Rights groups decry the ban as a further step to keep Muslims and other racialised people out of the US.

A previous version of this story stated that nationals of Nigeria have been banned from the "diversity visa" programme. This was inaccurate, the US government has said it will stop "diversity visas" for nationals of Sudan, along with those of Tanzania.

The rumours began circulating last week. By Friday afternoon, Houston immigration lawyer Ral Obioha said her phone was ringing off the hook, with several of her clients asking a seemingly simple, straightforward question: How does this affect me?

But the answer is not clear, Obioha told Al Jazeera, as confusion and uncertainty spread in the hours after Donald Trump issued an expanded travel ban for nationals from six countries seeking to enter the United States.

As of February 21, citizens of Eritrea, Myanmar, Kyrgyzstan and Nigeria will no longer be eligible for immigrant visas to the US, the White House announced on Friday afternoon. Citizens from Sudan and Tanzania will also not be eligible to enter a lottery programme to apply for immigrant visas.

The Trump administrations decision has been widely decried by advocacy and rights groups as an extension of an earlier so-called Muslim ban, under which citizens of several Muslim-majority countries were barred from entering the country.

It really hits us hard right now, said Obioha, who was born in the US to parents from Nigeria.

Houston, Texas, is home to one of the largest Nigerian diasporas in the country, Obioha explained, and Fridays announcement threw the community into chaos.

Theyre asking  Does this mean that my husband can never come? Does this mean that my children can never join me? Does this mean Ill have to give up my job to go back to Nigeria just so that I can be with my family?' she said, about the questions her clients have asked.

200131212513800

Its a lot of fear. Its a lot of trepidation because people just dont know what this means practically for them. Theres a lot of disbelief that this administration would go as far as separating families.

Racism and xenophobia

The Trump administration justified the extended ban by saying the countries added to the list did not meet specific security criteria, such as proper identification of US visa applicants, or failed to share information with the US.

It is fundamental to national security, and the height of common sense, that if a foreign nation wishes to receive the benefits of immigration and travel to the United States, it must satisfy basic security conditions, the White House said in a statement.

But advocates say the restrictions are the latest step in the Trump administrations plan to keep Muslims and other racialised people out of the US.

The US president promised during his election campaign to stop all Muslims from entering the country, and in 2018, The Washington Post reported that Trump, in a discussion about protecting immigrants from Haiti, El Salvador and African countries, had asked: Why are we having all these people from shithole countries come here?

In the early days of his administration, Trump passed an executive order that barred citizens of seven Muslim-majority nations from the US, prompting protests at major airports and several court challenges.

The US Supreme Court eventually upheld an amended version of the order in 2018, and the ban remains in place for Iran, Libya, Somalia, Syria and Yemen, while some citizens of Venezuela and North Korea also face travel restrictions.

200131172918069

The reasons keep changing about why it is that the Trump administration wants to keep Black and brown people out. And thats because there is no honest reason, except for racism and xenophobia, said Patrice S Lawrence, co-director of the UndocuBlack Network, which advocates for the rights of undocumented black people in the US.

Behind these bans and visa sanctions are real people with real families  facing the pain and uncertainty that family separation brings, Lawrence said in a statement.

The restrictions

The Trump administrations new travel ban does not apply to people from the six countries who are applying for a tourist or business visa to the US.

For people from Nigeria, Eritrea, Myanmar and Kyrgyzstan specifically, the restrictions apply to immigrant visas for people who intend on living in the US permanently, including spouses or family members of US citizens, family members of US permanent residents, or workers holding advanced degrees, among others.

For people from Sudan and Tanzania, the ban applies to the diversity visa programme.

In 2018, more than 500,000 people from Sudan (entrants and their spouses or children) had registered for that programme, according to US Department of State statistics. Of the total number of applicants, 3,781 Sudanese people were then selected and given a chance to apply for an immigrant visa to the US.

That same year, approximately 14,200 Tanzanian citizens applied to the programme, and 173 got to apply for an immigrant visa.

According to the presidents proclamation, anyone outside the US who does not already have a valid immigrant visa on February 21, when the order comes into force, may be affected. It was not immediately clear if waivers or exceptions would be issued and, if so, when and under what conditions.

Confusion widespread

Lets call it what it is: Its a Muslim ban, said Wafa Saeed, executive director of the Sudanese American Public Affairs Association, a non-profit that supports the Sudanese community.

Saeed said people were confused about what the ban means for them and their relatives who may want to apply to the lottery programme.

She said it was even more disheartening that the measure comes after the recent revolution in Sudan, which saw people rise against longtime ruler Omar al-Bashir and demand a civilian-led government and a better future for themselves and their country.

Its like a slap in the face to say that youre doing everything that youre supposed to in regards to being safe and secure and wanting better for yourselves, but the door is closed, Saeed told Al Jazeera in a telephone interview from Denver, an area that she said is home to about 6,000-7,000 Sudanese families.

Saeed said the ban also sends people a message that they are not welcome in the US no matter how long they have lived in the country. It really kind of instils that fear that regardless [of whether] youve been here a year, or youve been here 10 years or youve been here however long, even if you are a citizen, youre not fully accepted, she said. I think that really is heartbreaking for a lot of people here.

Berhane Haile, a board member of the Eritrean Community Center of Greater Boston, said the travel ban has led to confusion within that community, as well. We dont know much [about] why is this happening, he told Al Jazeera in a telephone interview on Friday evening.

He said it was still unclear how many Eritreans would be affected by the new restrictions. But there are a lot of other issues, he said, pointing to the repressive conditions inside Eritrea, from tens of thousands of people in jail to forced military conscription and crackdowns on basic human rights.

People are not free to travel to other countries. They are not free, he added.

Since 2017 and 2018, Eritreans have been barred from applying for most types of US visas  including non-immigrant visas  after Washington said the government in Asmara had refused to take back Eritrean nationals the US wanted to deport.

African cleansing

Chioma Azi, founder and CEO of Philly Nigerian Professionals, a group that connects and supports African professionals in Philadelphia, said the irony of the travel ban is that many Nigerians, in Nigeria and in the US, support Trump.

While Nigeria has been a longtime US ally, Azi pointed to a recent spat over visa fees as a sign of a strained bilateral relationship.

In August, the US embassy in Nigeria hiked fees for approved US visas, a move that came after the Trump administration said it would issue reciprocity fees to make sure visa costs were equal between the US and other countries.

The number of non-immigrant B1/B2 visas issued to Nigerians for tourism or business in the US was down 21 percent between December 2018 and December 2019, US State Department statistics show.

Ultimately, Azi said many people, herself included, have family members in Nigeria who hope to come to the US, and this ban makes that much harder.

But she told Al Jazeera she hoped people would now come together to advocate for their rights. There are a lot of other communities that have been really good with advocating and speaking out on these issues  We can do the same thing if we just unite and really try to make our voice heard, she said.

Obioha in Houston said everyone was still speculating about what impact the ban would have  but that fear and anxiety prevailed. It looks like the administration said, OK well weve done a Muslim-majority cleansing, and so now its time to do an African cleansing,' she said.

Thats what it looks like, and thats what a lot of people are feeling like right now.
Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell, R-Ky., center, walks out of the Senate chamber at the Capitol Tuesday, Jan. 21, 2020, in Washington. President Donald Trumps impeachment trial quickly burst into a partisan fight Tuesday as proceedings began unfolding at the Capitol. (AP Photo/Steve Helber)

Associated Press

The Senate on Friday voted against calling witnesses in President Donald Trump's historic impeachment trial.

The motion to call witnesses failed, with 51 senators voting against it and 49 voting in favor.

Democrats repeatedly made the case that former national security adviser John Bolton should be called to testify.

The Senate called witnesses in all 15 previous impeachment trials in US history, including those of former Presidents Andrew Johnson and Bill Clinton.

Visit Business Insider's homepage for more stories.

The Senate on Friday voted against calling witnesses in President Donald Trump's impeachment trial.

The motion for witnesses failed, with 51 senators voting against the measure and 49 voting in favor of it.

Fifty-one senators needed to vote in favor of calling witnesses for the motion to pass. There are 45 Democrats, two independents who caucus with Democrats, and 53 Republicans in the Senate.

That means four Republican senators needed to side with the Democratic caucus for the Senate to call witnesses.

In the Republican caucus, only Sens. Mitt Romney of Utah and Susan Collins of Maine voted for additional witnesses.

Sen. Lamar Alexander of Tennessee, once considered a possible pro-witness Republican, announced on Thursday night that he would not vote in favor of witnesses.

Sen. Lisa Murkowski of Alaska, another closely watched potential swing vote on the matter, confirmed Friday afternoon that she would also vote against calling more witnesses.

The highly anticipated vote came after a fierce debate over whether to call witnesses on Friday.

The seven Democratic House impeachment managers, who act as prosecutors in the trial, said the Senate has a duty to call additional witnesses, such as former national security adviser John Bolton, who have firsthand evidence against Trump.

The House of Representatives impeached Trump last month on charges of abuse of power and obstruction of Congress. The two articles of impeachment relate to the president's efforts to strong-arm Ukraine to deliver politically motivated investigations targeting his rivals.

Story continues

While doing so, Trump withheld $391 million in military aid to Ukraine and leveraged a White House meeting that Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky desperately sought and still hasn't gotten.

Calls for Bolton to testify intensified after The New York Times reported that the former national security adviser wrote in a forthcoming book that the president personally told him he would not release Ukraine's military aid until the country publicly committed to pursuing the investigations Trump wanted.

Earlier on Friday, The Times said in another report that Bolton also said Trump asked him during a meeting in May to call Zelensky and ensure he met with Rudy Giuliani, Trump's personal lawyer, when Giuliani planned to travel to Ukraine that month.

Giuliani told The Times last year that he was going to go to Ukraine to push the government to pursue the investigations targeting former Vice President Joe Biden and the Democratic Party.

Around the time of the May meeting that Bolton outlines in his upcoming book, Giuliani also sent a letter to Zelensky asking to meet with him on May 13 or 14. He didn't indicate what he specifically wanted from the meeting, but Giuliani emphasized in the letter that he was requesting the meeting in his capacity as Trump's personal lawyer.

"Just to be precise, I represent him as a private citizen, not as President of the United States," Giuliani wrote. "This is quite common under American law because the duties and privileges of a President and a private citizen are not the same."

The Senate called witnesses in all 15 impeachment trials in US history, including those of former Presidents Andrew Johnson and Bill Clinton.

The catalyst for Trump's impeachment was a whistleblower complaint from an anonymous US intelligence official who accused the president of soliciting foreign election interference during a July 25 phone call with Zelensky.

During the call, Trump personally urged Zelensky to launch inquiries into the Bidens and a debunked conspiracy theory that Ukraine interfered in the 2016 election.

Biden is a leading contender for the 2020 Democratic nomination, and there's no evidence of wrongdoing or illegal activity on his or his son Hunter's part in Ukraine.

Trump eventually released Ukraine's military aid in September, less than a week after three House committees launched investigations into his dealings.

Read the original article on Business Insider
ISTANBUL (Reuters) - Turkey may launch a military operation in Syria's northwestern Idlib region unless fighting there is quickly halted, President Tayyip Erdogan said on Friday as attacks by Syrian government forces risked a new wave of refugees.

Syrian President Bashar al-Assad's forces, backed by Russian air power, have made rapid advances in Idlib, the last major rebel-held stronghold in Syria's nearly nine-year war, in an offensive which has displaced hundreds of thousands of people.

The recent campaign has also raised tensions between Ankara and Moscow, which back opposing sides in the conflict.

Turkey, which already hosts 3.6 million refugees from Syria, fears a fresh wave of migrants from Idlib. It has 12 military observation posts around Idlib, set up under a 2017 agreement with Russia and Iran, and several of them have since been surrounded by advancing Syrian government forces.

Erdogan accuses Russia of violating agreements to reduce the fighting in Idlib, a charge Moscow denied on Friday. Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said Idlib was a haven for militants targeting Syrian troops and a Russian airbase in Syria.

Speaking in Ankara, Erdogan repeated Turkey could not handle a fresh influx of migrants and would not allow new threats near its borders, even if it meant resorting to military power as it did in three previous cross-border operations in northern Syria.

"We will do what is necessary when someone is threatening our soil. We will have no choice but to resort to the same path again if the situation in Idlib is not returned to normal quickly," Erdogan said.

He also appeared to hold out the option of another operation in northeastern Syria, where in October Ankara targeted the Syrian Kurdish YPG militia that it calls a terrorist group.

"We will not refrain from doing what is necessary, including using military force," he said, adding Turkey wants stability and security in Syria.

Later on Friday, the Kremlin said Russia was fully compliant with its obligations in Idlib, but that it was deeply concerned about what it said were aggressive militant attacks on Syrian government forces and Russia's Hmeimim air base.

Story continues

Turkey, which has backed rebels fighting to oust Assad, has repeatedly called for Assad to step down, even while Iran, Russia and Turkey have said they seek a political solution to the conflict.

"We will not allow the regime to put our country under the constant threat of migrants by tormenting, attacking, spilling the blood of... its people," Erdogan said.

(Reporting by Ali Kucukgocmen in Istanbul and Alexander Marrow in Moscow; Writing by Tuvan Gumrukcu; Editing by Dominic Evans, Jonathan Spicer and Hugh Lawson)
Having a group of students who looked like her and understood what it meant to be the first to leave home and the first to go to college made Reina Olivas believe she belonged at UT-Austin, she said. A Dell Scholar who graduated in 2017, Olivas, 24, is proud to have had a chance to help younger scholars feel the same way when she served as a peer ambassador.
- Ghana and 12 other African countries that are likey to reocord cases of th coronavirus

- The WHO have asked these countries to be high alert at the boarders, airports and all other entry points to their countries

- Our Manifesto: This is what YEN.com.gh believes in

Ghana has been mentioned as one of 13 African countries who are at risk of recording cases of the coronavirus disease.

According to the World Health Organization, these African countries have direct links or a high volume of travel to and from China.

The WHO statement named Nigeria, Algeria, Ethiopia, Ghana, Kenya, Mauritius, South Africa, Tanzania and Uganda to be on high alert.

READ ALSO: Cut down on all unnecessary China travels  Health Ministry urges Ghanaians

The rest of the African nations are; Angola, Ivory Coast and DR Congo.

To ensure rapid detection of the novel coronavirus, it is important to have laboratories which can test samples and WHO is supporting countries to improve their testing capacity. Since this is a new virus, there are currently only two referral laboratories in the African region which have the reagents needed to conduct such tests, the statement read in part.

The WHO also said it was in the process of supporting some of the affected individuals reagent kits to boost and increase diagnosis as soon as possible.

Active screening at airports has been established in a majority of these countries and while they will be WHO first areas of focus, the organization will support all countries in the region in their preparation efforts, a statement signed by the WHOs regional director for Africa, Dr Matshidiso Moeti.

ATTENTION: Read the best news on Ghana #1 news app. Install our latest app for Android and read the best news about Ghana

Dr. Moeti urged these African countries to report to the hospital if they suspect an see any body with the coronavirus disease.

READ ALSO: Construction of National Cathedral begins in March - Akufo-Addo announces

The quicker countries can detect cases, the faster they will be able to contain an outbreak and ensure the novel coronavirus does not overwhelm health systems, Dr.Moeti said.

YEN.com.gh earlier reported that Parliament on Thursday, January 30, 2020 approved a 50% and 100% upward review of fees charged for a passport application.

Effective February 1, 2020, the passport fee for booklets with 32 pages will cost GHC100 and the GHC150 for booklet with 48 pages.

Also, persons who want expedited service will have to pay GHC150 for the 32-page booklet and GHC200 for the 48-page booklet.

Mathew Anim Cudjoe showered with money after Hearts - Kotoko game in Accra | #Yencomgh

READ ALSO: Coronavirus confirmed in England, 2 patients hospitalised

Know someone who is extremely talented and needs recognition? Your stories and photos are always welcome. Get interactive via our Facebook page.

Source: YEN.com.gh
American president to bar nationals from 6 more countries from traveling, migrating to US

Iran Press TV

Friday, 31 January 2020 11:55 PM

US President Donald Trump is expected to announce immigration bans on nationals of six more countries  mostly Muslim-majority nations - in an expanded version of the original travel ban imposed after he took office.

In a press conference on Friday, acting Homeland Security Secretary Chad Wolf said that Washington would no longer issue visa that can lead to permanent residency for nationals of Eritrea, Kyrgyzstan, Myanmar and Nigeria.

He added that targeted immigrant visas were distinct from non-immigrant ones typically issued to visitors, which would not be affected by the ban.

Wolf also said that the US government would no longer issue "diversity visas" to nationals of Sudan and Tanzania. These visas, which drew criticisms from Trump in the past, are those that can be obtained through lottery and are issued for applicants from countries with low rates of immigration to the US.

According to the acting secretary of the US Department of Homeland Security, the six countries allegedly failed to meet US security and information-sharing standards, thus necessitating the new restrictions.

"These countries, for the most part, want to be helpful. But for a variety of different reasons simply failed to meet those minimum requirements that we laid out," Wolf said, citing a range of problems from sub-par passport technology to a failure to sufficiently exchange information on terrorism suspects and criminals.

During his first week in office in January 2017, Trump issued his original travel ban, which prevented almost all immigrants and travelers from seven Muslim-majority countries but after court challenges it reduced to its exiting 5-countries version, which impacted nationals of Iran, Libya, Somalia, Syria and Yemen.

The American president has made his immigration clampdown a focus of his 2020 reelection campaign and is expected to press the issue in the months ahead.

The new move by the Trump's administration has reignited debate over the discriminately nature of the policy against Muslims. Critics criticize the ban which disproportionately targets Muslim-majority nations.

Back in 2015 and during his campaign for president, Trump called for "a total and complete shutdown of Muslims entering the United States."

Kyrgyzstan, Nigeria and Sudan are Muslim-majority. Eritrea and Tanzania have sizable Muslim minorities.

NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address






Welcome Guest! You Are Here:
Budget 2020: India is currently in the midst of a temporary slowdown perpetuated by a host of global, as well as, domestic factors. Recognising the need to address the domestic triggers at the earliest and give a boost to economic activity, the government has announced a number of reforms/measures since mid-2019. These range from announcing strategic disinvestments and the immediate release of pre-announced Rs 70,000 crore for SOE Banks recapitalisation to reducing corporate tax from the earlier 34% to 25%. However, these measures are yet to have their full impact. In the interim, the government needs to address a flailing growth environment coupled with a tight fiscal situation. One is to make it more conducive for new wealth generators i.e. start-ups and MSMSE to do business, revive the real-estate sector and create a thriving and deeper investment market.

FULL COVERAGE: Union Budget 2020

Tax sops for MSMEs

The FM can use tax policy to incentivise and promote MSMEs in the country. Earlier, the government had announced an across the board rate cut for companies that intended to set up new manufacturing facilities and for companies that were planning to opt-out of the incentive regime. While this is a positive step, it is important to note that there are many MSMEs consisting of partnership firms and limited liability partnerships (LLPs) who are currently taxed at 30% (excluding surcharge and education cess). Considering that most of these companies are probably still at the beginning or in the mid-phase of their growth, they can definitely benefit from tax cuts or incentives.

The FM can consider:

Tax cuts along the lines of those given to corporates in September 2019, the FM announced a cut in the corporate tax rates from 30% to 25.17% (inclusive of surcharge and cess).

Deductions for plant and machinery - MSMEs investing in plant and machinery could be incentivised through a deduction under section 32AC. The section was introduced in the 2013 union budget with an aim to encourage investment in new plant and machinery by companies. The deduction was allowed in addition to depreciation allowance and had a minimum investment threshold of Rs 25 crore. The government can consider extending this benefit to MSMEs with a lower investment threshold and for a time horizon of 1-2 years.

These steps could potentially enhance cash flows and investment opportunities for MSMEs.

ALSO READ: Budget 2020 Date: When is Union Budget, Expectations from Modi govt, Time, where to watch

Boost to real estate sector

The real estate sector is like the spine of the economy. It provides a key essential to the population in terms of housing is a great employment generator and can be a compelling investment avenue. In September 2019, the government had announced the launch of a Rs 20,000 crore stressed real fund to be floated under the alternative investment fund (AIF) platform.

The scope of the project was further enhanced to Rs 25,000 crore in November 2019. The AIF will provide funds to bail out stalled real estate projects with a unit size of less than Rs 2 crore a unit in metros and Rs 1 crore in other places. The compelling part about this scheme is that it will also apply to projects that have been declared as non-performing assets by banks and to those lined up before the insolvency court.

Currently, the government and other private investors including cash-rich financial institutions, sovereign wealth funds, public and private banks, domestic pension and provident funds, global pension funds and other institutional investors can invest in this AIF. The FM can consider opening up this investment opportunity for UHNIs as well.

ALSO READ: Ind-Ra pegs states' gross fiscal deficit at 3%; cuts outlook to 'stable-to-negative'

More bond issuances

The government can consider issuing corporate bonds through top-rated PSUs and can also incentivise investments in bonds for income-tax benefits. This will address the current liquidity crisis in the fixed-income markets, give HNI investors more choice in terms of fixed-income investment options and help individual investors mitigate their overall tax liability.

Make it easier for foreign companies with a domestic presence to list in India

Foreign direct investment (FDI) continues to be a key element in India's future economic growth. While the government is focused on attracting FDI, it can also consider incentivising foreign companies that have a presence in India to get listed domestically. This will not only deepen domestic equity markets but also give investors an opportunity to participate in stories that are playing an integral role in the country's economic growth trajectory.

The measures discussed above can potentially have a two-fold impact on HNI investors. Firstly, they can directly impact their business growth and fortunes and secondly, they can create some compelling investment opportunities from a portfolio perspective.

(The author is Senior Managing Partner, IIFL Wealth)

ALSO READ: Budget 2020: How FM's fiscal deficit math is likely to affect Sensex, Nifty on Feb 1
The 26-year-old man pleaded guilty to eight out of 16 charges of insulting the modesty of a woman. He will be sentenced next Friday. (Photo: Facebook / Yale-NUS College)

SINGAPORE  The prosecution is seeking at least 30 weeks jail for a former Yale-NUS College student who filmed four of his female housemates showering on campus over a one-and-a-half year period.

The 26-year-old man, who was expelled from the college in October last year, had pleaded guilty on 13 January to eight out of 16 charges of insulting the modesty of a woman.

He cannot be named due to a court-imposed gag order to protect the victims identities.

Apart from filming his housemates, the man also recorded upskirt videos of unknown women inside classrooms at Yale-NUS College.

Yale-NUS College is Singapores first liberal arts college, established in 2011 as a collaboration between Yale University and the National University of Singapore.

The mans remaining charges will be taken into consideration when he is sentenced next Friday (7 February).

The mans lawyers are meanwhile pleading for a 20-week jail term.

Deleted incriminating videos

The man had stayed at a suite residence with five other female students between August 2017 and May 2018, and again between January and March last year.

These students comprised the four victims, all of whom were 22, and one other female housemate. The students stayed in separate individual bedrooms in the suite, but shared a common bathroom.

On 3 March last year, one of the victims took a shower at about 8pm. The man recorded a video of her showering by standing in front of the bathroom door and placing his phone above the door.

The victim heard noises outside the bathroom and saw a pair of feet when she looked under the gap of the bathroom door. She then looked up and saw the phone camera pointed towards her.

The culprit then ran to the sofa in the living room of the suite and deleted the four-second video that he took of the victim showering, along with other incriminating videos.

To deflect suspicion from himself, he also lied that the fifth housemate had entered the suite, raised the possibility that someone from an on-going party on the 10th floor of the building might have entered the suite, and even suggested that the victim lodge a school report.

Story continues

Confessed, but didnt come clean

At about 11pm, the victim told the perpetrator that she would be making a police report. She also told him that she did not suspect him to be the culprit.

But just as she was about to head to a police station half an hour later, the man gathered his suite mates and confessed to them.

However, he then lied to them that it was his first time doing such a thing, and that at that point in time, he had yet to activate the video-recording function on the phone, hence there was no video recorded, said Deputy Public Prosecutor Gabriel Lim.

Believing the culprits story, the victim decided against lodging a police report that day. After a subsequent meeting between the victims and culprits parents organised by their church, the victim then made a police report on 13 March last year.

Investigators seized the mans phone, iPad, laptop and hard drive. A forensic examination uncovered incriminating videos which had been deleted.

According to the accused, he recorded videos of his suite mates showering as it helped him to destress from his academic pressure, said DPP Lim.

After recording the videos, he would store some of them into the hard drive which was connected to his MacBook. Most of the videos would be automatically uploaded to his iCloud account. He also re-watches the said videos on his handphone whenever he felt overwhelmed with schoolwork.

Strong propensity for reform: lawyers

In asking for at least 30 weeks jail, DPP Lim said there was a strong public interest in deterring such crimes involving students in educational institutions, who are entitled to feel safe.

The culprit had abused the trust of his fellow housemates, the prosecutor said, and students staying in hostels are entitled to safety and privacy in their second homes.

Meanwhile, the mans lawyers Josephus Tan and Cory Wong of Invictus Law highlighted a litany of awards and scholarships that he had. The perpetrator also has several anchors for rehabilitation, they said.

He enjoys the strong support of a loving community comprising his own immediate family, his fiancee, and her family too, said the lawyers. The couple are planning to wed later this year.

The man also has support from his church fellowship, and has been attending therapy sessions with a psychologist at the Institute of Mental Health to help him curb his urges to make such videos. He was not suffering from any mental disorders.

(The man) is arguably an atypical offender who can be readily distinguished from the usual less meritorious (insulting modesty) offender. We even go as far as to suggest that (his) instances of offending were wholly out of character, the lawyers said.

For each of his charges, the man can be jailed for up to one year and also fined.

Have a tip-off? Email us at sgnews.tips@verizonmedia.com. In your email, do provide as many details as possible, including videos and photos.

Other Singapore stories:

Ministerial statements on Wuhan virus outbreak to be delivered in Parliament on Monday

Wuhan virus: MTI, MOH issue correction directions over fake news

Wuhan virus: MOE urges those on leave to be 'responsible'
Suspected coronavirus patient flees Tellippalai hospital before transfer By Chris Kamalendran View(s): View(s):

Police have launched a search for a patient who went missing yesterday from a hospital in the north, before he was transferred to the Jaffna Teaching hospital to be checked for suspected coronavirus, officials said.

Police were acting on a complaint from the Tellippalai hospital that the patient who had last week returned from Qatar, where he was sharing a room with a Chinese national, had admitted himself with fever, cough and breathing problems. Later, he had gone missing from the hospital.

The hospitals administrative officer said they found that the patient had gone missing when they were about to transfer him to the Jaffna Teaching hospital to undergo a further checkup to ascertain if he was infected with the coronavirus.

We had the facilities to check and treat the patient. I was told about the incident, but the patient was not brought to our hospital, Jaffna Teaching hospital Director T. Sathiyamoorthy told the Sunday Times.

A police team was sent to the patients house last evening, but he was not present. We have also left a message at his home. He may have gone into hiding in fear, a police officer said.
Unfortunately, our website is currently unavailable in your country. We are engaged on the issue and committed to looking at options that support our full range of digital offerings to your market. We continue to identify technical compliance solutions that will provide all readers with our award-winning journalism.
When it comes to chasing the dream of your choice and will, age hardly plays any role. Women today are breaking the glass ceiling, creating their own set of rules and making this world a better place. Actors like Neena Gupta and Ratna Pathak Shah have proved that with the right set of roles and talent, they will continue to be relevant.

While most of us hesitate about pursuing a new hobby, thinking we are too old for it, these seven Bollywood actors have proved that no age is too old to not be able to pursue photography, a new hair cut or choose a life with rules that only they make!

Let's appreciate these seven women from the film fraternity who have only listened to what their hearts have said and made their presence felt with everything they have achieved. Read on!

Neena Gupta was a trending topic on the internet, thanks to her new haircut. Veteran actress Neena Gupta flaunted her new hairstyle and then requested Google to "reduce" her age online. Neena, 60, who is gearing up for the release of her next Shubh Mangal Zyada Savdhaan, took to Twitter on Wednesday morning to share a photograph of her new haircut. In the image, Neena is seen sporting a sleek bob with gold highlights.

Giving a funny caption to the image, Neena wrote, "Google walo ab toh meri umar kam karke likh do (Google atleast now reduce my age)! Thank you @kantamotwani for the haircut." That's not all. From seizing the small joys of life to making her opinions heard, Neena Gupta is definitely doing life right.



Each and every project that has come her way has proved that she only wants to be associated with movies with progressive storylines.





An actor who is fondly remembered for her roles in films like Junoon, Bewafaa, Life In A... Metro and Yamla Pagla Deewana, Nafisa Ali is still resplendent and vivacious. In November, she shared the news of suffering from peritoneal, ovarian cancer. In her message, she also mentioned that her children are the reason for her to get better through her struggle to overcome the disease. She battled cancer like a true warrior and some months later, in July 2020, she posted on Instagram, asking for work.

What looked like an earnest appeal, she shared a stunning black-and-white picture, she said that she is looking for a perfect script, and at the same time mentioned that she will not be dictated to. "I am Nafisa Ali Sodhi and I would like an elegant role to portray in Indian cinema. So looking for a perfect script as a senior actor, I need to work to express my emotions. I will not be dictated to. May God give each of us the strength to follow our dreams," wrote Nafisa Ali.

An active user of social media, Nafisa has been doing Instagram right. She has been a delight for all her followers and the way she shares every big and small update of her life proves that she's someone who lives each day as it comes.



"Aaj phir jeene ki tamanna hai..."

How old is too old? For Waheeda Rehman, age no bar. Many revealed that she used to take a small camera to her film sets to fulfill her love for photography. She turned into a wildlife photographer and also held an exhibition of her pictures from her safaris across the globe.



Honored by Padma Shri, Asha Parekh can easily be touted as one of the finest actors we have seen. It's not just her work that makes her inspiring or aspirational but the way she lives life too can teach you a thing or two about life. Recently, she made headlines for her autobiography 'The Hit Girl'.

In the book, she opened up about her relationship with director Nasir Hussain, how she decided not to marry him and chose to stay single all her life.

In an interview with IANS, she revealed "Nasir Saab was the only man I ever loved. I was enamored by him. I loved him. But it was not meant to be. It wouldve been worthless to write an autobiography if I didnt write about the people who mattered in my life." She recently featured in the Verve magazine, where she opened up on how she stayed single and how it felt. She said, "Staying alone was probably one of the best decisions I made. I was in love with a married man and didnt want to be a homewrecker so, in retrospect, it was the only choice I had, according to the way I wanted to live my life."



Writer, painter and, of course, an actor, Deepti Naval with every film has proved that she is unconventional and for all the right reasons. Her life is beyond the exemplary work that she does as an actor. She is also a painter and photographer with several exhibitions to her credit.

Her works as a painter include the controversial Pregnant Nun. She also runs the Vinod Pandit Charitable Trust, set up in memory of her late companion, for the education of the girl child.

She made her web debut with Zoya Akhtar's Made In Heaven. Naval appeared as Gayatri Mathur, who displayed the vulnerabilities of an elderly single woman and how she gives love another chance.



Fearless, bold and fierce, Nandita Das is an Indian actor and director who has never followed rules but made her own. She has acted in over 40 feature films in ten different languages. Das won accolades for numerous performances, including in Fire (1996), Earth (1998), Bawandar (2000), Kannathil Muthamittal (2002), Azhagi (2002), Kamli (2006), and Before The Rains (2007). Her directorial debut Firaaq (2008), premiered at the Toronto Film Festival and traveled to more than 50 festivals, winning more than 20 awards. Her second film as a director was Manto which was praised by critics for being a sincere attempt at making a cinematic gem on the life of Saadat Hasan Manto.

Her other achievement includes becoming the first Indian woman Das to be inducted into the International Hall of Fame of the International Women's Forum in Washington, DC. Apart from always standing up for color neutrality, Nandita has always lived her life on her own terms.



If you want to fall in love with life, no one can teach you better than Ratna Pathak Shah. A woman who has always followed her heart. A gem of an actor that Ratna Pathak Shah is, she can effortlessly shift gears and portray every possible emotion the big screen. Be it playing a mother in Shakun Batra's Kapoor & Sons, where she constantly juggles between her role as a mother and a wife or playing an elite Maya Sarabhai, Ratna Pathak Shah is a delight to watch on the big screen.

In Lipstick Under My Burkha, she outdid her own self by playing the role of a 55-year-old widow, Usha Parmar (Ratna Pathak), who loved to read erotic novels in secrecy. In the film, she is seen living her life in a small neighborhood in Bhopal, where she is used to being addressed as "Buaji" (Aunty); she has all but forgotten her own name and routinely gazes at a self-portrait from her youth.

Her voice-over of the female puppet in Amol Palekar's Paheli is a part that goes down in the book of Ratna Pathak and her underrated achievements. She occasionally does theater in Mumbai as it still remains her first love.

Just recently, it was announced that she will essay the role of Ranveer Singh''s mother in his next film Jayeshbhai Jordaar. The Gujarat-set humorous entertainer is being directed by debutant Divyaang Thakkar and stars Ranveer as the titular character.




The Pita Pit in downtown Harrisburg closed Friday after nine years of operation.

The store, located at North 2nd and Walnut streets, shut down forever at 3 p.m. Friday.

The owner of the restaurant decided to close as he neared the end of his lease to focus on his family construction business, said store manager Daniel Ingalls.

Its been a good run, Ingalls said. We want to thank our customers in Harrisburg for dining with us all these years.

Its unclear what business could move into the highly visible corner location. The building is owned by local restauranteur Nick Nichols.

The Pita Pit closed temporarily in late 2016 after an unexpected change in management. But the store underwent major renovations and re-opened with a new look in the spring of 2017.

Restaurants do come and go, as it can be a tough industry to maintain profitability.

The average lifespan of a restaurant is five years and by some estimates, up to 90 percent of new ones fail within the first year, according to an 2018 article in USA Today.

Last year, the FireHouse restaurant located at 606 N. Second Street also closed.

The restaurant had operated for more than 20 years and was one of the first establishments to spark development along North Second Street, eventually coined Restaurant Row.

READ: With 4 homicides, Harrisburg sees its deadliest start in years
News

Washington, DC - Through bravery, perseverance, faith, and resolve - often in the face of incredible prejudice and hardship - African Americans have enhanced and advanced every aspect of American life. Their fight for equality, representation, and respect motivates us to continue working for a more promising, peaceful, and hopeful future for every American.

During National African American History Month, we honor the extraordinary contributions made by African Americans throughout the history of our Republic, and we renew our commitment to liberty and justice for all.

The theme of this years observance, African Americans and the Vote, coincides with the 150th anniversary of the 15th Amendment, which gave African American men the right to vote. This Amendment to the Constitution, ratified in 1870, prohibits the government from denying or abridging a citizens right to vote based on race, color, or previous condition of servitude. Today, this guarantee is enforced primarily throughout the Voting Rights Act of 1965, an enduring legacy of Reverend Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., and the Civil Rights movement.

This year also marks the 150th anniversary of the first African American to serve in the Congress. In 1870, Hiram Revels, a Mississippi Republican, served a 1-year term in the Senate, where he fought for justice and racial equality. During his lifetime, Senator Revels served as a military chaplain, a minister with the African Methodist Episcopal Church, and a college administrator. But it was Revels tenure in the Congress that truly distinguished him as a trailblazer. He made history serving our Nation in a building that had been constructed by slave laborers just a decade earlier.

My Administration has made great strides in expanding opportunity for people of all backgrounds. Over the past 2 years, the poverty and unemployment rates for African Americans have reached historic lows. Through the transformative Tax Cuts and Jobs Act, more than 8,700 distressed communities battling economic hardship have been designated Opportunity Zones, creating a path for struggling communities to unlock investment resources and create much needed jobs and community amenities. I also signed into law the historic First Step Act, which rolled back unjust provisions of the Violent Crime Control and Law Enforcement Act of 1994, which disproportionately harmed African American communities. The First Step Act provides inmates with opportunities for job training, education, and mentorship. We want every person leaving prison to have the tools they need to take advantage of a second chance to transform their lives and pursue the American dream after incarceration. Additionally, last December, I was proud to sign into law the groundbreaking FUTURE Act, which ensures full support for historically black colleges and universities over the next 10 years.

Our great Nation is strengthened and enriched by citizens of every race, religion, color, and creed. This month, we celebrate the cultural heritage, diverse contributions, and unbreakable spirit of African Americans. We commend the heroes, pioneers, and common Americans who tirelessly fought for  and firmly believed in  the promise of racial equality granted by our Creator, enshrined in our Constitution, and enacted into our laws. We pledge to continue to stand against the evils of bigotry, intolerance, and hatred so that we may continue in our pursuit of a more perfect Union.

NOW, THEREFORE, I, DONALD J. TRUMP, President of the United States of America, do hereby proclaim February 2020 as National African American History Month. I call upon public officials, educators, and all Americans to observe this month with appropriate programs, ceremonies, and activities.

IN WITNESS WHEREOF, I have hereunto set my hand this thirty-first day of January, in the year of our Lord two thousand twenty, and of the Independence of the United States of America the two hundred and forty-fourth.

DONALD J. TRUMP
Both Sadr and the Iran-backed faction, Fatah, are vocal supporters of a swift withdrawal by U.S.-led coalition troops in the country to fight the Islamic State. Western officials say that some of their representatives are more muted behind the scenes, instead favoring an orderly drawdown, or perhaps a reshaping of the mission, that will not affect any push to defeat whats left of the Islamist militant group.
As part of recognizing Black History Month, Google's daily doodle today features a seminal moment in civil rights history that took place in Greensboro.

On Feb. 1, 1960, N.C. A&T freshmen David Richmond, Franklin McCain, Joseph McNeil and Jibreel Khazan (formerly Ezell Blair Jr.) walked from campus to the Woolworths lunch counter on Elm Street. They bought a few toiletries to establish themselves as customers, then sat down at the whites-only lunch counter and silently, mannerly asked to be served.

They became known as the Greensboro Four, and their actions began a movement that spread across the South, eventually culminating in integrated lunch counters and restaurants.

Click on the link below the doodle to see the most searched items on Google relating to black history.

Google says that, of those four A&T students who kicked off the sit-in movement, the most searched in America is Joseph McNeil, who went on to become a major general in the U.S. Air Force.
Extreme weather conditions like floods, droughts and heatwaves have become annual events and have led to the deaths of thousands of people. We all complain about it, make impassioned claims about how its all because of climate change. But, how many of us have taken a conscious effort to bring a change or tried to mitigate the situation? Even as adults, much of what we do is restricted to big talk and no action.



Among the few who have taken that step to bring in a positive change is the precocious 11-year-old, Ridhima Pandey hailing from the city of Haridwar in Uttarakhand.

I am in this fight because the leaders are toying with our future and not taking concrete steps, says Ridhima, brimming with anger over the sad state of affairs across the world.

The little climate change crusader has been monumental in garnering awareness in the society and slamming the governments misconduct and inaction in the climatic sphere. From demanding action from world leaders to making her voice heard at a global level along with Swedish activist, Greta Thunberg, Ridhimas journey over the past three years has been nothing short of magnificent.

First steps towards activism

Instagram

The flash flood disaster of June 16 and 17, 2013 in Uttrakhand surpassed past ones in its ferocity and destruction. More than 5,000 people died, many were injured and many went missing during the flood. At the time, Riddhima was just five-years-old, but the floods moved her to the core and piqued her curiosity about the causes.

Her father Dinesh Pandey, a conservationist with Wildlife Trust of India, went on explain the reasons behind the floods and one of the things that stoked Ridhimas activism was the consequences s of global warming, I felt so bad for the people who lost everything and it made me angry that it was solely because of climate change," she told IndiaTimes in an Interview.

Thats when I knew that something had to be done about it and my father helped me through it. I read up as much as possible on climate change and went on file a petition with the National Green Tribunal in 2017, said Ridhima.

In the petition, she asked the court to order the Government to prepare a carbon budget and a national climate recovery plan to ensure that India does its share to reduce atmospheric CO2 below 350 parts per million by 2100, according to scientific recommendations.

She also laid emphasis on the need to move away from fossil fuels, protect forests, grasslands, soil, mangroves, engage in massive reforestation and improve agricultural and forestry practices.

It took a year and a half to get a response from them. They ended up dismissing my request but none of that deterred her passion to fight against the governments inaction.

One of the biggest focuses in the fight against climate change for people like Ridhima is to be part of the decision-making process, We are the ones who are directly affected by climate change and its important to secure our futures by taking the necessary steps. Thats why I sued the government and filed the petition.

Response to activism and dealing with trolls

Sometimes there are people around me who make fun of me by saying that I am doing this for fun or to miss classes, but I turn a deaf ear to such mockery.

Riddhimas efforts havent gone complete unnoticed though, her activism has helped inspire kids in her class to follow the same steps to take care of the environment. But there are a few who dont care and that hasnt dampened her spirit.

Just like some world leaders who dont take climate change seriously and pose obstacles to their protests, there are people in the society who will refuse to be part of the fight, says Ridhima who has learnt how to deal with criticism.

In 2019, she and 14 other young activists filed a complaint with the United Nations Committee on the Rights of the Child against five respondent countries, Argentina, Brazil, France, Germany, and Turkey.

After making hitting headlines with the 2017 petition she was shortlisted from India by a law firm to represent India in New York. Its only after she attended this convention, that she was exposed to the brutal world of online trolls.

People say all kinds of ridiculous things online, but I dont let anything affect me and I pay more attention to my activism, says a determined 11-year-old.

The biggest fear

Expressing her anger towards the government, Ridhima said, All I see in the news is CAA protest and violence against students, but according to me this all a ploy to distract people from important issues like Climate Change.

Ridhima has no qualms giving straightforward opinions about the governments lack in taking a constructive step towards environmental conservation. She has written multiple letters to the leaders in hopes to get a positive response but in vain.

My nightmare is that the future generations will end up seeing a tree in a museum, given the rate at which the environment is being razed for our resources. With trees being cut relentlessly, the future looks bleak and theres no hope if we dont act on it now,"

Striking a balance





Ever since her activism started gaining traction, Ridhima has been flooded with invites to attend various climate change seminars and meetings across the country. One of the biggest challenges for the class 8 student from DAV Haridwar, is to keep up with her homework and exams.

My school is pretty strict with attendance, its very difficult to keep up. My school Principal is very supportive and takes care of my attendance. Apart from that, I make sure that I keep up with my studies," adding that her parents have been equally supportive and have encouraged her tenacity towards climate change activism every step of the way.

The 2020 Vision & Message

Ridhima plans to launch her NGO to mobilise action on climate change and awareness and is determined to continue her higher studies on the same subject.



'My NGO is already registered, and I hope to mobilise a team of young activists fighting for the same cause." said Ridhima with a steely determination to bring a change.

At an individual level to Ridhima is very conscious about the way she consumes electricity, makes sure to avoid plastic bags at all costs and spreads awareness about the same with all her friends and family.
A pro-Brexit demonstrator protests outside the Houses of Parliament, in Westminster, London. (Image: Reuters)

More than three years after a referendum, that saw United Kingdom (UK) voting to leave the European Union (EU), Britain on February 1 formally exited the bloc, becoming the first country to do so after 47 years in the club.

This now leaves EU with 27 member states. However, the UK will continue to follow EU rules and procedures until the end of a pre-agreed transition period, which runs until December end 2020.

During that period, both sides are bound by a Political Declaration, signed alongside the EU Withdrawal Bill, to strike a new agreement for their future trading relationship.

Hours before UK's exit, Britain's Union Jack was removed from lines of EU member state flags at the European Council and European Parliament buildings in Brussels.

In its place on the pole they raised the EU flag, a circle of 12 yellow stars on a blue background.

British Prime Minister Boris Johnson had earlier said that Britain's exit from EU is not an end but a new beginning.

In a video message recorded in Downing Street on January 31 and to be aired at 2200 GMT, an hour ahead of the UK's scheduled exit time, the Conservative Party leader who took charge as UK prime minister last year with a "do or die" Brexit pledge characterised the historic moment as a new beginning for the country.

"This is the moment when the dawn breaks and the curtain goes up on a new act. It is a moment of real national renewal and change," Downing Street said in a read-out of Johnson's address to the nation.
By PTI

NEW DELHI: The government on Saturday proposed to remove dividend distribution tax on companies, and henceforth the tax will be shifted to recipients at the applicable rate.

Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman while unveiling the Union Budget said the proposal would make India more attractive market for investment.

"This is another bold move, which will further make India an attractive destination for investment," she said, adding it would result in a revenue sacrifice of Rs 25,000 crore per annum.

Currently, companies are required to pay dividend distribution tax (DDT) on the dividend paid to its shareholders at the rate of 15 per cent plus applicable surcharge and cess, in addition to the tax payable by the company on its profits.

BUDGET HIGHLIGHTS: Nirmala Sitharaman announces tax cuts and an LIC stake sale!

"In order to increase the attractiveness of the Indian equity market and to provide relief to a large class of investors, I propose to remove the DDT and adopt the classical system of dividend taxation under which the companies would not be required to pay DDT.

"The dividend shall be taxed only in the hands of the recipients at their applicable rate," she said.

The system of levying DDT, she said, results in increased tax burden for investors and especially those who are liable to pay tax less than the rate of DDT, if the dividend is included in their income.

ALSO READ | Piecemeal measures, repackaged schemes, no solution to economic crisis: Congress slams Budget as 'insipid'

Further, non-availability of credit of DDT to most of the foreign investors in their home country results in reduction of rate of return on equity capital for them, she noted.

"Further, in order to remove the cascading effect, I also propose to allow deduction for the dividend received by holding company from its subsidiary.

The removal of DDT will lead to estimated annual revenue forgone of Rs 25,000 crore," the minister said.
David Gauke is a former Justice Secretary, and was an independent candidate in South-West Hertfordshire at the recent general election.

It is the morning after the night before. For most readers of this website, it is a moment of triumph as we leave the European Union. This is an historic moment: many have campaigned long and hard to deliver Brexit and it is perfectly legitimate to celebrate it.

Personally, I never had much of an emotional attachment to the European institutions or the more integrationist aspirations of some pro-Europeans, but I do believe that our prosperity and global influence will be diminished by our departure. So, forgive me, but I stayed clear of the English sparkling wine last night.

We remain a divided nation and this is not a moment where the country comes together in one shared emotion. Some sensitivity is required from all sides. Steve Baker, in particular, has been impressive in making the case that the manner of our departure should not aggravate existing divisions.

It is now time to focus on what happens next. What will our future relationship with the European Union look like? In truth, it is what we should have spent the General Election campaign debating, but did not.

The UK Governments position for some time is that everything should be agreed before the end of the year. No extension to the Implementation Period because that wouldnt be getting Brexit done. (You might have thought that Brexit was done, has just been done, but clearly it is a little more complicated than that).

In recent weeks, the Government has also been more explicit that its focus is on zero tariffs and zero quotas, but with ability for the UK to diverge on regulations. Alignment (dynamic or otherwise) is out of the question. After all, what is the point of Brexit if you cannot make your own rules?

It has to be said, it is a fair question. But there are some big consequences of trying to pursue the point of Brexit. Even with zero tariffs and zero quotas, you will be very far from having frictionless trade. For an advanced economy like ours, most of the costs of trade barriers relate to non-tariff barriers. Even if we land the deal we are looking for, trade with the EU will be more complicated, bureaucratic and expensive than is currently the case  as Michael Gove acknowledges. The Governments own analysis suggests that the cost of pursuing a Canada-style free trade agreement will be 4.9 per cent of GDP in fifteen years time.

But wont this give us lots of exciting new opportunities to trade with other places, especially the US? Some realism on this point would be welcome. Let us put to one side the likelihood of getting a free trade deal with every relevant country including the US; the benefit to the economy of moving from WTO terms to a good free trade agreement is not that dramatic.

The Governments analysis is that the upside of getting a FTA with everyone else of any significance is only in the range of 0.2 to 0.7 per cent of GDP. To state the obvious, that is a lot less than 4.9 per cent.

I know, I know. Remoaners like me made these arguments in 2016 and 2019 and we lost. We did. But that doesnt make the economic analysis wrong and it doesnt mean that the decision to reject alignment in, for example, manufactured goods will be painless. There are people  probably quite a few of them, some of whom voted Tory for the first time in order to get Brexit done  who will lose good jobs as a consequence of the decision to ensure we are able to set our own rules.

To be fair, there is much less of the have cake and eat it about the Governments new approach. There is no more of the nonsense that we will the exact same access to the single market as we had before. There is an acceptance that there are trade-offs and if the conclusion is that sovereignty matters more than prosperity, this is the right strategy.

There is nothing much on non-tariff barriers, nothing for services, greater divergence between Great Britain and Northern Ireland (let us skirt over the issue of checks in the Irish Sea) but at least the Government knows where it stands, has Parliament behind it and can move quickly. There is no reason why this cant be done quickly. Right?

Maybe not. At one level, a zero tariffs, zero quotas deal is very good for the EU. After all, they export a lot of goods here. It is not great if your economy is based on services or if your manufacturing industry relies on cross-border supply chains vulnerable to additional friction (in other words, it is not great for us). But surely the German car manufacturers will love it. After all, we are always being told they are on the verge of intervening to help us out.

There are two obvious difficulties. The first is that, in addition to zero tariffs and zero quotas, the EU are also focussing on zero dumping. They take a pretty broad view of what constitutes dumping but we are immediately in the realm of Level Playing Field conditions. Workers rights, environmental protections, state aid. There is nothing new in this featuring in FTAs  the EU-Canada FTA has plenty of it  and that is with Canada being three thousand miles from the EU. The EU will want more extensive requirements on us than they do with Canada. It is complicated stuff, takes a while to work out and some of it will be politically sensitive. There might be some things a UK Government wants to do but wont be able to because of the Level Playing Field provisions. Some of my former colleagues might argue this raises questions of sovereignty, accountability and democracy.

The second issue is fish. If the issue of fish stands in the way of concluding a deal, it will be the ultimate triumph of politics over economics. The fishing industry matters to those relatively small numbers directly involved both in the UK and the EU. Maybe it matters to our own self-image as an island nation but, economically, it doesnt really matter much at all. But the fishing vote is geographically concentrated, it appears to have very high (by which I mean unrealistic) expectations of the benefits of Brexit and there is probably a widespread, sentimental sympathy for it. Finding a compromise on fish wont be easy.

So where does that leave us? The Government has a mandate to pursue a more distant, less ambitious relationship but even though it is aiming low, it may still miss its target. Reaching a deal on fish and the Level Playing Field Provisions will be challenging. Received wisdom is that both sides will move sufficiently to get something over the line by the end of the year but the parties will find a way to maintain the status quo as we take our time to resolve outstanding matters, thus avoiding a cliff edge.

I am not so sure. Even if the issue of fish can be dealt with, the Prime Minister will need all of his persuasive qualities, a lot of political capital and considerable flexibility to land a compromise on the Level Playing Field conditions. He might question whether the political price he would have to pay to deliver a very thin FTA is really worth it after all. This doesnt make a WTO exit at the end of 2020 the probable outcome but the risk does look under-priced. The drama of Brexit is not done yet.
It almost seemed surreal. A 30-something Maoist surrounded by angry Koya tribal women in a village deep in the Maoist bastion of Swabhiman Anchala (formerly cut-off area) listening helplessly to their harangues of no development. Despite the darkness that enveloped Janturai village of Swabhiman Anchala, the courage of the tribal men and women in questioning the Maoist ideology was quite clear in the hazy shots of the mobile camera video. The Maoist stood in fear, scared of the fate that befell upon his colleague who had been stoned to death a few hours ago. For a moment it seemed the tables had turned.

Few hours before the country was about to celebrate the 71st Republic Day, a group of 25 armed Maoists and their militias invaded Janturai village under Jodambo granpanchayat of Swabhiman Anchala. In the brawl which followed over construction of a road, a Maoist was left dead and other had to leave, something never heard in the jungles of Malkangiri, the Maoist infested region of Odisha bordering Andhra Pradesh. The rebels were asking the villagers to stall construction of a 18-kilometre-long road from Bedarpatna to Jodambo under the Pradhan Mantri Gram Sadak Yojana.

What followed next was beyond the expectation of the red rebels. Within the next few minutes, the Koya tribal men scampered home to bring out sticks, bows and arrows, while the womenfolk collected stones. Without much words, they started raining stones on the Maoists while few of them fired their arrows. Unprepared for the counter-attack, a Maoist was killed while another received major injuries leading to his arrest. The rebels while retreating, burnt down around 10 homes in Jodambo village and looted the belongings of the tribals.

In the history of Maoist activities in Odisha, the January 25 lynching incident in Janturai village of Malkangiri may go down as an watershed event when the tribals for the first time fought back against Maoist repression. Such fightbacks have happened in Andhra Pradesh, Jharkhand and Bihar in the past, but never in Odisha and that too in Malkangiri district, which was a liberated zone for the red rebels for more than three decades. In 2008, the Maoists stamped their authority when they sunk boats in Balimela reservoir killing 39 Greyhound cops, the anti-Maoist police of Andhra Pradesh. In 2011, Maoists abducted Malkangiri district collector R Vineel Krishna along with a junior engineer for 9 days when he had come to a village deep inside cut-off area for overseeing developmental works. In 2012, a BSF commandant who had set up the first camp on the shores of Balimela reservoir was killed in a landmine blast along with three of his jawans.

The fightback was long overdue. In this uprising they (the local villagers) were not at all bothered about the consequences. Though the presence of security forces was some sort of comfort, the January 25 fightback showed that the tribals had crossed the Rubicon when it came to Maoist threat. Their anger of cycle of killing of innocent tribals in the name of police informers had boiled over. This is almost similar to 1967 uprising against zamindari system, said Deepak Kumar Nayak, research associate in Delhi-based Institute for Conflict Management and an expert on Left-wing extremism.

In a battle, where the terrain is extremely hostile to the security forces, the Janturai incident may have come as a huge morale booster for the state administration. The Swabhiman Anchala, a cluster of 151 villages in nine grampanchayats separated from mainland Odisha by Balimela reservoir since 60s, was almost a no-go area for the security forces till July 2018 when the government built a 910-metre bridge across Guripriya river, ending decades of isolation for the 37,000-odd people of the area. Even after building the bridge since last one and half year, the state forces control just about 15 per cent of the Swabhiman Anchal zone that currently harbours several members of the all-powerful central committee of CPI(Maoist).

The Janturai village under Jodambo panchayat was one of the most inaccessible places in the Maoist citadel that could only be reached by walking as the Hantalaguda hill was natural barrier that helped the rebels create terror in the region while preventing counter-attack of security forces. During a ghat-cutting exercise last month, part of the hill was levelled paving way for a motorable road ending years of seclusion. Apart from a plan to construct 120-km concrete road in the area from central funds, the state government has unveiled SETU (Socio-economic Transformation and Upliftment) programme for the 151 villages under which physical infrastructure in the field of road connectivity, electrification, water supply, education and health would be built.

Malkangiri district collector Manish Agarwal said the new road to Jodambo panchayat would mean the tribals in the area now dont have to depend on the long ride by the motor boat across the Balimela reservoir. With the construction of road, people of Jodambo can come to Chitrakonda by motorcycles or other vehicles in couple of hours which would have taken not less than 12-15 hours earlier. The people of Swabhiman Anchala have showed huge courage and the State government would provide them with all orts of facilities including pucca houses and medical facilities at doorstep. Once the smell of development wafts into the deeper pockets of the region, people would side with us, said Agarwal.

While over 1,000 security forces personnel, including those from the Border Security Force (BSF), Special Operations Group (SOG) and District Voluntary Force are currently keeping an eye on the troubled villages of Jodambo, everyone in the region know that Maoist reprisal may be round the corner. Soon after the Janturai face-off, the MKB (Malkangiri-Koraput Border) Division Committee of the Maoists which calls the shots in Swabhiman Anchala issued a letter to the villagers telling them that it is in their best interests to co-operate with the ultras and accept the dominance of rebels. Once the police and the heavy security personnel deployed in the area leave, the locals would be at the mercy of the Maoists, the Maoist threatened in a letter.

Security experts also agree that despite the bravery by the tribals of Janturai, the battle with Maoists would not be over anytime soon. The Maoists moved in as there was no development for 70 years. Now people have realised what development means for them. Government has to move in quickly and double down on their efforts while providing security. There would of course be collateral damages, but now the State is in a position of advantage, said Nayak.
The Queen will be thrilled that the Maldives has rejoined the Commonwealth this morning, bringing the total number of member nations to 54.

The change came into effect at one minute past midnight on Saturday, February 1, just over an hour after the UK left the European Union.

The island nation quit the Commonwealth in 2016 after being threatened with suspension over its human rights record and lack of progress on democratic reform.

The Queen will be thrilled that the Maldives has rejoined the Commonwealth. (She is pictured attending St Mary the Virgin church in Hillington, Norfolk, on January 19)

President Ibrahim 'Ibu' Mohamed Solih, a campaigner for democracy during decades of autocratic rule who was elected in 2018, pledged change and swiftly applied to rejoin.

Male, the capital, began the country's readmission process after showing evidence of functioning democratic processes and popular support for being part of the family of nations.

Commonwealth Secretary-General Baroness Scotland, who spent 338,000 of public money refurbishing her grace-and-favour flat in Mayfair, announced the decision and said: 'I warmly congratulate Maldives on its successful application.

'We are delighted to welcome the country and its people back to the Commonwealth.

'The reform process under way in Maldives aligns with the values and principles of the Commonwealth and we encourage the nation to continue on this path.

'Commonwealth members were pleased to note these developments and are happy once again to count Maldives as a member of the family.

'Together we will support Maldives to realise its ambitions.'

The Maldives became a member at one minute past midnight. It had quit the bloc in 2016 following threats of suspension over its human rights record (stock)

Baroness Scotland has faced repeated criticism for her leadership, with member nation New Zealand pulling its 2.5million funding for her.

Boris Johnson is also opposing giving her a second term in office, according to The Telegraph.

The Maldives began its readmission process in December 2018, when Commonwealth Secretary-General expressed the country's interest in re-joining.

Famed for its sandy white beaches and luxury tourist resorts, the Indian Ocean archipelago - home to around 500,000 people - is formed of nearly 1,200 islands, most of them uninhabited.

During his election campaign, Mr Solih vowed to promote human rights and, since his surprise win, political prisoners have been freed and exiled opposition figures have returned to the islands.

Within months of taking power, he wrote to the Commonwealth Secretary-General expressing interest in rejoining the Commonwealth, before making an official application.

Elected President Ibrahim Solih (pictured) said he would return the island nation to the Commonwealth

Mr Solih said: 'Today is a happy day for Maldivians as we return to the family of Commonwealth nations.

'As a young democracy, the Commonwealth's foundational values of the promotion of democracy, human rights, good governance, multilateralism and world peace remain relevant to us more than ever.

'We gratefully acknowledge the support and help of the Commonwealth to the Maldivian democratic movement, and we look forward to the support of fellow member states to ensure the long-term entrenchment of these values in our society.'

The country faced an assessment including two site visits and consultations in accordance with the rules and procedures agreed by the Commonwealth Heads of Government in Kampala in 2007.

In 2016, the Maldives government quit the global body under former president Yameen Abdul Gayoom, saying it had been treated 'unjustly and unfairly'.

The country had been threatened with sanctions including suspension if it failed to show progress in key democratic governance issues, including the prompt release of political leaders and misuse of anti-terrorism legislation.

Mr Yameen, who was elected in 2013, was accused of a crackdown on political rivals, courts and the media.

The Maldives is made up of nearly 1,200 sandy islands and home to around 500,000 people

But he was replaced by opposition leader Mr Solih in a shock result in elections in 2018.

The islands, which became a multi-party democracy in 2008 after decades of autocratic rule, had been in political turmoil since its first democratically-elected president, Mohamed Nasheed, announced his resignation in 2012.

It followed a mutiny by the police and weeks of demonstrations against his order to arrest the senior judge. He later said he was forced out in a coup.

All member countries of the Commonwealth must subscribe to the values and principles of the Commonwealth Charter, including a commitment to the development of free and democratic societies and the promotion of peace and prosperity.

Maldives, which last joined the Commonwealth in 1982, will now be part of the Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting (CHOGM) in Kigali, Rwanda, in June.

The Queen is the symbolic head of the Commonwealth, and more than 2.4 billion citizens make up the voluntary association.
Source: Xinhua| 2020-02-02 05:33:41|Editor: yan

Video Player Close

WASHINGTON, Feb. 1 (Xinhua) -- Four people were shot, two of them fatally, after a funeral Saturday afternoon at a church in Riviera Beach, Florida, said police.

The shooting occurred in a local church at approximately 2:34 p.m. local time, according to a press release by the Riviera Beach Police Department.

A 15-year-old boy and an adult male were pronounced dead at the scene, said the release, adding that a woman and a juvenile were also shot and taken to the hospital for treatment.

No arrests have been made so far, it added.
Frank Press, who was a key voice in American science policy as chief science adviser to President Jimmy Carter and then as president of the National Academy of Sciences, promoting international cooperation at a time when Cold War tensions still predominated, died on Wednesday in Chapel Hill, N.C., where he lived in a retirement community. He was 95.

His son, William H. Press, announced the death.

Dr. Press, a geophysicist by training, was a professor at the California Institute of Technology in 1956 when he began consulting for the federal government  first for the Navy, then the United States Geological Survey, the State Department, the Department of Defense and the National Aeronautics and Space Administration, among other agencies.

President Carter named him director of the Office of Science and Technology Policy in 1977. In that role he was the presidents top science adviser, concerned with ensuring that the United States stayed at the forefront of scientific research and with pursuing international alliances and agreements. He had previously worked on a nuclear test-ban treaty with the Soviet Union.

Cooperation among scientific communities in all countries will become even more important in the years ahead as the problems we face increasingly will transcend national boundaries, he prophetically told a dignitary-filled banquet in Beijing in July 1978, at the end of a visit to China aimed at breaking down barriers.
The Air Force set a record for suicides in 2019, a stark reminder that a Pentagon all but invincible on the battlefield has struggled to protect its troops from themselves.

There were at least 112 suspected and confirmed suicides among active-duty, Reserve and Air National Guard personnel last year. That was a 40 percent jump from the year before and the highest total since the Air Force began tracking suicides in 2003.

The previous record was set in 2015, when 94 airmen took their own lives.

The pace of suicides in 2019 so alarmed Air Force leaders that the services top commander, Gen. David Goldfein, ordered a tactical pause in operations in July to raise awareness of the problem. He warned suicides could exceed 150 by the end of the year if nothing was done.

Goldfeins action appears to have had an effect. By years end, 136 suicides that included 24 Air Force civilian employees were recorded. Suicides occurred at a rate of about 13 per month before the pause and dropped to an average of 9.3 a month for the rest of the year. There was a downside, though: Suicides among airmen rose sharply in the final quarter, with 54 reported  almost as many as the rest of the year combined.

The record 2019 total was shown in an Air Force graphic displayed on a Facebook group of airmen, noncommissioned officers and senior NCOs (called Air Force amn/nco/snco).

The graphic was marked for official use only within the Pentagon. A Pentagon official, speaking on condition of anonymity, confirmed its authenticity to the San Antonio Express-News.

The graphic included a note that 68 deaths in the 2019 total were suspected suicides, not yet confirmed.

Air Force suicides trend upward Suicides among active duty, guard and reserve personnel in the U.S. Air Force: 2019 --- 112 2018 --- 80 2017 --- 86 2016 --- 85 2015 --- 94 2014 --- 86 2013 --- 72 2012 --- 75 2011 --- 70 2010 --- 80 2009 --- 66 2008 --- 53 2007 --- 59 2006 --- 60 2005 --- 49 2004 --- 72 2003 --- 58 Source: U.S. Air Force See More Collapse

Asked for comment, the Air Force released a statement from Lt. Gen. Brian Kelly, deputy chief of staff for manpower, personnel and services.

The Department of the Air Force has been and continues to pursue immediate, mid-term, and long-range suicide prevention initiatives for the total force that focus on connections between individuals, units, and Air Force family; protections in environments, services, and policies; detection of risk in individuals and units; and equipping the total force and family members to mitigate risk and increase resilience, the statement said.

Suicide is a difficult national problem without easily identifiable solutions that has the full attention of leadership.

The Pentagon official who spoke on condition of anonymity said the rise in suicides couldnt be attributed to an increase in the number of service personnel. That number generally has held steady at about 510,600 airmen on active duty and in the Reserve and Air National Guard.

Quite puzzling

Retired Air Force Lt. Col. Alan Peterson, director of UT Health San Antonios STRONG STAR Multidisciplinary PTSD Research Consortium, said the cause of the increase was a mystery. The consortium is the nations largest combat-related research effort devoted to post-traumatic stress disorder.

The most common reasons why people will kill themselves are things related to financial problems, relationship problems, legal problems, military career problems, said Peterson, a psychologist who served in Iraq and Afghanistan. Those are the biggest factors, but theres nothing that Im aware of to suggest that those risk factors have somehow increased over the past year.

He added, Its really quite puzzling why theres this big increase.

In ordering the tactical pause last summer, Goldfein said in a July 3 letter to Air Force commanders that suicide was killing more of our airmen than any enemy on the planet.

Rallying his subordinates to confront the problem, he said: You and I have sworn to defend against all enemies, foreign and domestic. Suicide attacks sometimes with and often without warning. Make this tactical pause matter. Make it yours and make it personal.

On ExpressNews.com: San Antonio bases to pause as Air Force suicides rise

There was reason for alarm. At Air Force installations in San Antonio alone, five suicides were recorded through summer 2019  as many as had been logged in all of 2018.

A drastic increase

Air Force suicides have been stubbornly high since the invasion and occupation of Iraq in 2003. From then through 2019, 1,257 airmen killed themselves.

Though the numbers fluctuate from year to year, they show a broad increase over the past two decades. From 2003 through 2009, suicides averaged 60 per year. For 2010 through 2019, the average was 84 per year.

Something similar was happening across the U.S. military. Suicides in all service branches reached 4,839 in 2015, eclipsing the total number of American troops killed in Iraq.

On ExpressNews.com: Grim toll of military suicides reaches a new milestone

Retired Army Col. Carl Castro, professor and research director at the University of Southern Californias Center for Innovation and Research on Veterans & Military Families, said that although year-to-year changes may not mean much, the entire pattern of data  clearly shows a drastic increase over the last two decades.

My guess is that for the first decade the Air Force was arguing over whether the increases were real or an aberration, similar to what the Army and Marines did, said Castro, who served two tours of duty in Iraq. And then by the time they recognized the increase was real, they were unable to identify the causes.

Overwhelmingly men

There are many stress points that can contribute to suicide. A portion of the Air Force graphic titled Suicide Deep Dive Lessons Learned said nine in 10 suicides was by a male. Men account for 80 percent of Air Force personnel.

Women account for one in five airmen and 35 percent of all attempted suicides.

A third of all suicide victims were involved in a failing relationship in the final three months of their lives and communicated their intention to kill themselves to a significant other, the Air Force graphic said.

The Air Force also found the percentage who used drugs and alcohol was higher among those who attempted suicide than among those who succeeded in killing themselves.

Airmen in aircraft maintenance and Security Forces were among the most likely to commit suicide. The graphic went on to say personnel in those two fields tend to be younger, male and familiar with lethal weapons.

Weve known for two decades now  that the highest risk group in the military is young men, and we know that firearms are the most common method used for suicide, and in the military its more common than what we see in the general population, said Craig Bryan, an associate professor of clinical psychology at the University of Utah and a former faculty member at UT Health Science Center. So in the U.S. as a whole, about half of all suicides involve firearms, and in the military its like two-thirds.

USCs Castro, a former director of the Military Operational Medicine Research Program, said that until about 35 years ago, suicide rates in the military were much lower than for civilians.

That has changed.

Studies have been done that showed that even when matched for important demographics, military suicide rates are higher than civilians, Castro said. I think the suicide rates bottomed out in the mid-80s, and then begin to steadily climb through all the peacekeeping deployments, Iraq and Afghanistan to the present.

The risk of suicide doesnt end when troops leave the armed services. A study of 1.3 million veterans who had been on active duty during the Iraq and Afghanistan wars found they had higher suicide rates than for the overall U.S. population. Of those 1.3 million veterans, about one-fourth were deployed to war zones.

Before the Iraq and Afghanistan wars, suicide rates among active-duty and former military personnel were 20 to 30 percent lower than for their civilian counterparts.

The Army Study to Assess Risk and Resilience in Service members, or STARRS, is trying to identify factors that contribute to suicide. But Peterson, director of the PTSD Research Consortium at UT Health San Antonio, said getting to the heart of how to stop someone from killing himself is difficult.

Grounds for hope

Its very complicated, he said. Two or three things go on, and if they hit a person it tips the scale and the person becomes acutely suicidal.

Still, there have been hopeful developments.

Peterson was involved in a study that found one form of therapy reduced suicide attempts by 60 percent among 152 active-duty soldiers at high risk of killing themselves. The two-year study found the soldiers benefited from a kind of counseling called brief cognitive-behavioral therapy.

A 2016 study by Bryan suggested health care providers could intervene to prevent suicides by monitoring troops comments on social media accounts. It described a growing consensus that insomnia, agitation and social withdrawal are warning signs of an imminent suicide.

Another recently published paper by Bryan found that military personnel who reported recent thoughts about wanting to die and or about harming themselves were less likely to have guns at home. But if a suicidal service member did have a gun at home, he was less likely to lock it up or employ other safe storage practices, the study found.

Access to firearms is a very, very well-known risk factor for suicide, Bryan said. We also know that safe storage practices  using gun locks, using gun safes, basically storing firearms in those ways  reduce suicide by about half, and so if you have someone whos actively suicidal, in crisis and they have easy access to loaded weapons, a moment of despair can become deadly.

At Fort Hood, researchers Brian Marx and Denise Sloan from Boston University and the National Center for PTSD are working with Peterson to study whether written exposure therapy, a form of intervention for PTSD, might help inpatients at high risk of suicide. In the therapy, the patient writes about a traumatic event while a therapist observes his or her reactions.

Research conducted through the STARRS program has shown many in the military are at greatest risk of suicide during their first six months of active duty. Still, prevention has proved elusive.

If theres something like post-traumatic stress disorder, weve got a number of treatments, Peterson said. We can treat people (who) are acutely suicidal  but many individuals (who) commit suicide are not seen by mental health professionals. They dont receive any type of intervention. And sometimes the switch from being nonsuicidal to suicidal  sometimes, that happens very rapidly.

sigc@express-news.net
The Big Debate: Is the assault weapon buyback a misguided idea? Jan. 28

Our federal government will finally buy back 250,000 military-style assault weapons, making Canada safer. That investment will save lives and money for society.

But that still leaves one million death threats: trucks.

A turning truck kills or injures a pedestrian or bicyclist everyday somewhere in Canada.

The open space in front of the rear wheels is at the perfect height to knock someone down before they are run over by the rear wheels.

The European Unions 520 million citizens dont face that threat. All trucks in the EU have low side skirts that will push a person out away from the wheels.

Achieving that in Canada could be with the stroke of a pen. The trucking industry would of course complain, however, as we would be making their trucks more expensive to produce.

In reality, insurance premiums would go down enough to pay for all this in a short period of time.

And our medical care costs would be reduced.

A good investment to reduce traffic deaths is a win-win situation for all.

Bengt Lindvall, Toronto

Read more about:
Share this article Whatsapp

Facebook

Twitter

Linkedin News Desk (The Jakarta Post) Jakarta  Sat, February 1, 2020 08:26 709 7f440ff09e92db75a02bbad2061f1cbd 1 National Wuhan-coronavirus-in-Indonesia,coronavirus,Bali-tourism,tourism,Indonesia,China,Chinese-tourists Free

The Bali Tourism Agency organized a mass prayer on Friday amid a fast-spreading coronavirus outbreak originating from China, which has taken a toll on the famous resort islands tourism industry.

Officials from the agency alongside those working in the tourism sector held the prayer on Friday morning at Pura Candi Narmada, a Hindu temple in Kuta, Badung regency.

Bali Tourism Agency head Putu Astawa said that the group prayed together to ask that Bali remain safe from the coronavirus outbreak, which as of Friday had killed 213 in China and infected nearly 10,000 globally.

We hope it [the virus outbreak] will be over soon. We are truly aware that the tourism industry is the backbone of Balis economy, Astawa said after the prayer.

Elsye Deliana from Bali Liang, a marketing division for China at the Bali chapter of the Association of Indonesian Tour and Travel Agencies (ASITA), concurred that the new virus outbreak had severely affected the tourism industry.

According to agency data, at least 15,000 Chinese tourists have had their trips to the island canceled amid fears of the virus.

A number of Chinese tourist groups, each consisting of 1,000 to 2,000 people, had planned to visit Bali in February, but their trips had been canceled indefinitely.

We who work in the [tourism] industry have suffered losses [due to the outbreak], she acknowledged.

Fears of the novel coronavirus previously led the Bali Tourism Agency to cancel the Bali Kintamani Festival, originally scheduled for Feb. 8. The agency will try to reschedule the event to sometime this year after fears about the virus have ebbed.

The Chinese government has implemented anticipatory measures to contain the virus, including limiting flights to and from the country, which has affected Chinese tourist arrivals in Bali.

According to Statistics Indonesia, Chinese tourists account for the second highest number of foreign tourist visits to Indonesia, after Malaysia. About 1.9 million Chinese tourists visited the archipelago from January to November 2019. (dpk)
On February 1, the Joint Forces of Ukraine combat medic died as a result of shelling by Donbas militants. This was reported by the JFO headquarters press service. "With deep sorrow we inform that today, February 1, as a result of shelling by the Russian-occupying forces of the positions of Ukrainian defenders near Novotoshkivske, a senior combat medic of one of the Joint Forces units was killed," the statement said.It is noted that during the delivery of medicines to the position, the woman came under fire and received multiple shrapnel wounds incompatible with life."The command of the Joint forces expresses deep condolences to the relatives and friends of the fallen Ukrainian defender. Eternal memory to the Hero!" the headquarters wrote.
The Central government on Saturday proposed an outlay of Rs 27,300 crore for the development of industry and commerce during 2020-21.

Presenting the Union Budget for 2020-21, Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman said that the government proposes "Rs 27,300 crore for the development and promotion of industry and commerce in 2020-21"

The Finance Minister said that the government intends to make every district an export house. "We wish to turn every district into an export house," said Sitharaman.

Given the role of technologies and their applications in industrial growth, the Finance Minister also announced Rs 8,000 crore over five years for quantum technologies and applications.

She also said that accelerated development of highways will be undertaken. The Finance Minister announced that Delhi-Mumbai expressway and two other projects would be completed by 2023. She also said that monetization of 12 lots of highway bundles of over 6,000km will be ensured before 2024.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
Dear Reader,

Business Standard has always strived hard to provide up-to-date information and commentary on developments that are of interest to you and have wider political and economic implications for the country and the world. Your encouragement and constant feedback on how to improve our offering have only made our resolve and commitment to these ideals stronger. Even during these difficult times arising out of Covid-19, we continue to remain committed to keeping you informed and updated with credible news, authoritative views and incisive commentary on topical issues of relevance.

We, however, have a request.



As we battle the economic impact of the pandemic, we need your support even more, so that we can continue to offer you more quality content. Our subscription model has seen an encouraging response from many of you, who have subscribed to our online content. More subscription to our online content can only help us achieve the goals of offering you even better and more relevant content. We believe in free, fair and credible journalism. Your support through more subscriptions can help us practise the journalism to which we are committed.



Support quality journalism and subscribe to Business Standard.



Digital Editor
What is the coronavirus?

A coronavirus is a type of virus which can cause illness in animals and people. Viruses break into cells inside their host and use them to reproduce itself and disrupt the body's normal functions. Coronaviruses are named after the Latin word 'corona', which means crown, because they are encased by a spiked shell which resembles a royal crown.

The coronavirus from Wuhan is one which has never been seen before this outbreak. It has been named SARS-CoV-2 by the International Committee on Taxonomy of Viruses. The name stands for Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome coronavirus 2.

Experts say the bug, which has killed around one in 50 patients since the outbreak began in December, is a 'sister' of the SARS illness which hit China in 2002, so has been named after it.

The disease that the virus causes has been named COVID-19, which stands for coronavirus disease 2019.

Dr Helena Maier, from the Pirbright Institute, said: 'Coronaviruses are a family of viruses that infect a wide range of different species including humans, cattle, pigs, chickens, dogs, cats and wild animals.

'Until this new coronavirus was identified, there were only six different coronaviruses known to infect humans. Four of these cause a mild common cold-type illness, but since 2002 there has been the emergence of two new coronaviruses that can infect humans and result in more severe disease (Severe acute respiratory syndrome (SARS) and Middle East respiratory syndrome (MERS) coronaviruses).

'Coronaviruses are known to be able to occasionally jump from one species to another and that is what happened in the case of SARS, MERS and the new coronavirus. The animal origin of the new coronavirus is not yet known.'

The first human cases were publicly reported from the Chinese city of Wuhan, where approximately 11million people live, after medics first started publicly reporting infections on December 31.

By January 8, 59 suspected cases had been reported and seven people were in critical condition. Tests were developed for the new virus and recorded cases started to surge.

The first person died that week and, by January 16, two were dead and 41 cases were confirmed. The next day, scientists predicted that 1,700 people had become infected, possibly up to 7,000.

Where does the virus come from?

According to scientists, the virus almost certainly came from bats. Coronaviruses in general tend to originate in animals  the similar SARS and MERS viruses are believed to have originated in civet cats and camels, respectively.

The first cases of COVID-19 came from people visiting or working in a live animal market in Wuhan, which has since been closed down for investigation.

Although the market is officially a seafood market, other dead and living animals were being sold there, including wolf cubs, salamanders, snakes, peacocks, porcupines and camel meat.

A study by the Wuhan Institute of Virology, published in February 2020 in the scientific journal Nature, found that the genetic make-up virus samples found in patients in China is 96 per cent identical to a coronavirus they found in bats.

However, there were not many bats at the market so scientists say it was likely there was an animal which acted as a middle-man, contracting it from a bat before then transmitting it to a human. It has not yet been confirmed what type of animal this was.

Dr Michael Skinner, a virologist at Imperial College London, was not involved with the research but said: 'The discovery definitely places the origin of nCoV in bats in China.

'We still do not know whether another species served as an intermediate host to amplify the virus, and possibly even to bring it to the market, nor what species that host might have been.'

So far the fatalities are quite low. Why are health experts so worried about it?

Experts say the international community is concerned about the virus because so little is known about it and it appears to be spreading quickly.

It is similar to SARS, which infected 8,000 people and killed nearly 800 in an outbreak in Asia in 2003, in that it is a type of coronavirus which infects humans' lungs. It is less deadly than SARS, however, which killed around one in 10 people, compared to approximately one in 50 for COVID-19.

Another reason for concern is that nobody has any immunity to the virus because they've never encountered it before. This means it may be able to cause more damage than viruses we come across often, like the flu or common cold.

Speaking at a briefing in January, Oxford University professor, Dr Peter Horby, said: 'Novel viruses can spread much faster through the population than viruses which circulate all the time because we have no immunity to them.

'Most seasonal flu viruses have a case fatality rate of less than one in 1,000 people. Here we're talking about a virus where we don't understand fully the severity spectrum but it's possible the case fatality rate could be as high as two per cent.'

If the death rate is truly two per cent, that means two out of every 100 patients who get it will die.

'My feeling is it's lower,' Dr Horby added. 'We're probably missing this iceberg of milder cases. But that's the current circumstance we're in.

'Two per cent case fatality rate is comparable to the Spanish Flu pandemic in 1918 so it is a significant concern globally.'

How does the virus spread?

The illness can spread between people just through coughs and sneezes, making it an extremely contagious infection. And it may also spread even before someone has symptoms.

It is believed to travel in the saliva and even through water in the eyes, therefore close contact, kissing, and sharing cutlery or utensils are all risky. It can also live on surfaces, such as plastic and steel, for up to 72 hours, meaning people can catch it by touching contaminated surfaces.

Originally, people were thought to be catching it from a live animal market in Wuhan city. But cases soon began to emerge in people who had never been there, which forced medics to realise it was spreading from person to person.

What does the virus do to you? What are the symptoms?

Once someone has caught the COVID-19 virus it may take between two and 14 days, or even longer, for them to show any symptoms  but they may still be contagious during this time.

If and when they do become ill, typical signs include a runny nose, a cough, sore throat and a fever (high temperature). The vast majority of patients will recover from these without any issues, and many will need no medical help at all.

In a small group of patients, who seem mainly to be the elderly or those with long-term illnesses, it can lead to pneumonia. Pneumonia is an infection in which the insides of the lungs swell up and fill with fluid. It makes it increasingly difficult to breathe and, if left untreated, can be fatal and suffocate people.

Figures are showing that young children do not seem to be particularly badly affected by the virus, which they say is peculiar considering their susceptibility to flu, but it is not clear why.

What have genetic tests revealed about the virus?

Scientists in China have recorded the genetic sequences of around 19 strains of the virus and released them to experts working around the world.

This allows others to study them, develop tests and potentially look into treating the illness they cause.

Examinations have revealed the coronavirus did not change much  changing is known as mutating  much during the early stages of its spread.

However, the director-general of China's Center for Disease Control and Prevention, Gao Fu, said the virus was mutating and adapting as it spread through people.

This means efforts to study the virus and to potentially control it may be made extra difficult because the virus might look different every time scientists analyse it.

More study may be able to reveal whether the virus first infected a small number of people then change and spread from them, or whether there were various versions of the virus coming from animals which have developed separately.

How dangerous is the virus?

The virus has a death rate of around two per cent. This is a similar death rate to the Spanish Flu outbreak which, in 1918, went on to kill around 50million people.

Experts have been conflicted since the beginning of the outbreak about whether the true number of people who are infected is significantly higher than the official numbers of recorded cases. Some people are expected to have such mild symptoms that they never even realise they are ill unless they're tested, so only the more serious cases get discovered, making the death toll seem higher than it really is.

However, an investigation into government surveillance in China said it had found no reason to believe this was true.

Dr Bruce Aylward, a World Health Organization official who went on a mission to China, said there was no evidence that figures were only showing the tip of the iceberg, and said recording appeared to be accurate, Stat News reported.

Can the virus be cured?

The COVID-19 virus cannot be cured and it is proving difficult to contain.

Antibiotics do not work against viruses, so they are out of the question. Antiviral drugs can work, but the process of understanding a virus then developing and producing drugs to treat it would take years and huge amounts of money.

No vaccine exists for the coronavirus yet and it's not likely one will be developed in time to be of any use in this outbreak, for similar reasons to the above.

The National Institutes of Health in the US, and Baylor University in Waco, Texas, say they are working on a vaccine based on what they know about coronaviruses in general, using information from the SARS outbreak. But this may take a year or more to develop, according to Pharmaceutical Technology.

Currently, governments and health authorities are working to contain the virus and to care for patients who are sick and stop them infecting other people.

People who catch the illness are being quarantined in hospitals, where their symptoms can be treated and they will be away from the uninfected public.

And airports around the world are putting in place screening measures such as having doctors on-site, taking people's temperatures to check for fevers and using thermal screening to spot those who might be ill (infection causes a raised temperature).

However, it can take weeks for symptoms to appear, so there is only a small likelihood that patients will be spotted up in an airport.

Is this outbreak an epidemic or a pandemic?

The outbreak was declared a pandemic on March 11. A pandemic is defined by the World Health Organization as the 'worldwide spread of a new disease'.

Previously, the UN agency said most cases outside of Hubei had been 'spillover' from the epicentre, so the disease wasn't actually spreading actively around the world.
BAKU, Azerbaijan, Feb. 1

By Rufiz Hafizoglu  Trend:

The export of electrical goods from Turkey to Azerbaijan increased by 19.5 percent in 2019 compared to 2018 and reached over $171 million, the Turkish Ministry of Trade told Trend.

In November 2019, the export of electrical goods from Turkey to Azerbaijan increased by 67.2 percent compared to November 2018 and reached $20.5 million.

The export of electrical goods from Turkey decreased by 0.5 percent in 2019 compared to 2018 and reached $11.2 billion.

Last year, the export of electrical goods reached 6.2 percent in Turkeys total export volume.

In December 2019, the export of electrical goods from Turkey increased by 2.2 percent compared to December 2018 and amounted to $977.9 million comprising 6.4 percent of Turkeys total export volume.

----

Follow the author on Twitter: @rhafizoglu
Gambian authorities should immediately drop the charges against broadcast journalists Pa Modou Bojang and Gibbi Jallow, and permit the Home Digital FM and King FM radio stations to reopen, the Committee to Protect Journalists said today.

On January 26, police raided the offices of the privately owned radio stations Home Digital FM, in Brikama, and King FM radio station, in Tallinding, and arrested several staffers, according to Home Digital FM manager Omar Fofana and Jallow, a reporter and general manager of King FM, both of whom spoke to CPJ via messaging app.

Police arrested Bojang, a reporter and CEO of Home Digital FM, during the raid and held him until January 28 at the police station, when they charged him with incitement and released him after posting a bail of 250,000 dalasi ($4,887), according to Fofana and Bojang, who spoke with CPJ via messaging app.

Police arrested Gibbi Jallow and two technicians at the station, Ebrima Jallow and Madiou Jallow, during the raid, Gibbi Jallow said. All three, who share a family name but are not related, were held in a police station until January 28, Gibbi Jallow told CPJ. He said he was charged with inciting violence and was released on the condition that he provide documents about land he owns. The technicians were released without charge, according to Kebba Kamara, a King FM reporter who spoke to CPJ via messaging app.

Bojang and Gibbi Jallow told CPJ that the stations remain off the air, and that no court dates had been set. Jallow told CPJ that he plans to appeal the stations closure in court.

Both Home Digital FM and King FM had recently covered protests and interviewed activists calling for President Adama Barrow to step down this year, pursuant to a pledge he had made in 2017 to serve for only three years instead of his full five-year term, according to Bojang, Jallow, and news reports . Barrow took office in early 2017 after defeating longtime President Yahya Jammeh, whose government had a long record of press freedom violations.

A democratically elected government resorting to dictatorial censorship tactics is a huge setback for press freedom in Gambia, Angela Quintal, CPJs Africa program coordinator, said from New York. Authorities should drop all charges against Pa Modou Bojang and Gibbi Jallow, and King FM and Home Digital FM must be allowed to resume broadcasting immediately.

The arrests and raids came after President Barrows executive office ordered both outlets to be suspended for allegedly violating their licenses by demonstrating notoriety for peddling incendiary messages and allowing their media to be used as platforms for inciting violence, according to a statement signed by Ebrima G. Sankareh, a spokesperson for the Gambian government, which CPJ reviewed.

Bojang and Mustapha K. Darboe, vice president of the Gambia Press Union, a local trade group, both told CPJ that authorities had not specified when Home Digital FM and King FM would be permitted to resume broadcasting. Jallow told CPJ that security officials had barricaded the area around his office and he could not get inside.

Jallow told CPJ he believed King FMs coverage of the issue was fair because they also broadcast interviews with people who advocated that Barrow remain in office until the conclusion of his five-year term. On the day of the raid, King FM had only played music and had not broadcast any political coverage, Jallow said.

"Police and paramilitary officers stormed the station and said they had orders from above to shut down the station," Bojang said. During the raid, police did not explain what they meant by "orders from above," nor did they give further details on the alleged offence, Bojang and Fofana said.

During the protests against Barrow staying in office, demonstrators just outside Banjul, the capital, slapped and shoved Sankuleh Janko, a reporter with the Dakar-based regional broadcaster West African Democracy Radio, the journalist told CPJ. He said he was not seriously injured.

On January 25, Gambian authorities denied accreditation to Nicolas Haque, a correspondent with Al-Jazeera, who had applied in order to cover the protests that began on January 26, according to a tweet by Haque and news reports .

CPJ called and sent text messages to Gambian Information Minister Ebrima Sillah, police spokesperson Lamin Njie, and government spokesperson Ebrima G. Sankareh, but did not receive any responses.
We're always interested in hearing about news in our community. Let us know what's going on!

Go to form
Deputy Head of the Office of the President of Ukraine Ihor Zhovkva met with Qatari Transport and Communications Minister Jassim Saif Ahmed Al-Sulaiti to discuss investment cooperation between the states, the presidents press service has reported.

In the context of discussing economic cooperation, the parties noted the importance of increasing investment cooperation between the two countries. In particular, Ihor Zhovkva welcomed the intention of the Qatari company QTerminals to invest in the development of Olvia Port infrastructure. It is estimated that UAH 3.4 billion will be invested in the port over the next five years," the statement reads.

In this regard, Ihor Zhovkva announced the Investment nanny initiative of the Ukrainian president, which is designed to provide assistance to large foreign investors who intend to invest in the economy of Ukraine.

Zhovkva also stressed the importance of continuing Ukraine-Qatar investment cooperation in other areas, including road construction, energy development and hotel business.

During the meeting, the interest of the Ukrainian side in intensifying political dialogue with Qatar was underscored. In this context, the parties discussed the schedule of high-level visits for 2020.

Earlier, Ukrainian Prime Minister Oleksiy Honcharuk stated that Mykolaiv-based Olvia Stevedoring Company State Enterprise had been transferred into concession to Qatars QTerminals.

ish
Skiers, rejoice. Cold weather haters, sorry about your luck. Shipoke Sheena, Harrisburgs celebrated grounddog, predicts six more weeks of winter.

Its the first time in this mostly annual event Sheena, a 6-year-old chihuahua whose real name is Bubbles, did not predict an early spring.

More than 50 bundled-up people and several dogs turned out to Conoy Street Park on a chilly Saturday morning for this event to find out what the bear-costumed weather-prognosticating chihuahua pretending to be a groundhog had to say.

Arriving in the arms of her owner Joanne Kaldy accompanied by a seven-member top-hatted entourage, Shipoke Sheena drew applause from the crowd that had been feasting on doughnuts and coffee while awaiting her grand entrance to the event sponsored by the Shipoke Neighborhood Association.

The pronouncement from Pennsylvanias first and only weather-prognosticating dog was handled by the Rev. Hal Fox, aka former lord mayor of Shipoke."

After conferring with the groundhog wannabe, he offered the grounddogs prediction with an apology.

Im sorry," he said. "If Im hearing correctly, I hate to disappoint you, my dear friends and neighbors. I believe were going to have six more weeks of winter.

A loud sigh rose from the crowd. Fox said, Im sorry. She is an honest woman.

The prediction was made with guidance from NASAs meteorologists, said George Diehl, the president of the neighborhood association.

Forget shadows and educated guesses. This is 21st Century prognostication, he said.

The event, which also was used as a fundraiser for the Susquehanna Service Dogs organization, was started in 2014 in this quaint Harrisburg neighborhood to break up the stretch of cold days that keeps people indoors and bring together neighbors.

Its something we can do as a neighborhood to get us through the winter, said Shipoke resident Ellie Martindale.

And to see your neighbors. Its a great thing, added Shirley Marks, who also lives in the neighborhood.

John Keck, who lives elsewhere in Harrisburg, said he considers Shipoke to be a part of Harrisburg where the camaraderie among neighbors and love for dogs is unmatched.

Theres probably as many dogs as people, he said. Thats probably an exaggeration but not by far.

Plus, its a tradition that has drawn Harrisburg Mayor Eric Papenfuse to it in each of the six years out of the last seven its been held. Last year, the organizers took a year off.

Showing up in a top hat that he brings out for the occasion, Papenfuse described the celebration as representative of the best of Harrisburg.

Its about the community coming together, celebrating yes, what is hoped to be the early coming of spring, said the former Shipoke resident prior to Sheenas grand entrance. But really its celebrating each other and this wonderful historic neighborhood, which is one of the reasons I personally came to Harrisburg.

George Scott, a Democratic candidate running for state Senate and fairly new resident to the Shipoke neighborhood, came with another purpose in mind. He arrived with clipboard in hand and nominating petitions attached to gather signatures to get on the April 28 primary ballot. He also took part in the brief ceremony by offering an opening prayer that sought a divine blessing on Sheena to "help her find an early end to winter.

But the chihuahua  who was highlighted in a front page article in Saturdays Wall Street Journal about weather prognosticating animal alternatives to Punxsutawney Phil  had a different prediction in mind.

Kaldy, who came up with the idea for the mid-winter celebration with neighbor Kathy Dunbar, said Bubbles sort of just fell into the role of the prognosticator.

The neighbors considered using a puppet. They also thought about finding a stuffed groundhog. Then, they settled on the quirky idea of using Kaldys dog.

When they couldnt find a groundhog costume for Bubbles, they settled on a bear, which Kaldy said looks groundhogish and thats how Bubbles became the center of attention on Grounddog Day.

Kaldy said fame hasnt gone to Bubbles head.

She takes it in stride, she said.

Along with her appearance on Grounddog Day, Kaldy said the canine celebrity also makes visits to nursing homes from time and time. As was evident on Saturday, she does have a fan base as people lined up to pose for selfies with her after the ceremony.

Kaldy joked Bubbles celebrity doesnt have to stop there.

Im hoping shes going to get her own sitcom.

Jan Murphy may be reached at jmurphy@pennlive.com. Follow her on Twitter at @JanMurphy.

Thanks for visiting PennLive. Quality local journalism has never been more important. We need your support. Not a subscriber yet? Please consider supporting our work.
You have permission to edit this article.

Edit Close
Environmental groups are suing a US government agency over concerns that oil exploration in Alaska could kill off endangered Beluga whales.

They want to force the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) to void a permit allowing exploration in waters used by the whales in the Cook Inlet.

It comes after a new population report showed that the whales are fewer in number and declining faster than previously thought.

The new estimate says just 279 beluga whales are left in the Cook Inlet, down from 1,300 in 1979.

The decline amounts to around 2.3 per cent over the past decade, daunting numbers which need to trigger immediate action to stop exploration planned by Hilcorp Energy Company, according to the Center for Biological Diversity.

Tragic photos show beached whales Show all 15 1 /15 Tragic photos show beached whales Tragic photos show beached whales A dead sperm whale lies on Hunstanton beach in Norfolk on 5 February 2016 AFP/Getty Tragic photos show beached whales Volunteers pour buckets of water over the 80 remaining live pilot whales found stranded on remote Ocean Beach on New Zealand's southern-most Stewart island, 8 January 2003 AFP/Getty Tragic photos show beached whales Contractors clear away the body of one of the dead 48ft sperm whales that were washed-up on a beach near Gibraltar Point in Skegness, Lincolnshire in 2016 PA Tragic photos show beached whales People pass by a beached whale at the Pointe de la Torche, near Brest in France on 29 November 2011 AFP/Getty Tragic photos show beached whales A woman touches the tail of a large whale carcass on Wattamola Beach at the Royal National Park in Sydney on 25 September 2018 AFP/Getty Tragic photos show beached whales Beached humpback whale in California, 2015 AFP/Getty Tragic photos show beached whales Dead long fin pilot whales at Hamelin Bay on Australia's west coast on 23 March 2009 AFP/Getty Tragic photos show beached whales A 36ft sperm whale lies dead on the beach at Sutton Bridge, in The Wash, off the Lincolnshire coast, where it became stranded in 2004 PA Tragic photos show beached whales A female fin whale opens its mouth as it lies stranded and alive on the beach at Carlyon Bay, Cornwall on 13 August 2012 Getty Tragic photos show beached whales The lower jaw of a dead sperm whale that stranded itself on a beach in Hunstanton, Norfolk on 5 February 2016 Getty Tragic photos show beached whales One of the five sperm whales that were found washed ashore on beaches near Skegness, Lincolnshire over the weekend on 25 January 2016 Getty Tragic photos show beached whales Employees at work to skin the remains of a beached 60ft whale on 25 January 2013 AFP/Getty Tragic photos show beached whales Two long-finned pilot whales are stranded on a beach in the northern French city of Calais on 2 November 2015 AFP/Getty Tragic photos show beached whales A sperm whale lies dead after becoming stranded on a beach in Hunstanton, Norfolk on 5 February 2016 Getty Tragic photos show beached whales Crowds gather as a sperm whale lies dead after becoming stranded on a beach in Hunstanton, Norfolk on 5 February 2016 Getty

The groups attorney, Julie Teel Simmonds, said theres a duty to reconsider and analyse if there's new information that's significant and indicates that the activities that they authorised would cause harm. The community non-profit organisation Cook Inletkeeper is also suing the NOAA.

The situation has emerged as a result of Augusts loosening of environmental restrictions by the Trump administration.

The revised rules clear the way for new mining, oil and gas drilling, according to environmental campaigners, as well as development in areas where protected species live.

The Cook Inlet stretches almost 200 miles from Anchorage to the Gulf of Alaska, and supplies energy for the south-central area of the state.

Beluga whales swim off the Anchorage waters and eat salmon and other fish, but their existence is made precarious by their proximity to Alaska's industrial activities in Cook Inlet.

While the Cook Inlet region is Alaskas oldest oil-producing basin, its not just oil exploration that threatens the Beluga whale; heavy ship traffic, industrial noise, pollution and climate change are all concerns.

Agencies contributed to this report
If I will die, let it ...
A book by Snodgrass, Holding the Line: Inside Trumps Pentagon with Secretary Mattis, was held up for five or six months by the Defense Department last year for a security review  and released only once he filed a suit alleging the department was blocking its publication. One of the people he said who asked him to remove material was Bolton, then the national security adviser, which he agreed to do.
Oil giant BP faces mounting pressure to sell its $15 billion (11 billion) stake in Russian energy giant Rosneft as it embarks on a major strategy overhaul to prop up its dividend payouts and tackle climate change concerns.

On Tuesday, BP is expected to reveal that profits fell by a quarter last year, from $12.7 billion to $9.5 billion. On the same day, chief executive Bob Dudley will step down after a decade in charge to be replaced by Bernard Looney.

A week later, the new boss  who last month launched an official Instagram account emphasising BP's role in the 'energy transition'  is expected to announce one of the biggest shake-ups in the company's 111-year history.

Challenging times: The FTSE 100 giant is battling rising concern about climate change from investors

The details have been drawn up in secret, but are believed to centre on the transition towards a low-carbon future.

The FTSE 100 giant is battling rising concern about climate change from investors such as the Church of England, which last week blacklisted BP from its 2.8 billion pension fund.

Sources said selling its 19.75 per cent stake in Rosneft was one of the most practical ways BP could keep paying dividends while turning more climate-friendly.

BP is the third highest dividend-payer in the FTSE 100  after Royal Dutch Shell and HSBC  handing out 6.3 billion last year at a yield of around 6 per cent.

Biraj Borkhataria, an analyst at RBC Capital Markets, said: 'If BP wanted to make a credible push away from oil and towards gas, divesting the Rosneft stake would be one of the obvious solutions.'

Barclays analyst Lydia Rainforth added that Rosneft 'should have no role in the BP portfolio going forward'.

Analysts said carbon-intensive assets such as BP's oil and gas fields in Angola and Canada could also be put up for sale.

Irene Himona, an oil analyst at Societe Generale, said: 'BP needs to decarbonise in a way that avoids value destruction and maintains the dividend.'

Looney is expected to announce plans for broader carbon emission reduction goals and could cut costs by restructuring the company. BP's executive pay  including Looney's 1.3 million salary  could also be linked to emissions targets, a source said.

BP produced 3.7 million barrels of oil and gas a day last year, while only a fraction of its $16 billion (12 billion) capital spending  between $500 million (380 million) and $750 million (570 million)  went on renewables.

The British firm's involvement in Russia dates back to the 1990s when it took a 10 per cent stake in oil company Sidanko. It later merged its assets there with three Russian companies to form TNK-BP, a 50/50 joint venture with AAR, a consortium backed by four oligarchs.

Bob Dudley ran TNK-BP from 2003, but tensions with the oligarchs escalated, forcing him to flee Russia in 2008 and run the company from a secret location. He eventually negotiated BP's exit from TNK-BP by selling its stake to Rosneft in 2013, with BP taking a 19.75 per cent stake in Rosneft as part of the deal.

Rosneft accounted for 1.1 million of the 3.7 million barrels of oil and gas BP produced each day last year. Dudley will remain on the board of Rosneft when he retires from BP in March.

A former adviser to Rosneft said that if BP decides to keeps its stake in it, Looney will look for higher returns.

'BP's $15 billion investment in Rosneft yields just 5 per cent per year,' the source said. 'Finally, after years of promises, BP needs to start making returns on its massive capital lockdown in this company.'

Looney, 49, has said the company needs to 'listen hard' to climate change concerns. 'We need to demonstrate that we are part of the solution  that we get it,' he added.

BP's renewables portfolio includes a biofuels project in Brazil, around ten wind projects in the US, the BP Chargemaster electric vehicle business and a 50 per cent stake in the Lightsource BP solar venture.

BP tried to expand into renewables in the early 2000s with its Beyond Petroleum strategy under Lord Browne, but suffered heavy losses.

Areeba Hamid, from Greenpeace UK, said: 'Bernard Looney joins BP just as the oil industry is becoming as toxic as the tobacco industry.'

Shares in BP have fallen more than 20 per cent since April last year, closing at 456.7p on Friday. In that time, the Brent crude oil price has fallen from $74 a barrel to $58. BP declined to comment.
Specialist gardai lay in wait for days to try and snare a criminal gang that had left five deadly weapons near a service station in south Dublin - but eventually decided to seize the guns when no-one showed up to collect them.

Five handguns and a machine gun were seized in Dublin after detectives uncovered a so-called 'dead letterbox' gangland operation in Rathcoole.

It is understood that Blanchardstown gardai, assisted by officers from Harcourt Square, received intelligence about the major firearms drop-off, which was left for pick-up several days ago.

The firearms were found during a search operation on the Naas Road in Rathcoole.

A senior source explained: 'There's intelligence that criminals agreed to make this serious guns haul drop-off for other criminals.

"But it was all to be done in a 'dead letterbox' manner.

"This means that there was no change of hands between the criminals.

"Burner phones were used. One individual dropped off the weapons at an agreed location, hidden.

"Gardai then lay in wait to catch the person who was due to collect them. That person never showed up.

"So yesterday morning gardai moved to seize the weapons, as it was dangerous to leave them where they were as the days went on," a senior source said.

A garda spokesperson said: "Members of the Detective Unit Blanchardstown Garda Station, as part of an investigation into an organised crime group, carried out a search at a site on the L6065 on the Naas Road, Rathcoole.

"During the course of the search, six firearms were recovered concealed not far from a nearby service station.

"Initial examination of the firearms indicate they are comprised of five handguns and one machine gun.

"A preliminary technical examination of the firearms has been carried out and further tests are awaited."

One line of inquiry is that the guns are connected to the so-called 'Monkey gang' in Finglas which has been riddled by garda informers.

This has led to a number of arrests in recent months, sources say.
On Friday night, Britain slipped out of the EU under cover of darkness. Nobody knows how to characterize it: a woman escaping a controlling man; a drug-addled teen running away from censorious parents; a former colonial power escaping its own colonization; a caterpillar emerging as a beautiful butterfly to float above the fens and spinneys of greenest England.

Conservative Prime Minister Boris Johnson would say the last, but then he would, wouldnt he? The hopeless, hapless Jeremy Corbyn, still leader of the flattened Labour Party, will miss running Little England as a co-op making bricks out of mud and straw, with everyone sharing in the washing-up.

The Guardians reliable economics editor, Larry Elliott, concludes mournfully that Britain didnt do that well within the EU anyway, and maybe, free of European regulation, a Briton  Alan Turing reborn  might come up with an idea that spawns the new Google in artificial intelligence. That would be nice.

Maybe young people, without hoping of moving out and up in the world, trapped in village England, will finally start doing the harvesting and fruit-picking previously handed off to desperate migrants from Eastern Europe. It would charm aristocrats to see local people working in the fields again, and grateful for the chance.

At any rate, any advantage to England and Wales (Scotlands leaving, count on it) will not show itself before a decade passes, and the Twenties will be rough.

The simultaneity is killing. At precisely the same moment, two once-great nations in decline are doing their absolute best to self-destruct and for what? Republican senators stuck on acquitting President Donald Trump dont realize that hell commit worse treason and more daylight robbery, if he hasnt already. If impeachment doesnt work this time, there will be no mechanism to rein him in. The U.S. will be lawless.

I watch U.S. Supreme Court Chief Justice John Roberts reading out written impeachment questions on slips of paper as if he were a dad wearing a paper hat and reading out the riddles in his Christmas cracker.

Whats green and sings? Anybody?

Elvis Parsley. Ha ha, good one.

We see Britain elect Boris Johnson, a clown with a good line in banter but without the intellect and knowledge to revive a failing nation, as he proved when he tried to be mayor of London. Johnson has form. He isnt a manager, he clearly hates going up north to talk to proles underwater from relentless flooding, hes no good in a crisis, and seven crises are on the way.

Try coronavirus, climate change, a health service running on fumes, a six-year long lineup at the coast and people living in tents at St. Pancrass Eurostar gate, a huge grocery list, Trump with a punishing trade offer, and a European neighbourhood sans goodwill.

Brexit was Little Britains dirty protest, if you recall 1970s IRA prisoners spreading their own filth over their cell walls. If you treat us like animals, well behave like animals. It is spiritually self-annihilating.

Little Britain needs practical leadership. The absurd and languid Jacob Rees-Mogg and the bullied Michael Gove arent it. Equally, the U.S. needs courage and pride but the Senate chamber has none to spare.

Both Little Britain and the U.S. will cling to past glories. Sadly, they arent shared. The Brits had the 19th century, Americans the 20th, but theres no special relationship. Americans have always been thoroughly transactional.

And now Germany will run Europe, which will upset the French no end but theres not much the French can do about it because the French army is silly as in Dunkirk silly. Its 1940 all over again and there are no Churchills.

I sometimes think that no nation  or person  can escape the deep drag of their nature. The U.S. cannot escape the octopus-like hold of slavery. Many of those Republican senators gluing themselves to Trump were elected by angry whites seeing power slip away for a century. Theyre not distinguished men; in a distant era, they were the shifty plantation overseers, thieves, contemptuous of the law. The Trump divide feels like a Civil War re-enactment.

And Britain, for reasons that elude foreigners, wants again to be the nation that stood alone in the Battle of Britain fighting off the Hun. Where lies the splendour of solitude now?

Both the U.S. and Britain are building walls. Trumps border wall? Winds blew it over on Thursday. Into Mexico. When it rains, trees and detritus pile up against the wall and cause flash floods, so the gates must be left open which makes it  not a wall.

Britain, slipping into the sea with London soon to be the new Venice, still regards the Channel as a wall  "a rocky shore beating back the envious siege  without considering the possibility that its no longer worth invading. Who would have this shabby place full of moaners and clingers?

The quoted phrase was from Shakespeare, Britains only really fantastic export. What a century the 16th was. Lets go there, Britain says, and start all over again.
Schutz served the Duke and Duchess for eight years after the 1936 abdication

She added: 'It's all a pity. If only the Royal family had known [Wallace Simpson]'

A former secretary to Edward VIII and Wallis Simpson has rejected comparisons between the American socialite and Meghan Markle.

Johanna Schutz, who served the Duke and Duchess of Windsor for eight years after the 1936 abdication, insisted the former Suits star 'doesn't come close in terms of style and sophistication'.

Due to their similarities as American divorcees married to a British royal who stepped down from royal duties, the Duchess of Sussex and Duchess of Windsor have regularly been compared to each other.

A former secretary to Edward VIII and Wallis Simpson has rejected comparisons between the American socialite and Meghan Markle. Pictured: Simpson and Edward in their Paris home

Johanna Schutz, who served the Duke and Duchess of Windsor for eight years after the 1936 abdication, insisted the former Suits star 'doesn't come close in terms of style and sophistication'

But Schutz rejected the comparison in an interview with The Telegraph, in which she also reflected on her years of service for the Windsors as they enjoyed a comfortable life of exile in France.

'Meghan doesn't come close to the Duchess in terms of style or sophistication,' she told the publication.

She added: 'It's all a pity. If only the Royal family had known her. The Duchess was a wonderful woman.'

Twice-married American socialite Simpson found herself at the center of one of the most scandalous love affairs of the 20th century when she entered into a relationship with Prince Edward, Prince of Wales who went on to briefly become King Edward VIII.

Their romance led to the prince abdicating the British throne in 1936.

Simpson received abusive and hostile hate mail and was accused of being a Nazi sympathiser.

Due to their similarities as American divorcees married to a British royal who stepped down from royal duties, the Duchess of Sussex and Duchess of Windsor have regularly been compared to each other

'Meghan doesn't come close to the Duchess in terms of style or sophistication,' Schutz said

She was formally known as the Duchess of Windsor, but was not allowed to share her husband's title of 'Royal Highness'.

Schutz said she first met the Duke and Duchess in Paris, where the couple lived, in 1969.

She said that while Simpson was 'not beautiful', she had a 'hypnotic charm' and had 'mesmerising eyes', while the Duke was 'polite and gracious'.

The former secretary went on to become very close to the Windsors, allegedly becoming the 'daughter they never had'.

After Edward died in 1972, she ate every meal with Simpson and accompanied her to America, the article claims.

Schutz also described the day when the Queen, the Duke of Edinburgh and Prince Charles went to Paris to see Edward 10 days before he died.

Twice-married American socialite Simpson, pictured in Vogue in 1944, found herself at the center of one of the most scandalous love affairs of the 20th century when she entered into a relationship with Prince Edward, who went on to briefly become King Edward VIII

Schutz said that while Simpson was 'not beautiful', she had a 'hypnotic charm' and had 'mesmerising eyes', while the Duke was 'polite and gracious'. Pictured: The couple in Paris in 1955

She said of the visit that it was 'very important' because the Duke had always said he had loved the Queen.

However, the article goes on to describe how, after Edward's death, the Windsors' lawyer, Maitre Suzanne Blum, 'threatened the Duchess'.

Even though the Duke had left all of his possessions and assets to the Royal family after his death, Schutz said the 'menacing' Blum told Simpson that the French Government would make her leave her home unless she left everything to the Louis Pasteur Institute, a science foundation.

Blum also allegedly banned friends from seeing Simpson and 'imprisoned' her in her home.

It was reported that Schutz was then dismissed by Blum in 1978, but Schutz said she was offered a new contract but refused to sign it because she said she would only work for the Duchess, not the lawyer.

She only left when Simpson became senile and no longer recognised her.
Eight male students have been isolated from other boarders at John Paul College south of Brisbane over coronavirus concerns.

They will be withdrawn from the school, in the Logan suburb of Daisy Hill, for 14 days following their return to Australia from China or Hong Kong.

The Novel Coronavirus virus was identified as the cause of an outbreak of respiratory illness first detected in Wuhan, China.

The move followed recent Queensland Health advice that students, teachers or other staff at risk of having contracted coronavirus shouldnt go to school, as a precaution.

John Paul College principal Karen Spiller OAM said students were being supported while withdrawn from school as per the Queensland governments advice to schools and universities.
The 17-year-old who fired at a crowd outside Jamia Millia Islamia and injured a postgraduate student, reportedly told the police that his plan was to go to Shaheen Bagh where people are protesting against the Citizenship (Amendment) Act , but an autorickshaw driver dropped him at the university campus.

The teenager from Jewar in Greater Noida was sent to a 28-day protective custody by a Juvenile Justice Board (JJB) on Friday.

Police said the minor, who will write his Class 12 board exams next month, showed no signs of remorse while in their custody for nearly 24 hours.

Investigators said he was self-radicalised by watching news and videos on social media regarding the murders of some Hindu leaders such as Chandan Gupta and Kamlesh Tiwari and the anti-CAA protests in Shaheen Bagh.

Gupta was killed in Kasganj on January 26, 2018 while Tiwari was murdered at his house in Lucknow in October last year.

According to the police, the teenager told them his original plan was to fire in the air at Shaheen Bagh and become famous. He told us he panicked, feared getting lynched, and fired at the crowd when he saw some of them rushing towards him soon after they saw him brandishing a gun and threatening to shoot them, said an investigator, requesting anonymity.

The teenager had purchased the country-made pistol for Rs 10,000 from a person living near his village on Wednesday and left for Shaheen Bagh on Thursday morning. He denied having any links with Hindu organisations or leaders, even as we have learnt he was in contact with one such leader for the past two-three months, the investigator said.

No senior police officer agreed to share details of the investigation.

POLICE FOR OSSIFICATION TEST

Deputy commissioner of police (crime) Rajesh Deo said the investigating team produced the teenager before the board at Kingsway Camp around 3 pm on Friday. The JJB sent him to protective custody till February 28 in a correction home for boys, said Deo.

DCP Deo said an application had been sent to Ram Manohar Lohia hospital, requesting constitution of a panel of doctors to conduct the teenagers bone ossification test to authenticate his claims that he is below 18 years. The teenagers family produced his Class 10 passing certificate and his Aadhaar card to prove he is a juvenile.

Investigators said they were approaching the Central Board of Secondary Education and the Unique Identification Authority of India to check if the documents were genuine.

A police officer, who was present at the JJB said, The teenager will be given counselling to de-radicalise him. The media was not allowed in the courtroom.

The JJB asked the teenager if he needed a tutor to help him prepare for his Class 12 exams. The boy told the JJB he will inform later. The JJB allowed him to get his books and other study material for preparation, the officer said.

Thursdays action

Police said after reaching Delhi in a bus, the teenager boarded an auto and asked the driver to take him to the protest site in Shaheen Bagh. The driver, however, dropped him near Jamia where several protesters had assembled for a march towards Rajghat.

Shaheen Bagh khel khatam... azaadi de raha hun (Game over, Shaheen Bagh. I am giving you freedom), he wrote in a Facebook post moments before he began one of the several short live videos near the place where he opened fire and injured Jamia student Shadab Farooq.

The shot was fired even as a group of policemen, many of them in anti-riot gear, stood and watched for several moments before one of them made a move to restrain him.

The police said they will analyse the teenagers mobile phone and his social media accounts to check if he was instigated by someone.
Terrorism cost the global economy $84 billion in 2017, according to the Global Terrorism Index (GTI) produced by a consortium of international institutes, including the US Department of Homeland Security and the University of Maryland. The countries that most suffer from this blight are struggling to rid themselves of terrorist groups fostered and supported by a number of nations, foremost among which are Turkey, Qatar and Iran, which utilise terrorist groups and illegal militias to secure footholds and carry out their agendas in countries suffering from social and political upheaval. Those agendas are driven by various motives, such as the thirst for revenge against countries opposed to their agendas, the desire to expand their influence and territorial control beyond their borders by threatening the national security of neighbouring countries and, of course, the thirst for natural resources and expanding markets in target countries.

Last week, the National Interest website published a report that describes Turkey and Qatar as brothers in arms involved in illicit finance, promoting extremist ideologies and providing safe havens to terrorists and terror financiers in glaring violation of US and UN sanctions. The report urged Washington to take action to compel Ankara and Doha to curb their malign conduct.

As the report observes, the Qatari-Turkish axis is waging a campaign for primacy in the Middle East from Iraq to Libya, adding another level of complexity to this already volatile region. This campaign intensified after a number of Arab countries severed relations with Doha because of its support for terrorism and collaboration with Iran in destabilising the region.

Islamism, particularly the ideology of the Muslim Brotherhood, is the heart of the Turkish-Qatari axis, the authors write, noting how close Turkey and Qatar had become after the Turkish strongman, Erdogan, came to power in Ankara at the head of the Islamist-oriented Justice and Development Party (AKP), which has a long history with the [Muslim] Brotherhood. As this alliances destabilising Islamist agenda was particularly worrisome for Washington, the US should pursue a multi-pronged response that involves its transatlantic allies and regional partners. Among the recommended options were conditioning future high-level dialogue with Qatar on concrete and verifiable steps taken on terror finance and continuing to sanction Turkey- and Qatar-based individuals and entities involved in terror and illicit finance.

A report published by the Foundation for the Defence of Democracies (FDD) in December 2019 takes a closer look at the destructive role the Turkish-Qatari axis plays across the region. A major arena for their battle is Libya, where both countries support extremist militias. As the report notes, when the revolution against the Gaddafi regime erupted in 2011, Qatar was the first Arab country to formally recognise Libyas rebels. It sent in hundreds of troops to support them and sent in advisers to train Libyan fighters in various parts of the country. Qatars role in the rebellion was so great that in some areas Libyans flew the Qatari flag alongside the Libyan flag. A March 2013 report by the UN Panel of Experts on the UN arms embargo to Libya concluded that Qatar blatantly violated the embargo in 2011 by sending arms to anti-Gaddafi forces.

Turkey soon followed suit. A subsequent Panel of Experts report found that Turkish companies had delivered weapons to the Libyan Dawn coalition (a grouping of militias led by the Muslim Brotherhood that attacked Tripoli International Airport and seized large parts of the capital in 2014). The FDD report also cites Libyan sources claiming to have evidence of Turkeys direct military support to Islamist militias in violation of the UN embargo. In 2016, the Libya National Army (LNA) claimed to have witnesses and satellite pictures proving that Turkey provides weapons, ammunition, vehicles and even Turkish combatants in the area of Misrata. The claim is supported by more recent footage of Turkish-made weapons being unloaded at Libyan ports. Then, in a culmination of this role, as 2019 drew to a close, the Turkish president signed a maritime border MoU and security cooperation agreement with the head of the Tripoli-based Government of National Accord (GNA). The agreements  widely denounced, especially by Egypt, Greece and Cyprus  caused tensions to soar in the Eastern Mediterranean.

The Qatari-Turkish axis has also set its sights on Somalia. About six months ago, The New York Times revealed that Qatar was furnishing arms and military training to Somali factions allied with Doha. The newspaper published excerpts of an audio recording of a mobile phone conversation between the Qatari ambassador in Mogadishu and a businessman close to the Qatari emir in which they discussed a recent bomb attack against the Somali port city of Bosaso. The port is operated by a firm based in the UAE. In the recording, the businessman, identified as Khalifa Kayed Al-Muhanadi, said: The bombings and killings, we know who are behind them ... [They were] intended to make Dubai people run away from there. Let them kick out the Emiratis, so they dont renew the contracts with them and I will bring the contract here to Doha. According to the New York Times, neither Al-Muhanadi nor Doha disputed the authenticity of the recording, but both insisted he was speaking in a private capacity and was not a government official. In the recording, the Qatari businessman referred to the people behind the attack as our friends. The ambassador responds, so thats why they are having attacks there, to make [the Emiratis] run away. A few months before the Bosaso bombing, which occurred in May, two gunmen shot and killed the manager of an Emirati company involved in running the port. Three other employees were wounded in the attack.

It is one thing if Qatar uses Bosaso for commercial activities. It is a totally different thing when it uses it or other ports to smuggle weapons and extremist operatives to terrorist groups such as Al-Shabab or Al-Qaeda or Islamic State affiliates, gravely jeopardising stability in the Horn of Africa and the safety of navigation in the Gulf of Aden and the Red Sea. That Qatars ally, Turkey, has a major military base in Mogadishu has raised concerns that the two are increasing their support to terrorists in order to further their agendas in the Horn of Africa, concerns heightened following reports that Qatar was involved in smuggling uranium aboard Qatari civilian airplanes to Iran from areas in northwest Somalia controlled by Al-Shabab.

TURKEY AND QATAR: OUT TO DESTROY LIBYA: Erdogan infuriated the international community when he sent Turkish military advisers and jihadist mercenaries from Syria into Libya as part of his ongoing meddling in the internal affairs of this Arab country. This comes as little surprise to those familiar with leaked intelligence documents that reveal close links between Erdogan and Al-Qaeda leaders dating back to 2012. Despite the international outcry, Turkey has continued to transfer Syrian jihadists to Libya to join the ranks of the militias aligned with the GNA. Some sources estimate that around 4,000 of these mercenaries are now in Libya.

Observers believe that by providing a safe haven to terrorist leaders and financiers, including many on international terrorist watchlists, Ankara managed to forge a powerful pressure group to serve its interests in Libya, because the individuals it harbours run the militias that control the political authorities in Tripoli. In an interview with alarabiya.net, Libyan lawmaker Ali Tekbali said that the Turkish regimes relationship with the Muslim Brotherhood and Libyan terrorist leaders is based on mutual interests. Turkey gives them shelter and helps them smuggle cash and gold into Turkish banks, and in return they help Turkey carry out its expansionist designs in Libya and elsewhere in the region.

One of the more notorious individuals Ankara harbours is Abdelhakim Belhaj, former emir of the Al-Qaeda affiliated Libyan Islamic Fighting Group (LIFG). Belhaj, who has been listed as dangerous and is wanted by police in Libya for his involvement in terrorist attacks against public facilities, and other crimes, has also been accused stealing large quantities of gold and money from Libyan banks following the fall of the Gaddafi regime. The LNA said it has proof that Belhaj has billions of dollars in Turkish banks.

According to LNA Spokesman Al-Mismari, Qatar and Turkey have long played a subversive role in the Libyan crisis. In an interview with Sky News Arabia, he said: After 2011, we realised that Qatar had become a key player in Libya. It was the first country to recognise the Libyan Transitional Council and it sent the first planeload of weapons to the so-called Coalition of Benghazi Revolutionaries, which is an extremist militia. The shipment was received by the terrorist Ali Al-Sallabi, currently residing in Qatar, who transferred it to his brother, Ismail, an international terrorist with an Interpol arrest warrant out for him.

The Qataris also sent military trainers to train the Libyan fighters they supported, mostly in use of sniper rifles, Al-Mismari said, adding: The Qatari role is still present in Libya, militarily, materially and politically. The Qatari emir uses every political forum to attack the Libyan National Army as though it were an enemy threatening Qatars border.

Ankaras meddling in Libya since the battle to liberate Benghazi from Islamist militias in 2014 has been no less pernicious, according to Al-Mismari in the same interview. The LNA has found pictures showing terrorists who fought against the army during Operation Dignity in Benghazi receiving medical treatment in Turkish hospitals. After the liberation of Benghazi, soldiers found Turkish made explosives, weapons and ammunition. Turkey at the time was fighting the LNA from behind a Muslim Brotherhood and Al-Qaeda mask. That mask fell during the battle for Tripoli that began in April when the army found that it was fighting Turkish officers who controlled the drones and Turkish experts who trained the gunmen in the militias in Tripoli.

According to the LNA spokesman, what set the battle for Tripoli apart from its predecessors was the Turks direct involvement. Another Libyan government official said that Turkey deployed a large number of drones in Libya to help the Tripoli-based government which has no air force.

Ali Al-Qatrani, a former member of the Libyan Presidency Council, is certain that the security agreement that Fayez Al-Sarraj signed with Erdogan will include arrangements for transferring weapons and for transferring terrorist elements from Idlib in Syria to Libya in order to support the GNA militias because the LNA was on the verge of liberating Tripoli.

Leaked documents disclosed by the Swedish-based Nordic Monitor website offer a glimpse into how far back the Erdogan regimes connections with Libyan jihadists go and how long it has been in the business of transferring jihadist fighters between Libya and Syria. Whereas in the past, his regime facilitated the introduction of Libyan jihadists into Syria after the uprising in 2011, today, the transfer of jihadist fighters has been reversed, and Turkey has accelerated its operations to send President Recep Tayyip Erdogans private paramilitary units (SADAT) and Syrian jihadists, who were previously trained by Libyan commanders, to fight for the GNA.

Intelligence submitted by Russia to the UN Security Council in February 2016 reveals the extent of the collaboration between Turkey and extremist groups in Libya, including the Al-Somood Front, the Benghazi Defence Brigades (BDB) and the Libyan Islamic Fighting Group (LIFG). The Nordic Monitor, citing The Daily Telegraph, relates that former LIFG leader Abdulhakim Belhaj met with Free Syrian Army leaders in Istanbul and on the border with Turkey in 2011. Belhaj sent Libyan fighters to train troops and transferred money and weapons to the opposition groups against Bashar Al-Assad. Soon, dozens of jihadist Libyan fighters joined opposition groups in Syria, and Libya became a transit point for fighters from Western Europe and the Maghreb headed to Syria, the Nordic Monitor writes, adding that now Erdogan is sending to Libya the Syrian mercenaries who Libyans had trained in Misrata and Benghazi.

ERDOGAN CRONY PLUNDERS $70 MILLION FROM SUDAN: Just because Turkey and Qatars expansionist drives sustained a major setback with the overthrow of Omar Al-Bashir regime in Khartoum, this does not mean that Ankara and Doha are going to stop their meddling in Sudan. Most likely they will exploit the current instability in order help the remnants of Al-Bashirs regime and his militias make a comeback. Perhaps, too, they will fuel rebel movements in Darfur, South Kordofan, the Blue Nile and other Sudanese states in order to pressure the new civil leadership in Sudan to end the freeze on the agreements signed between Al-Bashir and Erdogan, especially that involving the Turkish lease of Suakin which Ankara, with Qatari funding, wants to refurbish as a military base and commercial centre to serve as hub for its expansionist designs in the region. The new civilian government in Khartoum has demanded that Ankara halt all activities in Suakin.

In 2017, Turkish state media reported that chiefs-of-staff of the Turkish, Sudanese and Qatari armies met in Khartoum on the fringes of a visit by Erdogan during which they signed military and security cooperation agreements. We signed agreements concerning the security of the Red Sea, said the Sudanese foreign minister at the time, Ibrahim Ghandour. Erdogan said the Suakin deal, one of several signed with Khartoum, was worth $650 million, adding: Theres an annex I wont talk about now.

Under the Suakin deal, Turks would be allowed visa-free entry into that part of Sudan. In light of Ankaras established record of jihadist transfer operations, this was tantamount to an unrestricted license to infiltrate terrorist operatives into the area to undermine Red Sea security, for example, if that served Erdogans interests. The agreement also gave Turkey the right to build port facilities for civilian and military vessels, which raises even more suspicions regarding Erdogans designs on Sudan and elsewhere in Africa.

Al-Bashirs Muslim Brotherhood regime visited countless crimes of corruption on the Sudanese people before the grassroots uprising that overthrew him last April. Interpols recent arrest of a Turkish businessman close to Erdogan threw into relief a significant dimension of such crimes. In December, the Sudanese Prosecutors Office for Illicit Gains issued an arrest warrant for Oktay Ercan, a Turkish citizen whom Al-Bashir had awarded Sudanese citizenship and who changed his name to Oktay Shaban Hosni Ali, for having embezzled around $70 million from a single business deal. With the help of his connections with Al-Bashirs regime, a company he owns was given the right to oversee expenditures using a $120 million loan granted by the Islamic Development Bank. However, he allegedly used the money to buy equipment that was cheaper than listed and upped operational costs. Ercan, aka Shaban, also won a contract through a spurious bidding process to import uniforms for the Sudanese army and, by virtue of an agreement between Al-Bashir and Erdogan, his company obtained a license to market 60 per cent of Sudanese cotton. He faces corruption charges in Sudan for other illicit dealings in oil and minerals.

*A version of this article appears in print in the 30 January, 2020 edition of Al-Ahram Weekly.

Search Keywords:

Short link:


Krueger: With some care over the years, the old family barn keeps standing
Since Meghan Markle has already moved to Canada to start a new life, that leaves Kate Middleton to deal with royal duties. In return, however, it gives her more time with Queen Elizabeth II.

It is reported that the head of the monarchy and the Duchess of Cambridge have a very special bond.

Oftentimes, royal watchers see Kate wearing some of Queen Elizabeth II's beautiful pieces of jewelry, including tiaras, necklaces, earrings and brooches. Lucky for Kate, she can wear whatever what is in the Queen's collection whenever she wants.

Anything Kate Wants, Kate Gets

According to the royal author Katie Nicholl, "Kate gets the pick of the jewels for big occasions, and the Queen is happy to open up her jewelry box. Generally, Kate is allowed to borrow whatever she fancies."

During the NATO reception at Buckingham Palace, Kate wore the large teardrop earrings, which has four diamonds framed by a cluster of round diamonds. It was also worn by the 93-year-old monarch at the 2012 State Opening of Parliament.

The Cartier Halo Tiara made the Duchess a true fairytale bride by wearing it. It was one of the Queen's 18th birthday presents that she lent to Kate on her wedding day.

The Lover's Knot Tiara was given to Princess Diana on a permanent loan until her death in 1997. It was initially made for Queen Mary as a replica of a tiara owned by her grandmother. But when she died in 1953, Queen Elizabeth II inherited it.

Kate wore the Lover's Knot Tiara in 2015 and during the 2016 Diplomatic Receptions held at Buckingham Palace.

Kate likes brooches, and since 2012, it is a tradition that she wears an Irish Guards Brooch on St. Patrick's Day parade. Before her, Princess Anne wore it every year from 2002 until 2011.

Queen Elizabeth II's personal dresser Angela Kelly is now one of the Duchess' friends. She is in charge of the Queen's personal jewelry collection and oversees the loans.

"Unusually for Kate, who favors jeans and cashmere sweaters over designer labels, the instruction has been 'go for glamor and don't hold back," Kelly said.

The Queen's Fashion

Kelly also wrote a book called "The Other Side of the Coin." In it, she detailed how the Queen's diamonds remains sparkling by using gin and water.

Some other royal secrets she divulged is that the Queen almost always does her own makeup, except during her annual televised Christmas speech.

According to the memoir, Prince Philip also gives Her Majesty fashion advice that one time, during which he was able to convince her to wear a hat backward.

During a 1998 visit to Malaysia, the Queen was about to attend the closing ceremony of the Commonwealth Games when Kelly informed her that the hat they picked out would not suit her.

Kelly tried to convince the Queen that with the shape and design of the hat, she could wear it backward. It was not long until the head of the monarch consulted her husband.

"After an amusing conversation, in which I imagine the Duke didn't hold back, the queen had decided to wear the hat the wrong way around."
YEREVAN.  Zhoghovurd daily of the Republic of Armenia (RA) writes: At the EAEU session, the RA government raised issues related to the transportation of vehicles from Armenia to the territory of the Republic of Kazakhstan. It is well known that the potential buyers - Kazakhs - of cars [in Armenia] have not set foot in the auto market [of the country] for more than two weeks. The Kazakh side has created serious problems for Armenia residents selling cars.

It turns out that Armenians had no right to sell cars to Kazakhstan after entering the EEU during the transitional period, and they were to be used only by RA citizens permanently residing in Armenia.

Zhoghovurd daily had written that Armenias Deputy Prime Minister Mher Grigoryan is dealing with this issue. To note, he is on a working visit to Kazakhstan these days and is participating in the EEU session. The Deputy Prime Minister had told us that he would raise this issue.

Yesterday, Zhoghovurd daily had a phone conversation with RA Deputy Prime Minister Mher Grigoryan, and inquired whether the RA government had raised this issue at the EEU session to defend the rights of RA citizens.

In response to our question, RA Deputy Prime Minister Mher Grigoryan said that bilateral consultations had been held on the issue of transportation of vehicles from Armenia to the territory of the Republic of Kazakhstan. Judging by the situation, it can be assumed that the Kazakh side is quite combat-ready in this matter.
The Wuhan coronavirus has spread throughout the world since the first cases were detected in central China in December. At least 200 people have died and more than 9,800 have been infected, as the World Health Organization (WHO) declared the outbreak a public health emergency of international concern.

China's National Health Commission has confirmed the virus can be transmitted from person to person through "droplet transmission" -- where a virus is passed on due to an infected person sneezing or coughing -- as well as by direct contact.

There are more than 140 confirmed cases of Wuhan coronavirus -- but no deaths so far -- in more than 20 countries outside mainland China.

A number of countries, such as the United States and Japan, have evacuated their nationals on flights from Wuhan, capital of Hubei province.

This is a full list of places outside mainland China with confirmed cases of the Wuhan coronavirus.

Australia (at least 9 cases)

A second novel coronavirus case has been confirmed in Queensland, Australia, the Chief Health Officer announced on Thursday. Victoria also confirmed its third case -- bringing the total number of coronavirus cases in Australia to nine.

The second case for Queensland is a 42-year-old Chinese woman from Wuhan. She was a member of the tour group with a 44-year-old man confirmed with the virus on Wednesday.

She is receiving treatment in isolation at Gold Coast University Hospital and is in stable condition, according to the statement from the health officer.

On Wednesday, Prime Minister Scott Morrison announced the government is negotiating plans to evacuate more than 600 Australian nationals from Hubei province. They would be quarantined for 14 days on Christmas Island, an Australian territory that currently hosts a largely empty immigration detention center.

The latest Australian government travel advice for China is to "reconsider your need to travel."

Cambodia (at least 1 case)

Cambodia reported its first case of Wuhan coronavirus on Monday -- a 60-year-old Chinese man who flew into the country from Wuhan with three family members. They tested negative for the virus, according to a Ministry of Information statement. The man's condition was stable and he only showed mild symptoms, it said.

Canada (at least 3 cases)

Canada has a total of three confirmed cases of coronavirus -- two in Ontario and a third in British Columbia -- according to public health officials.

A Canadian couple tested positive for the Wuhan coronavirus in Ontario -- both the man and woman had visited Wuhan before getting ill.

The Canadian government has warned its citizens against all travel to Hubei province, including the cities of Wuhan, Huanggang and Ezhou. It said the risk of the new coronavirus spreading within Canada remained low.

Finland (at least 1 case)

Finland is the latest country to confirm a case of the Wuhan coronavirus. The patient, a 32-year-old woman from Wuhan, arrived in the country on January 23, traveling the same day to a village in the northern Lapland region, according to CNN's affiliate MTV3 Finland.

She developed respiratory symptoms and fever on Sunday and went to the emergency room on Tuesday, MTV3 Finland reports.

France (at least 6 cases)

A sixth case of coronavirus has been confirmed in France, according to the head of the country's health department, Jerome Salomon.

The sixth confirmed case is a French doctor who had been in contact with a patient in Asia, a spokesman for France's health department told CNN.

France was the first European country to confirm cases of the Wuhan coronavirus, according to Salomon.

The fifth case is the daughter of an 80-year-old Chinese tourist, who is one of the first four confirmed patients, France's Health Minister Agnes Buzyn said on French television BFMTV.

Germany (at least 5 cases)

Germany has confirmed its fifth case of Wuhan coronavirus, in the southern state of Bavaria, according to a statement from the Bavarian Health Ministry on Thursday.

The male patient is employed at the same workplace as the other four people who contracted the virus from a co-worker visiting from China.

The Chinese staff member is originally from Shanghai and has since flown back to China. She felt ill on the flight back and tested positive for the coronavirus after her return to Shanghai.

The statement said that no further employees who work for the company in Bavaria tested positive for the virus. Around 110 people who were in close contact with all infected patients are still being tested for the novel coronavirus.

These German cases are significant because most people diagnosed with the virus outside of China have recently traveled to the country -- but several of these German cases did not.

Hong Kong (at least 12 cases)

The semi-autonomous city of Hong Kong, which borders mainland China, has confirmed 12 cases of Wuhan coronavirus.

Hong Kong has temporarily closed some of its borders with China and has stopped issuing travel permits to mainland tourists.

West Kowloon station, where high-speed rail runs between the city and mainland China, is closed until further notice. Half of all incoming flights from China have been canceled. Residents of Hubei province, where the virus was first reported, are also being denied entry to the city.

Most government offices, except those involved in emergency and essential services, will be closed for the rest of the week. All primary and secondary schools will also be shut until at least February 17. Long queues are seen outside pharmacies as people look to buy face masks. This comes as Hong Kong recalls painful memories from the severe acute respiratory syndrome (SARS) outbreak in 2003, a pandemic that killed more than 280 people in the city.

India (at least 1 case)

India's Ministry of Health and Family confirmed the first case of coronavirus in the country on Thursday.

The patient is a student in the southern state of Kerala and was studying at Wuhan University.

The ministry said in a statement that the patient tested positive for the virus and is in isolation in hospital. No further details were given about the patient, such as age or gender, but the ministry said they were stable and being closely monitored.

India's first case will inevitably raise further fears over the global spread of the virus. China and India currently account for about 37% of the global population of roughly 7.7 billion, with China home to about 1.4 billion people and India to 1.3 billion.

Italy (at least 2 cases)

Italy has confirmed two cases of coronavirus, Italian Prime Minister Giuseppe Conte said at a news conference in Rome on Thursday.

The individuals affected are two Chinese tourists who arrived in Rome a couple of days ago, Conte said.

"We have already prepared all the precautionary measures to isolate these two cases," Conte said, adding that he will convene the Council of Ministers on Friday to take "further measures."

"There is no reason to create social alarm or panic," Conte concluded.

Italy's Health Minister Roberto Speranza said the government would try to trace the tourists' journeys while in Italy, adding that the situation was serious, but under control.

"The timeliness of the intervention makes us think that there are no other people exposed," Ippolito said.

Japan (at least 14 cases)

Japan's Ministry of Health and Welfare said on Friday it had identified three more cases of coronavirus in the country, bringing the total to 17.

Of the three new cases, one is a female bus guide who developed a fever after working with a driver who had contracted the virus. The other two cases are men in their 30s and 50s who returned from Wuhan on government-chartered flights on Thursday. Both men showed no symptoms of the virus.

At least two people with the coronavirus in Japan have no travel history to Wuhan. One, a man in his 60s, is a bus driver who drove tour groups from Wuhan for nine days before getting ill. His is the first case of suspected human-to-human transmission in Japan.

A third plane carrying Japanese evacuees from Wuhan arrived in Tokyo on Friday.

Notably, the Japanese flights also carried medical supplies for the Chinese government. They included thousands of surgical masks, safety goggles and 50 sets of protective suits.

Macao (at least 7 cases)

Macao, a semi-autonomous city in southern China, has confirmed at least seven cases of the Wuhan coronavirus.

The outbreak has had a devastating impact on tourism in the gambling enclave, which relies heavily on mainland Chinese visitors. Gambling is illegal on the mainland and Lunar New Year is usually a particularly busy time for Macao's casinos. But not this year -- tourism to the city has dropped 73.6% year-on-year, the Macao government announced Wednesday.

All residents of Hubei province and non-residents who traveled to Hubei in the past 14 days will be denied entry to Macao, until they show a doctor's letter certifying they are clear, according to Secretary for Administration and Justice Cheong Weng-chon. Anyone who has been to Hubei in the past two weeks is also banned from entering casinos.

All public services will be closed for the rest of January, and civil servants are advised to stay home. All primary and secondary schools will be closed until further notice, and all banks are closed until Monday.

Malaysia (at least 8 cases)

Malaysia has confirmed eight cases -- all Chinese nationals. The cases include a four-year old child, and a 52-year-old man, according to state news agency Bernama.

Malaysia has temporarily suspended all visas for Chinese citizens from Hubei province. It has also established an emergency response team at its Beijing embassy to provide assistance to Malaysian citizens in China.

Nepal (at least 1 case)

There was one confirmed case in Nepal -- a 31-year-old Nepali PhD student who lives in Wuhan but flew to Nepal earlier this month. He was admitted to hospital in Kathmandu on January 13, but was subsequently released on January 17 after his condition improved.

The Health Ministry said people in close contact with the patient have been identified and are being monitored.

Philippines (at least 1 case)

The Philippines has confirmed its first case of the Wuhan coronavirus, health secretary Francisco Duque said Thursday in a statement.

The patient, a 38-year-old woman from China, arrived in the country from Wuhan on January 21 via transit in Hong Kong, according to Duque. The patient began experiencing coughing symptoms on January 25 and consulted doctors at a government hospital.

Officials at the Department of Health sent her samples to the Victoria Infectious Disease Reference Laboratory in Melbourne, Australia to be tested. It was confirmed on Thursday that the patient's samples tested positive for the Wuhan coronavirus.

Duque said the patient is currently asymptomatic.

The Department of Health stressed it is "on top of the evolving situation" but urged the public to wear surgical masks and avoid crowded places if they are experiencing symptoms, such as coughing and a fever.

Russia

Russia has identified its first two Wuhan coronavirus cases, both Chinese citizens, Russia's TASS news agency reported, citing Deputy Prime Minister of Russia Tatyana Golikova.

One patient is being treated in Zabaikalsky region, which borders China, with the second case detected in the Tyumen region in Western Siberia, which borders Kazakhstan, TASS reports.

According to Golikova, Russia will begin evacuating its citizens from Chinese provinces of Wuhan and Hubei, where there are 300 and 341 Russians respectively.

Singapore (at least 13 cases)

Singapore confirmed three additional coronavirus cases on Thursday, making the total number of confirmed cases in the country 13, according to a statement from the Ministry of Health.

The new cases are three Chinese women from Wuhan who landed in Singapore from January 21-22. The country's top health department also said in the statement that all 13 confirmed cases are in stable condition and "most are improving."

It advised citizens to "defer all travel to Hubei province and all non-essential travel to mainland China."

Minister of Trade and Industry Chan Chun Sing said at a news conference the government will distribute four masks each to 1.3 million households starting from Saturday. He added that the country has "sufficient masks" if they manage the supply appropriately.

The health ministry earlier urged employers to implement flexible work arrangements, such as working from home or telecommuting, for employees who have been to China in the past 14 days.

South Korea (at least 11 cases)

South Korea has 11 confirmed cases of the coronavirus, according to a news release by the Korean Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (KCDC) on Friday.

Two of the four newly confirmed cases are family members of the sixth patient, who himself was the first reported case of human-to-human transmission in South Korea, according to the statement.

"An in-depth investigation was conducted on eight people who had contact with the sixth patient, and from the two members of his family, positive results were found," the statement added.

In a separate briefing, the director of KCDC Jung Eun-kyeong, announced that the eighth coronavirus patient is a 62-year-old woman who entered South Korea on January 23 on a flight from Wuhan.

The patient had been quarantined in a treatment facility and four immediate response teams are in the field investigating the patients' past movement, Jung said.

A charter flight repatriating South Korean citizens from Wuhan arrived at Seoul's Gimpo airport Friday morning local time with 368 citizens on board.

According to government estimates, there are about 700 South Koreans in Wuhan who registered to return to South Korea. The South Korean government initially planned to send two charter flights but only one flight has so far been approved by the Chinese government.

South Korea is sending $5 million worth of emergency humanitarian aid to China, the South Korean Foreign Affairs Ministry announced on Thursday.

Sri Lanka (at least 1 case)

There's one case of the Wuhan coronavirus in Sri Lanka.

A statement from the health ministry assured residents that local hospitals were prepared to handle any further outbreak. The government is contacting people who may have come into contact with the single case to detect potential contagion.

Taiwan (at least 9 cases)

The Center for Disease Control of Taiwan on Thursday confirmed an additional case of the Wuhan coronavirus, bringing the island's total number of confirmed cases to nine.

The patient began developing symptoms on January 27 and was admitted to hospital the next day. The CDC said that the patient's husband worked in Wuhan and returned to Taiwan on the January 12 with a cough and a cold. The husband is also being tested and monitored. The CDC says it will monitor the family and trace the patient's close contacts.

At present all nine confirmed patients in Taiwan are in stable condition.

All residents of Hubei province are banned from entering the self-governing island. Chinese students from other provinces will also be denied entry for two months. The export of face masks is also temporarily suspended to ensure stable supply.

Thailand (at least 19 cases)

Thailand confirmed a further five cases of Wuhan coronavirus on Friday, bringing the total number to 19.

Four out of the five new cases are Chinese citizens from Wuhan. The fifth case is a Thai taxi driver. He is the first Thai citizen infected with the virus who has no record of traveling to China, but was exposed to individuals who had traveled from China. Two of the 19 cases are Thai citizens.

Thai airports are now screening all Chinese visitors for symptoms. Thai citizens are also being asked to report anyone who seems to have fallen ill after recently traveling from China.

United Arab Emirates (at least 4 cases)

The UAE confirmed four cases of the coronavirus, the UAE's Ministry of Health and Prevention said in a statement Wednesday.

The four reported cases are all within a single Chinese family from Wuhan, the ministry said.

"The general health situation is not a cause of concern," the statement added.

United Kingdom (at least 2 cases)

The UK has confirmed its first two cases of Wuhan coronavirus in the northwest of England, according to a statement Friday by the chief medical officer for England.

"We can confirm that two patients in England, who are members of the same family, have tested positive for coronavirus. The patients are receiving specialist NHS (National Health Service) care, and we are using tried and tested infection control procedures to prevent further spread of the virus," Chris Whitty said.

"The NHS is extremely well-prepared and used to managing infections and we are already working rapidly to identify any contacts the patients had, to prevent further spread," he added.

"We have been preparing for UK cases of novel coronavirus and we have robust infection control measures in place to respond immediately. We are continuing to work closely with the World Health Organization and the international community as the outbreak in China develops to ensure we are ready for all eventualities."

United States (at least 6 cases)

The United States has confirmed six coronavirus cases, including one in Washington state, two in California, one in Arizona, and two in Illinois.

The State Department is telling US citizens not to travel to China amid the outbreak. In an advisory posted on the State Department website Friday, the agency elevated its travel warning to "Do Not Travel" and warned of possible "travel restrictions to be put into effect with little or no advance notice."

The advisory said US citizens currently in China should consider leaving using commercial means.

The US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention on Wednesday confirmed that 195 passengers who have been evacuated from Wuhan arrived at March Air Reserve Base in Riverside County, California, Wednesday. None of the passengers show signs of sickness, CDC officials said during a news conference Wednesday afternoon, but they will remain under a voluntary quarantine at the air base.

Vietnam (at least 5 cases)

Vietnam's Ministry of Health announced Friday that the number of confirmed Wuhan coronavirus infections had increased to five in total in the country, according to an online government statement.

The statement said the Ministry of Health has reported that the infected patients include two Chinese nationals and three Vietnamese citizens who had traveled to Wuhan.
Dear Jill, one thing I do that has benefited me greatly is buy ahead of our needs. We have a specific cereal we eat each day, and I now know how to buy it at its lowest price, then stock up for a few months worth. At times, though, I find that I have overbought. I was going through my cabinets and found canned goods that have expired on the shelf. I felt terrible about this, as we try to be good stewards of our finances and not be wasteful. Do you have any tips on how to avoid this situation?  Jane R.

One of the keys to saving on groceries is shopping sales cycles. The same box of cereal that sells for $1.79 one week may be $3.79 just a few weeks later. Using coupons with low sales prices is important, too  by pairing low sale prices with high-value coupons, we can often bring products home for less than half their normal, non-sale prices.

However, when you score an especially great deal, its certainly tempting to take home a large quantity of something you know youll use! My children enjoy a popular brand of oat cereal, and I recently saw it on clearance for 83 cents a box. The cereal inside does not expire for 11 months, but there was a coupon on the back of the box that was expiring sooner.

It appeared that the store was moving these boxes out so that they would not have expired coupons visible on the products packaging. Of course, I had multiple $1-off-2 coupons for the same brand of cereal, and 33 cents per box, after the coupon, was a steal. I stocked up on quite a few boxes, knowing that my children have plenty of time to eat it.

Whenever youre buying more than you may use over a three- to six-month span, you do run the risk of those items either disappearing to the back of your shelves, only to be remembered and rediscovered later. I try to go through my pantry once a month and peek at the expiration dates on my products. If food items are getting close to expiring, I will move them to the front so we can consume them soon, or I will bag them up to take to our local food pantry.

ADVERTISEMENT

Im a big believer in donating to local food banks and food pantries. They help people right in your community, and if youre an avid couponer, you often havent spent very much to buy the grocery items in the first place. Couponing and sale-shopping has definitely made me more generous in this way, and when I find fantastic deals (like the 33-cent cereal above), Im always happy to buy a few more packages that will be earmarked for our local pantry as soon as they come home with me.

To keep your home stockpile under control, I recommend going through it monthly. I try to keep my shelves sorted in order of expiration dates, with the soonest-to-expire items up front. Some shoppers have written to tell me that they find it helpful to write the expiration date large in black marker on the front of the package before putting it on the shelves, so that its easily readable.

If you like this tip, find out what kinds of products your local food pantry or food bank will accept. It may surprise you to hear that many of them accept non-food products as well, such as household cleaners and personal-care items like toothpaste and shampoo. One of my local pantries even accepts cosmetic items like hair color and makeup, as they feel access to these items may help people look their best at a time when they may be seeking work or needing a confidence boost.

If a food product does expire on your shelves, dont fret  it may still be safe to eat. I like the website StillTasty.com , which allows you to search specific packaged food items to see if they are still safe to consume after the dates printed on the packaging.
Close Get email notifications on {{subject}} daily!

Your notification has been saved.

There was a problem saving your notification.

{{description}}

Email notifications are only sent once a day, and only if there are new matching items.
Tihar Jail authorities will approach a Delhi court, seeking a new date for the execution of the four convicts in the Nirbhaya gang-rape and murder case, an official said on Saturday.

According to Tihar officials, the prison authorities are approaching the Patiala House court for fixing a new date for the execution of all four convicts in view of the rejection of convict Vinay's mercy petition by the President.

This comes after President Ram Nath Kovind rejected the mercy petition of second death row convict -- Vinay Sharma -- in the case, earlier today.

Meanwhile, Akshay Thakur, another death row convict in the Nirbhaya gang-rape and murder case, on Saturday filed a mercy petition before the President of India. Thakur has become the third convict in the case to file a mercy petition before the President.

So far, President Ram Nath Kovind has rejected the mercy petitions of convicts Vinay Sharma and Mukesh Singh in the matter.

A Delhi court had on Friday stayed till further orders the execution of four convicts -- Akshay Thakur, Mukesh Singh, Pawan Gupta, and Vinay Sharma -- which was earlier scheduled to take place on February 1.

The case pertains to the gang-rape and brutalising of a 23-year-old paramedical student in a moving bus on the night of December 16, 2012, by six people including a juvenile in Delhi. The woman had died at a Singapore hospital a few days later.

One of the five adults accused, Ram Singh, had allegedly committed suicide in the Tihar Jail during the trial of the case.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
Seeking to maintain their representatives' influence in government, factions of Iraq's Popular Mobilization Units (PMU) have set conditions for selecting the next prime minister. Meanwhile, President Barham Salih told parliamentary blocs Jan. 29 to name a prime minister. He gave them until Feb. 1 to do so, saying that otherwise he would select a candidate himself.

The PMU is an Iraqi paramilitary coalition, but many of its factions support Iran. Qais al-Khazali, secretary-general of one of those powerful Iran-backed factions, Asaib Ahl al-Haq, specified in a Jan. 27 tweet the conditions for choosing the next prime minister. He noted that any candidate must be independent, must be exclusively of Iraqi nationality, must pledge to fulfill parliaments decision of ousting foreign troops and must implement the "oil for reconstruction" agreement with China.

Kataib Hezbollah, another of the Iran-backed factions, had already listed its conditions for the next prime minister in a Dec. 17 statement calling for a candidate who can face the Zionist-American-Saudi project in Iraq.

These conditions are being used by the PMU factions to ensure a balance of powers, which brought [Adel] Abdul Mahdi to the premiership," writer and political analyst Ihsan al-Shammari, director of the Baghdad-based Iraqi Center for Political Thought, told Al-Monitor. "His departure would shake this balance."

Abdul Mahdi resigned in November under the pressure of mass public protests calling for a new government. He remains a caretaker prime minister until a new one is selected.

"The conditions are among the obstacles the factions are using to hinder the selection of the next prime minister," Shammari continued. "These conditions have nothing to do with the demands of the protesters, who are calling for an independent figure who can liberate Iraq from its dependence on foreign countries.

He described the PMU stipulations as political bumpers to protect the factions that want guarantees about the next prime minister's policies. These conditions could also be aimed at securing some privileges, not only at the level of the Iraqi government, but also at the level of international bodies, he said.

Shammari argued that the factions' conditions also don't align with the demands of many political forces. These forces, unlike the factions, aren't demanding that the Chinese agreement be implemented. This indicates that a foreign party intervened in setting these conditions.

He asserted that Khazali, through his list of conditions, seeks to entrench himself as a leader with influence, making it imperative to negotiate with him regarding Abdul Mahdi's replacement.

Contrary to this view, Mahmoud al-Rubaie, spokesman for the political bureau of Khazali's Asaib Ahl al-Haq, used the term resistance movements to describe the PMU factions. He told Al-Monitor that the conditions are consistent with the demands of peaceful protesters, who must be differentiated from gangs trying to implement the agendas of hostile countries.

Rubaie dismissed Salihs deadline to select a prime minister. The president of the republic is not entitled to choose any candidate, and his role is limited to receiving the names of the candidates proposed by the concerned parties, he said.

Political analyst Nazar Haidar, who heads the Iraq Media Center in Washington, told Al-Monitor that although political forces and influential parties insist on setting requirements for the next premier, only the people, and the protesters in particular, are the ones who have the right to set conditions for naming the new prime minister."

Where have they been since the resignation of the current government? Haidar asked. Doesn't that mean that they are setting conditions to prevent the nomination of the new prime minister?

Meanwhile, a dispute between Salih and the PMU reached a head after Salih refused to assign as prime minister the candidate of the Iran-backed al-Bina coalition, Asaad al-Eidani. At the time, Kataib Hezbollah accused Salih of yielding to the US desire to reject the candidate proposed by al-Bina, which claims to be the largest parliamentary bloc.

Asaib Ahl al-Haq spokesman Naim al-Aboudi told Al-Monitor, It is important for the prime minister to have the characteristics imposed by the PMU factions to be a strong leader who is not affiliated with current political forces and who meets peoples demands.

Abbas Abboud, former editor-in-chief of Iraq's official newspaper, al-Sabah, told Al-Monitor political blocs "no longer have the final say in determining the character of the prime minister because the public is influential and strong and can't be tamed easily."

He said early elections, if they happen, may "turn the tables on current forces, perhaps, and settle matters in favor of the public.

Abboud added, however, Political forces can pull the rug from under the protesters feet with their political experience in managing conflicts." As for the PMU, its conditions "constitute a reminder that the resistance and factions have a strong presence.

All these forces want what they want. The PMU factions are intervening in the choice of prime minister by imposing their conditions, at a time when protesters are calling for a prime minister that pleases them. Meanwhile, political blocs are singing a similar tune.

Salih, meanwhile, seems stuck amid heated political disputes conveyed in messages, blogs and tweets from leaders of factions or political blocs.
The number of devices connected to the internet continues to climb, with Intel Corp. estimating that number will grow to 200 billion this year, enabled by the cloud and mobile device technology. The military is far from exempt from this mega-trend, as ships, weapons, drones and even combat gear become equipped with sensors. These smart military devices demonstrate the dramatic increase in internet-of-things devices everywhere, including at the tactical edge.

The sheer number of edge devices gathering massive quantities of different types of data, makes sending everything to a centralized cloud infrastructure for processing and storage less than practical and extremely resource-intensive. For overseas warfighters in particular, sending that data to a Defense Department or intelligence community cloud provider resident in the United States can mean the loss of precious time and intelligence -- a delay those on the front line cant afford.

The fog of war and information dominance

Enter fog computing, which refers to a low-level cloud that sits closer to the tactical edge and offers a middle ground between cloud computing (standard centralized data centers) and edge computing (where computing occurs locally, on the connected device). The fog layer consists of servers, closer to the edge, which offer intermediate processing, with data only going back to a centralized cloud as required.

Fog computing presents significant benefits to defense forces in combat, especially in remote areas where communications are limited. Only essential information will make its way to the cloud, saving precious bandwidth and increasing the speed of information-sharing. This provides the U.S. military with an advantage when it comes to acting on real-time data and intelligence.

Fog computing introduces a new paradigm

Last March, the National Institute of Standards and Technology published a conceptual model for fog computing, describing it as "a horizontal, physical or virtual resource paradigm that resides between smart end-devices and traditional cloud or data centers." It also outlined numerous characteristics of fog computing, including low latency, a large number of nodes and real-time analytics -- all of which are particularly relevant in a military context.

Cloud providers have adapted to fit this paradigm. For example, Microsoft's Azure Stack Edge extends the hybrid cloud to the edge of your business (or mission), while Amazon Web Services' AWS Snowball Edge boasts that it is designed for rugged deployments in unfriendly environments. Fog computing, particularly when operating in conjunction with edge computing, can greatly improve latency and security, with less data sent and stored to the centralized cloud.

Sharing data in the fog with cross-domain technology

Administrators still must ensure that any data processed in the fog layer is protected, including data at multiple classification levels (e.g., Unclassified, Secret, and Top Secret). Just as multiple clouds exist for different classification levels, multiple fog layers will be developed at different classification levels. As with the cloud, edge and fog computing users will need to move data between multiple security levels so it can be used to its full potential -- and that can only be done with cross-domain technology.

Cross-domain cloud technology allows for data sharing between various networks and classification levels, monitoring those data transfers and ensuring only correct, authorized and sanitized information is moved. The same holds true in the fog.

Smart or IoT devices at the tactical edge run at varying classification levels. To be effective, the data they collect must be able to be shared seamlessly between those different levels, with proper redactions, data validation and sanitization. Data gathered from unclassified drones or wearable devices, for example, may need to be pushed up to a higher classified level for action.

Lowering latency and offering real-time insights is only half the challenge on the battlefield. Cross-domain technologies and fog computing allow information gathered from the exploding number of sensors and devices to be rapidly and securely shared between network levels locally -- without having to be sent back to cloud providers and servers in the United States.

The best decisions, even in the fog

The bottom line is that for the tactical IoT to be fully and securely realized, cross-domain technologies are required. They allow crucial data processing to take place closer to the network edge, ensuring warfighters on the front lines can make the best and fastest decisions possible.
Copyright 1995 - . All rights reserved. The content (including but not limited to text, photo, multimedia information, etc) published in this site belongs to China Daily Information Co (CDIC). Without written authorization from CDIC, such content shall not be republished or used in any form. Note: Browsers with 1024*768 or higher resolution are suggested for this site.

0108263 License for publishing multimedia online



Registration Number: 130349 Registration Number: 130349
SAN FRANCISCO (BCN)

Officials with City College of San Francisco acknowledged being unprepared during a hearing at City Hall on Friday, called by supervisors to examine how recent class cuts affect low-income students and those of color.

The hearing called by Supervisor Shamann Walton in front the Joint City, School District, and City College Select Committee aimed to investigate how the cancellation of more than 300 classes from the school's Spring 2020 semester impacted students.

"These decisions were made without proper community input and the way City College handled this situation has brought us to where we are today, with the city needing to step up to work to provide the resources to support our most vulnerable populations who would be and are disproportionately impacted by these cuts," Walton said. "We do deserve to know why these cut classes were chosen."

Walton also took issue with the cancellation of all classes held at the Southeast Community College campus, located within his district.

"Historically, these campuses came into these neighborhoods to serve a community that did not previously have access to the college. However, as the years have passed, the offerings and the commitment to these neighborhoods have become smaller and smaller, without engagement. At a time when we need to be embracing our African American community members, our students of color, our seniors; it's worrying to see the college take these actions," he said.

During a presentation, however, city college representatives failed to provide the committee with hard data about its students of color, those with disabilities and seniors.

"It is impossible to have a conversation about closing the achievement gap if we don't even know what the racial demographic of the students of City College is," said Supervisor Sandra Fewer.

"It just feels really disrespectful," said Board of Education Commissioner Alison Collins. "You know what courses you offer; you have a history of that information. It may shift from year-to-year but there's nothing here. There's no data at all here."

While school representatives said they were unaware that information had been requested, City College Board of Trustee President Shanell Williams promised to get the committee the right data.

"We'll definitely be working with our administration to provide all the information that has been requested," she said.

"We are not getting any more funding for the state; we have lived above our means for quite some time  but we need to really face the fiscal realities that we're living with at this time and we really need the partnership with the city to be able to get there, to be able to provide that level of support," she said.

"I think it's embarrassing and shameful that the chancellor would let you all walk in here and take hits for the college," Walton said. "It is hard for me to believe -- because I know that you generate reports like, that you have information and data like this -- that you would come in here without that information accidentally."

The hearing is the second on the matter, as the first had been rescheduled because of scheduling conflicts with school officials. The committee will meet again for a third hearing at a later time, Walton said.

Earlier this week, supervisors voted 7-4 to provide $2.7 million emergency funding to restore the cut classes.

Copyright  2020 by Bay City News, Inc. Republication, Rebroadcast or any other Reuse without the express written consent of Bay City News, Inc. is prohibited.
A plane carrying German and foreign nationals evacuated from the Chinese city of Wuhan, the epicentre of the deadly coronavirus outbreak, landed in Germany on Saturday, an AFP reporter said.

The plane carrying 102 German citizens and 26 foreign nationals landed at Frankfurt Airport around 1540 GMT after being delayed when Russia refused to let it land and refuel.

The Moscow airport claimed it had a "lack of capacity" and the Airbus A310 jet was forced to stop in Helsinki instead.

The passengers will be examined for symptoms of the virus, which has killed 259 people in China so far, at a specially equipped facility at the airport in Frankfurt.

Germany's health minister Jens Spahn said on Saturday that none of the passengers had shown any such symptoms.

Those who are cleared will then be quarantined for two weeks at a military base in Germersheim, near Stuttgart.

Germany now has seven confirmed cases of the virus, including the first of human-to-human transmission on European soil.

The patients are all in the southern Bavaria region and comprise of six employees of car parts supplier Webasto and a daughter of one of the workers.

All are in "a very good state of health", Spahn said.

"What worries me are conspiracy theories that spread uncertainty," he added, saying that there were reports that the children of Webasto employees were being turned away from daycare in Germany.

The Wuhan metropolis is at the heart of the SARS-like virus epidemic that has led the World Health Organization to declare it an international public health emergency.

The city of 11 million has been subject to an unprecedented lockdown, preventing residents from leaving in a bid to stop the virus from spreading further.

Numerous countries, including France, Britain, Japan and South Korea, have already begun airlifting their citizens out of Wuhan.

In Germany's Palatinate region where the evacuees will be quarantined some locals had managed to maintain a sense of humour about the affair.

"We have survived the French, we have survived the hippies (a reference to a famous 1972 rock festival)a virus from China is not going to immediately kill us," said a 72-year-old local, quoted by the DPA news agency.

 2020 AFP
During her teenage years, Gabriella Smith did scuba diving off the Channel Islands of Southern California as part of a marine biology camp. She remembered a nighttime dive when she was surrounded by bioluminescent plankton. Their electric blue colors left an impression on her that she never forgot.

Now 28, Smith has taken a different path via the Curtis Institute and Princeton University to become one of the nations leading young composers. Her works have been performed at Chamber Music Northwest, the Cabrillo Festival of Contemporary Music, and Bravo! Vail Music Festival. Recently the Los Angeles Philharmonic, the Cincinnati Symphony, and the WDR Sinfonieorchester based in Colgne, Germany, have championed her music.

Soon, the Oregon Symphony will play the world premiere of her Bioluminescence Chaconne, which the symphony commissioned.

Although she has not gone scuba-diving in a long while, Smith loves the outdoors, and the environment inspires several of her works, including Field Guide, Riprap and Tidalwave Kitchen. Sometimes she uses a hydrophone, a microphone that can capture sound underwater.

Actually, I didnt start my newest piece with memory of the dive in the Channel Islands, explained Smith. I started it, knowing that it would be a chaconne. The resulting sound from the music reminded me of the bioluminescent plankton. So I added that to the title.

Written for a full orchestra and finished on Jan.2, Bioluminescence Chaconne is a one-movement work that lasts about 14 minutes.

A chaconne involves variations on a repeated chord progression, explained Smith, that is passed about in the orchestra. One thing that makes this chaconne different from a lot of older ones is that instead of the chord progression repeating exactly each time, mine compresses and expands. So the first iteration of the chord progression takes about three minutes, then each variation after that gets shorter and shorter until each chord becomes only an eighth note long. It takes is only about five seconds to play. Then the chaconne goes back to the three-minute version.

Smith uses program called Logic, which is a digital-audio workspace, to get many of the sounds that she imagines. Her technique could be described as building a multilayered cake with lots of different icings and treats.

Logic lets you record in anything you want  music or text, said Smith. I am a string player and write a lot of techniques for stringed instruments that electronic sounds cant mimic. I play those into the program, and then I layer them all on top of each other. I usually sing the brass parts to imitate them or I occasionally use MIDI software for sounds that are unsingable. I bang on different things for the percussion. After layering in the parts, I go back and forth transcribing.

Although Smith started composing when she was 8 years old, she isnt one of those composers who has a steady composing routine.

I am more chaotic, she remarked with a laugh. I compose whenever I feel like it. That works for me.

Her next project is a 30-minute symphony that has been commissioned by the Eugene Symphony and the Santa Rosa Symphony. Like Bioluminescence Chaconne, it may make a vibrant splash.

***

Oregon Symphony plays Bioluminescence Chaconne by Gabriella Smith

Also on the program: Mussorgskys Pictures at an Exhibition, Missy Mizzolis Orbiting Spheres, and Paganinis First Violin Concerto with guest artist Augustin Hadelich.

7:30 p.m. Friday, Feb. 7, Smith Auditorium, 270 Winter St. S.E., Salem 7:30 p.m. Saturday and Monday, 2 p.m. Sunday, Feb. 8-10, Arlene Schnitzer Concert Hall, 1037 S.W. Broadway, Portland, 503-228-1353. Tickets: $24 - $125, orsymphony.org

 James Bash, special to The Oregonian/OregonLive

Subscribe to Oregonian/OregonLive newsletters and podcasts for the latest news and top stories.
By Trend

Russia reported its first two cases of coronavirus on Friday and restricted direct flights to China, its biggest trade partner, as Russians complained of rising prices for medical masks and anti-virus medicine, Trend reports citing Reuters.

The two infected people, both Chinese nationals, are in a stable condition and have been quarantined, officials said.

One of the cases was identified in the Siberian region of Tyumen and the other in the far eastern Zabaykalsky region, Deputy Prime Minister Tatiana Golikova said.

They are under strict supervision, isolated and are receiving the necessary treatment, she told reporters.

The outbreak has infected more than 9,800 people globally, almost all of them in China, and has killed 213 people in China. There are more than 130 confirmed cases in 24 countries and regions outside mainland China.

Russia will halt all direct flights to China from 2100 GMT on Friday, with the exception of those operated by its national airline, Aeroflot, Golikova said.

Four Chinese airlines - China Southern Airlines, Hainan Airlines, Air China, China Eastern - will still be able to fly to Moscow, Golikova and Moscows Sheremetyevo International Airport said.

All China-related flights will be routed through a separate terminal at the Sheremetyevo Airport, Aeroflot said, to minimise contact between those flights and other passengers.

Russias minor Ikar airline will also continue its flights between Moscow and China, the airport said.

Russia has already closed its 4,300 km-long (2,670 mile) land border with China to pedestrians and vehicles in an effort to protect its population, although rail freight continues as does a passenger train service from Moscow to Beijing.

Russia has no plans to limit freight traffic between Russia and China but will restrict Chinese citizens travelling to Russia from Mongolia, Golikova said.

Moscow is also drawing up a government resolution that would suspend the issuance of work visas for Chinese nationals, Golikova said.

Russia plans to evacuate more than 600 Russian citizens now in Wuhan and Hubei province, the epicentre of the outbreak in China, and they will be quarantined for 14 days, she added.

The national anti-monopoly watchdog said it was looking into public complaints it had received about rising prices for medical masks and anti-virus medicine.

---

Follow us on Twitter @AzerNewsAz
There are times when you share things on social media with absolutely no ill intentions, however, it ends up backfiring on you in the worst way possible, and the recent example of just that is our very own Circuit Arshad Warsi.

His attempt to make a joke of the deadly Coronavirus outbreak has landed him in trouble as Twitter users havent taken the meme in a light manner.

The meme is actually a scene from his movie Munna Bhai MBBS wherein local goons trick an Asian tourist into entering their lair, after which they abduct him and put his body into a sack. The meme was basically meant to share the ways to stop the virus from spreading. He captioned it, My friend just sent me this very valuable info...

Check it out here:

My friend just sent me this very valuable info... pic.twitter.com/QKAlH7rttS  Arshad Warsi (@ArshadWarsi) January 31, 2020





Well, we are pretty sure Arshad had no intentions to hurt any sentiments but he ended up getting heat from a lot of people because of the apparent 'racist' nature of his post.

However, its actually quite insensitive to make a meme on something which is as deadly as the Coronavirus, which is claiming lives in an alarming manner.

People did not hold back from letting Arshad know how badly he screwed up and here are some of the reactions:



This is racist actually! Everywhere around people are putting notices to not let the Chinese in which is very absurd.  Shevly Paul (@nyctanthestris) January 31, 2020

Sir, this is racism.  Marx yo. (@yusibusitusi) February 1, 2020

Wow in this age and world a person can not be more racist than this...making jokes out of misery..slow clap  sabeen (@sabeenbedford) January 31, 2020

It's racist.. But anyway we have bollywood so no worries.  super_guy (@amayzing_guy) January 31, 2020

Sir, This is completely out of line in current epidemic situation. Please refrain from such jokes in such a sensitive and disturbing time.  VG (@VeeG48) January 31, 2020

The World Health Organization has declared the Coronavirus outbreak as a global health emergency.

The death toll from the novel coronavirus outbreak in China has risen to 259 with total confirmed cases surging to 11,791.

Meanwhile, India has also reported its first case of coronavirus in Kerala last Thursday and the patient has been kept in an isolation ward, the Union health ministry said.

Here is hoping a cure emerges soon and the killer bug can finally be neutralised.
The two sons of a yoga teacher who was battered to death while on a Skype call have spoken out for the first time since her death.

Maud Steenbeek, 61, died at her home in Heidelberg West, Melbourne, at about 8pm on Tuesday.

Her neighbour Xochil O'Neill, 28, is under police guard in hospital after he allegedly entered Ms Steenbeek's home and killed her.

On Friday, Ms Steenbeek's adult sons Luke and Adam said they were 'truly empty' after their mother's death in an open letter.

However, the sons said they do not 'feel hate and anger' toward their mother's accused killer because he was a 'lost soul' who 'fell in between the cracks of our system'.

Maud Steenbeek (pictured), 61, was discovered dead in her Heidelberg West, Melbourne , home at about 8pm on Tuesday. On Friday, her adult sons Luke and Adam said they were 'truly empty' after their mother's death in an open letter

One of Ms Steenbeek's sons (pictured) allegedly apprehended her neighbour Xochil O'Neill at the scene. However, the sons said they do not 'feel hate and anger' toward their mother's accused killer because he was a 'lost soul' who 'fell in between the cracks of our system'

'Dear Mum, You were the most wonderful, strong, independent, loving mother and woman we ever had the privilege of knowing,' the letter began.

'We are truly empty without your presence but your strength and spirit will keep us all united and together forever.'

The brothers then expressed sympathy for their mother's killer as Ms Steenbeek 'would want us to see this tragedy from all angles'.

'It would be easy for us to feel hate and anger at this moment, but we know you would remind us to always try and see the bigger picture and find compassion for the offender as he is just a 'lost soul trying to find his way,' they wrote.

The brothers ended the letter: 'We will hold you close in our hearts forever Mum and love you more than we could ever express. Your sons Luke and Adam and loyal dog Buddha xox.'

Ms Steenbeek's alleged killer portrayed himself as strange loner and cat lover online.

O'Neill is thought to have been critically injured after being restrained at the former yoga teacher's home.

LUKE AND ADAM'S FULL STATEMENT Dear Mum, You were the most wonderful, strong, independent, loving mother and woman we ever had the privilege of knowing. You gave us strength when we were weak, you gave us guidance when we were lost, you showed us love when we felt hatred. We are truly empty without your presence but your strength and spirit will keep us all united and together forever. It is with a heavy heart writing this that we know you would want us to see this tragedy from all angles. It would be easy for us to feel hate and anger at this moment, but we know you would remind us to always try and see the bigger picture and find compassion for the offender as he is just a 'lost soul trying to find his way'. We will hold you close in our hearts forever Mum and love you more than we could ever express. Your sons Luke and Adam and loyal dog Buddha xox. Advertisement

Ms Steenbeek's neighbour Xochil O'Neill (pictured), 28, allegedly battered the yoga teacher to death. Adam and Luke said they do not 'feel hate and anger' toward their mother's accused killer because he was a 'lost soul'

Mystery surrounds why O'Neill allegedly entered Ms Steenbeek's home on Liberty Parade.

His multiple Facebook profiles paint a picture of a desperately lonely man who outwardly made fun at his own expense.

Just five years ago, when O'Neill would have been about 23, he posted an event highlighting his 'First Kiss'.

The image shows O'Neill kissing a mirror image of himself under the banner 'Best kiss ever'.

He further claimed he was in a relationship with himself.

Xochil O'Neill, 28, was reportedly bashed after he was allegedly found inside a murdered woman's home

First Kiss: Xochil O'Neill posted a picture of himself kissing a mirror image

A fresh-faced Xochil O'Neill in an image posted on one of his Facebook profiles

Detectives spent a full night and most of Wednesday at Ms Steenbeek's property as forensics experts analysed the property.

On Thursday, mourners began arriving at her home with flowers and tributes.

One tribute read: 'RIP Aunty Maude. 'Always lives and never forgotten. The boys are safe with us and never forgotten.'

Another friend posted on Facebook described Ms Steenbeek as a caring and devoted mother.

'An enlightened spirit, a beautiful natured person, a talented yoga teacher who gave her time and energy to many people and she will be sadly missed by all who knew her,' she wrote.

It is understood Ms Steenbeek lived at the property with her two sons who were unfortunately absent when the attack on their mother occurred.

A former student of the yoga trainer told Daily Mail Australia she was in shock on hearing about Ms Steenbeek's bloody demise.

'Maud was my yoga teacher many years ago, she was a lovely compassionate woman (who) lived a quiet life,' she said.

Ms Steenbeek was a welcome face at the Fawkner Leisure Centre where she conducted her classes for many years.

Before police arrived neighbours heard loud screams coming from the property.

A witness said an 'erratic' man covered in blood left the house a short time later with what appeared to be cuts to his arms.

Police spent Tuesday night at the scene of the alleged aggravated burglary in Liberty Parade, Heidelberg West

Detectives talk to neighbours across the road from where the alleged murder took place

The house in Heidelberg West where a 61-year old woman was allegedly murdered on Tuesday

She said the man had been running up and down the street earlier that night with a frantic look in his face.

'He seemed to be completely off his face,' the witness told The Herald Sun.

'We thought he was having an episode you know. Then he was running and we thought ''what the hell?''.

'He was trying to jump into trees. Then he was hiding under a car.'
By AFP

WASHINGTON: US said Friday it was declaring a public health emergency and temporarily banning the entry of foreign nationals who had travelled to China over the past two weeks to contain the spread of a deadly new virus.

Sweeping new restrictions will also be imposed on American citizens, with those returning from the province at the disease's epicentre placed in facilities for mandatory 14-day quarantines, said Health Secretary Alex Azar.

US citizens coming from other parts of China will undergo health screening at ports of entry and then be placed under monitored self-quarantine at home.

ALSO READ: Australia to refuse entry to non-citizens arriving from China

"I have today declared that the coronavirus presents a public health emergency in the United States," said Azar during a briefing at the White House, adding the directives would take effect on February 2 from 5:00 pm eastern time (2200 GMT).

"Foreign nationals, other than immediate family of US citizens and permanent residents, who have traveled in China within the last 14 days will be denied entry into the United States for this time," he added.

The restrictions apply to people who have travelled to the designated areas in the two weeks prior to their attempted entry.

There have been seven confirmed US cases of the 2019 Novel Coronavirus, which originated in a live seafood market in Wuhan, in Hubei province, in December.

The World Health Organization has already declared the epidemic a global emergency, and the Chinese death toll has risen to 259 while total infections reached nearly 12,000, surpassing the SARS epidemic of two decades ago.

Three US airlines, American, Delta and United said they would soon suspend all flights to China.

First federal quarantine in 50 years

Earlier, officials imposed mandatory 14-day quarantine orders on 195 Americans who were air evacuated from Wuhan, the first time a federal directive of this kind was issued for more than 50 years. The last case involved a person who was evaluated for smallpox in the 1960s.

A plane carrying the repatriated citizens, who include diplomats and their families, touched down at the March Air Reserve Base in Riverside, California, on Wednesday and officials initially said the passengers would be asked to voluntarily isolate themselves for up to 72 hours.

Early signs were good, and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) declared that none of the individuals showed symptoms of the 2019 Novel Coronavirus.

One of the individuals tried to leave the base and was placed under quarantine by the state of California, said CDC official Marty Citron, before the federal action.

Questions over test accuracy

The repatriated group submitted samples for testing at the CDC headquarters in Atlanta -- but officials now say they are not certain about the accuracy of their diagnostic tools.

"We are seeing in the cases that are in the hospital, we've seen people who had detectable virus, and they didn't have the technical virus, and then three days later they had detectable virus," said Robert Redfield, the CDC's director.

Given that the extent of asymptomatic transmission was not yet clear, a negative test was not being used as a release criteria.

"It isn't like it's a horrible test, but it is not a test that's absolute," added CDC immunologist Anthony Fauci.

Despite the seemingly drastic actions, the US public "should not let fear or panic guide your actions," said senior CDC official Nancy Messonnier, but instead exercise normal precautions for stopping the spread of respiratory viruses.

These include washing your hands thoroughly for at least 20 seconds, disinfecting surfaces, staying home when sick and covering your cough or sneeze with a tissue and then throwing it in the trash.

"We do not currently recommend the use of facemasks for the general American public," said Messonnier. "This virus is not spreading in your communities."

"Please do not assume that just because someone is of Asian descent that they have this new coronavirus," she added, noting there are four million Chinese Americans in the United States.
WASHINGTON, Jan. 31, 2020 /PRNewswire/ -- Today, at a White House press briefing on the coronavirus, Secretary of Health and Human Services Alex Azar declared a public health emergency in the United States. U.S. citizens returning from Hubei province will be subject to up to a 14-day quarantine. All foreign nationals, except those that are immediate family members of U.S. citizens and permanent residents, who have traveled in China within the last 14 days, will be denied entry into the country. The temporary measures take effect February 2 at 5 p.m. EST. The following is a statement by Dr. Esther D. Brimmer, Executive Director and CEO of NAFSA: Association of International Educators.

"Today's global health crisis requires prompt action and a measured and targeted response to ensure that clear information and resources are delivered to all affected by this serious health threat. At this stage, only source of information on these travel restrictions is a video and transcript of today's press briefing. We await additional administration guidance and official communication on this matter in order to better advise the field of international education.

"What is clear is that this public health crisis and any future response will have wide-reaching and dramatic effects on international education immediately and in the long-term. Even as the country takes steps to respond to this urgent situation, we must remember that international cooperation is part of the solution. As with previous international health emergencies, I have no doubt that international engagement among the world's scientists and researchers will lead the way forward."

More information about the travel restrictions and NAFSA resources may be found at nafsa.org/coronavirus.

About NAFSA: With more than 10,000 members, NAFSA: Association of International Educators is the world's largest nonprofit association dedicated to international education. Visit us at www.nafsa.org/press. To learn more about our advocacy efforts on behalf of international education, visit www.ConnectingOurWorld.org. Resources to guide our members on these issues can be found at www.nafsa.org/reginfo.

SOURCE NAFSA: Association of International Educators

Related Links

http://www.nafsa.org


The federal judge hearing lawsuits over the boat fire that killed 34 people off the Santa Barbara County coast has rejected the boat owners attempt to quash the suits, but is reserving judgment on the application of laws that would limit damages for the victims families.

The scuba diving boat Conception caught fire off Santa Cruz Island on Sept. 2 while all six crew members were asleep. Five of them were able to jump into the water and were rescued by a nearby ship, but one crew member and all 33 passengers were killed.

The boats owners, Glen and Dana Fritzler, and their company, Truth Aquatics, immediately went to court to invoke an 1851 federal law that would virtually eliminate their liability if they could show they had acted prudently and had no reason to suspect any dangerous conditions. That claim remains unresolved, but as relatives of the victims file their own suits, the owners are trying to limit their impact.

In one court filing, the owners lawyers argued that a passenger whose relative has sued them knew or should have known of the risks and hazards inherent in being a passenger ... and therefore knowingly assumed those risks. That argument, which if successful could have led to dismissal of all the suits, was rejected by U.S. District Judge Percy Anderson of Los Angeles.

Past rulings make it clear that assumption of risk is not a valid defense in cases arising at sea, Anderson said Wednesday.

The Fritzlers also cited a 1920 federal law, the Death on the High Seas Act, that allows victims families to recover damages only for their economic losses, such as financial support and funeral costs. It does not provide compensation for emotional harms, such as loss of love, care and companionship, which are available in most wrongful-death suits. It also bars punitive damages.

The 1920 law applies only to accidents at least 3 miles from shore, while the Conception was anchored barely 100 yards offshore when it caught fire. But the boat owners argued that the Supreme Court had applied the same principle to all maritime cases in its 1990 Miles ruling, which limited damages in suits by crew members injured or killed by vessels that were not seaworthy.

Federal appeals courts have differed on the meaning of the ruling. Anderson said Wednesday he cannot determine at this stage in the litigation whether the Conception suits are similarly limited, and would await further arguments and evidence.

On another issue, the judge said punitive damages, if available, could be awarded under federal law if the evidence showed a likelihood of gross negligence or callous disregard for the rights of others by the owners, rather than a more demanding standard set by California law.

Drought Map Track water shortages and restrictions across Bay Area Check the water shortage status of your area, plus see reservoir levels and a list of restrictions for the Bay Areas largest water districts.

John Hillsman, a lawyer for the family member in the case, said Friday that federal law would clearly limit damages for relatives of the dead crew member, but should not restrict suits by the passengers relatives. But he acknowledged it was a complex and controversial issue that would not be resolved quickly.

The case has become bare-knuckles, Hillsman said, citing the owners preemptive suit filed in the days after the fire. He also said families have until July 1 to file their claims with the court.

A lawyer for the boat owners declined to comment on the ruling.

Bob Egelko is a San Francisco Chronicle staff writer. Email: begelko@sfchronicle.com Twitter: @BobEgelko
After opening an office in the city last year, Indian ride-hailing firm Ola said it would officially begin operations in London on February 10. London is one of the world's biggest markets for ride-hailing services, and the expansion is a key development in Ola's international strategy as the company widens its competition with Uber, another SoftBank portfolio firm.

Ola said it will be fully operational from day one in London, where it has signed up more than 20,000 drivers since late November.

The company, which has raised about $3.5 billion to date, emphasized that its platform offers a range of security features, such as a 24/7 helpline for drivers and customers and an in-app emergency button.

Safety is a sensitive subject around the globe, especially in the U.K. capital, which might explain why it took Ola additional months to launch in the city after securing the license in July last year and entering the region in 2018.

In November, TechCrunch obtained a pitch to Ola from a PR firm that specializes in government lobbying, underscoring the kind of cautious footing and lengths that ride-hailing companies are willing to go in order to get things right. Ola denied it was working with the PR firm.

Failing to follow the safety guidelines in pursuit of aggressive expansion demonstrably cost Uber its license in London. The local regulator, TfL, stripped Uber of the license -- for the second time -- late last year after ruling that the American giant did not meet the fit and proper requirements for private hire operators.

In the ruling, TfL noted that it had found more than 14,000 trips on Uber's platform that were taken with drivers who had faked their identity. Uber CEO Dara Khosrowshahi expressed his disappointment at TfLs decision. "This TfL decision is just wrong. Over the last 2 years we have fundamentally changed how we operate in London," he said at the time.

Ubers cabs remain operational in London as the company appeals the decision. Ola says it will continue its collaborative approach with regulators and local authorities, as well as its clear focus on safety, drawing on industry-leading and global best practices.

Story continues

Additionally, Ola says to incentivize drivers on its platform it will not charge them any commission for six weeks. The company, like Uber, roughly charges between 20% to 25% commission on the final fare paid by a passenger, for instance. (It is also offering 25 worth of ride credit to passengers who sign up in the first week after the launch.)

Simon Smith, head of Ola International, said the platform has received overwhelming positive reception since launching in the U.K. in 2018. The startup is operational in 28 boroughs in the U.K., including cities such as Birmingham, Coventry and Warwick, where it claims to have seen more than double-digit growth in rides in the last quarter. To date, Ola has provided more than 3 million rides with more than 11,000 drivers already operating on the platform in the U.K.

We are working closely with drivers to build a high quality and reliable service for Londoners. Launching in London is a major milestone for us and we are keen to offer a first class experience for all our customers, he said in a statement.

Expansion into the U.K. capital, one of the worlds most lucrative markets, is a major step for Ola, which has provided about 3 million rides in the U.K. to date with more than 11,000 driver partners. Over the years, Ola has also expanded to Australia and New Zealand. The company says it is operational in more than 250 cities.
The World Health Organisation has declared a public health emergency of international concern, after waiting and watching and perhaps hoping things would get better in Wuhan. Instead, there has been a continuing surge of cases of coronavirus in China since January 18.

That this has occurred despite all the measures being taken by China is probably due to several factors, including increased travel for New Year, as travel is a major vector for spreading infections globally. It may also be due to person-to-person transmission, or asymptomatic transmissions. There may also have been increased detection, testing and reporting of cases, and possibly ongoing exposure to an environmental or animal source of infection.

People wait at Hankou Railway Station in Wuhan last week. Credit:Getty Image

Without any drug or vaccine for this virus, we must use every other measure at our disposal to control the spread. Public health measures to control the epidemic include reducing travel, screening of passengers coming from China, identifying new cases rapidly and isolating them, tracking close contacts of infected people and monitoring them for symptoms  and quarantine.

Our citizens are stranded in Wuhan, and have been asking for help. The government has responded with a strategy to evacuate them to Christmas Island and quarantine them there for 14 days. Canberra is still locked in negotiations with Beijing to get its agreement to allow dual citizens to take advantage of this offer. More than 150 Australians have reportedly already registered to be evacuated despite well reported reservations among some.
Please allow ads as they help fund our trusted local news content.

Kindly add us to your ad blocker whitelist.

If you want further access to Ireland's best local journalism, consider contributing and/or subscribing to our free daily Newsletter .

Support our mission and join our community now.
At least three persons, believed to be drivers of Dangote Cement and Sokoto Cement trucks, have died, after being stranded for months at Nigerias border with Niger Republic following the border closure policy.

Nigerias borders with neighbouring countries such as Benin and Niger have been partially closed since last August in a step authourities say will safeguard the economy and security.

The sealing of border crossings mainly targets widespread and largely unchecked smuggling of goods such as rice, poultry products, fabrics and vegetable oil into the country. In a reverse direction, petroleum products subsidised for local consumption also followed smuggling routes to neighbouring countries.

But real businesses that move goods across borders are also affected. Apart from losing revenues, the effect also has human costs.

At Illela border, Sokoto State, immigration and customs agents variously said about 450 trucks separately owned by Dangote Cement and Sokoto Cement are blocked from entering Nigeria.

The trucks had moved cement to countries as far away as Niger, Mali, Chad and Ghana, one official said, seeking not to be named because of service rules on press interviews. They were returning to Nigeria empty when the border closure was announced. Some got close to the (border) gate but we had to ask they should move back.

Immediately, we got the announcement, we shut the gate and trucks have been there since that day in August, the official further said.

PREMIUM TIMES confirmed the trucks have no good loaded on them based on direct observation and responses from the stranded drivers after being granted rare access to the drivers.

The trucks are empty and they are not bringing anything to the country but they are stranded and the drivers and their boys are suffering, another official, a Customs officer, said.

Three dead amid torrid conditions

As the trucks are denied entry into Nigeria, the drivers and those described as truck boys have had to stay at the border but the conditions have become increasingly unbearable.

One of them explained that the companies insisted they stay at the border to protect the trucks.

The trucks blocked from entering Nigeria at the Illela, Sokoto State, border, with Niger Republic

We allow them to walk across the border to buy food and we allow water vendors to sell water to them, one official, from the immigration service, said.

This is against human rights; how can people just be kept here? one Customs officer queried. But it is government policy, we cant do anything about it but their employers should try to ensure the government allows the trucks into the country so that the stranded drivers and their boys can go to their various homes.

One of the drivers, who is from Borno State, said he and his colleagues have not seen their families since August.

READ ALSO:

Since the border was closed in August, three officials, from Customs and Immigration services, and two truck drivers said three persons have died.

The three persons died during the wet season after they were bitten by snakes, PREMIUM TIMES was told.

The trucks blocked from entering Nigeria at the Illela, Sokoto State, border, with Niger Republic

There is no hospital within several kilometres of the border.

The officials declined to disclose whether the deceased truck drivers were employees of Dangote Cement or Sokoto Cement.

Abandoned

The officials at the border, expressing sympathies with the stranded drivers and their boys, believed Dangote Cement and Sokoto Cement were not doing enough towards resolving the logjam.

They have abandoned their drivers in this condition. How can people be here without any house for several months? The companies know the government and even if its for one hour the (border) gate should be opened to allow the trucks to come in and the drivers can be free, the Customs source said.

The trucks blocked from entering Nigeria at the Illela, Sokoto State, border, with Niger Republic

Anthony Chiejina, a spokesperson for Dangote cement, told PREMIUM TIMES he had just become aware of the situation at Illela and offered no further comments after requesting time to get confirmation.

Sada Suleiman of Sokoto cement, on the other hand, acknowledged the situation concerning his companys trucks and drivers.

Advertisements



On the death of drivers, he, however, said, I am just hearing for the first time and requested another official, whom he said was better placed to confirm, be asked.

A senior official with the company, who asked not be named because he is not responsible for corporate communications, said, we are losing a lot, a lot and we are doing our best to resolve the problem.

He said Sokoto cement had shown the authorities documentation that proves the legality of its transborder trade.

Gate of Nigerias border with NIGER Republic, Illela, Sokoto State.

But no headway yet, the official said. He did not categorically deny the awareness of the loss of drivers. I cant comment on that, I am not the one to ask, he said and suggested that Mr Suleiman should be approached again.

Nothing came of repeated calls and messages to Joseph Attah, spokesperson for the Customs, for comment on this report.

There is no certainty yet about when the borders will open.

The idea is to ensure that the protocol that is involved in transit of goods and trade facilitation is adhered to so that we will all live and complement each other, Customs boss, Hameed Ali said last September.

The border closure, beginning last August, came less than two months after Nigeria joined other Africa n nations to sign the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA) agreement.
Stocks plunge in China over coronavirus fears.

Stocks in China plunged in early Monday trading as investors returned from a long holiday to the prospect of the worlds No. 2 economy virtually shut down by the coronavirus epidemic.

Stocks in Shanghai opened 8.7 percent lower, while shares in the southern Chinese boomtown of Shenzhen fell 9 percent. The markets had been closed since Jan. 23 for the Lunar New Year holiday, and government officials extended that closure until Monday while the authorities dealt with the outbreak.

Other markets in the region, which have already digested much of the impact, opened lower as well. Shares in Tokyo and in Australia were down about 1.5 percent in early Monday trading. Stocks in Hong Kong opened about half a percent lower.
Liverpool host Southampton this afternoon with Jurgen Klopp's men looking to continue their incredible unbeaten run.

The Reds are steamrolling their way to the Premier League title but Ralph Hasenhuttl's men have been on solid form and might see the trip to Anfield as a free hit.

Elsewhere, West Ham host Brighton at the London Stadium as they look to end their winless run whilst Crystal Palace welcome Sheffield United who have outperformed expectations in their first season back in the competition.

Sportsmail's Danny Gallagher will provide live Premier League coverage including scores, lineups and build-up, with full commentary of Liverpool vs Southampton.
A man in his 20s who returned to the U.S. from Wuhan, China, the epicenter of the coronavirus outbreak, has contracted the virus, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention alerted health officials in Boston on Saturday. His is the eighth known case in the U.S.

Details: Rita Nieves, executive director of the Boston Public Health Commission, said officials "are not asking Boston residents to do anything differently" and that "risk to the general public remains low." The man was isolated soon after returning to Massachusetts, and his "few close contacts" are being monitored for symptoms.

We are grateful that this young man is recovering and sought medical attention immediately. Massachusetts has been preparing for a possible case of this new coronavirus, and we were fortunate that astute clinicians took appropriate action quickly. Again, the risk to the public from the 2019 novel coronavirus remains low in Massachusetts.

 Massachusetts Public Health Commissioner Monica Bharel

Driving the news: U.S. officials declared a public emergency on Friday and said America will deny entry into the country beginning Sunday to any foreign national who poses a risk of infection.

The State Department advised Americans not to travel to China and recommended that those currently in the country consider leaving, following WHO's global public health emergency declaration.

Go deeper: U.S. warned to prepare for worst on coronavirus
The father of three children killed by an alleged high-range drink-driver in Sydney's north-west on Saturday night says he is "numb" at the loss of his children.

Daniel Abdallah said his children - Antony, 13, Angelina, 12, and Sienna, 8 - were walking with other relatives down Bettington Road, Oatlands, about 8pm on Saturday when Samuel Davidson, 29, allegedly struck the group with his four-wheel-drive.

Daniel Abdallah, centre, is comforted on Sunday morning at the scene of the collision in Oatlands. Credit:Sally Rawsthorne

Seven children were hit by the ute. Four died and a fifth was taken to The Children's Hospital at Westmead in a critical condition and is in a coma. Two others are in hospital in a stable condition. One child was riding a bike.

Breath-tested at the scene, Mr Davidson allegedly returned a reading of .150.
An unidentified man fired a round from pistol outside a medical shop in suburban Malad on Saturday afternoon, the police said.

Nobody was injured in the incident which took place outside Anand Medical Store in Shivaji Nagar area of Kurar village, said an official.

The man fled from the spot after firing the shot, he said.

Senior police officials rushed to the spot, he said, adding that it was being probed if it was an attempt to threaten the shop owner.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
Sorry!

This content is not available in your region
Please register or log in to keep reading. No credit card required!

Stay logged in to skip the surveys.
In February 2019 the sexual abuse scandal that has bedeviled the Roman Catholic Church landed in Martinsville when the Diocese of Richmond named two former priests at St. Joseph Catholic Church among 42 across central and Southwest Virginia who it said had been sex abusers.

The diocese, in its statement identifying John Joseph Munley, who was pastor between 1971 and 1975 and died in 1995, and Harris Markam Findlay (1955-59), did not say how many accusers the men faced, simply releasing a statement from Bishop Barry Knestout: To those who experienced abuse from clergy, I am truly, deeply sorry.

That announcement, though, was only a byproduct of a much more troubling announcement that same month that has started a process that could threaten the appointment of a third priest in Martinsville, one whose only contribution to the sex scandal were his widely consumed comments about how badly he thought the church was handling it.

That February, former Cardinal Theodore Edgar McCarrick had been dismissed from the clergy about eight months after his resignation in July 2018 from the College of Cardinals and was accepted by Pope Francis. A church investigation and trial had found him guilty of sexual crimes against adults and minors and abuse of power.

The Catholic News Agency reported three weeks ago that McCarrick voluntarily had left the St. Fidelis Friary in Victoria, Kan., and would only describe his new residence as a community for those removed from the ministry. And a much-anticipated report from the Vatican concerning McCarrick has remained sealed. Both of those facts have outraged many Catholics.

Among those critics was Father Mark White, priest of St. Joseph Catholic Church in Martinsville and St. Francis of Assisi Catholic Church in Rocky Mount.

But now he speaks no more.

The Diocese in Richmond late last year ordered White to silence and possibly could dismiss him from the priesthood for the disgust he has expressed about how the church has responded to the sexual abuse scandal and McCarricks involvement in it in both a widely read blog and from the pulpit.

Whites comments about McCarrick and other issues related to sexual abuse in the church not only are based in his understanding of how the church works but also from a deep and very personal angst: He was ordained by McCarrick, who was once one of the most recognized Cardinals in American history.

Im from D.C., White said. I served in the Archdiocese of Washington from 2003 to 2010. I was in Montgomery County, Rockville, Maryland, for a period of time. I was in Prince George County for a period of time."

McCarrick became a cardinal in February 2001 and served as the Archbishop of Washington, D.C., from 2001 to 2006. Considered to be a power broker and connected to prominent politicians, he wielded an incredible amount of influence in the nations capital.

He ordained me as a priest in 2003, White said. "I was in D.C. for a good number of years in the city itself, and then I was transferred down here in the spring of 2011 by my own volunteering to do so because the diocese of Richmond is much more in need of priests than the Archdiocese of Washington is."

McCarricks alleged sexual abuse of adult seminarians was reportedly known to bishops as early as 1993, and word had reached the Vatican by 2016.

"In the summer of 2018 it was publicly made known that someone had accused him [McCarrick] of sexual abuse of a victim while he was a minor, White said.

"It was a great blow to me and to my brother priests of the same generation that were ordained by him.

"Later that summer, as often does happen in cases like this, additional victims let the world know that they also had been victimized by him.

"Then an archbishop of the church who had retired released information about how authorities in the church had in fact known about all of this for decades without it ever being acknowledged publicly, and that gave me an impetus  a psychological need in order to preserve my own faith to study the whole thing as carefully as I possibly could."

White said he was not one of McCarricks victims, but he observed signs that later would become clear to him he was among seminarians who were being abused.

He [McCarrick] wanted some of the men to wear certain shirts or clothes because he liked the way they looked. He built a trust that this was the way they could show their love for him.

When the allegations of sexual abuse against underage males were made public in 2018, White said he was shocked at the realization that in the infancy of his new life as a Catholic priest, he had been living in a cesspool of deceit, lies and manipulation.

Father Mark Blog

White began a personal blog called Father Mark Blog in August 2008. In the beginning he used it primarily for posting his homilies online for the benefit of the parishioners.

But as time passed and more of the egregious actions of McCarrick came to light, White began using his blog as a means of expressing his personal frustration with specific people in the Catholic Church and the apathetic attitude of the church hierarchy in general.

St. Joseph Eucharist Minister Barbara Kurtz says this is more than a story of a local priest being silenced.

"This is not just Father Mark or people in this diocese, this is across the board in the United States, Kurtz said.

"People are very impatient about the fact that one Theodore McCarrick, who was a cardinal and is the cardinal that ordained Father Mark.

He [Father Mark] knew him as somebody he looked up to. He [McCarrick] was a mentor of sort.

"I was listening to the conference of Catholic Bishops in the United States about two weeks ago. What I heard was more than one bishop say was that the people of their respective diocese anywhere in the United States are inpatient about this issue [sexual abuse] not being resolved and the issue is that Theodore McCarrick climbed the ranks  priest, probably monsignor, bishop, cardinal  its a very high position  and how did he do that because everybody  or many, many people seem to know that this man had been abusing children, young adults.

"How and why did he get to be so high in the church with a history like his, and the questions are not being answered and people are inpatient.

"Father [White] has been very vocal about his impatience.

The popularity of the Father Mark White Blog began to grow, and on Nov. 7 White posted that he had received his one millionth visit.

For good or ill, I find that a respectable number of visits, White wrote. Sharing this ride with you makes me a happy man. Lets do another million together.

Two weeks later, though, the blog of Father Mark White disappeared. He was silenced by the Richmond Diocese from communicating to the public online.

He is scheduled to meet Wednesday in Richmond with Bishop Barry Knestout. There is some thought  by White and his parishioners  that this could be his final moment as the priest of St. Joseph and St. Francis of Assisi.

How it began

In September 2018 White began posting some of his correspondence with Bishop Knestout from Richmond. Knestout has accused White of demanding that Pope Francis resign.

You write that, in my open letter, I demanded' that the Holy Father resign, White shared with his blog readers. "That is not true. I begged him to resign. I explicitly acknowledged that he alone has a right to make such a decision.

"You could easily check what I wrote on my weblog  except you censored the post. I never demanded anything. I humbly begged. Beg was my exact word.

"Did I disrespect you, or Pope Francis, by begging? Did I act with anything less than courtesy towards you [Knestout], or Pope Francis, by begging? Did I damage ecclesial communion by begging?

"You asked me to apologize to Pope Francis. For what? For loving him enough to point out that we have reached a dangerous impasse? If the full truth about McCarrick does not come out, then how will any of us who have been touched by his ministry recover?

"But, at the same time, how can any of us have confidence that the Holy Father will see to the full disclosure of all the facts? He has had ample time and opportunity to disclose them. But he studiously has refused to do so.

"You write that I have done you wrong by addressing issues that directly affect you. Have you yourself suffered reprisals from the Holy See because of what I, one of your priests, has written? If so, I am sorry. But you can hardly identify me as the villain in that scenario.

Bishop confronts White

On Nov. 21, parishioners at St. Francis of Assisi in Rocky Mount were in awe at the sight of Bishop Knestout and Vicar General Michael Boehling waiting for White and the conclusion of their noon Mass.

Both men had traveled from Richmond to meet Father White unannounced.

Mark, I need to spend 15 minutes with you, after we greet the people, Knestout was overheard by parishioners saying.

After that meeting in Whites office at the church, which lasted about 20 minutes, Whites blog was removed, and he was to abide by a new directive that limited his ability to communicate with the public only in person or from the pulpit.

Until Friday, there had been no public explanation from Knestout despite the outcry from local parishioners and followers of Whites blog.

It is not the practice of the diocese to speak to any one individuals blog or webpage, nor to personnel matters that are between Bishop Knestout and his priests, Diocese Communications Director Deborah Cox said in response to the Bulletin's request for comment from Knestout.

The parishioners speak

With their priest under a mandate of silence, members of the book club at St. Joseph Catholic Church in Martinsville sat at a table together recently and spoke openly about the situation and their extreme displeasure in the action taken by the Richmond Diocese against their Father Mark.

Jim Reaghard is the coordinator for the Reach Out program and on Parish Council at St. Joseph.

"He [Bishop Knestout] had a conference with him in his office, Reaghard said. I asked Father when I heard about it.  I said, Was that an order? -- being military, you know, Im a retired Naval officer -- and he says, 'Oh I guess so.

"I dont know the full story, but I do know that Father has a blog, and a lot of people have read it.

"I dont follow blogs. I dont follow things on social media or anything like that myself, but I heard the bishop kind of censured him and told him not to do this anymore, and I just went  why  and I was just kind of curious  and I dont know, it must of struck a note with the bishop or maybe someone above him.

Other people have read this blog, and it has helped them heal through some of the abusiveness that has occurred in the church.

"Im really surprised that bishop is muffling his speech because one of the best things we can do is speak out and be honest and open with people and talk about whats hurting us and hes putting the pinch on him and telling him not to do that. I dont think thats fair.

"In America we have the right to free speech.

Irma Harrison is the sacristan at St. Joseph.

"I think Father Marks blogs hit a nerve with the diocese because in those blogs he expresses concern, caring, he expresses frustration that things just arent moving fast enough  that the diocese isnt doing everything it can and I think it strikes a chord with the hierarchy and the diocese that  we dont want to hear this.

"I think thats why he was asked to remove his blog. So he has no blog anymore. Since all this has broken loose, all this abuse in the church  Father has been very vocal about it.

"Hes been hurt because hes a priest, its his church, so that hurts him.

"I think people reading the blogs who have experienced sexual abuse especially in the church  it gave them a sense that somebodys speaking for them.

Systemic lack of transparency

Said Eucharist Minister Kurtz: "So somehow what we have here with our bishop forbidding Father from continuing a blog and also demanding that he erase and remove any blog that hes ever done in the past  obliterate all of it. One cant help but think hes protecting something.

"Why is he coming down so hard on Fathers questions and issues which are held by so many, many people. Thats questionable. And our bishop also was in Washington D.C., for many, many, many years. He worked as secretary to the last cardinal, the last archbishop of the diocese of Washington and he also worked for a brief time for the then-Cardinal Theodore McCarrick.

"So part of Father Marks anger has to do with our current bishop saying right up at the front when he first became bishop he wrote in our newspaper I know nothing about all of this. And Father Mark is skeptical  Im putting it mildly  that he doesnt know anything about it.

It comes down to being a scapegoat.

"Two things that are the problem  lack of transparency. It seems to be systemic in the church. What you hear in the dark doesnt get spoken in the light. Youre out there  people know what youre thinking and what youre saying. That isnt happening. There is no transparency because none of the higher ups in the church, at least a great number of them, are not willing to say anything and so this drags out and drags out and drags out.

"The second is clericalism  which is a strange thing. It sounds like kind of a vague term but what it comes down to is like the old boys club. You take my back and Ill take your back. So, if this priest or bishop knows that someone is being abusive  they dont talk about it. Shoved under the rug.

"So each one protecting the other, its almost as though its a code."

Many of the followers of Whites blog offered opinions like Mike Keyser:

"Apparently, the 'good old boys club' in Virginia is closing ranks and trying to keep others silent on the issue of sexual abuse of children for their own self-preservation.

"Any attempt by the hierarchy to squelch this evil deed will eventually prove them to be on the losing side of His Story.

"Thank you, Father White, for not sweeping this under the carpet like it has been for so long.

"You are close to the cross.

Richard Long is a parishioner of St. Francis of Assisi.

I am angered that this has happened, he said. His [Father Mark's] blog created healthy dialogue among Catholics and the public. Yes, he wrote about difficult topics. Like the sex abuse scandal in the church.

"It was meaningful enough to actually keep me in the church, when I considered leaving the church, because of the abuse crisis.

The desire of many bishops to silence people, especially a Priest like Father Mark, is part of what led to such an abomination within the Catholic Church.

"Sweeping any of it under the rug will lead to future abuses. Conversation is necessary for healing within the church to occur.

Impending removal?

On Jan. 12 at Sunday Mass, Father Mark told his parishioners from the pulpit of St. Joseph in Martinsville that the bishop had threatened to remove him as their priest:

"In this church, we agree on faith and morals. We share the faith of the Apostles, which they and their successors have handed down to us, through the ages. And we govern our lives by the Christian rule of conduct. That does not mean, however, that we agree on everything.

"In the Catholic Church, we must respect each others right, and each others need, to study, to reflect, to form opinions, and to express ourselves.

"From the very beginning of our churchs pilgrimage on earth, open and honest debate has made up an essential part of the Christian life. The original Apostles argued about circumcising non-Jewish converts to Christianity.

"Different apostles had different opinions about it. It took some intense arguing before they found the path forward, and went down it together. And the uncircumcised men of the ancient world all breathed a sigh of relief.

"I dislike talking about myself up here. But I find myself in a difficult situation. And its a difficult situation for us all.

"The holy Catholic Church faced a profound crisis in the summer of 2018, as many of us remember. I began writing on my weblog about it, trying to understand the problem myself, and offering the reader whatever insight I had.

"I did 18 months' worth of writing on the subjecthopefully in the service of our Catholic faith, not against it. I dont claim never to have made any mistakes. Im sure I did.

"Until this past November, our bishop, Barry Knestout, tolerated my writing on my blog. Then he made a surprise visit to Rocky Mount, a week before Thanksgiving. He ordered me, in no uncertain terms, to keep silent. To remove my blog from circulation entirely, and to publish nothing further--not even my Sunday homilies.

"The bishop has every right to correct me, even to censor my writing, if he judges it necessary. We Catholic priests do not enjoy an absolute right to free speech.

"From the sacramental point-of-view, my ministry as parish priest here depends completely on his ministry as diocesan bishop. If the bishop identifies as unorthodox something a priest of his has written, the bishop has the duty to insist on a public correction.

"That said, bishops have to operate according to law and order, just like everyone else. He does not have the right, I dont think, to silence someone completely.

"He doesnt have the right to cut off an appropriate means of self-expression. Especially when theres actually no question of unorthodox teaching here.

"I know I often bore you. But I dont think that I have belabored my points about the sex-abuse crisis here at Mass. I have spoken about it a few times in my homilies, when it seemed like circumstances called for it.

"But mainly I have expressed my opinions on the subject just on my blog - for people to read as they might choose, or ignore as they might choose.

"I dont remember ever insisting that you had to read my world-famous blog. To the contrary, my blog seemed like just the kind of freewill forum for me to express myself, without fear of reprisals.

"All kinds of cranks publish all kinds of blogs, after all. If Im just another nut-job with a laptopso be it. At least, thats how I saw it, until this past Nov. 21.

"A month ago, I wrote the bishop asking him to reconsider his decision. He answered, expressing his willingness to meet with me next month, in February.

"If I dont have a nervous breakdown before then, I will try to persuade the bishop at that meeting that he shows the strongest and most admirable leadership by tolerating the free expression of opinions. Especially opinions regarding the sex-abuse crisis in the Church.

"In the Middle East, cool heads are looking for an off-ramp from war between Iran and the United States. If I might, let me ask you to pray for an off-ramp from this controversy between the bishop and myself.

"In November, he sternly threatened to remove me as pastor here if I did not silence myself.

"I, for one, do not want to be removed as pastor here.

Bill Wyatt is a reporter for the Martinsville Bulletin. He can be reached at 276-638-8801, Ext. 236. Follow him @billdwyatt

Get local news delivered to your inbox! Subscribe to our Daily Headlines newsletter. Sign up! * I understand and agree that registration on or use of this site constitutes agreement to its user agreement and privacy policy.
Her own life taught her lessons of resilience, strengthened by her Catholic faith, that she shared with her fictional heroines. She was born Mary Higgins in New York City in 1927, the second of three children. She would later take on the last name Clark after marriage. Mary Clark's father ran a popular pub that did well enough for the family to afford a maid and for her mother to prepare meals for strangers in need. But business slowed during the Great Depression and her father, forced to work ever longer hours as he laid off employees, died in his sleep in 1939. One of her brothers died of meningitis a few years later. Surviving family members took on odd jobs and had to rent out rooms in the house.
The court convicted the 37 defendants of carrying out 54 assassinations against policemen and citizens

A Cairo criminal court handed preliminary death sentences to leading terrorist Hisham Ashmawy and 36 others in the case known as Ansar Beit Al-Maqdis, convicting them of executing over 50 assassination attacks on policemen.

The court referred the preliminary sentences to the grand mufti, which is a necessary, albeit non-binding, procedure before issuing a death sentence, as per the Egyptian penal code.

The court is slayed to issue a verdict on 2 March.

The court convicted the 37 defendants of carrying out 54 assassinations against policemen and citizens, most notably late policemen Mohamed Mabrouk, Mohamed Abu Shakra, Mohamed Said and others.

The defendants were also convicted of bombing three security directorates, including Cairo Security Directorate in 2014, vandalising of 25 public and private institutions, including police headquarters, churches and mosques.

This is the second death sentence handed to Ashmawy in recent months.

In November 2019, an Egyptian military court sentenced Ashmawy to death over involvement in a number of terrorist attacks.

He was convicted in 14 crimes, including a 2014 ambush that killed 22 Egyptian military border guards near Libya and a failed assassination attempt on a former interior minister in 2013, the army spokesman said in earlier statements.

Ashmawy, one of the most wanted Egyptian militants, was apprehended in Libya in October 2018 and handed over to Egypt by forces of Libyan army commander Khalifa Haftar in May.

A former Egyptian special forces officer, Ashmawy had been sentenced to death in absentia before his transfer to Egypt.

Ashmawy led the Sinai-based Ansar Beit Al-Maqdis, the army said. He broke off after the group swore allegiance to the Islamist State group in late 2014.

Search Keywords:

Short link:


Country

United States of America US Virgin Islands United States Minor Outlying Islands Canada Mexico, United Mexican States Bahamas, Commonwealth of the Cuba, Republic of Dominican Republic Haiti, Republic of Jamaica Afghanistan Albania, People's Socialist Republic of Algeria, People's Democratic Republic of American Samoa Andorra, Principality of Angola, Republic of Anguilla Antarctica (the territory South of 60 deg S) Antigua and Barbuda Argentina, Argentine Republic Armenia Aruba Australia, Commonwealth of Austria, Republic of Azerbaijan, Republic of Bahrain, Kingdom of Bangladesh, People's Republic of Barbados Belarus Belgium, Kingdom of Belize Benin, People's Republic of Bermuda Bhutan, Kingdom of Bolivia, Republic of Bosnia and Herzegovina Botswana, Republic of Bouvet Island (Bouvetoya) Brazil, Federative Republic of British Indian Ocean Territory (Chagos Archipelago) British Virgin Islands Brunei Darussalam Bulgaria, People's Republic of Burkina Faso Burundi, Republic of Cambodia, Kingdom of Cameroon, United Republic of Cape Verde, Republic of Cayman Islands Central African Republic Chad, Republic of Chile, Republic of China, People's Republic of Christmas Island Cocos (Keeling) Islands Colombia, Republic of Comoros, Union of the Congo, Democratic Republic of Congo, People's Republic of Cook Islands Costa Rica, Republic of Cote D'Ivoire, Ivory Coast, Republic of the Cyprus, Republic of Czech Republic Denmark, Kingdom of Djibouti, Republic of Dominica, Commonwealth of Ecuador, Republic of Egypt, Arab Republic of El Salvador, Republic of Equatorial Guinea, Republic of Eritrea Estonia Ethiopia Faeroe Islands Falkland Islands (Malvinas) Fiji, Republic of the Fiji Islands Finland, Republic of France, French Republic French Guiana French Polynesia French Southern Territories Gabon, Gabonese Republic Gambia, Republic of the Georgia Germany Ghana, Republic of Gibraltar Greece, Hellenic Republic Greenland Grenada Guadaloupe Guam Guatemala, Republic of Guinea, Revolutionary People's Rep'c of Guinea-Bissau, Republic of Guyana, Republic of Heard and McDonald Islands Holy See (Vatican City State) Honduras, Republic of Hong Kong, Special Administrative Region of China Hrvatska (Croatia) Hungary, Hungarian People's Republic Iceland, Republic of India, Republic of Indonesia, Republic of Iran, Islamic Republic of Iraq, Republic of Ireland Israel, State of Italy, Italian Republic Japan Jordan, Hashemite Kingdom of Kazakhstan, Republic of Kenya, Republic of Kiribati, Republic of Korea, Democratic People's Republic of Korea, Republic of Kuwait, State of Kyrgyz Republic Lao People's Democratic Republic Latvia Lebanon, Lebanese Republic Lesotho, Kingdom of Liberia, Republic of Libyan Arab Jamahiriya Liechtenstein, Principality of Lithuania Luxembourg, Grand Duchy of Macao, Special Administrative Region of China Macedonia, the former Yugoslav Republic of Madagascar, Republic of Malawi, Republic of Malaysia Maldives, Republic of Mali, Republic of Malta, Republic of Marshall Islands Martinique Mauritania, Islamic Republic of Mauritius Mayotte Micronesia, Federated States of Moldova, Republic of Monaco, Principality of Mongolia, Mongolian People's Republic Montserrat Morocco, Kingdom of Mozambique, People's Republic of Myanmar Namibia Nauru, Republic of Nepal, Kingdom of Netherlands Antilles Netherlands, Kingdom of the New Caledonia New Zealand Nicaragua, Republic of Niger, Republic of the Nigeria, Federal Republic of Niue, Republic of Norfolk Island Northern Mariana Islands Norway, Kingdom of Oman, Sultanate of Pakistan, Islamic Republic of Palau Palestinian Territory, Occupied Panama, Republic of Papua New Guinea Paraguay, Republic of Peru, Republic of Philippines, Republic of the Pitcairn Island Poland, Polish People's Republic Portugal, Portuguese Republic Puerto Rico Qatar, State of Reunion Romania, Socialist Republic of Russian Federation Rwanda, Rwandese Republic Samoa, Independent State of San Marino, Republic of Sao Tome and Principe, Democratic Republic of Saudi Arabia, Kingdom of Senegal, Republic of Serbia and Montenegro Seychelles, Republic of Sierra Leone, Republic of Singapore, Republic of Slovakia (Slovak Republic) Slovenia Solomon Islands Somalia, Somali Republic South Africa, Republic of South Georgia and the South Sandwich Islands Spain, Spanish State Sri Lanka, Democratic Socialist Republic of St. Helena St. Kitts and Nevis St. Lucia St. Pierre and Miquelon St. Vincent and the Grenadines Sudan, Democratic Republic of the Suriname, Republic of Svalbard & Jan Mayen Islands Swaziland, Kingdom of Sweden, Kingdom of Switzerland, Swiss Confederation Syrian Arab Republic Taiwan, Province of China Tajikistan Tanzania, United Republic of Thailand, Kingdom of Timor-Leste, Democratic Republic of Togo, Togolese Republic Tokelau (Tokelau Islands) Tonga, Kingdom of Trinidad and Tobago, Republic of Tunisia, Republic of Turkey, Republic of Turkmenistan Turks and Caicos Islands Tuvalu Uganda, Republic of Ukraine United Arab Emirates United Kingdom of Great Britain & N. Ireland Uruguay, Eastern Republic of Uzbekistan Vanuatu Venezuela, Bolivarian Republic of Viet Nam, Socialist Republic of Wallis and Futuna Islands Western Sahara Yemen Zambia, Republic of Zimbabwe
The Minister of Information and Culture, Alhaji Lai Mohammed said the Federal Government will not stop Nigerians from travelling to China or any other country where coronavirus has manifested.

Lai Mohammed stated this while addressing newsmen shortly after a meeting of the inter ministerial and multi sectoral committee on coronavirus held at the Ministry of Health, Abuja on Friday.

According to him, rather than impose travel ban, there will be travel advisory that will help Nigerians who wish to visit China to do so without any encumbrances to their health and wellbeing.

We know it is a bit difficult to ban people from travelling. Another thing is that this is not a basis to stigmatise people who come from there. Even if we have Nigerians who are there, unless they indicate interest that they want to come home, we cant force them. I know we have Nigerians in Wuhan; our Embassy in China has confirmed that we have about 16 Nigerians in Wuhan and they are in touch with them. They have, however, not indicated their interest to come home. They will, however, contact our embassy if they like to come home, he said.

The minister said there was need for the general public to be enlightened and for Nigerians travelling to be absolutely transparent.

We need a lot of public enlightenment. We need to let people who travel know that there is the need for absolute transparency and absolute honesty when they are filling out forms. Some people dont take the forms seriously and they do mislead authorities when they are asked to declare their status. One of the major advantages of the declaration of global emergency for coronavirus by WHO is that they understand that combating it can be really expensive and there are states that cannot afford it. But there are partners that can help such countries. But right now, we are in the stage of working together inter-ministerially to make sure we address the epidemic, he said.

Meanwhile, the Minister of Health, Osagie Ehanire has asked Nigerians to avoid travelling to China for now because of the coronavirus disease spreading across the Asian country.

The minister also advised all passengers from China to stay in isolation for two weeks before reuniting with their families.
Amid coronavirus outbreak in China, a third-year MBBS student studying in Beijing has returned to his hometown in Saharanpur, much to his family's relief.

"I was very pleased to see him when he arrived home. We were eagerly waiting for him," Asha Singh, mother of the MBBS student told ANI.

The student named, Navdeep Singh, returned to India on 27 January, as the deadly virus continues to affect different provinces of China.

"I was planning to stay there but our tutors asked us to go back to our home town. I have my leave till 14 February. Let's see if the situation improves," he said.

Talking about Navdeep's health status, his mother, Asha said, "He first got his health checkup done a day before leaving China and second time after he arrived in Delhi."

Meanwhile, 220 of the 324 Indians evacuated from the coronavirus-hit Chinese city of Wuhan were sent to the Army quarantine facility at Manesar on Saturday, while the remaining 104 were shifted to Indo-Tibetan Border Police-managed Chhawla Camp in the capital for medical observation, the Health Ministry said.

The virus, which originated from the Chinese city of Wuhan, has killed as many as 259 people in that country alone, while cases have been registered in several countries across the world.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
Atiku Abubakar, former vice-president, has urged President Donald Trump not to punish Nigerians for the shortcomings and failure of the Muhammadu Buhari-led administration.

Atiku was reacting to the immigrant visa ban placed by the United States on Nigeria, saying that Nigeria has been a major force for Americas development.

Ayiku, the former presidential candidate of the People Democratic Party (PDP) said via a statement on Saturday, thus: I received with sadness the policy of the government of the United States of America to place Nigeria on its travel ban list. 

While I understand the reasons given by the Trump administration (the failure of the Muhammadu Buhari led administration to share information and to address issues of terrorism), the ban does not take into account the pro-American sentiments of the Nigerian public and the solidarity previous Nigerian administrations have had with the United States.

I urge the government of President Donald Trump to consider the history of US-Nigerian relationships.

Nigeria was one of the few African nations that joined the US-led coalition during Operation Desert Storm between 1990-1991 when the United States championed the liberation of Kuwait.

Read Also: Call For Buharis Resignation A Call To Do Better: Keyamo

The Trump administration may also consider the pivotal role Nigeria, in partnership with the US, played in bringing peace to Liberia, an American sphere of influence, that now enjoys democracy because Nigerian blood and money paved the way for peace in that nation.

Nigeria has also consistently voted in support of the United States and her allies at the UN and other multilateral world bodies. This is even as we are perhaps the biggest trading partner that the United States has in Africa, even where we had alternatives.

Nigerians love the United States and have been a major force for the positive development of that great nation: 77% of all Black doctors in the United States are Nigerians, Atiku added.

Nigerians are also the most educated immigrant community in America bar none.

Surely, the US stands to benefit if it allows open borders with a country like Nigeria that is able to provide skilled, hardworking and dedicated personnel in a two-way traffic.

The current Nigerian administration may have its deficiencies and deep faults, but the Nigeria people ought not to be punished for their inefficiencies.

Once again, I call on President Donald Trump to consider adopting measures that individually target those in government who have failed in their duties, rather than target the entire Nigerian population.

Other countries affected by the visa ban are Eritrea, Sudan, Tanzania, Kyrgyzstan, and Myanmar.
New Delhi, Feb 1 : With the government identifying skills as an important component in employability, Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman said that moves are afoot to stimulate the education sector with a new education policy.

Presenting the Union Budget, her second one since the NDA led by Prime Minister Narendra Modi stormed back to power, Sitharaman announced a number of initiatives in the education and higher education sectors.

Under the plans to improve employability, about 150 higher educational institutions will offer apprenticeship embedded degree/diploma courses by March 2021.

The government also proposes to start a programme whereby urban local bodies across the country would provide internship opportunities to fresh engineers for a period upto one year.

To provide quality education to students of deprived sections of society as well as those who do not have access to higher education, the government intends to start degree level full-fledged online education programme, to be offered only by top 100 ranked institutions.

Also on the anvil are a National Police University, and a National Forensic Science University in the domain of policing science, forensic science, and cyber-forensics.

To establish India as a preferred destination in higher education, the government is also set to introduce a 'Study in India' programme and Ind-SAT exam to be held in Asia and Africa.

"It shall be used for benchmarking foreign candidates who receive scholarships for studying in Indian higher education centres," the minister said in her presentation.
Dont let rumour spread faster than coronavirus By Kumudini Hettiarachchi, Ruqyyaha Deane and Meleeza Rathnayake Sri Lanka is prepared assure officials View(s): View(s):

Dont panic, but be vigilant. Act but dont react. Get information from credible sources, as rumour is spreading faster than the new coronavirus. Sri Lanka has put in place measures to ward off this threat.

These were the key messages with regard to the 2019-novel coronavirus (2019-nCoV) reiterated by health authorities, as a rational voice in the form of former Chief Epidemiologist, Dr. Nihal Abeysinghe who guided the country through the Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome (SARS) period underscored the importance of having centralized coordinated surveillance when dealing with an unknown infection. Sri Lanka was able to keep SARS from reaching the country.

As Sri Lanka detected its first imported case of 2019-nCoV (a Chinese woman tourist) on Monday (January 27); the World Health Organization (WHO) on Thursday declared a Public Health Emergency of International Concern (PHEIC) and the 33 Sri Lankans from the locked down city of Wuhan were brought back to the Mattala Rajapaksa International Airport.

The week saw a flurry of activity in the form of several media briefings by health authorities, daily updates from the Health Ministry and social media going on the rampage spreading false information and people in a panic rushed to buy surgical face-masks.

The Sri Lankan health authorities responded by allaying fears and keeping the public informed of the measures in place, with many earnest appeals not to let fear cause xenophobia against the Chinese and also stigmatization.

The Chinese tourist detected with the nCoV is recovering, assured the Director-General of Health Services, Dr. Anil Jasinghe at a media briefing at the Health Ministry on Friday afternoon, giving details of other suspected cases in hospitals which he believed were 99.9% not 2019-nCoV.

There are 9 suspected cases at the National Institute of Infectious Diseases (NIID), Angoda; 4 at the Kandy Hospital; 3 at the Gampaha Hospital; 3 at the Karapitiya Hospital; and 1 at the Ratnapura Hospital, it is learnt.

Currently the NIID, the Kandy National Hospital, the Kalubowila, Karapitiya, Anuradhapura, Jaffna, Kurunegala and Batticaloa Teaching Hospitals, and the Gampaha, Negombo, Ratnapura and Badulla Hospitals are the designated hospitals.

Dr. Jasinghe pointed out that the WHO had not seen the need yet for a travel and trade embargo. Countries cannot take arbitrary decisions on their own to impose such measures. If they do so, they first have to justify to the WHO why such action is necessitated, as part of the International Health Regulations (IHR), he said, adding that in fact the WHO had commended the measures implemented by China with regard to the 2019-nCoV.

Some health sources, however, cautioned that Sri Lanka must stop the entry of the virus from all entry points, not only the Bandaranaike International Airport, Katunayake.

If the 2019-nCoV comes into the country, it will spread like wildfire as it is a respiratory disease. Our hospitals however efficient they are will not be able to manage the influx of patients, the sources said.

Whether designated or not to meet the emergence of this threat, all hospitals have to be prepared to face it with strict protocols and equipment in place, urged these sources, adding that infection control needs to be given priority.

Other sources indicated that the efficiency of designated hospitals would depend on the capability of the leadership.

The protocols in place not only at the airports and the port but also in hospitals have to be checked regularly, one source urged, calling for regular audits as staff could become lax after awhile.

Elaborating on measures taken, Dr. Jasinghe said that adequate stocks of Personal Protective Equipment (PPE) costing Rs. 60 million which includes clothing and goggles etc to protect the health staff from infection have been distributed to hospitals. The WHO and UNICEF have also offered assistance with regard to securing more PPEs. The Health Ministry was also in constant communication with the Directors of those hospitals about urgent needs.

Referring to why the WHO had declared a PHEIC, the Director-General said:

n Globally, some countries have strong and others weak health systems. If some of the countries which had weak systems but had close links with China such as some African countries were affected by the 2019-nCoV there could be a crisis in those countries.

n In the light of there not being specific treatment and vaccine yet for this new virus, the declaration was made to propel the world to work towards finding a treatment and vaccine.

n It was also to get big donors to get activated to fund such endeavours.

Dr. Jasinghe stressed that people should not be misled by myths and rumour being spread through social media and asked that they check the authenticity and veracity of claims with the right authorities.

Hotlines

The 24  hour hotlines for information are: 071 0107 107 and 011- 3071 073

Preventive measures in place at all ports of entry

The Sunday Times carried out a detailed check of the preventive measures being taken at all ports of entry to Sri Lanka.

Such entry points include the Bandaranaike International Airport (BIA), Katunayake; the Jaffna International Airport, Palali; the Mattala Rajapaksa International Airport; and the Ratmalana Airport and the ports of Colombo, Galle, Hambantota and Trincomalee.

The measures taken at the BIA (where 2,000-3,000 passengers arrive and depart daily) which sees the largest number of passengers coming in are:

 All passengers are shown a video while on the aircraft with a Health Declaration Form (both in English and Chinese) as well as an information leaflet about nCoV and hotline numbers are being distributed to them to be filled and handed over to staff once they land. The form seeks information of recent travel history whether they have come directly from a country or have been in transit.

 Once they leave the flight, they pass through thermal scanners which would indicate whether they have a fever and if so they are checked by the health staff.

 If such passengers with fever have come directly from China or originated their journey in China and have been in transit in another country, they would be checked thoroughly by the health staff at the airport. If there is a high chance that they are carrying nCoV, they would be sent to the National Institute for Infectious Diseases. Otherwise they would be sent to the Negombo Hospital.

 Even if they are not ill, the details of all those who come directly from China or have originated their journey in China but transited elsewhere and their whereabouts and where they will be going to within Sri Lanka are being collated in a database and the relevant Medical Officers of Health (MOHs) in those areas informed to keep track of their movements.

Jaffna, Mattala & Ratmalana Airports:

Similar measures as at the BIA but on a smaller scale have been deployed at these airports, it is learnt.

Jaffna gets only three flights per week from Chennai on Monday, Wednesday and Saturday, with each flight generally having about 50 passengers, while Mattala gets around 4-5 flights per week, mainly for re-fuelling. Ratmalana, meanwhile, has only scheduled corporate international flights with around 50 passengers per month coming in.

There is a small health staff at these airports and the capability to screen each and every passenger, it is learnt, while Ratmalana there is hand-held distance-temperature measuring equipment.

When contacted the DDG of Public Health Services, Dr. Paba Palihawadana said that Epidemiology Unit staff are not only calling the staff of the MOH areas to remind them to keep in contact with those who have come into Sri Lanka and are in those areas, but also calling the passengers themselves to find out whether they are unwell, as a double-check.

Next week, Epid Unit staff is hoping to pay field visits to these areas, she added.

When informed that the Sunday Times has received information that some passengers have been missed, she said that they are promptly attempting to fill those gaps by checking passenger lists.

At the ports 

Health declaration forms and information leaflets are sent in advance to the ships so that they can be filled out before they dock at any port, said Dr. Palihawadana, stressing that doctors also board the ships to check whether anyone is ill.

Ships can also signal the port beforehand using their flag system to let the port know that someone is ill, she said, while the health authorities are also working closely with the Ceylon Association of Shipping Agents.

We have told all port authorities to be extra-vigilant, she added.

The Colombo Port gets about 1,000 passengers per day; no passengers alight at Galle Port, only crew (about 50-60 per day) in cargo ships; no passengers have arrived at the Hambantota Port in the last month and no ship crews are going out of this port as a precautionary measure against the coronavirus; and the Trincomalee harbour does not get any passengers.

When asked about the two passenger cruise-liners, Queen Mary and Bowdice (heading this way from the east) due to dock at the Colombo Port with at least 2,500 on board each, Dr. Palihawadana was categorical that all checks would be carried out and not one single passenger would be allowed to disembark if there is suspicion of anyone being ill. Then everyone will be subjected to a thorough screening.

On January 28, the Ports Health Authority had briefed all staff about the coronavirus.

Centralized coordinated surveillance important Sri Lanka can handle an unknown infection  but it should be done through a centralized coordinated surveillance and a single spokesperson who collects the information from every other source, whether BIA, quarantine unit, army or hospital and is capable of answering every query, underscored former Chief Epidemiologist Dr. Nihal Abeysinghe who was part of the team which faced the threat of the Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome (SARS) in the early 2000s. It should be the Epidemiology Unit which takes centre-stage and has done so as there is a time-tested system in place, he said, giving it as the Department of Health, the Director-General, Deputy Director-General, Provincial Directors of Health, Regional Directors of Health, Medical Officers of Health, Public Health Inspectors (PHIs) and Public Health Midwives (PHMS). This system has handled outbreaks from the plague to polio, from cholera to measles and more. Sri Lanka is the only country in the region which has this strong system. We have had good infrastructure to respond to any public health need since 1926, he pointed out. Systematically, Dr. Abeysinghe analyses the needs of the current nCoV threat. We need to be vigilant for: A person from Wuhan who is travelling around and comes to Sri Lanka.

A person who has been in contact with someone who has been exposed to the virus in Wuhan.

These could be Chinese or any other national coming in as tourists or workers or Sri Lankans. The measures needed are: n Appropriate funding for logistical support at crucial institutions such as the Medical Research Institute (MRI) n Traveller screening  mostly at the BIA as there is a rush for passengers jostling to get out and also at sea-ports where health officials can board ships to check for ill passengers. Forms seeking detailed information can be distributed to all passengers. n Strong units consisting of trained public health personnel being deployed at entry points to spot people who are ill. n Enhanced surveillance through the protocols already in place to catch any flu-like disease doing the rounds, with strong follow-up and monitoring. n True public health practice  contact tracing and follow-up and admission to designated hospitals
New Delhi, Feb 1 : Prime Minister Narendra Modi lauded Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman for her second Budget on Saturday, calling it "visionary" and "action packed".

Unemployment has been a major concern for the government, for which it has faced the opposition's criticism.

The Prime Minister said, "The main areas of employment are agriculture, infrastructure, textiles and technology. In order to generate employment, these four areas have been given great emphasis in this Budget." He said that with its efforts of doubling the income of the farmer, 16 action points have been created which will work to increase employment in rural areas. "Integrated approach to agriculture was adopted in the Budget, which along with traditional methods will increase value addition in Horticulture, Fisheries, Animal Husbandry and also increase employment," Modi said.

Income and investment were the two words he emphasised upon in his post-Budget speech, adding that the Budget will help Indians achieve their aspirations.

"We have made several special efforts in this Budget to promote employment generation in the field of technology. Several policy initiatives have been taken for areas such as new smart cities, electronic manufacturing, data centre parks, biotechnology and quantum technology," said Modi.

He added, through such efforts India can become a key part of global value chain, something the economic survey also talked about.

He also talked about the importance his government attaches to the industry. "Due to the removal of dividend distribution tax, Rs 25,000 crore will come in the hands of companies, which will help them in further investment," he said.

Modi added that various tax concessions have been given to attract outside investment to India. He further stressed that tax benefits have been given for start-ups and real estate sector.

He said his government continues to believe in "minimum government, maximum governance".
In an exclusive interview with ANI, Sun Weidong said the coronavirus is generally preventable, controllable and curable and China's system enables it to mobilise all resources for big tasks.He said the Chinese government and people were making every effort to combat the epidemic."I can tell you as of tonight, 218 confirmed patients have recovered and been discharged from hospitals. You can see the epidemic is generally preventable, controllable and curable. China's system enables us to mobilize all the resources for big undertakings," the Ambassador said.He said that China has full confidence and capability to win the battle against the epidemic and that the country was now in a critical period of epidemic control."We have found confirmed cases in 31 provinces, autonomous regions and municipalities in Mainland China, and in Hong Kong, Macao and Taiwan regions," the envoy said.Noting that Chinese President Xi Jinping has attached great importance and given several important instructions since the outbreak of the epidemic, he said the CPC Central Committee has set up a leading group for comprehensive prevention and control of the epidemic."The Chinese government and people are making every effort to combat the epidemic. The central and local governments have built an all-round and multi-level prevention and control system focusing on Wuhan city and Hubei province. We are advancing the battle in an open, transparent, scientific and orderly manner," he said."We are now strengthening case treatment to reduce severe and fatal cases. We have set up a national expert group on scientific research to speed up the development of vaccines," he said.The envoy said the process of approval and clinical use of drugs proven to be effective against the virus has been accelerated."The State Council of China has established a unified national dispatch system for epidemic prevention and control materials to timely coordinate the dispatch of medical personnel, medical supplies and daily necessities," he said.Talking about Wuhan, the epicentre of coronavirus outbreak, the envoy said it is the core area of prevention and control."Wuhan is the origin of the epidemic and the core area of prevention and control. In order to contain the spread of the epidemic, Wuhan has put restrictions in place for urban transport and movement of people to curb the spread of the virus into larger areas," he said."These are strict, decisive but necessary measures to control the epidemic in a bid to bring the situation back to normal as soon as possible," he added.Noting that the Chinese government has mobilised national resources and opened green channels to ensure the supply of medical equipment and living materials in Hubei, the envoy said, "All supermarkets are open, the commodity prices are stable and supplies of daily necessities are sufficient in Wuhan."He also urged people not to panic or overact saying that "if you follow the professional guidance, your health and safety could be ensured."The envoy said the Chinese government is extending all possible help to Wuhan and Hubei in tackling the epidemic."Entrusted by President Xi Jinping, Premier Li Keqiang went to Wuhan to give directions about prevention and control work. As of January 30, over 50 medical teams with over 6,000 doctors and nurses have arrived in Hubei to support the battle against the epidemic. Donations of money and materials have poured into the region," he said. (ANI)
As I argued in a 2019 study for the Institute for Research in Public Policy, it is past time for Canadians to rethink their old understanding of the Senate as a patronage-based appointed upper house that dutifully follows the direction of the prime minister by routinely passing bills without sufficient critical scrutiny and by failing in this respect, and others, to provide a meaningful voice for regional concerns.

Hey there, time traveller!

This article was published 1/2/2020 (709 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

Opinion

As I argued in a 2019 study for the Institute for Research in Public Policy, it is past time for Canadians to rethink their old understanding of the Senate as a patronage-based appointed upper house that dutifully follows the direction of the prime minister by routinely passing bills without sufficient critical scrutiny and by failing in this respect, and others, to provide a meaningful voice for regional concerns.

Here is my main conclusion: as a result of the 2014 decision by Liberal leader Justin Trudeau to remove Liberal senators from the parliamentary caucus, and by his introduction, as prime minister, of a new procedure for the selection of senators, a "new, non-partisan, independent Senate" has replaced the "old, partisan, government-controlled" Senate. On balance, this has been a positive development.

Party loyalists such as former MPs, provincial politicians, defeated candidates and party fundraisers are no longer the dominant presence in the Senate. Instead, its membership is comprised mainly of accomplished professionals from a variety of fields. Most new "independent" senators have no recent history of partisan involvement.

However, most hold centrist or moderately left-of-centre political beliefs. This has led to the charge, especially from Conservatives, that todays senators are mostly Liberals in disguise. They predict that when the Conservatives form government, the new senators will aggressively oppose its policy agenda.

The shifting alignments of political groupings in the new Senate are so confusing that senators should be asked to wear uniforms advertising their political affiliation. Here is a short synopsis of the situation.

Nearly all of the 50 appointees since 2016 have joined something called the Independent Senators Group (ISG). As of January, the ISG includes 53 of the 99 members of the Senate (there are six vacancies).

There is a slowly diminishing Conservative party caucus comprised of 23 senators. From 2014 on, there was a Senate Liberal Party caucus that was not part of the national government caucus. Due to retirements, this caucus was down to just eight members and it was dissolved in November 2019. This and other developments led to formation of the Canadian Senators Group (CSG), which declared it stood for strengthening the Senate as a protector of the regions.

As of Jan. 27, the CSG membership consisted of nine former ISG senators, three former Conservatives and one former Liberal. There are also 12 non-affiliated senators.

The significance of these lineup changes is that a majority of senators are no longer members of a traditional party caucus that seeks consensus and then relies on a party whip to ensure senators vote along party lines. With the new senators having an independent state of mind, there is also emerging an institutional culture that supports a constructive, but not obstructionist, role for the Senate in the national policy process.

As I documented in my full-length study, the new Senate has demonstrated a greater willingness to critically review and propose amendments to government bills than the old party-dominated institution. However, it has never used its absolute veto, delayed the passage of bills unduly or regularly played "ping pong" moving bills back and forth to the House of Commons to achieve agreement on a common version.

In short, the new senators have acted responsibly by providing the "sober second thought" the Constitution prescribes.

In the current political situation of a minority Liberal government that lacks any MPs from Alberta and Saskatchewan, and is facing aggressive attacks from premiers in a number of provincial capitals, the new Senate could serve the useful purpose of responding to regional concerns that might otherwise be neglected, or appear to be neglected, in the national policy process.

Want to get a head start on your day? Get the days breaking stories, weather forecast, and more sent straight to your inbox every weekday morning. Sign Up I agree to the Terms and Conditions, Cookie and Privacy Policies, and CASL agreement.

Playing a stronger regional role will mainly involve drawing attention to the regional implications of government bills and proposing amendments to remove or mitigate negative impacts. This need not mean regular showdowns with the government and the House of Commons. Instead, Senate influence could be indirect, low profile and longer term in nature.

In drafting bills, ministers and public servants are now required to a greater extent than in the past to anticipate reactions in the Senate. Briefings for senators on bills have become more frequent, and senators can use such occasions to present regional concerns without forcing the government to back down publicly.

Another way the Senate can strengthen its regional role is the creation of a series of regional caucuses comprised of members from the shifting lineup of political groupings described above. The Senates standing-committee system is organized along the lines of various broad policy fields, but there is often a territorial focus to their valuable studies that could also be strengthened.

Finally, individual senators should avoid thinking of themselves mainly as policy specialists and adopt more consciously their constitutional duty to be spokespersons for their regions.

Once regarded as useless, the Senate is now in a position to contribute to an easing of regional tensions in the country.

Paul G. Thomas is professor emeritus of political studies at the University of Manitoba.
Mumbai, Feb 1 : Veteran actress Shabana Azmi, who was injured in a car accident last month, has shared an update about her health, saying she is back home and recovering well.

On Saturday, Shabana shared a photograph of herself and gave her fans an update about her recovery. She thanked her fans and wellwishers for their "prayers and wishes".

"Thank you all for your prayers and wishes for my recovery. I am back home now Thank you #Tina Ambani and Kokilaben Ambani hospital for the sterling care provided by the doctors team and the nursing staff. I am indebted and grateful," she posted.

Shabana was injured on January 18 in a road accident involving her UV and a truck near Khalapur toll plaza on the Mumbai-Pune Expressway. The actress was initially rushed to the Mahatma Gandhi Mission Medical College and Hospital (MGM-MCH) at Kamothe, Navi Mumbai but shifted to Kokilaben Dhirubhai Ambani Hospital in Andheri the same evening.

Her husband, veteran lyricist Javed Akhtar, was also in the vehicle but he escaped unhurt.

Among those who rejoiced Shabana's homecoming was her "Chalk N Duster" co-star Richa Chadha. "We love you! Happy to hear you're better... See you soon and a big hug", while Vikrant Massey posted: "So happy to see you back!" Richa tweeted.

On the film front, Shabana will be in Faraz Arif Ansari's "Sheer Qorma", which also stars Divya Dutta and Swara Bhasker.
He also got round the hospital church of the Blessed Virgin Mary Protection of the Orthodox Church of Ukraine

US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo visited wounded Ukrainian soldiers Open source

During his visit to Ukraine, US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo visited wounded Ukrainian soldiers at the Kyiv Military Hospital. This was reported by the press service of the Ministry of Defense.



"Mike Pompeo visited the wounded Ukrainian soldiers who are being treated at the trauma unit of the Kyiv Military Clinical Hospital. He also got round the hospital church of the Blessed Virgin Mary Protection of the Orthodox Church of Ukraine, in which the defenders of Ukraine find spiritual support," the message says.



Mike Pompeo wished our soldiers a speedy recovery and took an interest in the history and modern potential of the famous military medical institution of Ukraine.

Related: Behind Pompeos big we care trip to Ukraine

Earlier Mike Pompeo said that the State Department is working on preparing a new meeting between US President Donald Trump and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky. Pompeo announced this in an interview with the journalist ABC, which was published by the press service of the State Department.

We work on many things with them (the Ukrainian leadership - ed.). When the time comes - they are both busy people - we will find a suitable opportunity for him (Zelensky - ed.) And the president (Trump - ed.) To meet. Do you remember that they met in New York in January or, sorry, in September. Im sure they will meet again somewhere, - Pompeo stated.

The Secretary of State does not exclude that Trump and Zelensky can once again meet both in Washington, and in Kyiv, or in any other place.

According to Pompeo, the leaders of the two countries are directing the development of Ukraine in the right direction. In particular, the United States helped Ukraine with weapons. Moreover, Washington helped Ukraine determine which judicial system it needed.

Country (Ukraine - ed.) Is located right on the border between Russia and Europe. It is very important that we get it right and help Ukrainians get what they want, - Pompeo stated.

Related: Pompeo: China does not benefit Ukrainian people






Through this collaboration NHA and ITC e-Choupal will spread awareness about AB PM-JAY scheme and conduct outreach and training activities

National Health Authority has signed an MoU with ITC e-Choupal to enable farmers across the country to avail benefits under Ayushman Bharat PM-JAY.

Through this collaboration NHA and ITC e-Choupal will spread awareness about AB PM-JAY scheme and conduct outreach and training activities.

The MoU was signed by Dr. Praveen Gedam, Dy.CEO NHA and Anil K. Rajput, Senior Vice President, Corporate Affairs, ITC in the presence of Dr. Indu Bhushan, CEO, NHA.

The two organisations have come together to spread awareness about the AB PM-JAY to help eligible farmers have a better understanding of the scheme and seek hospital treatment for serious illnesses through the scheme. Through this partnership, millions of farmers would be able to access the information via 6,000 e-choupals. E-choupal means village meeting place will constitutes a network of rural kiosks, providing number of information and communication related services for rural population.

Speaking about the collaboration, Dr. Indu Bhushan said, This partnership between National Health Authority and ITC e-Choupal, will empower millions of citizens in the rural India and Indian farmers with digital interventions. The collaboration focuses on providing secondary and tertiary treatment for a range of serious illnesses such as cancer, heart ailments, etc to farmers and their families in rural areas. It will also demonstrate how such innovative models can reach the remotest corners of the country.

Sharing his views, Anil K. Rajput said, The partnership with the National Health Authority will help to improve the health scenario in rural India. E-chaupal will empower farmers in the hinterland by providing necessary information through an integrated network. Signing of MoU will help pave the way to quality curative care for farmers and all citizens outside urban centers.

As part of the MoU, ITC will conduct awareness camps through 400 Village Health Champions (VHCs) covering nearly 800+ villages across 10 Districts of UP and MP on a pilot basis. These VHCs will make women and adolescents aware of the programme through group meetings and door-to-door connect. ITC will also promote AB PM-JAY thorugh 23 Choupal Saagars and 18 fuel stations. NHA will provide training modules and kit to train VHCs and Choupal Sanchalaks who will in turn raise awareness about the scheme among farmers and their families.

ITC e-Choupal is a network of 4 million farmers in over 35,000 villages across 10 states (Madhya Pradesh, Haryana, Uttarakhand, Uttar Pradesh, Rajasthan, Karnataka, Kerala, Maharashtra, Andhra Pradesh and Tamil Nadu) in the country.
The Supreme Court on Friday issued notice to the Prime Ministers Office (PMO) in a plea by former Indian Forest Service officer Sanjiv Chaturvedi seeking details of black money recovered from overseas locations since June 2014.

The notice came after Chaturvedi challenged a Delhi high court judgment which upheld the decision of the Chief Information Commissioner (CIC), partly in favour of the PMO. Chaturvedi has contended that the CIC initially ruled in his favour before reviewing part of its decision.

The high court, he said, erred in not appreciating that the information was denied to him on malicious grounds.

A bench of justices L Nageswara Rao and Hemant Gupta asked the Central Public Information Officer (CPIO) of the PMO to respond to the plea within four weeks.

Chaturvedi, in an RTI application dated August 7, 2017 sought certified copies from PMO of all the complaints submitted to the Prime Minister against central ministers from June 2014 till August 2017, along with documents related to action taken on those complaints. He also asked PMO for information about the quantum and value of black money brought from abroad to India from June 2014 and deposited in the bank accounts of Indian citizens.

The PMO denied information on the corruption complaints against central ministers, saying the RTI request was generic and vague. Information on black money was denied because, it said, this was not covered under the definition of information under the RTI Act.

Chaturvedis appeal to the Central Information Commission was upheld in October 2018 and the PMO was directed to furnish the information sought within 15 days.

It was Chaturvedis case that the PMO tried to circumvent the directions of CIC after this. Regarding the query on corrupt ministers, the CPIO of PMO denied information on the grounds that providing this would disproportionately divert resources of the authority, an exception which is provided under Section 7(9) of the RTI Act. Information on black money was withheld on the grounds that it would impede the process of investigation.

The non-compliance with the order of CIC was brought to the notice of the CIC by the petitioner by way of a complaint dated November 14, 2018. The CIC, after holding a hearing passed an order in June 2019. As per the petition, the CIC in this order validated the position taken by Chaturvedi regarding the query about corrupt ministers. However, it concurred with the PMO on the query relating to black money.

Chaturvedi again wrote to the CPIO seeking both pieces of information. He also moved the Delhi high court saying CIC could not review its own order and prayed that the information sought by him should be supplied by CPIO. The high court rejected his plea and upheld CICs second order, leading to the present appeal in Supreme Court.
Agri experts and industry players on Saturday gave a mixed reaction to the budget proposals, saying the government did not announce any major structural reforms to increase farmers' income.

Farmers' body India Kisan Sangharsh Coordination Committee (AIKSCC) called a nation-wide protest on February 13 to protest against the "pro-corporate" budget.

Industry players observed that the government failed to bring reforms in the Essential Commodities Act. There were few schemes to spur private investment and capital formation in the agriculture space.

However, fertiliser cooperative major IFFCO welcomed proposal of exempting cooperative societies from minimum alternate tax and also bringing tax rate for cooperative societies to 22 per cent from 30 per cent.

"These steps will indeed help the cooperatives to work in a dynamic manner and can bring more innovations for the farmers of country," IFFCO Managing Director U S Awasthi said in a statement.

Hailing the Budget, National Dairy Development Board (NDDB) Chairman Dilip Rath said: "18 per cent increase in allocation of funds to Animal Husbandry and Dairying sector to Rs 3,289 crore for the 2020-21 fiscal as against the revised budget estimate for 2019-20 is remarkable which recognizes that dairy sector is increasingly becoming an important sector for the economy, especially for the rural areas."



The measures announced will help sustain growth of milk production by more than 6 per cent and also reinforces the intent of the government that the dairy sector continues to play a stellar role in realising the goal of doubling farmers' income, he added.

Stating that the budget was a "mixed bag" for agriculture, the Federation of Seed Industry of India (FSII) Director General Ram Kaundinya said it is "disappointing" to note the continued emphasis on Zero Budget Natural Farming (ZBNF) as a panacea for farmers.

"While the FM said that they wanted to make the Indian farmer competitive, she did not talk anything about using modern science and technology in seeds, increasing farm mechanization and other inputs which are essential for this," he added.

Edible oil industry body SEA said it was expecting at least this year the government will come out with a package of incentives for higher production and productivity of oilseeds to reduce our dependence on import of edible oils.

NCDEX MD & CEO Vijay Kumar said allocation of Rs 2.83 lakh crore to agriculture, irrigation and rural development will provide impetus in re-energizing the sector.

For DCM Shriram Chairman and Senior Managing Director Ajay Shriram, it was a "balanced budget" which has tried to move the needle in different areas while maintaining the fiscal prudence.

NCML Chairman Sanjay Kaul said this is a refreshing change from the previous budget which had limited new schemes for agriculture.

However, the agri-industry would be disappointed with no reforms announced in the Essential Commodities Act and minimal schemes to spur private investment and capital formation in the agri space, he said.

Ajay Kakra of PwC India said, "Systematic coverage of agriculture sector through the 16-point agenda reflects an definite intention to bring fundamental development in agriculture and allied sector. Covering allied sector and important thematic areas can surely work towards aspirational agenda of the government.

Cargill India President Simon George said, "Agriculture being the backbone of the nation it would be significant to see how the government would push the Krishi Udaan on not just national but international routes and enabling agri and farmers to be part of the global value chains, providing enormous value addition for farmers and the economy."



LT Foods Ltd Managing Director and CEO Ashwani Arora said the government's efforts to provide impetus to the agri sector are "laudable" but one key area which remained untouched was the direct benefit to companies working in the area of agri-extension and directly engaging with farmers to educate and enhance their knowledge on advancing technologies.

"We were also hoping for subventions and incentivisation to agri-export companies. Both these were seemingly left out," he added.

Farm machinery maker CLAAS Managing Director Mrityunjaya Singh said: "Adoption of Model agricultural laws, agricultural credit availability of 15 lakh crore and allocation of 2.83 lakh crore will encourage farmers to adopt latest farming machinery and technology. This will upskill the farming sector in India."



SLCM Group CEO Sandeep Sabharwal said it's a "Kisan friendly, while KisanKraft Ltd MD and founder Ravindra Agrawal said it was "mixed bag".

"For achieving the goal of doubling the farmer's income, training farmers on best package of practice, MSP revision is necessary," he said.

Netafim Agricultural Financing Agency Pvt CEO Prabhat Chaturvedi said, "NABARD initiative to create an e-portal of geo-tagged, WDRA-compliant warehouses, integrated with eNAM, is a welcome step, which will help in better prices as well as warehouse-receipt financing for farmers."



SourceTrace Vice President Marketing Om Routray said: "The budget has been favourable thus far towards agriculture and allied sectors. There is a good focus on using technology to develop agriculture in India."



Aadvik Foods Co-founder Shrey Kumar said: "Overall the budget looks positive towards start-ups and improving the logistics and infrastructure of the agriculture segment."



The setting up of cold chain infrastructure in the country is much needed and it is good to hear that government is planning to improve the same, Kumar added.

Garware Technical Fibres CEO Shujaul Rehman said, "Sagar Mitras is an appreciative initiative for rural youth in fisheries. Thus fish farming is now a thriving sector and we see the sector GDP and turnover graph ascending with time."



World Gold Council India Managing Director Somasundaram PR said: Measures to boost farmers' income and reduce taxes for the middle class will boost purchasing power and consumer confidence, which will benefit jewellery industry as well.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
By IANS

NEW DELHI: A total of 95 of the 324 Indians, who arrived in Air India special flight from Wuhan in China at Delhi Airport on Saturday, have been taken from the airport to Indo-Tibetan Border Police (ITBP) camp here for medical observation.

They have been shifted to the paramilitary force's Chhawla camp in west Delhi. The ITBP had already made arrangements of 600 beds at the camp for families and kids coming from China as quarantine facility.

The ITBP had arranged facilities for hosting the Indians from the airport to the camp, IBP Spokesperson Vivek Pandey said.

"All basic amenities - fooding, lodging, and WiFi will be provided to the people. ITBP Doctors and personnel are present to look after them. An expert team of ITBP and Safdurjang Hospital and Doctors with sufficient medicines are already placed," he said.

An Air India special flight carrying 324 Indian nationals from Hubei province of China took off from Wuhan in the early hours of Feb 1 landed in Delhi at 7.26 a.m. Majority of the passengers were Indian students.

ALSO READ: China coronavirus death toll rises to 259, infections surge

Air India is now planning to operate another flight to evacuate remaining Indian nationals, who have consented to leave Hubei province for the time being, the government said. The national carrier said the flight will depart to Wuhan from Delhi at 12.50 p.m. on Saturday with a different set of crew and same team of doctors with other aircraft.

"We urge all Indian citizens from Hubei who intend to avail this flight for India and not yet contacted the Embassy, to urgently call the hotlines (+8618610952903 and +8618612083629) or send mails to dedicated email ID helpdesk.beijing@mea.gov.in before 0800 hours on February 1, 2020," said the government in a Tweet.
Kiev, Feb 1 : Visiting US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo met Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky here during the former's trip that coincides with an impeachment trial against American President Donald Trump over an alleged pressure campaign against the Ukrainian leader.

Making no mention of the scandal in his remarks, Pompeo said on Friday: "Today I'm here with a clear message: The US sees that the Ukrainian struggle for freedom, democracy and prosperity is a valiant one. Our commitment to support it will not waver." Democrats in the US however, believe otherwise, reports Efe news.

The House has already concluded that Trump tried to solicit foreign interference in the upcoming 2020 presidential elections by withholding $400 million in military aid to Ukraine and conditioning Zelensky's visit to the White House on a request that Kiev investigate presidential hopeful Joe Biden's son Hunter, for alleged corruption.

Trump's trial is now in the Senate.

Back in Kiev, the politicians could not avoid the issue when it came to the question and answer session.

"No, there's no condition if the nature you described for President Zelensky to come to Washington and have that visit, it's simply not the case. We'll find the right time, we'll find the appropriate opportunity," Pompeo said.

"We want to make sure that it happens at a time when there's substantial progress, things that we can deliver between the two of.

"President Zelensky will be welcome to come to Washington when we have an opportunity to do good things for both the Ukrainian and the American people," he added.

Zelensky, a former TV star who became President in May 2019, echoed Pompeo's statement and said he was ready to go to Washington whenever it was possible.

He emphasized the "excellent" bilateral relations between the US and Ukraine, stressing that he did not think they would be affected by the Trump impeachment trial.

Trump has defended his actions, saying the aid - eventually released in September 2019 - was withheld due to his frustration with what he considered to be an insufficient amount of monetary assistance provided to Ukraine by other countries.

He said the transcript of the phone call with Zelensky proved his innocence.

A second article of impeachment accuses the president of "obstruction of Congress", for directing executive branch agencies, offices and officials not to comply with subpoenas seeking documents and testimony deemed vital to the House's inquiry.

The trial looks set to end in the President's acquittal due to the Republicans - who hold the majority in the Upper House, where a two-thirds vote is required for impeachment - closing ranks behind their leader.

Pompeo is due to continue his tour with a trip to Kazakhstan on Saturday.
As an African American who voted for Democrats during the fall elections, Dean said she supports the idea of fixing the imbalance in sentencing. But she also does not want to see her sisters killer  Santo Ortez Sheffey  go free before his 30-year sentence expires. Under the current law, Sheffey, 60, became eligible to be considered for geriatric release last summer, which Dean and her family have been fighting.
A Thai taxi driver has been diagnosed with the coronavirus, health officials said Friday, in the kingdom's first case of human-to-human transmission of the deadly sickness which has sparked a global health alert. The finding makes Thailand only the sixth country alongside China, Germany, Japan, France and the US with confirmed domestic infections. It also comes as the Chinese death toll topped 200 on Friday and warnings intensified over the potential for the SARS-like virus to spread through countries with less well maintained public health systems. "Today (Friday) there are five more patients with coronavirus, four are Chinese who came in from Wuhan," Sukhum Kanjanapimai, a Health Ministry official told reporters. "The fifth was a Thai national - a taxi driver - who hasn't travelled to China... but may have had contact with Chinese tourists." He stopped driving after falling ill "so passengers shouldn't be worried," Sukhum said, adding 13 people who had close contact with the taxi driver had shown no signs of infection so far and were not under quarantine. Officials did not immediately reveal which city the taxi driver worked but said his symptoms had eased. Still the revelation will send a shudder through megacity Bangkok - as well as Thailand's second-tier cities - in a country where taxis are cheap and ubiquitous. Thailand now has detected 19 cases of the virus, the most declared outside of China. Thai authorities are trying to balance screening of inbound Chinese visitors with the economic needs of its tourist sector, which is heavily reliant on arrivals from the mainland. Health Minister Anutin Charnvirakul said thorough airport screening of all arrivals from China meant the kingdom "doesn't have to ban all flights" from the mainland, moreso as passenger numbers are already down "80 percent" as parts of China remain in lockdown. The government is also battling public criticism it has been slow to evacuate scores of its citizens from Hubei province, the ground zero of the virus. Stranded Thai citizens, including a pregnant 32-year-old, told AFP they felt abandoned by the government, while governments from the US to Japan hustled out plans to rescue their nationals. Anutin vowed the government was poised to pick up "161 Thai citizens... as soon as possible".
The makers of Fast And Furious franchise surprised the fan base with the trailer release of the ninth instalment, F9: Fast Saga. While it was known, Dominic's sister and Brian's wife, Mia will be reprising her role, it came as a shock when the trailer also featured the previous known dead character Han Lue.

Released with the #JusticeForHan, the film is set to once again play on the idea of family. Dominic Toretto in the trailer faces a new foe from his past, Jacob. The trailer starts with the scene from the teaser. After Letty gives little Brain the neckless, Dom meets his old crew including, Mia and Letty.

We are then introduced to Dom's past, aka Jacob played by John Cena. His character is described as an assassin and a super thief. When asked who he is, Letty lets everyone know, he is Dom's brother. Jacob is now working with Charlize Theron character, Cipher, the ultimate bad boy in the series currently.

The five-minute-long trailer takes us to several different countries including London, where we meet Deckard Shaw's mother. There is also a chance, Jason Standom will have a cameo in the film. After several high octane fight scenes and blown up cars, choppers and tanks, we are finally introduced to a Han Lue played by Sung Kang. He just walks in casually, eating like there is no reason why he shouldn't be there.

Kang made an appearance at the trailer premiere in Miami, and said, "[Director Justin Lin and I] know who and what Han is. And we're older now. This Han is older. The things that we learned as men in our personal lives, I hope it can transcend on-screen."

The series earlier also brought back Letty, who was also presumed dead in a firey car. At the end of Tokyo Drift, Han was killed by Jason Statham's villainous Deckard Shaw. Shaw and Dominic have made up over the past few films, it can be assumed Shaw must have revealed to Dom at some point, that Han is still alive, which also explains why Dominic looks so calm after Han's visit.

We may finally find out what actually happened to Han, when Fast 9 hits the theatre on May 22, 2020.

ALSO READ: Vin Diesel Returns With Fast And Furious 9, Teaser Shows Him Living With Little Brian



February 2020: Birds Of Prey, Little Women, Sonic the Hedgehog And Other Releases
RJD leader Tejashwi Yadav will hold two roadshows and two public meetings here in support of his party and Congress candidates in the run up to the Delhi assembly elections.

Addressing a press conference on Saturday, Rashtriya Janata Dal spokesperson Manoj Jha said Yadav will hold a roadshow in Palam on Sunday while a joint public meeting of RJD-Congress will be organised in Vikaspuri on Monday.

Jha, flanked by Delhi Congress chief Subhash Chopra, said leaders and workers of both parties will campaign for Congress and RJD candidates.

Yadav, who is Opposition leader in the Bihar Assembly, will hold roadshows and public meetings from February 2 -4 in the national capital.

The Congress has firmed up an alliance with the RJD for the upcoming Delhi Assembly elections for the first time.

Congress will contest elections on 66 seats while RJD will fight on four seats - Uttam Nagar, Palam, Kirari and Burari which has a seizable population of Poorvanchalis.

Delhi goes to polls on February 8 and the results will be declared on February 11.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
"If a merger or an acquisition is approved based on a certain set of projected outcomes in terms of impact on the market, but it turns out to be quite different, is there a mechanism to go back and, whether it's unwind it or at least learn from that transaction so that it will inform the next decision about another acquisition or merger?" he said.

One possibility: figuring out a way to measure the outcome of mergers versus what companies promised, and unwind them if there's a discrepancy.

As the House committee investigation into Big Tech is wrapping up, Rep. David Cicilline is beginning to turn his attention to new laws and regulations he believes can help fix areas of the digital marketplace he sees as broken.

The Rhode Island Democrat and House Antitrust Subcommittee chairman hopes to complete a report on the panel's investigation into Facebook, Google, Amazon and Apple by early April, he told CNBC in an interview in his D.C. office Wednesday.

The investigation won't result in an enforcement action like the investigations by the Justice Department, Federal Trade Commission and state attorneys general could. But Cicilline hopes it will result in laws and regulatory proposals that target behaviors in the broader digital marketplace that he believes hinder competition and prevent start-up growth.

"As I think about this marketplace, it's pretty clear to me that it's not functioning properly, that there's not robust competition there," Cicilline said.

Cicilline has previously expressed skepticism around the federal agencies' ability and willingness to enforce effective remedies on the tech giants. He slammed the FTC's record $5 billion fine of Facebook last year and accused the DOJ's Antitrust Division of having "weaponized its advocacy program to help monopolists and undermine robust enforcement," referring to its support of Qualcomm in a case the FTC brought against the company.

"I think there's substantial evidence of discriminatory practices that favor platforms' own products and services. So the question of, how do you get competition back into this marketplace so that you can create room for the next great Apple or the next great Facebook or the next great Amazon, that's part of the reason you want to have a competitive market to make space for that."

While all four companies share the label of "tech," their business models vary significantly. Cicilline said while legislation won't target any particular company, it's possible to address the problems across the different business models by limiting certain types of behaviors -- for instance, like prohibiting behaviors favoring a platform's own products and services or limiting consumer data usage.

In particular, Cicilline said he is thinking about ways to measure the success of antitrust enforcement, such as requiring federal agencies to report on past mergers that they cleared to understand if the companies' representations of their future actions held true.

"I think there's a real opportunity to figure out how do we learn from a set of transactions that maybe turned out to be very different than all of the enforcement agencies thought would be the case."

Under that framework, regulators might have to reexamine Facebook's acquisitions of Instagram and WhatsApp. Facebook bought Instagram for an eye-popping $1 billion in 2012 when it had just 13 employees, and committed to running it as an independent service, according to a New York Times article announcing the deal. In 2014, when Facebook was trying to buy WhatsApp for $19 billion, the company told the FTC, "WhatsApp will operate as a separate company and will honor its commitments to privacy and security." But last year, Facebook revealed its plans to integrate and encrypt the messaging services across all three businesses.

Digging through past mergers would require a lot of work, and Cicilline said if the government expects "to reinvigorate antitrust enforcement in this country, then we need to be prepared to invest resources to do it."
Ways to make an ever-popular New Year's resolution a reality

Getting started on a healthy program can be easy with some professional help.
The government on Saturday increased the revenue estimate from the debt-ridden sector by over two-folds to Rs 1.33 lakh crore for 2020-21 mainly on account of dues.

The government in the receipt budget has pegged a revenue collection of Rs 1,33,027.2 crore for financial year 2020-21 under communications head.

It expects a revenue of Rs 58,686.64 crore under communications head in the current fiscal year against budgeted amount of Rs 50,519.8 in 2019-20.

"Receipts under 'Other Communication Services' mainly relate to the license fees from operators and receipts on account of spectrum usage charges," the budget document explained.

The debt-laden industry is saddled with Rs 1.47 lakh crore in additional statutory dues in the wake of a recent Supreme Court ruling on (AGR). Telecom companies owe the government Rs 92,642 crore in unpaid licence fee, and another Rs 55,054 crore in outstanding spectrum usage charges.

According to government data, the liabilities in the case of Bharti Airtel add up to nearly Rs 35,586 crore, of which Rs 21,682 crore is licence fee and another Rs 13,904.01 crore is the SUC dues (excluding the dues of Telenor and Tata Teleservices).

In the case of Vodafone Idea, this number stands at a cumulative Rs 53,038 crore, including Rs 24,729 crore of SUC dues and Rs 28,309 crore in licence fee.

The remaining liability is with state-owned BSNL/MTNL and some of the shut/bankrupt telecom companies.

The Supreme Court had allowed three months to the affected telecom operators to cough up the amounts due to the government - that deadline expired on January 23 - although the Telecom Department did not take any coercive action against defaulters as their appeals seeking relaxation in payment timelines in pending in the apex court's order. Bharti Airtel, Vodafone Idea Ltd, and Tata Teleservices have jointly filed a modification application in the Supreme Court seeking more time to pay the statutory dues.

The fresh plea for relief on the payment schedule came after Supreme Court, last month, dismissed the review petitions filed by telecom companies against the apex court's October 24, 2019, verdict.

The Department of Telecom is also working on spectrum auction which is likely to be held in April-May 2020.
Source: Xinhua| 2020-02-02 05:07:39|Editor: yan

Video Player Close

An emergency meeting of Arab foreign ministers is held at the Arab League headquarters in Cairo, Egypt, on Feb. 1, 2020. Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas said here on Saturday that his authority informed the Israeli and U.S. sides that it will "cut all relations" with them over the recently released U.S. peace plan. (Xinhua/Ahmed Gomaa)

CAIRO, Feb. 1 (Xinhua) -- Arab foreign ministers voiced rejection on Saturday to the recently released U.S. Middle East peace plan, while expressing their support for Palestine which emphatically refused the new peace plan upon its announcement.

"Rejection of the U.S.-Israeli Deal of the Century comes as it does not fulfill the minimum rights and aspirations of the Palestinian people," said the final communique issued by the foreign ministers following the meeting.

The statement described as "unfair" the peace deal, announced on Jan. 28 by U.S. President Donald Trump in the presence of Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.

The U.S. vision of the Israeli-Palestinian peace process includes annexing the disputed holy city of Jerusalem as Israel's "undivided capital" while the Palestinian capital will include areas on the outskirts of East Jerusalem.

The U.S. president outlined the 80-page plan, saying it proposes a "realistic" two-state solution.

The Trump administration has postponed several times the publication of its "Deal of the Century," a proposal that has been criticized repeatedly by the Palestinians who had little engagement in it.

The final statement of Arab foreign ministers agreed to boycott the U.S. "unfair deal" and not to cooperate "in any way" with the United States in its implementation.

The U.S. plan "violates the references of the peace process based on the international law and the relevant United Nations resolutions," the Arab ministers added.

They also highlighted the Arab Peace Initiative endorsed by the Arab League in Beirut in 2002 as the minimum acceptable limit to achieve peace "through ending the Israeli occupation of all Palestinian and Arab territories occupied in 1967 and the establishment of the independent, sovereign state of Palestine with East Jerusalem as its capital."

The final statement agreed on "sticking to peace as a strategic option to settle the conflict," underlining the necessity of the two-state solution as the basis of the peace process.

They warned Israel against implementing the Trump-proposed deal unilaterally, reaffirming full support for the struggle of the Palestinian people and its leadership.

Speaking at the meeting, Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas said the Palestinian Authority informed the Israelis that it will "not have any relations with them or with the United States, including security relations."

Abbas said his authority sent two letters to both Netanyahu and the U.S. Central Intelligence Agency to convey the Palestinian rejection of the deal.

"The U.S. deal is completely rejected once they announced annexing Jerusalem to Israel," Abbas told the Arab foreign ministers at the meeting attended by Arab League Secretary-General Ahmed Aboul-Gheit.

The United States is a biased mediator, said Abbas, noting he will head to the UN Security Council to protest the deal and find a solution.

He condemned that Washington wants to abolish former UN resolutions and international legitimacy decisions related to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict and use the new U.S. plan as the only reference.

The Palestinian president said he declined the U.S. requests to receive a copy of the deal, nor letters and phone calls from Trump after the deal was announced.

"We have the right to continue our legitimate struggle through peaceful means to end the (Israeli) occupation and establish our independent state," said Abbas, calling for international and regional support for the legitimate rights of the Palestinians.

Abbas urged the formation of an international mechanism to implement the resolutions of international legitimacy and the Arab Peace Initiative endorsed by the AL in Beirut in 2002.

"We will not accept the United States as the sole mediator of the peace process," Abbas added.

Washington's role as an Israeli-Palestinian conflict mediator has been questioned with the Trump administration's pro-Israeli policies in the past three years such as recognizing Jerusalem as Israel's capital, moving the U.S. embassy to the city, and slashing hundreds of millions of U.S. dollars in humanitarian aid to the Palestinians.

The Palestinians seek to establish an independent state with East Jerusalem as its capital in the light of the UN-proposed two-state solution based on the 1967 pre-war borders.
Lashing out at the people protesting against the new citizenship law, Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath on Saturday alleged that those who support terrorists in Kashmir were staging protest in Shaheen Bagh and raising slogans of 'azadi'.

Addressing a series of rallies in the national capital, Adityanath also said that "their ancestors divided India", so they have a grouse against this emerging 'Ek Bharat, Shrestha Bharat', and slammed the AAP government, saying it "supplies biryani" to protesters in Shaheen Bagh.

"(Delhi CM Arvind) Kejriwal cannot even provide clean drinking water to the people of Delhi... According to a (BIS) survey, the Delhi government is making its people drink poisonous water. But it is supplying biryani to those protesting in Shaheen Bagh and elsewhere in the city," he said.

Hundreds of people, including women and children, have been protesting in Shaheen Bagh since December 15 against the amended law and the National Register of Citizens. They say the citizenship law is discriminatory and fear it targets Muslims.

At a rally in support of BJP candidate Vijender Gupta in Rohini, Adityanath claimed Mahatma Gandhi had said India should provide citizenship to Hindus, Sikhs, Buddhists, Jains, Parsis and Christians fleeing atrocities in Pakistan, and "therefore, it (the citizenship law) should be welcomed".

"Those who supported terrorists in Kashmir have come and sat on a dharna in Shaheen Bagh against the CAA and are raising slogans of 'azadi'," Adityanath said.

"You should understand what they want, what they think about India, where are they taking it. If they indulge in rioting or arson...In Uttar Pradesh, I told the administration to make them pay for the damages and we seized their property," the firebrand BJP leader said.

In December, Adityanath declared that his government would recover losses due to violence during protests against the law by seizing the properties of those involved in vandalism.

The UP CM also said that since Narendra Modi became the prime minister, "we have been identifying every terrorist and feeding them 'goli' instead of biryani".

"Let Kashmir remain in peace ... If you will speak the language of Pakistan, in favour of Pakistan, the soldier's gun will show you the way to hell," he said.

At another rally in Karawal Nagar Chowk in east Delhi, he again slammed the anti-CAA protesters, saying "their ancestors divided India, so they have a grouse against this emerging 'Ek Bharat Shrestha Bharat'."



"These protests at various places in Delhi are not about CAA, it is happening because those people are questioning how can India emerge as a major power in the world, and to stop that rising India," he claimed.

During the Delhi assembly poll campaign, BJP leaders, including Amit Shah, have been urging people to vote for their party to show their disapproval for the ongoing anti-CAA protest in Shaheen Bagh.

On Thursday, the Election Commission banned Union minister Anurag Thakur and BJP MP Parvesh Verma from campaigning for 72 and 96 hours, respectively, in view of their provocative comments at an election rally in the city earlier this week.

The EC has also ordered their removal from BJP's list of star campaigners.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
US arrests Arizona man over alleged ties to Al-Qaeda



Washington, Feb 1 (AFP) Feb 01, 2020



The United States has arrested a man on allegations that he was the leader of a group of Al-Qaeda militants in Iraq, which has requested his extradition.

Ali Yousif Ahmed Al-Nouri, a 42 year-old resident of Phoenix in the southwestern state of Arizona, appeared before a federal judge on Friday and is wanted in Iraq on premeditated murder charges over the death of two policemen in Fallujah in June and October 2006.

"The Government of Iraq subsequently requested Ahmed's extradition from the United States" after a warrant was issued by an Iraqi judge, the US Department of Justice said in a statement released Friday.

Ahmed, who was arrested on Thursday, was allegedly the leader of a group of Al-Qaeda militants in Fallujah that targeted Iraqi police.

The Justice Department statement gave no further details about how long the man had been living in the US or his visa status.

A final decision on any extradition would be made by the US Secretary of State.
(Repeats to additional Reuters services, no changes to text)

By Thyagaraju Adinarayan and Julien Ponthus

LONDON, Jan 31 (Reuters) - The coronavirus scare has wiped $1.2 trillion from global stock markets in the last two weeks as new cases of the deadly virus multiplied, stoking fears of an economic slowdown spreading from its Chinese epicentre to the rest of the world.

With the death toll rising to 213 despite travel restrictions, the impact was most evident in European equity markets in shares of companies which pocket the bulk of their revenues from China, the world's fastest-growing consumer market.

The pan-European STOXX 600 index is poised for its biggest weekly loss in four months, while among individual stocks Germany's Infineon, which gets two-thirds of its revenue from China, has fallen 10% despite strong quarterly results from Apple, its biggest customer.

The Goldman Sachs' "China exposure" basket of European stocks has slumped 5% this week alone.

Elsewhere Electrolux shares dropped on Friday after the group warned the outbreak would hit its sourcing of products and components from China. Supply chains are seen as among the key issues arising from the virus, with companies as diverse as Apple, Starbucks and Autoliv warning of potential disruption.

Major names in travel, luxury and retail globally have also been hit as hundreds of millions of people who were preparing to travel for the Chinese holidays cancelled their plans.

Royal Caribbean Cruises shares for instance have lost 12% of their value since Jan. 17 and the company has warned that its 2020 earnings would be impacted by cancellations.

Yet the virus - which Chinese President Xi Jinping has described as a "devil" - has had a bigger impact on European companies than their U.S. peers due to their high exposure to China.

Analysts have drawn comparisons with the deadly SARS outbreak in 2002-2003, but the read-across is limited as China's share of global gross domestic product has quadrupled since then to 16%. Several global airlines cancelled flights to China and in Europe shares of long-haul operators Air France and Lufthansa have been on the decline for the past two weeks.

Story continues

In the hospitality sector, Intercontinental Hotels Group and Accor were also beaten down.

Topping it all, the non consumer-facing mining sector was the hardest hit in Europe, falling 8% on concerns that the coronavirus will cut China's gigantic appetite for commodities.

The graphic below shows how Europe's miners have among the biggest revenue exposures to China.

(Reporting by Thyagaraju Adinarayan and Julien Ponthus Additional reporting by Joice Alves and Danilo Masoni Editing by David Holmes)
Sixty-four persons who returned to Gujarat recently from China are under observation at their homes, but no suspected case of coronavirus infection has been found among them so far, a senior health department official said on Saturday.

Most of these persons are from Mehsana district (24), followed by Panchmahal and Surat (six each), and remaining ones are from Ahmedabad, Vadodara, Rajkot, Jamnagar and Anand, said Principal Secretary (Health) Jayanti Ravi here.

"They are being monitored at their homes by respective district surveillance officers and are doing fine," she told reporters.

Passengers returning from China, Hong Kong, Singapore, Thailand, Japan and South Korea are being screened at the Ahmedabad International Airport, Ravi said.

Samples of those returning from Wuhan, the epicenter of the coronavirus outbreak in China, are being collected and sent to laboratories, the officer added.

The government has also set up isolation wards at the civil hospital in Ahmedabad, and is taking steps to ensure that the ports along the coastal areas of the state are secured, Ravi added.

A control room has been set up at the State Emergency Operation Centre (SEOC) in state capital Gandhinagar to deal with emergency cases, she said.

The government has sought Indian Medical Association's help to sensitize private doctors about how to handle patients who have returned from China recently, Ravi said.

District-level health officers are being giving training to deal with suspicious cases, she added.

The SEOC control room in Gandhinagar had shared details of over 200 people from Gujarat, mostly students, with the Ministry of External Affairs and Indian Embassy in China to help authorities bring them back.

The death toll due to novel coronavirus infection in China has reached 259.

The virus that emerged in early December and was traced to a market in Wuhan that sold wild animals, has now spread to more than two dozen nations, including India where the first case was confirmed in Kerala.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
Medical staff wearing protective clothing arrive with a patient at the Wuhan Red Cross Hospital in the Chinese city of Wuhan, where the outbreak was first reported. (Photo: AFP/Hector RETAMAL)

In its daily update, the provincial health commission also said newly confirmed cases of infection in Hubei continued to grow at a steady pace, with 1,347. Nationwide there were 2,102 new cases as of Jan 31.

That puts the national total at 11,791 as of Jan 31, according to the National Health Commission.

Most of the country's deaths and overall cases have been in Hubei, a populous province in China's centre.

The top Communist Party official in Wuhan, the central city of 11 million people where the virus first emerged in December, on Friday expressed "remorse" because local authorities acted too slowly.

The virus is believed to have emerged in December in the provincial capital of Wuhan in a meat market that sold wild game.

Last week, China's central government finally jumped into action, effectively sealing off Wuhan and surrounding Hubei province, and curbing travel across the nation of 1.4 billion people.

But the epidemic has spread far and wide as Chinese people travelled across the country and abroad over the Chinese New Year holiday that started last week.

The World Health Organization has declared the outbreak a global health emergency, but said it was not recommending any international trade or travel restrictions.

It has since ballooned into a global health emergency with cases in more than 20 countries.

Countries have scrambled to evacuate their nationals from Wuhan, with hundreds of US, Japanese, British, French and South Korean citizens evacuated so far, and more countries planning airlifts.

A flight carrying more than 300 Indian nationals left Wuhan in the early hours of Saturday for New Delhi.

About 200 US evacuees who landed in California on Wednesday have been put under a rare mandatory quarantine order for 14 days.

US carriers American, United and Delta joined other airlines suspending flights to China, following the State Department travel advisory.

Russia said it would evacuate more than 2,500 of its citizens holidaying on China's Hainan island, far from the epicentre of the outbreak, a day after sealing its remote far-eastern border.
Secretary of State does not exclude that Trump and Zelensky can once again meet both in Washington, and in Kyiv, or in any other place

US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo said that the State Department is working on preparing a new meeting between US President Donald Trump and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky. Pompeo announced this in an interview with the journalist ABC, which was published by the press service of the State Department.

We work on many things with them (the Ukrainian leadership - ed.). When the time comes - they are both busy people - we will find a suitable opportunity for him (Zelensky - ed.) And the president (Trump - ed.) To meet. Do you remember that they met in New York in January or, sorry, in September. Im sure they will meet again somewhere, - Pompeo stated.

The Secretary of State does not exclude that Trump and Zelensky can once again meet both in Washington, and in Kyiv, or in any other place.

According to Pompeo, the leaders of the two countries are directing the development of Ukraine in the right direction. In particular, the United States helped Ukraine with weapons. Moreover, Washington helped Ukraine determine which judicial system it needed.

Country (Ukraine - ed.) Is located right on the border between Russia and Europe. It is very important that we get it right and help Ukrainians get what they want, - Pompeo stated.

He stressed that the State Department is currently working on this issue. When it becomes clear what exactly Ukraine needs, and the presidents of the two countries realize this, a meeting will be scheduled.

As we reported, President of Ukraine Volodymyr Zelensky expects that the U.S. State Department will appoint Special Representative on settlement of Donbas Conflict and de-occupation of Crimea
He carried one of the panels of the Vietnam Moving Wall in Oswego that had the names of his two comrades killed while on the USS OBrien when it received three direct hits from enemy fire on Dec. 23, 1966.
The Socialist Equality Party (Canada) is holding a public meeting in Montreal this Sunday, February 2, to fight for the freedom of Wikileaks founder Julian Assange. (For meeting details please scroll to the bottom.)

We strongly urge all WSWS readers and defenders of democratic rights in south-western Quebec and eastern Ontario to make plans to attend this important meeting.

Assange is under imminent threat of being illegally extradited to the US, where he faces trumped-up Espionage Act charges and the threat of a 175-year jail term. Dozens of doctors have warned that if Assange is not released from prison to receive medical treatment for years of psychological torture at the hands of the British governmentwhich kept him under house arrest at the Ecuadorean Embassy for years, and has now jailed him in a hellish maximum security prisonhe could die.

The defence of Assange is an essential part of the global struggle to defend democratic rights and oppose war. He is being held in Bellmarsh Prison alongside convicted murderers because he sought to inform working people around the world about the crimes carried out by US imperialism and its allies. These include the massacring of innocent civilians as depicted in the notorious collateral murder video published by WikiLeaks.

The capitalist ruling elite is determined to make examples of Assange and of Chelsea Manning, the courageous whistle-blower who has been held in a US prison since last March, because she refused to testify against Assange in a rigged Grand Jury proceeding. Their aim is to intimidate popular opposition to authoritarianism and war, and to gut democratic rights.

The Canadian ruling elite is an accomplice to this historic crime.

None of its parties, including the New Democrats, Greens and Quebec Solidaire, have denounced, let alone sought to mobilize popular opposition against, Assanges persecution.

Instead, the so-called left and progressive parties promote Justin Trudeau as representing an alternative to the Conservatives, even as his Liberal government integrates Canada ever more deeply into Washingtons military-strategic offensives and regime-change operations around the world, including against Iran in the Middle East.

Canada has been a key ally in the US-led wars of aggression of the past quarter century. It therefore bears responsibility for the war crimes and devastation these wars have inflicted on entire societies, from Afghanistan to Libya, Syria, and Iraq. Canadas spy agencies collaborate intimately with the American National Security Agency (NSA), which has spearheaded the establishment of a global network of surveillance that targets the entire population.

Ahead of Assanges extradition hearing on February 24, it is critical that workers, young people, and professionals across Canada raise their voices in his defence and join the growing global campaign to win his and Chelsea Mannings freedom.

The Montreal meeting is part of the worldwide campaign spearheaded by the World Socialist Web Site to mobilize the working class and all those committed to democratic rights in Assanges defence. It will initiate steps to develop a cross-Canada campaign to win his freedom, defend democratic rights, and oppose Canadian imperialism and war.

No to war and the assault on democratic rights: Julian Assange and Chelsea Manning must be defended!

Montreal

Sunday, February 2, at 1:30 PM

Centre St-Pierre, Room 201

1212 Rue Panet (near the Beaudry Metro station, on the Green Line)
The selfie by Ben Kavanagh onboard his flight from China

Irish GPs are to be provided with full head-to-toe protective gowns and masks next week after warning the failure of the HSE to provide safety gear left them at risk of the deadly coronavirus.

It follows growing concern about the virus threat here following the detection of the first two cases of the killer infection in Britain.

The HSE confirmed the packs will be sent to GP surgeries after angry doctors' protests and the emergence of the virus in two Chinese tourists staying in an English hotel.

The HSE's official guidance to GPs on caring for a patient suspected of having the deadly virus is to wear a protective gown and goggles.

Challenge

But Dublin doctor Dr Maitiu O Tuathail revealed their protection was ignored by the HSE.

"GPs are responsible for 92pc of all patient activity. We need to be resourced to tackle the challenge."

The World Health Organisation declared the spread of the virus an international public health emergency.

There is particular concern at the human-to-human transmission of the virus which increases the risk. The virus has infected 10,000 people and killed 213.

It has spread to 20 countries outside China.

Two Chinese tourists became the first patients in Britain to test positive for coronavirus during a holiday to York.

Meanwhile, three Irish people who were on a rescue flight which travelled to England from China are spending two weeks' quarantine at NHS staff accommodation in Arrow Park Hospital, on Merseyside.

They include Kildare teacher Ben Kavanagh, who posted a selfie on Instagram showing him on an almost empty aircraft, with a joke saying: "group selfie of me and my friends."

The Irish were among a group of over 100 passengers on the RAF flight which landed in an airbase in Oxfordshire before travelling to Spain with other Europeans.

The passengers had to sign a contract agreeing to isolation before they could board the flight, and they also underwent temperature checks.

The quarantined group will be given free accommodation in fully furnished rooms, food and laundry facilities.

Kitchens are available if people want to cook for themselves.

A team of medical staff, who will wear protective suits, will closely monitor their condition.

If any of them become ill, they can be treated at Royal Liverpool and Broadgreen Hospital, which has a high-level infectious diseases unit.

Meanwhile, Chinese nationals in Ireland who want to stay here and reschedule their return to China are expected to be granted an extension.

The Department of Justice and Equality said it is "currently examining the immigration position of Chinese nationals, currently in Ireland, who require an extension of their permission as a result of the coronavirus outbreak in China."

A statement said that the department is liaising closely with the HSE and monitoring the ever-evolving situation."In relation to both visas and immigration permissions" it will " adopt a pragmatic approach".
A Melbourne woman in her 20s who flew to Australia from China last Saturday has been announced as the fourth confirmed case of coronavirus in Victoria.

The Health Department has issued a statement saying the woman had spent time in the city of Wuhan and flew back to Australia on January 25.

Wuhan, a city of 11 million and the capital of China's Hubei Province, is the epicentre of the outbreak, and has been locked down by Chinese authorities for more than a week in an effort to stop the disease from spreading.

The woman fell ill two days after arriving in Melbourne. She was seen by doctors at a Melbourne hospital on Thursday, and has been in isolated at her home since then.
The New York Police Department has made what it called a "tremendous" drug seizure.

Officials recovered 275 pounds of marijuana and more than 12,000 THC cartridges used for vaping Wednesday night after searching a storage facility in Staten Island, NYPD Sergeant Mary O'Donnell confirmed to CNN.

No arrests have been made and the investigation is ongoing, O'Donnell added.

"That's an awful lot of illegal drugs that will never be sold on the streets of #StatenIsland thanks to the great men and women @NYPD120Pct and @StatenIslandDA," NYPD Staten Island's Assistant Chief Kenneth Corey tweeted.

While many of the comments in response to the tweet were congratulatory of NYPD's bust, some Twitter users voiced their opinion that marijuana should be legal.

"Looks like weed and vape pens, most would agree that they should be legal for recreational use," one person commented.

New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo has vowed to legalize marijuana in his state. If Cuomo succeeds, New York would become the 12th US state to legalize cannabis for recreational use.

Cuomo already has passed legislation to expunge the marijuana convictions of thousands of New Yorkers.
Mary Hozey wanted to take her sister to a matinee at the AMC theater at Plymouth Meeting in Montgomery County. But her attempt at a nice afternoon out ended in misery after she fell while looking for her seat and fractured her hip.

Now, shes being awarded nearly $3.15 million by a Philadelphia jury over AMCs negligence, reports Law.com.

Hozeys case was taken to the Philadelphia Court of Common Pleas and overseen by Judge Sean Kennedy. The jury found the theater company completely at fault for the incident, which Hozey said was caused by an unlit step. Hozeys lawyer said that an AMC employee had told Hozey after she had fallen that she wasnt the first to fall on that step -- and other guests told her that six people had also fallen in the same spot.

Hozeys lawyer also argued that AMC violated its policy of not taking a photo of the area where the fall happened until three days after the incident.

AMC argued that Hozey was aware of the step, having been to the theater before, and that the step was properly illuminated with white plastic lighting strips and also from above.

Hozey had to undergo six surgeries as a result of the hip injury and has been hospitalized seven times because of it.

Hozey was represented by Franklin Strokoff with The Rothenberg Law Firm.

Thanks for visiting PennLive. Quality local journalism has never been more important. We need your support. Not a subscriber yet? Please consider supporting our work.
My businesses are suffering from what I know nothing about. I dont smuggle petrol across the border. We only sell petrol to motorists and other users in Nigeria. I am too far from the border to be engaged in petrol bunkering, if you want to see those smuggling petrol to Benin Republic, go to Owode-Apa, said the owner of a Forte Oil filling station in Gbaji, a village about 19 kilometres to Nigerias main western border with Benin and 21 kilometres to the lesser-known border at Owode-Apa.

The owner of the station, who refused to give his name, claimed another of his filling stations was affected by the embargo placed on the supply of petroleum products within 20 kilometres from land borders announced by the Nigerian government.

We thought the policy would be lifted after a week. After a month and the government didnt suspend the policy, I had no choice but to send all my workers home. I could no longer afford to pay them for doing nothing, he added.

Last November the Comptroller-General of the Nigerian Customs Service, Hammed Ali, placed an embargo on the supply of petroleum products to filling stations with 20 kilometres of Nigerias land borders. According to Customs, the ban was necessary to stop the smuggling of the products across the borders to neighbouring countries. The embargo was an extension of the closure of all land borders announced in last August. The Nigerian government explained that closure of the border was to protect the economy and to stop cross-border security breaches.

A week-long investigation by PREMIUM TIMES across the countrys land borders in five of the countrys six geo-political zones (for safety reasons we did not cover insurgent-infested North East region of the country), revealed that the while the restriction on supply of petroleum products has been effective, it has exposed inhabitants of the communities within the embargo area to exploitation from security operatives, and hardship.

The cost of living in communities along the borders has shot up as goods and services are rendered at higher prices than before the implementation of the policy.

Our investigation also revealed that while the policy might have stopped the large-scale smuggling of petroleum products, small-scale cross border smuggling of petroleum and other products is still unabated in many of the border posts visited.

Badagry borders

Inhabitants of communities within 20 kilometres of the two borders  Seme and Awode-Apa, now get their supply of petroleum products from filling stations in around the Badagry Roundabout. Commercial motorcycle riders, also known as Okada riders, are the preferred courier. Almost all the Okada riders in the areas have five-litre yellow plastic kegs tired to the back of the passenger seats of their motorbikes. The Okada riders also straddle backpacks concealing kegs filled with petroleum products to their chests. Others also resell fuel from the tank of their cars.

An Okada rider with 5-litre keg tied to his motorcycle

An Okada rider told PREMIUM TIMES that he can carry as much as 15 litres of petrol a trip, alongside two passengers, to communities within the restricted area where they are sold for as much as 60 per cent higher than the official pump price.

A keg of 30 litres petrol that is sold at filling stations outside the restricted area for N4,350 is resold for N6,900.00 at the Nigerian side of Owode-Apa border to small-scale smugglers. When smuggled to the Benin side of the border, which is less than 100 metres away, the same quantity is sold for N7,250.00.

Several women could be seen on the Nigerian side of the border haggling over the price of petrol with Okada riders.

Okada riders and petty smugglers haggling over price of petrol in kegs

PREMIUM TIMES also noticed that the Owode-Apa and Seme Borders were shadows of what they used to be. The hustle and bustle of the borders have petered away. The border areas looked like a town recovering from a natural disaster. The Owode-Apa border used to be a haven for rice smugglers with people loading trailer with rice from Benin into salon cars that are later smuggled into Badagry town and onward to other parts of Lagos and Ogun State. A PREMIUM TIMES reporter was at both sides of the border for several hours but did not see a single bag of rice on display.

A line of shut stores near Seme border. This is the effect of the closing of the border.

At the Seme border, the porous crossings have been fenced off up to the Atlantic Ocean. Many of the shops and fast-food restaurants that are around the border were not open for business and roadside traders that used to flow into the road, causing traffic around the borders have disappeared.

However, Immigration officials were still making quick bucks from people trying to cross into Benin or into Nigeria without international passports.

Extortion

I make only N200.00 on every 30 litres keg I sell across the border. What is left is used to bribe customs and Immigration officials so we can go across the border, one of the women haggling over the price of fuel with an Okada rider, said.

A man drawing fuel from the tank of his car into keg at Owode- Apa

Along the 20 kilometre restricted areas, Customs, Immigration and police personnel are cashing in on the policy extorting as much as N100.00 for every 10 litres of fuel purchased at each checkpoint. There are at least 25 security checkpoints from Badagry roundabout to both Seme and Owode-Apa. PREMIUM TIMES saw police and Customs officials demanding and accepting bribes from petrol-laden Okada riders.

One Okada rider said security officials sometimes confiscate petrol from people who refused to bribe them.

Haven for Illegal Petrol Stations

In September, less than two months after the border closure, the Petroleum Products Pricing Regulatory Agency (PPPRA) said the country was saving 10 million litres of daily consumption of petrol. Similarly, in December, President Muhammadu Buhari said the countrys domestic fuel consumption had dropped by more than 30 per cent, following the closure of land borders.

While PREMIUM TIMES cannot confirm the governments figures, our investigation at Owode-Apa revealed that the closure of land borders and the embargo on the supply of petroleum products to 20 kilometres within the land borders have stifled petrol bunkering to a large extent.

Shut filling stations along Owode-Apa road

Between Owode-Apa and Lagos State Model College in Kankon, a distance of 3.5 kilometres, PREMIUM TIMES counted at least 62 filling stations. About half of the filling stations are without dispensing pumps. Someone not conversant with the tricks used by smugglers in the area may dismiss the stations as uncompleted. But, our fixer explained that creating the impression that the stations were uncompleted is a trick used by smugglers to fool government inspectors. He said before the closure of the border and the restriction on the supply of petroleum products, the stations without dispensing pumps were mainly used as reservoirs to store petrol before they are smuggled across the border.

The fixer said there were other filling stations at the end of narrow paths deep inside the bushes surrounding the border town. When a PREMIUM TIMES reporter accompanied him to see some of the hidden filling stations, we rode on the motorbike through narrow bush paths for about five minutes before coming across a collection of at least 15 filling stations within a distance of 200 metres.

Idiroko Border

Idiroko is a town in Ipokia local government of Ogun State, situated along the Nigeria-Benin border. It has been an official border crossing point since the 1960s, according to residents.

The situation in Idiroko is not entirely dissimilar to that of Owode-Apa and Seme borders, in Badagry.

Advertisements



From Owode in Ogun State, there is a long, tarred road linking Idiroko and other communities to the border post. The town itself is surrounded by villages including Oke Odan, Ilase, Ita Egbe, Ajilete amongst others.

When PREMIUM TIMES visited the area, residents lamented the hardship caused by the governments petrol supply policy.

Okada man in African fabric (Ankara) transferring petrol from his motorcycle tank along Idiroko Expressway.

This newspaper observed that in Idiroko community, all fuel stations were shut. Similarly, petroleum stations in small communities along the Owode-Idiroko Way were also under lock and key.

The 20km threshold stipulated by the government, however, terminates at Ajilete, a small community along the border route. On Saturday, PREMIUM TIMES found that petroleum stations in the community were congested, as people from Idiroko and environs trouped into them to buy fuel.

A filing station shut down in Idiroko border now occupied by street traders.

In Idiroko, petroleum is the new Gold

Since the new policy on petrol supply took effect, residents said petrol has become the new gold in Idiroko and environs. PREMIUM TIMES observed that from Owode, the road is occupied by numerous commercial taxi drivers and motorcycle riders conveying petroleum products to the border communities in small jerrycans and backpacks.

Okada riders full their tanks in Owode-yewa and go discharge in Idiroko at agreed fees for their clients, Ganiyu Layiwola, a cab driver explained. All fuel stations in idiroko are shut down so thats the biggest business now. It is their gold

PREMIUM TIMES also gathered that fuel station owners whose businesses have been crippled in Idiroko have now moved into Ajilete, building new petrol stations to address increasing demand.

A survey by PREMIUM TIMES revealed that in Idiroko and environs, a litre of petrol sold for N250 while 30 litres went for as high as N6,500 or more, depending on the middleman involved. Similarly, in Idiroko and environs, every shop has a makeshift kiosk where petrol products in jerry cans and bottles are displayed.

Roadside petrol sellers litter Idiroko community

From Ajilete to Ayetoro, through Ajegunle, this newspaper observed that there are numerous security checkpoints manned by the different security agencies.

Residents alleged that Customs and police officers now engage in smuggling and racketeering by forcefully seizing petrol products from commuters and selling at far higher prices in Idiroko. Although multiple commercial drivers confirmed to this newspaper that they have had their petroleum products seized from them in the past, PREMIUM TIMES could not independently verify these claims.

Last week, a woman tried to move 10 litres fro Ajilete to Idiroko but was caught by custom officers, Baba Kowope, a commercial driver, told this reporter. I had to pay N5,000 to retrieve my car. They seize petrol from people every day on this road.

Fuel supply cut hit residents, businesses

In Idiroko, it was an orchestra of lamentations on Saturday as residents complained bitterly about the ripple effects of the supply cut on residents and businesses in the border communities.

Many residents complained that they experienced epileptic services from major communication service providers like MTN and Glo in the preceding days. This reporter affirmed on Saturday that the MTN network in Idiroko was non-existent, confirming residents claims.

A resident claimed the situation may not be unconnected to the non-availability of petroleum products needed for the service providers to power their equipment.

Electricity supply has improved slightly after we protested but the lack of fuel still bites hard, Jubril Hassan, a trader, said.

Mr Hassan said that Okada riders pay bribes to customs officers before they transport petrol to Idiroko and that has led to a sharp increase in the transport fares charged within the community.

You cannot ride Okada for N50 in Idiroko again; anywhere you are going, you must pay N100 or N150 and above, he explained.

For Agba, a vulcanizer, the rate of patronage for artisans and small business owners in the community has dropped since the supply cut.

Before closure, mechanics and vulcanisers used to have good patronage but now, there is no more patronage, he said.

Mama Jibike, another trader and business owner, said the policies have had the most effect on women who trade in the community. According to her, many of them have been thrown out of business and now engage in fuel transportation, thus endangering their lives.

As you can see, women wrap it (bottled petrol) around their wrappers, using different tactics to move it to Idiroko. That very dangerous; anything can happen to them. Some people have got burnt in the process. It is very sad. But as you know, there are no jobs and petrol is where they make money now.

Border closure bites

Before the border closure and the policy on regulated fuel supply to border communities, residents of Idiroko and environs largely engaged in sales of rice, turkey, shoes and other goods largely smuggled through the porous border from neighbouring Benin Republic.

But since the border closure policy took effect, many of the traders have been thrown out of business. PREMIUM TIMES observed that many of the shops in Idiroko area were under lock while others are largely abandoned.

The Border Post now closed.

Residents said commercial activities in the community has largely slowed since the border was closed.

Our people no longer sell most of those goods we brought in from Benin because there is no easy access anyway, said Tayo, a receptionist at the local community Mr Biggs outlet. Commercial activities have slowed down. Most of those goods cannot be brought in again and many are not doing anything, really. We hear some people struggle to bring stuff in but I cant confirm that. Other people I know have set up small businesses to feed their families while we pray that the government re-opens the border.

Tayo explained that the harsh condition has now been made worse for small businesses as a result of the policy on fuel supply.

Imeko

In Ogun State, there are two major border routes linking Nigeria to neighbouring Benin Republic: the border path in Imeko (and environs) and the Idiroko route.

In Imeko, community dwellers told PREMIUM TIMES that there have been gun battles between smugglers and customs officers but the border closure policy has largely been effective, with its ripple effects on the socio-economic survival of community dwellers.

Oyo/Kwara border Towns

Okerete is a border town in Saki West Local Government Area of Oyo State. The village shares boundary with Fesomu, another Yoruba community in Benin Republic.

Okerete to Saki, headquarters of Saki West Local Government, covers a distance of 99 kilometres and can only be easily accessed by motorcycles.

Saki, which is one of the five major towns in Oyo State, enjoys a good supply of fuel which is sold at the normal price of N145 per litre.

But after Saki, throughout the 99-kilometre distance to Okerete, there is no fuel station. Apparently, because the roads are not passable for cars apart from remodelled vehicles with their absorbers replaced with big springs, and their tyres replaced with those originally designed for SUV.

A vehicle laden with goods on the bumpy Okerete border road.

Even before the closure of the border, the people were buying petrol sold in bottles across counters for N250.00 per litre.

The villages are, however, suffering the consequences of the border closure in terms of a near collapse of business activities as smugglers, who used to converge there in numbers have deserted the communities.

READ ALSO:

According to the villagers, the border closure has also sent many farmers, especially those from Benin Republic and Togo, away from the villages.

One of the leaders of Okerete community, Jimoh Aremu, said economic hardship and insecurity has increased in the area since the border was closed.

Even some of us who engage in legal trades across the border are not allowed to cross over. In fact, on the day the border closure was effected, many of our people who were coming from Kilibo, Tuyi and Afesomu in Benin Republic were just at the boundary there looking at their houses over here without being able to cross.

Many others from neighbouring countries such as Togo and Benin Republic who had either crossed here to farm or trade, were also denied access to their villages for more than one week. But the challenge was that many of our people are married to their women there and vice versa. We had to appeal to authorities to, at least, allow us to visit our families across the border since we are not carrying any banned items such as rice, oil or frozen foods, said Mr Aremu.

The situation is similar across other border communities of Bukuro, Budo Aiki, Kiyon, Gah Jimoh, among others, which are located in Baruten Local Government of Kwara State.

When PREMIUM TIMES visited the communities, the people could not hide their frustration and anger at the closure of the border. They complained that their markets that used be a beehive of commercial activities have become scanty.

Speaking with PREMIUM TIMES, one of the Immigration officers at the Okerete Border, Solomon Oyelude, expressed satisfaction with the cooperation of the people of the communities.

As you can see, there is strict compliance of the order here and I can assure you that except for the kids whose schools are located around the border lines, we dont even allow people near the boundary, Mr Oyelude said.

Meanwhile, in spite of the strictness of the security operatives in and around the border towns, one or two motorcyclists still ferry rice across the border.

According to a commercial motorcyclists, who begged not to be named, three bags of rice are poured into another big sack, and cyclists always carry each from Okerete to Saki at N5,000 per bag.

A passenger sitting on a remodelled Peugeot 504 car

A cyclist will carry two of these bags for N10,000 per trip. But that comes at a huge cost. If discovered, your motorcycle would surely be impounded. That is the risk, he said.

He added that the development accounted for why a bag of foreign rice which sells for about N27,000 in Ibadan and Lagos, goes for less than N15,000 in communities around Saki such as Ago-Are, Tede, Iseyin, among others.

Meanwhile, a few villages close to the border in Baruten Local Government Area of Kwara State have some fuel stations, which according to the communities residents, have not sold fuel for a single day.

According to sources, these fuel stations were built by fuel merchants who were said to have used the location to apply for fuel, which is diverted to other locations.

Cross River borders

Ajassor, in Etung local government area of Cross River state, is a border town between Nigeria and Cameroon.

More than seven filling stations in Ajassor have been shut down in compliance with the federal government directive.

The closure of filling stations in Ajassor, a town of about 5,000 population, has given birth to a dangerous venture among the people  every household now seems to have a mini depot in front of their home, where they sell petrol illegally in small plastic containers.

This new crop of marketers travel from Ajassor to Ikom to buy petrol at the cost of N145 per litre and then sell it at N200 per litre back home in Ajassor.

A young woman who superintended over sales of petrol in front of a house haggled with a PREMIUM TIMES reporter over the price per litre of the product.

Make we give you N160 (per litre)? the reporter said to her.

Apparently disappointed, she shrugged, shook her head, and was about to walk away.

Last, how much? the reporter asked.

Daddy, dem no dey talk price of fuel, fuel na N200 per litre, she responded, smiled shyly, and then turned her face away momentarily before the reporter agreed to buy at her price for a waiting motorcycle.

Her containers of fuel  about six of them  are atop a plank supported by a stack of empty plastic crates.

Among the new set of petrol sellers in Ajassor is Jeremiah, a physically challenged man who does his at the junction close to the highway leading to the border.

A physically challenged man selling fuel at Ajassor

Mr Jeremiah said he was unaware of why all the filling stations in Ajassor were shut down. He said he was just three weeks old in the business.

When told that the government action was meant to stop the smuggling of fuel to Cameroon and that the government could come after him for selling fuel illegally by the roadside, he retorted The federal government would take care of me nah, I am a disabled (person).

Are they not supposed to take care of me? They are supposed to take care of disabled because I dont have money, I dont have anybody take care of me, he said.

He said he was willing to abandon the sales of petrol to start a legitimate business  like a provision store  if the federal government could give him N300, 000 start-up fund.

Cocoa farming and related business is the mainstay of the local economy in Ajassor and is tied to the activities at the border.

And of course the border closure, just like the shutting down of filling stations, is hurting the economy and the social life in the town.

Before the border closure, there were businesses, most times boys drive to Cameroon, carry passengers, carry cocoa, Victor Mbu, the youth leader in Ajassor, told PREMIUM TIMES.

Victor Mbu, the youth leader of Ajassor town

Commercial motorcyclists, popularly known as okada, have increased their fare within the town from N50 to N100 for a drop.

People travelling from Ikom to Ajassor pay as much as N1, 000 for a ride on okada.

Since morning my car is parked in the house because I dont have fuel, the youth leader, Mr Mbu said.

It is stressful for our people to travel to Ikom to buy fuel daily. People can no longer power their generators the way they would have wanted to.

Ajassor is said to have been without power supply for more than seven years. Horrible darkness traditionally envelops the town at night falls.

At the primary health centre Ajassor, the only health facility in the town, the only source of electricity is a solar panel donated by a non-profit organisation, Pathfinder International, three years ago.

And the solar panel is able to power only four electric bulbs.

A nearby borehole was no longer functional, the health workers fetch water from a stream for their daily usage at the health centre.

Before the border closure, travellers and business people usually spent nights in the hotels in Ajassor. Hotels owners were expanding their hotels and making more money. But today, their fortunes have gone down.

Since morning. See how the environment is, Mike Otigu, manager of Moses Hotel, Ajassor, said to a PREMIUM TIMES reporter, trying to explain how their business has been affected by the border closure.

Mr Otigu said the 34-room hotel had only three guests in the previous night.

There is a filling station adjacent to the hotel, it belongs to the hotel owner. But has been shut down, like others in the area.

When the filling station was open, there used to be light in the hotel 24 hours since we were not buying fuel, Mr Otigu said. But now we start our generator by 3.30 p.m. and put it off by 8 a.m.

Filling stations in Ajassor shut down in compliance with the governments directive

He said the hotel cancelled its plan to recruit eight new workers because of its current financial challenges.
SALEM  Public workers who expected to contribute more to their savings in July to make up for cuts to retirement benefits will have to wait until September.

The agency that pays out billions in retirement benefits to Oregon public workers is delaying a new program designed to allow employees to try to counterbalance recent benefit cuts by the Legislature.

Last year, lawmakers changed Oregons costly pension system, which is facing about $27 billion in debt. Legislative budget analysts expected the changes to save public employers $1.2 to $1.8 billion in pension costs every two years, starting in 2021.

The Oregon Public Employee Retirement System, known as PERS, is a hybrid. Theres a basic pension and a 401(k)-style savings account on top.

One revision rerouted a slice of employees salary that previously went to the savings account to help pay for the pension instead.

Employees will contribute the same amount of money to their retirement, but a greater portion will go to fund pensions. As a result, employees say they will end up with less money when they retire.

The new law included a provision where employees could choose to send some more money to the savings account to make up for the decrease.

If theyre going to delay the implementation of the part that would allow members to spend their own money to keep their retirement whole, says Joe Baessler, associate director of AFSCME Council 75, a union representing mostly public workers, they probably should also suspend the diversion, at least until they can figure all this stuff out.

Delaying the new savings option was necessary, PERS Director Kevin Olineck said in a phone interview Thursday.

The agency will let workers make additional payments to equal what they would have put in had the program started as scheduled.

The members will be kept whole, Olineck said.

The delay in the savings accounts start is one signal that the reforms in Senate Bill 1049 appear to be stretching the agencys abilities.

State workers have spent 17,200 hours over six months, through December, putting the changes into place, according to PERS records. More than 150 employees have been involved to some degree in helping to make the changes, according to PERS.

When you have to ramp up to put into place a project of this magnitude, you have to take people off their day-to-day jobs and move them over to project work, Olineck said. That results in them not being able to support their co-workers or theyre taking off doing their regular operational work.

The Legislature allotted about $39 million to incorporate the PERS reforms.

But Olineck expects the project will cost an additional $1.7 million, according to a Jan. 17 letter he sent to key legislators who lead committees on budget and information technology.

The project requires more office space and money to pay workers from the Department of Administrative Services and Department of Justice, Olineck said, and more money to support program management and project execution.

The agency could need even more money on top of that to finish the delayed project to let employees contribute more to their retirement.

But Olineck says the amount that government employers will avoid paying in pension costs will be greater than the costs the state will incur for putting the reforms into action.

Olineck, who took the helm in 2018 after running large public pension systems in Canada, said he now runs the second-most complex pension system in the U.S.

That complexity is due, in part, to the constant reforms in recent years intended to tame the systems staggering debt.

Last year, Sen. Betsy Johnson, D-Scappoose, asked Olineck in a public hearing whether the agency, charged with running an oft-tweaked system, was hitting a legislative fatigue wall.

At times, the agency has relied on manual fixes to meet tight deadlines set by new reforms, and reforms that have been passed and then later deemed unconstitutional by courts impeded forward progress on much needed operational process and system changes, Olineck responded in a letter last February to Senate President Peter Courtney, D-Salem.

There is a risk that any future changes to the plan that arent given the appropriate time and resources for implementation could negatively impact the agency and its ability to function in a cost effective, efficient and risk-mitigated fashion, Olineck wrote.

The agency has been clear from the beginning  while the legislation was being considered  that implementing the PERS changes would be a challenge, particularly from an IT perspective, said Kate Kondayen, a spokeswoman for Gov. Kate Brown.

Legislators and the governors office were told that during bill deliberations, Kondayen said in written responses to questions from the Oregon Capital Bureau. We always expected that temporary solutions would be needed in order to implement on the timeline the Legislature set.

She said Brown is monitoring developments closely and providing support as needed.

The Department of Administrative Services, the states hub for operations, also is monitoring the work.

PERS has been receptive and responsive to the feedback provided by an analyst from the states central IT office, said Liz Craig, a spokeswoman for the Oregon Department of Administrative Services.

Reporter Claire Withycombe: cwithycombe@eomediagroup.com or 971-304-4148.

Love 0 Funny 0 Wow 0 Sad 0 Angry 4
Speaking at the recent World Economic Forum (WEF) in Davos, Switzerland, Bakkt president Adam White shared plans for a consumer-facing app which will support the purchasing of virtual goods.

Bakkt currently offers physically settled Bitcoin futures contracts as a crypto spin-off of the Intercontinental Exchange (ICE)  the company behind the New York Stock Exchange.

Now it seems the company is moving past its institutional offerings and looking to launch a consumer-focused app and merchant portal.

White shared that contrary to Bakkts original plans on launching an app solely for Bitcoin payments and trading, the new offering will now be targeting a range of digital assets, including virtual goods, equities, and any other form of digital value.

Explaining that cryptos killer app hasnt been created yet, White said he was confident that someone is going to find something.

White discussed an app which would more closely resemble a PayPal for digital assets and cryptocurrencies, rather than simply releasing another Coinbase or Flexa-type app.

Bakkt shakes up its business proposition

Bakkt has recently appointed a new CEO after Kelly Loeffler, the previous head of Bakkt and spouse of ICE chairman Jeffrey Sprecher, left to pursue a career in politics  recently being appointed as a US senator for Georgia.

Mike Blandina, former chief product officer, became Bakkts new CEO at the end of 2019, announcing a new roadmap for 2020 which included the consumer payments app as part of the companys expansion plans.

In August 2018, Coin Rivet reported that Starbucks, Microsoft, and BCG were going to be working with Bakkt to bring simple Bitcoin payments to retailers and customers. However, it seems these plans have been put on the back burner.

A downturn in the crypto markets and a slow start for Bakkts Bitcoin options led some to speculate that the consumer-focused products the company had planned would be shelved.

Story continues

It now seems that the group will be pursuing retail consumer-based products throughout 2020 in a bid to increase adoption and increase cryptos utility.

You can read more about Bakkt here.

The post Adam White discusses Bakkts future at WEF in Davos appeared first on Coin Rivet.
Former pupils Kate Brennan and Elva Fogarty at Loreto Primary School, Rathfarnham, for the reopening of the time capsule buried in 1996

Gay Byrne predicted he might be dead by 2020 in a letter to students who were preparing a time capsule a quarter- of-a-century ago.

He also said climate change would allow Ireland to grow Mediterranean fruits and vegetables, cars would be banned from Dublin city centre and people would have more leisure time.

It was January 1996, and the broadcaster was sharing some of his thoughts on what 2020 might look like, in a letter written for a time capsule project to mark European Nature Conservation Year 1995.

Stashed

Coming to light less than three months after he died, there is particular poignancy in the line that by 2020 "I'll be dead or 86-years-old and still presenting The Late Late Show".

Now, 25 years after being stashed away, letters he and other famous names wrote to the sixth class pupils of Loreto Primary School, Rathfarnham, are part of a unique cache that was opened yesterday.

Expand Close Former pupils Louise Mulholland, Maria McGrath and Laura Hendrick in 1996 and back at the school yesterday / Facebook

Twitter

Email

Whatsapp Former pupils Louise Mulholland, Maria McGrath and Laura Hendrick in 1996 and back at the school yesterday

Broadcaster Joe Duffy spoke of a 2020 "of materialism, greed and high-tech communication designed to stop people meeting face to face".

The school was one of 72 in Ireland that participated in the 20-20 Vision project, organised by the then Department of Arts, Culture and the Gaeltacht.

Grainne Meaney, the sixth class teacher in Loreto in 1995-96, was back yesterday for a stroll down memory lane.

Such was their collection that the OPW supplied a bigger than usual capsule, which was buried in the school grounds, while the local bank agreed to store part of the trove.

Special

"The OPW said they would like to follow the project, that they would attend the burial and would invite President Robinson to officiate, and she did. It was a very special time," Ms Meaney said.

As well as pupils' essays about 2020, interviews with local people and letters from celebrities,the capsule included projects on the environment, photos and video.

Ms Meaney recalled how in her pupils' letters to the children of 2020, there was a lot of focus on subjects such as "bullying, Boyzone and sports".

Principal Sr Maria Hyland was newly-arrived at the time, but recalled sixth class as "a great group".
Winston-Salem police arrested two Georgia men Friday for their alleged roles in a phone scam in which elderly victims sent money to Winston-Salem, authorities said.

Azarias Levi Ross, 25, of Richmond Street in Atlanta and Ronnie Edward Shaw, 27, of Decatur Road in Decatur, Ga., each were charged with one count of felony exploitation of the elderly, one count of felony obtaining property by false pretense, one count of felony possession of counterfeit instrument and one count of felony conspiracy, Winston-Salem police said.

Ross also was charged with two counts of misdemeanor possession of fraudulent identification, police said.

The elderly victims who received calls were out-of-state residents, police said. It was unclear where the calls originated, but victims were instructed to send cash by mail to specific addresses. Victims sent more than $35,000 to an unoccupied home on Paddington Lane in the Sherwood Forest neighborhood of western Winston-Salem, according to police and arrest warrants.

Officers arrested Ross and Shaw at the home, police said. Investigators seized an undisclosed amount of money when the men were arrested.
WASHINGTON  President Trumps control of Senate Republicans is nearly complete.

In their almost unanimous vote on Friday to bar new impeachment trial witnesses, they once again raised one of the big questions in Washington over the past three years: Will Senate Republicans ever step in against the president and say, Enough?

Although many Senate Republicans have long expressed serious reservations about Mr. Trumps character and conduct in office  and some went so far as to say the Democrats had successfully made their case against him  little daylight is visible now. In pressing inexorably toward their preordained vote of acquittal, Senate Republicans made it clear they see their fortunes and futures intertwined with the presidents, and are not willing to rock the 2020 boat.

Their party is a cult of personality at this point, said Senator Christopher S. Murphy, Democrat of Connecticut.

Senators who normally are jealous guardians of their power over federal spending seemed to brush aside Mr. Trumps attempt to hold up military aid that Congress had allocated to Ukraine, an ally fighting Russian aggression on its eastern border. Mr. Trumps pressure campaign to leverage that aid in return for investigations of his political rivals is at the heart of the impeachment trial.
A killer chef, who is yet to do "the decent, honourable thing" and reveal where his murdered fiancee is buried, will have to wait until later this month before learning his sentence.

Johnny Miller was convicted of Charlotte Murray's murder last year, just weeks before the seventh anniversary of her disappearance.

Yesterday Judge Stephen Fowler QC told Miller that he wished to reflect on his case before deciding on the appropriate tariff.

The Dungannon Crown Court judge, sitting in Belfast, heard submissions from both prosecution and defence counsel on the minimum tariff Miller must serve of the life term before being considered for release by the Parole Board Commissioners.

Prosecution QC Richard Weir claimed his tariff should be at the higher starting point of 15 to 16 years, given the aggravating factors.

These included Miller's continued silence over the whereabouts of Charlotte's remains, depriving her of the respect and dignity of a burial and depriving her family of the essential right of burying their sister, their daughter and the continuing grief that imposes.

Mr Weir said that Charlotte was a vulnerable person, whose "total disappearance, total vanishing" by Miller, with its devastating and tragic consequences for the family, had three main aims: to evade capture, evade arrest and evade conviction.

The prosecutor added that it has had "dire consequences on other levels let alone the grave affront to justice".

However, defence QC Orlando Pownall, while accepting this may be an aggravating factor, said given the prosecution case that Miller killed in a rage having been provoked, and as such the killing could not have been pre-planned, therefore the case fell within the normal starting point of 12 years.

Mr Pownall argued that there was a fundamental flaw in the prosecution proposition as it promoted the possibility, the real risk of double counting, when it came to sentencing.

The defence lawyer further rejected the contention Miller had preyed on Charlotte as a vulnerable person as suggested by the Crown.

And Mr Pownall, while also acknowledging Miller "was undoubtedly being cuckold", he had resisted the temptation to harm her previously and the picture painted of him by others was that of a man who was thoughtful, kind, hard working and not aggressive.

The 49-year-old Co Tyrone chef, from Redford Park, Dungannon, was unanimously convicted last October by a jury of eight men and four women at the end of a four-week trial of being the "cold calculating murderer" who killed his 34-year-old ex-fiancee Charlotte.

His trial heard that sometime between October 31 and November 2, 2012, he murdered Charlotte in a rage when sent explicit images of herself in the arms of another man.

It was, said prosecution QC Richard Weir, "the last straw... a last humiliation... being shown to be a cuckold".

In answer to these murderous claims, Miller maintained that she simply left their Roxborough Heights home in the Moy, Co Tyrone, to take up a job in Belfast, leaving him her car, which he sold to pay off her debts to him, and her beloved dog Bella to look after.

In the aftermath of his conviction, Charlotte's identical twin sister Denise appealed on behalf of their mother Mary and family for "Mr Miller to do the decent thing, the honourable thing and let us know where Charlotte's body is so we can bring her home".

But to date Miller has kept that secret to himself, maintaining she still is alive, while "assiduous, thorough, wide-ranging, comprehensive inquiry... gargantuan efforts" by police has established there was not a shred of evidence to suggest this is the case.

And despite renewed searches by police since his conviction, including the draining of a local quarry pit at Benburb, Charlotte's whereabouts remain unknown.

During his trial the jury heard of alleged sightings of Charlotte in the weeks and months following her disappearance in the Moy itself, at a local hospital and even in England.

However, by their verdict the jury discounted this and Miller's denials of using her mobile phone to send text messages to "lay a false trail" in an attempt to show her alive.

The jury also rejected defence claims Charlotte was either alive or had fallen victim of another killer and instead accepted the circumstantial prosecution case she did not disappear, but was murdered by the man she had proposed marriage to.

The verdict also pointed to the jury accepting that three weeks later, Miller dismembered and disposed of her body using an axe and a saw he had looked for online for the gruesome task, and not as a Christmas present for his dad, as he claimed.
A recent tweet by French President Emmanuel Macron cooled one potential trade conflict with the United States, while muddying the waters of another. The confusing fallout has everyone in the wine world scrambling to make sense of it all.

On Jan. 20, Macron tweeted the following: Great discussion with @realDonaldTrump on digital tax. We will work together on a good agreement to avoid tariff escalation.

The French government was about to collect a new 3% tax on revenues earned in France by tech giants like Amazon and Google. The U.S. responded with a threat to impose a 100% tariff on a long list luxury goods that included Champagne.

Macrons tweet signaled Frances decision to delay collection, and the U.S. temporarily shelved its threatened tariff. Both sides are currently negotiating the matter at an international forum hosted by the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development in Paris.

Meanwhile, because of the 14-year dispute between the European Union and the U.S. over subsidies to aerospace giant Airbus, another potential 100% tariff still threatens a wider variety of European wines, including, once again, Champagne. Thats where the confusion begins.

France's President Emmanuel Macron, right, and U.S. President Donald Trump shake hands during a joint-press conference in Biarritz on Aug. 26, 2019. (Ludovic Marin/AFP/Getty Images/TNS) TNSTNS

The World Trade Organization ruled in October 2019 that E.U. subsidies to Airbus give the airplane manufacturer an unfair advantage over its American competitor Boeing. The W.T.O. awarded the U.S. the right to impose tariffs on $7.5 billion worth of European goods in response.

The U.S. set its initial Oct. 18 tariff at 10% on large civil aircraft, and 25% on an extensive list of other European products. Non-sparkling wines from France, Germany, Spain and the United Kingdom in containers less than 2-liters that do not exceed 14% alcohol by volume fell under the 25% tariff.

A W.T.O. panel rejected the E.U.s appeal in December. United States Trade Representative Robert Lighthizer claimed the E.U.s failure to end illegal subsidies to Airbus merited stronger action. A statement from Lighthizer read: In light of todays report and the lack of progress in efforts to resolve this dispute, the United States is initiating a process to assess increasing the tariff rates and subjecting additional E.U. products to the tariffs.

A tariff of up to 100% on a significantly longer list of E.U. wines is one of the options available to Lighthizer.

Harmon Skurnik, president of Skurnik Wines, an importer/distributor based in New York City, remembers the day Macrons tweet arrived. With one Macron-Trump handshake on the digital tax, there were suddenly 20-30 articles with headlines like Tariff Battles Are Over. It was horrible misinformation because the threat of tariffs related to Airbus still exists, Skurnick said in a telephone conversation.

Confusion over tariffs spread quickly. Scott Frank is an Oregon winemaker who also owns Delicious Wines, a Portland-based distribution company that sells mostly European wines.

I cant tell you how many people called me saying we won. I had to keep telling them the only wine covered by that proposed tariff was Champagne and that we havent won anything yet, Frank says.

Daniel Posner, the owner of Grapes the Wine Company in White Plains, New York, lays out the possible scenarios for the next round of Airbus-related tariffs.

The U.S. can announce new tariffs at any time, beginning Feb. 17, Posner said in an email.

Posner explained the current 25% tariff on wines could be increased, decreased or held at its current level. Products, like wine, could be removed from the tariff list for six months at a time. Or, Posner says, Previously carved out items like Italian and sparkling wines or spirits like Cognac and blended scotches can be added for six months. Tariffs can be revised every six months after Feb. 17, with the same five choices.

What does Posner think might happen?

"A 25% tariff applied to E.U. wines across-the-board is not unlikely, Posner says. However, it would appear that, as far as the Feb. 17 date goes, things may not change at all from where we are today. Italian wines could see the same retaliatory tariff threat as French Champagne in the next few months (100%), given the fact that Italy has recently implemented the same DIGITAX that France has recently rescinded."

While the tariff threat remains, Scott Frank believes some members of the Oregon wine community took their foot off the gas after hearing about the Macron-Trump digital tax agreement. Jana McKamey, the executive director of the Oregon Winegrowers Association, says, That might be the case. I have received significantly fewer messages about tariffs in the past week.

The confusion is vexing for those fighting tariffs.

Confusion is widespread. Producers in Europe think there is a truce. Those here think the same. It is awful, Posner says.

-- Michael Alberty writes about wine for The Oregonian/OregonLive. He can be reached at malberty0@gmail.com. To read more of his coverage, go to oregonlive.com/wine.

Subscribe to Oregonian/OregonLive newsletters and podcasts for the latest news and top stories.
He also has to forfeit 25 properties in Oregon and California and more than $16 million in Tesla stock. Here's how much time he'll serve.
CALHOUN COUNTY, MI -- Calhoun County Sheriff Matthew Saxton has been named the new executive director of the association representing Michigans 83 county sheriffs.

Saxton was chosen to lead the Michigan Sheriffs Association, according to a Friday, Jan. 31, news release from the association.

Matt brings years of experience, knowledge and personality to the position, association President and Iron County Sheriff Mark Valesano said in the release.

Saxton has worked for the Calhoun County Sheriffs Office since 1994, holding various positions within the law enforcement and corrections divisions. He was elected sheriff in 2013. Saxton confirmed he will need to step down as the countys sheriff in order to focus his attention on the new statewide position.

Its an honor to be selected," Saxton told MLive Friday. Ive been at the sheriffs office for 26 years, so its a little bittersweet to be leaving.

Though no timeline has been set for finding a temporary replacement, Saxton said a panel of elected officials in Calhoun County will choose an interim sheriff to serve out the remainder of his term in office. Candidates may seek election to the seat, and county voters will select a permanent replacement in Novembers general election.

Saxton has served on the Michigan Sheriffs Association board of directors for the last seven years, and is currently its vice president.

He will replace the associations current executive director, former Allegan County Sheriff Blaine Koops, at the end of April pending contract negotiations, the release said. Saxton, his wife Heidi and their three children live in Calhoun Countys Pennfield Township.

I look forward to serving the 83 Michigan sheriffs and their agencies into the future, as well as the over 21,000 citizen membership, Saxton said in the release.

Prior to his time in Calhoun County, Saxton spent a short time as a patrol officer in the village of Homer, the release said. The sheriff holds a bachelors degree from Lake Superior State University and is a graduate of the Northwestern University Center for Public Safety, School of Police Staff and Command. He is also a graduate of the Federal Bureau of Investigations National Academy No. 230.

Also on MLive:

Sheriff runs $6M jail boarding business that holds ICE detainees

Police search for Michigan man mistakenly released from prison

Free city bus rides for Kalamazoo students reinstated under revised program
The proceeds of the Kildare Town Community School bake-off of 260 was presented to Barbara Morris from Pieta House last week on behalf of the students.



The teacher student bake off in aid of Pieta House was a resounding success and was held on Monday December 16 last. There were eight junior and senior teams partnered with teachers to produce a variety of festive cakes.

The Guess the Teacher caricature competition also took place on the day with 12 teacher caricatures being produced by 6th year artist Jade Kearin.



Students had to guess who was who and they had a surprisingly accurate success rate!

It was a hugely successful well being event involving the whole school, said school guidance counsellor and PRO Liz Urell.

Six teachers took part in the competition with a total of 24 students and a total of 260 was raised for Pieta House. Together they designed their cakes to create masterpieces of perfection. Buttercream, ganache, fondant, sprinkles, cookies, flakes, marshmallows, chocolates and candlelights were all employed to create the masterpieces. Students voted over lunch and the judges gave their opinion to reveal the winners.

MS J Barry and her team of Jessica Doyle, James Adams, Paige Thackaberry and Aoibheann O'Brien were crowned winners and each received a box of chocolates as their prize. Highly commended awards were presented to Mr barron's team for their beautifully crafted Snowman Themed Cake, Mr Fitzgerald for his team's Santa is Stuck cake.
NSW's Independent Planning Commission (IPC) will only be brought in as the final arbiter for the state's "most controversial projects" that have received at least 50 "unique" community objections, under an overhaul announced by Planning Minister Rob Stokes on Saturday.

The IPC will also have to meet accountability benchmarks and deadlines to ensure decisions are made more quickly, after the state government accepted all recommendations of a Productivity Commission review.

The Independent Planning Commission rejected a proposal by the Star casino to build a 237-metre tower in Pyrmont.

The review found it was in the public interest to retain the IPC, but its policies and programs had been criticised for failure to provide certainty, consistency and timeliness.

It followed calls by the NSW Minerals Council to change the state's "broken" planning system after the IPC rejected South Korean company Kepcos $290 million proposal for a coalmine in the Bylong Valley near Mudgee.
Among the cast, its a team effort with everyone working together in harmony to get the job done to great effect.

The film that is a remake of an Argentinian film Igualita a mi is warmly touching as it deals with a man who refuses to grow up, and instead, loves life to the hilt as a single life that is more of a prolonged adolescence.

Rating:

Cast: Saif Ali Khan, Tabu, Alaya F, Farida Jalal, Chunky Pandey

Director: Nitin Kakkar

How would a 40-year-old bachelor react when he comes to know that, as luck would have it, he could not only be a father, but also a grand dad? Saif Ali Khan, who seems to be having a lot of fun playing characters these days (Tanhaji, Lal Kaptaan, Chef, Kalakandi, or even Sacred Games), plays a Casanova in Nitin Kakkars hilariously funny Jawaani Jaaneman, who is suddenly forced to deal with a young girls (presumably his daughters) pregnancy. A difficult situation, for sure. But that his pleasure-seeking lifestyle would get severely affected is the least of his worries: what hits him most is when this girl suggests that he could be a grandfather as well.

Jassie Singh or Jazz (Saif Ali Khan) lives in London with his family. Though things are not too bad for him as his full-time job as a real-estate agent seems promising, all the more because a grand multi-million deal would lead to his raking it in, his brother Dimpy (Kumud Mishra) worries about his care-two-hoots attitude. His mother (Farida Jalal) too insists that he reassess his goals and behaviour. But Jazz remains unperturbed, and spends his time partying at pubs. The only time he pours his heart out is when he goes to his hairdresser friend Rhea (Kubra Sait) who makes sure he dyes his hair to look younger. When the unexpected emergence of an unwanted guest Tia (Alaya F), whom he eyes at the pub and begins to flirt with, threatens to upset the life of this aging playboy, he doesnt realise theres more in store for him. Tia shares her predicament of coming all the way from Amsterdam to look for her biological father she has never seen, and soon, moves in with him in his apartment. An enraged Jazz is not too happy about her opportunistic and almost parasitic ways, and he gets the shock of his life when she tells him that he could be her father. To make matters worse, he is further shocked out of his wits when he discovers that she could also be pregnant.

Such an utterly charming plot could only be a joyride if the writing is in its place. The film that is a remake of an Argentinian film Igualita a mi is warmly touching as it deals with a man who refuses to grow up, and instead, loves life to the hilt as a single life that is more of a prolonged adolescence. His newfound fatherhood and grandfatherhood hits him like a ton of bricks, as he tries to deal with the abrupt change in his home. But theres more to come: Tias mother Ananya (Tabu) and her boyfriend and the father of her unborn child Rohan (Dante Alexander) too, land up at Jazzs home one day after completing a six-week workshop on meditation in Amsterdam.

Almost throughout the film, the screenplay and dialogue by Hussain Dalal and Abbas Dalal add their deft touch and manage to sustain the disorderly energy of the scenes. Kakkar and writers bring great laughs, as also spicy conversations that make the 119-minute film clever, silly, slick and fun. The gradual understanding of Indian families to move out of their shanty dwellings to bigger batter apartments serves as a subtext signifying the breezy lifestyle that the young aspire for. Save perhaps for the last few reels when forced sentimentality creeps into Jazzs innermost soul for him to start valuing family and the ideals that are a must, the film fulfils the films key promise to milk for all its worth.

Among the cast, its a team effort with everyone working together in harmony to get the job done to great effect. Stopping at the right moments from turning the story sleazy, it remains well within the believable parameters of an amusing film that has in its heart a sharp commentary on bachelorhood and its wayward ways.

Saif is having a ball, and nails it with his insouciance and minimised and understated humour and expressions. Alaya F is a confident newcomer and acquits herself well in the presence of veteran actors. Tabu, post her critically acclaimed Andhadhun, is a delight once again). Kubra looks and acts the part she is expected to play with ease and self-assurance and conviction.

Its great to see Hindi cinema giving its audience what they have been asking for  some real characters who are all out to have fun. And yes, that includes leading a debauched adult life too!








In a press conference, he stated that the three Chinese citizens and their Peruvian translator who had been to Wuhan (the epicenter of the outbreak) and were taken to a specialized area of Dos de Mayo National Hospital were discharged after being kept under observation for about a week.





According to Vazquez, the testing performed by both INS and the Ministry of Health (Minsa) is completely free of charge.









Finally, the official addressed citizens to reiterate the need to follow preventive recommendations such as washing hands with water and soap, covering mouth with your forearm when coughing or sneezing, as well as avoiding contact with people with respiratory symptoms.





(END) SMS/LIT/MTS/RMB

The novel coronavirus has been ruled out for four isolated suspicious cases at Dos de Mayo Hospital in Lima, as laboratory testing was negative for them. Therefore, the presence of cases in Peru has been ruled out as well, National Health Institute (INS) Director Hans Vasquez said on Friday.Published: 1/31/2020
Leidos Holdings, Inc. (NYSE: LDOS), a Reston, Va.-based science and technology company, completed the acquisition of Dynetics, Inc., an applied research and national security solutions company, for approximately $1.65 billion in cash.

Based in Huntsville, Ala., with offices throughout the United States, Dynetics is a provider of high-technology, mission-critical services and solutions to the U.S. Government.

The combination of capabilities enhances Leidos competitive position across its Defense, Intelligence, and Civil Groups, and also accelerates opportunities within the Leidos Innovations Center (LInC), for customer-focused research, development, and rapid prototyping. Dynetics will operate as a wholly-owned subsidiary of Leidos, and its Chief Executive Officer David King will continue to lead the business, reporting directly to Leidos Chairman and Chief Executive Officer Roger Krone.

Leidos is a Fortune 500 information technology, engineering, and science solutions and services company working to solve challenges in the defense, intelligence, homeland security, civil, and health markets. The companys 36,000 employees support vital missions for government and commercial customers. It reported annual revenues of approximately $10.19 billion for the fiscal year ended December 28, 2018.

FinSMEs

01/02/2020
For the first time, Monica Rojas Stone is talking about her recent altercation with Bexar County Republican Party Chairwoman Cynthia Brehm. Its an incident that resulted in Brehm calling the police and accusing Rojas Stone of attacking her.

The Dec. 16 conflict feels like the bizarre but predictable culmination of Brehms chaotic two-year tenure as head of the local Republican organization.

Rojas Stone is a longtime GOP activist and campaign consultant. She was a campaign coordinator for Pete Flores stunning 2018 special election victory in Senate District 19 and later worked as Flores constituent liaison.

Rojas Stone also served as a regional field director for George W. Bushs 2004 presidential re-election campaign and has worked closely with several local party chairs. But her relationship with Brehm was fraught from the beginning.

Rojas Stone is one of many party regulars who have been bewildered by Brehms erratic judgment and lack of knowledge about party procedures.

Brehm has questioned the integrity of Jacque Callanen, Bexar Countys elections administrator, and briefly threatened to pull out of the countys joint primary election this year. Last June, she camped out at the county elections office for two days during San Antonios municipal runoff, which drove the endlessly patient Callanen to call the Sheriffs Office for backup.

Back in 2018, many party activists were stunned to learn that Brehms husband, Norman, a retired Army lieutenant colonel, had pleaded guilty to exposing himself in 1999 to Cynthia Brehms then-14-year-old daughter.

In investigations, the Army Criminal Investigation Command also found probable cause to believe that Norman Brehm had committed forcible sodomy against two other children and exposed a third child to adult and child pornography.

As a candidate, Cynthia Brehm often touted her history as an Army wife but never discussed these disturbing allegations.

The recent incident with Rojas Stone occurred after a meeting of the partys Management Committee.

On ExpressNews.com: Party chairwoman says she was assaulted, raising yet another controversy

Rojas Stone, a candidate for a precinct chair position, said she arrived at party headquarters that night around 7:30 p.m., as the meeting was winding down.

She showed up because a friend had warned her that her campaign application had disappeared from the party headquarters. Rojas Stone said she saw Brehm heading to her office after the meeting and followed her.

I just kind of popped in. I had my cellphone in my left hand. I had my Starbucks cup in my right, Rojas Stone said. I said, Hello, maam, may I see my primary filing?

(Brehm) said no and I said, OK, you do know that withholding that kind of paperwork is against the law.

Rojas Stone said Brehm replied that someone had broken into the building and stolen eight or nine candidate forms, including hers. According to Rojas Stone, Brehm downplayed the missing candidate forms by saying, Well, youre a member of the opposition party.

I said, What does that have to do with anything? She said, Im tired of talking to you. You need to get out of my office, Rojas Stone said.

According to Rojas Stone, as she turned to walk down the hallway, Brehm called her an (expletive) pendeja (idiot).

The conflict quickly turned physical.

On Thursday, Brehm told San Antonio Express-News reporter Scott Huddleston that Rojas Stone started the fight.

She took both fists and pounded me in the chest, Brehm said.

Brehm called police that night to report Rojas Stone and told a police supervisor that Rojas Stone had entered her office and pushed her back multiple times. Brehm said she responded by pushing Rojas Stone outside of the incident location.

Rojas Stone insists that Brehm initiated the physical contact.

She pushed me with her bosom, Rojas Stone said. Shes a big woman, and I fell back alongside the door frame.

Rojas Stone added that Brehm repeatedly told her to get out of the office and then grabbed my wrist and my forearm and was literally pushing me out of her office and alongside the wall.

I told her, Let me go, youre hurting me, because I have arthritis. And she refused.

The origins of the fight might be under dispute, but the incident report backs up Rojas Stones account of Brehms disruptive behavior outside the party headquarters after the police arrived.

According to the report, Brehm caused a safety hazard by getting between the cars driven by the officer and Rojas Stone. The report also states that Brehm was highly irate, irrational and angry with the officer because he was attempting to get Rojas Stones side of the story.

Brehm subsequently refused to speak with the police officer and called his supervisor to complain that the officer had not done his job, according to the report.

Its not the first time an objective observer has described Brehms public behavior as irrational. And something tells me it wont be the last.

Gilbert Garcia is a columnist covering the San Antonio and Bexar County area. Read him on our free site, mySA.com, and on our subscriber site, ExpressNews.com. | ggarcia@express-news.net | Twitter: @gilgamesh470
Texas law enforcement agencies have been able to identify suspects in 45 unsolved cases as part of the Krystal Jean Baker Act, which took effect on Sept. 1.

The law is named after Krystal Jean Baker. In 1996, Baker, a 13-year-old girl, was abducted, sexually assaulted and killed. DNA evidence was collected at the time of her death, but no arrests were made. Then in 2010, Bakers murderer was arrested on an unrelated charge in Louisiana. Law enforcement matched his DNA, which was taken at the time of his Louisiana arrest, and connected it to Bakers murder. He pleaded guilty to the killing.
New Delhi: Presenting Budget 2020, Finance Minister Sitharaman said Indian Railways will set up Kisan Rail through Public-Private Partnership (PPP) model so that perishable goods can be transported quickly.

Sitharaman said, "To build a seamless national cold supply chain for perishables, Indian Railways will set up Kisan Rail through PPP model so that perishable goods can be transported quickly."

The Finance Minister also announced that 550 wi-fi facilities have been commissioned at railway stations, adding that 1,150 trains will be run in PPP mode and four stations to be redeveloped with help of private sector.

She added that more Tejas-type trains to connect iconic tourist destinations.

Live TV

Sitharaman said that a governance framework for ports will be set up, adding "It will also look at one major port and its listing on the stock exchanges."

The government will provide 20 per cent equity for Bengaluru Suburban Transportation Project which will be an Rs 18,600 crore project, the FM said, adding that an allocation of Rs 1.7 lakh crore for transport infrastructure will be provided in FY2020-21.

The FM also announced the setting up of 100 new airports by 2024 and the aim to double the fleet of commercial flights to 1,200.

Earlier the Union Cabinet, chaired by Prime Minister Narendra Modi, approved the Union Budget 2020-21 ahead of its presentation in Parliament. The Cabinet meeting was held after Sitharaman met President Ram Nath Kovind, accompanied by MoS Finance Anurag Thakur and other officials from her ministry.
Operators of motorbike and tricycle taxis (known as okada) in Nigeria's largest city, Lagos, are protesting against a state ban coming into effect on Saturday.

The Lagos state government said the ban was needed because of deaths and disorderliness caused by motorbike taxis, locally referred to as "okadas", and motorised tricycle taxis, known as "keke napeps".

The ban on the city's most common forms of transport will be enforced on all major highways and bridges.

City official Gbenga Omotoso was quoted on Tuesday by local media as saying they motorbikes will not be allowed in these areas of the city: Ikeja, Lagos Mainland, Lagos Island, Apapa, Surulere and Eti Osa.

A statement from Lagos state on Friday said the ban was also intended to push young people into finding better jobs because "Okada is not an enduring trade":

"Our youths no longer learn the trades we used to be proud about of - tailoring, bricklaying, printing, painting and others. Now we get artisans from neighbouring countries," it said.

---BBC
McCarthy did not immediately return a call for comment. In 2012, when Chicago decriminalized possession of small amounts of marijuana, McCarthy helped make the case for doing so, saying that the option of giving tickets was a better deterrent than arrests, which each took four hours of police time.
The World Health Organization held its fourth news briefing to announce that the flu-like Coronavirus that has killed at least 171 people and infected more than 7,834 people. Who has declared a public health emergency of international concern.

By James DiGeorgia

The World Health Organization (WHO), commended Chinas government for moving quickly to identify and contain the Coronavirus that emerged on December 31, 2019, that has infected 7,834 people and lead to the deaths of 172 deaths. WHO is now officially calling the outbreak -- a public health emergency of international concern. Approximately 98 people are believed to be in feted outside of China.



The World Health Organisation (WHO) holds a news conference after meeting to discuss whether the deadly coronavirus outbreak constitutes a public health emergency of international concern.





Eight cases of human to human cases of transmission of coronavirus have been confirmed outside of China, with most of the cases centered on travelers who are from Wuhan, China. The World Health Organization is calling Chinas response to a new standard of response.

Yesterday, WHO Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus said the continued increase in cases and the evidence of human-to-human transmission outside of China are, of course, most deeply disturbing. The illness produces a range of symptoms, with about 20% of the patients becoming severely ill, including pneumonia and respiratory failure. Estimates suggest that as many as 10% of those infected will die from the virus.

The estimates reported by WHO are dramatically lower than estimates offered by the worlds press while the number of reported cases and deaths continues to grow.

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention confirmed the first person-to-person transmission of the Coronavirus in the U.S. today; this transmission makes the U.S. at least the forth country where the infection is now spreading through human-to-human contact, outside of China.

According to health experts, WHO makes a concerted effort not to declare health emergencies unless the danger is very serious and a genuine threat. The last time WHO declared a global health emergency was last year (2019) for the Ebola outbreak in eastern Congo that killed more than 2,000 people. The agency also declared global emergencies for the 2016 Zika virus, the 2009 H1N1 swine flu and the 2014 polio and Ebola outbreaks.

The announcement by the WHO helped U.S. stock indexes recover much of its earlier selloff. The Dow was down as much as 145 points when the WHO press conference and rallied more than 120 points.










The requested page is currently unavailable on this server.

Back to [RTHK News Homepage]
In this image from video, U.S. Senators cast their vote on the motion to allow additional witnesses and evidence to be allowed in the impeachment trial against president Donald Trump in the Senate in Washington, Friday, Jan. 31, 2020. (AP)

WASHINGTON: The U.S. Senate narrowly rejected Democratic demands to summon witnesses for president Donald Trump's impeachment trial late Friday, all but ensuring Trump's acquittal in just the third trial to threaten a president's removal in U.S. history. But senators pushed off final voting on his fate to next Wednesday.

The delay in timing showed the weight of a historic vote bearing down on senators, despite prodding by the president eager to have it all behind him in an election year and ahead of his State of the Union speech Tuesday night.

Trump and senate majority leader Mitch McConnell spoke by phone to lock in the schedule during a tense night at the Capitol as rushed negotiations proceeded on and off the Senate floor. The trial came to a standstill for about an hour. A person unauthorized to discuss the call was granted anonymity to describe it.

The president wanted to arrive for his speech at the Capitol with acquittal secured, but that will not happen. Instead, the trial will resume Monday for final arguments, with time Monday and Tuesday for senators to speak. The final voting is planned for 4 p.m. Wednesday, the day after Trump's speech.

Trump's acquittal is all but certain in the Senate, where his GOP allies hold the majority and there's nowhere near the two-thirds needed for conviction and removal.

Nor will he face potentially damaging, open-Senate testimony from witnesses.

Despite the Democrats' singular focus on hearing new testimony, the Republican majority brushed past those demands and will make this the first impeachment trial without witnesses. Even new revelations Friday from former national security adviser John Bolton did not sway GOP senators, who said they'd heard enough.

That means the eventual outcome for Trump will be an acquittal in name only,'' said Rep. Val Demings (D-Fla.), a House prosecutor, during the final debate.

Trump was impeached by the House last month on charges that he abused power and obstructed Congress as he tried to pressure Ukraine to investigate Democratic rival Joe Biden, using military aid as leverage as the ally fought Russia. He is charged with then blocking the congressional probe of his actions.

Senators rejected the Democrats' effort to allow new witnesses, 51-49, a near party-line vote. Republicans Susan Collins of Maine and Mitt Romney of Utah voted with the Democrats, but that was not enough.

Senate Democratic leader Chuck Schumer called that decision a tragedy on a very large scale.'' Protesters' chants reverberated against the walls of the Capitol.

But Republicans said Trump's acquittal was justified and inevitable.

The sooner the better for the country,'' said Sen. Lindsey Graham, a Trump confidant. Let's turn the page.''

The next steps come in the heart of presidential campaign season before a divided nation. Democratic caucus voting begins Monday in Iowa, and Trump gives his State of the Union address the next night. Four Democratic candidates have been chafing in the Senate chamber rather than campaigning.

The Democrats had badly wanted testimony from Bolton, whose forthcoming book links Trump directly to the charges. But Bolton won't be summoned, and none of this appeared to affect the trial's expected outcome. Democrats forced a series of new procedural votes late Friday to call Bolton and White House acting chief of staff Mick Mulvaney, among others, but all were rejected.

In an unpublished manuscript, Bolton has written that the president asked him during an Oval Office meeting in early May to bolster his effort to get Ukraine to investigate Democrats, according to a person who read the passage and told The Associated Press. The person, who was not authorized to disclose contents of the book, spoke only on condition of anonymity.

In the meeting, Bolton said the president asked him to call new Ukrainian president Volodymyr Zelenskiy and persuade him to meet with Trump's personal lawyer, Rudy Giuliani, who was planning to go to Ukraine to coax the Ukrainians to investigate the president's political rivals. Bolton writes that he never made the call to Zelenskiy after the meeting, which included acting chief of staff Mick Mulvaney and White House Counsel Pat Cipollone.

The revelation adds more detail to allegations of when and how Trump first sought to influence Ukraine to aid investigations of his rivals that are central to the abuse of power charge in the first article of impeachment.

The story was first reported Friday by The New York Times.

Trump issued a quick denial.

"I never instructed John Bolton to set up a meeting for Rudy Giuliani, one of the greatest corruption fighters in America and by far the greatest mayor in the history of NYC, to meet with President Zelenskiy," Trump said. That meeting never happened.''

Key Republican senators said even if Trump committed the offences as charged by the House, they are not impeachable and the partisan proceedings must end.

"I didn't need any more evidence because I thought it was proved that the president did what he was charged with doing," retiring GOP Sen. Lamar Alexander of Tennessee, a late holdout, told reporters Friday at the Capitol. But that didn't rise to the level of an impeachable offense.''

Republican Sen. Lisa Murkowski of Alaska said she, too, would oppose more testimony in the charged partisan atmosphere, having "come to the conclusion that there will be no fair trial in the Senate.'' She said, "The Congress has failed.''
In a major drug bust case, the Punjab Police seized nearly 200 kg heroin, claimed to be worth around Rs 2,000 crore, from a house in Sultanwind village of Amritsar district and arrested six people, including an Afghan national, officials said.



Acting on a tip-off, police raided the house in Akash Avenue late night on Thursday and recovered the heroin along with other contraband, said Special Task Force chief Harpreet Sidhu.

NCA/Representational Image

In addition to 194.15 kg heroin, 38 kg dextromethorphan, 25 kg caffeine powder, probably used to cut and mix the heroin, and six drums of chemical composition weighing 207 kg were also recovered, he said.

An illegal lab was found set up inside the house where preparation, mixing and cutting of drugs was taking place, Sidhu said.

The Afghan national arrested during the raid had come to India a week ago and his task was to dilute, refine and mix the high-quality heroin, he said.

Among the other five accused are Sukwinder Singh, Major Singh and Tamanna Gupta.

Chief Minister Amarinder Singh said Punjab police had busted a major narco-terror racket.

Addressing a press conference at Chandigarh in the evening, the chief minister asserted that those involved in the case will not be spared.

We will not allow drug smugglers, narco-gangsters and narco-terrorists to spread their wings in the state, he said.

Amarinder alleged that the house from which the police seized the contraband belonged to one Anwar Masih, who was a member of the Subordinate Services Board and appointed by the previous SAD-BJP government.

Representational Image

An investigation is underway to ascertain Masih's involvement in the case, who claimed to have rented the house, the CM said.

Preliminary investigation revealed that the accused were using the premises for the last one month, Amarinder said.

He said the drug peddlers were linked to Simranjit Singh Sandhu, who was recently detained in Italy on a lookout notice from Interpol on the request of Gujarat police.

We will seek remand of Sandhu, who holds an Australian passport and was detained in Italy," the CM said.

"The contraband seized in Amritsar appears to be a part of the consignment of 300 kgs of drugs that arrived in Mandavi in Gujarat last year, of which 200 kg was smuggled into Punjab. The consignment had been traced to Sandhu," he said.

The chief minister said the government wants to eliminate the drug menace from Punjab.

Flanked by DGP Dinkar Gupta, Amarinder said the Afghan national was identified as Armaan Basharmal.

Asked about the value of the contraband seized in Amritsar, the DGP said it was estimated to be around Rs 2,000 crore.
According to reports, the use of the very term Brexit by government ministers has been banned by Downing Street, so keen are those around the prime minister to demonstrate that Brexit has indeed been done.

Of course, it has not: the trade talks will stretch across the next 11 months, even on the governments own timetable. The reality is that, one way or another, they will drag out for many more years. After all, Global Britain is going to enter into talks with every major economic power in the world (America, Japan, China), as well as some of the smaller ones (New Zealand) in order to conclude groundbreaking ambitious trade deals. Even the most ardent Remainer should wish them luck as they go about that mammoth task. Nothing less will do if we are to have much hope of mitigating the real economic damage to be wrought by Brexit.

It is in this spirit that The Independent today presents its Brexit Blueprint for how the UK is to survive, even thrive, in the post-Brexit world. For we will need not only new trade relationships with the EU and others; we will also need a national strategy for success. In the prime ministers phrase, we need to imagine who we can unleash Britains potential.

The chancellor, Sajid Javid, has spoken of human capitalism  a glib phrase, but one that points to an awareness that for small, open economies such as Britains, our greatest asset is our people. The better educated and trained they are, the better they will make their living in a difficult post-Brexit world. Education, infrastructure, regional investment  all will form part of the Brexit damage limitation exercise.

So how can we possibly make Brexit work? Fresh thinking will be required. Caroline Lucas, for example, offers the novel idea of a citizens panel on climate change  something that might help to bridge the gap between peoples ready acceptance of the climate crisis and their reluctance to change their way of life. Iain Duncan Smith talks of the tactics we will need to get what we want from trade talks with both Europe and America. Jonathan Powell assesses how Britain can marshal its diplomatic resources to best advantage as it loses the EUs leverage in international relations. Leaders in farming, the automotive sector and fisheries highlight what government can do to support them as they try to make the most of a Brexit they did not necessarily wish for.

Brexit day: UK says goodbye to EU Show all 66 1 /66 Brexit day: UK says goodbye to EU Brexit day: UK says goodbye to EU A message projected onto the White Cliffs of Dover Sky News/AFP via Getty Brexit day: UK says goodbye to EU Getty Brexit day: UK says goodbye to EU Big Ben, shows the hands at eleven o'clock at night AFP via Getty Images Brexit day: UK says goodbye to EU Nigel Farage speaks to pro-Brexit supporters PA Brexit day: UK says goodbye to EU Pro-Brexit demonstrators celebrate on Parliament Square REUTERS Brexit day: UK says goodbye to EU The Union flag is taken down outside the European Parliament in Brussels PA Brexit day: UK says goodbye to EU Pro-EU campaigners outside the Scottish Parliament, Edinburgh PA Brexit day: UK says goodbye to EU A pro-Brexit supporter jumps on an EU flag in Parliament Square PA Brexit day: UK says goodbye to EU EU Council staff removed the Union Jack-British flag from the European Council in Brussels, Belgium EPA Brexit day: UK says goodbye to EU A pro-Brexit supporter pours beer onto an EU flag PA Brexit day: UK says goodbye to EU Pedestrians pass in front of the Ministry of Defence Building on Whitehall, illuminated by red, white and blue lights in central London AFP via Getty Images Brexit day: UK says goodbye to EU A Brexit supporter shouts during a rally in London AP Brexit day: UK says goodbye to EU Pro-EU campaigners outside the Scottish Parliament, Edinburgh PA Brexit day: UK says goodbye to EU Pro-EU campaigners take part in a 'Missing EU Already' rally outside the Scottish Parliament, Edinburgh PA Brexit day: UK says goodbye to EU A large pro-EU banner is projected onto Ramsgate cliff in Kent PA Brexit day: UK says goodbye to EU Pro-EU supporters light candles in Smith Square in Westminster PA Brexit day: UK says goodbye to EU A man waves Union flags from a small car as he drives past Brexit supporters gathering in Parliament Square AFP via Getty Images Brexit day: UK says goodbye to EU The five-year old Elisa Saemann, left, and her seven-year old sister Katie hold a placard during a rally by anti-Brexit protesters outside the Scottish parliament in Edinburgh AP Brexit day: UK says goodbye to EU Pro Europe supporters gather on Brexit day near the British embassy in Berlin, Germany EPA Brexit day: UK says goodbye to EU Anti-Brexit protester hugs a man while holding a placard REUTERS Brexit day: UK says goodbye to EU A decorated, old fashioned fire pump in Parliament Square PA Brexit day: UK says goodbye to EU Pro Brexit Elvis impersonator performs at Parliament Square Getty Images Brexit day: UK says goodbye to EU An anti-Brexiteers stands with his dog in Parliament Square AFP via Getty Images Brexit day: UK says goodbye to EU Paddy from Bournemouth wears Union colours as he sits next to an EU flag decorated bag in Parliament Square AFP via Getty Images Brexit day: UK says goodbye to EU A pro-EU activist plays a guitar decorated with the EU flag during a protest organised by civil rights group New Europeans outside Europe House, central London AFP via Getty Images Brexit day: UK says goodbye to EU People celebrate Britain leaving the EU REUTERS Brexit day: UK says goodbye to EU A Pro Brexit supporter has a Union Jack painted onto his face at Parliament Square Getty Images Brexit day: UK says goodbye to EU Men hold placards celebrating Britain leaving the EU REUTERS Brexit day: UK says goodbye to EU Pro Brexit supporters dance in the street draped with Union Jack flags at Parliament Square Getty Images Brexit day: UK says goodbye to EU An anti-Brexit demonstrator spreads his wings during a gathering near Downing Street AP Brexit day: UK says goodbye to EU Pro EU supporters display a banner ' Here to Stay, Here to Fight, Migrants In, Tories Out' from Westminster bridge EPA Brexit day: UK says goodbye to EU Pro-Brexit supporters burn European Union flags at Parliament Square Getty Brexit day: UK says goodbye to EU A man poses for a picture on Parliament Square in a 'Brexit Day' t-shirt Reuters Brexit day: UK says goodbye to EU People celebrate Britain leaving the EU Reuters Brexit day: UK says goodbye to EU AFP via Getty Brexit day: UK says goodbye to EU A man wears a pro-Brexit t-shirt Reuters Brexit day: UK says goodbye to EU Anti-Brexit demonstrators visit Europe House to give flowers to the staff on Brexit day Reuters Brexit day: UK says goodbye to EU Pro Brexit supporter wears a novelty Union Jack top hat outside the Houses of Parliament Getty Images Brexit day: UK says goodbye to EU Customers Scott Jones and Laura Jones at the Sawmill Bar in South Elmsall, Yorkshire, where a Brexit party is being held throughout the day PA Brexit day: UK says goodbye to EU AP Brexit day: UK says goodbye to EU Getty Brexit day: UK says goodbye to EU Getty Images Brexit day: UK says goodbye to EU Pro-EU activists protest Getty Images Brexit day: UK says goodbye to EU A pro-Brexit demonstrator burns a European Union flag AP Brexit day: UK says goodbye to EU Pro Brexit supporters Getty Images Brexit day: UK says goodbye to EU Pro Brexit supporters Getty Images Brexit day: UK says goodbye to EU A Brexit supports holds a sign in Parliament Square AP Brexit day: UK says goodbye to EU A man carries an EU themed wreath Reuters Brexit day: UK says goodbye to EU Ann Widdecombe reacts with other members of the Brexit party as they leave en masse from the European Parliament PA Brexit day: UK says goodbye to EU Anti-Brexit demonstrators in Parliament Square PA Brexit day: UK says goodbye to EU Pro EU supporters let off flares from Westminster Bridge Getty Brexit day: UK says goodbye to EU British MEPs Jonathan Bullock, holding the Union Jack flag and Jake Pugh leave the European Parliament, in Brussels on the Brexit day AFP via Getty Brexit day: UK says goodbye to EU Newspapers and other souvenirs at a store, near Parliament Square Reuters Brexit day: UK says goodbye to EU Brexit supporters hold signs in Parliament Square AP Brexit day: UK says goodbye to EU Pro-EU protesters hold placards in Parliament Square AFP via Getty Brexit day: UK says goodbye to EU French newspapers PA Brexit day: UK says goodbye to EU Sinn Fein leader Mary Lou McDonald with a Border Communities Against Brexit poster before its unveiling in Carrickcarnon on the Irish border PA Brexit day: UK says goodbye to EU National growers organisation British Apples & Pears has renamed a British apple to EOS, the Greek goddess of dawn, to commemorate Brexit day AP Brexit day: UK says goodbye to EU Pro-EU protesters hold placards in Parliament Square AFP via Getty Brexit day: UK says goodbye to EU Britain's departure from the European Union was set in law on January 29, amid emotional scenes, as the bloc's parliament voted to ratify the divorce papers. After half a century of membership and three years of tense withdrawal talks, the UK will leave the EU at midnight Brussels time (23.00 GMT) on January 31 Reuters Brexit day: UK says goodbye to EU A man poses with paintings on Parliament Square Reuters Brexit day: UK says goodbye to EU People sporting Union Flags gather in Parliament Square Getty Brexit day: UK says goodbye to EU A man walks with a St. George's flag at Westminster bridge on Brexit day Reuters Brexit day: UK says goodbye to EU A British bulldog toy and other souvenirs at a souvenir store Reuters Brexit day: UK says goodbye to EU British pro-brexit Members of the European Parliament leave the EU Parliament for the last time Reuters Brexit day: UK says goodbye to EU Jonathan Bullock waves the Union Jack as he leaves the European Parliament EPA

Those who opposed Brexit, who joined with The Independent in the Final Say campaign for a second, confirmatory referendum, and who want the UK to rejoin the EU as soon as possible, are right to remain sceptical about Brexit. Yet it is happening, and we have now to polish this most unpromising of stones. It is always going to be true that the UK will be worse off outside the EU than it should have been inside it  but that does not mean that economic growth is impossible, or that Britain has to accept its destiny without trying to make the best of this bad job. Remainers may allow themselves some time for sadness, just as Leavers celebrate. But then it is time to put into motion a different kind of debate about what will inevitably become a different kind of country.
SARATOGA SPRINGS  Taller buildings on Broadway and denser residential neighborhoods could be coming the citys way.

The unified development ordinance or UDO as proposed by city consultants Camiros, Ltd, will allow for height bonuses downtown, upping the current limit of 70 feet to 96 feet. It could also pave the way for more subdivisions in the UR-3 neighborhoods concentrated on the city's west side.

The changes to the ordinance are part of the city's continuing efforts to align its 2015 comprehensive plan with zoning, which included the City Council's controversial approval to transform a residential neighborhood into one where the hospital can expand.

These more detailed alterations to the zoning law have not sparked the same outrage from residents, but Commissioner of Accounts John Franck said there is some concern that residents in the UR-3 neighborhoods will be asked to take on too much. Right now, current lot areas are 6,600 square feet for a single-family home and 8,000 square feet for a two-family home. That would be changed to 5,000 and 6,600 square feet, respectively.

In addition, the current zoning rules show 40 lots are eligible for subdivision in UR-3, while the proposed UDO adds 90 lots for a total of 130.

I understand their concerns, Franck said. Everyone wants to protect their property values. But there is not a lot of space there already. There is the potential for more density and to make a single-family (home) into multi-units, but its all built out there already. There is not a ton of buildable lots."

He also said he doesn't believe density will become a problem because Camiros dropped the height of the buildings from 60 feet to 40 feet in UR-3, Franck said. However, as the citys assessor, he said that a single-family homes value goes down if it is transformed into a two-family house. He also said the value goes up if a single-family homeowner builds a second dwelling on the lot, which would also be allowed under the proposal, he said.

Franck said hes more concerned with the height bonuses that Camiros is proposing downtown. Camiros is currently proposing to allow developers one foot for every point earned. These bonuses would be accumulated by adding affordable housing, providing public or community space or with LEED/ net-zero construction, meaning the energy consumed by the building is equal to the amount of renewable energy it creates.

Everyone is watching UR-3, but to me this is the story, Franck said about the bonuses. Everyone is complaining about something that may be impossible in UR-3, but the bonuses on Broadway is a developers dream, especially for a commercial developer.

Special Investigation 147 NY dams are 'unsound,' potentially dangerous Thousands of dams have not been inspected in over 20 years.

Mayor Meg Kelly said that Camiros has been studying the city since August 2018 and that the Chicago consultants have already successfully created a plan for Baltimore, Buffalo and New Orleans.

Residents have until Friday, Feb. 7, to comment on the UDO. Kelly said after changes are considered, the UDO will go to the citys Design Review Committee and the city and county planning boards before City Council approval. She expects the approval process will begin in the spring.

Camiros' Arista Strungys said the whole point of the effort is to simplify zoning laws while elevating land use and design standards...enhancing the neighborhood character as well as improving conformance" throughout the city.

"It will create an environment of predictability," she said. "I know what I can do with my lot and I know what can happen next to me on my neighbors lot."
Courtesy KLRN TV

Margaret Hoover talked about the 2020 election and the divisive state of our political discourse at a Wednesday night reception hosted by the Express-News and KLRN.

Hoover, the host of the PBS series Firing Line, said the show is an effort to have respectful, in-depth discussions on major policy issues.
by Wendy Davis @wendyndavis, January 31, 2020

A proposed bill in Maryland that would tax digital advertising is extremely detrimental and would create a regulatory enforcement nightmare, the Association of National Advertisers says.

The bill, SB 2, would impose a tax ranging from 2.5% to 10% of revenue derived from advertising to users who appear to be in the state based on their IP address.

The measure would only apply to companies that glean more than $100 million in global digital advertising revenue.

The measure could raise an estimated $250 million, according to a memo prepared by the state Department of Legislative Services. The agency adds that the bill is aimed at large multinational corporations, such as Alphabet/Google, Amazon, Facebook, and others that have a large presence in digital advertising.

The memo also notes that the bill could face legal challenges.

advertisement advertisement

Past efforts to impose taxes on the news media or advertising revenues have been rejected by the U.S. Supreme Court on First Amendment grounds, the agency writes.

In addition, the Maryland Court of Appeals ruled in the 1950s that a proposed tax in Baltimore on television, newspaper, and radio advertising would have violated the First Amendment.

The ANA, which testified against the bill Wednesday at a hearing of the Maryland Senate Committee on Budget and Taxation, adds that the bill could also be unconstitutional because it would tax companies based on business activity outside the state.

The ANA also argues the bill would tax companies based on mere guesses about consumers' locations, given that consumers' IP addresses don't always reveal their locations.

Taxing advertising is extremely detrimental and has been rejected by over 40 states that have considered this issue, the advertising group wrote this week in a blog post. We understand the need in Maryland to seek funding and support for educational purposes, but this proposal will cause substantially more harm than good.
More than 10,000 new residential units are projected to be added to the Lake Norman High School and South Iredell High School districts, Iredell County data indicates. The data draws from subdivision projects, both under review and those in various stages of construction as of Jan. 1.

Kenny Miller, assistant superintendent for facilities and planning, said that this would add a couple thousand students to the area in the next few years.

Johnson said that Lake Norman High is over capacity and has two mobile mega units in front of the school. He said that these units are designed to be a temporary solution to a growth problem and that the high school could not house any more due to watershed regulations.

Miller said that the mega units are like pouring money down a rathole because of their high initial and maintenance cost. He said that after 10 years, mega units need major renovations or need to be replaced.

Johnson also addressed the property tax increase that will fund the bond. The property tax is projected to increase from .5275% to .5375%, data from the Iredell County Finance Office indicated. This would increase annual property taxes by $10 for property valued at $100,000.
[January 31, 2020] Front Range BidCo, Inc. Announces Early Results of its Cash Tender Offers and Related Consent Solicitations for 6.00% Senior Notes due 2023, 6.375% Senior Notes due 2025 and 5.750% Senior Notes due 2027 of Zayo Group, LLC and Zayo Capital, Inc.

Front Range BidCo, Inc. (the "Company") announced today that, as of 5:00 p.m., New York City time, on January 31, 2020 (the "Early Tender Date"), as reported by the information and tender agent, in connection with the Company's previously announced cash tender offers (the "Offers") and related consent solicitations (the "Consent Solicitations") in respect of any and all outstanding 6.00% Senior Notes due 2023 (the "2023 Notes"), 6.375% Senior Notes due 2025 (the "2025 Notes") and 5.750% Senior Notes due 2027 (the "2027 Notes," and together with the 2023 Notes and 2025 Notes, the "Notes"), each co-issued by Zayo Group (News - Alert), LLC and Zayo Capital, Inc. (together, the "Co-Issuers"), it had received tenders and consents from holders of (i) approximately $1,279,830,000 aggregate principal amount, or 89.50%, of the outstanding 2023 Notes, (ii) approximately $862,783,000 aggregate principal amount, or 95.86%, of the outstanding 2025 Notes, and (iii) approximately $1,615,115,000 aggregate principal amount, or 97.89%, of the outstanding 2027 Notes. On January 31, 2020, the Co-Issuers, the guarantors party thereto and The Bank of New York Mellon Trust Company, N.A., as trustee under each of the indentures governing the Notes, executed (i) a supplemental indenture with respect to the 2023 Notes (the "2023 Supplemental Indenture"), (ii) a supplemental indenture with respect to the 2025 Notes (the "2025 Supplemental Indenture"), and (iii) a supplemental indenture with respect to the 2027 Notes (the "2027 Supplemental Indenture," and together with the 2023 Supplemental Indenture and 2025 Supplemental Indenture, the "Supplemental Indentures"), in each case to authorize the elimination of substantially all of the restrictive covenants, certain reporting obligations, certain events of default and related provisions contained in the applicable indenture governing such series of Notes (the "Proposed Amendments"). The Proposed Amendments relating to the applicable series of Notes, however, will not become operative until the Company has accepted for purchase Notes that have been validly tendered representing at least a majority of the aggregate principal amount of such series of Notes then outstanding pursuant to the applicable Offer. The deadline to validly withdraw tenders of Notes in each Offer was 5:00 p.m., New York City time, on January 31, 2020 (such time and date with respect to each Offer, the "Withdrawal Deadline"); therefore, Notes that have been tendered and not validly withdrawn, and Notes tendered after that date, may not be withdrawn unless otherwise required by applicable law. The table below summarizes certain payment terms of the Offers and the Consent Solicitations:







CUSIP Nos./ISINs Outstanding

Principal

Amount of

Notes Description

of Notes Tender

Consideration* Early

Participation

Premium* Total

Consideration* CUSIP: 989194AJ4, 989194AM7, U98832AE5 ISIN: US989194AJ41, US989194AM79, USU98832AE54 $1,430,000,000 6.00% Senior

Notes due 2023 $990.00 $30.00 $1,020.00 CUSIP: 989194AK1, 989194AL9, 989194AN5, U98832AF2, U98832AG0 ISIN: US989194AK14, US989194AL96, US989194AN52, USU98832AF20, USU98832AG03 $900,000,000 6.375% Senior

Notes due 2025 $990.00 $30.00 $1,020.00 CUSIP: 989194AP0, U98832AH8 ISIN: US989194AP01, USU98832AH85 $1,650,000,000 5.750% Senior

Notes due 2027 $990.00 $30.00 $1,020.00

* Per $1,000 principal amount of Notes. Holders who have validly tendered Notes at or before the applicable Early Tender Date will be eligible to receive the applicable Total Consideration with respect to the Notes tendered. Holders validly tendering Notes after the applicable Early Tender Date but at or before the applicable Expiration Date will be eligible to receive only the applicable Tender Consideration for such Notes, which is equal to the applicable Total Consideration less the applicable Early Participation Premium. In addition, holders whose Notes are purchased in the Offers will receive accrued and unpaid interest in respect of their purchased Notes from the last interest payment date of such Notes up to, but not including, the applicable settlement date for such Notes. The Offers will expire at 12:00 midnight, New York City time, at the end of the day on February 14, 2020, unless extended or earlier terminated (such time and date with respect to each Offer, as it may be extended, the "Expiration Date"). Subject to the terms and conditions of the applicable Offer being satisfied or waived, the Company will, following the applicable Expiration Date, accept for purchase all Notes of the applicable series validly tendered at or before such Expiration Date (and not validly withdrawn at or before the applicable Withdrawal Deadline). The Company will pay the applicable Total Consideration or the applicable Tender Consideration, as the case may be, for the Notes accepted for purchase, and the settlement date for Notes purchased pursuant to each Offer is expected to be the date of the closing of the Merger (as defined below). The Offers and Consent Solicitations are being made upon the terms and subject to the conditions set forth in the Company's Offer to Purchase and Consent Solicitation Statement dated January 17, 2020 (as it may be amended or supplemented from time to time, the "Statement") and in the related Consent and Letter of Transmittal (as it may be amended or supplemented from time to time, and collectively with the Statement, the "Offer Documents"). Holders may not tender their Notes without delivering their consents to the Proposed Amendments and may not deliver consents to the Proposed Amendments without tendering their related Notes. The Company's obligation to consummate the Offers is subject to the satisfaction or waiver of certain conditions, which are more fully described in the Statement, including, among others, (i) with respect to each series of Notes, the receipt of validly delivered consents to the Proposed Amendments from holders representing at least a majority of the aggregate principal amount of such series of Notes then outstanding (which, as described above, have been received with respect to each series of Notes as of the date hereof), (ii) the execution and delivery by the Co-Issuers and the trustee of a supplemental indenture with respect to each series of Notes implementing the Proposed Amendments to the applicable indenture (which, as described above, have been executed and delivered in respect of each series of Notes as of the date hereof), (iii) the substantially concurrent consummation of the merger of the Company with and into Zayo Group Holdings, Inc. (the "Merger") on the terms and conditions set forth in the Agreement and Plan of Merger dated May 8, 2019 (as amended, supplemented, waived or otherwise modified from time to time), by and among Front Range TopCo, Inc., the Company and Zayo Group Holdings, Inc. and (iv) the consummation of debt financing on terms satisfactory to the Company that yields sufficient net cash proceeds to fund the Total Consideration for all of the outstanding Notes. The consummation of the Merger is not conditioned upon, either directly or indirectly, the consummation of the Offers or the Consent Solicitations. Credit Suisse Securities (USA) LLC and Morgan Stanley & Co. LLC are acting as joint-lead dealer managers and solicitation agents (the "Dealer Managers and Solicitation Agents") for the Offers and the Consent Solicitations. Questions regarding the terms of the Offers and the Consent Solicitations can be directed to the Dealer Managers and Solicitation Agents, Credit Suisse Securities (USA) LLC at (800) 820-1653 (toll free) and (212) 538-1862 (collect) and Morgan Stanley & Co. LLC at (800) 624-1808 (toll free) and (212) 761-1864 (collect). The information and tender agent for the Offers and Consent Solicitations is Global Bondholder Services Corporation. Holders with questions or who would like additional copies of the Offer Documents may call Global Bondholder Services Corporation, toll-free at (866) 807-2200 or (212) 430-3774 (collect). This news release is for informational purposes only and does not constitute an offer to buy or the solicitation of an offer to sell the Notes. The Offers and the Consent Solicitations are being made only pursuant to the Offer Documents. Holders and investors should read carefully the Offer Documents because they contain important information, including the various terms of and conditions to the Offers and the Consent Solicitations. None of the Company, the Dealer Managers and Solicitation Agents, the information and tender agent or their respective affiliates is making any recommendation as to whether or not holders should tender all or any portion of their Notes in the Offers or deliver their consents in the Consent Solicitations. About Zayo Group Zayo Group Holdings, Inc. (NYSE: ZAYO) provides mission-critical bandwidth to the world's most impactful companies, fueling the innovations that are transforming our society. Zayo's 133,000-mile network in North America and Europe includes extensive metro connectivity to thousands of buildings and data centers. Zayo's communications infrastructure solutions include dark fiber, private data networks, wavelengths, Ethernet, dedicated internet access and data center colocation services. Zayo owns and operates a Tier 1 IP backbone and 44 carrier-neutral data centers. Through its CloudLink service, Zayo provides low-latency private connectivity that attaches enterprises to their public cloud environments. Zayo serves wireless and wireline carriers, media, tech, content, finance, healthcare and other large enterprises. For more information, visit zayo.com. Cautionary Statement on Forward-Looking Statements Information provided and statements contained in this press release that are not purely historical are forward-looking statements within the meaning of the applicable securities laws. Certain statements in this press release may constitute forward-looking information within the meaning of securities laws. Forward-looking information may relate to the Merger and Zayo Group Holdings, Inc.'s future outlook and anticipated events, business, operations, financial performance, financial condition or results and, in some cases, can be identified by terminology such as "may"; "will"; "should"; "expect"; "plan"; "anticipate"; "believe"; "intend"; "estimate"; "predict"; "potential"; "continue"; "foresee", "ensure" or other similar expressions concerning matters that are not historical facts. The reader should not place undue importance on forward-looking information and should not rely upon this information as of any other date. The Company will not update these statements unless applicable securities laws require it to do so. View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20200131005616/en/

[ Back To TMCnet.com's Homepage ]
Yovanovitch is the fourth top State Department official who has departed in the wake of the Ukraine impeachment inquiry.

Ambassador Marie Yovanovitch has retired, according to a senior State Department official. It is unclear when she retired, but the official said it was sometime in the last two weeks.

Yovanovitch was a career foreign service officer for more than 30 years, who was pulled from her post as Ambassador to Ukraine at the order of President Donald Trump, CNN reported.

Read alsoU.S. investigators interview Kyiv Embassy staff as part of Yovanovitch surveillance probe  media

Yovanovitch is the fourth top State Department official who has departed in the wake of the Ukraine impeachment inquiry. The others are former U.S. Ambassador to Ukraine Bill Taylor, former Special Representative for Ukraine Kurt Volker, and Michael McKinley, the former senior adviser to Secretary of State Mike Pompeo.

NPR was first to report her retirement, which comes about two months after she provided public testimony as part of the House impeachment inquiry. She said she was "devastated" to find out that Trump had discussed her in such a negative way during his call with President Volodymyr Zelensky in July. She said Trump's comments about her "sounded like a threat."

Yovanovtich did meet with diplomatic security after the revelations earlier this month that Robert Hyde and Lev Parnas were discussing surveilling her while she was in Kyiv. That investigation has not yet concluded.

Pompeo has never defended Yovanovitch by name. During an interview in Ukraine today, when asked if he felt any moral tension about Yovanvotich, Pompeo said he did not.

"We delivered for the President of the United States on a Ukraine policy that will benefit the American people I hope for years and years to come," Pompeo said in an ABC News interview.

More background on Yovanovitch: In May 2019, Yovanovitch was recalled to Washington, months earlier than expected. The State Department said at the time that Yovanovitch was "concluding her 3-year diplomatic assignment as planned" and that her departure aligned with the presidential transition in Ukraine.
Source: Xinhua| 2020-02-02 06:22:43|Editor: yan

Video Player Close

WASHINGTON, Feb. 1 (Xinhua) -- Four people were shot, two of them fatally, after a funeral Saturday afternoon at a church in Riviera Beach, Florida, said police.

The shooting occurred at Victory City Church at approximately 2:34 p.m. local time, according to a press release tweeted by the Riviera Beach Police Department.

A 15-year-old boy and an adult male were pronounced dead at the scene, said the release, adding that a woman and another juvenile were also shot and taken to the hospital for treatment.

No arrests have been made so far, it said.

The church's senior pastor, Tywuante Lupoe, said in a Facebook post that they are mourning the loss of "two young black men to a senseless shooting."

Riviera Beach is about 130 km north of Miami.
My wife and I took the overnight train from Cairo to Luxor on Monday night, 5 October 1981. When we arrived in Luxor fairly late the following morning, we instantly sensed that there was something odd in the air, but we couldnt tell at first what it was.

We eventually found out that Egyptian radio and television had been broadcasting the annual victory parade that was held in Cairo to celebrate Operation Badr. What was Operation Badr? It was a military effort at the beginning of the 1973 Arab-Israeli War  aka the Yom Kippur War or the Ramadan War  during which the Egyptian Army had crossed the Suez Canal and taken a portion of the Sinai Peninsula back from Israel. After the humiliation of the 1967 Six Day War under the late Egyptian president Gamal Abdel Nasser  when Egypt had lost the Sinai  this had been a significant psychological moment for Egypt and Nassers still relatively new successor, Anwar Sadat. It restored their pride and their confidence, and I believe that it enabled Sadat to undertake his historic and heroic November 1977 visit to Jerusalem and the Israeli-Egyptian peace negotiations that followed thereafter.

Anyway, the broadcasting suddenly stopped, and radio and television began to play classical and military music, instead, with only static images. That was what was happening when we arrived in Luxor.

It took us quite a while to find out, and then to confirm, that President Sadat had been assassinated.

It took us even longer to figure out the extent of what had happened, which, fortunately, was less than we had feared. Not to say that the death of President Sadat wasnt terrible. It was. Like many Americans, I regarded him as a hero, and I still do. But initial rumors suggested that a full-scale coup or revolution had taken place in Cairo. (And, in fact, an insurrection did take place in the Upper Egyptian city of Asyut  right along the railroad route between Luxor and Cairo  where rebels took control for several days. Fully 68 policemen and soldiers were killed in the fighting, and government control was not restored until paratroopers arrived from Cairo.) We were hours away from our apartment, not sure, at least for a day or two, whether it would even be safe to return home.

In the end, things were okay. For us, anyway. Life went on. (Traveling back through Asyut after several days in Luxor, we noticed nothing. Nothing about troubles there had been mentioned in the Egyptian media; we learned about them much later.)

I still very distinctly recall the first time I heard the surprisingly deep voice of President Hosni Mubarak. For some reason, I remember a fragment of his first sentence: Argu an tismahu li (I hope that you will permit me), he began. His voice shocked me a bit.

Ive always regretted that I never met Anwar Sadat. I was in a class at the American University in Cairo with his daughter Noha. And Ive since met his widow, the very impressive Jehan Sadat. But I never met President Sadat, whom I regard as one of the great figures of the twentieth century.
Lunchtime is usually hustling in Houstons Chinatown, when thousands of people head to restaurants or take breaks to buy Asian specialties in its supermarkets. But empty parking lots have been plaguing the otherwise vibrant neighborhood since Sunday, when rumors started spreading about a coronavirus outbreak here.

Business has dropped 40 to 70 percent this week as a result, owners said.

I normally serve around 4,000 customers per day, and I am now seeing maybe a thousand, said Feng Chen, the owner of Jusgo Supermarket at 9280 Bellaire Blvd.

Posts on a popular Chinese social media platform called We Chat falsely stated that Jusgo Supermarket was shut down by Houston authorities because of concerns about the coronavirus. The rumor spread to Twitter and Instagram, said the owner, adding that he hired a law firm to trace the social media posts.

We want to make this information very clear: There are no confirmed cases of coronavirus anywhere in the state of Texas, Dr. David Persse, health authority for the Houston Health Department, said after a press conference there Friday. There are no concerns about a virus here at all.

U.S. Rep. Al Green called the area safe. In fact, Chinatown, all of Houston and Texas are safe places to be, and we encourage people to deal with facts and not fear, he said. We want people to know that this is a very vicious and malicious rumor thats being spread; they are harmful, and we want to stop it.

If people are caught spreading rumors, they may face liability for lost revenue in the area, he said.

Chen said his supermarket is losing around $20,000 to $30,000 a day, and that many other companies in the area are suffering as well. Wang Lin, the owner of Welcome Food Center, a couple of blocks away on Bellaire, said business is down about 40 percent this week.

Tan Tan on Ranchester Drive, one of the most popular restaurants in Chinatown for its extensive menu of Chinese and Vietnamese dishes, was serving only three of its almost 70 tables midday Friday, a peak time.

Business has been really bad for the last days, said Muoi Ma, manager of Tan Tan. We normally see 100 or 200 people here every day from everywhere, but rumors have scared people, she said, estimating that business has slowed down nearly 70 percent.

Ray Luk was reading an Asian newspaper while waiting for his favorite fish soup at Tan Tan, where he is a regular. I heard about the rumors, but I dont believe a thing about it, he said. I know there is not one case in Houston.

Kenneth Li, chairman of the South West Management District covering almost half of Chinatown, said the impact of rumors and fears could have a ripple effect in the community. When a restaurant is affected, its employees are affected, its providers, and so on, he said.

A local taskforce is creating an informational campaign to dispel rumors and educate people about the virus, said Wea H. Lee, CEO of the International Trade Center in Chinatown.

Persse, from the Houston Health Department, said that coronavirus behaves much like any other viral illness, spreading through coughing and sneezing. If you have those symptoms here in Texas, we can say that you probably have influenza, and January and February are peak flu season, he said.

Persse urged Houstonians to Stop listening to Dr. Twitter; get the facts, and dont panic.

olivia.tallet@chron.com

Twitter.com/oliviaptallet
By Rami Ayyub

JERUSALEM (Reuters) - When Palestinian leaders learned that the release of U.S. President Donald Trump's Middle East plan was imminent, they swiftly announced a "day of rage" - a gritty, oft-used call for resistance against Israel.

But few demonstrators actually took to the streets despite Palestinians' broad rejection of Trump's proposal, a gap between rhetoric and delivery that exposes the scale of the challenge their leaders face in pressuring the United States and Israel.

As in past decades, critics are branding the Palestinians as naysayers, continually rejecting offers of a settlement in the hope, so far futile, of something better to come.

And domestic frustration with the Palestinian leadership has been building for years, with an ageing Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas seeking a legacy but having dwindling scope to demonstrate progress toward his people's dream of freedom.

Contrary to expectations, Trump did propose a "two-state" solution for the conflict - but with strict conditions that would leave any future Palestinian state under near-complete Israeli security control.

Trump's endorsement of Israel keeping its settlements delighted right-wingers, who immediately urged the extension of Israeli sovereignty to nearly 30% of the occupied West Bank, which Israel captured in a 1967 war.

For a graphic on the Trump proposal, click on https://graphics.reuters.com/ISRAEL-PALESTINIANS-PLAN/0100B5B73B0/ISRAEL-PALESTINIANS-PLAN.jpg

Palestinians say such moves would lead to apartheid. Israel rejects any comparison of its policies towards the Palestinians to South Africa's former system of legally-mandated racial segregation.

Analysts say that Palestinians face a difficult road ahead.

"They don't have good options. Responding positively to the Trump peace plan is impossible for any Palestinian leader. He would be seen as having sold out the Palestinian national cause completely," said Greg Shapland, a Middle East specialist at London's Chatham House think tank.

Story continues

"(This) whole exercise seems to be structured in such a way that the Palestinians would have to refuse it and then the Americans can say to Israel and to the rest of the world, 'go ahead and do it' because the Palestinians are clearly not interested in peace," Shapland said.

That attack line has already been used by Jared Kushner, Trump's son-in-law and principal architect of the plan.

"We're not going to chase the Palestinians," he told reporters. "It will be very hard for them to play the victim card when they basically have a real deal on the table."

For a factbox on the plan, click on https://www.reuters.com/article/israel-palestinians-plan-factbox/factbox-trumps-mideast-plan-whats-in-it-idINKBN1ZS280

INTERNATIONAL OPPOSITION

One avenue for Abbas, 84, is to use the United Nations to drum up international opposition to Trump's plan.

But Washington can veto any move in the Security Council. And even if Abbas wins support in the General Assembly it will have little more practical effect than a 2017 vote calling on Trump to drop his recognition of Jerusalem as Israel's capital.

That secured 128 of 193 votes in support of the Palestinian argument, but was only a rhetorical show of support.

Abbas will also try other routes. On Saturday he travels to Cairo for a meeting of the Arab League, where he will engage regional allies.

But many Arab states rely on U.S. military aid or financial backing. And most are led by Sunni Muslim administrations that are aligned with the United States and Israel in confronting Iran's revolutionary Shi'ite theocracy.

Diana Buttu, a former legal adviser to the Palestine Liberation Organization, said it was important to "hold the (Arab) states who were part of this charade to account" but that it wasn't likely to strengthen the Palestinians' hand.

"A better strategy is to begin to hold Israel accountable, whether it's through sanctions or legal (moves)," she said.

One such legal move is at the International Criminal Court, whose chief prosecutor is seeking an investigation into alleged war crimes in the Palestinian Territories.

The court is still deciding if it has jurisdiction. Israel says the court has no jurisdiction to investigate the Palestinian Territories.

(Additional reporting by Stephen Farrell in Jerusalem, Nidal al-Mughrabi in Gaza, Ali Sawafta in Ramallah, Michelle Nichols in New York and Luke Baker in London, Editing by William Maclean)
By AFP

PARIS: No manufacturer will have a coronavirus vaccine ready for use before the middle of 2020, despite an intensive global effort, a biotech executive told AFP on Friday.

Stephane Bancel is chief executive of Moderna Therapeutics, one of several entities involved in an all-out international effort to create a vaccine as soon as possible for the deadly SARS-like virus, also known as nCoV-2019, that has already killed more than 200 people.

Moderna is working in coordination with the US National Institutes of Health, while Inovio Pharmaceuticals and the University of Queensland in Australia are pursuing alternative tracks.

They have all received funding from the Coalition for Epidemic Preparedness Innovations (CEPI), an international body established to finance costly biotechnology research.

But Bancel warned that "no manufacturer will be able to have a vaccine ready for the summer".

In a French-language interview with AFP, Bancel also described the technology Moderna was using in its approach.

"It is based on messenger RNA technology. Messenger RNA (mRNA) is a coded information molecule," he said.

'Master the technology'

Moderna's website explains that "mRNA medicines are sets of instructions that cells in the body use to make proteins to prevent or fight disease."

ALSO READ: China coronavirus death toll rises to 259, infections surge

Bancel added that "once we have managed to master the technology that works on humans, things could go very quickly because it is always the same manufacturing process... for messenger RNA against the flu or against the coronavirus, it is the same method of manufacturing, the only difference is the order of letters that code the proteins.

"For the coronavirus, we are working with the US National Institutes of Health (NIH). They acquired the virus' sequence from the Chinese government, then the NIH and our teams analysed it to understand the protein structures, which are different from other viruses.

"Our teams near Boston are making a vaccine now, and as soon as it is ready, it will be sent to the NIH which will carry out clinical phase 1 trials" Bancel said in reference to initial safety tests on humans.

Asked if a vaccine could be developed in time to respond to the epidemic, he cautioned that "the vaccine will have to undergo several clinical trials.

"The challenge is that it could quickly be given to millions of people. The responsibility for its safety is therefore very important. Even going quickly with technolgy like mRNA, no manufacturer will be able to have a vaccine ready by the summer, or even by the autumn."

Bancel emphasised that "the only answer now is public health actions, trying to contain human to human transmission as much as possible.

"I think the biggest public health challenge will be during winter in the southern hemispere, along with the risk that it comes back to the northern hemisphere in the fall," he forecast.

"It is very had to predict today if the situation will be serious in the fall or if the virus will have disappeared.

"But one advantage of getting a coronavirus vaccine approved, is that if there is a mutation to another virus later, it will be possible to have a product available quickly."

In a separate interview with the European Pharmaceutical Review, CEPI chief executive Richard Hatchett said: "Our aspiration with these technologies is to bring a new pathogen from gene sequence to clinical testing in 16 weeks  which is significantly shorter than where we are now."

ALSO READ: 218 confirmed coronavirus patients have recovered, discharged from hospitals, says Chinese envoy

Risky project

Brancel told AFP there were risks for his company to take on this kind of project, but that CEPI funding removed a major obstacle.

"There is a risk that the product does not work, because biotechnology is complicated. There is also a risk that another solution is found before we do and that it becomes the blockbuster product that everyone prescribes.

"That is why partnerships with CEPI are very important. CEPI provides us with the funds to make the first batch of vaccines for the NIH. That removes a big thorn from our side.

"The idea behind CEPI is to obtain regulatory approval for a dozen vaccines, for viruses like Zika or coronavirus, because they pose a great threat to humans.

"We need approved vaccines so that if there are mutations within a strain of virus, we can produce vaccines in large quantities within a few months."
Jammu and Kashmir has handed over two students, who wanted to cross Lines of Control (LoC) and become "militants," to their families after four-day of counselling.

"Two boys studying in class 11 had left their house after one of them was scolded for not going to tuition. They wanted to cross LoC to take militant training there and become militants. They were intercepted here and we wanted to give them chance, so returned them to their families after 4-day counselling," SSP Baramulla Abdul Qayoom said in a press conference here on Saturday.

Qayoom said that a map of Jammu and Kashmir was also recovered from them. He said that the teens did not reveal why they wanted to become militants despite interrogation.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
Source: Xinhua| 2020-02-01 22:43:14|Editor: yhy

Video Player Close

SAN FRANCISCO, Feb. 1 (Xinhua) -- Climate activists rallied on Friday outside a Chase Bank office in downtown San Francisco to call on JPMorgan Chase to halt funding fossil fuels worldwide.

Demanding JPMorgan Chase divert investment immediately from fossil fuels to prevent a climate crisis, protesters accused the financial giant of providing over 195 billion U.S. dollars to fossil fuel companies since the Paris Agreement was signed in 2015.

Annie Banks, a member with the Bay Area Climate Coalition, which organized the protest, told Xinhua that their action was one of a series of nationwide protests against JPMorgan Chase over its huge investment in fossil fuels.

According to Banks, Chase has not only invested in Coastal Gaslink Pipeline Ltd., a Canadian gas company in Vancouver, but also "has its fingers on many nasty projects" in the United States, Canada and other countries.

"We can't just ignore the climate crisis. People are feeling the impacts and seeing the impacts," she said.

The climate activists said emissions by fossil fuels are causing the collapse of natural systems leading to forest fires, rising sea levels, flooding, more frequent storm systems and the extinction of species.

Jessica Daremus, a San Francisco resident, said she is joining other activists in pressuring JPMorgan Chase to stop fossil fuel investment by closing her account at the bank's branch at Post Street in the downtown area.

"Closing the bank account is my personal action, and many people are doing it," she said, adding that they wanted Chase to know it was losing customers if it did not change its policy on fossil fuel investment.
As of August 26th, 2021 Yahoo India will no longer be publishing content. Your Yahoo Account Mail and Search experiences will not be affected in any way and will operate as usual. We thank you for your support and readership. For more information on Yahoo India, please visit the FAQ
Reacting to perceptions that India has been on the losing side with free trade agreements (FTAs), the union budget has made changes to the customs act to insert certain unspecified obligations on the importer while expanding the ambit of preventing injury to domestic economy due to uncontrolled imports from just gold and silver today to any other goods in future.

"It has been observed that imports under FTAs are on the rise. Undue claims of FTA benefits have posed threat to domestic industry. Such imports require stringent checks. In this context, suitable provisions are being incorporated in the Customs Act," Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman said in her over two hours long budget speech in the Parliament on Saturday. "In the coming months we shall review Rules of Origin requirements, particularly for certain sensitive items, so as ensure that FTAs are aligned to the conscious direction of our policy."

FULL COVERAGE: Union Budget 2020

This follows the government's overall philosophy of curbing imports to encourage local manufacturing of merchandise in order to further the Make in India programme.

"A new chapter VAA is being incorporated in the Customs Act to provide enabling provision for administering the preferential tariff treatment under the Trade Agreements. The proposed section seeks to specifically provide for certain obligations on importer and prescribe for time bound verification from exporting country in case of doubt. Pending verification preferential tariff treatment shall be suspended and goods shall be cleared only on furnishing security equal to differential duty. in certain cases the preferential tax treatment may be denied without further verification," states the customs notification elaborating Sitharaman's comment in the budget speech.

"Clause (f) of the section 11(2) empowers the Central Government, for prevention of injury to the economy of the country by the uncontrolled import or export of gold or silver, to prohibit their import or export. This clause is being amended to include "any other goods" (in addition to gold and silver) in its ambit," the notofication added.

Additionally, Sitharaman also said the government was strengthening provisions related to safeguard and anti-dumping duties. These measures permitted under WTO guidelines are imposed in cases when a surge in imports in specific instances is reported from member countries. In the recent past, India has applied such measures on import of commodities such as steel, aluminium, automotive tyres and stainless steel from countries like China, Malaysia, Taiwan and Japan.

"We are also strengthening provisions relating to safeguard duties which are applied when surge in imports causes serious injury to domestic industry. Amended provisions shall enable regulating such surge in imports in a systematic way," Sitharaman said. "The provisions for checking dumping of goods and imports of subsidized goods are also being strengthened for ensuring a level playing field for domestic industry. These changes are in line with the international best practices."

The corresponding Customs notification to this stated that the countervailing duty rules at present provide for no provision of investigation in case of circumvention of countervailing duties.

"A provision is being incorporated in the Countervailing Duty Rules to enable investigation into case of circumvention of countervailing duty for enabling imposition of such duty. Certain other changes are being made for bringing clarity in the Rules," it said.

These moves, however, fly in the face of recommendations made by the chief economic advisor Krishnamurthy Subramanian in his Economic Survey 2020 that was tabled in the parliament only a day before on Friday. Subramanian had argued that India was a net beneficiary enjoying a trade surplus with most of its partners in the 14 free trade agreements that it has signed so far. He suggested India needed to be more open and less insecure while trading with the world at large.

"An apprehension is that most of the FTAs that India had signed in the past had not worked in "India's favour." The argument that is put forward is that the agreements led to worsening of India's trade deficit with the partner countries with which the agreements have been signed. This is the mercantilist way of evaluating the gains from trade," he wrote in the survey. "Manufactured products from India has clearly benefitted 122 Economic Survey 2019-20 Volume 1 from eight out of the fourteen trade agreements. Four of the agreements (SAFTA, BIMSTEC, Thailand and Sri Lanka) had no effect on exports of manufactured products while the bilateral agreements with Korea and Japan exerted a negative effect."

"The current environment for international trade presents India an unprecedented opportunity to chart a China-like, labour-intensive, export trajectory and thereby create unparalleled job opportunities for our burgeoning youth. As an India that harbours misplaced insecurity on the trade front is unlikely to grab this opportunity, our trade policy must be an enabler," he had added.

Also Read: Budget 2020 Speech Live Updates: Budget will boost people's income, enhance purchasing power, says Nirmala Sitharaman

Also Read: Budget 2020: Nirmala Sitharaman pays homage to former FM Arun Jaitley
Wife of ex-SriLankan executive in huge Airbus bribery scandal By Namini Wijedasa View(s): View(s):

Airbus SE hired the wife of a SriLankan Airlines (SLA) executive as a business partner through a dummy company she registered in Brunei. The corporation then paid into this entitys account US$ 2mn (Rs 362mn) out of a total US$ 16.84mn (Rs 3bn) promised in return for ensuring that the national carrier bought aircraft from Airbus, court documents revealed this week.

The SLA executive himself used his private Gmail account to communicate with and invoice Airbus for US$ 2mn (in November and December 2013) in exchange for buying aircraft from the corporation.

Airbus has been fined a record 3bn in penalties after admitting it paid huge bribes on an endemic basis to land contracts in 20 countries. One of those countries is Sri Lanka and involves the purchase of six A330 and four A350 airbuses and the lease of four other planes in deals agreed to between 2012 and 2013.

The contracts have long proved controversial here but inquiries have led to neither prosecution, at most, nor some form of disciplinary action, in the least.

A statement of facts released in Englands High Court now establishes beyond a shadow of a doubt that bribes were paid by Airbus and received by an unnamed woman who is the wife of a SriLankan Airlines executive, who is also not named in the documents.

The modus operandi was that the woman on October 5, 2012, registered a straw companyor a frontin Brunei. She was the sole shareholder and director. The court documents state this entity had no experience or personnel working in the airline sales industry but was engaged to influence SLAs purchase of 10 Airbus aircraft and the lease of an additional 4 aircraft.

An official named only as Airbus employee 8 from Airbus SMO, a Paris-based sales division, which ran the bribery apparatus within the corporation, approved the appointment of this straw company despite his compliance staff raising concerns.

In March 2013, Airbus engaged the woman as a business consultant through this company although she had no aerospace expertise. To disguise her identity, Airbus employees even misled UKEF (UK Export Finance) as to her name and gender.

Just days later, Airbus and the straw firm entered into a consultant agreement in relation to the sale of six A330 aircraft, the sale of four A350 aircraft and the lease of an additional A350 aircraft.

Pursuant to the agreement, the womans company would be paid US$ 1mn on the delivery of each A330 and US$ 1.16mn on the delivery of each A350 bought by SLA. There would be an additional US$ 300,000 for each A350 leased. (However, only US$ 2mn out of the total was disbursed).

Airbus also signed another market share agreement which stipulated that the womans company would receive a US$ 5mn lump sum if SLA did not purchase any competitor aircraft before October 30, 2015; that it would remain exclusive to Airbus till that date.

As early as June 19, 2013, three months after the womans company was enlisted, at the Paris Air Show, SLA ordered six A330 aircraft. These planes were delivered. Nine days later, on June 28, SLA ordered the promised four A350 aircraft under a second purchase agreement. These planes were not delivered.

Media releases from the day say that the SLA deal was worth around US$ 2.8bn at list prices. A promotional video uploaded by Airbus on June 18, 2013, features Kapila Chandrasena, the then Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of SLA, at the Paris Air show saying that the national carrier operates an exclusive Airbus fleet of A340s, A330s, A321s and A320s.

We have the commonality in operating crews, especially tech crews, they have commonality on the type licences which is advantage [sic] for us, he says into the camera. Even the cabin crews, basically certification is pretty much easier and it moves from one type to the next. So, certainly, that gives us again some type of a competitive edge.

Apart from the aircraft type, I think what we appreciate the most is the support aspects [sic], he continues. Because these are complex operations, when it comes to the technicalities, maintenance and all that stuff, the Airbus support is critical. And we have been happy so far with Airbus. Our association goes back to almost 20 years. We have been operating the 320 and the 330 about 12 years. So it has been good and it could improve.

So I am looking forward to another 20 years of positive partnership with Airbus, he says. The title of the promotional video is SriLankan Airlines: An all-Airbus fleet.

Two months after SLA signed the purchase deals, the Brunei-registered company submitted an invoice for US$ 1mn. But as Airbus only pays agents in euro currency, the entity was required to open a euro account at Standard Chartered Bank to receive payment.

At this point, even the SLA executive whose wife set up the company, started communicating with Airbus. Using his private Gmail address, he agreed with Airbus to set up the euro account. And on November 13, 2013, the executivenot his wifesubmitted a replacement invoice with the new account details.

On December 2, 2013, Airbus received from the same executive a second invoice for an additional US$ 1mn. Payment was approved by Airbus employee 1 and Airbus employee 9 from Airbus SMO and US$ 2mn was paid in euros to the company of the executives wife on December 27, 2013.

The bribery deal came to light when UK Export Finance (UKEF)from whom Airbus employees requested export financing in respect of the four A330 aircraftrequired disclosure of any agent or consultant involved in the purchase agreement.

Airbus indicated it had used an agent on the SLA negotiation and that wished to invoke Special Handling Process within UKEF. This means that only a small number of people within UKEF would receive the agents details. This they did in February 2015.

But these details listed the agent as he. This was a false suggestion, the court documents state. It also lied that the consultant agreement accurately reflected the total amount Airbus would pay. And there was no mention of the market share agreement commission.

UKEF was not happy and raised questionsincluding why the agent was employed when their CV suggested they had little aviation experience and why the agent was domiciled and paid out of Sri Lanka (in Brunei).

When Airbus provided the answers on February 12, 2015, it referred to the agent as both a he and a she while, again, not referring to the market share agreement despite a request by UKEF for confirmation there were no payments from Airbus to the womans company.

Then, UKEF asked Airbus to confirm that its agent was not the wife SLA Executive 1. Airbus asserted to UKEF that the agent was not the wife of SLA Executive 1 and that the agent had no connection to SLA.

In March 2015, Airbus withdrew its application for export financing from UKEF. But in April 2016, UEKF reported this and other matters reported to it by Airbus to UKs Serious Fraud Office.
Share this article Whatsapp

Facebook

Twitter

Linkedin (Reuters)  Sat, February 1, 2020 15:06 709 7f440ff09e92db75a02bbad206204f96 2 Science & Tech Apple,China,Wuhan-coronavirus,coronavirus Free

Apple Inc on Saturday said it would shut all of its official stores and corporate offices in mainland China until Feb 9. as fears over the coronavirus outbreak mounted and the death toll more than doubled to over 250 from a week ago.

"Out of an abundance of caution and based on the latest advice from leading health experts, we're closing all our corporate offices, stores, and contact centers in mainland China through February 9," Apple said in a statement. The company said looked forward to re-opening stores "as soon as possible".

Earlier this week, Apple closed three stores in China due to concerns about the spread of the virus.

It's joining a handful of overseas retailers, including Starbucks Corp and McDonald's Corp to temporarily shut storefronts as a precautionary measure.

Read also: 10,000 Chinese tourists cancel trips to Bali over coronavirus fears: Travel group

Many other companies, meanwhile, have called for employees in China to work from home and cease non-essential business travel in the first week of February.

Normally, businesses in China would be preparing to return to normal operations following the end of the week-long Lunar New Year Holiday.

Apple remains heavily reliant on China both for smartphone sales as well as for its supply chain and manufacturing. Many factories in Hubei province, including plants run by AB InBev and General Motors Co, have temporarily suspended production due to the virus.

In a recent earnings call, Apple CEO Tim Cook said the company was working out mitigation plans to deal with possible production loss from its suppliers in Wuhan. The city where the virus outbreak originated is home to several Apple suppliers.
The ruling Shiv Sena, NCP and Congress on Saturday termed as "disappointing" the Union budget, which they said didn't offer much to the "highest tax-payers" Maharashtra and Mumbai.

On the other hand, the opposition BJP in Maharashtra hailed the Budget 2020-21, saying it strengthens the economy and makes provision for the welfare of all.

"The budget has left Maharashtra and Mumbai the most disappointed. Mumbai gives highest tax, Maharashtra gives highest tax to the Centre, but they were completely ignored (in the budget)," Maharashtra Revenue Minister and state Congress president Balasaheb Thorat told reporters here.

The budget is like a "new bottle containing old wine", he added.

Thorat also questionned the Centre's claim of doubling the income of farmers by 2022.

He said the agricultural growth rate should be at 11 per cent to achieve the goal set by the Modi government, while the current rate is not moving beyond 2 per cent.

"How are they going to double it then? So, it is clear they have made a false announcement," he added.

The Budget has introduced new slabs and reduced the tax rate for different slabs for an individual income of up to Rs 15 lakh per annum, if a taxpayer opts for foregoing exemptions and deductions.

Referring to the announcement, Shiv Sena spokesperson Manisha Kayande said there was no clarity about the option the government has offered.

"Like who will not like to get tax benefit? Suppose if a person is investing in LIC or mediclaim, why will a person not opt for tax benefit? People basically do these investments for tax benefit apart from getting an insurance (cover). So, there is no clarity on this," she said.

The Sena leader expressed concern over "closing down" of government-owned enterprises like the Air India.

"So, this is a major drawback. Plus, they are banking completely on the LIC. Almost 290 million people are investing in the LIC. That means the government's eye is on public money," she added.

NCP spokesperson Mahesh Tapase accused the government of "over commitment and under delivery" leading to loss of faith of investors, industry sector and consumers.

"Instant negative reaction by the stock market proves this," he said.

Tapase said the current gross domestic product figures do not support the government's claim of achieving the target of $5 trillion economy.

The NCP leader also questioned the announcement of five new smart cities at a time when nothing much allegedly changed in the case of 100 smart cities the government had earlier declared.

"The BJP should steer away from vote banks politics and concentrate more on economic prosperity of the common man if it is serious about a higher GDP," he added.

Maharashtra BJP chief Chandrakant Patil said the budget takes care of all the sections of the society including farmers, women, the youth, tribals, traders, employed and others in line with Prime Minister Narendra Modi's 'Sab Ka Sath, Sab Ka Vikas, Sab Ka Vishwas' (inclusive growth with the trust of all) slogan.

"The budget focuses on fulfilling the aspirations of the society, strengthening the economy and taking care of the weaker section," Patil said in a statement.
A glamorous gym junkie and her heavily-tattooed boyfriend have been charged with importing steroids.

Nurse Shaylee Cheal, 24, and tradesman Hayden Brindle, 28, allegedly collected parcels that contained steroids from Erina Post Office on the NSW Central Coast at 12:40pm on Thursday.

Cheal cried as she successfully applied for conditional bail when she appeared at Gosford Local Court on Friday, according to the Daily Telegraph.

Meanwhile, Brindle remained silent during his hearing and did not apply for bail before he was formally refused it on the same day.

Nurse Shaylee Cheal, 24, and tradesman Hayden Brindle, 28, collected parcels that allegedly contained steroids from Erina Post Office on the NSW Central Coast at 12:40pm on Thursday

Cheal cried as she successfully applied for conditional bail when she appeared at Gosford Local Court on Friday, according to the Daily Telegraph

After an investigation into steroid supply by Brisbane Water Police, the Australian Border Force intercepted parcels that allegedly contained multiple types of steroids.

When the couple allegedly collected parcels from the post office on Thursday, police were waiting for them.

Brindle was immediately arrested, after which police seized steroids and MDMA while executing a search warrant at an apartment on Ghersi Avenue in Wamberal, east of Erina.

After the raid, Cheal was also arrested and taken to Gosford Police Station.

When the couple allegedly collected parcels from the post office on Thursday, police were waiting for them and immediately arrested Brindle (right)

The nurse was charged with four counts of importing prohibited items and two counts of supplying an indictable quantity of a prohibited drug.

Meanwhile, Brindle was charged with five counts of import prohibited imports, two counts possessing or attempting to possess anabolic or androgenic steroidal agent and two counts of supplying an indictable quantity of a prohibited drug.

Before their arrests, Cheal and Brindle would share their sun-soaked lifestyle at the beach, pool and gym in photos posted to Instagram and Facebook.

The couple own a Staffordshire dog, which they would take for walks while wearing activewear to show off their toned and tattooed physiques.

According to their Facebook profiles, Cheal is a nurse while Brindle is the owner of Harbourside Flooring.

Police seized steroids and MDMA while executing a search warrant at an apartment on Ghersi Avenue in Wamberal, east of Erina. After the raid, Cheal (left) was also arrested and taken to Gosford Police Station.

At court on Friday, Brindle was refused bail while Cheal was granted bail on the condition that she is forbidden to contact her boyfriend.

She is also required to stay at her mother's Hamlym Terrace home, also on the Central Coast, and report to Wyong Police Station every Monday.

Brindle is set to reappear at Gosford Local Court next Friday, while his girlfriend will return on March 27.
NEWS.am daily digest: 10.01.22

Pashinyan appoints Hayk Mkrtchyan as Deputy Governor of Kotayk province

Blast in eastern Afghanistan kills nine children

Pashinyan: One of key priorities of Armenia presidency at CSTO is strengthening of crisis response mechanisms

Internet cut off in Kazakhstan

Armenia, Kazakhstan ombudspersons confer on Armenian communitys rights

Armenia, Russia defense ministers discuss Kazakhstan

Turkey defense minister meets with their envoy in process of normalization of Armenia relations

Iranian Foreign Ministry reports progress in Vienna negotiations

Dollar continues going up in Armenia

New attempt by migrants in Belarus to storm Poland border

Skat Airlines resumes Yerevan-Aktau and Aktau-Yerevan flights

New Covid-related restrictions to be introduced in Armenia

Karabakh police: Firefighters also targeted by Azerbaijan shooting (PHOTOS)

Artsakh Defense Army has not fired on Azerbaijan positions

Azerbaijani military are protesting amid military awards deprivation

Azerbaijanis open fire in Nagorno-Karabakh

Karabakh MFA: Events in Kazakhstan are result of actions planned by Turkey

Armenia army General Staff has new deputy chief

Australia to buy US $ 2.5 billion of armored vehicles

Artsakh emergency service: Search for soldiers remains continued during holidays

Kazakh Colonel Nazanov dies after heart attack

Australia begins to vaccinate children aged 5-11 with COVID-19 vaccine

Putin: Peacekeeping contingent to stay in Kazakhstan for a limited period

Armenia 2nd-President Kocharyan v. premier Pashinyan lawsuit court session is closed

Azerbaijan commandos conduct military exercises

Part of the Great Wall of China collapsed due to earthquake

Armenia MP: Turkey, Azerbaijans regional calculations have mixed up

Copper prices decline

Armenia ex-President Kocharyan v. PM Pashinyan lawsuit trial resumes

Gold is getting cheaper

EU is ready to support in addressing Karabakh crisis

126 new cases of COVID-19 confirmed in Armenia

Fire in residential building in New York leaves 19 people killed

National Center for Infectious Diseases Yerevan branch employees protesting outside center

Karabakh President: Radical Pan-Turkic circles are actively involved in process in Kazakhstan

Oil is getting more expensive

Mars helicopter Ingenuity preparing for difficult 19th flight

Interior ministry: About 8,000 people detained in Kazakhstan

Earthquake hits Armenia-Azerbaijan border zone

Researchers create substitute for egg whites from fungus

Kazakhstan official information channel removes message about 164 casualties

EC says construction of new nuclear power plants in Europe will require  500 billion in investment

Ghost ship that sank 343 years ago discovered in US

Post-COVID-19 antibodies may attack healthy cells, scientists say

Pope says he was praying for Kazakhstan

Media: 164 people die in Kazakhstan during riots

Peskov: CSTO session does not plan to sign documents yet

Criminal cases launched after bomb threat in Armenian, Belarus embassies in Moscow

Norwegian military surrender panties before demobilization

Iranian MFA says Tehran is ready for talks on downed plane of UIA Ukraine

Russian defense minister says information war is on all fronts

Several strategic objects in Kazakhstan transferred to CSTO contingent under protection

David Minasyan elected head of Armenia's Parakar community

Bloomberg: US is considering issue of limiting supply of high-tech products to Russia

Armenia reports 142 COVID-19 new cases

Council of Elders meeting continues in Armenia's Parakar

White House speaks on Blinken statement on Russian peacekeeping troops

Armed people detained at border in Kazakhstan

Kazakhstan talks stabilization of situation in all regions of country

Azerbaijanis demand Armenian soldier change his faith by taking away his cross, Ombudsman says

Armenian painter Mher Mansurian dies in France

At least 17 killed in Egypt road accident

NATO chief announces Russia forces continued buildup in Ukraine

Armenian militarys transfer to Kazakhstan is completed

Azerbaijan opens fire on military positions near Armenia village

Unidentified persons report threat of explosion at Armenia, Belarus embassies in Moscow

Putin confers with Pashinyan, Lukashenko on situation in Kazakhstan

Zakharova: OSCE has not provided real assistance to reporters who were attacked in Kazakhstan

Lukashenko, Putin discuss situation in CSTO member countries

Russia's Putin has telephonic conversation with Kazakhstan's Tokayev

Quake hits waters off Chile

President Tokayev declares national mourning in Kazakhstan on January 10

US diplomats do not leave Kazakhstans Almaty yet

1 more person dies of coronavirus in Karabakh

Artsakh resident, 91 found dead near village

Russia MFA reacts to Blinken's words about Russian military in Kazakhstan

195 new cases of COVID-19 confirmed in Armenia

Kazakhstan security committee ex-chief detained

Kazakhstan interior ministry: There are foreigners among those detained in Almaty region

Russia continues transporting its peacekeepers to Kazakhstan

Kazakhstan launches investigation into 180 retailers of liquefied petroleum gas

BMW introduces concept vehicle that can change colors

Shootings continue in Kazakhstans Almaty

Lenovo reveals Legion Y90 gaming smartphone

Germany to impose tougher rules for visiting restaurants, bars

10 bodies found inside SUV left in front of Mexico state governors office

France fines Google and Facebook EUR 210 million

NATO Secretary-General calls on Russia to de-escalate, withdraw its forces

French journalist names regions where military conflicts may erupt in 2022

Taliban appeal world for humanitarian aid for Afghanistan

Liturgy served in the Artsakh Diocese

Armenian PM and Tajik President discuss Kazakhstan situation by phone

Bulgaria to adopt euro in 2024

Units of CSTO peacekeeping forces arrived in Kazakhstan

Armenian servicemen awarded state and departmental medals

Exchange rates in Armenia

Moscow court arrests activist supporting protesters in Kazakhstan

EU expresses its readiness to support stability in Kazakhstan

NATO expresses concern over events in Kazakhstan
U.S. Official: Trump To Expand Travel Ban To Six More Countries

By RFE/RL January 31, 2020

U.S. President Donald Trump will issue an expanded version of his travel ban on January 31, a U.S. official said, a decision that could impact thousands of immigrants.

The issuance of visas that can lead to permanent residency for nationals of Eritrea, Kyrgyzstan, Myanmar, Nigeria, Sudan, and Tanzania will be suspended, acting Homeland Security Secretary Chad Wolf said during a call with reporters on January 31.

The targeted immigrant visas are distinct from nonimmigrant visas typically issued to visitors, which will not be impacted by the ban, Wolf said.

It is not a total travel ban, unlike Trump's earlier effort that generated outrage around the world for unfairly targeting Muslims.

Wolf said the six countries failed to meet U.S. security and information-sharing standards, which prompted the new restrictions. The issues mentioned by Wolf ranged from subpar passport technology to a failure to adequately exchange information on terrorism suspects and criminals.

"These countries, for the most part, want to be helpful," Wolf said, "but for a variety of different reasons simply failed to meet those minimum requirements that we laid out."

Belarus, which had been considered for inclusion in the expanded travel ban, took measures to correct deficiencies lately and will not face visa restrictions, Wolf said.

The original travel ban -- issued during Trump's first week in office in January 2017 -- barred nearly all immigrants and travelers from seven Muslim-majority nations. The policy was revised amid court challenges, but the U.S. Supreme Court ultimately upheld it in June 2018.

The existing version of the ban includes the Muslim-majority countries of Iran, Libya, Somalia, Syria, and Yemen. North Korea and Venezuela also face visa restrictions.

Wolf said those restrictions will remain in place.

Immigration crackdown is a central topic of Trump's 2020 reelection campaign.

In 2015, during Trump's campaign for president, he called for "a total and complete shutdown of Muslims entering the United States."

Based on reporting by Reuters and AP

Source: https://www.rferl.org/a/u-s-official -trump-to-expand-travel-ban-to-six -more-countries-/30410751.html

Copyright (c) 2020. RFE/RL, Inc. Reprinted with the permission of Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty, 1201 Connecticut Ave., N.W. Washington DC 20036.

NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address






GST on textiles will not be increased from 5 to 12 per cent: FM Sitharaman

Budget 2020: Nirmala Sitharaman unveils 16-point plan for farmers

India

oi-Deepika S

New Delhi, Feb 01: Finance Minister Nirmala Sithraman reiterated that the Narendra Modi government is committed to doubling farmers income by 2022 and listed points to indicate govt's focus on farmers and agriculture.

"We have provided for 11 crore farmers through PM Kisan Beema Yojana. Provision of annual assistance to the farmer is made sure through PM Kisan yojana. Agricultural markets need to be opened and liberalised. Fisheries, animal husbandry and dairy need to be provided for," she said while presenting the budget.

Budget 2020: Nirmala Sitharaman recites Kashmiri poem, lists three themes of Budget

Encourage states to take up 3 model agricultural laws.

Comprehensive measures for 100 water-stressed districts.

20 lakh farmers to be helped to set up standalone solar pumps.

Government to encourage balanced use of fertilisers. This is an important step because currently the use of chemical fertilisers is incentivised.

NABARD will take up an exercise of mapping and geotagging agricultural warehouses, cold storage and other inventory storages.

A village storage scheme is proposed to be managed by SHEs. This will help farmers store more and reduce logistics costs. Women in the village will be responsible for managing this seamless storage mechanism.

Krishi Udaan on international and national routes.

One product, one district scheme for the horticulture sector, which already exceeds the production of foodgrains.

Financing on negotiating warehousing receipts - to be integrated with e-NAM.

NABARD refinance scheme to be further extended. Rs 15 lakh crore allocation for Kisaan credit card scheme.

Will eliminate foot and mouth disease of livestock.

Marine fishery boost to help youth in coastal areas.
Great Britain withdrew from the European Union, not from Europe. It cannot withdraw from Europe, after all, given that it is part of its history. And it remains one of Greeces firm friends and allies.



Brexit is an event of historic dimensions, but we are certainly not happy about it, as Greeks or as Europeans. But the finalisation of Brexit opens the way to the immediate launching of an open, sincere and institutional Dialogue on the Future of Europe, on procedural and substantial reform.



In any event, the Greek government has been prepared to deal with this development for some time. This past summer, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs initiated an institutional dialogue with citizens, entrepreneurs and social organizations on how to handle all of the individual issues that would arise in their transactions with Great Britain. We coordinated all of the Public Administration agencies involved  technically, administratively, operationally and organizationally  based on a comprehensive Operational Plan. With a clear picture of Brexits challenges for the market and society, at the beginning of the year we voted a comprehensive legislative package regulating the main parameters. Law 4652/2020 was the first law to come before Parliament this year, and through it we regulated issues concerning the residency, insurance and healthcare of British citizens, we settled matters concerning the financial, tourism, insurance and transport sectors, and we took care to staff Greeces customs authorities, which will see a significant increase in workload following Brexit.



The Greek governments efforts to manage this reality  which is new to everyone  certainly wont stop here. The Ministry of Foreign Affairs continues to monitor developments closely, putting the administrative mechanism at the disposal of Greek citizens and businesses, effectively defending their rights and interests and those of the Greek economy.



Through mutuality, flexibility and a spirit of collaboration, we believe our bilateral relations will maintain all of the momentum and effectiveness they have had until now. We believe in a common and secure future, as befits the friendship between the two countries, and we are certain that the historical and political depth of our relations will serve as the right compass for achieving this. As Winston Churchill so presciently said, The farther back you can look, the farther forward you are likely to see.
Not For Distribution To United States Newswire Services Or For Dissemination In The United States



TORONTO, Jan. 31, 2020 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Bunker Hill Mining Corporation (the Company) (CSE:BNKR) wishes to announce a non-brokered equity financing consisting of an offering of common shares of the Company (Common Shares) at $0.56 per Common Share for gross proceeds of C$4,000,000, subject to the Companys overallotment option at its discretion (the Offering).



The net proceeds from the Offering shall be primarily for a channel sampling and diamond core drilling program to verify historic resources in the Quill, Newgard and UTZ zones which were tabulated in 1991. These targets are in the upper and de-watered levels of the mine, accessed by either the Kellogg or Russell tunnels. The program is to commence on February 17, 2020.



Additional funds will be used for lease payments, water treatment payments, and other obligations required to keep the Companys option interest in the Bunker Hill Mine in good standing. Funds in excess of the above requirements will be used for general corporate and working capital purposes.



The Company has also been continuing its critical maintenance program. This has included repairs to 80 feet of timbering in No. 2 Shaft, and the replacement of the submersible pump at the bottom of that shaft. These efforts were undertaken to ensure compliance with EPA requirements for water management within the mine.



The Offering will be subject to receipt of all necessary regulatory approvals. The securities issued in connection with the Offering will be subject to a customary four month and a day hold period in accordance with applicable Canadian securities laws and to a concurrent six month hold period in accordance with applicable U.S. securities laws.



This news release does not constitute an offer of securities for sale in the United States. The securities being offered have not been, nor will they be, registered under the United States Securities Act of 1933, as amended, and such securities may not be offered or sold within the United States absent U.S. registration or an applicable exemption from U.S. registration requirements.

Mr. Scott E. Wilson, CPG, President of Resource Development Associates Inc. and a consultant to the Company, is an Independent Qualified Person as defined by NI 43-101 and is acting at the Qualified Person for the Company. He has reviewed and approved the technical information summarized in this news release.

About Bunker Hill Mining Corp.

Bunker Hill Mining Corp. has the exclusive option to acquire 100% of the marketable assets of the Bunker Hill Mine. Information about the Company is available on its website, www.bunkerhillmining.com, or within the SEDAR and EDGAR databases.

For additional information contact:

John Ryan, Interim Chief Executive Officer

(201) 509-3797

Cautionary Statements

Certain statements in this news release are forward-looking and involve a number of risks and uncertainties. Such forward-looking statements are within the meaning of that term in Section 27A of the Securities Act of 1933, as amended, and Section 21E of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended, as well as within the meaning of the phrase forward-looking information in the Canadian Securities Administrators National Instrument 51-102  Continuous Disclosure Obligations. The forward looking statements made herein are based on information currently available to the Company and the Company provides no assurance that actual results will meet management's expectations or assumptions with respect to, among other things, the ability of the Company to successfully complete the Offering on the terms as announce, the ability of the Company to complete payments pursuant to the terms of the agreement to acquire the Bunker Hill Mine Complex, the Companys present and future financial condition, the Companys ability to secure financing, and the state of financial markets. Forward-looking statements include estimates and statements that describe the Companys future plans, objectives or goals, including words to the effect that the Company or management expects a stated condition or result to occur. Forward-looking statements may be identified by such terms as believes, anticipates, expects, estimates, may, could, would, will, or plan, and may include statements regarding, among other things, the terms of the Offering and funding of the acquisition. Since forward-looking statements are based on assumptions and address future events and conditions, by their very nature they involve inherent risks and uncertainties. Actual results relating to, among other things, results of exploration, project development, and the Companys financial condition and prospects, could differ materially from those currently anticipated in such statements for many reasons such as: the inability of the Company to successfully complete the Offering; the inability of the Company to budget and manage its liquidity in light of the failure to obtain additional financing, the inability of the Company to successfully acquire the Bunker Hill Mine Complex on the terms as announced or other satisfactory terms or at all; the inability of the Company to develop or sustain an active public market for its securities; development of changes in general economic conditions and conditions in the financial markets; changes in demand and prices for precious metals; litigation, legislative, environmental and other judicial, regulatory, political and competitive developments; operational difficulties encountered in connection with the activities of the Company; and other matters discussed in this news release. This list is not exhaustive of the factors that may affect any of the Companys forward-looking statements. These and other factors made in public disclosures and filings by the Company should be considered carefully and readers should not place undue reliance on the Companys forward-looking statements. The Company does not undertake to update any forward-looking statement that may be made from time to time by the Company or on its behalf, except in accordance with applicable securities laws.
The governor of Oyo State, Seyi Makinde, on Friday, announced a minor cabinet reshuffle, which affected two ministries.

The chief press secretary to the governor, Taiwo Adisa, in a statement, confirmed the swapping of the portfolios of commissioners for Education and Establishments, while the Commissioner for Education, Science and Technology, Daud Sangodoyin, has been moved from the Ministry to Establishment and Training.

The statement added that the Commissioner for the Ministry of Establishment and Training, Olasunkanmi Olaleye, will now replace Mr Sangodoyin at the Ministry of Education.

The changes are with immediate effect.

According to the statement, a letter dated January 31, which was signed by the Secretary to the State Government, Olubamiwo Adeosun, communicated the decision of the governor to effect the minor cabinet reshuffle.

The two commissioners were part of the first batch of 14 commissioners inaugurated by the governor on August 15.

The new Commissioner for Establishment and Training, Mr Sangodoyin, a professor, obtained his B.Sc., M.Sc. and Ph.D degrees from the University of Ibadan and was the first lecturer to be promoted to the rank of full professor of Statistics at the University of Botswana.

Mr Olaleye, who is to man the Ministry of Education, Science and Technology, holds a Bachelor of Laws, Barrister at Law and LL.M degrees and has, at different periods, served as the chairman, Oyo State Land Allocation Committee and chairman, Oyo State Independent Electoral Commission.
Parents should not give their children even a small glass of beer or wine at dinner, warn the bosses of drinks firms.

They have condemned the trend  common among middle-class families  to introduce children to alcohol at meal times, in the belief it will teach them to drink responsibly.

Albert Baladi, chairman of the industry-funded International Alliance for Responsible Drinking (IARD), said: 'We call on parents to support us by not buying alcohol for, or sharing alcohol with, children  even if they do this with good intentions.'

Booze ban: Children shouldn't be given even small glass of beer or wine at dinner, according to drinks firms bosses

Drinks curb: Sir Ian Gilmore, chairman of the Alcohol Health Alliance, said: 'We support genuine initiatives to cut alcohol consumption by children'

One in six British parents allows their children to drink alcohol before the age of 14, according to a 2017 study.

Professor Sir Ian Gilmore, chairman of the Alcohol Health Alliance, said: 'We support genuine initiatives to cut alcohol consumption by children.

'However, the track record of the drinks industry is poor, from formulating alcopops to unacceptable advertising practices. The AHA will want to see prompt action  not just fine words  to ensure children really are protected.'
University of L'Aquila, Italy

First Conference of the ICLA Research Committee on Literatures/Arts/Media (CLAM)



Transcodification: Literatures - Arts - Media

Department of Humanities  Excellence Program 2018-2022

July 1-3, 2020  University of LAquila (Italy)





PRESENTATION

The transition of narratives, characters, themes and iconic elements from one code of representation to another represents one of the most fundamental processes through which the literary and artistic fields evolve, transform, and expand within a given culture. These same processes of transcodification also play a vital role in how different cultures interact across time and space. In the classical world, mythical narratives were disseminated through the Homeric epic, the theatrical genre of tragedy and the visual arts. From the onset of Christianity to the late modern age, the history of European art has been driven by the adaptation of episodes from the Bible and other religious texts across a number of media, from painting to sculpture, from medieval plays to sacre rappresentazioni, from musical texts to folkloric practices. Fables have moved from orality to the written form; at the same time, written narratives have been circulating through oral transmission. Medieval and early modern manuscripts were illuminated; modern and contemporary texts are illustrated. From antiquity to the contemporary media franchise, transcodification is ubiquitous.

Today, mass media and the digital revolution have changedand are still changingthe notions of author, text, public, intellectual property and medium that were inherited from the 20th centurys critical traditions. Literature, cinema, theatre and television are now facing the multisensory logic of the contemporary mediascape, a logic based on inclusion, acceleration, simultaneity and hyper-mediation. The idea of text has expanded into that of hypertext, while narration is becoming more and more pluralistic, polycentric and antihierarchical: as proposed by Lev Manovich (2010), narratives are becoming more and more like softwares that can be endlessly rewritten and reused. Cinema is being re-articulated in the forms of the so-called postcinema, in which films become part of a larger system of converging media and cinema can be relocated outside its traditional and institutional spaces. This mediums formal structures are being disseminated in urban spaces, thus giving birth to new forms of visuality like videomapping and media facade installations. Media may quote and thematize other media, according to the well-known concept of re-mediation coined by Bolter and Grusin (1999), thus generating what Irina Rajewsky (2002) defined as intermedia references. The interactivity and immersivity of videogames, augmented reality and virtual reality, as well as the transmedia and crossmedia organization of storytelling (especially in the case of TV series), also suggest a deep sense of engagement towards media hybridization and the exploration of innovative forms of textuality. Finally, the question has arisen, and is still being debated, whether it is appropriate to consider the theatre as part of the cluster of forms which, since the middle of the 20th century, have been subsumed under the general label media.

Given these premises, the first CLAM conference Transcodification: Literatures  Arts - Media represents an invitation to investigate the principles and practices of transcodification across time and space, as well as to discuss re-mediation as an aesthetic category which implies fluidity, fragmentation and pluralization. The conferences main purpose is to offer an intermedial perspective on fiction and the arts taking as a starting point the insights provided by the most recent developments in comparative literature.

AXIS

More specifically, such an inquirys aim is twofold:

historicizing transcodification, re-mediation and intermediality as both a set of practices and a set of philosophical notions;

exploring transcodification in the contemporary (post-WWII) age and examining the new roles and configurations of literature in the global polymorphic imagination.

We encourage contributions addressing any of the following areas or any interrelation between them:

Transcodification, adaptation and intermediality, from antiquity to today;

Literatures and the arts;

Transmedia narratology;

Philosophies of transcodification;

Literary transcodifications: new perspectives in comparative literature;

The dissemination of literary techniques (narration, empathy, point of view, etc.) in every aspect of contemporary culture;

Cinema/TV series and intermediality: theoretical frameworks;

Postcinema and new digital technologies;

TV series and transmedia television

Baroque/Neo-Baroque: theories, aesthetics and technologies;

Performance, performativity and theatricality;

Digital Art: aesthetics, environments and historical perspectives;

Inter-art studies;

Hybrid forms of mediality: musical theatre, theatrical performance, graphic novels, transmedia storytelling, computer games, video art, video clips, advertising, webseries, videomapping, media facade, etc.

Confirmed Keynotes:

Sean Cubitt, University of Melbourne / Marina Grishakova, University of Tartu / Christopher Johnson, Arizona State University / Agnes Petho, Sapientia University of Cluj-Napoca / Marie-Laure Ryan, University of Colorado / Rebecca Schneider, Brown University



We invite you to send paper proposals to clam2020conference@gmail.com

Proposals should include an abstract (300 words max), five keywords and a short biographical note (10 lines max).

The working language of the conference will be English.

The deadline for abstracts submission is February 10, 2020.

Participants will be notified of acceptance by March 15, 2020.

The conference will not have a registration fee.

The conference venue is the Department of Humanities, Viale Nizza, 14, LAquila.

Further information about accommodation and how to reach the conference venue will be published at www.clam-icla.com



Scientific Committee:

Massimo Fusillo, University of LAquila, Italy / Marina Grishakova, University of Tartu, Estonia / Hans-Joachim Backe, IT University of Copenhagen, Denmark / Jan Baetens, KU Leuven; Belgium / Bart Van Den Bossche, KU Leuven, Belgium / Kiene Brillenburg Wurth, University of Utrecht, Netherlands / Jrgen Bruhn, Linnaeus University, Sweden / Philippe Despoix, University of Montreal, Canada / Caroline Fischer, Universite de Pau, France / Yorimitsu Hashimoto, University of Osaka, Japan / Karin Kukkonen, University of Oslo, Norway / Christina Ljungberg, University of Zurich, Switzerland / Kai Mikkonen, University of Helsinki, Finland / Nam Soo-Young, Korea National Univerity of Arts, Korea / Haun Saussy, University of Chicago, USA / Marcio Seligmann-Silva, State University of Campinas, UNICAMP, Brazil



Organizing Committee:

Massimo Fusillo / Doriana Legge / Mirko Lino / Mattia Petricola / Gianluigi Rossini
Republicans have decided it was OK.With their expected vote this coming week to acquit President Donald Trump of abusing power and obstructing Congress, GOP senators are giving their express approval to the conduct that landed Trump at the center of the fourth impeachment case in American history. It's the same message that House Republicans sent late last year with their unanimous votes against sending the case to trial.

It's a fitting conclusion for a president who has spent three years testing the boundaries of his office and daring his own party to restrain him as his power and popularity within the GOP grew. It was already clear heading into the impeachment inquiry just how reluctant Republicans were to challenge Trump's impulses. Coming out of the trial it's uncertain whether there is anything he can do in office that would draw more than a passing, rhetorical rebuke from his party.

To Democrats, who initiated the impeachment process in hopes of pulling at least a handful of moderate or retiring GOP lawmakers to their side, Republicans are sending the message that, when it comes to Trump, nothing matters. His grip on the party is complete.

"No,'' Rep. Hakeem Jeffries, one of the House Democratic impeachment managers, said in a retort to Republicans. "Lawlessness matters, abuse of power matters, corruption matters. The Constitution matters.''

The reasons are clear for Republican lawmakers' fealty to Trump. When he was a candidate in the 2016 primary, nearly all of them opposed him, often in terms as harsh as Democrats now use. Today, he inspires a loyalty borne of fear and retribution but also of the belief that Republicans' own political fortunes are directly tied to his.

Though that brings with it risk in the November election, most vulnerable Republicans cannot succeed without him.

On the brink of the acquittal vote, some Republican senators insist that doesn't mean they are simply giving Trump a pass. They argue there is more to consider in this moment than a yes or no question on whether Trump violated his oath of office by pushing Ukraine to investigate his Democratic opponents and blocking Congress' ability to investigate the matter.

GOP Sen. Lamar Alexander of Tennessee, who is not seeking reelection, called Trump's overtures to Ukraine ``inappropriate'' and thoroughly proved by House Democrats, but that Trump's actions did not rise to the level of high crimes and misdemeanors. Sen. Marco Rubio, R-Fla., went so far as to suggest Trump's actions may have indeed been impeachable, but Rubio argued that removing Trump from office was not the right remedy.

"Just because actions meet a standard of impeachment does not mean it is in the best interest of the country to remove a president from office,'' Rubio said.

But behind the flickers of disapproval and the sober, carefully parsed statements, the all but certain acquittal vote Wednesday means Republicans are also accepting Trump's behavior and establishing a precedent for the ways in which an American president can wield the power of the office for personal political gain.

Trump has long made clear that he sees few limits to his power. He saw vindication, not flashing warning lights, after special counsel Robert Mueller's investigation into his possible obstruction of justice ended without any consequences. Shortly after that inquiry ended, Trump stated that the Constitution gives him ``the right to do whatever I want as president.'' Indeed, his phone call with Ukraine's leader came just a day after Mueller testified before Congress.

At times during the impeachment case, Trump's lawyers echoed those same arguments, most notably when retired Harvard law professor Alan Dershowitz said that if a president believes his personal interests are in the national interests, then his actions are not impeachable.

Though Dershowitz later tried to back away from the most expansive interpretations of his remarks, the crux of his argument remained: Trump wasn't out of bounds in seeking a foreign government's assistance for personal political gain, nor would he or a future president be if it happened again.

Democrats entered the impeachment process optimistic that this might be a moment that would weaken Trump's hold on his party. They believed this investigation was different from those that preceded it, including Mueller's, because it was rooted in Trump's own words to Ukraine's president and confirmed in a rough transcript made public by the president, who insisted the phone call was "perfect.''

As the impeachment case began, some Republican lawmakers expressed public concern over the president's dealings with Ukraine; even more did so privately.

There were also moments that tested Republicans' loyalty to Trump.

The release of text messages from administration officials as they struggled with Trump's decision to involve his personal lawyer, Rudy Giuliani, in efforts to investigate former Vice President Joe Biden and the Democratic National Committee. The televised testimony of career public servants who raised grave concerns about Trump's actions in real time. Then, last week's revelation that former national security John Bolton will reveal in an upcoming book that the president told him directly that crucial military aid to Ukraine was being held up until Ukraine agreed to the investigations into Democrats.

But those moments of GOP anxiety proved to be fleeting. Time after time, Republicans found reasons to stand by the president.

Their reasons were many. The aid to Ukraine was ultimately released. There were real questions about a potential conflict of interest with Biden given his son's work with a Ukrainian energy company. And in the ultimate chicken-or-egg argument, GOP senators said they couldn't support conviction _ or even a hearing for new witnesses _ because the process had not been bipartisan.

"It seems like the die has been cast here,'' Biden said Friday after a campaign event in Iowa. The only remedy that remains, he said, comes in November.

"I just have to beat him in the general election,'' he said of Trump.

Trump will now campaign with the stain of impeachment on his record, but it's unclear whether the case that has tied up Washington for four months will still be fresh in voters' minds in November.

One thing that is certain is that Trump's acquittal will be followed by new revelations related to the impeachment case. Among them: legal cases pending that relate to Giuliani's work in Ukraine and documents that have yet to be made public.

Then there is the unpublished book from Bolton, who said he was willing to testify under oath if the Senate was willing to hear from new witnesses. Republicans rejected that chance on Friday.

His book, which clocks in at 528 pages, is set for a March 17 release.

Search Keywords:

Short link:


After being admitted to the hospital for almost 12 days, actor Shabana Azmi was discharged on Saturday.

The actor was admitted to the hospital after she met with a road accident on the Mumbai-Pune expressway on January 18.

After reaching home in good health and spirits, Azmi took to Twitter to share the information with her fans and loved ones.

"Thank you all for your prayers and wishes for my recovery. Im back home now Thank you #Tina Ambani and Kokilaben Ambani hospital for the sterling care provided by the doctors team and the nursing staff. Im indebted and grateful," tweeted Azmi.

The 69-year-old actor also shared a picture of herself along with the tweet sporting her evergreen smile.

Earlier on January 18, the 'Makdee' actor was rushed to MGM Hospital after she met with the accident. Later the actor was shifted to Mumbai's Kokilaben Hospital. Her husband renowned lyricist Javed Akhtar escaped without any major injuries.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
(Newser)  If the Democratic National Committee would change the rules "so I could get into the debates," Michael Bloomberg said this week, "I'd be happy." Done. The committee has announced major changes in its requirements for candidates to qualify for the presidential primary debates, Politico reports. The minimum performance in polls required has been raised, but the individual donor rule is gone. Bloomberg doesn't accept money from individuals, so he was locked out of the eight debates so far; donations from 225,000 donors has been the minimum, per the Hill. The billionaire and former mayor of New York has refused to budge on his own rule. "With my wealth it's obscene to ask somebody else to support my campaign," he said.

story continues below

"The donor threshold was appropriate for the opening stages of the race, when candidates were building their organizations," a DNC spokeswoman said, per NBC News, "and there were no metrics available outside of polling to distinguish those making progress from those who weren't." To qualify, candidates now will need to win at least one delegate from the Iowa caucuses or the New Hampshire primary, or poll at least 10% in four national polls or 12% in two state polls from Nevada and South Carolina. There have been complaints among Democrats that Bloomberg has had it easy by not having to face opponents and questions on the debate stage. The next debate is Feb. 19 in Las Vegas. (Read more Michael Bloomberg stories.)
Union Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman on Saturday said that Beti Bachao Beti Padhao campaign has given tremendous results as the Gross Enrolment Ratio is now higher for girls than for boys at all levels.

Presenting the Union Budget 2020-2021 in the Lok Sabha, Sitharaman said, "Beti Bachao Beti Padhao has given tremendous results, Gross Enrolment Ratio is now higher for girls than for boys at all levels."

She also announced Rs 28,600 crore for programmes which are specific to women.

The United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO), describes 'Gross Enrolment Ratio' as the total enrolment within a country "in a specific level of education, regardless of age, expressed as a percentage of the population in the official age group corresponding to this level of education".

Beti Bachao, Beti Padhao is a campaign of the Government of India that aims to generate awareness and improve the efficiency of welfare services intended for girls in India.

She further said that Rs 35,600 crore has been approved for nutrition-related programmes in 2020-21.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
Barry Black

Twitter

The Senate chaplain on Friday warned senators "we reap what we sow" ahead of a vote on whether to call witnesses in President Donald Trump's impeachment trial.

"Lord help them to remember, that they can't ignore you and get away with it. For we always reap what we sow," Chaplain Barry Black said.

Senators were expected to hold a vote on witnesses later in the day, with Republicans poised to strike down the motion.

Visit Business Insider's homepage for more stories.

The Senate chaplain, Barry Black, offered an ominous warning to senators in the opening prayer of President Donald Trump's impeachment trial on Friday, which came ahead of an expected vote on whether to call witnesses.

"Eternal Lord God, you have summarized ethical behavior in a single sentence: Do for others what you would like them to do for you," Black said.

The chaplain added, "Remind our senators that they alone are accountable to you for their conduct. Lord help them to remember, that they can't ignore you and get away with it. For we always reap what we sow."

Senators were expected to vote on witnesses later on Friday, with Republicans poised to stand against the motion and strike it down.

Democrats have been pushing hard for witnesses, emphasizing that not calling any would be a break from historical precedent. All 15 Senate impeachment trials prior to Trump's saw witnesses called, including those for the only other US presidents who were impeached.

"We agree with the president's council on this much, this will set a new precedent. This will be cited in impeachment trials from this point to the end of history," Democratic Rep. Adam Schiff of California, the lead House impeachment manager, said on Friday while making the case for witnesses.

Story continues

Democrats want to hear from Trump's former national security adviser, John Bolton, in particular. In a forthcoming book that's been reported on by the New York Times over the past week, Bolton undermined one of Trump's key defenses against impeachment, pointing to an explicit quid pro quo that linked roughly $400 million in military aid to Ukraine to investigations into the president's political rivals.

Bolton also reportedly wrote that Trump asked him to get involved in the efforts to pressure Ukraine in a meeting more than two months before the president's July 25 phone call with his Ukrainian counterpart that's been at the center of the impeachment proceedings.

The former national security adviser said Trump's personal lawyer, Rudy Giuliani, the White House counsel, Pat Cipollone, and the acting White House chief of staff, Mick Mulvaney, were also in attendance. Trump and Giuliani denied the meeting took place.

Cipollone has served as Trump's lead attorney in the impeachment trial, and House impeachment managers have called for him to disclose any firsthand evidence in light of the Times' reporting.

Read the original article on Business Insider
Birmingham, Ala.

A historically black college in Alabama is unveiling a new home for murals that depict a famous revolt by African captives aboard a slave-trading ship more than 180 years ago.

Talladega College on Friday was scheduled to dedicate a new museum that will hold paintings which illustrate the story of the Amistad mutiny.

Commissioned by the college in 1938 and painted by artist Hale Woodruff, the murals hung in the campus library for nearly seven decades until they were removed for restoration and a national tour in 2008.

Worth about $50 million, according to the college, the three paintings will now be the centerpiece of a new campus exhibit.

"The murals are seen ... as a hidden jewel, but now it's no longer a hidden jewel," said Seddrick Hill, vice president of institutional advancement, in a video released by the college. "We have a another reason to come to this wonderful city and explore this artwork, which means so much to a lot of people."

Located about 50 miles east of Birmingham, Talladega College is a private, four-year school that is affiliated with the United Church of Christ. It was founded in 1867, two years after the end of the Civil War, by the descendants of slaves.

Slave traders illegally abducted more than 50 people from what is now the west African nation of Sierra Leone in 1839 and shipped them to Cuba. African captives took over the Amistad after it left Havana, killing the captain and cook, and the schooner was seized by a U.S. ship after it arrived off Long Island, New York.

The Africans were arrested and eventually tried before the Supreme Court, where they were represented by John Quincy Adams, a former U.S. president who argued for their freedom, according to the National Archives. The court granted the Africans' release, and 35 survivors returned to Africa. The brightly colored murals depict the takeover of the ship, the trial and the Africans' return to their homeland. They have been in storage since 2016.

The shipboard revolt and its aftermath was the subject of the 1997 movie "Amistad," directed by Steven Spielberg.
Parliament This Week in Parliament

The Lower House Chamber shortly before the parliamentary meeting began this week. / Htet Wai / The Irrawaddy

Monday (Jan. 27)

Two constitutional amendment bills proposing a total of 114 amendments to the countrys Constitutionincluding changes that would limit the role of the military and its commander-in-chief in politicswere submitted to the Union Parliament.

One proposal calls for removing unelected military lawmakers from Parliament. It suggests reducing the military bloc, which currently accounts for 25 percent of lawmakers, to 15 percent in the 2020 election, and by a further 5 percentage points at subsequent general elections.

Another proposes amending Article 436, which grants the military an effective veto over any proposed constitutional changes. It suggests changing the requirement for approving a charter amendment from more than 75 percent of Parliament to two-thirds of elected representatives.

Tuesday (Jan. 28)

In his discussion of the Yangon regional governments proposal to obtain a 50-million-euro (80.7-billion-kyat) ODA (official development assistance) loan from the government of Poland to implement a project to treat and recycle trash in Yangon, lawmaker U Kyaw Naing of the National League for Democracy said the Htein Bin dumpsite in Yangons Hlaingtharyar Township could contribute to the spread of the coronavirus in Myanmar. A coronavirus outbreak that began in Wuhan, China in December had by the end of January spread across China and to at least 15 countries.

Wednesday (Jan. 29)

As lawmakers continued to discuss the 50-million-euro ODA loan from Poland, they asked the Yangon Region government to explain why it had rejected proposals from some 150 local and foreign companies over the past three years to implement private-public partnership waste-management or waste-to-energy plants. Lawmakers called for Yangons municipal garbage disposal system to be switched to a private-public partnership.

Thursday (Jan. 30)

In the Upper House, lawmaker U Kyaw Htwe submitted proposed changes to the 2013 Minimum Wage Law that call for adjusting the minimum wage as necessary depending on the economic performance of the country.

The 2013 law mandates that the government adjust the minimum wage every two years; the next mandatory rate adjustment is due in May.

Myanmar set a minimum wage for the first time in September 2015, at 450 kyats per hour and 3,600 kyats for an eight-hour working day, regardless of the location and type of job. The current rate of 4,800 kyats was set in May 2018.

Friday (Jan. 31)

The Union Parliament approved a President Offices proposal to restructure the townships in Yangon Region. Under the new structure, Dagon Seikkan Township will disappear from the map of Yangon and be incorporated into Botatung and Lanmadaw townships. Hlaingtharyar, the regions most populous township, will be divided into Eastern and Western Hlaingtharyar.

The restructuring will have an impact on the Lower House, whose representatives are elected from each township in the country, as well as on the Yangon regional parliament, to which two representatives from each township are elected.

Additionally, the Union Parliament voted to obtain the 50-million-euro ODA loan from

You may also like these stories:

Myanmar Parliamentary Committee Chairman Says Members Returned Cash Gifts to Mining Company

Charter Amendment Committee Submits Two Bills to Myanmar Parliament Calling for Reduced Role for Military
The government plans to increase investment limit of foreign portfolio investors (FPI) in corporate bonds from 9 per cent to 15 percent, Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman said on Saturday.

New Delhi: The government plans to increase investment limit of foreign portfolio investors (FPI) in corporate bonds from 9 per cent to 15 percent, Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman said on Saturday.

In her second Budget presentation, the finance minister said certain government securities will be open for foreign investors.

She also proposed debt-exchange traded funds comprising mainly government securities, while stating that Rs 22,000 crore has already provided as support to infrastructure project pipeline.

To address liquidity constraints of NBFCs and housing finance corporations, partial credit guarantee scheme will be launched by the government, she added.

Sitharaman said a scheme will be introduced to provide subordinated debt for entrepreneurs of MSMEs.

The government has asked the RBI to extend debt restructuring window for MSME by a year to 31 March 2021.

Moreover, a National Recruitment Agency will be set up for conducting common online eligibility tests for recruitment to non-gazetted posts, the finance minister said.

Follow full coverage of Union Budget 2020-21 here
LAS VEGAS - A growing number of U.S. states are considering a ban on the sale or import of cosmetics that have been tested on animals, as advocates argue testing products such as lotions, shampoos and makeup on rabbits, mice and rats is cruel and outdated.

Hey there, time traveller!

This article was published 1/2/2020 (709 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

In this Wednesday, Jan. 15, 2020, photo, scientist and study director Jennifer Molignano uses forceps to hold a sample of living human skin tissue, grown on a porous membrane inside a plastic insert, while using saline solution to wash a skin care product off the tissue, during a demonstration of an experiment created to evaluate the effects of commercially available skin care products on human skin, at a MatTek Corporation lab, in Ashland, Mass. MatTek is a tissue engineering company that performs non-animal testing on cosmetics, skin care products and pharmaceuticals. (AP Photo/Steven Senne)

LAS VEGAS - A growing number of U.S. states are considering a ban on the sale or import of cosmetics that have been tested on animals, as advocates argue testing products such as lotions, shampoos and makeup on rabbits, mice and rats is cruel and outdated.

The cause has gained support from consumers and many cosmetics companies, but the biggest hurdle is China, which requires that cosmetics sold in its large, lucrative market undergo testing on animals.

California, Nevada and Illinois all saw new laws take effect this year that ban the sale or import of animal-tested cosmetics.

The laws, which apply to tests performed after Jan. 1, arent expected to cause much disruption for the industry because many companies already use non-animal testing. Instead, they draw a line in the sand that puts pressure on the U.S. government to pass a nationwide ban and help end China's requirement that most cosmetics sold in that nation of more than 1.4 billion people undergo testing on animals by Chinese regulators.

China's policy applies to all imported cosmetics, including makeup, perfume and hair care products, along with some special use goods produced in China, such as hair dye, sunscreen and whitening products that make functional claims.

Animal-tested cosmetics already are banned in Europe, India and elsewhere. A ban in the United States, one of the world's largest economies, would put further global pressure on China to end its policy and push Chinese cosmetics companies to rely on non-animal tests if they want to sell their products in the U.S.

Were not trying to create an island out here in Nevada, said state Sen. Melanie Scheible, who sponsored Nevada's law. We are trying to join a group of other communities that have stood up and said, We dont support animal testing.

Animal-rights groups like Cruelty Free International and the Humane Society of the United States hope to get more states to pass bans this year.

Legislation has been introduced or will soon be made public in Hawaii, Maryland, New Jersey, New York and Virginia, according to Cruelty Free International, and a national ban has been introduced in Congress since 2014, though the bipartisan measure has been slow to advance. The most recent version introduced in November marks the first time the country's leading cosmetics trade group, the Personal Care Products Council, has become a vocal backer of the ban, support that should ease lawmaker concerns about business opposition.

The California, Nevada and Illinois laws create exemptions for any cosmetics that were tested on animals to comply with regulations of a foreign government  an exception that acknowledges the reality that most companies will see their products tested on animals if they sell in China.

China is a "big complicating factor, said Monica Engebretson, who leads public affairs for Cruelty Free International in North America. Thats put companies that want to enter that Chinese market in a real bind.

Scheible said her aim in Nevada was not to punish those multinational corporations but to raise awareness and put pressure on other governments, like China, to act.

A lot of people thought that we no longer tested on animals at all, she said. They thought that this was already a thing of the past.

The bans in all three states require cosmetics sellers to use non-animal tests to prove their products are safe. Many international companies are already doing that after the European Union passed a series of similar bans on animal testing, culminating with a 2013 ban on the sale of animal-tested products.

Supporters note that science has advanced, allowing companies in most cases to use non-animal alternatives  such as human cell cultures or lab-grown human skin and eye tissue  to test whether a product or ingredient is safe.

For example, EpiDerm, a synthetic skin tissue made by Massachusetts-based MatTek Corp., is created from cells taken from skin donated during procedures such as breast reduction surgery, circumcision and tummy tuck procedures.

Products can be applied to synthetic tissue to determine whether they cause skin irritation, damage, sensitivity or other issues. That can be used in place of a testing a product on the back of a shaved rabbit, animal rights supporters say.

Some of the biggest names in personal care and beauty, including Avon, Unilever and Procter & Gamble, have used MatTeks tissues for testing.

Carl Westmoreland, a safety scientist with Unilever, said the European Union ban drove more innovation in non-animal testing. Companies like Unilever, trade groups and advocates are among those working with Chinese regulators and scientists to push for new rules, helping to familiarize them with procedures and results from non-animal tests.

They have been changing and are continuing to change, he said, noting China in recent years has allowed some cosmetics produced within the country to avoid animal testing.

Francine Lamoriello, executive vice-president for global strategies at the Personal Care Products Council said its a slow process, but Chinese regulators are working to accept non-animal tests.

Theyre having conferences. They really seem to be quite motivated to do as best as they can to accept and validate certain methods, she said.

Ready, Pet, Go! Leesa Dahl looks at everything to do with our furry, fuzzy, feathered, fishy (and more!) pet friends. Arrives in your inbox each Monday. Sign Up I agree to the Terms and Conditions, Cookie and Privacy Policies, and CASL agreement.

The Personal Care Products Council supports most of the state legislation but is pushing for a nationwide law instead of a patchwork of rules across the country.

Similar to the state laws, the proposed ban before Congress would exempt cosmetics required to undergo testing in China. It would allow those products to be sold in the U.S. as long as sellers relied on additional, non-animal tests to show they are safe.

California was first to pass the legislation in 2018, a move thats part of the state's pattern of wielding its status as the world's fifth-largest economy to push change.

Thats the beauty of doing things in California, said Judie Mancuso with the group Social Compassion in Legislation who pressed for that states ban. You set the stage, you set the standard, and others grab it and grow.

___

Associated Press researcher Shanshan Wang in Beijing contributed to this report.
Arshad Khan By

Express News Service

NEW DELHI: Despite impressive progress in enabling competitive markets, pro-crony has destroyed value in the economy, noted the Economic Survey 2020. In order to become a $5 trillion economy, India must wean away from pro-crony policies, it added.

The Survey said pro-crony policies, in contrast to pro-business ones, erode wealth in the economy as cronyism fosters inefficiencies by inhibiting the process of creative destruction.These policies may promote narrow business interests and hurt social welfare.

It also reiterated the common belief that business houses which are close to political parties, also known as connected firms, get undue advantages. Crony businesses, according to the Survey, may lobby the government to limit competition in their industry, restrict imports of competing goods or reduce regulatory oversight.

Many social activists have accused large business houses/lobbyist of meddling in policies. While in most of cases cronies are said to have benefitted from their connections, there are exceptions when poor business model of a crony has became the reason of his/her downfall.

These initiatives enhance the lobbying groups income but undermine markets and reduce aggregate welfare. Thus, pro-crony policy can inadvertently end up being hurtful to businesses in general, the survey noted.

The Survey also came down heavily on the allegedly mega scams like 2G spectrum allocation and coal block allocation scams that took place during the previous UPA-2 dispensation.
VANCOUVER, British Columbia, Jan. 31, 2020 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Pender Growth Fund Inc. (the Company) announces that one of its private portfolio companies has accepted a term sheet for a significant equity financing (the Proposed Financing).



The Proposed Financing will improve the liquidity position and outlook for the portfolio company. The portfolio company has made a strategic decision to accept the term sheet and welcomes the significant growth capital that is expected to be secured in this financing, however the term sheet provides for financing at a lower valuation per share than prior equity financings for this portfolio company.

After careful consideration of the price per share offered in this Proposed Financing, and the improved liquidity and growth prospects for the portfolio company, we have determined it appropriate to revise the Companys carrying value of the portfolio company. The Companys total net asset value is therefore decreased by approximately $2.0 million ($0.24 of net asset value per share).

As long-term investors we remain committed to our investment theses for our portfolio companies. We continue to support our portfolio companies in building their intrinsic value over the long-term with a goal of generating returns through the successful divestment of portfolio companies.

About the Company

Pender Growth Fund Inc. is an investment company with the objective of achieving long-term capital appreciation for its investors. The Company utilizes its small capital base and long-term horizon to invest in unique situations; primarily small cap, special situations, and illiquid public and private companies. The Company trades on the TSX Venture Exchange under the symbol PTF. For further information on the Company please visit www.pendergrowthfund.com or contact:

Tony Rautava (604) 688-1511

Toll Free: (866) 377-4743

trautava@penderfund.com

Neither the TSX Venture Exchange nor its Regulation Services Provider (as that term is defined in the policies of the TSX Venture Exchange) accepts responsibility for the adequacy or accuracy of this release.

CAUTION REGARDING FORWARD LOOKING STATEMENTS

This news release may contain forward-looking statements (within the meaning of applicable securities laws) relating to the business of the Company and the environment in which it operates. Forward-looking statements are identified by words such as believe, anticipate, project, expect, intend, plan, will, may, estimate and other similar expressions. These statements are based on the Companys expectations, estimates, forecasts and projections and include, without limitation, statements regarding completion of the Proposed Financing. The forward-looking statements in this news release are based on certain assumptions; they are not guarantees of future performance and involve risks and uncertainties that are difficult to control or predict. A number of factors could cause actual results to differ materially from the results discussed in the forward-looking statements, including, but not limited to, failure to satisfy the closing conditions of the Proposed Financing and the factors discussed under the heading Risk Factors in the Companys annual information form available at www.sedar.com. There can be no assurance that forward-looking statements will prove to be accurate as actual outcomes and results may differ materially from those expressed in these forward-looking statements. Readers, therefore, should not place undue reliance on any such forward-looking statements. Further, these forward-looking statements are made as of the date of this news release and, except as expressly required by applicable law, the Company assumes no obligation to publicly update or revise any forward-looking statement, whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise.
Three of the largest US airlines -- Delta, American and United -- have canceled more flights between the United States and China because of concerns about the spread of coronavirus.

For American Airlines, the nation's largest carrier, the decision comes after the union representing 15,000 pilots sued the company Thursday to immediately halt its US-China service, citing "serious, and in many ways still unknown, health threats posed by the coronavirus."

American moved up its planned suspension of flights between the United States and mainland China beginning Friday. It had originally announced that flights between Los Angeles and Shanghai and Los Angeles and Beijing would be suspended from February 9. Its Hong Kong flights will continue to operate.

"Based on the U.S. Department of State's recent increase of the China Travel Advisory to a Level 4 (Do Not Travel), American is suspending its operations to and from the Chinese mainland beginning today through March 27," American said in a statement.

The union applauded the move. "Now that American is ceasing operations in China, the ultimate goal is that all our passengers and crew will remain safe and that was our main goal,' Captain Dennis Tajer, a spokesperson for the Allied Pilots Association, told CNN Business.

Delta's said Friday it was suspending all flights from the United States to China from February 6 until April 30. The airline said it's continuing routes until February 5 to "ensure customers looking to exit China have options to do so." It said that it will "continue to monitor the situation closely" and adjust its schedule accordingly.

Affected customers can request a refund, rebook their flight after the suspension lifts or speak with an agent for other options. Delta currently operates 42 weekly flights between the United States and China, including daily service connecting Beijing and Detroit and Seattle, and Shanghai and Atlanta, Detroit, Los Angeles and Seattle.

United Airlines on Thursday extended its suspension of some routes to and from China until March 28. The carrier, which announced its first round of service reductions Tuesday, said it was because of a "significant decline in demand." Flights to Chengdu are not being reduced, it said.

The coronavirus, a potentially fatal respiratory disease, first emerged in Wuhan, China in early December and has since spread across China and appeared in some other countries, including the United States, Japan and India. The World Health Organization has declared the coronavirus epidemic a public health emergency of international concern.

Fears over the spread of the disease has forced both US and global carriers to amend their schedules as demand for China travel declines.

British Airways, Air Asia, Cathay Pacific, Air India, IndiGo, Lufthansa and Finnair have announced plans this week to slash the number of flights they are operating to China or stop flying to the country entirely. Other airlines are offering customers refunds.


Thank you for reading! On your next view you will be asked to log in to your subscriber account or create an account and subscribepurchase a subscription to continue reading.
Emmanuel Macron has insisted Brexit should act as a historic alarm signal for the EU, as European leaders reacted to Britain officially ending its 47-year-long membership of the bloc.

The French president, speaking in Paris, also hit out at the lies, exaggerations, simplifications during the 2016 EU referendum campaign, but said France had always respected the decision taken by the British people.

Marking the UKs exit  the first time a country has left the EU since its formation  Mr Macron said: It is a historic alarm signal that must be heard in each of our countries.

He added the EU should be more sovereign, more democratic, closer to our citizens so that the desire to leave Europe will never again be the response to difficulties today.

Angela Merkel, the German chancellor, also said Brexit was a deep break for us all, as she warned the negotiations over the UKs future relationship and trading partnership will certainly not be easy.

Brexit celebrations in Parliament Square Show all 37 1 /37 Brexit celebrations in Parliament Square Brexit celebrations in Parliament Square Pro-Brexit supporters celebrating in Parliament Square, after the UK left the European Union on 31 January. Ending 47 years of membership PA Brexit celebrations in Parliament Square Big Ben, shows the hands at eleven o'clock at night AFP via Getty Brexit celebrations in Parliament Square Pro Brexit supporters attend the Brexit Day Celebration Party hosted by Leave Means Leave Getty Brexit celebrations in Parliament Square Brexit Party leader Nigel Farage smiles on stage AFP/Getty Brexit celebrations in Parliament Square People celebrate in Parliament Square Reuters Brexit celebrations in Parliament Square A Brexit supporter celebrates during a rally in Parliament square AP Brexit celebrations in Parliament Square Police form a line at Parliament Square to prevent a small group of anti-Brexit protestors from going through to the main Brexit rally PA Brexit celebrations in Parliament Square Nigel Farage speaks to pro-Brexit supporters PA Brexit celebrations in Parliament Square PA Brexit celebrations in Parliament Square JD Wetherspoon Chairman Tim Martin speaks as people wave flags Reuters Brexit celebrations in Parliament Square Getty Brexit celebrations in Parliament Square Brexit supporters wave Union flags as they watch the big screen AFP via Getty Brexit celebrations in Parliament Square Brexit Party leader, Nigel Farage arrives Reuters Brexit celebrations in Parliament Square Brexit supporters gather AP Brexit celebrations in Parliament Square Ann Widdecombe speaks to pro-Brexit supporters PA Brexit celebrations in Parliament Square Brexit supporters wave Union flags as they watch the big screen AFP via Getty Brexit celebrations in Parliament Square AFP via Getty Brexit celebrations in Parliament Square People wave British Union Jack flags as they celebrate Reuters Brexit celebrations in Parliament Square Pro-Brexit demonstrators celebrate on Parliament Square on Brexit day Reuters Brexit celebrations in Parliament Square A pro-Brexit supporter jumps on an EU flag PA Brexit celebrations in Parliament Square Getty Brexit celebrations in Parliament Square AFP via Getty Brexit celebrations in Parliament Square PA Brexit celebrations in Parliament Square Getty Brexit celebrations in Parliament Square AP Brexit celebrations in Parliament Square Getty Brexit celebrations in Parliament Square A man waves Union flags from a small car as he drives past Brexit supporters gathering AFP via Getty Brexit celebrations in Parliament Square A pro-Brexit supporter pours beer onto an EU flag PA Brexit celebrations in Parliament Square Getty Brexit celebrations in Parliament Square An EU flag lies trampled in the mud Getty Brexit celebrations in Parliament Square Getty Brexit celebrations in Parliament Square PA Brexit celebrations in Parliament Square PA Brexit celebrations in Parliament Square Getty Brexit celebrations in Parliament Square Getty Brexit celebrations in Parliament Square PA Brexit celebrations in Parliament Square AFP via Getty

In a post on Twitter, Guy Verhofstadt, the European Parliaments chief Brexit coordinator, also said: We will look after your star & work to ensure the EU is a project youll want to be a part of again soon!.

European Council president Charles Michel responded to Brexit with a Monty Python reference, saying always look on the bright side.

The remarks from key European figures during the Brexit talks came as the Union Jack flag was removed from key EU buildings, including the European Parliament and European Council in Brussels.

In an article for The Times, Mr Macron also underlined the difficulties that will be encountered in the imminent trade talks. It is in our commons interest to define as close and deep a partnership as possible in defence and security, and in police, judicial, environmental, scientific and cultural cooperation, he said.

At the same time let me be honest, as I have always been: ease of aches to the European market will depend on the degree to which the European Unions rules are accepted, because we cannot allow any harmful competition to develop between us.

The Irish prime minister, Leo Varadkar, also warned that Ireland will take a firm line in the post-Brexit trade talks, insisting that fishing and farming communities will be protected during the talks.

Mr Varadkar told RTE a lot of work remained outstanding but he was confident a good deal could be reached. We want free trade with the UK with no tariffs, no quotas, as little bureaucracy and as few checks as possible, he said.

Speaking ahead of the UKs exit, Boris Johnson said from No 10: This is the moment when the dawn breaks and the curtain goes up on a new act in our great national drama.

Now is the time to use those tools to unleash the full potential of this brilliant country and make better the lives of everyone in every corner of the United Kingdom.
By Trend





A military cargo plane to evacuate the citizens of Turkey and Azerbaijan flew out from the Chinese Wuhan city, Turkeys Ministry of National Defense stated, Trend reports referring to Turkish media.

The plane safely took on board citizens of Turkey and citizens of friendly countries under the supervision of employees of countrys Ministry of Health.

Evacuation is conducted as part of operation, planned by Turkish Ministry of Health. Evacuated citizens will be quarantined in Turkey for 14 days.

Turkeys President Recep Tayyip Erdogan said on January 31 that Turkey will evacuate Azerbaijani citizens from China to their country.

The Minister of Health said that we have no threat so far. But there are citizens of Azerbaijan in China. They want to come back," Erdogan said.

The president instructed relevant authorities to take necessary actions and bring the citizens of Azerbaijan to Turkey.

The 2019-nCoV coronavirus was detected in December 2019 in the Chinese Wuhan city. Infection has already been registered in Thailand, Japan, South Korea, the US, Canada, Vietnam, Singapore, Hong Kong, Nepal, France, Australia, Malaysia, Germany and Finland.

In China alone, the number of patients with pneumonia caused by a new type of coronavirus reached 11,100 people, 258 patients died.
China has flown two planeloads of its citizens back home to Hubei, the locked-down province at the centre of the deadly coronavirus outbreak where they were greeted by authorities in full-body protective suits. A Xiamen Airlines charter flight from Bangkok touched down late Friday in the provincial capital Wuhan, where the infection is believed to have originated in a market that sold wild animals. Health authorities in white, full-body protective gear stood by the cabin door as the plane's 73 passengers disembarked, smiling through face masks and waving to news photographers. A second Xiamen flight landed soon afterwards carrying Hubei residents from Kota Kinabalu, a popular coastal tourist destination in Malaysia. China's foreign ministry said earlier on Friday that the country would bring Wuhan residents back from overseas "as soon as possible" due to "the practical difficulties that Chinese citizens from Hubei, especially Wuhan, have faced overseas". The move came after a more than 30 airlines worldwide announced they were halting or reducing flights to China as the country struggles to contain the spread of the epidemic. China's aviation agency had said there were 117 nationals from Hubei province in Bangkok and 100 in Kota Kinabalu who are "willing to take the chartered flights back to Wuhan as soon as possible". This was despite the fact that Wuhan and surrounding cities have been locked down by authorities for more than a week, effectively trapping more than 50 million people in their homes after a near-blanket transport ban. Nearly all of the 259 people killed in the outbreak so far were in Hubei. Hospitals have been overwhelmed in Wuhan. AFP reporters saw long queues, with some patients saying they lined up for two days to see a doctor. The charter flights prompted a flurry of discussion on Chinese social media. "These people probably don't want to go back," said one, while another questioned if residents should be returned to Hubei if they were not infected. China has advised its citizens to postpone trips abroad and cancelled overseas group tours. Several countries including the United States, Germany, Britain and Japan have urged their citizens to avoid travel there. The US has also declared a national emergency, temporarily barring entry to foreigners who had been in China within the past two weeks. Neighbouring Myanmar turned a plane back to China on Friday with most passengers still on board -- including French and American citizens a- after one man suspected of contracting the coronavirus was taken to hospital.
Cynthia Erivo says she's "saddened" by the lack of diversity when it comes to this year's Oscars nominations.

Earlier today, Erivo  who's up for Best Actress in a Leading Role thanks to her role in Harriet  spoke to The Hollywood Reporter about how it felt to be the only WOC nominee in the acting categories.

"It is a moment for celebration, but it also is a real eye-opener," she said. "It can't just be me alone."

Related | Give Cynthia Erivo Her EGOT Just For the Harriet Trailer

Erivo then went on to talk about how it's disheartening for her to not see any other Black women nominees, as she "would love to share this moment with someone else."

"There's just such good work going on and this may sound fatalistic, but I would hate for people's work to have gone by and then for us to have looked back and go, "Oh, I wish we would've given roses," when people aren't there to actually receive them. I don't want us to do that," she said, before adding, "To be in a room and not being able to see other actors [of color] who are nominated, to not be able to share that with another black actress is saddening."

That said, this isn't the first time Erivo addressed the film industry's diversity blindspots this awards season. Earlier this month, she turned down performing Harriet's "Stand Up" at the BAFTAs due to the same exact predicament  a decision she said was "received really well" in the UK.

"There are black actors who have reached out and said, 'Thank you very much, congratulations and well done,'" she told the publication. "Over [in the US], I've only been paying attention to those I know and care about who are also Black actors and actresses in the business, and demand to be a bit more outspoken about their belief in making sure it's a more diverse playing field, and that we get to see ourselves celebrated as well."

And while she now has a "community of Black actors and actresses who have welcomed me," Erivo went on to say that she still doesn't feel like she belongs in some places. However, this is something she's beginning to make peace witth.

"I'm now coming to the realization that that's part of the charm of me, that I'm a bit of an oddity, where I don't fit," she said. "I'm starting to accept that if I don't fit in, I don't have to try and make myself fit in."

Read Erivo's entire interview, here.
According to the Egyptian constitution, the president can pardon prisoners who had received final court rulings that cannot be further appealed

Egypt's interior ministry released on Saturday 498 prisoners uon a presidential pardon and conditional releases.

Around 129 prisoners were released upon a presidential pardon, while 369 were released conditionally. The releases came in commemoration of Egypt's 68th annual Police Day, which is marked on 25 January.

A list of those released was not immediately available.

According to the Egyptian constitution, the president can issue pardon decrees for prisoners who had received final court rulings that cannot be further appealed.

In May 2019, the president issued a decree pardoning 560 prisoners, including young people and prisoners with health problems.

Search Keywords:

Short link:


GamesRadar+ is supported by its audience. When you purchase through links on our site, we may earn an affiliate commission. Learn more
Prestigious Melbourne school Trinity Grammar has paid out more than $1 million to a former student for the historical sexual abuse he suffered.

John Turner, abused in 1974 when he was 16 by boarding master Leslie Wiggins, said he felt vindicated.

It makes me feel whole again. It makes me feel like a person. I never felt adequate as an adult, I always felt I was hopeless, he said.

John Turner says he feels vindicated after a $1 million settlement with Trinity Grammar. Credit:Simon Schluter

The feelings of inadequacy and extreme anxiety have been present with me my entire life since the sixth form.
A cut in personal income tax, sops for rural and agriculture sectors as well as an aggressive push on infrastructure spending are likely to be part of Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman's feel-good" second Budget.
WASHINGTON  The Trump administration announced Friday that it was curbing legal immigration from six additional countries that officials said did not meet security standards, as part of an election-year push to further restrict immigration.

Officials said immigrants from Kyrgyzstan, Myanmar, Eritrea, Nigeria, Sudan and Tanzania will face new restrictions in obtaining certain visas to come to the United States. But it is not a total travel ban, unlike President Trumps earlier effort that generated outrage around the world for unfairly targeting Muslims.

The announcement comes as Trump tries to promote his administrations crackdown on immigration, highlighting a signature issue that motivated his supporters in 2016 and hoping it has the same affect this November. The administration recently announced a crackdown on birth tourism and is noting the sharp decline in crossings at the U.S.-Mexico border and citing progress on building the border wall.

Immigrant visas were restricted for Kyrgyzstan, Myanmar, Eritrea and Nigeria, and are given to people seeking to live in the U.S. permanently. They include visas for people sponsored by family members or employers as well as the diversity visa program that made up to 55,000 visas available in the most recent lottery.

Sudan and Tanzania have diversity visas suspended. The State Department uses a computer drawing to select people from around the world for up to 55,000 diversity visas.

Nonimmigrant visas were not affected. Those are given to people traveling to the U.S. for a temporary stay. They include visas for tourists, those doing business or people seeking medical treatment. During December, for example, about 650,760 nonimmigrant visas were granted worldwide.

These countries for the most part want to be helpful ... but for a variety of different reasons failed to meet those minimum requirements, said acting Homeland Security Secretary Chad Wolf.

Wolf said Homeland Security officials would work with the countries on bolstering their security requirements.

Colleen Long and Nomaan Merchant are Associated Press writers.
Deo Poonwassie lived his life in pursuit of making the world a more equitable place for all students. Revered for his academic prowess, he taught those around him the importance of community, humility and generosity by demonstrating these traits first-hand.

Hey there, time traveller!

This article was published 1/2/2020 (709 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

Deo Poonwassie lived his life in pursuit of making the world a more equitable place for all students. Revered for his academic prowess, he taught those around him the importance of community, humility and generosity by demonstrating these traits first-hand.

Born in a village in Trinidad on April 13, 1941, Poonwassie was one of seven children. From a young age, he was determined to seek out higher education. Seeing his father work tirelessly in an oil field for pennies a day drove Poonwassies passion for education as a means to self-sufficiency.

The 78-year-old professor emeritus at the University of Manitoba died Sept. 8, 2019, after suffering a stroke in April.

Despite being a revered educator, awards and distinctions never went to his head.

"He was the most humble man ever, ever," said Alex Wolff, Poonwassies only son.

Wolff recently found himself organizing his fathers basement; there were a half-dozen boxes filed away in the corner. To Wolffs surprise, they were filled with diplomas, medals, awards and distinctions.

"He packed up all his achievements and put them away, he didnt need to show anyone. He was so humble and modest," Wolff said.

Growing up, Poonwassies stay-at-home mother took care of her four sons and three daughters while their father worked. As a result, there was nothing more important than family: he was close to all of his Trinidadian relatives, even as the siblings moved to different parts of the globe.

By his side throughout his life was his best friend, K.P. Binda. The two were neighbours, living side-by-side in Trinidad. They went to the same elementary school, the same high school and, eventually, both studied and taught at the same education institutions.

"We were very, very close. Why, we were not relatives, we were closer than that. Closer than blood," Binda said.

SUPPLIED PHOTOS Alex Wolff (left) with his dad, Deo Poonwassie, a professor emeritus who suffered a stroke in September and died at the age of 78.

Poonwassie was the first person to hold Bindas children, after himself and his wife. He was known as Uncle Deo to the family, with Bindas children always running through his house. As the families expanded, Bindas grandson wondered why Uncle Deo always had his hair roughed up like a mad scientist.

The friends would often speak to each other through Shakespeare, emphasizing Poonwassies vast knowledge. "Sometimes he would quote a sonnet, and I would reply with a soliloquy," Binda said.

Colleagues would say Poonwassie was not just an educator, but a community developer. Retiring in the mid-2000s after a long career committed to Indigenous students and adult education, Poonwassie was at the forefront of advocating for those who were marginalized, particularly in academic settings.

"When he was one of those students, no one stood up for him. So when he got to the place where he actually had authority, he wanted to stand up for them. He saw himself in them," Wolff said.

In 1965, Poonwassie came to Canada on a government scholarship to study at the University of Manitoba.

After earning a bachelor of arts and bachelor of education, he pursued graduate studies at the University of Toronto.

Following the completion of his graduate degree, Poonwassie took a job at Brandon University and becoming a professor in its Indigenous access program.

Poonwassie took leave from BU to complete his PhD at the University of Oregon in 1978. In 1979, he returned to the U of M as director of the access programs and special pre-med program for Indigenous students. These programs became nationally recognized for their contribution to the commitment of developing Indigenous education.

He was known as a tough, but exceptionally intelligent, student-centred educator.

"One of the things that he was very good at was reminding people that you dont achieve anything in life without hard work. In that journey, there are ups and downs. Part of being an educator is being there for that journey," said David Mandzuk, dean of the faculty of education at U of M.

In his free time, Poonwassie would go fishing or hunting; Binda was often along for the adventure.

SUPPLIED Deo Poonwassie circa 1970s

Once, the two rented a boat to catch a big salmon. "We came back with nothing," Binda said with a laugh.

They got close, but the salmon jumped off the hook at the last second.

"Deo turned to me and said: It probably was afraid of you and your beard."

Poonwassie also had a knack for entertaining, from extravagant parties to intimate gatherings.

"He was someone that people would like to be around, as there were no pretenses. He was a social animal and liked to be around others," said Mandzuk.

He is also said to have made an extraordinary curry dish.

"Pretty much anything he cooked, he managed to make it better than anywhere," Wolff said.

Poonwassie always had a book in his hand, as reading was his favourite hobby. Or he would read a Trinidadian newspaper to stay connected to his roots.

Poonwassie would often visit Trinidad, for both personal and philanthropic reasons. Binda recalled that during the mid-1980s, Poonwassie helped set up a library for the Canadian Mission elementary school he had attended as a child. He shipped crate after crate filled with books of all different genres.

"He did this on his own accord," Binda said. "He was very generous and helped set up scholarships and bursaries for students who were very poor."

In 2012, Poonwassie was awarded the Queens Diamond Jubilee Medal for service to the community, the nation and the wider world.

Poonwassie had a favourite Latin phrase, which he encouraged his students to strive towards. Those who knew him say he lived his life the same way: per ardua ad astra, which means "through adversity to the stars."
We are particularly concerned about our Chinese students and sent a message to them in Mandarin yesterday to let them know that like all of our students, their safety and security is of the utmost importance to the University," Rowley said. Our first priority is trying to ensure the safety and security of all our students, especially those at risk of contracting the virus, but that also means ensuring the safety and wellbeing of students from China here who are worried about their families and friends back home and need our support. We want our community members to feel supported and not stigmatized.
Cook County States Attorney Kim Foxx will donate $9,000 in donations from a red-light camera company linked to disgraced Illinois state Sen. Martin Sandovals corruption case, her campaign said Friday.

Sandoval pleaded guilty Tuesday to bribery and tax charges, including taking at least $70,000 from clout-heavy SafeSpeed for acting as its protector in the state Senate. The company and its president, Nikki Zollar, have denied wrongdoing.

Records show Zollar made three donations totaling $9,000 to Foxxs campaign in 2015 and 2016. Now Foxx is donating the money, her campaign said.

Sign up for The Spin to get the top stories in politics delivered to your inbox weekday afternoons.

We vet all contributions coming into the campaign to comply with our ethical standards. The moment we learn a donor no longer meets those standards, we immediately donate the funds to a charitable organization where it can make a positive difference in the community, Foxx spokeswoman Sylvia Ewing said in a statement.

Foxx is donating $3,000 to Black Ensemble Theater and $6,000 to Chicago Childrens Advocacy Center, her campaign said.

Foxx is seeking reelection in the March 17 primary. Shes being challenged by former prosecutor Donna More, former Ald. Bob Fioretti and former Assistant States Attorney Bill Conway.

Last September, Foxx announced she would donate a years-old, $5,000 contribution from Sandoval after federal agents raided the longtime legislators offices and family home.

Sandoval pleaded guilty this week to corruption charges and acknowledged that he will be cooperating with the federal government.

Love 0 Funny 0 Wow 0 Sad 0 Angry 0
A Ghanaian national, Baba Amadu has been assaulted by some Chinese nationals at Awutu Bosom Abena in the Central Region.

According to 40-year-old Baba Amadu who works as a tipper driver at J.F Stone Quarry belonging to some Chinese Nationals in the Awutu Senya West District, the incident happened when he mistakenly offloaded quarry stones into a wrong machine incurring the wrath of his bosses.

There was a little damage to the machine I was offloading the stones into and I didnt know my boss was working on the machines so I offloaded the stones into the machine and my boss got angry, Baba Amadu told Citi News.

According to him, he was sacked from work but was told to return later in the evening for his salary only to be beaten by the Chinese nationals.

After my boss fired me he asked me to come back later in the evening for my salary so when I got to his house there were six Chinese Nationals in the room, they locked me up in their room, handcuffed me and the six of them lashed me for making such a mistake at work, Baba Amadu added.

He said that he suffered severe pain as a result of the beatings inflicted by the Chinese nationals.

When I cough, it is full of blood and I have visited the hospital many times but it is still persisting, Baba Amadu said.

Kwaku Dartey a friend of Baba Amadu told Citi News the Chinese nationals have been maltreating them as a result of their colour thus calling on the Police to intervene in the matter.

It is time the Police intervene in the matter so these Chinese people are taught a lesson Kwaku Dartey explained.

citinewsroom
She was at odds with her former America's Got Talent co-star Terry Crews after he disputed her claims about rampant racism and sexism behind the scenes at the televised talent show.

Gabrielle Union continued to fight against injustice on Friday when she posted a video for DeAndre Arnold, a high school student who was suspended and prevented from walking at his graduation.

The 47-year-old actress showed her support by inviting the high schooler as her guest at the Academy Awards ceremony next month.

Helping hand: Gabrielle Union, 47, and her husband Dwyane Wade, 38, invited high schooler DeAndre Arnold to the Oscars after he was prevented from walking at graduation because of his dread locks

Gabrielle's video was first broadcast Friday morning on CBS This Morning in a segment featuring DeAndre.

'Hey DeAndre, I'm Gabrielle Union and I am one of the producers of the Oscar-nominated short film Hair Love,' she announced in the clip.

'When we heard about this amazing story about this young black father with long, beautiful locks, just trying to figure out how to do his daughter's hair, we knew that we had to support any way we could. We had to get involved any way we could.'

The Breaking In star saw a parallel between DeAndre's story and her animated short film.

'The same way as when we heard about your story, and you just wanting to wear your hair, the way you want, at school,' she said. 'And all this scrutiny that you faced and how unwavering you have been in standing up for yourself. We also knew that we had to get involved.'

Art imitates life: Gabrielle's video was first broadcast Friday morning on CBS This Morning in a segment featuring DeAndre. She saw parallels with her animated short film Hair Love, about an African American father caring for his daughter's natural hair

All expenses paid: Her husband Dwyane Wade made an appearance to invite DeAndre and his family to the Oscars ceremony on February 9

Gabrielle's husband Dwyane Wade also made an appearance in the video.

'We are big fans. We follow you. We love the way that you carry yourself and we wanted to do something special for you.'

The 38-year-old former Miami Heat star offered to completely cover a trip to Los Angeles for the student and his family, along with all of their accommodations while he attended the Oscars ceremony on February 9 at the Dolby Theatre in Hollywood.

Dwyane said that DeAndre and his mother were official guests of the Hair Love team at the Academy Awards, where they were nominated in the Best Animated Short Film category.

'Get ready, you're going to the Oscars, bud,' he added.

Hitting the red carpet: The former Miami Heat star offered to cover a trip to LA for the student and his family, along with all of their accommodations; pictured together January 19

Nominee: Dwyane said that DeAndre and his mother were official guests of the Hair Love team at the Oscars, where they were nominated for Best Animated Short Film; shown January 19

News of DeAndre's plight broke earlier this month after he was suspended for his dreadlocks.

His hair style is technically allowed by the Barbers Hill Independent School District in Texas, though he had to keep it tied up because the school system's dress code states that male students' hair can't drape past their eyebrows or earlobes, and it can't be extended past a T-shirt collar.

DeAndre kept his hair tied up so it wouldn't hang to low all throughout high school, but the school informed him the arrangement would no longer be accepted.

If he didn't cut his hair, he would get an in-school suspension until it was shorn, and he also wouldn't be allowed to walk at his graduation ceremony.

DeAndre's mother eventually pulled him out of school, and the districts hair policy had been widely decried as racist.

Derided policy: DeAndre was suspended by his Texas school district and prevent from walking at graduation because of his dreadlocks; still from The Ellen DeGeneres Show

The subject is also personal for Gabrielle, who was fired from her position as a judge on America's Got Talent in November.

An explosive Variety report featured multiple sources involved with the show who claimed that the actress had repeatedly complained about racists incidents on-stage and off.

Sources also reported that Gabrielle received multiple notes from producers that her changing hairstyles were 'too black' for the AGT audiences, something multiple sources said she was criticized for at least half a dozen times.

Gabrielle sparred publicly last week with Terry Crews, who disputed her claims of racist and sexist treatment on America's Got Talent; shown together in September

Different standards: Prior to her firing, the actress publicly supported him after he alleged that a 'high level Hollywood executive' had ' groped [his] privates ' at a party; shown in September

AGT host Terry Crews tried to rebut Gabrielle's claims about her treatment on the show and downplayed the importance of anonymous reports, though he incorrectly claimed that there was only one source, when there were multiple unnamed sources.

'Maaaaaan... We all agreed to let the investigation be completed before speaking but if we doing this... ohhhhh baby let's gooooooooooo!' she tweeted on January 24 after Terry's comments were reported.

Prior to her firing, the Bring It On star publicly supported him after he alleged that a 'high level Hollywood executive' had 'groped [his] privates' at a party, despite many of his colleagues remaining silent.

'Terry Crews is a stand-up guy,' she tweeted at the time. 'Literally one of the nicest people in our industry. He is honest, kind & true professional. I believe him & stand by him. #MeToo.'
Import duty on crude plam oil (CPO) remain unchanged at 37.5 per cent if the edible oil is imported under the ASEAN pact, trade body SEA clarified on Saturday.

The clarification comes amid confusion among traders after the customs notification in the Budget document mentioned duty on CPO at 44 per cent.

On December 31, the government had reduced the duty on CPO to 37.5 per cent from 40 per cent. The duty cut was made under the ASEAN agreement and India Malaysia Comprehensive Economic Cooperation Agreement (IMCECA).

"There was confusion about 44 per cent customs duty on CPO mentioned in the Budget document. The finance ministry has clarified that there is no change in import duty on CPO under the ASEAN agreement. The duty remains unchanged at 37.5 per cent," Solvent Extractors Association of India (SEA) Executive Director B V Mehta told PTI.

India purchases bulk of CPO from ASEAN nations specially Indonesia, Malaysia and Thailand. The 44 per cent duty on CPO is just a standard rate, he added.

Palm oil comprises more than 60 per cent of India's total vegetable imports. The country imported 7.41 lakh tonne of CPO in December 2019, while total vegetable oils shipments stood at 11.28 lakh tonnes in the same period, the SEA data showed.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
Wuhans mayor, Zhou Xianwang, later took responsibility for the delay in reporting the scale of the epidemic, but said he was hampered by the national law on infectious diseases. That law allows provincial governments to declare an epidemic only after receiving central government approval. After I receive information, I can only release it when Im authorized, he said.

Image Dr. Li in Wuhan Central Hospital on Friday.

The official reflex for suppressing discomforting information now appears to be cracking, as officials at various levels seek to shift blame for the governments response.

With the crisis worsening, Dr. Lis efforts are no longer viewed as reckless. A commentary on the social media account of the Supreme Peoples Court criticized the police for investigating people for circulating rumors.

It might have been a better way to prevent and control the new coronavirus today if the public had believed the rumor then and started to wear masks and carry out sanitary measures and avoid the wild animal market, the commentary said.

Dr. Li is 34 and has a child. He and his wife are expecting a second in the summer. He is now recovering from the virus in the hospital where he worked. In an interview via text messages, he said he felt aggrieved by the police actions.

If the officials had disclosed information about the epidemic earlier, he said, I think it would have been a lot better. There should be more openness and transparency.
(Reuters) - Airlines are suspending flights to China in the wake of the new coronavirus outbreak, which as of Friday had killed more than 200 people and infected nearly 10,000 people. Here is the latest on their plans (in alphabetical order): AIR CANADA Air Canada said on Jan

(Reuters) - Airlines are suspending flights to China in the wake of the new coronavirus outbreak, which as of Friday had killed more than 200 people and infected nearly 10,000 people.

Here is the latest on their plans (in alphabetical order):

AIR CANADA

Air Canada said on Jan. 28 it was cancelling select flights to China.

AIR FRANCE

Air France said on Jan. 30 it suspended all scheduled flights to and from mainland China until Feb. 9.

AIR INDIA

Air India said it was cancelling its Mumbai-Delhi-Shanghai flight from Jan. 31 to Feb. 14.

AIR NEW ZEALAND

Air New Zealand said on Jan. 31 it was temporarily reducing flights between Auckland and Shanghai to four return services a week from Feb. 18 to March 31 rather than the usual daily flights.

AIR SEOUL

South Korean budget carrier Air Seoul said on Jan. 28 it had suspended all flights to China.

AIR TANZANIA

Tanzania's state-owned carrier said it would postpone its maiden flights to China. It had planned to begin charter flights to China in February.

AMERICAN AIRLINES

American Airlines said it will cancel flights to Beijing and Shanghai starting Jan. 31, and run through March 27, though it will continue to fly to Hong Kong.

BRITISH AIRWAYS

BA said on Jan. 30 it had cancelled all flights to mainland China for a month.

CATHAY PACIFIC AIRWAYS <0293.HK>

Hong Kong's Cathay Pacific said it would progressively reduce capacity to and from mainland China by 50% or more from Jan. 30 to the end of March.

DELTA AIR LINES

Delta Air Lines announced cancellations, with its last flights out of mainland China on Feb. 5, running through April 30.

EGYPTAIR

Egypt's flag carrier said on Jan. 30 it would suspend all flights to and from China starting Feb. 1.

EL AL ISRAEL AIRLINES

El Al Israel Airlines said on Jan. 30 it was suspending flights to Beijing until March 25. Israel's Health Ministry said it will not allow flights from China to land at its airports.

ETHIOPIAN AIRLINES

The African carrier on Jan. 30 denied reports it had suspended all flights to China. The airline's statement contradicted its passenger call centre, which told Reuters earlier in the day that flights to China had been suspended.

ETIHAD AIRWAYS

Abu Dhabi's Etihad Airways said passenger flights between Beijing and Nagoya, in Japan, had been temporarily suspended due to low travel demand.

FINNAIR

Finland's Finnair said on Jan. 31 it was cancelling all flights to mainland China between Feb. 6 and Feb. 29 and to Guangzhou between Feb. 5 and March 29.

KENYA AIRWAYS

Kenya Airways said on Jan. 31 it has suspended all flights to China until further notice.

LION AIR

Indonesia's Lion Air Group said on Jan. 29 it would suspend all flights to China from February. The airline has suspended six flights from several Indonesian cities to China so far and will suspend the rest next month.

LOT POLISH AIRLINES

Polish carrier LOT said it had decided to temporarily suspend its flights to Beijing until Feb. 9.

LUFTHANSA

Germany's Lufthansa said on Jan. 29 it was suspending Lufthansa, Swiss and Austrian Airlines flights to and from China until Feb. 9. The airline continues to fly to Hong Kong, but it will stop taking bookings for flights to mainland China until the end of February.

ROYAL AIR MAROC

Moroccan airline Royal Air Maroc (RAM) has temporarily suspended its direct flights to China, the company said on Jan. 30. RAM had on Jan. 16 launched a direct air route with three flights weekly between its Casablanca hub and Beijing.

RUSSIA

All Russian airlines, with the exception of national airline Aeroflot , will stop flying to China, Deputy Prime Minister Tatiana Golikova said.

RWANDAIR

Rwanda carrier RwandAir has halted flights to and from China until further notice, the airline said in a statement on Friday. The decision will be reviewed later in February, it said.

SAS

Nordic airline SAS said on Jan. 30 it has decided to suspend all flights to and from Shanghai and Beijing from Jan. 31 until Feb. 9.

SAS offers 12 regular weekly connections from and to Shanghai and Beijing.

SCOOT

Singapore airline Scoot said it was suspending all flights between Singapore and China from Feb. 8, media reported.

SHANGHAI AIRLINES

Shanghai Airlines said on Jan. 31 it would suspend its Chengdu-Budapest flight between Feb. 4 and March 28 and its Xi'an-Budapest flight between Feb. 6 and March 26 according to a statement on the website of the Budapest Airport operator.

The airline's Shanghai-Budapest flight is unaffected.

SINGAPORE AIRLINES

Singapore Airlines Ltd said on Jan. 31 it would reduce capacity on some of its routes to mainland China in February.

The cuts include flights to Beijing, Shanghai, Guangzhou, Shenzhen, Chengdu, Xiamen and Chongqing, some of which are flown by regional arm SilkAir. Its budget carrier Scoot is also cutting back on flights to China.

TURKISH AIRLINES

Turkey's flag carrier said on Jan. 30 it would decrease frequency on scheduled flights to Beijing, Guangzhou, Shanghai and Xian between Feb. 5 and Feb. 29.

UNITED AIRLINES

Chicago-based United announced cancellations, saying last flights out of mainland China will be Feb. 5, running through March 28.

United had previously suspended 24 U.S. flights to Beijing, Hong Kong and Shanghai between Feb. 1 and Feb. 8 because of a significant drop in demand.

UNITED PARCEL SERVICE INC

UPS has cancelled 22 China flights, as a result of the Wuhan quarantines and normal manufacturing closures due to the Lunar New Year holiday, UPS Chief Executive David Abney said on Jan. 30. He did not specify how many flights cancellations were due to the virus.

VIETJET

Vietnam's Vietjet will suspend all flights to and from China from Feb. 1, the company said on Jan. 31. Vietnam Airlines will suspend some flights to China.

VIETNAM AIRLINES

Vietnam Airlines will suspend its flights to destinations in China next week over coronavirus concerns, the company said on Friday.

VIRGIN ATLANTIC

Virgin Atlantic said on Jan. 30 it would suspend its daily operations to Shanghai for two weeks from Feb. 2. It cited declining demand for flights and the safety of its customers and staff.

(Compiled by Jagoda Darlak and Tommy Lund in Gdansk; editing by Jason Neely and Diane Craft)

This story has not been edited by Firstpost staff and is generated by auto-feed.
Air India's jumbo B747 aircraft reached here on Saturday morning after evacuating 324 Indians from China's Wuhan city, the epicentre of the deadly coronavirus outbreak, officials said.

The plane, carrying 211 students, 110 working professionals and three minors, reached Delhi around 7.30 am, they said.

Another flight of the airline departed for the Chinese city from here around 1.37 pm, the officials said.

Five doctors from the Ram Manohar Lohia (RML) Hospital who were onboard the first flight are also in the second flight, the Air India spokesperson said.

The Indian Army has set up a quarantine facility in Manesar near Delhi to keep around 300 Indian students being evacuated from China's Hubei province in view of the coronavirus infection outbreak.

Separately, border-guarding force ITBP has set up a 600-bedded facility in southwest Delhi's Chhawla area to quarantine and provide basic medical care to those suspected to have been affected by the virus.

Officials said they will be monitored for any signs of the infection for a duration of two weeks by a qualified team of doctors and staff members.

The first flight had departed from Delhi airport at 1.17 pm on Friday to evacuate Indian nationals from China, where more than 250 people, none of them Indian, have died due to the deadly coronavirus infection.

Hours after the arrival of the flight from the Chinese city in Delhi, the Air India spokesperson said, "Another flight will depart to Wuhan from Delhi at 12.50 pm today with a different set of crew, same doctors' team with other aircraft. The rescue team is again headed by Captain Amitabh Singh, Director Operation, Air India."



Before departure , Air India Chairman and Managing Director Ashwani Lohani had said, "No service will take place in the plane. Whatever food is there will be kept in seat pockets. As there will be no service, there will be no interaction (between cabin crew and passengers)."



"Masks have been arranged for the crew and passengers. For our crew, we have also arranged a complete protective gear," he had added.

Wuhan, Hubei's capital, is the epicentre of the deadly coronavirus outbreak. The virus has killed 259 people in China with total confirmed cases surging to 11,791 amid stepped up efforts by a number of countries to evacuate their nationals from Hubei province, officials said on Saturday.

Air India has done such evacuations earlier also from countries such as Libya, Iraq, Yemen, Kuwait and Nepal.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
MATTOON  On Feb. 19, hog farms across Illinois and into Indiana will once again take part in the annual Lake Land College Alumni Online Pig Sale.

Lake Land Agriculture Division Chair Ryan Orrick said participation by alumni in the swine industry has grown from 12 consignors in the inaugural auction in 2017 to 20 last year. Current students organize and promote this auction, which raises money for the Agriculture Division.

"It's a good outreach opportunity, a good chance for the students to network with the alumni and have the experience of putting on a sale. It really opens up a lot of avenues and doors for the students," Orrick said. He added that proceeds from the auction help with travel expenses for the Lake Land Livestock Judging Team and the Professional Agricultural Student Organization.

Orrick said the Alumni Online Pig Sale is one of many opportunities the Agriculture Division offers each year to keep former students engaged with Lake Land long after they graduate.

"That's our goal here at the college, to connect with alumni and make sure they know they are as much a part of our present day students' success as anyone," Orrick said.

Regarding alumni engagement, Orrick said graduates working in many sectors of agriculture regularly employ Lake Land student interns through the Supervised Occupational Experience program.

Orrick said the interns "earn while they learn," working at least 40 hours a week for 26 weeks. He added the agriculture industry goes beyond grain and livestock farms to also include food and fiber production, education, business and much more.

"We have more internship and job opportunities available than we have students to fill them," Orrick said.

Grain farmer Troy Uphoff of Mattoon, who earned an associate's in agriculture economics from Lake Land in 1995, said his business has employed several Lake Land student interns with family farm backgrounds over the years.

"It's been a great experience. They bring their youthful enthusiasm and optimistic outlook about the agriculture industry," Uphoff said, adding they are dependable workers.

Uphoff also serves on the advisory board for the Agriculture Division. He said this is a great opportunity to give input on what skills agriculture business employers are looking for in students and to help Lake Land tailor its education programs to meet the needs of the community.

The grain farmer said he wants to give back to Lake Land because he built lifelong friendships and had great instructors there as a student. For example, Uphoff said that when instructor Bob Jurgens saw that some of his students were having trouble with agriculture math, he had class start half a hour early for the next session so that the students could help each other learn in a team setting.

"I can't say enough positive things about Lake Land," Uphoff said.

In addition, Orrick said many alumni have opened their workplaces to students for learning experiences outside of the classroom. He said Lake Land does not have a livestock facility on campus, so having access to facilities such as Welsh Farms in Gays and Rincker Simmentals in Shelbyville has been particularly helpful.

Orrick said alumni are also invited to attend the annual Agriculture Student Recognition Banquet, set for Feb. 27 this year. At the banquet, he said "milestone families" that have sent multiple generations through the Agriculture Division are recognized. The college also presents an Outstanding Alumnus Award at the banguet. The 2020 honoree will be Mark McCully, chief executive officer of the American Angus Association.

Last year, the Agriculture Division started posting some of its archived photos of former students on its Facebook page every Thursday and asking visitors to help identify those pictured. Orrick said these "Throwback Thursday" photos have provided another way to engage with alumni and to celebrate the success of students over the years.

"It's neat to look back at those pictures," Orrick said. "People have been very appreciative of that effort."

Contact Stroud at (217) 238-6861.

Love 0 Funny 0 Wow 0 Sad 0 Angry 0

Get local news delivered to your inbox! Subscribe to our Daily Headlines newsletter. Sign up! * I understand and agree that registration on or use of this site constitutes agreement to its user agreement and privacy policy.
The Coronavirus outbreak that started in China keeps spreading. According to US media, 18 countries now have recorded cases-- with 9800 cases and 213 deaths as of this morning- most of these being men.

In response, the WHO has declared a PUBLIC HEALTH EMERGENCY OF INTERNATIONAL CONCERN for only the 6th time in its history. There, emergencies are declared when there is "an extraordinary event which is determined to constitute a public health risk to the OTHER STATES THROUGH INTERNATIONAL SPREAD OF DISEASE " ( Caps mine). WHO boss Dr. Ghebreyesus called this an "unprecedented outbreak " and urged that we must "all act together now to limit further spread".

In response, China has imposed a massive quarantine of the residents of Wuhan, the capital of Hubei province where the crisis started-- to protect the rest of China!

The United States has evacuated its citizens from Wuhan and upon arrival, they were quarantined for 3 days voluntarily and tested. It was announced that after release, these citizens would be monitored for up to 2 weeks, which is the incubation period of the disease. In addition, the US has urged its citizens NOT to travel to China.

Russia, India, Britain, and other countries are taking protective measures and international airlines are cancelling flights to China.

China is now Africa's largest trading partner and there are estimates that about a million Chinese live in Africa with thousands in Ghana. Unofficial estimates are that about 4000 Ghanaians travel to China on business every month.

In the light of these, the measures announced by Ghana Health Service and our mission in China appear inadequate.

On behalf of the GHS, Dr. Laryea announced screening at airports and public education measures.

What does the screening consists of? Are those from China being tested for the disease? Are there plans for monitoring beyond airports?

In the light of China's measures and those of US and the airlines, shouldn't we urge Ghanaians NOT travel to China till further notice?

Shouldn't we be training healthcare workers on how to diagnose and treat this disease?

Thousands of Chinese travelled back home for the Chinese new year. The AU should urge China to undertake, as a gesture of solidarity, predeparture screening for coronavirus of all Chinese returning to Africa from the affected province.

An ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure. We see China's health house on fire. We see countries with more resources and better infrastructure acting aggressively.

We should get water ready to put out this fire WHEN it reaches us.

Long live Ghana.

Arthur Kobina Kennedy, MD ( 31st January, 2020)
European Council president Charles Michel has responded to Brexit with a Monty Python reference, saying 'always look on the bright side'.

Above a picture of the White Cliffs of Dover, Mr Michel posted on Twitter: '#Saturdaymood - tribute to the late Terry Jones #MontyPython.'

The actor, who died on January 21, directed Life Of Brian which featured the upbeat song Always Look On The Bright Side Of Life.

European Council president Charles Michel has responded to Brexit with a Monty Python reference, saying 'always look on the bright side'

Above a picture of the White Cliffs of Dover, Mr Michel (pictured) posted on Twitter: '#Saturdaymood - tribute to the late Terry Jones #newrelationship'

Britain officially left the EU at 11pm on Friday, with some greeting the move with parties, while others held vigils.

Mr Michel's post, which he pinned to the top of his page, was met with a mixture of sorrow and humour by many Twitter users.

One commented: 'Such a sad sad day for us remainers. We will be back.'

A man wrote: 'It's like breaking up with your bird of 10 years who you sit opposite from in work, but then asking to be friends... Never really going to work.'

One woman put: 'That is the British way, but I'm finding it hard to find anything bright this morning - just an overwhelming feeling of sadness..'

And another man added: 'I prefer optimism blended with realism intelligence and compassion.'

Mr Michel's post, which he pinned to the top of his page, was met with a mixture of sorrow and humour by many Twitter users

On the stroke of 11pm, the UK officially divorced from the bloc after three years of bitter political struggle that split families and paralysed Westminster.

Jubilant Brexiteers heralded the moment with celebrations across the country, including a flagship bash in London's Parliament Square headlined by Nigel Farage.

Many Remainers are still deeply uneasy about severing ties with the bloc and are cautioning that the Brexit saga is not yet concluded.

Britain has now entered an 11-month transition period with the EU, during which time the government will race to strike a trade deal before December.

This morning the nameplate outside the British embassy to the EU in Brussels was replaced.

This morning the nameplate outside the British embassy to the EU in Brussels was replaced. It used to read 'UK representation to the EU Brussels' (left), but now says 'UK Mission to the European Union' (right)

It used to read 'UK representation to the Eu Brussels', but now says 'UK Mission to the European Union'.

Some have already dubbed the new plaque: 'UKmissEU'.

The European Unions flag was removed from outside the building on Friday, hours before the UK formally left the EU after 47 years of membership.

A man reached out of a window on the first floor of the building and pulled in the official symbol of the EU, leaving only Britains Union Flag flying.

Britain will now be considered by the remaining 27 member states as a third country and its Permanent Representation to the EU will become a foreign mission.
Ashley Madison customers have fallen victim to new 'sextortion' scams five years on from the initial cyber breach that exposed 37 million users of the cheating website.

Email security company Vade Secure said that some victims of the 2015 hack are now the target of new scams, where fraudsters demand the individual coughs up $1,000 in exchange for their silence, CNBC reported.

The website provides matchmaking for people who are married or in relationships and are looking to have an affair.

In July 2015, Ashley Madison was targeted by hackers and the details of users were stolen and later leaked online.

Ashley Madison customers have fallen victim to new 'sextortion' scams five years on from the initial cyber breach that exposed users of the cheating website (above)

More than 37 million individuals had their affairs and sexual fantasies exposed when hackers calling themselves the 'Impact Team' stole their personal details in one of the biggest cyber breaches at the time.

The extramarital activities of some politicians and celebrities using the website were also exposed.

Hackers alleged the attack was designed to be a retaliation against Ashley Madison's then owner Avid Life Media after it used bots to pose as real women on the site. One month after the hack, the company announced its chief executive Noel Biderman had left.

Divorce lawyers dubbed the scandal 'Christmas in September', after the publication of the details saw hundreds of relationships fall apart.

The cyber attack has even been linked to three suicides - two in Canada and one in the United States - following the level of the intrusion into some individuals' lives.

Five years on, Vade Secure said new scams are springing up targeting people whose details were leaked.

One month after the hack, Ashley Madison's then owner Avid Life Media announced its chief executive Noel Biderman (above) had left the company

The website provides matchmaking for people who are married or in relationships and are looking to have an affair. In July 2015, Ashley Madison was targeted by hackers and the details of users were stolen and later leaked online

Chief Product Officer for Vade Secure Adrien Gendre said scammers are targeting victims of the breach in emails by using their stolen credentials to demand payment.

According to CNBC, the scam emails are well researched and contain real information about the user such as their email addresses, when they signed up to the scam, their username, security answers and the sexual interests they entered on the site.

One message shows that scammers are blackmailing individuals by threatening to expose private messages sent via the cheating website to their friends and families.

'FOR ALL YOUR FAMILY AND FRIENDS?' one message reads.

'Of all the private massages you sent to members, the reply you sent on Sunday July 31, 2011 was the best. Perv!'

The fraudsters are demanding victims pay up around $1,000 in bitcoin to prevent them posting the information.

Email security company Vade Secure (left) said that some victims of the 2015 hack were now being targeted in new scams. Chief Product Officer Adrien Gendre (right) said scammers are targeting victims of the breach in emails by using their stolen credentials to demand payment in exchange for their silence

Gendre warned victims to not give in to demands in what he said was a new version of the common 'sextortion' scam.

Sextortion scams are where scammers send emails to thousands of people saying they have incriminating images or videos of them and demand payment to prevent them being published or sent to the victim's contacts.

Typically the incriminating images do not exist but the hope is that someone will fall for the trick and pay up.

Gendre said the Ashley Madison scam is more sophisticated because it uses at least some real information.

News of the scam comes as a Republican GOP candidate faced calls to withdraw after he admitted to having an account on the cheating website.

In January, Joe Dills, Ohio's Republican GOP candidate, admitted to setting up an Ashley Madison account in 2013, but insisted he was single at the time and had not met anyone through the site, the Cincinnati Enquirer reported.

Dills' campaign has largely focused on him being a family man.
VANCOUVER, British Columbia, Jan. 31, 2020 /PRNewswire/ -- MYM Nutraceuticals Inc., (CSE: MYM) (OTC: MYMMF) ("MYM" or "The Company") is pleased to announce its subsidiary, Sublime Culture Inc., has received a cultivation license from Health Canada to produce cannabis at its indoor facility located in Laval, Quebec.

The Laval facility is a cutting edge, highly optimized, indoor facility that is complete and ready to cultivate high-quality, specialty "craft" cannabis varieties. Included is a mothering and cloning area allowing for exceptional genetic development and archiving.

"We are extremely excited to receive our cultivation license for the Sublime facility in Laval, Quebec. We are eager to put our team to work on cultivating small batch, super premium, indoor cannabis," said Howard Steinberg, CEO of MYM.

About MYM Nutraceuticals Inc.

MYM is uniquely positioned to opportunistically acquire and/or invest in companies within the cannabis and hemp industries that are in need of capital and management support. Our senior management team is made up of experts engaged in a wide array of disciplines  upper level management of public companies, finance, law, master growing, plant pathology, agricultural economics, pharmaceutical, engineering, global marketing, product development and branding, distribution and seed genetics. MYM is a shareholder in two production projects in Quebec and is actively looking to acquire complementary businesses and assets in the cannabis sector. MYM shares trade in Canada, Germany and the United States under the following symbols: (CSE: MYM) (OTC: MYMMF) (FRA:0MY) (DEU:0MY) (MUN:0MY) (STU:0MY).

ON BEHALF OF THE BOARD

Howard Steinberg, CEO

MYM Nutraceuticals Inc.

www.mym.ca

Investor Relations

[email protected]

Keep up to date with MYM on our social media channels:

Twitter: @mymnutra

Facebook: @mymnutra

Instagram: @mymnutra

This news release may contain forward-looking statements based on assumptions and judgments of management regarding future events or results. Such statements are subject to a variety of risks and uncertainties which could cause actual events or results to differ materially from those reflected in the forward-looking statements. The company disclaims any intention or obligation to revise or update such statements. For a description of the risks and uncertainties facing the Company and its business and affairs, readers should refer to the Company's Management's Discussion and Analysis and other disclosure filings with Canadian securities regulators, which are posted on www.sedar.com.

This news release does not constitute an offer to sell or solicitation of an offer to buy any of the securities described herein and accordingly undue reliance should not be put on such. Neither the Canadian Securities Exchange (CSE or CNSX Markets), nor its Regulation Services Provider (as that term is defined in policies of the CSE), accepts responsibility for the adequacy or accuracy of this release.

This news release does not constitute an offer to sell or a solicitation of an offer to buy any of the securities described herein in the United States. The securities described herein have not been registered under the United States Securities Act of 1933, as amended (the "U.S. Securities Act"), or any state securities law and may not be offered or sold in the "United States", as such term is defined in Regulation S promulgated under the U.S. Securities Act, unless registered under the U.S. Securities Act and applicable state securities laws or an exemption from such registration requirements is available.

INVESTOR RELATIONS

1-778-522-2261

[email protected]

SOURCE MYM Nutraceuticals Inc.

Related Links

http://www.mym.ca


The Yukon Quest international sled dog race begins Saturday morning in Alaska, and race officials say the initial stretch of trail is in "excellent shape" this year.

Fifteen mushers are scheduled to take off from Fairbanks at 11 a.m. local time. They're headed for Whitehorse, about 1,600 kilometres down the trail.

It's a relatively small roster of mushers this year. Recent years have seen at least 20 people entered in the race, and last year, there were 30.

The 2019 champ, Brent Sass of Alaska, is back to defend his title. He'll have to contend again with fellow Alaskan Allen Moore, who won the race in 2018 and finished third last year.

Robin Wood/Fairbanks Daily News-Miner/The Associated Press

About half of the mushers this year are American, and there are five Canadians  Yukoners Rob Cooke and Michelle Phillips, Albertans Jason Campeau and Pat Noddin, and Denis Tremblay of Quebec.

Noddin is a race rookie, but the other Canadians are all Yukon Quest veterans.

On Thursday, race officials said the trail on the Alaska side of the border was looking good.

"Plenty of snow coverage, very little overflow and virtually no jumble ice," reads a news release.

Mushers were told to watch for wildlife, though, as "trailbreakers reported high levels of moose and caribou activity in several areas," the release says.

Mushers will get an update on trail conditions in Yukon once they cross the border and arrive at the race's halfway point in Dawson City.
A day after a Delhi court stayed the black warrant for the execution of four death row convicts for the rape and murder of a 23-year-old paramedic in December 2012, Tihar jail authorities have decided to approach Patiala House Court for fixing date of execution of the four men, officials said Saturday according to PTI.

On Friday, the judge did not issue a fresh warrant for their execution.

Meanwhile, Akshay Thakur, one of the four convicts in the gang rape and murder case, filed a mercy plea on Saturday, jail officials said.

Earlier in the day, President Ram Nath Kovind rejected the mercy plea of another accused, Vinay Sharma

Akshay, Vinay and two other men - Mukesh Singh (32) and Pawan Kumar Gupta (25) were sentenced to death by a fast-track court within a year of the 2012 rape and murder of the woman.

On January 7, a Delhi court first issued the death warrant for the hanging of the four men at the Tihar jail complex on January 22 at 7 am. The date was later changed to February 1 over a legal technicality that calls for a 14-day gap between rejection of a mercy plea and the execution.

The delay in the execution of the rapists has disheartened the mother of the victim. Shocked after their execution was stayed on Friday, she said that the lawyer of the convicts, AP Singh, had thrown a challenge to her saying the convicts will never be executed.

The hangman Sindhi Ram, also known as Pawan Jallad, from the Uttar Pradesh prisons department, tasked with executing the four convicts of the December 2012 gang-rape case had arrived at Tihar jail on Thursday from Meerut.
Coleman Elementary. Fourth grade. Room 33. A classroom of curious faces eagerly watch us enter and set up for a 30-minute lesson entitled, "Be Aware, Play Fair, Show You Care."

An "Everyone Counts" poster is attached to the front wall. We introduce ourselves then play a piece of calming music to help them transition from their previous lesson. Some rest their heads on desks, others close their eyes.

Next, Kathleen List, one of our team teachers, announces: "We brought our Big Bully today!" She rolls out a larger-than-life-sized androgynous bully, drawn out on a large sheet of paper. "Raise your hand if you've experienced or observed bullying," she says. Everyone raises a hand.

The students write their definition of a bully on a sticky note, then attach it to the big bully paper. We read their words. "Mean. Mad. Antagonizing. Messes with younger people. Shames people for their looks. Is grounded a lot. Also: "A bully is a person who needs loving and good friends." A discussion follows. We close the lesson with a read aloud and some lively jazz music. Students happily leave their seats to dance along with us. This is our first of three visits to this and three other fourth and fifth grade classes at Coleman Elementary.

We are an energetic team of volunteer teachers, all active members from Midland's Chapter of Nonviolent Peaceforce, an international organization whose primary goal is to create peace through unarmed strategies. Our Midland Chapter (NPMC) supports this greater goal and raises funds, hosts guest speakers, and creates public awareness in various other ways.

One of our favorite projects is teaching peace in area school districts. Interactive and fun, the lesson topics include anti-bullying, empathy and leadership in fourth through eighth grade classrooms. Our mission is to give students an opportunity to integrate tools for creating peace in their lives and to help others do the same.

Jeanne Lound Schaller co-founder of NPMC, and fellow chapter member Randi Kawakita, developed the Teaching Team in 2014 when they were invited to Meridian High School to teach lessons on conflict resolution. The teaching team now includes several chapter members.

Bullock Creek Middle School teacher and Co-Student Council advisor, Valerie Brandt, has invited us back for several years. We provide team building and leadership lessons for the school's 20-25 member Student Council-Lancer Leaders Team. Over the course of our two-day, five-hour program conducted in mid-January, student teams constructed a domino rally, built a marshmallow tower and participated in other challenging activities.

Observing student teams construct, and sometimes accidentally destruct, their domino rallies was particularly emotional for all of us. Crashes and recoveries were many, criticisms few, and triumphs at both an individual and team level were palpable. Facial expressions, hugs, fist pumps, arggghhhs and yays let us know our mission to engage the students in team-building experiences was accomplished.

One of the noteworthy activities of the Bullock Creek program is the Step Over the Line activity. Students are asked to step over a line on the floor if certain statements apply to them. "Please step over the line if you  have ever been harassed or teased by someone else." Then: "Please step over the line if you have ever harassed or teased someone else."

Several statements posed to the students invited vulnerability regarding themselves and relationships with others. Katie Vauhkonen, a seventh grade Council member shared: "I really think the step over the line activity was a great idea! It was showing us that not everybody's lives are the same. You never know what people's lives are like at home. So you have to be nice to everyone because you have no idea what they are going through."

Responding to the NP team teaching activities at Bullock Creek Middle School, Valerie Brandt told us: "I love how you create an atmosphere with your music. You create a safe environment where students quickly become comfortable sharing information. It is so important for our students to see that being kind, helping to empower others, and being aware are not only important in school but outside of school as well."

Media specialist/librarian and co-student council advisor, Amy Brege added: "It was good to see the students cooperating and talking with students they don't usually spend time with. I heard such positive feedback from all of the students involved."

Our Team heads to Freeland Elementary in March, where we'll teach in five fourth grade classrooms for our fifth consecutive year. At the end of the 2019-20 school year, we will have taught 350 students conflict resolution tools they can use and pass along to others.

In another venture to work with area students and adults, NPMC has collaborated with Midland's Noon Rotary on several occasions to pursue the common goal of peacemaking. The two non-profits brought conflict resolution trainers to Midland for weekend workshops that involved many community members.

In addition, NPMC has recently aligned with Noon Rotary's Peacebuilding Committee and The Rock to develop Youth Voice for Peace, a program that recently began at Northeast Middle School.

The mission of NP's Midland Chapter is to help build peace throughout the world by beginning with peace work here at home. For more information on Nonviolent Peaceforce, please call me at 989-832-7876.

Jeanne Lound Schaller, from the Midland Chapter of the Nonviolence Peaceforce, wrote this column as part of the Daily News' Community Connections Initiative.
Union Minister Dharmendra Pradhan on Saturday hit out at former Congress president for calling the budget 'hollow' and said that hollow person like Rahul Gandhi will find everything hollow.

"A person who is hollow himself, will find everything hollow. I request Rahul Gandhi to educate himself, stay in the country, learn about it and have a positive mindset. Then he will be able to contribute to the country as the opposition," he said.

Soon after the presentation of Union Budget 2020-2021 by Sitharaman, Congress leader Rahul Gandhi on Saturday called it "hollow" and "tactical stuff without any central idea".

"The main issue is unemployment. I did not see any concrete, strategic idea that could help our youngsters get jobs. There were redundant things in the budget and I did not see any central idea," Rahul Gandhi said.

"It describes the government quite well. There is a lot of repetition, a lot of rambling and nothing concrete. It describes the mindset of the government, all talk and nothing concrete," he said.

Union Minister Pradhan said that the budget shows that the government will continue the reforms and is about maintaining low taxation.

"To put it briefly, with this budget, reform will continue so as low taxation. In both direct and indirect tax, investors and citizens will be benefitted."

"In social sectors, like health and infrastructure, investment opportunities will be eased out that will lead to employment generation," he said.

While on Twitter, Pradhan thanked Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharam for presenting the budget.

"Thank FM @nsitharaman ji for a historic budget, which perfectly embodies the spirit of Sabka Saath, Sabka Vikas, Sabka Vishwas by keeping Gareeb, Kisan, Mahila and the Aam-Aadmi at the centre of her Budget as well as positively touching every section of society," Pradhan tweeted.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
AAP on Saturday asked the Election Commission to direct the police chief and other agencies to take appropriate measures to prevent unrest and violence planned by "certain political parties" in the city to sabotage the Delhi elections.

In a letter to Chief Election Commissioner Sunil Arora, the Aam Aadmi Party said it has come to know through its sources that certain "anti social elements in connivance with certain political parties" are planning to create unrest and violence on Sunday to subvert law and order in Delhi and to impede the conduct of free and fair election.

"We have attached a video wherein a group can be seen giving a call to assemble near Sarita Vihar in large numbers. We have attached the picture of one of such hoarding being put in some parts of Delhi," the letter said.

"In the light of these, we apprehend that this may be a well planned conspiracy to sabotage the Delhi Legislative Assembly Elections 2020," it said.

The AAP urged the EC to act immediately and direct the Commissioner of Police and other agencies to investigate and take appropriate measures to pre-empt any such criminal act.

The AAP claimed that the BJP is planning a "big disturbance" on February 2 at Delhi's Shaheen Bagh and Jamia Millia Islamia, where anti-CAA protests are underway and urged the Election Commission to take cognisance.

Elections in Delhi will be held on February 8 and results will be declared on February 11.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
Uttarakhand Assembly Speaker Prem Chand Aggarwal on Saturday said raising of slogans like"Bharat tere tukde honge" on a university campus shows how "misguided" the country's youth are and underlines the importance of inculcating right values in them during adolescence.

Describing adolescence as a formative period in everyone's life, he said the responsibility of guiding adolescents in the right direction rested on the shoulders of their parents and teachers.

"Inculcating the right values in youth is the need of the hour when vested interests are out to misguide them by fanning anti-national sentiments," Aggarwal said addressing a symposium on "Adolescence: A Period of Bumps and Humps" at the ONGC auditorium here.

Expressing concern over youth being influenced in the internet era, the Speaker said symposiums like this are needed to help them distinguish between good and bad.

"Adolescence is a phase when one's life stands at the crossroads. This is the point from where one's life can take the wrong or right direction. This is the time when parents and teachers should deal very carefully with their children and students so that their energies are not channelised in the wrong direction," the 59-year-old said.

The Speaker asked the youth to develop a healthy lifestyle and a positive mindset besides focusing on their studies and keeping love of their nation alive in their hearts.

Aggarwal congratulated the organisers for holding a symposium on a relevant topic and asked them to organise more such programmes across the country.

Chief Minister Trivendra Singh Rawat could not make it to the event due to engagements in Delhi where he is campaigning for the forthcoming polls there.

In a message read out in absentia, the chief minister congratulated Advance Healthcare Foundation, the organisers of the symposium, for the initiative as it will help young minds think in the right direction.

National Advisor of Advance Healthcare Foundation Ratnajyoti Dutta said such symposiums will be held in different parts of the country to help young students deal with problems like stress, depression and sexual abuse.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
Bengaluru, Feb 1 : Corporates in Bengaluru welcomed the 2020-21 Union Budget for being comprehensive and focusing on rural India as well.

"There is stability, overall it is a good Budget. Initially the focus was on rural, that's very important part of our economy and we need to. 54 per cent of our population lives there. The 15-point agenda on that is very innovative," CII Karnataka chairman Aman Choudhari told IANS at the Confederation of Indian Industry (CII) roundtable on the Budget.

From the business point of view, according to Choudhari, there were some good initiatives such as redoing the Dividend Distribution Tax (DDT) and making it simpler.

"It may increase tax on richer people. It makes it simpler for the average man to compute his income," said Choudhari.

Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman announcing the plan to amend the Companies Act and introduce a Taxpayer Charter drew applause from CII members here.

"Tax payer charter will be something like if you are in the right you will not be harassed. What does the law say, innocent until proved guilty. Challenge is how do you make sure that the law is followed at the tax payer level," said the CII Karnataka chairman.

Manoj Kumar, partner, Deloitte said abolishing the DDT is the single largest change.

"Dividend Distribution Tax is the single largest change that they have made for the corporate sector. Abolishing DDT is quite beneficial to the corporate sector," said Kumar.

Kumar welcomed Sitharaman's decision to introduce 150 passenger trains through privatisation. Quoting the Economic Survey, he reasoned that the government has performed well when it has privatised sectors.

"Private participation has been more efficient compared to sectors where government has operated on its own," he said.

He also heaped praise on the amnesty programme scheme introduced by the government.

However, Kumar said the government has announced several programmes whose success depends on how it will implement them.

"There are just a plethora of schemes that they have announced. But the key to the success is going to be implementation. So they seem to have taken too much on themselves in terms of number of schemes. And therefore the success of the Budget will depend on how these are implemented," he said.

Sanjeev Ghatpalya from the company Mind Teck appreciated the importance Sitharaman gave to new age technologies.

"So far data analytics has never been used so much, now by articulating it in a more formal way in the Budget, it is a great thing to do," said Ghatpalya.

Wider use of technology and data centres to enable data use at the panchayat level is a welcome move, he said.

In her Budget speech, the finance minister reiterated that data is the new oil, announcing that a new policy would be brought to enable the private sector.

She mentioned Artificial Intelligence (AI), Internet of Things (IoT) and 3D printing as part of the new economy.

A bunch of CII members huddled together at a hotel in Bengaluru, listened to the entire Budget speech, took notes and reflected upon it.
Starbucks plan to reduce its carbon emissions is undoubtedly ambitious. It wants to halve its food waste, water use and gas emissions by 2030.

Hey there, time traveller!

This article was published 1/2/2020 (709 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

Opinion

Starbucks plan to reduce its carbon emissions is undoubtedly ambitious. It wants to halve its food waste, water use and gas emissions by 2030.

The companys commitment to becoming a better environmental steward has wide-ranging implications in the food industry. Other chains have made similar announcements. McDonalds aims to cut emissions by 36 per cent from 2015 levels by 2030. Yum! Brands, which owns KFC and Taco Bell, seeks to reduce emissions by 10 per cent by the end of 2025.

All of these efforts have merit, but Starbucks call is different. The baseline year will be 2018, based on an audit the company conducted.

Starbucks has a massive global network of stores. There are more than 31,000 locations in more than 80 countries. The company is responsible for emitting almost 17 million tonnes of greenhouse gases a year, using one billion cubic metres of water and dumping 868 kilotonnes of coffee cups and other waste.

But Starbucks aims to become "resource positive" by storing more carbon than it releases, eliminating waste and providing more fresh water than it uses. Everything coming out of a Starbucks store will be served in recyclable or compostable containers, from coffee to lunches to treats.

These measures will help, but their plans wont stop there. The biggest surprise comes from what Starbucks will do to its menu and the products it sells. Dairy is on its way out at Starbucks and dairy alternatives will be the standard. Whipped cream, cream and milk will all be gone soon.

While dairy supplies are typically cheaper, the company is banking on its buying power and the volume it represents to gain access to lower-priced alternatives.

The dairy industry is sure to have issues with Starbucks move away from its products, but the science is compelling. Based on a study published by Science in 2018, milk production requires more land and more water, and emits more carbon than any alternatives to milk.

Plant-based alternatives have been offered at Starbucks for a while but this announcement makes it official. Dairy is as healthy as any option but that doesnt seem to matter to Starbucks. Its about the planet.

Given Starbucks clout, other chains could follow if dairy alternatives become more affordable, as Starbucks is predicting, to the peril of the dairy industry. Starbucks has two things going for it:

First, sustainability has always been part of the companys DNA. Under former CEO Howard Schultz, Starbucks prioritized using renewable energy, invested in climate-resistant coffee trees and gave discounts to customers who used their own reusable mugs. That was long before the plastic crisis, which really started only a few years ago. Kevin Johnson, CEO since 2017, only invests in green bonds and options. The track record is there.

Second, Starbucks is known to sell products with higher price points than its competitors. Customers expect to pay more. That gives the company an edge and will help the chain absorb some of the extra costs. Demand at Starbucks is typically more elastic since its customers are not as price-sensitive as customers at other coffee shops. Starbucks brand equity is second to none and it charges for it, with no apologies.

Reaching these environmental goals wont be easy. In fact, the chains stock price is down since the announcement.

Maple Leaf Foods promised to become carbon-neutral just a few weeks ago. With some responsible accounting, it can get it done without significantly tweaking its operations.

Want to get a head start on your day? Get the days breaking stories, weather forecast, and more sent straight to your inbox every weekday morning. Sign Up I agree to the Terms and Conditions, Cookie and Privacy Policies, and CASL agreement.

Starbucks, on the other hand, opted to go further and commit to changing how its operations affect the environment. Instead of looking at the arithmetic of climate change, the Seattle-based giant is changing everything it does, from how it procures ingredients, to menu design, to how stores are managed on daily basis.

Starbucks bold move on sustainability points to the pressure the food service industry is under to save the planet. For many consumers, especially younger ones, political leaders have failed to respond adequately to the climate crisis. While governments face their electorates once every few years, food service providers face customers every day. And customers expect industry to step up.

Accountability is key for companies making bold commitments and companies are known to fail the market on sustainability. For example, Starbucks promised in 2008 that it would be serving a quarter of its beverages in reusable containers by 2015. By 2016, only two per cent of all beverages were served in reusable containers.

The public wont be as forgiving this time and will consider any half-hearted emission-reducing initiatives as greenwashing.

Sylvain Charlebois is senior director of the agri-food analytics lab and a professor in food distribution and policy at Dalhousie University.

 Troy Media
An in-flight break-up has been listed as a factor in the helicopter crash in Silver Spring Township that killed two people on Jan. 9, the National Transportation Safety Board announced Friday.

Around 8:29 p.m., the Robinson R66 carrying pilot Mark D. Croce, 58, and passenger Michael Capriotto, 63, experienced an in-flight break-up, according to the NTSBs preliminary report. The two men, both of Orchard Park, New York, were killed in the resulting crash, and the helicopter was destroyed.

Officials do not list a cause for the break-up but say multiple witnesses near the crash site heard sounds that indicated the helicopter was not working properly before the crash landing.

One witness told the NTSB that she saw a low-flying helicopter that was struggling to fly before hearing a loud boom with a flash of light. The helicopter then disappeared from her view, according to the report.

Another witness told the NTSB that he heard a slow thumping sound and then a loud bang shook his house, according to the report. The man went to his back door and 30 seconds later received a text from a neighbor about the crash. The man told investigators he also heard a percussion sound before the sound of a final impact.

The NTSB said the flight originated at Martin State Airport in Baltimore and was destined for the Buffalo Niagara Internationa Airport in Buffalo. There was no flight plan filed for the flight, which featured and nighttime visual conditions with 10 miles of visibility.

The report states that the helicopter stayed at the same altitude and flight track while flying between 8 and 8:23 that night but turned slightly northwest for the next 5 minutes.

At that time, the helicopter began a descent that continued until the last radar target, which occurred around 8:29 p.m., according to the report. The helicopter was at 1,150 feet msl at the time of the last radar report.

The NTSB said the helicopter was equipped with a Rolls-Royce Engine Monitoring unit that was taken to be downloaded as evidence. Wreckage including a section of the main rotor blade, a tail rotor assembly, tail boom, main rotor mast and other pieces of the helicopter were retained for additional examination.

It has been determined, the report says, that there was no fire or explosion either in the air or when the copter hit the ground.

There were no injuries or damage to people or homes in the neighborhood.

The NTSB said a final report wont be ready for another 18 to 24 months.

Read more on PennLive:

Thanks for visiting PennLive. Quality local journalism has never been more important. We need your support. Not a subscriber yet? Please consider supporting our work.
Locusts continue to wreak havoc these days in Pakistan. The country is already struggling with financial constraints. Due to which Pakistan Prime Minister Imran Khan has declared a national emergency in the country. These locusts have destroyed entire crops in the Punjab province of Pakistan. Prime Minister Imran Khan has declared a National Emergency to deal with insects.

Polio makes Pakistan cry, many cases encountered in this province

On Friday, Pakistan Prime Minister Imran Khan called a cabinet meeting. The meeting was attended by federal ministers and senior officials from the four provinces. The Prime Minister's advisor Hafeez Sheikh was also involved. A National Action Plan (NAP) was also approved in this meeting. It was decided to put an emergency in the meeting by consensus. National Food Security Minister Khusro Bakhtiar informed the National Assembly about the steps taken by the federal and provincial governments to deal with the crisis situation.

Tire stuck to crocodiles neck for years, person will be rewarded for removing it

For eradication of insects, Prime Minister Khan ordered the formation of a high-level committee headed by Bakhtiar to take decisions at the federal level. The Prime Minister directed the officials concerned to take immediate measures on the basis of crop damage. The report quoted Khan as saying that the safety of farms and farmers is the top priority of the government. Therefore, the federal government should take all necessary steps to save the national crops and provide necessary resources to the respective quarters.

Rahul Gandhi calls the budget speech hollow, tells Central Government what the public wants
Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman, on Saturday, announced slew of measures for youth in her budget 2020 speech. They focussed on access to education, health and better jobs. The FM has earmarked Rs 99,300 crore for Education sector in 2020-21 and Rs 3,000 crore for Skill Development. The Finance Minister also said that the New Education Policy will be announced soon.

Here are Sitharaman's key announcements for India's youth

The FM proposed to set up an investment clearance cell for entrepreneurs to provide pre-investment advisory, information related to land banks and facilitate clearances.

2. Apprenticeship embedded courses: 150 higher educational institutions will start apprenticeship embedded degree/diploma courses by March, 2021.

3. Online education programmes for students deprived of higher education: Degree level online education programmes for students of deprived sections of the society as well as those who do not have access to higher education.

4. Financing education infrastructure: Finance Minister said steps will be taken to enable sourcing External Commercial Borrowings and FDI to be encouraged for financing education infrastructure.

FULL COVERAGE:Union Budget 2020

5. Courses for nurse and para medical staff: Special bridge courses for nurses, para medical staff and care givers to enhance their employability.

6. Internships for fresh engineers: The government will also start a program whereby urban local bodies across the country would provide internship opportunities to fresh engineers for a period of up to one year, the FM announced today.

7. Study in India programme: Under its "Study in India" programme, an Ind-SAT is proposed to be held in Asian and African countries for benchmarking foreign candidates who receive scholarships for studying in Indian higher education centres.

8. National Police University and a National Forensic Science University: A National Police University and a National Forensic Science University have also been proposed in the domain of policing science, forensic science, cyber-forensics etc. in the budget.

9. Courses for resident doctors: Government will encourage large hospitals to offer resident doctors DNB/FNB (Diplomat of National Board/ Fellowship of National Board) courses under the National Board of Examinations.

Also read: Budget 2020: Start-ups get five-year tax holiday on ESOPs

Also read: Budget 2020: FM Nirmala Sitharaman delivers longest Union Budget speech, breaks record

Also read: Union Budget 2020: Full text of Nirmala Sitharaman's speech
Six people were arrested on Brexit night as people both celebrated and mourned Britain leaving the EU.

Police dealt with a handful of arrests as people gathered at major events across the UK to mark Brexit at 11pm on Friday.

The Metropolitan Police arrested five people in Whitehall, in central London, including one man who was charged with criminal damage and being drunk and disorderly.

Kevin Murphy, 52, of Corbyn Street, North London, was due to appear at Westminster Magistrates' Court on Saturday.

A 28-year-old was arrested on suspicion of being drunk and disorderly, a 52-year-old was arrested for the same offence as well as obstructing a police officer, and a 33-year-old was arrested under Section 5 of the Public Order Act and for failing to appear.

Brexit celebrations in Parliament Square Show all 37 1 /37 Brexit celebrations in Parliament Square Brexit celebrations in Parliament Square Pro-Brexit supporters celebrating in Parliament Square, after the UK left the European Union on 31 January. Ending 47 years of membership PA Brexit celebrations in Parliament Square Big Ben, shows the hands at eleven o'clock at night AFP via Getty Brexit celebrations in Parliament Square Pro Brexit supporters attend the Brexit Day Celebration Party hosted by Leave Means Leave Getty Brexit celebrations in Parliament Square Brexit Party leader Nigel Farage smiles on stage AFP/Getty Brexit celebrations in Parliament Square People celebrate in Parliament Square Reuters Brexit celebrations in Parliament Square A Brexit supporter celebrates during a rally in Parliament square AP Brexit celebrations in Parliament Square Police form a line at Parliament Square to prevent a small group of anti-Brexit protestors from going through to the main Brexit rally PA Brexit celebrations in Parliament Square Nigel Farage speaks to pro-Brexit supporters PA Brexit celebrations in Parliament Square PA Brexit celebrations in Parliament Square JD Wetherspoon Chairman Tim Martin speaks as people wave flags Reuters Brexit celebrations in Parliament Square Getty Brexit celebrations in Parliament Square Brexit supporters wave Union flags as they watch the big screen AFP via Getty Brexit celebrations in Parliament Square Brexit Party leader, Nigel Farage arrives Reuters Brexit celebrations in Parliament Square Brexit supporters gather AP Brexit celebrations in Parliament Square Ann Widdecombe speaks to pro-Brexit supporters PA Brexit celebrations in Parliament Square Brexit supporters wave Union flags as they watch the big screen AFP via Getty Brexit celebrations in Parliament Square AFP via Getty Brexit celebrations in Parliament Square People wave British Union Jack flags as they celebrate Reuters Brexit celebrations in Parliament Square Pro-Brexit demonstrators celebrate on Parliament Square on Brexit day Reuters Brexit celebrations in Parliament Square A pro-Brexit supporter jumps on an EU flag PA Brexit celebrations in Parliament Square Getty Brexit celebrations in Parliament Square AFP via Getty Brexit celebrations in Parliament Square PA Brexit celebrations in Parliament Square Getty Brexit celebrations in Parliament Square AP Brexit celebrations in Parliament Square Getty Brexit celebrations in Parliament Square A man waves Union flags from a small car as he drives past Brexit supporters gathering AFP via Getty Brexit celebrations in Parliament Square A pro-Brexit supporter pours beer onto an EU flag PA Brexit celebrations in Parliament Square Getty Brexit celebrations in Parliament Square An EU flag lies trampled in the mud Getty Brexit celebrations in Parliament Square Getty Brexit celebrations in Parliament Square PA Brexit celebrations in Parliament Square PA Brexit celebrations in Parliament Square Getty Brexit celebrations in Parliament Square Getty Brexit celebrations in Parliament Square PA Brexit celebrations in Parliament Square AFP via Getty

All three men remain in custody.

A 47-year-old man was arrested on suspicion of threatening behaviour but later released from custody and will not face any further action.

In Glasgow, there was a heavy police presence in the city centre as groups for and against Brexit held events minutes away from each other.

Pro-EU campaigners gathered at the Donald Dewar statue on Buchanan Street ahead of the official departure time of 11pm.

Police said one 25-year-old man was arrested over minor disorder.

Superintendent Mark Sutherland, of Police Scotland, said: "On Friday 31 January officers were in attendance at various Brexit-related events which took place in Glasgow city centre.

"A proportionate policing response was in place to ensure public safety and minimise disruption to the wider city centre community.

"The events passed peacefully with only one arrest of a 25-year-old man in connection with a minor disorder offence in Buchanan Street."

The Police Service of Northern Ireland (PSNI) said there had been no arrests at a celebration in Belfast.

Additional reporting by Press Association.
The Brewers announced that theyve signed veteran infielder Andres Blanco to a minor league contract and invited him to Major League Spring Training. Hes represented by GSE Worldwide.

Blanco will turn 36 in April and hasnt appeared in the Majors since 2017, but hes had a pair of productive Triple-A campaigns in 2018 and 2019  the former actually coming with the Brewers organization. Blanco hit .271/.362/.435 (111 wRC+) in 357 plate appearances with Triple-A Colorado Springs that season. Last year, with the Braves Triple-A affiliate, he put together a nearly identical .262/.364/.443 slash (109 wRC+) in a larger sample of 530 plate appearances.

The veteran Blanco has played in parts of 10 MLB seasons, logging time at each infield position and batting a combined .256/.310/.378 in 1321 trips to the plate. His signing comes just days after the Brewers found out projected shortstop Luis Urias will need six to eight weeks to recover from surgery to repair a broken hamate bone  an injury he sustained while playing in the Mexican Pacific Winter League. Blanco will head to Spring Training and vie to join a currently fluid infield mix that includes Eric Sogard, Jedd Gyorko, Orlando Arcia, Ryon Healy and Justin Smoak, among others.
'Genome-Scope' is a premier Genetic Diagnostic Test for newborns which assesses for thousands of early childhood-onset disorders

LifeCell International, India's premier stem cell bank and Diagnostics Company, has announced the introduction of 'Genome-Scope' - a premier Genetic Diagnostic Test for newborns which assesses for thousands of early childhood-onset disorders. Notably, LifeCell offers this service within a turnaround time of just 10 days, which is twice as fast compared to nearest offering - a vital time reduction for those who seek urgent diagnosis such as babies in the NICU.

With over 7000 rare disorders identified so far, it's vastly difficult for doctors to diagnose the same with traditional diagnostic techniques. A recent study showcased that it takes more than 7 physicians & 4 years to diagnose such rare disorders. Misdiagnosis, hidden symptoms & lack of awareness, are the core reasons for the long diagnostic journey of children with genetic disorders.

With >80% of them being genetic in nature, the recent emergence of low-cost genome sequencing it's now possible to detect relevant causative mutations of almost all of these conditions within a single test, thus far exceeding the routine newborn screening tests currently being offered which cover at most 50 conditions.

LifeCell has introduced this test under the brand 'Genome-Scope'. This breakthrough test uses advanced next-gen DNA sequencing technology to assess over 4000 genes related to early childhood-onset disorders, to provide results with >95% accuracy within just 10 days. Thus, it has the potential to not only expedite the diagnostic journey but also, to save lives. While not all conditions detected may have treatment, the parents may seek such information as it may help prepare for the care of the baby and also in future family planning.

Genome-Scope is also available for well-born kids to identify predisposition to genetic conditions that if detected late could cause irreparable harm. It also provides information on how & which medications the child would respond to, thus providing an impetus to the practice of personalised medicine. Genome-Scope will serve as a particularly important tool for those parents with a family history of a genetic disease or those who have previously lost a child to one. However there is also data suggesting that 80% of babies with genetic diseases are born to parents with no family history or symptoms implying the importance of this test to all families.

The test is conducted through a simple process on the cord blood obtained from the baby right after birth for the extraction & preservation of umbilical cord blood stem cells. Alternatively the test could also be done with blood samples obtained from the child after birth through heel prick. The test results are shared with the physician within 10 business days for their reference. Lifecell's in-house certified genetic counsellors would assist the clients in pre and post test counselling. The raw data is also stored with LifeCell for future re-analysis in case there are any changes in the clinical status of the baby.
The West Bengal government has initiated a search to track down four co-passengers of the Coronavirus-affected Kerala student who arrived at the NSCBI airport in Kolkata on January 23 in a flight from China. Out of six people from Bengal, who were in that flight only two could be contacted by the government while the phones of the rest four were found to be switched off till Saturday evening.

The woman from Thrissur in Kerala is a medical student at a university in Wuhan, the centre of the outbreak. She left Wuhan and boarded a flight from Kunming. This is the first confirmed case of the novel Coronavirus infection in India.

While search for her four co-passengers were on, HT found that at least two passengers who landed in Kolkata on the night of January 30 from other cities in China were roaming freely although they are supposed to stay in isolation at home. The centre has said that this isolation should be for at least 14 days.

At least six passengers on the flight in which the Thrissur woman was flying, hail from Bengal. The rest are from other states. We have been able to contact two passengers. We are yet to track the other four. Their phones are switched off. We are trying to contact them. The union health ministry has been informed, said Ajoy Chakraborty, director of health services, West Bengal.

HT spoke to two medical students, one from Bengal and another from Odisha, who landed on January 30 along with dozens of others. All of them were screened with thermal scanners and made to sign a form in which they had to declare their addresses and phone numbers. The last line of the form says that the signatory has to stay in isolation at home.

Both the students said that they were leading a normal life as they did not see symptoms of the infection, such as fever and respiratory problem.

I was scanned with the thermal scanner and asked to fill up a form. I was then allowed to leave the airport. I dont have any symptoms hence I dont think there is a need to stay indoors, said a 22-year-old a final-year medical student from Shangdong First Medical University. The youth, who hails from Odisha, has put up in a hotel near the NSCBI airport. He is scheduled to leave for Odisha on Saturday night.

On January 30, the union government issued a statement saying those who have come from China after January 15 have to undergo tests as there is an incubation period for the virus. The statement said that the cabinet secretary stressed upon the need for home isolation of 14 days for all those who have returned from China.

I was not asked to undergo any tests apart from the thermal scan. The form, which I was asked to fill up had questions such as which cities in China I had visited, whether I went to Wuhan city in Hubei province in the last 14 days, if I indeed went there then how long did I stay and whether I visited any seafood market? I also had to say if I had any of the symptoms, said the other youth who is a fourth-year medical student from Zhengzhou University. He said that he is meeting his family members and friends. This youth is from one of the south Bengal districts of West Bengal.

HT is withholding the names of both students.

The form both students had to fill up says that in case a passenger shows any of the symptoms within 28 days he/she should contact the union home ministry on the helpline.

All passengers need not be kept in quarantine. It applies only to those who have the symptoms. The rest need to be kept in isolation at home. They have been told to confine themselves at home, said Chakraborty.

The Kolkata Port Trust screened around 170 officers and crew members of seven foreign ships at the Kolkata dock and Haldia dock on January 31. None was detected with symptoms of the infection, said the authorities in a statement.

SHARE THIS ARTICLE ON
UttarPradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath on Saturday alleged that the anti-CAA protests in Delhi were "not about the amended law" but a manifestation of the "grouse" harboured by the protesters "against an India that is emerging as a major power in the world".

Addressing a poll rally at Karawal Nagar Chowk in east Delhi, the BJP leader lashed out at anti-CAA protesters, saying "their ancestors divided India, so they have a grouse against this emerging 'Ek Bharat Shrestha Bharat'."



"These protests happening at various places in Delhi are not about the CAA, but it is happening because those people are questioning as to how can India emerge as a major power in the world, and to stop that rising India," he claimed.

During the assembly poll campaign, BJP leaders have been urging people to vote for the party to show their disapproval for the ongoing anti-CAA protest at Shaheen Bagh.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
Ambassador of Belarus A.Rzheussky meets the Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs of India

31-01-2020

On January 31, 2019 the Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary of the Republic of Belarus to the Republic of India, Andrei Rzheussky, met with the Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs of India, Vikas Swarup.

During the meeting the interlocutors emphasized the mutual satisfaction with the friendly and constructive nature of bilateral cooperation and expressed their commitment to its further expansion.

The importance of maintaining the intensity of high-level Belarusian-Indian political contacts as the basis for the successful implementation of joint projects in the field of trade, industrial cooperation, investment and other areas, was emphasized.

In this context, the terms of visit exchange of the heads of the foreign offices of the two countries, as well as the possibility of holding Belarusian-Indian inter-MFA consultations in Minsk in the second and third quarter of 2020, were discussed.

The need for further close constructive contacts was noted, including with a view to mutual support and promotion of the interests of the two countries on international platforms.



print version
STATEN ISLAND, N.Y. -- Police responded to a report of a bank robbery in Sunnyside Saturday morning, an NYPD spokesman told the Advance.

This was the six bank-related robbery or attempted robbery on Staten Island in the last 12 days.

At around 10:30 a.m. on Saturday a man entered the Richmond County Savings Bank located at 1270 Clove Road and passed a note demanding money, the spokesman said.

The man then fled the location with an undetermined amount of cash, according to the spokesman.

Police did not immediately have a description for the man and more details on the note he passed, the spokesman said.

Shortly after police were notified, at least three police cars were in front of the bank, while more were canvassing the surrounding area.

Unconfirmed emergency radio transmissions indicated the man fled the location in a white Sedan towards the Verrazzano-Narrows Bridge.

There are currently no arrests and the investigation is ongoing, according to the spokesman.

A SPIKE IN BANK ROBBERIES

In the last two weeks, there has been a spike in bank robberies and related incidents on Staten Island.

On Tuesday, Jan. 21 an individual entered the drive-thru of the Santander bank branch located at 1850 Victory Blvd. at around 1:30 p.m. and passed two notes demanding money through a chute at the drive-up teller window, according to a statement from the NYPDs Deputy Commissioner of Public Information.

There was no money passed or removed and the individual fled the scene on Victory Boulevard in a red Ford truck, according to the statement.

The notes included an unfounded bomb threat, a police spokesman said.

The next day police asked the publics help in identifying the driver of a red truck who is sought for questioning in connection with the attempted robbery.

On Saturday, Jan. 25 police responded just after 1:30 p.m. to Santander Bank at 1320 Hylan Blvd where a white male had reportedly approached a teller and passed a note demanding cash, according to a written statement from the office of Deputy Commissioner of Public Information.

The suspect -- described to be in his 40s or 50s, wearing a camouflage jacket with a black hooded sweatshirt underneath -- fled with $600.

On Wednesay, Jan. 29 police received a call for a robbery at around 11:30 a.m. at a Northfield Bank located at 1481 Forest Ave., police said.

A man entered the branch and passed a note demanding cash, according to very preliminary information supplied to a spokeswoman for the NYPDs Deputy Commissioner of Public Information.

He was given an unknown amount that did not include a dye pack.

He fled the location in a light-colored sedan, police said.

The suspect is described as a Hispanic male, possibly in his 40s, who was wearing a black hat and black jacket, the police spokeswoman said.

On Thursday, Jan. 30 a man with a cast entered a Northfield Bank branch at 519 Forest Ave. at around 1:30 p.m. and announced it was a bank robbery, according to an NYPD spokeswoman.

The man was later identified as Augustin Nadreau, 25, who was arrested in connection to the incident, police said.

Only eight minutes after, Nadreau entered Victory State Bank located at 755 Forest Ave. and, after a brief flirtatious talk with a female employees, shouted its a mother f-----g robbery.

I just want yall to know its a mother f-----g robbery, he shouts in a video later posted on social media. Everybody put your hands on the floor. Get your hands on the f-----g ground right now.

Nobody reacted to the man, who walkee out of the bank without actually taking any money, according to police.

Nadreau was arrested in connection to that incident as well, and charged with reckless endangerment, unlawful possession of marijuana, aggravated harassment and disorderly conduct in both incidents, an NYPD spokesman said.

SPIKE IN CRIMES SINCE BAIL REFORMS ENACTED

Staten Island has seen an increase in robberies since the new bail reforms were enacted on Jan. 1.

Robberies jumped to 18 instances from Dec. 30, 2019 to Jan. 26, 2020 from 10 cases in the same period last year, NYPD data shows.

Citywide, robberies increased as well in the same period, the data indicates.

Overall, from Dec. 30, 2019 to Jan. 26, 2020 police responded to 1,147 robberies, 264 more instances than the same period last year, according to NYPD data.

Last week, Police Commissioner Dermot Shea said the recent increase in crimes on Staten Island and citywide is connected to the implementation of the new bail reform laws.

Now as you see in the first three weeks of this year, we are seeing significant spikes in crime, Shea said during a press conference. So either we forgot how to police New York City or there is a correlation.

Under the new law, people accused of non-violent offenses, like criminally negligent homicide, second-degree burglary and robbery, among others, could be released without bail.
As Donald Trumps impeachment trial drew towards a close on Friday with a 51-49 vote against the Senate hearing from witnesses or seeking documents, Republican Senators were coming out of the woodwork to explain why theyd refused to try to obtain any new evidence. Ultimately, only Sens. Susan Collins and Mitt Romney broke party lines to vote with the 47 members of the Democratic caucus in favor of calling witnesses.

This will be the first Senate impeachment trial in American history without witnesses called, and opinion polls show broad public support for witnesses, so the Republican decision to cut the proceedings short would seem to be hard to defend.



Still, these Senators tried their best! Here are the five most pathetic excuses Republican senators have offered to avoid calling witnesses according to cravenness.

Advertisement

Advertisement

Advertisement

Advertisement

5. Sen. Cory Gardner of Colorado

Gardner, who is up for re-election in Colorado this Fall, came out against witnesses already on Wednesday. His statement to Colorado Politics was:

I do not believe we need to hear from an 18th witness. I have approached every aspect of this grave constitutional duty with the respect and attention required by law, and have reached this decision after carefully weighing the House managers and defense arguments and closely reviewing the evidence from the House, which included well over 100 hours of testimony from 17 witnesses.

While this statement doesnt appear too craven, you have to recall that Gardner represents a state with the greatest opposition to Trump of almost any represented by a Republican in the Senate and that his coming out early against witnesses helped Majority Leader Mitch McConnell close ranks on the subject. Framing the question as whether to go from 17 witnesses to 18rather than whether to go from zero to oneneatly captures the Senates majoritys decision to pretend it was the Houses job to gather all the facts, and that they were helpless to try to learn anything more on their own.

Advertisement

Advertisement

Advertisement

4. Sen. Marco Rubio of Florida

Rubio, who was dubbed Lil Marco by the president the Florida senator now seeks to exonerate, released a video and issued a lengthy blog post on Friday explaining his decision. That statement read:

[N]ew witnesses that would testify to the truth of the allegations are not needed for my threshold analysis, which already assumed that all the allegations made are true.

And from the video:

Removing the president would in my opinion inflict extraordinary trauma on our nation, which is already deeply divided and polarized. Half the country would view his removal as nothing less than a coup detat and I ask you what scheme could Vladimir Putin come up with that would divide us more than that removal would. So Im not going to vote in favor of tearing this country apart any further, or fueling a raging fire that already threatens our country.

Advertisement

Advertisement

Advertisement

The intense strings soundtrack accompanying the video pairs perfectly with the melodramatic and cynical message that to save the country from election interference, you must allow election interference.

3. Sen. Lamar Alexander of Tennessee

Alexanders message on Thursday night that he was voting against witnesses was noteworthy because he had been considered a plausible swing vote in favor of witnesses, and because of the implausible reason he offered for refusing to swing. Trump, he explained, was guilty of what the House managers had charged him with, and so no more information was needed. What they charged, though, does not meet the United States Constitutions high bar for an impeachable offense. While Alexander finds Trumps conduct to be inappropriate, he told NPR on Friday that he will still support the president in Novembers election.

Advertisement

Advertisement

Advertisement

Advertisement

2. Sen. Ben Sasse of Nebraska

Sasse fashioned his career in the Senate, as Slates Ben Mathis-Lilley described it, as a performatively deep thinker, an advocate of public decency. What does the man who wrote a book titled The Vanishing American Adult think of Trumps conduct in the Ukraine affair and whether or not witnesses should be called in his Senate trial? Let me be clear; Lamar speaks for lots and lots of us, Sasse told CNNs Manu Raju, doing the presumably adult thing of deferring his reasoning for the most important decision of his public life to someone else. Even there, the straight-talking champion of integrity wouldnt take the risk of repeating those words with his own mouth. I asked if he believes then that Trump acted inappropriately, Raju reported. Sasse didnt answer.

Advertisement

1. Sen. Lisa Murkowski of Alaska

Murkowski put to rest on Friday any questions about whether Chief Justice John Roberts might have to decide to break a 50-50 tie in favor of witnesses, orby declining to vote at allagainst them. Murkowski framed her vote as a brave one to protect the chief justice from a Democratic effort to drag the Supreme Court into the fray, while attacking the Chief Justice. She continued: I will not stand for nor support that effort. We have already degraded this institution for partisan political benefit, and I will not enable those who wish to pull down another. By smearing her colleagues who sought to uncover the full truth of Trumps misconduct as vicious partisans while casting herself as the hero, Murkowski presented the most self-serving possible justification for her cowardice of them all.
England women defeated Australia in a Super Over thriller of the Tri-Nation Women's T20 Series match at Manuka Oval here on Saturday.

England chased down nine runs in the Super Over to win the match. Australia scored eight runs in the Super Over bowled by spinner Sophie Ecclestone.

This was the third T20I match across men and women this week that went into the Super Over.

Chasing 157, Australia were able to score 156/8 in their allotted 20 overs. Hence, the match ended as tied and Super Over came in play to decide the winner.

The hosts lost Alyssa Healy (9) in the second over at the score of 17/1. Beth Mooney and Ashleigh Gardner added 46-run for the second wicket. The latter was scalped by Natalie Sciver in the ninth over after scoring 16 runs. Skipper Meg Lanning (1) failed to score big runs and was clinched by Ecclestone in the 10th over.

Ellyse Perry joined Mooney in the middle and the duo stitched a partnership of 34 runs. The former was plumbed in front of the wickets by Sarah Glenn. Rachael Haynes was too dismissed by Glenn in the same over for a duck.

Mooney was dismissed by Sciver in the 17th over after scoring 65 runs including nine fours and a six. Jess Jonassen (2) and Georgia Wareham (6) were departed by Sciver cheaply. Annabel Sutherland and Delissa Kimmince remained unbeaten for 22 and 15 runs respectively. Sciver and Glenn both claimed three wickets each.

Earlier, Australia won the toss and asked England to bat first. England lost three early wickets. Danni Wyatt (17), Amy Jones (10), and Natalie Sciver (4) failed to leave their impression on the scoreboard and were sent back to the pavilion under nine overs, reducing them to 39/3 in 8.5 overs.

Skipper Heather Knight and Fran Wilson constructed the much-needed partnership of 115-run for the fourth wicket. Meanwhile, Knight completed her third shortest format half-century. Interestingly, each of her three T20I fifties has come at the same venue, including one in the previous game against India.

Knight smashed 78 runs off 45 balls studded with eight fours and three sixes. She was picked by Megan Schutt in the penultimate ball of England's inning.

On the other hand, Wilson played an unbeaten knock of 39 runs in 28 balls to post a total of 156/4 in 20 overs. Ellyse Perry, Schutt, and Georgia Wareham bagged one wicket each.

Australia will now play against India at Canberra on February 2.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
One of Ireland's top artists is looking for volunteers from across Fingal to participate in making an iconic artwork which will be permanently displayed in a prominent site within the Swords Cultural Quarter.

John Byrne has been commissioned by Fingal County Council under the Infrastructure 2018 - 2021 Public Art Programme and is planning to create a giant photographic image, featuring a cross-section of people in Fingal, which will be printed and fired onto steel panels.

The image will reference two well-known historical European paintings for which Byrne will cast a broad range of Fingal residents. They will be immortalised in the artwork essentially engaged in a 'tug of war' between the two paintings representing the 'pull' between rural and urban life in the county and beyond.

Byrne wants to open-up this project to as many people as possible and is asking members of the public to send him a photograph of themselves along with details of their age and height and their email and phone contact details.

The photograph can be a selfie or a clear head and shoulder shot. The photographs and other details required should be sent to johnbyrnecabra@gmail.com by February 21.

Byrne will then, with the assistance of the Fingal Arts Office, begin the process of selecting those who will eventually be included in the actual shoot which is scheduled for Swords in mid-July.

Cllr Paul Donnelly, Chair of the Community Development, Heritage, Culture and Creativity Strategic Policy Committee, said: 'This is a unique opportunity for citizens from all over Fingal to get involved in a major arts project and those who are eventually chosen by the artist will be immortalised in an iconic artwork.'

Caroline Cowley, Public Art Co-ordinator with Fingal County Council's Arts Office, said that the artist and the Council were looking for people of all ages and from all walks of life to participate.

'This is Public Art at its most public. We are interested in all age groups and diverse communities from all over the county that will capture Fingal in time as it plans for a major cultural investment. We want everyone to be part of it,' said Ms Cowley.

Margaret Geraghty, Fingal County Council's Director of Housing and Community, said: 'Our vision and ambition is to create a distinct urban identity for Swords as the County town in Fingal, for citizens and visitors alike.

'This will include a major civic, cultural and public space at the heart of the County town, which also includes ongoing works at Swords Castle. The SCQ Civic and Cultural Centre will be at the core of the Swords Cultural Quarter and this exciting arts project is part of a wider on-going programme to engage the wider community to be part of the development of this new iconic quarter for Swords.'

Byrne is regarded as an artist who reinterprets historical artworks into the contemporary. His previous work includes Misneach Ballymun which is an impressive equestrian monument to youth that he made by recasting an adaption of John Henry Foley's Gough Memorial from the original in the grounds of Chillingham Castle in the UK and which was previously situated in the Phoenix Park.

He is also responsible for the famous 'Dublin's Last Supper', taken from Leonardo Da Vinci's version and located in the Italian Quarter in the city centre.

The volunteers who are eventually chosen to take part in the project will find themselves involved in a fascinating process. Byrne will work with a constructed set and costume designer with production assistants for his composition.

Those chosen to be in the image will be styled and posed to fit his overall vision of the work which will be permanently displayed in the new Swords Cultural Quarter.
What if you get stuck on the highway in a storm? Here are some tips
PLAINVIEW, N.Y., Feb. 1, 2020 /PRNewswire/ -- Millions of people every day put their trust in elevators to bring them where they need to go. That confidence comes from the rigorous inspections elevators go through routinely. Inspection seals prove that elevators are safe -- any tampering with these notices can potentially put people in grave danger.

Tamper seal supplier, American Casting and Manufacturing, discusses the importance of inspection seals for elevators.

There are strict guidelines about the use of inspection seals for elevators, and for good reason. Inspection seals need to be tamper evident, leaving clear evidence if an unauthorized person tries to remove the seal or change any of the information on it. This is very important for a building to be within compliance. Each elevator is marked with a unique ID number which needs to be accurately transcribed onto the seal. The seal needs to be placed visibly within the elevator and on all parts of the mainline disconnect when the inspection is complete, and the entire process needs to be documented. This is essential for making sure elevators are safe to use and knowing when routine maintenance needs to be performed.

Security seals also prevent accidents in malfunctioning elevators. When an elevator needs repair or is considered temporarily dormant, law requires that a wire seal or padlock seal be installed on the mainline disconnect switch to prevent use. Only when the elevator is proven to be fully functional can that seal be removed by an authorized user such as a code official. Without this tamper-resistant seal in place, someone could easily release the mainline disconnect and operate the dysfunctional elevator -- which would spell disaster for those riding it.

Seals used on elevators need to be tamper-resistant and easily documented via customization options like alphanumeric serialization. This helps keep people safe when riding the elevator -- which is important considering there are an average of 325 million elevator rides per day.

American Casting and Manufacturing produces a variety of tamper evident security seals that help keep people safe, in elevators and beyond.

About American Casting and Manufacturing

American Casting and Manufacturing tamper evident seals supplier is a New York based, family-owned manufacturing company that produces high-quality customizable security seals, including bolt seals, container seals, and trailer seals, across a wide range of industries. Through innovative production, customer service, and both employee loyalty and respect, the tamper evident seals manufacturer has been producing high-quality seals for over 100 years. The company conforms to the highest standards, meeting the requirements of ISO-9001:2015 quality management systems.

SOURCE American Casting and Manufacturing

Related Links

https://seals.com


* WHO declares coronavirus outbreak a global health emergency * Philippines set for fifth straight session of losses * Indonesia set to fall over 4% for the week By Arpit Nayak Jan 31 (Reuters) - Southeast Asian stock markets extended losses on Friday after the World Health Organisation (WHO) declared the coronavirus outbreak a global emergency, with Indonesia and Philippines easing over 1% each. The death toll from the virus crossed the 200-mark in China with confirmed cases of infection reported in at least 22 other countries and regions. The WHO director-general on Thursday said the greatest concern was the virus' potential spread to countries with weaker healthcare systems, compounded by cases of person-to-person transfer of the virus outside China. Economists have signalled the impact of the new virus could be worse than that of the Severe Respiratory Syndrome (SARS) epidemic in 2002-2003, which took 800 lives and cost the global economy an estimated $33 billion. All south-east Asian markets were headed for weekly losses as the virus continued to dampen risk appetite in the region. Providing some relief, China's manufacturing activity in January was in line with expectations, dodging a contraction. "China markets' return in the coming week will be assessed for impact and could add to the noise as selling gets underway," IG Market Strategist Jingyi Pan said in note. With the growing reassessment of the growth trajectory for China this year by brokers following the virus outbreak, the sentiment may be overtly bearish at present, the note added. Indonesian shares slumped as much as 1.7% and were on course to slip 4.2% for the week, with financial and consumer stocks being the biggest drags on the index. An index of Indonesia's 45 most liquid stocks fell over 2%. Bank Rakyat Indonesia shed 2.6% and household goods maker Unilever Indonesia dipped 2.7%. Philippine stocks lost 1.8%, on course for a fifth consecutive session of losses and were set to be down 4.8% for the week. Financials and consumer stocks took the biggest hit, with BDO Unibank and conglomerate SM Investments dropping 2.9% and 2.2%, respectively. Singapore shares dipped 0.3% and headed for a loss of about 1.8% for the month, with conglomerate DBS Group Holdings losing 1.4% and Mapletree Logistics Trust down 1.1%. Vietnamese stocks fell nearly 1% after losing over 3% in the previous session. The Malaysian index inched lower 0.1%, following eight consecutive sessions of losses. The Thai bourse inched 0.3% lower, ahead of trade data for December expected later on Thursday. For Asian Companies click; SOUTHEAST ASIAN STOCK MARKETS as at 0405 GMT STOCK MARKETS Change on the day Market Current Previous Pct Move close Singapore 3163.3 3170.68 -0.23 Bangkok 1520.48 1523.99 -0.23 Manila 7260.37 7392.68 -1.79 Jakarta 5977.3 6057.596 -1.33 Kuala Lumpur 1544.99 1545.59 -0.04 Ho Chi Minh 955.47 959.58 -0.43 Change so far in 2020 Market Current End 2019 Pct Move Singapore 3163.3 3222.83 -1.85 Bangkok 1520.48 1579.84 -3.76 Manila 7260.37 7,815.26 -7.10 Jakarta 5977.3 6,299.54 -5.12 Kuala Lumpur 1544.99 1588.76 -2.75 Ho Chi Minh 955.47 960.99 -0.57 (Reporting by Arpit Nayak in Bengaluru; Editing by Shounak Dasgupta)
Jayakumar Madala By

Express News Service

TIRUCHY: DMK president MK Stalin has advised newly elected village panchayat presidents of his party to conduct more gram sabha meetings than what was mandated and address peoples grievances at the earliest.

"Your dedicated work will be the foundation for our government next. So do not involve in any irregularities and keep your poll promises," Stalin told local body representatives of the party at a meeting in Tiruchy on Friday.

Suggesting ideas to the representatives, Stalin told them to concentrate on providing basic amenities like sanitation, water, lights and roads. "Womens safety should be given priority. CCTV cameras can be installed at road intersections. During the DMK government, libraries were opened in all villages but most of them were uncared for. The libraries should be revived. Restoration of water bodies should be given adequate attention," he said.

Also, he administered a pledge to the elected representatives to work for betterment of people in an transparent manner. DMK treasurer Duraimurugan condemned minister Karuppannan for his alleged remark on reducing funds to local bodies represented by DMK members. Further, he assured that If DMK is voted to power, village presidents will be again given cheque signing power.
An investigation is underway to determine what caused a US military aircraft to crash in Afghanistan's Ghazni province Monday, a spokesperson for US Forces in Afghanistan confirmed, adding that there is "no indication" the plane was downed by enemy fire.

"A U.S. Bombardier E-11A crashed today in Ghazni province, Afghanistan. While the cause of crash is under investigation, there are no indications the crash was caused by enemy fire. We will provide additional information as it becomes available," Col. Sonny Leggett said in a tweet.

"Taliban claims that additional aircraft have crashed are false," he added.

CNN reported earlier Monday that the US military was investigating reports of a plane crash in Afghanistan's Ghazni province, according to a US official.

The official could not add any further details.

Multiple reports had emerged of a plane crash in the region, which is largely controlled by the Taliban and lies to the southwest of the Afghan capital of Kabul.

Secretary of Defense Mark Esper said Monday he is "aware of the situation" but would not elaborate with any more details, saying "he has nothing further to report at this time." Esper assured that the Pentagon will update the media when the "matter develops."

The E-11A is used to link troops in the field to headquarters and has been previously described by Air Force pilots as "WiFi in the sky."

It operates as part of the Air Force's Battlefield Airborne Communications Node (BACN), which was developed in response to communication problems during Operation Red Wings, a US military mission in Kunar province, Afghanistan, in 2005, according to a press release published by the service in 2018.

The 2005 operation involved a four-man Navy SEAL reconnaissance patrol that was compromised. Three of the SEALs were killed and a MH-47 Chinook helicopter carrying a rescue force to extract the patrol was shot down, killing the eight SEALs and the eight Army Special Operations crew on board.

"Due to Afghanistan's mountainous terrain and lack of existing communication infrastructure, serious communication challenges prevented the four-man SEAL patrol from effectively establishing contact with their combat operations center, leaving them vulnerable to the attacks that claimed the lives of 19 special operations forces service members," it said.

Between 12,000 and 13,000 US troops are currently serving in Afghanistan as part of a US-led NATO mission to train, assist and advise Afghan forces.

There have been more than 2,400 deaths of US service members since the start of America's longest war in 2001. Last year was the deadliest in five years for the US in Afghanistan, with 23 service members killed during operations in the country in 2019.
It has only been a few weeks since Prince Harry and Meghan Markle announced their stunning exit from the royal family, and Kate Middleton is reportedly having a difficult time adjusting to the changes. Kate had a busy schedule to begin with and has been forced to take on more responsibilities now that Harry and Meghan are out of the mix. While Megxit has clearly had a direct impact on Kates life, what did she tell her children about Harry and Meghans decision?

Kate Middleton and Prince Harry | Chris Jackson/Getty Images

How did Kate Middleton react to Megxit?

Meghan and Harrys decision to step down as senior members of the royal family has rocked the monarchy to its core. While the Duke and Duchess of Sussex look to live a quieter life with their son, Archie Harrison, in Canada, the rest of the royals are going to have to pick up the slack.

Kate has become accustomed to a busy schedule over the years, but sources claim that she is having a tough time adjusting to her new responsibilities.

According to She Knows, Kate Middleton has been suffering from anxiety in the wake of Megxit. The added stress has also made it difficult for the Duchess of Cambridge to sleep, which has only added more issues to her plate.

Kate Middleton 'misses' her close bond with Prince Harry and 'fears she'll 'never be close to him again' https://t.co/ZkXGRBRTsi  Daily Mail U.K. (@DailyMailUK) January 31, 2020

Kates in a panic and has been having bouts of anxiety, the source stated. She barely has time to rest, and when she does try to sleep, her mind is constantly racing.

The insider added that Kate is now working over 18 hours a day. Her busy work schedule has also added stress to her children  Prince George, Princess Charlotte, and Prince Louis. With Kate expected to keep up the work, she is reportedly worried about finding time for her kids.

Middleton misses Prince Harry

To add even more anxiety to her life, Kate also misses Harry. The two shared a close bond and the idea that she will not see him for most of the year is contributing to her sleepless nights.

When she was first dating Prince William, Kate and Harry grew close. Harry liked Kate so much that he even gave William their mother, Princess Dianas, old engagement ring when he proposed.

But Kates relationship with Harry changed once he started dating Meghan. There were a lot of rumors about a growing feud between the couples, and a source now says that Kate is worried that she will never be close to Harry again.

Here Are 20 Headlines Comparing Meghan Markle To Kate Middleton That Might Show Why She And Prince Harry Are Cutting Off Royal Reporters https://t.co/FnceqarBqg via @ellievhall  keisuke mizouchi (@keisukemiz) January 24, 2020

She misses him and fears shell never be close to him again, the insider dished.

The source noted that Kate Middletons relationship with Meghan is practically non-existent at this point. The Duchess of Cambridge is getting plenty of support from her husband, which is helping her deal with the drama.

When will Archie Harrison return to the UK?

Since his birth in May of 2019, Meghan and Harry have gone to great lengths to keep their son, Archie Harrison, out of the spotlight.

Archie has only appeared in public a handful of times, and the couple carefully curates any photos they release of him on social media.

The family of three is currently living in a temporary home on Vancouver Island. Sources claim that they are looking to buy a home in Canada, where they will spend part of the year.

Prince Harrys close friend Nacho Figueras says he moved to Canada to protect his wife Meghan Markle and their son Archie Harrison https://t.co/beeqcd68Ot  HELLO! (@hellomag) January 30, 2020

Meghan has not commented about when she will return to the UK with Archie. More than likely, the Sussexes will come home for important family events, such as Trooping the Colour, royal weddings, and the holidays.

When they do return to England, there is a good chance that Archie will get to spend some quality time with his cousins, George, Charlotte, and Louis, though we cannot say for sure.

What has Kate Middleton told her kids about Megxit?

At this point, it is unclear how much Kate has talked about Meghan and Harrys decision with her children. But considering how they will see Archie less frequently, Kate is bound to tell them something about Megxit.

After all, it will only be a matter of time before Kates children start asking questions about their aunt and uncle. They are not old enough to read about Megxit in the press, but there is a good chance that Kate wants them to hear it from her first.

Kate Middleton Worries She'll Never Be Close to Prince Harry Again Following His Royal Family Exit https://t.co/0ViBgC3kAJ  Cosmopolitan (@Cosmopolitan) January 30, 2020

The royals have not said anything about Kate Middletons struggles in the wake of Prince Harry and Meghan Markles shocking departure.
Pakistan Halts All Flights To And From China Amid Coronavirus Fears

By RFE/RL's Radio Mashaal January 31, 2020

ISLAMABAD -- Pakistan says it is halting all flights to and from China after the World Health Organization (WHO) declared the ongoing coronavirus outbreak a global emergency.

Pakistani officials announced on January 31 that 22 weekly flights will remain suspended until February 2, as the outbreak continues to spread in and outside of China.

Pakistan has yet to register a case, but top health official Zafar Mirza said four Pakistani students in China had been diagnosed with the new virus.

Around 500 students were in the Chinese city of Wuhan, which is at the center of the outbreak, when it surfaced earlier this month, officials said.

Islamabad said it has no immediate plans to evacuate the almost 30,000 Pakistani nationals living in the country, even though parents in the city of Kohat staged protests demanding the government bring their children back.

At least 213 people in China have died from the coronavirus, with nearly 10,000 cases registered. A total of 98 cases have been confirmed in 18 other countries, but no deaths outside of China have been recorded, according to the WHO.

The UN health agency's decision to declare a global emergency allows it to support lower- and middle-income countries to strengthen their disease surveillance systems and prepare them for cases.

Chinese authorities have effectively sealed off Wuhan and put numerous transport restrictions in place to curb the spread of the virus.

Meanwhile, various countries have taken steps to close their borders with China, cancel flights, or suspend the issuance of visas to Chinese citizens.

The United States has warned its citizens against all travel to China and said any American currently in the country "should consider departing using commercial means."

"Do not travel to China due to novel coronavirus first identified in Wuhan," the U.S. State Department said in a new travel advisory on its website, raising the warning for China to the same level as Afghanistan and Iraq.

With reporting by the BBC and AP

Source: https://www.rferl.org/a/pakistan-halts -all-flights-to-and-from-china-amid- coronavirus-fears/30409783.html

Copyright (c) 2020. RFE/RL, Inc. Reprinted with the permission of Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty, 1201 Connecticut Ave., N.W. Washington DC 20036.

NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address






New Delhi: Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman on Saturday (February 1) proposed to simplify the Income-Tax law while presenting the Union Budget 2020-21 in Parliament to provide relief to individual taxpayers.

The new and simplified personal income tax regime wherein income tax rates will be significantly reduced for the individual taxpayers who forgo certain deductions and exemptions.

Sitharaman said, The new tax regime shall be optional for the taxpayers, adding that an individual who is currently availing more deductions and exemptions under the Income Tax Act may choose to avail them and continue to pay tax in the old regime.

Live TV

In the new tax regime, the substantial tax benefit will accrue to a taxpayer depending upon exemptions and deductions claimed by him. For example, a person earning Rs 15 lakh in a year and not availing any deductions etc. will pay only Rs 1,95,000 as compared to Rs 2,73,000 in the old regime. Thus his tax burden will be reduced by 78,000 in the new regime.

The taxpayer would be a gainer in the new regime even if he was taking a deduction of Rs 1.5 lakh under various sections of Chapter VI A of the Income Tax Act under the old regime.

The new tax regime will be optional for the taxpayers.

As per the memorandum explaining the provision in the Finance Bill, the option will be exercised for every previous year where the individual or the HUF has no business income and in other cases the option once exercised for a previous year shall be valid for that previous year and all subsequent years.

The option will become invalid for a previous year or previous years as the case may be if the individual or HUF fails to satisfy the conditions and other provisions of the Act shall apply.

The new personal income tax rates will entail estimated revenue forgone of Rs 40,000 crore per year, according to Sitharaman, adding We have also initiated measures to prefill the income tax return so that an individual who opts for the new regime would need no assistance from an expert to file his return and pay income tax. The Finance Minister said that in order to simplify the income tax system, she has reviewed all the exemptions and deductions incorporated over the past several decades.

In the Budget, around 70 of the existing exemptions and deductions of different nature (more than 100) have been proposed to be removed. Remaining exemptions and deductions will be reviewed and rationalised in the coming years with a view to further simplifying the tax system and lowering the tax rate, according to the Union Budget 2020-21.
ST. PAUL, Minn. - Minnesota regulators opened a hearing Friday o n an updated environmental review for Enbridge Energy's plan to replace its aging Line 3 crude oil pipeline across the state, but most testimony focused on broader questions of whether the project even be built.

Hey there, time traveller!

This article was published 31/1/2020 (709 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

Supporters of Enbridge Energy's proposal to replace its aging Line 3 crude oil pipeline across northern Minnesota parked a truck near the State Capitol in St. Paul, Minn., on Friday, Jan. 31, 2020, carrying pipeline segments signed by people who back the project. They contend that replacing the aging pipeline with new pipe will provide the safest way to carry Line 3's oil from Alberta to Enbridge's terminal in Superior, Wisconsin. (AP Photo/Steve Karnowski)

ST. PAUL, Minn. - Minnesota regulators opened a hearing Friday o n an updated environmental review for Enbridge Energy's plan to replace its aging Line 3 crude oil pipeline across the state, but most testimony focused on broader questions of whether the project even be built.

Environmental and tribal activists urged the Public Utilities Commission to reconsider its earlier approvals and kill the project, saying climate change has reached a crisis stage. But the project's supporters, including union construction workers, testified it's time to let Enbridge complete the $2.6 billion project.

Dr. Laalitha Surapaneni, a physician at the University of Minnesota, was first in line for the hearing. She said in an interview that she had waited outside in the cold since 3:30 a.m. with no guarantee that she'd get to talk because she considers climate change to be a health emergency. When she got drawn at random to testify, she asserted that the updated review is inadequate because it doesn't properly address human health risks from a spill or the threat of climate change to human health.

You have the power to protect the health of Minnesotans  not just today but the health of generations to come, Surapaneni told the commissioners.

Line 3, which was built in the 1960s, starts in Alberta and clips a corner of North Dakota before crossing northern Minnesota en route to Enbridge's terminal in Superior, Wisconsin. Enbridge says the old line needs replacing because it's increasingly prone to corrosion and cracking and can run at only about half its original capacity.

The Minnesota Court of Appeals sent the previous final version of the project's environmental review back to the commission after finding that the massive document failed to adequately deal with the potential risks of an oil spill in the Lake Superior watershed. The state Department of Commerce then conducted additional modeling and concluded in the update that there was little chance of a spill reaching the lake.

So the central questions on the commission's agenda were whether the update is adequate to pass muster with the courts, and if so, whether to reissue the certificate of need and route permit that Calgary, Alberta-based Enbridge needs to proceed with building the Minnesota segment. The new Canadian and Wisconsin segments are already operating.

Ready, Pet, Go! Leesa Dahl looks at everything to do with our furry, fuzzy, feathered, fishy (and more!) pet friends. Arrives in your inbox each Monday. Sign Up I agree to the Terms and Conditions, Cookie and Privacy Policies, and CASL agreement.

Enbridge said in a filing ahead of the hearing that the update meets the court's concerns and that the record continues to show that the project is needed.

Friday's session  the 68th public hearing on the project by Enbridge's count  was meant for comments from the general public, including several lawmakers.

Democratic Rep. Frank Hornstein, of Minneapolis, was one of the relatively few testifiers to address the adequacy of the updated environmental review. He said there are still significant shortcomings with how it addresses the need for a rapid spill response.

But Democratic Sen. David Tomassoni, of Chisholm, who has applied to fill an open seat on the PUC, urged commissioners to approve the update and reaffirm the certificate of need and route permit.

The old pipeline needs replacing," Tomassoni said. "Replacing old infrastructure protects our water and natural resources. The construction alone will provide hundreds of good paying jobs with the latest and most modern technology. It just makes good sense to do so.

The commission will hear Monday, and Tuesday if more time is needed, from official parties to the case, which include Enbridge, its allies, and environmental and tribal groups opposed to the project. Their testimony is expected to focus more closely on the updated environmental review. If the commissioners sign off, Enbridge will still need to secure some state and federal permits.
In his remarks, UN Secretary General Antonio Guterres said ASEAN has played an active role in UN activities, especially in peace-keeping, and lauded the groupings initiatives regarding preventive diplomacy, conflict prevention and peace-building, as well as its main role in the evolving regional architecture.

Ambassador Dang Dinh Quy, head of the Vietnam Permanent Mission to the UN, speaks at the meeting. (Photo: VNA)



ASEAN Secretary General Lim Jock Hoi reviewed the progress in cooperation between the two sides, saying ASEAN shares visions and objectives with the UN.

The ten-member groups efforts in building the ASEAN Community has received the support from partners, including the UN, he said, affirming that ASEAN commits to promoting multilateralism and working together with the UN to build the future we want and the UN we need.

UNSC member countries applauded the initiative to organise the first-ever UNSC meeting on ASEAN-UN cooperation, and backed ASEANs efforts in enhancing dialogue and collaboration through ASEAN-led mechanisms.

They stressed the significance of enhancing ASEANs centrality in the regional architecture, expressing hope that the group will carry forward its role in regional and global issues of shared concern.

The countries lauded the progress in ASEAN-UN cooperation, especially the establishment of the comprehensive partnership in 2011, and the effective implementation of the cooperation action plan during the 2016-2020 period and the building of a new action plan for the next five years.

Ambassador Dang Dinh Quy, head of the Vietnam Permanent Mission to the UN, highlighted the significance of strengthening cooperation between the UN and regional organisations, including ASEAN, saying the UN is a dynamic and trust-worthy partner of the bloc.

As ASEAN Chair 2020 and a non-permanent member of the UNSC for 2020-2021 tenure, Vietnam will make greater efforts to intensify the effective and comprehensive cooperation between the sides, focusing on such priority areas as conflict settlement, preventive diplomacy, disarmament, peace-keeping, counter-terrorism and maritime cooperation and security, he said.

The ambassador presented Vietnams proposals for ASEAN-UN cooperation in 2020 like improving the quality and efficiency of ASEAN member countries engagement in UN peace-keeping missions and promoting womens role and contributions to peace and security.

Vietnam also proposed organising a high-level ASEAN-UN dialogue on sustainable development on the occasion of the ASEAN-UN Summit slated for October in the country./.
New York, Feb 1 : Researchers have found that the mechanics of infection displayed by the new coronavirus (2019-nCoV) are similar to that of the 2002-03 SARS outbreak -- also a coronavirus.

Studies over the years show that both viruses use same enzyme to gain entry into a cell.

As compared to nearly 11,000 people infected with the new coronavirus, most in China since it emerged in December; in 2003 around 8,100 cases of Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome (SARS) were reported during the eight-month outbreak.

According to the study, published in the Journal of Virology, the recent emergence of coronavirus in China has put the world on high alert for transcontinental transmission, reminiscent of the outbreak of SARS.

Decade-long structural studies by Fang Li of the University of Minnesota in US, show how the SARS virus (SARS-CoV) interacts with animal and human hosts in order to infect them.

These researchers used the knowledge they gleaned from multiple SARS-CoV strains -- isolated from different hosts in different years -- and angiotensin-converting enzyme-2 (ACE2) receptors from different animal species to model predictions for the novel coronavirus. (Both viruses use ACE2 to gain entry into the cell, but it serves normally as a regulator for heart function.) "Our structural analyses confidently predict that the Wuhan coronavirus uses ACE2 as its host receptor," the study researchers said.

According to the study, several other structural details of the new virus are consistent with the ability of the 2019 coronavirus to infect humans and with some capability to transmit among humans.

"Alarmingly, our data predict that a single mutation (at a specific spot in the genome) could significantly enhance (the Wuhan coronavirus's) ability to bind with human ACE2," the researchers said.

For this reason, 2019 coronavirus evolution in patients should be closely monitored for the emergence of novel mutations at the 501 position in its genome, and to a lesser extent, the 494 position, in order to predict the possibility of a more serious outbreak than has been seen so far.

The study provides the basic, translational and public health research communities with predictive insights that may help study and battle this novel coronavirus.

The deadly novel coronavirus outbreak has so far killed 259 people in China, besides others world wide. As of Saturday, total infected are 11,791.

Latest updates on Coronavirus (COVID-19)

-- The story has been published from a wire feed without any modifications to the text
Chinas national center for disease control has responded to accusations that it withheld crucial information about the spread of the coronavirus in the early stages of the outbreak, amid growing anger on social media over revelations in an academic paper that the authorities were allegedly aware of human-to-human transmission far earlier than they publicly admitted.

The Chinese Center for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) put out a statement on Friday defending its handling of the outbreak and its information disclosure. Two of the agencys senior scientists who were involved in writing the report also supported the centers actions and the publication of the paper, Early Transmission Dynamics in Wuhan, China, of Novel CoronavirusInfected Pneumonia. More than 40 disease control officials and experts from the Chinese mainland, Hong Kong, and the World Health Organization (WHO) contributed to the paper which was published in the New England Journal of Medicine on Wednesday.

There is evidence that human-to-human transmission has occurred among close contacts since the middle of December 2019, the paper said in its conclusion, indicating that the authorities knew the disease could be passed between people several weeks before the Chinese CDC publicly disclosed the threat on Jan. 20.

The CDC issued its statement after the paper went viral on Chinese social media and prompted a wave of angry comments from internet users.

I'm beyond furious, Wang Liming, a professor of neuroscience at Zhejiang University, said Wednesday in a post on Weibo, China's microblogging website, where he has about 500,000 followers. "This is the first time that I've found unmistakable evidence that human-to-human transmission of the new coronavirus has been intentionally hidden, he wrote in the post which has since been deleted.

Transmission concealed

My question is simple: Judging from the data in this paper, the National Centers for Disease Control and Prevention already had clear evidence of human-to-human transmission as early as the first few days of January. From then until Jan. 20, at what point was this information concealed, Wang wrote on Weibo.

The authors of the report based their conclusions on a study of 425 people who had been infected with the coronavirus since December. Of those, 15 were medical workers  seven were confirmed as having contracted the disease from Jan. 1 to Jan. 11, and eight during Jan. 12 to Jan. 22.

In its statement, which was distributed to state media and is not on its website, the Chinese CDC said the study referred to in the paper was a retrospective study and all cases mentioned had been reported to the public by Zhong Nanshan and the Wuhan Municipal Health Commission on Jan. 20 and 21, respectively, according to the statement. Zhong is one of Chinas best-known epidemiology experts who leads the National Health Commission team investigating the outbreak. He was thrust into the spotlight for his role in investigating the SARS outbreak in 2003.

The papers conclusion  that human-to-human transmission occurred among close contacts of infected patients from the middle of December 2019  was made retrospectively, based on survey data from the epidemiological investigation into the 425 cases, the CDC said. It did not directly address the accusations that it had withheld information about the spread of the coronavirus.

Feng Zijian, a deputy director at the Chinese CDC, and Gao Fu, a director, who were among the contributors to the paper have spoken to Caixin about the study and defended the center against accusations that it withheld data and disclosure of human-to-human transmission.

Feng told Caixin the center only obtained the data related to the 425 cases on Jan. 23 and immediately began its research and analysis. Its contributions to the paper were submitted on Jan. 25 and 26. Carrying out retrospective research is a part of the work of disease control, he said.

Timely action

The papers findings are inconsistent with information given by the Wuhan Municipal Health Commission, which on three occasions  Dec. 31, Jan. 5 and Jan. 11  announced that its investigations had not found any obvious human-to-human transmission. It also stated twice that it had found no infection among medical staff.

The local commission only changed its tune on Jan. 16, when it admitted the possibility of limited human-to-human transmission. It wasnt until Jan. 20 that Zhong and the Wuhan Municipal Health Commission announced the coronavirus could be transmitted between people.

Commentators on social media are now asking whether and when did the Chinese CDC know that human-to-human transmission was happening, whether information about the infection of medical staff was passed to it and whether appropriate measures were taken to prevent further transmission.

Yang Gonghuan, a former deputy head of the Chinese CDC told Caixin that there needs to be clarification  were experts aware of the facts and information and withheld them or was it a case of information being reported and action not being taken in a timely manner. Theres a big difference between the two and the key facts need to be clarified, Yang said

As Chinas disease control agencies are leading the fight against the new coronavirus, which has led to the deaths of 213 people on the mainland as of Jan. 31, the timing of the publication of the Chinese CDC-backed paper has also stirred controversy.

On Wednesday, the Ministry of Science and Technology released a statement, urging researchers to focus on combating the epidemic rather than publishing academic papers.

But Gao from the Chinese CDC told Caixin on Thursday that the paper was published in order to inform experts around the world and secure their input and contributions to help prevent and control the coronavirus.

Contact reporters Sun Huixia and Lu Zhenhua (zhenhualu@caixin.com)
About 150 Dickinson College students gathered at a hastily organized, town hall-style meeting Friday to register complaints about  and to begin to formulate a response to  how the college handles sexual assault cases.

The meeting is expected to spill over Monday into a demonstration at the Holland Union Building, where campaign leaders are expected to announce a list of demands for reform.

Fridays session in a jam-packed room at Kauffman Hall was spearheaded by senior Rose McAvoy, who went public earlier this week in a column in the student newspaper, The Dickinsonian, with her personal tale of frustration over how a founded assault against her in late October 2017 was handled.

McAvoys case was adjudicated by the school and her perpetrator was found guilty and placed on probation for a semester. He has since transferred to another school.

In the end, McAvoy said, she felt like she received no justice.

The Orlando, Florida, resident has been quietly pushing back ever since, she says, over a range of problems with the Title IX process. That includes:

the pace of the investigation

punishments that call into question, to her, the seriousness with which the college is approaching the problem

what McAvoy felt was a lack of supports for students going through the process

Title IX refers to the federal law that prevents all forms of sex discrimination in education.

McAvoy alleges that her attacker  who has since transferred to another school  assaulted two other women in the course of the investigation. She also said that one faculty member, during a meeting to discuss academic supports presumably offered to all sexual assault victims, told her at one point that she just needed to get over it.

PennLive could not independently corroborate that allegation for this report. Dickinson responded with a written response to McAvoys column that said it hadnt been advised of those details and that staff members are investigating those matters now. It was drafted by Brenda Bretz, the schools vice president for institutional effectiveness and inclusivity.

Bretz also wrote that while she applauded McAvoys courage in raising the issues, she had to take issue with McAvoys assertion that Dickinson is not taking sexual assault cases seriously.

In 2018, Bretz noted, the school hired two full-time Title IX administrators to focus on prevention/education programming, rapid response to reports, and support to ensure timely investigations. Assault awareness and prevention programs reached 99 percent of first-year students this fall, as well as 600 employees, the vice-president said.

But McAvoy said several students echoed her concerns at Fridays meeting, citing complaints about punishments that seemed too light, lax enforcement of no contact orders designed to help victims lead their lives on the same campus with their accusers while cases are pending, and a general lack of continued awareness about resources and stopping sexual assault culture.

Reforms discussed by the gathered students Friday included mandatory suspensions from the school for students found guilty in sexual assault cases, more timely completion of investigations, and even more general safety initiatives such as having more emergency call boxes installed around the campus.

McAvoy noted Friday she and her family had been trying to push for changes with Dickinsons administration through an attorney, but abandoned those efforts for cost reasons last year. All of which led to her decision to push for a public campaign now.

Ultimately, it was that this is my last semester on campus and I cant imagine leaving without changing this," McAvoy said. This has to change. Someone has to do something, and I just did.

Among those who attended Fridays session were U.S. Middle District Judge John Jones, the current chair of the Dickinson board of trustees, and board member Ruth Ferguson. Jones and Ferguson were in Carlisle this weekend for a previously scheduled trustees meeting.

Jones, addressing reporters after he left the closed-door meeting, promised that trustees would bring a fresh ear to the students demands, and without making specific commitments. I think the college is doing a really good job with Title IX [issues], but we dont ever think that there cant be constructive criticism or some tweaks, and well work with the students on that, he said.

I promised the students that the board is listening to them I want them to understand Title IX (rules and regulations) better, and I want us to understand better what they consider to be the deficiencies.

The fight against sexual assault on campus has received a great deal of attention in Pennsylvania and nationally in recent years. But colleges have continued to struggle with the role of serving as the arbiter of justice in student-to-student assaults.

A survey of campus climate undertaken by the Association of American Universities last year stated that while 65.6 percent of students reported it was very or extremely likely that school officials would take a report of a sexual assault seriously, that number dropped to 45 percent among those who said theyd experienced non-consensual sexual contact by physical force or inability to consent.

On the flip side, some colleges have now been sued by male students who say the pendulum has now swung too far in the opposite direction.

Dickinson has not been immune.

McAvoy is a psychology and studio arts double major who is scheduled to graduate from Dickinson this spring. Having stayed another year to make up for credits that she dropped while trying to cope with the after-effects of the assault, she sees the reform effort as the real capstone of her Dickinson experience.

I didnt feel like I could just leave and let more people go through this same thing, she said after Fridays meeting. I was committed to staying here and somehow figuring out a way to do something.
President of Ukraine Volodymyr Zelensky had a phone conversation with Prime Minister of the Republic of Bulgaria Boyko Borissov on Friday, the presidents press service has reported.

Zelensky reaffirmed interest in the further development of bilateral political dialogue with Bulgaria.

In addition, the president noted the support of Bulgaria for Ukraines sovereignty and territorial integrity, as well as the policy of non-recognition of the illegal annexation of Crimea.

The head of state expressed gratitude for the detention of Ukrainian citizen Oleksiy Levin, suspected in the involvement in the assault on Kateryna Gandziuk, by Bulgarian law enforcement agencies together with Ukrainian colleagues on January 24, and expressed hope for his prompt extradition to Ukraine.

During the conversation, Zelensky highly appreciated the rehabilitation of 190 wounded Ukrainian servicemen in Bulgaria as part of the NATO-Ukraine Medical Rehabilitation Trust Fund.

The parties also noted the importance of strengthening bilateral trade and economic cooperation, the volume of which is expected to exceed USD 1 billion in 2019 for the first time in the last decade. Its further intensification will be facilitated by a regular meeting of the Joint Ukrainian-Bulgarian Intergovernmental Commission on Economic Cooperation. There are also great prospects for cooperation in the fields of transport and tourism.

Volodymyr Zelensky thanked Boyko Borissov for understanding the state policy of Ukraine in the field of education and state language. The parties reaffirmed willingness to facilitate the comprehensive development of national minorities.

ish
India has begun preparations to airlift the remaining Indians from China, hours after it evacuated 324 Indian nationals from the coronavirus-hit Wuhan city as the death toll from the deadly disease rose to 259 in the country.

A special Air India plane carrying 211 students, 110 working professionals and three minors from Wuhan reached Delhi around 7.30 am on Saturday.

We look forward to operating another flight to evacuate remaining Indian nationals, who have consented to leave Hubei Province for the time being, the Indian Embassy said in a tweet on Saturday.

An Air India spokesperson said that another flight will depart to Wuhan from Delhi at 12.50 pm on Saturday with a different set of crew, same doctors' team with other aircraft.

An Air India flight carrying 324 Indian nationals from the coronavirus-hit Hubei Province of China took off from Wuhan in the early hours of Feb 1. Majority of the passengers were Indian students. We sincerely thank the Chinese government for facilitating this flight," it said.

We urge all Indian citizens from Hubei who intend to avail this flight for India and not yet contacted the Embassy, to urgently call the hotlines (+8618610952903 and +8618612083629) or dedicated email ID helpdesk.beijing@mea.gov.in before 0800 hours on February 1, 2020, the Embassy said in the tweet.

On Saturday, the death toll from the novel coronavirus outbreak in China rose to 259 with total confirmed cases surging to 11,791 amid stepped up efforts by a number of countries to evacuate their nationals from Hubei province, the epicentre of the virus.

The Indians evacuated on Friday were from Wuhan. The second batch was mainly expected to be from Hubei province for which Wuhan is the provincial capital.

Officials said the Indian Army has set up a quarantine facility in Manesar near Delhi to keep those evacuated from China's Hubei province. They would be monitored for any signs of infection for a duration of two weeks by a qualified team of doctors and staff members.

So far about 124 positive cases have been reported in a host of countries, including India where the first case was confirmed in Kerala.

Hubei province and Wuhan remained the ground zero of the virus with 45 deaths and 1,347 confirmed cases, according to the Chinese commission's report.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
A former minister, Femi Fani-Kayode, has commended the resolute in Senator Enyinaya Abaribe, Senate Minority Leader, who at the senate plenary on Wednesday called for the resignation of President Muhammadu Buhari for the failure of the government under his leadership to address the intractable security crisis in Nigeria. Fani-Kayode more importantly celebrated the firmness of Abaribe to resist all threats and pressures to maintain his position.

Senator Abaribe in defence of his advocacy, had declared: The Igbo man doesnt kneel for anybody except his Chi.

ALSO READ: Fani-Kayode fires Femi Adesina: Youre insensitive clown; youve sold your soul to the devil

Fani-Kayode on his twitter handle @realFFK, written on Thursday I love this man and I love the Igbo. They are defiant, strong warriors and I really dig that about them. They bow to no mortal but only to God. Such a people cannot be crushed or broken

Senator Abaribe had maintained his stand in the midst of insinuations that the DSS or EFCC may soon be unleashed on him by the federal government.

PV: 0
EASTON 

In 1891, Mary Anthony, the sister of suffragist Susan B. Anthony, wrote a letter to Easton farm wives urging the women of the southern Washington County town to form a political equality club.

On Oct. 19, 1891, Chloe A. Sisson, Lucy P. Allen and eight other farm wives, started the Easton Political Equality Club to encourage the people of Easton and the state of New York to give women the right to vote.

The Easton Political Equality Club was one of the first in the region and instrumental in securing women the right to vote to New York State in 1917 and eventually the entire country with the ratification of the 19th Amendment 100 years ago in 1920.

Susan B. Anthony and Mary Anthony had lived in the nearby town of Greenwich as children and had taught in local schools. Susan B. Anthonys progressive suffrage movement was well known in the region.

The Anthonys and the Sissons were friends, and the Anthonys were always welcome in the Sissons home, according to Helen Brownell, former director of the Easton Library.

At a young age they were urged to listen and give value to these progressive feelings of the Anthonys, Brownell said.

Sisson and Allen are perhaps the most well-known members of the Easton Political Equality Club.

Lucy was a great speaker and Chloe was a great writer, Brownell said. They were both very educated ladies.

The Easton Library archives house minutes from the Easton Political Equality Club meetings that took place at various homes around Easton as well as at Quaker meeting houses and Burton Hall, which now serves as the town offices.

The Easton Political Equality Club met monthly. Women traveled in horse-drawn wagons all seasons of the year to meet.

The Easton club was the model for many other clubs in Warren, Washington, Saratoga and Rensselaer counties.

A lot of women forget, Brownell said. They take it for granted, the right to vote now, and that it hasnt always been this way. My grandmother, when she got married, could not vote.

Sisson and Allen had a wonderful and special friendship in Easton, said Teri Podnorszki Rogers, executive director of the Warren County Historical Society, who wrote a book in 2009 about the Easton Political Equality Club.

The book, Strength Without Compromise, which she wrote under the name Teri P. Gay, describes the unique way in which rural American women, like those in Easton, fought for the right to vote.

She describes Sisson and Allen as Quakers who helped their husbands run big farms. Allen actually started the library, which was housed in Burton Hall until 1955.

These women were involved in a lot of amazing endeavors, Rogers said. Chloe and her family were longtime abolitionists, so its not surprising that they would be the women to sort of champion and start a political equality club.

When Mary Anthony wrote to them to join the cause, they didnt hesitate.

These were women who were really devoted to their community and yet they had an enormous impact in the region, all stemming from their connection to Susan B. Anthony, Rogers said. Its an amazing story.

In her extensive research, Rogers formed a new hypothesis about the women of the Easton Political Equality Club. These were women who embraced their femininity and loved their husbands and their roles in the family as they worked side by side with their husbands on the farm.

In the rural areas of America and the western territories in the late-19th century and early-20th century, there was not the traditional anti-suffrage sentiment that we commonly read about, Rogers said.

There was a greater sense of egalitarianism between men and women in the rural areas, she said. The women of Easton did not feel oppressed by men, Rogers pointed out.

These were women who were leaders in their farming community, she added. They might not have had the right to vote, but they sure knew how to use the First Amendment.

They were temperance leaders who fought slavery, created the library and were active leaders  along with men  in their communities.

They were ordinary women who were raising families and they were farm wives, and they loved their roles in those two arenas, but they also felt very strongly about the fact that citizens of a democratic country, they had every right to exercise the vote, Rogers aid. So even though they had such busy lives as farm wives and mothers, they still found time to fight for the right to vote.

When New York State granted women the right to vote in 1917  three years before the 19th Amendment was ratified  the women had achieved success. The club evolved into a mini-League of Women Voters, Rogers said, and educated women on how to use their new-found right to vote.

Because they were such great friends and enjoyed meeting, the Political Equality Club eventually morphed into a book club, which still meets at the Easton Library today. Some of the book club members are descendants of the founding members of the Easton Political Equality Club.

These were just ordinary women who did something amazing, right from our own little area here, Rogers said.

Gretta Hochsprung writes hometown news. To contact her, email ghochsprung@poststar.com or call 518-742-3206.

Love 0 Funny 0 Wow 0 Sad 0 Angry 0

Get local news delivered to your inbox! Subscribe to our Daily Headlines newsletter. Sign up! * I understand and agree that registration on or use of this site constitutes agreement to its user agreement and privacy policy.
I live in a perfectly fine house, in a perfectly fine locality with perfectly fine neighbours. I expect to remain resident there until carried out of the premises in a wooden box. I do not consider myself an envious person, though I like to think that I am blessed with a lively and curious mind.

I now hereby confess that my curiosity extends to house prices; curiosity about the cost of buildings which I will certainly never own, which I do not desire to own and which I will probably never even see. My partner dismisses this pre-occupation with other people's accommodation as 'property porn' while I prefer to regard it as an innocent indulgence, like stamp collecting or reading detective fiction.

Whether it is a serious addiction or a slightly eccentric hobby, it is allowed full rein on the website propertypriceregister.ie. The site is an official, State-backed initiative, and it has been logging house sales throughout the Republic since 2010, giving the price paid and a brief (very, very brief) summary of each property

Vendors and purchasers may consider that their transactions are a private matter but here, online, the beans are discreetly spilled for all to see. Yes, they are all here across the range - from hovels in need of substantial re-building to sumptuous billionaire pads complete with swimming pools and gate lodges.

The identity of those who sell and of those who buy are not disclosed but all the information which is divulged on the website is generally reliable and always dispassionate - no tittle-tattle or hyperbole. Full-blown property porn addicts may prefer the flowery prose of the estate agents with their talk of 'period dwellings' or 'superb locations'. But the Property Price Register strips the business of house or apartment sales back to the essentials of date, price and address - as simple as that.

Visitors to the site may search for particular homes, or particular dates, or particular estates, or particular towns - the scope for playing around with the data is limitless.

So it was that I decided to conduct a comprehensive review of the private housing market in County Wicklow during the year past. Given a laptop and some basic software, I can consider myself at the cutting edge of social and economic research.

First things first: the register recorded 1,886 house sales throughout the 12 months of the year 2019 in the County of Wicklow - that is a rate of more than five sales each day. More than half of these sales were concluded in the last four and a half months, suggesting that people prefer to go home hunting in summer, leaving the solicitors to tie up the details in autumn.

The figure of 1,886 for 2019 is a significant step up from the 718 deals concluded back in 2010 when, Wicklow was still licking the wounds inflicted by the Celtic Tiger.

The graph slumped lower still to 576 in 2011, before the post-crash revival began with 789 in 2012; 988 in 2013; 1,339 in 2014; 1,412 in 2015; 1,443 in 2016; and 1,670 in 2017. The surge stalled somewhat at 1,621 in 2018 before recovering to the 1,886 mark in the twelve months just finished, a figure which covers a multitude of styles, locations and affordability.

The average was somewhere in the region of 347,000 (hereinafter referred to in the form 347K) but surely no house is a mere average.

Some canny investor snapped up 20 John Paul Avenue in Arklow last October for the bargain price of 15K - loose change to anyone with savings or an inheritance. The register is too discreet to delve into the reasons why any house on the Ireland of 2019 should be valued at less than the price of modest family motor car.

The John Paul Avenue deal was struck just a few days before the eye-watering sum of 11.585 million was shelled out for 'dwellings and land' at Luggala in Roundwood at the end of the same month. The Luggala sale was the stuff of national news, with photos posted of a palatial residence which, with its white plasterwork and arches, is suggestive of a Foreign Legion fortress without any of the Saharan hardship.

The place also had plenty of well-connected associations - meat and drink to us property pornographers. The nice lady in the 'Irish Times' reported helpfully that Guinness heir Garech Browne lived there. It was put on the market in 2017 and the deceased's family trust hoped at one stage to persuade some rich sucker to part with 28 million to become owner of an estate said to have 'significant scientific and biodiversity value'. At that rate, the 11-plus million eventually agreed begins to sound like a bargain.

At least two dozen seven-figure deals were struck during the year across the county, notably the 2.57 million required in April to part Prospect House in Newcastle from the seller. While Enniskerry, Delgany and Greystones were all well represented among the two dozen, the thought occurs that Delgany may be one of the most desired and desirable places to live in all of Wicklow. The price register allows the casual researcher to come to swift conclusions on this matter, with the facts seeming to bear out this proposition.

Where the average house/apartment cost was around 340K across the entire county during 2019, in Delgany you might expect to pay 541K - that is a premium of around 59 per cent. It was possible, of course, to pick up a modest little starter home in Priory Court for under 220K but the most significant action was up several rungs from there.

Houses in Church View traded at around the 400K mark and Priory Rise was a notch above that on the list of 51 Delgany entries on the register. The average figure was dragged well past the half million mark by the four houses which changed hands for 1.2 million or more - 8 Glenair Manor, Montery in Kindlestown; Apartment 1 in Laurel Grove; and Templecarrig House.

Given the distorting effect of such heavyweight deals, perhaps it may be more meaningful to cite the median sale, number 26 on the list. The Delgany median turns out to have been the 418K shelled out in October for 14 Priory Drive, Edengate.

The busiest and biggest property market of the lost was Bray, which had 270 entries in the register for 2019, at an average of 388K. Eleven of the 270 were in the mature, desirable and leafy Wolfe Tone Square estate, where Number 61 was worth 198K to the new owner in September.

A few weeks later, in October, just around the corner, Number 69 Wolfe Tone Square West was acquired for the slightly princelier sum of 314k. The website cannot explain such differences in a town where the landmark sale was the 1,250 million stumped up for 'Edgewood' on Bray's King Edward Road.

One of the snazziest estates in the county, if not the country, must be Avoca Wood up the river from Arklow in the village of Avoca. Avoca addresses, with their Ballykissangel sheen, are obviously attractive, though the average price of 309K is not extraordinary. But Avoca Wood pre-dominated at the top of the local price league during the year under review. Number 24 with its four bedrooms and five bathrooms was sold for 425K, Number 2 for 485K and Number 4 broke the half-million barrier, weighing in at 535K - phew!

The website is crammed with all manner of nuggets to fascinate the property nerd.

Stratford-on-Slaney, for example, featured five times on the 2019 list at an average price of 250K - the most expensive being a place called Mountain View House at 380K.

Meanwhile, Aughrim, which is even further away than Stratford from the madness of the Dublin property market had a lower average of around 232K for its 27 transactions, though 'Craffield' attracted 868K for its five bedroomed splendour. A quick Google reveals that 'Craffield' extends to eight acres and nestles into a south facing valley with pasturage extending down to the River Ow.

Blessington made the list 76 times, across the spectrum from the modest 30K paid for 27 Woodleigh Avenue to the 675K which was forthcoming from the new owners of the Old Rectory. The average was a smidge over 274K.

Two properties with Rathdrum addresses changed hands for sums which exceeded the half million mark, both on the Greenane side of town - Hogg's Farm and Greenanemore but 249 was more the average. Rathdrum had a particularly lively property market during the twelve months as houses in a succession of estates were completed.

Eleven houses in Killian's Glen were snapped up, at prices from 211K to 286K - a total topping 2.5 million - but Killian's Glen was only in the ha'penny place. No less than 23 homes were purchased in the Woodpark estate, yielding a total of almost 5.5 million and the record in Viewmount was almost identical - 23 sales, totting up a few K under 5.5 million.
By Elizabeth Kwiatkowski, 01/31/2020



ADVERTISEMENT

FOLLOW REALITY TV WORLD ON THE ALL-NEW GOOGLE NEWS!

Reality TV World is now available on the all-new Google News app and website. Click here to visit our Google News page, and then click FOLLOW to add us as a news source!

ADVERTISEMENT

ADVERTISEMENT

Elizabeth Kwiatkowski is Associate Editor of Reality TV World and has been covering the reality TV genre for more than a decade.

star Meka Jones insists Michael Watson 's alleged sex ultimatum wasn't a misunderstanding and it erased all her trust in their relationship.On 's currently-airing tenth season, Meka alleged Michael had attempted to put a time limit on consummating their marriage while flying to their honeymoon in Panama."I'm pissed because on the plane, we had a conversation and Michael literally gave me an ultimatum and said if we don't have sex on our honeymoon then he won't want to be in this marriage," Meka told the cameras.Meka discussed the scene with host Jamie Otis on Wednesday night's episode of : Unfiltered and claimed of Michael, "He meant what he said.""I don't think it was miscommunication at all," Meka insisted.Meka was shown confronting Michael on the show and accusing him of being a different person -- one who's not patient or authentic -- when camera's weren't rolling. She feared the MAFS experts had matched her with the man Michael portrayed himself to be rather than the man he really is.Michael claimed he was just trying to be straightforward about his expectations for intimacy to avoid tension or issues in the future, but he didn't confirm or deny whether he had actually given his wife an ultimatum.Meka admitted watching her conversation with Michael on TV got her "angry all over again.""It makes me upset because he literally would say something off camera, and then on-camera, he'd be like, 'No, I meant [something else].' The two things he would say on and off camera would contradict each other directly -- 100 percent, no doubt," Meka insisted.After Meka confronted Michael but things were left unresolved, he suggested they sleep in separate hotel rooms for the first night of their honeymoon in Panama.When Jamie asked Meka if she would have preferred Michael stay in the room and try to work things out that night, Meka revealed, "No, it was absolutely the right thing for him to leave.""I did not want to be around him, at all," she added.Meka was joined by two other tenth-season brides, Jessica Studer and Mindy Shiben , on the Unfiltered broadcast, and the girls offered their thoughts on the argument."I mean, [Meka] was pretty calm in that clip too," Jessica noted."Really calm," Jamie agreed."I would not be okay with that," Jessica shared."I'd be like, 'What?!'" Jamie yelled, throwing her arms around. "Why now?! What?!""[I'd be like], 'Well, if you're saying we have to do this on the honeymoon, then, no. It's not going to happen now,'" Jessica said with attitude."For sure," Jamie noted."Right, exactly!" Meka agreed."If there was a chance of it happening, now there's no chance," Jessica continued."Exactly," Jamie said.And Mindy chimed in, "That is unacceptable, like, for anyone to put a timestamp on sex. That's really not cool for him to start out your marriage like that!"Jamie then asked Meka whether she felt she could trust Michael again after he allegedly demanded they sleep together on their honeymoon or else."Absolutely not," Meka sternly replied."One of my biggest concerns was that I would let my trust issues get in the way of a good man, so I was very cognizant of that. I truly believe I came into this open and giving him trust."But Meka said multiple factors led to her putting up walls, including how Michael had admitted on their wedding day he once emotionally cheated on a woman."You emotionally cheated on somebody else, my guard goes up. And then when you show a different side of yourself on and off camera, my guard is completely up right now," Meka explained."I'm not saying that this [marriage] is not going to work and I'm not saying my guard won't be let down, but right now, I have to protect myself."Jamie therefore asked Meka what Michael would need to do in order for their relationship to work."I need Michael to be 100 percent open and transparent on and off camera as of right now," Meka revealed.Meka, however, was hopeful at the time of filming trust could eventually be restored in her arranged marriage."I'm definitely hopeful that I can build trust back because the thing about being married at first sight is that you don't have anything to go off of," Meka said."It's not like, 'Oh, we were dating for three years and he just destroyed my trust after all that time.' We had just met, so right now it's hard and the trust is gone, but I have every intention of being able to build that back up with Michael." The latest episode of showed Michael and Meka agreeing to work on things and attempting to put the argument behind them, but Meka was far from comfortable around her husband and she thought he had a lot to prove.is currently airing on Wednesday nights at 8PM ET/PT on Lifetime.The series also stars Mindy's husband Zach Justice and Jessica's husband Austin Hurd as well as Katie Conrad and Derek Sherman and Taylor Dunklin and Brandon Reid Interested in more news? Join our Married at First Sight Facebook Group
Are Ona kakanfo of Yorubaland, Iba Gani Adams has disclosed that people of southwest would not tolerate any form of threat from any individual or groups over its decision to safeguard the region.

He added that the masses in the region would stand by the South West governors in their bid to rid the region of criminality through the Western Nigeria Security Outfit codenamed Operation Amotekun.

He spoke at the South-West Security Stakeholders Group summit at The Grand Place event centre Osogbo on Friday.

Adams, who convened the meeting said anyone who opposes the Amotekun initiative would not survive the wrath of the gods of the land.



He urged the different groups who were involved in local security not to be bothered by the states government inability to engage everyone for the outfit but to prioritise curbing insecurity in the region.

He said no state government has the capacity to engage above 1000 locals for the outfit, but stressed that the challenge of insecurity is a task for the entire populace.

The Yoruba generalissimo emphasised the need for all the groups to consider socio-economic effect of insecurity as a reason to get involved in the project rather than emphasising material gains.

We want everyone out there to know that the people of this region would not tolerate any form of threats from any individual or groups in relations to the issues of insecurity and the birth of Amotekun.

As you have seen events unfolding in recent times that the people of the southwest are behind the governors on the Amotekun project. Whoever opposes it would die mysteriously and the gods of Yorubaland would soon visit its wrath on its betrayers.

It is nauseating that a group, Miyetti Allah was giving orders that Amotekun should not be allowed to stay in the region.

We are using this medium to tell any group with criminal tendencies to leave the region. Yoruba is not known for hostility, the race is accommodating and we love to live in peace and harmony with other race, but we should not be pushed to reacting to criminality against our people, such as kidnapping, banditry, destroying farms and raping women, he said.

He frowned at the imbalance in the nations polity, wondering the rationale behind the existence of security outfits in some parts of the country, while it is termed illegal in other parts.

He said it is pertinent for security groups not to take laws into their hands, but work with the police and other security agencies in ridding the nation of criminals.

According to him, for centuries, Fulanis have herdsmen in southwest, they have even become an integral part of the society, but stressed the need to check those who under the guise of herdsmen involve in criminal activities across the region. Amotekun has exposed imbalance in the structure of Nigeria, while Hisbah, civilian JTF thrive in the northwest and east, why would Amotekun be different?

We are not against those outfits because even in the United kingdom, a central Police system is not practised because it cannot take care of the numerous challenges, which is why Forest Guards, Train station police, University police exist with the central Police structure. It is obvious in Nigeria that the police, as they are, have failed and cannot secure Nigerians anymore, he added.

While speaking on the need for unity in the region, Adams stressed the need for the masses to be united against the divisive tendencies of the elite, saying it is the only way to prioritise the interest of the masses as he added that no elite is interested in the welfare of the common man.

His words, The elites are always united to fight for their cause, not for the interest of the masses. they only fight because of contract or political gains. The unity of the masses is the only weapon

Follow Us on Facebook  @LadunLiadi; Instagram  @LadunLiadi; Twitter  @LadunLiadi; Youtube  @LadunLiadiTV for updates
Army chief General Manoj Naravane on Saturday said the Army is playing its part in containing the novel Coronavirus epidemic which has achieved "global proportions" and become a "major threat" to the world.

The Indian Army has set up a quarantine facility in Manesar near Delhi to keep those evacuated from China's Hubei province.

On Saturday morning, Air India's jumbo B747 plane, evacuating 324 Indian nationals from the novel coronavirus-hit Wuhan in China, landed in New Delhi.

When asked about the Army's role in setting up the quarantine facility in Manesar, general Naravane said the coronavirus epidemic has achieved global proportions.

"The coronavirus has achieved global proportions and we all view it as a very major threat to the world. So to that end, the whole of the nations have to come together to put in possible measures required to make sure that this threat/epidemic is contained in the best possible way and (kept at) the lowest level, and to that end, we are also playing our part," the general said.

General Narawane was speaking to reporters here in Maharashtra on the sidelines of the bicentenary event of the Bombay Engineering Group, also known as Bombay Sappers.

The death toll in the novel coronavirus (nCoV) outbreak in China has risen to 259 with the total confirmed cases surging to 11,791 amid stepped up efforts by a number of countries to evacuate their nationals from Hubei province, the epicentre of the virus.

Speaking on the role of engineers, the Army chief said warfare in the future will become more technical and network-centric.

"Not only engineers but all of us will have to keep adapting to the changing nature of warfare, and to that end I feel that engineers have a big role to play in the future, where they will have to absorb new technologies and move with the times," the top commander said.

The Army chief said that "capacity building" is an ongoing process, when asked about the role of engineers in the infrastructure-related works along the borders.

"We will continue to improve our capacity in the future. Whenever a construction work such as road, bridges or barracks is involved, engineers will have a major role to play," added the chief of the Army staff.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
Saturday Night Live is the benchmark of sketch TV. The show, which has been on the air for more than four decades, pairs a celebrity host with a rotating cast of comedians performing live and taped sketches, and also features a musical performance. It has become an inescapable part of the cultural conversation. SNL has brought humor to countless elections, has poked fun at pop culture trends, has been subject to major controversies, and has created some of the most indelible TV moments of all time.

"SNL" has also kept up with the times. After a brief hiatus due to COVID-19, the show resumed with a "quarantine version" in mid-April 2020. These broadcasts function as live shows via Zoom with cast members calling in and running skits remotely. That first episode back was hosted by Tom Hanks and featured musical guest Chris Martin of Coldplay.
New Ross character Richie Roche lived an alternative lifestyle and did it his own way
The Flying W Ranch in Colorado Springs will reopen Thursday, May 21, after being ravaged by the Waldo Canyon fire in 2012.

Flying W posted on Facebook that it is now selling tickets to its grand reopening chuckwagon dinner.

The fire destroyed hundreds of homes, including the ranch, in the Mountain Shadows neighborhood.

The Flying W Wranglers, who auditioned over 300 individuals for the grand reopening, will host the dinner and stage shows in the summer Chuckwagon operation, which runs through Sept. 30.

Click here for tickets.
With the a goal of starting clinical trials in 16 weeks, scientists around the world are racing to develop a vaccine against the new coronavirus (2019-nCoV) which has spread from Wuhan City in China to at least 24 countries within a month of first being reported on December 31.

China shared the genetic code of 2019-nCoV on January 10 and since then scientists worldwide have mapped dozens of genetic sequences from the virus strains to study how its changing genetically as the outbreak progresses.

Scientists are leveraging existing work on vaccines against the Middle East Respiratory Syndrome (Mers) coronavirus and rapid response platforms with 2019-nCoV genetic sequences inserted to speed up vaccine development.

The earliest a fast-tracked vaccine can be developed is six months, which means (it will be) ready to market by next year. The changes in a virus genetic sequence help establish patterns, which are used to predict its behaviour, how it will spread and whether it is likely become more virulent or mild. To develop a vaccine to protect people from it, we need study consistent virus change, said Dr Nirmal K Ganguly, former director general, Indian Council of Medical Research (ICMR).

The virus sample from Indias only 2019-nCoV case in Kerala has also been sequenced by the ICMR-National Institute of Virology Pune, which will share it with the World Health Organisation (WHO) to be included in the global database.

Mutations are mostly detrimental to the virus or have no effect at all. For example, a mutation of the Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome (Sars) virus sustained during the 2003 outbreak reduced its virulence, according to a study published in the journal, Scientific Reports in 2018.

The Coalition for Endemic Preparedness Innovations (CEPI), which was created after the Ebola outbreak in West Africa to fund vaccine development for emerging diseases, is funding three 2019-nCoV vaccine-development projects. Our aspiration with these technologies is to bring a new pathogen from gene sequence to clinical testing in 16 weeks  which is significantly shorter than where we are now, said Richard Hatchett, CEO of Cepi, which is funded by governments and philanthropic organisations, in a statement.

Alibaba founder Jack Ma has donated US$14.4 million for vaccine development, while the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation has committed $10 million aid.

Cepi-backed Inovio Pharmaceuticals has begun preclinical testing and preparations for clinical product manufacturing of its vaccine candidate INO-4800 against 2019-nCoV in the US and on Thursday, it announced a collaboration with Beijing Advaccine Biotechnology to run simultaneous Phase 1 trials in China and the US.

While Inovio is using a DNA medicine platform, the University of Queensland in Australia is working on a molecular clamp vaccine, which allows targeted and rapid vaccine production against multiple viruses.

Moderna is working on an mRNA vaccine which will be designed in collaboration with US National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases. RNA vaccines work by introducing an mRNA sequence (molecule that tells cells what to build) coded for a disease-specific antigen. Once its ready for human testing, NIAID will run clinical trials.

The 2019-nCoV death rate of a little over 2% is not as high as Sars (9.6%, according to WHO). An emergency vaccine to control outbreaks is essential, but as of now, it (2019-nCoV) is causing serious illness in 20% people and not causing disease and death in young, healthy people, said a scientist with the department of science and technology, who did not want to be named.

What is worrying is asymptomatic people transmitting disease, but till gaps remain about how the virus behaves, we have to follow international testing and quarantine protocols to stop it, said Dr Ganguly.

SHARE THIS ARTICLE ON
There was a deflated mood in London the day after Brexit. A sense that the divorce from the EU is now a done deal co-existed on Saturday with trepidation about what happens next as Britain enters the transition period in search of a new trade deal with the European bloc.

Over the past two days, the stark divide between the Leave and Remain camps was on display in Parliament Square. On Friday, a huge, uproarious pro-Brexit rally greeted the UKs departure from the EU, only hours after a small anti-Brexit crowd protested in the same place the night before. The outpourings of emotion broke the sense of tiredness about Brexit that had pervaded the national mood in recent weeks  epitomised by the near indifference the passing of Prime Minister Boris Johnsons Brexit deal met with after the New Year.

On Saturday, in the streets of South Kensington  where Brits converge from across the country on the august, late Victorian national museums  it seemed that Brexit fatigue had returned. For some it was tempered nevertheless with concern about what happens next, as the UK enters an 11-month transition period. Johnson promises not to prolong this stage of the process beyond that point, vowing to strike a free trade deal with the EU by 2020's end. Experts, meanwhile, warn that objective is overly ambitious and risks a de facto no-deal outcome.



Whats really the point?



Its taken such a long time since it started, and now were just waiting till the end of year before the entire thing goes through, said Brunel University student Vanujan, hanging out opposite the Victoria and Albert Museum in South Kensington. At this point its just another day; were not too worried about it, he said.



While nothing had tangibly changed after the moment Brexit took effect at 11pm on January 31, he noted, the end of the transition period was a worrying point on the horizon. At the end of this period, it wouldnt be surprising to find that its a hard Brexit, said Vanujan, who moved to the UK from Sri Lanka as a child. If it is a hard Brexit, in five years time I think I might leave the country.



Vanujan was too young to have voted in the 2016 referendum but opposed the UKs departure from the EU. Nevertheless, after more than three years of Brexit dominating the national debate to the exclusion of other political priorities, he said, in terms of rejoining, I think theres going to be other stuff that the UK has to worry about.



On Saturday in London, Vanujan wasnt alone in at once ruing the advent of Brexit and wearying of the long, all-consuming process that led to it.

Its been going on for ages  whats really the point? said a young man from Gloucestershire in the rural west of England, walking towards South Kensingtons Natural History Museum on a day trip to the capital. I think being in the EU benefitted us; I dont know whats going to happen now, continued this visitor to London, who was too young to cast a ballot in the 2016 vote but would have opted for Remain.



Two different bubbles



Another day tripper outside the Natural History Museum expressed bewilderment over what had happened during the more than three years that followed the shock referendum result in 2016: We voted to leave and then we didnt leave  and now  its confusing.



A doorman at the same museum voiced similar Brexit fatigue. Its over, were done, were out, lets get on with it, he said with a weary shrug.



Up the road, outside Imperial College London, a pharmaceutical importer visiting the capital for the day suggested the post-Brexit mood of lassitude might eventually be broken. Even though nothings really changed in the short term, people are starting to move on and think about whats coming next," the visitor said. "A lot of people who voted for Brexit think everything is going to immediately improve, but I work in an industry that is closely tied to the single market  and one thing that I can see is that up until the end of the transition period its business as usual, but beyond that it feels like youve got two different bubbles: youve got people who are looking at the details, and youve got people who think its over, and that anybody who is still bringing it up is just whining.



Crossing the road outside the Palace of Westminster onto Parliament Square  where the ecstatic Brexiteer celebrations on Friday night had turned the grass into a field of caked mud  a French tourist voiced a similar sense that the real moment of change in the UKs relationship with the continent might lie in the near future. Its a shame, she said of Brexit, with quintessentially Gallic sangfroid. For the moment, it feels like this is still Europe, but in the years to come  well see.
Britain left the EU on the stroke of midnight in a move that heralds another year of uncertainty for the Irish economy. The potential remains for a huge shock that may cost billions of euro in lost output and thousands of job losses here.

Far from being settled by the political declaration in the withdrawal agreement, all is now left to play for in the Brexit trade talks.

No one really has a clue as to how our relationship will work out with a country that takes 1bn a month of Irish goods exports and more than double that in services.

A 'clean' Brexit has already been muddied by a 'half-in, half-out' arrangement for Northern Ireland, which will remain part of the UK but operate under EU rules.

UK prime minister Boris Johnson has said that any trade agreement needs to be struck in 2020 and that he will not ask for an extension of talks, something that seasoned negotiators say is an impossibly tight timeline for a comprehensive deal.

Most commentators and economists are betting on another fudge, based on Mr Johnson's acceptance of more stringent Brexit terms than those agreed by his predecessor.

"In the extreme, the UK may face yet another cliff-edge exit at the end of this year, when the transition period within the EU withdrawal agreement is due to expire," said Neil Shearing, group chief economist at Capital Economics.

"A more likely outcome, given the history of Brexit to date, is more fudge - with perhaps a 'phase one' deal covering the basic elements of goods trade between the UK and EU agreed by the end of this year and the more thorny issues around services trade, market access and financial services kicked down the road."

For firms here, the path leading to that "fudge" will be punctuated with the kind of unpredictability and risk that characterised 2019. According to a study of more than 7,000 companies from 71 countries that included 53 Irish firms, managers here spent more time discussing Brexit than anywhere else, Britain included.

"We estimate that due to Brexit risk, the average Irish firm decreased its investment rate by 3.9pc and reduced its employment growth rate by 4.2pc relative to the mean in every year since the Brexit referendum," the study published by the National Bureau of Economic Research (NBER) said.

Irish Continental Group, which runs Irish Ferries, has already seen the impact of Brexit deadlines coming and going.

In its November trading update, the company said that it had experienced "some volatility in carryings as key Brexit dates were approached and subsequently postponed".

Had the UK dropped out without a deal at the end of December, Ireland would have been relegated from the top of the EU growth leagues to close to the bottom. In October, the Central Bank of Ireland warned that growth in 2020 would plunge to close to zero from an expected 4.3pc, in the event of a cliff-edge Brexit.

Unemployment would have started to rise as consumption, investment, exports and imports all shrank, the Central Bank's economists wrote.

Under a no-deal scenario, the Bank forecast that unemployment would have risen to 6.9pc in 2021, more than two percentage points higher than it would have been with a deal.

A study commissioned by the Government has warned that the economy could be up to 18bn smaller by 2030 than it would have been had the UK stayed inside the bloc.

Even if UK regulations remain closely tied to Europe, the hit would be 7bn, according to the report's author, Copenhagen Economics.

Agriculture and food firms exporting to the UK could face hefty tariffs, along with new regulations, that might cost up to 12,400 jobs, the consultancy warned.

While the biggest damage will be in these two sectors, and in localities along the Border with Northern Ireland, among workers who tend to be older and less well-educated, the impact will spread. Copenhagen Economics projected that real wages would be 8.7pc below the 2030 non-Brexit baseline for low-skilled staff.

There is also a risk that the woes of the farming sector will transmit to the rest of the economy.

"Brexit uncertainty continues and we view a hard Brexit as negative for Ireland's farm and agroindustry particularly, and rural Ireland generally," FBD Holdings, an insurance company, warned. "Our business is planning for some limited operational impacts that may arise to support the continuing needs of our customers."

While a deal on the withdrawal agreement late last year helped to give a bump to consumer sentiment and retail sales here, that could evaporate quickly amid what are expected to be fraught talks over trade.

"Ireland continues to have the strongest negative sentiment scores, even compared with the UK," the NBER study said.

Brexit timeline: What happens now?

January 31  Brexit Day. Britain formally left the EU at midnight, Brussels time.

February 1  Although the UK has formally left the EU after 47 years of membership, it remains bound by the blocs rules for the remainder of 2020.

March 1  The EU aims to have in place its formal negotiating mandate that will give the European Commission the authorisation it needs to begin talks on the future relationship with Britain.

June  Summit between the two sides to review progress.

June 31  Final date on which London can request an extension to the transition period that expires at the end of 2020.

November  A trade deal must be presented to the EU parliament so it can ratify any trade treaty.

December 31  Transition period ends. Without a deal, trade between the UK and the EU will be conducted on World Trade Organisation terms, which would mean large tariffs and a big economic hit here.
The son of a highly respected former senior garda has been arrested in a massive 1.6m drugs seizure linked to the 'Mr Big' mob.

His arrest followed a major investigation by elite detectives from the Drugs and Organised Crime Bureau (DOCB).

The 24-year-old suspect remained in custody at Tallaght garda station last night where he was being questioned under drugs trafficking legislation after his arrest on Thursday night.

The huge seizure is considered a massive blow to the international drugs trafficking operation led by Coolock-based criminal mastermind 'Mr Big.'

"Yes, the arrested male is the son of a respected retired garda but they have had no relationship for a long time now and the garda has absolutely no involvement in crime," a senior source said last night.

"This individual has been on the Garda radar for years because of his involvement in drug dealing and serious organised criminality, including the theft of a firearm a number of years back."

Gardai yesterday announced details of the operation, which sources say is one of the most significant drugs busts of the year so far.

"On Thursday, January 30, 2020, during the course of an intelligence led operation undertaken by GNDOCB, targeting persons suspected to be involved in serious organised crime operating in the Dublin Metropolitan Region and in Co Meath, personnel attached to GNDOCB and the Special Crime Task Force, intercepted a vehicle in the Killinarden area of Tallaght, Dublin 24," a spokesman said.

"During the search of the vehicle investigating members seized a quantity of a substance believed to be cocaine and a quantity of another substance believed to be heroin (both pending analysis).

"The sole occupant of the car, a 24-year-old male, was arrested on suspicion of possession of controlled drugs and is currently detained under the provisions of Section 2 of the Criminal Justice (Drug Trafficking) Act.

"As a result of these seizures, follow-up searches were carried out at premises located in Ashbourne and Rathoath ,Co Meath.

"In the course of these searches, suspected cocaine and heroin, both pending analysis, with an estimated value of approximately 1.6million was seized, along with other drug-related paraphernalia.

"The Mr Big drugs mob are said to be reeling from the seizure, and it adds more pressure on its boss, who is involved in a feud with other criminals that has already led to the barbaric murder of teenager Keane Mulready-Woods, as well as the shooting dead of Mr Bigs arch rival Richie Carberry last November.

Mr Bigs crew are considered the biggest drug dealing organisation on the northside and have been involved in tiger kidnappings.

They are suspected of carrying out the gun murders of Real IRA brothers Alan and Vinnie Ryan in 2012 and 2016 as part of an extortion-related dispute.

The mob are also suspected of murdering Carberry, which is considered the motive behind the murder of Mulready-Woods, because some of the teenagers associates are suspected of active involvement in it.

Carberry (39) was gunned down after getting out of his car in Castlemart in Drive, Bettystown, on November 4.
A number of Drogheda lcoal childcare providers have said they will take part in the national protest taking place early next month to highlight the childcare crisis in Ireland.

The protest, which will take place on February 5th in Dublin, has been organised by The Early Years Alliance who said the march will involve thousands of educators, providers and parents to demand a sustainable solution to the worsening children crisis.

Teresa Thompson, SIPTUs Big Start Co-ordinator for Lough said: The Sector needs more State support. Chronic under-investment means the sums dont add up for Providers and their Staff, but also for Parents. Providers are struggling with increased costs, but are also aware that Parents are also struggling with the cost of Childcare and because of this, they really do not want to pass on these increased costs to them.

Aishling Silk, who lives in Ardee and was a preschool provider in Ballapousta and now lectures early years students in DCU, said she joined the protest to highlight the lack of government funding to provide adequate levels of pay and conditions for early years professionals back in February 2015.

I will march again on the 5th February 2020 to highlight the same issue and let those who will make up the new government know that we will not go away the difference this time is that we are stronger and more united and have the srength of a union behind us, she said and called for all parents and staff to join in.

We are supporting the protest because things simply cannot be allowed to continue as they are, added Catherine McKearney from The Grange Childcare. We are calling on the next government to work with those in the sector and to cease the current culture of making bad policy decisions.
Union home minister Amit Shah has reportedly asked the Delhi police to take the strictest action against the young man who opened fire with a pistol at anti-CAA protesters at Jamia when they were setting out for Rajghat on the day of Mahatma Gandhis martyrdom on Thursday, and injured a student. It is unlikely Mr Shah will be taken at face value.

The shooters Facebook activity suggests he has long been linked to the RSS and its affiliates. After discharging a bullet from his gun, he appeared only a few yards away from the massed police force and seemed confident he will come to no harm. When a policeman at last apprehended him, the widely beamed videos showed the shooter raised a slogan in favour of the Delhi police.

A widely shared view is that the gunman was planted by Hindutva forces to do something sensational just days before the Delhi Assembly polls on February 8 to consolidate communal polarisation. A somewhat different but not wholly dissimilar view is that he, a self-confessed Hindutva nationalist who was psyched up by propagandist videos (like many young Muslims drawn to the current concept of jihad), fell an easy prey to Anurag Thakurs outrageous provocation at a public meeting two days earlier when he instigated a Delhi election rally to chant shoot the traitors, with those of a particular faith being all but identified as such by a long list of BJP top leaders.

Any propaganda-crazed Hindutva-oriented youth is likely to be dead certain he will come to no harm these days. Last month, one of the JNU attackers, a young woman who was identified though she too had her face covered, as an activist of the ABVP, the RSS' student body, is still roaming free. Other attackers were found to be linked to the same group. But the only FIR filed by the police was against Aishe Ghosh, leader of the students union who was attacked with a rod and had serious injuries to her head. Such a police force is expected to be indulgent with criminals of the Hindutva variety.

All this is very well, but what of Mr Thakur? Is it enough that he was asked by the Election Commission to sit out the campaign for a few days, now that his vulgar exhortation has led to a shooting? Should criminal law not catch up with him for being an accessory to an attempted murder? Probably none of this will happen. After all, just after saying strict action will be taken against the shooter, the Union home minister on Thursday said the Delhi election was a battle between Shaheen Bagh and those who taught Pakistan a lesson through a surgical strike. The dumbest mind can't fail to see that anti-CAA protesters are being singled out as being of one faith, though this is a false pitch. The BJP has prepared a communal wicket and is playing every stroke in the book on it, not bothering with any other issue. This is a dangerous poll campaign.
LANSING  Representative Phil Green is the latest local state politician to throw his support behind a plan opposing a Canadian nuclear waste storage site near Lake Huron.

Green is sponsoring a resolution that calls on Congress to take every legal action possible to prevent the Canadian government from allowing the Ontario Power Generation Company to dump nuclear waste at a site that would be directly across Lake Huron from the Thumb.

The proposed site for the waste, in Kincardine, Ontario, is 120 miles upstream from the main drinking water intakes for Southeast Michigan.

There is also a bipartisan resolution introduced by Michigans congressional lawmakers, sponsored by Senators Gary Peters and Debbie Stabenow, as well as Rep. Dan Kildee of Flint and Rep. John Moolenaar of Midland, that has the support of 10 Michigan representatives, including Republican Paul Mitchell.

The Great Lakes provide drinking water to more than 40 million people, Green said in a statement. Burying this waste would be a disaster waiting to happen. This is Canadas most dangerous nuclear waste were talking about, and it would be located less than a mile from the Lake Huron shoreline and only 1,300 feet below the lake level. This is much too risky to even consider for the people of the United States. We must do whatever we can to prevent this from happening.

The proposed site would store between 88,000 and 110,000 tons of high-level waste and would take thousands of years to decay to a safe state.

Underground waste repositories have leaked in the past, Green said further. Germany right now is spending billions of dollars to dig up low- to intermediate-radioactive waste stores in a salt mine because of leakage and other environmental concerns. We must not allow risky waste like this anywhere near our Great Lakes. Can you imagine what a leak would mean for Michigan? It would not be an easy fix.

State Representative Shane Hernandez is another co-sponsor for this resolution and had previously spoken out on how this would be devastating for the health of the Great Lakes and the safety of residents.

The resolution was approved by the House Natural Resources and Outdoor Recreation Committee with bipartisan support, and now advances to the Floor for further consideration.
Everyone knows that the royal family members have certain rules and protocols that they have to follow at all times. In addition to dressing a certain way, wearing hats to appropriate engagements, and even holding their teacups in a specific manner, the royals are expected to bow and curtsy to some of the other members of the royal family.

Now that Megxit is in full swing, there are quite a lot of changes happening behind the palace doors. Everyone has questions regarding Meghan, Duchess of Sussex and Prince Harrys future, and we can only imagine that some royal family members have questions as well!

Since they are stepping back as senior royals, just about every aspect of their lives will be different. Royal fans will miss seeing Meghan and Prince Harry make appearances, although we know that they are doing what they feel is best for themselves and their young son, Archie Harrison.

Not every aspect of Megxit has been confirmed, which means we cant help but wonder one thing: Will Meghan and Prince Harry have to bow and curtsy to Prince William and Kate, Duchess of Cambridge after Megxit?

Meghan Markle and Prince Harry are stepping back from their roles as senior royals

Being a senior member of the royal family may sound like it is a life of glitz and glamour, however, that couldnt be further from the truth. To say that it is stressful is actually an understatement, and Meghan and Prince Harry have been under a lot of pressure for the past few years.

According to The Sun, they shocked the world early in January when they announced that they would be resigning from royal duties. It does seem to make sense, though  the notoriously private couple has said that they are unhappy with royal life and the stress that comes along with it.

Meghan, in particular, has taken much more than her fair share of the backlash. Especially from the news media, who have mocked and criticized everything from her mixed-race heritage to her mothering skills when it comes to Baby Archie.

Meghan Markle and Prince Harry are losing their HRH titles

Prince Harry and Meghan Markle | Andrew Milligan  WPA Pool/Getty Images

One of the things that come along with Megxit is that Meghan and Prince Harry will no longer be considered to be Their Royal Highnesses. Although Meghan has only had a title since the couples wedding in 2018, Prince Harry has been known as His Royal Highness since the day he was born.

After a few weeks of working out the details of the split, E! Online reports that Meghan and Prince Harry will no longer be entitled to use royal titles. What else comes along with Megxit?

Well, it turns out that the couple will no longer receive public funding. In addition, they have agreed to repay the almost $3 million of taxpayer money that was used in the extensive renovations of Frogmore Cottage, their home in Windsor.

Looks like Meghan and Prince Harry are giving up quite a lot, and it seems to be exactly what they want.

Will Meghan Markle and Prince Harry have to bow and curtsy to Prince William and Kate Middleton after the split is final?

One of the biggest questions on everyones mind is who Meghan and Prince Harry will have to bow and curtsy to. While we see some bowing and curtsying in front of the cameras, Hello! reports that it doesnt really happen as often as we think it does.

Actually, the family members generally only bow or curtsy to Queen Elizabeth, and most people may not realize that they only have to do it if it is the first time they are seeing her on a particular day. After Megxit is a done deal, Prince Harry and Meghan will not have to curtsy or bow to Prince William and Kate, as that is something that they will only continue to do on those occasions when they see the queen.
The Jammu and Kashmir administration on Saturday said the killing of three Jaish-e-Mohammad terrorists in a gunfight near here prevented a "major terror plot" in the Union Territory.

Three Pakistani terrorists, travelling in a truck from Kathua to the Kashmir valley, were killed when security forces intercepted them on the Jammu-Srinagar national highway at a toll plaza in Nagrota here.

"Neutralizing these fully-armed terrorists has possibly prevented a 'fidayeen' (suicide) attack and much bigger terror plot," Rajiv Rai Bhatnagar, advisor to Lt Governor G C Murmu, said during an interaction with senior police officers including DGP Dilbag Singh here.

He said efforts are being made to revive terrorism in the Jammu region.

"Police along other security agencies should fill the gaps to prevent any such attempts," Bhatnagar said, complementing police for successful operation at Nagrota.

He said preventive action to thwart terrorists' designs is always better.

"Border security and highway grids are to be further tightened and maximum use of technology should be made to prevent such attempts," Bhatnagar said.

He also lauded the role of the Jammu and Kashmir Police against the drug peddling menace and said a "good job" has been done on that front but more is needed.

"Since the Jammu region has vast border connectivity with the rest of the country, plugging the routes and increasing the checking points would put a check on the NDPS activities," the advisor said.

Meanwhile, Inspector General of Police, Jammu zone, Mukesh Singh handed over a commendation certificate Class-I and a cash prize of Rs 25,000 each to its three personnel -- Assistant Sub-inspector Rajinder Singh, Selection grade constable Kartar Singh and Constable Bhoom Raj -- for their exemplary bravery during the Friday encounter.

Constable Raj, who was injured during the gunbattle, is undergoing treatment at Government Medical College hospital here.

He was handed over the certificate and cash by Singh during a visit to enquire about his health, a police spokesman said.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
Democratic insiders are warning that party voters could cast their 2020 vote for President Donald Trump if Vermont Senator Bernie Sanders wins the Democratic nomination.

They believe that 'the vast majority of Democrats' just 'do not believe in socialism' and would not cast a vote, would vote third party, or even vote for Trump if self-proclaimed socialist Sanders was the Democratic option.

Sanders has led recent polls in Iowa ahead of Monday's caucus and has also shown a strong lead in New Hampshire. Former Vice President Joe Biden maintains his national lead.

Large donors claim many Democrats won't stand with Senator Bernie Sanders if nominated

Democratic insiders claims some Democrats would vote for President Trump over Sanders

Several large Democratic donors are among the voices warning that a Bernie Sanders nomination would spell disaster for Democrats if facing off with Trump in November.

Some have even compared it to the British Labour Party's disastrous election campaign in December 2019 when leader Jeremy Corbyn was annihilated by Conservative Party leader Boris Johnson.

'I'll still put a Bernie Sanders bumper sticker on my car, but a lot of people won't,' Jim Kessler, executive vice president for policy at Democratic think tank Third Way, told the New York Post. The think tank does not align with any one Democratic candidate.

'They'll say "I don't like Donald Trump, but I don't like Sanders either. We survived four years of Trump, maybe we'll survive another four years."

'They'll stay home, vote third party, or vote for Trump,' he added.

Jim Kessler, executive vice president for policy at Democratic think tank Third Way (pictured right) thinks centrists will 'stay home, vote third party, or vote for Trump' over Bernie Sanders

An insider on the Michael Bloomberg campaign also claims his supporters won't back Sanders

An insider on the Michael Bloomberg campaign claims that supporters of centrist candidates such as Bloomberg, former Vice President Joe Biden, and South Bend, Indiana Mayor Pete Buttigieg would be unlikely to stand with Sanders if he beats their chosen candidate.

The former New York mayor is currently polling at just one percent in Iowa and two percent in New Hampshire, according to recent polls.

'I think that there is a very real 'Never Bernie' sentiment amongst both the donor class and moderate, centrist Democrats, or what I would call regular Democrats,' the insider said.

'Bloomberg and Pete [Buttigieg] and [Joe] Biden, who represent the heart and soul of the party  their supporters are not as apt to support someone like Bernie.'

It is believed that suburban and older voters, in particular, would be reluctant to back Bernie with only 32 percent of Baby Boomers showing favorable views of 'socialism', according to a November 2019 Gallup poll.

This compares with 39 percent of Generation X and a 50:50 split among Millennials who favor socialism.

'For Democrats to win, the election must be a referendum on Trump and not a debate about socialism,' said longtime Democratic donor Michael Kempner. He has cut check for eentrists Biden and Buttigieg.

'The vast majority of Democrats and the nation do not believe in socialism.'

According to Politico, such is the concern about a potential Sanders nomination that a small group of Democratic National Committee members have looked to weaken his campaign and head of a brokered convention.

Politico reports that half a dozen members have discussed a policy reversal that would see super delegates, now called automatic delegates, be able to vote on the first ballot at the party's national convention, increasing the influence of DNC members, members of Congress and other top party officials.

For two years after the 2016 convention, which saw Hillary Clinton receive the most super delegate votes and eventually clinch the nomination, the move to relegate the super delegates was a high priority for the DNC.

The policy change was also a massive win for the left after Sanders supporters voiced they frustration at the 2016 automatic delegate voting.

A Bernie Sanders campaign insider said they are aware of the 'Never Bernie' movement

Former DNC chair Donna Brazile claimed that there was no such anti-Bernie movement

'[DNC Chairman] Tom Perez fought tooth and nail to ensure our nominee would be chosen by pledged delegates, not automatic delegates,' David Bergstein, a DNC spokesman, told Politico in an email, arguing that no policy reversal was in play.

'The DNC passed these reforms unanimously. These rules make our party stronger and help ensure our eventual nominee has the full support of the party behind them.'

Former DNC chair Donna Brazile also claimed that there was no such anti-Bernie movement in place.

'There's nothing coming from the DNC, party leaders or those who are in the loop. Donors get moody all the time'' she told The Post.

A person close the Sanders campaign told that Post that they were aware of the 'Never Bernie' movement but there was 'no point in being afraid of it'.

The first vote on the Democratic candidates will take place this Monday, February 3, in the Iowa caucus.
CAIRO - Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas threatened Saturday to cut security ties with both Israel and the U.S. in a speech at an Arab League meeting in which he denounced the White House plan for ending the Israeli-Palestinian conflict.

The U.S. plan would grant the Palestinians limited self-rule in parts of the occupied West Bank, while allowing Israel to annex all its settlements there and keep nearly all of east Jerusalem.

The summit of Arab foreign ministers in Egypts capital Cairo was requested by the Palestinians, who responded angrily to the American proposal.

Abbas said he told Israel and the U.S. that there will be no relations with them, including the security ties following the deal that Palestinians say heavily favours Israel.

The Western-backed Palestinian leadership has been under mounting pressure from ordinary Palestinians and its rivals in the Islamic militant group Hamas to cut off security ties with Israel and the U.S. or even dismantle the increasingly unpopular Palestinian Authority.

That would leave Israel responsible for the complicated and expensive task of providing basic services to hundreds of thousands of Palestinians in the West Bank.

The Palestinians have made such threats in the past, with few people taking them seriously. But this time might be different, especially if Israel proceeds with annexation of its West Bank settlements  which the Palestinians and most of the international community view as illegal  as well as the Jordan Valley, which accounts for roughly a fourth of the West Bank, according to the U.S. plan.

Abbas could also cut off agreements with U.S. intelligence agencies to combat extremism.

There was no immediate comment from U.S. or Israeli officials on Abbas statement.

The Palestinian leader said he refused to take U.S. President Donald Trumps phone calls and messages because I know that he would use that to say he consulted us.

I will never accept this solution, Abbas said. I will not have it recorded in my history that I have sold Jerusalem.

He said the Palestinians remain committed to ending the Israeli occupation and establishing a state with its capital in east Jerusalem.

Abbas received a long applause from the foreign ministers in attendance.

Abbas said the Palestinians wouldnt accept the U.S. as a sole mediator in any negotiations with Israel. He said they would go to the United Nations Security Council and other world and regional organizations to explain our position.

The Arab Leagues head, Ahmed Aboul-Gheit, said the proposal revealed a sharp turn in the long-standing U.S. foreign policy regarding the Israeli-Palestinian conflict.

This turn does not help achieve peace and a just solution, he declared.

Aboul-Gheit called for the Israelis and Palestinians to negotiate to reach a satisfactory solution for both of them.

The Arab Leagues final communique described the deal as a new setback for the three-decade peace efforts. It said Arab foreign ministers reject the U.S., Israeli deal of the century because it did not meet the minimum rights and aspirations of the Palestinian people.

It cited the 2002 Arab Peace Initiative as an Arab accepted settlement to the conflict. The initiative offers Israel normal ties with Arab states in return for Palestinian statehood on territory captured in 1967.

That plan starkly contradicts the White Houses blueprint.

President Trump unveiled the long-awaited proposal Tuesday in Washington. Under the plan, the Palestinians would be granted statehood in Gaza, scattered chunks of the West Bank and some neighbourhoods on the outskirts of Jerusalem, all linked together by a new network of roads, bridges and tunnels. Israel would control the states borders and airspace and maintain overall security authority. Critics of the plan say this would rob Palestinian statehood of any meaning.

The plan would abolish the right of return for Palestinian refugees displaced by the 1948 war and their descendants, a key Palestinian demand. The entire agreement would be contingent on Gazas Hamas rulers and other armed groups disarming, something they have always adamantly rejected.

Ambassadors from the United Arab Emirates, Bahrain and Oman attended the Tuesday unveiling in Washington, in a tacit sign of support for the U.S. initiative.

Saudi Arabia and Egypt, Arab states that are close U.S. allies, said they appreciated President Trumps efforts and called for renewed negotiations without commenting on the plans content.

Egypt urged in a statement that Israelis and Palestinians carefully study the plan. It said it favours a solution that restores all the legitimate rights of the Palestinian people through establishing an independent and sovereign state on the occupied Palestinian territories.

The Egyptian statement did not mention the long-held Arab demand of east Jerusalem as the capital of any future Palestinian state  as Cairo has in past statements related to the conflict. The countrys foreign minister, however, said in his speech to the league that Egypt backs a comprehensive, fair settlement of the Palestinian cause, one that eventually leads to a Palestinian state on the 1967 occupied territories with east Jerusalem as its capital.

Jordan, meanwhile, warned against any Israeli annexation of Palestinian lands and reaffirmed its commitment to the creation of a Palestinian state along the 1967 lines, which would include all the West Bank and Israeli-annexed east Jerusalem.

Jordan and Egypt are the only two Arab countries that have peace treaties with Israel.
By Richard Vines

Filippo Falcone is anxiously waiting to see if he has the right to settle in the UK.

Nothing surprising about that. Hes Italian and the rules have changed since the UK. decided to quit the European Union.

But he might be forgiven for feeling a little disappointed. Chef Falcone left Italy for London in 1958. He is 81 years old and still in the kitchen every day, cooking for restaurant guests in the city that has been his home for more than six decades. His house is here, his family including a great granddaughter is here, and he rarely returns to Italy even for a holiday.

This is my home, Filippo says. Its upsetting.

Hes far from alone in this situation: Veteran French chefs Pierre Koffmann and Claude Bosi, both married to English women, are among many in the restaurant industry who are belatedly applying for the right to remain.

Filippo says he originally arrived in the U.K. on a work permit and was no longer required to apply for an extension after five years. I could have applied for a passport, but I am Italian and i didnt see the point, he says. But if hes unhappy, it doesnt really show, and hes smiling and animated when he talks about his long and interesting life in the U.K.

Preparing and serving food is in his blood. His parents ran a trattoria serving farmers and workers at Roseto Valfortore in the Puglia region of southern Italy.

I grew up interested in cooking and always stayed when my mamma cooked, he says. Quite a few people would come and they would say, `Signora Filomena, whatever you cook for your sons and your family, it is OK for us. We were five boys and three sisters. I left school around the age of 13. I used to do a bit of everything. My family had a mill for flour, the water one, and I worked there.

But he was then called up for military service and decided to move to England, where his sister was working. It was cold and foggy, but he immediately fell in love with the country and was particularly struck by how ordered things were, even bus queues.

I loved the discipline, he says. Now its not the same. You are at the bus stop, you are first, you are last and all this changed. I dont like it. I get upset. They even push you and I say, `You have got no manners.

All right, the food wasnt great back in those days. Many English people ate spaghetti out of a can. Even at the restaurant where he started as a kitchen porter, pasta arrived in large boxes rather than being freshly made. He quickly rose to work as a chef and had to accept that even friendly and polite customers might say pasta was undercooked because it was al dente.

His early days were spent at a restaurant called Stockpot, on Panton Street, near Trafalgar Square. Sixty years later, that is where he is cooking even now, though it is called Tasting Sicily Enzos Kitchen and the cooking has certainly changed somewhat. Stockpot was popular in its time, and Filippo opened several other branches as head chef and even became a major shareholder in the company.

He now works for chef and restaurateur Enzo Oliveri and is a valued member of the Tasting Sicily team.

Filippo is a very nice, kind person and seeing his journey within the restaurant, he is unique, Oliveri says. Hes an inspiration for the whole of the staff and he is trustworthy and reliable. He is a real asset.

Filippo says he rises at 6 a.m. each morning without needing an alarm clock and works at the restaurant six days a week, from 8 a.m. to 3 p.m. I have nice hours, he says. But sometimes Ive got to stay late because if they are busy, I wont leave.

Does he have advice for the younger chefs? Yes, he says and then laughs. But they wont listen.

Hes engaging company and something of an Anglophile. Hes even grown to like custard, which he found weird when he arrived.

The only cloud on the horizon remains his uncertain status in the U.K.

We pay tax here, he says. I got my daughters here. And I dont know what to do. It is ridiculous.
For much of Louisiana's history, people sentenced to life in prison were routinely released on parole after serving about a decade behind bars, sometimes less.

That changed in the 1970s when state legislators eliminated parole for all lifers, a decision that put more pressure on Louisiana's clemency process  now the only possible relief valve for more than 4,000 people sentenced to life without parole in Louisiana, which imposes such sentences at the highest rate in the nation.

Clemency decisions ultimately rest with Democratic Gov. John Bel Edwards, who has campaigned on a promise of criminal justice reform aimed at reducing Louisiana's vast prison population. He began his second and final term as governor last month.

Since taking office, he has signed 34 commutations of sentence, allowing people convicted of serious violent crimes to be released on parole after decades behind bars. That's a significant increase over the three granted by his predecessor, Republican Gov. Bobby Jindal  but still only 16 percent of the 207 positive recommendations forwarded to his office from the Louisiana Board of Pardons and Parole, which completes its own stringent review process.

Edwards won reelection last fall despite well-funded Republican groups blasting him for championing sentencing reform, and he has pledged to continue pushing for change. In the meantime, prisoner advocates argue that signing more commutations is one small step he can take toward mitigating the impacts of Louisiana's harsh mandatory sentencing laws.

"We have to remember that in Louisiana, this is the only mechanism available to thousands of people who will otherwise die in prison," said Ashley Nellis, senior research analyst for the national nonprofit The Sentencing Project. "That's what should lend some urgency to the governor's decisions."

The state's 2017 criminal justice reform package, which Edwards helped usher into law, softened sentences for minor and nonviolent crimes but stopped short of a more comprehensive overhaul that would have brought Louisiana closer in line with its neighbors. Most states allow parole for lifers  typically people convicted of murder and aggravated rape  after 20 or 30 years.

Edwards declined an interview request for this article.

'Why  take the risk?'

Louisiana's recent history has seen the use of clemency shift from one extreme to the other.

Prior to Jindal's three sentence commutations, which he signed over eight years in office, Kathleen Blanco signed 129 commutations in the early 2000s. Edwin Edwards signed 945 during his first two terms starting in 1972, then another 335 during his third term.

"I always acted on it because it was part of my job and I appointed capable, competent, concerned people to the pardon board," Edwin Edwards told the Advocate in 2011, while discussing Jindal's failure to take action on many applications. "If a governor's going to sit on the recommendation, he might as well not have a board and save the money."

Jindal argued that clemency was appropriate only in "exceptional cases" and that there's a reason the process involves multiple steps to weed out others.

Here's why Gov. Edwards' granted pardons far outpaces Bobby Jindal during first term; See full list Gov. John Bel Edwards has granted pardons to more than 100 people since taking office  far outpacing his predecessor, who ignored actions on 

Commutations are most often granted to people currently incarcerated on serious charges, reducing their sentence or giving them earlier parole eligibility. They're different from pardons, which usually apply to people who have finished serving their sentences, often for more minor crimes, and have requested that the offense is removed from their record. Pardons are more common and easier to obtain than commutations.

Though perhaps more extreme in Louisiana, the downward trend in clemency  particularly sentence commutations for people convicted of violent crimes  is reflected nationwide. Experts attribute the drop to a few controversial cases that were met with heated political backlash, most famously the Willie Horton scandal, which became a defining issue in the 1988 presidential race.

Horton, a convicted murderer, was serving a life sentence in Massachusetts when he failed to return from a weekend furlough program, then raped a woman and stabbed her fiance. The George H.W. Bush campaign ran attack ads slamming his Democratic opponent, Michael Dukakis, who had been governor of Massachusetts when Horton escaped.

That incident had nothing to do with the clemency process itself, but nonetheless stoked widespread fears about letting violent criminals go free. It also coincided with a series of "tough on crime" policies that originated during the 1970s and '80s when violent crime spiked in major American cities.

"All it takes is one news story, and that's what happened with the Willie Horton case," said Rachel Barkow, an NYU Law professor whose research has focused on clemency. "The public is very receptive to those scare tactics and then politicians start thinking, 'Why should I take the risk?'"

Last fall, when John Bel Edwards was running for reelection as the only Democratic governor in the Deep South, one of his most prominent and well-funded political enemies, Republican Attorney General Jeff Landry, formed a Super PAC to hammer the governor for the criminal justice reforms he supported.

The PAC, called Make Louisiana Great Again, quickly raised more than $1 million from oil and gas and other business interests, and launched a TV ad that featured dramatized depictions of violent crimes and accused Edwards of letting "thousands of criminals out of jail early." That ad, and similar ones launched by Edwards' opponent, Eddie Rispone, drew fire from conservative groups that helped pass the bipartisan criminal justice reforms.

Jeff Landry-backed super PAC begins hammering John Bel Edwards in governor's race Louisianas Republican Attorney General Jeff Landry, who has become one of Gov. John Bel Edwards most prominent political enemies, has begun 

Barkow said governors across the country have adopted an overcautious approach to clemency because of similar orchestrated attacks, though commutations have recently become somewhat more common in a few states, including California and Pennsylvania  which also house outsized populations of people serving life without parole. She said John Bel Edwards has already demonstrated his commitment to the process through the pardons and commutations he signed during his first term.

"He should be commended for what he's done, particularly in a Southern state," she said. "Governors who are doing this out of a sense of principal and decency, that's really admirable."

'Old narratives'

When Edwards took office, he quickly signed 22 commutations in his first year  largely to make up for the backlog from Jindal. He signed another 10 over the next several months, then stopped for the remainder of his term, resuming the practice only after he won reelection. He signed two commutations this past December.

Top stories in Baton Rouge in your inbox Twice daily we'll send you the day's biggest headlines. Sign up today. e-mail address * Sign Up

Meanwhile positive recommendations have been steadily trickling into his office and now totaling more than 200.

Statistically it's almost impossible to have a sentence commuted, although pardons are more common, according to data from the governor's office and the pardon board collected since Edwards took office. Just 3 percent of all applications for sentence commutations received since 2016 have been granted thus far.

But criminal justice reform advocates are optimistic Edwards will sign more over the next four years.

"Commutation powers have been weaponized politically  but these are old narratives, and more people are starting to see understand that clemency is there for a reason," said Kerry Myers, deputy director of the Louisiana Parole Project, which helps former state prisoners re-enter society. "When the sentencing structure doesn't allow for redemption or discretion, that's where this process comes in."

It also lends an occasional glimmer of hope for people sentenced to life in Louisiana, he said, giving them something to strive for even if success is exceedingly rare. There are guidelines in state law that dictate when a person can apply for clemency and then reapply after being denied.

Marcus Kondkar, a sociology professor at Loyola University whose current research project involves conducting filmed interviews with dozens of Louisiana lifers, said some inmates described a prolonged state of limbo during the application process, which becomes most acute for those who have received a positive recommendation from the pardon board but are awaiting a decision from the governor.

"But overall the process gives them something to cling onto," Kondkar said. "The minute you accept a true life sentence, you lose hope. It's that simple."

The Louisiana Department of Corrections declined the Advocate's recent request for inmate interviews pertaining to the clemency process.

+2 Louisiana once again has nation's highest imprisonment rate after Oklahoma briefly rose to top After state lawmakers passed historic criminal justice reforms in 2017, Gov. John Bel Edwards was quick to celebrate another achievement that 

Weeding out applicants

The process is designed to weed out applications at various stages, starting with a decision from members of the Louisiana Board of Pardons and Parole  made up of people appointed by the governor  on whether to hear the case.

The application was revamped in 2016, growing from one page to 16, said Francis Abbott, executive director of the board. Data shows about half of all applicants don't even receive a hearing.

Hearings give the board a chance to publicly review a case and question the applicant. For commutation requests, considerations often include the inmate's background, circumstances of their crime, accomplishments and disciplinary history while incarcerated, and opposition from victims or law enforcement. They also use an assessment tool that runs a series of factors through an algorithm to determine a person's likelihood of committing another crime once released.

Research also shows people "age out" of crime, meaning their likelihood of getting rearrested decreases the older they get. LSU research published in 2013 shows almost nonexistent recidivism rates among former Louisiana lifers who were released on commuted sentences.

Board staff members spend months gathering material for the board to review, including reaching out to local law enforcement, prosecutors and victims or their surviving relatives. Cases without victim opposition are more likely to end with a positive recommendation from the board, according to prisoner advocates involved in the clemency process.

"So much goes into these decisions, but the focus is first and foremost on public safety. That's the board's top priority," Abbott said. "We're trying to put the power in the victims' hands. We want them at the table."

Loren Lampert, associate director of the Louisiana District Attorneys Association, said he believes the clemency process allows for sentence review in "extraordinary cases" and  when operated as intended  "fits within the legal, technical and moral notions of justice and fairness." He said the primary concern for prosecutors is "assuring that the victims and their representatives have  the opportunity to provide real and meaningful input."

Of course the board's role is limited to making recommendations to the governor. The final decision is up to him.

Some of the cases awaiting Edwards' signature include the following:

A man convicted of second-degree murder in 1989 following his honorable discharge from the U.S. Marines. He had no prior criminal history but had become addicted to crack after returning home and ultimately stabbed someone who stole his drugs. Now 56 years old, he's been in Angola for more than three decades, where he serves as an inmate counsel and is engaged to be married.

A man who was 19 when he helped his co-defendant, who strangled the victim to death, hide the body by throwing it in the bayou. He was on drugs at the time and had dropped out of school in 10th grade when his father died. He's since earned his GED at Angola and completed a car mechanic training program during his 30 years in prison.

A man convicted of aggravated kidnapping after he and his co-defendant forced a woman into a car, made her cash a $300 check and give them the money, and then let her out at an apartment complex. He was a senior in high school at the time. Now 44 years old, he works as a carpenter and woodworker in Angola.

"Certainly these are difficult decisions to make, but if all the recommendations sit on the governor's desk indefinitely after such a thorough vetting process, that's a waste of time and resources," said Charles "Gee Gee" Hargon, a member of the steering committee for statewide conservative criminal justice reform group Smart on Crime. "These are rehabilitated people who are costing the state money when they could instead be working and paying taxes."

Getting pardoned

People applying for pardons have different goals, most often winning back their right to vote, own a gun and run for public office.

When Tracy Andrus walked out of a pardon board hearing in Baton Rouge a few years ago, he remembers thinking he definitely wouldn't receive a positive recommendation. The board had drilled him with hard questions about his life since leaving prison for issuing worthless checks and felony theft.

Andrus, who earned multiple advanced degrees after leaving prison and now serves as a criminal justice professor at Wiley College in Texas, was surprised to learn that the board had sent a positive recommendation to the governor. Several months later, a big brown envelope arrived at his Texas home, and he opened it to find out his record would be cleared thanks to Edwards.

"I read that and Lord, I almost passed out," said Andrus, now 57. "When I get out and am prevented from doing certain things because of my criminal record, that's like opening the wound again. And that's what millions of people with criminal records are dealing with right now in America."

He's still waiting on a pardon from Texas Gov. Greg Abbott for his crimes committed in that state, though he understands it's unlikely since Abbott typically grants just a handful each year, around Christmastime. If Andrus' request is ever granted, he hopes to run for public office in Texas  maybe even for governor.
Students are seen in this 2014 file photo at Roman Catholic High School. Read more

Students in the Archdiocese of Philadelphias 17 high schools are being told to stay home if they are just returning from China, due to concern about the coronavirus, according to a message sent Friday to school families.

While there is no evidence to suggest the presence of coronavirus in any of our schools, we have implemented the following practices out of an abundance of caution, wrote Sister Maureen L. McDermott, superintendent of the archdioceses secondary schools.

Students returning from China are required to remain home for 14 days following their reentry to the United States, McDermott wrote, citing federal Centers for Disease Control and Prevention guidance that the coronavirus incubation period  meaning the time between exposure and the development of symptoms  is two to 14 days.

 READ MORE: Colleges move to restrict China travel

If students returning from China are free of symptoms after 14 days, they can return to school. Those who must stay home for 14 days will be provided assignments and academic support, the message states. Any students exhibiting signs of ill health during their 14-day home stay are required to seek immediate medical attention.

The notice said that students, as well as faculty or staff members, should not travel to China for the remainder of the school year. Any student exceptions require written consent from their parents and their school.

Parents living in China are being asked by archdiocesan officials to not visit their children in the United States for the remainder of the school year.

 READ MORE: How much will the coronavirus spread?

In addition, international students are being advised to wait until the end of the school year to return to their native country and to arrive back in the U.S. at least 14 days before the beginning of the 2020-2021 school year.

Archdiocese officials could not be reached Friday evening to say how many students might be affected by this policy.

Though more than 200 people globally have died from the infection, in most cases the impact of the virus appears to be fairly mild. According to the CDC, the risk to the general public appears to be low in the U.S., where there have been no deaths and a handful of confirmed cases, all linked to travel overseas.
A hospital worker wearing protective eyewear and a mask in Indonesia. (Photo: AFP/Chaideer Mahyuddin)

PT Indonesia Morowali Industrial Park has sealed off its nickel mining hub on Sulawesi island and is barring any of its 43,000 staff from entering or leaving without written permission.

There are some 5,000 guest workers from mainland China at the sprawling site which hosts nickel ore smelters and stainless steel production.

Employees at the 2,000-hectare facility, majority owned by China's Shanghai Decent Investment Group, are undergoing medical tests and none has been found to be infected so far, said company spokesman Dedy Kurniawan.

The firm has also imposed a ban on employees or guests from overseas entering the complex and installed thermal scanners at its entrance, he added.

"We have identified and screened foreign workers from Wuhan," Kurniawan told AFP on Friday.

"We also stopped accepting foreign workers."

Indonesia has not reported any confirmed infections so far.

Wuhan, capital of Hubei province, is at the centre of the outbreak which is believed to have originated in a market that sold wild animals.

The city of 11 million has since experienced an unprecedented lockdown, preventing residents from leaving in a bid to stop the deadly virus from spreading further.

The lockdown at the Indonesian plant, which started at the weekend, comes as Indonesia said Friday it was preparing to evacuate more than 240 nationals stranded in China near the epicentre of the virus within the next 24 hours.

Indonesia, a Southeast Asian archipelago, attracts more than one million Chinese tourists annually to Bali and other holiday hotspots, and also hosts thousands of guest workers from major investor China.
Women legislators take up 42 percent of seats in the islands legislative body, making it the most equitable in Asia.

Taipei, Taiwan  In skinny jeans and chilly pepper red sneakers matching her lipstick, Kao Chia-yu was greeted like a film celebrity by her constituents.

Shouts of Congratulations! echoed through the narrow streets, and fans chased her down for selfies and autographs. Instinctually darting between Putonghua and Taiwanese, Kao, 39, was on her last thank-the-voters victory lap on the Lunar New Year break.

On Saturday, the three-term local councillor will be sworn in as a legislator. Kao and other women legislators take up 42 percent of the seats in Taiwans Legislative Yuan, making it the most equitable in Asia.

Kao won in last months general election, in which the sitting  and first female  president Tsai Ing-wen scored a second term on a historical high vote of 57 percent.

Now boasting a twice-elected female president, and a female vice president as early as in 2000, Taiwan seems to have arrived as a democracy where women have as much a fair shot as men at any political office.

What has paved the way to ensuring this is a long history of gender quotas for most races, except single-seat contests such as presidential and mayoral races.





More tellingly, in Chinese the quotas are called female safety net, requiring that women get at least half of the at-large seats in the legislature and one out of every four seats in local council elections.

And women in the Republic of China, as Taiwan is formally known, have been fighting for a seat at the table for nearly a century.

As early as in the 1920s, they fought to send a delegation to the fledgeling republics national assembly.

Codified gender quota

Freshly freed from foot-binding Qing Dynasty, Chinese women at the times were influenced by the suffrage movement in the United States and the feminist movements across the world.

Eventually, the gender quota was codified, albeit not specified, in the 1946 constitution.

When the Nationalists lost the civil war to the Communists in 1949, they relocated the capital to Taipei and suspended parts of the constitution during martial law (1949-87).

The common denominator among Taiwans top female politicians is that none hails from a ruling family, as has been the case with nearly all female leaders in other Asian countries [File: Sam Yeh/AFP]

But the quota mandate was not only observed, but progressively strengthened, thanks to advocacy from womens rights groups such as the Awakening Foundation, which was established in 1982.

By 2000, the constitution was amended to raise the proportion of reserved seats in the Legislative Yuan for women to a quarter.

The quota system motivates political parties to seek out female candidates  from beauties to professional women, said Chou-Yuan Tseng, the foundations senior research fellow.

Highly-qualified candidates

The quota has not seen much backlash as it was never invoked to install a woman in office by supplanting a man who garnered more votes. That is because the parties have the incentive to field strong female candidates to pre-empt just that outcome.

The women at Taiwans upper echelon, past and present, run the gamut.

Annette Lu, the 2000 vice president, is a Harvard-educated political activist, whereas Tsai is a professor turned politician.





The common denominator of these top women is that none hails from a ruling family, as has been the case with nearly all female leaders in other Asian countries, notably Aung San Suu Kyi in Myanmar, Indira Gandhi in India and Corazon Aquino and Gloria Arroyo in the Philippines.

Political scientist Nathan Batto at Academia Sinica observed that quotas installed at the lower rungs of power have been particularly conducive to grooming female candidates.

Its important that power is distributed throughout the system more equitably, Batto told Al Jazeera.

Inevitably youll see more women going up the level graduating into higher levels of office after theyve grown their power base.

Vestiges of sexism

This rang true to Kaos experience. The former TV host was first tapped by the then-opposition Democratic Progressive Party to be a candidate for the legislature in 2008, only to be replaced by an older male. She then forged her own political path from the ground up.

To work at the grassroots level for the past decade was a tremendous experience. Ive been able to build a solid base especially since theres significant overlap between the constituencies, said Kao.

Recent research also shows that women who won the reserved seats match their male counterparts in political experience and education achievement, and in some cases even beat them.

Recent research shows that women who won the reserved seats in Taiwan match their male counterparts in political experience and education achievement, and in some cases even beat them [File: Olivia Harris/Reuters]

Women these days perform better than men and are getting recognition, Kao added. Times have changed. I think the quota has served out its usefulness of encouraging women to run. It isnt needed any longer.

To many women, the barrier to running now lies more in the onslaught of sexism against first-time candidates. During her first term, even Tsai faced the put-down: Those who wear skirts cant be the commander-in-chief.

When Sherry Chou, 29, a feminist who was recruited to run in 2016 for a legislative seat, she pushed for decriminalisation of extramarital affairs. Her Facebook page saw comments saying she wanted to be someones mistress.

Chou believes schools need to do a better job teaching gender equality. Until then, she hopes everyone can learn from real-life examples at the top of the ladder.

Little girls in Taiwan can see they can grow up not just to be the princess waiting for the white knight, but then they can also be the empress, Chou said.
Share this article Whatsapp

Facebook

Twitter

Linkedin News Desk (The Jakarta Post) Jakarta  Sat, February 1, 2020 07:48 709 7f440ff09e92db75a02bbad2061f0d7e 1 National Wuhan-coronavirus,China,Indonesian-migrant-workers,BP3TKI Free

The Agency for the Placement and Protection of Indonesian Migrant Workers in Denpasar, Bali, has said that there are still at least 37 migrant workers working in China, where the fast-spreading coronavirus has killed at least 213 in the mainland.

Thirty-seven Indonesian migrant workers set off to China in 2019. They mostly work as spa therapists or in the hotel business. We are still waiting for further information from the Indonesian Embassy in Beijing, the agencys Denpasar head, Soleh Hidayat, said on Friday as quoted by Antara.

Soleh said agency data indicated that no Indonesian migrant workers from Bali were sent to China in January and, even if there were those who applied to work there, they would be restricted from travel.

Thirty-six of the migrant workers currently in China come from Denpasar and other regencies on the tourist island, including Badung, Gianyar, Jembrana and Tabanan. Only one worker originates from Banyuwangi in East Java.

Of the 37 workers, 13 of them work as spa therapists and nine of them as therapists in other sectors, while the remaining work various other jobs such as operation manager, sales manager and assistant manager.

Soleh, however, stopped short of mentioning whether the workers lived outside Wuhan and other cities in Hubei  the epicenter of the outbreak  or outside the virus-hit province.

He said none of the families had asked about the whereabouts of the 37 migrant workers by visiting the agencys office.

Perhaps the workers have contacted their families directly, Soleh said.

He said the central government had floated an evacuation plan as authorities monitor the outbreak, which had affected flights between China and Indonesia.

Soleh remained hopeful that the migrant workers in China were still healthy.

Indonesian migrant workers should immediately report to the Indonesian Embassy in Beijing in case anything happens and inform [the embassy] of their whereabouts if they are OK," he said. (ami)
HONG KONG  New walls are rising between China and the world as the country grapples with a fast-moving coronavirus and its mounting death toll.

Vietnam on Saturday became the latest country to try to close itself off from the worlds most populous country, barring all flights from and to China. Over all, nearly 10,000 flights have been canceled since the outbreak.

Australia joined the United States in temporarily denying entry to noncitizens who have recently traveled to the country. There are officially eight confirmed cases in the United States, including one person connected to the University of Massachusetts-Boston.

Japan also said it would bar foreigners who had recently been in the Chinese province at the center of the outbreak, or whose passports were issued there.
The Berejiklian government is stepping up food drops for endangered species and aerial shooting of some feral animals as part of efforts to help save dozens of native plants and animals brought closer to extinction by the state's unprecedented bushfires.

The Wildlife and Conservation Bushfire Recovery plan, obtained by the Sun-Herald, also updates the impact of fires that have scorched 5.3 million hectares so far.

Wildlife rescue teams and National Parks and Wildlife Officers have found devastation when it has been safe to enter burnt regions. Credit:Nick Moir

Blazes have hit the habitat of 84 of the most vulnerable animals, while 46 threatened plant species have more than 90 per cent of their recorded range in fire zones, it said.

Energy and Environment Minister Matt Kean said staff are still assessing the full effect but it was clear fires have had "a devastating impact", with 37 per cent of the national parks estate burnt.
Apex exporters body FIEO has welcomed the measures announced in Budget to boost exports, especially from agri sector, saying the proposals will help make the country a major exporter of agri and allied goods.

Federation of Indian Export Organisations (FIEO) President Sharad Kumar Saraf said the 16-points action plan announced in the Budget aim at structural changes in agriculture, horticulture and pisciculture, which will help make the country a major player in agro and allied sector exports in the medium to long-term.

Besides, it will also help double the farmers' income.

"The focus on standards and quality will facilitate exports of quality products, fetching better unit realisation and enabling manufacturers to meet the technical standards and help tide over the barriers erected by many of our trading partners, while also stemming cheap quality imports thereby protecting the domestic industry," Saraf said.

The 'one-district-one-product' initiative can be a game changer for exports, as substantial exports can be targeted by focusing at the district level, he said.

However, the scheme should be supplemented by forming 'district exports councils' on the pattern of the US to make districts vibrant and active partners in exports, he said.

The new scheme for electronic sectors including mobile phones, semi-conductors and electronic equipment will pave the way for increasing exports, particularly of mobile phones.

It can be noted that the country already exports mobile phones to the Middle East, South Asia and Africa.

Saraf said Nirvik scheme will ease lending process and enhance availability of credit to exporters.

Under the scheme, insurance guarantees will now cover up to 90 percent of the principal and interest both on pre- and post-shipment credit.

The Export Credit Guarantee Corporation (ECGC) currently provides such guarantee only up to 60 per cent of the loss to banks.

Saraf also said that the new scheme to provide digital payment of taxes will help improve competitiveness of exporters and move towards zero rebating of exports.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
STATEN ISLAND, N.Y. -- A former Staten Islander was honored earlier this month for her lifelong contributions to the world of real estate.

Jodi Pulice, founder and CEO of JRT Realty Group, was recognized as this years recipient of The Real Estate Board of New Yorks (REBNY) Bernard H. Mendik Lifetime Leadership in Real Estate Award at the organizations 124th annual banquet on Jan. 16.

It is an amazing honor to receive an award from REBNY, an organization that JRT Realty Group has partnered with for many years, said Pulice, who has roots in New Dorp Beach and is still highly active within the community.

A pioneer for woman in the real estate industry, Pulice founded the first ever minority- and woman-owned brokerage firm, with JRT Realty Group now recognized as the nations largest certified, woman-owned commercial real estate services firm.

As CEO of JRT Realty Group, Pulice oversees the leasing and management of nearly 10 million square feet of commercial and industrial space nationwide, having leased sales transactions totaling more than $3 billion.

Pulices other accolades include being recognized as one of Smart CEOs New York Brava Award Winners, one of the Top 50 Women in Real Estate by the Association of Real Estate Women and one of the 2018 Notable Women in Real Estate by Crains New York Business.

As a woman in a male-dominated industry, I want this award to serve as an inspiration to other women working to succeed in this business and create a more open professional space for all," Pulice said.
The nation watched and mourned. Again.

Headlines proclaimed, Columbia is lost.

Space Shuttle Columbia launched Jan. 16, 2003.

While in space the astronauts were performing science experiments 24 hours a day in two shifts.

During launch, a piece of foam insulation broke off from the external fuel tank and hit the edge of the shuttle's left wing.

The left wing began having sensor failures and other problems a half hour before it was supposed to land. When the shuttle was re-entering Earth's atmosphere and just minutes away from landing on Feb. 1, 2003, it broke apart, killing the seven astronauts.

Debris from the Space Shuttle Columbia streaks across the sky over Tyler, Texas, in this Saturday, Feb. 1, 2003 file photo. Pices of the shuttle were scattered over east Texas with some debris falling in downtown Nacogdoches, Texas. Columbia disintegrated 39 miles over Texas as it returned from a 16-day mission. (AP Photo/Dr. Scott Lieberman, File)ASSOCIATED PRESS

This was part of a timeline printed in The Patriot-News on Feb. 2, 2003:

8:15 a.m.: The space shuttle Columbia fires its thrusters to leave orbit and land at Kennedy Space Center in Florida.

Communications between the ground and the shuttle routinely are lost during the fiery re-entry through Earths atmosphere. Contact with Columbia briefly was re-established shortly before 9 a.m., when Mission Control radioed the crew about a pressure warning for the shuttles landing gear.

9 a.m.: The shuttle Columbia was at an altitude of about 203,000 feet over north-central Texas, traveling at 12,500 mph, when Mission Control in Houston lost all contact and tracking data. Silent video of the Mission Control Center, shown on NASA TV, showed workers sitting in front of their computer terminals, hands on their keyboards, but apparently doing little work. Residents of Texas, Arkansas and Louisiana report hearing a big bang and seeing flames in the sky. Louisiana State Police in Bossier City, 182 miles east of Dallas, got so many calls that one trooper had to be assigned just to answer the phone.

9:16 a.m.: As the countdown clock at the landing site in Florida reached zero with no sign of the shuttle, flaming debris began falling in Texas.

The damage caused to the left wing when the insulation broke off was determined to be the cause of the explosion. Heat shield panels on the wing were damaged.

Debris from the Space Shuttle Columbia streaks across the Texas sky Saturday morning, Feb. 1, 2003. Amateur photographer Jason Hutchinson made the photo in north Dallas. (AP Photo/Jason Hutchinson)ASSOCIATED PRESS

From history.com, Ten minutes after the shuttle re-entered Earths atmosphere, "... as the shuttle was 231,000 feet above The California coastline traveling at 23 times the speed of sound--that the first indications of trouble began. Because the heat-resistant tiles covering the left wings leading edge had been damaged or were missing, wind and heat entered the wing and blew it apart.

The first debris began falling to the ground in West Texas near Lubbock at 8:58 a.m. One minute later, the last communication from the crew of five men and two women was heard, and at 9 a.m. the shuttle disintegrated over northeast Texas, near Dallas.

Residents in the area heard a loud boom and saw streaks of smoke in the sky. Debris and the remains of the crew were found in more than 2,000 locations across East Texas, Arkansas and Louisiana."

According to space.com, in 2008, NASA released a crew survival report that determined, The astronauts probably survived the initial breakup of Columbia, but lost consciousness in seconds after the cabin lost pressure and then died as it disintegrated.

The crew members were:

Michael P. Anderson, 43, payload commander

David M. Brown, 46, mission specialist

Kalpana Chawla, 41, mission specialist

Laurel B. Clark, 41, mission specialist

William C. McCool, 41, shuttle pilot

Rick D. Husband, 45, shuttle commander

Ilan Ramon, 48, payload specialist

In this image released by NASA TV, Tuesday, June 24, 2003, shows the crew of space shuttle Columbia posing for a group photo during their mission in January 2003. In front is Rick Husband, clockwise from left are Kalpana Chawla, David Brown, William McCool Michael Anderson, Ilan Ramon and Laurel Clark. This image was recovered during search efforts since the loss of Columbia on Feb. 1, 2003. (AP Photo/NASA TV)ASSOCIATED PRESS

Thanks for visiting PennLive. Quality local journalism has never been more important. We need your support. Not a subscriber yet? Please consider supporting our work.
Supreme Court Schedules Date for Arguments in Trump Financial Records Cases

The Supreme Court said on Friday that it will hear arguments in three disputes over subpoenas seeking access to President Donald Trumps financial information on March 31 (pdf).

In December, the top court said they agreed to hear the three cases appealing lower court decisions that require Trumps accounting firm Mazars USA and two banks to comply with the subpoenas issued by the House and a New York district attorney in a grand jury probe. At that time, the court did not set a date for arguments.

The disputes dealing with the separation of power and absolute immunity concerns reached the Supreme Court after appellate judges upheld the subpoenas. Two of the cases stem from subpoenas that were issued earlier in the year by three House committeesFinancial Services, Intelligence, and Oversightas part of their probes over allegations of the presidents dealings. Meanwhile, the third case deals with a criminal investigation in Manhattan.

One of the cases centers on a subpoena issued by the House Oversight Committee to Mazars to hand over eight years of financial records involving Trump and his business in April as part of its probe into allegations about the presidents financial statements. Trumps legal team subsequently filed a lawsuit to invalidate the subpoena and asked for an injunction over its enforcement.

In October, a lower court ruled that the committee had the authority to subpoena the records from the New York accounting firm, while the U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit rejected Trumps request in November to reconsider the lower courts decision.

Similarly, the second House case involves subpoenas issued by the House Financial Services and House Intelligence committees in April to two banksDeutsche Bank AG and Capital One Financial Corp.asking them to turn over Trumps financial documents.

Trump then sued the two banks in April in an effort to stop them from complying with the subpoenas, arguing that the House subpoenas were unlawful and unconstitutional. But, in May, U.S. District Judge Edgardo Ramos ruled that subpoenas have a legitimate legislative purpose and could be enforced.

Ramoss ruling prompted Trump to file an appeal in August to the Second Circuit Court. But the court ruled on Dec. 3 that the banks must comply with the subpoenas.

Meanwhile, in the Manhattan grand jury case, District Attorney of New York County Cyrus Vance Jr. issued a subpoena to Mazars requesting Trumps financial records in connection with a criminal case. Vance is investigating alleged hush money reportedly paid to two women during the 2016 presidential campaignadult film star Stormy Daniels and former Playboy model Karen McDougal. Trump has denied the affairs and any other wrongdoing. Trump sued Vance in September in an attempt to block the subpoena. The district court denied Trumps application for an injunction over the subpoena and dismissed the case in October, prompting the presidents lawyers to file an appeal.

In early November, the Second Circuit Court of Appeals upheld the lower courts decision to deny Trump injunctive relief. The presidents legal team appealed to the Supreme Court on Nov. 14, arguing in their petition (pdf) that the lower courts had incorrectly ruled on the issue of immunity.

Earlier this week, Trumps legal team filed briefs urging the Supreme Court to block the subpoenas. In one of the briefs (pdf), the lawyers argued that although House committees are claiming that they are seeking the records for a legislative purpose, they are instead engaging in law enforcement.

These Committees are not legislating; they are avowedly engaging in law enforcement. All of themto one degree or anotherhave acknowledged that the purpose of the investigations is to determine whether the President engaged in wrongdoing, the lawyers state in the brief. The events that led to the subpoenas issuance, the public statements surrounding these investigations, the nature of these demands themselves, and other evidence confirm that the Committees purpose is to find out if the President broke the law.

Similarly, in the Manhattan case, Trumps attorneys argued in a separate brief (pdf) that the president is immune from requests to hand over his financial records to the criminal prosecutor while he is in office, and that the only way to prosecute a sitting president as provided by the Constitution is through impeachment.

Along with setting the argument dates for the Trump financial records cases, the Supreme Court also scheduled other cases for their March argument calendar (pdf). The Supreme Court will hear arguments for a copyright case, Google v. Oracle, on March 24 and two religious school employment discrimination cases, Our Lady of Guadalupe School v. Morrissey-Berru and St. James School v. Biel, on April 1.
For the last couple of days, Mr. Bernard has been debating whether to go. On one hand, he does not want to be the person responsible for introducing a deadly virus in Nigeria. On the other, he needs to make business contacts in China, where fabric is cheaper and cheaper and cheaper and cheaper, he said.

For now, hes planning to go.

I dont want to be contaminated, Mr. Bernard said. But with the face masks and the nose masks and a lot of warnings, Im going to be protected.

In the United States, several major companies, including Goldman Sachs, General Motors and Wells Fargo, have imposed travel limitations on employees. And analysts are projecting that the disruption could have a sizable impact on Chinas economy, at least in the short term.

The obvious point of comparison is the SARS outbreak in 2002 and 2003, which coincided with a relatively brief slowdown of global growth, then a sharp acceleration. Two decades later, however, China is an economic powerhouse, a vital manufacturing hub and a center of global trade with deep ties to practically every major industry.

The much larger role of China in the global economy versus 2003 implies much greater global spillover risks, economists at JPMorgan wrote in a research note on Friday.

It has also meant that many more people visit the country for work. Andy Payne, the founder of AppyNation, a video game company in England, said he had scrapped two visits to China scheduled for February.

He was planning to meet with representatives of a Chinese media company to discuss a partnership. But on Wednesday, British Airways canceled all flights to mainland China. Now those gaming negotiations will take place in a video chat.
Among the many quotes from our president, the one I found most revealing was: "Would you be able to do us a favor, though?"

It is asked of the new president of Ukraine just as he has begun a term in office. The young man wants to do a good job in the demanding challenge he has had little preparation for. And he is attempting to steady himself in order to steady a nation.

President Trump is trying to get him to compromise that for his own selfish political advantage. What kind of principled and self-respecting leader would do that? When questioned about it he might predictably reply, Why should I be concerned about something like that? Its not my responsibility!

There might credibly have been another such instance when Trump would have intervened to get cooperation. (This may not have actually occurred, but it seems not beyond the pale.) In the first year of his term, the president is not getting much support from the Senate Majority Leader, Mitch McConnell. Along with that, Donald had months before appointed McConnells wife, Elaine Chao, to be Transportation Secretary.

Is it not reasonable to believe that this would be insulting to the president, and thus a point of contention? Would Donald Trump not raise the issue?  Am I supposed to keep her in the cabinet or cant you see an opportunity to be more helpful in my effort to govern? Or would he instead have an overriding code of honor to observe?

McConnell, now also known as Moscow Mitch," has come far in the last two years to fulfill his presidents ideal of a fellow Republican.

I have read the leader's memoir, "The Long Road" (2016), in which he writes that he didn't do anything for immediate political advantage. That was then because he now acts in a unparalleled partisan manner - employing the U.S. Constitution as only something to get around. With the influence and power acquired since 1985, McConnell has in the process gone from clever to calculating to cynical to deceitful.

In the Senates phase of the of this historic moment (after impeachment by the House of Representatives), has he now arrived at diabolical?

Richard J. Yost, South Abington Township, Lackawanna County
Typically, it takes seven years to earn a law degree.

But a West Shore college and an East Shore law school have come together to make it possible that future attorneys can earn a bachelors degree and a law degree combined in just five years that the schools say will save time and money. And prospective students can earn the combined degree without ever leaving the Harrisburg area.

Central Penn College and Widener University Commonwealth Law School announced the2+3 agreement this week.

For students focused on completing their law degree as quickly as possible, this program will prove to be a game-changer, Linda Fedrizzi-Williams, president of Central Penn College said in a press release.

The agreement was signed by Linda Fedrizzi-Williams, president of Central Penn College, and Christian A. Johnson, dean of Widener Law Commonwealth at Wideners administration building in Susquehanna Township.

We are mindful of the high cost of college and law school and embrace opportunities like this one that make a difference for families, Johnson said in a press release.

Central Penn College operates on an accelerated schedule of four, 11-week terms each year, which enables studentsif they take 12 credits or more per termto complete a bachelors in three years.

Under the 2+3 agreement, Central Penn students in a bachelors program can now transfer to Widener Law Commonwealth after just two years or 90 credits, with the final 30 credits earned while attending law school. These same credits will be used toward a law degree, as well.

The agreement enables legal studies students at Central Penn to earn their final 30 credits of their bachelors degree at Widener Commonwealth Law while simultaneously pursuing their juris doctorate at the law school. Students will earn their bachelors degree from Central Penn College after completing 30 credits at Widener Commonwealth Law.

In order to be eligible for the program at the law school, students must maintain a cumulative grade point average of 3.0 or higher; take the Law School Admission Test no later than February of their junior year of college and are encouraged to take it earlier if possible; earn an LSAT score at or above the median for Wideners prior year entering class and have no disqualifying character issues.

The program applies to current Central Penn students who began their undergraduate study by the 20172018 academic year, as well as new students. Students who are accepted into the law school as part of the program, must attend full-time.

Central Penn College is based in East Pennsboro Township and Widener University Commonwealth Law School is based in Susquehanna Township.

--Sign up for PennLives newsletters

Thanks for visiting PennLive. Quality local journalism has never been more important. We need your support. Not a subscriber yet? Please consider supporting our work.

You can follow Daniel Urie on twitter @DanielUrie2018 and you can like PennLives business page on Facebook at @PennLiveBusiness
LANSDALE  Around noon on Friday, dozens of visitors walked, and in a few cases wheeled, their way through the lobby of the North Penn Commons complex on Main Street in Lansdale.

They may have noticed a VIP visitor in their midst: Pennsylvania Department of Human Services Secretary Teresa Miller, on hand to tour the facility and hear success stories of nonprofit food pantry Manna on Main Streets SNAP 50/50 job training program.

This has been a really fabulous tour, and a great opportunity to see truly local partners at the local level, coming together, seeing needs, and trying to figure out how you address those needs in the most effective way possible, Miller said.

Fridays visit by Miller was meant to highlight the topic of food security across Pennsylvania, along with a similar visit earlier in the day to the fifth annual Montgomery County Anti-Hunger Network conference in Pottstown.

In Lansdale, Miller toured the North Penn Commons complex at 606 East Main Street in Lansdale, getting a firsthand look at how Manna on Main Street has, since last fall, taken part in the SNAP 50/50 job training program.

We are really, really grateful for this SNAP 50/50 education and training reimbursement money, said Suzan Neiger Gould, Mannas Executive Director.

We have such skilled staff working in this program, and you need to have skilled staff in order to make this work, she said.

The state 50/50 program matches those who come to agencies like Manna for food under the federal Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program with onsite job skills training, in a twelve-week program that starts in Mannas kitchen and eventually places trainees out front in Mannas Common Grounds Cafe in the lobby of their shared complex  success stories like chef Alex Justo, who was working the cafe counter Friday afternoon.

Those who take part in the program, about eight members per 12-week training cohort, learn their way around a kitchen from Manna employees, and can earn formal certifications such as the ServSafe Food Handler accreditation awarded by the National Restaurant Association.

If somebody hasnt stepped into a kitchen before, this gives them a chance to really understand what theyre going to be living and experiencing for 12 weeks, said Kristyn DiDominick, Mannas program director.

Manna is all about food, right? So we can take our mission a little deeper, and have our chefs help individuals build something thats their own career, thats sustainable, for them and for their families. For us, thats the culinary field. We know food, we love it, and were all about that  thats our mission, she said.

During her visit Friday, Miller got an up-close look at Mannas kitchen, as chefs Suzanne Driscoll and Dan Salva cleaned up from a lunchtime meal and started prep work on that evenings offerings. In the nonprofits food pantry, Manna Development Director Vince Caperelli Jr. showed Miller how donated food items are given point values based on federal nutritional guidelines, and those who shop in the pantry get a certain number of points per trip.

Its based on the ages and genders, numbers of people in the household, recommended caloric intake, and then they get their total points and divide it based on the food pyramid  or whatever the shape is now, Caperelli said.

Prepared food coming from the kitchen is made by those in the SNAP 50/50 training program, with help from the professionals, and Niger Gould and Manna board member Jeffrey Fields said a recent big contract will expand that program much farther. Starting Monday, Manna will be delivering prepared food to the Ambler, Norristown and Glenside areas, after submitting the winning bid for part of Montgomery Countys Meals on Wheels program.

Now, we actually have that contract serving beneficial purposes from the beginning to the end: the foods being made by people who are training to then go into employment, and then its serving seniors, Fields said.

No fixed dollar amount is attached yet to the SNAP 50/50 reimbursement funding, Neiger Gould and DiDomick said, because the numbers may vary depending on how many people take part in the program and subsequently secure jobs. So far about 100 students have passed through the program, with a retention rate just shy of 80 percent since the program started.

We have up to eight students in a cohort right now, so it creates a nice care network for individuals to learn, and grow, alongside our chefs, DiDominick said.

Miller toured the Manna facilities, then the shared dining and activity rooms also used by the PEAK Center, the North Penn YMCA and an apartment run by Advanced Living Communities above, even dropping in on a group of four seniors playing a game of Rummikub, a word tile game similar to Scrabble.

Afterwards, Miller said the entire North Penn Commons complex was an example the rest of the state could emulate.

Im seeing today, in this community, there is a lot of wonderful partnerships happening, and people realizing where other entities strengths are, and building on that, Miller said.

Were not duplicating efforts, and were not using resources in an ineffective way, but instead were all just using our strengths, and trying to do the best we can to support people, she said.

State Rep. Steve Malagari, D-53rd District, joined the tour and noted that he helped oversee the North Penn Commons complex during his term as a Lansdale councilman, and that its located in Lansdales Ward 1 which he represented locally. Miller said state lawmakers have been a great partner, in looking for ways to streamline and modernize programs like SNAP, but recent federal proposals to change those programs should be watched closely.

Frankly, some of the Trump Administrations proposals around the SNAP program are really concerning, because our SNAP programs have provided really valuable services for people, in helping to lift people out of poverty, helping to make sure they have food on their tables, she said.

Saying to somebody that you have to work if youre going to have access to health care, or you have to work in order to have access to food on your table, thats concerning, and we are just trying to figure out how we can do a better job of helping to lift people out of poverty, Miller said.

Programs like SNAP 50/50 can do so by shifting focus away from placing people in low- or minimum-wage jobs that require little skill, Miller said, and can help reduce or remove barriers of transportation, child care, mental or physical health, hunger, or housing needs that might otherwise go unaddressed.

Our approach has been, I know I can get you a job at the local dollar store, for $8 an hour, as a cashier, so Im going to just put you into that, and ignore all of the other things going on, the transportation and housing issues, and youre done, I get paid, and I walk away. I think weve learned, thats not a success, she said.

They just focus on How do we get somebody a job? They dont focus on, how do we set somebody up to be successful long-term, and, frankly, get them off of public assistance for the long term. Not by kicking them off before theyre ready, but by setting them up to really succeed, and be able to support their families on their own.

For more information on Manna on Main Street call (215) 855-5454, visit www.MannaonMain.org, search for Manna on Main Street on Facebook or follow @MannaonMain on Twitter.
Hospital staff in protective clothing talk to a police officer at a checkpoint to the Hubei province exclusion zone at the Jiujiang Yangtze River Bridge in Jiujiang, Jiangxi province, China, as the country is hit by an outbreak of a new coronavirus on Feb. 1, 2020. (Thomas Peter/Reuters)

Countries Should Prepare for Local Coronavirus Outbreaks: WHO Official

Governments around the world should prepare for controlling domestic coronavirus outbreaks, a World Health Organization (WHO) official said.

Countries need to get ready for possible importation in order to identify cases as early as possible and in order to be ready for a domestic outbreak control, if that happens, WHO official Gauden Galea told The Associated Press in Bejing on Saturday.

WHO earlier in the week declared a global health emergency, which flipped the switch from a cautious attitude earlier to recommending governments prepare for the possibility the virus might spread, Galea said.

WHO Director-General Dr. Tedros Ghebreyesus said in announcing the outbreak that the organizations greatest concern is the potential for the virus to spread to countries with weaker health systems, and which are ill-prepared to deal with it.

A waitress wearing a face mask attends to customers at a restaurant inside a shopping mall, as China is hit by an outbreak of the new coronavirus, in Beijing on Feb. 1, 2020. (Stringer/Reuters)

China has reported thousands of caseshealth experts believe the Chinese Communist Party is consistently underreporting the number of casesand hundreds of deaths. The virus has spread from Wuhan to roughly two dozen countries, with no deaths reported so far outside of China.

Cases have been confirmed in five continents, with a slew of suspected cases in Africa but none confirmed. Spain, Russia, Italy, the United Kingdom, and Sweden announced the first confirmed cases in the countries in the past few days.

Governments are ramping up efforts to stop the spread of the disease, restricting or banning travel to and from mainland China, evacuating citizens from Wuhan or Hubei province, and isolating people who have traveled recently to China.

The United States on Friday announced a public health emergency. Officials said they were motivated by the number of unknowns with the new coronaviruswhich started last month, has no vaccine, and has an unconfirmed originand the rapidly rising number of cases.

Anthony Fauci, director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, also noted that officials now know that an infected person could transmit the disease to another person even if they did not exhibit any symptoms. He cited a recent case in Germany; other countries have also reported asymptomatic transmission.

People wear face masks as they listen to a presentation in an Apple Store in the Sanlitun shopping district in Beijing as China is hit by an outbreak of the new coronavirus, on Jan. 25, 2020. (Thomas Peter/Reuters)

The United States also announced a ban on foreign nationals who have been in mainland China in the past 14 days and a mandatory quarantine of any U.S. citizens who traveled to Hubei province in the past 14 days.

Outside of government action, airlines around the world have stopped or announced plans to stop operating flights into and out of mainland China and companies operating in the country announced widespread closures.

The three biggest carriers in the United StatesUnited, American, and Delta Airlinesmade announcements on Friday. Air New Zealand and Qantas Airlines also announced plans to stop flying between China and their home countries, joining, among others, British Airways, Japan Airways, Virgin Atlantic, Air Canada, and Lion Air.

Deere & Co closed all facilities in China, as did Apple, joining dozens of other companies either shutting down operations or restricting travel to the country.

Our thoughts are with the people most immediately affected by the coronavirus and with those working around the clock to study and contain it, Apple, based in Cupertino, Calif., said in a statement. Out of an abundance of caution and based on the latest advice from leading health experts, were closing all our corporate offices, stores and contact centers in mainland China through Feb. 9.

Cathy He contributed to this report.
iStock/ktsimage(BELFAST, Ireland) -- As the countdown approached Friday for Britain to leave the European Union, the only sign it was being marked in Belfast was a small group of people celebrating outside the gates of Northern Ireland's regional parliament.



Around 50 people gathered at the national assembly building, known as Stormont, and waved union jacks. As the clock passed 11 p.m., a local politician led cheers of "Freedom" and shouts of "Who here is British?"



The tiny celebration reflected the deep ambivalence toward Brexit in Northern Ireland, a place that has been at the center of the United Kingdom's tortuous saga to leave, and where the event is loaded with unsettling questions about the province's future. Since before the 2016 referendum, there have been fears that Brexit could destabilize Northern Ireland's complex peace, raising doubts about its place in the U.K. and stoking talk that it could lead to unification with Ireland.



As in the rest of the U.K., little will have changed on Saturday -- the U.K. will now enter a yearlong transition period, where it will negotiate a future relationship with the EU while most arrangements remain temporarily the same. Most people in Belfast on Friday appeared to want to ignore the day, weary of the last three years of argument and recrimination. Around 20 people staged an anti-Brexit protest hours earlier at Stormont, and pro-European activists also held small demonstrations at border crossings with Ireland.



Unlike England, Northern Ireland voted to remain in the EU by a majority of 56% to 44% in 2016. Brexit remains so divisive that no official celebrations were organized by Northern Ireland authorities; instead, the rally at Stormont was organized by a few conservative unionist politicians who support Brexit.



The gathering began with a pastor leading a prayer thanking God for delivering Northern Ireland from the "Babylon" of the EU. Members of the crowd, who were mostly in their sixties, sang "God Save the Queen" and a piper played.



"This is a happy day for our nation," Jim Wells, a unionist member of the national assembly who led countdown to 11 p.m., told the crowd. "This is the day our nation, the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, moves out from the bondage of Europe."



The pastor leading the prayers asked God that Ireland might also now leave the EU and trigger the union's collapse as countries fell like dominoes.



But for those celebrating in Northern Ireland, Brexit was not happening as they had hoped. The exit deal agreed upon by Britain's Prime Minister Boris Johnson and the EU will see Northern Ireland remain inside the custom union with the EU, a sacrifice made to avoid a hard land border between Northern Ireland and Ireland.



I dont feel like its the joyous occasion it should be, said John Brennan, 35, an office worker and unionist activist at the rally. I feel like Im a prisoner being left behind, when all my fellow countrymen are leaving to the glorious green pastures that are outside the European Union.



For three years Northern Ireland had been the central obstacle to the U.K.'s efforts to leave the EU, the result of the seemingly intractable problem produced by an apparently unavoidable consequence of Brexit -- that the U.K. separating from Europe must inevitably mean putting a border between the two.



The prospect of a border between Northern Ireland and the Republic immediately triggered fears that it could resurrect Northern Ireland's conflict between mostly Catholic republicans who support unification with Ireland and the predominantly Protestant unionists and loyalists who support staying with the U.K. The three decades of bombings and shootings, which killed 3,500 people since the late 1960s, were ended by the Good Friday Agreement in 1998.



Any hard border, however, would be unacceptable to republicans, and leaders from both communities warned that it posed a threat to the Good Friday Agreement. The problem was the other proposed solution -- treating Northern Ireland differently to the rest of the U.K. -- was unacceptable to unionists, who feared it would push them away from the U.K. and open a path to a united Ireland.



The U.K. government was essentially stuck. After then-prime minister Theresa May lost her majority in an ill-advised election in 2017, her Conservative party found itself dependent on the largest unionist party, the Democratic Unionist Party, or DUP, to prop it up. The DUP, which supported Brexit, received an effective veto on its form.



As a result, an exit deal with the EU repeatedly failed to pass the U.K. parliament. The DUP memorably described the stand-off: This is a battle of who blinks first, and weve cut off our eyelids.



All that changed with Boris Johnsons landslide election win in December that cleared the way to Fridays exit. Unshackled by his new majority, Johnson quickly agreed to a deal with the EU that would see border checks placed down the Irish Sea, and then pushed it through parliament.



The move pulled the rug out from under the DUP and unionists, who, having campaigned for Brexit, now found it threatening their union with the U.K.



The victory and the chance to celebrate and the joy of that win has been stolen off us, said Jamie Bryson, a prominent Loyalist activist.



Under the current plan, in order to avoid checks along the border with Ireland, EU customs procedures will be applied to Northern Ireland. It means Northern Ireland will effectively remain in the EU's single market for goods while the rest of the U.K. leaves.



Unionist activists have dubbed the deal the "Betrayal Act" -- and fears that the border issue could spark violence from republicans have suddenly switched to concerns about unionists.



After Johnson announced the plans in November, loyalists, including former paramilitary fighters, held meetings across Northern Ireland to discuss how to challenge them. The Newsletter journalist Ben Lowry, one of the only reporters permitted to attend, said the mood was heated -- with some asking whether threats of violence would be needed to change the U.K. government's approach.



Rob McCartney, a loyalist community organizer who was present at several meetings, told ABC News that paramilitary violence has been rejected by loyalists, but that "civil disobedience" was raised at all the meetings.



Does that mean masked men with guns marching back on the streets? No, it doesnt! McCartney said in an interview at the East Belfast Constitutional Club, where one of the meetings was held. But does it mean picketing ports, protesting, marching? Yes it does, he said.



The head of Northern Ireland's police service, Chief Constable Simon Byrne, said in December that he had requested additional officers to prepare for possible loyalist protests. But he said that so far he has not detected "a massive change in sentiment."



The argument over what form the border checks will take will be at the center of Johnson's negotiations with the EU. Despite the text of his own agreement, Johnson has promised there will be no checks. The EU has rejected that and on Monday its top negotiator, Michel Barnier in Belfast, said the checks were an "indispensable" part of the agreement.



Bryson said that if the border checks could be made negligible that would be acceptable. He has already begun legal action against Johnson, on the grounds that the plan violates the Good Friday Agreement. Bryson, though, seemed unsure that the legal challenge would succeed.



I think that this is going to end up with people taking it on the streets, Bryson said this week. Unless Boris Johnson comes up with something remarkable, I think thats where its heading, regardless of any legal challenge.



Others, though, dismiss that unionist opposition can be turned into large protests.



Peter Shirlow, a director at the University of Liverpools Institute of Irish studies and a veteran expert on unionism, said changes in Northern Irish society have reduced the capacity of hardcore unionist activists to mobilize.



That section of Loyalism that wants to go back to conflict -- it just doesnt have the capacity to bring people out anymore, Shirlow said.



After two decades of the peace process, most Northern Irish people have no appetite for a return to violence, he said.



At the end of the day most people -- as much as they might be fed up or angry about the Withdrawal Agreement -- its not Bloody Friday. he said. Its not something which is as traumatic or as violent or as motivating as what we had in the past.



Prominent unionists have also come out against protests. Billy Hutchison, a Belfast city councilor from the Progression Unionist Party, which is aligned with the paramilitary group UVF, told ABC News this week that unionists must focus on politics.



From my point of view, theres a political system that allows us to do this work. And while we have a political system, a democracy then theres no need for violence, said Hutchinson, who was jailed in the 1970s for murdering two Catholic men.



The perceived threat of Brexit, in particular worries that the border checks and customs arrangements could damage Northern Ireland's economy, has already produced unexpected unity.



Northern Irelands assembly, where power sharing is mandated, had not sat for three years, with unionist and nationalist parties deadlocked over a political dispute. After Johnsons win, however, they quickly came to a deal to begin governing again, with one of the assembly's first acts being the united rejection of Johnsons deal.



Northern Ireland's newly appointed first minister, Arlene Foster from the DUP, spent the evening of Brexit's arrival in Dublin, appearing on the popular Late Late Show in a gesture of goodwill toward Ireland.



Brexit is forcing people to come together, Sorcha Eastwood, a councilor for the pro-European party Alliance said on Monday. The party, which presents itself as an alternative to the traditional sectarian party choices, surged in the recent election. Eastwood said she did not believe Brexit would lead to fresh conflict.



"I think people in Northern Ireland have had enough of all that," she said.



Copyright  2020, ABC Audio. All rights reserved.
The government on Saturday revoked the antidumping duty on import of a chemical used in textile industry from seven countries, including South Korea and Thailand.

According to a memorandum of the Budget, antidumping duty on import of Purified Terephthalic Acid originating in or exported from South Korea, Thailand, China, Iran, Indonesia, Malaysia, and Taiwan has been revoked.

In July last year, the finance ministry had imposed antidumping duty of up to USD 78.28 per tonne on the chemical from South Korea and Thailand.

In July 2016, the ministry slapped the duty of up to USD 168.76 per tonne on the chemical from China, Iran, Indonesia, Malaysia and Taiwan.

Hailing the move, Apparel Export Promotion Council (AEPC) Chairman A Sakthivel said abolishing the duty will give the much needed boost to the entire textile and apparel value chain.

He also said the new NIRVIK scheme for higher export credit disbursements with greater coverage was announced at a time when there are increased uncertainties in the global market.

"The council is keenly looking forward to an effective substitution of MEIS (merchandise exports from India scheme) that has been withdrawn for the sector," Sakthivel said.

Further, the Budget memorandum said changes are being made in the rules to strengthen the anti-circumvention measures by making them more comprehensive and wider in scope to take care of al types of circumventions of antidumping duty in line with best global practices.

"A provision is being incorporated in the countervailing duty rules to enable investigation into case of circumvention of countervailing duty for enabling imposition of such duty," it said.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
Source: Xinhua| 2020-02-01 13:59:17|Editor: zyl

Video Player Close

Pro-Brexit supporters celebrate Brexit at a gathering at Parliament Square, in London, Britain, on Jan. 31, 2020. Britain officially left the European Union (EU) at 11 p.m. (2300 GMT) Friday, putting an end to its 47-year-long membership of the world's largest trading bloc. (Photo by Stephen Chung/Xinhua)

LONDON, Jan. 31 (Xinhua) -- It marks an end. Britain finally exited the European Union (EU) on Friday, more than three years after a referendum in 2016 threw the country into immense political chaos and social division.

"It is a day worth celebration," Simon Sutton, a taxi driver in Dover, felt relieved.

However, not everyone was in a mood for celebration.

Stuart Ord-Hume, a stock broker for 23 years, spent the day watching TV programs dominated by Brexit news.

"The Brexit process has lasted for three years and people are bored with it. I won't hold a party for Brexit. It has become a reality. What we should do is to accept the reality and move on," he said.

Admitting that people have various feelings about Brexit, British Prime Minister Boris Johnson tried to heal the country deeply divided by the issue in a special address on Friday: "I understand all those feelings ... This is the moment when the dawn breaks and the curtain goes up on a new act in our great national drama."

British government buildings were lit up in red, white and blue, and Downing Street was illuminated with a Brexit-themed light display ahead of 11 p.m. (2300 GMT) on Friday -- the hour Britain officially left the EU -- symbolizing the strength and unity of Britain.

Three million commemorative 50-pence (about 65.5 U.S. cents) coins, which read "Peace, prosperity and friendship with all nations," came into circulation on the day.

"Arguably, the past three-and-a-half years have been the easy part, despite all the political wrangling," said Aarti Sakhuja, an S&P Global Ratings credit analyst based in London.

"The focus now shifts to trade talks, which the British government is keen to conclude before the end of the year," she said.

Britain aims to be able to diverge from EU standards so that it is free to negotiate trade pacts with other countries and trading blocs, but the further it diverges from EU regulations, the higher the costs of trading with the bloc will be, Sakhuja said, warning sectors like auto will suffer because their competitiveness depends on the close alignment with EU regulations.

The British government is considering introducing a new immigration system to attract skilled workers to the country after Brexit. But questions remain over whether the new system will help employers access the varying skill levels that the British economy needs.

"Despite the positive step from government to introduce a seasonal workers' pilot scheme that allows 2,500 non-EU workers to take up seasonal work on UK farms annually, more action is needed," said Ali Capper, chair of the Horticulture and Potatoes board of the country's National Farmers' Union.

Capper said the number of non-EU workers should be increased to 30,000 this year, and to a fully functioning scheme of 60,000 in 2021.

"Nothing is going to change until the transition period ends in December 2020, and after that almost everything is going to change ... For services businesses, any deal in 11 months is like a no-deal," said Paul Hardy, Brexit director at global law firm DLA Piper.

Analysts said Britain's financial services sector will have much narrower access to the EU's single market after losing the passporting right that allows banks and other institutions authorized in one member to trade freely in another. Any future access to the EU will be through the so-called "equivalence," a policy that the EU can unilaterally revoke.

For many, Brexit day is a new beginning -- Britain needs to begin its hard work for a new relationship with the EU, and even the world soon.
LAGOS, Nigeria  Nigerias government pledged Saturday to try to address security issues the Trump administration cited in its decision to stop granting immigration visas to people from Africas most populous nation.

Immigrants from Nigeria and three other countries no longer will be eligible for visas allowing them to live in the United States permanently, the White House said Friday.

They would still qualify for tourist and business visas, but Nigerians rarely are granted those now because the U.S. says too many visitors from the West African country overstay their visas.

Nigerians, who have long decried the visa application processes in both the United States and Europe as racist, expressed disbelief and anger after the Trump administration announced the new policy, which takes effect Feb. 21.
Immigrant advocates and rights groups on Friday slammed the expansion of US President Donald Trumps controversial travel ban, saying it weaponises immigration law to advance [the administrations] xenophobic agenda.

The expanded version of the travel ban targets prospective immigrants from six additional countries: Eritrea, Kyrgyzstan, Myanmar, Nigeria, Sudan and Tanzania.

More:

Under the proclamation, which will take effect on February 21, the United States will suspend the issuance of visas that can lead to permanent residency for nationals of Eritrea, Kyrgyzstan, Myanmar and Nigeria, acting Homeland Security Secretary Chad Wolf said during a call with reporters on Friday. The visas affected are distinct from non-immigrant visitor visas, which will not be impacted by the ban, Wolf said.

The US government will stop issuing diversity visas to nationals of Sudan and Tanzania, Wolf said. The visas  which Trump has criticised in the past  are available by lottery for applicants from countries with low rates of immigration to the US.

Rights groups decried Fridays announcement, saying the Trump administration continues to push white supremacist and exclusionary policies that discriminate on the basis of faith, national origin, and immigration status.

From scapegoating Muslims with the Muslim Ban to now expanding the same restrictions to other immigrant communities of colour, the Trump administration continues to weaponize immigration law in order to advance its xenophobic agenda, said Javeria Jamil, a state lawyer at the National Security & Civil Rights of Asian Americans Advancing Justice  Asian Law Caucus.

A protester holds up a sign that reads No Muslim Ban Ever outside the Supreme Court [Carolyn Kaster/AP Photo]

The American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) said the Muslim ban should be ended, not expanded.

President Trump is doubling down on his signature anti-Muslim policy  and using the ban as a way to put even more of his prejudices into practice by excluding more communities of colour, Omar Jadwat, director of the ACLUs Immigrants Rights Project, said in a statement. Families, universities, and businesses in the United States are paying an ever-higher price for President Trumps ignorance and racism.

White nationalist agenda

The original travel ban  issued during Trumps first week in office in January 2017  barred nearly all immigrants and travellers from seven Muslim-majority nations. It caused widespread outrage and chaos at airports across the US. The policy was revised amid court challenges, but the US Supreme Court ultimately upheld it in June 2018.

The existing version of the ban includes the Muslim-majority nations of Iran, Libya, Somalia, Syria and Yemen. North Korea and Venezuela also face visa restrictions, but those measures affect relatively few travellers.

Restrictions under the current travel ban will remain in place.

Wolf added the six new countries failed to meet US security and information-sharing standards, which necessitated the new restrictions. The problems Wolf cited ranged from subpar passport technology to a failure to sufficiently exchange information on terrorism suspects and criminals.

These countries, for the most part, want to be helpful, Wolf said, but for a variety of different reasons simply failed to meet those minimum requirements that we laid out.

But rights advocates and community leaders said the administration is fulfilling a white national agenda.

We continue to be outraged by this Administrations actions to ban immigrants seeking a better life in the United States, said Linda Sarsour, executive director of MPower Change. Trump is fulfilling a white nationalist agenda on the backs of Muslim and African communities and we will not stand for it. All of our families deserve to be together.

Patrice Lawrence, a co-director of UndocuBlack Network, said the ban shows the US has a real problem with Blackness and any proximity to it.

The reasons keep changing about why it is that the Trump administration wants to keep Black and brown people out. And thats because there is no honest reason, except for racism and xenophobia. Behind these bans and visa sanctions are real people with real families  facing the pain and uncertainty that family separation brings, Lawrence said in a statement.

The reasons keep changing about why it is that the Trump administration wants to keep Black and brown people out. And that's because there is no honest reason, except for racism and xenophobia. #AfricanBan #NoMuslimBanEver Read our full statement here: https://t.co/B9rL8Koeog pic.twitter.com/iuP1OFgBZQ  UndocuBlack Network (@UndocuBlack) January 31, 2020

Protests against the ban are expected this weekend.

Democrats in the US House of Representatives announced earlier this week that the chamber will soon take up legislation that would repeal the travel ban and limit the president from imposing future restrictions based on religion.
WASHINGTON - As the political stakes become clearer, more states are trying to motivate residents to participate in the 2020 census this spring.

Some red states had held back: Texas and Florida spent nothing on outreach, as conservatives find it distasteful to compete for population-based federal dollars when their mission is to cut back on big government. Furthermore, some conservatives in Texas and Alabama have backed the idea of counting only citizens in drawing state legislative districts, making a full count of fearful immigrants less crucial.

"Texas is making a calculation: 'Who are these people who are likely to be undercounted and do we really want them to be counted?' The answer is 'no,'" said Cal Jillson, a political science professor at Southern Methodist University in Dallas.

But now even some of those states are rolling out last-minute efforts as it becomes evident that congressional seats and program dollars could be lost.

In Florida, Republican Gov. Ron DeSantis this month named a statewide committee to encourage census participation, despite showing little interest in the idea last year. Alabama, where Republicans control the legislature and the governor's office, last month set aside $1 million for outreach.

ADVERTISEMENT

Even Texas, which has resisted a statewide effort, hosted a roundtable discussion in December to talk about census coordination, and South Dakota Republican Gov. Kristi Noem proclaimed a Census Awareness Day in December.

Some states may be motivated in part by new projections an elections consulting firm released Dec. 30, showing that certain states stand to gain or lose a seat in Congress - for example, Florida could take one from neighboring Alabama.

Alabama needs to count only 10,000 more people to keep its seat, while Montana has a whisker-thin margin of about 2,400 residents to gain a seat, according to Kimball Brace, who based his projections for Virginia-based Election Data Services on state population trends.

"Since our study came out people are noticing it and saying 'Hey, we're close. If we can get it together we can do this,'" Brace told Stateline.

The analysis focuses on the states most likely to gain or lose seats. Because of the nation's population shifts over the decade, some states will certainly lose a seat (Illinois, for example) or gain a couple of seats (Texas). But the analysis shows even more seats at play: Illinois could lose a second seat, for example, while Texas could gain a third.

Other states with one or more seats most on the bubble include New York, Montana, Florida, Alabama, Minnesota, Ohio, California and Rhode Island.

This year's census could have the biggest political impact in those states.

The projections could change depending on how well states encourage census participation, Brace said.

ADVERTISEMENT

States can't count directly - that's the task facing the U.S. Census Bureau, starting with letters to most homes in March inviting residents to call or fill out a form online. Census workers will follow up in person with those who don't respond by May.

But states can play a big role in encouraging participation by people who may fear repercussions or just don't see a reason for doing it. By getting a higher count, states can ensure they get their share of the $1.5 trillion in federal money distributed by population.

California is battling to keep from losing a seat for the first time in its history, spending $187 million or almost $5 for each of the state's 40 million residents. That money goes to advertising and to grassroots organizations working with hard-to-count populations, using trusted leaders to spread the word that it's safe to participate and helps their communities with representation and funding.

In Alabama, Republican Gov. Kay Ivey in December awarded local groups $1 million. Groups recently gathered for a statewide coordination meeting and heard state survey results on attitudes toward the census that may help concentrate last-minute efforts in five counties.

Whether new state efforts will make a difference is unclear, said Mary Jo Hoeksema, co-director of the Census Project, a private-public partnership to increase awareness of census issues.

"For some (states) their last-minute, get-out-the-count efforts may be too little, too late," Hoeksema said. "Other states such as California and Minnesota have directed millions of dollars toward improving public awareness of participation in the 2020 census and what it means for their states."

A member of the new Florida committee, Ginger Delegal, director of the Florida Association of Counties, said the governor had "shown his commitment" to the census effort by appointing the panel.

But Florida U.S. Rep. Donna Shalala, thinks the governor was "slow to act," her press secretary Carlos Condarco said. Shalala is a Democrat representing the Miami-area district once held by Republican Ileana Ros-Lehtinen, who wrote about the need for an accurate count to preserve Florida's funding and political power.

ADVERTISEMENT

Florida needs state dollars to compete with Alabama and California's efforts, but the governor did not provide any, said Susan Racher, a founding member of Florida Counts, a Miami-based coalition of nonprofits hoping to raise $2 million for local efforts. Floridians had low response rates in the 2010 census, raising concerns about undercounts this time around.

"It's too late. The bull's out of the barn," Racher said. "Local groups have been working on fumes and they need gas money and overtime pay for somebody to man a table at a ball game, to put a census person in the carpool lane at the local Head Start. People need those trusted voices in the community but those people don't have extra money to do this."

Some residents in many states including Texas and Florida live in areas considered hard to count that are heavily minority and immigrant and may tend to vote Democratic. Republican lawmakers in those red states are hesitant to get involved in census outreach. And more spending for government programs may not be a priority for conservatives who see themselves as battling to shrink government.

In Texas there is "a general attitude that striving to get more federal dollars based on population isn't something that thrills the state's politicians," said Chuck DeVore, a vice president at the conservative Texas Public Policy Foundation.

But some white and Republican areas also are hard to count because their suspicion of the government extends to census questions.

Alabama conducted a survey to identify five counties with concentrations of people "somewhat likely" to participate - considered an indicator that they need more information to be convinced they should do so.

Four of those counties - Chilton, Cleburne, Lauderdale and Lee - are majority-white and voted for Donald Trump in the 2016 presidential election. Also included was majority-black Wilcox County, which has voted Democratic for decades.

To have the greatest effect on participation, the state needs to concentrate its efforts in those counties, Kenneth Boswell, the chairman of the state's Alabama Counts Initiative, said in a release this month.

"People need a greater understanding of what's at stake for Alabama," Boswell said. "People that were 'somewhat likely' (to respond) are the ones on the fence that we need to motivate to be counted. We have to share with them that it's safe, quick, easy and matters a great deal to their community."

Even in states like Texas that are not funding or coordinating outreach, nonprofits are trying to fill the gap. The Hogg Foundation for Mental Health gave $2 million to local Texas efforts last month, and the Community Foundations of Texas is part of a Dallas-based and statewide effort to raise money for the same purpose.

Montana, now projected by Election Data Services to gain a second congressional seat for the first time, is devoting a modest budget compared with California's massive effort.

Montana's legislature devoted $100,000 to census outreach last year as the chance for a second seat became clearer. That includes public service commercials set to run starting this month, and publicity campaigns encouraging people in 106 local groups to knock on doors and spread the word that the census is "easy, quick and safe," said Emilie Ritter Saunders, a spokeswoman for the state Department of Commerce.

"Folks in Montana are good at that, keeping their neighbors informed," Ritter Saunders said. "They rise up and meet the goal."

---

(c)2020 Stateline.org

Visit Stateline.org at www.stateline.org

Distributed by Tribune Content Agency, LLC.
Despite continued efforts to arrive at a peace plan, violent attacks in Afghanistan jumped to record levels in the last quarter, said a US watchdog in its report. In its quarterly report, the US Special Inspector General for Afghanistan Reconstruction (SIGAR) told US Congress that enemy-initiated attacks rose to 8,204 attacks, up from 6,974 in the same period in 2018.

SIGAR Sopko said that it is not clear whether the US and its coalition partners have helped create an Afghan police force capable of 'post-peace policing' or not. He opined that Afghan people and Afghanistans international partners would certainly welcome a peace agreement but such agreement could lead to challenges for the reconstruction efforts made over the past 18 years by the US, coalition partners and the Afghan government.

Read: US Air Raids Dropped Record 7,423 Bombs In Afghanistan In 2019

Sopko also highlighted that underdeveloped civil policing capability is a high-risk area because of Afghanistans high-threat environment. More than two million Afghans residing in Pakistan could return after a peace settlement, potentially because of political pressure from the Pakistani government, said SIGAR.

Read: US Military Recovers Remains Of Service Members From Afghanistan Plane Crash

Reintegration into society

Talking about the reintegration of ex-combatants into Afghan society, Sopko said that an estimated 60,000 ex-combatants will need to transition to a sustainable livelihood if a comprehensive peace agreement is reached. He added that a weak licit labour market would then have to absorb those returnees. The need to reintegrate former insurgent and militia fighters into the economy would introduce additional challenges, said Sopko.

(1/2) Following a political settlement, Afghan police, rather than the army, are likely to be the element responsible for everyday security and will serve as a direct link to the Afghan govt in local communities  SIGAR (@SIGARHQ) January 30, 2020

(2/2) What we are doing is using our years of oversight work in #Afghanistan to anticipate ways in which high risks to reconstruction success could continue past the date of a peace settlement: IG Sopko to Congresshttps://t.co/rTqngQ4GWi  SIGAR (@SIGARHQ) January 30, 2020

Read: Taliban Claims American Plane 'crashed' In Eastern Afghanistan

Read: US-led Airstrike Kills 10 Civilians In Afghanistan, Including Three Children: Officials
The owner of a popular restaurant has come under fire for an 'insensitive' joke about the killer coronavirus outbreak.

The joke was written on a display cabinet at Casanova by Cucina 105 in Liverpool, western Sydney.

'The coronavirus won't last long because it was made in China!' the message read.

'The corona virus won't last long because it was made in China!!!' the message reads

The image was shared to social media with people slamming the owner for the message which has seen more than 200 people killed in China.

'They think thousands of people dying is a joke,' someone wrote.

'Very poor taste of a joke,' another commented.

'The owner is stupid in running the business. End of story,' another wrote.

'Tasteless people to make jokes about something so serious. Surprising that a business would do this in such a prominent location,' someone else commented.

'A disgrace... will never go there now,' another wrote.

The restaurant's Google review page has also been inundated with people giving them one star reviews and calling them racist.

Daily Mail Australia has contacted Casanova by Cucina 105 for comment.

The image was shared to social media with people slamming the owner for the message which has seen more than 200 people killed in China

The national total of people confirmed with coronavirus reached 12 on Saturday as South Australia confirms two new coronavirus cases.

There are four confirmed cases of the virus in Victoria and New South Wales each, as well as two in Queensland.

The death toll has passed 200 in China, while confirmed cases of infection are edging towards 10,000.
Metro Manila (CNN Philippines, February 1)  Local airlines are canceling flights between the Philippines and mainland China, where the number of novel coronavirus cases continues to rise.

Budget carrier Cebu Pacific in a statement on Saturday said it will cancel flights to and from the Chinese capital Beijing, and the cities Shanghai, Xiamen, Guangzhou, and Shenzen from February 2 to March 29.

Flights to and from Hong Kong and Macau have been reduced.

Likewise, AirAsia said it will no longer be offering flights from Manila and Kalibo to mainland China cities Guangzhou, Shenzhen, and Shanghai, and to Hong Kong and Macau until March 1.

Cebu Pacific and AirAsia said all affected passengers will be notified, and asked to choose whether to rebook their flight, refund their tickets in full, or store the ticket value for future use.

Earlier, Cebu Pacific, like flag carrier Philippine Airlines, announced only a reduction of flights. PAL suspended charter flights between Kalibo, Aklan and Nanjing, Hangzhou, and Pudong Shanghai in China after Chinese authorities have restricted outbound travel from the mainland.

The two airlines also implemented various safety measures  including placing flight crews on quarantine  after a female Chinese national who earlier boarded their flights was confirmed to have the novel coronavirus acute respiratory disease (2019-nCoV ARD).

The 38-year-old Chinese tourist boarded a PAL flight from Dumaguete to Manila on January 25. Two pilots and four attendants have been quarantined. Meanwhile, Cebu Pacific said the aircraft used for their Hong Kong-Cebu and Cebu-Dumaguete flights were also pulled out for disinfection.

President Rodrigo Duterte has temporarily stopped the entry of all travelers from China's Hubei province where Wuhan  epicenter of the novel coronavirus  is located.

The death toll in mainland China has risen to 258 as the virus infected 11,791 people there. More than 20 countries and territories outside of mainland China have confirmed cases of the virus, spanning Asia, Europe, North America and the Middle East  prompting many of them to issue strict travel restrictions for foreign nationals who traveled to China.

In the Philippines, the Department of Health is monitoring 31 patients for suspected infection.

READ: How to protect yourself from coronavirus
HOUSTON, Feb. 1, 2020 /PRNewswire/ -- Equilon Enterprises LLC d/b/a Shell Oil Products US (Shell), a subsidiary of Royal Dutch Shell plc announced today that it has formally closed on the sale of Shell's Martinez Refinery in California to PBF Holding Company LLC (PBF), a subsidiary of PBF Energy, Inc., in exchange for $1.2 billion which includes the refinery and inventory. The deal also includes crude oil supply and product offtake agreements, and other adjustments.

Shell is very proud of the relationship we have built and maintained with the city and people of Martinez over the many years we've operated side-by-side with the Martinez community making several notable achievements on safety, reliability, performance, and community involvement.

As we turn over ownership of the Martinez Refinery to PBF, we offer our many thanks to the City and community of Martinez for all they have done to support and partner with Shell and our employees over the last 100 years.

Cautionary Note

The companies in which Royal Dutch Shell plc directly and indirectly owns investments are separate legal entities. In this release "Shell", "Shell group" and "Royal Dutch Shell" are sometimes used for convenience where references are made to Royal Dutch Shell plc and its subsidiaries in general. Likewise, the words "we", "us" and "our" are also used to refer to subsidiaries in general or to those who work for them. These expressions are also used where no useful purpose is served by identifying the particular company or companies. ''Subsidiaries'', "Shell subsidiaries" and "Shell companies" as used in this release refer to companies over which Royal Dutch Shell plc either directly or indirectly has control. Entities and unincorporated arrangements over which Shell has joint control are generally referred to as "joint ventures" and "joint operations" respectively. Entities over which Shell has significant influence but neither control nor joint control are referred to as "associates". The term "Shell interest" is used for convenience to indicate the direct and/or indirect ownership interest held by Shell in a venture, partnership or company, after exclusion of all third-party interest.

This release contains forward-looking statements concerning the financial condition, results of operations and businesses of Royal Dutch Shell. All statements other than statements of historical fact are, or may be deemed to be, forward-looking statements. Forward-looking statements are statements of future expectations that are based on management's current expectations and assumptions and involve known and unknown risks and uncertainties that could cause actual results, performance or events to differ materially from those expressed or implied in these statements. Forward-looking statements include, among other things, statements concerning the potential exposure of Royal Dutch Shell to market risks and statements expressing management's expectations, beliefs, estimates, forecasts, projections and assumptions. These forward-looking statements are identified by their use of terms and phrases such as ''anticipate'', ''believe'', ''could'', ''estimate'', ''expect'', ''goals'', ''intend'', ''may'', ''objectives'', ''outlook'', ''plan'', ''probably'', ''project'', ''risks'', "schedule", ''seek'', ''should'', ''target'', ''will'' and similar terms and phrases. There are a number of factors that could affect the future operations of Royal Dutch Shell and could cause those results to differ materially from those expressed in the forward-looking statements included in this release, including (without limitation): (a) price fluctuations in crude oil and natural gas; (b) changes in demand for Shell's products; (c) currency fluctuations; (d) drilling and production results; (e) reserves estimates; (f) loss of market share and industry competition; (g) environmental and physical risks; (h) risks associated with the identification of suitable potential acquisition properties and targets, and successful negotiation and completion of such transactions; (i) the risk of doing business in developing countries and countries subject to international sanctions; (j) legislative, fiscal and regulatory developments including regulatory measures addressing climate change; (k) economic and financial market conditions in various countries and regions; (l) political risks, including the risks of expropriation and renegotiation of the terms of contracts with governmental entities, delays or advancements in the approval of projects and delays in the reimbursement for shared costs; and (m) changes in trading conditions. There can be no assurance that future dividend payments will match or exceed previous dividend payments. All forward-looking statements contained in this release are expressly qualified in their entirety by the cautionary statements contained or referred to in this section. Readers should not place undue reliance on forward-looking statements. Additional risk factors that may affect future results are contained in Royal Dutch Shell's 20-F for the year ended December 31, 2018 (available at www.shell.com/investor and www.sec.gov ). These risk factors also expressly qualify all forward looking statements contained in this release and should be considered by the reader. Each forward-looking statement speaks only as of the date of this release, February 1, 2020. Neither Royal Dutch Shell plc nor any of its subsidiaries undertake any obligation to publicly update or revise any forward-looking statement as a result of new information, future events or other information. In light of these risks, results could differ materially from those stated, implied or inferred from the forward-looking statements contained in this release.

With respect to operating costs synergies indicated, such savings and efficiencies in procurement spend include economies of scale, specification standardisation and operating efficiencies across operating, capital and raw material cost areas.

We may have used certain terms, such as resources, in this release that United States Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) strictly prohibits us from including in our filings with the SEC. U.S. Investors are urged to consider closely the disclosure in our Form 20-F, File No 1-32575, available on the SEC website www.sec.gov.

SOURCE Shell

Related Links

http://www.shell.com


The Willis Independent School District is considering building or repurposing space for a prekindergarten facility.

Willis ISD Communications Director Jamie Fails said the district does not currently have the space to meet the new state law requirement for a full day pre-K by 2023.

The district also did not receive proposals for partnerships with eligible early learning centers after posting a survey in December on its website.

To work towards meeting the requirement while examining the options, the school board, which will hear from the bond committee soon, approved a waiver on Jan. 13 allowing the district to file for a three-year exemption through 2022. The confirmed it received has received approval for the exemption.

To be able to address the need, we are going to pilot adding two full day pre-k classes beginning next year, Fails said.

The district currently has a prekindergarten enrollment of 261 students with seven prekindergarten teachers who teach both a morning and afternoon class. To meet the requirement, Fails said the district would have to double those classes to about 14 for the full-year, intensive language development and early literacy program that is designed to give four-year old children who qualify the opportunity to develop skills, concepts, and attitudes for success.

A child is eligible for enrollment in free prekindergarten if the child is at least four years of age on or before Sept. 1, unable to speak and comprehend the English language, is economically disadvantaged defined by qualification for free or reduced lunch, homeless as defined by federal law, a child of an active duty member of the armed forces, state military forces, or reserve forces ordered to active duty, a child of a member of the armed forces, state military forces, or reserve forces who was injured or killed while serving on active duty, and/or ever has been in Foster Care.

With the waiver, the plan is to add two classes each year over the next three years to meet the needs of the current enrollment. This would allow the district to add about six or seven classes added by 2023, she said the approach would allow for the addition of teachers while spacing out funding, building up the classroom capacity, and examining its options.

In other news, the school board has approved moving forward with the remainder of the work on a $2 million project to repair the Lynn Lucas roof. Fails said about 15 percent of the roof on the northeast corner was replaced after Harvey with 85 percent remaining. The repair work is expected to continue during the summer while school is closed.

The school board, which met last month regarding the project, previously voted in December to proceed using district funds. A resolution has since passed to allow the district to reimburse with bond funds if a bond is called and passes.

The new administration building remains under construction next to the Roark Early Education Center at 606 North Campbell St. The foundation has been poured and the steel frame work has begun. It is anticipated to open Fall 2020 and will honor the districts longest-ever employee Sharon Hill Jennette. Jennette served as the assistant to the superintendent for 49 years.

The bond committee will present to the school board at the next school board meeting on Feb. 10 at 204 W Rogers St.

mellsworth@hcnonline.com
WASHINGTON (Reuters) - A decision by the United States to lift sanctions on one of two units of the Chinese tanker company COSCO was not a sign that the Trump administration was letting up on its "maximum pressure" against Iran, a senior U.S. official said on Saturday.

The lifting of sanctions on Friday by the U.S. Treasury Department partially reversed its punishment on the company for transporting Iranian oil after China complained about the measure in trade talks with Washington.

The Treasury said it deleted COSCO Shipping Tanker (Dalian) Co from its sanctions list but continues to blacklist a second unit - COSCO Shipping Tanker (Dalian) Seaman & Ship Management Co Ltd.

"This administrative de-listing should not be misinterpreted as a change in policy," a senior administration official said, speaking on the condition of anonymity.

"Our maximum pressure campaign continues as before; we will sanction any sanctionable activity."

China is the world's only major importer of Iranian oil despite sanctions President Donald Trump unilaterally reimposed on Tehran's petroleum exports in 2018 after withdrawing the United States from the 2015 Iran nuclear deal between Tehran and six world powers.

Trump hopes the sanctions will limit Tehran's ballistic missile program and influence across the Middle East. Tehran says its nuclear program is for peaceful purposes.

(Reporting by Humeyra Pamuk; Writing by Idrees Ali; Editing by Sonya Hepinstall)
New Delhi: China is ready to cooperate with India in strengthening measures towards preventing the spread of the new strain of deadly coronavirus, Chinese Ambassador to India Sun Weidong said on Friday.

"China is ready to cooperate with India to respond to the outbreak and work together to prevent and control the epidemic. We also hope India will continue to give understanding and support to China's efforts in this regard," he said in an exclusive interview to ANI.

The Ambassador's statement came in response to a question on the evacuation of Indian nationals from China.

He said China has done a lot of work to ensure the health and safety of Indian nationals in China.

The Ambassador stressed that as a responsible country, China has always given top priority to the health and safety of all Chinese and foreign nationals in Wuhan, the epicentre of the deadly virus outbreak.

He said China has been in communication with India to keep it informed of the developments concerning the epidemic and its prevention and control efforts.

"We have done a lot of work to ensure the health and safety of Indian nationals in China. We believe that through bilateral cooperation, India's concerns can be properly addressed," he said.

Referring to one confirmed case of the virus in India, Sun Weidong said: "We pay close attention to the report of one confirmed case of pneumonia in India. I would like to express my sympathy to the patient and her family, and wish her an early recovery."

He also noted that Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi had a telephonic conversation with External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar in which he reiterated that the Chinese government has taken the most rigorous control measures.

"State Councilor and Foreign Minister Wang Yi had a telephone conversation with External Affairs Minister Dr. Jaishankar. Wang reiterated that the Chinese government has taken the most comprehensive and rigorous prevention and control measures. Many of these measures go well beyond the requirements of the International Health Regulations. We have full confidence and ability to win the battle against the outbreak," he said.

Earlier in the day, Jaishankar had thanked Wang for the cooperation extended by the Chinese government for the departure of Indian students and professionals from Wuhan.

"Called Chinese State Councilor and Foreign Minister Wang Yi today to thank him for the cooperation extended by the Chinese government for the departure of Indian students and professionals from Wuhan. As China deals with the #coronavirus challenge, we agreed to stay in touch," Jaishankar in a tweet.

An Air India special flight from the coronavirus-struck Wuhan city landed in Delhi earlier today carrying 324 Indians.
New Delhi, Feb 1 : Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman on Saturday said a scheme on encourage manufacturing of mobile phones, semiconductor packaging and electronic equipment is on the anvil.

Making the announcement in the Budget speech, she said: "There is a cost advantage for electronics manufacturing in India".

But she says that this needs more investment. "I propose a scheme to encourage manufacturing of mobile phones, semiconductor packaging and electronic equipment", she said, adding this can be used for manufacture of medical devices as well.

A detailed scheme with details will be released soon, the FM said.

A Modified Special Incentive Package Scheme (MSIPS) to promote aggressively a 20-odd component manufacturing ecosystem in the country that will go beyond making mobile phones could be on the anvil. This could be an overarching policy which goes beyond interest subvention and credit default guarantee and it will be outside the scope of MeitY (Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology) and by an outside department/arm since ministry's role is that of a policymaker only.

M-SIPS was first floated to encourage electronics manufacturing and it ran from 2012 to 2018. It promised multiple incentives for 10 years, including a capital subsidy of 20 per cent in special economic zones (SEZs) and 25 per cent in non-SEZs, and reimbursements of countervailing duty or excise on capital equipment for non-SEZ units.

For some high-capital projects, it also offered reimbursement of Central taxes and duties. The incentives were available for 29 electronic verticals across the manufacturing value chain. The period of benefits was reduced to 5 years from 10 years after it was recalled.

M-SIPS was created to provide financial incentives across the ESDM (Electronics System Design and Manufacturing) value chain to compensate for cost disability in manufacturing and Electronics Manufacturing Clusters (EMC).

This sector has shown tremendous promise wherein exports have grown from a mere US $200 million three years ago to over $2 billion in the year 2019-20 in handsets alone -- a 10x growth in 36 months.

One of the most successful stories around Make in India is mobile handset manufacturing with Noida outside Delhi becoming the new hub. The size of the domestic mobile manufacturing industry in FY 2019-20 is expected to be Rs 1,35,000 crores as against Rs 94,000 in FY 2016-17.

Already, India, which has second position in the global mobile handsets market, is projected to grow to 302 million units this year.
Yang Zhaoyu quit his job in a big Chinese city nine months ago and moved to a small community that preaches sustainable living and mindful consumption.

After graduating from college, I lived a very mainstream life, the 30-year-old former software developer said. I dated, got married, and found a job.

But Yang realised he wanted something different, so he ditched his career in Suzhou, west of Shanghai, and found a new life in an isolated community centred around sustainability and organic farming.

Chinas teeming megacities have drawn hundreds of millions of people from rural villages and small towns in search of jobs and wealth, but people like Yang are part of an emerging trend in the opposite direction.

A recent poll of people aged 18-35 by a state think tank found 52 per cent of those living in smaller towns and cities had moved there after spending on average three years in top-tier cities, citing the fast pace of life.

Yang Zhaoyu and Chen Yan meditate in the early morning inside a dome-shaped house on a hill at AnotherCommunity (Reuters)

Known as AnotherCommunity, Yangs new home is an hours drive outside of Fuzhou city in Fujian province, at a village called Guanzhong. It was set up by Tang Guanhua, 30, and his wife, Xing Zhen, 35, in late 2015.

After a year at AnotherCommunity, residents can vote to have a say in its affairs and use shared funds and resources. There are currently five permanent members.

It is now opening to the public for a four-month trial. Since mid-October, more than 20 potential residents  from former computer programmers to online English teachers and freelance videographers  have signed up to join.

Freelance videographer Chen Yan said she originally planned to stay for only a week when she came in October, but ended up staying a month.

I lived in a room that ... was half open and remained connected to the outside world, to the mountain, the 24-year-old said.

I stayed longer because I wanted to continue to feel that fullness, that richness.

Xing Zhen teaches her students how to weave (Reuters)

The community also serves as a safe space for 63-year-old transgender woman Liu Peilin, who has known Tang for several years.

In 2018, the community had to destroy much of what they had built due to pressure from the local government, though in recent months they have been left alone.

Whatever they do, I just hope they make something of it, said the villages Communist Party chief, surnamed Lin.

Chinese media is full of stories about people seeking alternative lifestyles in the countryside.

Xing Zhen walks under a string of lights at AnotherCommunity (Reuters)

A newspaper reported in 2018 that a young woman had moved into the Zhongnan Mountains in Shanxi province seeking a hermit life. Her story went viral on social media after she was forcibly evicted.

Those mountains have since attracted young people from all over China. At one point, the community had over 600 residents, many former city dwellers, according to media reports.

The regional government, irked by what they saw as an incursion, tore down their illegal structures.

Reporting by Huizhong Wu, Reuters
After 47 years of sitting at the European Unions top table, the UK on Friday exited the 28-member group to beat an independent path into a future some see as a new dawn and others a leap into the unknown.

It is the first time a member-state has left the group whose origins lie in efforts in the aftermath of the Second World War to counter impulses of extreme nationalism. The moment of exit  11 pm GMT  was described as a bittersweet one by many, including Ireland PM Leo Varadkar.

There was sadness in various quarters in the UK and across Europe after nearly five decades of close engagement brought together not only rules, regulations and markets, but also personal relationships and families. Pro-Brexiteers partied to celebrate the occasion.

Also Watch | Brexit: UK formally leaves the European Union, supporters celebrate

The Bexit Day, ending years of wrangling since the 2016 referendum, was marked by low-key events staged by the Boris Johnson government. Indian and other businesses based in the UK continue to await clarity on future trade and mobility arrangements.

Johnsons cabinet travelled to Sunderland in north England for a meeting as a symbolic gesture to an area that overwhelmingly voted to leave the EU. He recorded a message striking an upbeat but not a triumphalist note.

He said: The most important thing to say tonight is that this is not an end but a beginning. This is the moment when the dawn breaks and the curtain goes up on a new act. It is a moment of real national renewal and change.

Ireland Prime Minister Leo Varadkar said: Well say goodbye to an old friend embarking on an adventure, their own tryst of destiny. We do hope it works out for them.

But if it does not, there will always be a seat for the United Kingdom at the European table. The next step is to negotiate future relationships, including a free trade agreement, between the EU including Ireland and the United Kingdom, he added.

Former Prime Minister David Cameron, who led the campaign to remain in the EU during the referendum and later resigned, called it a very big day for our country, adding that he believed the UK could make a success of the choice that we made.

Brexit Party leader Nigel Farage, who has long campaigned to leave the EU and now loses his seat as a member of the European Parliament, said: At last the day comes when we break free. A massive victory for the people against the establishment.

Keir Starmer, the front-runner to take over as the next Labour leader, said: The debate over whether we are in or out of the EU is over, but the debate over the kind of country we want to become has only just begun.

As a country weve been bitterly divided for three and a half years. Our politics has been frozen instead of tackling the real and deep-rooted problems we face. Now the leave-remain divide must endThere are no leavers or remainers any more.

From Saturday, the first day outside the EU, little will change on the ground. Under the withdrawal agreement, the UK and EU will move into a transition phase with the UK remaining in most EU institutions until December 31.

Most rules applicable to EU member-states, such as freedom of movement, will continue till the end of the transition period, but UK representatives will no longer join EU talks and debates and UK members of European parliament will lose their seats.

Crucial Brexit talks related to future trade and other arrangements are to be held during the transition period, which is expected to be as stormy as the EU-UK talks when the withdrawal agreement was reached under two prime ministers, Theresa May and Boris Johnson.

Noting the tough task to reach new trade and other arrangements before December 31, academic Anand Menon, a leading commentator on Brexit, wrote in The Guardian: Dont tune out yet: Britains Brexit odyssey is far from over.

(A) majority government may have made parliament reassuringly boring again. But beware. Boredom is a dangerous thing. The choices stemming from Brexit are arguably more significant than the choice to leave in the first place.

SHARE THIS ARTICLE ON
Dateline Myanmars Lawyers Made Feeble Case at ICJ: Legal Expert

The Irrawaddy

Kyaw Kha: Welcome to Dateline Irrawaddy! This week we will discuss the International Court of Justice (ICJ)s decision relating to provisional measures against Myanmar. I am The Irrawaddy chief reporter Kyaw Kha and I am joined by Dr. Salai Ngun Cung Lian, the director of federalism and constitutional reform at the Myanmar Institute for Peace and Study (MIPS).

The ICJ has imposed provisional measures against Myanmar. As a legal expert, could you explain what that means, according to legal procedures?



SNCL: The case was brought by The Gambia against Myanmar for alleged violation of the Genocide Convention. But as it is extremely difficult to prove the intent [to commit genocide], they requested six provisional measures as a temporary solution. And the ICJ judges accepted four of the measures. Whether we like it or not, Myanmar has to implement them.

KK: People are not very clear about those measures. Could you explain further?

SNCL: There are two things  firstly about the question of whether Myanmar violated the Genocide Convention, and secondly about the authority of the ICJ. The first is quite difficult [to prove]. It will take years. And the ICJ has the authority to deliver the ruling. The provisional measures are nothing to do with genocide but with the authority of the ICJ. The people are confused about these two and should be clear on them.

KK: What is your assessment of those four provisional measures?

SNCL: The ICJ has given the ruling but there must be someone to enforce that ruling. Thats why the ICJ did not order that the sixth measure be implemented. According to the four measures, Myanmar has to submit a report in the first four months and submit further reports every six months. According to Article 41 of the Statute of the ICJ, Myanmar has to submit regular reports to the UN Security Council. If Myanmar fails to comply with the provisional measures, the Security Council will take action against Myanmar. So we will get locked in a cycle of having to submit reports every six months for a decade.

KK: It is fair to say that the ICJ gave the ruling based on the fact-finding mission [FFM] report. But the government did not say it accepted the report. The National League for Democracys [NLD] spokesman Dr. Myo Nyunt said the party did not accept the report and they are sorry about the ruling. But the ICJ made its decision based on that report. What is your view?

SNCL: Besides that report, there are other reports by international agencies, including Human Rights Watch and Medecins Sans Frontieres. The case brought by The Gambia against Myanmar was based on those reports, including the FFM report. How Myanmar views it is not important. Myanmar should have questioned the figures. Suppose Medecins Sans Frontieres said 8,000 people died [in Rakhine State] but other reports gave different figures. The government should have asked the ICJ not to accept the lawsuit, citing inconsistent figures. This was our weakness.

KK: Myanmars Foreign Ministry issued a statement in response to the ICJs ruling but, for many citizens, the statement was too complex to understand.

SNCL: Governments may issue three types of statement in these cases. The first is to totally oppose it. The second is to accept some parts, and the third is to acknowledge it. It neither accepts nor opposes it. Myanmars statement belongs to the third group.

KK: The day before the ICJ delivered its ruling, the government issued its ICOE [Independent Commission of Enquiry] report. Some say the report was too late. What is your view?

SNCL: There are two parts. There are many reports about the Rakhine issue. But the ICJs ruling is largely based on the FFM report. Myanmar failed to complain at the ICJ that the FFM report differs from other studies. We failed to take the chance to argue that the ICJ should not make its decision based on the FFM report. Secondly, why was the ICOE report published late? The report should have been published in December or before we contested the lawsuit at the ICJ. If it had been published then, it could have helped disprove genocide and reduce the charges to war crimes or crimes of aggression. The government only published the ICOE report after the ICJ gave the ruling. I dont know whether the government did it intentionally or from a lack of knowledge. It was a mistake.

KK: What action can the ICJ take if Myanmar fails to comply with the four provisional measures?

SNCL: Myanmar will face troubles if it complies. Firstly Myanmar may have to grant citizenship to illegal immigrants in Rakhine State. When the government contested the lawsuit at the ICJ, it failed to say the Rohingya are not an ethnic group in Myanmar. It failed to say the ARSA [Arakan Rohingya Salvation Army] is a terrorist group. But it said the AA [Arakan Army] is a Buddhist armed group. So this amounts to granting legitimacy [to the Rohingya]. We will suffer from the consequences for decades. The ICJ gave its ruling based on that. The Chinese judge totally avoided using the term Rohingya. She said she agreed because ethnic minorities are being persecuted in Myanmar. The Brazilian lawyer did the same. What is sad was the lawyer for Myanmar did not stress that point. Citizens should know the details about what happened.

KK: Why do you think the situation has deteriorated to the extent that a case was brought against Myanmar at the ICJ? What are our weaknesses?

SNCL: The problems in Rakhine State erupted in 2012. There were problems in the past but the things that led to the current developments started in 2012. The [previous] government was not able to handle that issue properly. Due to this a problem that could have been handled domestically was brought onto the international stage. The previous and current governments share blame for this. I was on the Rakhine Commission under the previous government. I provided recommendations but unfortunately, it was just before the election was held and power was transferred to the [NLD] government. The incoming government ignored our recommendations. It formed commissions and committees only after ARSA launched attacks on security outposts. If they do not accept what the previous government did, we are very likely to face much worse problems.

If they [any party that comes to power] have the attitude not to accept what the previous government did or planned, we are very likely to face much worse problems.

You may also like these stories:

How Will Millions of Myanmar Migrant Workers Vote in the 2020 Election?

What Will Xi Jinpings Visit Mean for Myanmars Future?

What Will 2020 Mean for Myanmars Democracy?
A Rush business has won a prestigious award at a ceremony at the Crown Plaza Hotel, Dublin Airport.

Around 500 of the country's top businesses and wedding specialists gathered on Monday, January at The Crowne Plaza Hotel Dublin Airport to find out the champions of The 4th Irish Wedding Awards 2020 and one of the big winners was a candle-making business in Rush.

The awards recognised everyone that works hard towards creating memorable and unique weddings; from wedding planners, coordinators, specialists and caterers to photographers, videographers, florists and stationery suppliers.

The glitzy evening was hosted by the best-selling author, Andrea Hayes. She presented the awards

and acknowledged those who promote excellence in the industry, inspire others by their achievements and add the fairy-tale sparkle to any wedding.

The competition was fierce but Candles For Occasions based in Rush was crowned winner in the Wedding Accessories category and took the trophy home.

Speaking on stage, Melissa Barry thanked her customers for their nominations and support. Based in

her native seaside town of Rush, she has been hand-crafting personalised candles for over seven years and takes great pride in her work.

It is her belief that 'customers won't buy bad quality

twice', an adage instilled in her by her Grandfather many years ago.

She said: 'I'm still in shock to be honest! I love what I do, and I take great pride in what I do, so it's nice for

that to be recognised.

'I'm only a small company so I never thought I had a chance of winning a

national award, but my customers nominated me, and an independent panel of judges take it from there.'

Melissa added: 'It's an honour to take home the prestigious award, and to be named as a top wedding supplier in Ireland.'

A Spokesperson for The Irish Wedding Awards 2020 said: 'The winners represent the industry's gold tstandard that work tirelessly to meet the demands of the couples and their guests.

'The awards showcased some of the best wedding specialists that operate in the industry, whose excellence and

commitment brought them at the forefront of the industry.

'The competition was really tough this year, but these champions are tried and tested specialists that know how to create a stress-free wedding experience, keeping the romance in the in the air.

'We would like to congratulate all finalists and winners for their amazing achievements.'
More than 40 inmates at a Shirley prison have reported they were repeatedly assaulted by a tactical team at the facility following an attack of a correction officer in early January, attorneys said.

Several inmates at the Souza-Baranowski Correctional Center, a maximum-security prison, alleged they were punched, kicked, slammed into walls, repeatedly tased [and] shot with mace guns by members of the tactical team from Jan. 10 to as recent as Friday, according to Elizabeth Matos, executive director of the Prisoners Legal Services of Massachusetts. Six inmates also reported being bitten by a dog, she said.

The reports have been very consistent and the allegations are largely that the assaults were completely unprovoked and carried out while individuals were locked in their cells, Matos wrote in an email to MassLive. Between Jan. 10-24th, our understanding is that they were locked in for 24 hours a day, but as of the 25th are being allowed out for 15 minutes for a shower or phone call.

The prison was placed on lockdown Jan. 10 after a correction officer was surrounded and assaulted by inmates, according to Jason Dobson, a spokesperson for the Massachusetts Department of Correction. The correction officer suffered a head injury, and two other officers were injured when they responded to help, according to authorities.

The inmates who were allegedly attacked by the tactical team did not participate in the assault of the officer, according to Matos.

Six inmates were removed from the unit, and the prisoners allegedly involved were expected to face internal discipline, Dobson said. The incident remains under investigation.

Sources told MassLive the prisoners who participated in the attack are members of the Latin Kings. Video of the assault released by the department shows the group of gang members assaulting the officer.

The correctional center was also placed on lockdown in August after five guards were injured by prisoners, and in 2017, more than a dozen inmates were indicted for destroying parts of the building. Former New England Patriots tight end Aaron Hernandez was found dead in his cell at the facility the same year as well.

The alleged attacks on the inmates started the same day as the assault on the correction officer, Matos said. The prisoners reported they were assaulted as retaliation for the Jan. 10 incident, according to the attorney, who said her advocacy group has spoken with more than 50 inmates at the prison by phone or indirectly through their attorneys.

That is also our assumption at this point based on the information we have received, especially that so many of the assaults are reported as unprovoked and because the deprivation of basic access to personal items, phones, visits, programming, education, etc. has not been targeted to a certain group of individuals or area of the prison, Matos wrote in her email.

The Prisoners Legal Services has fielded concerns from around 25 family members of prisoners, according to Matos. Inmates families have not been allowed to visit the facility, and attorneys for some of the prisoners have had limited access to their clients, she said.

State Senator James Eldridge, who represents Shirley, told The Boston Globe he too has received around 30 complaints about conditions inside the facility since Jan. 10. Prisoners or their relatives have reported to him that inmates have been denied food or permission to speak to their lawyers, according to the state senator.

The tactical team is no longer at the prison, but conditions there are still austere, Matos said. Inmates are let out of their rooms for 15 minutes at a time, have no access to personal items and have had their legal paperwork removed from their cells, according to her.

We are still trying to understand the scope of the situation and are committed to addressing any violations, especially systemic human rights violations, but it is still early to assess whether litigation will be filed," Matos wrote in her email.

DOC cannot discuss the specifics of an inmates incarceration, according to officials, but the prison is returning to normal operations after the lockdown as well as a search for drugs, weapons or other contraband. Inmates have been given increasing access to showers, phone calls, emails and recreation, authorities said.

A methodical search protocol and other temporary changes at Souza-Baranowski Correctional Center have been undertaken to ensure the safety of staff, inmates, and the public, which remain DOCs primary concern in the aftermath of serious assaults on correctional officers," Dobson said in a statement to MassLive. "Any use of force under these circumstances is governed by DOC policy, and any alleged violations are thoroughly investigated.

Victoria Kelleher, president of the Massachusetts Association of Criminal Defense Lawyers, heard from inmates lawyers three weeks ago that they were not allowed to be admitted into the facility. She has not had any direct contact with prisoners but has communicated with around a dozen of the prisoners attorneys, according to her.

General visits have been suspended until further notice, officials confirmed, but attorneys are permitted to visit their clients. A certain segment of the inmate population has been allowed access to their attorneys on a limited basis over the phone and in person, Kelleher said, but the lawyers are not permitted to sit in the same room as their clients.

Legal counsel for the commissioner of the states Department of Correction and the Executive Office of Public Safety and Security confirmed to Kelleher that attorneys were previously not permitted to enter the institution, she said.

I have never seen a situation where attorneys were completely barred from seeing their clients. Its highly unusual," Kelleher said. Its a complete violation of their constitutional rights.

Kelleher has asked for a written policy from DOC about how it determines which inmates are allowed access to their lawyers, according to her.

The attorney, like Matos, has received reports of inmates being tased, dogs entering into their cells to assault them, bite them, being stripped of all their clothes for a period of time and having all their possessions taken from them, having food withheld," Kelleher said.

The inmates who we are talking about at this point were not involved in the attack of the guard, she said. What were seeing in the aftermath of that is not punishment for those involved in the assault. Its a shakedown of the institution.

Kelleher said the Massachusetts Association of Criminal Defense Lawyers is working with the Committee for Public Counsel Services to to address the alleged assaults.

Related Content:
(Natural News) Recall, it wasnt long ago that retired U.S. Supreme Court Justice, John Paul Stevens, remarked that the Second Amendment should be redrafted to make clear and unequivocal that the right of the people to keep and bear arms is not an individual, unalienable, immutable right. Stevens authored a book audaciously titled, Six Amendments: How and Why We Should Change the Constitution. In it, he proclaimed the need for a massive redraft of the Bill of Rights. Disagreeing with the idea of a set of fundamental, immutable, natural rights implicit in it, he wished to replace it, to reflect his vision of the world, one at odds with the vision of the framers.

(Article by Roger Katz republished from AmmoLand.com)

In his book, Stevens devotes attention to the Second Amendment to reflect his philosophy, his vision of America. His remarks constitute a vehement denunciation of the Heller rulingsas penned by the late eminent high Court Justice, Antonin Scaliaa strong denunciation Stevens dared not articulate in his dissent to the Heller decision.

But, on further reflection, Stevens evidently felt that a substantial redraft of the Second Amendment would be insufficient to set the Country on the course he sought: one cohering with the tenets of Collectivism. So, he went further. He argued for the outright abolition of the natural right of the people to keep and bear arms. The left-wing Magazine Time, citing John Paul Stevens Op-Ed appearing in The New York Times, wrote:

Retired Associate Supreme Court Justice John Paul Stevens has an idea for addressing gun violence in America: repeal the Second Amendment.

Unfortunately, John Paul Stevens isnt the only Supreme Court Justice who has condemned and has exhibited contempt for the Constitution the framers gave to us. Ruth Bader Ginsburg, who presently sits on the Supreme Court, has also espoused little regard for our Constitution. The Daily Signal took Ginsburg to task:

Conservatives are often ridiculed for criticizing activist judges who fail to respect the Constitution. We are told that it is not conservative originalists (labeled ignorant and extremist) but rather enlightened liberal judgeswith their nuanced understanding of constitutional penumbraswho truly respect the spirit of the Constitution.

Conservatives, however, have good reason to be skeptical of the lefts respect for the Constitution. . . for example, Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg told an Egyptian TV station that she would not recommend the U.S. Constitution as the model for Egypts new government. The problem, you see, is that the U.S. Constitution is a rather old constitution. Ginsburg suggested that Egyptians should look instead to the Constitution of South Africa or perhaps the European Convention on Human Rights. All these are much more recent than the U.S. Constitution.

Ginsburgs comments echo those by Washington University professor David Law, who published a study with Mila Versteeg on the U.S. Constitutions declining influence worldwide. In an interview, Law unfavorably compared the Constitution to Windows 3.1outdated and unattractive in a world of sleek and sexy modern constitutions. Such obsession with the age of the Constitution is both absurd and irrelevant.

Equally ridiculous is the claim that the Constitution is too antiquated to apply to the modern world. The principles of the Constitution, although first articulated centuries ago, are not tied to the material conditions of a bygone age. They rest on that most solid and enduring of all foundations: human nature. The Constitution itself contains no policy prescriptions. Rather, it is a short, elegantly written document that creates a framework for a free people to confront the political questions of their times.

Slightly over a year ago, the National Review pointed out that, with the various changes Democrats would like to make to the U.S. Constitution, they dared not mention, at that time, what they really are after. They realize that to make their Collectivist nightmare of America a reality, it is necessary to do away with the Constitution as it is the framework for our Constitutional Republic, which they seek to undo.

But even as Congressional Democrats do not, at least at the moment, talk expressly of rewriting the U.S. Constitution in its entirety, the Democrats bullhorn, the mainstream media, has shown no such reluctance in doing so: proclaiming what the Collectivist world view requires.

The Leftist magazine, Harpers, emblazoned its October 2019 cover with an incredibly audacious question, as the lead-in to the magazines featured article, Do We Need the Constitution?

Perusing the article, the reader comes to understand that the question is not only audacious; it is rhetorical. A subtitle within the magazine makes that clear, as Harpers presumptuously asks: Has Americas founding document become the nations undoing? Several Radical Left academic luminaries, namely Donna Edwards, Mary Anne Franks, David Law, Lawrence Lessig, and Louis Michael Seidman, address the presumed and misplacedas they see itsubservience of the Nation to the U.S. Constitution. Harpers readers are obviously supposed to take on faith that the arguments evinced are logically sound, reasonable, and profound. But even a perfunctory analysis makes clear enough that the remarks amount to nothing more than sophistry, a collective superficial polemic, scarcely hiding the academicians contempt for the very framework of our Nation. Consider: how is it that Harpers and the Radical Left academicians would reconcile abandonment of a Constitution, one that has stood the test of time, with the idea implicit in the concept of Rule of Law that they apparently subscribe to and to the notion that they would ostensibly also ascribe to, namely that, in our Constitutional Republic, we, as Americans are ruled by law, not by men? Without a Constitution, as the backbone of our body of law built up over time, how might the American citizenry fare, under a new transnational system of governanceone predicated on Collectivist tenets that, at their core, eschew the dignity, sanctity, and inviolability of the individual?

The slippery slope of incessant, incendiary, insufferable Leftist attacks on various parts of the Constitution in the Harpers feature article, ends with a proclamation in response to the rhetorical question, do we need the U.S. Constitution? No we dont need this U.S. Constitution at allwhich is to say, the concept of our Sovereign Independent Nation-State, as a Constitutional free, Democratic Republic, as laid out in our rather old Constitution, as Ruth Bader Ginsburg asserts, is too old-hat, to continue to exist and should be replaced: but replaced with what exactly?

Through the words and actions of the Democrat Party leadership, along with the words and actions of Radical Left elements within the Party and within the greater society at large, and with the policy prescriptions of the Democrat Party Candidates for U.S. President, as mentioned in the Party debates, the American people should have a pretty good clue what these people they have in mind for the Nation if they gain the reins of power.

Read more at: AmmoLand.com
Northern gannets pictured on Bonaventure Island in Quebec, home to an estimated 55,000 gannet pairs. The gannet migrates to the southeastern coast of the United States each fall. (David Boily/AFP/Getty Images)

Trump Administration to Decriminalize Accidental Killing of Birds

Obama-era rule potentially transformed "vast majority of average Americans into criminals"

The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (FWS) announced Friday that it is proposing a rule that defines the scope of the Migratory Bird Treaty Act (MBTA), rolling back a far-reaching Obama-era interpretation in the process. The proposed rule clarifies that the scope of the MBTA only extends to conduct intentionally injuring birds. Conduct that results in the unintentional (incidental) injury or death of migratory birds would not be prohibited under the act.

According to Jim Magagna, Executive Vice President of the Wyoming Stock Growers Association, WSGA welcomes the efforts of the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service and the Department of the Interior to adopt a longoverdue commonsense definition of the prohibition of take under the MBTA. This action will enable and encourage farmers, ranchers, and other landowners to become true partners in providing habitat and safety for migratory birds rather than operating in fear of being prosecuted for an unintended take.

With five federal circuit courts of appeals divided on this question, it is important to bring regulatory certainty to the public by clarifying that the criminal scope of the MBTA only reaches to conduct intentionally injuring birds, said Assistant Secretary for Fish and Wildlife and Parks, Rob Wallace.

The action codifies the 2017 Department of the Interior Solicitors Office Opinion M37050, which analyzed the scope of the MBTA and determined the act only applies to the intentional take of migratory birds and that the take of birds resulting from an activity is not prohibited when the underlying purpose of that activity is not to take birds.

According to the solicitor, Daniel Jorjani, Unless permitted by regulation, the MBTA prohibits the taking and killing of migratory birds. Incidental take is take that results from an activity, but is not the purpose of that activity.

A 45-day scoping process will begin Monday, during which the FWS will seek input from the public in producing an Environmental Impact Statement to help define the issues and alternatives to be defined.

Context

According to the DOI, bird hunting devastated migratory bird populations in the late 19th and early 20th centuries. A series of treaties and acts culminated with the Migratory Bird Treaty Act of 1918, which stated that  it shall be unlawful to hunt, take, capture, kill  any migratory bird  or any part, nest, or egg of any such bird. According to the memorandum, Violation of MBTA was a misdemeanor criminal offense, punishable by a fine of no more than $500 and/or upto six months in jail.

In the course of several complex subsequent court cases, acts and opinions, the term take came to include incidental takeor the killing of even a single bird in the course of an action, whether the birds death was intentional or not. One of the final acts of the Obama Administration was to issue a legal opinion to the effect that the law did include the incidental killing of birds. Thus, it became clear that the MBTA potentially criminalized a plethora of activities such as driving, construction, airplane flights, farming, electricity and wind turbines  and many other everyday lawful activities.

The solicitors advice states that The original purpose of the MBTA was to regulate overhunting rather than to criminalize human activity, and that this purpose has not changed.

According to Tammy Pearson, the Commissioner of Beaver County, Utah, The proposed changes to the Migratory Bird Treaty Act are long overdue. The need to clarify what is NOT criminal take is essential for energy, mining, ranching, and other industries that are critical to the economic stability of rural families, communities, and counties. It has been a giant thorn in the side of economic development for far too long, with projects being delayed for the potential harm that might happen to a bird despite the developers best intentions and protective efforts. These clarifications to the intent of the person are needed to be made to protect our local farmers and ranchers in their everyday operations.

Clarifying the scope of the Migratory Bird Treaty Act is long overdue, said Bette Grande, Chief Executive Officer at Roughrider Policy Center, a North Dakota think tank. Agenda-driven politicians have stretched the MBTA to punish industry and citizens they dont like. In 2011, the U.S. Attorney for North Dakota used the MBTA to sue three oil companies over the deaths of six ducks that were found dead at drilling locations and issued arrest warrants for individuals at the three companies. The charges were thrown out, but only after significant cost and uncertainty.

While the intent of the MBTA early last century is laudable, the provisions have been increasingly interpreted and enforced on ideological grounds.  The broad interpretation of take that disregards intent moves the MBTA far beyond the intent of Congress. Unchecked, it will continue to burden our economy, and the American people with increased costs decreased efficiency and the prospect of criminal charges for a lawful activity that results in unintended consequences.

Wyoming State House Representative Dan Laursen (RWY) The clarification of the Migratory Bird Treaty Act has been needed for too long. I have heard of oil producers going into hiding worried they might be put in prison by the regulators. The broad interpretation of take by regulators has been taken far beyond the original intent of the Act. Farmers and the mineral industry have been in fear for too many years. It is great to hear our Administration working hard to rein in the abuse.

Pushback

Over the past 40 years, bird populations have declined by nearly 30 percent. Despite this, the Trump administration is moving to weaken protections for migratory birds in ways that are fundamentally inconsistent with the Migratory Bird Treaty Act, said Collin OMara, president and CEO of the National Wildlife Federation. The rule sends an irresponsibleand legally incorrectsignal to industry that commonsense measures to protect birds like the snowy egret, wood duck, and greater sandhill crane are no longer needed. We urge the Trump administration to reverse course and restore protections for Americas birds.

U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) Wildlife Pathologist Carol Meteyer inspects a dead adult female Bald Eagle in Madison, Wisconsin, on June 6, 2006. (Photo by Darren Hauck/Getty Images)

Jennifer Rokala, Executive Director at the Center for Western Priorities, a conservation and advocacy organization, said that This radical interpretation of the law has already allowed oil companies to kill birds without repercussions. Now, the Trump administration wants to make sure extractive industries can continue to kill birds after they leave office.

Referring to David Bernhardt, the Secretary of the U.S. Department of the Interior, Rokala said that Secretary Bernhardts former oil industry clients have explicitly asked for this policy change, and now he is delivering. It seems there are no limits to what Bernhardt will do to shred wildlife protections at the behest of drilling and mining companies. Finalizing this proposal would only sign the death warrants of millions of birds across the country.
Tyler Sparling

Age: 23

Occupation: fashion editor

Nice camo.

These are my favorite vintage RRL camouflage cargoes, given to me by the fashion director here, Josh Peskowitz.

Hes giving you his old clothes?

I get his hand-me-downs. They have a great story: Theyre from the first or second RRL collection. He wore them to death and passed them on to me.

Thats kind, I guess.

Im wearing them with a cashmere sweater from the Row.

The Row? They must pay you very well here.

They do not. But I got to go to the friends-and-family sale and it was 90 percent off.

That must be the hottest ticket in fashion.

It got violent at times. This is actually womens.
The Indigenous People of Biafra (IPOB) has warned the Presidency against arresting the Minority Leader of the Senate, Senator Enyinnaya Abaribe, who called for resignation of President Muhammadu Buhari over alleged increase in the spate of insecurity in the country.

KanyiDaily recalls that Senator Abaribe had called for Buharis immediate resignation over the rising spate of insecurity in the country.

But the Presidency in a swift reaction by its spokesman, Garba Shehu said Senator Abaribe deserves to be in jail for facilitating the escape of the IPOB leader, Nnamdi Kanu, who is standing trail for treason.

In a statement on Friday, spokesperson to IPOB, Emma Powerful said Nnamdi Kanus home was invaded in a bid to kill him forcing him to flee the country.

IPOB said that any plans against Abaribe will fail because ordinary people are now wiser thanks to the gospel of liberation being preached by its leader, Nnamdi Kanu.

The recent incoherent and roundly childish tirade by the presidency of Nigeria against Senator Enyinnaya Abaribe, unarguably the only distinguished senator in the whole of Nigeria, is confirmation of the paranoia that has gripped the government in Aso Rock. Garba Shehu has not only showcased his ignorance of the law as it pertains to bail forfeiture proceedings in a law court, but his pathetic attempt to rewrite the history of the unprovoked bloody invasion of the home of our leader Mazi Nnamdi Kanu by soldiers which directly resulted in his inability to attend Binta Nyakos court is well documented. It doesnt matter how many times Aso Rock rehearsh this purile line of jumping bail argument, the facts are very clear and in the public domain for any sensible person to comprehend. If you went to Mazi Nnamdi Kanus house to kill him, is it a court in Abuja, where judges are impotent, that he wont be attacked? Mr Powerful said.

The spokesman said that it speaks to the intellectual vacuousness of this APC regime that a seemingly high ranking presidential spokesperson is blissfully ignorant of the constitution they swore to uphold.

Does it mean that Garba Shehu, Malami the Attorney General of Nigeria and the Tanko Muhammad the Chief Justice of Nigeria are ignorant of the section of the constitution that stipulates by law a senator is not allowed to stand surety for an accused person? Therefore Abaribe has no case to answer, that is why neither Binta Ntakos court nor the Court of Appeal is willing to entertain the bond forfeiture case any longer. Garba Shehu should stop disgracing himself and his government with their nauseating ignorance of judicial process. This same Garba Shehu who said they dont take advice from the likes of Abaribe were the same people that publicly called for Goodluck Jonathan to resign. Why is it that Senator Abaribes legitimate call for the resignation of Buhari is suddenly treasonable felony. Since the failure to eliminate our great leader during the invasion of his country home at Afaraukwu in Umuahia Abia State, Aso Rock with their truth averse misguided friends in some sections of the cash and carry news media in Nigeria, have been scrambling to see what false allegation against Enyinnaya Abaraibe will stick. Each time they have failed as they will also fail in this latest charade. We are now all familiar with the usual rage and fury anytime their corrupt regime in Aso Rock is held publicly accountable. They cannot fool the masses anymore, we are all wiser. We should remind Garba Shehu and Nigerians alike that Federal High Court in Abuja presided over by Justice Binta Nyako granted our leader bail on 23rd of March 2017 and a few months after that, the Federal Government of Nigeria on 14th of September 2017 to be precise ordered the Nigeria Army, Police, Navy, Air Force and DSS to invade kill and maim our leader Mazi Nnamdi Kanu. The fact they failed in that murderous mission that took the lives of 28 Biafrans is the reason why there is so much meaningless vitriol directed at Abaribe to cover up their murderous intent against our leader.

On the state of insecurity in the country, Mr Powerful said the government of Buhari has failed woefully and should be removed.

It is important we let the masses that inhabit the colonial contraption called Nigeria know that any government that fails to protect the lives and properties of her citizens is a total failure, therefore this regime is a complete and utter failure and should be removed. It is unfortunate that Nigerians do not know what democracy and opposition politics is all about. An opposition party is there to oppose and that is what Abaribe did but surprisingly this rudimentary requirement of democratic governance is lost on the government hence their hysteria. We are warning and cautioning any person, persons or group who are making frantic efforts to endear themselves to the caliphate by issuing unguarded press statements to retrace their step because Senator Enyinnaya Abaribe is not to be toyed with or his name ridiculed by any faceless, non-existent Igbo group. IPOB is still in court challenging the Nigeria Army, Police, Navy and DSS invasion of our leaders compound in 2017. Garba Shehu and his colleagues in Aso Rock should always be mindful of these irrefutable facts before opening their mouth again in public, he said.

Meanwhile, IPOB has finally announced that the parents of its leader, Nnamdi Kanu, would be buried on February 14, 2020.

The group, however, refused to disclose the security arrangements put in place for the burial in view of the return of Nnamdi Kanu.
Carlin is opening the door for a medical marijuana dispensary and recreational marijuana sales with adoption of an ordinance permitting cannabis establishments, but there are many steps ahead before such a business would open.

Carlin also could be in competition with Wells for the second marijuana dispensary license allowed by the Nevada Department of Taxation for Elko County, after Deep Roots Harvest received the first license to open a dispensary in West Wendover on the Utah border.

Deep Roots opened Dec. 29. The company also has a dispensary and growing facility in Mesquite.

Wells City Council on Jan. 28 agreed to have a second reading on an updated marijuana ordinance on Feb. 11, according to Deputy City Clerk Sherry Justus. Wells first approved the ordinance allowing a marijuana dispensary more than a year ago.

The updated ordinance clarifies that the Elko County Sheriffs Department would do background checks for Wells before a dispensary could open, she said.

We do not have a dispensary, but weve given out two licenses for cultivation, Justus said.

She said one of the marijuana cultivation facilities is close to completion.

Carlin hasnt set aside any building or land for such a dispensary but is simply opening the city code to possibilities, according to a city official who asked not to be quoted.

Nevada Department of Taxation would need to approve a license for a marijuana dispensary in Carlin, and the City of Carlin would need to issue a business license for a such a dispensary.

Carlin City Council approved amending city code to permit specified medical cannabis establishments and cannabis establishments in a Dec. 4 special session, after taking comments and questions, such as whether there was a limit to the number of dispensaries in Nevada.

Carlin City Manager Madison Mahon answered then that there is one license left in Elko County, and a license in Carlin would be the second one.

Elko County doesnt allow marijuana dispensaries in unincorporated areas, and the City of Elko also doesnt allow marijuana sales within the city limits.

Carlin Police Chief Dennis Fobes said at the council meeting he has talked with people about the potential for a dispensary and heard mostly the downside. The chief told the council the good and bad sides of having a dispensary are about 50-50 each.

Income to the city would be 3 percent of a dispensarys gross revenue and $5,000 for a business fee, as well as a $25,000 start-up fee. Mahon said the one-time fee of $25,000 is near the top of what any city has charged for a similar license.

As for what the 3 percent take would be for the city, Mahon said Carlins doesnt have the demographics of Mesquite or Carson City, for example, so it is hard to say if we pull in customers from Winnemucca and Elko. There is no other comparable city of our size to compare data with, so it is really hard to tell.

Carlin Mayor Dana Holbrook said on Jan. 31 that he believes the citys position was sufficiently covered at our council meetings, and I dont need to add anything at this time.

Carlin City council agreed at its Aug. 28 meeting to authorize city staff, the city attorney and the Carlin Planning Commission to proceed with an amendment to an ordinance to include marijuana retail establishment licenses, including a retail store, cultivation, distribution, manufacturing and testing facility licenses in the city, according to the minutes.

Love 15 Funny 2 Wow 3 Sad 2 Angry 7
A traveller wearing a face mask walks past a Lunar New Year of the Rat display at Changi Airport on 30 January, 2020. (PHOTO: AFP via Getty Images)

SINGAPORE  A 47-year-old female is the first Singaporean to be infected with the Wuhan coronavirus in the city state.

The Ministry of Health (MOH) confirmed three more cases of the virus, including the Singaporean, on Friday (31 January). This brings the total tally in the Republic to 16.

The other two new cases are Chinese nationals. In fact, 15 of the 16 confirmed cases are Chinese nationals, with at least 11 of them hailing from Wuhan.

The ministry said that there is currently no evidence of community spread in Singapore.

The 47-year-old Singaporean woman and her family had travelled to Wuhan, the epicentre of the outbreak. She was one of the 92 Singaporeans who were evacuated from the city on Thursday, and arrived in Singapore on the same day.

She was asymptomatic when she boarded the flight. Upon arrival at Changi Airport, she was found to have a fever during medical screening, and was conveyed to the National Centre for Infectious Diseases (NCID). She was tested positive for the virus infection on Friday at about 2pm and is currently warded in an isolation room at NCID.

The other case is a 31-year-old male Chinese national who is a Singapore Work Pass holder. After a trip to Hubei, he arrived in Singapore from Wuhan last Sunday. The man, who is currently warded in an isolation room at NCID, was tested positive for the virus on Thursday at about 11pm.

Another case is a 38-year-old male Chinese national who arrived in Singapore from Wuhan on 22 January. He was tested positive for the virus on Friday at about 2pm. He is currently warded in an isolation room at Singapore General Hospital.

Separately, the ministry provided more details on a case, a 73-year-old female Chinese national and a close contact of the second confirmed case, who was confirmed on Thursday.

The woman had arrived in Singapore from Wuhan on 21 January and reported that she was asymptomatic during her flight to Singapore.

The ministry said multiple attempts to contact her were made immediately and she was located on 28 January, having reportedly developed symptoms on the same day.

Story continues

She was conveyed by an ambulance to NCID, where she was immediately isolated. She tested positive for the virus on Thursday at about 2pm.

Prior to her hospital admission, she stayed at ParkRoyal Collection Pickering (3 Upper Pickering Street) and Oasia Hotel Downtown (100 Peck Seah Street). She indicated that she had visited Changi Airport and Jewel, and had travelled on private transport and taxi.

All cases remain in stable condition, and most are improving.

Apart from the 16 confirmed cases, 198 of the suspect cases have tested negative for the Wuhan coronavirus, while test results for the remaining 35 cases are pending, as of Friday afternoon.

MOH has identified 202 close contacts as of Friday, 12pm. Of the 162 who are still in Singapore, 156 have been contacted and are being quarantined or isolated, while efforts are ongoing to contact the remaining six close contacts.

This makes Singapore the third country with the highest number of confirmed cases outside mainland China, behind Thailand and Japan. The novel coronavirus, or 2019-nCoV, has spread to 23 territories beyond mainland China, sickening close to 10,000 people and claiming the lives of 231.

The World Health Organization declared a global emergency over the new coronavirus on early Thursday (GMT), after initially downplaying the threat posed by the disease.

Travel ban

On Friday, the Multi-Ministry Taskforce on the Wuhan virus outbreak announced expanded travel curbs in a bid to contain the outbreak.

All China passport holders not residing in Singapore will be barred from entering or transiting through Singapore.

With immediate effect, the Immigration and Checkpoints Authority will suspend the issuance of all forms of new visas to those with China passports. Singapores status as a visa-free transit facility for those with China passports will also be suspended.

Previously issued short-term and multiple-visit visas for those with China passports will also be suspended. During this period of suspension, they will not be allowed entry into Singapore.

All new visitors with recent travel history to mainland China within the last 14 days will not be allowed to enter or transit through Singapore, said the Taskforce.

Returning Singaporeans and long-term visa pass holders with similar recent travel history will be allowed to enter, but they will have to get 14 days of Leave of Absence upon returning.

The curbs will take effect on Saturday at 23.59pm.

On Tuesday, the Taskforce announced an earlier set of travel curbs for visitors who had visited Hubei province, home to Wuhan.

Affected passengers who give false or inaccurate information in their travel history may be subject to penalties under the Infectious Diseases Act. A person who is convicted under the Act could be jailed up to six months and/or fined up to $10,000.

MOH has already started contract tracing for recent travellers to Hubei who are already in Singapore. There are an estimated 2,000 of them, with about 1,000 on short-term visas. Should they be assessed to be of high risk, they will be quarantined.

Returning Singaporeans, permanent residents and long-term pass holders with travel history to Hubei in the last 14 days will be quarantined, as will returning permanent residents and long-term pass holders with Chinese passports issued in Hubei.

On Thursday, 92 Singaporeans arrived home safely from Wuhan via Scoot flight TR121.

Separately, the MOH has advised Singaporeans to defer all travel to Hubei, and all non-essential travel to mainland China.

The novel strain belongs to the same family of coronaviruses as Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome (SARS), which killed nearly 800 people globally during a 2002-2003 outbreak and also started in China.

It likely originated from Wuhans Huanan Seafood Market, where live animals or products  such as foxes, wolf puppies, giant salamanders, snakes, porcupines, and camel meat  are sold.

Patients suffering from the new strain may exhibit fever and symptoms of lower respiratory illness  such as coughing or difficulty in breathing , as well as pneumonia-like symptoms like a runny nose, sore throat, and headache.

However, some who have died from it have not displayed symptoms of fever according to details released by Chinas National Health Commission, potentially complicating global efforts to check for infected travellers as they arrive at airports and other travel hubs.

This means that temperature screening, the most common measure being used at transport links and airports to check travellers, may not identify some infected people.

(INFOGRAPHIC: Yahoo News Singapore)

(SOURCE: MOH)

Click here for more stories on the developing Wuhan virus crisis: sg.news.yahoo.com/health

Related stories:

Ministerial statements on Wuhan virus outbreak to be delivered in Parliament on Monday

Wuhan virus: MTI, MOH issue correction directions over fake news

Wuhan virus: MOE urges those on leave to be 'responsible'

Wuhan virus: 3 more confirmed cases in Singapore, total at 13

Wuhan virus: The Singaporeans who chose to remain in Hubei

Wuhan virus: Pack of 4 face masks to be distributed to each of 1.3 million households

3 in 5 Singaporeans fearful of contracting Wuhan virus: survey
After two capital infusions, the government owns a substantial part of IDBI Bank (46.5 per cent stake) which will be completely sold off.

Mumbai: Finance minister Nirmala Sitharaman in the Budget 2020 has announced listing public sector behemoth Life Insurance Corporation of India on the bourses and privatising IDBI Bank.

The proceeds from LIC Initial Public Offering (IPO), IDBI stake sale along with current divestments in progress will help the government to achieve its aggressive disinvestment target of `2.1 lakh crore and fiscal deficit targets. However one needs clarity on the sovereign guarantee that comes with LIC policy.

According to insurance experts, based on a high level of evaluation of LICs embedded value (future value of the new business), the insurers market capitalisation could be `8 lakh crore to `10 lakh crore, thus more valuable than TCS and Reliance Industries. Listing of LIC would also require amendments to the LIC Act 1956.

Listing of LIC is a commendable measure provided there is clarity on the sovereign guarantee to policyholders and adherence to the required solvency margin is undertaken. Based on a very high level of evaluation of the Embedded value of LICs portfolio, the market capitalisation of LIC could be `8 lakh crore to `10 lakh crore, said Ashvin Parekh managing director at Ashvin Parekh managing director at Ashvin Parekh Advisory Services.

After two capital infusions, the government owns a substantial part of IDBI Bank (46.5 per cent stake) which will be completely sold off. The new investors will seek complete independance in putting the governance framework including independant directors, nominee directors. Also considering the quality of assets of IDBI Bank, it remains to be seen how much an investor will be expected to pay for the troubled bank, added Parekh.

Discussion with respect to law ministry for legislative changes for LIC IPO has already begun, said finance minister Nirmala Sitharaman at a press conference after presenting the Budget.

Between LIC and IDBI Bank and other disinvestment as per guesstimates, Rs 90,000 crore could be raised. We will have to go back to parliament to get the nod for LIC stake sale The governments intention is to get out of IDBI Bank, said Atanu Chakraborty (secretary) ministry of finance, Department of Economic Affairs.

Listing of companies on stock exchanges discipline a company and provides access to financial markets and unlocks its value. It also gives opportunity for retail investors to participate in the wealth so created. The government now proposes to sell a part of its holding in LIC by way of Initial Public Offer (IPO), said Sitharaman in her Budget speech.

Speaking about IDBI Bank, the finance minister said, In the last few years, the government has taken concrete steps to bring our banking system to be robust. However, there is a need for greater private capital. Accordingly, it is proposed to sell the balance holding of Government of India IDBI Bank to private, retail and institutional investors through the stock exchange.

Under Section 37 of The LIC Act, the government has guaranteed the sum assured with bonus in all LIC policies to ensure the availability of financial security to the family of the deceased. For the April to December 2019 period, LIC collected new premiums of `1.37 lakh crore, showing a 45.5 percent year-on-year (YoY) rise, its market share was 71 per cent. LIC Annual Report 2018-19 showed that the income from investments stood at `2.21 lakh crore at the end of FY19. It balance sheet is `31 lakh crore.
Eastman and Ashford say Bacon and Republicans had two years with control of Congress and the presidency to do something proactive on health care, but accomplished little of note.

Bacon, for his part, repeated his criticisms of Eastman, saying her support for Medicare for All and other progressive policies puts her too far to the left to effectively represent a purple district.

Eastman said, It is obvious to me that Bacon will take a playbook from the Republican Party just like he did last time and talk about a phantom candidate that he and the Republican Party made up.

There is history among the candidates: Bacon knocked Brad Ashford out of Congress in 2016. Eastman upset Brad Ashfords comeback bid in the 2018 Democratic primary. Then Bacon defeated Eastman by 2 percentage points, or about 5,000 votes.

Before either Ann Ashford or Eastman can take on Bacon, one of the two must win the Democratic primary. And the 2020 primary debate sounds a lot like Brad Ashfords fight with Eastman.

Eastman said she came close to defeating Bacon in 2018 because her views excited Omaha-area Democrats who sometimes sit out campaigns involving more moderate Democrats.
Some of the best, most efficient and inclusive healthcare systems in the world are government-run

The Niti Aayog has unveiled a plan to hand over district government hospitals to private players. It claims that the guiding principles for the public-private participation scheme will be based on international best practices. Socialist Party (India) or SPI condemns this plan to privatise Indias public healthcare system. It should be remembered that the Indian governments per capita expenditure on healthcare is among the lowest in the world (and in the South Asian region).

The World Health Organisation (WHO) recommends that countries spend at least 4-5% of their GDP on health to achieve optimal healthcare outcomes. In the current central budget, the percentage of funds allocated for healthcare is 2.25%. This comes to about 1.4% of the GDP, which is much less even than the 2.5% of GDP goal set by the National Health Policy of 2017. In contrast, India spends about 10% of its budget on defence.

Some of the best, most efficient and inclusive healthcare systems in the world are government-run. The healthcare systems of countries like Canada, Iran and Sri Lanka are shining examples.

In India too, the current Delhi government has made remarkable strides in improving access to quality healthcare among the general public by making significant investments in close to 200 primary healthcare centres around Delhi, called Mohalla Clinics, and ensuring they are well-staffed and properly equipped.

In 2019, the Delhi government allocated 14% of its budget to healthcare. The Niti Ayog would do well to take note of these international best practices.
Chief Justice of India Sharad Arvind Bobde said Sikhism founder Guru Nanaks teachings do not only belong exclusively to Punjab, but transcend all man-made boundaries.

Justice Bobde was on his maiden visit to the city to address an international conference on Philosophy of Guru Nanak Dev and its relevance today in equity, social justice and environment at Panjab University (PU).

The two-day conference is being organised by the Bar Council of Punjab and Haryana and Bar Council of India, with participation of Supreme Court judges from countries including India, Bhutan and Sri Lanka.

Guru Nanak and his philosophies do not belong exclusively to Punjab or the Sikh religion but his persona and teachings have gifted pearls of sanity and wisdom to the entire world that transcend all man-made boundaries, justice Bobde said.

The CJI also said that if people followed Guru Nanaks message on protection of environment and ecology, the country would not have faced the environmental crisis we are suffering from today. Terming him a rationalist, the CJI said he championed the cause of equality.

Nanaks views about women were far ahead of his times and he formed a democratic congregation where single, married and widowed women were welcome.

Addressing law students and lawyers, justice Bobde said that they should realise the extent to which Guru Nanaks basic philosophy runs through the first couple of chapters of the Indian Constitution and the Preamble which we are sworn to uphold.

The CJI said Guru Nanak left the foremost lesson behind for his followers which was feeding masses through langar (community meal), for which the Sikh community is commended throughout the world.

The CJI also released a book The First Sikh - The Life and Legacy of Sri Guru Nanak Dev Ji written by UK author-cum-professor Nikki Guninder.

Environmentalist Balbir Singh Seechewal, businessman SPS Oberoi, journalist Baljit Balli and poet Surjit Pattar were honoured at the conference.
RESIDENTS of Henley have been urged to take part in protests to save the town from the effects of climate change.

Robin Launder, who is part of the worldwide Extinction Rebellion movement, outlined the threat facing the planet during a talk at Magoos bar in Hart Street.

The free event was organised by supporters Ed and Maggie Atkinson, of Queen Street, Henley, and attended by about 40 people.

Mr Launder said the town faced severe floods in coming decades because of its riverside location as the melting of Arctic ice is raising water levels globally. He urged the town council to declare a climate emergency.

This would mean it had to consider the environmental impact of all its activities and implement more green measures.

Mr Launder said it was vital to stop world temperatures reaching 2C above pre-industrial levels. They are continually increasing, making it harder to reverse.

Many parts of the world would become uninhabitable, killing thousands of species and creating millions of refugees through drought and famine.

Mr Launder defended last years XR protests in London, saying the disruption was necessary to draw attention to the issue.

He said all organisations should declare climate emergencies in a bid to reduce net carbon emissions to zero by 2025 and people should cause disruption to convey the message but never use violence.

Mr Launder, a tutor at Eton College, said: By declaring a climate and ecological emergency, the town council will be making its residents that bit safer.

Henley is already a town that floods and while we wont see the wildfires that have affected Australia, there will be more torrential rain so flooding will get worse. If something isnt done, you could become Henley-under-Thames.

Even if all you care about is your house price, you should still support this because you cant avoid whats happening.

Mr Atkinson, who was arrested after taking part in the protests in October and is still under investigation, has organised another talk at Magoos on Thursday from 6pm.

 The Berks, Bucks and Oxon Wildlife Trust will explain the effects of climate change on local species during a talk at Hambleden village hall on March 26 at 7pm.
Copyright  2020 Albuquerque Journal

SANTA FE  A state Court of Appeals ruling that New Mexico medical marijuana producers can claim a tax deduction for prescription medication could affect prices for 80,000 or so enrolled patients statewide  and the state budget.

The ruling, which overturned a hearing officers decision, could carry a multimillion-dollar price tag for the state Taxation and Revenue Department, which had denied medical cannabis producers applications for gross receipts tax refunds for years.

Theres a direct potential fiscal implication to the state, said Sen. Jacob Candelaria, D-Albuquerque, who added that lawmakers will have to set aside enough funding to cover the tax claims either this year or next year if the ruling is not appealed.

A tax department spokesman said Friday that the agency was reviewing the ruling and weighing legal options.

But the agency cited data from the Department of Health showing that medical cannabis providers paid roughly $24 million in gross receipts taxes during a recent nearly three-year period.

Those taxes are paid by providers but typically passed on to patients, who could see a drop in prices for medical cannabis products because of the court ruling.

Duke Rodriguez, president and CEO of Ultra Health LLC, one of the states largest licensed medical cannabis producers, said tax claims could range from several hundred thousand dollars to several million dollars, depending on the producer.

I think its good news, because we should never tax food or medicine, Rodriguez said in an interview.

He said the ruling could also raise questions about medical cannabis costs being covered, either by private insurance companies or Medicaid.

It could also have other implications. Candelaria suggested the ruling could affect workplace policies on medical cannabis use.

In addition, the ruling could give inmates and parolees who are enrolled medical cannabis patients the right to use marijuana, just like other prescription medications, he said.

However, Candelaria also suggested lawmakers did not originally intend to grant tax breaks for medical cannabis sales under the 2007 Lynn and Erin Compassionate Use Act, which launched the states program, as the Court of Appeals suggested in its ruling.

Theres a respectful disagreement between the two branches of government on this, he told the Journal.

The Court of Appeals ruling was handed down this week and was a unanimous decision by a three-judge panel.

It represents the latest ruling in a string of court challenges filed by medical marijuana producers. Other lawsuits have targeted the states stance on plant limits and whether out-of-state residents can enroll in the rapidly growing program.

In its 11-page ruling, the Court of Appeals determined medical marijuana meets the definition of a prescription drug under the states tax code, because physicians are required to certify that patients have a qualifying condition before they can enroll in the program.

The states medical cannabis laws dont explicitly define marijuana as a prescription drug.

Meanwhile, the ruling also found that the states medical cannabis laws and its allowable tax deduction for prescription drugs are both intended to make medicine more accessible to patients.

These statutes should be read harmoniously to give effect to their commonality of purpose, the appellate court said in its ruling.

The Taxation and Revenue Department has until Feb. 27 to appeal the ruling. The 30-day legislative session ends Feb. 20.
Hey there, time traveller!

This article was published 31/1/2020 (709 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

Wash your hands. Dont touch your face. Think before you tweet.

Those three tips may be your best defence against twin viruses: the coronavirus, as well as the viral spread of misinformation about it online.

Misinformation about the coronavirus has gone viral. (Chiang Ying-ying / The Associated Press)

A new member of the coronavirus family (2019-nCoV) was first identified in Wuhan, China, at the end of December. According to Chinas National Health Commission, the death toll in China was at 170 as of Jan. 30. According to the World Health Organization, more than 7,800 people worldwide were infected as of Thursday, the majority of them in China. Canada, so far, has very few confirmed cases.

The viruss symptoms include runny nose, headache, cough, sore throat and fever, and it can cause pneumonia.

The news of an outbreak of an infectious virus never before seen in humans can be frightening, especially when it comes on blaring emergency-red banners. Dynamic and rapidly evolving situations can make it hard to stay informed, especially with social media acting as an accelerant. Clear communication is a cornerstone of public health  we need to know what to do to keep ourselves safe and what our risks are  but were getting a front-row seat to what happens when a virus goes, well, viral.

Over the past couple weeks, the internet has been rife with coronavirus misinformation and wild conspiracy theories  including one involving the National Microbiology Laboratory in Winnipeg. The theory claims that Dr. Xiangguo Qiu and her husband Keding Cheng, the two scientists who were escorted out of the Level-4 lab last summer, are actually a husband-and-wife spy team who were removed from the Winnipeg facility for sending the coronavirus to a Level-4 lab in Wuhan. The Public Health Agency of Canada has dismissed this as baseless.

Canadian public-health officials have not recommended masks or quarantine, and yet, many pharmacies in Canada are sold out of surgical masks. People are reacting out of fear, not fact.

Others are using the anxiety about the virus to justify their own xenophobia. Take the bat-soup panic, for example. Videos said to be showing Chinese people eating bats began circulating online after bats were identified as a possible carrier of the virus. The most popular clip, of a smiling woman eating a cooked bat, is not from China. Its not even from this year. Its a 2016 video of influencer and travel-show host Mengyun Wang during a visit to the island republic of Palau, where bat soup is a delicacy.

Under all the many shares of bat-soup photos and videos, theres a common disheartening comment: "Whats wrong with these people?"

Many Chinese-Canadians are rightly concerned that the racism they experienced during the SARS epidemic in 2003 will rear its ugly head once again. Its worth remembering, too, that SARS pre-dated social media. Its so easy  too easy  now for xenophobic sentiments and misinformation to spread online. Its incumbent on all of us to think critically about the sources of our information.

As for personal hygiene, Canadians would do well to worry more about the flu, which is much more common, can also be deadly and causes thousands of hospitalizations every year. Cover your coughs and sneezes. Stay home if youre sick.

Wash your hands. Dont touch your face. And think before you tweet.
Gordon Walkers Instagram handle says it all: hes @FascinatedByFungi

Walker, a transplanted Napan by way of Massachusetts, is really into mushrooms. If he could, hed hike for mushrooms every day, spending hours searching and identifying the many, many varieties of the fungi.

Id like to be the Bill Nye of mushrooms, he said, referring to TV personality Bill Nye the Science Guy. My goal is to educate people and get people excited about mushrooms.

Walker said he especially loves the varied colors and textures of mushrooms. Mushroom spotting can be super therapeutic. Its kind of like an adult Easter egg hunt.

Mushrooms are endlessly fascinating because of the variety they can add to a hike or being outside, said Walker.

I love seeing the colors and textures  nature is its own greatest artist.

Walker said hes been interested in mushrooms since he was a kid. He reminisced about the time he found a huge Puffball mushroom as a child. Later he joined a mycological society  a group that studies and appreciates fungi. He and his father also grew sulphur shelf or chicken of the woods mushrooms in their own yard.

Hes not just an amateur. After moving to California, Walker attended grad school at UC Davis where he earned a Ph.D. in biochemistry, molecular biology and cellular and developmental biology.

His mushroom love really took off during a trip to New Zealand where the mushroom viewing was exceptional, recalled Walker. I was curious about what I was finding.

In 2018, the biochemist started taking photos and posting them on Instagram. Before long, Walker had 10,000 followers.

Walker does more than just post photos. He also researches the names of the mushrooms hes found, and posts that information along with the images. Hes big on mushroom education. People are often misinformed about the fungi, said Walker. Im trying to give people some context so they better understand mushrooms.

Walker said theres a common question he gets when he tells people about his mushroom hobby: Did you know those can kill you?

Yeah, I do, he said. I would never eat anything that I cannot 100 percent identify.

Mushrooms can be a source of protein and vitamins, but at the same time, that doesnt mean people should blindly take mushroom supplements or drink mushroom teas.

Its important to understand what you are putting in your body, Walker said. Be sure of where mushrooms come from and how they are grown. And mushrooms can be powerful. There are some supplements that can really screw you up, he warned.

Walker also doesnt want people to overrun areas known for harboring mushrooms. Some like to forage and collect specimens and eat or sell high-value edible mushrooms like chanterelle or porcini. Walker doesnt hunt mushrooms to sell, he noted. Im just a hobbyist.

By posting on social media and talking about mushrooms, Im trying to help people approach mushrooms with a mindful disposition, said Walker.

How much time does the budding naturalist spend per week looking for and admiring mushrooms?

As much time as I can, the biochemist said. I try to hike every day.

When asked about his favorite spots for mushroom viewing, Walker had an easy answer: Wherever I am.

Mushroom season typically runs from about October to March, said Walker. Wooded areas are best, but mushrooms can be found everywhere, he pointed out.

On a recent walk at a Napa park, Walker pointed out a number of local mushroom varieties including blewit, coral tooth fungi and a waxy cap kind of mushroom.

He also pointed out other organisms such as a slime mold growing on one tree trunk. A slime mold looks like a fungus but is technically an amoeba-like creature.

Upon spotting a spread of a certain slime mold, Walker eagerly crouched down to take a close-up photo of it and was delighted to discover sporangia or spore-bearing fruiting bodies descending and getting ready to turn brown and disperse their spores. The sporangia look like tiny yellow globules suspended on white thread-like strings.

You can spend an hour on one log, he said.

Finding a spare hour can be tricky for this Napan. He currently works in technical sales for a bio processing equipment company. Walker also plans to return to UC Davis as a post-doctoral scholar.

Unfortunately, Davis is not an ideal place to look for mushrooms, Walker said  there are not enough wooded areas or cool, moist places.

Fortunately I live in Napa with lots of oak chaparral woodlands!

You can reach reporter Jennifer Huffman at 256-2218 or jhuffman@napanews.com

Get local news delivered to your inbox! Subscribe to our Daily Headlines newsletter. Sign up! * I understand and agree that registration on or use of this site constitutes agreement to its user agreement and privacy policy.
The routine with a stethoscope at the doctors office is simple, but important. Take a deep breath, the doctor says. Now hold it.

Thats good practice for humans and good for cities. San Francisco just took a very deep breath  it banned private cars on the downtown portion of Market Street for the first time since Market became the citys main drag 147 years ago.

Now, only buses, streetcars, delivery trucks and taxis can travel on Market east of 10th Street. Its not just private cars that are banned. Lyft and Uber drivers are banned, too. This is serious, folks. Anyone who drives on the car-free section of the street can get a ticket. The fine: $327.

Market Street is a big deal in San Francisco, always has been. All of the citys major events happen on Market. The best parades, the biggest demonstrations, the most fierce riots. Presidents, premiers and heroes have ridden up Market Street in triumph. If the 49ers win the Super Bowl, the victory parade most surely will be on Market.

So banning cars on Market Street is a big deal, too. It is supposed to make transit run faster and is most of all a victory for bicycle riders, who have campaigned for years to ban cars on the street. It was something were often told well NEVER see in North America, Brent Toderian wrote in a tweet.

Today marks the start of a new era, Brian Wiedenmier. executive director of the Bicycle Coalition, said Wednesday.

But there may be less to a car-free Market Street than meets the eye. Private car drivers have avoided Market for years; it was too crowded, with too many buses, too many bikes, jaywalking pedestrians, and no room for anybody else. Only a dope drove on Market Street.

But now, the car-free advocates have taken aim at another target  Valencia Street, which links the Mission District to downtown and the rest of the city. And now, maybe, its time for a pause. Its time to hold our breath.

Last week, Malcolm Heinicke, chairman of the powerful Municipal Transportation Agency, which runs everything from Muni to parking garages and streets, described his vision of the new era. Im not very patient here, he said. I want the next one ... one street cries out to me, and thats Valencia Street.

Valencia Street? Holy bike lane! Valencia is one of San Franciscos most interesting streets. Its vibrant, lined with restaurants and shops. It has an Irish pub and a funeral home and 826 Valencia, an incubator for the Bay Areas writing scene. Valencia has also been a major street for bike riders, with long battles to get protected bike lanes. One city estimate says that 20% of workers in the Mission District commute to work by bike. And that means Valencia. Mission Street has too many buses, and parallel streets like Guerrero and Dolores are too steep.

But what would banning cars do for Valencia Street? Jonah Buffa, vice president of the Valencia Corridor Merchants Association, said it would be devastating for our business. He runs a high-end barbershop, and a lot of his customers come by car, or Lyft or Uber. There is no public transit on Valencia.

Other car-free advocates have their eyes on the Embarcadero and Golden Gate Park.

And why not? Arent cars the enemy? Why not just ride bikes or take Muni?

Drought Map Track water shortages and restrictions across Bay Area Check the water shortage status of your area, plus see reservoir levels and a list of restrictions for the Bay Areas largest water districts.

Im a California guy, have a car myself, but I drive sparingly. I take Muni nearly every day, and I see for myself what its like. Its crowded. Its slow. You share the bus with an occasional dog, or a baby stroller the size of a small car. There are times when I need to use my car, to run an errand or to go to the grocery store.

Sometimes, like a lot of other people, I have to go out of town, and like a good public citizen, I try to take transit. In the past two weeks, I made three trips to Marin County  two by public transit, one by car. The transit trips took twice as long.

You have to hand it to the bike advocates. Though only 4% to 5% of all trips to work in San Francisco are made by bicycle, groups like the Bicycle Coalition have been extremely effective in making their case. They are organized and get results, as you can see for yourself, on Market Street and soon a major street near you.

So whats the solution? Should we close off streets like Valencia, or the Embarcadero, eliminate parking and declare war on private cars?

I think we should wait and see how Market Street works out, and then slowly and carefully work out a plan so that private cars, bikes and scooters can share the streets, which, after all, belong to all the people.

Carl Noltes column appears Sundays. Email: cnolte@sfchronicle.com Twitter: @carlnoltesf
Source: Xinhua| 2020-02-01 22:54:15|Editor: yhy

Video Player Close

Myanmar State Counsellor Aung San Suu Kyi attends the opening ceremony of Myanmar Ethnics Culture Festival in Yangon, Myanmar, Feb. 1, 2020. An ethnics culture festival kicked off in Yangon on Saturday, with the participation of varieties of ethnic groups from across Myanmar. (Xinhua/U Aung)

YANGON, Feb. 1 (Xinhua) -- An ethnics culture festival kicked off in Yangon on Saturday, with the participation of varieties of ethnic groups from across Myanmar.

This year's festival was themed Myanmar Ethnics Culture Fest, which is the second time of the kind, is jointly organized by the Myanmar Ethnic Entrepreneurs' Association and Kayah State Ethnic Entrepreneurs' Association.

Myanmar State Counsellor Aung San Suu Kyi told the opening ceremony that holding such festival which gathers all colorful ethnic groups could support the development of the ethnic nationals.

Suu Kyi also urged the ethnic nationals to achieve peace by lending a helping hand to and sharing mutual respect and love with each other.

"Diversity of culture, tradition and cuisines of different ethnic groups residing across Myanmar could attract not only locals but also foreign tourists," said Vice President Henry Van Thio, calling for promotion of services including tourism and further efforts to penetrate international market with locally produced value-added products.

The culture festival could strengthen cross-understanding of different cultures and traditions among ethnic groups, leading towards building democratic federal union, said Union Minister Nai Thet Lwin of Ethnic Affairs.

Scheduled to last until Friday, the seven-day festival features exhibits showcasing cultural tradition of ethnic nationals and their products as well as ethnic cuisine, their traditional dances showcasing event and a beauty pageant for ethnic nationals, respectively.

Symbolizing the friendship and unity of ethnic people, the festival aims to promote the development of domestic and international tourism, community-based tourism in ethnic areas by introducing the livelihood of ethnic nationals to both locals and foreigners.
A roundup of campaign news items of interest for Friday, Jan. 31, 2020:

LEACH ENDORSES WELD: Former Iowa Congressman Jim Leach, a Republican from Davenport, has endorsed Republican presidential candidate Bill Weld, the former governor of Massachusetts.

Weld and former Illinois Congressman Joe Walsh are presenting a primary challenge to GOP President Donald Trump, although most expect few Republican voters will stray from the president.

Leach served 15 terms in the U.S. House.

Bill is a mixture of a (Ronald) Reagan and Bob Ray Republican, Leach said, referring to the Republican former president and former Iowa governor. Hes a fiscal conservative who, in the Bob Ray tradition, is an executive who understands that difficult choices have to be made. He believes in reining in deficits, and at the same time, addressing important contemporary issues, such as climate change. He is known for his thoughtfulness on policy. As a former federal prosecutor, he is committed to stamping out corruption.

And hes a good man, with a good family, who makes good friends  the kind of person any of us would be proud to know and honored to have in charge.

DVORSKYS ENDORSE WARREN: Bob and Sue Dvorsky, prominent Iowa Democrats, have endorsed Elizabeth Warren, the Democratic presidential candidate and U.S. senator from Massachusetts.

Bob Dvorsky, a former state legislator, and Sue Dvorsky, a former state party chairwoman, previously endorsed Kamala Harris, a U.S. senator from California.

STATE LAWMAKER ENDORSES BUTTIGIEG: Phyllis Thede, a state lawmaker from Bettendorf, endorsed Pete Buttigieg, the Democratic presidential candidate and former South Bend, Ind., mayor.

Thede is one of just a handful of minority Iowa state lawmakers. She previously endorsed Harris.

Pete can bring us together, Thede said in a statement provided by the Buttigieg campaign. Hes a listener who understands the challenges facing our country, and hes putting forward plans that can unite us in the solutions to these problems. As a mayor, a veteran, and someone who lives in a middle-class neighborhood, hell bring the voices of working people from places like South Bend and Davenport to Washington.

ANOTHER POLL SHOWS TIGHT RACE: A new poll from Park Street Strategies shows a familiar theme on the Democratic presidential primary in Iowa: a close race between four leaders.

In the Park Street poll, former vice president Joe Biden (20%), Vermont U.S. Sen. Bernie Sanders (18%), Warren (17%) and Buttigieg (17%) were within the 3-percentage-point margin of error of each other. Klobuchar was next at 12%.

The Iowa race is crowded and extremely close  with the top four candidates clustered together. While Biden leads and does hold a small advantage, the difference between Warren, Sanders and Buttigieg reflects a statistical tie, Chris Kofinis, founder and CEO of Park Street Strategies, said in a news release. It is reasonable to believe that with a successful (get out the vote) operation, any one of these four candidates could win in Iowa.

SANDERS UNVEILS PLANS FOR DISABILITY RIGHTS: Sanders said he would take several executive actions to strengthen protections for Americans with disabilities.

Sanders said he would protect and expand Social Security Disability Insurance and supplemental programs, enforce a U.S. Supreme Court decision that protected the rights of individuals with disabilities to get community support and create a National Office of Disability Coordination, run by a person with a disability.

Sanders also said he would reject renewals and new proposals from states to place disability and aging services under the management of for-profit corporations, citing Iowas private Medicaid management as an example.

Nearly 30 years after the (Americans with Disabilities Act), it is unacceptable that people with disabilities do not enjoy full equality and inclusion everywhere in America, and we will not wait to advance disability rights, Sanders said in a statement. This is an issue of fundamental civil rights. Every person with a disability deserves the right to live in their community and have the support they need to thrive. This right must be available to all, free of waiting lists and means tests. It is our moral responsibility to make it happen.

Photos: Presidential candidates in the area

Love 0 Funny 0 Wow 0 Sad 0 Angry 0
Deputy Head of the Office of the Ukrainian President Ihor Zhovkva has discussed investment cooperation between Ukraine and Qatar with Minister of Transport and Communications of Qatar Jassim Saif Ahmed Al-Sulaiti, according to a posting on the official website of the head of the Ukrainian state.

"Zhovkva welcomed the Qatari QTerminals company's intention to invest in the development of the infrastructure of the port of Olvia. It is estimated that UAH 3.4 billion will be invested over the next five years. In connection with this, the deputy head of the President's Office announced the Investment Nanny initiative of the head of the Ukrainian state, which designed to assist large foreign investors who intend to invest in the economy of Ukraine," the press service said.

Zhovkva also noted the importance of continuing Ukrainian-Qatari investment cooperation in other areas, in particular in the construction of roads, the development of energy and the hotel business.
Iran health minister urges government to ban entry of travelers from China

Iran Press TV

Friday, 31 January 2020 11:18 AM

Iran's Minister of Health Saeed Namaki has demanded that the government prevent the entry of passengers from China amid the threat of coronavirus epidemic.

Namaki made the plea in a Persian tweet on Friday, saying he had asked Iran's First Vice President Es'haq Jahangiri in a letter "to inform the Iranian Foreign Ministry and Ministry of Roads about a halt to be put on the entry of all travelers from China (by land, sea and air) until further notice."

"All health bases at the country's ports have been on high alert since the outbreak of Corona," Namaki said.

The minister said more than 70 Iranian students residing in Wuhan, China will return home in the coming days.

They "will be attended to in a suitable place under full surveillance and care" for two weeks after arriving in Iran, he added.

Foreign Ministry spokesman Abbas Mousavi said Thursday Iran's diplomatic officials were making all-out efforts to get Iranians out of Wuhan, which is the epicenter of an ongoing epidemic of coronavirus.

"A round-the-clock effort is underway to manage various aspects of this issue and to help fellow countrymen who live in contaminated areas in China," Mousavi told reporters on Thursday.

From the very early hours the virus began to spread, the Iranian embassy in Beijing established communication with Iranian students in Wuhan which contains the majority of the affected cases, he said.

Wuhan is in virtual lockdown, and nearly all flights at the city's airport have been canceled and checkpoints block the main roads leading out of town. Authorities have imposed similar lockdowns on more than 10 cities near Wuhan as part of the ongoing containment effort.

The virus has so far killed 213 people and spread to at least 18 countries around the world, with the number of confirmed coronavirus cases standing at 9,809.

The World Health Organization (WHO) on Thursday declared it an international public health emergency.

Iran is a major destination for Chinese tourists visiting the Middle East.

NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address






U.S. officials believe the leader of Al Qaeda's affiliate in Yemen was "likely" killed by an American airstrike earlier this month, a well-placed source told Fox News Friday.

Qassim al-Rimi is believed to have died as a result of the attack but his death has not been confirmed. The airstrike was first reported by The New York Times.

Rimi's Yemen-based network, Al Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula (AQAP), is considered to be the most dangerous branch of the global terror group since its creation in 2009.

The CIA learned of al-Rimi's location from an informant in Yemen in November, according to the Times, and began tracking him through aerial surveillance and other means.

The CIA did not immediately respond to a Fox News request for comment.

Rimi, 41, became the leader of AQAP when Nasir al-Wuhayshi was killed in a 2015 drone strike.

He previously trained in Afghanistan before returning to Yemen where he was sentenced to five years in prison for plotting to kill an American ambassador. He broke out of prison and rose through the ranks of the group.

In 2017, Rimi released an audio recording mocking President Trump, calling him the "White House's new fool." The message came days after a U.S.-led raid against AQAP killed 25 people, including 11 women and children.

The State Department had offered a $10 million bounty for al-Rimi, who was linked to numerous plots against U.S. interest, The New York Times reported.

The CIA believes he was involved in the 2008 attack on the U.S. Embassy in Sana that killed 10 guards and four civilians. He is also suspected of having links to Umar Farouk Abdulmutallab, the so-called "underwear bomber" who attempted to down a Detroit-bound Northwest Airlines flight with plastic explosives on Christmas Day in 2009.

The Al Qaeda affiliate claimed to have organized the attack and supplied him with the bomb.

The airstrike comes in the same month the U.S. targeted Iranian Quds Force Gen. Qassem Soleimani, who American claimed was responsible for the deaths of hundreds of U.S. troops during the Iraq War.
Source: Xinhua| 2020-02-01 17:21:39|Editor: yhy

Video Player Close

Photo taken on Feb. 1, 2020 shows the Europe House in London, Britain. Britain officially left the European Union (EU) on Friday, putting an end to its 47-year-long membership of the world's largest trading bloc. (Photo by Stephen Chung/Xinhua)

BRUSSELS, Jan. 31 (Xinhua) -- Tears, cheers and an array of mixed feelings hung over Europe on Friday as Britain officially left the European Union (EU), ending its 47-year membership with the world's biggest trading bloc.

The historic moment came under the curtain of a chilly night, and the Union Jack was hauled down from outside the European Parliament.

For many in the EU, it was an inevitably tough and emotional moment when Brexit materialized after three and a half years of turmoil since the summer of 2016.

However, when the sun rises again on Feb. 1, the EU will open a new chapter of its history, with its friendship and partnership with Britain remaining intimate and few substantial changes on both sides of the English Channel anticipated during an 11-month transition period.

Moreover, leaders of the EU as well as remaining member states have pledged to turn Brexit into an opportunity to forge a more competitive, integrated and influential bloc, long considered a carrier of peace, well-being, common values and identity in a multilateral world.

FAREWELL MOMENT

Bidding farewell to Britain, European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen repeatedly said the EU wants to have the best possible relationship with Britain, "but it will never be as good as membership."

David Sassoli, president of the European Parliament, said: "We stand at a new departure for Europe. We should not forget how much stronger we are when we act together."

"It's never a happy moment when someone leaves, but we are opening a new chapter," European Council President Charles Michel said, vowing that "we will devote all our energy to building a stronger, more ambitious EU."

In a podcast released on Friday evening, German Chancellor Angela Merkel said Brexit is "a deep cut for all of us, the 27 member states of the European Union and also for Germany."

She called on the remaining member states to do everything they can to successfully develop Europe, adding "an attractive, strong Europe is also a good partner for Britain."

"It is not a moment of joy," Austrian Foreign Minister Alexander Schallenberg said, advocating Britain's "closest possible connection" to the EU after Brexit.

ECONOMIC TIES

For dozens of years, the English Channel has seen free flows of goods as well as people between Britain and the European continent.

Such reality may not be taken for granted anymore after Brexit, if no agreement can be reached by the end of the transition period.

Cutting out close economic cooperation between Britain and the EU puts supply chains at risk involving autoparts, aerospace, food and several other sectors, according to a report by U.S. news outlet Politico.

Britain leaving the EU by January means one less uncertainty, which is good news for investors, noted Christine Lagarde, president of the European Central Bank.

She underlined that the biggest challenge was to come, namely the issue of reaching a trade deal between London and Brussels during the transition period.

Uncertainty concerning details of the transition period and the final agreement on future relations between the EU and Britain is putting a strain on the European economies as well as individual industries, according to Germany's Deutsche Bank.

Since future relations between the EU and Britain are still uncertain and a disorderly Brexit is still on the table, downside risks related to Brexit continue to weigh on the European economy.

"We will now negotiate very intensively with the British about future relationships, particularly in the area of trade and the economy," Merkel said.

SOLIDARITY

Hand in hand, members of the European Parliament sang Auld Lang Syne in an emotional farewell to Britain after giving the green light to the Brexit deal on Wednesday.

The EU had expanded several times from 6 to 28 member states throughout its history since 1957. In the historic and the largest expansion in 2004, Central and Eastern European countries such as Czech Republic and Poland joined the bloc, marking the re-unification of Europe after decades of division.

However, Britain opened a Pandora's box on June 23, 2016, as the outcome of a referendum upheld the decision to leave the EU, which marked the shrinkage of the EU membership for the first time in history.

Learning lessons from Brexit, European leaders vowed to strengthen solidarity within the EU and with Britain based on shared values.

"Fifty years of integration cannot disappear easily," Sassoli said, noting that the EU will work hard to build new relationships and protect the interest of its citizens.

COMPETITIVENESS

European leaders say deepening integration to enhance the EU's competitiveness and preserve its influence in the world should be a top priority.

French President Emmanuel Macron, in a televised address on Friday, called Britain's departure from the EU a "historic warning signal" that must be heard across Europe.

He called for deep reform within the bloc to better defend its interests and "make it more sovereign, more democratic."

Peter Griep, a director general at the Deutsche Bundesbank, said that with regard to Brexit, "strengthening our own market infrastructures -- the lifelines of the EU capital market -- will help Europe become a powerhouse in the global financial system."

Von der Leyen emphasized that Europe's challenges as well as opportunities related to climate change, the digital revolution, migration and foreign relations have not changed because of Brexit.
By Michelle Nichols

UNITED NATIONS, Jan 31 (Reuters) - U.S. Ambassador to the United Nations Kelly Craft warned the Palestinians on Friday that bringing their displeasure with the U.S. peace plan to the world body would only "repeat the failed pattern of the last seven decades."

Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas will speak in the U.N. Security Council in the next two weeks about the plan, Palestinian U.N. envoy Riyad Mansour said on Wednesday, adding that he hoped the 15-member council would also vote on a draft resolution on the issue.

However, the United States is certain to veto any such resolution, diplomats said. That would allow the Palestinians to take the draft text to the 193-member U.N. General Assembly, where a vote would publicly show how the Trump administration's peace plan has been received internationally.

Craft said that while the Palestinians' initial reaction to the plan was anticipated, "why not instead take that displeasure and channel it into negotiations?"

"Bringing that displeasure to the United Nations does nothing but repeat the failed pattern of the last seven decades. Let's avoid those traps and instead take a chance on peace," she told Reuters.

Craft said the United States was ready to facilitate talks and that she was "happy to play any role" that contributes to the Israeli-Palestinian peace plan unveiled by U.S. President Donald Trump on Tuesday.

Mansour said on Thursday: "There is not a single Palestinian official (who) will meet with American officials now after they submitted an earthquake, the essence of it the destruction of the national aspirations of the Palestinian people. This is unacceptable."

Israels U.N. mission signaled on Tuesday that it was preparing for the Palestinians to pursue U.N. action, saying in a statement that it was "working to thwart these efforts, and will lead a concerted diplomatic campaign with the U.S." (Reporting by Michelle Nichols; editing by David Brunnstrom and Dan Grebler)
The crisis-ridden on Saturday expressed disappointment at the Budget not spelling out any substantial relief for the ailing sector, which is saddled with Rs 1.47 lakh crore in unpaid statutory dues.

"From what we have seen so far, there appears to be no substantial relief for the Of course, we are waiting to see the details," Cellular Operators Association of India (COAI) Director General Rajan Mathews told PTI.

Mathews said that telecom not being included in the definition of infrastructure was a disappointment for the industry.

"The FM has talked about smart meters and Artificial Intelligence, and we will see how that translates into benefit for our sector," he said.

The government has more than doubled its revenue estimate from the debt-ridden to Rs 1.33 lakh crore in fiscal year 2020-21, mainly on account of levies derived from adjusted gross revenue (AGR).

In the receipt budget, the government has pegged revenue collection at Rs 1,33,027.2 crore for financial year 2020-21 under communications head. Receipts under 'Other Communication Services' mainly relate to the license fees from telecom operators and receipts on account of spectrum usage charges (SUC), the budget document explained.

Mathews said increased receipt estimates appeared to factor in AGR payments, levies like licence fee and spectrum charges, and auction proceeds.

The had been pinning its hopes on the Union Budget to offer some breather on licence fee and SUC levies.

had been asking for a reduction in these levies -- licence fee to 3 per cent from 8 per cent at present and SUC to a flat 1 per cent from average of about 5 per cent. At present, the licence fee of 8 per cent includes a USO Fund component of 5 per cent.

As it is, the troubled industry is buckling under Rs 1.47 lakh crore in additional statutory dues in the wake of a recent Supreme Court ruling on AGR. As things stand today, telecom companies owe the government Rs 92,642 crore in unpaid licence fee, and another Rs 55,054 crore in outstanding SUC dues.

According to government data, the liabilities in the case of Bharti Airtel add up to nearly Rs 35,586 crore, of which Rs 21,682 crore is licence fee and another Rs 13,904.01 crore is SUC dues (excluding the dues of Telenor and Tata Teleservices).

For Vodafone Idea, this number stands at a cumulative Rs 53,038 crore, including Rs 24,729 crore of SUC dues and Rs 28,309 crore in licence fee.

The remaining liability is with state-owned BSNL/MTNL and some of the shut/bankrupt telecom companies.

The Supreme Court had allowed three months to the affected telecom operators to cough up the amounts due to the government. The deadline expired on January 23, but the Telecom Department did not take any coercive action against defaulters given that their appeals seeking relaxation in payment timeline is currently pending before the top court.

Bharti Airtel, Vodafone Idea Ltd, and Tata Teleservices have jointly filed a modification application in the Supreme Court seeking more time to pay the statutory dues.

The fresh plea for relief on payment schedule came after Supreme Court, last month, dismissed the review petitions filed by telecom companies against the apex court's October 24, 2019 verdict on AGR.

Meanwhile, the Department of Telecom is also working on spectrum auction which is likely to be held in April-May 2020.
FROM a massive drug rehabilitation center, the 10-hectare facility in Fort Magsaysay in Nueva Ecija is now being eyed as a possible quarantine area for Filipinos that are set to come home from China, which is the epicenter of the 2019 novel coronavirus (2019-nCoV).

In an interview, Department of Health (DOH) Secretary Francisco Duque III said they have proposed the use of the Mega Drug Treatment and Rehabilitation Center (MDTRC) as the quarantine facility for those that will avail of the repatriation from China.

Filipino citizens, who are currently in China, regardless of which province, will be allowed to return to the Philippines. They will be required to go on quarantine for 14 days in the proposed facility: Fort Magsaysay, said Duque.

This, he said, is as long as the venue gets the approval from the interagency team that will conduct the inspection.

There will be an expeditious joint inspection by a composite team led by the DOH, AFP (Armed Forces of the Philippines), and PNP (Philippine National Police) that will be conducted, said the health chief.

He added that there will be an assessment of the vicinity around the facility before the proposal is approved.

Any potential apprehension and resistance from the community, where the repatriation and quarantine site is located, will be addressed by the composite team, said Duque.

At present, the official said there are around 40 to 50 Filipinos from Wuhan, China that have signified their desire to be brought back to the Philippines.

He said arrangements for their flight back to Manila is already being facilitated.

Duque stressed that the repatriation will be done for free, and will not be charged to the returning Filipinos.

Suspected 2019-nCoV cases

As for cases under investigation, the DOH said the 29-year-old Chinese male, who died of pneumonia at the San Lazaro Hospital last Wednesday, was found to be negative of the 2019-nCoV.

According to DOH Epidemiology Bureau head Dr. Ferchito Avelino, the test results on the deceased patient showed that he was not afflicted with the novel coronavirus.

Story continues

Its not 2019-nCoV. His samples are negative of the novel coronavirus, said Avelino.

The man was considered as a person under investigation (PUI) due to his travel history to Wuhan and is carrying symptoms of the disease.

The Chinese male was also found positive for the human immunodeficiency virus (HIV).

The deceased patient is one of the 31 PUIs recorded by the DOH since the start of the outbreak.

A total of 23 PUIs remain admitted in different hospitals while awaiting for their laboratory test results.

One individual has also tested positive for the 2019-nCoV; while the remaining six have already tested negative for the virus and have been discharged. (HDT/SunStar Philippines)
Former finance minister and Congress leader P Chidambaram said that Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman has not acknowledged the challenge of "demand constrained" and "investment starved" Indian economy.

He was addressing a press conference here on Saturday.

"Indian economy is demand-constrained and investment-starved. Finance Minister has not acknowledged these two challenges, and that is a pity. Consequently, she has proposed no measures or solutions to those two challenges," said P Chidambaram.

"If the twin challenges remain, the economy will not turn around and there will be no relief to the millions of poor and the middle class," he added.

"In 2019-20, the Finance Minister failed to meet any of the key Budget Estimate targets -- nominal GDP growth, fiscal deficit, net tax revenue collection, disinvestment revenue or total expenditure. There is no assurance that she will meet targets set for 2020-21," said Chidambaram.

"Money is no substitute for freedom, what the people of Jammu and Kashmir and Ladakh require is freedom, people of Kashmir valley requires the resurrection of human rights," said Chidambaram.

The government on Saturday allocated Rs 30,757 crore for Jammu and Kashmir and Rs 5,598 crore for Ladakh for 2020-21 in the Union Budget.

Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman made the allocations for the two union territories while presenting the union budget for the coming fiscal.

The government also allocated Rs 100 crore for hosting G-20 Summit in the country. Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman said India will host G20 Presidency in 2022 and Rs 100 crore has been allocated for making preparations for the occasion.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
I-T rates significantly reduced for those who do not avail exemptions

40,000 per annum of revenue foregone from new I-T rates

Date of approval of housing projects for availing tax holiday extended

Reduction in available I-T exemptions

System for instant allotment of PAN on basis of Aadhaar to be launched

Rules of origin requirements to be tweaked in Customs act

Taxpayer to pay only amount of disputed tax

Step-motherly treatment meted out to the people of Delhi: CM Arvind Kejriwal

Union finance minister Nirmala Sitharaman is presenting Budget 2020-21 on Feb 1, 2020.

Union finance minister Nirmala Sitharaman is presenting Union Budget for the financial year 2020-21 in Parliament on Saturday. This is the minister's second budget.

Like last year, the finance minister arrived at the Parliament in the morning with the traditional 'bahi-khata. She was accompanied by her deputy, minister of state Anurag Thakur.

In the Economic Survey, released on Friday, the government predicted that economic growth would pick up to 6.0% to 6.5% in the fiscal year beginning April 1, but also warned that it may have exceeded its deficit target to revive growth.

Follow the live updates here
The plane carrying Cambodia's Prime Minister Hun Sen arrives at Beijing airport ahead of the Belt and Road Forum in the Chinese capital on April 25, 2019.

Scholars and rights activists in Cambodia are urging Cambodia to more carefully consider Prime Minister Hun Sens decision not to cancel flights from China for economic reasons amid the novel coronavirus scare.

On Monday, Cambodia became the latest country to confirm a case of coronavirus, announcing that a Chinese national in the coastal city of Sihanoukville had been infected in the outbreak that as of Friday afternoon has sickened nearly 10,000 people worldwide and killed at least 213, all in China.

Hun Sen dismissed fears of an epidemic in Cambodia Thursday, warning that a ban on flights from China would kill the countrys economy and destroy ties with China.

He also said that there were no plans to evacuate Cambodians from China.

But the head of Cambodias Independent Teachers Association told RFAs Khmer Service Friday that the Prime Ministers comments were inconsistent with the current situation and global concerns over the spread of the deadly virus.

Rong Chhun said that Hun Sen should be more concerned with the health and safety of the people.

I think that the temporary flight closure will not affect diplomatic relations with China and the economy will not die, he said.

It is better to not let the virus spread to Cambodia, he added.

He also urged the Cambodian government to find a way to bring home Cambodian students, like other countries are evacuating their nationals from China.

We have seen that the government lacks the resources and ability to evacuate Cambodian students from China, he said.

Cambodias healthcare system is woefully inadequate to cope with a potential outbreak, and it has not made efforts to prepare for one, he added.

If we look at the healthcare system in Cambodia, it is not good for protecting people from infections, he said.

People have lost confidence [in Cambodian healthcare] as many doctors are incompetent, he said, adding that many Cambodians often travel to neighboring countries for medical treatment.

Cambodias Health ministry spokesman Ly Sovan told RFA there would be no reconsideration of flight cancellations or evacuations.

We are ready to prepare prevention at any time, he said.

We are working to transparently follow WHO warnings. he said.

We have always shared information immediately to our people and to the World Health Organization and as well as other countries, he added.

The spokesman said that Cambodia has not found any cases of the virus within its borders besides one 60-year-old Chinese man who has been hospitalized in Preah Sihanouk province and is in stable condition.

Vietnam

Meanwhile in Vietnam, authorities are cracking down on Facebook users who spread information about nCoV.

At least six Facebookers were reprimanded for posting what the authorities allege is fake news about the virus, fining them between 10 million and 15 million dong (U.S. $433-$650).

Lawyer Dang Dinh Manh told RFAs Vietnamese Service that the government only thinks of the political aspects of problems while ignoring issues that actually affect the people.

Dang said authorities should launch educational campaigns to prevent the virus spread in Vietnam and enact policies that ensure public safety and health, instead of focusing on punishing and controlling people who express their legitimate concerns and fears about the virus online.

Authorities in Quang Ninh and Can Tho provinces, meanwhile, announced they were suspending entry to Chinese tourists Friday, bringing the total number of province-level jurisdictions that have enacted such a ban to five.

Khanh Hoa and Lao Cai provinces and the province-level city Da Nang did so earlier in the week.

In addition, the city of Hai Phong Friday affirmed that two people visiting from Ho Chi Minh City to were possibly infected with nCoV. Both are under quarantine in Hai Phongs Vietnam-Czech Friendship Hospital.

A map showing the latest confirmed cases of the novel coronavirus (nCoV) in Asia. RFA

Laos

Hotel owners and tourism officials in Laos are reporting that tourism from China is way down.

Hotels in Bokeo province lie empty and casinos in the Golden Triangle SEZ are on lockdown.

Few Chinese have managed to make their way to major tourist centers like Luang Prabang, Vang Vieng, and Vientiane, as flights to and from the Middle Kingdom have been suspended.

So yeah, the coronavirus outbreak is totally impacting us. Many Chinese tourists cancelled their stays, an owner of a hotel in the tourist town of Vang Vieng told RFAs Lao Service.

Similarly, an official of the Luang Prabang Tourism Department told RFA, Right now, the Chinese are not coming [here], only Westerners are.

A receptionist at a hotel in Oudomxay Province reported similar conditions there.

An official of Cambodias Tourism Department told RFA, Of course numbers are down, but we dont have official statistics yet for this month.

As a way to prevent a potential epidemic from spreading among students, schools in Laos that remain open are taking preventative measures, such as distributing masks and hand sanitizer and monitoring student health.

One school in Savannakhet province regularly takes the temperature of some 3,000 students before they enter their classrooms in the morning, and has been distributing masks and hand sanitizer for their use.

We take their temperature and look for fever and other symptoms, said a member of the administration of a school in Savannakhet province.

Furthermore, they must wash their hands with soap in the school complex and with hand sanitizer before entering their classroom.

Additionally students in the school must produce a medical certificate attesting to their health status from a doctor in the event that they miss school for several consecutive days or go on trips abroad, the official said.

Im monitoring my students and if I see one that is sick or otherwise not feeling well, I will send them home immediately, said a teacher at another school in Vientiane.

Myanmar

Authorities in Myanmar are monitoring potentially infected Burmese after a Chinese citizen was found sick at Yangon International Airport and quarantined.

Thats right. A suspected patient was identified. But that doesnt mean hes infected [with coronavirus]. Not all suspected patients are found to be positive cases, Khin Khin Gyi of Myanmars Department of Public Health told RFAs Myanmar Service.

After arriving from China, we found him suffering with respiratory issues. So, we sent him to the hospital, Khin Khin Gyi said.

Myanmars Health ministry said the patients biological samples would be sent to a lab in neighboring Thailand to determine if he contracted nCoV.

The ministry said two Myanmar nationals who were also on the plane are being monitored at the same hospital despite not showing any symptoms.

Meanwhile, during a press conference in Naypyidaw, the director general of Myanmars Presidential Office told reporters that authorities are taking preventive measures to prevent an outbreak in the country.

China first confirmed the [existence of] the virus Jan. 7 and since then our health ministry began screening processes at airports and border checkpoints including Yangon, Mandalay and Naypyidaw, said Zaw Htay.

He also added that an evacuation plan for more than 60 Myanmar students in Wuhan will begin on Feb. 2. They will be flown to Myanmar on a chartered plane and will be monitored at a hospital in Mandalay for two weeks.

Residents, however, are very concerned.

Its spreading to neighboring countries. There are people going in and out of Myanmar so were worried, Min Min Paing, a resident of Yangon, told RFA.

Were particularly worried because theres not much information about prevention or treatment.

Another Yangon resident, Myo Set Aung, said, Im pretty worried because it cant be cured. Only those who can afford it will be able to seek treatment once it becomes available.

I think its better to prevent it before it happens, said Myo Set Aung.

Zaw Min Oo of Lashio said, Lashio has a lot of Chinese. To make matters worse, a lot of Burmese go to China as migrant workers.

By the time coronavirus outbreak occurred in China, the weather here was very cold. Viruses spread faster when theres not much sunlight, Zaw Min Oo added.

According to a 2015 BBC future report, a lack of sunlight might lead to Vitamin D deficiency in the human body, leaving the immune system underpowered.

Reported by RFAs Khmer, Vietnamese and Lao Services and Kyaw Lwin Oo and Nay Myo Htun for RFAs Myanmar Service. Translated by Pheap Aun, Huy Le, Nandar Chann, and Max Avary. Written in English by Eugene Whong.
Five stocks gained after positive measures announced by Nirmala Sitharaman in her Budget Speech.

Union finance minister Nirmala Sitharaman while presenting the Union Budget 2020-21 today, 1 February 2020 said that farm markets need to be liberalised.

FM Nirmala Sitharaman said that the government is committed to the goal of doubling farmers income by 2022. Government will incentivize farmers to go solar. Pradhan Mantri Kisan Urja Suraksha Utthan Mahabhiyan (PM KUSUM) will be expanded to provide 20 lakh farmers in setting up standalone solar pumps. FM's action plan to ease India's water problems starts with helping 100 districts. Government has insured 6.11 crore farmers under Pradhan Mantri Fasal Bima Yojna.

"We will encourage balanced use of all fertilizers, a necessary step to change the incentive regime which encourages excessive use of chemical fertilizers," FM said. Govt will build a seamless national cold supply chain for perishables, Indian Railways will set up Kisan Rail through PPP model so that perishable goods can be transported quickly. Krishi Udaan will be launched by MoCA on international and national routes.

Jain Irrigation Systems (up 4.99%), Hindustan Unilever (up 2.02%), Escorts (up 1.19%), Mahindra & Mahindra (up 1.74%) and ITC (up 0.28%) edged higher.

Powered by Capital Market - Live News

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
Maldives had quit the Commonwealth in October 2016 after being threatened with suspension over its human rights record and lack of progress on democratic reform

London: Maldives was officially readmitted to the Commonwealth on Saturday more than three years after the Indian Ocean archipelago nation quit the organisation over criticism of its human rights record, taking the count of the bloc's membership countries back to 54.

The island nation's rejoining came just over an hour after the United Kingdom left the European Union following 47 years of membership.

The island nation had quit the Commonwealth in October 2016 after being threatened with suspension over its human rights record and lack of progress on democratic reform.

It submitted a request to rejoin in December 2018, when President Ibrahim Mohamed Solih wrote to Commonwealth Secretary-General Patricia Scotland.

"The reform process underway in Maldives aligns with the values and principles of the Commonwealth and we encourage the nation to continue on this path," said Baroness Scotland, as she welcomed the country and its people back to the fold. "Commonwealth members were pleased to note these developments and are happy once again to count Maldives as a member of the family. Together we will support Maldives to realise its ambitions," she said.

The readmission followed "due diligence", which included country assessment and consultations in accordance with the rules and procedures agreed by the Commonwealth Heads of Government (CHOGM) in Kampala in 2007. India was one of the countries that had supported the country's readmission.

"Today is a happy day for Maldivians as we return to the family of Commonwealth nations. As a young democracy, the Commonwealth's foundational values of the promotion of democracy, human rights, good governance, multilateralism and world peace remain relevant to us more than ever," Solih said.

"We gratefully acknowledge the support and help of the Commonwealth to the Maldivian democratic movement, and we look forward to the support of fellow member states to ensure the long term entrenchment of these values in our society," he said.

The Commonwealth Secretariat said the assessment included two site visits to the country followed by positive feedback given by a Commonwealth Observer Group which was present for the Parliamentary Elections in April 2019. Members subsequently agreed to invite Maldives to submit a formal application, which it did on 25 December last year. The country presented evidence of functioning democratic processes as well as popular support for re-joining.

The Secretary-General then consulted with all 53 Commonwealth members and received no objections. The country will now be part of the CHOGM scheduled for Kigali in Rwanda on June 22-28.

Maldives Ambassador to the UK Farah Faizal, now becomes its High Commissioner, signifying Commonwealth membership. Maldives joined the Commonwealth in 1982 and was a member until it withdrew in 2016.

The Commonwealth is a political association of 54 member states, nearly all of them former territories of the British Empire. Its members have agreed to shared goals like development, democracy and peace.

Any country can join the modern Commonwealth. The last country to join the Commonwealth was Rwanda in 2009.
Disclaimer : Opinions expressed here are those of the writers and do not reflect those of Peacefmonline.com. Peacefmonline.com accepts no responsibility legal or otherwise for their accuracy of content. Please report any inappropriate content to us, and we will evaluate it as a matter of priority.
The Islamic Republic of Iran stopped publishing economic data, including figures on its foreign trade since March 21, 2019, as a serious economic downturn triggered by U.S. sanctions set in. But Irans major trading partners regularly issue their official figures, which for 2019 show a significant decline in Irans trade with China, South Korea and others.

Compared with 2018, Iran's trade with China and South Korea in 2019 shows more than 34 and 60 percent declines, respectively.

The trend of declining trade accelerated during the year, after the United States in May stopped offering sanctions exemptions to friendly countries to import oil from Iran. For example, in November 2019, China imported 547,758 tons of Iranian oil, down from 3.07 million tons in April, according to China's General Administration of Customs.

India and Japan also released their annual reports on trade with Iran on January 30.

According to the Indian Ministry of Finance, exports to Iran amounted to $3.86 billion in 2019, which shows more than a 37% increase compared with the previous year. However, in the same period, India's imports from Iran show a three-fold decline, plunging to $3.4 billion.

It is for the first time that the value of Indian exports to Iran has overtaken its imports from the Islamic Republic, as India has stopped buying Iranian oil since May.

Japan, on the other hand, says that its exports to Iran in 2019 show an eleven-fold decline compared with 2018, dropping to a mere $66 million, while imports from Iran show a three-fold contraction, declining to $1.16 billion.

Imports from Iran in 2018 totaled $3.5 billion, of which almost all were crude oil and other fossil fuels. Japanese exports to Iran in 2018 totaled $710 million, consisting mainly of vehicles and general machinery.

Furthermore, the latest reports on EU trade with Iran also refers to a sharp decline.

Iran exported 648.32 million (approximately $719 million) worth of commodities to the EU during the eleven months in 2019, indicating a 93.06% fall compared with the similar period in the previous year.

In the same period, Iranian imports from the EU fell by 51.82% to stand at 4.08 billion (roughly $4.5 billion).

The top five exporters from the European Union bloc to Iran were Germany with $1.4 billion, Italy with $827 million, the Netherlands with $487 million, France with $382 million, and Belgium with $234 million worth of shipments to Iran.

The decline in trade goes hand in hand with a huge drop in Iran's Gross Domestic Product (GDP), which according to the International Monetary Fund and the World Bank declined around nine percent in 2019.

Another major Iranian trade partner is Turkey. Based on the Turkish Statistical Institute (TurkStat) figures, Ankara's exports to its eastern neighbor, in the first eleven months of 2019, amounted to $2.1 billion, or nearly $200 million less than the same period in 2018, and about $1.5 billion less than 2017.

In the same period, Turkey imported nearly $3.2 billion of products from Iran. The figures for the same period in 2018 and 2017 were about $6.8 billion and almost $7 billion, respectively, Turkstat reported.

Therefore, total trade between Turkey and Iran in 2019 shows an almost 40% decline, compared to 2018, and a 50% fall compared to 2017.

United Arab Emirates (UAE) and Iraq are also among Irans major trading partners, but they have still not published official reports on their business with the Islamic Republic.
BEIJING  Chinas death toll from a new virus rose to 259 on Saturday and a World Health Organization official said other governments need to prepare fordomestic outbreak control if the disease spreads in their countries.

Beijing criticized Washingtons order barring entry to most foreigners who visited China in the past two weeks.

Australian Prime Minister Scott Morrison announced similar measures Saturday, following Japan and Singapore.

South Korea and India flew hundreds of their citizens out of Wuhan, the city at the center of an area where some 50 million people are prevented from leaving in a sweeping anti-virus effort. The evacuees went into a two-week quarantine. Indonesia also sent a plane.

The number of confirmed cases in China rose to 11,791, surpassing the number in the 2002-03 outbreak of SARS, or severe acute respiratory syndrome. The virus rapid spread in two months prompted the World Health Organization on Thursday to declare it a global emergency.

That declaration flipped the switch from a cautious attitude to recommending governments prepare for the possibility the virus might spread, said the WHO representative in Beijing, Gauden Galea. Most cases reported so far have been people who visited China or their family members.

The agency acted out of concern for poorer countries that might not be equipped to respond, said Galea. Such a declaration calls for a coordinated international response and can bring more money and resources.

WHO said it was especially concerned that some cases abroad involved human-to-human transmission.

Countries need to get ready for possible importation in order to identify cases as early as possible and in order to be ready for a domestic outbreak control, if that happens, Galea told The Associated Press.

On Friday, the United States declared a public health emergency and President Donald Trump signed an order barring entry to foreign nationals who visited China within the last 14 days, which scientists say is the virus longest incubation period. The restrictions dont apply to immediate family of American citizens and permanent residents.

China criticized the U.S. controls and unfriendly comments that Beijing was failing to cooperate.

Just as the WHO recommended against travel restrictions, the U.S. rushed to go in the opposite way. Certainly not a gesture of goodwill, said foreign ministry spokeswoman Hua Chunying.

WHO Secretary-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus said that despite the emergency declaration, there is no reason for measures that unnecessarily interfere with international travel and trade.

Meanwhile, iPhone-maker Apple announced Saturday that it was closing all of its 42 stores as well as its corporate offices in mainland China, one of its largest markets, until Feb. 9.

The ruling Communist Party postponed the end of the Lunar New Year holiday in Hubei province, where Wuhan is located, for an unspecified appropriate extent and appealed to people there to stay home.

Another locked-down city in Hubei, Huanggang, on Saturday banned almost all residents from leaving their homes in the most stringent controls imposed yet. The government said only one person from each household would be allowed out to shop for food once every two days.

Others are not allowed to go out except for medical treatment, to do epidemic prevention and control work or to work in supermarkets and pharmacies, it said in an announcement.

Chinas anti-disease controls started with the Jan. 23 suspension of plane, bus and train links to Wuhan, an industrial center of 11 million people. The lockdown has spread to surrounding cities.

The holiday, Chinas busiest annual travel season, ends Sunday in the rest of the country following a three-day extension to postpone the return to factories and offices by hundreds of millions of workers. The official Xinhua News Agency said people in Hubei who work outside the province also were given an extended holiday.

The party decision highlighted the importance of prevention and control of the epidemic among travelers, Xinhua said.

Beginning Sunday, the United States will direct flights from China to seven major airports where passengers can be screened. Those returning from Hubei province will be subject to a 14-day quarantine. On Saturday, Defense Secretary Mark Esper approved a request from the Department of Health and Human Services for the possible use of military facilities to accommodate 1,000 people who may have to be quarantined upon arrival from overseas.

American Airlines, British Airways, Finnair and Hong Kongs Cathay Pacific have canceled or cut back service to mainland China. Vietnam suspended all flights to China. Delta Air Lines said Saturday that it was accelerating plans to suspend its flights between the U.S. and China, with the last flight from China now leaving Sunday.

The U.S. order followed a travel advisory for Americans to consider leaving China. Japan and Germany also advised against nonessential travel to China. Britain did as well, except for Hong Kong and Macao.

Countries including Bangladesh, India, Indonesia, Sri Lanka, South Korea and Turkey all evacuated some citizens from China on Saturday. The Kremlin said Russia would use its air force planes starting Saturday for evacuations.

Germanys defense minister said a plane carrying 128 passengers, most of them German citizens, was refused permission to land and refuel in Moscow due to what the Russians said was lack of capacity. The military transport plane had to divert to Helsinki before it landed in Frankfurt. None of the people aboard was suspected of infection but they all will be quarantined at a military base for two weeks as a precaution, according to the German Foreign Ministry.

At least 24 countries have reported cases since China informed WHO about the new virus in late December.

Australia, Germany, Japan, South Korea, the United Arab Emirates, the United States and Vietnam all reported new cases Saturday. Spain confirmed its first case  a German man who had close contact with an infected person in Germany and then traveled to the Canary Islands with friends. Four friends who were hospitalized with him have not shown symptoms.

Both the new virus and SARS are from the coronavirus family, which also includes those that cause the common cold.

The death rate in China is falling, but the number of confirmed cases will keep growing because thousands of specimens from suspected cases have yet to be tested, WHOs Galea said.

The case fatality ratio is settling out at a much lower level than we were reporting three, now four, weeks ago, he said.

Although scientists expect to see limited transmission of the virus between people with family or other close contact, they are concerned about cases of infection spreading to people who might have less exposure.

___

Associated Press writers Aniruddha Ghosal in New Delhi, Tong-hyung Kim in Seoul, South Korea, Mari Yamaguchi in Tokyo, Hau Dinh in Hanoi, Vietnam, Niniek Karmini in Jakarta, Indonesia, and Bharatha Mallawarachi in Colombo, Sri Lanka, contributed to this report.
3 things to know as Trump's impeachment trial heads to acquittal vote Wednesday originally appeared on abcnews.go.com

A final Senate vote on whether President Donald Trump will be acquitted in his impeachment trial is now set for Wednesday after Democrats on Friday lost a weeks-long push to allow witnesses in order to make their case.

The Republican-controlled Senate voted against witnesses 51-49 after Democrats failed to persuade four GOP moderates to join them.

That, despite a new bombshell about former national security adviser John Bolton that seemed to have potential to upend the trial.

PHOTO: In this screengrab, House manager Rep. Adam Schiff begins speaking during impeachment proceedings against U.S. President Donald Trump in the Senate at the U.S. Capitol on Jan. 31, 2020, in Washington. (ABC News )

Here are three takeaways from Fridays dramatic session.

1) A push for Bolton to testify fails

On Friday, just before the Senate reconvened, new revelations regarding Trumps alleged actions regarding Ukraine surfaced when The New York Times reported on more details from Boltons unpublished manuscript.

According the Times reporting, President Trump directed Bolton in May to help Rudy Giuliani, the presidents personal attorney, to secure a meeting with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy -- two months before Trump's July 25 call with Zelenskiy and the earliest known instance of Trump being directly involved in the Ukraine pressure campaign.

PHOTO: National security adviser John Bolton adjusts his glasses before an interview at the White House in Washington, March 5, 2019. (Jacquelyn Martin/AP, FILE)

(MORE: Democrats seize on Dershowitz impeachment argument at Senate trial )

ABC News has not independently reviewed the manuscript, but The New York Times reported that Bolton claims that the president asked him to call the Ukrainian president to "ensure Mr. Zelenskiy would meet with Mr. Giuliani, who was planning a trip to Ukraine to discuss the investigations that the president sought.

Trump denied the account in a statement to The Times, saying that he never instructed John Bolton to set up a meeting for Rudy Giuliani, one of the greatest corruption fighters in America and by far the greatest mayor in the history of N.Y.C., to meet with President Zelensky.

"That meeting never happened, Trump said.

Story continues

PHOTO: In this screengrab, Rep. Adam Schiff, Chairman, US House Permanent Select Committee on Intelligence) speaks during the impeachment trial of President Donald Trump in the US Senate at the Capitol in Washington on January 31, 2020. (ABC News)

Adam Schiff, the lead House impeachment manager, addressed the new claims in The New York Times report speaking on the Senate floor Friday. Schiff challenged the Senate to hear from Bolton: So, here you have the president saying John Bolton is not telling the truth. Let's find out.

Let's put John Bolton under oath. Let's find out who's telling the truth. Trial is supposed to be a quest for the truth lets not fear what we will learn as Mr. Cipollone said let's make sure that all the facts come out.

This drip drip drip from the Bolton book is going to keep coming. Seems to me a vote against considering witnesses is basically an admission that nothing can change your mind about this President's conduct, Democratic Sen. Mark Warner of Virginia tweeted Friday evening,

(MORE: Democrats to ask Chief Justice Roberts to rule on witnesses amid fading hopes of winning vote )

2) Senate votes against hearing any witnesses

The Senate voted to not allow witnesses in the trial, despite Democrats hard push earlier in the week to sway key Republicans who had indicated they would might be interested in hearing from Bolton.

GOP Sens. Susan Collins of Maine and Mitt Romney of Utah were the only Republicans who voted with Democrats in favor of including witnesses.

Two Republicans targeted by Democrats -- Sens. Lamar Alexander from Tennessee and Lisa Murkowski of Alaska -- voted no, after announcing they would ahead of Friday's proceedings.

PHOTO: Sen. Lisa Murkowski walks in the basement at the U.S. Capitol on Jan. 30, 2020, while leaving at the end of a session in the impeachment trial of President Donald Trump on charges of abuse of power and obstruction of Congress, in Washington. (Julio Cortez/AP)

(MORE: Trump impeachment trial live updates: Senate votes no to witnesses, acquittal vote Wednesday)

Murkowski, in a statement. said that she has come to the conclusion that there will be no fair trial in the Senate.

I dont believe the continuation of this process will change anything, she said. It is sad for me to admit that, as an institution, the Congress has failed.

Murkowski also voiced concern that the process would become further politicized and drag the Supreme Court into the fray, as well as Chief Justice John Roberts.

We are sadly at a low point of division in this country, Murkowski said.

Before the vote -- despite the long odds --- House impeachment managers kept up their push for witnesses.

The evidence in the record is sufficient, it is sufficient to convince the president on both articles of impeachment more than sufficient, but that's simply not how trials work, lead House manager Adam Schiff said. As any prosecutor or defense lawyer would tell you, when a case goes to trial both sides call witnesses and subpoena documents to bring before the jury.

Schiff argued that trial process happens every day, in courtrooms all across America. There is no reason why this impeachment trial should be any different.

PHOTO: In this screengrab, US Supreme Court Chief Justice John Roberts prepares for impeachment proceedings against President Donald Trump in the Senate at the U.S. Capitol on Jan. 31, 2020, in Washington. (ABC News )

(MORE: Trump impeachment trial: Question period ends as GOP swing votes emerge)

3) What happens next

One of the senate's GOP leaders, Sen. Roy Blunt, of Missouri, said the final vote on acquittal is scheduled for 4 p.m. on Wednesday.

That's a day after President Trump is set to head to the Capitol to give his State of the Union address Tuesday evening and an awkward moment for Trump that the White House and congressional Republicans wanted to avoid. They had hoped the impeachment cloud would have been removed by then.

President Bill Clinton gave a State of the Union address during his 1999 Senate impeachment trial before eventually being acquitted.

ABC News Stephanie Ebbs, Allison Pecorin, Trish Turner, Mary Bruce, Olivia Rubin, and John Parkinson contributed to this report.
India's financial markets expect Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman to announce key measures for boost investment and stimulate growth in today's Budget speech. Given the environment of slow growth, declining consumption and weak investment, Indian stock markets performed relatively well in 2019.

The Indian benchmark indices Sensex and Nifty hit record highs and rallied over 13 per cent and 11 per cent, respectively. However, the rally was not broad-based as mid-cap and small-cap indices disappointed investors with negative returns. The mid-cap index declined as much as 3.2 per cent and small-cap index suffered a loss of 8.3 per cent during the year.

Also read: Budget 2020 Live Updates: FM Nirmala Sitharaman to present budget at 11 AM; middle class, corporate await surprise

The upcoming budget should, therefore, focus on boosting investor sentiment by reducing income tax and increasing cash in hand of common-man. The government's policies on personal income tax rates and taxation related to financial markets will set the market tone going ahead. The common expectation across market participants is some rationalisation of capital gains tax.

FULL COVERAGE:Union Budget 2020

According to market experts, Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman may announce reduction or abolition of long term capital tax which can significantly improve investor sentiments. The Budget may also propose increase in income tax deduction on investments made (80C) or provide deductions on housing loan.

Also read: Budget 2020: Watch Live Streaming on Aaj Tak, India Today, live telecast channels

"The market was very hopeful on the Union Budget, the pre-budget has been blockbuster with outperformance by mid and small caps. Growth is expected as the theme with positive measures to industries, cut in tax for common-man and schemes for rural market to boost consumption," said Vinod Nair, Head of Research, Geojit Financial Services.

Also Read: Budget 2020 Date: When is Union Budget, Expectations from Modi govt, Time, where to watch

Here are the key expectations of stock market investors:

Abolishment of Long-Term Capital Gains (LTCG) Tax

The abolishment of Long-Term Capital Gains (LTCG) Tax is a long-pending demand from investors to improve market sentiments in the market. According to media report, the government is considering rationalisation of the LTCG taxation structure by classifying three asset classes against six at present. The holding period for LTCG is likely to be increased to two years from one year currently.

Reduction in Securities Transaction Tax

Securities Transaction Tax (STT) is one of the biggest burdens on stock market investors as it is the largest contributor to per trade transaction cost. Introduced in the Union Budget 2004, STT is levied on every purchase or sale of listed securities.

Also Read: Budget 2020: What banks, NBFCs expect from Sitharaman's Budget

In the previous Budget, FM Sitharaman restricted the STT to the difference between settlement and strike price in case of exercise of options. However, the change will not affect the levying of STT on any other transaction on the exchanges.

Also Read: Union Budget 2020: How, When and Where To Watch Live Streaming Of Union Budget

Market expects Sitharaman to scrap STT to raise volumes on the bourses. Dalal Street is of the opinion that STT which is levied at the time of purchase and sale of securities listed on stock exchanges in India leads to double taxation. The reason is imposition of long term capital gains tax while keeping STT intact.

In order to increase investment in securities, the government must remove or reduce STT rate to ensure more participation by domestic as well as foreign investors in Indian capital markets.

Sops for retail investors

The government is working on a proposal to extend tax benefits to retail investors. The Union Budget 2021 may also offer incentive to health insurance buyers by increasing income tax exemption on health insurance premium.

By Chitranjan Kumar
At a Jan. 30 meeting at the Kremlin with the Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, Russian President Vladimir Putin announced a pardon for Naama Issachar, an Israeli-American citizen who spent 10 months in a Russian prison for allegedly smuggling drugs on a flight from India to Israel through Moscow.

The Kremlin said the pardon was on humanitarian grounds. But Putin was quoted as telling Netanyahu: She  thank God, it is very good for her  did not even cross the Russian border. He added: All that stuff was found while her luggage was being transferred from one plane to the other.

Putins statement is misleading. The circumstances around Issachars arrest are more complex, and the Russians had offered her up in an earlier prison swap.

The arrest

Issachar, now 27, was taken into custody last April in the Moscow Sheremetyevo airport. She was in transit from India to Israel when the Russian police said they found about 9.6 grams of marijuana in luggage she checked when registering for her flight in New Delhi.

Authorities charged Issachar with carrying contraband narcotics. Issachar denied the charges, saying she had no access to her luggage and had no idea how cannabis got into her bag. She also argued that she had no intention of entering Russia during her brief layover at the Moscow airport. Nonetheless, a Moscow court in October sentenced her to 7.5 years in prison; in December an appeals court upheld the sentence.

The defense

As it turns out, Putins assertion that it was very good Issachar didnt cross the Russian border echoed the very arguments used by her defense.

A Sheremetyevo customs officer testified in the court in October as a defense witness and said Issachars luggage did not cross the customs border and her actions did not constitute the crime of contraband. Airport authorities also sent a written statement to the court saying transit luggage is not a subject of a customs security search. In October and again in December, however, the court rejected those arguments as an attempt to escape justice by Issachar.

Issachars family said then the sentencing was ludicrous.

A public campaign was launched to free the New Jersey-born woman from Russian confinement. Netanyahu rallied to her cause.

The hacker

Last October, the Russian and Israeli news agencies reported that Russia offered to exchange Issachar for the Russian hacker Alexei Burkov, who at the time was being held in Israel and was wanted for extradition by the U.S.

Tel-Aviv refused the deal, and Burkov was extradited to the U.S.

On Jan. 23 in Virginia, Burkov pleaded guilty to access device fraud and conspiracy to commit computer intrusion, identity theft, wire and access device fraud, and money laundering, and faces a maximum sentence of fifteen years in prison when sentenced on May 8.

The cyber security news site Krebsonsecurity.com said, Burkov was an asset of supreme importance to Moscow and had run highly sophisticated secretive forums for elite hackers.

But failure of the prisoner swap did not discourage Russia. Instead, the focus shifted to transfer of ownership of a building, the Alexander Courtyard in Jerusalems Old City, to the Russian Orthodox Church. Russia had been seeking the property for more than a decade, The Times of Israel reported.

For Netanyahu, currently facing corruption charges and elections in March, freeing an Israeli woman whose predicament had moved millions is politically beneficial, the paper said.

Issachar was released as Netanyahu headed to Moscow for a meeting with Putin about a U.S. peace plan for the Middle East.

The announcement Tuesday by the Prime Ministers Office of the trip to Russia came less than an hour after Attorney General Avichai Mandelblit filed an indictment against Netanyahu for charges of bribery, fraud and breach of trust with the Jerusalem District Court, The Times of Israel report on Issachar said.
Carolyn Kellogg at the LA Times:

For those who dont know about Americas involvement in Laos, which at the time U.S. officials called the Secret War, author Paul Yoon provides a thumbnail sketch at the beginning of the book. From 1964 to 1973, the U.S. dropped more bombs on Laos than were used against Germany and Japan combined during WWII.

When they are forced to leave, Noi, Prany and Alisak are split up. One of them gets on a series of planes to France; one is imprisoned in Laos with their doctor friend; the last disappears.

The novel then tracks their diaspora. It seems that luck is with the one who makes it to France, able to make a new life halfway around the world. But is fate playing tricks?

more here.
The average sale price of a new vehicle hit a record of just more than $39,000 late last year, a figure that chased many buyers out of the market and into used vehicles, which could set a sales record.

The shift to used, aided by millions of late-model vehicles coming off two- and three-year leases, is good for consumers who can get well-equipped cars, trucks and SUVs for far less than new ones. But it could be bad for automakers, with many industry analysts expecting new-vehicle sales to fall in 2020.

Consumers bought an estimated 40.4 million used vehicles last year, likely passing the old record of 40.2 million set in 2018, according to figures from the Edmunds.com auto pricing site. Edmunds, which provides content to The Associated Press, won't call it a record until final numbers arrive sometime in mid-February.

At the same time, new-vehicle sales dropped 1.3 percent to more than 17 million last year, and some industry analysts are predicting they'll fall into the mid-16 millions this year.

"This affordability issue is sort of scaring consumers away" from new vehicles, said Charlie Chesbrough, senior economist at Cox Automotive, which includes Kelley Blue Book. "You have this sort of competition out there of used vehicles that is offering an alternative to people who are looking for value."

Chesbrough expects new-vehicle sales to fall to 16.6 million this year, while Standard & Poors analyst Nishit Madlani predicts 16.4 million "amid a wave of used autos hitting the market and high sticker prices on new cars." S&P sees a further decline to 16.3 million for the following two years.

If a buyer with good credit bought an average new vehicle for $39,000 and put $2,000 down, they would borrow $37,000. That sum, at about 6 percent interest for six years, would bring a monthly payment of just more than $600.

Since many lenders limit auto buyers to a payment of 15 percent of their income, the lowest-income buyer who could afford the average price would have to make more than $48,000 per year, said Matt Dundas, finance director for Carvana, an online used-vehicle sales company.

"That's approaching the U.S. median household income of just over $60,000, and even then, you're still right up against lender limits," Dundas said. "Ideally the average person wouldn't be right up against the line," he said.

The lower prices make late-model used vehicles more attractive. Last year, Edmunds estimated the average used vehicle cost $20,533. A 3-year-old vehicle cost an average of $22,571. Borrowing $20,000 for six years would cost an average buyer about a $340 monthly payment.

Price isn't the only reason buying used is becoming more attractive. Automakers, dealers and sites like Carvana offer used vehicles with warranties and maintenance records, sometimes calling them "certified pre-owned."

"I think we're making it not as scary to buy a used car," Dundas said. "It's in great shape, it's clean and I'm dealing with a legitimate company," he said.

A record 2.8 million certified pre-owned vehicles were sold last year, according to Cox.

Aundrya Richardson, an emergency dispatcher in the Atlanta area, could have afforded a new car but knew she shouldn't spend more than $30,000 while trying to recover from financial problems. She decided in early January to buy a silver 2016 Toyota Corolla with 25,000 miles on it from Carvana for about $15,000.

Special Investigation 147 NY dams are 'unsound,' potentially dangerous Thousands of dams have not been inspected in over 20 years.

"I'm going to look for something that's lower but still a reliable vehicle," she said. "I wasn't really in a position to be super-picky. Maybe I'll get what I want next time."

As demand falls, the industry could be forced to increase incentives such as cash rebates and low-interest financing, and ultimately that could bring new vehicle prices down.

The average new vehicle sales price, including taxes, fees and automaker incentives, hit a record of $39,028 last November, according to Cox. But as demand from individual buyers ebbed in December, dealer discounts grew to 7 percent of the sticker price, the highest level since the financial crisis in July of 2009. That drove the average price down slightly to $38,948, according to Cox.

Richard Bazzy, owner of three Pittsburgh-area Ford dealerships, said automakers like Ford are going to have to keep up low interest loans and cash offers to keep new vehicle sales strong.

Still, there are forces working against lower new-vehicle prices. People are still buying SUVs and trucks, which accounted for 69 percent of U.S. sales last year. Trucks and SUVs generally are more expensive than cars, so that drives up the average sale price.

Also, people still want the latest safety and infotainment technology, said Chesbrough, and they are willing to spend to get it. Automakers are differentiating their new vehicles from even 2-year-old ones by adding more driver assist and safety features as well as bigger navigation screens and other technology, he said.

"All of that is going to force these vehicle prices to continue to creep up," Chesbrough said.
WINONA  Whose Winona do you like better? Winona's or Winona's?

Visit Winona, the Winona visitors bureau, hopes folks take a cue from Winona native and Hollywood star Winona Ryder and find their own Winona experience.

A few weeks ago, Ryder  with a little help from the city, which shut down streets and helped set up some photo opportunities  slipped into town to shoot a commercial for Squarespace, a website building company, which will run its ad featuring Ryder during Super Bowl LIV on Sunday.

The ad features Ryder building a webpage (using Squarespace ... see what they did there?) that features photos of her experience in the city for which she was named. The photos on the site  which is called www.WelcomeToWinona.com  are available in a photobook that can be purchased with the proceeds going to the American Indian College Fund.

However, the story doesn't end there.

ADVERTISEMENT

Visit Winona Marketing Specialist Cynthya Porter said that while Ryder has her view of Winona to share, Visit Winona wants Super Bowl viewers  or the few other people on the planet  to find their own Winona experience.

"It goes to the real heart of the whole concept of the real Winona," Porter said. "She has some of our wonderful local characters and some interesting streetscapes. We want people to come find their true Winona. Everyone is going to have a different perception of the place they go."

The visitor bureau is promoting its own Squarespace website titled WelcomeToTheRestOfWinona.com . Porter said Visit Winona's site isn't meant to counter what Ryder has created, but simply to offer another view of Winona. In conjunction, Visit Winona is promoting its own photobook project, inviting its social media followers to post their own "true Winona" shots using #WelcomeToWinona on their posts.

"For us, it's kind of like having this side campaign to her campaign that allows us to tell our story," Porter said.

Best of all, the city has been getting unprecedented exposure, even before the big game, and being part of a $5 million advertisement seen by roughly 100 million people on Sunday should benefit the city greatly.

"It's such a blessing for Winona," Porter said. "It's an amazing opportunity for us."
We will not give in to fascists without a fight View(s):

Exactly a day after the pomp and the show of Indias celebrations of Republic Day 2020 faded, a young law student standing in the imposing shadow of India Gate in New Delhi, the countrys iconic war memorial,passionately confesses her uncomfortable dissonance with the lavish display.

All this passion, where will this lead to?

We are celebrating the Indian Constitution which held millions together with the golden thread of civil rights. Now, Republic Day marks the very opposite of what B.R. Ambedkars Constitution stood for; military might, crude nationalism and the disparaging of minorities she says.

India invited Brazils Bolsonaro as the guest of honour not coincidentally, she adds. This is to pass a not-so-subtle message, that the old order of striving for equality and justice has given way to nationalist strongmanship. We, the young people of India have risen against supremacist Hindutva ideology and will continue to do so.

Elsewhere in the sedate and scholarly confines of the India International Centre, older (though perhaps not necessarily wiser) pundits shake their heads in half perplexed bewilderment. All this passion, where will this lead to? a historian asks. He acknowledges that nation-wide protests over the Citizenship (Amendment) Act (CAA), the National Register of Citizens (NRC), and the National Population Register (NPR) were eminently justified. Even so, the worries are real. He points to Hong Kong youth standing up to Chinas might over an extradition Bill that would have abandoned criminal suspects to the uncertain mercies of mainland Chinas compromised legal system.

Trigger sparking national fury

The bill was withdrawn but protests continued. Hong Kongs young explained that they were fighting for the soul of their birthplace even as the self-administered territory experienced an economic downturn after months of riots and protests. Similar economic negativity would be devastating for India which is already coping with slow growth rates and a predicted recession. Like in Hong Kong, public anger came to a head with the Modi Governments Citizenship (Amendment) Act (CAA) which overrode the secular basis of Indias Constitution by promising citizenship for persecuted religious minorities excluding Muslims.It was justified on the basis that it only sought to give protection to Hindu minorities fleeing state reprisals in majority Muslim countries in the region. Earlier, the Government which had come sweeping back into power on a punishing wave of popular demand, revoked the special status given to Kashmir.

Nonetheless, the raft of citizenship amendments sparked national fury. Protests erupted in major cities and unprecedentedly, spilled over to renowned universities including Jamia Milia Islamia University and the Jawaharlal Nehru University (JNU). Masked attackers carrying clubs and sticks disrupted a meeting held by JNU students to protest against actions of a Bharathiya Janatha Party (BJP) linked right-wing student base and assaulted academics and students alike as the police watched. Images of traumatised professors and students with bleeding head injuries flashed across television screens around the world, leading to global shock and severe damage to Indias reputation as a liberal democracy.

The Government back-peddled with swift damage control measures. Senior Ministers voiced their disapproval of inactive law enforcement officers as the campus was invaded. On Republic Day, Prime Minister Narendra Modi cautioned that violence was never a solution to any issue but elsewhere in the city, Shaheen Bagh became the epicenter of protests as students and even parents recited resistance poetry. Undeterred, students in universities across India continued to hold vigils in sympathy with embattled colleagues in the capital. Interestingly, private campuses, business colleges and engineering schools, joined the agitation. Even though the Citizenship (Amendment) Act was passed in early December by a Government dominated legislature, some states have refused to implement its provisions. The crisis therein demonstrates afresh the dangers of giving juggernaut majorities to any one political force.

Unmistakable warning to rightwing factions in Government

Even so, Indias mass protests transforming the political reality of the day was an unmistakable warning to powerful right-wing factions in Government that Indias young was not going to yield. We will not give up our country to fascists without a fight declares my young conversationalist at India Gate. Some of this frustration is also traceable to the slowing down of the economy apart from growing awareness that Indias secular constitutional democracy is under siege. Yet absent a galvanised Opposition, there is only so much that people protests and the anger of students can accomplish.

Much like Sri Lankas dysfunctional Opposition with the United National Party led by a man who has liberal credentials to his name but has sadly undermined all those gains by an aloof and out-of touch style of leadership, Indias Congress Party remains demoralised. Thus, the anxiety of the scholar who asked me where Indias protests were heading is perhaps understandable. But the young listen to the cautions of the old soberly, yet only up to a point. There is a gut instinct driving their anger as they see India turning into a country which is becoming very different to what their parents experienced.

This is not right. We must do something corroborates others who join the conversation at India Gate. They are also students at the Law University, Delhi. Emotion moves them, irresistibly. Later, we should not be sorry that we kept quiet they say. Their courage and steadfastness is a lesson for Sri Lankan students and activists who recently issued a statement in support of the struggle being carried on by their peers over the Palk Straits. However, it must be stressed that civil rights activism amounts to far more than the issuing of statements and pontificating on social media.

The main takeaway of civic protests in India

Today in Sri Lanka, as nationalistic forces gather strength, the effort to combat that menacing development must not be through social movements linked to compromised political forces masquerading as independent. This is what crippled the yahapalanaya effort. Lawyers, academics and academics paraded under party political banners for personal and professional profit, forsaking the core values of objective and independent critique. In effect, the very faults of the political parties and the political establishment were replicated in those efforts which were, ultimately self-defeating and counter-productive in the main.

That compromised process has enabled subversive attacks on even the small and limited democratic gains in Sri Lanka during the past few years. Political turncoats and perfidious men try to demolish institutional protections by saying that they were prompted by mala fide and ulterior motives. This has the potential of undermining of the Constitution and the ideal of independent institutions and replacing them with that exact notion of strongman centralisation of power that Indias young is protesting against. The agitations of the Indian youth in regard to dangerous shifts in the countrys basic structures of governance, are principled and devoid of political agendas.

This is the core takeaway for Sri Lankans as, along with India, we face multiple challenges in preservation of the democratic space in the months ahead.
CHICAGO - A former head of the Chicago Police Department is advising a local cannabis company on security after more than $200,000 was stolen from it during a burglary last month.

Danny Marks, the co-owner of MOCA Modern Cannabis, told the Chicago Tribune that he brought on former police Superintendent Garry McCarthy as a consultant as he seeks a license to open a new recreational pot store in the River North neighbourhood.

In an email to the paper, Marks said that bringing on McCarthy, who started a security consulting business after he was fired from the police force in late 2015, makes sense for a number of reasons.

Garry is friends with our landlord in River North and because he lives a block away from the property, he is advising on any unique security concerns of the immediate area, he wrote. Furthermore, MOCAs security officer is Michael Chasen, a retired Chicago police chief of detectives, who often brings in consultants when the company is planning new projects.

McCarthy, who is one of at least 18 former law enforcement officials working in cannabis security in Illinois, did not immediately respond to an Associated Press email seeking comment sent Saturday to his wife.

MOCAs existing medical and recreational cannabis shop was closed during the overnight hours of Jan. 6 when someone used its key card system to get into the business and rob it, police said.

McCarthy had been superintendent for more than four years when a judge in late 2015 ordered the city to release a video that showed a white police officer shoot a black teenager, Laquan McDonald, 16 times the year before. The mayor at the time, Rahm Emanuel, came under intense criticism for trying prevent the video from being made public, and he fired McCarthy as part of his effort to restore public confidence in the police force and his administration.

McCarthy unsuccessfully ran for mayor last year.
Qantas Airways said it will suspend its two direct flight routes from Australia to mainland China from February 9 in response to travel restrictions imposed by some countries due to the coronavirus crisis.

The Australian national carrier's direct flights from Sydney to Beijing and Sydney to Shanghai will be halted until March 29, it said in a statement published Saturday.

Flights from Australia to Hong Kong would not be impacted by the change, it said, as it also warned the February 9 date would be reviewed and could be brought forward depending on demand from customers.

Qantas said the decision was made after Singapore and the United States on Friday announced toughened measures to enter their countries for people who had recently travelled through mainland China.

"These entry restrictions pose significant logistical challenges for rostering crew to operate mainland services, leading to the need to temporarily suspend these flights," the airline said.

COVID-19 Vaccine Frequently Asked Questions View more How does a vaccine work? A vaccine works by mimicking a natural infection. A vaccine not only induces immune response to protect people from any future COVID-19 infection, but also helps quickly build herd immunity to put an end to the pandemic. Herd immunity occurs when a sufficient percentage of a population becomes immune to a disease, making the spread of disease from person to person unlikely. The good news is that SARS-CoV-2 virus has been fairly stable, which increases the viability of a vaccine. How many types of vaccines are there? There are broadly four types of vaccine  one, a vaccine based on the whole virus (this could be either inactivated, or an attenuated [weakened] virus vaccine); two, a non-replicating viral vector vaccine that uses a benign virus as vector that carries the antigen of SARS-CoV; three, nucleic-acid vaccines that have genetic material like DNA and RNA of antigens like spike protein given to a person, helping human cells decode genetic material and produce the vaccine; and four, protein subunit vaccine wherein the recombinant proteins of SARS-COV-2 along with an adjuvant (booster) is given as a vaccine. What does it take to develop a vaccine of this kind? Vaccine development is a long, complex process. Unlike drugs that are given to people with a diseased, vaccines are given to healthy people and also vulnerable sections such as children, pregnant women and the elderly. So rigorous tests are compulsory. History says that the fastest time it took to develop a vaccine is five years, but it usually takes double or sometimes triple that time. View more Show

Qantas had previously flagged its Sydney to Beijing route, which was flown five days a week, would end on February 23 but that date will now brought forward to February 9.

Qantas joins an increasing number of international airlines which are cancelling or severely reducing the number of flights to mainland China as a result of coronavirus.

American Airlines on Friday announced cancellations to Beijing and Shanghai starting immediately and running through March 27, though it will continue to fly to Hong Kong.

United and Delta's last flights out of mainland China will be Feb. 5, with cancellations running through March 28 and April 30 respectively.

The decision of the American carriers followed moves by Air France KLM SA, British Airways, Germany's Lufthansa and Virgin Atlantic to halt flights.

Nearly 10,000 flights have been suspended since the outbreak of the coronavirus in China, according to travel and data analytics firm Cirium.
The release of President Donald Trumps long-awaited Israeli-Palestinian peace proposal this week has thrown a curveball into the Democratic presidential primary in the crucial days ahead of the Iowa caucuses Monday.

In the wake of Trumps proposal  which would allow Israel to retain all its West Bank settlements and annex the Jordan Valley  the left-wing Jewish activist group IfNotNow put former Vice President Joe Biden and former Mayor Pete Buttigieg of South Bend, Indiana, on the spot as part of a campaign to cut Israeli military aid.

IfNotNow highlighted two videos on Twitter featuring one of its activists, Elias Newman, confronting Biden and Buttigieg at their respective Iowa campaign events.

What Im ready to do is to make sure that we do not in fact support what hes [Netanyahu] is doing, Biden told Newman.

Biden  who is polling second behind Sen. Bernie Sanders, I-Vt., in Iowa  has ruled out conditioning military aid to Israel, calling it absolutely outrageous and a gigantic mistake.

Conversely, Sanders is running on the furthest left platform on Israel in the primary, calling for the United States to condition Israeli aid based on both the occupation of the West Bank as well as human rights and living conditions in the Gaza Strip. The progressive firebrands stance prompted the super PAC Democratic Majority for Israel to launch a $700,000 Iowa ad campaign against the senator in the final days before the caucuses. The Sanders campaign said it raised $1.3 million in donations the same day the ads aired.

While Buttigieg has staked out a position in between Biden and Sanders, he became the first candidate to put leveraging military aid on the table in the 2020 election cycle by vowing in June that US taxpayers would not foot the bill if Israel moved forward with any unilateral annexation of the West Bank. Fellow candidate Sen. Elizabeth Warren, D-Mass., has made a similar pledge.

But Newman, who supports Sanders, accused Buttigieg of backing off his campaign pledge to leverage Israeli military aid last year  a charge the candidate denied in the video.

The US cannot be promoting annexation like it is under this president, Buttigieg told Newman at an Iowa town hall. By the way, Im not talking about withdrawing aid or withdrawing our support for Israel.

He clarified that Trumps proposal would not prompt him to withdraw aid to Israel but characterized his position as consistent with what I said before without delving into specific policy proposals.

Neither the Biden nor Buttigieg campaigns responded to Al-Monitors request for comment. But Buttigiegs stance on the issue has tracked closely with the left-leaning lobby group J Street.

Hes taking the J Street position, and at the J Street conference they both said were no longer going to write a blank check to Israel, and were talking about conditioning aid, Newman told Al-Monitor in an interview. Both entities need to clarify what they actually mean, especially as annexation is happening now.

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu had initially pushed to hold a Knesset vote on West Bank annexation next week with only a month to go before Israels third round of elections in a year. Shortly thereafter, Jared Kushner  the chief architect of Trumps proposal  opposed such an accelerated timetable, expressing hope that annexation would wait until after Israels March elections and that the process would place under the auspices of a joint US-Israeli committee. Meanwhile, Netanyahus chief rival  Blue and White leader Benny Gantz  has said he would hold a Knesset vote endorsing the Trump plan next week.

Both IfNotNow and J Street launched separate pushes to leverage Israeli military aid last year in response to Netanyahus election campaign promises to annex West Bank settlements and the Jordan Valley  pledges enshrined in the Trump plan.

Still, IfNotNow is trying to push candidates further left than J Street, which supports a 10-year memorandum of understanding to provide Israel with $38 billion in US military aid from 2019 to 2028.

J Street is backing a letter introduced by Sanders campaign co-chairman Rep. Ro Khanna, D-Calif., which pushes Secretary of State Mike Pompeo to clarify whether Israel has used US military equipment while demolishing Palestinian homes in the West Bank. If so, that could trigger restrictions on Israel under the Arms Export Control Act.

Keep up to date with Al-Monitors election 2020 coverage here.
Success! An email has been sent to with a link to confirm list signup.
With high levels of moisture saturating soils throughout the Red River Valley and parts of the Assiniboine River basin going into winter, there is a high likelihood the region will experience flooding come spring.

Hey there, time traveller!

This article was published 1/2/2020 (709 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

Opinion

With high levels of moisture saturating soils throughout the Red River Valley and parts of the Assiniboine River basin going into winter, there is a high likelihood the region will experience flooding come spring.

How much and how damaging will depend on the amount of precipitation we get over winter and how quickly it melts.

Herbicide-resistant Palmer amaranth. (University of Arkansas / Associated Press files)

While Manitoba farmers are no strangers to overland flooding, speakers at the annual round of extension updates this winter are warning to be on the lookout for some troublesome pests hitching a ride into fields on that water.

Officials have been watching the northward migration of two plants that have been wreaking havoc with weed-control efforts south of the border over the past decade: herbicide-resistant Palmer amaranth and its genetic cousin waterhemp. Palmer amaranths arrival in Manitoba is pending, and waterhemp is already here, ready to make its next move.

Theyve been dubbed "superweeds" because they so rapidly evolve to survive virtually all forms of herbicide control. Once they develop resistance to one herbicide, they quickly figure out how to overcome stacked combinations of other herbicides too.

Researchers trying to understand how they do it have zeroed in on their sex lives. These particular species are dioecious, which means a field population contains both female and male plants. Most Amaranthus species contain male and female flowers on the same plant.

The dioecious plants more rapidly outcross, which gives them an advantage in the evolutionary race. As well, they are prolific seed producers, with one plant able to produce up to a million seeds. So not only do they develop resistance more rapidly, they are really good at spreading it around.

Farmers are easily caught off guard because there are lots of reasons why they might see a few weeds left here and there after spraying. It could have been a plugged nozzle on their sprayer; it could have been too hot, too cold or too windy.

Farmers are advised to assume herbicide resistance and do whatever it takes  mow, till or pull  to prevent those patches from going to seed.

Researchers hope that a better understanding of how these plants reproduce will open the door to new tools, for example, genetically modifying the plants so all the offspring are male, thereby collapsing the local weed population.

Herbicide-resistant weeds arent the only waterborne threat farmers need to monitor.

Clubroot is a strange beast in the world of crop protection. It is a protist, which means it is a parasite with plant, animal and fungal characteristics. It needs a living host to grow, which means it can quickly take hold if farmers grow canola in the same field year after year.

When it moves into a canola field, it can cripple production, and there is no treatment for it. In a badly infected field, farmers only tool is starving the organism by not growing susceptible crops for as many as 10 years. With canola being the No. 1 cash generator on most Prairie farms, the cure is almost worse than the disease.

In Alberta, clubroot has spread from field to field on contaminated soil that clings to equipment as farmers go about their work.

The pathogen has gradually made its way eastward and is now showing up in Manitoba fields.

Want to get a head start on your day? Get the days breaking stories, weather forecast, and more sent straight to your inbox every weekday morning. Sign Up I agree to the Terms and Conditions, Cookie and Privacy Policies, and CASL agreement.

However, whereas the clubroot infections in Alberta tend to show up first in field-entry points, Manitoba extension workers have noted the main path of transmission appears to be via waterways. That means farmers need to change their scouting practices to monitor for it.

The thing with most of these crop production challenges, whether they are resistant weeds or diseases, is that they force farmers to diversify their strategy for dealing with them.

In most cases, they have lots of tools to pick from, ranging from improved genetics to tillage, to various crop-protection technologies.

The problems arise when they keep doing the same thing over and over. When the pests take over, sometimes the only option is taking that field out of annual crop production.

Thats why the pressure is on for farmers to avoid getting the problem in the first place.

Laura Rance is vice-president of content for Glacier FarmMedia. She can be reached at lrance@farmmedia.com
The Recall Information page provides pertinent recall information, along with the ability for drivers to search for recalls on their specific vehicle by typing in their Vehicle Identification Number, or VIN.

Individuals wondering if there may be a recall notice out for some part of their Honda vehicle have an easy way to check such things online and soothe their minds. Continental Honda, a dealership serving Chicago and the greater surrounding area, has a page on its website dedicated to providing customers with recall information. Utilizing this page ensures drivers can stay safe while also taking advantage of any recall service that is due to them.

Those wishing to check for recall information on the Continental Honda website need simply head to the corresponding webpage. The Recall Information page provides pertinent recall information, along with the ability for drivers to search for recalls on their specific vehicle by typing in their Vehicle Identification Number, or VIN.

Alternatively, users can enter the year and model of any Honda vehicle from the past fifteen years to see all recalls issued for it. This option makes the tool helpful both for those who own a Honda vehicle and want to see recall information as well as those who are looking to buy a certain model or simply curious. Below the tool, there is information for where customers can go for additional recall information if they should desire it.

Again, users should note that the Recall Information page and tool provides information about Honda safety recalls issued in the past fifteen years. Recalls from before this time period are not included.

Continental Honda also boasts a trained and certified service center that can work with recalled vehicles of customers in the area. Interested individuals are encouraged to call the service department at 708-540-2810 and speak directly to a service advisor. The encouragement of an advance call is due to the fact that parts may need to be ordered before the appointment takes place.

Those interested in learning about Honda recalls and available service to remedy them are encouraged to pay a visit to the Continental Honda website at http://www.continentalhonda.com. For scheduling an appointment or to get other information, a call may be made to the service number listed above. Finally, individuals may also journey straight to the dealership in-person; its located at 5901 S. La Grange Road, Countryside.
The ongoing protests at Delhi's Shaheen Bagh against the Citizenship Amendment Act (CAA) and National Register of Citizens (NRC) are unprecedented in several levels. It is probably the longest-running mass protest against the Central government in recent years.

It is also probably for the first time in the country, Muslim women have led such an agitation. It has become so massive, that the women protesters in Shaheen Bagh have inspired similar women-led protests in several parts of the country.

BCCL

The sleepy neighborhood which comes under the Okhla constituency has become the de-facto epicenter of the ant-CAA demonstrations in the capital and has no signs of slowing down.



Now, nearly 50 days after the protests began the Modi government which has so far refused to listen to those opposed to the contentions legislation has given the first indication that it is willing to hold talks.

Union law minister Ravi Shankar Prasad on Saturday said the government is ready to talk to the protesters at Shaheen Bagh to clear their doubts over the amended Citizenship law, but it should be in a "structured form". "Government is ready to talk to protestors of Shaheen Bagh but then it should be in a structured form and the @narendramodi govt is ready to communicate with them and clear all their doubts they have against CAA," he wrote on Twitter.

Prasad also shared a video where he spoke about the protest and said it was a "good thing" that people were protesting for days but some people were heard saying on television that there would not be dialogue until the CAA was rolled back. "If you want a government representative to talk, then there should be a structured request from Shaheen Bagh which says all the people there want to talk on the subject," Prasad said.

He made it clear that Shaheen Bagh was not the place to hold talks. "What if someone goes there and is mistreated," he said.

This comes at a time when the BJP which is trying to unseat the AAP government in Delhi in the elections later this month has almost solely been campaigning on the topic of Shaheen Bagh.

The BJP had also come under heavy criticism after MoS Finance, Anurag Thakur, while speaking at an election rally implied that they should be shot at. BJPs West Delhi MP Parvesh Verma too had courted controversy after he claimed that Shaheen Bagh protesters would rape and kill Delhi residents.

Even Union Home Minister Amit Shah had invoked Shaheen Bagh in one of his speeches and said told supporters to press the button for the BJP with "so much anger that protesters in Shaheen Bagh feel the current".

Many have also alleged that it was the provocative speeches of Thakur and Verma that incited a 17-year-old boy to open fire at anti-CAA protesters at Jamia. According to Police, he was originally planning to go to Shaheen Bagh and had even posted on Facebook saying "Game over, Shaheen Bagh" hours before the firing.

REUTERS

Following the comments, Thakur and Verma have been temporarily banned from campaigning by the EC. The BJP has also removed the duo as star campaigners but has roped in another firebrand leader Uttar Pradesh chief minister Yogi Adityanath who will be addressing several rallies in the area.
MediPharm Labs (OTC:MEDIF) now has the green light to begin shipping product to Australia. The Canadian cannabis extraction specialist announced Friday it has received an import license from that country's Department of Health.

This permit allows MediPharm to ship cannabis, cannabinoids, and resin from Canada to Australia. These goods can be used to make finished products such as tinctures.

Australia made medical cannabis legal in 2016, and since then, a clutch of companies both domestic and foreign has emerged to supply product to qualified patients. The country still bars recreational consumption at the federal level, although somewhat controversially, its Capital Territory (which includes Canberra and its surrounding townships) legalized it last year within its borders.

In its press release heralding the receipt of the license, MediPharm said it "is an important milestone as we continue to build a multi-jurisdictional [Good Manufacturing Practices]-certified pharmaceutical-quality platform to serve the world's most attractive medical cannabis markets."

In Australia, cannabis companies must earn Good Manufacturing Practices (GMP) certification in order to sell their products.

The import license news will be welcomed by shareholders, as other recent developments with MediPharm haven't been entirely positive. Last week, it revealed that it is suing an unnamed licensed cannabis producer in Canada for breach of contract, alleging that this party owes it nearly 10 million Canadian dollars ($7.6 million) for product MediPharm supplied. It was subsequently discovered that the company being sued is HEXO. Perhaps that issue is still weighing on investors' minds, as the marijuana stock closed Friday down by nearly 6%.
The expertise of the Dutch in reclaiming land from the sea is needed to save one of Ireland's most iconic and legendary beaches, a meeting has been told.

Rossbeigh beach, the largest strand in south Kerry and a blue-flag beach of world renown, was rapidly eroding and surrounding soft cliffs had sunk and were in danger of collapse.

Already there had been a road collapse.

The breach of the Rossbeigh sand-spit in January 2008, during a huge winter storm, had led to a change in currents and a sand bar offshore had now built up while inland there was more and more erosion.

"We need the expertise of how to take the land back from the sea," local councillor Michael Cahill told a meeting of the Kenmare Municipal District held in Cahersiveen yesterday morning.

He warned low-lying inshore areas were already suffering and these included the village of Cromane and Dooks. These are already suffering from flooding. "If Rossbeigh goes it's going to create problems for all the lowland areas. There are serious flooding issues in this area already and it is already escalating with global warming," he said.

Dutch surveyors who visited Rossbeigh already advised taking sand from the offshore sand bank which had built up with the erosion of the past 12 years, and building up the shore and sand dunes at Rossbeigh.

Council engineers said they would undertake a review of a number of studies including a 2014 coastal flood and erosion management study of the Dingle-Castlemaine Harbour area where Rossbeigh is located.

This review will take 12 months.
The District 2 appointee for the Clarke County School District Board of Education misled the board about his high school graduation.

Antwon Stephens, who was appointed Jan. 16, gave a speech to the board where he suggested he graduated from CCSD in 2014.

My story is that of a young person that is recently out of the Clarke County School District, Cedar Shoals High School Class of 2014, Stephens said in his Jan. 16 speech.

However, the Cedar Shoals High School graduation list for 2014, obtained by The Red & Black through an open records request, does not have Stephens name.

Stephens also listed himself as a Clarke County School District native/ Cedar Shoals High School 2014 in his District 2 application materials, according to emails obtained by The Red & Black through the same open records request.

Stephens admitted to Cedar Blueprints, a publication at Cedar Shoals High School, that he did not graduate from the school.

I definitely apologize for it coming out that way but the graduation was not from Cedar Shoals, Stephens told the paper.

BOE President LaKeisha Gantt released a statement in the wake of the article saying that her and the vice president are talking with Stephens.

While the unfolding of events and information is not optimal, it is not a legal disqualifier, Gantt said in the statement. Being a high school graduate is not a requirement for serving on the Board of Education and the Affidavit signed does not contain any representation about being a graduate. Therefore, this revelation does not change his eligibility for the office. Additionally, the Board of Education did its due diligence by having Mr. Stephens sign the qualifications affidavit before being sworn in.

The Red & Black reached out to Stephens for comment about his graduation.

Stephens gained the support of four board members to solidify his appointment, edging out three other candidates.

District 9 member Tawana Mattox and District 4 member Patricia Yager voted for Stephens as their first choice for the appointment. District 1 member Greg Davis and District 5 member Kara Dyckman switched their votes from another candidate to Stephens, pushing him to the majority.

During the meeting, Mattox said she personally knows Stephens and wanted to have the perspective of a person that has recently graduated from our district on the board.

This young man has done everything he said he did he actually did in terms of making this community better, Mattox said at the meeting. I definitely would love to see a younger person and younger voice on this board.

Stephens said he plans to run for a full term to represent District 2 when the seat is up for election in May.

Before his appointment to the school board, Stephens was in the race for Georgias 9th Congressional District, despite missing the minimum age requirement by two years.

Stephens also ran for Athens-Clarke County mayor in 2018 but dropped out of the race.
Child specialist Kafeel Khan, who was accused of making an inflammatory speech at AMU, was remanded to 14 days' judicial custody and later transferred to Mathura jail, officials said on Saturday.

Aligarh: Child specialist Kafeel Khan, who was accused of making an inflammatory speech at AMU, was remanded to 14 days' judicial custody and later transferred to Mathura jail, officials said on Saturday.

Circle Officer (Civil Lines) Anil Samania said Khan was brought here late Friday evening and was produced before the remand magistrate who remanded him to judicial custody.

The doctor was sent to the Aligarh jail, but within an hour, he was transferred to Mathura jail, the official said.

The Uttar Pradesh police had on Thursday obtained transit remand for Khan, arrested in Mumbai for allegedly making inflammatory remarks at an anti- Citizenship Amendment Act (CAA) protest at Aligarh Muslim University last month.

A UP special task force arrested him in a joint operation with Mumbai Police on Wednesday, when he reached the city to attend a protest against the Citizenship Amendment Act.

The STF said Khan was arrested in connection with a case registered at the Civil Lines police station in Aligarh, police said. He was booked under section 153-A of the Indian Penal Code for promoting enmity between groups.

Khan is accused of making inflammatory remarks on 12 December during a protest near Bab-e-Syed Gate outside the Aligarh Muslim University in front of over 600 students protesting against the new citizenship law.

An official also alleged that the Gorakhpur doctor had made objectionable comments against Union Home Minister Amit Shah.

Following the arrest, Khan was taken to Mumbai's Sahar police station.

In Gorakhpur, his brother Adil Khan alleged on Thursday that the doctor was arrested to give the ruling BJP an advantage in the Delhi Assembly polls on 8 February.

The doctor was earlier arrested for his alleged role in the deaths of over 60 children in one week at the BRD Medical College in Gorakhpur in August 2017.

Short supply of oxygen at the children's ward at that time was said to have caused the deaths.

Following outrage over the Gorakhpur deaths, Khan was suspended and arrested, with the UP government claiming that he had failed to take prompt action or warn his superiors about the impending crisis.

About two years later, a state government probe, however, cleared Khan of all major charges, prompting him to seek an apology from the Yogi Adityanath government.

In Gorakhpur, his brother Adil Khan has questioned Wednesday's arrest. "It is clear that the motive behind the arrest was political gain during the Delhi Assembly election, Adil Khan claimed.

"It is alleged that my brother has no faith in the Constitution, which is wrong as his speech is available on social media and nowhere has he said this. He is falsely accused and wrongly arrested," he told PTI. Child specialist Kafeel Khan, who was accused of making an inflammatory speech at AMU, was remanded to 14 days' judicial custody and later transferred to Mathura jail, officials said on Saturday.

Circle Officer (Civil Lines) Anil Samania said Khan was brought here late Friday evening and was produced before the remand magistrate who remanded him to judicial custody.

The doctor was sent to the Aligarh jail, but within an hour, he was transferred to Mathura jail, the official said.

The Uttar Pradesh police had on Thursday obtained transit remand for Khan, arrested in Mumbai for allegedly making inflammatory remarks at an anti-CAA protest at Aligarh Muslim University last month.

A UP special task force arrested him in a joint operation with Mumbai Police on Wednesday, when he reached the city to attend a protest against the Citizenship Amendment Act.

The STF said Khan was arrested in connection with a case registered at the Civil Lines police station in Aligarh, police said. He was booked under section 153-A of the Indian Penal Code for promoting enmity between groups.

Khan is accused of making inflammatory remarks on 12 December during a protest near Bab-e-Syed Gate outside the Aligarh Muslim University in front of over 600 students protesting against the new citizenship law.

An official also alleged that the Gorakhpur doctor had made objectionable comments against Union Home Minister Amit Shah. Following the arrest, Khan was taken to Mumbai's Sahar police station.

In Gorakhpur, his brother Adil Khan alleged on Thursday that the doctor was arrested to give the ruling BJP an advantage in the Delhi Assembly polls on 8 February.

The doctor was earlier arrested for his alleged role in the deaths of over 60 children in one week at the BRD Medical College in Gorakhpur in August 2017.

Short supply of oxygen at the children's ward at that time was said to have caused the deaths.

Following outrage over the Gorakhpur deaths, Khan was suspended and arrested, with the UP government claiming that he had failed to take prompt action or warn his superiors about the impending crisis.

About two years later, a state government probe, however, cleared Khan of all major charges, prompting him to seek an apology from the Yogi Adityanath government.

In Gorakhpur, his brother Adil Khan has questioned Wednesday's arrest. "It is clear that the motive behind the arrest was political gain during the Delhi Assembly election, Adil Khan claimed.

"It is alleged that my brother has no faith in the Constitution, which is wrong as his speech is available on social media and nowhere has he said this. He is falsely accused and wrongly arrested," he told PTI.
Velabs Therapeutics a biotech company focused on the rapid screening of functional therapeutic antibodies announced that it has entered into an exclusive licence agreement with alytas therapeutics for the development and commercialization of alytas antibodies in the field of senescence, related degenerative processes and pathologies.

Velabs Therapeutics, a biotech company focused on the rapid screening of functional therapeutic antibodies announced that it has entered into an exclusive licence agreement with alytas therapeutics GmbH (alytas), for the development and commercialization of alytas antibodies in the field of senescence, related degenerative processes and pathologies.

Velabs Therapeutics, a young start-up company of the European Molecular Biology Laboratory (EMBL), is a pioneer of microfluidic technology for the screening of antibodies with modulatory function on complex signalling proteins such as GPCRs, ion channels or other regulatory proteins. The current active investor is Xlife Sciences, a Swiss company focusing on the development of promising life science technologies. Velabs offers its screening know-how and capacities for pharmaceutical collaborations worldwide. In addition to existing partnerships, Velabs is currently building its own pipeline of therapeutic antibody candidates for further development. Recently, the company has started to develop antibody-based senolytics, a class of drugs designed to prevent cell and tissue degeneration that can occur during the aging process by eliminating so-called senescent cells. alytas specializes in the research of fat metabolism in connection with obesity.

Its program is based on several proprietary protein epitopes with high relevance for the immunological regulation of excess adipocytes and has already been conceptually confirmed in vitro and in vivo. In a previous strategic partnership, alytas and Velabs co-developed different sets of preclinical antibodies for a novel immune-based obesity treatment. The current licence will allow Velabs to exclusively develop these antibodies against senescence related degenerative processes. Both indications, obesity and senescence, together with their associated comorbidities, are conditions with unmet medical need and enormous market potential.

Christoph Antz, Managing Director of Velabs, states: "We are pleased to have entered this licence agreement with alytas, which will allow us to develop a completely new treatment against ageing related decline of body functions. We are confident that this new approach has the potential to open new ways towards less associated deteriorations, higher degrees of vitality and better health conditions during human ageing process, thus increasing quality of life at older age and reducing the burden of age-related diseases and complaints. Velabs know-how in the generation and preclinical validation of functional antibodies will be instrumental in developing a first mover antibody-based therapy for the preventive delay of senescence associated body decline.
India on Saturday set aside 3.37 lakh crore for military spending in its budget for 2020-21, an increase of barely 6% over last years budget estimates of 3.18 lakh crore.

This years budget (minus defence pensions) includes 1.13 lakh crore under the capital head for modernization, which is only 10,340 crore more than the allocation in last years budget estimates. Lack of adequate funds could hit the militarys modernization programmes, experts said.

At first reading, the allocation under the capital head seems to be insufficient considering that large capability voids need to be filled, said Air Vice Marshal Manmohan Bahadur (retd), additional director general, Centre for Air Power Studies.

If the defence spending allocated for 2020-21 is calculated against last years revised estimates of 3.31 lakh crore, the increase is not even 2%. Finance minister Nirmala Sitharamans budget speech in Parliament on Saturday made no mention of defence except that national security was a top priority.

The military was hoping for healthy increase in defence funding as several modernization programmes have to be implemented --- ranging from artillery guns and helicopters to fighters and submarines. The armed forces will have to prioritise their purchases given that the available resources are inadequate, said a senior army official who did not want to be named. This years budget (excluding pensions) is a mere 1.5% of the countrys gross domestic product.

If defence pensions in the budget are taken into account, the defence outlay for 2021 stands at 4.71 lakh crore compared to 4.3 lakh crore in last years budget estimates and 4.48 lakh crore in last years revised estimates.

A parliamentary panel has asked the defence ministry to strongly press for additional funds from the finance ministry to enable the military to buy new equipment and also pay for weapons and systems it has already contracted to purchase, at a time when the armed forces projected a combined requirement of almost 1 lakh crore more under the capital head for 2019-20.

SHARE THIS ARTICLE ON
An artist has impressed hundreds of thousands of fans after painting mind-bending optical illusions onto her face.

Dain Yoon, 26, from Seoul, South Korea, has earned more than 607,000 Instagram followers thanks to her incredible artworks - all of which were created without using Photoshop.

Creating the pieces by using watercolours on her face and hands, Dain explained that she can spend between three to 12 hours completing a painting.

One of her most recent looks saw the talented artist blend into an Apple MacBook, which left fans 'speechless'.

Other works showed Dain blending into the sky, painting faces on a friend's body and recreating multiple eyes on her own face and arm.

Dain Yoon , 26, from Seoul, South Korea, has impressed hundreds of thousands of fans after painting mind-bending optical illusions onto her face. One of her most recent looks (above) saw the talented artist blend into an Apple MacBook, which left fans 'speechless'

Creating the pieces by using watercolours on her face and hands, Dain (pictured in a portrait) explained that she can spend between three to 12 hours completing a painting

The makeup artist paints building blocks on herself to hide her actual features and split fake ones across her body. It is another example of her mind-bending illusions

Speaking to FEMAIL, Dain said: 'I have always enjoyed painting since I was very young, and, frankly speaking, it was what I was best at.

'I attended Yewon Arts secondary and Seoul Arts high school, graduating at the top of my class. These arts schools are the most prestigious in Korea.

'After I got into art college, I studied scenography. I had a chance to design theatrical makeup and to draw on the body of actors of plays.

'But after participating in theatrical makeup, I felt a strong need to do my own creative work, not being part of a play.'

She continued: 'So, for my personal art works, I began painting on the bodies of several models. A little later, I decided to draw on my own face because face is the most strong and sensitive part of body where I can deliver the delicate emotions I so seek to convey.

The talented artist used her skills to paint herself into a self-portrait by Van Gogh, pictured

Revealing how she made the illusion works, Dain pulled herself away from the painting

The visual artist creates multiple fingers on her own face and arm in this baffling illusion

'Its also important to note that my artistic family has been a very important part of my life. My mother is an artist and my father a professor of architecture.

'Since I was young, my mother always emphasised that a sense of humour is very important for artworks. My parents philosophy has always supported and influenced me and my artistic growth a lot.'

With nearly 280,000 followers on Twitter, and hundreds of thousands on Instagram, Dain is an international hit and believes this is down to her works being 'eye-catching'.

The artist blends into a shelf holding several records, creating a mind-bending optical illusion

Stepping away from the furniture, Instagram fans can see where Dain has painted her face

Another piece of work shows Dain blending into the sky (pictured) - without using Photoshop

'My paintings were able to become popular because they catch the eyes of people within the thousands of images they scroll through on a daily basis,' she said. 'Most of my painting went viral.

'I always try to do new things, and never remain stagnant. I really work hard and I think my life and career have been developed a lot from it, especially this last year.

'With time passing, my perspective on art has grown, and it led me to do things on a bigger scale, and different types of mediums as well.'
KYODO NEWS - Feb 1, 2020 - 08:14 | All, Japan, World

Japanese businesses are hoping the United Kingdom and the European Union will swiftly forge a free trade agreement following the country's exit from the bloc on Friday, as a failure to do so could adversely affect their operations in Europe.

They are concurrently asking the Japanese government to strike an FTA with the United Kingdom as the Japan-EU trade pact, setting rules on investments and tariffs, is no longer applicable to trade relations between Tokyo and London.

"The government is set to discuss with the United Kingdom a new trade deal but talks depend on how negotiations with the European Union are settled," said Hiroaki Nakanishi, chairman of the Japan Business Federation, a major business lobby known as Keidanren.

"Japan needs to conduct various talks with both the United Kingdom and the European Union in a public-private effort," Nakanishi said at a recent press conference.

The government intends to proceed with trade negotiations with the United Kingdom based on the Japan-EU FTA that came into effect last year.

The agreement allows consumers' access to cheaper imported food items and elimination of tariffs on industrial products to the benefit of exporters.

"I will swiftly tackle building an ambitious economic partnership with the United Kingdom," Japanese Economy, Trade and Industry Minister Hiroshi Kajiyama told a press conference on Friday.

Akio Mimura, chairman of the Japan Chamber of Commerce and Industry, said, "Essentially the United Kingdom's departure is nothing positive for the Japanese companies doing business there so the focus going forward is how much the negative impact is alleviated."

The United Kingdom is a major trade partner for Japan, with total exports to it in 2018 totaling 1.53 trillion yen ($14 billion), the second-largest in the EU bloc after Germany.

By imports, the United Kingdom was the fourth-largest partner among EU members at around 909.4 billion yen.

The United Kingdom is home to offices of nearly 1,000 Japanese companies investing in the country and other parts of Europe, according to the Japan External Trade Organization.

Related coverage:

U.K. officially leaves EU, eyes new trade deals with Japan, U.S.

Nikkei sees highest year-end close since 1990

OPINION: What Brexit may bring, as U.K. election looms
ETRI develops drone and AI technology to predict algal blooms

Daejeon, Korea, Jan 31, 2020  The Electronics and Telecommunications Research Institute (ETRI) has developed a technology for analyzing water quality with drones and using artificial intelligence (AI) to predict the level of algal bloom. The technology is expected to reduce public anxiety about algal blooms that reoccur each summer and help manage drinking water safety.

ETRI reported it successfully measured and predicted harmful algal blooms in a remote lake with a hyperspectral camera built in a drone. The research was published in the journal Remote Sensing of Environment.

 Prediction of algal bloom expansion with AI analysis

Algal blooms have been observed in many rivers and coastal waters where water flow is slow or stagnant. Large algal blooms can be toxic to the environment and people. If the algal bloom growth reaches a certain point, it expands exponentially making it difficult to manage. Thus, it\-\-s critical to accurately monitor and predict algal activity.

In the past, it took a couple of days to collect samples and analyze water quality. Moreover, the process was cumbersome as it required physical site visits, making it difficult to respond quickly before the algal bloom spread.

The technology developed by ETRI uses drones to remotely examine water bodies, making it easier to study blue-green algae status, including migration, spread, and distribution in rivers or streams. Compared to satellites or aircraft, drones can monitor the water more easily at low costs and high resolution. The acquired big data is then quickly analyzed with AI, which helps predict where the blue-green algae will bloom.

 Rivers and streams explored with a hyperspectral camera

A hyperspectral sensor is central to the system\-\-s success. While conventional images divide light into three primary colors (RGB), the hyperspectral technology can divide the visible and near-infrared regions into 200 or more colors. Thus, the technology can classify the components of an object in more detail and can be applied widely in the military, environment, medicine, healthcare, and other areas.

The hyperspectral camera in a drone can easily indicate whether the blue-green algae level is at \-\-Attention\-\-, \-\-Warning\-\-, or \-\-Outbreak\-\-. It uses the light spectrum of blue-green algae to check the current status digitally.

\We have the goal of achieving the world\-\-s best level of accuracy in algae prediction. We plan to make it possible to track down the growth of blue-green algae and facilitate early response to prevent further spread,\ said Dr. Yong-Hwan Kwon, the ETRI project manager.

ETRI has used the hyperspectral camera drone to examine the water quality of Daechung Reservoir in South Korea. The research team next plans to construct a real-time monitoring map of algal blooms in the reservoir. The objective includes a study on automating the process of exploration, data collection, input and analysis after establishing the optimal moving path of the drone.

The research team has the goal of increasing the accuracy of the algae prediction to 90% or higher by enhancing the analysis performance. They also plan to reduce the weight and size of the hyperspectral sensor by 2022.

For more information, contact:

Yong-Hwan Kwon

Project Manager

042-860-5377

yhkwon@etri.re.kr

About ETRI  Electronics and Telecommunications Research Institute

ETRI is a non-profit, government-funded research institute focused on global information and communications technologies (ICT) and artificial intelligence (AI). Since its foundation in 1976, ETRI has helped position Korea as a leading ICT nation by developing world\-\-s first and best technologies. For more information, please visit our website: https://www.etri.re.kr/eng/main/main.etri

Paper: https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S003442571930536X
Whoever we vote in, they could be making legislation that impacts our lives from now until 2025, says Joyce Fegan. How will they behave? Have they a record in action and finding unity in diversity?

You cant eat a flag.

This is the advice that John Humes father gave him as a child. John Humes fathers education stopped at primary school.

John Hume, himself the eldest of seven children, went on to become a school teacher, president of the Credit Union movement throughout the whole of Ireland (at the age of 27), vice president of the international Credit Union movement, founding member and leader of the Social Democratic and Labour Party (SDLP) and co- recipient of the 1998 Nobel Peace Prize.

Taking a look around Ireland and Europe this week, its easy to say they dont make many politicians like John Hume anymore.

This week we had the privately educated pro-Brexit British politician Nigel Farage waving his miniature Union Jack flag during his farewell speech in the European Parliament as Britain officially left the EU.

In Ireland, weve had politicians making jibes at one another across the airwaves and on live TV debates, in the hope of winning your vote in the general election on February 8.

But what does it really take to win your vote? Conflict, combative verbal pyrotechnics and point-scoring?

Or would you prefer to hear and see politicians pitching and demonstrating solutions to our personal and collective challenges? Or tearing strips off each other so they can be crowned the winner of the debate by media pundits?

Which, do you the parent, the worker, the pensioner, the student, the voter actually want and need?

Another piece of sage advice that John Humes father gave him was: Stick to the books, son, its the only way forward.

This, again, advice from a man whose formal education stopped at 12, and who remained unemployed for much of his life after the shipyards in Derry closed following the end of the Second World War.

But back to the flags.

When John Hume was 10, he ended up at an election meeting at the top of his road. It was a Nationalist Party meeting.

They were all waving flags and stirring up emotions for a united Ireland and the end of partition, Hume wrote in his 1996 book, Personal Views.

His father saw he had been affected and this was the point where he lent in to tell his son dont get involved in that stuff. To which a 10-year-old John asked: Why not, Da? Because you cant eat a flag, came the famous answer.

And you cant.

Flags will also not work as bricks and mortar, nor as school books or school places, nor can they be turned into hospital beds or home care hours.

In the same way, fighting and tearing strips off one another as debating politicians wont solve those problems either.

Hume calls this moment his first lesson in politics and going by the work he went on to achieve, his guiding principle too.

Politics is about the right to existence  the right to life  bread on your table and a roof over your head, he said. It doesnt matter what flag you wrap around you when you stand in the dole queue or are forced to emigrate to another country to earn a living.

With a proactive approach to politics that was centred in non-violence and all about finding unity in diversity, John Hume started to make change in his community.

The reason he went on to become the president of the Credit Union movement throughout Ireland by the ripe old age of 27, was because he went looking for a way to lift up his entire community, one that was poverty-stricken and suffering high unemployment.

He co-founded the Derry Credit Union on October 30, 1960, with four members and 7. By 1996, it had 14,000 members and 21m.

Housing came next, and Hume, still an active member of his community as opposed to an elected politician, helped to set up the Derry Housing Association.

In the first year, in the mid-Sixties, they managed to house 100 families. In the same year, Derry Corporation housed none.

Hume went on to successfully contest his first election in 1969, as an Independent for the Northern Ireland parliament, defeating the leader of the Nationalist Party, Eddie McAteer, in the process.

This week, speaking to someone involved in training people to run for politics and for the upcoming general election, I was told of a few encounters she had with John Hume.

The things he spoke about, were also the things he did.

When Hume encountered groups or people with genuine complaints, be that in housing, unemployment or discrimination, he would encourage action, he said.

The woman I spoke to this week testified to this.

When I met him and spoke with him, he asked what action were we taking, but he asked that as an ally too, she said.

Over the next seven days when would-be candidates, or incumbents, knock on your doors, or speak on your airwaves or drop fliers through your letterbox, what action is it you wish theyd take? How would you like your politicians to behave and conduct themselves?

Will they be guided by social conscience or by whats popular? Will they say and do and vote and act in a way that keeps their base somewhat satisfied, but not the rest of the population?

When they make it to Dail Eireann, how will they vote on divisive issues like reproductive rights or cutting carbon emissions?

Have they a track record in action and finding unity in diversity?

Whoever we vote in, remember they could be there making legislation that impacts our lives from now until 2025.

What kind of politician do you want and need?
Nicholas Coleridge (pictured) shared the items of personal significance inside his home in London's Chelsea. The publishing legend's memoir is out now

1. LOVE STORY

This is my wife Georgia and her bridesmaids at our wedding in 1989. She now works as a healer in this room and I write here too.

We met briefly a few years before when I worked at Harpers & Queen magazine and she was an intern for a few days.

She left to travel round India and I found out where she was going, followed her and then we met out there, as if by chance!

We have a shared passion for India  its heat, landscape, architecture, food, wildlife, and slightly run-down heritage hotels.

2. ART AND SOUL

I very much like the slightly Tintin-ish quality and the colours of Indian art.

We bought our first miniature in Jaipur in 1984 for a great deal of money, 80, which is probably about 300 today.

We were very proud of it, but it turned out to be a fake.

The salesman was insistent that it was very old and particularly valuable, but he must have known his child had painted it the previous day. So our collection dates from the mid 17th century to 1984, but I dont really mind that.

3. IDOL WORSHIP

GQ doctored this photo to make me look like my hero, David Bowie, after I wrote a piece about him for the magazine.

I was with the writer Craig Brown when I first saw Bowie on stage in London in 1972  he found Bowie pretentious, whereas I lapped up the pretension.

Nicholas values a photo of his wife and her bridesmaids from their wedding in 1989

I still listen to him late at night in my car, very loud, mostly his early stuff like Aladdin Sane and Diamond Dogs.

I only met Bowie once and was so thrilled to find out hed read a few of my novels that I nearly fainted in his presence.

4. FROCK STARS

In 2003 I organised my first Fashion Rocks charity event  this is the security pass. The top fashion houses were there, plus stars like Robbie Williams and Duran Duran, and the Prince of Wales and Camilla.

It was like a vast gladiatorial event and it very nearly killed me. But it went like clockwork and raised a lot for the Princes Trust.

As Beyonce performed with hundreds of dancers while an Armani fashion show was going on, the entire Royal Albert Hall came alive  and only then did I realise it was OK to relax.

5. AN ALMIGHTY PRANG

I bought this the day after nearly dying on a trekking holiday in Ethiopia in 2015.

We were in Lalibela and our guide wanted to take us to the only nightclub, Torpedo, but our driver didnt notice hed pulled up on the edge of a cliff.

The car toppled over and rolled down until we banged against a stone shepherds hut. We were incredibly lucky not to be badly hurt.

We went to the club anyway and the gin and tonics just kept coming.

A priest would carry this on the end of a staff, I think, and buying it after the accident felt like a thank you for saving my life.

6. WHAT LIES BENEATH

While on holiday in Isfahan in Iran I bought this beautiful knife. Iran is a marvellous place and the people are delightful.

In the historic city of Yazd we met three young women dressed completely in black who asked if wed heard of Paul Smith.

I said I knew him, and they told us in perfect English that underneath they were wearing Paul Smith.

Im optimistic about Iran  I think the regime may come to an end because the younger people dont seem to share their views.

As told to Andrew Preston. Nicholass memoir, The Glossy Years, is out now.
Country

United States of America US Virgin Islands United States Minor Outlying Islands Canada Mexico, United Mexican States Bahamas, Commonwealth of the Cuba, Republic of Dominican Republic Haiti, Republic of Jamaica Afghanistan Albania, People's Socialist Republic of Algeria, People's Democratic Republic of American Samoa Andorra, Principality of Angola, Republic of Anguilla Antarctica (the territory South of 60 deg S) Antigua and Barbuda Argentina, Argentine Republic Armenia Aruba Australia, Commonwealth of Austria, Republic of Azerbaijan, Republic of Bahrain, Kingdom of Bangladesh, People's Republic of Barbados Belarus Belgium, Kingdom of Belize Benin, People's Republic of Bermuda Bhutan, Kingdom of Bolivia, Republic of Bosnia and Herzegovina Botswana, Republic of Bouvet Island (Bouvetoya) Brazil, Federative Republic of British Indian Ocean Territory (Chagos Archipelago) British Virgin Islands Brunei Darussalam Bulgaria, People's Republic of Burkina Faso Burundi, Republic of Cambodia, Kingdom of Cameroon, United Republic of Cape Verde, Republic of Cayman Islands Central African Republic Chad, Republic of Chile, Republic of China, People's Republic of Christmas Island Cocos (Keeling) Islands Colombia, Republic of Comoros, Union of the Congo, Democratic Republic of Congo, People's Republic of Cook Islands Costa Rica, Republic of Cote D'Ivoire, Ivory Coast, Republic of the Cyprus, Republic of Czech Republic Denmark, Kingdom of Djibouti, Republic of Dominica, Commonwealth of Ecuador, Republic of Egypt, Arab Republic of El Salvador, Republic of Equatorial Guinea, Republic of Eritrea Estonia Ethiopia Faeroe Islands Falkland Islands (Malvinas) Fiji, Republic of the Fiji Islands Finland, Republic of France, French Republic French Guiana French Polynesia French Southern Territories Gabon, Gabonese Republic Gambia, Republic of the Georgia Germany Ghana, Republic of Gibraltar Greece, Hellenic Republic Greenland Grenada Guadaloupe Guam Guatemala, Republic of Guinea, Revolutionary People's Rep'c of Guinea-Bissau, Republic of Guyana, Republic of Heard and McDonald Islands Holy See (Vatican City State) Honduras, Republic of Hong Kong, Special Administrative Region of China Hrvatska (Croatia) Hungary, Hungarian People's Republic Iceland, Republic of India, Republic of Indonesia, Republic of Iran, Islamic Republic of Iraq, Republic of Ireland Israel, State of Italy, Italian Republic Japan Jordan, Hashemite Kingdom of Kazakhstan, Republic of Kenya, Republic of Kiribati, Republic of Korea, Democratic People's Republic of Korea, Republic of Kuwait, State of Kyrgyz Republic Lao People's Democratic Republic Latvia Lebanon, Lebanese Republic Lesotho, Kingdom of Liberia, Republic of Libyan Arab Jamahiriya Liechtenstein, Principality of Lithuania Luxembourg, Grand Duchy of Macao, Special Administrative Region of China Macedonia, the former Yugoslav Republic of Madagascar, Republic of Malawi, Republic of Malaysia Maldives, Republic of Mali, Republic of Malta, Republic of Marshall Islands Martinique Mauritania, Islamic Republic of Mauritius Mayotte Micronesia, Federated States of Moldova, Republic of Monaco, Principality of Mongolia, Mongolian People's Republic Montserrat Morocco, Kingdom of Mozambique, People's Republic of Myanmar Namibia Nauru, Republic of Nepal, Kingdom of Netherlands Antilles Netherlands, Kingdom of the New Caledonia New Zealand Nicaragua, Republic of Niger, Republic of the Nigeria, Federal Republic of Niue, Republic of Norfolk Island Northern Mariana Islands Norway, Kingdom of Oman, Sultanate of Pakistan, Islamic Republic of Palau Palestinian Territory, Occupied Panama, Republic of Papua New Guinea Paraguay, Republic of Peru, Republic of Philippines, Republic of the Pitcairn Island Poland, Polish People's Republic Portugal, Portuguese Republic Puerto Rico Qatar, State of Reunion Romania, Socialist Republic of Russian Federation Rwanda, Rwandese Republic Samoa, Independent State of San Marino, Republic of Sao Tome and Principe, Democratic Republic of Saudi Arabia, Kingdom of Senegal, Republic of Serbia and Montenegro Seychelles, Republic of Sierra Leone, Republic of Singapore, Republic of Slovakia (Slovak Republic) Slovenia Solomon Islands Somalia, Somali Republic South Africa, Republic of South Georgia and the South Sandwich Islands Spain, Spanish State Sri Lanka, Democratic Socialist Republic of St. Helena St. Kitts and Nevis St. Lucia St. Pierre and Miquelon St. Vincent and the Grenadines Sudan, Democratic Republic of the Suriname, Republic of Svalbard & Jan Mayen Islands Swaziland, Kingdom of Sweden, Kingdom of Switzerland, Swiss Confederation Syrian Arab Republic Taiwan, Province of China Tajikistan Tanzania, United Republic of Thailand, Kingdom of Timor-Leste, Democratic Republic of Togo, Togolese Republic Tokelau (Tokelau Islands) Tonga, Kingdom of Trinidad and Tobago, Republic of Tunisia, Republic of Turkey, Republic of Turkmenistan Turks and Caicos Islands Tuvalu Uganda, Republic of Ukraine United Arab Emirates United Kingdom of Great Britain & N. Ireland Uruguay, Eastern Republic of Uzbekistan Vanuatu Venezuela, Bolivarian Republic of Viet Nam, Socialist Republic of Wallis and Futuna Islands Western Sahara Yemen Zambia, Republic of Zimbabwe
SAYING ALL: National Security Minister Stuart Young at Wednesdays meeting of the Joint Select Committee on National Security at the Red House.

Photo courtesy The Office of the Parliament of Trinidad and Tobago
SAN FRANCISCO (AP)  Pacific Gas and Electric is pledging to overhaul its board of directors in an attempt to avoid a potential takeover by the state of California and prove the nation's largest utility is turning over a new leaf as it works through its second bankruptcy in less than 20 years.

The promise to shake things up came late Friday as the San Francisco-based company filed its latest blueprint for getting out of bankruptcy court by June 30. But to make that deadline, PG&E still must win over Gov. Gavin Newsom, who has been insisting for months that the company must make more radical changes to a corporate culture that has repeated lapses in safety and played a role a series of catastrophic wildfires that drove the utility back into bankruptcy last year.

Newsom had become so exasperated with the PG&E's direction that earlier this week he vowed to follow through on a threat to launch a government-led takeover bid unless the company bowed to a series of demands he laid out in a Dec. 13 letter and has reiterated in the past two weeks. The list includes Newsom's insistence that it replace its entire 14-member board of directors, including CEO Bill Johnson, and come up with a plan that lessens its debt load so it can pay for $40 billion to $50 billion in anticipated improvements to its outdated electrical grid.

PG&E appears to be starting to bend to Newsom's will, but it's still not clear if the company is willing to go far enough to appease him. In its announcement and court filings, PG&E pledged to refresh its board before it emerges from bankruptcy, but didn't say whether it will comply with Newsom's insistence to oust the entire board. All but two of the current 14 directors have joined the board since last April.

The plan also still relies on a heavy debt load, although PG&E expects to save money over the long haul through refinancing. It also shifts more debt from the holding company to the subsidiary that runs the utility in another apparent attempt to placate Newsom.

Story continues

The governor's representatives didn't immediately respond to a request for comment Saturday.

Newsom holds unusual leverage over PG&E's fate because the company needs the support of him and its chief regulator in California to qualify for coverage from a wildfire insurance fund that the state set up last summer. The protection from the fund is a crucial part of the plan that PG&E drew up after being confronted with more than $50 billion in claimed losses for deadly wildfires during 2017 and 2018 that were blamed on its dilapidated equipment and managerial negligence.

PG&E used bankruptcy to settle those claims by wildfire victims, insurers and government agencies for $25.5 billion. The company also worked out a separate deal with most of its bondholders to persuade them to abandon a alternative route out of bankruptcy that would have made it easier for the state to take over if things continued to go awry.

Things are already so bad that PG&E expects to have to impose deliberate blackouts in parts of its sprawling service territory for at least the next few years to reduce the chances its power lines will ignite more wildfires during dry, hot and windy conditions that are becoming a perennial event in Northern California amid climate change. With Johnson serving as CEO, P G&E was skewered for the way its turned off the power in October when as many as 2 million people were left in the dark, some of whom had to make do without electricity for several days.

Saying it was rapidly evolving, PG&E struck a note of contrition in the filings it made in connection with Friday's announcement. The company that emerges from bankruptcy will be a changed company with an enhanced focus on safety, improvement, customer welfare and operational excellence," PG&E said.

As it looks for new directors on its board, PG&E said it would rely on a skills matrix focused on an understanding of safety, climate change, renewable energy, technology, finances and community leadership. The company also intends to have a board consisting of mostly California residents, up from roughly one-third now, in another concession to Newsom.
Share this article Whatsapp

Facebook

Twitter

Linkedin Fadli (The Jakarta Post) Batam  Sat, February 1, 2020 15:09 709 7f440ff09e92db75a02bbad20620595a 1 National coronavirus,Wuhan-coronavirus,wuhan,Wuhan-lockdown,Indonesians,Indonesians-in-Wuhan,Batam,Natuna Free

Three hospitals in Riau Islands are making preparations for the arrival of Indonesians from Wuhan, China, who will be isolated for a number of days while they undergo medical checkups and monitoring before they will be allowed to return home.

Riau Islands Health Agency head Tjeptjep Yudiana confirmed early Saturday that he had received a letter from the Health Ministry Health Services Directorate General directing his agency to make the preparations.

The three hospitals mentioned in the letter are Badan Pengusahaan and Embung Fatimah Regional hospitals in Batam and Natuna Regional Hospital in Natuna.

We are making preparations now. I will visit the hospitals to welcome them [Indonesians from Wuhan]. The final say will be in the hands of the governor and the Batam mayor, Tjetjep told The Jakarta Post on Saturday.

He added that Health Minister Terawan had been in Natuna since Friday as part of the preparations to make the province a transit point for Indonesians returning from Wuhan.

Basically, we need an isolation zine for them until they are declared free from the coronavirus. We dont want them to be in society before we know they are healthy, Tjetjep added.

In addition, Tjetjep said Foreign Minister Retno LP Marsudi and Transportation Minister Budi Karya Sumadi were scheduled to visit Batam on Saturday, when they will greet the returnees.

As of Friday, the virus had killed 213 people and infected nearly 10,000 in mainland China.

Meanwhile, Batam Indonesia Free Trade Zone Authority (BP Batam) spokesperson Dendi Gustinandar said there had been no discussions about whether the returnees would be isolated at the haj dormitory in Batam.

I have not heard about the plan. There has been no discussion about it within related offices Dendi added.

He said BP Batam had not issued any instructions to use the haj dormitory as an isolation spot.

He statement counters reports the governments plans to use the haj dormitory as an isolation zone, which has triggered protests and criticism from local people.

Riau Islands Legislative Council (DPRD) member Yudi Kurnai said it was wrong for the government to designate Batam as an isolation zone for Indonesians returning from Wuhan given that Batam was a popular tourism destination.

The government should pick another island. It is not the right decision to place them in Batam, Yudi said.

Meanwhile, dozens of people in Natuna staged a rally on Saturday to protest the governments plan. Local people are worried about the plan to isolate them in Natuna. We are worried because the coronavirus spreads very quickly, said a protester.
The World Health Organisation (WHO) praised China's efficiency in detecting the Coronavirus outbreak, isolating the disease and supporting other countries in the situation, China's Ambassador to India, Sun Weidong, said on Friday.

"As the Director-General of WHO Dr Tedros said, the speed with which China detected the outbreak, isolated the virus, sequenced the genome and shared it with WHO and the world are very impressive, and beyond words. So is China's commitment to transparency and to supporting other countries," the envoy said told ANI.

The Ambassador said that while fighting the epidemic, the Chinese government cooperated with the world with a sense of responsibility.

READ | Chinese Envoy Cautions On 'excessive' Virus Measures

WHO has confidence in China's efforts

The Chinese envoy quoted the words of WHO Director-General Dr.Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, where he said that WHO has confidence in China's capacity to control the outbreak, and its efforts to combat the disease.

'Many of the prevention and containment measures taken by China so far, exceeds the relevant requirements for dealing with emergencies. In many ways, China is actually setting a new standard for outbreak response,' WHO said.

Sun Weidong also stressed that the WHO disfavors imposing travel or trade restrictions on China.

READ | China Slams US For Travel Warning Over Virus: Statement

The World Health Organisation on Thursday announced a public health emergency of global concern over the coronavirus outbreak in China and other countries.

"The main reason for this declaration is not because of what is happening in China, but because of what is happening in other countries," Dr Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, as quoted by CNN.

The UN health body also spoke highly of China's prevention and containment measures.

READ | Coronavirus: China Wants Countries To Avoid 'overreaction', Calls For Solidarity

Death Toll Soars To 213

The death toll from the Coronavirus outbreak has risen to 213 with 9,356 confirmed cases in China after the worst-hit Hubei province reported 42 new fatalities on Friday. Within the past 24 hours, over 1,200 new cases of the disease have been recorded in 17 Chinese cities, the Chinese media reported.

The new figures came shortly after the World Health Organization (WHO) declared a global emergency over the deadly epidemic, which has spread to over 20 countries around the world. The latest figures show that the daily death count is increasing sharply, despite unprecedented measures imposed by China on Hubei a week ago.

READ | Coronavirus Death Toll Soars To 213; Over 9,300 Confirmed Cases In China

(With inputs from ANI)

(Image credits: Twitter)
A bushfire is threatening homes and lives in Victoria, with authorities advising residents it's too late to leave.

An emergency warning was issued for the Cape Conran blaze, in the East Gippsland region, on Saturday afternoon.

Residents in that community as well as Marlo Plains were told to take shelter inside amid the conditions.

'There is a bushfire at Cape Conran that is out of control,' Vic Emergency said.

An emergency warning was issued for the Cape Conran blaze, in the East Gippsland region, on Saturday afternoon

Residents in Marlo Plains were also told to take shelter inside amid the conditions

'The fire is impacting private property. This fire is threatening homes and lives.

'You are in danger and need to act immediately to survive. The safest option is to take shelter indoors immediately. It is too late to leave.'

It comes after heavy rain across parts of the Wimmera, with Nhill recording 61mm by 9am on Saturday, Dimbola 51mm, Longerenong 42mm and Horsham 40mm.

Up to 13mm has been recorded in parts of south-east Melbourne but the falls are not expected to extended to the fire ground.

Orbost reached 43C shortly before 1.30pm, with Albury, Rutherglen and Yarrawonga recording temperatures in the low 40s.

Three 'watch and act' warnings are also in place across the east and northeast, covering Bendoc, Bendoc Upper, Bendoc North, Marlo, Tabbara and Wulgulmerang.

Vic Emergency told residents it is too late to leave on Saturday afternoon

A cool change is moving east across the state but it remains unusually humid.

Bushfires ravaged the East Gippsland region over the Christmas and New Year period, with residents at Mallacoota hit the hardest.

About 4000 people became isolated at the coastal community on New Year's Eve, when blazes suddenly cut off the town.

More than 1500 people had to be evacuated by sea and air, with another 200 leaving on board HMAS Choules.
Gujarat Chief Minister Vijay Rupani on Saturday termed as "historic" the Union Budget 2020 -21, even as the state Congress slammed it saying there was nothing in it for unemployed youth, women and farmers.

Calling the budget farmer-oriented, Rupani said the schemes meant for farmers will help them raise their income.

"The budget presented by Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman has taken every section of the society into consideration. I am grateful to Prime Minister Narendra Modi for (proposal to set up a) bullion exchange at GIFT City in Gandhinagar, proposal for redevelopment of Dholavira in Kutch and maritime museum at Lothal in the state," he said.

Expanding the national gas grid to 27,000 kms will benefit Gujarat, he said, adding that expediting the Ahmedabad-Mumbai bullet train project will also benefit the people of the state.

Tax reduction will increase the purchasing power of the people, which in turn will help boost the economy, he said.

India's target of $5 trillion economy is reflected in the budget, Rupani added.

"Heartiest Congratulations to Prime Minister Shri @narendramodi ji, Smt@nsitharaman ji and Shri @ianuragthakur ji for the historic budget," he tweeted earlier in the day.

He also shared on his Twitter handle slides on 25 different budget announcements, like 'improving the quality of higher education, reforming medical education and practice, reforming banking sector'.

The state unit of the Congress, however, criticised the budget saying there was nothing in it for unemployed youth, women and farmers.

"The BJP is going on the path of two-tax theory just as it went on the path of two-nation theory in the past. It is going nowhere near its own 'one nation-one tax' claim," state Congress president Amit Chavda said over the optional income tax rate.

Disinvestment is a way to invite industrialists to take over government properties that the former Congress governments created for the country, he alleged.

"The Centre is also distancing itself from the responsibilities of serving the country and its people by introducing public-private partnership model in several schemes presented in the budget," Chavda said in a statement.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
COLEBROOKDALE  Despite plenty of people to choose from in filling the open school board seat vacated at her very first meeting by newly elected Kirstin Lord, the school board could not make a choice. The board will take the matter up again at the Jan. 11 school board meeting. Board members have until Jan. 14 to make a decision....
Maldives was officially readmitted to the Commonwealth on Saturday more than three years after the Indian Ocean archipelago nation quit the organisation over criticism of its human rights record, taking the count of the bloc's membership countries back to 54.

The island nation's rejoining came just over an hour after the United Kingdom left the European Union following 47 years of membership.

The island nation had quit the Commonwealth in October 2016 after being threatened with suspension over its human rights record and lack of progress on democratic reform.

It submitted a request to rejoin in December 2018, when President Ibrahim Mohamed Solih wrote to Commonwealth Secretary-General Patricia Scotland.

"The reform process underway in Maldives aligns with the values and principles of the Commonwealth and we encourage the nation to continue on this path," said Baroness Scotland, as she welcomed the country and its people back to the fold.

"Commonwealth members were pleased to note these developments and are happy once again to count Maldives as a member of the family. Together we will support Maldives to realise its ambitions," she said.

The readmission followed "due diligence", which included country assessment and consultations in accordance with the rules and procedures agreed by the Commonwealth Heads of Government (CHOGM) in Kampala in 2007. India was one of the countries that had supported the country's readmission.

"Today is a happy day for Maldivians as we return to the family of Commonwealth nations. As a young democracy, the Commonwealth's foundational values of the promotion of democracy, human rights, good governance, multilateralism and world peace remain relevant to us more than ever," Maldives President Solih said.

"We gratefully acknowledge the support and help of the Commonwealth to the Maldivian democratic movement, and we look forward to the support of fellow member states to ensure the long term entrenchment of these values in our society," he said.

The Commonwealth Secretariat said the assessment included two site visits to the country followed by positive feedback given by a Commonwealth Observer Group which was present for the Parliamentary Elections in April 2019.

Members subsequently agreed to invite Maldives to submit a formal application, which it did on December 25 last year. The country presented evidence of functioning democratic processes as well as popular support for re-joining.

The Secretary-General then consulted with all 53 Commonwealth members and received no objections. The country will now be part of the CHOGM scheduled for Kigali in Rwanda on June 22-28.

Maldives Ambassador to the UK Farah Faizal, now becomes its High Commissioner, signifying Commonwealth membership.

Maldives joined the Commonwealth in 1982 and was a member until it withdrew in 2016.

The Commonwealth is a political association of 54 member states, nearly all of them former territories of the British Empire. Its members have agreed to shared goals like development, democracy and peace.

Any country can join the modern Commonwealth. The last country to join the Commonwealth was Rwanda in 2009.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
A Key West man was jailed this week after police said he sexually assaulted a 72-year-old woman inside a bathroom after closing time at the bar where he works.

Thomas Edward LaTorre, 65, was arrested Wednesday on a felony charge of sexual assault. Key West police said the assault happened in the early hours of Nov. 5, 2019, at Shooterz Lounge, 3102 Flagler Ave.

The alleged victim said she went to the bar at about 10:30 p.m. Nov. 4 and had three drinks.

Hours later, she asked to use the bathroom but it was occupied, she said, and the bar had closed for the night.

At about 3 a.m., she was smoking outside when an employee  later identified as LaTorre  came outside to ask if she needed to use the bathroom, police reported.

She went to the bathroom and while on the toilet, LaTorre allegedly assaulted her until she was able to break free and run out of the bar, police said.

LaTorre is listed as a beverage manager in jail records and as a cook in the police report. The bars owner said LaTorre cleans the place and opens and closes the business and that he does not live at the bar.

LaTorre on Friday remained locked up at the Stock Island Detention Center on $75,000 bond.

Thomas Edward LaTorre

He has a court date set for Feb. 14.

Police interviewed the alleged victim, a Key West woman who at the time was living at a domestic abuse shelter.

With only her statement as evidence, police in November suspended the investigation pending the results of the testing of a sexual assault kit, which detectives had sent to the Florida Department of Law Enforcement.

The evidence sent to FDLE included a swab containing LaTorres DNA.

Police spokeswoman Alyson Crean said she couldnt confirm whether LaTorres DNA test results led to his arrest and only released the incident report.

Monroe County State Attorneys Office couldnt be reached for comment on Friday.

During an interview with police in November, LaTorre denied he touched the woman.

LaTorre looked visibly surprised by the allegation and said, This is crazy,  police reported.

When asked if there would be any reason his DNA would be on the woman, LaTorre said no, police reported, and agreed to provide a DNA sample.

The woman told police in November she didnt want to pursue charges and that she only called police to find out if LaTorre was a serial rapist, police reported.
Srinagar, Feb 1 : A 20-member NIA team arrived in Kashmir on Saturday to collect more information on disgraced J&K Deputy Superintendent of Police Davinder Singh, who was arrested while escorting two militants to Jammu last month.

The team led by a DIG-rank officer went to Anantnag and met police officials there regarding the case, sources said.

Davinder Singh was arrested on January 11 by police along with two Hizbul Mujahideen militants Naveed Babu and Rafi Ahmed, and one Irfan Mir, a law school dropout, while travelling in a car to Jammu.

According to sources, Babu, Ahmed and Mir had planned to travel to Pakistan.

After initial police investigations, the case was handed over to the NIA.

National Investigation Agency officials are currently interrogating Davinder Singh in Jammu after the agency got his transit remand.

Last week, NIA Director General YC Modi reviewed investigations in the case.

Before his arrest, Davinder Singh was posted with the anti-hijacking wing of the J&K police in Srinagar.

Latest updates on Howdy Modi Houston
New Delhi, Feb 1 : Although the Centre had to breach its fiscal deficit target in the current financial year to spur growth, the Budget document showed that the NDA government, in the first year of its second term, significantly lowered its expenditure on some of its flagship shemes including the Swachh Bharat Mission, Ayushman Bharat Mission and National Ganga Plan.

The revised estimates (RE) of allocation in the Pradhan Mantri Jan Arogya Yojana (PMJAY) - Ayushman Bharat, commonly known as Ayushman Bharat mission, has been capped at Rs 3,314 crore, lower than half the estimate pegged at Rs 6,556 crore in the budget 2019-20. Hailed by the government as the largest healthcare mission in the world, Ayushman Bharat was launched as recommended by the National Health Policy 2017, to achieve the vision of Universal Health Coverage (UHC).

The lower allocations in the revised estimates of several schemes follows the Finance Ministry's instructions to Central ministries recently not to push last minute expenditures.

The poor revenue projections and rising deficit has pushed the government into looking at savings from all available avenues. Government allocation to ministries falls victim to this austerity on numerous occasions.

A major component under Ayushman Bharat is that the scheme aims at providing health insurance cover of Rs 5 lakh per family per year for secondary and tertiary care hospitalisation to over 10.74 crores poor and vulnerable families, around 50 crore beneficiaries. The website of the scheme says: "This initiative has been designed on the lines as to meet SDG and its underlining commitment, which is 'leave no one behind'." Revised allocation to the National Ganga Plan, a pet of the Narendra Modi-led government which aims to clean the river Ganga, during the ongoing fiscal, was slashed to half to Rs 353 crore, in comparison to Rs 750 crore, the budget estimates (BE) for FY20.

The Bharatiya Janata Party-led government, which came to power in 2014, among other promises also assured to clean the river by 2019, but has since been extending the deadline with very little headway in that front, which has led to severe criticm of the government.

The much-hyped Swachh Bharat Mission also eventually received lower allocation of Rs 9,638 crore, compared to the FY20 budget estimate of Rs 12,644 crore.

Launched on October 2, 2014, the Swachh Bharat Mission focusses on achieving universal sanitation coverage and to put focus on sanitation and bring bring about an improvement in the general quality of life by promoting cleanliness, hygiene and eliminating open defecation.

The initial target was to achieve the target of 'Swachh Bharat' (clean India) by 2019, as a tribute to Mahatma Gandhi on his 150th Birth Anniversary.

Another scheme introduced by the Modi-led government, Pradhan Mantri Kisan Samman Nidhi (PM-KISAN), which aims to provide an income support of Rs 6,000 per year to farming families, also witnessed its actual spending decline in the ongoing fiscal.

Against the allocation of Rs 75,000 crore announced in the FY20 budget, the government allocated Rs 54,370 crore during the fiscal as per the revised estimates released on Saturday.

However, despite the eventual lower spending this fiscal year in all the mentioned schemes, the government, in this budget, has announced a higher or equal allocation as in the previous budget, which again seems to be an ambitious target.

The fund allocated in PMJAY-Ayushman Bharat in the FY21 budget is Rs 27,500 crore, higher than Rs 25,853 crore allocated in the previous budget. For the National Ganga Plan, the government has this time allocated Rs 800 crore, higher than Rs 750 crore allocated in the FY20 budget.

Rs 75,000 crore has been allocated for PM-KISAN, the same level as the outlay in the budget for the financial year 2019-20. For the Swachh Bharat Abhiyan, the government has allocated Rs 12,294 crore, against the previous budget estimate of Rs 12,644 crore. Although a bit lower than the previous budget estimate, the allocation for the cleanliness plan is still very high than the revised estimate for the ongoing fiscal.

(Rituraj Baruah can be contacted at rituraj.b@ians.in)

Latest updates on Howdy Modi Houston
Initially I had thought that I might not have much to say about Nikola Teslas Night of Terror. At least, not about religion. The episode has plenty of interesting elements, but I didnt initially think that there was much to connect it with religion.

Then I realized that inventors and prophets are essentially in the same category, visionaries. I began To explore this by thinking of prophets as inventors of worlds. But even then I realized that I was introducing an unnecessary distinction. Inventors of technologies and those who offer a vision of a new way of living both offer a vision of the future, transforming the ways that human beings live.

And both can end up not being fully appreciated in their own times.

The Doctor says she always wanted to meet Tesla, and calls him a liar as well as a genius. The reason is that he seems to know more about recent events involving aliens than he initially shares. The criticism largely evaporates as the episode progresses, so that the focus is on admiration rather than anything else.

For those interested in contemporary events and/or social commentary, the setting connecting with New York in a bygone era, the reference to people getting rich and poor, and the resistance (pun intended) to technological change (No to the death current, no AC) and the articulated reaction to an immigrant inventor (You dont belong in America) makes the episode timely.

There is reference in the episode to an object that is said to be a (repurposed) orb of Thassor (sometimes spelled online Thassa or Thasser). The makers of the object are said to be one of the ancient races, who were storytellers sharing their legacy even after they were no longer around. This in itself creates an interesting dynamic to the episodes central theme. How much are we merely repurposing themes, ideas, motifs created by bygone civilizations? Does our use of them bear any correspondence whatsoever to what they hoped to convey or achieve?

When it comes to things that intersect somewhat directly with religion, there are some individuals who at least look like human beings but their eyes glow red and they are ultimately something else. This is said to not be possession and so other possible categories, such as psionic cloaking are considered.

Shown impossible things, and now the ordinary things dont seem so important.

As always, there is some great dialogue, including (but not limited to) the following:

Changing the world takes time. You have to be patient. Just because youre a genius doesnt mean you have to figure this out alone. Let them talk. The present is theirs. I work for the futureand the future is mine.

The element of stealing technology versus imagining and creating it is not subtle. The Queen of the Skiffra has been taking technology from others, and now seeks to kidnap Tesla to work on their weapons. When all your tech is stolen, youre at a loss when it breaks.

There is a difference between those who imagine utopian visions, and those who borrow details from the visions of others in the interest of making something practical and profitable. I think that in ancient societies such as Israel, as today, there were those who offered prophetic visions of what could ideally be, and those who harnessed the power of their visions towards more pragmatic ends, picking and choosing what was useful from them.

One of my favorite moments is when Graham calls Tesla and Edison AC/DC.

When she is told that Tesla dies penniless, Yaz says its not right. Is that always the fate of the prophet? And could society thrive without both the Tesla and the Edison, without the prophets on the one hand and the kings and governors who heed them while keeping them at arms length on the other?
Malawi's constitutional court is set to rule next week on whether to annul controversial poll results that saw the re-election of President Peter Mutharika, a verdict widely expected to stoke turmoil. The case has gripped the southern African nation and kept Malawians glued to radio stations for hours on end listening to live broadcasts of witnesses presenting evidence of alleged vote rigging. Sporadic protests have broken out across the country since Mutharika was declared the winner by a narrow margin in May presidential elections with 38.5 percent of the vote. Runner-up Lazarus Chakwera, who lost by just 159,000 votes, alleges he was robbed of victory. His Malawi Congress Party (MCP) and the opposition United Transformation Movement (UTM) have petitioned the courts to annul the poll. A panel of judges is scheduled to deliver the verdict on Monday morning. It is the first time presidential elections have been legally challenged in Malawi since the country gained independence from Britain in 1964. Protesters have been demanding the resignation of the electoral commission chief, and several demonstrations have turned violent. "There will be winners and losers and we are not sure how the losers will react," said Malawian politics professor Michael Jana. A number of schools and companies have closed for the week, fearing violence could erupt after the ruling is announced. - 'Expecting change' - Anticipation was high in the financial capital Blantyre, Malawi's second-largest city. "I'm expecting change," said Chatonda Jembe, who works as an administrator. "Not necessarily change in leadership (but) change in attitude." "The leadership on both sides of the political divide know they can no longer take people for granted." Anger flared last month after Chief Justice Andrew Nyirenda claimed bribes had been offered to the five judges presiding over the case. Malawi's anti-graft body vowed to probe the allegations and arrested top banker Thom Mpinganjira last week. Both Chakwera and UTM candidate Saulos Chilima have urged supporters to maintain peace and accept the court's decision, regardless of the outcome. "There is more that binds us than that which separates us," Chilima told reporters on Thursday in the capital Lilongwe. "No matter which corner of this country we come from, we are a peace-loving people and we look out for each other." Chakwera called on his supporters to welcome the ruling with "open arms" as a base for "rebuilding our nation". Meanwhile, the army and police said additional security measures would be deployed on judgement day. "Nobody should be worried about security," commander Vincent Nundwe told AFP. "The army and the police will work together to make sure there is enough security in the country." - 'Pivotal moment' - Opposition leaders allege the election's tally sheets were tampered with, even claiming that polling station agents used correction fluid to alter some results. Mutharika has repeatedly dismissed their accusations and brushed off doubts about the official results. "The government urges all political parties in the country and other stakeholders to respect the rule of law," said spokesman Mark Botomani. "Destruction of the country is counterproductive." If the judges rule in favour of the opposition, Mutharika's party is likely to appeal before the supreme court. Law professor Danwood Chirwa said that process was likely to be settled within two months. "If it takes longer than this there will be too much chaos," he told AFP. Fresh elections are expected to be held 60 days after the constitutional court ruling if the appeal is unsuccessful. A joint statement by British, American and several European ambassadors on Thursday referred to the verdict as a "pivotal moment" in Malawi's history. It echoes a historic decision by Kenya's judiciary to annul presidential election results over claims of widespread irregularities in 2017. "This impasse has held us back for a long time," said James Gobede, who sells dried goods in Blantyre's Limbe market. "It is time the nation resolved this so that we can get back to normalcy."
Margot Robbie in Birds Of Prey

Birds Of Prey star and producer Margot Robbie and its director Cathy Yan have opened up about the lack of a Joker in the superhero film, explaining why both Jared Leto and Joaquin Phoenixs versions of the character arent involved.

When CinemaBlend asked Yan why the decision was made not to feature Letos Joker, who starred opposite Robbies Harley Quinn in 2016s Suicide Squad, she simply responded, I don't think we need Jared. Right? ... Just like [Harley] doesn't need The Joker.

Read more: New Birds of Prey trailer kills off Joker

Yan went a bit deeper with her explanation when talking to Heroic Hollywood, as she remarked, Well for us, I think the movie starts with the breakup and then its all about Harley and we just wanted to work with that and whatever we needed him to be just to show that he existed and that there was a breakup, but the focus of the movie is definitely not on the Joker.

Jared Leto in Suicide Squad

But there wasnt just Letos Joker for Robbie and Yan to consider when they were developing Birds Of Prey.

The pair knew that Todd Phillips and Joaquin Phoenixs standalone take on the infamous DC foe would be released before their film. But Robbie had the perfect response when asked by Capital FM whether theyd ever considered crossing Phoenixs Joker over with her Harley Quinn.

Read More: 'Birds Of Prey' pop-up roller disco coming to London

I think they exist in two very different worlds, Todd Phillips's Gotham and this Gotham  very different. I don't know how you'd bridge that gap. She'd drive him insane. She'd be on the other side of the fridge, like 'here.' 'J-puddin, whatcha doin?' And hes like 'I just need a minute, Im going through a lot of s***.

Audiences will get to see just how different the films are when Birds Of Prey is released on February 7.
Glaring at me with bloodshot eyes, Galip Korukcu makes it clear he isnt too happy with my siesta-busting, mid-afternoon intrusion. Im at Chez Galip, his famous pottery shop in the town of Avanos, some 8 km from Goreme, the historical centre of Cappadocia, Turkey.

Avanos is known for its beautiful pottery, fashioned out of the red, mineral-rich clay dredged up from the bed of the nearby Kizilirmak River. But thats not what draws me to his shop. Im interested in what lies beneath, carefully hidden, in the basement. The Avanos Hair Museum is Korukcus shrine to womens hair. Now 63, hes been building it up one lock at a time since 1979.

Leila Cohoon at her museum of hair art in Missouri.

MUSEUM OF HAIR ART Another hair museum, Leilas, in Missouri, does things a bit differently. Established in 1986 by Leila Cohoon, a retired cosmetology teacher, the museum displays samples of hair art dating back to the 16th century. These range from wearable trinkets like neckpieces and brooches to paintings and medallions, all made using human hair. The practice of making art and artefacts from hair reached its zenith in Victorian-era England and France, when people commissioned such work as mementos of loved ones.

Eager not to be turned away, I blurt out that I was born in 1979. I cant imagine that really helped, but the Albert Einstein lookalike did, for whatever reason, relent and let me in.

Entry to the museum is free and everyone is welcome (provided they inform him in advance by telephone, he growls).

Im led down a flight of stone steps into a large tunnel covered  from floor to ceiling  in locks of hair of varying lengths, textures and colours, each attached to a slip of paper bearing the donors name and country of origin.

Over 40 years, Korukcu has collected over 16,000 locks, left behind voluntarily by women visitors from around the world. A table at the end of the tunnel now bears scissors, duct tape, thumb tacks, pen and paper, so women can set up their own exhibits.

Korukcu says it all started when a French woman, who was studying pottery under him, left behind a few strands of her hair as a memento. This gave him the idea of asking other women students to donate a lock too; he just thought it would be an interesting log.

Then visitors began to hear of the basement oddity, and women who visited said they wanted to be on the walls too, and so it grew.

Now, every six months  in the beginning of June and December  the first visitor to the pottery shop is asked to select 10 striking locks from the museum, and the women they belong to are invited back to his studio for a free week of board, lodging and pottery classes.

Why arent men invited to leave behind their hair? I ask as I leave. He glares upwards in the direction of my buzz cut and scowls. I have my answer.
PHILADELPHIA  A Philadelphia City Council member and his wife pleaded not guilty Friday to federal fraud charges in what officials said was a widespread corruption conspiracy.

Councilman Kenyatta Johnson and his wife, Dawn Chavous, were each released after posting $15,000 bonds. They are charged with honest services wire fraud in a 22-count indictment that was handed up Wednesday and could each face up to 40 years in prison if convicted.

Johnson, 46, a Democrat who has served on the council since 2012, is accused of engaging in official actions in exchange for payments. Chavous, 40, is accused of having entered into a "sham" consulting agreement with a nonprofit that was used to funnel payments to her husband.

Prosecutors have alleged that the Philadelphia-based nonprofit Universal Companies was "hijacked" by the pair "and turned into a criminal enterprise in order to commit these crimes of corruption and greed." The nonprofit was founded by music producer Kenny Gamble to improve Philadelphia communities through education, real estate and other realms.

The couple have vowed to fight the charges and clear their names.

Two former executives of Universal were also charged.

Abdur Rahim Islam, 62, also pleaded not guilty Friday to charges of bribing the couple and others, and stealing nearly $500,000 from Universal, his former employer. The fourth defendant, Shahied Dawan, 68, the nonprofits former chief financial officer, pleaded not guilty Thursday to similar charges.
(Natural News) Every day, hundreds of millions of gallons of water drain from the oceans into the Earths mantle, and geologists think that a dead supercontinent may be to blame.

Dubbed the deep water cycle or the geologic water cycle, this phenomenon occurs when water gets soaked up by minerals within the earths mantle through a process called subduction. As the water gets closer and closer to the Earths core, it heats up, to the point where a large quantity of it gets expelled back into the ocean floor through undersea explosions and hydrothermal vents.

Earlier research suggests that the phenomenon is just one of many that determine the rise and fall of ocean levels.

In a study published in the journal Geochemistry, Geophysics and Geosystems, a team led by geologists from the University of Oslo detailed their findings surrounding the phenomenon  including historical evidence of sea levels fluctuating by more than 656 feet alongside so-called super continental cycles every 300 to 500 million years.

Krister Karlsen, lead author of the study and a researcher at UiOs Centre for Earth Evolution and Dynamics, said this phenomenon can be traced back to one major geological event: the splitting of the supercontinent Pangaea 200 million years ago.

The breakup of Pangaea was associated with a time of very rapid tectonic plate subduction, Karlsen said in an interview with LiveScience, adding that when Pangaea broke up, the resulting deep water cycle led to a drop of up to 430 feet in both Panthalassa and Tethys, the two main oceans at the time.

Karlsen said their team built on previous studies of the Earths tectonic plates over the last 230 million years to model the approximate rates in which oceanic water entered and left the Earths mantle.

Among their findings, Karlsen said, was the discovery that the faster the water-logged mineral plate fell into Earth, the farther it could subduct before the mantles high heat evaporated its water content. According to the teams calculations, this rapid subduction imbalanced the deep water cycle to the point that it triggered millions of years of extreme water loss.

Lose a continent, gain seven oceans

Experts, however, say this water loss is not as negative as it might sound, as it was something that led to the creation of todays oceans. Popular Mechanics expanded on this, noting in an article that the resulting lower water levels from Pangaeas split actually made the planet more habitable.

According to geologic records, when the supercontinent Pangaea started to split, new oceans appeared, starting with the North Atlantic, which appeared roughly 175 million years ago, followed by the South Atlantic 145 million years ago. The split also closed off the Tethys Ocean and triggered the formation of the Arctic Ocean from what used to be the Sinus Borealis. The Pacific followed suit, during the Mesozoic era, formed from the remains of the Panthalassa. Continued tectonic movement meanwhile, led to the formation of the youngest of todays oceans: the Indian and the Antarctic.

Deep ocean cycle no match for sea level spikes  researcher

Despite the continued draining of the oceans waters into the mantle, however, Karlsen said it cant really address issues such as continued sea level spikes, noting that even as massive amounts of water sink into the mantle, actual sea levels can spike and plummet by hundreds of feet on much shorter timescales. (Related: Rising global sea levels may actually be beneficial for coral reef islands in the long-run: Study.)

While the deep water cycle can effectively change sea level over hundreds of millions to billions of years, climate change can change the sea level in zero to 100 years, Karlsen said. For comparison, the present-day sea level rise associated with climate change is about 0.1 inches (3.2 millimeters) a year. The sea-level drop associated with the deepwater cycle is about 1/10,000 of that.

For more stories related to oceans and the environment, head over to Environ.news today.

Sources include:

LiveScience.com

Express.co.uk

AGPubs.OnlineLibrary.Wiley.com

PopularMechanics.com
Open Orphan, a Europe- focused pharma services company specialising in rare disease and so-called orphan drugs, has raised 5.3m (6.3m) through a share placing.

The proceeds will be used to fund the growth of the business and a synergies programme of the group, following completion of Open Orphan's merger with UK-based Hvivo.

Hvivo provides clinical development services - including human drug trials - to the pharmaceutical research industry.

In the oversubscribed placing, Open Orphan raised the funds through the combined issuance and subscription of 86,885,253 new shares at an issue price of 6.1 pence per share.

The fundraising has been underwritten up to 2.5m by Raglan Capital, an entity controlled by Cathal Friel, chairman of Open Orphan.

Raglan Capital now owns 8.6pc of the enlarged share capital of Open Orphan.

Mr Friel said the fundraising "strengthens the balance sheet to help us realise the full potential of the enlarged group".

"We are excited by the growth potential of the company, and look forward to creating value for all our shareholders," he added.

The initial founders of Open Orphan - including Mr Friel - continue to retain a substantial stake in excess of 20pc of the enlarged company.

This is because their original investment in the business means they remain locked in for three years post the group's initial public offering in June 2019.

In December last year, Open Orphan and Hvivo agreed the terms of their merger.

Both firms are listed on the Alternative Investment Market in London.

The takeover deal values Hvivo at 13m, giving the combined business a valuation of about 28.5m.

Following the admission of the fundraising shares, the total number of ordinary shares in Open Orphan in issue will be 532,507,627.
Bay Area biotech companies are joining the race to develop or repurpose drugs to treat the fast-spreading Wuhan coronavirus, but testing and manufacturing will likely take longer than the current outbreak will last.

Foster Citys Gilead Sciences is working with U.S. and Chinese researchers and regulators to determine whether its experimental antiviral drug remdesivir works on the new coronavirus, 2019-nCoV. Remdesivir has not been licensed or approved in any country. But it has been tested and has shown some activity against the Ebola virus and two other types of coronaviruses, SARS (severe acute respiratory syndrome) and MERS, in animals or in test tube experiments.

Gilead said Friday it has provided remdesivir to a small number of patients with the new virus as an emergency treatment, and is working with Chinese officials to set up a study on the drugs safety and effectiveness against the virus. The drug had been in clinical trials for Ebola patients in the Democratic Republic of Congo, but was discontinued in 2019 after other drugs were found to be more effective.

The novel coronavirus, believed to have originated in Wuhan, China, has stricken thousands of people, mostly in China, and led to 213 deaths as of the official count Friday. In an effort to halt the spread beyond China, the United States has advised against travel there, and airlines are canceling flights.

Vir Biotechnology, a 3-year-old San Francisco immunology company that focuses on infectious diseases, is testing whether its technology which has identified antibodies against Ebola, Zika and malaria  can identify injectable antibodies to act against the new coronavirus.

If we were to identify such an antibody, then we have to develop it, have it manufactured, go through the regulatory process and get it to people as quickly as we can, said Vir CEO George Scangos. Everyone has an interest in making this happen as quickly as possible.

Previous epidemics, such as Ebola and the H1N1 swine flu, have prompted a flurry of announcements from drug companies on new initiatives to research whether drugs already in their pipelines can be repurposed or combined with others to target new viruses. Coronavirus is no exception: In addition to Gilead and Vir, more than half a dozen drug companies, including global firms AbbVie, Johnson & Johnson and Merck, have begun testing their drugs for potential against the spread of the new coronavirus.

Some, like Moderna Therapeutics of Cambridge, Mass., and Inovio Pharmaceuticals of Pennsylvania, have received millions of dollars from the Coalition for Epidemic Preparedness Innovations, an Oslo-based coalition of public, private and philanthropic organizations, to develop vaccines against the new virus. Vaxart, a South San Francisco biotech firm that makes oral tablet vaccines, announced Friday it is starting a program to develop such a vaccine.

Some biotech analysts are skeptical that drugs can be identified, tested for safety and manufactured in time to help contain the current outbreak. Vaccines take months, if not years to test for safety and effectiveness.

I dont have a ton of confidence theyre going to get something quickly, said Madhu Kumar, an analyst at R.W. Baird who follows the biotech industry. Getting something done quickly has nothing to do with the companies. It has everything to do with drug development taking a long time. ... By the time they get something that could potentially work, knock on wood, this pandemic will be over and itll be hard to see a path forward.

Air Quality Tracker Check levels down to the neighborhood Ratings for the Bay Area and California, updated every 10 minutes

Vaccines and treatments for epidemics rarely make money for drug companies because they are typically not recurring or predictable like the flu, for which a vaccine is needed each year, Kumar said.

SARS, Ebola, the coronavirus today  they dont really pop up regularly enough where you can reliably manufacture medicines in a way that will be profitable, Kumar said. Theyre basically kind of altruistic efforts on companies part.

Virs stock climbed 64% to $27.12 a share after the companys coronavirus announcement. Gileads stock price has not reacted as favorably, hovering around $64 per share. Spikes in stock prices will likely be temporary, Kumar said.

Invariably, reality settles in. Its a a combination of, This isnt going to happen, and also the outbreak leaves peoples minds, so its not as important anymore, he said.

Catherine Ho is a San Francisco Chronicle staff writer. Email: cho@sfchronicle.com Twitter: @Cat_Ho

Correction: A photo caption in an earlier version misspelled the last name of Corey Momont, a research assistant who works in a lab at the San Francisco company Vir.
Representative image

IndiaNivesh Securities has handpicked the sectors that are likely to gain from the budgetary proposals announced by the finance minister on February 1. Take a look.

Expert: Vinay Pandit, Head- Institutional Equities, IndiaNivesh

Metals Sector: Rs 3.6 lakh crore approved for piped water to all households will be positive for pipe infrastructure companies such as Ratnamani Metals, Man Industries, among others.

Consumer Durables sector: The electronics manufacturing industry needs a boost. The schemes focused on encouraging the manufacturing of mobile phones, electronic equipment, and semiconductor manufacturing as well as medical devices is positive for companies such as Dixon Technologies, Amber Enterprises and Subros.

Infrastructure sector: There is a need to focus on commercialisation of highways. The Budget proposed to monetise 12 blocks of highway bundles before 2024 which is positive for IRB Infra.

Oil & Gas sector: The government proposed to expand the national gas grid from 16,200 km to 27,000 km. which is positive for companies namely IGL, MGL, and Gujarat Gas.

Power sector: While polluting thermal power plants may not be easily shut down, as envisaged in the speech, one can expect an increase in the focus towards installation and setup of FDG (Flu Gas Desulphurisation) for SoX and NoX, thereby reducing the emissions from thermal power plants. This will be positive for several companies namely Techno Electric, Thermax, BHEL and L&T some of whom have entered into technological tie-ups with global players for installation and EPC of FGDs.

Expert: Dharmesh Kant, Head- Retail Research, IndiaNivesh

Agri chemical sector: We are negative on agri-chemical manufacturers and fertiliser manufacture after the finance minister announced that balanced use of fertiliser will bring about change in the prevailing regime of providing an incentive for use of chemical fertilizer.

While the government targets to double farm income by 2022, how this will be achieved is yet to be seen.

Infra Sector: The proposal to develop 5 new smart cities and development of infrastructure with specific emphasis on clean drinking water, infrastructure focussed skill development, warehousing and civil aviation is a big plus point. We are positive for NBCC & Sterlite technologies.

Aviation Sector: Further with a target of 100 new airports by 2024 we are positive on Indigo and Spice Jet.

Dividend Distribution Tax: Doing away with DDT is a good move, it will help bring in more investments and is a big positive for capital markets.

Expert: Harit Shah, Sr. Analyst- Information technology, IndiaNivesh

The government said it will come out with a policy to promote data center parks for the development of big data technologies. The important aspect needs to be the focus on skills development in these technologies, given that IT firms face a shortage of digital talent.

In the long-term, the move could potentially benefit all IT firms including TCS, Infosys, Wipro, HCL Technologies, Tech Mahindra, along with mid-sized firms like LTI, Mindtree, Persistent, and Hexaware, among others, given the incremental focus on growing their digital businesses.

Expert: Ravikant Bhat, Analyst - BFSI & Insurance, IndiaNivesh

To achieve higher export credit disbursement, a scheme NIRVIK will be launched with the aim of high insurance cover, lower premium, simplification of claim settlement through the digital network.

Currently, premiums are up to 90 percent of the individual bill- this can be reduced further. Likely negative for general insurance companies such as ICICI Lombard and New India Assurance.

Expert: Santosh Yellapu, Analyst, IndiaNivesh

"Rs 6,000 crore allocation towards the BharatNet would benefit W&C companies like Sterlite Technologies, Polycab, Finolex Cables.

Expansion or addition of solar capacities to the solar grid, Rail Electrification initiatives would indirectly benefit Wire & Cable companies like KEI, CMI, Polycab, Finolex Cables.

Disclaimer: The views and investment tips expressed by investment experts on Moneycontrol.com are their own and not that of the website or its management. Moneycontrol.com advises users to check with certified experts before taking any investment decisions.
DAKAR, Senegal - President Donald Trump's addition of four African countries to his administration's travel ban could fuel discrimination and stifle business, leaders warned Saturday as people across the continent reeled at the news.

Most citizens of Nigeria - Africa's most populous nation and biggest economy - and Eritrea would be blocked from coming to live and work in the United States under the measure, which takes effect Feb. 22, while Tanzania and Sudan would be barred from the competitive U.S. visa lottery.

The White House called the new restrictions "the height of common sense" in a statement Friday, adding that foreign countries must "satisfy basic security conditions" before their citizens could move to the United States.

Most citizens from Myanmar and Kyrgyzstan would also be banned under the new measure.

After Trump's announcement, Nigerian President Muhammadu Buhari launched a committee to "study & address" the changes, his office tweeted Saturday.

"Nigeria remains committed to maintaining productive relations with the United States and other international allies especially on matters of global security," the president's office said in a statement.

Sudan, Tanzania and Eritrea had issued no official response by Saturday afternoon.

U.S. officials remained vague on why the African nations were added to the list, citing concerns about exposing vulnerabilities to "nefarious" actors. The countries had either failed to meet the administration's intelligence-sharing standards, they said, or lacked updated passport systems.

Sudan was viewed as a state sponsor of terrorism, the officials said, despite the country's widely praised transition last year from military rule to a civilian-led government.

The impact was expected to be particularly pronounced for Nigeria, which has more than 300,000 immigrants in the United States.

Nigerians also accounted for one of the biggest groups of visa overstays in 2018, according to the Department of Homeland Security.

Nigerian Sen. Mohammed Sani Musa, who represents part of central Niger state, said lawmakers would work to reverse the move.

"We are a giant of Africa - the biggest population of black people in the world," Musa said, "so this is unfortunate. It's harsh. And I hope it's temporary."

Atiku Abubakar, the country's former vice president and Buhari's closest rival in the 2019 election, urged the United States to reconsider the scope of the policy.

"I call on President @realDonaldTrump to consider adopting measures that individually target those in government who have failed in their duties," he tweeted Saturday, "rather than target the entire Nigerian population."

Though U.S. officials said the restrictions would not apply to refugees, tourists or business travelers, some worried the ban could heighten discrimination against Africans abroad.

"It sends the message that Nigerians cannot be trusted," said Abubakar Sidiq Usman, a writer and new media specialist for the Nigerian Senate. "Those going to the U.S. for business or leisure will face more scrutiny now."

The expanded travel ban comes at a time when the United States is trying to grow business and counter Chinese and Russian influence on the continent, which is home to one of the fastest-growing regions on Earth.

The topic is expected to come up Monday when the State Department hosts a Nigerian delegation in Washington to discuss, according to a news release, "innovation and ingenuity."

"Instead of deepening ties to Africa's biggest economy, the administration appears to be going out of its way to sour its relationship with one of the continent's most important nations," said Matthew Page, an Africa analyst at Chatham House in London.

Nigeria has struggled for a decade to curb Islamist violence unleashed by Boko Haram and, more recently, fighters linked to the Islamic State, which has forced more than 2 million people from their homes.

The ban "demonizes" vulnerable people in areas grappling with conflict, Osai Ojigho, director of Amnesty International's Nigeria office, said in a statement.

"It can only officialize discrimination," she said, "and harm those fleeing conflicts, torture and those who simply want to unite with their families in the US."

The ban could dampen perceptions of the United States in affected countries, analysts say.

"There is a possibility that Americans would have a change in view on Tanzanians," Deus Kibamba, director of the Tanzania Citizens Information Bureau, a nonprofit with offices across the country - and Tanzanians, he said, could change their view on the United States.

Trump's first ban in 2017, which initially targeted Muslim countries, triggered protests in the United States. Federal courts struck down the policy, which was later reinstated by the U.S. Supreme Court.

U.S. officials estimate that the restrictions, which now cover 13 nations, will annually affect several thousand people.

- - -

Washington Post's Rael Ombuor in Nairobi contributed to this report.
US Secretary of State Michael Pompeo arrived in Ukraine on a working visit. Deputy Foreign Minister of Ukraine Yehor Bozhok vigorously wrote in Twitter that Pompeo is a great US friend, who has done much to support Ukraine in difficult times of Russian aggression.

The dear guest has a busy program in Kiev - meetings with President Vladimir Zelensky, Foreign Minister Vadim Prystayko, Minister of Defense Andrey Zagorodniuk, as well laying wreaths in memory of those killed in the Donbass conflict. After that, the US Secretary will visit Belarus, Kazakhstan, and Uzbekistan. Pompeos trip to the post-Soviet countries was scheduled for early January, but the plans were corrected due to the events in Iraq.

Ukraine was waiting for the Secretary of State with undisguised impatience. With his arrival, Kiev hoped to clarify a number of questions. Firstly, whether it is worth hoping that the Minsk agreements on the Donbas settlement can be amended. The Ukrainian authorities seem a bit confused - what to do and when. Zelensky seems ready to announce, as stated in the agreements, the local elections in the Donbas. But the opposition categorically rejects such a step, first of all, Zelenskys predecessor Petro Poroshenko and his people. The piquancy of the situation is that the Minsk agreements were signed by the previous team. Now Poroshenko believes that elections in the Donbas can be held only after the withdrawal of armed forces and the establishment of control over a section of the Ukrainian-Russian border in a turbulent region.

What Washington thinks is not very clear. On the one hand, the US requires Kiev to follow the Minsk agreements. But on the other hand, the whole world is already used to the fact that today's rhetoric of American politicians is generally something vague, and sometimes yes may turn out to mean absolutely opposite, as, in fact, no.

Pompeo himself, in anticipation of the visit, announced that he intended to express support for Ukraine, which at the Budapest Summit received guarantees of peace and security from the United States in exchange for giving up its share of the nuclear weapons inherited from the USSR. On the eve of the visit of Michael Pompeo, the State Department issued a statement with quite unexpected content. It does not inform about current acute problems, which is usual on the eve of such visits reflecting the state of affairs in the region.

The State Departments statement reads that the United States supported the transit of Russian gas through Ukraine, considering it a strategic deterrent to Russian aggression in the future. Also, there is a reminder of the sanctions that the US imposed in December against companies involved in the construction of the Russian Nord Stream-2 gas pipeline, stressing that Washington supports Ukraines energy independence from Russian domination.

But it seems that something wrong with a statement, unless, of course, no translation or other errors have corrupted it.

How can one simultaneously welcome the resumption of the Russian gas transit through Ukraine, the resolution of the gas supply issue to Ukraine, and advocate for the independence of Ukraine from Russian energy domination?

Why has such special attention suddenly been shown to the agreement on resumption of the Russian gas transit through Ukraine that was signed in December?

It is clear that in fact, the United States neither wants the Russian gas transit through Ukraine nor Nord Stream-2 implementation. America would like to manage all these issues by itself thus making Europe begging for gas. One might complete these not ungrounded fantasies with a quote from the Killing Them Softly movie: "America is not a country, its just a business. But this is a real apocalypse with one surviving player- Washington. Even the United States is obviously not yet capable of such an overtly cynical public misanthropy. Yes, this topic is somewhat different.

The logical explanation for the statement by the State Department is probably following: Washington may welcome the resumption of Russian gas transit through Ukraine on the eve of Pompeos visit to Kiev in one, perhaps, case, taking into account the realities and general agenda of negotiations with Zelensky. This apparently means an expression of US hope or confidence that Ukraines energy-Russian cooperation reduces the risks of an escalation of tension between Moscow and Kiev. According to Washington, firstly, Moscow will not attack the territory through which its gas passes, and secondly, Kiev, along with transit, received some leverage over Moscow, which could play in the interests of Ukraine in the confrontation with Russia in the Donbas.

Another logic is in the absence of logic. Visits by senior officials are always accompanied by explanatory statements, representations, etc. But in this case, almost nothing was said publicly. Everything is outspoken, all instructions are given to Kiev, the Minsk agreements have not budged - Ukraine is trying to pursue its own line. The vague part also includes Kievs role in the ongoing process of impeachment of US President Donald Trump. Moreover, in the past few days, Ukrainian President Vladimir Zelensky distinguished himself in several ways - from unsuccessful and to some extent humiliating attempts to meet with President Vladimir Putin in Israel on his own to glaring statements and assessments of events related to World War II. Thus, Washington had no choice but to accompany Michael Pompeos visit to Kiev with a strange statement on the gas issue. Perhaps, a statement on the outcome of the visit will be more comprehensible and rich.
I only saw movies made by women directors at this year's Sundance Film Festival, and am pleased to announce that this was coincidental. I was there just for the first weekend, and in my scramble for tickets made quick decisions based mainly on buzz and scheduling. With women directors making up 29 percent of the program, the odds of avoiding dude-centric festival movies were pretty good. Thank you, programming director Kim Yutani.

Following three days of back-to-back screenings, it was a pleasure to attend Canada Goose's annual female filmmakers dinner on Sunday night and cap off an unexpectedly bro-free festival. Presented by IndieWire inside a cosy lodge on Main Street, the dinner is a cherished annual tradition  and an increasingly well-attended one. As IndieWire editor-in-chief Dana Harris-Bridson noted during her welcome speech, table sizes appeared to have doubled since 2019's event.

The evening kicked off with a coat check (alongside those Robert Redford cowboy hats, status puffers are a thing at Sundance; Canada Goose hands out chic limited edition coats to festival filmmakers every year) and cocktails. Conversations began with relaxed sighs. Sometimes it's nice to shut out men in the cold, you know? In their absence the atmosphere was comfortable and unpretentious. Call it networking if you like, but when women moved around the room it seemed mainly to express mutual admiration and swap set stories.

Emma Gonzalez, featured in Kim A. Snyder's Parkland documentary Us Kids, chatted cheerfully with Taylor Swift: Miss Americana director Lana Wilson before beelining for Zosia Mamet. (A 2014-nostalgic Girls fan lingers in all of us.) Wilson's movie had opened the festival, and she recalled how she and the star had felt nervous beforehand.

Swift would since have been reassured that the Miss Americana reviews are glowing like phone screens at an arena show. Meanwhile Hittman's debut feature Never Rarely Sometimes Always, which portrays the struggles of a teenage girl seeking an abortion in rural Pennsylvania, reduced entire theaters to tears and inspired heartfelt Q&A sessions. Joining her for drinks were Zeina Durra, whose Luxor follows a woman's return to her former home after spending time working in a war zone, reconnecting with an old flame while contending with deep trauma, and Channing Godfrey Peoples, director of Miss Juneteenth, about a former beauty queen crowned on the commemoration day that slavery was abolished in Texas.

Radha Blank's The 40-Year-Old Version, an unlikely film about lost dreams and New York City gentrification, had just premiered in a packed-out Park City library theater and made her a popular guest. An unnamed journalist was spotted having an understandably emotional moment with Phyllida Lloyd, director of the Irish film Herself, starring Clare Dunne as a domestic violence victim who aspires towards building an economical tiny house to live in with her children away from her abusive partner. Australian director Kitty Green, whose Harvey Weinstein-adjacent The Assistant is being hailed as the most devastatingly accurate #MeToo movie yet, talked with Garrett Bradley about her documentary feature Time, which chronicles a couple separated by a 60-year sentence.

Many in the room had started off at Sundance by premiering short films and returning a few years later with features. At the beginning of that journey was young filmmaker Chloe Aktas, whose Lance (in a Neck Brace) depicts a man turning to instructional cassette tapes post-heartbreak. Actress Ashley Williams was also in attendance backing the short film Meats, about a pregnant vegan plagued by unethical cravings, which she wrote and directed.

Then there was Emerald Fennell, showrunner of Killing Eve season two, returning to the festival following the success of her short Careful How You Go in 2017. You may as well learn her name right now: Fennell's feature debut Promising Young Woman made her the room's star attraction and is guaranteed to go viral upon wider release. Starring Carey Mulligan and Bo Burnham (but also: Laverne Cox, Alison Brie, Jennifer Coolidge and Clancy Brown), it's a rape revenge fantasy minus the Tarantino gaze, and it was all I could think about for days after viewing. Even cooler was talking with Fennell and Josephine Decker, en route to the premiere of her fourth feature-length movie Shirley, starring Elisabeth Moss as horror novelist Shirley Jackson. Turns out that both Fennell and Decker are extremely new moms who were pregnant while filming. Greta Gerwig's impact!

Sundance hosted still more female filmmakers who couldn't attend the dinner things get busy when you're courting distributors, and there are only so many open bars one person can drink at on any given night. They may not have made it to the Canada Goose lodge, but Miranda July (whose film Kajillionaire premiered at the festival and was reportedly snatched up by A24), Zola's Janicza Bravo and Julie Taymor, whose latest ambitious effort The Glorias reimagines Gloria Steinem's epic life to date, were all the talk of the town.

As food was served, Harris-Bridson rued that despite the festival's uptake in gender equality, the filmmakers present were yet to escape the "female" qualifier. Many attendees hoped that a dinner like this would be less necessary someday, but I don't know. Every now and then it's pretty special to get your own party.
A makeshift campsite in a wooded area at the Coolock Lane roundabout on the M50 in Dublin which caught fire earlier has been put out.

Firefighters from Kilbarrack came to the scene this afternoon after smoke drifted onto the motorway.

The fire ruined a number of tents and collapsed the roof of wooden shelter.

There are no reports of any injuries.

Brian McLoughlin from Inner City Helping Homeless say many rough sleepers are choosing to make camp in suburban parks rather than go to hostels run by the city council.

Firefighters from Kilbarrack fire station have extinguished a fire in a campsite on the Coolock Lane / #M50 roundabout. Smoke was affecting the nearby motorway but has cleared #Dublin #fire #traffic pic.twitter.com/ipWweck6df  Dublin Fire Brigade (@DubFireBrigade) February 1, 2020

"For someone it's the same place to go to every single night. They're not ringing a freephone number four or five times a day trying to see if they can avail of a bed," said Mr McLoughlin.

"And if they do avail of a bed they don't know if it's going to be for that one night.

"So a lot of people feel more secure sleeping in groups in parks and in different areas because they just feel there's a bit more security to it.

"But there's also a bit more of a guarantee of where you're going to be every single night.

"That's a big factor when it comes to mental health and the strain that's put on people when they're homeless."
As of 11pm tonight, Britain has officially left the European Union.

The two sides will then enter an 11-month transition period in which they also hope to reach a trade deal.

It has been over 1,300 days with countless discussions and twists in the tale which included fears for a hard border on this island, a backstop before this current agreement of customs checks taking place in the Irish Sea.

British Prime Minister Boris Johnson described tonight as an "astonishing moment of hope".

Mr Johnson also acknowledged that there were others in the country feeling "a sense of anxiety and loss" while others were worried that the process "would never come to an end".

"This is the moment when the dawn breaks and the curtain goes up on a new act in our great national drama," he added in a taped message from No 10 Downing St.

Tonight we are leaving the European Union. pic.twitter.com/zZBsrf4BLe  Boris Johnson (@BorisJohnson) January 31, 2020

Brexit Patry leader Nigel Farage, who spearheaded the campaign to leave the EU, simply stated "Democracy has won".

Outgoing Labour Party leader Jeremyy Corbyn said "Britain's place in the world will change".

The question now is what direction will we take?

The choice of which path we take for a post-Brexit Britain now lies before us. pic.twitter.com/XLw7n1aipw  Jeremy Corbyn (@jeremycorbyn) January 31, 2020

Taoiseach Leo Varadkar said that there will "always be a seat at the table" for the UK at the EU table.

"We'll say goodbye to an old friend embarking on an adventure. We hope it works out for them. But if it does not, there will always be a seat kept for them at the table," Mr Varadkar tweeted.

(PA Graphics)

"I am ambitious about the future EU/UK relationship but I also think we think to be realistic about the dangers. We need to start a new relationship between the EU and the UK on a firm and honest footing. And that means a level playing field.

"This is very much in Irelands interests, as well as that of the European Union as a whole.

Today is a bittersweet day for all of us who believe in the idea of Europe.

Finance Minister Paschal Donohoe tweeted that a "new future" will be ahead for Ireland, the UK and the EU.

"To our British friends, you made me at home when I was away from home for years. Were now on different paths, but were all in this together. Well create a new future, based on a shared history and ties that are too deep to let (Brexit) sunder."

Meanwhile, hundreds of anti-Brexit campaigners have taken part in a number of demonstrations along the Irish border in opposition to Brexit.

Pro-Brexit supporters in Parliament Square, London, as the UK prepares to leave the European Union, ending 47 years of close and sometimes uncomfortable ties to Brussels. Picture: Jonathan Brady/PA Wire

The anti-Brexit protests organised by the Border Communities Against Brexit group and Sinn Fein were held to mark the UK leaving the European Union.

Protesters gathered at six locations along the border in counties Louth, Cavan, Donegal, Fermanagh, Monaghan and Donegal on Friday night.

Around 200 people gathered a few miles from Newry to voice their opposition to Brexit.

The headlines across the water on Saturday. pic.twitter.com/R2euVA7YOa  Richard Chambers (@newschambers) January 31, 2020

However, a crowd of pro-Brexit supporters have gathered at the gates of Stormont, the seat of Northern Irelands devolved government, in east Belfast where they counted down to 11pm.

Many are holding Union flags and are ready to toast the moment Brexit became official.

Elsewhere, the first Calais to Dover ferry due to arrive in Kent after Britains departure from the EU has left the French port.

The DFDS ship, named Cotes des Dunes, is expected to dock in the UK shortly after 11pm GMT.

It left France at around 11.15pm French time, approximately 45 minutes before Britains official departure, which is midnight in the EU, but 11pm in the UK.

- Additional reporting Press Association
Desperate times need desperate measures and in the kitchen of her west London home, former Blue Peter presenter Konnie Huq is mulling over the idea of tying herself semi-naked to a tree round the corner from her house.

Its definitely something to consider, she laughs. It would absolutely send a message.

Just to be clear, Huq, 44, is not talking about a scene of gratuitous nudity, she is talking about the best way of stopping her local council from granting planning permission for a prep school on an area of green space.

Konnie Huq has taken a step back from television presenting and is focused on writing childrens books

Huq drives an electric car, led the Mothers Rise Up march for climate change last year and hasnt bought an item of clothing for five years. She is committed to saving the planet  in particular, her own piece, on the doorstep of the home she shares with her husband, Black Mirror creator Charlie Brooker, and their two young children.

Much has changed in the life of Huq, who in 1997 was announced with much fanfare as the BBCs first British Bangladeshi presenter of Blue Peter. At the time she felt almost embarrassed by the focus on her ethnicity. I wanted to think Id got the job because I was a good presenter.

My parents were first-generation immigrants. My mum wore a sari but at school and as a teenager and in my 20s I wanted to fit in. I remember on Blue Peter being sent to Bangladesh. I was cooking with relatives and they asked me to speak and translate in Bangladeshi and I felt so uncomfortable. I should have been proud but I wasnt, which really bothers me now.

Two decades on, Huq has taken a step back from television presenting and is focused on writing childrens books. Her debut, Cookie! And The Most Annoying Boy In The World, has as its heroine a geeky British Bangladeshi girl who loves school and is more interested in scientific experiments than cool outfits. Illustrated by Huq, the book is sharp and funny and has been praised by the likes of David Walliams and Jacqueline Wilson.

I wanted to write a book I would love to have read as a kid, she says. There were no small brown kids as the centre of the childrens fiction I grew up with. But my point is not to make this book separate but to show that this little Bangladeshi kid is like so many other kids in Britain, a geeky little girl with quirky thoughts and ideas, so anyone can relate to her.

Huq with husband Charlie Brooker and their boys, Huxley and Covey. When we got married, Charlie didnt want kids and I did. He turned out to be a natural and I am the one who works at it'

She is, of course, based in part on the young Huq, the youngest of a high-achieving academic family who, like her elder sister  the Labour MP Rupa Huq  went to Cambridge University. I loved science but I also loved performing. When I was 14 I appeared on Blue Peter with the National Youth Music Theatre singing a solo. If you look closely you can see a young Jude Law in the background. At 16 she landed a job doing celebrity interviews for a cable TV channel. Despite gaining a degree in economics, she went into TV-presenting working on GMTV and Channel 5s Milkshake before winning the slot on Blue Peter, which she kept for a record 11 years.

Being a Blue Peter presenter is not well paid, she says. But we were way ahead of the curve in so many ways. We were eco, we did stories on refugees, on disability issues. She also discovered that her two male counterparts, Matt Baker and Simon Thomas, were on a higher pay scale. I went to the head of the show with a spreadsheet and asked for more money based on my experience and time on the show. I think they were so shocked they just gave in to me, she says.

The year she left, she appeared on the cover of FHM wearing only a sheet. They paid me 15,000, she says, which was enough to put a deposit down on a house. And I got away with being completely covered up, so it was a win for me.

Her parents had hoped for an arranged marriage, but were nonetheless thrilled when she met the very British non-Muslim Brooker, whom she married in 2010. When she became a mother in 2012, she stepped back from presenting because I want to be the one doing the school pick-ups, knowing what my kids are doing, she adds. When we got married, Charlie didnt want kids and I did. He turned out to be a natural and I am the one who works at it. Now my kids are at school, I cram everything into the hours they are out of the house, which is why writing works for me.

As for her refusal to buy any new items of clothing for herself, she laughs: My husband has a wife who is happy to wander round in old leggings held up with worn elastic. Im happy with who I am and Im more concerned with other issues and trying any way I can to make a better world for our children.

Cookie! And The Most Annoying Boy In The World is published in paperback by Piccadilly Press on Thursday, priced 6.99
The Vietnamese Ministry of Health on Saturday announced an outbreak of the novel coronavirus (2019-nCoV) in the south-central province of Khanh Hoa as a local woman was confirmed as the country's sixth case of infection on the same day.

L.T.T.H., a 25-year-old woman from Van Ninh District, tested positive for the killer virus in both tests conducted by the Pasteur Institute of Nha Trang and the Pasteur Institute of Ho Chi Minh City, the provincial Peoples Committee said on Saturday.

Result of the second test came in from the Nha Trang institute on Friday, it added.

H. works as a receptionist at a hotel in Nha Trang, the capital city of Khanh Hoa, where two Chinese guests who were the first confirmed new coronavirus-infected patients in Vietnam had stayed last month.

The receptionist was in close contact with the two Chinese men, Li Ding, 66, and his son Li Zichao, 28, during the two guests' stay at the hotel on January 16.

Li Ding was visiting from the Chinese city of Wuhan, where the nCoV first surfaced in December 2019, while Li Zichao lives in Vietnam.

Li Ding started to have a fever on January 17, while Li Zichao developed similar symptoms on January 20.

The father and son were confirmed as the first cases in Vietnam to be infected with the nCoV on January 23, with the latter having recovered as of January 27.

Khanh Hoa authorities said in a report that H. first developed coughing and fever symptoms on January 18.

Her fever was eased while coughing remained after taking two doses of medicine bought from a drugstore.

She was sampled by the Pasteur Institute of Nha Trang and the Pasteur Institute of Ho Chi City on January 24, and has been quarantined at the Khanh Hoa Provincial Hospital for Tropical Diseases since January 27.

The Khanh Hoa Hospital for Tropical Diseases in the namesake south-central Vietnamese province. Photo: Phan Song Ngan / Tuoi Tre

The 25-year-old woman is currently in good condition, free from fever and coughing, Khanh Hoa authorities said.

People who had come into close contact with H., including her colleagues at the hotel and family members and relatives whom she visited over the Lunar New Year holiday, between January 16 and 27 have been told to immediately inform authorities on any flu-like symptoms, the provincial administration said.

They are also being monitored for any signs of 2019-nCoV infection, it added.

The Khanh Hoa Provincial Center for Disease Control had previously instructed the hotel staff to thoroughly clean the surfaces of hotel rooms, public areas, tables, floors, door handles, and elevators at the premises with the disinfectant Cloramin B.

Khanh Hoa, which receives a large number of Chinese tourists every year, was still isolating 23 people for suspected 2019-nCoV infection as of Friday.

With the newly confirmed case in Nha Trang, Vietnam has recorded a total of six nCoV-infected cases, including two Chinese and four Vietnamese. One of the Chinese patients have recovered and now tests negative to the novel coronavirus.

Meanwhile, there have so far been 93 suspected cases in the Southeast Asian country since the outbreaks in China, with 65 having tested negative for nCoV and 28 still in quarantine as of Saturday, according to the health ministry.

The total number of deaths from the coronavirus epidemic in China had reached 259 by the end of Friday, while the total number of confirmed infections accumulated to 11,791, state broadcaster CCTV said, citing numbers from the countrys National Health Commission.

More than 130 cases have been reported in at least 25 other countries and territories, with Russia, Britain, Sweden, and Italy all reporting their first cases on Thursday or Friday, Reuters reported.

The World Health Organization declared on Friday that the coronavirus epidemic in China now constitutes a public health emergency of international concern.

Like us on Facebook or follow us on Twitter to get the latest news about Vietnam!
Estas mujeres se han unido para crearse un lugar en la naciente industria del bacanora. Sus productos pueden adquirirse en Tucson, Phoenix y otras ciudades.
The Queen was spotted getting behind the wheel of her Range Rover days before she is set to leave Sandringham Estate for London.

It marks the first time the Queen has been seen out and about since the UK left the European Union and comes days before she is expected to return to the capital.

Her Majesty, 93, appeared in good health as she was seen driving her car out of the property in Norfolk, five days before she is thought to be leaving the 20,000-acre property.

She usually spends her winter break at the Royal Estate before leaving on February 6, which is the anniversary of her father King George VI's death.

The Queen leaving Sandringham House in Norfolk on Saturday afternoon behind the wheel of her Range Rover

It marks the first time the Queen has been seen out and about since the UK left the European Union and comes days before she is expected to return to London

Her Majesty, 93, appeared in good health as she was seen driving her car out of the property in Norfolk

The Queen was unable to attend a WI meeting on Thursday, which she goes to every year at West Newton village hall as part of her winter stay at Sandringham, after catching a cold.

A spokesman for Buckingham Palace had told MailOnline the Queen had 'a slight cold', while an insider added it was 'no cause for alarm.'

She was well enough to attend church on Sunday.

The Queen was unable to attend a WI meeting on Thursday, which she goes to every year at West Newton village hall as part of her winter stay at Sandringham, after catching a cold

The Queen leaving Sandringham House in Norfolk on Saturday afternoon

Her husband Prince Philip was spotted at Sandringham yesterday as he recuperates from a stay in hospital last month.

Philip, 98, was pictured being driven onto the Royal Sandringham Estate in Norfolk

Earlier this week the Queen and Philip were seen for the first time since Prince Harry departed to Canada.

She was pictured driving in Sandringham while Philip accompanied his daughter Princess Anne as she drove through the estate.

Prince Phillip was also seen driving a truck for a shoot on the estate yesterday morning, following reports that he and the monarch were holding crisis talks about the embattled Prince Andrew.
The outpouring for Ralph Tenuta last week reminded me of what makes a good leader. Ralph was fervently friendly to all and accomplished much.

This is in stark contrast to our nation's leader whose solitary goal seems to be self aggrandizement. When people say, "That doesn't matter - the economy is good," I cringe. Our economy has always and will always be world dominant.

What does matter are things like a dominant New York bank forbidding for years any business with his name on it; not fake news.

What does matter is the fact of six or more "besties" in jail; not fake news.

What does matter is his lack of respect for any part of government (calling them "dummies"). He's likely to put us in jeopardy, such as assassination of the Iranian general without consulting military or Congress (another villain is Putin - is he next? No, he's a buddy).

When in the Army myself, I was briefly an aide to our European Commander and was impressed with his intelligence and the care taken with planning even maneuvers. My bad knee could have kept me out but didn't, bone spur notwithstanding.

What does matter is the lack of respect shown in the failure to provide the tax returns provided by each predecessor, not fake news.

My life has included supporting Republicans like McCain, H.W. Bush, Reagan and others. No Republican anywhere seems willing to take the president to task on anything through fear of offending and suffering retribution - a dangerous factor afoot in the land.

My vote would go for Ralph Tenuta, may he rest in peace.

Howard Moon

Kenosha

Love 0 Funny 0 Wow 0 Sad 0 Angry 0
H undreds of Brexiteers have gathered in Parliament Square to celebrate the historic moment the UK leaves the European Union tonight.

Nigel Farages Leave Means Leave party is now in full swing as huge crowds turned out to mark Britain officially cutting ties from the bloc.

Crowds in Westminster counted down to Brexit at 11pm, with the celebration expected to feature "singalong hymns" and speeches from Mr Farage, Ann Widdecombe and Julia Hartley-Brewer.

A music system was set up on the back of a lorry on Parliament Street, with people dancing in a closed-off section of the road to music by Sir Tom Jones and Queen.

A Brexit supporter poses for a photograph with a Union flag as he waits for the festivities to begin / AFP via Getty Images

Wetherspoons boss Tim Martin and Brexit Party chairman Richard Tice are also expected to speak at the rally in London.

As one man walked through the crowd with an EU flag draped over his shoulders, another man carrying the Union Flag shouted at him: "Go away loser."

Dozens of people gathered around the Sir Winston Churchill statue, while others rang bells and banged a drum attached to a modified cart called Little Ben.

The cart belongs to David and Nancy Waller, who travelled from Shropshire to take part in the Brexit Celebration.

Mr Waller, 59, said the cart cost about 500 to restore and build, thanks to a "Brexiteer" blacksmith who donated his services free.

Crowds gather in Parliament Square for the historic night / PA

He said the bell, which people have been ringing throughout the evening, was found in a salvage yard but was originally forged at the Whitechapel Bell Foundry in London.

Mr Waller said: "We have come here because we are great supporters of democracy. At one stage we thought it was all over, but it ain't now."

Among the crowds were a group of French nationals who said they were jealous of Britain.

Union flags taken down at European Parliament buildings

Michelle, 54, said "France does not have the guts to do this."

Waving a Frexit banner she added: "We need to get out of the dictatorship. The EU is imposing its authority measures and policies and we need to get out."

France is full of conflict with riots every Saturday between the police and the people but the government are not doing anything, she added.

Asked if she supported Britain's choice to leave, she said: "Yes, I am so jealous and I am here 100 per cent backing them."

Donna Jones said she believes Prime Minister Boris Johnson has "tried his best" and delivered "what's best for the country".

The 44-year-old from west London said she was there to "be part of history".

Brexit Day at Parliament Square - In pictures 1 /22 Brexit Day at Parliament Square - In pictures Anti-Brexit protesters in Parliament Square, London PA Police presence at anti-Brexit protests in Parliament Square, London PA The Winston Churchill statue and Union flags in Parliament Square, London PA Pro Brexit supporters hold placards at Parliament Square as people prepare for Brexit Getty Images A man carries an EU themed wreath at Parliament Square Reuters Anti-Brexit demonstrators in Parliament Square, London, ahead of the UK leaving the European Union PA Pro Brexit supporters hold placards at Parliament Square as people prepare for Brexit Getty Images A man wears a President, Donald Trump mask and holds an American flag at Parliament Square as people prepare for Brexit Getty Images People hold placards in Parliament Square opposite the Houses of Parliament in London AFP via Getty Images A man holds up a President, Donald Trump, American flag at Parliament Square as people prepare for Brexit Getty Images A Red Viking apple with the Union Jack is displayed and given out for free to promote British produce as an Anti-Brexit demonstrator waves the European Union flag in Parliament Square AP Joseph Afrane in Westminster Jeremy Selwyn Pro-EU anti-Brexit protesters hold placards in Parliament Square AFP via Getty Images A man takes a photo of political artist Kaya Mar's paintings in Parliament Square Getty Images A man in an oversized 'Keep America Great' hat and draped with a US flag holds a Union Flag in Parliament Square opposite the Houses of Parliament AFP via Getty Images A woman holds a newspaper at Parliament Square Reuters A woman wears a face mask in Parliament Square PA

She added: "I think it's a good thing for Britain, I think we need to get our own laws back and I believe we have got the ability to do it.

"It doesn't mean we're anti-Europe, it just means we want to be self-sufficient in a certain way."

Asked how she thinks EU nationals living in Britain would react, she said: "They might take it (Brexit) the wrong way because we have a certain group in England that is racist, they have got problems with the immigration but I don't want them to think we are leaving because of them.

"We're leaving because of the laws and the trade but we're still their allies."

Logan Rossiter, 17, from the Plymouth Brexit Party, said the gathering was not a "political one" but a celebration of democracy.
Departmental leaders are among the most qualified public servants in the Federal Government. They are dedicated to ensuring the guidance and management necessary to support the health and well-being of the nation. Learn more about the Department's leadership:

Secretary and Deputy Secretary
In late January, the Trump administration announced new visa rules intended to discourage the practice of birth tourism, i.e., when a pregnant foreign woman travels to the U.S. so that her baby will be an American citizen. The practice is widespread; as this surprisingly balanced Associated Press article notes, the Center for Immigration Studies estimated that in 2012, around 36,000 foreign women gave birth in the U.S. and then left the country.

Under the new rules, pregnant applicants will be denied a tourist visa unless they can prove they must come to the U.S. to give birth for medical reasons and they have money to pay for it or have another compelling reason  not just because they want their child to have an American passport. Officials said that consular officers will not be asking all female visa applicants of child-bearing age whether they are pregnant or intend to get pregnant. Rather, they said consular officers would ask the question only if they had reason to believe the applicant is pregnant and likely or planning to give birth in the U.S.

However:

Officials said the rule will not apply to foreign travelers coming from any of the 39 mainly European and Asian countries enrolled in the Visa Waiver Program, which allows citizens of those countries to come the U.S. without a visa for temporary stays. The rule will only apply to applicants for so-called B class visas that permit short-term stays for business or pleasure.

Russia and China are not participants in the visa waiver program.

Birth tourism is a lucrative business in both the U.S. and abroad. Companies take out advertisements and charge up to $80,000 to facilitate the practice. Many of the women travel from Russia and China to give birth in the U.S.

The Associated Press implicitly adopts the common assumption that the Fourteenth Amendment mandates birthright citizenship; i.e., the idea that any baby born on American soil is an American citizen, regardless of the circumstances. In fact, the Fourteenth Amendment neednt require any such thing. The relevant provision, the purpose of which was to grant citizenship to newly-freed slaves, says:

All persons born or naturalized in the United States, and subject to the jurisdiction thereof, are citizens of the United States and of the State wherein they reside.

The Supreme Court could hold that children of (for example) pregnant Chinese women who visit the U.S. for a few weeks for the purpose of giving birth are not, as Chinese citizens, subject to the jurisdiction of the United States for purposes of that clause. Under standard rules of construction, subject to the jurisdiction thereof must mean something. If not that, then what?

The only Supreme Court case that, to my knowledge, has applied the Fourteenth Amendment to a child born of foreign parents in the U.S. emphasized that the parents were here legally. No Supreme Court case has ever held that the child of an illegal immigrant is a citizen under the Fourteenth Amendment. If birth tourism is illegal under the new rules, or is made illegal by Congress, the Court could classify babies born to briefly-visiting mothers in the same category with children of illegal immigrants as outside the realm of citizenship by birth under the Fourteenth Amendment. That would bring birth tourism to an end.

In the meantime, the administrations new rules manifest a worthy intention, but whether they make much practical difference remains to be seen.
PG&E Corp. intends to abide by tougher safety standards, break up its operations into new regional divisions and replace members of its board when it emerges from bankruptcy protection, the company said Friday.

The plans, outlined in a filing to state regulators, are intended to help the parent company and utility subsidiary Pacific Gas and Electric Co. speedily resolve their bankruptcy case while improving their operations in response to catastrophic wildfires their power lines started.

PG&E said in a statement that it would commit to enhanced safety metrics and stricter regulatory oversight with escalating enforcement mechanisms. Gov. Gavin Newsom had called for such changes in a December letter to PG&Es chief executive  and also suggested the company create a path to allow for a state takeover in certain circumstances.

But PG&E did not appear to fully embrace the most dramatic option sought by Newsom: a path for the state government or another entity to take control of the companys core business if it fails to meet safety standards. In his December letter, Newsom said PG&E should agree to a streamlined process through which its operating assets could be transferred to the state or someone else when circumstances warrant.

The company said in its filing that regulators may intervene if PG&E falls short of safety metrics and vowed to help construct a process for early identification of shortcomings and prompt implementation of corrective actions.

PG&Es filing offered its most substantive response yet to public criticism from Newsom, who said in his previous letter that the companys last bankruptcy exit plan fell woefully short of state requirements. Newsom has threatened a state takeover of PG&E multiple times, including Wednesday.

A spokesman for Newsom directed The Chronicle to the governors comments on Wednesday, when he said, Theres going to be a new company or the state of California will take it over. He said California needs a PG&E that is transformatively different than the one we currently have.

I have no interest in the existing management and the existing board, Newsom said at an event with the Public Policy Institute of California in Sacramento. It has to be a completely transformed company.

PG&E told the California Public Utilities Commission that it would later seek permission to use customer rates to pay for $7 billion in wildfire claim costs associated with its bankruptcy reorganization. But the company said its tax benefits would keep the impact on customers bills neutral. A state law PG&E is trying to comply with requires the companys bankruptcy exit plan to have no net impact on rates.

The proposed changes reflect PG&Es clearest vision so far for what the company wants to look like after the conclusion of its massive bankruptcy. The case began more than one year ago following a series of deadly and destructive wildfires the company caused, including the 2018 Camp Fire in Butte County.

CEO Bill Johnson said in a statement that the changes would allow PG&E to emerge from bankruptcy as a reimagined utility with an enhanced safety structure, improved operations, and a board and management team focused on providing the safe, reliable, and clean energy our customers expect and deserve.

After resolving the bankruptcy, PG&E said it wants to regionalize the companys operations and its infrastructure to enhance the companys focus on local communities and customers. Each region would be led by a PG&E officer reporting directly to the CEO, and would also have its own dedicated safety officer, the company said in its filing with the utilities commission.

PG&E said it would also bring in new board members with the necessary expertise and skills to oversee the company post-emergence. The company already replaced almost all of its board of directors after it filed for bankruptcy protection last year, but now plans to do so once again.

Air Quality Tracker Check levels down to the neighborhood Ratings for the Bay Area and California, updated every 10 minutes

Other changes outlined by PG&E include adjustments to executive compensation that would further tie it to safety performance, according to the statement. PG&E also intends to expand two executive roles, chief risk and safety officers, who will report to Johnson.

Additionally, a panel of experts from outside PG&E will regularly conduct independent review of the companys operations, including safety and regulatory compliance, safety leadership, and operational performance, the company said.

PG&E has also amended its bankruptcy exit plan to incorporate a settlement it reached with bondholders who tried to take control of the company. If the settlement is approved in court, bondholders will withdraw their competing exit plan.

The deal, which U.S. Bankruptcy Judge Dennis Montali will consider at a hearing next week, will save customers about $1 billion because PG&E will be able to refinance debt on more favorable terms, according to the company.

PG&Es latest round of proposed changes come after it cleared several major milestones in its year-old bankruptcy case. The company has won court approval of a $13.5 billion settlement deal with wildfire victims attorneys and a separate $11 billion settlement deal with insurance companies. PG&E previously settled with a group of local governments for $1 billion.

The company is trying to resolve its bankruptcy case by June 30 so it can access a new fund that will shield it from the costs of any future major wildfires.

J.D. Morris is a San Francisco Chronicle staff writer. Email: jd.morris@sfchronicle.com Twitter: @thejdmorris
The telecom industry on Saturday expressed disappointment at the Budget not spelling out any relief in levies and taxes for the "severely-distressed" sector saddled with Rs 1.47 trillion in unpaid statutory dues, and rued that it did not receive significant support despite being backbone of the country's economy.

The telecom industry had been pinning its hopes on the Union Budget to offer some breather on licence fee and spectrum usage levies, given that it has to cough up billions of dollars in (AGR) dues to the government.

"None of our key recommendation appear to have been taken into consideration...It is also disappointing to note that telecom was not given an infrastructure status even though a slew of crucial reforms has been announced on infrastructure. The telecom sector, which is the backbone of the country's economy, did not receive significant support," Cellular Operators Association of India (COAI) Director General Rajan Mathews said in a statement.

COAI had been batting for reduction in these levies -- licence fee to 3 per cent from 8 per cent at present and SUC to a flat 1 per cent from average of about 5 per cent. At present, the licence fee of 8 per cent includes a USO Fund component of 5 per cent.

Industry experts had estimated that a 6 per cent reduction in licence fee or spectrum usage charges (SUC) could free up Rs 8,000 crore for the industry, which could be infused into network expansion and technological advancements.

"...it is disappointing that there were no announcements made regarding the rationalisation of levies and taxes currently imposed on the severely distressed telecom sector and telecom infrastructure is not taken into consideration that is going to build out the country," he said.

Mathews, however, noted that the Budget has laid major emphasis on boosting domestic manufacturing of network products, mobile phones, electronic equipment, semiconductors and healthcare products, and Rs 27,300 crore has been allocated for development of industry and commerce by 2021.

The Budget proposed that the New India will be driven by innovations, artificial intelligence and computing where data will be the new oil, and outlined other significant initiatives such as linking of 1 lakh gram panchayat to the BharatNet program by this year at an outlay of Rs 6,000 crore.

"A financially healthy and robust telecom sector is imperative to support all these future forward initiatives," Mathews said.

While relief measures continued to elude the industry, the government has more than doubled its revenue estimate from the debt-ridden telecom sector to Rs 1.33 trillion in fiscal year 2020-21, mainly on account of levies derived from AGR.

In the receipt budget, the government has pegged revenue collection at Rs 1,33,027.2 crore for financial year 2020-21 under communications head. Receipts under 'Other Communication Services' mainly relate to license fees from telecom operators and receipts on account of SUC, the budget document explained.

Mathews said increased receipt estimates appeared to factor in AGR payments, levies like licence fee and spectrum charges, and auction proceeds.

As it is, the troubled industry is buckling under Rs 1.47 lakh crore of statutory dues in the wake of a recent Supreme Court ruling on AGR. As things stand today, telecom companies owe the government Rs 92,642 crore in unpaid licence fee, and another Rs 55,054 crore in outstanding SUC dues.

Bharti Airtel's liabilities alone add up to nearly Rs 35,586 crore, of which Rs 21,682 crore is licence fee and another Rs 13,904.01 crore is SUC dues (excluding the dues of Telenor and Tata Teleservices).

For Vodafone Idea, this number stands at a cumulative Rs 53,038 crore, including Rs 24,729 crore of SUC dues and Rs 28,309 crore in licence fee.

The remaining liability is with state-owned BSNL/MTNL and some of the shut/bankrupt telecom companies.

The Supreme Court had allowed three months to the affected telecom operators to pay the amounts due to the government. While the deadline for that expired on January 23, the Telecom Department did not take any coercive action against defaulters given that their appeals seeking relaxation in payment timeline was pending before the apex court.

Bharti Airtel, Ltd, and Tata Teleservices have jointly filed a modification application in the Supreme Court seeking more time to pay statutory dues.

The fresh plea for relief on payment schedule came after Supreme Court, last month, dismissed the review petitions filed by telecom companies against the apex court's October 24, 2019 verdict on AGR.
Former Vice-President Atiku Abukakar has urged the United States to reconsider its visa restriction against Nigeria, saying such measure was inconsistent with both countries long-standing bilateral relations.

Mr Abubakar also decried the Buhari administrations handling of the issues that preceded President Donald Trumps decision to prevent potential Nigerian immigrants to the U.S.

The Trump administration formally announced the policy on Friday, days after multiple reports said it was being considered and Nigeria was a prominent country on the list.

The U.S. authorities said Nigeria was added to the list, which includes repressive states like Eritrea and Myanmar, because the Buhari administration had failed to share information critical to fighting terrorism and other crimes.

The policy, which kicks off on February 21, would make it impossible for Nigerians to move to the U.S. to obtain permanent residency.

Thousands of Nigerians move to the U.S. annually, with some statistics putting them at some 22,000, the largest from developing world.

The Buhari government has not yet reacted to the allegations, but a government spokesperson, Garba Shehu, said last week the decision would be studied before a definitive response could be issued.

Mr Abubakar on Saturday morning joined other Nigerians to criticise the U.S. step and urged its immediate reversal, hours after the decision was announced late Friday.

Mr Abubakars statement as posted on his Twitter handle Saturday morning is reproduced in full below.

I received with sadness the policy of the government of the United States of America to place @Nigeria on its travel ban list.

While I understand the reasons given by the Trump administration (the failure of the @MBuhari led administration to share information and to address issues of terrorism), the ban does not take into account the pro-American sentiments of the Nigerian public and the solidarity previous Nigerian administrations have had with the United States.

I urge the government of President @realDonaldTrump to consider the history of US-Nigerian relationships.

Nigeria was one of the few African nations that joined the US-led coalition during Operation Desert Storm between 1990-1991 when the United States championed the liberation of Kuwait.

READ ALSO:

The Trump administration may also consider the pivotal role Nigeria, in partnership with the US, played in bringing peace to Liberia, an American sphere of influence, that now enjoys democracy because Nigerian blood and money paved the way for peace in that nation.

Nigeria has also consistently voted in support of the United States and her allies at the @UN and other multilateral world bodies. This is even as we are perhaps the biggest trading partner that the United States has in Africa, even where we had alternatives.

Nigerians love the United States and have been a major force for the positive development of that great nation: 77% of all Black doctors in the United States are Nigerians. Nigerians are also the most educated immigrant community in America bar none.

Surely, the US stands to benefit if it allows open borders with a country like #Nigeria that is able to provide skilled, hardworking and dedicated personnel in a two-way traffic.

The current Nigerian administration may have its deficiencies and deep faults, but the Nigeria people ought not to be punished for their inefficiencies.

Once again, I call on President @realDonaldTrump to consider adopting measures that individually target those in government who have failed in their duties, rather than target the entire Nigerian population.
Brexit

Following is the chronology of Brexit as the UK leaves the European Union, more than three and a half years since the country voted for it in a referendum in 2016.

January 23, 2013: Prime Minister David Cameron promises an in-out referendum on EU membership if his Conservative Party wins the 2015 General Election.

May 7, 2015: The Conservatives make sweeping gains over the Labour Party and secure a majority in the House of Commons.

June 23, 2016: The UK votes in a crucial referendum to leave the EU with 52 per cent of the public supporting Brexit. David Cameron, resign as prime minister.

July 13, 2016 : Theresa May wins the Conservative Party leadership contest and becomes prime minister.

March 29, 2017 : May sends a letter to European Council President Donald Tusk, triggering Article 50. It sets the date for the UK's departure in two years' time: March 29, 2019.

April 18, 2017 : May announces a snap general election in the UK, to be held on June 8.

June 8, 2017: May loses her Commons majority after her election gamble backfires.

July 17, 2017: Brexit talks officially get underway in Brussels between EU and UK negotiators.

March 19, 2018: The UK and EU publish a draft agreement on Britain's withdrawal. But the agreement is not totally agreed.

July 6, 2018: Prime Minister May unveils to her Cabinet her much-awaited Chequers plan.

July 8, 2018: The UK's Brexit minister David Davis resigns in protest. Foreign Secretary Boris Johnson follows suit.

November 15 2018: Dominic Raab resigns as Brexit Secretary.

November 25, 2018: The 27 European Union leaders endorse the Brexit deal.

December 13, 2018: Prime Minister May survives a vote of confidence in her leadership of the Conservative Party.

January 15, 2019: MPs reject May's Brexit plans by an emphatic 432 votes to 202 in a historic vote.

March 12, 2019: MPs again reject the Government's Brexit deal by 391 votes to 242.

March 20, 2019: May asks the EU to delay Brexit from March 29 until June 30.

March 29, 2019: MPs reject May's Withdrawal Agreement by 286 votes to 344, majority 58, on the day when the UK was due to leave the European Union.

April 10, 2019: EU apress on a flexible extension to Brexit is agreed until October 31.

May 24, 2019: May announces she is standing down as Tory party leader on June 7.

June 7, 2019: May officially steps down as Tory leader.

July 23 2019: Boris Johnson is elected as leader of the Conservative Party and becomes the UK's new Prime Minister.

August 28, 2019: The UK Parliament is prorogued, or suspended, for five weeks, upon advice given to Queen Elizabeth II by Johnson's government.

September 3, 2019: 21 rebel Conservative MPs vote against the government in protest at its Brexit strategy of driving the UK towards an exit from the EU by October 31.

October 3, 2019: The UK government sends a new Brexit plan to Brussels.

October 17, 2019: The UK and EU announce dramatically that they have struck a new Brexit deal, ahead of a Brussels summit.

October 19, 2019: At a special Saturday sitting, British MPs withhold their approval for the deal until laws implementing Brexit are in place.

October 22, 2019: Johnson puts Brexit legislation on pause, citing MPs' obstacles.

October 28, 2019: The EU agrees to offer the UK a Brexit flextension until January 31.

October 29, 2019: The House of Commons approves a general election on December 12.

December 12, 2019: Prime Minister Johnson's Conservatives wins General Elections and gain an 80-seat majority in the Commons.

January 23, 2020: The UK's EU Withdrawal bill becomes law, after a relatively smooth passage through Parliament.

January 29, 2020: The European Parliament approves the Brexit divorce deal under which the UK will leave the EU on 2300 GMT on January 31.

: The UK officially leaves the EU.
We are going and we will get there, the people of Ghana are very kind and hard-working and your work has given fruits to the current NPP government, I have no doubt that you will maintain President Nana Akuffo government in Power for the coming 2020 election.

I remember the promise he made, that he will acquire ambulances to every constituency in Ghana and in less than 4years the 307 constituencies have taken deliveries of modern-day ambulances with well equipped. To the people of Ghana, this signifies accountability and judiciously used of your taxpayer's money.

If we will all remember during the NDC era a contract was given to a Ghanaian to acquire ambulance and 56 ambulances were bought by the previous government at a cost of 80,000 EUR or $93,000 each which did not meet the standard to be used as ambulances. The Chief Executive Officer of the National Ambulance Service, Prof. Ahmed Zakariah, explaining why the service rejected the ambulances, said an ideal ambulance, right from beginning, is designed with the needed equipment factored into its manufacturing, but with the rejected ambulances, they had already been manufactured and improvised with equipment to look like ambulances. Your taxpayers' money was wasted and many people died as a result of this corrupt act.

The Ambulances are to save lives but in addition to saving lives, I must say the NPP government has also created employment for the youth in the area of the ambulance service.

The 307 constituencies will now have to employ drivers and other staff and in my own estimate, 307 drivers and 307 paramedics that will always have to be with the drivers in case of emergencies, so that is to say over 700 Ghanaians will be employed to work with the Ambulance service.

We have to always remember about good leaders and make sure we do everything possible to keep good leaders in office.

I say to people of Ghana never to stop electing good party into power and I will like to say that there is no party in the fourth republic who has been able to do what NPP has done in less than four years.

Therefore I ask all Ghana to vote and maintain NPP in Power this is not about just politics but it is about putting the development of Ghana first.

On behalf of Ghanaians, we say thank you, some may say the was packed for so long, there was a reason and the reason is to train staff to enable them used the tools in the ambulances to save lives and maintain the safety of the ambulances. As they say, it pays to wait.
A bombshell report has accused Victoria's Secret owner Les Wexner, 82, of ignoring rampant sexual harassment of the line's 'Angel' models and other misconduct within the company.

Wexner and Ed Razek, his right-hand man at parent company L Brands, 'presided over an entrenched culture of misogyny, bullying and harassment' according to the lengthy report on Saturday from the New York Times.

The Times cites interviews with more than 30 current and former executives, employees, contractors and models, as well as court filings and other documents.

The report says that Wexner appeared to turn a blind eye to complaints that Razek harassed Angels including Bella Hadid, and seemed to do nothing about his former associate, the late sex criminal Jefferey Epstein, attempting to recruit women.

A representative for Wexner did not immediately respond to a request for comment from DailyMail.com, and he declined to comment to the Times, through a representative.

Razek strenuously denies the allegations, telling the Times: 'The accusations in this reporting are categorically untrue, misconstrued or taken out of context.'

Les Wexner and Ed Razek pose backstage at the 2016 Fragrance Foundation Awards presented by Hearst Magazines - Show on June 7, 2016 in New York City

Bella Hadid walks the runway during the 2018 Victoria's Secret Fashion Show at Pier 94 on November 8, 2018 in New York City

'I've been fortunate to work with countless, world-class models and gifted professionals and take great pride in the mutual respect we have for each other,' Razek continued, declining to comment on a detailed list of allegations.

Wexner is the founder and CEO of L Brands, which is the parent company of Victoria's Secret, Bath & Body Works, and Pink.

Razek, 71, is the former chief marketing officer of the parent company and for 27 years was in charge of casting the Victoria's Secret Angels. He resigned last summer after public criticism of his reluctance to hire transgender and plus-sized models.

On multiple occasions, Wexner was heard demeaning women, the Times reports, and Razek is accused of more outrageous behavior.

In 2018, supermodel Bella Hadid was being fitted at the annual Victoria's Secret fashion show when Razek said'forget the panties,' according to three people present.

Sitting on a couch, he also wondered aloud whether the TV network would allow her to walk 'down the runway with those perfect t***ies,' the people said  though one disagreed and believes he said 'perfect breasts.'

In 2018, supermodel Bella Hadid (left) was being fitted at the annual Victoria's Secret fashion show when Razek (right) declaimed 'forget the panties,' three people told the Times

Ed Razek reportedly wondered aloud whether the TV network would allow Bella Hadid to walk 'down the runway with those perfect t***ies,'

At the same fitting, Razek placed his hand on another model's underwear-covered crotch, three people said.

A human resources complaint was filed over Razek detailing more than a dozen allegations, the Times reported.

At castings, Razek sometimes asked models in their bras and underwear for their phone numbers, three people who witnessed his advances told the Times. He urged others to sit on his lap.

'What was most alarming to me, as someone who was always raised as an independent woman, was just how ingrained this behavior was,' Casey Crowe Taylor, a former public relations employee at Victoria's Secret who said she had witnessed Razek's conduct firsthand, told the Times on the record.

'This abuse was just laughed off and accepted as normal. It was almost like brainwashing. And anyone who tried to do anything about it wasn't just ignored. They were punished.'

Taylor says that in 2015, Razek confronted her at a company buffet lunch and berated her for getting up for seconds.

He told the 5-foot-10, 140-pound PR staffer that she needed to lay off the pasta and bread as dozens of coworkers looked on, she said.

Taylor says that her complaint to human resources appeared to go nowhere, and that she quit the company a few weeks later.

Les Wexner and model Stella Maxwell pose at the 2016 Fragrance Foundation Awards

Wexner's connection to Epstein

Epstein, who ran a purported hedge fund, never had any publicly disclosed clients as a money manager, other than the billionaire Wexner.

Last year, Wexner accused Epstein of misappropriating 'vast sums' of his fortune while managing his personal finances, and said he had cut ties with Epstein a decade prior.

'I know now that my trust in him was grossly misplaced, and I deeply regret having ever crossed his path,' Wexner wrote in a letter to members of his charitable foundation, which focuses on the development of Jewish professional and volunteer leaders.

Wexner is known to have sold Epstein the Manhattan mansion where he hosted his infamous parties.

For over a decade, from 1995 through 2006, Epstein lied to aspiring models that he worked for Victoria's Secret and could help them land gigs, according to the Times.

Jeffrey Epstein is seen at the first Victoria's Secret Fashion Show at the Plaza Hotel in 1995

'I had spent all of my savings getting Victoria's Secret lingerie to prepare for what I thought would be my audition,' a woman identified as Jane Doe said in a statement read aloud last summer in a federal court hearing in the Epstein case.

'But instead it seemed like a casting call for prostitution. I felt like I was in hell,' she said.

Three L Brands executives told the Times that Wexner was alerted to Epstein's sick and predatory behavior as early as the mid-1990s  but that there was no sign he ever took action.

Epstein died behind bars in August 2019, a little over a month after he was arrested and charged with sex trafficking dozens of underage girls as young as 14 from at least 2002 to 2005. His death was officially ruled a suicide.

In July 2019, the L Brands board hired an outside law firm to investigate what role Epstein played at the company. The findings have not been made public.

Wexner is the longest-serving CEO of a Standard & Poor's 500 company, having served as CEO for more than five decades.

He founded what would eventually become L Brands in 1963 with one The Limited retail store, according to the company's website.
It has been hailed as a wonder-crop, an environmentally friendly, multi-use product that could provide significant extra income for tens of thousands of farmers across the country while reducing our carbon footprint - but only if Ireland's restrictive legislation is changed.

Farmers, scientists and environmentalists are united in calling for a loosening of the regulations surrounding the growing of hemp.

They are not talking about legalising marijuana for recreational use: hemp is a strain of the cannabis plant grown for industrial uses - of which there are many, including fibres, insulation and biodegradable plastics - and it contains negligible amounts of THC, the psychoactive component of cannabis.

But in Ireland, hemp is classed as a controlled drug, and you need a special grower's licence (from the Health Products Regulatory Authority) to grow it. Various restrictions apply - plants must not be visible from the road - and the THC content must not exceed 0.2pc. In most other European countries, the threshold is significantly higher. As a result, hemp is only grown on a minuscule scale here - just 370 hectares were planted last year, mostly for cannabidiol (CBD) oil, which is used in medical, cosmetic and food products.

"That's why the industry has been slow to take off in this country," says Dr Barry Caslin, Teagasc's energy and rural development specialist. "We don't have a processing infrastructure that would give farmers confidence to grow the product. And that's because of the grey areas in the legislation. Investors are slow to invest.

"There's an imperative there to look at hemp as an alternative crop in agricultural systems to help us meet all these challenges we have going forward, such as meeting energy needs hemp ticks many boxes: it addresses the bio-economy; it's a multi-use crop - none of the plant goes to waste. For example, people are insulating their houses with fibreglass, which is derived from fossil fuels. We could be using a natural product, hemp, which is even more effective - it has a higher U-value."

Tom Short, IFA's Renewable Energy Project Team Leader, is among those calling for the Government to take action and allow an Irish hemp industry to mushroom.

"If the legislation changes, there would be an explosion in hemp growing," he says. "It's an amazing product - so many uses, and it's sustainable.

"Traditional farmers are struggling to make ends meet, and they are looking for alternatives - and hemp could certainly be part of the answer. It's something that can be done on a small scale.

"The legislation needs to change to differentiate between industrial hemp, with very low levels of THC, and cannabis grown for marijuana. But we have been talking about this for 10 years and very little is being done," Short adds, pointing out that one of the reasons hemp legalisation has become bogged down is that it comes under the remit of three Government departments - Health and Justice as well as Agriculture.

"But it's not are we going to do it, it's when are we going to do it. The Government is under massive pressure... we are so reliant on oil/coal, and that has to change. We have to reduce our carbon footprint, and this is an ideal way to do it. If we don't do it, we will be importing hemp when we should be growing it ourselves."

Green Party agriculture spokesperson Pippa Hackett adds: "The Green Party would be very much in favour of supporting farmers to diversify into hemp growing, and we had a very informative presentation from hemp growers at our last party think-in. It is an incredibly useful plant.

"Unfortunately, the uptake of hemp growing seems slow in Ireland, partly due to the licensing requirement. On the legislative issue, it really should be as simple as legislating on the seed that can be sold/grown here in a similar way to seeds for other arable crops.

"Routes to market would also be an important aspect that would need to be considered. We do not want to end up in a similar situation as farmers who were lured into miscanthus growing for biomass and then left with no market for their product.

"We are actually looking into growing it on our own farm in Co Offaly."

Hemp is not some new fad: it has been cultivated by mankind for 10,000 years and was widely grown in Ireland until the 1930s.

"That coincided with the banning of marijuana and the development of synthetic plastics," says Dr Caslin. "I certainly see a great need for the crop - it's a crop that farmers can diversify into, that can give them a meaningful return.

"We could be using hemp for insulation, for animal bedding, clothing, even for car parts."

Dr Caslin is confident that hemp would flourish in most parts of Ireland - he says it prefers well-drained soils with nutrient retention, and a pH greater than 6 - "you may need to elevate the soil pH through liming".

"Teagasc research in the early 90s established that the high biomass yield from hemp can be obtained at relatively low levels of input in terms of fertiliser," he says. "It grows quite aggressively in the right conditions - you could be getting yields of 12-14t dry matter per hectare per year; with grass, you're talking an average yield of 5-7t."

Dr Caslin says there are "no known pests associated with hemp", it tends to outcompete weeds, and Teagasc harvesting trials found that "you can use a standard combine harvester with modified chopping box".

Agriculture minister Michael Creed was unavailable for comment.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Saturday greeted the Indian Coast Guard on its raising day, appreciating its efforts to keep the country's coasts safe.

The Coast Guard came into being in 1977.

"Greetings to the Indian Coast Guard on their foundation day. Our Coast Guard has made a mark due to their remarkable efforts to keep our coasts safe," Modi tweeted.

The prime minister said the force's "concern towards the marine ecosystem is also noteworthy".

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
Asha Devi, mother of the December 2012 gang-rape and murder victim, on Saturday said that the lawyer of the convicts has raised doubts over the tenets of the constitution by challenging her that the execution of convicts will not happen.

"I am not sad that the execution was delayed. But because the lawyer of the convict challenged me that he will not let the execution happen. I don't have a personal conflict with the lawyer AP Singh. But he pointed a finger at me and challenged that he will not let the hanging happen," Devi said.

"He did not only challenge me. He has challenged the system and the women of the entire country. He has raised a finger at the constitution," she added.

Nirbhaya's mother, however, exuded faith in the law and constitution of the country and said that she was confident of the convicts being executed for the heinous crime they had committed.

"The execution has been stayed for now. I don't know when the execution will take place but I am certain that it will. The convicts will certainly be hanged," Devi said.

This comes after a Delhi court on Friday stayed, till further order the execution of four convicts -- Akshay Thakur, Mukesh Singh, Pawan Gupta, and Vinay Sharma -- in the gang-rape and murder of a paramedic student on December 16, 2012, in a moving bus in Delhi.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
B oris Johnson addressed the nation in a pre-recorded message, hailing the beginning of a new era for an energetic Britain, ahead of the UK officially leaving the EU.

The Prime Minister struck an optimistic note as he looked ahead into the years ahead, while recognising there may be bumps in the road.

After almost four years of bitter wrangling since the 2016 referendum, Mr Johnson said his job was now to bring this country together.

Here is the PMs speech in full.

Brexit: UK's final day in EU 1 /44 Brexit: UK's final day in EU Britain's Prime Minister Boris Johnson arrives to attend a cabinet meeting held at the National Glass Centre at the University of Sunderland AFP via Getty Images A massive banner by the campaign group Another Europe is Possible is hung off Westminster Bridge in London, ahead of the UK leaving the European Union PA People wear Union Jack hats and Brexit Day t shirts in Parliament Square as people prepare for Brexit Getty Images Pro EU supporters let off flares from Westminster Bridge by the London Eye as people prepare for Brexit Getty Images European Parliament President David Sassoli speaks during a media conference at the Parlamentarium in Brussels AP MEP Jonathan Bullock holding the Union Jack waves from a taxi as he leaves the European Parliament AFP via Getty Images Commuters walk along London Bridge toward the City of London with Tower Bridge AFP via Getty Images Scotland's First Minister Nicola Sturgeon delivers a speech on Brexit day Reuters AFP via Getty Images European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen, European Council President Charles Michel and European Parliament President David Sassoli arrive for a meeting near The European Parliament in Brussels AFP via Getty Images Steve Bray in Westminster this morning Jeremy Selwyn People walk past a Brexit countdown clock at the Parlamentarium in Brussels AP Union Flags line the Mall leading to Buckingham Palace AFP via Getty Images British members of the European Parliament from the Brexit Party Jonathan Bullock and Ann Widdecombe wave in front of the train station as they leave in Brussels AFP via Getty Images Pro-EU anti-Brexit protesters hold placards in Parliament Square in London AFP via Getty Images Sunrise over the Houses of Parliament Getty Images Chancellor of the Exchequer Sajid Javid arrives at King's Cross St. Pancras Station in London before boarding a train to the North East for a cabinet meeting in Sunderland PA Brexit Party members of the European Parliament, Jack Pugh and David Bull, depart from the Parliament to return to Great Britain on the day the United Kingdom will officially fulfill Brexit and leave the European Union Getty Images Britain's ambassador to the European Union Tim Barrow leaves the British representation to the EU residence in Brussels AFP via Getty Images A man sits as members of the media set up on Parliament Square on Brexit day Reuters European Commission Chief Negociator Michel Barnier arrives for a meeting near the European Parliament in Brussels AFP via Getty Images Red Viking apples with the Union Jack are displayed and given out for free to promote British produce on Parliament Square AP A woman carrying the red box belonging to Foreign Secretary Dominic Raab goes into King's Cross Station in London to board a train to the North East for a cabinet meeting in Sunderland PA A technician makes lighting adjustments prior to a media conference of European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen, European Council President Charles Michel and European Parliament President David Sassoli at the Parlamentarium in Brussels AP Ann Widdecombe member of the European Parliament (MEP) for South West England, reacts with other members of the Brexit party as they leave en masse from the European Parliament in Brussels, Belgium PA Euro Balloons stuck in a tree in Westminster Jeremy Selwyn Newspapers and other souvenirs are pictured at a store, near Parliament Square REUTERS Julian Smith, Secretary of State for Northern Ireland arrives at King's Cross Station in London PA A British bulldog toy and other souvenirs are pictured at a souvenir store, near Parliament Square Reuters International Trade Secretary Liz Truss arrives at King's Cross St. Pancras Station in London before boarding a train to the North East for a cabinet meeting in Sunderland PA British MEP's carry a Union flag as they march out of European Parliament with their luggage in Brussels to take the Eurostar train back to Britain AP A Brexiteer in Parliament Square, Londo PA

Tonight we are leaving the European Union.

For many people this is an astonishing moment of hope, a moment they thought would never come. And there are many of course who feel a sense of anxiety and loss.

And then of course there is a third group  perhaps the biggest  who had started to worry that the whole political wrangle would never come to an end.

I understand all those feelings, and our job as the government  my job  is to bring this country together now and take us forward.

And the most important thing to say tonight is that this is not an end but a beginning. This is the moment when the dawn breaks and the curtain goes up on a new act in our great national drama.

And yes it is partly about using these new powers  this recaptured sovereignty  to deliver the changes people voted for.

Whether that is by controlling immigration or creating freeports or liberating our fishing industry or doing free trade deals, or simply making our laws and rules for the benefit of the people of this country.

And of course I think that is the right and healthy and democratic thing to do.

Because for all its strengths and for all its admirable qualities, the EU has evolved over 50 years in a direction that no longer suits this country.

And that is a judgment that you, the people, have now confirmed at the polls. Not once but twice.

And yet this moment is far bigger than that. It is not just about some legal extrication.

It is potentially a moment of real national renewal and change.

This is the dawn of a new era in which we no longer accept that your life chances  your familys life chances - should depend on which part of the country you grow up in. This is the moment when we really begin to unite and level up.

Defeating crime, transforming our NHS, and with better education, with superb technology and with the biggest revival of our infrastructure since the Victorians.

We will spread hope and opportunity to every part of the UK. And if we can get this right I believe that with every month that goes by we will grow in confidence, not just at home but abroad, and in our diplomacy, in our fight against climate change, in our campaigns for human rights or female education or free trade.

We will rediscover muscles that we have not used for decades, the power of independent thought and action.

Not because we want to detract from anything done by our EU friends  of course not - we want this to be the beginning of a new era of friendly cooperation between the EU and an energetic Britain.

A Britain that is simultaneously a great European power and truly global in our range and ambitions

And when I look at this countrys incredible assets our scientists, our engineers, our world-leading universities, our armed forces, when I look at the potential of this country waiting to be unleashed, I know that we can turn this opportunity into a stunning success.

And whatever the bumps in the road ahead I know that we will succeed.
With the outbreak of the coronavirus in China now declared a global health emergency, some effects are being felt on the other side of the world at the University of Montana.

At least one planned study abroad trip to China has been canceled, with the Montana University System banning all university-affiliated travel to China until further notice, and some Chinese students at UM are left wondering how a trip home might be complicated by the viral outbreak.

Yueyang Hu, a UM business analytics graduate student from Shanghai, said he had been planning to go back to China in mid-May, but with flight cancellations and federal restrictions in addition to the threat of illness, he said he might end up staying in the United States over the summer.

You really dont know how things will go in China, he said. The U.S. might issue additional travel warnings, they might even close down the consulate in Shanghai, which makes it impossible for me to renew my visa and thats going to be a problem.

Hu spent Friday morning driving among home improvement stores and pharmacies in Missoula buying up as many medical-grade respirator masks and nitrile gloves as he could find. Back in Shanghai, stores and aid groups are running out of the masks people use to protect themselves from airborne illnesses, so he is spending hundreds of dollars to ship supplies back to his family, as well as for donations to first responders.

American, Delta and United airlines all announced Friday that they were suspending all flights to mainland China following the World Health Organization declaring the coronavirus an international public health emergency. The U.S. Department of State issued its highest travel advisory warning against visiting any part of China.

Delta Airlines said in a press release that flights to China will be canceled until at least April 30, while American Airlines is canceling flights through March 28.

While its unknown whether the virus will still be a major concern come summer, Hu said his family told him it would probably be a good idea for him to make plans to stay in the United States over the summer, just in case.

The virus has been traced to the Chinese city of Wuhan, which is located in east-central China with a population of more than 11 million people. In the country of nearly 1.4 billion people, more than 300 people have died from the virus as of Sunday, with total reported infections nearing 14,000.

Hu said he would expect the number of infected people to continue to rise dramatically, as hospitals in China are overwhelmed and doctors are working around the clock diagnosing people as fast as possible, meaning the nearly 14,000 infections is likely well below reality.

The Trump Administration announced Friday it is banning foreign nationals who have been in China within the previous 14 days from entering the United States, and all flights from China will be directed to just a small handful of U.S. airports for screening, with the nearest one to Missoula being Seattle-Tacoma International Airport.

The nonprofit Institute on International Education counted 369,548 Chinese students studying at American colleges and universities in the last academic year. However, UM counts only about 20 Chinese nationals studying on its main campus.

UM spokesperson Paula Short said one UM study abroad trip to Hong Kong, China and Macau over spring break has been canceled, but roughly a dozen students in the associated semester-long class will still be able to earn credit for the class. UM will also help students with program fee refunds and canceling air travel.

With the State Department raising the travel warning to the highest level, Short said the Montana University System was banning all affiliated travel to China until further notice in light of the State Departments Do Not Travel warning.

In a campus-wide email, university officials warned students, faculty and staff that any travel expenses to China during the ban will not be eligible for reimbursement.

The university system is committed to protecting students, faculty and staff across our campus communities and is closely monitoring the situation in cooperation with state and county health officials, the email said. There are no known cases of 2019-nCoV infection in Montana, and the CDC states that the current risk to the American public of becoming infected is low.

You must be logged in to react.

Click any reaction to login. Love 0 Funny 0 Wow 0 Sad 0 Angry 0

Get local news delivered to your inbox! Subscribe to our Daily Headlines newsletter. Sign up! * I understand and agree that registration on or use of this site constitutes agreement to its user agreement and privacy policy.
Every general election throws up a high-profile casualty as a major political figure falls foul of the voters.

When gazing into the crystal ball, pundits will usually look to the fickle constituencies on the south side of Dublin, particularly the old Dublin South.

Now the narrowed down Dublin Rathdown, it covers suburbs from the edge of the city to the Wicklow mountains, from Milltown to Kilternan and Rathfarmham to Stillorgan.

From the outside, the constituency is viewed as affluent, liberal - and unpredictable.

TDs can go from hero to zero at the ballot box here.

Former minister Alan Shatter was the shock loser here last time out. This time, all eyes are on Shane Ross.

The Transport Minister topped the poll in 2016 but has a target on his back in 2020. He has had a controversial term in Cabinet as head of the Independent Alliance of TDs.

Safe

Nobody ever feels safe in this constituency. However, Green Party deputy leader Catherine Martin is expected to be fine with a Green wave at her back.

Fine Gael has been building for two seats here, with a formidable pairing of Culture Minister Josepha Madigan and senator Neale Richmond.

This constituency was top of the party's list of gains in Dublin for the past two years. Ms Madigan is the only first-term TD in Cabinet. Mr Richmond has gained kudos for putting the Government's case on Brexit to a UK audience.

Given Fine Gael's struggles, it's hard to see the party taking two seats.

Ms Madigan's only worry is being caught by her understudy, Mr Richmond. After all, she did the same to Mr Shatter two years ago. Her involvement in the Maria Bailey Swing-gate case controversy has been a blot on her copy book.

That leaves the last seat between Mr Ross and a chasing pack. The poll-topping performance of Labour's Lettie McCarthy in the local elections makes her a firm contender with a strong local track record in the growing south of the constituency.

Fianna Fail's Shay Brennan is another contender to be reckoned with.

In bygone days, his father, the late Seamus Brennan, and his Fianna Fail colleague Tom Kitt dominated this constituency for a generation. That name recognition and track record still count for something.

Mr Ross is banking on his own record in Cabinet on issues such as drink-driving laws and local priorities like the reopening of Stepaside Garda Station, which has been renovated but not opened yet, to get him across the line.

But a warning shot of the mood was fired when two of his activists lost their seats in the local elections last year.

Candidates: Shay Brennan (FF), Deirdre Conroy (FF), Liam Coughlan (Aon), Josepha Madigan (FG), Catherine Martin (Green), Lettie McCarthy (Lab), Sorcha Nic Cormaic (SF), Eoghan O Ceannabhain (PBP), Patrick Noonan (Ind), Neale Richmond (FG), Shane Ross (Ind).

Prediction: Catherine Martin, Josepha Madigan, Shay Brennan.
Hannah Browns season of The Bachelorette is known for being a total hot mess. We know her engagement didnt work out with contestant Jed Wyatt, as he was more interested in fame than her love. And while Peter Weber, third-runner-up of her season, is now The Bachelor, many rallied behind Mike Johnson taking the title and finding love on the show.

Johnson was a fan favorite from the start of Browns season, and he reappeared on Bachelor in Paradise, where he met many beautiful women from past Bachelor seasons. And it looks like he now might be interested in Browns good friend and fellow Bachelor alum, Demi Burnett. Heres what he posted on her Instagram.

Many Bachelor Nation fans think Mike Johnson shouldve been the next star of the show

Mike Johnson on The Bachelorette: Men Tell All Special | John Fleenor/ABC via Getty Images

Weber is certainly a likable guy, but it was Johnson who many hoped would take the title of the next Bachelor. During Browns season, he was clearly there to win her love, as he appeared to have no ulterior motives. But it didnt work out between them, as we know. And now, it looks like Johnson might be flying solo.

Yes, I wanted to be The Bachelor. Yes, I auditioned to be The Bachelor, Johnson said on the Bachelor Happy Hour podcast. I went in there with the right intentions of wanting to find love, wanting to be true to myself.

He was disappointed when he found he wasnt chosen. And many Bachelor Nation fans were equally as upset.

I cant believe some of yall genuinely wanted Peter as #TheBachelor over MIKE JOHNSON, one fan tweeted.

He and Demi Burnett were on the same season of Bachelor in Paradise

Demi Burnett attends the premiere of Lionsgates Jexi | Rodin Eckenroth/FilmMagic

Just because Johnson didnt get the leading part on the show doesnt mean hes giving up on finding love via reality TV completely. Post-Browns season, we know he attempted to find a real connection on the beaches of Mexico via Bachelor in Paradise. While he connected with a few of the women, one mainly being Sydney Lotuaco, it didnt work out. He left the beach without a woman by his side.

While the show didnt work for Johnson, there were a few lucky lovebirds in Paradise. We know Burnett had a deep connection with Derek Peth upon first arriving, though she later ditched him for her girlfriend from home, Kristian Haggerty. While Burnett and Haggerty got engaged on the show, they called it quits once filming was over.

Now, it looks like Burnett doesnt have a significant other after her major breakup. And Johnson appears to also be single.

Johnson is leaving thirsty comments on Burnetts Instagram

Johnson and Burnett didnt establish a romantic connection in Paradise, but are they into each other now? Burnett posted a photo of herself to her Instagram on Jan. 30, and Johnson commented, Snack.

To that, Burnett playfully commented back, u hongry?? Hahaha.

Johnson then commented again, Ive been deprived!

Burnetts followers picked up on the interaction, too.

As one follower commented on the flirting, i Stan.

And another wrote, thats my girl brah come on now.

So, just how serious is this flirtation? Its tough to say, as they might just be friends playing around. But we cant forget that there are plenty of other Bachelor stars whove left Burnett thirsty comments on her Instagram, so Johnson might be totally serious and hoping for a date. Both John Paul Jones and Garrett Powell, who were contenders on Browns season of The Bachelorette, seemed hopeful Burnett would give them a chance.

Would Burnett ever give Johnson a chance? Were not sure  but we think theyd make an amazing duo if so! Maybe theyll both be on Bachelor in Paradise in the future and establish a connection that way.

Check out Showbiz Cheat Sheet on Facebook!
Hyderabad: Fresh protests erupted on Friday after the Juma prayers at different places in the city against the Citizenship Amendment Act and the National Population Register.

Youths came out from Masjid Azizia, Humayunnagar, after the prayers, raised slogans of azadi and staged a protest at the crossroads.

They demanded revoking of the CAA and withdrawal of the proposal to hold the NPR and the National Register of Citizens to ascertain nationality. Youths claimed that they will continue their struggle to safeguard the Constitution of India. They also sang the National Anthem.

Youths held similar protests in front of Jamia Masjid, Moazzampura, Mallepally, and Jamia Masjid at Barkas. Different clans gathered on the ground in front of Jamia Masjid, Barkas, and pledged to continue the protests till the CAA revoked. In Mallepally youths holding the Tricolour and raised slogans against the BJP government at the Centre.

In another development, the Hyderabad police has granted conditional permission to the Akhand Bharat Sangharsh Samiti to organise a meeting in support of the Citizenship Amendment Act at the Quli Qutub Shah stadium on Sunday. Additional commissioner of police, law and order, D.S. Chauhan accorded permission to the samiti to conduct the programme between 6 pm and 9 pm.
WHO decision makes little effect in curbing China

Global Times

By GT staff reporters Source:Global Times Published: 2020/1/31 21:43:41 Last Updated: 2020/1/31 23:01:06

US travel alert an overreaction, shows unilateralism: experts

The World Health Organization (WHO) declared on Thursday (local time) in Geneva the novel coronavirus outbreak a global public health emergency of international concern (PHEIC), putting pressure on China amid the deadly virus battle, as more countries are likely to issue travel advisories and impose trade restrictions.

Chinese analysts said although there is no need to exaggerate the impact of the declaration, the country needs to focus on containing the spread of the pneumonia as its top priority, as countries would adjust travel and trade policies based on the changing situation, and a complete recovery also depends on progress made during China's nationwide fight against the virus.

The WHO emphasized that the declaration was not a vote of no confidence on China. Over the past few weeks, the WHO has witnessed the emergence of a previously unknown pathogen, which has escalated into an unprecedented outbreak, and which has been met by an unprecedented response, WHO Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus said at a press conference on Thursday.

After considering multiple factors, WHO designated the coronavirus as a PHEIC. However, WHO continues to have confidence in China's ability to control the outbreak.

Following the PHEIC declaration, the US State Department warned Americans not to go to China, becoming the first country of issuing travel alert to its citizens, despite the WHO emphasized on Thursday that it did not suggest other countries impose travel and trade restrictions on China.

A US State Department notice said travelers should be prepared for travel restrictions with little or no advance notice. Commercial carriers have reduced or suspended flights to and from China.

Those currently in China should consider leaving using commercial means, it said, noting that the department has requested all non-essential US government personnel to defer travel to China because of the novel coronavirus. The travel warning is the highest Level 4 - Do Not Travel - in the US.

At least 98 novel coronavirus cases have been reported in 18 countries outside of China, including eight human-to-human transmissions in Germany, Japan, Vietnam and the US. The majority of the cases outside of China involved people who had traveled to Wuhan, or were in contact with someone who had visited the city, according to the WHO.

Damage to both sides

The US travel warning may cause other nations to follow, considering its geopolitical influence, some Chinese analysts forecast, reminding other countries to heed the WHO advise.

The US is overreacting and the warning would greatly hurt global tourism and hinder people-to-people exchanges, Ni Feng, deputy director of the Institute of American Studies of the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences, told the Global Times.

Ni predicted that other Western countries may follow the US in issuing travel restrictions to China.

Zeng Guang, chief epidemiologist of the China Center for Disease Control and Prevention, noted that the US government's move shows its unilateralism, which is unsurprising.

The WHO clarified that they did not suggest other countries impose travel and trade restrictions on China. The advise was made based on multidimensional considerations and global public health interests, which the US ignored, Zeng told the Global Times.

The US government had ordered the departure of all non-urgent US personnel and their family members from Wuhan, Central China's Hubei Province, the coronavirus' epicenter, on January 23.

Some foreign airlines have suspended flights to China including Air Canada, United Airlines, British Airlines and IndiGo.

Imposing restrictions on personal exchanges between the US and China would significantly weigh on US interests in China, considering the huge presence of American companies in China, said Li Haidong, a professor at the Institute of International Relations of the China Foreign Affairs University.

"It may also trigger a humanitarian crisis, as American citizens have married Chinese people, and if they are forced to leave, many families would be separated," Li said.

Many US companies are becoming increasingly entrenched in China, including major US-listed firms such as Tesla, Starbucks, Apple and Boeing, therefore restricting personnel exchanges between China and the US would also have an impact on the US stock market, according to analysts.

The US government had also issued travel alerts on previous public health incidents declared by the WHO, including the H1N1 virus that caused an influenza pandemic in 2009, Ebola outbreak in West Africa and polio in 2014, media reported. During the Ebola outbreak, the State Department alerted US citizens to follow screening procedures and travel restrictions, and reduce air travel to countries including Guinea, Liberia, Sierra Leone and Mali.

Top priority

According to the International Health Regulations (IHR), if the WHO declares a PHEIC, the director-general shall issue temporary recommendations, including health measures regarding people, baggage, cargo, containers, conveyances, goods and parcels to prevent or reduce the spread of the disease and avoid unnecessary interference to international traffic.

However, temporary recommendations are non-binding advisories issued by the WHO and are on a time-limited, risk-specific basis, according to IHR.

When WHO declared the Ebola outbreak in the Democratic Republic of Congo as a PHEIC, the organization emphasized it was essential to avoid the punitive economic consequences of travel and trade restrictions on affected communities, in a statement published on its website in July 2019.

Under the IHR, countries implementing additional health measures going beyond what WHO recommends will be required to provide a public health rationale and justification within 48 hours of implementation for WHO to review, WHO spokesman Tarik Jasarevic told the Global Times on Thursday.

The WHO is obliged to share information about measures and the justification received with other countries involved, Jasarevic said, noting that countries are asked to provide public health justification for any travel or trade measures that are not scientifically based, such as refusal of entry based on suspected cases or unaffected persons to affected areas.

Chinese analysts said it was not necessary to overreact or interpret the news as a hostile attitude toward China from the global community. The shared priority is to prevent the deadly virus from spreading across the globe.

"Indeed, it may place extra pressure to China, with both economic and political implications," said Shen Yi, director at the Research Center for Cyberspace Governance of Fudan University.

"But it depends on how China continues fighting the epidemic in order to help its economy recover," Shen said, noting that the WHO decision has little influence on how other countries handle economic ties with China amid the pneumonia outbreak.

NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address












By Yilei Sun and Norihiko Shirouzu

The worsening coronavirus epidemic is likely to wreak havoc on China auto sales and production in the first quarter, but the effects could ripple through supply chains worldwide if the outbreak continues to expand.

Seeking to rein in the epidemic, which has killed more than 200 people, authorities have extended the weeklong Lunar New Year holiday by three days to Feb. 2. In mainland China, 11 of 31 provinces, representing more than two-thirds of automobile production in the country, have announced that returning to work for all nonessential businesses would be delayed to Feb. 10 on top of the extended holiday. Thats in addition to broad shutdowns of road, rail and air logistics and passenger travel.

Prior to the outbreak, forecasts for the world's largest auto market this year had ranged from mild sales growth to small declines after two painful years of contraction due to a slowing economy, the U.S.-China trade war and the chaotic introduction of new emission rules.

Auto analysts at IHS Markit had already forecast 10% lower first-quarter production volumes in China before the crisis began, and they released new estimates on Friday. Assuming no further disruptions, IHS predicted a first-quarter production decline of 350,000 units, or a 7% drop. But the analysts said a worsening crisis that keeps plants idled into mid-March could trigger a disruption across Chinas massive supply chain, with the possibility of 1.7 million units worth of lost production in the first three months, a drop of 32.3% from expectations before the coronavirus outbreak.

Writing in Forbes, Willy Shih, a professor at Harvard Business School who studies industrial manufacturing, said the real test may come when workers who went home to Wuhan or other areas of high contagion for the Lunar New Year holiday return to work. Many live in cramped factory dormitories filled with bunk beds and work in close proximity to one another on factory floors.

Story continues

When they return, Shih writes, managers will have to worry about whether any of their workers have potentially been exposed to the virus and will need to be quarantined for two weeks. Imagine an even worse case if virus carriers are not identified and go out on the factory floor and infect others. This will be a nightmare.

China, the world's largest automotive market, is already coming off slowing sales and industrial output. The China Association of Automobile Manufacturers said overall vehicle production totaled 25.721 million units in 2019, including commercial vehicles, down 7.5% on increased trade friction with the United States, lower subsidies for new energy vehicles and other factors. Sales slid 8.2% to around 25.77 million vehicles.

Showroom traffic in China is expected to be sparse when extended Lunar New Year holidays end as much of the population is steering clear of public spaces, while output is set to plunge in the short-term.

That is particularly true of Hubei province, the centre of the outbreak and a major car manufacturing hub that accounts for nearly 9% of China's vehicle production. Dongfeng Motor Group and its partners Honda Motor, Renault and PSA all have factories there.

"We expect (China) vehicle production to decline 3% for the full year, with production down 15% in the first quarter, including the extended new year shutdown," Joseph Massaro, CFO for auto technology supplier Aptiv, told an earnings conference call.

But he said delayed production could be made up in the second quarter. "We don't view this as a full year issue at the moment."

Cui Dongshu, secretary general at the China Passenger Car Association, said the holiday extension has discouraged dealers from ordering cars at the end of the month as is their usual practice, virtually guaranteeing a decline in sales for January.

Yet he noted in a blog post that the 2002-2003 SARS epidemic had little long-term impact on China's passenger car market, which grew 70% in 2003, albeit from a low base and helped by economic stimulus.

Automakers with plants in Hubei, particularly in its capital Wuhan, where transport links have been cut to curb the virus, will have the most work to do in rejigging production plans. Delays can often be made up later with extra shifts on weekends and at night.

Honda, which has three assembly plants in Wuhan with Dongfeng, said it was assessing how transport disruptions were affecting the supply of parts and that no decision had been made on when its factories will restart. Dongfeng, Renault and PSA also said no decision had been made on when production might resume.

Other automakers with operations in Hubei include Nissan Motor Co which has a plant with Dongfeng and General Motors Co which has a venture with SAIC Motor Co. Nissan and GM did not respond to requests for comment.

Tesla Inc, which started delivering cars built at its $2 billion car plant in Shanghai last month, has said it expects a delay of just one to one-and-a-half weeks in its ramp up of China-built Model 3s due to the shutdown.

In a sign, however, that the virus impact was not just limited to China, Hyundai Motor said it is suspending some SUV output in South Korea this weekend as parts supplies had been disrupted.

CAR OWNERSHIP SHIFT?

The big unknown is, however, just how far the outbreak, which authorities expect to peak in February, will ravage Chinese consumer spending.

Industry officials and analysts believe sales will be hit in the short-term but also say the impact might not be too bad over the whole year.

The outbreak could even spur more Chinese consumers to embark on car ownership, given that many are suffering in areas where public transport has been suspended, said Yale Zhang, head of Shanghai-based consultancy AutoForesight.

"Customers who do not have their own car might realize they need one, which might help sales this year," he said.

China has an estimated 170 vehicles per 1,000 people compared to 800 per 1,000 in the United States.

(Information from Reuters was used in this report.)
Share this article Whatsapp

Facebook

Twitter

Linkedin Juarawee Kittisilpa (Reuters) Phuket, Thailand  Sat, February 1, 2020 13:49 709 7f440ff09e92db75a02bbad206201ef0 2 News phuket,Thailand,coronavirus,Wuhan-coronavirus,tourism,travel,destination Free

The narrow laneways and pastel-colored shophouses of Phuket Old Town are usually bustling with Chinese tourists during the Lunar New Year holiday, but travel bans and local fears about coronavirus have largely emptied the streets this year.

Just a handful of tourists, many wearing face masks, strolled through the area during daylight hours this week. In the evening, foot traffic increased a little under the glow of the red lanterns strung across the thoroughfare, but remained far below normal levels.

Read also: Italy lets passengers off cruise ship after virus scare

"The impact is tremendous," 45-year old Ausana Akaradachakul told Reuters as she waited behind the counter for shoppers in her store selling postcards, straw bags, clothing and jewelry.

"Only a few days after the news broke about the virus, the Chinese tourists were visibly few," Akaradachakul said. "I think about 70% of them are gone."

The beach resort of Phuket is Thailand's second most visited destination after Bangkok and is usually a big draw for visitors from China, who accounted for 11 million visitors last year, particularly around the Lunar New Year holiday.

But China this week imposed restrictions on all overseas tour groups because of the coronavirus that originated in the city of Wuhan and which has infected more than 11,000 people and killed more than 250.

Reduced travel from China alone could result in 50 billion baht ($1.52 billion) of lost tourism revenue, the Thai Tourism Ministry estimated.

The spread of coronavirus beyond China has also affected domestic tourism in Thailand, which has recorded more infections than anywhere but China with 19 cases. Thailand announced its first case of human-to-human transmission on Friday.

Shopkeepers in Phuket said that had left Thai tourists wary of venturing out to join what should have been an annual festival on Walking Street at the heart of the town.

"There are barely any tourists around here. The people we are seeing now are just the locals," clothes store vendor Parichart Chaengmanee told Reuters as she sat on a stool outside her empty clothing stall, wearing a black face mask. "Even the number of Thai tourists is low."

Shopkeepers are hoping the impact is shortlived, with one sign in a store window reading: "The Thai people pray for China and hope China will recover soon. China and Thailand are family!"
The Glass-Glen Burnie Foundation plans to sell 20 acres where 70 single-family homes are planned. (Duncan Slade for The Washington Post)

Some Winchester residents say the project violates the wishes of the late Julian Wood Glass Jr. and the mission of the foundation created with his wealth.
Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas said on Saturday (February 1) that the Palestinian Authority has cut all ties with the United States and Israel,

after rejecting a Middle East peace plan presented by U.S. President Donald Trump earlier this week.

The plan, which is endorsed by Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu,

calls for the creation of a demilitarised Palestinian state that excludes Israeli settlements built in occupied territory and is under near-total Israeli security control.

Addressing the Arab League in Cairo, Abbas said security relations will also be severed.

(SOUNDBITE) (Arabic) PALESTINIAN PRESIDENT, MAHMOUD ABBAS, SAYING:

"We (Palestinian authority) inform you (Israeli government) that there will be no ties either with you or the U.S., as we have said the same to the U.S., including security ties. This is in light of your renouncing of all signed agreements under the international legitimacy. You, Israelis, should bear the full responsibility as a force of occupation."

Foreign ministers from Egypt, Saudi Arabia, Jordan, Iraq, Lebanon, among others, said there could be no peace without recognizing Palestinian rights and a comprehensive solution.
More than 100 Colombian former left-wing guerrillas and their family members have left an area designated for them following the murder of 12 fellow ex-rebels elsewhere in the country, the FARC said Friday. A historic peace deal signed with then-president Juan Manuel Santos in December 2016 saw thousands of FARC rebels lay down their arms, and many signed up for a reinsertion program in Ituango, a town in Colombia's northwestern Antioquia department. But in addition to a rash of violence throughout the country against the former guerrillas, resulting most recently in the 12 killed, many others have received threats. "It's been decided that 62 (ex-fighters) and 45 family members, including children, will leave the territory to continue their reinsertion... in peace," said FARC's Medellin representative Jesus Arenas. The Antioquia department is rife with armed criminal groups including drug-traffickers, paramilitaries and dissident rebels who refused to give up their fight after the peace accord. In the last few months, another 60 ex-fighters have left the Ituango reinsertion territory for the departmental capital, Medellin, where they live in "very precarious conditions," said Arenas. The latest exodus leaves only around 20 former rebels living in Ituango. Arenas said the group was looking for "new land in other" areas to settle in. If they can't find somewhere to settle in the next two months, Arenas said the group would have to be taken to a refugee camp. The 2016 peace accord, which resulted in 13,000 rebels laying down arms, ended a half-century of armed conflict and turned the FARC from marxist guerrillas into a far-left political party. Last year was a particularly deadly one for ex-FARC rebels with 77 murdered, according to the United Nations. A total of 173 ex-rebels have been killed by armed groups since the peace deal was signed. Colombia's High Commissioner for Peace, Emilio Archila, said the government had always acknowledged the Ituango territory has "security problems" and wasn't a suitable home for the ex-rebels. Former marxist rebel Jesus Arenas (center) says the ex-guerrillas are looking for a new home to live in peace
One politician will replace another as the new head of the agency that oversees the states busiest airport, according to a Jan. 27 Post and Courier article

Elliott Summey is unqualified to be head of the Charleston County Aviation Authority. He has no experience in aviation matters. He does have experience in flouting state regulations regarding his mining ventures and experience in getting taxpayers into a giant Navy hospital fiasco.

The worst part of his latest adventure is being named to a job with no input from anyone. Even present aviation board members stated publicly that it was a mistake not to have a search for the most qualified person for the job.

One member resigned, saying the board should have searched for someone who is really qualified and with proper vetting.

This appointment should be set aside immediately and a proper search for applicants started with all due diligence. Hire someone who is not beholden to local or state politicians and will have the best interests of the airport as his or her only job.

MEREDITH GOING

Delhi Road

North Charleston

Helicopter flights

The recent helicopter crash in Southern California caused me to reflect upon my years of flight training and experiences. There have been numerous accidents caused by flying into adverse weather such as fog, heavy rain, ice or thunderstorms.

The common factor is that planning, foresight and effective training could have prevented almost all of these catastrophic events.

Research the weather for the anticipated time frame, plus a considerable amount of time beyond the planned arrival. Weather, although forecasted, is not as exact as one would assume.

Once a flight is in progress and adverse weather is foreseen, a timely decision must be made to avoid that encounter. This may require the dreaded return to base and advising passengers of the change.

To continue until your or the aircrafts limitations are exceeded is dangerous because options for a successful outcome are gone.

Pilots must be acutely aware of the safest avenue to avoid inadvertently entering adverse weather. An immediate climb, or climbing turn, should be done to avoid obstacles and severe weather.

Once the imminent threat has been avoided, contact air traffic controllers with a request for their assistance and clearance to safely return the aircraft and passengers to the ground.

The immediate actions required may result in a violation of FAA rules, but its better to be alive to endure the possible inquiry than to impose undue grief and suffering on families of victims.

LEE SWANSON

Palmetto Village Circle

Moncks Corner

Advocate for women

In every corner of the world, there are girls with the potential to be their nations next great leader. They have the intelligence, talent and drive to succeed, but face far too many obstacles in realizing their full potential.

Evidence shows that as more women enter positions of leadership, their nations witness tangible gains in economic growth, democracy, and even sustainable peace. But we cant expect young women to have the confidence and skills to take on leadership roles after being systematically excluded from these opportunities in adolescence.

As a young professional woman who is engaged in advocacy, I know firsthand how powerful it is to use my voice. But in too many parts of the world, girls and young women dont have these same opportunities. To bring future female leadership to fruition, we must begin with supporting girls today.

This is why Im encouraging Sen. Tim Scott to join Sen. Ben Cardin, D. Md., and Sen. Susan Collins, R. Maine, in signing on to the Girls LEAD Act. This important piece of legislation aims to improve U.S. foreign assistance for girls around the world so they can be equipped to take on leadership roles and increase their civic and political participation. The bill will help provide the vital resources that are required for girls to be the drivers of change in their own lives.

I urge Sen. Scott to join his colleagues in empowering girls and supporting the next great generation of women leaders.

HEATHER BLACKWELL

Hulon Lane

West Columbia

Everyday heroes

If only the people crying about Kobe Bryant and the others killed in that terrible helicopter crash felt the same way about the folks who risk their lives, lose their lives and leave behind loved ones every day for our families safety: Im talking about our police, firefighters and military personnel.

Can we gain some perspective from this tragedy? Can we at least acknowledge the difference of coverage and attention?

We are all important, not just the famous. I just wish the word hero would be properly used and respected.

KIM WESTBERG

Marsh Oak Lane

Seabrook Island
By Ayenat Mersie

NAIROBI (Reuters) - Jihan Abass, a 26-year-old Kenyan woman, often walks into meetings full of puzzled faces as people crane past her looking for the boss of her new digital motor insurance company.

Abass is the boss.

"They would be surprised to see that it was actually me, said Abass from her bright office in Nairobi, where almost every wall is covered in dry-erase marker scrawls.

Abass is founder and CEO of Griffin Insurance, which released its flagship mobile application on Friday. Griffin is Kenya's first digital-only car insurance company, which lets customers pay in instalments and pause coverage if they travel abroad. Griffin will process claims in a week rather than the industry standard of 30 days, she said.

It allows you to buy your insurance policy in less than two minutes, said Abass.

In addition to the app, Abass 14-person team has another company, Lami, that sells the technology platform used to build Griffin so other businesses can use it to create their own digital insurance products.

Lami raised half a million dollars in seed funding and aims to close a further funding round by March.

Abass, who grew up wakeboarding in the Indian Ocean at the weekend, always wanted to work in business. After graduating from university in London in 2015 she became a sugar trader and was one of a handful of women in the business, just as she is now.

Nairobi, a technology hub nicknamed Silicon Savannah, has attracted many entrepreneurs from places like the United States and United Kingdom.

A lot of the CEOs here are not only men, but also foreigners, Abass said. You dont really see faces like mine.

Abass lightbulb moment came in 2016 at a restaurant when she learned her waiter didnt have health insurance. Neither, she would later learn, did most Kenyans - health insurance coverage is about 19%, mostly under a low-cost government scheme, according to a 2018 paper in academic journal Health Systems and Reform.

Story continues

Digital insurance can drive down the cost of all forms of insurance because it increases transparency of data and analytics, said Abass.

While the teams first foray is in motor insurance (selling policies underwritten by Kenyan insurers including Pioneer and Monarch), they hope to use their platform  and encourage other companies to so  to provide other forms of insurance, she said.

(Editing by Katharine Houreld and David Holmes)
China's Type 055 warship larger, more powerful than expected

Global Times

By Liu Xuanzun Source:Global Times Published: 2020/1/31 17:16:47

It has emerged that China's most advanced destroyer, the 10,000-ton-class Type 055, is larger than previously reported as the Chinese Navy recently revealed it has an actual displacement of more than 12,000 tons. Experts said on Friday that the difference between 10,000 and 12,000 tons could be huge and indicate the warship is even more powerful than expected.

In an introduction video for Nanchang, the first ship of its type, released by the People's Liberation Army (PLA) Navy during the Spring Festival holidays, the service confirmed the ship has a displacement of more than 12,000 tons.

The warship was previously only vaguely referred to as China's first 10,000-ton-class destroyer, without information of its exact displacement.

"This has debunked some analysts' estimations that the Type 055's displacement is only a little more than 10,000 tons, and indicates the ship type could be even more powerful than expected," a military expert who asked not to be named told the Global Times on Friday.

The 12,000-ton figure could refer to standard or normal displacement, so full displacement could potentially reach 13,000 tons, the expert estimated, noting that the Type 052D, a previous classification of Chinese destroyer, has an approximate displacement of just 6,000 to 7,000 tons.

Displacement is an important indicator of a warship's combat capability in multiple aspects including firepower and its ability to sail in high seas, as a larger displacement results in higher stability, more fuel and ammunition, analysts said.

The PLA Navy video also revealed that Nanchang marks China's achievement of a globally advanced level in terms of surface vessel propulsion technology, and that the warship's speed is of the top class.

It did not reveal details of the ship's propulsion system or the ship's top speed.

Analysts predict the Type 055 has variants that will use full electric propulsion in the future, which could enable more optimized power distribution and realize the usage of high-energy weapons like lasers.

NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address






The night before pregnant mother Jade Lewis died in a car crash Thursday, she was cuddling with her firstborn son, 2-year-old Mars Villavasso.

A new baby would be arriving soon, and Mars just seemed to cling to his mother that night. Neither could have known what the next day would bring.

Mars was hugging her and kissing her and hugging her and telling her, I love you, mommy. I love you, mommy, Lewis own mom, Dorothy Lewis, 51, recalled. She was a beautiful mother.

+3 Pregnant New Orleans woman, unborn baby killed in Kenner crash; road rage a possible factor A New Orleans woman who was 38 weeks pregnant was killed Thursday afternoon when her car slammed into a utility pole in Kenner in a two-vehicl

The Lewis family was still gripped by grief and shock Friday morning as they struggled with the loss of both Jade Lewis, 22, and her unborn son, a boy she planned to name Mydas.

Kenner police are still investigating the crash that claimed Lewis life, but they said it was a road-rage encounter that turned deadly. Jade Lewis and the unidentified driver of another vehicle slammed into separate utility poles along eastbound West Esplanade Avenue in Kenner after a 12-block clash that began near Williams Boulevard, authorities said.

Kenner Police Department spokesman Lt. Michael Cunningham said criminal charges are a strong probability for the surviving driver, a 45-year-old Metairie woman who has not been publicly identified.

I want to make sure they were doing their due diligence, that theyre going to press charges against that person, Dorothy Lewis said. I dont want my baby to be swept under the rug.

The unnamed woman, who was driving a 2008 Toyota 4Runner, tried to change lanes and almost hit Lewis 2008 Chevrolet Malibu, Cunningham said.

She (the SUV driver) sped up to get over, and then Lewis sped up, preventing her from getting over, Cunningham said.

$1.25 million bond for Los Angeles actor accused of raping child in Jefferson Parish A Jefferson Parish judge on Wednesday set bond at $1.25 million bond for a Los Angeles man accused of raping a boy while he was living in Metairie.

For just under a mile, the two drivers continued to ratchet up their speeds to stay ahead of each other until the SUV driver made a final surge to cut in front of Lewis car, according to authorities.

She changed lanes and clipped the front of Lewis vehicle, Cunningham said.

The impact sent Lewis car sideways so that it crashed into a utility pole between Maryland Avenue and Lake Trail Drive, police said. The pole hit the drivers side door, killing Lewis. She and her baby were pronounced dead at the scene.

Top stories in New Orleans in your inbox Twice daily we'll send you the day's biggest headlines. Sign up today. e-mail address * Sign Up

The SUV fishtailed and crashed into another utility pole about a half-block away. Its driver was taken to a hospital in stable condition Thursday afternoon. She was released from the hospital Friday, Cunningham said.

The SUV driver has not been arrested, but investigators obtained a blood sample for toxicology testing, Cunningham said.

As Lewis family began to prepare for her funeral, a few smiles and laughter bubbled forth as relatives swapped memories of the young mother.

Lewis was the absolute baby of the family, the last born among her siblings and cousins. Raised in New Orleans, Jade Lewis reaped all the attention and adoration that typically come to the youngest in the family.

Everybody spoiled her, Dorothy Lewis said. They would talk about me, but then they would turn around and always overload her with gifts.

Jade Lewis graduated from McDonogh 35 Senior High School in 2015 and worked as an aesthetician, specializing in waxing, eyebrows and lashes, her sister, Deshawn Ernest, 34, said. Ernest and sister Dominique Hutson, 32, good-naturedly described their little sister as sweet but straight-talking with a bit of a bougie streak.

Still, Jade Lewis was a warm and thoughtful person to friends as well as those she didnt know so well. Dorothy Lewis recounted her pregnant daughters recent insistence on buying baby bottles for another mother-to-be she found out was in need, even though Jade Lewis was still saving money to buy her own.

She would give you the clothes off her back, Dorothy Lewis said.

Before she became a mother, Jade Lewis was everyones favorite auntie, the go-to for trips to the movies, playtime and parade chaperone duties. But relatives say she absolutely bloomed once she became a mother to Mars.

As of Friday, the family had not yet told the toddler about his mothers death.

I dont even know where to begin, Ernest said.

Jade Lewis is also survived by her father, Robert Lewis Jr.; another sister, Cheakita Schaffer; a brother, Robert Lewis III; and her partner, Marcus Villavasso.

She was everybodys baby. Its a big loss, Dorothy Lewis said.

Friends and family plan to gather for a balloon released in honor of Jade Lewis and Mydas Villavasso at 4:30 p.m. Saturday at the site of the accident, West Esplanade Avenue near Lake Trail Drive in Kenner. Attendees are asked to bring pink and blue balloons. Roneagle alumni from McDonogh 35 Senior High School are asked to bring maroon and gold balloons.
GADHEIM, Germany - Now that the European Union includes one less country, its geographical centre has shifted to the southeast  landing in a nondescript field in Bavaria.

Gadheim, a village of 80 people near the German city of Wuerzburg, was ready for the bittersweet honour well before Britain left the EU at midnight on Friday. A red-and-white pole set on a boulder marks the new spot, and the flags of the EU, Germany and the local Veitshoechheim municipality fly on flagpoles next to it.

On the one hand, of course I am proud and happy that we are becoming the new geographical centre of Europe, Veitshoechheim Mayor Juergen Goetz said. On the other hand, of course its a sad occasion, because with Britain a country is leaving the EU for the first time.

The honour of being the centre of Europe stems from calculations by Frances national cartographic institute, IGN, which places the point at 9 degrees, 54 minutes, 7 seconds east and 49 degrees, 50 minutes, 35 seconds north.

Gadheim takes over from a spot in another northern Bavarian municipality, Westerngrund, which is 56 kilometres (35 miles) to the northwest.

The EUs geographical centre, as calculated by IGN, has been in Germany ever since the bloc expanded from 15 to 25 members in May 2004 by taking in 10 mostly eastern European countries. It has moved around, however, with the 2007 expansion to include the eastern nations of Romania and Bulgaria and then in 2013 with the arrival of the newest member, Croatia. Britains departure has reduced the blocs membership to 27 nations.

Goetz said he first heard of IGNs calculation on a local radio station in March 2017, months after Britain voters decided to leave the bloc in a 2016 referendum.

At first, I thought it was an April fools joke, an early one. But it turned out very quickly that it was really the case, he said.

Local officials mulled what to do about it amid years of uncertainty over when, and even whether, Britain would actually leave the EU.

Goetzs solution was to get the new centre point ready and, if Brexit hadnt happened, we would have made a monument for the unity of Europe out of this point.

The EUs geographical centre adds a new potential tourist attraction to the nearby Veitshoechheim palace, once the summer residence of Wuerzburgs prince-bishops.

___

Geir Moulson in Berlin contributed to this report.
Atiku Abubakar, former vice-president, has called on President Donald Trump not to punish Nigerians for the shortcomings and failure of...





Atiku Abubakar, former vice-president, has called on President Donald Trump not to punish Nigerians for the shortcomings and failure of the Muhammadu Buhari-led administration.





Reacting to the immigrant visa ban placed by the United States on Nigeria, the former presidential candidate of the People Democratic Party (PDP) said Nigeria has been a major force for Americas development.





I received with sadness the policy of the government of the United States of America to place Nigeria on its travel ban list, Atiku said via a statement on Saturday.





While I understand the reasons given by the Trump administration (the failure of the Muhammadu Buhari led administration to share information and to address issues of terrorism), the ban does not take into account the pro-American sentiments of the Nigerian public and the solidarity previous Nigerian administrations have had with the United States.





I urge the government of President Donald Trump to consider the history of US-Nigerian relationships.





The 73-year-old said Nigeria was one of the few African nations that joined the US-led coalition during Operation Desert Storm between 1990-1991 when the United States championed the liberation of Kuwait.





The Trump administration may also consider the pivotal role Nigeria, in partnership with the US, played in bringing peace to Liberia, an American sphere of influence, that now enjoys democracy because Nigerian blood and money paved the way for peace in that nation.





Nigeria has also consistently voted in support of the United States and her allies at the UN and other multilateral world bodies. This is even as we are perhaps the biggest trading partner that the United States has in Africa, even where we had alternatives.





ATIKU: 77% OF BLACK DOCTORS IN THE US ARE NIGERIANS

Atiku went on to say Nigerians are skilled and good for the US development, citing examples.





Nigerians love the United States and have been a major force for the positive development of that great nation: 77% of all Black doctors in the United States are Nigerians, Atiku added.





Nigerians are also the most educated immigrant community in America bar none.





Surely, the US stands to benefit if it allows open borders with a country like Nigeria that is able to provide skilled, hardworking and dedicated personnel in a two-way traffic.





The current Nigerian administration may have its deficiencies and deep faults, but the Nigeria people ought not to be punished for their inefficiencies.





Once again, I call on President Donald Trump to consider adopting measures that individually target those in government who have failed in their duties, rather than target the entire Nigerian population.





Other countries affected by the visa ban are Eritrea, Sudan, Tanzania, Kyrgyzstan, and Myanmar.




Are vehicles banned in Karnataka? Yes and it no April Fools prank says DGP

Kunal Kamra sends legal notice to IndiGo demanding apology, revocation of 6 month ban

India

oi-PTI

New Delhi, Feb 01: Days after IndiGo banned Kunal Kamra for a six-month period for allegedly heckling journalist Arnab Goswami on a flight, the comedian has sent a legal notice to the airline demanding an unconditional apology, revocation of the ban and Rs 25 lakh compensation.

In a legal notice sent to the airline on Friday, Kamra's lawyer asked the airline to 'pay compensation towards my client in sum of Rs 25 lakhs on account of the mental pain and agony suffered by my client as well as losses incurred on account of cancellation of his scheduled shows and programmes in India as well as aborad on account of adoption of a totally illegal, arbitrary and high-handed procedure which is against the extant DGCA CAR (regulations)'.

PTI did not receive a response from IndiGo when asked about the legal notice.

For Breaking News and Instant Updates Allow Notifications

Story first published: Saturday, February 1, 2020, 15:10 [IST]
The Republican Party of Texas this weekend is considering whether to accept gay members of their party as officially recognized partners in trying to win elections. It's a fascinating look at the inner workings of the majority party in this state.

Bernie Sanders and Joe Biden are tied in Texas according to the latest public polling. And state Rep. Briscoe Cain is back on Twitter after he lost access for making a threatening comment to Rep. Beto O'Rourke months ago.
A 27-year-old man was struck and killed by a car Friday night in Wayne, police said.

Gavino Salazar, of Pequannock was hit on Route 23 in the area of the Royal Car wash when he was hit by 30-year-old driver from Congers, New York, who was traveling north on the highway, according to a joint statement from the Passaic County Prosecutors Office and the Wayne Police Department.

Police were called to the scene around 6:45 p.m. and Salazar was pronounced dead at 7:32 p.m., the office said.

The driver remained at the scene of the collision. No charges had been filed as of 11 p.m., authorities said.

The incident remained under investigation late Friday night and anyone with information was asked to contact the Passaic County Prosecutors Office tips line at 1-877-370-PCPO or tips@passaiccountynj.org or the Wayne Police Department at 973-694-0600.

Chris Sheldon may be reached at csheldon@njadvancemedia.com. Follow him on Twitter @chrisrsheldon Find NJ.com on Facebook.

Have a tip? Tell us. nj.com/tips. Get the latest updates right in your inbox. Subscribe to NJ.coms newsletters.
Almost 60 million people are under lockdown in China, stores and offices have closed, and the U.S. and other countries are evacuating their citizens from the epicenter of the coronavirus outbreak. So far, more than 7,700 cases have been confirmed in China, and at least 170 people have died.

All of this is happening during the Chinese New Year holiday, when people in China typically buy gifts, go out, entertain, and celebrate. Last year, they spent the equivalent of about $146 billion during the holiday, according to the Commerce Ministry. This year, as coronavirus fears intensify and customers stay home rather than go shopping, it's clear that the figure will be much different.

Companies such as LVMH Moet Hennessy Louis Vuitton SE (OTC:LVMHF), The Estee Lauder Companies (NYSE:EL), and Hermes International (OTC:HESA.F), makers of a vast range of luxury products, normally could expect to benefit during this time of celebration.

A large share of sales

In a 2019 report, LVMH said the Chinese New Year was key for its subsidiary DFS, a network of duty-free shops, which saw strong performance during that period. The luxury-goods maker also noted growth in its wine and spirits business in China last year, citing the Chinese New Year as part of the reason. LVMH makes 30% of its $59.2 billion in revenue in Asia excluding Japan.

And LVMH isn't alone. Chinese customers make up a large share of global luxury goods sales. Mainland China has been a growth driver for the luxury-goods industry, according to a report by Bain & Company. In 2019, the market there grew 26% to $33 billion.

In its fiscal first-quarter earnings report, skincare and cosmetics maker Estee Lauder said that many of the "overachievements" in the quarter came from business in China. The company said it had double-digit growth in China in all categories, all channels, and almost all brands during the quarter. Estee Lauder makes about 25% of its $14.9 billion in annual revenue in the Asia Pacific region.

Hermes, known for its silk scarves and leather goods, called the performance of mainland China "outstanding" in the third quarter; it reported a 19% increase in revenue in Asia excluding Japan. Hermes makes 36% of its $6.6 billion in annual revenue in Asia excluding Japan. In the third quarter, the company also announced the opening of its 26th store in China.

How dire is the situation for these companies?

Surely, luxury-goods sellers will see a dip in sales over the Chinese New Year period, which began Jan. 25 and ends Feb. 8. That isn't great, but companies like LVMH, Estee Lauder, and Hermes are strong enough to handle a soft period that lasts for a few weeks. LVMH chairman and CEO Bernard Arnault told The Wall Street Journal that the situation wouldn't be difficult for his business if it continued through March, but that "if it lasts two years, that would be another story."

Last year, we saw an example in another major region for luxury goods -- Hong Kong -- as months of protests against its government led to shop closures and a drop in customers visiting shopping districts. The troubles hurt luxury-goods companies, but not drastically. LVMH said that because its duty-free business faced a slowdown due to the Hong Kong situation, the business is entering 2020 with a "vigilant approach," and the company will diversify its locations and activities. But overall, LVMH reported a 15% increase in revenue for the year. Estee Lauder also spoke of the Hong Kong protests in its last earnings report, saying net sales there declined in the quarter due to the unrest, but the company's net sales overall rose 11%. And Hermes said that sales rose in Hong Kong in the third quarter in spite of the troubles.

The problem is that if the coronavirus continues to spread, either within China or beyond, it will lead to a drop in consumer spending over time. Not only will companies lose sales in China, but they'll also miss out on purchases that Chinese travelers -- kept home due to the crisis -- would have made abroad. Nevertheless, while luxury-goods companies may take a hit for a quarter or even the full year, which might be a short-term drag on shares, this shouldn't prompt long-term investors to avoid luxury-goods names.

What are investors to do?

The Hong Kong protests might be our guide. Considering the strong revenue results at LVMH, Estee Lauder, and Hermes -- even through the Hong Kong events -- it is likely that they can weather this storm, too. Governments and health officials are making the coronavirus outbreak a priority, so at this point, we can hope the problem can be contained.

For the month, Estee Lauder shares are down 5.4%, while U.S.-traded shares of LVMH are down 6.4% and Hermes stock is down 1%. Any declines in the share prices -- and they may continue to drop as the coronavirus story unfolds -- aren't a reason for panic. Instead, they're opportunities to buy shares of solid companies that have proven themselves.
WASHINGTON  After months of promising to fix Alabamas dangerously violent prison system, a panel appointed by the governor issued recommendations this week that would do little to address the underlying problems identified last year in a scathing Justice Department report, which documented prisoners being routinely assaulted and tortured, sometimes with the knowledge and even participation of prison guards.

The plan calls for more oversight, new supermax facilities and a long-term reduction in the overall inmate population, but the panel acknowledged that those recommendations alone would not bring an end to the severe, systemic conditions that the Justice Department said violated the Eighth Amendment protection from cruel and unusual punishment.

Alabama lawmakers have long declined to impose oversight or build new facilities, leaving existing prisons to crumble and allowing drugs and gang violence to flourish behind their walls. Conditions documented last year by federal civil rights investigators included overcrowding, understaffing, free-flowing weapons and drugs, corruption among management and staff, extortion, and facilities so bad that investigators had to walk past raw sewage during an inspection.

A failure to fix those problems could result in Alabamas prison system being placed in the hands of an outside, court-appointed party that would control its budget and operations. Something similar happened to California in 2006, when a federal judge gave an outside authority control over the mental health system in its state prisons. And in 2011, the United States Supreme Court found the state in violation of the Eighth Amendment and ordered it to reduce the prison population.
While every one is a little Irish on St. Patrick's Day, one man says the authentic Irish celebration is really on St. Brigid's Day.

St. Brigid's Day, or Imbolc as it's sometimes called, is named after the one of Ireland's patron saints, Saint Brigid of Kildare.

It takes place yearly on Feb. 1, which is roughly the halfway point between the start of winter and the start of spring.

The celebration traces its roots back to pre-Christian times in Ireland but has now become associated with St. Brigid and is celebrated by the Irish, Scottish, the Manx and even neo-pagans and Wiccans.

Submitted by William Beers

But it's St. Brigid's Irish birth that makes the celebration so meaningful for William Beers, the vice-president of the Irish Canadian Cultural Association of New Brunswick, Moncton chapter.

"St. Patrick wasn't himself Irish whatsoever" Beers said. "He was a patrician, which means he was a part of the aristocracy of the Roman Empire.

"St. Brigid, on the other hand, she was a native-born Irish girl."

St. Patrick was actually born in Roman-conquered Britain, while St. Brigid was born in what is now Dundalk in the north of Ireland.

"St. Patrick, he's probably the most well-known outside of Ireland," said Beers.

"But St. Brigid is really present in the everyday psyche and, historically, the everyday life of Irish people."

Another thing that makes St. Brigid's Day more appealing to Beers is that it doesn't perpetuate stereotypes of the Irish.

While St. Patrick's Day may be celebrated by all, a major aspect is the excessive consumption of alcohol here in North America, something Beers said the Irish don't appreciate.

"It's unfortunate that St. Patrick's Day is associated with alcohol and drinking too much," said Beers.

"That's not really what the culture's about and there's a lot more depth. If you go to Ireland they really detest a lot of the ways we think of them."

Story continues

Beers said St. Brigid's day has two parts, a party atmosphere on St. Brigid's Eve and a more family-oriented celebration on St. Brigid's Day.

Submitted by William Beers

On the eve of Feb. 1, Beers said people would place trinkets and other items around their homes, believing St. Brigid would visit and bless them during the night.

And she would show up  in a way.

"The Biddy Boys" are groups of men dressed up in costumes and extravagant hats made of straw, carrying a doll representing St. Brigid, called a Brideog, who would visit house to house in the community, similar to the Newfoundland tradition of mummers.

"Sort of similar to Halloween but it would be just for St. Brigid's Eve," said Beers

The celebrations on St Brigid's Day are far more tame, but just as meaningful, including a mass and a family meal.

Beers will be part of that celebration in Irishtown this weekend, north of Moncton.

"The doll herself will be present," said Beers.

Irishtown's St. Brigid's Day celebration will take place Saturday starting at 11 a.m at St. Lawrence O'Toole Church.
By Express News Service

NEW DELHI: As a precautionary measure, the Central government on Saturday decided to screen all passengers coming from Thailand and Singapore for symptoms of Novel Coronavirus.



In addition to the travellers coming from China and Hong Kong at the airports in the country in view of the infection outbreak in China. As of Saturday, 52,332 passengers from 326 flights were screened.

In China, 259 patients have died in the outbreak so far while over 12,000 have been confirmed as having developed the infection, for which there is no vaccination available till now.



ALSO READ: US declares Coronavirus 'emergency,' bans travellers from China

A total of 97 travellers picked up the symptoms in the country according to the Integrated Disease Surveillance Programme who were then referred to the isolation facilities.

Out of the 98 samples that have been tested for coronavirus, only one has been tested negative in India.

The only confirmed patient of nCoV hails from Kerala, an MBBS student who had returned from Wuhan, China, is be is being monitored and is stable, said Union Health and Family Welfare Ministry.

The 324 passengers from China who were flown on Saturday morning are also being monitored constantly at two facilities in Delhi-NCR where they have been quarantined.
Chinese Authorities Send Charter Flights Globally to Return Wuhan Residents - Foreign Ministry

Sputnik News

03:16 GMT 31.01.2020(updated 03:56 GMT 31.01.2020)

China's Wuhan is ground zero for the latest strain of the coronavirus, dubbed 2019-nCoV, or more commonly the Wuhan virus that has spread to at least 19 countries, infecting 9,356 people in China alone.

The Chinese Foreign Ministry said in a statement on Friday that Beijing prepared special charter flights to return Wuhan residents from abroad to the epicenter of the virus-hit Hubei province.

"Given the fact that residents of Hubei province, especially residents of Wuhan, have recently faced real difficulties abroad, the Chinese government has decided to send Charter flights as soon as possible and deliver them directly to Wuhan", the statement said.

The Chinese aviation watchdog earlier green-lighted the drafting of charter flights for domestic air carriers to bring Chinese tourists from abroad back to the mainland over the rapidly spreading outbreak.

The 11 million people of the city of Wuhan have de-facto been cordoned off from the other provinces. Public transportation services have reportedly been suspended in the city. Air and ground transport with the rest of mainland China has been cut off.

As of Friday, the epidemic has left 213 people dead. While the number of people exposed to the new strain of coronavirus continues rising, Chinese officials continue to assert that they are confident that the outbreak will be quickly contained.

Authorities have globally suspended air traffic to and from China, increased border and airport control, and put travelers with even slight traces of flu symptoms into isolated wards under quarantine.

The number of confirmed cases of the new coronavirus has already surpassed the number of cases of the severe acute respiratory syndrome (SARS) during the 2002-2003 outbreak, caused by another type of coronavirus.

 Sputnik

NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address






Lamar Alexander of Tennessee said in a statement last night that Mr. Trump did what Democrats accused him of, and that those actions were inappropriate. He said that there is no need for more evidence to prove something that has already been proven and that does not meet the United States Constitutions high bar for an impeachable offense. (Ben Sasse of Nebraska said that Lamar speaks for lots and lots of us.)

Lamar Alexanders decision

My colleague Carl Hulse interviewed Mr. Alexander in a small private office on the third floor of the Capitol this afternoon. There, the outgoing senator offered more detail on how he thought about his no vote on witnesses. Why call them, Mr. Alexander asked, if you are persuaded that he did it.

I called Carl to ask about what Mr. Alexanders decision can tell us about how Republicans came together to effectively end the trial.

Carl, I was struck by the political-cultural argument behind his vote. He said removing Mr. Trump from office would pour gasoline on cultural fires that are burning out there. Why did he frame his decision that way?

He thought it would just be too disruptive, that even if you add up all this conduct, it just isnt of the level for which youd remove a president at such a volatile moment.

He thought that this close to the election, doing something so drastic as pushing the president out of office would have sparked what would basically be a rebellion. People wouldnt have accepted the election, he thought. He talked to me about what would happen to the primary ballots Mr. Trumps name is on already.

What does he think the cultural fires are?

He thinks of it as the divide between urban and coastal America and the rest of the country, and that people outside of the coasts would go crazy if Mr. Trump was thrown out. The president is the embodiment of the Republican Party and its position now. Conservatives identify their conservatism with Mr. Trump. Senate Republicans challenge him at their own risk.
When the clock struck 11 p.m. local time on Jan. 31, Britain officially left the European Union, after three and a half years largely marked by arguments, negotiations and divisions.

The moment heralded the start of a new, uncertain phase in the U.K.s national life. Britains lawmakers gave up their seats in the European Parliament, its trade officials became free to start negotiating with other countries, and pockets across the nation began to jangle with three million commemorative coins, minted to mark the occasion.

But as the sun rose on Feb. 1, Brits would be forgiven for not noticing much of a change. Thats because, thanks to the divorce deal agreed by Prime Minister Boris Johnson and E.U. leaders, the U.K. has now entered a transition period until the end of December 2020. That means most E.U. laws will continue to apply in Britain, including the rights of E.U. citizens to live and work in the country. Although new immigration rules were announced Feb. 19, they will not come into force until 2021.

So Britain will immediately recoup neither the sovereignty nor the control of its borders that voters were promised by the Leave side during the 2016 referendum. Officially, however, it will be one step closer to doing so. Heres what to know about the months to come.

What will happen to travel after Jan. 31?

During the transition period, travel between the U.K. and the E.U. will continue as normal. That means travelers who are U.K. or E.U. citizens will not need visas. It also means U.K. citizens can continue to work in E.U. countries  though they have long been advised to apply for residency to make sure they can continue to do so after the transition period ends. (The same applies for E.U. citizens living in the U.K.)

The EHIC health insurance card, which ensures holders access to foreign medical services during time abroad, will continue to work as normal until December.

Story continues

Cellphone roaming fees  nonexistent for E.U. citizens in other member states under an agreement that came into force in 2017  will also continue to be free for Brits in the E.U. and vice versa, until December. After the transition period ends they could increase, depending on the deal the U.K. reaches with the bloc.

After the transition period ends, tourists from the U.K. will not need visas for trips of less than 90 days to the E.U., Iceland, Liechtenstein, Norway or Switzerland. But people wanting to work, study, or travel for business may need more documentation.

What will happen to immigration rules?

Ending Britains obligation to allow any E.U. citizen to travel, settle and work in the country was one of the driving factors behind the 2016 Brexit vote. Accordingly, setting out new, harsher immigration rules has been a priority for Johnsons government.

On Feb. 19, the government announced a new points-based immigration system, which will come into force after the transition period ends.

Under the new system, foreign workers must pass an English test and hold a job offer at an appropriate skill level from an approved sponsor.

Those mandatory conditions would together award 50 points in the new system. To be eligible for entry to the U.K., a foreign worker must hold 70 points. More points are awarded, in bands, for higher salaries, higher educational qualifications, or if an applicant is seeking a shortage job, like nursing, where workers are in demand.

The Confederation of British Industry, a business lobby group, said the salary thresholds could hurt sectors of the British economy (like agriculture) that depend heavily on low-cost migrant labour.

It is unclear whether the E.U. will apply similar rules to the 1.2 million British migrants currently living and working in member states.

What will happen to the economy?

The stock markets will likely treat Feb. 1 like a normal day, given Brexit has been all but inevitable since Johnsons victory in Britains Dec. 2019 general election.

But theres still significant uncertainty on the horizon. Britain will begin trade talks with the E.U. in March, a high priority for Johnson who is keen to retain as many privileges of Britains membership of the E.U. as possible. But Johnson would also like to jettison some of the E.U. regulations currently complied with by the U.K. The E.U. is making it very clear that there will inevitably be a trade off between the U.K.s desire to deregulate and its demand for access to the E.U. market, says Tim Bale, the deputy director of U.K. in a Changing Europe, a non-partisan academic research institute. The U.K., as always, wants to have its cake and eat it.

Britain will also be free to begin trade talks with the U.S., a country with which the E.U. does not have an existing free trade agreement. Trump has talked up the possibility of a tremendous deal with the U.K. that has the potential to be far bigger and more lucrative than any agreement with the E.U.

But such a deal, if agreed, will come at a price. Kim Darroch, the U.K.s former Ambassador to the U.S., stole headlines on Friday when he said, in an interview with the Guardian, that President Trump would pressure the U.K. to accept higher prices for American pharmaceutical drugs and lower standards for agricultural goods in any trade deal. Do they want us to pay more for their pharmaceuticals? Do the pharmaceutical companies want to use this leverage? Of course they do, Darroch said.

Any deals agreed would not come into force until after the transition period ends in December.

Could there be another Brexit delay?

Johnson has repeatedly promised that there will be no further delay to Brexit, and that the transition period will therefore end on Dec. 31, 2020.

That leaves just 10 months for the E.U. and U.K. to strike an agreement on their future relationship, since talks are set to start on Mar. 3.

If they fail to reach an agreement, then it could put a no deal Brexit back on the horizon. In other words, Britain could end up abruptly leaving the E.U.s single market and customs union with no deals to smooth its passage. That could mean lines at ports thanks to new customs checks, a sharp drop in cross-border trade as tariffs come into force, and new restrictions on U.K. businesses operating in the E.U.

With such a large majority in Parliament, Johnson could perhaps afford to renege on his pledge not to extend the transition period, especially if a deal were in sight.

He will almost certainly have to extend. No-one in modern times, after all, has managed to do a comprehensive trade deal in only a matter of months, Bale says. He just wont call it an extension. Instead, itll be labeled Phase One or somesuch. And hell probably get away with it too.
Chandigarh, Feb 1 : Eminent Punjabi writer, novelist and Sahitya Akademi Awardee, Jaswant Singh Kanwal (101), died at his house in Dhudike village in Moga district in Punjab on Saturday morning after a brief illness, his family said. He was 101.

"He woke up in the morning and collapsed after coming out of the bathroom," Kanwal's grandson Sumail Singh Sidhu told the media.

The last rites will be held at the village cremation ground on Sunday.

Known as the 'writer of movements', Kanwal penned nearly 80 books and novels.

He received the Sahitya Akademi Award for his novel 'Taushali Di Hanso' in 1997.

Punjab Chief Minister Amarinder Singh condoled his demise.

In a condolence message, Amarinder Singh described Kanwal as a versatile writer, who penned nearly 80 books and novels vividly portraying the rural life of Punjab.

The Chief Minister also lauded the immense contribution of Kanwal towards promotion of Punjabi language, art and literature through his literary works.

He said that Kanwal would be ever remembered by one and all especially his millions of readers for his prolific writings, which lent a voice to the plight of common man grappling with several socio-economic hardships.

A void has been created with the death of Kanwal in the literary circles, which is difficult to be filled, the Chief Minister added.
Bernie

Regarding Around the Area: Sanders surges as primary nears, (A6, Jan. 30): Id appreciate the real news about Sen. Bernie Sanders, his record-breaking fundraising, his tremendous number of volunteers, his huge rally numbers, his platform and the way he is constantly topping polls. Media has been very unfair to him overall. Its not good journalism to practically ingore a true front runner. Also, love Keri Blakingers work.

Henry Lamb, Houston

Religious freedom

Regarding Faith-based adoption adds providers, (A11, Jan. 23): The lawsuit Archdiocese of Galveston-Houston and Texas Department of Family and Protective Services versus the federal Health and Human Services presents a number of concerns to religious and non-religious citizens alike.

These two plaintiffs together bringing this suit is an assault on church-state separation. The fact that a Texas state agency would join a suit to free a religious group from anti-discrimination laws illustrates the state governments view of civil rights.

The effect of a decision in favor of the state and its contractor, the archdiocese, would allow the archdiocese to discriminate against the LGBTQIA community along with other groups the archdiocese doesnt like. Such policies could put a significant strain on the foster care system if agencies turn away otherwise qualified parents who dont pass a religious litmus test, leaving too many kids without a home.

Such a decision would set a precedent for other religious groups and other state contractors to be freed from federal anti-discrimination laws. Other state contractors will be encouraged to ignore inconvenient anti-discrimination laws.

This lawsuit is a flagrant attempt to use the argument of religious freedom as a sword to attack the civil rights of others. The state is encouraging the wielding of this sword. We must sound alarms and resist this attack on our civil rights.

Keith Thompson, Americans United for Separation of Church and State  Houston Chapter Treasurer

I-45

Regarding Next round of I-45 talks starts today, (A3, Jan. 30): I totally oppose TxDOTs plans for the expansion of I-45 from downtown to the Sam Houston Tollway. The argument that it will improve the flow of traffic is vastly outweighed by the damage it will cause. The idea that adding and/or widening existing lanes will be a good thing was totally disproved when they redid the Katy Freeway. Traffic worsened.

The damage to the surrounding communities if this 18-mile expansion goes forward will be major. Homes, many of them low-income housing, businesses, churches and schools will be destroyed. There is a severe housing shortage in Houston already, and I have serious concerns as to where these displaced people could live. There is also a concern about worsening air quality.

I urge all of us to carefully consider the long-term effect of the I-45 expansion on our city. I plan to continue supporting the groups that are working against it.

Kathy Grundy, Houston
Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Saturday congratulated the Maldives for its return to the Commonwealth as its 54th member.

The Maldives had joined the Commonwealth in 1982, but withdrew its membership in 2016.

"I heartily congratulate President @ibusolih, Speaker @MohamedNasheed and the people of The Maldives on readmission to the @commonwealthsec.

"We warmly welcome The Maldives in the Commonwealth and look forward to The Maldives playing a larger role in the comity of nations and realising the full potential as well as aspirations of its people," the PM tweeted.

The Commonwealth is a key grouping of countries, most of which are former territories of the British Empire.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
Botswana Registers First Suspected Case of Coronavirus

By Mqondisi Dube January 31, 2020

Botswana has registered its first suspected case of the deadly coronavirus. A person arriving from China aboard Ethiopian Airways showed symptoms consistent with the virus.

Botswana's Ministry of Health said a man was detained at a local clinic soon after his flight from China landed at Gaborone's Sir Seretse Khama Airport on Thursday.

The ministry said the unnamed male displayed symptoms consistent with the coronavirus but did not say what those symptoms were.

The country's director of health services, Malaki Tshipayagae, said the patient has been isolated at a clinic in the capital as an investigation continues.

Meanwhile, the government has urged Botswana nationals to take precautions in order to avoid contracting the virus.

Nervousness

Mpho Marumo, a Gaborone resident, said there is panic after the first suspected case.

"We are doing all we can to take the necessary precautions," Marumo said. "Our fear is that the virus might have spread already, as many people arrive from China, some undetected."

The suspected case came as some Botswana nationals were holed up in the Chinese city of Wuhan, the epicenter of the virus outbreak.

Botswana has an estimated 500 nationals studying or working in China. A student who spoke on condition of anonymity said it had been a very difficult few days.

"I was supposed to leave to Botswana but my ticket was canceled," the student said. "Following that, we are not allowed to go anywhere."

The World Health Organization (WHO) declared a global health emergency as the death toll from the virus rose above 200 this week.

NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address






Residents will enjoy the benefit of doctor consultations, specialist doctor consultations, and access to a laboratory where over 40 tests can be performed

Gurugram based start-up Tattvan is planning to launch its new telemedicine e - clinic in the Ramky Discover Community of Hyderabad. The e-clinic will provide comprehensive & holistic healthcare solutions to residents of the community. Residents will enjoy the benefit of doctor consultations, specialist doctor consultations, and access to a laboratory where over 40 tests can be performed. Residents will also have access to a pharmacy and referral system, which will help them be admitted to suitable hospitals when required.

For an affordable price, they will be examined by specialist doctors from top-notch hospitals. Residents will enjoy the medical advice of doctors who practice in some of the worlds leading hospitals.

The pharmacy attached to the clinic will stock general medical supplies. Residents of the gated community will enjoy easy access to such supplies. Tattvans successful partnerships with leading physicians means doctors are available to community members via virtual mode at a lower cost than they are to those who seek treatment via traditional OPDs.

To ensure the clinic's effectiveness periodic checkups will be performed at the facility. Furthermore, to provide world-class service, every patients record will be stored electronically and remain accessible from anywhere in the world. As the size of the community grows along with the demand for healthcare, the clinic will become operational 24X7. Soon Tattvan will launch a mobile app which residents can use from their homes. The app will allow patients to be examined by doctors without leaving their homes.

Speaking about the possibilities of the new clinic Mr. Ayush Mishra of Tattvan said The Ramky Discover Community is among the finest in Hyderabad. It is a tight-knit community whose members contribute immensely to society. Residents of the community have a global worldview and aspirations. We help them realizetheir ambition of living in a world-class community that has every important facility within its borders. Residents of the community will enjoy the benefit of being treated by the worlds best physicians. Many such physicians dont practice in Hyderabad but will treat those living in Ramky because of Tattvan. Were very proud to be allowed to serve residents of this thriving community.
Blog Archive Apr 2010 (22) May 2010 (25) Jun 2010 (8) Jul 2010 (12) Aug 2010 (18) Sep 2010 (19) Oct 2010 (29) Nov 2010 (30) Dec 2010 (18) Jan 2011 (13) Feb 2011 (21) Mar 2011 (23) Apr 2011 (19) May 2011 (31) Jun 2011 (36) Jul 2011 (46) Aug 2011 (26) Sep 2011 (12) Oct 2011 (15) Nov 2011 (17) Dec 2011 (7) Jan 2012 (18) Feb 2012 (4) Mar 2012 (12) Apr 2012 (18) May 2012 (10) Jun 2012 (21) Jul 2012 (8) Aug 2012 (15) Sep 2012 (7) Oct 2012 (17) Nov 2012 (20) Dec 2012 (10) Jan 2013 (58) Feb 2013 (59) Mar 2013 (60) Apr 2013 (98) May 2013 (135) Jun 2013 (204) Jul 2013 (293) Aug 2013 (351) Sep 2013 (363) Oct 2013 (348) Nov 2013 (374) Dec 2013 (442) Jan 2014 (547) Feb 2014 (476) Mar 2014 (526) Apr 2014 (527) May 2014 (469) Jun 2014 (408) Jul 2014 (472) Aug 2014 (522) Sep 2014 (443) Oct 2014 (472) Nov 2014 (497) Dec 2014 (536) Jan 2015 (539) Feb 2015 (520) Mar 2015 (582) Apr 2015 (658) May 2015 (679) Jun 2015 (673) Jul 2015 (728) Aug 2015 (803) Sep 2015 (923) Oct 2015 (924) Nov 2015 (802) Dec 2015 (791) Jan 2016 (782) Feb 2016 (835) Mar 2016 (929) Apr 2016 (866) May 2016 (947) Jun 2016 (1044) Jul 2016 (882) Aug 2016 (1035) Sep 2016 (967) Oct 2016 (918) Nov 2016 (854) Dec 2016 (885) Jan 2017 (879) Feb 2017 (777) Mar 2017 (896) Apr 2017 (872) May 2017 (850) Jun 2017 (851) Jul 2017 (971) Aug 2017 (1040) Sep 2017 (998) Oct 2017 (1144) Nov 2017 (1046) Dec 2017 (838) Jan 2018 (873) Feb 2018 (769) Mar 2018 (885) Apr 2018 (809) May 2018 (827) Jun 2018 (820) Jul 2018 (840) Aug 2018 (854) Sep 2018 (844) Oct 2018 (851) Nov 2018 (870) Dec 2018 (912) Jan 2019 (919) Feb 2019 (827) Mar 2019 (957) Apr 2019 (913) May 2019 (1007) Jun 2019 (935) Jul 2019 (950) Aug 2019 (936) Sep 2019 (910) Oct 2019 (920) Nov 2019 (874) Dec 2019 (908) Jan 2020 (941) Feb 2020 (849) Mar 2020 (898) Apr 2020 (848) May 2020 (822) Jun 2020 (789) Jul 2020 (819) Aug 2020 (858) Sep 2020 (841) Oct 2020 (873) Nov 2020 (812) Dec 2020 (780) Jan 2021 (765) Feb 2021 (716) Mar 2021 (819) Apr 2021 (805) May 2021 (815) Jun 2021 (824) Jul 2021 (830) Aug 2021 (832) Sep 2021 (791) Oct 2021 (754) Nov 2021 (683) Dec 2021 (693) Jan 2022 (231)
Commonwealth nations on Saturday welcomed back the Maldives 40 months after it angrily quit the organisation over criticism of its human rights record under strongman president Abdulla Yameen.

The move is a new step in ending the international isolation that the Indian Ocean holiday destination suffered under Yameen's rule from 2013 to 2018.

The group of mainly former British colonies said an application to return made by the Maldives had been approved after "due diligence" including a country assessment.

The country has sought to repair its image after Yameen suffered a shock defeat in a 2018 election to Ibrahim Mohamed Solih.

The Maldives government said Solih telephoned Commonwealth secretary general Patricia Scotland to state that renewed membership was "symbolic of this administrations commitment to both engage with the international community and to deliver on our domestic pledges to citizens in good faith."

The Commonwealth said reforms underway in Maldives were in line with the group's values and they encouraged Solih to pursue the measures.

"Together we will support Maldives to realise its ambitions," Scotland said.

Yameen withdrew the Maldives, an archipelago of 340,000 Sunni Muslims, from the Commonwealth over its pressure to protect human rights during a fierce crackdown on dissent.

Yameen accused the Commonwealth leadership of interfering in the nation's affairs.

But on top of Commonwealth criticism, the United States repeatedly warned about events in the strategically-located archipelago sitting on key international shipping lanes.

Since Solih's election, political prisoners have been freed and opposition figures in exile have returned home.
A special Air India flight carrying 324 Indians -- who were evacuated from the coronavirus-hit Chinese city of Wuhan -- landed in the capital on Saturday morning.

The Boeing 747 Jumbo aircraft had taken off from Wuhan's Tianhe International Airport in the early hours of Saturday and landed here at the Indira Gandhi International Airport in Delhi at 7:26 am.

The passengers, mostly students, will be kept in isolation for 14 days at the ITBP centre in Chhawla in the capital upon their arrival.

The departure of the flight was delayed from Wuhan airport as immigration and Chinese authorities did not allow six Indians on board after they reported high temperatures during screening.

"Six passengers were offloaded as they had high temperatures," a passenger told ANI.

A screening camp has been set up at the Delhi Airport where they will be screened before they are put under quarantine.

All the passengers will go through necessary screening and following that will be put under observation. Ministry of External Affairs, Health Ministry and the Army will make arrangements for the passengers.

The Union Health Ministry had said on Friday that the government has made adequate quarantine camps at Manesar ((managed by Armed Forces Medical Services) and at Chhawla (managed by ITBP).

The special double-decker flight -- with a team of doctors, 20 crew members, and all necessary resources like masks, medical equipment, packed food, prescribed medicines -- had departed from Delhi on Friday.

According to the Indian Embassy in Beijing, there will be another flight to evacuate the remaining Indian nationals.

"We look forward to operating another flight to evacuate remaining Indian nationals, who have consented to leave Hubei Province for the time being," the EOIBeijing announced on its official Twitter handle.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
The EU External Action shortly after the Brexit issued a statement and announced that the EUs diplomatic mission in London will be carried out by the EU delegation led by Ambassador diplomat Joao Vale de Almeida, DW reported.

The relevant statement of the EU High Representative of the Union for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy, Josep Borrell, was released on Saturday.

The EU delegation will play a key role in monitoring the implementation of the Brexit deal between Brussels and London.

UK officially ceased to be a member of the EU on February 1. Prime Minister Boris Johnson addressed the nation the same day.
Saturday, February 1, 2020 at 1:09PM

Netflix has extended its deal with Adam Sandler and his Happy Madison Productions company for four new movies for the streaming service. Murder Mystery, which was filmed in Montreal, was Netflix's most-watched film in Canada and the US in 2018. That film is one of six Sandler movies that will be on Netflix within the first part of their agreement. The others include The Do-Over, The Ridiculous 6, Sandy Wexler, The Week Of, and the not-yet-released Hubie Halloween. There's also a Sandler-written film that he's set to produce and voice star in that's part of the previous deal. We don't know yet what the four upcoming movies will be. Perhaps one of them will be Murder Mystery 2?

Source: Variety
China faced increasing isolation over the coronavirus epidemic, as the death toll rose to 259 on Saturday. AFP photo

Beijing: China's death toll from a new virus rose to 259 on Saturday and a World Health Organisation official said other governments need to prepare for "domestic outbreak control'' if the disease spreads in their countries.

Beijing criticized Washington's order barring entry to most foreigners who visited China in the past two weeks.

Australian Prime Minister Scott Morrison announced similar measures on Saturday, following Japan and Singapore.

Meanwhile, South Korea and India flew hundreds of their citizens out of Wuhan, the city at the center of an area where some 50 million people are prevented from leaving in a sweeping anti-virus effort. The evacuees went into a two-week quarantine. Indonesia also was sending a plane.

The number of confirmed cases in China rose to 11,791, surpassing the number in the 2002-03 outbreak of SARS, or Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome. The virus's rapid spread in two months has prompted the World Health Organization to declare it a global emergency.

That declaration "flipped the switch'' from a cautious attitude earlier to recommending governments prepare for the possibility the virus might spread, said the WHO representative in Beijing, Gauden Galea. Most cases reported so far have been people who visited China or their family members.

The agency acted out of concern for poorer countries that might not be equipped to respond, said Galea. Such a declaration calls for a coordinated international response and can bring more money and resources.

WHO noted in its declaration Thursday it was especially concerned that some cases abroad involved human-to-human transmission.

"Countries need to get ready for possible importation in order to identify cases as early as possible and in order to be ready for a domestic outbreak control, if that happens,'' Galea said.

On Friday, the United States declared a public health emergency and President Donald Trump signed an order barring entry to foreign nationals, other than immediate family of American citizens and permanent residents, who visited China within the last 14 days, which scientists say is the virus's longest incubation period.

China criticized the U.S. controls, which it said contradicted the WHO's appeal to avoid travel bans, and "unfriendly comments'' that Beijing was failing to cooperate.

"Just as the WHO recommended against travel restrictions, the U.S. rushed to go in the opposite way. Certainly not a gesture of goodwill,'' said foreign ministry spokeswoman Hua Chunying.

WHO Secretary-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus said that despite the emergency declaration there is "no reason for measures that unnecessarily interfere with international travel and trade.''

Meanwhile, the ruling Communist Party postponed the end of the Lunar New Year holiday in Hubei province, where Wuhan is located, for an unspecified "appropriate extent'' and appealed to the public there to stay home.
Actor Owen Wilson is in talks with the makers as he can prospectively join Marvel's upcoming 'Loki' series. The Disney+ show has Tom Hiddleston playing the role of the trickster God alike his role in the 2011 movie 'Thor'.

The Hollywood Reporter shares that the makers are considering Owen for a major role in the series.

The character's death was sketched in 'Avengers: Infinity War' but was brought back through the time travel storyline. Loki showed up in 2019 release 'Avengers: Endgame' for a brief duration.

The plot of the series revolves around the character's rejuvenated version. Michael Waldron has taken up the responsibility to pen down the story for Loki, and will also be seen as a show creator and executive producer of the series.

'Loki' is one of the number of shows Marvel Studios is producing for Disney+, other than 'Falcon' and 'The Winter Soldier'.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
T he EU's Brexit co-ordinator has said the bloc will "look after your star" in a message to Britons after the UK left the EU.

The message was projected on the same stretch of coastline that provided a welcoming sight for soldiers returning from Dunkirk in 1940.

After the touching words from the two veterans, the video ends with the stars on the EU flag slowly disappearing. With just one star remaining, the line reads: "This is our star. Look after it for us."

Message reading 'this is our star, look after it for us' being projected onto the side of the White Cliffs of Dover by Led By Donkeys / PA

Responding as the UK wakes to its first day outside the EU, Mr Verhofstadt wrote on Twitter: "We'll look after your star."

He added that the bloc will "work to ensure the EU is a project you'll want to be a part of again soon."

The Brexit co-ordinator shared the message alongside the EU and Union flag symbols with a heart between them.

The video of the veterans was the brainchild of Led By Donkeys, a group of four activist fathers famed for their giant billboards of politicians' tweets.

In the tribute - also translated into French and German - Mr Goodall spoke of his sadness about Brexit.

Brigadier Stephen Goodall talking about the prospect of Brexit being projected onto the side of the White Cliffs of Dover / PA

The 97-year-old, who served in the Army for 32 years, said: "I feel really depressed at the idea that we are leaving Europe because it has meant so much to me.

"I like to be called a European. And the feeling that one has of comradeship as one goes round Europe is really quite something."

He added: "At my age I shan't be living much longer but I hope that, for the sake of my children and my grandchildren and my great-grandchildren, that England, Britain will move back to be much closer to Europe than what we have done now."

It comes as European Council president Charles Michel responded to Brexit with a Monty Python reference, saying always look on the bright side.
A Jersey City man was sentenced to life in prison Friday for the murder of a 23-month-old in his care in July 2018.

Andrew Howard-French, 29, must serve 85 percent of 75 years, or 63 years and 9 months, for the death of Bryce Sparrow, who suffered multiple blunt force injuries prior to his death on July 17, 2018, Hudson County Prosecutor Esther Suarez said.

Hudson County Superior Court Judge Patrick Arre also sentenced Howard-French to five years for endangering the welfare of an injured victim, which will run consecutive to the murder sentence. Howard-French was handed a 10-year concurrent sentence for endangering the welfare of a child.

Sparrow was pronounced dead at a local hospital after EMS and Jersey City firefighters responded to 115 Wagenen Ave. on a report of an overheated baby earlier that day.

Sources say Howard-French had reported the child was suffering from heat exhaustion  it was over 90 degrees that day  but doctors noticed Bryce had physical injuries. Howard-French was arrested a week later.

Howard-French was convicted in October after a two-week trial and one and half days of deliberation by the jury.

The State was represented by Assistant Prosecutor Najma Rana from the Hudson County Prosecutors Office Homicide Unit.
Thailand has confirmed its first case of human to human transmission of the new deadly coronavirus inside the country, according to its health official on January 31. The total number of cases has reached 19, the second-highest after China. The first patient who was diagnosed with the virus inside Thailand is a taxi driver according to the deputy director-general of the Department of Disease Control, Tanarak Pipat.

Tanarak said that he does not have any record of travelling to China but believed that he was infected by a sick traveller from China. The authorities have performed virus scans on 13 people, including three family members, who the taxi driver came into contact with.

READ: China: People Come Up With Creative Ideas To Fight Coronavirus Amid Lockdown

Seven out of Thailand's 19 cases of Coronavirus have recovered

Thai authorities have said that initially none of the Coronavirus patients had tested positive for the virus. Seven out of Thailand's 19 confirmed Coronavirus cases have successfully recovered from the infection and have been sent home. The remaining 12 are still being treated at hospitals.

Chinese Coronavirus death toll rises

The death toll from the Coronavirus outbreak has risen to 213 with more than 9800 confirmed cases in China after the worst-hit Hubei province reported 42 new fatalities on Friday. Within the past 24 hours, over 1,200 new cases of the disease have been recorded in 17 Chinese cities, the Chinese media reported.

The new figures came shortly after the World Health Organisation (WHO) declared a Global Emergency over the deadly epidemic, which has spread to over 20 countries around the world.

READ: Coronavirus: MEA Informed About Students From Guj In China

WHO declares Global Health Emergency

The latest figures show that the daily death count is increasing sharply, despite unprecedented measures imposed by China on Hubei a week ago. On Thursday alone, Chinese health officials had reported a nationwide total of 38 deaths, all but one of them in Hubei.

The Chinese province on Friday also reported 1,220 new cases, slightly higher than the previous day. The World Health Organisation (WHO) has declared the Coronavirus a Global Health Emergency. The Director-General of WHO, Dr. Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus made the announcement on Thursday evening.

READ: Army Rushes To Build Quarantine Facility As 300 Set To Arrive From Coronavirus-hit Wuhan

READ: China-return Student Referred To Cuttack Hospital For Possible Coronavirus Infection

(With Agency Inputs)
A farming property on South Australia's Eyre Peninsula will become a nuclear waste dump, the federal government has announced, as opponents of the facility make a last-bid ditch to stop it.

Federal Resources Minister Matt Canavan on Saturday said 160 hectares of the Napandee property in Kimba would host Australia's radioactive waste, the vast majority of which comes from the production of nuclear medicine and is held across more than 100 sites.

'Napandee was volunteered by the landowner, is suitable from a technical perspective, and has broad community support from those who live and work nearby,' he said in a statement.

A farming property on South Australia's Eyre Peninsula will become a nuclear waste dump, the federal government has announced. Pictured: Napandee property in Kimba

Map graphic showing locations of South Australian towns, Kimba and Wallerberdina in relation to Adelaide

The site near the town of Kimba will store low-level waste permanently and intermediate-level waste temporarily.

It will employ about 45 people and the government will gift the community a $31 million package.

A property at Lyndhurst, also near Kimba, had been in the running but Mr Canavan said the Napandee proposal had more support.

'The facility has broad community support in Kimba but I acknowledge there remains opposition, particularly amongst the Barngarla People and their representative group,' he said.

'We will work with traditional owners to protect culture and heritage, and to maximise economic opportunities and outcomes for local Aboriginal communities near the future facility.'

Before the announcement, Peter Woolford, president of the No Radioactive Waste on Agricultural Land in Kimba or SA committee, said locals and visitors will rally against the project on Sunday.

Mr Woolford says five years of consultation has taken its toll on the town and his group is calling on the federal government to abandon both sites.

'The process the federal government has undertaken to find a location for this facility has been a long and arduous one for the Kimba community,' he said.

Federal Resources Minister Matt Canavan on Saturday said 160 hectares of the Napandee property in Kimba would host Australia's radioactive waste

'Napandee was volunteered by the landowner, is suitable from a technical perspective, and has broad community support from those who live and work nearby,' he said in a statement

'Matthew Canavan's process has been arbitrary, completely lacking in clarity and an extremely divisive process.

'It is time for him to acknowledge that the prerequisite of 'broad community support' does not exist in Kimba, and allow the community to move forward.'

The dump is opposed by environmental and indigenous groups - but a recent poll conducted around Kimba returned a 62 per cent vote in favour of the facility.

Jeff Baldock, who owns the Napandee site, said the project was an opportunity for the area to secure its future.

'It's very rare that a small country community gets the chance to guarantee that it's still going to be here in 300 years time,' he said.

The site near the town of Kimba will store low-level waste permanently and intermediate-level waste temporarily

'We're always looking for ways to attract new industry and try and boost our local community.

'This is one of those projects that is not only supplying us with jobs but with an opportunity to attract new industry.'

The Department of Industry, Innovation and Science said it had provided a significant amount of material to inform the site decision.

'The department has put the community at the centre of this process, which involved more than four years of deep consultation and technical assessments,' it said.

Guest speakers at Sunday's rally will include local Labor MP Eddie Hughes, Conservation Council of SA chief Craig Wilkins and Kimba farmers James Shepherdson and Tom Harris.
Cheka, a young crime novelist in the making By Yomal Senerath-Yapa View(s): View(s):

Child literary prodigies, sadly, tend to fizzle and putter out like wet Catherine wheels after their debuts. But now and then, vital talent gets heralded by early portents which makes one go here is something

Leafing through 14-year-old Cheka Mendiss new book Smoke and Mirrors, I was impressed- here is something more than a teenager being tempted to emulate Harry Potter or Anthony Horowitz.

Smoke and Mirrors may seem a bit generic as a title for a thriller with the classic Poirot-in-the-library style denouement- like Agatha Christie blatantly calling one of her whodunits The Red Herring. But the title is actually a pun as actual smoke and mirrors do feature rather dramatically within the thrillers plot.

Cheka is a student of Ananda College, whose earliest formative years however were spent in Boston- home of the Red Sox, as he introduces it.

A record of those early years with all their bubbly, fizzy brightness is captured in an earlier book called Glorious Morning: My Paintings through Words (2015). This anthology of poetry with its spontaneous tumbling out of verse is adorable. The poems flow freely with an eight-year-olds joie de vivre but also a startlingly natural sense of rhythm and cute poetic percipience. He is clearly, blissfully at home with poetry- better than a duck in water.

The second book, coming five years later, cannot of course have the same spontaneity- as Chekas mission is a crime novel where the missing china dog and the unexplained footsteps and the butter dish have to all add up at the end- quite a daunting plot to contrive and weave. But on the other hand, little Cheka has grown up- and with him his imagination and vocabulary (he speaks arrestingly of a gibbous moon and the relative merits of Pyrophobia and Herpetophobia).

The story begins with a major arson at a Boston hotel where 13-year-old Ryan gets indicated as the culprit. Being compelled to investigate, he gets sucked into a whirlpool of crime in ritzy uptown Boston- beginning with blackmail and culminating with murder at a grand mansion.

It is an ambitious and well-executed adventure. Rather intelligent- evoking a compelling American setting with a whiff of bagels and a sniff of Hollywood. It could be read compulsively- though it would have been better if some of the extra fat of narrative was pared and the story given a slimmer figure. Even though Cheka has tried to link up everything there is still a lot of detail that just makes the story bulge.

But as it is, it is a rare feat for a 14-year-old. The plot has been dexterously done- and if Cheka sticks to his guns, one feels we will maybe yet see the making of a promising Sri Lankan crime writer (clean mature mystery being an arena little explored in our island literature- after Rosalind Mendiss nascent attempt as far back as 1928).

Chekas own parents- both lawyers like Ryan Nevilles- are the wind beneath his wings, always supportive of a voracious bibliophile.

The next Ryan Neville novel, says Cheka, will be set in Sri Lanka. Ryan fortuitously has a Sri Lankan mother, and his parents had met here. Given the propensity of Chekas hero to find himself in perilous situations and the way destiny seems to reserve all its doosras for him alone- it will certainly be something to look out for.

Ryan Neville- Smoke and Mirrors by Cheka Mendis is a Sarasavi publication- priced at Rs. 600.
When Facebook last fall said it would delete any and all mentions of the name of the CIA operative believed to be the "whistleblower who sparked President Trump's impeachment, it wasnt kidding.

A number of Facebook members complain the social media giant has been taking down recent RealClearInvestigations stories about the whistleblower within hours of sharing them with friends.

Paul Sperry's Notebook

"I posted your article to Facebook, got a bunch of likes and comments and shares, said a user in Sacramento who linked to RCIs Jan. 22 story, Whistleblower Was Overheard in 17 Discussing With Ally How to Remove Trump. But when I looked to see if there were additional responses, I saw that Facebook had removed the post. Wow! The story disappeared overnight, no message to me.

She said she tried reposting the story twice, but Facebooks content police removed it both times within an hour or so.

Another user in New Orleans also complained: The article disappeared from my friends' feed. And a Little Rock member reported, My post was removed without any notification from Facebook.

Facebook had no comment. But in early November -- a week after RCI first reported Oct. 30 that CIA analyst Eric Ciaramellas name had been invoked in heated discussions about the whistleblower during closed-door House depositions of impeachment witnesses  the site warned it would scrub from its platform identifying posts on the whistleblower. It explained that outing the anonymous official violates its policy against potentially "coordinating harm against witnesses or activists. Facebook users complain RCI's original story, "The Beltway's 'Whistleblower' Furor Obsesses Over One Name, which quickly went viral after the Drudge Report linked to it, has also been wiped off their pages.

A Connecticut law school student was so incensed after Facebook deleted his whistleblower posts mentioning Ciaramella  again, without warning, notification or explanation  that he sued Facebook and its CEO Mark Zuckerberg for allegedly violating fair trade practices, as well as his civil liberties. "The plaintiff has been denied the ability to speak publicly on a matter of grave public importance, Cameron Atkinsons attorneys stated in his Nov. 12 complaint.

Atkinson argued that Facebooks censorship of the whistleblower is politically motivated to preserve the carefully crafted narrative around the attempt to impeach President Trump.

During the 2016 election, the social network was accused of suppressing right-leaning publications and authors, along with positive Trump stories, in its "Trending Topics news feature. FEC records show Facebook executives overwhelmingly back Democrats, including COO Sheryl Sandberg who made a $416,000 contribution to Hillary Clinton in 2016. So do Facebook employees: 87% of their political contributions have gone to Democrats since the company was founded in 2004, according to a 2018 study.

Many of Facebooks 2.3 billion users rely on the platform for their political news. Others rely on traditional media, but they wont hear about the whistleblower there, either.

The nations top reporters have taken a virtual oath of silence regarding his name, even though it's an open secret inside their newsrooms. Suppressing their news instincts, they have been unified in complying with Democratic demands to back off identifying the whistleblower and exploring his motives.

As a result, they have left large gaps in reporting on the origins of this momentous story, only the third presidential impeachment in U.S. history. The Washington Post, which normally would own such a local story, has scarcely touched it. Instead of doing its own deep reporting, it's assigned reporters to do media stories (here and here) questioning RCI for its journalistic decision to unmask" the whistleblower, who enjoys limited, not blanket, anonymity.

Unlike the federal agency that fielded his complaint, the press is under no statutory obligation to keep his name secret, especially when it's in the publics interest to disclose it, along with his background and bias. Without him, there would be no investigation, no impeachment and no trial  to say nothing of the virtual halting of the nations business for the past six months.

Congress can legally reveal the whistleblowers name, but so far it has suppressed it.

Congressional Republicans complain House impeachment manager Adam Schiff and his staff, who privately met with the complainant prior to his filing, have redacted his name from documents. Schiff has even classified at the SECRET level all 179 pages of a document discussing the whistleblower and his contacts with Schiffs staff, which he did not disclose in his complaint as required. That means Republicans who have seen it cannot quote from it without violating laws against divulging classified information.

Justice Roberts Thwarts Questions

About Whistleblower in Senate

The contacts between members of Schiffs staff and the whistleblower are shrouded in secrecy to this day, deputy Trump counsel Patrick Philbin said responding to a question asked at Wednesdays trial by senators about RCIs reporting earlier this month. Obviously to get to the bottom of motivations, bias, how this inquiry was all created, [it] could be relevant.

Schiff claimed he cannot talk about who among his staff met with the "whistleblower," because they have received "threats" online. He says he must "protect" them, along with the whistleblower's identity, which he insists he does not know. Schiff also suggested RCI was circulating smears on my staff, though he did not deny the story.

On an official question card, GOP Sen. Rand Paul Thursday submitted a direct question for Schiff based on RCIs story: Are you aware that House intelligence Committee staffer Sean Misko has a close relationship with Eric Ciaramella when at the National Security Council together? Are you aware and how do you respond to a report that Ciaramella and Misko may have worked together to plot impeaching the president before there were formal House impeachment proceedings?"

However, the question was never asked. Chief Justice John Roberts, who is presiding over the trial, blocked it after screening the card, ostensibly because it included the name of the official believed to be the whistleblower. The presiding officer declines to read the question as submitted, Roberts declared in rejecting Pauls query.

Earlier, Roberts had signaled to Senate leaders behind the scenes that he would not read aloud the alleged whistleblowers name or otherwise publicly relay questions that might out the official.

Constitutional scholars say the disputed question was an unprecedented situation.

Jonathan Turley, a constitutional law professor at George Washington University who testified as an expert in the House impeachment hearings, said Roberts had no legal reason to quash the senators question since it did not violate federal whistleblower laws.

"This is relatively uncharted because the reading of the name does not directly violate federal law, Turley said.

He speculated Roberts simply claimed an inherent authority to block the question under decorum and restraint.

It remains unclear how Roberts knew Eric Ciaramella was the whistleblower when Paul did not outright say he was the whistleblower in the question card that was handed Roberts to read. "My question made no reference to any whistleblower, Paul affirmed. Did the presiding justice consult with Schiff or other House managers prior to the 16-hour question period? If so, did Roberts violate his own impartiality oath?

Paul said he was given no explanation for the rejection of a question that could have drawn out exculpatory information for the president. He blamed Roberts and the Senate for selective belief in protecting the whistleblower statute  Nobody says they know who the person is. But anybody you say might be [the whistleblower] all of a sudden is protected from being part of the debate.

The Kentucky senator said he considered requesting a roll call vote to overrule Roberts incorrect finding, but decided Friday's debate over witnesses would generate too many motions and votes to make it feasible.

Effectively silenced, Paul held a press conference Thursday afternoon in which he explained the significance of asking such questions: "It's very important whether or not a group of Democratic activists, part of the Obama-Biden administration, were working together for years looking for an opportunity to impeach the president.

He compared Eric Ciaramella and Sean Misko to disgraced FBI agents Peter Strzok and Lisa Page plotting to prevent Trump from being president.

With a paucity of information about the whistleblower forthcoming from both government and media, only one side has been allowed to do any real fact-finding during the impeachment process. And thats left the defendant  Donald J. Trump  still unable to cross-examine his main accuser.

@paulsperry_
Chopper crash: One arrested for linking PM with the tragedy

Sheikh Dawood who financed revenge killing of Tamil Nadu cop arrested

India

oi-Vicky Nanjappa

New Delhi, Feb 01: A key accused in the killing of Special Sub-Inspector Wilson in Kanyakumari district was arrested at Ramanathapuram.

Sheikh Dawood, who was allegedly financing the killers of the inspector, was staying in the district under the guise of a fisherman when he was held, police added.

He allegedly financed the killing, police said adding Dawood had managed to escape when three men with suspected links to the ISIS and connected to cases being probed by the National Investigation Agency were arrested in Devipattinam in the district on January 22.

He was reportedly funding B Mohammed Ali and Mohammed Amir, who were held for suspected ISIS links.

3 Dalit leaders arrested for apprehension of breach of peace in UP

Dawood was at a gymnasium here when he was arrested based on a tip-off, police said.

Two men-Abdul Shameem (29) and Taufeeq (27)- hailing from Thiruvithancode near Nagercoil, had shot at Wilson using a pistol and stabbed him when he was on duty at the Kaliyakavilai checkpoint on the border with Kerala on January 8.

The two were picked up from Udupi Railway station in Karnataka on January 14 and have been lodged in the Palayamkottai central prison.
Agartala, Feb 1 : Tripura Chief Minister Biplab Kumar Deb on Saturday congratulated Union Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman for presenting a "pro-people" Budget.

"I congratulate Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman for presenting the pro-people Budget 2020, which will fulfil Prime Minister Narendra Modi's vision of New India," the Chief Minister said in a tweet.

Deb said that the Budget laid special focus on the agricultural, rural development, heath and education sectors for the overall development.
Of all of the many wonderful walks in Sligo, few - if any - are as easily accessible and visually appealing as the newly revamped Ballymote Heritage Trail.

Developed as a looped urban trail, it takes in many of the archaeological and historical features and buildings in one of Sligo's most historically important towns.

In this short 3.5km walk, you'll take in notable features such as the ruins of Ballymote Abbey, the magnificent Ballymote Castle, as well as the striking Emlaghfad Church, which was located along a main regional access route during the Middle Ages and features on some of the earliest maps of Ireland.

I walked the loop on a very pleasant Winter's day with Ray O'Grady of Sligo County Council, who is a member of the team responsible for creating many of the walks in the county.

He filled us in on interesting aspects to this walk, explaining how communities are becoming more and more proactive in relation to developing walks amenities in their areas in partnership with the Council.

"Often times, the community either purchases land or maybe just gets permission through a permissive access agreement to actually develop the trails," he says.

"Rather than Sligo County Council coming along and saying that we want access, it's better if these things are brokered through the community for community benefit."

The latest section of this walk is a good example. Although the Community Park has been in place for a number of years, a new section adds both length and visual interest.

Incorporating the existing walk through the Community Park and on past Ballymote Castle via an underpass, this new 500 metre section includes a path which passes in front of the Corn Mill and on to a section along the road which leads to Emlaghfad Church, the furthest point from the start.

Once the agreements had been put in place between the community and the landowner to develop the new section of the walk, Sligo County Council was able to secure funding from the Town and Village Renewal Fund and the works were then put in place, supervised and promoted by the local stakeholders.

"Communities place huge value on these types of facilities," he says of the importance of walking amenities around Sligo.

"This particular walk is an urban walk, within that context it's lit, it's open 365 (days of the year), it's there in the evenings for people to walk on in the Winter. So we feel that it's very important for communities to be involved, and we feel it's very worthwhile for communities to be involved."

And in this way, the community can drive initiatives which can then be backed up by Sligo County Council and other agencies.

But the key aspect is that because it's driven by local people, that sense of ownership and local co-operation is central to its success:

"The bottom line is that this trail and this park would not exist but for the community involvement that actually created it in the first place.

"For a community group to have actually developed this themselves is testament to the community."

One of the only disappointing aspects of the walk is that for a number of years, Ballymote Castle has remained closed to the public due to safety fears and certain structural defects. But Sligo County Council would welcome a chance to engage with the Office of Public Works to have at least parts of the castle repaired and then reopened.

"Unfortunately, you don't have access into it,", Ray says of Ballymote Castle, adding that he would like to see an agreement whereby local access and tours could be arranged. "

At the moment there really isn't access internally, but it's in really good shape as you can see, so it has real potential in terms of being a visitor attraction for the whole of County Sligo in my view."

Time will tell whether the castle can once again be opened to the public, but for now its visible outer walls remain one of the most impressive features of the Ballymote Heritage Trail. A video on the Sligo Walks Facebook page includes dramatic aerial footage of the castle, as well as the other main attractions along the route.

The walk itself is also quite diverse in that alongside the older elements such as the Abbey and the Castle - which dates back to Norman times - a more modern flavour of the town's history is also tastefully commemorated.

In front of the train station is a statue of Brother Walfrid, founder of Celtic FC in Scotland, and who was born as Andrew Kerins just a short distance from the town.

And another of Ballymote's famous sons, traditional fiddle player Paddy Killoran, is also commemorated along the walk.

"Ballymote has major associations with Irish music and sport in general, and has a wonderful history and background in those areas, so the parks that have been developed reflect that," Ray adds.

The final stop along the walk is Emlaghfad Church, which overlooks the ancient route of Bothar an Chorrain, which provided an important access route into Ballymote from the Curlew Pass, again a main thoroughfare in the Middle Ages. Upon reaching this point it's time to turn for home, having completed a most enjoyable and relaxing ramble along one of Sligo's most scenic walks.

Walking Directions: Park the car at the entrance to Ballymote Community Park on the entrance to the town from the Sligo town side (the R293).

The walk through the park is clearly outlined, though the Abbey is hidden behind some trees less than 100 metres from the start.

Then pass the statue of Brother Walfrid and the train station.

Take the underpass to Ballymote Castle, on past the Corn Mill and the open road to Emlaghfad. The road then loops around back onto another section of the main road.

You can either retrace your steps back through the park, or take a slightly different route along the main roads in town, turning left onto Teeling St and back to the starting point.

Allow 45 minutes to walk, and perhaps an hour to do so at a more leisurely pace and to take in the sites.

More detailed information on this and over 50 other walks in Sligo are available at SligoWalks.ie.
The real estate sector, which is struggling with dwindling sales, high inventory and price stagnation, expects Union Budget 2020 to boost growth and provide a solution to the non-banking financial company (NBFC) liquidity woes. In her first budget, Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman had provided some incentives to address both demand and supply in the sector. But a lot needs to be done to revive the sector.

FULL COVERAGE:Union Budget 2020

As per the recent Centrum research report, the sector, which contributes more than 8 per cent to the Indian economy, expects quick implementation of alternative investment funds to rescue stressed residential projects. Here are some of the real estate sector's expectations:

Resolve the NBFC crisis

It has been almost nine months since the NBFC crisis started with IL&FS group companies defaulting on its payments. The credit squeeze has not only impacted the NBFC sector but has spread across sectors including real estate. According to Surendra Hiranandani, Chairman and Managing Director, House of Hiranandani, there is an urgent need to address the challenge of liquidity faced by the sector, especially after the NBFC crisis. He said that if the challenge would not treated on priority, it would hamper the confidence of developers as well as buyers which may severely impact the sector as well as economic growth.

Also read: Budget 2020 Live Updates: FM Nirmala Sitharaman to present budget at 11 AM; middle class, corporate await surprise

Also Read: Budget 2020: What banks, NBFCs expect from Sitharaman's Budget

Pour in more investments

The sector has been going through a cash crunch and the current NBFC crisis has worsened it. Therefore the industry hopes the government will help the sector in raising funds from other sources by relaxing norms.

Offer tax sops for homebuyers

In the previous budget, the government had announced a few incentives to encourage buying in the real estate sector but the industry believes more needs to be done. Home-loan borrowers are expecting tax reliefs in the form of changes in Section 80C and Section 80EE deductions.

Also Read: Union Budget 2020: How, When and Where To Watch Live Streaming Of Union Budget

Bring back Input Tax Credit (ITC) benefit

The GST Council has done away with the input tax credit (ITC) and reduced the GST rate for under-construction flats to five per cent from 12 per cent and for affordable housing to one per cent from eight per cent, from April 1, 2019 for all new projects. Although it is a welcome move for the home buyers, it is hitting the margins of the developers.

Also read: Budget 2020: Watch Live Streaming on Aaj Tak, India Today, live telecast channels

By Chitranjan Kumar
An adorable little girl's emphatic rant about her stolen pencil  and the classmate who took it  has charmed millions of social media users.

Mom Tabitha Garcia from San Jacinto, Texas shared the clip of her daughter Taylor on Instagram on Thursday, recording the second grader's story about a girl named Lizzie who pilfered her special pink Perfect Attendance Pencil and then lost it.

Taylor looks up at the camera in her purple jacket and matching tulle headband, explaining to her mom the injustice she had to endure  which was especially unfair, she said, because Lizzie didn't even have perfect attendance after taking a vacation to Canada.

Scroll down for video

How rude! A second grader named Taylor from San Jacinto, Texas was in a mood after a classmate stole her special pink pencil

Not nice! Taylor earned the pencil for her perfect attendance  but when she left it in a box to be sharpened, a classmate named Lizzie stole it

The two-minute video focuses in on Taylor, who's wearing a black tutu under her fuzzy jacket and is accessorized with a girly headband and pink bag.

A natural storyteller, she rolls right into the drama that unfolded that day at school.

'Yesterday I put my pink Perfect Attendance pencil in the sharpen box. I'm the only one who has one of the same type of those,' she said, indicating a special pencil she earned for not missing any days of school.

But when she got into school that morning and looked for her pencil in the box of pencils that had been sharpened overnight, it was gone.

'I went to go get my pencil. And guess what I saw. Nothing but yellow plain old pencils,' she said.

'I couldn't find my Perfect Attendance pencil, which is the only pencil I turned in. So I had to take somebody else's pencil, because somebody, and I know who, stole my Perfect Attendance pencil, who didn't even earn one, because they were in Canada,' she went on, her voice growing very firm and angry.

School drama: Little Taylor went on an impassioned rant about the classmate, saying she asked for the pencil back but Lizzie refused

Must be nice! She pointed out that Lizzie didn't even have perfect attendance because she missed school to go to Canada

'So today I saw Lizzie using it on her morning work. And I said, "Lizzie, that's my pencil," and she was like, "Well, it was in that box," and I was like, "Cause I needed it sharpened," she continued, talking a million miles a minute.

'Then she was like, "It's just a pencil," and I was like, "It's my Perfect Attendance pencil," and then Reese jumped in and said, "Yeah, she earned it, you didn't earn it. You were in Canada."

'And then I was like, "Yeah, so give me back my pencil," and she was like, "No," so I waited all the way until after lunch to get my pencil back.

'I said, "Can I have my pencil?" She was like, "Yes"  and she lost my pencil in her desk,' Taylor said, clearly completely over Lizzie's shenanigans.

'And then she said, "After recess," and I was like, OK,' she went on.

But after recess, she still didn't get her pencil back.

Cute moments: Taylor's mom Tabitha recorded the funny video and shared it on Instagram

Natural storyteller: Tabitha has shared quite a few videos of her daughter's funny stories

'I told the teacher. She didn't do anything... it was just the same thing, Lizzie had my pencil. And I still don't have it,' she said.

At this point, her mom finally chimed in, calmly telling the little girl that it's 'just a pencil.'

'It's a Perfect. Attendance. Pencil,' Taylor replied passionately.

'They all do the same thing,' her mom answered, adding that from now on Taylor should keep the pencil at home.

Just hours after Tabitha posed the clip, another social media user shared it on Twitter  where it's racked up three million views.

Commenters have chimed in offering support to Taylor, remember just how important a beloved pencil could be at that age.

Responding to some, mom Tabitha, who is a teacher herself, said she has 'a ton of pencils' and plans to get Taylor her own sharpener 'so she doesnt have to risk it.'

'I feel yall. The girl is wrong for what she did, no doubt,' she said.
People wearing masks stand at the Monument to the People's Heroes in Shanghai

DAR ES SALAAM (Reuters) - Tanzanias national carrier said on Wednesday it will have to postpone its maiden flights from commercial capital Dar es Salaam to China, citing concerns over the spread of a coronavirus that has killed 133 people.

State-run Air Tanzania had planned to begin charter flights to China next month ahead of the expected launch of scheduled direct flights to the key Asian tourist market.

"We have already received a permit to begin scheduled flights to China," Air Tanzania managing director Ladislaus Matindi told Reuters.

"But we will now have to take the necessary precautions ... We will decide when to launch our first flights to China after taking into consideration all the key issues to safeguard the safety of our passengers."

Tourism is the biggest source of foreign exchange in Tanzania, famed for its wildlife safaris and pristine beaches.

Around 1.5 million tourists visit East Africa's third-largest economy each year, according to government estimates.

(Reporting By Fumbuka Ng'wanakilala; Editing by Katharine Houreld and Nick Macfie)
As genetics and genomics knowledge expands rapidly throughout research, medicine, and society, Americans are excited and optimistic about this area of research and its emerging health applications, according to a new survey released today by the American Society of Human Genetics (ASHG) in partnership with Research!America.

The survey found the large majority of Americans agree genetic knowledge will be important to their own health and their families' health. Americans agree that more research is needed in human genetics, and that increased federal funding for that research is important. The survey also confirms the importance placed on confidentiality and security of research data, addressing Americans' views regarding genetic testing coverage, and highlighting opposition to the use of genetics for insurance coverage or rate-setting. Moreover, Americans express great curiosity about genetics, as well as interest in what it tells us about human history and our common heritage as a species, even as knowledge gaps persist.

The nationwide survey, conducted by Zogby Analytics, December 2019, consisted of an online survey of 1,100 American adults, plus 775 additional adults for minority population oversampling. The margin of error was +/- 3.1 percent. The margin of error was higher for subgroups.

ASHG undertook the survey following a broad review of existing recent public opinion polls and academic research findings that covered a wide array of genetics and medical research topics. That review is also being released as a companion resource, providing additional insights and raising important questions regarding public opinion on a broader set of questions than possible to be covered in the ASHG/Research!America survey.

Additional highlights from the ASHG/Research!America survey include:

- Asked to select adjectives expressing their views on genetics research, respondents' top five selections were "Curious" (59 percent), "Hopeful" (53 percent), "Amazed" (42 percent), and "Optimistic" (42 percent), followed by "Cautious" (38 percent). - Americans believe it is positive that researchers will use genetics to find cures for key diseases like cancer or Alzheimer's (78 percent); that physicians will be able to use genetic information to inform their health care (71 percent); that people will learn "surprising information" about their heritage or backgrounds (69 percent); and that it will be possible to change genes in embryos to prevent severe diseases like sickle cell disease, cystic fibrosis, or muscular dystrophy (60 percent). advertisement - Thirteen percent report having taken a direct-to-consumer genetic test; 8 percent had a genetic test through a hospital or research center; 5 percent had received genetic counseling; and 5 percent had participated in research requiring a blood or saliva sample. - Eighty-four percent agree that more research is needed in human genetics, and 74 percent reported that increased federal funding for that research is important. - More than 60 percent report that assurances of data confidentiality and privacy would be the key decision factor in their participation in research, along with the ability to help a loved one's health or their own.

- Thirty percent report having heard of "precision medicine," a fast-paced area of research that is creating new diagnostic and treatment options based on an individual's genetic composition.

"When it comes to human genetics, the U.S. public is supportive of research, believes more research is needed, and believes it's important to national health and their families' health," said ASHG President Anthony Wynshaw-Boris, MD, PhD. "It's exciting how curious and hopeful Americans are about this fast-paced area of research. That said, the survey shows there is still important work to do in educating the public on some genetics basics and how it might benefit them through applications like personalized medicine. It is rewarding to know they would participate in research that could help themselves or a loved one, but they also want assurances about privacy and confidentiality of that research data."

Wynshaw-Boris said the Society is also committed to realizing a world in which people everywhere realize the benefits of genetics and genomics research. "Lower awareness and higher skepticism among underserved populations reflect legitimate historic experience with research that we need to understand and the need to improve engagement and education with diverse populations," he said. "Overall, the poll confirms that more can be done to reinforce the progress and potential of genetics research, while also educating the public about rigorous privacy practices and laws already in place for U.S. federal research, and our growing ability to evaluate risks or resilience for common conditions such as heart disease, dementia, diabetes, or mental illness."

"Time and again, the public tells us they value medical research," said Research!America President & CEO Mary Woolley. "Americans believe in the hope research presents to improve the health and well-being of individuals, families, and communities. As a nation, we must step up and invest robustly in research to find the solutions to what ails us."

In coming months, ASHG will increase communication about the value of human genetics to the public, including webinars, papers, and public information and engagement on topics related to current advances and issues in human genetics. This is part of the organization's goal in the next three to five years to serve as a reliable source for public information on the topic of human genetics.

"It is an exciting time for human genetics and genomics, and emerging knowledge is speeding discovery and applications in research, medicine, and society," Wynshaw-Boris said. "With these advances, we seek to build a future where people everywhere benefit from human genetics and genomics research."
" " Black History Month has its roots in the celebration of Negro History Week, introduced in February 1926 as a way to honor the contributions of African-Americans throughout American history. Jonathan Bachman/Getty Images

Americans have officially celebrated Black History Month since February 10, 1976, when President Gerald R. Ford established it as a national observance in an address that lauded its founder, African-American historian Dr. Carter G. Woodson, and the "impressive contributions of black Americans to our national life and culture."

But why February? Was it chosen willy-nilly or does February have special significance? It definitely does.

Advertisement

The Father of Black History

We owe the celebration of Black History Month to Woodson, who made it his life's work to increase public awareness of African-American history and culture. Known as the father of black history, this son of former slaves worked his way out of the Kentucky coal mines to became a Harvard-educated historian and journalist. Disheartened to discover that history books excluded the black experience in American life beyond ways that portrayed black people as socially inferior, he took on the challenge of writing a proud and true African-American history into America's national consciousness.

Woodson believed that, "those who have no record of what their forebears have accomplished lose the inspiration which comes from the teaching of biography and history." With that in mind, in 1915, he founded the Association for the Study of African American Life and History (ASALH) and the seminal Journal of Negro History in 1916. In February 1926, he introduced the celebration of Negro History Week as a way to shine a light on the myriad contributions of black people throughout American history.

Woodson and the ASALH chose the second week in February to launch Negro History Week because it coincided with the birthdays of Abraham Lincoln, whose 1863 Emancipation Proclamation ended slavery, and of Frederick Douglass, the former slave turned social reformer who became a national force in the abolitionist movement. Other February events of historical merit included the birth of civil rights icon W. E. B. Du Bois and the passing of the 15th Amendment on Feb. 3, 1870, which gave African-Americans the right to vote.

The notion of expanding Negro History Week to a month evolved over the decades leading up to and during the Civil Rights Movement of the 1960s. Freedom Schools in the South incorporated Negro History Week into curricula and by the mid-1960s many colleges and universities across the country began to transform the week-long event into a month-long celebration on their campuses. Leaders of the Black United Students organization at Kent State University proposed expanding it to a month, and in 1970 they celebrated Black History Month for the first time on their campus. By the time President Ford made it a national observance in 1976, many mayors had already endorsed it as a municipal celebration.

Each iteration of the event since its inception in 1926 has had a specific theme as stated by the Association for the Study of African American Life and History.

NOW THAT'S INTERESTING A black man named Crispus Attucks was the first fatality of the American Revolution, shot and killed in the Boston Massacre of 1770. Reputed to be the architect and ringleader of the bloody event, it was a topic of debate for more than a century whether Attucks was a heroic patriot or an instigator. Nevertheless, history has eulogized him as "the first to defy, the first to die."

Advertisement

Originally Published: Feb 20, 2018
2 Taiwanese in China confirmed to have coronavirus infection

ROC Central News Agency

01/31/2020 10:51 PM

Taipei, Jan. 31 (CNA) Two Taiwanese nationals in China were confirmed Friday to be infected with the novel coronavirus (2019-nCoV), according to the Mainland Affairs Council (MAC), Taiwan's top government agency handling cross-Taiwan Strait affairs.

One of the patients is a businessperson forced to stay in Wuhan -- the epicenter of the coronavirus outbreak -- since the central Chinese city was closed off on Jan. 23 while the other worked in Wuhan before flying to Shenzhen in mid-January, the MAC said in a statement.

They are the first cases of 2019-nCoV infection involving Taiwanese nationals who remained in China after the outbreak began.

Nearly 10,000 people in China have been confirmed to have the coronavirus since the outbreak began in mid-December, and more than 200 people have died of the virus there, all in Hubei Province where Wuhan is located.

There are currently around 400 Taiwanese nationals trapped in Hubei after many cities in the province were shut down to prevent the novel virus from spreading, according to the MAC.

The agency said on Thursday it asked Chinese authorities about possible ways to transport the Taiwanese nationals back home, including deploying special charter flights, but the Chinese side has not responded, typical of the lack of official contact between the two sides in recent years.

(By Lai Yen-hsi and Elizabeth Hsu)

Enditem/ls



NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address






February 01 : Just a month has gone by, and Indian customers are sure to be spoilt with tech-related choices this 2020. In Feb, some of the much-awaited gadget and smartphone releases have taken place, and that is what you get to see below. You can also see the upcoming launches in March in India too.

To begin with, Samsung India launched the Galaxy A51 within the mid-range price band. The product reached retail stores by Jan 31, 2020. POCO X2 has revamped the brand value with new feature-rich inputs. The smartphone will be launched on Feb 4 with an amazing refresh rate and liquid cooling technology. Next, we have the leader of smartphone in the Under 5k band- itel mobiles from Transsion India, and they launched the new itel A25, for a flat price of Rs.3999.

Now, it is gadget time and you can buy the famous Apple Home Pod in Indian markets by March 2020. Last, on our gadget lookouts for the week, we have the Sennheiser AMBEO Soundbar that can now be bought for Rs.199.990/-.For more details, scroll further down

Samsung Galaxy A51

Image Source: IANS News Samsung Galaxy A51

Samsung India on Wednesday launched the Galaxy A51 (6GB+128GB) in the country for Rs 23,999. The smartphone comes with the company's signature Infinity-O Super AMOLED display. Read more

POCO X2

Image Source: IANS News Smartphone.

Chinese handset maker POCO, which Xiaomi spinned off as a standalone brand earlier this month, is ready to launch its POCO X2 smartphone on February 4 with a high refresh rate and liquid cooling technology. Read more

itel smartphone

Image Source: IANS itel Mobile

itel mobile from Transsion India that retained top position for the two consecutive quarters, has ended 2019 as the leader in under-Rs 5,000 price segment for both the smartphone and feature phone markets in the offline channel in India. Read more

Apple HomePod

Image Source: IANS News Apple HomePod

Apple smart speaker HomePod for Rs 19,900 -- cheaper than the $299 price in the US -- will be available in India for purchase in a month's time. Read more

Sennheiser AMBEO Soundbar

Image Source: IANS Sennheiser Ambeo soundbar

German audio giant Sennheiser on Wednesday launched its AMBEO Soundbar with immersive 5.1.4 sound and deep bass in India for Rs 199,990. Read more
Chennai, Feb 1 : The Budget 2020 has allocated Rs 6,950 crore towards recapitalisation of three public sector general insurers so that they can meet the solvency norms.

According to the budget papers, a sum of Rs 6,950 crore has been allocated towards recapitalisation of the government-owned general insurers - the National Insurance Company Ltd, the Oriental Insurance Company Ltd and the United India Insurance Company Ltd - so that they can maintain the required solvency ratio.

The government had provided Rs 2,500 crore for the three companies as a partial budgetary support as per the revised budget estimates for 2019-2020.

Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman was, however, silent on the merger of three companies as proposed by the government earlier.

The Board of Directors of three companies in their recent meeting had given their approval for merger.
Chair of Wicklow Hospice Foundation, Sean Dorgan, Minister for Health Simon Harris TD, OLH&CS clinical nurse manager Sarah James and Chief Executive of Our Ladys Hospice & Care Services (OLH&CS), Audrey Houlihan celebrating the official opening of Wicklow Hospice

Wicklow Hospice was officially opened on Friday afternoon eleven years after the original committee was first established.

The Hospice located at Magheramore will be the first specialist palliative care facility in the county and will provide 15 public beds for those with life-limiting conditions.

The 3.5 acre site was donated by the Columban Sisters and Our Lady's Hospice and Care Services (OLH&CS) will run the hospice, while the HSE will meet the operational costs.

Over 6 million has been raised through fundraisers over the past eleven years and Sean Dorgan, Chair of Wicklow Hospice Foundation, thanked the people of Wicklow for getting behind the hospice right from the start.

'This is a truly wonderful achievement by the people of Wicklow,' said Mr Dorgan. 'We are humbled by the efforts of groups and individuals from around the county who have come together to realise this dream to construct a state-of-the-art specialist palliative care facility for the people of the county.

'Week after week, month after month, events were put together and over 6 million has been raised to date. No one probably organised more events or ran more miles than Bill Porter. Fundraising will be ongoing to meet the building costs and for enhancements to patient care in the future. We are confident that OLH&CS, one of the oldest and largest specialist palliative care providers in the country, will provide an excellent service meeting the needs of the people in Wicklow.'

He also thanked the patrons of Wicklow Hospice for their support, including Daniel Day Lewis, who dedicated the premiere of 'Lincoln' to the Wicklow Hospice in 2012. Patrons in attendance at the opening included Chris de Burgh, Valerie Cox and Shane Byrne.

Chief Executive of OLH&CS, Audrey Houlihan said; 'This is an important milestone for the people of Wicklow and another positive step for palliative care in Ireland. This development will transform patients and families' quality of life and meet the changing care needs of this and future generations in the local community. Our Lady's Hospice & Care Services celebrated its 140th anniversary last year and is delighted to welcome Wicklow Hospice to its family, alongside Harold's Cross Hospice and Blackrock Hospice. This hospice is so rooted in the local community and we will always strive to support patients and provide care at a difficult time in patients and their families lives.'

A recruitment drive for staff for the hospice is currently underway, while the first patients will be admitted in April.

Paying tribute to the commitment and dedication of all involved Minister Simon Harris thanked everyone involved in the Wicklow Hospice project for their dedication.

'You have done it, you have really done it' said the Minister of Health, as he addressed the crowd.

'It is a real pleasure to be here today celebrating this opening of wonderful facility. It's an emotional and very moving day. The commitment of the people of Wicklow to this Hospice has been immense. By its nature, palliative care is rooted in the community and what you achieved is remarkable. The Hospice will support the people of Wicklow during difficult times and work with patients and their families to celebrate life and ensure their dignity and comfort.'

Valerie Cox introduced each speaker and thanked the Columban Sisters in particular for their donation of the site.

'Someone went up, asked "can we have a site?" and the Sisters said yes,' recalled Mrs Cox.

Cllr Irene Winters, Cathaoirleach of Wicklow County Council commented: 'The first public meeting regarding establishing a hospice in Wicklow took place in the Dominican eleven years ago. Their vision and tenacity has brought this hospice to where it is, as well as the generosity of the Columban Sisters and the contribution of all those who organised different fundraisers.'

Recruitment for positions at Wicklow Hospice will commence in the coming weeks. Applications will be invited for a range of roles and will be published on www.olh.ie and on OLH&CS social media channels.
As the United Kingdom officially left the European Union last night, Northern Ireland's First Minister was still in it, choosing to mark the occasion in a TV studio in Dublin.

All eyes were on DUP leader Arlene Foster, whose party fought so vociferously in favour of Brexit, as she appeared as the star guest on RTE's flagship Late Late Show as the minutes ticked away towards the historic departure.

Mrs Foster had said before hand that she agreed to it because "on the night the UK exits the EU, it's important for me to speak to an Irish audience and emphasise that I want a good neighbourly relationship."

Read More

It was a brave move with so many political factors blowing in the wind - the rekindling of a relationship with Sinn Fein to return to powersharing at Stormont barely weeks old and an election in the south a matter of days away.

But she was greeted with a respectful applause and a few cheers and smiled politely as she embraced host Ryan Tubridy who asked her what she made of people expressing surprise at her appearing on the show.

She said: "First of all we are leaving the European Union tonight, the United Kingdom leaves, but that doesn't mean we're not still neighbours and I wanted to send a message that we are and will continue to be neighbours and I felt the most easy way to do that was to come here and to be on your show."

She said she watched the Late Late Show when she was younger and told Ryan she was a Johnny Logan fan, and when Tubridy asked "and to say what to the people of the Republic of Ireland?" she replied: "Well to say that whilst we are leaving the institutions of the European Union, we are not leaving Europe and we're certainly not leaving the island of Ireland, that we'll continue to have those neighbourly relationships and of course as today is Brexit night, we have the transition period to go through now and there's much to do during that transition period."

Tubridy then asked if she felt comfortable being in the Republic of Ireland or if it was a peculiar place to be.

She responded: "It's very comfortable and I've been made very welcome and I have to say it's not just of course the Republic of Ireland because there are many people as you know that watch this show in Northern Ireland, and hello to my sister in Nottingham in England who is watching the show as well, people all over the United Kingdom watch this show."

She joked that her sister told her she "nearly fell off the settee" when she found out that she would be on the programme.

Tubridy raised the issue of anxiety over Brexit, including farmers and fishermen, to which she said: "I acknowledged that today, I was asked earlier on today how I felt about today and I said well obviously I was pleased that we were leaving the European Union, however I was concerned also about the fact that we are not leaving on the same terms as the rest of the United Kingdom, there are still issues to be dealt with in relation to Northern Ireland, for example the trade between Great Britain and Northern Ireland.

"And I said I also understood very much the anxiety of people who wanted to remain in the European Union institutions and many people who had anxieties.

"I think the first thing is to acknowledge them because I think the Brexit debate has been very polarising, not just in Northern Ireland but right across the United Kingdom so the first thing to do is not to be triumphalist and actually to acknowledge that people don't want this to happen, I do acknowledge that.

"But secondly then to work with colleagues in the newly formed Northern Ireland Executive to make sure that we find a common ground between us all and that we work together to do that."

Expand Close Executive ministers Peter Weir, Deirdre Hargey, Gordon Lyons, Nichola Mallon, Edwin Poots, Arlene Foster, Naomi Long, Michelle ONeill, Conor Murphy, Robin Swann, Declan Kearney and Diane Dodds at Greenmount Agricultural College, where they held a special meeting Photo by Kelvin Boyes / Press E / Facebook

Twitter

Email

Whatsapp Executive ministers Peter Weir, Deirdre Hargey, Gordon Lyons, Nichola Mallon, Edwin Poots, Arlene Foster, Naomi Long, Michelle ONeill, Conor Murphy, Robin Swann, Declan Kearney and Diane Dodds at Greenmount Agricultural College, where they held a special meeting

Mrs Foster also explained how she lived close to the border growing up and told how her father survived an IRA attempt to take his life, as well as she herself escaped death when her school bus was attacked by a Provo bomb and explained how her family were forced to leave their home.

Tubridy then asked Mrs Foster to characterise her relationship with former Deputy First Minister and ex-IRA man Martin McGuinness.

She said: "Well, we had worked together for quite a while, as you know the powersharing institutions came back in 2007 and Martin was the Deputy First Minister then with Ian Paisley, I was fortunate enough to be appointed a minister in that administration as well. So I've been a minister in that executive for all those years when he was Deputy First Minister."

Tubridy asked: "Did you like him?"

Mrs Foster replied: "I got on quite well with Martin, yes, and you may say that's very strange given his background and given my background but I think we have to make choices and, to me, reconciliation actually starts with the individual.

"Yes as leaders we have to show that we want to move forward and do things differently for our children and to give them hope, but reconciliation has to start with the person as well, so I had to see beyond what he had done in the past and I'm sure he had to look beyond who I was as well as a strong unionist."

Tubridy asked Mrs Foster to explain a "personal problem" she might have had with Martin McGunness over a funeral oration he gave and asked her to explain why it might have been an issue for her.

She said: "Well, he gave the oration at Seamus McIlwaine's funeral and it's widely believed that he was at the attempted murder of my father so that, of course, was very difficult to take in that he would say that this was a man that should be admired.

"He went on to kill a lot of people in south Fermanagh, he was very young at the attempt on my father, I think he was only about 17 years of age."

When Tubridy suggested her relationship with Martin McGuinness would be coloured by this, Mrs Foster countered: "I don't think it was coloured by that because I genuinely feel that I can stay in the past and think about the past and dwell in the past, and let me say this, I don't take away for a moment what people have been through, and as I've said to you I've been very fortunate because whilst my father was attacked and whilst I was on a bus that was blown up, I survived and I'm here today and I'm here to tell the tale whereas others aren't."

Expand Close Martin McGuinness and Arlene Foster (PA) / Facebook

Twitter

Email

Whatsapp Martin McGuinness and Arlene Foster (PA)

As the clock ticked past 11 to mark the official process of Brexit's beginning, Tubridy asked Mrs Foster how she was feeling.

She replied: "Well as I said earlier on I am pleased that the UK has respected the vote that was taken right across the nation but I can understand that there are many people who will not be celebrating tonight because they feel sad about that."

Tubridy said he noted that Mrs Foster seemed to be avoiding any sense of celebration or triumphalism, to which Mrs Foster agreed.

She said: "I think that is right because we have been there for 47 years. I think there's a lot of people who will be sad about it tonight but you have to understand that when the referendum was called, it was called because reforms weren't granted to David Cameron, reforms he was looking for in terms of monetary union, in terms of fiscal policies, in terms of sovereignty.

"Those weren't given and therefore it went to the people and I think people voted to leave the European Union because they felt disconnected from the institutions and that's why they felt they wanted to leave."

Tubridy asked the audience if they were sad over Brexit, to which they agreed, and then asked Mrs Foster what kind of neighbours the Republic were now that it was past 11 o'clock.

She smiled: "Well the same as we were before 11 o'clock, Ryan! It is because of course, the communities that live along the border will still be the communities that live along the border.

"They still have those relationships that happen. I mean I, for example, in Fermanagh work very closely with a group in County Leitrim.

"We're trying to get a greenway in place from Sligo to Enniskillen, I think that that's a very good thing to do because that will provide a cycle route and tourism."

On Northern Ireland having a different Brexit from the rest of the UK, she said: "That's something that we have to deal with in the next 11 months.

"Michelle O'Neill and I were in Cardiff this week talking to our counterparts from Scotland and from Wales and from the Westminster government about what that would actually mean for us."

Expand Close Theresa Mays minority government was propped up by Arlene Fosters DUP following the 2017 election (PA) PA Archive/PA Images / Facebook

Twitter

Email

Whatsapp Theresa Mays minority government was propped up by Arlene Fosters DUP following the 2017 election (PA)

Challenging Mrs Foster, Tubridy argued that Brexit meant a weakening of the union, but she dismissed the suggestion.

She said: " No it's not a weakening of the union because we are still in the United Kingdom's custom code, I think that was the difference if you like between Theresa May's deal and Boris Johnson's deal but there are those regulatory differences and that's where the issue will come."

The host asked: "But the fact that it's a border you didn't want must rankle a bit for you?"

She replied: "Well of course it rankles. I didn't want a border put in place and this is something I must deal with because what we didn't want to see was borders developed north-south but we certainly didn't want them east-west which is actually internal inside our own nation, which is wrong as well."

She said she did not accept that as a failure by her or the DUP and explained: "No, I think there's much work to do in relation to how we deal with that now.

"Boris Johnson, the Prime Minister, says emphatically there won't be any checks and then I listen to Michel Barnier who says something very different so there's a lot of work to do in all of that."

Tubridy then asked: "Do you believe Boris Johnson any more?"

Mrs Foster drew laughter from the audience and laughed herself as she said: "Well, he's the Prime Minister of the United Kingdom so we have to work with him because he has a mandate.

"Well, do you know what? I believe in myself and I have faith in myself so we'll have to make our own judgements as to what he does."

Upping the ante, Tubridy asked: "Do you believe you were shafted by Boris Johnson?"

She smiled: "Well I wouldn't use that terminology, Ryan, but I do think it was hugely disappointing that he decided to go down that particular route, but look, we have to deal with that now.

"I mean, we didn't ask for that but we have to deal with that and that's what we want to do."

Expand Close Boris Johnson, Michelle ONeill, Arlene Foster and Julian Smith (Liam McBurney/PA) PA Wire/PA Images / Facebook

Twitter

Email

Whatsapp Boris Johnson, Michelle ONeill, Arlene Foster and Julian Smith (Liam McBurney/PA)

Asked by Tubridy simply "regrets?" she ad libbed "I've had a few" then joked: "Don't worry, I'm not going to sing, I'll leave that to the professionals!"

But when he followed up asking her what her "chief regret" would be regarding the whole process, she replied: "Well, I'm sorry that when Theresa May called the election that she didn't get a big enough majority to deal with Brexit in a more meaningful way and we had three tortuous years of negotiations where a lot of things could have been sorted but weren't sorted out."

Asked how she handles the fact that the majority of Northern Ireland voted to remain, Tubridy said it seemed to him to be a peculiar place politically.

She said: "Well it's not really, because after the referendum happened and of course it happened across the United Kingdom - when you have a referendum here you don't take different pockets and say well, Donegal voted one way and that voted another way and we're going to have to take that into account.

"So the whole of the nation voted leave, therefore we have to respect democracy, but I do remember after it happened and Martin McGuinness and I sent a letter to the Westminster government where we set out where we felt there were going to be challenges and where we felt there was going to be opportunities and that was really the basis on which we were working before the executive collapsed.

Raising the collapse of the executive in 2017 over the RHI scandal, Tubridy asked if there was a figure of a 500m overspend.

But Mrs Foster said: "No, we're actually at an underspend now because we intervened to deal with that whole issue, so there's actually an underspend now and not an overspend."

Asked about how she felt about the imminent findings of the Public Inquiry into RHI, she said: "Well, I welcome the Inquiry and I welcome the report for the simple reason that it became a very frenzied atmosphere in Northern Ireland at that time.

"Some very wild allegations were being put forward around all of that."

Expand Close DUP leader Arlene Foster at the RHI Inquiry Kevin Scott / Belfast Telegraph / Facebook

Twitter

Email

Whatsapp DUP leader Arlene Foster at the RHI Inquiry

Asked if there was "corruption involved" she said: "No." Asked was there "incompetence involved" she said: "No, there wasn't incompetence involved."

She also denied she covered up any warnings and when asked if she thought she'd still be the First Minister after the report comes out she said: "Yes, I do and I'll tell you why, because I fundamentally believe there is a lot of work to do and there is much to do in Northern Ireland and I think that we have come through a heck of a lot of other big problems in Northern Ireland. People have been shot and the Executive nearly collapsed over that, welfare reform, a lot of other big issues came to the fore and we were able to deal with all of those and that's what the disappointment is, that we weren't able to work through those issues back in December 2016."

Asked how her family felt about her going to the funeral of Martin McGuinness, she said: "Well, I think they understood that it wasn't just Arlene Foster going to the funeral, I was going as the former First Minister of Northern Ireland at that time."

She said her family did not ask her not to go and added: "And I think it was absolutely the right thing to do and there were a lot of innocent victims who felt very strongly about it at the time and I totally understand that as well, I lost friends over going to the funeral, but I still believe it was the right thing to do."

She says those friends did not ghost her but told her directly and added: "It was difficult. These were people who I've known for a long time, but they take a different view in relation to this.

"I took the view that I had served with him in government, that I had worked with him in government, and that it was only the right Christian thing to do to pay my respects to somebody who had passed away.

"And as I say, as a leader you have things to do that you may not do if you were just an ordinary citizen and that was why I had to do it."

She said getting applause at the funeral and again at attending a GAA match was "encouraging" and added: "Obviously I was apprehensive going to the funeral because I didn't know what sort of a reception I would get, because the Executive was down at that point in time and we'd had a very difficult election, it was very polarised, so I didn't know what sort of a reception I would get at the funeral.

"So I was apprehensive but I have to say I was welcomed very warmly."

Tubridy then asked about the DUP stance on gay marriage and abortion rights, given the Republic's shift on those social issues, and how Mrs Foster felt about those issues being legislated by Westminster.

She said: "I think that it should have been the Assembly that actually decided those things and that Westminster should have allowed us to decide those things and let's be clear, I think there was a majority in the Assembly for same sex marriage and I think it would have came into being but I think it's wrong that it was imposed upon us by Westminster.

"We're there now and they didn't intervene in a whole range of other things... they didn't intervene, for example, on our waiting lists that we have in our health service where people are waiting years upon years.

"They definitely did pick and choose in relation to those issues."

Asked why she personally opposed gay marriage she said: "Because I think marriage is between a man and a woman. I think there are other partnerships there and indeed many of my friends are in other partnerships, but I just believe that marriage is between a man and a woman."

That statement was met with some jeers from the audience and then when Tubridy asked if she would attend the gay wedding of close friends she said: "I may well consider to do that, yeah."

Going back to Brexit, Tubridy said he felt the possibility of a united Ireland was being talked about for the first time in his lifetime.

Mrs Foster said: "Really? Because when I was a toddler it was always being talked about. No, I don't think it will become a reality, because there are many, many reasons why we will stay in the United Kingdom - economic, political, social, cultural - all of those reasons mean that we will stay there.

"Our National Health Service, which we are very proud of, which needs a lot of work I have to say and what we need to get down to dealing with."

Asked how she would feel if there was a border poll and she was outnumbered, she said: "Of course I would be absolutely devastated if I was leaving the United Kingdom, because I'm a unionist, it's what I believe in culturally and politically.

"I'm very much a traditional unionist as you know. Economically I believe it's the right thing to do so I would be devastated of course and I don't think, by the way, that it is going to happen and if you're going where I think you're going that's not going to happen!"

That was a reference to a previous remark she made in a TV programme with Patrick Kielty where she said she would leave the country if there was a united Ireland, and Tubridy asked if she still stood by that.

Expand Close Patrick Kielty speaks with DUP leader Arlene Foster about the legacy of violence in Northern Ireland. Credit: BBC Northern Ireland. / Facebook

Twitter

Email

Whatsapp Patrick Kielty speaks with DUP leader Arlene Foster about the legacy of violence in Northern Ireland. Credit: BBC Northern Ireland.

She said: "Well I think you have to look at the context of all of that, and the context was that Paddy asked - I went to Queen's with Paddy, he's the same age as me - he asked me that question about 27 different ways before he got the answer that he wanted.

"First of all, I don't think it's going to happen, Ryan. I don't do hypotheticals and you should know I don't do hypotheticals and that's why that was the wrong thing to involve myself in.

"I'm a Fermanagh woman, I love the place and I love Northern Ireland, I want to make Northern Ireland a better place for everybody regardless of, by the way, your sexuality, your religion or who you believe in or who you don't believe in.

"I really genuinely want to work with all of those people in the Executive to do all of that and that's what I'm determined to do. And you know, just because we have different views on different things, doesn't mean we can't find common ground to move forward and to make Northern Ireland work.

"I am hopeful. There is a big coalition now and somebody asked me about a week before the deal was announced was I hopeful, and I said I was hopeful because it is my Christian duty to be hopeful and I have to say it's hope that drives me on, to build a better future for my children and for everybody else's future in Northern Ireland."

That drew the interview to a close where Mrs Foster was again met with respectful applause from the audience.

She had earlier been billed by RTE as the main attraction on the chat show, the Republic's most popular programme, alongside guests including the author Marian Keyes and Eurovision winner Johnny Logan.

Before her appearance, the broadcaster had boasted: "At 11pm on Friday, the bell will toll on the UK's membership of the EU, and Northern Ireland's First Minister Arlene Foster - whose DUP party backed Brexit - will be live in studio with Ryan."

At the top of the show he had said: "A lot of history on the show tonight, as the clock strikes 11, the UK will exit the European Union and Brexit will happen - gone, out, divorced, over.

"That moment is without doubt the biggest political moment in a generation, quite a night then for the DUP's Arlene Foster to make her Late Late Show debut, Northern Ireland's First Minister joining us on the couch and you can stay with us and witness that little piece of history as it happens live."
(Photo : NASA/JPL/UArizona) Planet Mars Slowly Melts Down its Ice As Seen on a Before-And-After Images From Mars Orbiter Spacecraft (Photo : NASA/JPL/UArizona) Planet Mars Slowly Melts Down its Ice As Seen on a Before-And-After Images From Mars Orbiter Spacecraft

Planet Mars continues to show natural processes that make it quite similar to planet Earth. However, the Red Planet seemed also to be copying negative traits that are happening now on Planet Earth, and one of these is the continuous melting of ice blocks surrounding the planet.

Planet Mars is slowly melting ice blocks and its alarming

On Friday, Jan. 31, NASA's Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter Spacecraft has released images of what they described as "collapsing ice blocks" surrounding the planet.

The MRO HiRise camera team at the University of Arizona that controls the images explained that their spacecraft captured the before and after pictures of Planet Mars, showing it's north polar collapsing and experiencing a radical change.

The team put together the collected images and created a GIF image to showcase how the change continues to affect the planet.

"This animation shows where a section of the slope at right has collapsed since three Mars-years ago and deposited a field of ice blocks," wrote planetary geologist Alfred McEwen for a HiRise image release on Friday.

The researchers stated that the pictures were taken on three Mars years-- which equivalent to 687 Earth days per year-- while the second picture was just taken on Dec. 25, 2019.

The Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter Spacecraft has been in residence to planet Mars starting in 2006. The equipment that they use for the camera images of the planet were also recognized as one of Science's most valuable technology due to its ability to show how planet Mars can be compared to Earth in a lot of similar traits.

According to the MRO HiRise team, the spacecraft is at exactly 318.6 km or 198.0 miles.

Mars heating up do not have any connection with global climate changes, experts say

In 2018, NASA already explained that any unusual ice cap melting on Planet Mars does not have any contact with what's happening on Earth-like climate change. And that any ice melting on Mars does not have any effect as the planet will just continue to accumulate dry ice.

"In contrast to shrinking ice caps on Earth, climate change is not to blame on Mars," explained NASA. "This mesa in this cutout is shrinking over time as the frozen carbon dioxide turns to vapor. Pits in this sheet of dry ice (that give the deposit an appearance resembling Swiss cheese) are enlarging over time, exposing an older surface below that is likely made up of water ice."

Mars experience avalanche

Another proof that Mars has a similar trait with Earth was when researchers found out that the planet experienced a massive avalanche of ice in Sept. 2019.

As explained by the experts, the avalanche is just a normal process that Mars experiences as "the warmth [from the avalanche] destabilize the ice and blocks break loose."

 2021 TECHTIMES.com All rights reserved. Do not reproduce without permission.
BANGKOK, July 1, 2019 (Xinhua) -- Photo taken on June 30, 2019 shows secondhand toys at the Papaya Studio in Bangkok, Thailand. Papaya Studio, a secondhand shop located in a lane of Bangkok, was opened 40 years ago by a collection lover in a storeho Image Source: IANS News

New Delhi, Feb 1 : In an effort to lift the domestic MSMEs, keep imports down and raise revenue, the Indian government on Saturday hiked customs duty on several products, indicating a price rise soon for millions of consumers across the spectrum - from household appliances to electric vehicles and even toys.

A day prior to the Budget 2020, IANS had reported on that as a measure to boost domestic small and medium industry, the government may consider a hike in customs duty on over 300 items like toys, furniture, footwear, coated paper, rubber items among other in the Union Budget.

For the cellular mobile industry, the government hiked customs duty, from 10 per cent to 20 per cent, on printed circuit board assembly (PCBA) which is the key component in feature phones as well as smartphones.

The customs duty, which was earlier zero on vibrators/ringers and display panels of mobile phones, was increased by 10 per cent on both the components, indicating a price rise in feature phones as well as entry-level smartphones.

"The decision will push local manufacturing and require skilled labour to work on the SMT assembly lines for PCBs and will help local vendors. The prices will stablise as Indian manufacturers push towards CKD (completely knocked down) levels," said Tarun Pathak, Associate Director, Counterpoint Research.

If you are a housewife, home appliances like tableware, kitchenware (porcelain, China, ceramic, clay, iron, steel, copper, aluminium), glassware, padlock, brooms, hand sieves, combs and vacuum flasks will be dearer as the customs duty was increased on all these items from 10 per cent to 20 per cent.

Electrical appliances, which includes fans, food grinders/mixers, hair removing appliances, water heaters, hair/hand dryers, overs, cookers, toasters, coffee makers and insect repellents, also saw customs duty doubled from 10 per cent to 20 per cent.

Besides giving relief to the domestic industry and boosting employment, the move to keep imports down and help to raise revenue. Many of these are industries which are essentially concentrated in the small and medium sectors and employment intensive.

The government announced a raise in customs duty on imported footwear/footwear parts to 35 per cent from 25 per cent and on furniture goods (seats, article of bedding, mattresses, lamps and lighting) to 25 per cent from 20 per cent.

Harkirat Singh, Managing Director, Aero Club (maker of Woodland and Woods), told IANS that while this is a welcome move especially for a 'Make in India' brand like them, "it will marginally shake our production costings due to our dependencies on good quality/imported raw materials required for manufacturing the rough and tough shoes, Woodland is known for".

"The current import duty on footwear is 25 per cent, which is on the higher side and further increase in this will make India an unviable market for an international brand like ours," Dharmender Khanna, Head of Lotto brand, had said in a recent media statement.

While customs duty was raised a massive 60 per cent from current 20 per cent on toys (tricycles, scooters, scale motors and dolls), electric vehicles also saw a big increase.

The complete Built Units (CBUs) of bus and trucks saw duty up from 25 per cent to 40 per cent, semi-knocked down (SKD) units of bus, truck and two-wheelers saw the duty hike from 15 per cent to 25 per cent.

While SKDs of passenger vehicles (PVs) and three-wheelers witnessed a duty hike from 15 to 30 per cent, bus and trucks saw customs duty up from 10 to 15 per cent - indicating the duty hike to hit consumers soon.

Several items in the machinery industry like commercial freezers and welding parts also saw customs duty hike, ranging from 7.5 per cent to 12.5 per cent.

Other items like glass beads, artificial flowers, ornaments, frames and mirrors also saw duty hike from 10 per cent to 20 per cent.

The Commerce and Industry Ministry, in its budget recommendations, had proposed rationalisation of basic customs on over 300 items across sectors.
Source: Xinhua| 2020-02-01 23:47:21|Editor: huaxia

Video Player Close

BEIJING, Feb. 1 (Xinhua) -- Leaders of some foreign political parties have sent messages to the International Department of the Communist Party of China (CPC) Central committee, positively evaluating China's efforts in tackling the novel coronavirus outbreak.

Lao President and General Secretary of the Lao People's Revolutionary Party Central Committee Bounnhang Vorachit said that since the outbreak of the epidemic, Xi Jinping, general secretary of the CPC Central Committee, has been leading and strengthening command personally and has set up a leading group of the CPC Central Committee on novel coronavirus prevention and control to cope with the epidemic comprehensively and swiftly.

These measures not only protect the safety of the Chinese people, but also the safety of people around the world, he said.

The Lao president firmly believes that, under the strong leadership of the CPC and the government, the Chinese people will eventually contain the epidemic effectively and resume their normal production and life.

Sherry Rehman, vice president of the Pakistan Peoples Party and chair of the Senate Special Committee on the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor, said she was impressed by China's quick response to the novel coronavirus outbreak.

The epidemic is unpredictable and a tragedy faced together by mankind, she said.

She added that Pakistan is China's all-weather friend and will work with China to overcome the difficulties.

Through this event, Pakistan is also learning from China's experience in taking prompt action, handling the situation properly, and providing services in the face of such an emergency, she added.

General Secretary of Lebanon's Future Movement party Ahmad Hariri expressed condolences over those who have died in the outbreak, saying he appreciates China's efforts in combating the virus.

He said his movement stands firmly together with China and is ready to offer help.

Chairman of the Free Egyptians Party Essam Khalil said he has been paying close attention to the development of the coronavirus outbreak which concerns not only China, but also the whole world.

He expressed appreciation and respect for China's measures and efforts to contain the epidemic.

Secretary-General of Iran's Islamic Coalition Party Asadollah Badamchian said the campaign to prevent and control the outbreak of the novel coronavirus reflects the resolve and efforts of the Chinese government and the CPC to safeguard the interests of the Chinese people.

Iran has always stood together with China and all members of the Islamic Coalition Party have always stood together with the CPC, Badamchian said.

He extended regards to the Chinese people and wished the Chinese people a final victory in fighting the epidemic.

Jose Luis Gioja, president of Argentina's ruling Justicialist Party and first vice president of the Chamber of Deputies, said that Argentina and China are brotherly countries, and their histories make them close.

At this difficult time, Argentina is willing to work more closely with the CPC and the Chinese people, he said.

He also expressed firm confidence that under Xi's strong leadership, with China's advanced science, technology and healthcare levels, as well as the unremitting efforts of its medical staff, China will soon effectively contain the epidemic.

Alejandro Moreno Cardenas, president of the Institutional Revolutionary Party of Mexico, said that while confronting the outbreak of the novel coronavirus in China, his party completely stands with the Chinese people.

China's actions on epidemic prevention are essential, which are recognized and supported by the Mexican side, said Moreno, also head of the Permanent Conference of Political Parties of Latin America and the Caribbean.

When the 2009 swine flu pandemic became rampant in Mexico, the country faced a huge challenge but finally defeated the epidemic, he recalled.

Mexico, therefore, fully understands the difficulties of tackling an epidemic, he said.

Mexico firmly believes that China will overcome the difficulties and win the battle against the epidemic, he added.

Randall Quiros, president of Costa Rica's Social Christian Unity Party, said that Costa Rica remains concerned about the situation of the pneumonia epidemic caused by the novel coronavirus.

It is impressive that the Chinese government has made great efforts and taken decisive measures to curb the spread of the epidemic, he said, adding that he hopes China will overcome the difficulties soon.

Jan Zahradil, president of the European Conservatives and Reformists party, said that he has been paying close attention to the epidemic situation in China and was saddened by the infections and deaths caused by the epidemic.

He said he firmly believes that after the victory against the Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome in 2003, China and its people will also defeat the novel coronavirus.
Real-life superhero Yuan Herong has left her world of cosplay aside to help patients diagnosed with coronavirus.

Muscled-up Yuan, who documents her workouts and costumes to her 338,000 followers on Instagram, is a doctor by day and determined to help in the midst of the epidemic.

The Shandong Province-based physician has revealed the other side of her world in China.

Doctors orders: Yuan Herong revealed she is a doctor by day and is determined to help in the middle of the epidemic

Working out: The muscle-bound cosplayer has left her costumes aside as she plays a real-life superhero in the epidemic

Behind the mask: Yuan Herong unmasks her true career as she sets about her work in tackling victims with the virus

In an Instagram post, Yuan said: 'I'm a doctor. Must [be] on the front line. Do my best to help the epidemic.'

And in a second post she said: '171 cases of new pneumonia were cured and 15238 suspected cases were found.

'The healers are all treated through traditional Chinese medicine and other symptomatic treatment. We will try our best to do a good job in prevention and treatment.'

Between shifts, Yuan has been posting a series of workout videos, but in many cases has been unable to get to the gym to the outbreak of the virus.

'Trying our best': She and other medics are promising to do 'a good job in prevention and treatment'

Building a reputation: She has been unable to get to the gym because of the outbreak of the virus but is still posting her workouts

On a mission: She is one of the medics working around the clock to tackle the disease

Two people have tested positive for coronavirus in the UK - one is a student at the University of York, it has been revealed.

Calls have been made for university bosses to open a call centre for panicked students.

The pair, two members of the same family, are being treated at a specialist unit in Newcastle.

Most of China  where the virus is thought to have originated  remains under quarantine and other nations have blocked further evacuations of their own people amid growing fears the virus will rapidly spread further.

Medics, including Yuan, are working around the clock in the bid to stop the spread of the disease.

Her fans were full of well wishes, with one saying: 'Bless you and your fellow doctors. Good luck and best wishes in helping those who are sick,' and another adding: 'Thank you for all of your hard work'.

She simply replied to one well-wisher saying: 'We will try our best, please have confidence in China.'
A man reported Saturday to be the first person diagnosed with the coronavirus in Massachusetts was identified by officials as a student at UMass Boston.

The Boston resident, who is in his 20s, returned to the U.S. earlier this week after traveling to Wuhan, China, where the outbreak of the respiratory infection began, said Dr. Jennifer Lo, medical director at the Boston Public Health Commission. The student arrived at Boston Logan International Airport on Tuesday, recognized he was ill and sought medical attention Wednesday.

He remains quarantined at his home, which officials said is not a campus dormitory, and is doing quite well, Lo said. Public health nurses are checking on him regularly over the phone, and he will stay isolated until cleared by officials. His few close contacts were identified and are being observed for any signs of symptoms.

The Boston Public Health Commission is continuing to do contact investigations, Lo said during a media conference call Saturday with state and city health officials. At this time, we have a very limited number of people who were exposed.

The mans test results were released to the state Department of Public Health and Boston Public Health Commission late Friday night, according to officials.

Both agencies will continue to monitor his treatment. The risk to the school community as well as the entire state remains low, though, according to officials. For these reasons, we expect business as usual on campus, said Katherine Newman, interim chancellor of the University.

I want to remind everyone that all members of our community are valued and respected, Newman said in a statement. On occasions like this, it is possible for fear to get the better of any of us. Lets remember that viruses are no ones fault and anyone can find themselves ill. We all want to be treated with care and compassion, especially when we fall ill.

Eight people have been diagnosed with the virus in the U.S., Massachusetts health officials said in a statement. Three patients were reported in California, two in Illinois and one in Massachusetts, Washington State and Arizona.

Almost 12,000 cases have been confirmed globally, and 259 deaths from the virus were reported in China, according to the World Health Organizations most recent situation report.

Federal officials Friday declared the coronavirus a public health emergency and ordered any U.S. citizens returning from the center of the outbreak in China to be quarantined for two weeks as a precaution, according to the Massachusetts Department of Public Health.

Around 99% of the coronavirus cases were reported only in China, said Dr. Larry Madoff of the state Department of Public Health during the media conference call.

The risk, even in the rest of the world, remains low at this time," he said.

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention has warned against all nonessential travel to China. Boston Logan International Airport joined a number of U.S. airports earlier this week in screening passengers for the virus.

The virus can be spread through respiratory droplets, according to health officials. Symptoms may include a fever, coughing and difficulty breathing. There are currently no vaccines available to prevent the illness.

People can take preventative measures similar to those taken during flu season, authorities said. Those steps include washing hands with soap and water, avoiding contact with sick people, staying home if one is ill, covering ones nose and mouth when sneezing or coughing and disinfecting surfaces and objects that may be contaminated with germs.


Lenders wary of political risks in Russia, China, Central Asia



By Park Jae-hyuk



Immediately after the New Year began, the Moon Jae-in administration declared it would speed up efforts for its New Northern Policy in 2020, as Chinese President Xi Jinping and Russian President Vladimir Putin are supposed to visit Korea during the first half of the year.



Nevertheless, the nation's four largest financial groups  Shinhan, KB, Woori and Hana  remained cautious about their expansion in the area embracing Russia, Northeast China and Central Asia, according to a recent survey by The Korea Times.



Their attitude is in stark contrast to their supports for the New Southern Policy which was the key agenda last year in line with the Korea-ASEAN Commemorative Summit that took place in Busan.



Throughout 2019, they expanded rapidly in Vietnam, Indonesia, Cambodia and Myanmar to seek new income sources in the fast-growing markets.



The government hopes the country's private enterprises will support the New Northern Policy as they have done the New Southern Policy.



President Moon Jae-in said in his New Year address, Jan. 7, that Korea will diversify its key diplomatic partners by accelerating efforts for the New Northern Policy.



"As Chinese President Xi Jinping and Premier Li Keqiang are scheduled to visit Korea this year, the government will make efforts so that Korea-China relations can make a leap forward," he said.



"Russia is a core partner of the New Northern Policy. This year, the 30th anniversary of establishing diplomatic relations between the two countries, I hope that a new turning point will be made in the New Northern diplomacy."



Deputy Prime Minister and Finance Minister Hong Nam-ki told reporters Jan. 9: "The government tried to pioneer new export markets with the New Southern Policy in the ASEAN region last year. I expect the government policy will focus on the New Northern countries this year."



The financial regulator has been forcing financial institutions more strongly, so as to have them keep pace with the government initiative.



Kwon Dae-young, director general of the Financial Services Commission's financial innovation bureau, told The Korea Times the nation's financial institutions and fintech firms need to pioneer the New Northern countries.



"In Central Asia, there are many under-banked and unbanked countries with few banking accounts," he said.



"But nearly 100 percent of population in those countries own mobile devices, so there must be opportunities for fintech businesses."



The nation's banking groups, however, have been skeptical of the financial authorities' outlook for the area's growth potential, concerned about political risks inherent in doing businesses there.







Korean banks in New Northern states



Even before the administration pursues the New Northern Policy, the four financial groups have actually tapped the Russian, Northeast Chinese and Central Asian markets.



Among them, Hana Financial Group has been most aggressive in doing businesses there.



The company having a taskforce for the New Northern Policy has concentrated on its businesses in three Northeastern provinces of China  Liaoning, Jilin, and Heilongjiang.



Hana Chairman Kim Jung-tai formed a partnership with the Jilin provincial government in July 2018, and Vice Chairman Ham Young-joo was selected as an honorary citizen of Changchun City in the province in October 2019.



The group, which has run KEB Hana Bank's Russian subsidiary since September 2014, also hosted a forum in Vladivostok in June 2019 to seek Korea-Russia economic ties in finance, tourism and logistics in the Far East.



In addition, Hana Financial Investment CEO Lee Jin-kook visited Mongolia in June 2019 to discuss the country's capital market with Mongolian Parliament Speaker Gombojav Zandanshatar and form a partnership with Golomt Financial Group, the largest financial group there.



Despite these efforts, Hana was cautious about additional expansion in those countries.



"We have yet to come up with any plan to expand our businesses there," a Hana spokesman said.



"We need more market studies, because it differs from the Southeast Asian market that has come under the spotlight regardless of the government policies due to its rapid growth."



Other financial groups were no different from Hana in their views on the New Northern Policy.



Shinhan Financial Group, which has a subsidiary in Kazakhstan and offices in Russia and Uzbekistan, said it has focused on financing Korean companies there, rather than pushing ahead with localization.



According to the group, it has yet to generate a significant outlook in those countries, although Chairman Cho Yong-byoung accompanied the President on his trip to three Central Asian countries in April 2019.



"Because the New Northern countries have shown slower growth than the New Southern countries and their political systems are unstable, Korean financial firms have been restricted from expanding," a Shinhan spokesman said.



Woori Financial Group, which has a subsidiary in Russia, said its global strategies for this year do not include measures for the New Northern Policy, although Chairman Son Tae-seung formed a partnership with a Kazakh state-run investment agency in April 2019 when he accompanied the President on his trip to three Central Asian countries.



KB Financial Group, which suffered a traumatic failure in Kazakhstan, said it has no plans for expansion in the New Northern countries.



KB Kookmin Bank exited the Kazakh market in 2017, after suffering almost a 1 trillion won ($864 million) loss.



The bank acquired a 41.9 percent stake in the Kazakh's fifth-largest Center Credit Bank for 954.1 billion won in 2008 and sold it for 158 billion won in 2017 as it could not handle the snowballing losses after the global financial crisis.



Since then, KB has not established a network in the New Northern Policy countries.



Yet, it partially financed a 110 billion won Korean-Eurasian cooperation fund which has been used to finance Korean companies participating in infrastructure and urban development projects in the Commonwealth of Independent States, the Caucasus countries and Mongolia.



Potential demand from inter-Korean cooperation



Experts said the government should guarantee political stability if it wants financial institutions to enter the New Northern countries.



"China is still a socialist state, and there exists concerns about political risks in Russia, although it underwent structural change," said Lee Yoon-sok, the director of the Korea Institute of Finance's center for international financial cooperation.



The researcher expected financial firms may seek opportunities from possible inter-Korean economic cooperation in Northeast China and Russian border areas, if political instability is resolved.



"It will be recommendable for financial firms to enter Northeast China and Russia in advance, because there will be a demand for financing when inter-Korean development projects begin near the border areas," he said.



As for Central Asia, however, the researcher admitted more market studies are needed.



He said his think tank specializing in financial research will review each Central Asian country to understand their financial services needs.


A man who was caring for the 3-year-old boy of his ex-girlfriend is accused of injuring the child, who later died, according to investigators.

Logan Wayne Harvill, 29, was arrested Monday and charged with injury to a child causing serious bodily injury. His bail was set at $150,000.

The child, Christian Paz, was pronounced dead Monday as a result of blunt force trauma, according to the Bexar County Medical Examiners Office. His death was ruled a homicide.

Details of the case were not immediately available.

According to a gofundme account set up in the childs name to assist with funeral costs, family members said Christian was seriously injured Sunday while he was being watched by Harvill, his mothers ex-boyfriend.

According to court records, when Harvill was first arrested, the magistrate issued a no-contact order, directing Harvill to stay away from three people, including the 3-year-old and the childs mother.

Mary Walker, a spokeswoman for the Texas Department of Family and Protective Services, said Child Protective Investigations is investigating Christians death but that she had no other information.

Our focus is on any children who may be left in that home or who may have been placed at risk, Walker said.

She said there have been no prior protective services investigations involving Harvill, Christian or his mother.

Jacob Beltran is a reporter covering San Antonio and Bexar County. Read him on our free site, mySA.com, and on our subscriber site, ExpressNews.com. | jbeltran@express-news.net | Twitter: @JBfromSA
New Delhi: After quoting Kashmiri poet Dinanath Kaul Nadim in her speech, Union Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman mentioned Tamil poet Thiruvalluvar as she presented Budget 2020 in Lok Sabha on Saturday (February 1). Sitharaman quoted the Tamil poet on health, wealth, farm productivity, happiness and security as imperatives of a country. She said, "There are 5 jewels for a good country, according to Tamil poet Thiruvalluvar, which are:

No epidemics.

It should have wealth.

It should have a good crop.

It should have happiness.

It should have security and safety."

Sitharaman then linked the 'five jewels to government reforms such as Ayushman Bharat, wealth creators being respected, PM Kisan doubling income, ease of living, national security while delivering the India budget 2020 speech.

Live TV

The finance minister has taken three themes for the Union Budget 2020 - aspirational India, economic development and caring society. She started her speech by pointing out that the Indian voters reposed their faith in the Narendra Modi government in the 2029 Lok Sabha election by giving a massive majority to the Bharatiya Janata Party-led National Democratic Alliance.

She also paid homage to her former and late colleague Arun Jaitley who had piloted the Goods and Services Tax (GST) during his tenure in the previous regime of Prime Minister Modi. She added that the Modi government believes in and has been working on the motto of "Sabka Saath, Sabka Vikas and Sabka Vishwas".
A 17-year-old boy died Friday evening after a head-on crash, Clark County Sheriffs Office said.

The boy, whose name police have not released, was driving a Mercedes sedan south on Northeast 72nd Avenue just before 5 p.m. when police say he crossed the center line and drove directly into the path of a Ford van, which was traveling north. The two vehicles collided, and the boy had to be extricated from the car.

BREAKING: Were on scene of a fatal head-on crash near 72nd and 151st Cir. in Vancouver. The Clark Co. Sheriffs Office says one person is dead. The other driver was transported to the hospital. @fox12oregon pic.twitter.com/Rlnq2x6m4p  Drew Reeves (@DrewReevesTV) February 1, 2020

Police said the driver of the van, 27-year-old Cody Potter of Battle Ground, was taken to an area hospital with non-life-threatening injuries.

Police said they are still investigating the crash and have not said how fast either driver was traveling. Northeast 72nd Avenue has a speed limit of 50 miles per hour and is a major route from Battle Ground to Vancouver, heavily traveled in the evening. Police said they dont yet know why the teens car crossed over the center line.

Jayati Ramakrishnan; 503-221-4320; jramakrishnan@oregonian.com; @JRamakrishnanOR

Subscribe to Oregonian/OregonLive newsletters and podcasts for the latest news and top stories.
Bankrupt developer Sean Dunne is seeking to stop his son John from using the funds of a Cypriot company to settle a legal battle linked to the sale of Ireland's most expensive home.

John Dunne is a director of Yesreb Holdings, which sold Walford on Dublin's Shrewsbury Road to a trust set up by financier Dermot Desmond's children in 2016.

Yesreb is being sued by Sean Dunne's Irish bankruptcy trustee, who is seeking to recover assets for the businessman's creditors.

Official assignee in bankruptcy Chris Lehane alleges Sean Dunne had an involvement with Yesreb, which received 14.25m for the sale of Walford to the Desmond trust.

Prior to being owned by Yesreb, the property was bought by Sean Dunne for his then wife Gayle Killilea for a record 57.9m in 2005.

The official assignee's action is set to begin in the High Court on Wednesday.

But it has now emerged the case has been complicated by injunction proceedings Sean Dunne has initiated in New York against his son.

The High Court heard the US proceedings are aimed at restraining John Dunne from using Yesreb's funds to settle the case.

Sean Dunne claims the funds at issue belong to his minor children and are owned by a trust for those children.

The Dunnes initially denied having any connection with Yesreb but later asserted it had been owned by John Dunne.

Yesterday, one motion by Yesreb seeking some 553,000 out of monies held in an escrow account for the purpose of paying legal fees was adjourned to Tuesday.

A second application, by Mr Lehane and the Desmond trust, Celtic Trustees Ltd, to have certain expert evidence admitted, was not pursued.

Eoin McCullough SC, for Yesreb, said an affidavit provided by Jennifer Fay, solicitor for Mr Lehane, had disclosed "surprising" developments.

In the affidavit, Ms Fay said she had been informed on Thursday night that Sean Dunne had initiated injunction proceedings in New York against John Dunne.

Mr McCullough said his side had hoped to have an affidavit from John Dunne yesterday but it now appeared it had been overtaken by events.

Bernard Dunleavy SC, for Mr Lehane, said the result of the payment out application by Yesreb may have a "significant bearing" on the case.

Discussions are ongoing, he said. If matters are not resolved and the case opens on Wednesday, it is unclear who will give evidence for Yesreb.

It is also unclear whether Sean Dunne, Gayle Killilea and others will come to court to give evidence, he said.

Mr Justice Denis McDonald made various directions and returned the matter to next week.
US President Donald Trump on Friday slapped immigration restrictions on citizens of six countries including Nigeria, in addition to the list of nations already targeted by his controversial travel ban.

Besides Africas most populous nation, the new measures also pertain to Myanmar, Eritrea, Kyrgyzstan, Sudan and Tanzania, administration officials said.

The presidents decision is the product of a comprehensive and systematic assessment that was conducted by the Department of Homeland Security, as well as in partnership with other federal agencies, said one of the officials.

The official added that the decision was the result of these countries unwillingness or inability to adhere to certain baseline identity management, information sharing and national security and public safety assessment criteria that were established by the department in 2017.

Unlike the travel ban Mr Trump unveiled in January 2017 shortly after taking office, which banned citizens of certain Muslim-majority countries from entering US territory, the latest directive, which takes effect 22 February, was less sweeping.

The official said it would only target certain visa categories and would focus primarily on people seeking to move to the US rather than those simply aiming to visit.

US has to be safe

Mr Trump had announced his intention to lengthen the list of countries last week on the sidelines of the World Economic Forum in Davos.

We have to be safe. Our country has to be safe, he said.

We have to be safe. Our country has to be safe DONALD TRUMP

Mr Trump repeatedly promised during his election campaign to implement a complete ban on Muslims entering the US, and he announced his first package of travel bans and restrictions shortly after taking office in January 2017.

The move outraged critics and was struck down by a federal court that ruled the ban amounted to religious discrimination. The administration moved a second version of the policy in March 2017, which was struck down again for similar reasons.
IMF Chief Says 'Some' Negative Impact From Coronavirus Likely in Q1

Sputnik News

00:33 GMT 31.01.2020

WASHINGTON (Sputnik) - The International Monetary Fund (IMF) expects some negative first quarter economic impact from China's coronavirus amid disruptions to travel, tourism and manufacturing, IMF Managing Director Kristalina Georgieva said at a forum in Washington.

"Let's say for this quarter, it's very likely there would be some negative impact," Georgieva told a discussion on the global economic outlook at the Center for Global Development on Thursday. "But what would happen beyond the quarter? We have to just observe and assess."

The World Health Organization (WHO) on Thursday declared the outbreak a public health emergency of international concern.

Separately, IMF Communications Director Gerry Rice told a media briefing on Thursday that it was too early to tell the economic impact caused by the coronavirus outbreak, and that the fund expected to make an assessment in upcoming reviews before the G20 summit in November.

Georgieva said the IMF had upgraded its forecast for Chinese growth just earlier this month before the novel strain of the coronavirus, first detected in the central city of Wuhan in the Hubei province, turned into a pandemic.

"We had a six percent growth target for China, and now comes the coronavirus," she said. "We now have travel, tourism and manufacturing in China, and a little beyond China in Asia, being impacted."

Zhang Ming, a government economist at the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences, said on Wednesday that China's economic growth may drop to 5 percent or even lower this year due to the outbreak.

Georgieva said the IMF's template for assessing the impact of the outbreak would likely be the 2002-2003 SARS epidemic - another China-originated health scare that killed about 800 people and infected some 8,000 before being brought under control over a six-month period.

While institutions worldwide have relied on SARS as a comparison, statistics show the coronavirus to be more powerful, killing at least 170 people and infecting more than 8,000 in just over a month.

"What we can do is refer to the similar case of the SARS epidemic and what happened then," Georgieva said. "There was indeed a slowdown in the short term and then a rebound, I think, in economic growth over the course of the whole year. It was as if it kind of evened up. Would that be the case now? It is very hard to predict."

Earlier, China's foreign ministry said Beijing is confident and has the capability to win the war against the coronavirus and will continue to work with the WHO and other countries to maintain regional and global public health security.

 Sputnik

NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address






Two Irvington residents, including a man who was training to become a firefighter there, were arrested Thursday for operating an ecstasy mill in the trainees basement, federal prosecutors said.

The Irvington Fire Department trainee, Elijah Lee, 27, and Immanuel Majerska, 37, were charged with conspiring to distribute methylenedioxymethamphetamine, which is commonly referred to as ecstasy or MDMA, U.S. Attorney Craig Carpenito announced Friday.

Officers saw Lee and Majerska leave Lees home together on Thursday carrying a bag, which was later found to have over 1,000 ecstasy pills inside it, and drive away in separate cars, according to Carpenitos statement.

Investigators executed a search warrant and found two presses in the basement, which are capable of producing pills from raw ingredients, along with multiple kilograms of suspected bulk MDMA powder, and numerous ecstasy pills, authorities said.

They also found a loaded gun in a dresser in Majerskas room.

Lee and Majerska were pulled over and officers found the bag of ecstasy pills inside Majerskas car, according to a complaint.

Officers also searched a Union Township home owned by Lee and found two handguns hidden in the ceiling, federal prosecutors said.

The pair made their first appearances Friday before a federal judge. Lee was released on bail and Majerska was detained.

Chris Sheldon may be reached at csheldon@njadvancemedia.com. Follow him on Twitter @chrisrsheldon Find NJ.com on Facebook.

Have a tip? Tell us. nj.com/tips. Get the latest updates right in your inbox. Subscribe to NJ.coms newsletters.
Brexit supremo Dominic Cummings wept on Friday night as his bitterly fought mission to drag Britain out of the EU was finally realised.

At a Downing Street party to toast in the historic moment, the campaign guru who masterminded the 2016 Leave vote tried to make a victory speech but choked up.

With a lump in his throat, he just about managed to say: 'Those that know what we went through, know.'

Watching Mr Cummings, who relishes his reputation as a political street-fighter, break down in tears was like 'the scene at the end of The Terminator 2 when Arnold Schwarzenegger says, "I know now why you cry",' an insider told the Sunday Times.

At the Number 10 bash, the Prime Minister toasted his Brexit triumph with a bottle of one of the world's finest red wines left to him in a supporter's will.

Boris Johnson opened the 1994 vintage Chateau Margaux that was sent to him last year, with a message for it not to be drunk until Britain was out of the EU.

Boris Johsnon banged Britain out of the EU with a small antique gong in Number 10 on Friday night  a nod to his doomed campaign to have Big Ben bong to mark the moment

The Prime Minister gave a speech to Downing Street and former Vote Leave staffers in the state rooms and hailed 'a fantastic moment in the life of our country'

The beyond-the-grave instruction and 350 bottle of claret, pictured below, were included in the final testament of a Eurosceptic Tory Party member.

The Bordeaux Premier Cru was much loved by French Emperor Napoleon III and United States founding father Thomas Jefferson, and was drunk by the Beckhams at Christmas in 2017.

Earlier on Friday, Business Secretary Andrea Leadsom tweeted a photo of Mr Johnson showing off his new blue British passport to former Labour MP and Vote Leave campaigner Gisela Stuart.

The Prime Minister and his partner Carrie Symonds then joined No 10 staff, Tory donors and veterans of the 2016 referendum in the Downing Street state rooms, where guests were served English sparkling wine instead of champagne.

The couple's dog Dilyn was dressed in a Union Flag coat.

Earlier on Friday, Business Secretary Andrea Leadsom (right) tweeted a photo of Mr Johnson showing off his new blue British passport to former Labour MP and Vote Leave campaigner Gisela Stuart (centre)

Mr Johnson banged Britain out of the EU with a small antique gong  a nod to his doomed campaign to have Big Ben bong to mark the moment.

Mr Johnson told those present: 'This is a fantastic moment in the life of our country. There are very few moments that can be called a historic turning point  and this is it.

'This is not the end, or the beginning of the end; it's the beginning of the beginning,' he said, paraphrasing Churchill.

'This is a turning point in the life of our nation.'

The PM added: 'This is the start of something fantastic and different. And this is our chance to do something different and fantastic with our wonderful country.'

Mr Johnson told the audience he knew many of them did not vote Leave in the 2016 referendum, but he 'didn't care'.

'We did it, we absolutely did it. But much more important than that, this is a turning point for the life of our nation and a genuine chance for change and renewal,' he said.

'This is not the end, or the beginning of the end; it's the beginning of the beginning,' he said, paraphrasing Churchill

Boris Johnson (pictured left in Sunderland yesterday) hailed the role of his adviser Dominic Cummings (pictured right in London last night) at a Downing Street reception to mark Brexit

'It is the moment where we have to answer the demand of those who voted for Brexit in 2016.'

He went on: 'I want to thank those sitting at home watching on television, the people of this country  the real heroes of this story.'

And after thanking Mr Cummings and other staff, he added: I want you all to remember you were here tonight after 11pm, in Downing Street, when we got Brexit done.'

They were served a selection of patriotic canapes including fillet of lamb on toast, Shropshire blue cheese, beef and Yorkshire pudding with horseradish sauce, mushrooms tarts and roast chicken skewers.

Meanwhile, outside a countdown was projected on to the famous No10 black door from 10pm - and a pre-recorded address to the nation by Mr Johnson was broadcast.

A countdown was projected on to the famous No10 black door from 10pm, as the party continued inside

Mr Johnson's partner Carrie Symonds tweeted a picture of their dog Dilyn dressed up in a Union flag coat last night

The PM did nod to the scale of the task that now faces the government to thrash out trade terms with the EU and overhaul the UK's services, saying they had to move 'very fast'.

'I am a Conservative and we are going to deliver a fantastic agenda to take this country forward. And time is marching and we've got to go very, very fast to get it all done.'

He also paid tribute to Mr Cummings, pointing out that he had been the architect of the Vote Leave campaign and drove the Tory election strategy that resulted in a stunning 80-strong majority last month.

'It was he, I seem to remember, who came up with the famous phrase that we should 'take back control'.

'It was also Dom that came up with the other three word epigram, that the policy of the government should be to ''get Brexit done''.

'And I want you to remember that you were here tonight, after 11 oclock, when finally, we got Brexit done.'

In nearby Parliament Square, Union flags were prominently on show as Brexit supporters showed their delight about the departure from the EU

Many of the pro-Brexit revellers had decided to dress up for the good-natured party in Parliament Square last night
A Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) federal lawmaker has endorsed the Edo governor, Godwin Obaseki, for a second term.

The lawmaker, Joe Edionwere, who is representing Esan West, Esan Central and Igueben Federal Constituency, Edo state, said the governor is a good man.

The PDP in Edo state recently described as indiscipline and ingratitude, the endorsement of Mr Obaseki by some chieftains of the party.

Governor Obaseki is a member of the All Progressives Congress (APC).

The opposition PDP believes they could snatch victory away from the APC in the forthcoming governorship election because of the infighting within the ruling party. But they are worried that the endorsement of Mr Obaseki by PDP chieftains could threaten the PDP chances at the poll.

This practice you will agree with us is condemnable and smacks of indiscipline and ingratitude. It defeats the spirit of camaraderie that is supposed to exist within a political party. It is a morale-damper and its unacceptable, Dan Orbih, the state chairman of PDP said to the party national chairman, Uche Secondus, in a letter he wrote to him on Saturday.

Use your office to call these leaders to order so that this open treachery doesnt become a norm in our great party, Mr Orbih added.

The federal lawmaker, Mr Edionwere who is the latest high-profile PDP member to endorse Mr Obaseki, said most people in Edo are in support of the governor.

I want to tell you to continue your good works. It does not matter how long you spend in power. It is the legacy you leave behind that matters. Let it be known to you that those who are with you are more than those against you, Mr Edionwere said to the governor over the weekend during a thanksgiving service organised by a state lawmaker in Edo.

It is about development and since that is what you stand for, there is no party when it comes to development. You have constructed roads, rebuilt schools and health centres. I want to thank you on behalf of the church. May God perfect all that concerns you.

We need you to construct some roads in Iruekpen, not because we will vote for you, but because you are a good man, he said.

The governor of Ebonyi state, David Umahi, and member of the PDP Board of Trustees, Daisy Danjuma, are among the PDP leaders who have endorsed Mr Obaseki.

Mrs Danjuma, who is the wife of a former defence minister Theophilus Danjuma, defended her endorsement of Governor Obaseki as a personal decision.

I owe nobody apology for endorsing the second term aspiration of Governor Godwin Obaseki of Edo. I have the right to support whoever I choose to. I am a member of the PDP. I have never left the PDP or decamped to any party like others. It is my right to free comment and I have exercised that, she said.
Jeff Bezos is being sued for defamation by girlfriend Lauren Sanchez's brother after the Amazon founder accused him of leaking graphic nude photos and intimate texts exposing his affair to the National Enquirer.

Michael Sanchez, the brother of Bezos' girlfriend, filed a suit stating that the tycoon defamed him by falsely claiming that he was the source of the naked photos of Bezos that ended up in the hands of the Enquirer.

In January 2019, the Enquirer exposed Bezos' extramarital affair with Lauren, including quoting from text messages between the pair.

Bezos hired investigators, led by his longtime security chief Gavin de Becker, who accused Saudi Arabia of being behind the revelations.

Michael Sanchez (right), the brother of Bezos' girlfriend Lauren Sanchez (left), filed a suit stating that Jeff Bezos defamed him by falsely claiming that he was the source of the naked photos of Bezos that ended up in the hands of the Enquirer

In January 2019, the Enquirer exposed Bezos' (right) extramarital affair with Lauren (left), including quoting from text messages between the pair

Last week, the Wall Street Journal revealed that New York City prosecutors had obtained documents including a May 10, 2018 text message sent from Lauren's phone to Michael, containing intimate text messages she had exchanged with Bezos.

It also reported that Michael had received a $200,000 payment from the Enquirer later that year.

Michael denies he had anything to do with the expose.

He is now suing Bezos and de Becker for unspecified damages 'in an amount appropriate to punish and make an example of defendants.'

Michael claims he suffered substantial harm as a result of Bezos' allegations including an FBI raid on his home in full view of his neighbors.

The suit states he was a 'dutiful brother and manager' to Lauren at the time of the leak and that, despite assisting with the investigation, he had been 'scapegoated'.

The Wall Street Journal revealed that New York City prosecutors had obtained documents including a May 10, 2018 text message sent from Lauren's phone to Michael (right), containing intimate text messages she had exchanged with Bezos (left). It also reported that Michael (right) had received a $200,000 payment from the Enquirer. Michael denies he had anything to do with the expose

Michael (right) says he was a 'dutiful brother and manager' to Lauren (left) at the time of the leak and that, despite assisting with the investigation, he had been 'scapegoated'. He is now suing Bezos for unspecified damages

Included in the tabloid's expose was a quote from the Bezos text message that the Journal says Lauren Sanchez had sent to her brother in May 2018

Lauren reiterated the allegations that her brother sold information to the Enquirer and described his lawsuit against Bezos as 'baseless and untrue', in a statement to TMZ.

'Michael is my older brother. He secretly provided my most personal information to the National Enquirer - a deep and unforgivable betrayal,' she said.

'My family is hurting over this new baseless and untrue lawsuit, and we truly hope my brother finds peace.'

The saga began when, in January 2019, the Enquirer published details of Bezos' affair with Lauren.

Bezos was at the time married to MacKenzie, with who he has four children.

He abruptly announced a separation from his wife of 26 years, and has been romantically linked with Sanchez ever since.

Bezos alleged that the Enquirer tried to extort him by threatening to publish nude pictures, and he hired investigators to explore whether his phone was hacked.

His Investigators, endorsed by U.N. officials, indicated that the Crown Prince of Saudi Arabia had sent malicious code in a WhatsApp message that compromised Bezos' cell phone and was the source of the Enquirer story.

Saudi Arabia denies hacking Bezos' phone.

The Enquirer then claimed that Michael was the source, as first reported by The Journal.

'In September of 2018, Michael Sanchez began providing all materials and information to our reporters,' a spokesman for American Media told the Journal.

The spokesman said that any suggestion that a third party, such as Saudi Arabia, 'was involved in or in any way influenced our reporting is false.'

Bezos, who was married, was having an affair with Sanchez. Bezos alleged that the Enquirer tried to extort him by threatening to publish nude pictures, and he hired investigators to explore whether his phone was hacked

Parts of the text messages between Lauren and Bezos

The Journal said it had reviewed the text messages as well as a $200,000 payment Michael received from the Enquirer under an October 2018 contract.

Included in the tabloid's bombshell article was a quote from a text message from Bezos that Lauren had sent to her brother in May 2018.

Another text message sent from her phone to her brother's on July 3, 2018 includes a photo of a shirtless Bezos, according to the Journal.

Michael denied the allegations and said in an emailed statement to The Journal: 'With spoon-fed lies and half-truths, Wall Street Journal keeps getting it wrong.'

Despite the ongoing drama, Bezos and Lauren have put on a united front.

The couple were spotted smiling together in New York City Monday, and appeared unfazed by the family rift.

They went to a Manhattan restaurant and then to Hudson Yards with her children, where they climbed the new public art installation the Vessel.

Amazon founder and CEO Jeff Bezos (right) is seen with his girlfriend, Lauren Sanchez (left), in New York City on Monday
Source: Xinhua| 2020-02-01 17:51:41|Editor: xuxin

Video Player Close

DAR ES SALAAM, Feb. 1 (Xinhua) -- At least 13 people have been killed and 15,096 others have been left homeless by flash floods that swept 16 villages in Tanzania's southern district of Kilwa in Lindi region, an official said on Saturday.

Christopher Ngubiagai, Kilwa district commissioner, said the floods caused by ongoing torrential rains also damaged tens of hundreds of hectares of farmland and killed livestock.

"The floods that occurred from Jan. 26 have left people in the 16 villages in devastating shock," he told Xinhua in a telephone interview, adding that the district authorities have created four centers that were sheltering 8,000 people who have been made homeless.

Ngubiagai said the remaining 7,096 people were being accommodated by their relatives and friends. Kilwa district has a total of 90 villages, he added.

The official appealed to individuals, businessmen and organizations to donate relief supplies, including food, water, medicines, tents, blankets, mattresses and clothing to the victims.

He said the Kilwa district authorities were now counting the loss in the 16 villages to establish the exact number of houses that have been demolished by the floods, the number of destroyed hectares of farms, the number of killed livestock and damage on the infrastructure, including schools, dispensaries and roads.

Reports from northwest district of Magu in Mwanza region said 152 people were left homeless after 89 houses were demolished by floods on Friday.

Safia Jongo, Mwanza region acting police commander said all the victims were rescued and moved to safer areas.

On Sunday, the Tanzania Meteorological Authority issued its latest weather outlook warning of looming heavy rains in more than 10 regions across the east African country.
Copyright  2020 Albuquerque Journal

Joanna Gonzales wailed as she kneeled in the gravel before a row of candles. Her sons face stared up from photos glued to a poster.

I love you with all my heart, she said between sobs. Youre in no more pain, baby.

Gonzales was one of dozens who gathered at a Southwest Albuquerque intersection Friday evening to mourn the loss of her son, 18-year-old Carlos Los Hernandez.

Hernandez and a female  who hasnt been identified by authorities  were killed earlier this week in a rollover crash following a chase with Bernalillo County deputies.

Family and friends of Hernandez crowded the corner where the crash occurred to light candles and play Hernandezs music in his honor. Some of those who came wept silently as others cried out and talked about a young man who had two children on the way and, despite a rough start, had his whole life ahead of him.

People make mistakes in life, everybody deserves a second chance. Everybody goes through a phase, Bobby Rodriguez, Gonzales boyfriend, said through tears.  This wasnt Los for the rest of his life, he was going to get it right.

A deputy was in pursuit of a vehicle  with Hernandez and two females inside  early Wednesday morning when it crashed into another vehicle at Sapphire and Unser SW, according to the Bernalillo County Sheriffs Office. The crash killed Hernandez and one of the females and left the other, Angelic McKeller, 21, critically injured. The driver and sole occupant of the other vehicle was also injured and taken to a hospital.

BCSO has not identified the other female killed in the crash, but those at the vigil said she had just turned 17.

Those in the crowd described Hernandez, one of three siblings, as a good kid with a big heart who loved to make music and was excited to be a father.

Posters laid out on the gravel beneath the candles showed photos of Hernandez and left space for people to write messages. A speaker on the ground beside the posters, between two shiny blue balloons, played Hernandezs music as some who knew the words sang along. A woman passed candles out to be lit and held by those in a circle around the memorial.

He was an example to a lot of people regardless of the lifestyle he was living, Rodriguez said. That didnt define him; Los was defined by people that cared about him, people that prayed about him, they wanted the best for him  But we make choices in life. We have to live by them.
Thakur and three other convicts were to be hanged on Saturday but a city court indefinitely postponed their hanging

New Delhi: Akshay Thakur, one of the convicts in the 2012 Nirbhaya gangrape and murder case, on Saturday filed a mercy plea, jail officials said.

Thakur and three other convicts were to be hanged on Saturday but a city court indefinitely postponed their hanging. "Akshay Thakur filed a mercy plea before president Ram Nath Kovind on Saturday," Director General (Prison) Sandeep Goel said.

Earlier in the day, the president Ram Nath Kovind rejected the mercy plea of another accused, Vinay Sharma.

The 23-year-old physiotherapy intern, who came to be known as 'Nirbhaya' (fearless), was gangraped and savagely assaulted on the night of 16 December, 2012, in a moving bus in south Delhi. She died of her injuries a fortnight later in a Singapore hospital.

Six people, Mukesh, Vinay, Akshay Kumar Singh, Pawan Gupta, Ram Singh and a juvenile, were named as accused. The trial of the five adult men began in a special fast-track court in March 2013.

The prime accused, Ram Singh, allegedly committed suicide by hanging himself in Tihar jail days after the trial began.

The juvenile, who was said to be the most brutal of the attackers, was put in a correctional home for three years. He was released in 2015 and sent to an undisclosed location amid concerns over a threat to his life. The juvenile, when released, was 20 years old.

Mukesh, Vinay, Akshay and Pawan were convicted and sentenced to death in September 2013.
The Internet is filled with all sorts of stories. However, there are only some which are so unexpected or unique that they end up going viral. It can be the story of a groom walking four kms in ice to reach his bride or a picture showing Infosys co-founder Narayana Murthy touching business mogul Ratan Tatas feet.

Man uses coffee to rescue kitten

Kendall Diwisch was hailed as a hero after his quick-thinking and act of kindness saved lives of three little kittens. He used hot coffee to rescue kittens frozen to the ground.

Follow me for more recipes memes

The follow me for more recipes memes quickly became Twitters favourite with many people sharing their own version. The meme is about recipes - not due their preparation methods but rather lack of it. Take a look at one such meme:

Follow me for more recipes... pic.twitter.com/4IsrTTCNil  Singh Saab 6.0 (@regal_kingg) January 23, 2020

Dog rides bus alone to go to park

The old story of a dog riding a bus alone to go to a park again created a stir online again after recently being shared on Facebook. The post details the bus riding adventure of a black Labrador called Eclipse.

Narayana Murthy touches Ratan Tatas feet

Infosys co-founder Narayana Murthy won people over when he bent down, touched Ratan Tatas feet and sought blessing from the Tata Groups chairman. People found the gesture to be extremely warm.

The person who is touching the feet of Ratan Tata is Narayana Murthy, both are are India's biggest businessmen. They were fierce business rivals in the IT industry. The values, respect demonstrated by these legends are inspiring.

Its truly indian Culture @TiEMumbai pic.twitter.com/4GbLBrQZ6I  NIKHIL PALHADE (@NikhilPalhade) January 29, 2020

Groom walks 4 kms to brides house

A groom from Uttarakhand set quite an example by trekking through a snow clad road in Chamoli to marry his bride. The images of the groom along with his baraatis soon went viral.

Uttarakhand: A groom travelled four km on foot to reach the bride's home in Bijra village in Chamoli district as roads were closed due to heavy snowfall in the region. pic.twitter.com/sS9pjqdZLL  ANI (@ANI) January 29, 2020

Which of these stories you like the most?
Nintendo released an earnings report earlier this week that gave us an idea about the consoles sales numbers. The report said that the Nintendo Switch surpassed 50 million units in sales numbers that put it ahead of the Xbox One as well.

These numbers are worldwide figures, however, whats interesting is that the Nintendo Switch launched four years after the initial launch of the Xbox One in 2013 and still managed to surpass Xbox One in sales even though the latter had a head start.

 Unsplash/Matteo Grobberio

If you want to get into the specifics, Nintendo says the Switch managed to sell 52.48 million units worldwide to date and it includes both the classic and Lite model. Nintendo has also managed to surpass the Super Nintendo sales figures that stand at 49.1 million units.

Microsoft doesnt officially reveal the sales figures of the Xbox One, however, one can get a rough idea from the companys earnings reports, so far. But third party websites have given a rough estimate on the Xbox One sales figures and according to VGChartz, the Xbox One has sold approximately 43 million units as of August 2019.

 Nintendo

Whats surprising is that Nintendo doesnt officially sell the Switch in India, however, a report by The Mako Reactor details that the Nintendo Switch has managed to sell more units in India via unofficial channels than the Xbox One. Industry estimates peg the Nintendo Switch lifetime to date sales to be above 50,000 eclipsing the Xbox One the report said.

 YouTube/Austin evans

While the report was published in October of 2019, we expect the number of Nintendo Switch sales in India have grown even more since then.



It is also worthy to point out that both the Xbox One and the PlayStation 4 are in the last few months of this generation as both companies are looking to release new consoles later this year.



Source: VGChartz, The Mako Reactor
A 15-person jury was sworn in yesterday (Monday 27th) to hear the trial of a man charged with the capital murder of Detective Garda Adrian Donohoe seven years ago.

Aaron Brady, wearing a blue suit, white shirt and blue tie, replied 'not guilty' when charged with the murder of Det Gda Donohoe who was then a member of An Garda Siochana on active duty on January 25, 2013 at Lordship Credit Union, Bellurgan, Co Louth.

The 28-year-old from New Road, Crossmaglen, Co unty Armagh also pleaded 'not guilty' to a charge of robbing approximately e7,000 in cash and assorted cheques from Mr Pat Bellew on the same date and at the same location.

Mr Justice Michael White at the Central Criminal Court told the jury panel that the trial will be a lengthy one and is estimated to finish on May 28.

He warned the panel not to allow themselves to be sworn onto the jury if they have a difficulty in serving, as that would cause 'serious difficulties' for the court.

The judge said the trial will break for two weeks at Easter and will not sit on the St Patrick's Day public holiday. He said there will also be breaks when he will deal with legal matters in the absence of the jury. He added: 'That may suit self-employed people, who I would hope would consider sitting on the jury.'

He said he was conscious it is a long trial but added: 'The director [Director of Public Prosecutions] and defence and the Court are anxious to get a cross-section of jurors from all walks of life and I would ask you to consider serving for those reasons.'

Justice White said jurors must be impartial and asked them to let him know if they are aware of publicity and media coverage that might affect their impartiality.

He further stated that anyone from the Carlingford area, including Louth, Newry and south Armagh, should not serve because witnesses in the trial are from those areas.

He further explained that 15 people would be selected but only 12 will take part in the final deliberations.

The extra jurors are there in case someone is forced to drop out through illness or any other reason.

If more than 12 jurors remain at the end of the trial there will be an open ballot to decide the final make-up of the jury, Justice White said.

It took nearly two hours to swear nine women and six men as more than 40 potential jurors were excused after pleading to the judge.

A further ten were objected to by lawyers for the defence and the prosecution.

Justice White warned them not to look on social media or to research anything on the internet relating to the trial as they are only to pay attention to the evidence in court.

The trial is set to open this morning (Tuesday 28th), and is expected to last up to sixteen weeks.
WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Barring a dramatic development, President Donald Trump appears almost certain to be acquitted in his Senate impeachment trial. Here is a look at the road to his impeachment and trial. MUELLER REPORT In July 2017, two little-known Democrats in the House of Representatives make the first attempt to impeach Trump, basing it on investigations into Moscow's interference in the 2016 U.S.

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Barring a dramatic development, President Donald Trump appears almost certain to be acquitted in his Senate impeachment trial. Here is a look at the road to his impeachment and trial.

MUELLER REPORT

In July 2017, two little-known Democrats in the House of Representatives make the first attempt to impeach Trump, basing it on investigations into Moscow's interference in the 2016 U.S. elections.

They file formal charges known as articles of impeachment, alleging that Trump obstructed justice by firing FBI head James Comey to hinder the Russia investigation by then Special Counsel Robert Mueller.

After a two-year probe, Mueller finds insufficient evidence of a criminal conspiracy involving Trump and draws no conclusions on whether Trump obstructed justice.

Little comes of this impeachment effort. In 2019 House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, the leading Democrat in Congress, says Trump is "just not worth it."

WHISTLEBLOWER

On Aug. 12, 2019, an anonymous intelligence official files a whistleblower complaint about a phone call between Trump and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy. According to a summary of the call later released by the White House, Trump asked Zelenskiy to investigate both former U.S. Vice President Joe Biden, a Democrat running for president in 2020, and a conspiracy theory that Ukraine, not Russia, was behind 2016 election meddling.

IMPEACHMENT INVESTIGATION

Amid further reports of Trump's dealings with Ukraine, Pelosi on Sept. 24 accuses Trump of urging a foreign power to intervene in the 2020 election and announces an impeachment investigation in the Democratic-controlled House.

In testimony at televised hearings, U.S. diplomats and officials describe a pressure campaign organised by Trump's lawyer, Rudy Giuliani, to get Ukraine to announce the Biden investigation. Trump's freezing of $391 million in aid to Ukraine was part of the campaign, according to some testimony.

TRUMP'S DEFENCE

Trump says he was just trying to get Kiev to quash corruption and points to the fact that the Ukrainian investigations never happened as evidence that the July call was innocent. Republican lawmakers say that even if Trump's conduct was not perfect, it does not belong in the category of "high crimes and misdemeanors" stipulated in the U.S. Constitution as a reason to impeach a president.

IMPEACHED

On Dec. 18 Trump becomes only the third U.S. president to be impeached when the Democratic-led House approves two articles of impeachment charging him with abuse of power and obstructing Congress.

THE TRIAL

The Senate puts Trump on trial in late January. The outcome seems in little doubt, as Republicans dominate the chamber where a two-thirds majority is needed to convict and remove the president. No Republican expresses a desire to find Trump guilty.

WITNESSES

The two parties tussle over Democrats' attempts to introduce new witnesses and documents to the trial. They are especially keen to hear from former national security adviser John Bolton who had disparaged efforts by Trump allies to influence Ukraine as "a drug deal."

THE BOLTON FACTOR

The New York Times reports that Bolton, a foreign policy hawk who has served previous Republican administrations, has written a book in which he says Trump told him he had wanted to continue freezing the aid to Ukraine to pressure Zelenskiy to help with investigations into Democrats, including Biden. The revelation contradicts Trump's defence. It puts pressure on a handful of moderate Republican senators to join Democrats and vote to call Bolton and White House officials as witnesses. But a majority of senators are expected to vote to reject new witnesses.

TRUMP DEFENCE

Trump lawyer Alan Dershowitz says at the trial that senators cannot impeach a president for doing anything to try to win re-election if the president believes that to be in the public interest.

Democrats and constitutional experts severely criticise this defence, saying it gives U.S. presidents huge new powers not foreseen in the Constitution. Dershowitz says later his remarks were deliberately misinterpreted.

(Reporting by Alistair Bell; Editing by Howard Goller)

This story has not been edited by Firstpost staff and is generated by auto-feed.
Credit: CC0 Public Domain

Defense Secretary Mark Esper on Saturday approved a request from the Department of Health and Human Services for the possible use of military facilities to accommodate 1,000 people who may have to be quarantined upon arrival from overseas due to a new virus.

A Defense Department statement said HHS officials requested the use of several facilities capable of housing at least 250 people in individual rooms through Feb. 29. HHS would be responsible for all care, transportation and security of the evacuees, according to the statement.

The viral outbreak began in China, where the death toll rose to 259 on Saturday. More than 11,900 people have been infected with the coronavirus globally, the vast majority of them on the Chinese mainland.

An order signed Friday by President Donald Trump temporarily bars entry to foreign nationals who have traveled to China within the last 14 days, with the exception of immediate family of U.S. citizens and permanent residents.

Americans returning from China will be allowed into the country, but will face screening at select ports of entry and be required to undertake 14 days of self-screening to ensure they don't pose a health risk.

Those returning from Hubei province, the center of the outbreak, will be subject to up to 14 days of mandatory quarantine.

The installations selected by the Defense Department are the 168th Regiment, Regional Training Institute, Fort Carson, Colorado; Travis Air Force Base, California; Lackland Air Force Base, Texas; Marine Corps Air Station Miramar, California.

Nearly 200 Americans already are quarantined at a military base in Southern California after being evacuated from Wuhan, the capital of Hubei province.

None of the Americans being housed at the March Air Reserve Base in Riverside has shown signs of illness, but it can take up to two weeks for someone who is infected to get sick.

Beginning Sunday, the U.S. will also begin funneling all flights to the U.S. from China to seven major airports where passengers can be screened for illness.

Explore further US bans entry to foreign nationals who traveled to China

 2020 The Associated Press. All rights reserved.
Well meaning Nigerians have been urged to contribute to the growth of education by awarding schorlarship to brilliant children whose parents cannot afford to pay their fees.

Prince Gregory Oputa, the Omordi Chukubueze of Aboh Kingdom made the call at Aboh, Ndokwa East local government area of Delta State while awarding "schorlarship to 30 brilliant pupils, who ordinarily will not be able to attend high profile primary school, because the fees are beyond the finances of their parents."

The occasion was also used to inaugurate Gregory Oputa Foundation.

"Proper education is very vital for children's upbringing; that a child's parents are financially handicap should not deter such child from continuing with his education pursuit.

"Sponsorship of educational programs of children should be a collective responsibility; through such schorlarship, we will contribute to building a better future for our children and by implication, we shall have a stable society; parents should encourage their children to read and also find time to rest.

"I am committed to the advancement of Aboh kingdom; with time this schorlarship scheme will be extended to more pupils as I have made up my mind to ensure positive change in Aboh, Delta and Nigeria in general," Prince Oputa said.

Chairman of the occasion, Prince Mike Oputa, former Editor-in-Chief of The Pointer Newspaper in an address, said, "I understand that the scholarship covers tuition, books, among others and it is attainable at the Bishop Lucas Nwaezeapu Nursery and Primary School, Aboh, the best nursery and Primary school in Aboh Kingdom.

"To all 30 of you, the schorlarship award winners, I congratulate you for emerging winners out of 150 applicants who applied for the scholarship; I urge you to make the best use of this golden opportunity; in spite of hard times, parents, please, continue to encourage these children; my heartfelt gratitude to the founder of Gregory Oputa Foundation, Chief Gregory Nnamdi Oputa for committing his resources for education of other people's children as he embraced the philosophy of catch them young," he said.

Rev. Sis Frednora Ikpeama at the event, stated, "it takes one with a large heart to give and the more you give, the more you receive; we are aware that it is not all those who have, has the heart to give and I commend Prince Oputa for having the heart of giving.

Also speaking, Chief Kenneth Odili, re-echoed the need for people to institute schorlarship schemes to sponsor educational programs, asserting, "Without education, there will be challenges."

High point of the occasion was the presentation of books to the beneficiaries of the scholarship scheme.
Trying to mask those misdeeds View(s):

As I write this the World Health Organisation has just declared the Coronavirus a global emergency. That was 18 minutes ago. What the WHO and others monitoring the situation would say next is hard to say.

The WHO itself has admitted that it had made a mistake in an earlier assessment when it called the global risk moderate. Given the spread of the virus and the fact that it has already been detected in 18 countries outside China, one can only speculate whether the weekend will be the harbinger of more bad- or even worse- news.

Meanwhile here in London face masks are running out in the pharmacies and shops. On Wednesday I was able to pick up some throw-away face masks from a nearby pharmacy that sold its last dozen to me after I heard that retailers in Colombo and in some other cities had run dry after a rush to buy what little stocks they had on the shelves.

Meanwhile Government spokesman Bandula Gunawardena, Minister of Information and Communications Technology, Higher Education, Research and Innovations ( I wonder how he manages to get all that into his business card) told a news conference the other day that the government had not instructed anybody including students to wear face masks.

The minister claimed some persons are trying to capitalize on public concerns-and even fear- to sell the masks at hand in their shops at prices several times more than the usual selling price and so make a huge profit.

Some reports said that N95-type face mask ( whatever that is) was selling at Rs 150 compelling the Health Ministry to impose price controls which is a good thing. It is typical of our retailers and other businesses to exploit public fears to make a fast buck.

Some media cited the authorities as saying that due to the sudden imbalance between supply and demand the prices had been pushed-up by sellers. It would have been much simpler if they just said that stocks were running out or retailers were holding them back to sell at higher prices instead of breaking into economic lingo about supply and demand as though they had just left Bandula Gunawardenas tuition classes in days gone by.

Such use of basic economic terms would have warmed the cockles of Minister Gunawardenas heart throwing his mind back to the days when hordes of would- be economists streamed out of his tuition classes near Nugegoda.

It might well be that it was one of his former students who had landed in the Health Ministry but still recalled the unforgettable experience of lessons learnt in those classes and perhaps under Mr Gunawardenas watchful eye, that such economic principles came to mind as he (or she) sat down to draft this treatise.

Having doubtless calculated the unconscionable profits retailers of face masks were making, economist Mr Gunawardena excoriated them for exploiting public fears while the Health Ministry was grappling with the possibility of letting loose the law on these profiteers.

It was not mentioned whether the ministry is consulting Attorney-General Dappula de Livera on how to nab the exploiters and deposit them in the Delft or some far off island as the Australians do to unwelcome asylum seekers.

But then AG Livera must surely be otherwise busy batting (or is it battling?) on many fronts with several breathing down his neck. So it is better for the ministry to turn to the AGs spokesperson for some legal advice.

Surprise, surprise. At the same news briefing was a doctor named Samantha Ananda, representing the GMOA. What he was doing there doling out medical advice which had little to do with coronavirus one cannot quite fathom, unless of course he was not given enough coverage to justify his presence.

If this coronavirus scare occurred around this time last year, the GMOA would have been demonstrating outside the Chinese Embassy demanding that all Chinese nationals be sent home. Why, they might even have been calling for Chinese restaurants to be shut down and noodles banned even at home.

Those were the days when the drop of a diphthong was sufficient cause for the GMOA to take to the streets. They might not have been barefoot doctors having educated themselves in medical colleges at state expense, but they were often on their feet, demanding places in the best schools for their children or duty free cars which would be used to travel from their state jobs to private hospitals round the corner, as it were.

If a rattle was sufficient cause for Twiddledee and Twiddledum to prepare for battle, the GMOA did not even need that to go on strike or stay away from work while patients, especially the rural poor, suffered for lack of medical treatment.

So what has happened to Dr Padeniya and his merry docs who have suddenly gone silent? Where are those vociferous stethoscope-wielders who would intervene even if the subject at issue had nothing to do with their profession?

Maybe they are covering themselves with face masks because the public are still irate over the despicable conduct of GMOA members who would discard their Hippocratic oath to engage in political tub-thumping.

Minister Gunawardena told the media that the government had not issued instructions on the wearing of face masks and if the need arises the authorities would inform the public.

But one can be certain that there are many who would wish the government had instructed so. No, not because of the fear of the Chinese virus spreading along its much- discussed Belt and Road initiative.

There are many politicians and their catchers as they are called, who would rather cover their faces than expose them to public view. Many of them have robbed the state and the tax payers through corrupt deeds including bribery and other forms of graft.

They are known to the public for their lifestyles have noticeably altered. The promised crackdown announced by loquacious politicians from platforms on these robbers of the public purse has never materialized. They have escaped justice.

Some of them can hardly put their faces outside their luxury residences. That is why they wish wearing masks be made permanent. At least then they could move around in public without being recognized for the crooks they are.

There is a good reason for making face-covering masks compulsory. It not only covers the face especially of those should not be seen in public. It will hopefully stop politicians and their hangers-on from uttering so much nonsense and make promises they never intend to keep.
Love Lego bricks and drinking? The two are combined in Brick Bar, a pop-up bar coming to Philadelphia and Pittsburgh this February.

Brick Bar has Lego sculptures, a ping pong table made from 22,500 bricks and lots of chances to craft your own creation. In fact, therell be a judge on hand to give out prizes to the best builders.

The pop-up comes to Pittsburgh first, on Feb. 21 and 22 at an unknown location. Then it heads to Philadelphia on Feb. 28 and 29 for revelry at the Independence Seaport Museum (211 S. Christopher Columbus Blvd.) Tickets range from $15 to $25 and get you into the space for 90 minutes. You can buy tickets for the Philadelphia event here, and for the Pittsburgh one by clicking here. Learn more about Brick Bar at thebrickbars.com.

While Brick Bar is temporary, there are plenty of other bars in Pennsylvania where you can have a more unusual night out. In Philadelphia, for instance, theres a bar with its own ball pit and another filled with ping pong tables.

Check out these stories to learn more about nightlife in the City of Brotherly Love:

Thanks for visiting PennLive. Quality local journalism has never been more important. We need your support. Not a subscriber yet? Please consider supporting our work.
Hours before the Union Budget 2020 is presented in the Parliament, Chief Minister of Rajasthan Ashok Gehlot has expressed his view on what aspects should be the focus in the budget. Taking to Twitter, the Rajasthan CM said that the entire nation is looking at the central government for some concrete steps to revive the economy.

READ | Union Budget 2020: First Visuals Of FM Sitharaman With Budget 2020 Papers In 'Bahi-Khata'q

As Govt presents #Budget2020 today, entire nation is looking at them that there wud b some concrete measures to revive economy,to deal wd job crisis, to provide relief to farmers n for revival of small scale industries & measures to generate employment for unskilled labour force.  Ashok Gehlot (@ashokgehlot51) February 1, 2020

In another tweet, Gehlot mentioned the demonetization alleging that it brought hardships to the people.

#Budget2020 is the time for NDA govt to provide a healing touch to common people & industries, who have been facing hardships since noteban. Hope the budget fulfills expectations of common people and provide relief across sections.  Ashok Gehlot (@ashokgehlot51) February 1, 2020

READ | Union Budget 2020: Sanjeev Sanyal Says Banking Sector's Cleaned Up, Eyes 'bigger Banks'

IMF chief expresses confidence

A day ahead of the Union Budget 2020, Internation Monetary Fund (IMF) Managing Director Kristalina Georgieva said that India has experienced an abrupt slowdown in 2019 due to major reforms such as GST and demonetisation however the economy is not in a recession and is expected to set on an upward trajectory in 2020 and 2021. The IMF Chief also added that the reforms such as GST and Demonetisation had a short term impact on the economy but would prove beneficial for the country in the long run.

READ | Union Budget 2020: Big Boost For Centre As Jan Shows 2nd Highest GST Collection Since 2017

Union Budget 2020

The government will present the Union Budget 2020-2021 on Saturday, February 1. The first phase of the session will conclude on February 11, while the second part of the session will begin from March 2 and end on April 3. The budget session started on January 31 with the government presenting the economic survey which gave an overview of how the economy fared in 2019. The Indian economy gained a lead ahead of the UK and France to gain the fifth position in terms of GDP. According to the economic survey 2020, the Indian economy managed to sustain the global slowdown, faring better than the BRICS nations such as Brazil, Russia, South Africa and is on par with China.

READ | Budget: India Far From Recession But Saw Slowdown; Expect 6.5% Growth In 2021, Says IMF
Google Maps

A man was struck and killed by a car on the Gulf Freeway Friday night after being chased away from an altercation in which he was allegedly assaulting his girlfriend, police said.

The fatal crash occurred around 7:15 p.m. Friday near the freeways intersection with Route 90.
Source: Xinhua| 2020-02-01 09:42:54|Editor: huaxia

Video Player Close

A member of the medical team of the Second Military Medical University puts on protective clothing at Hankou Hospital in Wuhan, central China's Hubei Province, Jan. 27, 2020. (Xinhua/Xiao Yijiu)

"China's performance received compliments from all over the world, which, as WHO's current director-general Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus said, has set a new standard for countries around the world in epidemic prevention and control," former WHO chief said.

by Annie Cheung, Gao Jie, Zhu Yuxuan

HONG KONG, Feb. 1 (Xinhua) -- "This is a scientific judgment, a prudent and reasonable decision, with the aim to better control the epidemic and prevent it from spreading around the world," Margaret Chan, former director-general of the World Health Organization (WHO), commented after the organization announced the novel coronavirus outbreak a Public Health Emergency of International Concern (PHEIC).

"Human-to-human infections have been found in three countries outside China and none of the patients involved have visited China, prompting the WHO to make such a scientific judgement," Chan said in an interview with Xinhua on Friday.

Chan stressed the decision did not target China nor did it mean the WHO distrusted China's ability to handle the epidemic.

The decision was made to call on other countries to take measures to prevent and control the outbreak, she said.

Members of the medical team of the Second Military Medical University receive praise from a patient at Hankou Hospital in Wuhan, central China's Hubei Province, Jan. 27, 2020. (Photo by Chen Jing/Xinhua)

"China's performance received compliments from all over the world, which, as WHO's current director-general Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus said, has set a new standard for countries around the world in epidemic prevention and control," Chan said.

In about a week's time, China finished sequencing the genes of the new virus and shared the information with the world, she noted.

Chan, an expert in dealing with public health emergencies, said a level of panic was understandable as the epidemic was caused by a novel coronavirus unfamiliar to most people.

She pointed out that it was important for all governments in different countries and regions to take scientific and accurate measures to control the epidemic.

Chan believes that the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region (HKSAR) government is apt at preventing and controlling infectious diseases thanks to its past experience. Hong Kong has experienced Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome (SARS), bird flu and other severe infectious diseases.

A Hubei resident arrives at Tianhe International Airport in Wuhan, central China's Hubei Province, Jan. 31, 2020. The first charter flight sent by the Chinese government to bring home stranded Hubei residents from overseas arrived in Wuhan Friday evening. (Xinhua/Xiong Qi)

A number of people proposed shutting down checkpoints between Hong Kong and the Chinese mainland along with other suggestions to contain the spread of the coronavirus.

"WHO has declared that all countries shall not impose travel or trade restrictions on China. This is also the spirit of international health regulations valued by the WHO," Chan said.

Australia, for instance, once adopted measures that prohibited entry and exit of people during a global flu pandemic, but the measures failed to prevent an outbreak in the country, she pointed out.

Chan acknowledged that it is still difficult to estimate when the current pneumonia epidemic will abate since it was caused by a new virus whose source and hosts have yet to be determined by scientists.

She stressed that effective implementation of existing prevention and control measures should be the top priority at this stage.

"The mainland has done what it should. China has set a new standard for other countries to prevent and control the epidemic, while no other country has the scale, speed, transparency and openness comparable to China," Chan said. 
Bengaluru, Feb 1 : The Karnataka unit of the ruling BJP on Saturday lauded the Union Budget for announcing a Rs 18,600-crore plan to build an extensive 140-km Bengaluru suburban railway network.

"Thanks to PM @narendramodi government, the much-delayed suburban railway for Bengaluru will become a reality soon," tweeted the party unit soon after Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman presented the Union Budget for 2020-21 in the Lok Sabha.
By Panarat Thepgumpanat

BANGKOK (Reuters) - Thailand has its first case of human-to-human transmission of the new coronavirus inside the country, a health official said on Friday, as authorities raised the total number of cases in the country to 19, the second-highest after China.

The first patient to contract the virus inside Thailand is a Thai taxi driver, said Tanarak Pipat, deputy director-general of the Department of Disease Control.

"(He) ...does not have the record of travelling to China, and it is likely that he was infected (by) a sick traveller from China," Tanarak said.

Authorities have conducted virus scans on 13 people, including three family members, who the taxi driver came into contact with. They said that initially none of them had tested positive for the virus.

"The overall risk of infection in Thailand is still low, but people should take precautions to protect themselves," Tanarak said.

Thai health officials have urged the public to wear face masks, regularly wash hands and be vigilant in public, especially in areas frequented by tourists.

The taxi driver is one of five other coronavirus cases confirmed in Thailand on Friday.

Seven of the 19 cases have recovered and gone home while 12 are still being treated at hospitals. All but two of the cases are Chinese tourists visiting the country, the health authority said.

Thailand is planning to send a 180-seat Thai AirAsia plane to pick up 161 Thai nationals stranded in Wuhan, the epicentre of the coronavirus outbreak that has killed more than 200 people in China.

"We have not yet received confirmation from China about when our plane can go to pick up stranded Thais, but it should be in a matter of days," Narumon Pinyosinwat, the government spokeswoman told Reuters.

The vast majority of the almost 10,000 cases identified have been in China, mostly in and around the virus' epicentre of Wuhan, and health authorities worldwide are seeking to keep the infection from spreading.

Story continues

There have been at least nine cases of human-to-human transmission in five countries outside China: including the United States, Germany, Japan and now Thailand.

The World Health Organization is looking closely at cases of person-to-person transmission outside of Wuhan, which would suggest that the virus may have the potential to spread further.

(Additional reporting by Panu Wongcha-um. Writing by Kay Johnson; editing by John Stonestreet)
The research - which was undertaken at the University of York - also suggests there was no single point of origin for the world's oldest pottery.

Academics extracted and analysed ancient fats and lipids that had been preserved in pieces of ancient pottery - found at a number of sites on the Amur River in Russia - whose dates ranged between 16,000 and 12,000 years ago.

Professor Oliver Craig, Director of the BioArch Lab at the University of York, where the analysis was conducted, said: "This study illustrates the exciting potential of new methods in archaeological science: we can extract and interpret the remains of meals that were cooked in pots over 16,000 years ago.

"It is interesting that pottery emerges during these very cold periods, and not during the comparatively warmer interstadials when forest resources, such as game and nuts, were more available."

Why these pots were first invented in the final stages of the last Ice Age has long been a mystery, as well as the kinds of food that were being prepared in them.

Researchers also examined pottery found from the Osipovka culture also on the Amur River. Analysis proved that pottery from there had been used to process fish, most likely migratory salmon, which offered local hunters an alternative food source during periods of major climatic fluctuation. An identical scenario was identified by the same research group in neighbouring islands of Japan.

The new study demonstrates that the world's oldest clay cooking pots were being made in very different ways in different parts of Northeast Asia, indicating a "parallel" process of innovation, where separate groups that had no contact with each other started to move towards similar kinds of technological solutions in order to survive.

Lead author, Dr Shinya Shoda, of the National Research Institute for Cultural Properties in Nara, Japan said: "We are very pleased with these latest results because they close a major gap in our understanding of why the world's oldest pottery was invented in different parts of Northeast Asia in the Late Glacial Period, and also the contrasting ways in which it was being used by these ancient hunter-gatherers.

"There are some striking parallels with the way in which early pottery was used in Japan, but also some important differences that we had not expected. This leaves many new questions that we will follow up with future research."

Professor Peter Jordan, senior author of the study at the Arctic Centre and Groningen Institute of Archaeology, University of Groningen, the Netherlands said: "The insights are particularly interesting because they suggest that there was no single "origin point" for the world's oldest pottery. We are starting to understand that very different pottery traditions were emerging around the same time but in different places, and that the pots were being used to process very different sets of resources.

"This appears to be a process of "parallel innovation" during a period of major climatic uncertainty, with separate communities facing common threats and reaching similar technological solutions."

The last Ice Age reached its deepest point between 26,000 to 20,000 years ago, forcing humans to abandon northern regions, including large parts of Siberia. From around 19,000 years ago, temperatures slowly started to warm again, encouraging small bands of hunters to move back into these vast empty landscapes.

###

The paper is published in Quaternary Science Reviews.
Share this article Whatsapp

Facebook

Twitter

Linkedin Dian Septiari (The Jakarta Post) Jakarta  Sat, February 1, 2020

With two Southeast Asian nations currently serving on the United Nations most powerful body, ASEAN Secretary General Lim Jock Hoi briefed for the first time members of the Security Council on Thursday to highlight the organizations role in maintaining regional peace and security.

ASEAN has contributed to the peace, security and prosperity in Southeast Asia region, Lim said, underlining the importance of its relations with external partners, including the UN.
Senators have voted not to hear witnesses in the impeachment trial of Donald Trump, meaning the presidents acquittal on charges of abuse of power and obstructing Congress is now almost certain.

A motion that would have allowed members of the upper chamber to subpoena witness testimony and additional documents was defeated by 51 votes to 49.

The most senior Democrat in the Senate, minority leader Chuck Schumer, called it one of the worst tragedies the Senate had ever experienced.

Senators turned away from truth and went along with a sham trial, he told reporters after the vote. If the president is acquitted without witnesses or documents, the acquittal will have no value.

Only two Republicans  Utah senator and former presidential candidate Mitt Romney, and Maines Susan Collins  voted with the Democrats, something they had previously said they were planning to do.

Trump impeachment: Who's who in the Ukraine scandal Show all 26 1 /26 Trump impeachment: Who's who in the Ukraine scandal Trump impeachment: Who's who in the Ukraine scandal Donald Trump Accused of abusing his office by pressing the Ukrainian president in a July phone call to help dig up dirt on Joe Biden, who may be his Democratic rival in the 2020 election. He also believes that Hillary Clintons deleted emails - a key factor in the 2016 election - may be in Ukraine, although it is not clear why. EPA Trump impeachment: Who's who in the Ukraine scandal The Whistleblower Believed to be a CIA agent who spent time at the White House, his complaint was largely based on second and third-hand accounts from worried White House staff. Although this is not unusual for such complaints, Trump and his supporters have seized on it to imply that his information is not reliable. Expected to give evidence to Congress voluntarily and in secret. Getty Trump impeachment: Who's who in the Ukraine scandal The Second Whistleblower The lawyer for the first intelligence whistleblower is also representing a second whistleblower regarding the President's actions. Attorney Mark Zaid said that he and other lawyers on his team are now representing the second person, who is said to work in the intelligence community and has first-hand knowledge that supports claims made by the first whistleblower and has spoken to the intelligence community's inspector general. The second whistleblower has not yet filed their own complaint, but does not need to to be considered an official whistleblower. Getty Trump impeachment: Who's who in the Ukraine scandal Rudy Giuliani Former mayor of New York, whose management of the aftermath of the September 11 attacks in 2001 won him worldwide praise. As Trumps personal attorney he has been trying to find compromising material about the presidents enemies in Ukraine in what some have termed a shadow foreign policy. In a series of eccentric TV appearances he has claimed that the US state department asked him to get involved. Giuliani insists that he is fighting corruption on Trumps behalf and has called himself a hero. AP Trump impeachment: Who's who in the Ukraine scandal Volodymyr Zelensky The newly elected Ukrainian president - a former comic actor best known for playing a man who becomes president by accident - is seen frantically agreeing with Trump in the partial transcript of their July phone call released by the White House. With a Russian-backed insurgency in the east of his country, and the Crimea region seized by Vladimir Putin in 2014, Zelensky will have been eager to please his American counterpart, who had suspended vital military aid before their phone conversation. He says there was no pressure on him from Trump to do him the favour he was asked for. Zelensky appeared at an awkward press conference with Trump in New York during the United Nations general assembly, looking particularly uncomfortable when the American suggested he take part in talks with Putin. AFP/Getty Trump impeachment: Who's who in the Ukraine scandal Mike Pence The vice-president was not on the controversial July call to the Ukrainian president but did get a read-out later. However, Trump announced that Pence had had one or two phone conversations of a similar nature, dragging him into the crisis. Pence himself denies any knowledge of any wrongdoing and has insisted that there is no issue with Trumps actions. It has been speculated that Trump involved Pence as an insurance policy - if both are removed from power the presidency would go to Democratic House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, something no Republican would allow. AP Trump impeachment: Who's who in the Ukraine scandal Rick Perry Trump reportedly told a meeting of Republicans that he made the controversial call to the Ukrainian president at the urging of his own energy secretary, Rick Perry, and that he didnt even want to. The president apparently said that Perry wanted him to talk about liquefied natural gas - although there is no mention of it in the partial transcript of the phone call released by the White House. It is thought that Perry will step down from his role at the end of the year. Getty Trump impeachment: Who's who in the Ukraine scandal Joe Biden The former vice-president is one of the frontrunners to win the Democratic nomination, which would make him Trumps opponent in the 2020 election. Trump says that Biden pressured Ukraine to sack a prosecutor who was investigating an energy company that Bidens son Hunter was on the board of, refusing to release US aid until this was done. However, pressure to fire the prosecutor came on a wide front from western countries. It is also believed that the investigation into the company, Burisma, had long been dormant. Reuters Trump impeachment: Who's who in the Ukraine scandal Hunter Biden Joe Bidens son has been accused of corruption by the president because of his business dealings in Ukraine and China. However, Trump has yet to produce any evidence of corruption and Bidens lawyer insists he has done nothing wrong. AP Trump impeachment: Who's who in the Ukraine scandal William Barr The attorney-general, who proved his loyalty to Trump with his handling of the Mueller report, was mentioned in the Ukraine call as someone president Volodymyr Zelensky should talk to about following up Trumps preoccupations with the Bidens and the Clinton emails. Nancy Pelosi has accused Barr of being part of a cover-up of a cover-up. AP Trump impeachment: Who's who in the Ukraine scandal Mike Pompeo The secretary of state initially implied he knew little about the Ukraine phone call - but it later emerged that he was listening in at the time. He has since suggested that asking foreign leaders for favours is simply how international politics works. Gordon Sondland testified that Pompeo was "in the loop" and knew what was happening in Ukraine. Pompeo has been criticised for not standing up for diplomats under his command when they were publicly criticised by the president. AFP via Getty Trump impeachment: Who's who in the Ukraine scandal Nancy Pelosi The Democratic Speaker of the House had long resisted calls from within her own party to back a formal impeachment process against the president, apparently fearing a backlash from voters. On September 24, amid reports of the Ukraine call and the day before the White House released a partial transcript of it, she relented and announced an inquiry, saying: The president must be held accountable. No one is above the law. Getty Trump impeachment: Who's who in the Ukraine scandal Adam Schiff Democratic chairman of the House intelligence committee, one of the three committees leading the inquiry. He was criticized by Republicans for giving what he called a parody of the Ukraine phone call during a hearing, with Trump and others saying he had been pretending that his damning characterisation was a verbatim reading of the phone call. He has also been criticised for claiming that his committee had had no contact with the whistleblower, only for it to emerge that the intelligence agent had contacted a staff member on the committee for guidance before filing the complaint. The Washington Post awarded Schiff a four Pinocchios rating, its worst rating for a dishonest statement. Reuters Trump impeachment: Who's who in the Ukraine scandal Lev Parnas and Igor Fruman Florida-based businessmen and Republican donors Lev Parnas (pictured with Rudy Giuliani) and Igor Fruman were arrested on suspicion of campaign finance violations at Dulles International Airport near Washington DC on 9 October. Separately the Associated Press has reported that they were both involved in efforts to replace the management of Ukraine's gas company, Naftogaz, with new bosses who would steer lucrative contracts towards companies controlled by Trump allies. There is no suggestion of any criminal activity in these efforts. Reuters Trump impeachment: Who's who in the Ukraine scandal William Taylor The most senior US diplomat in Ukraine and the former ambassador there. As one of the first two witnesses in the public impeachment hearings, Taylor dropped an early bombshell by revealing that one of his staff  later identified as diplomat David Holmes  overheard a phone conversation in which Donald Trump could be heard asking about investigations the very day after asking the Ukrainian president to investigate his political enemies. Taylor expressed his concern at reported plans to withhold US aid in return for political smears against Trumps opponents, saying: It's one thing to try to leverage a meeting in the White House. It's another thing, I thought, to leverage security assistance -- security assistance to a country at war, dependent on both the security assistance and the demonstration of support." Getty Images Trump impeachment: Who's who in the Ukraine scandal George Kent A state department official who appeared alongside William Taylor wearing a bow tie that was later mocked by the president. He accused Rudy Giuliani, Mr Trumps personal lawyer, of leading a campaign of lies against Marie Yovanovitch, who was forced out of her job as US ambassador to Ukraine for apparently standing in the way of efforts to smear Democrats. Getty Images Trump impeachment: Who's who in the Ukraine scandal Marie Yovanovitch One of the most striking witnesses to give evidence at the public hearings, the former US ambassador to Ukraine received a rare round of applause as she left the committee room after testifying. Canadian-born Yovanovitch was attacked on Twitter by Donald Trump while she was actually testifying, giving Democrats the chance to ask her to respond. She said she found the attack very intimidating. Trump had already threatened her in his 25 July phone call to the Ukrainian president saying: Shes going to go through some things. Yovanovitch said she was shocked, appalled and devastated by the threat and by the way she was forced out of her job without explanation. REUTERS Trump impeachment: Who's who in the Ukraine scandal Alexander Vindman A decorated Iraq War veteran and an immigrant from the former Soviet Union, Lt Col Vindman began his evidence with an eye-catching statement about the freedoms America afforded him and his family to speak truth to power without fear of punishment. One of the few witnesses to have actually listened to Trumps 25 July call with the Ukrainian president, he said he found the conversation so inappropriate that he was compelled to report it to the White House counsel. Trump later mocked him for wearing his military uniform and insisting on being addressed by his rank. Getty Images Trump impeachment: Who's who in the Ukraine scandal Jennifer Williams A state department official acting as a Russia expert for vice-president Mike Pence, Ms Williams also listened in on the 25 July phone call. She testified that she found it unusual because it focused on domestic politics in terms of Trump asking a foreign leader to investigate his political opponents. Getty Images Trump impeachment: Who's who in the Ukraine scandal Kurt Volker The former special envoy to Ukraine was one of the few people giving evidence who was on the Republican witness list although what he had to say may not have been too helpful to their cause. He dismissed the idea that Joe Biden had done anything corrupt, a theory spun without evidence by the president and his allies. He said that he thought the US should be supporting Ukraines reforms and that the scheme to find dirt on Democrats did not serve the national interest. Getty Images Trump impeachment: Who's who in the Ukraine scandal Tim Morrison An expert on the National Security Council and another witness on the Republican list. He testified that he did not think the president had done anything illegal but admitted that he feared it would create a political storm if it became public. He said he believed the moving the record of the controversial 25 July phone call to a top security server had been an innocent mistake. Getty Images Trump impeachment: Who's who in the Ukraine scandal Gordon Sondland In explosive testimony, one of the men at the centre of the scandal got right to the point in his opening testimony: Was there a quid pro quo? Yes, said the US ambassador to the EU who was a prime mover in efforts in Ukraine to link the release of military aid with investigations into the presidents political opponents. He said that everyone knew what was going on, implicating vice-president Mike Pence and secretary of state Mike Pompeo. The effect of his evidence is perhaps best illustrated by the reaction of Mr Trump who went from calling Sondland a great American a few weeks earlier to claiming that he barely knew him. AP Trump impeachment: Who's who in the Ukraine scandal Laura Cooper A Pentagon official, Cooper said Ukrainian officials knew that US aid was being withheld before it became public knowledge in August  undermining a Republican argument that there cant have been a quid pro quo between aid and investigations if the Ukrainians didnt know that aid was being withheld. Getty Images Trump impeachment: Who's who in the Ukraine scandal David Hale The third most senior official at the state department. Hale testified about the treatment of Marie Yovanovitch and the smear campaign that culminated in her being recalled from her posting as US ambassador to Ukraine. He said: I believe that she should have been able to stay at post and continue to do the outstanding work. EPA Trump impeachment: Who's who in the Ukraine scandal Fiona Hill Arguably the most confident and self-possessed of the witnesses in the public hearings phase, the Durham-born former NSC Russia expert began by warning Republicans not to keep repeating Kremlin-backed conspiracy theories. In a distinctive northeastern English accent, Dr Hill went on to describe how she had argued with Gordon Sondland about his interference in Ukraine matters until she realised that while she and her colleagues were focused on national security, Sondland was being involved in a domestic political errand. She said: I did say to him, Ambassador Sondland, Gordon, this is going to blow up. And here we are. AP Trump impeachment: Who's who in the Ukraine scandal David Holmes The Ukraine-based diplomat described being in a restaurant in Kiev with Gordon Sondland while the latter phoned Donald Trump. Holmes said he could hear the president on the other end of the line  because his voice was so loud and distinctive and because Sondland had to hold the phone away from his ear  asking about the investigations and whether the Ukrainian president would cooperate. REUTERS

Delaware Democratic Senator Tom Carper told reporters following the vote that Republican senators would not attempt to force a final vote on whether to convict or acquit the president as he headed to a closed-door caucus meeting in which Democratic members will discuss how they would like to see the next few days play out.

Mr Carper said it might take a couple of weeks to bring about an endgame. But congressional sources indicated there is interest on both sides in wrapping the proceedings as soon as next week, possibly by Wednesday evening.

Pushing the end of the trial to Wednesday means Mr Trump would be set to deliver his State of the Union address the night before, giving him a chance to mock the House Democrats who impeached him just hours before the Senate would be poised to clear him on both charges.

That possible scene would produce some of the most dramatic images in recent US political history, just the kind of made-for-television moment relished by the reality television star turned commander in chief, but no final decision about the trials conclusion has come into focus.

Republican senators also huddled in their own Capitol meeting room. Both sides are trying to hammer out an agreement under which the final days of the trial would operate, meaning guidelines for closing arguments, floor statements and the final votes on the two articles.

 Senate votes against calling witnesses

As Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell spoke with his members, his office put out a statement defending the vote against witnesses and saying the trial will end in a few days, but not specifying how or when.

Never in Senate history has this body paused an impeachment trial to pursue additional witnesses with unresolved questions of executive privilege that would require protracted litigation. We have no interest in establishing such a new precedent, particularly for individuals whom the House expressly chose not to pursue, the Kentucky Republican said.

Senators will now confer among ourselves, with the House managers and with the presidents counsel to determine next steps as we prepare to conclude the trial in the coming days.

Mr Trump  who earlier had seemed in good spirits as he left the White House with the first lady on their way to Mar-a-Lago  tweeted soon after the Senate vote, saying: Democrats = 17 Witnesses. Republicans = 0 Witnesses.

Donald Trump waves to reporters as he leaves the White House with the first lady shortly before the Senate vote (Michael Reynolds/EPA) (EPA)

The president seemed to be complaining that the process had been one-sided and stacked against him, although he may also have been crowing that even with 17 witnesses testifying against him he was still almost certain to be acquitted.

Senators told reporters that a Wednesday completion was likely and they expected to vote on a revised rule stating that later on Friday night.

Senator Roy Blunt, an ally of Mr McConnell, told reporters that a final vote was expected at 4pm on Wednesday.

The aftermath of the witness vote and emerging plan  there are likely to be no weekend Senate sessions  quickly took on a 2020 campaign aspect. For one, the likely schedule means those senators who are still Democratic presidential nominees can return to the campaign trail with Monday nights Iowa caucus nearing.

One, Massachusetts Senator Elizabeth Warren, tweeted on Friday night: Senate Republicans just failed the American people & broke their oath to the United States Constitution.

Mr Trump was accused of abusing his position by pressuring the Ukrainian president Volodymyr Zelensky to announce investigations into his political rivals, and of obstructing the congressional investigation. He insisted he had done nothing wrong and said his accusers were involved in a politically-motivated hoax to stop him being re-elected in November.
Share this article Whatsapp

Facebook

Twitter

Linkedin News Desk (The Jakarta Post) Jakarta  Sat, February 1, 2020

An Indonesian aircraft that will bring Indonesian citizens home from Wuhan, China, took off from Soekarno-Hatta International Airport in Tangerang, Banten, on Saturday at approximately 1:10 p.m.

The Batik Air Airbus A330-300 with a 392-seat capacity will evacuate 250 Indonesian citizens from Hubei province following the coronavirus outbreak.

The evacuation team consists of 42 people, including nine cabin crew members, a pilot, a co-pilot and representatives from the Foreign Ministry, Health Ministry and Indonesian Military (TNI).

to Read Full Story SUBSCRIBE NOW Starting from IDR 55,000/month Unlimited access to our web and app content

e-Post daily digital newspaper

No advertisements, no interruptions

Privileged access to our events and programs

Subscription to our newsletters We accept Register to read 3 premium articles for free Already subscribed? login
Whiton still holds firm with his belief that Trump will earn success in the 2020 US presidential elections. He views the current impeachment controversy of Donald Trump as his political advantage regardless of the purpose of the Democratic Party to stain the leadership image of the current president.

Trump Supporters' Point of View on the President's Impeachment Probe

According to one of Trump's supporters from Iowa named Perry, he is still supporting President Donald Trump and his administration regardless of the political attacks made to him by the Democratic Party. Perry was one of the people who were participating in Trump's rally on the evening of Thursday in front of Des Moines' Drake University. Perry believes that the current president of the United States is fighting for the people of the country and that big effort is highly recognized and appreciated by the president's supporters.

Whiton believes that the Democratic Party's attack on the political image of Trump may backfire.

According to the Democratic Party, even if Trump gets proven innocent through the majority votes of the Republicans in the senate, his impeachment controversy will leave a noticeable scar in his political image.

Despite this claim by the Democrats, Trump supporters express their disagreement. They also believe that the shot fired at Trump by the Democratic Party will come back to their disadvantage in the presidential elections in November.

Another citizen of Iowa from Humboldt Brandon Point agreed that the impeachment inquiry of the Democrats to Trump will backfire at them.

According to Aaron Creger from Des Moines, the impeachment controversy will help Donald Trump in his 2020 presidential campaign. The impeachment issue started by the opposing party will make it clearer that it is a distraction and a big scam.

According to Pamela Klein from Iowa in Norwalk, she predicts that Donald Trump will be reelected in the 2020 elections. She also believes that the impeachment controversy is helping him surpass his opponents.

Ronnie Drake, one of Trump's supporters, also believes that the Donald Trump impeachment issue is helping him with his campaign and that the people of the country are continuously expressing their support to the current president of the United States.

Inside the Drake University arena, President Trump shared that the impeachment controversy was a form of deception. He believes that it should not have happened to begin with.

About Trump's Impeachment Controversy

President Donald Trump is being suspected of preventing assistance to Ukraine. This controversy was made into a national issue when Ukraine made a way to investigate Donald Trump and another 2020 presidential hopeful Joe Biden (and his family) regarding the issue.

Trump denied the claims pressed against him. However, according to John Bolton, the national security adviser, President Trump is connected with the Ukraine aid controversy.

It is eyed that the impeachment trial on Trump may come to an end. This may be due to the failure of the Democratic Party to have a sufficient number of votes to call out Bolton and other important witnesses to face the Senate.
A Wilson County judge Friday struck down the Floresville City Councils decision to cancel last falls municipal election, and he declared three of five council seats vacant, ruling that the incumbents terms had expired.

The decision leaves the council without the majority it needs to govern.

Its definitely one of the most extreme cases of abuse of legislative authority that Ive seen, said attorney Art Martinez de Vara, whose firm represented the plaintiffs.

Judge Lynn Ellison of the 81st state District Court ruled that the council broke state law when it voted last July to cancel the November municipal election.

Council members rescheduled the election for this May, effectively adding six months to the terms of three incumbents who were up for re-election.

In response, Floresvilles mayor and three co-plaintiffs who had filed to run in the November election sued the council, contending that the three incumbents werent allowed to serve beyond their normal terms and that the decision to cancel the election should be voided.

Ellison agreed, vacating the council places held by Juan Ortiz, Gerard Jimenez and Gloria Morales Cantu.

The judge ordered a special election held in May to fill the vacancies. Under the judges ruling, future municipal elections will be held in November, as they were previously.

The Floresville city attorney could not be reached for comment.

The city could appeal the ruling.

Martinez de Vara said the council, lacking a majority to approve decisions, might have to postpone meetings until after the special election in May. In the meantime, he said, the council wont be able to change city laws, approve contracts over $25,000 or give a green light to projects.

The mayor does have limited powers, including authority to act in emergencies and approve contracts below $25,000, Martinez de Vara said.

We represent a lot of city officials, he said. Were usually going up against cities, and we see a lot of squirrelly things, but this one is particularly egregious, and the consequences are particularly challenging for the city.

Floresville, a retiree haven 30 miles southeast of San Antonio, has about 8,000 residents. Before last years council action, the city held municipal elections every November, with three council races held in odd-numbered years, and the other two, plus the mayors race, held in even-numbered years.

Marina Starleaf Riker is an investigative reporter for the San Antonio Express-News with extensive experience covering affordable housing, inequality and disaster recovery. Read her on our free site, mySA.com, and on our subscriber site, ExpressNews.com. | marina.riker@express-news.net | Twitter: @MarinaStarleaf
Advertisement

A massive out-of-control bushfire which is raging across one fifth of the Australian Capital Territory has destroyed 20 homes and is threatening lives ahead of scorching temperatures forecast for Sunday.

The ACT has suffered through one of the worst days of the bushfire season, which threatens to match the fatal blaze of 2003 that destroyed 500 homes and killed four people.

The Orroral Valley fire was downgraded to a watch and act level just before 5pm on Saturday after it flared to emergency levels for a second consecutive day of 40C temperatures.

A massive out-of-control bushfire which has destroyed one fifth of the Australian Capital Territory is threatening homes and lives ahead of scorching temperatures forecast for Sunday. Fire burns within sight of the suburban fringe of the city of Canberra on January 31

Clair Cowie defends her home from an out of control spot fire on February 01, 2020 at Bredbo North near Canberra

Horses panic as a spot fire runs through the property of Lawrence and Clair Cowie on February 01, 2020 near Canberra

People in the areas of Apollo Road, Boboyan Road, Naas Road and Top Naas Road have been told to remain vigilant.

The bushfire has burned more than 52,000 hectares so far and thick smoke is making it difficult for aircraft to fly over certain areas.

ACT Emergency Services Commissioner Georgina Whelan told reporters on Saturday: 'The issue we have with the fire activity is that the fire itself is generating its own weather pattern, and that combined with the wind direction is what is driving that intensity in the fire.

'Consequently we have had to withdraw our firefighting efforts, direct firefighting efforts, which is why aerial attack is what we will be undertaking alongside New South Wales this evening.

Chief Minister Andrew Barr made the announcement as the 18,000-hectare fire is set to threaten homes in the capital's south (pictured)

Leave now! A state of emergency was declared for the ACT on Friday and some residents fled their homes due to the raging Orroral Valley fire (pictured)

Temperatures in the nation's capital topped 40C for a second consecutive day.

A total fire ban is in place for Canberra until midnight Sunday with sweltering temperatures of 34C and a chance of storms which is a cause for concern.

As firefighters continue to tackle the blaze which has formed its own weather system, Ms Whelan warned that the intensity of the blaze could increase as it becomes unpredictable.

'It has been unpredictable. It remains challenging. It is difficult to access. This fire could create its own weather system,' she told reporters on Saturday.

'If all of what I have just outlined occurs, there is a chance this fire could break containment lines.'

With a state of emergency declared in ACT, officials desperately tried to clear vulnerable areas as the sky turned a dark, hazy orange on Saturday in the middle of the day (pictured)

The Orroral Valley fire is seen burning on the horizon above Canberra late on Friday night (pictured) with the threat likely to increase on Saturday

Chief Minister Andrew Barr on Saturday said the state of emergency in the territory is expected to remain until at least Monday.

'We have a number of containment lines in place, however if they are breached the fire could continue up to the west of the ACT suburban borders,' he said.

'But it is forecast to be still quite hot tomorrow (Sunday) and we are expecting some storms that could lead to quite unpredictable weather, wind changes.'

With tops of 34C and a chance of storms on Sunday, Bureau of Meteorologys Dean Sgarbossa said humidity will continue to soar heading into Sunday, ABC reported.

He urged residents and visitors to take heed in the warning and leave saying that it's 'disappointing' that some are being told to leave by police.

'It is incredible disappointing that a number of people had to be told to leave the area last night by ACT police.'

A plane is seen dropping retardant over the out-of-control Orroral Valley fire on Saturday

A helicopter drops water on a fire near Bumbalong, south of the Australian capital, Canberra, Saturday

Overnight, crews are strengthening containment lines and have a planned backburn along Naas Rd on the east side of Mt Tennent.

Canberra sweltered through its hottest back-to-back days since records began after reached 41.9C on Friday followed by a scorching 42.7C on Saturday, according to Weatherzone.

Of the 12 major fires burning across NSW on Saturday night, three were at emergency levels in the Bega Valley region.

The Clear Range fire in Snowy Monaro region is also at emergency levels and closed the Monaro Highway.

Skies in Michelago and Bredbo have turned orange and homes in Tantawangalo are also under threat.

Fire crews are being forced to let the fire burn across Mt Tennent, as it's proved impossible to get close enough to fight it.

The Clear Range Fire burns through a property near Bredbo North on February 1

Sydney is warned of suffocating smoke on Sunday as raging bushfires in the nation's capital and south-eastern New South Wales continue to burn.

A bushfire is also threatening lives in Victoria and an emergency warning has been issued for the Cape Conran blaze.

Residents have been told it's too late to leave and take shelter indoors.
A few tax proposals in the Budget 2020 would make the life of many non-resident Indians more taxing, especially those living in tax-free regimes like UAE.

The budget has proposed to tax Indians who are not tax residents in India but are neither tax residents in any other countries. The budget proposes changes in the income tax law to make such individuals deemed tax residents of India.

Explaining the new proposal, revenue secretary Ajay Bhushan Pandey said: "We have seen that in many cases some people are residents of no country of the world. Any Indian citizen, if he is not a tax-resident of any other country in the world, then he would be deemed to be a resident of India and their income would be taxed."

This particular provision would impact those Indian citizens living in tax-free countries like the UAE, Saudi Arabia, and many other Middle-East countries. This is a big jolt for many Indian citizens living on these jurisdictions.

FULL COVERAGE: Union Budget 2020

Dinesh Kanabar, CEO, Dhruva Advisors LLP, says: "The tax imposed on Indian citizens abroad if they are not taxable in their home country could have serious ramifications in the hands of UAE residents."

Bijal Ajinkya, Partner, Khaitan & Co, says: "This is an interesting move as many individuals who were in such a position and consequently benefitted would now be within the Indian tax net."

There are other changes in provisions related to non-resident status in budget that could severely impact NRIs. A change in income tax law now makes it difficult for NRIs to prove themselves not a tax resident of India.

Earlier, if an Indian citizen who stayed out of India for 182 days, they would become non-residents. Now, the law has been changed and it now requires one to remain outside India for 240 days or more to become a non-resident (for tax purpose).

Many Indian citizens who do not stay in India but have significant economic activities in India, would now find it difficult to escape paying taxes in India.

Also read: Budget 2020: Education gets front seat in Sitharaman's aspiring India

Also read: Budget 2020: Modi govt's tax revenue estimate falls for second time

Also read: Budget 2020: 9 key announcements for India's youth
BAKU, Azerbaijan, Feb.1

By Nargiz Sadikhova - Trend:

International Finance Corporation (IFC) is committed to supporting Kazakhstan in its strategy to diversify the economy, expand private sector, and achieve sustainable growth, IFCs Regional Manager for Central Asia Cassandra Colbert told Trend.

"IFCs well-balanced Kazakhstan portfolio cuts across diverse segments of the economy; from agribusiness, manufacturing, infrastructure, including logistics, to the financial sector, including microfinance," Colbert said.

She noted that IFC addresses the various needs of Kazakhstans private sector and this includes working with institutions that provide finance to entrepreneurssuch as SMEs and micro-entrepreneursthat IFC cannot serve directly.

Some recent project examples are the second stage of a project that expands availability of housing finance in the country launched by IFC and the Housing Construction Savings Bank of Kazakhstan (HCSBK) in 2019.

"We conducted an assessment of HCSBKs operations as part of a joint advisory project to help the bank grow its housing portfolio by aligning its mortgage lending operations with international best practice. This phase of the project will fine tune HCSBKs product offering and launch new products and services to meet changing market demands," Colbert said.

She continued by saying the IFC has also partnered with Phoenix Commodities Pvt. Ltd. (British Virgin Islands) to invest into Kazakhstans horticulture and help the country modernize its fruit supply chain.

"The new global partnership includes a $20 million risk sharing agreement through a guarantee mechanism in favor of Phoenix Global DMCC, a Dubai-based trading subsidiary of Phoenix, and a $10 million investment in Phoenix Fruits LLP, a Kazakhstan-based subsidiary of Phoenix. The investment will support Kazakhstans horticulture sector and create more than 2,300 full-time and seasonal jobs, mostly for women," she said.

According to Colbert, IFC also looks to increase its presence in the human capital sector of the country; that is, health and education.

"We believe that with stronger private sector participation in the economy, Kazakhstan can become a driver of growth in the Central Asia region. IFC is committed to supporting Kazakhstan in its strategy to diversify the economy, expand the private sector, and achieve sustainable growth," she said.

Talking about IFCs goals in Kazakhstan, Colbert noted that IFC need to be flexible on how it achieves them.

"So our implementation sometimes needs to be adjusted to react to changing market conditions. In Kazakhstan, these adjustments are dictated by market events in the country, global forces, or by shifts in government priorities. With the government looking to move the economy away from natural resources, opportunities are emerging in other sectors and we hope to help the private sector leverage these opportunities," she said.

---

Follow the author on twitter: @nargiz_sadikh
Nothing will happen

Re: Schiff makes a strong case to America, Another View, Tuesday:

Absolutely, Adam Schiff is making a great case for America. Thats the good news. The bad news: Nothing is going to happen. Even with the John Bolton revelations, nothing is going to happen. Even with overwhelming evidence, the Republicans will not remove President Donald Trump. Republican senators want to hold on to their seats.

Once again, party first, American people last.

Steven Ochoa

On ExpressNews.com: News of Bolton book sends jolt through impeachment trial

Senators anonymous

Would the outcome of the vote on impeachment be different if the senators were voting by secret ballot?

Wayne Roberts

Thanks, USAA

Re: Boohoo for USAA, Your Turn, Monday:

I have not seen the percentage increase in homeowners and car insurance that letter writer Walt Banks has. Over time, there have been reasonable increases, but they have not been arbitrary as Banks states.

As a USAA member for over 30 years, the customer service I have received has been consistently superior. Any way I contact USAA  log in with the mobile app, use the chat application or speak with a representative by phone  my experience is always consistent and outstanding. Because of this, the USAA employees deserve bonuses and upper management should be commended.

No, I am not crying crocodile tears as Banks is, but I smile because Im happy I use USAA for my insurance, banking and investment needs.

Thank you, USAA.

Gene Thibault
The Palestinian Authority has cut all ties with Israel and the US after rejecting Donald Trumps Middle East peace plan.

President Mahmoud Abbas said the were would be "no relations at all" with the two countries as he reiterated his "complete" dismissal of the American leader's proposal, which called for a demilitarised Palestinian state with borders drawn to meet Israeli security needs.

The US president's peace plan, which he unveiled on Tuesday, would grant the Palestinians limited self-rule in parts of the occupied West Bank while allowing Israel to annex all its settlements there and keep nearly all of east Jerusalem.

At an emergency one-day Arab League meeting in the Egyptian capital Cairo on Saturday, Mr Abbas said: Weve informed the Israeli side ... that there will be no relations at all with them and the United States including security ties.

There was no immediate comment from US or Israeli officials.

Palestinian protests against President Trump's Middle East peace plan Show all 18 1 /18 Palestinian protests against President Trump's Middle East peace plan Palestinian protests against President Trump's Middle East peace plan AFP via Getty Palestinian protests against President Trump's Middle East peace plan Palestinian protesters burn pictures of US President Donald Trump and Israel's Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu during a demonstration in the West Bank against the expected peace plan proposal AFP via Getty Palestinian protests against President Trump's Middle East peace plan US President and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu announce Trump's Middle East peace plan in the White House AFP via Getty Palestinian protests against President Trump's Middle East peace plan Reuters Palestinian protests against President Trump's Middle East peace plan AFP via Getty Palestinian protests against President Trump's Middle East peace plan AFP via Getty Palestinian protests against President Trump's Middle East peace plan Reuters Palestinian protests against President Trump's Middle East peace plan EPA Palestinian protests against President Trump's Middle East peace plan EPA Palestinian protests against President Trump's Middle East peace plan AFP via Getty Palestinian protests against President Trump's Middle East peace plan AFP via Getty Palestinian protests against President Trump's Middle East peace plan EPA Palestinian protests against President Trump's Middle East peace plan EPA Palestinian protests against President Trump's Middle East peace plan EPA Palestinian protests against President Trump's Middle East peace plan AFP via Getty Palestinian protests against President Trump's Middle East peace plan AFP via Getty Palestinian protests against President Trump's Middle East peace plan AFP via Getty Palestinian protests against President Trump's Middle East peace plan AP

Mr Abbas said he had refused to take Mr Trumps phone calls and messages, or even to look at a copy of the plan, because I know he would use that to say he consulted us.

I will never accept this solution, he said. I will not have it recorded in my history that I have sold Jerusalem.

He said he remained committed to ending Israeli control of occupied Palestinian territory and establishing a state with its capital in east Jerusalem.

But the Palestinians refused to accept the US as sole mediator in any negotiations with Israel, he added.

Mr Abbas said he would go to the United Nations Security Council and international and regional organisations to explain our position.

The Arab Leagues head, Ahmed Aboul-Gheit, said Mr Trump's proposal revealed a sharp turn in the longstanding US foreign policy regarding the Israeli-Palestinian conflict.

This turn does not help achieve peace and a just solution, he added.

Mr Aboul-Gheit called for the two sides to negotiate to reach a satisfactory solution for both of them.

A statement issued by the Arab League described Mr Trump's as a new setback for the three-decade peace efforts.

It said Arab foreign ministers reject the US-Israeli deal of the century because it did not meet the minimum rights and aspirations of the Palestinian people.

It cited the 2002 Arab Peace Initiative as an Arab-accepted settlement to the conflict. That proposal offered Israel normal ties with Arab states in return for Palestinian statehood on territory occupied by Israel in 1967.

Mr Trump unveiled his own long-awaited peace plan in Washington at joint press conference with Israeli prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu.

The proposal would allow Israel to annex all its West Bank settlements  which the Palestinians and most of the international community view as illegal  as well as the Jordan Valley, which accounts for roughly a quarter of the West Bank.

In return, the Palestinians would be granted statehood in Gaza, scattered chunks of the West Bank and some neighbourhoods on the outskirts of Jerusalem, all linked together by a new network of roads, bridges and tunnels.

An Arab League emergency meeting is held to discuss the US proposal (AFP/Getty) (Khaled Desouki/AFP via Getty Images)

Israel would control the states borders and airspace and maintain overall security authority.

Critics of the proposals say this would rob Palestinian statehood of any meaning.

The plan would also abolish the right of return for Palestinian refugees displaced by the 1948 war and their descendants, a key Palestinian demand.

The entire agreement would be dependent on Gazas Hamas rulers and other armed groups disarming, something they have always adamantly rejected.

Ambassadors from the United Arab Emirates, Bahrain and Oman attended the unveiling of Mr Trump's plan.

Saudi Arabia and Egypt, Arab states that are close US allies, said they appreciated Mr Trumps efforts and called for renewed negotiations without commenting on the plans content.

Additional reporting by Associated Press.
In context: Windows 10 is turning five this year, and to celebrate the occasion, Microsoft has released a comprehensive list of all the user-recommended features theyve added. Its easy to take these little upgrades for granted, but Microsoft has truly made Windows 10 a lot more comfortable since launch.

Here are the five most interesting features, because five is my favorite number. If your favorite happens to be six, head to Microsofts blog post to see the rest.

Emoji

Emojis are a wonderfully unnecessary staple modern communication. Not only do you get the benefit of being able to skimp on typing in casual scenarios, but emoji in Windows also means you can integrate them into your professional world.

If you want to sound less passive-aggressive in a work email, just add something accurate to how you feel. For example, a message to tech support: Hey Jack, I was wondering if you got my email yesterday ? My computers stopped working, and I cant do anything until its fixed ?.

Or if you want to sound more passive-aggressive, Jack, its been a week since you said Id have a replacement desktop and Ive had to work from my phone since. Can you get it to me today? ? 

The emoji panel is activated by pressing Windows and the period key. It has a kaomoji section too, which are the adorable little faces that come from Japan. ()

Your Phone App

The Your Phone app is one of Microsofts most practical updates. Through a companion smartphone app, Your Phone can display a phone's text messages, calls, recent images, and live notifications on a PC.

Screenshot

Screenshotting on PC has always been terrible compared to the smartphone experience, but Microsoft has definitely improved things in the past few years. The old Windows key + PrtSc command could only shoot the whole screen, but the new Windows key + Shift + S brings up the options to select a portion of the screen using a rectangular or freehand tool.

Xbox Game Bar

The Xbox Game Bar is an essential, regardless of whether you have an Xbox or play games. The Performance tab is the fastest way to see CPU, GPU, and RAM utilization and FPS. The Audio tab lets you adjust the relative volume of different applications, so you can put a stop to egregiously loud system notifications that interrupt your music. The Control tab is also the easiest way to check the time without interrupting a full-screen video or game.

The bar is activated by pressing Windows key + G.

Mouse Options

Microsoft is adding the option to adjust the size and color of the mouse pointer and text cursor. The feature is technically to help users who have trouble spotting their mouse, but if you want to go full gamer, you could web browse with a giant red crosshairs too. This feature is still rolling out, but will be under the Ease of Access tab in Settings soon.

Microsoft still has some work to do, like giving Windows 10 a workable search feature, but the smaller upgrades are nonetheless appreciated.

Image Credit: Johny Vino on Unsplash
Rep. Rashida Tlaib admitted that she made a boo-boo when she encouraged a crowd of Bernie Sanders supporters to boo Hillary Clinton over disparaging remarks the Democrats' 2016 nominee made about the Vermont senator.

'In this instance, I allowed my disappointment with Secretary Clinton's latest comments about Senator Sanders and his supporters [to] get the best of me,' Tlaib tweeted Saturday morning. 'You all, my sisters-in-service on stage, and our movement deserves better.'

Tlaib was participating in a panel discussion alongside Reps. Ilhan Omar and Pramila Jayapal at a Sanders campaign event Friday night in Clive, Iowa when moderator Dionna Langford brought up how the former secretary of state had said 'nobody likes' Sanders.

Rep. Rashida Tlaib encouraged a crowd of Bernie Sanders supporters to boo Hillary Clinton who said in a Hulu series that 'nobody liked' the 2020 hopeful and Clinton's former 2016 primary rival

Rep. Rashida Tlaib released a statement via Twitter about her decision to encourage an audience of Bernie Sanders supporters to boo Hilary Clinton on Friday night

Rep. Rashida Tlaib (left) appeared as an opener for the musician Bon Iver at the Sanders campaign event alongside Reps. Pramila Jayapal (center) and Ilhan Omar (right)

When the crowd started responding, Langford tried to stop them. 'We're not going to boo. We're not going to boo,' she said. 'We're classy here.'

'No, I'll boo!' Tlaib interjected.

'You all know I can't be quiet. No, we're gonna boo,' she told the crowd of thousands.

Sanders was expected to be at the event, but got held up in Washington due to impeachment proceedings - still the senator phoned in and Bon Iver headlined the show.

'That's all right, the haters will shut up on Monday when we win,' Tlaib also said.

Tlaib's comments quickly went viral and she, like Clinton, was criticized for showing division in the party.

Hillary Clinton made the comments about Bernie Sanders as part of a four-part Hulu project about her. She told The Hollywood Reporter she still stands by them

On Saturday, she released a Twitter statement.

'I am so incredibly in love with the movement that our campaign of #NotMeUs has created. This makes me protective over it and frustrated by attempts to dismiss the strength and diversity of our movement,' Tlaib wrote.

'However I know what is stake if we don't unify over one candidate to beat Trump and I intend to do everything possible to ensure that Trump does not win in 2020,' she continued.

She then explained how disappointed she was in Clinton's negative comments about Sanders.

'I will continue to strive to come from a place of love and not react in the same way of those who are against what we are building in this country,' Tlaib said. 'This is about building a just and equitable future for my two boys, children across the country, and future generations.'

Sanders' campaign manager Faiz Shakir expressed Saturday that he was OK with what happened.

'Rashida, youre all good. We love your passion and conviction. Dont change,' he tweeted, highlighting her mea culpa.

Sanders - finally free of Washington - did not bite when DailyMail.com asked about the booing after he appeared at an AFSCME event Saturday morning in West Des Moines.

Nick Merrill, who was Clinton's press secretary during her 2016 campaign, chimed in Saturday afternoon, shaking his finger at what Shakir had said.

'Unbelievable,' Merrill tweeted. 'Its not enough that she booed her partys last nominee, but theyre making sure its clear she doesnt have to regret it.'

'If Sanders got the nomination, hed need the same 66 million votes. His campaign may not know that thats how you beat Trump, but voters do,' Merrill added.

Tlaib already has a reputation for stirring up trouble.

On the night she was sworn into Congress she attended an event and announced to the crowd, 'We're going to impeach the motherf***ker.'

She's since become a member of the so-called squad, which also consists of Omar, Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez and Ayanna Pressley.

Sen. Bernie Sanders' campaign manager Faiz Shakir told Rashida Tlaib 'you're all good' while highlighting her mea culpa Saturday morning on Twitter

Nick Merrill, who was Hillary Clinton's 2016 campaign press secretary, responded Bernie Sanders campaign manager Faiz Shakir by tweet Saturday afternoon, calling Shakir's response to Tlaib's booing 'unbelievable'

The trio of lawmakers were supposed to be an opening act for Sen. Bernie Sanders, but he left Washington, D.C., too late to make the event, which was headline by the musician Bon Iver

Clinton's raw feelings about Sanders came to light earlier this month as the former secretary of state talked to The Hollywood Reporter as part of promoting a four-party Hulu series 'Hillary.'

'Nobody likes him, nobody wants to work with him, he got nothing done. He was a career politician,' she said in the series. 'It's all baloney and I feel so bad that people got sucked into it.'

Asked if that remains her opinion she told The Hollywood Reporter the answer was yes.

Clinton did not commit to supporting Sanders should he become the Democratic nominee.

In 2016, Sanders didn't drop out until the very end of the Democratic primary - though eventually supported and campaigned on behalf of Clinton.

With the Iowa causes just three days away, Sanders looks poised to knock off the moderate frontrunner, former Vice President Joe Biden, this time around.

Polls show Sanders leading, on average, by 3.6 points.

Sanders supporters haven't always been known to play nice to the Vermont senator's political rivals.

In November, as Sanders was introducing Rep. Ilhan Omar as an official campaign surrogate in Minneapolis, Minnesota a 'Lock him up!' chant briefly broke out about President Trump.
As an existing print subscriber it is easy to get FREE access to all our online content.

When you click get started below it will walk you through creating an online account to attach your print subscription number to.

After your account is created it will ask you to either add a subscription for online access or click on the print subscriber button. Click the print subscriber button header and it will open a dropdown, now click on get started. The page will reload and you will be prompted to enter an account number and a zip code.

IT IS VERY IMPORTANT TO USE THE NUMBER OFF OF THE MOST RECENT ISSUE OR ANYTHING AFTER JANUARY 28, 2019 TO GAIN ACCESS!

OLD ACCOUNT NUMBERS WILL NOT WORK

The account number and zip code are easily available on your most recent issue of the High Plains Journal or Midwest Ag Journal in the address fields as is shown here. Sometimes the account number has extra zero's in front of it, just ignore those.
: Three people have been arrested in Kerala for spreading false information in the social media on the novel Coronavirus, Health minister K K Shailaja said here on Saturday.

They had put out false about those who had travelled from coronavirus affected countries and are under home surveillance, she told reporters here tonight.

The minister said that the condition of the woman medical college student, who is in the isolation ward at the Thrissur medical college hospital after testing positive, was stable.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
The Mahama government invested over $2 billion in health infrastructure, equipment, and human resources and planned to add 6,000 more beds the existed stock by the end of 2018.

Ghana's healthcare system improved tremendously under Mahama's administration. By June 2016, there were two teaching hospitals, three institutional hospitals, dozens of polycyclics and health centers, close to 2000 chps compounds going on Nationwide. The administration completed first phase of the ultramodern University of Ghana Teaching Hospital. This must-see facility, rated the best in the country and the subregion, has still not been commissioned. It is a two phase project with the phase one costing $217 million and has eight buildings and 617 beds. When completed, phase two will add a further 400 beds to make it 1,017 bed hospital. It is a super tertiary facility that will offer advanced medical services to patients not only in Ghana but also in the West African subregion and beyond.

Another first class health facility is the reconstructed 420 bed Ridge Hospital in Accra, redesignated as the Greater Accra Regional Hospital. The hospital is one of the largest and most modern health facilities in the subregion.

The Mahama administration also started the construction of the 500 bed new military hospital in the Ashanti region to cater for not only military needs but also the whole region and beyond.

The administration also renovated the police hospital making it a 104 bed capacity. Another health facility constructed by the administration was the 103 bed maritime hospital in Tema.

The Mahama government also expanded the Tamale teaching hospital. It started the phase one of the project in 2015 to increase the bed capacity to 800 with the phase two adding 1000.

The administration also renovated the Bolgatanga hospital making it a 295 bed capacity regional hospital.

The administration's $339 million health infrastructure program involving eight hospitals started in October 2012. It encompassed 250 bed regional hospital at Sewua in the Ashanti region, 60 bed district hospital at Salaga in the northern region, 60 bed district hospital at Tepa in the Ashanti region, 60 bed district hospital at Nsakwa, 60 bed district hospital at Twifo Praso, 60 bed district hospital at Konongo Odumasi, 100 bed municipal hospital at Atomic in Accra, 160 bed regional hospital at Wa, Tarkwa district hospital and the five polycyclics project at Nkrakwanta,Wamfie, Kwatre, Bomaa and Tachimantia.

In the central region the administration constructed and equipped ten polycyclics. In the Greater Accra region, five polycyclics were constructed.

The administration also provided Korle Bu teaching hospital with new and modern emergency department as well as 12 bed intensive care unit for the department of surgery. In the Volta region, apart from converting the Ho regional hospital into a modern teaching hospital, the University of Health and Allied Sciences project was completed.

Another major aspect of the government's healthcare projects was the concept of community based health planning and services. Appointees of the administration contributed part of their salary towards the construction of the chps compounds.

Aside the massive infrastructure development, the continuation of the government's $264 million national medical equipment replacement program provided diagnostic and treatment equipment for over 150 hospitals nationwide.

The Mahama administration also disbursed an amount of Ghc 50 million to some local pharmaceutical companies to assist them produce as much medical drugs as possible. One of the companies that benefited from the fund increased its production portfolio by 150 percent the first year and produced antibiotics, anti retroviral, analgesics and other drugs for both local market and export to some West African countries.

One of the flagship programs of the health sector was the National Health Insurance Scheme, which saw vast improvement under the Mahama government contrary to the propaganda tunes by the current administration. A biometric membership system was introduced nationwide, and clinical audits and the establishment of claims processing centers resulted in substantial cost savings.

The Mahama government also launched a National Medical Outreach Services which was dubbed "Onuador" to bring healthcare to the doorsteps of Ghanaians. It was employed as one of the means by which equity gap in health care delivery can be bridged to some extent.

One of the successes the administration achieved in the health sector was the eradication of the debilitating Guinea worm disease in the country in early 2015. The WHO declared Ghana Guinea worm free in 2015.

When the Millennium Development Goal (UN) started in 2000, maternal deaths in Ghana were in the order of 900 per 100,000 live births. Before exiting power, the maternal deaths was just over 300 per 100,000 live births and the administration was working feverishly to reduce the number drastically. While working on that, it was also reducing infant mortality.

Construction of new hospitals and renovation of existing ones, gave direct and indirect employment to thousands of Ghanaians and thousands of hundreds of Ghanaian suppliers benefitted from the supply chain.

Author: Andrews Krow
HOUSTON  An electrical spark likely ignited a gas leak that led to a massive explosion in Houston last week, killing two workers, injuring 20 others and damaging hundreds of buildings, law enforcement officials said Friday.

Highly flammable propylene gas started leaking in the piping connected to a tank inside a warehouse at Watson Grinding and Manufacturing within about 24 hours of the predawn blast, said Fred Milanowski, the local special agent in charge for the U.S. Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives.

Sensors could have detected a leak, Milanowski said, but its unclear whether sensors were in place, operating correctly or able to notify the company of a problem.

There is no evidence to indicate arson, vandalism or other criminal wrongdoing behind the Jan. 24 explosion, Milanowski said.

Houston Fire Chief Samuel Pena said the ATFs finding is preliminary, and that determining a final cause could take up to two months.

Company employees Frank Flores and Gerardo Castorena were killed. Two other warehouse workers were injured, along with 18 people from neighboring homes and businesses.

City officials say 450 structures  mostly homes  were damaged in the explosion at the metal fabricating and manufacturing company. Of those homes, 35 were seriously damaged.

City representatives say they are working with nonprofit groups to see what assistance can be offered to residents whose homes were damaged but who might not have the financial resources to repair and rebuild.

John Watson, the CEO of Watson Grinding and Manufacturing, told KTRK-TV on Tuesday: I will repair all the damaged homes  My insurance company will.

However, later Tuesday, Watson issued a statement taking back his earlier comments, saying, Who is at fault and who will pay for damages cannot be determined at this early stage.

Mayor Sylvester Turner said this week that the citys legal department has reached out to Watson to see what it will do to help those whose homes are damaged. The city was also looking at whether any federal assistance might be available.

Volunteers from several community groups have also helped residents with cleanup and repairs.

At least 13 lawsuits have been filed against the company since the explosion, including a wrongful death suit by Flores family. Harris County and the state of Texas filed one of the suits, alleging Watson violated the Texas Clean Air Act.

Officials say propylene  a colorless gas used to produce chemicals in plastics, synthetic rubber and gasoline  burned after the blast. The gas was in a 2,000-gallon tank at the facility. People exposed to propylene can become dizzy and light-headed, and the gas can also cause liver damage.

The county and state also allege the company might have failed to properly maintain equipment and properly store chemicals at its facility.

Houston and Southeast Texas are home to the highest concentration of oil refineries in the U.S. The region has experienced a series of explosions in recent years. Last July, a blast at an ExxonMobil refinery in Baytown, east of Houston, left more than a dozen people with minor injuries and put nearby residents under a shelter-in-place advisory for three hours.

In December, two blasts in the coastal city of Port Neches shattered windows and ripped doors from nearby homes.

___

This story was first published on Jan. 31. It was updated on Feb. 1 to correct the spelling of the last name of the special agent in charge of the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Exlosives Houston field division. His name is Fred Milanowski, not Fred Malinowski.
STATEN ISLAND, N.Y. -- Police found brass knuckles and a cornucopia of cocaine, pills and weed during a car stop in Tompkinsville and search of the driver at the 120th Precinct stationhouse in St. George, authorities say.

Officers pulled over unlicensed driver Michael Astwood, 51, of the 200 block of York Avenue in New Brighton, while he was behind the wheel of a white, 2015 Nissan Rogue at 12:33 a.m. on Wednesday at Van Duzer Street and Victory Boulevard, according to the criminal complaint and police.

Astwood, who was alone in the car, allegedly handed over metal knuckles to the police.

The complaint alleges that inside at least one backpack in the Nissan, officers recovered: 73 grams of cocaine; 10 amphetamine pills; a pipe, two straws and two spoons all containing cocaine residue, plus about 100 empty glassine envelopes.

Officers allegedly seized about 20 empty glassine envelopes and two straws with cocaine residue from a cup holder inside the Nissan. He was arrested within minutes.

Inside the 120th Precinct stationhouse, police confiscated from Astwood a pipe with cocaine residue and a twist of marijuana in the suspects sock, the complaint alleges.

Discovered inside plastic bags on his person were cocaine powder and rocks, four pills of the sedative clonazepam and three pills of the sedative alprazolam, police said.

Astwood has been charged with criminal possession of a controlled substance with intent to sell, criminal possession of a weapon, aggravated unlicensed operation of a motor vehicle, criminally using drug paraphernalia, unlawful possession of marijuana and driving without a license.

The complaint alleges that Astwoods license was suspended or revoked at the time of his arrest. He pleaded guilty to attempted criminal sale of a controlled substance in June 2019.

The suspect was released without bail, but is required to comply with certain conditions and is due to appear in Criminal Court on March 30, according to public records.

An attorney for the defendant did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
New Chinese Ambassador to South Korea Xing Haiming arrived at Incheon International Airport on Thursday wearing a surgical mask in line with coronavirus precautions, as did accompanying staff.

A spokesperson for the Chinese Embassy said Xing also had his temperature checked at the airport.

Xing told reporters on arrival he would "try hard" to assist with the evacuation of Koreans from the Chinese city of Wuhan, the epicenter of the coronavirus outbreak.

"I'm very glad to work in South Korea again," he said. "Though we have an issue to handle for the time being, I will look forward to the future and try hard."

It is unclear whether he meant coronavirus or something else, like the U.S. deployment of a Terminal High Altitude Area Defense battery here.

Xing answered questions in Korean since he is a graduate of North Korea's Sariwon College of Agriculture, which was a training hub for the Chinese Foreign Ministry's Korea experts.

He was posted to Pyongyang twice, from 1988 to 1991 and from 2006 to 2008, and to Seoul three times in 1992-1995, 2003-2006, and 2008-2011.

His last job was ambassador to Mongolia.


For the New World Order, a world government is just the beginning. Once in place they can engage their plan to exterminate 80% of the world's population, while enabling the "elites" to live forever with the aid of advanced technology. For the first time, crusading filmmaker ALEX JONES reveals their secret plan for humanity's extermination: Operation ENDGAME.

Jones chronicles the history of the global elite's bloody rise to power and reveals how they have funded dictators and financed the bloodiest warscreating order out of chaos to pave the way for the first true world empire.

Watch as Jones and his team track the elusive Bilderberg Group to Ottawa and Istanbul to document their secret summits, allowing you to witness global kingpins setting the world's agenda and instigating World War III.





to Ottawa and Istanbul to document their secret summits, allowing you to witness global kingpins setting the world's agenda and instigating World War III. Learn about the formation of the North America transportation control grid, which will end U.S. sovereignty forever.





Discover how the practitioners of the pseudo-science eugenics have taken control of governments worldwide as a means to carry out depopulation.





View the progress of the coming collapse of the United States and the formation of the North American Union.

Never before has a documentary assembled all the pieces of the globalists' dark agenda. Endgame's compelling look at past atrocities committed by those attempting to steer the future delivers information that the controlling media has meticulously censored for over 60 years. It fully reveals the elite's program to dominate the earth and carry out the wicked plan in all of human history.

Endgame is not conspiracy theory, it is documented fact in the elite's own words.




The agreement was signed by Prince Saud bin Talal, adviser and general supervisor at the ministrys agency for housing support and solutions and international co-operation management, and Dr Adam Boulokos, the Kingdoms resident representative at the UNDP.

The Housing Ministry signed a memorandum of cooperation with the UN Development Programme (UNDP), the Saudi Press Agency reported, as the ministry seeks to benefit from international experience and expertise in the housing field.

The agreement was signed by Prince Saud bin Talal, adviser and general supervisor at the ministrys agency for housing support and solutions and international cooperation management, and Dr Adam Boulokos, the Kingdoms resident representative at the UNDP. The UNDP, in cooperation with the Housing Ministry, is working on the development of an action plan that includes the participation of the nonprofit sector, a comprehensive review of the current policies, legislation, regulations and governance of the development housing sector to promote nonprofit governmental associations in the field, in addition to a spatial analysis to determine the locations of development housing projects.

The programme is an international UN organisation established by UN member states and has its headquarters in New York. It operates in 170 countries.
The smartest business insight and analysis, from all perspectives, rounded up from around the web:

British Prime Minister Boris Johnson "defied U.S. hawks" this week to let Huawei build part of the U.K.'s next-generation phone network, said Gordon Rayner at The Daily Telegraph (U.K.). The U.S. has lobbied Europe heavily to ban equipment from the controversial Chinese telecom company. But such a ban could delay the rollout of advanced services by as much as three years. Ultimately, Johnson concluded that "the potential risk to national security posed by the Chinese telecom giant was outweighed by the estimated 126 billion ($164 billion) boost to the economy" of having the 5G rollout proceed as planned. Huawei has "made considerable technological progress" in recent years, said Ina Fried at Axios, and China is exerting its own pressure on European countries that are wavering. It has threatened, for instance, "to close off a key market for German auto exports" if Germany passes on Huawei. "Like it or not," Siemens CEO Joe Kaeser said last week, "they are a year or two ahead."

The U.S. insists that Huawei is dangerous, but even Trump's own Cabinet agencies can't agree on how, said Ana Swanson at The New York Times. Last week, the Commerce Department withdrew its proposal to close a loophole allowing some U.S. companies to sell products to Huawei, after "officials in the Defense Department and other agencies argued that it would actually undermine national security," pushing Huawei to source chips from competitors in Korea or Taiwan. The Commerce decision "appears to be an admission of defeat in the U.S.-China tech war," said David Goldman at the Asia Times. Trump's effort to block Huawei's access to U.S. chip technology backfired: "Taiwanese companies who for years had begged for Huawei's business are now flooded with orders." U.S. firms are petrified that "Chinese companies will retaliate against export controls with a price war for high-end chips."

Story continues

Still, this is about more than sales for U.S. chipmakers, said Annie Fixler and Mikhael Smits at The Hill. Remember, Huawei is a company with "close political and financial ties and legal obligations to the Chinese Communist Party," and "the combination of CCP ruthlessness and Huawei technology threatens human rights" and European security. Banning Huawei and patiently developing their own secure networks through companies like Nokia, Ericsson, or Samsung could add $62 billion to Europe's 5G tab. But it's either that, or "roll out 5G infrastructure quickly with a baked-in Trojan horse."

This started as a worry about cybersecurity, but it has "burst into a much wider conflict" between Washington and Beijing over whose country will develop the latest technology, said Stu Woo and Asa Fitch at The Wall Street Journal. The standoff means we're headed to a repeat of the "VHS-versus-Betamax era," with much higher stakes. "Imagine two countries with completely different sets of hardware and software for the internet, electronic devices, telecommunications, and even social media and dating apps." Unlikely as it may have seemed just a couple of years ago, "mutual suspicion all but guarantees the march toward a two-system tech world."

This article was first published in the latest issue of The Week magazine. If you want to read more like it, try the magazine for a month here.

More stories from theweek.com

Mitch McConnell's rare blunder

John Bolton just vindicated Nancy Pelosi

All the president's turncoats


(Adds info on U.S. embassy family staff)

SHANGHAI, Feb 1 (Reuters) - Britain is withdrawing some

staff from its embassy and consulates in China due to the

coronavirus, the UK government said in a statement on Saturday.

"As of 31 January, some staff and dependants from the

British Embassy and Consulates are being withdrawn from China.

Essential staff needed to continue critical work will remain,"

the statement read.

"In the event that the situation deteriorates further, the

ability of the British Embassy and Consulates to provide

assistance to British nationals from within China may be

limited," it said.

As of January 31, the U.S. State Department said it required

family members of embassy staff in China under the age of 21 to

leave China immediately, a U.S. embassy spokeswoman said.

(Reporting by Engen Tham and Gabriel Crossley; Editing by Neil

Fullick)
Ethiopian Airlines, Kenya Airways, RwandAir, Air Madagascar, Air Mauritus and Royal Air Maroc have suspended flights to mainland China because of the coronavirus outbreak that has killed at least 213 people there.

The airlines said the suspensions are indefinite or temporary, and have offered to refund or re-route passengers who had booked flights to China.

The Moroccan carrier RAM, which has just launched mid-January three weekly direct flights between Casablanca and Beijing, said it decided a one-month suspension of the flights after a sharp drop in demand and bookings.

The move comes as airlines around the world are suspending or reducing flights to mainland China and as governments advise against travel to the region in an effort to stop the spread of the Wuhan coronavirus.

The so-called Coronavirus was first identified in Wuhan, a city of 11 million, in the province of Hubei.

In response, the Chinese government started a mass quarantine by shutting down transport to and from the Wuhan area, including the airport.

Ethiopias state minister for Health Lia Tadesse said in a tweet on Thursday that tests for coronavirus on four Ethiopians at a lab in South Africa came back negative.

Earlier this year, Xinhua.net reported that Ethiopian Airlines is eyeing flights to three new destinations in China, namely Chongqing, Shenzhen, and Zhengzhou.
Chino, CA (91710)

Today

Some sun this morning with increasing clouds this afternoon. High 71F. Winds light and variable. Stronger winds in and below canyons and passes..

Tonight

Cloudy skies this evening will become partly cloudy after midnight. Low around 45F. Winds light and variable. Stronger winds in and below canyons and passes.
WATERLOO  Pete Buttigieg campaigned in Waterloo Saturday morning as part of a final push for Democratic voters ahead of the Iowa caucuses.

As the 10 a.m. rally started at the Electric Park Ballroom, he noted the limited time for people to pick their candidate in Monday nights presidential preference contest.

Fifth-seven hours, is that it? Hard to believe, because weve been hard at work for more than a year, said the former mayor of South Bend, Ind. Now I have one more chance to ask you eye-to-eye to support me on Monday and to explain why.

The stop was part a swing through eastern Iowa that continued Saturday with town hall gatherings in Oelwein and Anamosa and rallies in Dubuque and Cedar Rapids. On Sunday, hell hold 10:45 a.m. and 1:30 p.m. rallies at Northwest Junior High in Coralville and Lincoln High School in Des Moines, respectively.

Democrats need to make sure we can get a nominee to defeat (Republican President) Donald Trump, Buttigieg told the cheering crowd, which included more than 500 people, according to campaign and Electric Park officials. He admitted to being a little worried, though, that some were distinguishing between the best way to win and the right way to govern once the next president is inaugurated.

In the last 50 years, he asserted, Democrats who won the nations highest office were new to national politics and focused on new ways of doing things in the future. The United States will face different kinds of challenges than in the past related to climate change, the economy, technology and global relations.

That is why we need a fundamentally new approach, said Buttigieg. Im here to say the less 2020 resembles 2016 the better. Its time to do something different.

He said there are respectful but meaningful differences of approach among people who share the same values that are running in Iowas Democratic caucus. Buttigieg argued against reasons that some might embrace his top competitors  former Vice President Joe Biden as someone who would be familiar to voters or Vermont U.S. Sen. Bernie Sanders as the choice for revolution over status quo.

Buttigieg is polling at an average of 15.8% among likely Iowa Democratic caucusgoers, which is third place, according to RealClearPolitics.com. Thats behind Sanders, at an average of 23.8%, and Biden, at 20.2%.

State Sen. Bill Dotzler, Waterloo Mayor Quentin Hart, and former state representative Deborah Berry spoke at the rally ahead of Buttigieg.

I endorsed this man because hes got new ideas, hes got fresh ideas, said Berry. Because the old way of doing politics is not going to work to beat Donald Trump.

In response to questions from the audience, Buttigieg said he would review Trumps executive orders and reverse some of them immediately, freeing detained immigrant children and reinstating environmental protections. He advocated doubling the number of unionized workers in the U.S., passing a constitutional amendment to overturn the Supreme Courts Citizens United campaign financing decision and increasing regulation of guns.

Buttigieg also emphasized the importance of working across the political aisle and setting a good tone, especially when he has disagreement with people. Weve got to reach out and call out the best in everyone of us, he said.

Some in the audience said Buttigieg remains a top choice for them, but they still hadnt decided who to caucus for after hearing him Saturday.

Hes definitely one or two in my mind, said David Hind of Waterloo, along with U.S. Sen. Elizabeth Warren. If it looks like probably one of them needs more help to be a viable candidate, Ill probably lean to help them out.

Lesley Squire of Waterloo was enthusiastic about Buttigieg, a military veteran who served in Afghanistan.

I love him. I think hes smart, I think hes fresh, she said. I love the military experience he has.

But he still wasnt her top choice.

I have been leaning towards Amy Klobuchar, said Squire. Im still open to changing my mind before Monday night.

Paula Letiche, wearing a Buttigieg T-shirt and button, was already solidly behind the candidate. The Waverly woman and her 14-year-old son, Christoph, waited in line to talk to and get a picture with him.

I like his message of respect, that he respects Americans, and so hes the candidate that I can respect, she said.

Photos: Presidential candidates campaign in the area

Love 0 Funny 0 Wow 0 Sad 1 Angry 0

Get Government & Politics updates in your inbox! Stay up-to-date on the latest in local and national government and political topics with our newsletter. Sign up! * I understand and agree that registration on or use of this site constitutes agreement to its user agreement and privacy policy.
A Texas mother is mourning the death of her 3-year-old son while her ex-boyfriend faces charges.

On Tuesday, Christian Paz died in his mothers arms after being taken off life support, KENS5, KBTX and WOAI report. Two days earlier, Christian had been rushed to a San Antonio hospital after he became unresponsive while in the care of his mothers ex-boyfriend, Logan Harvill.

He was declared brain dead Monday.

My world feels so empty without him, Christians mother told KENS5.

Harvill was watching Christian while his mother was working, according to a GoFundMe page created by his family.

Harvill called 911 to report the boy was not waking up, authorities said. The 29-year-old is now charged with injury to a child and remains behind bars on a $1 million bond.

Related: Body of Missing 3-Year-Old Kamille 'Cupcake' McKinney Found in Landfill

Want to keep up with the latest crime coverage? Sign up for PEOPLEs free True Crime newsletter for breaking crime news, ongoing trial coverage and details of intriguing unsolved cases.

On Wednesday, a medical examiner announced that Christian died of blunt force trauma to the head. Police are investigating the childs death, which was ruled a homicide.

aHe was a sweet, loving, brilliant, funny baby with big brown eyes and anime hair. Our hearts are shattered. He is so very loved and missed, the boys family told KBTX in a statement.

Attorney and plea information for Harvill was not available Friday.
Shah tweeted this after Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman presented the budget for 2020-21.

New Delhi, Feb 1 (IANS) By getting Rs 85,000 crore allocated in the budget for the Scheduled Castes and other backward sections, and Rs 53,700 crore for the Scheduled Tribes, Prime Minister Narendra Modi had again displayed his sensitive approach towards the deprived sections and to bring them to the mainstream, said Home Minister Amit Shah, here on Saturday.

Shah tweeted this after Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman presented the budget for 2020-21.

In a series of tweets, Shah said the budget would benefit farmers, middle-class taxpayers and business people. "In this budget, the Modi government has taken effective steps to rationalise the tax system, boost the basic infrastructure, strengthen the banking system, promote investment and ease of doing business, which will further the government's resolve to make India a $5 trillion economy," Shah tweeted.

The budget would help in doubling farm income by providing irrigation and food storage facilities as well as proper cost of the farm products. "Kishan Rail and Kishan Udaan schemes will benefit farmers, especially of the northeast, by connecting them to the national and international markets," he said.

The Home Minister said the budget had given big relief to income-tax payers, especially the middle class people.

For the infrastructure, like world-class highways, railways, airports, seaports and Metro, the Modi government had proposed Rs 100 crore, which would not only help common citizen but also increase their financial conditions, Shah tweeted.
It was US President John F. Kennedy who said: "When written in Chinese, the word crisis is composed of two characters  one represents danger, and the other represents opportunity."

That couldnt be more apt when dissecting how Prime Minister Scott Morrison and his government have handled the events of the past few weeks. From the devastating bushfires to this weeks rapid escalation of the coronavirus outbreak, theres been enough danger to fill a year, not a month.

People arrive at Sydney Airport wearing masks to avoid contact with the coronavirus. Credit:Renee Nowytarger

As JFK identified, there has also been political opportunity  some that has been squandered by the PM and his team. But if youve noticed the stark difference between Morrisons lethargic bushfire response in early January and the rapid formulation of a coronavirus plan this week, its clear there have been some lessons learned over the course of the month.

It didnt look like that was the case on Monday when Foreign Affairs Minister Marise Payne said it was "very important to appreciate that there are limitations to what we can do" when asked about evacuating Australians from Wuhan, China. At that point, it seemed the government was yet again facing an angry electorate that just wanted to Australian citizens protected and didn't care much for the bureaucratic complications.
UK Prime Minister Boris Johnson vowed in a pre-recorded video address that the British government would use all the authority it has to make the United Kingdom a more equal and dynamic place after Brexit, Sputnik reports.

On 31 Friday January 2020 at 23:00 GMT, the United Kingdom left the EU in accordance with the withdrawal agreement that was signed last week. The exit is followed by an 11-month transition period so that both London and Brussels can settle pending economic issues, the most pressing of which are future trade relations.

In a pre-recorded address broadcast an hour before Britain's historic exit from the bloc, Johnson said Brexit is a chance to make Britain a better place.

"The most important thing to say tonight is that this is not an end but a beginning. For many people this is an astonishing moment of hope, a moment they thought would never come. And there are many, of course, who feel a sense of anxiety and loss. And then there's a third group, perhaps the biggest, who had started to worry that the whole political wrangle would never come to an end. I understand all those feelings, and our job as the government -- my job -- is to bring this country together now and take us forward", Johnson said.

President of the European Commission Ursula von der Leyen, European Council President Charles Michel, and President of the European Parliament David Sassoli wrote an op-ed ahead of the UK's official exit from the EU, assuring that Brussels will continue to work together with London on various issues even after Brexit.

During the transition period, the UK will remain part of EU trade deals but will be able to negotiate new trade deals with other countries and with the bloc itself. In addition to trade, the UK and the EU will have to hammer out the details of their relationship in other sectors, like security and fishing rights.

According to Michel Barnier, the EU's chief negotiator for Brexit, 11 months may not be enough to agree on all aspects of the future relationship.

The sentiment among Britons is mixed, because during the lengthy, almost four-year uncertainty that followed the Brexit referendum, both London and Brussels went from lively interest in withdrawal talks to a sort of Brexit fatigue. But the European Parliament on Wednesday bid farewell to Britain with a heartfelt rendition of the song "Auld Lang Syne" after approving the withdrawal agreement.
About two months after an RTI activist from Kandhamal was shot dead, another RTI activist in Odisha was found murdered outside his house in coastal Kendrapara district on Saturday.

The body of Ranjan Kumar Das, a 35-year-old RTI activist known for filing multiple RTI applications in connection with several irregularities in Kendrapara district, was found just about 2 km from his home in Beruan village this morning. Das was supposed to return home last night, but did not come back. His body with multiple injuries on the face along with his motorcycle was found in a ditch by the road this morning.

We have lodged a case of murder against unknown miscreants. We are still waiting for the post-mortem report to conclude that the deceased was murdered, said Kalindi Behera, inspector of Marshaghai police station. Das is survived by his parents, his wife and 4-year-old son.

Das had taken to RTI activism about 8 years ago filing a series of applications seeking information about different government schemes in the district. Well-known RTI activist Pradip Pradhan, who had visited his home on Saturday, alleged that Das was regularly receiving death threats for seeking information including on the numerous brick kilns that had sprung up illegally. Last month his parents received death threats asking them to keep Das activism under check, said Pradhan.

Recently, he had lodged a case before the Odisha Lokayukta alleging encroachment of 1,100 acres of government land by a resident of Mahakalpada for shrimp farming. He had also filed RTI applications seeking details of expenditure on roads built by rural development department, quality of dry food for babies in anganwadi centres as well as irregularities in government schemes such as Pradhan Mantri Rozgar Yojana and Pradhan Mantri Gramin Awaas Yojana, one of his family members said.

Pradhan alleged that the RTI activist was murdered by people who did not like his filing of RTI applications seeking details of corruption cases.

In December last year, Abhimanyu Panda, a 58-year-old RTI activist of Kandhamal district was shot dead by unidentified persons while he was standing in front of his house. Though it was initially suspected that Pandas RTI activism was the reasonfor the murder, police said he was killed over the ongoing dispute over a shop inside the local Jagannath temple complex. Police arrested five people, including two contract killers for their alleged involvement in the murder.
Photograph: Marcio Jose Sanchez/AP

The spectre of Hillary Clinton loomed once more over Bernie Sanders campaign efforts in Iowa on Saturday after Rashida Tlaib, a congresswoman and prominent Sanders supporter, placed his escalating feud with the former secretary of state centre stage at a Friday night rally.

Related: 'We cant risk another four years of Trump': will Democrats in Iowa play it safe or go bold?

Tlaib led the audience in booing Clintons name when the moderator, Dionna Langford, brought up the acrimonious dispute between the 2016 rivals, which was stoked by Clintons comments in a Hulu documentary aired at the Sundance festival in which she said of Sanders: Nobody likes him, nobody wants to work with him.

The former first lady and former senator for New York edged out Sanders, a senator from Vermont, for the Democratic presidential nomination in 2016 but lost to Donald Trump.

Tlaibs comments on Friday at a concert to support Sanders highlight just how much of a factor the Vermont senators backers still consider Clinton to be as he chases the nomination to face Trump in November.

After Langford mentioned Clintons comments, many in the audience began to boo. Langford said: Were not going to boo, were classy here...

That prompted Tlaib, from Michigan, to raise her microphone and interrupt.

No. no, Ill boo, she said, to laughter from Pramila Jayapal and Ilhan Omar, two other Democratic congresswomen and fellow panelists on the stage.

You all know I cant be quiet, Tlaib said. No, were going to boo. Thats all right, the haters will shut up on Monday when we win.

In a series of tweets Saturday, Tlaib appeared to express regret for the episode but did not apologise. I allowed my disappointment with Senator Clintons latest comments about Senator Sanders and his supporters to get the best of me, she wrote.

You all, my sisters-in-service on stage, and our movement deserve better.

The debate took place in front of a mostly younger crowd of Sanders supporters, there to attend a folk concert by Bon Iver, Politico reported, adding that the audience also booed the former vice-president Joe Biden and the Democratic National Committee when they were mentioned by the film-maker and activist Michael Moore.

Story continues

Moore later said he was proud of my longtime friend from Michigan who spoke the truth last night.

Boo Hillary and anyone else who doesnt speak the truth, he added.

Sanders, who was not present because he was attending Trumps impeachment trial in the Senate in Washington, is a slight favourite for Mondays caucuses, the first formal election-year test of Democratic voters intentions.

According to polling specialists FiveThirtyEight, Sanders leads Biden by half a point, 22% to 21.5%, with Pete Buttigieg six points behind on 15.5%.

Supporters and opponents of Sanders and Clinton were quick to weigh in on social media. Some pointed out that Clinton defended Tlaib and her colleagues last July when Trump attacked them.

Others, such as the Republican strategist and commentator Ana Navarro-Cardenas, pointed out that such infighting was not conducive to winning the White House.

Newsflash: Democrats are running against Donald Trump, NOT Hillary Clinton, she said in a tweet.

Tlaib is no stranger to controversy. Shortly after being sworn into Congress, she told supporters: Were gonna go in there and were going to impeach the motherfucker.

Sanders and two other senators, Elizabeth Warren and Amy Klobuchar, will appear in Iowa this weekend after missing a weeks campaigning because of the impeachment trial.
New Delhi, Feb 1 (UNI) Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal has said the Union Budget, which was tabled by Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman on Saturday, will show how much the ruling Bhartiya Janata Party cares for the people of Delhi.

"The people of Delhi are hopeful that the Union Government will protect the interests of Delhi in the budget. Delhi should get more in view of elections. The budget will show how much BJP cares for us Delhiites," Mr Kejriwal tweeted in Hindi.

The Delhi government has been demanding more funds for the national capital since it came to power in Delhi in 2015.
Heroism is defined as having characteristics of courage, bravery, fortitude and unselfishness. Ancient heroes like Achilles, Odysseus, Perseus and Hercules easily come to mind. They performed heroic acts. Because of them, curses were removed, and nations and lives were saved. But although their deeds were often phenomenal acts of bravery, strength and determination, they werent so much out to save mankind as they were on a quest for personal glory.

Whom do we see today as our heroes? Whom do we most admire for their bravery, self-sacrifice and incredible achievements? Our military? Our first responders? Our athletes? Our political leaders? What qualities do they possess that compel our admiration? Are they heroes or role models?

Are we surrounded by heroes? Or do we have to hunt for them? Author/minister Samuel Rodenhizer writing about heroes suggests that these days anyone can be a hero.

Fathers are heroes. Mothers are heroes. Teachers are heroes. Soldiers are heroes. Police officers are heroes. Doctors are heroes. People with illnesses are heroes. Those who take care of aging parents are heroes. Is this, he asks, because theres a shortage of heroes in modern times?

He adds: If everybody is a hero, then nobody is a hero.

Rodenhizer believes real heroes are extraordinary people and not everyone can be extraordinary. He describes true heroes as selfless in their service  not self-serving, brave when others cower, strong when others are weak, determined when others quit, take risks and face potential loss not for themselves but on behalf of others. They are self-sacrificing, courageous, and humble.

It is humility that provides us the opportunity to listen and learn. It is bravery, in facing our fears, meeting a challenge or taking risks, that allows us to grow. And it is selfless sacrifice that can teach us the power of compassion.

Ernest Hemingways definition of a hero is: a man who lives correctly, following the ideals of honor, courage and endurance in a world that is sometimes chaotic, often stressful, and always painful.

Are heroes and role models the same? Author Alykhan Gulamali makes the distinction. A hero is someone who inspires you. A role model is someone you want to be like. They might be the same person, or they may not. Spider-Man, for example, is a hero. He is amazing. He does amazing things. But would you want to be like him? Many comic book and Hollywood heroes have embarrassing human flaws.

We recognize and praise as a hero the person who dashes into a burning building to save another. And indeed we should. In that moment, that person was a hero. But is that heroism enduring? Would the person do it again? Because of that single act of heroism, does that person become a role model?

Gulamali says: For role models we look for people who are examples of how to be honest, decent, hardworking individuals who put family first. They usually arent celebrities. Maybe theyre our parents. They are people we want to model ourselves after because we want to live like they did.

My role model and my hero has always been my mother. She never knew it. I never told her. But I am what I am today because of her. I will honor her on her birthday, Feb. 5. Let heroes inspire you, but let your role models guide you. And thats how I see it.

Larry Johnson is an author and inspirational/motivational speaker. He is available for luncheons, small group programs or conferences. Contact him by email at larjo1@prodigy.net.
"We have learned to live one day at a time. We are not naive. He is not going to be around forever, so while he is we just want to make him comfortable at home, give him the care he needs and get the help we need."

Those were the heartfelt words of Clondulane mum Helena Murray, who was speaking about her beloved eight-year old son Jamie and the struggle she and her husband Mark have undergone over the years to care for their profoundly disabled boy.

Back in 2011, Helena and Mark Murray were thrilled to find out that she was pregnant with their third child. However, after the 14-week scan, doctors noticed a build up of fluid on the baby's head that steadily increased as Helena's pregnancy progressed.

Born in November, little Jamie weighted in at 8lbs. However, the fluid build up on his brain meant that his head was the size of that of a baby more than double that weight.

He was subsequently diagnosed with alobar holoprosencephaly (HPE), an extremely rare developmental condition categorised by a failure of the brain's frontal lobe to separate into two distinct hemispheres.

The condition is so rare it is believed only 20 babies are born with it across the world each year, with many of them not surviving beyond six-months.

It left Jamie deaf, virtually blind, with severely restricted body movement and prone to regular life-threatening seizures. He has also suffered from pneumonia and collapsed lungs, with Helena estimating that Jamie has spent a year of his short life in hospital.

Speaking to PJ Coogan on his 96FM 'Opinion Line' show this week, Helena said that Jamie, who is now eight, also suffers from severe scoliosis, is in constant pain and is receiving palliative care from the team at Marymount Hospice who visit their home once a week.

Helena said her family has a HSE homecare package in place covering just two-nights a week, leaving she and Mark to manage Jamie for the other five nights.

This involves continually monitoring his fluctuating stats and suctioning as Jamie is unable to breath properly unaided, and repositioning Jamie in his bed.

However, such was Jamie's condition it was not safe for them to continue this without the appropriate medical assistance.

Helena said medical experts have agreed the family needs more help so they applied for a nightly care plan with the HSE "but nothing came of it".

She has now been told that they must reapply for the plan, which could take a 'couple of months' to be sanctioned.

"We do not know how long Jamie will be around for. He needs that care now, not in a couple of months. We just want to spend as much time as we can with our little warrior. The HSE and agencies just don't seem to see it. There is so much red tape involved," said Helena.

A Go Fund Me page, originally set up to help his family cope with the financial burden and make the day-to-day cost of Jamie's care more manageable, has been reopened in a bid to help cover the cost of the extended care regime that Jamie now requires.

A message on the page said that Jamie was "getting weaker and weaker" and that his parents, who have had to give up work to care for their son putting them under severe financial pressure, were at "breaking point".

"Jamie deserves more care. He has defied the odds with the last eight years. The HSE has failed him and we should not have to fight for help. We want to be his parents not his nurses and doctors and spend time with him as a family," read the emotional message.

"We are exhausted, the nearest respite is in Dublin. We are at breaking point but we want to keep him at home. We can not afford to pay for nurses to give us the support Jamie needs. We need your help and if you can financially help us please do. Every bit will help pay for nurses for Jamie. Please help him."
A ship carrying 363 migrants was seeking permission to dock in Italy on Saturday, after Malta denied safe port three times.

The Spanish NGO (non-governmental organisation), Open Arms, renewed its appeal to Malta and Italy to guarantee a safe port for the migrants they rescued in five different operations in the Southern Mediterranean Sea.

Speaking on video from the ship, the head of Open Arms said they have two more days worth of supplies left and added "we hope we can disembark."

Image source: Representational/Unsplash
Both [the US and Pakistan] are on the same page that theres no military solution in Afghanistan and we are working hard to bring peace to the country, said Prime Minister Imran Khan in an interview with CNBC last week. Clearly, the PMs reference was to efforts Pakistan is making in tandem with the Khalilzad-Taliban talks in Doha for a ceasefire or at least reduction in violence as a prelude to dialogue between the Taliban and Kabul government. So far there is no sign the Taliban are willing to do this, or go beyond reaching an agreement for US troop withdrawal in exchange for their pledge not to allow Afghanistan to be used to plan terrorist attacks against the US and to abjure ties with Al Qaeda, Daesh or other terrorist groups.

Is this enough to bring peace to an Afghanistan in which government forces would have lost control of a number of provincial capitals were it not for US air support operations and cash support for its largely ineffective local forces? The Kabul government is fragmented and theres little chance that it will become more united or self-sustaining. Now President Ghani says he is totally ready for a withdrawal of 4,000 of the 12,000 US troops, but the Taliban want a complete withdrawal though they may be open to making this phased.

The Taliban have said that they do not want to monopolise power but would want to revise the Afghan constitution to make it conform to their interpretation of Sharia, and would include others in the power structure on terms they deem appropriate. In their view, Trump is intent on withdrawing and no further concessions are necessary. This could set the stage for another civil war.

Pakistan must sadly come to the conclusion that while we wish to promote peace, the dire situation in Afghanistan will leave us no choice but to insulate ourselves even while taking every step possible to help with reconciliation. This means:

We must ask the Taliban on our soil to move back to Afghanistan and carry on negotiations with the US from their bases in Helmand and Kandahar. Make it clear that we recognise the Kabul government and support an Afghan-led and -owned peace process. This negotiation, if it materialises, will be long and complex; if asked we will try to help.

Pakistan should ensure our refugees commissioner exercises complete control over all camps, and prohibits clandestine addition to the refugee population or use of the camps as Taliban recuperation centres. While continuing to treat Afghan patients in our hospitals, we would carefully vet anyone with battlefield wounds. Complete the fencing of the border and, with UNODC, strengthen surveillance on smuggler movements. We can facilitate Pak-Afghan trade and make suitable concessions to ensure Afghan goods are marketed here and beyond our borders. The truck monitoring system the PM has authorised would be an essential tool to check smuggling. With Chinese cooperation, allow Afghanistan to use CPEC and to the extent possible to facilitate the use of CPEC by Central Asian states. Make prompt royalty and transit payments to the Afghan government.

Pakistan ought to prevail on the Americans, who eschew nation-building even under a non-Trump administration, to continue to provide material support for the salaries of 320,000 Afghan National Defence forces as well as budgetary support which would allow at least some maintenance of education and health services. The plea should be based on the fact that an Afghan collapse would adversely affect the entire region, and may prove a repeat of the power vacuum left after the collapse of the Soviet Union.

We should also be prepared in the future to help Afghanistan exploit its mineral deposits (estimated to be worth anywhere between $1-3 trillion) and explore the possibility of matching Pakistans mineral resources with those of Afghanistans (bringing copper ore from Afghanistans Aynak Copper mine to Reko Diq and thus having enough ore to justify the setting up of a refinery unit within our borders instead of exporting raw ore).

By arrangement with Dawn
A poster telling residents of a block of flats in the UK we do not tolerate people speaking languages other than English in the building has been reported to the police.

A sign bearing the title Happy Brexit Day was reportedly found stuck to fire doors on Winchester Tower in Norwich on Friday morning.

The discovery came hours before the UK officially left the European Union at 11pm on Friday.

A photo of the poster shared in news reports and on social media revealed it declared: We finally have our great country back.

Addressing Winchester Tower residents, it said the Queens (sic) English is the spoken tongue here.

It suggests that people wanting to speak a language other than English should leave the country.

Someone I follow just shared this photo of a sign he saw attached to a front door in a block in Norwich.



Brexit has encouraged and emboldened these people. It will get worse.



Do whatever you can to support immigrants who face this shit. We all need to stand strong against it. pic.twitter.com/9IbB3ztOkO  Simon Price (@simon_price01) February 1, 2020

Writing on Twitter on Saturday, Norwich City Council said: You may have seen a photo of a poster that has appeared in one of our properties.

Norwich has a proud history of being a welcoming city, and we will not tolerate this behaviour.

As soon as we became aware of this incident, we reported it to @NorfolkPolice and they are investigating.

We take this very seriously and encourage residents to contact us or the police if they have any concerns.

As soon as we became aware of this incident, we reported

it to @NorfolkPolice and they are investigating.



We take this very seriously and encourage residents to

contact us or the police if they have any concerns. 2/2  Norwich City Council (@NorwichCC) February 1, 2020

According to the BBC, which spoke to a resident, the signs were left on fire doors across all 15 floors of the block of flats before being removed by the caretaker.

Mike Stonard, a cabinet member on Norwich City Council, told the Eastern Daily Press: I absolutely condemn this abhorrent poster. Whoever put it there has committed a hate crime, it is as simple as that.

Many people voted for Brexit for a range of different reasons, however I am sure not many of them will condone this kind of thing.

Norfolk Police have been contacted for comment.
Patricia O'Connor's son Richard faced away from his younger sister Louise as he told the Central Criminal Court how she "didn't want us to report it" when their mother disappeared in 2017.

He looked straight ahead toward the jury as he testified, for the prosecution, that his sister "wore the trousers" in her relationship with murder accused Kieran Greene, who was "something of a fool and a moron".

Nearby, Louise and her daughter Stephanie sat in the dock in courtroom number 13, where they are on trial with two others over Patricia's gruesome death in 2017.

Richard O'Connor is the only member of the family to be called to give evidence so far in the trial, now in its third week.

Mr Greene (34), then-partner of Louise, is charged with murdering Patricia, a grandmother-of seven.

Louise (41), her ex-partner Keith Johnston (43) and their daughter Stephanie O'Connor (22) are accused of impeding the investigation.

It is alleged Stephanie disguised herself as her grandmother after she died to make it look like she was still alive, while Louise agreed to this.

They all deny the charges.

Patricia (61) was allegedly murdered on May 29, 2017, at the house at Mountain View Park, Rathfarnham, she shared with family including Louise, Stephanie and Mr Greene.

Her remains were found scattered in the Dublin and Wicklow mountains between June 10 and 14 that year.

Mr O'Connor was asked to pull his microphone closer as he told the jury in a deep, soft-spoken voice about the "friction" at the family home, where he had not lived for years.

It stemmed from Louise and her family living there and "not keeping the usual upkeep of the house", he said.

His mother had retired from her hospital cleaning job and "was at home more often".

"There wasn't enough being done for the amount of them in the house," he said. "It put a strain on her constantly."

"I seen my Mam giving out, saying 'move your lazy arse', or tidying up after the kids," he added.

May 30 was his birthday and when he had no contact from his mother, he called Louise the next day.

"That is when she informed me that my Mam had left with a suitcase and run off somewhere after an argument," he said.

He was asked to describe his mother. "She was a straight shooter and if you were in the wrong, she would tell you you were in the wrong," he said.

He was "worried" and had "no idea" where she might be, he added.

On June 1, he went to the house and Louise, their father Gus O'Connor and Mr Greene were there.

Prosecutor Roisin Lacey asked if an agreement was reached that Patricia should be reported missing.

"I agreed with my father. Louise didn't want us to report it," he replied.

Mr Greene "didn't say a thing", he added.

On June 11, he said, he walked to the shops with Mr Greene and asked about his missing mother.

"There wasn't a budge out of him," he said.

He agreed with defence barrister Conor Devally SC that he had told gardai that Mr Greene was "something of a fool and a moron".

He agreed Louise was "sharper" than Mr Greene, saying: "She would be cute enough, yeah.

"Louise wore the trousers, yeah," he added.

Cross-examined by Louise O'Connor's barrister Michael Bowman SC, he said Louise had told him: "There's no need to involve the guards."

"I said 'I don't care, I'm going down, even if I have to go down myself'."

It struck him as unusual, he said, and "my Mam wouldn't just run off for no reason".

He agreed he did not mention this in his Garda statement.

He told the jury Louise and her children moved back into the house after the Garda investigation but had since been evicted by his father, who decided to sell the property.

Asked by Garnet Orange SC, for Stephanie O'Connor, if he played any role in the eviction, Mr O'Connor said it was his father's decision.

"I would have said it's not right for someone to move a family into where my mother was murdered," he added.

The trial continues.
After a letter to the editor published by the Midland Daily News in December accused her 2018 campaign of being the beneficiary of "dark money" donations, a Democratic candidate for Michigan state representative is calling foul.

Sarah Schulz, who is challenging incumbent Rep. Annette Glenn, R-Midland, as representative of the 98th state House district in the 2020 election, is accusing the incumbent's husband, former 98th district Rep. Gary Glenn, R-Williams Township, of making an "unsubstantiated" claim about the amount of money the non-profit Citizens for Energizing Michigan's Economy  a Consumers Energy-funded 501(c)(4) organization  spent promoting her 2018 campaign.

"(Gary) Glenn made unsubstantiated and grossly exaggerated claims in his December letter to the editor about campaign finance in the 2018 election," Schulz said. "If he can prove dark money support in the amount he reported, let him prove it. If he cannot, I expect a retraction and an apology to me and all of the voters for his mischaracterization."

Schulz took particular issue with the fact that Glenn mentioned a $250,000 amount in addition to the $184,000 documented by the Michigan Campaign Finance Network (MCFN), which Glenn did not provide a source for in the letter.

Speaking to Midland Daily News, Glenn said the $184,000 figure reported by MCFN covered broadcast television ads only, which was documented from the public records the Federal Communications Commission requires TV stations keep on political ad purchases.

Not included in that amount are cable TV ads, radio ads and newspaper ads in publications such as Midland Daily News and The Pinconning Journal, Glenn said.

"Given the saturation level of all the above expenditures on Sarah's behalf, in addition to the $184,000 in broadcast TV ads documented by MCFN, the $250,000 in total estimate is probably a conservative one  it might have been much more," Glenn said.

Schulz said Annette Glenn's 2018 campaign also received support from "dark money" sources in the form of mailers paid for by the Americans for Prosperity "super PAC."

According to Campaign Legal Center, a political action committee (PAC) is a political committee that raises or spends more than $1,000 in a year to influence the outcome of a federal election, and is required to register with the Federal Election Commission (FEC). A super PAC is what the FEC refers to as an independent expenditure-only political committee, which can accept unlimited contributions from any non-foreign source, thus spending unlimited amounts to influence the outcome of elections.

As enforced by the FEC, super PACs are not allowed to communicate directly with candidates.

"I was legally prevented from even picking up the phone and asking them to stop," Schulz said. "I have not had a conversation with Consumers Energy about where I stand on the issues, so if they were the group behind the pro-Schulz TV ads last election, it must be because they hate the Glenns, not because they like me in particular."

Schulz points toward comments made by Glenn at a May 2018 House Energy Policy Committee meeting  during which he compared Consumers Energy to "terrorists" he would like to "shoot"  as a potential source of contention between the former lawmaker and the company.

"What I'd like to do is shoot the terrorists, but I am not willing to shoot through the hostages to hit the terrorists," Glenn said at the meeting.

Glenn soon after told the Midland Daily News that he neither misspoke nor regrets his words.

I used an obvious analogy referring to the corporation's threat to hold hostage the Hemlock Semiconductor legislation, Glenn said in an email to the Daily News.

Schulz believes the widespread nature of dark money financing in the modern electoral process is a reason to support campaign finance reform.

"We should know who or what is behind our political candidates funding at all levels and we need to get people back in charge," Schulz said. "The nature of dark money is that it is dark. We cant trace it, and candidates have no control over it."
Hospital and healthcare sector stocks were in focus after Finance Minister announced the Centre's plans to expand the government's flagship health insurance scheme Ayushman Bharat-Pradhan Mantri Jan Aarogya Yojana (PMJAY). The FM announced an allocation of Rs 69,000 crore for the healthcare sector in the 2020-21 Union Budget, slightly up from last year. Of this, around Rs 6,400 crore would be for AB-PMJAY scheme, flat from last year.



In 2019-20 the FM had announced a Rs 62,659.12 crore outlay for the healthcare sector.



Besides allocating Rs 6,400 crore for the scheme, the FM also said that the AB-PMJAY scheme would be expanded by setting up more hospitals in the tier-II and III cities under the public-private-partnership (PPP) route. Proceeds from taxes on medical devices would be used for development of hospitals.The government will provide viability gap funding for the process. Shares of Apollo Hospital Enterprises, Aster DM Healthcare were marginally down around afternoon after gaining initially in the morning.



"Viability gap funding window to be set up to cover hospitals, with priority given to aspirational districts that don't have hospitals empanelled under Ayushman Bharat. The government will open hospitals in tier II and tier III cities covered under aspirational districts scheme, which still do not have a Ayushman-empanelled hospital," Sitharaman said.



On-boarding of hospitals for the scheme has been a perennial challenge for the scheme. At present, about 16,000 hospitals are empanelled under the scheme of which around 50 per cent are private sector hospitals.



Under Ayushman Bharat, the government had also initiated a programme to set up 1,50,000 health and wellness centres (HWCs) by 2022. Stocks of diagnostic companies like Dr. Lal Pathlabs and Metropolis Healthcare were up in the range of 1.5-3.5 per cent in early trade.



This apart, the FM also said that the generic medicine retail outlets Jan Aushadhi stores would be expanded to every district. Apart from medicines, these stores would now also stock more surgicals. Currently the Jan Aushadhi stores sell 154 surgicals, which will now be expanded to about 300 surgicals. This would be a positive for both SME pharma manufacturing units as well as small domestic medical devices makers who supply to the scheme.



The expansion of the Jan Aushadhi scheme may further dent the branded generic medicines market in India as these medicines are cheaper than branded ones by at least 50 per cent.



The FM also re-iterated the government's commitment to eliminating tuberculosis from India. Setting a target of 2025, Sitharaman said 'TB Harega- Desh Bachega'. This is five years ahead of the Global Sustainable Development targets. TB kills an estimated 480,000 Indians every year and more than 1,400 every day. India also has more than a million missing cases every year that are not notified and most remain either undiagnosed or unaccountably and inadequately diagnosed and treated in the private sector.



Lupin is the market leader in the trade market for anti-TB medicines in India with a 63 per cent share.
Thank you for reading!

Please purchase a subscription to read our premium content. If you have a subscription, please log in or sign up for an account on our website to continue.
London: The UK's divorce from the European Union (EU) came into force on Friday night as it became the first country to exit the economic bloc after 47 years of membership following the vote in favour of Brexit in June 2016.

British Prime Minister Boris Johnson hailed the historic moment as the dawn of a new era for the UK in his address to the nation just before Brexit.

"This is the moment when the dawn breaks and the curtain goes up on a new act in our great national drama," said Johnson, in his video message which promised hope and opportunity to every part of the United Kingdom.

"It is not just about some legal extrication. It is potentially a moment of real national renewal and change. This is the dawn of a new era in which we no longer accept that your life chances  your family's life chances  should depend on which part of the country you grow up in," he said.

While there will be little change instantly as the UK and EU enter into a pre-agreed period of transition from Saturday until the end of December, the process of complete extrication from the now 27-member economic bloc will begin right away.

Johnson was keen to highlight his vision of a friendly negotiation process for both sides to thrash out a new trading relationship as the beginning of a "new era of friendly cooperation" between the EU and an energetic Britain.

Celebrating the UK's "recaptured sovereignty" to deliver the changes the June 2016 referendum vote signified, he noted, "Whether that is by controlling immigration or creating free ports or liberating our fishing industry or doing free trade deals...is the right and healthy and democratic thing to do."

On a critical note on the EU's evolution over the period of the UK's membership, he added, "Because for all its strengths and for all its admirable qualities, the EU has evolved over 50 years in a direction that no longer suits this country."

"And that is a judgment that you, the people, have now confirmed at the polls.

The Conservative Party leader took charge at Downing Street last year with a "no ifs, no buts" pledge to leave the EU. His General Election campaign pegged around the Get Brexit Done message last December won him a thumping majority, after which Britain's exit from the bloc also became a certainty as his Brexit bill easily crossed the parliamentary hurdle.

Acknowledging the long-drawn divorce process and the deep Remain versus Brexit divide within the UK, Johnson said, "Tonight we are leaving the European Union. For many people this is an astonishing moment of hope, a moment they thought would never come and there are many of course who feel a sense of anxiety and loss.

"I understand all those feelings, and our job as the government  my job  is to bring this country together now and take us forward.

As part of that forward-looking agenda, the government will kick off its GREAT Ready to Trade campaign across 13 countries, including India, from Saturday. Johnson has repeatedly committed himself to a new and improved trading relationship with India and now as a non-member of the EU, the UK is free to push ahead with those talks unrestricted by the economic bloc's rules.
Medical staff prepare pre-screening procedure at the National Centre for Infectious Diseases building at Tan Tock Seng Hospital. (PHOTO: Roslan Rahman/AFP via Getty Images)

SINGAPORE  The Ministry of Health (MOH) confirmed on two more imported cases of the Wuhan coronavirus infection in Singapore on Saturday (1 February), with a second Singaporean among the new cases.

The 47-year-old female Singaporean had travelled to Wuhan, and was one of the 92 Singaporeans evacuated from the Chinese city on Thursday. She was asymptomatic when she boarded the flight, but upon arrival at Changi Airport on the same day, she was found to have a fever during medical screening.

She was conveyed to the National Centre for Infectious Diseases, where she tested positive for Wuhan virus infection on Friday at about 11pm. She is currently warded in an isolation room at NCID.

The second case involved a 31-year-old female Chinese national who arrived in Singapore on 22 January. She was tested positive for the Wuhan virus infection on Saturday at about 2pm. She is also warded in an isolation room at NCID.

The two new cases brings the total of cases of infection in Singapore to 18. All cases have recent travel history to Wuhan. There is currently no evidence of community spread in Singapore.

Update on 16th case

MOH also provided more information on the 16th case, which was announced on Friday. The 38-year-old patient, a male Chinese national, arrived in Singapore from Wuhan on 22 January and was asymptomatic during his flight to Singapore.

He subsequently developed symptoms on 23 January and reported that he had stayed at his home at Nathan Road until Wednesday, when he took a taxi to Singapore General Hospital. He was classified as a suspect case and immediately isolated.

Subsequent test results confirmed Wuhan virus infection on Friday at about 2pm. He is currently warded in an isolation room at SGH.

MOH has initiated epidemiological investigations and contact tracing to identify individuals who had close contact with the cases.

All 18 cases in stable condition, most improving

For the 16 previously-announced cases, none are critically ill. All remain in stable condition, and most are improving.

Story continues

As of Saturday noon, 231 of the suspect cases have tested negative for the Wuhan virus. Test results for the remaining 25 cases are pending.

Contact tracing for the confirmed cases is ongoing. As of Saturday 12pm, MOH has identified 245 close contacts. Of the 177 who are still in Singapore, 172 have been contacted and are being quarantined or isolated. Efforts are ongoing to contact the remaining five close contacts.

Travel advisory for Singaporeans to mainland China

Singaporeans are advised to defer all travel to Hubei Province and all non-essential travel to mainland China.

All travellers should monitor their health closely for two weeks upon return to Singapore and seek medical attention promptly if they feel unwell. Travellers should inform their doctor of their travel history. If they have a fever or respiratory symptoms (e.g. cough, shortness of breath), they should wear a mask and call the clinic ahead of the visit.

Travellers and members of the public should adopt the following precautions at all times:

(SOURCE: MOH)

MOH will continue to monitor the situation closely. As medical practitioners are on the lookout for cases with pneumonia who have recently been in China, Singapore is likely to see more suspect cases that will need to be investigated.

Related stories:

Wuhan virus: 1st Singaporean among 3 new cases, total at 16

Ministerial statements on Wuhan virus outbreak to be delivered in Parliament on Monday

Wuhan virus: MTI, MOH issue correction directions over fake news

Wuhan virus: MOE urges those on leave to be 'responsible'

Wuhan virus: 3 more confirmed cases in Singapore, total at 13

Wuhan virus: The Singaporeans who chose to remain in Hubei

Wuhan virus: Pack of 4 face masks to be distributed to each of 1.3 million households

3 in 5 Singaporeans fearful of contracting Wuhan virus: survey
Tony Burrows is not one of the most recognisable names from the seventies pop era, but he probably should be. A vocal-for-hire session singer, he was lead singer on a string of hits, mostly one-hit wonder tunes, for a variety of different groups.

As well as singing lead on 'Love Grows (Where My Rosemary Goes)', he also provided the vocals for The Flowerpot Men's 1967 Beach Boys-esque 'Let's Go To San Francisco', White Plains' 'My Baby Loves Lovin', The Pipkins' novelty song 'Gimme Dat Ding', The First Class 1974 hit 'Beach Baby' and Brotherhood of Man's 'United We Stand'. He also contributed vocals to many other well-known recordings, and claims to have sung on 100 top 20 hits through the seventies.

The million-plus seller 'Love Grows (Where My Rosemary Grows)' was recorded by writers Tony Macaulay and Barry Mason using Burrows and other session musicians. When it became an instant hit, a group had to be rapidly assembled to perform the song on Top Of The Pops. Macaulay and Mason found a group called Greenfield Hammer who joined Burrows on TOTP as Edison Lighthouse.

It's widely reported that a few weeks later Tony Burrows made Top Of The Pops history by performing on the same show with three different groups. While this would appear to be inaccurate, there's no dispute that he did however perform on the show with two bands four times between January 29 and February 26, 1970.

As well as topping the chart in the UK and in Ireland, 'Love Grows...' was a major international hit. It reached number 5 in the US Billboard Hot 100, selling more than a million by April.

Tony Burrows left Edison Lighthouse after 'Love Grows...' and Macaulay brought in other musicians to continue the name. They had just one more UK chart entry: 'It's Up To You Petula' which reached number 49 in 1971. Edison Lighthouse have had many personnel changes down the years but continue to perform 50 years after storming to number one with one of the most popular and endearing 'bubblegum pop' tunes of the early 1970s.

1 Love Grows (Where My Rosemary Goes) Edison Lighthouse

2 Two Little Boys Rolf Harris

3 Reflections Of My Life Marmalade

4 Come And Get It Badfinger

5 All I Have To Do Is Dream Bobbie Gentry & Glen Campbell

6 Suspicious Minds Elvis Presley

7 Ruby Don't Take Your Love To Town Kenny Rogers and the First Edition

8 Friends Arrival

9 Leavin' On A Jet Plane Peter, Paul and Mary

10 The Witch's Promise'/Teacher Jethro Tull
The budgetary allocation of Rs 99,300 crore for the education sector for 2020-21 hasnt enthused educationists from the city. Finance minister Nirmala Sitharaman in her budget presented on Saturday proposed Rs 99,300 crore for education sector and Rs 3,000 crore for skill development saying that the Centre is to announce new education policy soon.

During 2019-20, the union budget had allocated Rs 94,853.64 crore to education that caters to around 300 million students in 1.4 million schools and over 51,000 colleges.

Prof SB Mujumdar, founder and president of the Symbiosis Society, which also has a Symbiosis Skills and Open University in Pune, said, Allocating Rs 3,000 crore for the entire country for the skill development programme is not enough when compared to the number of skill development institutes we have. Also, Rs 99,300 crore is less, as nearly 70 per cent of this budget goes into the salaries of faculties and staff. There is a need for more budgetary allocation to the higher education sector by the central government. Another important thing which the finance minister announced in this budget was starting the Ind-SAT exams in Asian and African countries. I think that the government should give freedom to educational institutes to take their own entrance exams for foreign students.

Sharad Kunte, chairman of Deccan Education Societys (DES) governing body and council, said, The budget allocated for higher education is very less, specially looking at the new education policy which they are going to introduce soon. To implement the new schemes, a lot of funds are required. The new education policy will bring in many changes in the existing education system, but it unfortunately got no financial boost from this budget, which has disappointed us.

Prof Vishwanath D Karad, chancellor of MIT World Peace University and founder president of MIT Group of Institutes, said that the allocation is inadequate given the high population of the country. I feel that compared to the population of India and huge expanse of education, we should have a higher allocation for higher education in this budget. I think that our country has a huge role to play in the world to promote a holistic, peace-loving society through value-based universal education system and for that, we need to have a higher budget allocation, said Karad.

However, an announcement that top 100 educational institutions will now offer full-fledged online degree programmes, has city colleges enthused with the scope of the programme. Degree level full-fledged online education programme will be started to provide quality education to students of deprived sections of the society as well as those who do not have access to higher education. However, these shall be offered only by institutions who are ranked within top 100 in the National Institutional Ranking Framework (NIRF), the Finance Minister said in her Budget speech.

According to the norms laid down by the UGC, higher educational institutions are eligible to offer online programmes if they have been in existence for at least five years and are accredited by the National Assessment and Accreditation Council (NAAC) with a valid minimum score of 3.26 on a 4-point scale. The institutions should also be in the top-100 in overall category in the NIRF for at least two years in the previous three years.

Dr PD Patil, chancellor of Dr DY Patil Vidyapeeth, Pune, which ranked 52 amongst the university category in 2018 in the NIRF and 46th in 2019, said, We are extremely happy with the announcement made by the finance minister in todays budget. Through the programme, we can reach students in remote areas. DY Patil Vidyapeeth with its NIRF rankings and NAAC score is likely to be eligible for the programme announced in the Union budget 2020-21.

(With agency inputs)
The US special envoy leading negotiations with the Taliban was set to meet with the Afghan president Saturday, an official confirmed, in an apparent renewed push for talks on an agreement with the insurgents.

Washington and the Taliban are still wrangling over a possible deal that would see American troops begin to leave Afghanistan in return for security guarantees.

However, in recent weeks, the US has been largely quiet on the exact status of the talks.

US Special Representative for Afghanistan Reconciliation Zalmay Khalilzad was prepared to hold talks with Afghan President Ashraf Ghani in the afternoon, according to the leader's spokesman.

The details of what they were planning to discuss were unknown.

The US embassy in Kabul did not immediately comment on the envoy's arrival. Khalilzad's trip to Afghanistan comes a day after the envoy travelled to Pakistan where he met with a host of officials including the country's powerful top general Qamar Javed Bajwa.

Islamabad has helped facilitate the talks between the militants and Washington in Qatar over the past year.

Khalilzad "welcomed Pakistan's ongoing efforts to support a reduction in violence that will pave the way for a US-Taliban agreement, intra-Afghan negotiations, and a comprehensive and permanent ceasefire in support of a sustainable peace", read a statement released by US officials in Pakistan.

The US and Taliban had been negotiating the deal for a year and were on the brink of an announcement in September 2019 when President Donald Trump abruptly declared the process "dead", citing Taliban violence.

Talks were later restarted in December in Qatar, but paused again following an attack near the US-run Bagram military base in Afghanistan.

Taliban sources told AFP last month they had offered to initiate a brief ceasefire of seven to 10 days to help secure a deal, but there was no announcement of the details of the proposal by either party.

As talks have fluctuated, violent attacks in Afghanistan have raged, with the number of clashes jumping to record levels in the last quarter of 2019, according to a US government watchdog report released Friday.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
. :      2:1    21-          ,       .  -         3:4, ,         1:0       3:1,   70-      .     49    -,...
In just the first month of 2020, #MeghanandHarry has been trending across social media more often than not.

Hey there, time traveller!

This article was published 1/2/2020 (709 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

Opinion

In just the first month of 2020, #MeghanandHarry has been trending across social media more often than not.

In a series of public statements over the Duke and Duchess of Sussexs widely followed Instagram account, as well as in a public speech by Prince Harry on the eve of his departure for a new life in Canada, the most recent famous royal couple has distanced themselves in ways both big and small from the Royal Family.

This includes giving up their royal duties and titles. Quite frankly, I would wager the majority of us dont blame them for these largely unprecedented moves.

Thats because Meghan Markles treatment by some media and public commentators since 2016, when her relationship with Prince Harry became public, has shifted from excitement and curiosity to judgment, unrealistic expectations and unfounded accusations that include both overt and implicit forms of racism.

After the fairy-tale engagement in fall 2017 and their marriage in the spring of 2018, public sentiment has seemingly turned against the couple, assisted by the media. This includes a slew of unfavourable comparisons between Markle and the Duchess of Cambridge, Kate Middleton, and gossip that Markle is an unpleasant and demanding diva completely out of touch with the royal way of life.

Women who become royals treated harshly

Markle is certainly not the only woman to experience negative media coverage and shifting public opinions once entering the Royal Family.

Prince Harrys mother, the late Princess Diana, also dealt with the devastating effects of an intrusive and unkind media, especially after her divorce from Prince Charles in 1996.

The Duchess of Cornwall, Camilla Parker-Bowles, also faced extensive scrutiny and unpopularity because of the role she played in the breakdown of Charles and Dianas marriage. She was subjected to unkind commentary about her age and appearance for years and compared unfavourably to the glamorous Diana. Sarah Ferguson, Prince Andrews ex-wife, was similarly derided about her appearance.

Further back in history, when King Edward VIII abdicated the throne in 1936 to pursue his relationship with American Wallis Simpson, she was painted as a promiscuous, scheming femme fatale  not unlike the modern-day commentary directed Markles way.

This treatment of women who enter into relationships with men of the Royal Family suggests a distrust of non-royals and a protectiveness of the family boundaries. Who gets to be a royal is apparently a matter of grave public debate.

This ongoing public distrust of non-royal women includes a series of gender, race and class beliefs that are unsettling. The things that set Markle apart from, say, the Duchess of Cambridge in public perception are telling.

Kate Middleton is from an upper middle-class family with longstanding ties to the British aristocracy. She met her husband, Prince William, while attending the prestigious St. Andrews University and happily left her independent life behind to become a royal.

Since her marriage and the birth of her three children, she has been coded as ideal in terms of her ethnicity, class and ambitions.

In contrast, Markle is biracial, American and was raised in a largely middle-class environment. She had an established career as a Hollywood actress and a lifestyle brand before meeting Harry.

She has been an outspoken advocate for gender and racial equity her whole life. And shes been candid about the challenges of leaving all that behind to join Prince Harry as an ambassador of the British monarchy. The different standards to which Markle and Middleton have been judged tell a story indeed of classism, sexism, nationalism and racism.

Sets of beliefs

This largely critical treatment of women entering the Royal Family, and Markle in particular, operates from three underlying sets of beliefs.

These include a belief in romantic fantasy, nationalism and the danger of women in positions of power.

Each of these belief systems held by the public and the media are not uniform. There is support as well as suspicion among the public about Markles and Prince Harrys relationship. This reflects how the couple has become a signpost for sentiments not wholly related to them at all, but are reflective of broader social anxieties at the moment.

Outsider women like Markle are held up to an unreasonably high standards due to the fantasy narrative of a woman meeting her prince and living happily ever after.

As we watch this play out in real life via figures like Princess Diana and Markle, the public doesnt just project their positive fantasies onto the storybook romances, but also their negative emotions, and the woman at the centre of it receives all the flack. They become the lightning rod for all of the complexity such a powerful fairy-tale narrative evokes in western popular culture.

Further, present-day Great Britain was built through a centuries-long project of colonial expansion. That history is part of how it defines itself as a nation.

Colonialism results in a worldview that distrusts others, outsiders or those who are different. This helped rationalize violent practices of land occupation and slavery, because it dehumanized those victimized by the British Empire.

This continues with the xenophobia and racism present in the modern-day U.K. It also extends to additional frameworks of otherness that operate when it comes to classism and sexism.

Negative stereotypes

British nationalism is most evident in how the U.K. public circulates negative stereotypes about Markles biracial identity, which even the Royal Family, spurred by Prince Harry, spoke out against in 2016 when it was first revealed the couple was dating.

Want to get a head start on your day? Get the days breaking stories, weather forecast, and more sent straight to your inbox every weekday morning. Sign Up I agree to the Terms and Conditions, Cookie and Privacy Policies, and CASL agreement.

Finally, if public discussions of gender inequity in the past four years has taught us anything, its that women in positions of power, whether political or otherwise, make some uneasy and sometimes angry.

If the vitriol directed at Markle by social media users reflects a subset of public opinion, its fuelled by a belief that shes single-handedly destroying the fabric of the Royal Family and the traditions it upholds.

This criticism amounts to a condemnation of Harry and Meghans attempts to push against tradition, to propose new models, to hold a different world view. Ironically, their choices now seem understandable in the face of the ongoing vitriol  both as an act of self-care and an act of refusal to tolerate further abuse.

If were ever to move past these outmoded values of gender, race and class, we need to now wish them well  and challenge those who would prefer it all remains the same.

Shana MacDonald is an assistant professor of communication arts at the University of Waterloo.

This article was first published at The Conversation Canada: theconversation.com/ca.
The novel coronavirus infection with a local resident of Rivne who was hospitalized after a trip to China has not been confirmed.

"It seems that the girl from the magical city of Yiwu can be safely let go home thanks to the professionalism and patience of Inna Khoronzhevska, the head of the virology laboratory of the Rivne regional laboratory center, who worked until late at night. The cause of the common cold and sore throat was an adenovirus," Head of the Rivne regional Laboratory Center of the Health Ministry Roman Safonov said on his Facebook page.

A resident of Rivne was placed in the isolation ward on January 31. After returning from China, she turned to doctors complaining of a runny nose, sore throat, cough and fever.
Stats show pedestrians an endangered species By Shaadya Ismail View(s): View(s):

Pedestrians run the highest risk of dying on the countrys roads, police statistics show, with pedestrian deaths causing the most mortalities in accidents for the second consecutive year. The good news is that the number of accidents and deaths has dropped.

Last year, there were 2,839 deaths in accidents out of which 766 were pedestrian deaths; in 2018, it was reported that 952 pedestrians were killed on roads out of a total of 3,151 deaths caused by accidents.

To reduce accidents we have increased the police presence in certain areas identified as accident-prone, DIG (Traffic) Muditha Pussella said.

He said monthly meetings on road safety directed by Defence Minister Chamal Rajapaksa will be held between police, the Road Development Authority, Department of Motor Traffic and the water board. We are discussing a number of long-term projects to help improve road safety, he said. Immediate priority was being given to taking strict actions against people violating traffic laws.

The list of road accident mortalities for 2019 includes the deaths of 925 motorcyclists, 237 pillion riders, 204 cyclists, 282 drivers and 405 passengers. The numbers were slightly down from the previous year, with the biggest drop being in motorcyclist deaths  about 100 fewer fatalities.

Fatalities that have occurred so far this year include the death of a 72-year-old man who was killed when the car he was travelling in collided with a petrol bowser at the Gamsaba junction in Nugegoda on January 11. The driver of the petrol bowser was arrested.

The Secretary of the National Council for Road Safety, Mahinda Jayasinghe, said a series of projects have been proposed to improve road safety standards.

They include a short video to be circulated on digital media and posters to be put up at railway stations to increase awareness about railway accidents.

In addition, road safety committees will be set up in each province.

Senior Lecturer of the Department of Transport and Logistics at the University of Moratuwa, Dr T. Sivakumar, said attention needed to be paid to the functions of different roads.

Every road must be designed with its own significance serving a specific purpose  for example, local roads function to cater for accessibility while express ways cater to higher mobility, he explained.

He said although roads are designed accurately on paper, problems occur when building commences.
The first days of the first week of the 2022 election year have been filled with a flurry of announcements of leaders leaving and candidates c
Firefighters are working to save the pigs (Owen Humphreys/PA)

Thirty pigs have been killed after they fell into a slurry tank at a Co Antrim farm.

Twenty-five pigs were saved during a rescue operation that lasted for several hours from Saturday morning.

The Northern Ireland Fire and Rescue Service (NIFRS) was called to the farm on the Ballinderry Road, Aghanlee around 9.20am.

Six appliances attended the scene alongside a specialist Large Animal Rescue Team from Newcastle. Around 40 people were working at various times throughout the day to try and save the pigs.

NIFRS Group Commander Andrew Woods said that firefighters worked in "arduous and difficult conditions" to rescue the pigs.

"Due to the fumes they would have been wearing special suits and breathing apparatus, and it can be difficult dealing with all that in the conditions" he explained.

"If you can imagine the pigs are going to be in a highly agitated state and basically fighting for their lives.

"It's never nice to lose any animal but we were glad to be able to save some."

Over 70 pigs were saved in a similar incident at the same farm in July 2018 after pigs fell into the tank when concrete slabs fell away.

It was the largest animal rescue operation in the history of Northern Ireland.

Despite the best efforts of firefighters two pigs died during that incident.
brexit .JPG

Reuters

The United Kingdom has officially left the European Union.

There were celebrations and protests nationwide as the UK counted down to Brexit at 11 p.m. GMT.

The UK government projected a countdown clock onto Downing Street in the run-up to the moment.

Prime Minister Boris Johnson welcomed a "new dawn" for the country.

Visit Business Insider's homepage for more stories.

The United Kingdom has finally left the European Union after three and a half years of political turmoil.

There were celebrations and protests across the country as the clock counted down to 11 p.m. GMT on Friday, bringing an end to almost half a century of Britain's membership of the EU.

In a speech broadcast on Facebook an hour before Britain's exit, Prime Minister Boris Johnson said the moment represented a "new dawn" for the country after three years of division, delay, and parliamentary deadlock.

"The most important thing to say tonight is that this is not an end but a beginning," Johnson said in a video message filmed inside his 10 Downing St. residence. "This is the moment when the dawn breaks and the curtain goes up on a new act. It is a moment of real national renewal and change."

The UK government projected a countdown clock onto the front of Downing Street in the hour leading up to 11 p.m., while "leave" voters celebrated outside the Houses of Parliament with pro-Brexit politicians like Nigel Farage.

Britain formally left the EU hours after Johnson and his Cabinet met in Sunderland. The city in northeast England was famously the first area of the country to declare a "leave" vote in the 2016 referendum.

This meeting of Johnson and his most senior ministers was designed as a public display of the government's commitment to improve the lives of voters in Brexit-voting areas of the UK outside London and the southeast of England.

Story continues

Meanwhile, in Brussels, there were historic scenes as EU officials took down Union Jack flags in preparation for Britain's formal departure.

What will happen now that Britain has left the EU?

What changes after Brexit

Andy Ash / Business Insider

The UK will now enter an 11-month transition period, during which it will continue to follow EU rules and laws.

This means life won't feel any different for UK citizens until January 2021, when the UK's relationship with the EU will change significantly.

In the meantime, the UK government plans to negotiate a new free-trade deal with the EU, as well as free-trade agreements with countries like the US, Japan, Australia, and New Zealand.

Georgina Wright from the Westminster-based Institute for Government think tank told Business Insider that negotiating a new trade deal with the EU would be the "greatest and arguably most complex negotiation" of the entire Brexit process.

"February 1 is the end of the beginning; it's not the beginning of the end," Wright said. "The scale of the task is massive. ... If you look at how long other trade negotiations have taken, it's basically a couple of years, especially if you're looking at something very comprehensive."

Multiple senior EU figures have said a deal will take much longer than the 11 months allowed by the transition period.

Johnson said he would not extend the transition period beyond December. Experts have warned that this creates a new cliff edge at the end of the year, in which the UK could switch to costly new trading terms with the EU.

Perhaps the most controversial element of the trade negotiations will be with US President Donald Trump's administration, where issues such as food standards, pharmaceuticals, taxation on US tech firms, and vehicle tariffs will dominate.

How did we get here?

Boris Johnson

Getty

Former Prime Minister David Cameron's decision to hold a referendum on the UK's EU membership in June 2016 triggered a period of chaos and instability unseen in Britain for decades.

Cameron's failure to persuade the nation to stay in the EU triggered his resignation and eventually led to his replacement by Theresa May.

However, May's decision in 2017 to hold a snap general election, in which she lost the Conservative Party's majority in Parliament, handed legislative power to opposition MPs, and left the UK in an extended period of political deadlock.

MPs rejected May's Brexit deal with the EU on numerous occasions, forcing her to delay Britain's exit twice.

May resigned as prime minister and Conservative Party leader in 2019, triggering a leadership contest that Johnson went on to win convincingly. He promised to deliver Brexit as soon as possible.

Despite Johnson's victory, MPs voted again to block a no-deal Brexit in October, leading the new prime minister to seek a fresh delay to Britain's exit and push it back to January.

Johnson then called a general election in which he successfully won an 80-seat majority, ensuring that Britain would finally leave the EU.

Read the original article on Business Insider
A bolt hole for gun runners and drug dealers involved in Drogheda's ongoing feud is to become an election issue with people living on the Ballymakenny Road.

A gap in the ditch between Moneymore and Castle Manor has become a known anti-social area, with weapons even being found at the location.

Last year a car was driven into the gap and set on fire in an attempt to block it. It is believed it was done to prevent a possible attack.

The area has also seen delivery drivers approached and robbed.

Now residents say they've had enough and want the hole blocked up.

It is used as a shortcut between the northside of the town and the Ballymakenny Road. There is no problem with the council erecting a proper walkway on their own land nearby, but either way, the time has come for action on closing the gap, residents feel.

Residents have a document from the council stating that the gap is 'unsatisfactory and unsafe' and have even the support of the gardai in stating that the area needs to be closed to help policing.

Young children have been used for drug dealing via the gap and it is felt that many of the problems impacting on Drogheda at present are linked to escape routes like this.

Now the issue is set to go national in a bid to get the council to spend the money needed and finally act on the matter.

Residents are being asked to raise the issue with the politicians calling to the doors before someone finds themselves 'in the wrong place at the wrong time'.

Supt Andrew Watters met residents and in a letter to Louth CC says that action must be taken.

A site visit was also organised with Joe McGuinness and Paddy Donnelly from LCC.

Following a very productive meeting last October, designed to iron out measures in relation to the gap, the Supt formally asked for it to the closed.

'The gap currently clearly facilitates a significant element of criminality that requires regular intense Garda patrols and operations. The closure of this gap would in my opinion, eliminate this particular opportunity for the criminals concerned to exploit.

'It would also go a long way to assure the residents of Castlemanor and indeed the law abiding residents of Moneymore of a quality of life without the current fear and issues they experience.'
The AAP on Saturday condemned the firing incident at Shaheen Bagh and reiterated that the BJP is planning to create "big disturbance" in the national capital on Sunday to get the February 8 Assembly polls deferred as it could sense its defeat.

Delhi BJP's media in-charge for polls Ashok Goyal, however, dismissed the claim as "nonsensical".

"What is happening in Delhi? I had warned that a big disturbance is planned by the BJP in Delhi and a big conspiracy is being hatched by the BJP to postpone the polls," senior AAP leader Sanjay Singh said.

A man fired two rounds in air in the Shaheen Bagh area in Jamia Nagar on Saturday, where an anti-CAA protest is on, following which he was taken into custody by police, eyewitnesses said.

On Thursday, a similar incident had taken place near the Jamia university when a youth had fired on anti-CAA protesters injuring a student in the presence of police personnel.

In the wake of the Jamia shooting too, the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) had claimed that the BJP was hatching a conspiracy to disrupt the ongoing protest at Shaheen Bagh and Jamia Millia Islamia urging the Election Commission to take cognisance.

"How is it possible that open firing is taking place in Delhi on a daily basis," Singh said, adding that the AAP has been seeking time from the EC to submit proof that the BJP was trying to disturb peace in the city.

"It is surprising that the Aam Aadmi Party has been seeking time from the Election Commission of India since yesterday and it is unfortunate that the ECI has not responded so far," he told reporters.

Singh said the administrative machinery of Delhi is currently under the ECI and the commission should ensure that the atmosphere of Delhi is not allowed to be vitiated.

"How is it possible that individuals in the national capital are brandishing dangerous weapons and are firing openly?" he said.

Union Home Minister Amit Shah is responsible for the law and order situation in Delhi but he is trying to create trouble, he said.

Singh also slammed Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath for his alleged derogatory remarks against his Delhi counterpart Arvind Kejriwal.

"Yogi should have been arrested till now. He is mentally sick and requires treatment, and he should know treatment is free in Delhi," he said, adding that the EC should take strict action against Adityanath.

Singh also questioned Union Law Minister Ravi Shankar Prasad over his statement that the government was ready to talk to the protesters at Shaheen Bagh to clear their doubts over the amended Citizenship law.

"I want to ask him what is preventing his government (from talking to the protesters) and whether it was a personal statement?" he said, adding that Prasad should know that the Union home minister will never allow talks to take place.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
Bakersfield, CA (93308)

Today

Partly cloudy this evening, then becoming cloudy after midnight. Low near 45F. Winds light and variable..

Tonight

Partly cloudy this evening, then becoming cloudy after midnight. Low near 45F. Winds light and variable.
The coverage on this live blog has ended  but for up-to-the-minute coverage on the coronavirus, visit the live blog from CNBC's U.S. team.

7:40 pm: China cancels tariffs on some virus prevention materials imported from United States

China will suspend retaliatory tariffs on products from the United States that can be used to combat the coronavirus outbreak in China, according to the country's Ministry of Finance. It was not immediately clear which products are covered by the suspension.

4:35 pm: China asks European Union to help procure medical supplies

Chinese Premier Li Keqiang asked the European Union to facilitate China's urgent procurement of medical supplies from member countries, according to a Reuters report.

4:20 pm: Australia bars entry to all foreigners traveling from mainland China

Australia's Prime Minister Scott Morrison says the country will deny entry to all foreigners traveling from mainland China, effective from Saturday. The ban covers anybody who has been in China from Feb. 1. "Effective immediately, foreign nationals (excluding permanent residents) who are in mainland China from today forward, will not be allowed to enter Australia for 14 days from the time they have left or transited through mainland China," Morrison's office said in a statement. Australia raised its travel guidance for China to the highest level, which means it has officially advised citizens not to travel to China at all.

4:15 pm: Thailand to evacuate its citizens from Wuhan

Thailand said Saturday it will likely evacuate its citizens from Wuhan after Feb. 2, adding that 182 Thais in the Wuhan area have registered with the government. The country last had 19 coronavirus cases.

3:40 pm: China's central bank says it will help virus-hit companies

The People's Bank of China on Saturday said it will lower lending rates to companies affected by the virus outbreak. Regulators in Guangdong province, Chengdu and Beijing also unveiled measures to support firms, according to a Reuters report. That includes delaying loan repayment deadlines and cutting interest rates, as well as providing more credit lines.

3:16 pm: Apple temporarily closes all stores in mainland China

Tech giant Apple has temporarily shut down all its stores, corporate offices and contact centers in mainland China through Feb. 9, according to a statement from the company on Saturday. It says its online store in China remains open.

2:05 pm: UK withdraws some staff from embassy, consulates in China

Britain is withdrawing some staff from its embassy and consulates in China due to the coronavirus outbreak, the UK government said in a statement on Saturday.

1:40 pm: World Health Organization says travel restrictions not needed

Trade and travel restrictions were not needed amid the coronavirus outbreak, Gauden Galea, World Health Organization's representative for China, told Reuters on Saturday. "We would want countries to focus on the mitigation efforts of identifying the possible importation of cases and responding to any domestic outbreak," she said. That statement comes as a few countries in the past few days imposed travel restrictions on Chinese nationals, or those with travel history in China. U.S. President Donald Trump signed an order for the U.S. to deny entry to any foreign nationals who have traveled in China within the past two weeks. Over in Singapore, those arriving from mainland China, who had been there in the past 14 days, will be barred from entry or transit. Authorities also stopped issuing visas to those with a Chinese passport. Some countries, such as Italy and Pakistan, have suspended all flights to and from China, while Mongolia closed all ports of entry from China.

1:00 pm: More Chinese provinces or cities announce delay to start of work

As of midday on Saturday, at least 19 provinces, municipalities and regions have told businesses not to resume work before Feb. 10 at the earliest, based on publicly available information. Last year, these parts of China accounted for roughly 80% of national GDP, and 90% of exports, according to CNBC calculations of data accessed through Wind Information. Morgan Stanley economists estimated earlier this week that if the Lunar New Year holiday was extended by a week nationwide, January and February industrial production could be hit by as much as 5 to 8 percentage points. These cities, provinces or municipalities have announced a delay to resumption of work: Beijing: Companies in the city will have to find ways to work remotely till Feb. 10  except essential industries, according to state media Beijing Daily. Hubei: Businesses are not to resume work no earlier than midnight on Feb. 13. However, on Friday, China officials said that Hubei would further extend the holiday to an "appropriate extent," reported the state-owned People's Daily. Hubei residents who work outside the province were also asked to stay put. Tianjin: Businesses and schools are not to reopen until further notice. Hunan, Xi'an, Shanghai, Chongqing, Anhui, Fujian, Guangdong, Jiangsu, Jiangxi, Yunnan, Suzhou, Inner Mongolia and Zhejiang: work to resume no earlier than midnight on Feb. 9.

12:50 pm: Coronavirus hospitals in Wuhan to start admitting patients on Feb. 3 and 6

A roughly week-long rapid construction of two hospitals in Wuhan will be complete by next week and will start taking in coronavirus patients, state media CGTN said on Saturday, citing the mayor of Wuhan. One 1000-bed hospital will admit patients from Feb. 3, while another 1,500-bed hospital will take in patients from Feb. 6. Wuhan  the epicenter of the outbreak  started rapid construction on those hospitals from just a week ago, a process that was watched by millions of viewers via live-streaming. Meanwhile, local railway security has been told to step up epidemic control measures to stem the spread of coronavirus during the holiday season travel rush, according to state media People's Daily.

11:50 am: The latest on airlines suspending China flights

These are the airlines which have suspended all flights to China amid the outbreak: American Airlines (until March 27), Delta Airlines (Feb 6. to April 30), Air France (until Feb. 9), British Airways, Air Seoul, Egyptair, Lion Air, Lufthansa, Swiss Airlines and Austrian Airlines (until end February), Kenya Airways, RwandAir (till further notice), Vietjet (effective Feb. 1), all Russian airlines (except Aeroflot). Airlines which suspended some flights, or reduced capacity: - Qantas: suspending flights from Sydney to Beijing and Sydney to Shanghai (Feb. 9 to March 29). - United Airlines: suspending flights from its hubs to Beijing, Shanghai and Chengdu from Feb. 6 to March 28. - Air New Zealand: reduced flights between Auckland and Shanghai to four return services a week from Feb. 18 to March 31, from the daily frequency. - Singapore Airlines: reduced capacity on flights to Beijing, Shanghai, Guangzhou, Shenzhen, Chengdu, Xiamen and Chongqing. - Cathay Pacific: progressively reducing capacity to and from mainland China by 50% or more, from Jan. 30 till end March. - Finnair: suspended flights to Nanjing and Beijing until end March. - Turkish Airlines: reducing frequency of flights to Beijing, Guangzhou, Shanghai and Xian from Feb. 5 to Feb. 29.

11:30 am: Some Chinese cities resume mask production

Mask manufacturers in some Chinese cities resumed the production of masks, even as many provinces have delayed the start of work. 17 companies in Shanghai and 30 others in Jiangxi have started work manufacturing masks, according to state media People's Daily and CGTN on Saturday morning. Meanwhile, overseas Chinese have donated over one million masks, according to People's Daily citing a Fujian official.

11:15 am: Beijing hits back at US travel restrictions

The Chinese government said the U.S. latest measures to impose travel restrictions goes against a World Health Organization (WHO) recommendation to avoid travel bans. It called the U.S. move "not a gesture of goodwill." "Certain US officials' words and actions are neither factual nor appropriate. Just as the WHO recommended against travel restrictions, the US rushed to go in the opposite way," said China's Foreign Ministry spokesperson Hua Chunying. "Certainly not a gesture of goodwill."

10:15 am: China flies back Wuhan residents from overseas

China has flown home a total of 310 Hubei residents from Bangkok, Thailand, Kota Kinabalu in Malaysia and Tokyo in Japan, according to state media CGTN. That's in view of the "practical difficulties" that residents in Hubei  the epicenter of the outbreak  have been encountering overseas, officials said previously.

9:00 am: Spain confirms first case of coronavirus

Spain confirmed the country's first case of coronavirus after a man was diagnosed on the island of La Gomera in the Canaries, according to a Reuters report citing the country's Health Ministry.

7:20 am China reports 46 additional deaths

China's National Health Commission said there have been an additional 46 deaths and 2,102 new confirmed cases, as of the end of Friday. That brings the country's total to 259 deaths and 11,791 confirmed cases, the government said. Hubei Province's local health commission reported 45 new deaths from the outbreak on Friday, bringing the total for the province to 249. The province confirmed 1,347 new cases of infection on Friday, with the total reaching 7,153 by the end of the day. All times below in Eastern time.

3:50 pm: Trump issues mandatory quarantine, denies foreign nationals entry

The Trump administration is issuing a mandatory quarantine for U.S. citizens who've visited Hubei province in the last 14 days and denying entry to foreign nationals who "pose a risk of transmitting" the virus in the U.S., administration officials said in declaring the coronavirus a public health emergency. "Any US citizen returning to the United States who has been in the Hubei province in the previous 14 days will be subject to up to 14 days of mandatory quarantine to ensure they're provided proper medical care and health screening," Health and Human Services Secretary Alex Azar said.

10:30 am: Sweden confirms first case

Sweden's Public Health Agency said a woman tested positive for coronavirus and was being kept isolated at a hospital in southern Sweden, the country's first confirmed case. The woman visited Wuhan and experienced symptoms after her return to Sweden, the agency said.

10:15 am: Delta, American will suspend all China flights starting Feb. 6

Delta Air Lines and American Airlines are planning to suspend their already reduced service to China as the rapid spread of coronavirus hurts demand to the country for airlines around the world. Delta said its China service suspension will begin Feb. 6 and last through April 30, but it will continue to operate the service until then to "ensure customers looking to exit China have options to do so." Dozens of carriers including United, Cathay Pacific, British Airways and others have slashed or suspended service to China because of the outbreak. Delta was the first in the U.S. to suspend service altogether.

10 am: Italy declares coronavirus emergency

Italy declared a six-month state of emergency after two Chinese tourists in the country tested positive for the coronavirus in the first cases detected in the country. The move will enable authorities to make rapid decisions if needed. Italy has already banned all flights to and from China. The two patients came from Wuhan, the epicenter of the virus, and fell ill during their trip to Italy.

6:50 am: Singapore, Mongolia ban Chinese travelers
Godwin Obaseki, governor of Edo, has called on the presidency and inspector-general of police to caution Adams Oshiomhole, national chairman of the All Progressives Congress (APC), saying no k e is above the law.

According to the Edo state governor, Oshiomholes ambition to be ultimate godfather is not worth the lives of people of the state.

In a statement by Crusoe Osagie, media aide to the governor, Obaseki said this when he received a delegation from the Omega Fire Ministries International led by Azemhe Azena, a pastor.

Obaseki was quoted as saying, The plans of the dissident Edo Peoples Movement to again disrupt the peace in the state in Edo central senatorial district is unauthorised and goes against the directives of the police and state government.

The government calls on the presidency and inspector-general of police to kindly caution the suspended national chairman of the APC and let him know that no one can be above the law of the land and his ambition to be the ultimate godfather in Edo State is not worth the lives and safety of millions of Edo people.

Read Also: I Will Deal With Oshiomhole If He Tries Nonsense: Obaseki

We have no fear  no man is God. He will not accept any man playing God. They say they want to run an illegal rally in the state to escalate the crisis. We are waiting for them.

Let them come to the state again to hold a rally and cause destruction. We will show them that God has given us peace and God will deal with them.

Three nights ago, some people who planned to set new Era Hall ablaze were arrested in Benin. They have been handed over to the police.

The federal fire service are here in the state to investigate all fire incidents. We know and have found out through intelligence reports that the incessant fire outbreaks in the state are plans to discredit our administration.
HARRISBURG  A Pennsylvania judge Friday put a freeze on a new state police policy regarding sales of partially manufactured gun frames that can be made into working pistols and rifles.

Commonwealth Court Judge Kevin Brobson issued the preliminary injunction about three weeks after state police provided guidance to gun dealers about how to perform background checks for sales of what are often called 80% receivers or unassembled "ghost guns."

Brobson said the plaintiffs, businesses that manufacture and sell the gun frames, have raised a legitimate question about whether the state police policy is too vague. He said he would be open to revisiting the scope of his injunction, depending on what state police does in response.

"The harm of threatened enforcement of an unconstitutionally vague policy, derived from statute, cannot be remedied after the fact," Brobson wrote. He noted that federal regulators, unlike the Pennsylvania State Police, have a process that allows manufacturers to submit their products for review and classification.

State police announced earlier this month that gun dealers must call the state gun-purchase background check system for sales of the 80% receivers and are not permitted to simply use the online system.

Joshua Prince, a lawyer for the plaintiffs, said Friday he was pleased and argued the new policy put people at risk of criminal and civil penalties "in relation to something that not even the Pennsylvania State Police could define."

Democratic Attorney General Josh Shapiro in December issued a legal opinion that the 80% receivers are firearms under state law, leading the state police to develop the background checks procedure and a new form for their sales.

He said he was acting because the gun parts can be quickly assembled and are not traceable because they lack serial numbers. Shapiro said they have increasingly turned up in the hands of people legally barred from possessing firearms, and that more than 100 ghost guns were seized from prohibited purchasers in Philadelphia last year.

On Friday, Shapiros office said Brobsons injunction did not change their legal opinion that the 80% receivers are firearms and that they intended to continue to defend the state police in the litigation.

Shapiro's December legal guidance told state police to treat unassembled gun frames as firearms if they are designed to expel a projectile by the action of an explosive, or if they can be readily converted to do so. He said no single factor can determine whether a gun frame meets that standard, but that all applicable factors should be considered when figuring out whether a part or parts can be readily converted into working guns.

Brobson said his preliminary review suggested Shapiro's letter does not match the definition of firearm under Pennsylvania law.

"Stated simply, a firearm can be either a weapon or the frame or receiver of a weapon," Brobson wrote. "A frame or receiver, however, is not a weapon (rather, it is part of a weapon)."

The state policy, the judge wrote, "sows confusion within the industry and the public."

The lawsuit challenging the attorney generals letter and state police policy claimed it amounted to improper lawmaking without the involvement of the Legislature or wider public, that it bypassed the normal regulatory review process and that it did not give people sufficient information regarding what was made illegal.
Did all those folks participate in a nefarious plot to bring the president down? Or did they collectively bear witness to Trumps plot to smear Biden by pressuring Zelenskiy to come up with some evidence that Biden and his son were corrupt? By Trumps theory, Biden had demanded that a Ukrainian prosecutor be fired because he had the goods on Bidens son, who did business in Ukraine. But other nations officials joined Biden in charging the prosecutor with corruption.
GREAT FALLS, Mont.  More than 125 years ago a band of Chippewa Indians in North Dakota, led by Chief Little Shell, claimed some 10 million acres as territory.

When it came time to settle the tribes claim, the treaty was signed on its behalf in 1892 by another tribe because the Little Shell had no federal recognition. It offered them about 10 cents an acre, and when it was over, the Little Shell band was landless in a part of the country where land was everything.

Most of the 112 families living on their ancestral territory migrated to Montana. In the early years, many lived crammed into tar paper shacks and ragged teepees in the area around Great Falls. As recently as the 1960s, some of them slept in abandoned cars on the outskirts of town in an area known as Hill 57. In more recent years, the Little Shell dispersed across Montana.

Petitions for federal recognition, which would give the Little Shell access to federal assistance and the ability to hold land as a tribe, went nowhere for more than a century.
Health Ministry spokesperson Khaled Megahed said that the shipments are sent by a plane that will carry Egyptians returning home from Chinas Wuhan

The Ministry of Health announced on Saturday that Egypt will provide China with 10 tons of preventive medical items and equipment to help deal with coronavirus outbreak.

The ministry spokesperson Khaled Megahed detailed that the shipments are sent by a plane that will carry Egyptians returning home from Chinas Wuhan, where a deadly coronavirus outbreak has originated and is now rapidly spreading across the world.

"Minister of Health Hala Zayed directed that this shipment be sent as part of Egypts support to the Chinese people given deeply-rooted and strong ties between both countries," Megahed said.

The spokesman explained that the equipment included necessary preventive items such as masks and alcoholic antiseptics.

He also assured that Egypt has sufficient strategic reserve of required preventive medical items and equipment under the adopted medical plan to face the virus.

Search Keywords:

Short link:


We have used your information to see if you have a subscription with us, but did not find one. Please use the button below to verify an existing account or to purchase a new subscription.
After Allu Aravind and Dil Raju, another Telugu producer is foraying into Bollywood. We hear that Abhishek Nama is gearing to remake Telugu film Brochevarevarura in Hindi. Apparently, the producer, who generally backs content-based films in Telugu, liked the comedy thriller so much that he acquired its Hindi rights, believing that it has universal appeal and will attract the Bollywood audience too. He now wants to cast a star kid in the lead role, and has reportedly zeroed in on Sunny Deols son, Karan Deol (of Pal Pal Dil Ke Paas fame).

Apparently Kareena Kapoor and Shraddha Kapoor are also being approached for significant roles, although nothing has been finalised yet, says an informed source. The Hindi version thus looks like having an ensemble cast. But the director is yet to be finalised. According to the source, Abhishek Nama is planning to rope in Vivek Athreya who directed the Telugu version; a clearer picture is expected to emerge in a fortnights time.
Source: Xinhua| 2020-02-01 20:16:58|Editor: xuxin

Video Player Close

MUMBAI, Feb. 1 (Xinhua) -- Indian stock markets gave a thumbs down to the country's federal budget tabled Saturday with benchmark indices ending over 2 percent down to a three-month low in a special trading session held on Saturday coinciding with the annual financial exercise.

"As the market reaction suggests, it gives a picture that Budget 2020 was a disappointing one. It fell short of expectations as the stimulus package for rural, infrastructure and transportation were up marginally. Further, even the widely expected personal income tax came with a caveat of having to forego earlier exemptions and deductions," said Ajit Mishra, VP Research, Religare Broking, a domestic stock brokerage house.

Bombay Stock Exchange benchmark index Sensex ended down 987.96 points or 2.43 percent to 39,753.53 points while National Stock Exchange's Nifty ended down 318.30 or 2.66 percent to 11,643.80 points, which were the levels last seen on October 27. The budget was far away from being path-breaking, given the limited room for maneuver amid depleting tax revenue due to slowing growth, experts said.

Asia's third largest economy has grown at its slowest pace in six years to 4.5 percent in July-September quarter and its current banking credit growth has been at its five-year low below eight percent.

While India's finance minister has done well in abiding by the fiscal prudence principles for 2020-21 and the targets set by her look achievable, it will be crucial for her to stick to it, else the international rating agencies may have adverse views, said Dhiraj Relli, MD & CEO, HDFC Securities, another domestic stock brokerage house.

"The markets have reacted negatively to the budget, mainly due to some disappointments on account of non-abolition of LTCG (long term capital gains), confusion about the impact of DDT (Dividend distribution tax) removal and taxing dividends in the hands of recipients. Foreign investors will look for signs of revival of growth before they commit funds," Relli said.
La Embajada del Peru en China y los Consulados en ese pais se mantienen en contacto y permanente alerta con nuestros connacionales.

?https://t.co/XPCcj59x5N pic.twitter.com/5Mogfp54fr
Independence Day ceremony: Face masks if necessary By Nadia Fazlulhaq View(s): View(s):

The Public Administration Ministry will consider providing face masks to invitees and people attending Independence Day celebrations on Tuesday, if more coronavirus cases are reported in the country by today.

The ministrys Additional Secretary, K.G. Dharmathilake, said liquid hand wash would be provided while water would be supplied by the Water Board at makeshift washrooms.

He said that according to their estimate, the main Independence Day parade at Independence Square would be attended by about 2,500 guests and about a thousand people, while 4,325 Army personnel, 868 from the Navy, 815 from the Air Force, 1,382 from Police, 515 from Civil Defence Force and 355 from the National Cadet Corps would take part in the parade.

If one or two more coronavirus cases are reported, we will go ahead and order face masks. Suppliers have already been registered to go for bulk purchase in case of an emergency, he said.

Mr. Dharmathilke said the health authorities had advised that according to the present situation, there was no need for people to wear face masks at the Independence Day event. Those who wish to wear face masks could do so.

Though coronavirus fear lingers among Sri Lankans, it will not hamper the tireless efforts to make the 72nd Independence Day celebration a successful and meaningful event.

This years event will have more than 450 persons performing in cultural events, he said.
Police investigate murder of Tulum man

Tulum, Q.R.  The General Prosecutor of the State of Quintana Roo reports the initiating of an investigation into the shooting death of a Tulum man that took place Friday morning.

La Fiscalia General del Estado de Quintana Roo says they have begun an investigation into the murder of Luis Alfredo Flores Manzanilla, Commissioner of the Labor Party in the municipality of Tulum.

According to their investigation, Flores Manzanilla was attacked by two subjects who shot and killed him while he was inside his home in colonia 02 de octubre in the municipality of Tulum. The shooting occurred around 2:00 a.m. Friday and was reported by neighbors who heard gunfire.

La Fiscalia General del Estado de Quintana Roo says specialized experts have processed the area and that ministerial police continue with the investigation, noting that they are seeking to locate and detain those responsible for the crime.
We have nothing. We dont have that kind of money they are asking for.

Those were the words of one of the nephews of couple Narine Maraj, 62, and Mattie Maraj, 52, who were kidnapped on Saturday evening after leaving their Madras, St Helena, home to tend to their animals at a family-owned farm in Piarco.
The surgical masks began to appear in public over the past week.

At train stations. Airports. And on the streets of Jersey City.

One pharmacy in Edison even sold its entire supply twice in the past two weeks.

Only a small number of New Jersey residents are wearing masks in public, spooked by the novel form of coronavirus that continues to sweep through China and beyond. But some stores report selling out of the protective gear and a handful of shoppers announced on social media that they are hoarding them, stoking fears of a shortage for health care workers and people with suppressed immune systems.

Meanwhile, those masks are offering a false sense of protection for many who are buying them.

"In the United States, there is no reason people should be going out and buying a mask right now for the general population," said Dr. Christopher Freer, chairman of emergency medicine for Saint Barnabas and system director of RWJBarnabas Health Emergency Services.

The coronavirus has killed 200 people in China, where the outbreak began, and has spread to more than 20 other countries. The growing concern resembles the fear that surrounded the 2003 SARS outbreak and the 2014 Ebola epidemic.

On Friday, the Trump administration declared the coronavirus a public health emergency while imposing a mandatory 14-day quarantine for Americans returning to the U.S. from Chinas Hubei province, the epicenter of the outbreak. Certain foreign nationals who pose a risk of transmitting the virus will also be temporarily prohibited from entering the country.

But only six cases have been confirmed in the U.S. and none in New Jersey, despite at least two recent false alarms.

Wearing a surgical mask for protection from the coronavirus is unnecessary, and may have limited effectiveness at best, experts say. But that hasnt stopped people from rushing to pharmacies or going online to purchase protective surgical masks  sometimes in bulk.

Even Freer's own daughter asked her doctor father if she needed one  and if he might supply one  when visiting home from college.

His response was the same as his message to the public.

"You do not need a mask," he said.

But they are vanishing off the shelves of some stores.

An employee at a CVS in Fort Lee on Friday said her location was sold out of its stock of surgical masks. She had heard other pharmacies in the area were as well.

Employees at two other pharmacies in Fort Lee confirmed a growing number of customers have been coming in day after day to purchase masks.

A Walgreens in Edison sold all of its supply recently and restocked Jan. 23, only to sell out again in just days, according to an employee. The store was expecting another shipment Friday.

And masks are also selling out on Amazon, with some products out of stock until mid-March.

Many shoppers are specifically looking for N-95 respirators, which filter out 95% of tiny particles, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

But masks offer little to no protection for most healthy people.

"These things were developed for closed spaces for health care (workers), so just walking down the street, it's really unclear that they would provide any benefit," said Dr. David Cennimo, an infectious disease expert at Rutgers University Medical School.

He is skeptical the masks offer even limited protection and emphasized they are unnecessary for the general public.

The draw of wearing surgical masks is understandable. The coronavirus outbreak continues to rage in China, infecting nearly 10,000 people.

As we cram together on the train, the subway or in an elevator, surrounded by people coughing and sneezing, many feel vulnerable  vulnerable enough to don a mask in public.

"It's giving people a sense of control and a sense of doing something that may or may not really have a true benefit," Cennimo said.

But if misused, wearing masks can actually contribute to the spread of germs, Cennimo said.

"If people are using the same mask and it's getting moist, or dirty, misshapen, (people) can end up getting other infections or compromising the mask," he said.

Masks have limits, even when they are effective.

"The surgical masks are potentially useful in preventing people from inhaling droplets," Cennimo said. "But one thing a lot of people forget about is many of the respiratory viral infections are acquired through your eyes."

For Freer, people "should be concentrating" on one simple measure to protect themselves and others: "Wash your hands. Wash your hands. Wash your hands."

People wearing masks who open a door, shake someones hand  or touch anything  and then rub their eyes, nose, or mouth render the mask useless.

Both Cennimo and Freer said the flu remains a much greater threat in New Jersey and the country than the coronavirus.

We should much more worry about influenza," Freer said. "People arent going out and buying masks for influenza, why would they with the coronavirus? This isnt ebola.

Spencer Kent may be reached at skent@njadvancemedia.com. Follow him on Twitter @SpencerMKent. Find NJ.com on Facebook.

Have a tip? Tell us. nj.com/tips.

Get the latest updates right in your inbox. Subscribe to NJ.coms newsletters.
An 18-year-old man has died after he was allegedly stabbed in the chest at a Brisbane CBD apartment complex on Australia Day.

Police said eight men attended the complex on Albert Street about 9.20pm last Sunday, occupied by a man known to the group.

Friends and family are mourning Kane Alexanderson after he died on Saturday. Credit:Kane Alexanderson/Facebook

A fight broke out and three of the eight guests, two 17-year-olds and the 18-year-old man - identified as Kane Alexanderson in media reports and by friends online - were stabbed.

The 18-year-old Clontarf man suffered a life-threatening chest wound and was taken to the Royal Brisbane and Womens Hospital.
Four Chinese treated for the flu at Tbilisi Infectious Clinic - GeorgianJournal
Source: Xinhua| 2020-02-02 00:28:26|Editor: yan

Video Player Close

DAMASCUS, Feb. 1 (Xinhua) -- The al-Qaida-linked rebels launched a massive assault in the western countryside of Aleppo Province in northern Syria on Saturday, state news agency SANA reported.

The Syrian army destroyed four booby-trapped vehicles before reaching their targets on the outskirts of Jamiat al-Zahra area west of Aleppo, said SANA.

The Syrian army has responded with artillery and missile fire on the rebels who launched the attack and fired mortar shells on residential areas in the provincial capital of Aleppo.

The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights also reported the massive attack, saying the rebels of the Hayat Tahrir al-Sham, the umbrella group of the al-Qaida-linked Nusra Front, used two suicide bombers to detonate two cars while the third was remotely detonated.

Last month, the Syrian army announced an offensive to clear the western countryside of Aleppo from the ultra-radical rebels.

The battle in western Aleppo comes in tandem with an operation launched by the Syrian army in the southern countryside of the nearby province of Idlib in a bid to secure the highway linking the capital Damascus in the south with Aleppo in the north, which runs through the provinces of Idlib and Hama.
Tax prep help -- SIU student volunteers are ready to start preparing free tax returns for area residents. From left to right, Megan Jordan and Donna Adkinson, master of accountancy students, are with Michelle Johanson, coordinator of online undergraduate instruction for the College of Business. (Photo provided)

Trained SIU student volunteers will provide free tax preparation help again

by Christi Mathis

CARBONDALE, Ill.  A group of specially trained Southern Illinois University Carbondale students will be taking a little of the sting and stress out of income tax time for many area residents this spring.

Beta Alpha Psi, a College of Business honors accounting student organization, will again be sponsoring the free Volunteer Income Tax Assistance (VITA) preparation program. The program assists low- and moderate-income community members and students with completing their tax returns in 2020.

For the first time since the programs inception, the group is also offering a drop-off service option this year.

Begins Feb. 8

The VITA program begins Feb. 8 and continues almost every Saturday through April 4. It will not be offered March 7 and 14 during the universitys spring break.

Area residents can receive free tax preparation assistance from 9 a.m. until 1 p.m. on the Saturdays the program is in session in the computer lab on the lower level of Rehn Hall, located at 1025 Lincoln Drive.

Students thoroughly train for the task

Megan Jordan, Donna Adkinson and Joshua Hill, all master of accountancy students, are the 2020 program coordinators. They each participated in advanced training in preparation for their leadership roles.

They will lead a team of about two dozen accounting and law students who will prepare tax returns at no cost for community members and students who meet the qualifications. Each of the student volunteers is an IRS-certified volunteer tax preparer and completed mandatory ethics and basic tax examination courses.

The VITA coordinators will review returns and assist with any questions. In addition, Benna Williams, a School of Accountancy lecturer and former tax practitioner who is also the Beta Alpha Psi faculty adviser, will be on hand along with other SIU faculty, to offer their expertise.

New drop-off service offered; free filing included

The free tax preparation service also includes free electronic filing.

And, this year, you dont even have to wait for your return to be prepared as drop-off services are being offered. Simply bring the required paperwork, sit through a short intake interview and leave the rest to the VITA crew.

When your return is completed, they will notify you by email and telephone and you can return at your earliest convenience to review and fill the return. Please note that when a married couple is filing a joint return, both must be present to sign the required forms.

Longstanding and valued tradition

Through the VITA program, Salukis have provided valuable tax preparation services to area residents and fellow students for more than a quarter of a century, according to Williams. Just last year the volunteers completed more than 200 tax returns  all free of charge.

VITA is an amazing experience for everyone involved, Jordan said. It is a great feeling to know that youre able to help someone and to feel their appreciation toward you for helping them with something they arent confident doing on their own. Not only are clients appreciative, but the students preparing the returns get first-hand experience working with a client and preparing a return, which will help them immensely when entering the work force.

No appointments needed

VITA services are available on a walk-in, first-come, first-served basis. However, people who show up late in a session may be required to return the following week if time runs short.

Most tax returns can be completed in an hour or less, but the wait will likely be much less for those who plan to utilize the new drop-and-go service.

Who qualifies?

The tax preparation help is available to any U.S. citizen, whether single or married, with an income of no more than $56,000 who takes the standard federal deduction.

Students will prepare tax returns involving these items:

Wages/salaries.

Interest income.

Dividends received.

State tax refunds.

Unemployment benefits.

IRA distributions

Pension income.

Social Security benefits.

Simple capital gain or loss.

Self-employment income.

Gambling winnings.

Education credits.

Child Tax Credit.

Earned Income Credit.

Limited itemized deductions.

They will be unable to prepare tax returns for people who are not U.S. citizens OR tax returns that involve:

Schedule C with losses.

Capital gains and losses (complicated Schedule D).

Non-deductible IRA (Form 8606).

Minors investment income (Form 8615).

Determination of worker status for purposes of federal employment taxes and income tax withholding (Form SS-8).

Premium tax credits (Parts 4 and 5 of Form 8962).

Bring all required documents

To take advantage of the VITA tax preparation, people must bring all of the necessary documentation to the session they attend. That includes legal identification, such as a drivers license or passport, and Social Security cards and birth dates for you (and your spouse and dependents, if applicable) along all current tax documents.

Tax documents include all official wage, earning, interesting and dividend statements, copies of last years state and federal returns if available and proof of insurance or Form 1095-B. Those claiming a childcare credit will also need to bring the daycare providers tax identification number (either Social Security number of business employer identification number) and amount paid for childcare. And, bring a blank check or other proof of bank account routing and account numbers for direct deposit if there will be a tax refund.

To learn more

For additional information, email cobvita@business.siu.edu. Or, call 618/453-1407.
Priyanka Chopra's Grammys 2020 Ralph and Russo plunging gown created quite a stir on social media for both right and wrong reasons. While many loved the bold and risque outfit, there was a section of the audience that criticized and body-shamed Chopra. Coming out in support of her daughter, Madhu Chopra spoke to a news agency and said that the criticism and trolling only makes Priyanka stronger.

READ: Suchitra Krishnamoorthi Says 'shame' As Wendell Rodricks Defends Remark On Priyanka's Gown

Madhu Chopra slams Wendell Rodricks

She also hit out at Wendell Rodricks who criticized Chopra's Ralph and Russo gown and age-shamed the actress and wrote, Wendel Rodricks afraid to admit he was body shaming Priyanka. Such a fake! He covers his legs cos he has varicose veins. Will ge cover his fave with hijab when he wrinkles up???? (sic)

Wendel Rodricks afraid to admit he was body shaming Priyanka. Such a fake! He covers his legs cos he has varicose veins. Will ge cover his fave with hijab when he wrinkles up????  madhu chopra (@madhuchopra) January 31, 2020

This came after Rodricks posted a picture of Priyanka from the Grammy Awards with a post that read, "the neckline goes all the way from LA to Cuba." Now to explain his previous post, Wendell Rodricks said, "For all those that said some really nasty things about me body shaming, here is my retort. Did I say anything about her body? No. Many women did. I just said the dress was wrong for her despite it being couture. It was more dress shaming than body shaming."

READ: Priyanka Chopra: How She Helped Mom Madhu Chopra Restart Her Career

While Priyanka hasn't broken her silence on the criticism, she, however, took to her Instagram handle to share a heartfelt note post Grammys event. She wrote: "I seem to be thinking what a crazy beginning of the year its been, and we are only in January. Love the ones you love".

READ: Priyanka Chopra Gets Emotional At TIFF Debut Of 'The Sky Is Pink'

READ: 'The Sky Is Pink': Priyanka Chopra Stuns At TIFF 2019 Red Carpet
The number of electric delivery vans that United Parcel Service Inc. (UPS) will buy in an attempt to reduce car emissions and delivery costs. The company will also test self-driving package delivery vehicles in partnership with Waymo. UPS hopes the partnerships will help us continue to push the envelope on technology and new delivery models. ( Reuters  January 29, 2020)
Of the millions of people whove moved out of Illinois, over 600,000 alone are black Americans who moved out of Chicago because were tired, Clark said. We are struggling. I know poverty. Ive seen my parents who scraped together their money to move us to a better community. Like the narrative that often exists, you cannot move away from struggle. Struggle is universal.
1. Yes. The downtown area needs a good draw. Some quality taverns would be a plus.

2. Yes. Too many storefronts are vacant. Bars could help to bring in needed revenue.

3. No. Putting a number of bars downtown is just asking for trouble. Dont change things.

4.No. Several churches have located downtown. Putting bars close by would be a bad fit.

5. Unsure. It would depend on how the law is written and what standards are enacted.

Vote

View Results
As Super Bowl LVI rolls around this Sunday, we also celebrate the 30-year-old youth initiative, Souper Bowl of Caring that since 1990 has raised $150 million and thousands of pounds of food around the nation. As youth collect and donate the food and funds to food banks this year, we congratulate their vision and efforts to tackle hunger in one of the wealthiest counties in the country.

That said, with all this effort, food insecurity and poverty are still huge problems. In ultra-wealthy Fairfield County, with the highest wage inequality in the nation, one in six children will go to bed hungry tonight. Across the nation one in seven families live below the poverty line. Charity is beautiful and necessary, of course, but it only provides one of every 20 bags of food assistance needed to keep our nations families and children fed. Without SNAP, formerly known as Food Stamps, every church, synagogue, mosque and food bank in the country would have to raise an additional $50,000 per year to fill the deficit.
A caregiver (R) works at an elderly supporting centre in Tomioka town of Japan's Fukushima prefecture. Japan is facing a labour shortage caused by its rapidly aging population (Photo: AFP/VNA)



The number of foreign workers in Japan hit a record 1,658,804 as of the month, up 13.6 percent year on year, as companies increasingly hired them amid a labour shortage caused by the nation's rapidly aging population.

The ministry attributed the 12th straight yearly rise to a government policy aimed at bringing in more highly skilled foreign workers and hiring students for part-time jobs. It also said there was greater labour force participation by permanent residents and the spouses of Japanese due to improved employment conditions.

Trainees from developing countries under Japan's technical intern programme also contributed to the increase, the countrys Ministry of Health, Labour and Welfare said.

It noted workers of the Chinese nationality accounted for some 25 percent of the entire foreign workforce at 418,327, followed by Vietnamese at 401,326 and Filipinos at 179,685. The figures rose by 7.5 percent, 26.7 percent and 9.6 percent, respectively.

Japan created a new visa system on April 1st last year to bring in more workers from overseas to address its labour shortage, marking a major policy shift from its traditionally strict immigration rules./.
Europe is sailing into a perfect storm involving China, Brexit, and America. This does not include Europe's immigration problem and the populist uprising in member-states.

This year will be rough ride for Europe, but 2021 could be a true nightmare when all its problems coalesce. Here's why:

Phase I of the U.S.-China trade deal is a fait accompli. The agreement basically calls for China to purchase $200 billion more in American goods and services over the next two years. A big chunk of this ($32 billion) will be in agriculture exports to China. The deal also starts to protect intellectual property and curtails currency manipulation. And unlike other trade agreements with China, this one has enforcement mechanisms with teeth should China renege on this or that aspect of the deal. In return, President Trump agreed to ease off on some tariffs in effect and hold off on other tariffs with which he has threatened China.

This is a significant step in re-balancing the unfair terms of trade America has endured with China since the Clinton presidency. Assuming that China actually complies with this agreement, there will, however, be collateral damage to others. The math here is straightforward. If China buys more from the U.S., it will out of necessity buy less from others. Places from Brazil to Russia to the European Union will see hits to their agriculture sector.

More critically still is the area of industrial goods. Europe will also come under heavy pressure as China tries to flood the European Union with manufactured goods to make up for what it lost in the U.S. To make matters worse for Europe, as China loses market share in the American market, it will have fewer dollars with which to buy European products.

It is problematic whether or not Europe has the will to stand up to the Chinese assault. The E.U. is a gaggle of countries with no unified voice. Its ranks can easily be split by a wily adversary who does not have Europe's best interest at heart.

There are two other storm clouds of the horizon for Europe.

One is Brexit itself. With Brexit, which began on Jan. 31, the E.U. will lose its second-largest economy with which to trade as well as a net contributor to its budget. This will enhance the strain between the prosperous northern countries and the the E.U.'s economic laggards in the south. France, the leader of the Mediterranean countries, is already calling for Germany to open its pocketbook and subsidize others. The prudent Germans do not look kindly on such suggestions. With Britain gone, this situation will exacerbate the tension between the two core countries of the E.U., Germany and France.

Also, while Great Britain was in the E.U., it had been able to temper the worst bureaucratic instincts of Brussels. Now that moderating influence will be gone. And the Brits added some muscle to Europe's anemic military capabilities. That too will be gone.

Then there's America. For some time, President Trump has been railing against Europe for its unfair and outmoded trade arrangement with America. So far, he has been tempered in his actions. Trump's priorities were to first work out deals with South Korea, Japan, and Canada-Mexico  and the big one, China. With those deals done, Europe is now next up at bat.

Europe is a juicy target. It is even a bigger U.S. trading partner than China, running large trade surpluses with America. With its sagging economy, Europe needs access to the American market more than ever. This gives Trump leverage. France recently got a mild taste of what things could be like. Trump forced President Emmanuel Macron of France to bend a knee by postponing his proposed digital tax on U.S. firms. Trump did this by threatening to put 100 percent tariffs on French luxury goods like wine, cheese, and cosmetics. Sacre bleu!

The priorities for Trump right now are still not trade with Europe. Trump is occupied with the impeachment circus and then the upcoming election. Once those are behind him, look for Peter Navarro, director of trade and manufacturing policy, and Wilbur Ross, secretary of commerce, to be turned loose on Europe. Once re-elected, there is little pressure Europe can put on Trump with targeted retaliatory tariffs as China tried.

When the Andrea Gail found itself in the middle of a perfect storm in the North Atlantic, the fishing boat went down with all crew members. That's not being predicted for the European Union, but it will not escape undamaged in the coming next few years.

Image credit: Pexels, public domain.
It's really quite something to imagine Laura de Barra cutting a swathe through London's cutthroat and largely male property sector. Scarlet of lip and sweary of gob, Cork-born Laura, a portfolio developer for a property investment company, has absolutely no truck with what she calls the "dick-measuring" side of the business.

"I'm always asked if I'm the secretary when I'm making an offer on a property," the 34-year-old tells me. "My mum is a secretary, so I'm like, 'Yeah, I wish I was that organised'. But what they mean is, 'Where is the man?'

"But instead of being all, 'I am woman, hear me roar' about it, I'm more, 'I am woman, watch me. You are about to learn something here'."

Whatever about sexism, the property business is also rife with classism.

"I don't even bother getting involved in all that stuff there, all 'What private school did you go to?'" de Barra says. "I'm like, 'Girl, you're 23, in those shoes and you're asking me about my school?' Once you get to my age, none of that matters."

De Barra, who has lived in London since 2015, made an interesting career pivot a couple of years ago. A fashion designer for the high street, she was tiring of the breakneck pace of the business ("It was like, 'Kendall Jenner's left the house in a pink duster coat. We need one now'") and moved into what is known as 'tszujing', or staging/decorating properties. She now looks after a portfolio of rentals in the UK capital. And, thanks to her new book, she is being touted as the straight-talking 'queen of SHE-IY'.

Gaff Goddess professes to take the sting out of tackling household emergencies and general maintenance, and encourages readers to take control of their own living spaces (while saving themselves a few quid to boot).

For renters or homeowners alike, de Barra believes that everyone should feel happy and comfortable in their own living space.

This is not a book that instructs its readers to buy a nice Insta-friendly lamp or rug. There are deeply unglamorous hacks, like unblocking a U-bend, fixing a washing machine or grouting a bathroom, through to revamping spaces on small budgets. The manual itself is illustrated by de Barra, who finishes most of her chapters with a #safeandchic hashtag.

It all began on Instagram, as these things often do. Coming up against a sizeable cohort of tradespeople in her line of work, she was soon grappling with the good, the bad and the downright cowboy. It made good professional sense to brush up on the basics.

"Even now, they still f*** me over," she says. "That does not end [with experience]. When I first started this job, I was picking the decor packs for each place, and I'd get into a flat that would be in bits and I realised I'd have to get someone in. After a while, I started to realise, 'Oh, I can probably fix that myself'. Or some old guy would tell me he could come in two days, which would be the day I'm supposed to stage the property, not have my hand down a toilet."

De Barra is at pains to note that not all tradies are cut from the same cloth, but not knowing the basics lays a person open to a budget possibly inching upwards.

"I met a plumber recently who admitted to me that another plumber he knew would basically go up into the attic and bang his hammer for an hour, even if it was just a simple job that took minutes," reveals de Barra. "But it happens in every industry."

The many topics covered in the book, from ventilation and bleeding radiators to treating bathroom mould, are all the things de Barra has "been shafted over".

"I started going into DIY stores and I'd just ask more and more questions," she adds. "I always say that asking questions doesn't make you seem dumber - it makes you smarter. Then I was looking up YouTube tutorials, manuals, books and I realised that there was absolutely no information out there."

De Barra realised that she was onto something when she managed to silicone her own bath for the first time, saving herself a significant sum. Later, she repainted her own kitchen.

"That was a really great moment," she smiles. "I'd paid someone else 800 quid to do that before, and I watched them every day thinking, 'Another coffee break, is it?'

"There were two ends of the DIY spectrum," she adds. "On one side it was very girlie, like 'Don't forget your pink hammer and don't wake your man up from his nap', but on the other end, it was like a real boys' club where people were very 'What are you doing here? We are the experts'. I don't want to be an expert, I just want to know what's going on in my space. I wanted to be able to fix things. I'm so capable in every other part of my life, so why am I stopped from being capable within my home?"

De Barra began amassing various hacks and how-to guides for her professional clients after she noticed that one tenant, a successful young financier, hadn't changed the bathroom light-bulb in six months and was too embarrassed to ask anyone to fix it.

"Can you believe it?" she says. "These people have amazing jobs in the city, but have been peeing and showering in the dark for six months. The guy told me that if it had been his house, he's have paid someone 80 quid to fix that."

Soon, she was creating illustrated manuals as house-warming presents for friends who had recently moved home. She shared the results on her (then private) Instagram page, and her how-to videos began amassing a following of their own through word of mouth.

"I was like, 'Why do people not know this?' We are completely capable, but we were obviously doing something else and keeping ourselves busy when we were supposed to learn this," says de Barra. "We also rent, so it's not ours, and we don't have the love, or want to spend money for the space."

It wasn't long before publishers began to take note. Clearly, someone somewhere has seen not just a gap in the market of renters and millennials needing to brush up on DIY, but a burgeoning trend of Instagrammers moving into the domestic realm, with much success.

Mention the phenomenally successful influencer/author Mrs Hinch, who dispenses cleaning hacks to her three million followers, and de Barra baulks at the comparison. Don't be expecting any Gaff Goddess influencer tours any time soon, in a word.

"Look, I have one boss, and I don't want a second boss [in Instagram]," de Barra affirms. "The thing that makes Mrs Hinch flourish is that she's unique. Jumping on that trend is pointless. Besides, I'm absolutely shite at Instagram. There are so many people that are so good at it, and they should do it. I don't even know if I obey the rules of it properly. I have a nice job, and I love it. I don't need another one."

Of the breezy, personable tone of the book, de Barra notes: "I didn't want to make things too technical, like it's a secret club you have to be in. I remember making up a video on how to clean the dishwasher, and I was so chuffed with myself, and I'd saved 90 quid.

"If you go to a makeup counter, it's like there's an older sister telling you not to wear something this way and not to do things that way. Where is that for DIY?"

Which prompts the question: do women need SHE-IY? What is wrong with plain old-fashioned DIY? De Barra notes that despite its glossy veneer, Gaff Goddess is not a manual aimed at women, or even just at millennials. She is open to all comers; all comers, that is, who don't know a stopcock from a washer.

"This is not a book that's just for women," she affirms. "A lot of my friends that are male love it. It's glam, it's fun, they don't see it as a girls' book. I think the language in it is quite neutral. I always said it's like if Cher and Bette Midler wrote a DIY manual while having cocktails. It's more for people who have good taste and have a fun sense of humour."

Referring to the book cover's snakeskin hammer and lippy, de Barra adds: "That's more to add camp value. This is not 'Bring your tits and vagina down here and let's do this, no boys allowed'. It's not 'Get your lipstick on, girls'. It's more like, 'Come on, let's do this'. What I'm saying is, 'This stuff isn't that hard. I'm doing it wearing lipstick, sure. Don't be afraid'."

Gaff Goddess, de Barra points out, is not designed to usurp the professionals: "At the end of the day, knowing when to get someone into the house is powerful," she explains. "I never look at a project that I need help with and think that I've failed. It's more that I know now when I need to call someone. I know this sounds really cheesy, but imagine if people started feeling that they felt better in their home, and didn't feel so f***ed over if they rented somewhere."

Expand Close 'Bolshie spirit: Laura DeBarra, author of 'Gaff Goddess'. Photo: Steve Humphreys / Facebook

Twitter

Email

Whatsapp 'Bolshie spirit: Laura DeBarra, author of 'Gaff Goddess'. Photo: Steve Humphreys

From the vantage point of London, how does the Irish rental/property market look to her now?

"London is quite competitive in a different way," de Barra observes. "It's designed for people to share, and Dublin isn't built like that as much. If you pay 800 quid for a room, you get an 800 quid room. I paid 400 quid and had mushrooms in my wardrobe, but I didn't care because I got pissed with the rest of that money. Here [in Dublin], you will pay 800 quid for a 400 quid room. There's a real mentality of 'digs' here, like you're living in someone else's space and you're not meant to do anything with it," she adds. "In London, people are really aware of the laws and their rights. Here, it's like, you're lucky to be renting at all."

De Barra briefly moved from her native Cork to Dublin, and from there she headed to Edinburgh, where she completed her fashion degree in 2013. She grew up in an all-female household in Cork, and notes that she learned much about her work ethic, and outlook, from her mum.

"It wasn't that my dad wasn't around, but my parents separated and then divorced, and my mum wouldn't have been calling my dad if something went wrong in the house," de Barra recalls. "I started working when I was 13, and I've always been one to do things on my own. No one was going to fix my mum's problems for her and that's how we were raised. It's like Paul Costello says, Irish women are at their best when they are under pressure, and that's so true."

This brilliantly bolshie spirit is writ large all over Gaff Goddess, and in the book's acknowledgements, de Barra writes: "A special, smaller thank you is reserved for those who put me in positions where I was forced to understand the true power of self-belief, hard work, SHE-IY and a red lipstick." On which, she elaborates: "I genuinely meant that for everyone who put me into a bad situation, from a handyman who screwed me over to an ex-boyfriend. I hope you see my book and I hope everyone you date for the rest of your life has a copy of my book. And then they dump you afterwards.

"I'm like Super Mario - I've been collecting all these coins and added to them, and each time I've learned something," she adds. "So it's more like a thank you to those people, for opening up an opportunity where I got to prove something to myself."

'Gaff Goddess; Simple Tips and Tricks to Help You Run Your Home' by Laura de Barra is out on February 6 via Transworld Ireland (15.99, hardback). Laura's Instagram is instagram/com/lauradebarra





Photography by Steve Humphreys





How to SWISH

Viewing any property  as a renter or a buyer  can be super daunting. There are a lot of emotions involved so it can be hard to remember to be practical and look at the bigger picture. Because of this, we can totally forget to check the things that will affect our daily life in the property even though these are usually the easiest things to check. Weve all been there, moved in on day one to realise we have zero phone coverage and theres an ancient immersion that requires us to get up an hour earlier every day. To help avoid this, I use the below SWISH method. Its a simple and straightforward list to keep in mind during your viewings and I find it also helps me to get to know the property much better in a limited time. So next time youre at a viewing, dont forget to SWISH!

Shower

Expand Close Shower - check every one of them in the property / Facebook

Twitter

Email

Whatsapp Shower - check every one of them in the property

This is something you will use every day so its really important to suss out. When youre at your viewing, run every shower (and taps!) in the property. If water pressure is a deal-breaker for you, youll spot it now.

Dont forget to make sure the water is running on a medium heat. When its just cold water flowing, the pressure will always be stronger so its good to get a realistic idea of what your morning shower will be like and if youre okay with the pressure.

Running showers and taps will also let you know if there are any issues such as leaks or damage that either need to be sorted before moving in, or popped on your to-do list.

Assessing the shower or bath will also highlight if the shower is wall-mounted, which many people will not want to live without.

White Goods

Expand Close White goods: you're going to be living with these items / Facebook

Twitter

Email

Whatsapp White goods: you're going to be living with these items

Open every white good and throw an eye (and a nose) over its condition. These will usually be the fridge, freezer, washing machine, oven, hob and so on. Youre going to be living with these items so dont avoid getting to know them now.

The things youre looking for are power, mould, water settling in places it shouldnt, smell, cleanliness and overall appearance. Its best to be aware of the condition of each so you can factor it into your offer.

Depending on whether youre renting or buying, youll need to check if the property will be professionally cleaned, or find out if white goods are included in the sale or if you need to start saving for new ones.

Instant Hot Water

This is something people usually forget to check, as naturally we are looking at all the glorious parts of a potential new home. If youre not an early riser and the thought of having to wait for hot water in the morning is your idea of a nightmare, always check if you have instant hot water! While youre at it, check out the general condition of your boiler and if the water gets as hot as you like.

Service

Expand Close Service: don't forget to check your phone's signal / Facebook

Twitter

Email

Whatsapp Service: don't forget to check your phone's signal

If you work from home or like to make a lot of calls/browse the internet, dont forget this point! While you check out each room, dont forget to check your phones signal, especially if youll be signing a contract you cannot get out of.

Most network providers will provide a Wi-Fi booster should you experience a low signal indoors, so if you are currently suffering with this problem, check these out. If you are taking a broadband service with you, check beforehand if they can service the address and if in an apartment block, if they will have permission to carry out the necessary drilling of cables. Finally, always check out what the broadband speed will be.

Heat

There are a few areas to assess here. Does it have central heating, or electric heaters/ storage heaters and do you have strong preferences for one over the other? This will make a difference to how you live and what you pay per month.

Youll also need to note things like single glazing, draughts and any other issues that could mean your home may be hard to heat. If the current tenant is there, dont be too shy to ask about their current utility bill spend, it will give you an idea of how easy it is to heat. All of this will be super helpful should you need to decide between two properties.
Describing the Union Budget as 'insipid' and one that is 'all talk and nothing concrete', Opposition parties on Saturday said it does not address the key issue of unemployment or suggest ways to fuel investment to spur economic growth.

IMAGE: A man watches the live telecast of Union Budget 2020-21 presentation at a television showroom in Kolkata. Photograph: PTI Photo

While the Congress alleged that the reduction in tax rates did not help the salaried class who have to pay more under the new slabs, the Left parties said it is a 'budget of privatisation' and accused the government of abdicating its responsibilities.

Former prime minister Manmohan Singh said the budget speech was 'too long' and Trinamool Congress alleged that the government was lying on tax cuts and one should read the fine print on the so-called income tax cuts, as government has removes incentives.

Congress leader Rahul Gandhi said the budget offered no strategic idea or anything concrete and left the issue of unemployment unaddressed, while former finance minister P Chidambaram gave it a score of zero to one out of 10 and asserted that the Modi government has given up on reviving the economy, accelerating growth or creating jobs.

"The main issues confronting this country today are unemployment and the situation as far as the economy is concerned. I did not see any concrete idea, any strategic idea that would help our youngsters get jobs. I saw a lot of tactical stuff, redundant things, I did not see any central idea," Gandhi told reporters.

"I did not find any strategic thing in it. The main issue is employment and economy. There is redundancy and income tax has been complicated instead.

"The government's approach is visible in this budget. It did not have anything in it. It was hollow," he said.

Gandhi said the budget describes the government quite well, which is of 'all talking' and nothing concrete.

"A lot of repetition, a lot of rambling, nothing concrete. So it is the mindset of the government - all talk, all talk, all talk, nothing happening. But, the country is, of course, is suffering," he said.

Congress leader and senior spokesperson Anand Sharma said the 'budget is insipid, lacking in stimulus for growth' and has no clear roadmap for job creation.

The party's chief spokesperson Randeep Surjewala said the new tax slab for salaried people is 'simply 'labyrinth' to mislead people'.

"Actually, under the new tax slab, people will have to pay more tax than in the old tax slab," he claimed.

At the opposition party's press conference, Chidambaram said the government's claim of 6 to 6.5 per cent growth next year is 'astonishing and even irresponsible'.

Asked what rating he would give to the budget on a scale of 1 to 10, he took a dig, saying '10 has got a 1 and 0, you can pick either of a number. I am okay with it'.

He accused the government of being in 'complete denial' about the economy facing a 'grave macro economic challenge' and there's nothing in the Budget that leads one to believe that growth will revive in 2020-21.

"It was a laundry list of old (that is current) programmes," he said.

If the ongoing programmes have failed the people, how can throwing more money into the ongoing programmes change anything, he asked.

"The government has given up on reviving the economy or accelerating the growth rate or promoting private investment or increasing efficiency or creating jobs or winning a greater share of world trade," he said.

The Indian economy is demand-constrained and investment-starved, and the finance minister has not acknowledged these two challenges, and 'that is a pity', he said.

He asked how one could call it a budget about caring the society when food and fertilisers subsidies have been reduced.

"I think this talk about caring society is more words than deeds. Once we drill into the numbers, we will know how caring they are or how uncaring they are."

Slamming the budget's proposal to sell a part of the government's share in Life Insurance Corporation, West Bengal Chief Minister and Trinamool Congress president Mamata Banerjee on Saturday described it as a plan to 'ambush' the legacy of public institutions.

'I am shocked and appalled to see how the central government plans to ambush the heritage and legacy of public institutions. It's the end of sense of security. Is it also an end of an era?' the CM tweeted.

Communist Party of India-Marxist's Sitaram Yechury criticised the budget, saying it did nothing to alleviate 'people's miseries'.

"The less you have to say longer will be the speech. The budget has completely failed to address the current economic slowdown. It does not have a road map on how the economy can be turned around," he said.

"Just platitudes and slogans. Nothing substantial to alleviate peoples' misery, the growing unemployment, rural wage crash, farmers' distress suicides and galloping prices," he said.

CPI general secretary, D Raja said that said that the Union Budget was a budget exposed how the government is abdicating all its responsibilities by privatising public assets.

"This budget is a budget for privatization and everything is to be done using PPP route including railways, health and infrastructure," he said.

"No hope to be seen in the budget for the millions of unemployed youth of the country," he said.

The All India Forward Bloc said that the budget was "an offer to sell India" and said it includes large scale privatization and disinvestment of national assets.

Opposition leader Sharad Yadav said the economic growth is at a low of 4.5 per cent and the issue of unemployment has become grave but the budget offers nothing to tackle these problems.

It does not touch on the issues like farmer suicides, poverty, rising inflation, cases of bank frauds, he said, demanding that Sitharaman should 'apologise' for 'ruining' the economy.
The recent move by Sobeys to ban plastic bags will remove 225 million single use bags from circulation a year. But take a look at your next grocery haul and you'll see that ditching the bags doesn't get rid of single-use plastics altogether.

Cucumbers and lettuce come wrapped in a thin layer of plastic that can't be reused and then there are those bags of rice or pasta that once opened, can't be resealed.

Although Sobeys is the largest national retailer to remove unnecessary plastic, smaller shops in Toronto have gone even further to encourage waste reduction.

Unboxed Market in Little Portugal and bare market (its name is written in lowercase) on Danforth Avenue sell their goods unwrapped. They have some tips on how to reduce your plastic trail.

Ditch the produce bags

The co-owner of Unboxed Market, Michelle Genttner, wanted to open a grocery store that went back to her country roots. You won't find any plastic produce bags at her shop. The fruits and vegetables are sold unpackaged.

"Apples have a peel, oranges have a peel, you don't need the extra packaging," said Genttner. "You're going home, washing and peeling them anyway."

Natalie Nanowski/CBC

Head to the bulk bins

While most grocery stores offer nuts and grains package-free, Dayna Stein's bare market has hundreds of home and beauty products sold by weight.

"How many eyeshadows do you have that you've only used once?," said Stein. "This way you can buy the amount you need. There's less waste and you can see if you like the product."

Natalie Nanowski/CBC

Bring your own containers

Jars are great for bulk bins. Simply weigh them before they're filled so you're only paying for the weight of the food. Stein's Danforth store also offers cleaning products. She encourages customers to hold on to "the old toilet cleaner container" and refill it. "You're extending the life of the product and keeping it out of the landfill," said Stein.

Story continues

If it works, don't replace it

Switching over to plastic-free is great, but Stein says don't rush to buy all new household items if the plastic ones are still in good condition. "Buying all new stuff, even if it's plastic-free, is consumerism at its base," said Stein. If they're working, don't upgrade them.

Natalie Nanowski/CBC

Go in with a list

That will keep you from buying unnecessary items that often come wrapped in plastic, says Genttner. If you go in with a list and the containers you need, you're unlikely to buy more items than necessary.

Pro tip: Start small

Minimizing your dependance on single-use items can be challenging, says Emily Charles-Donelson. Since her daughter was born six year ago, she's been on a journey toward a zero-waste lifestyle.

"I opted to use cloth diapers for my daughter because they made more sense," said Charles-Donelson. "Then, I started seeing the waste everywhere else ... I just thought if I'm doing this thing with diapers then I need to extend it to other areas of my life as well."

She started small by carrying around a reusable bag and coffee cup. Once she got used to that, she added more items to her arsenal. Now she has a full zero-waste kit with lightweight tin containers, cloth napkin and bamboo cutlery.

Emily Charles-Donelson

Every time she orders takeout or gets popcorn at the movies, she tells servers to use her containers instead of their disposable ones.

"I've never been turned down," said Charles-Donelson.

Big stores, next steps

Allowing people to fill their own containers at the hot or cold food table is something more grocery stores should start doing, says Genttner.

"If you bring in a container and it's clean and it closes we have no problem at all putting whatever you want in it," said Genttner.

Natalie Nanowski/CBC

Unboxed Market is also moving toward a reusable container program for those who don't come equipped with a takeaway box. Once you order what you want, you eat it and eventually bring the container back.

Genttner believes manufacturers will eventually realize this and start catering to consumers' environmental demands.

"People want these options," she says.
Anand Neelakantan By

India has achieved another dubious distinction. It has slipped in hunger index and is now at 102 among 117 countries survived. Though one can argue that the ranks of different years cannot be compared owing to change in the parameters by which the ranking is arrived, the fact that India is below even Pakistan and Bangladesh by many ranks in 2019 should sober most of us. We have the habit of glossing over the grave issues like poverty and malnutrition. Politicians know how to divert our attentions from their failures. One way to do so is to talk about imaginary scientific achievements of our ancestors.

Many a time, we find one politician or another, coming up with absurdities that is sure to draw our attention. Instead of discussing the issues that matter, the public starts discussing whether the various weapons used in some age-old war was a nuclear weapon or not, or whether Lord Ganesha acquired his elephant head as a result of plastic surgery. The people who make such statements arent fools. They use diversion as a strategic political manoeuvre.

While one can continue to debate about Arjunas arrows being nuclear-tipped missiles or not without reaching any useful conclusion till the apocalypse arrives, the things that matter like starvation would have taken a turn for worse. There is nothing wrong in learning lessons from our ancient past, provided you choose wisely the stories you wish to learn from. Mahabharata discusses the idea of kingship and the dharma of the ruler at many places in its varied versions.

Rantideva was a king in the Bharata dynasty. Famine strikes his kingdom and people starts dying of starvation. The king opens the royal granary for his starving people and soon, the palace runs out of food. However, Rantideva would eat only after he is sure of no one starving in his kingdom. For 48 days, the king and his family had nothing to eat, as Rantideva had shared whatever food his soldiers could forage with his starving subjects.

On the 49th day, the king finally has some food and water to share with his family members. As he is about to eat, a hungry Brahmin appears. The king gives away his share. Then a commoner appears, and the king gives away his wifes share. A starving Chandala appears at his gate and he gives away his sons food. There is no food left, but there is some water. The family decides to quench their thirst and wait for another day for food. A thirsty dog appears, and the king gives away his share of water. A thirsty crow comes, and his wifes share of water is given to the bird.

A drop of water is only left for his son, when a thirsty ant appears. The king asks his son to give up his drop of water for the ant, for it is the dharma of the king to ensure not even an ant goes hungry. When the king is offered heaven for his noble deeds, the king refuses it, saying, his dharma is to be with his people at the time of crisis and not to seek heaven for himself.

Yet, Rantideva is not considered the noblest king in Mahabharata, but only as an average ruler. After becoming the King of Hastinapura, Yudhishthira gives away alms to lakhs of Brahmins and poor people, and earn their wholesome praise for his charity. He boasts to his brothers that now he is equal to Rantideva in doing his Rajdharma or the duty of a ruler. Krishna says Yudhishthira is only a below-average ruler and to illustrate his point, he sends Yudhishthira to Mahabali. When Yudhishthira reaches Patala, the abode of Mahabali, he finds the king doesnt give any alms. Yudhishthira is surprised and asks Mahabali why Krishna considers him the ideal king, even above Rantideva or Yudhishthira.

Mahabali answers, If there are lakhs of Brahmins ready to accept your alms, how dreary their financial situation would be? And if the Brahmins themselves are in such a condition, how dreary the situation of common people in your country would be? The dharma of king is to ensure that no one needs alms. Rantidevas compassion, though admirable, only solves the problem of hunger temporally and hence he is only an average king. He is a noble man, but an average king. Your charity only promotes laziness and so you are worse than him.

Your charity is done for your popularity. You love the praise of those who take your alms and your rule ensures that there are many who are desperate enough to take your charity. Without such people, you have no existence. Hence, you arent doing your dharma of a ruler and deserve to be known as a below average ruler. In my kingdom, I have empowered everyone, and I dont find anyone who is willing to accept my charity or anyone elses. Maybe that is why Krishna called me the noblest ruler. The worst are those rulers who have countless starving people in their country and are indifferent to their plight.

Instead of searching for nuclear missiles in Mahabharata, if our politicians learn such lessons about Rajdharma from our ancient scriptures, India would have been a far better place to live in. We have been independent for the past seven decades and we have had many political leaders of different political parties ruling us. If India is ranking so low in the hunger index even now, one shouldnt have any doubt on which category of rulers they fit in. Tackling hunger is the primary dharma of any ruler. If the rulers cant be a Mahabali and ensure justice, equality and empowerment to all, our rulers should at least strive to be a Rantideva. A little compassion towards our people would do our country a lot of good. Until we tackle the scourge of hunger and ensure no child in India goes to sleep on an empty stomach, the patriotism we espouse is a hollow onemail@asura.co.in
My Irish husband and I have lived in New York for more than 20 years, so I've heard all the stories: a Leitrim man meeting his childhood friend on a job site in Brooklyn, a tourist pulling into a petrol station deep in the Australian outback only to find her neighbour Mary from back home in Navan working the till, a backpacker from Limerick hiking down from the summit of Mount Kenya and running into his cousin coming up the other side. "Howaya, Paul, how's Nuala keeping?"

So I wasn't surprised when I went to Mexico to conduct research for my novel, American Dirt and met not one, but two Irish priests working among migrants in the US-Mexico borderlands.

The first was an Irish American, the grandson of Irish immigrants, Father Pat Murphy, who runs La Casa del Migrante, the migrant shelter in Tijuana where I spent time in the summer of 2015. The casa has more than a hundred beds and offers vulnerable migrants temporary shelter, a hot meal, and the chance to contact their worried, faraway families. When I visited the casa, the staff psychologist had a queue outside her door that was never shorter than three men waiting. A lot of grim faces, bloodshot eyes.

A heavy sadness that Fr Pat nimbly manoeuvred himself through, always with a sombre smile. While I was there, a young man on crutches came in from Honduras, 22 years old, with one empty pant leg pinned up behind him. The story flew quickly around the shelter: like so many of his countrymen, three days prior, this young man had been on La Bestia, the freight train migrants ride atop to get from Central America or southern Mexico to the US border, when he'd fallen off. There was some consensus - he was lucky it was just the one leg. Usually it was both. Sometimes an arm or a hand, too.

Expand Close Father Dermot Rogers from Belfast, who performed the ceremony / Facebook

Twitter

Email

Whatsapp Father Dermot Rogers from Belfast, who performed the ceremony

Still, the effect of the young man's presence in the shelter was akin to dripping a bead of Fairy Liquid into a greasy pan. The others scattered from him, repelled, gave him wide berth. As if his condition might be contagious and if they came too close, their dreams, too, might be maimed and killed. I will never forget that man's face as he struggled to come to terms with the empty trouser-leg. When he leaned to plant his elbows on his knees, there was just the one knee. He'd have to find a new gesture. Fr Pat spoke to him just as he did to everyone else: gently, firmly. He didn't flinch.

The next time I visited the borderlands, I met Father Dermot Rodgers from Belfast. It was unremarkable to meet another Irishman there, 5,000 miles from the homeland, on a hot and sunny day in Parque de la Amistad in Tijuana - the kind of weather that'll make you fuchsia in the cheeks, damp around the hairline. I expect to encounter Irish people wherever I go in the world, and never more so than on the frontlines of humanity. I was impressed by how lightly and fluently Fr Dermot folded his Northern Irish accent into Spanish. That day, he wore his vestments at the border. He was set to perform a wedding. 'Friendship Park' feels like a heavily ironic misnomer when you visit that place; it's one of the most thoroughly fortified and militarised stretches of border in the entire world.

But when you look west across the Pacific horizon, you get a sense of how futile the border really is. The water will not obey the strictures of human governance. Overhead, the undivided sky is a stark, blasted blue, and the birds cross at will. They sit atop the rusting fence, their presence a mild rebuke to the border patrol. Look how silly this all is. Still, the border fence is so impenetrable it's no longer possible, in Tijuana, to even wriggle a pinky finger through to the other side. Padre Dermot stood on the southern side of that fence, the Mexican side, with groom and bride. She was a deported Mexican mother with three young boys who were all US citizens. She wore a beautiful, slim white dress and fingerless gloves. Her bouquet was red and white roses with a spray of baby's breath. Her sons were in sharp suits, and their new stepfather was resplendent in the uniform of the US Marine Corps. On the US side of the fence, the bride's mother leaned her forehead against the steel mesh, straining to see and hear as much as she could while her daughter said, "I do."

Neither mother nor daughter could cross that border, so they held the wedding here, where mom could watch through the fence. Afterward, the three boys would return home to their undocumented grandmother in California. They'd have to leave their parents behind. Padre Dermot performed the ceremony beneath the hot eye of the sun in his impeccable Spanish, with that brand of pragmatic compassion I've come to recognise as particularly Irish. It's a compassion so modest it's practically embarrassed of itself. It goes to lengths to deflect attention. It is the same brand of compassion my dad inherited from his father.

The presence of Irish people everywhere isn't new. The global diaspora runs generations deep. It runs into boardrooms and bar-rooms alike, slums and mansions, New Delhi to Hollywood to Tokyo. Few cultures are as globally scattered as the Irish. When my family and I disembarked from a recent Aer Lingus flight in Newark, we thought nothing of the standard call to donate our leftover currency into the old Unicef envelope there in your seatback. I had to remind myself that other airlines don't do this. It's uncommon, this cultural norm of Irish generosity. It's not so ordinary. And yet, anywhere you go in the world, wherever there are vulnerable people, the Irish are there, sweating beneath the sun, raising funds, distributing aid. They are doing the quiet work of fighting injustice. They're making the tea. That grace may be Ireland's finest export.

Jeanine Cummins is the author of 'American Dirt', published by Tinder Press, which is out now

Expand Close The wedding party / Facebook

Twitter

Email

Whatsapp The wedding party

Video of the Day

American Dirt controversy

When Oprah Winfrey selected American Dirt for her influential Book Club, she predicted that "everybody who reads this book is actually going to be immersed in the experience of what it means to be a migrant on the run for freedom."

The novel about a Mexican mother and her young son fleeing to the US from a cartel had been praised widely before its recent release. However, multiple criticisms including accusations of cultural appropriation have been levelled at Jeanine Cummins who has an Irish husband and some Puerto Rican ancestry. Dozens of authors published an open letter to Winfrey that urged her to reconsider her selection.

Cummins has cancelled her book tour due to safety concerns. Winfrey is still due to meet Cummins and it is expected that their discussion will air in March on Apple TV Plus.
14.8k SHARES Facebook Twitter Whatsapp Pinterest Reddit Print Mail Flipboard

After Senate Republicans blocked documents and witnesses, Sen. Chris Murphy (D-CT) warned Republicans to prepare for political pain.

Murphy said on MSNBC:



There is going to be real political pain here. People need to understand that voters wont forget this. As more and more of these revelations will come out, more and more vote letters wonder why on Earth the Senate didnt consider information available to them. And so I from the beginning was amongst those who thought there would definitely be witnesses. If not because it is in the best interests of the country because they knew there would be enormous political damage to them if they engaged in something could be easily seen as a cover-up.

First and foremost for the country but I think this makes the job of re-election for a lot of my Republican friends much, much more difficult. Why they dont understand that maybe due to the fact Trump just has death grip on this party right now that makes them blind, even to their own personal political fortunes.

Video:

Sen. Chris Murphy (D-CT) warns Republicans that political pain is coming their way, and those Senators who aren't in red states, just made their job of winning reelection a lot tougher. #RIPGOP pic.twitter.com/vHRILrb4LF  Sarah Reese Jones (@PoliticusSarah) January 31, 2020

The pain has already begun for endangered Colorado Sen. Cory Gardner.

In a statement provided to PoliticusUSA, Colorado Democratic Party Chair Morgan Carroll said, After months of ducking Coloradans and running from reporters, today Senator Gardner did exactly what weve come to expect from him  voted in lockstep with Mitch McConnell to block witnesses and evidence from Republicans sham trial before the Senate. Gardners vote today for his partys cover-up made clear that he has abandoned not only his pledge to serve as an impartial juror in the impeachment trial, but also his campaign promise to be an independent voice for our state. Voters will remember in November how Gardner sold out our country and our Constitution, and put his loyalty to Trump and McConnell ahead of Coloradans.

Cult leader Trump has inspired 51 Republicans to drink the orange Flavor Aid in an act of political mass suicide that should cost them their Senate majority in November. Incumbents like Martha McSally, Cory Gardner, and Thom Tillis can kiss their seats goodbye. The reckoning will come for Susan Collins when she votes to acquit Trump.

Mitch McConnell can rush through the trial, but voters wont forget. They will remember in November, as Trumps vulnerable accomplices will lose their seats.

For more discussion about this story join our Rachel Maddow and MSNBC group.

Follow Jason Easley on Facebook
Company Announcement no. 49  2019

Copenhagen, January 31st, 2020





GreenMobility enters Austria and signs LOI for cooperation with OAMTC





GreenMobility, a leading electric vehicle (EV) sharing provider, today announced it has signed a Letter of Intent with OAMTC  The Austrian Automobile and Touring Club  to cooperate on shared mobility in Austria. The move is part of GreenMobilitys strategy of international expansion after having gained a strong foothold in Copenhagen.

The establishment in Austria follows GreenMobilitys strategy from planned entries in cities like Malmo, Gothenburg and Antwerp where GreenMobility increasingly aims to launch own operation locally.

OAMTC is the largest automobile club in Austria with more than 2.2 million members. In 2018 OAMTC launched OAMTC easy way, a shared e-moped service with 315 e-mopeds in Vienna and Graz. GreenMobility and OAMTC will seek to combine the two services and create an integrated mobility sharing service, where customers can easily choose between different electric vehicles. A further goal of the cooperation is to combine the resources, expertise and experience of both companies to jointly develop and market innovative mobility services that create real added value for mobile urbanists.

In addition to the OAMTC-agreement, GreenMobility has been approved as an operator and been invited to be included in the City of Viennas public transport platform WienMobil. The City of Vienna strongly supports shared mobility and sees the benefits of combining such services with their well-functioning public transport, through the WienMobil platform, with an aim of removing private cars from the city, and reduce traffic intensity. GreenMobilitys EV sharing service will, from day one, become available to WienMobils more than 160,000 users, who will be able to reserve the cars directly on the platform.

Vienna is a perfect city for GreenMobility. There is a strong political support for shared mobility, and with close to 2 million inhabitants there is a solid potential customer base. The strong brand and member base of OAMTC combined with the fact that we will be included in the WienMobil platform makes me confident that our green shared mobility solution is well-positioned to take its fair share of the market, said GreenMobility CEO Thomas Heltborg Juul.

Story continues

GreenMobility expects to launch its operations in Vienna with 400 EVs. The exact timing of the launch depends on several factors but is expected to take place in the second half of the year.









For further information:



Anders Wall, VP Investor Relations GreenMobility, phone: +45 2540 3020, mail: aw@greenmobility.com

GreenMobility A/S, Landgreven 3, 1301 Kbenhavn K, CVR: 35521585, www.greenmobility.com

Certified Advisor

NORDEN CEF ApS

John Norden

Kongevejen 365, DK-2840 Holte

+45 2072 0200

jn@nordencef.dk





GreenMobility offers modern urbanites easy, flexible and sustainable transport in the form of electric, shared city cars. Users have access to these cars via the GreenMobility app. Trips are paid per-minute. Today, GreenMobility operates 400 cars in Copenhagen; and 250 cars in Oslo, together with cooperative partner VY and 100 cars in Aarhus together with our partner NRGi. More than 75,000 people have signed up with GreenMobility.

Driven by global megatrends, GreenMobility sees a rapidly growing market for car sharing in large cities, that demand green transport for their citizens and aim to reduce the number of private cars. GreenMobilitys ambition is to be among the leading global operators of green shared mobility solutions. GreenMobility is listed on the Nasdaq First North in Copenhagen.

Attachment
Principal Economic Adviser in the Ministry of Finance Sanjeev Sanyal has said that the Indian banks have gone through a cleaning process and are now in a better condition to lend due to better liquidity.

"We have cleaned the banking system from past 5-6 years which has been completed now. Banks are better regulated now and posses better potential to lend loans for businesses, consumers and large investments. There is better liquidity in the system", said Sanyal, hours before the Finance Minister presents the union budget 2020.

READ | Union Budget 2020 LIVE Updates: FM Nirmala Sitharaman Gears Up For Modi Govt's 2nd Budget

'6 to 6.5 percent growth rate'

Speaking of the growth rate of the economy which had substantially dipped in 2019, Sanyal, like the IMF expressed confidence on the projected upward trajectory stating, "Imports and exports will play a crucial role, also the US-China trade war has an effect on the economy however all of these factors have been taken into consideration and 6 to 6.5 percent is easily achievable".

Sanyal also noted that State Bank of India is the only Indian bank to make it to the top global 100 banks whereas countries smaller than India have more banks in the top 100 mark. "Our banking system is far smaller with respect to our economy, many smaller nations such as Singapore has three banks in top 100, ours is just one, State Bank of India, so our banks private or public are very small. If these banks don't become big then who will fund the investments? So it is important that we encourage the banking system", said Sanyal while explaining the importance of the growth of Indian banks.

READ | Budget: India Far From Recession But Saw Slowdown; Expect 6.5% Growth In 2021, Says IMF

Sanyal reiterated the completion of the cleaning process of banks which brought various banking scams to the surface. "We have cleaned the banking system from past 5-6 years, had we suddenly started expanding the banks in 2012-13 there would have been even bigger turmoils and scams. We saw many scams come to the light. We have cleared the majority of the issues after which the regulation and capitalization is better in banks now", said Sanyal.

READ | Budget: India Far From Recession But Saw Slowdown; Expect 6.5% Growth In 2021, Says IMF

The principal advisor also spoke on the 'Ease of doing business' saying that 'contract enforcement' is slow in India and the number of approvals required is huge as compared to other nations due to which the time taken to start a new business is more in India as compared to other nations. "If you want to open a restaurant in Delhi you require 26 permissions, whereas Singapore and China require only 4. And these 26 permissions is also a tedious process. So the complex web of rules and regulations was imposed for decades which needs to be phased out", said Sanyal while speaking of further improving the Ease of Doing business ranking.

India's ascending journey in Ease of doing business

India has ascended to 63rd rank in 2019 in World bank's ease of doing business index. India was also among the top 10 performers on the 2019 list for the third year in a row. A seven-year trend shows that India has been on the path of improvement with regard to ease of doing business. In 2013 and 2014, India was ranked 134 which improved to 131 in 2015 and followed by a one-point jump to 130 in 2016. India jumped drastically by 30 places to 100th rank in 2017. In 2018, the country jumped another 23 places to reach the 77th rank which has been further improved by another 14 points to 63rd rank in 2019.

READ | Union Budget 2020: Get Real, For Your Own Sake And The Country's Future
China says it has nearly 10,000 confirmed cases of the novel coronavirus. The virus has caused 213 deaths in China where it emerged late last year.

The World Health Organization says the worldwide spread of the virus is a global health emergency, as well as an "extraordinary event" requiring a coordinated international response.

The Trump administration is warning Americans not to travel to China. The State Department issued what it calls a Level 4-Do Not Travel advisory. It also is recommending all those currently in China to leave. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention issued Tuesday a Level 3 notice, advising Americans to avoid all nonessential travel to China.

Britain reported its first confirmed cases Friday. "We can confirm that two patients in England, who are members of the same family, have tested positive for coronavirus," said Chris Whitty, chief medical officer for England. He said the two are receiving "specialist" care from the country's National Health Service.

India and Philippines have also confirmed their first cases, joining a growing list that includes Australia, Canada, Finland, Germany, Hong Kong, Japan, Korea, Nepal, Singapore, Thailand, The United Arab Emirates and Vietnam.
Metro Manila (CNN Philippines, February 1)  A shootout Friday evening right inside a military camp in Patikul, Sulu, left three soldiers dead, authorities said Saturday.

The Sulu Provincial Police Office identified the suspect as Cpl Jack Indap, who shot to death his superior officers, Major Rael Gabot and 1Lt. Ryan Lamoste at the headquarters of the 9th Field Artillery Firestorm Battalion at Barangay Liang.

Police said one of the victims, Lamoste, confronted the suspect for hitting a mess duty personnel. The suspect admitted he was drunk.

Lamoste then relieved the suspect from his post as sentinel, resulting in a heated argument.

When another officer, Gabot, tried to intervene, the suspect fired shots at his superiors with his service firearm, police said.

A responding officer shot the suspect.

All three enlisted personnel were brought to the Camp Bautista Station Hospital in nearby Jolo town, but were declared dead on arrival, according to the Western Mindanao Command.

Major Arvin Encinas, spokesperson of the WesMinCom, said the 11th Infantry Division is investigating the incident.

"The Joint Task Force Sulu is saddened by what had happened and assured the next of kin of the soldiers that proper investigation by the PNP will be undertaken," Encinas said in a statement.
NEW DELHI: The Delhi High Court on Saturday issued a notice to Tihar jail authorities and all four convicts in the Nirbhaya gangrape case and sought their replies on a plea challenging the stay on their execution by a trial court. The hearing will now take place on a special Sunday sitting on February 2 at 3 pm, the court said.

The court passed the order while hearing the petition filed by Centre and the Tihar Jail authorities challenging the trial court`s order which had stayed the execution of the four convicts in the Nirbhaya gang-rape and murder case.

Justice Suresh Kait issued a notice to the four convicts, Mukesh Kumar, Vinay Sharma, Pawan Gupta and Akshay Singh and to DG (Prisons) and Tihar Jail authorities, seeking their stand on the Central government's plea. The lawyer of the DG (Prisons) told the court that its orders would be complied with.

Live TV

During the hearing, Solicitor General Tushar Mehta, appearing on behalf of the Centre, told the court that the convicts in the Nirbhaya case have taken the process of law on a "joyride" and are acting in tandem to delay their execution.

He further told the court that the Nirbhaya gangrape case will go down in the history of India where convicts of the heinous crime are trying the patience of the country.

A Delhi court had on Friday stayed till further orders the execution of four convicts - Akshay Thakur, Mukesh Singh, Pawan Gupta, and Vinay Sharma - which was earlier scheduled to take place on February 1.

The case pertains to the gang-rape and brutalising of a 23-year-old paramedical student in a moving bus on the night of December 16, 2012, by six people including a juvenile in Delhi.

The woman had died at a Singapore hospital a few days later.One of the five adults accused, Ram Singh, had allegedly committed suicide in the Tihar Jail during the trial of the case.
Seedling sale begins in Saratoga Springs

SARATOGA SPRINGS  The Colonel William F. Fox Memorial Saratoga Tree Nursery has kicked off its annual spring seedling sale.

This year's nursery sale runs until May 15, according to the state The state Department of Environmental Conservation. For more information including how to order, visit the Spring Seedling Sale webpage on DEC's website.

Some species sell out early, so it is recommended people place orders by phone for the most up-to-date availability information. Call 518-581-1439.

Route 30 meeting planned on Feb. 6

SCHOHARIE  State lawmakers this month will host a forum for citizens with concerns about Route 30.

The meeting will be held at the Schoharie Fire House 114 Fort Road from 6 to 8 p.m. Thursday, Feb. 6, and will feature Assemblyman Chris Tague and state Sen. James L. Seward.

The road is an important thoroughfare in Schoharie County but concerns about heavy traffic have been raised, particularly for the area between Middleburgh and State Route 7, according to the lawmakers.

Reservation setup available for camps

ALBANY  The state Department of Environmental Conservation said campers and day users will now be able to make online reservations for group camp sites at the Rogers Rock Campground and Day Use Area, located in Warren County in the Adirondacks, and pavilion rentals at the North-South Lake Campground and Day Use Area, in Greene County in the Catskills.

The change will eliminate the current lottery system for group sites at Rogers Rock Campground and Day Use Area and will add the sites to the campground reservation system inventory used for booking DEC's other campsites and facilities. Details of each site can be found on DEC's reservation website.

For more information, visit DEC's website, or call 518-457-2500. To make reservations, call ReserveAmerica at 1-800-456-CAMP (2267) or visit the NYS Parks Campgrounds and Camping Reservations website.

Culinary historian joins state agency

ALBANY  Culinary historian, interpreter and editor Lavada Nahon has joined the Bureau of Historic Sites staff as interpreter of African American History, the state Office of Parks, Recreation and Historic Preservation said this week.

Nahon has interpreted the lives of free and enslaved African Americans across the mid-Atlantic region, with an emphasis on the work of enslaved cooks in the homes of the elite class. Her expertise around cooking and dining spans the 17th to 19th centuries and cuts across cultures, encompassing Dutch, British, French and African traditions, the state agency said.

In her new position, Nahon will help support the efforts of state historic sites: delivering programs, researching content and leading outreach efforts.

Hospital to offer $99 heart scans

SARATOGA SPRINGS  For American Heart Month, Saratoga Hospital will offer heart scans at the discounted price of $99 in February. The simple, painless test  also known as a cardiac calcium scoring exam  can detect heart disease before symptoms begin, according to the hospital.

Cardiac calcium scoring uses a CT scan to detect and measure calcium deposits in the coronary arteries. Over time, these deposits can build up and block blood flow to the heart.

According to the hospital, the test may make sense for people who have diabetes or a family history of heart disease or who smoke or are overweight.

A physician referral is required, and the exam often is not covered by insurance. For more information or an appointment, call 518-580-2232.
DAVENPORT, Iowa  Just days before the critical Iowa caucuses, it appears many voters in the state have yet to agree on second- and third-choice candidates, in a race already fraught with indecision on who might pull ahead and win it all.

At events for middle-of-the-pack candidates, Yahoo News spoke to dozens of Iowa caucus voters who were not able to articulate consistent choices, which might be bad news for presidential hopefuls who need an Iowa headline to stay afloat.

The caucus voting process is not as simple as primaries. Within each caucus precinct, any candidate must clear a 15 percent viability threshold. If there arent enough supporters for a certain candidate, they would have to defect to another camp. And with a primary as unpredictable as this one, campaigns know being second or third choice will be a critical indicator to Democrats in other early states. Yet throughout the state, supporters for candidates at risk of falling below the threshold show little consistency in who their second and third strings may be.

This is part of why candidates or their surrogates have been crisscrossing Iowa to plead with voters that they are reasonable enough to be considered in caucus-goers top roster. Former South Bend, Ind., Mayor Pete Buttigieg, whos considered one of the in-state frontrunners, sprinted across 40 events in 18 days, while entrepreneur and mid-tier candidate Andrew Yang netted 50 events across the state in just over two weeks. Campaigns are hoping that just a few more events will give them the boost they need.

When asked where his supporters might move if hes unable to clear the bar, Yang told a roundtable of reporters that he has a feeling theyd move toward Vermont Sen. Bernie Sanders, whos currently at the top of some Iowa polls.

I think that Bernie and I do have a lot of overlap in support, so it wouldnt be surprising to me if many of our supporters head in that direction, Yang said. I think most people are going to show up on caucus night with a few top choices in mind, and I imagine if Im not viable at their caucus that they know exactly who theyre going to go to.

Story continues

But Yangs assumption that his supporters are unified might be off-base; at a town hall in Davenport Wednesday evening, locals werent close to making up their minds.

Im torn between Yang, Biden, Buttigieg and Klobuchar, said Joe, a 30-year-old Iowan who did not want to give his last name. He will be caucusing in Davenport but still wasnt sure about his first or third choice. His second choice is locked down: former Vice President Joe Biden.

Sen. Amy Klobuchar is welcomed at a campaign town hall meeting in Mason, Iowa. (Ivan Alvarado/Reuters)

But 64-year-old Brian Nagle, another Davenport resident who last caucused for Bill Richardson, a Biden-style moderate, back in 2008, thinks someone like the 77-year-old Biden is far too mature to be anyones first or second choice. A bit of an anomaly in the mostly younger crowd, Nagle says that he attended the event at the suggestion of his wife, an ardent Yang fan who will be caucusing on Monday. So, due to some marriage obligations, he jokes, hes considering the tech entrepreneur, but hes also a fan of Pete Buttigieg. He doesnt know who his third choice would be.

Another Yang-Buttigieg crossover voter is Hannah Breitbach, a 28-year-old who will caucus in Cedar Rapids. Like many others across the state who spoke to Yahoo News, shes undecided. Breitbach, who seemed intrigued by Yangs $1,000-a-month universal basic income platform, says that shed consider the more moderate mayor too. Shes also typical of the demographic of many Sanders supporters  young, engaged, leaning progessive  yet says she cant put my finger on what it is about Bernie that unsettles me. Shell move with the rest of the Yang pack if need be.

Yang volunteers from out of state assisted in the last-ditch Iowa pitch. At least thats what motivated Dallas small-business owner Angela Hildenson to fly to Davenport and attempt to convince Iowans who trickle into this event to caucus for Yang. While not able to participate herself, Hildenson hopes to convince the Iowans she meets to get behind Yang  and reluctantly admits that she would probably support another candidate if the tech entrepreneur were not viable beyond the early states. She says, however, thatd be really unfortunate.

The Davenport event attracted some rival campaign interlopers too. Beth Wiley, a 45-year-old from Park View, a village about 15 miles from Davenport, sat toward the back of the ballroom, listening intently to Yangs call-and-response stump about Amazon and automation, in search of a realistic second and third choice. She supports Sen. Amy Klobuchar, but her ideal second candidate is Sen. Michael Bennet, who is officially still in the running for the nomination. But nobody knows him, hes a nonstarter, Wiley said.

Andrew Yang campaigning in Nevada, Iowa, earlier this week. (Mike Segar/Reuters)

If Klobuchar, whos hovering around 10 percent in some Iowa polls, doesnt have the steam, Wiley would rather give her support to another fledgling campaign rather than a frontrunner  probably Yang, who faces a similar challenge to cross the 15 percent threshold, or a more mainstream choice, like Buttigieg, but she isnt sure in what order. As long as that choice doesnt include Sanders, Tom Steyer, Michael Bloomberg or Biden, who she sees as old white guys who need a hobby.

Certainly not all of Klobuchars supporters share that view, however. Several attendees of a Klobuchar hot-dish house party, held the next day in Prole, Iowa, found those candidates just fine.

Barbara Allison, a 75-year-old Klobuchar precinct captain in Norwalk, is admittedly charmed by many of the frontrunners  septuagenarian white guys included. I can just look at each one and say, Heres a good one.

But that same indecision makes her nervous. A lot of people are saying, Oh, whats Iowa going to do? So, we want to get it right.

Her first choice is the senator from Minnesota, but if shes not viable, Allison is going to Sen. Elizabeth Warren.

As Allison was answering, Liz Webster, a 67-year-old caucus-goer and Klobuchar organizer in Warren County, interrupted and challenged Allison: Why would she go so far left from someone so moderate? Webster was dubious about Warren and Sanderss socialist policies and urged Allison to consider her own rankings.

Sen. Elizabeth Warren in Cedar Rapids, Iowa. (Brian Snyder/Reuters)

So who is Webster rooting for? At first she reveals its Klobuchar, then its Biden, then its Buttigieg. Then she hesitates.

But I dont know, she says, expressing concern about Buttigiegs relative lack of experience. But I just cant stand Bernie Sanders.

She cites, as her concern about Sanders, his energized, sometimes fervent, young base.

Heather Brown, a 47-year-old from Norwalk who cares about climate change and womens reproductive health issues more than anything else, chimed in, saying shes also one of the areas undecideds. She doesnt know who she is going to caucus for and believes that the problem Democrats had three years ago was that Democrats couldnt unite, so she plans on making her decisions Monday evening for whomever seems like the strongest entity in the room.

I dont know whats going to happen  its kind of like a nail biter.

David Munoz, who knew the event organizer from the local Rotary Club, attended the hot-dish house party with his wife, whos leaning toward caucusing for Klobuchar. A wayward Cory Booker supporter looking for a candidate to land on, Munoz says hes still pretty undecided but likes what hes heard from Warren and Buttigieg. Many of his friends  though not the Rotary Club folk, who he says overwhelmingly lean Republican  like the same candidates. But hes not worried about factions within his own party; instead, he sees the process as a unique pleasure.

It seems kind of last minute, but its part of the great experience of being in Iowa, said Munoz.

Jana Erickson, 58, host of the house party in Martensdale, a hamlet with a population of 465, faces a challenge many rural organizers do: charming a small crowd in her candidates direction. She considers herself a moderate and hopes to use her skills working across party lines to sharpen her pitch to undecided voters in her group.

Though not everyone in her town is as understanding, she said that many in her neighborhood dont publicly support a candidate or have signs in their yard. In fact, her Amy for America sign was stolen as soon as she posted it. But shes not letting that deter her.

Erickson said that if Klobuchar doesnt hit 15 percent, shell look around the room and try to make alliances with other underperforming groups. Essentially the name of her game is convince, dont cave.

She still has a contingency plan, though  Biden is her second choice and Buttigieg is her third.

I always go where I can make a difference, said Erickson, as she made a fresh batch of white peach sangria for her guests. I dont know what Im in for, but I think Im ready.

_____

Read more from Yahoo News:
Close Get email notifications on {{subject}} daily!

Your notification has been saved.

There was a problem saving your notification.

{{description}}

Email notifications are only sent once a day, and only if there are new matching items.
China's central authorities approved Friday further extending the Spring Festival holiday in the novel coronavirus hard-hit Hubei Province to curb the outbreak.

A meeting of the leading group of the Communist Party of China Central Committee on the novel coronavirus prevention and control agreed that Hubei would extend the holiday to an "appropriate extent." People in Hubei whose workplaces are outside the province were also granted an extended holiday and were asked to stay put.

The meeting was chaired by Premier Li Keqiang, who also heads the group.

For regions where the number of new confirmed cases is rapidly increasing or where big risks exist, necessary measures such as postponing starting dates of business and school may also be adopted following due legal procedures, said a statement issued after the meeting.

Noting that the Spring Festival holiday is coming to an end, the meeting highlighted the importance of prevention and control of the epidemic among travelers in an orderly manner.

Efforts were urged to improve transportation arrangements, facilitate epidemic prevention and control during the trips, and strengthen prevention and control measures for those entering Hubei.

For medical materials such as protective clothing, the production and distribution should be better coordinated at national level, and priority should be given to ensuring the needs of key areas, it was stressed at the meeting.

Wang Huning, a member of the Standing Committee of the Political Bureau of the CPC Central Committee and deputy head of the group, attended the meeting.
A special Air India plane carrying 324 Indian nationals from the Coronavirus-hit Wuhan landed in Delhi on Saturday morning. Another flight for Wuhan is scheduled to leave this afternoon. Air India's jumbo B747 aircraft carrying 211 students, 110 working professionals and 3 minors reached the national capital at around 7:30 am today. The flight had departed from Delhi airport at 1:17 pm on Friday to evacuate Indian nationals from China, where the Novel Coronavirus (nCoV) has killed around 250 people- none of whom are Indian.

Also read: Coronavirus symptoms and how to protect yourself

The plane had 5 doctors from Ram Manohar Lohia (RML) hospital and 1 paramedical staff according to an Air India spokesperson. Indian Army has also set up a quarantine facility near Delhi in Manesar for all those who have been evacuated from China's Hubei province.

The Health Ministry assured the public that all 324 Indians who have been evacuated from Wuhan are fine. The Health Ministry also went onto say that the health screening of these 324 Indians is being done at medical camps.

Delhi: 103 of the 324 Indians who arrived at Delhi Airport today in Air India special flight from Wuhan (China), have been taken from the airport to Indo-Tibetan Border Police (ITBP) Chhawla Camp, for medical observation. #CoronaVirus pic.twitter.com/zTEVkSpVUn - ANI (@ANI) February 1, 2020

People stranded in Wuhan can contact the Indian Embassy on these helplines: +8618610952903 and +8618612083629 or the dedicated e-mail address: helpdesk.beijing@mea.gov.in before 08:00 hours till February 1.

We urge all Indian citizens from Hubei who intend to avail this flight for India and not yet contacted the Embassy, to urgently call the hotlines (+8618610952903 and +8618612083629) or dedicated email ID helpdesk.beijing@mea.gov.in before 0800 hours on February 1, 2020. (3/3) - India in China (@EOIBeijing) January 31, 2020

Hours after the first flight from Wuhan arrived, another flight for Wuhan is slated to depart from Delhi at 12:50 pm today with a different set of crew, the same team of medical professionals with a different aircraft. The rescue team will be headed by Captain Amitabh Singh, Director Operations, Air India, according to an Air India spokesperson. The spokesperson also went onto add there were 5 cockpit crew members and 15 cabin crew members on Friday's flight to Wuhan.

Air India chairman and MD Ashwani Lohani said that no services will be provided on the plane and all the food will be stored in seat packets. As there will be no service on board, there will be zero interaction between the cabin crew and passengers. Lohani also stated that personal protection equipments such as masks have been arranged for the cabin crew and passengers. The crew will also have a complete protective gear. Apart from the cabin crew, the plane will also carry 5 doctors from the Health Ministry. The AI plane will be in Wuhan for 2-3 hours.

People evacuated from the Hubei province will be monitored for signs of any infection for 2 weeks by qualified medical professionals. Till now, around 124 positive cases of coronavirus have been reported in many countries, including India. The first coronavirus positive case in India came out from Kerala.

Also read: Coronavirus: WHO declares global emergency as death toll reaches 170 in China

Also read: Coronavirus outbreak: Kerala moves fast soon after first case appears in state
BEIJING  The number of people infected with the new coronavirus in China has risen to more than 11,000, while 259 people have died, Chinese health officials said on Saturday.

Health officials in Hubei province in central China, the epicenter of the coronavirus crisis, said an additional 1,347 new cases had been reported in the province alone, bringing the number of infections there to 7,153.

Wuhan, with a population of 11 million, and many other Chinese cities have been placed on lockdown.

The number of people infected and China's national death toll are expected to climb further once other regions report their latest statistics.

More than 100 other people have become ill in about two dozen countries across the globe. On Thursday, the World Health Organization, or WHO, declared the outbreak a global emergency.

Several countries have already flown their citizens out of China, including the United States, Japan, South Korea, Jordan and Britain.

A German air force jet left Wuhan early Saturday to evacuate 130 people  90 German citizens and around 40 citizens of other countries. It is to leave for Germany Saturday afternoon.

The returnees are to be quarantined at an army barracks near Frankfurt airport.

Some countries have also moved to limit the entry of those who have travelled to China in a bid to stop the spread of the illness.

The United States on Friday announced a public health emergency in order to preempt a coronavirus outbreak.

The measures include a ban on the entry of foreign nationals  other than immediate family of U.S. citizens and permanent residents  who have travelled in China within the last 14 days.

The U.S. took the "unprecedented" action of issuing a 14-day quarantine on 195 US citizens who recently returned from Wuhan, China, the epicenter of the health crisis.

Meanwhile, Delta Airlines said it will suspend all U.S. to China flights starting on Feb. 6, citing concerns of the new coronavirus.

Hundreds of flights to and from China have been canceled around the world, including those run by Air Canada, Lufthansa, British Airways Turkish Airlines, United, American Airlines, KLM and Air France.

Russia announced earlier this week it was closing its land border with China, similar to steps taken by China's other neighbors. Moscow reported its first case of the virus on Friday.

The U.S. and Japan told citizens not to travel to China, with Washington issuing a warning on par with its advisories for Afghanistan and Iran.

The Italian government on Friday declared a six-month state of emergency in response to the first confirmed cases of the new coronavirus in the country.

The decision resulted in 5 million euros ($5.5 million) being earmarked for civil protection purposes.

Italian cruise company Costa announced on Friday that it would not allow anyone who had been in China in the last 14 days on board  including guests, visitors or crew members of any nationality.

The coronavirus broke out at a seafood market in Wuhan that reportedly sold exotic animals for consumption  similar to the outbreak of SARS.

SARS, a disease that infected 8,000 people and killed 800 globally, was linked to the consumption of civet cats, another exotic meat. The coronavirus belongs to the same family of viruses.

-- Tribune News Service
Despite the Democrats singular focus on hearing new testimony, the Republican majority brushed past those demands and will make this the first impeachment trial without witnesses. Even new revelations Friday from former national security adviser John Bolton did not sway GOP senators, who said theyd heard enough.

That means the eventual outcome for Trump will be an acquittal in name only, said Rep. Val Demings, a House prosecutor, during final debate.

Trump was impeached by the House last month on charges that he abused power and obstructed Congress as he tried to pressure Ukraine to investigate Democratic rival Joe Biden, using military aid as leverage as the ally fought Russia. He is charged with then blocking the congressional probe of his actions.

Senators rejected the Democrats effort to allow new witnesses. Republicans Susan Collins of Maine and Mitt Romney of Utah voted with the Democrats, but that was not enough.

Senate Democratic leader Chuck Schumer called that decision a tragedy on a very large scale. Protesters chants reverberated against the walls of the Capitol.

But Republicans said Trumps acquittal was justified and inevitable.

The sooner the better for the country, said Sen. Lindsey Graham, a Trump confidant. Lets turn the page.
Justice after 7 years, who said what on Nirbhaya hangings

Nirbhaya: Only two convicts wrote a will, one wanted to donate paintings, another his body

Nirbhaya: None of the four convicts slept at night

Squirmed for a bit before going still: The final moments of Nirbhayas killers

Bihar man hangs self in quarantine centre: Cops say he was stressed due to TB

Nirbhaya: No execution of convicts today, court stays hanging until further orders

India

oi-Vicky Nanjappa

New Delhi, Jan 31: A Delhi court has stayed the execution of the four convicts in the Nirbhaya case.

The court said that the execution will be stayed until further orders.

The convicts had sought a stay on their execution scheduled for February 1.

The court had on Thursday issued notices to to the Tihar jail authorities seeking its response on a petition filed by the convicts. Irfan Ahmed, the public prosecutor told the court that this was complete mockery of justice.

Counsel for the convicts however told the court that under Section 854 of the revised Delhi Prison Rules, none can be hanged till the last one has exhausted all options in case of multiple death row convicts, held guilty for the same crime. He also told the court that the Supreme Court in 2014 had said that death row convicts should be given 14 days time after the rejection of their mercy plea before hanging them.

Meanwhile, Pawan Jallad, a hangman from the Meerut Prison, reported to the Tihar Jail administration Officials said Pawan, a third-generation hangman, will be staying on the jail premises and check the strength of rope and other related things on Friday.
During the election, Mr. Johnson campaigned as an almost single-issue nationalist, the phrase get Brexit done falling robotically from his lips between every other stammer. Beyond that, much of what he said was conventionally Tory: He promised harsher restrictions on immigration, meaning an end to free movement from the European Union and the expansion of the hostile environment for migrants. Domestic repression, the manifesto promised, would also tighten, with a bigger penal system and a greater emphasis on counter-extremism, which, as Home Secretary Priti Patel has indicated, will target parts of the left. Mr. Johnson has also hinted at constitutional reforms, which would strengthen the executive and weaken judicial challenges. He promises an attack on liberal norms and legality in the name of national invigoration.

Tellingly, he distanced himself from the last government. He would end austerity, raise spending on the National Health Service, guarantee pensions, raise the minimum wage and borrow 100 billion to invest in infrastructure. Many of these promises were grossly exaggerated, but they served to underline the point that a Johnson administration would be different. And since the election, the government has acted to carry out its commitments, passing legislation to guarantee N.H.S. spending increases and proposing moderate improvements to workers and renters rights. It has also promised that most of the infrastructure spending will be invested in Englands deprived northern regions  and this week backed up the promise by nationalizing the norths major rail service.

If this sounds like an incursion into Labour territory, it is. Many of the policies are directly taken from Labours plans. The push for a larger state resonates with a politically ambiguous popular memory of the postwar era  a certain nostalgia for the era of big, dynamic industries owned by the British government inflects both a version of the left-wing politics of the Labour Party leader, Jeremy Corbyn, and a version of Brexit sentiment. Mr. Johnson knows that many of the votes contributing to a Conservative majority were lent by voters who wanted Brexit done. A more interventionist state is a way to shore up a lasting, broad coalition.

This pragmatic raid on enemy turf was first conceived under Mr. Johnsons predecessor, Theresa May. More thoughtful Tories knew they had to change. The British state and economy had become dysfunctional: gaping regional inequalities, a housing market inaccessible to younger workers, weak labor productivity, sluggish investment and very little to export. Mrs. Mays advisers understood that the Conservatives had to break with the formula of austerity and financialization somehow.

But while she used the rhetoric of working-class uplift, she was unable to back it up with policy. Her chancellor, Philip Hammond, a traditional ally of the banks, was determined to keep austerity going. If nothing else, he could see no other way to create a fiscal surplus big enough to soften the impact of Brexit. Mr. Johnson, by contrast, is just enough of an opportunist to see that delivering Brexit, in however self-injuring and punitive a form, gives him both the political power and the regulatory latitude to do things differently.
Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton should get a new job, perhaps.

Granted, Paxton might struggle to find a lucrative position in the private sector. He has been under indictment since 2015, facing three felony securities fraud charges related to past business ventures (he contends the case, which has been inexplicably delayed for years, is politically motivated). Meanwhile Paxton seems to enjoy the public platform his office provides, as well as the chance to file lawsuits challenging Obama-era environmental regulations and the Affordable Care Act.

Still, Paxton has proved himself reluctant to perform key aspects of his actual job, and oddly determined to pick fights with his own constituents.

This week brought a notable example, when the Republican attorney general decided not to defend the State Commission on Judicial Conduct from a lawsuit filed by Justice of the Peace Dianne Hensley of Waco.

The commission, which is charged with disciplining Texas judges, issued a public warning to Hensley in November as a result of her refusal to officiate same-sex marriages. The members of the commission concluded that this stance casts doubt on her capacity to act impartially to LGBTQ Texans who might appear in her courtroom.

Its a relatively light punishment, which carries no fine. Still, Hensleys attorneys argue that it violates her rights under the Texas Religious Freedom Restoration Act.

By investigating and punishing Judge Hensley for acting in accordance with the commands of her Christian faith, the Commission and its members have substantially burdened the free exercise of her religion, with no compelling justification, they write, in their petition.

On HoustonChronicle.com: AG Ken Paxton sidesteps gay marriage case that conflicts with his beliefs

In a statement, spokesman Marc Rylander indicated that the attorney general agrees with this.

We believe judges retain their right to religious liberty when they take the bench, Rylander said.

Paxton was bound to sympathize with an elected official such as Hensley. He is also a Christian conservative, and a critic of the 2015 Supreme Court ruling, Obergefell v. Hodges, that struck down remaining state-level bans on marriage equality. After that case was decided, he issued an opinion asserting that Texas judges who have religious objections to same-sex marriages cannot be compelled to officiate them, and pledging to stand with any who might be pressured to do so.

While Paxtons position in the SCJC case is consistent, that doesnt make it a good decision. As attorney general, Paxton is charged with defending state agencies in court, and this isnt the first time he has declined to do so: in 2018 he declined to represent the Texas Ethics Commission after it was sued by his political allies at the advocacy group Empower Texans.

Also troubling is that the news marks the third time in two months that Paxton has publicly taken issue with the very Texans he is sworn to represent.

In December, his office sent a letter to the city of Galveston, taking issue with a couple of 2003 city ordinances related to guns  one of which prohibited gun stores from locating within 200 feet of schools, public parks, or places of worship, and one which limited the noise level of gun ranges.

In the letter, Assistant Attorney General Cleve Doty asserted that both ordinances violate state law, and demanded their repeal.

Rather than file litigation now, we are confident that the City of Galveston intends to comply, Doty wrote, somewhat menacingly.

And the city did go along with the states demands, voting in January to scrap the offending ordinances rather than face an expensive court fight.

His office also suffered a legal defeat Friday when a judge sided with Harris County over the state and ruled that a county lawsuit against ExxonMobil after an Aug. 1 chemical fire could proceed. The state has been jockeying with the county over which should take the lead on environmental suits.

On HoustonChronicle.com: Galveston repeals gun regulations after AGs letter

In addition, Paxton began the year by kicking Planned Parenthood out of the State Employee Charitable Campaign, which allows state employees to make payroll donations to various nonprofit organizations.

That didnt come as a shock to womens health advocates. Last year, lawmakers adopted a measure, Senate Bill 22, which stipulates that a governmental entity may not enter into a taxpayer resource transaction with an abortion provider or an affiliate of an abortion provider language that is subject to interpretation by reproductive rights skeptics.

In a Jan. 2 opinion, Paxton argued, as advocates predicted he might, that payroll donations under the program qualify as taxpayer resource transactions, and that Planned Parenthood should therefore get the boot.

Christian conservatives cheered that news, as well as Paxtons decision to tacitly side with Hensley in her lawsuit.

His strong-arming of the city of Galveston, though, is impossible to defend as a matter of sincere religious belief.

And more importantly, Paxton doesnt just represent conservatives, or Christians.

The attorney general is supposed to be serving all Texans, and he's not doing that, says Angela Hale, a senior advisor to Equality Texas.

Paxton, it should be said, is not solely responsible for the politicization of the attorney generals office. In a sense, he is simply following in the footsteps of his predecessor, Greg Abbott, who served three terms as the states chief law enforcement officer before deciding to run for governor in 2014.

As attorney general, Abbott famously took pride in his record of picking fights with the federal government, particularly during the presidency of Barack Obama, a Democrat. And both Abbott and Paxton seem to have turned their sights on other adversaries since the election of Donald Trump, a Republican, in 2016.

But the other adversaries most readily available are Texans  including, in these examples, state employees, a state agency, and a local government. And while it might be shrewd politics for Paxton to pick these fights with his constituents, they might have a different perspective.

erica.grieder@chron.com
YEREVAN, FEBRUARY 1, ARMENPRESS. The economic activity index of Armenia amounted to 7.8% in 2019. This is the highest record since the index started to be calculated in Armenia, year 2011, Minister of Economy Tigran Khachatryan told ARMENPRESS.

Its good news that the growth of industry effected economic activity. The growth of industrial output amounted to 9%, the Minister said.

According to Tigran Khachatryan, this growth is mainly conditioned by exports. Increase of export of cognac surpassed 26% in 2019. The export growth of wines is also impressive  75% for fruit wines and 26% for grape wines. Chocolate is one of the most rapidly developing directions, the export of which rose by 14.2%.

The Minister of Economy also presented other economic indexes, particularly, he noted that construction has grown by 4.6%, services have grown by 15%, tourism gas grown by 15% based on preliminary examinations.

Speaking about the GDP for 2019, the Minister noted that they have not summed it up yet, but according to their assessments, it will exceed the recent forecasts, which means that economic growth of 2019 will be around 8%.

To the question what forecasts he can make for 2020, Minister Khachatryan said, ''I will refrain from making forecasts now, but I will reassure that our Government is committed to do its best in the framework of its economic policy in order we record economic results in 2020 that will be in line with the results of 2019, continuing to secure predictable, stable and equal environment for all participants in economic life, he said.

Edited and translated by Tigran Sirekanyan
Chiang Wei Sheng, 19, pleaded guilty last month to three out of six charges of insulting the modesty of a woman. (Yahoo News Singapore file photo)

SINGAPORE  A 19-year-old polytechnic student who took upskirt photos of six victims was sentenced to 18 months probation on Friday (31 January).

As part of his sentence, Chiang Wei Sheng has to perform 150 hours of community service and must remain indoors from 10pm to 6am. He also cannot own a phone with a camera function.

The Singaporean had pleaded guilty last month to three out of six charges of insulting the modesty of a woman. The remaining counts were considered in sentencing.

Caught red-handed at MRT station

On 9 April last year, Chiang stood behind a woman in a pink dress while going up an escalator at Sembawang MRT Station at about 8.30am. He held his mobile phone underneath the victims dress with the camera facing upwards and took multiple photos.

When the victim felt something brush against her right inner thigh, she turned around and saw what the culprit was doing. The victim confronted Chiang and alerted the MRT station master, who called the police to arrest the perpetrator.

A forensic analysis of his phone found upskirt photos of five other victims. Chiang stored the photos in an encrypted app on his phone and used the photos to pleasure himself.

Chiang had filmed one of the victims on 21 March last year at Jurong East MRT Station at about 5.05pm while she was going up the stairs.

He photographed another victim a week later on 27 March at Singapore Expo at about 4.10pm while she was going up the escalator.

Suspended by polytechnic

For each proceeded charge of insulting the modesty of a woman, Chiang could have been jailed for up to one year and also fined.

Chiang has been suspended for two semesters by Nanyang Polytechnic following internal disciplinary proceedings.

Other Singapore stories:

Ministerial statements on Wuhan virus outbreak to be delivered in Parliament on Monday

Wuhan virus: MTI, MOH issue correction directions over fake news

Wuhan virus: MOE urges those on leave to be 'responsible'
Maldives has rejoined the Commonwealth, bringing the total number of nations in the global organisation to 54, it has been announced.

The change came into effect at one minute past midnight on Saturday February 1  just over an hour after the UK left the EU.

The republic quit the Commonwealth in 2016 after being threatened with suspension over its human rights record and lack of progress on democratic reform.

President Ibrahim Ibu Mohamed Solih, a campaigner for democracy during decades of autocratic rule who was elected in 2018, pledged change and swiftly applied to rejoin.

The island nation has been readmitted after showing evidence of functioning democratic processes and popular support for being part of the family of nations.

President @ibusolih attends function to mark World Human Right Day 2019 pic.twitter.com/6xBrYUcZMB  The President's Office (@presidencymv) December 10, 2019

Commonwealth Secretary-General Baroness Scotland, announcing the decision, said: I warmly congratulate Maldives on its successful application.

We are delighted to welcome the country and its people back to the Commonwealth.

The reform process under way in Maldives aligns with the values and principles of the Commonwealth and we encourage the nation to continue on this path.

Commonwealth members were pleased to note these developments and are happy once again to count Maldives as a member of the family.

Together we will support Maldives to realise its ambitions.

Baroness Scotland consulted the other Commonwealth nations, who all had to agree to Maldives readmission for it to go ahead.

Famed for its sandy white beaches and luxury tourist resorts, the Indian Ocean archipelago  home to around 500,000 people  is formed of nearly 1,200 islands, most of them uninhabited.

Story continues

Many resorts in the Maldives need to be reached by seaplane. With unbeatable window seat views like this, the seaplane ride itself is a remarkable adventure. : aburrn via IG#Maldives #VisitMaldives #SunnySideofLife pic.twitter.com/4IW5j3pyUg  Visit Maldives (@visitmaldives) January 23, 2020

During his election campaign, Mr Solih vowed to promote human rights and, since his surprise win, political prisoners have been freed and exiled opposition figures have returned to the islands.

Within months of taking power, he wrote to the Commonwealth Secretary-General expressing interest in rejoining the Commonwealth, before making an official application.

Mr Solih said: Today is a happy day for Maldivians as we return to the family of Commonwealth nations.

As a young democracy, the Commonwealths foundational values of the promotion of democracy, human rights, good governance, multilateralism and world peace remain relevant to us more than ever.

We gratefully acknowledge the support and help of the Commonwealth to the Maldivian democratic movement, and we look forward to the support of fellow member states to ensure the long-term entrenchment of these values in our society.

The country faced an assessment including two site visits and consultations in accordance with the rules and procedures agreed by the Commonwealth Heads of Government in Kampala in 2007.

The Queen, head of the Commonwealth, and Commonwealth Secretary-General Baroness Scotland (right) with Commonwealth leaders in 2018 (Yui Mok/PA)

In 2016, the Maldives government quit the global body under former president Yameen Abdul Gayoom, saying it had been treated unjustly and unfairly.

The country had been threatened with sanctions including suspension if it failed to show progress in key democratic governance issues, including the prompt release of political leaders and misuse of anti-terrorism legislation.

Mr Yameen, who was elected in 2013, was accused of a crackdown on political rivals, courts and the media.

But he was replaced by opposition leader Mr Solih in a shock result in elections in 2018.

The islands, which became a multi-party democracy in 2008 after decades of autocratic rule, had been in political turmoil since its first democratically-elected president, Mohamed Nasheed, announced his resignation in 2012.

It followed a mutiny by the police and weeks of demonstrations against his order to arrest the senior judge. He later said he was forced out in a coup.

All member countries of the Commonwealth must subscribe to the values and principles of the Commonwealth Charter, including a commitment to the development of free and democratic societies and the promotion of peace and prosperity.

Maldives, which last joined the Commonwealth in 1982, will now be part of the Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting (CHOGM) in Kigali, Rwanda, in June.

The Queen is the symbolic head of the Commonwealth, and more than 2.4 billion citizens make up the voluntary association.
Michelle Bridges has reportedly sold her apartment in Potts Point, Sydney.

The 49-year-old is said to have sold the unit in 2019 for around $6 million, after purchasing it for $2.9 million in 2013, The Sunday Telegraph reports.

Last month, Michelle announced her split from her partner Steve 'Commando' Willis, after she was allegedly caught drink driving in Sydney on Australia Day.

Sold! Michelle Bridges (pictured) has 'sold her home in Potts Point, Sydney for around $6 million' - after purchasing it for $2.9 million in 2013, The Sunday Telegraph reports

Michelle first purchased the three bedroom unit in Sydney's east with ex-husband Bill Moore in 2013, before their split in early 2015.

The property was later transferred solely into Michelle's name in 2016.

It boasts three bedrooms, two bathrooms and stunning views of Sydney's CBD.

History: The three bedroom unit was transferred into Michelle's name only in 2016, after she first purchased it with ex-husband Bill Moore in 2013. Pictured: The lounge

Deal: According to The Sunday Telegraph, Michelle sold the unit in Sydney's east off-market late last year for approximately $6 million, but is yet to settle. Pictured: One of the bedrooms

According to The Sunday Telegraph, Michelle sold the unit off-market late last year for approximately $6 million, but is yet to settle.

The Biggest Loser star has a second home in NSW's Southern Highlands.

On January 26, Michelle was allegedly caught over the limit with a child in the car on New South Head Road, in the Sydney suburb of Bellevue Hill, at around 11.25am.

'Country life': The Biggest Loser star has a second home in NSW's Southern Highlands

Candid: Last month, Michelle announced her split from her partner Steve 'Commando' Willis (pictured), after she was allegedly caught drink driving in Sydney on Australia Day

While describing her actions as 'inexcusable', she revealed in the wake of her arrest that she had been dealing with 'emotional turmoil' following her split from long-term partner Steve, whom she met on The Biggest Loser.

'I would like to express my deep regret for breaking the law, this was a terrible mistake and an error of judgement,' she told The Daily Telegraph.

Michelle and Steve met while filming The Biggest Loser in 2007, at a time when they were both in relationships with other people.

They began dating in 2015, after splitting from their partners, and have a son, Axel.
Source: Xinhua| 2020-02-02 06:27:43|Editor: yan

Video Player Close

HELSINKI, Feb. 1 (Xinhua) -- Finnish Minister for Development Cooperation and Foreign Trade Ville Skinnari on Saturday underlined the importance of the freight rail connection between Finland and China for Nordic cooperation.

Skinnari said so when commenting on Finnish national radio Yle the discussions at the Arctic Frontier conference in Tromso, Norway this week.

The minister said that Norwegian and Swedish industries are interested in cooperation in logistics with Finland. "This cooperation has now been prepared. They want to deliver products to China and Russia on rail, and now we have this channel for fast delivery of products down to China by train."

Noting said that it is strategically important that Nordic countries "view together the transportation alternatives", Skinnari said "when speed in transports to East matters, then Finland is the solution."

He said the trains are important especially for highly developed products that have to be transported fast.

Train services between southeastern Finnish city of Kouvola and northwestern Chinese city of Xi'an were opened in 2017.

Jukka Holsa, Vice President Logistics at UPM Forest Products Company, said earlier to Finnish media that UPM follows with interest the development of the rail route connecting Kouvola to China. He said UPM has used the rail route a few times so far and everything went according to the plans.

"Our expectations and demands were met," he said.

In Kouvola, a freight terminal is under construction that will be able to handling the loading and offloading of trains more than a kilometer long. The city has said that the terminal will serve the connections both to China and Russia.

Besides Kouvola, container rail freight from Finland to China is also handled at Vuosaari, Helsinki, by logistics company John Nurminen.
The monks, from the Drepung Gomang Monastery in India, have been visiting the Keys for the last week. "Drifter" was released into the Atlantic Ocean off an Islamorada resort after an hour-long ceremony performed by the monks, each an ordained student of the Dalai Lama. Ritual chants aspired that the turtle and other animals enjoy long lives.
FILE PHOTO: Company's logo is seen on Ararat Park Hyatt Moscow hotel in central Moscow

(Reuters) - Hyatt <H.N> said it was extending its cancellation policy for Chinese travellers and hotels by nearly three weeks to Feb. 29 amid the coronavirus epidemic.

The extension will apply to guests from mainland China, Hong Kong, Macau and Taiwan looking to stay at any Hyatt hotel globally, the hotel group said on its official WeChat account on Saturday.

The policy allows guests who had booked stays through Hyatt's official channels and are cancelling due to coronavirus or Chinese guests outbound to its Asia Pacific hotels, to cancel or change dates free of charge. The cancellation policy was initially offered for bookings made up to Feb. 10.

Customers that had booked to stay at Hyatt hotels in mainland China, Hong Kong, Macau and Taiwan can also cancel or change their reservations free of charge, it said.

Shangri-la Hotels <0069.HK> also said on Saturday it would allow travellers from China to cancel hotel bookings through Feb. 29. Customers booked into its Chinese hotels can also cancel free of charge, it said in a statement posted on WeChat.

And Chinas Meituan Dianping <3690.HK> said it would extend a free refunds policy for hotel reservations on its travel booking platform, also until the end of February.

(Reporting by Aishwarya Nair in Bengaluru and Brenda Goh in Shanghai; Editing by Clelia Oziel)
The facts will come out in all of their horror, Schiff said in his closing remarks. The documents the president is hiding will come out. The witnesses the president is concealing will tell their stories. And we will be asked why we didnt want to hear that information when we had the chance.
Princess Eugenie was spotted visiting the hairdressers in West London on Friday, following the news that her sister Beatrice will get married in London.

The royal, 29, donned a chic printed shirt as she headed into Hari's Hairdressers for a new brunette look.

On Friday it was reported that Princess Beatrice will not be following in her sister's footsteps by tying the knot in Windsor, after Her Majesty The Queen invited her to host her wedding reception at Buckingham Palace.

Casual: Princess Eugenie was spotted visiting the hairdressers in West London on Friday, following the news that her sister Beatrice will get married in London

Eugenie looked effortlessly chic in skinny black jeans and an oversized printed shirt as she headed into the salon to transform her hairstyle.

She teamed the casual look with white trainers and a matching black coat as she enjoyed the low-key outing.

On Friday it was reported by The Daily Mail's Richard Eden that The Queen has stepped in to give her beloved granddaughter Beatrice a huge morale boost following her father Andrew's recent stepping down from royal duties.

Her Majesty has offered to hold Beatrice's wedding reception at Buckingham Palace later this year.

Low-key: The royal donned a chic printed shirt as she headed into Hari's Hairdressers for a new brunette look

Out and about: Eugenie was spotted visiting Hari's Hairdressers in Chelsea, West London, following reports that her sister Beatrice will be tying the knot in London

One friend said: 'Bea was delighted and very grateful to accept.

'It was a really special gesture as it will be the first wedding celebration at Buckingham Palace since William and Catherine's in 2011.'

All three subsequent royal weddings have been in Windsor. Beatrice's sister Princess Eugenie tied the knot in 2018 at St George's Chapel, with a reception at the castle.

Prince Harry and Meghan Markle had exchanged vows there earlier that year.

Sweet: On Friday it was reported by The Daily Mail's Richard Eden that The Queen has offered to hold Beatrice's wedding reception at Buckingham Palace later this year (pictured with husband-to-be Edoardo Mapelli Mozzi)

Kind: 'It was a really special gesture as it will be the first wedding celebration at Buckingham Palace since William and Catherine's in 2011,' a friend said (the Queen pictured last month)

And Lady Gabriella Windsor married businessman Thomas Kingston at St George's Chapel last year.

Beatrice's wedding to property developer Edoardo Mapelli Mozzi will be held in Central London, but the location has still not been finalised.

Beatrice and Edoardo have many friends and the Chapel Royal or Queen's Chapel would be too small.

The most likely choice was the Guards' Chapel at Wellington Barracks, but that could be troublesome because the Duke of York's role as Colonel of the Grenadier Guards appears to be in doubt.

Exciting: This will be the first wedding celebration at Buckingham Palace since William and Catherine's in 2011

The Daily Mail Diary disclosed last month Andrew would not appear with his regiment at Trooping the Colour in June after his catastrophic Newsnight interview.

A courtier said: 'Her Majesty does not want Beatrice to suffer in any way from the troubles her father is enduring.'

It comes after a royal biographer claimed Beatrice and Eugenie will take on more prominent roles in The Firm after Prince Harry and Meghan Markle's departure.

Robert Lacey, who is the historical consultant for The Crown, said the sisters will 'be brought forward' because it's 'what the royal family needs' after the Duke, 35, and Duchess of Sussex, 38, decided to step back from royal life.

Beatrice and Eugenie are not currently considered to be senior working royals, because they do not carry out duties full time on behalf of the Queen.

Speaking to Hello!, Robert revealed the sisters would be 'brought forward' if they were willing to be, saying: 'If two go out, two have got to come in, and those two have got to be Beatrice and Eugenie.'

The royal biographer called it 'a consequence' of the Duke and Duchess of Sussexes' decision that Princess Beatrice and Eugenie would step forward and be welcomed.

He added: 'It's what the family needs as it's another 15 years before Prince George's generation steps up.'

Robert went on to call it 'ironic' because Prince Harry mentioned his cousins as models for how he wants to live.

The sisters, who are ninth and tenth in line to the throne, both have full time jobs, and do not receive cheques from the Sovereign Grant, the government-supported fund that finances Queen Elizabeth II's official duties.
A Middletown resident described as obviously impaired crashed her sport utility vehicle through two security checkpoints near Mar-a-Lago in Palm Beach, Fla., on Friday during a high-speed chase with police, according to authorities.

Law enforcement said the actions did not appear to be an intentional attack on President Donald Trumps resort. The president was not at the resort at the time, but was scheduled to arrive later in the day Friday.

Authorities identified the driver, who was arrested, as 30-year-old Hannah Roemhild.

Palm Beach County Sheriff Ric Bradshaw said Roemhild was not even remotely close to getting to the inner perimeter of the Palm Beach resort. Bradshaw said Roemhild was obviously impaired.

Roemhild first came on law enforcement radar prior to the Mar-a-Lago incident after an off-duty Florida Highway Patrol officer working private security at a hotel went over to Roemhilds SUV when he noticed the driver was acting erratically.

Roemhild allegedly refused to acknowledge the officer and put her vehicle in reverse and tried to drive away. Bradshaw said the trooper smashed the window and tried to grab the steering wheel, but Roemhild was able to drive away.

Major Robert Chandler of the Florida Highway Patrol said Roemhild led officer on a high-speed pursuit.

The pursuit ended when Roemhild crashed through two checkpoints near Mar-a-Lago and was speeding toward a third when sheriffs deputies and Secret Service agents fired numerous bullets at the SUV.

Roemhild kept driving, police said, and picked up a possible relative before authorities found her car using a license plate reader.

When police tracked her down, Bradshaw said, Roemhild ran from her car outside a nearby motel and was tackled by a trooper.

Bradshaw said Roemhild will face charges of assault on a federal officer, deadly assault on two sheriffs deputies and traffic charges.

This isnt the first time a Connecticut resident has been tied up in an incident involving a president or presidential property.

In November 2015, Stamford resident Joseph Caputo jumped over the White House fence and ran toward the building before Secret Service ordered him to get down on the ground and he complied. The 22-year-old later claimed he had not intended harm to the president and just wanted to share his thoughts on the country with him.

Back in October 2013, 34-year-old Miriam Carey, of Woodside Green in Stamford, was shot and killed after she tried to ram her car into a White House security barrier and led police on a high-speed chase past the Capitol with her 18-month-old daughter in the vehicle.

This story includes reporting from the Associated Press.
TWIN FALLS  We say rock chuck. They say groundhog.

But are we talking about the same marmot? Not so much.

Punxsutawney Phil  the plump prognosticator of spring  will repeat his annual Groundhog Day ritual Sunday as he wakes from his winter slumber in his namesake town in Pennsylvania.

After the furry varmint sees his shadow  or not  a dozen town dignitaries wearing top hats will parade Phil in front of thousands of onlookers, congratulating themselves for yet another successful spectacle.

But Phils predictions have been wrong 60% of the time since the 1887 start of his career at Gobblers Knob, just outside of Punxsutawney, according to the National Oceanic Atmospheric Administration.

Perhaps we in Idaho should introduce the Punxsutawney top hats to Phils cousins, our rock chucks.

The two rodents are not the same, although they share some vernacular names. For instance, groundhogs and rock chucks are called whistle pigs because they both make a whistling sound to warn others of danger.

The two belong to the family of large ground squirrels called marmots. Rock chucks are the yellow-bellied marmot, while groundhogs are, well, groundhogs. Physically, the two are similar  so similar, its hard to distinguish one from the other unless the rock chucks yellow belly is showing.

The easiest way to tell the two apart is by their habitat. Rock chucks are found in the mountainous regions of the West; groundhogs are found in lowlands of the Eastern U.S. and in Canada.

Predicting springs arrival

Just how did the groundhog get roped into this prediction predicament? The tradition came from European folklore that forecasts an early spring if the sky is cloudy on Feb. 2. If the sun shines, however, winter will last another six weeks.

Germans put a twist on the legend by saying the arrival of spring would be postponed if a badger saw his shadow on Feb. 2. Centuries ago, Germans immigrated to Pennsylvania, bringing the tradition with them  but instead of a badger, they adopted the local marmot for forecasting duty.

The groundhog legends theory has some merit, despite the rodents proven inability to predict the weather.

Marmots spend much of their time under the ground and arent particularly fond of the hot sun  so its understandable that the shy animal would dive back into its burrow at the first sight of bright sunlight. But whether that means six more weeks of winter is up for debate.

The longheld tradition is likely to continue unless the People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals have their way.

In a recent letter to the Punxsutawney Groundhog Club, the president of PETA pleaded for mercy for the marmot, suggesting an animatronic meteorologist should replace Phil.

Times change. Traditions evolve. Its long overdue for Phil to be retired, Ingrid Newkirk wrote in the letter. By creating an AI Phil, you could keep Punxsutawney at the center of Groundhog Day but in a much more progressive way.

Or maybe we could offer them a rock chuck.

Love 1 Funny 1 Wow 0 Sad 0 Angry 2
Yemen's Huthi rebels are in possession of new weapons similar to those produced in Iran, according to a UN report obtained by AFP on Friday, in potential violation of a UN arms embargo.

The crisis in Yemen pits the Iranian-backed Huthi rebels against government forces supported by a Saudi-led military coalition.

Some of the new weapons, which the rebels have possessed since 2019, "have technical characteristics similar to arms manufactured in the Islamic Republic of Iran," said the report, which was compiled by a panel of UN experts tasked with monitoring the embargo.

The panel didn't say whether the weapons were delivered to the Huthis directly by the Iranian government, which has repeatedly denied sending them arms.

"In addition to the previously known weapon systems, they used a new type of Delta-design uncrewed aerial vehicle and a new model of land attack cruise missile," the document said.

The weapons, as well as commercially available parts constituting some of the weapons, potentially violated the embargo, according to the document.

The experts separately added that the Huthi rebels' claim that they carried out the attacks against two key Saudi oil installations on September 14 was "unlikely."



Several countries, including the United States, have ruled out the Huthis' ability to conduct such an attack, and instead accused Iran, which has denied involvement.

The panel additionally said that it had identified a "Huthi network involved in the repression of women who oppose the Huthis, including through the use of sexual violence."



"Violations of international humanitarian law and international human rights law continued to be widely committed by all parties in Yemen with impunity," the report said.

The war in Yemen has claimed tens of thousands of lives, most of them civilians, according to non-governmental groups.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
Tiny pieces of plastic, many of them shed from synthetic clothing, are nearly ubiquitous in the waters off the Oregon coast, and they are having harmful effects on one species that acts as a bellwether for the marine ecosystem.

Mole crabs, more popularly known as sand crabs, have seen increased rates of mortality and lower reproductive success after ingesting these microplastics, according to a new study from Dorothy Horn, a Ph.D. candidate in Portland State Universitys Earth, Environment and Society program.

"We don't eat them, but they're a bright blinking light for, 'there's a problem in this area,' " Horn said in a statement. "When pollutants affect sand crabs, it's also affecting most organisms around it in that ecosystem."

In November, a different group of researchers from the university found that microplastics were being ingested by numerous organisms up and down the Oregon coast, including razor clams and oysters. Of the 300 specimens collected, all but two contained microplastics. found an average of 11 pieces of microplastic in each specimen, with the foreign materials primarily consisting of microfibers, which can be cast off of synthetic textiles  yoga pants, fleece and other active wear  as they go through washing machine cycles.

These microfilaments can be shed from clothing, up to 700,000 per load of laundry, said Britta Baechler, a student in the universitys Earth, Environment and Society program, who conducted the previous research. Those particles then travel out through greywater into wastewater and to the coast.

For Horns study, she first analyzed the concentrations of microplastics found on 19 Oregon beaches. Mimicking those conditions in a lab setting, she found that as the crabs internalized more of the plastic, mortality rates went up while the amount of time the animals could hold viable eggs went down. An increase in internalized plastic also changed the development rate of crab embryos, she found.

Sand crabs eat by filtering small particles from the water and are considered in indicator species as their health can give signs about the well-being of the ecosystem. They are also common prey for shorebirds, fish and some marine mammals and Horn said she worries that any negative impacts to the shellfish could work its way up the food chain.

"We've proved it's causing them harm, and it can have harmful effects on these other organisms," she said.

Love 0 Funny 0 Wow 0 Sad 0 Angry 0
Beijing, Feb 1 : The deadly coronavirus outbreak that has claimed 259 lives in China so far has led the iPhone maker to shut all its stores and offices in mainland China till February 9, the media reported on Saturday.

Apple is no longer just closing one store in China over coronavirus worries -- Apple is closing them all.

The Cupertino-headquartered giant said in a statement on Saturday: "Our thoughts are with the people most immediately affected by the Coronavirus and with those working around the clock to study and contain it." This comes at a time when the deadly novel coronavirus that originated in China is spreading panic worldwide and Chinese authorities have confirmed that the death toll from the coronavirus in the country has increased to 259, with 11,791 infected cases in 31 provincial-level regions.

However, it is not clear yet if the iPhone maker's Chinese factories, run by Foxconn, will also be downing shutters and more factory workers dismissed.

As of Tuesday, Foxconn told us it would still be operating on a holiday schedule and didn't anticipate any impact in production, according to a report in the The Verge.

Earlier this week Apple CEO Tim Cook said that the company has closed one of its retail stores in the Asian giant and has restricted employees' business travel to the country.

Cook said that Apple is working very closely with its team and partners in the affected areas, and have limited travel to business critical situations "as of last week".

"The situation is emerging and we're still gathering lots of data points and monitoring it very closely. As Luca (Apple CFO Luca Maestri) had mentioned, we have a wider than usual revenue range for the second quarter due to the greater uncertainty," Cook told analysts during the earnings call on Tuesday.

Apple registered double-digit growth for iPhones in mainland China in its fiscal 2020 first quarter that ended on December 28, 2019.

The company also had double-digit growth in services in mainland China and extremely strong double-digit on Wearables.

According to Cook, the company does have some suppliers in the Wuhan area -- the epicentre of the coronavirus outbreak.

Meanwhile, Apple supplier Foxconn has warned staffers who were in Taiwan for the Chinese New Year not to return to its Wuhan plant.

According to a previous report in AppleInsider, Foxconn facility in Wuhan "could quickly become overrun with an outbreak, potentially putting workers at unnecessary risk and effectively shutting down production".

In addition to asking many employees to stay at home, the Taiwanese multinational electronics contract manufacturing firm has also enhanced employee health monitoring at the Wuhan factory.

Latest updates on Coronavirus (COVID-19)
Indias government led by Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Saturday presented the budget for fiscal 2020-21, vowing to boost income of Indians and their purchasing power, in a bid to revive domestic economic growth that has slumped.

Unveiling the financial roadmap for the coming year, Indian Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman announced a multi-billion dollar package of farm and infrastructure support in its budget, blowing past its fiscal deficit target for the year.

However, the stimulus fell short of market expectations and battered stocks, reported Reuters.

India estimates economic growth this fiscal year, which ends on March 31, will slip to 5% - its weakest pace since the global financial crisis of 2008-09, it stated.

Sitharaman later unveiled new infra road map to lend a cutting edge to flagship National Infra Pipeline (NIP) scheme.

To augment India's infrastructure and create jobs, the government has launched Rs103 lakh crore infra projects besides providing about Rs1.7 lakh crore for transport infrastructure and accelerating highways construction, stated Sitharaman, while presenting the Union Budget 2020-21 in Parliament.

Sitharaman said focus is on infrastructure for economic development and 6,500 projects across sectors under NIP envisions ease of living for citizens, according to Economic Times.

"In his Independence Day speech 2019, Prime Minister had highlighted that Rs100 lakh crore would be invested on infrastructure over the next 5 years. As a follow-up measure, I had launched the NIP on December 31, 2019 of Rs103 lakh crore," stated the minister.

"It consists of more than 6500 projects across sectors and are classified as per their size and stage of development," observed Sitharaman.

About Rs 22,000 crore has already been provided, as support to Infrastructure Pipeline, she added.

According to her, nearly Rs2.83 trillion ($39.82 billion) will be allocated for agriculture and allied activities including helping farmers set up solar power generation units as well as establish a national cold storage to transport perishables.

Farm markets need to be liberalized, farming need to be made more competitive said the minister.

Following her budget speech, Modi came out in appreciation of Sitharaman for presenting her second Union Budget on Saturday, calling it "visionary" and "action packed". Unemployment has been a major concern for the government, for which it has faced the opposition's criticism. "The main areas of employment are agriculture, infrastructure, textiles and technology. In order to generate employment, these four areas have been given great emphasis in this budget," remarked Modi. He said that with its efforts of doubling the income of the farmer, 16 action points have been created which will work to increase employment in rural areas. "Integrated approach to agriculture was adopted in the Budget, which along with traditional methods will increase value addition in Horticulture, Fisheries, Animal Husbandry and also increase employment," said Modi. Income and investment were the two words he emphasised upon in his post-Budget speech, adding that the Budget will help Indians achieve their aspirations. "We have made several special efforts in this Budget to promote employment generation in the field of technology. Several policy initiatives have been taken for areas such as new smart cities, electronic manufacturing, data centre parks, biotechnology and quantum technology," said Modi. He added, through such efforts India can become a key part of global value chain, something the economic survey also talked about. He also talked about the importance his government attaches to the industry. "Due to the removal of dividend distribution tax, Rs25,000 crore will come in the hands of companies, which will help them in further investment," he said. Modi added that various tax concessions have been given to attract outside investment to India. He further stressed that tax benefits have been given for start-ups and real estate sector. He said his government continues to believe in "minimum government, maximum governance".

Sitharaman pointed out that the government will spend $50.65 billion on a federal water scheme to address the challenges facing one of the worlds most water stressed nations.

Agriculture accounts for 15% of Indias gross domestic product and a source of livelihood for more than half of the countrys 1.3 billion population.

Terming the budget growth-oriented, Road Transport and Highways Minister Nitin Gadkari said it has given a massive boost to investment in infrastructure, which in turn would help revive industrial production and generate employment opportunities, crating more that 2 crore jobs.

These new projects will include housing, safe drinking water, access to clean and affordable energy, health-care, educational institutes, railway stations, airports, bus terminals, metro and railway transportation, logistics and warehousing and irrigation projects, stated the minister.

The National Infrastructure Pipeline envisions improving the ease of living for each individual citizen in the country, she said and added it will bring in generic and sectoral reforms in development, operation and maintenance of these infrastructure projects.

Also she said: "I propose to provide about Rs 1.70 lakh crore for transport Infrastructure in 2020-21."

The FM emphasised that a huge employment opportunity exists for India's youth in construction, operation and maintenance of infrastructure and National Skill Development Agency will give special thrust to infrastructure-focused skill development opportunities, reported Press Trust of India.

"I propose to set up a project preparation facility for infrastructure projects. This programme would actively involve young engineers, management graduates and economists from our Universities. It is also proposed to direct all infrastructure agencies of the government to involve youth-power in start-ups. They will help in rolling out value added services in quality public infrastructure for citizens," she said.

Sitharaman announced the introduction of a new personal tax system under which she offered cuts for those ready to give up a myriad of existing tax breaks.

People have reposed faith in our economic policy, said Sitharaman to the thumping of desks in parliament. This is a budget to boost their income and enhance their purchasing power.

The government also announced higher duties on a host of imports from walnuts to automobiles and even smartphone components.

To help generate revenue, she also announced the government will reduce stakes in the countrys largest insurer Life Insurance Corporation as part of its divestment programme.

In its annual economic report, released on Friday, the government predicted that growth would rebound to 6.0% to 6.5% in the fiscal year beginning April 1, but warned that it may have to exceed its deficit target to revive growth.

Sitharaman said the Modi-led government was planning to soon release a National Logistics Policy.

Besides, accelerated development of highways will be undertaken which will include development of 2,500-km access control highways, 9,000-km of economic corridors, 2,000-km of coastal and land port roads and 2,000-km of strategic highways.

Delhi-Mumbai Expressway and two other packages would be completed by 2023 and work on Chennai-Bengaluru Expressway would also be started.

She said under electronic tolling on national highways, FASTag mechanism enables greater commercialisation of highways so that NHAI can raise more resources.

"I propose to monetise at least twelve lots of highway bundles of over 6000-km before 2024," she added.

Indian Railways, she said aims to achieve electrification of 27,000-km of tracks. Besides, more Tejas type trains will connect iconic tourist destinations and high-speed train between Mumbai to Ahmedabad would be actively pursued, reported PTI.

On ports, she said the government would consider corporatising at least one major port and subsequently its listing on the stock exchanges.

Saying Inland Waterways received a boost in the last five years, the FM announced the JalVikasMargon National Waterway-1 will be completed and further, the 890 Km Dhubri-Sadiya connectivity will be done by 2022.

Sitharaman said the government was planning to develop 100 more airports by 2024 to support Udaan scheme and it is expected that the air fleet number shall go up from the present 600 to 1,200 during this time.

She proposed "about Rs 22,000 crore to power and renewable energy sector in 2020-21."

Meanwhile, some economists have cautioned that the global trade tensions and the outbreak of coronavirus in China, which has killed more than 250 people so far, pose a new risk to economic recovery by hitting cross-border commerce and supply chains.
As many as 324 Indians, evacuated from China's Wuhan city, on Saturday reached New Delhi on board Air India's jumbo B747 aircraft and were admitted at the two quarantine facilities set up by the Army and the Indo-Tibetan Border Police, though none of them have tested positive for the novel coronavirus, officials said.

IMAGE: Doctors and other team members of the specially-prepped Air Indias B747 aircraft wait to receive the Indian students, stranded amid the coronavirus outbreak, at the airport in Wuhan, China. Photograph: PTI Photo

The plane, carrying 211 students, 110 working professionals and three minors, reached Delhi around 7.30 am, they said, adding that none of them have tested positive for the coronavirus as yet.

Another flight of the airline, which departed for the Chinese city from New Delhi around 1.37 pm to bring back Indian nationals, reached Wuhan around 5.40 pm on Saturday, the officials said.

Five doctors from the Ram Manohar Lohia (RML) Hospital, who were on board the first flight, are also in the second flight, an Air India spokesperson said.

Out of the total 324 who landed here this morning, 88 women, 10 men and six children were brought to the special quarantine facility of the ITBP in southwest Delhi's Chhawla area, ITBP spokesperson Vivek Kumar Pandey said.

IMAGE: A B747 aircraft of the Air India at the IGI Airport before its departure for coronavirus-hit city of Wuhan in China to bring back Indians, in New Delhi. Photograph: PTI Photo

The Army has also set up a quarantine facility in Manesar near Delhi to keep around 300 Indians being evacuated from China's Hubei province in view of the coronavirus infection outbreak.

Separately, border-guarding force ITBP has set up a 600-bedded facility in southwest Delhi's Chhawla area to quarantine and provide basic medical care to those suspected to have been affected by the virus.

The officials said the Indians evacuated from China will be monitored for any signs of the infection for a duration of two weeks by a qualified team of doctors and staff members.

The first flight had departed from Delhi airport at 1.17 pm on Friday to evacuate Indian nationals from China, where more than 250 people, none of them Indian, have died due to the deadly coronavirus infection.

The evacuated Indians in the plane on their way to Delhi from China's Wuhan. Photograph: ANI Photo

Out of the 324 persons that have been evacuated through first Air India flight, 56, 53 and 42 are from Andhra Pradesh, Tamil Nadu and Kerala, respectively.

Two more people suspected of being affected by coronavirus have been admitted to the isolation ward of the RML Hospital here, taking the total number of patients housed at the facility to eight, hospital authorities said.

On Friday evening, two men, aged 23 and 46 years, complained of respiratory problems and fever at the hospital which has been designated by the government to deal with such cases, they said.

IMAGE: Cockpit crew led by Amitabh Singh, Director (Operations), Air India, in the B747 aircraft. Photograph: PTI Photo

The Union Health Ministry on Saturday said passengers arriving from Thailand and Singapore will be screened at airports in addition to those coming from China and Hong Kong for possible exposure to the deadly novel coronavirus.

In Maharashtra, all 15 persons quarantined in hospitals for possible exposure to the novel coronavirus have tested negative, an official statement said.

No confirmed case of coronavirus infection has been found in the state so far.

In Gujarat, 64 persons who returned to the state recently from China are under observation at their homes, but no suspected case of coronavirus infection has been found among them so far, a senior health department official said.

IMAGE: Five doctors of RML hospital inside a B747 aircraft of the Air India to bring back Indians. Photograph: PTI Photo

Kerala Health Minister K K Shailaja said three people have been arrested in the state for spreading false information in social media on the novel coronavirus.

Meanwhile, IndiGo announced that it will suspend flights on Kolkata-Guangzhou route from February 6 to 25 due to the deadly novel coronavirus outbreak in China.

Air India and Indigo operate flights on five routes, out of these, flights on three routes -- two of Indigo and one of Air India - have been suspended.

Among all Indian airlines, only Air India and Indigo operate flights between India and China.

Wuhan, Hubei's capital, is the epicentre of the deadly coronavirus outbreak.

The virus has killed 259 people in China with total confirmed cases surging to 11,791 amid stepped up efforts by a number of countries to evacuate their nationals from Hubei province, officials said on Saturday.
Lincoln Public Schools is among the growing number of high schools in Nebraska and other states to no longer assign students a class rank.

And more and more postsecondary institutions are ditching requirements students take the ACT or SAT college entrance exams before they can gain admission.

The University of Nebraska is poised to add to its academic performance requirements, bringing the admissions practices of its undergraduate campuses more in line with both national trends.

The NU Board of Regents is slated to vote on the changes Friday, the first meeting of the governing body in 2020.

Currently, applicants to UNL, UNO or UNK must be ranked in the top 50% of their graduating high school class or achieve a composite score of 20 or higher on the ACT college entrance exam or the equivalent on the SAT.

If approved by regents, admissions officers would be able to consider the qualifications of students who have a minimum 3.0 grade-point average after their junior year of high school in lieu of both.

"This change really is in step with what's happening nationally," said Susan Fritz, NU's executive vice president and provost. "So many high schools in Nebraska and other states no longer use class rank, so we have to find another means to address academic performance."

Adding a third performance requirement also eases the pressure on students to score high on a college entrance exam, Fritz said, while ensuring they "ultimately prove themselves in some way."

The proposal that will go before regents also allows for admissions officers to give special consideration to students from low socioeconomic backgrounds, first-generation students, those graduating from high schools with historically low attendance to four-year institutions and "students who have meaningful experience gained from working with individuals from diverse backgrounds."

But it limits the number of instances special merit can be used to make admissions decisions to 25% of first-time students.

Finally, regents will consider lifting additional requirements such as the completion of core classes for transfer students carrying 24 credit hours into NU.

Fritz said the proposed changes are intended to keep NU's three undergraduate campuses open and accessible to every student who wants to pursue a college degree.

"We believe in access, and we want to cast the net broadly, want people to understand we'll do what it takes to get you to college, while acknowledging we might not all start in the same place," she said.

The changes could help NU meet some of its other goals, such as growing enrollment and meeting the workforce demands in the state.

A 2018 study by the National Association for College Admission Counseling of 28 public and private colleges found test-optional admissions policies boosted the numbers of students applying for admission and also improved the diversity of the student body.

College graduates are also more likely to earn $1 million more than those without college degrees during their lifetimes, according to a study by the Association of Public Land Grant Universities, and as much as $32,000 annually filling high-demand jobs.

Other agenda items include:

* Friday's meeting will be the first for President Ted Carter, who took office leading the NU system Jan. 1.

* Regent Jim Pillen of Columbus will succeed Regent Tim Clare of Lincoln as chairman. The board will elect a new vice chairman for 2020.

* The board will consider establishing the Nebraska Governance and Technology Center at the UNL College of Law. The center, funded through a $5.5 million grant from the Koch Foundation, will be an interdisciplinary research program "to study the relationship between technology, society and government."

* Regents will be asked to approve a data center and institutional research division in Nebraska Hall on the UNL campus.

Reach the writer at 402-473-7120 or cdunker@journalstar.com. On Twitter @ChrisDunkerLJS

Love 0 Funny 0 Wow 0 Sad 0 Angry 0
JAKARTA, Jan 31 (Reuters) - Malaysian palm oil futures fell more than 2% on Friday, heading for their biggest monthly drop in over seven years, as the coronavirus outbreak in China added to demand concerns fuelled by a diplomatic spat with India.

The benchmark palm oil contract for April delivery on the Bursa Malaysia Derivatives Exchange dropped 2.3% to 2,592 ringgit ($637.64) per tonne. The contract is down 14.9% so far this month, on track for its biggest drop since September 2012.

FUNDAMENTALS

* The death toll from the virus touched 213 on Friday and the World Health Organization (WHO) declared it a global health emergency. Worldwide confirmed cases rose to 9,820, mostly in China.

* Fall in Chicago's soyoil prices overnight also put pressure on palm prices, traders said.

* Soyoil futures on the Chicago Board of Trade fell 2.8% on Thursday but showed small recovery early on Friday. China's Dalian Commodity Exchange is closed for the Lunar New Year holidays and will open on Feb. 3.

* Palm oil is affected by price movements in related oils as they compete for a share in the global vegetable oils market.

* Palm oil may fall to 2,533 ringgit per tonne, according to Reuters technical analyst Wang Tao.

MARKET NEWS

* Asian share markets battled to regain their footing on Friday as investors clutched at hopes China could contain the coronavirus, even as headlines spoke of ever more cases and mounting deaths.

DATA/EVENTS

China NBS Manufacturing PMI Jan

France GDP Preliminary QQ Q4

France CPI (EU Norm) Prelim YY Jan

EU HICP Flash YY Jan

EU HICP-X F&E Flash YY Jan

EU GDP Flash Prelim YY, QQ Q4

US Consumption, Adjusted MM Dec

US U Mich Sentiment Final Jan

($1 = 4.0650 ringgit) (Reporting by Fransiska Nangoy; editing by Uttaresh.V)
The Senate narrowly rejected Democratic demands to summon witnesses for President Donald Trumps impeachment trial late Friday, all but ensuring Trumps acquittal in just the third trial to threaten a presidents removal in U.S. history. But senators moved to push off final voting on his fate to next Wednesday.

The delay in timing showed the weight of a historic vote bearing down on senators, despite prodding by a president eager to have acquittal behind him in an election year and ahead of his State of the Union speech Tuesday.



Trump was impeached by the House last month on charges that he abused power and obstructed Congress like no other president has done as he tried to pressure Ukraine to investigate Democratic rival Joe Biden then blocked the congressional probe of his actions.



The vote on allowing new witnesses was defeated 51-49 on a near party-line vote.

Republicans Susan Collins, of Maine, and Mitt Romney, of Utah, voted along with the Democrats for witnesses, but that was not enough.

Despite the Democrats' singular focus on hearing new testimony, the Republican majority rebuffed those demands to make this the first Senate impeachment trial without witnesses. Even new revelations Friday from former national security adviser John Bolton did not sway GOP senators, who said they'd heard enough.

That means the eventual outcome for Trump would be an acquittal in name only, said Rep. Val Demings, D-Fla., a House prosecutor, during final debate. Some Democrats called it a cover-up.

The impeachment of the president now lands squarely in an election year before a divided nation. Caucus voting begins Monday in Iowa, and Trump gives his State of the Union address the next night.

The Democrats had badly wanted testimony from Bolton, whose forthcoming book links Trump directly to the charges. But Bolton won't be summoned, and none of this appeared to affect the trial's expected outcome.

The Senate is now in recess until Monday at 11 a.m., at which time the trial will resume with closing arguments from House managers and the president's defense team. A final vote is scheduled for Wednesday at 4 p.m.
Tree planting programme highlight of Independence Day celebrations By Nadia Fazlulhaq View(s): View(s):

Independence Square is being decked up in preparation for the celebration of the countrys 72nd Independence Day, on Tuesday.

State buildings and institutions have been asked to fly the National flag from February 1-7, while the buildings should be lit up on February 3-4, according to a circular (01/2020) issued on January 25.

The circular has been sent by Public Administration Ministry secretary S Hettiarachchi to secretaries of ministries, chief secretaries of the provinces, governors and district secretaries, heads of state departments, institutions and corporations.

An islandwide tree planting programme will be the highlight on Independence Day.

At 7.29 am President Gotabaya Rajapaksa will launch the programme by planting a tree. The public is requested to plant a tree, whether it is a potted herb or a large tree like kumbuk. It is important to spread the message that trees are vital for the environment, said K G Dharmathilake, Additional Secretary (Home Affairs) of the Public Administration Ministry.

State institutions are also requested to plant a tree at 8.30 am followed by a shramadana to clean the building premises.

Religious observances will be held at the Athula Dassana International Buddhist Centre at 7 am and at the Polwatte Sri Dharmakeerthiyarama Viharaya in Kollupitiya at 6.30 am. The Mayurapathi Sri Bathrakali Amman Kovil in Colombo 6 will conduct a religious ceremony at 6.30 am, while St Marys Church in Bambalapitiya and the Baptist Church on Bagatale Road will hold services at 6.15 am. The Jumma Masjid mosque in Kollupitiya will have a ceremony at 6.25 am.

President Gotabaya Rajapaksa will be the Chief Guest at the Independence Square event. Prime Minister Mahinda Rajapaksa, ministers, deputy ministers, members of parliament, foreign envoys, senior government officials and a total of 2,500 guests will grace the event.

About 1,000 people will be able to witness the celebration while 4,325 personnel representing the Army, Navy, Air Force, Police, Civil Defence Force and National Cadet Corps will take part in the pageant.

President Rajapaksa will address the nation at 8.44 am, which will be followed by a march past including the tri-forces, Police, Civil Defence Force and the National Cadet Corps.

Thirty Sri Lanka Air Force aircraft will fly over Colombo, said Air Force Spokesman Group Captain Gihan Seneviratne.

Among the aircraft will be three supersonic F-7s, three K-8 trainer aircraft, five piston engine PT-06 used for aerobatics, one Bell 212 helicopter , three Bell 412 helicopters, three Mi -17, four Y-12, C-150, B-200 and MA 60 passenger aircraft.

Army Spokesman Brigadier Chandana Wickremasinghe said about 70 military vehicles including military tanks will be part of the parade.

Cultural dance items will add colour to the Independence Day celebrations.

About 100 school students will sing the National Anthem and Jayamangala Gatha.

Meanwhile, Independence Day rehearsals will continue today (2) and tomorrow (03) with some roads being completely closed for traffic and others with restricted traffic.
The UKs largest car manufacturer, Jaguar Land Rover (JLR), is pressing ahead with restructuring, announcing that 500 jobs (over 10 percent) will be cut at its plant in Halewood on Merseyside in north-west England

The Halewood site employs 4,000 workers on contract and 1,000 agency staff, building the Range Rover Evoque and Land Rover Discovery Sport models.

JLR, owned by Indian conglomerate Tata, employs 44,000 in Halewood, Solihull, Castle Bromwich and Wolverhampton. Outside the UK it employs 53,000 workers, in India, Ireland, Austria, Slovakia, Brazil, China and the United States.

By April, the three-shift system at Halewood will be replaced by two, eliminating the night shift and further diminishing the number of decent paying jobs left in the UKs manufacturing sectorshrunk to 10 percent of the economy. Currently, employees work an early, late or night shift. The new two-plus pattern will comprise early and late shifts, with spare capacity to increase production when necessary.

Last year, JLR announced plans to eliminate 4,500 jobs in the UK, in a 2.5 billion cost cutting exercise to offset sales which had fallen by 6 percent. Sales to China fell 50 percent, due to the slowdown in the world economy amid growing trade tensions between China and the US.

In 2018, 1,000 jobs at JLRs flagship plant in Solihull were shed while working hours were reduced at other sites due to falling demand for its diesel vehicles and more expensive sedans. Costs were reduced further when the company opened a plant in Slovakia employing 1,500 workers on lower wages.

JLR was able to report a turnaround, with pre-tax profits at 156 million for the three months to September, compared with a loss of 395 million the previous quarter, and a 90 million loss in the same period the previous year.

Like all car manufacturers globally, JLR faces increasing competition to maintain market share as the world economy teeters on recession, with falling sales and intensifying trade war spearheaded by the US.

There is anxiety and speculation concerning the kind of trade deal, if any, that Prime Minister Boris Johnson may sign with the EU by the end of this yearnow that Britain has departed the EUand the disruption it will cause to businesses.

Conservative Chancellor Sajid Javid suggested recently that companies that wish to sell vehicles in the UK will need a separate certificate, making it more costly to supply the British market.

Professor David Bailey commented on the news site BusinessLive: The firm [JLR] as a whole has faced  a perfect storm in terms of declining sales in China (as the worlds largest car market contracted after 20 years of breakneck growth), a massive shift away from diesels across Europe in the wake of the VW Dieselgate scandal, and Brexit uncertainty slowing the UK market and investment. He added: The fact that there are job cuts around two attractive models shows the scale of challenge that the firm faces.

An automotive expert at Manchester Business School, Professor Karel Williams, questioned JLRs commitment to the UK following Brexit. It is getting much harder to sell JLR 4X4s [Range Rover Evoque and Land Rover Discovery models] against intensifying competition and the company will need to  expand its  new factory in Slovakia which offers lower wages and the Euro currency inside the European Union, he said.

Though JLR denied Brexit was a factor in its decision to retrench at Halewood, Professor Williams predicted, JLRs R&D [research and development] will stay in the UK but it is increasingly attractive to assemble their vehicles inside the markets where they are sold.

Prior to Johnson reaching a deal with the EU over the terms of Brexit, car manufacturerswho favoured remaining in the EUfeared that billions would be added to the cost of importing and exporting, and the supply chain dependent on frictionless movement at the borders in order to maintain just-in-time production would suffer disruption. The Society of Motor Manufacturers and Traders (SMMT) Chief Executive, Mike Hawes, warned, A no deal Brexit would have an immediate and devastating impact on the industry, undermining competitiveness and causing irreversible and severe damage.

The SMMT is urging a future trade agreement with the EU that affords the automotive industry the benefits currently enjoyed as members of the Single Market.

To illustrate how integrated the UK car industry is with the EU, the SMMT points out that 10 percent of the UK workforce involved in car manufacture hail from countries in the EU. And in a single day, 11,000 EU trucks deliver just in time car and engine components worth 35 million to UK car plants.

While UK car companies export more than half their cars to the EU, two thirds of cars imported are built in the EU.

Speaking as would a car manufacturing CEO, Unite trade union national officer Des Quinn echoed fears of the UK abandoning EU regulations, saying, Until the government ensures that there is long-term frictionless trade and no tariffs with the EU along with meaningful investment in the infrastructure to ensure the success of electric vehicles, the UKs car industry will continue to experience severe challenges.

The response of Unite to JLRs announcement was standard for the unions in the face of attacks on jobs and conditionsto avoid any attempt to mobilise its 100,000 members in the car industry in an effective fight. Instead, they are pledged to ensuring redundancies are implemented smoothly.

Quinn said, This a further blow to the UK car industry and to our members. Unite will be ensuring that the commitment to limit job losses to voluntary redundancies is fully honoured. The company and Unite will begin the job losses process from early this month after JLR called for workers to apply for redundancy.

JLR will continue to have reliable partners in Unite, with Quinn hailing the changed shift pattern that will deliver flexibility efficiencies that longer term should benefit both employees and the company.

The New Year began with layoffs in the car industry internationally as it undergoes massive restructuring. In the US, General Motors (GM) laid off 240 workers at a plant in Indiana. Ford Motor Company has plans to temporarily lay off 270 employees at its stamping plant in Chicago Heights. The previous year, the US-based Ford Motor Company announced that five plants would close across Europe. Tens of thousands of redundancies were announced in the German car industry.

For years, auto giants like GM and Ford have been working to transform their workforce into part-time, temporary, gig employees having no job security, low pay, and few benefitsto maximise profits and gain the competitive edge over their rivals.

The car industry globally faces further challengesand workers an intensified onslaught of jobs and conditionsas it moves from internal combustion engines to electro-mobility.

Chief CEO at Volkswagen in Germany, Herbert Diess, outlined his aims to transform the company through the application of digital technology, emulating California-based electric car manufacturer Tesla, with its soaring share prices. This would involve thousands of redundancies as well as massive investment deducted not from profits but the wages and conditions of the working class.

There is a growing resurgence of working-class struggles throughout the world, including by car workers, against attacks on living conditions as social inequality soars. Workers have repeatedly shown their willingness to fight, voting overwhelmingly for strike action, which is either ignored by the unions and suppressed or quickly shut down.

In November 2018, an entire shift of car workers at the UK Vauxhall car plant at Ellesmere Port near Liverpool, a few miles from JLR at Halewood, walked out after hearing that 241 jobs were going. Vauxhall is owned by French company PSA, which also owns Peugeot and Citroen.

There is a growing awareness that the interests of workers, regardless of which country they work in, can be furthered only by an international struggle against the global corporations in rebellion against the unions. Five Mexican workers at GMs Silao Complex were recently fired when a section refused to increase production in solidarity with 47,000 US autoworkers on strike across the border.

JLR workers must turn to the building of new rank and file organizations independent of the unions in order to take their struggle forward. The WSWS invites car workers to sign up for the Autoworker Newsletter and join the fight for a united international offensive of autoworkers.
On Friday, the Trump administration announced a new wave in its blanket bans on people from certain countries. And this time around, it includes one particularly vulnerable group  and one that tends to be very successful once it arrives in the U.S.

President Trump's original travel ban was one of his first acts in office, blocking people from several countries, most of which were majority Muslim, from coming to the U.S. altogether. This newest iteration explicitly bans people from Eritrea, Kyrgyzstan, Myanmar, Nigeria, Sudan, and Tanzania from receiving immigration visas, but doesn't touch those who are just visiting temporarily. That leaves 13 total countries on the travel ban list.

The fact that the ban explicitly targets those who are here to stay is particularly confusing when it comes to Nigeria, seeing as its immigrants are among the most likely immigrants to receive college degrees once they come to the U.S. In fact, an estimated 60 percent of Nigerian immigrants to the U.S. have college degrees, as opposed to 33 percent of Americans who do, Census data has shown. Nigerian immigrants are also much more likely to hold doctorates and master's degrees.

Myanmar also stands out among this new group because, unlike every other banned country, it doesn't have a significant Muslim population. In fact, its Rohingya Muslim people faced severe persecution and rampant genocide that turned survivors into refugees.

More stories from theweek.com

Mitch McConnell's rare blunder

John Bolton just vindicated Nancy Pelosi

All the president's turncoats


Mindanao is a land that has long weathered conflict and calamity. The families in Bongao, Tawi-Tawi know this all too well. Their island province is located at the southernmost tip of the Philippines, and is one of the most remote, hard-to-reach areas in the country. Year after year, aside from dealing with armed conflict, they face the risk of being hit by natural calamities, which can devastate homes and displace hundreds of people. For the people of Mindanao, the series of earthquakes that occurred in October 2019 have put even more lives at risk, adding new displacement and suffering to a people who have already endured so much.

Brgy Lamion, Bongao, Tawi-Tawi received Multi-purpose tents, solar lamps, rechargeable flashlights, and tarpaulins that will help them in disaster response and preparedness. During the message of commitment, Municipal Social Welfare Development Officer, Barbangsa Jalaide highlighted that UNHCR and IRDT have always been among the Municipalitys partners in in providing quality response during disaster and ensuring the welfare of the vulnerable sectors.

In time for ushering in the new year, UNHCR Philippines in partnership with the local government units and Integrated Resource Development for Tri-people Inc (IRDT), reached out to this remote community in Tawi-Tawi with the equipment and skills necessary for disaster preparedness and resiliency. Tents, tarpaulins, and other core relief items that will help them prepare for disasters were delivered. Juvy Amirul, a 56 year-old community member from Brgy. Lamion, expressed her gratitude during the turnover ceremony.

If we experience calamity again, we are more prepared.

We dont have to run anywhere and look for tents.

This is only one of 30 Quick Impact Projects (QIPs) that UNHCR Philippines implemented in 2019, reaching more than 30,000 individuals. QIPs promote confidence and self-reliance among the most vulnerable families, and build peace among the internally displaced and their host communities.

30,000 individuals benefited from 30 Quick Impact Projects implemented in 2019, including remote island provinces like Basilan. Quick Impact Projects (QIPs) promote confidence and self-reliance among the most vulnerable families, and build peace among the internally displaced and their host communities. In Davao Del Norte, you have helped rehabilitate a dilapidated classroom and transform it into a space of learning for students, and a place of refuge for families who flee from emergencies. The newly rehabilitated water system in Brgy. Lumbac, Sultan Dumalondong, Lanao del Sur is one of the 30 Quick Impact Projects (QIPs) that UNHCR Philippines implemented in Mindanao in 2019. The newly installed street lights in Brgy. Lydia (Lapaz, Agusan del Sur) and the water system in Brgy. Parasanon (Maragusan, Compostela Valley) have lightened the burden of displaced families and their host communities.

The Long Road to Recovery

Much has already been done, but close to half a million individuals are still displaced in Mindanao, having fled their homes due to armed conflict, situations of generalized violence, and natural disasters. More than 130,000 of those individuals have been displaced for more than 180 days. For these men, women, and children, the road to rebuilding and recovery is a long journey  one that is filled with many challenges.

Aside from Quick Impact Projects, UNHCR Philippines delivered life-saving aid to 52,279 individuals in Mindanao in 2019, and reached 711 more through through capacity building sessions. This ensures that families have sustained assistance that will help them prepare and rebuild their futures, months or years after the emergency strikes.

The road may be long, but thanks to the generosity and support of our donors and partners, UNHCR Philippines is able to reach the most vulnerable families and ensure that they will not only survive, but also thrive and rebuild their lives in dignity and safety.

Share on Facebook Share on Twitter
Metro Manila (CNN Philippines, February 1)  A portion of Skyway Stage 3, an infrastructure project under construction in Pandacan, Manila, collapsed Saturday as a massive fire gutted a warehouse for plastic containers nearby.

Heat melted part of the foundation of the elevated expressway, causing its collapse past noon.

San Miguel Corporation said in its initial assessment the fire affected approximately 300 meters of the Skyway Stage 3 project which was expected to be completed by March this year. It will connect the South Luzon and North Luzon expressways.

Both SMC and authorities are still assessing the amount of damage to Skyway Stage 3.

However, SMC assured reconstruction and rebulding will resume at the "soonest possible time."

Meanwhile, the fire that engulfed the warehouse of the San Miguel Yamamura Packaging Corporation on Tomas Claudio Street resulted in damage worth around 15 million, according to estimates by fire officers.

"We continue to monitor developments and are ready to provide assistance to anyone directly affected by the incident. We also extend our full support and cooperation to authorities," said SMC in a statement.

The blaze broke out at around 10:38 a.m. It quickly reached Task Force Bravo at 11:05 a.m., prompting even more firetrucks to respond.

The fire was finally put out at 2:52 p.m., after almost four hours.

No casualties were reported.

Initial investigation showed that metal works inside the warehouse caused the fire.

"Sabi ng mga nakakita na guwardiya may nagwe-welding sa kanilang area kaya tumawag sila sa bumbero (The guards said they saw welding activities in the area so they called firefighters)," said Fire Supt. Roberto Samillano Jr., Manila Fire District. Deputy Marshal.

He added that the thick, black smoke that was seen billowing from the warehouse was caused by the burning raw materials used in making plastic pallets.

CNN Philippines' Crissy Dimatulac contributed to this report.
Good Morning. Here are some of the top stories from around the region. WEATHER A little bit of freezing rain out there this morning and we will see a bit of the wet stuff throughout the day. It remains cold...
Countries expanded restrictions on travellers from China over a deadly virus epidemic Friday as an official admitted that a botched response worsened an outbreak that has grown into a global health emergency.

At least 213 people have died and nearly 10,000 people have been infected in China by the new coronavirus, while new cases were found abroad with more than 20 countries now affected by the disease.

The top Communist Party official in Wuhan, the central city of 11 million people where the virus first emerged in December, said Friday he felt "remorse" because local authorities had acted too slowly.

Last week, China's central government finally jumped into action, effectively sealing off Wuhan and its surrounding Hubei province, and curbing travel across the nation of 1.4 billion people.

But the epidemic has spread far and wide as Chinese people travelled across the country and abroad over the Lunar New Year holiday that started last week.

Graphic on the different evacuations plans for foreigners in China. By (AFP)

The World Health Organization on Thursday declared the outbreak a global health emergency, but said it was not recommending any international trade or travel restrictions.

Countries nonetheless intensified travel curbs.

The United States told its citizens not to travel to China and urged those already there to leave -- drawing a sharp rebuke from China which said the move was "certainly not a gesture of goodwill."

Citing a likely "sharper rise" in the spread of the virus, Singapore's government barred arrivals and transit passengers who visited China in the past 14 days, and stopped issuing all forms of new visas to Chinese passport holders.

Mongolia will ban Chinese nationals and foreigners coming from the neighbouring country by plane, train or road from Saturday until March 2. Mongolians will be barred from going to China over the same period.

Vietnam ordered the suspension of new tourist visas for Chinese citizens and foreigners who have been in China over the last two weeks.

Japan, meanwhile, joined Britain, Germany, and other countries that have recommended that their citizens avoid China.

Flights suspended

The WHO's rare declaration allows the UN health body to issue recommendations that the international community is expected to follow.

But the UN body warned Friday that closing borders was probably ineffective in halting transmissions of the virus and could even accelerate its spread.

Commuters in masks wait to board a canal boat at Pratunam Pier in Bangkok. By Mladen ANTONOV (AFP)

China's ambassador to Geneva also said his country was controlling the outbreak and insisted there was no need for "excessive measures".

Authorities, businesses and worried people around the world have been taking matters into their own hands, with airlines and countries suspending or reducing flights with China.

The virus is believed to have originated in a market that sold wild animals in Wuhan before jumping to humans.

Wuhan officials have been criticised online for withholding information about the infection until the end of last year, despite knowing about the new illness weeks earlier.

A doctor prepares to enter the isolation ward at a hospital in Wuhan, epicentre of the virus outbreak. By STR (AFP)

"Right now I'm in a state of guilt, remorse and self-reproach," said Ma Guoqiang, the municipal Communist Party secretary for Wuhan.

"If strict control measures had been taken earlier, the result would have been better than now," he told state broadcaster CCTV.

People in China have so far directed their anger at local officials in Wuhan and Hubei but the crisis could pose a challenge to President Xi Jinping, who has called the epidemic a "demon" that China can defeat.

Countries have scrambled to evacuate their nationals from Wuhan, with hundreds of US, Japanese, British, French and South Korean citizens evacuated so far, and more countries planning airlifts.

One French evacuee was hospitalised with coronavirus symptoms.

A man wearing a mask, goggles and gloves buys beverages at a supermarket in Beijing. By NICOLAS ASFOURI (AFP)

Russia said it would evacuate more than 2,500 of its citizens holidaying on China's Hainan island, far from the epicentre of the outbreak, a day after sealing its remote far-eastern frontier.

The health crisis has also dented China's international image abroad and put Chinese people in difficult positions abroad, with Chinese communities complaining of "latent racism" in Italy.

China on Friday said it sent charter planes to Thailand and Malaysia to bring Hubei residents back to Wuhan, citing the "practical difficulties" that they have encountered overseas.

Global anxiety

In a sign of growing global anxiety, more than 6,000 tourists were temporarily confined to their cruise ship at an Italian port after two Chinese passengers fell ill.

Medical staff of the Ethiopian Ministry of Health prepare to screen passengers at Bole International Airport in Addis Ababa. By Michael Tewelde (AFP)

They later tested negative for the coronavirus.

More than 40,000 workers at a vast Chinese-controlled industrial complex in Indonesia's Sulawesi island have been quarantined, although Indonesia has not reported any cases.

Myanmar sent a plane back to China after a Chinese passenger was hospitalised with possible symptoms.

The US has reported its first case of person-to-person transmission of the virus on American soil -- a man in Chicago who got it from his wife, who had travelled to Wuhan.

Britain and Russia each reported their first two cases on Friday and Sweden announced its first infection.

The number of cases in China soared to nearly 9,700 on Friday -- exceeding the 8,096 cases from SARS (Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome), a similar pathogen that spread to more than two dozen countries in 2002-03 and killed nearly 800 people, mostly in China and Hong Kong.

burs-lth/gle/bgs/jm
An idol in a local temple here was allegedly desecrated by a mentally unstable man who was thrashed and handed over to authorities, police said.

The incident happened in Sindhawali village under Mansurpur police station area in the district on Friday, station house officer M K Chahal said.

According to Chahal, they are questioning the youth who is said to be mentally unstable.

Police has assured the devotees of getting the idol replaced soon.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
One of the guards was shot in the lower right buttock, and another suffered a light shoulder wound. The assailants were not identified, but security camera footage of the incident showed that a group of six or seven gunmen approached a job site where U.S. contractors had been installing President Trumps steel barriers during the day.
St. Marys Academy leaders have met with Tania Culver Humphrey, a 1989 graduate who says the high school failed to protect her as a teen after she disclosed sexual abuse by her father, but they have so far failed to commit to her request for an independent investigation into how they handled her allegations.

Christina Friedhoff, president of the private Catholic girls school, issued a statement to the St. Marys community after receiving an inquiry from The Oregonian/OregonLive. Friedhoffs statement didnt address whether the school would review Humphreys case.

Tania has asked us to help her understand if there were adults at St. Mary's who could have or should have done more, and we, too, want to understand what happened and any mistakes that were made, Friedhoff wrote.

We take these questions very seriously, she wrote. We are working together with Tania and her lawyer to help her find answers as well as ensure that the safeguards we have in place to protect current and future St. Mary's students are strong.

The school declined to make Friedhoff or board Chairwoman Chandra Wahrgren available for an interview.

The board last week met with Humphrey at her request. She has pressed the school to initiate an outside review into their response to her 1980s-era disclosures to teachers and staff regarding abuse by her father, prominent humanitarian and Mercy Corps co-founder Ellsworth Culver.

Humphrey, 49, who lives in Northeast Portland, estimates 10 St. Marys teachers and staff were aware of the allegations when she was a student.

The Oregonian/OregonLive last year published a 10-month investigation that found Mercy Corps knew in the early 1990s of Humphreys credible allegations of sexual abuse by Culver. The international relief organization allowed Culver to remain in a leading role for more than a decade, traveling the world on its behalf.

Mercy Corps has undertaken a review of its own mishandling of the allegations.

The news organizations investigation identified eight friends from Humphreys childhood and teen years who confirmed that Humphrey told them about the abuse at the time.

Seven of the women were Humphreys classmates at St. Marys.

Three of them said they saw Culver grope or molest her in a car or during sleepovers. Two said they saw injuries on her legs and neck that Humphrey explained were from her fathers use of force or restraints during the assaults. One friend told the news organization that she was sexually abused by Culver during her freshman year. Another said she saw photographs of nude girls in a drawer in Culvers desk at home when she was a teen.

Michelle Green, 49, said Culver sexually abused her at least 10 times. She said she did not disclose the abuse to any adult at St. Marys.

But Humphrey told teachers and staff about her own experience.

One teacher acknowledged in an email exchange with The Oregonian/OregonLive last year that she failed to report Humphreys disclosure to the state. She said she deeply regrets her inaction.

Another teacher, Sue Harris, did report Humphreys allegations to state child welfare officials, Humphrey said. Harris was her Spanish teacher.

Harris, who retired last year as principal of St. Cecilia School in Beaverton, declined to confirm her report to the news organization, saying she doesnt discuss private student matters.

But Harris wrote to Humphrey after the newspapers series published last fall, saying she recalled Humphreys disclosure and that she had alerted child welfare officials at the time.

I remember being shocked, appalled and feeling so, so protective of youand also of being angry that these things had happened in your life, Harris wrote to Humphrey. Do you remember that, right after you told me, I guided you down the hallway to the counseling office and we told the counselor together?

Harris told Humphrey she called the state after that meeting fully expecting that they would follow up swiftly and appropriately on what I was sharing with them.

The state declined to discuss if it investigated the allegations, citing the confidentiality of child abuse reports. In a recorded conversation last summer with Humphrey, a manager for the Oregon Department of Human Services said her review of the file didnt shed light on why the state had failed to follow through.

Humphrey also recalled making a presentation in her senior year about her eating disorder that made reference to being sexually abused by her father. She said one or two staff members were present.

Mandatory child abuse reporting laws have been around for decades, though the list of professions required to report has expanded over time. In the 1970s and 1980s, Oregon law required any public and private official with reasonable cause to believe a child was the victim of abuse to make a report to authorities. The laws during that era spelled out that school employees were considered mandatory reporters.

Last fall, a day after The Oregonian/OregonLives investigation ran, Friedhoff issued a statement to the school community, expressing deep sadness and shock over the terrible abuse Humphrey experienced.

The brave account of Tania, as well as the others who were harmed, is heartbreaking, and the entire St. Mary's Academy community offers our support and compassion, she wrote.

The safety of St. Mary's students is our highest priority. If we are to make profound changes in our society so that young people are safe, we all need information and tools. To this we are very committed.

Humphrey and her lawyer, Jacqueline Swanson, first met with Friedhoff last fall and asked the school to arrange for the outside review.

The independent investigators mission should be to collect the facts and publicly issue a comprehensive report that addresses both the facts and the institutional accountability, Swanson wrote in a follow-up letter to Friedhoff, which Humphrey provided to The Oregonian/OregonLive.

Humphrey then met Jan. 23 with the schools board

She was accompanied by Swanson and fellow St. Marys alumna Theresa deSousa, a classmate of Humphreys. DeSousa visited the Culver home when the two were teens and saw a collection of photographs of young nude girls in Culvers desk drawer.

The gathering included representatives of Sisters of the Holy Names of Jesus and Mary, the religious order associated with the school. Humphrey said she talked about her experience as a student. She recalled how the abuse drove her into an eating disorder, requiring multiple hospitalizations.

Teachers came to visit me in the hospital, she said she told the board. They knew what was happening. I was dying right in front of you and consistently saying thank you for any morsel of anything and talking about this.

She said though many of her teenage friends knew what was going on, they felt powerless to intervene.

I have spent the last year consoling every single one of these people, Humphrey said. So many people feel guilty and its not on them. We are all still affected by this.

DeSousa was disappointed by the boards response. She said when Humphrey concluded, no one asked questions or apologized.

It was just really frustrating to see all those people not responding, she said. I wanted to scream, You dont understand. These teachers knew this and yet this continued to happen.

DeSousa said she supports an outside review.

They were responsible, she said. They had many options to report this and to stop it and to get her into a safe place and that didnt happen.

-- Noelle Crombie; ncrombie@oregonian.com; 503-276-7184; @noellecrombie

Subscribe to Oregonian/OregonLive newsletters and podcasts for the latest news and top stories.
Haitian migrants of Puerto Aventuras granted resident visas

Puerto Aventuras, Q.R.  More than a dozen Haitians have been granted temporary resident visas for the municipality of Solidaridad after a stay in Puerto Aventuras.

When handing out the legal paperwork, Playa del Carmen mayor Laura Beristain said Welcome to Mexico, adding that the municipal and federal governments endorse the commitment to work for the good and progress of the families that inhabit the municipality.

The migrants, who arrived in the area last year, were put up in a housing shelter in Puerto Aventuras where they have remained. However this week, Wilson Charles Martial of la Unidad de Atencion al Migrante Municipal says 16 have been granted visas on humanitarian grounds.

He says the migrants, who were staying in the shelter in Puerto Aventuras, would leave the shelter in the coming weeks. Martial explained that of the group of refugees, who were brought to the municipality by efforts of Father Alejandro Solalinda Guerra, five have already left after receiving their papers. He says documents will be delivered to another 11 who will leave on Monday, and the last should leave next week.

The City Council of Solidaridad helped the group of migrants with accommodations while defining their immigration status.

Wilson Charles Martial

Some already work, others request permission for it, he said adding that although a new arrival of migrants is not expected, municipal authorities must be ready.

We do not have a program to accept another group, but they always arrive and we must be prepared for that, he said.
DeCarlis Wilson was the kind of person to stop strangers while walking down the street in San Franciscos Mission District, just to ask how their day was going. He typically sported a warm, broad smile and moved with bouncy, focused energy in his work as computer scientist in the Bay Area, his friends and relatives say.

They were devastated to learn Wilson, 30, who worked at San Francisco-based tech company, Copper, was killed Sunday in a motorcycle crash. On Thursday night, dozens of friends and relatives gathered on Mission Street and shared their memories during a candlelight vigil.

Photos of Wilson were tacked on the base of a palm tree, including one in which he wore a Kobe Bryant jersey  the last photo taken of him, said his mother, Shedralyn Pullum-Wilson, 58.

He had put on his Kobe jersey to pay homage to Kobe, because that was his favorite player, Pullum-Wilson said. He had just got back from Portland earlier in the day. When he got off the plane he had found out about Kobes death, so when he got home, he took a little break, put on his jersey, got on the bike, and half an hour later he was gone.

Wilson was riding his motorcycle on the 1800 block of Mission Street when a crash occurred at 4:45 p.m. on Sunday, according to the San Francisco Police Department. The crash happened just two blocks from his home, friends and family said Thursday.

Police have released few details about the crash, but said the other individuals involved in the crash stayed at the scene and cooperated with investigators.

Wilson was raised in South Los Angeles and was the valedictorian of Community Harvest Charter School before attending USC, where he studied computer science and engineering, Pullum-Wilson said.

In order to be valedictorian, he kept track of whats-her-names grades to make sure he was several points ahead of her, she said with a laugh. He was like, Nah, shes not gonna beat me. He hates to lose. Im so proud of him. I couldnt ask for a better son. Hes just wonderful.

Charlie Daniel, 40, the eldest of Wilsons five siblings, said she remembered acting as a disciplinarian to her little brother growing up, but said he always had something positive to say.

She said his empathy, wisdom and work ethic planted so many seeds when he was at USC, in his various internships and jobs at tech companies in the Bay Area.

He counseled nieces and nephews about the importance of education, Pullum-Wilson said. He told teenage nieces to focus on academics, and assured his nephew that he shouldnt feel obligated to follow the crowd or try to be the coolest kid in school, she said.

Thats what I always instilled in him, and he was just a quirky, nerdy kid, Pullum-Wilson said.

The day before his death, Pullum-Wilson said, he was in Portland to visit a family that mentored him when he was growing up in Los Angeles. On Christmas, he traveled to Pullum-Wilsons home in Victorville (San Bernardino County), where he thanked her for raising him. Recently, she said, he had playfully pestered his siblings to spend more time together as a family.

Its almost like near the end he was saying goodbye to everyone he loved, without really knowing he was saying goodbye, Pullum-Wilson said.

Martin Encinas Leon, 29, of San Francisco, who first met Wilson while the pair were students at USC, said his friend was a ball of energy.

Drought Map Track water shortages and restrictions across Bay Area Check the water shortage status of your area, plus see reservoir levels and a list of restrictions for the Bay Areas largest water districts.

The two men bonded as first-generation college students.

I felt so uncomfortable on campus, Encinas Leon said. A year above me, (Wilson) told me, Relax. Enjoy the ride. Were all first-generation college students. I know the feeling because I was there last year. He brought this peace to me.

After both men later moved to San Francisco for their respective careers, Encinas Leon said he would frequently run into Wilson in the Mission District, the pair often stopping on the sidewalk to talk for up to 45 minutes at a time.

He was so positive. Its so surreal to me, Encinas Leon said. Even though hes not here physically, I hope to continue sharing his energy and his mentality in everything that I do. Thats what he would want.

Wilson is survived by his siblings and mother. His family created a GoFundMe fundraiser to raise money for funeral service expenses.

Lauren Hernandez is a San Francisco Chronicle staff writer. Email: lauren.hernandez@sfchronicle.com Twitter: @LaurenPorFavor
A few years ago, a tour guide at the Alamo told us that a black woman had been found dead after the (1836) battle. Who else was there? History tells us that at the Battle of Gonzales, a free black man was instrumental in that victory. Could you enlighten us on these folks who laid their lives on the line? I believe The Yellow Rose of Texas was also a black lady. These stories are not told often enough. Thank you for filling in some blanks.

 Nelda Stroud

About half the Alamo defenders whose origins are known came from the southern United States. Southerners, if they had them, took personal servants with them everywhere they went, said Bruce Winders, Ph.D., former Alamo historian and curator and the author of Sacrificed at the Alamo: Tragedy and Triumph in the Texas Revolution. Most of them were enslaved African-Americans, who cooked, tended horses and generally performed routine chores for their owners.

There were more than 5,000 enslaved people in Texas at the beginning of the hostilities that led to the Texas Revolution of 1835-1836, according to the Bob Bullock Texas State History Museum in Austin. Most had been brought by colonists, settlers or adventurers from the South.

On ExpressNews.com: Restoration of La Belle complete; on display at Bullock Museum

One of them was Joe, a 21-year-old slave who assisted Alamo garrison commander William Barret Travis during the Battle of the Alamo. According to Ron L. Jackson Jr. and Lee Spencer White, authors of Joe: The Slave Who Became an Alamo Legend, he probably was born in 1815 on a farm near Lexington, Ky.

Joes mother, of mixed race, may have been the daughter of Daniel Boone, who owned the adjacent property. She and her seven children  one of whom grew up to be abolitionist writer William Wells Brown  were brought to the Missouri Territory by Dr. John Young.

When he needed money, Young sold the whole family to St. Louis tin manufacturer Isaac Mansfield, who took Joe and a few other slaves to start over in Texas in 1833. Records found by Jackson and White show that Joe was sold the next year to Travis then-fiancees brother, John Cummings, for $410. Cummings sold him to Travis, who brought Joe with him to San Antonio in February 1836. As asked by Travis, Joe took up arms and was present when Travis was shot dead.

Joe survived the battle, was spared because of his status and released by the Mexican army. Joe gave his eyewitness account of the fighting first at Gonzales, then to the Texas Cabinet at Washington-on-the-Brazos.

For a year after the revolution, Joe worked at a tavern and was sold once more before walking away  all the way to Alabama, where Travis family took him in, perhaps recognizing their prior claim by inheritance.

It was Joe who said that a woman had died in the Alamo battle. A Kentucky newspaper, quoted by William Groneman, author of Eyewitness to the Alamo, said that of the enslaved people known to be in the Alamo, only one of the Negroes was killed  a woman  who was found lying dead between two guns. Joe supposes she ran out in her fright and was killed by a chance shot.

Some researchers have supposed that this was Bettie, an older female slave or former slave  historians differ  who came to the Alamo with James Bowie. However, that contradicts another eyewitness, Juana Navarro Alsbury, wife of Horace Alsbury (who had fought in the Siege of Bexar in December 1835) and cousin of Bowies wife, Ursula Veramendi.

Juana Alsbury, as quoted by Alan C. Huffines in The Blood of Noble Men, said she and other female Alamo survivors were placed in charge of a colored woman belonging to Col. Bowie, and the party reached the house of Don Angel Navarro (Juanas father) in safety. Bettie, a cook, stayed with the Mexican army through the concluding Battle of San Jacinto. She briefly lived and worked on this side of the Rio Grande, according to the account of Texan William Neale, but fled to Monterrey, Mexico, to avoid being taken back into slavery.

On ExpressNews.com: Allen: Women survivors of the Alamo have their own stories to tell

The woman the tour guide told you about might have been a mixed-race woman named Sarah, as Jackson and another researcher, Thomas Ricks Lindley, suggest. She was the property of Ezekiel Hays of Kentucky, said Winders, who claimed in a lawsuit that she had run off with Alamo garrison member Patrick Henry Herndon. Probably one of Bowies company, he died March 6, 1836. If Sarah is the woman Joe saw, shes the only one who died in the Alamo.

The first casualty in the Texas Revolution was Samuel McCulloch Jr., a free black soldier in the Matagorda Volunteer Company. He fought at Goliad and was wounded Oct. 9, 1835, during the storming of the Mexican officers quarters, where he took a musket ball in the right shoulder, according to the Handbook of Texas. The wound took him out of the fighting, and the lead shot was not removed until after the Battle of San Jacinto in April 1836.

McCulloch recovered and petitioned the Texas government for the land he was owed for his service and eventually was granted one league of land for the permanent disability he had incurred at Goliad. He and his family moved in 1852 to Bexar County, where he farmed and raised cattle, according to the Handbook, noting that, In his later years, McCulloch (who lived until 1893) attended reunions and gatherings of old soldiers and pioneers.

The song The Yellow Rose of Texas (covered here May 30, 2015) is loosely based on an ever-blooming succession of fantasies around a real person, Emily D. West, a free woman of color from New Haven, Conn.

On ExpressNews.com: The true? story of the Yellow Rose of Texas

She seems to have picked up the surname Morgan when she signed a contract in 1835 with James Morgan, representing a syndicate of New York investors, to work as a housekeeper in a hotel near Galveston for $100 a year. West arrived at the New Washington Hotel in December 1835. Morgan joined the Texian army, and while he was away, Mexican troops raided his storehouses and took his servants captive. That put West in the Mexican camp at the time of the Battle of San Jacinto.

Everything else about the Yellow Rose is iffy, originating from a single anecdote about West (as Morgan) distracting Mexican Gen. Antonio Lopez de Santa Anna the night before the battle. It was told in 1842 by a shipboard acquaintance of English visitor William Bollaert and picked up steam in 1959 when his journal was published. Popular historians added prurient and undocumented details. We dont know Wests age or anything about her appearance  except that after her experience in Texas, she was anxious to go home and applied for a passport because her papers were lost at San Jacinto.

historycolumn@yahoo.com | Twitter: @sahistorycolumn | Facebook: SanAntoniohistorycolumn
Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath launching an attack on his Delhi counterpart Arvind Kejriwal, claimed that he was being endorsed by Pakistan. Addressing a rally in the national capital, BJP's star campaigner raised 'suspicion' over Pakistan Minister Fawad Choudhry's apparent backing to Arvind Kejriwal. Yogi Adityanath, in addition, reiterated that Kejriwal was not getting the support of Indians and the people of Delhi, but Pakistan.

Yogi Adityanath said, "If Article 370 did not bother Pakistan, then Pakistani Minister would not have endorsed Arvind Kejriwal for Delhi Elections. You must be seeing, when they are not getting any support from Indians and Delhities, then who is endorsing Kejriwal? Pakistan Minister. Why is Pakistan happy to endorse Kejriwal? This means something is suspicious."

From Saturday to Tuesday, Yogi Adityanath will be campaigning across Delhi ahead of the Assembly elections on February 8 from Shaheen Bagh to Jamia. He is sceduled to address 12 rallies in Delhi. Yogi Adityanath is named fifth after Prime Minister Modi, Nadda, Home Minister Amit Shah and Rajnath Singh in BJP's list of star campaigners.

CM Yogi defends 'shoot traitors' & 'shot like dogs' remarks by BJP netas as 'nationalist'

Pakistan meddles in Delhi Elections

Unlike Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath's claim, Pakistan Minister Fawad Choudhry attacked PM Modi, and appealed for his defeat to the people of India. In an attempt to meddle in the elections, Pakistan PM Imran Khan's Minister called to defeat 'Modi madness' and said that with the fear of an electoral loss, PM Modi has resorted to 'ridiculous claims and threats.'

In a tweet, Pakistan's Minister said, "People of India must defeat Modi madness, under pressure to lose another state election (Delhi on Feb 8th) he resorts to ridiculous claims and threats endangering the region. Mr. Modi has lost balance after internal and external reaction to Kashmir, Citizenship Laws and failing economy. This came in response to PM Modi's statement from January 29, wherein he stated that India has the capability to make Pakistan "bite the dust" in less than 10 days in any new war with Pakistan.

Hours after Fawad Choudhry's claim, siding with the Prime Minister, Chief Minister of Delhi Arvind Kejriwal called the Assembly elections 'an internal matter'. Further, in retaliation to Fawad Choudhry, rejected the intervention of a 'biggest sponsors of terrorism'. He said, "Narendra Modi ji is the Prime Minister of India. I also have a Prime Minister. The election of Delhi is an internal issue of India and we do not tolerate the intervention of the biggest sponsors of terrorism. As much as Pakistan tries, it cannot attack the unity of this country."

Assembly elections will be held in Delhi on February 8 to decide who will rule the national capital for the next five years with the ruling AAP making a determined bid to return to power and the BJP seeking to have a chief minister in the city after 20 years. The Congress, which has ruled Delhi for 15 successive years, is also making efforts to regain its support base. Counting of votes will take place on February 11.

So Pakistan wants Modi to be defeated?: BJP has questions on Pak min's Delhi poll meddling
Samara Heisz/Getty Images

En espanol | President Trump and the contenders seeking to replace him in the White House have all pledged to lower prescription drug prices. But one medication, in particular, is taking center stage in the race for office: insulin.

Even though insulin has been around for almost a century, the cost of the diabetes drug has skyrocketed in recent years, nearly tripling between 2002 and 2013, according to a study from the American Diabetes Association. And Medicare Part D spending on insulin jumped 840 percent between 2007 and 2017, from $1.4 billion to $13.3 billion, far outpacing growth in the number of beneficiaries using insulin therapy, a Kaiser Family Foundation analysis states.

All totaled, Americans with diabetes, the majority of whom are older adults, face insulin prices that average more than $5,000 per year, some reports show. And these high prices have led a growing number of patients who rely on the lifesaving drug to resort to rationing or skipping doses because they can't afford the medication.

"Insulin is not a luxury; it's not a drug that people can do without, says LaShawn McIver, M.D., senior vice president of government affairs and advocacy at the American Diabetes Association (ADA). Skipping it could lead to devastating health complications, even death, she adds.

The recent price hikes on the almost 100-year-old drug have made insulin, more so than other prescription drugs, the poster child of sorts of pharmaceutical profiteering among politicians.

The Trump administration is working on a proposal to lower out-of-pocket insulin costs for older Americans, Axios reports. And Democratic candidates vying for the position have been discussing the medication on the campaign trail, STAT News highlights. All seven of the candidates scheduled to participate in the Feb. 7 debate have hit on the high cost of insulin, many taking to social media:
O ne of the two individuals who has tested positive for coronavirus is a student at the University of York, a university spokesman said.

The pair - two members of the same family - are being treated at a specialist unit in Newcastle.

They had checked in to the Staycity apartment-hotel in York on Wednesday and were taken to hospital that evening.

Health chiefs confirmed on Friday that they had tested positive for the virus - which has killed 259 people in China.

200 British citizens have been quarantined after being evacuated from China / PA

In a statement on Saturday a spokesman for the university said the risk of the infection being passed on to other people on campus is low.

We understand this development will cause concern and anxiety among our students, staff, and the wider community.

The buses are being deep cleaned / PA

PHE has advised us that the risk of infection being passed to others on campus is low. Current information from PHE suggests that the student did not come into contact with anybody on campus whilst they had symptoms, but investigations are ongoing to fully establish this.

Our immediate concerns are for the affected student and family, along with the health and continued wellbeing of our staff, students and visitors.

Two women wearing face masks leave the Staycity Hotel in the centre of York, after the apartment-hotel was put on lockdown on Wednesday night / PA

The spokesman confirmed the University of York continues to operate normally.

He added: We are monitoring the situation closely and we continue to provide as much advice, care and support as we can to our University community.

If people have any concerns about their health in relation to suspected coronavirus we ask that they follow current PHE advice and contact NHS 111.
The waning crescent moon on Feb. 18 seems to nudge Mars, a planet with a tepid +1.2 magnitude, in the south before the moon occults (covers) it. For Washington, the occultation starts a half-hour after sunrise, so in effect, the sun washes the event out for casual sidewalk observers. The West Coast lucks out on viewing the occultation: In Los Angeles, for example, it starts at 3:37 a.m. Pacific Standard Time, according to the International Occultation Timing Association.
Iran's Supreme Leader has vowed "harsh vengeance" against the U.S. for killing of his most senior commander, Qassem Soleimani, in Iraq late Thursday night but we should probably not expect an immediate direct confrontation on the ground.

Khamenei must now decide how to respond to an attack that not only killed his top commander but also shattered the myth of the power and invincibility of the Iranian intelligence apparatus in countries where the Qods Force is most active, especially in Iraq.

The Iranian Supreme Leader has always warned about "infiltration of the enemy" and now has to worry about it even more if there is any suspicion Soleimani's movements and plans had been compromised from the inside.

Ali Afshari, an Iran expert and contributor to Radio Farda, believes Iran and its allies in Iraq easily fell into the trap of U.S. forces. The shock of Soleimani's killing has once again demonstrated a "huge ditch" in their intelligence apparatus, he says.

The role of a possible security breach seems too obvious not to be noticed. "We should not overlook the role of the spies posing as friends who informed the Americans of our general's whereabouts," Asr-e Iran, a relatively moderate Iranian news website warned in a commentary on Soleimani's death hours after it was announced.

The circumstances force Khamenei, known among Iranians as a man of vengeance, to show a strong reaction in the face of the great blow he has received from the Americans, who only a few days ago he said "couldn't do a thing" to hurt Iran.

What Khamenei decides to do can bear grave consequences, not only for Iran but also for the whole region and even the world which is anxiously watching for Iran's reaction as the trending of the hashtags #WorldWar3 and #WWIII on Twitter shows.

Reza Haqiqatnejad, an expert on Iran and Radio Farda staff writer, says what makes a decision is difficult is that keeping silent and being passive can irreparably damage the regime propaganda machine while reacting may entail uncontrollable consequences.

But Khamenei is not just vengeful, he is also too shrewd and cunning to fall into the trap set for him. He is not likely to allow the U.S. to force his hand. He knows he is not in too strong a position.

The regime could probably be prepared to go all the way and confront the U.S. military in the past when there was money to support such a venture and a people who could easily be mobilized. Now things are very different.

Iran's Supreme Leader knows that he cannot fight against the world's biggest power when the country is plagued with economic difficulties resulting from U.S. sanction.

He also knows that it is no longer easy to mobilize a population that has increasingly been estranged from the theocratic system and is even prepared to die to make its voice be heard as seen in the November protests. The Iranian society is simply too deeply wounded by the killing of hundreds or maybe even more than a thousand protesters to fight for those who drowned their voices with undue violence.

Khamenei's first step will probably not be immediate large military retaliation, directly or through Iran's proxies in the region, but an extensive propaganda operation in Iran as well as Iraq and Lebanon where he has to show off Iran's influence even more than before by mobilizing its sympathizers to mourn for Soleimani and his companions.

Under Khamenei's guidance Iran may for the time being also carry out smaller-scale attacks against U.S. interests and troops through its proxies across the region to keep the U.S. constantly on its toes. Proxy war against the U.S. is most likely to be the order of the day as before.

In fact, in a second statement on Soleimani's killing the Revolutionary Guards has claimed that a "new chapter and new fronts" will open in the resistance "against Israel and aggressor and occupying American terrorists in the region." The statement also promises the U.S. to "experience" Soleimani's school of thought "across the world" in places that are under its domination and where it is illegitimately present.

Mehrzad Boroujerdi, a Middle East scholar tells Radio Farda, says Iran may save its energy for deepening its influence in Iraq even more than before. Influential Shiite leaders in Iraq who have so far refused to endorse Iran's meddling in Iraqi politics will be under pressure to denounce the killing of Soleimani and not opposing an Iran-friendly prime minister, he says.

Boroujerdi believes that "The regime's decision on how to respond to Soleimani's killing follows the dictum of 'revenge is a dish better served cold'".
After a muted domestic passenger growth in 2019, the aviation sector is staring at yet another year of losses in FY20. Though the second half of FY20 has shown some signs of improvement, the weak performance of the first half is going to drag down the financials of the entire year.

As per rating agency ICRA, the industry's losses are likely to stand at around Rs 7,800 crore in FY20 as against some Rs 10,000 crore in FY19. While a large part of these losses are contributed by national carrier Air India, the rest of industry, which primarily includes private carriers like IndiGo, SpiceJet and Vistara, has not been in the best of health in the first half of FY20.

For instance, the industry's losses - excluding Air India - are expected to be Rs 1,500 crore in FY20. The weak balance sheet structure and continued losses for the next few quarters are expected to weigh on the industry which would need about Rs 22,500 crore equity infusions over the next three years, says the ICRA report.

Kinjal Shah, Vice President and Co-Head, Corporate Sector Ratings at ICRA, said "Pressure on yields, increased maintenance costs and foreign exchange losses impacted the profitability of the industry during the second quarter of FY20. The two listed airlines [IndiGo and SpiceJet] have together lost about Rs 1.8 crore per day during April-to-September period..."

Though the third quarter results of IndiGo has given some respite in the backdrop of a gloomy scenario. The largest domestic carrier reported over two-fold rise in net profits to Rs 496 crore in the October-to-December 2019 period. The government has also firmed up plans to sell beleaguered Air India in an attempt to privatise it and possibly turning it into a profitable airline under a new private owner.

A major reason that has contributed to the losses of airlines in the past year is their inability to increase fares due to the highly competitive scenario. This problem is likely to exacerbate in the next few quarters as domestic carriers aggressively add new capacity on domestic and international routes. For instance, the industry has a pending order book of nearly 790 aircraft as compared to the current fleet of 682 aircraft. It's expected that the domestic capacity in FY20 would be low due to Jet Airways' shutdown last year, grounding of Boeing 737 Max aircraft owing to technical issues with its flight control software, and issues with the Pratt & Whitney engines for Airbus 320 neo planes (flown by IndiGo and GoAir).

The FY21's capacity additions would likely to better - at around 18 per cent - as most of the capacity issues would likely be resolved in the medium-term.

"Improvement in the core growth drivers like economic environment, tourism demand and regulatory support is essential for improved passenger traffic growth. Though there have been steps towards improving airport infrastructure, the pace of implementation remains a key concern. The industry prospects are expected to gradually improve, contingent on the movement in the ATF [aviation turbine fuel] prices," the ICRA report says.

ALSO READ:Budget 2020 Speech Live Updates: Govt to sell a part of its holdings in LIC via IPO, says Sitharaman

Also Read: Budget 2020: Nirmala Sitharaman pays homage to former FM Arun Jaitley
Rome, Feb 2 : The United Kingdom (UK) exited the European Union (EU) as of midnight on Friday, sparking mixed reactions among officials, pundits and politicians in Italy on Saturday.

"It is not a good day for Europe because Great Britain represented a lot in Europe both from the political, military point of view and from the perspective of scientific research and finance," said economist Romano Prodi, a two-time former prime minister of Italy who also served as president of the European Commission, reported Xinhua news agency.

"I am certain they will have problems and that they will be back in 15 to 20 years," Prodi added in televised comments on the sidelines of an event to celebrate the 110th anniversary of the founding of the General Confederation of Italian Industry Confindustria in the northern city of Turin.

Confindustria President Vincenzo Boccia was more optimistic.

"Brexit could be a great opportunity for Italy to attract investors who need to tackle the European market," Boccia told Italian news agency ANSA on the sidelines of the same event.

"Italy could become a great hub" as its geographically strategic position between Europe and the Mediterranean could also become a "geo-economic" one, Boccia said.

Former interior minister Matteo Salvini, leader of the far-right and eurosceptic League party, expressed his satisfaction.

"All the doomsday prophets who forecast economic catastrophes have been disproved, the British people have shown pride, courage and vision, their politicians have respected the will of the people," Salvini tweeted.

Nicola Zingaretti, the leader of the centre-left Democratic Party that currently governs Italy in coalition with the Five Star Movement, saw Brexit as a defeat.

"From today the UK is out of the EU and we cannot but start from this realisation because after over 70 years, the process of integration not only suffers a blow ... but we are witnessing a return to the past," Zingaretti said at an event celebrating the 10th anniversary of ItaliaCamp, which describes itself as an "organisation that develops processes of innovation and social transformation".

That process "managed to unite hundreds of millions of people" without firing a shot, in the name of peace, jobs and culture, Zingaretti said at the event that also saw Prime Minister Giuseppe Conte among its featured speakers.

"We must react speedily to Brexit in order to bring that process (of integration) into the future," Zingaretti said.

While he did not comment on Brexit in his speech on Saturday, Conte tweeted just before midnight on Friday that the "UK leaves the EU family, but remains a strategic partner and friend. Let's work on an ambitious new partnership between the EU and the UK, for the stability and prosperity of our common destiny, in the interest of our citizens and companies." According to Antonio Villafranca, co-head of the Europe and Global Governance Center at the Italian Institute for International Political Studies (ISPI), an independent think tank based in Milan, Brexit could cause tensions between Italy and the rest of the EU.

"We are already hearing about tariffs, about our parmigiano, our prosecco," Villafranca told RAI News 24 public broadcaster in an interview on Saturday in reference to Italy's prized cheese and sparkling wine.

"This could fragment European unity and we must avoid this at all costs, because it would diminish the negotiating power we (Italy) have in the negotiation with London," Villafranca said.

In an analysis released hours before Brexit went into effect, ISPI said that "compared to the other major EU countries, Italy appears to be less exposed to the hard Brexit risk: just 5 percent of our exports are directed to the UK." However, Italy has the third largest trade surplus in Europe towards the UK at 12 billion euros a year (13.3 billion U.S. dollars), while the UK is the fifth-largest (European) importer of Italian goods.

The major Italian exports to the UK are industrial equipment, textiles, chemicals, and food products, according to ISPI.
Surrounded by works of art Wednesday evening in the Benton County Historical Museums Moreland Gallery, Rep. Dan Rayfield stood at the front of the room with mic in hand to field questions from an audience that was roughly 50 strong.

Rayfield, who represents Philomath and Corvallis in District 16, filed for re-election to serve a fourth term in the Legislature. With a contentious political climate and in what many could perceive as a thankless job, Rayfield pushes those challenges aside. In short, he sees opportunities to rebuild trust in government while providing more accessibility to more people outside of Salem.

Those are the things that excite me and I think there is so much opportunity, Rayfield (D-Corvallis) said in an interview following the town hall. And so I ask myself, should I really run again? Do I have a vision? Because if Im just running to fill a seat and press a button, youve got to stop and hang up your spurs.

Some might think that sounds like political speak to a certain degree but Rayfield was trying to make a point while answering a question.

I still have that passion and I really believe now with the momentum were seeing with some of the divisive stuff that people are ready for this, Rayfield said. I think if we can do that, it will pay dividends long-term.

Certain issues that drive the representative complete the picture, such as wealth inequality. He promotes a message of creating better-paying jobs that allows families to plan for the future.

I think there are numerous occupations where if we can focus  like child care, he said. If you can make all child-care jobs in Oregon a living wage job with health care and benefits, if you can transform a workforce, what does that do our economy and things like that?

It all plays into his approach of thinking big from a structural point of view.

How do we make this a better place to live and work? Those are things you get excited about when you come across ideas, Rayfield said. So you have to push back all the partisan stuff and stay focused on the fun.

The primary election is May 19 with the general election Nov. 3.

During Wednesdays town hall, which lasted around 1 hour, 40 minutes, Rayfield discussed his priorities for the short session that started Monday and opened with comments about what he described as unfinished business regarding climate change legislation.

A top policy issue for the states lawmakers to consider involves a greenhouse gas emissions cap-and-trade bill. Its a partisan issue with Republicans opposed to cap-and-trade as the structure behind reducing carbon emissions. Democrats believe cap-and-trade would help the state achieve its goals of reducing greenhouse gas emissions.

In Philomath, the representative fielded several questions during the evening, including those on health care (vaccinations, vaping, mental health), the housing crisis (homelessness, affordable housing), transportation (pedestrian/bicyclist safety, electric vehicle station access) and water issues.

The first two questions that Rayfield heard from Philomath residents involved development and land-use laws. Its also a concern in neighboring Corvallis.

Thats really against House Bill 2001, Rayfield said. We had a big contingent in Corvallis, so that was universally liked and disliked in all communities.

HB 2001, passed on the final day of the 2019 legislative session, allows the development of duplexes and other multi-family housing in single-family zoning in Oregon cities with a population of 25,000-plus. Cities with more than 10,000 residents must allow duplexes. The premise behind the bill was to create more affordable housing options.

Rayfield promotes quality of life issues on his website as an important topic with plans to defend our land-use laws to protect farms and forestlands from uncontrolled growth and to protect the Mid-Valleys open spaces against unchecked development schemes.

With various developments proceeding through the approval process over the past couple of years, growth has become a hot-button issue in Philomath. The passage of Senate Bill 1573  which limits a citys home rule decision-making authority and restricts citizens' right to vote on annexations  added fuel to the fire for some locals.

Its a combination of development but its also this issue of home rule and the residents of Philomath and the city of Philomath wanting to be able to have a decision on where Philomath is going in the future and how they want to get there, said Chas Jones, a first-term city councilor.

Corvallis and Philomath teamed up to challenge SB 1573, but the issue remains before the Oregon Court of Appeals.

Campaign finance was also brought up and its a subject that Rayfield takes great importance in. During the 2019 session, Rayfield organized a 40-plus member work group on campaign finance reform, passing policies that include campaign advertisement disclosure, shining a light on dark money and a constitutional amendment to allow for stronger regulations on campaign finance activities.

Jones arranged for Rayfield to host the town hall.

The most important thing for me is I believe the public should have access to our public representatives ... from my perspective, they really appreciate having access to leaders, Jones said. I met Dan and he was really open the idea; he was actually wanting to engage. So it just seemed like a natural fit to bring him to Philomath and let him engage with our residents.

Love 0 Funny 0 Wow 0 Sad 0 Angry 0

Be the first to know Get local news delivered to your inbox! Sign up! * I understand and agree that registration on or use of this site constitutes agreement to its user agreement and privacy policy.
Students are being exhorted to be mindful of the environment and the massive challenges facing it as Catholic Schools Week gets underway in the Diocese of Kerry on a theme of 'Living in Harmony with God's Creation'.

It's an annual celebration of what the diocese terms 'our faith schools' and the whole gamut of the curriculum delivered in them - from academic and sporting pursuits to personal and spiritual development.

This year, Bishop of Kerry Ray Browne calls on students to think of two key examples of harmony: "Think of the harmony of nature and the challenge as illustrated by the horrific fires in Australia. Think of harmony among people in terms of citizenship, the 'one for all and all for one' of us as a people in Ireland as we hold our General Election."

Starting on Sunday last and running to Sunday, February 2, the week has already seen Bishop Browne visiting three secondaries: St Joseph's Presentation Secondary in Castleisland, CBS The Green in Tralee and the Intermediate Post-Primary in Killorglin. Post-Primary Diocesan Advisor for Religious Education Tomas Kenny accompanied the Bishop on all three visits.

Mr Kenny said the Bishop was deeply taken with the students he met in all schools. In Castleisland, they had prepared a special service. "They also focused on the theme of creation through a reflection on the colours of the rainbow, using coloured flags to the different colours represent the different dimensions of God's creation. Bishop Ray concluded the service by reflecting on the importance of faith in a secular world," Mr Kenny said.

Meanwhile, in The Green, music and prayer attended the visit, with one former student prominent in memory. "The students paid tribute to Donal Walsh, a past pupil of the school. They highlighted his legacy in bringing about an awareness of mental health among young people, and Bishop Ray also paid tribute to Donal. Bishop Ray highlighted the issues facing our environment and urged the students to do their part."

And on Thursday, students of the Intermediate Post-Primary in Killorglin put on a great welcome for the Bishop. School manager Joe O'Dwyer welcomed Bishop Ray to the heart of the school, where the head of religious education Cathriona O'Dwyer had prepared their beautiful prayer room for the service.

Students used the official Catholic Schools Week prayer service to focus on climate change and regard for the environment in the main, Mr Kenny explained.
WASHINGTON - Hours after the Senate voted against seeking new evidence in the impeachment case against PresidentDonald Trump, the administration acknowledged the existence of two dozen emails that could reveal the president's thinking about withholding military aid to Ukraine.

In a midnight court filing, the Justice Department explained why it shouldn't have to unredact copies of more than 100 emails written by officials at the Office of Management and Budget and the Defense Department about the hold on funds to Ukraine.

Heather Walsh, an OMB lawyer, wrote that of the 111 redacted emails in the lawsuit, 24 are protected by "presidential privilege."

"Specifically, the documents in this category are emails that reflect communications by either the President, the Vice President, or the President's immediate advisers regarding Presidential decision-making about the scope, duration, and purpose of the hold on military assistance to Ukraine," Walsh wrote.

Democrats spent much of the Senate impeachment trial imploring GOP senators to allow new evidence in the case against Trump.

In the weeks since the December House vote to impeach the president, new evidence against him has emerged, including reports that former White House national security adviser John Bolton says there was a quid pro quo conditioning the aid on investigations by Ukraine that could help the president politically.

Trump and administration officials repeatedly stonewalled the House impeachment probe, refusing to allow some witnesses to testify and to provide requested documents.

Ultimately Democrats could persuade only two Republicans that more evidence was needed. On Friday, the Senate voted 51 to 49 to block new witnesses and documents, clearing the way for Trump's acquittal this week.

Democrats are likely to seize on the new court filing as proof that the trial was incomplete and thus invalid.

"Every single Republican Senator voted to endorse the White House coverup of these potentially important truth-revealing emails," Minority Leader Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., said in a statement Saturday. (In fact, GOP Sens. Susan Collins of Maine and Mitt Romney of Utah voted with Democrats on new witnesses and evidence.) "Make no mistake, the full truth will eventually come out and Republicans will have to answer for why they were so determined to enable the president to hide it."

A spokesman for Majority Leader Mitch McConnell, R-Ky., declined to comment.

Heavily blacked-out versions of the emails in question were released in two batches in December in response to a lawsuit filed by the Center for Public Integrityafter the administration ignored a Freedom of Information Act request for the materials.

The government's filing Friday asked the court to deny the organization's request for unredacted copies.

The earliest correspondence labeled as protected presidential privilege is from June 24, 2019, between Pentagon officials and has the subject line: "POTUS follow up."

The crux of the impeachment case against Trump is whether he used the $391 million in military aid, and a coveted White House meeting for Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky, as leverage to force the foreign leader to conduct political investigations, including one focused on former vice president Joe Biden.

In a July 25 call, Trump had asked Zelensky to "do us a favor."

Why Trump wanted Congress-approved assistance to Ukraine delayed is the central question of his impeachment and was a major point of tension in the Senate trial.

On Wednesday, Romney asked Trump lawyer Patrick Philbin on what specific date Trump first ordered the hold on military aid to Ukraine and what reason he gave.

Philbin couldn't answer. "I don't think there is evidence in the record of a specific date," he said.

Referencing the June 24 email, Philbin said the president had been asking since late June about how much other countries spent supporting Ukraine and had raised concerns about corruption later in the summer - the issues the White House has claimed were the impetus for the hold.

"So the evidence in the record shows that the president raised concerns, at least as of June 24th, that people were aware of the hold as of July 3rd," Philbin said.

Many of the witnesses who testified in the House, some defying the White House's orders, said they were never given an official reason for the hold.

During his Oct. 22 deposition, William Taylor, the acting U.S. ambassador to Ukraine, recalled that he first learned of the hold on a July 18 conference call, when an OMB aide said the security assistance was being held but couldn't say why.

"All that the OMB staff person said was that the directive had come from the president to the chief of staff to OMB," Taylor said. "In an instant, I realized that one of the key pillars of our strong support for Ukraine was threatened."

Several days after that conference call, on July 25, Trump spoke to Zelensky. Two hours later, a senior official at OMB, Michael Duffey, sent an email to Pentagon officials directing the hold on military aid and asking them to keep it quiet.

House Democratic managers prosecuting the case against Trump argued throughout the Senate trial that there was sufficient evidence to conclude that the president was using the money as leverage to pressure the Ukrainian government to launch a public investigation into Biden and his son Hunter.

But White House lawyers contended that Democrats could not prove motive and suggested it was possible that Trump had mixed motives in placing a hold on the aid, both personal and in the public interest.

The House managers said that was why they wanted the Senate to subpoena additional documents and witnesses with firsthand knowledge of the president's thinking, such as acting chief of staff Mick Mulvaney and former national security adviser Bolton.

Rep. Adam Schiff, D-Calif., who led the prosecution, warned Friday that the contents of such emails will eventually be public.

"The facts will come out in all of their horror," Schiff said in his closing remarks. "The documents the president is hiding will come out. The witnesses the president is concealing will tell their stories. And we will be asked why we didn't want to hear that information when we had the chance."
Israel stepped up security in Jerusalem's Old City Friday after US President Donald Trump enraged Palestinians with his controversial peace plan, but weekly prayers at the flashpoint Al-Aqsa mosque passed off calmly. The plan released on Tuesday was seen as heavily biased towards Israel and was angrily rejected by Palestinians, with one of the key bones of contention being its classification of Jerusalem as Israel's "undivided capital". Palestinians have long seen the city's eastern sector, which was occupied by Israel in 1967, as the capital of their future state. Fears of tensions were raised Friday morning when a group of Palestinians protested at the Al-Aqsa compound in east Jerusalem after dawn prayers. Israeli police "responded and dispersed the gathering," police spokesman Micky Rosenfeld said, adding the protesters had chanted "nationalist" slogans. But noon prayers, when more than 30,000 Palestinians attended the mosque, passed without incident, religious officials and AFP journalists said. The weekly prayers have previously been a rallying point for demonstrations. The Al-Aqsa mosque is the third-holiest site in Islam and also the most sacred for Jews, who revere it as the location of the two biblical-era Jewish temples. The Trump plan gives Israel the green light to annex the strategic Jordan Valley -- constituting some 30 percent of the West Bank -- and all Israeli settlements, which number more than 200, including those in annexed east Jerusalem. The settlements are home to some 600,000 Israelis, but are considered illegal under international law. Britain on Friday cautioned Israel against "any such unilateral moves", saying they would be "damaging to renewed efforts to re-start peace negotiations, and contrary to international law". "Changes to the status quo cannot be taken forward without an agreement negotiated by the parties themselves," the UK foreign office said in a statement. After Trump presented the plan, flanked by Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, officials said they would swiftly submit an annexation bill to cabinet on Sunday. But the situation seemed less clear Friday, after Trump's adviser and son-in-law Jared Kushner said a decision would be best left until a new Israeli government has been formed after March 2 polls. - Gaza protests, rockets - The acting head of the UN agency for Palestinian refugees, Christian Saunders, said Friday that Palestinians were in a "state of shock" over the US plan. "We certainly have serious concerns that it will result in an escalation in clashes and in violence," he added. At least 30 Palestinians have been wounded since Tuesday in clashes with Israeli forces in the West Bank, although the demonstrations have mostly been small. In Hamas-controlled Gaza, thousands gathered for demonstrations this week. Many more donned badges proclaiming "no to the deal of the century". There has been some rocket fire from Gaza into Israel, but on nothing like the scale of barrages launched during multiple flare-ups last year. Israel carried out air strikes on Hamas targets in Gaza early Friday after three rockets were fired the previous evening, causing neither casualties nor damage, the army said. Later Friday, the Israeli army said that three mortar rounds were fired from Gaza into Israel -- with no reported casualties -- prompting a retaliatory strike by a tank on a "Hamas military post" in the south of the enclave. The military reported another, unspecified "projectile" was fired from Gaza after dark and intercepted by aerial defences. Hamas and Israel have fought three wars since 2008, but over the past year, the Islamists have gradually shaped an informal truce with Israel, under which the Jewish state has eased its crippling blockade of Gaza in exchange for calm. - Quest for Arab support - The Palestinians have sought to rally international support against Trump's plan, which they see as illegal and a violation of their rights. "What we're trying to do here is to get international consensus behind us, behind president Mahmud Abbas and his determination to achieve peace," said Palestinian chief negotiator Saeb Erekat. But there was a muted response, even within the Arab world. Both Egypt and the Gulf Arab states held off on any immediate criticism of their US ally, saying they would study the plan's contents. Those governments have quietly moved closer to Israel in recent years amid shared hostility towards Iran. Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan on Friday accused some Arab countries of "treason" for backing the US plan, singling out Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates, Bahrain and Oman for criticism. Abbas will try to rally opposition at an emergency meeting of the Arab League in Cairo on Saturday.
Two minors who had fled from their homes in south Kashmir last month, allegedly with the intention to cross over to Pakistan Occupied Kashmir (PoK) to become militants, have been apprehended and handed over to their families on Saturday, army officials said.

The spokesman said the boys-- 16 years of age-- from Shopian and Pulwama districts were influenced by the false narrative and the rhetoric created by anti-national elements to join an unidentified tanzeem (outfit).

The official said after security forces learnt of the boys intention to cross the LoC, synergised efforts were launched to track their movements and apprehend them alive so that they could be brought back to the mainstream.

Indian Army received input of their presence at Uri in Baramulla district on January 25.

The youth sensing tight security at Uri were returning to Baramulla to exploit other routes for exfiltration. Based on the input, a Mobile Vehicle Check Post (MVCP) was deployed at Ganthmulla Colony on national highway 1A. The post was instructed to exercise absolute restraint so as to apprehend them without any harm, he said.

The boys were travelling on a bus from Uri to Baramulla which was apprehended at Ganthmulla. The youth were counselled and handed over to their parents.

Parents of youth were thankful to the security forces for ensuring the safety of their children & bring them back to the mainstream, the officer said.

Last year in December, police had apprehended five Pulwama youths, including four minors, who were preparing to cross the LoC.

On January 25, inspector general of police, Vijay Kumar said that around 125 militants, most of them locals, were active in south Kashmir.
While women in some Muslim-majority countries are forced by governments to wear hijabs and face torture or imprisonment if they violate that official ordinance, much of the Western world will be celebrating "World Hijab Day." Founded by Nazma Khan, who claims she was harassed for wearing a hijab in New York, the annual event began in 2013.

The event takes place on February 1 every year, in many countries worldwide, in order "to encourage women of all religions and backgrounds to wear and experience the hijab."

According to Asra Nomani, co-founder of the Muslim Reform Movement, the hijab is used by Islamists to enforce their ideology and an expression of an honor-shame social system at odds with U.S. notions of liberty. Islamists like Linda Sarsour claim that the hijab is a means of women's empowerment.

I interviewed six American women from the Middle East and North Africa who live in the Greater Chicago area and have each experienced the hijab in different ways. Each spoke on the condition of anonymity. They range in age between 23 and 57. I have given them aliases to identify them.

"Nadia," a 23-year-old Sunni Muslim, is divorced and hails from Morocco. Nadia says:

I wore the hijab in Morocco, because a woman without a headscarf there is considered to be immoral. In Islam, women's bodies are awrah [shame]. So, they must cover up, unlike men. Also, I wore the hijab, because it was imposed on me by my husband in Morocco.

Nadia's friend and roommate "Salima" is 49 and also Moroccan. When Nadia added that she had removed the hijab because she was not convinced of its importance and because it was imposed on her by her ex-husband, Salima commented curtly, "Hijab is a shroud a Muslim woman is forced to wear alive, until they put on her shrouds when she is dead."

"Fatima" is a 47-year-old Shiite and refugee from Iran. In her teenage years, she was married off to a cousin and is now divorced. Fatima said:

The Iranian government forces women to wear the veil, even though most girls reject it. However, we cannot protest, because we would face imprisonment, or may be killed. There is a lot of torture in prison[.] ... So, we have to accept the hijab and keep our mouths shut.

While in Iran the hijab is enforced by the government, in other countries it's primarily enforced by community and family networks. "Khadija" is 33 and a former Sunni Muslim from Jordan. Even in her country of origin, she was a rebel for refusing to wear the hijab. Khadija commented:

The headscarf is imposed on girls by parents and relatives in Jordan. But my family gave me the freedom to wear any kind of clothes, unlike all other parents. In most Jordanian families it is compulsory for girls, from the age of 6 years.

She says some families are willing to use violence to impose the hijab:

Some parents use violence with their children. like a friend of mine. Her mother forced her to wear the hijab since the age of nine. She had to go to school wearing the hijab, but removed it there. Her brother discovered that, beat her severely, and her family prevented her from going to school for good.

"Aisha" is 26, a Sunni, and came from Iraq at the age of 13 as a refugee. She agrees that families are often the most significant pressure to wear the hijab. She notes:

I was forced to wear the hijab by my mother at an early age. She removed me from school, just in order to prevent me from seeing any male classmates. Later, my mother married me off at the age of 14 to an Iraqi American 25 years my senior.

"Mariam," 57, is Lebanese and removed her hijab in 2000. She says social pressure from the broader community played a role in her decision to wear the hijab.

My three sisters and I put on the hijab, in Lebanon, after my eldest brother died suddenly at the age of 48. Then my father died after six months. Everyone was saying that we will go to hell if we did not put on the hijab.

One argument made by Islamists is that the enforced modesty of the hijab prevents sexual harassment of women by men. But all of the women I spoke to reject this argument.

Nadia said, "Sexual harassment is common in Morocco, with or without the hijab." Fatima agreed, saying, "It is common in Iran, too. The hijab does not prevent it."

Mariam noted that sexual harassment in Lebanon is minimal but added that her aunt and female cousins who live in Saudi Arabia suffered from it, even during performing the pilgrimage rituals in Mecca.

I asked why they chose to take the hijab off and how it felt when they were wearing it.

Aisha answered, "I felt like garbage in the hijab and the baggy dress I was forced to wear. It was like wearing a bag. And a bag is for garbage. When I turned 21, I was able to get out of my mother's control, removed the hijab, and divorced that man. Then I felt like a real woman. I became free. I love wearing clothes that reflect my beauty and femininity."

Mariam said she felt the hijab made her feel "backwards" and was more a political symbol, representing the influence of Islamist movements like the Muslim Brotherhood and the Iranian revolution in 1979. She says, "I hated the hijab. I felt that it put limitations on me. I removed it before coming to America. I hate the hijab. I felt backward then. Very few women wore the hijab in Lebanon in the 1970s."

Khadija says she came to the U.S, "drawn by the freedom of faith, speech, and the other liberties Americans enjoy."

While real Muslim women express their appreciation for a country where they can refuse to wear the hijab without fear, there is growing concern that that freedom is being eroded. Indeed, Islamists have transformed some neighborhoods in the West like Dearborn, Michigan and the south suburbs of Chicago, Illinois, into enclaves where women who do not wear the hijab are shamed and ostracized. Muslim women are subjected to such pressure from Islamist organizations and some mosques in the West. And there remains an organized campaign to not only impose the same social pressure for the hijab, but to make it appear as a sign of freedom.

A Palestinian Muslim woman who lives in the southern suburbs of Chicago said, "women in the Palestinian Territories have more freedom to choose whether to cover or not, than women who live in those Chicago suburbs."

None of the women I talked to saw the hijab as freeing.

Nomani says we have to see the hijab as part of a larger ideology,: "We have to be smart about the ideology that is putting this idea into the world that a woman must be defined by her idea of modesty, that she is the vessel for honor in a community."

Americans need to not be duped by Islamists who are using the annual Hijab Day as a ploy to promote their Islamist ideology and gain power over American Muslim communities. Journalists need to do the hard work of speaking to Muslim women who reject the hijab, and not just Islamist hijab-promoters. And we have to advocate for these women, persecuted for rejecting the hijab in Muslim-majority countries.

Hesham Shehab is the Chicago associate of the Counter-Islamist Grid (CIG).

Photo credit: Piqsels.
Lalmalani sent the letter on behalf of Oak Brook to Omer Osman, acting secretary of transportation for IDOT, three days after former state Sen. Martin Sandoval pleaded guilty to bribery and tax charges. Those stemmed from his involvement with a red-light camera operator and Sandoval admitted in federal court to taking a bribe from a representative of the red-light camera company, SafeSpeed, that installed and operated cameras in Oakbrook Terrace. The bribe money was supplied by the government.
By Laura McCrystal, The Philadelphia Inquirer

PHILADELPHIA  When Philadelphia became the first big U.S. city to pass a soda tax in 2016, the rest of the country was watching. Mayor Jim Kenney basked in a national spotlight, appearing on CNN as even presidential candidates weighed in on the issue. And public health advocates predicted many others would follow in Philadelphias footsteps.

Now, as Kenney starts a second term following a 2019 reelection campaign that saw the beverage industry spend about $1.5 million fighting the tax, it seems likely to survive as his signature achievement. But Kenney is still one of relatively few mayors whose city taxes sweetened beverages.

Only seven cities levy a tax on soda distribution, according to The Tax Policy Center, a Washington think tank. No new soda taxes have taken effect since January 2018. The beverage industry has mounted an effective counteroffensive in the past three years, backing state preemption legislation that now bans municipalities from passing new taxes in Arizona, California, Michigan and Washington state.

After we passed ours  the soda industry has gone into kind of hyperdrive with some of these other jurisdictions, Kenney said in an interview last week. Its a shame, because that money could be going to really good purposes in many communities.

In Oregon in 2017, champions of a proposed soda tax for Multnomah County spent more than $800,000 promoting the idea before announcing they would postpone putting it on the ballot -- a pause that has since exceeded two years with little recent mention of the idea.

Philadelphias 1.5 cents-per-ounce tax has raised more than $200 million since it took effect in 2017. The revenue funds preschools, community schools and improvements to parks, recreation centers and libraries, making it politically harder to repeal. But far outside the city, Philadelphia remains at the center of debates over soda taxes, as advocates point to it as an example to follow and opponents paint it as an abject failure.

Those debates will last for years to come, as researchers study the policys economic and public health impacts.

The beverage industrys political victories in recent years show its currently ahead in the war over taxing soda, said Marion Nestle, a professor emerita of nutrition food studies and public health at New York University. But she said increased attention to the issue still has a positive impact, because soda consumption is declining.

People are buying fewer sugar sweetened beverages, Nestle said. And the tougher the fights get, and the nastier they get, the more sales go down.

Soda taxes are also in effect in Seattle, Boulder and four cities in California: San Francisco, Oakland, Albany and Berkeley, which passed its tax before Philadelphia. In 2017, voters in Santa Fe shot down a tax. The same year, Cook County, Ill., which includes Chicago, passed and then repealed one. Lawmakers in seven states had proposed statewide taxes on soda last year, according to the National Conference of State Legislatures. None have passed yet.

Some of the industrys biggest wins have been the passage of preemption laws.

In Oregon, however, voters rejected a ballot measure that would have prevented soda taxes from being imposed anywhere in the state.

Big Soda lobbyists point out what they say are many negatives from allowing a tax on sugary drinks.

Beverage taxes have had a harmful impact on local businesses, employees and working families, do not achieve public health goals, are tremendously unpopular,\ and result in major job and economic losses, particularly among those who can least afford it, Anthony Campisi, a spokesperson for the Ax the Philly Bev Tax Coalition, said in a statement.

Studies about the tax show that beverage sales in Philadelphia stores dropped after it took effect, while sales at stores just outside the city increased. Each side has its own take on the research, much of which has been funded by either the industry or public health advocates like former New York Mayor Michael Bloomberg. While opponents of the tax say the data is proof its hurting businesses and failing, supporters say a drop is to be expected  and is good for public health.

Jim Engler, Kenneys chief of staff, said he often hears from advocates, researchers, and lawmakers around the world who want to know about Philadelphias tax. He advises them to attach taxes to a specific program that residents care about and to prepare for the deep-pocketed industry to fight back. In Philadelphia, the American Beverage Association spent almost $19 million fighting the tax from 2016 through last September.

I dont know that its necessarily fair to say that theyre winning the war, Engler said. They have just about limitless resources, and if youre thinking about it as a war, the side that has the limitless resources is always going to be favored.

On a trip to New Hampshire for Sen. Elizabeth Warrens presidential campaign last week, one voter at a senior center asked Kenney about it. The mayor said its paying for important programs but that hes still facing opposition: A bill pending in Harrisburg would preempt the city from taxing soda.

But I think well fight them off, Kenney said. Its just having the courage of your convictions and doing what you have to do to get it done.

.Dan Gleiter | dgleiter@pennlive.com

Opponents have sought to use Philadelphias tax to stop others from gaining traction. The beverage and grocery industries appear to follow a similar playbook in each city.

Operatives form coalition groups funded largely by the American Beverage Association, but not named after it  giving it more of a grassroots feel. In Philadelphia, that group is Ax the Bev Tax. In Washington, D.C., where a proposed tax on soda is pending, the industry-funded group Alliance for an Affordable D.C. is using studies about and news stories from Philadelphia in its campaign.

Weve seen the detrimental effect that similar taxes have had across the country  just look at Philadelphia, the Alliance for an Affordable D.C. says on its website, citing reports of job losses and a grocery store closure after the tax took effect. When a West Philadelphia ShopRite closed in 2019 its owner blamed the tax, while the Kenney administration said the tax was just a scapegoat for one failing supermarket.

In Cook County, Ill., bad news about Philadelphias tax was a key component of the successful repeal campaign. The Kenney administration disputes the industrys portrayal. But Engler acknowledged its effectiveness.

The industrys reaction has put the fear of God in other governments from trying to do this, he said.

Philadelphia Inquirer staff writer Julia Terruso contributed to this report.
The following column is the opinion and analysis of the writer.

Now is the time for all good men to come to the aid of their country. Now is the time for all good men to come to the aid of their country. My devoted mom made me type that sentence over and over and over on our typewriter in hopes that I would learn how to type.

Fifty-years later I hunt and peck and the phrase, Now is the time for all good men to come to the aid of their country looms over my heart.

On Friday the Senate at the United States of America abandoned any pretense of truth-seeking, by rejecting eyewitness testimony, by agreeing to cover up the Presidents corruption and by granting him immunity from oversight  thus unleashing a gloating tyrant.

Perhaps we deserve our fate. When it comes to civics we have been an inattentive people.

I have stood in somber reflection in front of the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier, the crypt of General George Washington at Mount Vernon and the grim sarcophagus of Abraham Lincoln at Oak Ridge Cemetery in Springfield. I never thought Id kneel in sorrow before my mortally wounded republic.
BAKU, Azerbaijan, Feb. 1

By Rufiz Hafizoglu  Trend:

Export of grain and legumes from Turkey to Turkmenistan increased by 63.47 percent in 2019 compared to 2018 and amounted to $26.6 million, Turkeys Ministry of Trade told Trend.

In December 2019, Turkeys export of grain and legumes to Turkmenistan increased by 100.3 percent compared to December 2018 and exceeded $2.7 million.

In 2019, Turkeys export of these products amounted to $6.7 billion, which is 1.64 percent more compared to 2018.

Export of grain and legumes from Turkey increased by 5.95 percent in December 2019 compared to the same month of 2018, and amounted to $628.8 million.

----

Follow the author on Twitter: @rhafizoglu
The Senate voted on Friday nearly along party lines to block additional witnesses and evidence in President Trumps impeachment trial, effectively accelerating the proceedings toward a final vote, which is expected to be held Wednesday.

But even before votes were cast Friday, a number of top Republicans came forward with statements rejecting the notion that the president should be convicted and removed, despite the evidence laid out in recent weeks by House impeachment managers.

While some lamented the partisan tenor of the proceeding, which they said threw the fairness of the trial into doubt, others said their decisions were based on a stronger conviction: Even if the president did everything the House managers described, his actions and alleged wrongdoing still did not justify his removal from office.

This is what they said:

Senator Lamar Alexander of Tennessee: The question then is not whether the president did it, but whether the United States Senate or the American people should decide what to do about what he did. I believe that the Constitution provides that the people should make that decision in the presidential election that begins in Iowa on Monday.
The government on Saturday said it will soon release the national logistics policy, which aims to promote seamless movement of goods across the country.

Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman in her Budget speech said that the policy will help in clarifying the roles of Centre, states and key regulators.

"A National Logistics Policy will be released soon," she said, adding that it envisages creation of a single window e-logistics marketplace and focus on generation of employment, skills and making MSMEs competitive.

The e-marketplace will act as a one-stop platform for exporters and importers.

The policy is being worked out by the logistics division under the Commerce Ministry.

The policy, which is also aimed at reducing high transaction cost of traders, may propose setting up of a central portal, which will provide end-to-end logistics solutions to companies.

The announcement assumes significance as high logistics cost impact competitiveness of domestic goods in the international market.

Effective implementation of the policy would help provide an impetus to trade, enhance export competitiveness, and improve India's ranking in the Logistics Performance Index.

Meanwhile, the Commerce Ministry in a statement said that India's logistics sector is highly defragmented and the aim is to reduce the logistics cost from the present 14 per cent of GDP (Gross Domestic Product) to less than 10 per cent by 2022.

"The sector is very complex with more than 20 government agencies, 40 partnering government agencies, 37 export promotion councils, 500 certifications, 10,000 commodities, USD 160 billion market size," it said.

It also involves 12 million employment base, 200 shipping agencies, 36 logistics services, 129 ICDs (inland container depots), 168 CFSs (Container Freight Stations), 50 IT ecosystems and banks and insurance agencies.

Further, 81 authorities and 500 certificates are required for export and import.

The sector, it said, provides livelihood to over 22 million people and "improving the sector will facilitate 10 per cent decrease in indirect logistics cost leading to the growth of 5 to 8 per cent in exports".

Further, it is estimated that the worth of Indian logistics market will be around USD 215 billion in next two years compared to about USD 160 billion at present.

"The policy will improve India's trade competitiveness, improve performance in global rankings and pave the way for India to become a logistics hub," it said.

It added that several announcements made by the finance minister in the Budget will make the policy more robust.

These announcements include geo-tagging of all warehouses, village storage scheme, promotion of cold chains for fish and perishables, running Krishi trains on PPP mode, and establishment of 100 more airports under the UDAN scheme.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
Advising its citizens to reconsider visiting Pakistan due to terrorism, the US on Friday issued the highest level travel alert for the provinces of Balochistan and Khyber Pakhtunkhwa along with the Line of Control.

The Level 4 of US travel advisory means asking citizens not to travel to the provinces of Balochistan, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (KPK) along with the LoC. The rest of the areas in Pakistan continues to remain on Level 3 of the travel alert. "Do not travel to the India-Pakistan border. Militant groups are known to operate in the area. India and Pakistan maintain a strong military presence on both sides of the border," the State Department said.

READ: 'Narendra Modi is my PM': Kejriwal beats back Pakistan's attempt to meddle in Delhi polls

Indian and Pakistani military forces periodically exchange gunfire and artillery fire across the LoC, the advisory said. "Do not travel to KPK province, which includes the former FATA. Active terrorist and insurgent groups routinely conduct attacks against civilians, non-governmental organizations (NGOs), government offices and security forces," the State Department said.

READ: No proposal for PoK merger with Pakistan: Foreign Office

These groups historically have not discriminated between government officials and civilians. Assassination and kidnapping attempts are common, including the targeting of polio eradication teams, it said. According to the State Department, terrorist groups continue plotting attacks in Pakistan. A local history of terrorism and ongoing ideological aspirations of violence by extremist elements have led to indiscriminate attacks on civilian as well as local military and police targets, it said.

READ: Pakistan minister tries to meddle in Delhi elections, makes 'defeat Modi' appeal

Terrorists may attack with little or no warning, targeting transportation hubs, markets, shopping malls, military installations, airports, universities, tourist locations, schools, hospitals, places of worship and government facilities. Terrorists have targeted US diplomats and diplomatic facilities in the past, the advisory added.

READ: Another forced conversion & marriage in Pakistan: Hindu bride abducted, forcibly wed
The Budget has announced viability gap funding for hospitals in PPP mode and smaller cities and levied cess on imported medical equipments to promote domestic manufacturing.

Chennai: The private healthcare sector and medical equipment manufacturers have something to cheer about this years budget. The Budget has announced viability gap funding for hospitals in PPP mode and smaller cities and levied cess on imported medical equipments to promote domestic manufacturing.

The viability gap funding window will be provided to hospitals which are setting up centres in tier II and III cities. The first phase will cover the 112 aspirational districts.

Presently, under PM Jan Arogya Yojana (PMJAY) there are more than 20,000 empanelled hospitals. We need more in Tier-2 and Tier-3 cities for poorer people under this scheme. It is proposed to set up Viability Gap funding window for setting up hospitals in the PPP mode. In the first phase, those Aspirational Districts will be covered, where presently there are no Ayushman empanelled hospitals, said Minister of Finance, Nirmala Sitharaman.

Setting up of more hospital infrastructure in Tier-II and III cities under PPP model via viability gap funding, will further be a boost for the healthcare ecosystem and benefit the underprivileged families which were devoid of basic medical facilities. India has recorded highest out of pocket expenditure on healthcare, as compared to other developing countries.

The measures proposed in the budget will support to regulate the gap and play an important role in making health a priority for one and all and creating further awareness for health insurance, Ashish Mehrotra, MD & CEO, Max Bupa Health Insurance.

In order to fund this, the government will impose a nominal health cess, by way of a duty of customs, on the imports of medical equipment and use the proceeds for creating infrastructure for health services in the aspirational districts.

This will also promote the domestic manufacturing of medical equipments. Medical equipments will also be part of Network Products which are being promoted for exports.

Aiming at addressing the shortage of qualified medical doctors, the Budget proposed to attach a medical college to an existing district hospital in PPP mode.

Those states that fully allow the facilities of the hospital to the medical college and wish to provide land at a concession, would be able to receive Viability Gap Funding.

The government will encourage large hospitals with sufficient capacity to offer resident doctors fellow of National Board (DNB/FNB) courses under the National Board of Examinations, Jan Aushadhi Kendra Scheme to all districts offering 2000 medicines and 300 surgicals by 2024. The Budget has allocated Rs 69,000 crore for health care and this includes R 6400 crores for Prime Minister Jan Arogya Yojana.
Advertisement

By The Associated Press

Jan. 31, 2020 | WASHINGTON, D.C.

By The Associated Press Jan. 31, 2020 | 05:32 PM | WASHINGTON, D.C.

The Senate rejected the idea of summoning witnesses for President Donald Trumps impeachment trial late Friday, all but ensuring his acquittal. But senators considered pushing off final voting on his fate to next week.



The vote on allowing new witnesses was defeated 51-49 on a near party-line vote.



Republicans Susan Collins of Maine and Mitt Romney of Utah voted along with the Democrats for witnesses, but that was not enough.



Despite the Democrats singular focus on hearing new testimony, the Republican majority brushed past those demands to make this the first Senate impeachment trial without witnesses. Even new revelations Friday from former national security adviser John Bolton did not sway GOP senators, who said they'd heard enough.



That means the eventual outcome for Trump would be an acquittal in name only, said Rep. Val Demings, D-Fla., a House prosecutor, during final debate. Some called it a cover-up.



The impeachment of the president now lands squarely in an election year before a divided nation. Caucus voting begins Monday in Iowa, and Trump gives his State of the Union address the next night.



Trump was impeached by the House last month on charges the he abused power and obstructed Congress like no other president has done as he tried to pressure Ukraine to investigate Democratic rival Joe Biden, and then blocked the congressional probe of his actions.



The Democrats had badly wanted testimony from John Bolton, Trump's former national security adviser whose forthcoming book links Trump directly to the charges. But Bolton won't be summoned, and none of this appeared to affect the trial's expected outcome.



In an unpublished manuscript, Bolton writes that the president asked him during an Oval Office meeting in early May to bolster his effort to get Ukraine to investigate Democrats, according to a person who read the passage and told The Associated Press. The person, who was not authorized to disclose contents of the book, spoke only on condition of anonymity.



In the meeting, Bolton said the president asked him to call new Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy and persuade him to meet with Trump's personal lawyer, Rudy Giuliani, who was planning to go to Ukraine to coax the Ukrainians to investigate the president's political rivals. Bolton writes that he never made the call to Zelenskiy after the meeting, which included acting chief of staff Mick Mulvaney and White House Counsel Pat Cipollone.



The revelation adds more detail to allegations of when and how Trump first sought to influence Ukraine to aid investigations of his rivals that are central to the abuse of power charge in the first article of impeachment.



The story was first reported Friday by The New York Times.



Trump issued a quick denial.



"I never instructed John Bolton to set up a meeting for Rudy Giuliani, one of the greatest corruption fighters in America and by far the greatest mayor in the history of NYC, to meet with President Zelenskiy," Trump said. That meeting never happened.



Key Republican senators said even if Trump committed the offenses as charged by the House, they are not impeachable and the partisan proceedings must end.



"I didn't need any more evidence because I thought it was proved that the president did what he was charged with doing," retiring GOP Sen. Lamar Alexander of Tennessee, a key hold out, told reporters Friday at the Capitol. But that didn't rise to the level of an impeachable offense.



Republican Sen. Lisa Murkowski of Alaska said she, too, would oppose more testimony in the charged partisan atmosphere, having "come to the conclusion that there will be no fair trial in the Senate.'' She said, "The Congress has failed.



Eager for a conclusion, Trump's allies nevertheless suggesting the shift in timing to extend the proceedings into next week and it shows the significance of the moment for senators in casting votes in only the third presidential impeachment trial in American history.



The situation remained fluid, but senators have indicated they want more time to publicly debate the charges and air their positions on the coming vote, according to a Republican familiar with the proposal but unauthorized to discuss it. The person was granted anonymity.



Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell made the offer to Democratic Leader Chuck Schumer, the person said. Senators were considering it while the proceedings were underway on the Senate floor. Schumer had not yet agreed to it.



Under the proposal, the Senate would resume Monday for final arguments, with time Monday and Tuesday for senators to speak. The final voting would be Wednesday.



To bring the trial toward a conclusion, Trump's attorneys argued the House had already heard from 17 witnesses and presented its 28,578-page report to the Senate. They warned against prolonging it even further after House impeached Trump largely along party lines after less than thee months of formal proceedings making it the quickest, most partisan presidential impeachment in U.S. history.



Some senators pointed to the importance of the moment.



What do you want your place in history to be? asked one of the House managers, Rep. Jason Crow, D-Colo., a former Army Ranger.



Trump is almost assured of eventual acquittal with the Senate nowhere near the 67 votes needed for conviction and removal.



To hear more witnesses, it would have taken four Republicans to break with the 53-seat majority and join with all Democrats in demanding more testimony. But that effort fell short.



Chief Justice John Roberts, in the rare role presiding over the impeachment trial, could break a tie, but that seems unlikely.



Murkowski noted in announcing her decision that she did not want to drag the chief justice into the partisan fray.



Protesters stood outside the Capitol as senators arrived on Friday, bu few visitors have been watching from the Senate galleries.



Bolton's forthcoming book contends he personally heard Trump say he wanted military aid withheld from Ukraine until it agreed to investigate the Bidens. Trump denies saying such a thing.



The White House has blocked its officials from testifying in the proceedings and objected that there are significant amounts of classified information" in Bolton's manuscript. Bolton resigned last September  Trump says he was fired  and he and his attorney have insisted the book does not contain any classified information.
With the release of Disney+, the Marvel Cinematic Universe (MCU) will divide its content between the cinema and the small screen moving forward initiating a dialogue between the two mediums, in which stories on opposite platforms interweave and depend on each other. Meaning, while Moon Knight is set to be an upcoming Disney+ Marvel show, the actor chosen to portray the character will likely enter the film landscape as well, signing a contract to appear in mash-up films when necessary.

Moon Knight and Spider-Man | Marvel via Getty Images) SPIDER-MAN, MOON KNIGHT

So, who is Moon Knight, why does the character matter, and who is most likely to portray the son of a Rabbi turned CIA operative, turned morally gray mercenary?

What you need to know about Moon Knight

While the MCU does not always stick to comic book origins, its likely that Moon Knight will retain some of his historical legacy. Moon Knight  also known as Marc Spector  is the son of a Rabbi whose family fled Europe to escape the Holocaust in the 1930s. (If the character is to exist in the present, post-Avengers: Endgame timeline, this origin tale may receive adjustments).

As Marc Spector aged, he came to reject his fathers ways  his north-facing moral compass, compassion, etc  and he embraced materialism, as Marvel Fandom notes. He became a heavyweight boxer before becoming a U.S Marine, and eventually a CIA operative. After a series of unfortunate events  and a little too much heartache  left Spector distrustful of the CIA, he became a mercenary, spending years as a gun for hire.

On a mission in Sudan, Spector was killed. However, when his dead body was placed at the feet of the moon gods statue, he suddenly arose, believing the Moon God restored his life to act as the moons knight of vengeance, and so the story goes.

Who will play Moon Knight: Daniel Radcliffe or Pedro Pascal?

While several rumors point to Daniel Radcliffe as the man destined to play Moon Knight, including We Got This Covered, Geek Tyrant, Cosmic Wonder, etc., he is not the only actor who reportedly has a good shot at the role.

Radcliffe will likely come head-to-head with another actor who is quickly becoming a household name: The Mandalorian lead Pedro Pascal. According to Marvel Insider Mikey Sutton, Pascal clicks the right buttons for the role in the studios eyes. Sutton Stated:

The Mandalorians star is truly beginning to soar. According to several inside sources I spoke to, the Mandalorian himself  Pedro Pascal  is on the list of actors being considered to play Moon Knight for the MCU. They stress that no talks or any negotiations have begun yet but Pascal clicks the right buttons for the role Mikey Sutton, Geekosity: All Things Pop Culture

So, who will it be? Will Marvel Studios choose a man intimately connected to the boy who lived, or a man forever tied to the Star Wars franchise? While no confirmation exists, reports suggest that one of these two actors will snag the title role, becoming a part of another massively successful cinematic universe. For either actor, joining the MCU will mean joining another landscape with a massive fan following and legacy to uphold.
Health professionals from nine West African countries have converged on Accra for a training programme aimed at improving disease surveillance and prevention in the sub-region.



During the eight-week programme which is expected to be intensive, health professionals will be trained in modern trends in laboratory technology and will enhance their skills in detecting and accurately diagnosing diseases, particularly, the infectious ones.



The Noguchi Memorial Institute for Medical Research (NMIMR) of the University of Ghana is organising the training programme with support from the Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA).



Participants are from Ghana, Nigeria, Togo, Cote dIvoire, Guinea, Benin, Burkina Faso, Sierra Leone and Liberia.



After receiving the training, the participants are expected to also train other health professionals in their respective countries.





The training programme dubbed, Third country training course on enhancing laboratory skills for infectious diseases in West African countries for post-Ebola, is the second in the series to be organised.



Improving medical skills

At the opening ceremony, the Director of NMIMR, Professor Abraham K. Anang, said the world was currently in an era where infectious diseases were breaking out easily in different parts of the world.



He said it was critical for healthcare workers therefore to be well trained and equipped to detect and diagnose emerging infectious diseases in the sub-region.



Under the circumstances there is need for functional medical teams comprising physicians, laboratory technicians and other health professionals who are a critical component of the healthcare system, not forgetting specialists in biomedical laboratory, he said.



As part of the training being offered, he said the participants would learn best laboratory practices, biosafety and latest innovations in laboratory technology from technologists in the bacteriology, parasitology and virology departments of the NMIMR.



At the end of the programme, Prof. Anang said participants would be equipped to improve on the quality of diagnosis, treatment and prevention of infections at medical institutions or laboratories in their home countries.





He said Noguchi had been selected by the World Health Organisation (WHO) to carry out laboratory diagnosis of any suspected case of the coronavirus disease in the country and the West African sub-region.



Training is timely

The respective embassies of the participating countries have commended the initiative, saying it was critical and timely, especially, at a time when the coronavirus was on the loose.



The Minister Counsellor and Head of Chancery at the Sierra Leonean High Commission in Ghana, Mr Joseph S. Thornton, described the outbreak of Ebola in that country in 2013 as fearful moments for its citizens.



That notwithstanding, he said, the emergence of the disease helped them to detect weaknesses in that countrys health system and to find ways of strengthening the system to avert such occurrences.



While laboratory and medical systems were crucial in confronting cases of emergency, Mr Thornton said the requisite capacity and skills of personnel to handle the equipment and structures were equally critical in reducing or eliminating such diseases.



The Charge dAffaires of the Nigerian High Commission in Ghana, Ms Esther A. Arewa, said the step taken to equip health workers with the needed skills to enable them to overcome diseases when they emerged was quite proactive and laudable.



When a country is faced with an infectious disease epidemic it affects growth of the economy of the country. Africa needs to be fortified therefore to enable it fight infectious diseases that arise, she said.



The Chief Representative of JICA, Mr Araki Yasumichi, said it was critical to secure sufficient healthcare workers and develop their abilities to drive the healthcare system efficiently.



The Provost of the College of Health Sciences at the University of Ghana, Prof. Patrick F. Ayeh-Kumi, who chaired the ceremony, said human security and health are at stake, hence the need for all hands to be on deck to find solutions to save humanity.

Source: Graphic Online









Disclaimer : Opinions expressed here are those of the writers and do not reflect those of Peacefmonline.com. Peacefmonline.com accepts no responsibility legal or otherwise for their accuracy of content. Please report any inappropriate content to us, and we will evaluate it as a matter of priority.

Featured Video
Nigerian comedian AY Makun and his wife, Mabel, are today celebrating their daughter Michelle, who turned a year older today.

The comedian took to his IG page to share a family photo of them and penned a sweet message alongside.

Read Also: It Is Wrong To Beg Someone For Money With Account Details On The Same Text Message: AY Comedian

In his words; A virtuous daughter is one of the greatest achievements in any Dads life. Having a good and beautiful daughter is the greatest gift in life. Happy Birthday, Michelle Adeola Makun. Youre great in all aspects of life. May God continue to bless you.
(Bloomberg) -- The centerpiece of Japans response to U.S. calls for a Middle East security coalition -- a single warship -- sets sail Sunday, on a mission that highlights just how few American allies have signed up.

The Maritime Self-Defense Force destroyer Takanami, as well as two patrol planes, are taking part in what Prime Minister Shinzo Abes government has said will be a yearlong intelligence-gathering deployment to protect vital oil shipments from the region. But Japan has made sure those assets will be operating independently from the U.S. and staying away from potential flashpoints in the Persian Gulf.

U.S. allies such as Japan are walking a fine line to show support for President Donald Trump while minimizing the risk of getting drawn into a larger conflict with Iran. Many disagreed with Trumps decision to withdraw from a 2018 Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action to curb Tehrans nuclear program and were alarmed over a flurry of violence last month that included the U.S.s targeted killing of top Iranian General Qassem Soleimani.

While Australia and the U.K. have each committed ships and are part of the U.S.-led International Maritime Security Construct, others such as Japan, India and South Korea have sent vessels to the region with orders to act independently. France said it would deploy its Charles de Gaulle aircraft carrier to the Middle East from January to April to support European countries.

The international response has varied from lukewarm to hostile, said Ashley Townshend, director of foreign policy and defense at the University of Sydneys United States Studies Centre. Most U.S. allies and partners have sensibly sought to stay out of the Persian Gulf deployment, which is -- or at least could have been -- an entirely avoidable mission, had Trump not withdrawn from the JCPOA and eschewed a cool-headed path of diplomacy.

Zero Compensation

The U.S. began recruiting backers for the security coalition last summer after a series of attacks on tankers near the Persian Gulf, a strategic choke point that handles about one-third of the worlds seaborne crude oil. Trump singled out Japan, which gets almost 90% of its oil from the Middle East, among the countries that were providing zero compensation for U.S. protection.

Story continues

Three regional rivals of Iran -- Bahrain, Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates -- as well as Albania, have also signed up for the International Maritime Security Construct. Australia dispatched its frigate HMAS Toowoomba, while the U.K. sent the HMS Montrose and HMS Defender -- a frigate and a destroyer - to accompany British-flagged ships through the Strait of Hormuz.

The demand posed a particularly difficult problem for Japan and South Korea, which used to get significant shipments of oil from Iran before the U.S. imposed sanctions. Both also rely on a large U.S. troop presence for their security and are under pressure from Trump to pay more for those deployments.

Next year, Japan is set to renew a five-year deal with the U.S. that determines how much it contributes for local staff, utilities and training relocation. Tokyo is expected to pay 197 billion yen ($1.8 billion) this year, although the U.S. doesnt publish the costs of maintaining the bases.

Japans Abe Resumes Constitution Quest to Burnish Legacy

Abe has to balance Trumps demands with the concerns of voters who believe overseas deployments violate the countrys commitment to pacifism enshrined in its post-World War II constitution. With Sundays Takanami mission, Abe appears to have done just enough to avoid upsetting any parties.

Similarly, South Korea has announced that it would temporarily expand anti-piracy patrols by its Cheonghae naval unit to include the Strait of Hormuz and transfer troops already nearby in the region to the Persian Gulf.

By operating outside the U.S. coalition, Japan and South Korea hope to minimize their military exposure while also preserving diplomatic ties and economic relations with Iran -- something Prime Minister Abe has so far dexterously achieved, Townshend said.

--With assistance from Jihye Lee.

To contact the reporter on this story: Jon Herskovitz in Tokyo at jherskovitz@bloomberg.net

To contact the editors responsible for this story: Brendan Scott at bscott66@bloomberg.net, Isabel Reynolds

For more articles like this, please visit us at bloomberg.com

Subscribe now to stay ahead with the most trusted business news source.

2020 Bloomberg L.P.
A-List Education, an education service provider, has hired Zvia Schoenberg as the new CEO, with a mandate to expand the business geographically and into new business lines as the test prep landscape evolves.

For more than 15 years, A-List Education has offered solutions for families and institutions to drive peak educational performance in school and beyond, including 1:1 test prep, in-school classes, teacher professional development, testing analytics and college advising. Not only does A-List Education offer the full spectrum of products and services to support students successful transition from high school to the next step in their lives, it also proudly provides these products and services to students in under-resourced districts who might not otherwise have access.

Zvia Schoenberg has deep roots in the education sector including at the NYC Department of Education, the charter school sector, early stage EdTech companies and CBOs, said Scott Farber, Co-Founder of A-List Education, and we are confident that she is well positioned to bring A-List to new families in NYC and beyond.

Ms. Schoenberg attended NYU School of Law, and she spent a number of years as an education lawyer for the NYC Department of Education, serving as regional counsel for several superintendents, including Dr. Kathleen Cashin. Shes also held roles within charter networks such as Edison Learning and Ascend Charter Schools. She transitioned to business and strategy positions with GEMS Americas, and several early-stage EdTech companies.

Most recently, Zvia served as Regional Director, New York Metro, for the Network for Teaching Entrepreneurship (NFTE), a global youth entrepreneurship organization, where she was responsible for implementing and expanding youth entrepreneurship programs across the tri-state area.

About Company A-List Education

A-List Education is dedicated to bringing innovation and equity to education. We work with schools, school districts, families, and non-profit institutions providing solutions tailored to meet specific learning assessment and curriculum needs with the ultimate goal of improving college readiness and access. Our staff comprises experienced and passionate educators each with a distinctive and personal approach to academic learning. Our management team has provided leading-edge education services and products to more than 80,000 students a year. To learn more visit http://www.alisteducation.com.

Name: Rachel Freni

Phone: (646) 216-9187

Email: Rachel.Freni@alisteducation.com
New Delhi, Feb 1 : Stand-up comedian Kunal Kamra, in the news following an encounter with news anchor Arnab Goswami during an IndiGo flight, has sent a legal notice to the carrier for banning him for six months and has called the decision "Illegal, high-handed and arbitrary." The notice sent through Advocate Prashant Sivarajan of Lawmen and White calls for immediate revocation of the suspension.

During the flight, Kamra had approached Republic TV's Goswami and sought to question him on coverage of national affairs and the suicide of Rohith Vemula, in particular. Vemula was a Dalit activist and scholar at the Hyderabad University.

After the incident, IndiGo banned Kamra from flying.

Kamra has also sought an unconditional apology, to be published in all leading newspapers and broadcast by the electronic media and also on all social media platforms.

It has also demanded Rs 25,00,000 in damages by the airlines for causing Kamra mental pain and agony suffered as well as losses on account of cancellation of his scheduled shows and programmes in India as well as abroad.

It said the airline's action went against the DGCA norms on the issue.

Giving an account of the incident, Kamra's notice says, "On January 28, while flying on your aircraft Indigo 6E 5317 from Mumbai to Lucknow my client [in exercise of his right to freedom of speech and expression as enshrined in Article 19(1)(a) of the Constitution) sought to indulge in a conversation with the fellow passenger Arnab Goswami, and thereafter proceeded to critique the said individual's style of journalism, which was met with no response.".

At that time the seatbelt Signs were switched off, it said and added, shortly thereafter when the seatbelt signs came on, the stewardess asked Kamra to take his seat to which he duly complied.

After the takeoff, Kamra approached Goswami to which the news anchor replied that he was watching something and didn't want to indulge in any conversation. After this, Kamra started to make a video of himself and aggressively questioning Goswami. When requested by the stewardess, Kamra proceeded back to his seat, the notice said.

At no point, the notice says during Kamra's exchanges with Goswami was there any intervention by the cabin crew to the effect that such behaviour was unruly or disruptive or that Kamra was creating any nuisance whatsoever.

"At no point of time during the said exchanges between my client and Goswami was there any complaint by the fellow passengers that such behaviour was unruly, untoward or disruptive, much less posing any threat to flight safety. Even Goswami himself, towards whom my client's exchanges were directed, didn't make any complaint nor did he request the intervention of the cabin crew at any point of time," the notice read.
SHANGHAI (Reuters) - Britain is withdrawing some staff from its embassy and consulates in China due to the coronavirus, the UK government said in a statement on Saturday.

"As of 31 January, some staff and dependants from the British Embassy and Consulates are being withdrawn from China. Essential staff needed to continue critical work will remain," the statement read.

"In the event that the situation deteriorates further, the ability of the British Embassy and Consulates to provide assistance to British nationals from within China may be limited," it said.

As of January 31, the U.S. State Department said it required family members of embassy staff in China under the age of 21 to leave China immediately, a U.S. embassy spokeswoman said.

(Reporting by Engen Tham and Gabriel Crossley; Editing by Neil Fullick)
WASHINGTON  Defense Secretary Mark Esper on Saturday approved a request from the Department of Health and Human Services for the possible use of military facilities to accommodate 1,000 people who may have to be quarantined upon arrival from overseas due to a new virus.

A Defense Department statement said HHS officials requested the use of several facilities capable of housing at least 250 people in individual rooms through Feb. 29. HHS would be responsible for all care, transportation and security of the evacuees, according to the statement.

The viral outbreak began in China, where the death toll rose to 259 on Saturday. More than 11,900 people have been infected with the coronavirus globally, the vast majority of them on the Chinese mainland.

An order signed Friday by President Donald Trump temporarily bars entry to foreign nationals who have traveled to China within the last 14 days, with the exception of immediate family of U.S. citizens and permanent residents.

Americans returning from China will be allowed into the country, but will face screening at select ports of entry and be required to undertake 14 days of self-screening to ensure they dont pose a health risk.

Those returning from Hubei province, the center of the outbreak, will be subject to up to 14 days of mandatory quarantine.

The installations selected by the Defense Department are the 168th Regiment, Regional Training Institute, Fort Carson, Colorado; Travis Air Force Base, California; Lackland Air Force Base, Texas; Marine Corps Air Station Miramar, California.

Nearly 200 Americans already are quarantined at a military base in Southern California after being evacuated from Wuhan, the capital of Hubei province.

None of the Americans being housed at the March Air Reserve Base in Riverside has shown signs of illness, but it can take up to two weeks for someone who is infected to get sick.

Beginning Sunday, the U.S. will also begin funneling all flights to the U.S. from China to seven major airports where passengers can be screened for illness.
In last-minute rallies, pamphlets and television advertising and even in electric signs placed atop cars that resemble pizza delivery advertisements, the candidates are running more explicitly on their purported viability than in any modern presidential primary.

Mr. Sanders, the leading progressive in the field, is increasingly linking his populist platform to an argument that he can peel away disaffected voters from Mr. Trump while a more moderate candidate like former Vice President Joseph R. Biden Jr. could imperil that effort. Mr. Biden is closing his Iowa campaign with a commercial highlighting his advantage over Mr. Trump in some national and swing-state polls while his leading supporters in Iowa are introducing him to voters by arguing that he could win over their Republican friends.

And Mr. Buttigieg and Ms. Warren, who are struggling to match the appeal of their rivals on the partys ideological poles, are infusing their 11th-hour messaging with barely veiled claims that they are safer choices because they wont alienate one flank of the party like Mr. Sanders and Mr. Biden.

Returning to the Iowa campaign trail on Saturday, Ms. Warren presented herself as the candidate best prepared to rally Democrats for the general election. She addressed a group of volunteers in Urbandale, before a wall of signs reading Unite the Party. In a Cedar Rapids gymnasium, Representative Ayanna Pressley of Massachusetts praised Ms. Warren as both empathetic and electable.

We will, we must, come together as a party and beat Donald Trump, Ms. Warren said. And Ive got a plan for that.

This turn toward I-can-win pragmatism reflects a simple fact of political life in a contest in which at least a third of likely caucusgoers remain undecided just days before the vote. The candidates are responding to the marketplace: Their voters, while deeply split across ideological and generational lines in ways that could still force a showdown at this summers convention, are united by an all-consuming hunger to unseat Mr. Trump.

What Im focused on most is getting that fool out of the White House, said Debbie McAllister, who attended a Sioux City rally Friday for Mr. Buttigieg, the former mayor of South Bend, Ind., and is leaning toward him over Ms. Klobuchar.
T he Palestinian Authority say it has cut all ties with the US and Israel after rejecting President Donald Trump's Middle East peace plan.

Palestinian president Mahmoud Abbas gave an address on Saturday to the Arab League in Cairo.

The body backed the Palestinians in rejecting the plan - endorsed by Israeli prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu, which calls for a demilitarised Palestinian state.

The blueprint heavily favours Israel and would allow it to annex all of its Jewish settlements, along with the Jordan Valley, in the occupied West Bank.

The Palestinians were offered limited self-rule in Gaza, parts of the West Bank and some sparsely populated areas of Israel in return for meeting a long list of conditions.

Palestinian students take part in a protest against the U.S. President Donald Trump's Middle East peace plan / REUTERS

At the emergency meeting held to discuss Trump's plan, Mr Abbas said: "Weve informed the Israeli side  that there will be no relations at all with them and the United States including security ties.

Palestinian people had held demonstrations across the region on Friday to protest against the initiative, while militants in the Gaza Strip fired rockets and mortar rounds at Israel, drawing retaliatory strikes.

It said that Palestinian militants had also launched "explosive balloons" toward Israel and that a sniper had shot an observation antenna. The military said it struck targets linked to the Hamas militant group in response, including "underground infrastructure used to manufacture weapons."

Throughout the day, Gaza militants fired several rounds of mortars and projectiles. An Israeli tank fired on a Hamas military post, and Israeli aircraft struck additional militant sites in Gaza early Saturday.

No one was wounded in either exchange of fire, but an Israeli woman dropped her three-week-old baby while running into a bomb shelter during the rocket attack, according to the United Hatzalah rescue service. The baby was hospitalized and is in moderate condition.

US President Donald Trump's plan has pushed the Palestinians even further away from a deal / AFP via Getty Images

Security forces in both Israel and Palestine have cooperated in the past in policing the West Bank. Palestine also had cooperation agreements with the US' CIA which even continued after the country began boycotting Trump's peace efforts beginning in 2017.

Mr Abbas has said he refused to communicate with Trump about the deal and reiterated his complete rejection of the plan.

I will not have it recorded in my history that I sold Jerusalem, he said.

The Arab League foreign ministers meeting in Cairo said the plan did not meet the minimum aspirations of Palestinians, and the League would not cooperate with the US in implementing it.

The plan anticipates $50 billion of investment in the future Palestinian state and describes several ambitious development projects, without saying where the money would come from.

But the plan says "people of every faith should be permitted to pray on the Temple Mount/Haram al-Sharif, in a manner that is fully respectful to their religion, taking into account the times of each religion's prayers and holidays, as well as other religious factors."

The site is part of the famed Old City in east Jerusalem, which Israel captured, along with the West Bank and Gaza, in the 1967 war. The Palestinians view east Jerusalem as their capital and want all three territories to form their future state.

Trump's Mideast plan would situate the Palestinian capital on the outskirts of east Jerusalem, beyond the separation barrier built by Israel. The rest of Jerusalem, including the Old City, would remain Israel's capital.

"A lot of people are still in a state of shock over the proposal," said Christian Saunders, the acting head of the U.N. agency for Palestinian refugees, which provides basic services to some 5 million Palestinians scattered across the region.
Iraqi President Barham Salih appointed Mohammed Tawfiq Allawi as the new Prime Minister on Saturday, State TV reported. Mohammed Tawfiq is the former communications minister of Iraq. The announcement came as there were mass protests and rejection by protestors. The decision was made after a discussion for 11 hours, post which a consensus was reached.

The other political parties of the nation failed to provide a candidate as the Prime Minister in the last two months ever since former PM Adel Abdul-Mahdi resigned in November amid mass protests.

READ | Iraq protesters keep up anti-government rallies despite violence

Allawi has to form a govt within a month

The new Prime Minister reportedly has to now run the country until early elections can be held. He also has to form a government within a month. Allawi posted a video on his Twitter on Saturday in which he is heard saying that Saleh has named him as the new Premier.

Addressing the camera, Allawi said, "After the President appointed me to form a new government a short while ago, I wanted to talk to you first. I will ask you to keep up with the protests because if you are not with me, I won't be able to do anything."

The new premier was also quoted by State TV saying that he would resign if any political bloc sought to impose candidates for different ministries.

READ | Iraq: At least 10 killed, 138 injured in two days of violent protests

Violent anti-govt protests in Baghdad

Baghdad has been gripped by violent anti-government protests for almost four months now. The uprising began on October 1, when thousands of Iraqis took to the streets to decry rampant government corruption, poor public services and a scarcity of jobs. The protestors have demanded freedom from corruption and more importantly, snap elections.

The uprising in Iraq is effectively its worst crisis since the military defeat of the Islamic State in 2017. Iraq is primarily ruled by an Iran-backed Shia elite, which controls the nation that is facing tremendous opposition from a Shiite population. The former PM Mahdi who faced increasing pressure from the ruling elites and the protestors resigned late last year bringing Baghdad to a political standstill.

To end the crisis, President Salih gave the political blocs until February 1, to come up with a replacement for Mahdi or he would name his own candidate.

READ | Iraq's speaker calls Iranian attack 'violation of Iraqi sovereignty'

Iran and US trying to settle disputes in Iraq

If anti-government protests weren't enough, the nation was further thrown into more trouble after Iran General Qassem Soleimani's killing by the US in a drone strike on January 3rd. Iran replied to the killing with further missile strikes to airbases hosting US troops. Both Iran and the US have used Iraq as their proxy base which has pushed the nation into an all-out conflict zone.

READ | Missile attacks on US military, coalition forces could threaten all-out war: Iraq PM

(with inputs from agencies)
I watched the film the other day and will watch it again. Yes, I became emotional. And yes, it caused me to weep. I will take my wife and sons to this film and see it again with them, and I ask everyone I know to see it.
Budget 2020: Amit Shah hails Sitharaman for development-oriented budget

India

oi-Deepika S

New Delhi, Feb 01: Union Home Minister Amit Shah on Saturday said that the Union Budget 2020-21 will further the Modi government's resolve to make India a USD-5 trillion economy.

"In this budget, the Modi government has taken effective steps to rationalise the tax system, boost the basic infrastructure, strengthen the banking system, promote investment and ease of doing business, which will further Modi government's resolve to make India a 5 trillion dollar economy," he tweeted.

Shah added that the budget will contribute significantly in fulfilling the Modi government's aim to double the income of farmers. Describing it as 'Jan Jan ka budget' (a Budget for everyone), he said that the relief in income tax will benefit the salaried class.

Budget 2020: What gets cheaper, what gets more expensive

Bharatiya Janata Party president J P Nadda also praised the Budget and said it will ensure all-round development.

"Prime Minister Narendra Modi ji has ensured all-round development of all sections of the society. The Budget 2020, presented today in the Parliament is the testimony of the vision of Narendra Modi ji for 'New India'. I express my gratitude for our Prime Minister Narendra Modi ji and congratulate Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman ji and her team for the visionary and futuristic, growth-oriented and all-inclusive Budget," he tweeted.

"The Modi government through this budget has provided a major and unprecedented relief in income tax to taxpayers of every category. Particularly, the middle-class salaried taxpayers will not only get to pat reduced tax but will also get relief from the simplification of tax system," he said in another tweet.

New Income Tax slabs 2020

Rajnath Singh hails Budget 2020

Budget gives outline of new and confident India and will make country healthy and wealthy in coming years, said Defence Minister Rajnath Singh. "Budget has clear focus on welfare and development of all sections. It gives special attention to farmers," he added.
India must guarantee a minimum of 240 days of work for women under Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Act, pass womens reservation bill and come up with gender-segregated data of beneficiaries of central schemes among other things to achieve the principles of gender equality under Beijing Declaration.

The declaration, a resolution of the United Nations for gender equality, was passed in 1995 with 189 initial signatories.

There are 192 signatories now and a 25-year review of the declaration at the meeting of the UNs Commission on the Status of Women for its 64th session is coming up in March this year.

These recommendations emerged after officials of the National Commission for Women (NCW) and UN Women held a day-long consultation with field workers and officials to mark the 25th anniversary of the declaration.

Officials of the women and child development, health and family welfare, minority affairs and agriculture ministries were also a part of the consultation, where members of legal organisations, academics and several NGOs, too, were present.

NCW chairperson Rekha Sharma said that other recommendations include improving access to quality education, health services and skilling and working towards increasing female labour force participation.

We need to have a convergence of women-related initiatives by various ministries for better coordination of the gender equality agenda, we need to promote more women in entrepreneurship roles and most importantly, have mechanisms for the collection of gender-disaggregated data (data analysed separately on men and women), Sharma said.

Experts at the meeting also stressed on the need for an anti-discrimination bill which penalises gender-based discrimination. Education experts said that the Right to Education (RTE) Act needs to be implemented fully and comprehensive sexual education should be made available in all schools. Sexual health experts said safe abortion care should be accessible.

Priyanka Samy of the National Federation of Dalit Women, who was part of the discussion, said the government needs to prioritise gender-responsive planning, budgeting and implementation.

This should be done from the lens of intersectionality, factoring the distinct disadvantages faced by marginalised women, including women with disabilities and people across the LGBTQI spectrum, said Samy.

In 2015, in the WCD ministrys review report of its implementation of the declaration in its 20th year, the setting up the WCD ministry was listed as an achievement.

The passage of legislation such as the Criminal Law (Amendment) Act, 2013, and the Sexual Harassment of Women at Workplace (Prevention, Prohibition and Redressal) Act 2013, too, were listed in the report.

Sanya V Seth of the UN Women said there is a need for inclusiveness and collaboration in the policy and decision-making processes.
Top 100 educational institutions in the country will offer full-fledged online degree programmes, Union Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman announced on Saturday.

"Degree level full-fledged online programme will be started to provide quality to students of deprived sections of the society as well as those who do not have access to higher

"However, these shall be offered only by institutions who are ranked within top 100 in the National Institutional Ranking Framework (NIRF)," the Finance Minister said in her Budget speech.

Union HRD Minister Ramesh Pokhriyal 'Nishank' said the move will help increase the Gross Enrolment Ration (GER).

"I appreciate the announcement of introduction of degree level online education programme. Through this, GER will be increased and education will be accessible to all sections of the society," Nishank told reporters.

The University Grants Commission (UGC) had paved way for the move by drafting the UGC (Online Courses) Regulations, 2018.

According to the norms laid down by the UGC, higher educational institutions are eligible to offer online programmes if they have been in existence for at least five years and are accredited by the National Assessment and Accreditation Council (NAAC) with a valid minimum score of 3.26 on a 4-point scale.

The institutions should be in the top-100 in overall category in the NIRF for at least two years in the previous three years.

"Online programmes requiring practical and laboratory courses as a curricular requirement shall not be permitted. The examinations shall be conducted in proctored mode and in conformity with any norms for such examinations stipulated by the commission," according to UGC regulations.

For the year 2019-20, the UGC has granted recognition to seven higher educational institutions to offer degree, diploma and certificate programmes in online mode.

The institutions include JSS Academy of Higher Education and Research, Mysuru, Manipal Academy of Higher Education, Manipal, Bharati Vidyapeeth, Pune, Dr DY Patil Vidyapeeth, Pune, Shanmugha Arts, Science, Technology and Research Academy, Thanjavur and Amity University, Noida.

The commission had earlier this month granted exemption to Indira Gandhi National Open University (IGNOU) from its online courses or programmes regulations 2018.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
In the backdrop of the forthcoming Delhi assembly elections, Delhi Lieutenant Governor Anil Baijal has directed Police Commissioner Amulya Patnaik to ensure outsiders and suspicious characters are thoroughly frisked before they can access the Shaheen Bagh protest side. Baijals clear directive comes against the backdrop of a shooting incident just 50 metres from the stage earlier in the day.

The Delhi Lt-Governor also gave clear instructions to the police chief to take other steps to ensure that law and order is firmly under control at the protest site.

Baijals instructions, Delhi Police sources said, were designed to prevent any repetition of the unsavoury shooting incidents.

The two incidents of firing come just days before the national capital is to vote on February 8, heightening the sensitivities around the protest and the possibility that any incident at Shaheen Bagh was bound to be amplified by rival sides.

Baijal is learnt to have spoken with Patnaik soon after a young man fired shots in the air on Saturday evening. He was immediately taken into custody. Sources said Baijal had suggested that the police extensively put up barricades around the protest site to enable cops to control access and frisk outsiders.

Saturdays incident of a young man firing in the air was the second time in three days that a firearm has been fired at the protest side.

On Thursday, a teenager from Jewar in Uttar Pradesh had turned up at the protest site with a country-made pistol. He opened fire at the crowd, injuring a second-year postgraduate student.

The protest at Shaheen Bagh against the amended citizenship law started last month after Parliament enacted a law that empowers the government to fast-track citizenship requests from refugees belonging to the religious minorities from Pakistan, Bangladesh and Afghanistan.

SHARE THIS ARTICLE ON
Montreal, CA (H4T1V6)

Today

Snow showers this morning. Becoming partly cloudy later. High -11C. Winds WNW at 10 to 20 mph. Chance of snow 70%..

Tonight

Some passing clouds. A few flurries or snow showers possible. Low --24C. Winds NW at 5 to 10 mph.
Secretary of State Julian Smith has praised the "bravery and fortitude" of campaigners after confirming legislation on victims' pensions.

He said those who lived through the Troubles have demonstrated "extraordinary courage and bravery".

"One of my priorities has been the creation of a victim-centred scheme that is transparent, balanced and easy to use. The discussions and delay of the past few years have gone on long enough," he said.

Read More

"This scheme is intended to provide much-needed acknowledgement, and a measure of additional financial support, to people injured through no fault of their own in a Troubles-related incident, some of whom are struggling to make ends meet."

Mr Smith said the "terrible harm" caused by violence must be recognised, adding: "As a society, we still have work to do to deal with the legacy of that terrible period in our history.

"I know that there remain significant challenges to overcome and different views about how to proceed. We should pause and thank those who have helped us get to a place where we can provide a scheme like this which I hope will make a real difference to people's lives."
The possibility of developing river tourism within the Arklow Municipal District is to be explored.

At the January meeting, Councillor Pat Kennedy (FF) noted the district has great potential for river tourism. He suggested there may be a need to employ consultants in future to outline uses for the river area.

Cllr Peir Leonard (Ind) suggested there was need for signs to explain the river catchment area and illustrate the scale of the area. She noted that the project could expand to Arklow Harbour.

Cllr Kennedy said storyboards could be used to show the life of the rivers in the area. He added his belief that the area is the longest glacial valley in Ireland and the United Kingdom.

Cllr Pat Fitzgerald (FF) said this was an idea to follow up.
Delta Air Lines Boeing 767

Nicolas Economou/NurPhoto/Getty

Delta flight attendants are suing Boeing over an aircraft system they say exposed them to "toxic" air, the Chicago Tribune reported.

The plaintiffs claim that the bleed air system used by most Boeing aircraft that takes air from the engines to power air conditioning and pressurization systems in the cabin is at fault.

The incident in question occurred on a flight from Frankfurt, Germany, to Detroit, Michigan, operated by a Boeing 767-300ER aircraft.

Visit Business Insider's homepage for more stories.

Delta flight attendants are suing Boeing following an incident where they claim "toxic" air flowed into the cabin during a routine flight, the Chicago Tribune reported.

The lawsuit alleges that the aircraft's bleed air system, which takes air from the engines to feed the aircraft's air conditioning system and pressurize the aircraft, was responsible for the event and Boeing as the manufacturer is at-fault.

The flight attendants filed the lawsuit Tuesday in Boeing's home turf of Chicago, taking the matter to Cook County Circuit Court where they will ask for $50,000 in damages related to the incident and a trial by jury, the Tribune reported.

The incident in question allegedly occurred during a routine flight from Frankfurt, Germany, to the airline's hub in Detroit, Michigan, where the crew noticed decreasing air quality while in the middle of its transatlantic crossing, the AvHerald reported.

The bleed air that is taken from engines is supposed to be clean air, but potentially leaks in the engine can cause contamination, Inc reported. An aircraft's engines are constantly sucking in air as it's required to produce thrust, making them an ideal source for cabin air when functioning properly.

But the system has been the focus of numerous lawsuits over the years, with cabin crews at the forefront. Alaska Airlines flight attendants sued Boeing over the issue, the Chicago Tribune also reported, just five years ago in 2015. The matter was settled out of court.

Story continues

In the latest case, the aircraft operating the flight was a Boeing 767-300ER aircraft, one of Delta's long-haul workhorse.

Boeing aircraft aren't the only ones featuring the system, however, as its main rival uses the same type of bleed air system for its aircraft, even its newest ones. Two operators of the Airbus A330-900neo, TAP Air Portugal and Aircalin, both reported fumes on board the aircraft, matching the description of a bleed air issue, with New Caledonia-based Aircalin sending its aircraft back to France for tests shortly after taking delivery.

Boeing and Delta did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

Read the original article on Business Insider
Top archbishops in the Church of England have apologized for guidance issued by the church last week that said only married heterosexuals should have sex -- while same-sex or heterosexual Christians in civil partnerships should remain abstinent.



Archbishop of Canterbury Justin Welby and Archbishop of York John Sentamu said in a statement Thursday that they took responsibility for last week's announcement, "which we acknowledge has jeopardized trust." "We are very sorry and recognize the division and hurt this has caused," Welby and Sentamu wrote.



The statement stopped short of retracting the "pastoral guidance" issued by the bishops of the Church of England, which was in response to the extension of civil partnerships to heterosexual couples in the UK. The guidance, published January 22, said: "For Christians, marriage -- that is the lifelong union between a man and a woman, contracted with the making of vows -- remains the proper context for sexual activity."



When it comes to civil partnerships, the church sought "to affirm the value of committed, sexually-abstinent friendships."



It highlighted the division between conservatives -- who want the church to stick to a traditional biblical teachings on marriage -- and the church's progressive members. The guidance was described as "a laughingstock to a nation that believes it (the church) is obsessed with sex," in an open letter to the archbishops.



The letter, signed by more than 3,000 people, including dozens of members of the clergy, said the bishops' guidance "has significantly damaged the mission of the church and it has broken the trust of those it seeks to serve."



It goes on to express dismay that a public pronouncement on sex and marriage was made while the church was still undergoing a review of the issue, called the "Living in Love and Faith" project.



The letter said its signatories had not expected an announcement on the matter until the project's report was published. "It seems our trust has been misplaced and we feel badly let down."





Source: CNN









Disclaimer : Opinions expressed here are those of the writers and do not reflect those of Peacefmonline.com. Peacefmonline.com accepts no responsibility legal or otherwise for their accuracy of content. Please report any inappropriate content to us, and we will evaluate it as a matter of priority.

Featured Video
Dawn Tyler, who proudly claimed the role of Duchess of Dank, and Rick Tyler, who preached his craft as Minister of Beer chased their dream and opened a bar in Humble area that serves artisan and craft beer.

We dont take ourselves too seriously around here, and we ask that our customers dont as well, Rick said. Beer should be fun.

Four years after opening The Hop Stop, Dawn and Rick are hosting an anniversary party during their normal business hours on Saturday with live music sets, limited-release craft beers and on-site food truck Double Back Bar-B-Que. The Hop Stop is located at 802 1st Street E., Humble.

Its a chance for us to break bread with our customers, Rick said. ... Get to know them a little better and really just enjoy their company because we get a lot of really cool people that come in here on a consistent basis, and we [are] truly appreciative of that.

At The Hop Stop, customers can find Houston craft beer options in addition to craft brews from around the country, as well as a few wine options. Over the four years it has been open in downtown Humble, the store has created a Cheers style atmosphere, and it truly is a place where at least the owners know your name, Dawn said. The only music that plays in the bar comes from a vinyl record, which customers can choose to play from a few shelves of options or bring their own vinyl, known in house as B.Y.O.V..

ON HOUSTON CHRONICLE.COM: Houstons craft beer craze more than doubles brewery space in six years

The bar stretches almost the full length of the main room, but The Hop Stop also has outdoor seating and a second room with two dart boards and a set of musical instruments for anyone to play. The second room is where they also host a themed potluck on the third Sunday of every month.

Staying true to craft

Over time as major brands collect craft breweries as part of their corporation, The Hop Stop takes them off tap at the bar. Rick said they have a commitment to only serve craft beer and to maintain its status as a supporter and server of true artisan beer.

Its an important kind of thing to recognize the hard work of all these folks that are out there making artisanal small-batch beer, Rick said. We are pretty adamant about not having anything in here owned by the Budweisers, Millers, or Coors, or any of the big conglomerates. And as they have picked breweries off and acquired them we have severed our relationship with those breweries to try and really remain like a true craft establishment.

For the Tylers, its also about supporting fellow small business owners and offering products with better ingredients from businesses that dont cut corners for mass production.

RELATED: The Cove on Hamblen brings new beer, wine options to Kingwood

Youre not lining the pockets of a CEO, youre putting braces on a kid or youre helping somebody pay their mortgage, Rick said. So thats always been an important focus for us. Its the same thing here. If you come in and buy a beer in my establishment youre helping us subsist.

Ending the craft beer desert

When the Tylers moved to Kingwood eight years ago, they found the area to be a craft beer desert with no place to get a craft beer like in central Houston. Now, they can offer beer on tap, to-go beer in crowlers or growlers, and special orders for beer or wine.

You can only get so much at a grocery store, Dawn said. But those smaller batches, or the people who didnt have the same amount of money to get in a can form at a super grocery store, you had to go into town and you had to source it.

They had to make a split decision when the store next to their previous business went up for rent and choose to dive into making their bar a reality. Rick has over 20 years of experience in the hospitality industry and Dawn has a background in working in logistics and accounting positions, so they were able to successfully take the risk of opening a business.

Dawn said she feels like their customers are more than customers, they are like family now. They often greet each other with hugs and make it feel like sitting at their kitchen bar.

We feel like were super lucky that weve had so many people become regulars and keep us relevant even after more competitions come into the market, Dawn said. We were the pioneers of this area. We were first, then it was Back Pew, then it was Ingenious, and then domino effect, you have more and more like in our own little neighborhood now.

Fulfilling their dream

The bar was Ricks dream, and he said making it this far is humbling and satisfying to see his dream come true.

Its humbling that we made it this long, Rick said. Its kind of satisfying to know that you know I had an idea that worked.

For more information, visit http://thehopstophumble.com/.

savannah.mehrtens@chron.com
A: I kind of call myself the resilience queen. Ive had two brain tumors, bowel obstructions, hit by a car, a life of migraines. And Ive been very productive, very outgoing, very positive. I lost my son and recently had breast cancer. People say to me, how is it that you can maintain your positivity? So I decided to research that from a neuroscience standpoint ... and how can I help people learn tools and skills to be resilient and they can be taught. I have moved into becoming an advocate and helper, if you will, a teacher of mindfulness, resilience skills. Now Im using those skills in the migraine advocacy field.
Fotis Dulos, who was charged with killing his estranged wife, was declared dead Thursday, his attorney said.

Authorities believe Dulos made an apparent suicide attempt Tuesday, according to two law enforcement sources. He was in "dire" condition Wednesday at a New York hospital, his attorney said, and he was in a hyperbaric chamber.

"His family came in from Greece and decided today to donate his organs so that he will live on in some form in the assistance that he can provide to others in their own individual struggles," Norm Pattis told reporters Thursday.

The estranged husband of Jennifer Farber Dulos failed to appear at an emergency bond hearing Tuesday after one of the properties used to secure his $6 million bond was determined to be in foreclosure and didn't meet the bond requirement set by the court.

Officers later found him at his Farmington, Connecticut, house in distress and called for an ambulance. Fotis Dulos, 52, was initially taken to a local hospital for treatment of carbon monoxide poisoning and then transferred to the hospital in New York.

A Superior Court judge Wednesday ordered three re-arrest warrants for Dulos and increased his bond to $6.5 million because he missed his court hearing. At the hearing, Pattis agreed to waive extradition proceedings to allow Dulos' family to have access to him during his hospitalization.

'A horrific tragedy'

Pattis said Thursday "was tried and convicted in the court of public opinion."

"Now, he has been executed," Pattis said.

He added: "We remain committed to demonstrating he did not murder Jennifer."

Dulos' sister, brother in-law and a close friend were in the room when he was declared dead, along with Kevin Smith, another attorney representing him, Pattis told CNN.

"This is a horrific tragedy all around," Carrie Luft, a spokeswoman for Jennifer Farber Dulos' family and friends, said in a statement.

Jennifer Dulos, a 50-year-old mother of five, disappeared in May 2019 in New Canaan, Connecticut, after she dropped her children off at school. Investigators found her car near a park not far from her home, but she has not been seen or heard from since, and officials now believe she is dead.

She and Fotis Dulos were in the midst of a bitter custody battle. Jennifer Farber Dulos moved out in 2017 to a home in New Canaan and filed for divorce, court records show. She told officials she was afraid of her husband, according to court documents obtained by CNN.

"I know that filing for divorce and filing this motion will enrage him," she said, according to the documents. "I know he will retaliate by trying to harm me in some way."

Fotis Dulos denied making any threats or bullying her, according to court filings.

He and his then-girlfriend, Michelle Troconis, were arrested in June and charged with tampering with or fabricating evidence after investigators found blood stains and evidence of attempts to clean the crime scene, officials said. They pleaded not guilty.

He was arrested on murder and kidnapping charges earlier this month and again pleaded not guilty. Troconis, as well as Dulos' friend and former attorney, Kent Mawhinney, have also been arraigned on a charge of conspiracy to commit murder. Neither has entered a plea yet.

Pattis had said he was shocked after learning of his client's apparent suicide attempt.

"I saw nothing that led me to believe that," he said. "I look back and wonder what I missed."
The Planetary Society

Our Vision

Know the cosmos and our place within it.

Our Mission

Empowering the world's citizens to advance space science and exploration.
America, the world's powerful country, has announced that it will ban travel on 6 more countries, including four African countries. Steps like America's travel ban are already being criticized. The White House said in a statement on Friday that immigration restrictions would be imposed on Tanzania, Nigeria, Sudan, Eritrea, Kyrgyzstan, and Myanmar. The proclamation signed on Friday by President Donald Trump will take effect at 12.01 am on February 22 at midnight.

Locust wreaks havoc in Pakistan, National Emergency declared

According to the US on this matter, the US will curb the visa application of citizens of Eritrea, Kyrgyzstan, Myanmar and Nigeria, which will prevent the permanent residence of citizens of these countries. Citizens of two other countries, Sudan and Tanzania, will be prevented from participating in the Diversity Visa Lottery, which gives green cards to immigrants. The statement said that the newly banned countries failed to meet US national security requirements.

Polio makes Pakistan cry, many cases encountered in this province

The White House said in the statement that the new restrictions do not apply to trade, tourism or non-immigrant travel from those countries. Earlier seven countries Syria, Iran, Libya, Somalia, Yemen, North Korea, Venezuela were banned. Now six more countries will be included in this list, many of which are Muslim-majority. All are facing a travel ban issued by the Trump administration in 2017.

Tire stuck to crocodiles neck for years, person will be rewarded for removing it
Medical staff with protective clothing work inside a ward specialised in receiving any person who may have been infected with coronavirus, at the Rajiv Ghandhi Government General hospital in Chennai, India, January 29, 2020.

P. Ravikumar/Reuters

Scientists are racing to learn more about the coronavirus that emerged in Wuhan, China in December.

Preliminary research suggests that Wuhan alone could have 19 times more cases than reported, possibly even 26 times more.

Other studies  some of which have not been peer reviewed  suggest that patients could experience nausea or diarrhea before they get fever or a cough.

Many people infected with the new coronavirus have mild symptoms or none at all, making it difficult to know the size or severity of the outbreak.

For the latest case total, death toll, and travel information, see Business Insider's live updates.

Visit Business Insider's homepage for more stories.

Scientists are racing to learn more about a new coronavirus that has swept through China and spread across the globe. In the last few weeks, scientists worldwide have published a wealth of early studies.

The virus, which may have jumped from animals to people at a market in the city of Wuhan, has killed more than 2,000 people and infected more than 75,000.

The World Health Organization (WHO) considers the outbreak a global public-health emergency  a declaration that has only been used five times since it was created in 2005.

Research about the coronavirus so far has appeared both in peer-reviewed journals and on pre-print servers without peer review, since that process can take months, and the outbreak has grown quickly.

Although it's preliminary, here's what published research has shown so far.

The largest analysis yet of coronavirus patients so far found that about 80% of cases in China are mild.

coronavirus temperature check thermometer

A medical worker holds a thermometer to check a passenger's temperature at a checkpoint as the country is hit by an outbreak of the novel coronavirus in Susong County, Anhui province, China, February 6, 2020.

Thomas Peter/Reuters

The new report from the Chinese Center for Disease Control and Prevention looked at 72,314 cases.

Story continues

Patients with mild symptoms might experience a fever or dry cough, but they aren't likely to have difficulty breathing or develop a severe lung infection within 24 to 48 hours.

Many people on a quarantined cruise ship who tested positive for the new virus, called COVID-19, never showed symptoms at all.

diamond princess getting off the ship

Courtesy of Philip and Gay Courter/Handout via Reuters

The Diamond Princess cruise ship has been host to the largest number of diagnosed COVID-19 cases outside China: at least 621.

In a quarantine that many experts have called ineffective and unethical, officials kept passengers and crew on the ship while they tested them. The virus seems to have spread on the ship during that time.

Of the 621 cases on board, 322 showed no symptoms, according to Japan's Ministry of Health.

Those people could still develop symptoms later, but they might also offer evidence that many coronavirus carriers throughout China are going undetected, since they might not go to the hospital if they don't feel sick.

The period of time during which people carrying the coronavirus show no symptoms, called the incubation period, seems to last two to 14 days.

wuhan coronavirus

Emily Wang/AP Photo

That's the assumption that the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) has adopted, based on the incubation period of MERS.

It's also the reason the White House decided to temporarily bar foreigners from entering the US if they have been to China within the past 14 days. US citizens who have been to the Hubei province of China  where Wuhan is located  within the prior 14 days could be quarantined for up to two weeks upon their return.

These policies, which went into effect on February 2, are meant to prevent people from spreading the virus before they know they've been infected.

But an analysis of over 1,099 patients found that some had incubation periods as long as 24 days.

Customers wearing face masks shop inside a supermarket following an outbreak of the novel coronavirus in Wuhan, Hubei province, China February 10, 2020. China Daily via REUTERS

Reuters

That study has not been peer-reviewed, though.

It's unclear whether people who are infected can spread the new coronavirus before they show symptoms.

wuhan coronavirus stopping the spread

Indonesian Foreign Ministry via AP

A letter in The New England Journal of Medicine described a case in which a 33-year-old German man caught the coronavirus from a business partner from China. Three days later, he felt better and went back to work (before realizing he'd had the coronavirus), then infected at least two of his colleagues.

But a follow-up letter from Germany's public health agency claimed that the researchers hadn't spoken with the business partner from China. The agency said she had told investigators she had symptoms while in Germany, according to the journal Science.

There is no evidence that SARS or MERS can spread from people who don't have symptoms. But preliminary research shows that less serious coronaviruses might.

Soldiers wear protective suits during the arrival of Brazilians repatriated from Wuhan, China, the epicenter of the coronavirus, at the Annapolis Air Force Base, in Anapolis city, Goias state, Brazil, Sunday, Feb. 9, 2020. Dozens of Brazilians landed early Sunday morning at the airbase in the Brazilian state of Goias, where they will spend the next 18 days in quarantine. (AP Photo/Beto Barata)

Beto Barata/AP

A study published without peer review looked at common coronaviruses, which cause nothing more than a cold, and found them inside nasal passages of people who reported no symptoms.

"It's going to leak out as they're speaking and breathing and coughing and sneezing and wiping their nose," Jeffrey Shaman, the lead author of that study, told NPR. "Whether it's ... a sufficient quantity to make somebody else infectious, we can't discern that from what we've done."

Men represent the majority of new coronavirus cases so far, and they seem to die more often from it.

li keqiang wuhan coronavirus

cnsphoto via Reuters

The study from China's CDC found that men are more likely to die of the virus, with a fatality rate of 2.8% compared to 1.7% for women. Men also represented a slight majority of cases: around 51%.

Other recent studies have yielded similar results. A study of nearly 140 coronavirus patients at a Wuhan University hospital found that the virus was most likely to affect older men with preexisting health problems. More than 54% of the patients in the study were men, and the median age of patients was 56.

A study of 99 coronavirus patients at Wuhan Jinyintan Hospital showed that the average patient was 55.5 years old, and men represented around 68% of the total cases. A third study of nearly 1,100 coronavirus patients (which is still awaiting peer review) identified a median age of 47, with men representing around 58% of the cases.

Some experts think that's because Chinese men smoke more than Chinese women, increasing their risk of respiratory problems.

smoking china coronavirus.JPG

Carlos Garcia Rawlins/Reuters

On Friday, the executive director of the World Heath Organization's Health Emergencies Program, Michael Ryan, said smoking was "an excellent hypothesis" for why the virus has affected more men. A 2010 national survey of smoking in China found that 62% of Chinese men had been smokers at some point, while only 3% of Chinese women had ever smoked.

"Since COVID-19 is a respiratory disease and often causes pneumonia, having a history of smoking could increase the risk of more severe respiratory distress or pneumonia," Saskia Popescu, an epidemiologist at the Honor Health medical group in Arizona, told Business Insider.

More data is needed to confirm the theory, though.

Patients with severe cases of the virus develop pneumonia-like symptoms. Many have a build-up of fluid in their lungs.

Coronavirus_patient_chest_x ray

Junqiang Lei, Junfeng Li, Xun Li, and Xiaolong Qi

A study released in the journal Radiology included scans of the chest of a 33-year-old woman from a hospital in Lanzhou, China. The scans show white patches in the lower corner of her lungs, which indicate what radiologists call "ground glass opacity."

"If you zoom in on the image, it kind of looks like faint glass that has been ground up," Paras Lakhani, a radiologist at Thomas Jefferson University who was not involved in the study but examined the images, told Business Insider. "What it represents is fluid in the lung spaces."

Though the coronavirus is a respiratory disease, some research suggests it might also affect the digestive system.

People wearing masks shop at a supermarket on the second day of the Chinese Lunar New Year, following the outbreak of a new coronavirus, in Wuhan, Hubei province, China January 26, 2020. cnsphoto via REUTERS

Reuters

In a study shared in the pre-publication repository biorXiv without peer review, researchers in Shanghai detected an enzyme signature of the virus in cells from the small intestine and colon.

Researchers detected the coronavirus' RNA in a US patient's poop.

rna analysis

Malcolm Ritter/AP

Dr. Susan Kline, spokesperson for the Infectious Diseases Society of America, told MedPage Today that other coronaviruses appear in poop as well. Severe acute respiratory syndrome (SARS) traveled through a Hong Kong apartment's sewage system and infected other residents after one sick person had diarrhea.

Kline said some health authorities may be overlooking gastrointestinal symptoms, like nausea, vomiting, and diarrhea.

Coronavirus patients wuhan

STR/AFP/Getty Images

The first US patient to be diagnosed had diarrhea and reported abdominal discomfort the day after he arrived at the hospital. Patients in China and Vietnam have also had diarrhea, vomited, or reported nausea.

Kline said that although healthcare workers should not expect all patients to have gastrointestinal problems, including those symptoms in official guidelines could help catch more coronavirus cases early on.

"That would be helpful for clinicians to have, so they could at least consider that a patient with novel coronavirus might have vomiting or diarrhea," Kline said.

Ignoring those rarer symptoms could have deadly consequences, since they are sometimes the first indicators that a person is infected.

Wuhan coronavirus

AP Photo/Arek Rata

One study said a patient was placed in a surgical ward because they only showed abdominal symptoms, so doctors didn't suspect the new coronavirus. That patient transmitted the virus to at least 10 healthcare workers and four other patients in the ward.

The outbreak poses a grave risk to Chinese healthcare workers. Officials have reported 1,716 healthcare workers infected nationwide.

Wuhan coronavirus doctors

Feature China/Barcroft Media via Getty Images

China's National Health Commission announced Friday that 1,716 health workers had contracted the new virus. At least seven have died.

Of the total number of reported sick healthcare staff, 87.5% are in the Hubei province, where the outbreak began.

Research published earlier this month in the Journal of the American Medical Association (JAMA) found that, of 138 patients studied at one hospital, 29% were healthcare workers.

COVID-19 is the seventh known member of the coronavirus family, which also includes the viruses that cause the common cold and pneumonia.

A computer image created by Nexu Science Communication together with Trinity College in Dublin, shows a model structurally representative of a betacoronavirus which is the type of virus linked to COVID-19, better known as the coronavirus linked to the Wuhan outbreak, shared with Reuters on February 18, 2020. NEXU Science Communication/via REUTERS

Reuters

Other coronaviruses include SARS and Middle East respiratory syndrome (MERS).

Though it has spread quickly, the new coronavirus so far seems less deadly than MERS and SARS.

So far, the mortality rate for the Wuhan coronavirus is around 2%, but experts think that rate will evolve.

The new coronavirus appears to be more infectious than SARS. Studies looking at the number of people an average patient infects suggest it could range from one to five.

temperature check coronavirus beijing .JPG

Reuters/Carlos Garcia Rawlins

Knowing how many people the average patient infects  a number called the R0 (pronounced R-naught)  is crucial to understanding how a virus spreads.

So far, studies vary widely on the R0 of the Wuhan coronavirus. Most estimates, including the WHO's, land in a range similar to that of SARS, about two or three. But some studies have placed the R0 much higher, closer to five or six.

One peer-reviewed study estimated that 75,815 people in Wuhan had likely been infected by January 25  nearly eight times the number of reported cases worldwide at the time.

Wuhan

STR/AFP via Getty Images

The study, published in medical journal The Lancet, estimated that infected people would pass the virus to two to three others, on average, meaning the infected population would double every 6.4 days.

The researchers even accounted for the quarantine China imposed on Wuhan and surrounding cities.

"Other major Chinese cities are probably sustaining localized outbreaks," the study authors wrote. "Large cities overseas with close transport links to China could also become outbreak epicenters, unless substantial public-health interventions at both the population and personal levels are implemented immediately."

A more recent analysis estimated that only one in 19 infected people in Wuhan have been tested and diagnosed.

wuhan coronavirus inspection

Workers in protective suits conduct a door-to-door search to inspect residents following an outbreak of the novel coronavirus in Wuhan.

China Daily via Reuters

The analysis, from researchers at Imperial College London, is based on estimates of the rate of infection in cases outside of mainland China.

The researchers looked at roughly 750 passengers who traveled from Wuhan back to their home countries on government-arranged flights. Upon their return, the travelers were all kept in isolation and tested for the coronavirus immediately. Many tested positive, though some didn't present any symptoms.

The researchers applied the rate of infection calculated in those situations to the population of Wuhan. They assumed that the virus would show up on a test for an average of 14 days.

The same study found that if the virus is only detectable for seven days, the number of cases in Wuhan could be even higher: 26 times the reported number.

wuhan coronavirus medical worker protective suit sports center arena

A medical worker puts on protective suit before entering a sports center which has been converted into a makeshift hospital to treat patients of the novel coronavirus in Wuhan, China, February 12, 2020.

cnsphoto via Reuters

In that scenario, the researchers calculated Wuhan would have 300 new cases per every 100,000 residents on January 31. In total, that would be 33,000 new cases in the city that day.

When the analysis was published, the Chinese government had reported just 19,558 cases total.

Since that study came out, the number of reported cases spiked significantly as health officials revised the way they counted cases.

wuhan coronavirus temporary hospital patients

Xiao Yijiu/Xinhua News Agency via AP

In its update on February 13, the Hubei Health Commission added 14,800 people to its list of cases and reported 242 additional deaths.

The commission said the jump was due to a change in the way cases were counted: The newer number included clinical diagnoses made via CT scans of patients' lungs in addition to lab-test results.

The virus likely spread far beyond quarantined cities before China cut off transportation, according to some studies.

Wuhan

Getty Images

On January 23, local officials quarantined Wuhan by shutting down all public transportation  including buses, metros, and ferries. Trains and airplanes coming into and out of the city were also shut down, and roadblocks were installed to keep taxis and private cars from exiting.

With restrictions and quarantines in other cities, more than half of China's population is under some sort of travel restriction, according to a CNN analysis.

But a paper published in the journal Emerging Infectious Diseases found a 99% chance that at least one person carried the virus to the major cities of Beijing, Guangzhou, Shenzhen, and Shanghai before Wuhan's quarantine started.

The study also found that there was a 50% chance that people carrying the virus had traveled to at least 128 cities in China before the quarantine began.

Train Shanghai to Wuhan January 23 lockdown coronavirus outbreak

Hector Retamal/AFP via Getty Images

"Given that 98% of all trips during this period are taken by train or car, our analysis of air, rail, and road travel data yields more granular risk estimates than possible with air passenger data alone," Lauren Ancel Meyers, a co-author of the paper, said in a press release.

Bangkok, Thailand is more at risk than any other city outside China as the virus spreads, according to an analysis by population-mapping experts.

Boat passengers on a jetty wear face masks in Bangkok, Thailand, Tuesday, Jan. 28, 2020 to protect themselves from new virus infection. Panic and pollution drive the market for protective face masks, so business is booming in Asia, where fear of the coronavirus from China is straining supplies and helping make mask-wearing the new normal. (AP Photo/Gemunu Amarasinghe)

Gemunu Amarasinghe/AP

That's because the researchers estimated that Bangkok would receive over 1 million air travelers from China's most affected cities over a three-month period, starting 15 days before the Lunar New Year.

Thailand has so far reported at least 35 cases of the virus.

After Bangkok, that analysis identified Hong Kong, Taipei, Sydney, New York, and London as other high-risk cities.

wuhan coronavirus risk map cities

A map shows global cities receiving airline travelers from 18 high-risk cities in mainland China over a three-month period.

WorldPop

The most at-risk countries were Thailand and Japan. The US placed sixth in the researchers' ranking.

"It's vital that we understand patterns of population movement, both within China and globally, in order to assess how this new virus might spread domestically and internationally," Andrew Tatem, a professor at the University of Southampton and a study co-author, said in a press release.

While researchers on the frontlines learn more about infected patients, others are tracing the new coronavirus back to its source, which seems to be bats.

fruit bats

AP Photo/Rob Griffith

A genetic analysis of coronavirus samples from nine patients revealed it to be closely related to two SARS-like coronaviruses that came from bats.

Bats were the original hosts of SARS; the animals have been known to pass diseases to other species via their poop or saliva, and the unwitting intermediaries can transmit the virus to humans.

Another genetic assessment found that the new coronavirus is more genetically similar to SARS-like viruses in bats than to human SARS or MERS.

horseshoe bat

De Agostini/Getty

The analysis compared three genomes from the new coronavirus to many human SARS genomes, MERS genomes, and genomes from SARS-like coronaviruses in bats. The new coronavirus was most similar to the bat samples.

One study suggested that the virus jumped from bats to snakes to humans, but other researchers said that's unlikely.

snake

Reuters/Bobby Yip

In a peer-reviewed study published January 22 in the Journal of Medical Virology, a group of researchers in China suggested that snakes were the most likely animals to have passed the virus to humans.

Many scientists voiced their disagreement, however.

"They have no evidence snakes can be infected by this new coronavirus and serve as a host for it," Paulo Eduardo Brandao, a virologist at the University of Sao Paulo who is investigating whether coronaviruses can infect snakes, told Nature. "There's no consistent evidence of coronaviruses in hosts other than mammals and Aves (birds)."

Virologist Cui Jie, who was on a team that identified SARS-related viruses in bats in 2017, said this strain from Wuhan is clearly a "mammalian virus."

"Nothing supports snakes being involved," David Robertson, a virologist at the University of Glasgow, told Nature.

One group of researchers suggested that bats may have passed the virus to pangolins, which then passed it to humans.

FILE PHOTO: A man holds a pangolin at a wild animal rescue center in Cuc Phuong, outside Hanoi, Vietnam September 12, 2016. REUTERS/Kham/File Photo

Kham/Reuters

Researchers from South China Agricultural University in Guangdong suggested that the coronavirus' intermediate host might have been the pangolin, an endangered mammal.

According to China's Xinhua news agency, the researchers found that samples of coronaviruses taken from wild pangolins and from infected patients are 99% identical.

But this research has yet to be published or confirmed by other experts.

Other possible intermediaries include pigs and civets.

Another genetic study of the coronavirus found that it shares 80% of its genome with SARS  enough that research to develop SARS treatments and vaccines could be applicable here.

coronavirus image SARS organism cell

Getty

"In essence, it's a version of SARS that spreads more easily but causes less damage," Ian Jones, a virologist at the University of Reading in the UK who was not affiliated with the study, said in a press release.

He added: "This indicates that treatments and vaccines developed for SARS should work for the Wuhan virus."

Growing the virus in a lab could help identify the antibodies humans produce before they show symptoms, and possibly help develop a vaccine.

This video, courtesy of Dr. Julian Druce at the Victorian Infectious Diseases Reference Laboratory, shows the Wuhan coronavirus that Australian scientists grew from a patient sample at the Doherty Institute. It's the first time a lab outside China has grown the virus.

The lab-grown sample could help identify people who aren't yet showing symptoms but are still infected and capable of spreading the virus.

"An antibody test will enable us to retrospectively test suspected patients so we can gather a more accurate picture of how widespread the virus is, and consequently, among other things, the true mortality rate," Dr. Mike Catton, deputy director of the Peter Doherty Institute for Infection and Immunity, said in a statement. "It will also assist in the assessment of effectiveness of trial vaccines."

While some researchers are looking for a vaccine, others are developing treatments. Clinical trials are testing HIV medications against the new virus.

Medical staff with protective clothing work inside a ward specialised in receiving any person who may have been infected with coronavirus, at the Rajiv Ghandhi Government General hospital in Chennai, India, January 29, 2020.

P. Ravikumar/Reuters

Medical staff with protective clothing work inside a ward specialised in receiving any person who may have been infected with coronavirus, at the Rajiv Ghandhi Government General hospital in Chennai, India, January 29, 2020.

P. Ravikumar/Reuters

Johnson & Johnson, AbbVie, and Gilead Sciences have all donated antiviral drugs to Chinese health authorities to run tests against the virus.

There are 31 clinical trials testing various drugs, mainly antiviral therapies, against the coronavirus, BioCentury reported.

If effective, these drugs could be a short-term solution while companies race to develop vaccines. Those efforts will likely take longer because vaccines typically require multiple rounds of clinical testing that can span several years.

The first US patient received an experimental drug called remdesivir.

FILE PHOTO: Employees dressed in scrubs talk with each other at Providence Regional Medical Center after a spokesman from the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) said a traveler from China has been the first person in the United States to be diagnosed with the Wuhan coronavirus, in Everett, Washington, U.S. January 21, 2020. REUTERS/Lindsey Wasson

Reuters

The treatment appeared effective, though the researchers who reported the case said more robust testing is needed. Remdesivir was initially developed to fight Ebola.

Gilead, the biotech company that developed remdesivir, has donated enough of the drug for 500 patients to Chinese health officials. The company is working with local hospitals to run tests, Merdad Parsey, Gilead's chief medical officer, told Bloomberg.

The study from China's CDC suggested that the outbreak may have peaked in early February.

In this Sunday, Feb. 16, 2020, photo, a nurse prepares medicines for patients at Jinyintan Hospital designated for new coronavirus infected patients, in Wuhan in central China's Hubei province. China reported thousands new virus cases and more deaths in its update Tuesday, Feb. 18, 2020 on a disease outbreak that has caused milder illness in most people, an assessment that promoted guarded optimism from global health authorities. (Chinatopix via AP)

Associated Press

The study authors examined cases of the virus from December 8 to February 11. Their results showed that the largest number of coronavirus patients started exhibiting symptoms on February 1.

Since then, there haven't been as many new illnesses, the authors found. That could be a sign that the outbreak is tapering off.

But the authors also warned that China should prepare for a "possible rebound of the epidemic."

china spring cherry blossoms

Visitors flock onto a street, under blooming cherry blossoms, near Jiming Temple in Nanjing, Jiangsu province, China, March 23, 2019.

China Stringer Network/Reuters

What's more, a study published without peer review found that the new coronavirus thrives in temperatures of 13 to 24 degrees Celsius (55 to 75 Fahrenheit). That means that the virus could spread more easily to cities in northern China as spring arrives.

"From a global perspective, cities with a mean temperature below 24 degree Celsius are all high-risk cities for [COVID-19] transmission before June," the authors wrote.

"Beyond all, this global health threat teaches, once again, that it is far better to invest in preparedness to prevent, rapidly identify, and contain outbreaks at their source," Georgetown University researchers wrote.

wuhan coronavirus airplane disinfect suit thailand

A member of the Thai Airways crew disinfects the cabin of an aircraft of the national carrier during a procedure to prevent the spread of the coronavirus at Bangkok's Suvarnabhumi International Airport, Thailand, January 28, 2020.

Athit Perawongmetha/Reuters

In their analysis of government responses to the virus, published January 30 in the Journal of the American Medical Association, they added: "Reacting after a novel infection has spread widely (perhaps overreacting with travel bans and quarantines) costs lives, economic resources, and the well-being of millions of people currently cordoned off in a zone of contagion."

Correction: A previous version of this post used a chart with inaccurate data about the 2009 H1N1 outbreak. It has been removed.

Read the original article on Business Insider
LIC employees' unions on Saturday opposed the Centre's plan to sell a part of its shares in the state-run insurance behemoth through an initial public offer (IPO), insisting that the move is "against the national interest".

Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman said the Life Insurance Corporation of India (LIC) will be listed as part of the government disinvestment initiative.

The government proposes to sell a part of its holding in LIC through IPO, she said while unveiling the Budget 2020- 21.

"We strongly oppose the government's plan to sell a part of its shares in LIC and the move is against the national interest," a spokesman of an employees' union told reporters here.

Established in 1956, LIC is fully-owned by the central government and has the highest market share in the life insurance segment in the country.

He said that LIC has contributed a lot in the economic growth and the dilution of the government's stake in the company will "endanger the economic sovereignty of the country".

The employees' unions of LIC across the country will stage nationwide protests if the government goes ahead with its plan, he said.

He alleged that it will also affect crores of policy holders of LIC.
By LISA MASCARO, ERIC TUCKER and ZEKE MILLER Associated Press

WASHINGTON (AP)  Democratic House prosecutors made an expansive case Thursday at Donald Trumps impeachment trial that he abused power like no other president in history, swept up by a completely bogus Ukraine theory pushed by attorney Rudy Giuliani.

On Friday, the Democrats will press their final day of arguments before skeptical Republican senators, focusing on the second article of impeachment, obstruction of Congress investigation.

As the audience of Senate jurors sat through another long day, and night, the prosecutors outlined how they said Trump abused power for his own personal political benefit ahead of the 2020 election, even as the nations top FBI and national security officials were publicly warning off the theory that it was Ukraine, not Russia, that interfered in the 2016 election.

Thats what Donald Trump wanted investigated or announced  this completely bogus Kremlin-pushed conspiracy theory, said Rep. Adam Schiff, the chairman of the House Intelligence Committee who is leading the prosecution, during Thursdays session, which wrapped around 10:30 p.m. ET.

Trump is accused of seeking the Ukrainian investigation  and probes of political foe Joe Biden and Bidens son  while holding back congressionally approved military aid as leverage. Schiff said, You can imagine what a danger that presents to this country."

The president is facing trial in the Senate after the House impeached him last month, accusing Trump of abusing his office by asking Ukraine for the investigations while withholding the aid from a U.S. ally at war with bordering Russia. The second article of impeachment accuses him of obstructing Congress by refusing to turn over documents or allow officials to testify in the House probe.

Republicans, growing tired of the long hours of proceedings, have defended Trumps actions as appropriate and cast the process as a politically motivated effort to weaken him in the midst of his reelection campaign. Republicans hold a 53-47 majority in the Senate, and acquittal is considered likely.

The Democrats challenge is clear as they try to convince not just fidgety senators but an American public divided over the Republican president in an election year.

With Chief Justice John Roberts presiding, Democrats argued on Thursday that Trumps motives were apparent.

No president has ever used his office to compel a foreign nation to help him cheat in our elections, Rep. Jerrold Nadler of New York, the chairman of the House Judiciary Committee, told the senators. He said the nations founders would be shocked. The presidents conduct is wrong. It is illegal. It is dangerous.

Democrats scoffed at Trumps claim he had good reasons for pressuring Ukraine to investigate former Vice President Biden or other political foes.

Rep. Sylvia Garcia of Texas, herself a former judge, aid there is no evidence, nothing, nada to suggest that Biden did anything improper in dealings with Ukraine.

Trump, with Giuliani, pursued investigations of Biden and his son, Hunter, who served on a Ukrainian gas companys board, and sought the probe of debunked theories of what nation was guilty of interference in the 2016 U.S. election.

On dual tracks, Democrats prosecuted their case while answering in advance the arguments expected from the presidents attorneys in the days ahead.

At one point, they showed video of a younger Lindsey Graham, then a South Carolina congressman and now a GOP senator allied with Trump, arguing during Bill Clintons 1999 impeachment that no crime was needed for impeaching a president. Trumps defense team is now arguing that the impeachment articles against him are invalid because they do not allege he committed a specific crime.

The presidents defenders turn will come Saturday.

We will be putting on a vigorous defense of both facts, rebutting what they said, and the Constitution, said attorney Jay Sekulow.

Ahead of the days proceedings, Sen. Roy Blunt of Missouri said the Democrats were putting forward admirable presentations. But he said, Theres just not much new here."

During the dinner break, Sen. John Barrasso, R-Wyo., said it seemed like Groundhog Day in the Senate.

The top Senate Democrat, Chuck Schumer, acknowledged that many senators really dont want to be here.

But Schumer said Schiff has been outlining a compelling case that many Republicans are hearing it for only the first time. He contended they cant help but be glued to his testimony.

Once reluctant to take on impeachment during an election year, Democrats are now marching toward a decision by the Senate that the American public also will judge.

Trump blasted the proceedings in a Thursday tweet, declaring them the Most unfair & corrupt hearing in Congressional history!

After the House prosecutors finish, the presidents lawyers will have as long as 24 hours. Its unclear how much time they will actually take, but Trumps team is not expected to finish Saturday, according to a person unauthorized to discuss the planning and granted anonymity. The Senate is expected to take only Sunday off and push into next week.

After that senators will face the question of whether they do, or do not, want to call witnesses to testify.

Senators were permitted Thursday to review supplemental testimony submitted by an aide to Vice President Mike Pence, Jennifer Williams, who was among those who had concerns about Trumps actions. Democrats said the testimony, which is classified, bolsters their impeachment case. A lawyer for Williams declined to comment.

Holding the rooms attention has been difficult for the Democrats, but senators seemed to pay closer mind to Schiffs testimony that grew dramatic.

Most senators, even Republicans, sat at their desks throughout the afternoon session, as the rules stipulate, and not as many of them were yawning or standing to stretch as during the previous long nights.

To help senators pass the time, the Republican chairman of the Senate Intelligence Committee, Richard Burr of North Carolina, passed out lunch favors of fidget spinners, stress balls and other toys.

Democrats thanked the senators for their time and patience, acknowledging the repetition of some of their presentations.

The impeachment trial is set against the backdrop of the 2020 election. Four senators who are Democratic presidential candidates are off the campaign trail, seated as jurors.

A new poll from The Associated Press-NORC Center for Public Affairs Research showed the public slightly more likely to say the Senate should convict and remove Trump from office than to say it should not, 45% to 40%. But a sizable percentage, 14%, said they didnt know enough to have an opinion.

One issue with wide agreement: Trump should allow top aides to appear as witnesses at the trial. About 7 in 10 said so, including majorities of Republicans and Democrats, according to the poll.

The strategy of more witnesses, though, seemed all but settled. Republicans rejected Democratic efforts to get Trump aides including former national security adviser John Bolton and acting chief of staff Mick Mulvaney to testify in back-to-back votes earlier this week.

Senators were likely to repeat that rejection next week.

___

Associated Press writers Mary Clare Jalonick, Alan Fram, Andrew Taylor, Laurie Kellman, Matthew Daly and Padmananda Rama in Washington and Bill Barrow in Osage, Iowa, contributed to this report.
President Donald Trump attacked climate activists as "perennial prophets of doom" on Tuesday while addressing the World Economic Forum, in Davos, Switzerland, where the agenda is focused on tackling the climate crisis.

Trump's remarks underscored the chasm between his denialist view of climate change and the overwhelming scientific consensus driving the rest of the developed world to action. Speaking shortly after the teenage climate activist Greta Thunberg accused world leaders of not taking action, Trump rejected calls for urgent action and encouraged the world to instead embrace "optimism."

"To embrace the possibilities of tomorrow, we must reject the perennial prophets of doom and their predictions of the apocalypse," Trump said.

"They are the errors of yesterday's fortune tellers and we have them and I have them and they want to see us do badly, but we don't let that happen," he added.

The Trump administration has rolled back key environmental regulations and the President withdrew from the Paris climate accord, a landmark effort to reduce global greenhouse gas emissions.

Speaking on Tuesday as the US Senate is set to begin the impeachment trial back in Washington, Trump touted the US's newly-minted position as the No. 1 producer of oil and natural gas -- a boast that flew in the face of sustainability efforts underway at Davos, where the theme of the conference was focused on "a cohesive and sustainable world."

While Trump rejected the science behind climate change and its irreversible effects, he insisted that he wants "clean" air and water, and he announced that the US would be joining the "One Trillion Trees" initiative, a program with the goal of restoring a trillion trees by 2050.

Trump said that in joining the initiative, America "will continue to show strong leadership and restoring, growing and better managing our trees and our forests."

"This is not a time for pessimism. This is a time for optimism. Fear and doubt is not a good thought process because this is a time for tremendous hope and joy and optimism and action," he said.

Trump, who missed the World Economic Forum's annual meeting last year due to the government shutdown, is expected to sit down with business leaders and a slate of foreign counterparts, including the Iraqi and Swiss presidents later on Tuesday.

But impeachment remained on his mind as the President arrived at the economic summit.

When asked about the impeachment trial back home, Trump paused briefly to repeat his months-long defense that "it's just a hoax."

"It's a witch hunt that's been going on for years, and frankly, it's disgraceful," he added.

In his speech to the forum, the President focused on what he says his administration has done for the American middle class.

"America is winning again like never before," the President told the forum. He said before he took office, the "shrinking middle class ... felt neglected, betrayed, forgotten." He touted his trade deals, tax cuts, and slashes to regulations.

He arrived at the gathering with a strong US economy at his back, one that has bolstered the global economy amid economic uncertainty in Europe and other parts of the world and helped enrich many of the billionaires and other businessmen attending the summit.

This story has been updated with additional details from the forum.
DES MOINES, Iowa - Iowa Democrats pride themselves on voting first - and picking winners.

Since the Iowa caucuses began kicking of the presidential nominating process in 1972, the victor has marched on to become the Democratic nominee in seven of the last 10 open primary contests, including in the last four: Hillary Clinton, Barack Obama, John Kerry and Al Gore.

But in 2020, they fear it will be different. After more than a year of nonstop campaigning from upwards of two dozen candidates, there's a sense of foreboding among Democrats of all stripes that their state won't provide much clarity on who will ultimately become the party's standard-bearer.

It's a sentiment that's notably pervasive among rank-and-file Democrats, as well as inside of some of the major campaigns.

"I honestly think that when it's all said and done the headline of Feb. 4 will be something along the lines of 'No Clear Winner,'" said Amber Gustafson, a caucus director in Ankeny supporting Elizabeth Warren. "I don't think there's going to be any more of a clear picture on Feb. 4 than there is now. I think a lot of people are going to be disappointed, because we want to be the anointer."

ADVERTISEMENT

Four candidates have been bunched at the top of the field in Iowa, and polling released over the weekend only added to the foggy picture. A New York Times/Siena survey found Bernie Sanders pulling away from the pack with a 7-point lead, a Suffolk/USA Today poll placed Joe Biden with a 6-point advantage, while a CBS/YouGov poll revealed close to a dead heat between Sanders, Biden and Pete Buttigieg.

Warren, hailed for producing the best organized campaign in the state, sat in fourth place, drawing just 15% in each poll. Even before those results, her campaign was already downplaying the state it had invested so much in, declaring the four early states as "just the beginning."

Sanders looks primed to perform well on the first caucus ballots, but Biden or Buttigieg could pose a threat during the realignment process, when supporters of lower performing candidates are asked for their second choice. The scenario could allow multiple campaigns to take some sort of win away from the Feb. 3 caucus night.

"There will be more than one candidate who is claiming victory and there may be two or three who can rightfully point to something that shows success," said Chris Hall, a Sioux City state representative backing Amy Klobuchar.

Biden's advisers have consistently said Iowa isn't a must-win, even as the former vice president held leads in two respected polls in the state earlier this month. A top Sanders aide has said the first round of caucus results will be "the most accurate portrayal of who won the night," even though the second round of voting will determine delegate totals.

Some of Warren's own supporters don't even believe she'll prevail, but think she simply needs to perform better than expected to catch momentum. And Buttigieg may have the most riding on Iowa given his need to exhibit staying power. But even a finish in the top three would allow the 38-year-old to remind the country how far the once barely recognizable small-town mayor has come.

It's not surprising that campaigns are purposefully managing their own expectations. What's striking is that even their supporters see little opportunity to deliver their rivals a knock-out punch.

"If you've got four people separated by 4 points, then probably it's not going to make much difference," said John Epperson, a longtime Biden backer from Indianola.

ADVERTISEMENT

That means a jumbled field without a strong front-runner may remain unchanged as the race moves on to New Hampshire, Nevada and South Carolina, the other three states to vote in February.

"I think you're going to have four candidates come out of Iowa relatively close to each other," added Rod Sullivan, a precinct captain for Warren in Iowa City. "It's going to be up to others to decide, I guess."

And if Sanders were to notch a commanding Iowa victory, the moderate wing of the party may be more incentivized to soldier on and litigate a debate over who is best equipped to stop him.

After the Times poll was released showing the Sanders surge, the Buttigieg campaign sent an email to its donors with the message, "The general election is at risk."

---

It's a quadrennial political tradition for political operatives to wrestle with the importance of Iowa, the mostly white and largely rural state that employs a byzantine, arduous and time-consuming process for about 250,000 people to select a presidential preference. Historically, candidates who have written it off completely have not proven successful.

But with growing recognition that people of color comprise the heart of the party, the salience of Iowa's coveted political status is being seriously threatened for the first time. Julian Castro, now serving as Warren's top surrogate in Iowa, has said the state should lose its first-in-the-nation status by 2024.

"He definitely left a mark," said Grant Woodard, an Iowa Democratic operative. "The criticism is louder than ever before and the pressure is resonating more than ever."

ADVERTISEMENT

Iowa's saving grace has always been that it facilitates a process for anyone to road test ideas and develop a meaningful connection with voters. For Democrats, their history of accurately forecasting the eventual nominee is an added bonus.

But caucus veterans don't see the process playing out the same way in 2020.

"Hell, we may end up with a five-way tie coming out of this thing," said Dale Todd, a Cedar Rapids Democrat who previously supported Cory Booker and was aggressively courted by several campaigns.

Reggie Love, former President Barack Obama's body man, recently took Todd to a dive bar to reminisce about the 2008 campaign they were both on, play pool and advocate for Buttigieg, who Love endorsed last month.

"I'm getting in trouble with my wife because we're staying up till 2 in the morning," Todd said. On Sunday, Todd endorsed Warren, but he doesn't think any candidate will attain anything close to the eight-point margin of victory that propelled Obama out of Iowa to national stardom 12 years ago.

"I simply do not see anybody winning by a huge margin. The organizations are very similar. The resources being distributed are very similar. The ads are on all the time but they aren't moving anybody." Todd said. "It's all about who peaks at the right time. That final weekend, who is going to have the juice and who is going to inspire people."

---

To some Iowa Democrats, 2020 feels closest to 2004, which also featured a scrambled four-way race between John Kerry, Howard Dean, John Edwards and Dick Gephardt.

Kerry, the establishment favorite who lagged in the state early on, has distinct parallels to Biden. Dean, like Warren, ran a campaign attacking special interests and corruption in Washington. Edwards, like Buttigieg, was the bright-eyed optimist who championed the politics of hope, but at the time was perceived as lacking experience, having only been a senator for five years.

There was even a Michael Bloomberg figure: Wesley Clark entered the race late when Kerry looked like a lost cause but opted to skip Iowa.

And hanging over it all were fears about nominating the wrong person to defeat President George W. Bush. That paranoia ended up fueling Kerry's late Iowa comeback, leading to Dean's infamous caucus night scream and ultimate demise.

Memories of Dean's bitter fight with Gephardt - and the negative consequences for both of them - help explain why Buttigieg and Warren and then Warren and Sanders sought to deescalate their skirmishes.

Iowans historically recoil from negativity and this year Democrats are even more sensitive about attacks that could irreparably damage their nominee.

"I think there's a lot of fear. We've got one shot at this and we can absolutely not risk it. This happened in 2004 to an extent," said Jennifer Konfrst, a state representative representing Des Moines. "The whole idea of date Dean and marry Kerry."

Konfrst had initially backed Booker but when he unexpectedly ended his campaign she wanted to have an impact. Last week, she endorsed Warren because she believed she best embodied Booker's "messages of opportunity and justice."

Picking a winner wasn't her only consideration though, partly because doing so this year is so difficult.

"I still believe a lot of Iowans are nervous and want to nominate the most 'electable' person," she said. "I also think none of us truly knows what 'electable' looks like."

---

(c)2020 McClatchy Washington Bureau

Visit the McClatchy Washington Bureau at www.mcclatchydc.com

Distributed by Tribune Content Agency, LLC.

-----
By Express News Service

NEW DELHI: Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Friday asked the NDA allies to tackle the Opposition protests over the enactment of the CAA upfront head-on.

The JD(U), however, reiterated that the government should drop questions from the National Population Register, asking details on parents birthplace.

The NDA meeting was held on Friday with the commencement of the Budget Session, with the Opposition gearing up to corner the government over the protests against the CAA.

The PM is learnt to have told the NDA allies that there are no reasons for them to be defensive on CAA.

Modi, sources said, called upon the allies to counter the allegations of the Opposition parties that the law discriminated against the Muslims.

He also stressed that the Budget Session should be utilised for constructive discussions in both Houses.

The NDA, incidentally, is expecting the Congress, Left and Trinamool Congress to make determined bids to corner the government on the CAA.

With the BJP sharply pitching its electioneering in Delhi against Shaheen Bagh protests, Parliament is likely to witness stormy sessions, with polling in the capital scheduled on February 8.

The NDA also adopted a resolution hailing the government for signing of the Bodo and the Bru agreements.
Actor Adam Sandler has extended his partnership with Netflix to maker four more films for the streamer.

Netflix shared the on Friday that Sandler and his Happy Madison Productions have locked a new deal with the streaming platform.

Sandler first signed a deal with Netflix to produce and star in four films exclusively for the streaming service back in 2014.

Netflix re-upped that deal for another four films in 2017.

So far, the actor has made "The Ridiculous 6", "The Do-Over", "Sandy Wexler", "The Week Of", and "Murder Mystery" as well as stand-up special "100% Fresh" with the streamer.

"Whether you know him as Sandman, the Water Boy, Billy Madison, Happy Gilmore, Nick Spitz or simply Adam, one thing is clear: our members can't get enough of him," Ted Sarandos, Netflix's chief content officer, said in a statement to The Hollywood Reporter.

"They love his stories and his humour, as we saw with 'Murder Mystery'. So I could not be more excited to extend our partnership with Adam and the Happy Madison team and deliver more laughs around the world," he added.

Sandler's next film for the streamer is "Hubie Halloween", which also features his co-stars from "Grown Ups" series Kevin James, Maya Rudolph, Steve Buscemi and Rob Schneider.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
Nurses should avoid referring to old people as 'pensioners' and calling women 'ladies' to avoid causing unwitting offence, according to a new official guide.

The Royal College of Nursing is also advising its members against saying a patient 'suffers from' an illness, while problem drinkers should be called 'alcohol misusers' rather than alcoholics.

Wards are not 'manned' but instead are 'staffed', while the word 'mankind' has disappeared under the advice included in the RCN's new style guide, which has just been published on its website.

Nurses should avoid referring to old people as 'pensioners' and calling women 'ladies' to avoid causing unwitting offence, according to a new official guide

The 26-page guide advises: 'It's really important to use the correct terms to describe people to avoid causing unwitting offence.' Referring to age, it states: 'Do not use pensioner or OAP as a general description. Do not use the elderly. Use elderly people; [or] older people.'

When it comes to disability, it advises: 'Use people with disabilities and avoid both "disabled people" and "the disabled".'

The advice is based on the theory that describing an individual as 'disabled' defines them by their disability alone. In contrast, describing them as a 'person with a disability' signals this is just one of many attributes.

Likewise, the guide says nurses and RCN staff should 'avoid describing people as 'sufferers' or writing that they 'suffer from' [a condition]'. For example, instead of saying 'Jane is dyslexic', the proper phrasing would be 'Jane has dyslexia'.

Nor do alcoholics exist in the college's lexicon. Instead, they become 'alcohol misusers'.

In the minefield of gender, the RCN says 'use woman or women, not lady or ladies'.

It adds: 'Ensure that your language is gender-neutral, for example: chair not chairman or chairperson; humankind not mankind; staffed not manned.'

The last point is a particular issue for the RCN, as nine out of ten nurses are women.

Wards are not 'manned' but instead are 'staffed', while the word 'mankind' has disappeared under the advice included in the RCN's new style guide, which has just been published on its website (Stock image)

Last week, a study it commissioned claimed nurses' wages are suppressed because society considered nursing to be 'women's work'.

Last night a RCN spokesman insisted the guide was not intended as an instruction manual on how nurses should or should not speak to patients. Rather, as stated on its front page, it was 'for print, email and all other digital channels'.

He explained that the last version of the RCN guide was published seven years ago and it had needed updating.

The RCN's style guide has echoes of a document issued three years ago by the British Medical Association, which advised its 160,000 members not to call pregnant women 'expectant mothers', because it might offend transgender people. It urged the use of 'pregnant people' instead.

On transgender issues, the Royal College's guide advises to 'be sensitive to people who are non-binary'  those who do not identify as their birth sex  'and where possible use their preferred pronoun'. That means referring to a person born male but who identifies as female as 'she', and vice versa.

Last night Tory MP Philip Davies said: 'You would think the Royal College of Nurses would have better things to worry about than coming up with this idiotic, politically correct claptrap.

'Its leadership ought to make way for people in the real world rather than in the PC bubble they are clearly in.

'Just as a clue, they might want to focus on things like standards of patient care.'
There has been much talk recently of the importance of natural heritage and all the biodiversity that it encompasses, and how if we are to address climate change - even sustainable living - that we need to get things right as far as nature is concerned.

In Ireland, there have been many wonderful initiatives over the years that assist those communities, both urban and rural, who make a very real and positive contribution.

A sector that plays a very important role in the well-being of our natural heritage is the farming sector.

The County of Cork is lucky to possess some excellent farmers who put nature first, and such farmers now have the opportunity to be recognised on the national level with thanks to the Farming for Nature Ambassador Awards.

These awards allow people to nominate farmers or indeed farm families who are doing great things for nature on their land while farming in an economically and socially progressive way.

The awards are about farmers who are proud of what they do, and who are happy to share their story with others.

The window for making nominations is now open and will remain so up until March 31, 2020.

Hopefully, the County of Cork will see a number of entries and for further information visit https://www.farmingfornature.ie/awards/faqs.

Farm buildings grants scheme

Natural heritage is a tremendous asset for farmers, and a further asset from a heritage perspective is the wonderful built heritage that exists in many old farmyards.

These buildings are disappearing at an alarming rate in some locations and would have been in place for many hundreds of years.

Farmers in the GLAS Scheme can now avail of the 2020 GLAS Traditional Farm Buildings Grant Scheme, which remains open for applications until Tuesday, February 18, 2020.

The scheme is run by the Heritage Council and is operated in partnership with the Dept. of Agriculture, Food and the Marine.

The scheme is only available for GLAS participants, and a variety of projects can be applied for where the works relate to the conservation of traditional farm buildings and related structures.

For further information, visit www.heritagecouncil.ie/projects/traditional-farm-buildings-grant-scheme.

UCC Masters in local history

How we have managed our buildings and indeed our land over the many years constitutes a large part of our history, and there is not a parish in Ireland without a fascinating past or some fascinating stories and characters.

For those looking at learning more about local history in an academic capacity, the Masters in Local History will be of interest to many.

Run by UCC's School of History, the course will commence in September 2020.

The part-time MA degree is offered by coursework and assessment and runs for two years (part-time).

Coursework consists of a taught component of weekly evening lectures (Wednesdays from 6.30pm to 8.30pm) in Year One, and a dissertation of 25,000-30,000 words on an approved topic must then be submitted by the end of Year Two.

Lectures are specially tailored to provide a practical guide to the writing of Irish local history, indicating the main sources, their location and how best they might be exploited.

Lectures cover the introduction to sources and archives; approaches to local history; reading the landscape, maps, census and parish records, valuation office records, and estate records; sources for urban history, oral history and folklore; historiography; landscape and material history; gender and history; labour history; military and political history; cultural history; economic history; demographics; religion and much more.

For further information, email Dr Donal O Drisceoil at d.odriscoll@ucc.ie or Maeve Barry at maeve.barry@ucc.ie.

Applications forms are available from http://www.pac.ie/.

Musical skills

In terms of upcoming events, the week ahead has some very nice events in store.

In Killavullen on February 1, those with an interest in Irish music have a great opportunity to hone their skills playing either the feadog stain (tin whistle) or the bosca ceoil (accordion).

Taking place in the Nano Nagle Centre, and organised by Cuisle Avondhu with support from Cork County Council through the Creative Ireland Programme, it promises to be a very enjoyable morning, with both workshops running from 10am to 1pm.

Spaces are limited, and there is a nominal cost for participation.

For more information, email cuisleavondhu@gmail.com or phone (087) 416 4087.

Heraldry in County Cork

On Wednesday, February 5, there will be an illustrated talk on the topic of Heraldry in County Cork. Organised by the Cork Historical and Archaeological Society, the talk will be given by Gerard Crotty and commences at 8pm in the Crawford Art Gallery, Emmet Place, Cork.

The evening sees the annual AGM of the Kilmurry Historical and Archaeological Association take place at 8pm in the Independence Museum, Kilmurry.

On Thursday, February 6, a very nice event takes place in Blarney Secondary School, looking at the village of Blarney itself in 'music, poetry and song'.

Organised by the Blarney and District Historical Society and commencing at 8pm, the talk will be given by Barry Looney - an acclaimed traditional musician - who will present a selection of music, poetry and song, covering times of peace and tranquillity, war, mayhem and much more - all relating to Blarney.

Everyone is welcome on the night, and for more information, visit http://blarneyhistory.ie/events.
Project Bakong: A Pioneering Real-Time Gross Payment System Promoting Financial Inclusion Using Blockchain Technology

TOKYO, JAPAN / ACCESSWIRE / January 31, 2020 / Soramitsu Co., Ltd. (Shibuya-ku, Tokyo, Japan; hereafter Soramitsu) and the National Bank of Cambodia are collaborating on Project Bakong, a next-generation real-time gross payment system that promotes financial inclusion through user-friendly and powerful iOS and Android apps.

Bakong allows banks to save substantial cost and development time, and reach a whole new user base while increasing speed and efficiency. It also allows the central bank to monitor the activity of the whole system and leverage a much faster and safer financial infrastructure.

While most blockchain systems currently developed by central banks are only in the proof-of- concept phase, Bakong is already connecting 9 banks and payment processors, including the country's largest commercial bank, and has thousands of active users making daily transactions using real money.

Figure 1: Participating banks connect to the Bakong platform that uses the Hyperledger Iroha blockchain. End users (banks, corporations, or retail) connect to the gateways provided by each bank and can send payments to each other through the platform; as the regulator, NBC also monitors the entire system, which can provide new opportunities for bank supervision.

From a central bank's perspective, the Bakong technology is an easy-to-adopt evolution in technology: Bakong does not break current monetary policy or the legacy banking system, but rather makes it more efficient and secure. While legacy settlement systems in Cambodia perform batch settlements twice a day, Bakong enables near-instant, real-time interbank settlements.

Figure 2: Comparison of existing transfer scenario with typical bank accounts with Bakong transfer scenario. Bakong accounts interface seamlessly with both other Bakong accounts and existing bank accounts.

Story continues

Thanks to the Hyperledger Iroha permissioned blockchain primarily developed by Soramitsu, any bank or financial institution can plug into the Bakong platform which is monitored and supervised by the National Bank of Cambodia.

The ISO 20022 standard messaging format makes it simple for any bank's core banking system to integrate with the platform. Bakong automatically provides full interoperability between all of the connected banks, and every payment between users of any participating bank leverages Bakong's real-time settlement.

ACCESS TO A WHOLE NEW CUSTOMER BASE

According to the World Bank, 78% of citizens over 15 years old are unbanked in the Kingdom of Cambodia, while widely unbanked rural areas are seeing an explosion of smartphone use. With Bakong, every citizen can access banking services using just their smartphone. Users can open a Bakong account with any bank connected to the network, even if they don't own a traditional account at the bank. In other words, Bakong opens up the ability to more easily serve the entire unbanked population, which was previously difficult to access for Cambodian financial institutions.

As Makoto Takemiya, the co-founder and CEO of Soramitsu states, "Our work on Bakong in Cambodia has been not only revolutionary from a historical perspective, as it is the first central bank in the world using a blockchain system with real money for retail payments, but it has been a fulfilling and satisfying application of the Hyperledger Iroha technology to democratize digital asset management and access to payments."

THE NEXT GENERATION OF FINANCIAL SERVICES

Onboarding new users is expedient, thanks to a user-friendly KYC process that requires only a smartphone and an ID document, for identification and selfie verification. Citizens and businesses can immediately access a world of instant domestic and cross-border payments, at a reduced cost.

As recently reported by Coindesk:

The National Bank of Cambodia (NBC) recently signed an agreement with Malaysia's Maybank to determine how the banks' respective digital payment platforms - Bakong and Maybank2u - can work in tandem to reduce often crippling remittance fees.

Payments between the sender's pre-charged account and the receiver's account can be made easily thanks to QR codes. The QR codes are EMVCO compatible, which allowed NBC to sign a memorandum with the Central Bank of Thailand for the introduction of a QR code based payment system that can be used with both currencies and in both countries.

About Soramitsu

Soramitsu is a boutique Japanese fin tech company with expertise creating blockchain-based infrastructure, payment systems, and identity solutions.

- Together with the National Bank of Cambodia, Soramitsu developed the Bakong system to develop financial inclusion while enhancing monetary policy efficacy, through the creation of a next-generation retail payment system.

- Soramitsu is the original developer and one of the main contributors of Hyperledger Iroha, an open-source, permissioned blockchain platform aimed at helping businesses and financial institutions manage digital assets and digital identity. Hyperledger Iroha is part of the Linux Foundation's Hyperledger Project.

- Soramitsu was chosen by the Web3 Foundation to develop Kagome, the C++ implementation of Polkadot, the decentralized Web 3.0 blockchain interoperability platform.

- Soramitsu is the developer of Sora, a decentralized economic system to enable startups and creatives. See sora.org for more information.

Soramitsu's expertise and real-world experience running production blockchain systems allows us to quickly deliver secure and efficient applications. Based on the Bakong experience, we are aiming to extend these financial technologies globally, to allow unbanked people anywhere to transfer value inexpensively, and ensure commercial development in currently widely unbanked areas. Other financial products and capabilities are being developed for the Bakong system to broaden potential of the system.

About the National Bank of Cambodia

The National Bank of Cambodia is the central bank and financial regulator for the Kingdom of Cambodia.

If you wish to have more information about our services or technologies, please contact us:

Press Contact:

Makoto Takemiya

Soramitsu Co., Ltd.

Jingumae Tower Building 13F, 1-5-8 Jingumae, Shibuya-ku, Tokyo, JAPAN 150-0001 TEL: +81-(0)50-5235-1972

info@soramitsu.co.jp

SOURCE: Soramitsu Co., Ltd.





View source version on accesswire.com:

https://www.accesswire.com/574771/Soramitsu-Develops-Worlds-First-Blockchain-Based-Retail-Payments-System-with-National-Bank-of-Cambodia




Toronto, Ontario--(Newsfile Corp. - January 31, 2020) - CHC Student Housing Corp. (TSXV: CHC) ("CHC" or the "Company") announces that it has received shareholder approval and conditional acceptance of the TSX Venture Exchange ("TSXV") for the previously announced sale of its London property for total gross proceeds of $55.0 million. Shareholder approval was obtained at the Company's annual and special meeting of shareholders held on January 22, 2020, at which shareholders approved a special resolution approving the sale of the London property. The closing of the sale is subject to final acceptance of the TSXV and certain additional conditions which are customary for transactions of this nature. Subject to the satisfaction of all required conditions, the transaction is expected to close on or about February 5, 2020.

The Company also announces that Heather Fitzpatrick has resigned as a director of CHC.

Following the sale of the London property, the Company will cease to have active operations. As a result, it will not meet the continued listing requirements for the TSXV and will be transferred to the NEX upon completion of the sale. The NEX is a separate board of the TSXV that provides a trading forum for listed companies that have fallen below the TSXV's continued listing requirements.

As previously disclosed, the Company will use the net proceeds from the sale of the London property to settle its debts, return capital to its shareholders in an amount to be determined, and seek out alternative business opportunities which could potentially result in additional value for shareholders. At the Company's annual and special meeting of shareholders held on January 22, 2020, shareholders approved a special resolution approving a reduction in the stated capital of the Company for the purpose of permitting a special distribution to be made to its shareholders as a return of capital in an amount to be determined by the Board of Directors in its sole discretion . The Company will announce further details with respect to any of these matters as they develop.

Forward Looking Information

Certain statements contained in this news release may constitute forward-looking statements. These statements involve known and unknown risks, uncertainties and other factors that may cause actual results or events to differ materially from those anticipated in such forward-looking statements. Forward-looking statements are often, but not always, identified by the use of words such as "anticipate", "plan", "expect", "may", "will", "intend", "should", and other similar expressions. Forward-looking statements in this news release include statements regarding the expected sale of the Company's London property. Although the Company believes that the expectations and assumptions on which the forward-looking statements are based are reasonable, undue reliance should not be placed on the forward-looking statements because the Company can give no assurance that they will prove to be correct. Since forward-looking statements address future events and conditions, by their very nature they involve inherent risks and uncertainties. Actual results could differ materially from those currently anticipated due to a number of factors and risks. The forward-looking statements contained in this news release represent the Company's expectations as of the date hereof, and are subject to change after such date. The Company disclaims any intention or obligation to update or revise any forward-looking statements whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise, except as required under applicable securities regulations.

Neither the TSX Venture Exchange ("TSXV") nor its Regulation Services Provider (as that term is defined in the policies of the TSXV) accepts responsibility for the adequacy or accuracy of this release.

For more information, please contact:

Simon Nyilassy, President and Chief Executive Officer

CHC Student Housing Corp.

Telephone: (416) 504-9380

Email: snyilassy@marigoldandassociates.com

Ron Schwarz, Chair

CHC Student Housing Corp.

Telephone: (416) 593-7085

To view the source version of this press release, please visit https://www.newsfilecorp.com/release/52027
One of the UKs most popular literary events is setting sail for the first time.

From 2021, you will be able to join top writers from the Henley Literary Festival for talks, interviews and more on board an Emerald Waterways Star-Ship during an eight-day cruise along the mighty Danube.

The river is one of the greatest in Europe, flowing through ten countries and four capital cities  Vienna, Budapest, Bratislava and Belgrade.

All lit up: The Parliament Building in the Hungarian capital, Budapest

This unique itinerary in April next year starts in Passau, an ancient town on the edge of the Black Forest in Germany.

Your ship will also stop at Linz, the towns of Melk and Durnstein in the beautiful Unesco-listed Wachau Valley, Bratislava, Vienna, and finish at the stunning Hungarian capital, Budapest.

OUR SPECIAL LITERARY GUESTS Award-winning journalist, author and broadcaster Jeremy Paxman Award-winning journalist, author and broadcaster JEREMY PAXMAN was the BBCs Newsnight anchor for 25 years and has hosted University Challenge since 1994. His books include his insightful memoir, A Life In Questions. Victoria Hislop's award-winning first novel, The Island, sold more than five million copies worldwide VICTORIA HISLOPs award-winning first novel, The Island, sold more than five million copies worldwide and has been translated into 35 languages. Louis de Bernieres' best-known work is Captain Corellis Mandolin LOUIS DE BERNIERES best-known work is Captain Corellis Mandolin, which won the Commonwealth Writers Prize for Best Novel in 1994. It was later adapted into a major Hollywood film starring Nicolas Cage and Penelope Cruz. Former BBC Chief News Correspondent Kate Adie now presents Radio 4s From Our Own Correspondent Former BBC Chief News Correspondent KATE ADIE now presents Radio 4s From Our Own Correspondent and she has written several books, including a memoir of her extraordinary life, The Kindness Of Strangers. Dame Jenni Murray has presented BBC Radio 4s Womans Hour for more than 30 years DAME JENNI MURRAY has presented BBC Radio 4s Womans Hour for more than 30 years and is the author of a number of popular books, including A History Of Britain In 21 Women. Advertisement

YOUR ITINERARY DAY 1: Fly to Munich and board in Passau. DAY 2: Passau and author talks on board. DAY 3: Linz. DAY 4: Melk and Durnstein and author talks on board. DAY 5: Vienna and author talks on board. DAY 6: Bratislava and author talks on board. DAY 7: Budapest and author talks on board. DAY 8: Disembark and fly home. Advertisement

With an incredible line-up of bestselling authors set to attend, including Dame Jenni Murray, Victoria Hislop, Jeremy Paxman, Kate Adie and Louis de Bernieres, this promises to be an unmissable voyage through central Europe that book-lovers will not want to miss.

REASONS TO BOOK

AN INCREDIBLE LINE-UP

You rub shoulders with some of our favourite personalities from the world of books hand-picked by Henley Literary Festival, now one of the UKs most popular literary festivals. With more speakers to be announced, youll get to hear them talk and attend exclusive Q&As on board.

DISCOVER THE DANUBE

During this voyage youll sail through stunning scenery and visit two of Europes great capitals  Vienna, famous for its art and culture, and the historic city of Budapest, capital of Hungary.

YOUR DELUXE STAR-SHIP

The Emerald Waterways fleet offers spacious and stylishly designed staterooms, indoor and outdoor dining, an indoor heated pool with retractable roof, fitness centre, large open-air terrace, cinema and putting green.
After a racism debate in Davos on the invisibility of African climate activists, Greta Thunberg held a press conference Friday with fellow eco warriors from Kenya, Uganda and South Africa to stress the importance of their voices. Vanessa Nakate of Uganda was at the heart of a viral debate at the World Economic Forum in Davos after she was cropped out of a news agency photo of young activists, including Thunberg, taken after a press conference. A 23-year-old graduate in business administration, Nakate was the only black person and only African in the photo shoot. She accused the Associated Press of racism in cropping her out. The agency said the photographer had modified the photo for composition purposes and later apologised, calling it a "terrible mistake". Nakate said she did "not want to talk about" the incident, other than to say that "it was quite a frustrating moment." "This is the time for the world to listen to the activists from Africa and to pay attention to their stories... This is an opportunity for media to actually do some justice to the climate issues in Africa," Nakate told reporters via video link from Kampala. She was joined on separate screens by Ayakha Melithafa and Ndoni Mcunu of South Africa and Makenna Muigai of Kenya, who spent an hour answering questions from journalists gathered at Greenpeace Sweden's offices. - 'We are the most impacted' - So far, Africa is relatively blameless when it comes to climate change. The continent is home to 17 percent of the world's population and more than a quarter of its nations, but only accounts for about five percent of the greenhouse gas emissions pushing the planet toward runaway warming. "Yet we are the most impacted" by climate change, said Mcunu, a PhD student at Johannesburg's Witwatersrand University. "Almost 20 million people have fled the continent due to these changes" and major droughts have caused "almost 52 million people to become food insecure," she added. Mcunu said Africans have begun to adapt, using "indigenous knowledge systems" incorporating "the knowledge that we have as Africans into the international research science and climate data awareness". But, she stressed, "how is it that we're not being spotlighted in these stories, that's the main challenge we have as a continent." Billions of locusts are swarming through East Africa, the result of extreme weather swings which could prove catastrophic for a region still reeling from drought and deadly floods. If unchecked, the infestation could become a plague that will devastate crops and pastures in a region which is already one of the poorest and most vulnerable in the world. - 'Food and water scarcity' - Many Africans "are unaware as to why this is happening, due to not being educated and properly prepared for the consequences," said Makenna Muigai. "I urge African leaders and world leaders to take into consideration that all of us will be affected by climate change. No one should be left behind," she added. "The biggest risk that African countries face would be food scarcity and water scarcity, as a result of climate change," added Nakate. To combat these threats, activists' voices need to be heard. "The biggest threat to action is the fact that those who are trying as hard as possible to speak up are not being given the amplification, they're not able to tell their stories," Nakate said. "If we continue the silencing of planet activists from different parts of Africa, it will be so hard for them to get their message across to our government leaders." Thunberg meanwhile criticised the media for focusing so much of its attention on her, insisting "the African perspective is always so under-reported". "If I say something it gets turned into a headline, that is not the case for the others. The media frames us differently... the amount of coverage they give us," the Swedish teenager said.
In a packed city council chamber with officers from Corvallis, Tigard and Albany  as well as from Seattle, King County and Port Orchard, Washington  lining the walls and every empty spot between filled seats, Marcia Harnden raised her right hand.

"I, Marcia Harnden, solemnly swear I will support the Constitution of the United States and the state of Oregon and the ordinances of the city of Albany and I will, to the best of my ability, perform the duty of chief of police of the city of Albany. So help me God," she recited.

And at 3:09 p.m. Friday, Marcia Harnden became the new Albany Police Chief.

Her swearing-in came just two hours after former chief Mario Lattanzio was relieved from duty, retiring from the department after nearly seven years.

Harnden left Bellevue, Washington, after more than 20 years with that city's department, having worked her way up from school resource officer to chief.

"She noted that we were looking for a new chief and she entered the competitive field," City Manager Peter Troedsson said during Friday's ceremony. "The process was rigorous, but Marcia was selected."

The city received 29 applications for the position before narrowing the field to four finalists in November.

Trodesson said he'd spoke with city staff and members of the police department before making his selection.

"I'll ask you to serve with strength, wisdom and compassion," he told Harnden before City Clerk Mary Dibble administered the oath. "And yes, to have fun."

Troedsson also shared with the crowd that Harnden would be leading a unique department. Reading from a comment card residents may submit based on their interactions with city staff, Trodesson said, "Even though I was getting arrested ... the officer was kind and respectful."

Harnden addressed the crowd on Friday as well, saying she was "very humbled" by the experience and thanking both of her "blue families" in Washington and Oregon.

"I'm very much dedicated to this profession," she said. "I'm honored to be asked to lead this team and look forward to meeting the people of Albany and continuing to move us in a great direction."

Love 6 Funny 1 Wow 0 Sad 0 Angry 0
By Abdul Kerimkhanov

Azerbaijans economy minister Mikayil Jabbarov has said Azerbaijan is one of the few countries where the regional center of the World Economic Forum (WEF) will be created.

"Azerbaijan is one of the rare countries with which a corresponding document is signed. As part of the document, discussions will be held with the relevant Azerbaijans structures and organizations over the next months, Jabbarov said in an interview with the Azerbaijani Public Television and Radio Broadcasting Company.

The minister also said that it is the first time that WEFs regional center is being created in the region.

By region I mean the Caspian littoral states, the countries located in Central Asia and the South Caucasus, Jabbarov added.

Jabbarov noted that WEF is a unique platform, adding that Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev is among the world leaders who are invited annually and participate in special sessions of this forum.

He stressed that taking the Sustainable Development Goals as a basis, Azerbaijan is trying to maximally use the WEF opportunities.

"This is becoming possible in this format for a number of reasons: firstly, because the world business leaders, representatives of the companies interested in the region, heads of international development structures, delegations attend the forum," he explained.

Jabbarov further said that the direct discussions related to the economies of various countries are held, and important investment projects are presented. Opinions are formed and decisions are made at the bilateral and multilateral meetings during the discussions, sessions within the forum.

"We live in the period of the fourth industrial revolution. This entails the transformation of economic and social life. On the other hand, the state faces new challenges. The digitalization of the economy, the development of the innovation and artificial intelligence sectors, as well as new economic sectors, requires the implementation of an appropriate state policy to increase the knowledge and skills of citizens needed in these areas," he said.

He added that following the discussions, the development and expansion of digital commerce defined as a priority area as part of the fourth industrial revolution presented projects and the application of state policy in this area will be evaluated.

Jabbarov considers the creation of an ecosystem that encourages innovative thinking and innovative business as one of the main issues.

"The founder of the Davos Economic Forum Klaus Schwab came up with an initiative to cooperate with countries with high potential, recognizing the importance of these areas and encouraging this in their domestic politics," he noted.

Jabbarov once again emphasized that the development of the innovative economy is one of the priorities in Azerbaijan.

"By the corresponding decision of Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev, the position of presidential aide - Head of the Department of Economic Issues and Innovative Development Policy, who is responsible for these issues, has been created at the Presidential Administration. This is a clear indicator of the importance that the state attaches to this area, the minister recalled.

Touching upon the reasons for the interest of foreign investors in Azerbaijan within the World Economic Forum in Davos, he said: "Generally speaking, Azerbaijan today is recognised in the world as a rapidly developing country with a growing population, which initiates and participates in large-scale projects and plays a key role in the oil and gas, transport and other sectors, he added.

Listing factors which are important for successful investment, Jabbarov mentioned the political and macroeconomic stability in the country, development prospects, openness to the region and the world in the sense of having the opportunity to enter not only local markets, but also foreign ones.

At the same time, the development of our transport infrastructure, trade relations with neighbors - excluding one, and stable political relations are also important factors, Jabbarov stressed.

Reforms

He said all the above-mentioned factors exist in Azerbaijan and emphasized that one of the reasons for the growing interest is the next stage of socio-economic reforms carried out in the country under the leadership of the head of state, which are already yielding results.

"In particular, the depth and scale of the reforms over the past two years have been clearly emphasized in questions and in the comments of the analysts participating in the Davos Forum. In a word, the prospect of further improving the business environment to attract investments to the country and such factors as discussion of pressing issues, as well as measures taken in the country to solve them, increase investors' interest in Azerbaijan," Jabbarov added.

Answering the question about the benefits these investments give the country, he said: "These investments mean knowledge and skills. It is known that the modern economy is based on knowledge. Foreign investment means not only material means, but also new technologies, industrial solutions, new jobs. In other words, this makes a significant contribution to resolving issues related to the two main components of sustainable development - economic growth and employment," he said.

Population growth

Jabbarov further indicated the population's employment as one of the main tasks, which is constantly set by the head of state.

"This task was also set at a meeting of the Cabinet of Ministers on the discussion of socio-economic issues, chaired by the head of state on 13 January 2020," Jabbarov added.

Commenting on the outcomes of 2019, he said as a result of the reforms carried out in the country, some 157,000 new jobs were created, 99,000 jobs of which accounted for the non-oil sector.

This is the area where the state applies special tax benefits. This also contributed to official registration of existing jobs and their removal from the shadow economy. Another important challenge is that we must achieve sustainability in the creation of new jobs. Therefore, speaking of economic development, we always take the concept of sustainable development as a basis, he underlined.

He believes growing population means the growing power of the state, and from an economic point of view, this means an increase in purchasing power.

New schools, hospitals are being built in Azerbaijan, and it is well known that a lot of work is being done in this regard. The number of schools built over the past 16 years is nearing 3,300, and hundreds of hospital buildings were built and new roads laid. Growing population also means growing consumption. Demand for products and services is one of the main driving forces in the economy, he stated.

From this point of view, population growth opens up new opportunities. The main task is to correctly analyze all these factors, namely from a strategic point of view to ensure consistent approach to this matter, Jabbarov concluded.

---

Abdul Kerimkhanov is AzerNews staff journalist, follow him on Twitter: @AbdulKerim94

Follow us on Twitter @AzerNewsAz
Medical supply shortage haunts Hubei

Global Times

By Chen Qingqing, Li Qiao and Shan Jie Source:Global Times Published: 2020/1/31 22:03:41

Thousands of medical personnel from across China have been rushing to Hubei, bringing medical supplies, as the extreme shortage of medical supplies has been haunting the epicenter of the novel coronavirus in the country.

"Some frontline co-workers are betting with their lives. They have to save lives with or without sufficient supplies," an employee at the Union Hospital in Wuhan, capital of Central China's Hubei Province, told the Global Times on Friday.

Hospitals in Hubei have been posting on social media platforms, asking the public to donate supplies.

Cao Guangjing, vice governor of Hubei, admitted on Thursday at a press conference that the most needed supplies, such as protective clothing and N95 masks, have always been in short supply.

Pictures circulating online showed frontline medical staff making masks out of fabrics. Some of them, without protective suits, use huge plastic bags to cover themselves, some even use swimming goggles.

Hospital employees preferred not to be identified said many donated products do not meet the requirements for medical use.

A total of 6,129 medical personnel of 53 teams from national medical authorities, 29 provincial regions and three military hospitals had arrived in Hubei by Wednesday night, the CCTV reported Thursday.

Doctors and nurses brought medical supplies badly needed in Hubei. An aid team from East China's Shandong Province brought 100,000 masks, while the team from Northwest China's Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region brought respirators, electrocardiographs and medicine.

Zhang Liu, the leader of the medical team from Peking University People's Hospital in Beijing, told the Global Times that the constant changes and development of the disease make it difficult to apply treatment.

He said medical staff in protective clothing feel stuffy, sweaty and breath uncomfortably as the clothing is not breathable. Medical staff on duty for six hours wear diapers to avoid going to the bathroom and infecting patients.



NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address






Source: Xinhua| 2020-02-01 06:14:35|Editor: yan

Video Player Close

TEGUCIGALPA, Jan. 31 (Xinhua) -- More than a hundred people have joined a new migrant caravan that left Honduras on Friday with the goal of reaching the United States, despite the strong immigration controls implemented in countries en route.

On Thursday night, people began to congregate at the bus terminal in the northern city of San Pedro Sula and they convened in response to announcements made via social networks and instant messaging applications.

The first caravan of this year, the thirteenth since October 2018, left Honduras in mid-January through the border towns of Florido and Agua Caliente.

Last week, more than 1,500 Hondurans were detained and subsequently deported after trying to enter Mexico.
Cathay Pacific is under renewed pressure from its staff to suspend flights to mainland China following action by the United States, Australia and Singapore to restrict foreigners who had been to the country.

The fresh call to halt the routes amid fears surrounding the coronavirus threat came as sister airline Cathay Dragon announced on Saturday it would be suspending flights to the mainland cities of Hangzhou, Ningbo, Wenzhou, Sanya and Haikou on February 2 and 3.

Australias national carrier and Qatar Airways on Saturday said their decision to suspend China flights was down to new entry restrictions, with Qantas citing Friday measures by Singapore and the US it said would affect crew who work across the Qantas International network.

Cathays cabin crew has warned they would strike unless Cathay Pacific Group stopped operating all flights to the mainland.

During the past week, most major airlines  including all North American carriers that fly into mainland China  have suspended flights there until at least the end of February.

Delta Air Lines will not resume flights until May.

Qantas said its aircrew would be unable to work on any of its nine flights to the US or seven to Singapore scheduled for Saturday, if they had previously worked on a mainland China route.

For Cathay Pacific, with eight flights to Singapore, 14 to the US and 10 to Australia scheduled on Saturday, it was a similar scenario.

Hong Kongs flagship carrier operates three flights daily to each of Beijing and Shanghai, while Cathay Dragon, which operates with separate pilots and cabin crew, typically runs almost 50 flights a day to mainland China.

While Cathay Pacific can stop flying to mainland China to avoid crew problems across the rest of its international network, Cathay Dragon can continue as normal since it does not fly to Singapore, the US or Australia.

Responding to staff members concerns regarding mainland flights on Saturday, the airline said: We are aware of the crews concerns. We have been and will continue to communicate closely with our crew.

Story continues

Meanwhile, Cathay Pacifics cabin crew union said the airline was considering rolling out more protective measures on every flight, following pleas from flight attendants.

Since Thursday, passengers on mainland China flights have not been receiving pillows, blankets, hot towels, or magazines. The cabin crew serve a simplified meal service and have stopped serving drinks for everyone except business class in a bid to limit the risk of on-board infection.

Flight Attendants Union (FAU) chiefs also want bread rolls ditched along with any other food that is not properly sealed and covered.

Other hoped-for measures would include allowing crews to collect trash with plastic bags throughout the flight, rather than using a trolley cart, and removing liquid waste disposal jugs.

The company agreed to consider these suggestions, the FAU told its members on Facebook on Friday night, assuring them they totally understand the concerns and worries among crew community towards the rapidly evolving situation of the coronavirus.

As the union representative of the cabin crew community, your [executive committee] believes that the major responsibility of ensuring a safe working environment lies on the company. We will continue to monitor the situation and urge the management team to take the necessary action.

Rebecca Sy On-na, chairwoman of the Dragon Airlines Flight Attendants Association, said unionised cabin crew for Cathay Dragon would vote on February 8 on whether to take strike action, adding that membership was angry the vote was still so far away.

Six cabin crew from four Cathay Dragon flights  three from Wuhan and one from Haikou  have been isolated either at government-designated camps or self-quarantined at home in recent weeks, according to the union.

The crew go to work in horror every day, because they dont know if they will be the next one to be isolated, Sy said.

Cathay Pacific is waiving fees for people who rebook or re-route flights to, from or through Hong Kong, the airline announced on its website on Saturday.

In relaxing its travel policies, the airline said it would not waive charges for those wanting to cancel their tickets outright.

This article Coronavirus: Cathay Pacific faces pressure to suspend mainland China flights, following action from the US, Singapore and Australia first appeared on South China Morning Post

For the latest news from the South China Morning Post download our mobile app. Copyright 2020.
Vodafone to sell stake in Egyptian unit to Saudi Telecom for $2.4bn

Vodafone to sell stake in Egyptian unit to Saudi Telecom for $2.4bn

Vodafone Group has struck a preliminary deal to sell its 55 percent stake in its Egyptian unit to Saudi Arabias largest telecoms operator STC for $2.4 billion, the companies said on Wednesday.

The non-binding deal values Vodafone Egypt at $4.4 billion and the two companies have agreed a arrangement over the long-term use of the Vodafone brand and other services in Egypt.

Selling the stake is in line with Vodafones efforts to streamline its operations to focus on Europe and sub-Saharan Africa, Vodafone Chief Executive Nick Read said.

It will reduce our net debt and unlock value for our shareholders, he said.

Vodafone said the transaction was expected to close by June. STC said the non-binding agreement was valid for 75 days from Wednesday and could be extended by mutual consent.

Vodafone Egypt is the leading player in the Egyptian mobile market and we look forward to contributing further to its continuing success, said STC Chief Executive Nasser Al-Nasser.

The binding agreement is subject to approvals by STC and Vodafone, and regulators. STC said no other parties were involved in the potential deal.

STC, also known as Saudi Telecom, is majority owned by Saudi Arabias state fund the Public Investment Fund (PIF).

Telecom Egypt, which also owns a stake in Vodafone Egypt, said on Wednesday it was closely monitoring the process to study all available alternatives for it to handle its investments in Vodafone Egypt.

The state-owned company said on Sunday it had no intention of selling its stake.
It's official: Murray State becomes member of Missouri Valley Conference
BJP MLA Prashant Bamb has sent a defamation notice to Pratap Patil Chikhlikar, an MP from his own party, alleging that Chikhlikar called him "blackmailer" in a letter to PWD officials in Maharashtra.

Bamb, who represents Gangapur seat in Aurangabad district, has demanded a compensation of Rs 23 crore from Chikhlikar, Member of Parliament from Nanded in the state.

Bamb said in the notice that Chikhlikar wrote a letter to Public Works Department officials in November 2019, saying they should not pay heed to complaints from Bamb, and called him a "blackmailer".

"I have sent a notice for defamation to Chikhlikar through my legal advisor," Bamb told PTI on Saturday.

The notice said that Chikhlikar's allegations were baseless and had caused the MLA mental agony, demanding Rs 23 crore in compensation.

Chikhlikar should also tender unconditional apology and remove all messages agaist Bamb posted by him on social media, it further demanded.

"My party has not intervened in the issue. I have decided to explore a legal remedy," Bamb said.

Chikhlikar could not be reached for reaction despite repeated attempts.

Notably, senior BJP leader and Union Road Transport and Highways Minister Nitin Gadkari had said last month that local political leaders harass contractors when any infrastructure work starts in the Marathwada region.

These leaders call contractors before the work starts and demand bribes, Gadkari had hinted, warning that they would face CBI raids if such obstruction of work did not stop.

He did not name any leader or party.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
A week after being 'blindsided' by her philandering fiance Jesse Metcalfe, Cara Santana visited production offices with a black binder likely containing a script while in Los Angeles on Friday.

The Texan-born 35-year-old appeared to be make-up free with her signature raven locks scraped into a severe ponytail and her nails freshly painted red.

Cara - who relies on stylist Maeve Reilly - wore a trendy brown teddy coat over a black turtleneck, ripped blue jeans, and black ballet flats.

Back to work! A week after being 'blindsided' by her philandering fiance Jesse Metcalfe, Cara Santana visited production offices with a black binder likely containing a script while in Los Angeles on Friday

Santana was engaged to the 41-year-old SAG Award winner for four years and they dated for 11 years minus a brief split in 2011.

On January 20, Jesse was pictured having lunch with Hungarian model Livia Pillmann at Gracias Madre followed by drinks at Sherman Oaks bar The Attic with Australian actress Jade Albany Pietrantonio.

The Kohl's collaborator had previously told Hollywood Life in November she felt 'married' to Metcalfe, whom she gave plenty of 'independence' because 'we love to have our own lives.'

It was the same month the smirking Desperate Housewives alum ominously told Access that 'the wedding planning is non-existent' and 'maybe' they'd tie the knot in 2020.

'Cast & production parking only': The Texan-born 35-year-old appeared to be make-up free with her signature raven locks scraped into a severe ponytail and her nails freshly painted red.

Chic: Cara - who relies on stylist Maeve Reilly - wore a trendy brown teddy coat over a black turtleneck, ripped blue jeans, and black ballet flats

'I've been so busy. I've literally been out of town the entire year pretty much,' Jesse shrugged.

'So I haven't really had an opportunity to be apart of the wedding planning, which I certainly want to be part of. Cara has been incredibly busy as well.

'So we're kind of just doing things on our own schedule. But yeah, it's taking a while, I know.'

On/off romance: Santana was engaged to the 41-year-old SAG Award winner (L) for four years and they dated for 11 years minus a brief split in 2011 (pictured December 25)

Double booked: On January 20, Jesse was pictured having lunch with Hungarian model Livia Pillmann (L) at Gracias Madre followed by drinks at Sherman Oaks bar The Attic with Australian actress Jade Albany Pietrantonio (R)

'It's taking a while, I know': In November, a smirking Metcalfe ominously told Access that 'the wedding planning is non-existent' and 'maybe' they'd tie the knot in 2020

Metcalfe is currently hard at work in Cincinnati playing the role of Miller in Matt Eskandari's movie Open Source with legendary action star Bruce Willis.

On Wednesday, the Cali-born, Connecticut-raised actor thanked the 64-year-old Golden Globe winner as well as producers George Furla and Randall Emmett (the fiance of Vanderpump Rules' Lala Kent) on Instagram.

Cara next plays Bonnie in the Valentine's Day-themed episode of Oahu-set police procedural Hawaii Five-0 - titled 'Man is a Slave of Love' - which airs February 14 on CBS.

Action! The Desperate Housewives alum is currently hard at work in Cincinnati playing the role of Miller in Matt Eskandari's movie Open Source with Bruce Willis (pictured Tuesday)

'Working with an icon': On Wednesday, Jesse thanked the 64-year-old Golden Globe winner (L) as well as producers George Furla and Randall Emmett on Instagram

Cara next plays Bonnie in the Valentine's Day-themed episode of Oahu-set police procedural Hawaii Five-0 - titled 'Man is a Slave of Love' - which airs February 14 on CBS

Santana also has a recurring role as Nico's (Roberta Colindrez) troublemaking ex Zoe in the third season of Starz drama Vida due out later this year.

'It is such an honor to be apart of compelling and poignant story telling,' the lovely Latina - who boasts 805K social media followers - gushed in October.

'And I feel so lucky to be apart of this show that is pushing the boundaries and telling stories of those who need to be told. Thank you @tanyasaracho for having me to your @vida_starz.'

'Man is a Slave of Love': The Kohl's collaborator (2-R pictured October 2) next plays Bonnie in the Valentine's Day-themed episode of Hawaii Five-0, which airs February 14 on CBS
: NDA constituents in Tamil Nadu, including the AIADMK on Saturday welcomed the Union budget, but the opposition, led by the DMK, lashed out at its various proposals.

While Tamil Nadu Chief Minister K Palaniswami lauded the budget presented by Union Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman, DMK President and state Leader of Opposition M K Stalin said the annual exercise did not address issues like the economic slowdown and unemployment.

Actor and Makkal Needhi Maiam (MNM) founder Kamal Haasan used the 'halwa' analogy to say that the budget lacked solutions, alluding to a popular usage in Tamil Nadu.

Palaniswami, also the AIADMK Joint Coordinator, welcomed the various announcements made by Sitharaman in sectors like infrastructure, water management and manufacturing and lauded the Centre for not imposing any "tax burden on the common man."



"This budget has been efficiently prepared without imposing any tax burden on the people. The various announcements meet the expectations of the public and also ensures future growth. I extend my greetings to the Finance Minister (Sitharaman) for presenting the budget," he added.

The tax cuts would benefit the middle class and provide relief to them and spur consumerism, he added.

Stalin criticised the budget, saying there were no major allocations for Tamil Nadu.

"This budget is more of a cultural imposition, with scant regard for the economic slowdown and slowing rural growth," he said.

"The BJP government, which is keen on Hindi imposition in anything...has called the Indus valley civilisation Saraswathi Sindhu Civilisation in the budget," he said in a statement.

"This budget is of no use to Tamil Nadu and the Tamil people," he added.

Further, the long budget address by Sitharaman was 'directionless,' he added.

PMK founder S Ramadoss, whose party is a constituent of the NDA, welcomed the sops announced for individual taxpayers and the various measures in the farm sector, but opposed the proposals regarding privatisation.

He also lauded the significant allocations made to the Education, Infrastructure and Health sectors and welcomed proposals like the Chennai-Bengaluru Expressway and the tax sops "that will attract investments."



Setting up of a museum at Adichanallur in the state was also a welcome move.

"At the same time, opening up the doors wide for privatisation is a matter of concern," he said.

He also opposed the LIC disinvestment proposal, saying it was "dangerous" as the PSU was generating revenue for the government.

Haasan, founder of MNM, referring to the halwa preparation ceremony ahead of the budget exercise, said "the budget has ended with halwa for the people."



In Tamil Nadu, "giving halwa" to someone means fooling or misleading the person.

"A long address, but no proper solution," the actor said on Twitter referring to Sitharaman's lengthy budget address.

Amma Makkal Munnetra Kazhagam leader and independent MLA T T V Dhinakaran rued the budget had no major job creation efforts.

"It is disappointing that there are no determined efforts to revive the economy," he said in a statement.

He also said that tax cuts "cannot be expected to benefit the society in a big way.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
Over 300 Bangladeshis on Saturday returned home from Chinese city Wuhan, the epicentre of the coronavirus outbreak, on a special aircraft and were quarantined in a facility under military and police vigil, officials said.

State-run Biman Airlines' Boeing 777-300 ER aircraft carrying 312 Bangladeshis, including 12 children and three infants, landed at Hazrat Shahjalal International Airport (HSIA) here in afternoon, Biman spokeswomen Tahera Khondoker said..

Khondoker said 15 crew and four doctors were on board the special flight.

The evacuees were directly escorted to nearby Ashkona Hajj Camp from the airport, where they would have to stay under medical observation for next 14 days as the time is considered as the incubation period of the virus, a Bangladeshi health ministry spokesman said.

According to a report in BD News, seven people suffering from fever were sent to hospital after they arrived from Wuhan.

The death toll in the coronavirus epidemic has soared to 259 with total confirmed cases surging to 11,791 in China amid stepped up efforts by a number of countries to evacuate their nationals from Hubei province and its capital Wuhan.

The virus emerged in early December and has been traced to a market in Wuhan that sold wild animals.

The World Health Organisation declared the outbreak a global emergency on Thursday.

Bangladesh Foreign Minister A K Abdul Momen during a media briefing with Health Minister Zahid Maleque on Friday said the returnees were not sick, but we don't want to take any risk and they must go through the required medical observations.

Malek urged the returnees' relatives not to gather at the camp in the next 14 days, adding that the Directorate General of Health and Army Medical Core were mobilised to take proper care of the evacuees in line with a treatment protocol prepared with WHO guidelines to manage the situation.

Officials earlier said army troops were called out to guard the camp alongside policemen to enforce the quarantine so the people returned from China could not come in touch with other people.

The evacuees were among estimated 400 Bangladeshis, mostly students, who were stranded in Wuhan.

The governments of the several countries, including India, have chalked up plans to return their nationals under special arrangement from Wuhan.

Air India's jumbo B747 aircraft carrying 211 students, 110 working professionals and three minors, reached New Delhi on Saturday after evacuating 324 Indians from Wuhan.

Another flight of the airline departed for the Chinese city from New Delhi in Afternoon.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
A man suspected of killing his father-in-law and shooting his estranged wife near Fenton died by suicide Friday when police tried to take him into custody, St. Louis County police said.

James M. Kempf, 45, was found in rural northwest Arkansas after more than a week on the run after the killing, police said.

He was accused of entering his estranged wifes home in the 1800 block of Charity Court the evening of Jan. 23 and shooting her in the leg, according to police. When her father, John Colter, 66, tried to intervene, police said, Kempf shot him in the head and killed him.

Kempf's wife escaped, and St. Louis County police converged on the home, thinking Kempf was still inside. Several hours later, tactical officers entered and realized Kempf had fled.

Police on Monday and Tuesday searched for Kempf in a barn, hayloft and wooded area near the crime scene, but came up empty-handed.
live bse live

nse live Volume Todays L/H More 

Indostar Capital Finance share price rose 1 percent in early trade on February 1 after leading private equity and real estate investor Everstone Group said it will invest in the company.

The Everstone Group has entered into an agreement whereby Brookfield Business Partners, together with its institutional partners will, upon closing of the transaction, invest Rs 1,450 crore in the company.

The investment will made through a combination of subscription to securities and purchase of shares from IndoStar Capital Mauritius and mandatory tender offer, and seek to acquire 40 percent interest in the business, depending upon the subscription to the mandatory tender offer.

The overall investment will comprise a combination of primary investment in equity shares and compulsorily convertible preference shares of Rs 1,225 crore along with a secondary purchase of shares from IndoStar Capital Mauritius.

Brookfield will also become a co-promoter in IndoStar and nominate two board members. R. Sridhar will continue to lead the company in his role as Vice Chairman and CEO, IndoStar, company said.

The fresh investment by Brookfield will support the continued growth of IndoStars retail business, it added.

The investment remains subject to receipt of regulatory approvals and satisfaction of other closing conditions.

At 09:27 hrs, Indostar Capital Finance was quoting at Rs 284.10, up Rs 1.60, or 0.57 percent on the BSE.
The hour when the UK officially left the EU was greeted with both celebrations and protests in Ireland.

As pro-EU activists held demonstrations along the Irish border, Brexiteers waved union flags, sang God Save The Queen and heard the powerful beat of the Lambeg drum at the gates of the seat of Northern Irelands devolved government to celebrate the landmark moment.

At Stormont, DUP MLA Jim Wells described it as a happy day for our nation, this means that our nation of Great Britain and Northern Ireland moves out of the bondage of Europe to the freedom of the rest of the world, before leading the count down from ten to cheers as the clock struck 11pm.

Throughout the day, focus centred on future trading relations on the island of Ireland as opponents and supporters of Brexit prepared to mark the UKs exit from the EU.

Fears among Remainers over the prospect of a hard border on the island have dissipated somewhat, while pro-Brexit unionists are far from happy with an agreement that treats Northern Ireland differently to the rest of the UK.

On Friday morning, Irish premier Leo Varadkar warned that Ireland will take a very firm line in post-Brexit trade talks.

The Taoiseach insisted that fishing and farming communities will be protected during the upcoming negotiations on the future relationship.

Mr Varadkar told RTE a lot of work remained outstanding but he was confident a good deal could be reached.

We want free trade with the UK with no tariffs, no quotas, as little bureaucracy and as few checks as possible, he said.

Expand Close Members of Border Communities Against Brexit arrive with their new poster at Stormont (Brian Lawless/PA) PA Wire/PA Images / Facebook

Twitter

Email

Whatsapp Members of Border Communities Against Brexit arrive with their new poster at Stormont (Brian Lawless/PA)

DUP leader Arlene Foster notably marked Brexit night by appearing on RTE flagship Late Late Show  a move widely interpreted as a conciliatory gesture to the Irish Republic following strained relations during the Brexit process.

Unionists are concerned at post-Brexit arrangements that will see Northern Ireland continue to comply with many EU rules as a way to avoid a hardening of the Irish border.

Ms Foster, the first DUP leader to appear on the show, said: We are leaving the European Union tonight, the United Kingdom leaves, but that doesnt mean we are not still neighbours and I wanted to send out message that we are and will continue to be neighbours.

In a wide-ranging interview, Ms Foster insisted that Brexit would not bring a united Ireland any closer.

Well before sunrise on Brexit day, Irish Foreign Affairs Minister Simon Coveney toured Dublin Port at 5am as the first ships docked and unloaded.

He rejected claims from election rivals Fianna Fail, which branded his visit a stunt and accused his Fine Gael party of trying to politicise Brexit.

Expand Close Tanaiste Simon Coveney speaks to media at Dublin Port (Aoife Moore/PA) PA Wire/PA Images / Facebook

Twitter

Email

Whatsapp Tanaiste Simon Coveney speaks to media at Dublin Port (Aoife Moore/PA)

Put quite simply, all of the plans, all of the manifestos that are being debated and discussed in this election campaign, much of that is just aspirational if we dont maintain and protect a strong economy through the challenges of Brexit, he said.

Meanwhile, Sinn Fein president Mary Lou McDonald said the refusal of Prime Minister Boris Johnson to contemplate extending the transition period beyond the end of 2020 was cause for concern.

Speaking at the Institute of International and European Affairs (IIEA) in Dublin on Friday, Ms McDonald stated that negotiating a future relationship in 11 months is a tight timeline and represents a risk of no deal.

We must at all costs avoid this because we must prevent barriers to trade and commerce and our objective must be to avoid slowing business down or putting the cost of doing business up, east, west, or north to south, she said.

Ms McDonald added that people from all traditions and backgrounds see Irish unity as the best way, only way to stay within the European Union.

Many with a British or unionist identity are now actively considering the merits of reunification, not to become republicans, but to remain European, she added.
Incorporated in 1945, the city of Katy has grown to include commercial developments that help produce sales-tax revenue to ease the property tax burden on residents and offers the latest in technology for its fire and police departments.

Rotary Club of Katy hosted a Jan. 30 presentation by Mayor Bill Hastings, City Administrator Byron Hebert and Director of Tourism Marketing and Public Kayce Reina. Reina also serves as the citys director of parks & recreation.

All three talked of the importance of relationships and partnerships with agencies and groups around the city.

What makes us proud is our relationships, said Reina. Everything we do in the city of Katy also is important to the Greater Katy area.

Hebert singled out the citys relationship with the Rotary Club of Katy and said it helped the city during a bad situation. We were about ready to lose the Rice Festival and you guys stepped in and we were able to continue that tradition.

And Hastings mentioned that he and City Council dont always get along. But they come to an agreement on the basis of whats best for the citizens. Its not a relationship we have. We have a partnership, he said.

Hastings who worked 32 years for the police department  the last 10 as chief  before running for mayor last spring, said public safety represents 56 percent of the citys budget.

When he went to work for the police department, he said it had 13 people, including the chief. The department will have 68 officers as of Feb. 3.

Last year, the city opened its second fire station near Katy Mills mall and staffed it with eight firefighters. It also contracts for fire service with a municipal utility district that provides fire protection for Firethorne from a station near that subdivision.

The city recently spent more than $1 million for a ladder truck, Hastings said. The ladder truck is able to access every structure we have in the city, he said. If ambulances are out on calls, firefighting vehicles are equipped with life-saving equipment and can respond until an ambulance arrives at the scene. Very few cities or departments have that,he said.

The fire department also earned an ISO rating of 1, the best possible, which Hastings said few fire departments in the state have.

The police department hired nine police officers last year and recently acquired a dog to detect explosives. The department also brought on a commercial vehicle inspections officer who can check trucks on city streets for weight violations that damage roadways. He also has another role as Hastings talked about an astounding amount of narcotics that goes up and down Interstate 10, primarily in commercial vehicles.

Increased commercial development marks the city of Katy, which has 17,000 residents. Hebert said when he became city administrator 20 years ago, the city received 60 percent of its revenue from property tax. That percentage now is 33 percent as Hebert pointed to the growth in sales-tax revenue to 48 percent of the citys budget revenue.

Last years passage of the Harris County Metropolitan Transit Authoritys bond package means that the city will receive about $6 million a year through 2040 to pay for mobility projects, he said, which will lift a burden from taxpayers.

Reina talked about development of the Katy downtown across from City Hall and how it includes a civic center and visitors center. Eventually, the plaza will include green space and an outdoor museum among other features, she said. Officials hope to complete work on the plaza next year, she said. She talked of the citys parks and all the activities they host.

Development of the Katy Boardwalk across from Katy Mills Mall. The nearby lake will be home to migratory birds, she said. Residential construction has begun at that site and she anticipated the hotel opening in the spring 2022.

Katy really does offer a lot for people to come to the city. she said.

karen.zurawski@chron.com
To augment India's infrastructure and create jobs, the government has launched Rs 103 lakh crore infra projects besides providing about Rs 1.70 lakh crore for transport infrastructure and accelerating highways construction, Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman said on Saturday.

Presenting the Union Budget 2020-21 in Parliament, Sitharaman said focus is on infrastructure for economic development and 6,500 projects across sectors under National Infrastructure Pipeline (NIP) envisions ease of living for citizens.

"In his Independence Day speech 2019, Prime Minister had highlighted that Rs 100 lakh crore would be invested on infrastructure over the next 5 years. As a follow-up measure, I had launched the NIP on December 31, 2019 of Rs 103 lakh crore. It consists of more than 6500 projects across sectors and are classified as per their size and stage of development," she said.

About Rs 22,000 crore has already been provided, as support to Infrastructure Pipeline, she added.

Terming the budget growth-oriented, Road Transport and Highways Minister Nitin Gadkari said it has given a massive boost to investment in infrastructure, which in turn would help revive industrial production and generate employment opportunities, crating more that 2 crore jobs.

These new projects will include housing, safe drinking water, access to clean and affordable energy, health-care, educational institutes, railway stations, airports, bus terminals, metro and railway transportation, logistics and warehousing, irrigation projects, etc.

The National Infrastructure Pipeline envisions improving the ease of living for each individual citizen in the country, she said and added it will bring in generic and sectoral reforms in development, operation and maintenance of these infrastructure projects.

Also she said: "I propose to provide about Rs 1.70 lakh crore for transport Infrastructure in 2020-21."



The FM emphasised that a huge employment opportunity exists for India's youth in construction, operation and maintenance of infrastructure and National Skill Development Agency will give special thrust to infrastructure-focused skill development opportunities.

"I propose to set up a project preparation facility for infrastructure projects. This programme would actively involve young engineers, management graduates and economists from our Universities. It is also proposed to direct all infrastructure agencies of the government to involve youth-power in start-ups. They will help in rolling out value added services in quality public infrastructure for citizens," she said.

A National Logistics Policy will be released soon, she said.

Besides, accelerated development of highways will be undertaken which will include development of 2,500-km access control highways, 9,000-km of economic corridors, 2,000-km of coastal and land port roads and 2,000-km of strategic highways.

Delhi-Mumbai Expressway and two other packages would be completed by 2023 and work on Chennai-Bengaluru Expressway would also be started.

She said under electronic tolling on national highways, FASTag mechanism enables greater commercialisation of highways so that NHAI can raise more resources.

"I propose to monetise at least twelve lots of highway bundles of over 6000-km before 2024," she said.

Indian Railways, she said aims to achieve electrification of 27,000-km of tracks. Besides, more Tejas type trains will connect iconic tourist destinations and high-speed train between Mumbai to Ahmedabad would be actively pursued.

On ports, she said the government would consider corporatising at least one major port and subsequently its listing on the stock exchanges.

Saying Inland Waterways received a boost in the last five years, the FM announced the JalVikasMargon National Waterway-1 will be completed and further, the 890 Km Dhubri-Sadiya connectivity will be done by 2022.

About air traffic, she said 100 more airports would be developed by 2024 to support Udaan scheme and it is expected that the air fleet number shall go up from the present 600 to 1,200 during this time.

She proposed "about Rs 22,000 crore to power and renewable energy sector in 2020-21.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
Tech giant Apple on Saturday announced it has temporarily shut all its retail stores and offices across mainland China till February 10 as part of preemptive measures amid the outbreak of the deadly coronavirus that has killed more than 250 people and infected more than 10,000 others.

Apple said that the measure will come into force from Sunday till midnight of February 9, Russia Today reported. However, online stores of the company will remain open.

In its advisory, the company also restricted employees from travelling to the East Asian country. Some other multinational companies have also suspended business trips to China, or limited it to critical operations, according to media reports.

Meanwhile, Apple's key supplier, China-based 'Foxconn,' said that the business is running as normal despite the virus outbreak. The company assured that it has put forth all measures in place to "ensure that we can continue to meet all global manufacturing obligations."

Some of the Chinese provinces, municipalities and regions recommended businesses to prolong the Chinese New Year holidays and resume operations on February 10 at the earliest due to public health concerns.

To help those affected by the epidemic and mitigate damages for firms, the People's Bank of China further vowed today to provide financial support and cut lending rates. The central bank stressed that the impact of the outbreak on the broad economy should be temporary.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
(Natural News) Most American foreign policy experts and diplomats know that Ukraine is a deeply corrupt country and has been for decades since the breakup of the Soviet Union  not that Moscows Communist government was much better.

With that said, its new president, Volodymyr Zelensky is in the same vein as President Donald Trump: He, too, wants to drain the swamp and rid his government of the grifters, the skimmers, and the deep state types who are working daily to undermine the legitimate government.

The problem is, the corruption is so pervasive it is going to be difficult to eradicate  if possible at all.

Thats why its difficult to imagine why Ukraine would ask our own FBI to assist in a probe of a suspected cyber attack into Burisma  the energy firm at the center of corruption allegations involving Joe and Hunter Biden.

The firm hired Hunter Biden during the Obama administration, when his father, Joe, was serving as vice president, to be a board member for a fee of about $50,000 per month.

Its also the company that was being investigated by the state prosecutor for corruption when Joe Biden got him fired by then-President Petro Poroshenko.

Suddenly, according to reports, out of nowhere it is hacked by (wait for it) Russian hackers. And were supposed to believe that.

In any event, as Zero Hedge reports, the company is notorious for its corruption. More than that, the site reminds readers that the investigation of Burisma corruption and the firms relationship with the Bidens is at the heart of impeachment proceedings against the president brought by Democrats.

The FBI, mind you, is at the center of the Spygate scandal involving the attempt to enact a soft coup against Trump. And of course, we were told the Russians hacked the Democratic National Committees servers leading up to the 2016 election.

Wow, what a confluence of corruption.

So many coincidences

On Monday, The New York Times noted that Area 1, a Silicon Valley-based cybersecurity firm, said that Russian hackers from a military intelligence division formerly known as the GRU and operating under the alias Fancy Bear used phishing emails that were designed to steal passwords and usernames in order to gain access to the energy firms network.

On the surface this sounds legitimate because Moscow stole the Crimea from Ukraine and has been militarily supporting separatists in Ukraines east. So, why not hack a Ukrainian company?

Okaybut why this company, one that is currently at the center of so much political controversy as another election cycle approaches?

It is noted that the hacker attack most likely took place in cooperation with the Russian special services, said Ukrainian Interior Ministry official Artyom Minyailo at a briefing, adding that the FBI had been requested to assist in the investigation.

Later, the interior minister said his office had launched an investigation into claims that former U.S. Ambassador to Ukraine, Marie Yovanovitch, was illegally placed under surveillance by associates of Trump presidential lawyer Rudy Giuliani.

More coincidences? Is someone trying to steal evidence of wrongdoing by the Bidens?

As Zero Hedge reports further:

Of note, Area 1 was co-founded by two former NSA hackers  one of whom was a lead employee at cybersecurity firm Crowdstrike, which was the only company allowed to analyze the DNC servers in connection with a 2016 breach  which it concluded fancy bear was also behind. Area 1 founder Oren Falkowitz is an active donor to Democrats, contributing to the 2020 election campaigns of both Elizabeth Warren and Cory Booker.

So many coincidences, so little time to sort through them all.

If youre beginning to think this all smells like its somehow related, youre not the only one. Stranger things have happened stemming from the 2016 election, all in an effort to get Trump. It sure seems like some suspicious activity is cranking up again ahead of 2020.

Sources include:

ZeroHedge.com

NewsTarget.com
Pentagon raises number of US troops injured in Iran missile attack to 64

Iran Press TV

Friday, 31 January 2020 7:36 AM

The Pentagon has yet again raised the figure of soldiers wounded in Iran's retaliatory missile attack in Iraq earlier this month to 64, saying they have suffered "traumatic brain injuries".

Pentagon chief Mark Esper and chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff General Mark Milley said Thursday the military took these types of injuries "very seriously" after criticism that the authorities sought to whitewash them.

"The number is growing," Milley added, explaining that it takes time to diagnose and screen soldiers present in the area at the time of the attack.

The New York Times cited a Pentagon statement, which put the total number of injured troops at 68.

The report said eight troops were currently being treated in the United States, 21 in Landstuhl, Germany and that another 39 injured troops have returned to military operations in Iraq.

The new tally marks at least the fourth instance where US officials have raised the number of US troops injured following Iran's January 8 missile attack in response to Washington's assassination of top anti-terror commander General Qassem Soleimani on January 3.

The Trump administration at first claimed that no Americans had been injured in the attack.

"We suffered no casualties, all of our soldiers are safe, and only minimal damage was sustained at our military bases," President Donald Trump said a day after the missile strike.

A week later, however, the US military said 11 had been injured in the attack.

Last Friday and on Tuesday, the tally was brought to a total of 34 and 50 respectively, drawing added scrutiny and criticism against the Trump administration's initial claims of no casualties.

Trump has, nonetheless, sought to play down the reports, saying he "heard they had headaches".

"I don't consider them very serious injuries relative to other injuries I have seen," he said last week.

The comments were slammed by Veterans of Foreign Wars (VFW), the oldest major American veteran organization which demanded Trump to apologize for his remarks.

"Traumatic brain injury (TBI) is a serious injury and one that cannot be taken lightly. TBI is known to cause depression, memory loss, severe headaches, dizziness and fatigue  all injuries that come with both short- and long-term effects," VFW national commander William Schmitz said.

Speaking on Thursday, Esper sought to defend the president.

"He's very concerned about the health and welfare of all of our service members, particularly those that were involved in our operations in Iraq," he said.

Soleimani's assassination order 'troubled' US officials

An NBC report detailing the events surrounding Trump's order to assassinate General Soleimani said the measure "troubled" many current and former American military and intelligence officials.

"Gobsmacked," was the single-word reaction of a former CIA officer the NBC claimed had "spent a career" working against Gen. Soleimani.

The report said US officials feared that the decision, taken in presence of "a very small group of senior leaders", could set in motion "a full-scale war" that could greatly damage the world economy and get the US stuck in "yet another Middle East quagmire".

The report said US commanders in Iraq anticipated numerous different forms of attacks following the assassination, from Iranian suicide drone strikes to land attacks by Iraqi fighters.

Along with General Soleimani, top Iraqi commander Abu Mahdi al-Muhandis was also assassinated in the drone strike. He was the second-in-command of Iraq's anti-terrorist Popular Mobilization Units (PMU).

Many American politicians have decried Trump's assassination of Gen. Soleimani as a dangerous provocation which risks bogging the US down in yet another dangerous military conflict in the region.

On Thursday, the US House of Representatives passed two pieces of legislation aiming to contain Trump's war powers.

The US assassination of the Middle East's most prominent anti-terror commanders prompted tens of millions in Iraq, Iran, India, Pakistan and elsewhere to take to the streets and vent their anger at the United States.

Iranians turned out in numbers unmatched in its history to honor the charismatic commander and call for revenge.

NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address






The city of Portland on Friday agreed to pay $120,000 to settle a discrimination suit an African American couple filed against a police officer who pulled them over as they turned into the lot of a Popeyes fast-food restaurant in Northeast Portland and then left them stranded after breaking their ignition key.

Officer Christian Berge didnt cite the driver for any infraction or offense and left the couple at the scene with the disabled key. He also never wrote a police report, according to court documents.

Berge later told internal affairs investigators that he had suspected the driver had been drinking because he said he saw his blue El Camino drift twice into oncoming traffic on Northeast Ainsworth Street.

Attorneys for the couple said Berge never conducted a field sobriety test of the driver, and a Popeyes employee who had contact with the driver, Claudius Banks, and his wife, Daynelle Banks, told investigators he noticed no signs that the couple had been drinking.

Berge was not disciplined for the March 2015 stop or for failing to document the stop, but he resigned two years later when he was convicted of official misconduct for having sex on duty with a woman between August 2015 and May 2017. He had met the woman on another police call. Berge also relinquished his police certification in 2017.

The entire process was so stunningly irregular to call the officers motive more than highly questionable, Greg Kafoury, an attorney for the plaintiffs, said after a settlement was reached on the eve of a scheduled federal trial. It was basically a shakedown, frankly.

The officer didnt tell anybody he had broken the key until after the motorist called 911 four times from the parking lot of the restaurant, saying he was stranded after being stopped by a Portland officer who had left the scene.

The stop occurred about 2 a.m. March 21, 2015. Claudius Banks had gotten off of work for FedEx earlier that night and was pulled over as he was turning into the Popeyes restaurant at Northeast Ainsworth and Martin Luther King Jr. Boulevard.

In court statements, he and his then-wife, Daynelle Banks, said the officer approached and ordered, Get your black (expletive) out of the car. The couple stepped out. Without any explanation, Claudius Banks said, Berge searched his car, including looking inside the glove box. Before getting out, Berge jerked and twisted the key at least three times until it broke off in the ignition, Claudius Banks said in a statement.

Part of the key remained in the ignition, making it impossible to drive the car with another key until that fragment was removed, according to Claudius and Daynelle Banks.

Berge said he got in the car in order to secure it. He said he first placed the key in the ignition to close the windows but realized they were manually operated. Berge then said he accidentally broke the key after putting it in the drivers door to lock the vehicle. Berge denied searching the car.

His decision to ask plaintiffs to exit their car and prevent them from driving while intoxicated was appropriate. The brief duration of the stop, and Berges decision not to issue a citation or arrest either plaintiff, demonstrate that he did not treat them less favorably than similarly situated persons of a different race, Berges attorneys Karen OKasey and Andrew Weiner wrote in a trial memorandum.

Berge decided not to cite or arrest the motorist because he said he didnt have time or back-up support to process a drunken driving arrest. Instead, he said, he gave Banks a warning and allowed the two to walk home.

The night of the stop, Sgt. Robert Brown responded to the Popeyes in response to four 911 calls by Claudius Banks. The sergeant ended up giving Banks a ride to a location in St. Johns after Daynelle Banks already had called a cab.

Daynelle Banks was working for the citys Bureau of Environmental Services at the time of the police stop. She filed a tort claim with the city, seeking reimbursement for the cost of the tow and retrieval of their car and the cab ride she took home. The city in late December offered to pay $308.38 plus interest but that payment was never made.

The Portland Police Bureau conducted an internal affairs investigation into Berges handling of the stop and found no wrongdoing, although Berges account of how he broke the ignition key was inconsistent with the physical evidence and other statements, according to Kafoury and his paralegal David Hess, who represent Claudius and Daynelle Banks.

Attorneys for the city of Portland argued that the officer couldnt tell the color of the couples skin when he stopped their car and reasonably suspected that the driver was under the influence of intoxicants.

The settlement reached by attorneys likely will go before the City Council for final approval. City attorney Tracy Reeve declined to comment about the settlement Friday.

-- Maxine Bernstein

Email at mbernstein@oregonian.com

Follow on Twitter @maxoregonian

Visit subscription.oregonlive.com/newsletters to get Oregonian/OregonLive journalism delivered to your email inbox.

Subscribe to Facebook page
Adams Oshiomhole, the National Chairman of the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC), says Emeka Ihedioha of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) has no case.

Ihedioha who was the governorship candidate in the Imo governorship election had his victory upturned by the Supreme Court, while Hope Uzodinma of the ruling All Progressives Congress was declared winner.

Oshiomhole said this while taking questions from journalists on Friday at the Presidential Villa, Abuja, shortly after he presented Uzodinma as Imo State governor to President Muhammadu Buhari.

Read Also: Oshiomhole Wouldnt Have Been A Governor If PDP Did What APC Is Doing Today: Peter Obi

According to him, Ihedioha ought not to have been declared winner in the first place because he had those numbers only in nine LGAs when two-third of 27 LGAs is 15.

He said, INEC completely and irresponsibly misbehaved by using a professor who seems to be so senile that he didnt know that nine is not 2/3.

This is very serious. And because they take advantage of the fact that once they make pronouncements, even if the pronouncement is made by a lunatic in INEC, you cant reverse it.

You have to go to court. And it fits into PDPs fixation, rig and let them go to court. They just feel that it is their birthright to continue to rig elections.

The next time you see them talking, ask them how many local government did PDP score one quarter of the vote in the total vote cast in how many local government? That is not in the provision of the Electoral Act. That is in the expressive provision of the Nigerian Constitution.

For me, it shows that nobody is interrogating INEC and that is why they are getting away with blue murder. And this is minus the fact that INEC has not explained why they did not collate votes that were certified and signed by the presiding officers, appointed by INEC in each of the 388 polling units.

If there is something wrong with those votes, INEC is on record to having had course to cancelled unit votes where they are dissatisfied. Those votes were not cancelled. They just chose to ignore them.
At an event last year, Janhvi Kapoor casually mentioned to a stunned audience that she had temporarily given up non-vegetarian food as part of a mannat she took in the hope of getting a role. Kaafi sanskari ladki hoon main, mini skirt mein! the 22-year-old actor joked. But she wasnt really joking. The Bollywood-born daughter of the late superstar Sridevi and producer Boney Kapoor has been exploring spirituality and religion over the last year or so. It seems to bring her closer to her mother.

I identify with world values, but also with the aesthetics of an older generation. Kafi sanskari ladki hoon main, mini skirt mein!

Mom was always very, very religious, says Janhvi. And I think I have become much more religious since she passed away (Sridevi died on 24 February 2018). I somehow feel closer to her when I do things that were so much part of her.

This becomes obvious as we start the shoot. Although we were looking at a fun shoot with a young Gen Z kid, she is in no mood for that. Instead, as soon as the camera starts clicking, she channels her inner diva, reminding us of the ultra glamorous and super-sexy Sridevi of the glitzy film magazine covers, albeit probably unintentionally. It takes us a while to get her to loosen up and go back to being the spunky 22-year-old that she is.

Beyond the world of makeup rituals or style tips, Janhvi Kapoor has found a more profound connect with her late mother; Dress: Dolly J (The House of Pixels)

I am very childish as a person but I identify more with the world values and even aesthetics of an older generation, Jahnvi says. I have always thought that mentally, I was born in the 1970s or 1960s.

Mom was very religious but Im a bit paranoid about selling this side of me. I am spiritual but quietly so!

This dichotomy becomes more evident as the day progresses. While she is easily candid and often stunning with her maturity and poise, at times she abruptly clams up. She finds it awkward to open up about her spiritual side. I am very religious, but talking about it makes me a bit uncomfortable, she says. I am a bit paranoid about coming across as selling this side of me to promote something. I am spiritual, but quietly so.

Climb every mountain

Whenever Janhvi travels, she heads straight for religious structures. I love visiting churches and I think Ive visited every mosque in Istanbul, she says. There is such a strong energy in these places. People go there with so much hope, faith and conviction that the vibration of these places is very different. Thats what I love, not the religion the structure was built for, and which god is worshipped there. Having said that, I have a very strong emotional connect with Balaji, much like my mom.

The actor was spotted at the Tirumala Temple seeking blessings right before the release of her debut film Dhadak; Dress; Yousef Aljasmi (The House of Pixels)

On her mothers birthday last year, Janhvi visited the Tirupati Balaji Temple. I found out only recently that when she was working, she would climb up to Tirupati on her birthday every year. Once she got married and was busy with us, she stopped. So I decided that on her birthday I would climb to the top and pray for her.

Janhvi sought Balajis blessings at Tirumala Temple before the release of her debut film, Dhadak (2018). The first time I climbed up after we lost her, as the priests pulled open the curtain for the darshan, I started crying inconsolably. It was unlike anything I had experienced before, the actor reveals.

Darshan deserved

Since it is her way to connect with her mom, Janhvi is not willing to cut corners. Like her mother, she did the 3,550 step climb by foot.

I dont think Id ever be able to take a comfortable car ride to the temple. People stand in the queue for hours and days to reach. I know I cant be part of that queue, but it shouldnt be easy to get to the temple either. You have to earn the darshan, she smiles and adds: I know I might sound a bit phony right now, but the first few steps are really easy and exciting. It is after 200/300 steps that suddenly it becomes really tough. But then slowly you find a rhythm and the pain numbs and you keep going. Also, when you see people climbing on their knees, old people winding up the hill, people carrying babies on the climb, it puts things into perspective. It is actually a lot like life. You start off immature, then suddenly everything looks tough and then you eventually get the hang of it.

According to Janhvi, her religious side has never become a talking point among her friends. Dress; Mae Paris (The House of Pixels)

Janhvi has fallen in love with the journey. I found it such a therapeutic experience that now I want to go back every two months, she smiles. In fact, the actor recently dragged along the unsuspecting director of her forthcoming film, Gunjan Saxena: The Kargil Girl, on one such climb! I dont think he had ever visited a temple before, she giggles. The poor guy, his stamina is really low, but I made him climb all those steps. His face lost colour, his lips were chapped, I have a picture of him like that!

Learning curve

Though Janhvis spiritual streak has made her the odd one out among her friends, her religious side has never been a talking point. Now they know every Tuesday I go to Siddhivinyak, they know that if it is my birthday Ill be climbing to some temple or spending time in Banaras by myself, she says.

Since last one year, Janhvi has organically started to connect towards the spiritual side of her late mother

Her interest is more in spirituality than religion, though she finds religion fascinating too, thanks to an interest in history. Religion has often been used to divide people, whereas spirituality is about loving yourself and loving others, Janhvi says. Religion can be easily corrupted for political gains. I read a lot about Buddhism at one point and even read Oshos biography when I was a kid! I had heard him in an interview saying that he is a spiritual playboy. I was fascinated by the idea. However, mom was scandalised when she caught me reading that book!

Religion can be easily corrupted for political gains

Today, she thinks the spirituality of her childhood was an acquired spirituality. Now I am more responsible with my spirituality, she explains. For instance, I dont pray for trivial things or only for myself, but I pray for my entire family, says Janhvi.

Sweet blessings

That statement doesnt quite resonate with Janhvis mannat for a role, and she acknowledges that it does sound a bit crazy to hope to win an audition by promising to temporarily give up non-vegetarian food.

When you see your mom wash her face before going to bed every night, you start emulating her, and then it becomes part of your own before-sleep ritual

But for me it is a psychological thing, she laughs. I know nothing comes easily in life and I dont want to make things easy for myself. While taking a mannat does not mean putting myself through some big struggle, sometimes you need something extra. You can meet people, audition, work on yourself, but after a point I felt I needed something more, so I took a mannat.

Though she knows a mannat is not a shortcut to success or a substitute for hard work, in taking mannats Janhvi is following in her mothers footsteps. Mom was very religious and even superstitious about certain things. She would do a lot of pujas and mannats for us and for papas films. I grew up seeing all that, she says.

So, when Janhvi only enters a room with her right foot and avoids doing anything auspicious during rahu kalam, these are just habits she has acquired over time. It is like you see your mom wash her face before going to bed every night, and you start emulating her and then it becomes part of your own before-sleep ritual, she explains.

Janhvi is easily candid and often stuns with her maturity and poise (The House of Pixels)

While Janhvi always attended family pujas all her life, it was because attendance was compulsory, not because she was religious. Her connection to religion grew only after her mothers death. After last year, I very organically started to connect with this side of moms personality and it gave me a lot of comfort, she says. It makes me feel more connected with her when I pray.

(PS: Now that shes got the role she wanted, Janhvis back to non-veg food!)

Join the conversation using ##HerMothersDaughter

Follow @ananya1281 on Twitter

From HT Brunch, February 2, 2020

Follow us on twitter.com/HTBrunch

Connect with us on facebook.com/hindustantimesbrunch

SHARE THIS ARTICLE ON
NASA is Trying To Save Voyager 2 After a Power Glitch Shut Down Its Instruments MIT Technology Review

Australia fires: Residents told to seek shelter in Canberra region BBC

A new tidal energy project just hit a major milestone in Scotland We Forum (David L)

Green energy could now be cheaper than fossil fuels thanks to breakthrough New York Post (David L)

Coronavirus

China?

NEW: The arrested Harvard prof is tip of the iceberg. When the Texas A&M system investigated how much Chinese money its faculty was getting, officials were astoundedover 100 were involved in Chinese talent recruitment plans. Only 5 disclosed. https://t.co/Js50566lQt @aviswanatha  Kate OKeeffe (@Kate_OKeeffe) January 31, 2020

Brexit

Brexit happens BBC Its extraordinary. As if they had lost rather than won. As if they were grieving rather than celebrating. The UK is going through all this because it is what they wanted but, still, they are consumed by anger. https://t.co/UXIOrnVvtX  Chris Grey (@chrisgreybrexit) January 31, 2020 LibDems, its on you: Enabled Tory Govt to call EU Ref Enabled austerity  led to Leave vote Campaigned meekly in EU Ref Refused vote for soft Brexit options Refused temp Coalition Govt to hold soft Brexit/Remain Ref Refused to stand down in Con/Lab marginals  Matt Thomas  Stay In Labour (@Trickyjabs) February 1, 2020

Syraqistan

Big Brother Is Watching You Watch

Imperial Collapse Watch

The Foreign Influence Transparency Initiative Center for International Policy (Chuck L)

America Needs a Miracle Andrew Sullivan, New York Magazine. Resilc: Headed to revolution. Moi: Stuff like this makes me want to scream. Why have ethnic/tribal splits become so acute? Because everyone outside the elites is scrambling for pieces of a shrinking economic pie. Notice how the rise in tribalism coincides with the start of the neoliberal era? Thats a feature, not a bug.

Impeachment

Senate GOP passes resolution setting up end of Trump trial The Hill REALITY CHECK Anyone who thinks this GOP lawlessness is new needs to revisit the Bush era. Torture. Indefinite detention. War crimes. Droning babies. And guess what? Dem leaders voted with Bush, continued his policies when they took power, and rehabilitated his image.  Peter Daou (@peterdaou) February 1, 2020

2020

Our Famously Free Press

Uber Officially Bans Drivers From Carrying Firearms, But Companys Business Model Prevents Enforcement Atlantic

Lambert featured the tweet below yesterday in Water Cooler. This is the story by the same author: How Chaos at Chain Pharmacies Is Putting Patients at Risk New York Times

The American Psychiatric Association is particularly concerned about CVS, which it says ignores doctors explicit instructions to dispense limited amounts of medication to mental health patients. Patients may use the excess pills to attempt suicide, the association says.  Ellen Gabler (@egabler) January 31, 2020

Huawei Outsells Apple In 2019, Becomes No. 2 Global Smartphone Vendor arstechnica

EU Lawmakers Vote Overwhelmingly in Favor of Charging Cable Standard, Despite Apples Protestations MacRumors

Amazon Reveals New Details About Its Federal Tax Bill in Shot Across the Bow at Critics Geekwire. Not impressed.

Bayer considers new tactic in Roundup settlement talks Reuters

Preeminent Hospitals Penalized Over Rates Of Patients Injuries Kaiser Health News

S&P 500 wipes out gain for the year on coronavirus fear Financial Times

Godfather of technical analysis says stock-market downturn is going to get worse: I am looking at a 10% drop maybe a little bit more MarketWatch. Lead story.

Class Warfare

Antidote du jour. Furzy: My sons kitty in Berlin:

And a bonus, from Dan K. They look like they are having fun!

Sometimes, when the snow is deep, the ducks will give up on walking and scoot around on the snow like penguins pic.twitter.com/suSjPKE6Rc  Foxfeather Zenkova (@foxfeather) January 30, 2020

See yesterdays Links and Antidote du Jour here.:
Ginni Rometty, the longtime face of IBM and one of the countrys most prominent female business leaders, is stepping down as chief executive, the company said.

Rometty, who became chief executive in 2012, struggled to achieve growth at the technology giant as it made the transition to new fields like cloud computing and artificial intelligence.

She will be replaced in April by Arvind Krishna, who now runs the companys cloud computing business.

The timing of the departure of Rometty, 62, came as a surprise, made after the close of the market Thursday in a lengthy statement filled with praise from IBMs board. She will remain as executive chairwoman of the board until the end of the year.

Rometty was one of the top female executives in the corporate world, a frequent speaker at conferences, and liked and admired by her chief executive peers.

Her assessments of the challenges facing IBM, an old-line technology company making a difficult transition, were cleareyed and candid. In an interview in 2014, for example, she said the next couple of years would be a rocky time for IBM.

But the failure to reach the crossover point  when the growth of the new businesses like cloud computing, data analytics and artificial intelligence grew faster than older hardware, software and services business  frustrated Wall Street. During her tenure, IBMs stock price slipped at the time when the stock market in general rose sharply.

Shares in the company rose 5% Friday even though most of the markets tumbled.

Yet even Wall Street analysts who were often critical of IBMs performance during her leadership acknowledged that she had inherited key challenges. IBM, they note, was slow to adapt to cloud computing  computing tasks done on remote computers, owned by others. The leaders have been Amazon and Microsoft, and Google is pushing hard to capture that corporate business as well.

She came in at a particularly tough time, and that challenge was handed to her, said Toni Sacconaghi, an analyst at Bernstein Research.

In August 2019, IBM bought Red Hat, the largest distributor of the popular open-source operating system Linux, for $34 billion. At the time, many analysts said that the deal meant that Rometty would probably stay on until the end of this year. But her two predecessors, Samuel J. Palmisano and Louis V. Gerstner Jr., both retired at 60.

The acquisition of Red Hat seems to be going well, analysts said. James Whitehurst, chief executive of Red Hat, was named the president of IBM on Thursday.

Last week, IBM reported a slight increase in revenue. This positions us for sustained revenue growth in 2020, Rometty said at the time.

Other than Red Hat, IBM acquired 65 companies under Rometty, mostly small ones. And she sold off companies that accounted for $9 billion in yearly revenue, including semiconductor manufacturing and several lower-profit services and software businesses.

Its been her eight-year project to reposition the company, said Frank Gens, chief analyst of IDC, a technology research firm. And after the positive report last quarter, shes declared victory and retired.

At the time the announcement was made, Rometty was addressing IBMs top 300 managers at an annual company leadership conference in downtown Manhattan. She told the assembled executives about the change and shared the stage with Krishna and Whitehurst. The three received a lengthy standing ovation, said an IBM manager who attended but was not authorized to speak about the private event.

IBM said the transition was the culmination of a lengthy succession process that began more than a year ago, with Rometty collaborating closely with the rest of the IBM board.

Rometty was a computer science major at Northwestern University, where she was also a sorority president. But much of her nearly 40 years at IBM was spent in sales and building up IBMs big technology services business.

In tapping Krishna and Whitehurst, the company decided that the time had come for a seasoned technologist and an operating expert. Krishna, 57, had been senior vice president for IBMs cloud and cognitive software, which includes its Watson artificial intelligence technology.

Since he joined IBM in 1990, Krishna held a series of research and business management roles. He holds a doctorate in electrical engineering from the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign.

Arvind is the right CEO for the next era at IBM, Rometty said in the statement Thursday.

Whitehurst, 52, came to IBM with the acquisition of Red Hat, which he joined in 2007. Under his leadership, Red Hats revenue increased eightfold and its stock market valuation surged tenfold.

Before Red Hat, Whitehurst was chief operating officer of Delta Air Lines, leading it out of its bankruptcy restructuring. A former partner at the Boston Consulting Group, Whitehurst earned his undergraduate degree in economics and computer science from Rice University, and he holds an MBA from the Harvard Business School.

In recent years, IBM has not had a separate president. And given their ages and backgrounds, Krishna is seen as a transitional chief executive, with Whitehurst positioned to take over in a few years and perhaps become a longer-term leader, said Gens and Sacconaghi.

Only 33 women hold chief executive positions at Fortune 500 companies, according to Catalyst, a nonprofit organization that works closely with women chief executives in an effort to improve workplace conditions for women. That number is still only 7% of the total, but it has steadily risen over the past two decades.

We will have one less at the end of the year, but we now have a much broader pipeline, and hopefully, that number will continue to grow, said Catalysts president and chief executive, Lorraine Hariton.

Hariton said that Romettys departure should not be viewed as anything larger than a chief executive stepping down. We should just see it as normal to have succession. Period, she said.

Steve Lohr is a New York Times writer.
I will not ask why is it that we did not relocate the Beetham Waste Disposal (garbage) site 
Jan Maarten van Rooij (R) and his companion enjoyed Shen Yun Performing Arts at the Chasse Theater in Breda, The Netherlands, on Jan. 29, 2020. (Sherry Dong/The Epoch Times)

BREDA, The NetherlandsJan Maarten van Rooij is a conductor of wind orchestras and brass, wind, and percussion ensembles. Concerts are his bread and butter, but rarely has he seen a production as grand as that of Shen Yun Performing Arts at the Chasse Theater in Breda, The Netherlands, on Jan. 29, 2020.

Van Rooij attended the classical Chinese dance performance and was both surprised and impressed with the accompanying orchestra, which of course, he paid close attention to.

I am a music conductor. What I seeeverything is perfect, spot-on, with the movement the dancers with the music, van Rooij said, adding that it is rare to see such a large production nowadays, where the music is live. I like that very much, the integration of music, dance, and visual effects. I am very happy to be here; it is spot-onit is perfect.

Shen Yun Performing Arts curtain call at the Chasse Theater in Breda, The Netherlands, on Jan. 29, 2020. (The Epoch Times)

New York-based Shen Yuns mission is to revive the 5,000 years of Chinese culture and share it with the modern world through music and dance. Audience members often comment on Shen Yuns unique blend of old and new, bringing grand traditions to the forefront with an innovative touch.

One such unique facet of the performance is the orchestra itself, which places ancient Chinese instruments right in the middle of a classical orchestra.

The integration within the tradition of the Chinese music, the usage of instruments of the West, it is phenomenal, van Rooij said. The specific sound of the Chinese instruments are still in there and have a dominant role, that is what I can hear, but the Western instruments give somewhat of an assistance to the power of the sound and the richness. That is special as well.

A Shen Yun performance consists of 20 vignettes, and the classical Chinese dances and dance mini-dramas are all accompanied by original scores of Chinese melodies with Western orchestration.

The compositions, they are all in balance.  Jan Maarten van Rooij

The compositions, they are all in balance, van Rooij said, adding that not one bit of the composition is superfluous or lacking and that the score paired perfectly with what was happening on stage. How the instruments are used during the music parts within the songs, it feels natural.

If air floats or water is floating, you hear that in the music as well. Everything is in balance, he said. And also the usage of traditional instruments together, especially the woodwind instruments from the West, it is still in balance.

Hearing the Chinese woodwinds and the Chinese lute, pipa, gave van Rooij a touch of inspiration. He wasnt sure yet where he might find a wooden flute, but he was keen on adding one to his ensemble.

I have no idea yet, but it leads to inspiration, he said.

With reporting by Sherry Dong.

The Epoch Times considers Shen Yun Performing Arts the significant cultural event of our time and has covered audience reactions since the companys inception in 2006.
Source: Xinhua| 2020-02-01 14:22:18|Editor: huaxia

Video Player Close

CHENGDU, Feb. 1 (Xinhua) -- Thomas Deshors started his "drop-in" visits to a residential community in Chengdu, capital of southwest China's Sichuan Province Friday after spending the Christmas vacation in his hometown Correze, France.

Deshors, 26, is one of the international volunteers participating in the investigation into the epidemic situation in Tongzilin residential community, one of the most concentrated expat communities in Chengdu, with about 4,300 expats from more than 30 countries and regions.

Deshors has already mastered his work routine: first, ask the health condition of residents and take their temperature; then, ask them where they have been recently, especially if they have been to Wuhan, capital of central China's Hubei Province and also center of the novel coronavirus outbreak; last but not least, share with them knowledge about protection against the virus and learn about their troubles.

"I think a foreign face is more friendly to foreigners," Deshors said.

Actually, Deshors has been an entrepreneur in the catering service industry in the city for four years. He hopes to play his part to battle the epidemic.

The community lacks enough staff who can communicate with foreigners in English. Many foreigners living here have thus volunteered to help community workers.

Tongzilin International Community Center, a platform to provide service for international residents, was established in September 2018 and an international volunteer alliance under the center was also founded to enable the expats in the community to participate in the governance of the community, said Zhang Jiarong, Party chief of the community.

By the end of 2019, there were over 50 volunteers from different countries in the alliance. Deshors is among them. During the ongoing fight against the epidemic, the alliance called on the volunteers to lend a hand.

On Jan. 26, a post online attracted the attention of many foreigners in Chengdu. It read, "urgent need for anti-epidemic volunteers. In response to the recent epidemic development, the community is eager to recruit English-speaking volunteers to carry out anti-epidemic communication for foreign residents."

Ren Lijuan, a volunteer from Tongzilin Community International Volunteer Service Team who is in charge of the recruitment of volunteers, said about 160 people applied on the night when the online post was published, of whom nearly half were foreigners and many were new faces. On the afternoon of Jan. 27, the community started the drop-in visits.

"Before the visits, we conducted training for the selected Chinese and foreign volunteers and provided them with masks and disposable gloves. In particular, we emphasized that volunteers should first protect themselves and maintain a certain distance from the residents," Ren said.

From Jan. 27 to 29, the volunteers helped conduct the investigation covering most of the foreign residents in the community.

Mario Rodriguez, an Ecuadorian pilot with Sichuan Airlines, just returned to Chengdu from Harbin on Thursday with his wife and three children.

"Everything is good so far. We're taking precautions," said Rodriguez, adding that he and his family members stay at home and have enough food. Though it is difficult to buy masks, his friends and company are offering help.

Similar drop-in visits have been carried out recently in many communities with concentrated numbers of foreigners in the Chengdu high-tech zone and Jinjiang District. Community workers and volunteers have collected the foreigners' demand for masks, disinfectant and other necessities and are trying their best to help.

"We are all joining in, both Chinese or foreigners. I hope that while protecting their health, we can also bring warmth to these foreign friends," said Chen Lirong, director of the Tianhua community residents committee in the Chengdu high-tech zone.
Samsung is yet to announce its next Galaxy phone but the tech giant has already started taking pre-orders for the unannounced smartphone.

Once you register through the official website, Samsung will notify you when you can pre-order the next Galaxy. Given that only US carriers are listed, it is certain that the next Galaxy will debut in the US market first.

Samsung will host the Unpacked event on February 11, 2020. The company will introduce the Galaxy S20, along with the Galaxy Z Flip foldable smartphone, new Galaxy Buds, among other hardware and software announcements.

Click on Deccan Chronicle Technology and Science for the latest news and reviews. Follow us on Facebook, Twitter.
The ground-breaking research achievement by Duke-NUS makes Singapore the third country in the world outside China to culture the virus

Scientists from Duke-NUS Medical School (Duke-NUS), in close collaboration with clinicians and scientists from SingHealth Duke-NUS Academic Medical Centre, Singapore General Hospital (SGH), National Centre for Infectious Diseases (NCID) and Ministry of Health (MOH), have successfully cultured the coronavirus from an infected patients clinical sample.

This makes Singapore the third country in the world outside China to culture the virus, and the development will certainly aid efforts in diagnosis. This is a ground-breaking research achievement for the country, considering the first coronavirus case was confirmed only a week ago. The virus, cultured in a Singapore facility, will be used for developing new diagnostic methods, monitoring potential mutation and testing for potential vaccine and drugs.

Based on the latest reports, the Wuhan coronavirus has claimed at least 170 lives, with more than 7,000 cases confirmed in mainland China, as the coronavirus spreads across Asia and the rest of the world. Nearly 60 million people are under partial or full lockdown in Chinese cities. There are 91 confirmed cases outside of China, including 10 in Singapore. This calls for an urgent need to develop novel diagnostic techniques, vaccines and treatment strategies against this virus.

This is a crucial step forward for Singapore and neighbouring countries in response to the evolving coronavirus outbreak. We will continue our efforts and do our best to serve the nation, the region and the world in controlling this outbreak, said Professor Wang Linfa, Director of the Duke-NUS Emerging Infectious Diseases Programme, who is one of the most recognised international experts on emerging zoonotic viruses and is currently serving on multiple WHO committees on the coronavirus.

Our team has successfully cultured the coronavirus in Singapore within our own containment laboratory (ABSL3). This is highly significant as it will accelerate the assessment of trial vaccines effectiveness and lead to the development of early-diagnostic tests to detect the virus in asymptomatic patients, said Assistant Professor Danielle Anderson, Scientific Director of the Duke-NUS ABSL3 facility, who has been leading the work in the facility.

The ability to grow the virus not only allows us to accurately diagnose it but also to develop vaccines and cures. We are pleased that our collaborative effort has brought Singapore a step closer to finding a solution to a problem that is affecting many individuals worldwide, said Associate Professor Jenny Low, Senior Consultant, Department of Infectious Diseases, Singapore General Hospital.

With NCIDs role in infectious disease management and prevention, we have brought together scientists and researchers from Duke-NUS, NUS Department of Microbiology and Immunology, Lee Kong Chian School of Medicine, Defence Science & Technology Agency, Saw Swee Hock School of Public Health, Agency for Science, Technology and Research and

our public healthcare institutions to investigate this outbreak. One of the first outcomes of our collaborative efforts is the culture of the coronavirus. We are heartened by this breakthrough and hope it can contribute to better treatment of this new outbreak, said Associate Professor David Lye, NCIDs Director of the Infectious Disease Research and Training Office, which coordinates national outbreak research at NCID. This significant breakthrough exemplifies the strong collaborative culture we have with SingHealth, our Academic Medicine partner as well as the National Centre for Infectious Diseases and the Ministry of Health. It will continue to be important in providing insights on potential diagnostics and therapies for this coronavirus outbreak, commented Professor Patrick Casey, Senior Vice Dean of Research at Duke-NUS.
When it comes to fashion and more importantly, style, Vijay Deverakonda operates on a rather wide spectrum, trying outfits and styles that are at extreme opposites. This is actually quite a commendable thing, if you consider how easy it is to go awfully wrong at times and become a substantial fodder to internet trolls.





Surprisingly, Vijay somehow manages to pull off all his ensembles with a type of grace and panache that is very rare. This comes in spite of the varied experiments that he does with his style.



 Instagram/thedeverakonda

One of his more recent experimental looks actually caught our eye when he was spotted at the Mumbai Airport.



 Viral Bhayani

The Arjun Reddy actor was spotted in an ensemble that can be described quintessentially as Contemporary Hobo Street. Vijay was spotted wearing a basic white t-shirt, with light washed jeans and a pair of basic, flat white sneakers, and a beanie.



 Viral Bhayani

The ensemble, along with the manner in which he has had his beard and hair styled, strongly suggests that he is trying to go for a Hobo-esque aesthetic, which he actually manages to get just about right.



 Viral Bhayani

The Hobo Aesthetic is a kind of street style that is actually rather uncommon in India's streetwear scene. The aesthetic sensibilities are inspired by hobos and vagabonds from the 1950s and 1960s Americas. The aesthetic uses stuff like patchwork and pastiche quite extensively, on tough fabrics, like corduroy or denim.



 Viral Bhayani

Remember all those heavily distressed and torn shirts and sweaters our celebs have worn over the years? Well, they share their origins in hobo streetwear.



As for Vijay, he does look rather swell. The basic white t-shirt helps to accentuate his tall and lean built, by adding just the right amount of bulk at the right places. The denim jeans, along with the white flat sneakers also sit well with the ensemble. The patches on the jeans and the bleaching around them give them a very industrial appeal. The grey beanie as well, adds

 Viral Bhayani

With that being said, we think that had Vijay gone for a darker or heavier wash for the denims with lighter patches, the ensemble would have been even better. Yes, the light wash fabric works just right and Vijay does look rather swell, but the jeans, because of the patches, needs more contrast.



 Viral Bhayani

All things considered, this is actually a dope outfit, especially for the airport. And might we just add, the fact that our celebs are looking at other, non-conformist aesthetics for their style is actually a great thing. 2020 is going to be great for street style, it seems.
Source: Xinhua| 2020-02-01 08:39:48|Editor: huaxia

Video Player Close

A press conference on the prevention and control work of the novel coronavirus-caused pneumonia epidemic is held by the Information Office of Beijing Municipality in Beijing, capital of China, Jan. 31, 2020. (Xinhua/Ren Chao)

Beijing issued a public letter to foreigners in the city, offering a list of 101 hospitals for the treatment of fever and 20 hospitals designated for treating novel coronavirus infections.

BEIJING, Feb. 1 (Xinhua) -- A public letter was released to foreigners in the Chinese capital city Beijing on Friday, offering a list of 101 hospitals for the treatment of fever and 20 hospitals designated for treating novel coronavirus infections.

Beijing has also set up a hotline to provide information about the epidemic in eight foreign languages, according to the Foreign Affairs Office of Beijing Municipal People's Government.

People work at the Xiaotangshan Hospital which is under renovation in Beijing, capital of China, Jan. 30, 2020. Beijing has begun to renovate its hospital Xiaotangshan, formerly used to quarantine SARS patients, as a precaution in the face of the novel coronavirus outbreak, according to a press conference on Thursday. (Xinhua/Peng Ziyang)

Authorities have issued similar public letters to foreigners in China in a number of provinces and cities. These letters remind foreigners to enhance self-protection and avoid crowded places or group activities.

"I have noticed that China has issued public letters to foreigners, which is quite considerate," said Biggers Sauli, a Wuhan-based student from Malawi. "I believe that this is just a phase, and we can get through the difficulties." 
IndiGo announced on February 1 that it will suspend flights on Kolkata-Guangzhou route from February 6 to 25 due to the deadly novel coronavirus outbreak in China.

On January 2, the low-cost carrier had announced suspension of flights on Bengaluru-Hong Kong route from February 1 and on Delhi-Chengdu route from February 1 to 20.

"In line with the WHO guideline to contain the spread of coronavirus, IndiGo will be suspending its Kolkata-Guangzhou from February 6, 2020 until February 25, 2020 and Guangzhou-Kolkata from February 7, 2020 until February 26, 2020," the airline said in a statement on Saturday.

"These are purely temporary and precautionary measures. We understand that these measures will cause inconvenience to our customers and we will be refunding the full amount to the impacted passengers," the airline added.

Using its jumbo B747 plane, Air India on Saturday morning evacuated 324 Indians from Wuhan, which is the epicentre of the novel coronavirus outbreak. The national carrier sent a second special flight on Saturday afternoon to evacuate more Indians from Wuhan.
The World Health Organization (WHO) has urged governments around the world to prepare for local outbreaks of the coronavirus.

The February 1 announcement came as China raised the death toll in that country from the virus to 259. China reported 11,791 confirmed cases of the virus, making it worse than the 2002-03 outbreak of SARS, or Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome.

The WHO earlier in the week declared a global health emergency over the flu-like coronavirus. The organization has expressed concern that some cases outside China could involve human-to-human transmission of the virus.

"Countries need to get ready for possible importation in order to identify cases as early as possible and in order to be ready for domestic outbreak control, if that happens," the WHO representative in Beijing, Gauden Galea, told journalists.

In Geneva, WHO Secretary-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus said that, despite the health emergency declaration, there was "no reason for measures that unnecessarily interfere with international travel and trade."

On January 31, the United States barred entry to most foreigners who visited China in the last two weeks and introduced other screening measures. Australian Prime Minister Scott Morrison announced similar measures on February 1, following such announcements earlier by Japan, Italy, Mongolia, and Singapore.

The Chinese Foreign Ministry has criticized the U.S. travel ban as "unkind."

"Certainly it is not a gesture of goodwill," Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Hua Chunying said on February 1.

At least 25 countries have reported cases of infection by the virus, mainly involving people returning from China or who have had contact with such people. No deaths have been reported outside of China.

The Kremlin said on February 1 that Russia would fly out Russians on February 3 and 4 from areas of China most seriously affected by the virus.

Russia also announced on February 1 that it is suspending a tourist visa-free program with China.



An EU evacuation flight from Wuhan was scheduled for February 1.

U.S. tech giant Apple announced on February 1 that it would close all its stores in mainland China at least until February 9 because of the virus.

With reporting by AP, The New York Times, Reuters, and dpa
Goa Chief Minister Pramod Sawant on Saturday welcomed the Union Budget, terming it as "common man-centric".

"I congratulate Finance Minister Smt. @nsitharaman ji for a common man centric budget, and for taking ahead Prime Minister Shri @narendramodi ji's vision for a robust and vibrant India," he said in a tweet.

State Health Minister Vishwajit Rane also welcomed the budget.

Taking to Twitter, he said, "Congratulations to @nsitharaman ji for an outstanding launch of #Budget2020. Also would like to thank you for allocating IRS 3000 crore for skill development. Looking forward to reach newer heights under your able leadership."



Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman presented the Union Budget for 2020-21 in the Parliament on Saturday.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
Compared to the Rev Ian's Paisley's shenanigans in the European Parliament over the years, Nigel Farage's last hurrah in Brussels was a tame affair.

Brexit Party MEPs waved Union flags and shouted "Hip hip hooray!" as their leader delivered his final tirade against EU. "Please sit down, resume your seats, put your flags away. You're leaving and take them with you," parliament vice-president Mairead McGuinness told him as she turned off his mic.

Sitting right beside the Brexit Party contingent, DUP MEP Diane Dodds surprised some when she didn't join in. "I'm not into stunts," she says.

"I voted consistently for Brexit. I don't have anything to prove, but it's now a time for reflection. There are lots of different views out there and I wanted to convey that."

Expand Close Causing uproar: Rev Ian Paisley denounces Pope John Paul during his speech to the European Parliament in Strasbourg / Facebook

Twitter

Email

Whatsapp Causing uproar: Rev Ian Paisley denounces Pope John Paul during his speech to the European Parliament in Strasbourg

Her former party leader was less restrained in his 25-year European parliamentary career. In 1988, as Pope John Paul II began his address in Strasbourg, Paisley rose to his feet and roared that "the Antichrist" wasn't welcome. He waved a poster denouncing the pontiff as he shouted a quotation from a 16th century Protestant martyr.

Other MEPs wrenched the banner from him, and he was hauled out of the chamber while the Pope looked on with amusement.

But, despite the occasional fireworks, Paisley formed an unrivalled partnership in Brussels with Northern Ireland's next most famous MEP John Hume.

Expand Close Jim Nicholson Kelvin Boyes / Press Eye / Facebook

Twitter

Email

Whatsapp Jim Nicholson

Former Ulster Unionist MEP Jim Nicholson completed an influential trio. "As we huddled together in Brussels to discuss things, other MEPs would look on expecting a fight to break out. It never did," he recalls.

"John would sometimes exclaim 'My God!' or 'Oh Jesus!' and Ian would jokingly reprimand him for taking the Lord's name in vain, but that was the height of it."

They always put "Northern Ireland PLC" first, Nicholson says. "The constitutional issue didn't arise.

"This was mostly during direct rule. There was no Stormont executive. The three of us were the voice of Northern Ireland abroad.

"We worked together through awful times - the Shankill bomb, Greysteel and other atrocities. We had to learn a different style of politics in Europe.

"Our system at home was so combative. Over there, it was all about compromise. You realised you didn't always get your own way and you learned to make friends."

Nicholson says his proudest moment came when the trio met the then European Commission president Jacques Delors in 1994 after the IRA ceasefire.

"Delors said, 'What can I do for you gentlemen?' We said 'It's what you can do for the people of Northern Ireland. They need help from the bottom up'. Out of that meeting came the EU's Peace and Reconciliation Fund which has delivered over $2bn for Northern Ireland."

Expand Close Naomi Long Getty Images / Facebook

Twitter

Email

Whatsapp Naomi Long

Alliance leader Naomi Long wore suffragette colours - purple and green - as she delivered her final speech in Brussels on Wednesday.

"I wanted to mark how far Northern Ireland has travelled," she says. "I grew up watching three male MEPs representing us. We left the EU represented by three women."

Elected eight months ago, Long was just starting to find her way around the parliament. "I got lost loads of times," she laughs. "It's a vast and confusing place at first. I got locked in the Visitors' Centre one night. I had to take photos on my mobile phone and send them to my assistant to come and rescue me."

Long previously sat at Westminster as East Belfast MP. "The Brussels parliament had the feel of an airport terminal," she says.

"The House of Commons is very different. It's steeped in history. It's beautiful and atmospheric but the chamber is small and it can be very crowded.

"The European parliament was built for purpose. It's much more civilised and comfortable. You had your own seat and desk.

"I liked the u-shaped chamber compared to the oppositional Commons. Everything in Brussels was about being inclusive and securing a consensus, not just a majority. I will take that away with me and I hope we can do it at Stormont."

Long describes the parliament's Brexit co-ordinator Guy Verhofstadt as "a real character".

"If people think I talk a lot, they need to hear him. He wasn't always helpful in what he said but he did do battle for Northern Ireland".

The "most intriguing" MEP Long met was the Brexit Party's Claire Fox. She was "a left-winger in a right-wing party. I felt she was a person of genuine principle when so many of her colleagues were just there for the publicity and the ride.

"She genuinely engaged with the Remain argument. She was intellectually stimulating but politically frustrating for me."

Long describes the journey to Strasbourg - where the European parliament sat one week a month - as "a camel trek". It involved "numerous planes, trains and automobiles" and could take up to 12 hours.

Expand Close Michel Barnier and Diane Dodds AP / Facebook

Twitter

Email

Whatsapp Michel Barnier and Diane Dodds

DUP MEP Diane Dodds agrees and says the parliament should "be like every other one and sit in one place".

She accuses the EU of double standards: "It aims to become a zero carbon economy by 2050 but it adds significantly to its own carbon footprint by the travelling circus of moving from Brussels to Strasbourg once a month."

Being an MEP meant "a very transient lifestyle", Dodds says. She was first elected when her daughter Robyn was 11. "It was difficult for both of us. Sometimes I tried to come home mid-week but that wasn't always possible."

Like other MEPs, she lived for years in hotels - not apartments - in Brussels and Strasbourg. "I didn't mind. I'm a relaxed person. I don't fuss," she adds.

Having grown up on a farm, the highs of her MEP role was whenever the focus was on agriculture. The lows were the 2016 Brussels airport and metro station bombs which killed 35 people, and the 2018 Strasbourg Christmas market attack.

Dodds says: "After the airport bomb, Arlene Foster and Peter Robinson rang me to see if I was okay. I was in my office on the phone when I heard a thud.

"Another bomb had gone off at the metro nearby. I don't think Brussels has ever recovered its equilibrium.

"Two years later, I was sitting in a restaurant in Strasbourg with staff after visiting the Christmas market when suddenly police burst in, turned off the lights and ordered us away from the windows. A gunman had shot dead five people in the next street."

Expand Close Martina Anderson / Facebook

Twitter

Email

Whatsapp Martina Anderson

Like Dodds, Sinn Fein MEP Martina Anderson found the journey to Strasbourg taxing. "During Storm Brendan, it took me 36 hours and four flights to get there - from Belfast to Cardiff to Paris to Amsterdam to Strasbourg. It was a demanding job, and you had to be up for it," she says.

There were other challenges. "My mother Betty had Alzheimer's and we cared for her at home. Near the end, it was very difficult," Anderson says.

"Three times, she was at death's door. I got phone calls to come home and I thought I wouldn't make it. I was terrified she would die before I got to hold her one last time.

"My husband put the phone to her ear so I could talk to her. She pulled through twice. The third time, she didn't but I did make it home to be with her before she passed away."

Another "awful time" was in 2017 when Anderson was told Martin McGuinness had died. "I headed to the airport immediately. I was distraught. It was the worst journey of my life. I just wanted to be with him as he was brought home," she says.

"I was too upset to drive. A friend came to Dublin Airport to pick me up. I'm sure the speed limit was broken many times. As we came down the flyover we could see Martin's coffin coming to Free Derry Corner. I just got out of the car and ran to the cortege."

Anderson is most proud of "working so hard with the EU to get them to understand that the Good Friday Agreement had to be protected in all its part and of securing a protocol to the Withdrawal Agreement ensuring there will be no hardening of the border".

In her Brussels office, she had a photo of a Derry GAA team, Ballymena's coat of arms - a gift from a cross-community delegation - and portraits of 1916 leader Countess Markievicz and trade unionist Jim Larkin.

"I've taken them home with me but I've left my clothes and other bits and pieces with charities in Brussels for those in need," she says.

Expand Close Jim Allister / Facebook

Twitter

Email

Whatsapp Jim Allister

TUV leader and former barrister Jim Allister was a DUP MEP for five years. He found the travelling made the job "surprisingly more exhausting than being at the Bar even though it was much less intellectually demanding".

Living in a hotel four nights a week was a "big adjustment", he says, "although I'm not sure if it was a burden or a relief to my wife Ruth".

He adored Strasbourg. "It had a stunning historic centre on the River Ill, a beautiful cathedral and some nice parks. It was lovely in summer but very cold in winter," he says."Outside of Grand Place, there wasn't much to like in Brussels."

Allister says while he went to Brussels "a Eurosceptic and left an even stronger one as a result of what I saw", it was still "a great privilege to stand up and speak on behalf of my country and I took it seriously".

He felt the multiplicity of languages killed the parliament as a debating chamber.

"It was a stilted place. The interpreters are very skilled but there's still a natural lag between the spoken word and when you hear it in your ear," he says. "It ruled out the cut and thrust of debate.

"The other thing I struggled with was the restricted speaking time. Your mic was turned of if you went over two minutes. Saying what you wanted became an art."

Allister sat near Nigel Farage whom he came to know well. "He's a fantastic orator - he has it down to a tee. He was utterly fearless, I had a lot of time for him."

Expand Close Fond farewell: Nigel Farage in celebratory mood at the EU Parliament this week but Diane Dodds is more reserved Getty Images / Facebook

Twitter

Email

Whatsapp Fond farewell: Nigel Farage in celebratory mood at the EU Parliament this week but Diane Dodds is more reserved

So did the teetotal TUV leader socialise with Farage who is known for his love of a pint? "We had the occasional meal together. But no, I didn't 'go out on the tear' with him as you put it."

He was also impressed with Tanaiste Simon Coveney when he was an MEP and Fine Gael's Mairead McGuinness. They were "very knowledgeable" on agriculture and "made their mark".

He didn't rate Sinn Fein president Mary Lou McDonald. "She sat on the far side of the chamber with the communist brigade. She was in the early stages of her career. I never thought she was someone who would go far," he says.

"Her contributions were mediocre. She would now appear more capable than she came across then so maybe the European Parliament just wasn't her thing."

The TUV leader didn't warm to then EU Commissioner Lord Mandelson who was his "usual aloof self".

Allister's time as an MEP was dominated by the Lisbon Treaty which he had strenuously opposed.

"I stood up for British sovereignty but I was swimming against the tide.

"I saw Denmark, Holland and the Republic reject the Treaty but the EU wouldn't take no for an answer. Brussels bared its teeth and bludgeoned them into changing their minds.

"I was a dissident voice on the constitutional affairs committee against the encroaching bureaucracy. It's a role with which I'm entirely comfortable," he adds.

Expand Close Lord Kilclooney / Facebook

Twitter

Email

Whatsapp Lord Kilclooney

Lord John Kilclooney was a UUP MEP from 1979-89. He would often invite high-profile MEPs to Northern Ireland. Danish parliamentarian Kent Kirk, who invaded British fishing waters in his boat in 1983, came to meet the fishermen in Annalong, Kilkeel and Portavogie.

Kilclooney's most famous guest was Austrian MEP Otto von Habsburg, a devout Catholic who had helped eject Paisley from the parliament after he challenged the pope. "I took Otto to meet Cardinal O' Fiach in Armagh," Lord Kilclooney recalls.

"We arrived in an RUC car. O'Fiach came down the marble staircase totally overdressed in his full regalia.

"It was 10am and he said to Otto 'Will have you a wee one?' I said 'We'll just have coffee' and O'Fiach replied 'What kind of an Irishman are you?'"

As the UK bids au revoir to the EU, Northern Ireland's 47-year relationship with Brussels comes to a close. When politics at home was bitter, it was usually different over there. We will all surely miss the colour, the controversy and, most of all, the characters.
A big-hearted Banteer woman whose life has been saved by Beaumont Hospital's neurosurgical unit has organised a fundraiser as her effort to give something back to those who came to her rescue.

Sarah Weathers organised a table quiz in the White Country Inn in Banteer to be held on Friday (31st) to give her community, which has been very supportive up to now, the opportunity to show their support for the Beaumont Hospital unit and its lifesaving work.

She has already raised more than 2,000 on her GoFundMe page and here she gives an account of what the hospital means to her and why she would love to give something back to them.

"I have been a patient of this hospital for over the past two years as I was diagnosed with a rare disorder back in 2017.

"It causes benign tumours to grow on your central nervous system - your brain and spinal chord.

"In 2017 I had brain surgery to partially remove one of my brain tumours and in 2019 I had a shunt inserted to drain fluid from the brain. In September I spent a very scary three-week stay in Beaumont hospital fighting for my life.

"Really and truly I wouldn't be here today if it wasn't for the amazing staff and my wonderful team of doctors in Beaumont Hospital.

"Please give anything you can - it would be really very much appreciated," she said, pointing to the the fundraising page at https://www.gofundme.com/f/neurologist-section-beaumont-hospital

When she was originally diagnosed in April 2017, Sarah began treatment right in the middle of her Leaving Certificate studies and was awarded the Student of the Year title at Colaiste Treasa in Kanturk where she studied. She went to University of Limerick where she enrolled as a Business Studies student.

Last August she began to feel unwell again and when her mother, Mary, consulted the specialist she had to get an MRI scan and spent three weeks gravely ill in Beaumont Hospital. As her mother explained, as she recovered, she had to defer her return to UL and was disappointed that she wouldn't be able to resume her studies as she had planned.

However, she had a summer job at the pioneering Kanturk company, Waterpower, and the company's founder and managing director, Dan Twomey, said he would keep her on during her year out from UL.

"They really mind her there," said Mary. "She has a great group of cousins and friends who have been really supportive.

"They never left her behind and rallied around her - if they were going to Killarney or Mallow, they would call to see would she come along.

"Sarah's a trooper, she's the strongest and most amazing young woman that I know, she's been offered all sorts of counselling but has never felt the need of the service as she would class her cousins and friends as her counsellors."

Her family and extended family members have been there for her throughout this journey and their support has meant the world to Sarah.

Mary also paid tribute to the local community in Banteer who have really been of great support to Sarah and the family. She couldn't thank Beaumont Neurosurgical Unit enough for what they did for her daughter.

"This is Sarah doing a small bit in return - this is Sarah's way to give back".

"She came up with the idea herself and contacted the hospital and they're delighted and have sent balloons and t-shirts and the likes."

Sarah and family would like to thank the donors and sponsors thus far for their amazingly kind support of this event.
CLEVELAND HEIGHTS, Ohio -- Robert Koonce, a Cleveland Heights resident, has been tabbed to serve as chief development officer for the new Boys & Girls Clubs of Northeast Ohio, the organization created last year by the merger of Clubs in Cleveland, Akron, Lorain County and Erie County.

Robert Koonce (Photo Courtesy of David Liam Kyle)

Since 2015, Koonce, 41, has headed development for Boys & Girls Clubs of Cleveland. Koonces new duties will have him overseeing fundraising, development operations and communications for the new BGCNEO, which serves 7,667 youngsters at 39 locations in the region.

The Boys & Girls Clubs provide safe, fun, after-school places for youths ages 6-18, focusing on healthy lifestyles, academic success and character.

When asked why he has found his work with Boys & Girls Clubs rewarding, Koonce said, BGCNEO is rewarding because we help families raise children to be productive, responsible and caring adults -- and in many cases our work saves lives.

His goal for 2020 is to increase the number of young people involved with BGCNEO to more than 8,200.

Koonce, who brings more than 13 years of nonprofit fundraising experience to his new position, was born and raised in Cleveland Heights. He left the city for a nine-year period and returned in 2010. He and wife of 18 years, Davina, are the parents of four children, ages 8, 10, 14 and 16.

Of his home city, Koonce said, I also serve the Cleveland Heights community as an active member of Communion of Saints Parish, as board member of Lake Erie Ink and as board president of Home Repair Resource Center.

Koonce earned an undergraduate degree in Classics from Case Western Reserve University and a masters degree in theology from St. Josephs College in Maine. His past development work has been for University Hospitals, Western Reserve Land Conservancy and the Cleveland Museum of Natural History.

While with the Boys & Girls Clubs, Koonce has helped build a development program that enabled the organization to expand to 14 clubs, serving 900 young people per day.

Robert has done an outstanding job of building strong relationships with our donors and connecting them to our mission, BGCNEO interim president and CEO Ron Soeder said in a release.

Read more from the Sun Press.
Curious just how far your dollar goes in Eldridge?

According to Walk Score, this Houston neighborhood requires a car for most errands, has minimal bike infrastructure and has some transit options. Data from rental site Zumper shows that the median rent for a one bedroom in Eldridge is currently hovering around $945.

So, what might you expect to find if you don't want to spend more than $1,100/month on rent? Read on for a roundup of the latest rental offerings, via Zumper and Apartment Guide. (Note: Prices and availability are subject to change.)

Hoodline offers data-driven analysis of local happenings and trends across cities. Links included in this article may earn Hoodline a commission on clicks and transactions.

1910 Westmead Drive



First up, there's a two-bedroom, two-bathroom apartment located at 1910 Westmead Drive. It's listed for $1,009/month for its 920 square feet.

When it comes to building amenities, anticipate a swimming pool and assigned parking. In the unit, the listing promises a dishwasher and a balcony. If you've got a pet, you'll be happy to learn that cats and dogs are permitted. Be prepared for a $400 pet deposit.

(See the complete listing here.)

1520 Enclave Parkway

Next, here's a 933-square-foot two-bedroom, one-bathroom apartment at 1520 Enclave Parkway that's going for $1,010/month.

The apartment offers a fireplace, a walk-in closet and a dishwasher. The building has on-site laundry and secured entry. For those with furry friends in tow, know that cats and dogs are welcome on this property. Expect a $500 pet deposit.

(Take a look at the full listing here.)

2255 Eldridge Parkway

Then check out this 810-square-foot one-bedroom, one-bathroom apartment that's located at 2255 Eldridge Parkway. It's listed for $1,033/month.

When it comes to building amenities, expect garage parking and secured entry. The unit also comes with a fireplace, hardwood flooring, a dishwasher and a walk-in closet. Pet owners, take heed: Cats and dogs are welcome. Be prepared for a $350 nonrefundable pet fee.

(Check out the complete listing here.)

13101 Briar Forest

Finally, here's a 977-square-foot two-bedroom, two-bathroom apartment at 13101 Briar Forest that's going for $1,080/month.

Building amenities include secured entry, assigned parking and on-site laundry. The apartment also comes with a dishwasher and hardwood flooring. Pet owners, take heed: Cats and dogs are welcome. Expect a $400 pet deposit.

(Take a look at the full listing here.)

This story was created automatically using local real estate data from Zumper and Apartment Guide, then reviewed by an editor. Click here for more about what we're doing. Additionally, get free local real estate marketing ideas and tools for agents, brokers and more.

Got thoughts? Go here to share your feedback.
The United States Department of State has invited Geoffrey Onyeama, minister of foreign affairs and an interagency, delegation to Washi...





The United States Department of State has invited Geoffrey Onyeama, minister of foreign affairs and an interagency, delegation to Washington DC to discuss trade, security and good governance.





The invitation was made public less than 24 hours after the Donald Trump-led administration placed an immigrant visa ban on Nigeria.





According to the media note shared by the US Department of State, on February 3-4, the Department of State has the pleasure of receiving Nigerian Foreign Minister Geoffrey Onyeama and his interagency delegation from the Federal Republic of Nigeria to Washington, D.C., for the 2020 U.S.-Nigeria Binational Commission.





The theme of this years BNC is Innovation and Ingenuity, which reflects the entrepreneurial, inventive, and industrious spirit shared by the Nigerian and American people, the note read.

Established ten years ago, the Binational Commission is the premiere platform of engagement between Governments of the United States and Nigeria to expand cooperation and advance shared goals.





Our delegations will discuss areas of strategic collaboration toward measurable progress, particularly in the areas of trade and investment, development, good governance, and security cooperation.





Chad Wolf, acting secretary of the department of homeland security, had said the new immigration restrictions are designed to address security concerns in the way the banned countries track their own citizens, share information with the U.S. and cooperate on immigration matters.





Before the visa ban, President Trump and President Muhammadu Buhari have met in the US to discuss issues surrounding the situation in Nigeria and agricultural trade between both countries.





Other countries affected by the visa ban are Eritrea, Sudan, Tanzania, Kyrgyzstan, and Myanmar.




A Philadelphia police officer was arrested and charged Friday with falsely claiming a suspect attacked and injured him when video evidence shows that he hurt himself falling on a sidewalk, the District Attorneys Office said.

Keith White, 35, who was assigned to the 25th Police District in North Philadelphia, was charged with tampering with records, unsworn falsification, false reports to law enforcement authorities with intent to implicate another person, and official oppression. White, who has been with the department for 13 years, was suspended with intent to dismiss by Acting Police Commissioner Christine M. Coulter.

White allegedly claimed that a suspect he was arresting on April 13, 2018, for selling drugs had struck him in the mouth, causing damage to his teeth and bleeding.

Prosecutors said that surveillance video showed that White, who was then assigned to the East Detective Division, was running after the suspect when he stumbled and hit his face on the sidewalk.

Video footage further showed that the [suspect] was lying on the ground and did not physically resist when Officer White handcuffed him, the District Attorneys Office said in a news release Friday.

The suspect was originally charged with aggravated assault and related offenses. After reviewing the video evidence, prosecutors withdrew the charges two weeks later, on April 30, 2018.

None of us, including those who wear a badge or are installed in the highest offices of government, are above the law, District Attorney Larry Krasner said in a statement.

When the system has integrity, and is able to earn the trust of the public  including members of the public who might have reason to fear government  then we are all safer, Krasner said.

A spokesperson for the police union declined to comment on the case.
The Delhi High Court will hold a special hearing on Sunday afternoon to decide a petition by the government that sought the execution of at least two of the four men convicted for the rape and murder of the 23-year-old paramedic. Solicitor General Tushar Mehta, who had appeared for the government, told the judges that the convicts were trying the patience of the country by their delaying tactics.

This gang rape case will go down in history of India where convicts of heinous crime are trying patience of country, Mehta, who is the Centres second most-senior law officer told the court.

Justice Suresh Kait also issued notice to the Tihar jail chief after the lawyer representing the prison authorities told the court that he would need to seek instructions.

Mehta was critical of the conduct of the convicts, who he said, had taken the legal process for a joyride.

The government had petitioned the high court against the Delhi courts order on Friday freezing the black warrant issued for the four men sentenced to death for the rape and murder a 23-year-old paramedic in 2012.

The four convicts  Mukesh Singh (32), Pawan Kumar Gupta (25), Akshay Thakur (31) and Vinay Sharma (26) - were sentenced to death by a fast-track court within a year of the 2012 rape and murder of the woman. But it took years for the appeals process to complete in the superior courts.

Mehta, who wants the high court to direct the trial judge to issue a fresh black warrant, said two convicts - Mukesh Singh and Vinay Sharma - should be executed since they had exhausted their legal options.

But the Tihar Prison manual requires that the four - who were sentenced to death by a single verdict - be hanged together and bars hanging them one by one.

Solicitor General Mehta cited the 2014 verdict of the Supreme Court where the judge had spoken about the dehumanising effect of long delays in hanging death row convicts. He said a person facing the death penalty should be executed immediately because otherwise it will have a dehumanising effect on him.

That observation by the Supreme Court was in the context of petitions by death row convicts whose mercy petitions were rejected by the government after keeping them waiting for years, in some cases, upto a decade.

In the same judgment, the top court had also laid down guidelines for dealing with mercy petitions, commuted death sentence of convicts to life because the government took too long to decide their petitions and introduced checks to ensure that the government did not carry out secret executions.

In the December 2012 case, there are four death row convicts, and they have chosen to file their various petitions in a phased manner -- every petition by a convict is filed only after the one filed by another is rejected -- causing a delay in the process.
Though cliched, not all heroes wear capes is the perfect phrase that describes an incident where a woman climbed down a well to rescue a dog stuck inside. A video of the incident was also shared on Twitter. And, she is now experiencing an outpour of love on social media due to her selfless act.

In the video, the woman climbs down the well with the help of a rope. When she reaches the bottom, she ties another rope around the dog. Instantly, people standing outside pulls up the dog. The four-legged creature quickly runs away after being rescued. Eventually, they pull the woman up too.

Take a look at the video:

Bless the lady who saved the Dog  pic.twitter.com/UfguvHBnAG  Mauna (@ugtunga) January 31, 2020

Since being shared just a day back, the video has managed to capture peoples attention. Till now, it has received over 15,000 views and the numbers are increasing.

People dropped all sorts of comments on the video with most appreciating the womans gesture. For me, she is a hero, wrote a Twitter user. Respect, commented another. Brave and kind lady, exclaimed a third.

A few days back, a police officer from Uttar Pradesh became a hero for the same reason. Risking his life, the brave man climbed into a snake-infested well to rescue puppies.
If wet conditions and milder temperatures persist, the Driftless Region is on track to have another spring of flooding, according to the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers.

Heavy rainfalls from this fall, frost and heavy snowfalls are contributing to the historic groundwater levels and Mississippi River flow levels, surmounting the previously record high from 1993.

The conditions are those typically seen in late spring, according to the Corps of Engineers, which warns that much of the Upper Mississippi region is on the path to major spring flooding, given the right future conditions.

It could start early, with the potential for rare winter flooding in cities along the Mississippi and its tributaries starting from Winona all the way to Guttenberg, Iowa, a roughly 100-mile stretch.

If the region sees a lot of rainfall this spring, or the snow melts too quickly  especially in the northern areas near the Mississippi River  it would be the perfect formula for floods.

But the National Weather Service says that its still too early to tell whether those conditions will reveal themselves in the next coming months, or exactly how powerful they might be.

Ultimately, it comes down to what are the precipitation trends we will see, said John Wetenkamp, a service hydrologist with the National Weather Service in La Crosse, adding that a first spring flood outlook will be released on Feb, 13, giving more concrete predictions for flooding and its severity.

Reports from the NWS indicate a roughly 96% chance of at least minor flooding in Winona.

Ice dams in particular are impacting the potential for flooding, blocking the Mississippi Rivers normal flow and sending water over the banks.

Ice dams form when irregular temperatures cause ice to accumulate in unstable ways. Because of these, and their eventual melting, the Army Corps of Engineers will have difficulties actively monitoring the river water levels.

So what is the best-case scenario? Little rain and a perfect thaw.

We really dodged a bullet in our area last year, Wetenkamp said, saying the minimal rain and gradual temperature increase saved the region from drastic floods last spring.

Communities should still be on alert, regardless of the uncertainty, said Patrick Moes, the public affairs official with the Army Corps of Engineers.

Ive been with the Corps here in St. Paul for 10 years, and Ive never sent out a news release in January, Moes said of the uncharacteristic early flood warning. Its definitely shaping up to be something that people in the region need to be more aware of.

The Corps urges community members to begin working with local officials so they can be prepared and can ask for help sooner if flooding conditions arise.

Addressing national disasters happens first at local levels, Moes said, and then moves up the ladder, going through counties, then states, and finally federal assistance. The sooner local help can be executed and exhausted, the sooner more help can come.

What you dont want is to just wait, said Dan Fasching, the water manager for the Upper Mississippi River with the Corps. All I can say now is that this year seems to be unique.

Communities are already beginning to prepare for the potential flooding.

The city of La Crosse has already began pumping excess water in the area, according to officials, who say theyre following the citys normal checklist, but have a heightened sense of concern because of the wetter conditions.

Right now its all about probability and potential. Theres no forecast that floods are coming, said Bernie Lenz, the utility manager for the city of La Crosse.

The fact that the river is so high right now is another concern, he added. To be this high this early is pretty unheard of.

But with flooding becoming more common in the area, cities are struggling to come up with long-term solutions.

Flooding in the Driftless Region has been setting and breaking records consistently in recent years, and some communities are still playing catch-up and beginning to fall behind on repairs and preparation.

On La Crosses North Side, homeowners have been pumping water out of their yards during flood season for years. But this winter has been different.

A time when they are usually pump-free, they have now been pumping continuously through the winter months, some say even since April.

It wasnt unusual to have a pump run for a short time, but there were always breaks, said Barb Janssen, Common Council representative for District 3. She said residents in her district have been running at least one pump, sometimes two, to remove excess water in their yards. Problems like mold and collapsing walls are persisting, and the water isnt going anywhere.

All of your life is being impacted, she said. We havent seen any signs that this water level, the tables, are coming down.

Janssen said the pressure is on the city to come up with new solutions, and this springs impending threat of more floods will put even more on.

That should be enough to give everybody a push to come up with a long-term mitigation plan, she said. This is not the time to be kicking the can down the road.

Residents who experience flooding or fear they might should reach out to their city officials and planning department to map out their options in the event of flooding.

Its a team effort; we need everyone to be vigilant, Moes said. The river this year is unforgiving.

Ultimately, (flood risk) comes down to what are the precipitation trends we will see. John Wetenkamp, service hydrologist with the National Weather Service in La Crosse

Love 0 Funny 0 Wow 1 Sad 0 Angry 1

Get local news delivered to your inbox! Subscribe to our Daily Headlines newsletter. Sign up! * I understand and agree that registration on or use of this site constitutes agreement to its user agreement and privacy policy.
SHAMOKIN  A Shamokin area man has been accused of practicing law without a license and collecting money from people who sought his advice.

William Marshall, 79, of Coal Twp., was charged Thursday with the unauthorized practice of law.

He is accused of advertising legal services through social media and collecting fees ranging from $40 and $220.

Facebook evidence obtained through a search warrant indicates he made contact with citizens after observing their names in crime news.

He would meet those who expressed interest in retaining him mostly at his home or a fast-food restaurant, the charges state.

Much of the advice he gave clients was inaccurate, county Detective Degg H. Stark said.

He allegedly told one client he was not an attorney in Pennsylvania but was licensed in Maryland and California. There is no record of Marshall being licensed in either state, Stark said.

Marshall also is alleged to have had a fraudulent American Bar Association card containing his name and photograph.

He has not been arraigned but will be sent a summons to appear for a preliminary hearing.

--

Recent John Beauge stories in PennLive

Weather has slowed cleanup at site of massive I-80 pileup in Union County

Charges against five men accused of sexually assaulting a Pa. woman headed to court

Amicable settlement reported in suit over rare, uncirculated Lincoln pennies

Appeal court affirms sentence of inmate who threatened to kill Trump

Philadelphia area men get jail terms for hitting a man with a car and shooting at him

Unwed Pa. teacher fired for being pregnant loses second bid to get her job back

Former owners of Lycoming County motel owe feds $1.18M, government says
Budget 2020: Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman said that the Modi government is aiming to double the income of farmers by 2022. The minister said that the government is proposing a 16-point action plan to boost agriculture and farmers welfare. The agriculture market, FM Sitharaman said, needs to be liberalised and farming needs to be made more competitive. She said that the government will handhold farmers for all farm-based activities and ensure sustainable cropping patterns.

The minister said that agriculture service needs copious investments. She added that the government has insured 6.11 crore farmers under the Pradhan Mantri Fasal Bima Yojana.

To help the farmers, the government has proposed comprehensive measures for 100 water-stressed districts. Twenty lakh farmers will be provided funds to set up standalone solar pumps. "Farmers will be allowed to set up solar units on barren/fallow lands," she said.

FULL COVERAGE: Union Budget 2020

The government will encourage state governments who implement Model Agricultural Land Leasing Act of 2016, Model Agricultural Produce and Livestock Marketing Act of 2017 and Model Agricultural Produce and Livestock Contract Farming and Services Promotion and Facilitation Act of 2018 laws.

The minister further said that balanced use of fertiliser will bring about change in the prevailing regime of providing incentive for use of chemical fertiliser. "Government proposes plans to help farmers use proper manure and little water, encourage balanced use of fertilizers," she said in her Budget 2020 speech.

Also read: Budget 2020 Speech Live Updates: Budget will boost people's income, enhance purchasing power, says Nirmala Sitharaman

The Finance Minister further added that FCI and Warehousing Corporation of India would build warehousing facility on the land of farmers. NABARD would map and geo-tab 162 million tonne capacity agricultural warehouses across the country.

"Krishi Udaan to be launched by Civil Aviation Ministry to transport agri-products to national as well international destinations. Indian Railways to set up Kisan Rail in PPP mode for cold supply chain to transport perishable goods," stated the minister.

The minister said that the three key points for the Budget 2020 are - aspirational India, economic development for all and making a caring society.

Also read: Budget 2020 Date: When is Union Budget, Expectations from Modi govt, Time, where to watch

Also read: Budget 2020: Watch Live Streaming on Aaj Tak, India Today, live telecast channels
The judicial commission conducting inquiry into the 2018 Koregaon-Bhima caste violence has been given a two-month extension and salaries of its staff have been released, the Maharashtra government said on Saturday.

The commission, comprising former Calcutta high court chief justice J N Patel and IAS officer Sumit Mullick, had written to the government saying it was facing a funds crunch.

"The commission has been given an extension of two months. The finance department has released honorarium of commission members and thesalaries of staff," state home minister Anil Deshmukh said.

The term of the commission was to end on February 8.

According to an official statement, the commission has been given five extensions so far.

The commission had written to the state Chief Secretary on Friday saying that the government had not paid salaries of its staff for the last two months.

"The circumstances indicate that the government is not serious about the commission. The commission is unable to function for want of money even for day-to-day expenses," it had said, adding that the government should rather wind up the panel in such a situation.

Violence broke out near the Koregaon-Bhima war memorial in Pune district on January 1, 2018, during the bicentennial celebration of the 1818 battle between the British East India Company and the Peshwa of Pune.

Dalits commemorate the victory of the East India Company's forces, which included soldiers from the Mahar community, over the army of the Brahmin Peshwa.

Pune Police had claimed that inflammatory statements made a day earlier at Elgar Parishad conclave, allegedly backed by Maoists, led to the violence near the memorial.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
Prime Minister Narendra Modi hailed the decades first Union budget as one that will boost jobs and financially empowering common people, a day after he said that the Economic Survey, presented on Friday, outlined a strategy to make India a $5 trillion economy.

In a televised statement after Union finance minister Nirmala Sitharaman presented the budget in Lok Sabha on Saturday, Modi said that the budget has both vision and action and the unleashed reforms will ensure speed to the economy, empower every citizen financially, and strengthen the foundations of the economy of this decade.

He dubbed it a Jan Jan ka Budget, or a budget for every person. Modis emphasis on jobs -- he outlined the underlying employment opportunities in several of the budget announcements -- comes at a time when political opponents have slammed the National Democratic Alliance (NDA) government for rising unemployment. In 2019, a report of the National Sample Survey Office (NSSO) had stated that Indias unemployment rate hit a 45-year high of 6.1% in 2017-18, triggering widespread criticism of the governments handling of the economy. The government, however, maintains that the numbers in this survey are not strictly comparable with previous surveys.

The PM pointed out in his address on Saturday that four sectors that are major sources of jobs  agriculture, infrastructure, textiles and technology  have got special emphasis and attention in the budget.

He also linked the tax concessions given to start-ups and real estate firms with more job opportunities for young people. He said that investments will see creation of jobs, and the economy will gain momentum through historic steps taken to bring investments.

The PM spoke at length about personal income tax, maintaining that the countrys tax system has started a new journey towards trust from the old days of dispute. We have decided to decriminalise the lapses which are of a civil nature in our company laws. We will also clearly put in place the rights of a taxpayer through the taxpayers charter, the PM said.

In her budget speech, Sitharaman laid emphasis on trusting citizens, including current and future taxpayers. She linked the taxpayers charter with Modis vision of an improved goal of Ease of Living in India.

Modi maintained that the decision to remove dividend distribution tax (DDT) will leave ~25,000 in the hands of the companies which will be used for fresh investments. He was hopeful that the measures in the budget would lead to more investment because tax concessions have been given for foreign entities as well.

The PM spoke about measures proposed for farmers with the aim of doubling their incomes. The 16 action points envisaged by the government will help in boosting jobs in the rural sector. While integrated approach in agriculture will add value to horticulture, fisheries and animal husbandry, youth will get new opportunities in fish processing and marketing under the blue economy, he said.

Modi also said that the governments flagship health scheme Ayushman Bharat has been expanded and it would lead to jobs, manufacturing, and improvement in expertise and services. The human resource of this sector  doctors, nurses, attendants, and also manufacturing of medical devices -- will see a lot of scope.

He pointed out that even in areas of technology, the government has tried to boost employment. He listed new smart cities, electronic manufacturing, data centre parks, biotechnology and quantum technology as areas where many policy initiatives have been taken.

This is help us making India as an integral part of the global value chain, said Modi. Giving a long list of schemes and highlights of the budget, the Prime Minister said: I am confident that this budget will boost income and investment. It will also boost demand and consumption and give new momentum to financial system and credit flow.

Opposition parties, however, were unimpressed. Overall, this budget is lacklustre, and will not get the economy back on track, said Telugu Desam Party MP Jayadev Galla. The Trinamools Derek OBrien maintained that the budget has reduced the economic crisis to a disaster and Indian economy has shifted from ICU to ventilator.

In a series of tweets, Congress chief spokesperson Randeep Singh Surjewala slammed the budget. He tweeted that the BJP, which believes in two-nation theory, has introdcued two tax systems to divide the taxpayers. This is nothing but a puzzle for the salaried class. They will have to give more tax than the old system.

SHARE THIS ARTICLE ON
Drastic drop in Chinese arrivals; tourism industry beefs up health measures View(s):

From 1,300 Chinese nationals arriving in the country to a mere 100, a sharp drop in daily arrivals is presently recorded, according to Immigration Controller General Pasan Ratnayake.

He said daily about 800-1300 Chinese nationals arrived in the country as tourists, businessmen, students and workers. But since January 28, the rate has fallen to about 90 to 100.

He said instructions would be sent today to institutions and workplaces which employ Chinese nationals to keep them indoors and limit their exposure to public.

Mahesh Priyadarshana, Head of Sri Lanka Institute of National Tourist Guide Lecturers, said tour guides were being stigmatised as they worked with Chinese tourists.

We are pressured by both Western tourists and locals when we take Chinese or East Asian tourists on tours. They are not invited to places or shops. Even our tour guides take a weeks break after a tour before going to their respective homes, he said, calling on the authorities to strengthen the screening process.

According to Sri Lanka Tourism Development Authority, last year 167,863 Chinese tourists visited Sri Lanka and 265,965 in 2018. Sri Lanka receives Chinese tourists both by air and sea.

M. Shanthi Kumar, President of City Hotels Association, said there was a slight drop in overall tourist occupancy within cities.

The Chinese tourists arrivals have come down, following the Governments travel restriction. We are doing our best to keep tourists from other countries. We are taking adequate measures such as wearing masks, subjecting visitors to thermal screening and training the staff on health and hygiene, he said.

Sumedha Wickremanayake of the Airport Tourist Drivers Association said they were experiencing about 25 percent drop in tourist arrivals.

If more coronavirus cases are reported, then it will have a large impact on the tourism industry. Our association has 140 tourist transport vehicles and our drivers are advised to wear masks, carry sanitisers and tissues, and to be hygiene conscious. If any tourist shows flu symptoms, our drivers will immediately take them to the nearest hospital, he said.
Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas threatened to sever relations with Israel and the US because of a deal of the century during a meeting of the Arab League in Cairo, Al-Arabiya reported.

According to Abbas, he told Israel and the US that there will be no relations with them, including security relations because of the deal of the century proposed by US President Donald Trump, which was adopted taking into account the interests of Israel.

The Palestinian leader added he refused to answer Trump's calls and messages, as he knows that he uses this to say that he consulted with me.
The district administration on Friday thwarted an attempt of a group of people from taking out an anti-Citizenship (Amendment) Act march here.

The protesters, led by Aligarh mayor Mohammad Furqan, tried to take out a procession from Shamshad Market to the collectorate complex but police blocked their passage.

Speaking to mediapersons, Furqan said, "We were exercising our democratic right to protest but police did not allow us to reach the Collectorate."



Meanwhile, Aligarh Muslim University officials said there was a "marked improvement" in attendance in all faculties on Friday.

The varsity was closed early for winter vacations from December 16 last year, a day after students clashed with police during a protest against the contentious Citizenship (Amendment) Act (CAA) on campus.

The university was to reopen on January 6 but the vacation was extended owing to persisting tension over the changes in the citizenship law.

Students have been boycotting classes seeking the withdrawal of "false cases" against those who took part in protests against the CAA on December 15.

AMU Vice Chancellor Professor Tariq Mansoor has sanctioned a grant of Rs 1,50,000 each to two students who were seriously injured in the police action on December 15 last year, AMU spokesman Omar Peerzada said.

This decision was taken on the recommendation of a committee which had been constituted to decide compensation for the injured students, he said.

The vice chancellor also constituted a seven-member committee to look into FIRs lodged against AMU students during the anti-CAA protests which began in the campus from December 13. The committee is headed by Professor Najam Khalique of Department of Community Medicine, Peerzada said.

A senior university official said one of the demands of the protesting students was to give a permanent employment in the teaching staff to a student who had lost his hand in the December 15 violence.

"We have already decided to give an ad-hoc appointment. There is a procedure for making permanent appointments and we have paved the way for this appointment which would be done under the category of physically handicapped applicants," he said.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
Green was removed from his vehicle and appeared to be under the influence of a substance, police said. Green was handcuffed with his wrists behind his back and eventually placed in the front passenger seat of Owens cruiser. A short time later, police said, Owen fired seven shots at Green, for reasons they have yet to explain.
Australia has confirmed its 11th and 12th cases of coronavirus late Saturday afternoon local time. It marks the first two cases seen in the state of South Australia after a couple tested positive for the virus.

The two unidentified individuals, a man and a woman, are both aged 60 and both recently returned from Wuhan, the epicenter of the outbreak.

Authorities said the couple contacted authorities after they suspected they were sick. They also took precautions to self-isolate, and are now in preparation to be admitted to a hospital.

News Corp. also reported that another person who had come into contact with the couple has been tested for coronavirus and results are pending. The person has also put themselves in isolation.

Earlier Saturday afternoon, Australians were warned to avoid travel to China as Prime Minister Scott Morrison announced that travelers who have left or passed through China will be denied entry.

The exception will be for Australian citizens, permanent residents, and their immediate family members. However, all travelers among this group will be required to self-isolate for 14 days.

If you come from mainland China any time from Feb. 1, then you will be required to self-isolate for a period of 14 days, Morrison said. For anyone other than Australian citizens, Australian residents, dependents, legal guardians, or spouses, then you will not be permitted entry into Australia.

The warning to avoid travel to China comes from Australias Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade (DFAT), which has raised its travel advice to Australian to level 4, which is do not travel, for the whole of mainland China.

Similar measures were announced by the United States on Friday, as its advisory status was also raised to a level 4 warningthe highest alert possible of do not travel to China.

Earlier in the day, Australias flag carrier Qantas announced that it will suspend its two direct services to mainland China (Sydney-Beijing and Sydney-Shanghai) Feb. 9 to March 29.

A growing number of countries are closing their borders or announcing travel restrictions with China. The deadly coronavirus has spread to 23 countries outside of China, with at least 132 confirmed cases.
In a bid to improve students' focus on education, a women's college in Maharashtra's Aurangabad city has banned the use of mobile phones inside its campus.

The move comes at a time when mobile phones have become an indelible part of everyday living, where youngsters are glued to social media.

Speaking to PTI, Principal of Dr Rafiq Zakaria Women's College, Dr Maqdoom Farooqui said, "We were searching for measures to enhance the process of learning and we found that students could concentrate better when they are not allowed to carry their cellphones to classrooms."



With more than 3,000 students, the women's college offers undergraduate and postgraduate courses.

The ban, which was imposed 15 days ago, has not only helped students focus better in classrooms, but also improved their interaction with their peers, Dr Farooqui said.

Although students are not allowed to carry their own phones on campus, a couple of handsets are kept in the reading room for emergencies, he added.

"Initially, the decision was taken as a punishment for overuse of cellphones, but now students and staff are cooperating in the effort to enhance the learning and teaching process," the principal claimed.

Students, who travel to the college from far away places, have to deposit their phones once they enter the campus and collect them on their way home, he added.

Head of the Political Science department Prof Dr T A Paithankar said, "Initially, we also found the decision to be restrictive, but now studentsare concentrating on their studies and I am sure that this will reflect in their exam results."



A student on the condition of anonymity said, "We are getting to know the world around us, as now have plenty of time to read newspapers and magazines in the library.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
: Captains of various sectors of industry on Saturday welcomed the Union budget and provided suggestions to the Finance Minister Nirmala Seetharaman.

President of Tirupur Exporters' Association Raja M Shanmugham termed the budget as a people-oriented one.

Appreciating the focus on agriculture and farmers welfare, wellness and education and skills, Shanmugham, in a statement, said the measures announced in the budget would help overall development of economy.

He said the allocation of Rs 100 lakh crore for investment in infrastructure would lead to cut in logistics cost.

"As of now, poor logistics is one of the hindrance factors for attaining the export competitiveness by our units," he said.

Welcoming the proposal of setting up a National Technical Textile mission at an outlay of Rs 1,480 crore, he said it would boost the manufacturing of technical textiles in the country, he said.

The fund allocation for the Amended Textile Upgradation fund was only Rs 761.90 crore when the pending claims to the industry is to the tune of Rs 8,500 crores, he said and added that this would not attract the industry to go for modernisation.

Shanmugham expressed hope the government would consider and address the issue.

Convenor (economic affairs and taxation panel), Coimbatore Zone CII G Karthikeyan said the budget was presented with a recessionary phase in the background and hoped that there would be some big ticket reforms and tax cuts.

It is a welcome move that all-round allocations made in health care, renewable energy, education, technology- related advancements would not only benefit society at large but also help in pushing aggregate demand.

"We need to wait and see whether these will suffice in ...spurring growth," Karhikeyan said.

A long standing demand of increasing deposit insurance of banks has been met with the limit per deposit increasing from Rs 1 lakh to Rs 5 lakhs, he said.

It is a good move to see that start-up ESOPs (employee stock ownership plan) have been tax-deferred and it remains to be seen whether these measures would push demand, consumption, and private investment and help the economy turn around, he said.

Head (treasury) of Lakshmi Vilas Bank R K Gurumurthy said tinkering with the personal tax and some structural changes in the way DDT (dividend distribution tax) would work are cosmetic benefits that the small and medium investor will like.

The worry is that there was no specific mention of bank recapitalisation, which when read with RBIs Financial Stability Report that NPLs (non-performing loans) could still haunt banks, could raise concern and cripple the ability of banks to lend, he said.

Gross and net borrowings are marginally higher. Market may be able to absorb the incremental borrowing without much impact, he said adding that overall, it was a compact budget.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
The UNSC voted to approve a resolution on extending the operation of the UN Peacekeeping Force in Cyprus (UNFICYP) until July 31.

The council also heard from a report on the operation of the UN Support Mission in Libya (UNSMIL).

Ambassador Pham Hai Anh, deputy head of the Vietnam mission to the UN, hailed the efforts of the UN, regional organisations and relevant countries in promoting peace in Libya, especially the adoption of a joint declaration at the Berlin conference, which aims to call for an end to the current intervention in the Libyan situation and to promote political solutions led by Libyan people.

He also stressed the importance of ensuring political solutions led by Libyan people and called for parties in Libya to exercise restraint while making efforts to reach a long-term ceasefire agreement.

The diplomat said Vietnam supports a resolution of the UNSC to back the implementation of the decided outcomes that were made at the international conference in Berlin, Germany, on January 19.

Vietnam also highly appreciates the role and contributions of the UNSMIL, he added.
Prime Minister Nguyen Xuan Phuc has stated that Vietnam is willing to coordinate efforts with China in fighting the new coronavirus epidemic.

Prime Minister Nguyen Xuan Phuc

The Vietnamese government has decided to donate China with US$500,000 worth of medical supplies to help the Chinese government and people deal with the spread of the fatal coronavirus, local media reported.

The Vietnam Red Cross will give US$100,000 aid in form of goods to Chinese people.

In addition, seven provinces in North Vietnam, especially those having borders with China, will offer help to China.

Prime Minister Nguyen Xuan Phuc said in a January 27 diplomatic note that Vietnam is willing to actively coordinate efforts with China in fighting the new coronavirus epidemic.

In the note sent to his Chinese counterpart Li Keqiang, PM Phuc expressed his sympathy for the losses and hardship that Chinese people were experiencing and hoped that with its vast experience in curbing the Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome (SARS) epidemic in 2003, China will soon successfully stop the new coronavirus.

Death toll by the nCoV in China has risen to 213 while the virus has sickened other 9,812 as of January 31. More than other 20 countries and territories have confirmed 148 cases of individuals infected with the virus. Hanoitimes

Minh An
Anti-government protesters in Chile gathered in Santiago to protest against the government on Friday.

Police deployed a water cannon truck as they attempted to disperse demonstrators on the streets of the capital.

A student protest over a modest increase in subway fares on October 18 has turned into a much larger and broader movement with a long list of demands that largely have to do with the wide gap between the rich and ordinary Chileans.

Residents have called for reforms to health care, education, the pension system and even the constitution, which dates back to 1980 and the military dictatorship.

At least 27 people have been killed since the protests began.
As efforts intensify to save the 1921 Woolworth Building, the head of the World Monuments Fund met with Alamo officials Friday to express her concerns about the possibility that the historic site might be demolished as part of the $450 million makeover of Alamo Plaza.

Its in a good condition, and its obviously important for the people here, said Benedicte Montlaur, CEO of the fund, which named Woolworth to its 2020 World Monuments Watch list of endangered sites in October. If you want to demolish it, you should have a very, very strong rationale to do that.

The Woolworth Building housed one of seven local lunch counters that peacefully desegregated amid civil rights unrest nationwide in 1960.

The building, which now houses a tourist attraction, was purchased by the state and could be razed to make room for a more open plaza and a new museum. Advocates want the museum to incorporate the Woolworth facade; project planners say that might not be possible.

On ExpressNews.com: Woolworth Building makes global list of endangered sites

Save Woolworth has become a major rallying cry for civil rights activists and preservationists.

After her meeting with the officials, Montlaur said she doesnt understand why project planners cant commit to incorporating the buildings east and north facades into the design of a new modern Alamo museum.

The Conservation Society of San Antonio, which has taken a lead in the Woolworth preservation efforts, nominated the Woolworth Building as an endangered site.

The World Monuments Fund, a New York-based nonprofit founded in 1965, chose it as one of 25 from a list of more than 250 global nominees. Others chosen included the Notre Dame cathedral in Paris.

The idea that the redevelopment of one historic site could come at the expense of another worries the society, Montlaur said.

We thought that was really an interesting question, because its all about having several layers of history, and not choosing one layer over another, Montlaur said.

For their part, officials of the Alamo project say theyre committed to including the story of African-American civil rights in the new museum.

They just wont promise the Woolworth Building will be standing when the makeover is complete four years from now.

Including existing buildings into a new building type is difficult, City Councilman Roberto Trevino cautioned. Is it impossible? No, but we have to also be very, very realistic about what were able to do.

On ExpressNews.com: Event marks desegregation milestone, sparks Save Woolworth debate

Trevino, whos part of a six-member management committee guiding the project, said the panel soon will review an engineering report and a document detailing the buildings role in the civil rights movement, which the group and design architects will use to determine the structures fate.

We absolutely respect the history that happened in the Woolworth Building, and feel that the best way to honor history is to tell it factually, Trevino said.

Some have suggested a Woolworth demolition could expose original west wall footings of the mission and fort.

But former city archaeologist Kay Hindes has said any such architectural features would have been destroyed during construction of the Woolworth basement.

Any below-ground remnants of the west wall that still exist likely would be south of the Crockett Building or just north of the Woolworth site, underneath Houston Street, Hindes said.

In 2018, the 26-member Alamo Citizen Advisory Committee passed a resolution supporting a study of potential reuse of the state-owned Woolworth, Palace and Crockett buildings into the design. But the Conservation Society, while allowing for demolition of the heavily altered 1923 Palace Building, has said its prepared to mount a legal battle to save Woolworth.

Even before assuming the role of the societys president last summer, Patti Zaiontz shot back at a reporters question in May, saying members were willing to lie down in front of bulldozers, as they have in other preservation fights in the past, to protect the Woolworth and 1882 Crockett Building.

Weve done it before and well do it again, Zaiontz, then the societys first vice president, told reporters at a news conference.

She said Friday that the 96-year-old preservation group would rather find common ground on the Alamo project, but must remain vigilant and stay to the course until the Woolworths future is secured.

If they need to take down the inside and keep the facades, well, so be it. You still have what is the Woolworth Building, which is a site, she said. And it could incorporate what once was the lunch counter into the museum.

On ExpressNews.com: Historic events collide at site of Woolworth Building

One development that Montlaur and Trevino both viewed positively is last months announcement of a new civil rights institute to open as early as June 2021 at the historic Kress Building, about two blocks west of the Alamo at 315 E. Houston St. That building also had one of the lunch counters that desegregated in 1960, briefly putting San Antonio in a national news spotlight.

Trevino said the new institute, overseen by Trinity University professor and history department chairman Carey Latimore, will inform the history that is told at the Alamo museum and out in the plaza.

Latimore has prepared a report for the Alamo project on the civil rights history of the Woolworth Building. He said the new institute, though independent of the Alamo, could empower an awesome opportunity at the Alamo museum to connect the sacrifices of the fallen Alamo battle defenders to a long struggle for freedom that led to progress for people of color.

I mean, just think about that. Where else can you get that? Its in a mecca of inclusion and diversity, which is San Antonio, Latimore said.

Zaiontz is concerned that the institute at the Kress Building, operating under a 10-year lease with private developer GrayStreet Partners, will not have the permanence of the Alamo museum. But she agreed with the goal touted by Trevino and Latimore to tell all sides of history at the museum.

As part of its two-day Woolworth Watch Day observance, the society will hold a symposium on the role of Alamo Plaza in Bexar Countys civil rights legacy from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. today in the Double-Height Courtroom of the Bexar County Courthouse.

Although seating is limited, the group will provide a livestream through the news and events tab of its website, saconservation.org, and the Bexar County Commissioners Court livestream link.

Scott Huddleston covers Bexar County government and the Alamo for the San Antonio Express-News. Read him on our free site, mySA.com, and on our subscriber site, ExpressNews.com. | shuddleston@express-news.net | Twitter: @shuddlestonSA
Griffith defied danger and went to a tense Sligo in early April 1922. Civil war was imminent. He carried in his pocket "a last message" in case he died there.

That message was opened after his death in August 1922. It read: "Let the people stand firm for the Free State. It is their national need and economic salvation. Love to the Irish people, to all my colleagues and friends."

Griffith had signed the Anglo-Irish Treaty agreement in 1921. With the Irish state today preparing to celebrate its centenary in 2022, it is time for his leading role in its creation to be fully recognised. That's what I do in my new book.

Griffith's relationships with Maud Gonne, W.B. Yeats, James Connolly, Eamon de Valera and James Joyce were complex and vital.

As acting-president of the first Dail. and as president of Dail Eireann when civil war erupted, Arthur Griffith was central to the creation of the present Irish state. He was, as Michael Collins is said to have called him, "father of us all".

After the Civil War erupted in 1922 he collapsed and died. Some said he died of a broken heart, although his doctor diagnosed a cerebral haemorrhage.

An unsigned note in the National Library states that, "Shortly after the start of the Civil War workmen were delayed in getting into his office as he was seated at his desk with his hands to his face. On arranging his desk for removal, one of the workmen discovered the blotting pad was quite wet with his tears."

He was also the most influential advanced nationalist journalist of the early twentieth century in Ireland.

Between 1899 and 1919 Griffith edited five titles. James Joyce said that Griffith's United Irishman was "the only paper in Dublin worth reading" and he used to read it regularly.

Griffith married late, due partly to his poverty. He was nearly forty by the time he wed Mary Sheehan, although he always addressed her as Molly. For reasons that are unclear, she was known in public as Maud. She later called him sadly "a fool giving his all, others having the benefit".

No single political party today can claim his legacy exclusively.

Maud Gonne and other women found him supportive of their efforts to organize for women's rights, but his views on racial issues were very much of his time. He struggled to overcome contemporary anti-Semitism, leaving behind his earlier prejudice.

Griffith dedicated his life to improving the social and political conditions of his people. He saw poverty all around him, and its effects on people's health.

He was committed to building up Irish business. His annual Sinn Fein Yearbook was full of data helpful to economic planning. Those yearbooks and other initiatives, including Griffith's experiment in banking and his Aonach industry fair held annually from 1908 until 1914, serve as useful reminders that advanced nationalism was about more than bare politics.

Not until Sean Lemass and T.K. Whitaker launched their first programme for economic expansion in 1958 was there again such an imaginative and optimistic effort to envisage Ireland's material and social future as that developed by Arthur Griffith, except perhaps that of Griffith's socialist friend James Connolly.

Griffith's journalism is full of demographic, financial, and other statistics. That he frequently presented cogent evidence-based arguments in support of his contention that Ireland was inequitably treated by Britain, both socially and economically, is not always clearly recognised.

Griffith wrote that, "Politics or no politics we must have the facts, and the better and more widely these facts are known, the sooner we shall get rid of talking and theorizing, and get down to work to lift the country out of its present beggarly condition."

The Enigma of Arthur Griffith: "Father of Us All", by Colum Kenny, is published by Merrion Press at 19.95. Dr Colum Kenny is professor emeritus at DCU, and a journalist and author.
Workers are seen near Qantas Airways, Australia's national carrier, Boeing 737-800 aircraft on the tarmac at Adelaide Airport

HONG KONG (Reuters) - Qantas Airways <QAN.AX> and Air New Zealand <AIR.NZ> said on Saturday they were suspending direct flights from their countries to mainland China in response to travel restrictions imposed in the wake of the coronavirus crisis.

The Australian national carrier's direct flights from Sydney to Beijing and Sydney to Shanghai will be halted from Feb. 9 until March 29, it said in a statement published Saturday.

Air New Zealand said its Auckland to Shanghai service would be paused during the same time as the Qantas flights.

Qantas said flights from Australia to Hong Kong would not be impacted by the change, it said, as it also warned the February 9 date would be reviewed and could be brought forward depending on demand from customers.

The decision was made after Singapore and the United States on Friday announced toughened measures to enter their countries for people who had recently travelled through mainland China, Qantas added.

"These entry restrictions pose significant logistical challenges for rostering crew to operate mainland services, leading to the need to temporarily suspend these flights," the airline said.

Air New Zealand Chief Operational Integrity and Standards Officer Captain David Morgan said the decision was made as a result of the travel restrictions and a decline in forward bookings for the next two months.

Qantas had previously flagged its Sydney to Beijing route, which was flown five days a week, would end on February 23 but that date will now brought forward to February 9.

The two airlines join an increasing number of international airlines which are cancelling or severely reducing the number of flights to mainland China as a result of coronavirus.

American Airlines on Friday announced cancellations to Beijing and Shanghai starting immediately and running through March 27, though it will continue to fly to Hong Kong.

United and Deltas last flights out of mainland China will be Feb. 5, with cancellations running through March 28 and April 30 respectively.

Story continues

The decision of the American carriers followed moves by Air France KLM SA, British Airways, Germanys Lufthansa and Virgin Atlantic to halt flights.

Nearly 10,000 flights have been suspended since the outbreak of the coronavirus in China, according to travel and data analytics firm Cirium.

(Reporting by Scott Murdoch; Editing by Lincoln Feast.)
[January 31, 2020] MOLSON COORS INVESTIGATION INITIATED by Former Louisiana Attorney General: Kahn Swick & Foti, LLC Investigates the Officers and Directors of Molson Coors Brewing Company - TAP

Former Attorney General of Louisiana, Charles C. Foti, Jr., Esq., a partner at the law firm of Kahn Swick & Foti, LLC ("KSF"), announces that KSF has commenced an investigation into Molson Coors Brewing Company (NYSE: TAP). On February 12, 2019, before the market opened, Molson Coors announced that its "previously issued consolidated financial statements as of and for the years ended December 31, 2017 and December 31, 2016 should be restated and no longer be relied upon" due to errors regarding the acquisition of its remaining interest in MillerCoors, LLC in 4Q16, and that such restatements would "increase its deferred tax liabilities and deferred tax expenses by $399.1 million, with a corresponding decrease in net income and earnings per share." Thereafter, the Company and certain of its executives were sued in a securities class action lawsuit, charging them with failing to disclose material information during the Class Period, violating federal securities laws, which remains ongoing. KSF's investigation is focusing on whether Molson Coors' officers and/or directors reached their fiduciary duties to Molson Coors shareholders or otherwise violated state or federal laws.



If you have information that would assist KSF in its investigation, or have been a long-term holder of Molson Coors shares and would like to discuss your legal rights, you may, without obligation or cost to you, call toll-free at 1-877-515-1850 or email KSF Managing Partner Lewis Kahn ([email protected]), or visit https://www.ksfcounsel.com/cases/nyse-tap/ to learn more. About Kahn Swick & Foti, LLC

KSF, whose partners include former Louisiana Attorney General Charles C. Foti, Jr., is one of the nation's premier boutique securities litigation law firms. KSF serves a variety of clients - including public institutional investors, hedge funds, money managers and retail investors - in seeking recoveries for investment losses emanating from corporate fraud or malfeasance by publicly traded companies. KSF has offices in New York, California and Louisiana. To learn more about KSF, you may visit www.ksfcounsel.com. View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20200131005598/en/

[ Back To TMCnet.com's Homepage ]
Union Minister of Finance Nirmala Sitharaman, who'll present Budget today, has left finance ministry carrying the Union Budget 2020-21 in 'bahi khata' (red cloth-wrapped ledger). Last year too, she carried the Budget document in a similar 'bahi khata', breaking away from the years-long tradition of carrying a briefcase. She, along with her ministry colleagues, will meet President Ram Nath Kovind, and attend a Cabinet meeting before the Budget speech.

While presenting her first Budget, Sitharaman grabbed the eyeballs when she dropped the traditional leather briefcase for a traditional bahi-khata. It created quite a stir on social media. However, the Finance Minister revealed at an India Today event that she didn't even know what a 'bahi-khata' was but wanted to get over the colonial hangover and felt that the Budget was a sacred document.

Also read: Budget 2020: Watch Live Streaming on Aaj Tak, India Today, live telecast channels

Traditionally Budget documents including the minister's speech copy, finance bill and some other papers have always been carried in a brown briefcase. It has been a legacy passed on by the British.

The minister also said that the briefcase had Elizabeth II Regina's initials etched on it. "It no longer holds any ground in India, so why keep carrying a briefcase," minister had said.

Meanwhile, as Sitharaman presents Modi 2.0's second Budget today, India faces a severe economic crisis, and the country's GDP has declined to a six-year low of 4.5 per cent (Q2 of 2019-20). Consumer sentiment is at an all-time low and all pillars of the economy are in the red. Experts believe it'll be a huge task for the Finance Minister to strike a balance between a "fiscally prudent" Budget and a Budget for the masses. While some say Union Budget 2020 could reflect PM Modi's vision for making India a $5 trillion dollar economy, others believe it'll be focused around common people, rural sector, salaried class and businesses.

Also read: Budget 2020: Date, timings, where to watch, expectations from Modi govt's most challenging Budget
Study meets ESSAs standards for Tier 1 Strong Evidence, the highest level of efficacy evidence outlined by federal law

BOSTON, Jan. 30, 2020 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- According to the 2019 NAEP Report Card, approximately two out of three students complete middle school without being able to read proficiently. However, the results of a recent study evaluating the Lexia PowerUp Literacy adaptive blended learning program, an intervention for non-proficient and struggling readers in grades 6-12, showed that PowerUp was up to five times more effective at promoting reading gains than the average middle school reading intervention. The experimental study met ESSAs standards for Strong Evidencethe highest tier of efficacy evidence outlined by federal law.

This is the first randomized controlled study completed for PowerUp, meeting the strongest level of evidence requirements under ESSA. This well-designed study adds to our growing body of research supporting PowerUp as an effective evidence-based intervention, said Lexia Chief Learning Officer, Dr. Liz Brooke.

Developed to address the decades-long gap in reading proficiency across the nation, Lexia PowerUp Literacy is designed to enhance core English language arts instruction for struggling readers in grades 6-12. Blending personalized online student-driven instruction with offline teacher-delivered lessons and activities, the program accelerates the development of both fundamental literacy skills and higher-order thinking skills through adaptive learning paths.

The study took place at a suburban, Title 1 district just outside Detroit, Michigan with an enrollment of about 5,000 students in grades K-12. The sample included 155 students in grades 6-8 who were enrolled in Tier 2 supplemental reading classes.



One hundred and five students were randomly assigned to a treatment group that used PowerUp in supplemental reading classes from January 2019 through the end of the school year. On average, they used the online component of PowerUp for 55 minutes per week for 17 weeks. Fifty students were assigned to a control group that used the classes usual intervention curriculum throughout the year. After comparing pre- and post-treatment scores, the researchers found students who used PowerUp outperformed the control group on both the STAR Reading (STAR) computer-adaptive assessment in grades 6-8, and Michigans end-of-year state assessment, M-STEP, in sixth grade.



I would definitely recommend PowerUp as an intervention. I have worked as a school turnaround administrator for 10 years, and the results from this pilot were better than the results from other interventions I have been associated with in that period of time, said Dave Rice, assistant superintendent at Roseville Community Schools, where the study took place. Educators realize there is no magic product that creates significant growth for students who may need intervention. But PowerUp is easy for students to use and understand, and allows teachers to quickly identify essential skills that students may be lacking in, and makes resources available to address those gaps.



While fall scores on STAR for the two groups were similar, PowerUp students scored about 40 points higher (equivalent to approximately 10 percentile points) than the usual curriculum students on the spring assessment. Similarly, the sixth-grade PowerUp group scored on average more than 20 percentile points higher than the control group on M-STEP. The data showed PowerUp had an equal impact on students of all backgrounds, yielding similar results for special education and general education students as well as for white students and students of color. Ultimately, researchers found PowerUps impact on standardized test scores was up to five times greater than the average reading intervention in the United States, based on metrics reported in a U.S. Department of Education review.



Although the treatment group used PowerUp for only half the school year, these students demonstrated significantly higher scores on multiple assessments than control students using the traditional curriculum, said Brooke. We believe that the effects we saw will only increase when students are able to engage with PowerUp over a full school year.



# # #



About Lexia Learning

Lexia Learning, a Rosetta Stone company, empowers educators through adaptive assessment and personalized instruction. For more than 30 years, the company has been on the leading edge of research and product development as it relates to student reading skills. With a robust offering that includes solutions for differentiated instruction, personalized learning, and assessment, Lexia Learning provides educators with the tools to intensify and accelerate literacy skills development for students of all abilities. For more information, visit www.lexialearning.com.



About Rosetta Stone

Rosetta Stone Inc. (RST) is dedicated to changing peoples lives through the power of language and literacy education. The companys innovative digital solutions drive positive learning outcomes for the inspired learner at home or in schools and workplaces around the world.



Founded in 1992, Rosetta Stones language division uses cloud-based solutions to help all types of learners read, write, and speak more than 30 languages. Lexia Learning, Rosetta Stone's literacy education division, was founded more than 30 years ago and is a leader in the literacy education space. Today, Lexia helps students build fundamental reading skills through its rigorously researched, independently evaluated, and widely respected instruction and assessment programs.

Story continues

For more information, visit www.rosettastone.com. Rosetta Stone is a registered trademark or trademark of Rosetta Stone Ltd. in the United States and other countries.



Charlotte Andrist

charlotte@nickelcommpr.com

Media Inquiries Only: 770-310-5244


A former Livingston Parish sheriff's employee was taken into custody Saturday morning, marking the third arrest in an ongoing investigation into a former SWAT team leader accused of years of sexual abuse.

Though details have been limited since October, when Dennis Perkins and his wife, former Livingston Parish schoolteacher Cynthia Perkins, were arrested on a series of producing child pornography and other counts, court documents show the investigation spans at least five years and involves two adult and two child victims, as well as a dog.

The third suspect, Melanie Curtin, 41, of Denham Springs, is accused of one count each of first degree rape and video voyeurism. She was booked into Livingston Parish jail on Saturday, and a judge set no bond.

The state Attorney General's Office, which is the agency prosecuting the case, did not specify the role Curtin is believed to have played.

Livingston Parish Sheriff's Office spokeswoman Lori Steele confirmed Saturday morning that Curtin worked for the Sheriff's Office for about 18 months until August 2012. She was a deputy in the tax department.

Though few details have been released about the timeline of Curtin's alleged involvement, Sheriff Jason Ard said Saturday that she was not a Sheriff's Office employee at the time of the alleged crimes for which she was arrested.

Dennis Perkins is accused of raping an adult in November 2014 with the assistance of an unidentified female suspect. It was not immediately clear if Curtin is that suspect.

Cynthia Perkins, 34, and Dennis Perkins, 44, were indicted in December on charges including more than 60 counts each of producing child pornography, first-degree rape, video voyeurism and mingling harmful substances, among others. Dennis Perkins faces additional counts, including further rape counts of adult victims and sexual abuse of a dog dating back to 2014.

Top stories in Baton Rouge in your inbox Twice daily we'll send you the day's biggest headlines. Sign up today. e-mail address * Sign Up

Prosecuting documents say the pair were involved in the rape and abuse of the two child victims for a period of several months in 2019. The mingling harmful substances count comes from an accusation Dennis Perkins ejaculated into baked goods that Cynthia Perkins then took to the Livingston Parish school where she worked to serve to the children.

Former Livingston deputy tainted pastries with semen and sexually abused dog, new documents say New documents in felony indictments against a former Livingston Parish sheriff's deputy and his teacher wife describe years of sexual abuse, i

A parent of one of her former students is now suing both Dennis and Cynthia Perkins and the Livingston Parish School Board regarding the allegation.

Cynthia and Dennis Perkins were jointly indicted, meaning their criminal cases will proceed together through court. But, on the same day as the indictment in mid-December, Cynthia Perkins filed for divorce, claiming her husband of a little over a year had made sufficient threats that render her fearful of (him).

That divorce case is ongoing in civil court.

Cynthia Perkins was a teacher at Westside Junior High School in Walker, where she had taught English Language Arts since 2016. She'd been with Livingston Parish Schools since 2012, but resigned soon after her arrest.

Dennis Perkins was a longtime Livingston Parish Sheriff's Office deputy, having joined the agency in 2002, and was heading up the department's SWAT team. Sheriff Jason Ard fired him upon being informed of the arrest.

After child ate possibly tainted cupcake, Livingston parent sues school board, former deputy, teacher A Livingston Parish parent has filed a lawsuit against a former sheriff's deputy and middle school teacher, as well as the local school board,

Cynthia Perkins is being held without bond at the Livingston Parish jail and Dennis Perkins is being held at Elayn Hunt Correctional Center on behalf of Livingston Parish authorities. Due to the fact the case is high profile and Dennis Perkins is a former law enforcement officer, he is not being housed at the Livingston Parish jail.
Part of the main campus at the University of York. (PA Images)

One of the two patients in England who tested positive for coronavirus is a student at the University of York.

The university remains open and is carrying on as usual, Charlie Jeffery, the vice-chancellor said today.

Public Health England has advised us that the risk of the infection being passed to others on campus is low, he said at a press conference on Saturday afternoon.

The university is open and will continue to operate normally.

He added: I want to reiterate to students, staff, parents and visitors that were working with our partners across the city to ensure that York and the university remain a safe and welcoming place to live, work and visit.

He said the university is monitoring developments closely, will provide advice and care to anyone affected, and he urged anyone with concerns to visit the universitys website.

Earlier today, a spokesman for the University of York said: If people have any concerns about their health in relation to suspected coronavirus we ask that they follow current PHE advice and contact NHS 111.

The university has set up a call centre over the weekend for anyone who has any further concerns or enquiries. The telephone number is 01904 809571.

The two people who were announced on Friday as having tested positive for coronavirus - the first confirmed cases in the UK - are being treated at a specialist facility in Newcastle.

They are both members of the same family.

Public Health England is contacting people who had close contact  defined as being within two metres of the infected person for 15 minutes  with the pair.

University of York Students Union president Samara Jones said many students are likely to be worried by the news.

She said: The student community at York is a tight-knit, global community and we will continue to support one another at this time.

Ms Jones said the union would work with the university and health authorities to provide updates when available.

She added: I would encourage students with any questions to keep an eye on the university website for any developments and key information. Our dedicated helpline will remain open over the weekend.

Story continues

The university spokesman added: We understand this development will cause concern and anxiety among our students, staff, and the wider community.

PHE has advised us that the risk of infection being passed to others on campus is low.

Current information from PHE suggests that the student did not come into contact with anybody on campus whilst they had symptoms, but investigations are ongoing to fully establish this.

Our immediate concerns are for the affected student and family, along with the health and continued wellbeing of our staff, students and visitors.

British nationals arrive at RAF Brize Norton in Oxfordshire. (SWNS)

On Friday, 83 British people arrived back from a repatriation flight from Wuhan.

They are due to be quarantined at a facility on the Wirral.

Meanwhile, the number of deaths in China confirmed to 259 from 213 on Friday morning.
President Muhammadu Buhari has established a committee, chaired by the Minister of Interior, Rauf Aregbesola, to study and address updat...









President Muhammadu Buhari has established a committee, chaired by the Minister of Interior, Rauf Aregbesola, to study and address updated U.S. requirements relating to the assessment of compliance with certain security criteria by foreign governments.Buhari took the action following the visa ban slammed on Nigeria by the United States.Recall that US president, Donald Trump had imposed a visa ban on Nigeria and five other countriesThe proclamation, signed by President Donald Trump on Friday, is expected to take effect on February 22.Reacting, a statement on the Presidency official Twitter page, said the committee will work with the U.S Government, INTERPOL and other stakeholders to ensure all updates are properly implemented.Nigeria remains committed to maintaining productive relations with the United States and other international allies especially on matters of global security, It added.
Professor Felix Konotey-Ahulu

01.02.2020 LISTEN

Felix I. D. Konotey-Ahulu, born in 1930 at Odumase-Krobo, is one of the most original brains Ghana has produced.

He is so honest in what he thinks  and says  that many of his fellow academics must find him 'awkward.' He is so gifted with the faculty of curiosity that his skull encases tremendous knowledge about all manner of subjects. Meanwhile, his mouth cannot refrain from uttering what he thinks. Ahem -- that means he must seem 'insufferable' to some.

Which is all right by Ghanaian patriots, for a country some of whose nationals are so  sebe o, tafracher -- stupid as to invite foreigners to come and despoil their water sources and food farms in search of gold  needs quite a few 'insufferable' people to call out the  sebe o tafracher -- fools among us.

But whilst possessed of a sharp tongue with which to lash those who refuse to think, he simultaneously praises to the high heavens, those whose intellectual depth merits praise.

Take Thursday 30 January 2020, for instance. He delivered a special lecture to the Ghana Academy of Arts and Sciences, in which he poured encomiums on Dr Emmanuel Evans-Anfom, former Vice-Chancellor of the Kwame Nkrumah University of Science and Technology, Kumase. Dr Evans-Anfom attained the magical age of 100 years old in October 2019.

Now, as it happens, 2019 also marked the 60th anniversary of the founding of the Ghana Academy of Sciences So the Academy held a symposium to celebrate the occasion. The speakers invited to the symposium included Prof. Felix Konotey-Ahulu.

Prof Konotey-Ahulu was uneasy about the length of time allocated to his contribution to the symposium, implying that concentration on the achievements of the Academy, on its 60th-anniversary celebrations, would overshadow the honour that he felt should be accorded Dr Evans-Anfom in his centenary year.

The Academy must have seen his point, for it decided to allow him a special lecture slot on a later date, during which he would be the only speaker. Konotey-Ahulu promptly dedicated the special lecture to Dr Evans-Anfom.

The intriguing title he chose was History Surpasses Science. Now, this subject matter might have bemused a few members of the audience, since history and science seem, to many of us, to march in tandem.

But Prof Konotey-Ahulu was convincing in the line he took, namely, that as far as our continent, Africa, is concerned, science has been used to distort its history and demean its people.

In the course of carrying out zan erudite "hatchet job" on pseudo-scientists who use science to advocate or condone racism, Prof. Konotey-Ahulu sang the praises of many doctors and scientists who had fought against racism in science and had thus saved many lives in Ghana.

These included Dr Evans-Anfom, of course, who (Konotey-Ahulu recalled) came to Konotey-Ahulu, during Evans-Anfom's retirement, to plead to be allowed to do two surgical operations a week at the Ridge Hospital, where Konotey-Ahulu was in charge!

Just imagine if Evans-Anfom had been your typical arrogant Ghanaian. He would have used his seniority to push Konotey-Ahulu aside and done as he pleased! Instead, he had gone to the junior person with humility itself .

On the issue of science in general, the Professor pointed out that Charles Darwin had written a book, [whose full title, often omitted, was The Origin of Species by Means of Natural Selection, or the Preservation of Favoured Races in the Struggle for Life] which claimed that humans evolved in a series of steps  from monkeys to humans. White scientists had used Darwin's findings to teach that Africans were an inferior race that possessed less intelligence than the white race (whose people, according to white scientists, are at the apex of the human evolutionary tree!)

But as science had matured, it had been proved  with the deciphering of the human genome, in particular,  that there was only one human race and not different races.

Indeed, one of the scientists who had cited alleged genetical differences between the races to preach that blacks were less intelligent than whites, Dr James Watson (winner of the Nobel Prize, no less!) had discovered, on submitting himself to a DNA test, that -- irony of ironies -- HE possessed the genes of an African!

Prof Konotey-Ahulu gave many examples of false scientific notions that white scientists had propagated to the detriment of Africans. For instance, there was the case of a widely-publicized finding by some white doctors that blacks who had a sickle-cell trait in their blood, were susceptible to the same physical ailments as Africans suffering from sickle-cell "disease."

Panic had ensued among black pilots world-wide in 1967, when it was suggested that they should all be grounded or harassed at airports, by asking them to undergo sickle-cell tests. The following publication came to the attention of two Ghanaian doctors, Dr Reginald Addae and Dr Frank Djabanor: If, on certain African routes, a Negro (sic)traveller must take an unpressurized aircraft, it would be wise to ascertain the sickling status before departure.

Following this, a London Times Science Report (Sickle Cell Disease and flying December 9 1971) categorically claimed that sickle cell disease is now found in a fifth of West Africans and a tenth of West Indians and American Negroes. The Science Report continued: Clearly all flight crew with the sickle cell trait should be removed from flying duties

Some pilots and air crew were peremptorily grounded in the USA. But Drs Addae and Djabanor wrote to point out that what the authors of the publication did not seem to know was that not only black people have the sickle cell gene. In some parts of Greece, the prevalence of the sickle cell trait is 30% or more than twice the prevalence in Northern Ghana. The forebears and descendants of these non-Negro possessors of the sickle cell gene are doubtlessly scattered over America and Europe today. How can we identify them from their external features, to thrust upon them the benefits of this advice?

The writers of the false reports were thereupon prevailed to withdraw them! And the careers of black pilots were safeguarded.

(TO BE CONTINUED)
Senate Republicans rejected a resolution to call witnesses late Friday and approved a resolution that calls for a vote on the two articles of impeachment to be held on Wednesday in the impeachment trial of President Donald Trump.

Senators voted along party lines 53-47 approving Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnells (R-Ky.) resolution, which sets up the timeline for the rest of the trial proceedings.

It calls for closing statements to be heard starting Monday 11 a.m., which will not exceed four hours and [will] be equally divided between the House and the President to be used as under the Rules of Impeachment.

Once the closing arguments from both sides have been delivered, the trial will be adjourned until Wednesday at 4 p.m. ET, when senators will move to vote on the articles of impeachmentabuse of power and obstruction of Congress.

In the interim period, senators can speak on the Senate floor and explain their votes, reported The Hill.

Earlier, Senate Republicans rejected a resolution to call witnesses, which may have included former Trump national security adviser John Bolton.

The Senate voted 5149 to not subpoena any documents or witnesses in the trial. Sens. Susan Collins (R-Maine) and Mitt Romney (R-Utah) joined Democrats in the losing bid.

Potential swing-vote Sens. Lisa Murkowski (R-Alaska) and Lamar Alexander (R-Tenn.) voted against the measure. No Democrats joined the Republican majority.

Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.) said that there is no need for the Senate to re-open the investigation which the House Democratic majority chose to conclude and which the Managers themselves continue to describe as overwhelming and beyond any doubt.'

Never in Senate history has this body paused an impeachment trial to pursue additional witnesses with unresolved questions of executive privilege that would require protracted litigation, McConnell said in a statement. We have no interest in establishing such a new precedent, particularly for individuals whom the House expressly chose not to pursue.

Following the vote against calling witnesses, Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-N.Y.) told reporters that its a grand tragedy and one of the worst tragedies in the Senates history. The Senate turned away from truth and  held a sham trial, he said.

The Senate impeachment trial was not a real trial, Schumer said.

Schumer and other Democrats have said that witnesses and documents need to be subpoenaed for the impeachment trial to be legitimate. They attempted to apply more pressure on four potential swing-vote senators this week when The New York Times published details about Boltons forthcoming book, where he allegedly claims Trump told him about a link between military aid and investigations in Ukraine. The president has denied the allegations.

Democratic presidential contender Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.) pilloried the vote: The Senate refused to subpoena witnesses in this impeachment trial. Ive never heard of a trial where you dont have witnesses. This is a sad day in American history.

Trump was formally charged on Dec. 18 by the Democrat-majority House on the two articles of impeachment (pdf)abuse of power and obstruction of Congress. No House Republicans voted in favor of the articles, and a small number of Democrats broke with their party to vote against one or both articles. Democratic presidential candidate Tulsi Gabbard voted present in protest of the House-led effort, which she called a partisan endeavor.

Trump has repeatedly said he didnt do anything wrong. He earlier agreed with Gabbard that House Democrats were playing politics.

A two-thirds supermajority (67 votes) is required to convict an impeached president and remove them from office.

About 20 Republicans would have to break with their party and join the Democratic minority to achieve a supermajority. Meanwhile, a simple majority (51 votes) is required to dismiss the impeachment charges against Trump.

No president has ever been removed as a direct result of impeachment. Richard Nixon resigned before he could be removed. Andrew Johnson and Bill Clinton were both impeached by the House but not convicted in the Senate.

Mimi Nguyen Ly contributed to this report.

From The Epoch Times
Two men convicted of dacoity and murder escaped from a court in Bihars Sasaram soon after they were handed life imprisonment on Friday, officials said.

However, one of them was arrested later.

Fast track court judge-2 Ravindra Mani Tripathy declared the quantum of punishment for Uma Shankar Sah and Siya Ram Sonar.

The residents of Hasan Bazar in Bhojpur district were facing trial in an 18-year-old dacoity and murder case filed in Nasariganj police station.

Soon after the punishment was announced, the judge retired in his chamber and jail staff got busy in preparing custody warrant for the convicts. Taking advantage of the situation, Sah and Sonar escaped from the spot.

Sonar was arrested with the help of litigants present on the campus but Sah managed to flee.

We are conducting raids to arrest him, said station house officer (SHO) Sasaram Town police station Kamakhya Narayan Singh.

It is the second such incident in a court in Sasaram in three months.

On November 5 last year, under trial Parshuram Singh of Gopi Bigaha escaped from the court after he was brought from a divisional jail.

SHARE THIS ARTICLE ON
The six agreed with one another on the other topics raised by the public. All of them said securing the U.S./Mexico border was a top priority when it came to immigration, identified themselves as pro-life candidates on the topic of reproductive rights and said they believed less government intervention is needed on health care, which could be solved in the private sector.
Electric two-wheelers for college girls, cycles to Class 9, 12 students.

Delhi BJP president Manoj Tiwari with Union ministers Nitin Gadkari, Prakash Javadekar, MPs Meenakshi Lekhi and Gautam Gambhir at the launch of sankalp patra for Assembly election in New Delhi on Friday. (Photo: G.N. Jha)

New Delhi: The BJP on Friday released Delhi sankalp patra, its manifesto for Delhi Assembly polls, promising good quality wheat flour at 2 per kg for the poor and supply of clean drinking water to every household.

The party also promised free electric two-wheelers for the college-going girls and cycles to Class 9 and 12 students belonging to the economically weaker sections (EWS) of the society. The 56-page document has a large picture of Prime Minister Narendra Modi  the face for BJP for the Delhi Assembly elections. The cover page also has the picture of BJP president J.P. Nadda and city unit president Manoj Tiwari.

Eyeing its traditional vote banks of trading community, the BJP proposes conversion shops and offices from leasehold to freehold on priority basis. The party also promised that streamlining of regulatory and approval process to ensure obstacles free functioning of three lakh household industries. On sealing, the BJP promises to take all administrative and legal measures to address the issue.

The Sankalp Patra was released by Union transport minister Nitin Gadkari in presence of Union ministers Prakash Javadekar, Dr Harsh Vardhan, partys Delhi unit president Manoj Tiwari and all the member of Parliament from the national capital.

After releasing the poll promises, Mr Gadkari said that with the BJP government will run the bullet train of development in the city. BJPs history is linked to Delhi. The future of Delhi will be changed by the BJP, Mr Gadkari added.

Mr Tiwari said that the BJP will continue the same subsidies in power and water currently in place. BJP is not going to reduce any benefits people are already availing.

Sharing the key promises, Mr Tiwari said that the BJP will take all necessary steps to provide clean, corruption free and transparent government in the city. After giving ownership right to 40 lakh property owners in unauthorised colonies, the saffron party, to consolidate its votes in these colonies, promises setting up a dedicated colonies development board to formulate development plan for these colonies.

The sankalp patra pledged to increase budget for education and health sectors by 10 per cent annually. On education front, the BJP promises to open 10 new colleges and 200 new schools in the city. The party also talks about opening of a Sanskrit Board for the promotion of Sanskrit language and incorporating Yoga, positive health, mediation and value based learning as part of education system.

The saffron party promised that its government after coming to power implement Centres flagship programme Ayushman Bharat Yogna and Pradhan Mantri Awaas Yojna, which is currently not implemented by the Arvind Kejriwal government. For providing better health facilities to Delhiites, the BJP promises to open 400 health and wellness centre under Ayushman Bharat.

For infrastructure development, the BJP promises creation of Samriddh Delhi Infrastructure Scheme with a provision of 10,000 crore for key infra projects like roads, flyovers, footover bridges and others.
B rexit can unleash the full potential of the UK even though there will be "bumps in the road", Boris Johnson has said.

As the moment of the UKs departure from the European Union approached, the Prime Minister acknowledged mixed feelings in a still-divided nation about the end of 47 years of close links with Brussels.

For many people this is an astonishing moment of hope, a moment they thought would never come, he said in a pre-recorded message.

And there are many of course who feel a sense of anxiety and loss.

After years of bitter wrangling since the 2016 referendum, Mr Johnson said his job was now to bring this country together.

We want this to be the beginning of a new era of friendly cooperation between the EU and an energetic Britain, a Britain that is simultaneously a great European power and truly global in our range and ambitions.

Boris Johnson holds Cabinet meeting on Brexit day

And when I look at this countrys incredible assets, our scientists, our engineers, our world-leading universities, our armed forces, when I look at the potential of this country waiting to be unleashed I know that we can turn this opportunity into a stunning success.

And whatever the bumps in the road ahead I know that we will succeed.

On a day filled with symbolic moments:

With little expected to change following the 11pm moment, attention has already turned to the next set of talks aimed at securing the future relationship which will apply from January 1, 2021.

And Mr Johnson has been clear he also wants to strike deals with countries around the world  notably Donald Trumps USA.

Brexit: UK's final day in EU 1 /44 Brexit: UK's final day in EU Britain's Prime Minister Boris Johnson arrives to attend a cabinet meeting held at the National Glass Centre at the University of Sunderland AFP via Getty Images A massive banner by the campaign group Another Europe is Possible is hung off Westminster Bridge in London, ahead of the UK leaving the European Union PA People wear Union Jack hats and Brexit Day t shirts in Parliament Square as people prepare for Brexit Getty Images Pro EU supporters let off flares from Westminster Bridge by the London Eye as people prepare for Brexit Getty Images European Parliament President David Sassoli speaks during a media conference at the Parlamentarium in Brussels AP MEP Jonathan Bullock holding the Union Jack waves from a taxi as he leaves the European Parliament AFP via Getty Images Commuters walk along London Bridge toward the City of London with Tower Bridge AFP via Getty Images Scotland's First Minister Nicola Sturgeon delivers a speech on Brexit day Reuters AFP via Getty Images European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen, European Council President Charles Michel and European Parliament President David Sassoli arrive for a meeting near The European Parliament in Brussels AFP via Getty Images Steve Bray in Westminster this morning Jeremy Selwyn People walk past a Brexit countdown clock at the Parlamentarium in Brussels AP Union Flags line the Mall leading to Buckingham Palace AFP via Getty Images British members of the European Parliament from the Brexit Party Jonathan Bullock and Ann Widdecombe wave in front of the train station as they leave in Brussels AFP via Getty Images Pro-EU anti-Brexit protesters hold placards in Parliament Square in London AFP via Getty Images Sunrise over the Houses of Parliament Getty Images Chancellor of the Exchequer Sajid Javid arrives at King's Cross St. Pancras Station in London before boarding a train to the North East for a cabinet meeting in Sunderland PA Brexit Party members of the European Parliament, Jack Pugh and David Bull, depart from the Parliament to return to Great Britain on the day the United Kingdom will officially fulfill Brexit and leave the European Union Getty Images Britain's ambassador to the European Union Tim Barrow leaves the British representation to the EU residence in Brussels AFP via Getty Images A man sits as members of the media set up on Parliament Square on Brexit day Reuters European Commission Chief Negociator Michel Barnier arrives for a meeting near the European Parliament in Brussels AFP via Getty Images Red Viking apples with the Union Jack are displayed and given out for free to promote British produce on Parliament Square AP A woman carrying the red box belonging to Foreign Secretary Dominic Raab goes into King's Cross Station in London to board a train to the North East for a cabinet meeting in Sunderland PA A technician makes lighting adjustments prior to a media conference of European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen, European Council President Charles Michel and European Parliament President David Sassoli at the Parlamentarium in Brussels AP Ann Widdecombe member of the European Parliament (MEP) for South West England, reacts with other members of the Brexit party as they leave en masse from the European Parliament in Brussels, Belgium PA Euro Balloons stuck in a tree in Westminster Jeremy Selwyn Newspapers and other souvenirs are pictured at a store, near Parliament Square REUTERS Julian Smith, Secretary of State for Northern Ireland arrives at King's Cross Station in London PA A British bulldog toy and other souvenirs are pictured at a souvenir store, near Parliament Square Reuters International Trade Secretary Liz Truss arrives at King's Cross St. Pancras Station in London before boarding a train to the North East for a cabinet meeting in Sunderland PA British MEP's carry a Union flag as they march out of European Parliament with their luggage in Brussels to take the Eurostar train back to Britain AP A Brexiteer in Parliament Square, Londo PA

A Downing Street spokesman said: Cabinet discussed the Governments future trade agenda, which includes seeking a Canada-style FTA with the EU.

From tomorrow, the UK will also be free to begin trade negotiations with countries around the world  with the aim to have 80% of our trade covered by FTAs within three years.

But Brussels is pessimistic about the 11-month timetable for reaching a deal and made clear that Britain will have to accept worse terms and conditions for trade than if it were still a member of the EU.

European Commission president Ursula von der Leyen said: We want to have the best possible relationship with the United Kingdom, but it will never be as good as membership.

Brexit Supporters And Anti-Brexit Demonstrators Clash In Parliament Square

Senior Cabinet minister Michael Gove acknowledged the trade-offs that would have to be made in any deal.

We want trade to be as frictionless as possible but the EU is clear, you can only have fully frictionless trade if you accept all of their rules, if you accept all their laws, you are subordinate to their judges, you are subordinate to their political structures, he told the BBC.

There will be some regulations that will differ in Britain so that may mean that when it comes to trading with Europe there are some bureaucratic processes there that arent there now.

As the Cabinet gathered in Sunderland, car giant Nissan  which has a major plant in the city  called for clarity from the Government about its plans and urged both the UK and EU to secure an orderly balanced Brexit that will continue to encourage mutually beneficial trade.

Brexit Day at Parliament Square - In pictures 1 /22 Brexit Day at Parliament Square - In pictures Anti-Brexit protesters in Parliament Square, London PA Police presence at anti-Brexit protests in Parliament Square, London PA The Winston Churchill statue and Union flags in Parliament Square, London PA Pro Brexit supporters hold placards at Parliament Square as people prepare for Brexit Getty Images A man carries an EU themed wreath at Parliament Square Reuters Anti-Brexit demonstrators in Parliament Square, London, ahead of the UK leaving the European Union PA Pro Brexit supporters hold placards at Parliament Square as people prepare for Brexit Getty Images A man wears a President, Donald Trump mask and holds an American flag at Parliament Square as people prepare for Brexit Getty Images People hold placards in Parliament Square opposite the Houses of Parliament in London AFP via Getty Images A man holds up a President, Donald Trump, American flag at Parliament Square as people prepare for Brexit Getty Images A Red Viking apple with the Union Jack is displayed and given out for free to promote British produce as an Anti-Brexit demonstrator waves the European Union flag in Parliament Square AP Joseph Afrane in Westminster Jeremy Selwyn Pro-EU anti-Brexit protesters hold placards in Parliament Square AFP via Getty Images A man takes a photo of political artist Kaya Mar's paintings in Parliament Square Getty Images A man in an oversized 'Keep America Great' hat and draped with a US flag holds a Union Flag in Parliament Square opposite the Houses of Parliament AFP via Getty Images A woman holds a newspaper at Parliament Square Reuters A woman wears a face mask in Parliament Square PA

The Prime Minister, who has promised a dignified and respectful approach to the Brexit celebrations, was spending the evening in Number 10 at a reception for senior ministers, officials, and supporters of the Vote Leave campaign to leave the EU.

Guests were quaffing English sparkling wine and dining on canapes including fillet of lamb on toast, Shropshire blue cheese, beef and Yorkshire pudding with horseradish sauce, mushrooms tarts and roast chicken skewers.

In Scotland, which voted to stay in the EU in the 2016 referendum, rallies and candlelit vigils were taking place.

The Leave a Light On gatherings were intended to send a message to the EU to keep open a place for Scotland.
Since the end of the 1990s Egypt has dreamt of becoming an East Mediterranean gas and energy hub.

The discoveries offshore in the Nile Delta at the end of the 20st Century, that kickstarted the LNG boom sparked hope, but regional and internal conflicts which led to the removal of president Husni Mubarak and the rule of the Muslim Brotherhood have significantly slowed down the countrys energy industry.

However, new discoveries made in the last couple of years, combined with strong results offshore Cyprus, Israel and possibly even the coming years in Lebanon have brought new hope. The so-called East Med Gas Forum, in which most littoral states are participating is seen as one of the main drivers of new energy developments. Led by Egypt-Israel and the Greece-Cyprus quartet, a new start was made to reshape the regions energy market, with as crown jewel, Egypts LNG liquefaction capacity in Idku and Damietta. The combined reserves of the participants, especially Egypts elephant-sized fields Zohr and Noor, combined with Israels offshore wealth, could supply the European market. The EU and even the U.S. promote the so-called East Med Offshore Gas Pipeline project connecting the East Mediterranean with the Balkans and possibly Italy. The region is optimistic and strategies are being implemented at a remarkable speed. Even with Turkish military and political obstruction constraining or even threatening some of the projects, progress is made.

However, politicians and energy operators have maybe underestimated the environment they are working in. A global gas glut is emerging, threatening not only LNG exporters such as Australia, Qatar, Mozambique and others, but also the East Med Energy Hub dreams of the EMGF. Some of the regions projects are already facing headwinds. Related: Oil Market Falls Deeper Into Abyss

In a remarkable move, Cairo has cancelled several tenders in 2019 as market prices offered were below expectations. Analysts stated that some bidders even offered prices which were below the break-even cost prices of production. Still, the members of the forum are not yet concerned at all it seems. Egypt believes that operational costs as its LNG plants should be very low, regarding the fact that the plants are already paid off, and all capacity is installed. If global LNG landing prices fall below Cairos production costs, the nation will have a real issue.

The position taken at present by the Egyptian oil ministry to sell LNG under term agreements with a target selling price of $5/MMBtu, rather than on the spot market, is a risky one. With a market able to get all volumes needed on the spot market, where prices are much lower, the real question is, if there will be any bidders interested in the prices as announced in the tender.

Globally prices have plummeted. Large Asian buyers such as China, Japan and South Korea are enjoying much lower prices. The JKM benchmark for Asian LNG spot prices has fallen by 50% since the beginning of 2019 from around $8/MMBtu to a little over $4/MMBtu. Long-term deals such as Egypt is offering are a risky proposition for any buyer. For example, selling an 18-month FOB deal at $5/MMBtu is very challenging at present. East Mediterranean nations can count on stiff competition from Qatar, Australia and others. And by now, most analysts expect that global gas and LNG markets will see a lower for longer price environment.

The coming months will be decisive for Egypts LNG industry. The only parties interested at present could be new entrants to the market, or parties looking for some structural deals. If these, however, are not available, Egypt and its East Med partners could be facing a scenario in which LNG exports will be low or maybe even non-existing. Related: U.S. Rig Count Drops As Oil Price Slide Accelerates

In the meantime, Egypts gas production increase is impressive, the country produces more from its Zohr field than it can physically export. LNG exports from Egypt more than doubled year on year in 2019 to 4.8 Bcm of gas equivalent. On top of that, Cairo has started to import Israeli gas.

Egypts local market demand is still too low to absorb the current glut, and pipeline exports to Jordan are still very low. To counter the influx of Israeli gas (6 million cubic meter per year), Egypt is forced already to consider restarting its 2nd LNG plant in Damietta (5 million metric tons/year). A restart is currently being discussed by the operator Union Fenosa Gas (UFG), a 50-50 joint venture between Eni and Spain's Naturgy.

The LNG global market glut situation needs to be addressed not only by Egypt but all EMGF parties the coming months. The immense volumes available now and need to be monetized soon. Egypt would do well to focus Eastern European markets (including the Balkans). In this market, it will have to find a way to compete with, Russia, Norway and Qatar. Price levels could be plummeting even further in the short term, so Cairo must make sure to sell its existing LNG inventory soon.

The Forums parties should take a realistic view on their offshore gas wealth, and dreaming about a major multibillion treasury trove like Qatars is maybe not realistic. A long-term vision is much needed, and Cairo needs to develop a clear understanding of its potential markets, which might not just be North or West, but possibly even in the East.

OPECs main oil producer, and Egyptian ally Saudi Arabia is still in dire need for additional gas volumes. Redirecting the former Arab Gas Pipeline (AGP), which was meant to export Egyptian gas to Jordan, Lebanon and Syria, to Saudi Arabia could be hitting two birds with one stone. Integrating regional energy and security while monetizing reserves.

By Cyril Widdershoven for Oilprice.com

More Top Reads From Oilprice.com:
Just a matter of time for 9 day encounter in Rajouri-Poonch jungles to end

Guided by ex-Pak army officials, operating in buddy pairs: Why the Poonch encounter has dragged so much

Tire, track eliminate: Why has the Poonch encounter dragged on for so long

Made in China grenade, manufactured in Pakistan morphine found on JeM terrorists

India

oi-Vicky Nanjappa

New Delhi, Feb 01: The terrorists who were killed in an encounter at Jammu and Kashmir had a clear Pakistan connection.

After the encounter, the police found on them IED, tulles, and a Pakistan manufactured morphine injection. Further, the police also recovered Chinese made grenades, RDX and detonators from the terrorists.

The terrorists had infiltrated from across the International Border in the Dayalchak area in Kathua district.

J&K: Three terrorist killed as encounter underway at Nagrota toll plaza

The three terrorists of the Jaish-e-Mohammad had infiltrated from the Dayalchak area of Hiranagar sector in Kathua on Thursday evening. They picked up a Kashmir bound truck and reached the Ban toll plaza on Friday morning.

Police sources said that the terrorists were heading towards Srinagar. Jammu and Kashmir chief Dilbagh Singh said that this is a similar modus operandi used in recent times and hence trucks were high on surveillance, Singh also said.

This claim has however been disputed by the BSF. No infiltration has been detected so far from the Dayalchak area, BSF Jammu frontier Inspector General N S Jamwal.

The three terrorists opened at a police team near a toll plaza on the Jammu-Srinagar National Highway triggering a gunfight in which three ultras were killed and a policeman injured, police said.

The firing took place around 5 am when a police team stopped a Srinagar-bound truck for checking near the toll plaza in Ban area of Nagrota.

Terrorists sneaking into India in trucks, latest modus operandi of JeM

Singh said 3-4 terrorists were going to Srinagar when they were intercepted by the police team at the toll plaza.

Four weapons and some ammunition and explosives have been recovered from the spot. Traffic was suspended on the highway after the attack, the officials said. Authorities have ordered the closure of schools in Nagrota as a precautionary measure.
(CNN)  The final vote to acquit President Donald Trump in his impeachment trial may be delayed until next week, according to Republican and Democratic sources.

At this point, it seems unlikely that a final vote to acquit Trump will occur Friday night, but definitive details of the Senate trial's timing remain extremely fluid.

LIVE UPDATES: Impeachment trial of President Trump

Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell, a Kentucky Republican, is considering offering a resolution that would structure the final stages of the trial, which could include a final vote as late as Wednesday. This could change because a source familiar says the White House is pushing for a final vote Tuesday -- the same day as Trump's State of the Union address.

Asked when the final vote would be, Senate Minority Whip Dick Durbin, the second-ranking Democrat in the chamber, said: "Wednesday of next week. That's what McConnell is proposing."

The resolution may set up a process that would allow senators to speak about their views on the floor in an open session. Senators who have not spoken on the floor for days are eager to get a chance to speak.

This story was first published on CNN.com "Final vote on Trump acquittal could wait until next week"
India has extended support to China in combating the dreaded outbreak, and called for objective and rational assessment of the epidemic that has killed 259 people and affected nearly 12,000 others.

External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar on Friday spoke to his Chinese counterpart Wang Yi over phone and thanked him for China's cooperation in evacuating the stranded Indians from the coronavirus-hit Wuhan city and Hubei province.

On Friday, India airlifted 324 Indians, mostly students, from Wuhan and operated a second flight on Saturday to evacuate the rest from the province.

Chinese health authorities announced that the death toll has risen to 259 with total confirmed cases increasing to 11,791, the biggest increase since China began reporting the spread of the virulent virus on January 21.

ALSO READ: India unit of SAIC warns of sales hit due to coronavirus outbreak

In his telephonic conversation with Wang, Jaishankar advocated an objective and rational assessment of the epidemic and said India is confident that China will overcome the difficulties, according to a Chinese Foreign Ministry statement. Jaishankar said that India supports the Chinese government and people in their efforts to combat the outbreak of the new and appreciates China's open, transparent and responsible attitude in responding to the epidemic, it said.

India is confident that China will eventually overcome the epidemic, the External Affairs Minister said.

ALSO READ: China to exempt US imports from retaliatory tariffs to fight coronavirus

Wang, who is also the State Councillor, thanked India for its support and said the Chinese government and people are doing all they can to combat the

"We have taken the most comprehensive and rigorous prevention and control measures, many of which go well beyond the requirements of the International Health Regulations.

"China's efforts are not only protecting the health of its own people, but also the health of people around the world. Foreign governments and the World Health Organization (WHO) have given full recognition to this," Wang said.

The WHO on January 31 declared the virus as Public Health Emergency of International Concern (PHEIC). Wang said that the WHO, however, did not approve of the travel or trade restrictions on China when it judged the coronavirus outbreak.

"We believe that all countries in the world, including India, will respect this important recommendation of the WHO and China is willing to further strengthen public health cooperation with the international community," he said.

Wang, in his separate telephonic conversation with Pakistan Foreign Minister Shah Mahmood Qureshi on Friday, once again highlighted the deep friendship between the two countries.

While India, the US, Sri Lanka, Bangladesh and many countries evacuated their nationals from Wuhan, the Pakistani government -- despite strong criticism from the opposition, has declined pleas by several hundred Pakistani students in Wuhan to evacuate them.

The virus, that emerged in early December and traced to a Wuhan market selling wild animals, has now spread to more than two dozen countries including India, the US, the UK, Russia and Sweden.
A suspected coronavirus patient admitted at the AIIMS here had tested negative for the disease, hospital officials said on Saturday, after her blood test results arrived from the National Institute of Virology, Pune.

However, the woman will be kept at the isolation ward of the hospital as a precautionary measure for the mandatory 14 days prescribed in such cases, they added.

The woman, pursuing medical studies in Kunming City of China's Yunnan province, came to India on January 22.

She was admitted at the AIIMS, Rishikesh on January 30 with suspected symptoms of nCoV.

But the test reports of her blood samples that arrived from the Pune-based National Institute of Virology on Saturday said she was not suffering from the disease, the officials said.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
Lisa Nandy today demanded that 'Empire' is removed from OBE honours because it 'alienates' people.

The Labour leadership hopeful insisted doing away with the reference to Britain's colonial past would help make the country 'different'.

She pointed to the example of poet Benjamin Zephaniah - who turned down an OBE in 2003 because it 'reminded him of thousands of years of brutality'.

The Order of the British Empire recognises contributions to the UK across the arts and sciences, charity, public service and the military.

It is split into a number of different ranks - the most senior of which makes people a knight or a dame.

Speaking at a Labour leadership hustings in Bristol today, Ms Nandy set out why she did not believe OBEs should refer to 'empire'

The four Labour leadership candidates (left to right, Emily Thornberry, Ms Nandy, Sir Keir Starmer and Rebecca Long-Bailey) faced off at a hustings today

Ms Nandy pointed to the example of poet Benjamin Zephaniah (pictured in 2003) - who turned down an OBE because it 'reminded him of thousands of years of brutality'

Speaking at a Labour leadership hustings in Bristol today, Ms Nandy set out why she did not believe the term should be used.

'The self-confident, empowered country I will lead will be one that is different,' she said.

'Where people like Benjamin Zephaniah can accept the Order of Excellence not reject the Order of the British Empire.

'That celebrates those who built us not seeks to alienate them.

'To remake this country as it should and can be, Written, as he says, in ''verses of fire''.'

After he was put forward for an OBE in the 2003 New Year's Honours, Zephaniah wrote an article explaining why he had rejected it.

'It reminds me of slavery, it reminds me of the thousands of years of brutality, it reminds me of how my foremothers were raped and my forefathers brutalised,' he wrote in the Guardian.

'Benjamin Zephaniah OBE  no way Mr (Tony) Blair, no way Mrs Queen. I am profoundly anti-empire.'

At the hustings, the four Labour candidates - Ms Nandy, Sir Keir Starmer, Rebecca Long-Bailey and Emily Thornberry - struck distinctly different tones on Brexit.

Both Ms Nandy and Ms Long-Bailey said efforts should now be redirected into ensuring a good trade is struck with Brussels.

Ms Long-Bailey told activists that the party could not campaign at the next general election, expected in 2024, with the message of 'we told you so' if the country's economic fortunes took a dip after leaving the EU.

She admitted it was 'sad' to see the UK's divorce from Brussels finalised this week but said the 'debate is over' on Brexit.

'We cannot spend the next four years waiting to tell our constituents we told you so and that we knew it was going to be this bad all along,' she said.

Ms Nandy was critical of Labour's reaction to the referendum outcome, accusing the leadership under Jeremy Corbyn of looking 'backwards' after the result rather than 'looking forward to the country we can be'.

Sir Keir Starmer and Ms Long-Bailey are the favourites in the Labour leadership battle

Ms Thornberry and Ms Nandy struck distinctly different tones on how Labour should handle the issue of Brexit

'We completely missed the point of that political earthquake, which was a clamour for more power, more control and more agency across this country,' said the backbencher.

The former shadow energy secretary, who voted for the Prime Minister's Withdrawal Agreement at second reading, admitted she had failed in her push for a Brexit deal that kept a close relationship with the EU.

Ms Thornberry took an opposing view to her two female rivals and said she suspected the PM would not be successful in acquiring a trade agreement with Brussels, forecasting that the country would be 'back in no-deal territory by the summer'.

'What do we do at that stage? We need to have someone leading the fight who was on the right side of the argument all along,' said the Islington South and Finsbury MP, who is the only contender not to have secured enough backing to advance to the final stage.

Shadow Brexit secretary Sir Keir Starmer, one of the architects of Labour's second referendum policy, said the divide between Leave and Remain voters must end, but accused the Government of failing to address the 'underlying reasons' why the electorate voted out before Friday's historic moment.
The US Senate scheduled Friday the final impeachment vote against Donald Trump for next Wednesday at 16:00 p.m. local time (21:00 GMT), Trend reports citing Sputnik.

Senate Democrats wanted former national security adviser John Bolton to testify after a leak of an unpublished manuscript of his forthcoming book stated Trump ordered him to help pressure Ukraine to investigate Democratic presidential rival and former US Vice President Joe Biden, as well as his son Hunter Biden.

The trial ground to a halt Friday afternoon after an internal GOP spat erupted over how to end the proceedings. The pushback from so-called moderate Republicans reportedly derailed McConnells plan to acquit Trump late Friday or early Saturday after a round of votes on Democratic procedural objections.

There was some feverish discussion, Mike Braun told reporters after the vote, reported The Hill. Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell eventually postponed the final vote on articles of impeachment against Trump until 5 February. Braun said they hope to have the final vote on the articles of impeachment next week.

The narrative that Trump allegedly had a quid-pro-quo with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky and traded aid for an investigation into the Bidens serves as the basis for Democratic attempts to remove the president from office.

Trump has denied doing anything wrong and has repeatedly said the impeachment is a hoax intending to remove him from office in order to reverse the results of the 2016 presidential election.

Joe Biden has admitted that as US vice president he threatened to withhold about $1 billion in US military aid to Ukraine unless the nation dismissed a prosecutor who was investigating a company that employed his son Hunter.
Even though the U.S. formally withdrew from the Paris Climate Agreement, 184 countries are still pledged to reduce their emissions in the hope of keeping global temperatures from rising more than two degrees Celsius. Unfortunately, according to a panel of climate scientists late last year, three-fourths of those countries aren't on track to hit even their 2030 goals. Two of the biggest emitters in the world, China and India, are actually likely to have higher emissions by the end of this decade.

But there are some bright spots. Scotland is officially on track to run on 100 percent renewable energy by the end of 2020, just in time to host the United Nations Climate Change Conference later this year. The country has been aggressively leading the way in transitioning off of fossil fuels. It closed its last coal plant in 2016 and has vastly expanded its wind and solar power infrastructure. Last year, Scotland produced 9.8 million megawatt hours of wind energy, or more than twice the power needed for all 4.47 million homes in Scotland. And the Scottish government set a legally binding resolution to get the country down to net-zero emissions by 2045, five years ahead of the rest of the United Kingdom.

Officials in Scotland concede that their rapid gains are thanks to going after "low hanging fruit," obvious and relatively easy fixes that don't directly inconvenience people. Getting all the way to net-zero emissions will involve revamping transportation, private industry, and home heating, which will likely be a much bigger headache than simply transitioning from fossil-fuel power plants. Still, Scotland's progress is in stark contrast to the United States, where renewables account for less than a fifth of energy consumption. For now, progress is unlikely: Donald Trumpwho made reviving the flagging coal industry part of his campaign stump speechis opposed to transitioning off of fossil fuels. At a rally in December, he started ranting against wind power, saying, "I never understood wind. You know, I know windmills very much. Ive studied it better than anybody I know. Its very expensive."

Story continues

More devastating than his free-association rally rantings, though, are his actual policies. In 2017, the Trump administration instituted a 30 percent tariff on imported solar panels, ostensibly to invigorate U.S. manufacturing. In practice, however, this hobbled solar-panel installation in the U.S. and imperiled the jobs of more than 350,000 people who work in solar (more than twice as many people who work in the entire American coal industry). A solar industry group reported in December of last year that Trump's tariffs had cost an estimated 62,000 jobs and $19 billion in investments. The White House called the estimates "classic fake news."

It's a terrible time to hamstring renewable energy in the U.S. And not just because there's a rapidly closing window to prevent the worst possible outcomes of climate changesolar energy, in particular, has never been cheaper.

Solar power today relies on photovoltaic cells (PV), hardware that traps photons and releases electrons which are then used to create an electric current. In 1958, NASA used them to power the grapefruit-sized Vanguard-1 satellite, which is still in orbit more than 60 years later. At the time of Vanguard's construction, solar power was new, tremendously expensive, and not particularly efficient, especially compared to fossil fuel. What it offered though was an effectively endless power source that was only limited by our technical ability to harness it. And in the decades since, the technology has improved and the cost has dropped 99 percent, and is expected to only drop more in the future.

MIT did a study of the drop in cost in 2018 and found that it was the result of a spate of factors, including more efficient and larger-scale manufacturing, plus government policy that stimulated market growth and advances in public research and development. And in 2015 Deutsche Bank found that while conventional electricity prices were expected to double worldwide by 2030, solar had reached "grid parity"the point at which the price of renewable energy is equal to or less than that of fossil fuelin 30 developed countries, and prices were likely to fall another 40 percent by 2025.

In other words, renewable energy isn't just more affordable than everit's undercutting fossil fuels. The price for one megawatt hour of electricity from a coal-fired plant ranges from $60 to $143. The cost of solar is $40 to $46, down from $120 per megawatt hour just 10 years ago. From $70 per megawatt hour ten years ago, wind power now costs $29-$56. Natural gas is still competitive with renewables for now, in the range of $41 to $74 per megawatt hour. But the price on an energy bill isn't where the costs stop. A study from the National Academies of Sciences found that factoring in the long-term effects of medical and environmental problems causes the cost of fossil fuel to nearly triple.

Of course, Scotland is a country of less than 5.5 million people, while India and China are industrializing economies of more than 1.3 billion people each. And even countries with similar populations and GDPs would likely face unique logistical challenges in transitioning to renewable energy. But in the U.S., California is making some headway, pledging to transition to electricity from all renewable sources by 2045, and governors of other states are hoping to follow suit. It will, of course, take much more political might to get the rest of the country on board, but there's ample reason to do so.

In just one hour, more energy hits the planet in the form of solar radiation than the entire human race uses in one year. The amount of sunlight annually hitting Texas alone would reportedly be 300 times the total output of all power plants in the world. Technology has reached a point where it is cheap and efficient enough to use that energy to power huge swaths of the U.S. The thing that we need now is politicians willing to make that a reality.

The Bittersweet Bounty Of Greenland's First Spring

Michael Paterniti travels to the forefront of climate change and gets a taste of the complex future of a planet in flux. As Greenland's massive ice sheet melts at an alarming rate due to global warming, its citizensand especially its chefsare enjoying some unanticipated benefits.

Originally Appeared on GQ
There have been mixed reactions in Europe's newspapers to the UK's withdrawal from the European Union last night.

On the stroke of 11pm on Friday, the UK officially divorced from the bloc after three years of bitter political struggle that split families and paralysed Westminster.

The departure was greeted with varying responses by European newspapers, with Germany's Die Welt likening Britain's departure to John Cleese's famous Ministry of Silly Walks sketch and Italy's La Repubblica asking if Brexit signalled a 'nightmare'.

There have been mixed reactions in Europe's newspapers to the UK's withdrawal from the European Union last night. Pictured: Germany's Die Welt used a graphic of John Cleese's famous Ministry of Silly Walks sketch to acknowledge Britain's departure

In France, popular daily La Tribune's online front page simply said, 'Brexit: goodbye European Union', while Le Monde said Europe was heading 'into the unknown'

The headline of Die Welt read: 'Liebe (love) Briten, you'll never walk alone', alongside a graphic of Cleese's varying poses.

In France, popular daily La Tribune's online front page simply said, 'Brexit: goodbye European Union', while Le Monde said Europe was heading 'into the unknown'.

They added that Brexit would weaken the whole union.

Spain's El Pais topped its front page with a headline referring to a 'divided United Kingdom', and the country's ABC daily said Prime Minister Boris Johnson has secured a 'historic divorce'.

The Irish Times's cutting headline said that Britain was leaving the EU 'not with a bang, but a whimper'.

And in Italy, La Repubblica asks whether the 'schism' of Brexit signals a 'nightmare', while Dubai's Khaleej Times shows a chain being snapped either side of the words 'New dawn'.

The Irish Times's cutting headline said that Britain was leaving the EU 'not with a bang, but a whimper'

Spain's El Pais topped its front page with a headline referring to a 'divided United Kingdom'

Back in France, Calais' own local newspaper, in the town which has been one of the focal points for those concerned about trade and movement of goods, played down concerns about alterations or disruption.

Nord Littoral noted on its front page that 'it's today that the United Kingdom officially quits the European Union' but the headline stated: 'Brexit: the change is not now.'

The regional paper for the northern region led with the 'divorce', and also carried a large image of the town's port, which a large proportion of British and European freight passes through.

The sentiment was echoed in national paper Aujourd'hui, one of the country's most popular dailies.

It bid farewell with the headline 'Bye Bye', alongside a man draped in a Union flag.

Aujourd'hui, one of France's most popular dailies, bid farewell with the headline 'Bye Bye', alongside a man draped in a Union flag

France's Le Figaro wrote 'Farewell to Europe' on their front page, alongside a close-up shot of Big Ben

However, it also asked: 'What will this historic divorce really change?'

Les Echos also paid tribute to 'Europe without them', but proposed that the 'heavy consequences' of Britain quitting could help Europe 'bounce back'.

In Brussels, the absence of a mention of Britain in front pages was notable, with only Le Soir referring to the EU's 'new chapter' after 27 years.

Britain's exit from the bloc prompted jubilant Brexiteers to heraldthe moment with celebrations across the country, including a flagship bash in London's Parliament Square headlined by Nigel Farage.

Britain's last moments inside the EU were ticked off in a light show projected on to the famous black door of Downing Street, where Boris Johnson held a muted party for his staff after releasing a pre-recorded address to the nation.

The Prime Minister hailed the 'moment of hope, a moment many people thought would never come' and said Brexit would 'unleash' the UK's potential - but warned there will be more 'bumps in the road'.

Many Remainers are still deeply uneasy about severing ties with the bloc and are cautioning that the Brexit saga is not yet concluded.

Britain has now entered an 11-month transition period with the EU, during which time the government will race to strike a trade deal before December.

Austria's Die Presse simply had a painting of a draped Union Jack with 'Goodbye!' written above it

France's Liberation compiled a special edition newspaper with the words 'It's Time' on the front page

Any future wrangling with Brussels was far from the minds of revellers last night however.

Party-goers waved Union Jacks and cheered triumphantly following victory speeches by key architects of Brexit including Mr Farage, who is no longer an MEP after being a disruptive force in the European Parliament for over 20 years.

The Brexit Party leader said on Friday: 'There is one thing above all we must celebrate tonight and it is this. The reason we are here tonight is because Westminster became detached from the people in this country.

'The people have beaten the establishment. The real winner tonight is democracy. And I am someone who believes we should be pro-Europe, but not the European Union.'

Choruses of God Save The Queen and The Land of Hope And Glory swung round Parliament Square, and were echoed in similar parties up and down the UK.
Lagos State Government has revealed that why Governor Babajide Sanwo-Olu banned the activities of commercial motorcycles, popularly called Okada, and tricycles, known as Keke Napep in the state.

KanyiDaily had reported that Lagos government banned okada and Keke Napep, including ORide and Gokada, motorbike hailing services in 15 local councils, effective from February 1, 2020.

Many Lagosians have condemned the state government for this action, saying it will increase the rate of crime in the state as no palliative measures were put in place to cushion the effect it will have on those whose livelihood depends on riding okadas and tricycles popularly called keke napep.

Motorbike hailing services like Oride, Gokada accused the state government of not consulting them before announcing its decision to ban motorcycle taxis. Many of the riders took to the streets to protest against the action.

MAINLAND UPDATE: Gokada and Max riders are currently protesting the okada ban on the streets of Lagos. pic.twitter.com/TbPkqUzGyL  Inside Mainland (@InsideMainland) January 31, 2020

Feeding answers to why motorbike hailing services were affected, the government said they were part of the problem. It said they were not part of the greater Lagos journey on which the state has embarked.

The government lamented that youths are no longer interested in trades like tailoring, bricklaying, printing, painting and others.

The truth is that okada, no matter what fanciful name its called, is not part of our greater Lagos journey on which we have embarked, it said. Our youths no longer learn the trades we used to be proud of- tailoring, bricklaying, printing, painting and others. Now we get artisans from neighbouring countries. Okada is not an enduring trade, it said.

Asked why there were no alternatives in place before embarking on the ban, it said things were bad already, and the government could not fold its arm and watch it get worse.

The security of lives of Lagosians is of paramount interest to the Governor Babjide Sanwo-Olus administration. This is why it is moving to stop the first slide into lawlessness

Regarding those who may become jobless because of the ban, the Lagos government said there were programmes in place for the unemployed.

The Lagos State Employment Trust Fund, LSETF, is very active, helping many to set up their businesses with cheap funds. The ministry of women affairs and poverty alleviation has also been doing so much training young women in various trades and giving them some money to set up, it added.

Responding to the fears of people about the rate of crime increasing, the state government assured that it will not.

It said okadas were used to carry out criminal activities and the figures of such from the police were scary.

According to the government, it is ready to deal with anybody who plans on taking to crime because he lost his okada job.

Okada has been used by criminals to rob and terrorise innocent citizens. Police figures are scary. When it was banned in Kano and Edo, for instance, crime rates dropped. The law enforcement agencies are ready to fix anybody who wants to take to crime because he has lost his Okada job, it said.

ALSO READ: Lagos Government Shuts Down Christ Embassy, Mosques And Others Over Noise Pollution
A German military plane carrying German citizens from Wuhan amid coronavirus outbreak was blocked from stopping in Russia for crew-change and refueling, DW reported.

Moscow explained the move by lack of capacity at the airport.

An aircraft carrying 128 evacuees from Wuhan departed from Wuhan on Saturday and landed in Frankfurt.

After Moscows refusal, the plane was diverted to Helsinki.
Former Taoiseach Bertie Ahern speaking about the future of the Good Friday Agreement at Fridays Economic Conference in Killarney. Photo by Valerie OSullivan

A united Ireland is a possibility, but a comprehensive study is needed of what this will entail, according to former Taoiseach Bertie Ahern.

The Former Fianna Fail leader also said that the a coalition with Sinn Fein and the FF party may have to be considered.

"I think the best thing on all of this, is that people change their minds very rapidly in elections so we'll wait until mid-February, see what the numbers look like and then we'll see how the cards are played, but it's an issue we will be talking about next month," said Mr Ahern.

Mr Ahern joined economic, civil, political and business leaders last Friday at the third Killarney Economic Conference to discuss a range of issues including the future of the Good Friday Agreement.

Mr Ahern called for an in-depth study of how the whole system of a United Ireland would work, but he said he disagreed with any suggestion to call a Border Poll in the near future.

"I, of course, would like to see a United Ireland sometime, whenever it happens. There are literally hundreds of issues that have to be addressed.

"I do agree with those who have said that there should be a study of these issues. I'd like to see it academically done with expertise from finance and law experts," he told the conference.

A united Ireland was also discussed by the Rt Hon Carwyn Jones AM, the First Minister in the Welsh Assembly from 2008 to 2018.

"There are still some issues that people need to see resolved, it's [a united Ireland] closer than it's been, but I don't think we're in a position where people would vote for it in Northern Ireland. On the question of whether the Republic could want or afford the North, I don't think there would be a choice emotionally. The reality is that if there was a vote [on reunification] it's inevitable the people would want to see a united Ireland,"

Brexit was also a topic of discussion at the conference with Professor John O'Brennan; Jean Monnet, Professor of European Integration at Maynooth University; Professor Katy Hayward, Reader in Sociology at Queens University Belfast; Professor Ronan McCrea, Professor of Constitutional and European Law at University College London speaking, Chaired by Matthew O'Toole, SDLP MLA for South Belfast.

The business focus of the economic conference focused on family business.

The Executive Director of the Family Business Network, John McGrane, has called for the creation of a Department of Family Business with a senior Minister at the helm.

Other topics for discussion in the afternoon session included sustainable rural development, German and Irish relations. The 2020 Killarney Economic Conference heard that a priority for the local authority is to strengthen communities and economies in urban and rural areas. The Chief Officer of the Local Community Development Committee (LCDC) in Kerry County Council, Niamh O'Sullivan, said the Community Support Fund is often over-subscribed, which shows the indication or need out there for small-scale community support.

"Groups are constantly telling us that those small grants mean so much for them, to enable them to continue their voluntary work on the ground," she said.

"I don't think anybody should underestimate the value of the smaller grants that we do give to community groups. On average, 350 groups benefit every year," she said.

Niamh O'Sullivan was joined on the panel discussion on Rural Development by Eamon Ryan, Green Party Leader as well as other academics and rural development workers.
Born out of a young mothers courage, this Trust reaches out in many ways Sashini Rodrigo gets an insight into the wig project conducted by the Indira Cancer Trust View(s): View(s):

Indira Jayasuriya was diagnosed with breast cancer in 2008. However, being the fighter she was, she recovered after a series of chemotherapy sessions. Her cancer resurfaced during her second pregnancy, and determined to survive for the sake of her children, she delayed her treatment until her son was born. Sadly, she passed away in 2016.

Throughout her illness, Indira kept a smile on her face. Widely reported in the media, the story of her battle with cancer reached other patients and gave them the courage to keep fighting.

Indiras story and all that her family underwent, led to the idea of supporting cancer patients and their families. The Indira Cancer Trust (ICT) was established in 2016 by Indiras father Speaker Karu Jayasuriya, and today oversees nearly 27 major projects. This includes the Mobile Mammography and Breast Prosthesis Projects, livelihood development programmes, counselling, funeral support, Wig Making for A Cause, and more.

Of all the programmes that ICT conducts, the wig making project launched in July 2017 is one that most people dont understand the significance of. But it is of utmost importance to the cancer patients who have lost their hair because of chemotherapy, as they face the stigma attached to having cancer.

The wig donation drive aims at helping these patients feel themselves again. At present, the trust has given out nearly 975 wigs, through donations or self sponsorships. Prior to this, there was no facility for Sri Lankans to donate hair for Sri Lankans. In partnership with Ramani Fernando Salons, 15 branches located in Colombo, Negombo and Kandy send boxes of hair to the ICT every month. 18,357 ponytails have been donated to date.

The response they have received upto now has been amazing with so many people wanting to donate hair, Chairperson and trustee Dr. Lanka Jayasuriya Dissanayake tells us.

However, the Trust still needs to construct the wigs out of the hair received. Each wig is custom made by Lalith Dharmawardana and his team, and designed in the style of the patients actual hair to make them feel themselves again. Upon visiting the ICT office, patients fill out an application and have their measurements taken.

One of the biggest challenges ICT faces is the lack of funds to make these wigs. Each wig costs approximately Rs.12,500 to make. The trust hopes to purchase a machine that weaves the hair together to expedite the wig-making process, but it is a huge expense and the team simply does not have the funds yet.

Cancer is all-consuming, draining one mentally, physically, emotionally and financially. Because of this, the team prioritises the wellbeing of each patient that walks in to their office. A cancer patient would always need empathy, as opposed to sympathy, says ICT senior Joan Hyde.

You could help too ICTs operation would not be possible without the careful coordination and assistance from their 400 active volunteers and more. Following in the footsteps of their ICT seniors, these volunteers (also known as the juniors) are organising fundraisers to raise Rs one million for the wig making drive. The first of these fundraisers will be a movie screening of Angel Has Fallen at Liberty Lite Cinema at 4. 30 p.m. on February 4  World Cancer Day. Tickets priced at Rs. 1000 are available. Please call Gavin on 0761846075 or Dinal on 0772287764. As they continue their efforts to raise more funds for their projects, they hope to welcome more volunteers to help carry out this important work. For more information, contact +94 11 236 3211 or email indiracancertrust@gmail.com. ICT also runs the countrys only Cancer Helpline for patients requiring emotional support or assistance, and can be contacted on 0112 363 211. See also indiracancertrust.org Donations towards the trust are always welcome, and can be made to:

Account Name: Indira Cancer Trust Bank: Commercial Bank Branch: Duplication Road A/C No: 868 002 4505
Malawi's constitutional court is set to rule next week on whether to annul controversial poll results that saw the re-election of President Peter Mutharika, a verdict widely expected to stoke turmoil. The case has gripped the southern African nation and kept Malawians glued to radio stations for hours on end listening to live broadcasts of witnesses presenting evidence of alleged vote rigging. Sporadic protests have broken out across the country since Mutharika was declared the winner by a narrow margin in May presidential elections with 38.5 percent of the vote. Runner-up Lazarus Chakwera, who lost by just 159,000 votes, alleges he was robbed of victory. His Malawi Congress Party (MCP) and the opposition United Transformation Movement (UTM) have petitioned the courts to annul the poll. A panel of judges is scheduled to deliver the verdict on Monday morning. It is the first time presidential elections have been legally challenged in Malawi since the country gained independence from Britain in 1964. Protesters have been demanding the resignation of the electoral commission chief, and several demonstrations have turned violent. "There will be winners and losers and we are not sure how the losers will react," said Malawian politics professor Michael Jana. A number of schools and companies have closed for the week, fearing violence could erupt after the ruling is announced. - 'Expecting change' - Anticipation was high in the financial capital Blantyre, Malawi's second-largest city. "I'm expecting change," said Chatonda Jembe, who works as an administrator. "Not necessarily change in leadership (but) change in attitude." "The leadership on both sides of the political divide know they can no longer take people for granted." Anger flared last month after Chief Justice Andrew Nyirenda claimed bribes had been offered to the five judges presiding over the case. Malawi's anti-graft body vowed to probe the allegations and arrested top banker Thom Mpinganjira last week. Both Chakwera and UTM candidate Saulos Chilima have urged supporters to maintain peace and accept the court's decision, regardless of the outcome. "There is more that binds us than that which separates us," Chilima told reporters on Thursday in the capital Lilongwe. "No matter which corner of this country we come from, we are a peace-loving people and we look out for each other." Chakwera called on his supporters to welcome the ruling with "open arms" as a base for "rebuilding our nation". Meanwhile, the army and police said additional security measures would be deployed on judgement day. "Nobody should be worried about security," commander Vincent Nundwe told AFP. "The army and the police will work together to make sure there is enough security in the country." - 'Pivotal moment' - Opposition leaders allege the election's tally sheets were tampered with, even claiming that polling station agents used correction fluid to alter some results. Mutharika has repeatedly dismissed their accusations and brushed off doubts about the official results. "The government urges all political parties in the country and other stakeholders to respect the rule of law," said spokesman Mark Botomani. "Destruction of the country is counterproductive." If the judges rule in favour of the opposition, Mutharika's party is likely to appeal before the supreme court. Law professor Danwood Chirwa said that process was likely to be settled within two months. "If it takes longer than this there will be too much chaos," he told AFP. Fresh elections are expected to be held 60 days after the constitutional court ruling if the appeal is unsuccessful. A joint statement by British, American and several European ambassadors on Thursday referred to the verdict as a "pivotal moment" in Malawi's history. It echoes a historic decision by Kenya's judiciary to annul presidential election results over claims of widespread irregularities in 2017. "This impasse has held us back for a long time," said James Gobede, who sells dried goods in Blantyre's Limbe market. "It is time the nation resolved this so that we can get back to normalcy." Allegations of vote-rigging have heightened tensions throughout Malawi Malawi President Peter Mutharika has repeatedly dismissed accusations of vote-rigging Protests have broken out in the Malawian capital Lilongwe following accusations that bribes were offered to the five judges on the case
Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman, while presenting the Union Budget 2020-21 on Saturday, made proposals for leveraging data including a policy to enable private sector in building the Data Centre Parks throughout the countries, thus enabling firms to incorporate in every step of their value chains.

Highlighting the importance of 'data as the new oil', Sitharaman stated that Analytics, Fintech and IoT are changing the way we deal with our lives.

She proposed several measures to take advantage of this power of data which include linking 100,000 Gram Panchayats this year with Fibre to the Home (FTTH) connections through Bharatnet. This will fulfil the vision of providing digital connectivity to all 'public institutions' like Anganwadis, health and wellness centres, government schools, etc., at the Gram Panchayat level. It is proposed to provide Rs 6000 crore to Bharatnet programme in 2020-21, the minister said.

Emphasising on the disruptive innovations of the 'New Economy' like Artificial Intelligence (AI), the Union Finance and Corporate Affairs Minister, Nirmala Sitharaman proposed further measures by the Government to take advantage of these new technologies.

The Finance Minister observed that technologies like AI, Internet-of-Things (IoT), 3D printing, drones, DNA data storage, quantum computing, etc., are re-writing the world economic order.

She noted that India has already embraced new paradigms such as the sharing economy with aggregator platforms displacing conventional businesses. The Minister added that the Government has also harnessed these new technologies to enable direct benefit transfers and financial inclusion on a scale never imagined before.

With a view to expanding the base for knowledge-driven enterprises, the Finance Minister underscored the importance of intellectual property creation and protection. In this regard, she proposed several measures to benefit start-ups.

To promote a digital platform that would facilitate seamless application and capture of IPRs. A Centre is also proposed to be established in an Institute of Eminence for working on innovation in the field of Intellectual Property.

Knowledge Translation Clusters to be set up across different technology sectors including new and emerging areas.

Technology Clusters, with test beds and small scale manufacturing facilities for designing, fabrication and validation of proof of concept to be established.

Two National-level Science Schemes are to be initiated to create a comprehensive database of mapping India's genetic landscape, given its criticality for next-generation medicine, agriculture and biodiversity management.

It is also proposed to provide early life funding, including a seed fund, to support ideation and development of early-stage Start-ups.

The Finance Minister also noted that quantum technology is opening up new frontiers in computing, communications, cybersecurity with wide-spread applications. She pointed out that a lot of commercial applications are expected to emerge from theoretical constructs developing in this area.

Thus, the Minister proposed to provide an outlay of Rs. 8000 crore over a period of five years for the Mission on Quantum Technologies and Applications.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
Hours after Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman announced plans to sell the government's remaining stake in IDBI Bank, its officers' association said any move to change the services conditions of the employees of the LIC-controlled lender will be opposed.

Despite being a private sector bank, since LIC took the majority stake in January last year, IDBI Bank employees still enjoy service benefits on par with the rest of public sector banks (PSBs).

Presenting the Union Budget for 2020-21, the minister said the government will be exiting IDBI Bank by selling its stake to retail and institutional investors through a market offering.

The government currently holds 47.11 per cent stake in IDBI Bank, while LIC owns 51 per cent.

The sent the IDBI Bank stock gaining as much as 17.55 per cent to Rs 39.85 in intra-day trade. It closed the day 10.03 per cent higher at Rs 37.30 on the BSE.

"As long as our service contract conditions are not changed we do not have any issues with the government move. We will seek a written assurance on this," IDBI Bank Officers Association General Secretary Vithal Koteswara Rao told PTI.

IDBI Bank was set up as a Development Financial Institution in 1964. Later, it was transformed into a Bank in 2004.

Though the Reserve Bank re-categorised it as a private sector bank, the Department of Financial Services still lists it as a state-owned bank.

"We want these service contracts to remain unchanged," Rao said.

The union said it will also request the government to allow them to switch to other nationalised banks.

In January 2019, LIC was asked to acquire 51 per cent controlling stake in IDBI bank.

In the September quarter of 2019-20, IDBI Bank, which is under prompt corrective action (PCA) since May 2017, had received Rs 4,743 crore from LIC, and Rs 4,557 crore from the government.

The bank had reported a net loss of Rs 3,459 crore in the said quarter, marginally better than Rs 3,602 crore in the year-ago period.

Last month, the bank met the Reserve Bank to seek lifting of the lending restrictions.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
Metro Manila (CNN Philippines, January 31)  More novel coronavirus cases in the Philippines are likely to be confirmed in the next couple of days as the two-week incubation period of the disease passes, a former health secretary said.

Esperanza Cabral, who served as head of the Department of Health in 2010, said she expects the tally of the novel coronavirus (2019-nCoV) cases in the country to keep climbing.

"Dadami pa 'yan kasi hindi naman tayo nagpipigil ng maraming tao na pumasok dito mula sa areas na merong cases ng coronavirus [More cases will be reported because we didn't issue a travel ban for any visitors coming in from areas with confirmed cases of the coronavirus]," Cabral said in a separate interview.

She added that the cases are bound to go up to factor in the incubation period of the disease, which ranges from two days to two weeks. "People who have been to China and able to come in through this period are only experiencing symptoms now, tsaka lang sila pupunta sa doktor [that's the only time they will visit a doctor]," Cabral said.

CNN International reported that there are over 9,700 cases worldwide, with 213 people dead in mainland China as of early Friday. The 2019-nCoV has spread to 23 countries.

Cabral acknowledged the speed of 2019-nCoV's spread compared to previous viral diseases. She pointed out that the Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome or SARS outbreak in 2003 took nine months to infect less than 10,000 people. In contrast, the number of 2019-nCoV infections are close to 10,000 in just a month.

Authorities earlier confirmed the country's first novel coronavirus case  a 38-year-old Chinese woman who visited Wuhan City and flew to Cebu, Dumaguete and Manila last week. The woman is well "with the occasional cough," and is currently under isolation at the San Lazaro Hospital in Manila, DOH epidemiology bureau head Dr. Ferchito Avelino said. Another person is under observation in the same hospital, with the results of the test conducted in Australia expected in two days.

Avelino told CNN Philippines' The Source that there are more patients being observed for possible infection with the virus, a day after authorities reported the first confirmed case in Manila. The number nearly doubled from the 29 suspected cases as of Thursday afternoon.

However, he later clarified that the 56 cases are being probed as "2019-nCoV related health events," which includes 29 patients under investigation for the virus. The distinction between 2019-nCoV related health events and patients under investigation was not immediately clear. Avelino has not responded to further questions and calls.

Contact tracing

DOH epidemiologists have been sent to Central Visayas to track down people who have been in contact with the woman, particularly those who sat near her in the flights she took, and those who interacted with her in a resort in Dumaguete where she stayed for four days.

Authorities have traced the woman's travel history and found that she only stayed in Cebu to catch a flight to Dumaguete, before heading to Manila where she got checked. Avelino said the woman had no signs of the disease except for the occasional cough.

"At the time she arrived in the Philippines, she never had any fever. She passed through the Bureau of Quarantine thermal scanning... She could have been repressing her cough or has not been coughing that much, so people would not notice she had that kind of condition," the DOH official said.

RELATED: China says coronavirus can spread before symptoms show  calling into question US containment strategy

More cases expected

Former Health Secretary Esperanza Cabral said she expects cases of the novel coronavirus in the country to keep climbing.

"Dadami pa 'yan kasi hindi naman tayo nagpipigil ng maraming tao na pumasok dito mula sa areas na merong cases ng coronavirus [More cases will be reported because we didn't issue a travel ban for any visitors coming in from areas with confirmed cases of the coronavirus]," Cabral said in a separate interview.

She added that the cases are bound to go up to factor in the incubation period of the disease, which ranges from two days to two weeks. "People who have been to China and able to come in through this period are only experiencing symptoms now, tsaka lang sila pupunta sa doktor [that's the only time they will visit a doctor]," Cabral said.

CNN International reported that there are over 9,700 cases worldwide, with 213 people dead in mainland China as of early Friday. The 2019-nCoV has spread to 23 countries.

Cabral acknowledged how fast the 2019-nCoV can spread compared to previous viral diseases. She pointed out that the Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome or SARS outbreak in 2003 took nine months to infect nearly 10,000 people. In contrast, 2019-nCoV infections are closing in on that mark in just a month.

On Friday morning, Presidential Spokesperson Salvador Panelo said President Rodrigo Duterte has issued a travel ban on Chinese nationals coming in from infected areas in the mainland. The disease originated from Hubei province and has spread to all regions of China, CNN reported. Lawmakers have earlier called for the temporary travel ban to prevent the spread of the disease.

Stricter quarantine

Separately, health officials said they are eyeing to set up facilities that will host travelers from China in isolation, and are refining the set of indicators authorities use in monitoring possible cases in ports.

"What were looking at at the moment is to recommend a facility-based quarantine for all passengers coming from China, but this has to go through the proper channels. We will be recommending this within the day," Avelino said, adding this was a scaled-down response compared to the ebola virus outbreak abroad, when suspected carriers were quaratined on an isolated island for a month.

For the confirmed case in Manila, the official said the San Lazaro Hospital is well-equipped to handle the case and strict infection controls are in place in the area.

Clean devices, drink fluids: Simple ways to protect yourself from coronavirus

"For those na nangangamba, ang San Lazaro is known to be the referral hospital for infectious diseases... Rest assured 'yung ating mga pasyente sa San Lazaro, sila po ay napo-protektahan from the possible infection na nasa ibang area ng ospital," Avelino added, noting that patients seeking help for other illnesses can still visit San Lazaro Hospital.

[Translation: For those worrying, San Lazaro is known to be the referral hospital for infectious diseases. Rest assured that patients there are protected from any other possible infections in other areas of the hospital.]

Health officials have repeatedly stressed the need to observe good hygiene such as frequent and thorough handwashing, wearing of protective masks, and cooking food properly to reduce the risk of contracting the disease.
Last week, shares in GlaxoSmithKline reached highs they haven't touched since 2001.

That's perhaps a sign that investors are finally warming to plans outlined by boss Emma Walmsley to transform the British pharma company into a leaner, meaner, medicine-making machine.

And on Wednesday investors will get an update of how this is going when it reports full-year results.

For years Glaxo has been seen as a laggard compared to faster-growing Astrazeneca, which has wowed the industry with its blockbuster cancer drugs, stealing a march on its arch-rival.

But under Walmsley, Glaxo has ramped up its research efforts, snapped up innovative cancer specialist Tesaro, struck a deal to use genetic data in medicine trials and  most significantly  decided to spin off its consumer arm in 2022.

But as ever, with spending on research now a priority, there will be questions about the company's dividend this week.

Unchanged since 2014 at 80p, Walmsley has committed to paying it for the full year again  but there are no promises after that.

But given that Walmsley has shown herself capable of taking radical decisions, this remains one to watch.
"When it comes to the health and welfare, then that comes first," he said. Loading "We could expect that to have an impact obviously on tourist arrivals for obvious reasons and the broader economic impacts of that. That is not our first concern at the moment but we are very mindful of it." The restrictions do not apply to people who have come from Hong Kong or Macau. The government is also looking at the crews of ships who ply goods and resources between Australia and China. In the past year, China received more than $80 billion worth of Australian iron ore with some of that delivered to ports hundreds of kilometres inland.

Although most of these journeys take more than 14 days, there are concerns about possible transmission of the virus. China accounts for a third of Australia's goods exports. It is also the biggest source of foreign tourists and students. It comes following confirmation of three more cases of coronavirus in Australia. A Melbourne woman in her 20s who flew from China last weekend and a couple aged in their 60s in South Australia were revealed by health authorities to have the disease. All three had been in Wuhan. Late on Saturday, Australians shortlisted for the evacuation flight out of Wuhan received a letter confirming the plane will leave on February 3, subject to approval from China, and all permanent Australian residents will be allowed to board the flight as long as they are on the manifest.

More than 100,000 tourists from China arrive in Australia monthly while February also brings the return of tens of thousands of Chinese students to the nation's schools and universities. Education Minister Dan Tehan will work with the university sector to look at ways to reduce disruptions for students. This may include delaying the start of courses and orientation weeks or the provision of more work online. Monash University in Melbourne has already delayed classes for a week and cancelled hundreds of exams. Universities Australia Chief Executive Catriona Jackson said the sector would seek to increase flexibility to students affected by the ban.

"Our universities will continue to adhere meticulously to the advice of health and immigration authorities, while managing the impact for our students," she said. The ban will remain in place for at least the next fortnight. The move came as Qantas announced it was suspending its two direct flights between China and Australia from February 9 until March 29. It said that decision was due to entry restrictions imposed on the movement of airline crew by both Singapore and the United States. "These entry restrictions pose significant logistical challenges for rostering crew to operate mainland China services, leading to the need to temporarily suspend these flights," it said in a statement.

Qantas said the move, which does not affect its flights to Hong Kong, could be brought forward depending on passenger demand. The Morrison government's move came soon after the US announced similar restrictions on non-American citizens who have been in mainland China. The US has also urged its citizens not to visit China at this time. The Chinese Foreign Ministry criticised the US decision to increase travel alert levels. Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Hua Chunying said: Just as the WHO recommended against travel restrictions, the United States rushed to go in the opposite way. Certainly its not a gesture of goodwill. Christine Zhang, director of one of the largest Chinese tour operators in Victoria, said about 30 of her customers were in the air on flights to Melbourne from China on Saturday night.
WASHINGTON, Jan 31 (Reuters) - Ministers from Egypt, Ethiopia and Sudan said on Friday they would sign a final agreement by the end of February on the giant Blue Nile hydropower dam that sparked a years-long diplomatic crisis between Cairo and Addis Ababa.

In a joint statement with the United States and the World Bank after four days of talks in Washington, the nations said they had agreed on a schedule for staged filling of the Grand Ethiopian Renaissance Dam and mitigation mechanisms to adjust the filling and operation of the dam during dry periods and drought. (Reporting by Daphne Psaledakis and Andrea Shalal; Editing by Dan Grebler)
Egypt, Ethiopia and Sudan will meet again in Washington on 12-13 February to approve the final version of the agreement in preparation for signing it by the end of February

Egypt, Ethiopia and Sudan are set to sign a final agreement by the end of February on Addis Ababa's Grand Ethiopian Renaissance Dam (GERD), a joint statement by the three countries, the United States and the World Bank read late Friday, hoping to secure an agreement which has stirred months of conflict and a deadlock in talks.

The ministers of foreign affairs and water resources of the three countries agreed on a schedule for the filling plan; a mitigation mechanism for the filling of the GERD during drought, prolonged drought, and prolonged periods of dry years; and a mitigation mechanism for the annual and long-term operation of the GERD in drought, prolonged drought, and prolonged periods of dry years.

The last round of negotiations, which began on 28 and 29 January and saw an extension to two additional days, were sponsored by the US and the World Bank, who act as observers in the talks.

The issues are still subject to a final signing of the comprehensive agreement, where the ministers instructed their technical and legal teams to prepare the final agreement, including the mentioned points.

The ministers of foreign affairs and water resources of the three countries will meet again in Washington on 12-13 February 2020 to approve the final version of the agreement in preparation for signing it by the end of February 2020.

The ministers also agreed to finalise a mechanism for the annual and long-term operation of the GERD in normal hydrological conditions, a coordination mechanism, and provisions for the resolution of disputes and the sharing of information.

They also agreed to address dam safety and pending studies on the environmental and social impacts of the GERD.

In a separate statement, Egypts foreign ministry said following the conclusion of the four-day talks in Washington that the American side has prepared a document for an agreement on the three above-mentioned issues; [where] only Egypt signed the document at the end of the meeting.

It remains unclear which of the two other countries abstained from the signing of the US-prepared document.

The latest talks comes few weeks after Egypt, Ethiopia, and Sudan reached a preliminary consensus in a round held earlier this month in Washington ahead of a critical deadline to finalise an agreement on the disputed dam.

Tensions have been building between Egypt and Ethiopia in recent months after talks on the technical details governing the operation of the dam had failed to make progress.

Ethiopia hopes that the massive $4.8 billion project on the Blue Nile, which has been under construction since 2011, will allow it to become Africas largest power exporter.



Search Keywords:

Short link:


Alagalla: Has the rape of forest reserve begun? By Tharushi Weerasinghe View(s): View(s):

A chance sighting of an illegal structure in-the-making raises questions

The Naranbedda Forest Officethe relevant area authority lacks resources to do regular patrols

The only building that has got authorisation is the existing temple, say officials

Environmentalists on a research expedition two weeks ago stumbled upon building materials and the signs of a house being erected on the mountain range within the picturesque Alagalla Forest Reserve in the Kegalle District.

There was evidence of sand and soil quarrying. Plastic bottles and polythene material were strewn around. The group was immediately suspicious that the permanent structure they saw before them was taking shape as a tourist rest.

Since December 2012, vast swathes of Alagalla, including where the researchers now stood, have been reserved forest under the Forest Conservation Ordinance. Also known as the Potato Mountain range and bordering the Central and Sabaragamuwa Provinces, the reserve is a watershed for many rivers including the Maha Oya and Rambukkan Oya.

A number of small springs vital to households and to paddy cultivation are found at the base of the range. Isolated hill forests like Alagalla are vital to conserving biodiversity as some of the countrys endemic species are restricted to these patches, environmentalists said, adding that they assist in the migration of faunal species between much larger forest reserves through geographical linkage.

This isnt the first time Alagallas status as a protected forest has been violated. In May 2014, the Alagalla Pabbatharamayaa gleaming white chaithyawas erected on the Pooja Gala section of the mountain range. It was inaugurated in November the following year.

The Conservator General of Forests, whose job it is to oversee these matters, had approved the temple construction on a request by the Secretary of the Kehelwatte Wattegama Dhammika Sri Punyawardanaramaye Dayaka Sabhawa, said officials from the Rambukkana Divisional Secretariat and the Kegalle Divisional Forest Office.

The miscellaneous permit said an area of 0.0777 hectares or three-fourth of an acre could be used. And it imposed terms and conditions, including the payment of a mere Rs 200 annual rent and yearly renewal of the licence. It also prohibited the transfer of land access to third parties without the permission of the Forest Conservator.

The new house the researchers found is around 100m from this temple. And the workers camping there had claimed they received approval for it from the chief priest of the chaithya, Ven Kadigamuwe Dhammika Thera. He did not answer his phone despite repeated attempts to contact him.

Among other things, regulations imposed under the Forest Conservation Ordinance strictly prohibit the clearing or breaking up of soil, digging up of any land for cultivation, preparing of land for any building purposes or cultivating of any land already cleared within a reserve. It is also banned to erect any hut or building (permanent or temporary) or to occupy any building so erected.

In addition to imprisonment or fines, the punishment for offences comprises compensation for any damage caused to the reserved forest. Such compensation shall be equivalent to the actual value of the damage caused to the Reserved Forest and shall be charged and recovered as a fine levied by Court, the law states.

Construction of any kind was strictly prohibited in a forest reserve, confirmed Jagath Gunawardena, environmental lawyer. Nevertheless, the Act provides for religious institutions to establish hermitages in specified areas with official permission from the Forest Department of Sri Lanka.

And, yet, the Alagalla Pabbatharamaya is not registered under the Vihara Gam Dewala Act (Buddhist Temporalities Ordinance), which is implemented by the Ministry of Buddha Sasana. It is only approved by the Department of Forests.

But it was not uncommon for temples to be unregistered because of rivalries among chief priests, an official from the Vihara Gam Dewala Division of the Ministry of Buddha Sasasana said. They often block new places of worship from being registered in order to prevent them from eating into their reservoir of devotees.

Temples such as these are usually erected only in places of religious significance due to the sensitivity of the ecosystems in reserved forests. He was not aware of the site having such importance, said G S D Gamlath, Assistant Divisional Secretary of Rambukkana. He said he would inquire from the local population.

In recent times, the Alagalla Pabbatharamaya has become a popular tourist destination for those who favour the mountain range for its environmentally diverse hiking trails and scenic water bodies, such as the Dekinda Ella. There are now more people going into the reserve, impacting its balance, an environmentalist said, requesting anonymity over personal safety concerns.

The Naranbedda Forest Officethe relevant area authoritydid not know about the new building activity until the Sunday Times questioned them about it. If they patrolled the reserve at all, it would rarely be more than once a year. They had only two officers and were severely handicapped by a lack of resources and funds.

They have to patrol from Rambukkana to Mawanella, which is around 100km, with only Rs 3,000 worth of diesel given per month, said an authoritative source. There are only two of them and they spend their time attending office work, going to courts and patrolling as many forests and possible.

Conservator General W A C Weragoda confirmed that his Department faced severe challenges owing to a shortage of field workers such as beat officers.

Additionally, the legislation related to reserved forests was technical. Local residents often lacked the information they needed to be vigilant to potential violations of conditions in the miscellaneous permit. This, paired with no field monitoring, has resulted in more structures comingincluding in areas around the temple. The floodgates, environmentalists fear, are being thrown open to further rape of the forest.

There has been no authorisation for any other construction but the chaithya by the Rambukkana Divisional Secretariat, the Kegalle Divisional Forest Office and the Rambukkana Forest Office. The structures the environmentalists came upon, therefore, were illegal.

On Monday, people will start trekking up to the chaithya for an annual pilgrimage. The Naranbedda Forest Office is expected to go up there to tell them not to litter. Large crowds converging on the reserve is bad enough. Now it remains to be seen what they will do about the increasing modifications that are taking place around the temple, seemingly unbeknownst to the very authorities tasked with preventing them.
Every year, the San Antonio Stock Show & Rodeo adds plenty of new attractions to keep things fresh. Theyve done that again this year, but for many longtime fans, the biggest changes to the event will be geographic.

So get a map of the grounds, people, because the fairgrounds layout has changed, and a number of popular attractions are no longer where they used to be.

We did studies and made some changes to where things are located to improve traffic flow, said Lauren Sides, the stock show and rodeos communications and public relations manager. We hope the changes will provide our guests with a better experience.

Perhaps the biggest change is that the carnival has been moved from its longtime home near the south end of the Freeman Coliseum to a larger area in Parking Lot No. 4 on the east side of the AT&T Center, adjacent to the livestock barns.

San Antonio Stock Show & Rodeo

The new location has room for a dozen more rides than last year, for a total of 60, Sides said, including a larger roller coaster. Two other popular attractions, the High Energy Show and the Swifty Swine Pig Races, will be moved to the area so those who only go to the carnival can get a taste of what theyre missing in the rest of the fairgrounds.

Heres a look at some of the other big changes and new wrinkles. (For advance tickets, full schedules and to register for events, visit sarodeo.com):

Bustin in the Barn: A new place for an old favorite: mutton busting. Kids 4 to 7 weighing 55 pounds or less will compete to see how long they can stay atop a sprinting sheep, with winners earning a chance to ride in the big boy (and girl) rodeo event inside the AT&T Center.

Texas Wildlife Expo: The interactive exhibit that teaches visitors about native Texas wildlife and how to conserve natural resources moves into the Freeman Coliseum concourse and to the outside of the building.

Live music: A new music stage, dubbed Chute 7, has been added to the east side of the AT&T Center. It will feature cover bands playing classic rock. Four other stages will, for the first time, specialize in specific musical genres. The Food Court Pavilion stage will feature Tejano and Mexican-influenced music; the Watering Hole stage will be all about acoustic music; the Courtyard stage will be where local country music lives; and the members-only Frontier Club stage will feature local country music and cover bands.

Charreada: The rodeos first-ever Mexican rodeo will take place at 5 p.m. Feb. 16 in the Expo Hall. Tickets are $20, which includes fairgrounds admission.

Rodeo wildcard event: Rodeo performers will compete Feb. 10-16 in the Expo Hall for the opportunity to participate in the rodeo wildcard performance on Feb. 21 in the AT&T Center.

Dan-Dan the Farmer Man: A kid-friendly interactive comedy show plays daily inside Little Buckaroo Farms.

New foods: In addition to longtime favorites, new on the menu are cosmic cotton candy and rattlesnake sausage.

Richard A. Marini is a features writer in the San Antonio and Bexar County area. Read him on our free site, mySA.com, and on our subscriber site, ExpressNews.com. | rmarini@express-news.net | Twitter: @RichardMarini
The four men will be sentenced next week (stock photo)

A gang has been convicted of conspiring to rob an international jewellery salesman of a suitcase filled with 4m worth of precious gems.

Joseph Savoie, who worked for exclusive US designer Le Vian, was ambushed in a car park as he walked to Ernest Jones in Staines, west London, to display high-value stones. He was beaten to the ground and battered almost unconscious after taking the jewel-filled case from his car boot on May 13 last year.

His attackers had stalked him in a Mercedes fitted with fake number plates before pouncing, even ripping his watch and gold necklace from him along with the case.

Lee Gardner (48), of Wood Green, north London; Camilo Carvajal (40), of Lewisham, south east London; Ciro Troyano (41), of Southwark, south London, and Oscar Hicks (38), of St Leonards-on-Sea, were all convicted of conspiracy to rob in the "professionally planned" operation on yesterday at Kingston Crown Court.

The four men will be sentenced next week.
System error

error: Can't call method "get_id" on an undefined value at /usr/local/bricolage/data/burn/stage/oc_1027/smetimes/dhandler.html line 25.

context: ... 21: </%method> 22: 23: % foreach my $c (@categories) { 24: <%perl> 25: my $category_id = $c->get_id(); 26: my @stories = Bric::Biz::Asset::Business::Story->list ( { element_type_id=>1148, category_id=>$category_id , Order=> 'cover_date', publish_status => 't' , OrderDirection=> 'DESC' , Limit=>10 } ); 27: </%perl> 28: <table width="90%" border="0" cellspacing="0" cellpadding="0"> 29: <tr> ... code stack: /usr/local/bricolage/data/burn/stage/oc_1027/smetimes/dhandler.html:25

/usr/share/perl5/HTML/Mason/Request.pm:951

/var/cache/mason/obj/1784076917/main/smetimes/dhandler.html.obj:17

/usr/local/bricolage/data/burn/stage/oc_1027/smetimes/autohandler_template.html:149



Can't call method "get_id" on an undefined value at /usr/local/bricolage/data/burn/stage/oc_1027/smetimes/dhandler.html line 25. Trace begun at /usr/share/perl5/HTML/Mason/Exceptions.pm line 129 HTML::Mason::Exceptions::rethrow_exception('Can\'t call method "get_id" on an undefined value at /usr/local/bricolage/data/burn/stage/oc_1027/smetimes/dhandler.html line 25.^J') called at /usr/local/bricolage/data/burn/stage/oc_1027/smetimes/dhandler.html line 25 HTML::Mason::Commands::__ANON__ at /usr/share/perl5/HTML/Mason/Component.pm line 160 HTML::Mason::Component::run_dynamic_sub('HTML::Mason::Component::FileBased=HASH(0x7f0482370460)', 'main') called at /usr/share/perl5/HTML/Mason/Request.pm line 951 HTML::Mason::Request::call_dynamic('HTML::Mason::Request::ApacheHandler=HASH(0x7f0481c4d598)', 'main') called at /var/cache/mason/obj/1784076917/main/smetimes/dhandler.html.obj line 17 HTML::Mason::Commands::__ANON__ at /usr/share/perl5/HTML/Mason/Component.pm line 138 HTML::Mason::Component::run('HTML::Mason::Component::FileBased=HASH(0x7f0482370460)') called at /usr/share/perl5/HTML/Mason/Request.pm line 1305 eval {...} at /usr/share/perl5/HTML/Mason/Request.pm line 1295 HTML::Mason::Request::comp(undef, undef, undef) called at /usr/share/perl5/HTML/Mason/Request.pm line 958 HTML::Mason::Request::call_next('HTML::Mason::Request::ApacheHandler=HASH(0x7f0481c4d598)') called at /usr/local/bricolage/data/burn/stage/oc_1027/smetimes/autohandler_template.html line 149 HTML::Mason::Commands::__ANON__ at /usr/share/perl5/HTML/Mason/Component.pm line 138 HTML::Mason::Component::run('HTML::Mason::Component::FileBased=HASH(0x7f04821d2d68)') called at /usr/share/perl5/HTML/Mason/Request.pm line 1303 eval {...} at /usr/share/perl5/HTML/Mason/Request.pm line 1295 HTML::Mason::Request::comp(undef, undef, undef) called at /usr/share/perl5/HTML/Mason/Request.pm line 484 eval {...} at /usr/share/perl5/HTML/Mason/Request.pm line 484 eval {...} at /usr/share/perl5/HTML/Mason/Request.pm line 436 HTML::Mason::Request::exec('HTML::Mason::Request::ApacheHandler=HASH(0x7f0481c4d598)') called at /usr/share/perl5/HTML/Mason/ApacheHandler.pm line 165 HTML::Mason::Request::ApacheHandler::exec('HTML::Mason::Request::ApacheHandler=HASH(0x7f0481c4d598)') called at /usr/share/perl5/HTML/Mason/ApacheHandler.pm line 831 HTML::Mason::ApacheHandler::handle_request('HTML::Mason::ApacheHandler=HASH(0x7f048145efb8)', 'Apache2::RequestRec=SCALAR(0x7f0482227ad0)') called at (eval 487) line 8 HTML::Mason::ApacheHandler::handler('HTML::Mason::ApacheHandler', 'Apache2::RequestRec=SCALAR(0x7f0482227ad0)') called at -e line 0 eval {...} at -e line 0
A razor-thin majority of Senate Republicans on Friday voted against a Democratic proposal to admit additional witnesses and documents into President Donald Trumps impeachment trial.

The final tally was 51 votes against the motion, and 49 in favor, CNBC reports.

The vote dashed Democrats hopes of hearing testimony from former Trump national security advisor John Bolton, and it shifted the weeks-long trial into its final stages.

Two Republican senators, Susan Collins of Maine and Utahs Mitt Romney, broke with their party in order to join Democrats in voting to admit additional evidence, but the majority, 51 Republicans, did not.

Democrats had needed at least four GOP senators to vote with them, and they fell short of that threshold by two votes.

Following the adjournment of the Senate on Friday, McConnell called a recess in the Senate, likely in order to continue ongoing negotiations between the White House, Senate Republicans and, to a lesser extent, Senate Democrats, over the next steps in the trial.

Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer called the vote a perfidy, its a grand tragedy, one of the worst tragedies that the Senate has ever overcome.
After 47 years of European membership, the United Kingdom officially withdrew from the European Union at 23:00 GMT, Trend reports citing TASS.

The withdrawal, known as Brexit, was initiated after Britons voted to quit the European Union during the 2016 referendum. The margin was 1.3 million votes (52% versus 48%).

Earlier in the day, the flag of the United Kingdom has been removed from the building of the EU Council. The video of the flag being removed was released via the Councils official Twitter shortly before midnight.

"The UK flag is removed from the EU Council building in Brussels as the country leaves the EU at midnight," the EU Council said in a Twitter post.

The United Kingdom officially left the European Union. Brexit took place at 23:00 GMT, or 00:00 CET. An hour before this turning point in the UKs political history, British Prime Minister Boris Johnson, an ardent Brexit supporter, delivered his address to the nation.

After January 31, the UK and the EU enter a transition period meant to maintain the existing state of affairs, particularly on trade and tariffs, while the two sides are negotiating a deal on future trading relations. The transition period is scheduled to end on December 31, 2020. London is also obliged to continue paying membership fees to the EU budget until the end of 2020.
What does it take for ambitious young professionals to create wealth? Emotional intelligence? Talent? Luck? Perseverance?

Being born into wealth and/or privilege notwithstanding, many of the wealthiest entrepreneurs chose higher education to establish their foundation for success.

Researchers at resume.io decided to have a closer look at just what those rich contemporaries studied on their way to creating their wealth, with a focus on discovering their undergraduate degrees. You can see the full results in a bright set of infographics over on resume.io.

The college degrees of Jeff Bezos and other wealthy CEOs

What did we learn? For starters, the highest-paid chief executives in every state have college degrees while 67% of them nabbed a graduate degree, too.

It comes as no surprise that America's richest exec is Jeff Bezos. At Princeton, Bezos earned a Bachelor of Science in Engineering -- majoring in electrical engineering and computer science, developing the technical and critical skills he did not yet realize would set him right to found his online 'everything shop.' In fact, the internet didn't even exist when Bezos graduated.

Across the United States, other wealthy CEOs have similarly chosen to study the nuts and bolts of their industry rather than to start out with a business degree.

The top-earning CEO in Illinois is Dirk Van de Put. His $42 million income (2017 figures) is founded -- somewhat tangentially -- on a degree in veterinary medicine from the University of Ghent, Belgium.

Perhaps the feeding habits of the world's livestock helped him prepare for life in charge of the $25 billion snacking giant, Mondelez. However, his post-graduate degree in marketing and management is probably more useful in his daily work life.

Douglas Ingram, president and CEO of Sarepta Therapeutics, has his undergraduate degree in psychology -- certainly 'ballpark' for running a therapeutics company, even if Sarepta is focused on genetic solutions rather than the therapist's couch.

Ingram also has a Juris Doctor law degree that no doubt helps him navigate the thorny path to big pharma success. His reward? "Salary payments of $337,500, plus $11.6 million in stock awards, $44.84 million in option awards and $420,875 in non-equity incentive plan compensation," reports FiercePharma?.

But a business school qualification by no means holds you back from making big bucks in business: Melissa D. Smith of WEX nets $10.8 million annually following her business administration degree from University of Maine; Doug Lebda, CEO of LendingTree, rakes in $59.6 million and was set on his path with a similar degree from Bucknell.

Ultimately, if getting mega-rich from business is your goal, there is no prescribed path. So much has to do with the people you meet, the breaks that you get, and the unique way you interpret the lessons that you're taught. Heck, Mark Zuckerberg and Bill Gates didn't even complete their degrees!

It is also worth pointing out that money doesn't always make you happy. Not obscene amounts, anyway. "People who make more than $5 million a year are not appreciably happier than those who make $100,000 a year," writes John Medina, developmental molecular biologist and brain expert, citing a study from the Journal of Happiness Studies.

"Money increases happiness only when it lifts people out of poverty to about $50,000 a year in income. Past that, wealth and happiness part ways," notes Medina.
31.01.2020 LISTEN

When Nigeria Electoral Commission (NEC) announced that its presidential election would be held on Valentine's Day, 2015, I felt so compelled as a writer, journalist and political analyst to curate this.

That was five years ago today. I should, however, point out NEC rescheduled the 14th February date to March 28 due to security concerns, according to the electoral body.

xxxxx

Theirs often get these outrageous buzzwords --- acrimonious, brutal, callous, dangerous, ferocious, hostile, intense, vicious, violence you name it.

Nigeria is Africas most populous nation, culturally diverse, ethnically complicated and linguistically intertwined. Shes endowed with both human and natural resources.

But its politics is tricky and somewhat enigmatic. Traditionally Nigerias elections are tinged with violence----hotly contested and bitterly slogged out among rival parties.

Voters in Nigeria will head to the polls on Valentines Day (February 14) to elect the country's president. Yes, you heard me right, on St Valentines Day!

The Saturdays general election is the fifth since the military rule in 1999. It is also to elect members to the nations bicameral legislature----the House of Representatives and the Senate. Gubernatorial as well as assembly elections will be held on the same day.

The history behind this day (Valentine) is symbolic and therefore I expect my cousins (I call them) to emulate that.

In all, 14 nominees are seeking to become Nigeria's next president. Comfort Sonaija of the Kowa Party (KOWA) is the only female candidate.

#Message: 'Remember the Sabbath and keep it holy'. In the thick of things are incumbent, Goodluck Jonathan of the ruling Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) who faces one-time military top man and head of state, General Muhammadu Buhari of the major opposition party, All Progressives Congress (APC).

Viewed by many as a re-match between two heavyweights, its believed this years election could get woozy.

Their first epic battle was in 2011, Goodluck overpowered Buhari.

And his PDP party has dominated Nigeria's politics since the inception of democracy in1999.

But it remains to be seen whether luck would once again smile on Goodluck who is seeking his second and final term.

Buhari, who was then vilified, demonised and spurned by the super-rich and the youth per his age, is now seen by many as a formidable force. Paradoxically, his sharp critics have even made dramatic U-turns, praising him.

What do Polls say?

Polls after polls show, Buhari has his nose in front and it appears the two are in for a gladiatorial fight.

Meanwhile, the champagnes continue to be popping everywhere party faithfuls tread in a bid to woo electorate. And I pray the two front-runners wouldnt taste any of that ---to avoid getting groggy and losing their bearings.

Also capturing the headlines is the countrys currency, the Naira. In Naija the Naira Rains, so they say and the super-rich are doling out wads of money. Actually, it doesnt rain any longer in Nigeria it rather pours till the nation starts to bleed.

Fear and Uncertainty

With just two weeks to go, uncertainty and anxiety seem to have gripped many in the oil-rich sub-Saharan country.

Glaringly, FEAR (in its combative fearsome gear) walks as bold as the atrocious and giant Goliathflaunting his deadly weapon, threatening the citizenry and plunging them to their beds as though they are under a curfew.

Boko Haram an Islamist group has been terrorising the good and innocent people of Nigeria. Their brazen attacks in recent times have left many in trepidation and interminable doubts: Amid ethnic and sectarian clashes, tensions have also peaked and rumors of war soared.

So, can this years general election be held free, fair and transparent in Nigeria?

Would the incumbent relinquish power if it loses?

And would the major opposition leader concede defeat for the second time if it so happens?

These among other germane doubts are being expressed by the day. As earlier pointed out election violence in Nigeria isnt rare. The previous ones hadnt been violent-free. Theyd usually been sparked by alleged vote rigging, multiple voting; incumbency truancy and ironically polls starting late but ending early.

Perhaps the obvious question one may ask is: How widespread would this one be? And would the security agencies be able to de-escalate or contain any skirmishes that may rear its evil head?

Optimum Tolerance

As answers to the above questions look unlikely, its only prudent that things are done in moderation and with optimum tolerance. I bet the good people in that beautiful country cant afford to toy with their precious lives.

So Im per this write-up challenging leaders of all political parties, power brokers, the influential and all who matter in society to listen to the cry of that little girl in Abeokuta. They should also heed the call for peace by the nursing mother in Port Harcourt and the plea for cool heads by the school pupil in Maiduguri.

We want peace and not war, I could hear their voices echo from afar. They say, enough with the political violence, religious and ethnic clashes and all forms of social unrest.

Indeed, only the best is good for Nigeria.

But the best doesnt come easy. Tolerance is the watchword here.The worst could happen if tolerance is relegated to the background.

We must be mindful that whatever happens in Lagos wouldnt stay in Lagos. It would spill over and neighbours nearby would catch the flu.

What to Avoid:

Foul language, inflammatory statements, tough-talkings and chest-beatings could ignite mayhem. The less or none of these could help us put the monstrous past behind us. We would rewrite or tweak our report and be proud we did it.

So, as you head to the polling booths on Valentines Day, I beg of you to give peace a chance. And may your consciences be guided by tolerance for one another. I 've friends in that country. I schooled with them in Britain.

I worked with them in Ghana and I travelled with them across Europe. But beside that I love the people.

Nigeria, remember, Mama Africa loves you, likewise peoples the world over. Once again give peace a chance, let good triumph over evil, open your doors for tolerance to enter and shame the pessimists.

More so, try to ignore any provocative acts that might come your way, because if the unpleasant happens the Eagle (the super-rich) can fly away with her eaglets, but the piss-pot poor ones would be caught up in crossfire.

The rhinos and the elephants can bulldoze their way through the rough terrain: But how about the scrawny rats and mice?

Theyd certainly perish!

By Gordon Offin-Amaniampong
To make India an attractive destination for both international and domestic tourists, Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman on Saturday proposed to allocate Rs 2,500 crores in the Budget for FY2020-21 for the tourism sector.

Besides tourism, Sitharaman also proposed to allocate Rs 3,150 crore for Ministry of Culture.

In order to have well-trained resources in the disciplines of museology and archaeology, the Finance Minister proposed to establish the first Indian Institute of Heritage and Conservation with the status of a deemed university to operate under the Ministry of Culture.

"Acquisition of knowledge in disciplines such as museology and archaeology are essential for collecting and analysing scientific evidence of such findings and for dissemination through high-quality museums," Sitharaman said in her Budget speech.

Highlighting improved tourism revenues over the last few years, the Finance Minister said, "India has moved up from rank 65 in 2014 to 34 in 2019 in the Travel and Tourism Competitive Index (World Economic Forum)."

Due to this, Foreign Exchange earnings grew 7.4 per cent to Rs 1.88 lakh crores for the period January 2019 from Rs 1.75 lakh crores, she said.

The Minister proposed 8 new museums, which includes building infrastructure around 5 iconic sites, besides proposing renovation of 5 major museums across the country.

The Union Finance Minister proposed five Archeological sites to be set-up/developed as Iconic Sites with on-site Museums at Rakhigarhi (Haryana), Hastinapur (Uttar Pradesh), Shivsagar (Assam), Dholavira (Gujarat) and Adichanallur (Tamil Nadu).

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
In the wake of the threat posed by the deadly coronavirus, IndiGo Airlines on Saturday announced the suspension of its flight operations between Kolkata and Guangzhou from February 6 to February 27.

"In line with the WHO guideline to contain the spread of Coronavirus, IndiGo will be suspending its Kolkata-Guangzhou from February 6 until February 25, and Guangzhou-Kolkata from February 7 until February 26, 2020. These are purely temporary and precautionary measures," the IndiGo said in a statement.

"We understand that these measures will cause inconvenience to our customers and we will be refunding the full amount to the impacted passengers," it added.

.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
WASHINGTON  The Senate rejected the idea of summoning witnesses for President Trumps impeachment trial late Friday, all but ensuring his acquittal. But senators considered pushing off final voting on his fate to next week.

The measure to allow new witnesses was defeated 51-49 on a near party-line vote. Republicans Susan Collins of Maine and Mitt Romney of Utah voted along with the Democrats for witnesses, but that was not enough.

Despite the Democrats singular focus on hearing new testimony, the Republican majority brushed past those demands to make this the first Senate impeachment trial without witnesses. Even new revelations Friday from former national security adviser John Bolton did not sway GOP senators, who said theyd heard enough.

That means the eventual outcome for Trump would be an acquittal in name only, said Rep. Val Demings, D-Fla., a House prosecutor, during final debate. Some called it a cover-up.

The impeachment of the president now lands squarely in an election year before a divided nation. Caucus voting begins Monday in Iowa, and Trump gives his State of the Union address the next night.

Trump was impeached by the House last month on charges that he abused power and obstructed Congress like no other president has done as he tried to pressure Ukraine to investigate Democratic rival Joe Biden, and then blocked the congressional probe of his actions.

The Democrats had badly wanted testimony from Bolton, whose forthcoming book links Trump directly to the charges. But Bolton wont be summoned, and none of this appeared to affect the trials expected outcome.

In an unpublished manuscript, Bolton writes that the president asked him during an Oval Office meeting in early May to bolster his effort to get Ukraine to investigate Democrats, according to a person who read the passage and told the Associated Press. Trump issued a swift denial.

In the meeting, Bolton said the president asked him to call new Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky and persuade him to meet with Trumps personal lawyer, Rudy Giuliani, who was planning to go to Ukraine to coax the Ukrainians to investigate the presidents political rivals. Bolton writes that he never made the call to Zelensky after the meeting, which included acting chief of staff Mick Mulvaney and White House Counsel Pat Cipollone.

The revelation adds more detail to allegations of when and how Trump first sought to influence Ukraine to aid investigations of his rivals that are central to the abuse of power charge in the first article of impeachment.

Key Republican senators said even if Trump committed the offenses as charged by the House, they are not impeachable and the partisan proceedings must end.

I didnt need any more evidence because I thought it was proved that the president did what he was charged with doing, retiring GOP Sen. Lamar Alexander of Tennessee, a key holdout, told reporters Friday at the Capitol. But that didnt rise to the level of an impeachable offense.

Republican Sen. Lisa Murkowski of Alaska said she, too, would oppose more testimony in the charged partisan atmosphere, having come to the conclusion that there will be no fair trial in the Senate. She said, The Congress has failed.

Eager for a conclusion, Trumps allies nevertheless suggested the shift in timing to extend the proceedings into next week shows the significance of the moment for senators in casting votes in only the third presidential impeachment trial in American history.

The situation remained fluid, but senators have indicated they want more time to publicly debate the charges and air their positions on the coming vote, according to a Republican familiar with the proposal but unauthorized to discuss it. The person was granted anonymity.

Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell of Kentucky made the offer to Democratic Minority Leader Chuck Schumer of New York, the person said. Senators were considering it while the proceedings were under way on the Senate floor.

Under the proposal, the Senate would resume Monday for final arguments, with time Monday and Tuesday for senators to speak. The final voting would be Wednesday.

To bring the trial toward a conclusion, Trumps attorneys argued the House had already heard from 17 witnesses and presented its 28,578-page report to the Senate. They warned against prolonging it even further after the House impeached Trump largely along party lines after less than three months of formal proceedings, making it the quickest, most partisan presidential impeachment in U.S. history.

Some senators pointed to the importance of the moment.

What do you want your place in history to be? asked one of the House managers, Rep. Jason Crow, D-Colo., a former Army Ranger.

Trump is almost assured of eventual acquittal with the Senate nowhere near the 67 votes needed for conviction and removal.

To hear more witnesses, it would have taken four Republicans to break with the 53-seat majority and join with all Democrats in demanding more testimony. But that effort fell short.

Chief Justice John Roberts, in the rare role presiding over the impeachment trial, could have broken a tie, but that seemed unlikely.

Murkowski noted in announcing her decision that she did not want to drag the chief justice into the partisan fray.

Protesters stood outside the Capitol as senators arrived on Friday, but few visitors have been watching from the Senate galleries.

Boltons forthcoming book contends he personally heard Trump say he wanted military aid withheld from Ukraine until it agreed to investigate the Bidens. Trump denies saying such a thing.

The White House has blocked its officials from testifying in the proceedings and objected that there are significant amounts of classified information in Boltons manuscript. Bolton resigned in September  Trump says he was fired  and he and his attorney have insisted the book does not contain any classified information.

Lisa Mascaro, Eric Tucker and Zeke Miller are Associated Press writers.
2.1k SHARES Facebook Twitter Whatsapp Pinterest Reddit Print Mail Flipboard

Rudy Giuliani is admitting that the meeting with John Bolton that Trump claims never happened actually did happen.

The New York Times reported:

Mr. Bolton left the Oval Office after 10 minutes and returned to his office, he wrote. Shortly after, two aides came into his office, saying Mr. Trump had sent them out of a separate meeting on trade to ask about Mr. Kent, Mr. Bolton wrote.

Asked about Mr. Boltons account, Mr. Giuliani said, I think hes making some of it up. Hes sure making up  I wouldnt call it making it up, but hes acting like a real scumbag by never telling me that he objected once, and then saying I was a time bomb, or a firecracker or something.

Rudy Giuliani confirms that the meeting where Trump directed Bolton to withhold Ukraine aid happened, but he is mad that Bolton didnt complain to him directly.

Trump is guilty. The evidence continues to pile up against Trump on a daily basis. Trumps impeachment doesnt go away after the Senate votes on the articles of impeachment on Wednesday. Trump is still impeached. He will still be impeached during the 2020 election, and he will carry impeachment with him for the rest of his life.

For more discussion about this story join our Rachel Maddow and MSNBC group.

Follow Jason Easley on Facebook
President Gotabaya Rajapaksa yesterday instructed health authorities to collect information from experts in indigenous and western medicine to find a remedy to cure those affected with coronavirus.





by Charumini de Silva





Airport and Aviation Services (Sri Lanka) Ltd. (AASL) yesterday confirmed that proactive measures have been stepped up to identify, create awareness and to reduce the spread of the novel coronavirus (2019-nCoV) within the airport premises.









It was pointed out that all possible measures have been taken at the Bandaranaike International Airport (BIA) with the support of the Tourism and Aviation Services Ministry in collaboration with the Health Ministry.





We are following the procedure outlined by the World Health Organisation (WHO) in the prevention and control of the novel coronavirus infection and some of worlds most advanced airports, AASL Chairman Rtd. Major General G. A. Chandrasiri told the Daily FT.





He also pointed out that President Gotabaya Rajapaksa, Prime Minister Mahinda Rajapaksa, and Tourism and Aviation Services Minister Prasanna Ranatunga are constantly looking into the matter, and with the advice of the health authorities, AASL has stepped up the precautionary measures to control the outbreak of novel coronavirus.





In the past few days, we have had only four suspicious travellers who came from the airport, and it has been confirmed that they were not infected with coronavirus, he added.





Two thermal scanners have already been installed at the BIA to identify potential infected travellers. The rest of the airport check-ins are at different locations.





However, he said that the arrival of Chinese tourists to the country has been minimal. According to AASL, over 4,050 passengers have arrived at BIA from 26 January, which includes 330 Sri Lankans as well as 1,940 Chinese nationals.





The Chairman said airport employees, with the support of the Health Ministry and military doctors, carry out 24-hour inspections of the passengers arriving and departing from the BIA.





We do not allow anyone other than passengers to enter this perimeter. We are thoroughly checking those who come. We give a special tract to the passengers who arrive in the country. There is no need to panic as all authorities are keeping an eye on them. We will continue this program until the coronavirus is controlled, he stressed.





Reiterating that the BIA premises are safe and geared to face the situation, Chandrasiri urged the public not to be intimidated.





Special flight dispatched to Wuhan





Sri Lanka joined several other countries yesterday and sent a special charter flight to bring back Sri Lankans in Wuhan, which is the epicentre of the coronavirus.





Flight UL 1422 of SriLankan Airlines took off from the Bandaranaike International Airport (BIA) yesterday afternoon. The flight would arrive around 3 a.m. today at BIA.





About 33 students are said to be studying in Wuhan, and the Government has been working to expedite the flights over the last week. The Government has already set in place measures to quarantine the students in the Diyatalawa Army Camp.





The Foreign Relations Ministry said as of 30 January, the estimated number of Sri Lankan students and family members remaining in China has declined to 284 persons, from the estimated 864 at the commencement of this health emergency. The statement said 580 persons have returned to Sri Lanka.





India also dispatched a flight to Wuhan yesterday. The Boeing 747 aircraft took off from Mumbai and made a brief halt in Delhi, with five doctors from the Union Health Ministry and one paramedical staff on board. The flight will only be at the Wuhan Airport for two to three hours.





A number of other countries around the world have also dispatched flights to bring their nationals home. The US and UK have seen about 200 of their nationals return while Australia will hold its evacuees in Christmas Island, which was earlier used to hold illegal immigrants. Currently the only residents in the Christmas Island are a Sri Lankan family, according to international reports.





Canada, Japan and South Korea have also flown their citizens home while the European Union is attempting to send two flights to evacuate some 350 citizens.





President instructs officials to explore indigenous, Western medicine to fight coronavirus





President Gotabaya Rajapaksa yesterday instructed health authorities to collect information from experts in indigenous and western medicine to find a remedy to cure those affected with coronavirus.





He issued these instructions during a meeting with Ministers and officials of Health, Foreign Relations, Tourism and Higher Education held at the Presidential Secretariat.





The first coronavirus victim identified in Sri Lanka is now in stable condition. Sri Lankan doctors were capable of preventing the spread of the disease. The President commended the efforts of everyone who contributed to securing this result and advised them to continue their mission.





He reviewed the steps taken by the committee of experts to prevent the spreading of the disease and to bring back the Sri Lankan students from China.





Instructing officials to provide all the necessary facilities to the students who have returned from Wuhan and ensure their well-being, the President highlighted the importance of taking measures to sustain the tourism industry amidst this global health threat.





He also instructed officials to take steps to enhance facilities available at hospitals.





Ministers Chamal Rajapaksa, Dinesh Gunawardena, Bandula Gunawardena, Arundika Fernando and Pavithra Wanniarachchi, and several Ministry officials were present at the meeting.
The move by pensions and investment giant Aviva to stop investors cashing out of two property funds has spooked a lot of people.

Why has Aviva done this?

Aviva has had to stop investors making any withdrawals from the Aviva Irish Property Fund and the Friends First Irish Commercial Property Fund after too many investors rushed to take their money out. The funds have a value of almost 1bn, but were recently revalued downwards after high levels of withdrawals. Smaller investors seem to have been pulling out of these funds over the last half a year. They got spooked when they saw commercial property legend Stephen Vernon selling his Green Reit commercial property company for 1.3bn. Mr Vernon has a deserved reputation for calling the top of the market.

The withdrawals from the Aviva funds seem to have intensified in the past few days. Reports that Aviva and Irish Life have had to lower the values of the funds, amid fears they are overvalued, pushed Aviva into locking in existing investors.

That is something we have not seen since the last property crash.

What is happening with residential property values?

Residential property price rises have stalled, and are falling in Dublin. Affordability is being blamed for this. Potential buyers are struggling to meet Central Bank requirements on deposits and amounts that can be borrowed relative to incomes. Some economists argue that this means constrained demand is finally meeting supply.

A survey of chartered surveyors, estate agents and auctioneers estimates that residential property prices will increase by only 2pc this year. A lack of supply of affordable homes, especially in the 200,000 to 300,000 range, is also hampering the market, the survey found.

Read More

Will the property market crash again?

That is the $50m question, but the signs are we have learned lessons. Banks are no longer able to engage in loony lending, where credit-fuelled buyers chase up prices. A herd mentality in the residential market could be avoided.

On the commercial side, there is certainly a feeling that values are reaching the top of the market. This is despite strong demand for office space in Dublin.

Tech giants such as Amazon, LinkedIn and Facebook are in expansion mode. It may be that smaller investors have taken fright from the sale of Green Reit by its founder. Property fund experts insist there is still demand from institutional investors, such as pension funds, for commercial property. And they are adamant the commercial property market is not about to blow up.

What we can say with some confidence is that both the residential and commercial markets are stabilising after a long period of very sharp growth. The smart money says the residential property market will grow modestly this year, increasing affordability for buyers, and the commercial market will continue to be buoyed by strong demand for office space in our cities.

What is happening in markets elsewhere?

The vote in Britain in 2016 to leave the EU prompted a sharp fall in commercial property values. Some funds blocked investors cashing out, but it was only a short-term measure. We generally have not seen property crashes in other countries lately.
FILE PHOTO: Logo of Swiss bank UBS is seen in Zurich

MILAN (Reuters) - Italian prosecutors have investigated UBS Europe for possible money laundering and obstructing the work of regulators as part of a fraud inquiry into smaller asset manager Sofia SGR, two sources with direct knowledge of the matter said.

The sources said the investigation is over, and that prosecutors are expected to bring charges and request a trial.

The sources said 23 people including the former head of UBS in Italy, Fabio Innocenzi, had been probed, as well as UBS Europe and Sofia SGR. Under Italian law the two companies can be held responsible for the actions of their employees.

Innocenzi said he had learned only on Thursday that he was under investigation as an official of the bank and was unaware of the details of the investigation.

UBS said in a statement it did not comment on ongoing legal proceedings.

Prosecutors have looked into whether Sofia committed fraud by applying higher-than-average fees to 117 clients and by failing to disclose conflicts of interest on deals that generated losses for customers.

UBS Europe, part of UBS Group AG <UBSG.S>, was under investigation because Sofia SGR negotiated its products through the bank.

Sofia SGR has been liquidated and some of its assets taken over by Italian asset manager Azimut Holding SpA <AZMT.MI>. Azimut said the activities it acquired were not among those that were subject to the investigation.

(Reporting by Emilio Parodi in Milan; Writing by Valentina Za; Editing by Matthew Lewis and Louise Heavens)
Drama group - The Delgany Golf Club Drama Group will perform the play 'The Two Loves of Gabriel Foley', written by Jimmy Keary, in February.

The performance dates are Wednesday, February 12, to Saturday, February 15, and Wednesday, February 19, to Saturday, February 22.

Tickets are 15 each and are available from Chris Ball on 087 2570758. For pre-theatre dinner, call 01 2874563 and dial extension three.

Dementia support

Wicklow Dementia Support holds a number of events in the Greystones area.

'Musical memories' takes place each Friday morning at St Patrick's Church Hall from 11 a.m. to 1 p.m.

There are often visiting musicians and usually a turnout of around 30 people, including people with dementia, their family carers and volunteers.

A family carers support group meets on the third Friday of each month, also at St Patrick's, from 11.30 a.m. to 1 p.m.

This is a facilitator-led, peer-to-peer support group.

Contact Wicklow Dementia Support at 089 4286928 for more information or details about any of the events.

Alzheimer Cafe

The Alzheimer Cafe is facilitated by the HSE/St Columcille's Hospital and primary care nurses.

It meets at the Glenview Hotel on the last Thursday of each month, from 2.30 p.m. to 4 p.m.

Well-being course

Greystones Family Resource Centre will host a free six-week well-being course at its premises, 28 Burnaby Court, starting on Wednesday, February 5, at 10 a.m.

To book, call 01 2557528 or email development@greystonesfrc.ie.

Participants will be able to focus on their physical, emotional and mental well-being.

Men's Shed Greystones

Men's Shed Greystones is open Wednesdays and Fridays at 10 a.m. and welcomes new members.

Anyone interested can call into the scout den on Church Road on Wednesday mornings.

The group can be contacted on greystonesmensshed@gmail.com.

Art group events

Greystones Art Group has a variety of events throughout the month. Each Monday they meet to paint, sketch, create and share inspiration.

A new location is selected monthly for outdoor sketching and painting.

There are also monthly talks and demonstrations by guest artists.

The talks include techniques and suggestions relating to medium, composition, colour mixing and brushwork in a fun and friendly environment.

There is a small fee of 5 for non-members.

Anyone interested should come along any Monday morning to South Beach Pavilion, from 10 a.m. to 1 p.m.

Alternatively, email info@greystonesartgroup.com for further information.

Holy Rosary choir

The parish choir sings at 6 p.m. Mass in the Holy Rosary Church on the first and third Saturday of the month. For more information, call 085 8801466.

Badminton club

Bray-Greystones badminton club welcomes new players every Thursday night at 8 p.m. in BIFE, Novara Road, Bray.

Family badminton takes place every Sunday from 4 p.m. till 6 p.m. Adults and children are welcome.

If interested, contact Mary at 089 4132070.

Story time

Children's story time takes place at 10.30 a.m. on Wednesday mornings at Greystones Library.

The session is suitable for babies up to children aged six years.

No booking is required for the event.

Policing clinic in Kilcoole

Kilcoole policing clinic takes place each Wednesday evening at Kilcoole Community Centre, from 6 p.m. to 8 p.m.

Garda Corbett and/or Garda Thompson will be in attendance. Drop in for crime prevention advice, get a form stamped and obtain most other garda station services.

Exercise for the over-50s

Exercise programmes for the over-50s take place each Wednesday at Shoreline Leisure at 12.30 p.m.

The sessions help with flexibility, strength, confidence, balance, coordination and mobility. Admission is 5 per session.

Scout leaders sought

Greystones Scouts are now recruiting new leaders for first Wicklow, second Dublin, St Kilian's Scout Group. Training will be provided.

For more information, email group leader Anthony Finnegan at greystonesscouts@eircom.net.

Cancer support walk

The Greystones Cancer Support Walk 2020 will take place on Sunday, May 3.

Everyone is invited to take part in the walk of the town.

To sign up, call 01 2871601 or email info@greystonescancersupport.com

Country market

North Wicklow Country Market takes place each Saturday morning at Newcastle Community Centre.

The market takes place from 10.30 a.m. to 12.30 p.m.

Active Retired programme

Greystones Active Retirement Association will host a shopping outing to Pavilions Shopping Centre, Swords, on Wednesday, February 12, at a cost of 25. The bus will leave the church car park at 10 a.m.

On Tuesday, February 25, the group will go on a trip to Dail Eireann, including lunch in the Dail restaurant. The cost is 30, with the bus leaving the church car park at 11.30 a.m.

There will be an outing to 'The Mousetrap' play in the Gaiety Theatre on Wednesday, April 1.

The cost is 48, and the bus will leave at 1 p.m.

A tea dance will take place at the Parkview in Newtown on Saturday, April 4, from 2.30 p.m. to 5.30 p.m. The price is 7.50.

There will be a holiday to Kerry on Monday, April 13, for five nights. All trips are included in a cost of 379, with an 80 single supplement. A deposit of 50 is to be paid by Tuesday, January 28.

The group is hosting a holiday abroad in September 2020, to Austrian Tyrol.

The price is 99 per person sharing, for the five-night trip. The single supplement is 30 per night.

A deposit of 200 must be paid by February 18.

The association, based at Kilian House, holds keep fit classes from 1 p.m. to 2 p.m. and art from 2.15 p.m. to 4.15 p.m. on Mondays.

It also holds aqua aerobics in the Shoreline from midday to 1 p.m.

On Tuesdays, there is bowling from 10.45 a.m. to 12.45 p.m., followed by bingo from 2.15 p.m. to 4.15 p.m.

On Thursdays there's more bowling from 2.30 p.m. to 4.30 p.m.

Greystones Active Retirement Association also holds a coffee morning from 10.30 a.m. to midday on the last Friday of each month. The next get-together takes place on Friday, January 31.

The booking office is open at Kilian House Family Centre each Tuesday from 10.30 a.m. to 11.30 a.m. People can book tickets for events, become a member or renew membership at 20, and learn about coming events, trips and outings.

Sundays at the Hot Spot

Every Sunday from September to June, the Hot Spot Music Club hosts a weekly Sunday jam from 4 p.m.

Sometimes it's jazz, sometimes it's ukulele and sometimes it's just plain ol' roots.

Soup and sandwiches

Soup and sandwiches will be served at Kilian House Family Centre at Holy Rosary Church on Wednesday, January 29, from 12.15 p.m. to 2 p.m.

There's a suggested donation of 5, which will go to charity.

Language groups

A German conversation group meets each week in Greystones.

The group meets at the library on Saturday mornings at 11 a.m.

A French conversational group meets on Thursday mornings, also at the library, at 11 a.m.

Dancing evening

There is social dancing to live music every Sunday night in Greystones.

The event starts each week at 8.30 p.m. in the Rugby Club.
After a Delhi court stayed till further orders the execution of the Nirbhaya gang-rape convicts, BJP MP Gautam Gambhir expressed his disgust over the deferment of the hanging yet again.

"Each day these monsters get to live is a blot on us and our legal system! Seven years! When will the wait for a mother finally end? HANG THEM NOW!" Gambhir tweeted.

A Delhi court had earlier issued death warrants for the four convicts -- Akshay Thakur, Mukesh Singh, Pawan Gupta, and Vinay Kumar Sharma -- for their execution on February 1.

During the hearing today, public prosecutor Irfan Ahmad said that convict Mukesh has no legal remedies available and the sentence on Mukesh should be executed.

Advocate AP Singh, appearing on behalf of the convicts, submitted that some legal remedies are still available for the convicts adding that Mukesh has been sincerely pursuing all legal remedies without delay.

On the other hand, Ahmad argued that the application moved by Vinay and Akshay is non-maintainable as per the Delhi Prison Rules but said that the execution of Vinay can be postponed.

Advocate Seema Kushwaha, representing the victim's side, said that the convicts herein are adopting delay tactics to thwart the speed of justice.

The case pertains to the gang-rape and brutal assault of a 23-year-old paramedical student in a moving bus in south Delhi on the night of December 16, 2012, by six people including a juvenile. The woman had died at a Singapore hospital a few days later.

One of the five adults accused, Ram Singh, had allegedly committed suicide in the Tihar Jail during the trial of the case.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
A California man has been charged with animal cruelty for allegedly performing illegal c-sections on dogs in a makeshift surgery in the kitchen of his home.

Pedro Maldonado Victorio was arrested after a woman raised the alarm after spotting puppies running free near to his Lathorp apartment, before seeing the suspect and another man leaving the property wearing what appeared to be bloody rubber gloves.

A search uncovered what officers described as an 'assembly line operation' and 'heinous' treatment of the animals.

Police rescued a dozen dogs from inside the home, where Victorio had converted the kitchen into a home operating theater.

As well as performing botched surgeries, Victorio was breeding and selling dogs and keeping up to seven dogs in kennels designed for one, police said.

Pedro Maldonado Victorio (above) has been charged with animal cruelty for allegedly performing illegal c-sections on dogs in a makeshift surgery in the kitchen of his home

As well as performing botch surgeries, Victorio was breeding and selling the dogs and keeping them in overcrowded kennels (above), police said

Lathrop Police Services Chief Ryan Biedermann said in a press conference Friday that the way Victorio was operating on the dogs was 'heinous' and had left the animals with injuries that 'never truly healed'.

'The actual vets we have spoken to say these operations were done so poorly that the incision for the C-sections that were completed on these dogs were never truly healed,' said Biedermann.

'It was like an assembly line operation; these dogs would give birth, c-sections would be completed ... and they were then artificially put in heat through the medication that we found, then inseminated again.

'They are basically circumventing the normal biological process of these dogs to probably maximize the money they are making.'

The puppies' rescue mission began when a woman noticed a few English bulldogs outside the 2000 block of East Louise Avenue in Lathrop on Saturday, said Deputy Andrea Lopez of the San Joaquin County Sheriff's Office.

After locating the home the puppies escaped from, the woman then saw two men leaving the property wearing what appeared to be bloody rubber gloves, Lopez said.

Authorities arrived to find the gruesome makeshift veterinary practice.

A dozen dogs were rescued and narcotics 'used for anesthetic and pain purposes' were seized, officials confirmed.

An officer cradles one of the rescued puppies: The puppies' rescue mission began when a woman noticed a few English bulldogs outside the property. After locating the home the puppies escaped from, the woman then saw two men leaving the property wearing what appeared to be bloody rubber gloves

The makeshift operating theater set up in Victorio's home and allegedly used to perform illegal c-sections on dogs

Victorio, who was already under investigation by Manteca Animal Services for performing animal surgeries without a license, was arrested on suspicion of animal cruelty, practicing veterinary medicine without a license, and transporting a controlled substance.

Police searched other properties in Lathrop and Manteca connected to the suspect and found more evidence of illegal surgeries, $13,000 in cash, and 18 more dogs  a mix of English and French bulldogs.

Remains of three deceased dogs were also found at the properties, including one that had been discarded in a trash can along with pieces of other dogs' ears.

Half of the surviving animals required medical treatment when they were found, with some of the female dogs suffering severe nerve damage and intestinal issues because of botched c-sections, Biedermann said.

House of horrors: Police searched the home on the 2000 block of East Louise Avenue in Lathrop Saturday and rescued a dozen dogs from inside the home

Narcotics 'used for anesthetic and pain purposes' were also seized, officials confirmed

Remains of three deceased dogs were also found at some of Victorio's properties

Biedermann added that the 30 dogs rescued belonged to Victorio but that he also performed surgeries on other people's dogs.

'When it comes to animals or any kind of life it's just  it's really cruel,' Chris Velasquez, who works next to the illegal practice, told Fox 40.

'That's some evil stuff going on. You just never know where you're going to be.'

Victorio had told police he was a veterinarian in Mexico, but he did not hold a license to operate on dogs in California.

Victorio was arraigned Thursday at San Joaquin Superior Court and pleaded not guilty to one felony count of animal cruelty, one misdemeanor count of practicing veterinary medicine without a license and two felony counts of transportation of controlled substances.

He was released on bail and ordered to wear a GPS ankle bracelet.

No other arrests have been made but Victorio's wife and a caretaker of the Lathrop home remain suspects, police said.

The other man seen leaving Victorio's property has not been identified.

Police are asking anyone who bought a dog from Victorio or whose pet was operated on by the suspect to contact the Sheriff's Office at 209-468-4400 or Manteca Police Department at 209-456-8100.

Safe at last! Police searched other properties in Lathrop and Manteca connected to the suspect and found more evidence of illegal surgeries, $13,000 in cash, and 18 more dogs  a mix of English and French bulldogs

Animal cruelty: Victorio, who was already under investigation by Manteca Animal Services for performing animal surgeries without a license, was arrested on suspicion of animal cruelty, practicing veterinary medicine without a license, and transporting a controlled substance. He was arrested and bailed but ordered to wear a GPS ankle bracelet
8th US case of coronavirus confirmed day after public health emergency declared originally appeared on abcnews.go.com

Massachusetts health officials reported the state's first confirmed case of coronavirus, putting the number of confirmed cases in the U.S. at eight.

The man, who is a student at the University of Massachusetts Boston, had recently traveled to Wuhan, China, and sought medical care soon after returning home, according to a statement from the Massachusetts Department of Public Health.

Massachusetts Public Health Commissioner Monica Bharel said the man was recovering in isolation at his home and she was grateful that he sought medical attention immediately.

MORE: US declares public health emergency over coronavirus, announces temporary travel ban

Bharel said that while the state has been preparing for a possible case, the risk to the public "remains low in Massachusetts."

Illustration released by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) in Atlanta, Georgia on Jan. 29, 2020 shows the 2019 Novel Coronavirus (2019-nCoV), identified as the cause of an outbreak of respiratory illness first detected in Wuhan, China. (Handout/Centers for Disease Control and Prevention via Reuters)

The man, who is in his 20s, returned to Boston through Logan Airport on Jan. 28 and took himself to a medical facility the next day, Dr. Jennifer Lo, medical director at Boston Public Health Commission, said in a telephone call Saturday with reporters. He has been in isolation since Jan. 29, according to Lo.

Health officials would not detail his symptoms, but did say that he experienced a "runny nose." Symptoms of the new coronavirus are similar to pneumonia, and can range from mild symptoms, like a slight cough, to more severe symptoms, including fever and difficulty breathing, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

Many questions remain about how the virus is transmitted and how infectious it is, with countries scrambling to react.

A spokesperson for the CDC told ABC News the agency was in contact with the airline on which the man flew. The agency is conducting a contact investigation, which means identifying, assessing risk, evaluating or treating all persons who may be at risk of exposure. The agency didn't name the airline.

Story continues

PHOTO: Handout from the National Institute for Viral Disease Control and Prevention, China CDC, on Jan. 27, 2020, shows an image of the first new type of coronavirus isolated from environmental samples, named C-F13-nCoV Wuhan strain 02. (IVDC China CDC Handout/EPA via Shutterstock)

In a statement sent to the UMass-Boston university body, Katherine S. Newman, the school's interim chancellor, said the school is working closely with the Massachusetts Department of Public Health and the Boston Public Health Commission.

Newman noted that health officials have said that the risk to students and faculty at UMass-Boston is low.

MORE: What to know about coronavirus symptoms

"We expect 'business as usual' on campus," she said. The statement included a list of steps to take to stay safe, many of which are similar to those preventing a cold or flu.

Dr. Anthony Fauci, director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, emphasized at a press briefing Friday that the risk to the general American public is low.

"We want to keep it at a low risk," he said.

The eight cases in the U.S. include seven in travelers and one human-to-human transmission between a husband and wife. The affected states are California, Illinois, Massachusetts, Washington state and Arizona. In China, there have been 11,821 confirmed cases as of Saturday and 259 people have died. Outside of China, 170 cases have been confirmed in 25 countries.

The new case in the U.S. comes a day after Secretary of Health and Human Services Alex Azar declared a public health emergency in the country at a White House press briefing on coronavirus.

Centers for Disease Control and Prevention Director Dr. Robert Redfield and members of the Trump Administration's Coronavirus Task Force hold a press briefing on a federal quarantine order in the White House Briefing Room on Ja, 31, 2020, in Washington. (Sarah Silbiger/Getty Images)

U.S. citizens returning from Hubei province in the previous 14 days will be subject to up to a 14-day quarantine. Foreign nationals, other than immediate family members of U.S. citizens who have traveled to China in the previous 14 days, will be denied entry into the country. The temporary measures take effect Feb. 2 at 5 p.m.

MORE: US evacuation flight from China's coronavirus zone rerouted to March Air Reserve Base

Americans who've traveled to other parts of China in the previous 14 days will be subject to a health screening upon entry and asked to self-quarantine for up to 14 days.

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention ordered a federal quarantine order for all 195 people who were evacuated from China and have been voluntarily quarantined at a military base in California.

Americans should not let panic or fear guide their actions, according to the CDC, who recommended that the general public does not need to wear face masks.
The United States will deny entry to foreigners travelling from mainland China to prevent the new coronavirus from spreading after declaring a public health emergency on Friday.

President Donald Trumps order will require US citizens, permanent residents and immediate family members arriving in the country from Chinas Hubei province  the epicentre of the contagion  to be quarantined for 14 days starting Sunday at 5pm Eastern time.

The measures were announced by the White House task force on the coronavirus led by Health and Human Services Secretary Alex Azar. The order came as US health authorities confirmed the seventh case of the contagion  officially known as the 2019 novel coronavirus  in Santa Clara, California.

The move by Washington follows similar restrictions put in place by Japan and Singapore on incoming visitors from mainland China.

US Secretary of Health and Human Services Alex Azar announces quarantine measures to prevent the spread of the coronavirus. Photo: EPA-EFE

The two Asian countries moved to close their borders to residents of the mainland after the World Health Organisations declaration of a global health emergency on Thursday.

Foreign nationals, other than immediate family of US citizens and permanent residents, who have travelled in China within the last 14 days will be denied entry into the United States for this time, said Azar.

The actions we have taken and continue to take, complement  the work of China and the World Health Organisation to contain the outbreak within China, he said.

All US citizens, permanent residents and immediate family members travelling from other parts of China will be subject to proactive entry screening and self-quarantine for 14 days.

The US will also funnel all flights from China to seven airports: New Yorks John F. Kennedy, Chicagos OHare, San Francisco, Seattle, Atlanta, Honolulu and LAX in Los Angeles.

Officials from the Centres for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), among the members of the task force, emphasised that the measures were taken out of abundance of caution because of unknowns surrounding how the disease is spreading outside of China.

Story continues

The issue now with this is that there is a lot of unknowns, said Anthony Fauci, director of the CDCs National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases.

In the beginning we were not sure there were asymptomatic infections, which would make it a much broader outbreak than we are seeing. Now we know that there are, he added.

Anthony Fauci, director of National Institute of Allergy & Infectious Diseases, speaks during a news conference in the briefing room of the White House on Friday. Photo: Amanda Andrade-Rhoades/Bloomberg

Asked why the administration was taking these measures despite its repeated emphasis that the virus posed a low risk in the US, Azar said he hoped that people will see that their government is taking responsible steps to protect them.

These are preventive steps, the risk is low in the United States, he said.

Apart from CDC officials, the task force led by Azar includes representatives from the National Institutes of Health, the Department of Homeland Security, the Transportation Department and the Department of State.

Joel Szabat, the Acting Under Secretary for Policy, Department for Transportation, said in the briefing that Fridays measures did not constitute a travel ban on China.

However, Szabat noted that the three US airlines that fly to China  Delta Air Lines, United Airlines and American Airlines  had all temporarily suspended flights to and from the mainland even before the measures were announced.

We will be working going forward with the US and Chinese passenger airlines about their flight plans going forward, he said.

Earlier on Friday, the CDC announced a mandatory quarantine of 195 Americans evacuated from Wuhan earlier this week. It was the first such directive issued in some five decades.

As of Friday, more than 11,700 people have been infected in China, with over 130 cases reported in 26 other countries or territories, including Taiwan.

All 259 deaths caused by the virus have occurred in China.

The case in Santa Clara is the first in the San Francisco Bay area and the third in California.

More from South China Morning Post:

This article Coronavirus: US bars entry to foreigners travelling from mainland China, declares public health emergency first appeared on South China Morning Post

For the latest news from the South China Morning Post download our mobile app. Copyright 2020.
The United States will bar foreign nationals coming from China from entering the country. But whats the situation like inside Wuhan, where it all began?

So far no deaths have been reported outside of China, even though the coronavirus has been confirmed in at least 23 countries outside of China.

New measures to try and prevent the spread of the coronavirus overseas include more airlines stopping flights.

Countries are increasingly closing borders to China. The latest being Singapore and Mongolia.

And the warning level continues to rise. The Department of Defense reiterated the State Departments warning not to travel to China.

So far over 20 countries either have or are working to evacuate their citizens from Wuhan and get them home.

On Friday, the first plane bringing UK citizens, and some European citizens, arrived back in the UK. The problem is, one British man, Jeff Siddle, told local media his Chinese wife wasnt allowed to leave Wuhan.

This Tuesday, UK foreign secretary, Dominic Raab, raised this issue to the Chinese regime, which insisted it wont allow people with Chinese citizenship to leave.

At this time, it is not clear if his wife has been allowed to board the plane.

While countries are trying to pull their citizens from Wuhan, China is planning to fly its overseas citizens back to the virus-stricken Hubei province.

People are reacting to the news on social media.

One compared it to firefighters rescuing people from a burning building only to have the people put back in.

Another responded, its enough to scare one to death.

And yet another one called out the regime, asking if the ministry of Foreign Affairs should ask all countries to extend travelers visas from Wuhan.

Someone else pointed out the irony that while a Chinese passport might not allow you to go anywhere in the world, it will take you home from anywhere in the world.

China has already pulled its citizens from Thailand and Malaysia, people who were traveling there for vacation.

Thailand said it will send a plane to Wuhan to bring back its own citizens.

At ground zero in Wuhan, hospital staff lacking proper supplies are desperately making masks for themselves out of what looks like ziplock bags and plastic twine.

On Chinas southern borderer with Vietnam in Nanning, the capital of the Guangxi province, about 750 miles from Wuhan, people are lining up for miles trying to buy masks. Each person is only allowed to buy 3.
The mother of a seven-year-old Belfast boy with Down's syndrome has urged Prime Minister Boris Johnson not to introduce abortion for babies with the condition here.

Nicola Woods (34) is one of more than 1,000 people who have signed an open letter to Mr Johnson as new figures show there were 710 late-term abortions for Down's syndrome in England and Wales over the last 10 years.

Figures from the Department of Health in Northern Ireland show that while 52 children with Down's syndrome were born in 2016, in the same year only one child from here with the condition was aborted in England and Wales.

The letter has been backed by the Don't Screen Us Out community, a coalition of advocacy groups, who are concerned about the scope of the Northern Ireland regulations and the impact on families with Down's syndrome children.

Last October abortion in Northern Ireland was decriminalised by MPs at Westminster.

Prior to this abortion has been illegal except in very limited circumstances, such as where the life or mental health of the mother is in danger.

The Northern Ireland Office held a six-week consultation on the legal framework governing abortion ahead of the introduction of termination services here on March 31, 2020.

The NIO consultation document covered a series of issues, including questions on the gestational limit for early terminations of pregnancy.

Nicola's eldest son Daniel was born with Down's syndrome, but she said her pregnancy with him was honoured and respected by the medical staff at every appointment.

Nicola, who is also mum to Rory (4) and Finn (2), said having Daniel has been a "delight" and the "biggest blessing" to her family.

"Sometimes there are days that are tough, if Daniel has a lot of appointments or the extra work involved with his statement of special educational needs or if he's had a bad night's sleep," she added.

"Daniel himself is a delight. He lives in the moment, doesn't worry about mistakes he made last week or something difficult happening in the future. His joy in the simple things of life has radiated to all those around him."

Nicola said imposing abortion laws, including around Down's syndrome and other disabilities, implies their lives are not worth living, when the absolute opposite is the case.

"People are deluded if they think this won't have a negative impact on the Down's syndrome community here in Northern Ireland when it is the safest place to be diagnosed with a disability," she added.

"We in Northern Ireland should be left to make our own decisions about abortion law.

"People are keen to advocate for equality once babies are born, but not for the unborn child with a disability.

"Unborn children with disabilities are most vulnerable before they are born, where screening and abortion is the norm. Northern Ireland protects them and we want it to stay that way."

Don't Screen Us Out spokesperson Lynn Murray claims the new regulations here will allow abortion on request for any reason, which will include conditions such as Down's syndrome.

The group has urged the UK Government to commit to add a simple provision to the abortion framework that will outline that abortion for Down's syndrome will explicitly not be allowed.

Lynn said: "If the Government are not prepared to ensure abortion for Down's syndrome is not introduced in the final framework, they need to confirm this publicly and make it clear that their intention is to introduce abortion for disability-selective Down's syndrome to Northern Ireland.

"The proposed framework would likely lead to a big increase in abortion for congenital conditions detected pre-birth in Northern Ireland, and would reduce the numbers of our already very small community.

"This would have a devastating impact on the community of people with Down's syndrome."

She added: "Our attitude towards people with disabilities has changed and our laws must reflect that."
The Air Force set a record for suicides in 2019, a stark reminder that a Pentagon all but invincible on the battlefield has struggled to protect its troops from themselves.

There were at least 112 suspected and confirmed suicides among active-duty, reserve and Air National Guard personnel last year. That was a 40 percent jump from the year before and the highest total since the Air Force began tracking suicides in 2003.

The previous record was set in 2015, when 94 airmen took their own lives.

Read on ExpressNews.com how a new form of therapy is giving hope to active-duty and veterans at high risk for suicide.

The pace of suicides in 2019 so alarmed Air Force leaders that the services top commander, Gen. David Goldfein, ordered a tactical pause in operations in July to raise awareness of the problem. He warned that suicides could exceed 150 by the end of the year if nothing was done.

Goldfeins action appears to have had an effect. Suicides occurred at a rate of about 13 per month before the pause and dropped to an average of 5.6 a month for the rest of the year.

The record 2019 total was shown in an Air Force graphic displayed on a Facebook group of airmen, non-commissioned officers and senior NCOs (called Air Force amn/nco/snco).

The graphic was marked for official use only within the Pentagon. A Pentagon official, speaking on condition of anonymity, confirmed its authenticity to the San Antonio Express-News.

The graphic included a note that 68 deaths in the 2019 total were suspected suicides, not yet confirmed.

Asked for comment, the Air Force released a statement from Lt. Gen. Brian Kelly, deputy chief of staff for manpower, personnel and services.

On ExpressNews.com: A third of all Air Force suicide victims were involved in a failing relationship

The Department of the Air Force has been and continues to pursue immediate, mid-term, and long-range suicide prevention initiatives for the total force that focus on connections between individuals, units, and Air Force family; protections in environments, services, and policies; detection of risk in individuals and units; and equipping the total force and family members to mitigate risk and increase resilience, the statement said.

Suicide is a difficult national problem without easily identifiable solutions that has the full attention of leadership.

The Pentagon official who spoke on condition of anonymity said the rise in suicides could not be attributed to an increase in the number of service personnel. That number has generally held steady at about 510,600 airmen on active duty and in the reserve and Air National Guard.

Suicides among active duty, guard and reserve personnel in the Air Force:

2019 --- 112

--- 112 2018 --- 80

--- 80 2017 --- 86

--- 86 2016 --- 85

--- 85 2015 --- 94

--- 94 2014 --- 86

--- 86 2013 --- 72

--- 72 2012 --- 75

--- 75 2011 --- 70

--- 70 2010 --- 80

--- 80 2009 --- 66

--- 66 2008 --- 53

--- 53 2007 --- 59

--- 59 2006 --- 60

--- 60 2005 --- 49

--- 49 2004 --- 72

--- 72 2003 --- 58

Source: U.S. Air Force

sigc@express-news.net
Source: Xinhua| 2020-02-01 05:20:30|Editor: yan

Video Player Close

BAGHDAD, Jan. 31 (Xinhua) -- A total of five shells struck Friday a military base housing U.S. forces in Iraq's northern province of Nineveh, the Iraqi military said.

The attack took place in the night when the shells landed on al-Qayyara air base in south of the provincial capital city of Mosul, the media office affiliated with the Iraqi Joint Operations Command said in a statement.

The were no human or material casualties by the attack, the statement said.

A security source in Mosul told Xinhua that Katyusha rockets landed at the perimeter of al-Qayyara air base without causing casualties.

The attack came a week after thousands of demonstrators took to the streets in Baghdad upon the request of the Iraqi prominent Shiite leader Moqtada al-Sadr, in which he called for a scheduled withdrawal of U.S. troops from Iraq through peaceful means.

The Iraqi parliament passed a resolution requiring the government to end the presence of foreign forces in Iraq on Jan. 5, two days after a U.S. drone strike killed Qassem Soleimani, commander of the Quds Force of Iran's Islamic Revolution Guards Corps, and Abu Mahdi al-Muhandis, deputy chief of Iraq's paramilitary Hashd Shaabi forces.

Over 5,000 U.S. troops have been deployed in Iraq to support the Iraqi forces in the battles against Islamic State militants, mainly providing training and advising to the Iraqi forces.
AIMIM president Asaduddin Owaisi on Saturday condemned the arrest of a school headmistress and a student's mother in Karnataka for alleged involvementin staging a drama at the institution, portraying Prime Minister Narendra Modi in poor light over the CAA and NRC.

A sedition case has been slapped against the school in the matter, and Owaisi, who met the arrested women at Bidar, objected to the charge being filed in connection with a play.

"Earlier today, AIMIM MLA Kausar Mohiuddin, corporator Aziz sb., Yamin Khan & I met with arrested headmistress Fareeda Begum & students mother Najamunnisa in Bidar.

In a condemnable incident, they were arrested by Bidar police for sedition in connection with a school play," he tweeted.

The headmistress was unwell and the child was now being looked after by the landlord of the house as the childs mother is a widow, he said.

Owaisi also said he met the SP of Bidar and objected to the arrests and slapping of sedition charge for staging a school play.

The AIMIM chief claimed that the SP told him that the matter was under investigation and the sedition charge maybe removed.

"I said this should have been done before arresting these women as they are local residents,how can a school play be a crime?" Owaisi said.

The police action came after they questioned the two women, a few staff members of the Shaheen School in the district headquarters town of Bidar and students on Thursday.

The arrested women were produced before a court which remanded them to judicial custody, police said on Friday.

The drama was staged by students of fourth, fifth and sixth standard on January 21.

A sedition case was booked by police on January 26 against the school, along with some other sections of the Indian Penal Code (IPC) on January 26, based on a complaint from social worker Neelesh Rakshyal.

The complainant has alleged the school authorities 'used' the students to perform a drama where they "abused" Modi in the context of the Citizenship Amendment Act (CAA) and the National Register of Citizens (NRC).

The play, uploaded on social media, had gone viral.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
A 21-year-old African national was arrested after heroin was seized from his possession in Himachal Pradesh's Kullu district on Saturday, police said.

U C Chionso, hailing from Ivory Coast, was caught with 36 gram of heroin, Kullu Superintendent of Police Gaurav Singh said.

Chionso is the ninth foreigner arrested for carrying drugs in the last two months in Kullu, he said.

Earlier, two persons from Ivory Coast, a Russian national and five Nigerians were held with drugs, Singh said.

Chionso was selling heroin to youths, he said.

A case under Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic Substances Act has been registered against him at Patlikuhal police station, the SP said.

Chionso did not carry passport and visa. So action under the Foreigners' Act has also been initiated against him, Singh added.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
Marcal Paper Is Officially Back in Business, Papermaking Operations Restarted Marcal Paper CEO Rob Baron addresses the crowd at an event held Jan. 31 to commemorate the official restart of papermaking operations at the Elmwood Park, New Jersey, paper mill. Feb. 1, 2020 - Marcal Paper hosted an event Jan. 31 to commemorate the official restart of papermaking operations in Elmwood Park, New Jersey and thank those across New Jersey who aided in its recovery, one year after a ten-alarm fire destroyed the company's iconic mill and shut down operations. Chief Executive Officer Rob Baron and dozens of company associates were joined by dozens of workers, Governor Phil Murphy, Congressman Bill Pascrell, Jr., first responders, the United Steelworkers, state legislators, local officials and many community partners. "Marcal Paper is officially back in business," Baron announced to a cheering crowd inside the mill on Friday. "Today we officially announced the restart of regular papermaking operations in Elmwood Park, one year to the day after a ten-alarm fire destroyed the iconic Marcal Paper mill," said Baron. "The prospect of such an announcement  of restarting a viable paper manufacturing business at the site  seemed impossible to any of us who were there one year ago. "We are thrilled to welcome back dozens of good people into full-time jobs, and work to restore customer confidence. We will start the long journey of creating a great company from the ground up, once again. Thanks to the remarkable support we've received and the determination of our team, the Marcal story will have another chapter." Rob Baron talked with reporters after the official ceremony designating the restart of the mill. "Our goal is to continue to grow this business." New Jersey Governor Phil Murphy added, "One year ago, I toured what remained of the historic Marcal factory only hours after a devastating fire. What a difference a year makes. Today, I am proud to be here for the re-opening of Marcal in Elmwood Park, and thankful that this factory will again bring jobs and opportunity to this community. I wish those at Marcal nothing but the best as they restart operations and look forward to following this new chapter in the history of one of New Jersey's truly iconic companies." Baron said he and others at the mill were determined to rebuild the operation. "The team would come into my office and say, 'I'm staying if you're staying; let's do this'. . . I never thought about walking away." Baron said it's going to be a challenge moving forward. "Our goal is to continue to grow this business. But we lost in eight hours; we lost eighty years of customers. There is no magic bullet; there is no simple way to get back . . . it's going to take time." Currently, the mill is operating one paper machine with about 100 workers back on the job. About Marcal Marcal produces tissue that is a great entry-level-product for any retailer. The product is now softer and brighter than ever, absorbent, strong, whitened without chlorine bleach, no added fragrances, hypoallergenic, septic safe bath tissue, virtually lint-free, and 100% sustainable. To lean more or contact the company, visit: www.marcalpaper.com . SOURCE: Marcal Paper and local news reports
Alaya F, daughter of actor Pooja Bedi, who made her debut with Jawaani Jaaneman on Friday, seems to have already bagged her second film. According to a report in Filmfare, a source has claimed that Alaya has been chosen to play one of the female leads in Student of the Year 3.

The report also adds that the shooting of the film will begin in Bangkok this summer. A confirmation on the same is still awaited from the makers of the franchise, Karan Johar led Dharma Productions.

Alaya is the latest star kid to join the industry but got a thumbs up from the critics. The Hindustan Times review of the film said about her, Alaya F is a good fit for Tia, the girl out to find her dad. Vulnerable and honest, her chemistry with Saif lifts the film.

Karan Johar had already hinted about SOTY 3 while making an announcement for SOTY 2. Hed written on Twitter, Am so excited and proud to handed the franchise to you!!! #soty2 coming your way soon!!! Shall we reveal our plans for #SOTY3 just now!!? Or actually lets keep em guessing. Even Varun Dhawan, who made his debut with the original, had said in one of his interviews, People still call us student and I dont think that tag will go away from us and we never know in Student of The Year 3 we might go back to school.

Also read: Anushka Sharma, Virat Kohli share the secret of a strong relationship in new TV commercial. Watch

Alaya had named Student of the Year 2 actors Ananya Panday and Tara Sutaria (both of them made their debut with the film) in one of her interviews about how she learns from the mistakes made by her contemporaries. She had said, Sara, Ananya (Panday), Tara (Sutaria), Janhvi (Kapoor), among others, are all extremely talented in different ways and together weve so much to offer. I respect everyone and have watched all their interviews several times to learn from their mistakes and take a note of their good points. Ive also learnt to see them in the limelight.

The debutante not just has a pleasant onscreen appearance but is also good with words. On being asked to comment on nepotism, she told Mumbai Mirror in an interview, We need to realise that even in our struggle, we are privileged. If we got rejected in 10 auditions, someone else has got the thumbs down 100 times. Their struggle is greater than ours. But just because Im privileged, doesnt mean that Im not going to do what I love and work hard at it.

Follow @htshowbiz for more

SHARE THIS ARTICLE ON
Helping Your Child Succeed

Do you have children who can read, but do not enjoy reading, and almost never pick up a book or anything else to read for pleasure? Would your Read more
The Ranking Member on the Mines and Energy Committee, Adam Mutawakilu has said some government appointees should have packed and leave their offices over the reported disappearance of some excavators seized from alleged illegal miners.

According to him, such huge earth moving could not be moved without a trace.

The Minister for Environment, Lands and Natural resources, Professor Kwabena Frimpong earlier this week indicated that dozens of excavators that were seized from illegal mining have disappeared from the district assemblies where they were being kept.

The minister is quoted as saying that though the excavators were seized and taken to the district assemblies, the heavy-duty machines disappeared later from the premises of the assemblies.

But the Adam Mutawakilu, who is also the Member of Parliament for the Damango constituency said the development confirms his view that the government's fight against galamsey is only a facade.

How can an excavator vanish? By now some people should have willingly resignedI'm so shocked that excavators could just vanish. This goes to confirm what I said in 2019 that the president's fight against galamsey was just to remove those local people who are using hoes and cutlass and pave way for party bigwigs to take over.

He added that the minority is independently investigating the matter to expose persons who are behind the disappearance

He added that, When you take the minerals and mining Act as amended in 2015, it stated clearly how seized items should be dealt withWe in the minority we are doing an undercover operation to know where the excavators are and will come out with the results. Seized excavators being used for galamsey

Meanwhile, a group calling itself Concerned Small Scale Miners Union of Ghana had said that about 500 excavators seized during the intense crusade against illegal small scale mining between 2017 and 2018, are not missing as alleged but they are on various illegal mining sites in parts of the country.

We were able to find some of these machines in Tamale. Some of these machines had tracking devices. So we are able to trace them. Name officials responsible for the disappearance of seized excavators  Groups demand

The Media Coalition against Illegal Mining and Occupy Ghana subsequently demanded from government explanations for the supposed disappearance of some excavators.

According to the two organisations, the authorities responsible for ensuring sanity within the mining sector have failed to enforce the law.

Convenor of the Media Coalition against Galamsey, Ken Ashigbey said persons behind the disappearance should be named to ensure they are sanctioned.

If we don't ensure that the laws that we have, are working, then the impunity will continue. How come some of the excavators cannot be found? It is also important that we know which public officers or individuals are responsible for this. That is something that we need answers for, he said. Inter-Ministerial Committee on Illegal Mining

The Inter-Ministerial Committee on illegal mining was set up to oversee the implementation of the ban on all forms of small scale mining and also see to the vetting of small scale miners.

It was commissioned in March 2017 by President Akufo-Addo to reform artisanal and small-scale mining in the country. It's chaired by the minister of Environment, Science, Technology, and Innovation (MESTI), Professor Frimpong Boateng.

The committee is made up of Ministers of the following ministries; Environment, Science, Technology, and Innovation (MESTI), Lands and Natural Resources (MLNR), Local Government and Rural Development (MLGRD), Chieftaincy & Religious Affairs, Regional Re-Organisation and Development, Monitoring and Evaluation, Water and Sanitation, Interior, Defense, and Information.

---citinewsroom
New Delhi: Lashing out at the people protesting against the new citizenship law, Uttar Pradesh CM Yogi Adityanath alleged that those who support terrorists in Kashmir were staging protest in Shaheen Bagh and raising slogans of Azadi.

Addressing a series of rallies here, Adityanath also said that their ancestors divided India, so they have a grouse against this emerging Ek Bharat, Shrestha Bharat, and slammed the AAP government, saying it supplies biryani to protesters in Shaheen Bagh.

Kejriwal cannot even provide clean drinking water to the people. But the government is supplying biryani to the protesters.
Singing patriotic songs and waving Union Jacks, thousands of Britons flocked to a muddy patch of grass outside parliament on a damp Friday night to toast their moment of history: Britain's departure from the European Union. Britain's exit from the EU ends 47 years of union with Europe. It also draws a line under a bitter and divisive wrangle over whether, when and how the country should cut its ties to the bloc. While Prime Minister Boris Johnson kept a low profile at a private reception in his Downing Street office, more than 5,000 people gathered just down the road to ...
If you were looking for the Charlestown Democratic Town Committee website and ended up here, try this





Got news tips, gossip, suggestions, complaints?E-mail us: progressivecharlestown@gmail.com We strive to avoid errors in our articles. Our correction policy can be found here
Denver Democrat Dan Himelspach on Saturday withdrew from the state House District 6 vacancy election to replace state Rep. Chris Hansen, D-Denver, who was appointed last month to the state Senate, saying he instead plans to run for the seat in the June primary.

Himelspach, a mediation attorney and professional negotiator, cited concerns that Colorado has the highest number of unelected legislators in the country, a trend he said threatens to "undermine voter participation" in a crucial election year.

A Democratic vacancy committee is scheduled to meet at 7 p.m. Tuesday to pick a replacement for Hanson, who prevailed in an earlier vacancy election to fill the term of former state Sen. Lois Court, D-Denver, following her resignation due to health reasons.

Himelspach was among six candidates Democratic Party officials said have applied to fill the vacancy.

I respect the work of the people on the vacancy committee and our most committed party activists," Himelspach told Colorado Politics in a statement. "I am honored to have the support of so many of them and hope more will join our grassroots campaign. But voters are deeply concerned the vacancy appointment process is not reflective of a strong democracy  or the values of the Democratic Party.

Colorado Politics reported last week that the legislature leads the nation in unelected lawmakers, with 12% of current representative and senators having been appointed to their seats by vacancy committees.

Himelspach, who launched a candidacy for the seat in early January, before Court announced her retirement and the dominoes started to fall, said he plans to continue campaigning ahead of the June 30 primary election.

The 45-year Denver resident has the support of Denver City Councilwoman Amanda Sawyer, whose council district overlaps the legislative district, as well as former Denver City Council members Cathy Donohue and Ed Thomas, his campaign said.

I am proud to support Dan Himelspach to serve east and central Denver. He listens and understands the voice of our community. He will be a fierce advocate for us in the state House," said Sawyer in a statement provided by Himelspach's campaign.

Himelspach grew up on a ranch in Montana and got his law degree from the University of Denver College of Law on the GI Bill after serving in the Army.

He owns a mediation business and started a family business that produces products used worldwide in brain research.

Himelspach and his wife, former Denver County District Court Judge Leslie Lawson, have two adult children.

This story was updated to correct the spelling of Chris Hansen's name.
A deadline set by Iraq's president for parliament to name a new premier was set to expire Saturday amid renewed pressure from the street after influential cleric Moqtada Sadr called for fresh protests.

Baghdad and the mainly Shiite south have been gripped by four months of anti-government rallies demanding snap elections, a politically independent prime minister and accountability for corruption and protest-related violence.

Faced with pressure from the street and from the Shiite religious leadership, Prime Minister Adel Abdel Mahdi resigned in December after just over a year in office.

But rival parties have failed to agree on a successor, stoking fears of a spiral into chaos as the country tries to navigate the protests and rising tensions between its two main allies, Iran and the United States.

In a bid to restore some stability, President Barham Saleh sent a letter to the deeply divided parliament this week saying he would nominate a premier unilaterally if lawmakers did not do so by Saturday.

The ultimatum sent parties into crisis talks but on Saturday, there was still no clear consensus.

"There's no agreement, no way to end the rivalries so far," a top government official told AFP on condition of anonymity.

"And if Saleh names someone on his own, there will be a crisis because that shouldn't be his role."



In a normal situation, parliament's largest bloc must nominate a prime minister within 15 days of an election, and the candidate is then tasked by the president with forming a government within one month.

But Iraq is in an unprecedented situation: no premier has ever resigned and the constitution makes no provision for how to handle such a move.

Since a US-led invasion toppled longtime dictator Saddam Hussein in 2003, major decisions have been made by consensus among the country's Shiite, Sunni and Kurdish parties.

Any contender for prime minister needs a green light from a dizzying array of interests -- the divided political class, the Shiite religious leadership, neighbouring Iran, its rival the United States and now the protesters.

One of the most influential voices in Iraqi in recent years has been Shiite cleric Moqtada Sadr, who led the anti-US Mehdi Army militia after the invasion and has since refashioned himself as a populist politician.

He controls parliament's largest bloc and many ministerial posts.

But he backed the protests when they erupted in October and his supporters were widely recognised as the best organised demonstrators.

A week ago, he appeared to rethink his support for the protest movement and his hard-core backers dismantled their tents in protest camps across the country.

Within hours of Sadr's withdrawal, riot police moved into burn or tear down protest camps and around a dozen demonstrators were killed, medics and police said.

But on Friday he seemed to flip again, calling for his backers "to renew the peaceful, reformist revolution".

They were back in the streets on Saturday, setting up tents and mingling with politically unaligned protesters who had held their ground when the Sadrists pulled out.

The violence dropped markedly, too.

"Since the Sadrists came back, we've implemented a sort of ceasefire and haven't fired tear gas at protesters," a member of the security forces told AFP near Tahrir Square, the main protest camp in the capital.

More than 480 people have died in protest-related violence since October, the great majority of them demonstrators killed by live rounds or military-grade tear gas canisters.

Protesters in Tahrir Square have already publicly rejected a number of names floated for prime minister, including former communications minister Mohammed Tawfiq Allawi and current intelligence chief Mustafa Kazemi.

Their portraits, marked with large "X"s over their faces, were hanging in the square along with a big blue poster calling for the United Nations to intervene in the crisis.

The top UN official in Iraq Jeanine Hennis-Plasschaert has pushed throughout the week for progress, tweeting on Friday that solutions were "urgently needed" to "break the political deadlock".

And the country's top Shiite cleric Grand Ayatollah Ali Sistani piled on the pressure on Friday, saying Iraq must "accelerate the formation of a new government".

"It is imperative to speed up holding early elections so that the people will have their say," he said.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
Imposition of additional duty on cigarette by the government would increase pressure on the industry and will encourage its smuggling in India by illegal trade operators, the Tobacco Institute of India (TII) said on Saturday.

While presenting the Union Budget for 2020-21, Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman proposed to increase the National Calamity Contingency Duty (NCCD) on cigarettes, hookah, chewing tobacco, snuff and tobacco extracts and essence.

"The increase in NCCD announced in the Union Budget 2020-21 and the resulting escalation in cigarette taxation leading to higher tax arbitrage will serve as a huge incentive to illegal cigarette trade operators, who target India as a preferred destination for smuggled cigarettes," TII in a statement.

It said "in the current economic environment the proposed increase announced in the Union Budget on NCCD will aggravate the pressure on the legal cigarette Industry, encourage illegal cigarette trade and adversely impact tobacco farmer earnings whose livelihood is intrinsically connected with legal cigarette value-chain".

According to TII, NCCD was introduced in 2001 as a levy of a special surcharge on central taxes for a limited period. However, while almost all cesses and surcharges were discontinued in the GST regime, levy of NCCD on tobacco products continued.

"TII had also requested the government for the abolition of NCCD on the ground that this levy is against the principles of GST which, inter alia, seeks to eliminate cascading of taxes," it said.

TII claims to be a representative body of farmers, manufacturers, exporters of the cigarettes segment of the tobacco industry in India, whose members account for more than 98 per cent of the country's domestic sales.

According to TII, illegal cigarettes have grown consistently in the country and now account for one fourth of the Indian cigarette market.

Citing a report from the market research agency Euromonitor International, TII said that India is now the fourth largest illegal cigarette market in the world.

The illicit cigarettes has increased from a level of 11.1 billion sticks in 2004 to 25.6 billion sticks in 2018, resulting in an annual revenue loss of Rs 13,000 crore to the government.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
Gay Byrne predicted that climate change would allow Ireland to grow Mediterranean fruits and vegetables, cars would be banned in Dublin city, and people would have more leisure time.

It was January 1996 and the Irish broadcaster was sharing some of his thoughts on what 2020 might look like, in letter written for a time capsule project to mark European Nature Conservation Year 1995.

Coming to light less than three months after he died, there is particular poignancy in the line that by 2020 "I'll be dead or 86-years old and still presenting The Late Late Show". Now, 25 years after being stashed away, letters he and other famous names wrote to the sixth class pupils in Loreto Primary School, Rathfarnham, Dublin are part of a unique cache re-opened yesterday.

The late Seamus Heaney shared his pride in how his stanza containing the famous line "hope and history rhyme" had been quoted by US president Bill Clinton and Irish president Mary Robinson and wanted that included in the capsule.
MONTREALThe Parti Quebecois says that for the first time, non-members will be able to cast a ballot for its leader.

The PQ body that determines the leadership race rules says the new status of sympathizer will open the door for Quebecers to take part in party proceedings and, for a $5 donation, to vote for the new chief.

There are people who become members to vote for the leadership, but this pool could grow, because people are interested, said Agnes Maltais, who will oversee the vote.

Its exciting, as an idea, that you can participate in the election of a party leader directly, said Maltais, a PQ legislator for 20 years before stepping down in 2018.

Party president Dieudonne Ella Oyono suggested that the ultimate goal is to boost membership numbers, which are in decline.

Are we targeting 50,000 or 100,000? There is no specific objective. Of course 200,000 would be better, he said.

The announcement Saturday comes amid an attempt revive the flagging fortunes of a party that set Quebecs political agenda for more than 40 years, but that now sits in fourth place in the National Assembly, where it has not won a majority since 1998.

Leadership debates are expected between April 15 and May 20, though no dates have been set.

The vote to replace Jean-Francois Lisee is scheduled for June 19.

Lisee resigned after two years at the party helm when the Coalition Avenir Quebec surged to power in October 2018.

Read more about:
President Donald Trump took time -- in the midst of announcing his administration's long-awaited but likely-to-fail plan for Middle East peace -- to praise his Secretary of State Mike Pompeo.

"That was very impressive," Trump told Pompeo. "That reporter couldn't have done too good a job on you yesterday. I think you did a good job on her, actually." (And, yes, people laughed.)

Here's the moment:

What Trump was referring to was the decision by Pompeo's State Department to ban an NPR reporter from an upcoming trip to the United Kingdom and Ukraine, among other countries. That ban, which State has yet to explain, came just days after a decidedly contentious interview between Pompeo and NPR reporter Mary Louise Kelly in which Pompeo grew angry when Kelly asked about Ukraine and its role in the current impeachment trial of Trump. According to Kelly, Pompeo challenged her to find Ukraine on a map, which she did. In a statement from Pompeo that followed the incident, the secretary insisted that Kelly had pointed to Bangladesh.

That -- yelling at a reporter and demanding she find a foreign country on a map -- is what Trump called "very impressive" and praised Pompeo for doing "a good job on her, actually."

So, yeah.

Now, go to what might seem like an unrelated tweet from Trump on Tuesday morning:

"Really pathetic how @FoxNews is trying to be so politically correct by loading the airwaves with Democrats like Chris Van Hollen, the no name Senator from Maryland. He has been on forever playing up the Impeachment Hoax. So, what the hell has happened to @FoxNews. Only I know! Chris Wallace and others should be on Fake News CNN or MSDNC. How's Shep Smith doing? Watch, this will be the beginning of the end for Fox, just like the other two which are dying in the ratings. Social Media is great!"

Here's why the praise of Pompeo and the Trump tweet are actually more tied to each other than you might think: They both reflect Trump's view of how the media works, how it should work and how reporters should be treated.

Trump's outrage over the fact that Fox News had a Democratic senator on is based on the belief that the network should never have anyone on air who disagrees with him. That it is, effectively, state TV. And in Trump's defense, he has lots and lots of reasons to believe that Fox News would never dare to criticize him. Among those reasons: Sean Hannity, "Fox & Friends," Lou Dobbs, Tucker Carlson and Laura Ingraham. Fox News has built its empire by fueling Trump's rise and then keeping it afloat (and prospering) in the eyes of conservative voters by offering almost unanimous support and justification of what he says and does.

Trump takes that stance for granted because he fundamentally misunderstands -- whether purposely or not -- the role the media plays in a healthy democracy. It's not unpatriotic or biased for the media to ask hard questions of Trump and his senior officials. It's actually the essence of patriotism -- holding power, of both parties, to account.

Which brings me back to Pompeo, Kelly and Trump. That Pompeo treated a reporter so shabbily for simply asking relevant questions -- and then challenged her to what amounts to a geography bee -- is a function of Trump's deeply flawed view of journalism. Pompeo only acts like he acted with Kelly if he knows that he is unlikely to face any blowback from his superiors. And, on cue, not only did Trump not scold Pompeo for his treatment of Kelly, he praised him! In the middle of announcing a Middle East peace plan!

If you applaud -- or laugh -- at all of this, ask yourself one question: Has there ever been, in world history, a country that got freer, fairer or more transparent when the independent media was denigrated or destroyed entirely? Yeah, no.
How far off is Spark New Zealand Limited (NZSE:SPK) from its intrinsic value? Using the most recent financial data, we'll take a look at whether the stock is fairly priced by taking the expected future cash flows and discounting them to today's value. This is done using the Discounted Cash Flow (DCF) model. It may sound complicated, but actually it is quite simple!

Companies can be valued in a lot of ways, so we would point out that a DCF is not perfect for every situation. Anyone interested in learning a bit more about intrinsic value should have a read of the Simply Wall St analysis model.

See our latest analysis for Spark New Zealand

The method

We use what is known as a 2-stage model, which simply means we have two different periods of growth rates for the company's cash flows. Generally the first stage is higher growth, and the second stage is a lower growth phase. To start off with, we need to estimate the next ten years of cash flows. Where possible we use analyst estimates, but when these aren't available we extrapolate the previous free cash flow (FCF) from the last estimate or reported value. We assume companies with shrinking free cash flow will slow their rate of shrinkage, and that companies with growing free cash flow will see their growth rate slow, over this period. We do this to reflect that growth tends to slow more in the early years than it does in later years.

A DCF is all about the idea that a dollar in the future is less valuable than a dollar today, so we discount the value of these future cash flows to their estimated value in today's dollars:

10-year free cash flow (FCF) forecast

2020 2021 2022 2023 2024 2025 2026 2027 2028 2029 Levered FCF (NZ$, Millions) NZ$540.5m NZ$505.5m NZ$497.0m NZ$493.5m NZ$493.1m NZ$494.7m NZ$497.8m NZ$502.0m NZ$506.9m NZ$512.4m Growth Rate Estimate Source Analyst x2 Analyst x2 Analyst x1 Est @ -0.7% Est @ -0.09% Est @ 0.33% Est @ 0.63% Est @ 0.84% Est @ 0.98% Est @ 1.08% Present Value (NZ$, Millions) Discounted @ 5.7% NZ$511 NZ$453 NZ$421 NZ$396 NZ$374 NZ$355 NZ$338 NZ$323 NZ$309 NZ$295

("Est" = FCF growth rate estimated by Simply Wall St)

Present Value of 10-year Cash Flow (PVCF) = NZ$3.8b

Story continues

After calculating the present value of future cash flows in the intial 10-year period, we need to calculate the Terminal Value, which accounts for all future cash flows beyond the first stage. The Gordon Growth formula is used to calculate Terminal Value at a future annual growth rate equal to the 10-year government bond rate of 1.3%. We discount the terminal cash flows to today's value at a cost of equity of 5.7%.

Terminal Value (TV)= FCF 2029  (1 + g)  (r  g) = NZ$512m (1 + 1.3%)  5.7% 1.3%) = NZ$12b

Present Value of Terminal Value (PVTV)= TV / (1 + r)10= NZ$12b ( 1 + 5.7%)10= NZ$6.9b

The total value is the sum of cash flows for the next ten years plus the discounted terminal value, which results in the Total Equity Value, which in this case is NZ$11b. In the final step we divide the equity value by the number of shares outstanding. Compared to the current share price of NZ$4.7, the company appears about fair value at a 20% discount to where the stock price trades currently. The assumptions in any calculation have a big impact on the valuation, so it is better to view this as a rough estimate, not precise down to the last cent.

NZSE:SPK Intrinsic value, February 1st 2020

The assumptions

We would point out that the most important inputs to a discounted cash flow are the discount rate and of course the actual cash flows. If you don't agree with these result, have a go at the calculation yourself and play with the assumptions. The DCF also does not consider the possible cyclicality of an industry, or a company's future capital requirements, so it does not give a full picture of a company's potential performance. Given that we are looking at Spark New Zealand as potential shareholders, the cost of equity is used as the discount rate, rather than the cost of capital (or weighted average cost of capital, WACC) which accounts for debt. In this calculation we've used 5.7%, which is based on a levered beta of 0.800. Beta is a measure of a stock's volatility, compared to the market as a whole. We get our beta from the industry average beta of globally comparable companies, with an imposed limit between 0.8 and 2.0, which is a reasonable range for a stable business.

Next Steps:

Whilst important, DCF calculation shouldnt be the only metric you look at when researching a company. The DCF model is not a perfect stock valuation tool. Rather it should be seen as a guide to "what assumptions need to be true for this stock to be under/overvalued?" If a company grows at a different rate, or if its cost of equity or risk free rate changes sharply, the output can look very different. For Spark New Zealand, There are three relevant aspects you should further examine:

Financial Health: Does SPK have a healthy balance sheet? Take a look at our free balance sheet analysis with six simple checks on key factors like leverage and risk. Future Earnings: How does SPK's growth rate compare to its peers and the wider market? Dig deeper into the analyst consensus number for the upcoming years by interacting with our free analyst growth expectation chart. Other High Quality Alternatives: Are there other high quality stocks you could be holding instead of SPK? Explore our interactive list of high quality stocks to get an idea of what else is out there you may be missing!

PS. Simply Wall St updates its DCF calculation for every NZ stock every day, so if you want to find the intrinsic value of any other stock just search here.

If you spot an error that warrants correction, please contact the editor at editorial-team@simplywallst.com. This article by Simply Wall St is general in nature. It does not constitute a recommendation to buy or sell any stock, and does not take account of your objectives, or your financial situation. Simply Wall St has no position in the stocks mentioned.



We aim to bring you long-term focused research analysis driven by fundamental data. Note that our analysis may not factor in the latest price-sensitive company announcements or qualitative material. Thank you for reading.
Celebrations and tears as a divided and uncertain nation sets out to cut its own path in the world

Red, white and blue lights illuminate 10 Downing Street, the official residence of Britain's prime minister, in central London on January 31, 2020, after Britain left the European Union at 2300GMT. Brexit supporters gathered outside parliament to cheer Britain's departure from the European Union following three years of epic political drama.(AFP)

LONDON: Britain on Friday ended almost half a century of European Union (EU) membership, making a historic exit after years of bitter arguments to chart its own uncertain path in the world.

There were celebrations and tears across the country as the EU's often reluctant member became the first to leave an organisation set up to forge unity among nations after the horrors of World War II.

Thousands of people waving Union Jack flags packed London's Parliament Square to mark the moment of Brexit at 11 pm (2300 GMT) -- midnight in Brussels.

"We did it!" declared Nigel Farage, the former member of the European Parliament who has campaigned for Brexit for years, before the crowd began singing the national anthem.

It was a largely good-natured gathering, aside from one Brexit supporter who earlier set an EU flag alight.

But Brexit has exposed deep divisions in British society, and many fear the consequences of ending 47 years of ties with their nearest neighbours.

Some pro-Europeans, including many of the 3.6 million EU citizens who made their lives in Britain, marked the occasion with solemn candlelit vigils.

Brexit has also provoked soul-searching in the EU about its own future after losing 66 million people, a global diplomatic big-hitter and the clout of the City of London financial centre.

'Not an end, a beginning'

In an address to the nation, prime minister Boris Johnson -- a figurehead in the seismic 2016 referendum vote for Brexit -- acknowledged there might be "bumps in the road ahead".

But he said Britain could make it a "stunning success".

As he held a private party in his Downing Street office, a clock projected on the walls outside counted down the minutes until Brexit.

Johnson predicted a "new era of friendly cooperation" with the EU while Britain takes a greater role on the world stage.

"The most important thing to say tonight is that this is not an end but a beginning," he said in a televised address.

EU institutions earlier began removing Britain's red, white and blue flags in Brussels ahead of a divorce that German chancellor Angela Merkel called a "sea-change" for the bloc.

French president Emmanuel Macron described it as a "historic warning sign" that should force the EU and its remaining nations of more than 440 million people to stop and reflect.

Britain's departure was sealed in an emotional vote in the EU parliament this week that ended with MEPs singing Auld Lang Syne, a traditional Scottish song of farewell.

Almost nothing will change straightaway, because of an 11-month transition period negotiated as part of the exit deal.

Britons will be able to work in and trade freely with EU nations until December 31, and vice versa, although the UK will no longer be represented in the bloc's institutions.

But legally, Britain is out.

And while the divorce terms have been agreed, Britain must still strike a deal on future relations with the EU, its largest trading partner.

Both will set out their negotiating positions Monday.

"We want to have the best possible relationship with the United Kingdom, but it will never be as good as membership," European Commission president Ursula von der Leyen said in Brussels.

'Goodbye & good luck'

Getting this far has been a traumatic process.

Britain resisted many EU projects over the years, refusing to join the single currency or the Schengen open travel area, and eurosceptics have long complained about Brussels bureaucracy.

Worries about mass migration added further fuel to the Brexit campaign while for some, the 2016 vote was a chance to punish the government for years of cuts to public spending.

But the result was still a huge shock.

It unleashed political chaos, sparking years of toxic arguments that paralysed parliament and forced the resignations of prime ministers David Cameron and Theresa May.

Johnson brought an end to the turmoil a decisive election victory in December which gave him the parliamentary majority he needed to ratify his Brexit deal.

But Britons remain as divided as they were nearly four years ago, when 52 percent voted to leave and 48 percent voted to remain in the EU.

"Rise and shine... It's a glorious new Britain" said the Brexit-supporting Daily Express. The i newspaper, in contrast, headlined: "What next?"

In Scotland, where a majority voted to stay in 2016, Brexit has revived calls for independence.

First minister Nicola Sturgeon tweeted: "Scotland will return to the heart of Europe as an independent country -- #LeaveALightOnForScotland."

In Northern Ireland -- soon to be the new EU frontier -- there are fears Brexit could destabilise a hard-won peace after decades of conflict over British rule.

Irish foreign minister Simon Coveney tweeted: "Goodbye & good luck."

'Glad it's over'

Johnson, a polarising figure accused of glossing over the complexity of leaving the EU, made no public appearance on Friday and avoided any official celebrations that might exacerbate divisions.

He hosted a special cabinet meeting in the northeastern city of Sunderland, which was the first to declare for Brexit in 2016, while Downing Street was lit up in the colours of the Union Jack flag.

Millions of commemorative 50 pence coins have also been issued.

It was a different story in nearby Parliament Square, where the moment of Brexit was met with cheers, the lighting of flares and balloons let off into the night sky.

"What happens now marks the point of no return. Once we have left, we are never, ever going back," Farage told the crowd of cheering supporters.

At a "Big Brexit Bash" in Morley, northern England, Raymond Stott described the four years since the referendum as "a right cock-up".

"I am just glad it's all over. We will look after ourselves. We don't need Europe," said the 66-year-old.

Some British expatriates in southern Spain celebrated in bars but for many pro-Europeans, Friday marks a day they hoped would never come.

"Today is a day of mourning," said Katrina Graham, 31, an Irish women's rights activist who lives in Brussels, at a protest in central London.

At Berlin's Brandenburg Gate, a flashmob sang the EU anthem "Ode to Joy", from Beethoven's ninth symphony and waved flags.

Trade talks loom

From Saturday, Britain will be free to strike trade deals around the world, including with the United States.

Johnson has given himself just 11 months to negotiate a new partnership with the EU, covering everything from trade to security cooperation -- despite warnings this is not enough time.

He also discussed with his ministers on Friday an aim to get 80 percent of Britain's commerce covered by free trade agreements within three years, a spokesman said.

US president Donald Trump is an enthusiastic supporter of Brexit, and one of his top envoys on Friday hailed an "exciting new era".

"We will continue building upon our strong, productive, and prosperous relationship with the UK as they enter this next chapter," secretary of state Mike Pompeo said.
An Indigenous community has overwhelmingly rejected a proposed underground storage facility for nuclear waste near Lake Huron, likely spelling the end for a multibillion-dollar, politically fraught project years in the making.

After a year of consultations and days of voting, the 4,500-member Saugeen Ojibway Nation announced late Friday that 85 per cent of those casting ballots had said no to accepting a deep geologic repository at the Bruce nuclear power plant near Kincardine.

We were not consulted when the nuclear industry was established in our territory, SON said in a statement. Over the past 40 years, nuclear power generation in Anishnaabekiing has had many impacts on our communities, and our land and waters.

The provinces giant utility, Ontario Power Generation, had wanted to build the repository 680 metres underground about 1.2 kilometres from Lake Huron as permanent storage for low and intermediate-level radioactive waste. The project was tentatively approved in May 2015.

While Kincardine was a willing host, the relative proximity of the proposed bunker to the lake sparked a backlash elsewhere in Canada and the United States. Politicians, environmentalists and scores of communities expressed opposition.

Successive federal governments have withheld final approval. In August 2017, then-environment minister Catherine McKenna paused the process  the last in a string of delays for the project  to ensure buy-in from Indigenous people in the area.

The generating company, which insisted the stable bedrock would safely contain the waste, items such as contaminated reactor components and mops, said it respected SONs decision.

OPG will explore other options and will engage with key stakeholders to develop an alternate site-selection process, Ken Hartwick, head of OPG, said in a statement shortly after the vote was announced. Any new process would include engagement with Indigenous peoples as well as interested municipalities.

The apparent end of the road for the project comes shortly after the federally-mandated Nuclear Waste Management Organization said it was making progress toward choosing a site for storing millions of far more toxic spent nuclear fuel bundles.

The organization, comprising several nuclear plant operators, said it had struck deals with landowners in South Bruce  about 30 minutes east of Kincardine  that will allow it to begin site tests. The only other site under consideration for high-level waste storage is in Ignace in northern Ontario.

Despite the rejection of OPGs proposal, the utility said it planned to continue a relationship based on mutual respect, collaboration and trust with the Saugeen Ojibway Nation, which comprises the Chippewas of Saugeen First Nation and the Chippewas of Nawash Unceded First Nation.

Chippewas of Saugeen Chief Lester Anoquot called the vote  170 for and 1,058 against  a historic milestone and momentous victory for the community.

We worked for many years for our right to exercise jurisdiction in our territory and the free, prior and informed consent of our people to be recognized, Anoquot said. We didnt ask for this waste to be created and stored in our territory.

At the same time, Anoquot said, the vote showed the need for a new solution for the hazardous waste, a process he said could take many years.

Ontario depends heavily on nuclear power for its electricity but a permanent storage solution for the increasing amounts of waste now stored above ground has proven elusive. The radioactive material, particular from used fuel, remains highly toxic for centuries.

The utility insists exhaustive science shows a repository in stable and impermeable rock offers the best solution.

Permanent and safe disposal is the right thing to do for future generations, Hartwick said.
(Natural News) While I have reflected on the corrosive effects that fake and distorted media are having on our societys well-being for the past few years, I am now more concerned about it than ever. To me media distortions + great polarity + the upcoming elections = a significant risk to quality democracy.

(Article by Ray Dalio republished from Linkedin.com)

It is no longer controversial to say that media distortions are a serious problem. Even most of the media folks I speak with share my concern. As Martin Baron, the Washington Posts Executive Editor, said in reflecting on the problem, If you have a society where people cant agree on the basic facts, how do you have a functioning democracy?

This is not just a fringe media problem; it is a mainstream media problem. A 2019 Gallup study said that only 13 percent of Americans surveyed have a great deal of trust in the media. Only 41 percent of those surveyed said that they have either a fair or great deal of trust in media. That compares with 55 percent having such confidence in 1999 and 72 percent in 1976. The dramatically decreased trustworthiness has even plagued icons of journalistic trust such as The Wall Street Journal and The New York Times, as sensationalism and commercialism have superseded accuracy and journalistic integrity as primary objectives.?

A number of media writers have in private told me that their editors have specifically hired them to write negative, sensationalistic stories because they sell best. They explained that the financial decline of print media and the publics short attention span have required them to produce such attention-grabbing headlines and stories or face financial decline.

I also see this problem becoming a greater issue perhaps the greatest issueof the presidential election. One very senior political strategist explained that in the upcoming presidential election only about 500,000 peoplei.e., the swing voters in the swing stateswill determine the election and the way these voters will be won is with critical sensationalistic headlines. As a result, this strategist works with those in the media to bring that about. To me that is a clear threat to democracy.

To be clear, I am not saying that distorted media is coming from all people in the news media or in all publications. In fact there are a number of true journalists and publications that seek to convey accurate information and there are newer outlets in new formats such as podcasts that produce excellent media. Also, social media platforms like the platform we are now communicating on allow large groups of people to communicate directly whereas in the past traditional media controlled all large-scale communications. Still, the problem remains.

What can be done to fix this problem? While Im no expert on this, I will throw out a few thoughts.

The news media is unique in being the only industry that operates without quality controls or checks on its power. It has so much unchecked power that even the most powerful people and companies are afraid to speak out against it for fear of recrimination. At the same time we all treasure our free press. I think it would be terrible for our government to regulate it.

Perhaps because the loss of credibility is a threat to the media, prominent media organizations might explore ways of self-regulating the quality of what they are producing, or create ratings in the way the Motion Picture Association of America provides its movie ratings. If the industry created a self-regulatory organization that set standards and conveyed assessments of quality as is done in a number of other industries, perhaps that would work. Or perhaps private organizationsperhaps NGOswould come forth to rate the quality of major media outlets accuracy.

In any case, its not my place to determine how this problem should be resolved as much as to convey my concerns about the problem and get your thoughts. Please answer the following two questions.

1) Do you agree with me that the loss of truth and credibility in the media is frightening?

2) What suggestions do you have on what to do about it?

Read more at: Linkedin.com
Cookie Preferences Cookie List

Cookie List

A cookie is a small piece of data (text file) that a website  when visited by a user  asks your browser to store on your device in order to remember information about you, such as your language preference or login information. Those cookies are set by us and called first-party cookies. We also use third-party cookies  which are cookies from a domain different than the domain of the website you are visiting  for our advertising and marketing efforts. More specifically, we use cookies and other tracking technologies for the following purposes:

Strictly Necessary Cookies

We do not allow you to opt-out of our certain cookies, as they are necessary to ensure the proper functioning of our website (such as prompting our cookie banner and remembering your privacy choices) and/or to monitor site performance. These cookies are not used in a way that constitutes a sale of your data under the CCPA. You can set your browser to block or alert you about these cookies, but some parts of the site will not work as intended if you do so. You can usually find these settings in the Options or Preferences menu of your browser. Visit www.allaboutcookies.org to learn more.

Functional Cookies

We do not allow you to opt-out of our certain cookies, as they are necessary to ensure the proper functioning of our website (such as prompting our cookie banner and remembering your privacy choices) and/or to monitor site performance. These cookies are not used in a way that constitutes a sale of your data under the CCPA. You can set your browser to block or alert you about these cookies, but some parts of the site will not work as intended if you do so. You can usually find these settings in the Options or Preferences menu of your browser. Visit www.allaboutcookies.org to learn more.

Performance Cookies

We do not allow you to opt-out of our certain cookies, as they are necessary to ensure the proper functioning of our website (such as prompting our cookie banner and remembering your privacy choices) and/or to monitor site performance. These cookies are not used in a way that constitutes a sale of your data under the CCPA. You can set your browser to block or alert you about these cookies, but some parts of the site will not work as intended if you do so. You can usually find these settings in the Options or Preferences menu of your browser. Visit www.allaboutcookies.org to learn more.

Sale of Personal Data

We also use cookies to personalize your experience on our websites, including by determining the most relevant content and advertisements to show you, and to monitor site traffic and performance, so that we may improve our websites and your experience. You may opt out of our use of such cookies (and the associated sale of your Personal Information) by using this toggle switch. You will still see some advertising, regardless of your selection. Because we do not track you across different devices, browsers and GEMG properties, your selection will take effect only on this browser, this device and this website.

Social Media Cookies

We also use cookies to personalize your experience on our websites, including by determining the most relevant content and advertisements to show you, and to monitor site traffic and performance, so that we may improve our websites and your experience. You may opt out of our use of such cookies (and the associated sale of your Personal Information) by using this toggle switch. You will still see some advertising, regardless of your selection. Because we do not track you across different devices, browsers and GEMG properties, your selection will take effect only on this browser, this device and this website.

Targeting Cookies

We also use cookies to personalize your experience on our websites, including by determining the most relevant content and advertisements to show you, and to monitor site traffic and performance, so that we may improve our websites and your experience. You may opt out of our use of such cookies (and the associated sale of your Personal Information) by using this toggle switch. You will still see some advertising, regardless of your selection. Because we do not track you across different devices, browsers and GEMG properties, your selection will take effect only on this browser, this device and this website.
Three Jaish-e-Mohammed terrorists, killed in Fridays gunfight near a toll plaza in Jammu, had left an Improvised Explosive Device under a hoarding on the Jammu-Srinagar national highway which another member of the module was to use to target security forces, police said on Saturday.

IMAGE: Security forces carry the body of a terrorist killed in a gunbattle, after a group of terrorists travelling in a truck opened fire at a police team, at Nagrota toll plaza on the Jammu-Srinagar national highway. Photograph: PTI Photo

The JeM terrorists also carried 'armoured piercing steel core ammunition' which can go through Level 3 protection bulletproof vehicles that police and other security forces use, they said.

The ammunition was in large quantity and could have posed a grave threat, top police officials said.

The terrorists were killed in a fierce gun battle with police at Bann Toll Plaza near Nagrota, about 28 km from Jammu city, officials said.

The operation was called off after eliminating all the three terrorists but vigilance will still be carried out in the area, they added.

The truck-borne terrorists carried with them a powerful ready-to-use IED from across the border to carry out attack against the security forces on the highway, they said.

They had "dumped it at a convenient location" near a hoarding on the highway to be used by a third person of their module, who is currently in Jammu, they said.

Truck driver Sameer Dar, conductor Asif Malik and another over ground worker were arrested.

Based on the disclosure during questioning of the three OWGs, a police team and bomb disposal squad swung into action and defused the IED fitted with RDX, grenades and other material and placed under a hoarding at Nagrota on the Jammu-Srinagar National Highway, the officials said.

Efforts are on track down the person of the JeM module in Jammu who was to plant IED to target security forces, they said.

The JeM terrorists also carried with them a deadly US-made sniper rifle, six rifles, five pistols, 11 hand grenades, explosives and high-end satellite communication phones and GPS. DGP said that JeM terrorists only carried such weapons, that too by its top commanders.

They said M4 sniper rifle was used by militants in Kashmir in 2018 in five incidents fatally targeting police personnel.

The officials said that had the M4 carbine again fallen into the hands of militants, it could have proved disastrous for security personnel.

Three OGWs of the militants including their handler Sameer Dar, Sartaj Ahmed Mantu and Asif Malik, all residents of Kakpora, Pulwama, were arrested by police and have been shifted to safer location for sustained questioning as they were part of JeM plot to cause wide spread disturbances in the Valley, the officials said.

Sameer was cousin of February 14 Pulwama attack mastermind Adil Dar. Sameer's brother, Manzoor Malik, a Lashkar-e-Tayiba militant, was killed in South Kashmir in 2016.

Police and security forces detained five more truck operators from Rhembal and Udhampur on Friday night and two of them had called Sameer Dar on telephone but involvement of all of them was being investigated, the officials said.

Police said the terrorist group is suspected to have infiltrated from along the International Border in Dayalachak area in Hiranagar sector of Kathua district and were picked by truckers around 2 am on Friday to carry out an attack.

The group was on its way to Srinagar when the police team intercepted it at the plaza around 5 am on Friday, they said.

One of the terrorists was killed in the ensuing gunfight while the rest managed to escape to the adjacent forest area, Director General of Police Dilbag Singh said, adding a policeman was injured and has been hospitalised.

The terrorists also fired grenades, the officials said.

Two more terrorists were killed in the gun battle, taking the toll to three, they said.
WASHINGTON  Two decades ago, President Bill Clinton addressed a nation transfixed by impeachment. He didnt use the I-word once in a State of the Union address that ran for 78 minutes.

Now, President Trump prepares to address the nation under similar circumstances, with the added pressure of a looming presidential election thrown into the mix. And no one expects him to follow the Clinton model by ignoring the elephant in the room  especially because he now appears likely to be acquitted the day after the speech.

Trump is hardly the first president to deliver a State of the Union address in a time of turmoil. Abraham Lincoln delivered a written report during the Civil War, Richard Nixon spoke while embroiled in the Watergate scandal. Gerald Ford declared the state of the union is not good. But Clintons 1999 speech offers the most obvious parallels.

A Republican-controlled House impeached Clinton in December 1998 on grounds that he had lied to a federal grand jury and obstructed justice about his relationship with White House intern Monica Lewinsky.

Just hours before Clinton delivered his State of the Union address, White House lawyers opened their defense of the president in his Senate trial. They argued he was innocent of the charges and must not be removed from office.

Clintons address, in the same chamber where he had been impeached weeks earlier, was met with respectful applause, though some Republicans decided to boycott the address, saying it was inappropriate for Clinton to appear before Congress during his impeachment trial. Two of his harshest Republican critics, House Majority Leader Dick Armey of Texas and House Majority Whip Tom DeLay of Texas, sat stonily side by side.

Clinton speechwriter Michael Waldman says he cant recall any discussion leading up to the 1999 address about whether Clinton should talk about the impeachment proceedings.

It never was considered, said Waldman, president of the Brennan Center for Justice at NYU School of Law. His entire goal in a speech like that was to remind people of the policy agenda that he cared about and that they liked, and also to remind people of the parts of the presidency that they liked.

Clinton focused his speech on using the large majority of a projected $4 trillion surplus over 15 years to shore up Social Security and Medicare. Republicans resisted and instead called for tax cuts. Indeed, he offered so many policy proposals that one Democratic lawmaker, Rep. Joseph Moakley of Massachusetts, remarked; He did everything but buy a new dress for the Statue of Liberty.

At the time, the economy was entering its third consecutive year of economic growth exceeding 4 percent. An astonishing 69% of the country approved of the job Clinton was doing as president and 29% disapproved, according to Gallup polling. The Senate would go on to acquit Clinton the following month.

Twenty-five years earlier, Nixon devoted much of his final State of the Union speech to the countrys energy crisis. But near the end of his remarks, he added a personal word about Watergate. Nixon called for the investigation to end, declaring one year of Watergate is enough and said he had no intention whatever of resigning.

Trump is coming into the election year with his approval rating at 44% and his disapproval rating at 53%, according to the latest Gallup numbers. In seeking re-election, Trump is hoping to use a backlash against impeachment to help motivate his core supporters, but he also needs to reach out to a broader swath of voters.

The final vote in Trumps impeachment trial is set for Wednesday afternoon.

Kevin Freking is an Associated Press writer.
The Columbus Area Chamber of Commerce Agribusiness Committee during its Friday morning meeting at Stack N Steak discussed whether last years catastrophic flooding should have a seat at the table during March's Rural Recognition Banquet.

Of the dozen or so in attendance, the feeling seemed to be fairly consistent: The flooding was too big of an event to not at least touch on, even though the gathering predominately focuses on industry pioneers accomplishing big things.

I think we would be remiss if we didnt mention it at least just a little bit, said Miki Naylor, of Pillen Family Farms. It doesnt need to be a lot, but the resiliency of our community  That would be something nice to touch on.

Ag Park General Manager Brian Palmer noted how he has contacts within the Nebraska Air National Guard, and that at least one spent time in the sky during the flooding stockpiling photos and videos.

I could, potentially  I dont know how much success Id have, but I could reach out to those people and find out if they could share, Palmer said.

He added that he thought it might be neat at the Rural Recognition Banquet to highlight some of the places throughout Columbus, Platte County and its surrounding areas where airplane hay-drops assisted farmers and displaced livestock.

Just to see where they dropped and revisit those places, maybe see something like how they are doing a year later, Palmer said.

Former state senator Arnie Stuthman, a longtime proponent of a connector between U.S. Highway 30 and Nebraska Highway 64, took a moment during the flood discussion to give another pitch regarding the project that would essentially create a south bypass of Columbus.

If people heard a bit more about it at the Rural Recognition Banquet, Stuthman would be just fine with that.

I think theres a definite need; with another flood, we need another way to get across the Platte River, Stuthman said. Mainly because Highway 15 was washed out, Highway 81 was washed out and by Monroe was washed out. These people who had to travel really had a big inconvenience 

In other Agribusiness happenings:

*The committee discussed what its role could be regarding this years Cattlemens Ball, set to take place June 5-6 in Columbus. Committee Chairman Brad Christensen noted that it seems like the most value would be in finding volunteers to help coordinate the massive gathering.

It will take up to 1,000 volunteers, this is not a small undertaking, Columbus farmer Bill Luckey said.

*Attendees discussed Agribusiness Committee meetings, specifically, what is working well and what could use some improvement. It was generally agreed upon that, of course, theres no way to slot a meeting time that works for everybody (currently meetings are held at 7 a.m.), but there may be some sort of compromise.

There was also chatter about how it could be interesting and beneficial for one Agribusiness member, or attendee, to share a little bit about his or her operation, or place of employment. Additionally, members discussed having more guest speakers and presenters attend Agribusiness meetings down the line, much like they already frequently do during monthly Industrial Leaders gatherings held at Wunderlichs.

I personally, would like to see presenters come to these meetings talking about some of the new attractions in Columbus; the new businesses that are coming into Columbus, Stuthman said. Yes, it would be promotional for that business or organization, but I just feel that I would like to know what some of these things are that are coming in.

Columbus is really exploding as far as expanding.

Sam Pimper is the news editor of The Columbus Telegram. Reach him via email at sam.pimper@lee.net.

Love 0 Funny 1 Wow 0 Sad 0 Angry 0

Get local news delivered to your inbox! Subscribe to our Daily Headlines newsletter. Sign up! * I understand and agree that registration on or use of this site constitutes agreement to its user agreement and privacy policy.
As protests continue to erupt in the streets of Kenosha, Wisconsin, and across the world in outrage against the horrific shooting of Jacob Bla Read more
Are you a GU272 descendant? Find out more at Feb. 5 event at East Baton Rouge Main Library
Britain should learn from past mistakes, be clear when negotiating with EU after Brexit, says expert

Britain needs to figure out what it wants before it goes into negotiations with the European Union (EU) in March, and learn from its past mistakes after Brexit, an expert said when commenting on Britain's departure from the EU Friday night.

Amelia Hadfield, head of Department of Politics and director of the Center for Britain and Europe at University of Surrey, told Xinhua in a recent interview that Britain needs to be clear when it goes into phase-one negotiations with the EU.

"Britain probably learned from their mistakes this time in terms of the sequencing of what they want, specifically the free trade agreement," the expert noted.

The moment that Britain officially left the EU also marked the start of a transition period that will last till the end of this year, in which Britain's trading relationship with the EU will remain the same and Britain will continue to follow the EU's rules and contribute to its budget.

"It's not solely free trade ... Probably the most important among them is gonna be security and defense protocols in order to be able to keep on both sides of the channel safe in terms of internal security," said Hadfield, specifically referring to agreements over customs with regards to goods.

The expert said Brexit's biggest impact on Britain would be the decline of its influence in the world. "For the most part, Britain is going to decouple from some of the largest policies, like development, like humanitarian aid."

But Hadfield said she believes that Britain would continue to lead in key institutions like the United Nations on the Security Council, and in specific areas like climate change as the country is hosting the UN Climate Change Conference (COP26) in Glasgow this year, the biggest global summit.

"It's gonna be a balancing act ... between trying to identify where Britain wants to be a leader, admitting there has been some reduction in terms," said the expert.

When talking about the idea of "Global Britain," Hadfield said it has been around for about 18 months as the Foreign Office has attempted to construct what it thinks Britain should be in the world, in security terms, in defense terms and in foreign affairs, which will have an impact on its special relationship with the United States.

"It's gonna be difficult for Britain to try to prioritize America at this point completely," she said. "I think there's also a sense that Britain is going to want to try to strike free trade deals in a sort of parallel way with the EU and also with the United States."

Hadfield noted that Britain has clearly got an eye on other global partners like China.

"Britain has always enjoyed a strong relationship with China in many ways," she said, as Chinese students, scholars and analysts have become "a huge part, a very successful enterprise and economy, and an educational structure" in the country.

"Britain needs to consider ways in which it wants to perhaps more fully engage with its Asian partners," the expert noted, adding that she can see "China certainly being and playing a very, very prominent role in that respect."

As for Britain's willingness to participate in the China-proposed Belt and Road Initiative (BRI) after Brexit, Hadfield said she believes that the BRI is a large-scale and ambitious initiative, and significant results in logistics and infrastructure construction have been achieved.

"I wouldn't say particularly in the short term, but perhaps as a five-to-10 year option, it certainly could be on the table (of Britain)," she added.
Lee Universitys Department of Language and Literature will offer free English as a Second Language classes to the community through its English Language Center beginning Thursday and continuing through Thursday, Thursday, April 23.

The ELC will offer five levels of classes for all levels of learners, ranging from beginners who do not know any English to speakers who are advanced in their knowledge of the English language. The class size is small, which allows teachers to tailor lessons to each students learning style and goals.

The program is led by Dr. Chris Blake, associate professor of TESOL (Teaching English to Speakers of Other Languages) and linguistics at Lee and director of the ELC. The courses are taught by student instructors who have been professionally trained in the TESOL program.

In addition to the classes for adults, English instruction will be available for high school, middle school, and elementary school students. High school students will receive instruction through the ELC youth program, directed by Dr. Betsy Poole, assistant professor of Spanish and linguistics at Lee.

For children ages 6-10, childcare will be provided by TESOL-trained students who will lead English lessons and activities suited for the young age group.

Our program continues to grow every year, said Dr. Blake. We have seen hundreds of students make amazing progress in their English abilities over the past eight years as they have invested their time in these classes.

The English Language Center program is funded, in part, by a grant from the Athens Federal Foundation.

Classes will be held Thursday evenings from 6:30-8:30 p.m. in the Walker Memorial Building, with signs directing students to the building and rooms.

For more information about the classes, contact Dr. Blake at cblake@leeuniversity.edu or 614-8223.




MADISON, Wis.  On one side are regulators hoping to foster easier exchange of health data, some patient advocates and some researchers and healthcare app developers.

On the other side are major health records firms such as Verona-based Epic, the American Medical Association, some health-care systems, people worried about patient privacy and others concerned about intellectual property theft and cyberattacks.

The faceoff coming to a head in Washington, D.C., is over proposed federal rules, set to be finalized in early February, that would change how medical records are shared by creating an app-based marketplace around patient data.

In an age when two-thirds of American adults are worried about their personal information being sold, stolen or otherwise abused, caution is advised.

The debate has a distinct Wisconsin flavor, with people such as Epic chief executive officer Judy Faulkner and former Health and Human Services Secretary Tommy Thompson speaking out against the proposed interoperability rules and others insisting those rules will speed innovation in medical diagnostics and therapies through better access to patient health data.

The change is being pushed by the little-known Office of the National Coordinator for Health Information Technology, which is part of the larger federal Health and Human Services agency.

The process started several years ago, with ONC urging the health-care industry to adopt standardized application programming interfaces so that individuals could access electronic health records through third-party smartphone applications.

That would be a major change in how integrated health records systems have been built, managed and secured over time.

Epic, the national leader in electronic health records, does not sell patient health data. Its executives worry the ONC rules would create a data mining gold rush without making it easier for patients to move from one health provider to another while taking their health records with them.

Unless privacy regulations are in place before the ONC rules take hold, Epic leaders have argued, patient data will be exposed for all to see.

We are concerned that health-care costs will rise, that care will suffer, and that patients and their family members will lose control of their confidential health information, Faulkner said in a Jan. 22 letter to Epics largest hospital clients.

Many healthcare executives are concerned that implementing ONC rules will cost millions of dollars and still leave those systems open to fines and penalties if they fail to turn over all patient data, identifiable or otherwise, including admission and discharge information.

Some members of Congress are worried the rules will make it easier for copycats overseas to rip off intellectual property, thus compromising American leadership in electronic health records.

Concerns have also been raised about cyber-attacks engineered around specific health protocols, such as altering blood types or IV settings in patient records, that could put people in danger.

Epic executives say their electronic health records are routinely improving lives and even saving them. For example, the lead poisoning crisis in Flint, Mich., was uncovered by a pediatrician who used Epic records to spot trends in young patients.

Public health crises such as flu epidemics can also be fought through digital health data. With the debate now centered in the nations capital, Epic has put up billboards in Washington metro stations and at Reagan National Airport to help make its case.

For its part, the ONC doesnt dispute that electronic health records hold enormous potential to improve human health over time. In fact, agency leaders argue innovation is precisely what its rules aim to enhance, along with greater patient access to such records.

The seamless, interoperable exchange of health information is a key piece of building a health system that empowers patients and providers and delivers better care at a lower cost, Health and Human Services Secretary Alex Azar said, referring to the ONC rules.

Adoption of some version of interoperability rules is likely. However, more attention should be paid in advance to guarding patient privacy and avoiding unintended consequences that could harm health care more than it helps.

Tom Still is president of the Wisconsin Technology Council. He can be reached at tstill@wisconsintechnologycouncil.com

Love 0 Funny 0 Wow 0 Sad 0 Angry 0
An Oregon man faces criminal charges after police say he pretended to be a cop and stole meth and heroin from a known drug house where he had previously been a customer.

Jordan Fleming, 29, donned a bogus badge and served a fake search warrant to a woman he knew at the home in December, Springfield police Sgt. David Lewis told The Oregonian/OregonLive.

Fleming left with drugs and cash, police said.

He made her give up all her stuff, said Lewis.

As for the woman? She called the cops.

Jordan Fleming. (Lane County Sheriff's Office)

Yes, the real ones, Lewis said.

Police arrested Fleming on Sunday and booked him into the Lane County Jail.

He pleaded not guilty this week to multiple criminal counts, including second-degree robbery, possession of false law enforcement identification and impersonating a police officer, court records show.

Lets just say he was preying on a clientele that hes a part of, Lewis said.

Lewis said police may also seek criminal charges against residents of the suspected drug house.

-- Shane Dixon Kavanaugh; 503-294-7632

Email at skavanaugh@oregonian.com

Follow on Twitter @shanedkavanaugh

Subscribe to Oregonian/OregonLive newsletters and podcasts for the latest news and top stories.
New Delhi, Feb 1 : Two days after a youth opened fire on the anti-CAA protesters here, a similar incident happened on Saturday as a man fired bullets in the air in Shaheen Bagh area -- a key site of the protests. The police have detained the man.

Following the incident, there was panic and anger in the area where an anti-Citizenship (Amendment) Act (CAA) protest has been underway for over a month.

A police officer present at the spot said "three bullets were fired in the air. The man has been identified as Kapil, a resident of Dullupura village." The man has been taken away by the police amid tight security to an unknown place where he is being questioned, a police officer told IANS.

The crowd wanted to rough up the youth but the police prevented the situation from getting out of hand. The people also raised slogans against the police.

On Thursday, a youth opened fire with a country-made .315 bore pistol when the Jamia students were to start their march from Jamia Millia Islamia to Rajghat. It left a journalism student, Shadab, with injuries on his arm.
Mary Higgins Clark, a bestselling author who wrote dozens of suspense novels and lived in Bergen County, died Friday in Naples, Florida. She was 92.

Simon and Schuster President and Chief Executive Officer Carolyn Reidy announced the news in a statement Friday night. The author died of unspecified natural causes and was surrounded by family.

It is impossible to overestimate the importance of Marys contribution to our success, and her role in the modern history of Simon & Schuster. Beginning in 1975 with the publication of "Where Are the Children?, each of her 56 books has been a bestseller. There are more than 100 million copies of her books in print in the United States; they are international bestsellers and have been translated into every major and many less well-known languages, Reidy said.

It is with deep sadness we say goodbye to the "Queen of Suspense" Mary Higgins Clark, author of over 40 bestselling suspense titles. She passed away peacefully this evening, January 31, at the age of 92 surrounded by family and friends. pic.twitter.com/SoAGqBebRP  Simon & Schuster (@SimonBooks) February 1, 2020

But these storied publishing accomplishments tell only a small part of the larger story that is Mary Higgins Clark. She was, simply, a remarkable woman who overcame an early life of hardship and challenges, never doubting her ability as a natural-born storyteller (and she was one for the ages), and who persevered through trial and rejection until she at last achieved her Holy Grail of being a published author, the publishing company CEO added.

She was similarly devoted to her readers, until very recently going out of her way to meet them while on tour for every one of her books, and drawing tremendous energy and satisfaction from her interactions with them, even though she long ago could have pulled back from that part of being an author, Reidy said. She was, too, a generous member of the literary community, especially toward new authors, and was well known beyond the publishing world for her support of innumerable philanthropic and civic causes.

Two of her novels, Where Are the Children? and A Stranger Is Watching were turned into feature films while many other of her works made it to television. An international best-seller, more than 100 million copies Clarks books are in-print in the U.S. alone.

Though she was born in the Bronx, Clark set many of her works in New Jersey, a state she described as beautiful in a 2013 interview with NJ Advance Media.

Jersey is a beautiful state and I have written at least five books trying to prove that to all of the smart alecks. I set one in Spring Lake to show what a beautiful Victorian town it is. I set one in Ridgewood, one in Mahwah, with the mountains in the background. I set one in Mendham; all to try to show the smart alecks that New Jersey is a beautiful state. I want a medal, as one who continuously writes about how beautiful New Jersey is, Clark said in the interview.

Some of Clarks novels that were based around New Jersey included The Cradle Will Fall (1980), Saddle River, While My Pretty One Sleeps (1987), Ridgewood. All Around the Town (1992), Ridgewood, Let Me Call You Sweetheart (1995), Ho-Ho-Kus, Hackensack, Old Tappan, Englewood Cliffs and Oradell. My Gal Sunday (1996), Bernardsville.

Michael Korda, editor-in-chief emeritus of Simon & Schuster, described Clark as hard-working with a strong sense of what would keep readers turning the page.

She was the Queen of Suspense, it wasnt just a phrase; she always set out to end each chapter on a note of suspense, so you just had to keep reading. It was at once a gift, but also the result of hard work, because nobody worked harder than Mary did on her books to deliver for her readers, Korda said in a statement.

She was also, unfailingly, cheerful under pressure, generous, good humored and warm-hearted, the least temperamental of bestselling authors, and the most fun to be around, he said.

Clark was born Dec 24, 1927 and was raised by her mother after her father died she was 11. After high school, she attended secretarial school, worked for an advertising agency and joined Pan American Airlines as a flight attendant in 1949.

She started writing short stories and selling her work to Extension Magazine in 1956 for $100, according to a biography from Simon and Schuster.

In 1996, she married John Conheeney, a retired chairman and chief executive officer of Merrill-Lynch Futures. The couple lived in Saddle River until he died in 2018. The pair had 17 grandchildren between them.

Noah Cohen may be reached at ncohen@njadvancemedia.com. Follow him on Twitter @noahyc. Find NJ.com on Facebook.

Have a tip? Tell us: nj.com/tips. Get the latest updates right in your inbox. Subscribe to NJ.coms newsletters.
Iraq's president Saturday named ex-communications minister Mohammad Allawi as the country's new premier, the nominee announced, two months after Adel Abdel Mahdi resigned from the post under pressure from the street.

President Barham Saleh had told Iraq's divided parliament that he would name his own candidate unless it nominated someone by February 1.

Allawi, 65, in a video he posted to Twitter, said Saleh had named him and that he would form a new government in line with protesters' demands.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
President Trump in Des Moines, Iowa, on Thursday. Photo: Al Drago/Bloomberg via Getty Images

Even though Donald Trumps victory in Iowas Republican caucuses on Monday is a forgone conclusion, the presidents campaign is moving forward with so much organizational manpower and theatrics in the state that youd be forgiven for thinking Bill Weld or Joe Walsh, the presidents only remaining challengers, were polling much higher than three percent nationally.

In the week leading up to the caucuses, Iowa has been the setting for events with Vice-President Mike Pence aimed at Evangelicals (who, in 2016, were responsible for Trumps loss to Ted Cruz), President Trump himself, and visits from high-profile members of the administration, like Kellyanne Conway on Saturday. On Caucus Night, according to the New York Times, dozens of Cabinet secretaries, officials, and Trump-friendly members of Congress will be present at caucus sites, where they hope to generate excitement for the incumbent. In a private Facebook group for Trump supporters in the state, a campaign volunteer wrote, we have been called to help in a BIG way. He said the campaign was in need of 100 drivers for surrogates that will be on the ground all day Monday.

In a statement to New York, Brad Parscale, the Trump 2020 campaign manager, said, Our Caucus Day operation is just a preview of whats to come. He promised that the campaign would be the strongest, best funded, and most organized presidential campaign in history.

Though if the campaigns logistical planning of the Thursday night Des Moines rally was any preview, most organized is probably a stretch. Pre-credentialed media was forced to wait outside for over an hour in the 30-degree chill, with staffers periodically emerging from the venue to yell at those waiting to get in, until, without explanation, Secret Service closed off entrance to site altogether.

But Trumps speech  which, having been turned away from the rally, I watched from the lobby of the Marriott, the hub for many campaigns and news organizations ahead of the caucuses  felt, even more than usual, as though it was geared toward reminding his fans of the 2016 election. There were references to Crooked Hillary and deplorables and also to his earliest political speeches, with lines cribbed almost directly from his 2015 announcement speech.

This was the scene in a decidedly uncompetitive patch of the heartland as lawmakers in Washington weighed impeachment. The Trump campaign has staged their counter-programming, moving forward as if the presidents legal team isnt in the Senate chamber, attempting to defend him against charges that he improperly sought interference from the Ukrainian government to take out the Democratic front-runner in the upcoming general election. Its also a do-over: during the last election, Iowa was Trumps first test with voters, and he failed, however narrowly.

Look, you know, I can make this speech really short, Trump said, All I have to do is say, hello, Iowa. You have no choice. You have to vote for me. Otherwise, everything that youve built in your entire life will be gone. Goodbye, Iowa. Have a good time. Instead, I worked my ass off up here, OK. True. Do you think this is easy? Its a little hot in this room. This room wasnt designed for this many people.

Jeff Kaufmann, the Iowa GOP chairman, told me, Their presence here is ten times what it was in 2016. As the president spoke during the rally, Kaufmann looked on from the VIP section. The president called to him from the stage: Great job! he said.

In fact, the event I was locked out of in Des Moines wasnt even Trumps first rally of the week. In Waukee, Iowa, a suburban stretch a few minutes from the state capitol in Des Moines, I attended a MAGA Rally Watch Party on Tuesday night, some 1,200 miles from the site of the presidents Wildwood, New Jersey, event. The host was Tana Goertz, a former contestant on The Apprentice who is now a campaign surrogate best known for comparing Trump to Mother Teresa.

The TVs in the back of Jethros BBQ & Jambalaya were set to Fox News and Fox Business so that the men and women could look up from their beers and plates of onion rings to watch the president speak, although they were more often watching Fox Hostslike Tucker Carlsonas the rally aired in a small box in the corner of the screen.

As Goertz paced the room with Dance Mom purpose, passing around a sign-in sheet and offering goodie bags with rhinestone TRUMP pins, the Bikers for Trump rolled in, wheeling a container of Make America Great Again hats and assorted banners which they quickly arrayed on tables and pinned to the walls.

A woman, dressed in a camo MAGA hat and a rather busy vest stamped with a bald eagle and the Bikers for Trump decal (a badge of gold and red, white, and blue), and a man, in an American flagprint cowboy hat and American flagprint suspenders, unfurled the banners beneath glowing signs for Budweiser and Bud Light. WHERES HUNTER? TRUMP 2020 read one. ONLY YOU CAN PREVENT SOCIALISM read another.

Photo: Courtesy of Olivia Nuzzi

Goertz introduced a man named Randall to the room whom she said she met in Iowa in 2016 and who impressed her with his dedication to Trump. She asked those listening to compare themselves to Randall. How far are you willing to go for our president? she said. Are you willing to sleep outside in 25 degrees, 48 hours before the rally? People laughed. One man screamed, Save me a spot, Randall!

Its easy to justify the lack of commitment  Trump supporters have little cause for concern ahead of Monday night. The president, who enjoys close to 90 percent approval among Republicans, has failed to attract a competitive challenger for the nomination, and many state parties across the country have responded by canceling their nominating contests altogether.

Kaufmann stressed that, as the chair of the party, it was his decision, whether or not to hold the caucus. He went forward, he told me, primarily as a strategic move to preserve the states first-in-the-nation status. We cant take an election cycle off, Kaufmann said. We have to continually show the rest of the country and the states and the Republican National Committee that Iowa is the place where we wanna start the presidential process.

But Joe Walsh and Bill Weld  and Mark Sanford, the former governor and congressman from South Carolina who briefly campaigned against Trump last year  say that there is little distinction between the Iowa GOP and Trumps reelection campaign, and that the coordination goes beyond what was considered normal in previous cycles.

Sanford told me that, in general, the folks in leadership wouldnt even return a phone call. I made a number of calls to folks, from the chairman on down, and I couldnt get a call back. The experience, he said, was crippling.

After an event in Polk City, Walsh described a similar experience. Theyve made it very difficult. Theyve closed doors on us left and right, a feeling I understood as my hands and feet thawed in the Marriott lobby. Walsh said he reached out to the party repeatedly and he was pretty sure he got no response.

Walsh was critical of Weld, who by comparison hasnt campaigned in Iowa at all. Weld came and had a piece of chicken at the state fair, he said.

For his part, Weld told me, I felt like a two-headed cow at the Iowa State Fair  everyone wanted to come and see me! Partly it was curiosity: somebody with two arms and legs standing against Donald J. Trump. He said that hes made no effort at all with the Iowa GOP. None of the state parties are welcoming, because theyre all the Trump organization, he said. I wouldnt be barking up that tree. That would be a vain act.

Theyre under orders to make sure that I dont get to meet anybody, and if I show up to an organizational meeting at some city or town, theyre supposed to adjourn immediately so I cant have a conversation with them, Weld said, adding that hed seen memos ordering such things, but then clarified that hed merely been told about such memos by people in New Hampshire associated with the Republican Party there.

Kaufmann was enraged by the accusation. That is absolutely, one-hundred percent false! he told me. Not one time, as the state chairman, were we told anything about Bill Weld or the Joe fella, I cant think of his last name. That is patently false and I would know about it if that went out. That would go right past my desk. They are lying. That is a lie made up for why they didnt show up in the state.

Photo: Courtesy of Olivia Nuzzi

But who cares about this infighting among bit players anyway? The president has responded to impeachment the way hes responded to every other threat to his presidency: by pretending its irrelevant even as he stages events in which he spends half the time complaining that hes unfairly under siege. If that sounds a lot like the 2016 campaign, youre right. And even as everything is technically different now, very little  including this hotel lobby  feels like its changed at all.

As he concluded his remarks, Trump talked about good old Cambridge, a town of less than 1,000 half an hour away from Des Moines, before rattling off a list of other Iowa towns: Council Bluffs, Cedar Rapids, Melbourne, Moorhead, Davenport.

We stand on the shoulders of true, red-blooded American heroes, he said, This great state was founded by tough, tough frontier men. These are tough people. Lets see how tough. Theyre tough. Anybody like to join ICE?

Then he appeared to return to the script: And strong pioneer women, he said, who defied the dangers to carve out a life and a beautiful home with great families and great neighbors. They tamed the wilderness, braved the elements, tilled the soil, planted the fields, and helped make this the greatest nation to ever exist on the face of the earth, he said. And we are making it greater and greater every single day.
Gardai today arrested two men in their 20s in connection with the sickening attack on Keith Greaney in the Dunard estate in Lotamore, Mayfield earlier this month.

Both men were arrested this morning by detective Gardai from Mayfield Garda Station.

They are currently detained at Gurranabraher and Mayfield Garda Stations under Section 4 of the Criminal Justice Act, 1984.

The Echo revealed yesterday that gardai had informally interviewed Mr Greaney in recent days after he came out of an induced coma at Cork University Hospital.

Mr Greaney, aged 23, was with his girlfriend, Nicole O'Leary, when three men broke into his home, dragged him from his bed, beat him with a car exhaust pipe and attacked him with a machete just before 4am on January 20.

The assailants then doused him in petrol, set him on fire and then smashed the windscreen of his car.

He has suffered life-changing injuries and had been in an induced coma following the attack on January 20.

Mr Greaney had initial discussions with investigators who are waiting for an official statement from him when his condition improves further.

Gardai had previously spoken to three people in relation to the attack.
Becoming the first country, Britain on Friday (local time) officially left the European Union (EU).

The historic day, which marks an official end of 47 years of Britain's membership in what became the EU, came three-and-a-half-years after the 2016 Brexit referendum, CNN reported.

As the clock struck 11 pm GMT, Prime Minister Boris Johnson termed the moment "extraordinary turning point in the life of this country".

"Tonight we have left the EU - an extraordinary turning point in the life of this country. Let us come together now to make the most of all the opportunities Brexit will bring - and let's unleash the potential of the whole UK," Johnson tweeted.

Brexit has dominated British politics ever since the referendum which included the resignation of former prime minister Theresa May. This comes days after the European Parliament has overwhelmingly approved Britain's departure terms from the EU in a 621-49 vote with 13 abstentions.

Britain has entered the transition period for 11 months. The period was agreed between the British government and the EU. During this period, Britain will remain an EU member state and will have to obey all EU law and European courts. In the coming months, it will continue to pay into the EU budget and comply with any changes to EU law.

In this period, Britain will chalk out the relationship with the EU. A failure to reach an agreement would mean the hardest Brexit possible, causing economic damage for both sides and possibly the wider

Formal negotiations will begin on March 3. In the meantime, both sides will outline their priorities and draw their red lines.

The Union Jack is being removed from all EU institutions (one of which will be placed in a museum in Brussels).

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman on Saturday proposed a total outlay of Rs 99,300 crore for the sector in 2020-21 and Rs 3,000 crore for skill development.

"By 2030, India is set to have the largest working-age population in the world. We propose a total outlay of Rs 99,300 crore for the sector in 2020-21 and Rs 3,000 crore for skill development," said Sitharaman while presenting the budget.

Sitharaman announced that about 150 higher educational institutions will start apprenticeship embedded degree and diploma courses by March 2020-21 to improve the employability of students in the general stream.

While the government will also start a program whereby urban local bodies across the country would provide internship opportunities to fresh engineers for a period of up to one year, the Skill Development Agency (NDS) will give special thrust to infrastructure-focused skill development opportunities, the Minister said.

Stating that a '150 higher educational institutions will be announced soon, she said: "Steps will be taken to enable sourcing external commercial borrowings and Foreign direct investment to ensure a greater inflow of finance to attract talented teachers, innovate and build better labs."

She said degree level full-fledged online program will be started to provide quality education to students of deprived sections of the society as well as those who do not have access to higher education.

The online education program will be offered only by institutions that are ranked within the top 100 in the Institutional Ranking Framework (NIRF).

Observing that India should be a preferred destination for higher education, she said: "An Ind-SAT exam under the "Study in India" program is proposed to be held in Asian and African countries for benchmarking foreign candidates who receive scholarships for studying in Indian higher education centers."

In order to meet the requirement of qualified medical doctors, the Finance Minister proposed to attach a medical college to an existing district hospital in public-private partnership (PPP) model.

Sitharaman stated that a huge demand exists for teachers, nurses, paramedical staff and caregivers abroad.

"In view of this, special bridge courses may be designed jointly by the Ministries of Health and Skill Development along with professional bodies to match the employer's standards as well as meet the language requirements of various countries", she added.

A police university and a national forensic science university have also been proposed in the domain of policing science, forensic science and cyber-forensics in the budget.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
Singapore banned all travelers from China after the World Health Organization (WHO) declared Chinas coronavirus outbreak a global public health emergency, the island city-state said. The United Nations health agencys declaration is raising epidemic fears and prompting reactions from foreign governments.

Chinese nationals and those who have traveled to the Chinese mainland in the past 14 days will not be allowed to enter or transit through Singapore starting at 11.59 p.m. Feb. 1, the Singapore government said Friday evening.

The move marks an escalation of precautionary measures against travelers from China. As of Wednesday, restrictions affected only those with a history of travel to Hubei, the central Chinese province where the outbreak started, or people whose passports were issued there.

"With immediate effect, the Singapore Immigration & Checkpoints Authority will suspend issuance of all forms of new visas to those with PRC (Peoples Republic of China) passports, a spokesperson for the organization told Caixin Friday evening in a written note. We will also suspend Singapore's status as a visa-free transit facility for those with PRC passports.

Singaporean citizens and permanent residents will be exempt but are told to stay in their homes and avoid social contact for 14 days, the government said. Chinese nationals already in the country who wish to extend their visitor passes will be evaluated on a case-by-case basis, the spokesperson said.

North Korea and Russia closed their borders to China amid epidemic fears.

Early Friday morning, the WHO declared the outbreak of the virus a global public health emergency after deciding a week earlier to hold off on the designation. The organization also issued a recommendation against implementing travel restrictions on people from China.

In response, the U.S. State Department Thursday upgraded its travel warning to the highest level, telling Americans to avoid all travel to China, and Canada advised against nonessential travel.

The Japanese government said that starting Feb. 1 those who test positive for the virus, also known as nCoV-2019, will be barred (link in Japanese) from entering the country.

Contact reporter Dave Yin (davidyin@caixin.com)
Honeysuckle was forced to work harder than she ever has before to maintain her unbeaten record in the PCI Irish Champion Hurdle at Leopardstown.

Henry de Bromheads mare arrived with six wins in as many starts over hurdles, most recently making a seamless transition to open company in winning the two-and-a-half-mile Hattons Grace Hurdle.

Dropping back to two miles here, there was plenty of market confidence with Honeysuckle being sent off the 8-11 favourite.

Everything was going according to plan with Rachael Blackmore tracking stablemate Petit Mouchoir into the straight, with nothing else threatening to get into the race.

Honeysuckle jumped the last awkwardly, though, handing the initiative back to Petit Mouchoir before the outsider Darver Star came flying from the rear.

She was game on the rail though, just getting back up to win by half a length from Darver Star with Petit Mouchoir the same distance away in third.

Blackmore said: Shes got a massive heart and a massive will to do it. Petit Mouchoir ran a cracker and always does over two miles.

She was really tough and its a pleasure to be involved with her. Shes always done everything Ive asked her to do and I wasnt too worried about coming back in trip.

She needed to stay well to win after the last and thats what she did.

Mark Phelan (chief executive of PCI Insurance) is my sponsor and has been such a great supporter of mine. Its great to win his race, the PCI Irish Champion Hurdle.

De Bromhead said: She just looked like she got a bit lonely going to the last. Shes so tough and the lady on top of her is so tough. She really battled it out.

All credit to Petit Mouchoir and Davy Russell, he ran a brilliant race again and Gavins (Cromwell) horse looked very good.

I had my heart in my mouth coming to the line. She probably needed it and our two went at it fairly early.

Talk about adapting to two miles  she seemed brilliant. I thought she jumped well to be fair, maybe at the second Patrick (Mullins, Sharjah) jumped past her.

At the second last Im not sure if Rachael sat on her and Davy got a good jump, or if she made a mistake. I think she was just lonely in front at the last.

Rachael is brilliant and I always say that we are very lucky to have her. Shes just riding out of her skin and the mare is deadly.

When asked where she would go from here, De Bromhead added: Well enjoy today. Weve won the Irish Champion Hurdle and we can discuss all that in time. Im delighted to get today behind us.
San Francisco, Feb 1 : Randy Freer will step down from his role as the CEO of Walt Disney Company's subscription video on demand service Hulu at the company shifts to consolidate it's direct-to-consumer business under its own executives.

He took over in late 2017, but now will join the others under direct oversight from Disney Direct-to-Consumer & International chairman Kevin Mayer.

We'll see what changes come in the future for Hulu, as it previously stood alone as a rival to Netflix, but now is a part of a larger strategy, Engadget reported on Saturday.

It is pertinent to note that Disney hasn't shied away from its plans to roll out Hulu in various international territories, along with its other streaming service, Disney+.

"I want to thank Randy for his leadership the last two years as CEO and for his collaboration the past several months to ensure an exceptionally bright future for Hulu," Mayer was quoted as saying by The Verge.

The integration means Hulu executives will now report to Disney executives. Everything Hulu and streaming-at-large will now operate under Kevin Mayer, who heads up the division for Disney that includes Disney+, ESPN+, and now Hulu.
Living hell for families of Lankan students holed up in coronavirus ground zero By Namini Wijedasa Parents on pins speak of their children's fear-stricken survival in Wuhan, a city in lockdown View(s): View(s):

Thankfully, it happened during the Chinese New Year.

University students or teachers who had chosen to remain in their Wuhan hostels and apartments while the sprawling city emptied out for the holidays had stocked up on at least two weeks of provisions. As it happens here during the Sinhala and Tamil New Year, entire metropolises in China decamp to their homes or go on travel during this traditional festival.

Among those who stayed back were 33 Sri Lankans. Some had remained because their courses were nearly over. Others had assignments to complete over the vacation. Still more had only just returned from Sri Lanka and it was too soon to go again.

Now, holed up in their rooms or studio apartments as a virulent illness raged outside, they tried to remain optimistic. Their main distraction was speaking frequently with their worried families back home. But if they were not evacuated soon, their food would run out and they were afraid to eat what their universities were offering.

The Sri Lankans were at the centre of intense diplomatic negotiations between Colombo and Beijing over the past week. Like everyone else, they were trapped in Wuhan as the novel coronavirus forced it to go into lockdown.

Yesterday, they finally came home. But it has been a stressful, even depressing, few days. The families with young childrenthere were three among the groupfound it particularly difficult to keep their spirits up.

Wuhan, the capital of the Hubei Province, is big and diverse, with half of Sri Lankas population. It is well connected with railways, roads and expressways connecting to other major cities. The universities are massive. Campuses are situated several kilometres from each other within the same premises.

Sandeepani, the 26-year-old daughter of former Royal College Warden Aruna de Silva, 64, was at the Hubei University of Science and Technology. She was a fluent Chinese speaker, having lived there initially for five years to study international economics and trade before returning for her post-graduate degree.

Mr de Silva is the General Secretary of the Sri Lanka-China Buddhist Friendship Society. His daughter had attended a wedding in Sri Lanka and gone back to Wuhan on December 9. She stayed there to work on a paper throughout the holidays.

She first heard about a virus around January 18 or 19 but then it died down, Mr de Silva said. And not even the Chinese knew at the time that had started in Wuhan. They thought it was in the South.

Then it was found the virus may have its origins in Huanan Seafood Market in Wuhan. First, a warning was issued not to eat seafood. I still didnt take it seriously but I did tell her to buy a ticket and come home, Mr de Silva said. The second option was to travel to Shanghai where we had friends.

Sandeepani bought a plane ticket to Shanghai to travel on January 22 but decided against it because the airport was too crowded. She figured she was more at risk because she would be exposed on the way to the airport, at the airport and in the flight, Mr de Silva said. During that time of year, you cant stick a finger into any mode of transport in China. Its that crowded.

Around five million people had already left Wuhan. The authorities stopped another two to three million from going out after the virus was confirmed.

She said shes safer in her hostel, Sandeepanis father continued. On the 23rd, the city went into lockdown. Nobody was allowed in or out. In her campus, there were two more Sri Lankans. All of them had single rooms. And in all the days they were confined to their quarters, they did not see each other.

While the single students did not have serious issues with food, it was the families that fretted. Not only were they afraid of running out, they were scared to put a foot out in case they brought the virus back and their kids caught it.

Even to dispose of the garbage, they would open the door a crack, put it out and close the door again, said the relative of a three-member family there. They were that afraid. They just locked themselves in and waited.

Their daughter was just seven-years-old. Her father went to Wuhan for a PhD and her mother was a teacher. They had been there for two-and-a-half years and lived in a studio apartment. The relative did not wish to be named and requested that the family members names are also left out.

The mother of 28-year-old Kasun Chamara Wickramages had been crying all morning on Friday. She had read a letter her son had written to a Sinhala language newspaper and it had made her sad. Kasun posted regularly on Facebook, too.

M Kusumawathie, 52, lives in a remote village called Gamakanda in Embilipitiya. Her husband worked in a school. She had a small grocery and clothes shop. But her two childrenshe also has a daughterboth won scholarships to China by dint of their hard work.

Kasun went to China in August last year to study technology at the Wuhan University. He is a graduate of the Uva Wellassa University. His sister studied fisheries and marine sciences before him in Beijing and came back in June.

I am very proud of what they are achieving, despite coming from a very rural village under difficult circumstances, Mrs Kusumawathie said. But Im sad about his suffering and worried that his food might run out. Its like they are prisoners of war. He just sleeps all day. He doesnt feel like praying although is very religious. We must bring them back.

And what had hurt many of these families was a social media campaign urging the Government not to bring the Sri Lankans in Wuhan back in case they spread the virus around the country. One organisation had claimed that an entire nations lives were at risk for the sake of 33 people.

That has caused my son a lot of pain, Mrs Kusumawathie said. We dont mind how long they keep them in quarantine so long as they are brought back.

On Saturday, her wish was fulfilled. But it had been a long and arduous diplomatic negotiation that led to the transfer of the students and families from Wuhan to Sri Lanka on a special flight.

The Sri Lanka Embassy in Beijing lodged a request to ferry its citizens out on January 25, two days after the lockdown was imposed, on President Gotabaya Rajapaksas instructions.

A WeChat group was created connecting the mission with all the Sri Lankans in Wuhan. Some officers even made regular telephone contact with them. Discussions started with the Foreign Ministry in Beijing and Foreign Affairs Office (FAO) in Hubei Province who ensured with university administrators that the students were well.

The efforts were led by Acting Ambassador in Beijing K K Yoganaadan and all mission staff rallied round, including at consulates. When a request for food came through from Wuhan, the Embassy conveyed the telephone numbers of local community associations which assisted the students. One person with urgent medical needs was also attended to.

Meanwhile, Sri Lanka was exploring all possibilities to evacuate the students. We thought by air or landtaking them by land to another city and thereon by air, Mr Yoganaadan said. That was not possible because Wuhan was locked down.

Then, we thought of asking for a special aircraft or joining another country, he explained. First, China is a good friend but we couldnt trouble them as they were going through a difficult time. Second, the option to join another country was also not possible since they had bigger numbers

That left only one choiceto use one of Sri Lankas own aircraft. Approval was obtained locally and duly communicated to Chinese authorities. Various other countries, too, had submitted applications but Sri Lanka was one of the first.

Communication was taking place in Colombo as well as in Beijing. As recently as Thursday, a group of over 25 people met Secretary of Foreign Relations Ravinatha Ariyasinghe in Colombo and pleaded with him to get their family members back. He reassured them that everything was being done and it was now in the hands of the Chinese authorities.

Pending approval, the authorities in Sri Lanka and China prepared the groundwork. When clearance was given, it worked like clockwork. We have to thank everyone involved, Mr Yoganaadan said.

And this includes the students, who appointed leaders among themselves and coordinated movement to the airport. They were scattered about the place and the mission could not send anyone there, although one officer volunteered. There was no transport, the drivers were on leave and the journey was 15 hours.

So the student leaders took charge, speaking constantly with the relevant authorities. We were functioning 24/7, said Mr Yoganaadan. Cleaning, making tea for the staff, running day-to-day work in addition to this other operation.
The Canal Street Pub and Restaurant remained closed Friday for code violations on what would typically be a busy night of partying to kick off Super Bowl weekend.

The three-story building housing the pub and other businesses at 535 Canal St. was condemned Wednesday night after city fire officials discovered illegal apartments and other issues when extinguishing a small basement fire.

The building was declared unsafe due to lack of properly operating fire alarms and sprinkler systems.

Reading Fire Marshal Jeremy Searfoss said the hope was to reopen the pub on the first floor of the building as soon as possible.

The pubs sprinkler system was working Friday, but the fire alarm system was not yet repaired.

The fire was discovered on the Willow Street side of the building at 7 p.m. Wednesday when one sprinkler that was working activated an alarm. The pub was open and people were eating dinner.

The fire has been ruled accidental due to a tenant smoking, the fire marshal said.

No one was injured in the blaze, but firefighters discovered a half-dozen tenants, including businesses, residing in five unsafe rooms in the basement and second and third floors. The tenants were not in the building Friday.

Very dangerous

Searfoss said the building is still unsafe.

When we shut down a building, we take it very seriously, Searfoss said. The building is not legal and is very dangerous.

Searfoss said he contacted the owner of the building, Chin Lee, who has relocated from Reading to northern New Jersey, to discuss bringing the building up to code. Lee could not be reached for comment.

Searfoss said he has been talking with Lee for two years about maintenance issues with the building.

City building and trades code officers posted a bright orange notice condemning the building late Wednesday night.
LAS VEGAS - A growing number of U.S. states are considering a ban on the sale or import of cosmetics that have been tested on animals, as advocates argue testing products such as lotions, shampoos and makeup on rabbits, mice and rats is cruel and outdated.

The cause has gained support from consumers and many cosmetics companies, but the biggest hurdle is China, which requires that cosmetics sold in its large, lucrative market undergo testing on animals.

California, Nevada and Illinois all saw new laws take effect this year that ban the sale or import of animal-tested cosmetics.

The laws, which apply to tests performed after Jan. 1, arent expected to cause much disruption for the industry because many companies already use non-animal testing. Instead, they draw a line in the sand that puts pressure on the U.S. government to pass a nationwide ban and help end Chinas requirement that most cosmetics sold in that nation of more than 1.4 billion people undergo testing on animals by Chinese regulators.

Chinas policy applies to all imported cosmetics, including makeup, perfume and hair care products, along with some special use goods produced in China, such as hair dye, sunscreen and whitening products that make functional claims.

Animal-tested cosmetics already are banned in Europe, India and elsewhere. A ban in the United States, one of the worlds largest economies, would put further global pressure on China to end its policy and push Chinese cosmetics companies to rely on non-animal tests if they want to sell their products in the U.S.

Were not trying to create an island out here in Nevada, said state Sen. Melanie Scheible, who sponsored Nevadas law. We are trying to join a group of other communities that have stood up and said, We dont support animal testing.

Animal-rights groups like Cruelty Free International and the Humane Society of the United States hope to get more states to pass bans this year.

Legislation has been introduced or will soon be made public in Hawaii, Maryland, New Jersey, New York and Virginia, according to Cruelty Free International, and a national ban has been introduced in Congress since 2014, though the bipartisan measure has been slow to advance. The most recent version introduced in November marks the first time the countrys leading cosmetics trade group, the Personal Care Products Council, has become a vocal backer of the ban, support that should ease lawmaker concerns about business opposition.

The California, Nevada and Illinois laws create exemptions for any cosmetics that were tested on animals to comply with regulations of a foreign government  an exception that acknowledges the reality that most companies will see their products tested on animals if they sell in China.

China is a big complicating factor, said Monica Engebretson, who leads public affairs for Cruelty Free International in North America. Thats put companies that want to enter that Chinese market in a real bind.

Scheible said her aim in Nevada was not to punish those multinational corporations but to raise awareness and put pressure on other governments, like China, to act.

A lot of people thought that we no longer tested on animals at all, she said. They thought that this was already a thing of the past.

The bans in all three states require cosmetics sellers to use non-animal tests to prove their products are safe. Many international companies are already doing that after the European Union passed a series of similar bans on animal testing, culminating with a 2013 ban on the sale of animal-tested products.

Supporters note that science has advanced, allowing companies in most cases to use non-animal alternatives  such as human cell cultures or lab-grown human skin and eye tissue  to test whether a product or ingredient is safe.

For example, EpiDerm, a synthetic skin tissue made by Massachusetts-based MatTek Corp., is created from cells taken from skin donated during procedures such as breast reduction surgery, circumcision and tummy tuck procedures.

Products can be applied to synthetic tissue to determine whether they cause skin irritation, damage, sensitivity or other issues. That can be used in place of a testing a product on the back of a shaved rabbit, animal rights supporters say.

Some of the biggest names in personal care and beauty, including Avon, Unilever and Procter & Gamble, have used MatTeks tissues for testing.

Carl Westmoreland, a safety scientist with Unilever, said the European Union ban drove more innovation in non-animal testing. Companies like Unilever, trade groups and advocates are among those working with Chinese regulators and scientists to push for new rules, helping to familiarize them with procedures and results from non-animal tests.

They have been changing and are continuing to change, he said, noting China in recent years has allowed some cosmetics produced within the country to avoid animal testing.

Francine Lamoriello, executive vice-president for global strategies at the Personal Care Products Council said its a slow process, but Chinese regulators are working to accept non-animal tests.

Theyre having conferences. They really seem to be quite motivated to do as best as they can to accept and validate certain methods, she said.

The Personal Care Products Council supports most of the state legislation but is pushing for a nationwide law instead of a patchwork of rules across the country.

Similar to the state laws, the proposed ban before Congress would exempt cosmetics required to undergo testing in China. It would allow those products to be sold in the U.S. as long as sellers relied on additional, non-animal tests to show they are safe.

California was first to pass the legislation in 2018, a move thats part of the states pattern of wielding its status as the worlds fifth-largest economy to push change.

Thats the beauty of doing things in California, said Judie Mancuso with the group Social Compassion in Legislation who pressed for that states ban. You set the stage, you set the standard, and others grab it and grow.

___

Associated Press researcher Shanshan Wang in Beijing contributed to this report.
A heartbroken dog owner had to say a devastating farewell to her beloved pet this week after his pursuit of a ball at the dog park took a tragic turn.

Bowie, the border collie cross bull arab, was chasing down a small ball at the off-leash dog park in Narraweena, in northern Sydney, but his excitement over the item saw it make its way down his throat.

He was with his owner Bella Cooks dad when the dramatic event unfolded on Wednesday, who rushed the animal to the vet immediately after realising the ball was blocking his airway

Ms Cook told Yahoo News Australia it was a tense race against time to save her dog, as the vet was a half-hour drive away and required urgent major surgery.

Bowie and Bella Cook in a selfie shared before the dog's accident on Wednesday. Source: Supplied

He was in distress, the 23-year-old said, with the small ball soon confirmed to have caused irreversible damage.

My dad had to make the horrible decision to have him put down.

He said watching him die will stay with him for the rest of his life. It was simply horrible.

She was working throughout Bowies ordeal, so sadly was unable to say her final goodbye, but went to the vet the following day to see his body one last time.

They bought him up for me with a blanket around him and the candle I got so I could hug and kiss him. He looked at peace, she said.

Bowie had to be euthanised after swallowing a small ball at the dog park. Source: Supplied

Ms Cook has a rare chromosomal disorder called mosaic ring 22, which was one of many things she said Bowie had helped her with.

I live with my dad. My dog helped me with losing weight and a break up with my boyfriend. I also have a cat which I love, but it's not the same as a dog, she said.

She now wants to warn other dog owners against buying and using small balls like the one that killed her best friend.

For the people that own the little balls, don't bring them to a dog park. Bigger ones are fine but small are just dangerous.

Story continues

And for the people who own dogs who chase balls, when you see a small one, either leave the park or ask the person to hold the ball until youre ready to go.

The ball swallowed by Bowie was an ultra ball by the brand Chuckit! in the size small. Its packaging states that it is for small dogs only.

Yahoo News Australia has contacted Chuckit! for comment.

This is the brand and size of ball swallowed by Bowie. Source: Chuckit!

Do you have a story tip? Email: newsroomau@yahoonews.com.

You can also follow us on Facebook, Instagram and Twitter and download the Yahoo News app from the App Store or Google Play.
But many of the people who cause problems are likely the ones who could benefit from a long-term city partnership with a mental health service provider.
Following a volatile 2018 which witnessed the US-China trade war, the stock market in 2019 was gloomy with the VN Index hovering around 900-1,000 points.

Though the VN Index still increased by 10 percent, not many investors, including institutional ones with experience, could obtain the expected profitability.





Investors withdraw capital from domestic funds



Because of uncertainties, many investors are seeking new investment channels which promise higher yields and can bring more stable profits such as bank deposit, corporate bond and gold. As a result, equity funds saw net capital withdrawal in 2019.



As for domestic open funds, except SSI-SCA and MAFEQI which saw the net asset value increasingly slightly, other funds all witnessed a decline, though most of them gained growth in 2019.



Analysts said though the investment results in 2019 were more satisfactory than in2018, net capital withdrawal still occurred because of investors worry about instability, which may have a negative impact.

Though the VN Index still increased by 10 percent, not many investors, including institutional ones with experience, could obtain the expected profitability.

Foreign investment funds, however, maintained capital inflow. VanEck ETF even saw capital increasing sharply.



VanEck ETF is listed in the US and the continued capital inflow shows the expectation by investors in the US about the benefits Vietnam can obtain from the US-China trade war.



Most funds see growth rates lower than VN Index



Eight out of 10 surveyed investment funds had profitability lower than the VN Index. Only VFMVF1 and VFMVF4 had business results slightly better than the VN Index.



Since investment funds choose VN Index or VN30-Index as the indicators for reference to assess the business efficiency, their portfolios also cling to shares with high capitalization value in the market such as VIC, VCB, VNM, MWG and HPG.



Thoi Bao Kinh Te Saigon found that the funds following the investment strategy based on individual growth drivers of stocks had better investment results in 2019. Meanwhile, funds mostly make investments based on certain business fields. That is why they have a low growth rate.



Changing portfolios



Most investment funds have a common investment strategy. The three business fields they are most interested in include finance, non-essential consumer goods and information technology. Meanwhile, most funds reduce investments in industries and materials.



Regarding bank shares, MBB was bought by nearly all funds. VCB saw a higher proportion in the portfolios of VFMVF1, VFMVF4 and VEOF, thanks to good investment results.



Meanwhile, many funds sold or reduced the amounts of TCB and ACB shares they hold (VFMVF1, VFMVF4, SSI-COAD, VCBF-BCF, VCAMBF, ENF). The two funds managed by VFM also cut the proportion of ACB in their portfolios.

Kim Chi

How will investment funds and securities companies fare in 2020? The VN Index may bounce back and reach the 1,000 point threshold again in 2020, or it may come closer to its peak in 2018 thanks to good macroeconomic conditions, foreign capital flow and reasonable valuations.
WASHINGTON  As he sought to raise enough money to remain in the race for the 2020 Democratic presidential nomination, Cory Booker had a friend in Carole King.

The musician, who performed at the same 2016 Democratic National Convention that Booker brought the delegates to their feet at during his prime time address, contributed $400 to his campaign just a month before he ended his run for the White House.

From October to December, Booker took in $6.6 million, his biggest fundraising quarter, according to new Federal Election Commission filings.

Booker had $4.2 million cash on hand entering January. He dropped out of the race two weeks later, saying that there was no longer a path to victory because he could not raise the money he needed.

Any leftover money from his presidential campaign can be transferred to his Senate re-election committee, which had just $53,550 in the bank entering 2020.

Booker raised $25.1 million overall for his presidential campaign, far behind such rivals as Bernie Sanders ($109 million), Elizabeth Warren ($82 million), Pete Buttigieg ($51.6 million), Joe Biden ($37.8 million) and Kamala Harris ($36.9 million).

Tom Steyer contributed $202.5 million of his own money to his run, and fellow billionaire Mike Bloomberg took out $200.1 million from his pocket.

King wasnt the only boldface name on Bookers contributor list. Actress Gwyneth Paltrow gave the maximum $2,800 and fellow actress Sally Field contributed $250. Tichina Arnold, who appears with Cedric the Entertainer in the television show, The Neighborhood, donated $400.

Booker spent $6.6 million from Sept. 1 to Dec. 31, including $2.6 million on salaries. He had built a strong ground operation to get out the vote in the early primary and caucus states.

He spent $242,627 on Google ads and $203,391 advertising on Facebook.

Jonathan D. Salant may be reached at jsalant@njadvancemedia.com. Follow him on Twitter @JDSalant or on Facebook. Find NJ.com Politics on Facebook.

Have a tip? Tell us. nj.com/tips.

Get the latest updates right in your inbox. Subscribe to NJ.coms newsletters.
Sydney's selective schools are drawing the majority of their students from suburbs popular with skilled migrants, who hope a good education will help their children break through the so-called bamboo ceiling.

As a proportion of the school-age population, Edmondson Park in south-west Sydney, Hurstville, and Carlingford are the suburbs that have the most students at selective high schools, new figures from the NSW Department of Education obtained under Freedom of Information laws show.

But there are few students at selective schools from disadvantaged areas with low levels of education such as Campbelltown, Mt Druitt or Cranebrook, near Penrith. This bears out the department's own research that only 10 per cent of students in selective schools had parents who did not have post-school education.

There were also few students from the city's richest suburbs such as Bellevue Hill, Double Bay or Milsons Point, suggesting families in those areas are still opting for private schools.
Muslims around the world are thrilled at the recent news: "Harvard University ranks the Koran as the best book on justice" is the January 20, 2020 headline of a report published by Youm7, a popular Egyptian news site visited by millions of Arabic-readers. It writes:

The official website of the World Muslim Communities Council said on social media that, after lengthy, scientific studies that closely examined the rules of justice contained in the Noble Koran, the American university of Harvard has ranked the Noble Koran as the best book on justice[.] ... In its final evaluation, Harvard University's Classification Committee cited verses from the Noble Koran which confirm that the Noble Koran is a book replete with the rules of human justice ... and that Islam has no room for injustice but rather includes tolerance and respect for the other.

Several other leading news websites and newspapers  including Al Ahram, Egypt's most widely circulated and state-owned newspaper, founded in 1875  carried the story, followed by all sorts of triumphant celebrations on social media.

But is it true? Did Harvard make such a pronouncement? No. The real story is that, back in 2012, a group of law students painted a number of historical quotes dealing with justice on the walls of a Harvard building.

Known as the "Words of Justice," they consist of 33 quotes from a variety of thinkers and civilizations  including African, Chinese, European, and Hindu  from 600 B.C. to the present. Among some of the more recognizable names and documents quoted are Cicero; Augustine; Aquinas; the Magna Carta; Benjamin Franklin; Immanuel Kant; Gandhi; and Martin Luther King, Jr.

Among these 33 quotes is one that is Islamic, derived from the Koran:

O you who have believed, be persistently standing firm in justice, witnesses for Allah, even if it be against yourselves or parents and relatives. Whether one is rich or poor, Allah is more worthy of both. So follow not [personal] inclination, lest you not be just. (4:135)

That's it  the entire story. There were no "lengthy, scientific studies," nor "classification committees," that led Harvard to announce that the Koran is the "best book on justice." Rather, one Islamic quote was deemed worthy of inclusion with 32 other non-Islamic quotations.

What to make of this shameful episode? Why would Muslims fabricate such a story? More to the point, why would they even care what infidel Harvard thinks in the first place?

For those in the know, the answer is simple: Muslims are ever and always looking for outside validation. Why? Because a growing number of them have a nagging suspicion that their religion is not just.

Indeed, they need look no farther than to the very same Koran chapter/sura (4, al-Nisa', "the Women") whence the much celebrated "justice" verse (4:135) was excerpted to encounter any number of decidedly unjust verses, including permission to sexually enslave  buy and sell  women (4:3), permission for husbands to beat their wives  since men are "superior" to women (4:34)  and so on.

Accordingly, what can be more reassuring than Western intellectual praise for Islam?

Consider this Arabic op-ed on Islam's "inferiority complex" that I translated back in 2011. Although its author, Khaled Montaser, an Egyptian intellectual, focuses on all the hoopla that erupts whenever a Westerner converts to Islam  whether in reality or not  the essence of his arguments perfectly apply to and shed light on this recent Harvard fiasco:

We Muslims have an inferiority complex and are terribly sensitive to the world, feeling that our Islamic religion needs constant, practically daily, confirmation by way of Europeans and Americans converting to Islam. What rapturous joy takes us when a European or American announces their [conversion to] Islam  proof that we are in a constant state of fear, alarm, and chronic anticipation for Western validation or American confirmation that our religion is "okay." ... And we pound our drums and blow our horns [in triumph] and drag the convert to our backwardness, so that he may stand with us at the back of the world's line of laziness, [in the Muslim world] wherein no new scientific inventions have appeared in the last 500 years. Sometimes those who convert relocate to our countries  only to get on a small boat and escape on the high seas back to their own countries.

He goes on to discuss how the Arab world  in the guise of "our media and Internet sites ... our writers and intellectuals"  exulted when it mistakenly thought the German writer Henryk Broder had accepted Islam, based on sarcastic remarks he had made: "but we are a people incapable of comprehending sarcasm, since it requires a bit of thinking and intellectualizing. And we read with great speed and a hopeful eye, not an eye for truth or reality."

Montaser continues:

How come the Buddhists don't hold the festivities we do for those who convert to their religion? And some of these converts are much more famous than Broder. Did you know that Richard Gere, Steven Seagal, Harrison Ford  among Hollywood's most famous actors  converted to Buddhism? What did the Buddhist countries of Asia do regarding these celebrities? What did the Buddhists in China and Japan do? Did they dance and sing praise and march out in the streets, or did they accept these people's entrance into Buddhism as a mere matter of free conviction? ... It is sufficient for the Buddhists that these celebrities purchase their nations' electronic goods  without any beggary or enticements.

A closing thought: Muslim excitement over one small  and often fraudulent  compliment is only paralleled by the Western establishment's behavior: government, media, and academia are all in the habit of highlighting and fixating over one small (and often fraudulent) compliment to Islam  such as the "Andalusian Paradise" (a myth)  while suppressing Islam's numerous shortcomings.

And it's a reminder that, instead of flattering Islam, openly and honestly criticizing it  objectively, without rancor or hyperbole  is potentially one of the Western world's most powerful, though largely untapped, strategies that could go a long way in neutralizing Islam, and without force.

Raymond Ibrahim, author of Sword and Scimitar: Fourteen Centuries of War between Islam and the West, is Shillman Fellow at the David Horowitz Freedom Center, Judith Friedman Rosen Fellow at the Middle East Forum, and distinguished senior fellow at the Gatestone Institute.
Following the kidnapping of a group of University students, several thousand students took to the streets in Ethiopian cities. The protestors were demanding that the country's Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed take a strong stance against the ongoing ethnic violence in the country.

Anti-government protests

The university students were abducted from Dembi Dollo University by armed men. The university is present in the Oromiya region and the kidnapping took place in early December last year. Just earlier this week, the government announced that it had rescued 21 students who had previously been kidnapped but the whereabouts of 12 students still remained unknown.

Nobel Peace Laureate and a member of the Oromo ethnic group, Abiy is under great pressure as these recent kidnappings have revived widespread fears about ethnic violence at a time when the country is gearing up for an election.

Majority of the students that were kidnapped belonged to the Amhara, a group that has clashed with the Oromos in the past. According to statistics released by the higher education ministry, 35,000 students have opted to drop out of the university fearing the growing violence. At least 12 students have been killed.

Read: Ethiopian Airlines Continues Flights To China Amid Coronavirus Outbreak

Read: 3 Killed When Stand Collapses In Ethiopian Epiphany Ceremony

According to reports, the Prime Minister and other government officials met with the family of the abducted students and the family members were given assurances that the students would be safe. The movement has begun using the hashtag #BringBackOurStudents and has been used by several thousand people who are taking part in the marches.

Read: Tata Mumbai Marathon: Ethiopian Hurisa Creates Course Record

Read: Ethiopia's Electoral Board Sets August 16 As Tentative Date For Elections

27 students were kidnapped in Ethiopia last month, majority of which are girls.



We will not be silent! #BringBackOurGirls #BringBackOurStudents pic.twitter.com/hKiLVCl3R8  African Women in Dialogue (@AfWIDafrica) January 31, 2020

Big protests are going on right now in major cities of the Amhara region. The citizens want to express their discontent and are demanding the release of the abduction of #Dembidolo university students.#BringBackOurStudents:Ethiopians demand truth over abduction in Oromia region pic.twitter.com/sj9JX2d1H0  Obang Metho (@ObangMetho) January 28, 2020

#BringBackOurStudents demonstration just started at different towns of #Amhara "region".

17 (13 girls) students of Dembi Dollo University were kidnapped for 55 days & @AbiyAhmedAli's gov't kept silent about their whereabouts. #BringBackAmharaStudents ! pic.twitter.com/eRUfgcyewc  Dessalegn Chanie (@cdessalegn) January 28, 2020

(with inputs from agencies)
MEDFORD, Ore. -- You might see new products on the shelves at your local hemp store.

The Oregon Liquor Control Commission is allowing CBD products, specifically tinctures, to have up to 50 milligrams instead of 10. This starts on February 1st, 2020.

"We've had many many changes; rules constantly changing." said Brie Malarkey. She is the CEO and Founder of Sun Breeze Inc.

"Well at this point, the position of the Co-op is that we are really against anymore legislation ruling," said Mark Taylor. He is the Founder and Director of Southern Oregon Hemp Co-op Inc.

This new change doesn't mean your CBD products will get you high, because it does not effect the amount of THC that's in a serving.

"When they threw in that 10 milligram of THC limit in an entire container; even though it's under the point three percent the milligram, we can't sell this topical anymore," said Malarkey.

Confusing right? Malarkey's tinctures have the same amount of THC it had before  below point three percent per serving. If you count each serving though, it would bring the total amount of THC in the bottle above 10 milligrams. That was a problem for Malarkey's business, she couldn't sell multiple products because of it.

"Now I'm so excited. After lots of letters, different retail stores and customers writing in . . . the OLCC, the Commissioners and the Technical Advisers decided at least on tinctures and drops to allow up to 50 milligrams of THC," Malarkey said.

Malarkey's capsules and lotion are still not allowed to be more than 10 milligrams. It can be sold if it's in smaller quantities, which means customers have to buy smaller amounts of products. Depending on the store it could cost customers more money.
Tihar Jail authorities will approach a Delhi court, seeking a new date for the execution of the four convicts in the Nirbhaya gangrape and murder case, an official said on Saturday. (Photo: File)

New Delhi: Tihar Jail authorities will approach a Delhi court, seeking a new date for the execution of the four convicts in the Nirbhaya gangrape and murder case, an official said on Saturday.

According to Tihar officials, the prison authorities are approaching the Patiala House court for fixing a new date for the execution of all four convicts in view of the rejection of convict Vinay's mercy petition by the President.

This comes after President Ram Nath Kovind rejected the mercy petition of second death row convict -- Vinay Sharma -- in the case, earlier today.

Meanwhile, Akshay Thakur, another death row convict in the Nirbhaya gangrape and murder case, on Saturday filed a mercy petition before the President of India. Thakur has become the third convict in the case to file a mercy petition before the President.

So far, President Ram Nath Kovind has rejected the mercy petitions of convicts Vinay Sharma and Mukesh Singh in the matter.

A Delhi court had on Friday stayed till further orders the execution of four convicts -- Akshay Thakur, Mukesh Singh, Pawan Gupta, and Vinay Sharma -- which was earlier scheduled to take place on February 1.

The case pertains to the gang-rape and brutalising of a 23-year-old paramedical student in a moving bus on the night of December 16, 2012, by six people including a juvenile in Delhi. The woman had died at a Singapore hospital a few days later.

One of the five adults accused, Ram Singh, had allegedly committed suicide in the Tihar Jail during the trial of the case.
Delaware's Attack on Second Amendment:

Making Your Own Gun to Be Banned

By Dean Weingarten. January 29, 2020

Article Source

Individuals have been making their own firearms for the entire history of the United States and before. Homemade guns are not as popular as factory made guns, because factory made guns are easily and cheaply available in the United States. The Second Amendment has guaranteed that right.

It is a part of the right to keep and bear arms to be able to procure arms. A basic and fundamental way to procure arms is to make your own. Most home manufacture of firearms is for hobby or experimental purposes, although considerable homemade gun numbers are produced in localities with extreme restrictions on the ownership of guns.

Delaware is in the process of passing a statute to make it illegal to make your own firearms, or to even possess a piece of metal that is intended to be used to make a receiver. From the proposed statute, HB 277:

( ) Unfinished firearm frame or receiver means a firearm frame or receiver that requires further machining or molding in order to be used as part of a functional firearm, and which is designed and intended to be used in the assembly of a functional firearm. ( ) Untraceable firearm means an unlawfully manufactured firearm for which the sale or distribution chain from a licensed retailer to the point of its first retail sale cannot be traced by law enforcement officials.

The law makes it illegal to make your own firearms:

 1463 Untraceable firearms; Class E or D felony. (a) A person is guilty of possessing an untraceable firearm when then person knowingly possesses an untraceable firearm. (b) A person is guilty of manufacturing an untraceable firearm when the person knowingly manufactures, assembles, causes to be manufactured or assembled, sells, or transfers an untraceable firearm. (c) A person is guilty of manufacturing or distributing a firearm using a three-dimensional printer when the person does any one of the following: (1) Uses a three-dimensional printer or similar device to manufacture or produce a firearm, firearm frame or receiver, magazine, or major firearm component when not licensed as a manufacturer. (2) Distributes by any means, including the internet, to a person who is not licensed as a manufacturer, instructions in the form of computer-aided design files or other code or instructions stored and displayed in electronic format as a digital model that may be used to program a three-dimensional printer to manufacture or produce a firearm, firearm frame or receiver, magazine, or major component of a firearm. (d) Possession of a untraceable firearm is a Class E felony. (e) Manufacturing an untraceable firearm or manufacturing or distributing a firearm using a three-dimensional printer is a Class D felony.

The law, if passed, will be challenged in court, on both First and Second Amendment grounds. The law applies to people without any criminal record. People with felonies are already forbidden from owning firearms. This law is to prevent people who are not criminals from making their own firearms.

It is very new law to forbid law abiding individuals from making firearms for their own use. Such a law has only been passed in the last two years, to my knowledge.

It is a direct violation of the First Amendment to forbid the transmission of knowledge on how to make firearms with digital code.

This sort of law is common in countries without a Bill of Rights to limit the power of the government. It is an easily followed path of logic. The government forbids most people from buying guns. The people start to make their own. Then the government forbids the buying of gun parts. Then it forbids the buying or transfer of information of how to make guns. It may forbid the ownership of machinery that can be used to make guns. Some raids in India, for example, show confiscated drills, welders, and files.

Nothing in the Second Amendment allows the government to create a registry of guns or to require them to be traced to the first retail sale. Such a thing is of virtually no use in solving crimes. Its sole purpose, it appears, is to pave the way for a registration system to facilitate confiscation.

If Delaware passes this law, it will be following the steps of California (requires state serial number (following state manufacturing requirements), New Jersey (flat out ban), New York (firearm parts may only be sold to authorized buyers), Washington (bans "undetectable" guns), Connecticut (requires a state issued serial number). These five states, and Delaware, if it passes the law, are all treading new ground with laws passed in just the last two years.

The Washington state law may not be precisely in this group, as the law bans "undetectable guns", and the vast majority of homemade guns are easily detectable.

I have yet to see any court challenge to these laws. There was a court challenge on the legal ability to make your own machine guns, in Arizona, in the 1990's. The Ninth Circuit upheld that right, and the Supreme Court refused to hear the case. However, the case was complicated by other factors, and the Supreme Court had not yet decided Heller.

It is not surprising the five states above, sans Washington, all heavily infringe on the exercise of Second Amendment rights, by refusing to allow legal carry of firearms by most of the population. They all have "may issue" laws, aggressively preventing most people from carrying firearms for self defense.

2020 by Dean Weingarten: Permission to share is granted when this notice and link are included. Gun Watch

Back to Top


LONDON  You can take the would-be caucusgoer out of Iowa but not the quintessentially Iowan neighborhood political gathering out of the would-be caucusgoer.

The first step in Iowa's U.S. presidential nomination process takes place in fire stations, schools, libraries, churches and private homes. This year, there's something different: For the first time, they are happening outside the state.

Colyn Burbank's apartment he shares with his wife and young daughter is a good example. Except in one way: The graduate student is hosting an Iowa caucus in his adopted home of Glasgow, Scotland  4,000 miles from where he grew up.

"I know at least six Iowans who will show up. Maybe 10. The word's gotten out," the Des Moines native, 31, said. "I'm really happy Iowans will be part of the process even though they are not in Iowa. Because of the time difference, we're going to be caucusing six hours ahead of Iowa  one of the first in the world."

Iowa primer: A look at the ins and outs of the Iowa caucuses

Also a first this year: Iowa's Democratic caucuses, which take place Monday and give an early if not absolutely reliable indication which Democrat could go on to win the nomination of the political party for U.S. president, are going international. (The Republican caucuses in Iowa also take place on Monday, but with President Donald Trump facing no serious primary challenge, the focus this year is mainly on the Democratic contest.)

In addition to Glasgow, Iowa's Democratic Party designated Tbilisi, Georgia  an ex-Soviet republic located at the crossroads of eastern Europe and western Asia  as well as Paris, France, as international caucus sites. They are for voters who, like Burbank, are unable to attend their precinct's caucus in Iowa.

Troy Price, the chairman of the Iowa Democratic Party, said in a statement late last year when the idea for the satellite caucuses was first announced that the ultimate goal was "to make these caucuses the most accessible in our party's history."

Story continues

In an email, Joshua Kucera, a freelance journalist from Iowa who is hosting the caucus in Tbilisi, said he had done a few interviews about his motivations for organizing a caucus in Georgia but then decided to write his own story about it. It was published online Friday by The Nation, a weekly magazine. Kucera notes in the story that the very first of the votes of the Iowa caucuses will actually be cast in his apartment "south of Russia and east of Turkey" in a region that is known "as it happens, as the Caucasus."

Kucera said he is looking forward to recreating a "tiny bit of Iowa halfway around the world." Emphasis on tiny: "I have one other Iowan friend here in Tbilisi, and when our site was approved, we set about trying to find other Iowans to take part ... We posted in the expat Facebook groups and contacted the U.S. Embassy and Peace Corps here to see if they had any Iowans. In the end, we found ... one."

Well, three beats none.

In Paris, where Iowan Emily Hagedorn is hosting a caucus in France's capital not far from the famous Louvre Museum and the elegant arcades that frame the handsome garden of the Jardin du Palais Royal, numbers may not be as big an issue. Paris is home to a large expatriate population, many of them Americans.

"There are 26 preregistered Iowans for the caucus last I checked, but that doesnt mean 26 will come, necessarily," she said in emailed comments Friday, noting that Paris' mayor's office is "graciously" letting her use a room to host the event.

"It's important to me to be civically engaged and Im really thankful the Iowa Democratic Party made this an option this year," she said. Hagedorn said she transmit the results back to Iowa via FaceTime, Apple's video software.

Burbank intends to use Skype's video application to send his results.

Democratic officials expect a turnout of nearly 240,000 Democratic caucusgoers in Iowa on Monday at more than 1,600 precincts, a figure that would rival 2008's record turnout. Iowa's Democratic Party has authorized 60 in-state satellite locations, 25 out-of-state sites, plus the three international ones.

All the events will function in a similar way.

Colyn Burbank with his daughter, Nell, in Glasgow, Scotland.

Caucusgoers must be present at a physical location at a prescribed time to register their support by forming preference groups. Like a regular caucus, the events in Glasgow, Paris and Tbilisi will be overseen by a trained chairperson (Burbank, Hagedorn and Kucera, respectively). The satellite caucuses are treated as one big county. The number of delegates each candidate wins won't be known until all the satellites report.

Burbank, who caucused in Iowa four years ago ahead of the last U.S. presidential election  as a participant, not a host  said that at his event in Glasgow he is expecting to put his support behind Democratic presidential hopeful Bernie Sanders. The Vermont senator is statistically tied at the top of the Democratic field with former Vice President Joe Biden, according to an NBC News/Wall Street Journal national poll released Friday.

Burbank described Elizabeth Warren as a "great option" and pointed out that his mother, Mary Horsman, back home in Iowa, prefers the Massachusetts Senator.

"I do not see it so much as a rivalry, but as a time to talk about how much is on the line for the next presidential election," Horsman said in an email. "We both will support whoever wins the final nomination," she said, adding in a "p.s.": "Not sure where to add this but I feel like I need to share. I grew up in a politically active family. I think it is in (our family's DNA) not to sit on the sidelines."

Trump on Iowa caucus: Iowa has a 'front row seat to the lunacy' of left

Burbank said that, like him, at least two of his fellow caucusgoers are students. He said one of the biggest challenges of hosting the caucus will be to accommodate up to 10 Iowans in his small apartment in Glasgow, a few of whom will be bringing their small children, the next generation of caucusgoers. "But it should be a pretty varied demographic and it will be interesting to see what happens," he said.

"We're hoping for a friendly vibe, to make it as Iowan as possible," he said, saying that because Iowa is known for its cornfields he might make corn on the cob.

New rules: Could multiple candidates 'win' the Iowa Democratic caucus?

This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Iowa caucuses go global  to Glasgow, Paris and Tbilisi, Georgia
The mall is in an area that Albemarle County has identified as a priority area for public investment and redevelopment.

A planning process began in 2016 and resulted in the Rio+29 Small Area Plan, which was adopted by the county Board of Supervisors in late 2018.

The plan covers about a half-mile radius around the U.S. 29 and Rio Road intersection, minus the single-family homes, and calls for a walkable community with public amenity spaces.

County staff members are now working on zoning updates, including a form-based code, for the area. Form-based codes are land development regulations that, rather than dictate occupancy levels and specific uses, focus on the form and mass of buildings and streets in relation to one another and public spaces.

With walkability, it means that there needs to be more of an internal street network than there is today and that is an expensive cost for property owners to develop, and thats something weve heard concerns about, Albemarle Senior Neighborhood Planner Michaela Accardi said.

She said county economic development staff also have looked at options other than zoning that could encourage redevelopment.
"I'm tired," a reader wrote to me recently.

"I'm tired of the endless, wasted hours looking for an affordable day, let alone week, anywhere for a single man in his fifties on a budget."

Single supplements and holidays priced on a per person basis have made this man feel like a "persona non-grata", he told me.

"You see, I've had a travelling companion for years but he is now too ill to travel.

"We travelled all over the world on good deals for two people. I don't mind travelling on my own, if only I could find somewhere to go that didn't require me to pay for two/four people...

"My travelling days are over because of greedy travel companies and hotels who look on single travellers as not even worthy of their attention."

It's not the first email I've had from frustrated solo travellers - from active retirement groups to people simply looking to travel alone because they like it.

"I tend to travel myself because it is easier than waiting for other people to make up their minds," another reader told me last week.

Hotels and tour operators say surcharges pay for losses incurred when one person occupies a room designed for two.

But those supplements feel like a tax on travelling alone.

Read More

Solo travel is a growing trend (a recent British Airways survey found 50pc of female respondents had taken solo trips); it's time more options were available.

The good news? Small group tours from G Adventures and Intrepid have sharing options for solos, new cruise ships like Celebrity Edge are including more single staterooms, and I'm starting to see traditional tour ops like Sunway, TUI and ClickAndGo offer small ranges without single supplements.

Needless to say, it's always worth phoning to ask for options, rather than googling yourself to a standstill.

TUI, for example, has a seven-night Zakynthos package departing May 31 from 599 (3-star, room-only) and a five-star, half-board week in Tenerife from 1,019 next June 3 (use the solo discount code that shows on tuiholidays.ie).

Camino Ways (caminoways.com) has two guided group walking trips in Spain and Portugal for solos - seven-night packages start from 1,000pp (ex. flights).

Read More

Elsewhere, Travel Department (traveldepartment.ie), which says solo bookings rose 150pc last year, has a new, five-night French Riviera short break from 979 departing October 14, with excursions included.

Riviera Travel has a dedicated page for solo travellers (rivieratravel.ie/single-holidays), while Belfast-based Friendship Travel (friendshiptravel.com) has a week in Rhodes from 875, including solo use of a simple double room, host support, transfers and some evening meals.

The more solo travellers phone or email to make their case, the more of these offers we're likely to see.
EAST LONGMEADOW, Mass.  In a gray-walled, institutional hall usually reserved for prosaic debates over traffic and town budgets, Mohamoud Abdirahman rose from the audience last month and approached a panel of five town councilmen sitting in judgment.

Civil war had forced his family to flee their native Somalia in 1991, when he was a child. The Abdirahmans traveled for two days by cargo ship to Kenya, where they stayed for a year and a half before securing refuge in the United States. Now, it was his turn to fight for those trying to follow his footsteps to this town abutting Springfield and the Connecticut border.

A lot of people like me just want a second chance at life, an emotional Mr. Abdirahman pleaded.

A similar refrain is echoing across the country in town councils, county commissions, mayors offices and governors mansions after an executive order signed by President Trump in September granted local politicians a veto over the placement of refugees in their communities.

That order has carried the national tension over the Trump administrations hard-line immigration agenda from the halls of Washington and detention camps along the southwestern border to places like East Longmeadow, population 16,000, and turned refugees and those who work to resettle them into lobbyists of sorts.
Keith Smith shocked the country when he told how his Good Samaritan wife, Jacquelyn, had been stabbed to death by a panhandler as she offered him money while they were stopped a Baltimore intersection.

His tearful appearances on TV news even led to Oprah Winfrey - a one-time Baltimore resident - weighing in when she tweeted: 'This story struck my heart. I've done this a 1k times. But will think twice before ever doing again.'

But the 53-year-old man is just months away from a murder trial now, after his daughter, Valeria Smith, 29, admitted to helping him cover up 54-year-old Jacquelyn's December 2018 slaying.

Keith Smith, 53 (left), is expected to go to trial on murder charges in April. His daughter, Valeria Smith, 29 (right), pleaded guilty to an accessory after the crime charge in September

Keith (right) is accused of first-degree murder following the stabbing death of his wife, Jacquelyn Smith, 54 (left), in December 2018

Keith was charged with first-degree murder in March 2019, after police investigated his panhandler claims and came to believe that they were untrue.

Baltimore is currently experiencing a homeless crisis, with the Maryland Interagency Council on Homelessness estimating in 2018 that it provided services to more than 12,000 homeless people in the city. In comparison, the city's total population is estimated to be just 609,800.

After her death, Keith allegedly told police that his wife of four years had been attempting to give money to a female panhandler who was holding a baby money at an intersection in Baltimore, Maryland.

He said a man then approached the car, reached inside and fatally stabbed her.

The father and daughter told police that they were in the car with Jacquelyn when the incident occurred.

Police later said that that Keith and Valeria made up the panhandler stabbing story and that they ran once they knew authorities were closing in on them.

They were arrested on March 5 in Texas, during what police said was an effort to flee to Mexico.

The father and daughter - who were both charged with first-degree murder at the time of their arrest - claimed that they were just going on vacation together.

Court documents, obtained by Fox 45, revealed that Jacquelyn had been stabbed five times in the chest and once on the lower right arm.

Keith told police and the media that Jacquelyn had been stabbed by a panhandler who she had been trying to give money to. The pair are pictured here on their wedding day

Police later said that Keith's story about the panhandler was untrue and suspected that Keith (pictured with Jacquelyn) had been responsible for the death of his wife of four years

Court documents stated that police believe Jacquelyn (pictured with Keith) had been about to divorce Keith and that he had once asked his brother to kill Jacquelyn

Police also said that they reviewed surveillance camera footage from the street where Keith claimed the stabbing occurred and did not find any evidence of the Smiths' car being there at the time of the incident.

Among the other evidence against Kevin police said they uncovered, was that Keith had allegedly asked his brother to kill Jacquelyn and that she had been planning to divorce Keith.

Following Keith and Valeria's March 2019 arrest, Baltimore mayor Catherine Pugh held a press conference and said that 'These individuals took advantage of a situation, a city that is already dealing with its own problems. So we are looking forward to this cruel act being brought to justice.'

Kevin Lindamood, President & CEO of Health Care for the Homeless, was prompted to tweet: 'I remember vividly the public hysteria over public begging that followed this story last year. If there was half as much public outrage over poverty itself we could end homelessness altogether. How reprehensible to play into stereotype & falsely fuel fear.'

Keith and his daughter, Valeria (pictured), were arrested in Texas in March 2019 after they allegedly went on the run in an effort to escape to Mexico as police closed in on them

Valeria was originally hit with a first-degree murder charge, but was then indicted on one charge of accessory after the crime. She is shown at left in her mugshot and at right in an undated image

Valeria pleaded guilty to the accessory charge in September 2019, 10 days before her father's murder trial was originally expected to begin

In June 2019, prosecutors dropped the murder charges against Valeria, indicting her on one charge of accessory after the crime.

Valeria pleaded guilty to the charge on September 26, 2019, admitting to watching Jacquelyn's murder, concocting the panhandler story and helping her father - the alleged killer - try to escape to Mexico, according to the Baltimore Sun.

Valeria was expected to have been sentenced in January, but it's unclear if her sentencing occurred or the date was moved.

Because of her father's impending murder trial, her plea agreement was kept under a seal, so it's unknown whether prosecutors have agreed to a sentence or if Valeria will need to testify against her father during his trial.

It's thought that she could face up to 10 years in prison on the accessory charge, however.

Keith's murder trial was originally scheduled to begin on October 7, about 10 days after Valeria pleaded guilty - but was postponed to February 4, because his defense team needed additional time, according to WJZ.

In early January, the Baltimore Sun reported that Keith's trial is now expected to begin on April 20.

In the wake of Keith's arrest, Jacquelyn's mother, Anna Trisvane, said that the panhandler story didn't add up from the beginning because Jacquelyn was a cautious woman who would not have given money to a person in the street in the way Keith claimed she had.

'It was all phony. I knew it was not real. I suspected that he had something to do with it,' she told WBALTV in March 2019.

'She was too cautious. She doesn't like things like that. She would have said to herself, "No that's phony,"' Trisvane added.

Keith was previously arrested for robbing a bank three times in 1999 and 2000.
Recently, comedian Kunal Kamra hit the headlines when a video of him roasting popular journalist Arnab Goswami on a Mumbai-Lucknow flight went viral on the internet. Soon, Air India, IndiGo, GoAir and SpiceJet banned him from travelling in their flight for six months.

The airlines' ban on Kunal Kamra was heavily slammed by many Bollywood celebrities. While speaking at an event, Raveena Tandon too criticized the ban and said that it wasn't justified.

The actress said, "Ok, I like Kunal Kamra. Does that help? No? That doesn't help! Actually, personally I don't like him because he makes very personal and bad jokes but the ban on him was not justified. That I will stand for. Nonetheless, everyone has two sides of the coin."

Raveena was speaking at an event to promote organ donation and was accompanied by Priyanka Chopra's mother Dr Madhu Chopra on stage.

Previously, actress Kritika Kamra too slammed the ban in her tweet and wrote, "Regardless of what one thinks about what Kunal did..we have to agree this is the swiftest the state has acted lately.They CAN act,they just choose to ignore hateful speech and shameful behaviour of their own. No ban for anybody but a comedian is banned by 3 airlines. Priorities." (sic)

Meanwhile, Captain Rohit Mateti, the IndiGo pilot who flew Kunal Kamra, wrote to the airline's management on Thursday, asking why he was not consulted before a ban was placed on the comedian. Mateti further added that Kunal's behaviour, "while unsavoury, was not qualifying of a level 1 unruly passenger" and that he did not find the events reportable in any way.

Reacting to this, Kunal Kamra tweeted, "Captain Rohit Mateti ko mera salaam." (sic)

(All social media posts are unedited)

Kunal Kamra's Face-off With Arnab Goswami On Flight: Taapsee Pannu & Vijay Varma Have This To Say!

Hansal Mehta's Take On Kunal Kamra Heckling Arnab Goswami: 'Uncool, But Necessary'
Queen's University (QUB) has banned students and staff from travelling to China due to the outbreak of the Coronavirus.

The BBC has reported that the Belfast university has frozen travel to China for business or study while they monitor the situation.

Queen's has also advised those currently in China to return to the UK.

Read More

Any staff currently in China have been asked to contact the university.

A working group has been established to put in place a range of support measures for students and staff and to keep them up to date with the latest advice and guidance.

The university's registrar Jo Clague emailed the new guidance to all staff and students on Saturday.

It said QUB would pay for the travel costs of any students and staff currently in China to return to the UK.

"Your wellbeing is the university's first priority," the email read.

"Please do not let any concerns about your work or studies stop you taking this advice.

"We, as a university, are freezing travel to China for business or study while we continue to monitor the situation."

Queen's has asked anyone who has visitors planning to visit from the Chinese city of Wuhan, where the outbreak began, to ask them to postpone their trip.

However visits by academics and students from other parts of China will still be allowed to go ahead. The university said this would be kept "under review".

Any staff or students who have recently returned from Wuhan have been asked to contact Queen's.

The BBC has said that there are currently around 1200 Chinese students at QUB, which also has a medical campus in Shenyang.

There are currently two people in the UK with the virus, which has claimed the lives of over 250 people.

One of those affected is a student at the University of York.

The student and another member of their family are being treated at a specialist unit in Newcastle.

Dr Connor Bamford, a research fellow at QUB, has said that the emergence of these cases in England was to "be expected" and a similar discovery in Northern Ireland was possible.
After a racism debate in Davos on the invisibility of African climate activists, Greta Thunberg held a press conference Friday with fellow eco warriors from Kenya, Uganda and South Africa to stress the importance of their voices. Vanessa Nakate of Uganda was at the heart of a viral debate at the World Economic Forum in Davos after she was cropped out of a news agency photo of young activists, including Thunberg, taken after a press conference. A 23-year-old graduate in business administration, Nakate was the only black person and only African in the photo shoot. She accused the Associated Press of racism in cropping her out. The agency said the photographer had modified the photo for composition purposes and later apologised, calling it a "terrible mistake". Nakate said she did "not want to talk about" the incident, other than to say that "it was quite a frustrating moment." "This is the time for the world to listen to the activists from Africa and to pay attention to their stories... This is an opportunity for media to actually do some justice to the climate issues in Africa," Nakate told reporters via video link from Kampala. She was joined on separate screens by Ayakha Melithafa and Ndoni Mcunu of South Africa and Makenna Muigai of Kenya, who spent an hour answering questions from journalists gathered at Greenpeace Sweden's offices. - 'We are the most impacted' - So far, Africa is relatively blameless when it comes to climate change. The continent is home to 17 percent of the world's population and more than a quarter of its nations, but only accounts for about five percent of the greenhouse gas emissions pushing the planet toward runaway warming. "Yet we are the most impacted" by climate change, said Mcunu, a PhD student at Johannesburg's Witwatersrand University. "Almost 20 million people have fled the continent due to these changes" and major droughts have caused "almost 52 million people to become food insecure," she added. Mcunu said Africans have begun to adapt, using "indigenous knowledge systems" incorporating "the knowledge that we have as Africans into the international research science and climate data awareness". But, she stressed, "how is it that we're not being spotlighted in these stories, that's the main challenge we have as a continent." Billions of locusts are swarming through East Africa, the result of extreme weather swings which could prove catastrophic for a region still reeling from drought and deadly floods. If unchecked, the infestation could become a plague that will devastate crops and pastures in a region which is already one of the poorest and most vulnerable in the world. - 'Food and water scarcity' - Many Africans "are unaware as to why this is happening, due to not being educated and properly prepared for the consequences," said Makenna Muigai. "I urge African leaders and world leaders to take into consideration that all of us will be affected by climate change. No one should be left behind," she added. "The biggest risk that African countries face would be food scarcity and water scarcity, as a result of climate change," added Nakate. To combat these threats, activists' voices need to be heard. "The biggest threat to action is the fact that those who are trying as hard as possible to speak up are not being given the amplification, they're not able to tell their stories," Nakate said. "If we continue the silencing of planet activists from different parts of Africa, it will be so hard for them to get their message across to our government leaders." Thunberg meanwhile criticised the media for focusing so much of its attention on her, insisting "the African perspective is always so under-reported". "If I say something it gets turned into a headline, that is not the case for the others. The media frames us differently... the amount of coverage they give us," the Swedish teenager said. Greta Thunburg watches fellow eco warrior Vanessa Nakate, speaking from Kampala, after she was cropped out of a photo of young activists Swedish climate activist Greta Thunberg at the press conference in Stockholm with other participants on screen Nakate, speaking in Kampala: "This is the time for the world to listen to the activists from Africa"
By Noriyuki Suzuki, KYODO NEWS - Feb 1, 2020 - 14:00 | Japan, All, Coronavirus

Japan is taking unprecedented measures to fight the new coronavirus despite many unknowns, including denying the entry of foreign travelers from China's Hubei Province, the epicenter of the viral outbreak.

The official designation of the coronavirus as a "special infectious disease" on Saturday -- a week earlier than initially planned -- gives Tokyo the legal basis to enforce compulsory measures that also include banning foreign nationals infected with the virus from entering the country, regardless of where they are from.

Under the new measures, Japanese authorities can instruct foreign visitors suspected of being infected to have a medical examination at their point of arrival, while forced hospitalization is also an option.

(Tourists stroll Kiyomizu slope, a popular sightseeing spot in Kyoto, wearing facial masks on Jan. 30, 2020, amid the spreading coronavirus.)

As the number of infections in Japan is on the rise, Prime Minister Shinzo Abe has sounded the alarm about cases in which infected people do not show symptoms such as fever, coughing, or pneumonia. Figuring out who is infected might be difficult unless virus tests are conducted.

Foreigners who have been in Hubei within two weeks -- the virus's estimated incubation period -- prior to their arrival to Japan, will be barred. Foreigners are now required to declare at airports if they have been to Hubei during that period, Japanese officials said.

Holders of Chinese passports issued in the central Chinese province will also be prohibited from entering the country in principle.

They are subject to the precautionary measures, whether they display symptoms or not.

"We need to prepare steps to tackle the outbreak by using something that is objective," a Japanese government official said of Tokyo's decision to target Hubei-issued Chinese passports.

The moves came after the World Health Organization declared a global emergency on Thursday, and opposition lawmakers criticized the Japanese government for not doing enough to fend off the virus.

( Chinese tourists look at face masks at an electronics store in Tokyo's Akihabara district on Jan. 27, 2020.)

After a second emergency meeting, however, WHO Director General Tedros Ghebreyesus said the organization decided not to recommend travel or trade restrictions under the current circumstances.

Confirmed cases of the new coronavirus that emerged in December have mushroomed in China, topping 10,000. In Japan, the number of infected people, including those traveling from Wuhan, stood at 17 as of Friday.

Japan did not take measures such as an entry ban targeting foreigners from a specific region when it grappled with the spread of infectious diseases, including Middle East respiratory syndrome, or MERS, and severe acute respiratory syndrome, or SARS.

In recent years, Japan has drawn growing numbers of foreign visitors. Chinese travelers made up about 30 percent of the total in 2019, becoming the biggest group, according to government data.

Japanese government officials say it is not a blanket ban on holders of Hubei-issued Chinese passports, noting that exceptions will be made under special circumstances.

But it is still unclear, for instance, whether a case in which a person has a Chinese passport issued in Hubei but lives in a different province or country will warrant an exception. Uncertainty also remains over whether a Chinese national with a passport from Hubei who is married to a Japanese will be allowed to enter Japan.

The restrictions will remain in place "for the time being," Abe said, with one immigration official saying, "It will depend on (the possibility of) an extensive outbreak."

Looking ahead, Japan is also making preparations to ask passengers on all flights from China to Japan whether they have been to Wuhan and about the condition of their health in questionnaires, government officials have said.

The Japan National Tourism Organization has a hotline for foreign visitors who need assistance in emergencies. They can also inquire about the new coronavirus in English, Chinese and Korean at 050-3816-2787.

Related coverage:

Confirmed new coronavirus cases top 10,000 in China

Japan gov't criticized over initial coronavirus response

Olympics: IOC teams up with WHO over virus outbreak
WASHINGTON (UrduPoint News / Sputnik - 01st February, 2020) The United States imposed immigration restrictions on citizens of six countries including the former Soviet republic of Kyrgyzstan, the White House said in a statement.

"Today, following the recommendations provided by Members of his Cabinet and his advisers, President Donald J. Trump has issued a proclamation... suspending the overseas issuance of immigrant visas for certain nationals of Burma (Myanmar), Eritrea, Kyrgyzstan, and Nigeria; and suspending participation in the 'visa Lottery' for certain nationals of Sudan and Tanzania," the statement said on Friday.

The new restrictions will not apply to tourist, business, or other non-immigrant travel. The White House said that it would work with the affected countries to bring them into compliance with US security standards.

With regard to Kyrgyzstan, US authorities specified that the country didn't issue electronic passports or adequately share public-safety and terrorism-related information.

The White House said that it was also maintaining entry restrictions previously imposed on certain nationals of Iran, Libya, North Korea, Syria, Venezuela, Yemen, and Somalia.
A video of Meghan Markle calling herself a 'fraud' for apparently lying to casting directors about being in a union to get an acting job has resurfaced.

It comes as the Duchess of Sussex is rumoured to be returning to screens following the couple's vow to become 'financially independent' from the royal family.

The clip - unearthed from a promotional appearance Meghan did for her TV series Suits - shows the Duchess confessing to telling casting directors that she was in an actors union.

The host asks the panel about which role got them their first Screen Actors Guild card, a US union that represents more than 100,000 actors.

Meghan says she pretended to be in a union to get a small part in a pilot for Century City, a 2004 CBS show.

A video of Meghan Markle calling herself a 'fraud' for lying to casting directors to get an acting job has resurfaced. The clip shows the Duchess confessing to lying to casting directors about being in an actors union



She tells the panel: 'I was Taft-Harteleyed, which is I pretended I was union.... and you have to... it was the pilot called Century City with Hector Elizondo'

'And I got there, and thy're like - so you're union'

'And I'm like of course, I'm union I mean yeah absolutely. And then I wasn't.'

'To this day those castig directors will never hire me'.

'I was such a fraud.'

Meghan and Harry have already begun a transition phase of living in Canada and the UK after their bombshell announcement that they were stepping back as senior members of the firm.

She said: I told them I was union. Of course Im union, yeah, absolutely. And then I wasnt. I was such a fraud!

The clip was unearthed from a promotional appearance Meghan did for her TV series Suits. Pictured: Meghan in Suits

A spokesman for the couple on Saturday denied that Meghan was to make multiple appearances on the upcoming Canadian reality show 'I Do, Redo,' which is about couples planning a second wedding after disaster ruins their first ceremony.

The show, set to air on Netflix, will be hosted by Toronto wedding stylist Jessica Mulroney, who is Meghan's close friend and confidant.

This follows a resurfaced video of Meghan and Harry appearing to fish for voiceover work while attending The Lion King premiere on July 9.

It comes as the Duchess of Sussex is rumoured to be returning to screens following the couple's vow to become 'financially independent' from the royal family. Pictured: Harry and Meghan last month

Footage shows Harry praising his wife's voiceover skills to the film's director Jon Favreau as Beyonce and her rapper husband Jay-Z look on.

In the clip Harry tells Mr Favreau: 'If anyone needs any extra voiceover work' before Meghan interrupts and jokes: 'That's really why we're here  it's the pitch!'

Harry then says ' just not Scar'  a reference to antagonistic Lion King character who tries to steal the kingdom from Simba.

This follows a resurfaced video of Meghan and Harry appearing to fish for voiceover work while attending The Lion King premiere on July 9

At the same event, Harry also touted Meghan's acting chops to Disney CEO Bob Iger, 68, in a move that seemed to surprise his wife, former TV host Willow Bay.

During conversation, Harry asks: 'You do know she does voiceovers?'

Mr Iger can be heard replying: 'Ah, I did not know that.' Harry then responds: 'You seem surprised. She's really interested.' The Disney chief then says: 'We'd love to try. That's a great idea.'

The exchange came months before Meghan was hired by the company to work on a Disney project in exchange for a donation to Elephant Without Borders, a wildlife conservation and nature research charity.
The National Investigation Agency (NIA) will probe an Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act case against a terror module that was plotting to foment communal trouble in the state.

The case was officially handed over to the NIA from the Central Crime Branch (CCB) after the government passed the order.

The police had earlier uncovered a plot by religious fundamentalists by cracking down in Bengaluru and Tamil Nadu.

A senior officer from the CCB confirmed that the case, registered at the Suddaguntepalya police station against 17 people on January 17, was handed over to the NIA. We had recorded the statements of the five people arrested in the case, including the mastermind Mehboob Pasha. Some of the accused were arrested in Delhi and Tamil Nadu, said the officer.

The accused are former members of the banned outfit Al-Ummah. Some of the arrested were involved in murder cases of Hindu leaders in Tamil Nadu. The police said they were plotting to kill Hindu leaders across India and had links with foreign handlers.
The Jammu and Kashmir police said that the three Jaish-e-Mohammad terrorists killed by security forces on January 31 were Pakistanis, who had recently infiltrated from across the border.

The Jammu and Kashmir police on Friday said that it had recovered Improvised Explosion Devices (IEDs), ready to be used around Nagrota, along with huge quantities of arms, ammunition and communication equipment from the Pakistani terrorists.

"Recovered from 3 slain Pakistan terrorists of JeM on January 31. They had an IED ready to be used around Nagrota through some third person in a few days. They had dumped it at a convenient location on Jammu-Srinagar Highway," the Jammu and Kashmir Police's tweet on Friday read.

The recovery included AK-47 rifles, pistols and armour piercing steel core ammunition which can go through Level 3 protection bulletproof vehicles.

Earlier, Jammu and Kashmir DGP, Dilbagh Singh on Friday had said that the preliminary reports suggested that the terrorists had crossed the International Border (IB) on January 30.

"As per preliminary reports, they all appear to be Pakistani terrorists and belonged to JeM, this group had crossed the International Border (IB) from Dayalachak area last evening and they were on the way to Srinagar," Singh told reporters after the encounter.

The encounter had broken out between the security forces and terrorists during the checking of vehicles near the Bann toll plaza.

One security personnel had also received injuries during the encounter.

The police had arrested the driver and conductor of the truck which was being used by the terrorists.

Further investigation is underway.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
Executive director of the Asia Trade Centre Deborah Elms

Now that the 15 Asian countries in the Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership (RCEP) agreement have concluded negotiations, attention is turning to how companies might actually use the deal. While all the specifics will not be known until texts and schedules are released at signature in February or March, one important concept is worth exploring in greater detail: how this agreement has the potential to radically transform trade with just one element  a regional rule of origin.

The Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership is a free trade agreement negotiation involving 15 countries: the 10 ASEAN members - Brunei, Cambodia, Indonesia, Laos, Malaysia, Myanmar, the Philippines, Singapore, Thailand, and Vietnam - and the five countries with which the ASEAN has existing free trade agreements: Australia, China, Japan, South Korea, and New Zealand. Negotiations were formally launched in 2012 at the ASEAN Summit in Cambodia.

To appreciate why this single item is so important, it worth stepping back to understand in a simplified way how companies make goods without any trade deals and how they struggle to manage production across multiple trade agreements.

Take the example of a bottle of shampoo. This is a useful example for many reasons. First, both large and small companies compete to sell shampoo to customers. Second, this is an item that has universal appeal, where local or regional variations are likely to be relatively modest. Third, shampoo can have a lot of ingredients which are rarely found in just one country.

Finally, it tends to be subject to an interesting variation in protection at the domestic level in Asia. Perhaps surprisingly, shampoo often faces relatively high tariff barriers at the border. Applied tariffs (those actually charged on imported goods) can be 10-20 per cent into many markets in Asia.

Without any trade agreement in place, a company that wants to send shampoo into a new foreign market will need to create the product and pay the Most Favoured Nation (MFN) tariff rate for shampoo.

Depending on the market, some shampoo businesses may have access to lower tariffs by using free trade agreements (FTAs). These FTAs are typically designed to give preferences or benefits to member country businesses that non-member counterparts do not receive. This usually includes at least lower tariffs, or even zero tariffs, on most or all products between member countries.

The size and scope of these preferences depends on the negotiations. Higher quality agreements, in general, give deeper tariff cuts on a bigger set of goods. The best FTAs aim for duty-free treatment on all goods.

For businesses, however, these benefits can come with a catch. Lower tariffs do not come automatically. Companies have to demonstrate that they qualify for preferences. Typically, products need to be either 100 per cent from the member countries in the agreement (grown, harvested, or dug up as an example) or show that the product has been substantially transformed in the member countries to qualify.

If the item is 100 per cent from the members of the FTA, this seems straightforward. Most people intuitively grasp that a carrot or potato traded between two parties in an FTA should qualify for lower tariffs in a bilateral trade deal.

Shampoo, of course, is not grown or harvested. Ingredients are probably sourced from outside one market and may include items from outside both (or all) of the parties in the FTA. How much of the total content in the bottle of shampoo needs to be from the members to count for lower tariffs?

Trade negotiators spend a lot of time negotiating the rules of origin (ROO) to account for these problems. While not getting into the technical details here, basically the members often agree on a threshold that has to be satisfied to allow a product to count so the product qualifies for lower tariffs under the trade agreement.

A bottle of shampoo may have 20 ingredients on the label. Depending on the rules, in an agreement with just two members, it can be tricky for some countries to create a bottle of shampoo with enough content from just the two members to ever meet the thresholds to qualify for origin and get the benefits of the lower tariffs on offer. Smaller economies, especially, struggle to find enough domestic resources to satisfy content for products, as so many raw materials, parts and components are imported.

This is partly why businesses do not often use FTAs, even if they might appear to benefit from the agreement. If businesses find the FTA rules too bothersome, if the tariff preferences are small compared to MFN rates, or if products simply do not qualify, they can always ship products under the MFN tariff levels and avoid using an FTA at all.

For many companies that have the ability to use different FTAs, the world is both full of benefits and more complicated.

Take the example of a small company in Singapore trying to make shampoo for shipment across Asia. Singapore currently has more than 20 different FTAs in place that each provide special preferences, including potential for shampoo tariff reductions.

However, the ROO are going to be a problem. The Singaporean company relies on imported materials to create the final product. Even if the Singaporean company gets many items from within the ASEAN and has a huge potential advantage with using six existing ASEAN trade agreements, it could still struggle to ship across Asia. Depending on where it sources all the other materials from, it may or may not qualify for lower tariffs into different markets.

To illustrate the problem, if the company wanted to send a bottle to South Korea, it may need to ensure that it adds more South Korean ingredients to meet the ROO under the ASEAN-South Korea FTA.

If the company got an order from Japan, it may not be able to use the same bottle, because the South Korean content would not count. It may need to be swapped out for Japanese raw materials instead to qualify for lower tariffs under the ASEAN-Japan FTAs.

If a staff member in Singapore accidently shipped the Japanese content bottle to South Korea and claimed FTA preferences under the ASEAN-South Korea FTA, the company could be liable for mis-declaration with potentially significant fees and penalties.

Under the RCEP, however, the shampoo company can make shampoo safe in the knowledge that  as long as the content in the bottle comes from anywhere in the 15 markets in Asia meeting the ROO for the RCEP  it can be shipped to any of the 15 markets in Asia without any changes in formulation. Given the size and diversity of these markets, this is a significant advantage to all Asian-based businesses.

Even better, under the deal, businesses will need to fill out only one sheet of paper to prove that their products qualify for origin. The new RCEP certificate of origin should reduce costs and time for companies.

The extent of the benefits will vary in the RCEP. In some instances, the gap between the MFN rate or existing FTA benefits and new RCEP rates may be small. But the ability to ship products, like shampoo, across all of Asia without change in formulation, is still extremely significant. It means that businesses will be competitive in markets that they may never have considered in the past. This apparently small element of the RCEP is likely to be game changing. Companies should start preparing now to use this trade agreement.
Union Health Minister Harsh Vardhan has termed the Union budget a pragmatic, holistic and people's budget with special focus on health, medical infrastructure, and medical education.

This year, the health sector has been allocated Rs. 69,000 crore.

"The health budget shows an increase of 3.75 percent, while there has been a 10 percent hike in the allocation for the department for medical research. The budget 2020 is on medical infrastructure, human resources in the health, and holistic health and wellness," said Harsh Vardhan.

"To address the shortage of qualified doctors (specialist and general practitioners), it is proposed to attach a medical college with existing district hospitals in PPP mode," he added.

"As part of strengthening the medical infrastructure, the government will support the creation of hospitals in those aspirational districts, particularly in the two and three-tier cities, which do not have empanelled hospitals under Ayushman Bharat PMJAY. This shall be under PPP mode with a viability gap funding support," said the Union Minister

Under the Board of Examinations (NEB), large hospitals with sufficient capacity will be encouraged to train resident doctors in DNB / FNB.

"Bridge course for nurses and paramedics for equivalence with foreign courses will be designed by the ministry of health and skill development together with professional bodies," he said.

In addition, 6500 projects under the Infrastructure Pipeline (NIP) include projects of healthcare for all.

Those states that fully allow the facilities of the hospital to the medical college and wish to provide land at a concession would be able to receive viability gap funding from the Centre, he added.

Vardhan informed that the "TB Harega Desh Jeetega" campaign has received a boost in the budget. This shall strengthen our resolve and commitment to end tuberculosis by 2025.

The budget has also witnessed the importance of preventive and primitive health with support for Mission Indradhanush, Fit India campaign, digital linkage of all Ayushman Bharat Health and Wellness Centres.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
Terrorists from Hayat Tahrir al-Sham, formerly known as Jabhat al-Nusra, have staged assaults on the Syrian armed forces' positions with three car bombs in northern Syria's city of Aleppo, Al-Mayadeen broadcaster reported on Saturday.

According to the media outlet, the terror group attacked the army's positions in the Zahraa area in the west of Aleppo during clashes with Syrian forces.

The local Sham FM radio station reported that the military managed to blow up one of the cars before it reached army positions.

According to media reports, terrorists are also shelling the Mogambo and Shahba districts in western Aleppo.

Syria has been in a state of civil war for nine years, with the government forces fighting against numerous opposition groups as well as terror organisations.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
DENVER  Colorado authorities have issued an arrest warrant for a woman accused of lying when she filed a petition seeking to take away the guns of a university police officer who killed her son.

Susan Holmes of Fort Collins was being sought Friday on suspicion of first-degree perjury and attempt to influence a public servant, The Denver Post reported Thursday.

Larimer County deputies tried to serve the warrant but could not find Holmes, sheriffs office spokesman Jered Kramer said.

At this point, we are fairly certain she is attempting to avoid us, he said.

The warrant was issued a week after Holmes appeared in court to argue under the red flag law that the state should confiscate the guns of Colorado State University police Cpl. Philip Morris for a year after he fatally shot 19-year-old Jeremy Holmes in 2017, online court records said.

Jeremy Holmes reportedly bared a bayonet and charged officers after being told several times to drop the weapon. The 8th Judicial District Attorneys Office ruled that the officers use of force was justified, and they were cleared of wrongdoing.

The warrant was first reported by The Coloradoan.

Holmes said on the petition that she and Morris shared a child together, but later said it wasnt true during an interview with The Denver Post. A judge denied Holmes petition because she didnt have legal standing to file it.

The red flag law, which took effect Jan. 1, is similar to those adopted in over a dozen other states and intended to allow relatives, household members or law enforcement to seek a court order to confiscate the weapons of people they believe could harm themselves or others.

Holmes bond is set at $5,000. She did not respond to a Denver Post reporters call on Thursday and did not return a phone call from The Associated Press on Friday afternoon.
Joan Panos (pictured at her wedding in 2009) died in a hospital bed in Bendigo after trying unsuccessfully for to find a specialist willing to sign off her application to die using euthanasia laws. "There didn't seem to be a clear pathway of where we could go from there," Ms McNaughton said. "From this point on, mum told every palliative nurse or medical professional she saw she had no quality of life and asked them if they supported euthanasia." Her GP called voluntary assisted dying care navigators at the Peter MacCallum Cancer Centre, who connect trained doctors with dying patients wanting to access euthanasia laws. But there were more delays. Ms Panos deteriorated quickly. She was admitted to a hospice in mid August and died two weeks later. There was nothing mum could do about the fact she had a terminal illness, but she had a very strong preference to make the choice to do it when she wanted and where she wanted, Ms McNaughton said. "Watching her fade away in hospital and knowing it wasn't what she wanted was devastating. She wanted to die at home, but we feel she was robbed of that."

Mornington Peninsula GP Jack Knobel has also helped three terminally ill Victorians seeking permission to end their lives since the landmark laws came into effect in June. Each fit the strict criteria, but the GP was forced to refer them all to specialists in Melbourne. "To my knowledge, there are no neurologists or cancer specialists on the Mornington Peninsula able to help," Dr Knobel said. "The issue is there's a real lack of specialists at the moment outside of Melbourne and it's been a major stumbling block." Victorian GP Jack Knobel has raised concerns about terminally ill patients on the verge of death and their access to specialists on the Mornington Peninsula Credit:Simon Schluter Two of Dr Knobel's patients, who were in the advanced stages motor neurone disease, were transported to Melbourne by family to see neurologists, before being granted a permit for a lethal cocktail of drugs.

Dr Knobel contacted oncologists in Melbourne for another terminally ill cancer patient, when she suffered a stroke and died before being assessed by a second doctor. "What it means is that the entire process might take an extra three or four weeks," he said. "These are really sick people who are suffering terribly and they're having to go all the way to Melbourne for a second opinion. As it stands, it's just not fair." Victoria is the only jurisdiction with laws stipulating one doctor must be a specialist in the person's disease. "It is a bureaucratic roadblock that is inhibiting the way the laws were meant to work in Victoria," euthanasia advocate Dr Rodney Syme said. "No other place in the world, including Western Australia, has laws which are so restrictive." Some doctors are pushing for a change to the Victorian legislation allowing for experienced GPs, who have relevant expertise in a person's disease or condition, to step in as a secondary consulting doctor in exceptional circumstances when a person is on the verge of death and unable to find a specialist.

Dr Syme said he had been contacted by terminally ill people in Geelong and Warrnambool who had difficulty finding specialists signed up to the scheme. Loading Another man from Omeo in Victoria's north-east had a rare neurological condition that caused him severe muscle and joint pain. He was deemed eligible for euthanasia by a GP, but was too gravely ill to travel the 390 kilometres to Melbourne to see a neurologist. "He tried going to Wangaratta and couldn't find a specialist," Dr Syme said. "It all become too much and he simply gave up in frustration. He ended up in a nursing home. It was a tragic outcome because it was exactly what he didn't want." The number of people who have died using the new laws is not yet known, but it is estimated more than a dozen people have taken their own lives since they came into effect.

Brunswick GP John Stanton, who has helped two patients obtain a lethal substance, said in his experience the laws were working effectively in Melbourne. He conceded the laws were still in their infancy and teething issues were to be expected, but argued an amendment should be made allowing the secondary doctor to be an experienced GP. "The role of the second doctor is simply to confirm the person actually meets the criteria," he said. "This could equally be done by an experienced GP, particularly someone who has experience in the person's condition." To date, 371 doctors have registered or completed the training including GPs, cancer specialists and palliative care clinicians, up from 120 in June. A government spokeswoman insisted the scheme was working well and all 68 safeguards, including the requirement of a specialist doctor, were paramount.
N igel Farage has described Britain's departure from the EU as "the greatest moment in the modern history of our great nation".

The Brexit Party leaders remarks came as addressed his fellow Brexiteers gathered to mark the historic moment in Parliament Square on Friday night.

He addressed the crowd from a stage at his Leaves Means Leave party before the 20 second countdown to 11pm, when the UK officially left the bloc.

"This is something that I fought for - for 27 years and something that many thousands of you gave your time and money for, Mr Farage said.

Britain leaves the European Union

"We faced an established that didn't even want to listen to us. An establishment that never wanted that referendum to take place. An establishment that tried for three and a half years to frustrate the will of the greatest democratic mandate ever seen."

He added: "The people have beaten the establishment. The real winner tonight is democracy.

"Let us celebrate tonight as we have never done before. This is the greatest moment in the modern history of our great nation."

Boris Johnson hailed as the moment as the beginning of a new era.

Boris Johnson's Address to the Nation One Hour Before Brexit

For many people this is an astonishing moment of hope, a moment they thought would never come, the Prime Minister said before the countdown.

After years of bitter wrangling since the 2016 referendum, Mr Johnson said his job was now to "bring this country together".

There will only be minimal changes as the deal negotiated by the UK and EU keeps Britain aligned with EU rules for the rest of the year.

Pro-Brexit supporters in Parliament Square, London, just before the UK leaves the EU / PA

But attention has already turned to the next set of talks aimed at securing the future relationship which will apply from January 1, 2021.

And Mr Johnson has been clear he also wants to strike deals with countries around the world - notably Donald Trump's USA.

Brussels is pessimistic about the 11-month timetable for reaching a deal and made clear that Britain will have to accept worse terms and conditions for trade than if it were still a member of the EU.
Source: Xinhua| 2020-02-01 20:46:01|Editor: huaxia

Video Player Close

The Big Ben Clock shows 11 p.m. (2300 GMT), in London, Britain on Jan. 31, 2020. Britain officially leaves the European Union (EU) at 11 p.m. (2300 GMT) Friday, putting an end to its 47-year-long membership of the world's largest trading bloc. (Photo by Tim Ireland/Xinhua)

Leaders of the EU as well as remaining member states have pledged to turn Brexit into an opportunity to forge a more competitive, integrated and influential bloc.

BRUSSELS, Feb. 1 (Xinhua) -- Tears, cheers and an array of mixed feelings hung over Europe on Friday as Britain officially left the European Union (EU), ending its 47-year membership with the world's biggest trading bloc.

The historic moment came under the curtain of a chilly night, and the Union Jack was hauled down from outside the European Parliament.

For many in the EU, it was an inevitably tough and emotional moment when Brexit materialized after three and a half years of turmoil since the summer of 2016.

However, when the sun rises again on Feb. 1, the EU will open a new chapter of its history, with its friendship and partnership with Britain remaining intimate and few substantial changes on both sides of the English Channel anticipated during an 11-month transition period.

Moreover, leaders of the EU as well as remaining member states have pledged to turn Brexit into an opportunity to forge a more competitive, integrated and influential bloc, long considered a carrier of peace, well-being, common values and identity in a multilateral world.

FAREWELL MOMENT

Bidding farewell to Britain, European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen repeatedly said the EU wants to have the best possible relationship with Britain, "but it will never be as good as membership."

David Sassoli, president of the European Parliament, said: "We stand at a new departure for Europe. We should not forget how much stronger we are when we act together."

"It's never a happy moment when someone leaves, but we are opening a new chapter," European Council President Charles Michel said, vowing that "we will devote all our energy to building a stronger, more ambitious EU."

In a podcast released on Friday evening, German Chancellor Angela Merkel said Brexit is "a deep cut for all of us, the 27 member states of the European Union and also for Germany."

She called on the remaining member states to do everything they can to successfully develop Europe, adding "an attractive, strong Europe is also a good partner for Britain."

"It is not a moment of joy," Austrian Foreign Minister Alexander Schallenberg said, advocating Britain's "closest possible connection" to the EU after Brexit.

A pro-EU supporter cries during a rally in central London, Britain, on Jan. 31, 2020. Britain leaves the European Union (EU) on Jan. 31, 2020. (Photo by Stephen Chung/Xinhua)

ECONOMIC TIES

For dozens of years, the English Channel has seen free flows of goods as well as people between Britain and the European continent.

Such reality may not be taken for granted anymore after Brexit, if no agreement can be reached by the end of the transition period.

Cutting out close economic cooperation between Britain and the EU puts supply chains at risk involving autoparts, aerospace, food and several other sectors, according to a report by U.S. news outlet Politico.

Britain leaving the EU by January means one less uncertainty, which is good news for investors, noted Christine Lagarde, president of the European Central Bank.

She underlined that the biggest challenge was to come, namely the issue of reaching a trade deal between London and Brussels during the transition period.

Uncertainty concerning details of the transition period and the final agreement on future relations between the EU and Britain is putting a strain on the European economies as well as individual industries, according to Germany's Deutsche Bank.

Since future relations between the EU and Britain are still uncertain and a disorderly Brexit is still on the table, downside risks related to Brexit continue to weigh on the European economy.

"We will now negotiate very intensively with the British about future relationships, particularly in the area of trade and the economy," Merkel said.

Photo taken on Oct. 19, 2019 shows the European Union flag and the Union Jack flag outside the Houses of Parliament in London, Britain. (Xinhua/Han Yan)

SOLIDARITY

Hand in hand, members of the European Parliament sang Auld Lang Syne in an emotional farewell to Britain after giving the green light to the Brexit deal on Wednesday.

The EU had expanded several times from 6 to 28 member states throughout its history since 1957. In the historic and the largest expansion in 2004, Central and Eastern European countries such as Czech Republic and Poland joined the bloc, marking the re-unification of Europe after decades of division.

However, Britain opened a Pandora's box on June 23, 2016, as the outcome of a referendum upheld the decision to leave the EU, which marked the shrinkage of the EU membership for the first time in history.

Learning lessons from Brexit, European leaders vowed to strengthen solidarity within the EU and with Britain based on shared values.

"Fifty years of integration cannot disappear easily," Sassoli said, noting that the EU will work hard to build new relationships and protect the interest of its citizens.

Members of the European Parliament react after the vote on the Withdrawal Agreement in Brussels, Belgium, on Jan. 29, 2020. (Xinhua/Zheng Huansong)

COMPETITIVENESS

European leaders say deepening integration to enhance the EU's competitiveness and preserve its influence in the world should be a top priority.

French President Emmanuel Macron, in a televised address on Friday, called Britain's departure from the EU a "historic warning signal" that must be heard across Europe.

He called for deep reform within the bloc to better defend its interests and "make it more sovereign, more democratic."

Peter Griep, a director general at the Deutsche Bundesbank, said that with regard to Brexit, "strengthening our own market infrastructures -- the lifelines of the EU capital market -- will help Europe become a powerhouse in the global financial system."

Von der Leyen emphasized that Europe's challenges as well as opportunities related to climate change, the digital revolution, migration and foreign relations have not changed because of Brexit. 
Close

Online therapy services have garnered a great deal of press and praise alike in recent years, with many turning to various web-based platforms as an alternative to traditional in-office therapy sessions.

Largely revered for its convenience and affordability, online therapy and counseling has empowered many to get the help they need regardless of personal conflicts such as finances, transportation, and timing.

As with any relatively new and popular advancement in technology, online therapy isn't without its skeptics. Is it as effective as seeing a therapist face-to-face? Are online therapists fully licensed and trustworthy?

Will your information be kept safe? These are all valid questions posed by many who are considering online therapy for the first time, but aren't quite ready to make that commitment.

Here we'll discuss some of the most common misconceptions about online therapy, from cost to inclusiveness - and we'll debunk the biggest myths surrounding online counseling.

1. Online Therapy Is Just As Expensive As In-Office Therapy

While the cost of visiting an in-office therapist can run you anywhere from $75 to $200+ per hour depending on your insurance plan, online therapy offers a range of scaled payment options and convenient monthly membership fees.

In some cases, sliding pay scales can also be instituted depending on one's financial situation. Moreover, a number of sites offering peer support chats, downloadable materials, guided exercises, and one-on-one sessions with trained listeners are absolutely free.

2. Your Conversations Are Not Confidential

One would be well within their right to be wary of online transactions and the exchange of personal information in this age of frequent data leaks and cyber invasions. This naturally extends to entrusting an online therapist with extremely personal information.

That said, the good news is that all online therapists follow a strict code of doctor-patient confidentiality. Additionally, online therapists are bound by the same laws and regulations as traditional in-office therapists.

All information obtained by your therapist site is safe and secure and is further protected from third party acquisition or interference.

3. Online Therapists Are Not Licensed & Certified

All verifiable online therapy services are required to list their therapists along with their credentials, and most will include extensive bios as well as reviews for prospective users to evaluate.

Any online therapist conducting official therapy sessions is required to be fully licensed, trained, and accredited. In cases where sites are either volunteer run or implement trained listeners, full disclaimers acknowledging that these are not licensed therapists will be made clear.

4. Therapy Must Be Conducted Face-To-Face

Many people are unable to visit an onsite therapist for a number of reasons. While limited funds, limited insurance, unreliable transportation, and scheduling challenges are among the most widely reported causes, anxiety and depression can also play a huge role in one's ability to seek and receive adequate mental health care in-person.

For those who are uncomfortable venturing out to a brick-and-mortar establishment, online therapy has opened numerous doors and possibilities.

While chat messenger, email, and phone are all viable options for speaking with one's online therapist, a video conference call is the most preferred method. This allows patients and therapists to speak in real time much as they would in an office setting - except you can do this from the comfort of your home.

5. Insurance Won't Cover The Cost Of Online Therapy

Even when it comes to in-office therapy, insurance companies are notoriously cagey, leaving many to foot the majority of the bill regardless of whether their treatment is in-person or otherwise.

While insurance companies have been slow to acknowledge online therapy as a valid and necessary route to mental health care, this is rapidly changing. Today most reputable online therapy services are supported by insurance providers, and will work directly with your provider to secure assistance.

6. Therapy Over The Internet Is Just A Fad

While the growing prevalence of online therapy has been a gradual incline, ultimately the numbers don't lie. In 2019 alone more Americans than ever sought alternative mental health services, and the steady rise in various therapy platforms has proven that the demand is only increasing.

Assistant director of psychological services at Boston-based telehealth company American Well Lindsay Henderson, PsyD is cited by the American Psychological Association as touting online therapy platforms for the way they "normalize mental health care, especially among generations now who are so accustomed to interacting with people using technology. It just eliminates so many barriers."

With more and more people turning to technological alternatives for everything from education, communication, shopping, and now mental health care, one would be hard pressed to accuse the online therapy model of being a passing trend.

7. The Online Model Makes It Easier To Neglect Your Sessions

Online therapy is no different from in-office therapy in that pre-scheduled appointments are expected to be honored at the agreed-upon time, with little variance in exceptions. Some online services even charge a fee or full rate for no-shows or cancellations without prior notice.

It's worth noting that ultimately those who are dedicated to their mode of therapy and targeted goals will make an effort, regardless of whether that involves an onsite therapist or online platform.

8. Online Therapy Is Only For Certain People

In the past decade the online therapy model has branched out to include all individuals, regardless of gender, race, faith, sexuality, or lifestyle. Today there are a multitude of online therapy sites dedicated to helping teens, couples, LGBTQ communities and many others.

Depression, anxiety, addiction, and trauma can occur in anyone, and online therapy has allowed those who were formerly shunned by the mental health system to get the help they need and deserve.

See Now: What Republicans Don't Want You To Know About Obamacare
A Nebraska Supreme Court decision Friday in a lawsuit over how much, if any, an insurance company should have to pay in the Beatrice 6 case revived the possibility Gage County taxpayers could get help paying the $28.1 million judgment.

But it could be months, if not years, before the county's case against Employers Mutual Casualty Co. is a done deal.

"Were happy that the people in Gage County got some good news today. It means that the case is back on in the district court," said Joel Bacon, one of the attorneys representing Gage County.

Had the Supreme Court upheld a Lincoln judge's 2018 ruling  that the claims were barred by an exclusion in the policy for professional services  the case would've been over.

Bacon said it means the county will still have a shot at some amount of money to pay the judgments, which stemmed from a lawsuit filed by six people wrongly convicted in the 1985 rape and murder of Helen Wilson in her Beatrice apartment.

Joseph White, Ada JoAnn Taylor, Thomas Winslow, James Dean, Debra Shelden and Kathleen Gonzalez served a combined 75 years in prison before DNA evidence showed another man had committed the crime.

After they were exonerated in 2008, they sued Gage County. And, in 2016, a federal jury awarded them each $1,000 a day, concluding that the deputy who led the cold-case investigation, and another who also worked as a psychologist, had manufactured evidence or engaged in a reckless investigation that violated their rights.

After the judgment, Gage County filed a lawsuit against Employers Mutual Casualty, alleging the company should have to pay somewhere between $2 million and $4 million in coverage, plus attorney fees.

In Friday's decision, Supreme Court Justice Jeffrey Funke wrote: "The extent of EMC's liability under the (commercial general liability) policy remains for the district court to determine."

He said there also may be coverage available under the umbrella policy Gage County had with the insurance company.

The sole issue for the Supreme Court was whether Lancaster County District Judge Jodi L. Nelson was right to find that the general liability policy excluded "any and all professional services," including the work of law enforcement officers.

Attorneys for Gage County argued that law enforcement was an occupation, not professional services, but Nelson ruled with the insurer, saying Nebraska case law defined "professional acts or services" as those requiring "special learning or attainments of some kind."

In the opinion, Funke said this case didn't require the court to look to case law to answer whether law enforcement is considered a profession, "because the plain language of the EMC policies answers that question for the parties to this dispute."

Under both the commercial general liability and umbrella policies, he said, law enforcement isn't included on a list of professions but appears as one of five specified categories of occupations under the liability exclusions.

"Were we to apply definitions from our case law rather than the definitions the parties have used, we would be rewriting insurance policies," Funke said.

The court expressed no opinion on any other coverage-related issues in the case, which will be taken up by the trial court. A lawsuit against the county's other insurance carrier, the Nebraska Intergovernmental Risk Management Association, remains pending before Nelson.

Friday's opinion was a welcome development to the Gage County Board of Supervisors, which has wrestled with how the county would pay the judgment, according to Chairman Erich Tiemann.

Tiemann said if the county sees an insurance payout in the future, the money could only be used to pay down the debt quicker  not to ease either the additional property tax that supervisors levied in 2018, or the half-cent county sales tax that went into effect Jan. 1.

For the second year, property owners in the county of roughly 22,500 people are paying an additional 11.76 cents per $100 of valuation to satisfy the Beatrice 6 judgment, or about $120 more in taxes per $100,000 of property value.

Taken together with the sales tax revenue, the county estimates the judgment will be paid in full by the end of 2026.

Tiemann said the board will meet with attorneys Feb. 12 to discuss the next steps in the insurance case.

Reach the writer at 402-473-7237 or lpilger@journalstar.com. On Twitter @LJSpilger

Love 1 Funny 1 Wow 0 Sad 0 Angry 13
Delhi Chief Minister and AAP national convenor Arvind Kejriwal will hold roadshows at Najafgarh and Bijwasan on Saturday (February 1) to campaign for the Delhi Assembly election 2020.

Defence Minister Rajnath Singh and BJP national president JP Nadda will address two public rallies in Delhi on Saturday while Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath will also campaign in the national capital and hold four rallies.

Assembly elections will be held in Delhi on February 8 to decide who will rule the national capital for the next five years with the ruling AAP making a determined bid to return to power and the BJP seeking to have a chief minister in the city after 20 years.

Live TV

The Congress, which has ruled Delhi for 15 successive years, is also making efforts to regain its support base.

Counting of votes will take place on February 11. In the 2015 Assembly polls, AAP secured an outright majority, winning 67 seats while the BJP managed just three. The Congress drew a blank.
The UK's divorce from the European Union has come into force over three years after the landmark Brexit vote, making it the first country to exit the economic bloc after 47 years of membership, triggering celebrations across the country to mark the historic moment.

British Prime Minister Boris Johnson hailed the historic moment as the dawn of a new era for the UK in his address to the nation just before Brexit.

Brexit came into force at 2300 GMT on Friday.

"This is the moment when the dawn breaks and the curtain goes up on a new act in our great national drama," said Johnson, in his video message which promised hope and opportunity to every part of the United Kingdom.

"It is not just about some legal extrication. It is potentially a moment of real national renewal and change. This is the dawn of a new era in which we no longer accept that your life chances your family's life chances should depend on which part of the country you grow up in," he said.

A party at Parliament Square and a light display count down at Downing Street marked the historic moment, while elsewhere in the country there were some anti-Brexit rallies.

"Let us celebrate tonight as we have never done before. This is the greatest moment in the modern history of our great nation," said Nigel Farage, the leader of the Brexit party and someone who has campaigned incessantly for the UK to leave the EU.

Brexit parties were also held in pubs and social clubs across the UK as the country counted down to the official departure, with lower key anti-Brexit events in some parts of the country which had voted to remain in the referendum.

Parts of Scotland, which had voted to remain in the EU in the June 2016 referendum, held candlelight vigils to express its opposition to being dragged out of the bloc along with the rest of the UK. It has revived calls for another independence referendum to be able to vote on its union with Britain.

Police in London arrested four men and also charged one man with criminal damage and being drunk and disorderly, while one arrest was made in Glasgow.

While there will be little change instantly as the UK and the EU enter into a pre-agreed period of transition from Saturday until the end of December, the process of complete extrication from the now 27-member economic bloc will begin right away.

Johnson was keen to highlight his vision of a friendly negotiation process for both sides to thrash out a new trading relationship as the beginning of a "new era of friendly cooperation" between the EU and an energetic Britain.

Celebrating the UK's "recaptured sovereignty" to deliver the changes the June 2016 referendum vote signified, he noted: "Whether that is by controlling immigration or creating freeports or liberating our fishing industry or doing free trade deals is the right and healthy and democratic thing to do."



On a critical note on the EU's evolution over the period of the UK's membership, he added: "Because for all its strengths and for all its admirable qualities, the EU has evolved over 50 years in a direction that no longer suits this country."



"And that is a judgment that you, the people, have now confirmed at the polls," he said.

The Conservative Party leader took charge at Downing Street last year with a "no ifs, no buts" pledge to leave the EU.

His General Election campaign pegged around the "Get Brexit Done" message last December won him a thumping majority, after which Britain's exit from the bloc became a certainty as his Brexit bill easily crossed the parliamentary hurdle.

Acknowledging the long-drawn divorce process and the deep Remain versus Brexit divide within the UK, Johnson said: "Tonight we are leaving the European Union. For many people this is an astonishing moment of hope, a moment they thought would never come and there are many of course who feel a sense of anxiety and loss.

I understand all those feelings, and our job as the government my job is to bring this country together now and take us forward."



As part of that forward-looking agenda, the government kicked off its "GREAT Ready to Trade" campaign across 13 countries, including India, from Saturday.

Johnson has repeatedly committed himself to a "new and improved" trading relationship with India and now as a non-member of the EU, the UK is free to push ahead with those talks unrestricted by the economic bloc's rules.

A new commemorative 50-pence coin reading "peace prosperity and friendship to all nations" has gone into circulation and the Union Jack flag has been removed from all EU institutions.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
No patients carrying the new coronavirus have been reported in Ukraine.

Secretary of the National Security and Defense Council (NSDC) Oleksiy Danilov says the NSDC monitoring commission has been working around the clock since January 20 to develop a test system to prevent the spread of the deadly coronavirus.

Read alsoFirst two persons infected with coronavirus identified in Russia  media

"In fact, our scientists are now developing test systems. On January 20, Chinese [scientists] shared [the genetic makeup of] the RNA virus. We are now creating the systems and our own [test] system will be ready soon," he said during a "Freedom of Speech by Savik Shuster" panel show on Ukraine TV channel on January 31.

According to the official, the coronavirus situation is under control, as Ukrainian experts regularly monitor the relevanhet information abroad.

As UNIAN reported earlier, the number of confirmed coronavirus cases grew by 2,102 on Friday, bringing the total to 11,791. The death toll in China is now 259 people.

An outbreak of pneumonia of unknown origin in China's Wuhan was announced in late December 2019. It was established that the agent of a new type of coronavirus is 2019-nCoV. The virus is transmitted from person to person. The incubation period lasts from two to 12 days.

According to the Ministry of Health, no patients carrying the new coronavirus have been reported in Ukraine.
(Natural News) New research published in the journal Environmental Entomology has found that bees absolutely love to feed on cannabis sativa, which in turn is helping to boost their dwindling populations caused by prolific exposure to deadly crop chemicals like neonicotinoids and Roundup (glyphosate).

Entitled, The Bee Community of Cannabis sativa and Corresponding Effects of Landscape Composition, this paper out of Cornell University explains how cannabis produces high amounts of pollen, which acts as a magnet for at least 16 different varieties of bees just in the northeastern United States alone.

As it turns out, the taller the cannabis plant, the more attractive it is to bees, the paper found. In fact, the tallest cannabis plants evaluated as part of the research attracted an incredible 17 times more bees than the shortest cannabis plants  because bigger cannabis plants contain more pollen and bees instinctively know it!

Oddly enough, even though cannabis doesnt produce the same sweet, sugary nectar as other floral plants that bees are typically attracted to, they love it just the same. The male cannabis plants that bees tend to prefer also dont produce the brightly-colored flora that normally catches bees attention, which makes this phenomenon even more fascinating.

It would seem as though bees simply know that cannabis is an excellent source of food, just like the Bible says it is. If only our country could finally achieve broad legalization and normalization of cannabis, then perhaps Colony Collapse Disorder, or CCD, would reverse itself entirely  this being one of the many positive outcomes of ending cannabis prohibition once and for all.

The rapid expansion of hemp production in the United States  may have significant implications for agroecosystem-wide pollination dynamics, the study explains.

As a late-season crop flowering during a period of seasonal floral dearth, hemp may have a particularly strong potential to enhance pollinator populations and subsequent pollination services for crops in the following year by filling gaps in late-season resource scarcity.

Will bees that recently fed on cannabis be arrested and thrown in prison if they accidentally fly into South Carolina or Idaho?

These findings confirm those of another study out of Colorado State University which found that the more hemp we plant in the United States, the more bees well have to pollinate our food!

But there are still a few ugly enclaves in this country where anything related to cannabis, including hemp-nourished bees, is still considered to be evil. One of these is South Carolina, where law enforcement is doubling down on arresting and jailing people not just for cannabis that contains THC (tetrahydrocannabinol), but also for CBD-rich (cannabidiol) hemp, which is federally legal but still apparently illegal in South Carolina.

Idaho is another staunch prohibition state that last year arrested and charged three truck drivers for the crime transporting legal industrial hemp from one legal state to another through Idaho.

One of just three states that still doesnt regard hemp, or cannabis with trace amounts of THC, as legal in any form  the other two are South Dakota and Mississippi  Idaho would presumably arrest and charge bees for feeding on hemp in nearby Washington or Oregon should they accidentally cross the border into Idaho. The same goes for South Carolina, which would probably accuse these bees of exposing the children to a poison plant, as one local sheriff in South Carolina referred to cannabis in a recent rant.

Heres a word to the wise, all you bees (and humans!) out there: Best to skip these prohibition states and seek out freer, greener pastures elsewhere if you value your life and liberty.

Sources for this article include:

TheMindUnleashed.com

Academic.OUP.com

BibleGateway.com

TheMindUnleashed.com

GreenvilleOnline.com

WCNC.com

KTVB.com

NCSL.org

FoxCarolina.com
By West Kentucky Star Staff Feb. 01, 2020 | 12:37 PM | GILBERTSVILLE

The 11th Annual Polar Plunge into Kentucky Lake and 5k run, presented by Peel & Holland, will be held Saturday, March 7th.All funds raised by the event go to support the more than 10,200 children and adults with intellectual disabilities who participate in Special Olympics programs in Kentucky.The Plunge works like a walk-a-thon, with Polar Bears each raising a bear minimum of $75, ($50 for those between 6-18 years old), to earn the right to plunge. Every Polar Bear receives an official Polar Plunge T-shirt and Polar Bear Club Certificate, but participants who raise more money can earn better rewards.This year's event will again feature the Polar 5k ($40 entry fee), which will run through Kentucky Dam Village State Park, also on March 7th.In addition, the Polar Triple Crown Challenge, which includes three challenges for the bravest participants: the Polar 5k, the traditional Jump-In from a dock, and a Run-In from a beach area, will be available.Participants can register and raise money on-line at the link below.Those who want to support the Polar Plunge, but not jump or run can register as a Virtual Plunger and also raise funds. They will receive the Polar Plunge T-shirt and are eligible for all other fundraising prizes.Event Organizer Chuck Williams, speaking on the Greg Dunker Show, said the Polar Plunge helps to provide many opportunities to the very deserving Special Olympics athletes. He added, "a moment of chill provides a years worth of thrills for our athletes."Events begin on Friday, March 6th, with Polar Plunge 5k packet pick up and Polar Plunge early check-in from 4:00-6:00 pm at the Kentucky Dam Village Convention Center. Participants can turn in all remaining money, get registered to participate on Saturday, (March 7th), pick up their T-shirt and select other fundraising prizes, while avoiding lines on Saturday.Polar Plunge/5k Race Day check-in will open at 8:00 am. Opening ceremonies will begin at 10:00 am. The 5k will start at 10:45 and will include the lighting of the Special Olympics Cauldron. The Plunge will begin at 11:15 and should conclude at approximately 1:00 pm.For more information about the Polar Plunge activities, click the link below.

On the Net:
The search for the 2020 Wicklow Rose gets underway this weekend with an information event at the Arklow Bay Hotel on Sunday, February 2 from 4pm.

Lyn Moloney, Wicklow Rose co-ordinator, said: 'The Rose of Tralee International Festival is the most incredible experience and I would encourage as many young women as possible to take part and become their local Rose. I guarantee them they will make incredible friends and have an amazing experience.

'Many people think that the Rose of Tralee festival is just one week long and they don't realise that the Roses and Rose Escorts have so many incredible experiences throughout the whole year. All I can say to any young woman is to go for it and apply.'

Current Wicklow Rose Lorna Mallick said her decision to apply was 'without a doubt one of the best decisions I have ever made and I look back with many fond memories and many new friends from around the globe.'

'The Rose of Tralee is one of the oldest and largest festivals in Ireland and celebrates young women of Irish descent and heritage from all around the world. On entering the Rose of Tralee, I heard so much about the Rose 'family', how I would meet some of my best friends for life and the well-known 'once a rose, always a rose' and I genuinely found it all so hard to believe. I can now most certainly confirm that it was all true. Having visited most of the counties in Ireland, along with Frankfurt, New York, Texas, Ohio, Toronto and Yorkshire over the past two years, I have made some incredible memories with amazing friends and can almost be guaranteed a couch in any county and many a city around the world.

Ms Mallick added that the opportunity to volunteer with local and international charities was an important part of her time as the Wicklow Rose.

'One of the highlights of my year as the 2018 Wicklow Rose was definitely travelling to Adi Roche's children's orphanage and mental asylum in Vesnova, Belarus. It was an eye-opening, challenging but most of all rewarding experience.'

Any women aged between 18 and 29 years old interested in applying are invited to the event.

For more information, contact the Wicklow Rose Co Ordinator Lyn Moloney on 083 4631611 or Steve Cronly on 086 2505791.
The law cannot anticipate the nuances of every situation that might arise at a given school, and sometimes a misunderstanding or misrepresented incident spurs a call to bring back prayer to our schools. In most cases, these misunderstandings simply create an opportunity to reaffirm commonsense guidance and constitutional principles that support voluntary, student-led religious exercise.

But using any incident to institute state-sanctioned prayer, written and delivered by school officials, should be deeply concerning for all Christians. For a Baptist, as I am, voluntary prayer is an important part of my religious practice, and it has been since I was a student in Texas public schools. Why should government schools have a say in how and whether our children pray?

Importantly, ensuring faith freedom for all isnt only an issue of concern for Christians. If Christian nationalists were able to realize their goal and prioritize Christianity over other traditions in public schools, it is religious minorities who will suffer the most. In our religiously diverse society, why should our schools favor Baptists over Buddhists, Anglicans over atheists, or Methodists over Muslims?

Instead of demanding that a distorted vision of state-sanctioned Christianity be upheld by public schools, President Donald Trump should celebrate what public schools already are: a place where religious liberty ensures that Americans can work and learn together across lines of religious difference.

To guarantee religious freedom for students of all faiths and nonreligious students, we must embrace our nations constitutional vision that has served us well and push back against the dangerous influence of Christian nationalism.

Amanda Tyler is executive director of BJC, the Baptist Joint Committee for Religious Liberty, an 84-year-old organization committed to preserving faith freedom for all people.
Garcia, whose family emigrated from Mexico when he was a child, made it clear in a statement that he invited Perez to honor his perseverance, but also to make a point about what he calls "a failure of our immigration system: deporting veterans who served their country. The Trump Administration doesnt even know how many veterans have been deported. While the vets appeal their cases outside the United States, they dont have access to their military benefits. Miguels presence in Washington will highlight the cruelty of our immigration system.
President Ram Nath Kovind on Saturday inaugurated the 34th Surajkund International Crafts Mela here.

Speaking on the occasion, the President said that events such as Surajkund Mela provides ordinary craftsmen and artisans real recognition and value for their skills.

"It also provides them an excellent opportunity to display and sell their products directly to customers. The Surajkund Mela has saved India's various remarkable craft traditions from extinction. For many craftsmen, artisans and weavers, this fair is a major source of their annual income," he said.

The President reiterated the mantra of 'Buy local for a better tomorrow' and urged people to transform this into a movement.

"We should be proud of the items made by craftsmen of our country. By using locally manufactured products, we would be able to help the small entrepreneurs in our area to a great extent," he said.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi expressed happiness over Uzbekistan being the partner country in the Surajkund Mela.

"Happy to have Uzbekistan as Partner Country in the Surajkund Mela, inaugurated by Rashtrapati Ji. I sincerely thank Uzbekistan President Mirziyoyev for his leadership on such initiatives that make India-Uzbekistan relations even stronger," he tweeted.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
NOVA LIMA, Brazil, Jan. 31, 2020 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Afya Limited, or Afya (AFYA), further to the press release issued by it on November 4, 2019, today announced the closing of its acquisition, through its wholly-owned subsidiary Afya Participacoes S.A., of 100% of the total share capital of UniRedentor - Sociedade Universitaria Redentor, or Uniredentor.



UniRedentor is a postsecondary education institution with governmental authorization to offer oncampus, undergraduate courses in medicine in the State of Rio de Janeiro. UniRedentor also offers other healthrelated undergraduate degrees and graduate programs in medicine and health, as well as other courses.

The aggregate purchase price was R$225 million, of which: (i) R$125 million was paid in cash as of the date hereof (the transaction closing date), and (ii) R$100 million is payable in five equal installments through May 2024, adjusted by the CDI rate.

In 2019, Uniredentor registered gross revenue of R$131.0 million, an increase of 20% over 2018 and more than 70% of its gross revenue came from health related programs.

The acquisition contributed 112 medical school seats to Afya, with a potential 44 additional medical school seats subject to approval by the Brazilian Ministry of Education and will strengthen Afyas presence in medical graduation courses. The acquisition will increase Afyas total medical school seats to 1,684.

About Afya

Afya is a leading medical education group in Brazil based on number of medical school seats, delivering an end-to-end physician-centric ecosystem that serves and empowers students to be lifelong medical learners from the moment they join us as medical students through their medical residency preparation, graduation program, and continuing medical education activities.

Contact: Investor Relations: ir@afya.com.br
Thank you for reading!

Please log in, or sign up for a new account and purchase a subscription to continue reading.
Michelle Bridges, how did it go so wrong?

Fitness guru, media mogul, fully-fledged celebrity and red carpet regular, Bridges turns 50 this year, a milestone she should be celebrating as one of the most successful business entrepreneurs in the country.

Michelle Bridges and former partner Steve "Commando" Willis.

And yet, while there are still a few months before her October birthday, at this point 2020 is not shaping up to be Bridges' best year.

Last Monday she confirmed her relationship with fellow fitness guru Steve "Commando" Willis, the father of their young son Axel, was in tatters.
New Delhi, Feb 1 : In what is being billed as a make or break Budget to revive the economy, the Modi government is likely to introduce heavy duty measures for rationalisation of key equity taxes, including scrapping capital gains on sale of property, shifting tax applicability of dividend distribution tax (DDT) to the receiver and extending the timeline of long-term capital capital gains (LTCG) tax from the current 12 months to 24 months.

The breakthrough measure, if it materialises, will be doing away with capital gains on sale of property. The move has the potential to revive the real estate sector, which is in the doldrums and facing immense stress.

The government is considering a proposal to do away with capital gains on selling property. Currently, one has to pay 30 per cent capital gains on the sale of a property, if the amount is not re-invested in property within 3 years.

If property is sold within 24 months, one has to pay a short-term capital gains tax (STCG) on the gains as per an individual's income-tax slab.

After 24 months, one has to pay an LTCG tax, which is charged at 20 per cent with indexation benefits. Section 54 gives an exemption if there is sale of a property and then another one is bought.

This exemption is available when the capital gains from property sale are reinvested into buying or constructing maximum two houses.

However, the capital gains on the sale of house property must not exceed Rs 2 crore in order to claim exemption for re-investing in two properties. This benefit can be claimed only once in the lifetime.

The exemption will be reversed if this new property is sold within three years of purchase and capital gains from sale of the new property will be taxed as short-term capital gains. The new properties must be purchased either one year before the sale or two years after the sale of the property. Alternatively, the new residential properties must be constructed within three years of sale of the property.

In addition, the government is likely to change the applicability of dividend distribution tax (DDT) by shifting the tax liability from dividend issuer or the company to the receiver.

Currently, dividend distribution tax is levied at an effective rate of 20.56 per cent on the company declaring dividends. This is over and above the corporate tax. Apart from this, resident non-corporate taxpayers need to pay 10 per cent tax on dividends in excess of Rs 10 lakh a year. The DDT was introduced for more efficient collection of dividend tax from the companies rather than shareholders.

In a move that will fire up the stock markets, the government is likely to extend the timeline of long term capital gains on shares from the current 12 months to 24 months.

Currently, LTCG of 20 per cent is paid by domestic investors if they hold equity for 12 months, and 10 per cent is charged to non-residents if they hold equity for the same period.
She's worked hard for her killer curves.

And fitness influencer Tammy Hembrow covered up her famous curves while braving New York's chilly climes on Saturday.

Sharing a candid photo to Instagram while strolling along an inner-city street, the 25-year-old bundled up in casual beige sweats and a lightwash denim jacket.

Baby, it's cold outside! Tammy Hembrow, 25, (pictured) covered up her famous curves in casual sweats and a denim jacket, as she strolled the streets of New York on Saturday

Tammy slung a beige Prada handbag over one shoulder and gazed directly at the camera.

Her blonde extensions fell in soft waves, and her makeup included defined brows, false lashes, and a matte pink colour on her plump pout.

Revelling in her travels despite the cooler temps, Tammy wrote in the caption: 'I'm more of a tropical warm weather kinda girl, but New York I still love you.'

Just a day prior, the mother-of-two celebrated getting a billboard with women's nutrition and sportswear brand, Women's Best, in Times Square.

Incredible feat: Just a day prior, the mother-of-two celebrated getting a billboard with women's nutrition and sportswear brand, Women's Best, in Times Square

In her element: In her billboard image, Tammy can be seen flaunting her lean figure in a black crop top and matching leggings from the brand

Taking to Instagram, she shared a series of photos of herself proudly beaming up at her image on the screen.

In her billboard image, Tammy can be seen flaunting her lean figure in a black crop top and matching leggings from the brand.

Tammy's moment of career pride is a far cry from her very humble beginnings.

Humble jobs: Tammy's moment of career pride is a far cry from her very humble beginnings. She recently revealed in her podcast, Hanging With The Hembrows , that she previously held jobs in telemarketing and at a burger chain

She recently revealed in her podcast, Hanging With The Hembrows, that she previously held jobs in telemarketing and at a burger chain.

The blonde said she used to get screamed at while dealing with disgruntled customers during her stint in telemarketing.

'I just got screamed at all the time. I literally used to cry after work,' Tammy said with a laugh.

Speaking of her fast food job, she said: 'Grill'd was pretty bad as well, making burgers, but I got free burgers out of that and they were delicious.'
The government on Saturday proposed setting up of medical colleges in existing district hospitals under the Public Private Partnership (PPP) mode to address the shortage of qualified doctors.

Presenting the budget for 2020-21, Union Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman said, "There is a shortage of qualified medical doctors, both general practitioners as well as specialists.

"In order to meet this requirement, it is proposed to attach a medical college to an existing district hospital in PPP mode. Those states that fully allow the facilities of the hospital to the medical college and wish to provide land at a concession, would be able to receive Viability Gap Funding. Details of the scheme would be worked out," she said.

The Finance Minister said the government will encourage large hospitals with sufficient capacity to offer resident doctors diploma and fellow of National Board (DNB/FNB) courses under the National Board of Examination.

"There exists a huge demand for teachers, nurses, para-medical staff and care-givers abroad. However, their skill sets, many a time, do not match the employer's standards and therefore need to be improved. I propose that special bridge courses be designed by the Ministries of Health and Skill Development together with professional bodies to bring in equivalence.

"Language requirements of various countries need also to be included. All these should be achieved through special training packages," Sitharaman said.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
Finance minister Nirmala Sitaraman mentioned in her Budget speech that India will soon be announcing its National Education policy. Upbeat on the announcement, K Kasturirangan, space scientist and head of the nine-member committee that had formulated the National Education Policy, told Business Today, "It is a significant announcement. I am happy that the Prime minister will be taking a call on this."

He also welcomed the government's study-in-India initiative. "We certainly need to improve the international contact in education," he said. Currently, only about 45,000 students come to India from international institutions for their higher education. "It is a small number for a country of India's size and the country could increase this manifold."

FULL COVERAGE: Union Budget 2020

"We need to create the infrastructure, topics and subjects of interest for international students, especially in areas that interest many of them such as social sciences and the cultural side of it apart from the aspects of Indian tradition," he says.

He feels with new pedagogy, teachers and infrastructure, India could really become a destination for higher education for international students. "There are many students in Africa and Asia, who would like to come and pursue their studies in India." It could all be achieved, he felt, if we back this with the necessary capacity, capability and internationalisation in the context of amenities and other procedures that we need to bring in such as ease of visa issue and ease of stay here.

According to the education policy draft, currently, while Indian students are increasingly travelling abroad for their studies, approximately 45,000 (11,250 per year) international students study in Indian higher education institutions, making India the 26th ranked country among the top destinations for international student mobility. This accounts for less than 1 per cent of global international student mobility, given that globally, nearly 5 million students were reported to be studying outside their home countries in 2014.

The policy draft, which had received nearly 2 lakh responses, had also pointed out that this was crucial given "the understanding these students will derive and the relationships they will forge in our country will influence their work in their home countries. India has had an illustrious history in the internationalisation of higher education. The world's first university was established in Takshashila in 700 BCE. In its heyday in the 7th century CE, the University of Nalanda had students and scholars from China, Indonesia, Korea, Japan, Persia, Turkey, and other parts of the world".

Also Read: Budget 2020 Speech Live Updates: Budget will boost people's income, enhance purchasing power, says Nirmala Sitharaman

Also Read: Budget 2020: Nirmala Sitharaman pays homage to former FM Arun Jaitley
The Uttar Pradesh Congress on Saturday accused the Yogi Adityanath government of being "insensitive" towards farmers whose crops are destroyed by stray cattle.

Claiming that one such farmer in Agra committed suicide after losing his crop to bovines, the Congress said that the BJP government was not bothered about finding a solution to the grave problem.

"Yogi government is directly responsible for the problem of stray cattle. It is not serious towards finding a solution to this problem. This government which is trying to gain political mileage in the name of cow is not thinking on how to use the cattle for the benefit of farmers," UPCC president Ajay Kumar Lallu said in a statement.

Alleging that special cess imposed on Indian Made Foreign Liquor (IMFL) and beer to fund stray cow shelter homes, grazing grounds and other cattle protection-related activities have fallen prey to corruption, Lallu said pressure is being exerted on officials to use development fund for upkeep of cow shelters.

"This is the height of insensitivity and apathy," he said.

The UPCC president claimed that a farmer Rajesh Kushwaha in Bah area of Agra committed suicide after stray cattle destroyed his crop and said farmers are facing immense hardships because of the wrong policies of the BJP government.

Lallu who also met the family of Kushwaha on Friday asked the chief minister to fix responsibility for his suicide and demanded a compensation of Rs 25 lakh.

The UPCC president asked Adityanath to compensate farmers after assessing the losses caused to their crops by stray cattle as well as give allowance to the farmers who are guarding their fields from the animals.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
New Delhi: As questions abound about the prevailing situation in Kashmir, the Union Finance Minister Nirmala Sithraman quoted a Kashmiri poem to indicate that Kashmir Valley is turning normal after the abrogation of Article 370.

Humara watan khilte hue Shalimar bagh jaise, humara watan Dal lake mein khilte hue kamal jaisa, nau jawanon ke garam khoon jaisa, mera watan tera watan, humara watan, duniya ka sabse pyara watan, she said while beginning her Budget speech.

The government has allocated Rs 30,757 crore for Jammu and Kashmir, and Rs 5,958 crore for Ladakh, both of which are new Union Territories (UTs).Following the abrogation of Article 370 on August 5, 2019, the state of Jammu and Kashmir was converted into a Union Territory. Ladakh, whch was part of the state, was formed as a separate Union Territory.

The government has provisioned Rs 279 crore as the contribution to Union Territory Disaster Response Fund while Rs 30,478 has been allocated for meeting its resource gap, the Budget document said.

In Ladakh, the government has allocated Rs 83.38 crore for rural development, Rs 80.69 crore for public works, Rs 54.07 crore for power, Rs 52 crore for civil aviation and Rs 47.50 crore for tourism sector among others.

The Centre had abrogated special status of Jammu and Kashmir state under Article 370 on August 5 last year and split it into two Union Territories -Jammu and Kashmir and Ladakh.
India accounts for the largest number of visitors to Sri Lanka. According to official estimates, approximately 425,000 Indian tourists were expected to visit the country in 2019. MasterCard brings their global experiential campaign  Priceless Cities  for the first time in South Asia.

Through this campaign, MasterCard cardholders around the globe will be able to access six, one of a kind, experiences in Sri Lanka. The Priceless Cities campaign was first launched in New York in 2011 and now covers 50 cities worldwide.

"Mastercard has identified 10 areas or passion points that people care about. Travel is one of them. The once in a lifetime experiences will let them live their passions, something that money cannot buy. This will help Indians who are increasingly aspiring to enjoy offbeat and unique activities, vacation closer to home in Sri Lanka, said Manasi Narasimhan, Vice President, Marketing and Communications, South Asia, Mastercard.

Global tourism is on the rise and MasterCard is deeply committed in enabling it. First time travellers can opt for traditional tour packages, but MasterCard has observed an increase in the trend where travellers want more local experiences.

Tourists are often concerned about safety and security when they travel abroad and often stick to the trodden paths. The Priceless Cities initiative fits MasterCard's positioning as the safest payments network across 200 countries and 45 million merchant outlets.

The dynamics of travel have changed. Earlier, families used to be the main travellers, but there has been an increase in solo women travellers, empty nesters, and groups of millennials. Indians are now willing to travel throughout the year, according to Narasimhan.

International tourists also tend to be more discerning as to where they choose to spend their money. Offering them priceless experiences has to be more than lip service.

A lot of research goes into planning an international trip. What route to travel, what to wear, cuisine, where to visit, etc. Time is usually a constraint so you try to get the best bang for your buck.

Through Priceless Cities, MasterCard eliminates friction in ones journey. They have set up a microsite which customers can visit to learn more about the experiences and attractions curated by MasterCard. The same information is available via their partner banks in each country.

The real heavy lifting happens in the thought process. How to deliver a truly local experience? MasterCard approaches tourism boards and travel partners in these cities and share their idea of 'Priceless Cities. It is not about throwing money around, maintains Narasimhan. "We are committed to refreshing these experiences in perpetuity.

A personalised experience could be a private Safari tour where your guide is a professional photographer or a wine tasting accompanied by an actual gourmet.

Because of the hyperlocal nature of the campaign, MasterCard only offers it in countries where they have a very strong presence.

The communications for the initiative is relayed via the B2B and B2C route. MasterCard via its partner banks brings the information to their customers.

Narasimhan adds, "Being a global payments gateway we have to activate this in many countries simultaneously." The decibel levels of the campaign are increased during peak vacation months.

International tourism is important to a global payments gateway like MasterCard because it starts at the affluent level and keeps percolating down. When currency issued in one country is used in another country the entire network including MasterCard and their bank partners stand to gain significantly.
The planet is now faced with the sixth mass extinction of life on Earth, which will, if not averted, make the world unlivable for humanity. However, unlike the previous five, which were caused by various natural processes, the impending catastrophe is being triggered by human-induced climate change and other forms of environmental degradation caused by the irrationality of the capitalist system, and it is within our ability to stop it.

Last year, the United Nations Intergovernmental Science-Policy Platform on Biodiversity and Ecosystem Services (IPBES) estimated that approximately one million plant and animal species face extinction over the next several decades. The global rate of species extinction is already at least thousands of times higher than the average over the past 10 million years.

As recent extreme weather events, including the devastating, climate-induced bushfires in Australia, but also Indonesia, Portugal, California, and the Arctic demonstrate, entire communities of plants and animals, not to mention humans, are at grave risk. Estimates suggest that more than a billion animals have been killed, with many more injured and/or short of food and water in Australia so far during this fire season alone.

Already during the industrial period, 75 percent of Earths land and 66 percent of marine ecosystems have been altered by human activity. It is estimated that nearly 600 plant species have been driven to extinction over the past 250 years.

Now, a draft plan by the Working Group of the Convention on Biological Diversity, prepared for the upcoming five-day summit in Kunming, China, scheduled to start February 24, titled Zero Draft of The Post-2020 Global Biodiversity Framework, presents an initial version of a proposed plan to address this impending crisis. It warns that unless nearly a third of the planet is protected to provide livable habitats for endangered plant and animal species, and pollution cut by half, this mass extinction is inevitable.

The proposed plan asserts that to avert this crisis, transformative changes across economic, social, political and technological factors are needed. It goes on to state, Biodiversity, and the benefits it provides, is fundamental to human well-being and a healthy planet. However, Despite ongoing efforts, biodiversity is deteriorating worldwide and this decline is projected to continue or worsen under business-as-usual scenarios. The plan aims to develop necessary goals and targets to combat this crisis, with the aim of stabilizing biodiversity over the next decade and permit ecosystems to recover by mid-century.

The plan identifies 20 targets. Among them are:

Cutting pollution from biocides, plastic wastes, and excess nutrients by at least 50 percent.

Providing protected status to sites important for biodiversitycovering at least 30 percent of these land and sea areas by 2030, with at least 10 percent under strict protection.

Promoting sustainable agriculture.

Over the past several decades, as the effects of climate change and other human-induced environmental degradation on the worlds ecosystems have become increasingly apparent and are an established fact in the scientific community, the capitalist system has demonstrated its utter incapacity to undertake anything approaching the transformative changes necessary to avoid a global ecological catastrophe. A plan similar to the one now being proposedthe Strategic Plan for Biodiversity 20112020had been formulated at a summit in Japan in 2010. Grand promises were made. However, predictably, the goals were not met, and conditions continue to deteriorate at an ever-increasing rate.

The situation is dire. Every year that passes without substantial, world-wide, coordinated action brings Earth closer to irreversible devastation. Scientists have warned that at a certain point the process of global warming would reach a tipping point beyond which a positive feedback loop would be initiated whereby environmental degradation would re-enforce itself, making any future efforts to stabilize the environment difficult or impossible. This tipping point may be reached sooner rather than later.

A study by an international group of scientists published last year in the journal Nature (23 January 2019) projects that by 2060 the planets ability to absorb anthropogenic (human produced) carbon dioxide will begin to decline. That would greatly accelerate the pace of global warming, substantially compounding the environmental effects already underway.

As Elizabeth Maruma Mrema, acting executive secretary of the UN Convention on Biological Diversity, put it, 2020 must not be another year of conferences. It is likely to be just that, however. She has criticized the Zero Draft of The Post-2020 Global Biodiversity Framework as inadequate. Its vision is that By 2050, biodiversity is valued, conserved, restored and wisely used, maintaining ecosystem services, sustaining a healthy planet and delivering benefits essential for all people. It is, in fact, simply another set of vacuous language with no mechanism for implementation or enforcement.

At the just concluded Davos World Economic Forum, biodiversity loss was listed as the third greatest risk to the world. Again, predictably, it was nothing but talk. The drive to maximize shareholder value supersedes all other concerns.

Human existence depends on what are termed ecosystem servicessuch as breathable air, drinkable water, and an adequate food supplywhich are the product of a complex, dynamic interaction between living and non-living components. These cannot be replaced, certainly not within the foreseeable future. As just one example, a substantial number of agricultural crops on which humans rely are pollinated by animals, primarily insects and birds.

Of the 115 leading global crops consumed by humans, 87 rely on animal pollination, to some degree. These pollinators include 2,000 bird species and 20,000 species of wild bees that are key to crop propagation. Often, the relationships between plant and pollinator are exclusive. This delicate system is in grave danger.

A recent study by Cornell University found that the US and Canada lost one in four birdsor 3 billion totalsince 1970. The Audubon Society reported that North America could lose 389 of the 604 types of birds it studied due to climate change. According to Audubon, limiting the temperature rise to 1.5C could protect 148 bird species. A UN report published in 2016 estimated that at least 9 percent of bee and butterfly species are at risk.

The negative impacts on complex ecosystems by drought, wildfires, flooding and other climate-driven catastrophes now being experienced at the unprecedented scale and frequency, which will only worsen in coming years if drastic action is not taken, make it increasingly difficult for plant and animal communities to bounce back once the immediate episode has passed. The loss of individual species to extinction goes far beyond the simple reduction in the diversity of a biological community. The intricate and dynamic web of interactions between species in any given ecosystem have evolved over millennia. As growing numbers of species are lost, the fragility of the overall system increases, ultimately reaching the point of an irreversible collapse. Put simply: remove one leg from a chair and it may yet stand, remove two and it falls.

The problem is not that humanity does not have the means to avert this crisis. Or that the worlds population is unaware of the situation. The current bushfires in Australia have generated mass anger against the political establishments dismissal of climate change in favor of big business, especially the fossil fuel industry. In the US, recent research by Yale University found that a majority of those polled responded that they are concerned or alarmed about climate change. The numbers reporting alarm tripled over the last five years.

The causes of climate change and environmental pollution have been known for decades. Just 100 companies have produced more than 70 percent of the worlds greenhouse gas emissions since 1988. A mere 20 corporations are responsible for the majority of plastic pollution in the oceans.

Disaster is not inevitable. The necessary technological, economic, and social mechanisms to rectify them exist. And new tools are constantly being developed. The vast resources now being wasted on the military and obscene enrichment of the capitalist elite could be redirected to such urgent tasks as the replacement of fossil fuels with renewable energy and the replacement of plastics with truly recyclable packaging materials, etc., etc. However, as long as the worlds economy is divided into competing corporations and nation-states, and controlled by a tiny minority of the population, who operate solely for their own, immediate personal interest, there will be no meaningful change in the current catastrophic trajectory toward environmental disaster.

The author also recommends:

Climate change spin as Davos gathering confronts mounting environmental and economic crisis

[20 January 2020]

Capitalism and the climate disaster: The issues posed by the worldwide protests

[1 October 2019]

A million species threatened with extinction, UN-backed report warns

[14 May 2019]

The Sixth Extinction by Elizabeth Kolbert

[31 May 2014]
The refusal of the biggest political party National Democratic Congress (NDC) to understand the need for the compilation of new voters register has been described by the General Secretary of the ruling New Patriotic Party (NPP), John Boadu as an act of blockheadedness.



According to him, the explanation which was given by the Electoral Commission (EC) was clear enough for the Eminent Advisory Committee to give good advice to start the exercise.



The compilation of a new voters register has been challenged by the largest opposition party, NDC and a coalition named the Inter-Party Resistance Against New Voter Register [IPRAN], led by the People's National Convention [PNC] National Chairman, Bernard Mornah.



The group has called on some eminent leaders in the country to impose on the EC to suspend its schedule date to compile a new voters register but the NPP Chief Scribe insists that it is the constitutional mandate to compile new register as political parties and other institutions can only give advice.



Speaking on Okay FMs Ade Akye Abia Morning Show, barely 24 hours after an emergency Inter-Party Advisory Committee (IPAC) meeting together with members of the EC's Eminent Advisory Committee, John Boadu maintained that per the argument of the Electoral Commission with regard to the compilation of new register nothing will stop it, only blockheaded members of the NDC will kick against the decision.



Eventually, I know the decision which the EC has taken, no matter what happens, per the argument, unless you are a member of the NDC, but if you are not a member of the NDC and the way the EC explained to us, you still dont understand then you are blockheaded because the explanation went down well so I believe that the Eminent Advisory Committee will give good advice to the EC, he stated.



He maintained that the only piece of advice that the Eminent Advisory Committee will give to the EC is to go ahead with their planned timetable for this year's elections.



The only advice that the Eminent Advisory Committee will give to the EC is that they should go ahead to compile new voters register; they have already given their time table for the exercise, he indicated.







Source: Daniel Adu Darko/Peacefmonline.com/[email protected]









Disclaimer : Opinions expressed here are those of the writers and do not reflect those of Peacefmonline.com. Peacefmonline.com accepts no responsibility legal or otherwise for their accuracy of content. Please report any inappropriate content to us, and we will evaluate it as a matter of priority.

Featured Video
We're always interested in hearing about news in our community. Let us know what's going on!

Go to form
Up to 200 people from organisations across the country will march in a colour party procession through New Ross this Sunday, February 2.

The British Ambassador's attache to Ireland is due to attend and Irish and UK army council officials will also be present for the event.

Doyle who was born in New Ross on October 25, 1894, was awarded the Victory Cross and the Military Medal for fighting for Britain in the First World War. He joined the IRA during the War of Independence and played his part in the struggle.

Participants will assemble in Maher's Yard, New Ross, (on South Street) at 1 p.m. on Sunday where car parking is available. Led by the FCA New Ross Pipe Band the parade will march from Maher's Yard to the Tholsel Square via South Street. An ecumenical service will be held and wreaths and poppies will be laid at The Tholsel where a reception will be held and speeches made.

The parade will halt briefly on South Street at the Commemorative Plaque to 1916 hero Michael O'Hanrahan at the foot of Brennan's Lane.

While it is not as unusual for Irishmen to have served in both the British army and the Old IRA only one could boast both a Victoria Cross and a War of Independence medal, New Ross man Martin Doyle.

Doyle lied about his age to join the British army on St Stephen's Day, 1909, when he was barely 15. His father Larry is said to have sold a cow to buy him out but Martin re-enlisted.

Doyle was a company sergeant-major in the Royal Munster Fusiliers when his bravery earned him the Military Medal on March 24, 1918.

He successfully led a bayonet charge on a German machine-gun post in a derelict barn in no-man's-land.

The official announcement concluded: 'Throughout the whole of these operations, Doyle set the very highest example to all ranks by his courage and total disregard of danger.'

When the awarding of his VC was confirmed, he wrote to his parents: 'I am all in a whirl of joy.'

Doyle was welcomed home to New Ross in March 1919 by a large crowd.

This newspaper reported: 'The meeting between the young hero and his aged parents was very touching: going straight to his mother and father he embraced them. He was escorted to his home in Mary Street amidst a scene of great enthusiasm. As they approached the Royal Hotel a trumpeter standing on the steps sounded a stirring bugle call which evoked ringing cheers. There was a profusion of decorations in the town along with scrolls bearing words of welcome to the New Ross hero.'

Doyle went to Buckingham Palace to receive his VC from the king but left the army that July.

In 1920 he joined the IRA and became an intelligence officer for the mid-Clare brigade in Ennis in the War of Independence. During the Civil War he served with the Free State Army in Waterford, Kilkenny and south Tipperary and was wounded in the left arm in Limerick in early 1923.

He served in the Irish Army until 1937. His Army record described him as 'an excellent NCO, a very good Vickers machine gun and rifle instructor, and someone who could not be replaced without serious inconvenience to the service'. He spent a further year and a half in the Army Reserve. Having spent nine years and five months in the British army, two years in the Old IRA and 15 years and five months in the regular Irish Army, he hung up his uniform on January 25, 1939. Now married with three daughters, he had joined Guinness as a security guard but on November 20, 1940, he died of polio in Sir Patrick Dun's Hospital, aged only 46.

Even though Doyle had fought against the British and spent most of his career in the Irish Army, at his death he chose to be buried in his British first World War uniform and his gravestone, erected by former comrades in Grangegorman military cemetery, Dublin, records only his British military rank and honours. Doyle is one of 24 Irish holders of the Victoria Cross profiled in Victoria Cross.
Carthage College has received a $15,000 grant from the William E. Dean III Charitable Foundation-Bank of America to provide Green Zone training for faculty and staff.

Green Zone training aims to build a network of supportive allies who know the concerns of military veteran students and will assist them in navigating the complexities of a college campus. It is named for the secure international zone in Baghdad, Iraq, a place familiar to many post-9/11 service members.

For a few years now, weve made great strides to help veterans from all walks of life and this grant will provide more resources for our student veterans, says professor Martin McClendon, who helped write the grant. Were committed to helping them get what they need to achieve academic success, graduate, and pursue future dreams.

Pioneered at Virginia Commonwealth University in 2010, Green Zone training is now being offered at more than 100 universities and organizations nationwide. Each institution tailors the program to its own individual needs.

During the spring semester, a committee that will include Carthage student veterans, faculty, and staff will develop the curriculum for the Green Zone Training program. The program will be fully rolled out this summer, just before the fall 2020 semester begins.

The continued support Carthage receives for service members education is reflected in U.S. News & World Reports 2020 rankings, which rated Carthage the No. 1 school for veterans among Midwest regional colleges.

In addition to the Green Zone grant, Carthage received a $3000 grant from Just Live Inc; a local non-profit that provides community awareness about suicide and suicide prevention during the institutions Veteran Night of the Arts program held in November. The money will be used to provide students with free transportation to medical and counseling appointments off-campus.

Partnering with Just Live Inc. helps our students access life-changing and life-saving care, said Lydia Zopf, director of health and counseling services. We are truly grateful.

Just Live Inc. also donated $6000 to the Veterans Outreach of Wisconsin, a local organization that assists homeless and at-risk veterans. The donation was made on behalf of Carthage in recognition of their work helping veterans integrate back into civilian life.

Carthage is home to 31 self-identified student veterans, with an average age of 27.

Love 0 Funny 0 Wow 0 Sad 0 Angry 0
The risk to the public from coronavirus is low and the chances of dying even if infected are also very low: AFP/Getty

Britain is withdrawing its Foreign Office staff from China hours after dozens of UK nationals were evacuated from the city at the centre of the coronavirus outbreak.

They arrived at a hospital in Merseyside on Friday, where they will spend 14 days in quarantine.

Their arrival came as the UKs first cases of the new disease were confirmed, with health officials urgently trying to trace those who came into contact with two people diagnosed with the virus.

Meanwhile, Chinas death toll from the new virus rose to 259 on Saturday, with the number of confirmed cases reaching 11,791, surpassing the number in the 2002-2003 Sars outbreak.
An ex-special forces officer turned ISIS terror leader has been sentenced to death for the third time alongside 36 others in Egypt.

Hisham al-Ashmawy was captured in Derna, Libya, in late 2018 and was transferred back to Egypt in May last year by commander Khalifa Haftar.

He is accused of killing 54 people in total and has been convicted on several charges, including plotting a 2014 attack that killed 22 military guards near the frontier with Libya.

That conviction saw him sentenced to death in absentia back in 2017.

Hisham al-Ashmawy (pictured) was captured in Derna, Libya, in late 2018. He has now been sentenced to death three times

In November, a military court had already sentenced Ashmawy to death in another terrorism case.

He was also involved in an attempt to kill former interior minister Mohamed Ibrahim in 2013, a military statement said.

Ashmawy led the Sinai-based Ansar Bayt al-Maqdis, Egypt's most active militant group, before it pledged allegiance to Islamic State in 2014, it said.

The other 36 defendants tried with him were also convicted of terrorism charges, the court ruled.

Their cases were referred to the Grand Mufti, Egypt's highest Islamic legal official.

Egyptian law requires any capital sentence to be referred to him for an opinion before executions can take place.

He is accused of killing 54 people in total and has been convicted on several charges, including plotting a 2014 attack that killed 22 military guards near the frontier with Libya. Pictured is a propaganda video by an al-Qaeda group which featured their leader, al-Ashmawy

The court set a new session for March 2 to confirm the convictions after receiving the Mufti's non-binding opinion.

He was dismissed from the special forces in 2012 over concerns about his religious views.

He then joined the Sinai-based Ansar Beit Al-Maqdis but broke with the group after it pledged allegiance to the Daesh group in November 2014.

Known by his nom de guerre 'Abu Omar Al-MuHajjir,' Ashmawy announced the formation of an Al-Qaeda-aligned militant group Al-Mourabitoun in Libya in July 2015.

He is also accused of being behind attacks in Egypt's Western Desert region.
Thats when Eugenio found an angel.

He telephoned the banks toll-free number and spoke with Emily James, a senior officer at a call center in Portland. She spent an hour on the phone with Eugenio, trying to get some money released so he could at least get home. She soon realized that he had been misled, and that money wouldnt reach his account any time soon. Feeling bad for a customer stuck on Christmas Eve, James offered to drive over from her call center and personally hand him $20.

No, no, no, Eugenio told her. He couldnt impose. But she suggested she could use her break, and she received permission from a supervisor to drive 20 minutes to Eugenio. She later recalled that when she arrived, she wished him Merry Christmas and handed him $20 of her own money.

Twenty dollars wouldnt break me, she explained to me, and it would enable him to get home to his family.

When U.S. Bank found out that it had such a generous employee, what did it do? It fired her.

She broke the rules, putting herself and the bank at unnecessary risk, U.S. Bank said in a statement. The company bars call center workers from meeting customers, so it dismissed both her and the manager who had approved her trip. The manager, Abigail Gilbert, told me that Jamess account was essentially correct.

James had worked at the bank since 2017 and had received numerous commendations and awards that I examined, but the bank paid her no severance. She is single and used her last paycheck to buy sacks of food for her two dogs, Domino and Harley Quinn. She is now reduced to selling blood plasma, at $25 a visit.
Munna and Circuit may have made us wait for a time span that felt like an eternity but it looks like it's all worth it. Arshad Warsi and Sanjay Dutt, who are known for their camaraderie in the Munna Bhai series are all set to reprise their role as Munna-Circuit in Vidhu Vinod Chopra's Munnabhai 3.



Just a few days after Arnab Goswami and Kunal Kamra mid-air fiasco, the comedian has sent a legal notice to Indigo Airlines demanding an unconditional apology, revocation of the ban and Rs 25 lakh compensation.



Twitter

Before the release of his yet another important film 'Shubh Mangal Zyada Saavdhaan', Actor Ayushmann Khurrana looks back to his Roadies days with some amusement and surprise. He took to social media to express his happiness, saying he is glad that the adventure reality show is still popular among the youngsters.



bccl

Insisting that she does not like Kunal Kamra as a comedian, Raveena Tandon said that the ban on him was not justified, adding, That I will stand for this. Speaking at an event, Raveena said, Ok, I like Kunal Kamra. Does that help? No? That doesnt help! Actually, personally I dont like him because he makes very personal and bad jokes but the ban on him was not justified. That I will stand for. Nonetheless, everyone has two sides of the coin.



The six-episode series will take place after the events of "Avengers: Endgame" and explore a different version of the story, with Loki, played by Tom Hiddleston, at its centre. "Loki" series, directed By Kate Herron, will premiere in 2021. Geeks Worldwide last year broke the news that Marvel was casting a transgender character, speculating it could be Sera.


The three terrorists killed by the Jammu and Kashmir Police at a toll plaza in Nagrota (near Jammu), were prepared for a stand-off with the police, officials said on Friday.

Pakistan-manufactured morphine injection, IEDs and armour piercing bullets are among the recovery made by the police, which directly links these terrorists to Pakistan, the officials further said. The three terrorists belong to Pakistan-based terror group Jaish-e-Mohammad (JeM).

The police had also recovered AK-47 rifles, magazines and grenades from the slain terrorists on Friday. Three detonators, RDX, six Chinese grenades and Rs 32,000 cash have also been recovered.

The morphine injection recovered from the three terrorists killed in Jammu on Friday.

The three terrorists, said the police, sneaked into India through trucks. They were able to infiltrate through the rivers and other water bodies which flow between India and Pakistan, said the police. The terrorists then boarded a truck and were headed towards Srinagar when they were intercepted by the police at the Ban toll plaza during a security check at 5 am, they added.

The terrorists opened fire when they were caught by the police, leaving one cop injured. All three were shot dead by the police in the gunfight which ensued at the toll plaza.

One terrorist was killed in the morning. Two others have been neutralised in the adjoining forest area. Their bodies are being brought up to the road, J&K director general of police Dilbagh Singh told HT.

Among the other recoveries is detonators and wires.

The police also said that they have arrested three people including truck driver Sameer Dar, who was ferrying the armed terrorists to Srinagar from Dayalachak in Hiranagar area of Kathua district.

Dar is the cousin brother of Aadil Dar, the suicide bomber, who rammed his explosive-laden vehicle into a CRPF convoy in Pulwama on Jammu-Srinagar highway on February 14 last year in which 40 personnel were killed.

The officials suspect that the terrorists might have planned to carry out attack at vital installations as well as security camps along the nearly 300-km highway as they were carrying wire cutters and bulletproof jackets.

This was the first terror attack in Jammu since Article 370, which granted special status to the former state of Jammu and Kashmir, was revoked on August 5 last year.

Nagrota is an Indian Army cantonment where seven soldiers, including two officers, were killed in November 2016 when terrorists dressed as policemen stormed a military camp.

SHARE THIS ARTICLE ON
By PTI

LONDON: Maldives was officially readmitted to the Commonwealth on Saturday more than three years after the Indian Ocean archipelago nation quit the organisation over criticism of its human rights record, taking the count of the bloc's membership countries back to 54.

The island nation's rejoining came just over an hour after the United Kingdom left the European Union following 47 years of membership.

The island nation had quit the Commonwealth in October 2016 after being threatened with suspension over its human rights record and lack of progress on democratic reform.

ALSO READ: 'Optimism and regret' - UK papers rejoice, mourn Brexit Day

It submitted a request to rejoin in December 2018, when President Ibrahim Mohamed Solih wrote to Commonwealth Secretary-General Patricia Scotland.

"The reform process underway in Maldives aligns with the values and principles of the Commonwealth and we encourage the nation to continue on this path," said Baroness Scotland, as she welcomed the country and its people back to the fold.

"Commonwealth members were pleased to note these developments and are happy once again to count Maldives as a member of the family. Together we will support Maldives to realise its ambitions," she said.

ALSO READ: Brexit heralds new beginning, new ties with EU, says PM Boris Johnson

The readmission followed "due diligence", which included country assessment and consultations in accordance with the rules and procedures agreed by the Commonwealth Heads of Government (CHOGM) in Kampala in 2007.

India was one of the countries that had supported the country's readmission.

"Today is a happy day for Maldivians as we return to the family of Commonwealth nations.

As a young democracy, the Commonwealth's foundational values of the promotion of democracy, human rights, good governance, multilateralism and world peace remain relevant to us more than ever," Maldives President Solih said.

"We gratefully acknowledge the support and help of the Commonwealth to the Maldivian democratic movement, and we look forward to the support of fellow member states to ensure the long term entrenchment of these values in our society," he said.

The Commonwealth Secretariat said the assessment included two site visits to the country followed by positive feedback given by a Commonwealth Observer Group which was present for the Parliamentary Elections in April 2019.

Members subsequently agreed to invite Maldives to submit a formal application, which it did on December 25 last year.

The country presented evidence of functioning democratic processes as well as popular support for re-joining.

The Secretary-General then consulted with all 53 Commonwealth members and received no objections.

The country will now be part of the CHOGM scheduled for Kigali in Rwanda on June 22-28.

Maldives Ambassador to the UK Farah Faizal, now becomes its High Commissioner, signifying Commonwealth membership.

Maldives joined the Commonwealth in 1982 and was a member until it withdrew in 2016.

The Commonwealth is a political association of 54 member states, nearly all of them former territories of the British Empire.

Its members have agreed to shared goals like development, democracy and peace.

Any country can join the modern Commonwealth.

The last country to join the Commonwealth was Rwanda in 2009.

PTI AK MRJ 02011636 NNNN
WE had our first confirmed case of the novel coronavirus infection and people quickly emptied the drug stores shelves of surgical masks even at prices that had gone sky-high. Panic? Not yet but its close.

There is no sugarcoating it. The threat of the novel coronavirus is no longer imagined. No, not after it was confirmed that a Chinese national entered the country without being discovered until much later that she had the dreaded viral infection. Whatever happened to government assurances that they were on top of the situation, that we had men in the airports and other entry points who are equipped and competent to screen arrivals and make sure that they were not carriers?

Yes sir, the threat is real. One case does not an epidemic make, its true, but we dont have to wait for that to happen before we start worrying, do we? The fact that the woman was able to take at least three flights in the country before she was eventually discovered is not very reassuring. And thats an understatement.

How many people had she come into contact with in the Philippines? How many others were here who, like her, came unknowingly carrying the virus but, unlike her, flew out without being detected? No one can tell and when we are made to guess, it is worrisome.

So we ask: How prepared are we for real panic? In Wuhan, which is the epicenter of the 2019-nCoV outbreak, anxious relatives of coronavirus patients attacked on two separate occasions three doctors, pulling their masks and damaging their protective clothing.

Anger and desperation have escalated in Wuhan as the citys overwhelmed hospitals pleaded for urgent help to replenish diminishing supplies, the New York Times reported.

It cannot happen to us, we say in reassurance but without conviction. No place in our country will have 2019-nCoV cases approximating Wuhans numbers. But what if, God forbid, it does? Do we have enough hospital rooms to accommodate the patients?

Those who have had loved ones hospitalized only recently will tell you that our hospitals are almost always fully occupied and that you have to wait if you wanted to get a room. Where then will we send patients to for medical care if and when, again God forbid, we have an unusual number of 2019-nCoV cases?

Story continues

China was able to build a hospital in Wuhan only in a few days, which we cannot. Will we just ask victims to stay at home and wait for the infection to blow over because it is self-limiting and kills only two percent of the afflicted anyway?

What can we do to eliminate or at least minimize the risk of that happening? The United States has already barred entry not only to the Chinese but any foreign national who has visited China in the past two weeks. Singapore has similarly closed its borders to all travelers from China. Israel has barred all flights to and from China.

Even Chinas friends have adopted similar antagonistic (to China) measures. Russia has closed its 4,300-kilometer far-eastern border with China. And North Korea has indefinitely suspended all flights and trains to and from China.

Us, what shall we do?
The new owner of a Maryland home was in for a disturbing discovery when they discovered the body of the previous resident inside months after the home was foreclosed.

The body was found on Saturday inside a home in District Heights, NBC affiliate WRC-TV reported.

Neighbors told the outlet that the former owner was a 39-year-old woman with special needs who was being cared for by her grandmother until she died about a year ago.

As we grew up into adults, she never grew up, a male neighbor told WRC-TV. So she needed help with things and didnt process things as well as an adult would, even though she was an adult.

Especially when her grandmother passed away, thats what made us come over and just make sure everything was cool  she had food, she had rides to the store, things like that, the neighbor added.

RELATED: Oregon High School Students Discover Dead Body While Working on a Project Near Creek

After her grandmother died, another caregiver and relatives started helping the woman, but they also reportedly stopped showing up months ago, leading neighbors to believe that the woman was gone with the family.

In the meantime, nearby residents told WRC-TV that the homes utilities were cut off. By the end of September, the womans home was set to be foreclosed on due to an unpaid balance and a Notice of Sale was issued, according to the homes listing on Zillow.

I know they cut utilities, the neighbor recalled to the outlet. I know theres no power in there. Im not sure if there was water in there, but Im pretty sure if they cut the electricity, they cut the heat, too.

Eventually, the new owners moved into the Maryland property and found the unidentified womans body  leaving neighbors stunned.

RELATED VIDEO: Missing Mans Decomposing Body Sat in Truck for 8 Months in Airport Parking Lot As Family Searched

Story continues

We didnt know, and its said that she was in the house, the male neighbor told WRC-TV. If we knew that she was still in there, we would have at least knocked on the door. We would have at least asked her is everything OK.

Police are currently investigating the death, but believe there are no signs of foul play and are in contact with the womans family, according to the outlet.

The local coroner is also performing an autopsy on the body to determine when and how she died, WRC-TV reported.

The District Heights Police Department and the Prince Georges County Police Department did not immediately respond to PEOPLEs request for comment.
U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo is in Belarus seeking to improve ties with the former Soviet republic as its relations with Russia become further strained. Pompeo is the first secretary of state to visit Belarus in more than two decades and arrived on Saturday amid new tensions between Minsk and Moscow over energy. In a meeting with President Alexander Lukashenko, Pompeo said he hoped to help provide an opportunity for Belarus to achieve the sovereignty and independence it seeks.

Belarus fears Russia is trying to absorb it and last month began purchasing gas from Norway after Russian supplies were cut off. Last week, Lukashenko accused Russia, the countrys main provider of cheap oil and gas, of stopping supplies to dissolve Belarus.

Pompeo said the U.S. wants to help fill the vacuum and will continue to boost staffing at its embassy in Minsk, which was severely reduced 12 years ago. The two countries agreed in September to exchange ambassadors for the first time since 2008.

Belarus had been a candidate to be included in the Trump administrations expanded travel ban that was announced on Friday but avoided it by taking measures to improve security cooperation and potential traveler threat information with the United States.

In addition to trying to boost American influence in Belarus, Pompeo will be urging economic and political reforms as well as improved human rights conditions  a message similar to those he will be bringing to Kazakhstan and Uzbekistan later this weekend. At each stop, Pompeo will warn of attempts by Russia and China to aggressively assert themselves in Europe and Central Asia.

Russia stopped supplying oil to Belarus after Dec. 31. The two nations had failed to renegotiate an agreed oil price for this year during drawn-out negotiations on deepening the integration of their economies.

The Russian suspension did not affect oil crossing Belarus to Europe or the supply of natural gas, but had consequences for Belarus, which relies on Russia for more than 80% of its energy needs.

Lukashenko has since vowed to find alternative oil suppliers and said Friday that Belarus is currently negotiating additional supplies with the United States, Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates.

The Kremlin has recently increased pressure on Belarus, raising energy prices and cutting subsidies. It argues that Belarus should accept greater economic integration if it wants to continue receiving energy resources at Russias domestic prices.

This has prompted fears in Belarus that the Kremlin is plotting to form a single state with Belarus to keep Russian President Vladimir Putin in power well past the end of his term in 2024.Lukashenko has repeatedly rejected the idea, saying that Belarus would never become part of Russia.

(Image Credit: AP)
WASHINGTON - The White House reversed the Obama administration's prohibition on the use of anti-personnel land mines outside the Korean Peninsula on Friday, saying the restrictions could place American forces at a severe disadvantage during a conflict.

White House press secretary Stephanie Grisham, who announced the policy change as the Senate impeachment trial against President Donald Trump headed toward its final stages, said in a statement that the new policy would authorize high-level U.S. military commanders, in exceptional circumstances, to employ land mines that are specifically designed to reduce harm to civilians and partner forces.

"This action is yet another in a series of actions taken by the Trump administration to give our military the flexibility and capability it needs to win," Grisham said. "President Trump is rebuilding our military, and it is stronger than ever."

The reversal is the latest example of the new leeway the Pentagon has won during the Trump administration to control operations or employ previously restricted weapons.

The Trump administration has reintroduced low-yield nuclear weapons and once again developed previously banned intermediate-range missiles, in addition to giving commanders more authority on the battlefield to order strikes.

Defense Secretary Mark Esper said land mines are an "important tool" in ensuring mission success and reducing risks to U.S. forces. He noted that the change in policy was prompted by a review that former defense secretary Jim Mattis ordered in 2017, when the U.S. military put together a new national defense strategy focused on "great power competition" with Russia and China.

Advocacy groups and top Democrats have hit out at the land mine decision, which they say rolls back crucial progress the Obama administration made in reducing the global use of land mines, which are known to have an outsize impact on civilians during and after armed conflicts.

"The United States is doing a 180 on the near-global consensus to ban the abhorrent and inhumane use of land mines. These indiscriminate weapons maim and kill," Physicians for Human Rights said in a statement earlier this week when news broke about the outlines of the proposed change. "They destroy families and communities, arable land and livestock."

Sen. Patrick Leahy, D-Vt., who led the congressional charge against land mines during the Obamaadministration, called the decision "as perplexing as it is disappointing, and reflexive, and unwise," and said it overturned 30 years of steps, taken by both Democratic and Republican administrations, toward fully banning them.

"As far as I know, Congress was not consulted about this decision, despite requests to be consulted," Leahy said in a statement.

The Pentagon did not make a convincing case at the time of the ban that prohibiting land mine use put the military at a disadvantage, he said:

"In fact, the U.S. military has not used this weapon since 1991 in any of the protracted wars in which it has been deployed. One of the reasons is that landmines threaten the safety and impede the mobility of our own troops on a rapidly changing battlefield. This is so even for mines that are designed to self-destruct or deactivate, but are no more able to distinguish a civilian or U.S. soldier from an enemy combatant."

Military leaders have long argued that land mines are a useful and necessary tool in their arsenal, even as U.S. policy for years has prohibited their use, except on the Korean Peninsula.

Victorino Mercado, a top Pentagon official in charge of strategy, plans and capabilities for the U.S. military, said during a briefing Friday that the United States would only ever use "nonpersistent" mines - which are set to self-destruct in a certain number of minutes, hours or days after their emplacement.

He said the U.S. military doesn't have any "persistent" land mines - which stick around and can be tripped months or years later to maim or kill civilians - in its inventory, and the new policy continues the prohibition on their use.

During the Pentagon's recent review of the matter, Mercado said officials found there was only a six in one million chance of the self-destruct mechanisms on such mines failing - and top generals said the land mines could be useful in certain theoretical conflict scenarios involving Russia and China, which don't restrict the use of such weaponry.

"So when you take that into account, and you say that we can do both: We can go back to giving our soldiers, Marines, this capability, which may be decisive in a future conflict, and at the same time be absolutely committed to reducing and limiting civilian casualties. Then why wouldn't we do that?" Mercado said.

Mercado said the level of approval required to use land mines in a conflict involving the U.S. military has purposely been set at the highest levels of the Pentagon. Under the policy, he said, four-star generals must request their use, and the secretary of defense must sign off.

In a news release regarding the decision, the Pentagon said the restriction on land mine use created a "critical capability gap" between the United States and potential adversaries. Land mines could still be useful in a modern war because they can function as "force multipliers," obstructing, channeling or delaying a numerically superior adversary, the Pentagon added.

"The strategic environment has changed since 2016," the Pentagon said. "We face an era of strategic competition that requires our military to become more lethal, resilient, and ready for future contingencies."

In conflict scenarios, mines can be used to "shape" the battlefield, protect an installation or corral enemy troops away from a certain area. Mercado said that despite the change in policy, they would only be used in exceptional circumstances.

The new policy once again allows the U.S. military to produce mines for use outside the Korean Peninsula and potentially develop technological advances on the current stockpile of nonpersistent mines, Mercado said.

Daryl Kimball, executive director of the Arms Control Association, said deployment and continued stockpiling of anti-personnel land mines is "militarily unnecessary and dangerous."

"The Pentagon has not explained what military challenge, in which specific theater of operations, requires the deployment of land mines for the first time in nearly three decades," Kimball said.

Nearly three-quarters of those killed in land mine incidents, according to the Landmine Monitor, a nongovernmental organization that tracks such data, are civilians who inadvertently come into contact with them in active conflicts or, more often, in long-abandoned minefields of past wars.

In 2018, the last year for which comprehensive figures are available, 6,897 people were killed or injured, the Monitor said in its most recent report.

The global campaign to ban the weapons began in the mid-1990s. President Bill Clinton was the first world leader to call for a worldwide commitment, sparking a movement that led to a 1997 convention. The late Princess Diana also became a global advocate against the use of land mines.

But while the United States has long been the largest donor to international efforts to locate and destroy mines, it has never signed the convention. Other nations that haven't signed are Russia, China, Cuba, North and South Korea, and most countries in the Middle East and North Africa.

"One hundred sixty-four states, including Afghanistan, Iraq, Ukraine, Japan, and all U.S. NATO allies, are party to the 1997 Mine Ban Treaty and have rejected the use of land mines of any kind," Kimball said.

The George W. Bush administration prohibited the use of so-called "dumb" land mines - those buried in the ground and automatically tripped by pressure from above - again exempting the Korean Peninsula. The Bush-era policy allowed the use only of land mines that deactivate or self-destruct when programmed to do so by a human being.

In 2014, at the third review conference on the convention, the Obama administration announced that it would "not produce or otherwise acquire any anti-personnel munitions . . . including to replace such munitions as they expire in the coming years."

Later that year, Obama said his administration was "diligently pursuing other solutions that would be compliant" with the 1997 treaty, and pledged that his intention was ultimately to join it.

By then, millions of the anti-personnel land mines in the Defense Department's stockpile were already beyond their "use-by" date and were scheduled for destruction, according to Rob Berschinski, who worked on land mine policy at the National Security Council from 2010-2013.

The department said at that time that it was working on treaty-compliant, "sensor-based" mines in which commanders can activate or deactivate entire minefields from afar.

Berschinski, who now works at the advocacy group Human Rights First, said on Twitter this week that the Obama administration's prohibition was the result of tough negotiations among policymakers.

"The middle ground that Obama came to - no use outside of Korea, no assistance to allied forces using outside of Korea, and destroying land mines not for use in Korea - was the result of very tough internal debate," Berschinski said.

In its statement, Physicians for Human Rights added that despite purported technological advancements, land mines remained capable of causing indiscriminate harm and egregious injury and suffering.

"By loosening restrictions on land mine use, the United States is signaling to other countries around the world that land mines can be acceptable. The Trump administration should not normalize these archaic and gruesome weapons, which have no place in the 21st century," the group said.
by Sara Guaglione , January 31, 2020

The Atlantic has relaunched its weekly podcast, Radio Atlantic, with a new name: The Ticket: Politics from The Atlantic.

Katherine Wells, executive producer of podcasts at The Atlantic, told Publishers Daily the podcasts name signals a specific focus on politics.

With the Iowa caucuses on Monday marking the unofficial start of the 2020 election season, we wanted to cement for audiences that the show offers a deep look at the politics, policies and personalities defining this critical moment in America, she said.

The podcast now has a permanent host: politics correspondent Edward-Isaac Dovere.

Dovere will report from around the country.

When "Radio Atlantic" launched in the summer of 2017, it was co-hosted by Atlantic editor-in-chief Jeffrey Goldberg, executive editor Matt Thompson and contributing editor Alex Wagner, with rotating contributors from the masthead.

Dovere began hosting the show solo in April 2019.

Recent episodes have featured interviews with Democratic presidential candidates, such as Mayor Pete Buttigieg and Sen. Amy Klobuchar (D-Minnesota).

This week, Dovere will preview the Iowa Caucuses with J.D. Scholten, the Democratic challenger to Republican Steve King in Iowas 4th Congressional District.

The Ticket: Politics from The Atlantic publishes every Thursday.
So another one bites the dust. Last week it was Alastair Stewart's turn to get 'cancelled'. The veteran ITV broadcaster was one of the few journalists on social media who presented a fair and sensible view of the world. So of course he had to go.

He was found guilty in the great court of nowhere for the crime of tweeting something that isn't even a crime. Evidently a fan of Shakespeare  a dead white male who remains uncancelled (for now)  Stewart quoted the playwright in an argument online. Taken from Measure For Measure, they were lines he had used before: 'But man, proud man, Dress'd in a little brief authority, Most ignorant of what he's most assur'd, His glassy essence like an angry ape.'

Unfortunately for Stewart, a former Liberal Democrat council candidate called Martin Shapland was ready to take offence, claiming that by using this quotation, the newsreader was 'referring to me as an ape'. As if Stewart, who has no history of racism, had been scouring the Collected Works of Shakespeare for lines which he could apply to Shapland purely because he is black.

In fact, they are about ignorance, not race  and Shapland was in Stewart's view, both ignorant and self-important.

Last week it was Alastair Stewart's (pictured) turn to get 'cancelled'. The veteran ITV broadcaster was one of the few journalists on social media who presented a fair and sensible view of the world. So of course he had to go

The newsreader duly stepped down citing an error of judgment, but no one doubts that he was pushed  the latest victim in a gathering culture war.

In this case, the accusation against him happened to be racism, but pretty much anything that can be construed as offensive  whether transphobic, Islamophobic or sexist  is now fatal. The woke mobs want to control and dictate the terms on which we are allowed to conduct ourselves both online and in our conversations.

Prominent figures such as Alastair Stewart are not the only victims. Ordinary hard-working Britons in our shops, universities, schools and even our NHS are now vulnerable.

When, for instance, Asda worker Brian Leach posted a video of comedian Billy Connolly making fun of religion, somebody complained that the clip was Islamophobic. Then bang, Leach was gone. Sacked. Cancelled.

When, for instance, Asda worker Brian Leach (pictured) posted a video of comedian Billy Connolly making fun of religion, somebody complained that the clip was Islamophobic. Then bang, Leach was gone. Sacked. Cancelled

Today's Mail on Sunday reveals that the Royal College of Nursing has issued a bizarre style guide for letters and emails that outlaws such everyday terms as 'lady' and 'sufferer' for fear of causing offence.

Then there is the Orwellian case of businessman Harry Miller, who was accused of a hate crime for posting and retweeting 30 tweets that were alleged by police as being transphobic. During a call with the police, Mr Miller, a former policeman himself, was told by the officer that they wanted to 'check his thinking'. Fortunately, he is now taking the College of Policing  which issues teaching guidelines on 'hate crime'  to judicial review.

Reason and logic have gone out of the window. If someone shouts 'racism'  which is just about the most horrible claim that can be made about someone  then it is automatically accepted that racism is exactly what it must be, whatever the evidence.

There is no suggestion that Shapland was not sincere in his belief but, as we have seen time and time again, there are people who wield this powerful tool with cruelty as well as dishonesty.

It is especially jarring that in this new atmosphere of supposed care and concern, it is open season on those who happen to be white, middle-aged, often working-class, and needless to say, male. Increasingly, I hear reports from people around the country saying that they and their colleagues have to live in permanent fear of this strange, vengeful 'cancel-culture' coming for them.

How can this be turned around? Well, the remedy is in our own hands. This country is going through the most important transition in living memory and, with our exit from the EU, we have a duty and responsibility to ask ourselves what sort of country we want to be.

Do we want to live where unpleasant and dishonest people can wield career-ending accusations and everybody will simply buckle?

Should we live in a country where  like in the Soviet Union under Communism  everyone has to fear whether their neighbour or co-worker might 'inform' on them?

Or might we decide to breathe the air of freedom which includes controversy, disputation, argument and the possibility of solving problems rather than creating them?

Then there is the Orwellian case of businessman Harry Miller (pictured), who was accused of a hate crime for posting and retweeting 30 tweets that were alleged by police as being transphobic

We know what happens when people shut up or shut themselves down. History, not least the history of the Brexit years, shows it: you create a society filled with bubbling resentments where illegitimate fears end up bursting out.

This is why the treatment of Alastair Stewart  and the support he has received  should be taken as a key moment.

The woke totalitarians would not succeed if we all stood up for our friends when we know they have been wrongly accused. I am told by people inside ITN that there is serious unhappiness about the way in which Stewart has been pushed out.

Over the course of his career, he has worked with many people, of many different backgrounds.

Gradually, these people are coming out of the woodwork, both privately and publicly, saying what a gentleman he is, how kind he has been  and that, of course, he does not have a racist bone in his body.

So perhaps some proper pressure could be applied here. There is already a public petition under way to get Stewart reinstated. But how about a combination of public and private pressure? How about the people who gave Stewart the heave-ho start to fear for their jobs?

At present, bosses everywhere get a whiff of controversy and cut and run. There is no upside, they think, to standing by their man. Well there should be. Otherwise we will continue to live in a country based on the success of the most 'offended'.

Next time a similar case occurs, the bosses should weigh up the pros and cons and realise that disloyalty to people who have been loyal to you should incur a cost.

Let's see them explain why a long career can be destroyed in a second by bullies on social media.

That way, we might correct the balance in this country  a balance that is sorely needed and which will serve us well in the years ahead.
BANGKOK  An American journalist who was jailed in Indonesia for allegedly violating the terms of his visa has been deported and was expected to arrive in New York on Saturday.

The journalist, Philip Jacobson, who works for the environmental news organization Mongabay, was detained in mid-December in Palangkaraya, a city in Borneo, and ordered to remain there while his case was investigated. He was later jailed for three days late last month.

Under Indonesias harsh immigration law, he could have faced up to five years in prison.

Its tragic that an American environmentalist who dedicated his energies to protecting Indonesias rain forests and indigenous people has been treated so poorly by the Indonesian authorities, said Andreas Harsono, an Indonesia researcher at Human Rights Watch. Authorities should be thanking Jacobson for his environmental work, not punishing him for it.

Mr. Jacobson was not working as a journalist during his stay in Indonesia, said his lawyer, Aryo Nugroho. He was detained after attending a public meeting and accused of violating the terms of his business visa.
The enemy shelled the Ukrainian positions, using mortars, grenade launchers, heavy machine guns, and small arms.

Ukrainian female combat medic, sergeant Klavdia Sytnyk has been killed in action near the village of Novotoshkivske in Donbas, eastern Ukraine, as a result of shelling by Russian-led militants.

Read alsoUkraine reports eight enemy attacks in Donbas on Jan 31

"Today we have lost a service member. Senior female combat medic, sergeant Klavdia Volodymyrivna Sytnyk was killed when she came under fire by terrorist armed formations in the area of Novotoshkivske in Luhansk region. She was killed by a penetrating left-side chest wound as she was carrying medicine to a sick soldier," the press service of the 93rd separate mechanized brigade of the Armed Forces of Ukraine named Kholodniy Yar wrote on Facebook on February 1.

According to the military, the enemy shelled the Ukrainian positions, using mortars, grenade launchers, heavy machine guns, and small arms.

Klavdia was born in the town of Zachepylivka in Kharkiv region on February 25, 1986. She graduated from the Krasnohrad Medical College, where she was trained as a paramedic and used to work as an ambulance assistant.

She was called up for military service in February 2017 and signed a three-year contract with the Armed Forces. Sytnyk served with the 54th separate mechanized brigade, and then joined the 93rd brigade in October 2019 during the latter's training at Yavoriv Combat Training Center.

Klavdia left her daughter, Yuliya, born in 2008, her parents, and a disabled sister.
A fugitive wanted in the murder of a man in Lowell almost 30 years ago was located in the Dominican Republic and has been turned over to the FBI, the agency announced Friday afternoon.

Special Agents from the FBI Boston Divisions Violent Crimes Task Force, along with an officer from the Lowell Police Department, escorted Jose Armanda Betances from the Dominican Republic to Logan International Airport on a flight that is scheduled to arrive Friday night.

Betances was wanted for the murder of Andrew Alexander, who was killed in May of 1990, according to the FBI.

Authorities said Betances shot Alexander between the eyes. An arrest warrant was issued for Betances arrest in Lowell District Court a day after Alexanders murder, according to the FBI.

A month later, Betances was charged with murder.

Investigators located Betances, 58, in the Dominican Republic in January 2017, the FBI said. On November 12, 2019, with the assistance of the FBIs Legal Attache office in Santo Domingo, Betances was arrested outside his residence and held in custody pending extradition back to Massachusetts, according to the FBI.

Mr. Betances life on the run for almost 30 years has ended with him in handcuffs, and we can only hope this arrest brings some level of closure to Mr. Alexanders family, said Joseph R. Bonavolonta, Special Agent in Charge of the FBI Boston Division, in a statement. Violent offenders like him need to understand that no matter where they hide, or for how long they run, our investigators will track them down, and bring them to justice.

Upon arrival, Betances will be returned to the custody of the Lowell Police Department and he will be prosecuted by the Middlesex District Attorneys Office. His initial arraignment will be Monday, February 3, in Woburn Superior Court at 11:00 a.m. in courtroom 440.

Persistent and hard work have resulted in the arrest of this suspect. This heinous crime was committed in broad day light in front of many witnesses, many of whom were children, said Raymond Kelly Richardson, Superintendent of Police, Lowell Police Department in a statement. I hope this sends a clear message that the Lowell Police Department has strong partnerships with many law enforcement agencies."
Netflix's critically-acclaimed royal drama "The Crown" will conclude after its fifth season with veteran actor Imelda Staunton being confirmed to portray Queen Elizabeth II.

According to The Hollywood Reporter, series creator and showrunner Peter Morgan said though he originally envisioned the show to run for six seasons, he now believes five is the "perfect time and place to stop".

"At the outset I had imagined The Crown' running for six seasons but now that we have begun work on the stories for season five it has become clear to me that this is the perfect time and place to stop," Morgan said in a statement.

"I'm grateful to Netflix and Sony for supporting me in this decision," he added.

Staunton, best known for playing Dolores Umbridge in the "Harry Potter" series, will replace Oscar winner Olivia Colman as Queen Elizabeth II for the fifth season.

Colman, who took over the part from Claire Foy after the first two seasons, made her debut as the Royal Queen with the third season in November last year. She is set to appear in the show's fourth season which is expected to premiere later this year.

But unlike her two predecessors, Staunton will get to play the part for only one season.

"I have loved watching 'The Crown' from the very start. As an actor it was a joy to see how both Claire Foy and Olivia Colman brought something special and unique to Peter Morgan's scripts.

"I am genuinely honoured to be joining such an exceptional creative team and to be taking The Crown' to its conclusion," the 64-year-old actor said.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
Absurdly Driven looks at the world of business with a skeptical eye and a firmly rooted tongue in cheek.

I like to be surprised.

Especially when I visit a small business without great expectations.

Just over a year ago, I wandered into Stubborn Seed, a new restaurant created by Jeremy Ford. You may remember him. You'll more likely remember his face. He won Top Chef Season 13 and came across with a slight excess of bro-ishness.

I expected, then, an imperfect experience. Instead, it was so deeply uplifting that I had to write about it. Sample:

This was superb food being dished up with the minimum of ceremony and the maximum of care.

During a recent business trip to Miami, I thought I'd go back to what has now become an esteemed South Beach haunt. Would it be as good? Would it be even better? I didn't really contemplate a potential let-down. That's how much I'd liked it previously.

Every restaurant owner will tell you how tough business is these days. In an era of relatively full employment, it's hard to find and keep staff. It's hard to create an atmosphere that keeps customers coming back when there are intrepid -- or foolhardy -- people opening restaurants all the time.

Worse, as a restaurateur told me only last week, millennials are increasingly expecting their food to be delivered, rather than endure the sheer distress of a lovely ambience, warm service and meticulously crafted food.

At Stubborn Seed, I was led to a table in the main part of the restaurant, rather than in the bar. The menu had changed a little, but that's to be expected. Yet another of a restaurant's difficulties is keeping the menu fresh enough to interest cooks, as well as keeping some core dishes that regulars can't live without.

Speed Kills.

Last year, I'd chosen a five-course tasting menu. This time, conscious of my advancing years and retreating belt-level, I chose four dishes a la carte.

With some speed, the first fish dish arrived. I'd not had too many bites of it when the second dish did too.

Which seemed a touch awkward, but I want to be forgiving. One of these two dishes was a salad -- bathed in a rather acidic dressing, I should add -- so I felt able to at least contemplate pairing it with another dish.

In a very short time, an octopus appeared. A komby charred octopus, to be precise.

A chef brought it over -- Ford wasn't in the kitchen that night -- and, when I reacted with an attempt at simultaneous surprise and disappointment, the chef smiled and walked away without a word. My communication skills clearly need work.

The restaurant wasn't full, yet my server didn't wander back to my table to see if everything was alright. I had to look up and adjust my eyes to the "please can you see the furrowing of my brows?" setting before he came over.

I explained that my table was rather full and it seemed a touch much to eat all of these dishes simultaneously.

The server cheerily removed the octopus. I finished my first two dishes and the octopus instantly returned. By now it was a lukewarm, rubbery giant vulture digit.

After quite some time, the server came over and asked:

How are you finding your octopus?

To which I replied:

I'm finding it's the same octopus as before that's been kept under a heat lamp for 15 minutes.

He looked at me and, I fear, momentarily debated with himself. Then he offered:

I'd be lying to you if I said it wasn't.

By now, I'd communed with three-quarters of this digit, so I declined his belated attempt to have another one prepared. More importantly, however, this wasn't exactly Michelin three-star service. And I only mention those three stars because Eater rates Stubborn Seed as as a three Michelin-star restaurant -- if only Miami had Michelin stars.

Most of the dishes were still enjoyable, but not quite the standard of the previous year.

An Alternative. Service Brings A Smile.

This isn't to say don't eat at Stubborn Seed. Next time I'm in Miami, I'll go again. This experience, however, underlined how hard it is to maintain excellence in a restaurant. Even some of the best have very bad nights.

I can hear you mutter, however, that the server had at least taken the octopus off my check. Ah, no he didn't. There were no compensatory gestures at all.

I walked away musing on the ephemral nature of so many small businesses.

My disappointment was compounded because, two nights previously, I'd gone to a Miami restaurant that Eater deems worthy of only two Michelin stars.

It's called Alter and it embraces several tasting menu options in a very casual atmosphere.

I'd never been there before and asked the server for guidance. She suggested I have seven courses and then add in the restaurant's signature dish. It's a so-called soft egg that enjoys sea scallop espuma, truffle pearls and Siberian caviar.

Honestly, this didn't sound like my thing. The server insisted I'd love it. I suggested I was a touch too large for such excesses. She insisted. I demurred. She was charming. I resisted.

Please, I barely ever go to places with tasting menus. The mere idea of seven courses -- however small -- was already daunting. She smiled and retreated, but not before we'd discussed what the Portuguese had allegedly done to her native Brazil.

All the food was so beautifully prepared, so elegantly plated and so entertainingly tasty without being even slightly pretentious. And how often do you get to experience an Australian Montepulciano called The Bullet Dodger?

After three small, but perfectly formed courses, the server placed another dish in front of me.

"What's this?" I asked.

"It's the soft egg," she said. "I just thought you should try it, so I had one made for you."

Her cheeky countenance was so winning that all I could do was thank her. Oddly, the egg was quite enjoyable, if just a little rich.

I confess, though, that this evening at Alter had been a truly exemplary experience, made memorable by the attitude of the servers and the chefs. I was seated opposite the kitchen, alone with a Jose Mourinho biography. The chefs wanted to talk about my shoes. (Oh, I was in Miami so, you know..)

The restaurant was very busy. I paid the check and quietly meandered out. After walking twenty paces I heard someone shout: "Sir, sir."

I turned around. It was the manager, leaning out of the restaurant door. "Thank you for coming in tonight," he continued. I thanked him and waved. Then I walked on with a smile of utter contentment invading my face.
Secretary of Health and Human Services Alex Azar and members of the Trump Administration's Coronavirus Task Force hold a press briefing at the White House on January 31, 2020 in Washington, DC.

U.S. health officials starting Sunday have instituted a mandatory 14-day quarantine of Americans who in the last two weeks have visited China's Hubei province, where Wuhan, the center of the outbreak, is located, marking an extraordinary step in the Trump administration's efforts to prevent the spread of the novel coronavirus which has sickened more than 10,000 people in mainland China.

The Trump administration is also instructing Americans returning to the U.S. to undergo a two-week self quarantine if they have been in other parts of mainland China in the last 14 days.

"I want to stress the risk of infection for Americans remains low, and with these and our previous actions, we are working to keep the risk," Azar said Friday, as he declared a public health emergency due to the virus.

The emergency declaration provides funding for states and local health officials to deal with the viral outbreak, and flexibility to reassign federal health workers in their communities to help with the response. It is a measure often enacted during national disasters.

This is the first time the U.S. has declared a public health emergency due to viral contagion since the outbreak of the Swine Flu epidemic between 2009 and 2010, and the first time in 50 years that the U.S. has imposed a mandatory quarantine order. Federal health officials have resisted such extraordinary measures until now.

"The problem of enacting a quarantine is that it's such a disruptive social measure, economically, socially, culturally  that you only use it as your last resort, like your nuclear option," said Dr. Howard Markel, professor at the University of Michigan school of public health, who has studied quarantines and epidemics.

"They can work if they're done very early, but only as a temporary measure to tamp down cases," Markel explained, adding that it is prudent to check and observe travelers who may have been exposed to a new "poorly understood easily transmittable infection."
Source: Xinhua| 2020-02-01 14:09:18|Editor: zyl

Video Player Close

by Xinhua writers Liang Xizhi, Yu Jiaxin and Jin Jing

LONDON, Jan. 31 (Xinhua) -- Britain needs to figure out what it wants before it goes into negotiations with the European Union (EU) in March, and learn from its past mistakes after Brexit, an expert said when commenting on Britain's departure from the EU Friday night.

Amelia Hadfield, head of Department of Politics and director of the Center for Britain and Europe at University of Surrey, told Xinhua in a recent interview that Britain needs to be clear when it goes into phase-one negotiations with the EU.

"Britain probably learned from their mistakes this time in terms of the sequencing of what they want, specifically the free trade agreement," the expert noted.

The moment that Britain officially left the EU also marked the start of a transition period that will last till the end of this year, in which Britain's trading relationship with the EU will remain the same and Britain will continue to follow the EU's rules and contribute to its budget.

"It's not solely free trade ... Probably the most important among them is gonna be security and defense protocols in order to be able to keep on both sides of the channel safe in terms of internal security," said Hadfield, specifically referring to agreements over customs with regards to goods.

The expert said Brexit's biggest impact on Britain would be the decline of its influence in the world. "For the most part, Britain is going to decouple from some of the largest policies, like development, like humanitarian aid."

But Hadfield said she believes that Britain would continue to lead in key institutions like the United Nations on the Security Council, and in specific areas like climate change as the country is hosting the UN Climate Change Conference (COP26) in Glasgow this year, the biggest global summit.

"It's gonna be a balancing act ... between trying to identify where Britain wants to be a leader, admitting there has been some reduction in terms," said the expert.

When talking about the idea of "Global Britain," Hadfield said it has been around for about 18 months as the Foreign Office has attempted to construct what it thinks Britain should be in the world, in security terms, in defense terms and in foreign affairs, which will have an impact on its special relationship with the United States.

"It's gonna be difficult for Britain to try to prioritize America at this point completely," she said. "I think there's also a sense that Britain is going to want to try to strike free trade deals in a sort of parallel way with the EU and also with the United States."

Hadfield noted that Britain has clearly got an eye on other global partners like China.

"Britain has always enjoyed a strong relationship with China in many ways," she said, as Chinese students, scholars and analysts have become "a huge part, a very successful enterprise and economy, and an educational structure" in the country.

"Britain needs to consider ways in which it wants to perhaps more fully engage with its Asian partners," the expert noted, adding that she can see "China certainly being and playing a very, very prominent role in that respect."

As for Britain's willingness to participate in the China-proposed Belt and Road Initiative (BRI) after Brexit, Hadfield said she believes that the BRI is a large-scale and ambitious initiative, and significant results in logistics and infrastructure construction have been achieved.

"I wouldn't say particularly in the short term, but perhaps as a five-to-10 year option, it certainly could be on the table (of Britain)," she added.
A count down clock is projected onto 10 Downing Street, when, at 11pm, the UK will leave the European Union after 47 years. PA Photo. Picture date: Friday January 31, 2020. See PA story POLITICS Brexit. Photo credit should read: Aaron Chown/PA Wire

Damien McGinnity from the campaign group Border Communities Against Brexit during a demonstration in Carrickcarnon on the Irish border, ahead of the UK leaving the European Union at 11pm on Friday. PA Photo. Picture date: Friday January 31, 2020. See PA story POLITICS Brexit. Photo credit should read: Niall Carson/PA Wire

Declan Fearon from the campaign group Border Communities Against Brexit during a demonstration in Carrickcarnon on the Irish border, ahead of the UK leaving the European Union at 11pm on Friday. PA Photo. Picture date: Friday January 31, 2020. See PA story POLITICS Brexit. Photo credit should read: Niall Carson/PA Wire

Protesters from the campaign group Border Communities Against Brexit take part in a demonstration in Carrickcarnon on the Irish border, ahead of the UK leaving the European Union at 11pm on Friday. PA Photo. Picture date: Friday January 31, 2020. See PA story POLITICS Brexit. Photo credit should read: Niall Carson/PA Wire

A countdown clock is projected onto 10 Downing Street, ahead of the UK leaving the European Union at 11pm, ending 47 years of close and sometimes uncomfortable ties to Brussels. PA Photo. Picture date: Friday January 31, 2020. See PA story POLITICS Brexit. Photo credit should read: Aaron Chown/PA Wire

Protesters from the campaign group Border Communities Against Brexit take part in a demonstration in Carrickcarnon on the Irish border, ahead of the UK leaving the European Union at 11pm on Friday. PA Photo. Picture date: Friday January 31, 2020. See PA story POLITICS Brexit. Photo credit should read: Niall Carson/PA Wire

Pro-Brexit supporters in Parliament Square, London, as the UK prepares to leave the European Union, ending 47 years of close and sometimes uncomfortable ties to Brussels. PA Photo. Picture date: Friday January 31, 2020. See PA story POLITICS Brexit. Photo credit should read: Jonathan Brady/PA Wire

Sinn Fein activists calling for a border poll, stage a demonstration outside Parliament Buildings, Stormont, Belfast, ahead of the UK leaving the European Union at 11pm on Friday. PA Photo. Picture date: Friday January 31, 2020. See PA story POLITICS Brexit Ireland. Photo credit should read: Brian Lawless/PA Wire

Sinn Fein activists calling for a border poll, stage a demonstration outside Parliament Buildings, Stormont, Belfast, ahead of the UK leaving the European Union at 11pm on Friday. PA Photo. Picture date: Friday January 31, 2020. See PA story POLITICS Brexit Ireland. Photo credit should read: Brian Lawless/PA Wire

Sinn Fein activists calling for a border poll, stage a demonstration outside Parliament Buildings, Stormont, Belfast, ahead of the UK leaving the European Union at 11pm on Friday. PA Photo. Picture date: Friday January 31, 2020. See PA story POLITICS Brexit Ireland. Photo credit should read: Brian Lawless/PA Wire

Members of Border Communities Against Brexit arrive with their new poster at Stormont in Belfast, ahead of the UK leaving the European Union at 11pm on Friday. PA Photo. Picture date: Friday January 31, 2020. See PA story POLITICS Brexit Ireland. Photo credit should read: Brian Lawless/PA Wire

Press Eye - Belfast - Northern Ireland - 31st January 2020 - Pro-Brexit members of the public gather at the front gates of Parliament Buildings, Stormont in Belfast tonight for a Brexit Celebration event. The United Kingdom is on the final countdown to leave Europe, more than three years after the nation voted for Brexit. Photo by Kelvin Boyes / Press Eye.

Press Eye - Belfast - Northern Ireland - 31st January 2020 - Pro-Brexit members of the public gather at the front gates of Parliament Buildings, Stormont in Belfast tonight for a Brexit Celebration event. The United Kingdom is on the final countdown to leave Europe, more than three years after the nation voted for Brexit. Photo by Kelvin Boyes / Press Eye.

Press Eye - Belfast - Northern Ireland - 31st January 2020 - Pro-Brexit members of the public gather at the front gates of Parliament Buildings, Stormont in Belfast tonight for a Brexit Celebration event. The United Kingdom is on the final countdown to leave Europe, more than three years after the nation voted for Brexit. Photo by Kelvin Boyes / Press Eye.

Pro-Brexit activists celebrate at Stormont as the UK leaves the EU. Photo by Kelvin Boyes / Press Eye.

Jim Wells joins Pro-Brexit members of the public gather at the front gates of Parliament Buildings, Stormont in Belfast tonight for a Brexit Celebration event. Photo by Kelvin Boyes / Press Eye.

Jim Wells joins Pro-Brexit members of the public gather at the front gates of Parliament Buildings, Stormont in Belfast for a Brexit Celebration event. Photo by Kelvin Boyes / Press Eye.

The UKs departure from the European Union was marked with parties and protests in Northern Ireland on Friday night.

Pro-Brexit members of the public gathered at the front gates of Parliament Buildings for a 'Brexit Celebration' event at 11pm, when the UK left the EU after 47 years of membership.

DUP MLA Jim Wells was one of the organisers of the event.

He said: "My first vote as an 18-year-old was to vote to leave the European Union in 1975. I never thought in my life that I would see the opportunity to leave. Here we are 47 years later and at last our nation is leaving the European union."

Speeches and a countdown to the 11pm exit were held, marking what organisers described as the historic event.

Tonight we are leaving the European Union. pic.twitter.com/zZBsrf4BLe  Boris Johnson (@BorisJohnson) January 31, 2020

Meanwhile, the anti-Brexit protests organised by the Border Communities Against Brexit group and Sinn Fein were held to mark the night.

Protesters gathered at six locations along the border in counties Louth, Cavan, Donegal, Fermanagh, Monaghan and Donegal on Friday night.

Around 200 people gathered a few miles from Newry to voice their opposition to Brexit.

We are out of Europe and I think in a few months time it will totally take effectSeamus McDonnell

Standing yards from the Irish border, Co Armagh sheep farmer Seamus McDonnell said that communities have been left in limbo by the uncertainty following the split.

The anti-Brexit campaigner, who farms on both sides of the border, said many people in local communities were against Brexit.

He said: We will be left in limbo here for the next 11 months because we dont know if there will be a hard border, soft border or no deal. No one knows. I dont think Boris Johnson knows yet.

We are out of Europe and I think in a few months time it will totally take effect.

We may have a free-flowing border now but it (the end of the transition period) will make a big change. You have a big dread and we dont know if we will be able to continue what were doing.

Also attending Fridays nights protest was Stormont finance minister Conor Murphy.

This part of Ireland did not consent to Brexit, we voted significantly to remain within the EU and we are being taken out of the EU without consent, the Sinn Fein representative said.

People are very fearful of all the consequences of this, we know we werent in any way in consideration by the British Government or the people in Britain when they voted for Brexit.

There are a lot of concerns from people as to how this will unfold.

People in the government in the south (Republic of Ireland) need to be very vigilant that the protocols that have been agreed by the British Government are followed.

We do not want to see a hardening of the border.

Expand Close Protesters from the campaign group Border Communities Against Brexit (Niall Carson/PA) PA Wire/PA Images / Facebook

Twitter

Email

Whatsapp Protesters from the campaign group Border Communities Against Brexit (Niall Carson/PA)

The anti-Brexit campaigners also demanded for Northern Ireland to continue to have a voice in the EU after the UK leaves.

In an earlier protest, Border Communities Against Brexit activists unveiled a new billboard declaring the fight goes on.

They urged the Irish Government and the restored Stormont Executive to push for some form of continued representation in EU structures.

It comes as the regions three MEPs leave the European Parliament ahead of Brexit.

Border Communities Against Brexit expressed relief that a hard border with security check points appeared to have been avoided but warned the process was not over and there remained the risk of a damaging no-deal on trade.

Speaking on the Northern Ireland side of the border, campaigner Declan Fearon said: Today we meet all the parties at Stormont and one of things we would like to impress upon them is the urgent need for both the Executive in Stormont and the Irish Government to address the issue of representation for communities.

We are entitled to be represented in Europe, we are still part of the single market, we should have that representation at the table, even in an advisory role.

We have actually spoken to Mr Verhofstadt (former Brexit co-ordinator for the European Parliament Guy Verhofstadt) and members of the European Union on that issue and he said they had absolutely no problem whatsoever in allowing that to happen.

Its up to the Irish Government especially and indeed to the new Executive at Stormont to make sure that they push for that to happen.

Expand Close Sinn Fein deputy leader Michelle ONeiil attends the unveiling of a Border Communities Against Brexit poster in Carrickcarnon (Brian Lawless/PA) PA Wire/PA Images / Facebook

Twitter

Email

Whatsapp Sinn Fein deputy leader Michelle ONeiil attends the unveiling of a Border Communities Against Brexit poster in Carrickcarnon (Brian Lawless/PA)

Mr Fearon said people living in Northern Ireland would be poorer as a result of lost EU funding and their children would be denied opportunities enjoyed by young people living in the Irish Republic, such as the ability to study in the EU.

We are concerned for the people who live here and the difference there will be in the rights people will have from 50 yards on the other side of the border to where we stand now, he said.

The campaigners were joined by senior Sinn Fein figures on Friday morning on the Armagh/Lough border, among them party president Mary Lou McDonald, her predecessor Gerry Adams and vice-president Michelle ONeill.

Ms McDonald said: Today is a very sad day. People in the North did not consent to Brexit.

This is not something that people on the island of Ireland want, bar a small minority.

She praised the work done to avoid the return of a hard border but added: The job isnt done. Brexit is a game-changer, its not a one-off event, it completely recasts and reshapes the political and economic conversation across the island, between the island of Ireland and Britain, and right across the continent.

So this isnt an end point, this is very much a beginning.
Carraroe and District Regeneration Association (CADRA) is calling for the restoration of bus services to Sligo Retail Park after it was removed six years ago.

The campaign is calling for a restoration of the services and for the service to be extended to Carraroe Community Centre.

Speaking to The Sligo Champion about the ongoing campaign, Honorary Secretary of CADRA, Pat Benson said the service had been withdrawn in 2014 without consultation with the group or anyone else in Carraroe.

Highlighting the issue of climate change, Mr Benson said note the reintroduction of the service as a positive in reducing the amount of cars coming into Sligo town from the Carraroe area.

"There's the issue of climate change and Sligo County Council is the lead agency for climate change. Obviously reducing the parking spaces in Sligo town we felt it appropriate to get the bus service back to the retail park and extend it to Carraroe to the community centre."

Mr Benson outlined that there is a council owned car park lying idle at the community centre which could be used of a 'Park and Ride' system was established at the site.

"It would be a good thing for the town and climate change. "We had talks with Sligo Bus Eireann locally and we didn't get anywhere."

It was explained to the group that it was out of Bus Eireann's control, and, instead it was under the remit of the National Transport Authority and was also a matter for Minister Shane Ross.

The group wrote to Minister Ross in December 2018 outlining their case for the reintroduction of the service and service extension. The letter detailed a community study the group commissioned which identified the need for a Park and Ride facility to be developed.

The study outlined the overall catchment area had a population of 4,456 people, which represents 235 of the Sligo town population. Two thirds of this population are between the ages of 19 and 64 with 26% of dependents 18 and younger and 12% older than 65 years.

The group indicated that going on the findings from the study, a Park and Ride service at the central location at Carraroe Community Centre would benefit the neighbouring areas of Ballisodare, Ballygawley, and Ballintogher.

"People wishing to travel to Sligo City can drive the short distance to Carraroe and Park and Ride to the city, thereby avoiding the issue of parking in Sligo City," said Mr Benson. The group also wrote to all local TDs and Independent Cllr Marie Casserly. According to Mr Benson, only Deputy Eamon Scanlon (FF) addressed the matter by way of a parliamentary question in 2018.

In a response to this question querying the service, CEO of the NTA, Anne Graham said in conjunction with Bus Eireann, an expanded and improved service was introduced in Sligo in 2014 and that the service had experienced a 'significant increase in passenger numbers'.

In the letter to Minister Ross the group outlined the Public Service Obligation which is provided as a funded service to meet the needs of persons over 66 years of age.

The letter stated, "The population of our catchment over 66 years is 614 or 14% of our population. We as a community, because of the absence of the above service, is deprived of the opportunity to avail of this support provided through the financial grant by the Department of Social Protection for this purpose."

The group believes the service would reduce the need to travel by car to Sligo town for a large number of residents and would allow the population to remain independent. Now the group are preparing for local election candidates to canvass the Carraroe area and are considering launching a petition on the matter.

"It's not going away, it makes common sense. I can't understand why the council aren't demanding this service. Rural Ireland is being ignored," said Mr Benson.
The WHO disease classification will now include a disease called CDKL5 Deficiency Disorder

The rare genetic disease CDKL5 Deficiency Disorder (CDD) has been designated with a new disease code in the International Classification of Diseases (ICD), the medical classification list from the World Health Organization (WHO). The CDKL5 Deficiency Disorder diagnostic code will be incorporated in the October 1, 2020 classification revision.

The medical classification, currently in its tenth revision (ICD-10), uses a list of alphanumeric codes to document a persons medical condition. For example, a person with migraine headaches will receive the G43 code and a person with type 2 diabetes the E11 code. These codes are then used for clinical research and care, and increasingly also for health insurance billing and reimbursement. According to the WHO, about 70% of the worlds health expenditures are allocated using ICD codes for reimbursement and resource allocation.

There are many medical conditions that do not have a code in the international medical classification, and these diseases can be invisible for most clinical research and have difficulties accessing insurance and reimbursement. This previously included CDD, a rare genetic disease that leads to frequent seizures shortly after birth and severe impairment in neurological development, with most affected people being unable to walk, talk or care for themselves.

Obtaining an ICD-10 code for CDD is a big milestone for our field and one more step towards having approved therapies and ensuring patient access to these treatments," said Ana Mingorance PhD, Chief Development Officer at the Loulou Foundation, a private non-profit foundation for CDD therapeutic development which spearheaded the ICD-10 code effort. One of the reasons why we requested a code for CDD is because there are four ongoing clinical trials for therapies that might treat the disease, including a clinical study in the latest stage before approval. With an ICD-10 code for CDD, everything from research to reimbursement will become more efficient.

We know that CDD occurs in approximately 1 in every 40,000 births because of genetic studies, explains Karen Utley, co-founder and President of the International Foundation for CDKL5 Research (IFCR), the largest patient advocacy group for CDD families in the United States. But because there was no ICD-10 code for the disease, each of these patients is being coded in a different way at hospitals and we have no way to identify who they are or to know how many are out there.

ICD-10 codes are used by clinicians, health insurance companies, and public health agencies across the world to represent diagnoses. The disease classification is reviewed once a year, in a process managed by the National Center for Health Statistics (NCHS), housed within the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

Last year, IFCR and the Loulou Foundation submitted a proposal to the NCHS for the creation of a new unique code for CDKL5 Deficiency Disorder. The existing ICD-10 codes were not specific enough to capture the multisystem effects of CDD, said Dr Eric Marsh from the Childrens Hospital of Philadelphia, one of the leading clinical investigators in the disorder and the Principal Investigator at the CDKL5 clinical Center of Excellence who also participated in the proposal. This leads to the inconsistent records and introduces friction into clinical care, insurance authorization and research studies, all of which depend on ICD-10 codes.

The proposal included support letters from numerous medical organizations including the American Epilepsy Society, American Academy of Neurology, and the Child Neurology Foundation, as well as from leading patient advocacy organizations like the National Organization for Rare Diseases. Several pharmaceutical companies also contributed support letters.

Following the evaluation, CDD was successfully granted a new code (G40.42), in an acknowledgement that it represents a separate medical condition with unique medical needs and that it, therefore, required its own ICD-10 code. This milestone follows another major achievement for the CDD patient community, which on November 1, 2019, hosted a Patient-Focused Drug Development meeting with the FDA, in which caregivers shared their experiences and future treatment expectations with the regulators.

The Loulou Foundation, IFCR, and the International CDKL5 Alliance, representing worldwide CDD patient advocacy groups, believe that the new ICD-10 code for CDD will help improve the quality of life of people living with CDD, and urge the medical community and healthcare leaders to advance policies and protocols to ensure early access to genetic diagnosis that will identify currently undiagnosed cases of this disorder.
London, Feb 1 : A British teacher, who is stranded in the Chinese city of Wuhan which is the epicentre of the novel coronavirus outbreak, has said that authorities in the Asian giant were covering up the actual number of fatalities due to the disease, a media report said.

Tom Ellender, 37, failed to register with the UK consulate in time to secure himself a seat on the chartered plane carrying 83 Britons back to the UK, the Metro newspaper said in the report on Friday.

He was now "running low" on face masks and told the Metro daily that he "doesn't know what is going to happen" next to the others still stuck there.

In a response to the growing health emergency, the Chinese authorities have imposed a lockdown on Wuhan's 11 million residents and severe travel curbs on other cities in Hubei province.

The rapid quarantine, at a time when the infection numbers were still relatively low, sparked fears the government was covering up the true extent of the crisis.

"Of course they have (covered it up). The Wuhan mayor's head rolled to help conceal everything," Ellender told the newspaper.

"I have no idea what the real figures are but there was talk about a potential outbreak all the way back in early December I think.

"There's no way of knowing what the real figures are in China. Plus only 'confirmed' cases are being mentioned. There must be many more unconfirmed cases," he added.

With Wuhan and much of Hubei still under confinement, Ellender told the Metro that the bustling city he first moved to now looks "like a wasteland".

"Everywhere is just completely empty and deserted. Every single shop, shopping mall and restaurant was shut. Public transport had come to a complete halt. It was incredibly sombre." Ellender has launched a Gofundme page to get himself back to the UK and back on his feet.

As of Saturday morning, China has confirmed 259 deaths, with 11,791 infected cases.

As the Chinese government scrambles to contain the outbreak, the contagion has spread to all of the country's 31 provinces, municipalities and autonomous regions, as well as to at least 22 other countries.

More than 120 people outside China have been diagnosed with the potentially deadly virus.

The World Health Emergency has declared the outbreak a global health emergency.

Latest updates on Coronavirus (COVID-19)
CEB Engineers Union clashes with Govt. over emergency power purchases; vs. coal plants View(s):

Ceylon Electricity Board (CEB) Engineers have warned the government that power cuts would be inevitable by next month, if a decision to purchase emergency power supplies is not taken soon as the government was trying to push forward with coal power projects.

The Union, which represents a majority of CEB engineers, has conveyed its position to the Power and Energy Minister Mahinda Amaraweera, state minister Mahindananda Aluthgamage and the CEB management.

This was seen as a move to bring pressure on the government to go in for emergency power purchases for one more year. The union pointed out that scheduled power cuts will have to be imposed from the beginning of March because of the reduction in hydro power generation due to reduced rains and instructions from the Mahaweli and Agriculture authorities to retain water for agricultural purposes.

The unions president Anurudda Tilakaratne said that with the impending dissolution of Parliament by next month the power crisis will worsen as it would be difficult to call for bids without a government in place.

He said although bids have already been called for 200 Mw supplementary power supplies Govt. approval is yet to be granted. If approval is granted at least within the next two weeks we will be able to manage the situation, if not we will have to go for power cuts, he added.

A senior Power and Energy Ministry official said that the proposal for 200 Mw supplementary is under evaluation, but it would take a month to be implemented, if approved.

He said the purchases will be for one year and could be extended for 30 months.

He said there is another proposal pending cabinet approval to extend contracts of independent power producers to continue to supply 100 Mw. He said these plants were in Pallakele, Galle, Matugama, Horana, Polonnuarwa and Monaragala.

The official said if the cabinet did not approve the proposal they would have to call for international bids.

The moves come amidst plans to instal two more coal power plantsone in Norochcholai and another in Trincomalee or another location.
No confirmed case on the continent yet but fears grow the deadly disease will reach countries with weak health systems.

Countries across Africa are ramping up measures to prevent an outbreak of a new coronavirus that has killed more than 250 in China and spread to several Asian countries, and as far afield as the United States, Europe and Australia.

As scientists race to find a vaccine, the World Health Organization (WHO) on Thursday declared a public health emergency of international concern amid rising fears the virus could reach countries with weak healthcare systems.

In Africa, where past viral outbreaks have stretched already-strained healthcare systems in a number of countries, there have been no confirmed cases to date  but several countries have reported suspected cases of the rapidly spreading disease that originated in the central Chinese city of Wuhan late last year.

Amid the mounting concerns, medical experts appear certain that the deadly virus will also infect people on the continent, pointing to the deepening trade and travel ties between China and Africa that has seen many countries on the continent become popular tourist, business and investment destinations for the Chinese.

We can be very certain that coronavirus will be exported to Africa, said Ngozi Erondu, associate fellow of the Global Health Programme at Chatham House.

There is a large amount of travel between China and Africa; hubs such as Addis Ababa, Cairo and Nairobi are at particular risks due to the large amount of Chinese travellers that pass through these airports.

Measures taken

Speaking at the African Union headquarters on Tuesday, John Nkengasong, director of the Africa Centres for Disease Control and Prevention (Africa CDC), said the institution was working closely with their Chinese counterparts, adding that, We in Africa are watching the situation and also preparing ourselves to deal with any outbreak or cases.

200131232932230

Three days later, the WHO announced it would be scaling up preparedness in Africa, particularly in 13 top priority countries: Algeria, Angola, Ivory Coast, the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC), Ethiopia, Ghana, Kenya, Mauritius, Nigeria, South Africa, Tanzania, Uganda and Zambia.

Authorities in most of these countries have set up active screening at airports, it said, calling on governments to step up their readiness.

The quicker countries can detect cases, the faster they will be able to contain an outbreak and ensure the novel coronavirus does not overwhelm health systems, said Matshidiso Moeti, WHO regional director for Africa.

Africas most populous nation, Nigeria, is among the countries that have issued a travel advisory telling citizens to delay travel to China unless extremely essential.

Chikwe Ihekweazu, director general of the Nigeria Centre for Disease Control (NCDC), said lessons had been learned from the Ebola outbreak that swept through Liberia, Sierra Leone and Guinea in 2014-16, killing about 11,300 people in West Africa.

Over the last three years, we have invested resources in improving infectious disease surveillance and response capacity. Our National Reference Laboratory has the capacity for molecular diagnosis of pathogens and we are receiving guidance from WHO on the primers and reagents that will be used to test suspected coronavirus cases.

200125070959786

Elsewhere, Ugandan physician Sabrina Kitaka also cited the Ebola response as an example of how the country has successfully managed previous infectious and said authorities were taking all precautions at border entries to deal with the new coronavirus, officially known as 2019-nCoV.

This is a new virus with very scanty information on the virulence and transmission dynamics, said Kyeng Mercy Tetuh, a Cameroonian public health expert and epidemiologist.

In the case of Cameroon, Tetuh said while health authorities have stressed the countrys preparedness, this may not be the case in areas affected by insecurity such as the Anglophone regions.

A challenge in containing Ebola in the DRC has been insecurity, she said, referring to an ongoing outbreak of the deadly disease that has seen medical teams came under attack from armed militias in eastern DRC.

For its part, Mauritius announced that all passengers coming from Wuhan are being quarantined, while others from China would be monitored by healthcare workers.

Mozambique said it was suspending visas for visitors from China and blocking travel to the country, while in neighbouring South Africa, Minister of Health Zweli Mkhize said temperature screenings using non-invasive thermometers would be conducted at 12 port of entries and health officials would go on board international aircraft to determine any sick travellers.

Ivory Coast, where the continents first suspected case was reported, has also installed thermal imaging cameras at airports.

Passengers arriving on a China Southern Airlines flight from Changsha are screened for the new type of coronavirus upon their arrival at the Jomo Kenyatta international airport in Nairobi [Patrick Ngugi/AP Photo]

Major challenges

Yet, Tanzanian clinician Joachim Mabula said airport screenings may not be sufficient.

The screening process involves looking for symptoms; people can have a disease yet not show symptoms, he said.

He added that many African countries do not have the required laboratory capacity to respond to an infectious disease like the new coronavirus, an issue also highlighted by Erondu.

Unfortunately, many disease surveillance systems throughout African countries are weak and most of the continent lack diagnostic capability, for example, laboratory capacity, so identifying cases and controlling the outbreak could be difficult, especially in resource-constrained countries, Erondu said, even as she pointed out that the continent is home today to stronger and more experienced institutions such as Africa CDC, the NCDC and the Ethiopian Public Health Institute.

In Mabulas opinion, African countries should cancel flights to and from China  so far, African carriers that have taken such a step include RwandAir, Kenya Airways, Royal Air Maroc, EgyptAir, Air Madagascar and Air Mauritius, while Air Tanzania has postponed its maiden flight to China.

An official at the DRCs Ministry of Health, who chose to remain anonymous, supported such a move: In the DRC, Ebola and measles have claimed thousands of lives; an outbreak of coronavirus is the last thing we need, thus cancelling flights is sensible.

The official added, Screening and healthcare systems vary in strength from country to country, therefore if the virus reaches one African country from China, it may be difficult to stop it spreading to others.

In the officials opinion, another concern is the spreading of fake news: This leads to mass panic. African governments need to be transparent with all information.

Suzana da Lomba, a teacher based in Angolas capital, Luanda, said fake news was already having an impact.

The hysteria and lack of information globally means friends are warning each other to not go to Chinese-owned shops and restaurants.
Whats new? Attempts to reach agreement upon a UN Security Council resolution on using UN assessed contributions to co-finance African Union (AU) peace support operations have ended acrimoniously, damaging relations between the Council and the AU Peace and Security Council. Discussions are now on hold, offering the parties an opportunity to clarify positions.

Why does it matter? Access to UN financing offers the hope of predictable and sustainable funding for vital AU peace operations, whose offensive mandates are often better suited to current conflict dynamics in Africa. An AU summit in February 2020 could determine if and how the proposal is pursued.

What should be done? The UN and AU should pursue a compromise. It could involve agreeing to treat AU troop contributions as in-kind payment, creating a joint mechanism for monitoring human rights compliance, and stipulating that a commander reporting to both institutions will lead co-financed missions.

Executive Summary

A proposal to use UN assessed contributions as a means of providing sustainable and predictable financing for African Union (AU) peace support operations is perhaps the most contentious issue facing the two institutions. The Security Councils attempts to agree on a resolution that would see a 25:75 funding split between the AU and UN for Council-authorised AU-led missions ended acrimoniously, threatening to taint relations with its AU counterpart, the Peace and Security Council (PSC). Central to the dispute are doubts about the AUs ability to pay its share. Discussions are on hold until African leaders meet in February 2020 to decide if and how the AU will meet its obligation. The timeout presents a much needed opportunity for the AU to clarify key positions. UN member states need to do the same. They should then come back together and make the necessary compromises to get the proposal off the ground  an outcome that would serve both institutions and their common goals of conflict prevention, mitigation and resolution in Africa.

Since its founding in 2002, the AU has assumed greater responsibility for maintaining peace and security in Africa, including through peace support operations. Its ability and willingness to mount counter-terrorism and peace enforcement missions to help stabilise African countries confronting grave violence have become increasingly important in the face of rapidly changing conflict dynamics, especially given that such operations fall outside the scope of traditional UN peacekeeping. Resources, however, have been a challenge for Addis Ababa, which has generally needed to seek them on an ad hoc basis from non-UN donors or quickly shift missions wholesale to the UN, as it did in the cases of Mali (2013) and the Central African Republic (2014). Against this backdrop, the AU has repeatedly called on the UN to share the financial burden of its operations in support of peace and security on the continent.

The AU first sought the use of UN assessed contributions in 2007 for its mission in Sudan, which was on the verge of collapse due to a funding shortage. The idea eventually gained traction in 2015, after an internal AU decision cleared the way for negotiations over a proposal under which the AU would pay 25 per cent of the costs of Security Council-authorised missions and the UN would cover the rest through assessed contributions.

Those negotiations have since foundered, however, on three main issues. First, the parties have been unable to reach a clear understanding of how the 25:75 split will work in practice, especially regarding the AUs ability to meet its financial obligations. Secondly, Security Council members continue to question whether AU missions financed through UN assessed contributions would comply with both international human rights law and the UNs financial transparency and accountability standards. Finally, there are disputes about which institution should have overall force command. These issues are particularly important to the U.S. and the UK, which have indicated that they are unlikely to support the proposal until these problems have been resolved to their satisfaction.

The AU has made progress on a number of fronts. It has taken significant steps to ensure that the long dormant Peace Fund (the mechanism through which it plans to finance its 25 per cent) will soon be operational by requiring mandatory member states contributions and introducing a sanctions regime to deter and penalise defaulters. As a result, for the first time in its 27-year history, the fund has an endowment of over $100 million ($131 million), though it is still well short of its $400 million annual target.

Both the AU and the UN have hit the limits of what they can do on their own with their current tools for promoting peace and security in Africa.
Greece is known for its abundance of Islands which attract millions of tourists throughout the year. Greece features somewhere around 2000 to 6000 islands in total with the majority being unexplored and up to approximately a thousand islands available for commercial purposes.

The Islands are also grouped into clusters; for example, the North Aegean islands, the Ionian islands, and the Argo-Saronic Islands. This natural bounty of Islands has allowed Greece to be on the top of the list for many travel enthusiasts. Below are some Islands from Greece to fuel up a traveller's wishlist. Read on to know more about Island hopping in Greece:

Also read: Lord Of The Rings Experiences In New Zealand For Fans Across The Globe

Santorini

Santorini is one of the most commercial Islands in Greece which reportedly attracts various couples from around the globe. A volcanic eruption in three centuries ago blew up Santorini and left-back black sand beaches and extremely steep cliffs. Tourists can enjoy a boat trip to the crater of Nea Kameni or soak in the hot springs of Palia Kameni. But the mesmerising views on this island attracts major attention.

Also read: Day Trip From Salzburg That Will Help One Enjoy The Natural Beauty In Austria

Mykonos

Mykonos is known for its celebratory culture. The party island attracts a much younger demographic who do not prefer the quieter islands. It is affectionately also known as 'the party animal of the Greek islands' as it has many clubs open around the clock. The party culture of this island was reportedly well-established before it boomed in the western countries.

Also read: Things To Do In Finland: Places To Visit In This City Of Neo-classic Architecture

Crete

Crete is the largest Greek island which consists of diverse attractions from beaches to nightlife. One of the biggest tourist attractions to Crete is the hidden churches, monasteries and mosques in the mountain ranges which face directly to the deep sea. The island reportedly has a fine balance between night culture and natural bounty which attracts almost every demographic of tourists.

Also read: Things To Do In Finland: Places To Visit In Turku, A City Dominated By River Aura

Also read: Hill Stations In Meghalaya That Must Be On Every Nature Lover's List

Image Credit - Alex Korolkoff on Unsplash
Soon after gas station clerk Donna Pena was shot dead during a March 2019 robbery, sheriff's deputies combed the neighborhood looking for evidence.

About two blocks northwest of the crime scene, they found a blue sweatshirt, inscribed with "NAVY," that surveillance video showed belonged to one of the suspects. Investigators took a DNA sample from the sweatshirt, but it didn't return any matches.

Until 11 months later.

On Monday, investigators received word that the sample had a match from the Texas Department of Public Safety, a break in the nearly year-long case that led to the arrest Friday night of 20-year-old Marcus Kenneth Cox-Davis.

Sheriff Ed Gonzalez said Friday night that a new state law, which requires a person to give a DNA sample if the are arrested for certain felony offenses, was responsible for the link. Cox-Davis had provided the sample after he was charged with another aggravated robbery in November.

The Krystal Jean Baker Act passed the Legislature last year, and Gov. Greg Abbott signed it into law in June. Baker, 13, was a teen girl murdered in Chambers County 1996. Her killer was caught using DNA evidence in 2010.

Prosecutors described the Pena murder investigation early Saturday at Cox-Davis initial probable cause hearing in Harris County District Court, where a magistrate denied him bail.

Cox-Davis did not appear at the hearing.

Investigators say he and another man ran into the Shell gas station near FM 1960 and Perry Street on March 8, 2019, wearing hoodies with bandannas covering their faces.

Prosecutors said Saturday that Cox-Davis, wearing the Navy sweatshirt, held a handgun against the back of Penas head as she attempted to open the cash register. His accomplice took Penas purse and cell phone.

Before Pena could open the drawer, Cox-Davis allegedly fired the handgun, killing her. Pena had two children, ages 4 and 15.

An appointed defense attorney told a judge during the hearing that the crime was certainly horrific, but its too soon to tell whether the DNA sample on the sweatshirt necessarily means that it was Cox-Davis wearing it that night at the scene of the murder.

Investigators believe the two men are responsible for a slew of other aggravated robberies as well.

When the DNA match came in, sheriffs deputies checked Cox-Davis criminal history and found the November 2019 case.

When police arrested him and his co-defendant for that crime, they were found inside a car in a Valero parking with a gun, wearing facial coverings by all appearances preparing to commit another aggravated robbery.

His co-defendant in that November case, Thomas Alford, was also charged with an aggravated robbery of a Subway in February 2019, a month before Penas murder.

Surveillance video in that case showed Alford robbing the store with another man authorities believe to be Cox-Davis. The video shows him wearing the same Navy sweatshirt.
The beginning of the school year when you got to show off your new duds, new cars, new looks!

Sports! Playing, cheering, watching high school athletics.

The arts: Dramatic arts, musical groups and shows, graphic arts groups, debate, etc.

The prom! No dancing the night away or punch bowl antics.

The daily interactions. Just being with the group, hanging with friends and classmates.

Access to college recruiters and advisors  its harder to line up higher education.

Walking onstage to get a diploma while all the family is watching with everyone elses family.

Vote

View Results
Soon after Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharam unveiled the Union Budget 2020-21, Opposition leaders tore into the Budget, claiming that if offered no concrete solutions to the challenges facing the economy

After Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharam unveiled the Union Budget 2020-21, Opposition leaders tore into her and the document, claiming it offered no concrete solutions to the challenges facing the economy.

Leading the charge was senior Congress leader P Chidambaram, who said the Modi government is in complete denial that the economy faces a "grave macro economic challenge" and it has given up on reviving the economy, accelerating growth or creating jobs.

There is nothing in the Budget that leads one to believe that growth will revive in 2020-21 and the claim of 6 to 6.5 percent growth next year is "astonishing and even irresponsible", the former finance minister said at a press conference.

"The government has given up on reviving the economy or accelerating the growth rate or promoting private investment or increasing efficiency or creating jobs or winning a greater share of world trade," he said.

He said the government "does not believe" in reforms and certainly not in structural reforms as the finance minister has outrightly rejected every reform idea in the Economic Survey. "Did the FM read the Economic Survey? Was the chief economic adviser privy to the content of the Budget speech? I think the answer to both questions is in the negative," Chidambaram said.

There were multiple themes, segments and programmes in the Budget speech, leaving the listener dazed and confused, he claimed.

"It was a laundry list of old (that is current) programmes. I am pretty certain that even the most loyal Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) MP or supporter cannot latch on to any idea or statement in the Budget speech and take it to the people," Chidambaram said.

If the ongoing programmes have failed the people, how can throwing more money into the ongoing programmes change anything, he asked.

"You did not ask for such a budget and you did not deserve such a budget for voting the BJP to power. But you have to live with it until the government is forced to revisit it, as it did in 2019," Chidambaram said.

The Indian economy is demand-constrained and investment-starved, and the finance minister has not acknowledged these two challenges, he said.

Congress leader Rahul Gandhi too echoed the criticism, claiming that the budget was repetitive and did not contain any strategic idea or anything concrete.

Talking to reporters outside Parliament soon after the presentation of the budget, "The main issues confronting this country today are unemployment and the situation as far as the economy is concerned. I did not see any concrete idea, any strategic idea that would help our youngsters get jobs. I saw a lot of tactical stuff, redundant things, I did not see any central idea," he told reporters.

He said the Union Budget describes the government quite well, which is of "all talking" and nothing concrete. He also hit out at the finance minister for her 160-minute long speech, which he said, contained "nothing of consequence."

Our youth want jobs. Instead they got the longest budget speech in parliamentary history that said absolutely nothing of consequence. PM & FM both looked like they have absolutely no clue what to do next. #Budget2020 pic.twitter.com/5oUCs8rp32  Rahul Gandhi (@RahulGandhi) February 1, 2020

CPM's Sitaram Yechury also slammed the Budget, claiming that nothing substantial was being done to address a host a of economic concerns such as increasing unemployment, farmers' suicides and price rise.

Just platitudes & slogans. Nothing substantial to alleviate peoples misery, the growing unemployment, rural wage crash, farmers distress suicides and galloping prices. #BudgetSpeech pic.twitter.com/867dB4f4lc  Sitaram Yechury (@SitaramYechury) February 1, 2020

Opposition leader Sharad Yadav said the economic growth is at a low of 4.5 percent and the issue of unemployment has become grave but the Budget offers nothing to tackle these problems. It does not touch on the issues such as farmer suicides, poverty, rising inflation, cases of bank frauds, he said, demanding that Sitharaman should "apologise" for "ruining" the economy.

BJP ally JD(U) praised the Budget for its initiative on all fronts, but added that more could have been done to address the "rural distress".

Mamata Banerjee criticises disinvestment plans

Expressing her opposition to the Central government's proposal to sell a part of its shares in Life Insurance Corporation, West Bengal chief minister Mamata Banerjee described it as a plan to "ambush" the legacy of public institutions.

I am shocked & appalled to see how the Central Government plans to ambush the heritage & legacy of public institutions. Its the end of a sense of security. Is it also the end of an era?#LIC #IndianRailways #AirIndia #BSNL  Mamata Banerjee (@MamataOfficial) February 1, 2020

Earlier in the day, Sitharaman said the insurance behemoth, fully-owned by the Central government, will be listed as part of the government's disinvestment initiative. Established in 1956, LIC has the highest market share in the life insurance segment in the country.

Regional parties, states disappointed

Regional parties, too expressed dissatisfaction with the budgetary provisions for respective states.

Arvind Kejriwal, AAP chief and chief minister of Delhi, which heads to polls in on 8 February, alleged that step-motherly treatment has been meted out to Delhi again in the Union Budget.

"Delhi had high expectations from the Budget, but step-motherly treatment has been meted out to it again," he posted on Twitter in Hindi. He also took potshots at the BJP, asking, ""When Delhi doesn't figure in the BJP's priorities, why should people vote for it?"

The AAP national convenor also asked that if the BJP was disappointing Delhi before the Assembly elections "will it fulfill its promises after the polls?"

In Maharashtra, the ruling Shiv Sena, NCP and Congress on Saturday termed as "disappointing" the Union Budget, which they said didn't offer much to the "highest tax-payers" of Maharashtra and Mumbai.

"The budget has done injustice to Mumbai and Maharashtra," tweeted Chief Minister Uddhav Thackeray from his official Twitter handle, adding that the budget seems to have to no provisions for the development of infrastructure in Mumbai, as also for the funding of the Metro project or the development of rail services in the city.

Thackeray also hit out at the government for failing to make adequate provisions for women, children, the elderly and for persons with disabilities.

The Maharashtra Congress said that the budget is like a "new bottle containing old wine", which has disappointed the "highest tax payers".

"The budget has left Maharashtra and Mumbai the most disappointed. Mumbai gives highest tax, Maharashtra gives highest tax to the Centre, but they were completely ignored (in the budget)," PTI quoted Maharashtra revenue minister and state Congress president Balasaheb Thorat as saying.

Claiming that current agricultural growth rate is not moving beyond 2 percent when it should be at 11 percent to achieve the goal set by the Modi government, Thorat questioned the Centre's claim of doubling the income of farmers by 2022

The growth rate of the country is rapidly falling in 2020-2021 too is likely to remain at 6%. In such a situation, where is the government going to raise money for the schemes announced today?  Balasaheb Thorat (@bb_thorat) February 1, 2020

"How are they going to double it then? So, it is clear they have made a false announcement," he added.

The Budget has introduced new slabs and reduced the tax rate for different slabs for an individual income of up to Rs 15 lakh per annum, if a taxpayer opts for foregoing exemptions and deductions.

Referring to the announcement, Shiv Sena spokesperson Manisha Kayande said there was no clarity about the option the government has offered. "Like who will not like to get tax benefit? Suppose if a person is investing in LIC or MediClaim, why will a person not opt for tax benefit? People basically do these investments for tax benefit apart from getting an insurance (cover). So, there is no clarity on this," she said.

The Sena leader expressed concern over "closing down" of government-owned enterprises like the Air India. "So, this is a major drawback. Plus, they are banking completely on LIC. Almost 290 million people are investing in the LIC. That means the government's eye is on public money," she added.

NCP spokesperson Mahesh Tapase accused the government of "over commitment and under delivery" leading to loss of faith of investors, industry sector and consumers. "Instant negative reaction by the stock market proves this," he said.

Tapase said the current gross domestic product figures do not support the government's claim of achieving the target of $5 trillion economy.

The NCP leader also questioned the announcement of five new smart cities at a time when nothing much allegedly changed in the case of 100 smart cities the government had earlier declared. "The BJP should steer away from vote banks politics and concentrate more on economic prosperity of the common man if it is serious about a higher GDP," he added.

In Andhra Pradesh, the ruling YSR Congress and the Opposition Telugu Desam Party both dubbed the Union budget 2020-21 as disappointing for the state and decried non-allocation of grants that were overdue to the state.

YSRC parliamentary party leader V Vijayasai Reddy said the budget was totally disappointing as the state got only an empty hand.

"There was no mention of the special category status to the state or various incentives. Neither was there a mention of the special grant for backward districts development nor promises made in the AP Reorganisation Act, 2014," he lamented.

Noting that the Centre should have released more funds for the Polavaram multipurpose project, the Rajya Sabha member said they would raise the injustice done to Andhra with the Centre.

TDP politburo member Yanamala Ramakrishnudu blamed the YSRC government for failing to extract the states due from the Centre.

"The faulty policies of the Jagan Mohan Reddy government have brought disgrace to the state, which has been in chaos because of the "inept" governance. Though the YSRC leadership boasted it would force the Centre to release more funds to the state, it has clearly failed as the Budget indicated," the former finance minister said.

He also said that the chief minister owes an explanation to people on the failure to secure adequate Central grants.

NDA constituents in Tamil Nadu, including the AIADMK on Saturday welcomed the Union budget, but the Opposition, led by the DMK, lashed out at its various proposals.

While Tamil Nadu chief minister K Palaniswami lauded the budget, DMK president and state Leader of Opposition MK Stalin said

the annual exercise did not address issues like the economic slowdown and unemployment.

Stalin criticised the Budget, saying there were no major allocations for Tamil Nadu and accused the Centre of furthering its agenda of "Hindi imposition" .

"This Budget is more of a cultural imposition, with scant regard for the economic slowdown and slowing rural growth," PTI quoted him as saying. "The BJP government, which is keen on Hindi imposition in anything... has called the Indus Valley civilisation Saraswathi Sindhu Civilisation in the Budget," he said in a statement.

Further, the long Budget address by Sitharaman was 'directionless,' he added.

Follow full coverage of Union Budget 2020-21 here

Sitharaman gave relief to companies on payment of dividend in the Union Budget as the government looked to boost consumption to bring the economy out of the worst slowdown in 11 years.

The minister proposed raising customs duty on a variety of products ranging from tableware and kitchenware, electrical appliances to footwear, furniture, stationery and toys to give a level playing field to domestic companies and boost 'Make in India'.

With inputs from PTI
Police are reminding residents to lock their cars after various thefts from vehicles were reported Friday.

St. John police said they responded to the 9500 block of West 95th Place at about 2 a.m. Friday after a man saw three to four men dressed in hooded jackets in his neighbor's car.

When the alleged suspects saw the man, they fled in a dark-colored, four-door sedan, police said.

After the men fled, the witness said he checked his own car and discovered his cellphone was missing.

The witness' neighbor, who resides in the 9600 block of West 95th Place, told police although the men entered his car, nothing appeared to be missing.

Video footage provided to the police shows one of the alleged suspects holding a handgun, police said.

While police were searching the area for the suspect's vehicle, they learned a vehicle matching the description was seen in Schererville.

At 2:41 a.m., Schererville police officers encountered a stolen, four-door blue Acura with Illinois registration in the area of Primrose Lane and Poppyfield Place, said Cmdr. Jeff Cook.
As jubilant Brexit supporters gather to celebrate the UK's departure from the European Union, Scotland is digging in to its position as the last bastion of political resistance.

First Minister Nicola Sturgeon said her government in Edinburgh is looking at all options for an independence referendum, which the UK government is refusing to sanction. They include asking the courts to ascertain whether the Scottish Parliament already has the power to hold a consultative vote.

EU supporters gather outside the Scottish Parliament in Edinburgh after Britain left the European Union. Credit:PA

However, the Scottish National Party leader said the turmoil in Catalonia, which held an illegal vote on leaving Spain in 2017, showed why Scotland needed an independence vote that was legally watertight. Until then, she will focus on building support for independence.

"For me to pretend that there are shortcuts or clever wheezes that can magically overcome the obstacles we face would be to do the independence cause a disservice," Sturgeon said in a speech on Brexit Day. Routes toward a referendum are "constantly under review," she said.
Deputy Chief Minister of Delhi, Manish Sisodia on Saturday hit out at the Centre over the budget saying it has betrayed the aspirations of the people of Delhi.

At a press conference, Sisodia said, "This budget has betrayed the aspirations of Delhi people. We all were waiting for the budget as it is election time in Delhi these days and we hoped that there will be a good announcement in the budget for Delhi."

Sisodia said, "Since 2001, Delhi has been getting lesser Central share. 42 per cent of Central taxes should be given to states and by this logic, Delhi should have got Rs 7,000 crore."

"People of Delhi pay tax amounting to Rs 1.5 lakh crore and accordingly Delhi should have got more but this time too, we got Rs 325 crore," he said.

"The MCDs have not been allotted any funds which were required for the payment of salaries of the employees," Sisodia further added.

Union Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman on Saturday presented Union Budget for 2020-21, which proposes to give Indian economy an impetus to emerge as more vibrant and stronger.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
Kim Brent / The Enterprise

Restaurants open and close all the time in Southeast Texas, but there was something particularly inspiring about the rebirth of Vautrots Cajun Cuisine in Bevil Oaks. Incredibly, this is the third time this restaurant has figuratively risen from the ashes of destruction, causing the Vautrot family to bestow on it the well-deserved moniker the Cajun phoenix. Moreover, its happening in a community that was hit as hard as just about any in the region by Tropical Storm Harvey in 2017. But after two long years of struggle and worry, the restaurant is finally serving food once again.

That kind of resilience is common in Southeast Texas after the many natural disasters (and lately, industrial accidents), but rarely is it demonstrated in such a tenacious manner. For the record, Vautrots Cajun Cuisine has bounced back repeatedly in the 30 years the family has operated the restaurant.
Recall that social media was earlier set ablaze following the news that Bishop David Oyedepo, the general overseer of Living Faith bible church also known as winners chapel, was denied visa by the US embassy in Nigeria.

The news prompted a popular radio personality, Daddy Freeze to mock the popular cleric.

However, the US embassy released an official statement describing the news as false.

Read Also: US Embassy Debunks US Visa Refusal To Bishop Oyedepo

Shortly after the news, one of the spiritual children of the popular cleric then took to the comment section of Daddy Freeze on Instagram to launch a scathing attack at him and in split seconds, the radio personality also fired a missile at the spiritual child.

See their exchange below:

The spiritual bastard children have begun to flood my page, today I have their time.
According to police, there have been at least five robberies in the downtown area that all follow the same pattern in which suspects arrange on the gay dating app Grindr or other dating sites to meet their victims. Then, once the men are in a hotel room, the suspect displays a stun gun and demands money and other valuables. In at least two of the incidents, the suspect used the stun gun after the victims refused to hand over their property. In other instances, the victims turned over their property after the suspect threatened to use the stun gun.
El Salvador and Guatemala both announced Friday they will not allow people travelling from China into their respective countries one day after the World Health Organization declared the outbreak of a new virus a global emergency.

The government has confirmed there are no coronavirus cases in El Salvador but screening is taking place at international ports of entry.

At the international airport in San Salvador, arriving passengers were thermally screened and checked by health care workers before being allowed to leave the airport.

"Each one (country) has its own mechanism activated based on the international health regulation that is part of the international strategies that organizations such as the WHO and OPS (Office of Public Health) dictate," said Francisco Alabi, El Salvador's Vice Minister of Health.

In Brazil, the government has yet to announce travel restrictions.

Some passengers arriving at Rio de Janeiro's international airport wore masks as did airport employees.

Passengers travelling from Dubai said their flight was normal and no one aboard had health issues that they were aware of.

China on Friday confirmed nearly 10,000 cases of the virus, which can cause pneumonia and other severe respiratory symptoms.

So far 213 people have died from the virus in just two months.
Azerbaijan is ready to assist China in the fight against coronavirus, President Ilham Aliyev said. The Azerbaijani leader also expressed condolences to Chinese President Xi Jinping in connection with the deaths due to the virus outbreak.

"Im extremely saddened by the news of the death of people as a result of the outbreak of a new type of coronavirus in your country ... I assure you that these temporarily difficult days, the people of Azerbaijan are in solidarity with the friendly Chinese people and we are ready to provide any help," RIA Novosti quotes Ilham Aliyev as saying.
A physician who said he developed "a nasty cold with a cough and runny nose" while on a flight from Hong Kong to Toronto is questioning whether there are adequate safeguards to prevent the spread of coronavirus in Canada.

Massey Beveridge, a retired general surgeon, said he was "waved" through Pearson International Airport even after reporting his symptoms to a border services agent.

"My nose is running like Niagara Falls, I'm coughing and feeling pretty miserable," Beveridge told CBC News.

He says he explained his symptoms to the agent and that he was taken to a screened-off area with face masks and hand wash.

"The immigration officer came back a few minutes later and said, 'Here's a handout. You can call public health if you like'," Beveridge added.

"I figured there'd be some kind of public health person coming to interview me."

There are currently two confirmed coronavirus cases in Toronto, a husband and wife both in their 50s who recently travelled to Wuhan, China  the epicentre of the outbreak. A third case has also been confirmed in B.C.

Ontario public health officials have repeatedly stressed that the risk of coronavirus infection in Canada is low. Evidence suggests transmission of the virus from person to person requires close contact, like the kind between immediate family members who live together, said Dr. David Williams, the province's chief medical officer, this week.

Further, lessons from the 2003 SARS outbreak suggest many airport screening procedures are ineffective.

Beveridge was returning to Canada from Cambodia but changed planes in Hong Kong after flying from Phnom Penh.

He said he was anxious, even though he had not been anywhere near Wuhan. Cambodia has so far reported only one case of the coronavirus and it was travel-related.

Additionally, given the concerns over the coronavirus in China and other Southeast Asian countries, he figured he'd better do something on his return to make sure he didn't spread whatever he had.

Story continues

Nobody even took my temperature. - Massey Beveridge, retired surgeon

"Nobody even took my temperature. And you know if we're really trying to keep this out of Canada, it seems that that was not a very thorough screening process," Beveridge said.

The outbreak of the new coronavirus began last month in Wuhan, a city of 11 million people. The World Health Organization (WHO) says it has killed at least 213 people, all in China. More than 9,600 people globally have been infected, the vast majority in China, though cases have been confirmed in 19 other countries.

Yesterday, WHO declared the emerging situation a public health emergency of international concern.

Justin Tang/Canadian Press

CBC News reached out to the Greater Toronto Airports Authority (GTAA), the body that oversees Pearson, for comment. A spokesperson said the Public Health Agency of Canada (PHAC) is responsible for determining the response to coronavirus.

Canada began implementing some enhanced screening measures for passengers on flights from China to Toronto, Montreal and Vancouver on Jan. 22. They include signs urging travellers to report flu-like symptoms, additional health-realted questions at kiosks and pamphlets with information about what people should do if their condition worsens.

Watch infectious disease experts discuss why many enhanced screening measures are ineffective:

Dr. Theresa Tam, chief public health officer of Canada, said it's likely Beveridge was not screened because he was in Hong Kong only briefly and hadn't been to mainland China.

"For the coronavirus, the enhanced border measures, on top of what we have as a foundation, is essentially providing the information on the screen and the kiosk questions and the referral to Canadian border service agents," Tam told CBC News.

Tam said anyone who is sick should tell a border service agent.

Call for enhanced screening at all Canadian airports

Frank Scarpitti, the mayor of Markham, 30 kilometres northeast of Toronto, says while he has great confidence in public health officials at the federal, provincial and local levels, he continues to press for the federal government to put in more enhanced screening at all Canadian airports.

"I think it would just give Canadians a greater sense of confidence that that additional step is being taken," Scarpitti told CBC News.

"It's not going to catch everyone but it's just another layer of screening, rather than just voluntary screening, and indicating where someone may have travelled."

CBC

Scarpitti also pointed to measures introduced at other major airports in New York City, San Francisco and Los Angeles that involve passengers from China being screened for symptoms.

"You just have to look south of the border, the U.S. airports instituted that," he said.

"Because of the number of airports that they have, they're actually redirecting passengers to the airports that have that technology," Scarpitti said.

Global Affairs Canada said there are 196 Canadians currently seeking consular help to leave China, and Canada has secured a charter aircraft to bring home Canadians stranded in the affected region.
Nokia is hosting an MWC event on February 23 in Barcelona, Spain. The company hasn't revealed what smartphones it's going to announce at the event, but a Nokia smartphone codenamed "Captain America" has surfaced, which might go official at the event.

Popular leakster Evan Blass has shared a couple of images of Nokia Captain America, which might be the Nokia 5.2. The pictures reveal it will sport a waterdrop notch display and come with a wide earpiece, which may double up as a loudspeaker.



Nokia Captain America

Around the back, the smartphone has an LED flash surrounded by four cameras inside a circular plate, with the fingerprint reader placed right below.

We can also see that the volume rocker and power button are placed on the right side, with the USB port located at the bottom.

The source goes on to detail that the Nokia Captain America will come with 6GB RAM and 64GB storage. Price is quoted at $180 and it will be released sometime around March 4.

Source
Nigerias Minister of Information, Lai Mohammed, has come under fire after denying the National Assembly is considering a bill to regulate the activities of Nigerians on social media.

In an interview with the German broadcaster, DW, aired Thursday, Mr Mohammed said he was speaking authoritatively that the controversial Protection from Internet Falsehood and Manipulations Bill was not before the National Assembly.

Tim Sebastian, host of the channels Conflict Zone, had asked the minister four times about the bill to buttress his argument that the Nigerian government had grown intolerant of criticisms, and was clamping down on citizens basic rights.

Each time, Mr Mohammed replied he did not know about the infamous legislation and insisted it was not before the parliament.

I am not even aware of that bill, the minister said the first time, before adding: There is no such bill before the house.

I can say authoritatively, there is no such bill, he affirmed, appearing to confuse the interviewer.

Mr Mohammed, who has been minister since 2015, was clearly making a false claim. The controversial social media bill was sponsored by the Niger East senator, Mohammed Musa.

The bill, which seeks to criminalize the use of the social media in peddling false or malicious information, caused a major backlash in 2019 with many Nigerians condemning it.

The bill has not been withdrawn yet. If passed and signed into law, it will punish anyone found guilty of its provisions with a N300,000 fine, three years imprisonment, or both. Corporate organisations face a fine not exceeding N10 million.

The bill, alongside another targeting hate speech, has been widely criticised in and outside of Nigeria.

Ahead of the introduction of the bill, the federal government through Mr Mohammed had vowed to crack down on fake news and hate speeches in the countrys social media space.

Mr Mohammed said at the time that the government was working to inject rationality into the social media space in the country, to tackle fake news and hate speeches spreading without restriction.

On November 15, 2019, the information minister held a meeting with the Guild of Corporate Online Publishers in Abuja and said there was no going back on the social media regulation. He said public criticism of the bill will not deter the government from the plan. The statement showed the minister was aware of the bill and even supported it.

When the Nigerian Union of Journalists cautioned the federal government on the bill, Mr. Mohammed asked NUJ to support the bill because they will be the first victim when the people lose confidence in the media due to the reckless actions of non-journalists and purveyors of fake news and hate speech.

He said the bill did not serve to stifle free speech or gag journalists rather only purveyors of fake news and hate speech need to be worried.

Let me be clear: We are going ahead with our plan to stop, as much as we can, the anarchists, non-patriots, and purveyors of fake news and hate speech. No responsible government will sit by and allow these purveyors of fake news and hate speech a free reign. Thats why many countries of the world are taking measures to regulate the social media, Mr. Mohammed said.

But asked about the bill on DW, Mr Mohammed denied knowledge of the legislation.

Hear the minister:

DW: What also worried people enormously was your decision to submit a bill which in its original form would have seen anyone convicted of so-called hate speech actually sentenced to death by hanging under particular circumstances. You actually wanted and you sought authorization from parliament to kill people because of something they said. Why would you do a thing like that?

Mohammed: I think what is even more shocking is the ignorance of people, there is what is called separation of power in major democracies. This particular bill we are talking about is a bill submitted not by the executive but by the legislative arm of government. So how can you accuse the executive. We did not submit this bill; it is a private members bill by a senator which is 

DW: And youre telling me you didnt want it to go through, is that right?

Mohammed: Do we have a choice in which bills go through or not? Which bill is being discussed? Theres public hearing. You see the government does not come in until when the bill has been passed.

DW: And you didnt use any influence to get that passed?

Advertisements



Mohammed: Absolutely not.

DW: If this bill had gone through minister, journalists couldve been jailed for any article deemed threatening abusive or insulting and couldve been hanged if there were caused any loss of life. Well you did not object this bill, did you?

Mohammed: You see there is what is called doctrine of separation of power, the only thing you can do as a president is to refuse your assent to such a law. The law has not been passed, was not originated by the executive 

DW: The law is still going through the Senate.

Mohammed: How does Mr. President stop it without being accused of dictatorship and 

DW: You telling me that you wouldnt have signed the law with that provision in it?

Mohammed: Youre being speculative

DW: You cant tell me that can you?

Mohammed: You see when we get to that bridge we have to cross it, we look at the contents of the law and what form it would be passed. But you see people rush hastily to judgement. You said we submitted that bill, we did not

DW: You didnt want it submitted?

Mohammed: We dont micromanage the parliament

DW: Really? What about the protection from internet falsehood and manipulations bill, also carrying draconian provisions, under its terms journalists can be arrested for publishing content.

Mohammed: Who is the author of that bill?

DW: Are you against this bill or not?

Mohammed: I am not even aware of that bill

DW: The protection from internet falsehood and manipulations bill, youre not even aware of it? It is causing an outcry internationally, and youre the minister of information and you know nothing about it

Mohammed: There is no such bill before the house

DW: There is a bill.

Mohammed: I can say that authoritatively, there is no such bill before the house.

DW: Reporters without borders said these bills talking about the prohibition of hate speech bill and the protection from internet falsehood and manipulations bill, they say these bills contain extremely harsh penalties that violate the international law and are likely to be used to gag the media. And you are saying you know nothing about this bill?

Mohammed: I dont.

Nigerians React

The ministers comments has sparked anger with many Nigerians saying Mr Mohammed was being untruthful.

The reason Lai Mohammed denied that bill is because they know the Bill is a shameless bill made for shameless men whit fragile egos, Twitter user, William Ukpe, wrote.

Another user, Sandra Ezekwesili, wrote, Shame on you !!Buhari Minister at it again. Imagine a minister of Information and culture dishing out lies with reckless abandon, he has no regard for posterity, disgracing Nigeria before international community. Lai Mohammed, repent for posterity sakes.

Shame on you !!Buhari Minister at it again.

Imagine a minister of Information and culture dishing out lies with reckless abandon, he has no regard for posterity, disgracing Nigeria before international community. Lai Mohammed, repent for posterity sakes. pic.twitter.com/bZqNUFvFGz  Usman Okai Austin (@Oma_igala1) January 31, 2020

Another user, EbongJc, was less dismissive. Lai Mohammed may be lying, he said. There is no such bill before the House @nassnigeria.

Instead of accusing him of lying,  should be happy that the Prohibition of the Hate Speech Bill and Protection from Internet Falsehood & Manipulation Bill DOES NOT EXIST. 

Its DEAD.
The United States top infectious disease doctor said a new study published Thursday shows people can spread the Wuhan coronavirus before symptoms are exhibited, after people who showed no signs of sickness were diagnosed with the virus in five instances.

Theres no doubt after reading this paper that asymptomatic transmission is occurring, said Dr. Anthony Fauci, director of the National Institute for Allergy and Infectious Diseases, reported CNN. This study lays the question to rest.

A study published in the New England Journal of Medicine on Thursday night showed that four German business associates became infected through asymptomatic infection.

The coronavirus, first identified in Wuhan, China, has prompted lockdowns, travel bans, and quarantines across the city and other parts of Hubei province. The World Health Organization declared it a global health emergency while the U.S. State Department called on Americans to altogether avoid traveling to mainland China.

The study said a German businessman had attended meetings with a Chinese business partner at his company near Munich on January 20 and 21. The business partner, a Shanghai resident, had visited Germany between Jan. 19 and 22. During her stay, she had been well with no signs or symptoms of infection but had become ill on her flight back to China, where she tested positive for [the Wuhan coronavirus] on Jan. 26.

Dr. Camilla Rothe, an infectious disease specialist and the lead author of the paper, told CNN that the Shanghai woman hosted her parents, who came from Wuhan. They appeared healthy during their visit but were later diagnosed with the virus.

The Shanghai woman then left Shanghai and headed to Germany. She met with employees of a Munich company but still showed no signs of the viruss symptoms. She became ill on the plane days later, Rothe said.

Two days later, according to Rothe, two German employees became sick. Rothe said one German worker was ill for a few days but recovered.

The other one had a mildly sore throat and a minimal cough, Rothe told CNN. He was clinically unspectacular.

Two more employees got sick about a week after the Shanghai woman infected the two German workers. Those employees didnt attend the meetings with the Shanghai woman but spent time with the infected German employees before they had begun displaying symptoms, Rothe said. They both tested positive for coronavirus but were mildly ill, Rothe said.

Despite these concerns, all four patients who were seen in Munich have had mild cases and were hospitalized primarily for public health purposes. Since hospital capacities are limitedin particular, given the concurrent peak of the influenza season in the northern hemisphereresearch is needed to determine whether such patients can be treated with appropriate guidance and oversight outside the hospital, according to the study.

The study comes after a top Chinese health official claimed that the virus could be transmitted without a patient exhibiting symptoms, although he provided no evidence.

Rothes revelation will likely prompt more stringent measures around the world in curbing the spread of the virus.

Meanwhile, the Centers for Disease Control identified the sixth patient in the United States, saying that a woman who had traveled from Wuhan transmitted the virus to her spouse in the first person-to-person case in the country.

From The Epoch Times
Brexit 1) Johnson to take a tough line with the EU on trade negotiations

Boris Johnson is preparing to impose full customs and border checks on all European goods entering the UK after Brexit, in a ramping up of pressure on the coming EU-UK trade talks, the Telegraph has learned. In a radical departure from pre-election no deal planning that prioritised the smooth flow of goods into the UK from Europe, Whitehall departments have been told to prepare for imposing the full panoply of checks on EU imports to the UK. The toughened approach, which is designed to give UK negotiators greater leverage against Brussels, came as Mr Johnson promised that Brexit would open an exciting new chapter in our great national drama. I know that we can turn this opportunity into a stunning success and whatever the bumps in the road ahead, I know that we will succeed, he said. Now is the time to use those tools to unleash the full potential of this brilliant country and to make better the lives of everyone in every corner of our United Kingdom.  Daily Telegraph

What happens now  Laura Kuenssberg, BBC

Bitter-sweet moment for staff at the Department for Exiting the European Union  Daily Mail

>Today:

Brexit 2) Merkel warns against Canada-style free trade deal

The UK has lost all its formal representation in Brussels and is now a third country, seeking a trade deal from outside the room with a formidable negotiating partner. Ms Merkel said talks with the UK would be the dominant theme of this year. She warned Mr Johnson that if he insisted on seeking a Canada-style trade deal with the EU, eliminating tariffs and quotas but allowing the UK to diverge from Brussels rules, there would be negative consequences for British business. The more the UK will diverge from the conditions of the single market, the bigger the differences in our future relationship will be, the German chancellor said.  Financial Times

PM aims to have 80 per cent of Britains post-Brexit trade deals covered in three years  The Sun

A letter from Emmanuel Macron to the British people  The Times

Brexit 3) Leavers celebrate in Parliament Square

Scenes of jubilation erupted at a rally in Parliament Square as the clock struck 11pm and hardcore Brexit fans had tears in their eyes as they sang a rendition of God Save The Queen. A recording of Big Bens bong was played and flares were set off as a video screen displayed the words Were Out! People in the crowd were heard screaming: Were gone! and We were there. Fireworks were set off around Britain and crowds gathered at parties to celebrate the historic moment. A jubilant Nigel Farage described it as the greatest moment in the modern history of our great nation.  The Sun

Celebrations far and wide with festivals and pub crawls to mark history  Daily Mail

Good natured crowds gather  Robert Hardman, Daily Mail

Now its time for Britain to heal its bitter division  Leader, The Sun

May welcomes the news  Daily Express

We united across political spectrum to complete the peoples crusade  Kate Hoey, Daily Express

Brexit 4) Forsyth: The EU may miscalculate over the trade negotiations

The danger is that the EU thinks that Boris Johnson will, ultimately, take what they offer, as Theresa May so often did. So they wont realise he means what he says until it is too late. As one influential Government source warns: Even if there was perfect mutual comprehension there would still be a moment of profound difficulty. In a way, the blow up between the UK and the EU cannot come soon enough. It needs to happen before the two sides can start having a more realistic negotiation.  James Forsyth, The Sun

Brexit 4) Moore: The ruled have given the rulers a lesson

These were uncomfortable lessons to learn about many of the people who run this country, but happier lessons came from the publics response. Three times after the referendum itself  in the 2017 election, in the European elections of 2019, and in the general election in December  electors had the chance to go back on their original decision. They never did so. Politicians who had tried to frustrate Brexit, most notably every single candidate who had left the Conservatives or Labour in the name of Remain, was punished at the ballot box. There is little evidence that this was because of increased support for Leave  although Leave held up astonishingly well against the BBC/Labour/Liberal Democrat/SNP and Green propaganda barrage. It was more because voters showed a clear understanding of their own constitutional function.  Charles Moore, Daily Telegraph

Brexit 5) Parris: Nothing has changed

We do not wake up to a new world this morning. We wake to the same world. Welcome back to the old, hard choices, the same choices weve faced since 64 years ago at Suez when the Americans smacked us in the mouth: a post-imperial power with dreams of exceptionalism and a tired economy, troubled by low productivity and a culture of health and welfare entitlement that we struggle to afford. Enough arguing the toss over Brexit. Its done now; it was surely a mistake; we who believed that and still do, did our utmost to persuade politicians and fellow citizens to think again and we failed. But some of us also argued that leaving the EU wouldnt be the end of the world. That, too, I still believe; and the job of politics now is to re-set expectations. A bit of a pinch is coming.  Matthew Parris, The Times

The UK is not yet at ease with itself  Jonathan Freedland, The Guardian

Brexit 6) Gove: A chance to make politics work again

The heart of the problem with our EU membership is it took power away from the people and the institutions directly accountable to them. Ministers, myself included, found every day that there were decisions which affected the lives of those we represented over which we had no effective control. From control of our borders and who could come to our country to the type of blowtorch you could use to harden the crust on a creme brulee, we were subject to EU laws enforced by EU judges with responsibility out of our hands. Our politics suffered. Pledges were made and expectations raised, only for ministers to say they couldnt deliver what they had promised and the voters wanted because Brussels tied our hands. Accountability, the muscle that makes democracy work, was weakened.  Michael Gove, The Times

EU offered NO reform  that is why weve left  Andrea Leadsom, Daily Express

PM says we need to keep digging to get out of the HS2 hole

Boris Johnson has suggested the only answer to the hole enveloping HS2 is to keep digging. In an interview for Sky Kids FYI show, the PM criticised the profligate rail project and its hopeless management. But he appeared to rule out pulling the plug on the controversial scheme, which might cost in excess of 100bn, saying in a hole the size of HS2, the only thing to do is keep digging. A final decision on the UKs largest construction project is due next month.  BBC

Perry fired from climate change role

Boris Johnson has sacked a former cabinet minister who was due to represent Britain at UN climate talks this November, prompting a row. Claire Perry ONeill, a former energy minister, was appointed president of the climate summit, known as COP26, by Mr Johnson after he became prime minister. She revealed yesterday that he had rescinded his offer and suggested he had done so because of concerns about her independence. The role will now be taken by a minister in the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy (Beis). Government sources said that there were concerns about the progress of preparations before the summit in Glasgow. They also highlighted allegations that Ms Perry ONeill swore and screamed at civil servants while she was an energy minister. Ms Perry ONeill told The Times that the bullying allegations, which were made in November 2018, were unfounded and had been dismissed with no action taken.  The Times

Starmer pledges to reintroduce free migration

Labour leadership contender Sir Keir Starmer risked infuriating Brexiteers by pledging to reintroduce free movement if he wins the party crown. The race frontrunner pledged to reverse PM Boris Johnsons clampdown on unrestricted European immigration in a speech to mark exit day.And he also demanded the vote in general elections for the three million EU nationals living here. The Shadow Brexit secretary said: We welcome migrants, we dont scapegoat them. Sir Keir, who has been blamed by some for aiding Labours catastrophic election defeat with his Brexit policy, praised the benefits of EU membership in a speech in Westminster Cathedral Hall.  The Sun

Sturgeon calls for patience from her Party on second independent referendum

Scotlands first minister has warned there are no shortcuts to indyref2 as she urged her party to patiently build the case for independence. In a speech in Edinburgh, Ms Sturgeon stressed that she still wants an independence referendum this year. But she acknowledged that it now may not happen until after next years Scottish Parliament election. And she again insisted that any referendum must be legal and legitimate. Ms Sturgeon was addressing SNP activists just hours before the UK leaves the EU at 23:00, despite Scottish voters backing Remain by 62% to 38% in the EU referendum.  BBC

Welsh Conservatives ordered to lift suspension on Assembly member

The leader of the Welsh Conservatives has been ordered by a high court judge to lift the suspension of an assembly member pending further legal action. Nick Ramsay, 44, was suspended from the Tory group after being arrested at his home in Raglan, Monmouthshire, on New Years Day. Gwent police released him the following afternoon, saying he would face no further action, but his suspension remained. Ramsay is suing Paul Davies, the leader of the Welsh Conservatives, at the high court. At a hearing in Bristol, Judge Jonathan Russen QC ordered the lifting of the suspension until a trial into the matter takes place in February. In my judgment, it is appropriate that he is restored to the membership of the group, Russen said. The court heard Ramsay was elected to the Welsh assembly in 2007 and became a member of the Conservative group.  The Guardian

Trump set for acquittal

US President Donald Trump is set to be acquitted in his impeachment trial after senators voted against calling witnesses or admitting new evidence. Democrats hoped four swing Republicans would vote for witnesses, which would have extended the trial without in all likelihood changing its outcome. In the end, only two of the four Republicans voted with Democrats. The trial now moves forward to a vote on whether to acquit President Trump, which he is all but certain to win. Senior members of President Trumps Republican Party pushed from the outset for a speedy trial with no witnesses or new evidence. Above all, they wanted to avoid senators hearing from former National Security Adviser John Bolton.  BBC

Sanders surges in Iowa  Financial Times

BBC criticised for anti British drivel

The BBC was accused of producing anti-British drivel by one of its most senior presenters in an astonishing Twitter attack.Andrew Neil criticised the corporation over a video posted on the CBBC Twitter feed. The two minute clip was from satirical childrens show Horrible Histories.It was presented by comedian Nish Kumar who introduced the video with a reference to Britains EU departure. The video features Queen Victoria being shocked to discover goods she enjoys, such as tea and sugar, are not actually produced in Britain. Mr Neil commented: This is anti-British drivel of a high order. Was any of the licence fee used to produce something purely designed to demean us? Critics pointed out its unlikely Queen Victoria would have thought either tea or sugar come from the UK.  Daily Express

Former PMs lucrative earnings from speeches

David Cameron has earned 1.6 million since resigning as prime minister while his successor Theresa May has been paid 400,000 in five months for speaking events. Accounts for the Office of David Cameron, which were made public yesterday, show earnings of 836,168 in the year to April 30, 2019. Accounts for the year before show a profit of 790,274. While the accounts do not detail where Mr Cameron has made his money, he has had lucrative consultancy work and speaking engagements. Last May, he took a job as chairman of the advisory board of the US artificial intelligence firm Afiniti. He is also a consultant for the US genomics firm Illumina and is vice-chairman at the UK-China fund, which aims to boost co-operation between the two countries. Mr Cameron is listed with the Washington Speakers Bureau, which has Tony Blair, Gordon Brown and George W Bush on its books.  The Times

News in brief
By Express News Service

BHOPAL: The Congress-ruled Madhya Pradesh might be headed towards a possible conflict-like situation between the state government and the Raj Bhawan if Chief Minister Kamal Nath goes ahead with his decision not to implement the Citizenship (Amendment) Act in the state.

The states Governor Lalji Tandon has made it clear that no state in the country can refuse to implement a law which has been enacted after being passed by Parliament and subsequent Presidential assent.

"There is a Lakshman Rekha (restriction) in the Constitution for state governments. Any bill passed by the Lok Sabha and Rajya Sabha and thereafter given the Presidential assent becomes a law. So which state in the country can deny implementing it," said Tandon.

The Governors statement is being seen as an indication about a possible conflict-like situation between the Raj Bhawan and the state government if the Congress government stuck to its present stand on the CAA.

Non-BJP ruled states, including Punjab, Rajasthan, Kerala and Chhattisgarh, have either passed resolutions via the state assemblies or via the cabinet against the CAA.

In MP, where the Congress returned to power in the state after 15 years in December 2018, CM Kamal Nath too has made it clear that the CAA won't be implemented. The CM had even led a rally on the streets of Bhopal against the CAA in December 2019.

Talking to journalists on Friday evening after the inauguration of a media room at the Raj Bhawan, the Governor, however, lauded the state's CM for decisions like building Ram Van Gaman Path in the state, announcing to build the Sita Temple in Sri Lanka and Hanuman Chalisa Path at Bhopal's Minto Hall on Mahatma Gandhi's death anniversary on Thursday.

"The CM is upholding the Sanatan culture, I like him for that," the Governor said.

The Governor's appreciation of Kamal Nath gave Congress leader Narendra Saluja (also the media coordinator to the CM) ammo to mock the BJP for opposing the CM's decisions.
MSU Extension of Midland County and cooperating parent educators sponsor the Parent's Corner. Send submissions to Midland County MSU Extension Educator, Lisa Treiber, 220 W. Ellsworth St., Midland, MI 48640.

Cooking Matters for Families

Cooking Matters for Families is a hands-on nutrition program. Parents/guardians with their children, ages 8-18, learn about preparing healthy meals together, food safety, grocery shopping and budgeting for their food. Michigan State University Extension (MSU Extension) has scheduled this free program, from 6 to 8 p.m. Mondays, Jan. 27 - March 9, at The Salvation Army, 330 Waldo Ave. Midland. The program consists of six lessons, lasting two hours each. With the help of an experienced chef and nutrition educator, participants will gain the skills and confidence to make healthy, budget-friendly meals at home as a family. Each week participants will receive take-home groceries which they can use at home to practice, as a family, a recipe they learned in class. Classes fill up fast, so call today to reserve your spot! 989-607-6516 or 989-832-6648or email salo@msu.edu.

Cooking Matters for Parents

Michigan State University Extension (MSU Extension) will be holding this free hands-on cooking and nutrition program for parents or guardians caring for children under 18, Feb 5 - March 11 at Meridian Early Childhood Center. Each week participants will learn about preparing healthy meals, grocery shopping, and budgeting. Participants will also receive take-home groceries, which can be used at home to practice a recipe learned in class. The class will take place over six Wednesdays at Meridian Early Childhood Center, 2534 N. West River Road, Sanford. Interested participants must sign up for this class in advance by calling the MSU Extension office at 989-832-6645 to register. If you are in need of childcare, contact Julie Sheets with Meridian Early Childhood Center 989-687-3455 ext. 3460.

Nature Preschool

Nature Preschool at Chippewa Nature Center, located at 400 S. Badour Road in Midland, is accepting registration requests for the 2020-21 school year. Nature Preschool is open to children who will be 3 or 4 years old by Sept. 1 for two, three or four half-day classes. Registration information packets are available at www.chippewanaturecenter.org/nature-preschool, by calling 989-631-0830 or at CNC. Placements for current and alumni families will begin Jan. 6. Placements for new families will begin Feb. 3. Questions regarding Nature Preschool should be directed to Madison Powell, Nature Preschool Director, at 989-631-0830 or mpowell@chippewanaturecenter.org.

NEMCSA Head Start

NEMCSA Head Start offers Preschool Experiences at no cost to families of children ages 3-4. Head Start also serves children with special needs and/or disabilities. Head Start is a member of the Midland County Regional Preschool Partnership. The first step to enroll is to complete an interest form online at www.michiganpreschool.org. NEMCSA Head Start offers full day and half day preschool classrooms that run four days a week. There are locations in Midland, Sanford and Mills area. Sites include Longview Early Childhood Center, M-20 Locations, Washington Street, Sanford Early Childhood Center, and North Midland Family Center. Contact Megan Greer 832-0968 or Kelly Scoles 832-7520, to schedule an application appointment to learn if your family is eligible for this high quality NEMCSA Head Start Preschool program.
New Delhi: Law Minister Ravi Shankar Prasad on Saturday said the government is ready to talk to the protesters at Shaheen Bagh to clear their doubts over the amended Citizenship law, but it should be in a "structured form". This is perhaps for the first time a Union minister has expressed willingness to communicate with the Shaheen Bagh protestors who have been staging a sit-in since last 40 days to protest the Citizenship Amendment Act.

"Government is ready to talk to protestors of Shaheen Bagh but then it should be in a structured form and the @narendramodi govt is ready to communicate with them and clear all their doubts they have against CAA," he tweeted.

Prasad also shared a link of a TV debate in which he participated. In the debate, a person associated with the protest asked the minister why the central government was not trying to communicate with the protesters at Shaheen Bagh.

Prasad said it was a "good thing" that people were protesting for days but some people were heard saying on television that there would not be dialogue until the CAA was rolled back.

"If you want a government representative to talk, then there should be a structured request from Shaheen Bagh which says all the people there want to talk on the subject," Prasad said.

He made it clear that Shaheen Bagh was not the place to hold talks. "What if someone goes there and is mistreated," he said.

The Shaheen Bagh protest site in southeast Delhi is at the centrestage of BJP's polls campaign.
Share this article Whatsapp

Facebook

Twitter

Linkedin News Desk (Agence France-Presse) London, United Kingdom  Sat, February 1, 2020 06:35 709 7f440ff09e92db75a02bbad2061efba3 2 World #UK,#Brexit,European-Union,Boris-Johnson Free

Britain on Friday ended almost half a century of European Union membership, making a historic exit after years of bitter arguments to chart its own uncertain path in the world.

There were celebrations and tears across the country as the EU's often reluctant member became the first to leave an organisation set up to forge unity among nations after the horrors of World War II.

Thousands of people waving Union Jack flags packed London's Parliament Square to mark the moment of Brexit at 11 pm (2300 GMT) -- midnight in Brussels.

"We are a free nation," declared John Moss, a 44-year-old businessman who joined the crowd, which erupted into cheers as the clock ticked down.

Many pro-Europeans, including many of the 3.6 million EU citizens who made their lives in Britain, marked the occasion with solemn candlelit vigils.

Brexit has exposed deep divisions in British society.

One Brexit supporter set fire to an EU flag in central London.

Away from the celebrations, many fear the consequences of ending 47 years of ties with their nearest neighbours.

It has also provoked soul-searching in the EU about its own future after losing 66 million people, a global diplomatic big-hitter and the clout of the City of London financial centre.

'Not an end, a beginning'

Prime Minister Boris Johnson, a figurehead in the seismic 2016 referendum vote for Brexit, acknowledged there might be "bumps in the road ahead" but said Britain could make it a "stunning success".

As he held a party in his Downing Street office, a clock projected on the walls outside counted down the minutes until Brexit.

Johnson has promised to unite the island nation in a new era of prosperity, predicting a "new era of friendly cooperation" with the EU while Britain takes a greater role on the world stage.

"The most important thing to say tonight is that this is not an end but a beginning," he said in a televised address.

EU institutions earlier began removing red, white and blue Union flags in Brussels ahead of a divorce that German Chancellor Angela Merkel called a "sea-change" for the bloc.

French President Emmanuel Macron described it as a "historic warning sign" that should force the EU and its remaining nations of more than 440 million people to stop and reflect.

Britain's departure was sealed in an emotional vote in the EU parliament this week that ended with MEPs singing "Auld Lang Syne", a traditional Scottish song of farewell.

But almost nothing will change straight away, because of an 11-month transition period negotiated as part of the exit deal.

Britons will be able to work in and trade freely with EU nations until December 31, and vice versa, although the UK will no longer be represented in the bloc's institutions.

But legally, Britain is out.

And while the divorce terms have been agreed, Britain must still strike a deal on future relations with the EU, its largest trading partner.

Both will set out their negotiating positions Monday.

"We want to have the best possible relationship with the United Kingdom, but it will never be as good as membership," European Commission president Ursula von der Leyen said in Brussels.

Years of tumult

Getting this far has been a traumatic process.

Britain resisted many EU projects over the years, refusing to join the single currency or the Schengen open travel area, and eurosceptics have long complained about Brussels bureaucracy.

Worries about mass migration added further fuel to the Brexit campaign while for some, the 2016 vote was a chance to punish the government for years of cuts to public spending.

But the result was still a huge shock.

It unleashed political chaos, sparking years of toxic arguments that paralysed parliament and forced the resignations of prime ministers David Cameron and Theresa May.

Johnson brought an end to the turmoil with last month's decisive election victory which gave him the parliamentary majority he needed to ratify his Brexit deal.

But Britons remain as divided as they were nearly four years ago, when 52 percent voted to leave and 48 percent voted to remain in the EU.

In Scotland, where a majority voted to stay in 2016, Brexit has revived calls for independence and there were protests Friday outside parliament.

"I think it's shameful that Scotland has been pulled out against its will," said Joe Harrow, a tourist guide in Edinburgh.

In Northern Ireland, where there are fears Brexit could destabilise a hard-won peace after decades of conflict over British rule, a billboard read: "This island rejects Brexit."

'Glad it's over'

Johnson, who remains a polarising figure, has avoided any big official celebrations that might exacerbate divisions.

He hosted a special cabinet meeting in the northeastern city of Sunderland, which was the first to declare for Brexit in 2016.

He later held a private party at Downing Street, serving English sparkling wine, while the building itself was lit up in the red, white and blue of the British flag.

Millions of commemorative 50 pence coins have also been issued.

The rally in Parliament Square was organised by ex-MEP Nigel Farage, who has spent decades campaigning to leave the EU.

Crowds sang the Queen anthem "We Are the Champions".

At a "Big Brexit Bash" in Morley, northern England, Raymond Stott described the four years since the referendum as "a right cock-up".

"I am just glad it's all over. We will look after ourselves. We don't need Europe," said the 66-year-old.

But for many pro-Europeans, Friday marks a day they hoped would never come.

"Today is a day of mourning," said Katrina Graham, 31, an Irish women's rights activist who lives in Brussels, at a protest in central London.

Trade talks loom

From Saturday, Britain will be free to strike trade deals around the world, including with the United States.

Johnson has given himself just 11 months to negotiate a new partnership with the EU, covering everything from trade to security cooperation -- despite warnings this is not enough time.

He also discussed with his ministers on Friday an aim to get 80 percent of Britain's commerce covered by free trade agreements within three years, a spokesman said.

US President Donald Trump is an enthusiastic supporter of Brexit, and his envoy to London on Friday hailed an "exciting new era".

"America shares your optimism and excitement about the many opportunities the future will bring," ambassador Woody Johnson said.
Source: Xinhua| 2020-02-01 22:20:11|Editor: huaxia

Video Player Close

BEIJING, Feb. 1 (Xinhua) -- "Don't go party! The virus's belly is empty!" On Tik Tok, a blogger turned virus control tips into rap-style doggerel, then chanted them in the Fuzhou dialect.

On Saturday afternoon, the verses were broadcast dozens of times in an old neighborhood in Fuzhou, capital of Fujian Province, as community workers used a loudspeaker to get the message across.

As China ramps up the fight against the novel coronavirus, grassroots groups, from urban communities to remote villages, are on the move.

They translated official jargon and legalese into streetwise lexicon, flew drones to broadcast instructions and sent workers to buy vegetables for quarantined residents in a nationwide campaign to curb the transmission of the virus.

The following are local snapshots of the grassroots mobilization, which has involved millions of volunteers, community workers and people from all walks of life.

DEITIES, SNACKS, ALL WEAR MASKS!

Cyberspace has become a major front in the publicity campaign as many Chinese follow the official instructions to stay at home, spending more time surfing the Internet.

Many netizens have joined the campaign, using music, short videos and cartoons to popularize knowledge on epidemic prevention control.

In one caricature, legendary figures from the literary classic "Journey to the West" wear masks and rest in a circle in a simulation of the real-life quarantine. Though in the novel, the magic circle is drawn to fend off demons.

"It is my way of raising public awareness of the epidemic and helping them understand the quarantine measures," said Bi Lige, a cartoonist from Inner Mongolia Autonomous Region and author of the caricature.

Another caricature places a personified reganmian, the most popular noodle dish in the epidemic epicenter of Wuhan, in a hospital ward. Other snacks from across China press on the ward window, holding posters saying "Be strong, reganmian!"

The drawing has gone viral on social media platforms including the microblogging site Sina Weibo, sparking a trend of posting pictures of local snacks to show solidarity with the virus-hit city.

LOUDSPEAKERS AND DRONES

The epidemic has forced the "square dance nannies" in Duichong Village of Hunan Province to suspend their daily practices, but their stereo system is still in service. Zhang Zhonghao, Party secretary of the village, drags the stereo every day across the village to broadcast disease prevention knowledge.

His daily job also includes door-to-door visits to ensure good enforcement of prevention measures, putting up anti-virus posters and disinfecting the village's public areas.

"I need to walk miles every day to ensure no stone is left unturned," Zhang said.

In China's populous countryside, publicizing disease control knowledge and persuading villagers to cancel public activities are now major missions of village officials.

"It's not an easy job because many families had planned to hold weddings around the Spring Festival, when their relatives and friends will all return home," said Yang Xiaosheng, Party secretary of Zhujia Village in Hunan. On Jan. 25, the first day of the Lunar New Year, Yang managed to persuade one family to postpone their wedding banquet originally scheduled during the festival.

According to health authorities of Hunan's Lanshan County, more than 460 families in the county's 190 villages have canceled Spring Festival banquets and instead used mobile phones and messaging app WeChat to pay their New Year's greetings.

In Beijing's suburban Yanqing District, unmanned aerial vehicles equipped with mini speakers are flown to advise residents on personal protection and persuade them to cancel group activities. Local officials said the service has achieved full coverage of the district's communities and populous areas.

"MY HANDS WERE BRUISED KNOCKING DOORS"

In Shanghai's residential buildings, volunteers and community workers are busy meeting the needs of the quarantined residents, from delivering meals, buying groceries to throwing away garbage.

As quarantine policies ask those having visited Wuhan to stay at home for at least two weeks, volunteer Pan Yaqin said it is her mission to reassure the quarantined families that their lives can go on undisturbed.

Their services now include putting the garbage into the right trash bins, as Shanghai last year issued the toughest garbage sorting rules in China.

"Every day at noon, we place lunches on the doorsteps of the quarantined families and pick up their trash left in a designated zone," said 50-year-old Pan. "It's not as simple as it sounds -- we need to wear protective gowns and carry out disinfection at every step."

"My hand was bruised and finger joints swollen after a day of knocking on doors," said Shen Yimin, a social worker from Nanjing West Road who spent days visiting families to learn their conditions and needs, a vital step in the community-level epidemic prevention efforts. Things are even more hectic these days as the post-Spring Festival travel rush approaches, she said.

According to the Shanghai Association of Volunteers, the city has recruited more than 7,900 volunteers to assist in epidemic control.
Description

The Bank of America Museums on Us program offers FREE weekend general admission to Bank of America, Merrill and Bank of America Private Bank credit and debit cardholders, at 25 top cultural attractions throughout New York State.

For the past 22 years, Bank of America has provided access to some of our nations greatest cultural experiences and brought new visitors to our partner museums. Use the Bank of America Museums on Us Location Finder tool to search for participating cultural attractions. With over 225 Museums on Us partners in 123 cities across the U.S., there is an option for everyone.
Share this article Whatsapp

Facebook

Twitter

Linkedin D. Nicky Fahrizal (The Jakarta Post) Jakarta  Sat, February 1, 2020

Decades ago, former president of the Commonwealth of the Philippines Manuel L. Quezon set out a guiding principal for statesmen in a legendary quote, My loyalty to my party ends where my loyalty to my country begins. Since then that statement has become a cardinal principle for modern politicians, especially those in constitutional democracies.

In reference to the principle, let us reflect on two recent, interconnected events.

First, the presence of Yasonna Laoly, the law and human rights minister, in the middle of a press statement of Indonesian Democratic Party of Struggle (PDI-P) executives in response to alleged bribery involving former commissioner of the General Elections Commission (KPU) Wahyu Setiawan and PDI-P politician Harun Masiku.

to Read Full Story SUBSCRIBE NOW Starting from IDR 55,000/month Unlimited access to our web and app content

e-Post daily digital newspaper

No advertisements, no interruptions

Privileged access to our events and programs

Subscription to our newsletters We accept Register to read 3 premium articles for free Already subscribed? login

Disclaimer: The opinions expressed in this article are those of the author and do not reflect the official stance of The Jakarta Post.
The N69 through Annascaul village has been described as being 'like Beirut' by a Fianna Fail Councillor.

The comment was made by Councillor Michael O'Shea at a recent Castleisland-Corca Dhuibhne municipal district meeting in Castleisland.

His party colleague, Dingle-based Breandan Fitzgerald also described the road as being "in a very bad state of repairs" and asked when work will be carried out to address these problems.

Councillor O'Shea described the route as being "in an appalling condition", and said the road gave a bad last impression of the village as you leave for Tralee.

West Kerry-based Councillor Seamus 'Cosai' Fitzgerald (Fine Gael) said Cllr O'Shea's 'Beirut' comparison reminded him of a comment by another councillor - who some 20 years ago said travelling through Annascaul was like Buckaroo.

Cllr 'Cosai' Fitzgerald pointed out that the road is to be included in the next phase of the N86 improvement scheme, which the council hopes will begin in 2021.

"We can make a claim for supplementary maintenance funding," Council Engineer Breda Mulryan told the meeting, although she feels the fact that the N86 improvement works could begin in 2021 may make it difficult to secure funding before that date.

"Meanwhile, Kerry [County] Council will maintain the existing surface as far as funds allow," the local authority outlined.
"Botkeeper exceeded our hopes and quickly became a partner I sought to join forces with," said Jody Padar, the CEO and Principal of New Vision CPA Group. "Botkeeper shares the same values we have for excellent service, expertise, curating a technology-driven environment which I am excited to be a part of, and which our customers, and the accounting industry as a whole, will significantly benefit from."

"I'm so excited to have Jody join the team," said Enrico Palmerino, CEO of Botkeeper. "As an early cloud adopter and practice management innovator, this role will be a commitment to the accounting industry in a way most software vendors can only dream of." Palmerino also noted that it's invigorating to have the industry as excited about this valuable addition as we are.

Sandra Wiley, President of Boomer Consulting, said, "Jody will be a tremendous asset to Botkeeper - and our profession - as she assumes the leadership position of Vice President of Strategy for the company. The marriage of Botkeeper and The Radical CPA will create an amazing opportunity to blend machine learning and AI with real life experts to bring the future of technology to our profession now!"

Samantha Bowling, CPA CGMA  2019 Most Powerful Women in Accounting award winner and immediate past chair of the Maryland Association of CPAs  said, "This transition is important not only for Botkeeper, but also for the entire accounting industry." Bowling went on to say, "Jody Padar's new role as Vice President of Strategy for Botkeeper is the position she was born to do. Her journey of moving her Father's Firm from old school paper to paperless and automated has prepared her for this role. There is always a resistance to technology, but if anyone can navigate our profession through this radical age of change and innovation, it is her!" Bowling continued by saying that she'd "love to see more companies incorporating new technology into their processes."

Jim C. Bourke, CPA.CITP.CFF.CGMA also expressed excitement around this exciting industry event. "What a great addition to the Botkeeper team! Jody Padar brings a uniqueness to the table that is not found in many professionals in our space today," said Jim C. Bourke, CPA.CITP.CFF.CGMA. "As VP of Strategy, I am looking forward to her leadership role in taking Botkeeper to the next level across our profession."

Those who work at Botkeeper are excited for her to join forces with them so the company can better serve the accounting industry.

About Botkeeper

Botkeeper is developing AI to help automate bookkeeping and broader accounting functions for accounting firms. The platform easily integrates with a client's bank accounts, credit cards, HR system, and POS system, and makes appropriate entries and adjustments to their QuickBooks or Xero accounts, providing businesses with a 24/7 AI-driven botkeeper. The new-age software platform coupled with skilled accountants helps to automate common bookkeeping workflows for accounting professionals through the use of machine learning and AI. The company is headquartered in Boston, MA.

About Jody Padar

Jody is one of the accounting profession's foremost visionaries and pioneers. Consistently named as one of the Top 100 Most Influential to the Profession by Accounting Today, Jody has led the transition of next-generation public accounting firms through open collaboration and change management. She is the author of From Success to Significance: The Radical CPA Guide and The Radical CPA: New Rules for the Future-Ready Firm and is CEO and principal of New Vision CPA Group in Chicago.

Contact: Jessica King, 1-800-823-8064, [email protected]

SOURCE Botkeeper

Related Links

botkeeper.com


Shares of healthcare sector moved higher after the government provided an additional Rs 69,000 crore for the health sector.

Meanwhile, S&P BSE Sensex was down 467.81 points or 1.15% at 40,225.68.

Shalby (up 2.89%), Apollo Hospitals Enterprise (up 2.06%), Fortis Malar Hospitals (up 1.86%), Aster DM Healthcare (up 0.91%), Kovai Medical Center & Hospital (up 2.2%) and Fortis Healthcare (up 0.03%) inched higher.

Union finance minister Nirmala Sitharaman while presenting the Union Budget 2020-21 in Parliament today, 1 February 2020 announced an allocation of Rs 69,000 crore for the healthcare sector. There is need for more hospitals in Tier II & Tier III cities. In a bid to boost medical services in the country, proceeds from tax on hospitals to be used to fund hospital facilities. Under Ayushmann Bharat Scheme, medical facilities would adopt artificial intelligence (AI) & machine learning to boost growth in the healthcare sector.

A medical college would be attached to a district hospital in PPP mode, with viability gap funding to be set up for setting up such medical colleges. The FM also re-iterated the government's commitment to eliminating tuberculosis from India.

Powered by Capital Market - Live News

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
DES MOINES, Iowa - Some voters think she's a bot when their phones light up with her appeal on behalf of Sen. Bernie Sanders.

But she's not a bot. She's Amiebrooke Miller, 40, a boutique manager in Iowa's capital, sending texts for the Vermont independent who's been surging in recent polls, thanks in part to the army of plugged-in supporters who plaster his campaign's message across email inboxes, Facebook feeds and, increasingly, text messages.

They're the digital foot soldiers in this year's battle for the White House, opting to punch keys on a smartphone instead of trundling through the snow to knock on doors. And they are legion. The Sanders campaign's text team boasts more than 12,000 volunteers nationally.

In the lead-up to the first-in-the-nation caucuses, the campaign estimates that it has reached nearly a million Iowans via text - almost a third of the state. New software gives each volunteer the power to reach hundreds of Iowans a day, though the response rate varies widely.

When voters learn that there's a human being behind the bubble of text, said Miller, 40, "they completely change how they talk with us." She conducts intimate conversations about medical hardship from her home office, a candle lit beside her. Or, she steals 10 minutes from her lunch break to text with voters about college debt.

As phone calls go to voicemail and email solicitations go unanswered, strategists and technology experts expect a turn to text messaging as a mainstay in 2020. That's especially true for campaigns powered by young people, who are more likely to be scrolling on a mobile phone than sitting in front of a television. Text messages are also better for reaching low-income voters who may lack a smartphone, experts say.

"Every other form of voter contact has declined in effectiveness over the last few cycles," said Betsy Hoover, a Democratic strategist and co-founder of Higher Ground Labs, an incubator for campaign-tech start-ups. "Home addresses are harder and harder to find. People aren't answering their phones."

But, Hoover said, "everyone reads their text messages." The Democratic National Committee's announcement this week that it was investing six figures in acquiring "tens of millions" of cellphone numbers was an acknowledgment of that fact. The party said it would have "high-quality cellphone numbers" for voters in all 50 states.

Nationally, the Sanders campaign has sent more than 100 million texts, according to a spokesman, Joe Calvello. It has done so using peer-to-peer texting, which allows decentralized agents of a campaign or cause to circulate a common script to scores of people without running afoul of consumer protection rules.

"I work an eight-hour day and then Bernie at night," said Miller, a mother of two, adopting the verb form coined by her family to describe her volunteer labor Sanders. "And Bernie on my days off."

Volunteers send texts seven days a week, from 9 a.m. Eastern to 9 p.m. Pacific time. A texter begins by requesting a set of messages - the average size ranging from 500 to 750 messages - and pressing send on each missive. Then they wait for replies.

The sender's name is preloaded, as is the name of the recipient, though the phone numbers of both are obscured. The request, determined by a preset script, can be anything from a donation to attendance at an event. Members of an advance team work on identifying and persuading undecided voters, and the information they glean is fed back into the campaign's database.

"Bernie is committed to creating a government and an economy that work for all of us, not just wealthy campaign contributors," reads the opening appeal to voters whose leanings are unknown. "Are you in for Bernie?"

The team congregates on Slack, an online messaging app, to coordinate work, as well as to offer support and ensure "self-care," as Miller put it. A mobile app, BERN, will play a more prominent role in larger states that come later in the calendar, as supporters in states such as California and Texas log information about their friends, including level of support and union membership. In Iowa, the campaign has rich enough data to reach likely caucus-goers more directly.

Texting is hardly cutting-edge. The first SMS message was sent almost 30 years ago. And more than a decade ago, Barack Obama's campaign texted supporters to announce his choice of Joe Biden as his running mate.

What is new, however, is the development of technologies allowing mass distribution by individual volunteers, who are then able to conduct one-on-one conversations with voters who choose to reply. Especially novel is the integration of these technologies into campaign organizing infrastructure.

Sanders, whose 2016 campaign was the first to put peer-to-peer texting to use at scale, now employs a text team director, two English-language texting organizers and a Spanish-language texting organizer. The platform his team used in 2016, called Hustle, saw its campaign clientele multiply in two years, and it gave rise to competitors, including Relay. The software, developed by alumni of the Sanders campaign, was used by Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, D-N.Y., to deliver 170,000 texts to voters in her successful bid to oust incumbent Rep. Joseph Crowley in New York in 2018, according to her campaign's spokesman, Corbin Trent.

Now, all the top-tier presidential candidates are texting. And Iowa is on their minds. "It's clear that our post-debate surge has worn off," a message from Biden's online fundraising director warned this month. "But, with just 18 days until the Iowa Caucus, we can't afford to lose any steam!"

On Thursday evening, Bonnie Whitaker, an undecided voter in a suburb of Des Moines, attended a town hall with Pete Buttigieg, the former mayor of South Bend, Indiana. An hour later after she returned home, a text arrived. "Hi Bonnie! How was your experience at Meet Pete in Ankeny!?" it read. "Reply GOOD if it was good, BAD if it was not, or MISSED if you didn't make it."

Jason Noble, communications director for Elizabeth Warren's Iowa campaign, touted the streamlined opportunities for caucusgoers to signal their support for the campaign in the final days before the caucuses. Texting IOWA to a short code of five numbers, for example, prompts a voter to commit to caucus for the candidate. For New Hampshire residents craving something a bit different, texting LLAMA to the same set of numbers signs a voter up to the campaign's Granite State operation, as well as to a dose of four-legged content.

"Campaigns are always trying to get on top of the latest technology," said Sheena Pakanati, who partnered in 2016 with Saikat Chakrabarti, later chief of staff to Ocasio-Cortez, to develop the platform Spoke, which the Sanders campaign is using this cycle.

The co-founders made the tool open source and handed over ownership in 2017 to MoveOn. The progressive advocacy group touts the platform using the catchphrase "The resistance is mobile."

"Peer-to-peer, which was already being used for marketing, started to be seen as a viable way of reaching voters as well," Pakanati said.

And not just by the left. Gary Coby, the digital director for President Donald Trump's reelection campaign, is also the chief executive of Opn Sesame, a peer-to-peer platform whose advertising materials declare, "Text is going to kill email." According to Opn Sesame, 90% of text messages are read within five minutes.

In another sign of buy-in from top GOP operatives, the company also counts Gerrit Lansing, president of the online fundraising platform WinRed and former digital director for the Republican National Committee, as a co-founder, though he's no longer involved in day-to-day operations. The RNC paid Opn Sesame more than $1.5 million last year, according to FEC records.

"Each message transmitted using the Opn Sesame platform must be individually, manually sent from a single sender to a single recipient," Lansing wrote in a filing last year in federal court in West Virginia, where a complaint arose from a voter who had received a text from a political action committee using Opn Sesame's software.

The role of the human operator is crucial. It is the basis for a petition before the FCC - filed in 2018 by a collection of peer-to-peer companies calling themselves the "P2P Alliance" - asking for clarification that text messages are not subject to "restrictions on calls to mobile phone numbers" spelled out by the Telephone Consumer Protection Act of 1991. The group pointed to a 2016 advisory from the FCC affirming that, "only manually placed text messages are permissible without prior express consent." The RNC weighed in, urging the agency to "tread lightly when it comes to regulating political speech." The petition is still pending.

The dispute is of considerable significance to campaigns, which have faced class-action complaints alleging that the new tools allow the text equivalent of illegal robocalls.

Last cycle, the Trump campaign faced a lawsuit from a voter in Illinois, who found this unsolicited message irksome enough to bring suit: "Reply YES to subscribe to Donald J. Trump for President. Your subscription will help Make American Great Again! Msg&data rates may apply."

The claim was ultimately withdrawn, but the plaintiff's attorney, Joseph Siprut, warned that penalties can be steep for campaigns that misuse mass-texting software.

Some advocates say mass-texting technologies should not be allowed, even those operated by a human volunteer like Miller, rather than a bot.

"Involving a human at some step is not sufficient," said John Bergmayer, legal director for the Washington-based nonprofit Public Knowledge. "You don't get to engineer your way out of robo-texting rules."
A year ago, the Omaha Police Department began clearing its backlog of an estimated 1,500 sexual assault kits with a $1.9 million grant from the national Sexual Assault Kit Initiative.

Cavanaugh told the committee that getting estimates of the number of untested rape kits in Nebraska is hampered by a lack of publicly available data.

The report would help policymakers understand the scope of the problem, and would help them see if efforts are making progress, she said.

Sen. Tom Brandt of Plymouth asked Cavanaugh about the status of untested kits throughout the entire state.

"I'd be happy to expand the scope of this to be the whole state," she said. "It was my intention to just start moving this forward, and Omaha and Lincoln have the largest number."

Every county uses the state crime lab, and she could ask that the crime lab issue the annual report, which would be helpful to everyone, she said.

Only one person testified on the bill. Christon MacTaggart, domestic/sexual violence project manager for the Women's Fund of Omaha, said the National Institute of Justice recommends that all sexual assault kits be tested.
North Chinas Tianjin and the city of Anyang in Central Chinas Henan province both reported two new cases of the highly transmissible omicron variant over the weekend. Both cities have launched new rounds of mass testing and designated more Covid-19 risk areas to control the spread of the virus

Jan 10, 2022 06:18 PM
The GSMA is continuing to monitor and assess the potential impact of the Coronavirus on its MWC20 events held annually in Barcelona, Shanghai and Los Angeles and as well as the Mobile 360 Series of regional conferences. The GSMA confirms that there have been no registration impacts on MWC Barcelona thus far and the upcoming MWC Barcelona event, 24-27 February 2020, will proceed as planned, across all venues at Fira Gran Via, Fira Montjuic and La Farga LHospitalet, including YoMo and Four Years From Now (4YFN). Specifically, for MWC Barcelona 2020, measures are already in place, and updates can be found on www.mwcbarcelona.com/about/news/.

The WHO has agreed that the outbreak now meets the criteria for a Public Health Emergency of International Concern (PHEIC) and proposes advice to be issued as Temporary Recommendations. The updated WHO advice states that Countries should place particular emphasis on reducing human infection, prevention of secondary transmission and international spread. The Committee does not recommend any travel or trade restriction based on the current information available.

The GSMA will:

Carefully follow and adhere to: the World Health Organisations (WHO) recommendations, all applicable Chinese government recommendations, all Spanish health authority recommendations and all police/health recommendations and protocols

Work with Fira de Barcelona to ensure sufficient sanitising products throughout all venues and implement other activity in line with recommendations from our city partners

Guide exhibitors who may not be able to travel to MWC Barcelona (via GSMA account managers or the Customer Care Team) on local companies and services who may be able to address their onsite needs.



Measures we are planning to implement at MWC will include, but not be limited to:

Increased cleaning and disinfection programme across all high-volume touchpoints, e.g. catering areas, surfaces, handrails, WCs, entrances/exits, public touch-screens, etc. along with the use of correct cleaning/sanitising materials and products

Increased onsite medical support

Awareness campaign via online and onsite info-share and signage

Availability of sanitising and disinfection materials for public use

Awareness and training to all staff and associates on standard personal preventative measures, e.g. personal hygiene, frequency of use of sanitising/disinfection products, etc.

Advice to exhibitors on implementing effective cleaning and disinfection of stands, offices along with guidance on personal hygiene measures and common preventive behaviour

Public health guidelines and advice communication to Barcelona hotels, public and private transport, restaurants and catering outlets, retail, etc.



We strongly urge exhibitors and attendees to implement appropriate guidelines and protocols as suggested by the WHO and other health authorities to contain and mitigate against any further spread of the virus. Up-to-date WHO advice can be found here: https://www.who.int/emergencies/diseases/novel-coronavirus-2019/technical-guidance and the most recent press release issued by WHO is here: https://www.who.int/news-room/detail/30-01-2020-statement-on-the-second-meeting-of-the-international-health-regulations-(2005)-emergency-committee-regarding-the-outbreak-of-novel-coronavirus-(2019-ncov).

-ENDS-

About the GSMA

The GSMA represents the interests of mobile operators worldwide, uniting more than 750 operators and nearly 400 companies in the broader mobile ecosystem, including handset and device makers, software companies, equipment providers and internet companies, as well as organisations in adjacent industry sectors. The GSMA also produces the industry-leading MWC events held annually in Barcelona, Shanghai and Los Angeles, as well as the Mobile 360 Series of regional conferences.

For more information, please visit the GSMA corporate website at www.gsma.com. Follow the GSMA on Twitter: @GSMA.

View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20200131005405/en/
Parents who use informal strategies to juggle work and family life are more likely to suffer distress, fatigue and burnout - and mothers are most at risk.

Meanwhile, formal workplace flexibility arrangements boost parents wellbeing and help them manage both work and family life.

Jo Lees has full flexibility to combine work as a construction manager and care for her daughter Zoe. The family has a rainwater tank attached to the shed, which means they can use a hose despite water restrictions. Credit:James Brickwood

That is the conclusion of new research, based on a national survey of more than 4000 parents, published in the Community, Work & Family journal.

Lead researcher Stacey Hokke, from La Trobe Universitys Judith Lumley Centre, said the study defined formal workplace flexibility as explicit policies offered by the employer. This included both ongoing fixed arrangements such as working from home or starting later on certain days, as well as full flexibility where employees can decide when and where to work.
Like many places around the world, Victoria has laws designed to stop the provocation of racial or religious-based hatred or violence. Our community is proudly inclusive and tolerant, but our current anti-vilification laws are out of date and failing to work as intended. We know they arent working because there has been a spike in religious abuse, harassment and intimidation. We have also seen an increase in hateful anti-Semitic graffiti, often depicting the Nazi swastika.

Visitors inside the former Auschwitz-Birkenau concentration camp. Credit:Getty Images

Recently, Victorians and many others around the world commemorated the 75th anniversary of the liberation of Auschwitz by allied forces in World War II. Auschwitz was the largest and most deadly of Nazi Germanys concentration camps during the Holocaust and remains a painful reminder of the attempted genocide that resulted in the murder of more than 6 million Jews, as well as the systemic persecution of homosexuals and mentally and physically disabled individuals.

The Holocaust remains the greatest evil known to mankind and 75 years on, its pain remains in our community. Melbourne has the largest number of Holocaust survivors in the world on a per capita basis outside of Israel and for this cohort and their families, imagery of the Nazi regime will always elicit excruciating memories of persecution and unimaginable loss.

The Nazi swastika was designed to signify racial supremacy. The swastika was adopted by Adolf Hitler himself, who incorporated the design into his infamous Nazi insignia, saying that it signified the struggle for the victory of the Aryan man.
In July, Facebook Inc. quietly hired Miranda Sissons, a 49-year old human rights activist whose previous work has included stints at the Australian diplomatic service and the International Center for Transitional Justice. The hiring, which was never formally announced, is part of a broader effort by the company to atone for more than once failing to stop online abuse on Facebook from spilling over into real-world violence.

Human rights advocates in places like Sri Lanka, the Philippines, India and Brazil have long complained that the company has refused to acknowledge mounting evidence about the dangers of digital hate. As Facebook pursued world-changing growth, particularly in developing countries, it didn't always have local staff there, or even employees who spoke the language. In Myanmar, a wave of online hate preceded a campaign of violence against the country's Rohingya minority that led to thousands of deaths and the displacement of over 700,000 people. An independent report Facebook commissioned in 2018 found that it bore partial responsibility for fueling the conflict.

Immediately after taking the job, Sissons took a five-day trip to the country. "I was deeply, deeply aware of the criticism of Facebook's inaction in Myanmar, and deeply aware of the struggles humankind is facing with the impact of social media," Sissons told Bloomberg News earlier in her first press interview in her new role. "This is one of the greatest challenges of our time."

Sissons work is part of a broader reckoning within the technology industry, which has been forced to reexamine its role in world conflicts. Several months before Facebook hired Sissons, Twitter Inc. brought on Cynthia Wong, a former researcher at Human Rights Watch, to be its human rights director. As with Facebook, Twitter never announced the hiring.

In discussions with more than a dozen people familiar with Facebook's work on human rights, a picture emerges of a company that has been moving rapidly but, according to its skeptics, not always effectively. One Facebook employee, who asked not to be identified discussing private information, said its shortcomings have not always been the result of having too few people dedicated to human rights, but at times having so many people involved that they're working at cross-purposes.

Human rights advocates outside the company acknowledge Facebook's effort to hire experts, and say it has become far more responsive. But they worry that internal advocates like Sissons won't be adequately empowered, and many are withholding praise until the company makes more concrete changes. "They are hiring people who have the right knowledge, experience and sensibility to tackle human rights problems," said Matthew Smith, chief executive of Fortify Rights, a human rights group. "So far, though, that's clearly not enough."

Sissons' human rights education started early. Her father was a prominent Australian historian who served in the occupation force of Hiroshima after World War II, then worked as an interpreter in the Australian-led tribunals of Japanese officials accused of war crimes. "My early childhood was completely taken up with discussions of war crimes, war criminals, the Second World War, and notions of justice," she said.

After attending the University of Melbourne, Sissons spent time in East Timor, researched Middle Eastern issues and took several posts with the Australian diplomatic corps, including a frustrating stint answering phones at an Australian embassy in Egypt. "My Arabic wasn't very good," she confessed. "People would ring me up and shout at me about all kinds of things, and I would have to find a solution. " Eventually, Sissons went on to work on her own high-profile tribunal as an independent observer of the trial of former Iraqi leader Saddam Hussein, and she did stints at Human Rights Watch and the Australian diplomatic corps.

In 2011 Sissons switched her focus to the relationship between human rights and technology. She had been working in the Middle East, where the Arab Spring was just getting underway, and many people believed social media could shift the balance of power between citizens and oppressive regimes. It was a time of unmatched optimism about the potential of social media in political organizing.

The good feelings didn't last. As early as 2014 there were credible reports emerging of coordinated incitement on Facebook against the Rohingya in Myanmar. The online abuse foreshadowed a wave of violence that began in earnest in 2016.

By the time Facebook began looking for a human rights director in 2018, the conventional wisdom on tech from a few years earlier had effectively reversed. The killings in Myanmar and elsewhere, coupled with Russian-led disinformation campaigns in Donald Trump's presidential election, had darkened popular opinion. Companies that were accustomed to being revered were suddenly being accused of simultaneously squelching free expression and tolerating active manipulation of their platforms.

The tech industry's first halting steps to control the flow of abuse initially won few fans. In an online essay in late 2018 Cynthia Wong, then senior internet researcher for Human Rights Watch, said it was time for a "moral reckoning" in Silicon Valley. "If regulators, investors, and users want true accountability, they should press for a far more radical re-examination of tech sector business models, especially social media and advertising ecosystems," she wrote.

In some cases, the companies started hiring their critics. Twitter brought on Wong as its legal director of human rights in April 2019. The company declined to make her available for an interview, and said in a statement that it was "uniquely positioned to help activist and civic-minded people around the globe make their voices heard."

Other attempts at reform were wholly unsuccessful. In early 2019 Ross LaJeunesse, then Google's global head of international relations, saw Facebook's posting for a human rights director, and used it to argue for the creation of a similar structure at his company. He failed, and left the company soon after. LaJeunesse, who is currently running for the U.S. Senate in Maine, now says tech companies can't handle these issues on their own. "There has to be government oversight," he said.

Sissons, who reports to Facebook's head of global policy management Monika Bickert, has over the last several months been quietly incorporating human rights protections into Facebook's policies, and making sure that people with human rights training are in the meetings where executives sign off on new product features. She said the company had made progress before she arrived, including the reform of its 2018 decision to begin removing misinformation in situations where it could lead to physical harm.

"There are now a lot of resources in place," Sissons said. The challenge is to quickly identify local signs of trouble, then block or slow the spread of certain content, or take swift action against particular users. "We are testing continuously in crisis environments to try and predict what resources we'll need," she said, "and to ensure they're in place."

When Sissons went to Myanmar with Facebook she made a stop in Phandeeyar, a tech hub and community center in downtown Yangon. Jes Kaliebe Petersen, its CEO, said he's been meeting with Facebook employees for years - he helped the company develop local community standards almost five years ago. But the encounters have calcified into a depressingly predictable routine. "They send a bunch of people who have never been here before, and they talk to us," said Petersen. "And we never hear from them again."

A spokesman for Facebook said it has held many introductory meetings at the request of local advocates, and argued the company has taken significant strides in the country. Besides hiring Sissons, it shut down hundreds of pages and accounts, including that of the head of Myanmar's army, for spreading misinformation and hatred. It has hired a Myanmar head of public policy for the first time. And it assembled a team of 100 content moderators who speak Burmese. That group will be able to "support escalations" in other languages used in the country as well, Sissons said.

The company also set up an independent review board for thorny content moderation issues, and in an unusual step, commissioned independent human rights assessments of what happened in Myanmar and other trouble spots. In November 2018, it published a 60-page report on Myanmar from the nonprofit group Business for Social Responsibility, in full. "They deserve praise for putting it out there," said Dunstan Allison-Hope the lead author of the report. "You don't see that."

But Facebook has never made the results of a similar assessment in Sri Lanka public, despite calls to do so. Sissons declined to say whether it had plans to publish those results. And there are currently no Facebook staff members working in Myanmar full-time - something that many advocates have called for. Representatives for Facebook say its staff based in Singapore and elsewhere are regularly in Myanmar, and that it has spent well over a year taking hundreds of meetings with people in the country.

One person who said he'd never gotten an invitation to meet with Facebook is Nickey Diamond, a local advocate working for Fortify Rights. Diamond said he has been the target of harassing posts from the government for years, and still faces a menacing atmosphere online. "They're sharing my picture with the word 'traitor' in Burmese," he said. "Every human rights defender is in the same situation."

The broader problem Facebook is confronting-the vigilant monitoring of an ever-evolving social network used by 2.3 billion people-can seem almost impossibly daunting. The company now has content moderators examining posts in approximately 50 languages, Sissons said, a number that is unchanged from its count last April, and is fewer than half of the languages that Facebook actively supports.

Facebook has said only technological improvements can combat problems at scale. It has automated tools that scan for hate speech, as well as image recognition technology monitoring for obscene content regardless of language. About 80% of the posts that Facebook acts on for violating its hate speech policies are now first identified by its automated filters, up from about 24% a year earlier.

Soon, the challenges of monitoring the spread of abusive posts could become even more difficult. Facing pressure to increase user privacy, Facebook has prioritized private communications, meaning more content is encrypted so that even the company itself won't know what it says. In those cases, Sissons said the company is working on tools that will look for patterns associated with problematic content, so it can either remove such messages or impede them from spreading so rapidly.

Facebook is aware of the scope of its challenges, said Rebecca MacKinnon, the director of Ranking Digital Rights, an online advocacy group. "Facebook is making an effort to engage. Whether that will make a difference in the real world, we'll see," she said. "They're dealing with some problems that no one knows how to solve."

When Sissons met with members of the Phandeeyar team last November in Myanmar, they came prepared with a handful of suggestions for actions Facebook should take before the national elections there, which are expected to take place later this year. While Phandeeyar staffers had been deeply engaged in the specifics for months, Sissons was still just getting her feet under her, and there wasn't enough time in the hour-long meeting to get much resolution, said Phandeeyar CEO Petersen.

"There's always lots of goals for improvements. Hopefully Miranda has a sound plan for how to get there," he said. "The thing is, we don't really have that much time."
The trial of a Co Armagh man accused of the murder of garda Adrian Donohoe has been shown footage of a person holding a shotgun approach the unmarked Garda vehicle the officer was in.

CCTV footage was played to the jury at the Central Criminal Court in Dublin yesterday which captured the moment Det Gda Donohoe was shot dead outside a Louth Credit Union.

Dashcam video and audio from a vehicle parked in the car park at the time of the incident was also played.

Aaron Brady (28) is on trial charged with the murder of Mr Donohoe at the Lordship Credit Union in Bellurgan, Co Louth, on January 25, 2013.

Brady is also charged with the robbery of approximately 7,000 in cash and assorted cheques from Pat Bellew at the same location on the same date.

The accused, of New Road, Crossmaglen, has pleaded not guilty to both charges.

Garda Gareth Kenna, of Dundalk Garda Station, said he prepared footage for the court, which included video from two CCTV cameras at the Lordship Credit Union and one dashcam.

Two people appear from the right of the screen, where the rear credit union wall is, and "both individuals appear to be running towards the car park entrance where the unmarked Garda patrol car is," Gda Kenna told the court.

The first individual, the court heard, "appears to be pointing a long barrel shotgun across the roof" of the Garda car and a second person is behind him.

Gda Kenna said that the apparent shotgun appeared to be "fully extended at this point and in the next frame we see this individual appears to recoil and appears to almost hit the ground."

The trial is due to continue on Monday.
Rating:

Cast: Santhanam, Ritika Sen, Yogi Babu, Radha Ravi

Director: Vijay Anand

Guru (Santhanam) and his friend (Yogi Babu) are petty thieves in Mumbai who work for a gangster Bhai (Radha Ravi). One day Bhai assigns Guru the job of finding a girl from a portrait. She is wanted by a billionaire Vijay Samrat (Traun Arora). And the back story of Vijay is that he draws sketches of random girls and then wants to bed them. The womanizer sends his henchmen across the country to kidnap such young women and is ready to shell out a ton of money to get them.

In this case, the girl in the painting is Malli (Ritika Sen) from down south and the money he is prepared to pay is Rs 10 crore. Guru finds out that Malli lives in Tiruchendhur and is an aspiring filmmaker. Malli on the other hand runs away from home to board a bus to Chennai as her parents are against her film-making dreams.

Our hero coincidentally meets her and manages to lure her with an offer of a directorial opportunity in Bollywood. He tells her he knows Shahrukh Khans manager, and instead of using her script for Ajith or Vijay, she can give a try with SRK. The rest is all about the duos adventurous trip from Tiruchendur to Mumbai and how and why he has a change of heart after handing over Malli to Vijay Samrat.

Dackalti is a Santhanam film and hence the minimum you can expect is a fun ride. The concept of two colliding timelines is nothing new, and the problem is that our main guy has to mix his signature comedy with romance and action, but excels in neither. Of course, they could always rely to some extent on Yogi Babu to bring on the laughs but that cant save the film. His comedy is largely distasteful.

Newcomer Ritika Sen is just randomly tossed in as your trifling and dense K-town girl whos only job is to look cute. And when the pockets of laughter done with, you are left hanging in the middle of nowhere.

Technically, Vijay Narains music is good and the songs are hummable. The pacing and editing could have used some more work. Yes, the run time is good but the scenes do jump a bit too much. Perhaps watchable once!
HC junks plea by Nirbhaya case convict claiming he was not in Delhi at time of crime

Nirbhaya case: President Kovind rejects mercy plea of convict Vinay Sharma

India

oi-Madhuri Adnal

New Delhi, Feb 01: The President of India on Saturday rejected mercy plea of convict Vinay Sharma, one of the four convicts on death row in the Nirbhaya gangrape and murder case.

Earlier on Wednesday, Sharma had filed a mercy plea with the President of India and alleged he was tortured and treated inhumanely by jail authorities and inmates at Tihar.

Nirbhaya: Pawan Guptas review on juvenility plea rejected by Supreme Court

Advocate AP Singh, who represents Vinay, said he has filed the mercy petition with the President House and has got a receiving on it. "I have filed mercy petition for Vinay before the President. I have submitted it by hand," Singh told PTI.

The apex court has already rejected the curative petition of Vinay.

Before Vinay, another death row convict Mukesh Kumar Singh had filed the mercy plea which was rejected by the President on 17 January.

The apex court Wednesday dismissed the plea filed by Mukesh challenging the rejection of his mercy petition.

The case pertains to the shocking gangrape and murder of a 23-year-old physiotherapy intern who came to be known as 'Nirbhaya' was gangraped and savagely assaulted on the night of December 16, 2012, in a moving bus in South Delhi. She died of her injuries a fortnight later in a Singapore hospital.

While one of the convicts died in prison and another was eventually let off on account of being a juvenile, the remaining four were sentenced to death.

The last-minute petitions have been widely seen as desperate attempts by the convicts to stall their impending executions. The delay has been criticised by many, including the victim's parents.

Nirbhaya's mother Asha Devi had said she will continue her fight till the convicts in the 2012 gangrape and murder case are hanged, shortly after a Delhi court postponed the execution of death warrants till further order.

Asha Devi told reporters her "hopes are dashed" but she will continue her fight. "These convicts have no right to live. We keep getting disappointed by the system. I will continue my fight till the convicts are hanged," she said. Asha Devi said because of the loopholes in law the "criminals' lawyers had the audacity to challenge me in court that they will not be hanged".

A Delhi court had postponed the execution of death warrants of the four convicts in the Nirbhaya gangrape and murder case till further order. Additional Sessions Judge Dharmender Rana passed the order on a plea by the convicts seeking a stay on their execution on Saturday, February 1.

The black warrants for the execution of the death sentence against Pawan Gupta, Vinay Kumar Sharma, Akshay Kumar and Mukesh Kumar Singh, were issued on January 17.
DP World, UAE Region has signed an agreement with Dubai South to enable its flagship Jebel Ali Free Zone (Jafza) to facilitate the seamless entry and exit of goods between them and enhance services to the customers.

The MoU explores various areas of co-operation between DP World, UAE Region and Dubai South aimed at enhancing the services for customers at the security gates by unifying policies and procedures between the two free zones.

Dubai South has been one of the fastest growing free zones and preferred trade gateway in the UAE, serving key regional markets including Middle East, Africa, and South Asia.

The 145-sq-km free zone is the venue of Expo 2020 and is close to Dubais second state-of-the-art airport, the Al Maktoum International and one of the worlds busiest ports, Jebel Ali Port.

Dubai Souths Logistics Corridor, a unique 200-sq-km custom bonded zone which connects air, land and sea, pioneering a new global standard for goods handling of within four hours from sea to air.

In addition to the supply chain route efficiencies, the two sides will also engage in an exchange of knowledge in leading industry practices that would further enhance the management of trade flows between Jafza and Dubai South.

The agreement was signed between Khalifa Al Zaffin, Executive Chairman of Dubai Aviation City Corporation and Dubai South, and Mohammed Al Muallem, CEO & Managing Director of DP World, UAE Region, and CEO of Jafza in the presence of senior management executives and officials of both organizations.

Al Zaffin said: "In line with the vision of our leaders to maintain Dubais excellence in the facilitation of goods and services, the signing of agreement with DP World is part of our proactive efforts to ensure more efficient operations and, thereby, smoother transport of goods between the Dubai South and Jafza."

"This will provide great benefits, especially for companies and participants of the upcoming Expo 2020, which will require easy processing of their entry and exit between these free zones," he added.

Al Muallem said: "DP World, UAE Region and Dubai South have taken a major step towards further enhancing the logistics and supply chain efficiencies required to support the on-going work at Expo 2020 site."

"As the Premier Global Trade Partner of Expo 2020, DP Worlds flagship Jebel Ali Port is the principal gateway to Expo-related cargo. We believe the thousands of companies using the port and operating out of Jafza and Dubai South will benefit immensely as a result of our cooperation," he added.

DP World, UAE Region is a key engine of economic growth for Dubai, contributing to over a third of the GDP (33.4 per cent).

The holistic ecosystem it has created through Jebel Ali Port and Jafza offers an end-to-end logistics landscape unique to the region, reaching out to over 3.5 billion people in some of the most dynamic emerging economies in the world today.

Jafza is home to over 7,500 companies, while Jebel Ali Port handled 3.6 million TEU (twenty-foot equivalent container unit) in the third quarter of 2019.-TradeArabia News Service
A company which erected a development of four battery storage units for power from wind turbines faces the prospect of tearing down the development unless An Bord Pleanala allows its appeal against the Cork County Council decision to refuse planning permission for the retention of the development.

Redfaze Ltd, a company owned by Kilmuray based ecopower magnates, Michael and David Murnane, had applied for a retention of the development near Curraglass which is close to the historic battle site of Ceim an Fhia on the Beal Atha'n Ghaorthaidh to Bantry road last year but the application had been refused in November.

An appeal was lodged by the company to An Bord Pleanala just before Christmas.

Cork County Council cited among its reasons to turn down the initial application the fact that the battery development and ancillary buildings was intended to occupy the site of a number of windmill turbines which had been decommissioned.

The original intent was that the site would be restored to its original state of wilderness after the removal of the windmills based on the principles of sustainable development for the 'next generation'.

"The siting of four battery storage units coupled with the electricity substation that is required to be decommissioned, would lead to 'inappropriate development' and over a further 30 year longer term lead to the semi industrialisation of an otherwise unspoilt mountain," the Cork County Council refusal states.

An application for a second development of another four battery storage units nearby, also by the Lissarda based company, Redfaze Limited, was submitted in January of last year but marked incomplete by the Planning Office in Cork County Council. Its status is now unclear.

Battery storage units are designed to store the energy generated by windmill turbines so that the power can be evenly distributed on days when there is wind, and the days when there isn't. However they are surrounded by controversy arising out of concerns over safety.

A similar plant in Ballyhulla near Ballydesmond in County Kerry was objected to with one concerned resident claiming: "The lithium batteries used in compounds can explode and can cause fire and toxic clouds."

The two developments proposed by Redfaze Limited for Curraglas near popular tourist spot Gugan Barra each consisted of four battery storage units, palisade fencing, concrete plinths, associated electrical equipment, transformers and all ancillary site works.

The application which was withdrawn recently concerned an extension to an existing electricity substation on this site. There had been a number of objections to one of the Curraglass proposals, including one from a local development committee in Beal Atha'n Ghaorthaidh and a local school.

There was a windfarm previously on this site but it was removed due to technical difficulties.

However Beal Atha'n Ghaorthaidh is a hotspot for windfarm turbine development and concerns have been expressed that the battery storage units proposed for Curraglass will also be proposed for other areas.

Redfaze Limited is a company whose directors are listed as Michael and David Murnane. It was established in 2015. It is based in Lissarda. Both David and Michael Murnane have been directors of 113 other companies between them While no website is listed for Redfaze Limited, both David and Michael Murnane of Macroom were listed as directors of another company in Lissarda, Enerco Energy Ltd.

This company describes itself as one of Ireland's leading renewable energy deveopers and its brochure says it is researching new technologies such as battery storage.
The Summit was organized with the overall aim to boost the participation of women in STEM field for development of scientific career

The Department of Biotechnology organized an International Summit on Women in STEMVisualizing the Future: New Skylines

The Summit was organized with the overall aim to boost the participation of women in STEM field for development of scientific career.

During the summit, different sessions of the summit included mechanisms of leadership building, empowering women through networking, career opportunities and interactive exercises with scientists. The aim was to showcase women in STEM successes as real-world examples of successful women scientists, doctors and engineers demonstrating the excitement of being in the STEM fields as well as the rewards associated with it.

Discussions and interactive sessions between aspiring young, mid-career and senior scientists in the STEM field were held to understanding the future requirements of womens employment and career progression. Keynote speakers were renowned women scientists in STEM from different countries, young as well as established women scientists, science communicators and entrepreneurs from India.

Around 350 participants from different STEM field across the globe participated in the event including scientists, socialists, entrepreneurs, researchers, teachers and students. Posters were presented by women scientists and students.

The summit provided a good platform for young students and researchers to interact and network with leaders in the field, to develop ideas and generate a future action plan for making career in STEM fields.
Transport activists in Mumbai on Saturday said they were disappointed with the 2020-21 Budget announced by Union Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman as it had nothing for the massively overcrowded suburban railway network, considered the lifeline of the country's commercial capital.

They pointed out that the Mumbai suburban network did not even get a mention in the Budget speech whereas there was an announcement about the Rs 18,600-crore Bengaluru suburban transport project.

However, officials at Mumbai-headquartered Western and Central Railways said they would wait for the 'Pink Book', which details the Budget allotments for the railways across the country for the fiscal in question, before offering a comment.

National Railway Users Consultative Committee Subhash Gupta said he was expecting an announcement of funds for the Mumbai Urban Transport Project phase three and two-A.

"There was neither mention of MUTP-3 and 2A fund allocation nor about grants of funds for projects from the already announced Rs70,000 crore. Nor is there an announcement on creation of separate zone for Mumbai railway area. The Budget is disappointing as far as Mumbai suburban network is concerned," Gupta said.

Activist Lata Arghade wondered if the announcement of more Tejas trains would be of any use to the common man since the fares of these services are higher than normal ones.

"The Mumbai suburban network has been completely ignored," Arghade added.

Earlier, Maharashtra Chief Minister Uddhav Thackeray also expressed disappointment over the lack of announcements in the Budget for the Mumbai suburban network.

"There is no mention of the suburban railway network (in Mumbai) and development of proposed lines (on the Central and Western Railway routes)," he said.

"The budget gives no momentum to the development of railway network in the state except for the mention of projects announced earlier, such as the Mumbai-Ahmedabad Bullet Train," Thackeray said.

The Mumbai suburban network is among the most congested in the world with over 3000 services per day carrying some eight million passengers.
- Monalisa Chinda is a household name in Nollywood - the popular actress has opened up about her first marriage

- The Nollywood actress parted ways with her ex-husband Dejo Richards some years ago

- Monalisa says she was naive and young when she married Dejo, and that she does not regret that part of her life

- According to her, she moved on, worked on herself and love found her again

Popular Nollywood actress Monalisa Chinda Coker has disclosed in an interview that she met the wrong person at the right time, referring to her ex-husband.

Speaking about her first marriage with Dejo Richards, Monalisa said she did not regret that part of her life, adding that she was naive and young.

Legit.ng gathers that the Nollywood actress, who said that what she experienced in her first marriage only made her wiser, also spoke on why she has not been regular on the TV screens.

She said she is getting older and needs to allow the younger generation to take over from her.

Monalisa said: Im not there on the screens as I used to be. I am getting older and need to give room for the younger generation to take over."

She said there are certain roles she can no longer play because she is getting older - like roles made for the younger generation - like a young university student.

The actress said she is more about producing her own movies and show.

She said: "Thats another reason I slowed down a bit. But this year 2020, you would see me gracing more of your TV screens."

PAY ATTENTION: Install our latest app for Android, read the best news on Nigerias #1 news app

Meanwhile, Legit.ng previously reported that prolific Nollywood actress turned 45 on September 13, 2019, and she took to social media to celebrate with a cute photo of herself.

Monalisa is one Nollywood diva who has continued to wow many people with her impeccable delivery on screen. The actress, who started her acting career in 1996, has successfully built a brand name for herself.

To mark her birthday with her fans, Monalisa took to her Instagram account to share a stunning photo of herself and captioned it: "Hey! It's my birthday and I'm gonna have fun and glorify His name".

NAIJ.com (naija.ng) -> Legit.ng We have updated to serve you better

EXCLUSIVE: 17 Years After Their Marriage. Ramsey Nouah Has This to Say About His Wife | Legit TV

Source: Legit.ng
64th District Court

01-23-2020 to 01-29-2020

Portfolio Recovery Associates, LLC vs. Valessa Gutierrez  contract, other  default judgement

In the matter of marriage of Jaime Lee Escalante and Priscilla Escalante  divorce, no children  final judgement after non-jury trial

Portfolio Recovery Associates, LLC vs. Aurora Palomino  contract: consumer/commercial/debt  default judgement

In the matter of marriage of Felipe Chairez and Adriana Chairez  divorce, children  final judgement after non-jury trial

Portfolio Recovery Associates, LLC vs. Dario Castillo  contract: consumer/commercial/debt  default judgement

Portfolio Recover Associates, LLC vs. Bobby Reyes  contract: consumer/commercial/debt  default judgement

Portfolio Recovery Associates, LLC vs. Juanita Reyes  contract: consumer/commercial/debt  default judgement

In the matter of marriage of Raven Rodulfo and Zachary John Rodulfo  divorce, no children  final judgement after non-jury trial

Portfolio Recovery Associates, LLC vs. Melissa Landeros  contract: consumer/commercial/debt  agreed judgement

Justice of the Peace

01-24-2020 to 01-30-2020

Second Round Sub, LLC vs. Ernest Salinas  debt claim  filed

Midland Credit Management, Inc. vs. Sylvia Gonzales  debt claim  filed

Portfolio Recovery Associates, LLC vs. Amanda A. Garcia  debt claim  filed

Winwood Village Apartments vs. Gloria Guerra, Luis Guerra, Lorelei Guerra  evictions  filed

Alvidrez Rentals vs. Armando Armendarez Lozano III, etal  evictions  filed

Stonebridge of Plainview vs. Michelle Reyes, Ruben Reyes Jr. and all other occupants  evictions  filed

Plainview Apartments vs. Virginia Rodriguez  evictions  filed

Plainview Apartments vs. Stephanie Ambriz  evictions  filed

TD Auto Finance LLC vs. Jason Carrillo  debt claim  disposed  default judgement, judgement for plaintiff

Portfolio Recovery Associates, LLC vs. Christelia LaFuente  debt claim  disposed  default judgement, judgement for plaintiff

Portfolio Recovery Associates, LLC vs. Henry Hendon  debt claim  disposed  default judgement, judgement for plaintiff

Bank of America N.A. vs. Paul Anthony Chavez  disposed  default judgement, judgement for plaintiff

Persolve Legal Group, LLP vs. Benjamin Morales, an individual  debt claim  disposed  default judgement, judgement for plaintiff

Persolve Legal Group, LLP vs. Steve Gutierrez, an individual  debt claim  disposed  default judgement, judgement for plaintiff

Persolve Legal Group, LLP vs. Christine Rocha, an individual  debt claim  disposed  default judgement, judgement for plaintiff

Portfolio Recovery Associates, LLC vs. Lupe Arroyo  debt claim  dismissed  non-suited, dismissed by plaintiff

Midland Funding LLC vs. Kayla Carbajal  debt claim  disposed  default judgement, judgement for plaintiff

Midland Funding LLC vs. Dandy Jones  debt claim  disposed  trial/hearing by judge/hearing officer

Midland Funding LLC vs. Wells Fargo Bank, N.A., garnishee vs. Leticia Guajardo, defendant  debt claim  disposed  agreed judgement

Sun Loan Company vs. Michael Camargo  debt claim  disposed  default judgement, judgement for plaintiff

Second Round Sub, LLC vs. Saul Patino  debt claim  disposed  default judgement, judgement for plaintiff

Midland Funding LLC vs. Nora Escobar  debt claim  disposed  trial/hearing by judge/hearing officer

Rushmore Loan Management Services LLC vs. Edward G. Reyna, Brandie Rodriguez and all occupants  evictions  disposed  default judgement, judgement for plaintiff

Plainview Apartments vs. Joy Reyes and Victor Reyes  evictions  dismissed  non-suited or dismissed by plaintiff

Eric Robles vs. Plainview Dodge, Daniel service manager  small claims  dismissed  trial/hearing by judge/hearing officers, judgement for defendant

Steve Solberg vs. Larry Garcia  small claims  disposed  default judgement, judgement for plaintiff

Ronnie Ray vs. Fred Alcala  small claims  disposed  default judgement, judgement for plaintiff
One of the "treetop Barbies" ecologist Nalini Nadkarni created outfitted with miniature versions of her own gear. Fifteen years after she began making the dolls, Mattel asked her to consult on a new line of Barbies with careers in science and conservation. (AP Photo/Rick Bowmer) Read more

Nalini Nadkarni didnt play with Barbies as a girl. She was too busy climbing the maple trees in her front yard in Bethesda, Md.

The forest ecologist might seem an unlikely person to help design and promote Barbie dolls. But over the past six months, she has been inspiring girls worldwide to play with dolls that come with a magnifying glass and all-terrain boots instead of tiaras and high heels. Its through new explorer Barbie dolls designed with her input by Mattel and National Geographic.

The line of dolls, which includes an astrophysicist, a conservationist, an entomologist, a marine biologist, and a nature photojournalist, are long overdue, said Nadkarni, 65, a University of Utah biology professor who studies rain forest canopies and how plants get their nutrients.

When I was growing up in Bethesda, we tried to live simply, following Gandhis principles, she said. My dad was from India, and a Barbie didnt quite fit in with living a simple life.

Instead, said Nadkarni, she and her four siblings were encouraged by their mother, who was a stay-at-home mom, and their father, a pharmacologist, to create their own fun.

For Nadkarni, that meant tree climbing.

As a child, I had a vivid imagination and could picture the treetop as a place of rescue if the neighborhood flooded, or as a hospital for wounded birds, she said. Because no one else [I knew] climbed trees. It was my own world, and I could be anything in it.

After graduating from Walter Johnson High School in 1972, Nadkarni attended Brown University for her undergraduate degree. Then she received a doctorate in forest ecology at the College of Forest Resources at the University of Washington in 1983. In 2014, she received an honorary doctorate in science from Brown University.

Her work has included bringing nature into prisons to help soothe inmates who are anxious and potentially violent.

Nadkarni is doing research in Costa Rica on trees that are still standing after farmers cut down the majority of the forest on their land.

It has never been more important, Nadkarni said, to share with a new generation what she has learned.

These explorer Barbies are a big step forward, she said. Its not perfect  Barbie still has that impossible body shape and is made of plastic  but its a good start.

Nadkarni, who received a custom-designed Barbie in her likeness from Mattel as a thank-you for her efforts, said she had spent years trying to persuade the toy company to develop a treetop Barbie with no luck.

In 2003, Id been thinking of ways to help get girls more interested in science, and I asked myself, What do girls care about when theyre little?'" she recalled.

She looked to her young daughter.

I knew that girls wanted to play with Barbies and look like Barbies, Nadkarni said. But what if Barbie had field clothes on and came with a little booklet about canopy plants?

Mattel wasnt interested in her idea (Nadkarni said she was told that a treetop Barbie wouldnt sell), but she persisted.

She finally created her own treetop dolls, retrofitting Barbies bought at thrift stores with sturdy boots, helmets, and climbing harnesses. Mattel agreed that she could produce the dolls on a small scale, and Nadkarni sold about 400 by request over 15 years through her website to friends, her students, and others who had heard about her efforts to introduce girls to the science-themed dolls.

 READ MORE: Philadelphias new toy library lets families save money while forming a community.

Last year, Nadkarni was thrilled to learn that National Geographic was working with Mattel to come up with a new line of adventure dolls, and that they wanted her to serve on their advisory committee.

That Mattel has perceived there is a market for dolls emulating adventurous women scientists to which young girls can aspire is a great thing, Nadkarni said. Its a hopeful manifestation of the fact that although there are still inequities in science with women and men, there is a desire for girls to play with an explorer Barbie.

Since sales of the explorer Barbies began in the summer on the National Geographic website and at retailers such as Target and Walmart, Nadkarni said, she has heard from girls coast to coast. They thank her for her work in tropical rain forests and ask questions about how they can make a difference to help trees in their own communities.

Nadkarni has since held ecology discussions with about a dozen elementary school classrooms across the country, she said, hoping to pass along her passion for caring for the environment and the world's endangered forest canopies.

When I started hearing from these young kids, I realized they had a true sense of the dire straits of our forests, she said. They really care, and they want us grown-ups to do something to save our environment. It gives me hope for the future that girls  and boys  as young as 7 and 8 want to do what they can to help.
Gulf-based NRI businessmen on Saturday welcomed the initiatives related to agriculture, education and infrastructure announced by India's Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman in her fiscal 2020-21 budget speech, calling it promising and a move to secure the country's future.

Yusuffali MA, the Chairman of Lulu Group International, said the stress on agriculture and education makes it a promising budget.

"Especially the 16-point action plan to boost agriculture sector and allowing FDI in education sector is surely going to secure the future of India," he said.

According to Yusuffali, the finance minister was right in saying that entrepreneurship is the strength of India.

"The establishment of seed funds to boost early stage start-ups and setting up of investment clearance & advisory cell are very welcome steps and will boost investments into India," he said.

He also said that the removal of Dividend Distribution Tax (DDT) by companies is a major step towards attracting investments.

"I take this as the biggest take away from this first budget of the decade," Yusuffali said.

Promoth Manghat, the Group CEO of Finablr, said the 2020 budget demonstrates the resolve of the government to spur growth in the backdrop of the lowest rate of expansion in over a decade.

"The initiatives announced are clearly aimed at reviving consumption expenditure and investment growth while taking a pragmatic view to fiscal deficit targets," he said.

According to Manghat, the continued rationalisation of personal income tax slabs, the sops announced for the rural and agriculture sectors and the aggressive push on infrastructure spending are steps in the right direction in line with the expansionary policy needed to stimulate growth.

On start-ups and digital payments, Manghat said that for the large part, the 2020 Union budget build on the Digital India programme and the proposed app-based invoice financing platform for MSMEs is a boost for the digital payments sector.

While the start-up sector finds support with the new investment clearance and advisory cell and seed fund that seeks to support early stage start-ups, the ambiguity around Angel tax continues to prevail, he said.

Kamal Vachani, the Regional Director of Electronics and Computer Software Export Promotion Council (ESC) and Group Director, Al Maya Group, said that the announcement of new project to improve electronic production will increase the domestic production of electronics and IT industry and boost the economy.

The government's plan to encourage the manufacture of mobile phones, electronic equipment and semiconductor manufacturing as well as medical devices is a positive step for the Indian companies which will be a boost to electronics exports, Vachani said.

According to him, income tax rate cut to 10 per cent from 20 per cent for individuals having income between Rs 5 lakh to 7.5 lakh gives relief to medium income people to save more.

He also welcomed the reduction of corporate tax, five years tax free for new start-ups, and scrapping of DDT.

Vachani said that huge allocation for agricultural sector will benefit the farmers and generate millions of new jobs in the rural sector, which will boost the agricultural economy in a big way.

"Agri exports will get a big boost with this incentive offered by Government of India during the budget," he said.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
Union Minister of Health & Family Welfare Harsh Vardhan on Saturday chaired a review meeting on preparedness for management of novel coronavirus with senior officers of the Ministry in Delhi. Meanwhile, Secretary of Health and Family Welfare Department Preeti Sudan reviewed the screening of Indians who had been evacuated from Wuhan through a video conferencing on Saturday.

READ | 'Cancel weddings, scale down funerals': Chinese officials try to curb Coronavirus outbreak

Delhi: Union Minister of Health & Family Welfare Harsh Vardhan today chaired a review meeting on preparedness for management of novel #coronavirus with senior officers of the Ministry. pic.twitter.com/4rXtC9jyf0  ANI (@ANI) February 1, 2020

READ | Chennai woman returns to India in an empty flight via Singapore amid Coronavirus outbreak

First positive case in India

On 30 January the first case of Coronavirus was confirmed in India, to which Union Health Minister Harsh Vardhan responded that the government has been putting all its might into dealing with the threat.

"Even before the case was detected, we were doing our best. If there is a positive case, we will treat them. I have been informed about one positive case and I will go to the office and find about it. The whole govt is doing its best to ensure no case comes positive," Union Health Minister Harsh Vardhan had said.

Kerala Health Minister KK Shailaja had informed that 20 samples were sent for tests out of which one was found to be positive. The patient who is a student studying at Wuhan University had returned from China after the outbreak and has tested positive. She is kept in isolation at General Hospital in Thrissur. The patient is currently stable.

READ | UP: MBBS student returns home in Saharanpur amid coronavirus outbreak in China

Indians Evacuated From Wuhan, Admitted To ITBP

Around 324 Indians were evacuated from China's Wuhan city, on February 1. They arrived in India on Air India's jumbo B747 aircraft. All the evacuated Indians were admitted at the two quarantine facilities set up by the Army and the Indo-Tibetan Border Police (ITBP), though none of them have been tested positive for the novel coronavirus. The plane, carrying 211 students, 110 working professionals and three minors, reached Delhi at around 7.30 am.

Rescue mission continues

Another flight of the airline Air India departed for the Chinese city from Delhi at around 1.37 pm on Saturday to bring back Indian nationals, reached Wuhan at around 5.40 pm. Five doctors from the Ram Manohar Lohia (RML) Hospital, who were on board for the first flight, are also on the second flight, said an Air India spokesperson.

READ | Hindu Mahasabha recommends 'miraculous' treatment to combat deadly Coronavirus

(With inputs from ANI)
Australians will not be charged $1000 to be evacuated from the Chinese city of Wuhan, in a stunning federal backflip blamed on "incorrect advice" given to Prime Minister Scott Morrison last week.

Treasurer Josh Frydenberg revealed on Sunday morning that Australians would be airlifted from China and flown to quarantine on Christmas Island without having to pay the $1000 fee the government announced days earlier.

Treasurer Josh Frydenberg has revealed the government will no longer charge those fleeing Wuhan $1000. Credit:AAP

"Theyre not going to be charged," Mr Frydenberg said on the ABC's Insiders program.

"Its very clear that the advice that we got originally was incorrect."
Whatever your political affiliations, it would seem difficult to deny that politics in Ghana has become less civil in recent times.

Lady Mary Wortley Montagu argued that 'civility costs nothing and buys everything' and according to Montagu's principle, rudeness should only harm a politician's rating.

Personal attacks by our politicians are an insult to voters. The politicians, especially those being paid, fed and housed from our taxes should know that crass political speeches are self inflicted wounds on the republic that promises freedom, justice and other such noble virtues of public order.

Personal jibes end up making heroes of the target and John Mahama and his NDC are gaining more admirers because of Npp insults, blame game and false allegations. Burning issues such as jobs, health, poverty, security, education are effective in connecting voters with real issues than jibes and propaganda.

Scrutinizing the former President's Facebook (live) conversation with the public isn't wrong. Yes, government reacting to some of the issues he raised is appropriate. But we expect government via its information ministry or other communication outfits to provide credible responses and solutions to the issues raised. Your insinuations, attacks and blame game may sound impressive to your supporters but will end up not telling the public what they deserve or yearning to hear.

The Akufo-Addo government is obsessed about somehow trying to fix blame on its predecessor, in the process, it is unable to find solutions that will ensure revival of the economy. The government believes in headline management and not concrete solutions, that is the problem. This is what Kojo Oppong Nkrumah has been contracted to do to the detriment of the suffering masses.

My advice to Kojo and his government is that "before one can fix the economy, one needs a correct diagnosis of its ailments and their causes". Your government has been in office for three years, and that is long enough for a government that promised heaven on earth to do some credible things. Merely passing the buck to your predecessor is no solution to the problems you've created the last three years. You may win the media battle because of your censorship and manipulation agenda, you may win some debating points because of your propaganda machinery but that is not governance or finding a solution to the problems you've created.

Responding to Kojo has always been a difficult one because of the respect we all have for the young man. But sadly, his attitude and outbursts these days go against the vision of building a meritocratic, egalitarian Ghana where issues and principles are discussed more than cheap propaganda and lies peddling.

I listened to Kojo's encounter with the press responding to issues former President raised and ask myself, is that the Kojo I know? I asked that question because the information minister's responses were empty, vague, and cheap. All he did was attacking the former President, low level name calling and churning out cheap propaganda. Kojo must be told that his language to boost his government and party does not fit well with the dignity of the office he is occupying.

Did I hear the information minister say the former president commissioned pans? And who gave him that information? He was in the media so should have known better. Why didn't he mention the outboard motors and other equipments the administration presented to the Fisher folks. President Mahama did not organize a special ceremony for that presentation. He presented the items when he toured the regions. Why didn't he mention the cold stores the former president inaugurated in Shama, Prampram, Nyanyano and Half Assini to revamp the fisheries sector. He distributed the pans and the outboard motors to Fisher folks in our fishing communities to support their activities. He did not organize special events for their inauguration or presentation of the items. He did not bus party supporters from the regions to these events. He did not advertise the event on his Facebook page. Knowing the agenda and modus operandi of this government, it is not surprising that such a despicable lie is emanating from Kojo.

Kojo, Ghanaians know that the President and his propagandists, are busy trying to spin success from all your epic failures.

President Akufo-Addo was elected in 2016, in part, by giving his supporters an impression that he stands for good governance and economic development. This was, in fact, the image the president and your group carefully cultivated through media, while candidate Akufo-Addo himself claimed to be an incorruptible person. These claims can now be believed only by the ideologically addled. Governance has become extremely difficult for you because of what you told Ghanaians, the promises, and the lies you told Ghanaians about Mahama and his government.

And Kojo's response to Former President Mahama's excellent delivery about the problems in the banking sector is his government's package for the unfortunate victims, the bank owners and the over 5000 bankers who lost their job as a result of that needless exercise? Kojo is happy we losing all the local Banks? He is happy thousands of Ghanaians are sitting home jobless as a result of that so called cleanup? Has he seen the letter the Attorney General wrote to the finance ministry about the decision to collapse Unibank? He is happy with the hell depositors, dismissed bankers and owners of the banks are going through?

Kojo, no one can reasonably claim to believe in the Akufo-Addo brand as it was sold in 2015/16. People have plumbed the shallows of his boast, and they have been refuted. And whatever else the President may be, he has proved that he is not capable of leading an aspirational, inclusive and a united Ghana. Ghanaian voters are looking for authenticity, credibility and viability in their leaders and that is what John Mahama represents.

When did going for IMF support become an economic crime? And why did your government extend the period of our dealing with the IMF? Kojo has economics background so should know better. Almost all our governments including the military administrations received support from the IMF so why making it look as if going for an IMF is evil. And did the IMF support instill discipline in the economy? These are the issues I expect Kojo to discuss with the Ghanaian public.

Kojo, President Akufo-Addo's unpopularity is reflected in the undercurrent of dissatisfaction of Ghanaians who are not convinced on what your government has done to address unemployment, corruption, nepotism, agriculture sector distress, low capital expenditure, reckless borrowing and spending and your government's failure to fulfill the many promises you made.

Always remember that, the former president, in 2015, predicted a 7-8% growth in the economy by 2017 because of the huge investment his government made in the oil and gas sector. His prediction was corroborated by the IMF. Ask yourself how much your government has borrowed the last three years then you look around to see if you could find a single project implemented from the amount borrowed.

My last point is about the Ambulance distribution. Is he challenging the fact that the NDC distributed over 160 ambulances? Is he ready to defend his statement that the Onuador Vans didn't have medical equipments in them? Isn't that interesting and worrying? The information minister of a great nation like Ghana misinforming the public for political convenience.

Author: Andrews Krow
48th Annual National Conference DERMACON 2020 takes place in Pune

On World Leprosy Day, IADVL (Indian Association of Dermatologists Venereologists & Leprologists), the countrys premier institute of Dermatologists announced the inauguration of its 48th Annual National Conference DERMACON 2020 in Pune.

The 4-day conference from 30th January 2020 to 2nd February 2020, witnessed doctors and the medical fraternity addressing Derma led grave diseases like Leprosy, Vitiligo and abuse of steroid-based medicines. In the year 2005 India leprosy was eliminated from India and today shockingly due to the resurgence of disease we are home to 66 per cent of cases global. In other words, two out of every three new global leprosy cases are detected in India. IADVL which is the second-largest dermatologist association, on World Leprosy Day took a pledge to spread awareness and work towards the eradication of Leprosy in India. DERMACON is one of IADVLs initiative which is an annual event to educate and communicate the people about the disease.

DERMACON also addressed the lack of awareness and abuse of steroid-based ointments, medicines which are being purchased over the counter from medical or general stores. In recent years India has reached a pandemic where such skin diseases have become steroid-resistant and more and more cases are being reported. This years conference was attended by globally renowned doctors (31 International Faculty and 400 + Indian faculty), where they shared their expertise and knowledge.

In 2005 WHO had declared that India is fully eradicated of leprosy, but shockingly with 66% of the cases prevailing in India, sadly our country is the capital of Leprosy. With the aim to eliminate the disease, IADVL is working towards many initiatives and one of the key focus is on educating society.

During the discussions at the event, it was revealed that in Maharashtra itself there are Sixteen thousand new cases reported every year out of which 4500 cases are from Nagpur itself. The active districts where leprosy is widespread are Thane, Raigad, Vidharbh and Palghar, there are cases reported because of the tribal belt. The resurgence was reported first in UP in 2012 with 20000 new cases followed by Bihar with 18000 new cases every year.

During the inauguration of DERMACON 2020, Dr. P Narasimha Rao, IADVL President said It is time we face the harsh reality that Leprosy is coming back, and it can be tackled only by collaborative efforts. To make India truly Leprosy Free  we all need to have a correct understanding of leprosy and compassion toward those with the disease. It is only then that Leprosy patients will seek treatment and will be able to live with respect in the society. Leprosy is not a disease of the past, it is still an ongoing issue therefore, on World Leprosy Day 30th January 2020, we at IADVL pledge to work towards Mission Leprosy Free India.

Dr. Kiran Godse, President-Elect (IADVL) reiterated the fact that There is a lot of stigma and isolation which is associated with leprosy which is very harsh for the patients and their families have to endure it. Patients are abandoned not just by the society but their families as well and in India its very sad to see that even the law doesnt show any compassion towards them. Today, through the efforts of research and science, leprosy is a curable disease if detected early and for that the drugs are also distributed free of charge. Fearful of being diagnosed, people often do not go to a clinics or hospital because of the stigma related to the disease. This therefore is one of the biggest obstacles to early diagnosis and treatment thereafter.

Despite the fact that early diagnosis is 100% curable and prevents further deformity and spread of the disease, the fact that leprosy can be treated with drugs, just like other diseases. The people who are suffering, continue to face discrimination to the extent that they are separated from their families; children are unable to attend school; a few lose their jobs; and a few who have missed out on the chance of getting married. Even after their recovery they are still termed as ex-leprosy patients and are looked down upon, said Dr. Anil Patki, Leprosy Specialist Pune

"Though leprosy is claimed to be eliminated, the continued occurrence of new cases and static new case detection rate in the country for the last fifteen years post elimination (2005) is a matter of great concern. There is a need for strengthening referral systems, identifying the magnitude of clinical problems like reactions, nerve damage and deformity and their early management specially after stopping treatment in order to contain the morbidity associated with the disease in the community. Evaluation of chemoprophylaxis as a strategy is important and so also monitoring and surveillance of drug resistance at national level, said Dr Vivek Vasudev Pai, Director, Bombay Leprosy Project.

Dr. Narendra G Patwardhan, Organizing Chairman (DERMACON 2020) addressed the abuse of steroid-based medicines and said Corticosteroids, also known as steroids, are anti-inflammatory medicines used for a range of conditions. These are present in some creams used as fairness creams, combination drugs, antifungal, anti-bacterial combination, these irrational combinations are prescribed by family physicians, pharmacists without understanding the dangerous impact of steroid use.

Dr. Dhanashree Bhide, Scientific Chairman (DERMACON 2020) further added that The widespread misuse of skin creams and lotions that contain steroids in India is harmful and out of control. Indian doctors are witnessing a pandemic of adverse effects induced by topical corticosteroids. These steroid creams and lotions can lead to substantial and permanent damage, especially on thin skin, such as on the face and groin. Side effects include pigmentation and breakdown of the skin, small and widened blood vessels on the skin, as well as bacterial and fungal infections. Misuse can also lead to resistance of infections that can make these difficult to diagnose and treat.

Dr. Pradyumna Vaidya, Organizing Secretary (DERMACON 2020) spoke about developed countries where topical corticosteroids are available strictly by prescription and sale thru any other medium is restricted. These should be used judiciously, for appropriate indications and duration and only if prescribed by qualified Dermatologists. He further added Citizens, as well as doctors of all specialities, need to be informed and educated about safe use of topical corticosteroids. The government needs to implement a strict policy for its dispensing, approvals and prescription given by respective authorities. Even qualified medical practitioners in India are ignorant about rational prescribing, therefore, we at IADVL appeal to the government to ban these "irrational combinations".
The U.S. Treasury Department's Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) announced Friday it has lifted economic sanctions against COSCO Shipping's oil tanker operations.

The department did not explain the reasons for lifting the sanctions. OFAC imposed sanctions against the Chinese tanker operation on Sept. 25 for transporting Iranian oil in violation of U.S. and UN sanctions. However, the Trump administration signed a phase one trade deal with China on Jan. 15, signaling improved relations between the two economic powers.

Specifically, OFAC added COSCO Shipping Tanker (Dalian) Co. Ltd. and its affiliates, including Dalian Ocean Shipping Co. Ltd. and Dalian Yuanyang Yunshu Gongsi, to its Specially Designated Nationals and Blocked Persons (SDN) List.

The agency also added a handful of Chinese executives and other Chinese tanker operations, including China Concord Petroleum Co. Ltd., Kunlun Holding Company Ltd., Kunlun Shipping Company Limited and Pegasus 88 Limited.

U.S. persons and companies are generally prohibited from conducting business with individuals or entities on the SDN List. Additionally, any entities owned 50% or more in the aggregate by these listed individuals are blocked.

However, the sanctions did not apply to COSCO Shipping Tanker's parent, COSCO Shipping Corp. Ltd., or its other nontanker corporate affiliates.

The lifting of the sanctions against COSCO Shipping Tanker was good news for the oil transport sector.

"The effect of the sanctions was a reduction in supply, and as a result, tanker rates were still reasonably high," wrote Ben Nolan, Stifel Maritime analyst, in a note on Friday. "With the lifting of sanctions, about 2-3% of the global crude tanker fleet (particularly the VLCCs) will immediately rejoin the global trading fleet and drive tanker rates down."

Nolan estimated that 20-25 VLCCs (very large crude carriers) of an estimated global fleet of about 800 were idled or "underutilized" after OFAC imposed the sanctions against the Chinese tanker operators.

Story continues

Meanwhile, crude tanker rates currently face a "negative headwind," Nolan said.

"Crude tanker rates have already been falling this year, with VLCC rates down from about $100,000/day to closer to $50,000/day currently," he said.

The U.S. continues to strengthen its use of sanctions against Iran's oil supply since leaving the international Iran nuclear treaty in 2018. Numerous Iranian and foreign entities and individuals, as well as vessels, have since been placed on the SDN List for their alleged role in transporting Iranian oil, which the U.S. said helps finance the activities of the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps-Qods (IRGC-QF).

Image Sourced from Pixabay

0

See more from Benzinga

 2020 Benzinga.com. Benzinga does not provide investment advice. All rights reserved.
Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman announced on Saturday that a task force will be appointed to examine the issue about the age of girls entering motherhood, as she asserted that the government will keep its focus on the welfare of women and children, besides the disadvantaged communities.

She announced a Rs 35,600-crore outlay for nutrition-related programmes for 2020-21 and an amount of Rs 28,600 crore was allocated for programmes specific to women, an official statement said.

The budget fixed Rs 85,000 crore for the welfare of scheduled castes and other backward classes (OBCs), and Rs 53,700 crore for scheduled tribes in the next fiscal.

Noting that more and more opportunities were opening up for women to pursue higher education and career, Sitharaman said the entire issue about the age of a girl entering motherhood needed to be seen in a new light and proposed to appoint a task force for the purpose.

It would present its recommendations in six months' time, she added.

Sitharaman said the government's "Beti Bachao Beti Padhao" scheme had yielded "tremendous" results with the gross enrolment ratio of girls across all levels of education now being higher than boys.

At the elementary level, it was 94.32 per cent against the 89.28 per cent for boys, and similar trends were also observed at the secondary and higher secondary levels, she said.

The budget proposed to provide Rs 35,600 crore for nutrition-related programmes for 2020-21.

Speaking about the "Poshan Abhiyan" (nutrition scheme) that was launched in 2017-18 to improve the nutritional status of children (0-6 years), adolescent girls, pregnant women and lactating mothers, the finance minister said more than six lakh anganwadi workers were equipped with smartphones to upload the nutritional status of over 10 crore households, which was an "unprecedented development".

Addressing the issue of manual scavenging, Sitharaman said the government was determined to eradicate the practice of manual cleaning of sewer systems or septic tanks.

The Union budget allocated Rs 10,103.57 crore to the social justice and empowerment ministry for 2020-21 as against the Rs 8,885 crore given to it in 2019-20.

The initial expenditure proposal for the ministry was Rs 10,070 crore for the ongoing fiscal, before being revised downward to Rs 8,885 crore.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
The opposition Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) has cautioned the Speaker of the House of Representatives, Hon. Femi Gbajabiamila, and asked him to concentrate on his legislative duties and end his meddling into the internal affairs of the PDP.

The caution is predicated on Mr. Speakers reported needless interferences into the choice of leadership of the PDP Caucus in the House of Representatives, leading to intimidation and threats of sanctions against PDP Caucus leaders led by Hon. Kingsley Chinda.

The PDP in a statement signed by the partys spokesman, Kola Ologbondiyan, the party reminds Hon. Gbajabiamila that as a party, they reserve the right to form a parliamentary caucus as well as choose the leaders of their caucus, as it obtains in parliaments, all over the world and the House of Representatives under Gbajabiamila, as Speaker, cannot be an exception.

The statement reads in parts.

The leadership of the House is aware that whereas members from minority parties decided on the Minority leadership, a party and its members have the right to form a caucus and select leaders of such caucus accordingly, without interference by the leadership of the House or members of other political parties in the legislature.

The PDP reminds the leadership of the House that our party had directed that the affairs of the PDP caucus be organized and managed by Hon. Kingsley Chinda, Hon. Yakubu Barde, Hon. Chukwuma Onyema and Hon. Muraina Ajibola. This position has not changed.

The PDP recognizes the caucus roles of our members and they have the instructions of our party to do so.

Our party therefore calls on the Speaker to respect our choice of leadership for the PDP Caucus in the House of Representatives. Our choice has not in any way contravened any rules or pose any threats to the statutory running of the House of Representatives.

Mr. Speaker should, therefore, steer clear and bury the thoughts of punishing the loyal members of our party just because they are obedient to the decisions of the PDP.

He should rather focus on giving the House of Representatives the much-needed leadership direction to proffer solutions to the myriads of economic and security challenges confronting our nation today instead of hounding our loyal members and meddling into the internal affairs of our party.
Coronavirus: India Sends Special Flight to Wuhan to Evacuate its Citizens

Sputnik News

07:30 GMT 31.01.2020

New Delhi (Sputnik): On 30 January, the World Health Organisation declared the spread of the Novel Coronavirus a 'Public Health Emergency of International Concern'.

India arranged a special Air India Flight into on Friday to evacuate its citizens stranded in the Wuhan province of China, the hotbed of the Coronavirus epidemic. Ashwani Lohani, Chairman and Managing Director of Air India announced the measure on Twitter.

The national carrier Air India had kept one of its 467-seater jumbo planes ready for evacuation and was waiting for approval from the Federal External Affairs and Health Ministries to begin the evacuation procedure.

The crew onboard will comprise of at least two doctors, who will be equipped with all safety and preventative gear. The crew has been asked not to de-board the aircraft and keep minimal contact with passengers in order to prevent the infection from spreading.

The US and Japan evacuated their nationals from a quarantined city on Wednesday while many international airlines suspended flights to mainland China.

India has so far reported one positive case of Novel Coronavirus in the southern state of Kerala and the patient has been kept under observation in a hospital's isolation ward.

The Indian government had assured the 600 Indians living in China's Hubei province, of all possible help and promised they would be evacuated to India.

Coronavirus, which emerged in December in a live wild animal market in Wuhan, the capital city of China's Hubei province, is spreading globally. The epidemic has already left 213 people dead and 9,692 infected in China.

The World Health Organization declared a public health emergency of international concern over the outbreak of the coronavirus, which, according to the agency, has spread to 18 countries.

 Sputnik

NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address






Our Divisions

Copyright  2021-22 DB Corp ltd., All Rights Reserved

This website follows the DNPA Code of Ethics.


remaining of

Thank you for reading! On your next view you will be asked to log in to your subscriber account or create an account and subscribepurchase a subscription to continue reading.
PARIS - In a southeastern Paris district known as the go-to place for Asian cuisine, business is down at Pascal Corliers Vietnamese restaurant, a side-effect of Chinas coronavirus health scare that has sparked panic and a rise in xenophobic incidents.

Some nervous customers have begun to ask waiting staff if they are Chinese, according to Corlier, whose Vietnamese father-in-law runs the kitchen and serves up traditional dishes like pho soup. Others are simply staying away.

Theres a sort of unfounded psychosis setting in around the Asian community and Asian food, the restaurateur said, adding that his revenues were down 40 percent for the first few weeks of 2020 compared to the same period a year ago.

The virus outbreak that began in the central Chinese city of Wuhan has infected nearly 12,000 people - mostly in China but with some 130 cases in 25 countries and regions outside mainland China, including six cases in France.

It has killed 259 people in China and sparked a wave of travel curbs and other efforts to stop the spread, both inside China and abroad.

As well as Chinese nationals, Frances big Asian community includes many people of Cambodian and Laotian descent, and one of the largest contingents of Vietnamese overseas  a legacy of Frances former colonial presence in Southeast Asia.

Asians in France this week created a Twitter hashtag #Jenesuispasunvirus (I am not a virus) to signal abuse. Racist incidents, slights and slurs have been reported from the school playground to supermarkets, according to Laetitia Chhiv, who runs an association for young people of Chinese descent.

We had a student of Chinese origin in Strasbourg who was shouted at by a woman who told him not to touch the avocados she wanted to buy, Chhiv said. That was after she asked him where he was from and whether he had the virus.

Worries over the virus are reverberating across Paris in other ways too, with high-end stores that rely on Chinese tour groups hurting as the flow of visitors dries up. At some retailers, staff said French customers were also staying away, partly out of fear of mingling with Asian clients.

Racism against Asians is spreading even faster than the virus, said Sun-Lay Tan, who works in the art world and is French-born of Chinese and Cambodian descent.

I was sitting on the metro on my way to work and the person next to me edged a few centimeters away and put his scarf over his mouth. I was shocked.

Corlier, the restaurant owner, whose wife is from Vietnam, said even his children had felt stigmatized and saw people covering their faces.

A Chinese teacher at a prestigious Parisian high school wrote to parents this week to explain she had not traveled to China in years, according to an email seen by Reuters.

People are panicking, so its hard to hold it against them, Corlier said. But they have to take a step back ... and look at the facts.
A traveller wears a mask, after arriving on a direct flight from China, as Canada's Public Health Agency added a screening question for visitors and began displaying messages in several airports urging travellers to report flu-like symptoms in efforts to prevent any introduction of coronavirus, at Vancouver International Airport in Richmond, British Columbia, Canada January 24, 2020. REUTERS/Jennifer Gauthier

The new strain of coronavirus has reached Europe after France confirmed three cases.

A 48-year-old man is being treated in a Bordeaux hospital in the southwest of the country after testing positive.

He had passed through the Chinese city of Wuhan - the epicentre of the outbreak - before arriving in France on Wednesday.

Two other people are in hospital in Paris. They also travelled to China and are believed to belong to the same family.

Health minister Agnes Buzyn said France has developed a test doctors can use to quickly diagnose patients and this was one reason why it was the first European nation to confirm cases.

Ms Buzyn predicted there would probably be more positive tests in her country.

It comes as the United States announced a second case after a woman was found to have contracted the strain.

She is in her 60s and is being treated in a Chicago hospital where she is reportedly doing well. She had travelled to Wuhan in December before flying home to Illinois.

China announced today it is building a new 1,000-bed hospital in just six days to treat victims of the virus.

Work has started on the structure in Wuhan in the style of a facility Beijing constructed during the SARS epidemic 17 years ago.

Machinery including 35 diggers and 10 bulldozers arrived at the site on Thursday night, with the aim of the hospital being operational by 3 February.

It comes as the coronavirus death toll in China increased to 41 and the number of confirmed cases around the world was 1,287.

Lockdowns to contain the new virus have been extended to at least 10 cities - including nine in Hubei province - effectively isolating 33 million people.

Restrictions include the suspension of public transport services, while some cities have also shut public venues such as temples and cinemas.

Authorities have warned of more stringent and targeted measures.

"The spread of the virus has not been cut off. Local authorities should take more responsibility and have a stronger sense of urgency," state broadcaster CCTV said.

Story continues

British grandmother trapped in Wuhan

Veronica Theobald, from Lancaster, is visiting her grandson, Kharn Lambert, who has lived in the city for five years.

The 81-year-old has chronic obstructive pulmonary disease and has not left the house where she is staying in over a week.

She was due to fly back to England on Monday - but she is unable to with the city in lockdown.

Mr Lambert, a PE teacher, said: "There is no knowing how long she will have to stay here, and I'm worried about her running out of the medication she needs for her health so I'm in constant contact with the British embassy.

"I do worry if I have to go out for whatever reason that I will bring something back into the house and she will become infected and fall ill.

"My family at home are extremely concerned about her, but I'm trying hard to reassure them that I am taking the best care of her as I can."

Is it a global health emergency?

Not yet.

The World Health Organisation (WHO) has declared the outbreak an emergency but said it was "too early" to consider it a "public health emergency of international concern" given "its restrictive and binary nature".

WHO chief Dr Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus said: "Make no mistake, though, this is an emergency in China.

"But it has not yet become a global health emergency. It may yet become one."

What do we know about the new virus?

There is no vaccine for the new viral infection, which can cause pneumonia and can be passed from person to person .

The symptoms include fever, coughing and difficulty breathing.

Though the origin of the virus has yet to be identified, the WHO has said the primary source is probably an animal.

Coronaviruses are a large family of viruses ranging from the common cold to severe diseases such as SARS - which killed nearly 800 people during the 2002-03 outbreak.

When a new strain emerges that has not yet been identified, as with the current outbreak, it becomes known as a novel coronavirus (nCoV).

:: Listen to the Daily podcast on Apple Podcasts , Google Podcasts , Spotify , Spreaker

What about the rest of the world?

Overseas, five cases have been found in Thailand, three in Singapore and Taiwan, two in the US, Hong Kong, Japan, South Korea, Vietnam and the autonomous region of Macau, and one in Nepal.

In Singapore, schools have asked parents to declare their overseas holiday plans as authorities screen travellers at air, land and sea checkpoints to combat the spread of the deadly virus.

Airports around the world - including in Dubai, Australia and South Africa - have stepped up screening of travellers arriving from affected regions.

In the UK, 14 people have been checked for coronavirus - all have tested negative, Public Health England said.

Measures are also in force in the UK to guard against the virus, including taking aircraft to a special designated area of Heathrow's Terminal 4 .
Please register or log in to keep reading. No credit card required!

Stay logged in to skip the surveys.
A combined memorial for the 357 Army and Assam Rifles personnel killed while fighting insurgency in Nagaland was inaugurated on Saturday.

The 'Veer Smriti' memorial, built at Mokokchung in the northeastern state by the Assam Rifles, was inaugurated by Inspector General Assam Rifles (North) Maj Gen Pradeep Chandran Nair, a senior official told PTI.

"This memorial is the first of its kind in Nagaland, which also has the famous Second World War Cemetery at Kohima. 'Veer Smriti' is spread over 13,500 sq ft and was built by 44 Assam Rifles," the official said.

Nagaland has seen decades of insurgency, leading to the loss of lives for the security forces and Naga insurgents.

Since 1955, when insurgency first began in Nagaland, lives of 357 personnel from the Army and Assam Rifles have been lost, he said.

"The Assam Rifles authorities in Nagaland felt it was necessary to have a memorial to commemorate the supreme sacrifice made by our men in uniform and one which also acts as a beacon of motivation for future generations in the state," he said.

In the last six decades, many battalions from the Army and almost all battalions of Assam Rifles participated in the counter-insurgency operations, the official said.

The memorial has been designed in a concentric circular form, with outer rectangular flower beds as boundary wall. The central arena, the heart of the memorial, comprises two circular podiums with a 19-feet high main memorial mast having three converging posts signifying the Army, Air Force and Assam Rifles.

The names of the 357 martyrs have been carved, each on a single granite stone.

Mokokchung was chosen as the site for the memorial due to its centrality, richness in culture and because a large number of soldiers were martyred in the district in the line of their duty, he said.

One of the most decorated officers of the Army, Colonel N J Nair, Ashok Chakra, Kirti Chakra of 16 Maratha Light Infantry, was also martyred in Mokokchung in 1993, the official said.

From Nagaland, the martyrs include Naik Nikhuni Mao, Riflemen Lukhubi Sema, Alalmba Ao, Y Nokte, Dule Luwang, Kumar Rangmai, H Konyak and AS Ringphami, all from Assam Rifles and Rifleman Hungna Konyak from 164 Territorial Army Battalion.

The memorial is located in the Assam Rifles Battalion location and is expected to become an important place of visit for locals, ex-servicemen and other visitors to Mokokchung, he said.

The memorial was conceptualised, planned and executed by the Inspector General Assam Rifles (North), he said.

The nearly 55,000-strong Assam Rifles has been guarding India's 1,640-km long border with Myanmar and also parts of Arunachal Pradesh border opposite China during war under the operational control of the Indian Army, he said.

The Assam Rifles, which was raised in 1835, has also been carrying out counter-insurgency operations in militancy-infested states in the northeastern region.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
The goal of this article is to teach you how to use price to earnings ratios (P/E ratios). We'll show how you can use Celestica Inc.'s (TSE:CLS) P/E ratio to inform your assessment of the investment opportunity. Based on the last twelve months, Celestica's P/E ratio is 16.88. That is equivalent to an earnings yield of about 5.9%.

View our latest analysis for Celestica

How Do You Calculate A P/E Ratio?

The formula for price to earnings is:

Price to Earnings Ratio = Share Price (in reporting currency)  Earnings per Share (EPS)

Or for Celestica:

P/E of 16.88 = USD9.06 (Note: this is the share price in the reporting currency, namely, USD )  USD0.54 (Based on the year to December 2019.)

Is A High Price-to-Earnings Ratio Good?

A higher P/E ratio means that buyers have to pay a higher price for each USD1 the company has earned over the last year. That isn't necessarily good or bad, but a high P/E implies relatively high expectations of what a company can achieve in the future.

How Does Celestica's P/E Ratio Compare To Its Peers?

One good way to get a quick read on what market participants expect of a company is to look at its P/E ratio. As you can see below Celestica has a P/E ratio that is fairly close for the average for the electronic industry, which is 18.0.

TSX:CLS Price Estimation Relative to Market, February 1st 2020

Its P/E ratio suggests that Celestica shareholders think that in the future it will perform about the same as other companies in its industry classification. If the company has better than average prospects, then the market might be underestimating it. Checking factors such as director buying and selling. could help you form your own view on if that will happen.

How Growth Rates Impact P/E Ratios

Companies that shrink earnings per share quickly will rapidly decrease the 'E' in the equation. That means even if the current P/E is low, it will increase over time if the share price stays flat. So while a stock may look cheap based on past earnings, it could be expensive based on future earnings.

Story continues

Celestica shrunk earnings per share by 24% over the last year. And it has shrunk its earnings per share by 2.4% per year over the last five years. This could justify a pessimistic P/E.

Don't Forget: The P/E Does Not Account For Debt or Bank Deposits

It's important to note that the P/E ratio considers the market capitalization, not the enterprise value. So it won't reflect the advantage of cash, or disadvantage of debt. The exact same company would hypothetically deserve a higher P/E ratio if it had a strong balance sheet, than if it had a weak one with lots of debt, because a cashed up company can spend on growth.

Such expenditure might be good or bad, in the long term, but the point here is that the balance sheet is not reflected by this ratio.

Celestica's Balance Sheet

Since Celestica holds net cash of US$23m, it can spend on growth, justifying a higher P/E ratio than otherwise.

The Verdict On Celestica's P/E Ratio

Celestica has a P/E of 16.9. That's higher than the average in its market, which is 15.4. The recent drop in earnings per share might keep value investors away, but the net cash position means the company has time to improve: and the high P/E suggests the market thinks it will.

Investors have an opportunity when market expectations about a stock are wrong. People often underestimate remarkable growth -- so investors can make money when fast growth is not fully appreciated. So this free visualization of the analyst consensus on future earnings could help you make the right decision about whether to buy, sell, or hold.

But note: Celestica may not be the best stock to buy. So take a peek at this free list of interesting companies with strong recent earnings growth (and a P/E ratio below 20).

If you spot an error that warrants correction, please contact the editor at editorial-team@simplywallst.com. This article by Simply Wall St is general in nature. It does not constitute a recommendation to buy or sell any stock, and does not take account of your objectives, or your financial situation. Simply Wall St has no position in the stocks mentioned.



We aim to bring you long-term focused research analysis driven by fundamental data. Note that our analysis may not factor in the latest price-sensitive company announcements or qualitative material. Thank you for reading.
Nagpur, Feb 1 : The Union Budget 2020-2021 has once again cheated the farming community and the 16-point plan to tackle the Indian agrarian crisis is "an eyewash" as Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman has failed to address the core issues afflicting the farm sector, a top agriculture activist said here on Saturday.

Analysing the budget, Vasantrao Naik Sheti Swavlamban Mission (VNSSM) President Kishore Tiwari said that no solutions have been offered to the pending problems of the agro sector like costs, crops, credit and risk management that would contribute to doubling the farmers' income by 2022, as claimed by Sitharaman.

"The Bharatiya Janata Party-led government at the Centre is trying its best to divert attention from the most serious economic crisis confronting the most deserving sector, agriculture, which is the backbone of the economy. The rural economy is facing a severe crisis and the utter collapse has resulted in farmers resorting to suicide around the country," Tiwari told IANS.

He alleged that this is the outcome of the wrong policies adopted in the banking, import-export, development, poor infrastructure and environmental issues due to climate change for which a comprehensive farmers bailout package was necessary, but has not materialised.

"Two weeks before the budget, we had written to the FM demanding Rs 3 lakh crore as a 'Special National Agrarian Package' and a 'National Commission for Farmers Rights', which could help end the agrarian distress in the country and end farmland suicides within 3-to-5 years. We are disappointed that it has not been considered," rued Tiwari.

On the other hand, the BJP-led government at the Centre has been pursuing the failed policies of giving bailout packages to banks, power sector, automobiles, FMCS, sick industries, commercial and service sectors, barring agriculture, he said.

All these efforts have failed and crashed the government's intentions to bring GDP back on the tracks, leading to the present recessionary trend and a looming economic crisis, said Tiwari, who is Advisor to Maharashtra Chief Minister Uddhav Thackeray.

He said Sitharaman has completely ignored the major demands of farmers, like minimum support price (MSP) for cotton and soybean to match production cost with a 50 percent profit margin, new crop loans to farmers after waiving their existing debts, introducing new technology in agriculture and irrigation, financial assistance for farmers' widows, education and health facilities for their children, etc, which can go a long way to reduce farmers suicides.

Tiwari urged that in view of the utter neglect of the agriculture sector by the NDA governments since 2014, it is high time the Central government considers agriculture seriously by announcing a hefty development package and export incentives, but instead it has resorted to relaxing import dues for oil and pulses.

He lamented that unless attention is given to the core issues bogging down the agriculture sector, instead of reducing, farmers suicides - which stand at an average of 3,000-plus annually in Maharashtra alone - may increase in the coming months all over India.
By PTI

NEW DELHI: A special Air India plane landed here on Saturday morning after evacuating 324 Indian nationals from the novel coronavirus-hit Wuhan and another flight of the airline would leave the national capital for the Chinese city in the afternoon, officials said.

The first plane -- Air India's jumbo B747 aircraft carrying 211 students, 110 working professionals and three minors-- reached Delhi around 7.30 am, they said.

There were five doctors from Ram Manohar Lohia (RML) Hospital and one paramedical staff on board, said an Air India spokesperson.

The Indian Army has set up a quarantine facility in Manesar near Delhi to keep those evacuated from China's Hubei province.

Officials said they would be monitored for any signs of infection for a duration of two weeks by a qualified team of doctors and staff members.

"With 324 passengers, a special flight has taken off for India from Wuhan. It may reach Delhi at 7. 30am," said the Air India spokesperson at 1.19 am on Saturday.

The flight had departed from Delhi airport at 1.17 pm on Friday to evacuate Indian nationals from China, where more than 250 people - none of them Indian - have died due to novel coronavirus.

Hours after the arrival of the first flight from the Chinese city in Delhi, the Air India spokesperson said, "Another flight will depart to Wuhan from Delhi at 12.50 pm today with a different set of crew, same doctors' team with other aircraft. The rescue team is again headed by Capt Amitabh Singh, Director Operation, Air India."

Wuhan, Hubei's capital, is the epicentre of novel coronavirus outbreak.

"We urge all Indian citizens from Hubei who intend to avail this flight for India and not yet contacted the Embassy, to urgently call the hotlines (+8618610952903 and +8618612083629) or dedicated email ID helpdesk. beijing@mea. gov. in before 0800 hours on February 1, 2020," the Indian Embassy in China said in the tweet.

The virus outbreak has killed 259 people in China with total confirmed cases surging to 11,791 amid stepped-up efforts by a number of countries to evacuate their nationals from Hubei province, officials said on Saturday.

ALSO READ: China coronavirus death toll rises to 259, infections surge

About Friday's flight, the spokesperson had said earlier during the day, "A team of five doctors from RML hospital, one paramedical staff from Air India, with prescribed medicines from doctors, masks, overcoats, packed food are in the aircraft. A team of engineers, security personnel are also there in this special aircraft. The whole rescue mission is being led by Captain Amitabh Singh."

The spokesperson had added that there were five cockpit crew members and 15 cabin crew members on Friday's flight.

Before departure at Delhi airport, Air India Chairman and Managing Director Ashwani Lohani had said, "No service will take place in the plane. Whatever food is there will be kept in seat pockets. As there will be no service, there will be no interaction (between cabin crew and passengers)."

"Masks have been arranged for the crew and passengers. For our crew, we have also arranged a complete protective gear," he had added.

"Total five doctors from the Health Ministry are also going. The plane will be there (at Wuhan airport) for 2-3 hours," Lohani had said.

Officials said the Indian Army has set up a quarantine facility in Manesar near Delhi to keep those evacuated from China's Hubei province.

They would be monitored for any signs of infection for a duration of two weeks by a qualified team of doctors and staff members.

So far about 124 positive cases have been reported in a host of countries, including India where the first case was confirmed in Kerala.

Hubei province and Wuhan remained the ground zero of the virus with 45 deaths and 1,347 confirmed cases, according to the Chinese commission's report.

Air India has done such evacuations earlier also from countries such as Libya, Iraq, Yemen, Kuwait and Nepal.
The U.S. Senate will convene Friday around 1 p.m. ET for the 10th day of President Donald Trumps impeachment trial. NBC News will stream live coverage online, which you can watch above.

Friday could mark the beginning of the end of the impeachment saga, as the senators will vote on whether or not to bring in additional witnesses. With a Republican majority in the Senate, GOP leaders believe they have just enough votes to block further testimony, meaning they could bring the trial to an end by voting whether or not to acquit the president.

Also Read: Joe Scarborough Warns Republicans They'll Be 'Held Accountable' for Impeachment Trial Outcome

If four of the Republican senators vote to hear from witnesses, the trial will move forward. If three do, there will be a 50-50 tie, which would defeat the resolution, unless Chief Justice John Roberts, who is presiding over the trial, votes to break it.

A key GOP senator, Tennessees Lamar Alexander, announced Thursday he would not vote for witness testimony to be heard. Only one has said she will: Maines Susan Collins. Besides Collins, Utahs Mitt Romney and Alaskas Lisa Murkowski have indicated theyre considering voting for witness testimony.

The House of Representatives delivered two articles of impeachment against Trump earlier this month, charging abuse of power and obstruction of Congress. House Speaker Nancy Pelosi signed the articles while flanked by the seven Democratic trial managers who are prosecuting the case. Those managers are Jerrold Nadler of New York, Adam Schiff of California, Hakeem Jeffries of New York, Zoe Lofgren of California, Val Demings of Florida, Sylvia Garcia of Texas and Jason Crow of Colorado.

Read original story How to Watch or Stream Day 10 of Trumps Senate Impeachment Trial At TheWrap
Theresa Payton, CEO of Fortalice Solutions, is one of the most influential experts on cybersecurity and IT strategy in the United States. She is an authority on Internet security, data breaches and fraud mitigation.

She served as the first female chief information officer at the White House, overseeing IT operations for President George W. Bush and his staff.

With the U.S. midterm elections fast approaching, both Paytons observations about the current cybersecurity threat level and her advice about shoring up the nations defenses carry special weight.

In this exclusive interview, she also shares her views on social networking, privacy, and the changing playing field for women who aspire to leadership roles in technology.

TechNewsWorld: What is the chief cyberthreat to the upcoming midterm elections?

Theresa Payton:

My biggest worry and concern is that citizens will not trust election results and that the election process will lose legitimacy. We know that the Department of Homeland Security, working with state election officials, have raced against the clock to secure voting systems. Our U.S. intelligence agencies have repeatedly been on the record stating there is no evidence that cybercriminals modified or deleted any votes in 2016.

The next area of concern is for the communications, contacts, and digital campaigns of candidates being broken into and doxed. While the news focuses on securing the votes and the voter databases of the midterm elections, there is not a lot of attention on whether or not campaigns take threats targeting their campaigns seriously. Nothing would hit closer to home for a candidate than if their election was hacked and they lost  or won.

Cyber is certainly a buzzword, but its not a word without meaning. With the onslaught of breaches, candidates should be laser-focused on cybersecurity.

TNW: What should federal officials do to shore up election security? What should state and local governments do? Where does the buck stop?

A D V E R T I S E M E N T

Payton:

Its crucial that elected officials on the left and right not politicize an issue in the short term that will have grave long-term consequences for national security.

Defensively, we need to harden our election infrastructure at the local level. This is the responsibility of the Department of Homeland Security.

DHS needs to continue to work at the local level with state election officials, but also to provide much more robust cybersecurity capabilities for protection and detection at the campaign level.

We also need to be sure that the intelligence and homeland security community is effectively sharing information and tools, techniques and tactics.

TNW: How serious are concerns that election interference might be caused by tampering with back-end election systems? What can federal agencies do to address the problems of outdated voting equipment, inadequate election-verification procedures, and other potential vulnerabilities? Is there an argument to be made for some level of mandatory federal oversight of state and local voter systems?

Payton:

There are grave concerns about election interference and the race to secure them, globally, is under way. The idea that voter databases could be seeded with falsified data or modified has been around for decades, but the technical know-how and motive has caught up with that idea. Election officials in a race towards automation and efficiency may have helped criminals along, but its not too late if we act now.

Today, there are entire countries totally relying on electronic voting: Brazil, since 2000, has employed electronic voting machines, and in 2010 had 135 million electronic voters. India had 380 million electronic voters for its Parliament election in 2004.

It is easy to see why electronic voting is the wave of the future and how the United States could model its own voting system after these countries. Its faster, cheaper and more accessible for those with disabilities. Also, would you miss the experience of, or the reporting of, the every-election-day headline of Long Lines at the Polls Today? Probably not. That is certainly less painful than a recount though.

A D V E R T I S E M E N T

We are headed towards electronic voting as the sole system we use despite these facts:

The U.S. intelligence community developed substantial evidence that state websites or voter registration systems in seven states were compromised by Russian-backed covert operatives prior to the 2016 election  but never told the states involved, according to multiple U.S. officials, NBC News reported earlier this year.

Russia hacked the Democratic National Committees emails with the intention to interfere with the U.S. election process, according to the director of national intelligence, James R. Clapper Jr., and the Department of Homeland Security.

As far as we know, despite the scans and alarm bells, no outside entity has changed any records in the registration database.

Scams such as text your vote were more prevalent than ever, and will increase as electronic voting becomes more widespread.

The good news is our government took this very seriously. Prior to the midterm elections, the Department of Homeland Security offered state election officials cyber hygiene scans to remotely search for vulnerabilities in election systems. They also conducted threat briefings and onsite reviews, as well as released a memo of best practices  guidance how best to secure their voter databases.

Some have called for more federal oversight and moving towards a more restrictive security model, but the states own the voting process. Providing year-round briefings from DHS, FBI, CIA, and NSA would prove to be very helpful over time.

Also, we have to remember elections are decentralized. Sometimes there is security in obscurity. Each state in our country, plus the District of Columbia, run their own election operations, including voter databases. A hostile nation state could not feasibly wipe out each system with one wave of their magic wand.

How we vote, though, is just one-way our elections could be compromised. Another concern going forward must be disruption of Internet traffic, as we saw occurred just days before the last presidential election cycle on Oct. 21st, 2016, when the Mirai botnet crippled part of the Internet for hours.

A massive Distributed Denial of Service (DDoS) attacked a host server causing major disruptions to some of the most highly visited websites in the United States. The attack was in two waves, first on the East Coast and then on the West Coast.

As our country votes on Election Day in different time zones, and polling stations close at different times, the similarity is chilling.

However, we need everyone to turn out to vote. The focus on bolstering our election security defenses is reassuring. What we know is the warning signs are there. As we move towards the future, and focus on creating and protecting a new system to collect our votes, we need to protect the one we already have.

Two things you can be sure of after this years election: Eventually, every vote you cast in a United States election will be electronic, and one of those elections will be hacked. No doubt about it. But the recount in 2016 in Wisconsin reminds us all why we need a backup.

TNW: What are some ways candidates and campaigns can shore up their cybersecurity without draining their war chests? What are some of the practices they should implement in the very early days? A campaign thats very secure ultimately might lose due to lack of visibility. How can campaigns strike the right balance?

Payton:

Never before have campaigns collected so much essential information that would be lucrative to so many cybercriminals. Credit card numbers, bank account information, addresses, online identities. The assets go on and on, and cybercriminals are just like bank robbers in the old days: They follow the money.

That is why in todays day and age, if you are on a campaign, whether it be state, national or local, you need to be as vigilant about protecting data as any business. Otherwise, you will lose your customers  also known as constituents and voters.

Anyone on a tight budget can follow these guidelines to protect their campaign assets:

Make it as hard as possible on cybercriminals by separating donor information details onto a completely separate domain name with separate user IDs and passwords from the campaign. For example, your campaign domain might be VoteSallySue.com, but donor details would be stored at MustProtectDetails.com. Using that same practice, run all of your internal communications on a domain name thats not the campaign name  i.e., email addresses should not be henry@VoteSallySue.com but rather henry@MustProtectDetails.com. Increase the level of protection for internal messages by using encrypted messaging platforms for internal communications, such as Signal or Threema. Also, be sure to encrypt all of your campaigns donor data. We have yet to hear a report of a campaigns donor data being hacked and used for identity theft, but we will  of that I am sure. It would be too lucrative not to try. Once it is hacked, it will be hard to restore confidence in your operation. Just ask any major retailer, bank or organization who has recently been hacked, and they will tell you. I dont even need to use their names, you know the headlines. Train technology and campaign staff to spot spearphishing emails and scams. Oh, sure, you think everyone knows not to click on that link, but recent studies illustrate doing just that is the No. 1 cause of breaches among employees. Another safeguard that raises the bar in terms of security is implementing two-factor authentication wherever feasible. When you use a platform that employs two-factor authentication, dont you feel safer? Possibly annoyed, as well, but certainly reassured that the extra step has been taken to secure your data. Dont you want the electorate to feel the same way? Finally, post a privacy policy thats easy to read, easy to find, and youll find voters have more confidence in just your agenda.

TNW: How well  or poorly  have Facebook, Twitter, Google and other tech companies addressed the problems that surfaced in 2016?

Payton:

I was encouraged to hear that with less than three weeks to go for the U.S. mid-terms, that Facebook has stood up a war room to combat social media community manipulation as the world heads into elections this fall and winter.

They have also said they have war-gamed a number of scenarios to ensure their team is better prepared for elections around the globe. Much is at stake, so the fact that Facebook also integrated the apps they have acquired  such as WhatsApp and Instagram  into the mix of the war room is a great idea.

If I were to give them advice, I would suggest that another great step to take would be to create a way to physically embed representatives from law enforcement, other social media companies  including Twitter, Linkedin and Google  and to allow election officials around the globe to have a red phone access to the war room.

TNW: What are some of the most pressing cybersecurity problems facing social networks, apart from their use as political tools?

Payton:

The ability to change their business and moderator models, in real time, to morph quickly to shut down fake personas, fake ads, and fake messaging promoting political espionage, even if it means higher expenses and loss of revenue. Social media companies have made a lot of progress since the 2016 presidential elections and claims of global-wide election meddling, but the criminals have changed tactics and its harder to spot them.

On the heels of the August 2018 news that Microsoft seized six domains that Russian Internet trolls planned to use for political espionage phishing attacks around the same time that Facebook deactivated 652 fake accounts and pages tied to misinformation campaigns, Alex Stamos, the former Facebook security chief, posted an essay in Lawfare, and stated that it was too late to protect the 2018 elections.

TNW: What role should the government play in protecting citizens privacy online?

Payton:

As the Internet evolves, laws and regulations must change more rapidly to reflect societal issues and problems created by new types of behavior taking place online. Never before has the world had access to statements, pictures, video and criticism by millions of individuals who are not public figures.

The Internet provides us with places to document our lives, thoughts and preferences online, and then holds that material for an indefinite period of time  long after we might have outgrown our own postings.

It also provides places where we can criticize our bosses, local building contractors, or polluters.

This digital diary of our lives leaves tattered pages of our past that we may forget about because we cannot see them, but they could be collected, collated, and used to judge us or discriminate against us without due process. The government needs to think ahead and determine which laws need to be enacted to protect our right to opt in and out of privacy features and to own our digital lives and footprints.

TNW: What is your opinion of Europes right to be forgotten law? Do you think a similar law would make sense in the United States?

Payton:

The European Unions right to be forgotten sets an interesting precedent, not just for its member countries but for citizens around the world. It is too early to know what the long-term impacts of the EUs decision to enforce a right to be forgotten with technology companies will be. However, its a safe bet the law will evolve and not disappear.

There are concerns that giving you or organizations more control of their Internet identity, under a right to be forgotten clause, could lead to [censorship] of the Internet. Free-speech advocates around the globe are concerned that the lack of court precedent and the gray areas of the EU law could lead to pressure for all tech companies to remove results across the globe, delinking news stories and other information upon an individuals request.

A quick history lesson of how this law came about: A Spanish citizen filed a complaint with Spains Data Protection Agency and indicated that Google Spain and Google Inc. had violated his privacy rights by posting an auction notice that his home was repossessed. The matter was resolved years earlier but since delete is never really delete and the Internet never forgets, the personal data about his financial matters haunted his reputation online.

He requested that Google Spain and Google Inc. be required to remove the old news so it would not show up in search engine results. The Spanish court system reviewed the case and referred it to the European Unions Court of Justice.

Here is an excerpt of what the May 2014 ruling of the EU Court said: On the Right to be Forgotten: Individuals have the right  under certain conditions  to ask search engines to remove links with personal information about them. This applies where the information is inaccurate, inadequate, irrelevant or excessive for the purposes of the data processing . A case-by-case assessment is needed considering the type of information in question, its sensitivity for the individuals private life and the interest of the public in having access to that information. The role the person requesting the deletion plays in public life might also be relevant. In the U.S., implementing a federal law might be tempting, but the challenge is that the ability to comply with the law will be complex and expensive. This could mean that the next startup will be crushed under compliance and therefore innovation and startups will die before they can get launched.

However, we do need a central place of advocacy and a form of a consumer privacy bill of rights. We have remedies to address issues but its a complex web of laws that apply to the Internet. Technology changes society faster than the law can react, so U.S. laws relating to the Internet will always lag behind.

We have a Better Business Bureau to help us with bad business experiences. We have the FTC and FCC to assist us with commerce and communications. Individuals need an advocacy group to appeal to, and for assistance in navigating online defamation, reputational risk, and an opportunity to scrub their online persona.

TNW: What is your attitude toward social networking? Whats your advice to others regarding the trustworthiness of social networks?

Payton:

Social networking can offer us amazing ways to stay in touch with colleagues, friends and loved ones. Its a personal decision as to how involved you are online, how many platforms you interact with, and how much of your life that you digitally record or transact online.

If you want to be on social media but dont want to broadcast everything about you, I tell my clients to turn off location tracking  or geolocation tools  in social media. That way you arent checking in places. Cybercriminals use these check-ins to develop your pattern of life and to track your circle of trust. If a cybercriminal has these two patterns, it makes it easier for them to hack your accounts.

Register for an online service that will give you a phone number, such as Google Voice or Talkatone. Provide that number on social media and forward it to your real cellphone. Avoid personality surveys and other surveys  they are often very fun to do, but the information posted often gives digital clues to what you may use for your password.

Always turn on two-factor authentication for your accounts, and tie your social media accounts to an email address dedicated to social media. Turn on alerts to notify you if there is a login that is outside your normal login patterns.

The amount of personal information you choose to share is up to you  and everyone has to find that limit of what is too much  but at the very least, never give out personally identifiable information like your address, DOB, financial information, etc.

TNW: As the first woman to serve in the role of CIO at the White House, under President George W. Bush, how did you feel about becoming an instant role model for girls and young women interested in tech careers?

Payton:

Its an honor to think about the opportunity to give back and to help along anyone that wants to pursue this career path, especially young women. Candidly, we need everyone to fight the good fight. My heart breaks when I see computer and engineering classes with very few women in them.

We did not reach out to the women early enough, and when I talk to young women in high school and college about considering cybersecurity as a career, many of then tell me that since they have had no prior exposure they are worried about failing, and that its too late now to experiment. To which I tell them that its always a great time to experiment and learn new things!

Prior to taking on the role at the White House, I had been very active in women in technology groups and was passionately recruiting young women to consider technology careers. At the time I was offered the role and accepted, I candidly didnt have an immediate aha moment about being a role model for women because of that specific job. I was most focused on making sure the mission was a success. I see it now and its an honor to be able to be a role model and I strive to live up to that expectation.

The cybersecurity industry can do more to help women understand the crucial role that cybersecurity professionals play that make a difference in our everyday lives. Unfortunately, hackers, both ethical and unethical, are often depicted as men wearing hoodies over their faces, making it difficult for women to picture themselves in that role as a realistic career choice, because they dont think they have anything in common with hackers.

Studies show that women want to work in professions that help people  where they are making a difference. When you stop a hacker from stealing someones identity, youve made a difference in someones life or business. At the end of the day, the victims of hackers are people, and women can make a tremendous difference in this field. This is something the industry as a whole needs to do a better job of showing women.

TNW: Youre now the CEO of a company in the private sector. Can you tell us a little about what Fortalice Solutions does, its mission, and your priorities in guiding it?

Payton:

Fortalice Solutions is a team of cybercrime fighters. We hunt bad people from behind a keyboard to protect what matters most to nations, business and people. We combine the sharpest minds in cybersecurity with active intelligence operations to secure everything from government and corporate data and intellectual property, to individuals privacy and security.

At Fortalice, our strengths lie in studying the adversary and outmaneuvering them with our human-first, technology-second approaches.

TNW: How have attitudes toward women in powerful positions changed  for better or worse  in recent years?

Payton:

Although thankfully this is beginning to change, I am typically the only woman in the room  and that was common in banking as well as technology. I had to learn how to stand up for myself and ensure my voice was heard. Ive had more than my fair share of times when my technical acumen has been discounted because Im female.

Ive learned that grace and tact go a long way, and Im very, very proud to say that my company is nearly dead-equal male/female. We even started an organization called Help A Sister Up  you can find us on LinkedIn  thats dedicated to advancing women in technology and serving as a rallying point for them and their male advocates. We post job openings, interesting articles, avenues for discussion. Please join us!

TNW: Whats your advice to girls and women entering technological fields about whether to seek employment in the private or the public sector? What are some of the pros and cons, particularly from the standpoint of gender equality?

Payton:

An April 2013 survey of Women in Technology found that 45 percent of respondents noted a lack of female role models or [the encouragement to pursue a degree in a technology-related field].

Its been proven that professional mentorship and development dramatically increase participation in any given field, so the lack of women in cybersecurity is really a compounding problem  we dont have enough women in cyber because there arent enough women role models in cyber.

While connecting with other women has had its challenges, there are wonderful women in cyber today. Look at Linda Hudson  currently the chairman and CEO of The Cardea Group and former president and CEO of BAE Systems Inc.  shattering the glass ceiling for women behind her. Also, up-and-comer Keren Elazari, a global speaker on cybersecurity and ethical hacker out of Israel.

Ive been very lucky to work with wonderful, inspiring women in cyber, but I recognize that my exposure might be more than women starting their career. This brings me to my next point: I recommend all cyber practitioners, and especially women, take advantage of all the amazing free tools out there from RSA, TED talks, and even YouTube.

You can watch speeches from veteran cybersecurity professionals about their careers, hear their advice on how to succeed, and learn new skills to keep you competitive in the workplace. Consider free online courses in cybersecurity or popular programming languages like Python.Ask your colleagues to show you their favorite geek gadget or ethical hack.

There are some excellent security frameworks and guidance available for free online, such as the NIST framework, CIS Critical Security Controls, SSAE 16, and discussions on GDPR. Leverage social media to hear whats on the minds of security experts. You must be a constant student of your profession in this field.
- Toni Gonzaga recently celebrated her 36th birthday in Singapore

- Her birthday celebration was captured on-cam by her sister, Alex Gonzaga

- Furthermore, Alex revealed in her video that the said trip was a treat to them by Paul Soriano

- The said video garnered various reactions and comments from netizens on social media

PAY ATTENTION: Click "See First" under the "Following" tab to see KAMI news on your News Feed

Kapamilya actress-vlogger Alex Gonzaga recently posted a vlog about her trip to Singapore together with her family.

KAMI learned that the trip was for Toni Gonzaga's 36th birthday as she recently celebrated her birthday last month, January 20.

In the video, Alex and her family visited the famous tourist spot in Singapore which is the Marina Bay Sands as well as the Ritz Carlton Hotel which is an American luxury hotel chain.

Alex and Toni also bonded together over a relaxing massage therapy which she showed in the video.

Furthermore, Alex revealed that the said trip was a treat to the family by Paul Soriano, "We are going to Singapore with the family because it's Ate's birthday and Direk Paul treated us."

The said post elicited various reactions and comments from netizens on social media.

"I love seeing Seve and Alex together, I cant wait for her to have one soon."

"I love Alex and Toni Gonzaga, I love their closeness being sisters at the same time best friends."

"Happy birthday Toni! Thank you for sharing your precious moments with your family Alex G. You never fail to make me laugh whenever I watch your vlog."

"The one thing I love about Alex Gs vlogs, aside from it being funny, her contents are always different from the other vloggers."

PAY ATTENTION: Enjoyed reading our story? Download KAMI's news app on Google Play now and stay up-to-date with major Filipino news!

As reported earlier by KAMI, Alex Gonzaga has stunned the online community with her latest post on her social media account. The celebrity vlogger shared in the video that she and Mikee Morada are finally engaged. At one point in the video, Pinty Gonzaga got 'mad' when Mikee was proposing to Alex. The said post garnered various comments and reactions from netizens on social media.

Alex Gonzaga was born on January 16, 1988 in the Philippines as Catherine Mae Cruz Gonzaga. She started her career on ABS-CBN's sitcom, Let's Go, where she played the role of Alex, which also became her nickname.

POPULAR: Read more news about Alex Gonzaga

Please like and share our Facebook posts to support KAMI team! Dont hesitate to comment and share your opinion about our stories either. We love reading about your thoughts!

Source: KAMI.com.gh
The companies made their choice in part because of right to work and, because of that law, the employees have a choice on whether or not to join a union.

Today, right to work and employees choice are under threat in the General Assembly.

Indeed, for the first time since Virginia became a right-to-work state in 1947, there is a real chance the law could be gutted or repealed.

There are two proposals being considered: repeal of the right-to-work statute and a bill to implement fair share, which would eviscerate right to work.

Make no mistake: Right to work is a key component of Virginias strong business climate.

Since slipping out of first place in 2012, we worked hard to return to the top and be named CNBCs Best State for Business last year.

If right to work disappears, we will lose one of the pillars of best for business rankings, which ultimately hurts job creation opportunities.

The bills havent been heard yet, but we already know that competitor states are using the potential for a repeal or weakening of the right-to-work law against Virginia in business recruitment.
BANGOR, Maine - Private high schools in Maine have asked Chinese students to not travel home during the upcoming break amid concerns of a new virus.

The schools announcement comes as the World Health Organization declared the new virus an international health emergency Thursday. On Friday, American authorities announced that the U.S. will temporarily bar entry to foreign nationals, other than immediate family of U.S. citizens and permanent residents, who have travelled in China within the last 14 days.

Some of the states private schools also called off administrators upcoming recruiting trips to China as a precaution, the Bangor Daily News reported.

Theres a worldwide consensus developing about what to do and what not to do, said Mel McKay, head of school at John Bapst Memorial High School in Bangor, where 48 Chinese students are enrolled. Schools are communicating well with our friends in China, and everybodys agreeing that nows a bad time to travel.

The virus, which is from the coronavirus family, can cause fever, coughing, wheezing and pneumonia. Health officials think it spreads mainly from droplets when an infected person coughs or sneezes, similar to how the flu spreads. So far, nearly 10,000 people have been infected globally, according to the World Health Organization.

The schools have consulted with public health agencies, including the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, regarding how to best respond and have communicated with parents of Chinese students, in an effort to discourage temporary travel.

A student at George Stevens Academy in Blue Hill was tested for the virus after coming to the high school in mid-January from China, even though he showed no symptoms, the head of the school, Tim Seeley said.

The first case of person-to-person spread of the new virus in the U.S. was reported Thursday in Chicago. The other five U.S. cases are travellers who developed the respiratory illness after returning to the U.S. from China. There has been no confirmed case of the virus in Maine or anywhere else in New England.
The fast-spreading coronavirus could slow first quarter growth of the United States economy, according to a new report from Goldman Sachs.

Analysts at the firm forecast a 0.4 percentage point decline on US annualized growth through March. But it's not all doom and gloom: Goldman Sachs also predicts that growth will rebound in the second quarter by roughly the same amount.

The note said that it doesn't "find a clearly discernible effect of past pandemic scares on aggregate US activity." Overall, analysts predict the coronavirus will result in "only a small net drag" for the full year. Reasons for the slight decline are a decrease in Chinese tourists to the US and fewer exports to China.

Other factors could hamper US economic growth, however.

"While the housing and labor markets have been particularly positive, the auto market has been sliding and market volatility has posed some challenges, especially at the beginning of Q4," said Steve Rick, chief economist at CUNA Mutual Group.

The virus is likely to do more damage to China's economy, where there are nearly 10,000 cases as of Friday. Some economists are predicting that the economic impact could be worse than the 2003 SARS outbreak because coronavirus is spreading rapidly and coincides with the Lunar New Year travel rush.

Before the outbreak escalated this month, the International Monetary Fund and the World Bank had forecast China's annual economic growth to fall to about 6%, down from 6.1% in 2019.

At least 200 people have died in China from the virus. There are more than 140 confirmed cases of Wuhan coronavirus -- but no deaths so far -- in more than 20 countries outside of China.

--CNN Business' Laura He contributed to this report.
David Trimble, Dick Spring and Seamus Mallon, who were honoured by the Benchers of the Kings Inns in 2017. Photo by Damien Eagers

While it's a long way from Markethill in County Armagh to the rolling hills around Cahersiveen, the feeling of sadness at the death of Civil Rights activist and peacemaker Seamus Mallon brought him a little closer to everywhere this week.

Seamus visited Kerry in 2019 for the Daniel O'Connell Summer School, where he received the inaugural 'Daniel O'Connell Award'.

It's a visit fondly recalled by the school's director, Prof Maurice Bric, who paid tribute to a 'great man' and a 'great nationalist'.

"Seamus made a great impact on people here and interacted with them in a wonderful way," Maurice said.

Maurice outlined three key qualities when looking to understand a man of Seamus' stature.

"Firstly, he was a man of peace. Secondly, he was what I would call a convinced believer in the peace process. He built a space where people from different traditions could come and interact.

"Thirdly, he was a convinced nationalist. He didn't see that by negotiating with people from other traditions that he was compromising his essential and convinced belief in Irish nationalism and unity. I don't think I ever heard him use the words 'Northern Ireland'; it was always the 'northern part' of our island."

Prof Bric described Seamus as a 'self-confident and self-assured' nationalist, who was often in the middle because of a deep sectarian mistrust emanating from both sides.

"Seamus was equally a proud GAA man having played with his club Mullabrack and Armagh. He played Sigerson Cup with Queen's University and was marked by Cahersiveen man Frank O'Leary many years ago. They met when Seamus visited. Seamus also visited the great Mick O'Connell," he said.
When the House passed their two impeachments articles, I reacted on Twitter by pointing out the two articles were essentially:

Orange man bad (Abuse of power) Orange man mean to us (Obstruction of Congress)

That is a distillation of the two articles from the point of view of Democrats in Congress who passed them.

One can also distill the two articles of impeachment from the point of the American public. While some people don't really know what the articles are, to those who do, legalese aside, they amount to:

President Trump using foreign aid to get something from the recipient country President Trump going to through the courts to defend his rights

The overwhelming response to the first article from the American public who are not NeverTrumps is "it's about time." You might even hear a more colorful adjective before the word time from many members of the U.S. public. The American public favor getting something for their money. Now, maybe investigating the Bidens would not be high on their list, or maybe it would, but the consensus of the public is that the U.S. gets little or nothing from its foreign aid, and it is about time the U.S. got something for the foreign aid it gives. At least by asking for something in return for one chunk of foreign aid (according to the Democrats' understanding), President Trump was setting a precedent that the U.S. should demand something for its foreign aid.

The public is also likely to be sympathetic regarding the second article. As far back as Gentlemen's Agreement in 1947 and 12 Angry Men in 1957, Hollywood has reflected the American public's sympathy with someone seeking to protect his rights in the court. Certainly, the public's sentiment is more for underdogs seeking to protect their rights, and no U.S. president is really an underdog. Still, the U.S. public is generally not going to turn against someone for defending himself or protecting his rights in court.

This is why the public support has not built for removal of President Trump. Thus, the Senate will acquit President Trump, and the Democrats will be left to start rooting for the coronavirus to slow down the Chinese and U.S. economies enough to defeat President Trump in November.

Image: Fox News via YouTube.
Photo: (Photo : Photo by Jelleke Vanooteghem on Unsplash)

For a world that's fed up with technologies, it's no surprise that everyone - as in EVERYONE - utilizes gadgets in their daily life. Yes, even the youngsters use them too (as young as babies). So what's the big deal? While gadgets can finally complement our children's education as they enroll in a big school, pediatricians and educators will be the first to say that toddlers don't need them to learn at their age. Why? Below, we will discuss the effects of screen time for your baby.

Francis Dimalanta, M.D., a Developmental and behavioral pediatrician and Tina Zamora, educator of Nest School of Child Development, give their expert view on how technology devices affect learning and the developmental progress among toddlers.

Effects Of Gadgets In Toddlers

Tina Zamora points out that "Gadgets are a very powerful tool when you give it to a child. You might think it's a toy, and it's harmless, but it's a powerful tool," during the "Parenting in the Digital World" by the Smart Parenting Masterclass Toddler Expertips. The experts helped acknowledge the scopes of a toddler's development and the impacts of gadgets when it is practiced too early during the webinar that is also co-presented by Nido.

Kids Develop Less Empathy

Dr. Dimalanta clarified that "The caveat is gadgets don't cause developmental delay, but they actually make a child less responsive because they are glued to it." "They are looking at the screen, something that will not react to them, so they lack empathy," she continued.

"It might seem that they are smarter, more intelligent [when they learn and absorb information using the gadget]," says Zamora. She also informs that the unhealthy consequences of gadget custom may not be known instantly, but in the long run, "But with all the studies that we've read, you are going to feel [the effects] later on. Less attention span, less interaction with classmates, less empathy, and less eye contact."

Gadgets Can Limit Tactile Learning

Children may be educated by a phone, tablet, or laptop of the basics alphabet, counting, and colors, yet it's not the same as learning through actual activities like blocks and other tangible toys.

Dr. Dimalanta explained, "Children should learn using the hand, and all senses should be stimulated. They learn Math using building blocks better than seeing it on screen." He added that "Yes, they can probably memorize rotely [what they learn on screen], but they [may] not know the reason behind it."

He also stated that "Some children first learn how to swipe before they can write." With an example given, "Supposedly, a 2-year-old already has pencil grasp while a 3-year-old can write on a pad." Dr. Dimalanta continues by explaining that gadgets also influence the advancement of excellent motor skills. Some may even pause or skip a milestone, like writing using a pen.

"Two to six would learn through touching, messy play, holding a book, and using blocks." He emphasized that toddlers should be engaged in touching and feeling.

Using Gadgets Too Early Can Affect Speech & Language

Parents, it might be a good idea to start meddling when your child is spending more time using gadgets than interacting with people around him. Dr. Dimalanta said that communication is back and forth language and the screen doesn't accommodate that.

There are two kinds of speech: expressive and receptive. Dr. Dimalanta covered in more detail that "Expressive is being able to learn what words to say while receptive is understanding (what is being said)." He appended that "A lot of kids can say words, but they don't understand its meaning, so you're fooled into thinking my child's so good. This can be bridged if parents read with them and talk to them."

"To help them [acquire language skills] talk to them and not [let them] to live in the tablet," suggests Dr. Dimalanta. It helps that Filipino children are usually exposed to extended families like Lolo, Lola, and Ninang, giving them more opportunities for communication, he added.
Arab leaders say US initiative does not meet minimum rights and aspirations of Palestinian people.

The Arab League has completely rejected US President Donald Trumps Middle East plan during an emergency meeting in Egypts capital, saying it would not lead to a just peace deal.

In a statement on Saturday, the pan-Arab bloc said it rejects the US-Israeli deal of the century considering that it does not meet the minimum rights and aspirations of Palestinian people.

Arab states also agreed not to  cooperate with the US administration to implement this plan, adding that Israel should not implement the initiative by force. They insisted on a two-state solution that includes a Palestinian state based on borders before the 1967 war, when Israel occupied the West Bank, Gaza and East Jerusalem. They also called for East Jerusalem to be the capital of the future Palestinian state.

The session was requested by Mahmoud Abbas, the president of the Palestinian Authority (PA), who urged Arab nations to take a clear stance against Trumps proposed plan.

The 181-page proposal was unveiled by Trump last week at the White House as he spoke standing next to Israels Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.

This is a disgrace

The plan, dubbed by Trump as the deal of the century, was presented on Tuesday after being negotiated with Israel but with no input from the Palestinians, who had cut off all ties with the Trump administration after its 2017 decision to recognise Jerusalem as Israels capital.

The proposed plan envisions the Israeli annexation of large swaths of the West Bank, including illegal settlements and the Jordan Valley, giving Israel a permanent eastern border along the Jordan River.

They told me Trump wants to send me the deal of the century to read, I said I would not, Abbas told the meeting of Arab League foreign ministers.

Trump asked that I speak to him over the phone, so I said no, and that he wants to send me a letter, so I refused to receive it.

Holding up a map that shows the gradual geographic reduction of Palestine through four stages from pre-1948 to Trumps Middle East plan, Abbas said: I challenge any of you, if you can even see us on the map. If you ask a child in first grade to draw Trumps map he will never know how to.

This is a disgrace, he added.

Abbas also said that he will cut security ties with both Israel and the US: Weve informed the Israeli side  that there will be no relations at all with them and the United States, including security ties, he said.

The Western-backed Palestinian leadership has been under mounting pressure from ordinary Palestinians and its rivals in Hamas to cut off security ties with the two countries, or even dismantle the increasingly unpopular Palestinian Authority.

Reporting from Ramallah, Al Jazeeras Nida Ibrahim said many Palestinians there might not even know that there is an Arab league meeting taking place.

It doesnt seem that the street is holding so much hope, she said.

Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas arrives for the emergency meeting in Cairo, Egypt [Mohamed Abd el-Ghany/Reuters]

Clear declaration

Abbas said the Palestinians remain committed to ending the Israeli occupation and establishing a state with its capital in East Jerusalem.

Trumps plan also proposes making Abu Dis, just outside Jerusalem, the capital of a future Palestinian state, which was also instantly rejected by the Palestinians.

The Arab Leagues head, Ahmed Aboul-Gheit, said on Wednesday an initial study of the plans political framework showed that it ignored legitimate Palestinian rights in the territories.

He said the Palestinian response would be key in shaping a collective Arab position on the plan, which he noted was a non-binding US vision.





In a tacit sign of support for the US initiative, ambassadors from the United Arab Emirates (UAE), Bahrain and Oman attended the unveiling of the plan in Washington. Saudi Arabia and Egypt, Arab states that are close US allies, said they appreciated Trumps efforts and called for renewed negotiations without commenting on the plans contents.

Egypt urged in a statement Israelis and Palestinians to carefully study the plan. It said it favours a solution that restores all the legitimate rights of the Palestinian people through establishing an independent and sovereign state on the occupied Palestinian territories.

Jordan warned against any Israeli annexation of Palestinian lands and reaffirmed its commitment to the creation of a Palestinian state along the 1967 lines, which would include all the West Bank and Israeli-annexed East Jerusalem. Qatar said it welcomed efforts to broker long-standing and just peace but warned that was unattainable without concessions to the Palestinians.

Analysts said the divided reaction from Arab states to Trumps plan was no surprise, noting the main reason for support  whether strong or subtle  was to guarantee Washingtons backing against a common regional enemy, Iran.

The US-Iran brief military confrontation in January has convinced some Gulf countries that Washington is their only protector, Ramzy Baroud, a Palestinian author and journalist, told Al Jazeera.

Some Arabs have completely forsaken Palestine and are embracing Israel to fend against an imaginary Iranian threat, Baroud said.

Gulf countries such as Saudi Arabia, the UAE and Bahrain, which traditionally championed the Palestinian cause, have cosied up to Israel in recent years as they see Iran as a bigger regional threat.

I think that what has been done is these people have adopted the approach that my enemys enemy is my friend, Diana Buttu, analyst and former legal adviser to Palestinian peace negotiators, told Al Jazeera.

And it shouldnt have to neutralise Iran, or deal with Iran  It would come at the expense of the Palestinians, she said.
An Egyptian criminal court referred on Saturday the files of 37 defendants to the Grand Mufti, the country's top Islamic jurist, for his non-binding opinion on their execution over terrorist charges, Trend reports citing Xinhua.

The court will pronounce the verdict on March 2.

The 37 defendants have been tried in a case including 208 defendants over a failed attempt to assassinate a former interior minister, murdering policemen and bombing security buildings since 2013.

The prosecution also accused the defendants of joining and leading terrorist groups and spying in favor of a foreign organization.

The dependents include Hisham al-Ashmawy, a leading terrorist who was extradited in late May last year to Egypt from Libya where he was detained by the self-proclaimed Libyan National Army.

Ashmawy belonged to a Sinai-based terrorist group loyal to the Islamic State regional group, which claimed responsibility for most of the terrorist attacks in Egypt over the past few years.

A wave of terrorist activities started in Egypt following the military ouster of former Islamist President Mohamed Morsi in July 2013 in response to mass protests against his one-year rule and his currently outlawed Muslim Brotherhood group.

The attacks killed hundreds of policemen, soldiers and civilians over the past few years, while security forces killed hundreds of terrorists and arrested thousands of suspects during the anti-terror war declared in Egypt following Morsi's ouster.
On the fourth finger of Sean Pertwees right hand is a large silver ring from 850 BC that his late father, the most iconic Doctor Who of all, Jon Pertwee, found at the bottom of the Mediterranean and wore throughout his four-year reign as the eccentric Time Lord.

On his left forearm is a large tattoo, an image of the Perthuis family crest that marks his heritage back to the French Huguenots which his father spent his life searching for. Pertwee stretches out his arm to show off the blue crest. About ten years after Dad died [in 1996], the crest surfaced through various people looking into it and, in memory of my dad, I had to have this done in honour of him.

Sean Pertwee as Inspector Lejeune in The Pale Horse. Pertwee started out in the RSC and appeared in seminal Brit indie movies including Shopping before breaking into Hollywood with a string of films including Dog Soldiers, Doomsday and Mutant Chronicles

Like his father, Pertwee, 55, is an actor. An extremely good actor who has, in many ways, outshone the man who will always be remembered by generations of children for two legendary BBC series: Doctor Who and Worzel Gummidge.

Pertwee junior started out in the Royal Shakespeare Company and appeared in seminal Brit indie movies including Shopping before breaking into Hollywood with a string of films including Dog Soldiers, Doomsday and Mutant Chronicles.

Last year he returned to the UK after living for six years in New York, where he starred as Alfred, the butler in Gotham, the critically acclaimed Netflix Batman drama. He has produced a slew of movies and theatre plays alongside Jude Law, Jonny Lee Miller and Ewan McGregor with their former company, Natural Nylon, and part-owns an art gallery in Londons Soho. But despite all these achievements, to most of Middle England Pertwees voice is more recognisable than his face, as he has provided the dramatic narration for the BBCs top-rated cooking show, MasterChef, for the past decade. He laughs: Yes. Id be a very rich man if I charged a quid every time I get asked to read a restaurant menu!

This month Pertwee returns in front of the cameras in a beautifully shot BBC adaptation of the Agatha Christie mystery, The Pale Horse. Pertwee plays the hard-bitten Inspector Lejeune opposite his old friend Rufus Sewell as a historian, Mark Easterbrook, under threat from a trio of witches led by A Taste Of Honey actress Rita Tushingham.

It feels different from a lot of Christies books because its slightly lesser known, says Pertwee, but its completely compelling and of course Rufus is ridiculously good in it and looks insanely handsome. The guy could slice open envelopes on those cheek bones.

Pertwee himself looks like a man who is living a pretty good life. A former stalwart of the flamboyant group of artists, actors and musicians known in the Nineties as the Primrose Hill set, he is in good shape and deeply tanned from a recent trip to Thailand with his wife of 20 years, Jacqui Hamilton-Smith and his best friend, the musician Goldie. His face is, unmistakably, the face of his father. The Pertwee gene is a strong one, he nods. My son also has the same face but luckily he has his mothers eyes.

It is impossible to talk to Pertwee without talking about his father. As a teenager this may have infuriated him. He grew up with his older sister, Dariel, on Ibiza, where they lived a totally off-grid life with no electricity and endless outdoor activities including diving and riding motorbikes. The ring on his finger comes from a diving expedition to a shipwreck off the islands coast. His dad believed the 850 BC Greek coin had been soldered onto a 55AD band by a Roman sailor and wore it from that day on. He had so many stories and every time he would tell a story, one tiny fact would change, so you would always be fascinated, Pertwee recalls.

As a youngster his signal to come home would be his father ringing a cowbell because his mother, Ingeborg, a food writer, had prepared a family meal. I went to the local hippy school and had the best life just being outside all the time, he says. I then came back to London when my dad was doing Doctor Who. School was a bit of an issue because apart from knowing a lot about trees and songs, I didnt know a hell of a lot else, so that was a bit of a problem.

A young Sean Pertwee, with, from left, sister Dariel, mother Ingeborg and father Jon in 1969

Simultaneously, in 1970, as he appeared in the Tardis for the first time, his dad suddenly became the hero of ten million school children. And stars of the day  including Billy Connolly  would call up asking to be in the show.

I didnt really understand all that, he says. Kids just accept what is going on and dont think too much about it. But Id get a bit irritated when kids would come up to him and my dad would give everyone a lot of his time. I wasnt used to that.

Id come from living on a tiny island, running completely free, to this very different life and it did make me a bit of a rebel, he says. I moved out of home when I was 16 and into a friends house round the corner. I was massively into bands. I spent all my time going to see them.

Without telling his father, Pertwee applied to the Bristol Old Vic to study drama, winning a special grant to supplement his fees.

My dad was concerned about me because he thought I had no direction and I needed that. And I didnt tell him about getting into drama school. Then he came to me one day with an overland ticket to Nairobi [in Kenya]. He wanted me to see real life. I didnt see the point of it but he told me it would change me.

We had guns pointed at us, Id seen death and knew how lucky I was...

It was in the days when no one did anything like that. I went off with a group of people and it was crazy but incredible. We went through the desert, we went through the Congo, through the Serengeti. We had guns pointed at us, all sorts of mad adventures. But he was right, when I got back to London I was completely changed. Id seen life, Id seen death and I knew how lucky I was.

He pauses. When I came back, I went straight to Bristol. My dad wasnt so much shocked as amused. It was then I discovered hed done exactly the same thing to his dad, Roland, who was an actor and screenwriter for Charlie Chaplin. My dads rebel period involved riding a motorcycle around the wall of death in a circus with a toothless lion in a sidecar and then going off to act. I guess it runs in the family.

Family and fatherhood loom large in Pertwees life. His one regret is that his father never got to meet his own son Freddie, 18, or his wife Jacqui [daughter of Lord Colwyn] whom he married in 1999, three years after his fathers death.

Becoming a father for him was not easy. His wife gave birth prematurely to twins and one boy, Gilbert, died within a matter of days, leaving his sibling Freddie in a coma for three months. The fact that he pulled through and is now a funny, smart young kid changed everything says Pertwee.

I am in awe of the fact he had the strength to pull through and I made a vow to tell him every day that Im proud of him. I do tell him that every day. My dad would tell me he loved me and that he was proud of me.

He repeats many of the patterns of his childhood, from going back to Ibiza to visit the house he grew up in, to cooking for his son. And what of the Primrose Hill crowd? He shrugs: We all still talk but everyone has busy lives so you dont see each other all the time. But Jude, Jonny, Ewan and I will always be blood brothers because we grew up together, thats just how it is.

There have been rumours that he is to appear in the current series of Doctor Who alongside Jodie Whittaker. He shakes his head: I was offered a part but I turned it down because it wasnt right. There has to be a point to me being in it, it cant just be that Im there because of my dad.

What would his father make of a female Doctor? He laughs: Hed think it was bloody marvellous. He was a renegade, he was very much a bohemian who followed his own path and he had absolutely no prejudices at all.

Right now there is another Jon Pertwee revival, with Mackenzie Crook revisiting Worzel Gummidge in a new series that divided critics, with some feeling his interpretation was too scary. Pertwee shakes his head. There was a great environmental message he was putting across. Again, my dad would have approved.

Its clear that even today he misses his father deeply: On the set of Gotham they wanted me to have a signet ring and someone had taken a photo of me in my dressing room in my underpants but you could clearly see my tattoo. Theyd had the crest put into a signet ring, which I knew nothing about until the first day of filming. I was exactly the same age that my dad was when he did Doctor Who and there I was with this ring on with this crest hed spent his life trying to track down. That really brought tears to my eyes.

The Pale Horse is on BBC1 next Sunday at 9pm
Taraba State Police Command has arrested a 31-year-old man, Munda Bala, who killed his girlfriend, Imbajuri Ambisi, because she dumped him.

Bala, a native of Donga Local Government Area, reportedly conspired with his two friends to kill his girlfriend and burn her body to ashes before burying her in a bush.

The commands police spokesperson, David Misal while parading the suspects told newsmen that a manhunt has already been launched to arrest the other fleeing suspects.

While parading the suspects, Bala confessed that he killed his girlfriend because he got jealous after she left him for wealthy men. He blamed the sad act on jealousy and hardship.

I fell in love with Imbajuri Ambisi. She became my girlfriend; I got her pregnant and she delivered a baby boy and killed him after seven months. This got me angry and I couldnt tell anyone. My money got finished and she ran away to some wealthy guys who engage in the selling of rosewoods to foreigners. This got me jealous and I met two of my friends who advised me that if I really want my heart to be at rest, I have to kill her, hence our decision to eliminate her, he said.

Meanwhile, a student of Tai Solarin University of Education (TASUED) has been arrested for allegedly attempting to kill his girlfriend and colleague after stealing the sum of N57,000 from her account.

The victim, Danni Iyabo, who is also a student of TASUED, disclosed that her fake friend stole her money and poisoned her with Sniper because he is jealous that she has attained a greater height in the comedy business before him.
Tennessee man stirs the pot by lighting joint in court, and more of this week's weirdest news
A few days ago, Business Today caught up with Kunal Shah, Founder of CRED and FreeCharge. "The government cannot create jobs," he quipped. "Start-ups will." Shah, therefore, had a simple ask from the Minister of Finance, Nirmala Sitharaman. He would like to see consistency in the country's taxation policies - a long-term view of taxation is easy on investors, particularly those brining in the big bucks. "No nation has become prosperous without foreign capital," he said.

Shah, in short, was asking that the government empathise with investors. We need to wait and watch on that but the Budget, for now, appears to be empathetic towards entrepreneurs. There appears to be a realisation of what Shah says. Start-ups are job creators.

FULL COVERAGE: Union Budget 2020

Sitharaman announced three measures.

Most start-ups use an employee stock option plan (ESOP) to attract and retain talented employees. "ESOP is a significant component of compensation for these employees. Currently, ESOPs are taxable as perquisites at the time of exercise. This leads to cash-flow problem for the employees who do not sell the shares immediately and continue to hold the same for the long term. In order to give a boost to the start-up ecosystem, I propose to ease the burden of taxation on the employees by deferring the tax payment by five years or till they leave the company or when they sell their shares, whichever is earliest," she said.

The Minister went on to announce another benefit. "An eligible start-up having turnover up to Rs 25 crore is allowed deduction of 100 per cent of its the profits for three consecutive assessment years out of seven years if the total turnover does not exceed Rs 25 crore rupees. In order to extend this benefit to larger start-ups, I propose to increase the turnover limit from existing Rs 25 crore to Rs 100 crore. Moreover, considering the fact that in the initial years, a start-up may not have adequate profit to avail this deduction, I propose to extend the period of eligibility for claim of deduction from the existing seven years to 10 years," she noted.

The last measure has to do with the ease of doing business. The Minister proposed to set up an Investment Clearance Cell to provide end-to-end facilitation and support, including pre-investment advisory, information related to land banks and facilitate clearances at central and state level.
Republicans rebuff Democratic calls for new witnesses, paving the way for Trumps likely acquittal next week.

The United States Senate narrowly rejected Democratic demands to summon witnesses for President Donald Trumps impeachment trial late on Friday, all but ensuring Trumps acquittal in just the third trial to threaten a presidents removal in the US history. But senators pushed off final voting on his fate to next Wednesday.

The delay in timing showed the weight of a historic vote bearing down on senators, despite prodding by the president eager to have it all behind him in an election year and in the run-up to his State of the Union speech Tuesday night.

Trump and Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell spoke by phone to lock in the schedule during a tense night at the Capitol as rushed negotiations proceeded on and off the Senate floor. The trial came to a standstill for about an hour. A person unauthorised to discuss the call was granted anonymity to describe it.

The president wanted to arrive for his speech at the Capitol with acquittal secured, but that will not happen. Instead, the trial will resume on Monday for final arguments, with time on Monday and Tuesday for senators to speak. The final voting is planned for 4pm (21:00 GMT) on Wednesday, the day after Trumps speech.

Trumps acquittal is all but certain in the Senate, where his Republican allies hold the majority and there is nowhere near the two-thirds needed for conviction and removal; nor will he face potentially damaging, open-Senate testimony from witnesses.

Despite the Democrats singular focus on hearing new testimony, the Republican majority brushed past those demands and will make this the first impeachment trial without witnesses. Even new revelations on Friday from former national security adviser John Bolton did not sway GOP senators, who said they had heard enough.

That means the eventual outcome for Trump will be an acquittal in name only, said Democratic Representative Val Demings, a House prosecutor, during the final debate.

Trump was impeached by the House last month on charges that he abused power and obstructed Congress as he tried to pressure Ukraine to investigate Democratic rival Joe Biden, using military aid as leverage as the ally fought Russia. He is charged with then blocking the congressional probe of his actions.

Senators rejected the Democrats effort to allow new witnesses, 51-49, a near party-line vote. Republicans Susan Collins of Maine and Mitt Romney of Utah voted with the Democrats, but that was not enough.

Senate Democratic leader Chuck Schumer called that decision a tragedy on a very large scale. Protesters chants reverberated against the walls of the Capitol.

But Republicans said Trumps acquittal was justified and inevitable.

The sooner the better for the country, said Senator Lindsey Graham, a Trump confidant. Lets turn the page.

The next steps come in the heart of the presidential campaign season before a divided nation. Democratic caucus voting begins on Monday in Iowa, and Trump gives his State of the Union address the next night. Four Democratic candidates have been chafing in the Senate chamber rather than campaigning.

Bolton revelations

The Democrats had badly wanted testimony from Bolton, whose forthcoming book links Trump directly to the charges. But Bolton will not be summoned, and none of this appeared to affect the trials expected outcome. Democrats forced a series of new procedural votes late on Friday to call Bolton and White House acting chief of staff Mick Mulvaney, among others, but all were rejected.

In an unpublished manuscript, Bolton has written that the president asked him during an Oval Office meeting in early May to bolster his effort to get Ukraine to investigate Democrats, according to a person who read the passage and told The Associated Press news agency. The person, who was not authorised to disclose contents of the book, spoke only on condition of anonymity.

Trump listens as his then-NSA John Bolton speaks [File: Leah Millis/Reuters]

In the meeting, Bolton said the president asked him to call new Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy and persuade him to meet Trumps personal lawyer, Rudy Giuliani, who was planning to go to Ukraine to coax the Ukrainians to investigate the presidents political rivals. Bolton writes that he never made the call to Zelenskyy after the meeting, which included acting chief of staff Mick Mulvaney and White House Counsel Pat Cipollone.

The revelation adds more detail to allegations of when and how Trump first sought to influence Ukraine to aid investigations of his rivals that are central to the abuse of power charge in the first article of impeachment.

The story was first reported on Friday by The New York Times.

Trump issued a quick denial.

I never instructed John Bolton to set up a meeting for Rudy Giuliani, one of the greatest corruption fighters in America and by far the greatest mayor in the history of NYC, to meet with President Zelenskyy, Trump said. That meeting never happened.

Congress has failed

Key Republican senators said even if Trump committed the offences as charged by the House, they are not impeachable and the partisan proceedings must end.

I didnt need any more evidence because I thought it was proved that the president did what he was charged with doing, retiring Republican Senator Lamar Alexander, a late holdout, told reporters on Friday at the Capitol. But that didnt rise to the level of an impeachable offence.

Republican Senator Lisa Murkowski said she, too, would oppose more testimony in the charged partisan atmosphere, having come to the conclusion that there will be no fair trial in the Senate. She said, The Congress has failed.

Eager for a conclusion, Trumps allies nevertheless suggested the shift in timing to extend the proceedings into next week, acknowledging the significance of the moment for senators who want to give final speeches.

Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell made the offer to Schumer.

Under the resolution, the Senate would resume on Monday for final arguments, with time on Monday and Tuesday for senators to speak. The final voting would be on Wednesday.

To bring the trial towards a conclusion, Trumps attorneys argued the House had already heard from 17 witnesses and presented its 28,578-page report to the Senate. They warned against prolonging it even further after House impeached Trump largely along party lines after less than three months of formal proceedings making it the quickest, most partisan presidential impeachment in the US history.

Some senators pointed to the importance of the moment.

What do you want your place in history to be? asked one of the House managers, Jason Crow, a former army ranger.

Trump is almost assured of eventual acquittal with the Senate nowhere near the 67 votes needed for conviction and removal.

The presiding officer, Chief Justice of the United States John Roberts listens [State TV/AP Photo]

To hear more witnesses, it would have taken four Republicans to break with the 53-seat majority and join with all Democrats in demanding more testimony. But that effort fell short.

Chief Justice John Roberts, in the rare role presiding over the impeachment trial, could have broken a tie, but asked late on Friday, he told senators it would be inappropriate.

Murkowski noted in announcing her decision that she did not want to drag the chief justice into the partisan fray.

Though protesters stood outside the Capitol, few visitors have been watching from the Senate galleries.
Labour leadership hopefuls Rebecca Long-Bailey and Lisa Nandy said the party must accept Brexit and move on.

Britain finally left the EU at 11pm last night, more than three years after the referendum.

Shadow business secretary Ms Long-Bailey and Wigan MP Ms Nandy said the government should ensure a good trade deal is struck with Brussels, while speaking at the hustings in Bristol today.

Labour leadership hopefuls Rebecca Long-Bailey (left) and Lisa Nandy (right) said the party must accept Brexit and move on while speaking at the hustings in Bristol today

But shadow foreign secretary Emily Thornberry predicted the exit talks were unlikely to go smoothly.

She said that Labour would need a Remain-backing leader who had been 'on the right side of the argument all along'.

Ms Long-Bailey said the party could not campaign at the next general election, expected in 2024, with the message of 'we told you so' if the country's economic fortunes took a dip after leaving the EU.

She admitted it was 'sad' to see the UK's divorce from Brussels finalised this week but said the 'debate is over' on Brexit.

Shadow business secretary Ms Long-Bailey (right) and Wigan MP Ms Nandy (second left) said the government should make sure a good trade deal is struck with Brussels. Keir Starmer (second right) and Emily Thornberry (left) also spoke at the hustings

Ms Long-Bailey said: 'We cannot spend the next four years waiting to tell our constituents we told you so and that we knew it was going to be this bad all along.'

The Salford and Eccles MP said Labour instead had to make sure Boris Johnson negotiated the 'best possible trade deal' that could help 'rebuild our communities'.

Ms Nandy was critical of Labour's reaction to the referendum outcome.

She accused the leadership under Jeremy Corbyn of looking 'backwards' after the result rather than 'looking forward to the country we can be'.

She said: 'We completely missed the point of that political earthquake, which was a clamour for more power, more control and more agency across this country.'

Ms Thornberry took an opposing view to her two female rivals and said she suspected the Prime Minister would not be successful in acquiring a trade agreement with Brussels

The former shadow energy secretary - who voted for the Prime Minister's Withdrawal Agreement - admitted she had failed in her push for a Brexit deal that kept a close relationship with the EU.

Ms Thornberry took an opposing view to her two female rivals and said she suspected the Prime Minister would not be successful in acquiring a trade agreement with Brussels.

Shadow Brexit secretary Sir Keir Starmer said the divide between Leave and Remain voters must end

She said the country would be 'back in no-deal territory by the summer'.

The Islington South and Finsbury MP - who is the only contender not to have secured enough backing to advance to the final stage - said: 'What do we do at that stage? We need to have someone leading the fight who was on the right side of the argument all along.'

Shadow Brexit secretary Sir Keir Starmer, one of the architects of Labour's second referendum policy, said the divide between Leave and Remain voters must end.

He accused the Government of failing to address the 'underlying reasons' why the electorate voted out.

The hustings also saw a red-on-red clash, with Ms Long-Bailey and Ms Nandy disagreeing over whether to introduce open selections for Labour MPs.

Ms Long-Bailey told members she would bring in open selections if she was elected leader.

The move would make it easier for local party branches to deselect sitting MPs before elections.

'Being an MP is not a job for life,' she told the audience, to loud cheers.

But Ms Nandy said she disagreed with her rival's views on the issue, adding: 'The MPs I want to get rid of are Tories, not Labour.'

Saturday's hustings at Ashton Gate Stadium was the second debate held by the four remaining contenders.

Last weekend's event was cancelled due to Sir Keir pausing his campaign following his mother-in-law's admittance to intensive care.
Start-up giants and tourism industry major have hailed the Union Budget 2020-21 terming it a boost to tourism, industry, connectivity, job creation, start-ups, etc.

"It is heartening to see a budget that focuses on improving standards of living as well as economic development. A grant of Rs 2500 crores for tourism promotion and the development of 5 iconic archeological sites and museums in the country are bright indicators of the renewed focus of the government on the travel and tourism industry," said Rohit Kapoor, CEO, OYO, India South Asia.

"Apart from these initiatives, the overall focus on increased disposable income, better infrastructure, better connectivity, and the digital push will help boost demand for the hospitality industry in India. It is also heartening that the government acknowledges and understands the role of entrepreneurs in both capital and job creation in the country. Government's efforts towards creating more opportunities for startups will spur entrepreneurship," said Kapoor.

"Thankful to the Hon'ble Finance Minister for accepting the start-up sector's request for ESOP taxation reforms. Also, the higher time and turnover limits for carry forward of losses for start-ups will enable them to optimize growth decisions in formative years," said Kunal Bahl, CEO & Co-founder, Snapdeal.

"Overall, Budget 2020 is a thoughtful weaving together of specific proposals to tackle varied issues. Measures to improve access to finance for MSMEs and reduced taxation for the middle-income segment are welcome steps. Boosting physical infrastructure, expanding digital connectivity and growing use of technology in government functioning are important building blocks for the long-term growth of the Indian economy," said Bahl.

"The Union Budget has seen encouraging focus intended to give impetus to the Travel and Tourism sector with the allocation of Rs 2500 crore, equally critical allocation of Rs 1.7 lakh crore towards transportation infrastructure in 2020-21; setting up of 100 additional airports by 2024 and doubling of aircraft as part of the unique Udaan scheme to further boost regional connectivity and ensure affordability; 2000 kms of strategic highways and Tejas equivalent trains to connect iconic tourist destinations," said Madhavan Menon, Chairman & Managing Director, Thomas Cook (India) Ltd.

"Significant focus of the Budget towards cultural tourism was manifest in the Rs 3,150 crores allocation for the ministry of culture and announcements including developing five archaeological sites at iconic sites with on-site museums at Rakhigadi (Haryana), Hastinapur (UP), ShivSagar (Assam), Dholaveera (Gujarat) and Adichanallur (TN); setting up of a Tribal Museum in Ranchi and a Maritime Museum at Lothal, the dockyard of the Harappan Civilization of 3000 BC-2000 BC," he said.

"India's Foreign Exchange Earnings (FEE) grew by 7.4 percent to Rs 1.88 lakh Crore during 2020-21, and the announcement of specialized grants to states will give much-needed fillip towards tourism-focused initiatives on a pan-India basis," said Madhavan Menon, Chairman & Managing Director, Thomas Cook (India) Ltd.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
As reports of the novel coronavirus (2019-nCoV) spread, Midland County Health Department director and health officer, Fred Yanoski, said the risk remains low for the general public in the United States.

He said they haven't had a lot of public inquiries about it at the department, but that it's important to keep risk in perspective. At this time, the greatest risk is to those who have recently traveled to China or who have had close, personal contact with someone who has.

"There is still much that we do not know about this particular coronavirus, and the situation is evolving rapidly," he said. "Public health officials will continue to monitor the situation and advise the public accordingly."

On Friday, MidMichigan Health announced it is taking extra precautions with visitors for the remainder of the flu season.

"Only those visitors who are healthy, without symptoms of illnesses, will be allowed to visit patients at MidMichigan's Medical Centers in Alpena, Clare, Gladwin, Gratiot, Midland, Mt. Pleasant and West Branch," the announcement stated. "In addition, upon registration for Medical Center appointments, patients will continue to be screened for recent travel outside of the country."

The coronavirus is a respiratory illness that was first detected in Wuhan City, China. There have been thousands of reports of infection in China and more than 200 people have died in China, according to several other news outlets. On Thursday, the International Health Regulations Emergency Committee of the World Health Organization declared the outbreak a "public health emergency of international concern."

The virus can be transmitted through the air by coughing or sneezing, by close, personal contact such as shaking hands, by touching an object or surface with the virus on it and then touching your eyes, mouth, or nose, and in rare cases, through fecal contamination, according to the Center for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC).

Symptoms include runny nose, cough headache, sore throat, fever and a general feeling of being unwell, according to the CDC.

As of Friday, the United States has issued a "level 4" travel advisory for China, and multiple airline companies have halted flights to mainland China.

With global corporations in Midland, such as Dow, DuPont and others, there may be local employees who travel outside the country for work.

According to DuPont Reputation and Media Relations Leader Dan Turner, DuPont is closely monitoring the recent outbreak of cases of pneumonia caused by the coronavirus, and it is also actively managing the impacts to its people and locations.

"We have issued travel advisories for all DuPont employees - at this time, travel for China is 'suspended' to Hubei province including Wuhan; travel to the rest of China is 'business critical only," he said in a statement earlier this week.

The virus has been detected in the United States. As of Friday afternoon, there are six patients who have tested positive in the United States, with another 121 people pending diagnosis, according to the CDC. States with confirmed cases include Arizona, Illinois, California and Washington.
Authorities on Friday said DNA testing has led them to solve the brutal murder and rape of a woman, whose body was found at the Asbury Park Boardwalk nearly 30 years ago.

While investigators named Clarence W. Turnage, who died in 2014, as the attacker, they continue to work to confirm the identity of the woman, believed to be Christa Engel, and asked for help from the public to find any of her relatives.

The decades-long effort to solve the killing began March 27, 1991 when Asbury Park police alerted the Monmouth County Prosecutors Office about a womans body found under a ramp at Fourth Avenue and the Boardwalk, according to authorities. The 58-year-old was severely beaten, sexually assaulted and strangled to death.

The victim was believed to have been Christa Engel, though at that time there were no next of kin located to confirm Engels identity, Monmouth County Prosecutor Christopher Gramiccioni said in a statement.

In the early days of the murder, detectives collected evidence, including DNA profiles from the victims body, stockings, slip, and dress, according to the prosecutors office. DNA testing ultimately led to exoneration of another man initially charged in the crime.

Years after the wrong man was arrested, the case seemingly went cold.

In 2001, the prosecutors office said it reopened the case after investigators learned DNA from the womans body and clothing could possibly be resubmitted for testing.

Based on this discovery, certain evidence from the victim was submitted to the New Jersey State Police lab for analysis, Gramiccioni said.

Using the FBIs DNA database, called CODIS, investigators matched samples to Turnage, according to the prosecutors office. He was living about 300 yards from where Engels body was found and a block from the Carlton Hotel, where she lived.

CODIS contains samples from specific cases, including a convicted offender, person arrested, missing persons and unidentified human remains, according to the FBI. It was not immediately clear how or when Monmouth County detectives centered on Turnage as a possible source of the DNA.

The prosecutors office in January 2018 launched a cold case unit to focus on older, unsolved slayings, assigning two detectives and an assistant prosecutor to the task. Engels case was reviewed by the new squad.

"Thereafter, investigators spent months reviewing case files, various public records, and DNA analysis of the victim, ultimately confirming that Engel was born in West Germany with a given name of Christa Dierolf, the prosecutors statement added. It was determined that she changed her name to Christa Engel after marrying Seymour Engel in 1961. The couple married in Passaic, New Jersey and later moved to Asbury Park.

Further testing beginning in 2018 provided more key evidence to cold case investigators. The prosecutors office submitted DNA from the 1991 killing to Bode Technology, a private forensic lab, authorities said. Detectives also confirmed the earlier CODIS hit by receiving consent to exhume Turnages body and have Bode run testing.

In February 2019, Bodes forensic testing confirmed that Clarence W. Turnage was, in fact, the contributor of DNA profiles obtained from the victims dress, stockings and body, the prosecutor said. These three profiles were not tested in 1991 when the case was originally under investigation.

In August 2019, this Office requested that the original suspects DNA be compared to DNA from the victims slip and the dress, the statement added. Subsequent lab testing by Bode confirmed the exclusion of the original suspect as the major contributor on the dress and slip.

Though investigators believe they found the killer, the prosecutors office said it was not giving up on a lingering mystery from the case.

In January, our Office unsuccessfully attempted to reaffirm the identity of the victim as Christa Engel since investigators have been unable to identify any next of kin. It is hoped that with the release of this information and the conclusion of this investigation, a family member of Ms. Engel may come forward, the prosecutor said.

Anyone with information about the case can call Monmouth County Prosecutors Office Detective John Leibfried at 732-431-7160.

Noah Cohen may be reached at ncohen@njadvancemedia.com. Follow him on Twitter @noahyc. Find NJ.com on Facebook.

Have a tip? Tell us: nj.com/tips. Get the latest updates right in your inbox. Subscribe to NJ.coms newsletters.
After 10 days of arguments and deliberations, the Senate voted against hearing from new witnesses in President Donald Trumps impeachment trial, signalling a vote to acquit him would likely come in the coming days.

House impeachment managers and Trumps defence team made their final arguments for and against hearing from new witnesses as the Senate trial entered its final stages Friday before the evening vote. Not long before the session started, Senator Lisa Murkowski, Republican for Alaska, announced that she would vote against a measure to hear new witnesses erasing any doubt that the Republicans would have the support to end the trial without considering new material.

Here are five key takeaways from the afternoon.

Senate will not consider new witnesses or evidence.

In a nearly party-line vote, the Senate decided not to hear testimony from witnesses or review evidence before it moves to vote on whether President Trump should be removed from office.

The 51-49 outcome was not surprising and paved the way for the Senate to acquit Mr Trump. Senate leaders are negotiating over the next steps to end the trial.

Many of the arguments from House managers over the past two weeks have been centred on the importance of hearing from witnesses, like Mr Trumps former national security adviser, John Bolton, who has firsthand accounts of Mr Trumps actions regarding Ukraine.

All the president's lawyers: The team fighting Trump's impeachment Show all 6 1 /6 All the president's lawyers: The team fighting Trump's impeachment All the president's lawyers: The team fighting Trump's impeachment Alan Dershowitz Dershowitz is a controversial American lawyer best known for the high-profile clients he has successfully defended. Those clients have included OJ Simpson, Jeffrey Epstein and Harvey Weinstein. One longtime Harvard Law associated told the New Yorker Dershowitz "revels in taking positions that ultimately are not just controversial but pretty close to indefensible." Getty All the president's lawyers: The team fighting Trump's impeachment Ken Starr Starr became a household name in the 1990s as the independent counsel who led the investigation that led to Bill Clinton's impeachment. That investigation began as a look into a real estate scandal known as Whitewater, and eventually led to impeachment after Mr Clinton lied under oath about having an affair with White House intern Monica Lewinsky. AP All the president's lawyers: The team fighting Trump's impeachment Jay Sekulow Sekulow is the president's longtime personal attorney, and, now, personal lawyer in the White House. He has been accused by former Rudy Giuliani associate Lev Parnas of being "in the loop" during the Ukraine scandal. Getty All the president's lawyers: The team fighting Trump's impeachment Pam Bondi Bondi is the former attorney general in Florida, and a longtime backer of the president's. She made a name for herself in Florida for taking hyper partisan stances on issues, and her penchant for publicity. She is likely to be a prominent public-facing figure during the trial. AFP/Getty All the president's lawyers: The team fighting Trump's impeachment Pat Cipollone Cipollone is the White House counsel, and leading the president's defence team. Getty All the president's lawyers: The team fighting Trump's impeachment Rudy Giuliani While not officially named as one of the president's impeachment lawyers, it is hard to ignore Giuliani's outsized role in this process. The former mayor of New York has been making headlines for months as he defends his client, and for his apparent role in the effort to compel Ukraine to launch the investigation into Joe Biden. We'll see how he figures in the actual trial, which he has said he would like to be a part of. Reuters

Two Republican senators, Susan Collins of Maine and Mitt Romney of Utah, voted in flavour of hearing witnesses, as they had signalled ahead of the trial.

Democrats have said that a trial without witnesses and documents is not a fair one. Republicans said that they did not need to hear any additional information and that the Democrats brought a weak case.

The top Democrat in the Senate, Chuck Schumer of New York, said the trial was a sham and a tragedy.

To not allow a witness, a document  no witnesses, no documents  in an impeachment trial is a perfidy, Mr Schumer said after the vote. America will remember this day, unfortunately, where the Senate did not live up to its responsibilities.

Managers made their final pleas after a new report from The New York Times.

In the hours before the vote, House impeachment managers made their final plea, citing a New York Times report that published about an hour before the trial started.

The report, which draws from new details from an upcoming book by John Bolton, shows that Donald Trump had a direct role in the Ukraine pressure campaign earlier than previously known, and senior White House advisers were aware of it.

Yet another reason why we want to hear from witnesses, said Rep. Adam Schiff Democrat for California, the lead manager.

In the book, Mr Bolton describes a meeting in early May at which Trump instructed him to call President Volodymyr Zelensky of Ukraine to press him to meet with Trumps personal lawyer, Rudy Giuliani. According to the book, one of Mr Trumps defence lawyers for the impeachment trial, Pat Cipollone, was also in the meeting, which took place months before Mr Trump and Mr Zelensky spoke by phone on 25 July. That conversation ultimately set the impeachment proceedings in motion.

(John Bolton and President Trump inside the White House (AFP/Getty Images) (AFP via Getty Images)

The fight over witnesses had largely been an argument about hearing testimony from Mr Bolton, particularly as details about what he knows of Trumps motives and his efforts to pressure Ukraine emerged in the past week.

Mr Trump blocked Mr Bolton from testifying in the House impeachment inquiry, but Mr Bolton has said he would comply with a subpoena to testify during the Senate trial.

More Republicans announced their intentions to acquit the president.

Even before the Senate trial resumed Friday, some Republican senators announced their plans to vote to acquit Mr Trump, and there was noticeably less note-taking in the Senate chamber compared with previous days of the trial.

Can anyone doubt that at least half of the country would view his removal as illegitimate  as nothing short of a coup detat? Sen. Marco Rubio, Republican for Florida, wrote in a statement Friday.

His decision, he said, was made out of concern of further dividing the country.

Recommended Trump will take the impeachment drama and run with it

Mr Rubio added that if the president was removed from office, it would be a victory for President Vladimir Putin of Russia.

It is difficult to conceive of any scheme Putin could undertake that would undermine confidence in our democracy more than removal would, he wrote.

Sen. Rob Portman, Republican for Ohio, said that he did find some of Mr Trumps actions wrong and inappropriate, but he wanted to leave it to voters decide on a verdict in November.

Our country is already too deeply divided and we should be working to heal wounds, not create new ones, Mr Portman said in a statement.

Mr Trumps former chief of staff scolds Senate for not hearing witnesses.

It seems it was half a trial, said John Kelly, Trumps former chief of staff, hours before the Senate officially voted.

If I was advising the United States Senate, I would say, If you dont respond to 75 per cent of the American voters and have witnesses, its a job only half-done, Kelly said, ahead of delivering a speech in New Jersey on Friday. You open yourself up forever as a Senate that shirks its responsibilities.

Mr Kelly appeared to be referring to a recent national poll from Quinnipiac University, which found that 75 per cent of independents think witnesses should testify. The independent vote is expected to be a critical one in November.

A retired four-star Marine general, Kelly was well-liked in the Senate  he was confirmed with bipartisan support to be Mr Trumps first Homeland Security secretary  which made his criticism Friday even more pointed. He was later drafted to be the presidents

chief of staff with the hope he would bring order to a White House defined by chaos.

Earlier this week, Mr Kelly said he believed Mr Boltons account of the presidents dealings with Ukraine, which the president has denied.

If John Bolton says that in the book, I believe John Bolton, Mr Kelly said on Tuesday.

Kelly and Bolton overlapped at the White House for much of 2018 but were not always in lock step. On Friday, Mr Kelly described Mr Bolton as an honest and an honourable guy, and a copious note-taker.

There are still several steps before the final verdict.

Senators will vote at 4 pm on Wednesday to render a verdict in Mr Trumps impeachment trial. But before then, they will vote on procedural motions on Friday and return at 11 am on Monday to give closing arguments, senators said. They will also have a chance to give floor speeches on Tuesday before the Wednesday vote.

Id rather conclude it right away, said Sen Roy Blunt, Republican for Missouri. But the rules allowed for more time, and Democrats insisted, he added.

It gives everybody the flexibility if they need to go somewhere over the weekend, said Sen Mike Braun, Republican for Indiana.

The schedule means Mr Trump would deliver the State of the Union address on Tuesday night with his all but certain acquittal pending.

For the four senators running for the Democratic nomination to face Mr Trump in November, it will be a busy few days as they rush to Iowa ahead of the caucuses there Monday before needing to return to Washington for the closing phase of the trial.

The New York Times
Irans Minister of Health and Medical Education, Saeed Namaki, said Friday night that Iran had decided to suspend all Chinese flights because of a coronavirus that broke out, Mehr reports.

According to decisions made following an emergency meeting led by Iran's First Vice President Eshaq Jahangiri, all flights will be suspended. The resumption of flights will be announced later.

Next week, all Iranian citizens who will undergo a medical examination upon return from China by special flights.
Sometimes the keys to the future can be found in the past.

Thats one of the core principles (pun intended) of Oregon State Universitys Marine and Geology Repository, which holds one of the nations largest collections of oceanic sediment cores.

OSU began assembling its holdings in the 1970s and at one time stored some of its sensitive core samples in the walk-in refrigerator of a Corvallis Chinese restaurant, but the collection has grown steadily since those early days.

Last year it doubled in size when the National Science Foundation transferred stewardship of the Antarctic and Southern Ocean National Collection of Rock and Sediment Cores, previously held at Florida State University, to OSU.

To properly store its burgeoning collections, Oregon State spent $5.8 million renovating 33,000 square feet of a former manufacturing plant in the Sunset Research Park, located about a mile from campus at 4700 SW Research Way, and on Friday the university opened the state-of-the-art facility to the public.

The OSU Marine and Geology Repository is one of just four National Science Foundation-supported repositories in the country and the only one on the West Coast, making it a major hub for research, said co-director Joe Stoner, a professor of paleomagnetism and marine geology in OSUs College of Earth, Ocean and Atmospheric Sciences.

OSU is now the second-largest NSF-supported collection in the country, Stoner said, after the Lamont-Doherty Core Repository at Columbia University in New York. But ours has the most refrigerated space, so our cores are in better shape.

Each core sample starts out as a long cylinder, which is cut into 5-foot sections. Each section is then cut in half the long way, with one half designated for research and the other set aside to be permanently archived. Holding the sediment cores in cold storage helps keep them from drying out, molding or suffering chemical degradation, Stoner explained.

The OSU repository holds more than 10 miles worth of deep sea sediment cores gathered from 6,300 sites primarily in the Pacific Ocean, stored in the form of 5-foot segments on tall racks of shelves in the climate-controlled warehouse, which is kept at a steady 38 degrees Fahrenheit. The facility holds an additional 11 miles of sediment cores from 7,300 sites around Antarctica and the surrounding Southern Ocean (the former Florida State collection).

A pair of freezers set at a frigid 28 degrees below zero hold OSUs collection of ice cores. Other parts of the building hold samples of rocks dredged up from the ocean floor and a collection of rock core samples drilled in Oregon.

There are also labs for analyzing rock and core samples, as well as office and classroom space.

But what the OSU Marine and Geology Repository really holds is knowledge  knowledge about the Earths ancient past.

Some of the ice cores in the repository are 800,000 years old; the oldest sediment cores date back tens of millions of years; and some of the marine rocks in the collection are more than 100 million years old.

The oldest rocks Ive dated in my lab are 167 million years old, said the repositorys other co-director, Anthony Koppers, a professor of marine geology in the College of Earth, Ocean and Atmospheric Sciences who specializes in calculating the age of ancient rocks.

Because they go so far back in time, the samples comprise a rich storehouse of data about the planets inner workings  from the chemical composition of ancient atmospheres to pieces of the fossil record, chronicles of glacial movement, shifts in magnetic orientation and countless other pieces of information that scientists can make use of.

Theres a lot of different research spun around the collection that we can do, Koppers said.

One way researchers are making use of the collection, Stoner said, is to examine sediment outflows from the Columbia River from a time in the distant past when the climate was warming, as it is today. By closely studying those ancient sediments, scientists may be able to more accurately forecast the long-range effects of the current episode of global warming.

Models predict in the future we might be wetter than we are now, but this gives us an example from nature that we can study, he said.

It gives us a perspective on how the Earth works that we really cant get any other way, Stoner added. I think of geology as the solutions manual for the Earth.

And the collection is not just for Oregon State University researchers. Scientists from all over the world come to Corvallis to examine rock, ice and core samples. They can also request that OSU ship them samples of specific cores for study in their own labs.

Scientists affiliated with other institutions can also send their core samples to OSU for storage in the repository, which helps expand the collection further  and expand its value for research. And theres plenty of room for more growth. The facility was designed with an estimated 50 years worth of expansion space.

Thats why NSF funds us, Koppers said. We are basically taking care of cores that NSF owns.

The National Science Foundation gave Oregon State an $810,000 grant to cover the cost of moving the Antarctic and Southern Ocean core collection from Florida State University, according to figures provided by OSU. Ongoing federal support for the repository includes an additional $2.9 million in NSF funding and a $400,000 grant from the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration.

Now OSU is embarking on a project to make its collections even more widely accessible. The university is converting all the paper records of samples stored in the collection into digital form that can be accessed over the internet, creating a virtual card catalog of all the samples in the repository.

The next phase in the project will involve photographing the core samples and analyzing their physical properties and digitizing that information to create a complete database of the repositorys holdings that would be accessible to researchers and curious members of the public.

Samples are labeled with QR codes that enable a smartphone link to the collection database.

It goes to our system, and you can see all the information on it, Koppers said. Were building an app.

Reporter Bennett Hall can be contacted at bennett.hall@lee.net or 541-812-6111. Follow him on Twitter at @bennetthallgt.

Love 1 Funny 0 Wow 0 Sad 0 Angry 0

Get local news delivered to your inbox! Subscribe to our Daily Headlines newsletter. Sign up! * I understand and agree that registration on or use of this site constitutes agreement to its user agreement and privacy policy.
By Express News Service

KOTTAYAM: In a tragic incident, five members of a family, including three women were killed when the car in which they were travelling rammed a wood-laden lorry at Kalikavu near Kuravilangad along M C Road in the early hours of Saturday.

The deceased were identified as Thampi-68 of Ullattilpadi house, wife Valsala  65, their daughter-in-law Prabha-45, Prabhas son Arjun alias Ambadi-19 and her mother Usha. According to police, accident occurred around 12.30 am. The family was returning from Chalakkudi after visiting a relatives house there, police said. The car collided head-on with the lorry, which was heading to Perumbavoor from Pathanamthitta. Police suspect that Ambadi, who drove the car, might have dozed off.

The car was completely destroyed in the impact of the collision. The Fire and Rescue Force unit from Kaduthuruthi, with the help of police and local residents, cut apart the car to take out the passengers, who got trapped inside it.

All the five persons died on the spot and the bodies were shifted to the Government Medical College hospital, Kottayam.

Traffic disrupted for nearly 45 minutes along M C Road following the accident. Thampi was doing lottery business in Kottayam town. Prabha, who was working as a nurse in Kuwait, is the wife of Thampis son Praveen, who is also in Kuwait.
For every rupee in govt kitty, 64 paise come from taxes, borrowings contribute 20 paise

Explained: The Budget proposal to increase the insurance cover on bank deposits

Sorry for the long budget speech says Nirmala Sitharaman

To boost exports, NIRVIK scheme to provide high insurance cover for exporters

India

oi-Madhuri Adnal

New Delhi, Feb 01: Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman on Saturday announced Nirvik (Niryat Rin Vikas Yojana) scheme to provide enhanced insurance cover and reduce the premium for small exporters.

"To achieve higher export credit disbursement, a new scheme NIRVIK is being launched which provides for high insurance cover, reduction in premium for small exporters and simplified procedures for claim settlements," she said while presenting Budget 2020-21.

The scheme is being prepared by the commerce ministry. Under the scheme, also called the Export Credit Insurance Scheme (ECIS), the insurance guaranteed could cover up to 90 per cent of the principal and interest.

Budget 2020: Govt to bring new education policy, says Sitharaman

The ministry has also proposed to subsidise the premium under the scheme that has to be paid by exporters of certain key sectors. The Export Credit Guarantee Corporation currently provides credit guarantee of up to 60 per cent loss.

The development assumes significance as exporters have raised concerns over the availability of credit.

The country's exports contracted for the fifth month in a row by 1.8 per cent in December 2019 to USD 27.36 billion.

During April-December 2019-20, exports slipped 1.96 per cent to USD 239.29 billion, imports declined 8.9 per cent to USD 357.39 billion, leaving a trade deficit of USD 118.10 billion.
New Delhi: India will get a new roadmap when Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman presents Budget 2020-21 on Saturday (February 1, 2020) in the Lok Sabha. With the Indian economy facing a tough time recently, Congress hoped that India Budget 2020 have proposals to revive the growth in the country along with providing relief to the salaried class by giving tax cuts and focussing on rural India.

Congress spokesperson Randeep Singh Surjewala targeted the Narendra Modi government and Nirmala Sitharaman claiming that India has been facing economic problems after Budget 2019 which according to him led to unemployment, farm distress and a slowdown in investments.

He also targeted the central government for providing corporate tax cuts to big businesses. "Budget2019= Consumption crashed, Unemployment soared, Farm distress surged, Incomes declined, Investments slumped, Public spending fell, GDP nose dived! Yet, Modiji gave Corporate Tax Cuts of 1,45,000Cr Let #Budget2020 give tax cuts to Salaried Class & invest in Rural India," tweeted Congress spokesperson Randeep Singh Surjewala.

Budget2019= Consumption crashed,

Unemployment soared,

Farm distress surged,

Incomes declined,

Investments slumped,

Public spending fell,

GDP nose dived! Yet, Modiji gave Corporate Tax Cuts of 1,45,000Cr Let #Budget2020 give tax cuts to Salaried Class & invest in Rural India  Randeep Singh Surjewala (@rssurjewala) February 1, 2020

Live TV

Another Congress leader and Rajasthan Chief Minister Ashok Gehlot stated that he expects India budget 2020 will be able to meet the requirement of the common people and help the industrial sector too.

"Budget 2020 is the time for NDA government to provide a healing touch to common people and industries facing hardships since noteban. Hope the budget fulfils expectations of common people and provide relief across sections," Gehlot was quoted as saying by PTI.

Sitharaman's budget will take into account the Economic Survey 2019-20 which was tabled in Parliament on Friday (January 31, 2020). According to the Economic Survey 2019-20, Indias can become a $5 trillion economy only if the country goes ahead with "promoting pro-business policy that unleashes the power of competitive markets to generate wealth, on the one hand, and weaning away from pro-crony policy that may favour specific private interests, especially powerful incumbents, on the other hand".


New Delhi, Feb 1 : Emphasising on creating more employment, Union Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman on Saturday announced that a National Recruitment Agency (NRA) will be set up for all computer-based examinations for recruitment to non-gazetted government and public sector banks posts.

The move has the potential to give a breath of fresh air for the youth of the country, who have been stuck in the vicious cycle of recruitment exams and an indefinite wait for jobs. At present, lakhs of aspirants appear for multiple examinations for various non-gazetted government jobs.

Presenting the Union Budget 2020-21 in the Parliament, Sitharaman said: "The Government intends to introduce major reforms in recruitment to non-gazetted posts in government and public sector banks." The Minister said that at present, candidates have to appear for multiple examinations conducted by multiple agencies at different points of time for similar posts.

"This places enormous burden on time, effort and cost of young people. Thus to mitigate their hardship faced, it is proposed to set up a NRA as an independent, professional, specialist organisation for conduct of a computer-based online Common Eligibility Test for recruitment to non-gazetted posts," she said.

Non-gazetted jobs are the government jobs or posts which do not give the person the authority to issue an official stamp on the behalf of the government. In terms of types of jobs, this includes Group B, Group C and Group D government jobs.

Sitharaman said that a test centre in every district, particularly in the aspirational districts would be set up.The Minister also stressed that it is proposed to evolve a robust mechanism for appointment including direct recruitment to tribunals and specialised bodies to attract best talents and professional experts.

The government in May last year admitted that India's unemployment rate had touched a 45-year high, with the latest data showing that joblessness had indeed touched 6.1 per cent in the 12-month period from July 2017 to June 2018.

During the Lok Sabha elections last year, the government had brushed aside a leaked official report on the country's poor job scenario and maintained that the unemployment data was yet to be finalised.
The death toll from the coronavirus has increased to 213, with the number of cases rising to 9,692, Chinese health officials say.

The figures show an increase of 1,981 cases and 81 deaths since Wednesday.

The World Health Organisation (WHO) has declared the outbreak, which has spread to more than a dozen countries, a global public health emergency.

The vast majority of the cases have been in Hubei province and its provincial capital, Wuhan, the epicentre of the outbreak.

No deaths have been reported outside China.

The UN health agency defines an international emergency as an extraordinary event that constitutes a risk to other countries and requires a coordinated international response.

China first informed WHO about cases of the new virus in late December.

Eighteen other countries have since reported cases, as scientists race to understand how exactly the virus is spreading and how severe it is.

Experts say there is significant evidence the virus is spreading among people in China and have noted with concern instances in other countries  including the United States, France, Japan, Germany, Canada, South Korea and Vietnam  where there have also been isolated cases of human-to-human transmission.

Speaking to reporters in Geneva on Thursday, WHO Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus noted the worrisome spread of the virus between people outside China.

The main reason for this declaration is not because of what is happening in China but because of what is happening in other countries, he said.

People wear masks at a metro station in Taipei, Taiwan (Chiang Ying-ying/AP)

Our greatest concern is the potential for this virus to spread to countries with weaker health systems which are ill-prepared to deal with it.

This declaration is not a vote of non-confidence in China. On the contrary, WHO continues to have the confidence in Chinas capacity to control the outbreak.

A declaration of a global emergency typically brings greater money and resources, but may also prompt nervous governments to restrict travel and trade to affected countries.

Story continues

The announcement also imposes more disease reporting requirements on countries.

In the wake of numerous airlines cancelling flights to China and businesses including Starbucks and McDonalds temporarily closing hundreds of shops, Dr Tedros said WHO was not recommending limiting travel or trade to China.

There is no reason for measures that unnecessarily interfere with international travel and trade, he said.

Despite this, the United States state department has advised against all travel to China due to the coronavirus outbreak while Russia said it was closing its 4,185-kilometre (2,600-mile) border with China.

The new virus has now infected more people in China than were sickened there during the 2002-2003 outbreak of SARS, or severe acute respiratory syndrome, a cousin of the new virus.
Samantha Cameron's sister has spoken frankly about her agony at suffering a miscarriage, describing how she 'tumbled into grief' over the heartbreaking loss.

Emily Sheffield revealed how she was left 'physically traumatised' by her loss, which came soon after she was forced out of her job as deputy editor of British Vogue.

Recalling the emotional turmoil of the time, she wrote in The Times magazine: 'Without my usual work routine for balance and the Vogue girls for support, I tumble into a period of grief.

Devastated: Emily Sheffield revealed that she 'tumbled into grief' following a miscarriage

'Plummeting pregnancy hormones don't help, and leaving Vogue begins to feel like a very painful divorce.'

She eventually sought professional counselling, nine months after the traumatic events, and wrote: 'I urge other women to do so far sooner.'

Ms Sheffield, who is married to actor Tom Mullion, became pregnant at the age of 44, just before the 'crushingly sad' loss of her job at the glossy fashion magazine in 2017.

She wrote: 'I'd been there 13 years. I spent more time with my Vogue team than with my family. When the managing director, Nicholas Coleridge, called me into his office and broke the news, I was furious with myself for crying.

'I had become pregnant in those last months at Vogue, a shock given I was 44. I decide this is my consolation prize for losing out on the top job and leave feeling excited about the future.

'In September, just as London Fashion Week begins, I miscarry a week short of my three-month scan. The miscarriage leaves me feeling physically traumatised.'

Ms Sheffield, now 46, has a close relationship with her elder sister Samantha, who was an ambassador for the British Fashion Council before husband David entered Downing Street in 2010.

Close: Sisters Samantha Cameron and Emily Sheffield are very close and both have a passion for fashion

She recalled: 'We often sat on the front row gossiping during London Fashion Week. In Paris, we would sneak off with our British designer friends to chic gay nightclubs.'

But she also spoke of her insecurities in her high-powered job, which she was forced to quit when Edward Enninful took over as editor from Alexandra Shulman.

'I had two very young children at home and was the main breadwinner, and I often felt I was falling short of being brilliant at either career or motherhood,' she said.

'I don't miss the gnawing anxiety of heading off to the shows never feeling well-dressed enough, as pathetic as that sounds.'

Ms Sheffield's relationship with her sister led to a major faux pas when Samantha invited her to a fashion party without telling Vogue's editor-in-chief Anna Wintour.

Ms Sheffield said: 'Anna clocked me the minute I walked in. Her eye narrowed, I was not even wearing new season clothes.

'Samantha dragged me over excitedly. I knew this wouldn't go well. Anna looked me up and down and remained silent before turning swiftly on her Manolos.

'Honestly, I'd have been deeply disappointed if I hadn't been Wintour-ed. Within seconds she returned, bringing Emma Watson to meet me My only career regret is that I was never able to learn directly from Anna while I worked for [publisher] Conde Nast.'

Ms Sheffield has recently started her own web media business, called #ThisMuchIKnow, and admitted that entrepreneurship has been challenging. She said: 'You feel constantly under siege. You never think you've achieved enough. Every decision feels seismic but you make hundreds of them each week until your head throbs.'
Police said a 19-year-old man was standing in an alley with someone he is familiar with when that person shot him multiple times in the abdomen. The victim fled the alley and flagged down a police car. He was taken in critical condition to South Shore Hospital.
Union Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman on Saturday morning reached the Ministry of Finance in the North Block, ahead of the presentation of the Union Budget 2020-2021 in Parliament.

Sitharaman will present her second budget in the Parliament at 11 am today. Before presenting the budget, she will meet President Ram Nath Kovind.

The duration of the budget speech usually ranges from 90 to 120 minutes.

Dressed in a yellow silk saree, Sitharaman continued with the tradition she set last year carrying the bahi-khata, which she used ditching the briefcase. She was seen holding a red bahi khata.

On the first day of the budget session of the Parliament, Sitharaman on Friday tabled the pre-budget Economic Survey for 2019-20, which projected the state of the economy and outlined its challenges. The survey was released by Chief Economic Adviser Krishnamurthy Subramanian.

According to the economic survey 2020, which was tabled in the Parliament on Friday, India's gross domestic product (GDP) is projected to grow at a rate of 6 to 6.5 per cent in the next financial year 2020-21.

Sitharaman had presented her maiden budget in July last year, shortly after the Narendra Modi government came back to power in the Centre in the 2019 Lok Sabha elections.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
: Lashing out at the BJP- led NDA government at the Centre over the Citizenship (Amendment) Act (CAA), Bhim Army chief Chandrasekhar Azad on Saturday said a democratic country runs according to the will of the people not by the whims and fancies of the BJP and RSS.

Speaking at an anti-CAA rally here, Azad sought withdrawal of the "black law" and said the fight would continue till it is repealed and the central government expresses an apology.

Addressing a massive protest here, Bhim Army chief read out the preamble to the Constitution of India to the crowd and said none would be taken to the detention centres.

"If someone has any false impression that this country can be run according to the whims and fancies of BJP and RSS, he or she is wrong. This is a democratic country and here things happen according to the will of the people," Azad said.

Speaking at the protest meet, organised by the Socialist Democratic Party of India (SDPI), Azad said the beauty of the country lies in its diversity.

"Our country Bharat is a great nation. The beauty of this country lies in its diversity. The unity in this diversity made our country. I can see that togetherness in Kerala today," he said.

Taking a dig at Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Azad said, "The watchman of the house has started asking for proof from the owner."



He said the people asked for development and a corruption-free government but "they made us protest in the streets. However, it is a good thing. Now, we all are standing together," Azad said.

"Just like how we fought and declared at the historic steps of Juma Masjid in Delhi, I would like to say, no citizen, none of our brothers will be taken to any detention centres," Azad said.

The SDPI march began from Kozhikode on January 17 commemorating the martyrs day of Rohith Vemula, and culminated here in front of Raj Bhavan.

Vemula, a PhD scholar at Hyderabad Central University, had allegedly committed suicide on January 17, 2016 following caste bias,



"We will fight till this black law is repealed. We will continue our fight till the central government apologises for it," Azad said.

He said the protest at Shaheen Bagh in Delhi has inspired the country to take forward the protest in a peaceful manner.

"The people are in the streets protesting. Our sisters at Shaheen Bagh has inspired us, resulting in making of other Shaheen Bhags across the country, " he said.

He said the government was "afraid of the protest" and was trying to stop the agitation by creating trouble.

"The government wants us to get violent. But they don't know that our biggest strength is our peaceful protest, which we will continue. We must stand together and uphold our rights granted by the Constitution and the courts, in a peaceful manner, Azad said.

Besides Azad, lawyer Mehmood Pracha, SDPI leaders and others took part in the protest.

Azad would attend another protest at Kodungaloor on Sunday.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
ANN ARBOR, MI  Students at the University of Michigan plan to rally from noon to 1 p.m. Saturday, Feb. 1 in a protest of the way UM handles sexual misconduct cases.

The event, hosted by activist groups Roe v. Rape, Inc. and Michigan Takes Back the Night, comes after UM Provost Martin Philbert was placed on administrative leave for multiple allegations of sexual misconduct.

University of Michigan provost accused of sexual misconduct, placed on leave

After we found out about the allegations against the provost, we decided this was kind of the last straw, said Emma Sandberg, founder and executive director of Roe v. Rape.

Event organizer Ceciel Zhong, a freshman at UM, said she expects the university to allow a negotiation or meeting with students to hear their demands, which include changing policies, expanding resources for sexual assault survivors and being transparent with investigation procedures.

I expect our perseverance and genuineness will attract more people and call for action, Zhong said. I think [Saturdays] event will add to the momentum of our movement in achieving our goals and protecting everyones safety.

Organizers said via the event Facebook page that the allegations against the provost speak volumes toward the universitys overall failure to adequately address sexual violence," and that the university has implemented a cruel policy requiring victims to be directly interrogated by their perpetrator.

Students protest University of Michigans sexual misconduct policy

The interim student sexual misconduct policy was updated in 2019 to adhere to a ruling of the U.S. Sixth Circuit Court of Appeals, which mandated that anyone accused of sexual misconduct on campus be allowed to cross-examine their accuser.

While the Sixth Circuit ruling requires an opportunity for a live hearing and cross-examination, it notes that universities could allow an agent or lawyer to conduct the cross-examination, rather than having victims questioned directly by their accused attackers.

But the university only allows cross-examination to be conducted by the accused parties themselves, not by a representative.

It is important to note, however, that the claimant and the respondent do not need to face each other, said UM spokesperson Rick Fitzgerald. All hearings conducted to date have happened with the parties in separate rooms and the hearing officers facilitating the cross-examination.

Fitzgerald said the university doesnt allow attorneys to handle the questioning, because not all students have the means to retain an attorney.

Sandberg said the demands of those at the rally will include reforms to the Sexual Assault Prevention and Awareness Center (SAPAC) and an overall prioritization of the issue.

We have found that UMs SAPAC is restricted by the university from fully being able to support survivors, Sandberg said. We want SAPAC to be able to do more to help survivors on campus. They need more freedom, funding and support.

UM promises serious sexual misconduct probe into provost as some express doubt, frustration

Fitzgerald noted that the university lists sexual misconduct among its key issues. More information on the universitys prevention efforts can be viewed here.

The Sexual Assault Victims Alliance started planning a vigil for survivors at the University of Michigan a month and a half ago, according to group organizer Catherine Williams. The vigil is scheduled from 6:30 to 9 p.m., Feb. 5 at the Michigan Diag.

A microphone to survivors:' Vigil at UM to oppose sexual misconduct policies
3 ways the Education Dept. is protecting religious freedom for Christian colleges

Email Print Img No-img Menu Whatsapp Google Reddit Digg Stumbleupon Linkedin Comment

WASHINGTON  A U.S. Department of Education regulatory reform officer has assured the nations Christian colleges that the agency is taking several steps to protect the religious liberty of their institutions and students, including a proposed rule currently up for public comment.

Robert Eitel, the senior counselor to Secretary of Education Betsy DeVos, spoke at the Council for Christian College & Universities Presidents Conference on Capitol Hill Wednesday.

The secretary is committed to respecting your convictions and free exercise of religious beliefs that our Constitution has protected, Eitel told the audience gathered in the Dirksen Senate Office Building. The freedom of religion is more than simply freedom. It is much more. In fact, Secretary DeVos says the First Amendment doesnt exist to protect us from religion. It exists to protect religion from the government.

Eitel, a lawyer who previously served as vice president for regulatory compliance for several post-secondary institutions, detailed various ways the administration is trying to ensure that faith-based institutions are not disadvantaged because of their religious mission.

He pointed out that President Donald Trump set the table for promoting religious freedom across all federal agencies with an executive order in 2017.

Also, the U.S. Supreme Courts Trinity Lutheran ruling in 2017 and then-Attorney General Jeff Sessions 2017 memorandum on religious liberty have laid the groundwork for DeVos to propose important changes to the department's regulations and rules, he added.

Accreditation

Last year, the department proposed a new rule to change accreditation regulations under the Higher Education Act. The final rule is set to go into effect this July. Eitel highlighted a few provisions in the rule that are of note to Christian higher education institutions.

The takeaway is this, he said. An accreditation agency may not use as a negative factor the fact that you are a faith-based institution, that you have a religious mission.

Concern was raised by Christian college leaders in 2018 after one accreditation agency proposed a new policy that would have removed a requirement for the agency to take into account institutions "specific and diverse" missions when assessing the schools commitment to diversity.

Eitel said the new rule defines what a religious mission is under the Higher Education Act.

Congress mandated that agencies respect the diversity of missions in institutions, including religious missions. But there is no definition. We provided one in our regulation, he said.

He explained that the definition of religious mission as defined by the rule is: the published institutional mission that is approved by the governing body of an institution of postsecondary education that includes, refers to or is predicated by religious tenets, beliefs or teachings.

What is important there is this: There are several regulatory references  that relate to how accreditation agencies handle the issue of religious mission in schools. There are mandates in the regulation that require accreditation agencies to ensure consistency in decision making when it comes to faith-based institutions. There are also provisions related to procedures for submitting an application for recognition by accrediting agencies in the department and how the department [enforces] those regulations.

Eitel said that the department is in the process of consulting with accreditation agencies about how they can comply with the new rule.

We intend to enforce this aspect  in our own review of accreditation agencies, he stated.

Title IV

In December, the Education Department proposed another rule that was open for public comment until Jan. 10.

The rule, which is expected to be enacted in July, would expand access to Teacher Education Assistance for College and Higher Education (TEACH) Grants so as to ensure that religious freedom rights of faith-based schools and students are respected.

The rule states that the department cannot discriminate against otherwise eligible students and faith-based entities by disqualifying them from Title IV Higher Education Act programs because of their religious convictions or beliefs.

We have proposed to eliminate certain limitations on the ability of faith-based institutions to participate ... and to ensure they are included in the program, Eitel said. We hope to avoid issues up the road.

HBCU

Eitel said that last September, DeVos told Congress that a statutory provision of the Historically Black Colleges and Universities Capital Financing Program was unconstitutional. At issue was Section 344 of the Higher Education Act barring the use of loans for capital improvements to HBCU schools in which a substantial portion of its functions is subsumed in a religious mission.

The Department of Education considers that provision to be unenforceable because it singles out a class of schools based solely on their religious status.

Eitel compared the provision to a policy struck down by the U.S. Supreme Court in 2017. The high court ruled at the time that the Missouri government could not discriminate against churches when handing out funding for a secular grant program.

Last September, President Donald Trump vowed that his administration would lift restrictions on capital financing funds for faith-based historically black colleges and seminaries.

On Jan. 17, the department published a proposed rule that is open for public comment until Feb. 18.

What is important for you to know about the proposed rule is that it does a number of things, Eitel said. One deals with leveling the playing field for your schools in regards to grants and programs outside of Higher Education Act.

Walter Kimbrough, president of the historically-black Dillard University in Louisiana, a school affiliated with United Methodist Church and the United Church of Christ, reached out to CP to argue that the administration is overstating its claim about how many HBCU institutions the rule change will help.

In September, Trump claimed that there are 40 HBCU schools that are restricted from the Capital Financing Program. But Kimbrough said that claim is inaccurate.

"There are about 40 HBCUs that are private and are church-related. That I guess is what [Trump] was talking about. But we get capital funds," he said. "I went through the recipients list. The only one I saw that didn't get it is a seminary. Based on that law, and it is written very clearly, if the primary purpose is church-related, you wouldn't be eligible. But none of our schools are primarily church-related."

CCCU President Shirley Hoogstra praised the work the Department of Education is doing to clarify policies.

They want to make sure there is a level playing field, nothing more and nothing less, Hoogstra told The Christian Post.

When the government speaks into issues that are ambiguous and makes it clear, it actually helps everybody. It helps the accreditors so they dont get into trouble, it helps us so that we know what the parameters are for Christian higher education. The department is doing a great job of making sure there is clarity around things that are kind of fuzzy.

CCCU is an association of over 180 Protestant higher education institutions worldwide. Its annual presidents conference is attended this year by representatives from 85 campuses in over 30 states and nine countries.
A wildfire burning near Australia's national capital Canberra has grown to more than 35,000 hectares as some residents were warned it's too late to leave the area.

As officials closed a major motorway due to the bushfire, residents in some areas around the capital were warned that it was "too late to leave" and were advised to seek shelter.

The capital region declared a state of emergency on Friday because of a fire that by Saturday covered 88,500 acres (35,800 hectares) of forest and farmland south of Canberra, Australian Capital Territory Emergency Services Agency Commissioner Georgeina Whelan said.

Spot fires were sparked by embers carried on winds up to six miles (10km) from the fire front, and some of those fires will eventually merge with the main fire, she said.

Bushfires burn near the town of Bumbalong south of Canberra / AFP via Getty Images

The fires threaten Canberras southern suburbs and the nearby village of Tharwa, which has been cut off by road closures since Saturday morning.

Monaro Highway in the Australian Capital Territory (ACT) has been closed.

Bushfires burn near the town of Bumbalong south of Canberra / AFP via Getty Images

The fire may pose a threat to lives directly in its path, Ms Whelan told reporters in Canberra. Driving is extremely dangerous and potentially deadly.

The fire was downgraded from emergency level late on Saturday to the second level on a three-tier scale of danger due to a fall in temperatures and winds.

A water bombing helicoptor drops water over bushfires / AFP via Getty Images

But several fires continued to burn at emergency levels in south-east New South Wales.

New South Wales Rural Fire Commissioner Shane Fitzsimmons said sheds and stables had been destroyed but no homes had been reported lost to wildfires on Saturday.

Horses panick as a spot fire runs through the property / Getty Images

The continuing state of emergency is the first in the Australian Capital Territory since 2003, when wildfires killed four people and destroyed almost 500 homes in a single day.
U K leaders have responded to Britains EU departure with a mixture of optimism, jubilation, sadness and, in some cases, regret.

While roaring celebrations took over Westminsters Parliament Square, led by Nigel Farage, swathes of Scots pledged their loyalty to Europe in a mournful vigil.

As Brexit officially made history at 11pm, Boris Johnson tweeted a call to unleash the potential of the whole of the UK.

Tonight we have left the EU  an extraordinary turning point in the life of this country, he wrote.

Let us come together now to make the most of all the opportunities Brexit will bring  and lets unleash the potential of the whole UK. 

Similarly, Foreign Secretary Dominic Raab tweeted: The (UK) has left the (EU).

Were ambitious, confident and optimistic for our future  as masters of our own destiny, and a force for good in the world.

But Scotlands First Minister Nicola Sturgeon was quick to denounce the departure and pledge her countrys loyalty to Europe.

Sharing a picture of the EU flag, she wrote: Scotland will return to the heart of Europe as an independent country - #LeaveALightOnForScotland.

Northern Irelands DUP leader Arlene Foster UP marked the historic moment by appearing on RTEs flagship Late Late Show.

Striking a conciliatory note with Europe, she said: We are leaving the European Union tonight, the United Kingdom leaves, but that doesnt mean we are not still neighbours and I wanted to send out a message that we are, and will continue to be, neighbours.

She added: I am pleased that the UK has respected the vote that was taken right across the nation but I can understand there are many people who will not be celebrating tonight because they feel sad about that.

Pro-Brexit supporters gather to celebrate outside Stormont in Belfast / PA

Across the border Ireland's Tanaiste Simon Coveney shared his own message of friendship and solidarity with the UK.

He tweeted: Good bye & good luck to my friends in the UK.

History is changing course tonight. I hope we can make the new realities work. Despite all that has happened through BREXIT so far, we will miss you in the EU as a close friend and ally."

Meanwhile back in central London, Nigel Farge addressed the crowds to hail the greatest moment in the modern history of our great nation.

He said: "The people have beaten the establishment. The real winner tonight is democracy.

"Let us celebrate tonight as we have never done before.
Source: Xinhua| 2020-02-01 04:06:25|Editor: yan

Video Player Close

CAIRO, Jan. 31 (Xinhua) -- Egypt, Sudan and Ethiopia reached an agreement on Friday over the disputed Grand Ethiopian Renaissance Dam (GERD) on the Nile River, according to the Egyptian foreign ministry.

In a statement, the ministry said the foreign ministers and water resources ministers of the three countries have issued a joint communique of reaching a deal on the controversial dam that Ethiopia is building on the Nile River.

According to the statement, the three countries reached a consensus on a timetable and a plan for filling the dam, adding that they have also agreed on procedures related to dealing with droughts, protracted droughts and scarce years during filling the dam.

The ministers, the statement said, agreed to complete negotiations and reach an agreement on the mechanism of operating the GERD during normal hydrological conditions, the coordination mechanism to monitor and follow up the implementation of the agreement, the exchange of data and information, and the dispute settlement mechanism.

They also agreed on complete studies on safety, environmental and social impacts of the GERD.

The tripartite ministerial meetings, which are hosted and sponsored by the United States, kicked on Jan. 28.

Meanwhile, the Egyptian foreign ministry revealed that the ministers of the three countries assigned the technical and legal committees to continue meetings in Washington to finalize the agreement.

The ministry noted that the ministers of foreign affairs and water resources of the three countries will meet again in Washington on Feb. 12, to approve the final version of the agreement in preparation for signing it at the end of February.

Upstream Nile Basin country Ethiopia started building its grand hydropower dam in 2011 on the Blue Nile, while Egypt, a downstream country, is concerned that the dam might affect its 55.5-billion-cubic-meter annual share of Nile water.

Egypt's fellow downstream country Sudan eyes future benefits from the GERD construction despite Egypt's concerns. The GERD is expected to produce over 6,000 megawatts of electricity and become Africa's largest hydropower dam upon completion.

Filling the reservoir, with a total capacity of 74 billion cubic meters, may take several years. While Ethiopia wants to fill it in five to six years, Egypt seeks to prolong the period to avoid the possibility of a water shortage.
U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo said Saturday that the United States is willing and able to provide Belarus with 100% of its oil and gas, Fox Business reports.

Pompeo is the first secretary of state to visit Belarus in 26 years and arrived in Minsk amid new tensions between Minsk and Moscow over energy. In a meeting with authoritarian President Alexander Lukashenko, Pompeo said he hoped to help provide an opportunity for Belarus to achieve the sovereignty and independence it seeks.
Source: Xinhua| 2020-02-01 21:04:03|Editor: xuxin

Video Player Close

CAIRO, Feb. 1 (Xinhua) -- Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas said here on Saturday that his authority informed the Israeli and U.S. sides that it will "cut all relations" with them over the recently released U.S. peace plan.

"We told the Israelis that we will not have any relations with them or with the United States, including security relations," Abbas told an emergency meeting of Arab foreign ministers at the Arab League headquarters in the Egyptian capital of Cairo.

Announced in Washington on Jan. 28 by U.S. President Donald Trump, in the presence of Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, the U.S. peace plan was rejected by the Palestinians.
The silver lining for the Party leadership in this otherwise highly dangerous scenario is that public anger seems to have primarily coalesced around local, rather than central, government and medical activity.





by Taisu Zhang





A month into the coronavirus epidemic that has swept across China, the details of the Chinese governments political and administrative response remain highly ambiguous. Reports of information suppression and general mismanagement by the Wuhan city authorities have swirled around the Chinese Internet for well over a week by this point, but relatively few concrete facts can be confirmed. What has been unmistakable, however, is the volume and intensity of social anxiety, much of which has been channeled into open skepticism of governmental activity. Even a cursory glance at Weibo will reveal an enormous amount of criticism, both veiled and direct, at the official response. Compared to other political challenges that have drawn large amounts of international criticism over the past two years, ranging from the 2018 Constitutional Amendments to the Xinjiang and Hong Kong crises, the current situation constitutes a much more serious threat to the Party-states domestic legitimacy. Whereas the domestic response during those other episodes was often muted due to a combination of censorship and apathy, or genuinely pro-government sentiment, the coronavirus epidemic has clearly struck much closer to the publics bottom line, leading to widespread displays of anger and frustration that one rarely sees these days in the tightly censored world of Chinese Internet expression.













Apparently recognizing the severity of the challenge, the government has treaded somewhat lightly in its management of social opinion. While usually quick to remove any significant criticism of governmental entities, Internet censors have allowed an unusually large, and often unusually harsh, volume of criticism to remain highly visible, both on social media and in the press. In fact, more than a few government media platforms have actually added to the chorus of criticism: For example, Hu Xijin, editor of the government-controlled Global Times and usually a reliable pro-government voice in sociopolitical discourse, penned an op-ed that directly called out both the Wuhan city government and central medical regulation authorities for their inadequate initial response. There seems to be a general recognition across the state apparatus that aggressive suppression of public criticism will lead to a potentially unmanageable backlashin other words, that public unhappiness has already reached such a critical level that the only truly viable response is appeasement.





The silver lining for the Party leadership in this otherwise highly dangerous scenario is that public anger seems to have primarily coalesced around local, rather than central, government and medical activity. As far as one can tell, the general public seems to have responded relatively positively to the most visible steps the central government has taken since the outbreak, including the quarantining of multiple cities in Hubei province, the channeling of medical resources nationwide into the Wuhan region, the formation of a special working group within the Party leadership to address the epidemic, the appointment of SARS veteran Zhong Nanshan to lead the expert taskforce, and so on. The Wuhan city government and the Hubei provincial authorities have, however, been the target of widespread ridicule. When rumors that several city-level officials, including the mayor of Wuhan, had been sacked and placed under investigation for administrative misconduct were eventually proven false, a popular comment on Douban dryly joked that [the rumors] only represented the beautiful hopes and dreams of the people (the comment has since been removed, after being visible for about a week). Likewise, when reports emerged of equipment and space scarcities in the Wuhan medical system, social commentary seemed far more likely to blame local governmental ineptitude, rather than the failure of central authorities to marshal national resources. By comparison, foreign media have tended to pin blame on central authorities, or the Chinese bureaucratic system as a whole.





There are at least three different ways to interpret this difference in popular reaction. The first, which will likely appeal to committed critics of the Chinese Party-state, is that it is simply far too dangerous to criticize central authorities, and especially the Party leadership, on Chinese social media, whereas the consequences for criticizing local authorities are generally far less serious. This may very well be true in this particular case, but it is not true in general: Provincial and local authorities often retaliate just as aggressively, if not more so, than many central government branches, especially the more technocratic ones, and central authorities are usually more than happy to facilitate this. In the present case, however, there are abundant reports of local authorities attempting to suppress early reports of the coronavirus epidemic, only to be reprimanded and censured later by central authorities and state media). In fact, central authorities have not only tolerated widespread criticism of local authorities, but have begun to actively encourage it. Just this past Friday, the State Council posted a national call for information on local misconduct and information suppression. The question, then, is why the central government has taken, under these circumstances, such an aggressive position vis-a-vis its provincial and city-level underlings. This begs for a somewhat deeper explanation.





The second interpretation is that, objectively speaking, local authorities are primarily to blame for the increasingly dire situation, and should therefore shoulder the lions share of the blame. This is almost certainly what Chinese central authorities would like the public to believe, but it, too, is dubious, even though there may be some kernel of truth to it. While there may have been some information suppression efforts early on at the local level, from December 31 onward, once the National Health Commission sent a team of experts to assess the situation in Wuhan, central authorities have clearly played a rolelikely the decisive onein all major administrative and political actions. In addition, if one wishes to blame local authorities for behaving indecisively, or for artificially attempting to maintain a veneer of calm, then one must also blame the centralized system of review, promotion, and censure that incentivizes them to do so. Normatively speaking, there can be no clean center/local distinction when assigning blame and responsibility for the present situation.





The third interpretation offers a way around these empirical and analytical difficulties: It sees the present center-local dynamics as both a product and a reinforcement of deeply rooted special characteristics of Chinese sociopolitical legitimacy. As a number of studies have found, the Chinese public has long had a significantly more favorable view of the central government than of county-level or provincial-level ones. The exact origins of this phenomenon are unclearthe situation was largely the opposite in the Republican era, and the change likely had something to do with the centralization of authority and political legitimacy under Maobut it is one of the more striking and unusual things about contemporary Chinese politics. Most polities around the world tend to place greater trust in officials that are more proximate to their everyday lives. They are more easily observed and monitored, more vulnerable to local social pressures, and therefore perceived as more accountable. Central authorities, in contrast, are distant, obscure, and less trustworthy. Chinese politics has long operated under the opposite scenario: local officials are considered corrupt and ineffective, whereas those in Beijing are supposedly more professional and disciplined. From this perspective, the concentration of public blame on local authorities during the coronavirus epidemic is simply the most recent manifestation of a long entrenched and very powerful sociopolitical pattern.





This pattern may well predate the post-Mao Party-state, but its ongoing strength and influence is also something that central authorities have, in all likelihood, consciously cultivated and reinforced over the years. The official media, for example, often portrays corruption as primarily a local problem, even as it tends to tolerate or even facilitate the day-to-day censorship of criticism against local governments. Following major natural disasters, such as the 2008 Wenchuan earthquake, the media have likewise tended to portray central authorities in a more positive light than local ones, even though local officials generally enjoyed a stronger marginal boost in popularity from whatever positive media exposure they did receive.





There are strong reasons for doing so: The central government benefits from the ability to shift blame to local underlings in times of serious crisis. This helps prevent social frustration over specific incidents from snowballing into a more general challenge to the Party-states political legitimacy, while providing relatively low-cost ways to pacify public angernamely, by blaming and sacking local officials. The handling of the current coronavirus epidemic seems to have largely followed this playbook: The central takeover of anti-virus measures has coincided, as noted above, with a highly visible public call for information on local misconduct and abuse, while Internet censors have, over the past two to three weeks, opened the door for public criticism of local authorities. At a much more general level, Xi Jinpings political strategy over the past five years of combining sweeping anti-corruption measures and pro-legality reforms with aggressive administrative centralization has been, to at least some extent, a conscious attempt to harness the publics higher trust in central authority for political gain. The more he does so, however, the greater the trust gap between central and local authorities will likely become.





That said, these kinds of tactics are not without their costs, and can be employed only in moderation. Even during major crises, the central government cannot afford to allow public trust in local authorities to fall too steeply, lest their ability to conduct everyday governance and administration deteriorate beyond repair. This is an extremely delicate balancing act that arguably runs against the short-term political interests of central rulers. Political centralization has a strong tendency to self-reinforce: The more a government centralizes under social conditions like Chinas, the more it erodes the publics faith in the governance capacity of local officials, which further strengthens the short-term political benefits of centralization. If central authorities give in to these short-term temptations, they can easily sink into a vicious cycle of assuming ever-increasing amounts of sociopolitical responsibility. In a country of Chinas size, this is almost certainly unsustainable over the long run. Combating these self-reinforcing tendencies requires, however, both the ability to appreciate long-term consequences and the political will to sacrifice some short-term gain for long-term structural health. Whether the Chinese Party leadership possesses sufficient quantities of both remains to be seen, but given the potentially catastrophic human costs of failure, one can only hope that it eventually finds the right equilibrium.





Taisu Zhang is a Professor of Law at Yale Law School. He has published one book on the comparative history of Chinese and English property institutions (The Laws and Economics of Confucianism: Kinship and Property in Pre-Industrial China and England), and is writing another on the late imperial Chinese fiscal state. He has also written a large number of articles, essays, and book chapters, in both academic and media venues, on topics in legal theory and contemporary Chinese law and politics. Zhang is a Global Faculty member at Peking University Law School and holds a secondary appointment at Yale as Professor of History. Previously, he has taught at the Duke University School of Law, the University of Hong Kong, Brown University, and the Tsinghua University School of Law.
DES MOINES, Iowa - For a brief few days, Iowa will be the centre of the political universe, thanks to the states caucuses, which kick off the presidential nominating season. Every four years, candidates spend months and millions wooing the states fickle caucusgoers. Itll happen again this Monday. How well do you know Iowa? Take our quiz and find out.

1. Who is the most famous person from Winterset?

2. What first lady was born in Boone?

3. Who won the Iowa Democratic caucuses in 1976?

4. Who was the heater from Van Meter

5. Where was technology developed that transformed fax machines into universal business machines?

6. What famous late-night TV host was born in Corning?

7. What is the hometown of the band leader Glenn Miller?

8. Which Iowan painted American Gothic?

9. Which famous newspaper advice columnists are from Sioux City?

10. Which president was born in West Branch?

11. Which Iowan served as Franklin Roosevelts vice-president?

12. In what year did both Republican and Democratic nominee finish third in the Iowa caucuses?

13. What TV sitcom actor and former MTV Punked host is a Cedar Rapids native?

14. What Burlington native was Super Bowl XXXIV MVP and attended University of Northern Iowa?

15. Which Iowan played Gopher on The Love Boat and was also elected to the U.S. House?

16. Until he became U.S. ambassador to China in 2017, he was the longest serving governor in U.S. history

17. What early rock musicians died on Feb. 3, 1959, in an icy plane crash after playing the Surf Ballroom in Clear Lake in northern Iowa?

18. Which Republican presidential candidate lost the Iowa caucuses on his first try before winning twice?

19. What percentage of the delegate count did Democrat Joe Biden receive in the 2008 Iowa caucus?

20. Who won the Iowa Republican caucus in 2016?

ANSWERS: 1. John Wayne 2. Mamie Eisenhower 3. Uncommitted (not Jimmy Carter) 4. Bob Feller 5. Iowa State University 6. Johnny Carson 7. Clarinda 8. Grant Wood 9. Abigail Van Buren, known as Dear Abby, and Eppie Lederer, known as Ann Landers. 10. Herbert Hoover 11. Henry Wallace 12. Republican George H.W. Bush and Democrat Michael Dukakis in 1988. 13. Ashton Kutcher 14. Kurt Warner 15. Fred Grandy 16. Terry Branstad 17. Buddy Holly, Ritchie Valens and J.P. The Big Bopper Richardson. 18. Bob Dole 19. 1 per cent 20. Texas Sen. Ted Cruz.

___

This story has been corrected to change the 11th question, ``Which Iowan ran for president against Franklin Roosevelt? to make it, ``Which Iowan served as Franklin Roosevelts vice-president?
Eminent Punjabi writer, novelist and Sahitya Akademi Awardee Jaswant Singh Kanwal died after a brief illness at his native village in Moga district on Saturday, his family said.

He was 101.

Kanwal's grandson Sumail Singh Sidhu said the deceased's last rites will be held at Dudhike village cremation ground on Sunday.

Kanwal was a prominent novelist, essayist and short-story writer of the Punjabi language.

Born in Dhudike, he left school when he was a teenager and went to Malaya, where he got interested in literature.

Kanwal returned to Dhudike after a few years and lived there ever since.

In 2007, he was awarded the Punjabi Sahit Shiromani Award.

Kanwal was bestowed Sahitya Akademi Fellowship award for his 1996 book 'Pakhi' (Hand Fan).

In 1998, he also received the Sahitya Akademi award for Taushali Di Hanso.

Guru Nanak Dev University, Amritsar, conferred Kanwal the degree of Doctor of Literature (Honoris Causa) for his contribution to Punjabi literature in 2008.

Punjab Chief Minister Amarinder Singh condoled the passing away of Kanwal.

In a condolence message, Singh described Kanwal as a versatile writer who penned nearly 80 books and novels vividly portraying the rural life of Punjab.

The chief minister also lauded the immense contribution of Kanwal towards promotion of Punjabi language, art and literature through his literary works.

He further said the writer will be remembered ever by one and all especially by his millions of readers for his prolific writings, which lent a voice to the plight of common man grappling with several socio-economic hardships.

A void has been created with the death of Kanwal in the literary circles, which is difficult to be filled, he added.

Sharing his heartfelt sympathies with the bereaved family, Singh prayed for courage to the bereaved family to bear this irreparable loss and grant eternal peace to the departed soul, a statement issued said.

Shiromani Akali Dal (SAD) president Sukhbir Singh Badal also condoled the passing away of Kanwal.

In a statement here, he said the demise of the veteran writer who has written extensively on the socio-economic problems faced by the common man had left a void in Punjabi literature which will be difficult to fill.

"Mr Kanwal's extensive collection of 80 books will serve as an inspiration for us always," he said.

Badal also expressed his condolences with the bereaved family.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
Facebook says it will start taking down bogus claims about purported "cures" and other unproven theories surrounding the coronavirus, as the deadly outbreak continues to spread globally, sparking a surge in online chatter and misinformation.

The company will "remove content with false claims or conspiracy theories that have been flagged by leading global health organizations and local health authorities that could cause harm to people who believe them," according to a blog post published Thursday by Kang-Xing Jin, Facebook's head of health.

Jin said that includes claims "related to false cures or prevention methods" or "that create confusion about health resources that are available."

The company also plans to increase its fact-checking and monitoring efforts on Instagram, which it also owns. Jin said users who click on a hashtag related to the coronavirus will now be served with a "pop-up with credible information."

The social network wants to prioritize legitimate sources of information, Jin said, by letting select organizations run free ads that help educate people about the virus and also boosting posts that fall in line with health experts' guidance to the top of users' Facebook feeds. It did not specify which organizations would be included.

Jin noted in the Thursday blog post that not all the new measures were "fully in place" yet.

"It will take some time to roll them out across our platforms and step up our enforcement methods," he wrote. "We're focusing on claims that are designed to discourage treatment or taking appropriate precautions."

The move is Silicon Valley's latest attempt to combat misinformation about the outbreak, which has infected more than 9,800 people around the world and killed more than 200 in mainland China. The World Health Organization (WHO) on Thursday declared the outbreak "a public health emergency of international concern."

Twitter and Google have also stepped up efforts this week to guide their users to verified sources on the subject.

Google announced Thursday that when people search for information about the coronavirus, it will pull up a special notice with updates from the WHO.

YouTube, which is owned by Google, said it will promote videos from credible sources when people search for clips about the virus. The company said it specifically points to content from trusted users, such as public health experts or news outlets, in search results or panels that suggest which videos to watch next.

Twitter said Wednesday that it would begin prompting users who search for the coronavirus to first visit official channels of information about the illness. In the United States, for example, Twitter directs users to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, beneath a bold headline that reads: "Know the facts."

The campaign is running in 15 locations, including the United States, the United Kingdom, Hong Kong, Singapore, and Australia, and "will continue to expand as the need arises," the company said in a blog post.

As of Wednesday, Twitter said that it had already seen more than 15 million tweets about the coronavirus in four weeks, "and that trend looks set to continue."

A company spokesperson told CNN Business earlier this week that it had not seen a coordinated increase in disinformation related to the virus, but would "remain vigilant" on the issue.

The moves this week are notable, particularly since social networks have long been criticized for allowing the spread of misinformation.

Facebook, which now claims about 2.5 billion monthly users on its flagship network and a combined 2.9 billion monthly active users across its other apps like WhatsApp and Instagram, has had major problems restricting hoaxes about vaccines, for example.

Instagram last year vowed to block more hashtags that surfaced vaccine misinformation after a CNN Business report found that content promoted by anti-vaccination accounts were still thriving on the platform.

While the company frequently touts its army of fact-checkers and reviewers who are paid to debunk false claims, the effectiveness of its policies remain in question.

On Thursday, some people pointed out that a search for "vaccines" on Instagram still brought up several pages linked to dangerous misinformation.

Facebook did not immediately respond to a request for comment when asked about those searches.

-- Donie O'Sullivan contributed to this report.
- Tactful studies have proven that Africa is the true origin of mathematics, which is one of the most relevant subjects in the world

- Evidence gathered from Egypt, Mali, Congo, Swaziland and more show that many ancient mathematical devices had been used in Africa more than 25,000 years ago

- Great monuments such as the pyramids of Egypt also buttress the point, as the building of such great structures requires deep application of mathematics

Careful studies in recent years have revealed that one of the world's most relevant subjects, mathematics, was invented in Africa and not from the foreign world as many Eurocentric myths have suggested in the past.

According to Libertywritersafrica.com historical facts, archaeological evidence and artifacts lend credence to the origination of mathematics from ancient Africa, more than 25,000 years ago.

A good mass of the historic evidence comes from the mountains of Swaziland and the headwaters of the Nile River in the northeastern part of Congo.

It is indicated that numbering, counting, measuring and other basic numerical forms were applied by ancient Africans in these areas over 25 millenniums ago. There were also discoveries that suggest early attempts to quantify time in those ages.

Specifically, some of the discoveries that have sent strong signals about Africa being the origin of mathematics include the Lebombo bone, the Ishango bone, series of tally marks carved in columns, the Tellem weavers of Mali, and others.

The Lebombo bone, for instance, is regarded as the worlds oldest recorded and proven measuring and mathematical device. On the other hand, the Ishango bone is reported to represent either the earliest known representation of prime numbers or a six-month lunar calendar.

To prove the discovery, even more, the systems of measurement used in the African forest kingdoms, and the mathematics used in building the great stone complexes of Zimbabwe as well as the great accuracy of the dimensions of the pyramids still gives rise to wonder and strengthens the evidential value of the African origin of mathematics.

The accuracy of the Egyptian value for (the constant ratio of circumference to diameter of any circle) was probably a result of theoretical analysis of squaring a circle and confirmation of experiment and accurate measurement.

The Egyptian value for pi was 3.16, much closer to the modern 3.14, gives credence to the African roots of mathematics.

PAY ATTENTION: Install our latest app for Android, read the best news on Nigerias #1 news app

Meanwhile, Legit.ng previously reported that a nine-year-old boy Siju Olawepo is able to tell the day of the week of any year without checking the calendar.

The boy was discovered by an ICT teacher in the school, and he is on his way to becoming a star.

His parents did not know he had this rare talent until the ICT teacher noticed it in him. Since Siju's discovery, his school has set up a special curriculum for him, allowing him to work at his own pace.

NAIJ.com (naija.ng) -> Legit.ng We have updated to serve you better

There is a 'genius' in every Nigerian family - Comic Con founder | Legit TV

Source: Legit.ng
Oakland police have arrested the third person in connection to killing of a 34-year-old physics specialist while stealing his laptop at a Starbucks coffee shop in Oakland in December, police said Friday.

Police on Monday identified the suspect as 18-year-old Kejuan Wiggins. Alameda County prosecutors have charged him with murder and second-degree robbery, including several special allegations.
We realize its going to take a great deal of assets to manage this, at least for the first year, she said. We dont have a big curbside.

Crawford said the companies will use geofencing to track the number of trips to the airport to determine monthly payments. Regulations require that data to be shared with the airport.

Deputy Executive Director Jason Burch said that currently, Uber and Lyft cars are parking in areas surrounding the airport. He believes the regulations will benefit the community.

Theyre staging and theyre leaving their trash for someone else, he said. Its beyond the idea of just parking your car.

Authority member Donald Long asked officials to provide revenue information on the program after it is up and running.

Crawford said the permitting program also will examine the use of ride-sharing companies and inform a $700,000 terminal-area plan study.

The study, by Parrish & Partners, will examine the terminal and surrounding area to inform future parking and potential terminal expansion.
The messy war between former Minister of Aviation, Femi Fani-Kayode and the founder, Muslim Rights Concern, MURIC, Prof. Ishaq Akintola...





The messy war between former Minister of Aviation, Femi Fani-Kayode and the founder, Muslim Rights Concern, MURIC, Prof. Ishaq Akintola is far from being over, as the MURIC boss described the former ministers father as the real traitor who betrayed the Yoruba to northern hegemony.





Fani-Kayode had sparked off the war of words when he described Akintola as a traitor to the people of Southwest and dangerous enemy of the South.





He said the MURIC boss is a disgrace to Islam and a slave to the Fulanis.





Ishaq Akintola is a traitor to the people of the South West and a dangerous enemy of the South. His name is Judas! Not only is he a gutless slave to the Fulani but he is also a disgrace to Islam.

He should ask his owners and masters why they never allow Oduduwan Muslims to lead in prayer even though Islam got to the South West 400 years before Usman Dan Fodio set foot in northern Nigeria, Fani-Kayode said.





Though Akintola replied Fani-Kayode the last time, he came back in fury on Friday and attacked the former minister on twitter, saying that his father, Chief Remi Ade Fani-Kayode was the real traitor.





He wrote: Fani-Kayode called Ishaq Akintola a traitor. Traitor in what matter? That is terminological inexactitude. Somebody must betray in a matter over which you have all agreed before you can call him a traitor. What did we agree on? Who did we betray?





Did we ever agree together on Amotekun? Did you ever carry the Muslims along? How can we be traitors in a matter in which we were never taken into consideration? How can we be traitors in a matter over which we never sat down together to take a decision?





Did we Muslims sit down with the Afenifere or any group and agreed that we should form Amotekun? Can you shave our heads in our absence? Can you defecate for us? Must you eat for us when we are the ones who are hungry? Will that take our hunger away?





Can you drink water for us when we are the ones who are thirsty? Fani-Kayode must be reasonable at least for once. Femi Fani-Kayode has forgotten history. We pity him. Does he think the Yoruba have fallen victims of general amnesia?





According to Akintola, Fani-Kayode shoul not have been the one using the word traitor in reference to any son of Oduduwa.





Talk about kettle calling pot black. Well, now that he has asked for it, we will let him know that when a child rejects pounded yam in the evening, the elders will narrate stories to him





We have a question for Femi Fani-Kayode: Who were the Yoruba politicians who betrayed the Yoruba? Chief Remi Ade Fani-Kayode or Chief Obafemi Awolowo? Again, who betrayed the Yoruba people and sold them to the North? What role did Fani-Kayode play in that tragedy? Remember?





If Fani-Kayode (Snr) aided and abetted the subjugation of the Yoruba to Northern political hegemony, how can Fani-Kayode (jnr) brazenly call Akintola a slave of the Fulani? Is this not a manifestation of addiction to lying and an incurable phobia for anything honourable? He asked.





Akintola continued: Fani-Kayode claimed Hausa Muslims cannot pray behind a Yoruba Imam. Fact check: Hausas pray regularly behind a Yoruba Imam (Shaykh Ahmad Onilewura) at the National Mosque, Abuja. When will Fani-Kayode stop lying? Your divide et impera gimmick has failed.





We advise Fani-Kayode as a former minister to learn how to use parliamentary language, at least in public. Unrefined, uncouth and gutter vocabulary should be reserved for area boys. Or are we back in the days of Fani-Power? Those were days when anything goes in politics.




ITN bosses have been 'stung and surprised' by the backlash against Alastair Stewart being forced out, insiders claim.

They are said to have held crisis meetings on Thursday and Friday to discuss how to handle the 'complete mess'.

On Wednesday, the newsreader was forced to quit ITN, which produces the news for ITV, after 44 years amid claims of racism.

Mr Stewart, who is married with four children, was the nation's longest-serving male newsreader. He started on Southern Television in 1976 and joined ITN in 1980. An OBE came in 2006 for services to broadcasting

In a Twitter spat with a black man, Stewart had quoted a Shakespeare passage which includes the phrase 'angry ape'.

Since the 67-year-old resigned citing a 'misjudgment', about 50,000 people have signed a petition to have him reinstated.

He is said to have been 'deeply moved' by the support, and has privately thanked colleagues for their messages.

Martin Shapland (pictured) was in a debate with Mr Stewart on Twitter when the veteran newsreader quoted a passage from Shakespeare that included the words 'angry ape'. Mr Shapland described this as a 'disgrace'

Stewart's decision to step down comes after a black Twitter user claimed he 'called him an angry ape' three weeks ago. Martin Shapland later branded Stewart a 'disgrace'

Tonight an ITN insider said bosses were 'stung and surprised' by the furore, adding: 'This is a complete mess.

'The fallout is not only on the outside, but the inside too, as the groundswell of support and genuine shock has shown.'

An ITV source said: 'There have not been any emergency meetings.'
Man in custody after he fires at Shaheen Bagh where women are holding sit-in, two days after a teenager shot a student.

Two days after a teenager shot a protester in the Indian capital, another firing has been reported at an all-women sit-in site in the city against a controversial new citizenship law.

Police said no protester was wounded after a man fired a gun at New Delhis Shaheen Bagh, the epicentre of nationwide protests against the Citizenship Amendment Act (CAA), which critics say violates Indias secular constitution and is anti-Muslim.

Witnesses told Al Jazeera the suspect shouted Jai Shri Ram (Hail Lord Ram, a Hindu deity) as he fired two to three shots in the Muslim-dominated area where hundreds of women have been protesting since mid-December.

Only Hindus will prevail

Mobile videos shot after the arrest of the suspect, identified by the police as Kapil Gujjar, showed him shouting: Only Hindus will prevail in this country. This country is ours.

The terrorist. He fired in #ShaheenBagh. Is anyone doing any effort to de-radicalised these kind of fanatic Hindu youth in India? pic.twitter.com/vK869zEYv2  Ovais Sultan Khan |  |  (@OvaisSultanKhan) February 1, 2020

Police said Gujjar is a resident of Dallupura village on the outskirts of the Indian capital, and has been taken into custody.

The man had resorted to aerial firing. Police immediately overpowered and caught him, police officer Chinmay Biswal told the ANI news agency.

Mohammad Akhlas, who was present at Shaheen Bagh when the shooting happened, told Al Jazeera: We first thought it was a tyre burst. But later some women came running and said a man fired towards the protest site.

Other witnesses at Shaheen Bagh told Al Jazeera the firing created panic, with some women leaving the protest site after they heard the gunshots. They later returned to continue their sit-in.

These incidents actually give us more power to fight the evil forces that are at the helm of affairs. We are peacefully protesting and if they need to resort to violence to suppress us, no need to guess who is on the right path, Fareeda, a 40-year-old Shaheen Bagh protester, told Al Jazeera.

A group of protesters held a march to the local police station, raising slogans against the attacker and the police.

We dont feel intimidated by these acts and the protest will continue till CAA is rolled back, said a woman protester, who preferred to stay anonymous, told Al Jazeera.





Teenager shoots student

NDTV website quoted a witness saying the gunman fired at the protesters, while police officers were standing just behind him.

He had a semi-automatic pistol and fired two rounds  When his gun jammed, he ran. He tried to fire again, then tossed the gun into the bushes and tried to escape, NDTV quoted the witness as saying.

A similar incident happened on Thursday when a 17-year-old attacker fired at a protest rally outside New Delhis Jamia Millia Islamia (JMI) university as police officers stood behind him.

Thursdays shooting, which took place barely two kilometres (1.24 miles) from Shaheen Bagh, wounded a JMI student from Indian-administered Kashmir.

Dramatic photos and videos of the man brandishing a single-barrel gun and shouting slogans at the protesters went viral on Indian social media.

The teenage suspect was arrested and is being interrogated by New Delhis police.

The two shootings came just days after Indias minister of state for finance, Anurag Thakur, encouraged supporters at a state election rally in New Delhi to chant slogans, calling for traitors to be shot.

Thakurs statement drew a reprimand from Indias election commission ahead of state assembly elections in the capital.

Hanan Zaffar contributed to this report from New Delhi
The city's leader requires the health sector to be well-prepared for the worse situation.

Chairman of the Hanoi Peoples Committee Nguyen Duc Chung has urged city agencies to store between 15 and 20 million medical masks to cope with the possible outbreak of a new deadly coronavirus (nCoV) in the context that the city has confirmed two people positive with this virus.

Mr. Chung said at a meeting on January 30 that the municipal Department of Health needs to check the production of medical masks to ensure sufficient quantity for the city of eight million people.

Chairman of the Hanoi Peoples Committee Nguyen Duc Chung at the meeting on Jan 30. Photo: Zing

In case of disease outbreak, the masks would be delivered for free to local people, local media quoted the mayor as saying.

He asked related agencies to equip more hospital beds, isolation areas, and facilities to receive new patients.

Notably, Mr. Chung required the Department of Education and Training to conduct disinfectant sprays at 3,000 schools citywide before this Sunday [February 2].

The Department of Tourism needs to work with tourist firms to stop receiving all visitors from epidemic-hit areas as required by the Prime Minister [Nguyen Xuan Phuc] that we must keep our people safe even at the expanse of economic benefits," Mr. Chung said Thursday.

Chung noted that the city needs to check and ban the trading of wild animals and check safety at festivals and massive public gathering.

He warned that Hanoi might cope with this outbreak in months, requiring the health sector to be well-prepared for the worse situation.

The 2019 novel coronavirus (2019-nCoV), a new respiratory virus first identified in the Chinese city of Wuhan has been found in Vietnam a week ago at two Chinese tourists who are a father and son duo. The 28-year-old son is now tested negative with the nCoV while the father is recovering.

As of January 30, Vietnam confirmed three Vietnamese nationals tested positive with the nCoV. They returned to the country from Wuhan on January 17.

Meanwhile, the number of people infected with the nCoV has risen to 7,771 in mainland China and more than 100 confirmed cases outside China as of Thursday morning. hanoitimes

Linh Pham

nCoV: Vietnam capable of producing sufficient medical masks Prices of masks have been driven up by hoarding and citizens spookiness.
Combatant commanders for Africa and Latin America made the case Thursday for more U.S. military, diplomatic and economic involvement in their regions, even as the Defense Department mulls troop drawdowns.

Army Gen. Stephen Townsend, head of U.S. Africa Command, and Adm. Craig Faller, head of U.S. Southern Command, received bipartisan support for their positions at a hearing of the Senate Armed Services Committee.

Sen. Jim Inhofe, R-Oklahoma, the committee's chairman and a close ally of President Donald Trump, said that AFRICOM and SOUTHCOM "have never been adequately resourced."

A drawdown in either region to free up more troops to counter Russia and China makes no sense when both Russia and China are aggressively expanding their influence in Africa and Central and South America, Inhofe said.

Related: Pentagon Eyes Guantanamo Bay Military Prison for Cuts to Personnel, Infrastructure

Sen. Jack Reed, D-Rhode Island, the committee's ranking member, made similar arguments at the hearing, pushing back against the possibility that an ongoing Pentagon review of the U.S. force posture worldwide might lead to withdrawals.

"While it is wise, and in fact necessary, to take a hard and methodical look at our investments and military activities around the globe, it would be strategically unwise to disengage from either Africa or Latin America in an effort to generate small, near-term budgetary gains," Reed said.

Defense Secretary Mark Esper has said repeatedly in recent weeks that the force posture review could result in withdrawals in some regions to either send troops home or reposition them as part of the National Defense Strategy to counter China and Russia.

He said in December that decisions would be made "in the coming weeks" on troop withdrawals from Afghanistan, but no announcements have been made.

While Townsend and Faller were testifying Thursday, Esper held a Pentagon news conference at which he skirted questions on which regions could face a drawdown.

"I know the inclination is whenever someone says 'review,' the word that automatically pops up in their head is 'reduction.' It is a rebalancing," Esper said.

"In some cases, we will increase; in some cases, we won't change; and in some cases, we will decrease," he said but gave no details.

In an unusually lengthy and detailed presentation to the committee, Townsend made the traditional request of all combatant commanders for more intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance assets and argued that small investments of troops and assistance go a long way on the continent.

He backed up his case with an 18-page prepared statement, presented graphics showing Russia and China's advances in Africa, and focused particularly on China's so-called "debt diplomacy," in which it puts African nations in hock with the promise of building roads, ports and infrastructure.

"I have learned that small investments in Africa go a long way," Townsend said in the prepared statement. "A few bucks and a few troops can make a significant difference and have proven to be the cornerstone of multinational efforts in the region.

"What U.S. Africa Command accomplishes with relatively few people and few dollars, on a continent 3.5 times the size of the continental United States, is a bargain for the American taxpayer," he said.

Townsend also appeared to be sending a message to the Pentagon that a drawdown in Africa would free up only a relatively small number of troops for repositioning to the Indo-Pacific region to counter China.

The troop estimate for AFRICOM has usually been given as 6,000, but Townsend, possibly for the first time in public, gave a breakdown. There are 5,100 US troops and about 1,000 Defense Department contractors in the region, he said.

Faller echoed Townsend in calling for more attention to the inroads made by Russia and China in Latin America, and called for more investments by the U.S. in addition to more assets for SOUTHCOM.

China and Russia are propping up Nicolas Maduro's dictatorship in Venezuela, where an estimated five million refugees have fled the regime to neighboring countries, he said.

The region has also been exploited by a "vicious circle of threats" from trans-national criminal organizations thriving on drug trafficking, said Faller, whose command has about 1,200 assigned military and civilian personnel and is bolstered by rotational troop and naval assets.

Sen. Angus King, I-Maine, noted that there were an estimated 67,000 deaths in the U.S. last year attributed to drugs, adding that SOUTHCOM has the capacity to detect only about 25% of the drug shipments coming to the U.S. from Latin America.

"We detect 25%," Faller said in response, but "we only interdict 9%" due to the lack of Navy and Coast Guard ships to intercept the drug runners.

King asked, "Who do we need to talk to get those assets? We are woefully falling down on this responsibility."

In his opening remarks and questions, Inhofe questioned how much would be contributed to the National Defense Strategy by withdrawing the relatively small number of troops now assigned to AFRICOM and SOUTHCOM.

"You're talking about two areas where there aren't enough people to reposition," he said.

Much of the hearing was devoted to examining China's efforts to build up debt and dependence across Africa through investments in infrastructure.

Townsend called China's investments "debt trap loans -- that is exactly what we're seeing. Most African leaders are wise to it," he said, but they are susceptible to money up front.

"They build not just debt but dependence," he said of the Chinese.

The Chinese policy in Africa was likened to "payday loans" by Katherine Zimmerman, a resident fellow at the American Enterprise Institute and Africa specialist, was referring to the high-interest instruments that trap many troops in mounting debt.

"African leaders are not stupid," she said in a phone interview. "They know what deals they're making" with the Chinese, but many are reluctantly willing to trade long-term dependence for immediate assistance.

She contrasted the Chinese approach to U.S. policy on assistance and aid, which often comes with requirements for long-term development plans and delays in delivery.

"When you're drowning, you accept any help," Zimmerman said.

-- Richard Sisk can be reached at Richard.Sisk@Military.com.

Read more: Trump Reverses Obama-Era Restrictions on Military Use of Land Mines
The Centre on Saturday proposed to allocate Rs 1,116 crore to Delhi in the Union Budget, keeping the national capital's share in central taxes unchanged and prompting Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal to term it a "step-motherly" treatment to the city.

The Delhi government was given Rs 325 crore as share in central taxes in the 2020-21 Budget. Rs 10 crore has also been given to it for paying enhanced compensation to the 1984 Sikh riot victims. The same amount had been given in the 2019-20 Budget.

The Centre allocated Rs 626 crore as central assistance against Rs 472 crore in the last budget. Apart from this, the grant for the Delhi Disaster Response Fund remained unchanged with an allocation of Rs 5 crore.

The AAP dispensation has been demanding that the share in central taxes and duties for Delhi be increased.

Taking to Twitter, Kejriwal said a "step-motherly" treatment has been meted out to Delhi in the Union Budget.

"When Delhi doesn't figure in BJP's priorities, why should people vote for it?" Kejriwal said.

"Delhi had high expectations from the Budget, but step-motherly treatment has been meted out to it again," he tweeted in Hindi.

The AAP national convenor asked when the BJP was "disappointing" Delhi before the assembly elections, scheduled on February 8, "Will it fulfil its promises after the polls?"



Earlier in the day, Deputy Chief Minister Manish Sisodia alleged the BJP-led central government has done the "biggest injustice" to the people of Delhi.

He said the central government has allotted Rs 325 crore to the Delhi government as central taxes share in the budget, which is the same since 2001.

Sisodia, who is also the finance minister, said Delhiites give Rs 1.5 lakh crore as taxes to the Centre annually, but the Union government doesn't give anything to the Delhi government.

According to the deputy chief minister, the Centre has also not allocated funds to all the three BJP-led municipal corporations in the budget.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
Source: Xinhua| 2020-02-01 15:46:27|Editor: xuxin

Video Player Close

LONDON, Jan. 31 (Xinhua) -- Britain is no longer a member of the European Union (EU) after 23:00 GMT on Jan. 31, 2020.

Brexit -- Withdrawal of Britain from the EU was originally meant to happen on March 29, 2019, but the deadline was delayed three times.

The following are the chronicled major events related to Brexit:

Jan. 29, 2020 -- The European Parliament gave its consent to the Council of the EU to conclude the withdrawal agreement by 621 votes to 49. This was the final time that members of the European Parliament (MEPs) from the United Kingdom (UK) sat in the European Parliament.

Jan. 23, 2020 -- The Withdrawal Agreement Bill received royal assent from Queen Elizabeth II.

Jan. 22, 2020 -- The Withdrawal Agreement Bill proposed by Prime Minister Boris Johnson was passed by the British parliament.

Dec. 12, 2019 -- A general election was held in which the Conservative Party gained an 80-seat majority in parliament.

Oct. 28, 2019 -- The European Council agreed to extend the Brexit deadline to Jan. 31, 2020, which was the third extension.

Oct. 19, 2019 -- British Prime Minister Boris Johnson sent letters to then President of the European Council Donald Tusk, asking for an extension of the Brexit deadline to Jan. 31, 2020.

Oct. 17, 2019 -- The UK and the European Commission agreed on a revised withdrawal agreement containing a new protocol on Northern Ireland. The European Council endorsed the deal.

Oct. 2, 2019 -- The British government published a white paper outlining a new plan to replace the Irish backstop, involving regulatory alignment across the island of Ireland but retaining a customs border between the Republic of Ireland and Northern Ireland.

July 24, 2019 -- Johnson accepted the Queen's invitation to form a government and became prime minister of the UK, the third since the Brexit referendum.

May 24, 2019 -- Theresa May announced that she would resign as leader of the Conservative Party, effective on June 7. Her resignation came against the backdrop of her failure to win parliamentary support for her Brexit plan.

April 10, 2019 -- The European Council granted another Brexit deadline extension to Oct. 31, 2019.

March 21, 2019 -- The European Council offered to extend the Article 50 period to May 22, 2019 if the withdrawal agreement is passed by March 29, 2019, but if it is not, then the UK has to indicate a way forward until April 12, 2019. The extension was formally agreed the following day.

March 20, 2019 -- May requested the EU to extend the Article 50 period to June 30, 2019.

March 14, 2019 -- The British parliament voted 412 to 202 to pass a motion to extend the Article 50 period.

Jan. 15, 2019 -- Parliament members voted 432 to 202 against the deal reached between the British government and the EU after a five-day debate, which was called the worst defeat in almost a century in the British parliament.

Nov. 25, 2018 -- The EU's 27 member states endorsed the withdrawal agreement and Political Declaration on Britain's exit from the EU and the European Atomic Energy Community, as well as on a framework of the future relationship between the EU and Britain.

Britain's 39-billion-pound "divorce bill" has yet to be passed by the British parliament.

Nov. 13, 2018 -- Britain and the EU agreed to the draft deal on Brexit. According to the draft, there will be a 21-month transition period after Brexit, during which Britain will remain in the single European market and the EU Customs Union, and continue to enjoy zero tariffs with EU members. In addition, the two sides are expected to seek to establish a free trade area.

Earlier in the day, the EU published contingency plans for a "no-deal" Brexit.

July 2018 -- May put forward the controversial Chequers plan, or proposals for negotiations with the EU for a "soft" Brexit.

June 26, 2018 -- The Queen signed the EU withdrawal bill, according to which Britain will quit the EU at 2300 GMT of March 29, 2019.

December 2017 -- Britain and the EU reached a deal on several key terms on Brexit.

June 2017 -- Britain's negotiations with the EU officially started, aiming to complete the withdrawal agreement by October 2018.

March 29, 2017 -- The British government invoked Article 50 of the Lisbon Treaty on quitting the EU.

July 2016 -- The British government created the Department for Exiting the EU.

June 23, 2016 -- Britain held a national referendum on quitting the EU with 52 percent of the vote in favor. Britain joined the EU in January 1973.
The YouTube community is up in arms after one of the platforms creators admitted to faking the death of his girlfriend to gain traction on their joint channel. The man behind the hoax, Jason Ethier, claimed that Alexia Marano was willingly a part of the stunt during his admission. But Marano alleges that she felt forced to participate and that Ethier abused her during their relationship.

Ethier, the 29-year-old Canadian behind the popular channel ImJayStation has acquired his 5.44 million subscribers predominantly through various dark challenges  including a 3 AM series where he capitalizes on the deaths of celebrities like Mac Miller and XXXTentacion by claiming to contact them via a ouija board  that have brought criticism upon his channel. However, his latest stunt to entertain his audience seemingly crossed the line.

It all started on Jan. 21 when Ethier announced the death of his girlfriend of just five months in a video on his main channel titled, My Girlfriend Alexia Died... *Rest in Paradise*. The video has since been deleted, but was archived and posted by another channel. Last night, we lost Alexia, he said, to a drunk driver guys.

The video was met with suspicion from viewers as Ethier had the video monetized, included promotions to his and Maranos channel Dream Team, and even encouraged people to subscribe to it out of respect for his late girlfriend.

Her dream was just to get a million subscribers, and we were so close to doing that guys, Ethier explained. After talking with her parents, we both agreed that I should post the remainder videos that we filmed for that channel on that channel.

Some viewers and other YouTubers even looked into police records throughout Toronto, where Marano resided with Ethier, and Ottawa, where she previously lived with her family, and were unable to find confirmation of Maranos death. Still, all attempts to contact her led to a dead end. Her social media accounts were also deleted.

Story continues

Meanwhile, Ethier continued to create content in response to Maranos alleged death, including a video during which he visited a memorial site for her to say his last goodbye. (It was also deleted from ImJayStation and archived by another user.)

According to the Washington Post, Ethier also published a 3AM challenge video where he attempted to contact his so-called dead girlfriend with a Ouija board. Shortly after the video appeared on his YouTube channel, it was removed.

A new video titled ALEXIA MARANO *THE TRUTH ABOUT HER* quickly popped up on Jan. 26, in which Ethier said he faked Maranos death  with her help  to prank everybody and to gain traction on the Dream Team channel. Still, he explained, it eventually led Marano to break up with him and report him to police for assault.

She helped me do the ouija board video. I edited it until 8 a.m. and then she woke up around 8 a.m. when I just posted the video and she said she just got off the phone with her dad and her dads yelling at her, Ethier explains. I told her that her parents, its none of [their] business what we do online. I dont mess with [her] dads business, he shouldnt mess with ours. Then I go to bed.

When Ethier woke up at 4 p.m., Marano and all of her belongings were gone. He tried contacting her via phone and text messages, which all went unanswered. Eventually, police arrived at his door to notify that his girlfriend reported him for assault and assault with a weapon.

I have a warrant for my arrest, I cant leave my house right now or Im gonna get arrested and theyre gonna keep me in jail untiluntil they either say if Im guilty or Im not guilty. I never hit a woman in my life... Ethier pleaded in his video. ....I feel like Ive been wronged so much by this. I dont deserve this.

Yahoo Lifestyle contacted both the Toronto Police and the Ottawa Police Service for information on the alleged warrants. The Ministry of the Attorney General of Ontario confirmed that they havent been able to locate any relevant records. Toronto Police similarly said, there is no Toronto Police Service warrant on file for a Jason Ethier. Although a rep for the service confirmed that an officer did speak with Ethier on the evening of Jan. 26  the same night that the YouTuber posted his truth video, which included a clip of him speaking with officers.

I can confirm that Toronto Police Service officer did attend an address and spoke to a person named Jason Ethier on Sunday, January 26, 2020 in the evening, Jenifferjit Sidhu, media relations officer for the the Toronto Police Department, tells Yahoo Lifestyle. Sidhu tells Yahoo Lifestyle that there is still no warrant on file.

Throughout the next two days, people expressed shock over Ethiers admission, while still questioning Maranos involvement. Finally, she broke her silence on Jan. 28 with a video of her own, during which she revealed the truth about ImJayStation.

....After more time of being with him, I felt like he wanted to take away more and more and more away from me, she shared in the video. At this point, I felt really controlled by him and I felt like he was trying to isolate me from my friends, from my family and I just felt really isolated and alone.

She went on to explain that Ethier had proposed faking her death and while she never wanted the videos to be posted, for certain parts of certain videos I did help Jay and that she only helped him out of fear.

She continued, Then, these videos happened where Jay faked my death and I felt sick to my stomach from the minute that he posted it, I did not want to play with anybodys emotions.... Marano said that she protested, but that Ethier reassured her that it would soon be forgotten. She added, Then, he puts out another video that I wanted nothing to do with because up until this point, I was not a part of any of them. It was just Jay and I didnt even know what he was going to say in those videos before he posted them.

Marano said she watched the YouTube videos for the first time along with the audience. She opposed the drunk driving narrative, she says, and due to the impact on Maranos friends and family, she eventually left the relationship.

I had friends messaging me from Ottawa, I had family members being harassed. I was getting thousands of phone calls, my family was getting thousands of phone calls, she explained. I was not allowed to say anything to anyone...I couldnt take it anymore and I just ended up messaging a couple of my friends back saying, Yes, Im ok. Ill explain in a bit. Im ok. But I dont like anything thats going on.

In a follow-up video posted on Jan. 30, Marano continued to tell her side of the story, and even confirmed that she had gone to the police with accusations of abuse against Ethier.

Jay has been abusive toward me in our relationship, and I went to the police and charged him for domestic assault, Marano said. ...Jay assaulted me on two separate occasions....

According to a voicemail that Marano played during the video, a man who identified himself as a detective said he is looking into her reports. He explained that he would speak with Ethier to see if Maranos ex would turn himself in, otherwise there would be a warrant out for his arrest.

Yahoo Lifestyle has gotten in touch with Marano, who ultimately declined an interview.

Neither Ethier nor YouTube have responded to Yahoo Lifestyles requests for comment.

He has since gone back to posting regular content to his channel.

Read more from Yahoo Lifestyle:
Blackmon said the inspection was not prompted by anything. She said she could not say when the inspection would be completed or when the jail would reopen for visits.
Congressman Richard Neal, chair of the House Ways and Means Committee, said he expects to work closely with U.S. Trade Representative Robert Lighthizer following the United Kingdoms announcement this week it would be formally leaving the European Union.

Britains decision to depart from the EU came at 11 p.m. on Friday after a long struggle from lawmakers to formalize a Brexit deal following a referendum in 2016 in which voters approved leaving the union, the Associated Press reported.

Future trade talks between Britain and the EU will include discussions on tariffs, the U.K.'s ability to recruit foreign workers and the EUs access to British fishing grounds, according to the news outlets report.

Many important questions remain open that the United States will need to work with the United Kingdom and the European Union to answer over the next months, Neal said in a statement.

The White House will soon begin trade negotiations with Britain after the Brexit announcement, the statement said. Neal urged both the Trump administration and the U.K. to form an agreement that reflects the countries shared economic aspirations and democratic values.

The congressman said he will work with Lighthizer to ensure a potential deal between the two nations has bipartisan support in Congress. He will do so by including protections on workers rights, the environment and Congresss freedom to regulate in dynamic areas of domestic policy.

A future agreement will also respect the Good Friday Agreement, a peace deal made in 1998 between the British and Irish governments that has maintained prosperity for communities in the United Kingdom, Europe and the U.S. since it was brokered, according to Neal.
This year's Super Bowl commercials promise to be out of this world.

This upcoming Sunday (Feb. 2), a number of cosmic commercials are scheduled to run during the 2020 Super Bowl. From SodaStream to Olay and even Walmart, companies are turning to the stars to promote their products during one of the most-watched broadcasts on American television.

Make space for women

Former NASA astronaut and artist Nicole Stott is joined by actress Busy Phillipps and YouTube personality and late-night host Lilly Singh during the Super Bowl for a new commercial for Olay. For the ad, the three dress as astronauts in Olay-themed spacesuits. The commercial also features Katie Couric and Taraji P. Henson.

Related: How Living on Mars Could Challenge Colonists (Infographic)

As Stott shared on Facebook, she is participating in the ad to help "make space for women." "On a mission to #MakeSpaceForWomen. Thanks to Olay for encouraging and supporting young women in STEM [science, technology, engineering and mathematics]," she wrote.

Aside from, obviously, advertising Olay's brand and products, the 30-second commercial will also promote the company's mission to donate up to $500,000 to the organization Girls Who Code. A line in the spot tells viewers that if you tweet @OlaySkin #MakeSpaceForWomen, the company will donate $1 to the organization.

Bill Nye and bubbles

SodaStream's space-y advertisement stars everyone's favorite "science guy," Bill Nye, alongside Alyssa Carson, a teenage astronaut hopeful.

Carson has trained with the Advanced PoSSUM (Polar Suborbital Science in the Upper Mesosphere) Academy at Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University in Daytona Beach, Florida. The program gives students hands-on experience doing research in the upper atmosphere and helps them practice technical human spaceflight operations.

In the advertisements, which SodaStream teased with videos before the Super Bowl, Nye and Carson sip seltzer, future astronauts find water on Mars and (spoiler alert) someone accidentally carbonates the Martian water with a SodaStream device and drinks it.

"Being able to get humans on Mars and actually collecting one of these samples would be such an incredible moment, I would kind of hope it would almost bring us back to the moon days of everyone being glued to the TV," Carson told Space.com. "Somehow someone drank it, I definitely think that there would be a little bit of disruption in people not being too happy about our first sample being gone, but ... we'd hope that we'd store it somewhere a little bit better."

At the end of one of the videos, this text scrolls across the screen: "This is a fictional story. For now. By 2025, SodaStream will eliminate 67 billion single-use bottles on this planet, so we won't have to go looking for a new one." With this text, SodaStream is referring to the concept of Mars serving as "Planet B" if human activity one day makes Earth unlivable.

"It was really cool to be able to connect to their [SodaStream's] mission as a company and how they're so environmentally conscious," Carson said about her involvement in the commercial.

Famous Visitors

Walmart, not to be left out of all of the intergalactic fun, will also air a space-themed commercial during this Sunday's Super Bowl. The company's campaign, named "Famous Visitors," includes a 60-second commercial that will feature 12 characters from popular movies and television who "touch down on Earth" from "across the galaxy" to pick up groceries at Walmart, a blog post from Janey Whiteside, executive vice president and chief customer officer at Walmart, said in a blog post .

"What better way to show off the out-of-this-world convenience of Walmarts pickup service than the biggest television event of the year," Whiteside added. "For the first time ever, Walmart will be airing an ad during the Big Game with the help of some familiar visitors."

According to the blog post, the beloved characters who will touch down during this commercial will include Flash Gordon; Buzz Lightyear; Bill S. Preston, Esq., of "Bill & Ted's Excellent Adventure"; and characters from "Arrival," "Blade Runner," "Guardians of the Galaxy," "The Lego Movie," "Mars Attacks," "Marvin the Martian," "Men in Black," "Star Trek" and "Star Wars."

Turkish Airlines

Turkish Airlines has jumped into the space Super Bowl ad with a commercial that apparently will compare NASA's Apollo 11 moon landing to the a flight with the Turkish airline.

A 20-second teaser for the Turkish Airlines ad combines archive video of NASA's Apollo Mission Control in Houston at a Saturn V rocket on the launchpad with views of the cockpit of a commercial jet and passengers heading to the airport for their flight.

"51 years later, it's time to take off again," reads a message as a launch countdown reaches zero.

2020 will mark the 51st anniversary of the Apollo 11 moon landing on July 20, 1969.

"Houston, Turkish Airlines here. Our Big Game ad is on. All engines are running," Turkish Airlines wrote in the video description on YouTube.

Editor's note: This story, originally posted Feb. 1, was updated with a new Turkish Airlines teaser ad that references Apollo 11.

Follow Chelsea Gohd on Twitter @chelsea_gohd . Follow us on Twitter @Spacedotcom and on Facebook .
European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen (R), European Parliament President David Sassoli (C) and President of the European Council Charles Michel attend a press conference on the future of Europe at the Parlamentarium in Brussels, Belgium, Jan. 31, 2020. The United Kingdom's (UK) withdrawal agreement will enter into force upon the UK's exit from the EU on Friday night, ending the country's 47-year membership. (Xinhua/Zheng Huansong)

Top European Union (EU) leaders sent a message of unity and hope on the day of the United Kingdom's departure, vowing that a smaller bloc would not translate into a weaker one.

Presidents Charles Michel, David Sassoli and Ursula von der Leyen, respectively of the European Council, the European Parliament and the European Commission, stood together on Friday morning to deliver remarks meant to elicit optimism and energy on the day when they lose one of the bloc's most important economic, political and military powerhouses.

"We stand at a new departure for Europe. We should not forget how much stronger we are when we act together," said Sassoli.

"It's never a happy moment when someone leaves but we are opening a new chapter. We will devote all our energy to building a stronger, more ambitious EU. With 27 strong democracies, strong values, freedoms, 22 million businesses, and the biggest single market," said Michel.

"Indeed, tomorrow, almost half a century of the United Kingdom's membership of the European Union is over. When the UK joined -- I was still at school -- we were six Member States. Tomorrow we will be 27 Member States," said von der Leyen.

"During all these years ... our Union has gained political impetus and has become a global economic powerhouse. Our experience has taught us that strength does not lie in splendid isolation but in our unique Union," she added.

LESSONS FROM BREXIT

Despite their upbeat rhetoric, the leaders were pressed by questions what lessons the EU have learned.

"It's essential in the future to take much more into consideration the expectations of the European citizens towards the European Union. It's also very important to explain what is the daily added value of this political project," Michel said, referring to the concept usually repeated by pro-EU figures that the EU is not a perfect final product but an ongoing process that constantly needs adaptations and perfections.

Von der Leyen stressed the unity, saying within three and a half years of Brexit, there was a very precious experience -- the 27 other EU member states sticking together.

To the surprise of many observers, during the Brexit negotiations, the EU27 held together around Brexit negotiator Michel Barnier to square off with London, where bitter divisions unseated the government of then Prime Minister Theresa May.

"It's way more than each single country would ever have on its own, and we make the experience how strong we are defending our values, our interests but also protecting our member state Ireland. And therefore this experience of being together and solving problems together was a valuable one," she said.

FUTURE PRIORITIES

The EU leaders also took advantage to highlight the bloc's priorities despite Brexit.

Von der Leyen, in charge of the executive branch of the EU, said the challenges that Europe faces, and the opportunities that it can grasp, have not changed because of Brexit, "It is the climate change and the European Green Deal. It is being at the forefront of the digital revolution. It is managing migration in an effective and humane way. It is building strong partnerships across the globe."

Another priority will no doubt be the coming negotiations between the EU and UK on their future relations. Brussels sent clearly signals that it wishes the best possible relationship with the UK. "But it will never be as good as membership," von der Leyen said.

The EU has maintained that how much London remains aligned with Brussels' rules will determine its access to the single market, the UK's largest trading partner.

"The more the UK will diverge from EU standards, the less the access to the single market," Michel said.
Beijing criticises US move temporarily barring entry to most foreigners who had been in China in the past two weeks.

The United States has declared a public health emergency and temporarily banned the entry of foreign nationals who travelled to China recently, joining a growing list of nations to impose travel restrictions due to the coronavirus outbreak that has killed more than 250 people and infected thousands.

US President Donald Trump signed an order on Friday barring entry to foreign nationals, other than immediate family members of American citizens and permanent residents, who travelled in China in the last 14 days, which scientists say is the longest incubation period for the virus.

Americans returning from China will be allowed into the country, but will face screening at select ports of entry and required to undertake 14 days of self-screening. Those returning from Hubei will be subject to a 14-day quarantine.

Chinas government criticised the measure, which it said contradicted the World Health Organizations appeal to avoid travel bans, and slammed unfriendly comments made by the US that Beijing was failing to cooperate.

Just as the WHO recommended against travel restrictions, the US rushed to go in the opposite way. Certainly not a gesture of goodwill, said foreign ministry spokeswoman Hua Chunying.

There have been seven confirmed US cases of the 2019 Novel Coronavirus, which originated in December in a live seafood market in Wuhan in Chinas Hubei province.

With the United Kingdom, Russia and Sweden among the countries confirming their first infections, the virus has now spread to more than two dozen nations, sending governments scurrying to limit their exposure.

The US move follows similar steps by countries, including Italy, Singapore, and Chinas northern neighbour, Mongolia.

The US, Japan, the UK, Germany and some other affected nations have already advised their citizens not to travel to China.

On Saturday, Australia said it would bar non-citizens arriving from China from entering the country under new measures to combat the spread of the coronavirus epidemic.

Prime Minister Scott Morrison said only Australian citizens, Australian residents, dependents, legal guardians or spouses would be permitted into the country from China.

The WHO has already declared the epidemic a global emergency. Death toll in China has risen to 259 while total infections reached nearly 12,000, surpassing the severe acute respiratory syndrome (SARS) epidemic 20 years ago.

Three US airlines  American, Delta and United  said they would soon suspend all flights to China.
New Delhi: Union Defence Minister Rajnath Singh said that Prime Minister Narendra Modi is 24-karat gold and his intention should not be doubted, while he was addressing a rally in Delhi's Mehrauli constituency ahead of the upcoming election. Singh added that Modi government keeps their promise and the government has proved this over the year.

Singh said, "Our Prime Minister is 24-karat. His intention cannot be doubted," adding that the BJP government beleives in the slogan 'Sabka Saath, Sabka Vikas and Sabka Vishwas'.

Taking to Twitter Singh said, ''Addressed a public meetings today in Delhi's Mehrauli and Ambedkar Nagar constituencies, and informed the public about the promises made by the BJP government at the center and the unfinished promises of the AAP government of the state. We do what we say. Our government has proved by its work.''

Live TV

The defence minister further said that issues like abrogation of special provisions of Article 370 that gave special status to Jammu and Kashmir, Triple Talaq and Ram Temple in Ayodhya was mentioned in BJP's manifesto and they fulfilled their promise.

Hitting out at the opposition parties, Singh said, they are trying to create misunderstanding among muslims over the amended Citizenship Act. He asserted that the opposition is trying to create fear among the minorities for their vote banks.

Taking a jibe at Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal, Singh said instead of maintaining good relations with the Centre, his only intention is to indulge in fight (dangal) with the centre and that is what he has done in last five years.

Delhi will go to polls on February 8 and the results will be declared on February 12.
drones pollination china

China Out via Reuters

China is using drones to scold people for walking around outside without masks as the Wuhan coronavirus spreads throughout the country.

According to a video by Chinese state-run paper the Global Times, drones are hovering above people in rural and urban areas, and a voice commands them to put masks on or go indoors.

The video shows a drone telling people crossing the street to "Put on your masks! Hurry up!"

Visit Business Insider's homepage for more stories.

As the coronavirus spreads throughout China, people there are getting scolded by drones for not wearing masks  or for just going outside.

Drones hovering above people in rural areas and city streets appear to be broadcasting messages sent in real-time by a human, telling them to put on a mask or go indoors and stay home.

"Yes, auntie, this is the drone speaking to you," says a voice echoing from a drone hovering over an elderly woman, who looks confused before walking away quickly, a video posted by Chinese state-run media outlet the Global Times showed.

"You see, we've been telling people to stay at home but you still wander outside," the voice continues. "Now a drone is watching you."

Another clip shows a drone telling a group of women to "put your masks on, hurry up!"

The patrolling comes after the World Health Organization declared a public health emergency because of the virus, which has now claimed the lives of over 200 people and infected over 9,700.

However, experts warn that face masks are not effective at preventing the spread of the virus, advising that frequent hand-washing is the most effective prevention method.

Even children aren't spared by the drones' patrolling. The video showed a child being told, "Hey kid! We are in unusual times. Don't stroll around outside!"

The Global Times tweeted that people walking outside without face masks "can't avoid these sharp-tongued drones!"

Story continues

You can watch the video below:

Read the original article on Business Insider
Protesters carry Jordanian and Palestinian flags and slogans during a protest in Amman, Jordan, against the Middle East peace plan (Raad Adayleh/AP)

Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas has threatened to cut security ties with both Israel and the US as he denounced the White House plan for ending the Israeli-Palestinian conflict.

Donald Trumps plan would grant the Palestinians limited self-rule in parts of the occupied West Bank, while allowing Israel to annex all its settlements there and keep nearly all of east Jerusalem.

Mr Abbas addressed a summit of Arab foreign ministers in Cairo on Saturday which was requested by the Palestinians, who responded angrily to the American proposal.

He used his speech to tell Israel and the US that there will be no relations with them, including the security ties following the deal that Palestinians say heavily favours Israel.

There was no immediate comment from US or Israeli officials.

I will not have it recorded in my history that I have sold JerusalemPalestinian President Mahmoud Abbas

The Palestinian leader said he had refused to take Mr Trumps phone calls and messages because I know that he would use that to say he consulted us.

He added: I will never accept this solution. I will not have it recorded in my history that I have sold Jerusalem.

He said the Palestinians remain committed to ending the Israeli occupation and establishing a state with its capital in east Jerusalem.

Mr Abbas also said the Palestinians will not accept the US as sole mediator in any negotiations with Israel.

He said they will go to the United Nations Security Council and other world and regional organisations to explain our position.

Expand Close Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas speaks after a meeting of the Palestinian leadership in the West Bank city of Ramallah on Tuesday (Majdi Mohammed/AP) AP/PA Images / Facebook

Twitter

Email

Whatsapp Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas speaks after a meeting of the Palestinian leadership in the West Bank city of Ramallah on Tuesday (Majdi Mohammed/AP)

The Arab Leagues head, Ahmed Aboul-Gheit, said the proposal revealed a sharp turn in the long-standing US foreign policy regarding the Israeli-Palestinian conflict.

This turn does not help achieve peace and a just solution, he declared.

Mr Aboul-Gheit said the Palestinians reject the proposal and called for the two sides to negotiate to reach a satisfactory solution for both of them.

Mr Trump unveiled the long-awaited proposal in Washington on Tuesday. It would allow Israel to annex all its West Bank settlements  which the Palestinians and most of the international community view as illegal  as well as the Jordan Valley, which accounts for roughly a quarter of the West Bank.

In return, the Palestinians would be granted statehood in Gaza, scattered chunks of the West Bank and some neighbourhoods on the outskirts of Jerusalem, all linked together by a new network of roads, bridges and tunnels.

Israel would control the states borders and airspace and maintain overall security authority.

Critics of the proposals say this would rob Palestinian statehood of any meaning.

The plan would abolish the right of return for Palestinian refugees displaced by the 1948 war and their descendants, a key Palestinian demand.

The entire agreement would be contingent on Gazas Hamas rulers and other armed groups disarming, something they have always adamantly rejected.

Expand Close Jordanian police stand guard during a protest in Amman against US President Donald Trumps Middle East peace plan (Raad Adayleh/AP) AP/PA Images / Facebook

Twitter

Email

Whatsapp Jordanian police stand guard during a protest in Amman against US President Donald Trumps Middle East peace plan (Raad Adayleh/AP)

Ambassadors from the United Arab Emirates, Bahrain and Oman attended the unveiling in Washington on Tuesday, in a tacit sign of support for the US initiative.

Saudi Arabia and Egypt, Arab states that are close US allies, said they appreciated President Trumps efforts and called for renewed negotiations without commenting on the plans content.

Egypt urged Israelis and Palestinians to carefully study the plan, saying it favours a solution that restores all the legitimate rights of the Palestinian people through establishing an independent and sovereign state on the occupied Palestinian territories.

The Egyptian statement did not mention the long-held Arab demand of east Jerusalem as a capital to the future Palestinian state, as Cairo usually has its statements related to the Palestinian-Israeli conflict.

Jordan, meanwhile, warned against any Israeli annexation of Palestinian lands and reaffirmed its commitment to the creation of a Palestinian state along the 1967 lines, which would include all the West Bank and Israeli-annexed east Jerusalem.

Jordan and Egypt are the only two Arab countries that have peace treaties with Israel.
Benjamin So was mid-way through a 36-hour shift at a Hong Kong hospital when an elderly couple from Wuhan, China was wheeled into the isolation ward at 3 a.m. After the nurse took their vitals and nasal samples to test for the novel coronavirus, he got to work.

Inside the negative pressure chamber, So, a resident in internal medicine, asked the male patient about his symptoms, listened to his chest and reviewed an x-ray scan of his lungs. Then, he did the same with the female.

Around nine hours later, both tests came back positive. The 72-year-old man and 73-year-old woman became the ninth and tenth confirmed coronavirus cases in Hong Kong.

I was a little shaken when I found out, So told TIME.

After he came off shift, he sought answers from the hospital on how he should protect himself, having been in close contact with the two infected patients. The authorities said they would not provide quarantine facilities for him since he was wearing full gear during the interactions. He was even told he could come into work as normal the next day.

Sign up for our daily coronavirus newsletter by clicking on this link, and please send any tips, leads, and stories to virus@time.com.

Frustrated, So booked himself a hotel room and decided he would isolate himself for the time being.

He may seem overcautious to some. But the 2003 SARS outbreak killed 360 hospital workers around the world and medical staff accounted for about a fifth of the 299 SARS-related deaths in Hong Kong. The coronavirus has proven to be more infectious than previously thought, and carriers of it may not show symptoms. A hospital outbreak is the biggest fear of many healthcare workers, who are not leaving anything up to chance.

Read more: A Timeline of How the Wuhan Coronavirus Has SpreadAnd How the World Has Reacted

There are hundreds of medical workers on the front lines of the fight against the coronavirus in Hong Kong, a semi-autonomous southern enclave separated by a border from mainland China, where the virus has killed at least 210 people and infected more than 9,700.

Story continues

The virus, known as 2019-nCoV, has also spread to at least a dozen countries, but Hong Kongs 12 confirmed cases are one of the highest outside of mainland China and the local situation threatens to worsen. As many as 95 suspected cases have been reported every day for the past week and more are expected as Hongkongers begin returning home after spending the Lunar New Year up north.

The Hong Kong government says the territory is well equipped to deal with an epidemic and that 1,400 isolation beds can be made available when necessarya number many medical workers say is greatly exaggerated. But the public is skeptical and are calling for a full closure of the border with mainland China (the government has shut some entry points but kept others open) to reduce the chances of confirmed cases being brought into the city. In recent days, medical workers have threatened to strike until the government responds.

Many are also under intense pressure from their families to resign. [My colleagues and I] talk about how ridiculous everything is, So says, about whether our life insurance will be valid if we die due to negligence on the part of the hospital.

Cracks in the system

Joe, a resident specialist in his 30s at another medical facility, has so far only dealt with suspected coronavirus cases. (He asked to go by a pseudonym to protect his identity.) But hes volunteered to join the so-called dirty team, assigned to working with confirmed cases, should they come through to his hospital, next month.

I dont have kids, Joe says. But my colleagues, a good friend of mine, has two kids. Another colleague who is also going to join the dirty team next week, his wife is going to deliver soon.

At a recent meeting, Joes boss told him: We must not let the things that happened 17 years ago [during the SARS outbreak] happen again. No matter what, we must protect ourselves and our colleagues.

In some ways, the coronavirus epidemic has exposed cracks in an healthcare system that many say has long been overburdened. By one estimate, Hong Kong needs thousands more doctors to bring its health services up to international standards. During flu season, bed occupancy rate at public hospitals can exceed 120%, according to a report by the citys Hospital Authority. Patients wait on average more than three years for specialist care. The rapidly ageing population further compounds the problemthe medical needs of the elderly are at least 5.5 times that of the rest of the population.

Joe complains that the government has overlooked the collateral damage thats resulted from his under-resourced department redirecting efforts to deal with suspected coronavirus cases, most of whom are from the mainland. He says emergency operations have been canceled, and certain procedures have to be put off because they can only be done in isolation wards, which are full.

We dont have the capacity, he says. We cant deal with this tsunami.

Read more: How Long Will the Coronavirus Outbreak Last? Experts Are Scrambling to Find Out

At another hospital, a doctor who asked to be identified as S., agreed that the lack of resources could put lives at risk.

We dont have enough isolation wards, he says. What happens is that we have to put about two or three suspected cases in one isolated cubicle. The problem is that one of them could come back testing positive.

Experts estimate that the outbreak could reach its peak around April or May. As the figures continues to rise, being at the front lines of the outbreak has forced S. to ponder lifes toughest questions.

Whenever I get called to see a patient [suspected to have the virus], I start thinking about life, he says. Should I be here? Should I be writing a will? Last night, I even left a message for my ex. I told her no matter what, Ill always look after her, that my feelings for her have never changed.

He adds: Weve been trained to deal with other peoples deaths, but we havent really been trained to face our own.
A white supremacist Coast Guard officer who was accused of plotting a terrorist massacre of Nancy Pelosi, other Democrats, and journalists was sentenced to 13 years in prison on gun and drugs charges Friday.

Christopher Paul Hasson, 50, was arrested last year when authorities found a trove of illegal firearms and racist, white supremacist material in his home in Silver Spring, Maryland.

More than a dozen guns and hundreds of bullets were discovered inside his home, prosecutors said Friday.

They also found a 'hit list' Hasson had made of people to shoot including U.S. House of Representatives Speaker Nancy Pelosi and MSNBC host Joe Scarborough.

Christopher Paul Hasson, 50, (above) was arrested last year when authorities found a trove of illegal firearms and racist, white supremacist material in his home in Silver Spring, Maryland

The 'hit list' Hasson had made of people to shoot including U.S. House of Representatives Speaker Nancy Pelosi and MSNBC host Joe Scarborough

More than a dozen guns and hundreds of bullets were discovered inside his home (above)

Draft documents and emails found on Hasson's computer repeatedly used racist language and advocated a violent race war.

'Much blood will have to be spilled to get whitey off the couch,' one typo-filled draft document said, which prosecutors described as a signed manifesto Hasson wrote in June 2017.

'Have to take serious look at appropriate individual targets, to bring greatest impact. Professors, DR's, Politian's, Judges, leftists in general.'

Hasson had spent $12,000 on illegally obtained firearms and unregistered gun paraphernalia over a three-year period.

Prosecutors labeled Hasson a terrorist and a white supremacist who should be put away for 25 years.

U.S. Attorney Robert Hur said Hasson intended to inflict violence on the basis of his racist and hateful beliefs.

Prosecutors labeled Hasson (above) a terrorist and a white supremacist

'As long as violent extremists take steps to harm innocent people, we will continue to use all of the tools we have to prevent and deter them,' Hur said in a statement after the sentencing.

Hasson admitted to unlawfully possessing firearms, gun silencers and Tramadol and was sentenced to 13 years.

He said he was 'embarrassed' by the racist, violent writings investigators found on his computer, the Huffington Post reported.

'I have never hurt anyone in my life and I was not planning to in any way, shape or form,' he told Judge George Hazel of the U.S. District Court in Greenbelt, Maryland, in the hearing Friday.

His lawyers claimed Hasson was not planning any attacks but rather was in the grip of a years-long opioid addiction that created 'significant mood disturbances,' according to a letter they wrote this month to the judge.

'Like many Americans, Mr. Hasson went through a difficult time in mid-life, when he became addicted to prescription opioids,' his lawyers wrote, saying he was taking three or four times the daily approved dose of Tramadol, a prescription-only medicine he ordered illegally online.

U.S. House of Representatives Speaker Nancy Pelosi (left) and MSNBC host Joe Scarborough (right) were both on Hasson's 'hit list'

'His criminal conduct arose out of this addiction.'

They had asked that Hasson be sentenced only to the time he has already served in prison and three years of supervised release.

Judge Hazel sentenced Hasson to 13 years.

He was not charged with conspiring to commit any violent crimes.

His lawyers said Hasson was not planning any attacks but rather was in the grip of a years-long opioid addiction that created 'significant mood disturbances,' according to a letter they wrote this month to the judge
CBC

Ontario confirmed at least 13,362 new COVID-19 cases on Saturday, although the real number is likely much higher given the province has reduced access to PCR testing for most people. However, as many infectious diseases experts have noted, the more important number to watch is hospitalizations. The number of people hospitalized as a result of the virus is still on an upward trend, reaching a new pandemic high of 2,594 on Saturday, up from Friday's high of 2,472. While still not as crowded as the
The UK flag has been removed from its pole outside the European Parliament in Brussels.

Three officials took down the Union flag at exactly 8pm, watched by crowds of journalists and British expats.

Several former assistants to the UKs MEPs also attended, sporting their commemorative UK/EU scarves.

There was a small cheer as the lowering mechanism got briefly stuck, with one onlooker joking: It means you have to remain.

Once the flag was eventually unhooked and folded up, it was quickly replaced by the EU flag.

Brexit day: UK says goodbye to EU Show all 66 1 /66 Brexit day: UK says goodbye to EU Brexit day: UK says goodbye to EU A message projected onto the White Cliffs of Dover Sky News/AFP via Getty Brexit day: UK says goodbye to EU Getty Brexit day: UK says goodbye to EU Big Ben, shows the hands at eleven o'clock at night AFP via Getty Images Brexit day: UK says goodbye to EU Nigel Farage speaks to pro-Brexit supporters PA Brexit day: UK says goodbye to EU Pro-Brexit demonstrators celebrate on Parliament Square REUTERS Brexit day: UK says goodbye to EU The Union flag is taken down outside the European Parliament in Brussels PA Brexit day: UK says goodbye to EU Pro-EU campaigners outside the Scottish Parliament, Edinburgh PA Brexit day: UK says goodbye to EU A pro-Brexit supporter jumps on an EU flag in Parliament Square PA Brexit day: UK says goodbye to EU EU Council staff removed the Union Jack-British flag from the European Council in Brussels, Belgium EPA Brexit day: UK says goodbye to EU A pro-Brexit supporter pours beer onto an EU flag PA Brexit day: UK says goodbye to EU Pedestrians pass in front of the Ministry of Defence Building on Whitehall, illuminated by red, white and blue lights in central London AFP via Getty Images Brexit day: UK says goodbye to EU A Brexit supporter shouts during a rally in London AP Brexit day: UK says goodbye to EU Pro-EU campaigners outside the Scottish Parliament, Edinburgh PA Brexit day: UK says goodbye to EU Pro-EU campaigners take part in a 'Missing EU Already' rally outside the Scottish Parliament, Edinburgh PA Brexit day: UK says goodbye to EU A large pro-EU banner is projected onto Ramsgate cliff in Kent PA Brexit day: UK says goodbye to EU Pro-EU supporters light candles in Smith Square in Westminster PA Brexit day: UK says goodbye to EU A man waves Union flags from a small car as he drives past Brexit supporters gathering in Parliament Square AFP via Getty Images Brexit day: UK says goodbye to EU The five-year old Elisa Saemann, left, and her seven-year old sister Katie hold a placard during a rally by anti-Brexit protesters outside the Scottish parliament in Edinburgh AP Brexit day: UK says goodbye to EU Pro Europe supporters gather on Brexit day near the British embassy in Berlin, Germany EPA Brexit day: UK says goodbye to EU Anti-Brexit protester hugs a man while holding a placard REUTERS Brexit day: UK says goodbye to EU A decorated, old fashioned fire pump in Parliament Square PA Brexit day: UK says goodbye to EU Pro Brexit Elvis impersonator performs at Parliament Square Getty Images Brexit day: UK says goodbye to EU An anti-Brexiteers stands with his dog in Parliament Square AFP via Getty Images Brexit day: UK says goodbye to EU Paddy from Bournemouth wears Union colours as he sits next to an EU flag decorated bag in Parliament Square AFP via Getty Images Brexit day: UK says goodbye to EU A pro-EU activist plays a guitar decorated with the EU flag during a protest organised by civil rights group New Europeans outside Europe House, central London AFP via Getty Images Brexit day: UK says goodbye to EU People celebrate Britain leaving the EU REUTERS Brexit day: UK says goodbye to EU A Pro Brexit supporter has a Union Jack painted onto his face at Parliament Square Getty Images Brexit day: UK says goodbye to EU Men hold placards celebrating Britain leaving the EU REUTERS Brexit day: UK says goodbye to EU Pro Brexit supporters dance in the street draped with Union Jack flags at Parliament Square Getty Images Brexit day: UK says goodbye to EU An anti-Brexit demonstrator spreads his wings during a gathering near Downing Street AP Brexit day: UK says goodbye to EU Pro EU supporters display a banner ' Here to Stay, Here to Fight, Migrants In, Tories Out' from Westminster bridge EPA Brexit day: UK says goodbye to EU Pro-Brexit supporters burn European Union flags at Parliament Square Getty Brexit day: UK says goodbye to EU A man poses for a picture on Parliament Square in a 'Brexit Day' t-shirt Reuters Brexit day: UK says goodbye to EU People celebrate Britain leaving the EU Reuters Brexit day: UK says goodbye to EU AFP via Getty Brexit day: UK says goodbye to EU A man wears a pro-Brexit t-shirt Reuters Brexit day: UK says goodbye to EU Anti-Brexit demonstrators visit Europe House to give flowers to the staff on Brexit day Reuters Brexit day: UK says goodbye to EU Pro Brexit supporter wears a novelty Union Jack top hat outside the Houses of Parliament Getty Images Brexit day: UK says goodbye to EU Customers Scott Jones and Laura Jones at the Sawmill Bar in South Elmsall, Yorkshire, where a Brexit party is being held throughout the day PA Brexit day: UK says goodbye to EU AP Brexit day: UK says goodbye to EU Getty Brexit day: UK says goodbye to EU Getty Images Brexit day: UK says goodbye to EU Pro-EU activists protest Getty Images Brexit day: UK says goodbye to EU A pro-Brexit demonstrator burns a European Union flag AP Brexit day: UK says goodbye to EU Pro Brexit supporters Getty Images Brexit day: UK says goodbye to EU Pro Brexit supporters Getty Images Brexit day: UK says goodbye to EU A Brexit supports holds a sign in Parliament Square AP Brexit day: UK says goodbye to EU A man carries an EU themed wreath Reuters Brexit day: UK says goodbye to EU Ann Widdecombe reacts with other members of the Brexit party as they leave en masse from the European Parliament PA Brexit day: UK says goodbye to EU Anti-Brexit demonstrators in Parliament Square PA Brexit day: UK says goodbye to EU Pro EU supporters let off flares from Westminster Bridge Getty Brexit day: UK says goodbye to EU British MEPs Jonathan Bullock, holding the Union Jack flag and Jake Pugh leave the European Parliament, in Brussels on the Brexit day AFP via Getty Brexit day: UK says goodbye to EU Newspapers and other souvenirs at a store, near Parliament Square Reuters Brexit day: UK says goodbye to EU Brexit supporters hold signs in Parliament Square AP Brexit day: UK says goodbye to EU Pro-EU protesters hold placards in Parliament Square AFP via Getty Brexit day: UK says goodbye to EU French newspapers PA Brexit day: UK says goodbye to EU Sinn Fein leader Mary Lou McDonald with a Border Communities Against Brexit poster before its unveiling in Carrickcarnon on the Irish border PA Brexit day: UK says goodbye to EU National growers organisation British Apples & Pears has renamed a British apple to EOS, the Greek goddess of dawn, to commemorate Brexit day AP Brexit day: UK says goodbye to EU Pro-EU protesters hold placards in Parliament Square AFP via Getty Brexit day: UK says goodbye to EU Britain's departure from the European Union was set in law on January 29, amid emotional scenes, as the bloc's parliament voted to ratify the divorce papers. After half a century of membership and three years of tense withdrawal talks, the UK will leave the EU at midnight Brussels time (23.00 GMT) on January 31 Reuters Brexit day: UK says goodbye to EU A man poses with paintings on Parliament Square Reuters Brexit day: UK says goodbye to EU People sporting Union Flags gather in Parliament Square Getty Brexit day: UK says goodbye to EU A man walks with a St. George's flag at Westminster bridge on Brexit day Reuters Brexit day: UK says goodbye to EU A British bulldog toy and other souvenirs at a souvenir store Reuters Brexit day: UK says goodbye to EU British pro-brexit Members of the European Parliament leave the EU Parliament for the last time Reuters Brexit day: UK says goodbye to EU Jonathan Bullock waves the Union Jack as he leaves the European Parliament EPA

The Union flag is due to be placed in the House of European History in Brussels, a spokesman for the European Parliament said.

A similar procedure also took place outside the European Council building where national leaders gather for their regular summit.

The Union flag from the foyer of the parliament was removed by mid-afternoon on Friday, while the flag from inside the European Council was also taken down on Friday evening.

Additional reporting by agencies
London, Feb 1 : Britain has officially left the European Union (EU), marking a historic end of its 47-year-long membership of the world's largest trading bloc.

The historic moment happened at the stroke of 23:00 GMT on Friday, more than three and half years after an in and out referendum exposed deep rifts across British society.

It also marks the start of a transition period that will last till the end of this year as negotiators try to forge a trade arrangement between Britain and the EU, Xinhua news agency reported.

While celebrations to mark "Brexit day" saw EU flags being burned on the streets of London, UK Prime Minister Boris Johnson marked the historic moment with his team at his Downing Street office, celebrating with English sparkling wine and an array of British culinary treats, Aljazeera reported.

As the clock ticked down the final seconds, thousands of Brexiters partied outside Parliament, while anti-Brexit campaigners mounted several protests along the Irish border.

In a televised address to the nation, Johnson called the UK's withdrawal from the EU "an astonishing moment of hope" .

"This is the moment when the dawn breaks and the curtain goes up on a new act in our great national drama," he said.

"And yes it is partly about using these new powers - this recaptured sovereignty - to deliver the changes people voted for. Whether that is by controlling immigration or creating freeports or liberating our fishing industry or doing free trade deals. Or simply making our laws and rules for the benefit of the people of this country.

"And of course, I think that is the right and healthy and democratic thing to do," he added. "Because for all its strengths and for all its admirable qualities, the EU has evolved over 50 years in a direction that no longer suits this country." The Prime Minister called for "a new era of friendly cooperation between the EU and an energetic Britain".

In Scotland, which voted to stay in the EU in the 2016 referendum, rallies and candlelit vigils took place as activists sought to send a message to the EU to keep open a place for Scotland.

In Northern Ireland, the campaign group Border Communities Against Brexit staged a series of protests in Armagh, near to the border with the Republic of Ireland.

In Cardiff, First Minister Mark Drakeford said Wales would "remain a proudly European nation".

Meanwhile leaders across Europe gave their reactions to the first country leaving the EU.

German Chancellor Angela Merkel said Brexit was "a deep break for us all" and warned the "negotiations will certainly not be easy".

French President Emmanuel Macron said Brexit was an "alarm signal" for the EU and hit out at the "lies, exaggerations, simplifications" that led to the Leave vote.

The departure, 1,317 days after Britain voted to leave the bloc, carries not only enormous symbolic weight, but also significant legal consequences.

It concluded three years of fractious debates over whether the country should really leave the bloc, the terms of its departure and the kind of relationship it should forge with Europe.
James Herriots stories of life as a vet in the glorious Yorkshire Dales either side of the Second World War have delighted generations.

His memoirs were bestsellers, and became the long-running TV series All Creatures Great And Small in the 70s and 80s, starring Christopher Timothy, Robert Hardy and Peter Davison.

When vet Julian Norton joined Herriots old practice in the late 90s, he discovered that heartwarming stories and occasional calamities came with the territory.

Now thanks partly to Julian, whose work has been the basis of immensely popular Channel 5 reality series The Yorkshire Vet, the original tales are being remade for Channel 5 with a cast including Samuel West and Dame Diana Rigg.

Married with two sons, 47-year-old Julian continues to practise in some of the most beautiful countryside in Britain, and his latest book A Yorkshire Vet: The Next Chapter chronicles more of his adventures...

Julian Norton, 47, (pictured) from Yorkshire, documents his adventures as a vet including being bitten by a llama in a new memoir

Of course its stupid to put your fingers into the mouth of a llama with toothache. I did it anyway: I needed to find out if the problem was a loose or fractured tooth, or an abscess.

I paid for my recklessness. As my fingertips probed a gap where one tooth had fallen out, the animal lost patience.

A llamas teeth are sharp and serrated, and its jaw muscles are powerful, made for chewing grass.

They clamped down on my fingertip.

Ive learned not to let any discomfort show when Im doing my job.

Yorkshire farmers, whether their livestock are the traditional cattle and sheep or the less conventional llamas and alpacas, dont like to see a professional make a fuss.

So I played down the incident with a muted ouch  but I knew this pain was going to be with me for a while.

As I finished my consultation, the latex glove on my hand was filling up with blood like a sinister balloon.

A week later my crushed fingernail was still black and the split fingertip was throbbing constantly.

And the lambing season was about to begin which meant my hands would be taking a battering.

This injury was not going to heal quickly... but every time I held a newborn lamb in my hands, I knew the pain was worth it.

My predecessor at the Skeldale veterinary practice, James Herriot, probably never saw a llama in the Dales.

Julian whose work has been the basis of Channel 5 reality series The Yorkshire Vet, said llamas are temperamental beasts. Pictured, the animal that bit Julian's finger

But today theyre not such an unusual sight, though the rolling countryside is a far cry from their natural habitat in the high Andes. Theres a herd in Nidderdale and their role is much the same as it would be in their native South America.

These are trekking llamas. Visitors can fill panniers with pork pies and Prosecco and enjoy a happy wander with a laden llama to the heather-clad tops around the eerie outcrops of Brimham Rocks.

But llamas are temperamental beasts. One afternoon as I was preparing for a busy surgery, our receptionist Sylvia called, sounding mildly agitated.

Ive just had Suzanne from the llama ranch on the phone, she said.

I know your diary is full but this sounds quite urgent. They have a llama called Dobbie with a damaged face. Theres blood everywhere.

Julian recalls giving a young boy some extra time with his pet, by injecting the hamster and applying cream to help with any infection

Sylvia knew that if I went out shed have to spend the rest of the day apologising to clients who had come in for appointments, but this was an emergency.

Llamas are lovable, inquisitive creatures but when they lash out with their hooves they can do serious damage  a kick to the face might have really serious results.

If Dobbie and I were lucky he might need nothing more than stitches to a gash, but I was prepared for the worst.

Suzanne rushed out to meet me, flushed and upset.

Hes been kicked, she confirmed.

His jaw is floppy, I think its broken. Hes been such a good animal but I really think that you might have to put him down.

Sure enough, Dobbie was in a terrible mess.

I had castrated him a few months earlier and I recognised him: all llamas have distinct personalities and appearances  colour, coat type, face size and shape, even the fluffiness of the ears.

Dobbie was unmistakeable, despite his bloodied and lopsided jaw.

Id never faced a problem exactly like this before but vets are good at adapting to circumstances.

We dont need to learn the detailed anatomy of every single species: rather, we learn the anatomy of the dog in detail and the intestinal system of ruminants such as cows, and apply these first principles to each new situation, noting the differences.

Its called comparative anatomy.

Rummaging in my disorganised car boot, I found the strongest nylon I had.

This would usually be employed to suture the thick skin of cows, for example after a Caesarian. My idea was to loop it around the teeth on either side of the fracture line, pulling the broken bones into position like a brace.

Julian (pictured) who describes himself as an independent at heart, recalls not wanting to work within a large organisation when a chain came to visit the practice he was working for

After injecting the jaw with local anaesthetic, I set to work with my nylon loops around the base of the incisors.

Half an hour later, Dobbie had regained a smile to be proud of, and was back at his hay net, testing out his new face.

I drove home with the late winter sun illuminating the golden crag of Whitestonecliffe above the village of Sutton, feeling blessed to be doing a job that I loved so much.

That afternoon, Id saved a llamas life.

Quercus, the party-pooping pointer Julian gave Quercus (pictured) an injection to make him sick, after he ate seven party poppers Jonathon, the young son of one of our clients, was celebrating his birthday and everything was ready for the party. Or it had been until Quercus, the unruly wire-haired pointer, intervened by eating most of the ingredients  sausage rolls, jelly, balloons, a pair of cufflinks and, significantly, all of the party poppers. Jonathon and his mum Sandra brought Quercus to see me. The boy looked anxious. Do you think hell explode? he asked. No, I said, but if he breaks wind, we may be showered in streamers. I checked his mouth, looking for confetti around the gums which would indicate hed chewed the poppers, but I couldnt tell. I moved to his abdomen, pressing in search of cylindrical objects. I asked how many hed eaten: Seven. Seven! They could get stuck and cause a potentially fatal blockage. And what would happen if the dogs stomach acid burned through to whatever made the poppers pop? Perhaps they really might explode. An X-ray revealed Quercus had chewed the poppers, so I gave him an injection to make him sick. As I held his enormous ears back, the poppers and everything else came up. Well, almost everything  they never did find the cufflinks. Advertisement

Not everything was so sunny, such as the day a young boy called Finlay walked in with his father. So, who do we have in this box? I asked.

This is Christopher Nibbles, explained Finlay confidently.

So whats the problem with Christopher Nibbles?

His skin has gone all wrinkly and his hair has fallen out. He looks horrible, replied Finlay, screwing up his face.

Oh dear, that doesnt sound very nice. Wed better have a look.

Its not terribly easy to examine a hamster. They are fast and too small to make an extensive examination.

Luckily for me, Christopher Nibbless problem was easy to see. He had a severe case of dermatitis, causing sore patches and baldness over most of his body.

It looked nasty.

That doesnt look very nice, does it? I said, trying to confirm the seriousness of the problem without causing too much alarm to Finlay.

I came up with a plan. I gave Christopher Nibbles an injection to help with any infection and then showed Finlay how to apply some cream that I hoped would help to heal the lesions.

I hope it makes him better, I said.

As Finlay marched out, I had a quiet word with his dad. Hamsters are prone to a slowly progressing type of cancer that affects the skin.

The cream would ease the soreness and give Finlay some extra time with his pet.

It would have been a shock to the little boy if I had put his hamster to sleep at this early stage.

Christopher Nibbles came to see me twice over the following weeks. He looked slightly better at first, but then quite a bit worse.

I explained as gently as I could to Finlay that he wouldnt be getting better. Then the final consultation came.

It was peaceful in the end and Finlay was very brave.

He spoke eloquently about his loss, before finally concluding, Christopher Nibbles is in heaven now.

One afternoon in March, two gentlemen in suits strode across the car park of the practice and I knew instinctively they were not coming for a consultation.

They didnt have an animal with them, for one thing.

Were from the dark side, one of the men joked, as they both thrust out a hand for me to shake.

And perhaps the joke wasnt so far from the mark, because they did indeed represent an empire... the Medivet chain, which has more than 300 practices around the UK.

My partners had already started negotiations with them about being bought out, but I knew I didnt want to work within such a large organisation.

Julian (pictured) said tradition is important, a tip he passes on to all of his students is leaving your car ready for a quick getaway

Im an independent at heart.

It happened that I got on well with a senior vet at a neighbouring practice, Alan at Boroughbridge.

We were chatting about TB testing on cattle, when he mentioned he could do with taking on another vet to ease the workload. Before long, Id decided to join him.

If I was worried about a great upheaval, I neednt have been.

As soon as I arrived at the practice I felt at home: it looked like something right out of the Herriot books.

Aged, wooden shelves with chipped varnish, laden with bottles of calcium for recumbent cows and ointments for lame horses, filled the middle part of the building.

There was a box bursting with stomach tubes for treating horses with colic and ancient punches used to make the holes to put rings in the noses of stock bulls [which helps with handling and leading them].

Miscellaneous other items were stacked up, ready for a busy vet to grab on his way out. I knew at once this historic practice was going to suit me.

I was determined that the corporate world would not swallow me up  and that wouldnt happen here.

Tradition is important, especially in the Dales, where such great characters have left their mark.

Take my habit of always leaving my car pointing towards the gate when I arrive at a farm, for instance.

Thats a tip I pass on to all my students, and one in turn I learned from a vet in Skipton called Andy, who helped me when I was a student.

Always leave your car ready for a quick getaway, he used to say.

It was wise advice.

In the event of a veterinary disaster, you could be sure of leaving quickly without compounding things by reversing over a lawn, a flowerbed or, heaven forbid, a cat.

And where did Andy learn this trick? From his one-time boss Donald Sinclair... alias Siegfried Farnon of All Creatures Great And Small.

A Yorkshire Vet: The Next Chapter by Julian Norton is published by Coronet Books on Thursday, 16.99. Adapted here by Christopher Stevens. To order a copy for 13.60 call 01603 648155 or go to mailshop.co.uk. P&P free. Offer valid until 14/02/20.
Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman again opted for a bahi khata, a ledger wrapped in a red-coloured cloth, as she arrived in Parliament to present her second Budget.

Sitharaman broke away from long-standing traditions of colonial-era when she ditched the briefcase and opted for traditional bahi khata while presenting her full Budget in 2019.

The word budget has its origin in the French word Bougette, which means leather briefcase. Traditionally, budget documents - which primarily include papers related to revenue receipt and expenditure as well as the speech of finance minister - were carried in a brown briefcase, a legacy passed on by the British. However, traditional Indian businessmen used bahi khata to maintain their books of account.

WATCH | Budget 2020: FM Nirmala Sitharaman poses with bahi-khata ahead of speech

The government is following Indian tradition and bahi khata symbolises our departure from the slavery of Western thought, Chief Economic Advisor Krishnamurthy Subramanian had said last year.

Sitharaman believes that leather made products are not auspicious for the big occasion, so she avoided the leather bag and took the bahi khata wrapped in the red cloth. This is considered to be auspicious, he had further said.

In July last year, Sitharaman had said that Modi government is not a suitcase-carrying government.

In a veiled attack on Congress, she had connected her idea of carrying budget documents wrapped in a red cloth instead of a briefcase with alleged corruption in the previous UPA government at the Centre.

For Budget 2019, I did not carry a suitcase. We are not a suitcase-carrying government. A suitcase also denotes something else: suitcase-taking, suitcase-giving. Modi jis government is not a suitcase government, she had said at the International Business Conference of Nagarathar in July 2019.

Before Sitharaman, a long-standing tradition in connection with the budget presentation was broken during the Atal Bihari Vajpayee government with the then Finance Minister Yashwant Sinha presenting the budget at 11 am rather than at the traditional time of 5 pm.

Since then all governments have been presenting the budget at 11 am.
Many of the senators did not try to justify or explain the presidents conduct. Some mentioned an election in nine months or other Trump accomplishments. Just because actions meet a standard of impeachment does not mean it is in the best interest of the country to remove a president from office, Sen. Marco Rubio (R-Fla.) said.
We have used your information to see if you have a subscription with us, but did not find one. Please use the button below to verify an existing account or to purchase a new subscription.
The worlds most populous nation dominates Australias top export sectors, iron ore, coal, and education  which the current headlines show isnt limited to higher education where enrolments from China exceed 164,000 this year. There are more than 12,000 mostly fee-paying students from China enrolled in our schools, public and private, the numbers doubling in just five years.

In case there was any doubt, the virus has illuminated just how much our good fortune is tied to that of our paramount trading partner and emerging regional superpower.

The popular wisdom doing the rounds this summer is that sometimes it takes a crisis to reveal our true qualities. But if the bushfires etched a portrait of the courage and generosity of ordinary people, the coronavirus is laying bare Australias complicated and not always edifying relationship with China and its people, especially its students. The Chinese international students at Australian universities were already struggling to fit in; the pandemic makes that challenge even tougher.

Some of Australias richest private schools have become even richer by recruiting from mainland China. The same goes for Australias most prestigious universities, whose growing dependence on revenue from Chinese international students has prompted consistent warnings from government auditors in NSW, Victoria and Queensland.

Our education market was already at risk from changes in exchange rates, visa policies and the Asian economic outlook. After the Turnbull government pushed back against Chinese Communist Party influence here, the Chinese government threatened to block the student pipeline; posting dubious warnings about Chinese students safety in Australia, talking down foreign education in state-controlled tabloids. Authorities in the Peoples Republic could shut down the market as easily as they have shut down an estimated 16 cities of 40 million people, give or take 10 million.

Loading

And leaving that threat hanging can be a useful tactic for China, said Peter Varghese, University of Queensland chancellor and former Secretary of the Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade, in a speech in October 2018. (In the China of Xi Jinping, overseas students are also considered tactfully useful in crushing dissent on issues such as Hong Kong and disseminating Beijings propaganda.)

But a more immediate risk to Australias education market has emerged. The coronavirus might obstruct students in China from coming here to study. And some Australian education institutions are mimicking the Chinese governments blunt-instrument approach to containment. Monash University cancelled its February exams, asked residential students to limit their use of public space and suggested students just back from China isolate themselves for 14 days. A number of schools in several states have likewise advised families whove been in China to keep their children away for a fortnight to avoid any risk of contagion.
Nirmala Sitharaman turned to the Tamil classic Tirukkural, believed to be written by poet-saint Thiruvalluvar, besides quoting from a host of other poets, as she presented the first full budget of the re-elected National Democratic Alliance (NDA) government.

The finance minister used a poetic framework to structure the budget around three themes: aspiration, economic development, and care (or antyodaya, the Gandhian idea of maximum benefit to the weakest sections of society). She compared the three themes to flowers in a bouquet, with good governance and robust finance being the hands holding the bouquet.

One such hand is governance  clean, corruption-free, policy-driven and good in intent and most importantly trusting in faith, Sitharaman said. If governance was described as one of the hands holding the bouquet, the other is the financial sector, she said.

Tirukkural, dated between 300 BC and 5 AD, is considered one of the finest works of Tamil literature. It is composed of 1,300 couplets grouped into three chapters on love, wealth and virtue. Freedom from illness, wealth, produce, happiness and protection [to subjects]; these five, are the ornaments of a kingdom, Sitharaman read out, before proceeding to talk about governance.

Though not much is known of the poet, Thiruvalluvar, he was also a favourite of former finance minister P Chidamabaram, who quoted the Tamil poet in the last budget he presented, in 2013, for UPA-2.

Earlier in her speech, Sitharaman quoted from another Tamil book of aphorisms, Aathichoodi, attributed to Aauvaiyar  a name used for at least three women poet-saints of the Tamil Sangam era  before talking about agriculture. The verse that Sitharaman quoted was: First tend to ones land and then eat. The Aathichoodi is a collection of simple one-liners, intended as a primer on morality and virtuous living.

Sitharaman began the budget quoting Sahitya Akademi awardee Dinanath Kaul Nadim, a 20th century Kashmiri poet who also wrote poetry in Urdu, Hindi and English. Born in 1916, Kaul, a Kashmiri Pandit, was among the founders of the Left movement in Kashmir, and a part of its progressive movement.

Quoting from his poem, Myon Watan, Sitharaman said: Humara watan, khilta hua Shalimar Bagh jaisa/ Humara watan, Dal lake mein khilta hua kamal jaisa/ navjawanon ke garam khoon jaisa/ mera watan, tera watan, humara watan/ duniya ka sabse pyara watan. [Our land is the blooms of Shalimar Bagh/ Our land is the lotus in Dal Lake/ its the hot blooded youth/ my land, your land, our land/ the loveliest land in the world]

What made the choice of verse more significant is that the Centre nullified Article 370 last August, following which the state of Jammu & Kashmir was converted into two Union Territories. Several restrictions are still in place in Kashmir.

She also prefaced the section on taxes with a poem from 5th century poet Kalidass work, Raghuvamsa. Surya, the Sun, collects vapour from little drops of water. So does the King. They give back copiously. They collect only for peoples well being, she recited, before announcing the change in slabs for private income tax.

SHARE THIS ARTICLE ON
The candidates have put in thousands of miles crisscrossing rural Iowa to show their faces to voters in living rooms, diners and community halls. Theyve fielded questions, sparred with critics and tweaked policies along the way. All the while their campaigns have flooded the states television stations with homespun stories of the candidates lives and their catapulting visions for a better America, crammed into a few seconds of political advertising.

Now it all comes down to Monday evening when Democrats will huddle in schools, libraries and churches across Iowa to hold the countrys first vote to decide who will challenge Donald Trump for the White House in November.

On 3 February, voters in the midwestern state of Iowa will kick off the long process that will eventually choose the Democratic partys presidential nominee, who will take on Donald Trump in November's US election.

The primaries and caucuses are a series of contests, in all 50 US states plus Washington DC and outlying territories, by which each party selects its presidential nominee.

Iowa is extremely influential in US elections because, since 1972, it has voted first. After months of campaigning, this will be the first chance to see what support each of the presidential candidates actually have among voters.

Winning Iowa matters because it can give candidates a huge boost in momentum and name recognition before the other states cast their votes. Underdogs can triumph, and frontrunners can fall. Since 2000, every Democratic winner of the Iowa caucuses has gone on to win the partys nomination.

However, Iowa only has a population of around three million people, who are 90% white, which has prompted criticism that its influence in US elections is outsized.

Its a responsibility Iowans take seriously every four years, often regarding themselves as the eyes and ears of America as their states caucuses decide who will be first out of the gate, and into primary races across the rest of the nation, with the huge advantage of a win under their belt. It was Iowa in 2008 that teed up Barack Obama for the presidency. Those who fall too far behind at this first hurdle rarely make it much further down the course.

Story continues

This year Iowa Democrats feel an added weight as they grapple with the challenging question of not only which candidate would best govern America but, also, who is most likely to lever the man many regard as the worst president in living memory out of the White House. Four years ago, Trump was a joke to Democrats as the partys primary came down to radical Bernie Sanders v corporate Hillary Clinton, without much thought as to which of them would best beat the reality television star emerging as the Republican frontrunner.

But in 2020, Trump is taken very seriously and for many Iowa Democrats their choice has crystallised around whether the White House will be won by rousing calls for reform from Senators Bernie Sanders and Elizabeth Warren, or the safe pair of hands in former vice-president Joe Biden, former Indiana mayor Pete Buttigieg and Amy Klobuchar.

The big divide: ideology v electability

Ashly Moore, a 32-year-old occupational therapist, was grappling with exactly that question before she arrived at a Sanders rally in Des Moines.

Ask my family. Theyre like, I dont care who Im going to vote for as long as we can win, she said. Thats a concern but I really am kind of torn because I think it takes more than just wanting to beat Trump.

There are other issues at play, too. Age, gender and race all figure for some voters. But the big divide is over ideology v electability. Its on the minds of the candidates, too.

There is a lot of discussion about electability, Bernie Sanders told the Des Moines rally. Trump will be a very tough opponent. The only way that Trump is going to be defeated is if we have by far the largest voter turnout in American history.

That, said Sanders, requires mobilising large numbers of people who dont always vote, particularly the young and the working class. To make that happen, they have to be motivated with policies that are going to change their lives and their country.

Young people today are the most progressive generation in the history of the United States of America. Historically, however, the simple truth is young people have not voted in the kind of way that they should have. Which campaign is capable of bringing millions of young people into the political process? asked Sanders.

To Biden, that is all wrong. The way to get Trump out of the White House, he tells his supporters, is to win back those voters who turned away from the Democrats, albeit after they were in power for eight years when Biden was vice-president. He dismisses the notion that there is an untapped well of voters thirsting for radical policies.

Joe Bidens campaign bus heads to an event in Fort Madison, Iowa, on 31 January 2020. Photograph: Jim Lo Scalzo/EPA

They have to focus on voter turnout

At the heart of the difference, voters are being asked to choose whether America is merely badly governed or in need of fundamental restructuring. If Biden regards the ship as having strayed off course, Sanders sees a vessel seized by pirates and requiring more than a change of captain.

Opinion polls do not offer a clear roadmap. They have Sanders and Biden close in Iowa, with Buttigieg and Warren trailing them. But Biden currently leads nationally in the Democratic race. Perhaps more importantly, the polls do not show any of the candidates as a standout favourite to beat Trump in November.

At the rally in Des Moines, Moore said she had long favoured Biden in part because she couldnt see how Sanders could have broad enough appeal to beat Trump. But now she had seen Sanders speak, she understood what he would do for her and she was sold, not least because of his promise to erase university tuition debt.

I have a lovely career as an occupational therapist but the amount of student loan debt I have is crippling, she said.

The huge cost of university education is an issue for a lot of young people, and Moore said it opened her eyes to why Sanders might be right about how he can put together a winning coalition of voters.

He has a great point that, in order for him to win, they have to focus on voter turnout for people who historically have not voted because they felt like their vote didnt matter, she said. I didnt really know how could Bernie win and I think hes exactly right.

But Moore still has nagging fears about Bidens claim that Sanders radicalism will drive middle-of-the-road voters away.

I am concerned about that. I think its a valid concern. But I also think Biden supporters like to fall on that and say its all about beating Trump, she said.

Bidens the only person that can beat Trump

If it were down to energy, Sanders would be home free. His rallies have the feel of an evangelical revivalist meeting. Bidens on the other hand sometimes resemble a church fete.

Bidens the only person that can beat Donald Trump, said Shirley Crippen, a 66-year-old former flight attendant and Biden supporter. That was the deciding factor for me. I was already leaning toward Joe but knowing that he is the one that can beat Trump was a huge, huge factor for me.

The Biden camp, and a good part of the Democratic establishment, fear the Trump campaign will hammer at Sanders as disloyal to America for a past that includes taking his honeymoon in the Soviet Union and allying with the Sandinista government in Nicaragua in the 1980s.

Crippen is more worried about Sanders and Warrens policies driving away voters. She brushes aside their claims that it is those policies that will get young people out to vote in the presidential election.

The win is totally dependent upon people that are independents, that are maybe Republicans that lean a little left. Its the people that are undecided. Maybe some of the people that voted for Donald Trump only because they thought as a businessman he would be different and now they know that he was is definitely different but in a terrible way, she said.

Elizabeth Warrens husband, Bruce Mann, and golden retriever, Bailey Warren, greet supporters on 29 January 2020 in Fort Dodge, Iowa. Photograph: Mark Makela/Getty Images

We need big ideas and we need to be willing to fight for them

Front and center in this is healthcare. Sanders wants the government to provide health coverage through taxation and scrap private insurance. Crippen, like other cautious Democrats, doesnt think its necessarily a bad policy, only that they will unnerve too many voters.

Whats radical for America  public healthcare, subsidised university education, reining in corporate power  may not seem that way in other parts of the world. But in a country steeped in half a century of politics blaming the government for peoples problems, there is hesitation and even fear at the idea of the state taking control of healthcare.

Warren has hit back at the caution of Biden and Buttigieg by warning against the Democratic establishments tendency to retreat into what it regards as safe territory out of fear of losing voters.

We need big ideas and we need to be willing to fight for them. Its easy to back off from big ideas and make yourself sound so sophisticated and so smart, she told Iowa voters. They think that running a vague campaign that nibbles around the edges of these big problems is somehow a safe strategy.

Still, Warren did retreat on her commitment to comprehensive public health insurance after Biden said it would drive up taxes. That may have cost her support just as she looked to be outpacing Sanders after his heart attack in October, because it touched on fears about Democratic leaders being too willing to abandon principled positions.

Dylan Baker, who has campaigned for Warren and came to see her speak in Des Moines, thinks she probably had little choice.

Ive been out knocking on doors and lots of people say, I really like Elizabeth Warren but I just dont know if [public health insurance] is going to work. Even if they support it, they say they dont know if enough independents will vote for it or if other Democrats will go for it. Theyre too scared of it or say it costs too much, he said.

Still, Baker is torn about the strategy. In the end he thinks Sanders is right, that radical policies are required to get voters out.

I personally think energizing the youth is the answer, he said.

Youre asking for drastic change and most liberals deal with incremental change

At another Warren rally, Negus Imhotep, a 59-year-old African American man who works with young people to combat gang violence in Des Moines, said he likes both Warren and Sanders.

I think that theyre the only beacon of hope because if you look at the other candidates, especially Joe Biden, hes asking for the same thing that you already have, he said.

But Imhotep doubts Sanders or Warren will be able to overcome powerful entrenched forces and so isnt even sure hell vote.

I dont think the system was created for somebody to destroy it. Youre asking for drastic change and most liberals deal with incremental changes, he said.

Part of Imhoteps frustration lies in his disillusionment with the Obama years, when the 2008 economic crash cost him his job delivering concrete. He couldnt pay his mortgage and the bank took his house.

Obama turned around and gave money back to the bankers, thinking that theyre gonna do the trickle-down effect, which hasnt happened, he said.

They say the African American vote is important but it seems to be only important during elections

Polling suggests that Sanders, Warren and Buttigieg struggle to win support among black voters. Biden does better, perhaps in no small part because of his years as Obamas vice-president, although as a senator he voted in favour of laws that contributed to the mass incarceration of black men. But the bigger issue among some African American voters is to find a candidate they believe is really listening to them.

Theres also a nagging concern among some minority voters that candidates only talk about race to black people when its a message they should be pushing out much more forcefully to the country as a whole.

Its kind of insulting how candidates do that, said Rachelle Long at a forum for candidates to address minority voters in Des Moines. They say the African American vote is important but it seems to be only important during elections. After that it starts to get real vague. Before its, Im going to do it. And then when they get in its, Well try.

Dava James, a retired teacher, went to see Biden speak at a local hotel. Shell vote for him and regards him as having served Obama well. But she lives in an Iowa district represented by Congressman Steve King, a Republican who once said white Americans did not have to worry about being a minority because blacks and Hispanics would be fighting each other before that happens.

James thinks King gets re-elected because most people in 85% white Iowa dont understand what it is to be black, and she wanted to know from Biden how he would change that.

I wanted to have him help me to publicize the fact that Iowans dont always see what they have in common with a minority, even if theyre right there, she said. Im not a white woman so I already know what I get in a salary is at the bottom of the list of what you do for a living.

Supporters of Bernie Sanders at a campaign event in Des Moines, Iowa, on 20 January 2020. Photograph: Shannon Stapleton/Reuters

Theres just no way that we can risk another four years

Alison McCarthy, an immigration lawyer, was a Sanders supporter back in 2016 and boycotted Clinton at the general election.

Hes an inspiring person. Ive brought my kids here to the rally today so that they could feel the energy and take part of this excitement, she said.

But even she has niggling doubts and thinks he may have to adjust his message on policies such as healthcare if he goes into the general election.

McCarthy said that if Sanders is the candidate, it would be essential that the broader Democratic party get behind him, even though she acknowledges she failed to back Clinton. With hindsight, she said she will back whoever the Democratic candidate is this year.

But then she hesitates.

I hate voting in that strategic way instead of in a more principled way. But I feel that theres just no way that we can risk another four years of Donald Trump at this point, she said.
The ensuing chaos also led to delay in the scheduled train services by 15 to 20 minutes during morning, a railway official said.

Mumbai: A stampede-like situation occurred at the suburban Thane station Friday, after chaos prevailed as commuters thronged to board the air-conditioned local on the first day of its regular run. The air-conditioned train services had started in the early hours of the day but the problem arose after 8am during peak hours.

Eyewitnesses claimed that passengers thronged the station to board the train, causing a stampede-like situation on platforms.

Because of overcrowding, the automated doors of the train could not close, a commuter said. Following this, similar scenes were witnessed at every station, causing the situation to deteriorate further.

The railways had deployed security personnel inside and outside the train. The ensuing chaos also led to delay in the scheduled train services by 15 to 20 minutes during the morning peak hours, a railway official said.

We are appealing to people not to board the air-conditioned train without a valid ticket, so the doors of the train close without any problem, chief public relations officer Shivaji Sutar said. Security will be further beefed up inside and outside the train at Thane station during evening peak hours from 4.30 onwards, he said.
A plane carrying German and foreign nationals evacuated from the Chinese city of Wuhan, the epicentre of the deadly coronavirus outbreak, landed in Germany on Saturday, an AFP reporter said.

The plane carrying 102 German citizens and 26 foreign nationals landed at Frankfurt Airport around 1540 GMT after being delayed when Russia refused to let it land and refuel.

The Moscow airport claimed it had a "lack of capacity" and the Airbus A310 jet was forced to stop in Helsinki instead.

The passengers will be examined for symptoms of the virus, which has killed 259 people in China so far, at a specially equipped facility at the airport in Frankfurt.

Germany's health minister Jens Spahn said on Saturday that none of the passengers had shown any such symptoms.

Those who are cleared will then be quarantined for two weeks at a military base in Germersheim, near Stuttgart.

Germany now has seven confirmed cases of the virus, including the first of human-to-human transmission on European soil.

The patients are all in the southern Bavaria region and comprise of six employees of car parts supplier Webasto and a daughter of one of the workers.

All are in "a very good state of health", Spahn said.

"What worries me are conspiracy theories that spread uncertainty," he added, saying that there were reports that the children of Webasto employees were being turned away from daycare in Germany.

The Wuhan metropolis is at the heart of the SARS-like virus epidemic that has led the World Health Organization to declare it an international public health emergency.

The city of 11 million has been subject to an unprecedented lockdown, preventing residents from leaving in a bid to stop the virus from spreading further.

Numerous countries, including France, Britain, Japan and South Korea, have already begun airlifting their citizens out of Wuhan.

In Germany's Palatinate region where the evacuees will be quarantined some locals had managed to maintain a sense of humour about the affair.

"We have survived the French, we have survived the hippies (a reference to a famous 1972 rock festival) -- a virus from China is not going to immediately kill us," said a 72-year-old local, quoted by the DPA agency.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer was caught on camera shushing laughing California senator Kamala Harris as she shared a joke with a colleague during a press conference Friday.

The incident occurred during a press conference the Democratic senators held after Republicans blocked witnesses from testifying during President Trump's impeachment trial in the Senate.

Video and still photos of the moment shows Schumer standing at the podium, with Harris and Sen. Sherrod Brown to his left and Sen. Patty Murray to his right.

As an off-camera reporter begins to ask a question, Harris can be seen smiling and reaching up at Brown's face, prompting Schumer to whip around and make a 'cut it out' gesture at them both.

Senator Kamala Harris (center) can be seen here making a face after Sen. Chuck Schumer (left) tells her and Sen. Sherrod Brown (right) to stop goofing around on stage Friday

Schumer (left) is seen here addressing a reporter's question Friday, with a chastened and now sober Harris (center) and Brown (right) stand in the background

A chastened Harris reacts by making a face and crossing her arms, subtly elbowing Brown as she does so. Both she and Brown then adopt serious expressions as they face forward towards the audience.

Eagle-eyed social media users caught the senators' quick interactions and tweeted them out.

'Remember: Democrats said that #impeachment was 'sad' and 'somber.' Did Senator Harris not get the memo?' the House Oversight Committee Republicans Twitter account wrote.

Social media users were quick to spot and offer commentary on the senators' interactions

GOP Rapid Response director Steve Guest tweeted a similar message, adding that 'Chuck Schumer is not having it when Kamala Harris and Sherrod Brown mess around during his impeachment press conference.'

'This is just disrespectful. I don't care who you are or what party you belong to,' another tweeter wrote of the fact that Harris and Brown were laughing while standing behind Schumer on stage.

'First Nadler grabs the mike and Schumer is playing the role of schoolmarm Nancy Pelosi scolding the students when they're not acting appropriately somber and serious,' a Twitter user wrote.

Speaker Nancy Pelosi was seen reprimanding representatives who clapped when the first article of impeachment was passed at the House in December 2019 by making a face and pointing at them to keep quiet.

After four hours of debate, senators voted Friday evening, 51 to 49, against calling witnesses at Trump's impeachment trial.

Only two Republicans - Mitt Romney and Susan Collins - crossed the aisle and voted with Democrats in favor of hearing from witnesses.
Chlorinated chicken must be on the table in UK and US trade talks post-Brexit, Mike Pompeo has insisted.

The US secretary of state said the Trump administration will demand the inclusion of foods such as chlorinated chicken in negotiations.

While he admitted the issue would be 'real contentious', farmers in the United States would also insist on the product's inclusion.

Speaking to Iain Dale's programme on LBC on Thursday (30 January), Mr Pompeo said: Our ask will be as it has been in the other negotiations, we need to be open and honest about competitiveness.

We need to make sure we dont use food safety as a ruse to try and protect a particular industry.

Despite admitting that agricultural issues are 'deeply political', Mr Pompeo went on to say that the biggest winners would be 'consumers who are going to be the net beneficiaries of these really good deals'.

We need to have conversations about the places we have opportunities to give and take and then deliver on outcomes that benefit the agricultural sector - and most importantly consumers who are going to be the net beneficiaries of these really good deals, he said.

It comes just weeks after the UK's Defra Secretary confirmed that chlorinated chicken and hormone-treated beef will not be imported after Brexit.

Theresa Villiers said the current EU ban on the two controversial methods of food production will pass into UK legislation.

But Washington has frequently urged the UK to relax food regulations to make any future trade deal quicker and easier to conclude.

Recently leaked trade documents show the US has tried to push the UK away from the EU's food safety standards.

American negotiators had the most angst about EU limits to the use of chemicals in food production, the documents say.

UK farming groups, however, fear lower-standard food imports would force farmers to drop their standards in order to compete.

Farmers in the United States could 'outcompete' British farmers in a trade deal post-Brexit, the NFU warned last August.

Practices used in the US that are currently banned by the EU due to perceived safety concerns include genetically-modified crops, chlorine-washed chicken and the use of hormones in beef production.
LONDON, Feb 1 (Reuters) - British Prime Minister Boris Johnson would consider a looser trade agreement with the European Union, similar to the bloc's ties with Australia, rather than follow EU rules to reach a closer deal, a government source said on Saturday.

"There are only two likely outcomes in negotiation - a free trade deal like Canada or a looser arrangement like Australia - and we are happy to pursue both," the source said.

Johnson is due to give a major speech on trade on Monday, following Britain's departure from the EU on Friday after nearly 50 years of membership. (Reporting by Elizabeth Piper; Writing by David Milliken; Editing by Daniel Wallis)
Organise the quarantine onshore Why is the government not organising quarantine facilities onshore so that people who develop the virus can receive the immediate treatment they would require in nearby, fully equipped hospitals. Would Scott Morrison, Greg Hunt and Peter Dutton want to be on Christmas Island with makeshift facilities if their life was in jeopardy? Julie Conquest, Brighton An overstated threat compared to this ... Why are some deaths more newsworthy than others? Yes, coronavirus is a serious threat, and it is vital that its spread is contained and a treatment is found.

But let's compare it with another cause of death in Australia and China. About 260 people in China have died from this virus, but each year about 1 million Chinese die from the effects of air pollution. That's more deaths every 2 hours than the virus's total toll in China so far. In Australia, while coronavirus has fortunately claimed no lives so far, air pollution claims around 3000 lives each year. That's almost three times the annual road toll. Vehicle emissions, coal mining and coal power generation are leading causes of this pollution, and bushfires are likely to be an increasing cause. We need to treat this cause of death with proportionate seriousness. Robert Salter, Clifton Hill THE FORUM Who sets up 'the list'?

British police will use live facial-recognition cameras in London ("London faces the long lens of the law", The Sunday Age, 26/1). The cameras will alert the police when they spot anyone on "wanted lists". Who is on the list and who decides who should be listed and who is watching the watchers? If it can happen in London, it can happen in Australia. Only six months ago the AFP raided the ABC's headquarters in Sydney with a warrant to access the National Broadcaster's databases. In 2018 the home of an Australian journalist Annika Smethurst was raided and her home, computer and mobile phone searched. We must be careful how many human rights and freedoms we sacrifice in the so-called "interest of national security". The phrase "if you have nothing to hide, you have nothing to fear" is widely attributed to Joseph Goebbels. History tells us that only the very naive would believe that. I fear we entering the same dystopian world George Orwell writes about in 1984. We need to be very careful and very afraid. Christine Hurwood, Newport

Hold them to account Jacqueline Maley ("Ho-hum, just another totally fair-dinkum day", Metro, The Sunday Age, 26/1) alerts us to a worrying trend in the way we are being governed. It just might be that the Morrison government is trying to inoculate or immunise the electorate from applying a moral compass to their policies, decisions or behaviour. After a while we become so used to hearing about these scandals, they become the new norm. What a frightening prospect. Each one of us needs to make the government accountable and never accept second best. As they say, "if you don't stand for something, you'll fall for anything". This government hopes we will submissively fall for their breaches of integrity, accountability and due diligence. We need the government to start being "totally fair dinkum".

Nick Toovey, Beaumaris They can afford it Poor Anastasia and Nick ("The inequality trap", The Sunday Age, 26/1). With a pre-baby combined income of $225,000 a year (a quarter of a million dollars) they're angry her more-than-$150,000 wage prevents Nick receiving 18 weeks government Parental Leave Pay. I'm angry my tax pays wealthy couples parental paid leave. I'm 66 and raised sons without expecting taxpayer subsidy. Sue Gunningham, Greensborough

Look for the light The mourning of the summer that was left behind (Sunday Life, The Sunday Age, 26/1) that Bron Wills aptly describes as a result of the raging and merciless bushfires diminishes the abject suffering of those who lost everything when she mentions the inability and future uncertainty of holidays near the sea. There will be other times and places. Trees will reshoot by that moisture within the valleys, the sea will sparkle and music of the forest will resound. We must look for the small glimmers of light because there is room for only optimism now. Frances Damon, Tooradin

Fix your house first Now let me get this straight. At the very moment when Senator Bridget McKenzie's questionable funding decisions are under long-overdue scrutiny and George Christensen (the "member for Manila") has just repaid thousands in travel allowance, our august Attorney-General states he is determined to push through the "Ensuring Integrity" bill. What was that about putting your own house in order? Darryl Emmerson, Ballarat A warning to us all

Nicole Precel's essay ("Memory more vital than ever", The Sunday Age, 26/1) is an extraordinary opportunity for reflection. She consolidates what it is for someone to carry the history of the Holocaust within one's own family. It is also a warning to all of us, and especially politicians, who seem to suffer historical amnesia with their empty platitudes regarding the values of a liberal democracy. It is bewildering to try to grasp how standards of common decency, respect and morality were trampled upon by the Nazis and replaced by the incitement to violence, bigotry, vulgarity and lies, for example. Her essay alerts us to the seeds being planted of Islamophobia, anti-Semitism, demonisation of refugees and minority groups. The recent raising of a swastika flag in Victoria may seem trivial to some, but in Germany through the Nuremberg Laws, it represented the attitude of the Nazi state towards German Jews. We must heed the lessons from this time. This history tells us what we humans are capable of doing. Judith Morrison, Mount Waverley

Perils of being 'quiet' Nicole Precel's article commemorating the 75th anniversary of the liberation of the Nazi's Auschwitz extermination camp is a timely reminder of the consequences of being "quiet" citizens. Andrew Dods, Ascot Vale Reciting a pledge Rather than Tanya Plibersek's call for schoolchildren reciting a pledge of allegiance to Australia, I prefer the pledge to be aimed at the entire world, and agree with Adam Ford's preference for politicians to take that pledge (Letters, 31/1).

Internationalism, not nationalism, with no borders, in my view, is the way to go for a more peaceful and fairer world. Rosemary Taylor, Castlemaine Rename the arena Like Tim Wilson ("Renaming Court Arena 'like 1984', says gay rights MP", The Age, 30/1) I am gay and married my long-term partner soon after the passage of the same sex marriage legislation. Unlike Tim, I do not believe those seeking to rename the Margaret Court Arena are attempting to "airbrush" her legacy like a plotline from some sinister dystopian novel. Neither are they denying her right to free speech (Letters 31/1, "Opinions not wanted" and "Our right to our views").

Isn't sportsmanship (or womanship) about more than mere winning? Isn't it characterised by respectful, gracious, fair, exemplary behaviour and treatment of others? Margaret Court's public remarks don't reflect these values and as such the arena that bears her name ought to be renamed. Michael Smith, Essendon West The roses are dying Our standard of living, health and civil liberties are not "a given" (Letters, 31/1), they are being eroded that's why we are SWINE (Seniors Wildly Indignant about Nearly Everything) and children are demonstrating. The roses are dying.

Jacqueline Kenna, Kew Punitive victim blaming Social Services Minister Anne Rushton wants to roll the Cashless Welfare Card out nationwide (The Age, 1/2). The single rate of Newstart is $40 a day, leaving recipients, on average, $17 to pay for food, staples, energy bills and transport. I spent many years on Newstart and the best way to get enough food was by going to local markets, like Queen Victoria Market, especially on Saturday afternoon, when fruit, vegetables and seafood is being sold off cheaply. The Cashless Welfare Card will prevent Newstart recipients from accessing the cheapest and best quality food available, instead forcing them to buy high-priced food at the major supermarkets. All the government would be doing is handing a large slice of taxpayers' money to the supermarket giants and condemning those on Newstart to a higher level of poverty all because a minority of recipients might spend their allowance on alcohol and other drugs. This is nothing but an exercise in punitive victim blaming by a government who cares nothing for those doing it hard.

Rohan Wightman, Muckleford It's concern, not anger David Adams is perturbed by readers being "so angry" (Letters, 31/1). Where he sees anger, I see people's genuine concerns for the world we live in and the type of society we create. In a democracy, we trust that the people we elect will act for the greater good. When they fail to do so, it is unhelpful to simply sit back and take a "chill pill" as is rather dismissively suggested. We would soon find out that the country's "standard of living, health, education and civil liberties" were anything but "a given". Vivienne Bond, Warburton
Nigeria says will take steps to address concerns raised by US, which has added six countries to a travel ban.

Eritrea and Kyrgyzstan have denounced US President Donald Trumps controversial travel ban which targets prospective immigrants from six additional countries.

Eritrean Foreign Minister Osman Saleh Mohammed said on Saturday that the government saw the ban as a political move that would hurt the countrys relations with the US.

We find this move unacceptable, he told Reuters news agency by telephone. We will, however, not expel the US ambassador, Mohammed said.

Kyrgyzstan hit out on Saturday at the immigration restrictions that will apply to its nationals, stating that they had been applied selectively and had damaged relations.

The two countries were among six that were added to an expanded version of the US visa ban, announced on Friday in a presidential proclamation.

Under the proclamation, which will take effect on February 21, the US will suspend the issuance of visas that can lead to permanent residency for nationals of the affected countries.

Immigrants from Nigeria and Myanmar will no longer be eligible for visas allowing them to live in the US permanently, while citizens from Sudan and Tanzania will not be eligible to enter a lottery to apply for immigrant visas.

We dont have official communication

Nigerias government said it had created a committee to address the issues that prompted the ban, while Tanzania said it had not been officially notified by the US about the travel ban.

Nigeria remains committed to maintaining productive relations with the United States and other international allies especially on matters of global security, a Nigerian presidential statement said.

Nigerias information minister Lai Mohammed told Reuters they had no warning of their inclusion on the list before it appeared in the media.

Emmanuel Buhohela, spokesman for the Tanzanian ministry of foreign affairs said: We dont have official communication from the US government. We havent received a formal diplomatic communication, which is the official way of communicating between governments.

Acting Homeland Security Secretary Chad Wolf told journalists the visas affected are distinct from non-immigrant visitor visas, which will not be impacted by the ban.

Immigrant advocates and rights groups have also slammed the expansion of the controversial travel ban, saying it weaponises immigration law to advance [the administrations] xenophobic agenda.

The original travel ban  issued during Trumps first week in office in January 2017  barred nearly all immigrants and travellers from seven Muslim-majority nations. It caused widespread outrage and chaos at airports across the US.

The policy was revised amid court challenges, but the US Supreme Court ultimately upheld it in June 2018.

The existing version of the ban includes the Muslim-majority nations of Iran, Libya, Somalia, Syria and Yemen. North Korea and Venezuela also face visa restrictions, but those measures affect relatively few travellers.
New Delhi, Feb 1 : In a major rural push, the government has allocated a massive Rs 2.83 lakh crore for agriculture and allied sectors, as sought by the BJP in its pre-Budget meet with Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman on January 9.

For agriculture, allied activities, irrigation and rural development, the whopping allocation has been made for 2020-21. In fact, 'Pradhan Mantri Kisan Urja Suraksha evam Utthan Mahabhiyan' (PM-KUSUM) will be expanded to provide 20 lakh farmers in setting up standalone solar pumps, said Sitharaman.

The Budget speech claimed to set the agricultural credit target at Rs 15 lakh crore.

"Village Storage Scheme run by Self Help Groups will provide holding capacity for farmers, and women in villages can regain their status as 'Dhaanya Lakshmi'," said Sitharaman.

In its continued thrust on the rural sector, the Finance Minister approved Rs 3.6 lakh crore for Jal Jeevan Mission to provide safe drinking water to rural India.

The Finance Minister also announced Kisan Rail and Kisan Udan -- farmer-centric railway and aviation services, in her Budget speech.

This is in line with BJP's demand for a 'Gaon, Gareeb, Kisan Budget' that it had sought in its three-hour-long pre-Budget meeting with the Finance Minister on January 9. BJP General Secretary Arun Singh, who had attended the meeting, told the media after its conclusion that it will be a "Gaon, Gareeb, Kisan" (village, poor, farmer) driven budget. As Sitharaman read out the details, it turned out to be one.

Moreover, later this year, Bihar - one of India's most populous states will go to polls where the BJP hopes to return to power. According to 2011 census, of the total population of Bihar, around 88.71 per cent live in villages. In actual numbers, the total population in rural areas of Bihar was over 9.23 crore.

This rural thrust may also be aimed to appeal to that segment, while others argue this move will put more money in the hands of the rural populace, creating a rural demand that will have positive effects for the economy at large.
The daughter of the current president of the United States Ivanka Trump and the White House's senior adviser, had some remarks after a panel of reporters had suggested that those who support the country's president are dumb "hillbillies".

Ivanka said that these people continuously make a joke out of half of the entire population of the United States of America and they then make complaints of the country's lack of unity. She expressed her disgust on the arrogance and mockery of the country's 'Real Elites.'

She had shared a clip of Rick Wilson, a Republican who is anti-Trump. The clip revealed Wilson expressing his comment on the relationship of Donald Trump with Ann Coulter, a conservative author.

Rick Wilson and Wajahat Ali's Unfunny Remarks about President and his supporters

During a CNN segment on Monday, Wilson attempted to make a humorous remark about President Donald Trump not being able to locate Ukraine on a map without having a letter 'U' and an actual photo of a crane. However, most of America did not find the bullying funny.

It made one of the media personalities, CNN's resident Never Trumper Don Lemon, burst into laughter. After getting the laughs he was expecting, he later added another statement. He said that the source of Trump's support is "the credulous boomer rube demo." He said the words with a Southern accent that aims to mock Trump supporters. In his message to the supporters of Trump, he was basically describing them as 'dumb.'

Another guest in the fiasco who expressed his ideas on the matter opened by Rick Wilson was Wajahat Ali, a columnist. He jokes about the elitists' maps and spelling. He spoke his words in an insulting manner similar to Wilson's.

In a mocking accent, Wilson responded to Ali's remarks by saying something about the elitists' math, reading, and the lines included in the map. Ali responded that only elitists know the location of Ukraine.

Ali apologized and blamed Wilson for opening the topic. During the conference, reporters were laughing with the humorous remarks of the two.

On Tuesday, President Donald Trump issued a response to the conversation. After being informed of the remarks made about him, he commented that Don Lemon is "the dumbest man on television."

On their respective social media accounts, Wilson and Ali did not express any apologetic remarks regarding the issue.

What does Ivanka Trump Have to Say About the Issue?

Ivanka Trump is trying to stay away from the issue. Also, when comedian Samantha Bee expressed a rude remark, Ivanka refused to provide a comment on that matter as well. Kudos to Ms. Trump for rising above the nonsensicle and divisive behavior of the Left.

During the term of her father's leadership in the United States of America, she aims to help with the return of the manufacturing job opportunities in the country. This will help thousands of unemployed citizens find a job and provide for themselves and their family. Ivanka Trump shared that her father's leadership is currently in the process of drafting and creating contracts and agreements to help ease occupational licensing. This is an issue that greatly affects military families because of their need to move residence frequently throughout the different regions of the country and the world.
Arrests Made at Anti-Police, Anti-Fare Protest in New York City

The New York Police Department arrested multiple people late Friday at a protest that started in Grand Central and continued outside.

Masked protesters started gathering just after 5 p.m. many holding posters expressing anti-police sentiments, according to local television footage. The protest came after three masked people from the Decolonize This Place group in a video posted on Twitter told people they should enter subway stations and board trains without paying money.

The groups goals include removing all police from the subway system and making the system free for passengers.

The group also encouraged people to inflict damage on turnstiles, which passengers have to go through to get onto train platforms, and commit other acts of sabotage.

The Police Benevolent Association of the City of New York, which represents over 50,000 officers, said in a statement that the video showed the true endgame of the anti-police movement, an end of all policing and destruction of public order.

Our members have spent their careersand in some cases given their livesto bring public safety back to NYC. We cant go backwards, the group added.

Photographs taken on Friday showed places where metro cards are slid by passengers covered with an unknown substance, and doors labeled for emergency use held open by bicycle locks.

Acts of vandalism started earlier Friday, prompting Terence Monahan, Chief of Department for the New York Police Department (NYPD), to post a video on social media trying to discourage any protests.

This morning, a group of individuals vandalized subway stations. We believe the same individuals will attempt to disrupt the evening commute by causing disorder, endangering commutersand even attempting to physically assault our officers. IT WILL NOT BE TOLERATED, Monahan said in the social media post.

While the NYPD will always protect peoples right to protest, we will not accept illegal behavior that threatens the safety of others. Those who break the law will be arrested, Monahan said in the video.

According to ABC NY, dozens of people were arrested on Friday. One person who damaged property was being sought by police, the department said in an alert.

This individual is wanted for criminal mischief/damaging property last night at the 50th St/8th Ave subway station on the C line- If you have any information about this incident or the identity of this suspect, please call @NYPDTips at 800-577-TIPS  You can remain anonymous pic.twitter.com/ZRWUSHEIEa  NYPD Transit (@NYPDTransit) January 31, 2020

One protester, Sydney Daniels, told CBS NY that she wants free public transportation and fewer police officers.

Theres so much in the budget that can cover free transportation instead of more police. I dont understand why its going that way instead of the other way, Daniels said.

We pay for the metro with our taxes. Why are we being charged then hounded if we dont pay to use it? And of course, its disproportionately brown and black people being hounded and arrested, another protester, Brandy, told the outlet.

In a statement after the evening protest stated, Patrick Warren, the Metropolitan Transportation Agencys chief safety officer, said that the demonstration follows the dangerous pattern of previous activities that have resulted in vandalization and defacement of MTA propertyclearly violating laws.

Those actions divert valuable time, money and resources away from investments in transit services that get New Yorkers to their jobs, schools, doctors, and other places they need to go, he added.

The MTA has zero tolerance for any actions that threaten the safety of the public and our employees, and impede service for millions of customers. We are monitoring conditions as we cooperate with the NYPD and MTA PD to maintain service while ensuring everyones safety.
The headdress of one of the most prominent Northern Arapaho leaders in the tribes history has been returned to the tribe and will be welcomed home Saturday in a repatriation ceremony.

Chief Black Coal  who guided many Northern Arapaho during the 19th century, including during their move to the Wind River Reservation  gave his headdress to a non-Native dentist who lived in Wyoming and would often travel to the reservation to provide dental care.

After being passed down through his family for years, the great-grandson of that dentist contacted the tribe late last year to see if theyd want Black Coals headdress back. The tribes Historic Preservation Office said yes.

I just felt like it was just meant to be, said Jordan Dresser, collections manager of the Northern Arapaho Tribal Historic Preservation Office. Were starting off a brand new decade ... and I feel like hes coming back to teach us some things.

Dresser said he traveled with his father, Northern Arapaho Business Council member Samuel Dresser, a descendant of Black Coal and others to retrieve the headdress in Massachusetts.

The headdress is more than 140 years old, according to the Tribal Historic Preservation office.

On Saturday afternoon at the Great Plains Hall in Arapahoe, community members will have the chance see Black Coals headdress and welcome it back to the community during a ceremony.

When you look at the headdress, its powerful. Its like (Chief Black Coal) looks at you, and its almost like hes looking you up and down thinking about what kind of man are you are, what kind of woman you are, Dresser said. Regardless of how you may be, he will you will accept you. At the same time, hell want to change you for the better.

The headdress has been stored at the University of Wyoming to be disinfected since. After Saturdays repatriation ceremony, Dresser explained  after consultation with tribal members and the community  theyll begin conservation work on the headdress and then likely put it on display.

Eventually, Dresser continued, he hopes the headdress can be a prominent part of a museum displaying the culture and history of the Northern Arapaho, where younger generations can learn about their identities and see reflections of themselves in Black Coals headdress and other items.

The repatriation follows a string of recent successes for Northern Arapaho cultural preservation.

In 2017, Northern Arapaho boys who died at the government-run Carlisle Indian Industrial School were returned to the reservation to be buried. The boarding school was part of a system meant to force Indigenous children to abandon their traditional culture and values in favor of European and Western practices.

Last year, in October, the tribe welcomed 10 buffalo to the reservation. The Northern Arapahos buffalo  an important animal to many tribes  joined the more than 30 who already live on Wind River as part of the Eastern Shoshones herd.

For us, with this, this is just another win  and its like all these things are happening for a reason, Dresser said. This was just a big team effort. Im just really excited; Im just really humbled by it all.

Love 10 Funny 0 Wow 0 Sad 1 Angry 0

Be the first to know Get local news delivered to your inbox! Sign up! * I understand and agree that registration on or use of this site constitutes agreement to its user agreement and privacy policy.
Photo: The Canadian Press

China has reported 259 people have died of a new virus, which has now infected nearly 11,800 people as the United States declared a public health emergency and took drastic steps to significantly restrict entry into the country.

President Donald Trump has signed an order that will temporarily bar foreign nationals, other than immediate family of U.S. citizens and permanent residents, who have travelled in China within the last 14 days.

The new restrictions, which take effect at 5 p.m. EST on Sunday, were announced by Health and Human Services Secretary Alex Azar, who is co-ordinating the U.S. response.
Republican hopes of blocking former national security adviser John Bolton's impeachment testimony highlight the Trump-era GOP's defining characteristic: its refusal to defy the President under almost any circumstances.

President Donald Trump's vituperative attacks, regularly trained on critics through his vast social media following, make every Republican politician wary of crossing him. But that represents the lesser factor in the party's fealty.

More significantly, decades of American political realignment have tightened the bonds holding Republicans together in any high-stakes fight with Democrats. The ongoing diversification of American society further unites an overwhelmingly white GOP around a shared fear of impending doom.

Together, those changes lend weight and rigidity to Republican partisanship that did not exist that last time a GOP chief executive faced impeachment. The modest barrier that once separated Republicans from Democrats has become a dense, multi-layered wall reinforced by ideology, race, education and religion as well as party identification.

That helps explain why so many Republican senators have cast aside consistency, logic and unrebutted evidence to shield their president from impeachment charges. Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell aims for a Friday Senate vote in which Republicans would refuse even to hear new testimony about Trump's culpability before summarily acquitting him.

American partisanship has not always proven so powerful. Two decades ago, five House Democrats voted to impeach President Bill Clinton on charges stemming from his adulterous affair with a White House intern. Senate Democrats stood united to acquit him -- but only after condemning wrongdoing that Clinton himself acknowledged.

And two decades before that, outright defections by Republicans in both the House and Senate sealed the outcome of the Watergate scandal and forced President Richard Nixon's resignation in 1974. That result is virtually unimaginable in 21st century Washington.

Nixon-era voters wore their Republican and Democratic labels far more lightly than voters today. Identification with their parties, both ideologically scrambled under alignments that had persisted since the Civil War, represented only one element of their political identity and behavior.

White Southerners in Congress identified with Nixon's conservatism -- but generally belonged to the opposition party. In 1974, Democrats still held 17 of 26 Senate seats in the 13 states of the old Confederacy.

Many Northern liberals shared the President's GOP affiliation but disdained his politics. In the 11 states of the Northeast, Republicans held 13 of 22 Senate seats.

Republicans such as then-Reps. William Cohen of Maine and Hamilton Fish of New York broke with Nixon to join Democratic leaders in backing impeachment in the House. GOP Sens. Edward Brooke of Massachusetts and Lowell Weicker of Connecticut called for the President's resignation long before Nixon took that step in August 1974.

Partisan allegiances had already begun shifting amid the upheavals of the 1960s. After President Lyndon Johnson signed landmark civil rights legislation -- with support from a Senate Republican leader from Illinois -- white voters drifted toward the GOP while African Americans cemented their alliance with Democrats.

By now, those shifts have increased ideological uniformity and consistency within each party. According to 2016 election exit polls, 8-in-10 liberals and 9-in-10 Democrats backed Hillary Clinton. Comparable proportions of conservatives and Republicans backed Trump. Southern states have aligned their conservatism with GOP partisanship, Northern states the reverse.

Polarization by race reinforces those cleavages. While 9-in-10 African Americans backed Clinton, nearly 6-in-10 whites backed Trump.

The Republican tilt is even more lopsided among white evangelical Christians and those without college degrees. Both feel threatened by demographic and cultural changes that have tripled the size of the non-white electorate, and cut in half the share of Americans who are white Christians, over the last half-century.

Democrats have won the popular vote in six of the last presidential elections. Reflecting Republican foreboding, Trump's Attorney General William Barr recently warned that "secularists, and their allies among the 'progressives' " have sustained "an unremitting assault on religion and traditional values" in a campaign of "organized destruction."

That view of the stakes generates immense pressure against defection within the GOP. In the House, with Trump denying any wrongdoing on Ukraine whatsoever, not a single Republican voted to impeach him.

In the Senate, no Republican has called for the President's resignation or signaled intent to vote for his conviction. Democrats need support from four of 53 Republicans just to subpoena Bolton's testimony, which reportedly promises to affirm the Democratic allegations. The combined efforts of McConnell and the White House may block even that.

The decisive vote on Bolton's testimony may lie with retiring Republican Sen. Lamar Alexander of Tennessee, once an aide in Nixon's White House. His own political emergence a few years after Nixon resigned lends poignancy to his choice against hearing witnesses, which he announced late Thursday night.

After Alexander won the Tennessee governorship in 1978, the outgoing Democratic governor began accepting payments in exchange for pardoning convicted criminals. Crossing party lines, other top Democratic officials arranged to halt that corruption by swearing the newly elected Republican into office early.
BAKU, Azerbaijan, Feb. 1

By Nargiz Sadikhova  Trend:

Kazakhstans Prime Minister Askar Mamin proposed to fully transfer public procurement process in Eurasian Economic Union (EAEU) member countries to electronic format by the end of 2021, Trend reports with reference to the prime ministers press office.

Mamin made the proposal during the meetings of the Eurasian Intergovernmental Council in a narrow and extended composition, where he put forward a number of initiatives to address pressing issues of economic integration in EAEU.

Mamin highlighted the need for accelerated approval of amendments to the procedure for removing barriers initiated by Kazakhstan, which will speed up the process of reviewing appeals up to three months.

Currently, a register of agreed obstacles contains 68 obstacles. We started this registry three years ago with 60 obstacles. Instead of lowering the number, unfortunately, we are increasing it every year, creating new barriers or delaying their removal, Mamin said.

He also brought up an initiative to work out amendments to the EAEU Agreement regarding compensation for damage to business in violation of the general rules of competition.

Mamin noted the need to strengthen joint work within EAEU on the development of the digital economy and modern high-tech areas, as well as the development of joint tactics to combat pirated products.

As a result of the meeting, relevant decisions, orders and instructions were signed.

The next meeting of the Intergovernmental Council will be held on April 9-10, 2020 in Minsk.

---

Follow the author on twitter: @nargiz_sadikh
BAKU, Azerbaijan, Feb. 1

By Ilkin Seyfaddini  Trend:

Uzbekistan has temporarily suspended regular flights to China amid the coronavirus outbreak Trend reports via Uzbekistan's Ministry of Health.

Chartered flights are planned to evacuate Uzbekistan's citizens from China.

The decision was taken by a government commission established by a decree of President Shavkat Mirziyoyev on January 29.

Government commission instructed the Foreign Ministry to notify the Chinese side that Uzbekistan is temporarily suspending regular flights between the countries.

As Parliamentary Senate reports, 72 students from Uzbekistan are currently in China.

An outbreak of previously unknown pneumonia later identified as a new type of coronavirus and denoted as 2019-nCoV was registered in China's Wuhan in late Dec.2019.

In China alone, the number of patients with pneumonia caused by a new type of coronavirus reached 11,100 people, 258 patients died.

The World Health Organization has declared the novel coronavirus outbreak a public health emergency of international concern.
Derek Brumby/iStock(WASHINGTON) -- President Donald Trump on Friday signed an order to impose travel restrictions on a new group of six countries, adding to the current travel ban, according to three senior administration officials.



The U.S. will stop issuing visas for travelers seeking permanent residency from Burma, Eritrea, Kyrgyzstan, and Nigeria -- Africas most populous country. Sudanese and Tanzanian nationals are barred from the diversity visa lottery under the new restrictions, but can still apply for other immigrant visas. The restrictions are scheduled to take effect on Feb. 22.



The senior officials, who spoke on the condition of anonymity to discuss certain details, cited national security concerns and said the countries listed don't meet U.S. standards for information sharing and document verification. The officials estimate as many as 13,000 prospective immigrants could be impacted, based on visa admission numbers from 2018.



It seems to be more of an excuse to come out with something that looks strong rather really advancing the policy priorities of the administration, said Jeff Gorsky, former chief legal adviser in the State Department visa office.



Advocates for immigrants and refugees reacted immediately, condemning the new restrictions.



There is no reasonable national security or immigration control justification for this policy, other than bald-faced and unapologetic bigotry, said Frank Sharry, Executive Director of Americas Voice, an immigrant rights advocacy organization.



Designated refugees, students visa holders, and those traveling for temporary business are exempt from the restrictions, administration officials said.



Trump told reporters in Davos, Switzerland, last week that plans to roll out the new restrictions were already in the works.



Were adding a couple of countries to it, Trump said We have to be safe. Our country has to be safe. You see whats going on in the world. Our country has to be safe.



When Trump originally announced the travel ban in the first year of his presidency the order was met with chaos and controversy. Protests erupted at airports across the country as immigration authorities attempted to implement the abrupt stop on travelers.



Several legal challenges brought by civil rights groups resulted in modifications from the Trump administration which limited the impact and scope of the ban.



The ban should be ended, not expanded. President Trump is doubling down on his signature anti-Muslim policy  and using the ban as a way to put even more of his prejudices into practice by excluding more communities of color, said Omar Jadwat, of the ACLU, which has fought the restrictions since 2017. Families, universities, and businesses in the United States are paying an ever-higher price for President Trumps ignorance and racism.



The Supreme Court authorized a modified version of Trumps original travel ban in a June 2018 decision. The ruling resulted visa restrictions for seven countries: Iran, Libya, North Korea, Somalia, Syria, Venezuela, Yemen.



Copyright  2020, ABC Audio. All rights reserved.
Tata Motors on Saturday reported a 17.74 per cent decline in total sales at 47,862 units in January.

The company had sold a total of 58,185 units in January 2019, Tata Motors said in a statement.

Total domestic sales were down 18 per cent at 45,242 units as compared to 54,915 units in January last year, it added.

Passenger vehicle sales in the domestic market during the month stood at 13,894 units as against 17,826 units in the same month of the previous year, down 22 per cent.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
Medical staff (L) at the National Hospital for Tropical Disease in Hanoi January 31, 2020. The hospital is treating two Vietnamese patients infected with the nCoV. Photo by VnExpress/Giang Huy.

The Health Ministry has advised people to avoid crowded places unless absolutely necessary as a safety measure against the deadly new coronavirus.

While the epidemic has been declared a global health emergency, it is still unclear how long the incubation period is and whether healthy people can catch the infection or not, people should stay away from crowded areas, the ministry says.

If it's not an emergency, meetings should be held online to avoid direct contact, a ministry representative said at a news briefing Friday.

The ministry also advised against organizing traditional festival celebrations during this period. This is a season when Vietnam celebrates many spring festivals that usually gather thousands of people in one place.

As for schools, "the ministry is yet to suggest letting students stay home, because Vietnam has not so far detected any cases of infection via transmission among the community," said Tran Dac Phu, former head of the Preventive Medicine Department under the ministry.

The education ministry has already told departments and schools to act on real situations and decide for themselves if they should let students stay home.

Meanwhile, several schools have already let parents decide whether or not to keep their children away from schools and urged students who attend classes to wear masks.

Phu noted that many people are confused about the ongoing pneumonia virus outbreak and epidemic prevention recommendations "must be very reasonable" to avoid "unwanted impacts" on the public.

Ministry experts have said that wearing a mask is one of the best protections against the nCoV infection. In public places, wearing surgical masks is enough to guard against the virus, and only medical staff who directly treat infected patients must use the N95 masks, they have said.

The new coronavirus can be transmitted from person to person, most likely through close contact via particles in the air from coughing or sneezing, or by someone touching an infected person or object with the virus on it and then touching their mouth, nose or eyes.

It was announced Saturday that calls to the ministrys hotline 19003228 for answers and information related to the nCoV can be made free of charge. In recent days, the hotline has been overloaded.

Vietnam has so far recorded five confirmed cases of infection: three Vietnamese returning from Wuhan and two Chinese nationals.

As of Friday, Vietnam had quarantined 97 people in 11 cities and provinces of Hanoi, HCMC, Da Nang, Khanh Hoa, Quang Ninh, Lang Son, Lao Cai, Cao Bang, Ha Giang, Lai Chau and Kien Giang, of whom 32 remain isolated pending test results.

Forty-five rapid response teams have been set up at major hospitals across Vietnam to deal with suspected new coronavirus infections.

The Vietnamese government has deployed various measures to combat the virus, including halting all flights to coronavirus-hit areas, suspending visas for visitors from those regions and quarantining Chinese workers returning to Vietnam after the Lunar New Year.

The World Health Organization (WHO) declared the outbreak a global public health emergency on Thursday.

As of Saturday morning, the nCoV death toll had risen to 259, all of them in China. About 2,100 new cases have also been recorded in the country, putting the worldwide total to almost 12,000.

27 countries and territories have recorded nCoV infections. Apart from China and Vietnam, the others are Hong Kong, Macao, Thailand, Singapore, Taiwan, Malaysia, Japan, Australia, the U.S., South Korea, France, Germany, Canada, the UAE, Nepal, Cambodia, Sri Lanka, India, the Philippines, the U.K., Russia, Finland, Nepal, Sweden, and Spain.
STATEN ISLAND, N.Y.  In potentially explosive testimony, a cooperating witness told jurors on Friday he and Isaiah Kelson were shooting at a rival on a New Brighton street two years ago when a bullet struck and fatally wounded and innocent 67-year-old bystander.

The witness, who has already pleaded guilty to murder and manslaughter for his role in the hope of getting a reduced sentence, said Kelson orchestrated the events leading to the deadly gunfire. He said Kelson provided him a revolver and attempted to cover up the crime.

The witness said the shooting stemmed from Kelsons desire to exact revenge after watching Robert Craigwell, a buddy of theirs, get mowed down in St. George less than an hour earlier by a van containing members of a New Brighton crew.

The witness, whose name is being withheld at prosecutors request for fear of reprisal, said he and Kelson were shooting to kill on July 10, 2018.

However, the only bullet that connected was the one which hit Frances Williams. The victim, affectionately known as Miss Franny, was waiting at the bus stop on the corner of Jersey and Pauw streets.

Meanwhile, in cross-examination, defense lawyers sought to portray the witness as an opportunist willing to say whatever prosecutors wanted to save his own skin.

Mario Romano, the lawyer for Jaleel Hewitt, a co-defendant, pointed to inconsistencies in the witness testimony and what he told prosecutors in meetings with them last year. Those meetings resulted in his cooperation.

And the witness admitted to writing a letter to Kelson while both were incarcerated, saying he thought friends on the outside would have taken care of the man who drove them to New Brighton.

He confirmed that meant being killed. The witness said he believed the driver had implicated him and Kelson to authorities.

Kelson, 23, an alleged member of a West Brighton gang, is charged with murder and other crimes.

West Brighton residents Marquise Tart, 26, and Hewitt, 27, are also on trial, but for conspiracy and criminal facilitation stemming from the events leading up to Williams shooting as well as some actions allegedly taken afterward.

They are not charged with murder.

A thin, bearded man wearing eyeglasses, a tan sweatshirt and tan pants, the witness testified the better part of two days.

Sometimes slouching in his chair, he spoke in a low voice, which, at times, was difficult to understand.

The witness testified Craigwell was killed as three of them - Craigwell, the witness and Kelson - were walking to the courthouse after parking their car a short distance away.

He said Naquan Young, a friend, had called Kelson and told him to come to the courthouse in St. George because fights had broken out in the area with their rivals.

While he and his two friends were walking on Fort Place toward the courthouse, a van carrying the rival gang drove rapidly at them, prompting them to run, he said.

The witness testified Craigwell fired two shots from a .32-caliber handgun which Kelson had given him before they left West Brighton.

He admitted he had told prosecutors last year six shots were fired.

The van struck Craigwell as, the witness said, he and Kelson were running back to their car.

Afterward, he and Kelson headed back to West Brighton.

Once there, he said Kelson decided to seek revenge against their rivals.

The witness said Kelson gave him a .38-caliber gun and kept a 9 mm handgun for himself.

At Kelsons direction, he said he got a change of clothes for both of them which consisted of sweat clothes he pulled from his dirty laundry bag.

He said he and Kelson changed into the sweat clothes in the car on the way to New Brighton, then changed back to what they were originally wearing after the shooting.

Contrary to the witness, the man who drove them to New Brighton testified on Wednesday they first went to Elm Street to get the change of clothes.

The driver further conflicted with the witness, testifying that he, Kelson and the witness were headed to the courthouse only to pick up friends. He said there was no talk of retribution.

The drivers name is also being withheld at prosecutors request for fear of reprisal.

En route to New Brighton on Henderson Avenue, Kelson Face-Timed Hewitt who was passing them in the opposite direction and told him to follow, the witness testified. He said Tart was in Hewitts car, a black Mercury.

As they made their way to Prospect Avenue, the witness testified they saw a rival, who he identified as Fiji.

On seeing them, Fiji ran down Prospect, across intersecting York Avenue and onto Pauw on the opposite side of York. Fiji then ran down Pauw toward Jersey Street.

Their car turned onto York where the witness said he and Kelson jumped out. He said the Mercury was still on Prospect.

The witness said he and Kelson ran toward Pauw.

The witness said he fired two shots at Fiji from near the corner of York and Pauw. The witness said Kelson was ahead of him a short distance down Pauw, also firing at Fiji.

He said Fiji did not have a gun.

Afterward, they returned to West Brighton. The Mercury followed, said the witness.

A short time later, police arrested the witness, who was fleeing them outside 780 Henderson. The witness admitted he was caught in the act of tossing away the .38-caliber gun.

Romano, Hewitts lawyer, along with Robert Reuland, Kelsons attorney, and Rick J. Pasacreta, Tarts lawyer, sharply questioned the witness about his cooperation agreement, as well as his interviews with prosecutors last year.

In exchange for his cooperation, the witness said he would be sentenced on the manslaughter plea and not the murder plea. The minimum would be five years, the maximum 20 years, under the agreement.

He said he had cooperated with the hope of getting a lesser sentence and to own up to my responsibility.

The witness agreed to cooperate last August, more than a year after the shooting.

He said he was aware then the fatal bullet was determined to be a 9 mm. Kelson was shooting the 9 mm, he testified.

During his first meeting with prosecutors last July, the witness confirmed he said he had fired into the air to scare, but not kill, anyone.

However, in a subsequent meeting a month later, he said he was aiming at Fiji.

I was shooting to kill. I did not shoot in the air, he testified.

The witness contended he had corrected himself at the July session to say he had shot at Fiji. But he said the detective who was taking notes then failed to include that correction.

Defense lawyers also challenged the witness on letters he had written while incarcerated to Kelson and to a woman he called Auntie.

The witness wrote Auntie he was cooperating because the feds were pressuring him. But he admitted on the stand federal authorities never charged him.

He said he wrote feds to make her understand he had no other options. He testified Kelsons family was pressing him to take the hit for the slaying.

In his letter to Kelson, who also was incarcerated, the witness said he was cooperating because it made no sense for both of them to get a life sentence for murder.

In that letter, the witness also wrote they didnt believe the man who drove them to New Brighton was the shooter.

He said they referred to his lawyer, not authorities.

The witness testified Kelson had told him to pin the shooting on the driver, although he said he never told authorities that man had fired a gun. He said the driver didnt have a gun.

(The driver) was not the shooter, he testified. It was Kelson and me.

However, the witness admitted he believed the driver had ratted him and Kelson out.

He confirmed he informed Kelson the driver had moved out of state and gave the general location.

He said he expected that information would be relayed to friends on the outside who would check it out and take care of him.

That meant to kill the driver, he said.

Assistant District Attorneys Adam Silberlight, Andrew Botelho and Arda Ozdinc are prosecuting the case.
Ghanas Embassy in Beijing, under the auspices of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Regional Integration, has given 50,000RMB to NUGS-China for the procurement of food and protective items for Ghanaian students caught up in the Wuhan Coronavirus outbreak which has claimed 213 lives and hospitalised more than 9,000 others so far.



A statement signed by Mr Felix Gyawu-Addo, President of NUGS, said this initiative was taken in response to challenges that were raised by its representatives during a four-hour meeting held on 29 January 2020 between the Ghana Embassy, the National Executive Council, and representatives of NUGS-China.



During the meeting, chapter representatives unanimously affirmed that all Ghanaian students in their respective cities were safe from the virus. They mentioned that the shortage of nose masks and hand sanitisers had led to some concerns and prevented some members from going out to buy basic needs like food and water.



At the end of the meeting that was chaired by Mr Edward Boateng, Ghana's Ambassador to China, the embassy officials promised to channel all the concerns raised by chapter executives to Accra, the statement said.



It continued: According to directives from the embassy, during another meeting with the National Executive Committee (NEC) of NUGS-China on 31 January 2020, 30,000RMB of the disbursed amount is to be given to the Chapters in Hubei Province. Hubei Province is the epicentre of the disease and is also where the lockdown is severest. The remaining 20,000RMB is to be committed to the NUGS-China NKWA NA HIA fund created to provide support for all other chapters outside of the Hubei Province.



The statement said: NUGS-China welcomes any donation either in cash or kind to help provide adequate support for all members under our watch.



NUGS-China is grateful to the government of Ghana, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Regional Integration, and the Ghana Mission in China for such a kind gesture.





Source: Class News









Disclaimer : Opinions expressed here are those of the writers and do not reflect those of Peacefmonline.com. Peacefmonline.com accepts no responsibility legal or otherwise for their accuracy of content. Please report any inappropriate content to us, and we will evaluate it as a matter of priority.

Featured Video
Yves here. Even though we linked to this story earlier in the week about the way a software company Practice Fusion actively enabled opioid abuse, were highlighting it again because the details matter, and not just the sorry fact that no one is going to jail.

Many commentors defend the use of electronic health records (EHR), not understanding that the way theyve been implemented in the US makes them a danger to patient health. We are not being hyperbolic; a respected industry body, ECRI, deemed EHRs to be the biggest risk to patient health in large medical organizations (meaning hospital systems) in 2014.

One problem is the systems are designed for billing, not for patient care. A second is that they often require the doctor to fill them out in the patients presence, distracting the physician from his exam.

This post demonstrates a third risk, and one Id never heard about. Some (many?) EHRs recommend treatment protocols based on doctor inputs. In this case, Practice Fusion had sought bribes from opioid makers in return for designing prompts to recommend opioids first on the list of suggested treatments, irrespective of whether they were appropriate.

Note that this decision support clearly succeeds in influencing doctor behavior. It can also serve to enforce new treatment guidelines, which in the US routinely pathologize test results that are considered normal in other countries. For instance, earlier this week, we featured a story from RTE which discussed how Irish doctors disagreed with new US guidelines that lowered the threshold for what is considered to be high blood pressure. The article pointed out that the new level was based on clinician opinion, not on any data, and would have the effect of more people being prescribed medications to lower their blood pressure.

Even worse, with the practice of medicine in the US increasingly corporatized, it is not hard to imagine that doctors that attempted to use their own judgment and ignored the new guidelines (and decision support prompts to pull out their Rx pad) could be sanctioned by management.

By Informatics MD, a medical doctor, and medical informatics professional via NIH-sponsored postdoctoral fellowship at Yale School of Medicine. Expertise in clinical IT design, implementation, refinement to meet clinician needs, and remediation of HIT projects in difficulty in both hospitals and the pharmaceutical industry. Former Director of Scientific Information Resources and The Merck Index (of chemicals, drugs, and biologicals) at Merck Research Labs. Faculty, Drexel University, College of Information Science and Technology, Philadelphia, PA.. Originally published at Health Care Renewal

Considering the devastating and deadly opioid problems in this country, this news release from DOJ describes particularly despicable behavior from an EHR vendor and pharmas.

These problems are likely more widespread, but this EHR company got caught. The company admitted that it solicited and received kickbacks from a major opioid company in exchange for utilizing its EHR software to influence physician prescribing of opioid pain medications, via decision support routines specifically designed by the drug company to increase drug company profits. The DOJ reports that in exchange for sponsorship paymentsfrom pharmaceutical companies, Practice Fusion allowed the companies to influence the development and implementation of the CDS (clinical decision support) alerts in ways aimed at increasing sales of the companies products. Practice Fusion allegedly permitted pharmaceutical companies to participate in designing the CDS alert, including selecting the guidelines used to develop the alerts, setting the criteria that would determine when a healthcare provider received an alert, and in some cases, even drafting the language used in the alert itself. The CDS alerts that Practice Fusion agreed to implement did not always reflect accepted medical standards. This story could certainly help explain why I could never get involved in EHR initiatives in pharma, despite having been at Merck in a science-support capacity, but seeking EHR involvement. I had completed a Yale Medical Informatics postdoc and then faculty period authoring EHRs domestically and for a foreign country, and then had a period as a CMIO in Delaware. Yet, my many pharma applications over many years afterwards for EHR-related positions were mostly ignored. The reason behind that shutout could likely be that I was known as being exceptionally honest, if only in part for my candid writing on EHR problems first on AOL 1999-2004, then at Drexel University and at this blog, at a time when the pundits and hyper-enthusiasts were pushing the technology uncritically and relentlessly. Indeed, I would never have tolerated the types of conspiracy (DOJs word) between EHR companies and pharma that are described in this DOJ release to help push drugs, any drugs  let alone opioids. To make matters worse, this vendor is also described as cheating on the HHS EHR certification process. The company is described as concealing from the certifying entity, known as an ONC-Authorized Certification Body (ATCB), that the EHR software did not comply with all of the applicable requirements for certification. Apparently, no defendants were jailed. I am posting the DOJ release in its entirety. It is quite comprehensive, and I have nothing to add. https://www.justice.gov/opa/ pr/electronic-health-records- vendor-pay-145-million- resolve-criminal-and-civil- investigations-0
A shamed ex-prison nurse who helped her convicted killer husband go on the run from jail is sweating over being caged herself.

Former model Kathryn Kathy Johnston will find out on February 13 if she has to spend time on the wrong side of the bars when she is sentenced at Craigavon Crown Court.

The 55-year-old fled across the border with glue-sniffing murderer hubby Paul Johnston (37) when he was out on day release from Maghaberry Prison  her old place of work  in April 2017.

The odd couple hid out in the Dublin area for 15 days before he was taken into custody by gardai on foot of a European Arrest Warrant.

Paul Johnston was extradited back to Northern Ireland and pleaded guilty to being unlawfully at large last month. Wife Kathy confessed to aiding and abetting his escape at a sitting of Craigavon Crown Court last week.

She is now back living in Comber, Co Down, after spending a period on bail holed up in a dingy flat in the university area of Belfast.

Donaghadee-born Kathy, who sources say is smitten with her toy-boy husband 18 years her junior, has been warned that she could face jail when she is sentenced in two weeks time.

The pair met in Maghaberry Prison two decades ago when Paul Johnston was caged for 19 years for the murder of disabled west Belfast man Sean May.

High from sniffing glue he and older brother Stephen broke into their 58-year-old victims home in the Moyard area and stabbed him 45 times before bludgeoning him with a wheel-brace. They then burned down vulnerable Seans home in a bid to cover their tracks.

Paul Johnston was on the run from Hydebank Young Offenders Centre when he carried out the frenzied 1999 killing. Aged just 17 at the time he had already amassed 47 criminal convictions.

Expand Close Paul Johnston / Facebook

Twitter

Email

Whatsapp Paul Johnston

But his disturbing background apparently did not bother Maghaberry Prison love-struck nurse Kathy McClelland, as she was known then, when she tied the knot with Johnston in a behind bars ceremony in 2008.

The best man at the unlikely ceremony was his killer older brother Stephen, who was caged for 21 years for the murder of Sean May.

By the time of the wedding an infatuated Kathy Johnston had quit her nurse job at Maghaberry and found work as a beautician avoiding any internal Prison Service probe into her inappropriate relationship.

Since then she has remained steadfastly loyal to her husband including going on the run with him in 2017 when he enjoyed a period of temporary release.

Their decision to flee across the border baffled jail sources because Paul Johnston only had a few months left to serve before being eligible for parole.

One insider said: He was out on day release and made a spur of the moment decision to abscond. They headed down south, but were eventually caught by the gardai after being on the run for a few weeks.

The whole thing is mad, especially because he was only supposed to have a few months left of his sentence.
A former Coast Guard lieutenant who described himself as a white nationalist was sentenced Friday to more than 13 years in prison after pleading guilty last year to federal gun and drug charges.

The former lieutenant, Christopher Paul Hasson, had plotted to kill journalists, Democratic politicians, professors, Supreme Court justices and those he described as leftists in general, federal prosecutors said in a previous court filing.

He was arrested in Maryland last February and pleaded guilty in October to four federal charges, including unlawful possession of unregistered silencers, unlawful possession of firearm silencers unidentified by serial number, possession of firearms by an addict to and unlawful user of a controlled substance, and possession of a controlled substance.
Bengaluru, Feb 1 : Karnataka Chief Minister B.S. Yeddiyurappa hailed the Union Budget as "pro-people, pro-farmer and pro-poor" on Saturday.

"For the first time in the history of the country, priority has been given to farmers, poor and rural areas. This is a boon to the farmers. The programmes announced for the farming sector compliment the Prime Minister's vision to double the income of farmers," said Yeddiyurappa.

He recognized that agriculture has been discussed in such detail for the first time in the Budget, highlighting that Prime Minister Narendra Modi has resolved to restore the glory of Indian agricultural system.

"Providing Rs 2.83 lakh crore to agriculture sector is a major deviation from the routine budgetary allocations. Kisan Rail and Kisan Udan will facilitate speedy transportation and export of perishable agriculture products and this in turn will boost farmers' income," he said.

Praising the budget plan to undertake water conservation measures in 100 water stressed districts, constituting one-fifth of the country's area will help farmers in those districts where underground water has been almost exhausted, he said.

Yeddiyurappa welcomed encouraging solar energy production and Pradhan Mantri Kisan Urja Suraksha evam Utthan (PM-KUSUM), a scheme to energise pumpsets through solar energy which will benefit over 20 lakh farmers.

According to Yeddiyurappa, skills training schemes announced in the budget will propel small and cottage industries under the micro small and medium enterprises schemes.

He said allowing Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) in education sector will boost academic activities in varsities starved of funds across the country.

Thanking Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman, he hailed her decision to approve Bengaluru suburban rail whose funding up to 40 per cent will be shared by the state and the Centre, with the balance coming from external assistance.

The Finance Minister allocated Rs 18,000 crore for the 148-km-long Bengaluru suburban railway line on Saturday in her Budget speech.

"This will boost the infrastructure facilities in Bengaluru which has turned out to be favourite investment destination for the MNCs. This will help us to eliminate traffic congestion in this investment friendly city," said Yeddiyurappa.

Joining corporates, the chief minister highlighted that measures to eliminate harassment of taxpayers will be a big relief.

He also supported the reduction of income tax rates in almost all slabs.
The ongoing protests against the Citizenship Amendment Act (CAA) the National Register of Citizens (NRC) and National Population Registry (NPR) have resonated not only across the country, but also among Indians across the world.

Like in many parts of the world the Indian community in Australia too have been holding several protests against CAA, NRC, NPA and the police violence against students of Jamia, AMU and JNU.

YASK Desai

An independent group of concerned Australian-Indian academics, artists, and activists have organized We are with you protests in the country. The first protest was organized on December 22 by Jamia Millia Islamia and Aligarh Muslim University Alumni group.



YASK Desai

YASK Desai

The second one was organized by JNU alumni on January 12 and the third one was organized by a group of academics, artists and activists on January 26.

Many of the Australian-Indian academics have voiced their concerns on the current ongoing in India and sent their statements to Southern Crossings - a collective based in Australia, that aims to reimagine Australia, South Asia and the world, through South Asian bodies and minds.

"In Australia we have seen unfold the inhuman situation at the Manus Island detention center. Multiplied a thousand-fold, is what is on offer with the NRC and CAA. In both countries we have failing strongmen, Modi (economy) and Morrison (climate change). Here a billion animals have died. There, in India, a billion human beings are to be placed on trial. There have to be sought better ways to solve a nations problems, and a majority communitys ambitions, other than this bureaucratic and humanistic nightmare," Dr. Arjun Raina, a Melbourne-based independent artist said.

YASK Desai

"From Australia, I watch the news in my home country, the USA. Trump demonises immigrants, rounds up refugees, and has made moves to strip Americans of their citizenship. Its fascism 101, and like the US, India is not immune,"Dr. Ian Woolford, a Melbourne-based academic said.

YASK Desai

Dr Vikrant Kishore, another organiser said, I am deeply disturbed by the violent suppression and police brutality in Jamia Millia Islamia on 15 December 2019, followed by suppression of the student protesters at Aligarh Muslim University (AMU), Jawaharlal Nehru University (JNU) and elsewhere. The protest has spread all over India, with very high-handed responses from the Indian government, including cutting off phone and internet in some areas."
The caucuses are very unique and are unlike the primaries that occur in Illinois and most other states. It is an in-person, active, fluid process that involves discussion, debate and voting throughout the evening until the final delegates are decided, she said.
By Makini Brice and Steve Gorman

WASHINGTON Reuters) - The Trump administration, while insisting the risk to Americans from coronavirus is low, nevertheless declared a public health emergency on Friday and announced the extraordinary step of barring entry to the United States of foreign nationals who have recently visited China.

In addition, U.S. citizens who have traveled within the past two weeks to China's Hubei Province - epicenter of the coronavirus epidemic - will be subject to a mandatory quarantine of 14 days, the incubation period of the virus, officials said.

Americans who visited other parts of mainland China will undergo special health screening upon their return, followed by up to 14 days of "monitored self-quarantine," under the temporary restrictions.

The emergency measures were unveiled by U.S. Health and Human Services Secretary Alex Azar at a White House briefing, shortly before the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) and local health authorities announced a seventh U.S. coronavirus case had been confirmed in Northern California.

The latest U.S. patient was identified only as a man in Santa Clara County, south of San Francisco, who became ill after traveling to China and has "self-isolated" at home, Sara Cody, director of public health for the county, told reporters.

She said the CDC was seeking to determine whether the man was infectious while flying home.

The U.S. entry ban on foreign travelers to China and the quarantine for Americans returning from Hubei go into effect on Sunday at 5 p.m. EST (2200 GMT), Azar said.

At the same time all commercial flights from China would be restricted to international U.S. airports in one of seven cities - New York, Chicago, Atlanta, Los Angeles, San Francisco, Seattle and Honolulu.

An average of more than 14,000 people traveled by air to the United States from China each day last year, either by direct or indirect flights, according to the White House.

Story continues

KEEPING RISK LOW

CDC Director Robert Redfield told reporters the U.S. government acted after the World Health Organization declared a global health emergency on Thursday over the spread of the respiratory disease.

"I want to emphasize that this is a serious health situation in China, but I want to emphasize that the risk to the American public is currently low," Redfield said. "Our goal is to do all we can do to keep it that way."

The U.S. State Department warned Americans on Thursday not to travel to China because of the epidemic.

The ban on U.S. entry of foreign nationals who have traveled to China during the past 14 days would exempt immediate family of U.S. citizens and permanent U.S. residents, Azar said.

The suspension-of-entry proclamation, signed by President Donald Trump, says the ban stays in effect until the president lifts it, and that the HHS secretary will recommend every 15 days whether to do so.

The flu-like coronavirus, which is believed to have originated in a seafood and animal market in Wuhan, the provincial capital of Hubei, and was first identified earlier this month, has resulted in 259 deaths in China.

More than 11,700 people have been infected in China, and more than 130 cases reported in at least 25 other countries and regions, with Russia, Britain, Sweden and Italy all reporting their first cases on Thursday or Friday.

None of the U.S. cases has been fatal, and all but one of the patients in the United States was believed to have contracted the disease while they were traveling in the Wuhan area of China.

FIRST U.S. QUARANTINES

The first quarantines of U.S. citizens potentially exposed to coronavirus in China began hours before the White House announcement.

Nearly 200 Americans evacuated earlier this week from Wuhan and voluntarily confined to a California military air base for 72 hours of health screenings were placed under a mandatory 14-day quarantine on Friday. It marked the CDC's first quarantine order in 50 years.

The State Department said Friday it was working with Chinese agencies to arrange additional flights of Americans out of Wuhan. Washington also plans to evacuate non-essential government employees and family members from the U.S. Embassy in Beijing and consulates in Chengdu, Guangzhou, Shanghai and Shenyang due to the outbreak, a State Department official said on Thursday.

The two-week quarantine of the 195 Americans at March Air Reserve Base, near Los Angeles, runs from the time the evacuees left China on Tuesday.

The original plan was to release the passengers after 72 hours of evaluation and tests, absent any indication of illness, and permit them to take public transportation home. Local health authorities would then continue monitoring the evacuees through the remainder of the incubation period.

CDC officials said then that such a plan posed little or no risk of spreading the virus because individuals incubating the infection before symptoms appear are generally not contagious.

But Dr. Nancy Messonnier, director of the CDC's National Center for Immunization and Respiratory Diseases, told reporters on Friday that experts' understanding of the virus was still evolving.

She cited emerging evidence the virus can be spread by someone who is infected but not yet showing signs of being ill, such as fever, cough and other respiratory symptoms.

The CDC also pointed to a limitation of its screening test for the virus - a negative result is merely a "point-in-time" snapshot that cannot conclusively rule out the risk of a person developing the disease during the 14-day incubation period.

The blanket quarantine at March air base was instituted after one passenger sought to leave the base without permission on Wednesday night, and was immediately slapped with an individual quarantine order by local health officials.

As of Thursday, none of the group at the base had exhibited signs of the disease, local health officials said.

(Reporting by Makini Brice in Washington and Steve Gorman in Culver City, Calif.; Additional reporting by Dan Whitcomb and Deena Beasley in Culver City, Jeff Mason Brice in Washington, Gabriella Borter in New York, and Manas Mishra and Ankur Banerjee in Bengaluru; Writing by Steve Gorman; Editing by Bill Tarrant, Dan Grebler, Jonathan Oatis and Daniel Wallis)
New Delhi, Feb 1 : National carrier Air India's special flight to the Chinese city of Wuhan, the epicentre of the novel coronavirus outbreak, to evacuate Indians stranded there, landed at the IGI airport here on Saturday.

The flight ferried back 324 Indian nationals.

The airline said that the special flight landed at Delhi airport at 7.26 a.m.

Air India started evacuation of Indians from Wuhan with the first special flight which was operated using a double decker jumbo 747 with 15 cabin crew and five cockpit crew.

The flight had departed from Indira Gandhi International Airport here for the central Chinese city on Friday.

Besides, the crew, the flight also ferried a team of five doctors from the Ram Manohar Lohia hospital and one paramedical staff from Air India.

However, few passengers were not allowed to board the flight by authorities in Wuhan due to Coronavirus symptoms.

Meanwhile, a total of 95 of the 324 Indians, who arrived in the special flight from Wuhan were taken from the airport to a special facility at a Indo-Tibetan Border Police (ITBP) camp here for medical observation.

They have been shifted to the paramilitary force's Chhawla camp in west Delhi. The ITBP had already made arrangements of 600 beds at the camp for families and kids coming from China as quarantine facility.

The ITBP had arranged facilities for hosting the Indians from the airport to the camp, IBP Spokesperson Vivek Pandey said.

"All basic amenities - fooding, lodging, and WiFi will be provided to the people. ITBP doctors and personnel are present to look after them. An expert team of ITBP and Safdurjang Hospital and Doctors with sufficient medicines are already placed," he said.

Besides, Air India is now planning to operate another flight to evacuate remaining Indian nationals, who have consented to leave Hubei province for the time being, the government said.

The national carrier said the flight will depart to Wuhan from Delhi at 12.50 p.m. on Saturday with a different set of crew and same team of doctors with other aircraft.

"We urge all Indian citizens from Hubei who intend to avail this flight for India and not yet contacted the Embassy, to urgently call the hotlines (+8618610952903 and +8618612083629) or send mails to dedicated email ID helpdesk.beijing@mea.gov.in before 0800 hours on February 1, 2020," said the government in a tweet.

Latest updates on Coronavirus (COVID-19)
Representative image

The Trump administration, while insisting the risk to Americans from coronavirus is low, nevertheless declared a public health emergency on January 31 and announced the extraordinary step of barring entry to the United States of foreign nationals who have recently visited China.

In addition, US citizens who have travelled within the past two weeks to China's Hubei Province - the epicentre of the coronavirus epidemic - will be subject to a mandatory quarantine of 14 days, the incubation period of the virus, officials said.

Americans who visited other parts of mainland China will undergo special health screening upon their return, followed by up to 14 days of "monitored self-quarantine," under the temporary restrictions.

The emergency measures were unveiled by the US Health and Human Services Secretary Alex Azar at a White House briefing, shortly before the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) and local health authorities announced a seventh US coronavirus case had been confirmed in Northern California.

The latest US patient was identified only as a man in Santa Clara County, south of San Francisco, who became ill after travelling to China and has "self-isolated" at home, Sara Cody, director of public health for the county, told reporters.

COVID-19 Vaccine Frequently Asked Questions View more How does a vaccine work? A vaccine works by mimicking a natural infection. A vaccine not only induces immune response to protect people from any future COVID-19 infection, but also helps quickly build herd immunity to put an end to the pandemic. Herd immunity occurs when a sufficient percentage of a population becomes immune to a disease, making the spread of disease from person to person unlikely. The good news is that SARS-CoV-2 virus has been fairly stable, which increases the viability of a vaccine. How many types of vaccines are there? There are broadly four types of vaccine  one, a vaccine based on the whole virus (this could be either inactivated, or an attenuated [weakened] virus vaccine); two, a non-replicating viral vector vaccine that uses a benign virus as vector that carries the antigen of SARS-CoV; three, nucleic-acid vaccines that have genetic material like DNA and RNA of antigens like spike protein given to a person, helping human cells decode genetic material and produce the vaccine; and four, protein subunit vaccine wherein the recombinant proteins of SARS-COV-2 along with an adjuvant (booster) is given as a vaccine. What does it take to develop a vaccine of this kind? Vaccine development is a long, complex process. Unlike drugs that are given to people with a diseased, vaccines are given to healthy people and also vulnerable sections such as children, pregnant women and the elderly. So rigorous tests are compulsory. History says that the fastest time it took to develop a vaccine is five years, but it usually takes double or sometimes triple that time. View more Show

She said the CDC was seeking to determine whether the man was infectious while flying home.

The US entry ban on foreign travellers to China and the quarantine for Americans returning from Hubei go into effect on Sunday at 5 p.m. EST (2200 GMT), Azar said.

At the same time, all commercial flights from China would be restricted to international U.S. airports in one of seven cities - New York, Chicago, Atlanta, Los Angeles, San Francisco, Seattle and Honolulu.

An average of more than 14,000 people travelled by air to the United States from China each day last year, either by direct or indirect flights, according to the White House.

KEEPING RISK LOW

CDC Director Robert Redfield told reporters the US government acted after the World Health Organization declared a global health emergency on Thursday over the spread of the respiratory disease.

"I want to emphasize that this is a serious health situation in China, but I want to emphasize that the risk to the American public is currently low," Redfield said. "Our goal is to do all we can do to keep it that way."

The US State Department warned Americans on January 30 not to travel to China because of the epidemic.

The ban on U.S. entry of foreign nationals who have travelled to China during the past 14 days would exempt immediate family of US citizens and permanent US residents, Azar said.

The suspension-of-entry proclamation, signed by President Donald Trump, says the ban stays in effect until the president lifts it, and that the HHS secretary will recommend every 15 days whether to do so.

The flu-like coronavirus, which is believed to have originated in a seafood and animal market in Wuhan, the provincial capital of Hubei, and was first identified earlier this month, has resulted in 259 deaths in China.

More than 11,700 people have been infected in China, and more than 130 cases reported in at least 25 other countries and regions, with Russia, Britain, Sweden and Italy all reporting their first cases on Thursday or Friday.

None of the U.S. cases has been fatal, and all but one of the patients in the United States was believed to have contracted the disease while they were travelling in the Wuhan area of China.

FIRST U.S. QUARANTINES

The first quarantines of U.S. citizens potentially exposed to coronavirus in China began hours before the White House announcement.

Nearly 200 Americans evacuated earlier this week from Wuhan and voluntarily confined to a California military airbase for 72 hours of health screenings were placed under a mandatory 14-day quarantine on January 30. It marked the CDC's first quarantine order in 50 years.

The State Department said January 30 it was working with Chinese agencies to arrange additional flights of Americans out of Wuhan. Washington also plans to evacuate non-essential government employees and family members from the U.S. Embassy in Beijing and consulates in Chengdu, Guangzhou, Shanghai and Shenyang due to the outbreak, a State Department official said on Thursday.

The two-week quarantine of the 195 Americans at March Air Reserve Base, near Los Angeles, runs from the time the evacuees left China on Tuesday.

The original plan was to release the passengers after 72 hours of evaluation and tests, absent any indication of illness, and permit them to take public transportation home. Local health authorities would then continue monitoring the evacuees through the remainder of the incubation period.

CDC officials said then that such a plan posed little or no risk of spreading the virus because individuals incubating the infection before symptoms appear are generally not contagious.

But Dr. Nancy Messonnier, director of the CDC's National Center for Immunization and Respiratory Diseases, told reporters on Friday that experts' understanding of the virus was still evolving.

She cited emerging evidence the virus can be spread by someone who is infected but not yet showing signs of being ill, such as fever, cough and other respiratory symptoms.

The CDC also pointed to a limitation of its screening test for the virus - a negative result is merely a "point-in-time" snapshot that cannot conclusively rule out the risk of a person developing the disease during the 14-day incubation period.

The blanket quarantine at March airbase was instituted after one passenger sought to leave the base without permission on Wednesday night, and was immediately slapped with an individual quarantine order by local health officials.

As of Thursday, none of the group at the base had exhibited signs of the disease, local health officials said.
DENVER, Jan. 31, 2020 /PRNewswire/ - Intermap Technologies today announced preliminary unaudited financial results for the year ended December 31, 2019.

Government contracting is the Company's largest market, accounting for approximately 65% of revenue for the past five years. Contract cycles are long and governments around the world continue to make progress in the adoption of geospatial data as a service.

For the year ended December 31, 2019, the Company reported revenue of $10.1 million, compared with $15.8 million for 2018. Delays in government contracts affected both acquisition services and value-added data revenue. Software revenue was $1.4 million in 2019 compared to $1.0 million last year. Although growing well, the software segment is having difficulty achieving scale as the Company is inadequately capitalized to make further investments.

Adjusted EBITDA for 2019 was negative $0.9 million, compared with positive $2.1 million in 2018. The decline in Adjusted EBITDA for 2019 was related to carrying costs associated with the contract delays in Alaska and South East Asia.

The Company continues to build its contracted pipeline. Historically, the pipeline has required 30 months to convert to revenue. The Company is teamed with prime contractors and has been selected through competitive requests for proposals to participate in the National Geospatial-Intelligence Agency's Janus Geography contract, the US Geological Survey's Geospatial Products and Services Architect and Engineer IDIQ Contract, and the National Oceanic & Atmospheric Administration Coastal Mapping Program.

Andrew Hines has resigned as a director of the Company. The Board of Directors of Intermap thanks Mr. Hines for his contributions on behalf of the Company.

Adjusted EBITDA is not a recognized performance measure under IFRS and does not have a standardized meaning prescribed by IFRS. The term EBITDA consists of net income (loss) and excludes interest, taxes, depreciation, and amortization. Adjusted EBITDA is included as a supplemental disclosure because management believes that such measurement provides a better assessment of the Company's operations on a continuing basis by eliminating certain non-cash charges and charges that are nonrecurring. The most directly comparable measure to adjusted EBITDA calculated in accordance with IFRS is net loss. A reconciliation of net loss to Adjusted EBITDA is provided in the table below. As previously disclosed in our quarterly reports, the Company's ability to continue as a going concern is dependent on management's ability to successfully secure sales with upfront payments, restructure the balance sheet (including a reduction of debt) and obtain additional financing.

Selected Annual Information







Unaudited

U.S. $ millions, except per share data

2019 2018









Revenue:





Acquisition services

$ 6.9 $ 8.7 Value-added data

0.8 4.7 Software and solutions

2.4 2.4

Total revenue

$ 10.1 $ 15.8 Operating income (loss)

$ (2.9) $ (0.1) Financing costs

$ (2.9) $ (2.7) Net loss

$ (4.9) $ (2.8) Adjusted EBITDA

$ (0.9) $ 2.1 Assets:







Cash, amounts receivable, unbilled revenue

$ 2.4 $ 4.9 Total assets

$ 8.1 $ 9.8 Liabilities:





Current portion of notes payable

$ 31.9 $ 1.4 Long-term liabilities (including finance lease obligations)

$ 0.3 $ 29.3 Total liabilities

$ 37.3 $ 34.2

Reconciliation of Adjusted EBITDA





Unaudited



U.S. $ millions 2019

2018 Net loss $ (4.9)

$ (2.8)

Financing costs 2.9

2.7

Depreciation expense 1.6

1.3

EBITDA $ (0.4)

$ 1.2

Gain on settlement of promissory note (1.1)

-

Restructuring costs 0.3

0.5

Share-based compensation 0.2

0.4

Loss on foreign currency translation 0.1

-

Adjusted EBITDA $ (0.9)

$ 2.1

About Intermap Technologies

Founded in 1997 and headquartered in Denver, Colorado, Intermap (TSX: IMP) (ITMSF: BB) is a global leader in geospatial intelligence solutions. The Company's proprietary NEXTMap database and value-added geospatial data management, processing, analytics, fusion and orthorectification software and solutions are utilized across a range of industries that rely on accurate, high-resolution elevation data, including aviation, engineering, environmental planning, government markets, hydrology, insurance, land management, law enforcement and patrol, oil and gas, renewable energy, telecommunications, transportation and utilities. Intermap's commercial applications include location-based intelligence, risk assessment, geographic information systems, global positioning systems and 3D visualization. For more information, please visit www.intermap.com.

Intermap Reader Advisory

Certain information provided in this news release, including statements in relation to the Company's results or ability to continue as a going concern constitutes forward-looking statements. The words "anticipate", "expect", "project", "estimate", "forecast", "will be" and similar expressions are intended to identify such forward-looking statements. Although Intermap believes that these statements are based on information and assumptions which are current, reasonable and complete, these statements are necessarily subject to a variety of known and unknown risks and uncertainties. Intermap's forward-looking statements are subject to risks and uncertainties pertaining to, among other things, cash available to fund operations, availability of capital, revenue fluctuations, nature of government contracts, economic conditions, loss of key customers, retention and availability of executive talent, competing technologies, common share price volatility, loss of proprietary information, software functionality, internet and system infrastructure functionality, information technology security, breakdown of strategic alliances, and international and political considerations, as well as those risks and uncertainties discussed Intermap's Annual Information Form and other securities filings. While the Company makes these forward-looking statements in good faith, should one or more of these risks or uncertainties materialize, or should underlying assumptions prove incorrect, actual results may vary significantly from those expected. Accordingly, no assurances can be given that any of the events anticipated by the forward-looking statements will transpire or occur, or if any of them do so, what benefits that the Company will derive therefrom. All subsequent forward-looking statements, whether written or oral, attributable to Intermap or persons acting on its behalf are expressly qualified in their entirety by these cautionary statements. The forward-looking statements contained in this news release are made as at the date of this news release and the Company does not undertake any obligation to update publicly or to revise any of the forward-looking statements made herein, whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise, except as may be required by applicable securities law.

SOURCE Intermap Technologies Corporation

Related Links

www.intermap.com


SIOUX CITY -- There was a near calamity at the end of the Friday appearance by Democratic presidential candidate Pete Buttigieg, although it had nothing to do with his speech content.

Buttigieg super fan Elizabeth Sturgeon, of Sioux City, was unhappy to have missed him in a late November stop, when an evening snowstorm diminished the crowd at West Middle School. Therefore, Sturgeon was pumped for Friday's rally at the Orpheum Theatre, not only to hear the former South Bend mayor speak to a crowd of 200 people, but also to have him sign a book.

However, when she stopped on the way out of the building at a merchandise table, she made a blunder. A bit later, Sturgeon rushed back, looked around, and profusely thanked the salesman who pointed to the book she'd inadvertently left behind.

"I just like Pete so much, I just can't think beyond Pete...I was hoping and praying he'd come back," Sturgeon said.

Such enthusiasm for seeing political candidates firsthand in Northwest Iowa has been peaking lately, in the final run-up to the important Iowa caucuses, which are the first contest in the 2020 presidential nominee selection process. Seven Democratic candidates are actively working Iowa, in a number that was reduced after Maryland congressman John Delaney dropped out Friday morning.

Democratic candidates -- and some surrogates campaigning on their behalf -- have packed venues in Sioux City since Sunday, with rallies held by Sen. Bernie Sanders, businessman Andrew Yang, former Vice President Joe Biden and Buttigieg. It appears the end of the presidential campaign appearances will come to a close in Northwest Iowa with the 2 p.m. Saturday event by Sen. Amy Klobuchar at The Marquee on Historic Fourth Street.

In fact, at one point there were overlapping events planned Friday in the city, as the Buttigieg stop was to have been slightly proceeded with one by Sen. Elizabeth Warren. However, Warren's team on Thursday announced she could not make the Sioux City event, due to all senators required to be present in the Senate chambers for the impeachment trial of President Donald Trump.

Instead, U.S. Rep. Katie Porter, D-Calif., who grew up near Winterset, Iowa, spoke at the Warren event as a surrogate, and 35 people showed up. That was at the same Western Iowa Tech Community College venue where Biden had drawn 350 people on Wednesday.

JoAnn Sadler, of Correctionville, Iowa, listened to Porter, and didn't hold it against Warren for bowing out.

"They have to do their job. (The impeachment) is a serious situation," Sadler said.

Mariah Murray-Zumo, of Sioux City, added, "Of course I am disappointed, but I understand." Murray-Zumo added Warren's absence won't derail her plans to caucus for Warren, after seeing 10 to 12 Democratic candidate events over the last year.

Porter told the crowd "my constituents are counting on each one of you," in the caucuses to make a good choice to unify the country and defeat President Donald Trump, the Republican who is seeking re-election.

The impeachment trial meant Warren, Klobuchar and Sanders were taken off the campaign trail for several days in the final crucial stretch to Monday's caucuses. Murray-Zumo said since those three senators are polling in the top five in Iowa, non-senators like Buttigieg and Biden may be able to draw in more caucus supporters.

"There are so many undecideds left that are to be swayed," Murray-Zumo said.

In Buttigieg's remarks at the Orpheum, he said, "I'm resting my hope for Iowa's knack for making history."

Ed Tryon, of Sioux City, who is actually an independent leaning towards caucusing with Republicans, went to both the Buttigieg and Warren events.

'"I really wanted to hear Warren. I'm not so interested in the surrogates," Tryon said.

He cut out early on the Porter speech in order to hear more of Buttigieg.

"I tried to catch as many as I could this last week," Tryon said, citing four over the last six days, plus he plans to see Klobuchar on Saturday to bring the caucus cycle to a close.

While Tryon said he is "kind of getting fatigued" by the political rallies, he firmly believe they are the best way to determine whom to support, by virtue of interpersonal observations that can be made.

"To me, it makes a big difference," he said.

Tryon said, to his eyes, Biden seemed "lackluster" in his Wednesday college stop, while a high-profile congresswoman with Sanders shined when speaking Sunday.

"Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez came off as very intelligent, and that is not how she is portrayed," Tryon said.

Love 0 Funny 0 Wow 0 Sad 0 Angry 0
Venture capital firm Frazier Healthcare Partners promoted Kent Berkley and Ryan Lucero to Principal, and Jennifer Martin and Carol Eckert to Vice President.

The promotions of Berkley and Lucero expand the Principal group on the Growth Buyout IP team to four, as they join Christina Miller Reszka and Phil Zaorski.

Berkley joined Frazier in 2016 as a Vice President and is on the IP team for several of Fraziers portfolio companies including Matrix Medical Network, Parata and Caravel Autism Health. Before coming to Frazier, Berkley spent four years with The Edgewater Funds where he focused on leveraged buyout and growth equity investments in the healthcare, industrial and business services industries. Prior to Edgewater, Berkley was an Associate with CIVC Partners and worked for Dresner Partners and Lehman Brothers.

Lucero joined Frazier in 2016 as a Vice President and serves on the boards of MedData, EPTAM and United Digestive and is on the IP team for several portfolio companies including PCI. Before joining Frazier, Lucero spent five years with Kohlberg & Company where he focused on leveraged buyout and growth equity investments. Previously, Lucero worked for JPMorgan Chase & Co. and was also a member of the investment team for the Troubled Asset Relief Program (TARP) of the U.S. Department of the Treasury in Washington, DC.

Martin  Vice President of Finance  joined Frazier in 2015 in the firms accounting, treasury and finance group. She has extensive experience in hedge and private equity fund activities, including multiple fund structures and standard control practices, and has advised numerous asset managers in the implementation of new financial accounting and disclosure requirements. Prior to joining Frazier, Martin was the CFO of Red Mountain Capital Partners, a hedge fund manager located in Los Angeles. She was also previously a manager with PricewaterhouseCoopers in the Asset Management audit practice.

Eckert  Vice President of Investor Relations  joined Frazier in 2016 as Director of Investor Relations, heading up IR, marketing and communications for the Growth Buyout team. She helped lead the latest fundraise, FHGB IX, which closed in April of 2018. Eckert came to Frazier after several years in private accounting consulting. She began her career in public accounting at Deloitte in Seattle, and then as Director of Accounting at Immunex Corporation.

Founded in 1991, Frazier Healthcare Partners is a provider of growth and venture capital to healthcare companies. With nearly $4.8 billion in total capital raised, the firm has invested in more than 200 companies with investments ranging from company creation and venture capital to buyouts of profitable lower-middle market companies. The firms Growth Buyout team invests in healthcare and pharmaceutical services, medical products and related sectors. The Life Sciences team invests in therapeutics and related areas that are addressing unmet medical needs through innovation. Frazier has offices in Seattle, Wash., and Menlo Park, Calif., and invests broadly across the U.S., Canada and Europe.

FinSMEs

01/02/2020
Max and Gokada, motorbike hailing services, have taken to the street to protest against the ban imposed by Lagos state government in several parts of the state. Effect from February 1st, Lagos state says it doesnt want okada and tricycle plying 15 local councils.

Making the announcement, Gbenga Omotoso, commissioner for information and strategy, confirmed that ORide, Max and Gokada would be affected by the ban.

The Peoples Democratic Party, PDP, has asked Justice Tanko Mohammed to resign as Chief Justice of Nigeria and Chairman of the National Judicial Council because Nigerians have lost confidence in him. The demand was made by the opposition party on Friday when its leaders protested at the United Kingdom (UK) and American Embassies in Abuja.

Festus Keyamo, minister of state for labor and employment, says the call for the resignation of President Muhammadu Buhari is a way of asking him to do better.

Senate minority leader, Enyinnaya Abaribe had asked Buhari to resign after the presidents statement in which he expressed surprise over the state of security in the country. Abaribe said Buharis government can no longer do anything about the situation, a statement that stirred reactions among Nigerians who also demanded that the president resigns.

President Muhammadu Buhari says his government plans to offer security to all Nigerians with policies and programmes that will bring prosperity, and this can only work if everyone put their differences aside and work together in the spirit of cooperation.

The president said this on Thursday at the Presidential Villa, Abuja, when he was paid a courtesy visit by the 2019 National Productivity Order of Merit Awardees.

Bauchi state has confirmed four new cases of Lassa fever bringing the total to seven in the state. The confirmation was made by Rilwan Mohammed, executive secretary of the primary health care development agency in the state, during a press conference on Friday.

Mohammed said the number of suspected cases has also risen from 15 to 22.

Former President Goodluck Jonathan says he is worried about ordinary Nigerians, following the widespread insecurity in the country.

Jonathan said this when the National Association of Nigerian Students (NANS) paid him a solidarity visit over the attack on his Bayelsa residence in December. Jonathan, in a statement via Ikechukwu Eze, his spokesman, told the delegation that he was worried about the fate of ordinary Nigerians if he could suffer such attack despite his status.

The leadership of the People Democratic Party(PDP) staged a protest at the Abuja offices of the US Embassy, UK embassy, and the European Union embassy on Friday following the Supreme court judgement which sacked Emeka Ihedioha and replaced him with Hope Uzodinme of the All Progressive Congress(APC). PDP in its plea wants the Supreme court to revisit the judgement and also reverse the judgement.
Two days after a youth fired a pistol at a group of anti-Citizenship Amendment Act protesters near the Jamia university, another man on Saturday fired two rounds in the air at Shaheen Bagh, the epicentre of the protest against the country's new citizenship law, and was later taken into custody.

IMAGE: Police take away a person who identified himself as Kapil Gujjar after he opened fire in the Shaheen Bagh area of New Delhi, on Saturday. Many anti-CAA protestors have been staging a peaceful demostration in the area for since December 15, 2019. Photograph: Arun Sharma/PTI Photo



No one was injured in the incident that came even as Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath during a poll rally in Delhi's northwest Rohini area alleged that those who support terrorists in Kashmir are staging protest at Shaheen Bagh.

The man, who identified himself as Kapil Gujjar, chanted 'Jai Shree Ram' and said, 'hamare desh me aur kisi ki nahi chalegi, sirf Hindu ki chalegi (only Hindus shall have a say in our country, no one else)', as he was taken into custody by the Delhi Police.

"The accused fired in air near police barricades. He was overpowered by police personnel and taken into custody. Further investigation is on," Chinmoy Biswal, Deputy Commissioner of Police (southeast) said.

The police said they are verifying his identity.

According to eyewitnesses, the man shouted 'Hindu Rashtra Zindabad' and fired two rounds.

The incident, which comes days after a local contractor armed with a gun had come to the site and asked the people to end the protest against the Citizenship (Amendment) Act, has triggered panic in the area.

SEE: Man who fired at Shaheen Bagh area detained by police

A woman protestor, who didn't wish to be named, said the incident has created panic among them as well as children.

"Many women and children were inside the tent when the incident occurred. We rushed to the spot after hearing a gunshot. Everyone is scared. But we won't leave the spot," she said.

Notwithstanding the unnerving incident, many people thronged the protest site to express solidarity with the protestors. Many of them sung the national anthem while others offered namaz there.

The protestors also raised slogans against the Delhi Police.

Abu Ala Suhani, a publisher and resident of Shaheen Bagh said, "The man appeared to be in his 20s and fired two rounds. While he was being taken into custody, we heard a policeman asking him his name. The man said his name was Kapil Gujjar and he belongs to Dallupura village in Uttar Pradesh."

On Thursday, the youth had fired on anti-CAA protesters at Jamia Millia Islamia injuring a student in the presence of police personnel, triggering massive protest by the Jamia students against the police inaction.

Hundreds of people, including women and children, have been protesting since December 15 at Shaheen Bagh, which has attracted attention across the country among those opposing the CAA, but at the same time the agitation has been severely criticised by others, including the Bharatiya Janata Paty Union ministers and leaders.

Hitting out at the Aam Aadmi Party dispensation, Adityanath said that the Arvind Kejriwal government 'supplies biryani' to protesters at Shaheen Bagh.

Addressing another poll rally at Karawal Nagar Chowk in east Delhi, the BJP leader lashed out at the anti-CAA protesters, saying 'their ancestors divided India, so they have a grouse against this emerging 'Ek Bharat Shrestha Bharat'.'

"These protests happening at various places in Delhi are not about the CAA, but it is happening because those people are questioning as to how can India emerge as a major power in the world, and to stop that rising India," he claimed.

BJP leaders have been urging people to vote for the party in Delhi assembly polls on February eight to show their disapproval for the ongoing anti-CAA protest at Shaheen Bagh.

IMAGE: Police personnel stand near bullet shells. Photograph: Arun Sharma/PTI Photo



Reacting to the incident, AAP leader Sanjay Singh said they had already warned the Election Commission that a conspiracy is being hatched by the BJP to postpone the polls.

"There is no law and order in the country. The gun-toting men are not making Delhi their bastion (adda).We have been seeking time from the Election Commission since yesterday so that we can make them aware of these developments but they have not given us any time," he said.

However, senior BJP leader B L Santhosh insinuated involvement of party's rivals in the recent shooting incidents, saying the 'great drama party of Delhi is becoming too costly for the country'.

'One more drama today. This time the gun shot is near Shaheen Bagh. The acts are looking too dramatic to be real. Person brandishes gun...shoots couple of bullets...shouts some words against a community .The great drama party of Delhi is becoming too costly for the country,' he tweeted.

In a veiled attack on the BJP over the incident, the Congress said the shooter has changed but the ideology pulling the trigger in 1948 or 2020 has remained the same.

A man fired two rounds in air in the Shaheen Bagh area in Jamia Nagar, where an anti-CAA protest is on, following which he was taken into custody by police, eyewitnesses said.

Congress spokesperson Jaiveer Shergill tweeted, 'Shooter changes but ideology pulling the trigger either in 1948 (Nathuram Godse) or 2020 remains the same 'Goli Maro' -- Hands which should be pulling India's growth are now firing guns.'

'Instead of 'Make in India' focus is on 'spreading hate in India',' he alleged.

On Monday, Minister of State for Finance Anurag Thakur while addressing a election rally, had raised the slogan of 'desh ke gaddaron ko' (traitors in the country) as the crowd responded with 'goli maaron sa***n ko'.

The next day, BJP MP Parvesh Sahib Singh Verma said protesters at Shaheen Bagh could 'enter homes and rape our sisters and daughters'.

The Election commission asked the BJP to remove both Thakur and Verma from the list of star campaigners.

It also barred Thakur from campaigning for three days and Verma for four days for their controversial remarks.
The Civil Aviation Authority of Vietnam (CAAV) has announced that all flights to and from China would be grounded from Saturday to prevent the spread of the novel coronavirus (2019-nCoV).

The flight ban took effect from 1:00 pm on Saturday and applies to all flights between Vietnam and China, including those already licensed for takeoff.

The grounding is in line with a government directive on Friday on enhancing measures to prevent a pneumonia outbreak caused by the 2019-nCoV, CAAV said.

Accordingly, all flights between destinations in Vietnam and China will not be licensed to take off from Saturday while previously issued licenses are voided until the ban is lifted.

Following the new order, Vietnam Airlines said on Saturday the airline and its subsidiary Jetstar Pacific Airlines will suspend their flights to mainland China, Hong Kong, and Taiwan with effect from Saturday.

The national flag carrier had said late on Friday it would suspend flights to China from Thursday next week and cut flights between Ho Chi Minh City and Hong Kong to seven from ten per week.

"Considering how widespread the virus is and following the government's order, all flights to China will be suspended from today," the company said in its latest statement.

Plans to bring Vietnamese citizens back from mainland China, Taiwan, and Hong Kong will be further updated in later announcements, the carrier added.

Budget carrier Vietjet said on Friday it will suspend all flights to and from China from February 1.

On Thursday, Vietnam said it would stop issuing visas for Chinese tourists.

Hundreds of passengers checking in and waiting to board two Vietnam Airlines flights and one Bamboo Airways flight to China at Noi Bai International Airport in Hanoi were affected by the sudden ban on Saturday afternoon.

Most passengers were understanding and complied with the ban without causing any disturbance, an airport representative told Tuoi Tre (Youth) newspaper.

Vietnam is the latest country to impose extraordinary travel barriers after the virus spread to two dozen nations and killed 259 people in China where it originated in the city of Wuhan.

The United States temporarily barred entry to foreigners who had been in China within the past two weeks and Australia said it was barring entry to non-citizens arriving from China.

Italy, Singapore and Mongolia have also taken similar sweeping precautions.

The World Health Organization declared the coronavirus outbreak a global health emergency on Thursday but did not advise international trade of travel restrictions.

Vietnam's announcement came after the country confirmed its sixth case of the coronavirus.

A 25-year-old hotel receptionist working in Nha Trang contracted the SARS-like pathogen after coming into contact with Chinese tourists who were later diagnosed with coronavirus.

She was also the first domestic infection for a Vietnamese national with no known history of travel to China.

Three of the country's six cases were Vietnamese nationals who had traveled to Wuhan.

The receptionist's health is "stable, no fever or cough", a hospital staffer told AFP on condition of anonymity, adding she had "no history of travel to China recently".

Vietnam has joined Thailand, China, Germany, Japan, South Korea, France, and the United States as the only countries with confirmed domestic coronavirus infections.

Like us on Facebook or follow us on Twitter to get the latest news about Vietnam!
Filmmaker Vivek Agnihotri recently wrote on Twitter on anti-CAA protests at Shaheen Bagh in Delhi which did not go down well with many. Actor Sayani Gupta objected to his tweets and said that he doesnt have a conscience.

Reacting to Viveks tweet, Sayani Gupta wrote on Twitter, Sir,I never pick out people on Twitter &leave bigots unaddressed.But you really have no conscience.What went wrong with your upbringing Sir? I am so glad I refused your film & didnt speak to you on the award night. I am glad my instinct always tell me to stay away from poisonous ppl.

Sir,I never pick out people on Twitter &leave bigots unaddressed.But you really have no conscience.What went wrong with your upbringing Sir?I am so glad I refused your film&didn't speak to you on the award night.I am glad my instinct always tell me to stay away from poisonous ppl https://t.co/p7gIsstYG7  Sayani Gupta (@sayanigupta) January 31, 2020

Vivek Agnihotri had tweeted, #ShaheenBagh has turned into an Islamist conversion centre and a hideout for all kinds of criminals like pickpockets, mobile thieves, drug-peddlers. All kinds of illegal activities are flourishing there. I wonder why Delhi citizens are tolerating this?

Protests have been going on at Shaheen Bagh since December 15 last year against the amended citizenship law. The name of the film Sayani mentions is not known. She is best known for playing Gaura in Anubhav Sinhas Article 15 and her roles in Jagga Jassos and Jolly LLB 2.

Also read: Vivek Agnihotri says Shaheen Bagh has turned into hideout for criminals like pickpockets, Sayani Gupta reacts I am so glad I refused your film

Vivek is known for his last directorial The Tashkent Files and is currently working on his next, The Kashmir Files. It is scheduled to release on Independence Day, August 15 this year.

Vivek had earlier tweeted about Deepika Padukones visit to the Jawaharlal Nehru University last month. The actor had visited JNU to show her solidarity with the students who were attacked by a masked mob. He had written on Twitter, I am told that it was suggested to #DeepikaPadukone to go and stand next to #Nirbhayas parents for a photo op. But last minute she changed her plan because #Nirbahaya wasnt trending whereas #JNU was. This is how it works, my dear friends.

The story is based on Vivek Ranjan Agnihotri and Sayani Guptas tweets.

Follow @htshowbiz for more
Source: Xinhua| 2020-02-01 19:03:50|Editor: huaxia

Video Player Close

Staff members receive takeaways from a deliveryman at a hospital in Wuhan, central China's Hubei Province, Jan. 31, 2020. (Xinhua/Li He)

BEIJING, Feb. 1 (Xinhua) -- The Red Cross Society of China (RCSC) and the Chinese Red Cross Foundation had received more than 849.72 million yuan (about 123.37 million U.S. dollars) in social donations for novel coronavirus prevention and control as of 5 p.m. Friday, the RCSC said Saturday.

The donations, consisting of 656.96 million yuan in cash and 192.77 million yuan in kind, will be used in accordance with the needs of epidemic control and the will of the donors, the RCSC said. 
When did cows become these superbeings? The list of cows' super abilities keeps on increasing day by day.



First, it was said that cows are the only animals that exhale oxygen, and then it was said that cows' milk actually contains gold. All of this applies to only desi cows or our 'gau mata', of course, since the foreign cows are our aunties.

The latest thing that cows can do is cure coronavirus, obviously. I mean, at this point, are we even surprised by any claim that is made regarding cows? I sure am not.

So, this hilariously bizarre claim was made by Hindu Mahasabha president Swami Chakrapani Maharaj who said that cow urine and cow dung can be used to cure the deadly virus that is rapidly becoming a global epidemic.

He said, "Consuming cow urine and cow dung will stop the effect of infectious coronavirus. A person who chants Om Namah Shivay and applies cow dung on the body will be saved. A special yagna ritual will soon be performed to kill coronavirus."

Who's sending him to Wuhan with a tank full of cow urine, a bag full of cow dung, and a whole lot of this bullshit philosophy?

As expected, he was ripped apart on Twitter and it's so beautiful to see everyone unite and have a facepalm moment together.

We knew this was coming.

Yes, please.

Modi should send this moron to Wuhan with some cow dung and urine! https://t.co/BDWNBqTi2m  Ashok Swain (@ashoswai) January 31, 2020

Can't wait.

India will, in the next 5 years, be the country which will wipe out all Pharma companies across the world.



India will export 1st, only cow urine of Desi cows, with magical curing properties.



Next on the list is Bhakt urine. It will change d world.https://t.co/8aKT6eg7YG  Indur Chhugani (@IndurChhugani) February 1, 2020

No science allowed.

Hindu mahasabha president says Corona virus disease can be cured by Cow urine.



Researchers:#BJPAgainstSchoolKids pic.twitter.com/T5o8p7BR4t  Rishi (@SunoRishi) January 31, 2020

Yep.

The Hindu Mahasabha that is advocating for Cow Urine + Gobar as treatment for Coronavirus is also the one that will honour terrorist Ramgopal Bhakt for his invaluable contribution to the Hindu supremacy movement.



The spectacle is meant to entertain, lull, butcher & usurp.  Sidrah (@SidrahDP) February 1, 2020

Oops.

Cow urine and cow dung can be used for the treatment of coronavirus  Shri Shri Maharaj Chakrapani..



Meanwhile the Chinese scientists who are rubbing their ass off to find a cure :- pic.twitter.com/SH74BSIdj2   _ (@khan_sajid009) January 31, 2020

For sure.

Cow urine, dung might cure coronavirus (lets just assume) but it can't cure stupidity for sure. pic.twitter.com/S7YSWIpvqX  Abhijeet Dipke (@abhijeet_dipke) January 31, 2020

Hmm.

If cow urine and dung itself are so powerful, how powerful Beef should be.. Beef shawarma for Coronavirus.  https://t.co/9FoFarWsRR  Priya (@Priyadoc22) February 1, 2020

Probably feeling very stupid.

Heh take that, China. All that money, huge Scientific knowledge pool and high-tech labs and you never knew it could be treated so simply. Feeling pretty stup!d now, don't ya? https://t.co/kjgFuGP8hl   A little bit rad Komrad (@DerArschloch) January 31, 2020




Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman, in her second budget, did not announce any capital infusion for the public sector banks (PSBs). She said that the government had already infused Rs 3.5 lakh crore In PSU Banks over the last few years.

The government front-loaded Rs 68,855 crore, out of Rs 70,000 crore earmarked for capital infusion for the current fiscal, to take care of the mega-merger plan announced in August 2019.

The FM said that the decision of merging PSU Banks had been taken so that it could absorb losses as there would be amendments in the Income Tax Act. The privatisation will bring in arms-length between PSUs and Govt, while improving governance standards, she said.

Among all four anchor banks  Punjab National Bank was given R 16,091 crore, Union Bank of India Rs 11,768 crore, Canara Bank Rs 6,571 crore and Indian Bank Rs 2,534 crore.

Merging entities like Allahabad Bank was provided Rs 2,153 crore, United Bank of India Rs 1,666 crore and Andhra Bank Rs 200 crore.

Besides, Bank of Baroda got a capital infusion of Rs 7,000 crore, Indian Overseas Bank Rs 4,360 crore, UCO Bank Rs 2142 crore, Punjab & Sind Bank Rs 787 crore and Central Bank of India Rs 3,353 crore.

LIC-controlled IDBI Bank too received additional capital of 4,557 crore through the first supplementary demands for grants approved by Parliament last month. With the deadline of March 31 to complete other regulatory requirements, the merged entity will come into existence beginning next fiscal.

Alternative Mechanism of Government of India gave in principle approval for merger of United Bank of India and Oriental Bank of Commerce with Punjab National Bank, making the proposed entity the second largest public sector bank (PSB).

Syndicate Bank will be merged with Canara Bank, while Allahabad Bank will be amalgamated with Indian Bank.

Similarly, Andhra Bank and Corporation Bank will be consolidated with Union Bank of India.

Banks have been reportedly also looking at divesting or selling their non-core business as part of fund raising exercise during 2020-21.

Banks expect robust recovery from the resolution of both NCLT and non-NCLT cases during this calender year and also headroom for raising capital from the market.

The provision coverage ratio of public sector banks is at a 7-year high of 76.6 percent.

Country's largest lender State Bank of India (SBI) has already initiated the process of diluting its stake in its subsidiaries SBI Cards and Payment Services Ltd and UTI Mutual Fund.
With election fever in full swing, we took to the streets of Longford town to try and gauge public opinion ahead of polling day on Saturday, February 08.

On Thursday, January 23, we took to the streets of Longford town to find out the main issues facing the constituency ahead of the general election on February 08, and if Longford really missed out by not having a TD last time around.

Sam Curwin, Anthony McKenna (Middle right in above picture)

For Sam and Anthony, the main issue locally is the rise in antisocial behaviour in the town.

Sam said: I think the lack of security around here is an issue. You are always looking over your shoulder, especially during the day.

This, they feel, is affecting locals and giving the county a bad image, which, in turn, is deterring visitors.

Anthony noted: Longford has got a very negative image.

Because it is dead centre in Ireland, everyone comes through Longford. If there is a very negative image here, it is a straight run through, nobody stops and there is very little footfall.

If there was a local TD, there would probably be a lot more focus on the town, he continued.

Loveth Nuantwor & Tracey Harte (middle left in above picture)

For Tracey Harte, Manager at Lloyds pharmacy, violence on the streets of Longford was also the main issue.

She stated: We face it (violence) here everyday. A lot of people are afraid to come into town because of that and I can see it affecting business.

Gardai are stretched to their limit and nobody gives them fair credit for what they do and I just feel sorry for them.

She hopes Longford is represented in the next Dail.

I am hoping for someone who has a voice and cares for the town. It would definitely make a difference to the town. Having someone in town who acts as a voice for us could certainly draw more attention.

SEE HERE: For full coverage of the general election

James Carroll (Pictured top right)

Local student James Carroll, felt the main issue for Longford is the lack of adequate services for kids with additional needs and a lack of mental health services.

I dont think there are enough facilities at all in Longford, especially when it comes to secondary schools. There are only a handful of schools that facilitate special needs adequately, he said.

James says he won't be voting for either FF or FG and feels current representation havent delivered for Longford.

We are always on the backburner to Athlone. There was so much promised in Longford that never happened.

It seems like nobody really cares about Longford.

Christine Tracey (Pictured bottom left)

Christine feels there will be no major difference to the area following the elections, regardless of who is elected.

I think it is all the same. Civil servants run the country.

Nobody has the magic bullet to cure everything and it will never be cured.

However, she will stay loyal to Longford candidates, though she feels the country is in a much better state that people think.

I will vote for all of the Longford candidates, rather than a party. But I dont think it is all that relevant.

I feel we have come on well since the slump. In general, I think the country is very prosperous.

Things have been a lot worse.

Seamus Keaveney (Pictured top left)

Seamus Keaveney feels there are a number of issues in need of tackling both locally and nationally, though he doesnt feel the lack of a local TD last time around changed much.

Hospital, health, housing. There are plenty of them. he said of main issues.

Dont be fooling yourself that a TD in Longford can do anything, because they havent done in years."

Mr Keaveney tuned into the recent debate between party leaders Mr Varadkar and Mr Martin, though didnt take much from it.

If thats what you could call it, he said of the debate.

Tweedle dee and Tweedle Dum were playing off each other and that was about it, he concluded.

David Skinner (Pictured bottom right)

For David Skinner, his main grievances are with the healthcare system (lack of hospital beds) and the lack of differences between the two parties (FF and FG) which are in a tug-of-war for power.

The main issue for me is that there is no difference between the two main parties.

Health is another issue for me, as I have had reasonably bad health myself.

"I have had good service, but anytime I have been in hospital I have been left on a trolley.

In terms of the direction of the elections, Mr Skinner feels whatever happens, change is necessary.

Unless we make a change nothing different will happen.

Also read: Longford's Mean Scoil Mhuire campaign for new school
Advertisement

Love Island's Casa Amor twist is never without an explosive truckload of drama.

And now the sexy singletons who are set to shake up the current line-up have been revealed, with six beautiful new ladies and a further six hunky men set to make their debut and tempt the Islanders from their couples.

The contestants, as always, will be given the chance to couple up with one of the newcomers or stay single and risk their current couple ditching them for someone else.

REVEALED! The sexy singletons who are set to shake up the current line-up have been revealed, with six beautiful new ladies and a further six hunky men set to make their debut and tempt the Islanders from their couples (Priscilla Anyabu, Alexi Eraclides and Molly Smith pictured L-R)

The latest line-up includes a stunning pageant queen, a sexy butler in the buff and three models, who will no doubt all be trying to turn the heads of the current batch of Islanders.

Almost all of the girls have claimed that they have their eyes on Justin Bieber lookalike Luke Mabbot, leaving his relationship with Jess Gale even more at risk after her head appears to have been turned by Mike Boateng.

A source previously revealed to the Sun that the newbies are the 'sexiest singles yet', and producers are hoping they stir up trouble between the couples.

Casa Amor is a second villa situated just a throw away from the main villa. It sees the show's couples separated from each other and gives them the opportunity to get to know a new set of boys and girls, while testing their loyalty.

The Casa Amor twist will be teased during Sunday's episode, with the action kicking off on Monday when the bombshell is delivered to the current couples.

MEET THE NEW ISLANDERS: THE GIRLS Name: Jade Affleck Age: 25 From: Yarm Occupation: Sales professioanl She says: Some guy are coupled up but that's a minor setback for me, I'll do anything it takes to get my man. Name: Priscilla Anyabu Age: 25 From: Battersea Occupation: Model and operations manager She says: My personality and my spirit and I think I look good. I've got likeability, it's easy for me to meet and get on with new people Name: Jamie McCann Age: 24 From: Ayrshire Occupation: Eyelash technician She says: I'll give myself an 8 out of 10. I get complimented on my boobs but also I've got nice eyes! Name: Molly Smith Age: 25 From: Manchester Occupation: Model She says: I've got my eye on Luke M, I like how he dresses, I like how he dresses and styles his hair, he seems really into his fashion. He seems confidence as well which I like Name: Eve Zapico Age: 21 From: Bromley Occupation: Recruitment consultant She says: I rate myself 10/10 - how can you expect someone to love you if you dont love yourself? Id say my hair is my best feature - its long, thick and bright. Name: Natalia Zoppa Age: 20 From: Manchester Occupation: Student and club promoter She says: I don't really hold back, if I'm in a bad mood people will know about it. I'm not very good at hiding my emotions. Advertisement

Making room for the new Islanders, a dumping looms during the upcoming episode after the couples were forced to vote for two couples who they believed to be the least compatible together.

Following the tense decision, Sophie Piper and her partner Mike were branded 'snakes' after they chose to vote 'tactically' during the process.

Sophie, 21 and Mike, 28, decided to give one of their votes to Siannise Fudge, 25, and Luke Trotman, 22, despite them being one of the current strongest couples.

Although it appeared that Sophie and Mike voted for them because they knew they would be safe, fans still accused them of being out of order with their vote.

MEET THE NEW ISLANDERS: THE BOYS Name: Chris Biggs Age: 27 From: Glasgow Occupation: Car body repair specialist He says: My celebrity crush... there's something about Sharon Osbourne. But I'd say Cardi B. Name: George Day Age: 27 From: Southampton Occupation: Estate agent He says: My hair once came second in a Barber Connect competition! Name: Alexi Eraclides Age: 23 From: Essex Occupation: Butler in the buff He says: Ive met Jess on a night out before, we exchanged Instagrams then we sent a few messages but nothing came of it. Itll be interesting to see how we get on when we meet again.. Name: Josh Kempton Age: 21 From: Surrey Occupation: Model He says: Im competitive. I hate losing, Im a sore loser. Name: Ched Uzor Age: 23 From: Suffolk Occupation: Scaffolder He says: I dont feel like anyone is in a solid couple in there. The most solid couple in the villa is probably Shaughna and Callum and I still wonder if Callum might stray Name: Jordan Waozikeze Age: 24 From: London Occupation: Adminstrator He says: Im attracted to all of the girls because they are all good looking. Im looking forward to meeting them and seeing who I get on with. Advertisement

Siannise and Luke only received one vote in total - from Sophie and Mike - however they are now up for the public vote which puts them at risk of elimination.

Following the series of events, viewers took to Twitter to express how they felt about Sophie and Mike's 'tactical' decision.

One fan wrote: 'That's just shown that Mike and Sophie are the biggest snakes in the villa. Siannise and Luke T are one of the most compatible couples in the villa!

Reaction: Sophie Piper and her partner Mike Boateng have been branded 'snakes' after they chose to vote 'tactically' during a brutal task on Friday's Love Island

Good thinking? Sophie, 21 and Mike, 28, decided to give one of their votes to Siannise Fudge, 25, and Luke Trotman, 22, despite them being one of the current strongest couples

'I hope Sophie and Mike get DUMPED from the Island and get a reality check #loveisland.'

Another person said: 'Did snakes Sophie and Mike really just choose Siannise and Luke. Wtf kinda tactics are they? #LoveIsland.'

A third person wrote: 'Who does Sophie htink she is with her tactical thinking in voting for Luke T and Siannise! Go Home! #LoveIsland.

Along with Luke and Siannise, Luke Mabbott and Jess Gale, Wallace Wilson and Rebecca Gormley, and Mike Boateng and Sophie Piper are all at risk of elimination.

The Islanders were faced with a tough decision, as each couple had to vote for the two pairs they believe are the least compatible.

Four couples - Luke M and Jess, Luke T and Siannise, Wallace and Rebecca, and Mike and Sophie - all received at least one vote from their fellow Islanders, and so now face a public vote to determine which couple will be booted from the villa.

New pad: The islanders are in for a treat as the luxury abode boasts a stunning pool, cosy day beds and a swanky new dressing room

Making a splash: The pool area features romantic fairylights and colourful sun loungers

Love Island confirmed the return of the classic second villa twist, Casa Amor, on Friday night.

Fans were reeling that this may mark the end of Callum and Shaughna, as they suspect he may stray the minute he meets a new set of six girls.

At the episode, Iain Stirling announced that Casa Amor would make its return next week as a sign with the name of the villa flashed up on screen.

Bed time: The decor of the luxury new villa is similar to that of the original with white and pastel hues
YEREVAN.  Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan has not violated the presumption of innocence. Minister of Justice Rustam Badasyan said this in a conversation with journalists today, answering the journalist's question whether the presumption of innocence was violated in the case of Arsen Babayan, former Deputy Chief of Staff of the National Assembly.

"No, because I followed the Prime Minister's speech in Kapan, and he made a reference to his indictment and only then spoke about the content of the indictment," Badasyan said. "He [Pashinyan] made a reference to the indictment, the official documents."

To note, Arsen Babayan had stated: "The head of the political force adopting laws with disgraceful fraud violates my presumption of innocence protected by the Constitution already for the third time (each time more severely)."
Barclays Bank Ghana will be changing to Absa Bank Ghana in line with its parent company, Absa Groups decision to rebrand all its operations in Africa by mid-2020. People have been wondering what they can expect from the Bank that is committed to bringing customers possibilities to life.



Absa Group is one of Africas largest diversified financial services groups, offering an integrated set of products and services across personal and business banking, corporate and investment banking, wealth and investment management, and insurance. The Group has a presence in several African countries with representative international offices in London and New York. They have approximately 40,000 employees, more than 1,000 branches, and nearly 10,000 ATMs.



Absa is a future-focused organisation driven by progress and a desire to thrive in the digital age. Their ambition is to become a digitally-led bank that is centred around the ever-changing needs of customers. Given these changing customer needs, the Group has invested in digital platforms to offer more convenience and innovation. In 2018, they invested $550 million to bring about new technology and digital platforms to improve customers banking experience.



According to Ebo Richardson, the Change Enablement Lead in charge of the transition project at Barclays Bank Ghana, Once the transition is complete, our customers can look forward to the following innovative products that leverage the Absa Groups investment in technology.



Vertical Cards



Previously, bank cards were designed for a time when paper-based machines that took an imprint of the card and the transaction were still used. In those days, the horizontal orientation made sense, Mr Richardson said. Today we use cards differently. Vertical cards are designed to be better suited to how customers actually use them these days, whether in the ATM, swiping, tapping or safely stored in their wallet or purse. These cards are designed to be as future-proof as possible, so all new Absa cards will soon be tap-and-pay enabled.



The new vertical cards reflect Absas vibrant red colour palette and take an unconventional approach to status. We did extensive research, Mr Richardson explained. People across all our segments  from youth to premier and wealth customers  loved the energetic and youthful approach.



Over and above this, Mr Richardson added, Smart design elements help you easily distinguish your card in your wallet or purse.



All cards come with an array of benefits, making it easier for customers to bank and earn rewards. In the next couple of months, our new vertical cards will provide access to nearly 1,000 thousand airport lounges around the world with Dragon pass. Our cards come with an array of benefits including discount packages of up to 40% from our Alliance Partners, 2% cashback rewards on purchases made with your Absa Platinum Credit Cards and many more.



Absa ChatBot



The Absa ChatBot, when launched, will be available all hours of the day, every day, to answer customers questions. Powered by artificial intelligence, the Bot becomes smarter the more questions are asked of it. Explaining the rationale behind this innovation, Mr Richardson had this to say: Some people will always prefer to come into a branch to ask questions, others prefer the call centre, but many others are beginning to embrace a more digital way of life. By using the Bot, customers can find answers to their questions  in their own time and at their convenience.



Biometric access to the Absa app



The Absa app allows customers to pay bills, transact, buy airtime and more. According to Mr Richardson, Biometric access offers an added layer of protection as customers can use their fingerprints or facial recognition technology to access their app. Mr Richardson further advised that this is device dependent and the feature can only be used if the customers mobile device has this capability.



Family Banking



We are rolling out family banking to enable us serve the next generation of our customers.



Our Premier customers , will be able to have their family members signed on to the Absa Premier banking offering , with one Relationship Manager for the whole Family, providing a comprehensive and convenient banking experience for the entire family .



My SME Toolkit



Entrepreneurs and small and medium enterprises (SMEs) are key drivers of economic activity and growth in our country. Absas digital toolkit enables SME businesses to perform certain functions online, Mr Ebo Richardson said.



Customer innovation lies at the heart of Absas strategy. The group continues to invest in the sorts of technologies that will lead to improved experience and convenience, as it works toward becoming a scalable digitally-led bank. With the underlying improvements in technological capabilities and connectivity, and the proliferation of mobile devices, we anticipate exciting times ahead as our market gets progressively digitally transformed. You can expect more digital innovations from us that will enhance our customers banking experiences! Mr Richardson said.



Under Absa, customers can expect a forward-looking bank that is still very cognisant of our role in society, he added.

Source: Peacefmonline.com









Disclaimer : Opinions expressed here are those of the writers and do not reflect those of Peacefmonline.com. Peacefmonline.com accepts no responsibility legal or otherwise for their accuracy of content. Please report any inappropriate content to us, and we will evaluate it as a matter of priority.

Featured Video
The decision was taken at a meeting convened by Prime Minister Imran Khan on Friday

Islamabad: Pakistan, which is facing its worst locust attack in decades, has declared national emergency to tackle the insects destroying crops on a large scale in Punjab province, country's main region for agricultural production. The decision was taken at a meeting convened by Prime Minister Imran Khan on Friday. The meeting, attended by federal ministers and senior officials of the four provinces, also approved a National Action Plan (NAP) that requires a sum of Rs 7.3 billion to overcome the crisis.

Minister for National Food Security Khusro Bakhtiar informed the National Assembly about the gravity of the situation and the steps so far taken by the federal and provincial governments to deal with the crisis, the Dawn newspaper reported. During the meeting at the Prime Minister's Office, which was also attended by Adviser to the Prime Minister on Finance Hafeez Shaikh among others, a detailed briefing on the overall situation was given to the prime minister.

The meeting was informed that besides involving the officials concerned at the provincial and district levels, different tasks have been given to the National Disaster Management Authority (NDMA), provincial disaster management authorities and federal and provincial departments to deal with the threat. Imran ordered formation of a high-level committee to be headed by Bakhtiar to take decisions at the federal level for the elimination of insects. The prime minister directed the authorities concerned to make immediate measures on the basis of damage of ripened crops.

"Protection of farms and farmers is the highest priority of the government. Therefore, the federal government should take all necessary steps to save national crops and provide required resources to the quarters concerned," Imran was quoted as saying in the report. Bakhtiar informed the house that it was for the first time that after attacking Sindh and Punjab, the swarms of locust had entered Khyber Pakhtunkhwa.

"A sum of Rs 7.3 bn is required to avoid further destruction," he said. "Declaration of national emergency was eminent to handle the situation; besides, Parliament must have a role in monitoring the situation," he added. Bakhtiar claimed that the government had managed to save cotton and winter crops to a large extent, adding that climate change was one of the reasons for delay in the exit of locusts. He said the situation was worse than the one Pakistan faced in 1993.

The swarms of locust are currently on the Pakistan-India border along Cholistan, the minister said, adding that insects had entered Cholistan and Nara from Sindh and Balochistan. Locusts used to move to Iran after sometime, but perhaps this time due to low temperatures they are still in Pakistan, he said. Nawab Yousuf Talpur of Pakistan Peoples Party said that in 1993 when locusts had attacked the country, the situation had been handled in four days with limited resources, the report said.
For most people of an older generation, the name Maureen O'Hara is iconic, her image seared into their hearts and minds and her story the stuff of legend.

For those out there not too familiar with the story of the Irish actress, she was a star of Hollywood's Golden Age and was known for her starring roles in films such as 'The Quiet Man' 'Miracle on 34th Street' and 'The Parent Trap'.

It is the part she played as in what we now know as the '#MeToo' movement - she often spoke out about the sexual harassment in the 1940's - that has really cemented her status as one of 'the' icons of the 20th century.

This #MeToo connection was also what drew Elaine O'Dwyer to the story of Maureen in the first place.

Now, as we celebrate 100 years of the Dublin-born mega star - she was born on August 17 1920 - a Limerick born actress, Elaine O'Dwyer has taken it upon herself to bring the story of Maureen to a whole new generation and audience.

Elaine will perform her show 'Queen of Technicolor -The Story of Maureen O' Hara' in St John's Theatre on Friday March 20.

It was Maureen's passing in October 2015 that served as the catalyst for Elaine to write the show, which has received huge critical acclaim right across the board.

She spoke to us here in The Kerryman last week about what she says drew her to Maureen.

"I'm 28-years-old so I was not part of her generation and did not grow up with her films. But when she actually passed away in 2015, I was in a rehearsal studio in Guildford and I remember reading something online about her death and it just hit me," said Elaine.

"I hadn't even realised that she was still alive even so when I heard she had died, the cogs in my brain started turning and I thought 'god, I actually don't know much about this woman'. I started looking up different things about her and when I read her autobiography in 2017, it was when all the scandals in Hollywood were surfacing, all the Weinstein stuff," she said.

"I was reading this book and I was reading articles from 2017 and the similarities were very overwhelming and I thought that not much has changed in all these years," she continued.

Hailing the star as someone who was way ahead of her time with the issues that she spoke out about over 70 years before they became the movement that it is today, Elaine said that some of the types of characters that Maureen met during her career are very similar to people that she herself has encountered as an actress in the present day.

Calling O'Hara a "trailblazer" for her work, Elaine was then inspired to put pen to paper on her show which has had critics calling it "an emotional roller-coaster" and a "beautiful piece of theatre".

As for those who feel that they might not know enough about Maureen to come along, Elaine said that the beauty of the show is that it covers her life from the very beginning.

"They really don't need to know anything about her if they're coming to the show. In relation to any celebrity that we see in all the magazines and everything, you can say that you know them but you really only know them at a surface level," she said.

"While this story is obviously about the life of Maureen O'Hara, it's also very much about the life of a celebrity as well and what you see in the headlines isn't actually what's happening in real life. They might be going through horrific things personally and on the outside they have to smile and make sure they look okay and portray that life is wonderful. With this show, I just want to juxtapose those two sides, those facades," said Elaine.

"When they come out of the theatre, I hope that they'll feel that they know Maureen O'Hara to a greater, greater extent than they thought they did. I'm absolutely not going to shy away from the darker side of things at all," she said.

The audience will witness how O'Hara navigated her way from humble Irish beginnings to reach the top of the Hollywood tree whilst remaining true to herself and steering clear of the dreaded casting couch.

Within a stream of chronological and flashback scenes, O' Dwyer portrays over twenty characters in this tour-de-force, which will take you on an intimate journey with Maureen and revealing the real woman behind the limelight.

Adding something even more special to the show is that the vanity case that is used in the show is actually the original case which belonged to O' Hara.

Elaine first performed 'Queen of Technicolor- The Story of Maureen O' Hara' in November 2018 at Belltable Arts Centre in Limerick to mark the third year anniversary of Maureen O' Hara's passing.

Tickets for the show are available to buy through the St John's Theatre website.

Elaine is a Limerick born actress and writer who trained as a primary school teacher before going on to train as an actress, her true vocation, at the Guilford School of Acting in the UK. She is currently based in London.

Elaine's urgency to get this show on stage was triggered by the #MeToo and the #TimesUp movements which correlated so much with Maureen's story.

To get in touch with Elaine, you can email her at ms.elaineodwyer@gmail.com.
DECATUR  Collin Cliburn works as a carpenter in Athens, Illinois, a city of about 1,900 in southern Menard County, but his latest project involves cutting of a different kind.

Cliburn is part an effort to slice Illinois into two states, with Cook County as one and everything else as another. The way Cliburn sees it, the state's Democrat-dominated northeast corner for too long has had outsized influence, with treacherous results.

Im impacted severely by every decision these guys are making," he said.

The long-shot divorce by downstate residents isnt a new concept, but recently a resurgence has popped up in counties like Cumberland, Douglas and Shelby. The goal is to add the question to the ballot and let residents decide. The Effingham County Board was the first to approve adding the referendum, and other boards like Massac and Fayette counties have followed suit successfully.

Shelby County resident Jeremy Williams has been collecting signatures. Another dozen people are working with him.

A tattered flag on an Illinois government building touches of Twitter crusade In pictures posted to social media, the tattered flags outside the Thompson Center in Chicago looked like they were dangling by a thread.

You will find corruption anywhere, Williams said. But it seems to be more prevalent and pronounced in Chicago, and we feel like that is probably driving some of the representation, some of the policy, some of the tax initiatives that go on, so we would rather be free from that.

He will lead a petition signing at 6 p.m. Thursday at The Ville Pub & Grill, 124 E. Main St., in Shelbyville.

We have had great success, and we dont doubt that the referendum is going to be on the ballot, Williams said, adding hed like to get the county boards support.

Another group, called New Illinois, is working to constitutionally separate the state.

Cliburn is head of Illinois Separation and began his social media page empire and brand after a long-time displeasure with politics in the state, specifically in Chicago and Cook County. His efforts have spread through different Facebook pages, one for each county in the state.

Cliburn cited Article 4, Section 3 of the U.S. Constitution, which says a resident can form a new state with approval from state legislatures and Congress. He and the Illinois Separation supporters are open to splitting constitutionally, but he said theyre open to trying other techniques successfully used in the past. He gave the example of West Virginia breaking off from Virginia, a separation which was successful, but technically unconstitutional.

Kentucky and Maine also were created through similar efforts, and there have been numerous proposals in other states, from breaking off South Florida from the rest of the state to creating a new one by combining Delaware with parts of Maryland and Virginia.

The 51st state

Several bids also have been made in Illinois over the years, including one in the 1970s by the "Republic of Forgottonia" in the western portion of the state.

Most efforts have focused on the political, economic and cultural differences between the Chicago area and the other mostly rural counties, and how local residents are represented.

Cook County, home to the third most populated city in America, represents about 40 percent of the state's population, and five of the six executive state offices are occupied by Chicago residents. House Speaker Michael J. Madigan also is from Chicago and the new Senate president, Don Harmon, represents the Chicago suburbs. All also are Democrats.

And while Republican lawmakers dominate many of the downstate seats, because of lopsided population of the Chicago area, the General Assembly has long been controlled by Democrats. That's been the source of continued friction on key issues like gun control, abortion and spending.

The issue has long frustrated state Rep. Brad Halbrook, R-Shelbyville. He refiled legislation last year to get Congress to make Chicago the 51st state. He had six co-sponsors.

The reason for the resolution HR101 is just because of this growing divide between rural and urban, Halbrook said. Its really about the lack of representation.

Chicago lawmakers approve bills downstate residents dont resonate with, Halbrook said, giving the minimum wage increase as an example. They include us in that, and those arent problems for us."

He said the majority of representation comes from such a small geographic region and they just "drown out the rest of us."

Ed Luth is one Douglas County resident who has been collecting signatures and is hopeful the county board will vote on the matter.

The main thing is not having our voice heard, and I think enough people are getting their toes stepped on, Luth said.

A petition-signing event is planned Feb. 22 at the Tuscola Community Building, 122 W. North Central Ave. Douglas County needs 509 signatures to push the referendum on the ballot.

He said hed like a government who doesnt wastefully spend or enact unnecessary laws.

I want to see our new state fiscally responsible, Luth said.

Population consideration

The Effingham County Board voted in April to include the question on the March ballot. Voters will be asked: Shall Effingham County collaborate in discussions with the remaining 101 counties of the state of Illinois, with the exception of Cook County, the possibility of forming a new state and ultimately seeking admission to the Federal Union as the 51st state, pursuant to the provisions of the United States Constitution?

The board in 2018 also made Effingham County a "sanctuary" for gun owners, telling its employees not to enforce any new Illinois law that would "unconstitutionally restrict the Second Amendment." The vote brought national media attention.

I feel like Effingham has leaps and bounds above other counties in their thinking, said Lorri Dunn, who is collecting signatures in both Cumberland and Clark counties.

She said Cumberland County has enough signatures, which will show officials the communitys support.

It lets the county board know that the community is definitely interested in having that on the ballot, Dunn said.

She plans to turn the signatures into the county clerk, however Dunn would additionally like to present the signatures to the county board.

I think that were in trouble, Dunn said. The people of southern Illinois, Central Illinois, we have different beliefs than Chicago. I feel like the beliefs arent being heard.

Cumberland County Board Chairman Roy Clapp said the board hasnt come to a position on the matter, but he has been in contact with Dunn.

Halbrook, along with Rep. Blaine Wilhour, R-Beecher City, is also holding a meeting in Greenville as well.

The Fayette County Board in September approved adding a referendum to the 2020 General Primary Election Ballot in a 12-1 vote, with one member being absent. The Massac County Board voted Tuesday to approve the referendum be added to the November ballot. County boards in Marion, Jefferson, White, Johnson and Pope counties have also approved.

Separation supporters understand this is a long process, but are hopeful for a brand new start.

What I see happening is a state that will enact more business-friendly policy and it will attract business and attract citizenry instead of repelling them, Williams said. The out-migration will hopefully stop and we will regain some of what we lost. I also look forward to downstate values and rural values being better represented.

15 new Illinois laws for 2020

Contact Kennedy Nolen at (217) 421-6985. Follow her on Twitter: @KNolenWrites

Love 2 Funny 0 Wow 0 Sad 0 Angry 0
A 67-year-old man surnamed Wan and his wife, both previously infected with novel coronavirus, were discharged on Friday from a hospital in Wuhan. A doctor celebrates with the couple in a ward. [For chinadaily.com.cn/Gao Xiang]

The formerly infected couple waves goodbye to medical staff at a hospital in Wuhan, Central China's Hubei province. [For chinadaily.com.cn/Gao Xiang]

(Source: China Daily)
Gathering of Navajo Women: 9 a.m.-4 p.m., Saturday, Feb. 1 at Twin Arrows Resort and Casino, 22181 Resort Blvd off I-40 east of Flagstaff. The Navajo Nation's First and Second lady invite Navajo women to the Heart to Heart gathering. The "healing of the heart and mind" event takes place all day. Navajo Nation First Lady, Phefelia Nez and Second Lady Dottie Lizer invited five women who will give inspirational testimonies and/or uplifting music at the event. These women are Margie Rosalind Tso, Fannie Chavez-Platero, Robyn Dykstra, Deborah Kim and Dr. Sandy McKenzie. Vendors and prayer groups are available and lunch will be provided. For more event information and child care cost questions, call Sonya Begay at 928-810-8505. Email: sonyambegay@navajo-nsn.gov. Please register at www.H2H2020.org.

Beacon Unitarian Universalist Congregation: 10-11 a.m. 510 N Leroux St. The Path, Part I: Clearing A Path to Heartfulness. Rev. Robin Landerman Zucker. In a world overrun with words, thoughts, noise and conflict, how might we clear a path to a more heart-centered life? The poet Rilke advises us: "The work of the eyes is done. Now go and do heart-work." We'll explore new paradigms for setting deeply-felt intentions towards "heartfulness." The service includes a guided meditation for opening the heart chakra and meditative silence and song. 928-779-4492. http://www.beaconuu.com.

Children's Religious Exploration at Beacon UU!: 10-11 a.m. Beacon Unitarian Universalisty Congregation, 510 N Leroux St. Are you looking for a supportive community for your family to join? Beacon Unitarian Universalist Congregation is a welcoming and intentionally inclusive faith community that embraces diverse thought and belief and builds a just, peaceful and compassionate world. In addition to a weekly Sunday morning service, Beacon UU offers children's religious exploration for kids of all ages! This spring our K-5 group is starting a new curriculum using works by Dr. Suess to learn more about being an ethical person. (928) 779-4492. http://www.beaconuu.com.

Shepherd of the Hills ELCA: 1601 N San Francisco St. Our services include a spoken word service at 5 p.m. on Saturday, a contemporary service at 9 a.m. on Sunday, and a traditional service at 11 a.m. on Sunday, all led by Pastor Adam Barnhart. 928-774-4832. http://sothflagstaff.org.

Riverside Church Sunday Morning Worship: 11:15 a.m.-12:45 p.m. Riverside Church, 419 S. Verde St. Sunday Worship Morning. Sunday School 09:30 a.m. Sunday Morning Service 11:15 a.m. Pastor Leonard L http://www.riversidecogic.com.

Living Christ Lutheran Church: 10-11 a.m. Living Christ Lutheran Church, 6401 N. US Highway 89. Living Christ ELCA Lutheran Church holds Sunday services with fellowship following. We worship through music, teaching, prayer and sacraments. Pastor Kurt Fangmeier will be leading worship on Sundays. We will have adult Sunday School at 11:15 a.m. after worship during February and all are invited. On Sunday, February 9, we will study and discuss Stories of Creation; then on Sunday, February 16, the topic is Life of Jesus; on Sunday, February 23, A Passion for Christ: Paul; and on Sunday, March 1, Out into the World: Challenges Facing Progressive Christians. Come join us for worship, fellowship and music! Everyone is welcome. 928-526-8595. http://livingchristflagstaff.org.

Unity of Flagstaff: 10:15 a.m.-12 p.m. 1800 S Milton, Suite 103. "Love is life. And if you miss love, you miss life." Leo Buscaglia What DOES Love have to do with IT? Whatever the "IT" is. Dissect most anything down far enough and the common element that runs through is LOVE. Most of our behaviors and habits are driven by love. Being present to and acknowledging the things that we are doing as being acts of love gives us our power back, gives purpose and meaning to our actions and word. It also makes us stop and ask the question, "Is THIS the expression of Love that I want to put on this?" Join Rev. Penni Honey as she starts "The LOVE Series" and enjoy the beautiful and fun music of Wiley Beveridge and The Uni-tones. open every Sunday- to all and all ways. 928-526-8893. http://unityofflagstaff.org.

Church of the Resurrection: 10-11:15 a.m. 740 W. University Heights Dr. South. Church of the Resurrection, Presbyterian Church in America (PCA). Join us for the ordination of our new pastor, the Reverend Joshua Walker, this Sunday, February 2. Refreshments and fellowship after the service. www.cor-pca.org.

First Congregational Church of Flagstaff: 10:30 a.m.-12 p.m. 740 N Turquoise Dr. Worship Service with Rev. Nathan Watts. Join us for worship and communion this Sunday. We will be reading Matthew 5: 1-12 with the sermon reflection being "The Dance of Grace and Grief". We will have a time of fellowship following the service. Our choir rehearsal begins at noon. No matter where you are on the journey of life, you are welcome here! 928-774-0890. http://fccflagstaff.org.

Flagstaff Federated Community Church: 9:30 a.m.-12 p.m. Federated Community Church, 400 W Aspen Ave. This Sunday we are lead in worship by Rev. Jonathan Scanlon. Worship will be inspired by the scripture passages Matthew 5:1-12 and Micah 6:1-8. His sermon is titled "What Does God Require of You?" Following this single worship service at 9:30am, there will be a Service Worship for Flagstaff Shelter Services in Rees Hall.The Wired Word Adult Class will meet to discuss current events through a lens of faith. The Christian Living Adult Class will be continuing their book called Holy Envy which will discuss the value in other religions. 928-774-7383. https://www.flagstafffederatedchurch.org/.

Spiritual Book Study group: 6:30-7:30 p.m. Spiritual Center for Intentional Living, 2211 E. 7th Ave. Please join us on Sunday evening, 6:30pm as we begin reading 'This Thing Called Life', Ernest Holmes, founder of Science of Mind.We are Spiritual Center for Intentional Living, studying New Thought Principles and Science of Mind teachings, and welcome people of all faith traditions. We meet every Sunday, 6:30 p.m, White Dove Coffee, 2211 E 7th Ave. 928-522-9103.

Peace Lutheran Church: 8:30 a.m.-12:20 p.m. , 3430 North 4th Street, Flagstaff. Pastor Brian Pape will use Genesis 1:26-31, 1 Peter 4:-11 and Luke 16: 1-13, as his references Sunday talking about Stewards. We have a traditional service at 8:30 a.m. that will be celebrating Holy Communion , followed by fellowship and bible study, then we have an 11 a.m. contemporary service with our Praise Band. Our College Connect team will be sing this week. Please come join us at one of our services. All are welcomed. 928-526-9578. http://peacelutheranflagstaff.org.

Flagstaff Friends Meeting (Quakers): 10-11 a.m. 402 S. Beaver Street. Unprogrammed Meeting for Worship and Children's First Day school every Sunday at 10 a.m. followed by hospitality at 11 a.m. Casual mid-week fellowship Wednesdays at 5:30 p.m. Instructional worship every first Sunday of the month 8:30-9:45 a.m. Come join us, learn about Quakers. All welcome. www.quakercloud.org/cloud/flagstaff-friends-meeting.

The Episcopal Church of the Epiphany: 423 N Beaver St. Mission: Bringing the love of God to all people. Vision: Reconciling all to God, so the world will know peace and justice. 423 N. Beaver St. Worship days and times: Saturdays 5:30 p.m.; Sun. 8 and 10:30 a.m.; Tues. 11 Centering Prayer; 12:15 p.m. Healing Service. This Sunday, Feb. 2 SUN, Rev. Marianna Gronek Celebrates and Rev Janetta Beaumont Preaches; and at 9:15 a.m. Alyssa Ballou, Connections Minister, and a MORE session on the book Searching for Sunday by Rachel Held Evans. Alyssa describes this as "a discussion of the strengths and weaknesses of the modern church."; 928-774-2911. http://www.epiphanyaz.org.

Christian Science Society of Flagstaff: 10-11 a.m. 619 W. Birch Ave. We hold Sunday worship services and Sunday School (for children and young people up to the age of 20) at 10 a.m. The subject of this week's sermon is "Love" We also have Wednesday testimony meetings at 5:30 p.m. each week. Our Christian Science Reading Room, a quiet place for prayer and study,or to have questions answered, is open normally from 4-5:30 on Wednesdays and 10 a.m. - noon on Saturdays, however, at this time it is open only by appointment (Call 526-5982 for full Church information or to make an appointment.) All are warmly welcome to our services and to use our Reading Room. 928-526-5982.

Love 0 Funny 0 Wow 0 Sad 0 Angry 0
WASHINGTON, Feb. 1, 2020 /PRNewswire/ -- The American Pharmacists Association (APhA) announced today that Scott J. Knoer, MS, PharmD, FASHP, has been named the 13th Chief Executive Officer/Executive Vice President of APhA.

Dr. Knoer is the Chief Pharmacy Officer of the Cleveland Clinic, overseeing nearly 1,600 pharmacy FTEs at the Clinic's 1,300-bed tertiary care referral hospital, its clinics and cancer center, 18 family health centers and 11 community hospitals in the Cleveland area. He officially assumes his duties July 1, 2020. He succeeds Thomas E. Menighan, who has served as CEO/EVP of APhA for the past 11 years, and last year announced his plans to retire in 2020.

"I am humbled and honored to be named APhA's 13th Chief Executive Officer and Executive Vice President," said Dr. Knoer. "I have advocated hard for pharmacy throughout my career, and I'm excited to officially represent the entire profession, helping APhA to empower pharmacists to care for patients.

"Health care is transforming at a staggering pace," Dr. Knoer continued. "While innovative medications are treating diseases once thought incurable, they often come at a price that is unsustainable for society. APhA will not only fight so pharmacists can care for their patients, but we will also fight to ensure that patients have access to affordable drug therapy."

Prior to joining the Cleveland Clinic in 2011, Dr. Knoer held leadership positions in pharmacy at the University of Minnesota Medical Center in Fairview, Minn., the University of Texas Medical Branch at Galveston, Tex., and the University of Kansas Medical Center. He is a graduate of the University of Nebraska College of Pharmacy.

"We are thrilled to announce Scott Knoer as the next CEO/EVP of the American Pharmacists Association," said Brad Tice, PharmD, MBA, FAPhA, President of APhA. "Scott brings a tremendous track record of leadership and organizational growth that will help drive APhA and the profession forward. He will be able to build on the tremendous work and foundation laid by Tom Menighan and previous CEOs of APhA to take the organization to even greater heights. His experience across the healthcare ecosystem will be vital in helping the association navigate and strengthen the profession's position as we move forward in this critical time for the profession in an increasingly complex healthcare system."

"Congratulations to Dr. Knoer on his selection as the CEO of APhA to succeed me on July 1," said APhA CEO/EVP Thomas E. Menighan, BPharm, MBA, ScD (Hon). "I am pleased with the board's diligence and their excellent selection. Scott brings tremendous talents, perspectives and experiences to us. I look forward to optimizing the transition."

Stanley Martin Associates of Washington, D.C., assisted in the search.

About the American Pharmacists Association

The American Pharmacists Association, founded in 1852 as the American Pharmaceutical Association, is a 501 (c)(6) organization, representing 60,000 practicing pharmacists, pharmaceutical scientists, student pharmacists, pharmacy technicians and others interested in advancing the profession. APhA is dedicated to helping all pharmacists improve medication use and advance patient care and is the first and largest association of pharmacists in the United States. For more information, please visit www.pharmacist.com.

SOURCE American Pharmacists Association

Related Links

http://www.pharmacist.com


In S.F. bans natural gas in new buildings (Jan. 19), San Francisco Board of Supervisors member Catherine Stefani says I think incentives are the way to go. Nowhere is that more evident than in Davis, which just last week implemented incentives for home builders to go all-electric, rather than banning their use of natural gas altogether.

The change went into effect the same day the California Energy Commission approved it.

Meanwhile, in cities like Berkeley, which chose the punitive approach of a gas ban, the new building code is in limbo while lawsuits challenge its legality.

There is a lesson to be learned here. Advances and price drops in renewable energy technologies like solar have made all-electric homes not only realistic, but also cost-effective and comfortable. But well get there a lot faster if more cities opt for the carrot instead of the stick.

Aaron Nitzkin, Davis

Complex formula

Regarding Housing crisis fix stalled as bill dies (Page 1, Jan. 31): In its laudable crusade to encourage the construction of needed housing, The Chronicle persistently misses the point as to why so many of us opposed SB50 and its precursors.

The simplistic formula solve the housing shortage by building more housing does not work in the current economic climate. To build new housing, it must pencil out. Thus, all new privately financed housing is luxury housing.

Tearing down old low-density housing causes displacement. Thus we have the flight of successful young adults out of the Bay Area and mushrooming homeless camps. Trickle-down economics does not work.

Further, urban density is not as wonderful as its evangelists would have the public believe.

Overcrowding is a setup for bad behavior, collisions and the spread of disease. The urban Bay Area was designed around the automobile. Most existing public transit options are unpopular. Vilifying opponents of urban density fundamentalism as suburban NIMBYs is not helpful in developing socially acceptable new housing options.

SB50 was coercive, and Californians do not like being coerced any more than Ukrainians did in President Trumps perfect phone call.

Amelia Marshall, Oakland

Let reforms continue

San Franciscos newly elected district attorney, Chesa Boudin, is doing exactly what he promised the voters he would do. He promised to reform the system to make it more equitable, less discriminatory and fairer to all our residents.

During the campaign he was viciously attacked by the Police Officers Association. Many believe those attacks helped to get him elected. Recently the POA has increased its attacks upon him for his decision to carefully investigate the issues around the Jamaica Hampton incident. The POA should not be allowed to undo the election results and thwart the will of the people of San Francisco.

Let this process of reform continue and let us, as a thinking populace, decide if these revised policies have made all of us safer or not.

Sherry Gendelman, San Francisco

A digital James Dean

So according to James Dean lives  in digital world (Business, Jan. 31), technology will allow a digital likeness of James Dean, who died in 1955, to have a supporting role in a new Vietnam War movie called Finding Jack? Well, those who are overwrought by this news might react by saying what Deans character, Jim Stark, did in Rebel Without a Cause: Youre tearing me apart!

Herman Rivera, San Jose

Majestic trees

During this time of anti-environmental edicts emanating from the White House, Oasis of redwoods saved in Santa Cruz (Page 1, Jan. 31) is welcome news.

Not only is the preservation of our state tree, the redwood, necessary to protect the habitats of many animals, but also these majestic sequoias help to combat global warming by absorbing significant amounts of harmful carbon dioxide. Whether old or second growth, coastal redwoods are an integral part of Californias ecosystem and are emblems of its majestic landscape.

Yvette Violanda, Daly City

Need for sane gun laws

Virginia has shown what is possible  sane gun laws in a Southern state. Mass hysteria among gun enthusiasts has led to a call for sanctuary cities and counties, but it is not like their guns are being taken from them.

It is not the same as what is being done to women and their right to choose, because their reproductive health resources are being taken away in many areas of the country.

This is a test for all of us, because yes, we need stronger gun laws in this country if we are to be safe, but we also need more access to womens reproductive services if they are to be safe, too.

Mitchell Goldman, Richmond

Year of the Mask

Now that the World Health Organization, the United Nations health agency, has declared that Chinas coronavirus has escalated into a global health emergency, perhaps this Lunar New Year, the Year of the Rat, should be redesignated to reflect how people are trying to cope with this crisis: the Year of the Mask.
Source: Xinhua| 2020-02-01 22:20:12|Editor: xuxin

Video Player Close

BAGHDAD, Feb. 1 (Xinhua) -- Iraq's Oil Ministry said Saturday that Iraq exported more than 102 million barrels of crude oil in January, bringing in revenues of over 6 billion U.S. dollars.

Iraq's total exports of crude oil in January exceeded 102.485 million barrels with an average of 3.3 million barrels per day, a ministry statement said, citing statistics of the State Organization for Marketing of Oil.

The average selling price for crude oil in January was 60.45 U.S. dollars per barrel, the statement added.

About 101 million barrels were exported from Iraq's central and southern oil fields via Basra ports, while about 1.114 million from the northern province of Kirkuk via the Turkish port of Ceyhan on the Mediterranean, it said.

Iraq exported 309,96 barrels of crude oil to the neighboring Jordan in January, according to the statement.

Iraq's economy heavily relies on the exports of crude oil, which accounts for more than 90 percent of the country's revenues.
Hillary Clinton is not done talking about Bernie Sanders.

The 2016 Democratic presidential nominee said in a podcast interview that aired Friday that Sanders didnt try to unify the party after losing the primary to her four years ago and that he and his supporters contributed to her loss to Donald Trump in the general election.

Asked by Emily Tisch Sussman of the podcast Your Primary Playlist what Sanders could do this time to unite the party against Trump, Clinton replied, Well, he can do it, for one.

Thats not our experience from 2016, Clinton said.

Clintons comments come just before Mondays first-in-the-nation caucuses in Iowa, where Sanders is bunched at the top of the polls with former Vice President Joe Biden, Massachusetts Sen. Elizabeth Warren and former South Bend, Ind., Mayor Pete Buttigieg. The remarks are yet another reminder of the lasting scars of the the brutal 2016 primary battle between Sanders, whose supporters believe the contest was rigged in Clintons favor, and Clinton, who has faulted Sanders for not supporting her candidacy quickly enough after she clinched the nomination.

Sanders was unable to campaign in Iowa on Friday because of the impeachment trial of President Trump in the Senate. But at an evening rally in Clive, Iowa, one of his highest-profile supporters, Michigan Rep. Rashida Tlaib, led the crowd in booing Clinton.

At the first mention of Clintons name, some in the crowd began booing, prompting the moderator to say, Were not going to boo. Were classy. But Tlaib interjected: No. Ill boo. Booooo! That drew laughter and louder boos from the audience.

You all know, I cant be quiet, Tlaib continued, laughing. Were going to boo. Its alright. The haters will shut up on Monday, when we win.

On Saturday, Sanders told a crowd in Indianola, Iowa, that if he isnt the nominee, we will support the winner and I know that every other candidate will do the same.

Clinton recently raised doubts about whether she would endorse Sanders if he wins the 2020 Democratic nomination to face Trump. Clinton told the Hollywood Reporter in an interview that shes not going to go there yet, but later took to Twitter to say her priority is to defeat Trump, and, as I always have, I will do whatever I can to support our nominee.

In Fridays podcast, Clinton contrasted the conversations she had with Barack Obama in 2008 about unifying the party after he became the nominee with the conversations she had with Sanders in 2016 after it became clear she would come out on top. They were like night and day, she said.

Alexandra Jaffe is an Associated Press writer.
NSW residents are being warned to prepare for scorching temperatures this weekend as the mercury climbs to 45 in western Sydney on Saturday, while a state of emergency has been declared for the ACT as bushfire conditions deteriorate.

Victoria and southwestern NSW communities were already sweltering on Friday with Melbourne expecting a top of 43 and Hay in the NSW Riverina set for 46.

The Bureau of Meteorology says the heatwave conditions will stretch further north on Saturday reaching western Sydney with most of inland NSW experiencing above 40-degree days throughout the weekend.

A hot air mass delivered scorching temperatures across large parts of Western Australia before moving east across the country. The severe to extreme heatwave pattern is set to peak in NSW on Saturday.

While the city of Sydney has a maximum forecast of 34 on Saturday, buffered by ocean breezes, Penrith in the far west of the city is forecast to reach 45 while Liverpool and Campbelltown are forecast to hit 42. Canberra is expecting highs of 41 on both Friday and Saturday.

With worsening bushfire conditions forecast for the ACT over the weekend the government on Friday announced a state of emergency for the weekend. A large blaze is burning over 18,000 hectares in Namadgi National Park just south of Canberra, and conditions are the worst they have been since fires ravaged the nations capital in 2003.

Timely warning over swimming hazards

Large crowds are expected at NSW beaches, rivers, lakes, and swimming pools as people look to beat the heat. But after three drownings across NSW, Victoria and Queensland on New Years Day, authorities are warning people to stay safe when cooling off.

Special care should be taken when swimming in rivers and dams where submerged objects may pose unexpected risks, NSW Police Force Deputy Commissioner Gary Worboys said on Friday.

I want to send a strong message to parents: if your children are out swimming, whether that is at the beach, a river, a dam or your backyard pool, and regardless of their age  they need to be supervised.

Story continues

This map shows forecast NSW temperatures as at 1pm on Saturday. The purple areas are all forecast to be above 40, with the lightest purple representing the hottest areas. Source: stormcast.com.au

Residents and visitors to NSW will get some mild reprieve at night but temperatures are only set to bottom in the low to mid 20s.

The combination of these really warm conditions and also an increase in humidity is going to lead to very warm daytime temperatures and very warm night-time temperatures as well, BoM meteorologist Diana Eadie said on Wednesday.

Extreme conditions have firefighters on high alert

The high temperatures, along with winds forecast along the NSW coast on Friday afternoon, have firefighters on high alert as blazes continue to burn on the south coast and the NSW-Victoria border.

In this drought, these fires are just moving so quickly because the landscape is so dry and these winds are pushing them along at unbelievable speed, Rural Fire Service deputy commissioner Rob Rogers told the Nine Network on Friday morning.

Conditions are expected to cool on Sunday with a southerly change and possible showers or storms developing.

A Total Fire Ban is in place for three areas today including the Southern Slopes, Southern Ranges & Monaro Alpine areas. With widespread Very High fire danger and very hot temperatures, make sure you and your family know what you'll do if you're threatened by fire today. #NSWRFS pic.twitter.com/Qp861Q1hMJ  NSW RFS (@NSWRFS) January 30, 2020

Victorian implored to limit power use as fire danger looms

After calmer conditions earlier this week, temperatures well above 40 degrees, damaging winds and dry lightning are expected to raise the fire threat in Victoria.

The wild weather experienced a week ago is set to return, with Melbourne's forecast 43 on Friday expected to give way to possible storms, flash flooding and muddy rain heading into Saturday.

The increased humidity combined with extreme heat will create tropical oppressive weather that will make Victoria's capital feel more like Darwin, the bureau warned.

Melburnians have been urged to be aware of potential changes to public transport due to the heat, with Public Transport Victoria urging passengers to take extra care.

With extreme hot weather forecast today and tomorrow in Victoria and Melbourne, please take extra care travelling on the public transport network, it said Friday.

Meanwhile the Australian Energy Market Operator has urgently called on Victorians to minimise their electricity use on Friday afternoon.

Today, were forecasting the highest electricity demand in Victoria since January 2014, due to extreme temperatures and with unusually high humidity, the AEMO said this morning.

It is requesting consumers in the state reduce their energy usage between approximately 1pm and 8pm, to help minimise the potential for electricity supply disruptions.

Beachgoers at St Kilda beach in Melbourne, on Thursday. Source: AAP

Bushfire-ravaged East Gippsland was already experiencing the effects of the warmer weather change on Thursday evening, as an emergency alert was issued for a blaze that threatened lives and homes. The alert has since been downgraded to watch and act level.

Rain expected to sweep through Victoria by Saturday and Sunday will not be spread evenly around the state, according to the Bureau of Meteorology, so will be of little help to firefighters.

The elevated fire conditions have prompted a total fire ban for all state regions except Gippsland and the northeast. Emergency Services Minister Lisa Neville said current blazes are expected to become more active and there is a high risk of new fires starting.

We do have some dormant areas that we expect, with the drying out over the next 24 hours, the potential for those fires to again get a bit more active, she said.

Adelaide to be hit with downpour while Tasmania swelters

After a week of extreme heat with temperatures in the high 30s and low 40s accompanied by sticky nights, South Australia is set for a tropical downpour in the next 48 hours.

The Bureau of Meteorology is forecasting between 20mm and 80mm of rain across much of the state, and potentially up to 100mm in isolated areas on Friday and Saturday.

Motorists are advised that the onset of rainfall today is likely to result in slippery roads, and heavier showers from midday will reduce visibility making driving conditions dangerous at times, the BoM warned Friday morning.

The incredibly humid air over SA this morning will continue to drift south and east during the weekend, contributing (principally by keeping nights hot) to extreme heatwave conditions over parts of VIC, TAS and NSW. pic.twitter.com/2nBktauQVU  Andrew Miskelly (@andrewmiskelly) January 30, 2020

Meanwhile Tasmania will endure unusually high temperatures before it is hit with rain as the mercury is tipped to hit 40 degrees in the south of the state on Friday, including Hobart.

The summit of Hobart's Mt Wellington and surrounding park areas, plus walking tracks at Freycinet National Park, are off limits due to the hot conditions.

Showers and rain are forecast to cross Tasmania on Friday evening, but a cool change won't bring substantial relief until Saturday morning.

With AAP

Do you have a story tip? Email: newsroomau@yahoonews.com.

You can also follow us on Facebook, Instagram and Twitter and download the Yahoo News app from the App Store or Google Play.
Pakistan Suspends Flights to China a Day After WHO Declares Global Health Emergency Over Coronavirus

Sputnik News

10:50 GMT 31.01.2020

New Delhi (Sputnik): Airlines around the world have been suspending all flights to China following the outbreak of the virus which has already claimed the lives of over 200 people.

Pakistan on Friday became the latest country to halt flights to and from China with immediate effect, in the wake of the rising death toll from the virus outbreak in the country, and the World Health Organisation (WHO) declaring it a global health emergency.

At least 18 countries have reported cases of the Novel Coronavirus so far.

Currently, Pakistan operates flights to and from the Chinese cities of Beijing, Hong Kong, Guangzhou and Shanghai.

"We are suspending flights to China until 2 February," a senior Pakistan civil aviation ministry official said. He further stated that a review of the situation prevailing in China and its impact around the rest of the world would be undertaken next week.

In Pakistan's port city, the Karachi Port Trust (KPT) announced that all personnel of Chinese and South-East Asian origin would be quarantined as a preventive measure. Ships coming into Karachi from these areas are being checked, and the movement of their personnel is being restricted, following the outbreak of the virus.

On Friday, Pakistan's Foreign Office (FO) said the government had contacted the relevant authorities in Beijing, urging them to ensure the safety of all Pakistani citizens in China, especially in the virus-hit city of Wuhan in Hubei province.

"Islamabad is monitoring the evolving situation and will take a decision after consultations among all the stakeholders," a foreign office spokesperson said.

Apart from Pakistan, aviation authorities in Russia, the US, the UK, France, South Korea, Egypt, Germany, Austria, Kenya and Switzerland have suspended their flights to China. These countries have also issued travel and alert advisories to their citizens to avoid to and fro travel to China.

The US and Japan have also raised the levels of their respective travel advisories for China, informing their citizens to reconsider and avoid journeys to China due to the spread of the Novel Coronavirus. As a precaution, Russia has sealed its remote far-eastern border with China. Other countries have banned the entry of travellers from the city of Wuhan, China, where the virus surfaced and has had its most devastating impact.

The new coronavirus  named 2019-nCoV is thought to have originated in a food market in the city of Wuhan and has since infected more than 9,000 people worldwide (9,825). China first reported the outbreak of the virus on 30 December 2019. Since then, Beijing has put in place travel restrictions. Financial markets across China have also been closed until 3 February.

 Sputnik

NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address






Local clerks are advising people who request an absentee ballot for the March 10 presidential primary not to be surprised by the special envelope ballots arrive in.

Envelopes containing absentee ballots have a specially designed blue and white look, while return envelopes have a green and white design, meant to make it easier for the United States Postal Service to process them. Macomb County Clerk Fred Miller said the Postal Service had problems with accidentally mishandling the manilla envelopes absentee ballots were previously delivered in, but also warned voters not to mistakenly throw away the new colorful envelopes.

All eligible Michigan voters can request an absentee ballot for the presidential primary election right now. Voters can either visit their local clerk to request a ballot in person or print the online form. The Secretary of State has forms available in large print and Spanish available online.

Applications must be filled out in writing and can be turned in by hand, mail, fax or email, as long as a signature is visible.

Requests for a mailed absent voter ballot must be turned in by 5 p.m. on March 6.

People who are already registered to vote can request an absent voter ballot in person at their clerks office anytime before 4 p.m. on March 9.

Voters have until 8 p.m. on March 10 to return their completed ballot to their local clerks office, either through the mail or in person.

For the presidential election, voters choose whether to participate in the primary for Democrats or Republicans. This must be marked on the ballot application.

Some counties will also be deciding on local questions in March. Voters in those areas can select nonpartisan if they only want to weigh in on local issues.

Check your voter registration and find your local clerk at the Secretary of States Michigan Voter Information Center. You can track the status of your absentee ballot online at michigan.gov/vote.

The new envelope designs have a few small details that should make it easier for the Postal Service to process. For example, the envelopes are slightly smaller, a request made by the USPS.
A pizza shop owner is facing backlash for a billboard that some thought made light of human trafficking.

Jeremy Clemetson, the owner of East of Chicago Pizza store in Barberton, Ohio, is known for his cheeky signs.

"We've had 'Legalize marinara,' and 'Our pizza is deep as potholes,' 'Free box with every pizza,'" he told CNN.

But his latest billboard, which said, "fat people are harder to kidnap" struck a different chord with locals.

"You shouldn't make a joke about kidnapping regardless of what it is," one person told WOIO. "I just think that was poor taste, very poor taste, very offensive," said another.

Others took issue with the fact that the billboard makes fun of weight issues.

"The physical and emotional issues overweight people have to deal with shouldn't be made light of," someone said on Facebook.

Some people, however, found the sign to be harmless.

"I love your signs and there was absolutely nothing wrong with the kidnapping sign ... I've seen that saying on Facebook several times in memes," one customer wrote on the pizza store's Facebook page.

Clemetson holds that he did not mean to offend anyone and when he realized that January is national human trafficking awareness month, he took the sign down.

"I was more just trying to be funny. I actually had it on my sign out front for three weeks and nobody said anything except funny things about it," Clemetson told WOIO. "Once I found out, you know, I have seven kids myself. That it was more sensitive to people because of the kidnapping aspect we actually took it down today."

The pizza shop owner doesn't plan to stop putting up his comical signs, but he told CNN he will likely put more consideration into what it says next time.

"I probably will think more when I put up my next sign. I don't want to end up on national news again," Clemetson said.
For the last 13 years, Ive traveled the country talking about my immigrant experience. On stages across the United States, I bare my soul and relive the trauma of moments Id rather forget, to help people understand that immigration is not a crime but an act of survival, that immigrants are not criminals but human beings who deserve to be treated with dignity and compassion.

Image The cover of American Dirt by Jeanine Cummins. Credit... Flatiron Books, via Associated Press

Sometimes, my words help open minds and hearts. Other times, they dont. Recently, The Moth Radio Hour aired my story about a chance encounter on an airplane with a Guatemalan asylum seeker. An email later appeared in my inbox, and when I read it, I thought of American Dirt and its intended white audience:

You are an excellent speaker and clearly very sincere. However, I and many others completely disagree with your point of view. Illegals in the country, that is adults that came into the USA without proper permission should all be deported as soon as practicable and there never should be any amnesty in the future for anybody [shouldnt have happened in the past eather] the young man you talked about should have been removed and sent back to where he came from, I do not want him here in my country. and no Dreamers that came here illegally should never be allowed to be citizens. And if it was up to me their children would not be alow to become citizens ether.

Maybe I am being naive in thinking that this man and others like him might be more willing to show compassion toward immigrants if they heard it from someone other than a first- or second-generation immigrant. But after having spent my entire writing career advocating immigrant rights, I appreciate when another writer joins the fight. We need all the voices we can get, within and outside our community  perhaps especially from outside our community. I had hoped Ms. Cumminss words would germinate in the toxic American dirt where my own words, and those of other Latino writers, have often failed to take root.

When I read American Dirt, I didnt know the back story  the bidding war, the seven-figure advance, the proclamation that this was the immigration book of its time. When I found out, I confess it offended me and hurt me. I felt undervalued and deceived. The publishing industry had changed its opinion of Mexican immigrant stories  but not until it was someone from outside our community who had written one. I had seen Ms. Cummins as a writer who could speak with us, not for us. Instead, the publishing machine decided to put her book on a pedestal.

It is unfortunate that the publisher canceled the authors future book events. That denies audiences across the country the opportunity to participate in face-to-face discussions with Ms. Cummins about the issues that are being raised around cultural appropriation and who gets to tell our stories. The reasons the publisher cited for the cancellation  safety concerns  and its dismissal of the legitimate concerns raised as vitriolic rancor, further denigrates the Latino community. Now is not the time to shut down conversations, but to encourage speaking out and listening to one another.

To me the issue is neither with the book nor its author, but rather with those institutions that silence some voices while elevating others. One positive outcome is that publishers have shown they are willing to pay top dollar and use the full strength of their marketing machine to promote the immigrant experience. They cant back away from that now. Immigrant-written stories deserve the same treatment.
A wonderful individual try from fly-half Jack Crowley capped a man of the match performance as Ireland got the defence of their Under-20 Six Nations title off to a flying start with a bonus-point win over Scotland.

The Munster sub-academy playmaker scored his second try of the match on the stroke of half-time with a brilliant showcase of his vision, footwork, pace, and power as he picked up the ball in front of his own five-metre line, stepped two Scottish defenders on the Irish 22, sprinted into the visitors 22 and then fended off full-back Ollie Smith before touching down behind the posts.

It was the high point of an entertaining match that saw the class of 2020 continue the winning streak for Noel McNamaras Under-20s having won the Grand Slam in 2019.

If that had put pressure on his latest squad, there was little sign of it at Musgrave Park last night.

Ireland were intent on laying down a marker, a point evident by the decision of captain David McCann to turn down the opportunity of three points from in front of the posts after just 11 minutes.

Ireland instead took a scrum and from the set-piece scored seven instead of three. Crowley, who was playing for Bandon Grammar a year ago, collected them all, with a sharp line to take a pass from prop Charlie Ward for the try, which he then converted.

The second try also came from a scrum on 23 minutes but not before Scotland had levelled, with a try from hooker Ewan Ashman, converted by Nathan Chamberlain.

This was enjoyable fare and Ireland added to the show by again taking a scrum rather than kick at goal inside the 22, forward power getting them to the line with vice-captain and Grand Slam ever-present tighthead Thomas Clarkson converting possession into five points.

Crowley converted but again Scotland found a reply, six minutes before the interval and this time through an excellent finish in the corner from left wing Jack Blain after a prolonged period of pressure which saw Ireland concede a number of penalties before their line was breached.

Chamberlain could not convert from the touchline, leaving Scotland trailing by 14-12 and before the half was out their deficit was nine points at 21-12 thanks to Crowleys brilliant score and conversion.

Ireland wasted little time racking up the bonus point just three minutes into the second half as Leinster wing Andrew Smith followed up his hat-trick for the U20s against a Munster development side on the same pitch over Christmas with an excellent finish in the left-hand corner to widen the gap further, Crowleys conversion making it 28-12.

McNamaras team were not done, though, and it was another great score, hooker Tom Stewart making a blistering break down the right wing with lock Tom Ahern matching him for pace on his shoulder.

Stewart timed his pass outside to perfect and Munsters Ahern found another gear to accelerate from the 22 to the try line and over.

Crowley missed his first kick of the night with his fifth conversion attempt from the right touchline and it appeared to matter little with Ireland holding a 33-12 lead after 48 minutes. Yet Scotland had not given up and to their credit hit back with a try from Chamberlain on 61 minutes, the fly-half converting his own score to close the gap to 14 points.

Yet Ireland were not about to blow their advantage and a late try off a driving maul rubber-stamped victory, replacement prop Ciaran Ryan grabbing the sixth try.

Scotland kept fighting and replacement fly-half Cameron Scott earned his side a bonus point themselves with an 85th-minute try.

Duncan & Duncan Rugby: Everest in underpants, Irelands transition, mystery of leadership groups

IRELAND U20: O McNulty; E McIlroy, D Kelly, H Hyde (L Faria, 52), A Smith; J Crowley (T Corkery, 74), L Finlay (B Murphy, 76); C Ward (C Ryan, 40-43 & 58), T Stewart (J McKee, 58), T Clarkson (R McMahon, 76); B Deeny, T Ahern (J McCarthy, 69); S OBrien, M Hernan (L Soroka, 74), D McCann - captain.

SCOTLAND U20: O Smith; J Henry, M Currie, R McCallum, J Blain (R McLean, 46); N Chamberlain (C Scott, 75), R Frostwick (K McGhie, 65); M Wilson (G Breese, 65), E Ashman (R Jackson, 33 & 78), D Gamble; K Watt (J Campbell, 60), C Henderson; J Hill (G Brown, 60), C Boyle, R Darge - captain.

Referee: Gianluca Gnecchi (Italy)
With 2021 concluded and the 20th anniversary of the ModDB's Mod of the Year Awards wrapped up, we take a stroll down history lane and look back at all the winners over the last two decades.
Marvel snuck in a slew of Easter eggs in Avengers: Endgame, but there was one hidden clue that most fans completely missed. The Easter egg in question was a reference to one of the filming locations, something that only the locals probably noticed. Heres a look at one of Endgames most bizarre Easter eggs, plus a list of some of the films other hidden gems.

The cast of Avengers: Endgame | Alberto E. Rodriguez/Getty Images for Disney

Marvel gives this country its own Easter egg

The Easter egg most Marvel fans missed came during a scene with Thor (Chris Hemsworth) in Norway. Bruce Banner (Mark Ruffalo) and Rocket (Bradley Cooper) were trying to convince Thor to help them pull off the time heist.

In the background of one of the shots inside Thors home is a soda bottle with the name Irn-Bru. According to We Got This Covered, the drink is very popular in Scotland, which is where the scenes were actually filmed.

The fact that the bottle was clearly displayed is a sign that Marvel intentionally put it into the Avengers: Endgame scene. People from Scotland were quick to notice the drink, which is reportedly used as a cure for hangovers.

The drink, which is pronounced iron brew, actually sells better than Coca-Cola in Scotland and is commonly called the countrys other national drink.

Whats even more interesting is that the beverage actually contains a tiny amount of iron, which is where it gets its name.

The most obscure Easter eggs of Avengers: Endgame

Speaking of Easter eggs most fans completely missed, there was actually a shot in Endgame that featured Howard the Duck. The character showed up in the final battle scene with Thanos (Josh Brolin) and can be spotted as the camera pans over Wasp (Evangeline Lilly).

The creator of Thanos, Jim Starlin, also enjoyed a brief cameo in Avengers: Endgame. Starlin is featured in the scene where Captain America (Chris Evans) is talking to a support group. For reference, he is the bald guy sitting next to director Joe Russo.

Another Easter egg many fans missed came in the form of a characters name on The Vanished Memorial. When Scott Lang (Paul Rudd) was looking for his daughters name on the wall, the camera panned across the name of Roberto da Costa, a member of the X-Men called Sunspot.

Marvel is expected to introduce the X-Men now that it owns the rights from Fox. We do not know which mutants will appear in the MCU, but it looks like Sunspot might be on that list.

Captain America enjoys a few Easter eggs

Avengers: Endgame also featured a few hidden gems related to Captain America, who retired at the end of the film. This includes Cap saying Hail Hydra in a bid to retrieve the Mind Stone from some Hydra agents.

The reference is a callback to a story in the comics called Secret Empire. In that storyline, it was revealed that Cap was actually a sleeper agent with Hydra, a move that did not go over well with fans. That story has since been ditched, which is why the reference in Avengers: Endgame is so funny.

There was also an Easter egg when Sam Wilson, a.k.a. The Falcon (Anthony Mackie), radioed in to fight Thanos alongside Cap and the rest of the Avengers. In a pivotal moment in the battle, Falcon tells Cap, On your left, which is a reference to a scene in Captain America: The Winter Soldier.

In that movie, Sam is shown running in Washington while Cap keeps lapping him, saying On your left, as he runs by.

Here are all the Easter eggs related to Iron Man

Captain America wasnt the only Avenger who got multiple Easter eggs. Tony Stark (Robert Downey Jr.) also got some hidden gems throughout the movie.

This includes an appearance by the original Jarvis when Tony and Cap traveled to the 1970s to secure the Space Stone. Jarvis shows up to drive Tonys father, Howard Stark, out of the base.

Iron Mans other Easter egg is related to his famous line, I love you 3000. Although the line was meant to be a cute moment between Tony and his daughter, it has greater significance beyond the scene.

A fan went back and added up all the run-times of the Marvel films leading up to Avengers: Endgame, and the end result is close to 3000 minutes.
Representative image

Some companies have warned that a coronavirus outbreak in China that has killed more than 250 people and infected thousands could disrupt supply chains or hurt bottom lines as factories and shops shut and airlines suspend flights.

FINANCIAL IMPACT:

- Electrolux said the epidemic could have a material impact if its Chinese suppliers were further affected and that it was implementing contingency plans.

- H&M said store closures in China - about 45 - hurt sales in January. The company said it sources "a lot" from China but its flexible supply chain had contained disruptions so far.

- Hyundai Motor said it planned to halt South Korean production of a sport utility vehicle this weekend to cope with a supply disruption caused by the virus outbreak.

COVID-19 Vaccine Frequently Asked Questions View more How does a vaccine work? A vaccine works by mimicking a natural infection. A vaccine not only induces immune response to protect people from any future COVID-19 infection, but also helps quickly build herd immunity to put an end to the pandemic. Herd immunity occurs when a sufficient percentage of a population becomes immune to a disease, making the spread of disease from person to person unlikely. The good news is that SARS-CoV-2 virus has been fairly stable, which increases the viability of a vaccine. How many types of vaccines are there? There are broadly four types of vaccine  one, a vaccine based on the whole virus (this could be either inactivated, or an attenuated [weakened] virus vaccine); two, a non-replicating viral vector vaccine that uses a benign virus as vector that carries the antigen of SARS-CoV; three, nucleic-acid vaccines that have genetic material like DNA and RNA of antigens like spike protein given to a person, helping human cells decode genetic material and produce the vaccine; and four, protein subunit vaccine wherein the recombinant proteins of SARS-COV-2 along with an adjuvant (booster) is given as a vaccine. What does it take to develop a vaccine of this kind? Vaccine development is a long, complex process. Unlike drugs that are given to people with a diseased, vaccines are given to healthy people and also vulnerable sections such as children, pregnant women and the elderly. So rigorous tests are compulsory. History says that the fastest time it took to develop a vaccine is five years, but it usually takes double or sometimes triple that time. View more Show

- Jaguar and Land Rover parent Tata Motors expects the outbreak to hamper production in China and hit profits.

- Japan Airlines Co said a quarter of reservations for China flights were cancelled in the past 10 days.

- Levi Strauss shut about half its stores in China and said it will take a near-term hit.

- LG Display said it had not yet closed any of factories in China but warned the outbreak increased uncertainty for suppliers.

- McDonald's, which closed several hundred of its roughly 3,300 stores in China, said the overall impact on profits would be "fairly small" if the virus stayed contained in China.

- Remy Cointreau warned that a potential impact from the outbreak would be significant because of its big exposure to China.

- Royal Caribbean Cruises, which cancelled three trips of its China-based cruise liner, trimmed its 2020 earnings forecast by about 10 cents per share and said it would take a further 10-cent hit if travel restrictions continued until the end of February.

- Ssangyong Motor said it would idle its plant in the South Korean city of Pyeongtaek from Feb. 4 to Feb. 12 for the same reason.

- Samsung Electronics said it had extended a holiday closure for some factories in line with Chinese government guidance but declined to comment on the impact.

- Samsung affiliate and battery maker Samsung SDI, which counts Volvo among its customers, warned of a hit to its March-quarter earnings.

- SK Hynix, which has a chip plant in the eastern Chinese city of Wuxi, said the outbreak had not yet disrupted production but that could change if the situation was prolonged.

- Starbucks, which closed more than half its roughly 4,300 stores in China, delayed a planned update to its 2020 forecast and said it expects a material but temporary hit.

- Tesla warned a 1-1.5 week delay in the ramp of Shanghai-built Model 3 cars could slightly hurt March-quarter profit after China ordered a shutdown of the factory. Tesla is also evaluating whether the supply chain for cars built in its California plant will be affected.

STORE/FACTORY CLOSURES:

- Alphabet's Google temporarily shut all offices in China, Hong Kong and Taiwan.

- Deere & Co said it has temporarily closed its facilities in China until the company determines it appropriate to reopen.

- US makers of surgical masks including 3M, Owens & Minor and Alpha Pro Tech are ramping up manufacturing because of surging demand in China and around the world in response to the outbreak.

- Toyota Motor shut factories in China through Feb. 9.

- Walt Disney shut its resorts and theme parks in Shanghai and Hong Kong.

- Fast Retailing closed about 100 Uniqlo stores in Hubei.

- IKEA closed all 30 stores in China.

- Swatch closed five stores in Wuhan, Yum China closed some KFC and Pizza Hut stores in the city, Luckin Coffee closed its cafes and AB Inbev suspended production at its brewery.

- Imax delayed film releases in China.

HOTELS, BOOKING PLATFORMS, AGENCIES:

- InterContinental Hotels and Hyatt Hotels said they would allow customers to cancel for free reservations booked for China for specific dates..

- Ctrip, China's largest online booking platform, said more than 300,000 hotels on its platform had agreed to refunds on bookings between Jan. 22 and Feb. 8.

- Fliggy, Alibaba's booking site, offered similar refunds, as did several Chinese and European tour operators.

LIMITING TRAVEL TO CHINA:

- Walmart Inc said it is temporarily limiting "non-business critical travel" to, from, and within mainland China amid the outbreak, while Chevron Corp asked its staff to postpone all non-essential travel to China.
Bob Ball passed away peacefully on Thursday, January 30, 2020, with his wife of 61 years, Elizabeth, by his side at The Bridge Assisted Living Community in Ooltewah, Tennessee.



Bob was a retired 20-year veteran of the U. S. Air Force. After retirement he served over 30 years in the Hamilton County Court System, most recently as bailiff in criminal court for the Judge Don Poole.

Bob was a long time member of the Church of God. He was a 50 year Mason serving as Sec. /Treasurer and Master of Hill City Masonic Lodge #603.



In addition to his wife, Liz, he is survived by brothers-in-law, Pat (Mary) West, Paul (Barbara) West of Chattanooga, sister-in-law, Geneva Devine, of Acworth, Georgia; and numerous nieces, nephews, grandnieces, and grandnephews who loved and adored him. His was a life well lived.



Visitation will be from 12-1:30 p.m. on Monday, Feb. 3, at Chattanooga Funeral Home, East Brainerd Chapel. The funeral service will follow at 1:30 p.m. Interment with military honors will follow in Chattanooga National Cemetery.

Please share your memories of Bob with the family at www.chattanoogaeastbrainerdchapel.com.

Arrangements are by the East Brainerd Chapel of Chattanooga Funeral Home, Crematory and Florist, 8214 E. Brainerd Road, Chattanooga, Tn. 37421.
2020 Democratic presidential hopeful and former New York Mayor Michael Bloomberg speaks during an event to open a campaign office at Eastern Market in Detroit, Michigan, on December 21, 2019.

Billionaire Democratic candidate Mike Bloomberg unveiled a tax plan on Saturday that would unwind corporate tax breaks granted by President Donald Trump and impose an additional 5% "surtax" on incomes above $5 million a year.

According to the campaign, the plan in total would generate roughly $5 trillion and would be sufficient to help fund Bloomberg's initiatives, including his healthcare plan, education, combating climate change and more than $1 trillion infrastructure plan.

The campaign did not state how much it would generate from its surtax on incomes above $5 million a year, though noted it would only impact less than 0.1% of taxpayers.

Bloomberg, like fellow moderate candidate Joe Biden, thinks Trump's 2017 Tax Cuts and Jobs Act went too far. Both want to hike the corporate tax rate up to 28%, after Trump lowered it from 35% to 21%. Both want to reverse the Trump tax changes that lowered taxes on high-income households from 39.6%. to 37%. Both propose raising capital gain taxes for high-income taxpayers.

"The plan I am releasing today raises rates on wealthy individuals and corporations, closes loopholes, cracks down on tax avoidance, expands the estate tax, and reduces the tax advantages that investors have over workers," said Bloomberg in a statement.

"And, most importantly," he added, "my plan is achievable" in a seeming swing at more liberal policies put forward by rival Democrats, Senators Bernie Sanders and Elizabeth Warren.

For Bloomberg, who has a net worth of more than $59 billion and courted business leaders as part of his campaign, a focus on high-income taxpayers is notable. It is an acknowledgment of rising income inequality and a 2020 presidential campaign that has centered on populist rhetoric. It echoes language by millionaires and billionaires like Warren Buffett and Abigail Disney who have said they should pay higher taxes.

Bloomberg, who founded financial and media company, Bloomberg LP, said in a statement on Saturday he already gives nearly all his company's profit to charity.

"Under my plan, I'll continue doing that," he noted. "But I will also pay more in taxes to make sure all Americans have the same opportunities I did. That's only right."

Bloomberg could take the debate stage for the first time in Nevada later this month. The Democratic National Committee on Friday unveiled new debate rules that dropped the requirement for candidates to obtain a minimum number of campaign contributors, opening a previously closed door for Bloomberg.

He is polling in fourth place in national surveys, earning approximately 8% support.
On this humid evening in Redfern, a free table is snared by sheer fluke. Bush is mobbed at dinnertime, full of loud, happy people rubbing elbows at knot-wooded tables and wiping cheeseburger sauce off their chins before spooning in mouthfuls of fairy bread and butter pudding.

Ordering one of Bush's cheeseburgers, currently a is-this-the-best-burger-in-Sydney social media sensation, is like asking a mate to cook their signature dish at a house party. Funky tunes are playing, staff are as laidback and sociable as friends in a share house and decor features twisty wood branches, stuffed marsupials, handmade murals from magazine cut-outs and books about cooking and Australian native plants. Homey, fun and unpretentious.

Owner and head chef Grant Lawn, visible in the kitchen in a Eucalyptus leaf-green T-shirt, is cooking sizzling cheese-covered burger patties with lanky gusto. Everyone is relaxed and talking and eating, the combo Lawn aimed for when he quietly opened the cafe in July with the credo, "Bush is about bringing life, green, truth and happiness to people."

Inspired by the Australian bush, the menu features six daily options; curry roo pie, cheeseburger, greens and chips for mains. A mushroom burger is available as a vegetarian option. There are two desserts; grapefruit 'n grandma's honey and fairy bread and butter pudding. In recent weeks the specials board has offered wattleseed damper and dahl, cold Korean pumpkin soup with glass noodles, an ice-cream biscuit sandwich and, star offering, Nan's cheesecake. Bush is BYO but ask for a smoothie, flavoured with "whatever's popping''. Today it's a creamy persimmon batch sweetened with honey.

Bush's cheeseburger, with chips and a bowl of greens, has turned into a social media sensation. Credit:Louise Kennerley

The cheeseburger is a thing of joy. A soft milk bun holding a succulent beef patty, American cheese, onions, pickles and a housemade creamy sauce that runs down your fingers if you're lucky. Also marvellous is the roo pie with excellent curry-infused filling inside buttery, flaky pastry.

Today's greens is top-notch potato, okra and kale salad with herbaceous green sauce and crinkle-cut chips that are crunchy beauties. The rich, wobbly and custard-soaked pudding is sweet and stained with neon-like strands of melting hundreds and thousands. It tastes like happiness. Grapefruit segments drizzled with Lawn's grandma's honey burst with sweet and citrus flavours.

Lawn, who uses Marrickville meat wholesaler Feather and Bone, began perfecting his cheeseburger in 2015 when he started making and giving them to homeless people in Woolloomooloo. Pop-ups at Balmain Markets, The Australian Meat Emporium and Young Henry's honed it further.
She frightened audiences with her disturbing turn in the horror film Wounds in the fall.

Now Dakota Johnson has audiences in stitches with her unexpected turn in the bizarre pseudo-music documentary The Nowhere Inn, which premiered at the Sundance Film Festival on January 25.

The 30-year-old actress plays carries on a relationship with the rock musician St. Vincent in the horror comedy, which also stars Portlandia's Carrie Brownstein.

Love interest: Dakota Johnson, 30, surprised audiences at the Sundance Film Festival premiere of with her cameo as rocker St. Vincent's girlfriend in The Nowhere Inn; pictured in August

The film stars Annie Clark, who performs under the stage name St. Vincent, as she tries to film a music documentary directed by her friend Carrie, who plays a version of herself.

The film gets off to a rough start when Carrie deems Annie's backstage demeanor too boring to carry a film.

In an effort to make herself seem more interesting, the rocker adopts a chilly ice queen persona, while also oversharing about her romantic life.

Dakota, playing a fictionalized version of herself, makes a surprise appearance halfway through the film as Annie's girlfriend.

On film: The film stars Annie Clark, who performs under the stage name St. Vincent, as she tries to film a music documentary directed by her friend Carrie, who plays a version of herself; still from The Nowhere Inn

Sex scene: In order to be more interesting, St. Vincent adopts a theatrical persona and tries to get Carrie to film a sex scene with her girlfriend Dakota, who's clad in lingerie; pictured in 2018

The uproarious scene occurs when St. Vincent invites Carrie up to her hotel room to film a scene for the documentary, where she finds her sitting on her bed with Dakota, both of whom are wearing nothing but scintillating lingerie.

The Suspiria star's role seems to be inspired partly by some of Annie's high-profile ex-girlfriends, including Kristen Stewart and Cara Delevingne.

'She made me gay,' Dakota jokes before the two lovers have sex (off camera) while a visibly uncomfortable Carrie is left to film it.

'She made me gay': Dakota's role as a fictional version of herself is seemingly inspired by Annie Clark's relationships with Kristen Stewart and Cara Delevingne; pictured in February

Ring her up: Annie called Dakota 'a really great sport for what was a very strange ask,' in an interview with Variety. 'I think it was originally, like, "Dakota will you play my girlfriend?"'; pictured Sunday

Annie called Dakota 'a really great sport for what was a very strange ask,' in a recent interview about the project's origins with Variety.

'I think it was originally, like, "Dakota will you play my girlfriend?"' she said.

'It wasnt like, "Will you put on lingerie and come hang out?"' added Carrie.

Part of Brownstein's awkwardness in the scene comes from the lack of an intimacy coordinator, though their wasn't one during the making of the actual film either, as Dakota and Annie just made sex noises off camera.

The Fifty Shades Of Grey briefly returns later in the film when a seemingly demented St. Vincent tries to talk her into planning out a future break-up in order to film it.

The Nowhere Inn currently boasts a 75 percent fresh score on Rotten Tomatoes, with multiple critics singling out Dakota's scenes for praise.

Dressing it up: 'It wasnt like, "Will you put on lingerie and come hang out?"' added Carrie; shown Sunday

Going strong: Dakota is currently dating Coldplay frontman Chris Martin, whom she started dating in October 2017; pictured with actress Addison Timlin (R)

Dakota's current romantic prospects are a bit less chaotic than in the film.

She and Coldplay frontman Chris Martin have been in a relationship since 2017.

The couple briefly split in June of last year, before reuniting the following month.

The impetus to reconcile came from a surprising source: Chris' ex-wife Gwyneth Paltrow.

The Goop founder reportedly urged the two to give their relationship another go over the summer, according to Us Weekly.
So-called education reformers have had a stranglehold on state and federal education policy for almost 20 years. They imposed a myopic focus on student performance on narrow academic outcomes  measuring school and teacher effectiveness based on annual standardized test scores in math and English. The solutions to low scores were blaming and firing teachers, and sanctioning schools with reorganization, takeover and/or privatization.

These reformers charged that educators who recognized the effect of out-of-school factors on learning were merely using poverty as an excuse. The status quo needed to be disrupted with their brand of innovation. They claimed that their test-based reforms would achieve excellence for every student no matter what their life circumstances.

None of these reforms were based on any evidence they would work. And, after two decades, the reform house of cards is crumbling. When reformers were given free rein to implement their schemes, they failed. For example, Broad-trained Chris Barbic ran Tennessees Achievement School District into the ground. Upon his departure, he observed that when he does not get to cherry-pick his students, but rather has to educate all students, his reforms do not work. Noted reformer Jay Greene recently came to the belated realization that test scores do not correspond to changing later life outcomes, such as high school graduation, college attendance or gainful employment.

It turns out that those folks accused of using poverty as an excuse were right all along. Reforms that do not ignore the factors in students lives outside school are the ones that actually work.

A new study of New York Citys Community School program contributes solid evidence that successful education reform entails attending to a broad range of student needs  both academic and non-academic.

Community Schools is partnership among students, schools, families and the community, collaborating to deliver a host of essential resources to vulnerable students. The components of community schools are: integrated student supports, expanded learning time and opportunities, family and community engagement, and collaborative leadership. These schools have additional resources to provide students with academic support, enrichment opportunities and wraparound services in school and often work with community based organizations to support students and their families.

The Rand Corporation recently evaluated three years of the largest implementation of this program to date: in New York City. Among its findings was that that the program had a statistically significant effect on on-time grade progression, reducing chronic absenteeism, and on raising graduation rates. Schools with higher levels of implementation of mental health programs saw a more robust reduction of chronic absenteeism. The report also found some positive effects on math test scores, student discipline and the amount of high school credits earned.

The report noted that the longer the program was implemented, the stronger the positive results. In contrast with education reformers zeal to constantly shake up public schools, this study demonstrates that stability matters. These positive effects impacted students living in poverty, African American and Latinx students, students living in temporary housing and emerging bilingual students. The researchers found that little demographic change in the schools over the years, therefore the improvements were not attributable to shifts in student population.

This report demonstrates that when schools can provide resources that respond holistically to student need, they can affect outcomes that matter for students lives  staying in school, learning what they need to in each grade and graduation.

Looking beyond test scores enables schools to serve all children and helps children succeed.

An unrelated new study drives that point home. Researchers at the University of Chicago just issued a study finding that a regardless of the school, a high school GPA is a robust predictor of college success  and the ACT is a poor predictor. This study adds to the mountain of evidence across the nation on this subject.

The authors noted that while standardized tests such as the ACT measure a very narrow set of skills and topics, the high school GPA is a fuller account of a students ability and achievement. They observed that the teachers and programs that improve standardized test scores are not necessarily the same as those that prepare students to succeed in college. They cautioned against using test scores as a proxy for school quality or effectiveness.

The reformers obsession with standardized test scores misjudged students, teachers and public schools- and did nothing to improve education for our children. It is time for them to step aside and return education policy to those who know something about children and about education.

Wendy Lecker is a columnist for the Hearst Connecticut Media Group and is senior attorney at the Education Law Center.
The infamous Waringo report on the internal workings of the monarchy was made public on Friday morning.

Former IGF director Jeannot Waringo has spent the better part of the last year compiling the report from within the Palace.

The 44-page report was presented to the Government Council on Friday before being made public on the government website. It can be downloaded here.



The overreaching message of the report is that the monarchy's functioning must be reformed, in terms of staff management at the Palace.

Waringo wrote that the most important decisions concerning staff were taken by the Grand Duchess, whether at the level of recruitment, dismissals or department assignment.

In recent weeks, the media have speculated and reported on the Grand Duchess' role in all this, causing the Grand Duke to defend his wife in an unexpected public statement. The statement provoked criticism from the Luxembourg union of journalists. The report confirmed 51 of a total staff of 110 resigned or were dismissed in the period of time between 2014 and 2019.

16 of these were said to have been dismissed, while 16 resigned, and others moved to different administrations. Waringo described an atmosphere of fear among staff, and proposed all future recruitment be signed by the Prime Minister.

He described the internal communication as almost nonexistent, explaining administrative managers communicated very rarely internally, meaning staff were hardly informed about developments within the Court. Waringo was very clear on the need for change in this regard, warning the system would suffocate itself otherwise.

Waringo also detailed his experience with staff members at the Palace, with staff often ill, searching for other work, or struggling with anxiety and pressure. The atmosphere was said to be less than jovial, with staff members exercising caution over their speech. The lack of communication contributed to constant rumours and a sense of unease.

In his eyes, the Marshall of the Court and the Secretary of Property Administration would need to work together to take on an important role, allowing the government to approve changes. The government required more input into the use of taxpayer funds allocated to the Court.

Any future changes in staff should also require detailed justification in line with directives. The report also highlighted that it was unclear exactly how many staff were required for the functioning of the Court. Waringo suggested the Palace could take note from other monarchies in dividing the staff required for official functions, and those required as personal staff to the royal family.

In the 44-page report, which also tackled the financial side to the Palace's operations, Waringo admitted he was unable to ascertain whether the royal couple's private activities were financed by the State or not. He said this question required an immediate answer.

The Grand-Ducal Court confirmed it had received the report and said it would contribute constructively to the implementation of the improvements proposed in the interests of greater transparency and modernisation.

The government were not available for comment after the report's publication. The Prime Minister has said he wishes to discuss the report within the Chamber prior to making any statement. The report of the Prime Minister's special representative to the Grand-Ducal Court can be viewed in its entirety on the government's website. The report will be presented to the members of the Committee on Institutions and Constitutional Revision of the Chamber of Deputies on Wednesday, 5 February 2020.
Chinese pupils at a top British boarding school have been barred from flying home for the holidays for fear of them contracting the deadly coronavirus.

Hereford Cathedral School said all planned trips to visit loved ones have been scrapped and the boarding house will stay open during half term next week.

The 15,000-a-year institution is ratcheting up efforts to insulate its students and staff from the infection after the first two cases were confirmed on UK soil.

These patients, one of whom is a York University student, have sparked panic as Britons rush to buy protective face masks.

But the problem at home pales in comparison to China, where the outbreak spawned in Wuhan and has now spread to infect almost 12,000 and kill 259.

Other private schools with overseas students are also banning them returning to China.

A senior source at a high-flying British boarding school told MailOnline: 'I doubt many if any schools will be sending pupils back at half term. All of ours are not returning, including some from Thailand.'

This week teachers were warned to keep an eye out for xenophobia in the classroom as students could exclude their Chinese peers over misplaced fears they could catch coronavirus.

Hereford Cathedral School said all planned trips to visit loved ones have been scrapped and the boarding house will stay open during half term next week

A deliveryman wears a protective Hazmat suit in Wuhan, where the deadly virus spawned before spreading to kill 259

Hyper-aware that the bug is both extremely contagious and lethal, Hereford Cathedral School moved swiftly to impose a blanket ban on its crop of Chinese pupils returning home, despite their 'concern' for friends and family.

'None of the pupils are travelling back home and the boarding house will remain open over half term,' the school's marketing manager Laura Yates told the Hereford Times.

'None of the students from China have been there since the outbreak and any planned visits from family and friends have been cancelled. We're doing everything we can do.

'Our medical and boarding staff have been briefed.'

Many Chinese parents send their children to Britain's elite boarding schools, creating tough decisions for headteachers forced to weigh up whether they should be allowed to go home for the short winter break.

Sources told MailOnline that parties of prospective students and parents who planned to tour schools ahead of next year's intake have been axed while the world wrestles to squash the spread of the virus.

Wellington School in Somerset has advised parents of Chinese pupils to forbid their children from flying back for the break.

Chinese citizens passing through a temporary corridor opened at a border checkpoint in Russia

Headmaster Eugene du Toit told the County Gazette: 'I have also told parents of students in year 11 and in the upper sixth that they should anticipate not allowing their children to travel home during the Easter break so that their ability to complete external examinations is not compromised.

'It is of paramount importance that we do everything within our power to minimise the threat of coronavirus to our children and the community and keep everyone safe.'

Bullying could also creep into the classroom as students shun their Chinese peers over misplaced fears of contracting illness.

This week the Boarding Schools' Association even warned teachers to 'stay alert for signs of xenophobia' both during the day and on social media.

Updated advice to accommodate coronavirus concerns read: 'Stay alert for any signs of xenophobia by students towards one another, or by any external audiences, either in school or on social media sites.

'Such behaviour should not be tolerated and action should be taken against anyone acting in this way.

'They [Chinese pupils] will be worried about themselves but more particularly about their friends and families.'
Share this article Whatsapp

Facebook

Twitter

Linkedin (Agence France-Presse) Tokyo, Japan  Sat, February 1, 2020 09:08 709 7f440ff09e92db75a02bbad2061f42ae 2 Science & Tech Nintendo,Nintendo-Switch,Japan,games Free

Japanese gaming giant Nintendo said Friday there would be no fresh model of its hot-selling Switch console this year, dashing the hopes of fans eager for a new version.

"We have no plans to launch a new Nintendo Switch model in 2020," president Shuntaro Furukawa told a briefing in Tokyo.

Competition in the industry is expected to grow tougher this year as Sony prepares to launch its next-generation PlayStation 5 for the Christmas season, and with upcoming 5G mobile phones expected to offer more sophisticated gaming.

But Furukawa said the Switch's life cycles and customer bases were different from rival consoles.

"Other companies' business moves will not have a special impact on our business," he said.

The original Switch console, a hybrid that can be used for handheld play or hooked up to a screen at home, has become a huge global seller.

It is entering its fourth year, which Furukawa described as the "early stage of its middle life".

But its sales are still solid with powerful software titles.

Last September, Nintendo also launched a scaled back, cheaper version of the console, called Switch Lite, which is a strictly handheld device. Its sales have also been solid.

In December the Kyoto-based firm behind Super Mario and Pokemon rolled out the flagship Switch model in China via Tencent to further boost its global reach.

After the stock market closed on Thursday, the company reported a leap in sales and profit for the nine months to December, upgrading its full-year profit forecast on strong demand for Switch consoles.

But the stock fell more than four percent on Friday.

"Its earnings were not bad but market expectations had been higher," said Makoto Sengoku, market analyst at Tokai Tokyo Research Institute.

The absence of a console launch would not hurt Nintendo much thanks to its hit software titles, he added.

"The new coronavirus is rather worrying," he added, noting it could disrupt Nintendo's shipments from Chinese factories.

"Stocks related to inbound tourists have been falling but now investors have realized Nintendo could also be affected," he said.

Nintendo said Thursday its net profit for April-December rose 16.4 percent from a year earlier to 196.4 billion yen ($1.8 billion) on robust sales of hardware and software.
There have been mixed responses in the newspapers to Britain leaving the EU (Andrew Milligan/PA)

There have been mixed reactions in the newspapers to the UKs withdrawal from the European Union, with some British dailies mourning as others praised the departure and Europes front pages seemingly move on.

The Guardian strikes a mournful tone on the day we said goodbye with a glum-faced bulldog, while inside economics editor Larry Elliott writes a new era has begun as the UK enters a decade of potentially profound structural change.

Tory MP Michael Gove writes in the Times that the real meaning of the Brexit vote is re-invigorating out parliamentary democracy and an apparently jubilant Daily Express entreats readers to Rise and shine for a glorious new Britain.

Brussels former tenants absence is notable through Belgian papers, with only Le Soir referring to the EUs new chapter after 27 years.

The French express some interest in events across the Channel inside three major newspapers.

La Tribunes online front page simply says Brexit: goodbye European Union, Le Monde speaks to Britons in France, and Le Figaros online live section asks if the departure could be a chance for the French economy.

In the UK, the Sun says the EU must grasp the new reality, while the Daily Mirror shifts the pressure to London with a front page demanding Now build the Britain we were promised.

The front page of German national daily Die Welt is occupied by a graphic of John Cleeses famous Ministry of Silly Walks paired with the headline Liebe (love) Briten, youll never walk alone, and the Hannoversche Allgemeine Zeitungs editorial states that Brexit means first and foremost the spirit of the continent has been lost.

Spains El Pais tops its front page with a headline referring to a divided United Kingdom, and the countrys ABC daily says Prime Minister Boris Johnson has secured a historic divorce.

Italys La Repubblica asks whether the schism of Brexit signals a nightmare, while Dubais Khaleej Times shows a chain being snapped either side of the words New dawn.
As part of their fifth year portfolio work, art students in St Louis Secondary School completed a piece on the theme of Borders.

This was very topical in the school where a second year students had just finished a high profile collaboration with two other schools as part of a Department of Foreign Affairs funded Cross Border project.

The girls decided for themselves whether they wanted to create artworks dealing with local, national or international borders. Their works also focused on the issues of Human Rights and Dignity for all.

When the work was completed, the students were lucky enough to have a meeting with Senator David Norris in Leinster House with their teacher Fergal Kilkenny.

The Senator spoke to the girls about their work and discussed his own work in the Israeli Palestininian conflict, about which he has spoken on many occasions,

At the end of the visit Aliya Sanussi presented David Norris with a portrait of himself.
How it all unfolded As we celebrate another Freedom Day on Tuesday, D.C. Ranatunga looks at Sri Lankas path to Independence February 4, 1948: View(s): View(s):

The territory ceded by the Dutch was from 1797 to 1802 placed under the English East India Company, and formed a part of the territory of the Government of Madras until 1802, when Ceylon was created a Crown Colony. In 1815 the British Government declared war on the last king of Kandy. His mis-government had estranged his own subjects. He was able to offer but a feeble resistance, and was eventually taken prisoner. In terms of a convention held on 2nd March 1815, at Kandy, between the British authorities and the Kandyan chiefs, the king was dethroned, and the Sinhalese voluntarily surrendered their Island to the British sovereign with full reservation of their rights and liberties.

Thus ended the oldest dynasty in the world, after enduring for twenty-four centuries, and the whole island passed under the sway of Britain. A few years ago at Tanjore in the Madras Presidency, I had the honour of being presented to the last surviving Queen of Kandy, who in spite of straitened means still maintained the traditions and ceremonial of a court. Speaking from behind a curtain, she was pleased to welcome me and express her appreciation of some little services rendered to her family since their downfall. She has now passed away. A lineal descendant of the kings of Ceylon holds a minor clerkship in the Registrar-Generals Department of this Island  a living testimony to the revolutions of the wheel of fortune.

These two paragraphs are from a lecture delivered by Sir Ponnambalam Arunachalam (1853-1924), civil servant and national leader at the Legislative Council Chamber in Colombo presided by Governor Sir Henry A. Blake on January 30, 1906. At the start of the lecture titled, Sketches of Ceylon History he said that not only is the history of Ceylon among the oldest, most interesting and fascinating in the world, going back twenty-four centuries, but no people can break with its past as we are trying to do. At the time of his writing the country was a Crown Colony under the British Empire following the British taking over the country from the Dutch.

As the years went by, national leaders successfully demanded that the country be granted Independence. Two of the key leaders in the campaign to gain freedom were E.W. Perera and D.B. (later Sir Baron) Jayatilaka, active members/presidents of the Ceylon National Congress formed in 1919. The two scholars lobbied the British government against actions of the colonial administration in the country. After them Don Stephen (D.S.) Senanayake led the constitutional movement and became the first Prime Minister of independent Sri Lanka.

Decades earlier, a commission had been appointed under Sir William Colebrooke when the British Government became anxious that finances were not being properly balanced. In 1833, on the Commissions recommendation an Executive Council was appointed to control the acts of the Governor, and a Legislative Council, nominated by the Governor, to represent various interests and government departments.

After the opening up of plantation crops starting with coffee, the English business interests started agitating for constitutional reforms. The local intelligentsia too gradually began to realise the need for more participation in the administration. Patchwork was done by increasing the number of members of the Legislative Council at regular intervals but the agitators were not happy.

Realising that colonies could no longer be governed autocratically, the British Government decided to test out Ceylon with more reforms. The Donoughmore Commission was appointed to recommend changes. On the Commissions recommendation the State Council was established in 1931.

When Governor Sir Andrew Caldecott arrived in 1937, he had instructions to study the constitutional position carefully taking into account the different opinions about the State Council system. The Governor recommended a Cabinet in place of the Board of Ministers, the elimination of the system of Executive Committees, and the retention of territorial representation which had replaced communal representation when members were elected to the State Council from 1931. It was coupled with the grant of universal adult suffrage when all male and female Ceylonese over 21 years were given the right to vote. This increased the voting population from 204,997 (based on educational and property qualification) to 2,175,000.

With the outbreak of World War II in 1939 no further reforms were put in place.

On May 26, 1943, it was declared that a post-war re-examination of the Ceylon Constitution would be made directed towards the grant of full responsible government in all matters of civil administration. Following this declaration the Secretary of State requested the Ministers who were agitating for self-government with other statesmen and organisations, to frame a constitution for examination.

A Commission appointed in September 1944 under Lord Soulbury recommended that a Westminster style of government be established with a bicameral legislature. On June 18, 1947, Governor Sir Henry Monck-Mason Moore made a statement at a special session of the State Council that early steps will be taken by His Majestys Government as soon as the necessary arrangements are negotiated with the new Ceylon Government to confer upon this country fully responsible status within the British Commonwealth of Nations.

On December 19, 1947, the Ceylon Independence (Commencement) Order in Council, 1947 was released at the Court at Buckingham Palace declaring that the appointed day for the purpose of the Ceylon Independence Act shall be the fourth day of February 1948.

Thus did February 4 become our Independence Day.
New Delhi, Feb 1 : After a lacklustre approach towards the February 8 Delhi Assembly polls, the Congress leadership is planning to infuse some vigour. As part of the plan, former Congress chief Rahul Gandhi will hit the campaign trail and address two rallies on February 4 and 5.

However, his sister Priyanka Gandhi Vadra's poll programmes are yet to be finalised.

Contrary to the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) and the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), which have marshalled their resources for the elections, the Congress has gone for a low-key campaign.

The Congress campaign may move into higher gear on Monday as the Chief Ministers of Congress-ruled states will canvass for the party. RJD leader Tejaswi Yadav will also address four rallies. The RJD is contesting 4 seats in alliance with the Congress.

The Congress is contesting 66 of the 70 Delhi Assembly seats by making the poll plank works done during late Chief Minister Sheila Dikshit's tenure. It will release the manifesto on Sunday, just six days before the vote. It had won no seat in the 2015 polls.
By PTI

ISLAMABAD: Pakistan, which is facing its worst locust attack in decades, has declared national emergency to tackle the insects destroying crops on a large scale in Punjab province, country's main region for agricultural production.

The decision was taken at a meeting convened by Prime Minister Imran Khan on Friday.

The meeting, attended by federal ministers and senior officials of the four provinces, also approved a National Action Plan (NAP) that requires a sum of Rs 7.3 billion to overcome the crisis.

Minister for National Food Security Khusro Bakhtiar informed the National Assembly about the gravity of the situation and the steps so far taken by the federal and provincial governments to deal with the crisis, the Dawn newspaper reported.

ALSO READ: BJP MLA brings 'basket full of locusts' to Rajasthan Assembly to address farmers' crisis

During the meeting at the Prime Minister's Office, which was also attended by Adviser to the Prime Minister on Finance Hafeez Shaikh among others, a detailed briefing on the overall situation was given to the prime minister.

The meeting was informed that besides involving the officials concerned at the provincial and district levels, different tasks have been given to the National Disaster Management Authority (NDMA), provincial disaster management authorities and federal and provincial departments to deal with the threat.

Prime Minister Khan ordered formation of a high-level committee to be headed by Bakhtiar to take decisions at the federal level for the elimination of insects.

The prime minister directed the authorities concerned to make immediate measures on the basis of damage of ripened crops.

"Protection of farms and farmers is the highest priority of the government. Therefore, the federal government should take all necessary steps to save national crops and provide required resources to the quarters concerned," Khan was quoted as saying in the report.

Bakhtiar informed the house that it was for the first time that after attacking Sindh and Punjab, the swarms of locust had entered Khyber Pakhtunkhwa.

"A sum of Rs 7.3 bn is required to avoid further destruction," he said.

"Declaration of national emergency was imminent to handle the situation; besides, Parliament must have a role in monitoring the situation," he added.

Bakhtiar claimed that the government had managed to save cotton and winter crops to a large extent, adding that climate change was one of the reasons for delay in the exit of locusts.

He said the situation was worse than the one Pakistan faced in 1993.

The swarms of locust are currently on the Pakistan-India border along Cholistan, the minister said, adding that insects had entered Cholistan and Nara from Sindh and Balochistan.

Locusts used to move to Iran after sometime, but perhaps this time due to low temperatures they are still in Pakistan, he said.

Nawab Yousuf Talpur of Pakistan Peoples Party said that in 1993 when locusts had attacked the country, the situation had been handled in four days with limited resources, the report said.
Members of the Stand up for Scotland movement rallied in front of the Scottish parliament in Edinburgh on Saturday, the first day out of the European Union for the United Kingdom.

Scotland voted to stay in the European Union by a majority of 62% in the 2016 referendum and the protesters showed their upset and anger at being forced out the European trade bloc against their country's will.

Across the road from the rally, a group of pro-Brexit supporters staged a small counter-protest, but their chants were drowned out by the much larger group of pro-Europe demonstrators.

Many of the protesters gathered outside parliament carried YES flags, to show their support for Scottish independence.

The UK's departure from the EU has revived the Scottish independence movement with many arguing it would be the only way back into the European club of nations.
Meghan Markles relationship with her father and siblings is incredibly strained and appears to be getting more strained by the day. Thomas Markle Sr. hasnt spoken to his daughter since the eve of her wedding to Prince Harry in May 2018. Hes never met the prince and hasnt laid eyes on his grandson, either. Regardless of the rift, the elder Markle hasnt stopped talking to the press, nor have Markles siblings, Thomas Markle Jr., and Samantha Markle. With Markle and Prince Harrys decision to step back from royal life making headlines, everyone is wondering what went so terribly wrong in the Markle family, and whether or not Markle is embarrassed by her family members desperate attempts to garner the spotlight.

Meghan Markle once had lovely things to say about her father

Back in 2017, Markle sat down with Vanity Fair to discuss her upbringing. She noted that her parents, while they divorced when she was young, always seemed to work together in her best interest. She said that they vacationed together, spent time together, and even enjoyed Sunday meals together. Shes spoken about growing up on the set of the television shows that her father worked on, and from the sounds of it, the father-daughter duo enjoyed a close relationship.

Meghan Markle as Rachel Zane | Frank Ockenfels/USA/NBCU Photo Bank/NBCUniversal via Getty Images

The elder Markle has been pretty open about his relationship with this daughter. He noted that she told him when she met Prince Harry, and they discussed him fairly regularly until the engagement. The elder Markle even spoke to Prince Harry after he popped the question, according to The Evening Standard. The elder Markle and Prince Harry, however, never got a chance to meet one another. Things turned sour shortly before the pair were set to walk down the aisle.

When did their relationship deteriorate

Things appeared to go downhill quickly for the father-daughter duo. The catalyst of the rift that now exists seems to be rooted in the elder Markles decision to skip the royal wedding after photos taken in the beachfront Mexican town he resides in were revealed to be staged. The elder Markle and the paparazzi attempted to pass them off as candid shots. It seems the elder Markle was paid for the photos.

Evening Standard headlines with news of Meghan Markles father not attending the upcoming royal wedding | Richard Baker / In Pictures via Getty Images Images

He claims he hasnt spoken to his daughter since the eve of her wedding to the prince, but he has been talking to the press, regardless of the warning he claims he was given by the prince about speaking with the media. Markles fans see her father as nothing more than money-hungry, believing that hes been chasing paychecks from media outlets ever since the news of Markles engagement broke. Opponents of the Duchess of Sussex see the elder Markle as a confused father, desperate to reconnect with his daughter.

Regardless of which side of the fence you fall on, its clear to say that a serious wedge has been placed between the father and daughter. It does seem, however, that the duchess much older siblings have played a hand in the problem, and its possible that Markle is thoroughly embarrassed by them.

Is Meghan Markle embarrassed by her family?

While the relationship between Markle and her father is certainly not healthy at the moment, shes never outright claimed to be embarrassed by him. In fact, everything shes said about him leading up to the familial rift was positive. The real thorn in the side of the duchess seems to be her older half-siblings. Markles much older sister, Samantha Markle, has been incredibly outspoken about her distaste for her younger sister. The Markle sisters havent had contact in more than a decade. In fact, the last time the pair were in the same room together was 2008, long before Markle landed her breakout role on Suits. Samantha Markle was left off of the guestlist for both of her sisters weddings.

Meghan Markle | Chris Jackson/Chris Jackson/Getty Images

Markles brother, Thomas Markle Jr., has been a problem, too. Hes penned several open letters to his younger sister and appears to be taking advantage of her celebrity every chance he gets. According to Us Weekly, Markle Jr. even appeared in a beer ad that mocked the younger Markle. Still, he claims hed like to reunite with this sister.

Has this all been embarrassing for the younger Markle? Shes never said, but one can assume that having your familys dysfunction aired to the world cant be a comfortable feeling. Both half-siblings have also said some pretty horrible things about the youngest member of the Markle clan. Whether theyll ever reunite is unknown, but frankly, it seems unlikely.
There were no announced changes in the provinces plan to close the Dauphin jail, following a positive meeting Friday between city officials and the justice minister.

Hey there, time traveller!

This article was published 31/1/2020 (709 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

There were no announced changes in the provinces plan to close the Dauphin jail, following a "positive meeting" Friday between city officials and the justice minister.

"It was a very positive meeting," was all Mayor Allen Dowhan would tell reporters, after talking with Justice Minister Cliff Cullen in Winnipeg, adding he is looking forward to a town hall on the issue Monday in Dauphin.

BRANDON SUN Dauphin mayor Allen Dowhan.

When asked, Cullen was just as forthcoming as Dowhan.

"Weve had a number of discussions with the community and with the mayor," the minister said as he emerged from a special round table on retail crime.

"In fact, we just had a meeting with the mayor and the CAO of the city just this morning. We look forward to attending (the town hall) Monday... Hopefully, we can address any questions that arise."

MIKAELA MACKENZIE / WINNIPEG FREE PRESS Manitoba Justice Minister Cliff Cullen: We look forward to having further discussions with the community.

Cullen said he wouldnt be travelling to the western Manitoba city, but the province will send the deputy justice minister and officials from other departments.

"We look forward to having further discussions with the community," Cullen said.

The City of Dauphin, as well as the surrounding RM of Dauphin, were blindsided a week ago, when the province suddenly announced it was closing the century-old jail in May, and not replacing it with a new one.

Under the former NDP government, not only had planned construction of a new corrections facility been announced, but a groundbreaking ceremony took place on land donated by the city and RM. Since then, a sewage system has been installed on the site.

In addition to the town hall meeting, the Manitoba Government and General Employees Union, representing the more than 80 employees affected at the Dauphin Correctional Institution, is organizing a rally and march to the jail Tuesday.

Meanwhile, Gary Robinson, president of the Legal Aid Lawyers Association, said that union is also against the move to shut the jail. Robinson said the closure will not only affect criminal lawyers  both legal aid and private  based in Dauphin, but inmates and their family members, as well.

"It makes it harder to meet their clients if theyre not located in Dauphin," he said Friday. "It makes it difficult to keep in contact with clients. Theyre really pressured to plead guilty as fast as possible."

The other correctional centres for adults are in Brandon, Headingley, The Pas, and Milner Ridge in the Agassiz Provincial Forest (about 20 km southwest of Lac du Bonnet).

Robinson said the province believes a video link between lawyers and accused people will work, but he said it can never replace face-to-face meetings.

Want to get a head start on your day? Get the days breaking stories, weather forecast, and more sent straight to your inbox every weekday morning. Sign Up I agree to the Terms and Conditions, Cookie and Privacy Policies, and CASL agreement.

"You need to be closer to them," he said.

Robinson said it also makes it difficult to persuade judges to agree to allow intermittent sentences, where convicted people can serve their time on weekends.

"When they close jails, that makes it harder to get that type of sentence  they have to go much farther to begin serving on a Friday to a Sunday," he said.

A government spokeswoman said sheriff services is working to ensure in-person court appearances by inmates will not be impacted, while video court is also available to help inmates have their matters heard without physically being there in court.

The spokeswoman said there are also lawyer video interview systems at all Manitoba adult and youth correctional centres, to allow lawyers to connect with their clients over the internet.

kevin.rollason@freepress.mb.ca
New Delhi: Another flight of Air India left from Delhi at 1:37 pm on Saturday from Indra Gandi international airport (T3) to evacutae Indians from coronavirus-hit Wuhan in China. The second flight of Air India left hours after the first flight landed in the Indian capital evacuating 324 passengers from China.

Earlier, on Saturday, Air India spokesperson said "Another flight will depart to Wuhan from Delhi at 12.50 pm today with a different set of crew, same doctors' team with other aircraft. The rescue team is again headed by Capt Amitabh Singh, Director Operation, Air India."

The first flight was a double decker jumbo 747 with 15 cabin crew and 5 cockpit crew along with a team of five doctors from Ram Manohar Lohia hospital (RML) hospital, one paramedical staff from air India with prescribed medicine from doctors, masks, overcoats, packed food are boarded in the special aircraft. A team of engineers ,security personnel also went to Wuhant to carry the rescue mission lead by Captain Amitabh Singh, Director operation of Air India.

Live TV

According to news agency ANI, the Indian nationals who returned back to India will be kept at specially created quarantine centres for two weeks, as a precautionary measure. The Union Health Ministry informed that the government has made adequate quarantine centres at Manesar and Chawal camp.

In addition, a 50-bedded critical care facility has been set-up at Safdurjung Hospital in Delhi for the critical care of the patients. All persons admitted to both the quarantine facilities will be monitored on a daily basis for a period of 14 days.

The death toll from the novel coronavirus outbreak has risen to 259 with total confirmed cases surging to 11,791 amid stepped up efforts by a number of countries to evacuate their nationals from Hubei province, the epicentre of the virus, officials said on Saturday.

(With PTI inputs)
By John Geddie and Joseph Sipalan SINGAPORE/KUALA LUMPUR (Reuters) - 'Do not wear a mask if you are well' read a warning plastered across the front of Singapore's main newspaper on Friday, as authorities around the world sought to calm panic buying of masks seen as a guard against the fast-spreading coronavirus. In neighboring Malaysia, the government urged people to always have masks and hand sanitizers ready, similar to advice by authorities in Thailand and Vietnam. Conflicting messages have sowed confusion over how to protect against an epidemic that has claimed over 200 lives in China and spread to over 20 countries, with some experts saying wrong handling of masks could even increase infection risk

By John Geddie and Joseph Sipalan

SINGAPORE/KUALA LUMPUR (Reuters) - "Do not wear a mask if you are well" read a warning plastered across the front of Singapore's main newspaper on Friday, as authorities around the world sought to calm panic buying of masks seen as a guard against the fast-spreading coronavirus.

In neighboring Malaysia, the government urged people to always have masks and hand sanitizers ready, similar to advice by authorities in Thailand and Vietnam.

Conflicting messages have sowed confusion over how to protect against an epidemic that has claimed over 200 lives in China and spread to over 20 countries, with some experts saying wrong handling of masks could even increase infection risk.

"Wearing a mask only when u feel unwell? Then why do u need soldiers when there isn't war? It's better to be safe than sorry" Facebook user Kenny Chan Wai Kong posted in Singapore, where authorities have announced plans to give four masks to every household as retailers' stocks run dry across the island.

In parts of Asia, wearing face masks is common when people are sick or to counter urban pollution.

Official guidance from the World Health Organisation and the Centre for Disease Control and Prevention makes no mention of wearing a face mask as a preventative measure against the virus - but their websites do not specifically advise against them.

Australia and Taiwan have said healthy people don't need masks, but Australia has released 1 million masks from the national medical stockpile, and masks are widely worn in Taiwan's capital Taipei where the government has imposed purchase limits and an export ban on masks.

The Taiwan Railway Administration said on Friday that if the virus continues to spread it will refuse to carry passengers not wearing masks.

MASKS MUST BE FITTED CORRECTLY

Coronavirus can be transmitted from person to person, although it is not clear how easily. Most cases have been in people who have been in the Chinese city of Wuhan at the centre of the outbreak, family members of those infected, or medical workers.

Transmission is likely through contact with an infected person via particles in the air from coughing or sneezing, or by someone touching an infected person or object with the virus on it and then touching their mouth, nose or eyes.

"Situations that require a mask are when you are in a crowd...or if you are caring for a sick person. If it makes you feel better, wear a surgical mask," Angela Rasmussen, virologist at the Center for Infection & Immunity at Columbia University said on the Reuters Global Markets Forum.

Other experts have said disposable surgical masks may not fit the face tightly enough to prevent infection, while some have pointed out that wrong handling of masks such as touching the front could increase the likelihood of infection spread.

In Hong Kong, a lawmaker who chairs the city's government health services panel was slammed over a short video she posted showing people how to steam and re-use disposable face masks.

More unusual advice has seen India's government suggest a traditional concoction that includes ginger and holy basil as virus protection, while a Myanmar minister was rebuked for sharing a Facebook post that advised people to eat more onions.

Some overseas Chinese have been buying masks to send to friends and relatives in China, where some stocks have been running out. Chinese citizens living in Vietnam, Thailand and Malaysia sent 150,000 masks back to their home province of Gansu on Thursday, China's Xinhua news agency reported.

In China, where nearly 10,000 cases have been reported so far, Zunyou Wu, chief epidemiologist at the Chinese Center for Disease Control and Prevention, told state broadcaster that people need to wear masks when taking public transport.

This story has not been edited by Firstpost staff and is generated by auto-feed.
New Delhi, Feb 1 : To create a single window e-logistics market, the Centre plans to soon release a 'National Logistics Policy'.

According to Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman, the soon-to-be-released policy will clarify the roles of the Central and state governments and key regulators.

"It will create a single window e-logistics market and focus on generation of employment, skills and making MSMEs competitive," she said in her Budget speech.

At present, India's logistics sector is highly fragmented and the policy aims to reduce the logistics cost from 14 per cent of GDP to less than 10 per cent by 2022.

"India's logistics sector is very complex with more than 20 government agencies, 40 PGAs, 37 export promotion councils, 500 certifications, 10,000 commodities, 160 billion market size. It also involves 12 million employment base, 200 shipping agencies, 36 logistics services, 129 ICDs, 168 CFSs, 50 IT ecosystems and banks & insurance agencies," the Ministry of Commerce and Industry said in a statement.

"Further, 81 authorities and 500 certificates are required for EXIM." The sector provides livelihood to more than 22 million people and improving the sector will facilitate 10 per cent decrease in indirect logistics costs, leading to the growth of 5 to 8 per cent in exports.

"Further, it is estimated that the worth of Indian logistics market will be around$215 billion in the next two years compared to about $160 billion at present." The policy which has been formulated by the Commerce and Industry Ministry will improve India's trade competitiveness, create more jobs, improve India's performance in global rankings and pave the way for India to become a logistics hub.
(Newser)  Chinas death toll from a new virus rose to 259 on Saturday and a World Health Organization official said other governments need to prepare for "domestic outbreak control" if the disease spreads in their countries, the AP reports. The number of confirmed cases in China rose to 11,791, surpassing the number in the 2002-03 outbreak of SARS, or Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome. Meanwhile, Beijing has criticized Washingtons order barring entry to most foreigners who visited China in the past two week, and the virus' rapid spread in two months prompted the World Health Organization (WHO) on Thursday to declare it a global emergency. In other developments:

story continues below

On Saturday, Australian Prime Minister Scott Morrison announced a travel ban similar those imposed by the US, Japan, and Singapore.

South Korea and India flew hundreds of their citizens out of Wuhan, the city at the center of an area where some 50 million people are prevented from leaving in a sweeping anti-virus effort. The evacuees went into a two-week quarantine. Indonesia also sent a plane.

WHO said it was especially concerned that some cases abroad involved human-to-human transmission. "Countries need to get ready for possible importation in order to identify cases as early as possible and in order to be ready for a domestic outbreak control, if that happens, says a WHO representative.

WHO Secretary-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus said that despite the emergency declaration, there is "no reason for measures that unnecessarily interfere with international travel and trade." That prompted criticism of Washington from a Chinese official, who said that "just as the WHO recommended against travel restrictions, the US rushed to go in the opposite way. Certainly not a gesture of goodwill."

The ruling Communist Party postponed the end of the Lunar New Year holiday in Hubei province, where Wuhan is located, for an unspecified appropriate extent and appealed to people there to stay home. Another locked-down city in Hubei, Huanggang, on Saturday banned almost all residents from leaving their homes in the most stringent controls imposed yet.

(Read more coronavirus stories.)
Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell flashes President Trumps favorite hand signal while leaving the chamber on Friday night. Photo: Drew Angerer/Getty Images

The final vote on the impeachment and conviction of Donald Trump has not been cast and the Senate is already returning to normal.

The suspense had almost entirely drained out of Capitol Hill late Thursday night when Tennessee Republican Lamar Alexander announced that he would not support new witnesses in the trial. The Senate, however, still needed to officially reject any witness testimony and documentary evidence in the trial. That near party-line vote of 51-49 didnt happen until late Friday, with only Mitt Romney and Susan Collins breaking partisan ranks.

Even after the vote, which made Trumps acquittal all but inevitable, Mitch McConnell and Chuck Schumer needed a final round of extended negotiations about how to land the plane, as a number of Republican senators described the process. In doing so, the worlds greatest deliberative body returned to its traditional duties: haggling over how much time senators could speak on C-SPAN and when they would be able to catch weekend flights out of the capital.

This gave Democrats four more opportunities to force votes on witnesses than they had originally been allowed on Friday. All would be pro forma show votes. Further, the trial was stretched past Tuesdays State of the Union with the final vote lined up for Wednesday afternoon. This means Trump will join Bill Clinton as the second chief executive to address a joint session of Congress during an impeachment trial. In the meantime, the senators would get the weekend off  to rest, watch the Super Bowl, or campaign for the White House in Iowa  and when they returned, they could still spend Tuesday and Wednesday orating about impeachment to their hearts content.

The additional votes on witnesses happened in quick succession. There were no speeches and no drama. The Senate voted in a routine rat-a-tat-tat roll call. Two of the votes were on strict party lines to allow Democrats all the witnesses they desired and to allow Chief Justice John Roberts to make the ultimate determination. Two of the votes were simply on subpoenaing John Bolton to testify. Romney and Collins voted with Democrats again on those.

Afterward, Republicans were relaxed about the final process. Lindsey Graham told reporters, I was hoping it would be over but the Senates the Senate. It works its will.

Democrats felt disheartened. Its really a low point in my memory, Marylands Chris Van Hollen told Intelligencer, for the U.S. Senate becoming a Senate that, for the first time in American history, doesnt hear from a single witness or get a single document as part of a trial.

That really is a disgraceful new precedent to set.

Patrick Leahy, the most senior member of the chamber, flashed a hardcover copy of Profiles in Courage to reporters after leaving on Friday night. The book, by John F. Kennedy, describes moments in American history when senators acted with great political courage. Most famously, Kennedy writes about Edmund Ross, who broke with his party to cast the decisive vote against Andrew Johnsons conviction in 1868 and lost his seat as a result. When asked by Intelligencer if he thought any of his Republican colleagues might qualify for a sequel, Leahy firmly and simply replied, No.

Then again, there is rarely any courage worth profiling on a normal day in the Senate. Instead, there are mechanical party-line votes that lead to predetermined outcomes just in time for senators to make it through the PreCheck line at DCA. And, despite all the trappings of an impeachment trial, Friday was ultimately just another normal day.

Sign Up for the Intelligencer Newsletter Daily news about the politics, business, and technology shaping our world. Email This site is protected by reCAPTCHA and the Google Privacy Policy and Terms of Service apply. Terms & Privacy Notice By submitting your email, you agree to our Terms and Privacy Notice and to receive email correspondence from us.
Three young Cork women will be amongst the fifteen finalists competing for the Sean O Riada Gold Medal in the Rochestown Park Hotel in Cork on Friday 7 February, and the event will be broadcast live on RTE Raidio na Gaeltachta.

Eimhear Flannery, 15, from Rockchapel in the Sliabh Luachra area of Cork will be the youngest competitor this year, and this will be her third time to compete in the final. She was a finalist in 2016 when she was just 11, competing on whistle that time, and on concertina then in 2018.

She was just 2 years old when she took up the whistle, and has won many prizes for her playing over the years.

Mairead Carey hails from the parish of Aughadown in West Cork. She has had a strong interest in Irish traditional music from a young age and plays the fiddle, tin whistle and piano, as well as the flute. Mairead has many awards and scholarships to her name, and at the moment she is working as an Executive Officer in the civil service in Cork City, and playing music with the National Folk Orchestra. Mairead previously qualified for the final in 2012 and 2016.

Joanne Quirke is a multi-instrumentalist from Cork city who began playing whistle at the age of 14 and quickly progressed to the flute at the age of 15. She also plays fiddle and piano. She has won many honours at Fleadh Cheoil na hEireann in the past including three senior All-Ireland titles. Joanne was involved in the creation of a series of tutorials for Irish Music Apps in which she acted as tin whistle teacher and she has toured extensively throughout Europe and Japan. She was a finalist in the competition in 2016.

Peadar O Riada will present the event live from the Rochestown Park Hotel from 7 pm - 10 pm. Esteemed musicians Michael Tubridy, Mary Bergin and Gary Hastings will have the difficult job of choosing the winner, and the criteria will include not only technical proficiency, but playing that demonstrates musicality and soul as well. The winner will take home the prestigious Sean O Riada Gold Medal, as well as 2500.

As part of the weekend events, there will be a musicians' conference on Saturday morning in the hotel, and the Coirm Ordha concert with past winners including box player Keelan McGrath and harper Una Ni Fhlannagain will take place on Saturday night.
Keena Roberts parents were notable primatologists studying baboons in the remote Okavango River delta in Botswana. The author, a successful Harvard graduate, and her younger sister Lucy accompanied them on their regular research trips to Africa. Life in Botswana was very challenging and often dangerous, but transitioning to a comfortable suburb in Philadelphia where her parents taught was tougher.

Hey there, time traveller!

This article was published 1/2/2020 (709 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

Keena Roberts parents were notable primatologists studying baboons in the remote Okavango River delta in Botswana. The author, a successful Harvard graduate, and her younger sister Lucy accompanied them on their regular research trips to Africa. Life in Botswana was very challenging and often dangerous, but transitioning to a comfortable suburb in Philadelphia where her parents taught was tougher.

Roberts memoir Wild Life: Dispatches from a Childhood of Baboons and Button-Downs chronicles her back-and-forth coming-of-age story from pre-school through adolescence. It reads more like a young-adult adventure tale than a memoir.

Supplied photo Growing up, author Keena Roberts endured bullying and harrasment from her peers in Philadelphia.

The book starts with a bang  in fact, a double-barreled bang-bang.

In the epilogue Roberts recounts the time she was totally humiliated in the second grade of her private school for doing a "Gorilla Man" dance she learned from her time in Africa. Her breathless you-are-there story told by a six-year-old is a preview of her troubling times in Philadelphia. Awaiting her turn, Keena wiggles her toes with excitement; but when shes done, shes ridiculed by her snooty classmates and totally crushed.

Chapter one reverts back to her toddler years as she quickly describes the three times she almost died: when a deadly black mamba snake joined her in her crib; when she was covered by painful safari ants; and when she was confronted, alone, by a Saint Bernard-sized baboon. Although she did not accompany her parents when they worked in the field with Dian Fossey or were monitoring Vervet monkeys in Kenyas Amboseli Park, Roberts absorbed the sights and sounds of wild Africa from their small forest home. Its the life she preferred.

Its easy to see why, as the rest of the book is a combination of Extreme Adventures in Africa and Mean Girls. The stories about life in the "idyllic bubble" of the Botswana baboon camp  located 65 kilometres from the nearest town, Maun  are vivid and astonishing. The animals there are dangerous but "rational," as Roberts descreibes them, predictable. The Philadelphia school stories, meanwhile, are sad and scary. Her classmates, especially the girls, are bullying and viciously dismissive.

In Botswana Roberts is typically on her own, and acts startlingly grown-up from a very young age. At eight years old she shoots her first black mamba (a poisonous, game-over snake) with an air rifle. Before she is 10 she has piloted a small boat two hours downriver, past man-eating crocs and even more dangerous hippos. To keep the baboons, wild dogs and hyenas from stealing their food, Roberts has to sit in a tree with a chunk of thawing chicken while reading adventure stories. Hours from any medical help, Roberts endures a savage laceration of her elbow and cuts a huge thorn out of her own heel with a pocket knife.

Back in Philadelphia, meanwhile, life is confined and either boringly routine or depressing lonely. Her schoolmates call her the "monkey girl" or simply "Apu." She tries to fit in but usually finds herself alone, even avoiding her good friend Nat so that he too wont be scorned. At one point she even has to endure a close encounter with a pedophile.

Roberts story is believable and accurate  her parents forced her to keep a detailed daily diary for the 11 years her story covers. Wild Life is compact and manageable because her editors cut it down from a "giant stack" of "incredibly disorganized stories" into a crisp, enjoyable account. It is accompanied by many verifying photos (much more so than the fanciful cover, a Photoshopped image of a young girl on a colorful inner tube amid wide-mouthed hippos).

Wild Life is a harrowing and heartening story of survival and success. Its perfect for someone who doesnt seem to fit in and is tired of Harry Potter-type fantasies.

Gene Walz has been to Africa twice and cant get enough stories about people living among the wild animals there.
WASHINGTON - Geoffrey Gibson, owner of Capital Vape Supply, watched his thriving, 7-year-old business wither last summer when vaping-related deaths started making headlines.

It picked up again after the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention announced in December that the lung illness that has killed at least 60 people and injured more than 2,600 was primarily caused by cartridges containing THC (the psychoactive ingredient in marijuana), not nicotine.

Now, Gibson and dozens of other vape shop owners in Washington, D.C., face another potential setback - a proposed city council bill that would outlaw all flavored vaping liquids. Similar efforts are sprouting up around the country as local and state officials try to curtail rampant teen vaping.

The number of adolescents who vape has more than doubled since 2017. An estimated 28% of high-schoolers and 11% of middle-schoolers are current vape users, according to a recent national survey by the CDC and the U.S. Food and Drug Administration.

Other state tactics include levying hefty taxes on vaping products, restricting vape store zoning, requiring warning labels and otherwise limiting the sale and marketing of nicotine vaping liquids.

ADVERTISEMENT

Nineteen states and the District of Columbia had raised the smoking age to 21 for both cigarettes and vaping when in late December the Trump administration raised the national smoking age to 21, effective immediately.

Major medical groups, the U.S. Surgeon General and anti-tobacco lobbyists are calling for an expansion of state and local flavor bans and other restrictions aimed at keeping the devices out of kids' hands.

"This is an industry that spends $9 billion a year in marketing, and a lot of that is designed to get kids addicted," said John Schachter, state policy director for the Campaign for Tobacco-Free Kids. "Kids aren't making a choice. They're being targeted by a nefarious industry."

But advocates for vapers, the vaping industry and some public health researchers say the emerging regulations could destroy a nascent industry that is proving to be the greatest boon to smoking cessation in decades.

They argue that over-regulating vaping products could force the more than 3 million adults who use them as a smoking alternative to seek dangerous, unregulated products on the black market or go back to smoking cigarettes, which kill more than 480,000 Americans every year. They also warn the same thing could happen to the kids they are trying to protect.

Because adolescent tobacco use declined more rapidly in the past five years than in the previous three decades, some researchers speculate that youth nicotine vaping, which started gaining momentum about five years ago, may have supplanted what would have been more harmful adolescent smoking.

Earlier this month, the CDC removed a website warning it had posted last year as the lung illness was sweeping the nation.

Now, instead of urging everyone to stop all types of vaping immediately, the agency is taking a more measured approach. The CDC's website currently recommends that vaping products should not be used by youths, young adults, women who are pregnant or adults who do not currently use tobacco products. And it cautions adults using nicotine vaping products as an alternative to cigarettes not to go back to smoking.

ADVERTISEMENT

In November, Massachusetts became the first state to enact a permanent flavor ban on all tobacco products, including menthol cigarettes. New Jersey's legislature passed a similar ban this month but did not include cigarettes.

Lawmakers in 16 states - Florida, Georgia, Hawaii, Nebraska, New Hampshire, New Jersey, New Mexico, New York, Rhode Island, South Carolina, South Dakota, Tennessee, Utah, Vermont, Virginia and West Virginia - and Washington, D.C., are considering flavored vaping legislation.

In addition, New York City, Philadelphia, San Francisco, Los Angeles County and more than 250 other local governments banned the sale of flavored vaping products last year.

At the federal level, the Trump administration announced this month that the FDA would ban all flavors except tobacco and menthol in so-called closed system or cartridge-based products such as those made by Juul and NJOY, starting in February. Those are the easy-to-conceal, high-tech products that are preferred by teens, according to national surveys, and are sold online and in most gas stations and convenience stores.

Cartridge-based products in general contain a much higher percentage of nicotine than open-system or refillable tank vapes sold in stores like Capital Vape Supply.

The refillable tanks are the clunkier, low-tech devices that create a huge cloud of vapor and are primarily used by budget-conscious adults who either consider vaping a safer alternative to smoking or want to vape nicotine liquids in places where they can't smoke cigarettes.

The administration said it was striking a balance between preserving flavored e-cigarettes for adults seeking to quit smoking while targeting the products most widely used by teens.

Still, small vape shops and the customers who use them to stay away from cigarettes aren't out of the woods yet, said Gregory Conley, president of the Stamford, Connecticut-based American Vaping Association, which represents vapers.

ADVERTISEMENT

A federal court ordered - in a lawsuit filed against the FDA by the American Academy of Pediatrics - vaping device-makers to file applications with the FDA showing the liquids and their products are safe and help people stop smoking.

Juul, which dominates the closed-system vaping market and already has stopped making most flavored products, and a handful of other large makers of cartridge-based products are expected to file applications seeking so-called premarket approval of their products by May 12.

For the first time, vape companies will have to provide scientific evidence to support what they have claimed all along - that their products are safe and effective at helping adults quit combustible cigarettes.

But for the hundreds of small manufacturers whose products line the shelves at Capital Vape Supply and other tobacco and vaping stores nationwide, it is not financially feasible to file hefty applications for the dozens of flavored products they make, Conley said.

In the District of Columbia, a bill before the City Council would prohibit vape shops less than a quarter mile from a middle school. Another bill would require adults to have a prescription for vaping products, after the FDA approves vaping for smoking cessation.

In addition, anti-tobacco advocates are calling for tax hikes on vaping products, just as they have for cigarettes. Massachusetts in November raised its excise tax on retail sales of vaping products to 75%.

Minnesota's retail tax is 95% and the District of Columbia's is 96%. Vermont last year added a 92% tax on wholesale vaping products.

Marcus Plescia, chief medical officer for the Association of State and Territorial Health Officials, said his organization recommends that states enact a full complement of vaping restrictions, starting with flavor bans, tax hikes and inclusion of vaping in existing restrictions on indoor and outdoor nonsmoking areas.

"But it's not a matter of raising awareness on the issue or twisting arms," he said. Nearly all states, including those with Republican majorities, are seeking advice on how to quell runaway adolescent vaping, he said. "State officials are very interested and engaged on the issue. They're ready to act."

The Arlington, Va.-based association also advises states to consider limits on the concentration of nicotine in vaping products to reduce the risk of addiction.

Vaping cartridges made for Juul contain roughly 5% nicotine, compared with much lower concentrations in refillable tank systems. Newer disposable e-cigarettes tout the highest concentration yet at roughly 6%.

Still, traditional cigarettes deliver nicotine to the brain in its most addictive form, according to Truth Initiative, a Washington, D.C.-based nonprofit public health group that advocates for an end to tobacco use.

Some researchers and advocates who consider nicotine vaping an effective method of quitting cigarettes say the groundswell of new taxes, flavor bans, zoning regulations and other restrictions could do more harm than good.

Vaping nicotine is an effective means for the nation's nearly 40 million smokers to quit and is far safer than smoking, said David Abrams, professor of social and behavioral sciences at New York University and former director of the Office of Behavioral and Social Sciences Research at the National Institutes of Health.

In the United Kingdom, where e-cigarette products are highly regulated by a health authority similar to the FDA, products are tested for safety before entering the market and nicotine concentrations are limited to 2%.

Although most U.S. public health experts recommend limits on nicotine concentrations in e-cigarettes to lessen the risk of addiction, Abrams disagrees. Whatever nicotine level is needed to attract cigarette smokers to vaping should be allowed, he said, since vaping is safer than smoking.

In the December issue of Science Magazine, he and four other researchers cautioned federal, state and local policymakers to ensure that the vaping regulations they enact are proportionate to the risk of vaping compared with smoking.

Many of the new and proposed state and local vaping restrictions were triggered by the lung illness that has affected more than 2,600 people in all 50 states. Despite the CDC's finding that the illness was tied to THC vaping, it heightened public awareness that unknown harms could result from any type of vaping.

"The pulmonary injury opened people's eyes to the fact that anything you inhale into your lungs could be a problem," Plescia said. He cited a December study by researchers at the University of California, San Francisco that found people who used e-cigarettes were at a somewhat higher risk of developing respiratory diseases from the chemicals used in the vaping fluids, including some flavorings.

In New York, state Rep. Linda Rosenthal, a Democrat, didn't need convincing.

She said she was suspicious of e-cigarettes from the beginning. In 2010, she sponsored a bill that would have outlawed the sale of all e-cigarettes and vaping devices in the state until the FDA approved them.

"Somehow, I just knew," Rosenthal said in an interview with Stateline. "At the time, most e-cigarettes were made in China and no one knew what was in them. We should know what's in a product before we put it into our bodies."

A former smoker, Rosenthal said she wasn't concerned about adult smokers who claimed they needed flavored e-cigarettes to quit. "There are other methods people can use to quit, including talk therapies, the patch and gum."

As for the stores that sell them, she said, "selling poisons to kids isn't a very good business model."

Earlier this month, the New York Supreme Court overturned a temporary statewide ban on flavored vaping products ordered by Democratic Gov. Andrew Cuomo in September. This month, in his State of the State address, Cuomo said he plans to ban all vaping flavors and ads directed at youth.

Within days, Rosenthal held a news conference to rally support for a pair of bills that would eliminate the sale of flavored vaping products and menthol-flavored cigarettes. Despite stiff opposition from the vaping industry, Rosenthal said she expects her bill to pass before the end of this month.

Advocates for vapers who are trying to quit smoking explain that flavors are essential.

"The whole idea is to get away from cigarettes, so the last thing you want is a nasty-tasting imitation tobacco flavor and a harsh burn on the back of your throat," Conley said. The flavors are designed to be so appealing to adults that they never want to return to cigarettes, he said.

On a mild January afternoon, a steady stream of customers stepped into Gibson's cozy store from the bustling sidewalks of the historic U Street neighborhood in D.C. Some were first-timers getting started on their New Year's resolution to quit smoking. Most were regulars picking up fresh supplies or replacement parts.

The first thing Gibson tells his customers is that the lung illness was caused by THC - not nicotine. He shows them a notice from the CDC listing the offending THC products. None is available in his shop, he tells them. They nod in understanding.

For them, the lung scare is over and they're back to vaping their favorite flavors: Paradox on Ice, Black Note Prelude and Dinner Lady Lemon Tart. Gibson explains that the flavors aren't all that different from the Watermelon, Strawberry Milk and Mint flavors adolescents say they prefer in Juuls. They just have grown-up names.

---

(c)2020 Stateline.org

Visit Stateline.org at www.stateline.org

Distributed by Tribune Content Agency, LLC.
By Rosemary Nwisi, Port Harcourt/Chris Oji, Enugu/Damisi Ojo, Akure/ Okungbowa Aiwerie, Asaba/David Adenuga, Bauchi/Onimisi Alao, Yola/Augustine Okezie, Katsina/Uja Emmanuel, Makurdi/Nsa Gill, Calabar/Damian Duruiheoma, Owerri/Sunny Nwachukwu, Aba/Kolade Adeyemi, Kano

1,200 under observation in Edo, 70 in Rivers

121 infected in Ondo

Two expectant mothers  one each in Rivers, Enugu and Adamawa states  are among the latest victims of the current Lassa fever outbreak in parts of the country.

Six other persons have also lost their lives to the killer virus in other states.

Edo State alone has placed 1200 patients under observation while 70 are under surveillance in Rivers State.

Apart from the expectant mother, Lassa fever has claimed two other lives in Rivers State.

They included a young father of two and one other, according to the Director Planning, Research and Statistics in the state Ministry of Health, Chinwendu Atata.

He told reporters in Port Harcourt that results of samples from the deceased persons showed that they died of the virus.

She appealed for calm and assured that the state has procured facilities and sufficient drugs to tackle the challenge.

The Rivers State Public Health Emergency Operation Centre (EOC), she said, had earlier commenced pro-active effort for containment of the outbreak. So far, all hands are on the deck for facility decontamination, line-listing, presumptive prophylaxis and surveillance to ensure public health safety and security.

In addition, the state has procured large quantities of anti-viral agents; isolation centres have been designated and are being set-up across the teaching hospitals in case of any eventuality. Rivers State Government is doing everything to contain the Lassa virus.

Pregnant woman, one other succumb to Lassa in Enugu

Two persons, among them a pregnant woman, have been confirmed dead in Enugu State as a result of the Lassa fever outbreak

Six suspected cases were reported, but three of these were confirmed.

The third victim, a 24-year-old female member of the National Youth Service Corps (NYSC) is responding to treatment.

Read Also: Why Lassa fever is a recurring decimal

The Chief Medical Director (CMD) of the University of Nigeria Teaching Hospital (UNTH), Ituku/Ozalla, near Enugu, Dr Obinna Onodugo, said of the death of the expectant mother: It is confirmed that a case of Lassa fever came to UNTH today (30/1/2020) and died at our Emergency and Accident Unit. We are currently tracing contacts.

We are also working with the Enugu State Epidemiology Team and the Nigerian Centre for Disease Control (NCDC) to ensure that proper measures are taken at the mortuary and to protect staff against new cases.

Four deaths in Delta

No fewer than four deaths have been recorded in Delta State, following the outbreak of Lassa fever in parts of the country.

A source at the Federal Medical Centre, Asaba who spoke on condition of anonymity said four deaths had occurred, of which two were probable fatal cases.

Delta Health Commissioner, Dr Ononye Mordi could not be reached for comments.

Edo places 1,200 under observation

The Edo State government has placed 1,200 people under surveillance since the Lassa fever outbreak last month.

Health Commissioner Patrick Okundia told The Nation in Benin that the state had recorded 91 confirmed cases and nine deaths so far.

121 infected in Ondo

One hundred and twenty one persons have been reportedly infected with Lassa fever in Ondo State.

Sources revealed that the deadly virus had spread to more than 10 out of the 18 local government areas of the state.

Most of the victims have been quarantined at the Federal Medical Centre, (FMC) Owo.

The state Epidemologist, Dr Stephen Fagbemi who confirmed the development, said some other patients have been quarantined in Akure.

Seven infected in Bauchi

Seven residents of Bauchi State have been confirmed as having Lassa fever.

In all, 22 suspected cases have been confirmed in the state.

The Executive Secretary Bauchi State Primary Health Care Development Agency, Dr. Rilwanu Mohammed, said no case.

Katsina records four suspected cases

Katsina State on Friday confirmed recording four suspected cases of Lassa fever in the state.

But three patients have been discharged after passing as negative in the various tests conducted on them

Health Commissioner Yakubu Nuhu Danja told newsmen in Katsina that three suspected patients were first isolated and the sample of their blood taken to the laboratory for tests and their results came back negative.

Its one death, zero active case in Adamawa

Lassa fever claimed one life in Adamawa State last week, but since then there has been no recorded case.

Three persons suspected of carrying the virus were found to be clean

Health & Human Services Commissioner Abdullahi Isa said the deceased was a pregnant woman who suffered a stillbirth in the course of the carrying the virus.

Benue declares emergency

The Benue State Government declared an emergency after a 40-year-old woman tested positive to the virus.

Health and Human services Commissioner Sunday Angbabo said patient was on admission at the Benue State University Teaching Hospital in Makurdi and was responding to treatment.

Dr Angbabo said government would launch a massive campaign against the virus and sensitize the people on how to avoid contracting it.

Unizik student confirmed as carrying virus in Anambra

A student of the Nnamdi Azikiwe University (Unizik), in Anambra State, has been confirmed as carrying Lassa fever virus.

The state emergency response team has moved the patient to Abakaliki, Ebonyi State.

Cross River steps up preventive campaign

Health officials in Cross River State have stepped up awareness campaign for residents to understand the preventive measures on Lassa fever although there has not been no reported case of the virus in the state,

Primary Healthcare Development Agency (CRSPHCDA) urged Cross Riverians to observe precautionary measures and stay calm despite the outbreak of Lassa fever recorded in its neighbouring states.

Director General, Primary Healthcare Development Agency (CRSPHCDA), Dr. Janet Ekpeyong, in a statement advised residents to observe personal hygiene by covering their food items and keeping them away from rodents.

Fear in Imo

There were fears on Friday about possible spread of Lassa fever in some communities in Oru West,Imo State, following alleged burial of victims of the virus in the state.

The deceased were said to have been brought home for burial from outside the state.

Abia State has one recorded case

The only recorded case of Lassa fever in Abia State so far occurred in Avonkwu Olokoro in Umuahia South Local Government Area.

The patient was admitted at the Federal Medical Centre (FMC), Umuahia but died shortly after wards.

We are on top of Lassa fever in Kano  Commissioner

The Kano State Government on Friday expressed its commitment to step up measures to end the outbreak of Lassa fever in the state.

Health Commissioner Aminu Ibrahim Tsanyawa said government was on top of the situation.
Due to the threat of the coronavirus contamination, Yakutia Airlines temporarily suspended flights to Harbin on February 1, the companys press service reports.

The airline company informs that passengers with tickets on the specified route will be able to issue a return at the place of purchase without loss of cost, RIA Novosti informs.

Recall that at the moment, in China, about 11 700 people have been infected with coronavirus, 259 people have already become victims of the disease.
Bollywood actor Raveena Tandon has criticised the ban on Kunal Kamra by several airlines after he heckled journalist Arnab Goswami onboard a flight.

Speaking at an event, Raveena said, Ok, I like Kunal Kamra. Does that help? No? That doesnt help! Actually, personally I dont like him because he makes very personal and bad jokes but the ban on him was not justified. That I will stand for. Nonetheless, everyone has two sides of the coin.

Raveena was speaking at an event to promote organ donation and was accompanied by Priyanka Chopras mother Dr Madhu Chopra on stage.

Also read: Gurdas Manns son Gurrickk G Mann marries Simran Kaur Mundi in royal wedding ceremony at The Baradari Palace in Patiala. See pics and videos

Kunal has shared a video on Twitter where he was heard heckling Arnab onboard Mumbai-Lucknow flight on January 28. After the post, IndiGo banned him for six months. Air India also restricted the comedians access to their airline services after the video surfaced online. Rohit Mateti, who was the captain of the flight on which the incident happened, wrote a letter to the airline asserting that Kamras conduct through the flight may be considered unsavoury but could not be classified to be that of a Level 1 Unruly passenger. The letter was leaked online.

The ban on Kunal has been sharply criticised as civil aviation rules only mandate a three-month ban for first level unruly behaviour, as was the case. Besides, the rules require that the pilot-in-command should have filed the first complaint and initiated the process to take action. Captain Rohit Matetis letter said he did not raise it because in his view, Kunal Kamra didnt cross the line.

Kunal Kamra's act now seems almost like the only option to expose an establishment and its stooges. He called Arnab out in a very crude way and the response was a vulgar show of authoritarianism. Kamra's protest still does not feel right to me but i almost feel it was necessary.  Hansal Mehta (@mehtahansal) January 29, 2020

I used to know Arnab earlier - not exactly a friend but as someone passionate about news and debate. It is sad to see him becoming a preposterous, partisan and obnoxious servant of a dictatorial establishment. He symbolises the mostly comatose state of tv journalism in India.  Hansal Mehta (@mehtahansal) January 29, 2020

Earlier, filmmaker Hansal Mehta had also criticised the ban. Hansal tweeted, I used to know Arnab earlier - not exactly a friend but as someone passionate about news and debate. It is sad to see him becoming a preposterous, partisan and obnoxious servant of a dictatorial establishment. He symbolises the mostly comatose state of tv journalism in India.

I did not like the way @kunalkamra88 heckled Arnab on a flight. I felt it was unnecessary and uncool coming from someone who usually criticizes with such sharp wit. But seeing the even more uncool response by airlines (with govt blessings) to his behavior I have mixed feelings...Kunal Kamras act now seems almost like the only option to expose an establishment and its stooges. He called Arnab out in a very crude way and the response was a vulgar show of authoritarianism. Kamras protest still does not feel right to me but i almost feel it was necessary, he added.

Follow @htshowbiz for more
Russia Confirms First Two Cases Of Coronavirus, Two Chinese Nationals Quarantined

By RFE/RL's Russian Service, Current Time January 31, 2020

MOSCOW -- Russia has reported its first two cases of coronavirus, as governments scrambled to control the spread of a new coronavirus that has already killed more than 200 people in China.

The two cases were registered in the Zabaikalye region, which borders China, and in the Tyumen region bordering Kazakhstan, Russian Deputy Prime Minister Tatyana Golikova told journalists on January 31.

Both patients have been quarantined, Golikova said, adding that Russia was halting most flights to China.

At least 213 people in China have died from the coronavirus, which emerged in the country in December, with nearly 10,000 cases registered.

The World Health Organization (WHO) on January 30 declared a global health emergency over the outbreak, saying there had been 98 cases outside China -- but no deaths.

There have been more than 100 cases reported in about 20 other countries.

WHO's decision to declare a global emergency allows it to support lower- and middle-income countries to strengthen their disease surveillance systems and prepare them for cases.

Chinese authorities have effectively sealed off Wuhan, the sprawling city of 11 million at the center of the outbreak, and put numerous transport restrictions in place to curb the spread of the virus.

Canceled Flights, Closed Borders

As the outbreak continues to spread in and outside of China, various countries have taken steps to close borders with China, cancel flights, suspend the issuance of visas to Chinese citizens, or evacuate citizens.

Golikova announced that all direct flights from Russia to China would be halted starting January 31, with the exception of national airline Aeroflot.

She said Russia would suspend the issuance of work visas to Chinese citizens and evacuate citizens from China's Hubei Province because of the virus.

The moves come a day after the Russian government said the country had closed its border with China, the fifth-longest land border in the world.

Also on January 31, Kazakhstan announced it was planning to evacuate all of its citizens from China before the end of the week. There are 98 Kazakh students currently in Wuhan, according to Kazakh officials.

Earlier on January 31, Pakistan announced it was halting all flights to and from China until February 2.

Pakistan has yet to register a case, but top health official Zafar Mirza said four Pakistani students in China had been diagnosed with the new virus.

Around 500 students were in Wuhan when it surfaced earlier this month, officials said.

Islamabad had no immediate plan to evacuate the almost 30,000 Pakistani nationals living in the country even though parents in the northwestern city of Kohat staged protests demanding the government to bring their children back.

The United States has warned its citizens against all travel to China and said any American currently in the country "should consider departing using commercial means."

"Do not travel to China due to novel coronavirus first identified in Wuhan," the U.S. State Department said in a new travel advisory on its website, raising the warning for China to the same level as Afghanistan and Iraq.

Source: https://www.rferl.org/a/russia-confirms -coronavirus-first-cases-chinese- nationals-quarantined/30410166.html

Copyright (c) 2020. RFE/RL, Inc. Reprinted with the permission of Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty, 1201 Connecticut Ave., N.W. Washington DC 20036.

NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address






Members of the Redeemed Christian Church of God (RCCG) are embarking on prayer walk across the country tomorrow, the leadership of the church has announced.

The walk is the churchs own way of expressing displeasure at the gruesome killings of innocent people in the country.

The action is also to pray for the government to develop capacity to overcome the criminals troubling the nation.

The Assistant General Overseer (Admin and Personnel) of the church,Pastor J.F Odesola, in a circular dated January 29, 2020 addressed to all regions and provinces of the RCCG, parishes of the church were asked to end their service not later than 11am on Sunday to enable members march round their immediate environment, praying for God's intervention in the ongoing situation in Nigeria.

The protests are at the instance of the RCCG General Overseer, Pastor Adejare Adeboye.

According to the circular, The Christian Association of Nigeria, the umbrella body for all Christians and Christian organizations in Nigeria, has made a clarion call for prayers and advocacy to all Christians in Nigeria in response to the inhumane acts against Christians in the country.

The General Overseer has therefore directed that all members of RCCG should participate in this prayer and advocacy with details as stated here under:

Since RCCG is currently on a fasting and praying programme, the prayer focus within this period should be against the gruesome killings of innocent people in the country and prayer for the government to develop the capacity to overcome the criminals troubling the nation.
A second worker has died from injuries suffered in a Burleson County oil well fire, which authorities suspect was caused by the ignition of natural gas rising to the surface.

The worker, who was not identified, died two days after the fire broke out at the well operated by Chesapeake Energy of Oklahoma City, according to the company. The other worker killed in the explosion was identified in a court filing as Windell Beddingfield, 38, of Tyler.

Beddingfield, an employee of Eagle Pressure Control, a Fort Worth oil field services company, died at the scene Wednesday. His mother, Linda Milanovich, filed a request for an injunction before a state District Court in Caldwell on Friday afternoon to preserve evidence in advance of a potential lawsuit.

Officials from Eagle Pressure Control could not immediately be reached for comment. Milanovich is seeking a hearing as soon as Monday or Tuesday, said her lawyer, Eric Allen with the Houston office of the law firm Zehl & Associates.

Distraught is the best way to explain what the family is going through right now, Allen said.

Fatal Accident: One dead, three burned in fire at Chesapeake Energy well

Crews were working on upgrading a wellhead at the surface when an unexpected amount of natural gas entered the 8,500-foot-deep well and ignited around 3:30 p.m. Wednesday, a preliminary inspection report from the Railroad Commission of Texas shows. The cause of the ignition is not clear and remains under investigation by state and local authorities.

Eleven people from Chesapeake, Eagle Pressure Control and Alice oil field services company C.C. Forbes were working on the well pad at the time of the accident, the Railroad Commission report said.

Beddingfield died at the scene, and three other men were transported by helicopter to hospitals in Houston and Austin.

Beddingfield, nicknamed Bubba by family members, is survived by a wife and a 16-year-old daughter.

Chesapeake officials said the crews were performing workover operations at the time of the accident. In the oil and natural gas industry, workover crews are typically called to perform maintenance or other types of work to improve a wells sagging productivity. Chesapeake said none of its employees were injured.

Our thoughts and prayers are with those impacted, Chesapeake spokesman Gordon Pennoyer said in a statement.

Forbes Energy Services, the parent company of C.C. Forbes, said in a statement that one of the victims was its employee. The company declined to disclose the name of the worker or the extent of his injures.

Forbes said it is cooperating with authorities and Chesapeake in the investigation.

Fuel Fix: Get energy news sent directly to your inbox

Family members identified Brian Maldonado, a resident of San Diego in South Texas, as one of the men injured in the accident, the Alice Echo News-Journal reported.

Maldonados aunt Jessica Gonzalez Quintana told the newspaper that he suffered third-degree burns to more than 90 percent of his body.

The 25-year-old oil field worker underwent surgery at Dell Seton Medical Center at the University of Texas in Austin on Thursday afternoon, family members told the News-Journal.

More: Read the latest oil and gas news from HoustonChronicle.com

Located off County Road 127 and FM 60 near Deanville in Burleson County, a pair of oil wells were drilled by Columbia Gas Development in 1980 and 1993, Railroad Commission records show. Ownership of the oil lease has changed hands at least five times over the past two and half decades.

Chesapeake assumed ownership of the lease after closing a $4 billion deal to buy Houston oil company Wildhorse Resources last February.

Targeting the Giddings field of the Austin Chalk geological formation, the well was last reported in November to be producing 220 barrels of crude oil and nearly 1.9 million cubic feet of natural gas per month.

sergio.chapa@chron.com

@SergioChapa on Twitter
Northrook, IL -- (SBWIRE) -- 01/31/2020 -- According to the new market research report on the "Manufacturing Execution System Market by Offering (Software, Services), Deployment (On-premises, On-demand, Hybrid), Process Industry (Food & Beverages, Pharmaceuticals & Life Sciences), Discrete Industry, Geography - Global Forecast to 2024", published by MarketsandMarkets, the Manufacturing Execution System Market is expected to grow from USD 11.8 billion by 2019 to USD 23.0 billion by 2024 at a CAGR of 14.3% from 2019 to 2024.



A few key factors driving the growth of this market include the need for mass production and connected supply chain to cater to the growing population, increasing use of industrial automation in process and discrete industries, low deployment cost, and growing importance of regulatory compliance.



Ask for PDF Brochure:

https://www.marketsandmarkets.com/pdfdownloadNew.asp?id=536



MES market for services to grow at highest CAGR during forecast period



The demand for MES services is expected to grow at the highest CAGR during the forecast period. Manufacturing execution systems. The manufacturers provide services such as opportunity assessment, solution migration and enhancement, product evaluation, MES application configuration, business analysis, selection services, customization, and multi-level support services.



On-premise deployment of MES is expected to hold largest share of manufacturing execution system market during forecast period



The process industry comprises sectors such as oil & gas, pharmaceuticals & life sciences, chemicals, food & beverages, pulp & paper, energy & power, and water & wastewater management. On-premises manufacturing execution systems are being increasingly deployed in these sectors as they allow manufacturers to manage the system within the premises, which reduces the time and cost. It also helped in increased security and enhanced the productivity of processes. Therefore, the market is expected to grow in the next five years.



North America to dominate manufacturing execution system market during forecast period



North America has been a significant contributor to the growth of the overall manufacturing execution system market owing to the increasing use of manufacturing execution systems in process and discrete industries in the region, and the presence of players developing MES solutions are some of the driving factors for the growth of the MES market in North America.



Browse in-depth TOC on "Manufacturing Execution System"



120  Tables



46  Figures



180  Pages



Inquiry Before Buying:

https://www.marketsandmarkets.com/Enquiry_Before_BuyingNew.asp?id=536



The report profiles the most promising players in the market. The MES market is highly dynamic because of the presence of a significant number of big and small players operating in it. Key players in the market are ABB Ltd. (Switzerland), AVEVA plc (UK), Applied Materials, Inc. (US), Dassault Systemes (France), Honeywell International, Inc. (US), Rockwell Automation, Inc. (US), Siemens AG (Germany), SAP SE (Germany), Oracle Corporation (US), and Werum IT Solutions GmbH (Germany).



Please Explore Relevant Reports:



Process Automation & Instrumentation Market by Instrument (Field Instrument, Control Valve, Analytical Instrument), Solution (APC, DCS, HMI, MES, PLC, Safety Automation, SCADA), Industry, and Geography - Global Forecast to 2024



SCADA Market by Component (Programmable Logic Controller, Remote Terminal Unit, Human-Machine Interface, Communication Systems), SCADA Architecture (Hardware, Software, Services), SCADA Industry, and Geography - Global Forecast to 2024



About MarketsandMarkets

MarketsandMarkets provides quantified B2B research on 30,000 high growth niche opportunities/threats which will impact 70% to 80% of worldwide companies' revenues. Currently servicing 7500 customers worldwide including 80% of global Fortune 1000 companies as clients. Almost 75,000 top officers across eight industries worldwide approach MarketsandMarkets for their painpoints around revenues decisions.



Our 850 fulltime analyst and SMEs at MarketsandMarkets are tracking global high growth markets following the "Growth Engagement Model  GEM". The GEM aims at proactive collaboration with the clients to identify new opportunities, identify most important customers, write "Attack, avoid and defend" strategies, identify sources of incremental revenues for both the company and its competitors. MarketsandMarkets now coming up with 1,500 MicroQuadrants (Positioning top players across leaders, emerging companies, innovators, strategic players) annually in high growth emerging segments. MarketsandMarkets is determined to benefit more than 10,000 companies this year for their revenue planning and help them take their innovations/disruptions early to the market by providing them research ahead of the curve.



MarketsandMarkets's flagship competitive intelligence and market research platform, "Knowledge Store" connects over 200,000 markets and entire value chains for deeper understanding of the unmet insights along with market sizing and forecasts of niche markets.



Contact:

Mr. Shelly Singh

MarketsandMarkets INC.

630 Dundee Road

Suite 430

Northbrook, IL 60062

USA: +1-888-600-6441

Email: sales@marketsandmarkets.com
Advertisement

By West Kentucky Star Staff

Jan. 31, 2020 | PADUCAH

By West Kentucky Star Staff Jan. 31, 2020 | 05:20 PM | PADUCAH

Congressman James Comer, a fervent opponent of the impeachment trial against President Trump, is hopeful that impeachment proceedings will soon be over.



In an interview with West Kentucky Star, Comer called the impeachment trial a "complete waste of time", saying Democrats may have had more credibilty if they hadn't spent the last two years investigating the President, especially on Russian collusion.



"It's just been a witch hunt from day one, and I think that in less than a week it will finally be over," said Comer. "Hopefully the Congress will let the President try to lead, and hopefully the leaders in Congress, especially on the House side where Democrats have the majority, will try to govern."



In a 51-49 decision, the Senate voted against calling witnesses on Friday afternoon, paving the way for an acquittal.
By PTI

DHAKA: Over 300 Bangladeshis on Saturday returned home from Chinese city Wuhan, the epicentre of the coronavirus outbreak, on a special aircraft and were quarantined in a facility under military and police vigil, officials said.

State-run Biman Airlines' Boeing 777-300 ER aircraft carrying 312 Bangladeshis, including 12 children and three infants, landed at Hazrat Shahjalal International Airport (HSIA) here in afternoon, Biman spokeswomen Tahera Khondoker said.

Khondoker said 15 crew and four doctors were on board the special flight.

ALSO READ: Vietnam to suspend all China flights amid Coronavirus scare

The evacuees were directly escorted to nearby Ashkona Hajj Camp from the airport, where they would have to stay under medical observation for next 14 days as the time is considered as the incubation period of the virus, a Bangladeshi health ministry spokesman said.

According to a report in BD News, seven people suffering from fever were sent to hospital after they arrived from Wuhan.

The death toll in the coronavirus epidemic has soared to 259 with total confirmed cases surging to 11,791 in China amid stepped-up efforts by a number of countries to evacuate their nationals from Hubei province and its capital Wuhan.

The virus emerged in early December and has been traced to a market in Wuhan that sold wild animals.

ALSO READ: Coronavirus outbreak - Australia to refuse entry to non-citizens arriving from China

The World Health Organisation declared the outbreak a global emergency on Thursday.

Bangladesh Foreign Minister A K Abdul Momen during a media briefing with Health Minister Zahid Maleque on Friday said the returnees were not sick, "but we don't want to take any risk and they must go through the required medical observations".

Malek urged the returnees' relatives not to gather at the camp in the next 14 days, adding that the Directorate General of Health and Army Medical Core were mobilised to take proper care of the evacuees in line with a treatment protocol prepared with WHO guidelines to manage the situation.

Officials earlier said army troops were called out to guard the camp alongside policemen to enforce the quarantine so the people returned from China could not come in touch with other people.

The evacuees were among estimated 400 Bangladeshis, mostly students, who were stranded in Wuhan.

The governments of the several countries, including India, have chalked up plans to return their nationals under special arrangement from Wuhan.

Air India's jumbo B747 aircraft carrying 211 students, 110 working professionals and three minors, reached New Delhi on Saturday after evacuating 324 Indians from Wuhan.

Another flight of the airline departed for the Chinese city from New Delhi in afternoon.
The Wuhan coronavirus is here. The emergency will stretch Indias scarce medical resources and the formal declaration by World Health Organisation can only add to the panic. The preparedness in cities and towns with a basic health infrastructure and airport screening processes has been fine so far and there has not been a single death outside China yet. The coronavirus mortality rate is around only three per cent as compared to MERS (35 per cent), SARS (10 per cent) and Ebola (50 per cent). But, alarmingly, in at least four countries  the United States, Germany, Japan and Vietnam  the virus has transmitted human to human, infecting those who have not been to China.

A Kerala woman studying medicine in Wuhan has been declared the first confirmed case in the country and it is a good sign that she is recovering. The only problem is this virus may be incubating in many China returnees and there is really no predicting how widely silent carriers have been transmitting a virus strain that has shown an ability to quickly spread through large droplets. Home quarantine has been recommended for those who have come back and their discipline to stay isolated will be tested in the days to come.

China has responded as only a totalitarian state can in containing the outbreak. Precautions have been widely publicised but it is worth repeating that the mask could be more useful for people on the move and that washing hands  for 20 seconds at least with soap and water  is far more likely to help keep the virus out. Keeping a distance from those showing any symptom of influenza and use of alcohol rubs and awareness about not touching objects in public spaces might help in remaining uninfected. Remember a vaccine is still some time away.
City Editor

Tom Roeder is the Gazette's City Editor. In Colorado Springs since 2003, Tom has covered the military at home and overseas and has covered statehouses in Denver and Olympia, Wash. His main job, though, is being dad to two great kids.
Source: Xinhua| 2020-02-01 14:30:20|Editor: huaxia

Video Player Close

BEIJING, Feb. 1 (Xinhua) -- China's National Immigration Administration has issued a guideline for novel coronavirus (2019-nCoV) prevention in six languages including English, Russian, French, German, Japanese and Korean, for foreigners in China.

The guideline advises foreigners in China to strengthen personal protection and health monitoring, minimize outdoor activities and keep good hygiene and health habits during the epidemic.

It also answers questions concerning immigration and entry policies for foreigners, including entry and exit, as well as visa and residence permit applications.

Besides, another guideline concerning immigration and exit-entry service for those who need to make outbound trips during the epidemic control period has been released in Chinese and English by the administration on its official website and WeChat and Weibo accounts.

The administration is sending related information to foreigners in China via email, text message, and Weibo and WeChat apps.
Prince Andrew described his alleged victim Virginia Roberts as 'a very sick girl', The Mail on Sunday can reveal today.

The Duke made his insensitive remark in a message to a friend and business associate just days after Ms Roberts described the appalling abuse she had suffered at the hands of Andrew's paedophile friend Jeffrey Epstein.

Her shocking revelations  which came in this newspaper  were accompanied by the now-infamous photograph of the Prince with his arm around her waist.

The apparently dismissive comment to his friend  who had asked how Andrew was coping with the scandal appears to question the mental health and credibility of Ms Roberts, who later claimed she was forced to have sex with Andrew from the age of 17 after being trafficked by Epstein.

The Duke made both the bad-taste joke and his comment about Ms Roberts' health to his friend Jonathan Rowland in 2011

Last night a lawyer for clients suing the Epstein estate said: 'Until Andrew talks to the FBI about his relationship with Virginia  and what he knows about the other victims and wrongdoers  it's his credibility at stake, not hers.

'Virginia's mental health is excellent and has been throughout, although it has been severely tested by Andrew and Epstein.'

The revelation comes as:

The Duke faces mounting demands, including from Ms Roberts, to co-operate with an FBI investigation into Epstein's sordid activities;

Four of Epstein's other alleged victims urge Andrew to talk to the FBI for the sake of 'your daughters and their children', warning him in a powerful open letter published in today's Mail on Sunday that 'the world is watching';

This newspaper reveals that the Prince also sent the same associate a repellent 'joke' about breast cancer, raising serious questions about his judgment.

The Duke made both the bad-taste joke and his comment about Ms Roberts' health to his friend Jonathan Rowland in 2011.

The 'very sick girl' slur came in an exchange seen by the MoS. Mr Rowland, the son of controversial property tycoon David Rowland, had contacted Andrew, saying: 'Hope the press isn't getting you down to [sic] much.'

Notorious: The photograph of Andrew, Ms Roberts and Ghislaine Maxwell in 2001 in London

The Duke replied: 'Not at all! She is a very sick girl apparently. The innuendo is the problem. But there is nothing that one can do for that! Shrug and move on.'

His comment appears to show little sympathy for Ms Roberts, who had bravely waived her anonymity to tell the disturbing story of the years she spent as Epstein's sex slave.

The Duke similarly failed to show sympathy for Epstein's victims during his disastrous BBC interview with Emily Maitlis in November that ultimately led to him quitting Royal duties. During the questioning, Andrew insisted he had no recollection of ever meeting Ms Roberts, now 36 and going by her married surname Giuffre.

But the messages between the Duke and Mr Rowland suggests that Andrew had spoken to someone  possibly billionaire Epstein or Ghislaine Maxwell, who is alleged to have procured young girls on Epstein's behalf  about her claims.

Last year it emerged that the Duke asked for Ms Maxwell's help in dealing with Ms Roberts's claims in 2015. In an email uncovered by BBC's Panorama, the Prince wrote: 'Let me know when we can talk. Got some specific questions to ask you about Virginia Roberts.' Ms Maxwell replied: 'Have some info. Call me when you have a moment.'

The exchange with Mr Rowland is one of the few times Andrew has directly referred to Ms Roberts, who claimed she was forced to have sex with the Duke in London, New York and on a private Caribbean island owned by Epstein. She claimed that Andrew bought her alcohol in London's Tramp nightclub in March 2001, when she was 17, before they had sex at Ms Maxwell's home. The Duke, 59, has vehemently denied the allegations against him.

A war of words erupted last week between US prosecutors and the Duke over his willingness to help the FBI's inquiry into Epstein. US attorney Geoffrey Berman accused the Queen's son of providing 'zero co-operation', but sources close to the Prince hit back, saying he was 'more than happy to talk' but 'hasn't been approached yet'.

The apparently dismissive comment to his friend  who had asked how Andrew was coping with the scandal appears to question the mental health and credibility of Ms Roberts (pictured)

Ms Roberts last week urged him to 'do the right thing' and talk to US investigators. Tweeting a picture of a mocked-up missing persons poster featuring the Prince, Ms Roberts wrote: 'Tick tock Andy time to talk!!'

Epstein served 13 months in jail after striking a controversial plea deal over sex charges in 2008, was rearrested last July and found dead in jail the following month.

In another message to the Duke, Mr Rowland asked: 'How is it in the trenches! Hope you are surviving.'

The Duke replied: 'Keeping head below the parapet! Been trying to engage with the media on all fronts but they won't listen to sense at the moment. Hopefully HMG [Her Majesty's Government] will, finally, swing in today.'

Mr Rowland advised that it is 'sometimes best to ignore them and disappear for a while', but Andrew insisted it was 'no time to hide'.

Their discussion came after a Mail on Sunday interview with Ms Roberts, published on February 27, 2011. As part of our report, we stated that she had undergone counselling to cope with her past and had, years earlier, seen a psychiatrist and been on antidepressants. Our report did not, however, detail the current state of her mental health.

During his BBC interview in November, Andrew repeatedly stressed that he had 'no recollection of ever meeting' Ms Roberts, adding: 'I'm convinced that I was never in Tramp with her... I can tell you categorically I don't remember meeting her at all. I do not remember a photograph being taken.

'I've said consistently and frequently that we never had any sort of sexual contact whatever.'

Last year this newspaper revealed the extraordinary financial ties between Andrew and the Rowlands, with the Duke plugging a Luxembourg-based bank for the super-rich that the Rowland family owned while he was on taxpayer-funded trips as Britain's trade envoy.

Other leaked messages between Andrew and Mr Rowland show how the pair discussed secretly continuing their controversial business relationship 'under the radar'.

The Duke last night declined to comment.

Prince Andrew, the world is watching: Four of Jeffrey Epstein's victims write an open letter to the Duke urging him to talk to the FBI for the sake of 'your daughters and their children'

The Duke of York was under renewed pressure last night after four of Jeffrey Epstein's alleged victims signed an open letter urging him to talk to the FBI for the sake of his 'daughters and their children'.

It warns the Queen's second son that 'the world is watching' and says he has the chance to be on the right side of history.

The victims say the Duke has the ability to create positive change, and they exhort him to take 'the decent and moral path' to help authorities in the US with anything he had observed during his friendship with the convicted paedophile.

Last week, the Duke's accuser Virginia Roberts, who claims she was forced to sleep with him three times, issued a similar plea, saying he should do the right thing and adding: 'Tick tock, Andy  time to talk!!'

The open letter is written by a former model who uses the name 'KiKi' (pictured) and is countersigned by three unnamed 'Jane Doe' victims

Her intervention came as a top US prosecutor accused Andrew of providing 'zero co-operation' despite a request for an interview.

The open letter is written by a former model who uses the name 'KiKi' and is countersigned by three unnamed 'Jane Doe' victims. All four are clients of Los Angeles-based lawyer Lisa Bloom.

It says: 'Please help the US authorities with anything you may have observed in your time spent with Jeffrey Epstein.

'Do it for the victims who have lived a life of suffering, shame and humiliation. You can make things better for us and for future generations with your co-operation.

'Do it for your daughters and their children. You have a chance to be on the right side of history. The world is watching.'

KiKi broke down in tears on a US talk show last year as she described being assaulted as a teenager by Epstein at his mansion in Palm Beach, Florida. Epstein, 66, killed himself last year as he awaited trial on child sex abuse charges.

Last week, Andrew and the FBI were at odds over whether the Prince had ignored requests for help in the Epstein inquiry. The Duke's friends claimed he would be happy to speak to US investigators but 'hasn't been approached yet'.

However, the Americans insisted that was untrue, claiming they had tried several times to arrange an interview. On Monday, New York attorney Geoffrey Berman accused the Duke of 'zero co-operation'.

He gave a press conference outside Epstein's New York mansion, where Andrew had stayed, and said that the Duke had failed to keep his promise to help police probing 'co-conspirators'.

On the spot: Prince Andrew peers out from inside Jeffrey Epstein's New York home

He claimed the FBI and US prosecutors had written to Andrew's lawyers seeking an interview but were snubbed.

On Tuesday, an anonymous source close to the Duke said 'nothing could be further from the truth' and stressed that Andrew was 'more than happy to talk to the FBI but he hasn't been approached by them yet'.

In December, The Mail on Sunday revealed that a new witness had come forward to corroborate claims that Andrew was dancing with Ms Roberts at Tramp nightclub in London.

The letter sent by Jeffrey Epstein's alleged victims Prince Andrew, the world is watching. You have been blessed with a privileged life and with the ability to influence and create positive change. Please help the US authorities with anything you may have observed in your time spent with Jeffrey Epstein. Do it for the victims who have lived a life of suffering, shame and humiliation. You can make things better for us and for future generations with your co-operation. Do it for your daughters and their children. Do it for your family, so that they may be proud that you have taken the decent and moral path. You see, the dilemma we face as victims is not so different from your choice to hide in order to protect yourself. The difference is that we are trying to right wrongs, despite our crippling fears, and you are perpetuating them through apathy, inaction and denial. You have a chance to be on the right side of history. The world is watching. Please look past your fear and help those who could not help themselves. Advertisement

Ms Roberts says Epstein forced her to have sex with the Prince after a night of dancing at the club in March 2001.

After watching the Prince deny Ms Roberts's claims during his 'car-crash' interview with Emily Maitlis on Newsnight, a woman came forward to insist that she had seen him at Tramp that evening.

Lisa Bloom flew to London to interview her and also tracked down a second person  a friend of the woman she originally came to interview  who supports her account of the night in question.

During the Newsnight interview at Buckingham Palace, the Prince said he was not at Tramp and had taken his eldest daughter Beatrice to a party at Pizza Express in Woking that afternoon, and then went home.

Ms Bloom told The Mail on Sunday: 'The first woman, a Londoner, contacted me after she saw Prince Andrew's interview.

'She was very disappointed that he denied knowing Virginia and denied being at the club.

'That is what spurred her to come forward. No one should be above the law.'

She added: 'The FBI is looking into Prince Andrew. They want to speak to him.

'He has said he wants to co-operate with law enforcement and yet it doesn't seem to be happening, so I would like to help this move forward.'

The Duke of York has vehemently denied Ms Roberts's claims that she had sex with him on three occasions.

Revealed: Prince Andrew made sick 'gag' about breast cancer in boorish texts to his friend Jonathan Rowland (and it's too offensive to be repeated)

In his now-infamous Newsnight interview, Prince Andrew described himself as someone with a 'tendency to be too honourable'.

The self-aggrandising remark may have surprised those familiar with the Duke's reputation for rudeness and boorish behaviour.

But a message containing a repellent so-called 'joke' about breast cancer, sent by Andrew to a friend and business associate, is likely to shock even those used to his gauche sense of humour.

The Mail on Sunday has seen the appalling message, sent to his friend Jonathan Rowland.

It appears to be a gross distortion of a BBC news report about the benefits of breastfeeding. It is too offensive to be repeated.

In his now-infamous Newsnight interview, Prince Andrew described himself as someone with a 'tendency to be too honourable'. He is pictured with Epstein in New York

The crude pastiche was circulating on the internet and Andrew, 59, forwarded it to Mr Rowland in an ill-judged attempt at humour.

The Duke sent the message in March 2011 to Mr Rowland, who described it as the 'latest email from HRH'. Mr Rowland then forwarded it to his father, David, another of Andrew's friends and business associates.

Mr Rowland Snr responds to his son, asking if the message had been sent by the Duke. Jonathan Rowland replies: 'Yes he's nuts.'

The revelation is likely to infuriate the Palace as there are 13 cancer charities with links to members of the Royal Family, including the Queen, the Prince of Wales and Prince William. It is not the first time that the Duke has been accused of highly offensive and inappropriate behaviour.

Last November, former Home Secretary Jacqui Smith claimed he made racist remarks about Arabs during a state banquet for members of the Saudi royal family in 2007. Separately, a former Downing Street adviser claimed that Andrew used the N-word during a meeting at Buckingham Palace. The Palace denied the Duke used racist language.

Andrew sent the breast cancer 'joke' at the height of the scandal about his links with convicted paedophile Epstein. It came less than three weeks after The Mail on Sunday published an exclusive interview with Virginia Roberts, one of Epstein's sex slaves, in which she revealed she was flown to the UK to be introduced to the Prince. The report included a photo of Andrew with his arm around Miss Roberts at the London home of Epstein's ex-girlfriend Ghislaine Maxwell.

Andrew was Britain's trade envoy from 2001 to July 2011 and earned a reputation for boorish behaviour. In 2010, Simon Wilson, a former deputy head of mission in Bahrain who hosted the Prince, revealed how he was known throughout the Gulf as HBH  His Buffoon Highness  'because of his childish obsession with doing exactly the opposite of what had been agreed'.

The Duke of York declined to comment last night.

ELIZABETH DAY: Andrew's cancer 'joke' was bad enough... but it's timing just days after pictures emerged of him arm-in-arm with Virginia Roberts made it even worse

Prince Andrew has a talent. He is truly, exceptionally gifted in one specific area. It is not, unfortunately, a talent for anything especially useful. He is not particularly skilled at being a member of the Royal Family, given that such a role requires discretion, good judgment and an unimpeachable reputation in order to be carried out effectively.

Nor was he a success as a UK trade envoy. He stepped down from that made-up position in 2011 after a string of controversies and diplomatic incidents which saw one ambassador describe him as 'cocky' and 'verging on rude'.

No, Prince Andrew's natural flair and ability is for something else entirely. It is for making situations incalculably worse for himself. It is for taking terrible decisions and then myopically standing by them. It is for possessing a tin ear for how things appear to the ordinary people who have not been brought up in gilded palaces, attended to by whispering courtiers and ingratiating yes-men since the day they were born.

It is, in short, a gift for manufacturing shovels magically out of thin air with which to dig himself into an ever-deeper hole of ignominy. In this sport, Prince Andrew is truly an Olympic champion.

Prince Andrew has a talent. He is truly, exceptionally gifted in one specific area. It is not, unfortunately, a talent for anything especially useful

We saw his capacity for self-sabotage in full flow in the now-notorious Newsnight interview in November, during which Emily Maitlis quizzed him on his close association with the disgraced financier Jeffrey Epstein. It was an unwitting masterclass in misplaced defensiveness and unchecked self-aggrandisement.

In it, the Duke was so busy claiming to be 'honourable' and working up an improbable alibi involving malfunctioning sweat glands and Woking's Pizza Express, that he couldn't find a spare second in which to express a shred of compassion for Epstein's victims.

Not once did he express concern for those young girls who had been trafficked and assaulted by his good friend, the convicted sex offender.

Instead, he repeatedly insisted he had done nothing wrong and would help the authorities if he could. But last week, the New York state attorney Geoffrey Berman accused the Prince of offering 'zero co-operation' with the US inquiry. If that is true, it seems an odd stance for a man who has nothing to hide.

Now we have his messages to a friend and business associate. At first glance, they might seem relatively inoffensive  a couple of joshing missives exchanged with friends. A bit off-colour, maybe, but who among us doesn't have a slightly creepy uncle who tells crude 'jokes' at Christmas and seems overly interested in the bridesmaids at family weddings?

We saw his capacity for self-sabotage in full flow in the now-notorious Newsnight interview in November, during which Emily Maitlis quizzed him on his close association with the disgraced financier Jeffrey Epstein (pictured)

Then you think about the timing. These were sent in March 2011, within days of this newspaper publishing a photograph of the Duke posing with his arm around Virginia Roberts's waist and shortly after incriminating pictures emerged of him walking with Epstein around Central Park.

One of the emails consists of a cut-and-pasted fake news story about breast cancer that is so tasteless it turned my stomach.

It is a 'joke' which manages the double whammy of being utterly unfunny AND stupid.

There is no wit to it; it is a poorly constructed jibe which uses cancer patients as an excuse for a sexual punchline. I truly can't think of anyone in their right mind who would find it amusing.

The other email refers directly to Roberts, one of Epstein's victims who would later allege that she was instructed to have sex with Andrew on three occasions from the age of 17. The Prince categorically denies her claims. But at the time of this email, questions were beginning to be asked about the nature of his relationship to the young woman.

And what did the Duke of York have to say about it? Not much. He dismissed Roberts as 'a very sick girl, apparently'.

With that short but telling phrase, the Prince manages to be both patronising (in his eyes, Virginia Roberts, who by this time was 28 years old and married, is a 'girl' not a woman) and to cast aspersions on her mental and physical wellbeing.

It reminds me of those men who seek absolution for their terrible past behaviour by referring to all their ex-girlfriends as 'crazy' or 'hysterical', as if instability is a peculiarly female trait; as if none of us can quite be trusted to keep our wits about us.

Also pay attention to that 'apparently'  a concession that this opinion is second-hand. Had this matter been mulled over with others, behind closed doors? Why would it need to be talked about if there were nothing to discuss?

Even if we were to give Andrew all the benefit of all of the doubt; even if we were to believe everything he says, wouldn't most of us feel some sort of compassion towards a woman who had, in all likelihood, been one of the minors Epstein admitted to prostituting in 2008?

Instead of casually labelling her 'very sick' in an email to friends, wouldn't we have taken a moment's pause to wonder whether the sick one in this particular dynamic was Jeffrey Epstein? I think most of us would have done that, don't you? Not Andrew. He goes on to say that he will 'shrug and move on'.

Of course he will. It is what, up until this point, he has been able to do all his life. He has never had to accept responsibility for his actions because he has been insulated by a bubble of privilege he refuses to see or acknowledge.

It's why, when I interviewed him several years ago and asked him if he ever wondered what his life might have been like were he not a member of the Royal Family, he became visibly irate. He simply could not conceive of an alternate reality. He lacked the empathetic muscle to imagine himself into the life of an ordinary person and it angered him that he had been asked to try.

So I'm not surprised by the lack of compassion shown in these messages but I wish it were different.

I wish Prince Andrew could astonish us all with some vestige of self-reflection. I wish he could understand what others find offensive in the words he uses and in the way he behaves. I wish he could demonstrate a willingness to change, to co-operate with the authorities and to show he cares.

But I suspect that, in the end, he will always be blinkered to the plight of anyone other than himself  forever shrugging and moving on.
The Law Offices of Frank R. Cruz Announces Investigation on Behalf of Southwest Airlines Co. Investors (LUV)

The Law Offices of Frank R. Cruz announces an investigation on behalf of Southwest Airlines Co. ("Southwest" or the "Company") (NYSE: LUV) investors concerning the Company and its officers' possible violations of federal securities laws.

If you are a shareholder who suffered a loss, click here to participate.







On January 30, 2020, The Wall Street Journal reported that "Southwest pilots flew more than 17 million passengers on planes with unconfirmed maintenance records over roughly two years."

On this news, Southwest's share price has fallen over two days to approximately $55 per share.

Follow us for updates on Twitter (News - Alert): twitter.com/FRC_LAW.

If you purchased Southwest securities, have information or would like to learn more about these claims, or have any questions concerning this announcement or your rights or interests with respect to these matters, please contact Frank R. Cruz, of The Law Offices of Frank R. Cruz, 1999 Avenue of the Stars, Suite 1100, Los Angeles, California 90067 at 310-914-5007, by email to [email protected], or visit our website at www.frankcruzlaw.com. If you inquire by email please include your mailing address, telephone number, and number of shares purchased.

This press release may be considered Attorney Advertising in some jurisdictions under the applicable law and ethical rules.

View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20200131005628/en/
In this Saturday, Feb. 1, 2020, photo, a government worker takes the temperature of a passer-by at a checkpoint in Suining in southwestern China's Sichuan Province. China's death toll from a new virus has increased to 304 with more than 14,000 cases, amid warnings from the World Health Organization that other countries need to be prepared in the event the disease spreads among their populations. Read more

BEIJING  The Philippines has reported the first death related to a new virus outside of China.

The Department of Health says a 44-year-old Chinese man from Wuhan was admitted on Jan. 25 after experiencing fever, cough, and sore throat.

He developed severe pneumonia, and in his last few days, the patient was stable and showed signs of improvement, however, the condition of the patient deteriorated within his last 24 hours resulting in his demise," the health department said.

The man's 38-year-old female companion, also from Wuhan, tested positive for the virus and remains in hospital isolation in Manila. She's the second case in the Philippines.

Chinas death toll from a new virus increased to 304 on Sunday amid warnings from the World Health Organization that other countries need to prepare in the event the disease spreads among their populations as more nations report local infections.

Meanwhile, six officials in the city of Huanggang, neighboring the epicenter of Wuhan in Hubei province, have been fired over poor performance" in handling the outbreak, the official Xinhua News Agency reported.

It cited the mayor as saying the city's capabilities to treat the patients remained inadequate and there is a severe shortage in medical supplies such as protective suits and medical masks."

Figures from the National Health Commission showed an increase of 45 in the death toll and 2,590 in the number of cases for a total of 14,380, well above the number of those infected in in the 2002-03 outbreak of SARS, or severe acute respiratory syndrome, which broke out in southern China before spreading worldwide.

With the outbreak showing little sign of abating, authorities in Hubei and elsewhere have extended the Lunar New Year holiday, due to end this week, well into February. The annual travel crunch of millions of people returning from their hometowns to the cities is thought to pose a major threat of secondary infection at a time when authorities are encouraging people to avoid public gatherings.

All Hubei schools will postpone the opening of the new semester until further notice and students from elsewhere who visited over the holiday will also be excused from classes.

Far away on China's southeast coast, the manufacturing hub of Wenzhou put off the opening of government offices until Feb. 9, private businesses until Feb. 17 and schools until March 1.

With nearly 10 million people, Wenzhou has reported 241 confirmed cases of the virus, accounting for one of the highest levels outside Hubei. Similar measures have been announced in the provinces and cities of Heilongjiang, Shandong, Guizhou, Hebei and Hunan, while the major cities of Shanghai and Beijing were on indefinite leave pending developments.

Despite imposing drastic travel restrictions at home, China has chafed at those imposed by foreign governments, criticizing Washingtons order barring entry to most non-citizens who visited China in the past two weeks. Apart from dinging China's international reputation, such steps could worsen a domestic economic already growing at its lowest rate in decades.

The crisis is just the latest to confront Chinese leader Xi Jinping, who has been beset by months of anti-government protests in the semi-autonomous Chinese city of Hong Kong, the reelection of Taiwan's pro-independence president and criticism over human rights violations in the traditionally Muslim northwestern territory of Xinjiang. Economically, Xi faces lagging demand and dramatically slower growth at home while the tariff war with the U.S. remains largely unresolved.

Australian Prime Minister Scott Morrison announced similar travel measures Saturday, following Japan and Singapore.

South Korea and India flew hundreds of their citizens out of Wuhan, the city at the center of an area where some 50 million people are prevented from leaving in a sweeping anti-virus effort. The evacuees went into a two-week quarantine. Indonesia also sent a plane.

On Sunday, South Korea reported three more cases for a total of 15. They include an evacuee, a Chinese relative of a man who tested positive and a man who returned from Wuhan.

The virus rapid spread in two months prompted the World Health Organization on Thursday to declare it a global emergency.

That declaration flipped the switch from a cautious attitude to recommending governments prepare for the possibility the virus might spread, said the WHO representative in Beijing, Gauden Galea. Most cases reported so far have been people who visited China or their family members.

The agency acted out of concern for poorer countries that might not be equipped to respond, said Galea. Such a declaration calls for a coordinated international response and can bring more money and resources.

WHO said it was especially concerned that some cases abroad involved human-to-human transmission.

Countries need to get ready for possible importation in order to identify cases as early as possible and in order to be ready for a domestic outbreak control, if that happens, Galea told The Associated Press.

Australia, Germany, Japan, South Korea, the United Arab Emirates, the United States and Vietnam all reported new cases Saturday. Spain confirmed its first case  a German man who had close contact with an infected person in Germany and then traveled to the Canary Islands with friends. Four friends who were hospitalized with him have not shown symptoms.

Both the new virus and SARS are from the coronavirus family, which also includes those that cause the common cold.

The death rate in China is falling, but the number of confirmed cases will keep growing because thousands of specimens from suspected cases have yet to be tested, Galea said.

The case fatality ratio is settling out at a much lower level than we were reporting three, now four, weeks ago, he said.

Although scientists expect to see limited transmission of the virus between people with family or other close contact, they are concerned about cases of infection spreading to people who might have less exposure.

Associated Press writer Hyung-jin Kim in Seoul, South Korea, contributed to this report.
President Ram Nath Kovind on Saturday rejected the mercy petition of Vinay Sharma, one of the four death row convicts in the December 2012 gang-rape and murder case.

Vinay Sharma had filed his mercy petition before President on Wednesday urging him to listen to his side of the story when nobody did, his lawyer said.

AP Singh, who represents Vinay Sharma, had said the death row convict has stated that he feels that he has died several times already in prison during the pendency of judicial proceedings.

The Supreme Court has already rejected the curative petition of Vinay.

On Friday, a Delhi court had deferred the hanging of the four convictsVinay Sharma, Akshay Thakur, Pawan Gupta and Mukesh Singhuntil further orders.

The court was hearing a plea filed by Vinay Sharma, who had sought that the death warrant issued by the court on January 17, for the second time, be stayed in the wake of the mercy petition pending before the President.

The court had said that the Delhi Prison Rules, 2018, say that if an appeal and application is made by one convict then the execution sentence of all co-convicts will be postponed as well.

...I am of the considered opinion that the execution warrant issued by this court vide order dated January 17 deserves to be postponed till further orders, additional sessions judge Dharmendra Rana said.

The court also said that according to the Delhi Prison Rules (DPR), 2018, the execution sentence of all convicts of the case will be postponed pending receipt of orders from the President of India.

The trial court had issued black warrants for all the four convicts on January 17 and decreed that they were to be hanged at Tihar jail at 6am on February 1.

They were convicted of raping the 23-year-old woman on the night of December 16, 2012, in a moving bus in south Delhi. She died of injuries a fortnight later at a Singapore hospital.

They were sentenced to death by a fast-track court within a year of the brutal crime that had brought thousands of people to the streets in demand of better safety for women and stricter laws.

The protests eventually led to a major overhaul of all laws surrounding sexual assault.
JUNEAU, Alaska - Alaska Gov. Mike Dunleavy is planning town hall meetings centred on the states fiscal situation and future.

Events announced Friday are planned for Petersburg on Monday and Wrangell on Tuesday. Dunleavys office said the town halls will be open to the public. Additional public events will be announced later as part of a town hall series, his office said.

Dunleavy has said he plans to more directly communicate with Alaskans. His first year in office was marked by an ongoing recall effort, which was fueled by anger over budget cuts he proposed last year. Dunleavy has called the recall effort political.

Besides the town halls, Dunleavy plans to meet with school and community leaders, tribes, business groups and nonprofits across the state, according to his office.

Dunleavy told reporters Friday the state is paying for the upcoming trips.

He faced criticism last year for holding town halls hosted by Americans for Prosperity-Alaska.
Qantas will suspend its services to mainland China from next Sunday due to entry restrictions imposed by other countries as a result of the coronavirus.

The airline said it would halt its services from Sydney to Beijing and Sydney to Shanghai from February 9 until March 29.

Qantas is suspending trips to mainland China for a period of almost two months. Credit:Paul Rovere

The move comes after entry restrictions imposed by countries including Singapore and the United States affected the movement of crew who work across the Qantas International network.

"These entry restrictions pose significant logistical challenges for rostering crew to operate mainland China services, leading to the need to temporarily suspend these flights," the airline said in a statement.
With the green signal given ten days ago, Trinamool Congress MPs on Friday executed their protest in Parliament Central Hall against CAA-NPR-NRC during President Ram Nath Kovinds address with no screaming and no shouting as instructed by West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee.

At 11.45 am, as the President was reading out his speech, around 20-25 Trinamool MPs suddenly were on their feet with banners No CAA, No NPR and No NRC. They stood in silence for about five minutes, registering their protest against the government move before they sat down.

Three MPs, including Dola Sen and Santanu Sen, wore shirts with inscriptions No CAA and No NRC even as Lok Sabha leader Sudip Bandhopadhyay and Rajya Sabha leader Derek OBrien sat in their designated seats in the second row.

A video was also shot by an MP and shared with the media.

Sources said Mamata had decided to protest on the issue ten days ago during a students protest in Kolkata and asked her MPs to execute it but with no screaming, no shouting. They said she was categorical that there should be no disrespect to the President and they should not disrupt his speech.

The address had its share of drama too as one of the MPs stood up to express his views on NRC in Assam. While UPA Chairperson Sonia Gandhi and Rajya Sabha Leader of Opposition Ghulam Nabi Azad refused to sit in front rows, former prime minister Manmohan Singh sat in the front row.
Fear and confusion over the coronavirus have caused chaos at a Toronto private high school made up entirely of Chinese international students, with teachers refusing to show up in class and some students being sent to the local hospital.

But administrators at Yorkland High School are stressing they have stepped up precautionary measures, including daily sanitizing by an outside cleaning company, and have requested anyone whos recently returned from China  or in close contact with someone who has  to stay home.

Theres no evidence of anyone at the school having contracted the virus  and five students sent to Scarborough Health Network Birchmount hospital on Friday have been cleared.

We are making every effort to ensure that our students, teachers and staff are working and attending school in a safe and healthy environment, said spokesperson Nikara Abudou, of the school which has close to 100 students. Yorkland High School has students who do travel back and forth to China, and as a result we are taking every precaution suggested by Public Health Toronto as well as (the) Ministry of Education.

Rana Zandi, one of five teachers who refused to show up at school this week, told the Star late Friday afternoon that she still has concerns.

So far, we have not received any proof (from administration) that they have done what theyre telling us, said Zandi, who teaches arts and design at the school located on Finch Avenue East, near Kennedy Road. We havent seen it.

Her comments came on the same day Ontario announced its third case of the novel coronavirus, which originated in the Wuhan area of China. Canada now has four confirmed cases, including one in British Columbia.

While theres been a rush on to buy masks, and hysteria spreading on social media, Dr. Eileen de Villa, Torontos medical officer of health, says the risk to Toronto residents remains low. Officials understand there is a certain amount of fear and anxiety around the new virus, but it is worsened by the spread of disinformation, she said, adding people have been showing up in emergency rooms with no symptoms, exposure or relevant travel history.

Shortly before Ontario announced its first confirmed case of the coronavirus  when news of the outbreak was already making headlines  Yorkland teachers sounded the alarm because some students were displaying flu-like symptoms. Zandi said teachers requested administrators have the school properly cleaned by an outside company, buy hand sanitizers or masks, and request those who had recently returned from China to stay home for two weeks.

I had a student, who had just been to China, and she was back, had the fever and was using my laptop, said Zandi. And there was (another) student who was coughing and had a fever.

But Zandi claims nothing was done  although the school disputes that  and on Monday she and four other teachers, out of a total of about 12, refused to show up. Instead, they offered to run online classes and digital workshops and requested the school remain closed for a minimum of 10 days.

She noted that she cant run the risk of getting sick because she lives with her mother whos on medication that has weakened her immune system.

On Monday morning, when some of the teachers didnt show up, school administrators were unable to provide regular classes for students, and held an assembly about safety and hygiene before dismissing them early. Students pay about $23,000 annually in tuition, plus fees. That doesnt include living costs  students either live with a homestay family or with roommates in apartments.

On Tuesday, teachers and students were told to stay home  and lessons continued on Google Classroom. Over that day and the next, the school was cleaned, hand sanitizers were placed in all classrooms and administrators notified additional students who had recently returned from China  or were connected with someone who had  to self-quarantine for about two weeks. About 22 students did so.

By Thursday the building reopened, but many teachers continued to deliver their lessons remotely to students in class and at home.

A Grade 12 student at Yorkland said he was surprised the school continued with so many teachers absent.

Its not good to study online, but theres no point to go to school when there are no teachers, said the student, who asked not to be identified for fear of repercussions. But I understand why our teachers are concerned. Most of the students are from China and this virus came from China. Some students just came back from China after the holidays. Both parents and students (who didnt travel to China) are concerned and afraid, too.

On Friday, five of the 22 isolated students contacted the school and the administration took them to hospital. By nightfall all were cleared.

According to the Grade 12 student, who had stayed in Toronto over the winter break, none of his classmates appeared to have flu-like symptoms, but said the school has asked everyone recently returned from China to see a doctor to be tested for the virus and to self-quarantine.

He said the school administration has yet to explain to students about the teachers absence and let parents and students know when classes will return to normal again.

Abudou is confident classes will resume normally on Monday. Zandi still isnt sure if shell be there then.

I dont know my answer, said Zandi. I want to see what happens between now and Monday.

With files from Star staff

Read more about:
January 31 is a sombre anniversary for David Milgaard; it marks the 1970 date a court wrongfully convicted him for the rape and murder of Saskatoon nursing student Gail Miller.

Hey there, time traveller!

This article was published 31/1/2020 (709 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

January 31 is a sombre anniversary for David Milgaard; it marks the 1970 date a court wrongfully convicted him for the rape and murder of Saskatoon nursing student Gail Miller.

But on Friday, the University of Manitoba marked the 50th anniversary of his wrongful conviction by announcing honorary degrees for Milgaard and his lawyer, David Asper.

PHIL HOSSACK / WINNIPEG FREE PRESS FILES David Asper, lawyer for David Milgaard, will receive an honorary degree at U of M's spring convocation.

"It's kind of an anniversary of a nightmare for me, so I don't celebrate it, that's for sure," Milgaard told the Free Press.

The men will each receive an honorary doctor of law on June 5.

Milgaard, who served 23 years in prison, said he hopes the award raises the profile of the wrongfully convicted and their champions, like his mother Joyce, who have long-fought for justice.

"I don't usually accept any awards," Milgaard said from his Calgary home, while drafting a letter to a judge urging leniency in a strangers looming sentencing. "I've always felt I don't do that much, in relation to helping others."

Asper was a key part of the legal team that got Milgaard's charges stayed and eventual exoneration. He was emotional about the news.

"I walked with David out the doors of Stony Mountain prison in 1992, and I'm going to walk into an academic convocation with him in 2020," he said. "Those are going to be two pretty special walks."

Milgaard said the two have long relied on each other.

He recalled Asper coming to visit him once while he was in solitary confinement to tell him the justice minister had denied their application.

"It was important for me at that point to tell David not to worry too much; not to take it too hard. But at same time, somehow inside me, I just died. David has always been my friend and always will be."

Want to get a head start on your day? Get the days breaking stories, weather forecast, and more sent straight to your inbox every weekday morning. Sign Up I agree to the Terms and Conditions, Cookie and Privacy Policies, and CASL agreement.

Aspers award comes from his work supporting Milgaard, as well as for his efforts leading the Asper Foundation and the National Post. He said he dropped out of high school and was rejected by multiple law schools.

"To end up with an honorary doctorate of law to me it's a phenomenal honour," he said.

Milgaard and Asper are watching closely as the federal Liberals move to establish a long-demanded independent review agency of those who maintain theyve been wrongfully convicted. The task is the first item Prime Minister Justin Trudeau assigned in his mandate letter to Justice Minister David Lametti.

Asper said he plans to impress upon the graduates how they need to retain the facts but also the ethical lessons theyve learned through a university education. That got him through fierce opposition from the government and lawyers.

"The value of education really kicks in when you get yourself into a situation of ambiguity and contrarianism  because of the wide variety of challenges that we faced, just having the intellectual security to be satisfied that we were doing the right thing, when pretty much everyone else was saying that you're not."

dylan.robertson@freepress.mb.ca
Readers hoping to buy Reinsurance Group of America, Incorporated (NYSE:RGA) for its dividend will need to make their move shortly, as the stock is about to trade ex-dividend. Investors can purchase shares before the 5th of February in order to be eligible for this dividend, which will be paid on the 27th of February.

Reinsurance Group of America's next dividend payment will be US$0.70 per share. Last year, in total, the company distributed US$2.80 to shareholders. Looking at the last 12 months of distributions, Reinsurance Group of America has a trailing yield of approximately 1.9% on its current stock price of $144.05. We love seeing companies pay a dividend, but it's also important to be sure that laying the golden eggs isn't going to kill our golden goose! So we need to investigate whether Reinsurance Group of America can afford its dividend, and if the dividend could grow.

View our latest analysis for Reinsurance Group of America

If a company pays out more in dividends than it earned, then the dividend might become unsustainable - hardly an ideal situation. Reinsurance Group of America paid out just 19% of its profit last year, which we think is conservatively low and leaves plenty of margin for unexpected circumstances.

Companies that pay out less in dividends than they earn in profits generally have more sustainable dividends. The lower the payout ratio, the more wiggle room the business has before it could be forced to cut the dividend.

Click here to see the company's payout ratio, plus analyst estimates of its future dividends.

NYSE:RGA Historical Dividend Yield, February 1st 2020

Have Earnings And Dividends Been Growing?

Companies with consistently growing earnings per share generally make the best dividend stocks, as they usually find it easier to grow dividends per share. If earnings fall far enough, the company could be forced to cut its dividend. This is why it's a relief to see Reinsurance Group of America earnings per share are up 7.0% per annum over the last five years.

Story continues

Many investors will assess a company's dividend performance by evaluating how much the dividend payments have changed over time. Reinsurance Group of America has delivered 23% dividend growth per year on average over the past ten years. We're glad to see dividends rising alongside earnings over a number of years, which may be a sign the company intends to share the growth with shareholders.

Final Takeaway

Is Reinsurance Group of America worth buying for its dividend? Reinsurance Group of America has seen its earnings per share grow slowly in recent years, and the company reinvests more than half of its profits in the business, which generally bodes well for its future prospects. Overall, Reinsurance Group of America looks like a promising dividend stock in this analysis, and we think it would be worth investigating further.

Wondering what the future holds for Reinsurance Group of America? See what the five analysts we track are forecasting, with this visualisation of its historical and future estimated earnings and cash flow

A common investment mistake is buying the first interesting stock you see. Here you can find a list of promising dividend stocks with a greater than 2% yield and an upcoming dividend.

If you spot an error that warrants correction, please contact the editor at editorial-team@simplywallst.com. This article by Simply Wall St is general in nature. It does not constitute a recommendation to buy or sell any stock, and does not take account of your objectives, or your financial situation. Simply Wall St has no position in the stocks mentioned.



We aim to bring you long-term focused research analysis driven by fundamental data. Note that our analysis may not factor in the latest price-sensitive company announcements or qualitative material. Thank you for reading.
New Delhi, Feb 1 : In the course of a Budget speech that lasted close to three hours on Saturday, Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman ended up announcing Rs 69,000 crore for health, barely Rs 5,170 crore higher than the last budgetary allocation in July, 2019.

At a time when the world is facing the prospect of challenges in the health sector, the allocation for health care sector in fiscal 2020-21 appears disappointing.

The minister tried to gloss over by repeatedly emphasising on funds allocated under Ayushman Bharat scheme. "In order to achieve the holistic vision of health care that translate wellness of the citizens, about Rs 69,000 crore have been provided for health care in Union Budget 2020-21. It includes Rs 6,400 crore for Prime Minister Jan Arogya Yojana (PMJAY)." However, till date, there is lack of public awareness on Ayushman Bharat Yojana. In fact, a few states, such as Delhi and West Bengal do not even implement the Ayushman Bharat Yojna. The criteria for registering for the scheme is also very categorical. Therefore people hardly know if they are eligible to get benefits of the scheme.

Sitharaman said, "Presently, under PM Jan Arogya Yojana (PMJAY) there are more than 20,000 empanelled hospitals. We need more in Tier-2 and Tier-3 cities for poorer people under this scheme. It is proposed to set up Viability Gap funding window for setting up hospitals in the PPP mode. In the first phase, those Aspirational Districts will be covered, where presently there are no Ayushman empanelled hospitals." The Indian Medical Association has in a press release stated that instead of investing in infrastructure, the government is hellbent on giving away money to life insurance companies. "There is acute scarcity of medical staff and infrastructure in government hospitals. Instead of focusing on those issues the government has given an eyewash to the people in the name of Ayushman Bharat." says Dr Santanu Sen, ex-president of Indian Medical Association.

In the backdrop of the novel coronavirus outbreak, within barely 20 days China constructed two speciality hospitals to treat infected patients. The question being posed in various quarters is that if such a pandemic breaks out in India, are we equipped to contain the situation the way China did? Do we have the resources to deal with the situation, given the paltry increase in the budgetary allocation this year?
Speaking of symbolism, the fact that President Trump has been a fulsome supporter of this folly is apt. An ahistorical, amoral American leader cheering on a British abdication sums up the end of an era. The world was rebuilt after 1945 on something of more substance than British-American lies and bloviation; it took resolve. The torch has passed. To whom exactly is unclear, perhaps to a country slow to contain a plague. That is a problem.

Brexit belongs to this era in one quintessential way. It is an act of the imagination, inspired by an imaginary past, carried along by misdirected grievances, borne aloft by an imaginary future. The age of impunity is also the age of illusion turbocharged by social media.

Inequality, poor infrastructure, low investment, inadequate schools are real British problems but the take-back-your-country transference of blame for them onto Brussels bureaucrats proved that the imagination now overwhelms reality. Truth withers. The mob roars. This, too, is a problem.

Yes, Britain was undefeated in World War II and helped liberate Europe. But it could do so only with its allies; and it was precisely to secure what it is now turning its back on: a free Europe offering its people the simple joys and hopes which make life worth living. Those are Churchills words in 1946 in a speech that also contained this phrase: We must build a kind of United States of Europe. Unbowed Britain was once consequential Britain; no longer.

I used the word abdication advisedly. Europe needs the great tradition of British liberalism at a moment when Hungary and Poland have veered toward nationalism and, across the Continent, xenophobic hatred is resurgent. It is perverse for Britain to try to look away. Europe is part of Britain. Visit the great Norman monasteries in England and tell me this is not so. The British dead who lie in the Continents soil having given their lives for its liberty tell the same story of interlaced fate from a different perspective.
The bodies of two US Airmen killed in a plane crash in Afghanistan were returned to US soil on January 30, and given a dignified transfer upon landing at Dover Air Force Base in Delaware.

Footage posted by the Air Force showed personnel transporting flag-draped coffins containing the remains of Lt. Col. Paul K. Voss and Capt. Ryan S. Phaneuf from an aircraft to a waiting vehicle.

The two airmen were killed on January 27, when the Bombardier E-11A they were piloting crashed in Afghanistans Ghazni province, in an area under the control of the Taliban. According to the US military no one else was on board the plane. The cause of the crash had not been confirmed at the time of writing.

Storyful previously analyzed footage of the reported crash site, which can be found here. Credit: US Air Force via Storyful
For years, he criss-crossed the globe almost weekly, travelling on a British passport without a second thought, raising funds for international non-profit organisations and working for the likes of Elton John and Nelson Mandela. But when Britain voted to leave the European Union, something changed inside Daryl Upsall, a 59-year-old businessman who has spent decades living and working in Europe. As Britain formally leaves the block on Friday, Upsall is also on the brink of his own "Brexit" -- giving up his British citizenship to become Spanish. It's an interesting twist for someone who grew up in the English town of Boston, known today as Britain's Brexit capital after 75 percent of its residents voted leave during the 2016 referendum. "I was always very international but also very involved in politics in the UK," said Upsall who spent a decade in London working for the Nicaragua Solidarity Campaign, writing speeches for Labour leader Neil Kinnock and raising funds for Elton John's AIDS charity and Nelson Mandela's African National Congress. He left in 1993 and after seven years with Greenpeace in Amsterdam, he moved to Madrid setting up a string of companies serving the non-profit sector. But he never once thought about becoming Spanish. "I had all the rights to live, work here -- my son and my wife are Spanish, all the companies are Spanish, and Britain was European, so thinking about Spanish nationality didnat really occur to me," he said. "Then Brexit came along." - A passport that works - There are around 370,000 Britons registered in Spain, the largest community in Europe. But few have opted for citizenship given the requirement to relinquish their British nationality. Since Brexit, that has changed with justice ministry figures showing applications rising from 33 in 2016 to 335 last year. For Upsall, the decision was about keeping his European identity while avoiding the travelling uncertainties created by Brexit. "If I travel to China or India, where you need a visa.. as a European, it takes a week. But who knows where things are in (the different countries') negotiations with the UK -- is it going to be a week or two weeks? I travel every week to a different country." A long and complex process, becoming Spanish is not for the fainthearted, involving a demanding study of hundreds of potential questions on Spanish history, culture and politics, from Nobel Prize winners to the colours of regional flags. "It became a parlour game for us -- we'd have people for dinner and I'd ask them when Spain's war of independence finished.. We literally never found a Spanish person who could pass it without having studied," Upsall said. Prospective applicants much also take a language exam involving an oral test and a three-hour written paper. Only those who pass both tests are allowed to apply. - 'Embarrassed to be British' - "I reached a point about 18 months ago when I actually became embarrassed to be British," Upsall admitted. "Iam ashamed my country took that decision and muddled its useless way through it." But the idea of renouncing his British nationality didn't go down well back home, particularly with his mother who like most in their town had voted to leave. "When I told my mother, she burst into tears. She said: You canat do it. And I said: Youare the Daily Mail reader that voted for all of this, itas the consequence of your actions." Barely a year into a three-year process, becoming Spanish is still some way off. But when he has to give up being British, he will. "It will be a sad moment," he reflects. "Kind of the end of an era."
Source: Xinhua| 2020-02-01 17:38:40|Editor: xuxin

Video Player Close

BEIJING, Feb. 1 (Xinhua) -- The Red Cross Society of China (RCSC) and the Chinese Red Cross Foundation had received more than 849.72 million yuan (about 123.37 million U.S. dollars) in social donations for novel coronavirus prevention and control as of 5 p.m. Friday, the RCSC said Saturday.

The donations, consisting of 656.96 million yuan in cash and 192.77 million yuan in kind, will be used in accordance with the needs of epidemic control and the will of the donors, the RCSC said.
Kejriwal was responding to Dr Vardhans tweet, in which the BJP leader questioned the chief minister for calling himself Delhis son.

New Delhi: Delhi chief minister Arvind Kejriwal, on Friday, hit out at Union health minister Dr Harsh Vardhan for calling him an outsider, saying the people from Uttar Pradesh and Haryana settled here can be outsiders for the saffron party but the city has adopted them.

Mr Kejriwal was responding to Dr Vardhans tweet, in which the BJP leader questioned the chief minister for calling himself Delhis son.

The Union health minister said that while Mr Kejriwal was born in Hisar in Haryana, he was settled at Kaushambi in Ghaziabad, Uttar Pradesh.

How can he be Delhis son? Dr Vardhan asked.

Doctor Sahib, you hate me. You can abuse me. How can you call all those born in UP and Haryana and settled in Delhi outsiders? They may be outsiders to BJP. But they are part of our Delhi family. We Delhiites adopted them all, made them our family, Mr Kejriwal tweeted in Hindi.

In another tweet, Mr Kejriwal responded to the recent sting by BJP on mohalla clinics, saying the party has again mocked the people of Delhi by issuing fake videos.

BJP once again mocked the people of Delhi by issuing fake videos. Delhiites worked hard to build 450 world class mohalla clinics. Mohalla clinics have brightened the name of Delhi all over the world. Today, BJPs lie was caught in media investigation. People of Delhi are very happy with mohalla clinics, he said.
Our directory features more than 18 million business listings from across the entire US. However, if we're missing your business, add your business by clicking on Add Your Business.
The race for mayor has a new candidate: Former Flagstaff City Council candidate Paul Deasy announced Friday that he was joining the race.

Deasy, a research analyst at Northern Arizona University, ran for a seat on city council in 2018, narrowly losing out to Councilmember Regina Salas for the third and final spot.

But Deasy said he decided to enter the race for mayor rather than seek one of the three available council seats in 2020 because the position comes with more influence.

It seems like as mayor, I will be able to have a larger impact on making change than I would as a city councilman, and we need change right now, Deasy told the Arizona Daily Sun. Things cant continue down the same road. We cant continue business as usual and I feel like the other candidates were just going to be doing business as usual.

In joining the race, Deasy will face current Councilmembers Jamie Whelan, who announced her candidacy over the summer, and Charlie Odegaard, who declared he was running for mayor in November.

Deasy said he has been considering running for public office for some time but finally made the final call last week because he felt a moral obligation to provide voters with an alternative candidate.

Throughout the last few weeks, Deasy said he has also received a number of phone calls from friends and community members asking him to run for office. And when he has received those calls, Deasy said people have told him they want a candidate who is an advocate for the minimum wage law, does more on the issue of climate change and wont rezone properties for developers looking to build student housing.

Having been here for a while -- my wife was born here, my kids were born here -- I feel like we can keep Flagstaffs character as we move into the future and that needs to be a priority, Deasy said.

Deasy said as he has been looking to run for mayor, he has been considering a number of issues including the affordability of the citys rental market and what the city is doing on climate change.

The move Council made towards a climate emergency resolution on Tuesday was a good first step, Deasy said, but it was only that. The city needs to follow that action by fully implementing the climate action plan, he said.

Deasy said he also believes there needs to be more transparency in how the city spends its money and pointed to the recent controversy over a city-funded study of the minimum wage as an example.

The city council and staff came under fire from members of the public after the consultant hired to conduct the study was accused of bias.

I dont think we are using our money wisely as the city, Deasy said. I think we need fresh ideas at the helm.

Adrian Skabelund can be reached at the office at askabelund@azdailysun.com, by phone at (928) 556-2261 or on Twitter @AdrianSkabelund.

Love 7 Funny 5 Wow 0 Sad 0 Angry 4

Be the first to know Get local news delivered to your inbox! Sign up! * I understand and agree that registration on or use of this site constitutes agreement to its user agreement and privacy policy.
Yesterday, as the bitter lockout of 750 oil refinery workers in Regina, Saskatchewan, entered its ninth week, Uniforled by its national president, Jerry Diasand Federated Cooperative Limited (FCL) management returned to the bargaining table.

FCL agreed to the contract talks after Unifor bowed to the companys demand that it withdraw all preconditions and lift a ten-day blockade of the highly profitable Cooperative Refinery Complex (CRC), the third largest oil refinery in Western Canada.

Since the beginning of the lockout, the company, with the active support of the right-wing provincial government, has mounted a massive scabbing operation. It has maintained a work camp inside the refinery grounds and helicoptered in supplies, scabs, and managers since locking out the regular workforce last Dec. 5. In this, it has been bolstered by two pro-company court injunctions restricting picketing, a third ruling fining the union $100,000 for contempt of court, and a police attack on the picket line that ended in the arrest of 14 picketers, including Dias, and the hospitalization of another. The union could face further court sanctions in another contempt-of-court hearing scheduled for February 4.

The central issue in the dispute is FCLs demand that the defined-benefits pension program for veteran workers be gutted. In the last contract, Unifor accepted a two-tier benefits scheme that requires all newly-hired workers to enroll in an inferior defined-contributions pension plan, but left the provisions for veteran workers untouched. During the negotiations for the current contract, the union initially insisted that the current defined-benefits plan not be altered. However, in a significant climb-down last week, Unifor withdrew that precondition.

Emphasizing that the union is now ready to dramatically alter its bargaining stance, Dias pleaded for the company to return to the bargaining table. We communicated with them (refinery management), said Dias, that the preconditions that we had put on the bargaining table, we were now prepared to remove and dramatically alter.

The company responded by demanding that the union first end its blockade, which has stopped all fuel trucks from entering or leaving the complex since January 20. On Thursday, Dias announced that the union would comply with that stipulation as well.

Signaling that the union plans to present major concessions at the talks that could quickly satisfy company management, Local 594 president Kevin Bittman said Thursday, We're hoping to get a deal at the table tomorrow. That's where this dispute is going to end.

Should no deal be reached, Dias has called on Saskatchewan Party Premier Scott Moe to arrange for binding arbitration to end the dispute. Moes office responded that as of Wednesday, no official request from the union had been received.

Dias appeal to the right-wing, anti-worker Moe government must be seen by the locked out workers as part of Unifors criminal attempts to sellout their struggle. The rigged labour arbitration process is designed to enforce employer demands and, under a fig leaf of legality, defuse workers struggles.

Dias suggestion that Moe and his ministers can be pressured into acting as neutral mediators is absurd on its face. For over a decade, the Saskatchewan Party government has mounted major attacks on workers rights and living standards, including restricting public sector workers right to strike through essential services legislation.

The Moe government has also been a partisan player throughout the dispute, backing managements concessions drive since before the lockout began. In November, the provincial labour minister publicly declared the government had no objection to CRCs contingency plansi.e. its scabbing operationand stood ready to use the full legislative tools available if ever worker job action succeeded in crippling the refinerys output.

After a long silence on the scab-herding operation in Regina, the federal New Democratic Party (NDP) announced this week that it will introduce a private members bill to outlaw the use of scabs in enterprises governed by the Canada Labour Code. About 400,000 unionized federal workers would be affected. This proposal, however, is simply meant for show.

If the minority Liberal government of Prime Minister Justin Trudeau even allows the bill to reach the floor of the House of Commons, it will no doubt vote it down in a bloc with the right-wing Official Opposition Conservative Partya fact of which the federal NDP leadership is well aware. In 2016, a majority Liberal government, joined by the Conservatives, voted down a similar anti-scab proposal by the NDP. Trudeaus Liberals also criminalized a postal workers strike in 2018 with back-to-work legislation, and threatened to do the same last November during the CN Rail strike.

Such consistent anti-worker actions by the big business Liberals have not prevented Unifor from actively supporting the party during elections and giving pride of place to Liberal leaders at their conventions. Nor has it stopped the NDPs efforts to find common ground with Trudeau in the new parliament, where the minority Liberal government is reliant on support from the opposition parties to pass legislation.

In Saskatchewan, the NDP, the official opposition in the provincial legislature, maintained a criminal silence on the refinery dispute until recently. It has refused to join the federal NDP in making a nominal commitment to adopt anti-scab legislation. Instead, the party meekly announced that it would engage in consultations on the effects of employing scabs in the province. Workers should not hold their breath.

Between 1991 and 2007, Unifors predecessorsthe Canadian Auto Workers and the Communications, Energy and Paperworkers Unionsupported a pro-big business New Democratic Party government in Saskatchewan that steadfastly refused to legislate anti-scab legislation. Even as NDP governments pushed through budgets that slashed education and health spending, pursued privatization, and passed strike-breaking legislation against nurses, the unions continued to give them their unstinting support. According to the last public filing, Unifor was the largest single financial contributor to the NDP in 2018.

In order to prepare the fight against the rotten contract that Unifor is now seeking to conclude, the CRC workers must take the conduct of their struggle into their own hands by organizing independently of, and in opposition, to the trade union bureaucracy.

Above all, they must recognize that their fight against FCL is not merely a collective bargaining dispute with a single, ruthless employer, but a political fight against the capitalist state and all its institutions. This political struggle demands that workers recognize they face the combined opposition of the right-wing provincial government, which backs the companys demands, the police and courts, which act as enforcers for FCL, the NDP, which refuses to stand up for workers rights while extending a hand of cooperation to the pro-war, pro-austerity federal Liberals, and Unifor and the entire union bureaucracy, which has systematically suppressed all working class struggles for the past four decades.

While workers have powerful enemies, their allies are stronger still. Working people across Canada and internationally are being driven into struggle by the same attacks on wages, pensions, and living conditions that have motivated the Regina refinery workers to show tremendous determination and a readiness to fight during the two-month lockout. If locked out workers are to prevail, they must fight to make their struggle the spearhead of a working class counter-offensive against the ruling elites austerity drive and for a workers government committed to socialist policies.
Ms. Mensers mother, Stephanie Bashore, said that her 36-year-old daughter has advanced uterine cancer, as well as cervical cancer, and needs surgery to remove her uterus and the tissue around it. On the day Ms. Menser was sentenced, her mother said, she had been scheduled to meet with her oncologist to discuss a last-ditch effort to treat the disease.

Ms. Bashore said that a doctor recently told her daughter, If you dont get this done, you will die. It is eating you up inside.

Ms. Bashore said that her daughter had been working at a fast-food restaurant and had put many problems behind her. Her lawyer, Scot Feeman, asked Judge Samuel A. Kline to allow her to serve any sentence through home confinement so that she could continue to be treated at the Penn State Cancer Institute in nearby Hershey, Pa. Through an assistant, the judge declined to comment.

Mr. Feeman said that Ms. Menser had a history of minor drug and theft crimes, and that both the 2018 shoplifting charge she pleaded guilty to  a third-degree felony  and the sentence handed down were in line for someone with her criminal history.
A future U.S.-UK trade agreement must incorporate strong provisions on worker rights, environmental protection, and enforcement to ensure bipartisan support, U.S. House Ways and Means Committee Chairman Richard Neal said on Friday, staking out a claim for Congress to help shape any such accord.

Neal, a Democrat, said he expected to work closely with U.S. Trade Representative Robert Lighthizer in forging a new U.S.-UK trade deal after Britain's left the European Union on Friday.

Britain is the closest U.S. ally but the two countries face big hurdles in working out a new trade agreement, including a dispute over Britain's plan to impose a unilateral digital tax.

Washington argues that such taxes would discriminate against big U.S. tech companies like Alphabet Inc's Google, Apple Inc , Facebook Inc and Amazon.com .

Neal's comments came days after President Donald Trump signed a revamped North American trade accord at a White House ceremony that excluded Neal and other House Democrats who ensured its congressional passage by adding better protections for workers' rights and the environment, increased enforcement and measures to avert higher drug prices.

Both Democratic and Republican lawmakers are growing concerned that Trump is circumventing Congress's constitutional role in setting trade policy by imposing tariffs and signing smaller trade deals that do not need congressional approval.

Neal's comments made clear that U.S. lawmakers expect to be consulted on a U.S.-UK trade deal after being shut out of Washington's bilateral trade negotiations with China, Japan and others.

He said the new U.S.-UK trade deal also needed to preserve the freedom of Congress to regulate areas of domestic policy, and respect the achievement of the 1998 Good Friday peace agreement between the British and Irish governments, and most of the political parties in Northern Ireland.

Senator Chris Murphy, also a Democrat, said the two countries should ultimately reach a free trade agreement, but said Washington should not reward Britain for leaving the EU and should focus first on reaching a trade deal with Brussels.

In addition to disputes over digital taxes, the Trump administration has also threatened to tax foreign car imports, which could hit British-made Jaguar, Land Rover , Mini , and Honda Civic hatchback cars.

Britain and the United States are also at odds over London's decision this week give the Chinese telecoms giant Huawei a limited role in Britains 5G mobile network.

Britain's outgoing ambassador to Washington, Kim Darroch, told the Guardian newspaper on Friday there was a "narrow and rocky path" to a U.S.-UK deal and questioned what Britain had to gain in following it.
With disruptive technologies like (AI) driving businesses, the IT sector wants the Union Budget for fiscal 2020-21 to ensure greater use of these to spur a sluggish economy among other measures for the sector, industry experts said on Friday.

"The budget should announce a fund like Singapore's Temasek that will invest only in early-stage Indian AI start-ups and lower long-term capital gain's tax for investing in AI-based firms," digital intelligence firm Germin8 founder chief executive Ranjit Nair told IANS.

With the US and China racing ahead of India in AI research, AI entrepreneurship and government investment in AI, he said the budget should make it easier for start-ups to access capital, as they face an uphill task in early-stage funding.

"The government bring policies that encourage AI companies. Ease of doing business means less bureaucracy so that entrepreneurs can build solutions without distractions," he said.

AI is expected to have a huge impact not only in commerce, but also in health, national security, cybersecurity, food security, education and global warming.

"The government should announce AI challenges, which make academia and industry solve an important problem in the country. The state's role should give a crisp problem definition, provide access to data and provide a good cash prize," Nair said.

Though thousands of engineering graduates pass out every year across the country, India is behind other nations in AI PhDs and AI research. Hence, the budget should allot more grants for AI research and offer incentives to institutes investing in AI training, he added.

Noting that IT was one of the few sectors that remained growth-driven despite the eonomic slowdown since the last fiscal, Cigniti Technologies chairman C.V. Subramanyam said the budget should give relief or reduce dividend distribution tax (DDT) for IT firms operating in the country.

Anti-virus leader Kaspersky's General Manager, South Asia, Dipesh Kaura said Dipesh Kaura said: "As the budget for the ensuing fiscal is crucial for businesses across the country, we are expecting higher allocations for cyber security from the government."

Investment in cyber security will accelerate the digital transformation. Funds should be spent on supporting skill development and training students keen to become cyber security professionals, he said.

"Cyber security awareness campaign for consumers should be a major focus of the budget," Kaura said in a statement.

Cybage Software chief executive Arun Nathani said the budget should take steps to roll back DDT across the board to attract FDI and incentivise the sector to ramp up the capex/opex spend once the demand is back.

"Rationalising the GST rates and compliance processes will outgrow the consumption rates. The Indian IT industry will welcome specific incentives likeAweighted deductions for investing in R&D of AI/BI tools to facilitate IT firms, companies, universities and research institutes," Nathani added.

--IANS

fb/vd

(Only the headline and picture of this report may have been reworked by the Business Standard staff; the rest of the content is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)




Still wont forgive them for making the Shaw bros Mi Familia but wtf ever. They have overstayed their welcome.



Also thank goodness Justin Lin is back. The last two were just not great and I know the writing has sucked but Lin is great at ensemble films.



#justiceforGiselle I can't believe how stupidly excited I am for Han to be back haha i was so ready to write these films off but kind of was interested from the trailer showing Letty and Mia kicking ass together then these fuckers just had to throw in Han. He looks so good too. Yum.Still wont forgive them for making the Shaw bros Mi Familia but wtf ever. They have overstayed their welcome.Also thank goodness Justin Lin is back. The last two were just not great and I know the writing has sucked but Lin is great at ensemble films.

Reply

Thread

Link

No thank you, let Giselle stay dead please.

Reply

Parent

Thread



Link





Happy for him and can I get a I don't care how he's back, but I wish they would have kept it a secret. I feel robbed off that moment in the theater.Happy for him and can I get a #justiceforHan shirt?

Reply

Thread

Link

Damn, that would've been better.



I also want a shirt.

Reply

Parent

Thread



Link

Studios really don't care about the movie going experience anymore. They just want to get butts in the seats and we, as an audience, suffer from it.



Maybe some other twists will go down to make up for it. BUT DAMNIT I WANTED TO GASP AND CHEER ALONG WITH EVERYONE ELSE!!!!

Reply

Parent

Thread



Link

Yeah you know what, keeping it a secret wouldve amazing. Maybe they revealed it to get some of the fans who fell off, to come back

Reply

Parent

Thread

Expand

Link

I havent seen the movies since the 7th one but why is Mia there? I thought the idea was that her and Brian were gonna raise their family away from this?

Reply

Thread

Link

Because Brian can't watch the kids alone for once? Mia's been doing that since F6.



But also if Jon Cena is Dom's brother....he's also Mia's.

Reply

Parent

Thread



Link

If Han is back, we better get Giselle back. Han and Giselle are the true F&F OTP.



WE ALSO NEVER SAW HER BODY.



Reply

Thread

Link

John Cena's arms are so obviously Photoshopped to look bigger, it's kind of hilarious.

Reply

Thread

Link

How is Han back omg Im so drunk and confused???

Reply

Thread

Link

lol when f&f6 came out i asked sung kang if han could just, like, come back from the dead bc it's the fast & the furious and anything can happen. he told me no, bc it'd be too cheesy. bitch u thought!

Reply

Thread

Link

nothings too cheesy for F&F!

Reply

Parent

Thread



Link

yesterday I watched the first movie again since lord knows when, and wow I really love it, theres something nostalgic about it thats too comforting



ill watch this stupid franchise until they bring Jesse back just because why not

Reply

Thread

Link

... i'd been down with it tbh

Reply

Parent

Thread



Link

I still maintain Jesse is/was in witness protection and I keep waiting for him to pop up to help Luda with some hacker shit lol

Reply

Parent

Thread



Link

i think han being alive would've been epic watching on screen for the first time but i'm also happy with this trailer spoiling it, because it just made me so much more excited for it. like sung kang says, shaw(s) being brought into the movies and treated like family was a tough pill to swallow so i hope they do a good job of explaining it all



unless dom and mia are suddenly half siblings jakob is mia's brother too i really wish they'd acknowledge that instead of constantly saying he's dom's brother  i hope she gets to kick ass

Reply

Thread

Link

I'm fucking here for the return of Han

Reply

Thread

Link

I loved Han ok, I did. I've been pissy in these posts for years because of how they didn't think shit out, killed him and snuggled up to his killer.



and i'm sure the plot of this one is the shaws did what they did because charlize made them or cena. because it makes total sense that a mechanic in LA who turned to stealing to take care of his baby sister and friends who were his family, totes has a brother who is a multimillionaire super spy, captain america gone bad type and nobody mentioned it.



forever.



i just can't. they are so damn redic and have really showcased for years what happens when you let action star actors who've totally bought their own press releases and BELIEVE they are that shit, flex on the creative side. they don't even try for intelligent heist flicks. they are canon films in the 80s with a huge budget. if they tried even a little, i'd still be there, but i tagged out several flicks back because each one was just more redic than the last. not more fun, just more RIIIIIIGHT.



Reply

Thread

Link

But I hope you fans get your flick. I do. the MCU was my jam and i don't want to sound like those assholes who hear the word marvel and gotta hate from the word go and make it known. i liked these dumb movies until we reached a point of shit not making any damn sense, and there being no sense of continuity. and everything feeding vin's ego. i love ensembles, and i wish this franchise hadn't lost me, but it did. but i do hope those who are still on board, i hope you get your flick.



for han alone, i'll end up getting it from redbox. i just really, reeally, don't expect it to be any good.

Reply

Parent

Thread



Link

I've never seen any of these movies... is it worth my time?

Reply

Thread

Link

How much time do you have?

Reply

Parent

Thread



Link

No

Reply

Parent

Thread



Link

To watch all? Probably not. IMHO the only ones worth watching are 1, 2 (it's dumb but fun), 5, and 6. Tokyo Drift has cool racing and Han but it's bad lmao



Story wise I guess 1, 5 and up but the last two films have just been boring and I hate the addition of the Shaw Brothers as part of the team.



But they also aren't for everyone so ymmv.



Reply

Parent

Thread



Link

Watch 1 - 5, but not the 3rd. Then you are good.

Reply

Parent

Thread



Link

lmao tokyo drift is pretty essential with han back

Reply

Parent

Thread

Expand

Link

They're fun! Mindless entertainment so if you don't mind the lack of logic you should give it a shot :)



And it's one of the few franchises that's not full of white dudes so that aspect is very refreshing <3

Reply

Parent

Thread



Link

Yes. Take none of them seriously and you will have a great time.



Maybe don't watch Tokyo Drift though.

Reply

Parent

Thread



Link

Natalie Emmanuel is such a sweetheart and beyond gorgeous. I hope she keeps getting roles.

Reply

Thread

Link

i kind of wanted to see Dwayne in this just to watch Tyrese's meltdown oop

Reply

Thread

Link

Umm wasn't his death pretty gnarly? I can't rmb..

Reply

Thread

Link

He blew up lol

Reply

Parent

Thread



Link
MITCHELL  Public meetings are planned Feb. 13-14 on proposed Madison County Transit (MCT) route changes, including the creation of a new shuttle in the Gateway Commerce Center.

The proposed changes, which would take place in May, were discussed at the MCT board meeting Friday morning.

Changes include extending the No. 2 Granite City Shuttle to Northgate Industrial Park off Illinois 3 via Pontoon Road; changes to the No. 21 West Collinsville Shuttle to improve service to Eastport Plaza; and changes to the No. 20 Granite City-Pontoon Beach Shuttle, including the addition of a new shuttle that would operate during peak hours within Gateway Commerce Center.

Much of the Fridays discussion centered on changes at the Commerce Center, with interim Director SJ Morrison citing a massive amount of demand for services.

It was noted there are almost 30 separate warehouse and other buildings within Gateway Commerce, and the current No. 20 route through the industrial park adds about 30 minutes to the trip. The proposed new shuttle would feed off the No. 20 bus and would only operate during peak hours.

In addition to citizens, MCT officials are reaching out to third-party logistics providers that oversee both the buildings and operations inside. MCT Board Chairman Ron Jedda noted he would like to approach some of the building owners about paying for part of the service.

The first meeting will be 11:30 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. Thursday, Feb. 13 in the Contegra building at 22 Gateway Commerce Center Drive W. #110. The second meeting will be 10-11:30 a.m. Friday, Feb. 14 at Chestnut Health Systems, 50 Northgate Industrial Drive, Granite City.

MCT will also accept public comments via email to info@mct.org, or regular mail to Madison County Transit c/o May 2020 Service Change, One Transit Way, P.O. Box 7500, Granite City, IL 62040. Comments must be received by 5 p.m. Feb. 21.

MCT officials are also planning a conference on the districts trail system to discuss future plans and vision for the trails.

Since MCT started rail-banking abandoned railroad right-of-ways in the 1990s the trail system has expanded to 137 miles and is considered one of the best in the nation.

The conference is tentatively set for 9-11 a.m. Friday, March 13 in the LeClair Room at Lewis and Clark Community Colleges N.O. Nelson Complex in Edwardsville.

Reach reporter Scott Cousins at 618-208-6447.
Budget 2020: Govt proposes to set up Indian Institute of Heritage and Conservation

India

oi-PTI

New Delhi, Feb 01: Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman on Saturday proposed the setting up of an Indian Institute of Heritage and Conservation under the Ministry of Culture. Presenting the Budget for 2020-21, Sitharaman said Rs 3,150 crore has been allocated for the Ministry of Culture and Rs 2,500 crore for the Ministry of Tourism.

She also proposed the setting up of a tribal museum in Ranchi, Jharkhand. "Five archaeological sites in Haryana, Uttar Pradesh, Assam, Gujarat and Tamil Nadu to be developed with on-site museums," the Finance Minister said.

Budget 2020: National Police University, National Forensic Science varsity to be set up

While the fund for the Tourism Ministry was Rs 2,150 crore in the 2018-2019 Budget, it rose to Rs 2,189.22 crore in 2019-2020. The allocation for the Culture Ministry, which was Rs 2,843.32 crore in 2018-2019, increased to Rs 3,042.35 crore for 2019-2020.

For Breaking News and Instant Updates Allow Notifications

Story first published: Saturday, February 1, 2020, 13:39 [IST]
YEREVAN.  Areg Hovhannisyan, Head of Department of Asia, Pacific Ocean and Africa of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MFA) of Armenia, gave an interview to state-funded Public Television on the situation surrounding the new coronavirus, the MFA informed.

"The agreement between the Government of the Republic of Armenia and the Government of the Republic of China on visa requirement waiveron the principle of reciprocityfor persons holding ordinary passports also provides for suspension for some periods in force majeure situations," Hovhannisyan said. "Initially, the issue has been discussed with our Chinese associates, and they will, of course, treat with respect any such decision."

In the context of returning the Armenian citizens from China, the MFA official noted: "We are working with our international partners, we are also working with the Chinese side so that if necessary, it will be possible to organize the people's return."
Source: Xinhua| 2020-02-01 17:49:41|Editor: xuxin

Video Player Close

GUANGZHOU, Feb. 1 (Xinhua) -- After becoming blind 35 years ago, it was the first time for Zhu Jianping to visit the Guangdong Museum for an art exhibition.

Instead of seeing the exhibition, Zhu heard it.

Following the tour led by Chen Yuan, an exhibition guide at the museum, Zhu passed through the gallery and stopped in front of a painting, a self-portrait by famous Dutch painter Rembrandt.

"I saw many paintings of Vincent Van Gogh when I was young," Zhu recalled. "But I have never seen exhibitions since I lost my sight, for fear of bringing troubles to others."

In January, the Guangdong Barrier-free Promotion Association organized an event to invite the blind to visit the museum and "see" an art exhibition with the help of exhibition guides.

Zhu and 10 other blind individuals participated in the event.

"On the dark red wall, there is a picture about the size of an A4 sheet of paper, with a beam of yellow light falling down. In the picture, the young Rembrandt wearing a black beret looks at the audience. His left cheek is illuminated by light and his red lips are slightly opened, seemingly surprised," exhibition guide Chen vividly described the painting.

With Chen's description, Zhu imagined the picture in his mind.

"The description is very pictorial," Zhu said. "There are so many famous paintings on display and the visit is worthwhile and meaningful," said Zhu, who wrote two novels about his experiences after going blind.

In 2018, the Guangdong Museum conducted training programs for exhibition guides and commentators for the blind, in order to meet the demand of such patrons. Since then, groups can make an appointment for such a service in advance.

"The vivid explanations of museum guides deliver more visual information to the blind and as a result help them build graphic images," Chen said.

"Such an attempt is great," Fu Minghui, a professor at Sun Yat-sen University, said after following the special tour. "The exhibition commentator tries to help the blind better enjoy visual arts."

Guangdong will release more policy measures to create a friendly barrier-free environment for the 5.4 million disabled people, said Zhang Yongan, chairman of the Guangdong Disabled Persons' Federation.
Kate Shanahan, a native of Kilflynn, broke down in tears numerous times on Tuesday afternoon as she spoke to The Kerryman over the phone from a health clinic in Poland where she is receiving treatment for her chronic Lyme Disease.

Kate, once an avid walker and hiker in both her native Kerry and her adopted home of Dublin, was left fighting back tears as she told her harrowing story of how the debilitating disease has changed her life beyond all recognition.

Misdiagnosed for years, Kate was categorically told by the medical profession that she did not have Lyme disease, but rather that the cause of her rapidly deteriorating health was due to too much stress.

"The medical approach in this country seemed to pay too much heed to American guidelines, as I was left with this chronic illness having paid a fortune to no avail," she said.

Unsuccessful attempts to identify the disease meant that Kate's Lyme disease was left undiagnosed - and more importantly, untreated. By the time she was finally diagnosed just over a year-and-a-half ago, she not only had a chronic version of the disease, but she also had ten related infections in her body as well.

Kate said that all of this meant that her immune system hit rock bottom, leaving her battling bouts of exhaustion as well as Pneumonia.

Housebound for almost the entirety of last year, Kate's debilitating condition forced her to give up her dream job.

She said she has now been forced to seek what she calls 'do-or-die' treatment abroad in Gdansk, Poland.

It's a story that has been written about all too often in this newspaper - how Lyme disease can ravage the life of a previously healthy individual; sufferers then left facing an uphill battle to secure a diagnosis and receive the proper treatment.

Kate does not recall ever getting bitten by a tick - a species that she refers to as 'nature's dirty needles' due to the amount of co-infections that they carry.

She never developed the tell-tale 'bull's-eye' rash, the circular red skin rash around a tick bite which presents in a percentage of infections.

The fact that she never got this rash, is a key reason why she wants to share her story.

"Many patients do not recall a tick bite and this can be a big factor in a lot of patients being misdiagnosed and it was in my case, certainly.

"A nymph tick is the size of a poppyseed so they can bite people and it will remain visually undetected," she said.

"There's a lot of research out there that indicates now that the bull's-eye rashes in patients presenting with Lyme is present in less than 60 percent of cases and some research suggests that this is as low as 27 percent," she continued.

The first signs for Kate that all was not well came several years ago when she started developing a severe pain in her right knee. But it was in October 2016, that she said her life changed completely. Her symptoms began to get a lot worse and her daily struggles now include, but are not limited to, daily migraine, nerve pain, extreme fatigue, loss of balance, brain fog, inability to walk long distances.

All of this means that Kate has been effectively robbed of the chance to fulfil many of her life goals with her fiance Noel, including being able to start a family or saving for a mortgage.

After years of being "beyond let down" by the Irish health system, Kate said that she was eventually left with no option but to seek treatment abroad.

"I had to eventually send my bloods to a lab in Germany and travel to Brussels to get a diagnosis, despite already having been sick at this stage for two-and-a-half years," she said.

"Being denied access to a proper diagnosis and treatment in Ireland has taken a huge toll on my life.

"I have had to give up my careers as HR Business Partner with Deloitte and the effects financially, physically and emotionally have been devastating.

"Not to mention my immediate family and my fiance, Noel, who has had to take on the role of my caregiver and sole provider for us."

Currently, Kate is one week into a six-week treatment course in Poland, and while she acknowledges that she has a big uphill battle ahead of her, she says that despite everything that she's gone through, she still feels positive about her future.

"The support that I have around me from my friends, my family, my extended family, it has been vital. They are my why, my purpose. Without them, I do not think I would have had the strength to make it this far," she said.

"That's what I want to get across here, that I still have hope. I'm still fighting and I'm staying positive about the outcome of this treatment that I am finally receiving," she said.

The treatment in Poland involves an intensive course of antibiotics administered intravenously, just to build her immune system back up before she can undergo an even longer treatment.

In an effort to help cover the costs of the treatment in Poland, Kate and her family will be organising a fundraising night in the Oyster Tavern on Friday April 24. The event will be called 'Into the Lyme-light' and will feature a number of surprise performances from members of the local community to help raise awareness of Lyme disease and help support Kate's treatment abroad.
London, Feb 1 : The UK has officially left the European Union (EU) after 47 years of membership and more than three years after it voted to do so in a referendum, finally putting an end to one of the most divisive political issues in the country's history, media reports said on Saturday.

When the clock struck 11 p.m. on Friday, thousands taking part in a Brexit celebration event in Parliament Square erupted into cheers, said a Metro newspaper report.

An illuminated clock counting down to the deadline was projected onto Downing Street and jubilant Brexiteers began singing "God Save the Queen".

The historic moment also saw anti-Brexit protests, including candlelit vigils in Scotland. Pro-EU demonstrators also staged a march in Whitehall to bid a "fond farewell" to the union Brexit was hailed by Prime Minister Boris Johnson as "not an end but the beginning".

"For many people this is an astonishing moment of hope, a moment they thought would never come.

And there are many of course who feel a sense of anxiety and loss. And then of course there is a third group - perhaps the biggest - who had started to worry that the whole political wrangle would never come to an end," the BBC quoted Johnson as saying in a message released on social media an hour before the UK's departure.

"I understand all those feelings and our job as the government - my job - is to bring this country together now and take us forward.

"For all its strengths and for all its admirable qualities, the EU has evolved over 50 years in a direction that no longer suits this country.

"The most important thing to say tonight is that this is not an end but a beginning... A moment of real national renewal and change," the Prime Minister added.

While Britain's exit is a historic moment, it only marks the end of the first stage of the Brexit saga, said the Metro daily report.

The UK and the EU have given themselves an 11-month 'transition period' in which the former will continue to follow the bloc's rules to strike new agreements on trade, security and a host of other areas Johnson is expected to clash with EU members as he pursues a hard Brexit.

But despite the problems, several politicians wished Britain on its historic exir.

President of the EU Comission, Ursula Von Der Leyen, tweeted: "The challenges that Europe faces, and the opportunities that it can grasp, have not changed because of #rexit. As part of this, we want to have the best possible relationship with the UK. But it will never be as good as membership." US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo said: "I am pleased the UK and EU have agreed on a Brexit deal that honours the will of the British people." However, there were some who did not welcome the move.

Scottish First Minister Nicola Sturgeon tweeted a picture of the EU flag, saying: "Scotland will return to the heart of Europe as an independent country." French President Emmanuel Macron called Brexit a "historic alarm signal" that should force the EU to improve itself.

The UK had joined what was then European Economic Community on January 1, 1973, at the third attempt. Two years later the country voted by an overwhelming majority to remain in the bloc in the first nationwide referendum, said the BBC.

Conservative Prime Minister David Cameron held another referendum in June 2016, amid growing pressure from his own MPs and Nigel Farage's UK Independence Party.

Cameron led the campaign to stay in the EU but lost by the narrow margin of 52 per cent to 48 per cent to the Leave campaign, fronted by fellow Conservative Johnson.

Cameron's successor Theresa May repeatedly failed to get her version of an EU withdrawal agreement passed by Parliament and was replaced by Johnson, who also failed to get his plans through.

Johnson managed to secure an early general election in December 2019, which he won with an 80-seat majority on a promise to "get Brexit done".

The Prime Minister's EU withdrawal deal was approved by MPs just before Christmas, and the bill became law earlier this year.
Twice this ridiculously wet winter several homes in northern Escondido along Vista Avenue have been damaged when flood waters overtook their homes.

After the first flood in January, Michael Sucharda began repairs to the home where he lives with his wife and in-laws. Then came a record storm on Feb. 27 that dropped more than four inches of rain on Escondido, causing a new round of flooding worse than the first.

City officials are trying to get to the root of the problem before the next storm moves in, but have so far declined to say what theyve learned.

Surcharda has said he believes the culprit is a graded property about a block to the east, where KB Homes plans to build 40 homes. The site includes a holding pond where water spilled out, he said.

Advertisement

A report on the incident filed by Escondido Fire Capt. Derek Chapman confirmed that runoff from the excessive rain breached the holding pond and flooded three homes.

The developer released a statement this week denying any fault, however, and said the problem was caused by another neighbor who filled in a drainage channel which serves the area. This compromised the water management systems capacity and caused flooding during the recent record rainfall.

As the drainage channel is not located on our property, we do not have the authority to address the issue without permission from the homeowner, KB Homes spokeswoman Susan Martin said in the statement. We have notified the neighboring property owner and their counsel of the drainage issues and have even offered to shoulder the costs of restoring the drainage channel to its prior and intended condition.

After the first incident, a claim was filed against the city by Ruben Cruz, another resident of the area, that simply stated: Drain plugged and house is flooded, need help!

Julie Procopio, Escondidos engineering services director, said this week the city is looking into the problem. She declined to comment beyond that because of possible pending litigation.

Chapman, the fire captain, said some of the rain came from the holding pond but more came from the sky.

Ill discuss only facts as I saw them, he said. Look, there was too much rain. The water overflowed and it came into the back yards.

Evan Walker, an attorney for Surchardas in-laws Ellen and Ron Ewertz  who own the Vista Avenue home  said the courts may have to ultimately figure out what happened.

Were trying to figure out who is really responsible here and we may not know until we file suit and have flushed it out that way, said Walker, who specializes in flood litigation. He said he doesnt yet know if the city will be included in the list of defendants.

He said the last time the Ewertzs home flooded was in the 1970s.

Sucharda said hes been told by a contractor the damage will will cost between $80,000 and $130,000 to repair.

Meanwhile, he said, he doesnt know if he should start repairs.

Do I wait to rebuild? Is this going to happen again? Sucharda said. Who do I need to talk to at this point to get it squared away?

jharry.jones@sduniontribune.com; 760/529-4931; Twitter: @jharryjones
BAKU, Azerbaijan, Feb. 1

By Rufiz Hafizoglu  Trend:

Export of electrical goods from Turkey to Georgia increased by 12.13 percent in 2019 compared to 2018, amounting to $118 million, Turkeys Ministry of Trade told Trend.

In November 2019, Turkeys export of electrical goods to Georgia increased by 39.30 percent compared to November 2018, exceeding $14.2 million.

In 2019, export of electrical goods from Turkey dropped by 0.5 percent compared to 2018, amounting to $11.2 billion. Turkeys export of these goods amounted to 6.2 percent of countrys total export.

In December 2019, export of electrical goods from Turkey increased by 2.2 percent compared to December 2018 and amounted to $977.9 million or 6.4 percent of country's total export.

----

Follow the author on Twitter: @rhafizoglu
WeatherTechA founder David MacNeil orders a Super Bowl ad every year. This year, he devoted that ad to the University of Wisconsin School of Veterinary Medicine, which saved his dog Scout from terminal cancer. It's gotten more attention than an ad about his company ever could.

Super Bowl ads are famously pricey -- $5.6 million for a 30-second spot this year. If you're going to spend that kind of money, you want an ad that will make an impact, something that will get talked about afterward, like Apple's unforgettable "1984" commercial from 1984, or last year's "Dilly Dilly" Budweiser ad that was going along just fine until a fire-breathing dragon suddenly blasted the entire cast because it was also an ad for the final season of Game of Thrones.

The Super Bowl hasn't happened yet, but we may already have a winner for most-talked-about ad, which is called "Lucky Dog" and features a golden retriever named Scout. A cute dog in a Super Bowl commercial might seem like a well-worn idea, but this ad is different. To begin with, it isn't selling anything and barely even mentions WeatherTech, the Bolingbrook, Illinois-based company paying $5.6 million for the slot. Instead, the ad centers on Scout, the actual dog, played by himself. Scout, who is seven, belongs to WeatherTech founder David MacNeil, and this past summer, he collapsed unexpectedly and was diagnosed with a tumor on his heart and given one month to live.

This is where a lot of dog owners would have bid their pet a tearful goodbye, but MacNeil wasn't having it. "There he was in this little room, standing in the corner...and he's wagging his tail at me. I'm like, 'I'm not putting that dog down. There's just absolutely no way," MacNeil told a local NBC station. Instead, he took Scout to the University of Wisconsin School of Veterinary Medicine, where vets gave the dog an aggressive course of radiation and chemotherapy that shrank the tumor by 90 percent. A grateful MacNeil decided to devote WeatherTech's Super Bowl ad this year to Scout -- and to a request for donations to the University of Wisconsin veterinary school that had saved his life.

"It's very common for clients to bring their animals to our hospital and ultimately want to figure out a way to give back," Veterinary School Dean Mark Markel told Patch. "What's very uncommon is someone that has David's capacity to do that."

As for MacNeil, he has no fear of doing the unexpected. Although his company is primarily a manufacturer of floor mats and other accessories for cars, last year he used the company's Super Bowl ad to promote his new human-grade feeding bowls for dogs -- created because he'd watched too many canine companions succumb to cancer over the years. That ad featured Scout along with a lot of other dogs.

The company's 2018 Super Bowl ad was most memorable for what it didn't include: actors, WeatherTech products, or any kind of narration. Instead, it showed construction workers building the company's newest factory, and concluded with the text, "At WeatherTech, we built our new factory right here in America. Isn't that the way it's supposed to be?"
Its back! That evergreen Green Cabin By Sashini Rodrigo View(s): View(s):

Since its inception in 1884, Green Cabin had been a favourite spot for countless Sri Lankans spanning five generations; so there was collective dismay when the restaurant in its original form shut down on July 31, last year. Everyone had their favourite dish, from their hot hot hoppers to Lamprais to their ultra popular Pineapple Gateau that the older generation still rave about. A beloved part of Sri Lankan food culture, the news that the old Green Cabin has reopened, albeit in a new place, will have many rejoicing.

Turn right onto Visaka Road from Duplication Road (just before the original House of Fashion), go down until youre just about to hit Galle Road and there it is  the familiar sign beckoning you to Cyril Rodrigos Green Cabin.

With the newly relocated and refurbished restaurant, Green Cabin aims to elevate their dining experience with a whole new ambience that sets diners at ease and makes them feel at home. What better location for a homely atmosphere than a 100-year-old house, converted to suit a restaurant setting but without losing that relaxed feeling.

Stepping across the threshold feels like visiting an old friend, and diners are greeted by the hustle of the open air action kitchen on the right, where chefs prepare local favourites like kottu, godhamba rotis, and charming flower-shaped hoppers with skill and flair. From there, diners can choose to sit at tables that are indoors, in an inner courtyard or meda midula, or in a covered patio. Though it feels small and intimate, the restaurant can seat up to 50 pax.

It was important not to lose that well-known old world charm, says Director and CEO Chirath Devasurendra, who is part of the fifth generation of the family to continue the proud Green Cabin brand. Many will be familiar with the Green Cabin Restaurant in Kollupitiya, and he tells us this new venture aims to combine that classic experience with a few modern influences at a remarkably low competitive price point.

Most of the recipes go back a hundred or so years, having been passed down through the family. Every family recipe has their own special twist to it, and dishes like Achchis Chicken Curry and Seeyas Beef Jaggery Curry have big hits of flavour and a hint of sweetness that is fairly unique.

Alongside the old favourites are many new and exciting additions to the menu, from bites to mains. The menu is predominantly Sri Lankan in both heritage and flavour profile, from the fresh burst of ocean salt with a hint of spice in the Gratinated Oysters, to the well-seasoned richness of the Lobster Kottu.

The restaurant is open from 11 a.m. for lunch right up to dinner, with two different menus. The lunch menu includes their popular Lamprais with a choice of mutton, chicken or vegetable, as well as a rice and curry set and Kaha Bath with a choice of Black Coconut Pork Curry, Prawn Thel dhala, Chicken Curry or Cadju Curry.

The bites are a great start to a meal, with timeless dishes like Hot Butter Cuttlefish, Fried Handello, Isso Wade, Stuffed Capsicums and more. They pair well with the eclectic drinks menu, particularly the homemade Ginger Beer, the surprisingly refreshing Karapincha and Lime Twister or the Fresh Caramelised Pineapple Juice.

The dinner menu includes the bites as well as a wide variety of Sri Lankan staples. Pair your hoppers, stringhoppers, pol roti, godhamba roti and more with a selection of curries, like the sumptuous Lagoon Crab Curry. The kottu is a must try, particularly the Prawn Kottu that is bursting with flavour and topped with a huge, perfectly grilled river prawn.

To end the meal on a satisfying note, the menu includes classic desserts like Cream Caramel, the ever popular Ice Cream with Chocolate Sauce and Nougat, or the Green Cabin Chocolate Mousse with a soft chocolate base. Round it off with their signature Tin Kiri Tea or Tin Kiri Kopi (or plain tea or coffee if youre really full), and its a surefire hit thatll have you planning your next visit almost immediately.

Overall, its the ideal dining spot for anyone  from families and couples wanting a relaxed dining experience, to groups of friends and the working crowd eager for a good meal on a busy day. Call 0115 501 501 to reserve a table.
Anti-government demonstrations that erupted in Iraq on October 1 have escalated into its deadliest protest movement in decades, with more than 480 dead.

Protests erupt

On October 1, hundreds of people gather in Baghdad and cities in the Shiite south in leaderless protests against corruption, unemployment and poor public services.

Riot police disperse about 1,000 protesters in the capital's Tahrir (Liberation) Square, including with live fire.

The first two demonstrators are killed, one in Baghdad and another in the south.

Protests continue into October 2, getting the backing of influential Shiite cleric Moqtada Sadr, who leads the biggest bloc in parliament.

Unrest spreads

On October 3, thousands defy a curfew in several cities, blockading streets and burning tyres.

Prime Minister Adel Abdel Mahdi defends his year-old government on television, asking for more time to implement reforms.

On October 4, clashes intensify and Sadr calls on the government to resign. Two days later the cabinet announces reforms including in land distribution, social welfare and anti-corruption.

Deadly second wave

Protests resume on October 24, a day before the anniversary of Abdel Mahdi taking office.

Protesters in the south torch dozens of provincial government buildings and offices linked to the powerful Hashed al-Shaabi paramilitary force.

At least 63 people are killed over two days, according to the Iraqi Human Rights Commission.

On October 28, students, professors and schoolchildren join rallies in Baghdad and southern cities.

Death toll mounts

On November 3, demonstrators in the central city of Karbala attack the Iranian consulate amid charges that Iran is propping up the government. Four are shot dead.

After a major strike and continuing demonstrations, on November 27 protesters torch the Iranian consulate in the holy city of Najaf.

The following day is one of the bloodiest in the uprising, with 46 protesters killed and about 1,000 wounded across the country, including around two dozen in the southern city of Nasiriyah.

PM resigns

On November 29, top Shiite cleric Grand Ayatollah Ali Sistani calls for a new government. Hours later Abdel Mahdi offers to resign.

Parliament accepts his departure on December 1.

Talks to find a new prime minister intensify and include the commander of Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps, Major General Qasem Soleimani, a key ally of Iraq's main Shiite parties.

Washington denounces Tehran's "meddling".

Violence escalates

On December 6, at least 20 protesters and four police officers are killed when armed men attack a Baghdad building where anti-government protesters had been camped out for weeks.

After several weeks of calm, protests intensify from December 22.

Parliament votes through electoral reform, which fails to address most of the protesters' specific demands.

Protests resume

On January 10, 2020, thousands of Iraqis rally across the country, reviving the protest movement, which has been overshadowed by tensions between Washington and Tehran after the assassination of Soleimani in a US drone strike.

Thousands of demonstrators seek to shut streets across the country on January 20, clashing with security forces who use live fire.

On January 29, President Barham Saleh threatens to unilaterally name a successor to the premier, if parliament does not nominate a candidate within three days.

Sistani urges free and fair elections "as soon as possible" on January 31. Sadr calls for a "massive" demonstration in Baghdad.

Search Keywords:

Short link:


New Delhi, Feb 1 : The Youth Congress staged a symbolic protest over the prevailing economic situation and against the Bharatiya Janata Party's (BJP) budget for 2020-21, here on Saturday.

The protesters staged a mock parliamentary session in the middle of road, wearing masks. "Through the sit-in, we want to show how the government is playing games of GST, unemployment, demonetisation and falling stock markets with the country," said Priyadarshini Mahara, Youth Congress media co-ordinator.

The protest was stopped just outside the headquarters of the Youth Congress.

Reacting to the budget, B.V. Shrinivas, Youth Congress president, said, "Despite failing on all fronts, instead of taking serious steps to revive the economy and provide employment opportunities, the Narendra Modi government is interested only in unleashing its jumlas." Terming the budget as one such jumla (empty talks) in the series of jumlas played upon the people by Modi and his government, Shrinivas said the budget had no mention of unemployment and falling economy.

The government lacked concrete plans to combat the disastrous situation in the country, said Amish Ranjan, Youth Congress spokesperson. The entire budget speech was more on praising the Prime Minister than talking on issues.

Latest updates on Howdy Modi Houston
What do people care about in the coming election? Not Brexit, thats for sure; not when thousands of people cannot get an appointment, not when rural Ireland is awash and out of control with drugs, not when thousands are homeless, sleeping in tents, walking the streets daily trying to let the hours slip by, before they can return........often with children in tow.

Why would anyone care tuppence about Brexit until these worries have begun to be handled. The health service is in chaos, yet at a time when thirty million would solve the consultants issue (per year), we are more concerned with lowering taxes than spending money.

Imagine the difference that 30m would mean to hospitals if consultants and their teams were reinstated to hospitals. Imagine how many of the hundreds of thousands would be seen in one year alone, if consultants were paid the required amount.

SEE HERE: For extensive coverage ahead of GE2020

Nurses too are scandalously neglected, and should get a real raise in wages, and immediately wed find nurses are staying in Ireland, instead of emigrating.

The crime/drugs in rural Ireland - where I live - is rampant. The entire country has been taken over by the drug cartels, who have gradually built levels of pushers, runners, and distributors. Not necessarily in that order! Its those who dont take drugs at all themselves who control the drugs trade. Millions and millions of euro are being lodged to various accounts while nobody is anxious to take on the people involved. Drugs have now inhabited every single village in Ireland.

The big debate on Virgin television hosted by Pat Kenny, didnt tell anyone anything. Pat meting out the time allotted to two men, both of whom sounded awfully boring, not a new idea between them. High on self-praise and personal records, low on solutions.

Plenty of the old arguments, quoting statistics - which mean little in election campaigns - while desperately searching for a chink they could exploit. So An Taoiseach Leo Varadkar took drugs in another life. So what, who cares what he did at that time? This fact almost became the highlight of the debate.

Micheal Martin was questioned on his former actions; isnt it now we should enquire about? Nothing whatever learned, meanwhile Sinn Fein were equally described as not suitable partners for government. How infantile can two leading politicians get?

Days later, a poll suggested that Sinn Fein are neck and neck with FF in terms of definite votes (whatever that means!), on 17% each, while Fine Gael have dropped to 14% in the same poll - Sunday Business Post. Available voters in the same graph showed Fianna Fail on 48%, Sinn Fein on 42% and Fine Gael on 41%. Will Fianna Fail continue to disregard the electorate if Sinn Fein still continues to surge?

This is not to suggest anyone has special entitlement to share government, but it shows how farcical if the electorate can be ignored, while Fianna Fail & Fine Gael guard their own standing. Maybe Gene Kerrigan in the Sunday Independent is right.

Also read: ALONE calls for action on housing and health for older people ahead of #GE2020
T he UK has left the European Union after years of tense negotiations, many resignations, and a controversial prorogation.

Almost half a century as a member of the Brussels club came to an end at 11pm on Friday, with jubilant Brexiteers partying in Parliament Square in Westminster and a light show illuminating 10 Downing Street.

The Government now faces tough negotiations with the EU during a transition period that looks set to end on December 31, 2020.

With many twists and turns yet to come, here the Standard takes a look at the journey so far:

Union flag removed from the European Parliament / AFP via Getty Images

January 23, 2013

Under intense pressure from many of his own MPs and with the rise of Ukip, Prime Minister David Cameron promises an in-out referendum on EU membership if the Conservatives win the 2015 general election.

Mr Cameron pledges to campaign with all my heart and soul for Britain to vote to Remain in the referendum, which he says will take place by the end of 2017.

May 7, 2015

The Tories unexpectedly make sweeping gains over Ed Milibands Labour Party and secure a majority in the Commons. Mr Cameron vows to deliver his manifesto pledge for an EU referendum.

Jeremy Selwyn

June 23, 2016

The UK votes to leave the EU in a shock result that sees 52% of the public support Brexit in a humiliating defeat for the Prime Minister. Mr Cameron quickly resigns, saying: I dont think it would be right for me to try to be the captain that steers our country to its next destination.

July 13, 2016

Theresa May takes over as Prime Minister. Mrs May, who had backed Remain, promises to rise to the challenge of negotiating the UKs exit.

November 10, 2016

The High Court rules against the Government and says Parliament must hold a vote to trigger Article 50, the mechanism that begins the exit from the EU. Mrs May says the ruling will not stop her from invoking the legislation by April 2017.

March 29, 2017

Mrs May triggers Article 50 of the Treaty on European Union. European Council president Donald Tusk says it is not a happy occasion, telling a Brussels press conference his message to the UK is: We already miss you. Thank you and goodbye.

April 18, 2017

Mrs May announces a snap general election to be held on June 8. Justifying the decision, she says: The country is coming together but Westminster is not. The Prime Minister adds that division in Westminster will risk our ability to make a success of Brexit.

June 8, 2017

There is humiliation for Mrs May as she loses her Commons majority after her election gamble backfires. She becomes head of a minority Conservative administration propped up by the Democratic Unionist Party.

Misery: Theresa May coughing her way through her Conservative Party conference speech in Manchester in 2017 / BRUCE ADAMS/DAILY MAIL

September 22 2017

In a crucial Brexit speech in Florence, Mrs May sends a message to EU leaders by saying: We want to be your strongest friend and partner as the EU and UK thrive side by side. She says she is proposing an implementation period of around two years after Brexit when existing market access arrangements will apply.

December 8 2017

The European Commission announces it is recommending to the European Council that sufficient progress has been made in the first phase of Brexit talks. European Commission President Jean-Claude Juncker tells a press conference in Brussels that negotiations had been difficult for the EU and the UK.

The announcement comes after Mrs May and Brexit Secretary David Davis make an early-hours journey to Brussels. The PM says the Brexit deal is a significant improvement which required give and take on both sides, and that it will ensure no hard border in Ireland.

March 19 2018

The EUs chief Brexit negotiator, Michel Barnier, says he and Mr Davis have taken a decisive step towards agreeing a joint legal text on the UKs EU withdrawal. He warns there are still outstanding issues relating to the Irish border, saying: We are not at the end of the road and there is a lot of work still to be done.

June 19 2018

Britain and the European Union publish a joint statement outlining the progress that has been made since negotiations in March. Brussels warns that serious differences remain over how to deal with the border between Northern Ireland and the Republic after Brexit.

July 6 2018

A crunch Cabinet meeting at Chequers agrees Mrs Mays new Brexit plans, including the creation of a new UK-European Union free trade area for goods. But not all who attend are happy with the compromises.

A spate of resignations follow a crunch meeting at Chequers / PA Archive/PA Images

July 8 and July 9 2018

Brexit Secretary Mr Davis resigns from the Government. In his resignation letter he tells Mrs May the current trend of policy and tactics is making it look less and less likely that the UK will leave the customs union and single market. The following day Boris Johnson quits as Foreign Secretary, claiming the plans mean we are truly headed for the status of colony of the EU.

November 14 2018

In a statement outside 10 Downing Street after a five-hour Cabinet meeting, Mrs May says that Cabinet has agreed the draft Brexit Withdrawal Agreement and she believes it is the best that could be negotiated.

November 15 2018

Dominic Raab resigns as Brexit Secretary, saying he cannot in good conscience support the terms proposed for our deal with the EU. More resignations follow, including Work and Pensions Secretary Esther McVey. Leading Brexiteer Jacob Rees-Mogg submits a letter of no confidence in Mrs May.

November 25 2018

The 27 European Union leaders endorse the Brexit deal.

December 12 2018

Mrs May survives an attempt to oust her with a vote of no confidence as Tory MPs vote by 200 to 117 in the secret ballot in Westminster.

January 15 2019

MPs reject Mrs Mays Brexit plans by an emphatic 432 to 202 in a historic vote which throws the future of her administration and the nature of the UKs EU withdrawal into doubt.

January 16 2019

Mrs May survives an attempt to oust her as Prime Minister, as MPs reject Labour leader Jeremy Corbyns motion of no confidence in the Government by 325 to 306.

March 12 2019

MPs again reject the Governments Brexit deal by 391 votes to 242.

March 14 2019

MPs vote to delay Brexit in dramatic parliamentary scenes which see the Conservative Party split down the middle.

More than half of Tory MPs  including seven Cabinet ministers, at least 33 other ministers and whips, and five party vice-chairs  vote against Mrs Mays motion to put back the date when Britain leaves the EU.

March 20 2019

Mrs May tells the House of Commons that she has written to Donald Tusk to request an extension to the Article 50 Brexit negotiations to June 30. The PM describes the delay to Brexit as a matter of great personal regret, adding: It is now time for MPs to decide.

March 29 2019

MPs reject Mrs Mays Withdrawal Agreement by 286 votes to 344, majority 58, on the day when the UK was due to leave the European Union.

April 10 2019

A flexible extension to Brexit is agreed until October 31. Mrs May says the choices we now face are stark and the timetable is clear.

May 21 2019

The Prime Minister says there is one last chance to help MPs deliver the result of the 2016 referendum, as she offered a new Brexit deal. She says a failure to reach agreement on Brexit would lead to a nightmare future of permanently polarised politics.

May 23 2019

The UK votes in the European elections which Mrs May hoped would never have to be held. Nigel Farages Brexit Party come out on top, while the pro-EU Liberal Democrats also make gains.

May 24 2019

Mrs May announces she is standing down as Tory Party leader on Friday June 7. She says: It is and will always remain a matter of deep regret to me that I have not been able to deliver Brexit.

Theresa May resigned after she failed to deliver Brexit / Getty Images

July 23 2019

Boris Johnson is elected as leader of the Conservative Party and becomes the UKs new Prime Minister after defeating Jeremy Hunt. Mr Johnson secures 92,153 of the vote compared with 46,656 for Mr Hunt.

July 24 2019

Mr Johnson uses his first speech in Downing Street to say that critics of Brexit  the doubters, doomsters and gloomsters  are wrong. He says he is convinced we can do a deal to resolve the issue of the Irish border but he would prepare for a no-deal Brexit.

August 20 2019

Mr Johnson is rebuffed by Brussels after demanding major changes in a new Brexit deal. European Council president Mr Tusk defends the backstop  the contingency plan to keep the Irish frontier open  and warns that those seeking to replace it would risk a return to a hard border.

August 28 2019

The Queen is dragged into the Brexit row as Mr Johnson requests the prorogation of Parliament.

Mr Corbyn says the Prime Ministers plan to suspend Parliament is an outrage and a threat to our democracy.

The Queen approves an order to prorogue Parliament no earlier than September 9 and no later than September 12, until October 14.

September 3 2019

Mr Johnson says Parliament is on the brink of wrecking any deal with Brussels after MPs voted to give a cross-party alliance control of the Commons agenda in a bid to block a no-deal Brexit on October 31.

Tory MP Nicholas Soames rebelled against Johnson / REUTERS

September 4 2019

MPs including 21 rebel Tories vote to approve legislation aimed at preventing a no-deal Brexit. The Benn Act compels the Prime Minister to ask Brussels for an Article 50 extension to the end of January 2020 if MPs do not back a deal by October 19.

Mr Johnson, who had repeatedly ruled out requesting any further delay, accuses them of having scuppered negotiations. He withdraws the whip from the rebels in a major purge. Among those exiled are former chancellors Philip Hammond and Sir Kenneth Clarke, and Winston Churchills grandson, Sir Nicholas Soames.

The PM attempts to trigger an early general election but fails because he does not win the required support of two-thirds of MPs.

September 10 2019

Mr Johnsons second attempt to trigger an early general election fails after his motion does not secure the required support of two-thirds of MPs, with the Commons voting 293 to 46.

September 17 2019

A legal battle over Mr Johnsons decision to suspend Parliament for five weeks begins at the UKs highest court. The Supreme Court in London hears appeals from two separate challenges brought in England and Scotland to the prorogation of Parliament over three days.

September 24 2019

The Supreme Court rules that the Prime Ministers advice to the Queen to suspend Parliament until October 14 was unlawful because it had the effect of frustrating Parliament.

October 2 2019

Mr Johnson puts forward his formal Brexit plan to the EU, revealing his blueprint to solve the Irish border issue, and says it is a compromise, but European Commission President Jean-Claude Juncker says there are still problematic points.

October 10 2019

Mr Johnson and Irish Taoiseach Leo Varadkar say a Brexit deal is in everyones interest and they can see a pathway to a deal, in a joint statement after talks at a luxury hotel in Cheshire.

Leo Varadkar and Boris Johnson solve the Irish border issue / IRISH GOVERNMENT/AFP via Getty I

October 17 2019

After intense negotiations, the Prime Minister announces the UK has reached a great deal with the EU which takes back control and means that the UK can come out of the EU as one United Kingdom  England, Scotland, Wales, Northern Ireland, together.

But the DUP says it cannot support the deal in Parliament, citing a series of objections over the integrity of the union and Northern Irelands economy.

October 19 2019

The first Saturday sitting of the Commons in 37 years is set to see MPs hold a meaningful vote on the new deal and the pressure is particularly strong because it is also the deadline for the PM to ask for an extension under the Benn Act.

But MPs instead vote for an amendment tabled by exiled Tory Sir Oliver Letwin to compel Mr Johnson to comply with the Benn Act requesting a delay to Brexit.

Mr Johnson gets a senior diplomat to send Brussels an unsigned copy of a letter asking for the delay, with a cover note stressing his detachment from the move. He dispatches a second note to European Council president Donald Tusk saying the extension would be deeply corrosive.

October 22 2019

Mr Johnson mounts an attempt to fast-track his Brexit deal through Parliament. This requires two votes: one on the Withdrawal Agreement Bill (WAB) to implement the deal, and another on the accelerated timetable.

The WAB is approved in principle at its first hurdle when MPs vote 329 to 299 for it. But the blow comes when they reject the hasty timetable by 322 to 308. The PM puts his plans on ice, saying he will pause the WAB until the EU makes a decision on granting a delay.

October 28 2019

EU leaders agree to a Brexit flextension until January 31 unless Parliament ratifies the deal sooner.

October 29 2019

The Prime Minister succeeds in winning support for a general election on December 12.

December 12 2019

Having campaigned on a promise to get Brexit done, Mr Johnson secures a landslide win at the election and with a comfortable 80-seat majority is able to command the Commons in a way Mrs May never could.

Jeremy Corbyn loses his second general election as Labour leader / Jeremy Corbyn/Twitter

January 8 2020

New European Commission president Ursula von der Leyen visits Downing Street for talks with Mr Johnson. She makes clear that the timetable for a Brexit trade deal is very, very tight and it will be impossible to agree everything by December 31. But Mr Johnson is clear there will be no extension to the transition period, which expires at the end of 2020.

January 9 2020

Mr Johnson gets his Brexit deal through the Commons as the European Union (Withdrawal Agreement) Bill is given a third reading with a majority of 99. Downing Street warns peers not to hamper the progress of the legislation as it heads to the Lords.

January 31 2020

A special Cabinet meeting outside London, a clock counting down the moments until Brexit on the walls of Downing Street, and the Union flag flying in Parliament Square herald the UKs departure from the European Union.
Gov. Tom Wolf, Aging Sec. Robert Torres, members of the legislature and representatives from the health-care community gathered last week in Philadelphia to announce several new initiatives geared toward protecting Pennsylvanias most vulnerable populations.

These efforts were just a preview of what the governor intends to include as part of his 2020-21 budget proposal, which hell unveil Feb. 4 before a joint session of the General Assembly. In all, these initiatives represent more than $40 million in new spending to help those in need.

We appreciate the governors proposed funding plan to ensure vulnerable populations have access to critical services. The proposed $1.4 million to enhance the state's ventilator grant program is desperately needed, especially for the patients receiving this specialized care as well as the long-term care providers who lose more than $400 for each patient each day they provide care.

At a time when skilled nursing facility operating margins have fallen below zero percent for the first time in 34 years, incremental improvements to this program are critical to improving the quality of life for Pennsylvanias most vulnerable.

But when you hear the term vulnerable populations, who do you think of first? For me, its people like my grandfather, who resided in a Montgomery County nursing home for most of 2019.

Yet, noticeably absent from the governors proposed budget initiatives on Wednesday was any mention of the older Pennsylvanians who receive care in more than 700 nursing homes across the state.

The funding initiatives announced Wednesday are certainly important, but they do nothing to address the larger Medicaid funding crisis happening in Pennsylvania.

For six consecutive years, Medicaid reimbursement rates for nursing home residents have been flat-funded, even as one of every three nursing home residents relies on Medicaid for their daily care. Today, our states seniors suffer from more complex medical conditions, such as dementia and Alzheimers disease, which requires more advanced and more expensive care.

And the impact of those six years has already caused significant unrest and volatility in Pennsylvanias long-term care sector.

Since 2018, more than 100 Pennsylvania nursing homes have been reorganized, sold or changed ownership.

This follows a pattern that has taken place in other states  look no further than Connecticut, Massachusetts, Illinois, Texas or Washington. Those states experienced this same kind of instability until there was only one option left for those providers of care.

Closures.

Across the country, long-term care providers are closing their doors as a result of chronic Medicaid underfunding.

If we dont make a meaningful investment in our Medicaid program in this years budget, Pennsylvania will become just another state on that list. Nursing homes closures put hundreds of hardworking staff out of jobs and force residents and families to seek access to care hundreds of miles from their communities.

Often in politics, we wait for a bridge to collapse before we invest in our aging infrastructure. As the third oldest state in the country, we cannot wait for our long-term care system to crumble before we invest in our aging population.

And as our state ages rapidly  within 10 years, 1 in 5 Pennsylvania residents will be age 65 or older  our seniors and their families need the options and services long-term care facilities provide now more than ever.

Our commonwealth needs to do everything it can to ensure the doors remain open to provide the quality care Pennsylvanias seniors need and deserve.

It doesnt get more vulnerable than that. Lets make our seniors in nursing homes a priority in 2020

Zach Shamberg is the president and CEO of the Pennsylvania Health Care Association, a statewide advocacy organization for Pennsylvanias most vulnerable older residents and their providers of care.

____
The Houston GLBT Political Caucus on Saturday endorsed Harris County district attorney candidate Audia Jones, a rebuke of incumbent DA Kim Ogg, who is openly lesbian and won the caucus endorsement last cycle.

Caucus members voted 121-95 in favor of Jones, a Democratic Socialist who is pledging to make a vigorous push for criminal justice reform policies. She argues that Ogg, who was elected in 2016, has insufficiently championed such reforms.

The vote came after a contentious debate among members and the 13 people on a screening committee that vetted the candidates. Eleven screeners recommended Jones, with some describing an antagonistic meeting with Ogg.

Speaking to the caucus Saturday, Ogg defended her record as DA, arguing that she has started criminal diversion programs for nonviolent offenders while working with 87 law enforcement agencies, leading 800 employees, to protect you and this community.

Theres a balance as the DA, and I represent that balance, Ogg said. My record shows it. Ive made difficult decisions to exonerate people against perhaps the police unions recommendation, and I have stood for crime victims and the LGBT community.

Ogg spoke minutes after Jones, who criticized the incumbent for asking commissioners court for more prosecutors in her office. Jones also contended that Ogg has not done enough to root out policies that are disproportionately targeting our communities of color.

In 2016, we got nothing but promises, and in 2020, we are standing here with nothing but failures from our current district attorney, who stated that she was going to support cash bail reform when in fact she was the only Democrat that opposed it, Jones said.

Democrat Carvana Cloud, the former chief of the special victims' bureau under Ogg, argued that her experience would help her enact criminal justice reform more effectively than Jones.

When you understand reform principles, you can take those reform principles and you can apply them to every practice to make sure you have true criminal justice reform, she said.

Last month, Jones picked up an endorsement from the Texas Organizing Project, a progressive advocacy group that backed Ogg in 2016.

Ogg, meanwhile, is endorsed by the Victory Fund, a national political organization that supports gay, lesbian and transgender candidates. The groups president, former Houston mayor Annise Parker, attended the caucus meeting Saturday and voted for Ogg.

In an interview, Parker said "the far left, which is what was represented largely in the room today, and the far right are opposing (Ogg) because she has chosen over and over again to do what she thinks is right."

Parker, a former caucus president, argued that Jones' supporters want Ogg to "stop prosecuting certain crimes," but "she swore an oath to the Constitution and the laws of the state of Texas, and she will use her discretion to the best of her ability. But she's not going to arbitrarily not enforce laws."

"It's a combination of the changing of the guard, and that Kim is doing exactly what you would want from a DA, and that is going forward where she sees fit and not catering to either side," said Parker, who was Houstons first openly gay mayor.

GLBT Caucus President Mike Webb shot back at Parker on Twitter, writing, "We are at a point in our history where we need leaders that fight for the ENTIRE LGBTQ+ community, particularly advocating for our queer communities of color."

Todd Overstreet, another Democratic candidate, did not attend the caucus meeting. Three Republicans also are running for DA: Mary Nan Huffman, a former Montgomery County prosecutor and current legal counsel to the Houston Police Officers Union; Lori DeAngelo, who was a Harris County prosecutor for more than 20 years, including in Oggs office; and Wayne Lloyd Oliver, a defense lawyer who has run unsuccessfully for several offices as a candidate for both major parties, primarily as a way to advertise for his legal practice.
The headlong rush of Justin Trudeaus minority Liberal government to the right was on full display this past week as Canadas House of Commons met for the first time in 2020.

Reflecting the fact that Canadas ruling class is coming into ever more direct conflict with a resurgent working class at home and is aggressively asserting its predatory interests on the world stage, Trudeau announced that his governments top priority is adopting the United States, Mexico, Canada Agreement (USMCA), and welcomed to Ottawa Juan Guaido, the US-backed Venezuelan coup leader.

On Wednesday, the Liberals introduced legislation to ratify USMCA. The agreement, signed into law by US President Donald Trump the same day, aims to consolidate a US-dominated trade bloc in North America to confront the global commercial and strategic rivals of American and Canadian imperialism. It strengthens Trumps hand in his trade war with China, while also accelerating the general breakdown of the global economy into competing trade blocs.

The deal, which effectively prevents Canada and Mexico from concluding free trade agreements with non-market economies, a euphemism for China, and increases North American production requirements to gain tariff-free access to the USMCA market, was negotiated by the Trudeau Liberals in close cooperation with the trade unions. Jerry Dias and Hassan Yussuff, respectively the presidents of Unifor and the Canadian Labour Congress, functioned as close advisers to the government during the talks, prompting Trudeau to remark that his Liberalsthe Canadian bourgeoisies preferred party of government for over a centuryenjoy a special partnership with the unions.

The New Democrats voted with the Liberals, Conservatives and Greens in favour of considering the USMCA legislation, leaving the Bloc Quebecois to cast the only dissenting votes. The NDPs pro-USMCA vote was meant as a clear signal from the social democrats to Trudeau that he can rely on them in securing a parliamentary majority on issues critical to the interests of Canadian imperialism. After failing to win a majority in last Octobers federal election, Trudeaus Liberals require the support of at least 13 opposition MPs for a parliamentary majority.

One day prior to tabling the USMCA bill, Trudeau took the provocative step of meeting with Guaido, whose self-proclamation as interim president in January 2019 was orchestrated by Washington, with Ottawa providing ground support. Guaido has served as the front-man for the North American imperialist powers drive to oust Venezuelas democratically-elected president, Nicolas Maduro. Underscoring the crucial role played by Canada in the US-led campaign of military threats, sanctions and bullying against Maduro, Guaido made a point of thanking Trudeau when they met for Canadas leading international role.

Canadas international role has been to act as co-chair of the Lima Group, which has provided democratic cover for the US regime-change operation, while regularly offering a platform for leading Trump administration officials to deliver bellicose threats of US military action against Venezuela. In November, the Trudeau government also backed a coup in Bolivia which brought to power far-right fascistic forces.

Backing regime change operations like these with hard power is a key motivation for the Liberals plan to hike military spending by more than 70 percent by 2026. Under conditions of deepening great power conflicts, Trudeau has also expanded Canadian military involvement in US imperialisms major strategic offensives around the world, including against nuclear-armed Russia and China.

Trumps America First agenda has cut across the interests of the Canadian bourgeoisie. It has found itself the target of US tariffs and threats, and increasingly internationally isolated, as multilateral institutions crumble. All this has only strengthened the resolve of the Trudeau government and the entire ruling class to safeguard and enhance Canadas military-strategic partnership with Washington, the foundation from which Canadian imperialism has advanced its interests around the world for the past eight decades.

To this end, the Trudeau government welcomed Trumps illegal assassination of Iranian General Qassem Suleimani in early January. One month earlier, Trudeau had emerged as one of the leading defenders of NATOs continued relevance after French President Emmanuel Macron described the US-led military alliance as brain dead.

On the domestic front, Trudeau responded to ruling class demands following the Oct. 21 election that he conciliate the hard-right premiers of Alberta and Saskatchewan by proclaiming his commitment to national unity and by appointing the war-hawk Chrystia Freeland as Deputy Prime Minister and Intergovernmental Affairs Minister.

The Liberals embrace of Albertas Jason Kenney, Saskatchewans Scott Moe and Ontarios right-wing populist premier Doug Ford, with whom Trudeau had an early post-election kiss and make-up session, is bound up with the fact that they intend to pursue similar pro-business policies at the federal level.

Finance Minister Bill Morneau has warned that Canada must prepare for a possible global downturn by reining in government spending. Meanwhile, the Trudeau government has pushed through an income-tax cut, similar to that advocated by Andrew Scheer and his Conservatives in the fall election campaign. The Liberals have touted their tax cut as a boon for those with low-incomes, but the poorest Canadians will get nothing, and much of the tax savings will go to the upper middle class and rich. Moreover, the cut, which will cost more than $6 billion annually when fully implemented, will soon be cited by the government and opposition alike as a further argument for public-spending austerity.

The Trudeau government has also again displayed its readiness to enforce anti-worker measures directly. When 3,000 CN Rail workers went on strike in late November in protest at intolerable working conditions, the Liberals made clear that if the Teamsters didnt soon call off the strike, they would intervene with back-to-work legislation. That this was no idle threat is shown by the Liberals outlawing in November 2018 of a campaign of rotating strikes by 50,000 postal workers.

In the end, the Teamsters shut down the strike without informing their members as to the details of the proposed contract settlement, let alone allowing them to vote on it, and thanked the Trudeau government for helping broker the deal.

Workers must be warned: under conditions of a resurgence of the class struggle in Canada and internationally, the unions and NDP are deepening their collaboration with the pro-austerity, pro-war Liberal government.

Recent weeks have seen close to 200,000 Ontario teachers stage walkouts to fight the Ford governments education cuts, a bitter two-month lockout of oil refinery workers in Regina, Saskatchewan, and protests in Alberta against Kenneys spending cuts and demands for wage rollbacks. Leaders of unions that suppressed the class struggle for decades have begun voicing the fear that mounting worker militancy could escape their control and result in a challenge to bourgeois rule. This was summed up recently by Alberta Union of Public Employees President Guy Smith, who warned Kenney, The anger that has built up is now in danger of spilling out into the streets.

This makes the role of the nominally left NDP all the more vital for the Canadian bourgeoisie. Like social democracy and the trade unions the world over, the NDP acts as the most loyal defender of the capitalist order, using progressive bluster to defuse working-class opposition and harness it to Parliament and the political establishment. The NDPs latest initiatives in this regard are a pledge to introduce a national Pharmacare bill that is tailored to the Liberals own proposal, and a proposed anti-scab bill that the social democrats know has no chance of being adopted.

Much more significant than this posturing was NDP leader Jagmeet Singhs statement that the NDP was prepared to proceed in the right manner on USMCA, a promise they swiftly fulfilled by voting with the government to initiate debate on adopting the protectionist, anti-China trade deal; and the social-democrats support for other key elements in Canadian imperialisms agenda. These include the NDPs full-throated backing of the Liberal governments plans to spend tens of billions on purchasing new fleets of warships and fighter jets; and their rallying behind the Canadian elites increasingly bellicose anti-China campaign.

The author also recommends:

NDP props up Trudeau, joins Conservatives in demanding tougher anti-China stance

[14 December 2019]
Irish Ambassador to Malawi and Athea native Gerard Cunningham, second left, presenting his alma mater Tarbert Comprehensive with the flag of the United Nations

Tarbert Comprehensive rolled out the red carpet for one of its very own this week as a special UN mission of education called into the North Kerry secondary.

That mission was led by none other than Athea native and former Tarbert Comprehensive student Gerard Cunningham.

His Tarbert education obviously stood to him a great deal as Gerard returned to the school last week in his current role as Irish Ambassador to Malawi - one of the most important postings in Africa. Ambassador Cunningham visited the school, accompanied by Corporal Sean Neville of the Irish Army, as both spoke to the students about the Irish missions overseas in an event that was part of the Global Ireland 2020 initiative.

"They presented a UN flag and a copy of the Charter of the United Nations, which was accepted on behalf of the school community by our principal Mr Prendiville," teacher Jovita Delaney said.

"Mr Cunningham was delighted to return to Tarbert Comprehensive to speak with the students, and the presentation by Mr Cunningham and Corporal Neville was warmly welcomed by the students, and was followed by a great question and answer session."
Delhi chief minister and AAP national convenor Arvind Kejriwal will hold roadshows at Najafgarh and Bijwasan

New Delhi: Defence minister Rajnath Singh and BJP national president JP Nadda will address two public rallies each in New Delhi on Saturday to campaign for the upcoming Delhi Assembly elections.

Uttar Pradesh chief minister Yogi Adityanath will also campaign in Delhi and hold four rallies.

Meanwhile, Delhi chief minister and AAP national convenor Arvind Kejriwal will hold roadshows at Najafgarh and Bijwasan.

Assembly elections will be held in Delhi on 8 February to decide who will rule the national capital for the next five years with the ruling AAP making a determined bid to return to power and the BJP seeking to have a chief minister in the city after 20 years.

The Congress, which has ruled Delhi for 15 successive years, is also making efforts to regain its support base.

Counting of votes will take place on 11 February. In the 2015 Assembly polls, AAP secured an outright majority, winning 67 seats while the BJP managed just three. The Congress drew a blank.
Business Roundup The Irrawaddy Business Roundup

Foreigners wearing masks arrive at Yangon International Airport on Jan. 31. / Myo Min Soe / The Irrawaddy

YANGONIn the last week, countries around the world have gone on alert and rushed to address the global outbreak of a coronavirus originating in the Chinese city of Wuhan. Myanmar is among them and the outbreak has impacted key business sectors including tourism and trade.

Myanmar may have to lower its expectations for tourism numbers in 2020 as daily arrivals have decreased due to concerns over the coronavirus, and trade on the border with China is at a standstill.

The Myanmar government also faces objections from the European Chamber of Commerce in Myanmar over the governments new policy of granting tax-free car import permits to senior officials. Both the governments policy and objections from European and domestic businesses could damage foreign direct investment in the automotive industry and markets.

Meanwhile, Thai firm Amata has reached an agreement with the Myanmar government to build the US$1-billion (1.46-trillion-kyat) Yangon Amata Smart and Eco City.

Govt takes flak over tax-free car import scheme

The European Chamber of Commerce in Myanmar (EUROCHAM Myanmar) and the Automotive Association of Myanmar (AAM) have officially raised objections to a government policy allowing some civil servants to import vehicles without paying most taxes.

Under the Ministry of Commerce policy, the government will grant permits to all officials at or above the rank of deputy director-general or who have at least 25 years of civil service to import vehicles worth 30 million kyats (US$20,492). Higher-ranking officials can import more expensive cars worth up to 150 million kyats.

The imported vehicles will be exempt from customs duties and road taxes, which can total 100-150 percent of a cars price, depending on its engine power. The government will soon issue an estimated 34,000 new tax-free car import permits.

EUROCHAM Myanmar and AAM voiced objections to the policy on Wednesday, saying that foreign-backed automotive markets have been nearly crippled by the move and asking the Myanmar government to abandon the scheme.

The latest foreign investment statistics

The Directorate of Investment and Company Administration (DICA) approved over $2 billion in foreign direct investments during the first four months of the 2019-20 fiscal year.

DICA said at a press conference that it approved nearly $2.16 billion in foreign investments and $134 million in domestic investments between October and the end of January.

The Myanmar Investment Commission also said that in the last week of January, 23 foreign direct investment projects worth $434 million were approved. The commission said these projects will create 11,951 jobs.

Border trade between Myanmar and China halted due to coronavirus outbreak

Trade between Myanmar and China has been halted at the Muse border checkpoint in Shan State due to the outbreak of a new coronavirus in China, Myanmar merchants told the media last week.

As the Chinese government has ordered the countrys citizens not to leave their homes and prohibited transportation along many routes within the country, livestock, produce and other goods sent by Myanmar producers are stuck at the border in Muse.

Myanmar farmers have also been advised by wholesale vendors in Muse to stop sending any produce to the border in order to avoid losses.

U Sai Myint Bo, chairman of the Muse fruits wholesale center, told The Irrawaddy on Friday that trade has stopped at the border but it has not been banned.

Media reports say Myanmar exported $1.7 billion worth of goods into China via Muse between October and the third week of January.

Myanmar tourism affected by coronavirus outbreak

Myanmar is among a list of countries who have seen their tourism sectors affected by the outbreak of a coronavirus that began in the Chinese city of Wuhan.

The Union of Myanmar Travel Association (UMTA) told The Irrawaddy on Wednesday that tourist arrivals have nearly stopped due to the virus outbreak.

UMTA chairman U Hnaung Hnaung Han said that some tourists have postponed their travel plans out of fears over the virus and some have changed their trips to visit other countries, despite having already paid for their trips to Myanmar.

U Khin Aung Tun, spokesperson of the Myanmar Tourism Federation (MTF), told The Irrawaddy that Myanmars tourism sector has been impacted primarily due to a drop in the number of Chinese visitors, the countrys main source of tourists.

Before the virus outbreak, up to 900,000 Chinese visitors were expected to visit Myanmar in 2020.

In 2019, more than 4.3 million tourists from 30 countries visited Myanmar, including 730,000 Chinese tourists.

New urban development project signed to Thai firm

A subsidiary of Thai firm Amata, Amata Asia (Myanmar), has signed a joint agreement with the Ministry of Constructions Department of Urban and Housing Development to establish the Yangon Amata Smart and Eco City (YASEC) on over 800 hectares of land.

YASEC Managing Director Yasuo Tsutsui has said that the billion-dollar foreign direct investment project will create more than 33,000 jobs.

Amata also said the Myanmar government will earn at least $60 million from the project, plus additional revenue from indirect taxes.

Both Amata and the Department of Urban and Housing Development have said that the project will attract $3.75 billion in foreign direct investments.

Four telecom operators face fines

On Wednesday, the Ministry of Transport and Communication issued fines against four telecommunications operators for violating instructions on SIM card registration.

In random checks, inspector groups from the ministry have found unregistered SIMs distributed by the four operators, a ministry official told The Irrawaddy on Friday

The four operatorsMyanmar Posts and Telecommunications (MPT), Telenor Myanmar, Ooredoo Myanmar and Mytelwere fined $100,000 each.

You may also like these stories:

The Irrawaddy Business Roundup

Suspected Chinese Coronavirus Patient in Stable Condition: Myanmar Hospital
Vietnam Airlines and Jetstar Pacific will stop flights on some routes to China and reduce them on others amidst the ongoing coronavirus outbreak.

National flag carrier Vietnam Airlines will suspend routes between Vietnamese localities and Chinas Beijing, Shanghai, Guangzhou and Shenzhen cities starting February 4. It will stop flying to and from Chinas Chengdu starting February 5, and Macau starting February 6.

The airline will also suspend flights on the Hanoi-Hong Kong route from February 6 and reduce the number of flights between Ho Chi Minh City and Hong Kong from 10 to 7 per week starting the same day.

It will disinfect all aircraft upon returning to Vietnam from China to prevent the spread of 2019-nCoV, which originated in Wuhan City of Hubei Province in mainland China.

Jetstar Pacific, the budget carrier of Vietnam Airlines, will stop operating flights on the Hanoi-Hong Kong route starting February 6, Hanoi-Guangzhou starting February 9 and HCMC- Guangzhou starting February 11.

Passengers who wish to fly between the mentioned destinations before the suspension can change dates free of charge or ask for a refund from both airlines.

Budget carrier Vietjet had earlier announced that it will suspend all China flights starting Saturday.

Over 30 airlines in the world have suspended all or certain flights to China in the wake of nCoV, which as of Saturday had killed 259 people in the country.

As of Friday, Vietnam had quarantined 97 people, of whom 32 remain isolated pending test results, according to the Ministry of Health.

As of Saturday morning, the country has recorded six confirmed cases of infection: two Chinese nationals, and four Vietnamese, including three returning from Wuhan, and a female hotel receptionist who has caught the coronavirus infection from the two Chinese nationals presently quarantined in Saigon.
CRPF Director General A P Maheshwari on Saturday felicitated 49 personnel of the force for their gallant action during the Nagrota encounter with Jaish-e-Mohammad (JeM) terrorists on the Jammu-Srinagar national highway.

Three Pakistani JeM terrorists were killed and their three Kashmiri associates were arrested after the CRPF and police intercepted a Srinagar-bound truck at Ban Toll Plaza in Nagrota area, 28 kms from here, on Friday.

The CRPF chief, who reached Jammu this morning and visited the site of the encounter, felicitated 25 jawans with DG's Disc and another 24 with DG's Commendation letter for their gallant action at a 'Sainik Sammelan", officials said.

"It was a difficult operation given the topography of the terrain at the encounter site. Full credit goes to the CRPF and the local police for their presence of mind and raw courage in neutralizing the threat," Additional Director General of CRPF, Jammu and Kashmir Zone, Zulfiquar Hassan told reporters here.

Giving details of the operation, he said the CRPF personnel along with two unarmed policemen intercepted a truck on the highway in the early morning hours at Nagrota, leading to an encounter.

"One terrorist was killed instantly in the retaliatory firing, while two of his associates managed to escape towards a gorge but were chased by the joint parties of security forces and neutralised," Hassan said, adding the prompt response by the CRPF personnel averted many casualties among the security forces.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
Chemical fertilizers stocks fell 1.58% to 4.88% after FM announced intent to help farmers to cut fertilizer use in farming.

Fertilizers & Chemicals Travancore (down 4.88%), Chambal Fertilisers (down 3.43%), Rashtriya Chemical Fertilizers (down 2.88%), Madras Fertilizers (down 2.61%), Deepak Fertilisers (down 2.2%), National Fertilizer (down 2.11%) and Gujarat State Fertilzers and Chemicals (down 1.58%) were top losers in Fertilizers segment.

Union finance minister Nirmala Sitharaman while presenting the Union Budget 2020-21 today, 1 February 2020 said that farm markets need to be liberalised. The government is committed to doubling farmers' income by 2022, she added.

Fertilizers stocks witnessed heavy selling pressure after FM Nirmala Sitharaman in Union Budget said that we will encourage balanced use of all fertilizers, a necessary step to change the incentive regime which encourages excessive use of chemical fertilizers.

The government proposes plans to help farmers use proper manure and little water, encourage balanced use of fertilizers, she said in her Budget speech.

Powered by Capital Market - Live News

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
By PTI

BEIJING: Six Indians stranded at the coronavirus-hit Wuhan city were stopped from boarding the first special Air India flight to India due to high fever, officials said on Saturday.

The first flight left early Saturday with 324 stranded Indians mostly students from Wuhan.

Officials here told PTI that six Indians could not board the flight as they were stopped by the Chinese immigration officials after they tested for high temperature.

The six students may have to undergo tests to determine whether they have symptoms of the coronavirus.

ALSO READ: Australia to refuse entry to non-citizens arriving from China

Ahead of the evacuation, the Indian Embassy had informed the Indians that they will be tested before the flight and undergo 14-day quarantine after reaching India.

The special Air India plane carrying 211 students, 110 working professionals and three minors from Wuhan reached Delhi around 7.30 am on Saturday.

Meanwhile, the second Air India flight has arrived here to pick up the rest of the Indians from Hubei province of which Wuhan is the provincial capital.

On Saturday, Chinese health authorities announced that the death toll has risen to 259 with total confirmed cases increasing to 11,791, the biggest increase since China began reporting the spread of the virulent virus on January 21.

ALSO READ: US declares Coronavirus 'emergency,' bans travellers from China

China's National Health Commission said in its daily report on Saturday that 1,795 patients remained in critical condition, and 17,988 people were suspected of being infected with the virus as of the end of Friday.

A total of 243 people have been discharged from hospital after recovery.

Friday saw 2,102 new confirmed cases, 5,019 new suspected cases, and 46 deaths.

So far, about 124 positive cases have been reported in a host of countries, including India where the first case was confirmed in Kerala.

Earlier in the day, the Indian Embassy said in a tweet that "an Air India flight carrying 324 Indian nationals from the coronavirus hit Hubei Province of China took off from Wuhan in the early hours of Feb 1.

Majority of the passengers were Indian students.

We sincerely thank the Chinese government for facilitating this flight".

"We look forward to operating another flight to evacuate remaining Indian nationals, who have consented to leave Hubei Province for the time being.

"We urge all Indian citizens from Hubei who intend to avail this flight for India and not yet contacted the Embassy, to urgently call the hotlines (+8618610952903 and +8618612083629) or dedicated email ID helpdesk.beijing@mea.gov.in before 0800 hours on February 1, 2020," the embassy said.

The schedule of the second flight has not been announced yet.

Officials said the Indian Army has set up a quarantine facility in Manesar near Delhi to keep those evacuated from China's Hubei province.

They would be monitored for any signs of infection for a duration of two weeks by a qualified team of doctors and staff members.
KYODO NEWS - Feb 1, 2020 - 14:50 | All, Japan, Coronavirus

Prime Minister Shinzo Abe on Saturday instructed ministers to come up with additional steps to respond to a new coronavirus outbreak that continues expanding in Japan.

Abe also stressed the need to make sure people across the country have access to necessary medical examinations and supplies, including masks, as cases of infections from the virus have been confirmed in various parts of Japan.

"I ask ministers to compile measures to use reserves (in the state budget) and implement them as soon as possible," Abe told a meeting held at his office to discuss the government's response to the outbreak.

"The new coronavirus is having a major impact on tourism, the economy and our society as a whole," the prime minister said. "The government will do its utmost to address the impact."

Japan has confirmed 17 cases of infection, including some without symptoms, while in China, the number topped 10,000, according to Chinese health authorities.

The government officially classified the virus as a designated infectious disease on Saturday, enabling authorities to choose, among other measures, compulsory hospitalization when necessary. Taxpayers' money will cover the costs of treating such patients forced to stay in the hospital.

To prevent the deadly virus from spreading further, Japan started refusing entry to foreign nationals infected with the virus.

Even without exhibiting symptoms caused by the virus, foreign travelers who have been to Hubei Province, including the capital city of Wuhan, the epicenter of the outbreak, in the two weeks prior to their arrival in Japan, and those in possession of Chinese passports issued in the central Chinese province, will also be barred.

During the meeting, Abe said the measures need to be strictly and properly enforced, adding that the government will also continue to check on the health of over 560 Japanese nationals who were evacuated this week from Wuhan on government-chartered flights.

Related coverage:

Japan takes new steps targeting foreigners amid coronavirus outbreak

Confirmed new coronavirus cases top 10,000 in China

Japan gov't criticized over initial coronavirus response
This combination of images created on September 24, 2013, shows convicted Indian prisoners (L/R): Akshay Thakur, Vinay Sharma, Mukesh Singh, Pawan Gupta as they arrive for an appearance at the High Court in New Delhi on Sept. 24, 2013. (STRDEL/AFP via Getty Images)
The people of Jammu and Kashmir, and Ladakh want freedom and restoration of human rights, senior Congress leader P Chidambaram said on Saturday, asserting that "money is no substitute for democratic freedom".

Chidambaram made the remarks when he was asked by reporters to comment about the higher allocation for the Union Territory of Jammu and Kashmir in the Union budget.

The former Union finance minister also said if the government thinks that they can take away freedom and then substitute it with the money, they are completely wrong.

"Money is no substitute for democratic freedom for the people of J&K and Ladakh. The people of the Kashmir Valley require freedom, the restoration of human rights. Only a free society, people breathing free air can enjoy the fruits of development and participate in the development process. Money is no substitute for freedom," Chidambaram said.

"If they think that they can take away freedom, and then substitute it with money, they are completely wrong. I will restore freedom first and then give money," he told reporters.

To another question about the use of Kashmiri poetry by Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman in her budget speech, the Congress leader said all these weakened "hypocritical" attempts to appease the Kashmiri people will not succeed.

"What they need is freedom," he said, adding that since August 5, freedoms have been taken away from the people of the Kashmir Valley and some are still in custody without charges.

On August 5 last year, the government abrogated Article 370 provisions that gave the erstwhile state of Jammu and Kashmir special status and reorganised it into union territories of Jammu and Kashmir, and Ladakh.

"The world has taken note of the fact that India has denied freedom to 75 lakh people in the Kashmir Valley for over 6 months. The first thing that the government should do is to restore their freedom, it is only after you restore freedom, you can talk about other things like money or poetry," Chidambaram said.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
Email Whatsapp Menu Whatsapp Google Reddit Digg Stumbleupon Linkedin Comment

How is it possible for a pastor to prey on their parishioners for sexual favors and practice sexual misconduct and this go unnoticed for years, even decades?

I hate to say it, but it takes a leadership, an elder board and a group of people who refuse to see the situation for what it is and decide to look the other way.

As we step more into the #churchtoo movement, the stories are very similar and the sadness and darkness seems to be the same.

The stories go something like thisthe leader was charismaticthey trusted the leaderthe leader misused their authoritya victim or observer was confused, unwilling but intimidatedeventually they fought them back while fighting the shame they felt for being a partfinally they went to the spiritual authority of the churchbe that another pastor or elder board or deacon board and shared their experiencesonly to be turned away or belittled, minimized, ignored or even targeted for removal because of their spirit of disunity or their lack of character or shall we saythey didnt benefit the church as much as the leader they were coming against.

Sadly, this is not just a situation for an isolated church in a remote part of the world. As we move into this #churchtoo movement, it is an epidemic. And it is not just a one church/one situation phenomenon or a situation birthed in large impersonal churches. This is an epidemic of churches and even associations of churches that span across city wide cultures where success is worshipped and the need to protect the reputation of the church is the norm.

As a senior pastor of a church for the past almost 23 years, this grieves me deeply.

The Church is Christs Bride. The Bible tells us in Ephesians 5:

25 Husbands, love your wives, as Christ loved the church and gave himself up for her, 26 that he might sanctify her, having cleansed her by the washing of water with the word, 27 so that he might present the church to himself in splendor, without spot or wrinkle or any such thing, that she might be holy and without blemish.

In recent months I keep hearing Jesus say to me, The Church is my Bride, and I want my Bride back.

As I dig in to the circumstances surrounding pastors who prey on their church members, I am discovering that they can only continue this practice as long as the church allows it, enables it and even fosters it by not being willing to hold their senior leadership accountable.

For pastors to prey on people in their church long term, elder boards have to ignore what others are telling them.

Recently, my own church went through a very difficult transition and a number of our pastors went off staff. It was a very painful time, but it afforded opportunity and responsibility to my elder board to sit down with those pastors and with people in the church and to ask them if there was anything about my leadership that needed to be addressed. Yes, it was painful for me, and yes, there were some who wanted to see me go. It was hard on me, my wife and my kids to go through this, but it was NECESSARY in order for me to be and do what God has called me to be and do. And it was NECESSARY for the elders to do their job to discover if my leadership needed correcting and disciplining, and to ask if I needed to be removed from my position all together.

I have always lived my life with full-disclosure and, sometimes, that requires me as a pastor going through a time of examination by those I am accountable to in order to make sure I am living above reproach in my life and leadership.

Why am I telling you this first?

Because I want you to know that I understand why churches, pastors and elder boards hide the truth sometimes. It is PAINFUL to be publicly honest about things that could damage you, your church and its ability to be effective.

But Christ wants His Bride  thats us  to be presented to Him as spotless and blameless, not perfect, but HONEST, REAL AND ACCOUNTABLE.

It is time for elder boards to do their job. Its time for people who have been sexually abused by pastors and ministry leaders to come forward. Its time for church leadership to stop fostering and helping groom people in the church for senior leaders to molest, wound, abuse and take advantage of. Its time for Jesus to have His Bride back. This is going to require HUGE AMOUNTS OF HUMILITY on the part of church leadership. It is going to require conversations, accountability and boundaries that maybe have been missing in a lot of churches across our country for the past few decades.

It is going to require elder boards to hold accountable the pastors who prey, and it may require for a time that they give more of a benefit of the doubt to those bringing the accusations over those who lead their organization.

It is going to require full-disclosure on the part of the leadership and a willingness to say to people, We were wrong, we failed you, we need to ask you to forgive us.

If you have been victimized by a ministry leader, pastor or person in a position of authority in the church or not, I want to encourage you to STOP BEING AFRAID OF THEIR POWER AND WHAT OTHERS WILL SAY. DO THE RIGHT THING.

God will meet you. No, it wont be easy, but its time for those who have been traumatized by the church to stand up and say, NO MORE.

No more will you be silent and live with the shame that has been placed on you by pastors who prey and elder boards that enable. No more will you be silenced by the intimidation of church lawyers who try and get you to shut up and go away quietly. No more will you take undisclosed amounts of money in exchange for your silence.

It is time for Christ to have His Bride back spotless and without blemish. It is time for people like myself  pastors  to be accountable, submitted and full of humility. It is time for elder boards to be elder boards and hold their senior leadership accountable. It is time to use whatever means necessary to do what Paul says in Ephesians 5:

6 Let no one deceive you with empty words, for because of these things the wrath of God comes upon the sons of disobedience. 7 Therefore do not become partners with them; 8 for at one time you were darkness, but now you are light in the Lord. Walk as children of light 9 (for the fruit of light is found in all that is good and right and true),10 and try to discern what is pleasing to the Lord. 11 Take no part in the unfruitful works of darkness, but instead expose them. 12 For it is shameful even to speak of the things that they do in secret. 13 But when anything is exposed by the light, it becomes visible, 14 for anything that becomes visible is light. Therefore it says,

Awake, O sleeper,

and arise from the dead,

and Christ will shine on you.

15 Look carefully then how you walk, not as unwise but as wise, 16 making the best use of the time, because the days are evil.

IF we do this, yes, it will seem darker for a while, but the Son will break through and call His Bride, the Church to Himself, and we will be renewed with a power that unleashes the Gospel of Jesus Christ into our lives and restores a reflection of His presence in us that will cause the world to be drawn to our husband, JESUS CHRIST.

Yes, Jesus is our husband, we are HIS BRIDE.

This ALL begins with church leadership making the holiness of God more important to them than the reputation AND success of the Church.

MAY REVIVIAL SWEEP THROUGH OUR CHURCHES IN JESUS NAME!

God, give us bended knee and a repentive tongue for the glory of Jesus!

Sincerely,

Pastor Kelly M. Williams
The United States will impose an entry ban on foreign nationals who have visited China over the past two weeks, Secretary of Health and Human Services Alex Azar told reporters on Friday.

"The President has signed a presidential proclamation...temporarily suspending the entry into the United States of foreign nationals who pose a risk of transmitting the 2019 novel coronavirus," Azar said during a press briefing at the White House.

"As a result, foreign nationals other than the immediate family of US citizens and permanent residents, who have travelled in China within the last 14 days, will be denied entry into the US for this time," he added.

Azar said that the ban would become effective at 5 pm (EST) on February 2.

He also said that the measures are temporary and were designed to decrease pressure on US public health officials to allow them to act more effectively.

"I want to stress -- the risk of infection for Americans remains low. All agencies are working aggressively to monitor this continuously evolving situation," Azar said.

The new strain of coronavirus was first detected in the Chinese city of Wuhan, located in the Hubei province in December and has since spread to more than 20 countries. The virus has already killed 213 people in China and infected over 9,800 others.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
by Sean Hargrave , Staff Writer, January 31, 2020

So today's the big day? News presenters are travelling the length and breadth of the country to bring back views from the public.

As they do so, experts of all varieties find themselves dragged to ports and airports, as well as the "red wall" of Labour seats in the North, to pontificate on the biggest damp squib in history -- Brexit day.

No, it isn't just you. Those travel, business, pharmaceutical and HR experts staring down the camera today are all agreed on one thing. Come tomorrow, nothing will have changed. No blue passports, no new line at customs, no differences in hiring and no real impact on the business world.

The truth is, the UK hasn't truly left anything. We're in a holding pattern, circling the EU until a year's time, when the real change happens.

If advertisers and marketers need proof, I would suggest Googling the phrase "despite Brexit uncertainty" and you'll find just about any piece of research into marketing budgets or ad spending will show they are on the up "despite" question marks over the UK's future trading relationship with the EU.

Just this week we had AA/Warc revealing that the third quarter of 2019 was the 25th consecutive quarter of growth in UK advertising spending. Overall spending was up 5.6% for the quarter to reach just under GBP6bn.

Today, on Brexit day, we have GfK also announcing that consumer confidence has seen a Boris surge in January -- up two points compared to the corresponding month a year ago.

This is not to say that nothing is set to change, but rather we're marking today as the final day of something when really, we're not truly going to wake up to a different UK until January 1st 2021. That's when whatever new trading arrangements negotiated in the year ahead will kick in.

At the moment, the only thing we know for sure is the UK will not be implementing Article 13 of the EU Copyright Directive. It's an open sign to the tech giants, and American trade negotiators, that the UK wants to go easy on website and not hold them personally responsible for copyright infringements posted on users' timelines.

As for data, it's hard to imagine the UK will pull out of GDPR, and it's very hard to imagine that data will not continue to flow freely between the UK and the EU in a year's time.

So, for now, there's a lot of talk about this being an end, but ultimately it's just a day upon which on 11pm London time (midnight in most of the EU) the UK will move to being in a transition period of leaving the EU rather than being a full member.

Nobody will notice any difference. Ad spending will continue to rise, and every report that is mentioned in any media outlet featuring relatively positive news will be preceded by "despite Brexit uncertainty".

Change is coming -- just not at 11pm today.
WASHINGTON  The Senate brought President Trump to the brink of acquittal on Friday of charges that he abused his power and obstructed Congress, as Republicans voted to block consideration of new witnesses and documents in his impeachment trial and shut down a final push by Democrats to bolster their case for the presidents removal.

In a nearly party-line vote after a bitter debate, Democrats failed to win support from the four Republicans they needed. With Mr. Trumps acquittal virtually certain, the presidents allies rallied to his defense, though some conceded he was guilty of the central allegations against him.

The Democrats push for more witnesses and documents failed 49 to 51, with only two Republicans, Mitt Romney of Utah and Susan Collins of Maine, joining Democrats in favor. A vote on the verdict is planned for Wednesday.

As they approached the final stage of the third presidential impeachment proceeding in United States history, Democrats condemned the witness vote and said it would render Mr. Trumps trial illegitimate and his acquittal meaningless.
A tenth person has been diagnosed with coronavirus in Australia, health authorities have confirmed.

The woman, who is in her 20s, lives in Melbourne and is at home recovering from the respiratory disease.

She returned from Wuhan, the coronavirus epicentre, on January 25 and fell ill two days later.

Health authorities insisted she was not infectious on the flight, and has remained in isolation since being tested.

People wearing protective face masks to protect themselves from Coronavirus are seen at Brisbane International Airport (pictured)

There are now 10 confirmed cases of coronavirus in Australia (pictured) with dozens more people undergoing tests

Shoppers are pictured wearing facemasks at a seafood market in Sydney's Cabramatta (pictured) with the number of people affected in Australia rising to 10

Authorities said there are no public exposure sites and the woman had not been in close contact with anyone.

It comes as hundreds of citizens prepare to be evacuated from the disease-stricken Hubai province.

Victorias Chief Health Officer Dr Brett Sutton said: 'After spending time in Wuhan, Hubei Province, she returned home to Victoria on January 25 and became unwell two days later.

'The woman is not considered to have been infectious on her flight to Melbourne.

An man infected with coronavirus visited the House Of Delight restaurant (pictured) at Glen Waverley in Melbourne's south-east with five family members on January 26

'Since then, she has remained at home and isolated and has had no visitors.

'There are therefore no public exposure sites and the department has not identified any close contacts that require follow up.'

It comes amid concerns the outbreak could rapidly get worse and become even deadlier as it continues to spread worldwide.

The chilling warning comes as a Qantas jet waits on standby to rescue Australian citizens from Wuhan, which is in lockdown.

Just over a quarter of the 600 Australians there have registered with the Department of Foreign Affairs to be evacuated.

The plane is expected to arrive in the virus-stricken city on Sunday, before arriving in Darwin in the early hours of Monday morning.

It will then fly the stranded Australians to Christmas Island, where a disaster response team has already been sent.

They will stay at a quarantine centre on the island - 2,600 kilometres from the mainland - for two weeks before returning home.

A man wearing a face mask cycles past the body of a man who collapsed and died on a pavement in Wuhan (pictured), a city of 1 1million people which is under quarantine

The World Health Organisation declared a global emergency and the US has urged its citizens to avoid China.

It comes as chilling images emerged from Wuhan of the body of a man on a pavement outside a furniture store being surrounded by police in hazmat suits.

It's understood the grey-haired man collapsed and died in the street while wearing a face mask as the death toll in China rise to 213.

The virus, which emerged late last year, has infected thousands in China with at least 159 deaths in Wuhan alone.

Authorities have imposed an unprecedented lockdown of the city of 11million, blocking off roads out and banning flights, in a bid to stop the virus spreading

Australia's gateways, major tourist destinations, universities and suburbs in Sydney and Melbourne with large numbers of Chinese have emerged as the frontline in the fight against the deadly virus.

Fears are held thousands of Australians could have been unwittingly exposed to the virus in airplanes, restaurants and shopping centres by 10 confirmed infected patients.
Pakistan likely to remain in Grey List

India

oi-Vicky Nanjappa

New Delhi, Feb 01: Pakistan is likely to stay in the Grey List owing to inadequacy in curbing terror funding.

The working group and plenary meetings of the Financial Action Task Force in Paris will assess the implementation of a 27 point action plan by Pakistan, which was placed in the Grey List. The plenary would be held between February 16 and 21.

In June, the joint group of the Asia Pacific Group in its assessment had found that Pakistan's compliance to act against 8 terror groups which include the Jaish-e-Mohammad and Lashkar-e-Tayiba has been unsatisfactory. The report urged Pakistan to do more against these groups before the FATF comes up with its final decision.

Explained: What is FATF Grey List

The report states that stringent action should be taken against groups such as the Lashkar-e-Tayiba, Jaish-e-Mohammad, their financial entities, Haqqani Network, Al-Qaeda and Da'esh.

In order to move out of the grey list, Pakistan would need at least 15 of the 36 FATF's members' votes. It would also require a minimum of 3 votes to keep itself out of the black list.

In April the FATF had asked Pakistan to implement a new set of constraints in its crackdown against terror funding, including documenting and regulating all gold markets.

In the past few months, Pakistan appears to have taken some action. While India considers that the action is only token, Pakistan is doing all it can to avoid being downgraded to the black list.

One key development in recent times is the UN listing of Jaish-e-Mohammad chief, Maulana Masood Azhar. The first action by Pakistan was to put his brother Rauf Asghar in charge of operations. However, with the heat stepping up, Pakistan claimed that Asghar had been placed under arrest.

Help us get out of FATF Grey List, Pakistan urges US

The FATF on the other hand had asked Islamabad to collect data of all gold markets and restrict the sale and purchase of gold items using cash. The watchdog has also demanded that the country ensure restriction on supply of gold and jewellery to banned outfits and terrorist organisations.

The FATF had urged Pakistan to collect data of all trusts operating across the country as well as their bank accounts on the district level. It has also asked the country to ensure regulation of thousands of registered trust organisations.

For Breaking News and Instant Updates Allow Notifications

Story first published: Saturday, February 1, 2020, 7:07 [IST]
With Vietnam's demand for robots in the manufacturing industry on the rise, many businesses are investing in the field. (Photo: VNA)

Among eight local projects granted investment permits by Saigon Hi-Tech Park late last year was a 5 million USD research, development and manufacturing centre for experimental robots and automation from IDEA Technology Joint Stock Company.

Do Hoang Trung, chairman and general director of IDEA, said the company about two years ago began producing robotic arms, automatic guided vehicles and other items, which have been sold to FDI businesses in Vietnam.

The company plans to build its 1ha facility at the park soon, as well as a training centre for staff. It aims to become a leading robot brand in Vietnam in the next five years.

Kieu Huynh Son, deputy chairman of the HCM City Mechanical and Electrical Businesses Association, said many businesses such as IDEA, Autotech and Truc Quang were taking part in the field.

Huynh Phong Phu, director of electrical and electronic manufacturer ABB Vietnams Robotics and Discrete Automation Business, said the demand for robots in manufacturing was rising fast in Vietnam.

The country is one of the fastest-growing robot consumption markets in ASEAN, and is expected to grow even more in the next two to three years, he added.

Tran Thanh Thuy, former deputy rector of the Vietnam Research Institute of Electronics, Informatics and Automation, said that domestically produced robots were cheaper than imported ones.

However, due to limited technical infrastructure, underdeveloped supporting industries and limited robot quality testing equipment, local businesses have not been willing to invest heavily, preventing the industry from reaching its full potential.

Hoang Viet Hong, deputy general director of Industrial Machinery and Instruments Holding JSC, said that many businesses wanted to apply more modern technology and robots, but were encountering problems related to manpower and investment funds.

He said that there should be more collaboration between domestic and foreign experts to develop new automation technology for Vietnam manufacturing process. More attention also needs to be paid to pushing investment and research, he added.
Married At First Sight star Jules Robinson flaunted her 9kg weight loss in a figure-hugging dress on Friday, as she stepped out at a beauty event in Sydney.

The 37-year-old showcased her stunning curves in a skintight red frock.

On the night, Jules joined the likes of The Morning Show's Kylie Gillies and Bachelor star Emma Roche.

Red hot! Married At First Sight star Jules Robinson (pictured) flaunted her 9kg weight loss in a figure-hugging dress as she joined Kylie Gillies at a beauty event in Sydney on Friday

Jules' dress featured a bustier-style top and a flowing mermaid skirt.

Showing off a golden tan, she wore a bright red lip and lashings of mascara.

She left her gorgeous curls out, subtly pinning one side back for a vintage edge.

Fancy seeing you here! Also stepping out at the event - called The Show - was Seven star Kylie Gillies, 52 (pictured)

Jules lost 9kg in the months leading up to her televised wedding in November.

Last month, she told Now To Love that that Weight Watchers (WW) has taught her the importance of healthy habits without 'restricting' her favourite foods.

Also stepping out at the event - called The Show - was Seven star Kylie Gillies, 52.

Kylie looked chic in a pink and green sequinned skirt, which she teamed with an off-the-shoulder black top.

Looking good! Former Bachelor star Emma Roche (pictured), who was featured on Matt Agnew's season, looked stylish in a white playsuit

She added height to her frame with a pair of black strappy heels and wore her short locks neatly straightened, with natural-looking makeup.

Bachelor star Emma Roche opted for a plunging white playsuit, which she teamed with blue heels.

Another familiar face at the event was Australian journalist and Weekend Sunrise star, Monique Wright, 46, who stunned in a red silk dress.
Dont Panic: Governor urges calm, issues warning as fake news of Wuhan flu spirals out of control

PHUKET: Phuket Governor Phakaphong Tavipatana this week struck out at false reports online about people in Phuket being infected with the Wuhan coronavirus, with one post even claiming that a foreign woman at Phuket International Airport had died from the disease.

ChinesetourismhealthCoronavirusCOVID-19

By The Phuket News

Saturday 1 February 2020, 09:00AM

A tourist from a cruise ship from Singapore is screened for elevated body temperature on arrival on shore in Patong. Photo: Patong Municipality PR

Governor Phakaphong on Wednesday (Jan 29) urged people to be wary of fake news and reports that do not confirm their sources.

Fake news has been shared on social media, making people worried and damaging Phukets tourism image. Please check before believing it, reduce the panic, he said.

Among the reports going viral this week was a post claiming that a foreign woman at the airport had died of the Wuhan coronavirus. The post, uploaded onto Facebook by Konnika Jampaburee on Monday (Jan 27), showed a photo of a person covered with a white sheet being wheeled out of the airport and loaded into an ambulance.

Along with the photo were the words in Thai, One death at Phuket International Airport #Chinese.

Dr Sutsinee Sakswut, the airport doctor on duty on Monday, confirmed to The Phuket News on Wednesday that nobody had died from the Wuhan flu at the airport. The post is wrong, she said.

A female tourist had suffered a mini stroke in the Arrival Hall at the International Terminal and had been taken to Bangkok Hospital Phuket, Dr Sutsinee explained, adding that the tourist was discharged from the hospital care on Tuesday (Jan 28).

Another example cited this week was a post claiming that Chinese tourists from Wuhan were not allowed on board a flight home last Friday (Jan 24) because a 4-year-old girl travelling with the group had contracted the Wuhan flu.

A secretions sample from the girls nose was sent to the Health Control Division in Bangkok to test for the virus, Phuket Provincial Health Office (PPHO) Deputy Chief Dr Krit Sakulpat told The Phuket News.

The test confirmed that she was not infected with the Wuhan coronavirus, The girls condition is improving. It is just the flu. She left Vachira Phuket Hospital on Monday, he said.

Phuket Governor Phakaphong assured, We are working on measures to control and prevent the Wuhan virus from spreading here. We have set up an Emergency Operations Center to follow up on the situation and updates are given through press briefings every day.

So everyone should check any information first before sharing it [online]. Anyone who finds fake news reports, please inform the Phuket office of the Public Relations Department (Phuket PR) or relevant officers so they can check it out, he said.

As a more ominous warning, a report posted by the Phuket PR office late Wednesday highlighted that posting or sharing fake news online was illegal under the Computer Crimes Act.

If anyone sees fake news on social media, please send an image and details to the Phuket PR Dept Facebook page https://www.facebook.com/prphuket2018/, the report noted.

Vachira Phuket Hospital Director Chalermpong Sukontapol on Wednesday confirmed that since screening of tourist arrivals from Wuhan began on Jan 5, only 20 people had been taken under observation on suspicion that they may be infected with the virus.

So far, none of them have been confirmed as infected with the virus, he noted, reconfirming the report delivered by PPHO Chief Thanit Sermkaew on Tuesday.

Thirteen of those suspected of being infected have since been released from hospital care, but seven people currently remain under observation, Dr Chalermpong added.

Three of those still in isolation and under observation are at Vachira Phuket Hospital, one is at Patong Hospital, another is at Thalang Hospital and two remain in care at private hospitals, he said.

Dr Thanit explained on Tuesday, They are still recovering. All are in isolated areas under observation and receiving treatment for flu symptoms. They are still waiting for their blood tests. All seven people are in stable condition. They can breathe normally, with no need for a respirator.

Dr Chalermpong noted that while preliminary tests for the virus can be conducted by health officials in Phuket, absolute confirmation had to come by tests conducted by Department of Medical Sciences experts at the Ministry of Public Health Bamrasnaradura Institute or the King Chulalongkorn Memorial Hospital, both in Bangkok.

So far medical teams at Phuket airport have screened 5,733 passengers and 122 pilots and cabin crew arriving on 44 direct inbound flights from Wuhan and Guangzhou since Jan 5, Dr Chalermpong added.

Meanwhile, Governor Phakaphong assured, Phuket is safe. Officials are keeping track of all tourists arriving from China during their stay on the island. Officers are collecting information, such as where the tourists are staying and how they will leave the country. The information is being to prevent Wuhan flu from spreading, he said.

We have also informed hotels that if any of their guests become ill with a high temperature, to please contact the PPHO or nearest government hospital so the guest can be examined and be taken care of by doctors, he added.

Expanding the countermeasures on Wednesday, health officials were deployed to Patong to check any of the 1,200-odd passengers from the Genting Dream cruise liner for possible infection as they arrived on shore.

Joining the screening was Patong Mayor Chalermluk Kebsup and a host of officials. No passengers were reported as possibly infected as the welcome team checked for elevated body temperatures and handed out face masks.

A report by the Phuket PR office noted that an estimated 4,000 tourists were to arrive on cruise liners in the following few days.
The Chinese government has ordered its citizens to get rid of their pets in five days or risk government officials getting it culled.

This latest development comes amidst fears that animals could also catch the new coronavirus that has killed 213 in less than three weeks and infected over 10,000 people.

Villages, municipalities and residential officials issued the order to locals after receiving instructions from their superiors to tackle the corovirus epidemic.

A village in Hebei urged all households to deal with their pets within five days, otherwise, officials would handle them altogether; while a residential committee in Shaanxi instructed people to dispose their cats and dogs immediately.

Chinas top expert for infectious diseases warned that pets would also need to be quarantined should they be exposed to coronavirus patients

The World Health Organisation has however said it has not seen any evidence of the virus being passed onto cats or dogs.

In Wuhan, the city where the virus was first discovered one neighbourhood banned its residents from letting their cats, dogs and pets leave their homes. Officials threatened to catch, kill and bury the animals on the spot if they see any lurking around.

Also, residents of Shanghai has been forbidden from feeding stray animals to enforce the control and prevention of the epidemic a separate document reads.

Similar commands have been issued in provinces and municipalities across the country, including Beijing, Tianjin, Shandong, Heilongjiang, Hebei, Wuhan, Shanxi and Shanghai, according to animal welfare organisation Humane Society International.
Photograph: J Scott Applewhite/AP

The Senate chaplain, Barry Black, an African American rear admiral looking out on an overwhelmingly white chamber, opened the days session with the words: Lord help them to remember that they cant ignore you and get away with it. For we always reap what we sow.

The prayer was greeted by silence but followed by the shared murmuring of the oath of allegiance, ending with the senators promising ..and justice for all.

That was arguably not quite how things worked out in the Senate on Friday, when the chamber voted to stage the countrys first impeachment trial without hearing witnesses.

It turns out the Senate has overseen 15 previous impeachments  of judges mostly, but also a senator, a supreme court justice, a secretary of war, and of course two earlier presidents: Andrew Johnson and Bill Clinton. In all those trials, an average of 33 witnesses were called. The trial of Donald J Trump will summon none.

Monica Lewinsky, the intern who was the star witness in the 1999, took to Twitter to observe ruefully: Gee, too bad I had to give that videoed witness testimony for the senate trial in the Clinton impeachment.

Adam Schiff, the California congressman who has been the lead prosecutor in Trumps impeachment, said the vote would mean that the president has a God-given right to abuse his power and theres nothing you can do about it. God help us if that argument succeeds.

The argument succeeded. The 51-49 vote had been all but certain since 11pm the previous night, when the wobbliest Republican waverer, Lamar Alexander of Tennessee, announced which way he would vote, by tweet.

He conceded that the Democrats had proven their case that Donald Trump had used his office to try to bully Ukraine into investigating the presidents political opponents. But Lamar explained while this was inappropriate, it was not an impeachable high crime or misdemeanour. So why drag out impeachment?

So if youve got eight witnesses saying that you left the scene of an accident, you dont need nine, Alexander told National Public Radio on Friday, using a revealing parallel. Leaving the scene of an accident you cause is normally a crime, and this was of course no accident.

Story continues

Related: Senate chaplain warns impeachment trial jurors they will reap what they sow

On Friday morning the New York Times reported that John Bolton, the presidents former national security adviser, had described a damning scene in his forthcoming memoir in which the president directly ordered him to commit the act at the heart of the impeachment case.

Trump told Bolton to call the new Ukrainian president, Volodymyr Zelenskiy, and tell him to meet Trumps lawyer and fixer, Rudy Giuliani, with the aim of arranging investigations into the former vice-president Joe Biden and his son Hunter.

It appeared to be the smoking gun the presidents lawyers had long claimed did not exist. The Republican response was, in effect, that the president had every right to a recently fired weapon.

It was plainly evident from the start of the day that evidence was unlikely to play a major part in the majoritys deliberations. On each Democrats wooden desk there was a bulky white binder, detailing the articles of impeachment presented by the House of Representatives. The 53 Republican desks in contrast, were tidy and empty.

In the well of the Senate, the tables used in Clintons impeachment had been dusted off and laid out for Schiff and the other Democrat managers, or prosecutors to make their case for witnesses. On the other side, the presidents lawyers, sprung up to offer an array of counter-arguments.

The lead counsel, Jay Sekulow, recited out a list of witnesses he would like to call, very slowly and deliberately, to emphasise what a boring experience it would be for all involved.

In front of each speaker, a succession of stenographers stood tapping away at a machine, as if setting their words to music.

When the vote came, the outcome was prosaic and expected, and the chamber adjourned for dinner and put off a final vote on Trumps acquittal until Wednesday. But Fridays decision ensured next weeks denouement will be largely a display of party loyalty. By any substantive measure, the trial is already over.

After that decision was taken, Trump left the White House without speaking to waiting journalists, on his way to his private resort in Florida, where members pay large amounts to dine and mingle close to the centre of power.

At almost exactly the same time, the presidents closest British ally, Nigel Farage, was celebrating Brexit and it was announced he would be on his way to the US within the month to address the largest gathering of the American right, the Conservative Political Action Conference (Cpac) in Maryland. Mitt Romney, one of only two Republican senators to vote to hear witnesses on Friday, has been disinvited, lest there be any doubt that fealty has now replaced ideology entirely.

The rights hopes are high that Trump  having shrugged off impeachment  will coast to re-election buoyed by tides that for now, seem to be moving inexorably in his favour.
When did you turn on your heat in your house and close all your windows? Do you take really hot baths or showers? Do you pat or rub dry? Rubbing can exfoliate the skin and can add to drying out, he says.
Prime Minister Nguyen Xuan Phuc on February 1 signed Decision No.173.QD-TTg, declaring the acute respiratory disease caused by the new coronavirus (nCoV) an epidemic in Vietnam.

browser not support iframe.

The decision noted that the epidemic began on January 23 with the first two confirmed infection cases to be a pair of Chinese father and son. The scope of the epidemic was identified in three provinces of Khanh Hoa, Thanh Hoa and Vinh Phuc.

The total number of nCoV infections in Vietnam is six, including two Chinese, three Vietnamese returning from Chinas Wuhan city, and a receptionist at a hotel in Khanh Hoa province.

nCoV is classified as a Class A contagious disease, a group of extremely dangerous infectious diseases that can transmit very rapidly and spread widely with high mortality rates, including the likes of influenza A-H5N1, SARs, Ebola or smallpox.

At the national teleconference held in Hanoi on Feb. 1, Deputy PM Vu Duc Dam, who is head of the national steering committee for prevention and control of the acute respiratory disease caused by new coronavirus (nCoV) said Vietnam has been all set for the fight against the novel coronavirus that is sweeping all over the world.

He stressed that prevention of the deadly virus is a mission of top priority of the Party Committee at all levels, fatherland front, and organisations.

The Health Ministry confirmed a new case of nCoV infection on February 1, raising the total number of infections of the new coronavirus in Vietnam to six. They include two Chinese, three Vietnamese returning from Chinas Wuhan city, and a receptionist.

Also on Feb. 1, the Civil Aviation Authority of Vietnam has announced that all permits granted for flights between Viet Nam and China (including Chinese Taipei, Hong Kong and Macau) have been temporarily revoked, effective starting 1pm the same day until further notice.

According to the ministry, the number of nCoV infections in the world rose to 11,949 as of 8:30 on February 1, with 11,791 cases in China. The death toll increased to 259, all in China.

Earlier, the World Health Organisation declared the nCoV epidemic in China as a global health emergency of international concern./.
"This is just the issue that all of Europe and the whole world must participate in order to resolve it. But in the end, Russia and Ukraine must solve it themselves," said US Secretary of State

Bloomberg

US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo during his visit to Belarus announced the USs readiness to help find a solution to the conflict in Ukraine. But according to him, Ukraine and the Russian Federation themselves must ultimately come to an agreement. It is reported by Belta.



"This is just the issue that all of Europe and the whole world must participate in order to resolve it. But in the end, Russia and Ukraine must solve it themselves. Everything that we can do in the United States, we will do," said Pompeo.



Related: Pompeo: China does not benefit Ukrainian people

Earlier Mike Pompeo said that the State Department is working on preparing a new meeting between US President Donald Trump and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky. Pompeo announced this in an interview with the journalist ABC, which was published by the press service of the State Department.

We work on many things with them (the Ukrainian leadership - ed.). When the time comes - they are both busy people - we will find a suitable opportunity for him (Zelensky - ed.) And the president (Trump - ed.) To meet. Do you remember that they met in New York in January or, sorry, in September. Im sure they will meet again somewhere, - Pompeo stated.

The Secretary of State does not exclude that Trump and Zelensky can once again meet both in Washington, and in Kyiv, or in any other place.

According to Pompeo, the leaders of the two countries are directing the development of Ukraine in the right direction. In particular, the United States helped Ukraine with weapons. Moreover, Washington helped Ukraine determine which judicial system it needed.

Country (Ukraine - ed.) Is located right on the border between Russia and Europe. It is very important that we get it right and help Ukrainians get what they want, - Pompeo stated.
The on Saturday recommended 41 per cent share in the divisible pool of taxes for states and 1 per cent for the newly created Union territories of Jammu & Kashmir and Ladakh for the financial year 2020-21, thus retaining the devolution formula of the earlier Commission.

The 14th Commission had recommended the share of states at 42 per cent in the divisible pool of taxes.

In her Budget Speech, Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman said the commission has given its first report pertaining to 2020-21.

"In the spirit of co-operative federalism, I am pleased to announce that we have, in substantial measure, accepted the recommendations of the commission," she said.

The commission would submit its final report to the President during the latter part of the year, for five years beginning 2021-22.

The first report said that for 2020-21, the commission is inclined to leave the vertical split of divisible pool at the same level as recommended by the 14th Commission.

"However, we have to take into account recent changes due to re-organisation of the erstwhile state of Jammu and Kashmir.

"We have notionally estimated that the share of the erstwhile state of Jammu and Kashmir would have come around 0.85 per cent of the divisible pool," the report said.

The commission said it believes there is a strong case for enhancing the share to the two UTs (erstwhile Jammu and Kashmir) from 0.85 per cent to 1 per cent to meet the security and other special needs of the Union territories of Jammu and Kashmir and Ladakh.

"Since this enhancement has to be met from the Union's resources, we recommend that the aggregate share of states may be reduced by 1 percentage point to 41 per cent of the divisible pool," the commission said.

Further, the commission has recommended Rs 90,000 crore as grants to local bodies for 2020-21, which is 4.31 per cent of the estimated divisible pool.

For determining state-wise allocations for disaster risk management, the panel headed by former bureaucrat N K Singh has suggested a new methodology which combines capacity, risk exposure and proneness to hazard and vulnerability.

The total amount recommended for states is Rs 28,983 crore in 2020-21, of which Rs 22,184 crore is the Union share, towards disaster risk management.
Amaravati, Feb 1 : The YSR Congress Party government in Andhra Pradesh on Saturday expressed its disappointment over the Union Budget 2020-21 and voiced its doubts over the projected GDP growth.

State Finance Minister B. Rajendranath Reddy said the Budget presented by Union Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman offered nothing for the state.

He said it was disappointing that there was no mention of the long-pending demand of special category status for the state and other commitments made in Andhra Pradesh Reorganisation Act, 2014.

Reddy also voiced his doubts over the GDP growth rate projected by the Union Finance Minister and also the targeted disinvestment of Rs 2 lakh crore. He said similar claims were made in the previous Budget, adding that the entire Budget looked questionable.

"The special category status is our right, but the Centre is not doing anything about it," Reddy said, as he aired serious concerns over the dwindling central devolutions to the state.

He said the state's share in central taxes was cut by Rs 2,500 crore in 2018-19, which was a huge setback.

Reddy also noted that there was no clarity with regard to the help to the state to bridge the revenue deficit. The minister said there was neither a package for seven backward districts, nor industrial incentives.

He also voiced concern over the delay in reimbursement of funds for the Polavaram project.

YSRCP parliamentary party leader V. Vijaya Sai Reddy said the state was given a raw deal in the Budget. He told reporters in New Delhi that the state had expected incentives and new schemes, but there was no such mention.

Even the amount of Rs 24,350 crore assured for backward area development fund for seven districts was not taken into consideration.

The MP said the Polavaram project has to be included in the allocation of Central projects and funds have to be released for the project immediately. The injustice done to Andhra Pradesh after the bifurcation of the state has to be rectified and the Centre has to explain how the Budget would address the need for providing basic amenities, he said.

There is no clarity on the Centre's claim that the income of farmers would be doubled, the MP said and reminded that since Andhra Pradesh was a agro-based state, the Centre must make adequate allocation to the state in this regard.

Vijaya Sai Reddy noted that there was no provision of new railway lines for Andhra Pradesh in the Budget and there was no mention of allocation of funds for the development of airports in the state.

He said the Centre should allocate funds to the states with the concept of a holistic development of the country and not with a partisan view
Peter Serkin, 72, who took his training at the conservative Curtis Institute of Music and cut a wholly original path through the classical piano scene, died Saturday, Feb. 1, at home in Red Hook, N.Y., of pancreatic cancer, his manager said.

As a player, programmer, and stage personality, there was no one else like Mr. Serkin. He put his career on hold to find spiritual enlightenment, and simultaneously embraced the period-instrument and avant-garde repertoire, with an originality of interpretation that was seen by some as an act of artistic rebellion. The scion of an illustrious family of old-world musicians  his father was pianist and Curtis teacher/director Rudolf Serkin, his grandfather violinist Adolf Busch  Mr. Serkin was decidedly of the new world.

He performed with orchestras worldwide, including the Philadelphia Orchestra, Boston Symphony Orchestra, Los Angeles Philharmonic, New York Philharmonic, and English Chamber Orchestra, and had been slated to play a Philadelphia Chamber Music Society all-Bach recital with violinist Pamela Frank this March.

In classical musics atmosphere of strict performance tradition and unforgiving proscription, Mr. Serkin offered reality-bending experiences. In the pianists last recital here, at the Kimmel in January 2019, this critic found Mr. Serkin to be a performer "who likes to rearrange time and space around him.

In that Philadelphia Chamber Music Society recital, his Bach Goldberg Variations unfurled one revelation after another with a bone-dry sound in the left hand here, a violent start to a variation there. In various spots he emulated organ or harpsichord. He didnt shy from emotion, making variations strident, searching, pastoral, or fragile.

Born in New York, Peter Adolf Serkin was a prodigy cultivated in the artistically related hothouses of Curtis and the Marlboro Music Festival, the Vermont summer retreat cofounded by his grandfather and father along with others. He entered Curtis at age 11, and studied with Mieczyslaw Horszowski; Lee Luvisi; and his father, who had a top-tier performing career and would later become head of the school.

It was Rudolf Serkin who helped to introduce him to Philadelphia Orchestra audiences several years before the boy graduated from Curtis. Together, they performed the Mozart Concerto for Two Pianos, K. 365, in 1961, when Peter Serkin was 14.

They repeated the feat a few months later at Carnegie Hall with the Marlboro Festival Orchestra, with the younger Serkin showing considerable intensity of feeling in passages when he played alone, according to a New York Times review.

He graduated from Curtis in 1964 and won a Grammy in 1966 for most promising new classical recording artist, and set off on a major career.

Peter Serkin has the instincts of a rebel and a non-conformist, declared New York Times music critic Harold C. Schonberg of the pianists first full-scale New York recital at age 20 in 1967.

He struck many as a flower child, too, at least for a time. In 1973, with violinist Ida Kavafian, cellist Fred Sherry, and clarinetist Richard Stoltzman, he founded TASHI, whose groovy album covers turned on many a listener to Messiaen, Webern, and Takemitsu.

He had a special focus on new music, and yet he played the normal classical repertoire beautifully, said former Curtis director Gary Graffman. He played Beethoven marvelously, wonderfully, and chamber music and Brahms and Mozart.

He continued to solo with the Philadelphia Orchestra regularly from the 1960s through 2008  in Mozart, Beethoven, Bartok, Ravel, Stravinsky, Hindemith, Takemitsu, Brahms, and Peter Lieberson. He performed with the Philadelphia Chamber Music Society more than a dozen times starting in 1989.

Over the years, he taught at Curtis, the Juilliard School, Yale University, and Bard College. As with performing, Mr. Serkin brought an unusually thoughtful approach to teaching.

He didnt tell me how something should be played, said pianist Simone Dinnerstein, who studied with him for two years at Juilliard and one more privately. Usually what would happen is, I would play the piece and then thered be a kind of long silence while he was thinking about it. And then he would start asking questions. And I had the sense that he was just as interested in the music as I was, that he was just as curious about trying to find out how to approach the piece.

She remembers one lesson in Bach where he asked her to write down a list of different adjectives, and then had her try out the same passage in the style of each adjective.

He taught me a lot about the variety of touch and timbre that is possible, she said. There was a lot of exploration of what he referred to as differentiation  that a passage is not about being played smoothly. A passage is about showing the contour and the shape of it depending on the harmonic shape or the melodic or rhythmic shape, and that the contour shows by varying the articulation and the touch and the sound.

If his pedigree made him destined for classical music, Mr. Serkin took some detours. He sometimes dropped out of performing in the late 1960s and early 70s for matters more spiritual and philosophical in Mexico, Tibet, India, Morocco, and elsewhere.

He held a lifelong fascination for certain pieces, like Beethovens Diabelli Variations and Bachs Goldberg Variations. He was an early adopter when the period-instrument movement came along, recording Beethoven and Schubert on a fortepiano in the early 1980s.

One of his first concerts in Philadelphia was at Curtis, where, as Curtis piano professor Eleanor Sokoloff remembers it, he played Schumann.

He was a child, really, it was so gorgeous, he was 12 or 13, said Sokoloff, who has taught at Curtis for more than eight decades and continues to teach there at age 105. It was the way it was played, like a person in his late 80s reminiscing about life."

Mr. Serkin is survived by five children, Karina, Maya, Elena, Stefan, and William; two grandchildren; and his former wives, Wendy Spinner Serkin and Regina Touhey Serkin. Details on services were not immediately available.
The Pakistan government has declared national emergency to eliminate the attacking swarms of desert locust which are destroying crops on a large scale in Punjab province after wiping out the same in Sindh, a media report said on Saturday.

The decision was taken at a meeting convened by Prime Minister Imran Khan on Friday. The meeting attended by federal ministers and senior officials of the country's four provinces approved a Rs 7.3 billion national action plan (NAP) to overcome the crisis, the Dawn reported.

Minister for National Food Security Makhdoom Khusro Bakhtiar informed the National Assembly about the gravity of the situation and the steps so far taken by the federal and provincial governments to deal with the crisis.

The meeting was informed that besides involving the officials concerned at the provincial and district levels, different tasks have been given to the NDMA, provincial disaster management authorities and federal and provincial departments to deal with the threat.

Prime Minister Khan ordered formation of a high-level committee to be headed by Khusro Bakhtiar to take decisions for elimination of locust swarms.

The prime minister directed the authorities concerned to make immediate measures on the basis of damage of ripened crops.

Protection of farms and farmers is the highest priority of the government. Therefore, the federal government should take all necessary steps to save national crops and provide required resources to the quarters concerned, he was quoted as saying by the daily.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
Everything you need to know about skiing the Northeast this winter

Whether you want to stay close to home or head north, here's everything you need to know about skiing or snowboarding in the Northeast and New York this season.
Source: Xinhua| 2020-02-01 13:30:14|Editor: zyl

Video Player Close

LONDON, Jan. 31 (Xinhua) -- Memories, celebrations and commiserations marked a historic day that will be narrated differently by Brexiteers and Europhiles in the future.

Britain officially left the European Union (EU) at 11 p.m. (2300 GMT) Friday, putting an end to its 47-year-long membership of the world's largest trading bloc.

In a televised special address to the nation, British Prime Minister Boris Johnson, who took office amid the Brexit crisis, called the moment "the dawn of a new era" when "the curtain goes up on a new act."

"Our job as the government -- my job -- is to bring this country together and take us forward," he said. "And the most important thing to say tonight is that this is not an end but a beginning."

The Opposition Labour Party leader Jeremy Corbyn urged the country not to "turn inwards" after it leaves the bloc.

A joint statement published by the EU leaders said that in the day which is inevitably of "reflection and mixed emotions," Britain and the EU will have to work hard to weave together a new way forward "as allies, partners and friends."

The moment also marked the start of a transition period that will last till the end of this year as negotiators face an uphill struggle for trade arrangement between Britain and the remaining EU nations.

At London's Parliament Square, Brexiteers were waving Union Jacks and chanting slogans to celebrate this historic moment.

For them, the day signifies that Britain has once again become a truly independent, sovereign state and a normal self-governing, parliamentary democracy.

"We will now be fully in control of our own laws, finance, borders and trade," Alan Sked, founder of Britain's leading Brexit political party the UK Independence Party, told Xinhua. "No longer shall we have to pay billions of pounds each year to unelected foreign bureaucrats to make up laws designed to ruin us."

"After almost 50 years we can forget about Brussels," added Sked, who is also professor emeritus of international history at the London School of Economics.

Big Ben, which has been mostly silent since restoration work began in 2017, did not chime at the historic moment for the nation that has been hugely divided since the Brexit referendum in 2016.

10 Downing Street, the prime minister's office and residence, counted down to the historic moment with a light display. Government buildings in central London were lit up to mark the special occasion.

The British government has hailed the Brexit Day as a significant moment in the country's history, and said it intends to use the event to bring communities back together and "heal divisions."

On Friday, a British government cabinet meeting took place in Sunderland, the first city to declare support for leaving the EU three and a half years ago.

On the other side of the English Channel, the Union Jack flag was lowered outside the compound of the European Parliament.

A commemorative Brexit coin which reads "Peace, prosperity and friendship with all nations" also came into circulation in Britain on the day.

But Brexit could also mean an uncertain future for the United Kingdom.

Brian Renaghan, whose farmland straddles the border between Northern Ireland and the Republic of Ireland, fears that he may lose the annual EU subsidies to keep his business afloat.

"I will have to come up with another way to make money, perhaps turning it into a recreational farm or something," he told Xinhua.

In Dundee, a high-profile "Yes City" in the 2014 Scottish independence referendum, City Council leader John Alexander said he was eager to get a good sleep before starting the next day campaigning even harder for Scottish independence.

"Brexit has not only resulted in huge political upheaval and public anger but is already having a negative impact upon the UK's, and therefore Scotland's, economic outlook," he told Xinhua. "The UK government's position does not in any way reflect the views of the Scottish population."

Every single voting district in Scotland voted to remain in the EU, the largest and most strategically important economic partner for Scotland, in the 2016 Brexit referendum.

Withdrawing from the EU is merely the first hurdle that will be followed by negotiations on a permanent trade and working arrangement between Britain and Brussels. Tough talks are expected to conclude before the end of this year as the Brexit "transition period" wraps up.

Ivan Rogers, Britain's former permanent representative to the EU, said Britain's departure from the EU will be just the starting point of a rocky and uncertain journey that may continue for years, and almost certainly into the second half of the 2020s.

The ex-diplomat warned that Jan. 31 is just the beginning of Brexit rather than the end of it.

Brexit also casts doubt on the future of the EU, which expanded a number of times throughout its history, and the trend of globalization as a whole.

Martin Albrow, a renowned sociologist and pioneer of the theory of globalization, told Xinhua that he thinks Brexit will in no way make any difference to globalization, which is driven by technology, culture and ideas.

Martin Wolf, chief economics commentator at the Financial Times, said in a recent column piece that Britain after Brexit will not be alone, but it will be lonelier.

"Will this separation endure? Nobody can know. But it is quite likely to last a long time. In my own view, it is a huge blunder. But the moment is now upon us. We must live with its consequences," he concluded.
Claudia Wallin, a journalist and author, Sweden: The Untold Story, in this interview with Abdulkareem Mojeed, says Nigeria and Brazil where she comes from, have a lot to learn from the Swedish political system.

Ms Claudia who spoke with PREMIUM TIMES during her visit to Nigeria also spoke about the educational system in Sweden, the significant role of the media as well as citizens towards promoting democracy, and how Sweden which was among the most corrupt countries in the world, is now the 4th least corrupt countries in the world.

Excerpt:

PT: What are your perceptions about politicians and democracy in Nigeria?

I understand very much what it means to be in a corrupt society because Im originally from Brazil which has an extremely corrupt government. That is why I think it is important to highlight the remarkable Swedish political system. Ive been living in Sweden for 17 years, that is why I truly believe that we have a lot to learn from Sweden in this sense. The members of parliament in Sweden go to work by bicycles; they live in state apartments as small as 16 square meters. They even wash their own clothes using the laundry facilities inside the parliament. The only privilege that the Swedish politicians have is that they receive a card to use the public transport.

In Sweden, political participation is in democracy, democracy is something that the children start to learn at school. I asked my youngest son what he has learned in school about politics and democracy. He said straight away, Ive learnt that it is important to have a voice in the society.

The Swedish schools teach the young students how the political system works, how the parliament works, what the political parties represent and what they stand for. They also teach the kids about their rights as citizens. Hence, democracy is something every individual learns at school in Sweden.

PT: Sweden, like other Scandinavian countries, has one of the best educational systems in the world. What stands out for you in the Swedish way of teaching?

Claudia: Education of course was a major fundamental factor for the development of the Swedish society, because if you dont have an educated population, a society cant transform itself. If citizens dont have education, they wont be able to understand the problems of the society and they wont be able to demand their rights as citizens from political leaders, because theyre so concerned about survival.

READ ALSO:

For Instance, during your(Nigerias) elections last year, you had a very low voters turnout, which was around 35% if Im not mistaken, and that calls my attention because in Sweden they have traditionally very high voters turnout of about 90%. Even though voting is not compulsory in Sweden, during last years election in Sweden, the voters turnout was over 87%. Of course, different factors influence voters turnout such as income and education .

PT: Unlike Sweden which ranks third freest nation for the press, Nigeria (120th) and Brazil (105th) rank among the worst places for journalists. What must journalists in these zones do to uphold their obligations and how would you say the media has fared in ensuring accountability in governance and informing the people better?

Claudia: The primary task of the media, in any society, is to scrutinize power and to demand transparency. A free press and a transparent system are the major factors that make Sweden one of the least corrupt countries in the world. Sweden was also a relatively corrupt country in the past, until approximately the beginning of the 19th century. But by gradually developing the institutions of its democracy, Sweden transformed itself. In this process of creating a culture of integrity and respect for the public money, the main weapon that Sweden invented was its transparency law  which was the first transparency law in the world, created back in 1766. This law, which is enshrined in the Swedish Constitution, gives not only to the press, but also to all the citizens, the right to assess the official documents of power. Any citizen can, for example, scrutinize the expenses of any member of parliament. And the Swedish journalists are always checking the politicians and their actions. This is an essential part of democracy.

PT: How has it been being a female journalist in Sweden. Are women considered to take leadership positions in newsrooms?

Claudia: Sweden is one of the most gender equal countries in the world and it is important to say that the current Prime Minister Stefan Lofvan has declared his government as a feminist government which is the first feminist government in the world. So 11 of the 22 cabinet ministers are women, and in parliament nearly half of the representatives are also women, and women have a strong role in the Swedish society.

Also, they are very important in the workforce; around 80 per cent of women in Sweden occupy positions of leadership not only in the media but also in companies, government, public agencies and so on. Sweden also plays a great role in the recognition of women in the society.
Source: Xinhua| 2020-02-01 07:29:43|Editor: Wang Yamei

Video Player Close

WASHINGTON, Jan. 31 (Xinhua) -- A motion to allow subpoenas for witnesses and documents in the Senate trial of U.S. President Donald Trump's impeachment failed to pass the upper chamber on Friday, suggesting a quick end to the proceeding.

The Republican-controlled Senate voted 49 to 51 to block the motion.

Two Republicans joined Democrats in requesting witnesses for the impeachment trial, but the Democrats still fell short of a simple majority needed to pass the motion.

The vote came after the House impeachment managers and Trump's defense team debated for hours on Friday over whether the Senate should call witnesses.

It also followed more than a week of arguments from both sides and a question-and-answer session involving all senators who act as the jury.

It remains unclear when the Senate will vote on the articles of impeachment against Trump but it is widely expected that the president will be acquitted.

In a statement after the vote, Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell said senators will now confer among themselves, with the House managers, and with the president's counsel to "determine next steps" as they "prepare to conclude the trial in coming days."

Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer told reporters on Friday that Democrats "do not want this rushed through," adding that they "do not want it in the dark of night."

The Democrat-led House impeached Trump last month for abuse of power and obstruction of Congress, charges the White House has refuted.

A whistleblower raised concern in an anonymous complaint last summer about the White House's interactions with Ukraine, triggering a Democrat-led impeachment inquiry against Trump.

The U.S. president was alleged to have pressed his Ukrainian counterpart, Volodymyr Zelensky, into launching investigations that could politically benefit him. Furthermore, the White House allegedly tried to cover it up.

According to the U.S. Constitution, the House shall have the "sole Power of Impeachment," while the Senate shall have the "sole Power to try all Impeachments."

Conviction can only happen in the Senate and requires at least two-thirds of its members, or 67 senators, to vote in favor of at least one article of impeachment after a trial. Currently, the Senate has 53 Republicans, 45 Democrats and two independents.
A foreign traveller wearing a mask walks past a departures information board at Beijing International Airport in Beijing, China as the country is hit by an outbreak of the new coronavirus, February 1, 2020. REUTERS/Jason Lee

The US is among a number of countries which have imposed tough travel restrictions against China as the coronavirus outbreak escalates.

Washington has faced criticism by Beijing after it moved to bar entry to most foreigners who have visited China in the past two weeks.

Australia has imposed similar measures, following Japan and Singapore.

Many major airlines, including British Airways, have also suspended flights with mainland China.

Meanwhile, Russia, Mongolia and North Korea have announced that they will close their land borders with the country to guard against the spread of the virus.

The increased border controls come as the number of people killed by coronavirus in China rose to 294 and confirmed cases passed 12,000.

The infection's rapid spread recently prompted the World Health Organisation (WHO) to declare it a global emergency .

The virus originated in the Chinese central city of Wuhan at the end of last year and has since spread to every province across mainland China.

While no deaths have been reported outside China, cases have been confirmed across at least 25 countries, including the US, Russia, France, Australia and the United Arab Emirates.

America has declared a public health emergency and President Donald Trump has signed an order barring entry to foreign nationals, other than immediate family of citizens and permanent residents, who visited China within the last 14 days, which scientists say is the virus's longest incubation period.

China has hit out at the US restrictions, which it said contradicted the WHO's appeal to avoid travel bans.

WHO Secretary-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus said despite the emergency declaration, there is "no reason for measures that unnecessarily interfere with international travel and trade".

US citizens returning from China will be allowed into the country, but will face screening.

The 195 Americans evacuated earlier this week from Wuhan were the subject of the first federal quarantine ordered since the 1960s.

Story continues

Currently housed at a military base in southern California, none have so far shown signs of illness, although infected people do not show symptoms immediately.

One of those quarantined is Matthew L McCoy, a theme park designer who lives in China.

He said: "All of us really want to stay here and make sure we're all medically clear and the public safe."

US Health and Human Services Secretary Alex Azar said: "The risk of infection for Americans remains low and with these and our previous actions we are working to keep the risk low."

It comes as Apple said it was temporarily closing all stores in mainland China out of "an abundance of caution".

Meanwhile, British health officials are urgently trying to trace those who came into contact with the first two people diagnosed with coronavirus in the UK, one of which is a student at the University of York.

Public Health England confirmed that the two people taken ill - who are members of the same family - had been staying at a hotel in York when they became unwell.

The UK evacuated 83 Britons and 27 non-UK nationals from Wuhan, the centre of the outbreak, on Friday.

The British passengers were taken to Arrowe Park Hospital on Merseyside to be housed in isolation in an NHS staff accommodation block.

A number of other countries, including Australia, South Korea, India and Singapore are also quarantining evacuees for two weeks to avoid spread of the virus.

The vast majority of the cases have been in Hubei province and its provincial capital, Wuhan, the epicentre of the outbreak.

Chinese officials have postponed the end of the Lunar New Year holiday in the region to in a bid to curb travel and prevent the spread of infection.

Chinese premier Li Keqiang said they would coordinate with local governments to stagger the times when

people are asked to go back to work.

He also called on the EU to help with the provision of medical supplies.

China first informed WHO about cases of the new virus in late December.

Symptoms include fever, a cough and in more severe cases shortness of breath or pneumonia.

The number of coronavirus cases worldwide has surpassed that of the previous SARS epidemic, although death rates are lower.
Crime Branch has seized the laptop and mobile phone of JNU student Sharjeel Imam, who is in Delhi Police's custody after being arrested on charges of sedition. Police on Friday (January 31) searched Sharjeel's rented flat in Vasant Vihar where they recovered a laptop and a desktop. His mobile phone was recovered from his house in Bihar's Jehanabad.

A copy of the pamphlet that he prepared against CAA-NRC with misleading and intimidating facts was also found at his flat in Delhi. The photocopy shop, where he printed the poster has been identified. Further investigations are underway.

On Tuesday (January 28), Sharjeel was caught by Delhi Police's Special Team from Jehanabad and brought to Delhi for questioning. During interrogation, he confessed to having made inflammatory comments on Assam and even admitted of his plans to turn India into an Islamic state.

Live TV

According to sources, Sharjeel is highly radicalised and repeatedly told officers that Muslims were being treated poorly in this country and so he was raising his voice against this. He admitted that he knew he could be arrested for his speech but showed no regrets.

Despite his confession to making the objectionable remarks and admitting that the video is not doctored, the Police has sent all his videos to FSL for investigation on its authenticity. Also, all of Sharjeel's social media accounts are being scanned.

The Police is probing his links with the Islamic Youth Federation and PFI to find out if he was working alone or if more people are involved.

Sedition was filed against him after a video of him shot on January 25 went viral on social media. In it, Sharjeel can be heard saying, "If we all come together, then we can separate the Northeast from India. If we cannot do it permanently, then at least for 1-2 months we can do this. It will take the administration at least one month to disperse all of them."

Apart from Delhi, five other state police departments including Bihar, Assam, Arunachal Pradesh, Uttar Pradesh, and Manipur have booked Sharjeel under the relevant sections of the IPC.
WASHINGTON  A TV at the bar shows Ken Starr on Capitol Hill, talking about a presidents impeachment. Liver and seafood Louie are on the menu, and the martinis are cold.

This is lunchtime at the Monocle, the restaurant that sits just steps away from the Senate office buildings on a recent January afternoon, but it was a scene that could easily have unfolded decades ago.

The Monocle, housed in a bright-yellow circa 1885 townhouse, seems to sprout up from the parking lot that surrounds it like a flower from a sidewalk crack. It has served senators from a young JFK to todays cast of characters  and still seems untouched by time.

Elsewhere, dining out in Washington can be a political act. Trump courtiers and wannabes might mill around the lobby of the hotel on Pennsylvania Avenue that bears his name. The presidents sworn enemies gather at the Eaton hotel, which proclaimed itself to be the headquarters of the resistance.

But the Monocle remains an oasis of civility, despite its location practically in the trenches of the partisan warfare that has intensified during the past few weeks as the impeachment trial grinds on.
The Minister of Information, Lai Mohammed, said the Federal Government has got in touch with the affected persons in Wuhan, China.

The minister while addressing journalists on Friday, January 31, 2020, said the 16 Nigerians have not shown interest in returning to their country.

While urging Nigerians to reconsider travelling to China, the minister said the Federal Government cannot stop Nigerians from travelling to the country.

He said, We know it is a bit difficult to ban people from travelling. Another thing is that this is not a basis to stigmatise people who come from there.

Even if we have Nigerians who are there, unless they indicate interest that they want to come home, we cant force them.

I know we have Nigerians in Wuhan; our Embassy in China has confirmed that we have about 16 Nigerians in Wuhan and they are in touch with them.

They have, however, not indicated their interest to come home. They will, however, contact our embassy if they like to come home.

We need a lot of public enlightenment. We need to let people who travel know that there is the need for absolute transparency and absolute honesty when they are filling out forms.

The disease, which has now been declared global emergency by World Health Organisation (WHO) has reportedly killed 213 people in China.

Coronavirus recently broke out in China and has spread to 16 countries, namely Australia, Cambodia, Canada, France, Germany, Japan, Malaysia, Nepal, Singapore, South Korea, Sri Lanka, Taiwan, Thailand, US, Vietnam and the United Kingdom.

Share this:
Today's broadcast is a special edition of Paris Live marking the historic day that the United Kingdom becomes the first member country to withdraw from the European Union after 47 years.

RFI's David Coffey is joined in studio by the President of the Mouvement Europeen Yves Bertoncini and Chairman of Conservatives in Paris, Jeremy Stubbs to discuss the impact of this momentous occasion, the damage that it has inflicted over the past 3 years of vitriol and uncertainty and what lies ahead as the haggling over the terms of divorce are set to begin.

We also cross live to Crossmaglen, Co.Armagh to RFI's Jan Van Der Made to get a sense of how Brexit will directly affect communities and cross-border trade between the Irish Republic and Northern Ireland.

Reaction from London which voted overwhelmingly to remain in the European Union... and Brussels, where the EU 27 get their cards in place ahead of what will be tense negotiations.

And a look at how the French newspapers are approaching the UK's exit from the EU.
A man on Saturday fired bullets in Shaheen Bagh area of the national capital, near the anti-Citizenship Amendment Act (CAA) protest site. There were no injuries. The accused opened fire near the barricade of the protest site near the Jasola red light.

The man has been identified as 25-year-old Kapil Gujjar, a student of a private college. The Delhi Police have taken him into custody. Delhi DCP Chinmay Biswal said that the man resorted to two rounds of firing in the air. "The man had resorted to aerial firing. Police immediately overpowered and caught him," said DCP Biswal. The weapon used by him has been seized.

Biswal said, "At around 4.45 pm, a person opened air fire and only then the police caught him from the spot. His name is Kapil. He fired two rounds and two empty shells were recovered. He resides across River Yamuna. The case is being registered. Barricades have been set up on both sides so that law and order can be maintained, but people are coming from different places in this protest. We spoke to the protesters, who have blocked the road, informing that mischief mongers might also try to enter the site and that they should go to some other site to protest. A country-made pistol was likely used but it has been recovered."

Live TV

After the firing women formed a human chain at the site of the firing. The people in the area started protesting against the firing at Shaheen Bagh.

It was a wedding of someone in his family and he had to take a detour to buy goods which made him angry. After police inquiry, he said he was angry that "a handful of people in his own country have captured the road of Shaheen Bagh". He was angry about it and had come by auto to open the road.

The shooting comes in less than 48 hours since the shooting in the Jamia area. On January 30, while the Jamia Milia Islamia University students were marching from Jamia to Rajghat, an attacker shot a student named Shadab while raising slogans.

Demonstrations against the CAA and National Register of Citizens (NRC) have been taking place in Jamia and Shaheen Bagh for the last nearly 50 days.

A Delhi court on Friday had sent the 17-year-old minor to 14-day protective custody. The Crime Branch of Delhi Police has, applied to carry out an ossification test of the Jamia shooter to ascertain his age. The minor, who is a resident of Gautam Budh Nagar, Uttar Pradesh, had triggered panic in the area by opening fire in broad daylight in presence of policemen deployed there.

The entire drama, which was captured by television cameras, showed the young man in light coloured pants and a dark jacket, walking away on an empty road barricaded by police, turning around and shouting at the protesters in Hindi, "Here, take this freedom."

Behind him, a group of policemen could be seen in the frame. Seconds later, he was apprehended by the police.

The bag of the minor shooter was recovered containing several inflammatory slogans. The shooter had a red bag, which was left back the road after the attack. A guard of Jamia picked it up from the road believing it to a student's bag and gave it to the Chief Proctor of Jamia. When this bag was opened on Friday some books, mark sheets and a purse were found.

According to Zee News sources, besides some of the provocative sloganned posters, banners saying 'Mandir wahi banayenge' (We will make the temple there) was also found. According to Jamia's Chief Proctor, "Some test papers have also been found, in which the name of the attacker is written. These papers also include the address of the attacker. Apart from this, a purse and some photographs were also found. The bag was found by the guard of Jamia University and it was later handed over to the police."
Photo: Rob Gibson

The man accused of robbing a downtown Kelowna bank Wednesday remains behind bars after he was arrested shortly after the robbery.

Police swarmed the downtown core just before 1 p.m., after receiving a report of a robbery in progress at the TD Canada Trust, on the corner of Ellis Street and Leon Avenue. An RCMP helicopter circled downtown at a low altitude, searching for a suspect, while police dogs searched on the ground.

After an extensive search of downtown, 48-year-old Jason Miles was arrested nearby, near Pandosy Street and Leon Avenue.

Miles currently faces charges of robbery and disguising his face with the intent to commit an offence.

The accused briefly appeared in Kelowna court Thursday morning, but his bail hearing was put over until next week.

Last June, a 59-year-old Kelowna man was sentenced to three and a half years in jail for robbing three banks across Kelowna between January and March of 2019.
Metro Manila (CNN Philipines, February 1)  Several schools in Metro Manila have taken precautionary steps to minimize exposure to and transmission of viral illnesses following the confirmation from authorities that the contagious and deadly novel coronavirus or 2019-nCoV has reached the Philippines.

All faculty and students of the Ateneo de Manila University who have been to China are required to go on a two-week self-quarantine upon their return.

Ateneo university President Jose Ramon Villarin said in a memorandum on Friday that those who must undergo self-quarantine will be excused from classes and allowed to make up for their absences provided that they present medical certificates.

He also urged AdMU members not to travel to China for now, which has been hardest hit by the 2019-nCoV. The virus has already killed hundreds of people and sickened thousands in mainland China.

Meanwhile, the De La Salle University in Manila said it has implemented a "complete travel ban on administrators, faculty, and staff to China until the 2019-nCoV crisis is over."

Polytechnic University of the Philippines and Far Eastern University in Manila and Makati City said Friday that all of their students and staff who have arrived from travel abroad must stay at home and do a self-quarantine.

"Special class attendance policy will be arranged for faculty and students through the Academic Affairs Office while employees will have a special leave," FEU said in a Facebook post.

In a Friday memorandum, Adamson University President Fr. Marcelo Manimtim has also advised its Chinese students to put themselves on quarantine from January 31 until February 14. He said that the recommendation was based on the school managements decision. Meanwhile, all local and other international students will continue to have their regular classes.

Manimtim then urged all Chinese nationals to postpone their scheduled transactions in the university until February 14 as well.

A day after incurring the ire of people online for issuing a memorandum, which singled out Chinese students, the president issued an addendum. Manimtim said that the self-quarantine advisory shall include all staff, students and stakeholders who have travel history to countries with confirmed cases of the 2019-nCoV within the last month.

He added that Chinese students and guests who are not limited by the conditions set in the self-quarantine advisory are allowed to come to school.

Members of the San Beda College Alabang, meanwhile, are mandated to wear a face mask starting Saturday, February 1.

As of Friday, the Health Department said the 2019-nCoV case here remains at one -- a 38-year-old woman from Wuhan, China -- the epicenter of 2019-nCoV acute respiratory disease outbreak.

The Department of Health said that 31 patients remain under investigation for suspected infection caused by the 2019-nCoV in the country.
Burke County residents who looked at their weather apps Thursday night saw rain in the next days forecast.

But Mother Nature had other ideas Friday morning.

Unexpected snowflakes fell across the county into the afternoon hours, lying heavily in some areas and sticking to roads in others before turning to rain and moving out of the area later in the evening.

A shift just before the system arrived produced the snow on very short notice, said Dan Crawley, a weather forecaster with Foothills Action Network.

Our weather team was monitoring the past few days for a cold rain event with snow possible in the higher elevations on Friday, Crawley said. That was still our forecast opinion up until early Friday morning, when short-range guidance was suggesting a better chance of snow or rain/snow mix in the lower elevations.

The guidance didnt give forecasters a ton of lead time. Ultimately, this turned out to be a bit more wintry than anticipated for Burke County and surrounding foothill areas. (You) gotta love western North Carolina weather.

Support Local Journalism Your subscription makes our reporting possible. {{featured_button_text}}

According to the National Weather Service, that shift centered on the speed of the system.
The Union Budget 2020 will be presented in a short while from now.

New Delhi: After meeting President Ram Nath Kovind, Union Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman and her deputy, Ministry of State Anurag Thakur arrived in Parliament to attend a meeting of Cabinet ministers ahead of the presentation of the Union Budget.

The Union Budget 2020 will be presented in a short while from now.

Like last year, Sitharaman opted for a traditional 'bahi-khata' to carry budget documents. Dressed in a crisp yellow silk saree, the minister carried the documents wrapped in a red silk cloth, adorned with the Indian emblem in golden.

The Union Budget 2020 will be presented in a short while from now. The Budget speech will begin at around 11 am today with Sitharaman beginning it with an address to the speaker of Lok Sabha. Usually, the duration of the presentation ranges from 90 to 120 minutes.

The word 'budget' has its origin in the French word Bougette, which means leather briefcase. Traditionally, budget documents -- which primarily include papers related to revenue receipt and expenditure as well as the speech of finance minister -- were carried in a brown briefcase, a legacy passed on by the British.

However, traditional Indian businessmen used bahi-khata to maintain their books of account. India's gross domestic product (GDP) is expected to rebound and grow at a rate of 6 to 6.5 per cent in the next financial year 2020-21, according to the Economic Survey laid in Parliament on Friday.

Weak global growth impacting the country and investment slowdown due to crisis in the domestic financial sector had led to the government to estimate GDP expansion at 5 per cent for the current financial year ending on March 31.
We may smile at the quirky names of some of the UK's least pronounceable towns and villages but locals are enjoying the last laugh with bumper house prices, new research reveals.

On average property prices in the top ten most oddly named villages and towns is 20 per cent higher than homes in their local district.

The average for a property in the Hampshire village of Beaulieu (pronounced Bew-lee) is 605,181, almost 80 per cent more than for homes across the New Forest.

We may smile at the quirky names of some of the UK's least pronounceable towns and villages but locals are enjoying the last laugh with bumper house prices, new research reveals

View on the historic Beaulieu village and river in the New Forest area of Hampshire in England

Autumn view of the Scottish village of Ballachulish, where buyers spend an average 247,221

A farm in Quernmore, Lancashire. In Quernmore homes go for 235,367, more than 45 per cent higher than Lancaster as a whole

Buyers in the village of Ballachulish (Ball-a-hoolish) spend an average 247,221, almost 50 per cent more than the 168,705 across the Scottish Highlands, while in Quernmore (Kwor-mer) homes go for 235,367, more than 45 per cent higher than Lancaster as a whole.

For Bicester (Bister) in Oxfordshire and Northern Ireland's Omagh (Oh-muh), the difference is more than 20 per cent compared with the rest of the district. In the Dorset village of Rampisham (Ran-som) it's nearly 15 per cent, and just over 13 per cent for Frome (Froom) in Somerset. In Woolfardisworthy, Devon, the 240,387 average price is nearly three per cent higher.

A street at Bicester village. For Bicester in Oxfordshire and Northern Ireland's Omagh, the difference is more than 20 per cent compared with the rest of the district

Omagh High Street in Northern Island, where houses are 20 per cent more pricey than the rest of the district

The old village post office in Rampisham, a village in Dorset

Cobbled streets at Catherine Hill in Frome, Somerset

The study, by estate agent comparison site GetAgent, compared prices in ten of the most difficult-to-pronounce places with those of surrounding areas. The Land Registry House Price Index and property prices on the Propdex and PropertyData sites were used to compile the figures.

GetAgent spokesman Colby Short said: 'We're talking about some very nice places, so you would expect a certain level of buoyancy. But it's clear that hard-to-pronounce villages and towns are often head and shoulders above the rest.'

But there are exceptions. Prices in Ynysybwl (An-is-abull) in Mid Glamorgan are two per cent below the area average and homes in Godmanchester (pronounced by some locals as Gumster) in Cambridgeshire are a huge 53 per cent less.
Veteran filmmaker Paul Schrader has announced that his follow-up to "First Reformed" will also feature actor Tiffany Haddish.

In an interview with The Metrograph, the 73-year-old director confirmed that Oscar Isaac will play the main lead in the movie, currently titled "The Card Counter".

Isaac will essay the role of a gambler and ex-serviceman who tries to reform a young man looking to exact revenge on a mutual enemy.

Schrader said the film will also feature Willem Dafoe and Tye Sheridan in pivotal roles.

As for Haddish, the filmmaker said, "I love Tiffany. I've never met her, but I was on the phone with her for an hour. She's a firecracker. It's like talking to a live-wire connection. She's very funny and, of course, she makes you funny."



"When someone's sharp, that makes you get sharp because you want to keep up. So that's all good," he added.

Schrader also said the film will revolve around "the world series of poker and Abu Ghraib".

"The Card Counter" is yet to begin production.

The filmmaker is best known for penning screenplays of four Martin Scorsese films -- "Taxi Driver", "Raging Bull", "The Last Temptation of Christ" and "Bringing Out the Dead".

Schrader's directorial credits include movies such as "Hardcore", "Patty Hearst", "Light Sleeper" and "First Reformed".

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
In three different cases, the Central Industrial Security Force (CISF) recovered foreign currency worth Rs 1.34 crore at the IGI Airport in the capital.

Two Afghan nationals and two Indians were arrested with the currencies.

The CISF said in the first case, $31,000 (Rs 22 lakh) was recovered on January 30. The accused were identified as Afghan nationals -- Abdul Saboor Amiri and Zafar Mohammad Nazari.

"During behaviour detection, CISF surveillance and intelligence staff of IGI Airport noticed suspicious activities of two foreign nationals. On physical checking of their bags, USD-31,000 worth approximately INR 22 lakh was found which were concealed inside the layer of clothes kept in their bags," read an official CISF release.

In another case, CISF detected Euro-1,19,200 and $2,000 worth Rs 96 lakh concealed in the turban of a suspect identified as Surinder Singh Seehra bound for Bangkok by flight.

In the third case that took place on January 31, CISF recovered $8050 worth Rs 16 lakh from an Indian identified as Habibullah.

The CISF officials said the passengers along with the recovered foreign currency were handed to the Customs officials for further investigation.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
The message that night came from many different voices, from within the Laotian community and others. Elgin City Councilman Corey Dixon encouraged everyone to spread the word about the importance of the Census. All of you are here because youre informed. Its not you that Im worried about. Its your brothers, your sisters, your cousins, your friends or the woman down the street who lives alone and is afraid to answer the door, he said. Dont be friends with anyone who doesnt fill out the Census, he said half joking.
Syrian insurgents carried out two suicide car bomb attacks in an assault on pro-government forces in Aleppo on Saturday and opened a new front northeast of the city, an attempted fightback after territorial gains for President Bashar al-Assad.

Backed by Russian air power, Syrian government forces had made a significant advance into the rebel-held northwest this week, seizing the town of Maarat al-Numan, part of an offensive to secure the main highway between Damascus and Aleppo.

The suicide attacks were carried out by jihadist group Hayat Tahrir al-Sham and targeted the Jamiyat al Zahraa area on the western edge of Aleppo. A third car bomb was set off by remote control, a source with the group said.

A news outlet linked to the group, Ebaa, published a video which it said showed elite Tahrir al-Sham fighters pledging "allegiance to death and jihad" before the attack on Jamiyat al-Zahraa, watched by the group's leader, Abu Mohammad al-Jolani.

The northwestern corner of Syria including Idlib province and adjoining areas of Aleppo is the last major rebel foothold in Syria, where Assad has taken back most of the ground once held by his enemies with Russian and Iranian support.

Syrian state news agency SANA said army troops had destroyed four car bombs before they reached their targets in that area. Syrian army forces were firing rockets and artillery at militant groups on the Jamiyat al-Zahraa front, it said. Militants had also fired rockets at residential districts of Aleppo.

A military news outlet run by Lebanon's Hezbollah, which fights in support of Assad, said the Syrian army had thwarted a "fierce attack" by the Nusra Front, as Jolani's group was known until it broke ties with al Qaeda in 2016.

Government control

The Hayat Tahrir al-Sham source said the attacks had targeted the "Iranian occupation militias", a reference to Iran-backed groups that have fought in support of Assad.

Aleppo city has been under full Syrian government control since 2016, when pro-Damascus forces defeated rebels in the east of the city.

Some 50 km (35 miles) northeast of Aleppo, Turkish-backed Syrian rebels attacked government-held positions near the city of al-Bab, a rebel source and the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights reported. SANA made no mention of an attack in that area.

Turkish forces were not taking part, rebel sources said.

The government's latest offensive in the northwest has triggered a fresh wave of civilian displacements, with hundreds of thousands moving towards the Turkish border.

Turkish President Tayyip Erdogan said on Friday Turkey may launch a military operation in Idlib unless the fighting there is halted.

U.S. special envoy for Syria James Jeffrey said on Thursday the Idlib fighting raised the spectre of an international crisis.

Turkey, which already hosts 3.6 million refugees from Syria, fears a fresh wave of migrants from Idlib. It has 12 military observation posts around Idlib, set up under a 2017 agreement with Russia and Iran, and several of them have since been surrounded by advancing Syrian government forces.

Search Keywords:

Short link:


The US Senate voted Friday against hearing witnesses in the impeachment trial of Donald Trump, setting the stage for the presidents likely acquittal on Wednesday.

The Democrats, who hold 47 seats in the 100-member chamber, had sought to peel off four Republicans to provide the 51 votes needed to approve the issuance of a subpoena for the testimony of former National Security Advisor John Bolton.

Last Sunday, the New York Times published an article reporting that Bolton, who left the White House under acrimonious circumstances in September, has written in his still unpublished book that Trump told him in July that he would release military aid approved by Congress for Ukraine only when the Ukrainian president announced a corruption investigation into Hunter Biden, the son of Trumps potential opponent in the 2020 elections, former Vice President Joe Biden. This contradicts the presidents claims that there was no quid quo pro linking the military aid to an investigation of the Bidens.

President Donald Trump speaks during a news conference with Finnish President Sauli Niinisto at the White House in Washington, October [Credit: AP Photo/Carolyn Kaster]

The 51-49 vote against calling Bolton or any other witnesses opens the way for a speedy conclusion of the impeachment trial on Wednesday, with the vote to convict and remove the president expected to fall far short of the required two-thirds majority. The vote is now slated to take place just one day after Trump delivers his State of the Union address to Congress on Tuesday.

From the beginning of the impeachment drive, the Democrats have refused to seek Trumps removal on the basis of the many impeachable attacks on democratic rights he has committed, including inciting violence against his political opponents, overriding Congress by means of a declaration of emergency to use Pentagon money to build his border wall, the abrogation of the right to asylum and mass incarceration of immigrants in concentration camps along the Mexican border, and his drone missile murder of a high-ranking Iranian government official, an act of war and war crime carried out without congressional authorization.

Instead, the Democrats have conducted their struggle against the Trump administration as a political intrigue within the state, centered on the charge that Trump is not pursuing a sufficiently aggressive foreign policy against Russia.

This campaign, carried out in alliance with disaffected sections of the intelligence, military and foreign policy establishment, was deliberately tailored to avoid arousing the widespread and intense popular opposition to Trump, which the Democrats fear no less than Trump does.

In the event, the Democrats impeachment drive failed to find a response among broad sections of the population, despite the fact that Trump has the lowest approval rating of any post-World War II president, with substantial sections of the population favoring his removal.

The right-wing character of the Democrats impeachment drive was expressed in the emergence of the arch-warmonger John Bolton as their hoped-for star witness in the Senate trial. Bolton is a notorious war criminal, responsible for lying to the public, along with his co-conspirators in the Bush administration, to launch a war in Iraq that led to the deaths of over a million people. He has advocated war against Iran, North Korea and Venezuela.

The Democrats impeachment drive was the outgrowth of the discredited Mueller investigation, based on the unsubstantiated claim that the 2016 Trump campaign colluded with the Russian government and WikiLeaks to undermine the campaign of Hillary Clinton, including through the publication of Democratic Party emails exposing efforts to sabotage the campaign of rival Bernie Sanders and Clinton speeches to Wall Street documenting her subservience to the financial oligarchy.

After Mueller failed to find evidence of collusion between the Trump campaign and the Russian government, the Democrats switched their allegations of foreign meddling in US elections to a July 25 phone call between Trump and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky.

On August 12, 2019, a CIA officer submitted a whistleblower complaint alleging that the president of the United States is using the power of his office to solicit interference from a foreign country in the 2020 elections. The report charged that Trump sought to pressure the Ukrainian leader to take actions to help the Presidents 2020 reelection bid, including seeking to initiate or continue an investigation in the activities of former Vice President Joseph Biden and his son, Hunter Biden, as well as seeking Ukrainian assistance in casting doubt on the narrative of Russian intervention in the 2020 election.

This was seized on by the Democrats to allege that Trump had withheld the military aid to Ukraine, an ally at war with Russia, in order to pressure Ukraine into announcing the investigation, thereby jeopardizing US national security.

In fact, Trumps withholding of the military aid had already provoked a fierce internal conflict within his administration, with State Department, Pentagon and National Security Council officials, including Bolton, opposing the move and working to get the money released. The ferocity of the conflict suggests that the delay in military aid was seen to cut across internal timetables for a major escalation of Ukraines conflict with Russia.

As the New York Times reported in an extensive report last month, Mr. Trumps order to hold $391 million worth of sniper rifles, rocket-propelled grenades, night vision goggles, medical aid and other equipment the Ukrainian military needed to fight a grinding war against Russian-backed separatists would help pave a path to the presidents impeachment.

Just minutes before the December vote in the House of Representatives to bring articles of impeachment against Trump, House Intelligence Committee Chairman Adam Schiff declared, Ukraine is fighting our fight against the Russians, against their expansionism. Thats our fight, too. During the Senate trial, Schiff said that the United States aids Ukraine and her people so that we can fight Russia over there and we dont have to fight Russia here.

For its part, Trumps defense team has used the impeachment proceedings to assert a vast expansion of presidential powers at the expense of Congress, laying the pseudo-legal basis for a presidential dictatorship. Trumps attorneys repeatedly stated that the United States is not a parliamentary democracy, declaring that the president does not serve at the pleasure of the Congress, asserting this in the context of denigrating Congress powers of oversight as laid down in the US Constitution.

The legal sophist Alan Dershowitz argued that the president can be impeached only for committing crimes on the statute books, and that neither abuse of power nor obstruction of Congress is an impeachable offense. This is a legal premise which, if accepted, would invalidate the articles of impeachment against Richard Nixon, who resigned in order to avoid being impeached in the House for obstruction of justice, abuse of power and contempt of Congress.

The reactionary basis of the Democrats impeachment campaign has created conditions in which the Trump White House, widely hated, wracked with crisis and facing an upsurge in working class resistance both in the US and internationally, will feel emboldened to accelerate its efforts to transform the presidency into a dictatorship and whip up an extra-parliamentary fascistic movement.

On Thursday, Trump held a rally in Des Moines, Iowa, the state that on Monday will hold the first Democratic presidential primary contest. In his speech he pledged that America will never be a socialist country and vowed to defeat the radical socialist Democrats who are right down the street.

He once again implied that he will defy constitutional term limits, declaring, When we leave in 10, 14, 18, 22 years from now, the New York Times will be out of business and so will a lot of them, referring to critical media outlets.

As the World Socialist Web Site wrote following the impeachment vote: In their own way, both parties represent the twin imperatives of American imperialism under conditions of social crisis and the loss of its global hegemony. The Democrats embody the drive to war; the Republicans, in the form of Trump, embody the move toward fascistic and authoritarian forms of rule.

The collapse of the impeachment drive has made clear that no serious struggle against the Trump administration is possible in alliance with the Democratic Party. The removal of Trump from office is an urgent political task. But it can be achieved only through an independent social and political movement of the working class. The essential prerequisite for the building of such a movement is a total and unequivocal break with the Democratic and Republican parties and the building of a socialist movement of the working class.
01.02.2020 LISTEN

Lawyer for National Communications Officer of the National Democratic Congress (NDC), Edudzi Tamakloe has dismissed claims that his client, Sammy Gyamfi published and disseminated a forged memo purportedly seeking to direct the Chief of Staff to convene a cabinet meeting.

Mr. Tamakloe made this comment in response to a press release issued by the office of the Secretary to the President which indicated among others that Sammy Gyamfi's arrest was pursuant to a warrant that was issued, following the publication.

The statement said he was cautioned on the offences of possession of forged document and publication of false news with the intent to cause fear and alarm.

The attention of the Office of the Secretary to the President has been drawn to various commentary on social media that suggests that the complaint lodged against Sammy Gyamfi, the National Communications Officer of the National Democratic Congress, by the Secretary to the President, with the Criminal Investigation Department (CID), is borne out of revenge and/or malice or is politically motivated. That suggestion is erroneous and should not be entertained at all.

The complaint was lodged with the CID on November 28, 2019, following the publication and dissemination of a forged memo purportedly signed by the Secretary to the President, seeking to direct the Chief of Staff to convene a Cabinet meeting. The forged document was published, with extra commentary, on the Facebook page/account of Sammy Gyamfi, the statement said.

Mr. Tamakloe on Eyewitness News, however, rubbished these suggestions, saying his client had not committed the offence he was being accused of.

The Communication Bureau of the Presidency cannot be truthful, at least they owe it a responsibility to be accurate.

The conduct of the Police under him [President Nana-Addo] is becoming embarrassing and thus this face-saving release from him. That is why it is even more regrettable when the President becomes the post for cooking this lie that Sammy Gyamfi posted something directing Cabinet meeting. When? It is rather unfortunate.

Sammy Gyamfi's offence

Sammy Gyamfi was arrested at the premises of Accra-based UTV at Abeka Junction on Monday, January 27, 2020.

According to the police, he was cautioned for allegedly possessing forged document and the publication of false news with the intent to cause fear and alarm contrary to section 166 and 208 of the Criminal and Other Offences Act, 1960 (ACT 29) respectively.

He was later granted bail with two sureties  to be reporting once every week at the CID headquarters.

citinewsroom
The Alabama Legislature passed its top priority last year, a fuel tax increase for better roads, quickly and by a wide margin with bipartisan support.

This year, a crisis in the state prison system stands as the top issue, but the path to a solution is murkier, more complex, and figures to carry a hefty price tag.

Lawmakers convene at noon on Tuesday to begin the 2020 session. Gov. Kay Ivey will deliver her State of the State address Tuesday night and is expected to talk about prisons, education, health care, the census, and other issues.

Proposals for a state lottery and other gambling issues will be in the mix that legislators will consider over the next three and a half months.

House Speaker Mac McCutcheon, R-Monrovia, who has led the chamber since 2016, worked for years to lay the groundwork for passing the gas tax last year.

The path was there for us and the structure from the legislation was already in place, McCutcheon said. Well, the path this year is not that clear on corrections. And corrections is really priority number one because of where we are with the Department of Justice.

The Department of Justice notified Ivey in April that it believes the state is violating the constitutional rights of inmates because of the violent conditions its investigation found. The DOJ said overcrowding and a severe shortage of staff compounded the problems. State officials and the DOJ are in negotiations.

The overcrowding has gotten worse since April, rising to 170% of the prison systems designed capacity. The revelation that crumbling conditions will force the transfer of more than 600 inmates from Holman Correctional Facility adds more stress.

The problems have festered for years to reach a state that Ivey calls a crisis. A study group led by former Alabama Supreme Court Justice Champ Lyons stressed urgency in its report to the governor, saying the state is at risk of a federal court ordering the release of inmates, which happened in California in 2012.

The study group did not propose specific legislation but said rehabilitation through expanded education, training, and treatment programs is the long-term solution because 95% of inmates will be released. Rehabilitated inmates are less likely to return to crime and wind up back in prison.

Well address corrections on the legislative side and take the lead from the governors office on what their plans are and what their intentions are and well just start working the process, McCutcheon said. Its not going to be as clear as the transportation, but it will be a cooperative effort like transportation was. We are working together on what we need to do.

Lottery and gambling

Lottery bills die every year in the Legislature but the idea still has life. Forty-five states have lotteries, including the four that border Alabama.

I think the chances are good that well address a lottery because the people of Alabama, when you look at some of the polling, theyre ready for the Legislature to address it as a funding source, McCutcheon said.

The speaker said he would prefer not to rely on gambling revenue to fund state services. But the states aversion to tax increases and the rising costs for prisons, Medicaid, mental health and other state services means that it needs to be considered.

Also, the state has established gambling -- three electronic bingo casinos operated by the Poarch Band of Creek Indians and counties that have authorized pari-mutuel betting at dog tracks and bingo. The state is not receiving revenue from those activities, McCutcheon said.

And because of that, I think our first discussion about additional revenue needs to be right there, McCutcheon said. Before we talk about taxes and any other issues that we deal with in the state, I think we need to talk about revenue from gambling.

Rep. Steve Clouse, R-Ozark, who chairs the General Fund committee in the House, is sponsoring a lottery bill that would direct net proceeds to education, with 50% to expand access to the states highly regarded prekindergarten program and 50% to need-based scholarships for college or technical school.

Lawmakers say pledging lottery revenue to education increases the odds of passing a bill and putting it on the ballot for voters to have the final say, which has not happened since 1999.

But the question still remains for many of the members, what do we do for the General Fund? McCutcheon said.

The speaker said he believes there is a possibility for legislation to allocate revenue from the counties that have authorized pari-mutuel gambling and bingo, as well as a possible agreement with the Poarch Creeks, to benefit the General Fund.

Somewhere along the line were going to have to pull people together and sit down at the table and start talking about what could be some alternatives for the gambling issue, McCutcheon said. And if so, could the Poarch Creek Indians or possibly the local issue be a revenue source for the General Fund.

The speaker said there is not yet an agreement on a specific proposal. He said it would likely be a constitutional amendment.

Senate President Pro Tem Del Marsh, R-Anniston, said he suggested to McCutcheon that a lottery bill wont pass without some resolution to the conflict between the factions competing for the other gambling dollars.

Those entities that have those other concerns are going to try to slow the lottery down in order to see things they want to get done, Marsh said. I think a package deal is more practical and possible.

House Minority Leader Anthony Daniels of Huntsville said the Democratic caucus wants to create a growth fund from lottery revenues that local governments could use to match federal grants. He said that will boost the economy in communities that need to improve infrastructure to attract employers but dont have the 20% local contribution required to draw down many federal grants.

Weve just got to create opportunities and help communities help themselves, Daniels said.

Education

With employment in the state at record levels, the growth in state income tax revenue that supports education pushed the education budget over $7 billion for the first time this year, an increase of $500 million over last year.

That growth is expected to continue, which means that lawmakers are again expected to pass the states largest ever education budget.

That is likely to mean an across the board cost-of-living raise for teachers. It would be the third straight year for a raise. Educators received a 2.5% increase in 2019 and a 4% raise this year.

McCutcheon said he would support a plan to offer extra pay to math and science teachers to address a shortage in those subjects.

I think were going to have to pay these types of educators more to attract them into the profession, McCutcheon said.

Alabamas rankings at or near the bottom among states in reading and math on the National Assessment of Educational Progress will affect the education budget. Last year, lawmakers passed the Alabama Literacy Act, which aims to help struggling readers in the earliest grades.

To make that happen, the State Department of Education requested about $50 million for teacher training, reading specialists, summer programs for students with reading deficiencies, and pilot labs to help students with dyslexia.

Lawmakers have steadily increased funding for Alabamas First Class prekindergarten program. This years budget of $123 million is triple what it was five years ago. But the program, which has been recognized for its quality for more than a decade, still reaches fewer than half of the states eligible 4-year-olds. Ivey has made early childhood education a priority, so another funding increase is possible.

Minority leader Daniels said pre-K and other early childhood programs are a good investment of education dollars, noting the scientific research that says 95% of a childs brain development happens from birth through age 5.

If were focusing more education on the front end, before they get into kindergarten, or get to first grade, well be better off academically long term, Daniels said.

Other issues

The Alabama Department of Mental Health requested $18 million to establish three crisis centers to provide stabilization and care for people with mental illness as a better alternative to hospital emergency rooms and to reduce the likelihood that the mentally ill land in jail after an encounter with law enforcement.

McCutcheon said he supports the idea of crisis centers but has some concerns about the cost. He said he would like to see it started as a pilot program.

Were hearing from hospitals across the state that the emergency room is not really the place for them, McCutcheon said. They can treat them, they can try to take care of the immediate crisis that they may be facing. But the emergency room is really not the place.

Last year, the Senate passed a bill to regulate the production and use of medical marijuana but it stalled in the House. That led to the establishment of an 18-member study commission that held three public hearings last year, receiving presentations from those for and against the idea and hearing from the general public. At the conclusion of their research, 12 of the 18 commissioners voted in support of the concept.

Sen. Tim Melson, R-Florence, an anesthesiologist and medical researcher, said he will again sponsor a bill. Melson said it would allow doctors to recommend medical cannabis products as an alternative for people suffering from chronic pain and other symptoms who have not found relief from conventional treatments. He said he opposes recreational marijuana and his bill would not allow use of the raw plant or products that are smoked.

More than 30 states have passed laws allowing the use of marijuana for medical purposes, according to the commissions report. Alabama Attorney General Steve Marshall urged lawmakers to oppose it.

Marsh said he expects the Senate to debate Melsons bill.

Ill do all I can to make sure he gets it in committee and to the floor for debate, Marsh said.

McCutcheon said he believes much of the opposition to medical marijuana in the House remains.

Were going to see what the Senate comes up with and see if they can get it passed., McCutcheon said.

Daniels said the Democratic caucus would continue to advocate for Alabama to expand Medicaid under the Affordable Care Act. Alabama is one of 14 states that has not done so. Ivey and legislative leaders have said it would be too expensive, even though the federal government covers most of the cost.

I can clearly see the returns on our investment, Daniels said Its just like pre-K. There will be folks that say why are we doing pre-K. They say we cant afford it. Well, we cant afford not to do it. Thats the way I feel about health care.

With the governor and the Republican majority in the State House opposing Medicaid expansion, Daniels said the caucus would support other ways to improve access to healthcare, including finding ways to recruit and retain physicians and through the use of telemedicine.

Daniels said the caucus was holding town hall meetings around the state and would incorporate what it hears from constituents into a legislative agenda.

Changing Alabamas law regarding bail for people accused of serious crimes will be a topic. Support for new restrictions on bail access could gain momentum because of the murder of college student Aniah Blanchard, who was abducted last year in Auburn and shot to death. The man charged in Blanchards death had been released on bail on charges that included attempted murder, kidnapping, and robbery.

Blanchards mother, Angela Harris, appeared at the State House to speak in favor of the bail reform bill by Rep. Chris Brown, R-Mobile. Current Alabama law says defendants have a right to bail unless they are charged with a capital offense. Browns proposal would give judges the option of denying bail for defendants charged with other violent felonies. Browns proposal is a constitutional amendment and would require voter approval if it clears the Legislature.

McCutcheon said he supports the bill.

Were going to try to address that bill early in the session and get it out so the Senate can deal with it, McCutcheon said.

Sen. Cam Ward, R-Alabaster, is also sponsoring a bail reform bill.
An Arizona man having a medical emergency on a sidewalk died after a Good Samaritan quickly pulled over to help and the car accidentally ran him over on Thursday.

The City of Phoenix Police Department said 34-year-old Michael Phillips was standing on a sidewalk near 43rd Avenue and Bell Road and it appeared he was suffering from an undisclosed medical issue.

A unidentified Good Samaritan, 55, noticed Phillips struggling and pulled over her 2004 Buick sedan to help the man.

Authorities say Michael Phillips, 34, was suffering a medical emergency on an Arizona sidewalk when a Good Samaritan pulled over to help

In the Good Samaritan's rush, she forgot to put her 2004 Buick sedan in park and it rolled over Phillips after he feel in the street

When the woman stopped her car, Phillips suddenly fell into the street without warning.

As she hastily jumped out of her car to assist Phillips, she forgot to put her car into park and the Buick drove over the victim.

Phillips was rushed to a local hospital, but was later pronounced dead.

The woman, who was not injured, stayed behind at the scene to talk to authorities and it was determined she was not impaired at the time of the incident.

The Maricopa County Medical Examine is set to determine Phillip's cause of death.
The United States has arrested a man on allegations that he was the leader of a group of Al-Qaeda militants in Iraq, which has requested his extradition.

Ali Yousif Ahmed Al-Nouri, a 42 year-old resident of Phoenix in the southwestern state of Arizona, appeared before a federal judge on Friday and is wanted in Iraq on premeditated murder charges over the death of two policemen in Fallujah in June and October 2006.

"The Government of Iraq subsequently requested Ahmed's extradition from the United States" after a warrant was issued by an Iraqi judge, the US Department of Justice said in a statement released Friday.

Ahmed, who was arrested on Thursday, was allegedly the leader of a group of Al-Qaeda militants in Fallujah that targeted Iraqi police.

The Justice Department statement gave no further details about how long the man had been living in the US or his visa status.

A final decision on any extradition would be made by the US Secretary of State.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
While some are criticizing a decision to sentence a woman diagnosed with advanced-stage ovarian cancer to prison for shoplifting, the Lebanon County District Attorneys Office argued in a statement that the sentence was justified given her criminal history.

Ashley Menser, 36, was sentenced last week by Lebanon County Judge Samuel A. Kline to serve ten months to seven years in jail. Menser pleaded guilty to shoplifting $109.63 worth of merchandise from a Weis Markets in 2018.

Lebanon County District Attorney Pier Hess Graf noted in a news release that Menser pled open, meaning the court decides the sentence it deems appropriate.

Options before the court are dependent upon a pre-set sentencing range, determined by the defendants current charge and prior criminal record, Graf wrote, pointing out that Menser had a "lengthy criminal history, including 13 prior theft convictions, welfare fraud, and endangering the welfare of children. In this case, Ms. Mensers sentencing range called for jail time, anywhere from six to sixteen months in duration.

Menser also had a history of abusing drugs, Graf wrote.

Mensers attorneys requested house arrest so that she could continue to get medical treatment. PA Post previously reported that Menser and her family were so confident she would be allowed to leave the courtroom that Menser had made an appointment the day of the sentencing so that she could be scheduled for a hysterectomy.

In the week that Menser has been in jail, her parents say the corrections staff have neglected her cancer treatment.

Graf noted a 2019 document submitted by her attorney indicated Menser had refused treatment at some point.

The court rejected the notion of house arrest given the defendants extensive prior criminal record and the circumstance of the current offense, Graf wrote, going on to point out that Menser stole makeup, hair dye, a candle, and a Super Skinny Serum product.

The court imposed a period of state incarceration ... and the simple fact the state system is far more capable of addressing serious health concerns for inmates, Graf wrote.

Lt. Gov. John Fetterman has since called for Lebanon County Correctional Facility to release Menser so she can get treatment. He even offered to pay the $109.63 back to Weis Markets. He went so far as to upload a photo of the check to social media.

If the underlying details of this are accurate, this cannot be allowed to continue.



Im sure @WeisMarkets doesnt support this. Ill personally pay the $109 back.



Calling on Judge Kline to err on the side of mercy. https://t.co/4N50n4aKPK  John Fetterman (@JohnFetterman) January 31, 2020

A picture of the actual check Im going to personally deliver to the @WeisMarkets in Lebanon to make them whole after they were victimized by this specific shoplifting conviction that sent her to prison for 10 months. pic.twitter.com/I9BWs55BeN  John Fetterman (@JohnFetterman) January 31, 2020

Graf pointed out in the news release that Fetterman failed to mention Mensers criminal record or history of drug abuse, and also stated that her sentencing ranges - as set forth by legislature - call for jail time.

Mensers case has garnered attention from The New York Times.

Thanks for visiting PennLive. Quality local journalism has never been more important. We need your support. Not a subscriber yet? Please consider supporting our work.
Chennai, Feb 1 : The CISF personnel on Saturday seized over 2 kg gold valued around Rs 1 crore from a woman at Chennai international airport, officials said.

A senior CISF officer said Vijaykumari, who exhibited "suspicious behaviour", was intercepted and taken to a frisking booth where she was checked by women CISF personnel.

The woman, a housekeeping staff of Travel Food Services, Chennai, was stopped when she was walking out of the new international terminal building.

Around 2.4 kg (a total of 24 pieces of gold bars) wrapped in black adhesive and tied around her waist in a bandolier was found.

During questioning, the woman said she got the gold bars from a woman passenger in the washroom.

The custom department officials were informed and the gold bars handed over to them.
People who have visited or transited through mainland China from Saturday will be banned from entering Australia for two weeks, Prime Minister Scott Morrison has announced, as the number of confirmed coronavirus cases rose to nearly 12,000 globally.

Australian citizens, permanent residents and members of their immediate families will be exempt from the ban but will be asked to self-isolate for 14 days from their date of departure from China, Mr Morrison said on Saturday.

Prime Minister Scott Morrison has announced that travellers from China will be banned from entering Australia for two weeks. Credit:AAP Image/Bianca De Marchi

Australians who are currently in Wuhan and have asked to be evacuated by the Australian government have been told that a Qantas flight will leave the city on February 3, and that Australian permanent residents as well as citizens will be allowed to board.

However, anyone with a temperature of 37.3 degrees celsius or above will not be allowed onto the aircraft and will be asked to seek medical assistance within Wuhan, those shortlisted for the flight have been told by the Australian government in an email.
U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo has said the United States seeks closer ties with Belarus but added Minsk did not need to take sides between Washington and Moscow.



Pompeo made the remark at a meeting in Minsk on February 1 with Belarusian President Alyaksandr Lukashenka.



"There's a long history with Russia. It's not about picking us between the two. We want to be here," he said.



Washington would appoint a new ambassador to Minsk soon, Pompeo said, adding that the United States would continue to push for human rights reforms while also fostering closer economic ties.



Pompeo's visit is the first by a U.S. secretary of state to Belarus since Warren Christopher accompanied then-President Bill Clinton to Minsk in 1994.

His one-day visit comes with relations between Russia and Belarus strained over the failure to agree on an oil supply contract for this year. That row comes amid a broader dispute between Moscow and Minsk in which Lukashenka has accused the Kremlin of trying to pressure Belarus into a deeper union with Russia.

Washington, in another boost to its ties with Belarus, on January 31 omitted it from a list of countries under a travel ban after earlier signaling its possible inclusion.



"It is very good that you, after all kinds of misunderstandings in relations between Belarus and the United States, absolutely baseless misunderstandings...you risked coming to Minsk to look at this country," Lukashenka told Pompeo.



In a seemingly jocular reference to the West's characterization of him as a dictator, Lukashenka told Pompeo: "Our dictatorship is different, in that everybody is resting on Saturday and Sunday, and the president works."



Lukashenka has said he has held talks with the United States and other countries to secure alternative energy supplies. Moscow suspended supplies to refineries in Belarus from January 1, though it partially restored them on January 4.



"The United States wants to help Belarus build its own sovereign country. Our energy producers stand ready to deliver 100 percent of the oil you need at competitive prices," Pompeo said at a meeting with Foreign Minister Uladzimer Makey.



Makey acknowledged that Belarus recognized the necessity of making changes. "Belarus is probably not the most ideal country in this regard, and we do understand that we must implement some reforms in many areas, including the area of human rights -- and we are doing this," he said.

U.S. relations with Belarus -- a country of some 10 million people -- deteriorated more than a decade ago when Washington imposed sanctions on Lukashenka following the 2006 Belarusian presidential election on allegations of "human rights abuses related to political repression."

Belarus then recalled its ambassador to Washington and told the U.S. envoy to leave Belarus.

Pompeo arrived in Belarus after stops in London and in Ukraine as part of Washington's efforts to express support for Kyiv in its battle to combat what U.S. officials label as "Russian aggression."

Pompeo's trip will also take him to the former Soviet states of Kazakhstan and Uzbekistan before it ends on February 4.

With reporting by RFE/RL's Belarus Service and dpa
Korean residents and students from Wuhan, China, arrive at a state-run quarantine shelter in Asan, South Chungcheong Province, Saturday. They arrived at Gimpo Airport via a second chartered flight dispatched by the government to evacuate them from of the Chinese city hit by a new coronavirus. Yonhap



A second charter plane carrying 333 South Koreans from the coronavirus-hit Chinese city of Wuhan arrived in Seoul, Saturday, completing an evacuation mission to bring home about 700 nationals from the epicenter of the deadly disease.



The Korean Air plane touched down at Gimpo International Airport in western Seoul at around 8:15 a.m., a day after the first evacuation flight brought home 368 citizens from Wuhan.



Though they underwent medical checks at the airport in Wuhan, the evacuees underwent a second round of screenings upon arrival and then were taken to a state-run quarantine shelter in Asan, about 90 kilometers south of Seoul, where they will stay for at least two weeks.



The evacuees included one who missed the first evacuation flight due to signs of fever. The person was later categorized as having no symptoms and given approval to board the second flight.





South Korea reports 12th new coronavirus case, 70 potential cases under observation 350 evacuees from Wuhan placed in two quarantine facilities Government hit for poor diplomacy, clumsy responses to epidemic LG says coronavirus disrupting supply chain Seven of the evacuees showed some symptoms and were sent to a government hospital for additional checkups and monitoring.



Among the 368 people aboard the first evacuation flight, 18 were hospitalized after they showed symptoms of coronavirus infection. Of them, 11 tested negative, while the others are awaiting the final results of secondary testing despite initial negative results.



The government initially planned to bring back 722 Koreans from Wuhan and its vicinity. However, some decided to stay behind with family members of Chinese nationality who the local authorities had instructed to remain, while others could have missed the flight due to the citywide lockdown.



On Saturday, the health authorities here Korea reported another confirmed case of the new coronavirus, bringing the total to 12.



Since the virus first emerged in Wuhan, central China, in December, the death toll in China alone has risen to 259, AFP reported, citing data from China's National Health Commission. The number of infections in China stands at 11,791.



The World Health Organization declared the outbreak a global emergency, Thursday, as the United States raised its travel advisory for China to the highest level, banning all travel to the country.



In Asan and Jincheon, where the evacuees are being quarantined, residents initially expressed anger at the government's decision to use facilities there.



They later relented, with some holding up handwritten banners in support of the evacuees. President Moon Jae-in expressed his gratitude on Twitter, Friday.




(Newser)  President Trump has expanded his 2017 travel ban to include six more countries with sizeable Muslim populations, USA Today reports. Announced Friday, the new plan will block overseas visas for nationals of Nigeria, Myanmar, Kyrgyzstan, and Eritrea, and keep people from Tanzania and Sudan from entering America via the diversity lottery. The White House said the countries "fail to conduct proper identity management" or "fail to provide information necessary to comply with basic national security requirementsincluding sharing terrorist, criminal, or other identity information." The new ban has limitsit allows non-immigrant visas for business, students, or travelbut critics are decrying it as unfair, racist, or a political ploy to excite Trump's base for the 2020 election.

story continues below

"The ban should be ended, not expanded," said an ACLU official, per CNN. "President Trump is doubling down on his signature anti-Muslim policyand using the ban as a way to put even more of his prejudices into practice by excluding more communities of color." The White House said it targeted immigrant visas partly because it's easier to deport a visitor or tourist, but harder to remove someone who has emigrated to America. Immigrants can also apply for waivers, and countries can be removed from the list by adjusting their policies. The new restrictions are likely to affect over 12,300 possible immigrants next year in addition to the 135 million people hindered by the initial, seven-country ban, per the New York Times. The new ban is set to kick in on February 22. (Read more travel ban stories.)
Manchester United hosted Wolves at Old Trafford in the Premier League on Saturday evening with all eyes on Bruno Fernandes.

The new 46.5million signing from Sporting Lisbon was handed his debut for the club in front of the home fans.

Wolves held United to a draw once again, meaning not much has changed in the race for European spots.

Sportsmail's MATT PORTER provided live Premier League coverage of Man United vs Wolves as well as all the build-up.
*How was your experience shooting for Not Just Supper Stars?

It has been Phenomenal, it is something very new and if you talk about fitness, fashion, style, it is everything the audience wants to know. It is a lot of fun and I am sure people will connect to this



*How do you look back at your career? * How do you want to take forward your acting career?

I am an engineer who came into this field to pursue my career and to make my parents proud. I have done films in various genres and in various languages like Tamil, Telegu, Kanada, Chinese, Marathi Punjabi and English. I still think there are miles to go and the journey is on.

* What can we expect with your new upcoming movies? If you can briefly talk about a few movies you will be a part of

I am working on a movie called Kurukshetra which will be coming soon along with a movie in Tamil, I will also be starting shoot on Kungfu Yoga 2, and will be announcing another project too

*tell us what viewers/fans can expect from your episode in Not Just Supper Stars

They will see the real me, what I love, what I enjoy, what I want to do, so I am sure they will enjoy the show

*Who is your go-to person when you find yourself stuck in personal life or professional life? Who is joining you on this show? And, why that person?

My go to person is my wife sonali whenever I get stuck or whenever I need suggestion I always go to her, and ia lways get the right ones. But today I am with my trainer Yogesh, he has been with me since Happy New Year days and he has been training with me for various projects like Simba. He is one guy who has been constant support system when you talk about fitness

Hangout with your favourite celebrities and the real superheroes behind their success with Not Just Supper Stars on Sundays at 10 PM and reruns on Friday 11 PM on Zee Cafe
The Narendra Modi governments Budgets in its first stint from 2014 to 2019 were written with one eye on the forthcoming Assembly polls, which included it shifting the date of the presentation of Budgets: Like in 2017 when, in the run-up to the crucial Uttar Pradesh Assembly polls, the date was shifted to February 1 from the earlier February 28.

This year will see only two states going to the polls  Delhi on February 8 and Bihar in October. The new income tax slabs announced Saturday appear aimed at Delhi voters, particularly younger entrants to the job market or those ...
National Youth Organiser of the ruling New Patriotic Party (NPP), Henry Nana Boakye, popularly known as Nana B has accused the NDC of deceit following a meeting between the Electoral Commission (EC), Eminent Advisory Committee and the Inter-Party Advisory Committee (IPAC), Thursday.



The National Communications Officer of the National Democratic Congress (NDC), Sammy Gyamfi speaking on Peace FM's morning show 'Kokrokoo' a day after the meeting, reported that they were not given enough time to make their case.



According to him, even political parties who are not known had enough time than the NDC.



But reacting to this on the same platform, Nana B said the NDC spoke longer than any other party at the meeting.



"It is deceitful for them to claim that they were not given sufficient time . . . they even exceeded the time allocated to them," he argued.



Communique



The opposition party has also described as mischievous a statement released by the Electoral Commission after the meeting.



Per the statement an overwhelming number of people who attended the meeting endorsed the need for a new register; however, the NDC claim it's never true.



In response to this, Nana B said "the communique was endorsed by the Eminent Advisory Committee and I am surprised that they are rubbishing it especially as there are reports that their National Chairman signed it . . . overwhelming majority accepted for there to be a new register."



However, Sammy Gyamfi in a quick rebuttal said his National Chairman, Samuel Ofosu-Ampofo never endorsed the communique as suggested by Nana B.



He said the only communique they accepted was the one that came from the Eminent Advisory Committee.



Listen to their submissions in video below.





Source: Rebecca Addo Tetteh/Peacefmonline.com/[email protected]









Disclaimer : Opinions expressed here are those of the writers and do not reflect those of Peacefmonline.com. Peacefmonline.com accepts no responsibility legal or otherwise for their accuracy of content. Please report any inappropriate content to us, and we will evaluate it as a matter of priority.

Featured Video
By PTI

GOPALGANJ/SIWAN: CPI leader Kanhaiya Kumar on Friday urged Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar to lend his weight to the country-wide protests against CAA, NPR and NRC by getting a resolution passed against these in the state legislature.

The former JNU student leader also raised the demand at rallies he addressed in Gopalganj and Siwan districts.

He covered these districts on the second day of his "Jan Gan Man Yatra" under which he is touring the state with the message 'Samvidhan bachao, Desh bachao' (save the Constitution, save the country).

"I want to make it clear that these rallies are not aimed at an electoral benefit nor are these being organised by any political party."

"I urge the chief minister of Bihar to support our cause and get resolutions passed to the effect in the state assembly. Precedents have been set by many other states," Kanhaiya Kumar said.

The Nitish Kumar-led JD(U) had supported the Citizenship (Amendment) Act (CAA) in the Parliament.

However, the JD(U) chief, who runs his government in coalition with the BJP in Bihar, has been opposed to implementation of National Register of Citizens (NRC) beyond Assam and has expressed disapproval of the current National Population Register (NPR) forms containing "problematic" columns like places of birth of parents.

After a party meeting earlier this week, Nitish Kumar had told reporters that his MPs, in both the Houses of Parliament, would urge the Centre to drop these clauses from the NPR forms in view of "apprehensions" caused by these in people's minds.

Kanhaiya Kumar, who was thwarted from addressing his first scheduled rally in West Champaran on the previous day but was allowed to speak in the adjoining East Champaran hours later, faced stiff opposition from supporters of the Bharatiya Janata Yuva Morcha in Gopalganj where his posters were blackened.

The agitators were chased away by police clearing the way for the 32-year-old to deliver his address, during which he took a veiled dig at the BJP youth wing activists.

"It is good to chant Vande Mataram. But I would like to tell my friends, the love for the country also entails the love for all its people. Do remember patriotism is not about sycophancy of political masters. They will win elections, and pass over the mantle to their offspring while you all might end up chanting Vande Mataram all your life with no recognition," Kanhaiya Kumar said.

The Narendra Modi government has brought the "divisive measures of CAA and NPR to divert public attention from its failures, its inability to handle the economy, which is tottering at five per cent GDP growth rate, the PM's tall claims of a five trillion dollar economy notwithstanding", he said.
"A little appreciation goes a long way in the workplace," Terryberry's Managing Partner, Mike Byam says. "We're excited to be able to offer Employee Appreciation Gift Kits help clients say thanks to the individuals who do so much of the heavy lifting day-to-day in their businesses."

Companies of all sizes will observe Employee Appreciation Day on March 6, 2020. It's an opportunity for organizations to celebrate the team members that help them thrive. There are as many different ways to celebrate Employee Appreciation Day as there are unique company cultures. Activities often include food, fun, and small gifts. Just in time for Employee Appreciation Day, Grand Rapids-based Terryberry has announced a new line of Employee Appreciation Gift Kits (https://www.terryberry.com/employee-appreciation-gift-ideas-just-in-time-for-employee-appreciation-day/).

Terryberry's Employee Appreciation Gift Kits provide customers with a turn-key option for employee appreciation gifts. Customers can select from Terryberry's gift collection online and then upload their logo. Terryberry assembles the gifts into canvas gift bags or backpacks. The kits are shipped ready to present to recipients. Terryberry has a minimum order of 24 kits, so it's a simple solution for small and medium businesses or larger teams.

Terryberry, a global rewards and recognition provider, has long been in the business of developing rewards programs for organizations of all sizes. Their services include peer recognition software, award points programs, service awards, and custom award programs. Terryberry's Employee Appreciation Gift Kits and sister product Welcome Aboard Kits represent the company's entrance into e-commerce, self-serve solutions.

"A little appreciation goes a long way in the workplace," Terryberry's Managing Partner, Mike Byam says. "We're excited to be able to offer Employee Appreciation Gift Kits help clients say thanks to the individuals who do so much of the heavy lifting day-to-day in their businesses."

About Terryberry

Terryberry (https://www.terryberry.com) is a global provider of employee rewards and recognition programs. Based in Grand Rapids, Michigan, Terryberry serves thousands of organizations of all sizes throughout North America and the U.K.
India Ltd (HCIL) on Saturday reported a 70.98 per cent decline in domestic sales to 5,299 units in January, as it despatched only BSVI-compliant petrol models last month.

The company had sold 18,261 units in the domestic market in January 2019, HCIL said in a statement.

Exports stood at 182 units last month, it added.

"We are ramping up BS-VI production. Hence, our volumes will be lean in coming months. We are committed to enhancing the supplies and bringing down the waiting period which has gone up during this transition to BS-VI," HCIL Senior Vice-President and Director (Marketing and Sales) Rajesh Goel said.

The company said it completed despatches of BS-IV vehicles to dealers in December 2019 and now has less than a week of BS-IV stock left in its entire dealer network.
Trump impeachment trial: Senate votes against adding more witnesses, sets vote on impeachment articles

Email Print Img No-img Menu Whatsapp Google Reddit Digg Stumbleupon Linkedin Comment

Senate Republicans Friday voted to reject a resolution that would have allowed more witnesses and documents in the impeachment trial and prolonged it, and passed instead a resolution to make President Trumps acquittal possible next week.

Fifty one Senate Republicans rejected the resolution to call witnesses, possibly including former Trump national security adviser John Bolton and acting chief of staff Mick Mulvaney, according to Reuters. And 49 Senators, all Democrats except Sens. Susan Collins of Maine and Mitt Romney of Utah, voted unsuccessfully to approve subpoena of documents and witnesses in the trial.

The resolution would have prolonged the trial by several months.

All 53 Republicans then voted to approve Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnells resolution on the timeline of the trial while the 47 Democrats opposed it.

A majority of the U.S. Senate has determined that the numerous witnesses and 28,000-plus pages of documents already in evidence are sufficient to judge the House Managers accusations and end this impeachment trial," McConnell, R-Ky., said in a statement.

Instead of Saturday, the Senate will now reconvene on Monday when Trump's legal team and House managers will have two hours each to make their final statements. Then on Wednesday, the Senate will meet at 4 p.m. to vote on the two articles of impeachment that accuse the president of Abuse of Power and Obstruction of Congress.

On Tuesday, senators are expected to make their stands public on the Senate floor.

Republicans Friday night rejected many other amendments sought by Democrats.

According to leaked details from Boltons forthcoming book told to The New York Times, Trump allegedly asked him to withhold military aid from Ukraine until it launched investigations into Democrats, including former Vice President Joe Biden and his actions as head of the U.S.'s Ukraine policy.

During the Obama administration, Biden threatened to withhold $1 billion in aid to Ukraine unless a prosecutor investigating the Burisma energy company was fired. At the time, Burisma was paying his son, Hunter Biden, $1 million a year to sit on its board.

The twin brother of Army Lt. Col. Alexander Vindman, one of the House Democrats' witnesses in the impeachment inquiry, is suspected of being the person who leaked details of Bolton's manuscript to The New York Times.

Vindman's brother, Army Lt. Col. Yevgeny Vindman, a senior ethics lawyer for the National Security Council, is in charge of the review process for manuscripts written by former NSC officials, such as Bolton's book that was submitted to the NSC on Dec. 30.

During his House testimony, Alexander Vindman testified that he told his brother, Yevgeny, about the president's July 25 phone call with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky, in which Trump is accused by his opponents of pressuring Zelensky to investigate Biden. The two brothers discussed the call and Yevgeny told Alexander that he knew the transcript was moved to a top-secret server.

Trump later took to Twitter to denounce the Bolton manuscript claims, arguing that The Democrat controlled House never even asked John Bolton to testify. It is up to them, not up to the Senate!

The Associated Press then released a fact check of the statement, labeling it false in its entirety noting that the House had tried to get Bolton to testify but he declined.

House Democrats decided not to pursue a subpoena compelling Bolton to testify in the House proceedings because he threatened to sue, which could have meant an extended court fight, noted the AP fact check.

However, Trumps acquittal looks imminent.
FILE PHOTO: China Ocean Shipping Company (COSCO) vessel is seen near oil tanks at the China National Petroleum Corporation (CNPC)'s Dalian Petrochemical Corp

By Timothy Gardner, Daphne Psaledakis and Dmitry Zhdannikov

WASHINGTON/LONDON (Reuters) - The United States will likely lift sanctions within days on units of Chinese tanker company COSCO that Washington accused of transporting Iranian oil, two industry sources said.

A source with a major Chinese oil company said they had received indications that COSCO had been taken off the U.S. sanctions list. The Chinese energy industry was waiting for official communications from Washington, the source said.

Another energy industry source in London said that Washington had indicated it would soon lift the sanctions.

The U.S. Treasury Department declined comment. The State Department did not immediately respond to requests for comment.

Zhang Zheng, a Shanghai-based investor relations manager at COSCO Shipping Energy Transportation Co Ltd <600026.SS>, parent of COSCO Shipping Tanker Dalian, said the company has yet to be informed of any change in its sanctions status.

"The company will make the necessary announcement as and when there are big developments," Zhang said.

The administration of U.S. President Donald Trump blacklisted the Dalian units of COSCO on Sept. 25 in a move that pushed global freight costs to record highs and disrupted shipping markets.

The Dalian COSCO units only have about 40 tankers, but Washington's move led to confusion about whether sanctions applied to the parent company's fleet of more than 1,000 ships.

The Treasury Department had twice issued waivers to allow companies to wind down dealings with the COSCO units, the latest of which is set to expire on Feb. 4, but shipping markets were still unnerved.

The removal of sanctions will be bearish for tanker freight rates globally, with more than 25 very large crude carriers (VLCCs) owned by COSCO Dalian having been out of the market for the past three months, said Anoop Singh, head of tanker research in Asia at Braemar ACM Shipbroking.

"Their absence was key to the soaring freight rates seen in Q4 and early January," he said.

Story continues

China is the lone major importer of Iranian oil despite Trump's "maximum pressure" campaign on Tehran that includes cutting Iran's oil revenue to zero. Trump began re-imposing sanctions on Iran's vital oil exports after he unilaterally pulled the United States from the Iran nuclear deal in 2018.

It was unclear whether any lifting of the sanctions would mean that China or COSCO had agreed to the Trump administration's urgings to stop taking Iranian oil.

Chinese customs data showed on Friday that China took in 14.77 million tonnes, or 295,400 barrels per day, of Iranian oil in 2019, about half the imports of 2018.

Most of the oil likely went into Chinese government stockpiles, according to Refinitiv Research.

Tensions between Washington and Beijing are thawing amid the signing of an initial trade deal this month, defusing an 18-month trade war that hurt global growth.

A top Chinese official had raised the COSCO issue in the trade talks, said one source who advises COSCO and is familiar with the Chinese government's position.

U.S. Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin told Fox News earlier in January that he met with Chinese officials to talk about purchases of Iranian oil.

"They've cut off all of the state companies from buying oil, and we're working closely with them to make sure that they cease all additional oil activities," Mnuchin said.

Mnuchin said last week he expects to begin negotiations on a so-called Phase 2 trade deal soon, with both countries on the same page.

(Reporting by Timothy Gardner, Daphne Psaledakis, and Humeyra Pamuk in Washington, and Dmitry Zhdannikov, Jonathan Saul in London; Additional reporting by Chen Aizhu and Florence Tan in Singapore; Editing by Grant McCool and Tom Hogue)
The Tihar Jail authorities will move the Patiala House Court on Saturday for fixing the date of execution of all four convicts in the Nirbhaya gang-rape and murder case, officials said.

"In view of rejection of mercy petition of Vinay Kumar Sharma by the President, the Tihar Jail is approaching the Patiala House Court for fixing the date of execution in respect of all the four convicts," Director General (Prison) Sandeep Goel said.

The convicts -- Mukesh Kumar Singh (32), Pawan Gupta (25), Vinay Kumar Sharma (26) and Akshay Kumar (31) -- who are lodged in Tihar jail, were ordered to be hanged on February 1 at 6 am but a Delhi court postponed their execution indefinitely.

With Advocate A P Singh, the counsel for Pawan, Vinay and Akshay contending that their legal remedies were yet to be exhausted, the hanging date remains uncertain.

As of now, Mukesh has exhausted all his legal remedies including the clemency plea which was dismissed by President Ram Nath Kovind on January 17 and the appeal against the rejection was thrown out by the Supreme Court on January 29.

The curative petitions of Vinay Kumar Sharma and Akshay have been rejected by the apex court.

On Saturday, Akshay filed a mercy plea before the President, the Tihar Jail officials said.

Earlier in the day, the President rejected the mercy plea of Vinay.

Convicts have the option of moving a mercy petition before the President only after the apex court dismisses their curative plea. A curative petition is the last legal remedy available to a convict.

On Friday, the Supreme Court dismissed Pawan's plea seeking review of the decision by which his application claiming to be a juvenile at the time of the commission of offence was rejected.

A 23-year-old physiotherapy intern who came to be known as "Nirbhaya" (the fearless one) was gangraped and savagely assaulted on the night of December 16, 2012, in a moving bus in South Delhi.

She died of her injuries a fortnight later in a Singapore hospital.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
Archer-Daniels-Midland Co. (ADM) signage displayed on the side of a grain storage bin at an ADM grain elevator in Niantic, Illinois. Daniel Acker | Bloomberg | Getty Images

CNBC examined the latest Wall Street research this week to find stocks that analysts say are "compelling" buys for investors. These companies include Oxford Industries, iHeartMedia, Archer Daniels Midland, Qorvo, and Aspen Technology.

Oxford Industries

This week Needham raised its rating on the stock to buy from hold. The company is best known as the maker of apparel brands like Tommy Bahama, Lily Pulitzer and others. The firm said the anticipation of the shorter shopping holiday window may have caused some deceleration in the company's third-quarter earnings report in early December. But now things are starting to look up for investors due to what the firm said was "better demand" than expected in the holiday season. "Our checks also indicate fairly well-controlled discounting, giving us confidence about 4Q, analyst Rick Patel said. "We also think that OXM has compelling growth drivers for each of its major brands in 2020 that can fuel sales," he said.

Archer Daniels Midland

With Phase 1 of the U.S-China trade deal complete, there's one company that looks set to prosper according Buckingham. Archer Daniels Midland reported strong fourth-quarter earnings this week and it could be a big year for investors of the global food processing and agricultural commodities company if analysts are to be believed. "We believe the U.S./China Phase 1 trade agreement will gradually aid earnings across F20, but more specifically, during 4Q20 when U.S. crop prices are most competitive on a global basis," analyst Eric Larson said. The firm said the company's growth is "compelling" and urged clients now is the time buy. "With the potential aid of several improving 2020 micro/macro fundamentals, and self-help programs, we believe valuation and stock price downside risk is limited," he said.

iHeartMedia

B. Riley FBR upgraded iHeartMedia to buy this week and said the media communications company looks set to take advantage of the election season among other things . "High-margin political revenues should provide a few points of incremental revenue growth in 2020. Moreover, core radio advertising could benefit, as well, with political ads crowding out TV inventory availability for non-political advertisers," the analyst said. But the company's growth is still an area for investors to closely monitor when the firm reports earnings in late February. "Among investors, the fear of sustained core revenue declines, plus relatively high leverage, is likely to remain an obstacle for multiples," they said. "Despite this mixed outlook for the group, we see a compelling setup for radio's largest player, over the next year."

Needham- Oxford Industries, Buy rating

"We upgrade OXM from Hold to Buy as we see lowered 4Q expectations as achievable and believe the company's positive momentum will continue in 2020. OXM reported solid 3Q results but noted a deceleration for 4QTD on Dec. 11th, partly due to the challenge of the shorter Holiday shopping window. Industry results thus far point encouragingly to better demand in the days leading into Christmas. Our checks also indicate fairly well-controlled discounting, giving us confidence about 4Q. We also think that OXM has compelling growth drivers for each of its major brands in 2020 that can fuel sales."

Buckingham- Archer Daniels Midland, Buy rating

"The near-term outlook for ADM is improving, reflecting a new Phase 1 U.S./China trade deal, strong savings from the Readiness Program and excellent growth from Nutrition division. With the potential aid of several improving 2020 micro/macro fundamentals, and self-help programs, we believe valuation and stock price downside risk is limited; the setup for stronger 2020 earnings growth is compelling, particularly for investors with a 12-18 month investment horizon ... We believe the U.S./China Phase 1 trade agreement will gradually aid earnings across F20, but more specifically, during 4Q20 when U.S. crop prices are most competitive on a global basis."

B.Riley FBR- iHeartMedia, Buy rating

"While our sense is that investors remain skeptical towards the radio broadcasting group, we see reasons to expect both healthy growth and multiple expansion for IHRT over the next year. Our upgrade is based primarily upon an increased long-term outlook for AEBITDA and FCF, versus our previous forecast. Additionally, despite our initial skepticism around Liberty Media's/SIRI's interest in acquiring IHRT, we now see, in a best-case scenario, Liberty's interest evolving into a deal announcement sometime this year. Even without a deal, we believe that Liberty's interest alone provides a sturdier floor for IHRT, relative to the rest of the group."

Raymond James- Qorvo, Outperform rating

"We reiterate our Outperform rating on Qorvo and raise our price target to $135. The company posted a strong quarter and with a much better than seasonal guide on 5G strength in China, consistent with commentary from others. Qorvo was however the first to factor virus risk into guidance - while they haven't yet seen any effects, they provided preliminary guidance for a weaker than seasonal June in an effort to remain conservative. Virus concerns aside, Qorvo's 5G content story remains compelling, the stock's valuation remains reasonable despite recent gains, and we do see a path to higher earnings power, particularly as the high volume handset tier converts to 5G."

Baird- Aspen Technology- Outperform rating
Air India's Jumbo B747 plane departed from the Wuhan airport in the early hours of Saturday to reach Delhi, rescuing 324 Indian nationals from China, as the country continues to battle against the outbreak of novel Coronavirus.

"With 324 passengers, the special flight has taken off for India from Wuhan. It may reach Delhi at 7.30 am," said an Air India spokesperson at on Saturday.

Along with the Indian nationals, five doctors from Ram Manohar Lohia (RML) Hospital and one paramedical staff were on board, the Air India spokesperson added.

The flight had departed from Delhi airport at 1.17 pm on Friday to rescue Indian nationals from China, where more than 200 people lost their lives due to the novel Coronavirus.

Another special flight may take off from Delhi airport on Saturday to rescue more Indians from Wuhan, the Air India spokesperson on Friday evening.

READ | First Case Of Coronavirus In India Confirmed In Kerala; Patient A Wuhan Student; Isolated

Special arrangements made on the flight

Speaking of Friday's flight, the spokesperson said the special aircraft will carry a team of five doctors, one paramedical staff from Air India, with prescribed medicines, masks, overcoats, and packed food. A team of engineers, security personnel will also be present onboard.

Air India Chairman and Managing Director Ashwani Lohani had said that the place will not provide services, and the meals will be kept in seat pockets for passengers. This is to avoid interaction between the cabin crew and the passengers.

Air India has carried out rescue operations in the past also, carrying passengers from countries such as Libya, Iraq, Yemen, Kuwait and Nepal.

The death toll in China's novel coronavirus outbreak on Friday climbed to 213 with the number of confirmed cases totalling to 9,692. The Hubei province alone. reported 5,806 confirmed cases, including 204 deaths.

READ | EAM S Jaishankar Thanks China For Co-operation In Evacuating 300 Indians From Wuhan

Army builds quarantine facility

Ahead of the airlifting of nearly 300 Indian students from Wuhan, China, the Indian Army sprung in action to create an emergency quarantine facility near Manesar. The Indian nationals that will be arriving from Wuhan will be monitored for a duration of two weeks by a team of doctors to watch for any signs and symptoms of the novel disease.

As per the information released by the Indian Army, the procedure of screening and quarantine will comprise two steps, the first one being screening at airport followed by quarantine at Manesar and if any individual is suspected to be infected, he/she will be shifted to the isolation ward at Base Hospital Delhi Cantonment (BHDC). The Screening at the airport will be done by a joint team of Armed Forces Medical Services (AFMS) and Airport Health Authority (APHO).

READ | Army Rushes To Build Quarantine Facility As 300 Set To Arrive From Coronavirus-hit Wuhan

READ | WHO Warns Shutting Down Borders Could Allow Coronavirus To Spread Faster

(Inputs from PTI)

(Image credits: Air India)
Northern Ireland will remain part of UK customs territory, but it will also continue to align with EU on specific trade regulations.

Brexit is now a reality, but as the transition period gets under way to negotiate the future trading relationship between the United Kingdom and the European Union, the situation in Northern Ireland presents an enormous challenge.

Northern Ireland will remain part of the UK customs territory, but it will also continue to align with the EU on specific trade regulations and follow EU customs rules. And many businesses which rely on cross-border trade are worried about how that will work.

Al Jazeeras Paul Brennan reports from Belfast.
Wednesday, for the first time in more than 71 years, Rabbi Ezra Michael Finkelstein saw the sacred Torah given by his father for his bar mitzvah, when Ezra turned 13 years old. No, his Torah - a scroll of with the body of Jewish religious writings - had not been lost.
Resident doctors in Nigeria have called on the federal government to declare a state of emergency on Lassa fever.

The group, under the aegis of Association for Resident Doctors, made the call in Abuja on Saturday as the country is currently battling the scourge of Lassa fever.

It has become a yearly occurrence for Nigeria to lose health care workers to the disease, the doctors said, adding that they had already lost some of their members in this years outbreak.

As at January 26, a total of 689 suspected cases with 258 confirmed cases were reported, with 41 deaths.

Five health workers were among the 41 deaths recorded.

As the first responders to Lassa fever patients, health workers are susceptible to getting infected with the disease, the doctors said.

Due to these reasons, the association has deemed it fit to call on the government to get serious on finding a lasting solution to combating the disease, they added.

Speaking at the end of the annual conference of its National Executive Council, the president of the association, Aliyu Sokomba, said the decision to declare a national emergency on the disease will boost preparedness of health institutions in the country.

NARD calls on the Federal Government to declare a national emergency on Lassa Fever and also to evaluate hazard allowance paid to health workers considering the increased risk faced by health workers.

Declaring an emergency is owing to the poor preparedness in response of our health institution in handling cases of Lassa fever.

You will agree with me that it is only when the index case must have come with contact with a lot of individuals, especially health care providers that they are identified, at a much later stage.

If we have a state of emergency to improve the preparedness of our health institutions as well as their response in addressing the case of Lassa, it will contain cases of the disease in Nigeria, he said.

Mr Aliyu said the welfare of health workers should be a priority to government at all levels due to risks faced in the cause of doing their jobs.

NARD call on the federal government to make the issue of security of health care workers a priority both in and outside the hospitals.

NEC seems to state clearly that whenever a member is assaulted, the association shall call on their members to suspend work until adequate safety is guaranteed in such institutions and the assailant is brought to book fully, Mr Aliyu said.

As part of the resolution reached at NEC meeting, the association seeks the implementation of the National Health Act, 2014.

He also urged the government to ensure speedy payments of arrears off minimum wage and salary adjustments.

Lassa Fever

Lassa fever is an acute viral haemorrhagic fever (VHF) caused by the Lassa virus. The natural carrier of the virus is the multimammate rat, but the disease is also spread through human to human transmission.

Lassa fever is transmitted from the excreta or urine of the multimammate rat. Anyone who is suspected of being in contact with a Lassa patient needs to be presented to the health facilities within a period of 21 days.

Lassa fever at early stages present symptoms similar to febrile illness such as malaria.

Symptoms of the disease generally include fever, headache, sore throat, general body weakness, cough, nausea, vomiting, diarrhoea, muscle pains, chest pain, and in severe cases, unexplainable bleeding from ears, eyes, nose, mouth, vagina, anus and other body orifices. It could also present persistent bleeding from sites of intravenous cannulation.

Early diagnosis and treatment increase a patients chances of survival.
A darting trail of light flickering across the night sky has baffled onlookers who speculated that it may have been UFOs.

New Zealand residents around the country reported seeing an 'extremely odd' string of 30 to 40 lights crossing the sky from west to east.

Dwayne Alexander, from Torbay in Auckland, said it was 'the strangest thing' he'd ever seen before the flashes vanished behind a cloud.

A string of lights dashing across New Zealand's sky line on Saturday nights has baffled Kiwis

'There must have been around 30 to 40 lights close together going south east,' he said, the New Zealand Herald reported.

'They then disappeared.'

Kevin Prince reported seeing the same phenomenon in the sky from his home in Tauranga, 230km south-east.

'I've never seen anything like this. There was this unusual string of lights in a perfectly straight line moving across the sky. They looked like satellites, 40 lights moving from west to east.

'It definitely wasn't a shooting star.'

Shane Essjax, also from Tauranga, said: 'Big string of bright lights tracking from north to south, people rushing out of their houses to see.

New Zealanders across the country rushed outside to catch a glimpse of the abnormal light display

'I can only imagine it's a satellite breakup.'

And Nick Robinson added: 'Too perfect for shooting stars, looked like Santa's sleigh.'

But the dazzling display is not as mysterious as kiwis had first imagined.

This week Elon Musk's SpaceX launched its Falcon 9 rocket launch from Cape Canaveral Air Force Station in Florida -and it has been lighting up the night sky since.

Space news website SpaceFlight Now posted a video showing 60 satellites separating from the rocket for as it flew in orbit south of Australia.

The Falcon 9 has been launched as part of the company's Starlink broadband network to install additional communication satellites for internet access on Earth.

SpaceX have so far sent up four sets of 60 Starlink satellites.
Pakistan on Saturday summoned a senior diplomat from the High Commission of India and registered protest at the alleged ceasefire violations by Indian security forces along the LoC.

The Foreign Office said that a man has been injured in the "indiscriminate and unprovoked firing" by the Indian forces in Satwal Sector of the Line of Control (LoC) on February 1.

"Such senseless Indian acts... further vitiate the tense atmosphere along the LoC and pose a threat to the regional peace and stability," the FO said in a statement.

The FO summoned a "senior diplomat from the High Commission of India" and registered a strong protest over the incident.

Pakistan called upon the Indian side to respect the 2003 Ceasefire Understanding; investigate this and other incidents of deliberate ceasefire violations and maintain peace along the LoC and the WB, it said.

The FO said India should permit the United Nations Military Observer Group in India and Pakistan (UNMOGIP) to play its mandated role as per the United Nations Security Council (UNSC) Resolutions.

India maintains that the UNMOGIP, established in January 1949, has outlived its utility and is irrelevant after the Simla Agreement and the consequent establishment of the LoC.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
After meeting President Ram Nath Kovind, Union Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman and her deputy, Ministry of State Anurag Thakur arrived in Parliament to attend a meeting of Cabinet ministers ahead of the presentation of the Union Budget.

The Union Budget 2020 will be presented in a short while from now.

Like last year, Sitharaman opted for a traditional 'bahi-khata' to carry budget documents. Dressed in a crisp yellow silk saree, the minister carried the documents wrapped in a red silk cloth, adorned with the Indian emblem in golden.

The Union Budget 2020 will be presented in a short while from now. The Budget speech will begin at around 11 am today with Sitharaman beginning it with an address to the speaker of Lok Sabha. Usually, the duration of the presentation ranges from 90 to 120 minutes.

The word 'budget' has its origin in the French word Bougette, which means leather briefcase. Traditionally, budget documents -- which primarily include papers related to revenue receipt and expenditure as well as the speech of finance minister -- were carried in a brown briefcase, a legacy passed on by the British.

However, traditional Indian businessmen used bahi-khata to maintain their books of account. India's gross domestic product (GDP) is expected to rebound and grow at a rate of 6 to 6.5 per cent in the next financial year 2020-21, according to the Economic Survey laid in Parliament on Friday.

Weak global growth impacting the country and investment slowdown due to crisis in the domestic financial sector had led to the government to estimate GDP expansion at 5 per cent for the current financial year ending on March 31.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
The stepmother of a missing Colorado Springs-area boy claimed in an interview with KKTV Friday that the El Paso County Sheriff's Office violated her constitutional rights while questioning her.

Letecia "Tecia" Stauch was the last known person to see Gannon Stauch, 11, before he went missing Monday afternoon. Authorities said Gannon left to walk to a friend's house in their southeastern Colorado Springs neighborhood of Lorson Ranch near Fountain.

In an interview with Gazette news partner KKTV, Letecia Stauch claimed she was initially denied her request for a lawyer by Sheriff's Office detectives, who also would not let her have water or use a bathroom.

"The tactics (the detectives) started to get when I would answer questions ..." she told the TV station. "During that time, some of those things made me feel uncomfortable the way they were saying things.

"So I immediately stopped and felt like an attorney would help me with some of the vocabulary and things like that that I needed help with and understanding some of the things they were asking."

She also told KKTV that her 17-year-old daughter was briefly put in handcuffs when detectives pulled over their vehicle Thursday. She claims deputies had guns drawn and told her they were going to shoot her without identifying themselves as law enforcement officers.

Deb Mynatt, a spokeswoman for the agency, said she could not comment on Letecia Stauch's claims, citing an ongoing investigation. Mynatt could not comment if Letecia Stauch currently had a lawyer, either. Instead, she said, the agency is trying to keep the focus on finding Gannon, not on Letecia Stauch's statements to KKTV.

Since Gannon's disappearance, hundreds of volunteers have searched nearby fields and neighborhoods looking for signs of the missing boy. Friday, blue ribbons were placed throughout Gannon's neighborhood to show support for the family and let the boy know he's desperately missed, organizer Sara Robertson said.

Thousands have joined online "Find Gannon Stauch" Facebook pages over the week, filling pages upon pages with speculation about what happened to Gannon.

Authorities initially said his disappearance was being treated as a runaway. However, on Thursday, sheriff's investigators held a news conference with Gannon's parents and other relatives at which they said he is now considered an endangered missing child.

That designation was in recognition of his age, how long he's been missing, the cold, overnight temperatures and his need for medication. It also enabled the Sheriff's Office to access assistance from the FBI and other agencies.

In reference to the speculation that has been circulating online, a spokeswoman for the Sheriff's Office said Thursday night that "misinformation spread on social media has been an absolute hindrance to this case."

Letecia Stauch told KKTV Friday that she's received numerous death threats.

"I took care of Gannon for the last two years in our home because his mother didn't want to do it," she said. "I would never ever, ever hurt this child ... these people have these conspiracy theories ... I'm like, 'Why are you saying Gannon is dead?' He is not dead. We are going to find Gannon."

Letecia Stauch reiterated that she and her family have been involved in the searches for Gannon, despite Facebook users claiming she's been "missing."

"I'm just ready for Gannon to come home," she said. "Most importantly for him to see his family, but second, I am going to be so ecstatic when I'm able to say to people that I hope they have a really sincere apology for all these theories that have (come) out online."

As of Friday, the Sheriff's Office has received 72 tips through the communication center, Pikes Peak Crime Stoppers, the agency's website and phone tipline, all of which are being "vetted," Mynatt said.

Friday, the office announced 11 groups assisting in search efforts:

The FBI Child Abduction Rapid Deployment, Pikes Peak Regional Office of Emergency Management, El Paso County Search and Rescue, the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children, the Colorado Springs Police Department, the Fountain Police Department, the Salvation Army, the Voluntary Organizations Active in Disaster, the Army 4th Engineer Battalion, Flight for Life and the National Guard 100th Missile Defense Brigade.

Gannon's father, Albert Stauch, is a member of the National Guard 100th Missile Defense Brigade.

Missing Colorado Springs boy Gannon Stauch, 11, is 4 feet, 9 inches, with brown hair and brown eyes, and weighs 90 pounds. He was wearing a blue jacket and jeans the day he went missing. Anyone with information about Gannon is asked to call a tip line at 719-520-6666 or email shrtips@elpasoco.com.

Thursday night, Stauch and Gannon's mother, Landen Hiott, pleaded with the public for information regarding their missing son.

"I have hope," Hiott, who lives in South Carolina, said to a bank of media cameras. "So please have hope with me. I'm begging: Bring my baby home."
The celebrated Dhudike writer, Jaswant Singh Kanwal, lived a 100 years, wrote some 50 books, won many awards, led life on his own terms, swaying from extreme Left to the Right but left behind a rich legacy of fiction rooted in the rural landscape of Punjab and still popular with the readers for his inimitable style and memorable prose.

Born in a family of land-owners in Dhudike village of Moga district of Punjab and leaving school, he went as a teen to British Malaya and it was there that he started developing a taste for literature. Away from home, he longed for the sounds, sights and way of life that he had left behind. He returned after a few years to his village and decided that his would be the vocation of a writer and not a tiller of the soil. Yet he was to reap a rich harvest of words of the nurtured in the ethos of the life around him. Such was the reach of his words that they were etched in the minds of people. His readers still recall the dialogues from his novels.

INIMITABLE STYLE

Just a year ago, functions were organised to celebrate his completing 99 years. One remembers him stepping in style with his well-tied turban, black robes and a sword handing down his waist as one proud of his Punjabi Sikh origins which remained his hallmark even though he was given to ideological swings.

The most celebrated novel from his vast literature was Lahu Di Lao, a novel written on the brief Naxalite uprising that followed in Punjab in the footsteps of Bengal. The novel got a huge response from readers as the vision of the uprising lived long after the movement had been suppressed. Only later did some writers critical of him point out that the words he put into the mouth of one of his characters implied that the uprising was a movement of Jats, who ironically belonged to the land-owning class. Interestingly, this novel was published in Singapore during the Emergency and the copies were smuggled here. The other novel, Puranmashi, is also lauded for his beautiful prose.

COURTING CONTROVERSY

He had the gall to court controversy with the pride of a feudal lord. His sympathising with the separatist Khalistan movement caused a stir in the literary world but Kanwal ignored the criticism and saw nothing amiss in swinging from the extreme Left to the Right, taking them as movements which were similar in nature and their aim being to end the miseries of the struggling masses.

A couple of Punjabi authors also wrote fiction about the mysterious murder of one of his daughters, a student of Panjab University who wished to marry a non-Jat boy of a lower caste. However, nothing was proved and a relative who was convicted was let off on grounds of mental instability but the alleged honour death is talked about in hushed tones.

A writers world is made of many contrary pulls but even his detractors did not question the power of his pen.

AWARDS AND ACCOLADES

Among the many honours awarded to Kanwal were the Sahitya Akademi Award for his novel Taushali di Hansi in 1998 and Guru Nanak Dev University conferred upon him the degree of Doctor of Literature.

With his death, he passes from life to legend with a writer who will always have a prominent place in the world of Punjabi letters.
Its no secret that I travel often and have a special affection for translated literature. When I get lucky, the two passions meet, and here I am getting lucky in Istanbul: Im at the Gezi, an artistss cafe in Beyoglu, waiting for Turkish writer Sebnem Isiguzel and her agent, Nermin Mollaoglu, to talk about Isiguzels new novel, The Girl in the Tree, to be published by Amazon Crossing on April 16.

The two women arrive, equally delightful and equally impressive in their knowledge and commitment to literature. Isiguzel is one of the top writers in Turkey, with works translated into 10 languages. This is her first book to be translated into English.

The Girl in the Tree is inspired by the 2013 demonstrations against the destruction of Gezi Park in central Istanbul, which was being razed to make way for a commercial site. When police reacted violently, antigovernment protests swept Turkey. Hundreds of thousands of people marched, and thousands were injured and arrested.

Shaken by the events, the girl in the novel, unnamed until the last page, climbs the tallest tree in Istanbuls Gulhane Park, planning to spend the rest of her days there observing the cruelty and disorder of the world below. When a young man looks up and falls in love, he joins her and the two tell their stories. The girl tells tales of violenceof the pogroms against the Greek residents of Istanbul in 1955 and of the current ISIS attacksand tales from far back in history, when the first female slaves were brought to the city. People are nothing more than the accumulated stories of others, the girl says.

Mollaoglu, founder of the Kalem Literary Agency, says she so loved the novel from the very first page that the agency paid to have it translated. I still remember the feeling when I got the Amazon Crossing offer, she says. I work a lot, and it was very early when I checked my email. I woke up my husband, I was so excited. Its important to be published in English.

Mollaoglu also tells me that Isiguzels first book was awarded the prestigious Yunus Nadi literary prize in 1993, and no one believed she could have won because she was only 20 years old.

Isiguzel smiles. The book was banned by the Turkish censors [it references incest and necrophilia] along with two books of Henry Miller, she recalls. I was honored by the company!

With this book, Sebnem wants to bring the voice of Istanbul to American readers, but the themes of the book are universal, Mollaoglu says.

Who is the girl in the tree? Isiguzel asks. In this new world she could be Jane Fonda in a red coat or Greta Thunberg; she shares the same sense of anger and rebellion. And what is the girl telling us? Regardless of who you are or where you are from, she touches you deep down through the stories she relates. At one point in the novel, the girl says, Im the psychoanalysis of all women and youth. 

Amazon Crossing senior editor Liza Darnton says she considers translations a way of traveling to other countries, experiencing other cultures through books. She adds, My fantasy is people from different places who speak different languages coming together to discuss the same book.

Darnton first connected with Mollaoglu two years ago when she reached out to her about a Turkish book that unfortunately had already been sold. When she received a group email about The Girl in the Tree, along with a summary, she says she was intrigued. I usually dont have such a strong reaction, such a drive to see a book based on a summary, but I felt like this was the book I was looking for about Turkey. Nermin sent 30 pages and I remember a tingle. It was all I had hoped for.

The novel was published in Turkey in 2016; Darnton acquired world English rights in May 2018 before she had seen the whole book. I was smitten with the voice of the narrator telling this devastating story of Turkey, she says. I took a leap of faith that the author would take me where I wanted to gothe same leap a reader makes when they buy a book. I felt an urgency to hear the story the girl in the tree had to tell.  Then Darnton met Isiguzel at the 2019 Frankfurt Book Fair and found her magical.

The Girl in the Tree will come out in all formats simultaneously in April and to date rights have sold in eight languages other than English and the original Turkish. This book is very close to my heart, Darnton says. The girl is a complex voice, both tragic and comedic. She is resigned to death yet searching for salvation. The fact that shes stepping up resonates with the phenomenon of young people all over the world rising up with a hope for the future. I feel this is enduring literature, and Im hopeful that English-speaking readers will feel that way as well.

Isiguzel says, All my dreams are on paper. I came to love the world through literature. What I really want to achieve with this book is to make reading about the daily life of Istanbul an unforgettable experience. It is a happy thing that the book will reach more readers.
US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo arrived in Minsk on a visit, TASS reported.

This is the first visit of such a level by a representative of the American administration over the past 25 years.

Pompeo flew to the Belarusian capital from Kyiv. He will meet with President Alexander Lukashenko and FM Vladimir Makei. The US Department of State called the goal of the visit the desire to emphasize the US commitment to a sovereign, independent, stable and prosperous Belarus and reaffirm the desire to normalize bilateral relations.

Pompeo will stay in Minsk in less than a day. He was going to visit Minsk on January 4, and talks were planned with President Alexander Lukashenko. However, the visit was postponed due to the complicated situation in the Middle East. In August last year, John Bolton visited Minsk to meet with the country's leadership. In September 2019, Deputy Secretary of State David Hale paid a visit to the republic.
HANOI, Jan 31 - Vietnam Airlines will suspend its flights to destinations in China from next week over coronavirus concerns, the company said on Friday.

Its flights between Vietnam and Beijing, Shanghai, Guangzhou, Shenzhen will be suspended from Tuesday, Chengdu from Wednesday, and Macau from Thursday, the company said in a statement.

All passengers, especially Vietnamese in China planning to fly back to Vietnam are advised to reschedule in advance of their flights suspension dates, the statement said.

Vietnam Airlines will also suspend all flights between Hanoi and Hong Kong from Thursday, and cut its flights between Ho Chi Minh City and Hong Kong to seven from ten per week, it said.

Jetstar Pacific Airlines, partly owned by Vietnam Airlines, will also suspend its flights to Hong Kong and Guangzhou from Thursday, according to the statement.

Budget carrier Vietjet said earlier on Friday it will suspend all flights to and from China from February 1.

Vietnam Airlines, Jetstar Pacific Airlines, and Vietjet Air together operate 87 regular and charter flights to 54 destinations in China, averaging 401 services a week.

On Thursday, Vietnam said it would stop issuing visas for Chinese tourists after the Southeast Asian country detected three new cases of the virus.

The flu-like coronavirus, which is believed to have originated in a seafood and animal market in Wuhan, the provincial capital of Hubei, and was first identified earlier this month, has resulted in 259 deaths in China.

More than 11,700 people have been infected in China, and more than 130 cases reported in at least 25 other countries and territories, with Russia, Britain, Sweden, and Italy all reporting their first cases on Thursday or Friday.
WHO is working with countries in the Region to roll out the guidelines

The World Health Organization South-East Asia has urged countries in the Region to remain vigilant and strengthen readiness to rapidly detect any case of importation of the new coronavirus and prevent its spread.

Dr Poonam Khetrapal Singh, Regional Director, WHO South-East Asia Region said, It is time to focus all efforts on readiness guided by whatever is known about the new coronavirus.

As in the case of any new virus, much remains to be understood, the Regional Director said, adding that globally WHO has prepared interim guidance on case detection, testing, clinical management of cases, infection prevention and control during health care, home care for people suspected to have the virus, and guidance on reducing transmission.

WHO is working with countries in the Region to roll out these guidelines, prioritizing reviewing and building capacities for laboratory diagnostic, including referral of specimens and diagnosis; trainings in case management, specimen collection and transportation, and infection prevention and control; logistics support and communicating risks and promoting desired behavior in the community.

The Regional Director has been in contact with the Ministers of Health since the onset of the outbreak. Last week Dr Khetrapal Singh also took stock of the preparedness and support being extended by WHO to countries.

Two countries in the WHO South-East Asia Region  Thailand and Nepal - have reported confirmed cases of the new coronavirus.

Globally, WHO continues to work with networks of researchers and other experts to coordinate global work on surveillance, epidemiology, modelling, diagnostics, clinical care and treatment, and other ways to identify, manage the disease and limit onward transmission.

Dr Khetrapal Singh said, emphasizing that We should continue to be vigilant and ready to contain and prevent any further spread.

Though the new coronavirus being called novel coronavirus-2019 was not declared a public health emergency of international concern (PHEIC) by the Emergency Committee of the International Health Regulation which met last week, its risk was assessed to be high.
Britain is thinking big and global as we exit the European Union. I am no fan of China's economic imperialism or BT's skill at building out telecoms infrastructure.

But the decision to give Huawei a role in 5G ends uncertainty and gives the UK the opportunity to get the job done.

It is also a reminder that business and consumers need not just 5G but Korean-style ultra-fast broadband too.

Taking precautions: Coronavirus is spreading at a rate six times faster than Sars

The final decision on the HS2 high-speed rail between London and the North is awaited. But with Chancellor Sajid Javid on side it looks set to be kept on track.

Each time someone claims that January 31 and the lowering of the EU flag doesn't mean we have left Brussels behind, I despair.

A settlement with Europe will be agreed by year end, whether it is a bare bones series of intentions, a Canada-style trade deal or something else.

It will not be acceptable if 2020 becomes another year of infighting and damaging delays. That would consign the Boris bounce  looking very real in the housing market  to the dustbin. Business investment in the UK fell way down the OECD league in the post-referendum period. Unlocking the 750 billion of cash on corporate balance sheets is critical to kick start output. It is even more crucial now that the Bank of England has lowered forecasts for Britain's productivity.

Being part of the European Union meant that the UK was less exposed to global economic conditions than before 1973.

It has not been an enormous advantage since the Grexit threat and euro crisis of 2010 led euroland to stagnate.

Britain, as an open economy with the largest financial sector outside the US, can never isolate itself from global conditions.

I can remember how chagrined Gordon Brown was in 1997 when the Asian crisis required him to dramatically lower the UK's growth rate.

The UK may be able to quarantine itself from the medical fallout from the coronavirus emergency, but cannot avoid impact by the economic consequences.

Hong Kong academics (quoted by the Economist) say that the epidemic may not peak for several months. That is quite frightening. In 2003 during the Sars outbreak, China accounted for just 4.3 per cent of global output, a figure which has zipped up to 16.9 per cent.

Coronavirus is spreading at a rate six times faster than Sars, leading forecaster Cebr to suggest it could hit world GDP by between 1.8 per cent to 6 per cent, which would signal a global recession.

Even if one dismisses worst-case outcomes, the threat underlines the need for fiscal and monetary boldness to offset the slowdown.

The Chancellor has given himself more room to manoeuvre by easing the fiscal rules. By holding bank rate at 0.75 per cent in January the Bank of England left itself space to act decisively should the global economy lurch downwards.

Broken Hill

If I didn't know better, I would say that Hargreaves Lansdown chose Brexit day to bury bad news.

The reputation of the immensely profitable dealing platform has been badly holed by the Woodford scandal.

New business has declined, but revenues at 258million and profits at 171million are sharply up. That is not good optics for one-quarter of HL clients exposed to catastrophic losses as a result of following recommendations on HL's poorly monitored Wealth 50 list.

'Frustrating': HL boss Chris Hill described the Woodford affair as 'disappointing and frustrating'

HL boss Chris Hill described the Woodford affair as 'disappointing and frustrating'. Clients will regard that as crocodile tears.

In effect the broker has accepted a degree of culpability by the promise to tighten up oversight of the Wealth 50 list and to 'follow a more independent path'.

The chunky 8 per cent-plus fall in HL's shares may be just the start. Asset manager Cavendish warns there could still be a big Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) fine and a class action lawsuit from shareholders to come.

Bad advert

The speed of process at the FCA is never scary. But it is never a feather in the cap to be under investigation.

M&C Saatchi's shares plunged following disclosure that the FCA would be looking at forensic findings of overstated profits.

Not a great outcome for chairman Jeremy Sinclair and chief executive David Kershaw who are seeking to rebuild after the shock departure of co-founder Maurice Saatchi and a cadre of independent directors.

Experienced as he is, new deputy chairman Gareth Davis will have his work cut out.
Britain began an uncertain future outside the European Union on Saturday, as it gears up for likely gruelling negotiations on future relations with the EU after the historic end to almost half a century of membership. There was joy and sadness on Friday night as the EU's often reluctant member became the first to leave an organisation set up to forge unity among nations after the horrors of World War II. Little has changed yet as the UK is now in an 11-month transition period agreed as part of the divorce. Britons will be able to work in the EU and trade freely -- and vice versa -- until December 31, although the UK will no longer be represented in the bloc's institutions. But legally Britain is out, with attention now turning to what are set to be tough talks with Brussels this year on the future relationship. British newspapers reported late Saturday that the government was readying for a bruising battle. The eurosceptic Sunday Telegraph said Prime Minister Boris Johnson had already become "privately infuriated" at perceived EU attempts "to frustrate a comprehensive free trade deal". A leaked memo from Foreign Secretary Dominic Raab orders UK diplomats to make an immediate break with former European allies, in ways such as not sitting alongside them at international summits, the Sunday Times said. It instructed them to "adopt a stance as a confident independent country," the paper added. - 'Stunning success' - British voters backed Brexit by a narrow margin in a 2016 referendum, sparking several years of domestic political gridlock about how, or even whether, to deliver it. Johnson -- whose decisive December election victory finally paved the way for Britain's long-stalled departure -- marked the occasion by holding a private party in his Downing Street office. A clock projected on the walls outside counted down the minutes to Brexit becoming a reality at 11 pm (2300 GMT) -- midnight in Brussels. In a televised address to the nation, the British premier hailed a "new era of friendly cooperation", acknowledging there could be "bumps in the road ahead" but predicting the country would make it a "stunning success". Thousands of people waving Union Jack flags packed nearby Parliament Square and sang the national anthem to herald the occasion. But Brexit has unleashed deep divisions in British society, with many fearing the consequences of ending 47 years of ties with their nearest neighbours. Some pro-Europeans, including many of the 3.6 million EU citizens who have made their lives in Britain, marked the occasion with candlelit gatherings. There was a sombre atmosphere on one of the last ferries to leave the European mainland pre-Brexit and make the 42-kilometre (26-mile) journey across the Channel. "It's very depressing what's happening today," said Alessio Bortone, an Italian who has lived in Britain for 10 years. - Trade talks loom - Brexit has also provoked soul-searching in the EU about its future after losing a country of 66 million people with global diplomatic clout and the financial centre of the City of London. French President Emmanuel Macron described it as a "historic warning sign" that should force the bloc and its remaining nations of more than 440 million people to stop and reflect. Britain's diplomatic mission in Brussels on Saturday changed the building's nameplate to read "UK Mission to the European Union", signalling its new non-member status. Meanwhile, Joao Vale de Almeida, the newly named EU ambassador to Britain, said on Twitter he looked forward to "laying the foundations for a solid EU/UK relationship". Getting to this point has been a traumatic process and, while the divorce terms have been agreed, finding consensus on future relations with the EU -- its largest trading partner -- could be equally hard. Both London and Brussels will set out their negotiating positions on Monday. But Johnson, a polarising figure accused of glossing over the complexity of leaving the bloc, has given himself just 11 months to seal a deal -- not enough time, according to his critics. London is also now free to strike trade agreements around the world, including with the United States, whose President Donald Trump is an enthusiastic Brexit supporter. One of his top envoys on Friday hailed an "exciting new era". At a special Brexit day ministers' meeting in northeast England, Johnson discussed an aim to get 80 percent of Britain's commerce covered by trade agreements within three years, a spokesman said. - 'Goodbye & good luck' - In Scotland, where a majority voted to remain in the 2016 referendum and Brexit has revived calls for independence, pro-EU campaigners rallied in Edinburgh on Saturday. "It's a sad day for Scotland to be taken -- or dragged out, as I would say -- out of the EU," said protester David Eakins, 74. Meanwhile in Northern Ireland -- soon to be a new EU frontier -- there are fears Brexit could destabilise a hard-won peace after decades of conflict over British rule. "They're going to have problems probably, sorting everything out with the border up the Irish Sea," said Thomas Glover, 77, alluding to possible trade frictions between mainland Britain and the divided island. "I hope we can make the new realities work," Irish foreign minister Simon Coveney tweeted, adding: "Goodbye & good luck." burs-jj/rma At London's St Pancras station Saturday morning a Eurostar train arriving from Paris became the first from the continental connection service to leave EU territory, a small, symbolic milestone in the Brexit process A farewell message was projected onto the White Cliffs of Dover, on the southern coast of England Thousands of people waving Union Jack flags packed Parliament Square in London Saturday to herald Brexit Brexit: what happens next? The front page of pro- and anti-Brexit newspaper in the UK on the day after Britain left the EU A rally in Edinburgh, Scotland, where a majority voted to remain in 2016 and Brexit has revived calls for independence
People shop at E Land's fashion brand Scofield's store in China. / Korea times file



By Kim Jae-heun



E-Land Group's fashion apparel business in China is on alert due to the spread of the new coronavirus after 86 percent of its 317 stores operating in Wuhan decided to close temporarily.



The fashion firm owns 4,000 stores across the mainland. As the contagious disease has now killed 213 and infected 9,692 people in China, E-Land Group has formed a taskforce to take emergency action.



"Our stores in Wuhan will be closed for a while. Other stores in mainland China will operate according to guidelines given by the Chinese government," an E-Land Group official said.



The 14 percent of E-Land stores still operating in Wuhan shortened their business hours  opening late and closing early.



It has not been confirmed whether the group will cut the business hours of its stores in other areas but they will be vulnerable to local government countermeasures.



E-Land officials said the company expects more of its stores to close temporarily as most of them are operating in department stores or shopping mall complexes.



Currently, E-Land has extended all of its local employees' Chinese New Year break by one day.



The Chinese branches are also reviewing extending the holiday period further and suspending overseas business trips.



Korean employees, who have been sent to China as resident workers have been permitted to return of their own volition will and the group recommend their family members, living in China, to return home as well.



E-Land Group said there are not many Korean employees in China as it has successfully localized its business there.



The group decided to send some 10,000 masks to China, Wednesday, after the Red Cross Society of China requested them as relief goods.



E-Land first entered the Chinese market by establishing a manufacturing plant in 1994. Two years later, it opened its first clothing store there and launched the brands E Land, Scofield and Teenie Weenie.



The brands became luxury labels in China in the mid-2000s, when three to four stores would be opened in a day.



However, an economic slump there has affected E Land's business since 2016 with a reduction in sales.



In March 2017, E Land sold Teenie Weenie China and pulled out of its restaurant franchises. It operates 20 brands in China.


9.1k SHARES Facebook Twitter Whatsapp Pinterest Reddit Print Mail Flipboard

The DOJ admitted that they are intentionally blocking two dozen Trump administration emails related to Ukraine until after the Senate acquits Trump.

Bill Barr is hiding evidence against Trump

CNN reported:

The Department of Justice revealed in a court filing late Friday that it has two dozen emails related to the President Donald Trumps involvement in the withholding of millions in security assistance to Ukraine  a disclosure that came just hours after the Senate voted against subpoenaing additional documents and witnesses in Trumps impeachment trial, paving the way for his acquittal.

The filing, released near midnight Friday, marks the first official acknowledgment from the Trump administration that emails about the Presidents thinking related to the aid exist, and that he was directly involved in asking about and deciding on the aid as early as June. The administration is still blocking those emails from the public and has successfully kept them from Congress.

Trump Thinks Ukraine Will Go Away After Impeachment, But It Wont

The House has left the door open to more articles of impeachment against Trump, and the politics of the scandal are not going to get better for Trump. The president is the one who is forever impeached, but his entire administration is corrupt and involved in a criminal conspiracy to cheat to win the 2020 election.

The House needs to investigate Attorney General Barr and continue to probe the Ukraine scandal. The Senate vote on Wednesday will be the close of one chapter, but the story doesnt end with the presidents acquittal at a sham trial.

For more discussion about this story join our Rachel Maddow and MSNBC group.

Follow Jason Easley on Facebook
Racism 'still very much alive' in Canada as stereotypes around coronavirus spread

At Amy Go's Lunar New Year family dinner in Toronto on Friday, celebrations were mixed with a palpable sense that "racism is still very much alive" in Canada.

As fears spread about the threat of the newly discovered strain of coronavirus that's hit hardest in China, Go has heard from many friends and family members about the xenophobia they've experienced as misinformation and stereotypes run rampant.

"My sister-in-law said in her workplace there were people coughing and the Chinese staff were told by the manager not to come back to work the next day, but not the other staff," Go told CBC News.

That's just one example.

A friend told Go that when she got on a bus the other day, people around her immediately moved away. Go says her friend watched as a white woman asked two East Asian men wearing protective masks, "Do you have the Chinese disease?"

Then there are examples of school kids being taunted or bullied for being Chinese.

It's a worrying reminder to Go, who is the interim national president of the Chinese Canadian National Council for Social Justice, of the isolation and stigma that came with the 2003 SARS outbreak that killed 44 Canadians among nearly 800 victims worldwide. Amid the fears, Asian-run businesses were hit hard as people kept their distance  so much so that then-prime minister Jean Chretien visited a Chinatown restaurant at the height of the crisis to show there was no need for panic.

Compared with 2003, Go says this time around social media seems to have made it easier for hateful ideas to spread.

A 'punch in the gut'

"I do find this time it's even more, it's worse because this sort of uncensored and brazen, brazen hate speech and racism could rear its head without any sanctions as compared to the time we were living through SARS," she said.

For Chinese Canadians, it's a "punch in the gut," said Go. "Unfortunately the 'yellow peril' term used against the Chinese, it's still here."

Story continues

According to the most recent census, more than 1.5 million people in Canada identify as Chinese.

It's that kind of sentiment that dozens turned out to fight during a walk through Toronto's Chinatown on Saturday.

"I thought I would just have Torontonians join me as a show of tangible support for the Chinese Canadian community," said Chinatown resident and author Jay Pitter, who organized the event.

Tijana Martin/The Canadian Press

Pitter said she was disheartened by stories of Chinese Canadians being singled out on the bus, at work and at school, and decided to act, holding the walk on the start of Black History Month  a date she says isn't without significance.

"I certainly come from a culture of people who face lots of discrimination within the public realm and so I'm deeply concerned about any other community facing the same and similar challenges."

'No place in our country for discrimination'

Prime Minister Justin Trudeau delivered a similar message to Canadians at a Lunar New Year celebration in Scarborough, Ont., on Saturday.

"There is no place in our country for discrimination driven by fear or misinformation," Trudeau said. "This is not something Canadians will ever stand for."

James Morrison/CBC

In his remarks, Trudeau sought to show his support for those who have been victims of discrimination and those worried about loved ones abroad.

"I know it's been a tough start of the year for many of you," Trudeau said. "Our government will always stand with you. We will always speak up against division."

WATCH: How to confront racism sparked by coronavirus fears

For Go, that kind of public display of support is important. But she said she would also like to see more tangible measures such as a hotline for people experiencing racism, greater monitoring of social media for misinformation and resources for people whose rights whose rights may be violated to get the information and support they need.

Saturday's walk in Toronto was one step in the show of solidarity.

"Public places like streets and transit reveal the very worst of who we are as a city, but they also reveal the very best of who we are," Pitter said.

"This is a city that will not tolerate this alienation and backlash."
Brexiteers awoke on Britain's first day outside the European Union to find themselves being branded 'thick' by sour Remainers.

Pro-EU activists flooded social media with the insulting hashtag, which first spawned as they poured scorn on Leavers celebrating the historic occasion.

Rather than extinguishing the Brexit battle lines which have bitterly divided the nation over the last three and a half years, the UK's eventual divorce from the bloc appeared to spur animosity.

Parties were held across the country last night as Brexiteers toasted in a new chapter outside of the EU, drawing a line under 47 years of membership (Warrington pictured)

Pro-EU supporters demonstrate outside the Scottish Parliament at Holyrood, Edinburgh, today

Piers Morgan led the kick-back and tweeted: 'So #thick is trending, driven by Remoaners who think they're so much smarter than the 17.4m people who voted for Brexit'

Parties were held across the country last night as Brexiteers toasted in a new chapter outside of the EU, drawing a line under 47 years of membership.

A flagship Brexit bash headlined by Nigel Farage in Parliament Square drew hundreds of Leavers, many of whom were vox-popped by TV reporters.

Videos of these people excited for the 11pm exit time went viral as they explained their reasoning for voting Brexit back in 2016.

Soon after, #thick began trending on Twitter as Remainers began mocking their responses.

One piece of footage from the Westminster rally showed two women who hailed 'getting our sovereignty back'.

Pro-EU activists flooded social media with the insulting hashtag, which first spawned as they poured scorn on Leavers celebrating the historic occasion

Twitter user Richie Holland, a staunch defender of the EU, tweeted: 'Nice try ladies, but completely wrong,' followed by the #thick hashtag.

Their belittling of Leave voters - which many Remainers were accused of following the referendum - was countered with a fierce backlash.

Piers Morgan led the kick-back and tweeted: 'So #thick is trending, driven by Remoaners who think they're so much smarter than the 17.4m people who voted for Brexit.

'If you're all so f***ing smart, how did you get beaten by a bunch of thickos?'

His fury was echoed by many Brexiteers online, who also reminded the Remain campaign predicted a vote to Leave with trigger an economic hit.
COTTONPORT  A pair of school buses, painted white and with bars welded across the windows, rolled slowly through the gates of Raymond Laborde Correctional Center in the August humidity. The motley group of men on board squinted in the sun as they awkwardly stepped down the stairs and off the bus, their hands and feet locked into clanking shackles.

These were fresh arrivals in the states prison system, all recently sentenced by judges across south Louisiana. Some wore cheap jail jumpsuits from the lockups where theyd awaited trial, while others were still dressed in street clothes: loud T-shirts, torn jeans, sneakers and work boots.

Guards shouted greetings to a handful of frequent fliers  men they recognized from previous stints  while new arrivals looked around with wide-eyed apprehension. Most now faced daunting prison stints  a decade, perhaps, for a smattering of drug charges or petty burglaries  but sentences that could be whittled down to three or four years, with good behavior.

They would spend just a few days at the state prison before being shuttled off to an archipelago of rural parish jails to serve out their sentences.

As prison population drops, Louisiana sheriffs ask for more money Louisianas sheriffs want more money for housing inmates as the prison population drops and the state becomes less reliant on local jails foll

Conditions in local jails are relatively spartan and the services offered to people locked up there  basic GED courses, volunteer-led prayer groups or Alcoholics Anonymous meetings  pale in comparison to what's available at state prisons like Angola, Hunt, Dixon or Raymond Laborde, where prisoners can learn trades like plumbing or welding or even earn graduate degrees.

But state prisons house fewer than half of Louisianas state prisoners. For inmates facing less than a decade in prison for drug or property crimes, the odds of ending up at a state-run facility are slim.

The arrangement has long drawn criticism from inmates, advocates and state prison officials themselves, who say the dearth of services at underfunded local jails gives people fewer chances to turn their lives around.

Theres a cruel irony to the situation: As convicted murderers serving life without parole earn graduate degrees in state-run prisons, addicts busted for petty drug deals sometimes learn little of any use to them before theyre sent back into civilian life.

The reason for the disparity is money: The state pays sheriffs just $25.39 a day for each prisoner, a meager allowance that Jimmy LeBlanc, the head of the Louisiana Department of Public Safety and Corrections, says scarcely covers the cost of the bare necessities.

LeBlanc refers to such jails as lock and feeds. Simply dropping offenders back into their communities after theyve spent a few years idling in a rural jail, LeBlanc has repeatedly warned, is a recipe for disaster.

LeBlanc, who has spent his entire 43-year career in corrections, now hopes to change that.

After years of pleading for a bigger chunk of the states tight budget, LeBlanc is now overseeing an effort to invest millions  savings from Louisianas 2017 criminal justice overhaul, which slashed the overall prison population by more than 12%  into programs to better prepare inmates for life after release.

A new direction

A major early part of that effort is unfolding downriver from New Orleans on the marshy east bank of the Mississippi River in Plaquemines Parish, where the 871-bed Plaquemines Parish Detention Center in Pointe a la Hache stands perched on 19-foot concrete pylons.

Short-term state inmates from Louisiana's biggest cities headed to jails with more services Corrections officials are using much of their savings from Louisianas trimmed prison population to house inmates from the states biggest par

Here, the Department of Corrections has brought together hundreds of state inmates from Orleans and Jefferson parishes with less than four years left on their sentences, a group that would otherwise be scattered across as many as 100 different facilities in the state.

The idea, according to prison officials, is to expand services and programs at this local, sheriff-run jail to something approaching the level of those in state prisons. Additional state grants to community groups like Catholic Charities cover in-reach services that will ideally follow inmates after theyre set free.

The jail will start offering some college courses through Ohio-based Ashland University in February and aims to expand carpentry and job-skills courses into a full-fledged program to certify prisoners as skilled tradesmen and construction workers.

The Department of Corrections is expanding similar re-entry centers for prisoners with two to five years left to serve elsewhere in the state, initially focusing on the states five biggest parishes  Jefferson, Orleans, East Baton Rouge, St. Tammany and Caddo  and expanding pre-release programs around smaller cities as well. "Justice reinvestment" savings are also funding grants for community groups and nonprofits to provide post-release services.

The program has proved to be a boon for Plaquemines Parish Sheriff Jerry Turlich, allowing him to fill bunks in a huge jail that many in the parish feared might prove a costly boondoggle  given the small parishs modest need for jail beds.

When Turlich came into office in 2016, the jail was losing about $5 million a year. He struck a deal with LeBlanc, who praises the jails modern amenities and short commute for relatives visiting from New Orleans, to dramatically expand its re-entry programs.

They had no inmates, they had no anything, so I think that was priority one when I took office, Turlich said in an interview. It just so happened that the state needed ... room to house their inmates. We were fortunate enough to get them.

The Sheriffs Office has gotten an extra $1.2 million  in addition to the $25.39 the state pays per inmate per day  to fund programs such as anger management, drug treatment and building trades.

'A big difference'

In a trailer parked beneath the jail-on-stilts, Chris Kendrick showed a handful of students how to change blades on power saws and safely handle other construction tools. A builder by trade, Kendrick regularly drives down to the lockup from his home in New Orleans to teach carpentry and basic wiring skills.

Hopefully, it'll become a cycle where they come in, get the skills and we send them straight to ... get the jobs, he said. Were just really trying to help guys move forward, really change their thought process on how to get work and get money without being illegal.

You get some guys that haven't had a job ever in their life, and then you get guys who worked at but never got certified in these fields  working in these fields for 10 or 15 years but never got the certification, said Kendrick. "And that certification plays a big difference on your resume when you're trying to get a job.

Its a challenge Kendrick, 47, knows intimately. He first got involved in the carpentry program as an inmate while serving time on drug convictions several years ago. The Orleans Parish Sheriffs Office later hired him as a custodian before promoting him to instructor. When the re-entry program moved downriver to Plaquemines, Kendrick followed.

I never knew I could be doing what I love and getting paid for it, you know what I mean? I never knew this was a job that somebody could have  come in here teaching these guys, giving your experience, giving your knowledge that they need, Kendrick said. So it's all a blessing in one.

Top stories in New Orleans in your inbox Twice daily we'll send you the day's biggest headlines. Sign up today. e-mail address * Sign Up

Among his students in early August was Nosayaba "Nasir" Okunseri, whod bounced around seven other parish jails during the five years hed spent in the Louisiana prison system for charges including identity theft and bank fraud. None offered the breadth of courses or counseling services hed gotten since landing in the re-entry program in Plaquemines Parish this past spring, Okunseri said.

Okunseri said hed hoped to enroll in a welding program but wasnt able to finagle his way to a jail that offered one until his release was imminent. But he was hopeful his final few months in Plaquemines Parish  he was released in mid-January  would leave him better prepared to head back home.

State prisons and local re-entry programs like the one in Plaquemines Parish are sought after by inmates.

Craig Leblanc, 44, of Lafourche Parish, was among the busloads of new arrivals at the Raymond Laborde prison in August. He was returning to prison for the third time in five years on drug charges, this time to serve a 10-year sentence for selling meth.

Leblanc said he once made good money working in the oil industry before losing his job in a downturn and ending up hooked on drugs, homeless and occasionally selling drugs to get by. Leblanc said he hoped to beat his addiction during this prison stint  which could end up being less than three years  and put himself in a position to land stable work and provide for his four kids.

But just how successful hell be at doing so is partly out of his control, hinging on where Leblanc ends up spending his sentence and the opportunities those facilities offer.

I want to better myself mentally, spiritually and physically, he said. I read every book I can and read the Bible ... I'm going to take every class I can and there are certain facilities that offer college courses  you can actually get a four-year degree now at some facilities  Im trying to get there.

The root of the problem

Louisianas heavy reliance on local jails dates back to the 1990s, when tough-on-crime judges shipped off more and more people to serve ever-longer sentences. State prisons were soon stuffed beyond capacity, sparking lawsuits and a federal court order to ease overcrowding.

But instead of spending millions to build new prisons, the state turned to local sheriffs for help.

Sheriffs, especially those in rural central and north Louisiana, built new jails far larger than their small jurisdictions needed, banking on a steady stream of state inmates to fill the bunks and state dollars to pad their budgets. Some cut deals with private prison companies  like the Ruston-based LaSalle Corrections  to finance and run the new lockups while cutting the sheriffs in on a share of the profits.

Some sheriffs and lawmakers continue to tout the arrangement as a win-win for taxpayers, noting that the state spends a lot less money housing inmates in local jails than it spends to put them in state prisons.

But LeBlanc and others argue that those short-term savings come with massive hidden costs, setting people up to fail when they return home  and making it more likely theyll end up back in prison.

We began building at the local level because it seemed it was cheaper, said LeBlanc, and ultimately we are paying for that today, in my opinion, and weve got to fix that.

The system isnt easily dismantled, however. Louisiana lawmakers remain wary of shelling out hundreds of millions to build new state prisons. And influential sheriffs in the states prison belt, who poured millions into building oversized lockups, would face yawning budget holes and staff layoffs if their bunks were suddenly to go empty.

LeBlanc has pushed for a gradual shift. As the number of state inmates has dropped, the states prisons have been kept full, leaving fewer in local jails. Millions in funding for re-entry programs like the one in Plaquemines Parish, meanwhile, aim to allow a handful of jails to become  in LeBlancs words  more like a state facility.

Meanwhile, a sudden influx of thousands of federal immigration detainees into Louisiana has helped grease the transition, filling whole dorms in local jails.

Critics have blasted the federal deals as a major setback in the fight to shrink the big business of incarceration in Louisiana. But they have also headed off a potential clash with local jailers.

In fact, lucrative U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement contracts  which pay double, sometimes triple the states $25.39 rate  have led some sheriffs to boot out state inmates in favor of ICE detainees. LaSalle Corrections, which runs 10 for-profit jails in Louisiana, has converted most of them into immigration detention centers.

Very candidly, the ICE situation has helped us a great deal in that sense, said LeBlanc. That part is helping our local communities in kind of making up for some of the vacancies that had been created .

In and out of the system

A long string of arrests has sent Jeffrey Parker in and out of the prison system since he was 17. Parker, now 35, said hes collected five felony convictions over the years, serving nearly all of his time in various parish jails.

Parker, who lives in Livingston Parish, described conditions in some jails as like a jungle  chaotic, understaffed, violent  and recalled arriving at his dorm in one facility in north Louisiana to see one inmate tattooing anothers penis. Most offered only a handful of basic classes which, because taking courses often knocks time off sentences, featured lengthy waiting lists that made it almost impossible to get in.

During his most recent stint, this time on drug charges, Parker said he was blessed to get sent to state-run Dixon Correctional Institute for the final eight months of his sentence.

There, he volunteered as a GED tutor. Staffers also made sure he and others obtained ID cards and Social Security cards and signed up for health insurance before being released in April 2018, something Parker said had never happened during his numerous spells in parish jails.

Those three things right there are a huge deal when it comes to trying to get on your feet when you get released, he said.

Every time Ive been released from (a parish jail), Im out on the street  no resources, no information, no help. Its not long before Im back in, said Parker. Im not trying to say DOC or state facilities are a walk in the park, but the resources are there.

This time, he said, his transition to civilian life has been much smoother. Hes been sober, gotten married, had a child and found a good-paying job he enjoys at a shop that manufactures industrial paint.

Michel Sosa Santiesteban, 43, had just arrived at Plaquemines Parish in August after being moved out of a string of other jails in less than two years. Sosa, like several others in the re-entry program, said hed written prison officials letters hoping to get sent to Plaquemines or another facility with extensive programs.

If youre lucky, you go to a parish jail which is calm, where theres zero tolerance (policies), where there is, you know, zero violating and zero violence, Sosa said. But if youre unlucky, you go to  a place where you can get no rest, you get no sleep and your expected level of security is non-existent.

The Times-Picayune | The Advocate spent months reporting on rural jails in Louisiana and jail reform efforts at the Plaquemines Parish prison in partnership with filmmaker Joanne Elgart Jennings and the PBS series "Independent Lens."
Rep. Rashida Tlaib encouraged a crowd of Bernie Sanders supporters to boo Hillary Clinton over the 2016 Democratic nominee saying that 'nobody liked' the Vermont senator.

Tlaib was serving as an opening act alongside Reps. Ilhan Omar and Pramila Jayapal at a rally Sanders was supposed to attend - though he phoned in instead, as he didn't leave President Trump's impeachment trial in Washington on time.

'No, I'll boo!' Tlaib said as moderator Dionna Langford mentioned Clinton's comments to the Congressional trio.

Rep. Rashida Tlaib encouraged a crowd of Bernie Sanders supporters to boo Hillary Clinton who said in a Hulu series that 'nobody liked' the 2020 hopeful and Clinton's former 2016 primary rival

Rep. Rashida Tlaib (left) appeared as an opener for the musician Bon Iver at the Sanders campaign event alongside Reps. Pramila Jayapal (center) and Ilhan Omar (right)

The trio of lawmakers were supposed to be an opening act for Sen. Bernie Sanders, but he left Washington, D.C., too late to make the event, which was headline by the musician Bon Iver

Langford had tried to stop the crowd from heckling Clinton.

'We're not going to boo. We're not going to boo,' Langford said.

'We're classy here,' she added.

But the Michigan Democrat went undeterred.

Hillary Clinton made the comments about Bernie Sanders as part of a four-part Hulu project about her. She told The Hollywood Reporter she still stands by them

'You all know I can't be quiet. No, we're gonna boo,' she told the crowd of thousands, assembled to hear the musician Bon Iver play and surrogates of the Sanders campaign speak.

'That's all right, the haters will shut up on Monday when we win,' she added.

Tlaib already has a reputation for stirring up trouble.

On the night she was sworn into Congress she attended an event and announced to the crowd, 'We're going to impeach the motherf***ker.'

She's since become a member of the so-called squad, which also consists of Omar, Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez and Ayanna Pressley.

Clinton's raw feelings about Sanders came to light earlier this month as the former secretary of state talked to The Hollywood Reporter as part of promoting a four-party Hulu series 'Hillary.'

'Nobody likes him, nobody wants to work with him, he got nothing done. He was a career politician,' she said in the series. 'It's all baloney and I feel so bad that people got sucked into it.'

Asked if that remains her opinion she told The Hollywood Reporter the answer was yes.

Clinton did not commit to supporting Sanders should he become the Democratic nominee.

In 2016, Sanders didn't drop out until the very end of the Democratic primary - though eventually supported and campaigned on behalf of Clinton.

With the Iowa causes just three days away, Sanders looks poised to knock off the moderate frontrunner, former Vice President Joe Biden, this time around.

Polls show Sanders leading, on average, by 3.6 points.

Sanders supporters haven't always been known to play nice to the Vermont senator's political rivals.

In November, as Sanders was introducing Rep. Ilhan Omar as an official campaign surrogate in Minneapolis, Minnesota a 'Lock him up!' chant briefly broke out about President Trump.
Joy Ranch reopens under new ownership

Joy Ranch near Watertown has reopened under new ownership.
Hey there, time traveller!

This article was published 31/1/2020 (709 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

YELLOWKNIFE, N.W.T. -- Its 6:30 a.m. (and minus 30C). Time for breakfast.

Its pretty good. Eggs, bacon, beans and coffee  all cooked over an open fire.

Outside.

"This is the best breakfast in the city," Olive (not her real name) tells me. Olive has experienced homelessness for six months. "My time out here keeps me warm all day," she says, with a smile.

Every morning for almost two years, the Arctic Indigenous Wellness Foundation (AIWF) holds two free breakfasts in a traditional camp five minutes from downtown.

The program runs a free shuttle at 7 and 8 a.m., with seats always filled. Clients who miss the ride can also come (and many do) but must walk down Yellowknifes main street until turning down a path into the woods.

SUPPLIED Niigaan Sinclair, centre, with elders and counsellors at the Arctic Indigenous Wellness Foundation (AIWF) free breakfast in a traditional camp.

There, behind the Community Recreation Centre, sit four tents, a small shack (covering a fire), and a tipi nestled between snow drifts that are more than a metre high.

"We feed everyone who comes here," Stanley tells me. Stanley works at the camp after spending years on the streets, struggling with addictions after residential school. Now, he is the first to arrive every morning, lighting the fire and cooking breakfast.

Clients say the food is better and fresher than that served in shelters. It also reminds some of their homes in Tuktoyaktuk and Wekweti, N.W.T.

Theres more than just food at the camp, though. There is a sacred fire, burning from 7 a.m. until the evening. Participants can ask for a smudge, make a tobacco offering, or just sit and reflect.

There is near constant visiting.

If anyone wants, certified Indigenous counsellors and elders on-site are available. Sessions can take place in the traditional tipi or the Inuit- or Dene-centred tents. All are warmed by fires in wood stoves.

Many arrive and stay all day. I plan on visiting for an hour but end up staying for four.

NIIGAAN SINCLAIR / WINNIPEG FREE PRESS The camp's breakfast includes eggs, bacon, beans and coffee  all cooked over an open fire, outdoors in -30C temperatures.

There is more than counselling happening too. While there, I meet a professor from Australia, an elder, an AIWF board member (Stanleys brother Wilbur), and a social worker.

I am introduced to an instructor from nearby Aurora College, who tells me she brings her students  and that her daughters teachers bring them, too.

Everyone is sipping from cups of sweetgrass tea medicine, which is constantly warming on the woodstove. Soon, I get a steaming mug too.

There is always work to do at the camp  chopping wood, cooking food, shovelling snow, or sharing songs and stories.

There are also workshops on drum-making, fasting, and traditional teachings.

"We offer all parts of our culture to support the community," camp co-founder and traditional counsellor William Greenland tells me. "Some days people want to talk and some days people want to work. Its all part of learning and growing."

As Greenland explains, the work at the camp includes caring for the body, heart, and spirit alongside the mind. "I dont ever ask anyone to come be counselled. When people want to talk, we talk. When its time to work, we work."

NIIGAAN SINCLAIR / WINNIPEG FREE PRESS The traditional camp is five minutes from downtown Yellowknife, Northwest Territories.

Greenland is also a traditional flute player. He shows me his backpack, which holds ten flutes crafted during his time working at the camp.

Then, he offers everyone a song.

"Thats amazing, uncle," Olive tells him.

Greenland tells me that when the camp was first started by elders and Indigenous leaders, local officials tried to stop them. "They threw regulations and rules at us, even while we dug into the snow," he laughs. "But we let nothing stop us. We built it anyways."

Now, the camps success speaks for itself. Every week, nearly a hundred of the citys most marginalized come here alongside hundreds of other community members. Most are Indigenous, but not all.

Last year, the city of Yellowknife offered to pay for the breakfast, including the camp in the civic homeless strategy. The camp also has partnered with academics and Indigenous governments (Hotsii tseedaa and Tlicho) to research Indigenous trauma and poverty.

The camp runs on a shoestring budget, with most expenses involving gasoline for the generators, food, and salaries. Its all peanuts compared with most health facilities.

NIIGAAN SINCLAIR / WINNIPEG FREE PRESS Nearly a hundred of Yellowknife's most marginalized people come to the camp every week.

The day I am there, I meet clients with addictions and suicidal thoughts and trauma. Every one of them greet me before I greet them. There is incredible pride everywhere in this place.

One thing hard to ignore is how young residential school survivors are in Yellowknife. Many are my age  from when residential schools closed in the 1990s. So many face hard struggles and have many years ahead. But, they have this place.

Want to get a head start on your day? Get the days breaking stories, weather forecast, and more sent straight to your inbox every weekday morning. Sign Up I agree to the Terms and Conditions, Cookie and Privacy Policies, and CASL agreement.

In Yellowknife, a small camp is saving lives and building a future.

Meanwhile, two weeks ago in Winnipeg -- in the middle of a cold snap -- city officials bulldozed a camp built by the downtown community. Explaining why, politicians cited regulations and rules and told residents that shelters (temporary or otherwise) were safer, dignified, and better (note: theyre not).

Winnipeg's "tent city" wasnt a perfect place, of course, but it had principles of acceptance, warmth, and independence.

Nothing has replaced this since.

I have an idea.

Niigaan Sinclair is Anishinaabe and is a columnist at the Winnipeg Free Press.
Michael Sperou, the disgraced leader of a church group that prosecutors called a cult, was sentenced Friday to about 13 years in prison for sexually abusing a former member when she was a child.

Multnomah County Circuit Judge Andrew Lavin sentenced Sperou, 69, to 160 months and ordered him to pay one of his victims, Shannon Clark, $70,000 in damages.

During the trial, Clark, 33, testified that Sperou abused her from about ages 3 to 10. A jury convicted him on Jan. 24 of two counts of first-degree unlawful sexual penetration..

Clark was not in the courtroom Friday, but her attorney, Sean Riddell, read a statement on her behalf. Clark wrote that she suffers from post-traumatic stress disorder and struggles to foster healthy relationships.

I feel lonely all the time, even today," she said in the letter. "This feeling has never gone away.

She said she pursued Sperous prosecution for her children. When they read about the case in the news someday, she said, they know that I stood up to my abuser.

The Oregonian/OregonLive generally does not disclose the names of sexual abuse victims. But Clark wanted to be identified and so do six other women who allege Sperou abused them as children. Because the statute of limitations has passed, Sperou couldnt be prosecuted for those allegations.

Prosecutor Melissa Marrero described Sperou as a prolific child predator who acknowledged during the trial that he abused two of the women who have accused him. She said he lacks remorse and continues to treat his victims with disdain, glaring at one during his trial.

He was offending against multiple young children over the course of years and years and years, Marrero told the judge.

Sperou led whats now called the North Clackamas Bible Community. Former members describe the group as a cult that required them to live in a network of homes in Happy Valley and Portland, sometimes with entire families in a single bedroom and children living in closets. Former members said Sperou exercised absolute control over the food members ate, that he drank heavily and used drugs and took as much as 25 percent of their incomes as a church tax.

Prosecutors had sought the maximum sentence  170 months -- for Sperou. Marrero said a lengthy prison sentence is the only way to protect children in his group from becoming victims.

Frankly, there is not another way to keep the community safe, she said. We have a horde of followers who believe he can do no wrong.

She pointed out a preschool-aged girl in the gallery who sat two rows behind Sperou with his followers.

It is absolutely astonishing to me that his supporters would bring a child here under such circumstances, Marrero said.

In handing down the sentence, the judge said child abuse takes a toll on victims and the community. The damage is irreparable, Lavin said.

He then criticized Sperous supporters from the bench, calling out their decision to bring a young child to the sentencing, which included graphic descriptions of sex crimes against children.

I think that exercises the kind of horrible judgment that ran rampant in the community that we heard about during testimony in this trial, the judge said.

Lavin said he chose not to have the parent and child removed from the courtroom but was unhappy that the child was exposed to the disturbing material. I dont think it was appropriate for the child to have heard much of what was said today, he said.

Sperou declined to speak during his sentencing. In contrast to the pressed dress shirts and ties he wore during his trial, he was brought into Lavins courtroom with his hands in cuffs and in a light blue jail uniform and jail-issue orange sandals.

As he was led back out of the packed courtroom, Sperous followers called out to him, saying goodbye and telling him they love him.

This was the second trial and sentencing for Sperou. The Oregon Supreme Court overturned his first conviction and 20-year prison sentence after concluding that witnesses shouldnt have been allowed to refer to Sperous accuser by using the word victim during the first trial in 2015.

Sperous lawyers, Steve Sherlag and Michael De Muniz, said they would appeal the second guilty verdict, which was 11-1. De Muniz said he expects the U.S. Supreme Court to soon declare nonunanimous jury verdicts in criminal cases in state courts unconstitutional and make that change retroactive in cases such as Sperous.

-- Noelle Crombie; ncrombie@oregonian.com; 503-276-7184; @noellecrombie

Subscribe to Oregonian/OregonLive newsletters and podcasts for the latest news and top stories.
Ikebana Societys Paradise in Bloom View(s):

The Members of Shien Ikebana and Floral Arts Society (SIFAS) will present Paradise in Bloom their annual floral art exhibition on February 8 & 9 from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. at the Ruby Hall of the Marino Beach Hotel, Colombo 3. A limited number of tickets will be available at the entrance.

Singaporean floral expert Harijanto Setiawan will hold a demonstration on Saturday the 8th at 4.30 p.m. Tickets for the exhibition will be valid for the demonstration.

Proceeds from this years event will go towards partly financing the Shana Medura Project established by the Oblates of Mary Immaculate (OMI).
After slashing income tax rates for individuals on condition that they give up exemptions and deductions, Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman on Saturday said the government intends to remove all I-T exemptions in the long run.

Speaking at a press conference after presenting her second budget in the Lok Sabha, she said income tax cuts follow reduction in corporate tax rates in September last year.

The minister said additional capital will be provided to public sector banks as and when required.

Her budget speech did not provide for any specific number for additional capital.

The finance minister said improvement in revenue generation gives hopes of lowering fiscal deficit to 3.5 per cent of GDP in the next fiscal from 3.8 per cent in the current.

Disinvestment Secretary T K Pandey said big ticket stake sale will happen in the next few months and that he was confident of achieving the Rs 2.10 lakh crore target set for the next financial year.

He said an expression of interest (EoI) for sale of government stake in Bharat Petroleum Corp Ltd (BPCL) will be issued shortly.

The Cabinet had approved sale of government stake in BPCL in November last year.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
Union Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman on Saturday announced that the government has allocated Rs 12,300 crores for Swachh Bharat Mission while presenting the Union Budget for the year 2020-21, according to an official press release.

"Now more needs to be done towards liquid and greywater management. The focus would also be on solid waste collection, source segregation, and processing. Total allocation for Swachh Bharat Mission is Rs.12,300 crore in 2020-21," informed the Minister.

She further added that the government is committed to making India to Open Defecation Free (ODF) plus in order to sustain ODF behavior and to ensure that no one is left behind.

The Minister also informed that Rs 3.60 lakh crore has been approved for Jal Jeevan Mission which is aimed at providing piped water supply to all households.

Jal Jeevan Mission also places emphasis on augmenting local water sources, recharging existing sources and promoting water harvesting and desalination.

"The cities with over a million population will be encouraged to meet this objective during the current year itself. The Scheme would be provided resources of Rs. 11,500 crores during the year 2020-21," the Minister added.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
A soldier of the Chhattisgarh Armed Forces (CAF) was killed in an internal fight in a camp located at Farsegarh police station of insurgency-hit Bijapur district on Saturday evening .

According to the police, the reason why the soldier opened fire is yet to be ascertained and investigation is going on.

One jawan, Raviranjan, died during the course of evacuation from Farsegarh to Bijapur. The incident took place on Saturday evening when a quarrel broke out between two CAF jawans. We were informed that Constable Dayashankar Shukla fired upon Constable Raviranjan with his Insas, then fired upon himself, IG Bastar, Surderaj P told Hindustan Times.

The IG further said that Dayashankar and Raviranjan sustained critical injuries while another Constable Mohammad Sharif came in the line of fire and sustained a minor injury in his leg

Later Raviranjan died while the other two are serious, the IG added.

SHARE THIS ARTICLE ON
Kerry County Council has officially opened a new extension to the playground in Tralee Town Park which includes specialised play equipment for children with disabilities and special needs.

The local authority received grant aid of 12,000 from the Department of Children and Youth Affairs for the upgrade of the playground, which was officially opened on Friday by the Mayor of Tralee, Cllr Jim Finucane.

A further 20,000 was provided from the Community Support Fund and the sponsorship of Nivea Ireland provided 15,000 towards the project.

The Council worked closely with local schools and Enable Ireland to develop the inclusive and accessible facility which was designed and constructed by Kompan Ireland.

Mayor Finucane said the new extension to the playground represents a wonderful addition to the existing amenity and he thanked all those involved in bringing the project to fruition.

"This is a really valuable addition to the playground and provides specially designed equipment for children with particular needs. It will provide a wonderful play experience for those visiting the Town Park," he said.

Kerry County Council is currently undertaking a public survey on the future development of the 35-acre park which will feed into the formation of a new strategy for the ongoing improvement, development and use of the park.

Tralee Municipal District of Kerry County Council is asking people to complete an online survey which can be found on the homepage of Kerry County Council's website at www.kerrycoco.ie.

Local secondary schools have also come on board and will be out and about over the coming weeks in Tralee Town Centre encouraging and assisting the general public to complete the surveys.
Italy has declared a state of emergency on January 31 ahead of the deadly coronavirus outbreak in a bid to contain the spread of the virulent disease, as per reports. Two cases were confirmed in Rome. Italy has said on Thursday that it was halting all flights to and from China after the reports that two Chinese tourists holidaying in Italy had tested positive for the virus. The couple was being kept in isolation wards in Rome's Lazzaro Spallanzani National Institute for Infectious Diseases. According to the Italian media, the state of emergency gives regional authorities special powers which will last for six months. Police have sealed off the room where the couple had been staying at a hotel in the heart of the capital.

READ: Coronavirus: Air India Special Flight Takes Off From Wuhan With Over 300 Indians On Board

250 dead, nearly 12000 infected

The death toll from the Coronavirus outbreak has risen to 250 with nearly 12000 confirmed cases in China after the worst-hit Hubei province reported 42 new fatalities on Friday. Within the past 24 hours, over 1,200 new cases of the disease have been recorded in 17 Chinese cities, the Chinese media reported. Earlier, an Italian cruise ship quarantined over 6000 tourists in Italy on January 30 after the huge liner was placed on lockdown over two suspected cases of the deadly coronavirus.

READ: Coronavirus: Chinese Envoy Says, '218 Patients Recovered, Discharged From Hospitals'

The health authorities said that samples from a Chinese couple were sent for examination after three doctors and a nurse boarded the Costa Crociere ship in the port of Civitavecchia to attend a woman running a fever. Costa Crociere reported that the ship carrying some 7,000 people including the crew members was in lockdown. A 54-year-old woman from Macau was placed under solitary confinement in the on-board hospital last night with her travel companion and are strictly asked to follow the instructions from the health ministry.

READ: Coronavirus: Singapore Closes Its Borders For New Visitors From China

WHO declared global health emergency

The new figures came shortly after the World Health Organisation (WHO) declared a Global Emergency over the deadly epidemic, which has spread to over 20 countries around the world. The latest figures show that the daily death count is increasing sharply, despite unprecedented measures imposed by China on Hubei a week ago. On Thursday alone, Chinese health officials had reported a nationwide total of 38 deaths, all but one of them in Hubei. The Chinese province on Friday also reported new cases, slightly higher than the previous day. The World Health Organisation (WHO) has declared the Coronavirus a Global Health Emergency.

READ: Coronavirus: Chinese Envoy Says WHO Praised Country's Efficiency In Containing Virus
(Natural News) In a bizarre and highly disturbing incident that took place in the sunny skies above Southern California, a Delta Air Lines flight headed towards Shanghai, China, blasted an elementary schoolyard with fuel during an emergency U-turn landing back at LAX (Los Angeles International Airport), giving a whole new meaning to the term chemtrailing.

Reports indicate that the Boeing 777 airplane, which had departed just after 11 a.m., suffered some kind of mechanical issue not long after takeoff that required an immediate return to the airport. And in order to land safely, the jet had to dump its fuel load prior to landing.

But rather than dump it over the ocean or some other unoccupied area as is required by law, the pilots of Flight 89 decided to spray the fuel over a residential area where students were outside playing, exposing at least 20 of them and 11 of their teachers to the toxic particulates.

While the emergency fuel dump primarily affected Park Avenue Elementary School in Los Angeles, additional students and faculty at San Gabriel Avenue Elementary School in South Gate, Jordan High School and 93rd Street Elementary School in South Los Angeles, Graham Elementary School in Inglewood, and Tweedy Elementary School in South Gate, are also said to have been potentially exposed.

Another individual reportedly told CBS News in Los Angeles that the fuel was also dumped over PIH Health hospital in nearby Whittier, while workers at an electroplating shop in Orange County told the media that they could see and smell tiny droplets of jet fuel that ended up blanketing their cars.

Delta Air Lines has since released an official statement indicating that the airplane in question had conducted an emergency fuel release while in flight, and that the company is in close communication with first responders who are looking into the situation.

If more of the public knew about chemtrails, this emergency fuel dump would pale in comparison

As to what went wrong with yet another Boeing airplane, CBS News says that the pilots of the 777 received a notification after takeoff about a possible compressor stall affecting [the planes] right engine. They immediately radioed air traffic control, declared an emergency, and headed back to LAX.

A compressor stall  or compressor stall warning  is a sign of an engine issue that typically prompts an engine shutdown, CBS News explains.

Thankfully, the plane landed safely and nobody on board was injured, though some on the ground may have accidentally ingested or gotten fuel residues in their eyes, which from the sound of it spread all across the Southland.

As disturbing as this all is, its nothing compared to whats being dumped daily all around the world from jet planes in the form of chemtrails, which are polluting our skies with stratospheric aerosol injections of chemicals like aluminum, barium and strontium.

There could also be biologicals like viral fragments and contagions hiding in those white, hazy mists that routinely block out our natural sunlight while dousing our planet with unknown poisons. The official story is that these chemtrails exist to prevent global warming, but we all know thats a bald-faced lie.

Now it can be tested for additives involved in chemtrail spraying: barium salts, aluminum and such, wrote one chemtrail-aware CBS News commenter about the fuel residues from the 777 airplane.

Mike Adams, the Health Ranger, describes the chemtrail phenomenon as geogenocide because its entirely incompatible with humans and other life forms. Be sure to check out this article he wrote that provides an in-depth look at the horrors of chemtrails.

You can also learn more about geoengineering at Geoengineering.news.

Sources for this article include:

ZeroHedge.com

CBSLocal.com

NaturalNews.com
YEREVAN, FEBRUARY 1, ARMENPRESS. The Armenian delegation at PACE has issued a written statement on Baku massacres, which has been signed by a number of PACE parliamentarians representing different countries and political groups.

The statement recalls the atrocities against Armenians in Azerbaijani capital, Baku, 30 years ago and urges to condemn xenophobia and racisim in the area of the Council of Europe.

ARMENPRESS reports the National Assembly of Armenia has published the text of the statment, which runs as follows,

We, the undersigned, declare the following:

On 13-19 January 1990, hundreds of thousands of Armenians living in Baku, Azerbaijani SSR, faced a large scale series of pogroms, the manifestations of Azerbaijani policy of systematic attacks against the ethnic Armenian population. Hundreds of Armenians were murdered, mutilated, persecuted, displaced. Under the threat of extermination, around 250 000 Armenians were forced to flee Azerbaijan.

The Baku massacres became the culmination of the State policy of racism and xenophobia against Armenians (armenophobia). Contrary to the facts recorded by the international community, human rights organisations and the European Parliament (Resolutions of 1988, 1990, 1991), the Azerbaijani authorities deny those crimes and evade responsibility. 30 years after those outrages, there is no respect and compassion for the victims of Armenian massacres in Azerbaijan. Azerbaijanis who tried to speak about the pogroms are officially considered betrayers.

Regarding this, we:

 commemorate the memory of the Baku pogroms victims;

 condemn any manifestation of racism and xenophobia;

 reaffirm that crimes against humanity have no statute of limitations and emphasise that condemnation of past crimes is the most important guarantee for preventing new ones;

 deplore that the organisers and perpetrators of the pogroms have not yet been brought to justice'.
'Having fared not too successfully in Haryana, Maharashtra and Jharkhand, the BJP can't afford to disappoint its supporters in Delhi,' says Amulya Ganguli.

IMAGE: The man who fired at protesters gathered to protest the Citizenship Amendment Act, near Jamia Millia Islamia University, in New Delhi, January 30, 2020. Photograph: PTI Photo

Even as deradicalisation of the Kashmiri youth is on, as the chief of defence staff, General Bipin Rawat, has revealed, the confession of the shooter near the Jamia Millia university shows that radicalisation is proceeding apace elsewhere in the country.

According to the juvenile whose firing injured a Jamia student, he had been influenced by inflammatory content on social media and had also attended a Bajrang Dal rally.

The police have described him as having been self-radicalised, which means that he did not attend a training school on hate but imbibed it from the Internet and provocative pamphlets.

While the deradicalisation process in Kashmir is obviously aimed at 'cleansing' the minds of Islamic militants, there does not appear to be any such endeavour about Hindutva fanatics learning their craft from WhatsApp.

So, the incident outside the university is unlikely to induce an effort to purge the social media of hateful content directed at the Left-Liberal/pro-Pakistani/Khan Market gang, which is one of the labels for the government's opponents.

The radicalisation, therefore, of the saffron patriots is likely to continue.

Except that it may prove to be counterproductive for the government just before the Delhi elections.

As reports suggest, Union Home Minister Amit Anilchandra Shah called upon the police not to spare the culprit.

His advice could not but have been prompted by the thought that the Class 12 student may have shot the BJP in the foot by his zeal.

But the delinquent himself must have been taken aback by any unkind treatment by the police.

He may have presumed that he would be treated leniently like the masked invaders at Jawaharlal Nehru University who were likened to the Pakistani terrorists of 26/11 by Maharashtra Chief Minister Uddhav Thackeray.

None of them has yet been arrested.

The shooter's presumption would have been based on the belief that he was acting against the 'traitors', as Union Minister Anurag Thakur had asked his listeners to do at a rally.

Now, he probably feels betrayed.

So, what has changed?

Is it a dawning of sense in the saffron camp that it is dicey to cross certain lines even in a Hindu rashtra in the making -- that it is one thing to make incendiary speeches and quite another for a listener to convert words into deeds ?

The Delhi election is clearly another constraint, especially when the BJP's prospects are not considered too bright.

Having fared not too successfully in Haryana, Maharashtra and Jharkhand, the BJP cannot afford to disappoint its supporters in Delhi as well.

A slippage in the national capital will mean that the party will approach the Bihar election later in the year rather apprehensively.

Hence, the caution over the juvenile's act.

But there is little doubt that the radicalisation of others like him will continue via social media.

It is too handy a tool to be forsaken because of a single act of indiscretion.

But there will be no end of the deradicalisation of the Kashmiris.

Amulya Ganguli is a writer on current affairs.
'The circumstances indicate that the government is not serious about the commission...'

'...We are not at the mercy of the government.'

Jyoti Punwani reports from the Bhima-Koregaon commission.

IMAGE: The Bhima-Koregaon commission in session. Photograph: Jyoti Punwani

'Do you think we have no other work but to attend to the needs of your commission? Just shut it down.'

After three months of having its superintendent subjected to humiliation by staff at Mantralaya -- the seat of the Maharashtra government -- the two-member Bhima-Koregaon commission of inquiry on Friday, January 31, recommended to the government that the commission be wound up.

While no one, including the chairman of the commission, has been paid since December, most of the staff stopped receiving their salaries since November.

In November, the Maharashtra home department on its own scaled down the budget demanded by the commission to less than half.

These and other startling facts have been stated in a letter addressed to the chief secretary, government of Maharashtra, the additional secretary, home, and the principal secretary, home special 2, signed by commission secretary V V Palnitkar.

The letter was sent on Friday.

The commission was set up on February 9, 2018, to investigate the violence that took place on January 1, 2018, when lakhs of Dalits had gathered to observe the 200th anniversary of the battle of Bhima-Koregaon.

It has so far received four extensions, and its term expires on February 8.

The commission holds sittings in Mumbai and Pune, and Friday was the last day of its hearings in Mumbai.

The proceedings began dramatically, with Commission Chairman Justice J N Patel announcing: "Today, we are winding up."

IMAGE: Advocate Ashish Satpute, counsel for the commission, Sumit Mullick, member, Commission, Shishir Hiray, Maharashtra government counsel, Justice J N Patel, chairman of the commission. Photograph: Jyoti Punwani

"Nobody from the government is interested," he went on as everyone in the room stared in disbelief. "The staff is not paid, bills are not sanctioned. If it was only me, I wouldn't have said anything. But I cannot expect my staff to work for me without being paid. When they go to Mantralaya, they are treated like trash," said an angry Justice Patel, adding that they had saved a lot of government money by functioning with minimum staff.

"They think the commission is a botheration on the exchequer. We are not at the mercy of the government," Justice Patel added.

The commission functions from the office of the state information commission. Sumit Mullick, state chief information officer, is the second member of the commission and his office infrastructure is used for the commission.

His dual responsibility has limited the working hours of the commission to two sessions a month, one in Mumbai, the other in Pune. These last between three to five days. In Mumbai, the sessions can be held only in the afternoon.

The letter to the government details how, after the initial meagre budget of Rs 52 lakh (Rs 5.2 million) was exhausted, the government either delayed sanctioning the supplementary budget or sanctioned much less money than required.

Salary and other bills were not promptly passed. Not only was no advance given for day to day expenses, but expenses were not reimbursed for months.

Commission staff revealed that the day to day expenses of the commission were being paid by contributions from the senior officers of the commission, including the chairman.

The commission's term was last extended on November 8, 2019. At that time, says the letter, the commission had placed a supplementary demand of budget to the tune of Rs 65 lakh (Rs 6.5 million). This should have been submitted to the finance department on or before November 16.

But the home department did not do so, and hence the finance department did not take this demand for approval in the ensuing budget session of the state assembly.

What's worse, the home department prepared a note to the effect that only Rs 25 lakh (Rs 2.5 million) were asked for by the commission.

Counsel for the commission Ashish Satpute is being paid Rs 10,000 per hearing in Mumbai. Since he has to forego his practice when the commission holds its hearings in Pune, the commission had recommended that he be paid Rs 20,000 for the Pune hearings.

However, that has not been done till date.

Nor has the government's Counsel Shishir Hiray been paid.

Not just salary, but even the renewal of the ID card of the commission's stenographer Pritam Uttekar has not been done for more than three weeks.

IMAGE: Standing: Govind Dingankar, superintendent of the commission; seated: V V Palnitkar, commission secretary. Photograph: Jyoti Punwani

What brought matters to a head was the response of Deputy Secretary Home Special 2, V M Bhat, who was summoned to the commission's office on Friday. He told the Commission that there was no budget for it, and the commission would get funds only after the budget session.

The letter also mentions the humiliation suffered by Commission Superintendent Govind Dingankar by the home department staff whenever he went to inquire about pending bills. The concerned under secretary even asked him to wind up the commission, says the letter.

Dingankar told Rediff.com that he was made to feel like a beggar when he went to Mantralaya.

"They keep telling me to come back later. I have to make so many rounds of their offices, and I'm sent here and there," Dingankar said. "While he was often told 'Why do you keep coming here?' and 'You think we have no other work?', Under Secretary Pragnya Ghate told him to wind up the commission.

Things had got worse after November, he said.

The state's administration had come to a halt for two months in October and November due to the assembly election and the uncertainty in government formation thereafter. The new government was formed on November 23.

In conclusion, the letter notes: 'The circumstances indicate that the government is not serious about the commission. The commission is unable to function for want of money even for day to day expenses. Most of the staff are hired on contract basis. They would starve for want of salary.'

'Honourable Chairman of the Commission is at pains to express his displeasure and expects the State to take remedial steps.'

Advocate B A Desai, the senior-most counsel appearing before the commission, requested Justice Patel to reconsider his decision. "You may give the government a deadline, but please do not say that you are winding up. The commission stands for truth and justice," he said, "its work needs to be completed."
We attempted to send a notification to your email address but we were unable to verify that you provided a valid email address. Please click here to update your email address if you wish to receive notifications. Otherwise, you may click here to disable notifications and hide this message.
A woman wears a mask in Chinatown following the outbreak of the novel coronavirus, in Chicago, Illinois, U.S. Jan. 30, 2020. (Reuters/Kamil Krzaczynski/File Photo)

Boston Man Who Traveled to Wuhan Confirmed as 8th US Case of Coronavirus

U.S. health authorities have confirmed an eighth case of the novel coronavirus in the United States.

The virus was detected in a man in his 20s from Boston who had recently traveled to Wuhan, the central Chinese city where the outbreak originated, the Massachusetts Department of Public Health announced in a press release on Feb. 1.

Health officials later confirmed that hes a student at the Boston campus of the University of Massachusetts. He has been under self-isolation at his off-campus home since Jan. 29, after complaining of flu-like symptoms.

The officials said he has had very limited contact with others since his return from Wuhan on Jan. 28, but declined to provide further details at a press briefing on Feb. 1.

The man will continue to be isolated until cleared by health officials, who said he is clinically healthy and doesnt require hospitalization. He has been in regular contact with medical personnel, the officials said.

State officials said the decision to place the patient under self-isolation, rather than in hospital quarantine, was consistent with recommendations from the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), and was partly because of concern that the virus could spread more easily in a hospital setting.

Boston Logan International Airport didnt begin screening for the virus until Jan. 29, a day after the patients return from China. So far, 20 U.S. airports have been screening passengers from China to identify possible coronavirus patients.

Its unclear how long he had been in Wuhan.

In addition to the Boston case, there are three confirmed cases of the novel coronavirus in California, one in Washington state, one in Arizona, and two in Illinois. In one of these cases, a man from Chicago who hadnt been to China contracted the virus from his spouse, who had returned from Wuhan.

The CDC is currently monitoring another 121 possible cases of the virus.

U.S. health officials have said that the risk of infections on Americans remains low.

We are grateful that this young man is recovering and sought medical attention immediately, Massachusetts Public Health Commissioner Monica Bharel said in the statement.

The mans few close contacts are currently being monitored for any signs of illness.

State health authorities were notified by the CDC of the positive test results late on Jan. 31.

The U.S. government declared the coronavirus a public health emergency on Jan. 31, and enacted temporary travel restriction and quarantine measures in a bid to contain the spread of the disease in the country.

As of 5 p.m. Feb. 2, all foreign nationals who have been in mainland China for the past 14 days will be denied entry into the United States, excluding U.S. residents or immediate family of U.S. citizens.

In addition, returning U.S. citizens from Hubeithe Chinese province where Wuhan is locatedwill undergo a mandatory quarantine of up to 14 days.

For U.S. citizens returning from the rest of mainland China, they will undergo health screenings at selected ports of entry and would be subject to up to 14 days of monitored self-quarantine.

All three major U.S. airlinesDelta Air Lines, American Airlines, and United Airlinessaid Jan. 31 they would cancel flights to mainland China. American Airlines announced Feb. 2 the suspension would be extended to flights to Hong Kong.

The World Health Organization earlier in the week declared the outbreak a global health emergency. Currently, more than 20 other countries and territories have reported confirmed cases of the virus. Meanwhile, a 44-year-old Chinese man, who died Feb. 1 of the coronavirus in the Philippines, is the first confirmed fatality outside mainland China since the outbreak began.



Inside China, state figures place the number of infections at nearly 15,000, and more than 300 deaths, with numbers drastically rising on a daily basis. However, experts say the actual numbers are likely to be much higher.

Epoch Times reporter Eva Fu contributed to this report.
Not just shopping malls and commercial mill compounds, stand-alone eateries or shopping outlets in non-residential areas, too, could be allowed to run 24x7 in Mumbai.

A fortnight ago, the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) gave nod to implementation of its 24x7 Mumbai plan, allowing establishments in gated communities such as shopping malls and commercial complexes in non-residential areas to run through the night.

Gated communities refer to places with CCTV surveillance, parking facilities, safety arrangements and steps to curtail noise, said a government official.

The civic body is now identifying other non-enclosed and non-gated areas  business hubs, commercial areas or tourist spots  where the plan can be implemented.

The criteria are the hubs should not cause nuisance to residential areas and where security can be ensured, according to BMC officials.

Municipal commissioner Praveen Pardeshi told HT, Recently, we had a meeting with the associations of retailers and restaurants in the city. They are keen to implement the nightlife plan in business hubs. We are trying to find a way as to how retail outlets and restaurants owners outside gated communities can be included in the plan. A decision on the mechanism is yet to be taken, but in-principle, we would like to support that. We are identifying areas where security will be ensured.

A senior civic official said, Officials on ward level will identify such areas, check its feasibility for implementing nightlife plan and check with the police authorities to take this ahead.

The decision to allow shopping malls, eateries, commercial complexes and other gated communities to run 24x7 was taken in a meeting called by tourism minister Aaditya Thackeray on January 16. The meeting was attended by civic chief and police commissioner Sanjay Barve.

HT was the first to report that the Mumbai Police and Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) would permit such establishments to stay open all night without serving alcohol post 1.30am.
Chinas isolation grows as virus toll reaches 259

CHINA: China faced deepening isolation over its coronavirus epidemic on Saturday (Feb 1) as the death toll soared to 259, with the United States and Australia leading a growing list of nations to impose extraordinary Chinese travel bans.

healthChinesetourismtransportCoronavirusCOVID-19

By AFP

Saturday 1 February 2020, 10:01PM

The virus is starting to have an impact on economies around the world. Photo: AFP

Temperature screenings for the virus at an airport in South Sudan. Image: AFP

Commuters in Bangkok. Face masks are in short supply across many parts of Asia. Photo: AFP

At the epicentre of the deadly epidemic, Chinas Wuhan city, hospitals are overwhelmed. Photo: AFP

The coraonavirus is causing panic around the world. Photo: AFP

With Britain, Russia and Sweden among the countries confirming their first infections, the virus has now spread to more than two dozen nations, sending governments scurrying to limit their exposure.

China toughened its own quarantine measures at the centre of the outbreak in Hubei province, a day after the United States temporarily barred entry to foreigners who had been in China within the past two weeks.

Foreign nationals, other than immediate family of US citizens and permanent residents will be denied entry into the United States, Health Secretary Alex Azar said.

Australia said it was barring entry to non-citizens arriving from China, while Australian citizens who had travelled there would be required to go into self-isolation for two weeks.

Vietnam suspended all flights from mainland China and Hong Kong effective from Saturday. Taiwan also initially appeared on the list of banned routes but references to the self-ruled island were later removed.

Similar expansive restrictions have been announced by countries including Italy, Singapore, and Chinas northern neighbour Mongolia.

The United States, Japan, Britain, Germany and other nations had already advised their citizens not to travel to China.

Britain said Saturday it was temporarily withdrawing some diplomatic staff and their families from across the country, a day after the US State Department ordered embassy employees to send home family members under the age of 21.

Unkind

Beijing insists it can contain the virus and called Washingtons advice against travel to China unkind.

Certainly it is not a gesture of goodwill, foreign ministry spokeswoman Hua Chunying said.

The US emergency declaration also requires Americans returning from Hubei province to be placed in mandatory 14-day quarantine, and health screening for American citizens coming from other parts of China.

The virus emerged in early December and has been traced to a market in Hubeis capital Wuhan that sold wild animals.

It spread globally on the wings of a Lunar New Year holiday rush that sees hundreds of millions of Chinese people travel domestically and overseas.

The economic fallout continued Saturday as Apple announced that all its China stores would be closed until February 9.

Chinas central bank said it would offer financial support to businesses hit by the public health emergency.

Mea culpa

With public anger mounting in China, Wuhans top official admitted late Friday that authorities there had acted too slowly.

If strict control measures had been taken earlier the result would have been better than now, said Ma Guoqiang, the Communist Party chief for Wuhan.

Wuhan officials have been criticised online for withholding information about the outbreak until late December despite knowing of it weeks earlier.

China finally lurched into action last week, effectively quarantining whole cities in Hubei and tens of millions of people.

Unprecedented safeguards imposed nationwide include postponing the return to school, cutting bus and train routes, and tightening health screening on travellers nationwide.

On Saturday, authorities in Hubei extended the new year holiday until Feb 13 and announced a suspension of marriage registrations from Monday to discourage public gatherings.

The city of Huanggang, east of Wuhan, said only one member of each household would be permitted to leave the house every two days to buy necessities.

But the toll keeps mounting at an ever-increasing pace, with health authorities on Saturday saying 46 more people had died in the preceding 24 hours, all but one in Hubei.

Another 2,102 new infections were also confirmed, bringing the total to nearly 12,000  far higher than the Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome outbreak of 2002-03.

SARS, which is caused by a pathogen similar to the new coronavirus and also originated in China, killed 774 people worldwide  most of them in mainland China and Hong Kong.

The World Health Organization declared the outbreak a global emergency on Thursday but later warned that closing borders was probably ineffective in halting transmission and could accelerate the spread of the virus.

But authorities around the world pressed ahead with preventive measures.

Latent racism

Thai health officials on Friday said a taxi driver became the kingdoms first case of human-to-human transmission.

Thailand joins China, Germany, Japan, France and the United States with confirmed domestic infections.

The health crisis has dented Chinas international image and put Chinese nationals in difficult positions abroad, with complaints of racism.

More than 40,000 workers at a vast Chinese-controlled industrial park in Indonesia  which also employs 5,000 staff from China  were put under quarantine, the facility said on Friday.

On the same day, China flew overseas Hubei residents back to the centre of the outbreak in Wuhan on chartered planes from Thailand and Malaysia, citing practical difficulties the passengers had encountered overseas.

Countries have scrambled to evacuate their nationals from Wuhan, with hundreds of US, Japanese, British, French, South Korean, Indian, Bangladeshi and Mongolian citizens evacuated so far, and more governments planning airlifts.
In a complete betrayal of its membership, the Maoist-controlled Left Trade Union Centre (LTUC) early last month signed a sellout agreement with Motherson Automotive Technologies & Engineering (MATE) management and ordered workers to end their 140-day strike at the companys Sriperumbudur plant in Tamil Nadu.

Motherson workers sit-down protest

Over 300 workers in the MATE plant, which is located about 40 kilometres from Chennai, the state capital, walked out on August 26 last year to demand a wage rise, an end to brutal working conditions and recognition of their newly-formed trade unionthe Chengai Anna Mavatta Jana Nayaga Thozhilalar Sangam (CAMJTS).

None of the strikers demands were granted in the LTUCs return-to-work deal and none of the 79 workers who were victimised during the walkout, including 51 permanent employees and 28 trainees, have been reinstated.

The union, in fact, has totally abandoned the 28 trainees and will allow MATE management to conduct disciplinary inquiries into the 51 permanent workers. The outcome of these investigations will be submitted to an assistant labour commissioner, who will make a final ruling.

Having ended all industrial action, the remaining workers now face increased management intimidation, including the transfer of workers from their previous positions and a ban on the use of mobile phones.

Part of a demonstration of Motherson autoworkers

CAMJTSthe Motherson workers unionwas initially affiliated to the All India Central Council of Trade Unions (AICCTU), the trade union wing of the Maoist Communist Party of India-Marxist Leninist-Liberation (CPI-ML-Liberation).

Last November, AICCTU National President S. Kumaraswamy split from the party and the AICCTU, reportedly without any explanation, and formed the LTUC. The party splinter group, known as the Communist Party and led by Kumaraswamy, has linked the CAMJTS to the LTUC.

The LTUC and AICCTU bureaucracies played the same treacherous role during the MATE dispute, isolating the strikers and refusing to mobilise any genuine working-class support. In October, the AICCTU told MATE that they would drop workers main demands if management agreed to take no action against the strikers.

Despite the union back-stabbing, the MATE auto parts strikers heroically continued their action in defiance of state repression, company intimidation and enormous economic hardships.

MATE, which is the polymer division of Motherson Sumi Systems Ltd, was established in 1986 as a joint venture between Samvardhana Motherson Group and Japan-based Sumitomo Wiring Systems. Along with its Indian plants, the giant company operates in 42 countries and employs over 135,000 workers. In 2018 it had a turnover of $US11.7 billion.

The companys Sriperumbudur plant has over 1,500 workers but only about 560 are permanent. The remaining 1,000 workers are either contract or trainee employees.

The AICCTU and LTUC refused to mobilise the hundreds of contract workers and trainees at the plant in support of the strikers, let alone appeal for backing more broadly from other Motherson group employees in Sriperumbudur, Oragadam or anywhere else in India.

The unions isolated the strikers, diverting them into futile appeals to various authorities, including government labour officials and the anti-working-class All India Anna Dravida Munnethra Kazhagam (AIADMK)-led Tamil Nadu state government.

This strengthened the hands of MATE management, which stepped up its repressive measures against strikers and used the contract workers and trainees to maintain production. Management suspended dozens of striking permanent employees and terminated trainees. It also sent out a charge sheet or show cause notice to the striking workers.

The split from the AICCTU and formation of the LTUC constituted a further shift to the right by the Maoist-Stalinists organisations. The LTUC aligned itself with the chauvinist Velka Thamil (Rise up Tamil) campaigns led by the various Tamil nationalist organisations. The Maoist union leaders, in a calculated effort to split the Motherson auto parts workers from their fellow workers across India, directed the strikers to participate in the Tamil nationalist agitations.

The reactionary policies of the AICCTU and LTUC flow from the nationalist pro-capitalist program of the CPI-ML-Liberation, which is also in an alliance with the two main Stalinist parliamentary partiesthe Communist Party of India (Marxist) (CPM) and the Communist Party of India (CPI). These formations established an electoral alliance led by the big-business Dravida Munnethra Kazhagam (DMK) in the recent Indian parliamentary elections. The Maoist group also established an electoral bloc with the Congress Party in Bihar state and pledged to help it form an alternative government.

All three Stalinist partiesCPM, CPI and CPI-ML-Liberationwere ready to support a government led by the Congress Party, the Indian bourgeoisies preferred party of government, in the 2019 national elections.

The respective union federations of these competing Stalinist parties, which defend capitalism and auto industry profits, were hostile to any independent mobilisation working-class support behind the Motherson workers 140-day strike. The corporate media and publications controlled by the Stalinist parties imposed a virtual media blackout on the Motherson workers ongoing industrial action.

By contrast, the World Socialist Web Site (WSWS), published articles on the issues rising from the strike, exposing the treacherous policies of AICCTU and LTUC, and elaborating a socialist and international program on which Motherson workers could advance their struggle.

Indian supporters of the International Committee of the Fourth International (ICFI) circulated this material amongst the strikers and spoke with them in defiance of the desperate efforts of Maoist AICCTU and LTUC officials to stop these discussions. One Maoist official attempted to justify the unions refusal to call on contract workers to join the strike by falsely claiming that it was illegal.

ICFI supporters explained to MATE workers that permanent and contract workers at the Maruti Suzuki car assembly plant at Manesar in the north Indian state of Haryana took united industrial action in 2011 against sweatshop conditions. They also pointed out over that 10,000 contract workers held several indefinite strikes to demand a pay rise and permanent jobs at Neyveli Lignite Corporation in Neyveli, 350 kilometres from Chennai, the Tamil Nadu capital.

From the outset the WSWS has explained that the MATE auto parts workers strike is part of the growing resurgence of workers-class struggles internationally.

The central lesson of the MATE workers strike and its betrayal by the unions is that the struggle for permanent jobs, decent wages, improved working conditions and basic democratic rights can only be advanced by challenging the capitalist system and all its political agencies.

This requires a complete break from all Stalinist-Maoist controlled, pro-capitalist unions and for workers to establish genuinely independent rank-and-file committees that fight to mobilise autoworkers in unified action throughout India and around the world on a socialist and internationalist program.
City grandee Michael Spencer could collect a multi-million payout after the owner of spreadbetting firm City Index received an approach from a US rival.

Sources in the City said INTL FCStone, a New York-headquartered commodities trading house, has been talking to Gain Capital, the owner of City Index.

Spencer, founder of inter-dealer broker Icap and a former Conservative party treasurer, remains a shareholder in Gain Capital after selling City Index to the US-listed business for 74 million in 2014.

In the money: Michael Spencer is founder of inter-dealer broker Icap and a former Conservative party treasurer

He owns 2.5 per cent of Gain Capital via his investment firm IPGL, according to data firm Bloomberg. Spencer is said to be in line for a peerage.

City Index gives punters the opportunity to make high-risk bets on rises and falls in the price of shares, commodities and currencies.

London-listed 'contract for difference' broker Plus500 approached Gain Capital last summer, but talks later broke down.

Gain Capital and INTL FCStone declined to comment.
Foreign ministers of three countries say they have reached an agreement on schedule to fill massive dam on Nile River.

Officials from Egypt, Ethiopia and Sudan announced they have cleared the way for the filling and operation of a disputed multibillion-dollar dam being built by the Ethiopian government on the Nile River.

In a joint statement issued after four days of talks in Washington, DC, the foreign ministers and water resources officials of the three Northeastern African countries said on Friday they had agreed on a schedule for filling the dam, dubbed the Grand Ethiopian Renaissance Dam (GERD), among other key issues.

The ministers have instructed their technical and legal teams to prepare the final agreement, the statement read, for a signing of the three countries by the end of February 2020.

The three countries reaffirmed the importance of transboundary cooperation in the development of the Blue Nile to improve the lives of the people of Egypt, Ethiopia and Sudan.

200128093014096

Ethiopia says the dam  which will be the largest in Africa and is located near its border with Sudan  is crucial for its growing economy. It began the massive project in 2010 as part of a plan to expand its power exports.

Egypt fears the project, now 70 percent complete, will disrupt the river that covers 90 percent of its needs for irrigation and drinking water.

The US Treasury Department has been leading the talks after Egyptian President Abdel Fattah el-Sisi sought intervention from Donald Trump, his US counterpart and close ally.

The White House said Trump on Friday spoke by telephone about the negotiations with Ethiopian Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed.

Trump expressed optimism that an agreement on the Grand Ethiopian Renaissance Dam was near and would benefit all parties involved, the White House said in a statement.

https://interactive.aljazeera.com/aje/2020/saving-the-nile/index.html

The points agreed to on Friday provide mechanisms addressing some of Egypts concerns, including how to fill the dam during periods of drought, and how to operate the power plant in the long term during droughts.

The ministers also discussed and agreed to finalise a mechanism for the annual and long-term operation of the dam, a coordination mechanism, and provisions for dispute resolution and information sharing.

Finally, they agreed to address dam safety and pending studies on the environmental and social impacts of the GERD.
China ranked worlds second largest arms producer trailing behind US By Thalif Deen View(s): View(s):

UNITED NATIONS, Jan 27 2020 (IPS)  Donald Trump, the vociferously unpredictable US president, has long chastised China for seeking unfair advantage over trade and tariffs, violating intellectual property rights and manipulating the countrys currency to its advantage.

But while this blatant political rhetoric has continued ever since Trump assumed office in 2017, the Chinese have steadily built a massive military arsenal  and joined the worlds major players in arms production and arms exports.

In a new report, released January 27, the Stockholm International Peace Research Institute (SIPRI), said that China is now the worlds second-largest arms producer, ranking behind the United States and ahead of Russia.

And in 2014-18, the five largest arms exporters were the United States, Russia, France, Germany and Chinain that order.

At the United Nations, China is a veto-wielding permanent member of the Security Council, along with the US, UK, France and Russia.

According to SIPRI, China has invested considerably in the modernization of its arm industry since the 1960s, and particularly since 1999.

One of its primary aims is to be self-reliant in the production of advanced weapons and technologies for its armed forces.

However, due to lack of transparency, the value of Chinese arms sales has been either unknown or based on unreliable estimates  until now.

Based on estimated arms sales in 201517, SIPRI has identified four major Chinese arms companies as the front-runners.

In 2017, of the 20 largest companies in the SIPRI Top 100, 11 were based in the US, six in Western Europe and three in Russia.

If the four Chinese arms companies, investigated in the study, were included in the top 100, they would all rank among the top 20, with combined estimated arms sales totalling $54.1 billion. Three of the companies would be ranked in the top 10, said SIPRI.

The four have been identified as Aviation Industry Corporation of China (AVIC), China North Industries Corporation (NORINCO), China Electronics Technology Group Corporation CETC) and China South Industries Group Corporation (CSGC).

These companies are ranked behind the worlds four biggest arms producers: Lockheed Martin, Boeing, Northrop Grumman and Raytheonall based in the US.

Asked whether the quality of Chinese weapons was on par with Western military equipment, Dr Nan Tian, Researcher, Arms and Military Expenditure Programme at SIPRI, told IPS generally there is the opinion that some of the Chinese weapons are still a bit behind in quality as compared to those made by Western countries.

But we have seen massive improvements in the quality of Chinese weapons, he added.

This is also one of the factors why Chinese weapons are considered less expensive than Western alternatives, he added.

The large buyers of Chinese weapons include Pakistan, Bangladesh, Myanmar and Algeria. Most of these countries are considered friendly or are allies of China, he pointed out.

Asked if these sales were tied to Chinese foreign policy and meant to advance political causes, he said: Yes, indeed it has foreign policy ties, but so is the case with Russia, US and other countries as well.

Meanwhile, according to the China Power Project at the Washington-based Center for Strategic and International Studies (CSIS), China is also an arms supplier to two other Asian countries, namely Indonesia and Thailand.

In Africa, its arms markets include Algeria, Egypt and Morocco while Chinese weapons have also been used in several military conflicts in the region, including in Sudan, Somalia and the Democratic Republic of the Congo.

Dr Nan said that China, like most other arms suppliers, often provides exports through loans or economic partnerships (i.e. 1st access to certain mineral fields).

On loans, it is common that over the course of the repayment, China will write-off the loan as a form of aid, and thus there will be no need for the buyer to pay back the loan, he explained.

According to SIPRI, the largest of the Chinese companies is Aviation Industry Corporation of China (AVIC), with arms sales totalling $20.1 billion would be sixth largest in the world.

China North Industries Group Corporation (NORINCO), which would be placed eighth in the Top 100, with sales of $17.2 billion, is in fact the worlds largest producer of land systems.

Contrary to most other major global arms producers, SIPRI said, Chinese arms companies specialise primarily in one arms production sector. For example AVIC produces mostly aircraft and avionics.

And most of the large non-Chinese arms companies produce a wider range of military products across different sectorscovering aerospace, land systems and shipbuilding within one company.

According to SIPRI, these new estimates are most likely still an underestimate. A lack of transparency in the arms sales figures of Chinese arms companies continues to hinder a complete understanding of Chinas arms industry. This new research, however, acts as an important scoping study that opens the possibility for further research and prepares the ground for a fuller estimate of Chinese arms sales.

*The authors of the report are Dr Nan Tian, Researcher, Arms and Military Expenditure Programme at SIPRI and Fei Su, a Researcher with SIPRIs China and Asia Security Programme.

The writer can be contacted at

thalifdeen@ips.org

We will not allow Hambantota to be another Hongkong

Chinas arms sales to Sri Lanka including F-7 jet fighters, the JY-11 low altitude air surveillance radar system and loads of ammunition  have been relatively small compared to the vast array of military equipment delivered to Pakistan, Bangladesh and Myanmar. Meanwhile US concerns over Chinese activities in Sri Lanka were best reflected in the TV series Madam Secretary. In one episode, the fictional US Secretary of State, played by Tea Leoni, is at a State Department meeting with a visiting Sri Lankan President (who keeps consulting his astrologer, seated next to him, before making his decisions). And while discussing the role of China and its military activities in Sri Lanka, the US Secretary of State warns the President: We will not allow Hambantota to be another Hongkong.
An article by President Xi Jinping on the protection and exchange of the Chinese culture, especially the Dunhuang culture, will be published Saturday on Qiushi Journal, a flagship magazine of the Communist Party of China (CPC) Central Committee.

The article is the transcript of a speech by Xi, also general secretary of the CPC Central Committee and chairman of the Central Military Commission, at a symposium at the Dunhuang Academy in August, 2019.

The article hails the Dunhuang culture as a result of the long-term cultural exchanges and mutual learning between Chinese civilization and other civilizations, and points out that the Dunhuang culture shows the Chinese nation's confidence in its culture.

It also emphasizes the need for advancing the study of Dunhuang culture to serve the joint construction of the Belt and Road.

Efforts should be made to further promote the Chinese culture, cultural exchanges between China and countries along the Belt and Road, as well as people-to-people exchanges, says the article.
A schoolgirl with an 'impossible tumour' which cancer surgeons said could not be removed is on the path to recovery after her pioneering medical team created a 3D model of the massive growth.

Leah Bennett, who is now seven, had a 3in (9cm) tumour wrapped around her spine and key blood vessels which chemotherapy had been unable to shrink.

A panel of experts from leading children's hospitals concluded it would be too risky to attempt surgery.

But her mother Claire  who had lost her own mother to the same disease weeks earlier  begged Leah's doctors at Alder Hey Hospital in Liverpool not to condemn her to watch her daughter die as well.

Leah Bennett (pictured making her remarkable recovery at home), who is now seven, had a 3in (9cm) tumour wrapped around her spine and key blood vessels which chemotherapy had been unable to shrink

In what her surgical team believe is a UK first for a soft tissue tumour, they used 3D printing technology and a high resolution scanner to construct a detailed model of the tumour in order to work out if they could remove it.

They told Mrs Bennett and her NHS manager husband Stephen that even if Leah went under the knife, there was only a 20 per chance they could cut it out  and even if they did, there was a 50-50 chance she would bleed to death or be left paralysed.

Faced with a one in ten chance of success, the couple agreed the attempt should go ahead and Leah went into surgery on August 1 last year.

'At that point we didn't know whether that would be the last time we would ever see our daughter alive,' her mother said yesterday. Thankfully, the operation was a complete success, with the surgeons  Jo Minford and four colleagues  removing 95 per cent of the tumour. After a fortnight at Alder Hey, Leah was allowed back to the family's St Helens home.

Leah Bennett pictured after six hours after the major operation to remove her tumour at Alderhey Hospital in August

She then faced radiotherapy to eradicate more of the growth, but amazingly was able to return to primary school for the start of the new school year.

After the 12-month battle which turned the family's lives upside down, her parents decided to share her story as they attempt to raise money through their online link Team Leah  Fighting Back Against Cancer for the 20 different charities which helped them. They also hope to inspire families who may face similar ordeals.

'The bravery of the surgical team to  attempt surgery when all other hospitals around the country said 'No' is beyond inspiring,' said Mr Bennett, 39. 'They put their professional reputations on the line.'

Leah, who has a ten-year-old sister, Phoebe, began complaining of a sore back in November 2018.

After seeing her GP and enduring a battery of hospital tests her oncologist confirmed the tumour was a retroperitoneal sarcoma  and that it was wrapped around blood vessels, including the aorta.

By April it was clear that chemotherapy was not shrinking the tumour and a panel of surgeons from Great Ormond Street and Manchester children's hospitals concluded operating would not be in Leah's 'best interests'.

But in June came the meeting at Alder Hey which was to change their lives when the surgeons produced the model of the tumour. 'I could barely look at it,' Mrs Bennett said. 'It was the enemy.'

In what her surgical team believe is a UK first for a soft tissue tumour, they used 3D printing technology and a high resolution scanner to construct a detailed model of the tumour in order to work out if they could remove it

The surgery took six hours but Leah, now seven, is returning to full health though she will need regular three-monthly checks.

Her surgeon, Jo Minford, said: 'We worried that by operating we would rob her parents of another six months or a year with her.' Seeing Leah now makes her feel 'quite emotional', the surgeon added. 'It makes me proud  to have done something that people said we couldn't do.'

Link to the appeal: https://uk.gofundme.com/f/teamleah-fighting-back-against-childhood-cancer
Congratulations, bndes.gov.br got a very good Social Media Impact Score! Show it by adding this HTML code on your site:

Bndes.gov.br scored 75 Social Media Impact. Social Media Impact score is a measure of how much a site is popular on social networks. 4/5.0 Stars by Social Team

This CoolSocial report was updated on 14 Jan 2013, you can refresh this analysis whenever you want.

This is the sum of two values: the total number of people who shared the bndes homepage on Twitter + the total number of bndes followers (if bndes has a Twitter account). The total number of people who shared the bndes homepage on Google Plus by a google +1 button. This is the sum of two values: the total number of people who shared, liked or recommended the bndes homepage on Facebook + the total number of page likes (if bndes has a Facebook fan page). The total number of people who shared the bndes homepage on Delicious. The total number of people who shared the bndes homepage on StumbleUpon.

Basic Information

PAGE TITLE Site BNDES DESCRIPTION KEYWORDS OTHER KEYWORDS



The keywords meta-tag found in the head section of the homepage. CoolSocial advanced keyword analysis tool is able to detect and analyze every keyword on each page of a site. The URL (Uniform Resource Locator) is the address of the site. The description meta-tag found in the head section of the homepage. The title found in the head section of the homepage.

Domain and Server

DOCTYPE CHARSET AND LANGUAGE Portuguese (Brazil) UTF-8Portuguese (Brazil) DETECTED LANGUAGE Italian Italian SERVER Microsoft-IIS/6.0 (ASP.NET) OPERATIVE SYSTEM Windows Server 2003 Windows Server 2003

Operative System running on the server. The language of bndes.gov.br as detected by CoolSocial algorithms. Represents HTML declared type (e.g.: XHTML 1.1, HTML 4.0, the new HTML 5.0) Type of server and offered services. Character set and language of the site.

Site Traffic trend during the last year. Only available for sites ranked <= 100000 in the world.

Referring domains for bndes.gov.br by MajesticSeo. High values are a sign of site importance over the web and on web engines.

Facebook link

FACEBOOK PAGE LINK NOT FOUND

The total number of people who tagged or talked about website Facebook page in the last 7-10 days. Facebook Timeline is the new layout of Facebook pages. A Facebook page link can be found in the homepage or in the robots.txt file. The type of Facebook page. The total number of people who like website Facebook page. The URL of the found Facebook page. The description of the Facebook page describes website and its services to the social media users.

Twitter account link

TWITTER PAGE LINK NOT FOUND
BRUSSELS  His 13th-floor office with its panoramic views was testament to the high status Claude Moraes had attained as a senior member of the European Parliament. But on a recent morning, it was empty, save his suitcase, a laptop and a phone on his bare desk.

That is because Mr. Moraes is British, and his time in Brussels is up.

For Britons back home, the formal departure from the European Union on Friday means very little in practice, as the country will obey European Union rules until the end of the year.

But it is different in Brussels. The longstanding British contingent in the European capital now has to disband, or regroup. Thousands of British permanent officials, lobbyists and others are actually staying in Brussels, and many have qualified for passports from Belgium  a nation that the British have more often mocked than admired.

But for Mr. Moraes and many others, it has meant joining the Brexodus of those quitting Brussels and their countrys 47-year engagement with its Continental neighbors, a cause to which many have devoted their careers.
President Donald Trumps administration announced the expansion of travel restrictionsone of his signature policiesto include six new countries: Nigeria, Burma (also known as Myanmar), Sudan, Tanzania, Eritrea, and Kyrgyzstan, in a move that is likely to draw renewed criticism from immigration advocates.

The United States will suspend issuing visas that can lead to permanent residency for nationals of Burma, Nigeria, Kyrgyzstan, and Eritrea. The latest rules will also bar people from Sudan and Tanzania from the U.S. diversity visa program, according to acting Homeland Security Secretary Chad Wolf.

These countries, for the most part, want to be helpful but for a variety of different reasons simply failed to meet those minimum requirements that we laid out, Wolf told reporters. And really the only way to mitigate the risk is to impose these travel restrictions, he added.

Wolf told reporters the six new countries have failed to meet U.S. security and information-sharing standards, meaning that new restrictions are required. Wolf said those countries have either failed to provide information on terrorism suspects or criminals or use poor passport technology.

U.S. travel restrictions are currently being imposed on seven countries, including Libya, Iran, Somalia, Syria, Yemen, North Korea, and Venezuela. Libya, Somalia, Syria, and Yemen are four countries that have experienced civil war and numerous terrorist attacks in recent years, while Iran has been accused by the U.S. State Department of sponsoring terrorist organizations. North Korea, meanwhile, is still technically at war with the United States.

While some critics might term the latest move a Muslim ban, Burma, Nigeria, Tanzania, and Eritrea are not Muslim-majority countries. Neither are Venezuela or North Korea.

The 2017 version of the travel ban, which was implemented during Trumps first week in office, was revised after several court challenges, but the Supreme Court upheld the latest iteration in 2018.

Wolf told reporters that Belarus was under consideration in the expanded travel ban, but the country took measures to deal with deficiencies in recent months. It will not face any restrictions, he said.

Nonimmigrant visas were not affected. Those are given to people traveling to the United States for a temporary stay. They include visas for tourists, those doing business, or people seeking medical treatment. During December, for example, about 650,760 nonimmigrant visas were granted worldwide, according to The Associated Press.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.

From The Epoch Times
With the anti-CAA protest in Jamia Millia Islamia and Shaheen Bagh continuing well into almost 50 days, more attempts are being made to force the Delhi Police to break the protests. After a case of firing was recorded in Jamia Millia on January 30, a man was caught at the site of the Shaheen Bagh protest with a gun after he fired 2 shots.

The protests at Jamia Millia Islamia and Shaheen Bagh are showing no signs of being withdrawn and on the 50th day of the protests, a man, identified as Kapil Gujjar of Dallupura in the city, fired a pistol twice in Shaheen Bagh. The attack comes 2 days after the Jamia Millia case where a man, said to be a minor, was caught firing at a Kashmiri student. Gujjar has been remanded to 2-day custody. As per reports, the weapon of Kapil Gujjar has been seized by Delhi Police. Delhi South-East DCP Chinmay Biswal said Gujjar had fired in the air and was overpowered by police. Biswal was later transferred by the Election Commission for allowing two such incidents, one at Jamia and one at Shaheen Bagh, under his watch.

Gujjar is said to have fired at the barricades while shouting Jai Shri Ram. He has been caught on video saying only those who will work for the welfare and benefit of the Hindus in India will survive in this country, making a direct attack on the faith of the people protesting at Shaheen Bagh and Jamia.

On January 30, a similar case was registered in Jamia Millia Islamia. The man was initially identified and his name was flashed on TV but his name was dropped at the instance of a wire agency that produced a CBSE marksheet which showed him to be a minor. Several social media users have blown the minor theory to smithereens by using tools that point to photoshop editing of the marksheet. The attack happened just when a huge protest march was to be taken out from Jamia to Rajghat. In preparation for the march, the whole area was soaked with police but the policemen could not stop the gunman from firing at a student. The assailant is said to have shot at the Kashmiri student, saying here take this freedom, in reply to the popular protest slogan demanding liberty.

Delhi: A man fired bullets in Shaheen Bagh area. Police has taken him into their custody. More details awaited. pic.twitter.com/kzBi74Qti7  ANI (@ANI) February 1, 2020

Another incident of firing this time at Shaheen Bagh. Police took the man into custody. But n out before he said  is desh main sirf hinduon ki chalegi aur kissi ki nahi chalegi pic.twitter.com/SGA9FJGWBK  Milan Sharma (@Milan_reports) February 1, 2020

For all the latest National News, download NewsX App
By Paulina Duran

SYDNEY, Jan 31 (Reuters) - Commonwealth Bank of Australia grew its home lending business in the second half of last year, the only one to do so of the four major banks, data showed on Friday, as offshore lenders lured customers with quick approvals and cheap money.

Australian home buyers flocked to big offshore players such as HSBC, ING Groep NV, and Citigroup Inc. , following a period of heightened regulatory scrutiny and customer backlash at the big domestic institutions. Those banks grew by 6.6%, 5% and 2.3% respectively, over the same period.

The loss of market share for the Big Four points to a challenging revenue growth environment at a time when their dependency on home loans has increased after selling scandal-hit businesses such as insurance and financial advice.

A string of scandals in the last two years has seen regulators pressuring the major banks to tighten their conduct and lending processes, thereby slowing down credit approvals.

Meanwhile, HSBC and Citi have invested in their relationships with brokers and sped up their loan approval processes. HSBC has also opened new branches.

"The big overseas banks have been less impacted by the Royal Commission," said Steve Mickenbecker, Financial Services executive at rate comparison site Canstar.

"Those institutions have been able to get the loan approvals through more quickly when they have been traffic jams at some of the bigger organisations, plus those banks have also been pricing aggressively in the last 12 to 18 months."

Commonwealth Bank, already Australia's largest, with one fifth of the mortgage market grew its home lending books by 1.2% in the six months to Dec. 31 to A$444.8 billion, according to Australian Prudential Regulation Authority (APRA) statistics.

The rest of its smaller domestic rivals - Westpac Banking Corp, National Australia Bank, and Australia and New Zealand Banking Group - shrunk their books by up to 1.6% each over the same period.

"The extent of ANZ, and now (Westpac), housing share losses are unprecedented," said Brian Johnson, a banking analyst at Jefferies in Sydney.

Story continues

Due to the scandals and scathing revelations at a sector-wide misconduct inquiry, all but one of the Big Four have been forced to overhaul their management teams.

Commonwealth Bank, which reports first-half earnings on Feb. 12, was the first to see the early retirement of its CEO following a money-laundering scandal.

NAB, the third largest, lost its top executives after an industry inquiry into misconduct accused them of being unwilling to accept responsibility for the bank's misconduct.

Westpac, the second largest with a 23% share of the mortgage market, is searching for a new chief executive following the resignation of its CEO over a child exploitation payments scandal.

Investment conglomerate Macquarie Group, which was largely unscathed by the inquiry, grew its mortgage book at a dramatic rate of 14% over the same period - albeit from a much lower base of about 2.5% market share.

($1 = 1.4622 Australian dollars) (Reporting by Paulina Duran in Sydney; Editing by Jacqueline Wong)
It was around midnight in Cairo, and I couldn't stop coughing. I had just flown back to Egypt from Dubai. I was having tea at my fashion designer friend's house with the rest of our entourage. It was about a year after the Egyptian revolution, and I was living in the Middle East, working as an international economist.

I looked down, and realized the tissue I had been using was covered in blood.

Inside there was a meaty piece of flesh that looked like a piece of a lung.

"Omar, I think I need to go to the hospital," I said to my Egyptian friend.

"Right now?" asked Omar, who was hoping to go on a date with someone from the internet.

I held up the bloody tissue, and said, "Yeah, right now." And so began our trip to the Cairo Emergency Room (ER).

At least it's not tuberculosis?

The second I saw the bloody tissue, I was sure I had "consumption," also known as tuberculosis. I was so relieved when I learned I didn't have tuberculosis, but I was still really sick.

The X-ray of my lungs showed significant damage from whatever virus I had. I still keep my lung X-ray hanging in my living room to remind myself of my younger adventures and that "every day above ground is a good day."

I was hallucinating with a high fever for at least a week before we learned that I was one of the early MERS (Middle East Respiratory Syndrome) cases. MERS is caused by a coronavirus that originated in the Arabian Peninsula in 2012.

While research into the Wuhan Coronavirus is still early, the mortality rate of MERS patients seems to be about 7 times higher than the Wuhan Coronavirus. (And the death rate for MERS was about 3 times greater than SARS.) While Wuhan Coronavirus appears to be far less deadly than MERS or SARS, it is much more contagious.

Prevention tips to protect yourself from the Coronavirus:

1. Stay hydrated.

Drink lots of water, and avoid or limit drinks that will dehydrate you such as coffee, soft drinks and alcohol. Eating foods with high amounts of water, like fruits and vegetables, also helps.

2. Boost your immune system, naturally

There are plenty of foods that can help your immune system. Make sure to consult your doctor, but I personally consume large amounts of raw ginger and garlic whenever I am at risk for disease. Peppers and citrus fruits are also excellent disease fighters. Your colleagues might hate you for eating that big garlic clove, but if it keeps you from getting sick or helps you get better faster, it's worth it!

3. Get plenty of sleep

This was one of my biggest mistakes in my early twenties, and very likely compromised my immune system even further, making me especially susceptible to MERS. Whether you're a workaholic or a party animal (or both), be sure to get enough sleep or your immune system will be weakened.

4. Wash your hands

I personally carry hand sanitizer everywhere, but that doesn't catch everything, so be sure to frequently wash your hands with soap and warm water. Health professionals recommend singing "the happy birthday song" to yourself to make sure you've washed your hands thoroughly for a sufficient amount of time. I have made it a habit to immediately wash my hands whenever I return home and before every meal, and it's dramatically cut down how often I'm sick.

5. Work from home

This is actually probably one of the best ways to prevent disease. A coworker could forward you a phishing email that compromises your accounts, but they can't give you Wuhan Coronavirus over Slack or email. I've run a company with a distributed team for more than five years, and my newest software company, Endpass, continues to have a remote team across North America and Europe. Needless to say, we won't be sharing any germs unless we do a team retreat. If one positive thing came from the Coronavirus, it would be encouraging more companies to consider remote teams and work from home policies.

6 Carry tissues

Besides wearing a surgical-grade or n95 masks if you think you're sick or potentially exposed to infected people, the next best thing you can do is use tissues when you sneeze. I always carry a disposable pack in my fanny pack (since I stopped wearing purses) and travel bag.

7. Disinfect your environment

Public places are filthy, especially airports and airplanes. My cousin who works in nursing turned me on to carrying disposable disinfectant wipes in my travel bag. Now I wipe down the plane seat and other especially germy places before coming in contact with them. There's also some great hand sanitizer out there. My favorite is the lavender vanilla scented stuff at Whole Foods, but it's probably in other stores and on Amazon.

8. Think twice about sharing

I'm a big fan of "family style" meals, but when any kind of disease is likely to be spreading you should limit your exposure to possible contamination as much as possible. So don't share drinks, and definitely don't share vapes, if you smoke. (Obviously, smoking also weakens your immune system and can damage your lungs, making them easier to be infected.)

9. Don't travel while sick!

Traveling when you're sick is a terrible idea. Not only are you more likely to get even sicker if you're already feeling unwell, you're also spreading disease. I refuse to do it anymore after getting MERS. I personally fly Alaska because of their great customer service, and how easy it is for me to change my flights for free.

10. If you're sick, seek medical attention immediately!

Finally, don't wait to seek medical attention. I probably should have gone to the hospital in Dubai when I first had symptoms, but I foolishly decided to wait until I returned to go to Cairo. If my symptoms had progressed slightly faster, I could have died. If you think you have contracted the Wuhan Coronavirus, seek medical treatment early. Make sure a loved one, close friend, or colleague also knows you're feeling unwell so they can check on you in case you become even sicker.
The Saga

Back in 2016, the British electorate went to the polls for a once in a lifetime vote. Few would have anticipated what was to come in the years ahead. Very much in the same way as few had anticipated the outcome of the EU Referendum.

As the results filtered through, it became rapidly apparent that voters had bought into the anti-EU campaign.

The markets had anticipated a remain outcome, which was reflected in the Pounds movements on that famous day.

We even saw a flash crash, where cable slumped to sub-$1.20, which wiped out a vast number of brokers across the globe that had laid a 1-sided bet.

Looking back to late 2016, Camerons tears just about summed up how the remain camp felt.

Housewives of bankers had voted to leave and, in getting their desire, soon realized that they had just voted their breadwinners out of their jobs.

Corporations hit their panic buttons and began laying out contingency plans to protect against a hard Brexit.

As British PM David Cameron made way for Theresa May, things went from bad to worse. Snap elections left the Tories on an even weaker footing at a time when a majority was a must.

It couldnt have been any worse for a British PM who had actually sat on the Pro-Remain camp.

From the time Theresa May took over, extensions kicked in and Britain learned the hard way just how difficult the EU can be. It may have proven to be the final nail in the coffin

When considering the rise in populous governments across the region and the threat of departures from the EU by the likes of France, Italy, Spain, and Greece, it was a bad time all around.

It, therefore, came as little surprise that the EU dug in its heels in a bid to fend off the threat of other member states jumping ship.

The Pro-Brexiteer

After 3-years of political wrangling, rate cuts by the BoE, General Elections that went the wrong way and blood, sweat and tears, we have seen Britain return to its glory days.

Story continues

Theresa Mays resignation in late 2019 was not quite a falling on the sword event as she had little choice.

Boris Johnsons resounding victory that was compared with the hay day of Maggie Thatcher, however, couldnt have come at a better time.

Who better to lead Britain out of the EU than the Brexiteer himself?

Fast forward to 2020 and Britain is enjoying its final day as a member of the EU.

While Boris Johnson and the Brexiteers may feel that they are the victors, it is really the EU that has lost.

For the EU, Brexit has become a blueprint for other member states, though much will depend on how Britain morphs through the transition period and beyond.

Not even the British Prime Minister is in a position to say how things will pan out for Britain.

As a member of the top 10, by GDP, this is a major geopolitical event, however, and has not been taken lightly.

The 2019 General Election just showed how the markets need to brush aside the noise and look to the facts.

Britains electorate had a 2nd chance to vote on Brexit.

Granted, while no one wanted Corbyn, the Lib Dem option was on the table. The performance, however, demonstrated just how much Brits had grown tired of the EUs ways

1-year Transition Period

As Britain enters its 1-year transition period that has been capped by Johnson and the Tory majority, the EU will find itself divided once more.

For the Pound and the global markets, hopes of an end to Brexit chatter has been dashed.

Not too dissimilar to the last 3-years, trade negotiations are unlikely to go smoothly. In fact, the EU may prefer to cut the hand that feeds it rather than finding a mutually beneficial trade agreement.

Well, Britain was certainly not benefitting from the EU terms, so anything may end up being better.

Imagine having bilateral agreements with the likes of the U.S, China, Canada, Australia, Africa, and LatAm or better yet, enter into free trade agreements with some, if not all.

Boris Johnson has a full 11 months to deliver on his promise of making Britain better or, taking a line out of his pals book, making Britain great again.

The Pound and the Footsie

What do the markets think of all of this?

Well, if we look at the Pound, its been quite a ride. While we have seen support kick in of late, a return to the days of $2.1 seems unlikely for now.

It was back in November 2007 when the Pound hit a current millennium high $2.1162.

While a downward trend was in evidence since the 2007 peak, it was 2016 that delivered the biggest blow.

A visit to sub-$1.20 in October 2016, January 2017 and September 2019 reflected the market view.

For the FTSE100, a 12% slide in Cable from 23rd June 2016 to date supported a 16.5% rally over the same time period.

So, with Britain leaving, why is the Pound sitting at $1.30 levels?

Because Brexit may prove to be the tonic that the UK economy needs. With Trump on the other side of the Pond, it could turn out just right for the Brexiteers.

It could, however, end up in a complete mess. Its the uncertainty that leaves the Pound in limbo, wedged between the pre-EU referendum levels of $1.48 and post-referendum lows of $1.19.

Britain could fail to reach trade agreements with its main trading partners, leaving WTO terms to replace EU terms.

That would most likely lead to companies relocating headquarters to the EU or even to another continent, which would leave Britain out in the cold.

The Armageddon outcome is one that is hard to swallow, but seems also a stretch It is easy to get wrapped up in the chatter, however

If we look at the FTSE100, Brexit has had little impact. In fact, the weaker Pound has been a boon for the 100, around 70% of which earn revenues from overseas. Translate Dollars into Pounds and Britain is not a bad place to be.

Throw in incentives that the government will likely offer for companies to remain and its not the doom and gloom that many had talked of. In fact, weve seen major multinationals reverse threats of leaving. Why? Perhaps Britains relationship with the U.S is one

The Outlook

If anyone truly knows what lies ahead for Johnson and the British economy, they would be guessing

Granted, the EU may not fold but further cracks could appear should the Establishment look to punish the British electorate.

Honestly speaking, threats of blocking the Channel Tunnel and banning British airlines from landing in France were just ludicrous.

Macron made a name for himself, but just not the one he perhaps would have wanted Such action could accelerate the EUs implosion and thats certainly not a legacy any pro-EU leader would wish to have.

If Britain fairs well beyond the EU and better yet, passes up on an EU hard line on trade, expect the rest of the fifty-fifty members to follow.

Assuming that the EU survives, it will at least be forced to change its ways and the handling of member states.

Many will have the British electorate to thank for that. The EU Referendum was a big statement. It was the 2019 General Election, however, that really put the writing on the wall

As for British companies and the Pound, progress on trade agreements and expect pressure to build on the EU.

That jump in the Pound may ultimately undo the FTSE100 rally, but that isnt and shouldnt be the primary concern.

Economic prosperity and an environment free from the threat of trade wars is likely far more alluring for the multinationals that have decided to remain within the UK.

This article was originally posted on FX Empire

More From FXEMPIRE:
The West Side of Chicago represented at a North Side bar Friday night and locals were hip to bounce on over to see the rap trio, Do or Die, perform live at Fitzgerald's Bar.

Photos show a good turnout of fans eager for the group's signature hits songs such as"Po Pimp", "Your Body", and more.
Holly Carrington, DVFREE and policy advisor at Shine, said the insurance industry seems to be pushing for more awareness on meeting the needs of employees to strengthen business.

When employees are given the tools to support one another and to know how to ask for help, it builds a better team and greater engagement, Carrington said. AA Insurance shows a clear commitment to the wellbeing of its 750+ employees. That means that anyone working within AA Insurance knows they can feel safe and secure in seeking help or information.

Read more: AA Insurance issues warning on claims settlement

AA Insurance launched its 15-person support network volunteers, who are in-house experts supporting those who experience violence outside of work. It also included training for almost 90% of AA Insurance leaders to appropriately deal with employees requests and queries about domestic violence.

Our people are the most important part of our business and looking after staff, which positively affects business outcomes, is a good reason to take a stand against violence. The other is that its just the right thing to do, Nikki Howell, head of people and capability at AA Insurance, said.

This external recognition, for the way AA Insurance truly backs up its promise to be there for our people, is not easily attained and puts us in a minority of organisations that are serious about helping othersincluding being vocal and visible about our stance against domestic violence.
It has become a depressingly familiar ritual. A store chain closes, and people come forward to say how much they loved it, and how they will miss it. So it is with Beales, the department store group. A newspaper dispatches one of its reporters to Bournemouth to write about the retailer going into administration.

Step up Edna Southworth and Lis Gray, clutching half-price bedclothes and duvets as they leave the shop, now holding its final closing down sale. Ive been shopping here for 50 years, Gray tells The Guardian. Its always been the store to come to. It will be such a shame if it vanished from this street and a disaster for the town centre. Our generation grew up with stores like this. Theyre a big part of our lives.

Established in 1881, Beales is shutting simply because not enough folk adhered to the corporate motto: It has to be Beales. Alas, too many of them presumably said to themselves: It has to be Amazon.
The Centre's continuing support to the CAA and the proposed National Register of Citizens is not just a "diversionary tactic" being deployed in the face of an economic crisis but it's a part of the BJP's "Hindu Rashtra" project, noted journalist R Ram said here on Saturday.

He also appealed to protesters to maintain discipline to ensure that the "mass upsurge" doesn't lose steam.

"I don't think this is just a diversionary tactic. It may have that effect of diverting attention from the economic crisis, the collapse of their dream of building a powerful economy in India," N Ram said.

He made the remarks during the opening session 'The Rising Tide in Indian Politics' of the two-day 'Mumbai Collective' initiative that began here on Saturday.

Explaining, Ram referred to the BJP's 2019 Lok Sabha poll manifesto in which the party talked about its commitment towards enactment of the Citizenship Amendment Bill for the protection of religious minority communities Hindus, Jains, Buddhists and Sikhs escaping persecution from India's neighbouring country.

Ram said that in the manifesto, the BJP also talked about making efforts to clarify the issues to the sections of population from the North-eastern states who have expressed apprehension regarding the legislation.

He claimed that Christians were not part of the BJP's list initially, but were added to it later.

Ram further said the BJP had also promised in the manifesto that it will expeditiously complete the national register of citizens (NRC) in Assam and actively consider its extension to other states of the country.

"And Mr Amit Shah, before and after he became (Union) Home Minister, has gone on record saying this (NRC) is going to be a nationwide project," he said.

Ram said the experience of implementing the NRC in Assam was a "horror story, a nightmare and a kind of harassment of the poor".

He said some people, whose names had gone missing from the final draft NRC in Assam, had fought for the country.

"The point here is that this is part of the Hindutva project. This is what they want 'Hindu Rashtra' in part, the progress of Hindu Rashtra.

"It is not merely a diversionary tactic although it may have that effect. But this, I think, has to be understood," he added.

Professor Gopal Guru, who too addressed the session, hailed the anti-CAA protest being led by women at Shaheen Bagh in Delhi.

He lauded the demonstrators for using language "that's not aggressive and maintaining discipline while exhibiting humility".

"They are actually producing new politics. They are actually giving new dimension to politics. What a great gain we actually have achieved. Hats off to those people who have given us a new way of organising politics," he said.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
Coronavirus hits travel industry By Sunimalee Dias View(s): View(s):

Even as Sri Lanka took preventive measures to combat the spread of the coronavirus in the country, some Chinese tourists in Sri Lanka were seeking to extend their stay as they feel safer here than going back home.

The impact has also hit outbound travel in Sri Lanka. One agent was saddled with a large number of postponements or cancellations of Sri Lankan incentive tours to various parts of Asia that amounted to over 500 persons postponing their travel plans. The financial damages faced by the agent were enormous, it was revealed.

The travel industry is likely to be further hit by the current crisis as most companies in Sri Lanka this week have restricted their employees from travelling overseas unless it is essential effectively impacting corporate travel.

A number of Chinese visitors that arrived in the country are now seeking to overstay their holiday as they fear going back home in the wake of the coronavirus outbreak that hit China and led to the World Health Organisation (WHO) declaring a global emergency. At present there are between 800 to 1,000 Chinese travellers in the country.

Following these developments relatives in China of the Chinese tourists here were said to have asked them to continue to stay in Sri Lanka and the immigration authorities have assisted in granting them extensions on their visas, it is learnt.

In the wake of the announcement by the WHO that the virus outbreak is a global threat it is likely that people might panic and decide not to travel. Airlines are said to be monitoring the situation in this respect and are likely to see the results of this declaration next week.

Numbers hurt

Sri Lanka like all other countries faces its biggest hit as China imposed a ban on group travel by tour agents to all countries. As China celebrates its New Year during this time of year, it is also a peak season for Chinese travel as many go on holiday to other destinations.

Most industry persons noted that Sri Lanka was just recovering from the Easter Sunday attacks when they were hit by the current crisis.

Currently occupancy at city hotels are said to be at around 58- 60 per cent that is believed to be far below normal levels, while this drop could increase in the future based on future Chinese arrivals.

Some hotel groups have pointed out that they were likely to lose about 10 per cent of room nights for February following the ban on Chinese travel as cancellations are on the rise.

At least one company has recorded about 2000 cancellations and the total is likely to increase up to around 5000 for the month of February and no re-bookings have been reported either.

Over 18000 Chinese travellers visited Sri Lanka in December alone and a total of 167,863 in 2019, a drop of over 30 per cent from Chinese arrivals in 2018.

Industry experts believe the China market could be down until around March this year following the virus outbreak.

Sri Lanka has seen an improvement in other markets like Russia, Europe and India and was expecting to pick up on the numbers during the Chinese New Year holidays this year.

Meanwhile, in a show of solidarity with the people of China, Sri Lanka is to issue a number of media advertisements in Chinese newspapers endorsing their support to the country battling the coronavirus.

Sri Lanka on alert

The airports and hotels have been given necessary precautions in a bid to ensure adequate checks are carried out to contain the virus spreading further.

Civil Aviation Authority (CAA) Director General H.M.C. Nimalsiri held a meeting on Monday with Airline Managers and Cabin staff on the precautions to be adopted in line with the outbreak of the virus even as preventive measures have been taken at all international airports namely the Bandaranaike International Airport (BIA), the Mahinda Rajapaksa International Airport (MRIA), the Ratmalana International Airport and the Jaffna International Airport.

In this respect, as a precaution face masks were asked to be worn especially onboard aircraft but due to non availability the authorities were able to obtain stocks which were distributed to the airport authorities and the CAA.

These stocks, he said, would be made available to any airline that requires these supplies and added that they had also requested sanitizers be placed where passengers were present at the airport as well.

Temperatures of arrivals are being checked, specifically those flying in from China and other virus-infected destinations, he pointed out.

Interestingly some airlines that arrived from China were found to be re-using their blankets. We told them to bring two sets of blankets, he said. In this respect, the regulator would be carrying out random checks as well onboard aircraft, he said. The BIA has also allocated a separate parking bay for any aircraft arriving from China.

Moreover, passengers were also asked to voluntarily report any their ill-health when arriving at the airport as well. Cabin staff is to identify ill persons when onboard as well, it was pointed out.

Mr. Nimalsiri noted a reduction in passengers from the usual 1500 that arrive at the BIA on flights from China aboard the seven flights per day.

The domestic airports were also said to adopt similar preventive measures as scheduled flights were said to commence from Saturday via Fits Aviation taking off from Ratmalana.

Meanwhile, top officials at the Colombo Port held a meeting and conducted at least two seminars for employees on how to cope with the current situation, the Sri Lanka Ports Authority (SLPA) Chief Manager Communication and Public Relations Nalin Aponso said.

In this respect, those coming in direct contact with people namely the security, logistics, operation and navigation staff have been asked to wear masks, he explained.

Further monitoring and steps to be taken in future are also been assessed at present, it was noted.

In addition, the Tourist Hotels Association of Sri Lanka (THASL) has advised its members on the increased awareness of personal hygiene, particularly hand washing considered critical every 30 minutes.

Further, THASL states there should be careful monitoring of employees and guests wellness including contractors. Hoteliers are to monitor temperatures should the situation worsen.

A thorough contact information of all guests is required in a bid to ensure they will be able to trace any suspected case and even potentially contact anyone that person may come in contact with.

Protective equipment and sanitizing chemicals are to be made readily available and staff has been advised to remain vigilant and adopt good hygiene measures.

THASL has also stated that this is not a note of panic but instructions sent to its member to be cautious and prepared.

As the country readies to address the issue Sri Lanka has so far reported only one confirmed case of a Chinese national holidaying in the country that was infected with the coronavirus.

Some countries have resorted to bans on travellers from Wuhan like Malaysia and North Korea while Russia stopped issuing Chinese nationals with electronic visas and closed their border close to China.

In addition some countries like the UK have updated their travel advisory indicating that Sri Lanka had reported its first case of coronavirus. But the US updated their advisory with only road closures for the upcoming Independence Day celebration and rehearsals.
A British citizen who has remained in coronavirus-hit Wuhan to be with his wife and family is worried he will be forgotten by the UK Government.

The Foreign Office (FCO) said on Saturday it would have 'limited' ability to help Britons in China after it made the decision to withdraw all but essential staff from the country.

Chris Hill, 38, from Sunderland, is one of the Britons who has chosen to remain in the country where he lives with his wife, Caitlyn Gao, and daughter, Renee Gao, who are both Chinese citizens.

Chris Hill (pictured with his daughter Renee Gao) is worried he and his family will be forgotten by the UK Government

Mr Hill, 38, from Sunderland, is one of the Britons who has chosen to remain in the country where he lives with his wife, Caitlyn Gao, and daughter, Renee Gao, who are both Chinese citizens

Health officials wearing full protective clothing greeted passengers arriving on a Xiamen Airlines flight from Thailand to Wuhan Tianhe International Airport yesterday

He said: 'My only worry now is after everybody pulls out the FCO will forget about those who are staying and not give any support for us.'

Mr Hill added: 'For British nationals that are staying in Wuhan, but also in China, to have the consulate and embassy evacuating, it's not a good sight to see really, is it?

'My concerns would basically be that they're going to completely write off China in the long run.

'Even though they say that they are trying, it's also a fear that with pulling all the staff out, they're just going to go 'out of sight, out of mind' kind of thing.'

Mr Hill said he received a call from the FCO On Saturday morning saying he, his wife and daughter would be able to get on an evacuation plane bound for France.

But his wife is unable to leave because she works as a nurse at a hospital and is also unwilling to abandon her parents.

'I am not willing to leave her behind and take my daughter,' Mr Hill said. 'It's either we all go or we all stay in Wuhan, which I told the FCO officer and she was shocked at my answer but respected my choice to not break up the family.'

He added: 'Family is very important to me so it wasn't really a hard choice.'

The FCO has been contacted for comment.

The death toll in China from coronavirus rose to 259 today and a World Health Organisation (WHO) official said other governments need to prepare for 'domestic outbreak control' if the disease spreads in their countries.

The first cases of the illness have been diagnosed in the UK, with two people - believed to be Chinese nationals from the same family - being treated in Newcastle.

British father Adam Bridgeman, 33, his Chinese wife Su and son Austin are also stuck in the quarantined city and fears food may run out.

Adam Bridgeman, 33, his Chinese wife Su and son Austin are stuck in the quarantined city after they were given just two hours notice to escape

He had pledged to stay after he was told seats on a plane to RAF Brize Norton were only for British citizens - meaning his spouse and child would have to stay behind.

But he received a call at 11.15pm Thursday saying the family could fly back to the UK - but only had until 1am Friday to get to Wuhan Tianhe International Airport.

Mr Bridgeman said it was impossible to clear their flat in time - but the Foreign Office called again saying the rescue flight was delayed and sent a taxi for them.

By the time the car turned up it was too late for check-in, leaving them stranded.

The father, whose son was born two days before the coronavirus outbreak, is now worried about the health of his baby boy.

He told the Times: 'The main concern then is that Austin will need some medical attention.

'We don't want to go to a hospital because of the virus. Most shops are shut. The variety of food we have access to is noticeably reducing.'

A member of the Armed Forces guards the gate at RAF Brize Norton in Oxfordshire where the Britons evacuated from China overnight landed yesterday

A security guard checks the temperature of a woman in Beijing wearing a protective mask as a preventative measure

A medical worker wearing a full hazmat suit can be seen in the bus next to a driver - wearing no protective gear - while the British evacuees from Wuhan sit in the back

Ben Williams, who had been in Wuhan getting married and on honeymoon, said he had to leave his new Chinese wife behind after being given short notice to get to the plane.

He told the BBC there had been delays in getting paperwork and mistakes in communication between embassies.

He said: 'By the time we got out the door it was very much a close call to get to the meeting point to get on this flight and sadly my wife has nothing prepared and it wasn't right for her to enter the UK with essentially nothing.'

Speaking from the plane after it touched down, he said: 'We'll leave the plane one-by-one or in families, for a full health screening and I believe just get on a coach to our final destination for our extended vacation.'

Mr Williams said the UK Government had been shown to be a 'bit green around the gills' in its response to the virus outbreak, but added: 'You've got to learn from somewhere... they'll improve it in the future.'

Britons Patrick Graham (left) and Ben Kavanagh (right) waiting for repatriation flight out of Wuhan, China, this evening

Almost 12,000 people in 24 countries and territories have now been diagnosed with the Wuhan coronavirus and 259 people have died, all in China

The Foreign Office is withdrawing staff from China just hours after flying dozens of UK nationals home from coronavirus-hit Wuhan.

Beijing today criticised Washington's order barring entry to the US to most foreigners who visited China in the past two weeks.

Australian Prime Minister Scott Morrison announced similar measures on Saturday, following Japan and Singapore.

South Korea and India flew hundreds of their citizens out of Wuhan, the city at the centre of an area where some 50 million people are prevented from leaving in a sweeping anti-virus effort. The evacuees went into a two-week quarantine. Indonesia also sent a plane.

The number of confirmed cases in China rose to 11,791, surpassing the number in the 2002-03 outbreak of Sars (Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome).

The virus's rapid spread in two months prompted the WHO to declare it a global emergency on Thursday.

That declaration 'flipped the switch' from a cautious attitude earlier to recommending governments prepare for the possibility the virus might spread, said the WHO representative in Beijing, Gauden Galea.

Most cases reported so far have been people who visited China or their family members.

Arrowe Park Hospital in Merseyside is caring for the British nationals from the coronavirus-hit city of Wuhan in China

The agency acted out of concern for poorer countries that might not be equipped to respond, said Mr Galea. Such a declaration calls for a co-ordinated international response and can bring more money and resources.

The WHO said it was especially concerned that some cases abroad involved human-to-human transmission.

'Countries need to get ready for possible importation in order to identify cases as early as possible and in order to be ready for a domestic outbreak control, if that happens,' Mr Galea said.

On Friday, the United States declared a public health emergency and President Donald Trump signed an order barring entry to foreign nationals, other than immediate family of American citizens and permanent residents, who visited China within the last 14 days, which scientists say is the virus's longest incubation period.

China criticised the US controls, which it said contradicted the WHO's appeal to avoid travel bans, and 'unfriendly comments' that Beijing was failing to co-operate.

Matt Raw, who was part of a group flown in from China on Friday over the coronavirus outbreak, revealed that he and other quarantined passengers can 'go outside for fresh air' and are treated to 'anything we ask for'

A woman and her daughter are also staying alongside Mr Raw in the hospital accommodation block. The woman asked to say hello to her husband live on the show

'Just as the WHO recommended against travel restrictions, the US rushed to go in the opposite way. Certainly not a gesture of goodwill,' said foreign ministry spokeswoman Hua Chunying.

WHO Secretary-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus said in Geneva that, despite the emergency declaration, there is 'no reason for measures that unnecessarily interfere with international travel and trade'.

Meanwhile, the ruling Communist Party postponed the end of the Lunar New Year holiday in Hubei province, where Wuhan is located, for an unspecified 'appropriate extent' and appealed to the public there to stay at home.

On Saturday, Huanggang, another locked-down city in Hubei, banned almost all of its residents from leaving their homes in the most stringent controls imposed yet.

The government said only one person from each household would be allowed out to shop for food once every two days.

'Others are not allowed to go out except for medical treatment, to do epidemic prevention and control work or to work in supermarkets and pharmacies,' it said.

China's increasingly drastic anti-disease controls started with the January 23 suspension of plane, bus and train links to Wuhan, an industrial city with a population of 11 million.

The lockdown has spread to surrounding cities.

Crew members of a SriLankan Airlines Airbus A330 wearing full protective suits and masks during a humanitarian operation to evacuate Sri Lankans from Wuhan

An Indian national looks on as he is transported in a bus out of the Indira Gandhi International Airport in New Delhi following their evacuation from Wuhan

A convoy of vehicles, believed to contain French citizens after their evacuation from the Chinese city of Wuhan, leaves the Istres-Le Tube Air Base near Istres, northwest of Marseille

The holiday, China's busiest annual travel season, ends on Sunday in the rest of the country following a three-day extension to postpone the return to factories and offices by hundreds of millions of workers.

The official Xinhua News Agency said people in Hubei who work outside the province also were given an extended holiday.

The party decision 'highlighted the importance of prevention and control of the epidemic among travelers', Xinhua said.

Americans returning from China will be allowed into the US, but will face screening and are required to undertake 14 days of self-screening.

Those returning from Hubei province will be subject to a 14-day quarantine.

An official sits alone inside an aircraft before leaving Jakarta airport in Tangerang on Saturday

Military personnel are seen during a press conference near building 4 at the military base in Germersheim, near Stuttgart, Germany, where German citizens evacuated from Wuhan will be held in quarantine

From Sunday, the US will direct flights from China to seven major airports where passengers can be screened.

On Friday, Delta Air Lines and American Airlines suspended all flights between the US and China.

Other carriers including British Airways, Finnair and Hong Kong's Cathay Pacific also have cancelled or cut back services to mainland China.

The US order followed a travel advisory for Americans to consider leaving China. Japan and Germany also advised against non-essential travel to China as did Britain, except for Hong Kong and Macao.

A plane carrying Indians from Wuhan landed in New Delhi on Saturday. The government said they would be quarantined in a nearby city, Manesar.

Sri Lanka also pulled out more of its citizens and promised to bring out the remaining 204 students.

South Korea's second evacuation flight landed in Seoul with 330 people from Wuhan. They were to be screened for fever before being taken to two quarantine centres.

South Korea also reported its 12th virus case, which appeared to be a human-to-human transmission.

People wearing protective masks walk in a park in Beijing on Friday as the death toll from coronavirus continues to rise

A pharmacy employee wears a face mask in Hong Kong as a preventative measure to protect against the deadly virus

At least 23 countries have reported cases since China informed the WHO about the new virus in late December.

The death rate in China is falling but the number of confirmed cases will keep growing because there are thousands of specimens from suspected cases yet to be tested, the WHOS's Mr Galea said.

'The case fatality ratio is settling out at a much lower level than we were reporting three, now four, weeks ago,' he said.

Both the new virus and Sars are from the coronavirus family, which also includes those which cause the common cold.

Experts say there is evidence that the new virus is spreading among people in China.

Although scientists expect to see limited transmission of the virus between people with family or other close contact, they are concerned about cases of infection spreading to people who might have less exposure.

Tourists wearing protective masks stand on the side of a street in Hanoi, Vietnam, on Saturday

In Japan, a tour guide and bus driver became infected after escorting two tour groups from Wuhan.

In Germany, five employees of a German car parts supplier became ill after a Chinese colleague visited, including two who had no direct contact with the woman.

She showed no symptoms until her flight back to China.

On Saturday, Japan reported its 17th case, a woman in her 20s who also worked as a guide for Wuhan tourists on the same bus as the two other cases.

Vietnam confirmed one more case for a total of six, and Australia counted its ninth infection.

On Friday, Germany confirmed a sixth case, a child of one of the people already infected.

In the US, health officials issued a two-week quarantine order for the 195 Americans evacuated this week from Wuhan.

It was the first time a federal quarantine has been ordered since the 1960s, when one was enacted over concern about smallpox, the Centres for Disease Control and Prevention said.

None of the Americans being housed at a Southern California military base have shown signs of illness, but infected people do not show symptoms immediately and may be able to pass on the virus before they appear sick.
Cairo, Feb 1 : Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas said here on Saturday that his authority informed the Israeli and U.S. sides that it will "cut all relations" with them over the recently released US peace plan.

"We told the Israelis that we will not have any relations with them or with the United States, including security relations," Abbas was quoted by Xinhua as saying at an emergency meeting of Arab foreign ministers at the Arab League headquarters in the Egyptian capital of Cairo.

Announced in Washington on January 28 by US President Donald Trump, in the presence of Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, the US peace plan was rejected by the Palestinians.
Republicans narrowly win vote against summoning witnesses to testify on U.S. president dealings with Ukraine

In this image from video, U.S. Senators cast their vote on the motion to allow additional witnesses and evidence to be allowed in the impeachment trial against president Donald Trump in the Senate in Washington, Friday, Jan. 31, 2020. (AP)

WASHINGTON: The U.S. Senate narrowly rejected Democratic demands to summon witnesses for president Donald Trump's impeachment trial late Friday, all but ensuring Trump's acquittal in just the third trial to threaten a president's removal in U.S. history. But senators pushed off final voting on his fate to next Wednesday.

The delay in timing showed the weight of a historic vote bearing down on senators, despite prodding by the president eager to have it all behind him in an election year and ahead of his State of the Union speech Tuesday night.

Trump and senate majority leader Mitch McConnell spoke by phone to lock in the schedule during a tense night at the Capitol as rushed negotiations proceeded on and off the Senate floor. The trial came to a standstill for about an hour. A person unauthorized to discuss the call was granted anonymity to describe it.

The president wanted to arrive for his speech at the Capitol with acquittal secured, but that will not happen. Instead, the trial will resume Monday for final arguments, with time Monday and Tuesday for senators to speak. The final voting is planned for 4 p.m. Wednesday, the day after Trump's speech.

Trump's acquittal is all but certain in the Senate, where his GOP allies hold the majority and there's nowhere near the two-thirds needed for conviction and removal.

Nor will he face potentially damaging, open-Senate testimony from witnesses.

Despite the Democrats' singular focus on hearing new testimony, the Republican majority brushed past those demands and will make this the first impeachment trial without witnesses. Even new revelations Friday from former national security adviser John Bolton did not sway GOP senators, who said they'd heard enough.

That means the eventual outcome for Trump will be an acquittal in name only,'' said Rep. Val Demings (D-Fla.), a House prosecutor, during the final debate.

Trump was impeached by the House last month on charges that he abused power and obstructed Congress as he tried to pressure Ukraine to investigate Democratic rival Joe Biden, using military aid as leverage as the ally fought Russia. He is charged with then blocking the congressional probe of his actions.

Senators rejected the Democrats' effort to allow new witnesses, 51-49, a near party-line vote. Republicans Susan Collins of Maine and Mitt Romney of Utah voted with the Democrats, but that was not enough.

Senate Democratic leader Chuck Schumer called that decision a tragedy on a very large scale.'' Protesters' chants reverberated against the walls of the Capitol.

But Republicans said Trump's acquittal was justified and inevitable.

The sooner the better for the country,'' said Sen. Lindsey Graham, a Trump confidant. Let's turn the page.''

The next steps come in the heart of presidential campaign season before a divided nation. Democratic caucus voting begins Monday in Iowa, and Trump gives his State of the Union address the next night. Four Democratic candidates have been chafing in the Senate chamber rather than campaigning.

The Democrats had badly wanted testimony from Bolton, whose forthcoming book links Trump directly to the charges. But Bolton won't be summoned, and none of this appeared to affect the trial's expected outcome. Democrats forced a series of new procedural votes late Friday to call Bolton and White House acting chief of staff Mick Mulvaney, among others, but all were rejected.

In an unpublished manuscript, Bolton has written that the president asked him during an Oval Office meeting in early May to bolster his effort to get Ukraine to investigate Democrats, according to a person who read the passage and told The Associated Press. The person, who was not authorized to disclose contents of the book, spoke only on condition of anonymity.

In the meeting, Bolton said the president asked him to call new Ukrainian president Volodymyr Zelenskiy and persuade him to meet with Trump's personal lawyer, Rudy Giuliani, who was planning to go to Ukraine to coax the Ukrainians to investigate the president's political rivals. Bolton writes that he never made the call to Zelenskiy after the meeting, which included acting chief of staff Mick Mulvaney and White House Counsel Pat Cipollone.

The revelation adds more detail to allegations of when and how Trump first sought to influence Ukraine to aid investigations of his rivals that are central to the abuse of power charge in the first article of impeachment.

The story was first reported Friday by The New York Times.

Trump issued a quick denial.

"I never instructed John Bolton to set up a meeting for Rudy Giuliani, one of the greatest corruption fighters in America and by far the greatest mayor in the history of NYC, to meet with President Zelenskiy," Trump said. That meeting never happened.''

Key Republican senators said even if Trump committed the offences as charged by the House, they are not impeachable and the partisan proceedings must end.

"I didn't need any more evidence because I thought it was proved that the president did what he was charged with doing," retiring GOP Sen. Lamar Alexander of Tennessee, a late holdout, told reporters Friday at the Capitol. But that didn't rise to the level of an impeachable offense.''

Republican Sen. Lisa Murkowski of Alaska said she, too, would oppose more testimony in the charged partisan atmosphere, having "come to the conclusion that there will be no fair trial in the Senate.'' She said, "The Congress has failed.''
File Image

FM Sitharaman has arrived at the North Block where the Ministry of Finance is housed. Minister of State for Finance, Anurag Thakur, was earlier seen offering prayers at his residence. FM Sitharaman will begin her Budget 2020 speech at 11 am on February 1 in the Parliament.

The annual Economic Survey is usually presented a day before the finance minister tables the Union Budget in the Parliament. Prepared by the economic division of the Department of Economic Affairs, it serves as the official report of the economy.

The document comprises Volume I, Volume II and the statistical appendix. Tabled in both Houses of the Parliament, it reviews the developments that took place in the Indian economy over the past financial year.

LIVE coverage of Budget 2020 with Moneycontrol here

It gives a detailed account of the state of the economy, prospects and the policy challenges. It carries sectoral overviews and comments on reform measures that are required. The surveys outlook serves as a marker about future policy moves.

The survey puts out economic growth forecasts, giving out detailed reasons why it believes the economy will expand faster or decelerate. Commentary on topics such as GDP growth, job growth and GST collection is expected in the Economic Survey 2020.

Authored by Chief Economic Adviser Krishnamurthy Subramanian and his team, the survey serves as the official report of the economy and as a policy guide. The government is not bound to follow these recommendations.

The survey, in the past, has favoured policy moves that come into conflict with the official line of thinking of the government in power. These do not necessarily serve as pointers to what to expect in the Budget. On many occasions, policy changes recommended in the document have not found a place in Budget proposals.

With the economy reeling under one of its worst slowdowns in decades, the finance minister is expected to pull out all available measures to give a boost to flailing consumer demand and investment. Meanwhile, personal income tax rate cuts along with some relief for rural and agriculture sectors may also be on the cards.
Minister for Justice Charlie Flanagan said he wanted to strengthen hate speech legislation (Brian Lawless/PA)

A number of protesters have clashed during a rally against free speech legislation in Dublin.

Demonstrators from rival sides were forced apart by gardai as the rally took place outside Leinster House on Saturday.

It is understood that supporters of the Irish Freedom Party were taking part in the demonstration.

A number of people were waving Irish flags and holding placards stating free speech is a human right.

Free speech demo in Dublin - Nationalists shout pedos pedos pedos at the globalists. pic.twitter.com/DkU3oPfaI7  Gearoid Murphy (@gearoidmurphy_) February 1, 2020

Videos posted on social media show clashes with a number of counter-protesters who were holding a rally.

Gardai were forced to push the counter-protesters back as they attempted to move towards those taking part in the free speech rally.

In a statement, gardai said: Gardai attended the scene of a demonstration which took place this afternoon in Dublin city centre.

It is not known currently if any incidents had taken place or any arrests have been made in relation to this demonstration.

Great to see so many Irish flags at the Free speech rally in Dublin today.



If you believe in freedom of speech vote Irish Freedom Party on Feb 8th. #GE2020 pic.twitter.com/JRAKJU44s9  Irish Freedom Party (@IrexitFreedom) February 1, 2020

Minister for Justice Charlie Flanagan said he wanted to strengthen hate speech legislation.

A public consultation was launched last year in a bid to update Irelands law on hate speech.
Apple just reported strong iPhone sales for the last quarter of 2019 and even with all that success, there are Apple users who would still love to have a smaller iPhone with a home button. Rumors of a successor to the iPhone SE have been going on for years, but this years rumors about a possible iPhone 9 (with the design of the iPhone 6, 7, and 8) have been abundant.

Todays report from My Drivers cited Chinese industry sources who claim the iPhone SE 2 is already under trial production. They also claim that the new device will be called the iPhone 9 and it is said to launch sometime in March. The industry supply chain also suggested the total order volume would exceed 30 million units.



Leaked renders of Apple iPhone 9

The report also suggests that Apple would begin mass production of the iPhone 9 sometime in mid-February. The iPhone 9 would appeal to emerging markets and may sell for under CNY 3,000 (~$432). This would be a great price if you recall the iPhone SE first launched for $399.

We still dont know what the specifications of such an iPhone would be. The features, cameras, or design of the phone need to be different enough to entice iOS users to switch from an iPhone 8. The iPhone SE launched with the same camera and processor as the iPhone 6S.

We wonder how which smartphone Apple will use hardware from on the iPhone 9? Previous reports claim it will use the iPhone 11s A13 Bionic chipset and use the chassis-standard 4.7-inch display.

Source (Translated)
Delta Air Lines said on Saturday that it will suspend flights to and from China earlier than the carrier had previously announced as a result of new screening protocols implemented by the Trump administration in response to the new coronavirus.

The last China-bound flight departing from the U.S. will leave on Saturday, the airline said in a statement. The last return flight from China to the U.S. will depart on Sunday.

The airline had previously said that it would begin suspending flights on Thursday.

The Trump administration declared the new coronavirus a public health emergency in the United States on Friday. During a press conference at the White House, Health and Human Services Secretary Alex Azar said that the U.S. will deny entry to foreign nationals who have traveled to China within the past two weeks, aside from the immediate family of U.S. citizens.

Air travel between the U.S. and China has slowed significantly since the outbreak of the flu-like respiratory illness in late December, airlines have reported. Meanwhile, other American companies with footprints in China, including Apple, Ford and Kraft Heinz, have restricted employees' China business travel or scaled back operations as a result of the disease.

Markets sold off sharply on Friday on growing fears that the new coronavirus could hamper global growth. Nearly 12,000 cases have been reported globally, the vast majority of which have occurred in China. The death toll from the new coronavirus was more than 250 as of Saturday morning.

Delta's flight suspension is expected to end April 30.

The full statement from Delta is below:

Delta has made the decision to accelerate its plan to temporarily suspend flights between the U.S. and China to Feb. 2 following updated U.S. Health and Human Services screening protocols that will go into effect on Feb. 2. The last China-bound flight departing the U.S. will leave on Saturday, Feb. 1 with the last return flight back to the U.S. departing China on Feb. 2. The airline had previously announced a plan to suspend operations effective Feb. 6 but advanced that timeline based on new U.S. requirements that will deny entry to foreign nationals who have traveled to China within the past two weeks, or subject to possible quarantine those U.S. citizens who have been in China's Hubei province. Delta's first priority is to assist its customers and take care of its crews. The airline is working with customers to make adjustments to their travel plans, leveraging codeshare partners where appropriate. Customers with affected travel plans can go to the My Trips section of delta.com to help them understand their options, including: Reaccommodation to flights after April 30

Reaccommodation on alternate airlines

Requesting a refund

Contacting Delta to discuss additional options. Delta expects flights between the U.S. and China to remain suspended through April 30, though the airline will continue to monitor the situation closely and may make additional adjustments as the situation continues to evolve.




SACRAMENTO, Calif. (AP) - The Trump administration has rejected a proposed tax on managed care organizations in California. The decision could cost the state nearly $2 billion per year.

Gov. Gavin Newsom had planned to use that money to extend sales tax exemptions for diapers and tampons.

A letter from the federal government said it rejected the tax because it did not apply to all managed care organizations.

A spokesman for the California Department of Finance says the state will continue negotiating with the federal government and is confident they can reach an agreement.
At least two people have been killed and two others injured in a shooting that took place at a Florida church on Saturday.

The incident occurred just after 2:30pm at the conclusion of a funeral, which was held at Victory City Church in Riviera Beach.

A boy, 15, and an unidentified man were pronounced dead at the scene.

A woman and a juvenile were also shot and rushed to a local hospital. They are both believed to be in a stable condition.

According to NBC, the shooter fired 13 rounds before fleeing the scene.

No arrests have been made.

At least two people have been killed and two others injured in a shooting that took place at a Florida church on Saturday

Scores of police officers and several squad cars were pictured at the scene in the aftermath of the shooting.

The senior pastor of the Victory City Church took to Facebook to provide an update on the situation shortly after 4pm.

'We solicit the prayers of the saints today as we morn the loss of two young black men to a senseless shooting after a funeral held here at the church,' he wrote.

He urged all members of his congregations to pray for the victims' families.

Several squad cars were pictured at the scene in the aftermath of the shooting

The Victory City Church Pastor released provided an update on the situation via the organization's Facebook
Law Offices of Blumenthal Nordrehaug Bhowmik De Blouw LLP If you would like to know more about the Ameriprise Auto & Home Insurance Agency, Inc., lawsuit, please contact Attorney Nicholas J. De Blouw today by calling (800) 568-8020.

The Los Angeles employment law lawyers at Blumenthal Nordrehaug Bhowmik De Blouw LLP, filed a class action complaint alleging that Ameriprise Auto & Home Insurance Agency, Inc., failed to provide their California employees with meal and rest periods as required by California law. The Ameriprise Auto & Home Insurance Agency, Inc., class action lawsuit, Case No. RIC2000006, is currently pending in the Riverside County Superior Court for the State of California. A copy of the Complaint can be read here.

According to the lawsuit filed in the Riverside Superior Court, The Ameriprise Auto & Home Insurance Agency, Inc., allegedly failed to provide their employees with meal and rest breaks because allegedly Ameriprise Auto & Home Insurance Agency, Inc., did not have a policy to provide their hourly employees thirty (30) minute uninterrupted meal breaks prior to their fifth (5th) hour of work. California labor laws require an employer to provide an employee required to perform work for more than five (5) hours during a shift with, a thirty (30) minute uninterrupted meal break prior to the end of the employee's fifth (5th) hour of work.

Additionally, the complaint further alleges The Ameriprise Auto & Home Insurance Agency, Inc., committed acts of unfair competition in violation of the California Unfair Competition Law, Cal. Bus. & Prof. Code  17200, et seq. (the UCL), by engaging in a company-wide policy and procedure which failed to accurately calculate and record all missed meal and rest periods by PLAINTIFFS and other CALIFORNIA CLASS Members. As a result of DEFENDANTs intentional disregard of the obligation to meet this burden, DEFENDANT allegedly failed to properly calculate and/or pay all required compensation for work performed by the members of the CALIFORNIA CLASS and violated the California Labor Code.

If you would like to know more about the Ameriprise Auto & Home Insurance Agency, Inc., lawsuit, please contact Attorney Nicholas J. De Blouw today by calling (800) 568-8020.

Blumenthal Nordrehaug Bhowmik De Blouw LLP is an employment law firm with offices located in San Diego, San Francisco, Sacramento, Los Angeles, Riverside and Chicago that dedicates its practice to helping employees, investors and consumers fight back against unfair business practices, including violations of the California Labor Code and Fair Labor Standards Act. If you need help in collecting unpaid overtime wages, unpaid commissions, being wrongfully terminated from work, and other employment law claims, contact one of their attorneys today.

***THIS IS AN ATTORNEY ADVERTISEMENT***
Mitt Romney has been barred from a major conservative conference after he voted to hear from additional witnesses in Donald Trumps impeachment trial.

The senator and former presidential nominee was one of only two Republicans who sided with Democrats by voting to hear new evidence against the president on Friday.

In response to Mr Romney's decision, Matt Schlapp, chair of the American Conservative Union, wrote on Twitter: BREAKING: The 'extreme conservative' and Junior Senator from the great state of Utah, @SenatorRomney is formally NOT invited to #CPAC2020.

CPAC is an annual political conference for conservative activists and politicians, which has featured appearances from Republican presidents such as Mr Trump, George W Bush and Ronald Reagan.

Despite Mr Romneys efforts, the Republican-controlled Senate voted by 51-49 to block a push by Democrats to hear testimony from new witnesses, such as former national security adviser John Bolton.

All the president's lawyers: The team fighting Trump's impeachment Show all 6 1 /6 All the president's lawyers: The team fighting Trump's impeachment All the president's lawyers: The team fighting Trump's impeachment Alan Dershowitz Dershowitz is a controversial American lawyer best known for the high-profile clients he has successfully defended. Those clients have included OJ Simpson, Jeffrey Epstein and Harvey Weinstein. One longtime Harvard Law associated told the New Yorker Dershowitz "revels in taking positions that ultimately are not just controversial but pretty close to indefensible." Getty All the president's lawyers: The team fighting Trump's impeachment Ken Starr Starr became a household name in the 1990s as the independent counsel who led the investigation that led to Bill Clinton's impeachment. That investigation began as a look into a real estate scandal known as Whitewater, and eventually led to impeachment after Mr Clinton lied under oath about having an affair with White House intern Monica Lewinsky. AP All the president's lawyers: The team fighting Trump's impeachment Jay Sekulow Sekulow is the president's longtime personal attorney, and, now, personal lawyer in the White House. He has been accused by former Rudy Giuliani associate Lev Parnas of being "in the loop" during the Ukraine scandal. Getty All the president's lawyers: The team fighting Trump's impeachment Pam Bondi Bondi is the former attorney general in Florida, and a longtime backer of the president's. She made a name for herself in Florida for taking hyper partisan stances on issues, and her penchant for publicity. She is likely to be a prominent public-facing figure during the trial. AFP/Getty All the president's lawyers: The team fighting Trump's impeachment Pat Cipollone Cipollone is the White House counsel, and leading the president's defence team. Getty All the president's lawyers: The team fighting Trump's impeachment Rudy Giuliani While not officially named as one of the president's impeachment lawyers, it is hard to ignore Giuliani's outsized role in this process. The former mayor of New York has been making headlines for months as he defends his client, and for his apparent role in the effort to compel Ukraine to launch the investigation into Joe Biden. We'll see how he figures in the actual trial, which he has said he would like to be a part of. Reuters

Mr Bolton is thought to have first-hand knowledge of Mr Trumps efforts to pressure Ukraine into announcing an investigation into his 2020 election rival Joe Biden.

In a manuscript for his upcoming book, the former national security advisor alleged that Mr Trump linked freezing military aid to Ukraine with forcing an investigation into Mr Biden.

With no new witnesses, it is almost certain the president, who has denied wrongdoing, will be acquitted next week.

Recommended Five key takeaways from the Trump impeachment trial

Mr Romney has previously been a favourite of CPAC attendees and holds the record for winning the most CPAC straw polls for the most popular potential presidential candidate among conservative activists.

The senator has not yet commented on the decision and it is unclear if he was planning on attending the conference this year.

Michael Steele, a former chair of the Republican National Committee, described the decision to not invite the Republican senator to the conference as embarrassing, stupid and juvenile.

Soon after Mr Schlapps tweet, Mike Lee, Utahs other Republican senator, tweeted in support of Mr Romney.

Mitt Romney is a good friend and an excellent Senator. We have disagreed about a lot in this trial, Mr Lee wrote.

But he has my respect for the thoughtfulness, integrity, and guts he has shown throughout this process.

The speakers at CPAC 2020, which will take place from 26-29 February, will include Nigel Farage, senior Republican Devin Nunes and Eduardo Bolsonaro, the son of Brazilian president Jair Bolsonaro.

Additional reporting by AP
(Newser)  A 12-year-old girl died this week in southern Egypt after her parents brought her to a doctor who performed female genital mutilation, a criminal practice that remains widespread in the region, according to a judicial statement. The girl's death in the province of Assiut prompted Egypt's public prosecutor to order the arrests of her parents and the physician who preformed the procedure, the AP reports. Since the mid-1990s, Egypt has been battling the centuries-old practice, which is misguidedly believed to control women's sexuality. In 2008, a law banning the cutting of female genitalia was passed despite strong opposition from conservative voices. But a 2015 government survey found that 87% percent of all Egyptian women between 15 and 49 years old have been circumcised.

story continues below

"Many more Egyptian girls will be forced to undergo the procedure, and many of them will dieas long as there is no clear strategy from the state and a true criminalization of the practice," Amel Fahmy, managing director of Tadwein Gender Research Center, said Friday. In 2016, the Egyptian law was changed to redefine FGM from a misdemeanor to a felony, which draws tougher sentences and punishments. But women's rights advocates argue the law still contains loopholes. In 2016, a criminal court sentenced two doctors and the mother of a 17-year-old who died after FGM to only a one-year suspended sentence each, a verdict that drew sharp criticism from activists. "Judges themselves are not convinced that female circumcision is a crime that should be punished," said a human rights lawyer.

(Read more female genital mutilation stories.)
The shady street delicacy called 'Kaka Biryani' or crow meat Biryani has been around in Tamil Nadu for a long time now.

Twitter

In fact, a popular Kollywood movie called Run, starring actor Madhavan alongside Tamil comedian Vivek, has a popular scene where the latter stops by a roadside stall and unconciously eats a plate of the infamous Biryani.





So, for someone who has been grown up in Tamil Nadu, the crow meat business is really not that shocking. More recently, in the city of Rameswaram, two people have been arrested for selling crow meat to street-side stalls under the guise of selling chicken.

According to reports, this shady business was reported by pilgrims of a local temple who noticed that crows kept dying when they were fed the rice that devotees offer at the temple.

After investigation, it was found that crows in the area were being fed liquor-laced rice by poachers and stuffed in a sack until they became completely unconscious.

The men were selling the crow meat as a cheap replacement for roadside eateries and Police are now tracking down stalls that sold the meat.





According to the cops, the stalls mix the crow meat with that of chicken before selling it to roadside eateries.

This is not the first chicken meat has been replaced with a cheaper alternative, back in 2016, the Chennai police and animal rights activists busted roadside eateries in the city for kidnapping and killing pet cats for their meat to use in biryani - cat biryani.

When the People for Animals (PfA) rescued 16 cats they were in a deplorable condition, some infested with maggots and all of them suffering from dehydration.Cat meat is considered a delicacy among gipsies called the Narikurava community in Tamil Nadu. Animal activists raided a Narikurawa wedding where around 20 cats were slaughtered for cooking cat biriyani.
Dominic Thiem will meet defending champion Novak Djokovic in tomorrows Australian Open final after digging deep to beat Alexander Zverev on Friday.

Thiem, 26, won 3-6 6-4 7-6 (7-3) 7-6 (7-4) in a match briefly interrupted by rain and a lighting failure.

The Austrian fifth seed said: it was an unreal match and he will now look to win his first Grand Slam, after losing the past two French Open finals.

Djokovic is favourite to win a record-extending eighth title and 17th major. The 32-year-old has lost just three matches in the past 10 Australian Open tournaments.

German seventh seed Zverev, 22, was bidding to reach his first Grand Slam final but instead, it his good friend who will play for the title.

To reach the Australian Open final is unreal, said Thiem, who will bid to become only the second Austrian player  after Thomas Muster at the 1995 French Open  to win a Grand Slam.

Two tie-breaks, so tough and so close, it was almost impossible to break him.

Thiem produced a heroic effort, physically and mentally, to beat Spanish top seed Rafael Nadal in an epic quarter-final that lasted more than four hours on Wednesday.

As a result it looked as though the Austrian, who said he did not get to sleep until 5am following that win, was lacking energy against Zverev.

The crushing groundstrokes he produced against Nadal initially lacked fizz, largely down to being pinned back by the big-serving German.

It is not easy because I played four hours and 10 minutes against Rafa, who is the most intense man on tour, said Thiem, who is through to his first Australian Open final.
They said if the McCloskeys still wanted to attend the conference, they should pay to do so out of pocket. If an investigation later cleared the couple and concluded they did live in the district, they would be reimbursed for their costs.
AUBURN HILLS, MI  Police dashcam footage of state Rep. Rebekah Warrens Dec. 26, 2019 drunken driving arrest shows the lawmaker crashing into a barrier on I-75 and failing field sobriety tests during a traffic stop in Auburn Hills the day after Christmas.

Warren, D-Ann Arbor, was arraigned Thursday, Jan. 30, on one misdemeanor count of operating while intoxicated with blood alcohol content greater than 0.17 percent, according to Oakland County District Court records.

State Rep. Rebekah Warren arraigned on super drunk driving charge after crash on I-75

Police dashcam video recordings obtained by MLive/The Ann Arbor News through a Freedom of Information Act request shows Warrens SUV crash into a barrier at 11:25 p.m., Dec. 26 on northbound I-75 in Auburn Hills. She continued driving after the impact.

An Auburn Hills police officer turned on his emergency light seconds after she hit the barrier and followed her for about two minutes before she stopped.

Warren later told the officer she did not recall hitting the barrier.

She admitted to having a few drinks during an event at the Renaissance Center in Detroit and said she was driving back to Ann Arbor. The officer noted that Auburn Hills is far north of Detroit and not on the way to Ann Arbor.

On a scale from 1 to 10, with 10 being the drunkest you have ever been, and zero being sober, what would you say youre at, the officer said.

Warren responded with three.

Her blood alcohol content was measured at was 0.212 percent, almost three times the legal limit, according to blood analysis by Michigan State Police.

She said she had her last drink a few minutes ago, which the officer noted was strange, as he pulled her over a few minutes prior, and she was a long way from Detroit, where she said she had two or three glasses of red wine.

She appeared cooperative and friendly with police during the traffic stop, though at times she seemed to have trouble staying on her feet.

She eventually took off a pair of high-heel boots, but continued to struggle performing the field sobriety tests.

After failing the tests, she refused to take a preliminary breathalyzer test after asking the officers multiple times what was going to happen to her, and was arrested.

Warren did not return a phone call seeking comment Friday.

She is free on a $500 personal recognizance bond. Her next court hearing is scheduled for Feb. 19.

Warren was elected in 2018 to serve a third and final term in the House after serving two terms in the state Senate. Warren represents the 55th District, one of four state House districts in Washtenaw County. It includes parts of Ann Arbor and Milan, as well as Augusta, Pittsfield, Ann Arbor and York townships.
French President Emmanuel Macron has labelled Britain's withdrawal from the United Kingdom a "historic warning" for Europe, blaming Brexit on Eurosceptics' lies.

"Brexit occurred because we made Europe a scapegoat for our own problems," Macron said in a short televised address at the Elysee palace on Friday.

"This departure is a shock. It's a historic warning sign which must... be heard by all of Europe and make us reflect," Macron said.

The French leader, who was elected on a promise to transform the EU, also argued that Britain's decision to leave was enabled by the fact that "we did not change Europe enough."

Faced with competition from China and the US, "we need more Europe", he went on, reiterating the themes of his historic Sorbonne speech of September 2017.

Calling Friday a "sad day" he attacked the "lies, exaggerations, simplifications and checks promised that never arrived" from the Brexit referendum campaign of 2016.

New chapter

"We must always remember where lies can lead our democracies," he said solemnly.

Macron, who hosted the EU's Brexit negotiator Michel Barnier earlier Friday for talks in Paris, also sounded a firm note on the upcoming negotiations between London and Brussels on their future relationship.

While saying he hoped for the "closest, most solid, most enduring partnership possible" he warned: "It won't be the same as the relationship we have had for several decades. You cannot be both in and out."

Other leaders like former President of the European Council Donald Tusk struck a more conciliatory tone.

After nearly half a century of integration with its closest neighbours, Britain will leave the European Union on Friday 31 January at midnight in Paris, starting a new chapter in its long history.
B ritain has officially left the European Union in an historic move that marks the end of a decades-long partnership which has divided the nation for years.

Brexit was triggered at 11pm on Friday, more than three years after the UK voted to break ties from the bloc in a referendum and nearly half a century of membership.

Huge crowds gathered in central London to celebrate and commiserate the moment, which Boris Johnson hailed as the beginning of a new era.

For many people this is an astonishing moment of hope, a moment they thought would never come, the Prime Minister said before the historic moment

Boris Johnson's Address to the Nation One Hour Before Brexit

There may be "bumps in the road" but Brexit can "unleash the full potential" of the UK, Mr Johnson said.

As the moment of the UK's departure from the EU approached, the Prime Minister acknowledged mixed feelings in a still-divided nation about the end of 47 years of close links with Brussels.

"For many people this is an astonishing moment of hope, a moment they thought would never come," he said. "And there are many of course who feel a sense of anxiety and loss."

After years of bitter wrangling since the 2016 referendum, Mr Johnson said his job was now to "bring this country together".

People gathered in Parliament Square to mark the occasion / REUTERS

"We want this to be the beginning of a new era of friendly cooperation between the EU and an energetic Britain, a Britain that is simultaneously a great European power and truly global in our range and ambitions.

"And when I look at this country's incredible assets, our scientists, our engineers, our world-leading universities, our armed forces, when I look at the potential of this country waiting to be unleashed I know that we can turn this opportunity into a stunning success.

"And whatever the bumps in the road ahead I know that we will succeed."

There will only be minimal changes as the deal negotiated by the UK and EU keeps Britain aligned with EU rules for the rest of the year.

Leave Means Leave party - in pictures 1 /17 Leave Means Leave party - in pictures Pro-Brexit supporters in Parliament Square PA Brexit supporters carry Union flags and a Welsh flag as they gather in Parliament Square AFP via Getty Images Brexit supporters gather during a rally at the Parliament square in London AP A pro-Brexit demonstrator carries a child, wearing a Union Jack top hat, on his shoulders on Parliament Square REUTERS A Brexit supporter poses for a photograph with a Union flag as he waits for the festivities to begin in Parliament Square AFP via Getty Images Pro-Brexit supporters in Parliament Square, London, ahead of the UK leaving the European Union at 11pm PA People draped in UK flags walks across Parliament Square during a rainfall in London AP A pro-Brexit supporter draped in a US flag and wearing an oversized "Make America Great Again" cap AFP via Getty Images A Brexit supporter takes part in a rally during a rally at the Parliament square in London AP Brexit supporters take part in a rally during a rally at the Parliament square in London AP A Brexit supporter takes part in a rally during a rally at the Parliament square AP A man waves Union flags from a small car as he drives past Brexit supporters gathering in Parliament Square AFP via Getty Images Brexit supporters gather in Parliament Square PA

But attention has already turned to the next set of talks aimed at securing the future relationship which will apply from January 1, 2021.

And Mr Johnson has been clear he also wants to strike deals with countries around the world - notably Donald Trump's USA.

Brussels is pessimistic about the 11-month timetable for reaching a deal and made clear that Britain will have to accept worse terms and conditions for trade than if it were still a member of the EU.

European Commission president Ursula von der Leyen said: "We want to have the best possible relationship with the United Kingdom, but it will never be as good as membership."

Senior Cabinet minister Michael Gove acknowledged the trade-offs that would have to be made in any deal.

Pro-EU activists protest at Parliament Square / Getty Images

"We want trade to be as frictionless as possible but the EU is clear, you can only have fully frictionless trade if you accept all of their rules, if you accept all their laws, you are subordinate to their judges, you are subordinate to their political structures," he told the BBC.

Mr Gove said there "will be some regulations that will differ in Britain" so "that may mean that when it comes to trading with Europe there are some bureaucratic processes there that aren't there now".

The Daily Telegraph reported that Mr Johnson is prepared to impose full customs and border checks on all European goods entering the UK in an effort to create leverage in the negotiations with Brussels.

As the Cabinet gathered in Sunderland, car giant Nissan - which has a major plant in the city - called for clarity from the Government about its plans and urged both the UK and EU to secure "an orderly balanced Brexit that will continue to encourage mutually beneficial trade".

Brexit Day at Parliament Square - In pictures 1 /22 Brexit Day at Parliament Square - In pictures Anti-Brexit protesters in Parliament Square, London PA Police presence at anti-Brexit protests in Parliament Square, London PA The Winston Churchill statue and Union flags in Parliament Square, London PA Pro Brexit supporters hold placards at Parliament Square as people prepare for Brexit Getty Images A man carries an EU themed wreath at Parliament Square Reuters Anti-Brexit demonstrators in Parliament Square, London, ahead of the UK leaving the European Union PA Pro Brexit supporters hold placards at Parliament Square as people prepare for Brexit Getty Images A man wears a President, Donald Trump mask and holds an American flag at Parliament Square as people prepare for Brexit Getty Images People hold placards in Parliament Square opposite the Houses of Parliament in London AFP via Getty Images A man holds up a President, Donald Trump, American flag at Parliament Square as people prepare for Brexit Getty Images A Red Viking apple with the Union Jack is displayed and given out for free to promote British produce as an Anti-Brexit demonstrator waves the European Union flag in Parliament Square AP Joseph Afrane in Westminster Jeremy Selwyn Pro-EU anti-Brexit protesters hold placards in Parliament Square AFP via Getty Images A man takes a photo of political artist Kaya Mar's paintings in Parliament Square Getty Images A man in an oversized 'Keep America Great' hat and draped with a US flag holds a Union Flag in Parliament Square opposite the Houses of Parliament AFP via Getty Images A woman holds a newspaper at Parliament Square Reuters A woman wears a face mask in Parliament Square PA

The Prime Minister hosted a reception in Number 10 for senior ministers, officials and supporters of Vote Leave who quaffed English sparkling wine while a countdown clock beamed onto the building ticked down the minutes until 11pm.

Nigel Farage told cheering crowds at the Brexit celebration rally in Parliament Square: "We did it. We transformed the landscape of our country.

"There are some that say we shouldn't celebrate tonight, but we are going to celebrate tonight."

He added: "The people have beaten the establishment. The real winner tonight is democracy. And I am someone who believes we should be pro-Europe, but not the European Union.

In Scotland, which voted to stay in the EU in the 2016 referendum, rallies and candlelit vigils took place as activists sought to send a message to the EU to keep open a place for Scotland.

In Northern Ireland, the campaign group Border Communities Against Brexit staged a series of protests in Armagh, near to the border with the Republic of Ireland.

In Cardiff, First Minister Mark Drakeford said Wales would "remain a proudly European nation".

Meanwhile leaders across Europe gave their reactions to the first country leaving the EU.

German Chancellor Angela Merkel said Brexit was "a deep break for us all" and warned the "negotiations will certainly not be easy".
The Oklahoma man charged with killing a Manhattan antiques dealer met his victim on a dating app before using a sharp object to mutilate his head in his Upper East Side apartment, New York prosecutors say.

Alex Scott, 24, who was arraigned in Manhattan court early on Saturday morning after his arrest on Friday, is wanted in his home state of Oklahoma on charges he sexually assaulted a six-year-old boy, according to authorities.

Scott cut off his ankle monitoring bracelet and fled Oklahoma to New York, where he met 64-year-old Kenneth Savinski on Wednesday, the New York Post reported.

Manhattan prosecutors allege that after they met, Savinski invited Scott back to his apartment on East 83rd Street near Lexington Avenue.

'We see the two of them on surveillance video, walking arm in arm,' Assistant District Attorney Shira Arnow said.

'The victim thought this would be a romantic liaison.

Alex Ray Scott, 24, of Tulsa, Oklahoma is taken into custody by police in Manhattan on Friday

Victim Kenneth Savinski (center) is seen with two friends in 2006. He moved his antique store to NYC from Maryland in 2000 and received a favorable mention in the New York Times

Victim Kenneth Savinski, 64, was found dead in the living room of his first floor apartment on E. 83rd St. near Park Ave. about 5.20 p.m. Wednesday

A friend who hadn't heard from Savinski for a long time went to check on him at his apartment

'The defendant thought this would be an opportunity to rob and attack.'

Once in the apartment, Scott allegedly stabbed Savinski in the face and neck, severing his carotid artery - a major blood vessel that supplies blood to the brain, neck, and face.

Scott is then alleged to have strangled Savinski to death.

After the gruesome killing, Scott made off with Savinski's watch, credit cards, and cash, prosecutors said.

'Two hours after we see him go into the victim's apartment, he leaves,' Arnow said in court.

Murder victim Kenneth Savinski (left) is seen with a friend at an event at Bergdorf Goodman's Restaurant 'BG' in 2006. Savinski was an antiques dealer and decorator

Neighbors were shocked at the murder in the normally quiet area near Central Park

An antiques dealer found dead in his Upper East Side apartment with a deep head wound was killed - possibly by someone he knew, police said Thursday

Homicides are rare in the wealthy 19th Precinct, which last year had no murder cases

'On surveillance video  we see him wearing the victim's jacket, counting cash.

'Over the next day, he used the victim's credit cards to buy himself food, to buy new clothing and cab rides.'

According to Arnow, Scott turned himself over to police on Friday morning when he 'walked into the Midtown North Precinct with Savinski's credit cards and ID on him and says he doesn't remember the past few days, but he thinks he may have killed someone.'

Arnow said that Scott perpetrated a 'vicious, ferocious, crime scene attack' in Savinski's apartment.

Scott's court-appointed lawyer alleged that her client did not receive adequate medical care when he turned himself in at the precinct.

Scott was said to be 'violently ill' after being taken into custody.

He was ordered held without bail.

Scott faces charges of murder, five counts of grand larceny and five counts of criminal possession of stolen property.

He was found in possession of five stolen credit cards.

Police were summoned to the scene of Savinski's home after a friend hadn't heard from him for a while and went to check up on him.

Scott is seen in a November mugshot during his arrest on lewd molestation charges in Tulsa

Scott (above) fled Tulsa last fall, and police found him on Long Island in October, where he said he had driven in order to kill himself after facing child molestation allegations

Scott is seen at a 2017 fashion show fundraiser supporting the Children's Abuse Network

Cops rushed to the scene and found Savinski with a deep gash in his head and neck wounds. He was declared dead at the scene.

Initially, police were uncertain whether Savinski had tripped and suffered accidental injuries. But closer examination revealed that the antique dealer's throat had been slit, and blood splatter indicated he had been attacked.

Scott surrendered at the 19th Precinct on East 67th Street.

He made incriminating statements to investigators after his surrender, a police source told the Post.

Originally from Oklahoma, last fall Scott was under investigation for child molestation in that state.

Investigators said that Scott inappropriately touched a child he knows inside of a home in Tulsa.

Police in Tulsa say that before they could interview Scott about the allegations, he quit his job, left his apartment and rented a car that he never returned.

In October, cops on Long Island made contact with Scott, who told them he had driven there in order to kill himself.

Scott was taken to a psychiatric hospital for observation and later transported back to Tulsa to be charged there with two counts of lewd molestation.

Social media posts indicate that Scott previously worked for a property management firm in Tulsa.

In 2017, he was pictured at a fashion show event to raise funds for the Children's Abuse Network of Tulsa. His employer at the time said the event raised $30,000.
The plan presented by US president Trump and further fleshed out by Israel prime minister Netanyahu is nothing less than a recipe for endless oppression and injustice, according to the a joint statement from inter-denominational bishops who recently visited Palestine.

Palestinians for far too long have suffered under Israeli military control, a reality which is denied and ignored.

The proposed plan would further entrench the Israeli security establishment, ensuring that generations of young Israeli men and women will serve in a military tasked with continuing oppression of the Palestinian people. The inevitable result will be more human rights abuses, trauma, and violence.

It is clear that Trump has garnered his US Judeo-Christian core support in the hijack of Christian values by the Zionists. They are being weaponised in an attempt to give a veneer of moral legitimacy to a plan that is, in fact, meant to facilitate further Israeli jackboot control over Palestinian lives, land, and resources.

The use of Judeo and Christian religious and spiritual imagery to justify political aims and agendas is idolatry.

Referring to the modern geopolitical state of Israel as a light unto the world and glorifying places inscribed in the pages of the Bible without seriously addressing the injustices suffered by those who have lived under decades of occupation and oppression, flies in the face of what the Jesus taught us. This appropriation of religious ideals diminishes the true spiritual significance of the land we call Holy and is a betrayal of the Christian faith.

This is a chance for Ireland to stand up for the rights of vulnerable people  it is about respecting international law and refusing to support illegal activity.

It is vitally important to remind Irish people how trade in settlement goods absolutely sustains injustice. In the occupied territories, people are forcibly kicked out of their homes, fertile farming land is seized, and the fruit and vegetables produced are then sold on Irish shelves to pay for it all.

We condemn the settlements as illegal but support them economically. As international law is unbiased and clearly states that the settlements are illegal, then the goods they produce are the proceeds of crime. We must face up to this  we cannot keep supporting breaches of international law and violations of human rights.

Some years ago our Government criticised the relentless progress of Israeli settlements and said they could seek an EU ban on settlement goods if matters continued to worsen.

In the years since then it has only gone one way, with settlements expanding, more Palestinian homes being demolished and land being confiscated. Its clear that empty promises have not worked but nothing has been done. Ireland needs to show leadership and act now.

Daniel Teegan

Monkstown

Co Cork

- This readers opinion was originally published in the letters page of the Irish Examiner print edition on 1 February 2020.
Official figures confirmed earlier this week that 2019 wasn't the best year for the UK automotive sector.

Car production fell by 14 per cent, with outputs dropping to the lowest levels seen in a decade, the Society of Motor Manufacturer and Traders confirmed on Thursday.

But there were cars manufactured at UK plants that remained in huge demand, both at home and from export markets. Here's the countdown of the most-built models of 2019...

The Land Rover Discovery Sport offers school-run friendly motoring, even if you have to scale a mountain to get to the gate

Production of the Discovery Sport is at one of JLR's three UK factories - Halewood near Liverpool

10. Land Rover Discovery Sport

Where is it built? Halewood, Merseyside

Price from: 31,575

Jaguar Land Rover as a brand posted a 14.3 per cent decline in UK-built vehicle outputs last year across all three of its manufacturing sites.

That includes Halewood, near Liverpool, where the current Land Rover Discovery Sport is produced.

This is the brand's most affordable Land Rover-badged model in the line-up that looks to offer a combination of off-road capabilities with family-car traits - though it's most likely to be used for the school run, thanks to its seven-seat layout.

The recent addition of a mild-hybrid petrol engine should help sales, which have predominantly been diesels until now.

The Range Rover is a staple of Land Rover's armoury. It's more luxurious than ever, and prices show this

The full-fat Range Rover is a product of the long-standing Solihull factory based in the West Midlands

9. Range Rover

Where is it built? Solihull, West Midlands

Price from: 83,655

For years, the Range Rover has been the bread-and-butter model for JLR. It's the flagship luxury motor in its arsenal and the one that people associate most with the brand.

Available in standard or long-wheel-base guises, there are six- and eight-cylinder diesels that offer loads of pulling power. However, there is a mild-hybrid petrol and a plug-in hybrid P400e with a two-litre motor for those moving away from oil burners.

Given that other cars in the list are lower down in the pricing ranks, the fact the Range Rover - which goes up to as much as 179,675 - is among the top 10 most-built UK cars is something of an achievement.

With export demand, especially in the US and Far East, being high, the majority built are destined for overseas markets.

Velar is the new kid on the block for Land Rover. It picked up an award this year as the best Coupe SUV on sale in 2020

Land Rover has experienced huge demand for the Velar from export markets, mainly the US and China

8. Range Rover Velar

Where is it built? Solihull, West Midlands

Priced from: 45,260

Range Rover's new kid on the block, the Velar, was the eighth most-produced UK car in 2019.

Like the Range Rover, demand will be more significant from overseas markets, with plenty of motorists across the globe taken with the coupe-like looks of the enormous off-roader.

While prices start from a fairly hefty 45,000, top of the range examples will set buyers back almost twice that - 86,685 (for the SVAutobiography Dynamic Edition) to be exact.

Earlier this year it was named best Coupe SUV at the 2020 What Car? Awards.

It wasn't a great 2019 for Vauxhall or its employees at Ellesmere Port in Cheshire, the home of the Astra

Production outputs were down in 2019 and bosses announced that assembly of the Astra estate will be moved to Germany in 2022

7. Vauxhall Astra

Where is it built? Ellesmere Port, Cheshire

Priced from: 18,885

Once a stalwart of the top 10 most popular UK models, the Astra has fallen down the pecking order in recent years - despite the latest example being a pretty good all-round family car.

The Ellesmere Port facility is currently the home of the Astra, and for European markets, too - though rebranded as an Opel instead of Vauxhall.

Bosses have already taken the executive decision to switch production of the Astra estate to Germany in 2022, which represents a significant bulk of the 61,737 models that came off the assembly lines last year.

Apart from the Vauxhall van factory in Luton, this is the manufacturer's only UK car plant - and its future still remains uncertain as Brexit unfolds.

The second-generation Evoque arrived last year and has attracted plenty of attention

A switch over to a new model meant a brief spell without output last term. Expect it to climb up the table in 2020 as orders flood in

6. Range Rover Evoque

Where is it built? Halewood, Meseyside

Priced from: 31.395

For those looking at the less expensive (relatively speaking) end of the JLR market who want a bit more style than the Land Rover Discovery Sport, the other option is the svelte Range Rover Evoque.

Since the first generation arrived on the market in 2011, it has been something of a sales success.

The dwindling demand for diesel-engined cars has taken its toll on the Evoque as much as the rest of firm's range, though it's still the sixth most-built UK model in the rankings.

The second-generation Evoque arrived last year. This resulted in a brief spell without outputs as the assembly process and parts were upgraded. Expect it to climb up the table in 2020 as orders flood in.

The availability of a hot - and very fast - SVR version of the Range Rover Sport has reinvogorated sales

Production of the Range Rover Sport line-up takes place in Solihull - the historical home of JLR outputs

5. Range Rover Sport

Where is it built? Solihull, West Midlands

Priced from: 64,725

Of all Jaguar Land Rover products to make it into this top 10 list - none of which are Jaguars, you might have noticed - the Range Rover Sport is the company's most-built.

Coming out of the same production facility as the standard Range Rover and the Velar in Solihull, the Sport is still the luxury car in the range in most demand.

The addition of a powerhouse SVR model has helped the Sport garner more fans.

It's an increasingly popular car among those looking for speed thrills from a mammoth SUV.

The Civic is currently built for the global market - even Japan - at the firm's UK plant. But not for long...

Honda announced last year that it will close the Swindon factory in 2021, meaning the UK automotive industry will lose one of its biggest producers next year

4. Honda Civic

Where is it built? Swindon, Wiltshire

Priced from: 19,805

Of all the UK automotive industry bad news stories in 2019, Honda employees at the Swindon plant had it worst.

They've been informed that the factory is due to close in 2021, meaning the global production of the Civic hatchback will be moved elsewhere from next year.

As well as a hammer blow for the local area, it will mean the 108,876 units accounted for in 2019 will soon disappear from future UK car outputs.

The closure will end almost three decades of Honda production in the Wiltshire town.

The Toyota Corolla was one of the few feel-good stories for the British automotive sector in 2019, with an increase in outputs by the Burnaston plant where it is built

Toyota's decision to assemble the Corolla hatchback at the Derbyshire factory during Brexit negotiations was a huge boost for the UK (seen here during production of the Auris model)

3. Toyota Corolla

Where is it built? Burnaston, Derbyshire

Priced from: 24,140

The Corolla is one of the few recent good news stories for the UK car-making industry, with the all-new hatchback going into production at Toyota's Derbyshire plant in the midst of the Brexit conversation.

Of all the factories producing cars in Britain, it was the only mainstream maker to post increases in 2019.

The plant made almost 15 per cent more cars than it did the year previous, almost entirely down to the arrival of the Corolla, being made for the European market.

A hybrid version is also being built at Burnaston, which should remain in healthy demand in 2020.

Mini celebrated its 60th year in 2019, and demand for the hatchback continues to boom home and abroad

Plant Oxford remains busy and will be even more so in 2020 thanks to the production of the all-new Mini Electric model

2. Mini Hatchback

Where is it built? Oxford, Oxfordshire

Priced from: 16,195

Ever since BMW brought back the Mini name - and returned production to Plant Oxford - it has been a mainstay in the list of the best-selling British-built motors.

Not only is demand for the cute supermini high in the UK (it was again among the 10 most popular new models of 2019), orders remain healthy for the export market too.

Outputs at Plant Oxford dipped by around 5 per cent in 2019, though the brand did close down operations in March in preparation for Brexit delays.

The new Mini Electric - which we first drove this week - will be made there, which should spark a big increase in sales again this year.

The Qashqai has been the most-bought SUV in the UK for over a decade. Outputs at the Sunderland plant have always been high

Nissan Sunderland celebrated the assembly of its 10 millionth vehicle in 2019 - and it was this Qashqai pictured

1. Nissan Qashqai

Where is it built? Sunderland, North East

Priced from: 20,195

The Qashqai has been the UK's best-selling SUV every year it has been available - making it the most popular 4x4 for over a decade.

It's Nissan Sunderland's biggest output, as the North East factory pumps out cars for the British and European markets.

The Japanese car maker delivered bad news in 2019, announcing the next-generation X-Trail won't be built at the UK manufacturing hub, though Qashqai will remain.

As will the smaller Juke, which was renewed last year with a more handsome version. It should prove popular and hopefully boost Sunderland's 346,535-car output over the last 12 months - and likely appear in this list when we revisit it in 2021.
New Delhi, Feb 1 : The AAP's Rajya Sabha MP Sanjay Singh on Saturday urged the Shaheen Bagh protesters to "rethink" about their sit-in against the CAA to "avoid anyone from taking political advantage of them".

Speaking to the media here, Singh said that the protesters should not let anyone harm them physically.

"They should rethink about their protest. They should not allow anyone to take advantage of their protest or harm them. Polling date is drawing near." The Aam Aadmi Party leader said that while Union Minister Ravi Shankar Prasad had in the morning maintained that the central government is ready for structured talks with the Shaheen Bagh protesters, there has been no attempt from the Centre so far in this direction.

Singh also asked if the Union Minister had been stopped by anyone from further action in the matter.

"Prasad should name the person who stopped him after he announced the (willingness of the government to) talk. Prasad should know that (Union Home Minister) Amit Shah will never allow this to happen," Singh said.

On Saturday, Prasad tweeted: "Government is ready to talk to protesters of Shaheen Bagh but then it should be in a structured form and the Narendra Modi government is ready to communicate with them and clear all their doubts they have against CAA." Shaheen Bagh has been the epicentre of the protests against the Citizenship (Amendment) Act, wherein primarily women and children have been camping since December 15.
A state medical official has filed disciplinary charges against a Santa Rosa physician who exempted three healthy youngsters from vaccination, part of a surge of medical exemptions after California repealed parents authority to keep their children from being vaccinated because of personal beliefs.

The accusations of gross negligence or incompetence could lead to the suspension or revocation of Dr. Ron Kennedys license to practice medicine, which he has held since 1975. The allegations were filed Wednesday by Christine Lally, executive director of the Medical Board of California, and will be considered by the board at a future hearing.

California requires schoolchildren to be inoculated against infectious diseases, including measles, mumps, chicken pox, tetanus, whooping cough, polio and rubella. Parents could formerly invoke personal opposition to vaccinations to exempt their children, but the state repealed the exemption in 2016 after an outbreak of measles traced to children at Disneyland. It also required a doctor to approve any exemptions for health reasons.

The states vaccination rate increased after the law took effect but the number of medical exemptions more than tripled, according to a 2018 study by the American Academy of Pediatrics. A followup law, effective this year, requires the state Department of Public Health to review medical exemptions by doctors who frequently grant them or for children attending schools with an immunization rate of less than 95%.

Kennedy works at an antiaging medical clinic in Santa Rosa. He initially refused to turn over his records to the state Medical Board, but a San Francisco judge and a state appeals court ordered him to release the documents, and the state Supreme Court declined to review his appeal.

According to Lallys accusation, Sonoma County health officials received complaints from schools and preschools in 2017 expressing concerns about medical exemptions Kennedy was issuing.

One was for a seventh-grade student who had previously been exempted because of her parents personal beliefs. Kennedys records said the teenager has always enjoyed good health, Lally said, and neither her medical history nor the school records had any information suggesting vaccines might harm her.

Kennedy evaluated the student in July 2017 and granted her a permanent medical exemption from all vaccines, based on what he described as a family history of mental and emotional problems, including obsessive-compulsive disorder and depression, Lally said.

Drought Map Track water shortages and restrictions across Bay Area Check the water shortage status of your area, plus see reservoir levels and a list of restrictions for the Bay Areas largest water districts.

She also cited medical exemptions Kennedy had granted in November 2017 to boys ages 1 and 3. Their mother had told Kennedy the 3-year-old had gotten sick after vaccinations, but medical records showed no illnesses, Lally said.

Kennedys exemption order said the mother had a family history of vaccine-related illnesses. But after the childrens father objected, Kennedy rescinded the exemptions in January 2018.

In both cases, Lally said, Kennedy failed to follow standards for vaccination exemptions set by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention or the American Academy of Pediatrics. Neither organization recognizes a family history of disorders or various illnesses as grounds for exemptions, she said.

Kennedys lawyer could not be reached for comment.

Bob Egelko is a San Francisco Chronicle staff writer. Email: begelko@sfchronicle.com Twitter: @BobEgelko
President Ram Nath Kovind has rejected the clemency plea of Vinay Kumar Sharma, one of the four men facing the gallows in the 2012 Nirbhaya gangrape and murder case, Home Ministry officials said on Saturday.

Sharma filed mercy petition before the president on Wednesday, his lawyer had said.

Kovind has rejected Sharma's mercy plea, the officials said.

The president had last month also rejected the clemency petition of another accused, Mukesh Singh.

The 23-year-old physiotherapy intern, who came to be known as 'Nirbhaya' (fearless), was gangraped and savagely assaulted on the night of December 16, 2012, in a moving bus in South Delhi. She died of her injuries a fortnight later in a Singapore hospital.

The brutality of the crime shook the nation, leading to country-wide protests and a change in India's rape laws.

Six people -- Mukesh, Vinay, Akshay Kumar Singh, Pawan Gupta, Ram Singh and a juvenile -- were named as accused.

The trial of the five adult men began in a special fast-track court in March 2013.

The prime accused, Ram Singh, allegedly committed suicide by hanging himself in Tihar jail days after the trial began. The juvenile, who was said to be the most brutal of the attackers, was put in a correctional home for three years.

He was released in 2015 and sent to an undisclosed location amid concerns over a threat to his life. The juvenile, when released, was 20 years old.

Mukesh, Vinay, Akshay and Pawan were convicted and sentenced to death in September 2013.

They were to be hanged on January 22 at 7 am in Tihar Jail, a Delhi court had announced on January 7 while issuing their death warrants.

However, the Delhi government informed the high court during a hearing that the execution of the convicts will not take place on the designated day as a mercy plea had been filed by Mukesh.

Following rejection of Mukesh plea, a Delhi court had issued black warrant fixing the hanging of all the four convict on February 1.

The scheduled hanging on Saturday was postponed for the second time again on Friday by a local court here.

Reacting in anguish to the delay in the hanging, Nirbhaya's mother Asha Devi has said she will continue her fight till the convicts are hanged.

"These convicts have no right to live. We keep getting disappointed by the system. I will continue my fight till the convicts are hanged," she said.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
Data reported in the just published American Heart Association's Heart & Stroke Statistics -- 2020 Update, show heart disease and stroke deaths continue to decline, but that trend has slowed significantly in recent years. Further discouraging is that more people are living in poor health, beginning at a younger age, as a direct result of risk factors that contribute to these leading causes of death worldwide.

To build on its mission to be a relentless force for a world of longer, healthier lives, the American Heart Association, the nation's oldest and largest voluntary organization dedicated to fighting heart disease and stroke, has published a presidential advisory in the journal, Circulation, outlining new national and global 2030 Impact Goals to help all people live healthier for more years of their life.

Across the US: Together, we will equitably increase healthy life expectancy from 66 to at least 68 years by 2030.

Around the world: Together with global and local collaborators, we will equitably increase worldwide healthy life expectancy from 64 to at least 67 years by 2030.

"We know people are living longer thanks in part to nearly a century of dedicated efforts from volunteers, staff and many invaluable supporters joining the American Heart Association in our fight again heart disease and stroke, leading to improvements in disease control and prevention, advancements in medical treatments and improved lifestyle behaviors," said American Heart Association president Robert A. Harrington, M.D., FAHA. "Unfortunately, not all those years are healthy ones as the effects of chronic illnesses are increasingly impacting the quality of life of people at a much younger age than in the past."

Goal progress will be tracked by the Health-Adjusted Life Expectancy (HALE) metric, commonly referred to as Healthy Life Expectancy, which anticipates the number of years a person can expect to live in good health. It's a comprehensive single metric that provides an estimate of overall health across a person's lifetime and captures both physical and mental health conditions. That is especially relevant to the broader focus on overall health and well-being emphasized in the new goals.

advertisement

Over the past decade, key factors that support ideal cardiovascular health have seen some positive movement across the U.S. Reports show adults are getting more active and, overall, people are eating healthier, smoking cigarettes less and better controlling their cholesterol. But that good news is offset by major setbacks in other critical areas, especially among youth, a trend that puts upcoming generations at even higher risk for facing major health issues at younger ages.

According to the Association's Heart & Stroke Statistics -- 2020 Update:

Obesity rates are on the rise in children and adults -- nearly 40% of U.S. adults and 18.5% of youth are now obese.

Physical activity rates are abysmally low among youth -- less than a third of U.S. students take part in a daily physical education class and only 26% meet national recommendations of an hour a day of moderate to vigorous physical activity.

Rates for uncontrolled high blood sugar are leading more people toward diabetic and pre-diabetic conditions -- diabetes prevalence in the U.S. increased 129.7% for males and 120.9% for females between 1990 and 2017.

advertisement

While cigarette smoking in the U.S. is down among adults and at all-time lows for teens, the growing youth vaping epidemic is making daily headlines and the global use of tobacco continues to climb -- in 2015, there were more than 933 million smokers, globally.

The trends are even more devastating among certain races, ethnicities, genders and geographic locations -- at least 80% of the world's smokers, most of whom are male, live in low- and middle-income countries.

"We believe every person should enjoy health and well-being no matter their age, gender, race or even the zip code in which they live. And, we know disparities exist even to that level -- from one block of a city to another," said John Warner, M.D., FAHA, 2017-18 president of the American Heart Association, lead author of the presidential advisory and Executive Vice President for Health System Affairs at the University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center in Dallas. "To improve individual health, we must make the environments where we live, work, learn and play equitably supportive of healthy behaviors. We also need to help people better understand the impact their communities have in driving choices for health and well-being."

In a Harris Poll recently conducted for the American Heart Association, most respondents (93%) agreed that living a long, healthy life is important to them and believe everyone deserves the longest, healthiest life possible (92%). However, there appears to be a disconnect between their desires and their understanding of how those intentions connect back to their behaviors, as less than half of the respondents (49%) strongly agreed their behavior influences their health and well-being and only a third (34%) strongly agreed that their environment influences or supports their health choices.

"We need to make healthy choices the easy ones, make healthcare accessible and affordable and we need to get better at stopping preventable diseases before they start," said Harrington, the Arthur L. Bloomfield Professor of Medicine and Chairman of the Department of Medicine at Stanford University. "Sometimes parents are more worried about whether they can feed their children anything, much less whether it's healthy or not. If you're living with high blood pressure, you shouldn't have to worry about choosing between whether to pay rent or buy your medicine."

Harrington said what will drive the success of the goals is working collaboratively with many diverse groups from local neighborhoods to global governments. Additional improvements will need to come through increased efforts for primary and secondary prevention, public health policies that impact populations, the establishment of effective, comprehensible and affordable healthcare systems and modifications to individual lifestyle behaviors.

"Much of this will be an expansion of efforts already underway with many committed collaborators, but it will be critical to bring in new ideas and resources to connect the collective vision with the creativity and innovation needed to make real change," he said. "We'll be inviting more people to the table, but even more importantly, we're asking likeminded stakeholders to invite us in -- let us help be a catalyst bringing together elements that can create a healthier world for everyone."

While the basic metric of healthy life expectancy is well established, tracking progress and understanding trends to meet the 2030 goals will also require improvements in capturing the way health information is reported and analyzed. An accompanying publication to the 2030 goals is an American Heart Association policy statement outlining major recommendations for enhancing cardiovascular health and disease surveillance worldwide.

"In every country, in every city and village, we want everyone of all ages and backgrounds to be healthy and experience every simple joy, make every heartfelt memory, celebrate every special occasion they need and want to do," said Harrington. "This is so much more than just wanting people to live to a ripe old age, we want them to live healthier, longer. And we're dedicating ourselves to doing just that over the next decade."
Like a monument to dashed hopes, an unfinished Palestinian parliament building stands derelict on a ridge in Abu Dis, an unimposing West Bank suburb of Jerusalem that the administration of President Donald Trump has proposed as the capital of a future Palestinian state.

A symbol of the possibilities of sovereignty when it was begun in the mid-1990s, the parliament was supposed to have a clear line of sight to the glimmering domes of the revered al-Aqsa Mosque compound in Jerusalems Old City, barely 2 1/2 miles away as the crow flies. Today it backs onto a hulking, razor wire-topped concrete wall, a section of Israels security barrier that went up in 2005, isolating wingless creatures in Abu Dis from Jerusalem and its holy sites.

Days after the rollout of the long-awaited Trump plan for resolving the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, which strongly favoured Israel and disregarded most Palestinian claims, there was little sense of gathering majesty or of Palestinian control here in Abu Dis.

US administrations have tried repeatedly over decades to mediate a peace agreement between Israel and the Palestinians on far more evenhanded terms than the new proposal. But nothing epitomises the asymmetry more than how it addresses a Palestinian capital.

Palestinians have long aspired to an independent state with East Jerusalem as its capital, but the proposal does away with the long-held notion that the two sides would negotiate Jerusalems future.

Palestine, yes, but Israelis draw the line at Jerusalem Show all 2 1 /2 Palestine, yes, but Israelis draw the line at Jerusalem Palestine, yes, but Israelis draw the line at Jerusalem 651686.bin EPA Palestine, yes, but Israelis draw the line at Jerusalem 651598.bin EPA

Instead, it gives all the desirable parts of the city to Israel and proposes a group of obscure, outlying areas of the city as the closest thing to a capital in Jerusalem that the Palestinians should ever get. It offers Palestinians the tiny, crowded Abu Dis, along with troubled faraway neighbourhoods technically in East Jerusalem but also on the other side of the security barrier.

One of the neighbourhoods designated for the capital, the Shuafat refugee camp, is a gang-ridden slum where the Palestinian police have no jurisdiction and the Israeli police fear to tread. Another, Kufr Aqab, became a Wild West of unregulated and unsafe construction when Israeli policies and sky-high housing prices drove middle-class Arabs to seek homes beyond the security barrier but still inside the Jerusalem municipality.

And then there is Abu Dis, the hilly home of Al-Quds University, which opened in the 1980s when the village was just a 10-minute drive from Damascus Gate  one of the portals leading into Jerusalems Old City. Most of Abu Dis was never inside the Jerusalem city limits.

How can this be a capital? asked Ahmed Bader, 25, incredulously. He had come in a small truck to collect garbage from a patch of wasteland behind the parliament building. Children rode horses bareback in an adjacent alley.

Jerusalem has the Aqsa mosque, the churches, business, places to work, he continued. What do we have here, in our little town? If I stop my little Vespa in the main street to speak on the phone, cars pile up behind and cant get past me!

When the Palestinians say they want Jerusalem as their capital, they do not mean areas like Abu Dis, Shuafat or Kufr Aqab.

Shuafat and Kufr Aqab are part of territory that the Israelis annexed to Jerusalem in 1967, in the heady days after their victory in the Six-Day War.

Jerusalem is the old walled city. The rest is not Jerusalem, said Nazmi Jubeh, an archaeologist and historian who runs the Birzeit University Museum in the West Bank. We mean by Jerusalem  and I think everybody around the world means  the holy sites. This game of playing with words has no meaning at all.

In broad terms, the Trump administration plan would give Israel overall military control from the Jordan River to the Mediterranean Sea. It would allow Israel to annex about 30 per cent of the West Bank along with all the Jewish settlements in the territory, although most of the world considers those settlements a violation of international law.

While Israel had long been expected to hold on to some large settlement blocs in the West Bank in return for land swaps, there was also an expectation it would dismantle more isolated settlements in territory designated for a Palestinian state.

(REUTERS) ((Reuters/Ammar Awad))

And rather than Israel annexing the strategic Jordan Valley in its entirety, previous peace proposals envisaged a special security arrangement, possibly involving third-party forces, along the border with Jordan.

In return for the concessions to Israel, the Trump administration plan makes the Palestinians a heavily conditional offer that stands little chance of being accepted: an entity that they could call a state made up of the Gaza Strip and several enclaves in the West Bank  pockmarked with settlements and surrounded by Israeli territory  that would be linked by roads or other transportation.

While Israel hailed the plan, the Palestinians angrily rejected it out of hand.

In myriad ways, the Trump plan seemed to reward the Israelis and punish the Palestinians for what each has considered the others bad behaviour.

The Israelis relentlessly created facts on the ground, like settlements in the heart of the West Bank aimed at preventing a Palestinian state from coming together. The Palestinians repeatedly resorted to violence, even after Israeli withdrawals, which led Israel to expand its security presence at the Palestinians expense and to insist on never uprooting its people again.

In its conceptual map of a Palestinian state, the Trump administration plan did not even mark the location of a capital, although the document did suggest calling it Al-Quds, the Arabic name for Jerusalem.

It did mark Jerusalem  in Israeli territory.

The Americans determined that Israel should remain sovereign over all parts of Jerusalem, including the ancient holy sites that are inside the security barrier built in the early 2000s after a spate of Palestinian suicide bombings.

At least 120,000 Palestinians live beyond the barrier but still inside the Jerusalem city limits so they can cling to their Jerusalem residency cards, which allow them to work and travel inside Israel. Under the American plan, they would find themselves living in Palestine.

(Inside the barrier, the plan says, the approximately 200,000 Palestinians would get the choice of becoming citizens of Palestine or of Israel, or of maintaining the in-between residency status that most of them have today.)

As a purely geographical matter, the Palestinian capital would be fragmented across several neighbourhoods that are miles apart from one another, separated by Israeli communities and major roads, and share little in common. It is not unlike cobbling together a new city from parts of Teaneck, New Jersey; Queens; and the South Bronx.

The Trump plan promises to manage the feat with new roads, tunnels or bridges.

If you know these areas, you know theyre just making a joke of you and your national aspiration, said Jubeh. A capital is a symbol, he added. These areas are not a symbol for anybody.

Indeed, the Palestinians are denied even a symbolic toehold in or near the ancient heart of the city. But Israel gets rid of its only refugee camp and of the violent outland it has become.

In carving off Shuafat, the Trump plan completes what the Israelis first tried to do when they built the security barrier, said Danny Seidemann, an expert on the geography and political history of Jerusalem who is a harsh critic of the Trump plan. It would correct what he said was a mistake in hastily drawing the city boundaries in 1967.

The refugee camp had been a hot spot of violence for years, he said. So the decision was made to build the security wall inside the city in order to cut them out, Seidemann said.

In the Shuafat camp on Thursday, residents laughed at the idea of making their neighborhood a Palestinian showpiece. Water and sewer services in the camp are unreliable at best; the streets contain potholes big enough to lose much of a car.

Its a ghost city, not a capital, said Muhammad Inbawi, 30. Its chaos here. At night, were ruled by the gangsters. What kind of capital is that? Is Trump sane?

The place is not so safe by day, either: As Mr Inbawi spoke, a fog was billowing down the street. It was tear gas fired by Israeli security forces. Crowds of children in school uniforms broke into a run to get away.

Seeing a girl struggling to withstand the effects of the acrid cloud, Mr Inbawi shouted at no one in particular, You dont throw stones when school is letting out!

Abu Dis, which started out as a sleepy village, now has about 13,000 residents in less than 2 square miles. It consists of a single main street and higgledy-piggledy alleys shooting off at strange angles.

We love it, said Safia, 35, an English teacher who would provide only her first name for fear of repercussions from the authorities. But she added, Like all Palestinians, I refuse what we call the American-Israeli agreement to take Jerusalem.

She last visited Jerusalem three years ago to pray during the holy month of Ramadan, a visit that required a special permit from the Israeli authorities.

Tareq Bader, 22, who works in a car accessory store, was last in Jerusalem about 10 years ago. Its so close, he said, but difficult to get to.

But he hasnt lost faith.

Trump promised Jerusalem to the Jews, he said. God promised it to us, and God is greater than Trump.

The New York Times
MADISON  Bars across southeast Wisconsin may be allowed to stay open until 4 a.m. during this summers Democratic National Convention in Milwaukee.

A bill currently working its way through the state Legislature would allow southern and southeastern Wisconsin restaurants and bars to operate under extended hours from July 13-17. The extra hours could be good for business, with 50,000 expected to attend the convention itself. But local bartenders are lukewarm on the idea.

If other places wanted to do it thats fine, but I think youre just inviting trouble, said Corey Szaryc, co-owner of Toad Hall, 611 Wisconsin Ave., in Downtown Racine. As we always say: Theres nothing good that happens after 1 a.m.

Szaryc also wasnt excited about the idea of having to work until 4 a.m. Jacob Spiegelhoff, a bartender at the Pub on Wisconsin, 525 Wisconsin Ave., had a similar reaction.

Four a.m. feels different than 2 a.m., Spiegelhoff said. But, during the DNC, it would be pretty good for business.

Backers of the extended hours say the temporary change would help bars and restaurants take advantage of late-night activity during the convention and bolster the gatherings economic benefit to Wisconsin.

The DNC (extended hours), it makes sense, its a no-brainer. Its good for Wisconsin, its good for small businesses, not just for the Milwaukee area but for the extending towns and restaurants and whatnot, said William Glass, the head of the Wisconsin Craft Beverage Coalition.

Even if the state legislation were to pass, local municipalities would have to pass legislation of their own to allow their local bars to stay open past 2 a.m. So, it is hypothetically possible for Racine to have longer hours, but Kenosha and Milwaukee bars could close at their normal time, or vice versa.

A City of Racine spokesman did not reply to a request for comment Friday.

Ongoing discussions

The idea has been discussed since last spring.

But the current draft has come forward in the waning days of the current legislative session, as legislators prepare for a few more floor dates in February and potentially March before wrapping up their work.

The proposal isnt cut and dry. In addition to allowing lengthened bar hours in more than a dozen counties  including Dane, Milwaukee, Kenosha and Racine  preliminary legislation also aims to require that wedding barns be licensed by the state, hours of operation at small breweries get cut, and alcohol permits be granted for State Fair Park and Road America.

Reaction to the complicated draft so far has been mixed, with some calling for a clean bill dealing solely with the DNC provision and others saying the loaded proposal is a reasonable compromise.

Any time you deal with alcohol in the State of Wisconsin, theres a lot of stakeholders, state Rep. Rob Swearingen, R-Rhinelander, said Thursday. Even though the DNC hours on its face alone seems like an easy fix or a quick fix, it opens up liquor laws.

The major point of contention at the state level regarding the current bill deals with wedding barns, the privately owned establishments available to rent for a variety of events. The operations of these businesses have been heavily debated in Wisconsin over the past couple years as officials debate how to regulate them.

The Tavern League wants more oversight. The conservative group Wisconsin Institute for Law and Liberty wants less.

A draft of the bill shows wedding barns and other event venues would be subject to a $2,000 biennial permit fee, paid to the state Department of Revenue, and wouldnt be able to stay open past midnight.

Tavern League lobbyist Scott Stenger called the measure a reasonable proposal and said the bill seeks to ensure wedding barns have licensed bartenders and liability insurance coverage.

We are putting, I would say, minimum regulation on these venues for the publics interest, he said.

Representatives from Wisconsin Institute for Law and Liberty, which has advocated for wedding barns to operate without alcohol licenses, said the group is reviewing the draft.

Local wedding barns are sure to be watching closely. Even though Gov. Tony Evers, under advisement from Attorney General Josh Kaul, said last March that he wouldnt force wedding barns to get liquor licenses, The Farm at Dover, 26060 Washington Ave., Dover, still sought out getting a license, but has not yet gotten one yet.

Updated: The Farm at Dover looked into getting a liquor license, but has not yet gotten one as of February 2020.

Journal Times Reporter Adam Rogan contributed to this article.

Love 0 Funny 0 Wow 0 Sad 0 Angry 1
New York, Feb 1 : Rebuffing Democrats, the Senate has voted against calling witnesses to the Senate trial of President Donald Trump with a razor-thin majority ending days of suspense.

The voting on Friday on the motion to call witnesses was 51 against and 49 for, with two Republicans joining the Democrats.

The outcome was a nail-biter with the last of four wavering Republicans, Lisa Murkowski, announcing her decision to oppose the call for witnesses only minutes before the trial resumed on Friday.

The Democrats had wanted to call John Bolton, a former national security adviser who was dismissed by Trump, to testify about the military aid to Ukraine that he froze.

The witness decision opens the way for the Senate to vote its verdict on the charges of abuse of power and obstruction of Congress.

As has been clear from the beginning, Trump will be acquitted because a two-thirds of the Senators in the Republican majority Senate will have to vote to convict him.

The Democrats were using the impeachment process as campaign tool for the November election to discredit Trump among his supporters and the undecided voters.

Republican Senate majority leader Mitch McConnell like Trump wanted a quick end to the trial in time for the president's State of the Union Address on Tuesday.

However, the final vote will be pushed to Wednesday evening, Republican Senator Roy Blunt told reporters after a meeting of the party senators.

He said that the Senate will meet on Monday for final arguments by the prosecutors and Trump's lawyers and then allow senators to speak about their stand on impeachment till the verdict vote.

Blunt said that Democratic leader in the Senate Chuck Schumer was on board with the arrangement.

But Schumer, who called the vote against witnesses "a tragedy on a grand scale" and a "perfidy,a can bring up several procedural issues to stall the final verdict.

"We'll see, we'll see," he told reporters cryptically.

The charges of abuse of power arise from Trump asking Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelentsky to investigate the dealing of former Vice President Joe Biden and his son, Hunter, in that country.

The Democrats say that this was inviting a foreign country to intervene in US elections and was compounded by freezing military aid to Ukraine.

Republicans point out that the appointment of Hunter Biden to the directorship of a Ukrainian gas company with monthly payments of over $50,000 when he had no experience in the areas and the former vice president having the prosecutor looking into the company removed were unethical.

The Senate had voted down Democrat demands for calling witnesses at the start of the trial last week, but it received renewed momentum from disclosures that Bolton had written in a manuscript for a yet to be published book that Trump had linked the aid freeze to the probe of Bidens.

The news about the book was broken by The New York Times on Sunday in the middle of the trial.

Trump has denied that he had linked aid to the probe and Bolton was saying that sell his book.

Trump's lawyers said that the aid was withheld only to ensure that the new president was committed to fighting corruption and getting other European countries to pitch in.

Adam Schiff, the leading prosecutor from the House of Representatives that impeached Trump, said that without witnesses the trial would be unfair.

The House voted last month to impeach Trump and have the Senate try him.

Trump's lawyer Jay Sekulow said that calling witnesses would cause a long delay in the trial.

He said that Trump's lawyers had been shut out of the impeachment investigation and hearings and the Republicans in the House were barred by the Democrats from calling their own witnesses.

If new witnesses were called, he said Trump's defence team could call the witnesses from the House hearings and cross examine them in the Senate.

Trump's Legislative Director Eric Ueland said that they were pleased with the outcome of the vote.

(Arul Louis can be contacted at arul.l@ians.in and followed on Twitter @arulouis)
A UAE delegation visited the Kingdom to get updated about the Education Ministrys plans to to enhance services and promote planning, international co-operation, financial and legal affairs.

The delegation which represented the UAE Ministry of Education were updated on legal affairs, administrative investigation procedures, quality assurance and governance of educational institutions, financial measures, as well as efforts to bolster co-operation with international organisations and activate memoranda of understanding and agreements.

The delegation also paid visits to the Oqba bin Nafea Primary Boys School and the Ghazi Algosaibi Secondary Girls School where they were updated on projects, achievements, school work assessment, leadership and management and the insertion of autistic students. UAE Ministry of Education Director of Financial Resources Obaid Hameed Al Qaoud hailed Bahrains strides and efforts to develop the sector of education, stressing keenness on exchanging visits.
Croatia's port city of Rijeka on Saturday held festivities to celebrate its inauguration as a European capital of culture for 2020. Thousands of people, including many tourists, braved the rainy weather to attend the cultural party with dozens of events held throughout the northern Adriatic port, according to an AFP photographer. Hundreds of performers took part in the festivities, including concerts including at the city's historic fish market building. Visitors could also learn about Rijeka's eventful recent history from a 200-meter-long (656-foot) timeline running along its main Korzo street. Croatia's third-largest city is the country's first to be awarded the title of European Capital of Culture which is this year shared with Ireland's Galway. The central ceremony dubbed 'Opera Industriale' was held Saturday evening at the Rijeka port, a symbol of the city's openness. The open-air event involved more than 100 performers, combining classical instruments, recitations and choral singing with industrial sounds, lighting effects and audience participation. "It pays homage to the working class and conveys a message about ... the strength of workers in the life of a modern city," organisers said. The event also "tells the story of Rijeka's 'Port of Diversity'" which is the motto of the year-long event, mayor Vojko Obersnel said earlier. During the year the city will host hundreds of events, including a special edition of its known international carnival later in February. Rijeka, with a population of around 120,000 people, was once a thriving industrial port and the centre of Croatia's once prosperous shipbuilding industry, but is now struggling. Its fall in fortunes is the consequence of both the 1990s Independence war and badly-managed privatisation exercises which led to the collapse of major companies. With a rich history, having been run by different states over the 20th century -- from the Austro-Hungarian Empire, to two decades of Italian rule and subsequent Nazi occupation, Yugoslavia and finally Croatia -- Rijeka is now banking on cultural attractions and tourism to boost its coffers. Tourism is a key sector of Croatia's economy. Last year the country attracted nearly 21 million tourists, five times its own population. Celebrations and performances in Korzo street, Rijeka, at the start of the Croatian port town's year as European capital of culture A performance at Rijeka's historic fish market A triangular installation on Korzo street People could walk wlong a 232-meter (761-feet) long timeline pf Rijeka's eventful history
Iraq: four months of anti-regime protests



Baghdad, Feb 1 (AFP) Feb 01, 2020



Anti-government demonstrations that erupted in Iraq on October 1 have escalated into its deadliest protest movement in decades, with more than 480 dead.



- Protests erupt -



On October 1, hundreds of people gather in Baghdad and cities in the Shiite south in leaderless protests against corruption, unemployment and poor public services.

Riot police disperse about 1,000 protesters in the capital's Tahrir (Liberation) Square, including with live fire.

The first two demonstrators are killed, one in Baghdad and another in the south.

Protests continue into October 2, getting the backing of influential Shiite cleric Moqtada Sadr, who leads the biggest bloc in parliament.



- Unrest spreads -



On October 3, thousands defy a curfew in several cities, blockading streets and burning tyres.

Prime Minister Adel Abdel Mahdi defends his year-old government on television, asking for more time to implement reforms.

On October 4, clashes intensify and Sadr calls on the government to resign. Two days later the cabinet announces reforms including in land distribution, social welfare and anti-corruption.



- Deadly second wave -



Protests resume on October 24, a day before the anniversary of Abdel Mahdi taking office.

Protesters in the south torch dozens of provincial government buildings and offices linked to the powerful Hashed al-Shaabi paramilitary force.

At least 63 people are killed over two days, according to the Iraqi Human Rights Commission.

On October 28, students, professors and schoolchildren join rallies in Baghdad and southern cities.



- Death toll mounts -



On November 3, demonstrators in the central city of Karbala attack the Iranian consulate amid charges that Iran is propping up the government. Four are shot dead.

After a major strike and continuing demonstrations, on November 27 protesters torch the Iranian consulate in the holy city of Najaf.

The following day is one of the bloodiest in the uprising, with 46 protesters killed and about 1,000 wounded across the country, including around two dozen in the southern city of Nasiriyah.



- PM resigns -



On November 29, top Shiite cleric Grand Ayatollah Ali Sistani calls for a new government. Hours later Abdel Mahdi offers to resign.

Parliament accepts his departure on December 1.

Talks to find a new prime minister intensify and include the commander of Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps, Major General Qasem Soleimani, a key ally of Iraq's main Shiite parties.

Washington denounces Tehran's "meddling".



- Violence escalates -



On December 6, at least 20 protesters and four police officers are killed when armed men attack a Baghdad building where anti-government protesters had been camped out for weeks.

After several weeks of calm, protests intensify from December 22.

Parliament votes through electoral reform, which fails to address most of the protesters' specific demands.



- Protests resume -



On January 10, 2020, thousands of Iraqis rally across the country, reviving the protest movement, which has been overshadowed by tensions between Washington and Tehran after the assassination of Soleimani in a US drone strike.

Thousands of demonstrators seek to shut streets across the country on January 20, clashing with security forces who use live fire.

On January 29, President Barham Saleh threatens to unilaterally name a successor to the premier, if parliament does not nominate a candidate within three days.

Sistani urges free and fair elections "as soon as possible" on January 31. Sadr calls for a "massive" demonstration in Baghdad.
Metro Manila (CNN Philippines, February 1)  A few organizations have urged the public to refrain from being discriminatory, particularly against Chinese nationals amid the global spread of the novel coronavirus (2019-nCoV), which began in China.

The Federation of Filipino Chinese Chambers of Commerce and Industry, Inc. (FFCCCII) on Saturday discouraged Filipinos from adding to racist messages following the news of the virus.

"Let us not join some misinformed people in their unfair anti-China racist stereotypes and xenophobic attacks, because this important Asian neighbor is the Philippines traditional ally and longstanding trade partner for over 1,000 uninterrupted years," said Henry Lim Bon Liong, FFCCCII President, in a statement.

Instead, Liong said people should commend China and its government for its transparency, "remarkable political will" and sacrifice during this health crisis. The public should also give moral support to the East Asian nation, Liong added.

The Trade Union Congress of the Philippines (TUCP) also denounced "blatant racism" and discrimination particularly by Adamson University.

University President Fr. Marcelo Maimtim on Friday issued a memorandum requiring Chinese students to undergo self-quarantine until February 14 as one of its precautionary measures. He also advised them to postpone all transactions in the school until the said date.

This action is highly inappropriate in our civilizing and maturing Filipino educational system and values, said Raymond Mendoza, TUCP president and TUCP Party-list Rep.

The TUCP added that "Whether Chinese or Filipino, now is the time for all people and all nations to stand together as one to protect all human life."

On Saturday, after earning the ire of netizens over the memorandum, Maimtim released a clarification, now saying all students, staff and stakeholders who have traveled to countries with confirmed cases of 2019-nCoV within the previous month, must go through self-quarantine.

"This Memorandum modifies the previous released, and we apologized for the misimpression it may have created," said Maimtim.

The Health Department on Thursday announced the first confirmed case of 2019-nCoV in the country  a 38-year-old Chinese woman who came from Wuhan. Wuhan is the Chinese city which sits at the center of the outbreak.

President Rodrigo Duterte has since issued a temporary travel ban to stop the entry of visitors from China's Hubei province, where Wuhan is located.

Several airline companies have also suspended flights going to and from Chinese cities.

Meanwhile, other Metro Manila schools also announced measures to further prevent the spread of the virus, which has already killed more than 250 people from mainland China and sickened nearly 12,000 others all over the world.
LIC employees' unions on Saturday opposed the Centre's plan to sell a part of its shares in the state-run insurance behemoth through an initial public offer (IPO), insisting that the move is "against the national interest".

Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman said the Life Insurance Corporation of India (LIC) will be listed as part of the government disinvestment initiative.

The government proposes to sell a part of its holding in LIC through IPO, she said while unveiling the Budget 2020- 21.

"We strongly oppose the government's plan to sell a part of its shares in LIC and the move is against the national interest," a spokesman of an employees' union told reporters here.

Established in 1956, LIC is fully-owned by the central government and has the highest market share in the life insurance segment in the country.

He said that LIC has contributed a lot in the economic growth and the dilution of the government's stake in the company will "endanger the economic sovereignty of the country".

The employees' unions of LIC across the country will stage nationwide protests if the government goes ahead with its plan, he said.

He alleged that it will also affect crores of policy holders of LIC.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
New Yorkers should pay close attention: this is true endgame of the anti-police movement, an end of all policing & destruction of public order. Our members have spent their careers -- and in some cases given their lives -- to bring public safety back to NYC. We can't go backwards pic.twitter.com/X72vVioCVi  NYC PBA (@NYCPBA) January 30, 2020

STATEN ISLAND, N.Y.  This is the world that the radical left wants for us.

No policing.

Vandalism.

Chaos.

New York City saw it in all its ugliness on Friday. That was the day that protest group Decolonize This Place sparked protests in the city subway system.

The main target of their animus? The NYPD, of course. They want the cops out of the subway. So that the subway can become even more lawless than its already becoming.

The group also wants the $2.75 transit fare eliminated. Not a bad goal. Once you figure out how to pay to keep the subways and buses running. How you pay for increased service. How you pay the workers. Free transit isnt much good if it doesnt actually work.

Were heard a lot of talk about anti-Semitic violence lately. And white supremacists who put fliers up. Racist groups with possible foreign ties. And rightly so. The world doesnt belong to them or their twisted, backward ideologies either.

Lets see the same level of outrage over the havoc that Decolonize and their fellow travelers wreaked in the subway on Friday.

Emergency exits were jammed open. OMNY and swipe fare-collection devices were damaged with superglue (they call that creative sabotage). Graffiti was sprayed on subway walls, including F**k The Police and NYPD KKK and Racist MTA. A large protest banner was unfurled at the Oculus transit hub in Lower Manhattan.

The groups message, seen in a video thats all over Twitter, was simple: The streets are ours. The trains are ours. The walls are ours. They pledged to f**k s**t up.

Social media was full of scenes of disorder and destruction. And hate.

Its like the early 1970s again, when radical groups protested against the government, the military and big business. Even the language sounds the same. Calling police piggies. Dubbing the protest a day of action and a mobilization. Talking about law enforcement repression.

All those old Weather Underground terrorists still with us must be jumping out of their chairs cheering. Whats next? Bombs in post offices?

And who suffers? The commuters. Who have enough trouble dealing with mass transit as it is. Who face hours of delays because a bed bug is found in a subway control tower. These are the very people that these protest groups claim to champion. This is how they treat them?

Protest is their right. Bravo. But dont expect me to applaud, particularly when they link their fare protest to hatred of cops. Or when they damage infrastructure that all of us rely on.

The radical left is coming into its own after more than a decade of momentum. We saw big protests against the Iraq War. We saw Occupy Wall Street in 2011. The Black Lives Matter movement added fuel to fire. The election of Donald Trump turned the flame way up.

And its had an impact. Just look at whos at the top of the field for the Democratic presidential nomination: Sen. Bernie Sanders of Vermont, a democratic socialist who calls for nothing less than revolution. Hes says hes against the establishment. Hes against the banks and the health insurance companies. The drug makers. The rich. All the robber barons. Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, a top Sanders supporter, is even more radical.

Will ordinary Americans embrace the chaos? Do they really want to overthrow the status quo that much? Thats whats on the agenda in this presidential election year.

The protests can also be laid right at the feet of Mayor Bill de Blasio, a onetime supporter of the repressive Sandinistas, and lawmakers who have basically made it a crime for police to arrest offenders, particularly those of color.

Theyve eliminated enforcement of quality-of-life offenses. Theyve closed Rikers Island. Theyve sympathized with anti-police protestors. Theyve done away with bail, putting dangerous criminals back on the streets. Anybody arrested during these transit protests will likely face zero consequences for their actions.

Now were seeing the utopia that the left would build for us, one full of chaos, division and hate. Replacing the old boss with a just-as-repressive new boss.

Not my America.
Kyrgyzstan has temporarily closed its border with China and suspended all flights to and from its neighboring country in the wake of the new coronavirus outbreak, the Kyrgyz government's press service told Sputnik on Saturday

Bishkek, (UrduPoint News / Sputnik - 01st February, 2020) Kyrgyzstan has temporarily closed its border with China and suspended all flights to and from its neighboring country in the wake of the new coronavirus outbreak, the Kyrgyz government 's press service told Sputnik on Saturday.

"Kyrgyzstan is temporarily closing the state border with the People's Republic of China and suspends air traffic," the press service said.

The government's decision aims to prevent the spread of the deadly new strain of coronavirus in the country.

Kyrgyzstan has not registered a single case of the viral disease.

The press service added that the country had boosted sanitary control at border crossing points. Everyone arriving from China is sent to medical facilities for quarantine.

China has been fighting the new strain of coronavirus since December. According to the latest official data, the outbreak has killed 259 people in China and infected about 12,000 others. The virus has also spread to over 20 countries.
STATEN ISLAND, N.Y. -- A person under the age of 40 who traveled from China to New York City is being detained and tested for the coronavirus at NYC Health + Hospital/Bellevue in Manhattan, according to the city Department of Health and Mental Hygiene.

This means they had recently traveled from China and showed signs of a fever and cough or shortness of breath without another common cause, like influenza and other cold viruses, identified on testing, according to the Health Department.

Testing to determine whether this is a confirmed case of coronavirus will take a minimum of 36 to 48 hours and depends on CDC testing capacity.

An individual with a travel history to China felt unwell and sought help from a medical provider who promptly contacted the Health Department. This is exactly what we prepared for and we thank everyone for taking all the right steps, said city Health Commissioner Dr. Oxiris Barbot. Reports of the first person being tested in New York City demonstrate that the system is working as intended.

There are now eight confirmed cases in the United States and over 12,000 worldwide. At least 259 people have died.

The novel (new) coronavirus is a strain of coronavirus that has not been previously detected in humans. This novel coronavirus can lead to symptoms of fever, cough or shortness of breath. While some infections have resulted in severe illness, and even death, others have presented with milder symptoms and been discharged from care.

The Health Department is continuing to monitor the evolving worldwide situation daily, including the latest data on transmissions, incubation, new cases, and guidance. The Health Department has distributed educational materials so that people have the facts about how to protect themselves and their families, what to do if they feel unwell and have a travel history to affected areas, and other important information about this disease.

EIGHT CONFIRMED CASES

A Massachusetts man who traveled to Boston from Wuhan, China, was the eight confirmed case of the coronavirus in the U.S., according to published reports.

The man, in his 20s, lives in Boston and is the first confirmed case of the coronavirus on the east coast, according to 10Boston.

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) announced on Thursday that the first person-to-person spread of the new coronavirus in the United States has been reported between an Illinois couple in their 60s  shortly before the World Health Organization (WHO) declared the outbreak a global health emergency.

President Donal Trump declared a public health emergency in the U.S. on Friday in response to the spread of coronavirus.

Starting Sunday, JFK Airport in Queens will be screening people who arrive from China for the coronavirus. JFK is one of seven airports where flights from China will be directed, according to NY1.

CDC RECCOMENDATIONS

For those who feel sick with fever, cough, or difficulty breathing, and traveled to Hubei province Chinaor been in contact with a confirmed case nCoV within 14 days of symptom onset, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) recommends:

Seek medical care right away. Before going to a doctors office or emergency room, call ahead and tell them about recent travel and symptoms.

Avoid contact with others.

Do not travel while sick.

Cover mouth and nose with a tissue or your sleeve (not hands) when coughing or sneezing.

Wash hands often with soap and water for at least 20 seconds. Use an alcohol-based hand sanitizer if soap and water are not available.

For more information about the coronavirus, visit the Heath Department website at nyc.gov/health.

FOLLOW TRACEY PORPORA ON FACEBOOK and TWITTER
Copenhagen Fashion Week FW20 drew to a close yesterday and despite the gloomy weather, there was a palpable sense of hope. It wasnt just the fact that the last two shows on schedule  Rotate and Ganni  were brimming with ideas, energy, and community (although that certainly helped); the whole week was saturated with a collective drive to do and be better.

Copenhagen kicked off this season by announcing a major sustainability pledge: an action plan so impressive, were hoping it inspires bigger fashion week cities to follow suit. Committing to reducing its environmental footprint by transforming its business model, CPHFW promises to offset carbon emissions, ban single-use plastic, minimize travel to events and use electric transport only, move to vegan food offerings and be a zero-waste event by 2022. Developed by a board of directors including Ganni founder Nicolaj Reffstrup, and reviewed by experts including Orsola de Castro of Fashion Revolution, our expectations are high for the eco-conscious plan. Heres hoping New York Fashion Week kicks off next week with the same kind of responsibility.

The FW20 collections were set against the backdrop of a hopeful future and boy, did the Danes show up. Over the past few years, CPHFW has gone from being an insiders secret to globally influential, a shift that was reflected in this seasons collections. Here are five trends were stealing from the Scandis, from high-shine patent to clashing coats.

Touch The Leather

Sanne Sehesteds label Gestuz started Copenhagen Fashion Week with a bang, presenting its FW20 collection in an art gallery. Abstract paintings and sculptural pieces sat in synchronization with the oversized checked suiting and graphic floral dresses. Leather, however, is what the brand was first known for and with this collection, Sanne returned to her roots. Glam rock green snakeskin knee-high boots and coordinating pencil skirts, 80s puff-sleeved workwear dresses, and olive shirt and matching midi skirts all featured in Gestuzs signature buttery leather fabric.

Story continues

Leather was a big feature over at Ganni, too. The brands FW20 collection was truly thrilling; its no mean feat topping last years much-hyped 10th anniversary, but look after look not only paid homage to classic Ganni  exposed stitching, balloon sleeves, fantastic outerwear  but also reignited our love for the beret, the stomping boot, and the oversized collar. While every look had us swooning, the leather pieces  all black, coming in knee-length board shorts, sweetheart neckline cocktail dresses, and zip-front dresses  are top of our cold-weather wish list.

Keep Em Cozy

With their extreme seasons, its no wonder the Danes have defined our summer wardrobes (we have them to thank for the ubiquitous floral midi dresses and chunky kicks)  but we should be looking to them for cold-weather styling tips, too. Copenhagen Fashion Weeks knitwear game was mighty strong this season. Rodebjers collection, inspired by Pablo Picasso and the art of the creative process, brought us cozy cashmeres and wools you just want to hibernate in. Models hair was tucked into rollneck knits, ankle-skimming vests came in oversized crochet, and the navy knitted dresses looked just as ideal for wearing with Birkenstocks around the house as they would layered over denim and loafers.

Over at Norwegian brand Holzweilers show, head of design Maria Skappel Holzweiler was inspired by her home countrys natural landscape. For this collection, we looked to nature, valleys, mountains, woods, and agriculture The collection explores the many facets of country living in Norway, from the knitted soil patterns to fossil prints, whilst incorporating thick tactile fabrics made for durability and function. The knitwear was more extreme here, with a layered Lenny Kravitz scarf moment (divine!) and  our favorite look  an oversized Fair Isle rollneck jumper with an extra pair of sleeves acting as an extended scarf. Wrap us up and take us to a cabin in the Norwegian woods.

Clash Your Coats

The Scandis aforementioned knack for outerwear is rooted in their familiarity with sub-zero temperatures, but if you think its all sleek minimalist puffers and quilted jackets, you can think again. The most joyful trend to emerge this season was coats in a cacophony of prints. A mash-up of 50s, 60s, and 70s florals was spotted at Rave Review, the cult Stockholm-based brand founded by Josephine Bergqvist and Livia Schuck in 2017 which makes all its clothes out of upcycled fabrics. With a hodge-podge of checks, stripes, florals and more, the brand created a collection that found calm in the chaos. For both sustainability and aesthetic reasons, the label should be on your radar going forward.

Clashing coats neednt only come in the form of different fabrics spliced together. Emilie Helmstedt has fast become one of the most anticipated shows on the schedule in Copenhagen, entrancing women far and wide with her whimsical motifs and joyous color palette. For FW20 she gave us a modern-day Alice in Wonderland tea party, and while there were plenty of abstract prints and clashing colors to choose from, our standout look was this utterly adorable Eskimo-style candy-colored coat. Now thats how to make the miserable weather more bearable.

Rise & Shine

If leather is the grown-up take from FW20s catwalks, patent is its rebellious little sister. High-shine vinyl and PVC have steadily infiltrated our wardrobes over the past few years, but rather than your classic trench coat or tote bag, we were given a new take this season. Rains, the brand that makes you actually hope for April showers, presented its very first on-schedule show at Copenhagen, having grown its following globally, and it did not disappoint. Models stormed down the catwalk to thundering beats, and the (yup, you guessed it) rain-proof patent outerwear was so good that were already dreaming of a sodden festival season.

Over at Stand, we were pleasantly surprised with the brands evolution. While its signature teddy shearling and fluffy faux fur coats thankfully featured, alongside fabulous oversized checked pieces sat high-shine vinyl and leather. Turning biker jackets from standard game to 80s outsider, and making cropped zip-ups the centerpiece of the look, the brand made us a lot less eager for summers arrival.

Cadburys Colors

While were glad to see the back of the beige, sand and cream tones that were adopted with far too much zeal last year, theres a new hue in town and were embracing it with open arms. Meghan Markle made waves when she wore a brown monochrome Reiss get-up to Londons Canada House last month, and understandably so. Less severe than black but not as feeble as beige, brown is the perfect autumn/winter color, and the dreamiest designer on schedule, Cecilie Bahnsen, incorporated it heavily into her FW20 collection. Coming in cozy rollneck knits and quilted scallop-hemmed skirts, sheer tees, and layered dresses, her pieces had us as sweet as Cadburys chocolate.

Copenhagen Fashion Week mainstay Baum Und Pferdgarten also presented sumptuous cappuccino shades, going for head-to-toe looks of brown riding boots, caramel quilted jackets and rust tops tucked into matching leather trousers. Go for monochrome a la the former or a tonal look like the latter  either way, brown is the new black.

Like what you see? How about some more R29 goodness, right here?

Copenhagen Fashion Week Calls For Sustainability

The Best Looks Spotted At Copenhagen Fashion Week

A Fashion Insider's Guide To Copenhagen
Editors Note: This story has been updated to reflect that the hospital Dr. John Kenney founded was among the early ones in New Jersey that served African-American patients.

The pastors office on the second floor of New Salem Baptist Church was once an operating room for one of the early African-American hospitals in New Jersey.

Original ceramic tiles still line the walls. Underneath the carpet, herringbone tile make-up the floor. Both are tangible reminders of the Community Hospital on West Kinney Street in Newark. It was the medical facility where African-American doctors, nurses and their patients went when it first opened as Kenney Memorial Hospital in 1927.

The first floor church sanctuary is a rectangular space that once had small wards divided into semi-private and private rooms for 30 patients.

In the basement, at the bottom of the steps, theres a large room that used to be a laboratory.

And now, there are plans by city preservationists to make it a museum in honor of Dr. John A. Kenney.

Considered to be one of the most influential African-American doctors of the 20th century, Kenney built the hospital with his own money during a time when segregation policies didnt allow African-American doctors to practice at white hospitals in the state.

Theres a small plaque summarizing the history on the front of the churchs Romanesque style building. That wasnt enough for the Newark Preservation & Landmarks Committee. It wanted to do more than have visitors look up to see the historical marker. With the help of Rutgers Law School, "The Friends of Dr. John A. Kenney, a non-profit organization, was formed to maintain Kenneys legacy as it seeks grant funding to make that happen.

They still need help. Elizabeth Del Tufo, president of the landmark committee, said its looking for people who may have artifacts to furnish the museum or interesting information and memorabilia. If so, she said folks can reach the Kenney group at 973-996-8342.

We feel a museum is appropriate," Del Tufo said. People just dont know the history."

About 16 years ago, the church was placed on the National Register of Historic Places. Kenneys family, including his granddaughter, Linda Kenney Miller of Marietta, Georgia, came to the church to celebrate the recognition and recount his journey with the well-trained doctors and nurses of his era.

City officials and community leaders were there, too, including the late Amiri Baraka. The well-known poet and activist was born at the hospital in 1934, a year before it was renamed Community Hospital. When the room is done  hopefully later this year - Pastor John White said there will be a timeline in the hallway with pictures of Kenney and his staff. While a video plays of the Kenney family seeing the church for the first time, White said visitors can learn more about the church on a tour with its members.

We want it to be classy," White said. We want a historical feel when you come down into that room. We always want people to remember that it was a medical hospital."

Kenney Miller said she is thrilled about the museum idea as she continues the story of Beacon on Hill," a novel she wrote in 2008 about her grandfather. A screenplay, she said, is in the works.

Medical staff of Community Hospital, one of the early African-American hospitals in New Jersey. Built by Dr. John A. Kenney, the hospital opened first as Kenney Memorial Hospital in 1927 in Newark,N.. Kenney is in front row on the right.Linda Kenney Miller

Im determined not to let our ancestors be forgotten," Kenney said. I think we owe them a debt of gratitude."

Kenney, a graduate of Hampton Institute, came to Newark in 1924 after death threats from the Ku Klux Klan in Tuskegee, Alabama, where he was the personal physician of Booker T. Washington, George Washington Carver and founder of the John A. Andrew Hospital.

Three years later, in 1927, Kenney Memorial Hospital opened as private hospital. He built the facility in one year and it was next to his home, which became an office building that was connected to the hospital by a corridor.

David Glenn, a church organist and history buff, said Kenney used the opening to transfer supplies from his home to the hospital. That passageway is sealed up, and the building that was Kenneys home is no longer there.

Other remnants, though, are visible inside and all of them are original. Two medicine cabinets remain untouched with medicine bottles on the shelves. Down the hall from the laboratory, theres a small kitchen with a dumbwaiter compartment that delivered meals upstairs. On the second floor, the 60-foot narrow hallway is there. So are cast iron steps that lead to the sanctuary on the first floor. The doors have milk glass doorknobs, and a sign that says bathroom" is porcelain enamel. Cast iron radiators are mounted on the wall near the ceilings, most likely for space.

You couldnt wheel the gurneys around if they (radiators) were on the floor," Glenn said.

As a private hospital, Kenney Memorial achieved a level of success from 1927 to 1934, according to the nomination application for the church to be a historic site. In those seven years, it served 4,543 bed patients, 584 free clinic patients and performed 1,109 operations with only 19 deaths.

After that run, Kenney gave the hospital to the community in 1934, a gift that was accepted on behalf of the people in Newark by the Booker T. Washington Hospital Association. A year later the name changed from Kenney Memorial Hospital to the Community Hospital, which closed in 1953. It stayed that way until 1959 when the church bought it.

Kenney, who died in 1950, settled in Montclair where he had a practice with his son, John Jr., who founded the school of dermatology at Howard University. Another son, Howard, was medical director of the Veterans Administration Hospital in East Orange. Kenney Miller said Howard was her father and their family lived on the hospital grounds for several years before he was promoted to eastern regional medical director of the Veterans Administration Hospital in Washington, D.C.

The history of her grandfather, however, came to light after Kenney Miller found his medical journals in 2000. Documents from the early 1900s were stored in boxes in a storm cellar at the familys home in Oak Bluffs, Massachusetts in Marthas Vineyard.

I saw that I was sitting on history that had never been told, that would never be told if I didnt do something with it," she said.

Not only did this treasure contain subjects about medicine, Miller Kenney said there were scholarly and philosophical writings from her grandfather and African-American doctors on issues pertinent to the community.

You would read the things they wrote, and you would have just a sense of pride knowing who they were," Miller Kenney said.

Her grandfather, she learned, was president of the National Medical Association, the first national organization of African-American physicians. In 1909, he founded the Journal of the National Medical Association, a publication doctors still receive today.

He did so many things in the field of medicine, but nobody knows his name."

Not anymore.

New Salem Baptist Church in Newark was the original home of Kenney Memorial Hospital (renamed Community Hospital). It was one of the early African-American hospitals in Newark and New Jersey.(Barry Carter NJ | Advance Media)

Read More

Barry Carter may be reached at bcarter@njadvancemedia.com. Follow him on Twitter @BarryCarterSL. Find NJ.com on Facebook. Have a tip? Tell us. nj.com/tips.

Get the latest updates right in your inbox. Subscribe to NJ.coms newsletters.
The House of Representatives has suspended the consideration of a bill after a member accused the Senate of plagiarism.

Nicholas Ossai (PDP, Delta), on Thursday told the house how a bill he sponsored was transmitted to the Senate for concurrence but was stepped down for no reason.

The bill is titled Federal Polytechnic, Orogun, Delta State (Establishment) Bill, 2020 (HB.642)

It is a usual practice in the National Assembly that bills that emanate from either of the chambers are passed by the other without debate.

But to my greatest surprise, the bill was stepped down which has never happened before, he said.

The bill was reintroduced as a Senate bill and sent to the House on Thursday for concurrence.

Mr. Ossai alleged that his bill was copied by his colleagues in the Senate.

He lamented that the Senate did not give credit to those who sponsored the bill from the House of Representatives.

The bill brought before us today is carrying the same heading and contents with the one recently passed in this house, he said.

In his prayers, he urged the house to also step down the bill.

In his ruling, the speaker obliged and urged the house to step it down until all issues are resolved.

Plagiarism is considered a crime in Nigeria, but it is unclear how the senators will react to this accusation.

The Senate had in December passed the bill for the establishment of Federal Polytechnic, Orogun, Delta State, sponsored by the Deputy Senate President, Ovie Omo-Agege.

Mr Omo-Agege, who represents Delta Central Senatorial District, hails from Orogun.

The bill was read for the first time on October 8, 2019 and for the second time on November 7, 2019 after which it was referred to the Committee on Tertiary Institutions and TETfund.

Mr Omo-Agege sponsored the bill about one year after another bill for the establishment of Federal Polytechnic, Kwale, Delta State.

The bill for the establishment of the Federal Polytechnic, Kwale, which was sponsored by Mr Ossai (Ndokwa/Ukwuani federal constituency) was first read in the House of Representatives on June 6, 2018 and subsequently passed on April 30, 2019.

It was titled, Federal Polytechnic, Kwale (Establishment) Bill, 2018.

After the bill was passed, it was referred to the Senate, which passed it alongside five others on December 5, 2018.

The other proposed institutions approved the Senate were Federal Polytechnic, Mpu, Enugu State; Federal Polytechnic, Kaltungo, Gombe State; Federal Polytechnic, Adikpo, Benue State; City University of Technology, Auchi, Edo State; and College of Education, Omuo-Ekiti, Ekiti State.

The passage of the bills at the plenary followed the consideration of the report of the Committee on Tertiary Institutions and TETfund presented by its chairman, Jibrin Barau.

PREMIUM TIMES reported in December that some member members of the Ndokwa/Ukwuani federal constituency of Delta State expressed displeasure over the delay in the passage of the bill to establish the Federal Polytechnic, Kwale.

They also staged a protest at the National Assembly last year over what they claimed was a plot to relocate the proposed polytechnic from Kwale to Orogun, the hometown of the deputy Senate president.

Advertisements


SIOUX CITY -- Parents suffering from a cough or runny nose should refrain from kissing their babies on the cheek.

What they might think is just a mild cold could actually be respiratory syncytial virus (RSV). Children under age 2 are especially vulnerable to this virus, which causes inflammation of the bronchioles or small airways of the lungs and could result in the need for hospitalization.

"There's some years where we'll see mainly just a lot of nasal symptoms -- nasal discharge and congestion with little airway involvement," said Jeremy Granger, a pediatric hospitalist at UnityPoint Health -- St. Luke's. "This year, most of the people that are getting it are getting the brochiolitis, which is the lower respiratory infection. The younger and smaller you are, the worse your symptoms."

Usually, Granger said he sees an uptick in RSV cases between December and April, but this season, he said he started seeing "heavy numbers" beginning in October. After a "big flare-up" over the Christmas holiday, Granger said there has been a slight drop in RSV cases locally.

According to the Iowa Department of Public Health, 147 of 485 rapid tests conducted in the state were positive for RSV during the week ending Jan. 11. RSV is the predominant non-influenza virus currently circulating in the state.

"Our hope is that it burned bright, burned hard and burned down,"said Granger, who said 20 percent of the babies born in the United States in a given calendar year will develop bronchiolitis caused by RSV.

RSV spreads through contact with the droplets of infected people that are released into the air when they cough or sneeze. To prevent the spread of RSV, it's important to practice good hand hygiene, keep surfaces clean, wash toys frequently and avoid places with outbreaks. Daycare centers can be hotbeds for the virus, which can survive on surfaces for up to six hours, according to Granger.

"Once you have it in your house, pretty much every kid in the house is going to get it -- that part is really hard to prevent," he said.

Wheezing, labored breathing and mucus in the lungs, which Granger said sounds like crackling to a physician listening with a stethoscope, are hallmarks of RSV, which also produces fever, cough, congestion and runny nose. Symptoms worsen three to five days after the infection starts.

"To parents, it may be difficult to even hear that (children) have wheezing inside their lungs without an ear to the chest or stethoscope, but they may see worse cough than they're accustomed to, more difficulty breathing, their skin tugging at the ribs when they breathe," Granger explained.

If you think your child has RSV, but they're breathing fine and drinking fluids, Granger said your child doesn't need to seen by a physician. He said visiting a doctor's office could result in your child picking up another illness or transferring RSV to another person. He said nasal fluids can be suctioned with a bulb syringe and saline, but cough medicine should not be administered to children under age 6. He said these young patients need to cough the secretions out of their systems.

According to Granger, the children with RSV who end up being hospitalized generally need supplemental oxygen or IV fluids. Sometimes, he said breathing treatments, such as albuterol are used, but he said American Academy of Pediatrics guidelines for RSV don't routinely recommend albuterol, because it could actually make the situation worse.

"It can sometimes be a frustrating experience for a parent because you come to the hospital and, if their oxygen is OK, most of the time, we'll recommend what you're already doing at home and not to use the breathing treatments," he said. "Most (children) don't need to be hospitalized."

Love 0 Funny 0 Wow 0 Sad 0 Angry 0

Be the first to know Get local news delivered to your inbox! Sign up! * I understand and agree that registration on or use of this site constitutes agreement to its user agreement and privacy policy.
Source: Xinhua| 2020-02-01 13:35:14|Editor: Wang Yamei

Video Player Close

LANZHOU, Feb. 1 (Xinhua) -- Customs police in Lanzhou, capital of northwest China's Gansu Province, said they had seized 3.73 kg of products from endangered species in 2019.

The contraband goods included 21 ivory products weighing 775.61 grams, 10 antelope horns weighing 871 grams and 38 items made of giant clams weighing 2.08 kg, according to Lanzhou Customs.

In a recent bust, customs police at Lanzhou Zhongchuan International Airport confiscated five bracelets made of giant clams weighing 215.5 grams from a Chinese passenger of an inbound flight from Bangkok.

Under Chinese law, mailing, carrying and consigning products from endangered species such as ivory into and out of the country requires a certificate and must be declared at customs. Illegally importing, exporting or smuggling products made from endangered wild animals and plants will be punished in accordance with relevant laws and regulations.
Zimbabwes Health Minister, Dr. Obediah Moyo, says Zimbabwe is taking all necessary precautions as recommended by the World Health Organization to prevent the coronavirus from reaching or spreading in Zimbabwe.

Dr. Moyo said they are screening travelers at all ports of entry and they also use thermal monitoring machines to detect fever.

The ports of entry also have medical personnel ready to attend to anyone showing signs of the virus, and containment rooms to keep people suspected of having the virus.

The number of people under surveillance in Zimbabwe, who arrived from countries with recorded cases of coronavirus is currently 221, and rising by the day.

The World Health Organization (WHO) says Zimbabwe is using the WHO-prescribed intervention measures in order to curb infections in the country through travelers.

Dr. Alex Gasa confirmed that some people in Zimbabwe are under surveillance for the coronavirus but are not suspected of having the virus as they are not showing any symptoms of the virus.

These are people who have come to Zimbabwe in the recent days from countries where there is confirmed coronavirus transmission. So, when they come to the point of entry and then fill the surveillance form, and they indicate that they have come from any of the infected countries, they are recorded and they are followed up, they are monitored by a health worker, every day to see whether theyve developed any of the symptoms.

None of the people from the infected countries has arrived in Zimbabwe with symptoms, but they are just documented and they are followed up every day for 14 days as we know, the recommendation is that anybody could be harboring the infection without having signs for as long as 14 days.

So they are followed up for 14 days and the expectation is after the 14 days if they have not developed the symptoms, then there is no longer need to be followed up. So, they do not meet their criteria to be called suspect cases.

He said the travelers are from various nations with confirmed coronavirus cases.

The vast majority are coming from China. But as you know, there are about 18 countries, some in Asia, some in North America, Europe that have confirmed cases. So, anybody coming from any country with confirmed cases, is followed up.

He said Zimbabwe has implemented the initial recommendations of the WHO.

 On the 24th (of January) the Ministry of Health and Child Care discussed and started implementing some of these recommendations. That is why we can now know how many people have come into their country. How many people are being followed up, you know, on a daily basis. So, the right actions have been taken.

He said more needed to be done to prevent an outbreak of the coronavirus in Zimbabwe.

 We are working with them (government). The World Health Organization, the government with all its partners. As I speak to you, a series of meetings were held earlier today (Friday) to fine tune the enhanced preparedness plan, which has prioritized priority actions. So, yes, we are moving along. Zimbabwe is doing the right thing. And we hope that in the coming days and weeks even more will be done.

China says it has nearly 10,000 confirmed cases of the novel coronavirus. The virus has caused 213 deaths in China where it emerged late last year.

The World Health Organization says the worldwide spread of the virus is a global health emergency, as well as an "extraordinary event" requiring a coordinated international response.
The Muslim Students Society of Nigeria, Lagos State Area Unit has called on both federal and state governments to address the religious discrimination experienced by its members in Nigeria.

The Amirah (female head) of the MSSNLagos, Basheerah Majekodunmi, made the plea at the World Hijab Day 2020 in Lagos on Saturday.

In commemoration of the World Hijab Day, the MSSNLagos and other Islamic organisations collaborated to hold a peaceful walk in Lagos and Ogun States.

Addressing journalists at the sideline of the walk, Majekodunmi complained that Muslim students were facing difficulties using the hijab.

According to her, religious discrimination is a major setback for the country and must be addressed urgently.

She said, It is tiring that despite the Appeal Court ruling granting the use of hijab in schools, our members are harassed and punished for exercising their human rights.

Shamefully, the government in some cases pretends not to see the abuses on our members. This is condemnable and dehumanising. It is the peak of irresponsibility from the government, organisations and the perpetrators.

"President Muhammadu Buhari must address this now before things get worst. The increasing disregard for human rights and religious freedom would continue to make countries like the US with worst cases of discrimination take advantage of Nigeria through a needless visa restriction.

"In an ideal society, that a pupil or female wears the hijab to school or for registration should not be something that would generate to crisis or harassment. This happening in Nigeria only shows how unaccommodating Nigerians are becoming.

We also face this discriminatory act during image capturing for Integrated Payroll and Personnel Information, Drivers License at Federal Road Safety Commission, International Passport at the Nigerian Immigration Service and National Identity Card at the National Identity Management Commission. JAMB and WAEC are also inclusive.

In most cases, it is when the discrimination has begun to create chaos that the government and organisations come out to deny the lawless officials harassing females for wearing the hijab. But in the end, we are not aware that any punishment is meted to such an individual. The failure of government and the organisations to punish and sanction the individuals shows that they are culpable.

Our understanding, as a peace-loving organisation, is that the government has shown enough irresponsibility in the protection of human rights, especially the right to use hijab in Lagos State.

She insisted that the MSSNLagos would continue to pursue hijab rights in Lagos, saying, With the case on the use of Hijab is still pending in the Supreme Court of Nigeria, I must emphasise here that we would not relent in our struggle.

In fact, we are committed to it until our constitutional right is granted, until we are safe and not discriminated against.
Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas threatened to cut security ties with both Israel and the U.S. on Saturday, in a lengthy speech delivered at an Arab League meeting in Egypts capital that denounced a White House plan for ending the Israeli-Palestinian conflict.

The US plan would grant the Palestinians limited self-rule in parts of the occupied West Bank, while allowing Israel to annex all its settlements there and keep nearly all of east Jerusalem.

The summit of Arab foreign ministers in Cairo was requested by the Palestinians, who responded angrily to the American proposal.

Abbas said that he told Israel and the US that there will be no relations with them, including the security ties following the deal that Palestinians say heavily favors Israel.

There was no immediate comment from US or Israeli officials.

The Palestinian leader said that hed refused to take US President Donald Trumps phone calls and messages because I know that he would use that to say he consulted us.

I will never accept this solution, Abbas said. I will not have it recorded in my history that I have sold Jerusalem.

He said the Palestinians remain committed to ending the Israeli occupation and establishing a state with its capital in east Jerusalem.

Abbas said that the Palestinians wouldnt accept the US as a sole mediator in any negotiations with Israel. He said they would go to the United Nations Security Council and other world and regional organizations to explain our position.

The Arab Leagues head, Ahmed Aboul-Gheit, said the proposal revealed a sharp turn in the long-standing US foreign policy regarding the Israeli-Palestinian conflict.

This turn does not help achieve peace and a just solution, he declared.

Aboul-Gheit said that the Palestinians reject the proposal. He called for the two sides, the Israelis and the Palestinians, to negotiate to reach a satisfactory solution for both of them.

President Trump unveiled the long-awaited proposal Tuesday in Washington. It would allow Israel to annex all its West Bank settlements  which the Palestinians and most of the international community view as illegal  as well as the Jordan Valley, which accounts for roughly a fourth of the West Bank.

In return, the Palestinians would be granted statehood in Gaza, scattered chunks of the West Bank and some neighborhoods on the outskirts of Jerusalem, all linked together by a new network of roads, bridges and tunnels. Israel would control the states borders and airspace and maintain overall security authority. Critics of the plan say this would rob Palestinian statehood of any meaning.

The plan would abolish the right of return for Palestinian refugees displaced by the 1948 war and their descendants, a key Palestinian demand. The entire agreement would be contingent on Gazas Hamas rulers and other armed groups disarming, something they have always adamantly rejected.

Ambassadors from the United Arab Emirates, Bahrain and Oman attended the Tuesday unveiling in Washington, in a tacit sign of support for the US initiative.

Saudi Arabia and Egypt, Arab states that are close US allies, said they appreciated President Trumps efforts and called for renewed negotiations without commenting on the plans content.

Egypt urged in a statement Israelis and Palestinians to carefully study the plan. It said it favors a solution that restores all the legitimate rights of the Palestinian people through establishing an independent and sovereign state on the occupied Palestinian territories.

The Egyptian statement did not mention the long-held Arab demand of east Jerusalem as a capital to the future Palestinian state, as Cairo usually has its statements related to the Palestinian-Israeli conflict.

Jordan, meanwhile, warned against any Israeli annexation of Palestinian lands and reaffirmed its commitment to the creation of a Palestinian state along the 1967 lines, which would include all the West Bank and Israeli-annexed east Jerusalem.

Jordan and Egypt are the only two Arab countries that have peace treaties with Israel.
Mike Pompeo and President Volodymyr Zelensky hand shake after their meeting in Kyiv, Ukraine, January 31, 2020. (Sergii Kharchenko/Zuma Press/TNS) Read more

As he cursed out an NPR reporter last week, Secretary of State Mike Pompeo uttered seven words that sum up the sham impeachment trial of President Donald Trump:

Do you think Americans care about Ukraine?

Thats the question Pompeo used to berate Mary Louise Kelly, who had the temerity to question him on his role in the Ukraine scandal. (You did a good job on her, Trump congratulated Pompeo.)

The White House clearly assumes public interest in Ukraine is so low that the presidents blackmail of its leader will quickly be forgotten, once his trial ends with acquittal.

Yet, irrespective of the verdict, Ukraine has become the symbol of Trumps worst authoritarian impulses at home and abroad. So Americans cant afford to forget about Ukraine as we approach 2020 elections. Here are three urgent reasons why.

 READ MORE: Trump's most dangerous behaviour in Ukraine may not be an impeachable offense ITrudy Rubin

Trumps blatant defense of his Ukraine shakedown signals his conviction that the presidency grants him unchecked powers - and no one can stop him.

GOP senators caved, despite undeniable evidence in John Boltons book that Trump blackmailed Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky, withholding desperately needed defensive weapons until Ukraine agreed to investigate his 2020 political opponent, Joe Biden. And until Zelensky pursued a debunked conspiracy theory that Ukraine, not Russia, hacked the 2016 election.

Yet confronted with undeniable truths, the GOP-led Senate refused to hear Bolton. It latched onto a shocking White House defense that a president can do anything to aid his reelection if he considers that reelection to be in the public interest, because this means the motive cant be corrupt. A 10-year-old could deduce that this claim, made by lawyer Alan Dershowitz (who also defended Jeffrey Epstein on underage sex charges), can justify any corrupt White House behavior.

Acquittal will give Trump a green light to seek more foreign interference in the 2020 election  or do worse if he is reelected. Remember Ukraine.

Trumps withholding of defensive aid from Ukraine for personal gain highlights his indifference to Russian aggression, and to overall U.S. geopolitical strategy.

Ukrainian soldiers are still dying in eastern Ukraine, where a Russia-backed invasion killed thousands and those defensive weapons were desperately needed. Vladimir Putins seizure of Crimea was the first time since WWII that a European army invaded another European country and seized territory.

Putin has a revisionist agenda, says the Atlantic Councils John Herbst, a former U.S. ambassador to Ukraine. He wants to overturn the post-Cold War architecture. If we dont stop him in Ukraine, hell do something dangerous in a country where we have a [NATO] treaty obligation, like in the Baltics.

Yet Trump has waffled on whether Russia had a right to seize Crimea. He disdains Ukraine as a country because he has swallowed Russian propaganda that Kyiv tried to help Hillary Clinton in 2016.

In a we care visit to Kyiv last week, dripping with hypocrisy, Pompeo reassured Zelensky of U.S. friendship. But the post of U.S. ambassador to Kyiv remains vacant after Pompeo failed to protest Trumps shameful sacking of Ambassador Marie Yovanovitch.

And Russias aggression wont end unless Kyiv finally gets strong support from the White House. Hardly likely. On the contrary, Trumps acquittal will encourage Putin misbehavior.

The good news: Ukraine has many supporters in Congress, including GOP members, who understand the Russian threat and support defensive arms for that country -- despite the presidents uninterest. Trumps personal inclinations have given Russians reasons to be hopeful," says Herbst, and winning on impeachment will encourage him. But he will face the same institutional impediments to appeasement.

Even otherwise craven GOP senators worry about Russian aggression. But a Trump victory in 2020 means more gifts to Putin. Remember Ukraine.

Instead of fighting corruption in Ukraine, Trump brought new corruption to that country.

The U.S. president arm-twisted Zelensky to do exactly what U.S. officials  including Yovanovitch  had been urging Kyiv not to do: use investigative arms of government for political smear jobs.

 READ MORE: Trump's impeachment defense is based on lies about Ukraine I Trudy Rubin

The United States is supposed to be the shining city on the hill, lecturing Ukraine about cleaning up corruption, but the president who lectures against it, engages in it, says Brian Bonner, chief editor of the Kyiv Post in Ukraine.

And by the way, it was bizarre to hear GOP senators during the trial repeating old lies that Joe Biden was trying to get an honest Ukrainian prosecutor fired. The truth (as anyone not gulled by White House fiction knows by now) is totally the opposite: Biden, along with Ukrainian officials and NGOs, the International Monetary Fund, the EU, and the U.S. State Department, was trying to depose a corrupt prosecutor, Viktor Shokin, who refused to prosecute Burisma, the company on whose board Hunter Biden sat. Even Republican Sens. Ron Johnson, Rob Portman, and Mark Kirk wrote a letter urging Shokins ouster (a fact theyve conveniently forgotten).

Remember Ukraine whenever you hear Trump talk about combating corruption.

And remember that Ukraine deserves U.S. support against Russian aggression, irrespective of a president who tied that country up in his personal political games.
China's death toll from a new virus rose to 259 on Saturday and a official said other governments need to prepare fordomestic outbreak control if the disease spreads in their countries.

Beijing criticised Washington's order barring entry to most foreigners who visited in the past two weeks.

Australian Prime Minister Scott Morrison announced similar measures on Saturday, following Japan and Singapore.

Meanwhile, South Korea and India flew hundreds of their citizens out of Wuhan, the city at the center of an area where some 50 million people are prevented from leaving in a sweeping anti-virus effort. The evacuees went into a two-week quarantine.

Indonesia also sent a plane.

The number of confirmed cases in rose to 11,791, surpassing the number in the 2002-03 outbreak of SARS, or Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome. The virus's rapid spread in two months prompted the World Health Organization on Thursday to declare it a global emergency.

That declaration flipped the switch from a cautious attitude earlier to recommending governments prepare for the possibility the virus might spread, said the



WHO representative in Beijing, Gauden Galea. Most cases reported so far have been people who visited or their family members.

The agency acted out of concern for poorer countries that might not be equipped to respond, said Galea. Such a declaration calls for a coordinated international response and can bring more money and resources.

WHO said it was especially concerned that some cases abroad involved human-to-human transmission.

Countries need to get ready for possible importation in order to identify cases as early as possible and in order to be ready for a domestic outbreak control, if that happens, Galea told The Associated Press.

On Friday, the declared a public health emergency and President Donald Trump signed an order barring entry to foreign nationals, other than immediate family of American citizens and permanent residents, who visited China within the last 14 days, which scientists say is the virus's longest incubation period.

China criticized the US controls, which it said contradicted the WHO's appeal to avoid travel bans, and unfriendly comments that Beijing was failing to cooperate.

Just as the WHO recommended against travel restrictions, the U.S. rushed to go in the opposite way. Certainly not a gesture of goodwill, said foreign ministry spokeswoman Hua Chunying.

WHO Secretary-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus said in Geneva that despite the emergency declaration, there is no reason for measures that unnecessarily interfere with international travel and trade.

Meanwhile, the ruling Communist Party postponed the end of the Lunar New Year holiday in Hubei province, where Wuhan is located, for an unspecified appropriate extent and appealed to the public there to stay home.

Another locked-down city in Hubei, Huanggang, on Saturday banned almost all of its residents from leaving their homes in the most stringent controls imposed yet. The government said only one person from each household would be allowed out to shop for food once every two days.

Others are not allowed to go out except for medical treatment, to do epidemic prevention and control work or to work in supermarkets and pharmacies, it said in an announcement.

China's increasingly drastic anti-disease controls started with the Jan. 23 suspension of plane, bus and train links to Wuhan, an industrial center of 11 million people. The lockdown has spread to surrounding cities.

The holiday, China's busiest annual travel season, ends Sunday in the rest of the country following a three-day extension to postpone the return to factories and offices by hundreds of millions of workers.

The official Xinhua News Agency said people in Hubei who work outside the province also were given an extended holiday.

The party decision highlighted the importance of prevention and control of the epidemic among travelers, Xinhua said.

Americans returning from China will be allowed into the country, but will face screening and are required to undertake 14 days of self-screening. Those returning from Hubei province will be subject to a 14-day quarantine.

Beginning Sunday, the will direct flights from China to seven major airports where passengers can be screened.

Also Friday, Delta Air Lines and American Airlines suspended all flights between the and China. Other carriers including British Airways, Finnair and Hong Kong's Cathay Pacific also have cancelled or cut back service to mainland China. Vietnam suspended all flights to China.

The US order followed a travel advisory for Americans to consider leaving China. Japan and Germany also advised against non-essential travel to China and Britain did as well, except for Hong Kong and Macao.

A plane carrying Indians from Wuhan landed Saturday in New Delhi. The government said they would be quarantined in a nearby city, Manesar. Sri Lanka also pulled out 33 more of its citizens and promised to bring out the remaining 204 students.

A special flight brought 312 Bangladeshis back from Wuhan, including eight who were hospitalised with high temperatures. The government says about 5,000 Bangladeshis study in China.

A Turkish military transport carrying 42 people left Wuhan for Ankara on Saturday.

They reportedly showed no signs of infection.

The Kremlin said starting Saturday, Russian air force planes will be used to evacuate Russians from areas of China most seriously affected by the virus.

Germany's defense minister said a plane taking 102 citizens back to Germany was refused permission to land and refuel in Moscow due to what the Russians said was lack of capacity and had to divert to Helsinki.
The United States has been at war in the Middle East for almost 20 years.

Weve spent trillions of dollars, lost thousands of service members and innocent civilians, all while neglecting our constitutional duty to debate and vote on matters of war and peace.

And while there has been no military solution in the Middle East  our military presence has increased dramatically under President Trump.

When President Trump authorized the assassination of Gen. Qassem Soleimani last month, he not only ignored the Constitution but also dragged our nation deeper into an intractable and dangerous conflict.

Make no mistake  these reckless actions have brought us to the brink of an all-out war with Iran.

Since day one of his administration, the president and his Cabinet have sought to provoke war with Iran. They have chosen to shun diplomacy at every step, instead pursuing a maximum pressure campaign that has done nothing but inflame tensions.

Enough is enough.

Lets be clear: Congress has been missing in action for far too long. We have a constitutional responsibility to stand up and stop President Trump from starting an unauthorized and illegal war with Iran.

Thats why the House of Representatives passed two measures to reclaim our constitutional duty. One is Rep. Barbara Lees legislation to repeal the 2002 Authorization for the Use of Military Force for Iraq, and the other is Rep. Ro Khannas legislation to block any federal funding for a military offensive against Iran without congressional approval.

This language is not new, nor is it controversial. Both bills passed the House last summer as amendments to the National Defense Authorization Act and received overwhelming bipartisan support.

They were later stripped from the bill by Senate leadership at the administrations behest  and now we know why.

For almost two decades, the executive branch has had unchecked power and authority on war and peace due to the overly broad 2001 authorization of military force  something that Lee warned against when she was the sole vote against the measure.

Congress must act. By leaving the outdated authorization on the books, we are abdicating our constitutional authority on matters of war and peace, putting our troops in harms way in the process.

This is especially outrageous when you consider that more than 75% of the members currently serving in Congress were not in office when the 2001 and 2002 military force bills passed.

Congress must also invoke its strongest constitutional power, the power of the purse, to make clear we will not allow any funds to be used for an offensive and unconstitutional war against Iran.

The American people and our brave troops deserve for Congress to debate and vote on whether to send our troops into another unnecessary and catastrophic war of choice in the Middle East.

And while the president reported to Congress that the strikes against Iran were in response to an imminent threat, that claim has been disputed by members of his own administration.

Right now, the presidents strategy appears to be dragging our troops deeper into war, while turning away vulnerable families fleeing conflict and violence.

There is no victory in endless war. And Congress has failed the American people by accepting this state of affairs, ceding its ownership and oversight of military action in the process. Congress must go back to the drawing board and reassert itself before any more lives are lost to these undefined, unauthorized conflicts. Especially in war, the will of the American people, not the whims of any president, must prevail.

Together with the American people, we can and must come together to put a check on this president and stop the march to war.

Barbara Lee represents District 13 (including Oakland and much of northern Alameda County) in the House of Representatives; Ro Khanna represents District 17 (parts of Alameda County and Silicon Valley) in the House.
'Heaven and earth united to bring Willie back to us,' Fr Michael Doyle told hundreds of mourners gathered inside and outside of Poulfur church on Monday.

Willie Whelan's remains arrived in a hearse decorated with yellow flowers spelling Husband: his wife Mandy, stepdaughter Lily-May, parents Joe and Maggie; brothers: Joseph, Malcolm and Ciaran walking behind.

Hundreds of mourners lined the winding path down to the church, located in a hollow just off the Fethard road, a road eerily quiet of passing traffic on Monday afternoon.

Willie's former teacher Mary Caulfield said she taught for 37 years and Willie stands out in her memory for his goodness. 'He hadn't a bad bone in his body. There wasn't a grain of malice in his being. He cared for people and took an interest in them. Now that's a rare quality and a very valuable one.'

She said Willie wanted to be a fisherman from a young age. 'Over the years we would often meet for a chat outside the local shop and he would fill me in about how things were going and it was obvious that he was happy about the way things were going and he was proud of the family business. Now it's sad that what William loved took him from us, from those who loved him and those he loved. As a community in Saltmills we are heartbroken but he will live on in our memory.'

Ms Caulfield recalled, the Gurteens, Saltmills man's jolly face and 'that glint in his eye, that familiar swagger of his'.

'There was a spark of devilment in him too.'

Gifts symbolising Willie's life were brought to the altar by family members including a boat, a scallop box, ropes and netting, a photo of his wedding day, a toy chainsaw and a Liverpool flag and jersey.

Fr Michael Doyle said the thoughts of the community were with Willie's wife Mandy, sept-daughter, family and friends. He acknowledged the presence of An Garda Siochana, Garda underwater team, navy divers, Hook Sub Aqua team, the RNLI, members of the Coast Guard and local fishermen who helped in the 20-day search for Willie. 'We are here to show you our love and our affection and our strength for you as you lean on us in this very difficult time. Sad news reached our shore here in the beginning of January and in the intervening weeks there have been many anguished moments as we all prayed and hoped and wished for the very best and eventually it became clear that our rescue mission was going to become a search mission.'

He said: 'There have been so many who have poured out themselves, who have given themselves to William and have been a great source of strength and hope to his family.'

He said the pain of death cannot be airbrushed over. 'Grief is the price that we pay for love. This family grieves the loss of a husband and a father and a son and a brother, nephew and great friend and a ship mate.'

He recalled Willie's ship mate Joe Sinnott who also died when the Alize trawler sank off the south Wexford coast on January 4, saying Willie worked with him for 20 years. 'Just as they were in life so also they are in death.'

Fr Doyle said Willie was a saint. He spoke of his love of fishing, adding that he was an extraordinary sprinter and high jumper in his youth.

'From the tender age of ten he was naturally drawn to the sea and when the sea salt gets into your veins it's very difficult to keep away from it. It attracts us and there seems to be no reverse with regard to it. He was also into all things mechanical from a very young age.'

Fr Doyle spoke of Willie's friendship with Ken Doyle from Duncannon.

'All of our hearts are heavy and they are broken. None of us want to be here if truth be told, but we are here because of the reality that is.'

He spoke highly of everyone who save people's lives at sea, adding that people from fishing communities across Ireland have sent their sympathies and prayers to Willie's family.

'Our Bishop was in contact with me and he wanted to convey his condolences to the family and to assure you of his prayers. Like a fishing net we are all intertwined and interlocked and interconnected. Everybody's hearts were moved deeply by this reality that we now pray for today.

'It's true that the sea took his life but I noticed that when it did so it brought back an extraordinary flood of memories for this community - so many families who have been touched by the lost lives at sea - some of whom, sadly, have never been found so we keep them in our thoughts and prayers as well.'

Fr Doyle thanked everyone who looked for Willie and brought him back home.

'There is an old saying in Gaelic that the sea takes its own and it did. However the boat was not willing to give him up and against all odds considering the number of storms that we've had. There were many times we feared we would never find him but the boat held firmly onto him so with the help of the various diving teams finally his body was able to be retrieved from the sea.'

Fr Doyle said Willie had many hopes and dreams for his life with his wife Mandy and step-daughter Lily-May, saying 'it's a very heavy cross, especially for Mandy and Lily-May and his family.'

Willie was laid to rest afterwards in the New Cemetery in Poulfur.
DEAL OF THE WEEK

S&S Signs Up Seinfeld Jerry Seinfeld sold a new book to Simon & Schuster in a world rights agreement. The currently untitled work, which is the funny mans first adult title since the 1993 bestseller Seinlanguage, is slated for October 2020. In the book, Seinfeld (who was represented by CAA) will, S&S said, share selections of his favorite material organized decade by decade. S&Ss Jonathan Karp, who acquired the book, said, Not only is the book brilliantly crafted and laugh-out-loud funny on every single page, but readers will be able to see Jerry and his comedy evolve through the years. According to S&S, Seinlanguage has sold more than 2.5 million copies.

FROM THE U.S.

Morrow Invests in Talking Pooch

In a rumored seven-figure deal

following a nine-publisher auction, William Morrow nabbed a memoir by a woman who taught her dog to talk. How Stella Learned to Talk by Christina Hunger was sold in a North American rights agreement to Mauro DiPreta. Ryan Harbage and Christopher Hermelin at Fischer-Harbage represented Hunger in the agreement, which will see the book released in fall 2020. Subtitled A Speech Therapists Groundbreaking Method for Communicating with Dogs, the book chronicles how Hunger taught Stella to communicate with her by pushing buttons on a homemade soundboard, and the impact those lessons had on her and her family. Morrow said Hunger, whose work with Stella has been covered by outlets including CNN and People, taught her dog to combine up to six words to share stories, feelings, and ask questions. Morrow added that the book will include tips for dog owners to try themselves.

HC Kids Fires Marantzess Laser

After an auction, HarperCollinss Clarissa Wong won world rights to the middle grade graphic novel Blake Laser by husband-and-wife author-illustrator team Keith and Larissa Marantz. The book, HC said, is set in the 24th century and follows a 12-year-old inventor who, along with her family, must stop aliens from stealing the suns energy, which would lead to the total destruction of Earth within 48 hours. Rachel Orr at the Prospect Agency represented both Marantzes in the deal. The book will be released in fall 2022.

Harper Buys Cummingss Posthumous Memoir

A memoir by Elijah Cummings, the late Baltimore congressman and chair of the House Committee on Oversight and Reform, was bought by Harper. Lisa Sharkey took world rights to Were Better Than This: My Fight for the Future of Our Democracy from David Black at the David Black Agency. Harper said that in the book, Cummings details the formative moments in his life that prepared him to hold President Donald Trump accountable for his actions while in office. Cummings, Harper continued, weaves together the urgent drama of modern-day politics and the defining stories from his past. Fight, set for June 2020, was not fully completed by the author before his death in October 2019; his collaborator James Dale and his widow, Maya Rockeymoore Cummings, finished the book.

Loverings Truth Lands at SMP

In a six-figure, two-book deal, Carola Lovering (Tell Me Lies) sold Too Good to Be True. Sarah Cantin at St. Martins Press acquired the novel, which her publisher called a seductive story of love, revenge, and obsession, exploring three different sides of a relationshipand three different versions of the truth. The author was represented by Allison Hunter at Janklow & Nesbit in the world rights agreement.

Lins Crimes Unfold at Little, Brown

A debut novel by 23-year-old Tom Lin, The Thousand Crimes of Ming Tsu, was preempted by Ben George at Little, Brown. Lisa Queen at Queen Literary sold world rights to the novel, which LB said is set 150 years ago in the American West and follows a Chinese-American assassin hell-bent on revenge as he travels the deserts of Utah, Nevada, and California to be reunited with his wife, who was abducted years earlier.




See Full Image Gallery >>



Mercedes-Benz is getting out of the pickup truck game not long after it got into it. The brand confirmed that it will cease production of the X-Class midsize pickup in late May due to poor sales.

Mercedes unveiled the X-Class, the brands first-ever pickup, in South Africa in 2017 as a 2018 model with no immediate plans to sell it in the U.S. Its based on the Nissan Navara chassis but is given a number of ride and handling upgrades and is built alongside the Navara and the Renault Alaskan at a Renault-Nissan plant in Barcelona. From the onset, it was targeted for Latin America, Europe and South Africa, with plans at one time to build the truck in Argentina to serve the local market.

Already in the first quarter of 2019, we decided the the X-Class would not be built in Argentina as planned, a Mercedes spokesman wrote in a statement sent to Autoblog. The reason for this was, above all, that the price expectations of the Latin American customers have not been economically viable.

Now it has been decided that from the end of May 2020, we will no longer produce this relatively young model.

The news was first reported by German publication Auto Motor und Sport, which says Mercedes sold just 15,300 X-Class trucks globally in 2019.

Mercedes launched the X-Class starting at 37,294 (about $41,227) for the X220d, which used a 2.3-liter four-cylinder turbo-diesel engine that made 163 horsepower. It also offered a biturbocharged, 190-hp version of the same engine, available with either a manual or seven-speed automatic. Both of those versions are reportedly no longer on offer, however, so the starting price for the pickup is now 48,790, or just under $54,000. The remaining X-Class is the X350d, which features a 258-hp 3.0-liter diesel V6 and permanent four-wheel drive and a small 166-hp gasoline-powered X200 in limited markets like the Middle East.

Mercedes said it would continue to offer service and warranty coverage for the truck through Mercedes-Benz Vans.

Story continues

Related Video:



Click here to See Video >>
ASHGABAT, Turkmenistan, Feb. 1

By Huseyn Hasanov  Trend:

Turkmenistan takes all necessary preventive measures in connection with the threat of coronavirus, Trend reports referring to the Turkmen Foreign Ministry.

The appropriate measures have been taken given the development of international contacts, the geographical location, the growth of the tourism industry in Turkmenistan, as well as in order to avoid any dangerous infections in the country.

Turkmen Ministry of Health and Medical Industry issued an order "On measures aimed at revealing the symptoms and treatment of pulmonary diseases of unknown etiology".

A meeting of the emergency commission to combat the spread of disease was also held. The whole range of measures to combat the spread of diseases, including the work in the country's medical institutions to improve the skills of specialists and to strengthen sanitary and epidemiological control was considered.

The control in the sanitary and epidemiological services has been strengthened in border areas.

All measures were taken to provide the country with necessary medicines and medical supplies, the Turkmen Foreign Ministry said.

The 2019-nCoV coronavirus was revealed last December in the Chinese city of Wuhan. The infection has already been observed in South Korea, Japan, the US, Thailand, the UAE, Singapore, Hong Kong, Australia and other countries.
How did you tap into that? What were some of the challenges of writing in that voice?

Nigerians speak something called pidgin English, and I knew I didnt want to write in pidgin English because even the very educated people speak pidgin English. So I knew it wasnt going to be that. I wanted it to be nonstandard English, whatever that meant. I thought by doing that, I could make it Adunnis. It could be her own English, so to speak.

So the first thing I did was to watch as many Nigerian movies as I could. I was watching these movies of people in the market, and they would describe the political situation in Nigeria with broken English but with frustration at not being able to get out what theyre trying to say. I watched a lot of that.

I looked through Alice Walkers The Color Purple over and over again. I know its not the same, but it was very helpful to see how Alice Walker did that, because I thought, O.K., shes very educated, so how did she get that out?

Despite the broken English, you can really tell how bright and feisty Adunni is.

I wanted to explore the amount of talent and dreams and intelligence that we kill and waste when we dont allow these girls to go to school, when we hire these young girls and get them to work. I wanted to show that this was a girl who dreamed. She is more than just a girl that needs to be up at 4 a.m. in the morning. Shes intelligent, and if she was given a chance, and other young girls in the world, they will shine and they will thrive. I really wanted her to come across as someone that was more than a girl that could not speak English. And this is why she makes that realization somewhere in the book that, look, its just a language. Its not a measure of intelligence.

Image Abi Dares book The Girl With the Louding Voice comes out on Feb. 4. Credit... Alessandra Montalto/The New York Times

When Adunni arrives in Lagos, she has a hard time understanding class  she asks why she cant talk to Big Madam, her employer, directly. I wonder if you could speak a little bit about that class distinction, and why she might not have been attuned to what it meant?

Shes from a village where everyone is kind of the same class. Then once she gets to Lagos and sees this wealth, I mean, that was a huge chasm. Theres a huge divide between the poor and the rich, and I saw that growing up. The people that work for families would be treated as if they were second-class citizens. She couldnt understand it because shed only known a society where everyone could speak to everyone. Its just very strange to her. And also her personality, as well. She loves to speak and she loves to be heard.
Hannah Bragg died after taking the drug in a field with friends (Picture: SWNS)

Two teenage boys have been spared jail after supplying MDMA that killed a 15-year-old girl in Devon.

Hannah Bragg died after overdosing on the drug, in the form of ecstasy, at a gathering with friends in Tavistock on June 23, 2018.

Two youths, aged 16 and 17, appeared at Plymouth Crown Court on Friday where they admitted supplying class A drugs.

The 17-year-old boy from Tavistock was given a 12-month youth rehabilitation order and ordered to do 50 hours unpaid work.

The 16-year-old boy from Yelverton was given a 24-month youth rehabilitation order and ordered to do 70 hours unpaid work.

He alone was also charged with supplying ecstasy, known as MDMA, to Hannah on the date she died.

Flowers have outside of the Tavistock College in Devon, in tribute to Hannah Bragg (Picture: SWNS)

The judge acknowledged he had to sentence the boys based on the age they were when the incident occurred which was 14 and 15 years old.

The teenagers, who cannot be named due to their age, bought the drugs on the 'dark web'.

The youngest person said to have been supplied with drugs was just 12 at the time.

On the day of Hannah's death, she had taken MDMA with the 16-year-old boy near a disused viaduct in Tavistock before Hannah became unwell and suffered a seizure.

Extensive phone work carried out by detectives on the defendants phone showed that he had carried out several internet searches asking what to do with someone who was having a seizure.

After some time searching the internet and contacting a friend, he dialled 999.

Hannah Bragg was a keen horserider (Picture: SWNS)

Emergency services attended the scene and Hannah was airlifted to Derriford Hospital where she was later pronounced dead.

READ MORE YAHOO UK NEWS HERE:

'Sexual predator' jailed after assaulting grandmother as she slept at home

Man jailed five years after brutal New Year's Day attack left victim in coma

Woman jailed for sexual assault on stranger after asking for bus fare

Karen Bragg, 51, said her daughters tragic death should act as a warning to other youngsters thinking of taking drugs.

She said: "If it can happen to Hannah, it can happen to anyone.

Story continues

"We want them to think 'Hannah took this and she died. Am I prepared for what could happen?'"

Two teenagers were sentenced at Plymouth Crown Court to youth rehabilitation orders (Picture: SWNS)

Following the sentencing, the Bragg family released a statement.

It read: Our daughter Hannah was very well behaved. She played rugby, was a keen horse rider and was very active. She had lots of friends and had a good life.

If this can happen to her, it can happen to your child too and I wouldnt want anyone to go through the nightmare we as a family have over the past 19 months.

It has totally devastated us and is something that we will never come to terms with.

Case Officer Detective Constable Craig Ferguson added: These events led to a subsequent police investigation which unearthed the boys actions in procuring and dealing the drugs to local young people and children, one of whom was just 12 years of age."
A group of Pakistani students and community members stranded in Urumqi city, the capital of Xinjiang province in China's far northwest, due to suspension of flights in the wake of the new coronavirus outbreak have been granted an 11-day visa extension by authorities in Beijing.

All of them have been provided hotel accommodation and food will be made available for them until flights resume between Urumqi and Islamabad, official sources in Beijing told Dawn on Saturday.

A senior official at the Pakistan Embassy said Chinese authorities in Beijing and Urumqi were fully cooperating and had assured that all of the Pakistani nationals who were stranded in Urumqi were being provided accommodation, food, and healthcare.

The embassy officials are also in contact with the Pakistani nationals in Urumqi and as of now, "there is absolutely no problem and difficulty being faced by these people", the official said.

The group of nearly 150 Pakistani nationals stuck at Urumqi airport appealed to the government in Islamabad on Friday to evacuate them back home.

In video messages, the Pakistani nationals had said that they could neither leave the airport because many of them had reached the expiry of their visas, nor could they fly home due to Pakistan's suspension of its flights to and from China in the wake of the coronavirus outbreak.

"We request the Pakistani government to evacuate us from here ... this is our constitutional right," Tariq Rauf, a scholar from Khyber Pakhtunkhwa's Shangla district who was studying in China, had said in his video message.

However, despite strong criticism from the opposition, the PTI government has decided to stay firm on its earlier decision against the repatriation of Pakistanis stuck in virus-hit China in a show of solidarity to its all-weather ally.

According to media reports, at least 259 people have been killed due to pneumonia caused by the novel coronavirus and around 11,947 others infected. The virus had been detected in 18 countries apart from China and now, after two days, cases of the virus have been detected in 27 countries.

Numerous countries, including India, France, Indonesia, Canada, and the United States, have started evacuating their people from Wuhan, the epicentre of the deadly virus outbreak.

The Health Organisation (WHO) has declared the situation an emergency of international concern.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
Over Rs 17,300 crore has been allocated for the Ministry of External Affairs in the Budget, with Rs 100 crore earmarked for the strategic Chabahar Port project in southeastern Iran that gives India connectivity to Afghanistan bypassing Pakistan.

The total aid to countries has decreased by about Rs 56 crore from Rs 6,963 revised estimates of 2019-20 to Rs 6,907crore in Budget 2020-21.

While Nepal saw a cut of Rs 400 crore in aid by India from Rs 1,200 crore in 2019-20 to Rs 800 crore in 2020-21, Myanmar saw a hike in allocation from Rs 170 crore in 2019-20 to Rs 300 crore for the next fiscal.

The aid for the strategically-important Chabahar Port which was zero in the revised estimates of 2019-20 has gone up to Rs 100 crore for the next fiscal.

The Port complex, backed by India, on Iran's coast along the Gulf of Oman is being developed to provide an alternative trade route between India and Afghanistan.

In May 2016, India and Iran signed a bilateral agreement under which India would refurbish one of the berths at Shahid Beheshti Port, and reconstruct a a 600-metre-long container handling facility at the port.

The aid allocation for Bhutan has gone up from Rs 2,674.51 crore in 2019-20 to Rs 2,884.65 crore in the next fiscal.

Aid allocation to Maldives has been reduced by Rs 75 crore to Rs 1,025 crore in the next fiscal.

In the budget 2020-21, aid allocation for African countries is Rs 350 crore, Rs 200 crore for Bangaldesh and Sri Lanka, Rs 140 crore for Seychelles, Rs 20 crore to Latin American countries and Rs 2 crore to Mongolia.

The revised budget for 2019-20 showed that Rs 188 crore was spent for maintenance of aircraft of Air India for VVIP travel, and for the next fiscal year, Rs 150 crore has been allocated for it.

The total allocation to the ministry in 2020-21 stands at Rs 17,346.71 as compared with the revised budget FY 2019-20 of Rs 17,372.27 crore.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
Alan brings extensive strategic, business development, technical and scientific experience to Lupin from over 30 years in the pharmaceutical industry

Pharma Major Lupin Limited (Lupin) announced the appointment of J. Alan Butcher as Chief Corporate Development Officer (CCDO). Alan will lead Lupins Global Corporate Development efforts and will be responsible for the Companys Global M&A, Business Development and Licensing functions. In this role, Alan will be responsible for leading the companys overall business development efforts, with a focus on continuing to build Lupins Specialty and Novel products business.

Commenting on the appointment, Vinita Gupta, Chief Executive Officer, Lupin said, We are very pleased to welcome Alan to our leadership team. Alans experience in leading portfolio strategy and business development in specialty and big pharma companies, will help us enhance our plans to evolve our Specialty and Novel products business and optimize our capital allocation efforts to drive long term growth and value

Alan brings extensive strategic, business development, technical and scientific experience to Lupin from over 30 years in the pharmaceutical industry. He joins Lupin from AMAG Pharmaceuticals where he served as Executive Vice President and Chief Business Officer. Prior to AMAG, he served as Senior Vice President, licensing and business development for Purdue Pharma. Prior to Purdue, he led a global business development team and was responsible for identifying, evaluating and negotiating expansion opportunities at Shire Pharmaceuticals. Earlier in his career, Alan conducted scientific research in areas of molecular genetics, virology and cardiovascular drug discovery.

Alan holds a Bachelor of Science in Clinical Microbiology and a Master of Arts in Biology with a concentration in Molecular Biology and Genetics from West Chester University of Pennsylvania. He is also an MBA graduate from Cornell Universitys Johnson Graduate School of Management.

Alan will be based at Naples, Florida and he will report to Vinita Gupta, CEO.
Source: Xinhua| 2020-02-02 05:16:40|Editor: yan

Video Player Close

WASHINGTON, Feb. 1 (Xinhua) -- Four people were shot, two of them fatally, after a funeral Saturday afternoon at a church in Riviera Beach, Florida, said police.
Chennai, Feb 1 : After Thiruvalluvar and Pisirandaiyar it was the turn of Tamil saint-poetess Avvaiyar to be quoted by Union Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman during her Budget speech.

Presenting the 2020-21 Budget in Parliament on Saturday, Sitharaman while speaking about the government's plan to encourage balanced use of all kinds of fertilisers instead of just chemical fertiliser quoted a small verse from 'Aathichoodi' by saint-poetess Avvaiyar.

Sitharaman said Avvaiyar in just three words had said: "Bhoomi Thiruthi Oon" meaning tend and till the land and eat.

In her Aathichoodi, Avvaiyar in simple style, in just two or three words, had expressed a profound message.

Sitharaman had also quoted a verse from Thirukural written by another saint-poet Thiruvalluvar while praising Prime Minister Narendra Modi's government.

She said the five jewels of a good country are - freedom from illness, wealth, agri-produce, happiness and protection - which are made possible under various schemes of the Modi government.

While presenting her first Budget last year Sitharaman had quoted from the works of another Tamil poet Pisirandaiyar.

Incidentally, Modi took Tamil Nadu by surprise by wearing the traditional Tamil attire - white veshti/dhoti and angavastaram over white half shirt when Chinese President Xi Jinping had visited Mahabalipuram last year for the second informal India-China Summit.

Not only did Modi don traditional Tamil attire, he also tweeted a message in Tamil welcoming Xi.

Modi speaking at the UN General Assembly last year Modi highlighted India's message of inclusiveness quoting the Tamil poet Kaniyan Pungundranar who lived some 3,000 years ago and said, "We belong to all places and we belong to everyone." "The sense of belonging beyond borders is unique to India," he had said.

Again last year when Modi came here to participate in a function at Indian Institute of Technology, Madras (IIT-M) Modi recalled his quoting the Tamil poet which was received well by the foreign media.

Speaking at the IIT-M function, Modi promoted Tamil Nadu tourism by encouraging people to visit the nearby UNESCO World Heritage Site of Mahabalipuram, famous for its stone carvings and stone temples.

Making a special reference to the South Indian delicacies of idli, dosa, vada and sambar generally taken for breakfast, Modi said Chennai is known for its hospitality and is warmth.

But Modi's BJP has not been able to make any inroads in Tamil Nadu.

Latest updates on Howdy Modi Houston
The hazy days of Sydney being smothered in smoke could be about to return.

A poor air quality alert has been forecast for the harbour city to be blanketed in smoke on Sunday as raging bushfires in the nation's capital and south-eastern New South Wales continue to burn out of control.

'Areas of smoke haze developing during the day. Dust haze possible in the afternoon and evening,' a forecast from the Bureau of Meteorology forecast stated.

The hazy conditions will be the result of a southerly change after parts of western Sydney sweltered in 45C plus temperatures on Saturday.

Sydney (pictured last month) is expected to be blanketed in a smoky haze on Sunday

'There's a possibly the southerly change will carry the smoke from active fires up the coast to have some impact on Sydney,' BOM senior forecaster Rosemary Barr told Daily Mail Australia.

'Another southerly change forecast for Monday could also bring another burst of haze from the fires and stick around for the early parts of the week. '

The NSW Department of Planning, Industry and Environment has issued a health warning that Sunday's poor air quality will be 'unhealthy for sensitive people, and could cause symptoms, especially in people with heart or lung disease.'

To lower the risk of being affected by bushfire smoke, people are advised to reduce or avoid vigorous outdoor activity, keep doors and windows shut to keep the smoke out, spend time in air-conditioned venues like cinemas, libraries and shopping centres and to avoid indoor sources of air pollution.

Raging bushfires continue to burn out of control in the ACT south of Canberra on Saturday

Authorities have issued a warning about the poor air quality forecast for Sunday

Sydney is expected to reach a top of 32 on Sunday with afternoon thunderstorm activity likely.

As the city's CBD reached a high of 34.8C on Saturday, the heat was more unbearble out west as Richmond reached 46.8C, followed closely by Penrith with 46.4C.

Of the 12 major fires burning across NSW on Saturday night, three were at emergency levels in the Bega Valley region.

The Clear Range fire in Snowy Monaro region is also at emergency levels and closed the Monaro Highway.

In the ACT, the Orroral Valley fire has been downgraded to a watch and act level after it flared to emergency levels for a second consecutive day on Saturday.

Smoke from the ACT fires are forecast to blanket Sydney in a smoky haze on Sunday

'Fire activity has eased across the fire ground. Conditions can still change and get worse,' the latest ACT Emergency Services Agency alert read.

A state of emergency has been declared for the nation's capital for the first time since the deadly 2003 bushfires, which claimed four lives and destroyed almost 500 homes.

Canberra sweltered through its hottest back-to-back days since records began after reached 41.9C on Friday followed by a scorching 42.7C on Saturday, according to Weatherzone.
Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) and Congress Party (NCP) have criticised the Central government's dialogue offer to Shaheen Bagh protestors by questioning the timing of the move, adding that it came 'too late'.

Union Law and Justice Minister and senior BJP leader Ravi Shankar Prasad today said that the central government is ready for a structured dialogue with the Shaheen Bagh protesters.

Speaking to ANI, AAP Rajya Sabha lawmaker Sanjay Singh said, "I believe this should have been done long ago and we have been saying it repeatedly that government should talk. Why does the government wake up so late? This shows that the government is in deep slumber and is not worried. Now they are saying they are ready to talk, it is their government and they have law and order, they should talk. It is a welcome move that Ravi Shankar Prasad has proposed it and I hope it has a positive outcome."

"If the government's intent is clear, the protestors should also become a part of communication", he added.

NCP lawmaker from Rajya Sabha, Majeed Memon, also slammed the government alleging that the offer was 'very late' and he doubted the intent of it.

"Law minister has woken up too late. The government of India has now realised that no persuasion and words from them can convince the protestors to call off the agitation. The government has now come up with some offer. But I am skeptical if this is some genuine offer. The whole country is protesting against this unconstitutional and undemocratic act", he said.

The Centre on Saturday said that it is ready to talk to and clear any misgivings of protestors who have been on a sit-in agitation at Shaheen Bagh in the capital against the Citizenship Amendment Act (CAA) here for over almost two months.

In a tweet, this morning the Union Law Minister posted: "Government is ready to talk to protestors of Shaheen Bagh but then it should be in a structured form and the @narendramodi govt is ready to communicate with them and clear all their doubts they have against CAA...

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
New Delhi: Amid fears of novel coronavirus, two more suspected cases of coronavirus have come to Delhi's Dr Ram Manohar Lohia Hospital, that makes a total of 8 suspected cases which are admitted to the hospital. The samples of the two suspected cases have been sent for testing.

Speaking to IANS, RML`s PRO Smriti Tiwari said: "Two more people suspected to be infected with coronavirus have been admitted to the Hospital. Their samples have been sent for testing."

She also said that a total of 8 suspected cases of coronavirus are currently at the RML hospital. "Two males, aging 23-year and 46-year olds have been admitted to the hospital today. One was staying in China for the last 5 years and returned from there on January 24 from Wuhan while the other visited China for 2 months and returned on January 18."

There were a total of 6 suspected cases as on January 30, including 4 males, 1 female and an one old admission. The 24-year old female suspected patient had been residing in China since 2015. She returned on January 29. While others were staying in China for as long as 7 years. Some of them were in China for over two months, informed Tiwari.

The dreaded virus started spreading from China`s Wuhan city. Chinese authorities on Saturday announced that the death toll in the country has increased to 259, with 11,791 infected cases in 31 provincial-level regions.

Earlier, a double-decker jumbo 747 with 15 cabin crew and five cockpit crew ferried back 324 Indian nationals. After the Air India evacuated Indians from Wuhan, the national carrier said another flight will depart to Wuhan on Saturday.

India has set up a coronavirus quarantine facility at Haryana`s Manesar, with the help of the Army, for around 300 students arriving from China`s Wuhan.

Another quarantine facility for approximately 600 Indian families arriving from Wuhan has been swiftly created by the Indo-Tibetan Border Police (ITBP) near its Chhawla camp here.

Responding to an emergency requirement to create and manage a facility to quarantine the returning Indians, the Indian Army has swiftly set up the camp.
No cases of the coronavirus virus have been reported in Napa County, but the countys health officer says health care workers are preparing in case it does.

As of Jan. 31, seven cases are confirmed in the United States across four statesArizona, California, Illinois and Washington. Three of those cases have been identified in California, including a new confirmed case in Santa Clara County. All but one case have traveled from Wuhan, China.

Napa County Public Health officials said they are closely working with California Department of Public Health, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) and Bay Area health officials to monitor the new coronavirus, which originated in Wuhan, Hubei Province, China.

We are monitoring the situation closely and preparing rapidly to protect the health of Napa County residents and limit the spread of this virus, said Dr. Karen Relucio, Napa County Health Officer. We are working with closely with health care partners to review testing and infection control procedures and communicating with community partners and are prepared to take action should someone in our county become infected with this virus.

Coronaviruses are a large group of viruses that are common among animals and humans. In rare cases, animal coronaviruses can be transmitted to humans. This newly discovered coronavirus (2019-nCov) has not been previously detected in animals or humans. The source of 2019-nCov is not yet known. Person-to-person spread of 2019-nCov is currently occurring, the county said in a news release.

While this is considered a serious public health threat, based on current information, the risk to the general public in Napa County is considered low at this time, the county said. However, it is likely there will be more cases reported in the U.S. in the coming days and weeks.

Typically, human coronaviruses cause mild-to-moderate respiratory illness. Symptoms are very similar to the flu, including runny nose, headache, cough, sore throat, fever, and/or shortness of breath. Older adults and people with underlying health conditions may be at increased risk for severe disease. Anyone who has recently traveled from China, or has come in close contact with someone who traveled from China, and develops a fever and lower respiratory symptoms, such as a cough or shortness of breath within 14 days after leaving the area, should first call their health care provider and share travel history and symptoms before visiting the clinic or emergency room. Healthcare providers should call Napa County Public Health immediately.

No additional precautions are recommended at this time beyond the simple daily precautions that everyone should always take, such as:

1. Washing hands with liquid soap and water, and rubbing for at least 20 seconds;

2. Covering your mouth and nose with a tissue or your sleeve (not your hands) when coughing or sneezing; and

3. Staying home if you are sick.

Since flu activity will continue to remain high during this flu season, and symptoms of coronavirus are similar to the flu, Napa County Public Health also recommends getting a flu shot to protect yourself and others from the flu.

For the latest updates, go to the CDC 2019 Novel Coronavirus website at: www.cdc.gov/coronavirus/2019-ncov/index.html
AG to go ahead with case against Karannagoda and Dassanayake By Sandun Jayawardana View(s): View(s):

The Attorney Generals Department will proceed with the case against former Navy Commander Wasantha Karannagoda and former Navy Spokesman D.K.P. Dassanayake  accused in the abduction of 11 youths  unless there is a court order otherwise.

This is after the AG wrote to the Commission of Inquiry (CoI) inquiring into alleged political victimisation that it had no authority to order him to halt legal proceedings against former Admiral Karannagoda and Rear Admiral Dassanayake.

Earlier, the CoI had ordered the AG not to proceed with the case after the duo lodged complaints with the Commission on January 22 stating that the case was an act of political victimisation.

Both officers are facing charges in relation to the abduction and disappearance of 11 youths between 2008 and 2009. The case will be heard by the Permanent High Court at Bar comprising Justices Champa Janaki Rajaratne, Amal Ranaraja and Navaratne Marasinghe.

State Counsel Nishara Jayaratne, the AGs Coordinating Officer, told the Sunday Times that the AG, in his letter, had made it clear that the CoI had no statutory or legal authority to order the AG to refrain from performing his statutory functions in the case.

Ms. Jayaratne said under the Commissions of Inquiry Act, the CoI had no mandate to dispatch orders to the AG. The Commission can only give a report to the President and make recommendations, she noted.

A Commission official told the Sunday Times on Friday that the Commission had no comment on the matter.

The Commission is looking into political victimisation alleged to have take place from January 8, 2015 to November 16, 2019. It is expected to hand over its final report to President Gotabaya Rajapaksa in six months.

The CoI comprises retired Supreme Court Justice Upali Abeyrathne, retired High Court Judge Daya Chandrasiri Jayathilake and former Inspector General of Police Chandra Fernando.
Former U.S. Ambassador to Ukraine Marie Yovanovitch, who played a key role in the U.S. House hearings on the impeachment of President Donald Trump last November, has retired from the State Department, according to U.S. media reports on January 31.

Yovanovitch was abruptly recalled from Kyiv in May 2019 following an intense campaign to oust her that was coordinated by Trump's personal attorney, Rudy Giuliani. After her recall following a 33-year career in the foreign service, Yovanovitch remained on the State Department payroll while teaching at Washington's Georgetown University.

In November, Yovanovitch testified before the House impeachment inquiry, accusing Giuliani of organizing an "irregular channel" of diplomacy in Ukraine that was aimed, in part, at promoting Trump's domestic political interests.

"Shady interests the world over have learned how little it takes to remove an American ambassador who does not give them what they want," Yovanovitch told the inquiry.

According to a summary released by the White House, Trump told Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy during a telephone conversation on July 25, 2019, that Yovanovitch was "bad news."

"She's going to go through some things," Trump also said.

The State Department announced earlier this month that it was looking into evidence that Yovanovitch may have been under surveillance while she was in Kyiv.

That announcement came days after Lev Parnas, a Ukraine-born U.S. citizen who has been indicted on campaign-finance charges and who was an associate of Giuliani's, released documents relating to his efforts to help Giuliani find incriminating material against former U.S. Vice President Joe Biden and his son, Hunter Biden.

The documents also indicated that Connecticut Republican congressional candidate Robert Hyde disparaged Yovanovitch in messages to Parnas and gave Parnas updates on her location and mobile-phone use.

"We will do everything we need to do to evaluate whether there was something that took place," U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo said during a January 17 radio interview. "I suspect that much of what has been reported will ultimately prove wrong, but our obligation -- my obligation as secretary of state -- is to make sure that we evaluate, investigate. Any time there is someone who posits that there may have been a risk to one of our officers, we'll obviously do that."

On January 16, officials in Ukraine announced they would launch a criminal investigation into the information that Yovanovitch may have been under surveillance.

On January 25, Parnas released an audio recording of an April 2018 meeting between Trump and a group of donors that appears to include Parnas. In the recording, Parnas can be heard telling Trump that Yovanovitch was "basically walking around telling everybody, 'wait, he's going to be impeached.'"

"Get rid of her," Trump responds. "Get her out tomorrow. I don't care. Get her out tomorrow. Take her out."

With reporting by NPR, CNN, and CBS
New Covid curbs in Kerala: Attendance at marriages, funerals capped at 50

New Covid curbs in UP: Government and private employees to work at 50 per cent capacity

Night curfew in Andhra Pradesh: Know timings, guidelines, rules; What is allowed, what is not allowed

46 Covid deaths in 5 days in Delhi, 34 patients had comorbidities, 25 aged above 60: Govt data

Contacts of confirmed cases don't need to get tested unless identified as high risk: Govt

Suspected coronavirus patient at AIIMS Rishikesh tests negative

India

oi-Mousumi Dash

Rishikesh, Feb 01: A woman suspected to be infected with coronavirus admitted to All India Institute of Medical Sciences (AIIMS) Rishikesh, Uttarakhand on Saturday had tested negative for the disease, hospital officials said.

Reportedly, the woman is being treated and is kept under observation in the AIIMS hospital in Rishikesh. She had recently returned to India from the epicentre of coronavirus Wuhan, China.

Today after her blood test results arrived from the National Institute of Virology, Pune she was tested negative.

However, the hospital officials said that the woman will be kept at the isolation ward of the hospital as per precautionary measure for the mandatory 14 days prescribed in such cases.

The woman, pursuing medical studies in Kunming City of China's Yunnan province, came to India on January 22.

And on January 30, she was admitted at the AIIMS, Rishikesh with suspected symptoms of nCoV or coronavirus.

Massive fire breaks out in a building at AIIMS

Fortunately, the test reports of her blood samples that arrived today from the Pune-based National Institute of Virology said she was not suffering from the disease.
Live Results / Start Lists (Flash Results)

(Flash Results) Saturday Live Streaming  2 p.m. (SEC Network +)

Teams Competing: Arkansas (No. 3 women; No. 15 men), Georgia (No. 2 women), LSU (No. 2 men; No. 6 women), Missouri (No. 24 men), Oregon (No. 17 women; No. 17 men), Texas (No. 4 men, No. 4 women).

Venue: Randal Tyson Indoor Track Center (University of Arkansas)

FAYETTEVILLE, Ark.  The Gators kicked off the two-day Razorback Invitational Friday by posting four marks and times that rank in the top 5 of the Division I Indoor Qualifying list, and two more that remain within the top 10.Juniorsandopened up the competition for the Gators by posting the No. 5- and No. 7-ranked pentathlon scores in Division I, respectively. Froeynes finished with a 4,062-point score, while Stephens logged a score of 4,003 points. Stephens' score also moved her from the No. 5 into the No. 4 spot in UF's All-Time Top 10 list.The women's DMR quartet, headlined by sophomoresand, alongside juniorand redshirt senior, logged the third-fastest time in the country and No. 3-ranked in school history. The time of 11:04.00 moved the group into UF's No. 3 spot by just 0.53 seconds.Meanwhile on the men's side of the DMR, the team formed by senior, junior, freshmanand redshirt junior, moved into the No. 6 spot of the indoor national list with a time of 9:44.97.Senior jumperalso posted top-5 marks Friday evening. The Jamaica native finished the first day of competition tied for the No. 3 spot in Division I, while also tying his personal record of 2.25 meters (7 feet, 4.5 inches) in the high jump. His mark remains the fifth-best clearance in school history.Freshman, who entered the competition already owning the fourth-fastest time in the nation, maintained his spot in the top 5 after crossing in 20.79 seconds in the 200 meters. The Dallas native topped his season-best time by 0.2 seconds.Throwerset a new personal record Friday evening for the second week in a row. The senior, who logged at 20.06-meter (65 feet, 9 inches) mark at Virginia Tech's Hokie Invitational last week for a personal best, topped that mark with at 20.09-meter (65 feet, 11 inches) throw in Arkansas. Wiggan missed a spot in the program's All-Time Top 10 list by just 0.07 meters.Competition at the Razorback Invitational resumes Saturday afternoon, with a live television broadcast starting at 2 p.m. on SEC Network.SOCIAL: Twitter JOIN THE CONVERSATION: #GoGators; #WeBelieve; #LessSaid; #TheMissionContinues
Category Select Category Apparel/Garments Textiles Fashion Technical Textiles Information Technology E-commerce Retail Corporate Association Press Release

SubCategory Select Sub-Category
Photo: Mario Tama/Getty Images

Senate Republicans had the chance to get evidence that, for various reasons, was not available to the House when it impeached the president. Neither John Bolton nor Lev Parnas had yet offered to testify, and now they are. The Senate has more certain and rapid legal avenues to compel documents and witnesses that Trump withheld from the House. But nearly every Senate Republican decided they do not want to see that evidence. Why?

If you ask Republicans themselves, the reasons they offer are so riddled with internal contradictions as to insult our intelligence. Here is Senator Lisa Murkowski:

The House chose to send articles of impeachment that are rushed and flawed. I carefully considered the need for additional witnesses and documents, to cure the shortcomings of its process, but ultimately decided that I will vote against considering motions to subpoena.

According to Murkowski, the criteria for a good process is carefully considered, thorough, and bipartisan. If she supported witnesses, it would make the process more thorough and less partisan. Instead she is opposing such a measure, thereby compounding the very flaws she identifies.

Likewise, Senator Lamar Alexander insists the case Trump abused his power has already been proven to such a degree there is no need for more evidence, but also decries the evidence provided as shallow, hurried and wholly partisan. Which is to say, the House convicted Trump because  as Alexander concedes  it had enough evidence to prove its case. But since Republicans denied the obvious conclusion, this rendered the case partisan. And since they now complain it is rushed, Alexander votes to rush it even faster.

Former presidential candidate and Trump bullying survivor Marco Rubio promised in 2016 that his role would be to hold Trump accounable if he won the presidency. Rubios conception of this role has since evolved. He now argues against convicting Trump on the circular grounds that voting guilty would not just be a condemnation of his action. If I vote guilty, I will be voting to remove a President from office for the first time in the 243-year history of our Republic. The Founders, he explains, decided to require the support of two thirds of the Senate to remove a President  we serve as a guardrail against partisan impeachment and against removal of a President without broad public support.

In reality, Rubio voting guilty would not remove Trump, because Rubios vote would still leave the chamber far short of a two-thirds supermajority. If enough senators did join him to remove Trump, then it would not longer be a partisan impeachment. His argument against conviction is a pure logical paradox.

Rubio further argues that he doesnt need any evidence because, while he opposes the actions in question, the crime itself does not merit removal. Rubio does not even go as far as Alexander in conceding the case has been proven. He frames his argument entirely in the hypothetical, characteristically protecting both his flanks so that he can one day argue either that he believed Trump to have been guilty or innocent, depending on which position ultimately proves more convenient to his advancement.

Viewed in this light, more evidence is not merely unnecessary to Rubio, but downright harmful. The more he knows, the harder it is to maintain his pose of studied neutrality.

In a new interview with the New York Times, Alexander, perhaps looking to salvage his reputation, ruminates more deeply on his very public-spirited reasons to block all new evidence from the trial.  It would just pour gasoline on cultural fires that are burning out there. This is worth a moments reflection. No figure in American history since perhaps Joe McCarthy has done more to inflame political culture than Trump, who has obliterated all known political norms with his endless lies, invective, and refusal to cede any legitimacy to his critics. Alexander believes his duty is to protect the culture, by shielding Trump not only from removal, but even from the discovery of more evidence of his guilt. Even to expose Trumps lies  before acquitting him  is too inflammatory for Alexanders delicate sensibility.

One might wonder what Alexander is afraid will happen if he were to extend the trial a week or two, and discover more evidence of Trumps guilt? Is it the culture he fears will be burned? Or himself?
Congratulations, europaminis.com got a very good Social Media Impact Score! Show it by adding this HTML code on your site:

Europaminis.com scored 70 Social Media Impact. Social Media Impact score is a measure of how much a site is popular on social networks. 3.5/5.0 Stars by Social Team

This CoolSocial report was updated on 4 Aug 2013, you can refresh this analysis whenever you want.

europaminis.com is very popular in Facebook. Furthermore its facebook page has 995 likes.

Add a widget like this on your site: click here

The total number of people who shared the europaminis homepage on StumbleUpon. The total number of people who shared the europaminis homepage on Google Plus by a google +1 button. This is the sum of two values: the total number of people who shared the europaminis homepage on Twitter + the total number of europaminis followers (if europaminis has a Twitter account). This is the sum of two values: the total number of people who shared, liked or recommended the europaminis homepage on Facebook + the total number of page likes (if europaminis has a Facebook fan page). The total number of people who shared the europaminis homepage on Delicious.

Basic Information

PAGE TITLE Homes - Europa Minis DESCRIPTION Carrinhos em Miniatura em diversas escalas direto da Alemanha KEYWORDS Carrinhos em miniatura, Carrinhos 1:43, Miniaturas 1:43, IXO, Loja Revell, Revell Alemanha, LOja carros em Miniatura, Carros em miniatura, comprar carros em minatura, veiculos miniatura, miniaturas de carros, miniatura carros, carros colecionaveis, Revell OTHER KEYWORDS escala, fabricante, 43 fabricante, exibir, 00 add to cart, 00 add to, add to cart



The title found in the head section of the homepage. CoolSocial advanced keyword analysis tool is able to detect and analyze every keyword on each page of a site. The keywords meta-tag found in the head section of the homepage. The URL (Uniform Resource Locator) is the address of the site. The description meta-tag found in the head section of the homepage.

Domain and Server

DOCTYPE XHTML 1.1 CHARSET AND LANGUAGE UTF-8 DETECTED LANGUAGE English English SERVER Apache/2.2.24 (Unix) mod_ssl/2.2.24 OpenSSL/1.0.0-fips mod_auth_passthrough/2.1 mod_bwlimited/1.4 FrontPage/5.0.2.2635 mod_fcgid/2.3.6 Phusion_Passenger/3.0.18 (PHP/5.3.23) OPERATIVE SYSTEM Linux Linux

Character set and language of the site. The language of europaminis.com as detected by CoolSocial algorithms. Operative System running on the server. Represents HTML declared type (e.g.: XHTML 1.1, HTML 4.0, the new HTML 5.0) Type of server and offered services.

Site Traffic trend during the last year. Only available for sites ranked <= 100000 in the world.

Referring domains for europaminis.com by MajesticSeo. High values are a sign of site importance over the web and on web engines.

Facebook link

FACEBOOK PAGE LINK FOUND FACEBOOK PAGE www.facebook.com/pages/Europaminis/505486532849785 DESCRIPTION Carrinhos em miniatura em diversas escalas direto da Europa. LIKES 995 PEOPLE TALKING ABOUT 24 PAGE TYPE Company TIMELINE PAGE TIMELINE

The URL of the found Facebook page. Facebook Timeline is the new layout of Facebook pages. The type of Facebook page. A Facebook page link can be found in the homepage or in the robots.txt file. The total number of people who like website Facebook page. The total number of people who tagged or talked about website Facebook page in the last 7-10 days. The description of the Facebook page describes website and its services to the social media users.

Twitter account link

TWITTER PAGE LINK NOT FOUND
Passengers wearing masks as a precautionary measure against the coronavirus arrive at the Chennai International Airport on Friday, Jan. 31, 2020. (PTI Photo)

CHENNAI: Over 500 people who had arrived here from coronavirus-hit Asian nations are under observation in Tamil Nadu but there have been no positive cases. These people under observation include 58 Chinese nationals.

The state government has issued an advisory asking people to follow preventive measures. One of them is to avoid travelling to coronavirus-affected China.

The states health secretary Beela Rajesh said there has so far been no need to even draw samples from any of the people being screened. None of them has shown any symptoms.

Should the need arise, King Institute of Preventive Medicine and Research in Chennai would start testing samples after obtaining clearance from the National Institute of Virology in Pune, she said.

Two isolation wards have been set up, one at the Government Rajiv Gandhi General Hospital in Chennai and another at a government hospital in suburban Tambaram.

Rajesh said good personal hygiene, such as washing ones hands periodically everyday and cooking non-vegetarian food well would arrest the contagion.

Airports in the state are stocking hand sanitizers and taking other sterilisation measures.

Protective equipment including body suits for medical professionals have been requisitioned.
Actor Amy Jackson celebrated her 28th birthday on a family vacation in Seychelles on Friday. The 2.0 actor had welcomed her son Andreas last year and shared pictures of her intimate African vacation on Instagram.

Amy shared a stunning monochrome picture of herself bathing in the rain while overlooking the vast expanse of the picturesque island along with a note. She is seen in a bikini and standing on the boundary of an infinity pool overlooking the city. Reflecting on life on her birthday, she wrote, Just to simply wake up and see my son lying next to me is a blessing. To be able to walk outside on my own two legs and hear the waves with my own two ears is a blessing. To have the chance to speak to my best friends and family so I can tell them I love them is a blessing.

Talking about how her plans have gone for a toss due to the sudden rainfall, she further wrote, If you opened your eyes today and took another breath - youre winning!! With everything thats happening across the world right now... just to LIVE another day is truly a gift!! Im going into my 28th year on this planet with a whole new perspective and a heart filled with gratitude anddddd Im gonna start with this little rain dance!! Yes its p*ssing down on my birthday and theres not an ounce of sun to be seen BUT on the plus side, the plants are happy.

Giving an insight into how she ringed in her birthday with her son, she shared two pictures of herself in a red swimsuit, leaning on a coconut tree trunk. She plays with the son who is seen twinning with his mom in matching red shorts, in one picture.Another was a solo shot. She captioned it in humour, real life VS insta life (and no, I didnt just chuck AP into the sea. A day later, she also shared a picture of the waves and captioned it, As endless as the ocean, as timeless as the tides...

Also read: Priyanka Chopras mom Madhu is glad the Grammys dress controversy happened: I feel it made her stronger, trolls dont have joy in their lives

She had earlier shared an adorable picture of the little one from the vacation and wrote in caption, Mum, get the Pina Coladas in will ya #VacayMode.

Amy is engaged to George Panayiotou and the two welcomed their first child in September last year. She has been stationed with him in Europe after her last appearance in Rajinikanth starrer 2.0.

Follow @htshowbiz for more

SHARE THIS ARTICLE ON
Documentary filmmaker Michael Moore blasted the Democratic National Committee  and floated that he thought the decision was racist  for changing the rules for 2020 candidates to get on the Democratic debate stage.

The DNC plans to do away with the donor threshold after the February New Hampshire debate, allowing candidates to participate if they are doing well enough in the polls or are earning convention delegates. This paves the way for former New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg to get onstage.

The fact that the DNC will not allow Cory Booker on that stage, not let Julian Castro on the stage, but will let Mike Bloomberg on that stage,' Moore screamed to a crowd of thousands of Bernie Sanders supporters at a concert event in Clive, Iowa Friday night. 'Because he has a billion f***ing dollars.'

Michael Moore tore into the Democratic National Committee Friday night in Des Moines for a debate rule change that paves the way for billionaire candidate Michael Bloomberg to make the stage - after not budging for months when candidates of color were getting squeezed off

Documentary filmmaker and Bernie Sanders surrogate Michael Moore suggested that the DNC was racist because the party refused to change the debate rules in order to keep a more diverse field of candidates onstage

The news rules will open the door for former New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg to participate in the debates because the number of donors a candidate has will not longer matter. Bloomberg has been self-funding his presidential campaign

Sen. Bernie Sanders was still stuck in Washington Friday night as his event with Michael Moore and Bon Iver kicked off. He later called into the Clive, Iowa venue and gave a part of his stump speech to supporters

The DNC refused to budge on donor and polling requirements for the 2019 debates, which eventually squeezed both Sen. Cory Booker (left) and former HUD Director Julian Castro (right) off the stage. Both candidates have since dropped out of the 2020 presidential race

The DNC has received criticism for the optics, though the top-polling candidates of the race: former Vice President Joe Biden, Sen. Bernie Sanders, Sen. Elizabeth Warren and former South Bend Mayor Pete Buttigieg are all white.

Without achieving early success, Booker, who is black, and Castro, who is Hispanic, dropped out.

Andrew Yang, who is Asian-American, missed the last debate, but is expected to be on the debate stage in New Hampshire next month.

Bloomberg got a late start, entering the field in late November.

To make up for it, hes plowed hundreds of millions into advertising  and decided to skip the early contest states, instead keeping an eye on places that vote on Super Tuesday, March 3.

Unlike billionaire Tom Steyer, who asked supporters to chip in just $1 so he could participate in the debates  which he as  Bloomberg is self-funding his entire campaign, and thus would never have made the stage without the rule change.

Moore, one of a number of surrogates speaking on behalf of Sanders at a concert headlined by the band Bon Iver, went after both the DNC and Bloomberg.

We already have enough to fight with Donald Trump and these enabling Republicans, he griped, name-dropping a number of other perceived enemies to the Sanders movement including the banks and corporate America.

He called the rule change this Hail Mary pass of theirs to stop Sanders momentum.

The Vermont senator has topped a number of Iowa polls and is 3.6 points ahead in the state, according to the Real Clear Politics polling average.

Rep. Ilhan Omar was one of Bernie Sanders' surrogates who spoke in his stead Friday night in Clive, Iowa, just outside of Des Moines. Sanders couldn't make it out of Washington in time for the event with Bon Iver

Rep. Ilhan Omar (left) brought her boyfriend Tim Mynett (second from left) along with her to Des Moines, Iowa. Both Omar and Mynett got divorces from their respective spouses in the past few months

Bon Iver was the headliner for the Bernie Sanders campaign event Friday night in Iowa, a concert the Vermont senator had to miss thanks to President Trump's impeachment trial

As for Bloomberg, Moore deployed the R-word, calling him The Republican mayor of New York City.'

Sanders remains stuck in Washington due to the impeachment trial of President Trump.

Moore joked that he came to Iowa 'because Bernie told me he has jury duty.'

Sanders did please his supporters by calling in and delivering a bit of his stump speech to the crowd.

A number of surrogates also spoke at the event including Rep. Ilhan Omar, who was spotted at a Sanders campaign canvassing event with her now-divorced boyfriend earlier Friday. Also Reps. Rashida Tlaib and Pramila Jayapal.

Tlaib, who famously dropped the F-bomb the night she was sworn into Congress in regards to impeaching Trump, played troublemaker Friday night too.

When Hillary Clinton's comments about Sanders were brought up, moderator Dionna Langford told the audience they should be polite and not boo.

Tlaib encouraged them to do the opposite.
State District Judge Jeff Perilloux hasnt heard a case in 21 months.

But that hasnt stopped the suspended judge in St. John the Baptist Parish from collecting his taxpayer-paid salary while he awaits trial on charges of sexual misconduct involving three of his daughters teenage friends.

Records from the state Supreme Court show that Perilloux, 52, has been paid over $256,000 since he began a leave of absence on May 16, 2018. The high court formally suspended Perilloux the next month, following his indictment on three felony counts of indecent behavior with a juvenile and a misdemeanor sexual battery charge.

Under state law, the Supreme Court can allow judges to continue being paid while they are suspended. And that's to be expected in a case like Perilloux's, according to Rafael Goyeneche of the Metropolitan Crime Commission, a watchdog agency based in New Orleans.

This is pretty much the norm, said Goyeneche, who noted that Perilloux will also continue to accrue credit in the judiciary pension program during his suspension.

Efforts to reach Perilloux's attorney were not successful.

In addition to paying Perilloux, taxpayers have also had to cover the salaries of the judges called in to handle his Division B docket in St. John's 40th Judicial District Court.

Factoring in salary and expense reimbursements, payments for those judges had cost taxpayers over $140,000 as of the end of 2019, state Supreme Court records show.

That money went to several ad hoc judges who have had to step in to carry some of Perillouxs caseload. State taxpayers cover the costs for all judges' salaries.

Perilloux's trial in St. John Parish was initially scheduled for March 11, 2019, but has been delayed four times, the most recent in January. It is now set to begin March 30.

Top stories in New Orleans in your inbox Twice daily we'll send you the day's biggest headlines. Sign up today. e-mail address * Sign Up

The charges against Perilloux stem from alleged encounters at his LaPlace home in 2017. Prosecutors say that in May and June of that year, he touched the breasts of two girls  then aged 14 and 15  and also intentionally touched the breasts of a third girl in December 2017.

The judge pleaded not guilty to the charges at a July 2018 arraignment; he has been free since he posted a $35,000 bond.

Retired Orleans Parish Criminal District Court Judge Dennis Waldron is overseeing the case against Perilloux.

Hes entitled to due process like everyone else, Goyeneche said. He was elected by the public, and hes going to be paid until hes no longer a judge, and that will not be determined until his criminal case is completed.

Even if Perilloux is found not guilty, he would still face an investigation and potential disciplinary action from the Louisiana Judiciary Commission, Goyeneche said, though he added that those proceedings often drag on for a long time and are shrouded in secrecy.

Until there is a conviction or some action taken by the Judiciary Commission, Goyeneche said he can't think of a situation where a judge wouldnt be entitled to paychecks.

Perillouxs term expires at the end of this year.
Ned Gerard / Hearst Connecticut Media

BRIDGEPORT  The citys ShotSpotter system picked up gunfire on Seaview Avenue Friday night and police are canvassing the area and searching for a possible victim.

Police said the ShotSpotter activation came through around 7:27 p.m. Initial dispatch reports indicate that the activation was in the 1000 block of Seaview Avenue.
Education Dept. official says Second Chance Pell in prisons is Illegal but worth fighting for

Email Print Img No-img Menu Whatsapp Google Reddit Digg Stumbleupon Linkedin Comment

WASHINGTON  The Department of Education is looking to expand its experimental Second Chance Pell initiative to bring college programs to more prisons nationwide but is butting heads with the White House Office of Management and Budget over funding, an official said Thursday.

Dianne Auer Jones, the principal deputy undersecretary of education, spoke on the state of higher education before dozens of college presidents and administrators at the Council for Christian Colleges & Universities annual presidents conference at the Westin City Center.

Jones updated the gathering on the status of the second cohort of the Second Chance Pell Experimental Site Initiative. Since its launch it 2016, the initiative has helped bring college programs to as many as 12,000 incarcerated individuals nationwide.

With 180 member schools across the globe, CCCU has 13 institutions that have participated in the Second Chance Pell Experimental Sites Initiative since it was launched by the Obama administration.

Second Chance Pell is an experiment that we think is incredibly important, Jones said. It is probably also illegal.

But the prior administration started it and we have a lot more flexibility, she continued. One of the things we are not allowed to do with experimental sites is changing eligibility requirements. So technically, it is not a legal experiment. But Congress likes it and the last administration started it and we said, What the heck, well join the club."

The Second Chance Pell initiative essentially uses the authority of the Experimental Sites Initiative of the Higher Education Act to circumvent a 1994 law passed by Congress banning those in prison from receiving Pell Grants.

Over 60 colleges and institutions participated in the first cohort of Second Chance Pell. Last year, the department announced that it would allow new cohorts of colleges and universities to apply for the initiative.

Jones told the administrators that the department will soon release the names of schools selected to participate in the second cohort of the experimental site initiative. She said that the agency has received over 130 applications so far.

Our biggest obstacle there is we have to get a budget number from the Office of Management and Budget, Jones explained. There is a cost associated with the new cohort of Second Chance Pell because it allows additional students to participate and get a Pell Grant. There is a cost associated.

But Jones stressed that even though President Trump and senior administration officials believe Second Chance Pell is a really important program, there are some folks at OMB that are making it clear that they dont allow us to use budget.

So we are having that fight, Jones said. Ill just share that with you and you can do with it what you will. But we want people to understand that we are ready to go and we want a large cohort to enter the experiment. But OMB is the one that will determine how many institutions we can allow to participate.

There is a push by the CCCU and criminal justice reform groups like Prison Fellowship that are advocating for legislation or a provision to be passed in Congress that would reopen Pell Grants for prisoners.

We do think the eligibility requirement should be changed, Jones said.

Advocates for Second Chance Pell contend that increasing access to education in prison will help reduce recidivism.

The Education Department will soon release its report on the first cohort of Second Chance Pell. Jones stressed that it's too early to know whether the Second Chance Pell initiative is leading to a reduction in recidivism.

I would not call it a scientifically robust report, Jones admitted. We just dont have enough data that will allow us to put out a report that says that This is what we know as a result of the experiment. We dont know enough yet.

Jones said that the report will largely show anecdotal information about the challenges of running college programs in prison.

We learned that sometimes prisons are going to update their computer networks [but then] they shut them down. So for a year there are no computers on-site, Jones detailed. What do you do about that?

Another struggle the department noticed, she said, is difficulty in keeping tabs on students as they get transferred between prisons or released.

We learned that all those schools in the experiment have to provide the outcomes of those students. If they are moved to a different correctional facility, you dont know what happens to them, Jones explained. As they graduate, they may not know what happens to them and you certainly dont have access to information about recidivism.

The Education Department is working to figure out how to best support its partners so that the department can obtain those data sets without being a burden on institutions, Jones said.

I would not say that we have conclusive data, she relayed. And we certainly havent had the experiment going long enough to know if it has had an impact on recidivism. We think it will but we just cant say that yet.

Representatives from over 85 institutions in 31 states and nine countries attended the 2020 CCCU Presidents Conference.

If you think about what kind of person you want to have come out of prison, you want a person equipped because that is good for everybody  good for the prisoners, good for the caretakers and good for us, CCCU President Shirley Hoogstra told The Christian Post.

Although some were concerned that Second Chance Pell could be abused by institutions, Hoogstra assured that the initiative has not been abused.

In fact, incarcerated persons are getting educated and having some increased success, Hoogstra said.
The Delhi BJP chief Manoj Tiwari has claimed that the youth who fired at students of Jamia Millia Islamia university on Thursday is 'an AAP supporter or from Shaheen Bagh', NDTV reported.

The Delhi BJP chief Manoj Tiwari has claimed that the youth who fired at students of Jamia Millia Islamia university on Thursday during an anti-Citizenship Amendment Act (CAA) protest is "an AAP supporter or from Shaheen Bagh", NDTV reported.

Tiwari, without offering any evidence to substantiate his claim, told NDTV, "I have a feeling that the shooter was either a supporter of the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) or was from Shaheen Bagh itself. These people are not being able to sustain their own protest. That is why, now, they're coming up with these claims."

Tiwari, asked about the gunman's profile and Facebook posts, told NDTV, "Anyone can claim to be associated with the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP). I am pretty confident he was one among the anti- Citizenship (Amendment) Act protesters."

The youth, who was sent to 14-day protective custody by a Delhi court on Friday, is a resident of Jewar in Greater Noida, Delhi Police sources told News18 Delhi. His father runs a pan shop, sources added.

Before the shooting, the youth put up a post on Facebook saying he intended intended to avenge the death of Chandan Gupta, who was killed during the Kasganj violence that took place in January 2018. The shooter also put up other livestream videos recently showing him walking around the Jamia neighbourhood, where people have been protesting against the Citizenship Amendment Act.

Other posts on his Facebook profile  which the company later deleted  also show that he was hinting at carrying out such violence for quite some time. One of his posts reads, "On my last journey, take me draped in saffron and shout slogans of Jai Shri Ram." Yet another of his posts said, "Shaheen Bagh...Game over!" He further wrote on his Facebook profile on Thursday, "I am the only Hindu here", "There is no Hindu media here" and "Ye lo azadi" (Here's your 'freedom'.) He also made an appeal to people to take care of his family.

Tiwari, who is part of the 15-member BJP committee for the Delhi Assembly polls, has been in the headlines lately.

Earlier in January, the Delhi BJP complained to the Election Commission and sent a defamation notice to AAP seeking Rs 500 crore in damages after it tweeted a video that showed Manoj Tiwari dancing to the tune of Aam Aadmi Party's campaign song for the forthcoming Assembly polls.

In August, Tiwari caused controversy by saying claiming the National Register of Citizens (NRC) is needed in Delhi as illegal immigrants who have settled here are dangerous and there is a need to "look into" the situation.

"National Register of Citizens (NRC) is needed in Delhi as the situation is becoming dangerous. Illegal immigrants who have settled in Delhi are the most dangerous, we will implement NRC here as well," Tiwari said. When asked at the time if BJP will include it in its manifesto, the BJP MP said, "Why not? It will be in our manifesto. Delhi needs it." "NRC will help in eliminating terrorism and prevent crime from illegal immigrants," he added.

With inputs from PTI
As part of the Stars Toronto 2030 project, we asked some leaders of Toronto to tell us what we need to do to ensure we have a livable city in 2030.

Watch the video above to see a selection of their responses. Below, youll find more ideas they shared with the Star.

John Tory, Mayor of Toronto

Why are we building public transit? Its not a line on a map, its to connect people to opportunity. Were building affordable housing not just because we need to, but because it will give people from all income groups a place to call home in Toronto. The challenge for us over the next 10 years is to close that gap so that people have equitable access to the boom town that is Toronto.

Alison Gordon, CEO of 48North Cannabis Corp.

Theres still a lot of stigma around cannabis and what Id like to see in the next decade is that we democratize cannabis and break down the stigma so that Toronto can be a city for everybody.

Heather Tremain, CEO of Options for Homes

The greatest issue that Toronto faces in the next 10 years is inclusivity. I think the critical thing is that it be a great city for everybody. And that is about ensuring that we have housing thats for everybody, diverse across the tenures of housing, in different locations in the city, across the needs, so that we are making sure that theres a home for everybody.

Yung Wu, CEO of MaRS Discovery District

If you had asked me 10 years ago, in 2010, I would have said Well, imagine if we could build a city that was a destination for the best talent in the world. And that talent starts to attract the entrepreneurial energy to create new things. What happens if that new business starts to attract foreign direct investment. Were seeing that now. So, I think over the next 10 years we have to play to win. We have a key opportunity on our hands, but we have to convert Toronto the good, into Toronto the best.

Daniele Zanotti, president and CEO of United Way

United Way research indicates that the Greater Toronto Area is the income inequality capital of Canada. Increasingly, your postal code, race, background and circumstances determine your success. The GTA of 2030 will have opportunities for everyone; places where people could go to volunteer, community and health services close to home, good jobs from retail to AI and affordable housing to meet all our needs for everyone to get a chance at a better life.

Jean Paul (JP) Gladu, president and CEO of the Canadian Council for Aboriginal Business

I think theres a tremendous opportunity here in this wonderful city of Toronto to be more reflective of the Indigenous population  its cultures, its history, its food, its business  by ensuring that there is a space for Indigenous people to grow from. Just as Chinatown has grown organically, I think the City of Toronto can really act as a catalyst to ensure that Indigenous population is represented through the landscape.

Sal Sabila, founder of Youth Gravity

Being an immigrant and a young woman of colour, I cannot remember the last time I had an open conversation about mental health in my community. By 2030, I want Toronto to have equitable and accessible mental health services for refugees, newcomers, and immigrant communities. Mental health is not a westernized issue, its a human issue.

Stephen Diamond, chair of Waterfront Toronto

Theres going to be greater issues that were facing in the future. Issues of infrastructure and affordable housing. In order to resolve these issues, the public and the private sector have to work toward a greater degree of responsibility and accountability. From the private sector, we need a greater degree of corporate responsibility and from the public sector, we need more innovative solutions.

Phil Verster, president and CEO of Metrolinx

Today, around 10 per cent of the people in our region live within 500 metres of a bus stop or a train station or a subway station. In the next decade, our investments will increase that percentage to 25 per cent  one in four. That will mean that people who travel on LRTs and subways will double, and the number of people who travel on GO in the region will triple.

Read more about:
An Indian army soldier hands out face masks to colleagues, as Indians who arrived from Wuhan are taken to a quarantine facility, at the airport in New Delhi (Dinesh Joshi/AP)

The death toll in China from coronavirus rose to 259 on Saturday and a World Health Organisation (WHO) official said other governments need to prepare for domestic outbreak control if the disease spreads in their countries.

Beijing criticised Washingtons order barring entry to the US to most foreigners who visited China in the past two weeks.

Australian Prime Minister Scott Morrison announced similar measures on Saturday, following Japan and Singapore.

Meanwhile, South Korea and India flew hundreds of their citizens out of Wuhan, the city at the centre of an area where some 50 million people are prevented from leaving in a sweeping anti-virus effort. The evacuees went into a two-week quarantine. Indonesia also sent a plane.

The number of confirmed cases in China rose to 11,791, surpassing the number in the 2002-03 outbreak of Sars (Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome).

The viruss rapid spread in two months prompted the WHO to declare it a global emergency on Thursday.

That declaration flipped the switch from a cautious attitude earlier to recommending governments prepare for the possibility the virus might spread, said the WHO representative in Beijing, Gauden Galea. Most cases reported so far have been people who visited China or their family members.

The agency acted out of concern for poorer countries that might not be equipped to respond, said Mr Galea. Such a declaration calls for a co-ordinated international response and can bring more money and resources.

The WHO said it was especially concerned that some cases abroad involved human-to-human transmission.

Countries need to get ready for possible importation in order to identify cases as early as possible and in order to be ready for a domestic outbreak control, if that happens, Mr Galea told the Associated Press.

On Friday, the United States declared a public health emergency and President Donald Trump signed an order barring entry to foreign nationals, other than immediate family of American citizens and permanent residents, who visited China within the last 14 days, which scientists say is the viruss longest incubation period.

China criticised the US controls, which it said contradicted the WHOs appeal to avoid travel bans, and unfriendly comments that Beijing was failing to co-operate.

Just as the WHO recommended against travel restrictions, the US rushed to go in the opposite way. Certainly not a gesture of goodwill, said foreign ministry spokeswoman Hua Chunying.

Q: Is it safe to receive a letter or a package from China?

A: Yes, it is safe. People receiving packages from China are not at risk of contracting #2019nCoV.

From previous analysis, we know coronaviruses do not survive long on objects, such as letters or packages.#KnowTheFacts pic.twitter.com/RBBqjkd5JQ  World Health Organization (WHO) (@WHO) February 1, 2020

WHO Secretary-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus said in Geneva that, despite the emergency declaration, there is no reason for measures that unnecessarily interfere with international travel and trade.

Meanwhile, the ruling Communist Party postponed the end of the Lunar New Year holiday in Hubei province, where Wuhan is located, for an unspecified appropriate extent and appealed to the public there to stay at home.

On Saturday, Huanggang, another locked-down city in Hubei, banned almost all of its residents from leaving their homes in the most stringent controls imposed yet. The government said only one person from each household would be allowed out to shop for food once every two days.

Others are not allowed to go out except for medical treatment, to do epidemic prevention and control work or to work in supermarkets and pharmacies, it said.

Chinas increasingly drastic anti-disease controls started with the January 23 suspension of plane, bus and train links to Wuhan, an industrial city with a population of 11 million. The lockdown has spread to surrounding cities.

Expand Close A woman wears a face mask as she shops at a grocery store in Beijing (Mark Schiefelbein/AP) AP/PA Images / Facebook

Twitter

Email

Whatsapp A woman wears a face mask as she shops at a grocery store in Beijing (Mark Schiefelbein/AP)

The holiday, Chinas busiest annual travel season, ends on Sunday in the rest of the country following a three-day extension to postpone the return to factories and offices by hundreds of millions of workers. The official Xinhua News Agency said people in Hubei who work outside the province also were given an extended holiday.

The party decision highlighted the importance of prevention and control of the epidemic among travelers, Xinhua said.

Americans returning from China will be allowed into the US, but will face screening and are required to undertake 14 days of self-screening. Those returning from Hubei province will be subject to a 14-day quarantine.

From Sunday, the US will direct flights from China to seven major airports where passengers can be screened.

On Friday, Delta Air Lines and American Airlines suspended all flights between the US and China. Other carriers including British Airways, Finnair and Hong Kongs Cathay Pacific also have cancelled or cut back services to mainland China.

The US order followed a travel advisory for Americans to consider leaving China. Japan and Germany also advised against non-essential travel to China as did Britain, except for Hong Kong and Macao.

A plane carrying Indians from Wuhan landed in New Delhi on Saturday. The government said they would be quarantined in a nearby city, Manesar. Sri Lanka also pulled out more of its citizens and promised to bring out the remaining 204 students.

South Koreas second evacuation flight landed in Seoul with 330 people from Wuhan. They were to be screened for fever before being taken to two quarantine centres.

South Korea also reported its 12th virus case, which appeared to be a human-to-human transmission.

Expand Close Sri Lankan air force officers, in protective gear, engage in disinfection procedures after a charted aircraft carrying Sri Lankan students evacuated from Wuhan province in China landed at the Mahinda Rajapaksa International Airport in Mattala (Dilip Nuwan Jayasekera/AP) AP/PA Images / Facebook

Twitter

Email

Whatsapp Sri Lankan air force officers, in protective gear, engage in disinfection procedures after a charted aircraft carrying Sri Lankan students evacuated from Wuhan province in China landed at the Mahinda Rajapaksa International Airport in Mattala (Dilip Nuwan Jayasekera/AP)

At least 23 countries have reported cases since China informed the WHO about the new virus in late December.

The death rate in China is falling but the number of confirmed cases will keep growing because there are thousands of specimens from suspected cases yet to be tested, the WHOSs Mr Galea said.

The case fatality ratio is settling out at a much lower level than we were reporting three, now four, weeks ago, he said.

Both the new virus and Sars are from the coronavirus family, which also includes those which cause the common cold. Experts say there is evidence that the new virus is spreading among people in China.

Although scientists expect to see limited transmission of the virus between people with family or other close contact, they are concerned about cases of infection spreading to people who might have less exposure.

In Japan, a tour guide and bus driver became infected after escorting two tour groups from Wuhan.

In Germany, five employees of a German car parts supplier became ill after a Chinese colleague visited, including two who had no direct contact with the woman. She showed no symptoms until her flight back to China.

On Saturday, Japan reported its 17th case, a woman in her 20s who also worked as a guide for Wuhan tourists on the same bus as the two other cases.

Vietnam confirmed one more case for a total of six, and Australia counted its ninth infection.

On Friday, Germany confirmed a sixth case, a child of one of the people already infected.

In the US, health officials issued a two-week quarantine order for the 195 Americans evacuated this week from Wuhan.

It was the first time a federal quarantine has been ordered since the 1960s, when one was enacted over concern about smallpox, the Centres for Disease Control and Prevention said.

None of the Americans being housed at a Southern California military base have shown signs of illness, but infected people do not show symptoms immediately and may be able to pass on the virus before they appear sick.
At midnight on Friday -- 1,317 days after British voters decided to leave the European Union -- Brexit finally came about. So what changed? So far, not much. Daily business between the United Kingdom and the EU will continue as before during an 11-month transition until the end of the year. This will allow London and Brussels to negotiate new arrangements to guide future relations, but in the meantime there are some practical changes. - No turning back - The United Kingdom has left the EU and the union has lost one of its largest and richest states, the first ever to quit the project. The EU has therefore lost 66 million inhabitants -- leaving it with a population of around 446 million -- along with 5.5 percent of its land mass. If Britain ever does decide it wants back in, then this will be a matter for EU accession procedures as for any outside applicant. - The institutions - In Brussels, the lowering of the Union Jack outside the European Parliament symbolised a concrete change: Britain is out of the union and a "third country". It has no MEPs, the 73 Brits elected in May have left. 46 of the seats will be kept for future EU members and 27 distributed among under-represented countries. Britain no longer has to nominate a top official to the European Commission, although London failed to do so last year and its seat is already vacant. Prime Minister Boris Johnson will no longer be invited to summits of the European Council of leaders, and ministers no longer attend EU council meetings. As non-EU citizens, Brits are not eligible for senior bureaucratic posts in Brussels, but many have already secured dual nationality and residence rights. More junior officials whose careers began before Brexit will stay in post. Britain will, however, continue to pay into the EU budget as the second largest net contributor after Germany until the end of the transition. - Citizens rights - According to the United Nations, around 1.2 million British citizens live in other EU countries, mainly in Spain, Ireland, France, Germany and Italy. And according to the UK stats office, another 2.9 million citizens of other EU countries live in Britain, around 4.6 percent of the population. Under the withdrawal agreement signed by both sides, both sets of expatriates retain the rights they had before Brexit to work and reside in their host country. But Britons in Europe and EU citizens in the UK may have to register with the authorities and individual member states will set up procedures of their own. Free movement will apply until the end of the transition. Afterwards, the withdrawal treaty says EU nationals will be able to stay in the UK if they continue to work. The UK government has said it intends to end "freedom of movement" for future EU arrivals, and precise details of reciprocal rights will be negotiated after Brexit. - The negotiations - Britain has, of course, already spent years negotiating with European Commission official Michel Barnier's Brexit task force on the terms of its departure. But these negotiations changed after Friday, when the "Article 50" procedure in the European Treaty expires and the UK becomes a third country. The UK nevertheless remains subject to EU law and the European Court of Justice until the end of the transition, and in any judgements in cases pending from before the final departure. Barnier is in talks with EU member states to draw up a negotiating mandate for a trade agreement to govern cross-Channel commercial ties after the transition. This will then be hammered out with UK officials in the same way as Europe's free trade agreements with other third countries, such as Canada or Singapore. Barnier will unveil the goals of his draft negotiating parameters on Monday, but EU leaders have already warned that Britain will not enjoy the benefits of membership outside the bloc. burs-dc/rma Red, white and blue lights illuminate 10 Downing Street, the official residence of Britain's Prime Minister, in central London after Britain left the European Union The redistribution of seats in the European Parliament after Brexit by country and by political grouping A band plays as Brexit supporters wave Union flags at a Brexit Celebration party at Woolston Social Club in Warrington, north west England
For every rupee in govt kitty, 64 paise come from taxes, borrowings contribute 20 paise

Explained: The Budget proposal to increase the insurance cover on bank deposits

Explainer: Is Sitharaman's environment allocation in budget 2020 green enough?

Sorry for the long budget speech says Nirmala Sitharaman

Budget 2020: Rs 30,757 crore allocation for J&K

India

oi-Vicky Nanjappa

New Delhi, Feb 01: Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman on Saturday said the Centre has proposed allocation of Rs 30,757 crore for Jammu and Kashmir, and Rs 5,958 crore for Ladakh for fiscal 2020-21.

Presenting the Union Budget for 2020-21, Sitharaman also said the government has earmarked Rs 100 crore for hosting G-20 Summit in the country.

Budget 2020: Govt proposes to set up Indian Institute of Heritage and Conservation

She also said a national policy on statistics will be brought in and added that data must have credibility.

The finance minister also proposed major reform in the recruitment of non-gazetted staff.
SIOUX CITY -- Internships have been secured for all international students currently attending Western Iowa Tech Community College under a federal student visa program, enabling them to stay in Sioux City and continue their studies, a college official said.

Students in the J-1 Student Study Program were required to have internships by Friday or return to their homes in Brazil and Chile.

"The program administrators have been doing nothing but working on finding placements for the students," WITCC director of marketing and publications Andrea Rohlena said. "We are committed to making this a successful program for our students."

Rohlena said that as of Tuesday, all students in the program had placements, though the U.S. State Department, which oversees the program that grants J-1 visas to international students to study in the United States, is reviewing the internships for compliance with program guidelines.

"We are striving for a Jan. 31 completion of activities and understand that some modifications may extend beyond this deadline. This remains a fluid process," a State Department official said.

Social advocacy groups have said the students were subjected to human rights abuses, and they continue to monitor the situation.

David Goodner, a member of Iowa City-based Iowa Citizens for Community Improvement and The Catholic Worker, said there had been little contact with students this week. At one time, he said, 11 of them were hoping for a better deal and were willing to go home if necessary, "but it's possible some or all may have taken the internships and tried to make lemonade out of the rotten fruit they were sold. Compliance doesn't necessarily mean consent."

Rohlena said Thursday that none of the international students had asked to go home.

The advocacy groups have taken issue with how the 57 students have been treated since their arrival in Sioux City in July and August to study in WITCC's culinary arts and robotics and automation programs. Under terms of the visa program, the students must work at an internship in their field of study in return for a scholarship that pays tuition, housing and other fees.

Students told the media in January that some of them worked up to 50 hours a week and weren't paid for overtime they worked at factory jobs set up through the school as internships.

Advocates said the jobs had little to do with the students' field of study and that they were basically being charged to pay for their scholarships through income withholding. Advocates said the arrangement amounted to wage theft and debt bondage.

In November, WITCC tweaked the internship program after the State Department visited and determined the internships lacked variety in their experiences.

Goodner said he was curious to see if federal officials would approve college-arranged internships at Hy-Vee and Wal-Mart.

"Even if they are, it's important that everybody understands half of the students' wages will still be garnished to repay fees equal to tuition, housing, food, books, etc.," Goodner said.

Citing student privacy, a State Department official said the department would not release the locations of the students' internships.

Rohlena said some of the students would work as interns for the college, the rest at local businesses. Students are not allowed to work until their internships have gained State Department approval, she said.

In the meantime, the college is working to improve communications with the international students, Rohlena said. College officials have said miscommunications led the students to believe that WITCC would provide food during their stay in Sioux City. The college has said a free meal plan never was promised.

When students were asked to quit their internships in November after the State Department review, some ran out of money to buy food and said the college threatened to send them home when they complained.

College officials have denied making those threats.

Rohlena said the college is now providing the students Hy-Vee gift cards, and they can eat breakfast and lunch at the campus cafeteria at WITCC's expense.

In hindsight, Rohlena said, the college moved too fast to implement the program, and that rush resulted in errors that led to negative consequences for the students.

"That's on us," Rohlena said. "That was certainly a mistake that we made."

Love 0 Funny 0 Wow 0 Sad 0 Angry 0

Want to see more like this? Get our local education coverage delivered directly to your inbox. Sign up! * I understand and agree that registration on or use of this site constitutes agreement to its user agreement and privacy policy.
Three men are dead and two are injured following a shooting at an Airbnb rental in downtown Toronto late Friday night.

Police arrived at a condo on the corner of Queens Wharf Road and Fort York Boulevard after receiving reports of a shooting around 10:30 p.m., where they initially found one victim. Const. Craig Brister told the Star police later located four more victims in the condo.

Paramedics transported three men, 22, 20 and 19, to a trauma centre in critical condition. They all died in hospital, police said.

A 20-year-old man was shot but did not sustain critical injuries, while another man was cut but not seriously injured.

Toronto police Chief Mark Saunders said police are no longer searching for a suspect. Saunders said he is encouraging witnesses to come forward and to contact Toronto Police or CrimeStoppers.

The shooting occurred on the 32nd floor of the building, Det. Henri Marsman said, though Saunders said multiple floors of the building were involved in the shooting.

We found (injured) people on other floors, Saunders said.

Polices homicide unit is leading an investigation into the shooting, and police are advising residents of the building to stay in their units while the investigation is ongoing.

The condo was being used as a rented Airbnb, police said. A social gathering was taking place when the shooting occurred.

In a statement, Airbnb said: The safety of our community is our priority and we are urgently investigating this incident to understand if an Airbnb guest or host was involved.

This is not the first time a shooting has occurred in a Toronto Airbnb. In August, a man suffered life-threatening injuries after he was shot at an Airbnb listed in the Bridle Path. Police said there were 20 to 30 people in the Airbnb at the time of the shooting.

The shooting in August sparked criticism towards Airbnbs rental policies from tenants groups, who argued that Airbnbs accountability and rating system is not well-equipped to deter these dangers.

In November, a 19-year-old Humber College student sued Airbnb after he was shot while attending a large party at a house rented through the online platform.

In the lawsuit, Sean McCann, the plaintiff, alleged that Airbnb should have known that rental properties like the one in Etobicoke, where the shooting occurred, were commonly used for parties and attracted violence. Airbnb subsequently removed the house from its listings.
Amid rumours that the Karnataka cabinet expansion is likely to take place on Monday, BJP MLA from Athani Mahesh Kumathalli has said denial of a ministerial post to him will send a wrong message.

A day after Chief Minister B S Yediyurappa managed to get the green signal from the party high command for expansion of the six-month-old cabinet in the state, Kumathalli on Saturday reminded the CM of the promises made to him ahead of the bypolls.

"During the bye-election from Athani, in front of some 30,000 to 35,000 people he (Yediyurappa) had said unequivocally that Srimant Patil of Kagwad and Mahesh Kumathalli will be made ministers and hence people should bless them," Kumathalli, a former congress MLA, told reporters here.

"Never had it occurred to us in the remotest corner of our mind that he will ever desert us. If such things happen, then it will send a wrong message," he reminded the Chief Minister.

However, he was confident that Yediyurappa will not desert him because "he is a man of his word who never backtracks from his promise and his opponents too say the same thing about him."



When asked about Kumathalli's statement, Yediyurappa curtly replied, "I will speak to him."



Eleven disqualified Congress-JDS MLAs had won the December bypolls on the ruling party ticket.

With the high-command reportedly not keen on making all the 11 re-elected legislators ministers, whom Yediyurappa has given assurance, it will not be an easy task for the chief minister, who has to ensure adequate representation to various castes and regions in his cabinet.

Currently there are 18 ministers, including the Chief Minister in the cabinet that has a sanctioned strength of 34. Sixteen berths are still vacant.

In addition to pressing the BJP leadership hard for ministerial berth, some MLAs are reportedly after plum portfolios.

According to BJP sources, Gokak BJP MLA Ramesh Jarkiholi wants water resource portfolio.

However, the Chief Minister is non-committal, they added.

Last year, the then assembly speaker had disqualified 17 Congress and JD(S) legislators after they revolted against the coalition government leading to its fall on July 13.

Of them, 13 had contested the bypolls held for 15 assembly seats and barring A H Vishwanath (Hunsur) and M T B Nagaraj (Hoskote) all others emerged triumphant as BJP candidates.

Opposition parties have been targeting the BJP and Yediyurappa over the delay in the cabinet expansion, alleging he was weak and that his administration had collapsed.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
Jim Carrey was branded 'rude' and 'awkward' when he joked that Margot Robbie had a successful career thanks to her good looks.

The actor, 58, made the remark to the actress, 29, when they appeared on Friday's edition of The Graham Norton Show to promote their respective films.

He was on hand to talk about his new film Sonic The Hedgehog, but took a moment to gush over Margot, before saying: 'Its incredible that youve got as far as you have with your obvious physical disadvantages.

'Rude and downright embarrassing': Jim Carrey was BLASTEDby fans for joke implying Margot Robbie's successful career is thanks to her looks, on Friday (pictured in Wolf Of Wall Street)

'Its unbelievable, its really something. That's pure talent right there!'

He then went on to sing a song he 'prepared' for Daniel Kaluuya, which saw The Mask star say the actor's name to the tune of Jeff Buckley's Hallelujah.

Margot appeared to take the joke in good humour as she laughed at the quip Jim had made, but viewers were not as convinced as they branded the interaction 'rude', 'awkward', and 'creepy.'

Joke: The actor, 58, took a moment to gush over the actress, 29, before saying: 'Its incredible that youve got as far as you have with your obvious physical disadvantages'

Taking to Twitter to share their disdain for the actor's remark, one wrote: 'That joke Jim Carrey make towards Margot Robbie about her looks and talent was so awkward.

'Kudos to her for just laughing and taking it on the chin, I'd have slapped him.'

While another added: 'Margot Robbie was my spirit animal tonight with her barely concealed disdain for the rude, manic and downright embarrassing Jim Carey (sic).'

Continuing that sentiment, one viewer said: 'Well I for one think @MargotRobbie was very gracious in the face of huge condescension and blatant rudeness from Jim Carey (sic)'

Another hit out at the star by writing: 'Jim Carey basically telling Margot Robbie her career is based on her looks. To her actual face. What?! She looked a bit blind sided.'

Hitting out: Margot appeared to take the joke in good humour as she laughed at the quip, but viewers were not as convinced as they branded the interaction 'rude', 'awkward', and 'creepy'

The reaction to Jim's joke wasn't all negative though, as some viewers defended it and said he was 'commending' the actress, rather than trying to offend her.

In response to a fan hitting out at the actor, one claimed: 'Jim Carrey was genuinely commending Margot Robbie - the comment about her making it despite obvious physical disadvantages was a secondary afterthought.

'If he was scorning anyone, it was Hollywood, of whom Jim is famously critical - not Margot, whom he was clearly complimenting.'

Another said: 'The fact it was said in jest makes it a joke? One Margot Robbie herself laughed at but one you are feeling you have to be offended on her behalf for?

'You're right though, and we're all wrong, including Margot Robbie. Liberal feminist Jim Carey is actually a sexist now right? (sic)'

Different response: The reaction to Jim's joke wasn't all negative though, as some viewers defended it and said he was 'commending' the actress, rather than trying to offend her

Meanwhile, Margot praised the amount of women involved in the production of her new film, Birds Of Prey.

The Australian actress is set to reprise her role as Harley Quinn in the Suicide Squad spin-off, with the cast also boasting Mary Elizabeth Winstead, Ali Wong and Rosie Perez.

Speaking about the film, Margot gushed that it was a real example of 'girl power', as she said: 'Aside from the fact that we have an all-female ensemble in an action film, which is very rare, we have a female director, female writer and two out of three producers are women.

'There was a lot of girl power! It's taken about four years to get it made and now we are showing it to the world it is very exciting. I love being Harley. It is so much fun.'
Six Indians stranded at the coronavirus-hit Wuhan city were stopped from boarding the first special Air India flight to India due to high fever, officials said on Saturday.

IMAGE: Doctors and other team members of the specially-prepped Air Indias B747 aircraft wait to examine those airlifted fromcoronavirus-hit Hubei province in Wuhan, in New Delhi, on Saturday. Photograph: PTI Photo

The first flight left early Saturday with 324 stranded Indians mostly students from Wuhan.

Officials in Beijing told PTI that six Indians could not board the flight as they were stopped by the Chinese immigration officials after they tested for high temperature.

The six students may have to undergo tests to determine whether they have symptoms of the coronavirus.

Ahead of the evacuation, the Indian Embassy had informed the Indians that they will be tested before the flight and undergo 14 day quarantine after reaching India.

The special Air India plane carrying 211 students, 110 working professionals and three minors from Wuhan reached Delhi around 7.30 am on Saturday.

Meanwhile, the second Air India flight has arrived in Beijing to pick up the rest of the Indians from Hubei province of which Wuhan is the provincial capital.

On Saturday, Chinese health authorities announced that the death toll has risen to 259 with total confirmed cases increasing to 11,791, the biggest increase since China began reporting the spread of the virulent virus on January 21.

China's National Health Commission said in its daily report on Saturday that 1,795 patients remained in critical condition, and 17,988 people were suspected of being infected with the virus as of the end of Friday.

A total of 243 people have been discharged from hospital after recovery.

Friday saw 2,102 new confirmed cases, 5,019 new suspected cases, and 46 deaths.

So far, about 124 positive cases have been reported in a host of countries, including India where the first case was confirmed in Kerala.

Earlier in the day, the Indian Embassy said in a tweet that 'an Air India flight carrying 324 Indian nationals from the coronavirus hit Hubei Province of China took off from Wuhan in the early hours of Feb 1. Majority of the passengers were Indian students. We sincerely thank the Chinese government for facilitating this flight'.

'We look forward to operating another flight to evacuate remaining Indian nationals, who have consented to leave Hubei Province for the time being.

'We urge all Indian citizens from Hubei who intend to avail this flight for India and not yet contacted the Embassy, to urgently call the hotlines (+8618610952903 and +8618612083629) or dedicated email ID helpdesk.beijing@mea.gov.in before 0800 hours on February 1, 2020,' the embassy said.

The schedule of the second flight has not been announced yet.

Officials said the Indian Army has set up a quarantine facility in Manesar near Delhi to keep those evacuated from China's Hubei province.

They would be monitored for any signs of infection for a duration of two weeks by a qualified team of doctors and staff members.
A pole in a field in Gadheim, Veitshoechheim, southern Germany, marks the new geographical centre of the EU after Brexit (Michael Probst/AP)

Now that the European Union includes one less country, its geographical centre has shifted to the south-east  landing in a nondescript field in Bavaria.

Gadheim, a village of 80 people near the German city of Wuerzburg, was ready for the bittersweet honour well before Britain left the EU at midnight on Friday.

A red-and-white pole set on a boulder marks the new spot, and the flags of the EU, Germany and the local Veitshoechheim municipality fly next to it.

Expand Close A pole in Gadheim, Veitshoechheim, marks the new geographical centre of the European Union after Brexit(Michael Probst/AP) / Facebook

Twitter

Email

Whatsapp A pole in Gadheim, Veitshoechheim, marks the new geographical centre of the European Union after Brexit(Michael Probst/AP)

On the one hand, of course I am proud and happy that we are becoming the new geographical centre of Europe, said Veitshoechheim Mayor Juergen Goetz said. On the other hand, of course its a sad occasion, because with Britain a country is leaving the EU for the first time.

The honour of being the centre of Europe stems from calculations by Frances national cartographic institute, IGN, which places the point at 9 degrees, 54 minutes, 7 seconds east and 49 degrees, 50 minutes, 35 seconds north.

Gadheim takes over from a spot in another northern Bavarian municipality, Westerngrund, which is 35 miles (56km) to the north-west.

The EUs geographical centre, as calculated by IGN, has been in Germany ever since the bloc expanded from 15 to 25 members in May 2004 by taking in 10 mostly eastern European countries.

It has moved around, however, with the 2007 expansion to include the eastern nations of Romania and Bulgaria and then in 2013 with the arrival of the newest member, Croatia. Britains departure has reduced the blocs membership to 27 nations.

Mr Goetz said he first heard of IGNs calculation on a local radio station in March 2017, months after Britains voters decided to leave the bloc in a 2016 referendum.

At first, I thought it was an April Fools joke, an early one. But it turned out very quickly that it was really the case, he said.

Expand Close The village of Gadheim is the new geographical centre of the EU (Michael Probst/AP) / Facebook

Twitter

Email

Whatsapp The village of Gadheim is the new geographical centre of the EU (Michael Probst/AP)

Local officials mulled what to do about it amid years of uncertainty over when, and even whether, Britain would actually leave the EU.

Mr Goetzs solution was to get the new centre point ready and, if Brexit hadnt happened, we would have made a monument for the unity of Europe out of this point.

The EUs geographical centre adds a new potential tourist attraction to the nearby Veitshoechheim palace, once the summer residence of Wuerzburgs prince-bishops.
Travel and tourism industry expects better tax reforms, improvement of infrastructure and better connectivity from the upcoming Budget 2020. Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman will present the Union Budget today.

India aspires to become the third largest travel market across the globe by 2025. However, the government must ensure that infrastructural inadequacies do not fetter the growth. The industry hopes that upcoming Budget will carry the vision to lift domestic infrastructure to meet global benchmarks.

FULL COVERAGE:Union Budget 2020

Travel company Cleartrip CFO Indroneel Dutt has urged the government to take cognizance and resolve challenges for the aviation industry which has already seen a tough year in 2019. According to him, thin operating margin coupled with TCS (Tax collection at source) have hampered the working capital of airlines, giving rise to numerous operational difficulties.

Also read: Budget 2020 Live Updates: FM Nirmala Sitharaman to present budget at 11 AM; middle class, corporate await surprise

"These obstacles are not only affecting the stakeholders and service providers but the consumers as well," he said.

Also Read: Budget 2020: What banks, NBFCs expect from Sitharaman's Budget

"We are optimistic that the government will continue to be open-minded and maintain the impetus of its past initiatives while bringing necessary reformations to further enable the travel sector," Dutt added.

Sunil Gupta, MD & CEO of car rental firm Avis India said that the government should build on its recent push towards sustainability by prioritising the growth of the Electric Vehicle (EV) ecosystem. He said that the road connectivity should also be improved between major urban centres and tier-2/3 regions to bolster the growth of the travel and tourism sector.

Also Read: Union Budget 2020: How, When and Where To Watch Live Streaming Of Union Budget

"This can be done by promoting the creation of a strong and well-connected charging infrastructure on a pan-India level, promoting the setting up of EV battery capacity in the country and incentivising the adoption of EVs, especially for public transport buses, fleet operator cars and 2 and 3 wheelers," Gupta said.

Also read: Budget 2020: Watch Live Streaming on Aaj Tak, India Today, live telecast channels

Commenting on the upcoming Budget, Varun Chadha, CEO, TIRUN Travel Marketing, said, "The government has recognised the potential of cruising as an economic multiplier and is catching up with the world in terms of policies and infrastructure. Cruise Lines are now looking at the government to create a relatable tax regime, which is at par with the rest of the world."

By Chitranjan Kumar
The parents of little Tyler Ryan of Charleville, who lost his battle with cancer last March at just 22 months old, have donated a colourful buddy bench in his memory to Ballyhea National School, which is attended by his sister, Lillykate, who is in junior infants.

Tyler was signed-up along with his twin brother, Scott, now two and a half years, to attend the school when the time came. Unfortunately, it was not to be as Tyler was diagnosed with cancer and was attending Crumlin Children's Hospital in Dublin, but succumbed to the disease in March of last year.

In a school setting, a buddy bench, or friendship bench, is a special place in a school playground where a child can go when they want someone to talk to. It is a simple idea to eliminate loneliness and foster friendship on the playground, and it encourages pupils to mingle with others.

His parents, Margo and Stephen Ryan, were on hand to present the national school principal Paul Cronin with the commemorative bench on last Friday morning at Ballyhea, which is located some four miles south of Charleville.

Margo Ryan said that Tyler was a much-loved and lovable baby, who always had a smile. "He was a lovable soul, who loved music and when he was with us brought so many smiles to the faces of everybody and touched the hearts of so many. We hope that in Tylers' memory we can bring some smiles to the faces of children through the use of this 'buddy bench' in the school yard," she said.

Margo said Ballyhea NS was a fantastic school, where everybody was so supportive, "and we would like to thank them for their continued support".

The brightly painted bench was manufactured by members of the Bruff Men's Shed, who are based in the Kirby O'Sullivan Centre in the County Limerick town.

Tyler was also a Little Blue Hero, a charity which is run by the Garda Siochana members to help terminally ill children. Margo and Stephen have also organised a walk in Tyler's memory at Doneraile Park in aid of the Little Blue Heroes children's charity on the 7th March starting at 12 noon.

"We hope to get as much support as possible for the walk as they truly deserve it for the fantastic work they do, and every kid deserves to smile." said Margo.
TORONTO - Canada's 10 largest internet service providers will be required to make their contract terms and pricing easier to understand under a new mandatory code of behaviour that went into effect Friday.

Hey there, time traveller!

This article was published 31/1/2020 (709 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

TORONTO - Canada's 10 largest internet service providers will be required to make their contract terms and pricing easier to understand under a new mandatory code of behaviour that went into effect Friday.

The big ISPs account for more than 85 per cent of Canada's home internet service subscriptions, according to the Canadian Radio-television and Telecommunications Commission.

Canada's 10 largest internet service providers will be required to make their contract terms and pricing easier to understand under a new mandatory code of behaviour that went into effect Friday. A CRTC logo is shown in Montreal, Monday, Sept. 10, 2012. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Graham Hughes

The rest of the market share is held by hundreds of small to mid-sized ISPs.

The CRTC  the main regulator for Canada's communications carriers and broadcasters  says it expects all other ISPs to behave in a manner consistent with principles set out in the code.

"In today's marketplace, Canadian consumers deserve to be provided with clear information and easy-to-understand terms and conditions," CRTC chairman Ian Scott said in a statement.

"The Internet Code will allow Canadians to make better decisions when subscribing to or modifying their existing Internet service, and will make it easier for them to take advantage of competitive offers."

The code is the CRTC's answer to a soaring number of complaints about internet services, such as "bill shock" caused by unexpected extra fees or price increases.

Among other things, the new rules permit customers to cancel a contract within 45 days, without paying early cancellation fees, if the contract differs from the offer.

The code also empowers the Commission for Complaints for Telecom-Television Services  which is already responsible for wireless and television services  to require a big ISP to pay up to $5,000 in compensation per complaint.

The code applies only to specific internet providers  Bell Canada, Cogeco, Eastlink, Northwestel, Rogers Communications, SaskTel, Shaw Telecom, Telus, Videotron and Xplornet.

A 2018 report prepared for a market study by the Competition Bureau estimated there were more than 550 companies offering an alternative to the internet services owned by the traditional telephone and cable companies.

Most of the smaller ISPs are wholesale customers of the big carriers but compete on the retail level for the same residential and small business customers.

The CRTC's internet code comes into effect two days after the release of a government-appointed expert panel recommended a sweeping overhaul of the broadcast and telecommunications system.

Among other things, the 235-page report recommends giving the CRTC new powers and responsibilities.

Some of the recommendations are relatively simple  such as renaming the Broadcasting and Telecommunications acts, as well as the CRTC  while others will be contentious and politically difficult.

For example, recommendation 28 is to update the Telecommunications Act to foster a competitive market "through reliance on market forces and, where required, through efficient and effective regulation."

However, it has been historically difficult for the CRTC to determine when it should intervene to regulate prices and when it should rely on market players to establish the right price through competition.

Want to get a head start on your day? Get the days breaking stories, weather forecast, and more sent straight to your inbox every weekday morning. Sign Up I agree to the Terms and Conditions, Cookie and Privacy Policies, and CASL agreement.

The large ISPs, including Bell and Rogers, have recently launched multiple appeals of the CRTC's decisions about setting wholesale rates for internet services.

A similar battle, pitting Bell, Rogers, Telus and other wireless networks, is at an earlier stage with the CRTC scheduled to hold nine days of public hearings into whether it should set wholesale wireless rates, starting Feb. 18.

Navdeep Bains, the federal minister responsible for telecommunications as well as competition, said on Thursday at a Toronto business conference that the expert panel's findings were "fairly consistent" with his views.

"But we're still reviewing the 97 recommendations and we are going to go through a very comprehensive legislative process as well as we modernize all this," Bains said.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published Jan. 31, 2020.

Companies in this story: (TSX:BCE, TSX:CCA, TSX:RCI.B, TSX:SJR.B, TSX:T, TSX:QBR.B)
While the Trump administration continues to ratchet up economic sanctions against Iran, the U.S. continues to supply humanitarian aid to Iranian citizens.

The U.S. Treasury Department on Thursday said it has recently established a new "humanitarian channel" through the Swiss government, which will provide ongoing medical care to Iranian nationals without the Iranian government's involvement.

"Iranian cancer and transplant patients are receiving treatments through this channel, which is subject to strict due diligence measures to avoid misuse by the Iranian regime," the Treasury Department said in a statement. "The successful completion of these transactions provides a model for facilitating further humanitarian exports to Iran."

"The United States is determined to ensure the Iranian people have access to food, life-saving medicines, and other humanitarian goods, despite the regime's economic mismanagement and wasteful funding of malign activities across the region," Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin said. "Humanitarian transactions are currently allowed under our sanctions programs, and we encourage companies to use this humanitarian mechanism."

The Treasury Department announced the development of this new humanitarian financing channel on Oct. 25, 2019, citing the Iranian regime's continued use of humanitarian trade schemes to evade sanctions and fund regional terrorist activities.

"Through this mechanism, no revenue or payment of any kind will be transferred to Iran," the department said at the time.

The new mechanism through the Swiss government will focus on facilitating commercial U.S. exports of agricultural commodities, food, medicine and medical devices to Iran. However, other foreign governments can join the Treasury program.

"This framework will enable foreign governments and foreign institutions to seek written confirmation from Treasury that the proposed financial channel will not be exposed to U.S. sanctions in exchange for foreign governments and financial institutions committing to provide Treasury robust information on the use of this mechanism on a monthly basis," the department said.

Story continues

Since diplomatic relations were severed between the U.S. and Iran in 1979, the Swiss government through its embassy in Tehran has become the "neutral" political interface between the two countries.

Image by mostafa meraji from Pixabay

0

See more from Benzinga

 2020 Benzinga.com. Benzinga does not provide investment advice. All rights reserved.
But the plan does not satisfy those who have been lobbying for several years for the state to open a prerelease center solely for female inmates. They say women have not had opportunities equal to those for men in terms of job training, housing referrals and other services to help them succeed after release.
(Photo : Screenshot From Adrian Cormillot Facebook Page) The Deadly coronavirus vs AI

BlueDot is the artificial intelligence that is leading us to a successful battle with Coronavirus by giving precise estimations on the next moves of the virus. So far, BlueDot has been able to provide us with viable information and is continuing to provide us with information about the movements of the coronavirus outbreak.

How BlueDot works

BlueDot is an AI with capabilities that track the future movements of this virus by crosschecking data and reading the previous changes to make analytic possibilities that are then presented to scientists, governments, and public health officials. Conducting an "automated infectious disease surveillance" to gather necessary information, the ability of this AI has already been proven. It is now up to the people to act on the presented data.

Read Also: Coronavirus Outbreak is Hurting Apple's China Operations More Than You Could Imagine

BlueDot has the ability to read and analyze about 100,000 articles in 65 languages every day to add to its portfolio of data, which is then translated into calculated possibilities. Flight patterns have also been part of BlueDot's data collection, which then creates a global pool of information and points towards both the origin and movements of this virus. The temperature, climate, and even the condition of livestock in countries of focus are also data that BlueDot uses to understand this virus.

Calculations made by BlueDot so far

BlueDot has already notified its customers nearing the end of January that the death toll has reached 100 people and has already penetrated countries like the United States, Philippines, Japan, and even Singapore. Because of the findings of BlueDot, Americans have been warned not to take unimportant trips to China while this virus is still very aggressive.

2016 was the year that BlueDot was able to predict the Zika virus to hit Florida six months before it actually happened.

The creation of BlueDot

Kamran Khan is the CEO and founder of BlueDot and has modeled this AI to give necessary information to health care workers on a global scale. With much similarities to the epidemic-monitoring company Metabiota, language and translations were of utmost importance to do thorough global research on the viruses being studied.

Read Also: Real-time and Interactive Coronavirus Online Map Now Available to Track Global Cases

Through a broader angle, this AI can also be used to help existing research advance on developing drugs that counter certain viruses. AI has a good reputation when it comes to predictions of possible pandemics like the deadly Chagas, which is an incurable disease and would have potentially killed about 8 million people in Mexico and Central and Southern America.

Other Uses for AI

AI has also been able to track illegal movements of opioid sales by mining data from social media. Law enforcement has experienced firsthand the advantages of AI to sift through piles of data and come up with quick and likely-accurate predictions.

The idea of AI is not to replace human capabilities but rather enhance the reach of possibilities. AI is still a product manufactured by humans. The BlueDot AI might actually help in finding the cure for this coronavirus.

 2021 TECHTIMES.com All rights reserved. Do not reproduce without permission.
It was a narrow escape for CPI leader and former Jawaharlal Nehru University Students Union president Kanhaiya Kumar when a group of miscreants pelted stones on his cavalcade while he was en route to Chhapra Town for attending a rally protesting against the newly implemented Citizenship (Amendment) Act near Chapra airport premises on Saturday.

The incident took place at Kopa police station area in Saran district upon his arrival from Siwan. Police used mild force to disperse the crowd after windscreens of four vehicles were smashed.

Cameras of photojournalists were also snatched by the crowd who also showed shoes at the former JNUSU president. Saran SP Harkishore Rai said no one was injured in the incident.

Saran SP Harkishore Rai further added that there was a heavy deployment of police force when Kumar arrived at the Airport field premises along with hundreds of supporters.

Police sources said that following the cavalcade attack Ajay Singh, husband of Janta Dal (United) MP Kavita Singh was put under house arrest in Dahiyawan Tola locality as it was believed he was instrumental behind the incident.

Police said that legal action will be taken against the perpetrators once a complaint is received.

Kanhaiya Kumar has embarked on a statewide Jan Gan Man Yatra, which would conclude with a rally on the theme nagarikta bachao, desh bachao (save citizenship, save the country) in Patna on February 29.

SHARE THIS ARTICLE ON
The Russian government is going to suspend issuance of work visas to Chinese citizens, Russian Deputy Prime Minister and head of the emergency response headquarters for the prevention of the novel coronavirus spreading to Russia Tatyana Golikova told reporters on Friday.

"We are preparing a draft government decree on a temporary ban on work visas for citizens of the Peoples Republic of China," she said.

Russia will suspend all air service with China starting February 1, the coronavirus prevention HQ head reported. Aeroflot regular flights to Beijing, Shanghai, Guangzhou and Hong Kong will be the only exception from the ban. Four Chinese airlines will be allowed to fly to Russia, Golikova specified.

"We close all aviation frequencies, with the exception of Aeroflot, which will continue flying to four Chinese cities: Beijing, Shanghai, Guangzhou and Hong Kong," Golikova announced. "In accordance with the agreement with the PRC, four Chinese airlines continue flying to Moscow, they will continue operating on a regular basis."

All Aeroflot and Chinese airlines flights will be conducted only from the Terminal F of Sheremetyevo Airport, while all other flights will be redirected to other terminals.

As for the Chinese citizens staying in Russia, they will be able to leave for China before air communications of Russian regions with China are halted. "Simultaneously, we will talk to the Chinese side, suggesting that if such a need arises Chinese citizens can board planes leaving for China from cities other than Moscow so that they can return to China. We expect information from Chinese authorities regarding this issue in a couple days time," she said.

Russia will not suspend mail and cargo shipments with China.
(AAP) leader and Rajya Sabha MP on Saturday requested those protesting against Citizenship Amendment Act to rethink about it.

"Today several protests (against CAA) that were underway in Mumbai were withdrawn. I think the people who have been organising protests should use their calm and intelligence to make sure that does not succeed in fulfilling its intentions, its intentions of profiting from violence. You all should rethink your protests," said Singh.

The leader further said, "Union Minister Ravi Shankar Prasad said that he is ready for talks on Shaheen Bagh issue, but it is evening already and nothing has been done."

"I want to ask him (Prasad), has he been stopped? Who stopped you? Reveal the name of the person, otherwise, I already know the name of the person, it is Amit Shah who wants to delay in Delhi, and spread violence in Delhi," said Singh.

Singh was reacting to Union Minister Ravi Shankar Prasad's tweet in which Prasad had said, "Government is ready to talk to protestors of Shaheen Bagh but then it should be in a structured form and the Narendra Modi govt is ready to communicate with them and clear all their doubts they have against CAA."

.

(Only the headline and picture of this report may have been reworked by the Business Standard staff; the rest of the content is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
WASHINGTON  The U.S. Senate on Friday rejected by a slim margin calling witnesses to the impeachment trial of President Trump, setting up a final vote to end the proceedings.

Two Republicans  Sen. Mitt Romney of Utah and Sen. Susan Collins of Maine  voted with all 47 Senate Democrats in favor of considering votes to call witnesses and to subpoena documents from the White House.

Two more votes were needed to reach the simple majority needed to pass the resolution.

The Senate spent a long block of time late Friday before and after the vote working out an agreement on how the trial will end, and decided to hold a final vote on guilt or innocence next Wednesday. A 67-vote supermajority is needed to convict, and that was never a likely outcome.

The no-witnesses result had been expected since late Thursday when a possible key swing voter, Sen. Lamar Alexander, R-Tenn., announced just before midnight that he would oppose calling witnesses.

Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., said Friday that a trial without witnesses would be a sham trial and the greatest cover-up since Watergate.

Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer. (J. Scott Applewhite/AP)

Alexander said the impeachment proceedings proved the president inappropriately withheld military assistance from Ukraine to pressure the government there to announce investigations that could hurt Joe Biden, a rival for the presidency, but that he did not think it merited removing Trump from office.

Democrats had insisted that, since the House of Representatives formally impeached Trump in December, the Senate should allow new witnesses to testify. They asked that four top Trump officials appear: Mick Mulvaney, acting White House chief of staff; John Bolton, former national security adviser; Michael Duffey, Office of Management and Budget associate director for national security; and Robert Blair, senior adviser to the acting White House chief of staff.

House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, D-Calif., delayed sending the articles of impeachment over to the Senate until mid-January, in an ultimately fruitless effort to extract concessions from McConnell on the issue of calling these witnesses.

Story continues

McConnell also defeated efforts to get a witness agreement at the beginning of the trial, nearly two weeks ago. He obtained support from all Republican senators for trial rules that put off the question until after six days of opening arguments and two days of questions. He did so in part by releasing an initial set of rules that were so stringent that it gave him ways to make concessions in exchange for support from key senators who might have otherwise considered voting in favor of calling witnesses.

Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell. (Drew Angerer/Getty Images)

This past Sunday, news of allegations in Boltons book  that he had firsthand knowledge of Trumps directing the pressure campaign on Ukraine  provided the last real jolt of energy toward calling witnesses. But many Republican senators coalesced around the argument that Trump had behaved badly but that his actions did not meet the Constitutions treason, bribery, or other high crimes and misdemeanors standard for an impeachable offense, as Alexander said in his statement Thursday night.

Sen. Ben Sasse, R-Neb., told CNN that Alexander speaks for lots and lots of us Republican senators. Sen. Rob Portman, R-Ohio, echoed Alexanders rationale in a statement issued Friday

I believe that some of the presidents actions in this case  including asking a foreign country to investigate a potential political opponent and the delay of aid to Ukraine  were wrong and inappropriate, Portman said. But I do not believe that the presidents actions rise to the level of removing a duly elected president from office and taking him off the ballot in the middle of an election.

Sen. Rob Portman. (J. Scott Applewhite/AP)

If the president were found guilty by the Senate and removed from office, he would also be barred from holding public office ever again.

Alexander and Portman were echoing a version of the argument made by Trump attorney Alan Dershowitz, who said that only a criminal act meant to personally enrich the president could be the basis for removing him.

Lead House impeachment manager Rep. Adam Schiff, D-Calif., called Dershowitzs rationale a descent into constitutional madness.

Constitutional lawyers said the Dershowitz defense would give this president, and any future president, carte blanche to abuse his or her power.

Other Republican senators who announced their opposition to new witnesses on Friday offered a variety of other reasons for their decision.

Sen. Lisa Murkowski, R-Alaska, said Friday that she would vote against witnesses in part because she did not want to create a 50-50 tie that would require Chief Justice John Roberts, who presides over the trial, to either break the tie with a ruling or allow the measure to fail by abstaining from weighing in.

Sen. Lisa Murkowski, standing, casts a no vote for calling witnesses in the impeachment trial of Donald Trump. (Senate TV via Yahoo News)

And Murkowski took aim at colleagues like Sen. Elizabeth Warren, D-Mass., who asked a question on Thursday regarding Chief Justice Roberts. Since senators submit their questions in writing, that put the chief justice in the position of reading a question about himself.

Does the fact that the chief justice is presiding over an impeachment trial in which Republican senators have thus far refused to allow witnesses or evidence contribute to the loss of legitimacy of the chief justice, the Supreme Court, and the Constitution? said Roberts, reading Warrens question.

Murkowski was clearly not pleased with Warrens tactic and alluded to it in her statement.

It has also become clear some of my colleagues intend to further politicize this process, and drag the Supreme Court into the fray, while attacking the chief justice. I will not stand for nor support that effort. We have already degraded our institution for partisan political benefit, and I will not enable those who wish to pull down another, Murkowski said.

After the vote concluded, Schumer went to huddle with his fellow Democrats, and told reporters the refusal to hear witnesses amounted to a tragedy on a very large scale.

_____

Read more from Yahoo News:
A San Antonio man arrested for allegedly killing his parents' cat was indicted by a Bexar County grand jury on Tuesday.

Dominic Alexander Cantu, 21, was indicted for a charge of cruelty to a non-livestock animal. The indictment alleges that Cantu "intentionally, knowingly and reckless in a cruel manner killed a cat by striking the cat with his hand and foot," according to the Bexar County District Attorney.

According to an arrest affidavit, Cantu struck his parents' house cat with his fist in their backyard on Sep. 24  "for no apparent reason, possibly out of fit of rage or frustration." He believed at the time that he had killed the house cat.

FIND OUT FIRST: Get San Antonio breaking news directly to your inbox

Cantu's mother saw him in the backyard, which was out of the ordinary, and confronted him because she believed he had done something to the cat. He did not respond, so she told him that he would have to make other living arrangements if he could not respect the cat. So, Cantu left.

The following day, Cantu returned to collect his belongings, the affidavit states. He was initially relieved to see the cat still alive, but after thinking about the previous day's incident, Cantu took out his anger on the cat once more, the affidavit continues.

This time he not only hit the cat but stomped on it until the cat was dead and then threw the cat's remains in the trash, according to the affidavit.

Animal Care Services was contacted that day. Cantu confessed to intentionally killing the cat a few days later, the affidavit states.

A trial date has not been set for Cantu.

Mark Dunphy is a breaking news reporter and general assignment writer. Read him on our breaking news site, MySA.com, and on our subscriber site, ExpressNews.com | mark.dunphy@express-news.net | @m_b_dunphy
India on Saturday thanked the Chinese government for facilitating a special flight to evacuate Indians from coronavirus-hit Wuhan city.

Earlier, a special Air India flight carrying 324 Indians on board took off in the wee hours of Saturday from Wuhan which emerged as the epicenter of coronavirus outbreak. Boeing 747 Jumbo aircraft is bringing the 324 people, mostly students.

Taking to Twitter, the Indian embassy said, "An Air India flight carrying 324 Indian nationals from the coronavirus hit Hubei Province of China took off from Wuhan in the early hours of Feb 1. The majority of the passengers were Indian students. We sincerely thank the Chinese government for facilitating this flight."

The embassy said that the Indian government is planning for another flight to evacuate the remaining Indian nationals and also asked its citizens in Hubei to avail flight for India.

"We urge all Indian citizens from Hubei who intend to avail this flight for India and not yet contacted the Embassy, to urgently call the hotlines (+8618610952903 and +8618612083629) or dedicated email ID helpdesk.beijing@mea.gov.in before 0800 hours on February 1, 2020," the embassy tweeted.

"We look forward to operating another flight to evacuate remaining Indian nationals, who have consented to leave Hubei Province for the time being," it said in a subsequent tweet.

India has been waiting for China's approval for repatriating Indians from Wuhan city in Hubei Province. The MEA has established contacts with over 600 Indians across the province and said it is individually ascertaining their willingness to travel back to India.

The first case of coronavirus was reported in December. Since then, the virus has spread rapidly claiming 259 lives in China alone.

The cases have been reported in several parts of the including India.

In order to prevent the further spread of the virus, Chinese authorities put on lockdown in more than a dozen cities affecting the movement of 56 million people.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
.

Until recently, it was a common understanding that the Indian Constitution has been an important regulatory document and which acquired added significance, particularly on 26 January 1950. It is also true that on this day, the spectacle of military power on Vijay Path in Delhi tends to create in citizens the sense of a strong state that they believe would protect them from external threat. Constitutional principles, arguably, appear to be less spectacular to some of us. However, this is not to suggest that we are not in touch with the Constitution. It is needless to emphasise that our familiarity with our Constitution gets demonstrated through the teaching of the Constitution, which takes place at various levels of learning: schools, colleges and the universities. Similarly, one could also see the invocation of the Constitution at the oath-taking ceremony of ministers who are to be inducted in the ministries at both central as well as state levels. Thus, the Constitution and oath-taking have been an important aspect of the top-ranking officials working in various government services. Oaths are given and taken as and when needed. Such moral commitment to the Constitution that is demonstrated through the oath-taking ceremony, in above cases, however, takes place at the individual, legal level.

With this background, it is important to focus our attention on mass oath-taking ceremonies that are taking place through several protests, which are being organised at various places. Citizens have chosen this sacred path of oath-taking to confirm their commitment with the universal principles that are enshrined in the Constitution. Oath-taking is also directed at those government institutions that are failing in their constitutional duty to strengthen democratic traditions in the country. Spokespersons of the government, if asked the straightforward question of whether or not they are failing to perform their constitutional duties, would seldom answer in the affirmative. They would be quite confident in making the claim that the government in power is totally committed to follow the Constitution. They would further say that they have taken the oaths to follow the Constitution.
BAKU, Azerbaijan, Feb. 1

By Nargiz Sadikhova  Trend:

Kazakh government is ready to provide all possible humanitarian assistance to China if necessary due to coronavirus outbreak, Kazakhstans President Kasym Jomart Tokayev said, Trend reports with reference to the presidents press office.

President Kassym-Jomart Tokayev sent a letter to President Xi Jinping on the spread of coronavirus.

Highly appreciating the decisions and actions of the Chinese leadership to localize and curb the dangerous virus, Kassym-Jomart Tokayev informed the Chairman of the Public Republic of China on the decision of the Kazakh government to provide all possible humanitarian assistance to China if necessary, the press office said.

In the letter, the Kazakh president also reported on measures taken by the Government to prevent the spread of coronavirus in Kazakhstan.

The outbreak in the Chinese city of Wuhan - which is an international transport hub - began at a fish market in late December 2019. Since then 259 people have died, including a doctor who was treating the victims. Some sources claim the coronavirus outbreak started as early as November 2019.

The symptoms include cough, headache, fatigue, fever, aching and difficulty breathing. It is primarily spread through airborne contact or contact with contaminated objects.

Chinese health authorities say that the majority of the people who have died were either elderly or had underlying health problems.



Aside from Mainland China, the cases of coronavirus spreading have also been confirmed in Thailand, Hong Kong, Taiwan, Japan, Macau, Malaysia, Singapore, Australia, the US, France, Germany, South Korea, Canada, Vietnam, Cambodia, Nepal and Sri Lanka.

---

Follow the author on twitter: @nargiz_sadikh
Your tax-deductible gift today powers our reporters and keeps us independent. We rely on you, our reader, not paywalls to stay funded because we believe important news and information should be freely accessible to all.

Start your day with LAist Sign up for the Morning Brief, delivered weekdays. Subscribe

Los Angeles City Council members are considering an aggressive new plan for preserving affordable housing: Taking over apartment buildings using eminent domain.

Councilman Gil Cedillo introduced a motion on Friday to explore the possibility of seizing Hillside Villa, a 124-unit affordable housing development in Chinatown.

The building was constructed more than three decades ago under a covenant to keep rents affordable for 30 years. After that period of time, the property owner would be legally allowed to raise rents to market rate.

The Hillside covenant is set to expire later this year. Tenants have been organizing to keep rents in the building from spiking.

"We are looking at a tsunami of displacement if we don't grab control of the covenants that will expire," Cedillo said.

L.A.'s housing department has estimated that 11,771 units across the city are at risk of converting from affordable to market-rate rents in coming years. Cedillo said he would consider using eminent domain to preserve affordable housing in other buildings.

'PUBLIC MONEY FOR PUBLIC GOOD'

Cities typically use eminent domain to seize private property in order to develop freeways and other projects meant for public use. In the 1950s, L.A. used eminent domain to clear residents out of Chavez Ravine in order to construct Dodger Stadium.

But using eminent domain to preserve affordable housing would be a new approach for the city of Los Angeles.

Annie Shaw with the Chinatown Community for Equitable Development has been one of the organizers working with the Hillside tenants. Her group, along with the Los Angeles Tenants Union, has been pushing for months to get the city to use eminent domain on the property.

"The principle of eminent domain is about using public money for public good," Shaw said. "We are here to support that affordable housing is a public good."

Shaw said the tenants are feeling energized by Cedillo's action. She said they would not be able to afford the going rate for rent in this rapidly changing neighborhood.

"Most folks are facing either homelessness, or they will have to leave a community that they have deep roots in," Shaw said. "Most of the folks at this point are low-income families that have seniors and children who are completely reliant on the infrastructure right around Chinatown."

'CHILLING EFFECT' ON DEVELOPMENT?

Tom Botz, the owner of Hillside Villa, said he would fight any effort to seize his building in court.

"The eminent domain concept would fit better in countries like Cuba or Venezuela," Botz said via email.

"No developer would ever again agree to build low-income housing and operate it for 30 years under strict rent and occupancy restrictions, only to have the city take the building away at the end of the 30 years," he said.

UCLA associate professor of urban planning Michael Lens said this potential use of eminent domain could have a "chilling effect" on the development of new affordable housing.

"The developer entered into a 30-year covenant with the expectation that whomever owned the property at the end of that 30-year period would be free to do whatever made sense to that owner," Lens said via email. "All financial decisions over that 30-year period have been made with that assumption."

If passed, Cedillo's motion would instruct city staffers to report back in 30 days on the possibility of seizing Hillside Villa. The city would have to determine a fair market value to pay the owner for the seized property.

The motion could come up for a vote in the city council housing committee in mid-February.
LETTER: Where will our electricity come from in the future?
He made the request at a reception in Hanoi on January 31st for the diplomat, who was the first foreign diplomat invited to the Government Office after Tet, the Vietnamese traditional New Year.

Speaking at the meeting, Prime Minister Nguyen Xuan Phuc said he is happy to see the bilateral ties between Vietnam and Sweden thriving over years, especially at a time when the two nations are organizing many activities to celebrate the 50th anniversary of their diplomatic relations.

Prime Minister Nguyen Xuan Phuc (R) and Swedish Ambassador to Vietnam Ann Mawe (Photo: VNA)



Sweden is Vietnams important and trustworthy partner in the EU, he said, noting that the two-way trade has been on the rise, reaching 1.5 billion USD in 2018 and 1.2 billion USD in the first three quarters of last year. Swedish investors currently operate 67 projects, worth a total 364 million USD, in Vietnam, he added.

The PM said the figures fail to match the two countries potential so the ambassador should work to boost the bilateral trade and investment.

Ambassador Ann Mawe, for her part, said 2019 saw the exchange of many high-level visits between the two countries, highlighting the visit of PM Phuc to Sweden and of Crown Princess of Sweden Victoria Ingrid Alice Desiree to Vietnam.



She also congratulated Vietnam on its assumption of ASEAN Chair in 2020 and a non-permanent seat in the UN Security Council for the 2020  2021 term.



The diplomat suggested the two countries further enhance cooperation in innovation, the field Sweden holds strength, as well as in aviation, among others.



She noted that the Sweden  Southeast Asia Business Summit will take place in the next two weeks, providing a good opportunity for leading Swedish companies to learn about ASEAN nations view on economic growth and to promote trade and investment between the two sides.



Sweden highly values Vietnams major steps in anti-corruption and the newly-adopted labour standards which are in line with international practices, Mawe said.



PM Nguyen Xuan Phuc agreed with the Swedish ambassador on the promotion of high-level visits and expressed his wish to welcome the Swedish PM to visit Vietnam soon.



He also asked Sweden to soon ratify the EU-Vietnam Free Trade Agreement (EVFTA) and the EU-Vietnam Investment Protection Agreement (EVIPA) to bring benefits to firms and people of both sides.



The PM expected to see more Swedish corporations arrive in Vietnam to further lift the bilateral trade and the investment inflow into Vietnam, contributing to strengthening the two countries relations./.
Trump Rescinds Obama-Era Rules on Landmines

The Trump administration said it was rescinding an Obama-era policy concerning anti-personnel landmines.

President Donald Trump canceled the Obama administrations policy that prohibited U.S. military forces from using the mines outside of the Korean peninsula.

The Department of Defense has determined that restrictions imposed on American forces by the Obama administrations policy could place them at a severe disadvantage during a conflict against our adversaries. The president is unwilling to accept this risk to our troops, White House press secretary Stephanie Grisham said in a statement.

Safeguards on mines require them to self-destruct or, if the self-destruct mechanism fails, to self-deactivate.

A new policy issued by the department enables commanders to, in exceptional circumstances, employ mines designed to reduce unintended harm to civilians and allies. However, persistent landmines, or those without a self-destruct/self-deactivation function, will still be prohibited.

An antipersonnel mine in Afghanistan in a file photograph. (Joe Raedle/Getty Images)

The antipersonnel landmines, or APL, are allowed under international treaties that the United States is a part of, Vic Mercado, Assistant Secretary of Defense for Strategy, Plans and Capabilities, said in a statement. The new action was taken as the result of a Department of Defense study that determined that the U.S. military faced a critical capability gap, Mercado said.

Landmines, including APL, remain a vital tool in conventional warfare that the United States military cannot responsibly forgo, particularly when faced with substantial and potentially overwhelming enemy forces in the early stages of combat, he said.

Withholding a capability that would give our ground forces the ability to deny terrain temporarily and therefore shape an enemys movement to our benefit irresponsibly risks American lives.

Secretary of Defense Mark Esper sent a memo to military leaders on Jan. 31 announcing the updated policy.

He said that area denial systems, such as landmines, play an important role in helping the military regain competitive advantages.

Secretary of Defense Mark Esper (L) and Italian Minister of Defense Lorenzo Guerini take part in a joint press conference at the Pentagon in Washington on Jan. 31, 2020. (Kevin Wolf/AP Photo)

These systems help protect defending forces from both enemy armor and dismounted threats and ensure units are not outflanked or overrun when under attack. They obstruct and influence the enemys direction of movement, channeling enemy forces into zones in which U.S. forces can better concentrate overwhelming firepower, he said.

They also delay or stop enemy forces, enhancing the effectiveness of other weapons that U.S. forces can then bring to bear, while doing so with reduced manpower requirements and fewer munitions. Ultimately, they serve as a force multiplier, helping U.S. forces to fight effectively against enemy threats, which may be numerically superior or capable of exploiting operational or tactical advantages over U.S. forces.

The new policy drew some criticism, including from Sen. Bob Menendez, ranking member of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee.

By enabling and encouraging the scourge of anti-personnel landmines around the world, President Trump has found yet another disturbing way to undo the progress made to restrict the harm to civilians these indiscriminate weapons cause, he said.

There is a reason why more than 160 countries have banned the use of antipersonnel landmines. Like machine guns, APL are gruesome weapons useful only to kill people in the battlefield; but the reality is these devices often end up causing horrific casualties and deaths of innocent men, women, and children off the battlefield.
When Chris Voss showed up at his hotel in Los Angeles recently before the official check-in time, the clerk informed him there would be an early check-in fee. Minutes later, he left the reception desk with the fee waived and a key to an upgraded room.

A former lead international kidnapping negotiator for the F.B.I., Mr. Voss is an expert in negotiation, and not just at hotels. He successfully negotiated the surrender of hostages during the 1993 Chase Manhattan bank robbery in Brooklyn. He has taught business negotiation at Harvard University and written about the art of persuasion in his book, Never Split the Difference. His new online MasterClass details the use of body language, speech patterns, empathy and bargaining  tactics he believes can be applied, from requesting a pay raise to landing travel perks and avoiding travel penalties.

The following interview, on Mr. Vosss approach to managing travel hurdles, has been edited and condensed for clarity.

Are there basics to negotiation, like controlling your voice?

Its great there are so many demanding travelers who raise their voices. It makes it easier for the rest of us. Start out friendly and playful. The idea is to convey I like you and want you to enjoy this interaction. It will come out in your voice and impact them positively before you finish your first sentence. The adage is: Never be mean to someone who can hurt you by doing nothing. If youre good, theyll be delighted to do for you whatever they can. A playful, enjoyable attitude gives you latitude.
New Delhi, Feb 1 : Admitting that there is a lack of headroom to pursue fiscal expansion, Union Defence Minister Rajnath Singh said on Saturday that Budget 2020-2021 has done a "wonderful job at this juncture" and is promising, proactive and progressive.

"The first Budget of the new decade presented today by Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman gives an outline of a new and confident India. It is a promising, proactive and progressive Budget which will make India healthy and wealthy in coming years," he said.

The Defence Minister said the Budget has a clear focus on the welfare and development of all sections of the society and gives special attention to farmers.

"The measures announced today will certainly spur growth and create new job opportunities," he said.

The minister said the Budget is not only investment friendly but will also go a long way in doubling farmers' income and unshackling the Indian industry.

It also promises the investors, tax payers and wealth creators a predictable environment by assuring them protection against tax harassment.

"The new tax regime will reduce tax burden on common man. It will pave the way for an efficient tax system, in sync with the best practices in the world", the minister said.

"Strategic allocations have been made in this Budget for agriculture, education, health, water, sanitation and skill development. Policy intervention in new tech economy is indeed a welcome move", he said.

"Under the leadership of Prime Minister Narendra Modi, the nation aspires to be a $5 trillion economy. The Budget today has emphatically laid down this goal to be achieved by 2024-25," he added.
Union minister of state for finance, Anurag Thakur, offered a prayer hours before his boss Nirmala Sitharamans presentation of the Union Budget in Parliament.

News agency Asian News International tweeted photographs of Anurag Thakur praying before an idol of Hanuman at his home.

The Modi government believes in Sabka Sath, Sabka Vikas. We received suggestions from across the country. The government has made efforts to ensure that this budget will be good for all, good for the people and the country, Thakur, dressed a rust jacket and white kurta, said while speaking to ANI.

All eyes are on Union finance minister Nirmala Sitharaman, who is expected to increase spending on infrastructure and cut taxes to revive a sagging economy and boost consumer demand.

Nirmala Sitharaman will be aiming to get growth back up with the economy staring at the worst pace of expansion recorded in a decade with her second budget as the second woman finance minister after Indira Gandhi.

Sitharaman had presented her first budget in July last year, shortly after the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP)-led government came to power in the Centre in the Lok Sabha elections in 2019.

The Union Budget is the financial statement of the government, detailing its revenue and expenditure in the past, as well as estimated spending and projections for the coming year.
Queensland's Premier wants Australia to suspend flights from China as the death toll from coronavirus rises.

Annastacia Palaszczuk is calling on the federal government to stop arrival flights from China in a bid to stop the spread of the virus.

Queensland Premier Annastacia Palaszczuk says she is frustrated with the federal government's response to the coronavirus. Credit:AAP

The Premier told reporters in Brisbane on Saturday she backed "recommendations in relation to no more incoming flights until the virus is contained".

"I don't often agree with Donald Trump, but I do agree with the US authorities on this occasion that I think we should take every measure possible to combat this virus," she added.
A number of bilateral documents are expected to be signed.

Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan will visit Ukraine on Monday, February 3, according to the press service of Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky.

Read alsoTurkey interested in Ukraine's An-178 aircraft  media

The presidents will meet face to face. In addition, the eighth meeting of the Ukraine-Turkey High-Level Strategic Council co-chaired by Zelensky and Erdogan will be held in Kyiv, the press service said.

During the negotiations, the parties will discuss ways to deepen strategic partnership and cooperation in all areas.

Following the meeting of the Strategic Council, a number of bilateral documents are expected to be signed.

Zelensky and Erdogan will also visit the Ukrainian-Turkish business forum.
A man on Saturday fired two rounds in air in the Shaheen Bagh area, where an anti-CAA protest is on, following which he was taken into custody by police, eyewitnesses said. No one was injured in the incident which occurred at around 4:53 pm.

According to eyewitnesses, the man opened fire behind the stage at the site where the protest against the Citizenship (Amendment) Act has been going on since over a month. The man was overpowered by locals and handed over to the police. The incident comes days after a local contractor armed with a gun had come to the site and asked the ...
Maldives has been readmitted to the Commonwealth (Gareth Fuller/PA)

Maldives has rejoined the Commonwealth, bringing the total number of nations in the global organisation to 54, it has been announced.

The change came into effect at one minute past midnight on Saturday February 1  just over an hour after the UK left the EU.

The republic quit the Commonwealth in 2016 after being threatened with suspension over its human rights record and lack of progress on democratic reform.

President Ibrahim Ibu Mohamed Solih, a campaigner for democracy during decades of autocratic rule who was elected in 2018, pledged change and swiftly applied to rejoin.

The island nation has been readmitted after showing evidence of functioning democratic processes and popular support for being part of the family of nations.

President @ibusolih attends function to mark World Human Right Day 2019 pic.twitter.com/6xBrYUcZMB  The President's Office (@presidencymv) December 10, 2019

Commonwealth Secretary-General Baroness Scotland, announcing the decision, said: I warmly congratulate Maldives on its successful application.

We are delighted to welcome the country and its people back to the Commonwealth.

The reform process under way in Maldives aligns with the values and principles of the Commonwealth and we encourage the nation to continue on this path.

Commonwealth members were pleased to note these developments and are happy once again to count Maldives as a member of the family.

Together we will support Maldives to realise its ambitions.

Baroness Scotland consulted the other Commonwealth nations, who all had to agree to Maldives readmission for it to go ahead.

Famed for its sandy white beaches and luxury tourist resorts, the Indian Ocean archipelago  home to around 500,000 people  is formed of nearly 1,200 islands, most of them uninhabited.

Many resorts in the Maldives need to be reached by seaplane. With unbeatable window seat views like this, the seaplane ride itself is a remarkable adventure. 



: aburrn via IG

#Maldives #VisitMaldives #SunnySideofLife pic.twitter.com/4IW5j3pyUg  Visit Maldives (@visitmaldives) January 23, 2020

During his election campaign, Mr Solih vowed to promote human rights and, since his surprise win, political prisoners have been freed and exiled opposition figures have returned to the islands.

Within months of taking power, he wrote to the Commonwealth Secretary-General expressing interest in rejoining the Commonwealth, before making an official application.

Mr Solih said: Today is a happy day for Maldivians as we return to the family of Commonwealth nations.

As a young democracy, the Commonwealths foundational values of the promotion of democracy, human rights, good governance, multilateralism and world peace remain relevant to us more than ever.

We gratefully acknowledge the support and help of the Commonwealth to the Maldivian democratic movement, and we look forward to the support of fellow member states to ensure the long-term entrenchment of these values in our society.

The country faced an assessment including two site visits and consultations in accordance with the rules and procedures agreed by the Commonwealth Heads of Government in Kampala in 2007.

Expand Close The Queen, head of the Commonwealth, and Commonwealth Secretary-General Baroness Scotland (right) with Commonwealth leaders in 2018 (Yui Mok/PA) PA Archive/PA Images / Facebook

Twitter

Email

Whatsapp The Queen, head of the Commonwealth, and Commonwealth Secretary-General Baroness Scotland (right) with Commonwealth leaders in 2018 (Yui Mok/PA)

In 2016, the Maldives government quit the global body under former president Yameen Abdul Gayoom, saying it had been treated unjustly and unfairly.

The country had been threatened with sanctions including suspension if it failed to show progress in key democratic governance issues, including the prompt release of political leaders and misuse of anti-terrorism legislation.

Mr Yameen, who was elected in 2013, was accused of a crackdown on political rivals, courts and the media.

But he was replaced by opposition leader Mr Solih in a shock result in elections in 2018.

The islands, which became a multi-party democracy in 2008 after decades of autocratic rule, had been in political turmoil since its first democratically-elected president, Mohamed Nasheed, announced his resignation in 2012.

It followed a mutiny by the police and weeks of demonstrations against his order to arrest the senior judge. He later said he was forced out in a coup.

All member countries of the Commonwealth must subscribe to the values and principles of the Commonwealth Charter, including a commitment to the development of free and democratic societies and the promotion of peace and prosperity.

Maldives, which last joined the Commonwealth in 1982, will now be part of the Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting (CHOGM) in Kigali, Rwanda, in June.

The Queen is the symbolic head of the Commonwealth, and more than 2.4 billion citizens make up the voluntary association.
He obviously knows nothing about bison management like so many people living in their iconic fantasy world. Each bison will replace one ranchers cow (which pays for your local school and provides your hamburgers). Who is going to compensate that property tax paying rancher for his lost income? Most ranchers are hardworking small businessmen trying to pay their extensive bills, pay their taxes, feed their families, and provide food for the rest of America.

Marchion seems confused; or at the least is totally misinformed claiming the United Property Owners of Montana (UPOM) is a out-of-state dark money group The truth is that that the UPOM is a simple organization of family ranchers led by a ranch wife from Roy, and totally funded by donations from mostly central Montana ranchers. The simple goal of this group is to address the destruction of agriculture by the American Prairie Reserve and the naive idea initiated by Democrat Gov. Brian Schweitzer and his radical environmental political base to force ranchers to accept wild bison. This adds to their current problem of thousands of elk being fed by ranchers in place of the livestock which would pay their bills. These cows pay the taxes for schools and support local businesses while the ranchers hope to have enough income at the end of the year to feed and clothe their family.
The African Development Bank (AfDB) expects Moroccos economic growth to reach 3.7 pc in 2020 and 3.9 pc in 2021 from a 2.9 pc growth posted last year.

In its African Economic Outlook 2020 report, the African bank says the projected GDP in Morocco is supported by the sustained efforts made to improve macroeconomic conditions to overcome regional and international challenges.

The report also underlines the economic attractiveness of the North African Kingdom, which has become a strategic hub for foreign companies looking to operate or set up business in Africa.

The amended law on publicprivate partnerships and the advanced regionalization policy offer new investment opportunities.

However, the agricultural sectors strong dependence on the climate could be a drag on growth, say the AfDB analysts, noting that the country faces some structural challenges. These include education and training that meet the needs of the private sector as well as youth unemployment.

The report also stresses the importance of good governance, the modernization of public administration and the role of private sector in promoting competitiveness and productivity.

Regarding the economic situation in Africa, AfDB says growth has stabilized in the continent at 3.4 pc in 2019 and is expected to rebound to 3.9 pc in 2020 and 4.1 pc in 2021.

For the first time in a decade, investment in Africa accounted for more than half the continents growth, with private consumption accounting for less than one third.

The 2020 Outlook highlights, however, that growth has been less than inclusive. Only about a third of African countries achieved inclusive growth, reducing both poverty and inequality.
Linda Diebel was a tenacious reporter and gifted story-teller who broke new ground as the Toronto Stars first Latin American Bureau chief in 1995.

Diebel died this week of natural causes several months after a serious fall down the stairs in her Toronto home. She was 71.

Linda was a one of a kind trailblazer, said Torstar chair John Honderich, a former publisher of the paper.

She was our first female correspondent in Washington and her work as a correspondent in war-torn Mexico was both daring and insightful Honderich said.

Former Star managing editor Mary Deanne Shears recalled Diebels doggedness as a reporter.

Linda exuded a very deep passion for journalism and was just about unstoppable in her search for truth, Shears said.

When she took on an assignment, her editors knew no stone would be left unturned. Her work ethic demanded she be given the appropriate time to research and write, she said.

Diebel was known to friends and colleagues for an intense and quirky personality and a flamboyant fashion sense.

To be sure, she was intense, a trait that led her to write award-winning journalism and books, Shears said.

No subject was beyond her grasp: political intrigue, wars, civic issues. She cared about them all, she said.

Olivia Ward, a close friend and fellow foreign correspondent at the Star, remembers Diebel as an ace reporter who would dig until she uncovered the full story.

Linda was an absolutely fierce and dedicated journalist who would go to the limit on any story, says Ward, who covered Moscow for the paper in the 1990s.

Diebel joined the Stars Ottawa bureau in 1988 after stints as a senior writer for Macleans Magazine and in the Montreal Gazettes Ottawa bureau.

She also worked at the Vancouver Sun in her early career.

Tim Harper, a former national editor and columnist at the Star, recalled Diebel not only as a tenacious reporter, but as as a fine writer.

I worked with Linda in Ottawa, Washington and Toronto and never saw anyone attack a story with such tenacity, said Harper. The richness of her writing and her eye for detail were second to none, he said.

Ian Urquhart, also a former Star managing editor, also recalled Diebels skill as a reporter.

She was a brilliant journalist . She was, in my view, a great journalist, Urquhart says.

She was trilingual (Spanish, French and English) and loved going off the beaten path of journalism and finding stories that other people werent finding, he says.

Diebel was born in Sudbury in 1948 and attended Hamiltons McMaster University in the late 1960s, where she earned an honours degree in English and history.

She became the Stars Washington Bureau Chief in 1990, where her intense opposition to the first Gulf War earned her the ire of then U.S. president George H.W. Bush.

He called her that nasty Diebel person, recalls Ward, who added that it was a reproach Diebel relished.

From Washington she broke ground as the papers first Latin American Bureau chief, setting up headquarters in Mexico City but seeing all of Mexico and Central and South America as her bailiwick.

Her work earned her a National Newspaper Award in 2000 for stories about the kidnapping business in Colombia. It was her fourth nomination for that prestigious award.

Diebel  travelled deep into dangerous guerrilla territory, sometimes by mule, and found a sophisticated kidnapping operation assisted by computers, the Star wrote at the time.

Diebel used her bureau experience to write the 2006 book Betrayed: The Assassination of Digna Ochoa, about the killing of a Mexican human rights lawyer.

She wrote a second book published a year later on then national Liberal leader Stephane Dion.

Back in Toronto in 2002, Diebel worked extensively on national and local political issues. And her stories in 2010 about a sex scandal involving city counsellor Adam Giambrone put the brakes on his incipient mayoral campaign.

Beneath her intense exterior, there were deep layers of loyalty and compassion, said Ward, who added that Diebel was also deeply involved in human rights issues.

She was an extremely loyal friend, Ward said.

And her heart was with the poorest people in society. She was also a fashionista. She loved the good things in life, but she always identified with the poor.

Ward also recalled Diebels passion for her feline companions.

More than anything in the entire world, she loved her cats, said Ward, who recalled that she brought two rescued animals back with her from Mexico.

A celebration of Diebels life will be held at a later date.

Editors note March 7, 2021: This article was edited.
DES MOINES, Iowa  Democratic presidential candidates seeking victory in this weeks Iowa caucuses are navigating a field that is so jumbled that voters second choices could matter almost as much as their first, adding fresh uncertainty and confusion to the final days of the race.

Lower-polling candidates including Amy Klobuchar, Andrew Yang and Tom Steyer have been approached by campaigns in recent days eager to form an alliance that could reshape Mondays election. Joe Bidens team has been in communication with lower-polling rivals, according to several people familiar with the conversations who spoke on condition of anonymity.

The former vice presidents campaign dismisses such reports of potential deal-making as dramatized accounts of business as usual. But the delicate overtures are a test of the leading campaigns ability to assemble a winning coalition and the capacity of second-tier candidates to stay relevant. And it could be decisive in determining who leaves Iowa with the momentum that will be needed to sustain a long campaign ahead.

The second-place phenomenon, at least in Iowa, is not a bad thing at all, said Iowa state Sen. Zach Wahls, who supports Massachusetts Sen. Elizabeth Warren.

In contrast to a traditional election, the caucus system works like this: Voters gather at dozens of caucus locations across the state and start the night by pledging support for their preferred candidate. After the initial vote count is taken, voters backing candidates who earn less than 15% are free to shift to other candidates or go home.

While a dozen Democrats are still running for president, just four  Biden, Warren, Bernie Sanders and Pete Buttigieg  have consistently polled above the 15% threshold in Iowa. Still, any of the four could see their support fall short, depending on who shows up to caucus.

As is the case with Biden and others, Warren sees an opportunity to draw significant support from Klobuchar, who has not reached the 15% threshold in polls to date, even as the Minnesota senators standing appears to have improved in recent weeks.

Klobuchars team, aware that shes viewed as a source of second-choice votes from several campaigns, downplayed the possibility of a potential deal when asked about conversations with rival campaigns.

Weve got no plans to cut any deals with anybody because were going to be viable, said Klobuchar campaign manager Justin Buoen.

Steve Peoples and Will Weissert are Associated Press writers.
A Belfast woman who went missing on Wednesday has been found alive in the Cave Hill area after an extensive three-day search operation.

The name of the woman has not been released, but it is understood to be 41-year-old Lisa Faulkner who went missing from the east Belfast area on January 29.

After being found Ms Faulkner was transported to hospital by Coastguard helicopter and it is understood she is currently in intensive care and remains in critical condition.

The Community Rescue Service (CRS) had worked with police to scour the local area looking for the missing woman.

CRS Regional Commander Sean McCarry said that the woman was located on Friday evening after police air support noticed a heat source in the Cave Hill area, overlooking Belfast.

Police and a 35 member CRS specialist team were tasked to the area at around 6pm on Friday evening and after a period of searching found the missing woman.

Mr McCarry said that when found, the woman was in need of "immediate medical attention".

CRS and police liaised with the Coastguard Coordination Centre at Bangor who arranged for a helicopter to be dispatched to the scene from Prestwick.

The woman was then taken to a nearby clearing where she was airlifted to hospital in Belfast for treatment.

Mr McCarry said the woman had ended up in a "very remote and inaccessible" area of Cave Hill which took the rescue team around an hour to locate.

The operation lasted around four hours in total and finished at roughly 10pm.

"The police air support deserve credit for locating the woman and facilitating her rescue," Mr McCarry said.

"The operation had an extremely positive ending for everyone, the woman, her family and friends and the search team who had spent three days and nights out looking for her."

Mr McCarry said the woman may not have survived had she spent much longer without rescue.

"We never give up hope, we have been out on searches much longer than three days and still had a positive result," he said.

"This is why we do what we do, you just never know where people could be or end up if they get themselves into difficulty. Not every operation we are part of has a happy ending."

Mr McCarry said the rescue operation was a "classic example" of a successful multi-agency approach with the CRS, police and the Coastguard all working together.

He paid tribute to the CRS volunteers involved in the woman's rescue and said that over 70 other volunteers were involved in searches in other parts of Northern Ireland at the same time.

"I give my sincere thanks to everyone involved in this operation and I'd also like to wish the woman a speedy recovery," Mr McCarry said.

A PSNI spokesman confirmed that Ms Faulkner had been found safe.

"Police are no longer looking for missing person Lisa Faulkner, she has been found and is safe. Thank you for your assistance," a spokesman said.
Faced with almost $100,000 in federal tax liens, New Orleans Mayor LaToya Cantrell on Friday blamed most of the debt on penalties and interest but declined to provide a further explanation of her financial troubles to the public, saying the issue is too complicated.

In brief remarks about the debt, Cantrell said she and her husband are working with a tax attorney to dispute many of the charges. She also said they had paid $60,000 toward the debt over the course of two years, though she did not say how much she currently owes or how much she had originally underpaid.

I believe Ive given you enough information, Cantrell said as she briefly answered questions following a news conference about road work in New Orleans East. I dont anticipate or expect to go into that level of detail especially when its so complicated and you dont have the information.

Mayor LaToya Cantrell owes more than $95,000 in back taxes; IRS puts liens on her home New Orleans Mayor LaToya Cantrell owes more than $95,000 to the Internal Revenue Service for unpaid taxes over the course of six years, accord

The $95,000 in Internal Revenue Service liens, first reported by WVUE-TV on Thursday evening, have caused an uproar among many members of the community who have taken Cantrell to task for not paying the federal government what it says she owes, even as she has pushed a fair share policy in New Orleans that attempts to bring more money into city coffers through new taxes and fees that could hit residents, tourists, nonprofits and businesses.

Cantrell has repeatedly referred to the liens as a personal matter and has sought to cast the debt as a sign that she is in touch with the struggles of average New Orleanians.

I will say to the people of this city they have a mayor who really gets it and is dealing with challenges and difficulties her own self, and at the same time doing what it takes to deal with the needs of people, she said.

As mayor, Cantrell will make more than $174,650 this year. A 2018 financial disclosure report listed her husbands income as more than $100,000. Last years financial disclosure form is not due to be turned in until May.

I pay taxes, every single time, Cantrell said, noting that as a City Hall employee she has taxes taken out of her paycheck.

This is not a situation where you dont pay or I have not paid, she said. Fines or penalties have stacked up against the taxes that are owed and ones that really do take some fine tuning and work with a tax attorney.

Beyond that, Cantrell said little about how her family fell behind on taxes for the second time in the past decade.

The IRS has filed liens on the Cantrells Broadmoor home in each of the past three years. The first was filed in January 2018 and alleged Cantrell owed about $43,660 for 2013, 2014 and 2015. In 2019, the IRS filed a second lien for $31,940 owed from 2017. A third lien was filed in mid-January, alleging that $19,400 was owed from 2018.

That all comes on top of a lien filed by the IRS against the Cantrells home in 2014 for $28,000 in unpaid taxes from 2010, 2011 and 2012.

During her mayoral race in 2017, Cantrell told The Lens, which first revealed that lien, that it came after the IRS determined they owed more than they had paid during those years. At the time, Cantrell said the debt was supposed to have been largely settled by proceeds the couple took out when they refinanced their home but that their lender, First NBC Bank, never sent that money to the IRS before the bank collapsed.

Top stories in New Orleans in your inbox Twice daily we'll send you the day's biggest headlines. Sign up today. e-mail address * Sign Up

Shortly before the election, the Cantrells settled up with the IRS for about $30,000.

Cantrell would not answer questions Friday about how much of the $95,000 in debt was due to unpaid taxes, as opposed to fines and fees. But a tax expert said the penalties assessed by the IRS can add up quickly.

In some situations, those who owe money to the IRS can find that amount increased by 50% a year after the filing deadline, said Dennis Brager, a tax litigation attorney in Los Angeles whose 40-year career has included time as a trial lawyer for the IRS.

This gets expensive, fast, Brager said.

And those penalties add up even if the taxpayer is disputing the IRS findings or working to pay off the balance, Brager said.

Cantrell said little Friday about what parts of the debt she might be contesting or on what grounds. But she did say that the payment she and her husband have already made was not processed by the IRS for four or five months, which could add a substantial charge to the overall amount.

While the amount the couple owes may be nearly three times the median income in New Orleans, experts said it likely would not prompt criminal prosecution unless there is evidence of deliberate attempts to defraud the government.

Instead, Brager said, a more normal course would be for the IRS to garnish wages or potentially seek to seize and sell the taxpayers' home.

Former U.S. Attorney Harry Rosenberg agreed with that assessment. "I just dont think its going to rise to the level of anything other than the government trying to collect its back taxes," he said.

Some people on social media lambasted Cantrell for the liens, saying they call into question whether she can properly handle the city's budget.

But she rebuffed suggestions that her finances should be seen as a cause for concern about her administration.

"As it relates to city government and running it, we have not misstepped at all, and there will be no missteps in the Cantrell administration, as we have routinely proven," she said.

Staff writer Gordon Russell contributed to this report.
Bord na Mona workers are protesting in Co Offaly this afternoon, saying the government's failing to deliver good quality replacement jobs under a "just transition" away from fossil fuels.

An Bord Pleanala refused the ESB permission to keep burning turf until 2027 at Shannonbridge power station, while it switched to biomass.
PROTEST: Activists and journalists protest outside the Attorney General's Office (PGR) after a criminal complaint following a report that their smartphones had been infected with spying software sold to the government to fight criminals and terrorists in Mexico City, Mexico June 23, 2017. Carlos Jasso/Reuters file
The Santa Clara County Health Department said Friday that a resident of the county tested positive for the new coronavirus, marking the first case in the Bay Area. This is the third case in California, with two others reported in Southern California.

While health officials said the risk to Bay Area residents remains extremely low, the recent news may have some residents asking questions.

What is coronavirus?

The viral respiratory illness spreading rapidly in China is a new kind of coronavirus that scientists have never observed in humans before. Coronaviruses are a large family of viruses, some of which cause the common cold. Others have evolved into more severe illnesses, such as SARS and MERS, although so far the new virus does not appear to be nearly as deadly or contagious.

How many people are impacted?

The number of confirmed cases worldwide has risen to 9,800, with the majority of those cases in China, according to the World Health Organization. More than 200 people have died.

The World Health Organization has declared novel coronavirus a global health emergency, and the U.S. Department of Health and Humans Services has declared a public health emergency in the United States. But the center of the outbreak is in Wuhan, a port city of 11 million in the Hubei province of China. The Chinese government has quarantined the city, and restricted travel to and from several other cities, including the capital, Beijing.

About 200 cases have been confirmed across two dozen countries outside China, including Australia, Cambodia, Canada, Finland, France, Germany, India, Italy, Japan, Malaysia, Nepal, Philippines, Russia, Singapore, Sri Lanka, Sweden, the Republic of Korea, Taiwan, Thailand, United Arab Emirates, the United Kingdom and Vietnam. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) is updating this list daily.

There are seven cases in the United States: three of them in Southern California, two in Illinois, one in Washington state and another in Arizona.

For comparison, between November 2002 and July 2003, the outbreak of SARS in southern China infected 8,098 people, resulting in 774 deaths reported in 17 countries. The majority of cases were in in mainland China and Hong Kong.

What's the mortality rate?

"Theres a lot we dont know about coronavirus, and one is the case fatality rate -- what percentage of patients will die of the illness," said Dr. Chiu of UCSF. "It does appear based on the data available so far that this appears to be less deadly than SARS at 2 to 3 percent, and for SARS, it was about 10 percent. This is still a more severe disease than the flu. It has a mortality rate of .o1 percent."

Chiu added that at this early stage in virus and with most cases in China, it's difficult for researches to pin down the mortality rate. He said in China, officials have been focused on the public health response and they're only now able to start analyzing data.

Who is the person who tested positive in Santa Clara County?

The first Bay Area case involves an unnamed adult male who is a resident of the county and who traveled to Wuhan, China. He showed symptoms after returning home, and has been self-isolating at home. The patient is stable and hasn't been sick enough to be hospitalized. He was seen at a local clinic. For privacy reasons, other details on the patient aren't being released. The CDC and county health officials are monitoring anyone this person has come into contact with, but the number is thought to be low, because he has stayed at home.

Now that someone in the Bay Area has coronavirus, am I at a higher risk?

"Although we do understand this confirmed case may raise concern, this one case, in fact, doesn't change the risk for the general public," said Dr. Sara Cody, a health officer with Santa Clara County. "Our assessment is that the public at large is still at low risk, because this case was careful to self-isolate at home since the time he returned from China."

The San Francisco Public Health Department echoed Cody's message, saying the risk in the city remains low. "San Francisco has zero cases of novel coronavirus at this time," the public health department said in a statement. "If a case is confirmed in San Francisco, the Department of Public Health will announce it, in cooperation with the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and the California Department of Public Health."

What's more, Dr. Charles Chiu, a professor of laboratory medicine and infectious disease at UC San Francisco, said "I think the risk in the U.S. is still close to zero. We havent seen any evidence of sustained transmission currently, but I emphasize currently because that may change. Although we have confirmed cases, they have been coming from returning travelers from Wuhan, or a household member of a returning traveler."

MORE: World stocks skid as virus fears spook markets, hit tourism

What are the symptoms?

The virus can cause fever, coughing, wheezing and pneumonia. The incubation period is thought to be two weeks. But it's also a heavy flu season, and some of the symptoms are similar.

"If you have traveled to Wuhan and are experiencing a fever or lower respiratory illness, such as a cough or trouble breathing, contact your medical provider by phone," advised Balram. "Let them know your symptoms and travel history before going to the ER. You want to make contact first."

What's the origin of coronavirus?

The exact origin is currently unknown, but Dr. Chiu said it likely originated from bats. "We know this because most coronaviruses are thought to originate from bats," he said. "SARS originated from bats and coronavirus about 80 percent identical to SARS. It's about 90 percent identical to a bat virus."

The transmission of a disease from a bat directly to a human is very rare and Chiu said it's more likely another animal is the intermediary but researchers aren't certain which one yet. There was one paper pointing to snakes, but Dr. Chiu said the research is still fuzzy. "I think right now its up in the air," he said. "Theres likely an intermediary reservoir thats likely to be an animal, but we don't know yet."

How can I stay safe?

"There are things people can do to make themselves safer, and by far the most effective way to do this is really good hand-washing," said Dr. Susan Philip, San Francisco's deputy health officer and director of communicable disease prevention. "We dont do that as much as we should, especially when riding public transit. We dont realize how much we touch surfaces and then our faces."

Should I start wearing a mask to protect myself?

There's currently no need for residents to wear masks when they leave their homes, according to Dr. Philip. But if a mask puts you at ease, there's likely no harm in using one.

You should consider wearing a mask if you're coughing or have a fever to stop the spread of viruses. While there continues to be a low risk of coronavirus transmission, flu and cold viruses are rampant at this time of year.

"Masks do have a role," Dr. Philip said. "If people are sick, we prefer they stay home. But if they do have to go out, then wearing a mask is a great idea to prevent the spread of germs to people around you."

Should I start stocking up on food in case of an outbreak in the Bay Area?

"We dont think theres any reason to stock up on food," said Dr. Philip. "We dont advise people to panic. If people are really worried, the best thing is to stay informed by checking the CDC website where you find updated information. You can also check in with your county health department."

What's the United States doing to prevent spread into the country?

The CDC is screening passengers on direct and connecting flights from Wuhan at multiple airports including Atlanta, Chicago, New York City, San Francisco and Los Angeles.

The United States is imposing a travel ban on foreign nationals who have been in China in the past 14 days.

What's the Bay Area doing to prepare for potential local cases?

San Francisco Mayor London Breed said Monday that the city has activated the Emergency Operations Center and is working with local, state and federal agencies to be ready to respond, if necessary. Other Bay Area counties are doing the same.

ALSO: Are you in danger of catching the coronavirus? 5 questions answered

Amy Graff is a digital editor with SFGATE. Email her: agraff@sfgate.com.
Jonathan Copus has been the CEO of Getech Group Plc (LON:GTC) since 2016. First, this article will compare CEO compensation with compensation at similar sized companies. After that, we will consider the growth in the business. Third, we'll reflect on the total return to shareholders over three years, as a second measure of business performance. This process should give us an idea about how appropriately the CEO is paid.

See our latest analysis for Getech Group

How Does Jonathan Copus's Compensation Compare With Similar Sized Companies?

According to our data, Getech Group Plc has a market capitalization of UK8.5m, and paid its CEO total annual compensation worth UK276k over the year to December 2018. While we always look at total compensation first, we note that the salary component is less, at UK250k. We examined a group of similar sized companies, with market capitalizations of below UK152m. The median CEO total compensation in that group is UK250k.

So Jonathan Copus is paid around the average of the companies we looked at. Although this fact alone doesn't tell us a great deal, it becomes more relevant when considered against the business performance.

The graphic below shows how CEO compensation at Getech Group has changed from year to year.

AIM:GTC CEO Compensation, February 1st 2020

Is Getech Group Plc Growing?

Over the last three years Getech Group Plc has shrunk its earnings per share by an average of 58% per year (measured with a line of best fit). Revenue was pretty flat on last year.

Sadly for shareholders, earnings per share are actually down, over three years. And the flat revenue hardly impresses. It's hard to argue the company is firing on all cylinders, so shareholders might be averse to high CEO remuneration. You might want to check this free visual report on analyst forecasts for future earnings.

Has Getech Group Plc Been A Good Investment?

Since shareholders would have lost about 44% over three years, some Getech Group Plc shareholders would surely be feeling negative emotions. It therefore might be upsetting for shareholders if the CEO were paid generously.

Story continues

In Summary...

Remuneration for Jonathan Copus is close enough to the median pay for a CEO of a similar sized company .

After looking at EPS and total shareholder returns, it's certainly hard to argue the company has performed well, since both metrics are down. Few would argue that it's wise for the company to pay any more, before returns improve. CEO compensation is one thing, but it is also interesting to check if the CEO is buying or selling Getech Group (free visualization of insider trades).

Of course, you might find a fantastic investment by looking elsewhere. So take a peek at this free list of interesting companies.

If you spot an error that warrants correction, please contact the editor at editorial-team@simplywallst.com. This article by Simply Wall St is general in nature. It does not constitute a recommendation to buy or sell any stock, and does not take account of your objectives, or your financial situation. Simply Wall St has no position in the stocks mentioned.



We aim to bring you long-term focused research analysis driven by fundamental data. Note that our analysis may not factor in the latest price-sensitive company announcements or qualitative material. Thank you for reading.
Industry bodies and entrepreneurs of the state have expressed a mixed bag of reactions on the Union Budget 2020-21.

The Bihar Industries Association (BIA) hailed the Budget and termed it a "welfare budget" meant to benefit the common man.

BIA President Ram Lall Khaitan said, "The Budget may not provide immediate benefits or reliefs but the measures announced in it will certainly help in picking up the growth momentum."



The Bihar Chamber of Commerce and Industry (BCCI), which also welcomed the Budget, however sees the Budget as the one that may not help the country in getting out of the recession.

BCCI President P K Agrawal said the Budget announcements would benefit farmers and people hailing from the small and medium category, but expressed disappointment on Bihar getting nothing in the Budget.

PHD Chamber of Commerce and Industry's Bihar unit Chairman Satyajit Singh welcomed the Budget 2020-21, saying it has tried to reset the economy for growth.

The Bihar Entrepreneurs Association also welcomed the Budget saying it will boost incomes and enhance purchasing power.

"The focus of the Budget on the agriculture sector with pinpointed 16 action points to double farmers' income by 2022 is highly encouraging. The focus on agriculture will create tremendous demand in the economy, boost manufacturing and services sector activities and rebound the economic growth trajectory of the country," BEA Secretary General Abhshek Singh said.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
Budget 2020: Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman broke her own record and delivered the longest Union Budget speech. Her first budget speech was 137 minutes long, while this speech was 159 minutes long. The minister could not wrap up her speech and abruptly stopped her budget speech.

Towards the end of her address to the Lok Sabha, Nirmala Sitharaman told the speaker, "There are only two more pages. Sir, I think I will lay the rest of the pages, Sir." Sitharaman appeared unwell towards the end of the speech.

FULL COVERAGE:Union Budget 2020

The Congress party lashed out at the minister and said that it might have been the longest but the Budget 2020 was lacklustre. "The main issue facing is unemployment. I didn't see any strategic idea that would help our youth get jobs. I saw tactical stuff but no central idea. It describes the government well, lot of repetition and rambling. It is the mindset of government -- all talk, but nothing happening. Maybe this was the longest Budget speech in history but it had nothing, it was hollow," said Rahul Gandhi.

The party also said, "Longest Budget speech and most lacklustre. After Acche Din and New India, it appears they have also abandoned USD 5 trillion economy target."

Also read: Budget 2020 Speech Live Updates: FM Sitharaman announces major income tax relief

The minister announced a host of measures in her Budget speech. Some of the prominent ones included change in the income tax slabs and the government selling part of its holding in national insurer LIC. FM Sitharaman said that the government is aiming to double the income of the farmers by 2022. As part of the measure for the agriculture sector, the minister announced Kisan Rail and Krishi UDAN. The finance minister added that there will be more than 100 new airports under the UDAN scheme by 2025.

The Finance Minister also spoke about GST and paid homage to former Finance Minister Arun Jaitley, who she credited as the 'architect' of the national tax.

Also read: Budget 2020 Date: When is Union Budget, Expectations from Modi govt, Time, where to watch

Also read: Budget 2020: Watch Live Streaming on Aaj Tak, India Today, live telecast channels
About 24 hours after an FCT high court granted bail to a former justice minister, Mohammed Adoke, the EFCC has not released him from its custody.

The acting spokesperson to the commission, Tony Orilade, told PREMIUM TIMES on Friday that the ex-official is still in detention as he has not been able to fulfil his bail conditions.

He is still with us because he is yet to fulfil his bail conditions, Mr Orilade said in a telephone interview.

Mike Ozekhome, who represents the former AGF, told PREMIUM TIMES the defendant had fulfilled all his bail conditions adding that the next step rests with the EFCC.

Mr Adoke was granted bail on Thursday afternoon by Idris Kutigi, a judge at the divisional high court in Gwagwalada, Abuja.

PREMIUM TIMES learned he met the bail conditions by Thursday evening, a few hours after he was released, and the judge signed a warrant for his release, officials familiar with the matter said.

Rather than comply with the order to release Mr Adoke, EFCC officials instead demanded an enroll order authorising Mr Adokes release, PREMIUM TIMES learnt.

Enrolment of order is an official summary of a court ruling prepared and issued to parties in a case until the full version is available.

The demand infuriated Mr Adoke and his team as they wondered why the EFCC would impose its own conditions in a manner that undermined the release warrant that had been duly signed by a judge.

Nonetheless, Mr Adokes lawyers returned to court on Friday to obtain the document requested by the EFCC.

They then presented the enroll order and other necessary release documents signed Mr Kutigi on Friday. The registrar for Mr Kutigis court also reportedly followed Mr Adokes team to the EFCC on Friday to understand why the former AGF was still being held.

Blame the system  Lawyer

Mr Ozekhome narrated the efforts embarked by his legal team to meet the conditions.

He said the lawyers were also able to secure a letter from the court formally telling the EFCC all the bail conditions had been perfected.

According to him, before his team was able to secure all the documents requested by the commission, the officers in charge of the matter had already closed.

READ ALSO:

The lawyer, therefore, blamed the system and the distance between the court and the commission for their inability to arrive on time.

He (Adoke) has fulfilled all the bail conditions. When my team of lawyers went yesterday to get him released, the EFCC told them that they needed a certified true copy of the enrolled order for his release, the certified true copy of the ruling and they needed also a formal letter from the court saying that Adoke had perfected all the bail conditions.

My team then went to the court and all these were done. The court orders were drawn up but they needed the judge to sign the court order and the ruling, but the judge, of course, was sitting over other matters, so my lawyers had to wait until the judge finished sitting.

The judge then signed the ruling itself and the warrant formally telling the EFCC all the bail conditions had been perfected.

But by the time my lawyers drove from Gwagwalada, which is quite some distance to the EFCC for the release of Adoke, it was already about quarter past four p.m. before we got there and all the EFCC officials in charge of the matter had already closed for the day.

So we are now looking forward till tomorrow for his release. The situation is that no one can blame the EFCC or the court. It was just the system, and the distance between Gwagwalada and the city.

Bail terms

Mr Kutigi, who granted the N50 million bail on Thursday, had also ruled that the former AGF provides one surety who must be resident in Abuja and who must have a landed property in the capital territory.

The second defendant, Abubakar Aliyu, also got bail on the same terms, while the third defendant, Rasky Gbinigie, was granted N10 million bail.

Advertisements



Mr Gbinigie was asked to sign an undertaking not to interfere with the trial or further investigation by the EFCC.

Mr Adoke is accused of fraud by the EFCC. He denies the charge.

Trial

PREMIUM TIMES last week reported how the anti-graft agency filed multiple charges against Mr Adoke.

These include a seven-count charge before the Federal High Court in Abuja and a 12-count charge before the FCT High Court. The charges were later amended to 42 from the initial 12.

The charges include money laundering, denying Nigeria taxes and an alleged N300 million bribe.

In the charge before the FCT High court, the EFCC accused Mr Adoke of accepting gratification to facilitate and negotiate the OPL 245 resolution agreement with Shell, Eni, and their Nigerian subsidiaries.

PREMIUM TIMES reported how almost half of the $1.1 billion paid by Shell and Eni in a controversial OPL 245 deal negotiated by Mr Adoke and some officials of the Goodluck Jonathan administration ended in accounts controlled by Mr Aliyu.

Malabu, which was illegally awarded OPL 245 when Mr Etete was a minister in 1998, then transferred about half of the money into accounts partly controlled by Mr Aliyu.

The EFCC alleges that Mr Aliyu distributed the money to top officials of Shell and Eni as well as some officials of the Jonathan administration.

The EFCC also alleges Mr Adoke received N300 million from Mr Aliyu in 2013. The agency alleges that was his share of the Malabu windfall.

Shell, Eni, and their officials are already being prosecuted in Italy for the scandal.

Mr Adoke has repeatedly denied any wrongdoing.

He said the actions taken in respect of the transfer of the bloc were based on the instructions of his boss, Mr Jonathan and in the best interest of Nigeria.
Seica, Inc. is excited to announce the addition of a new Test House and Demo Center in Los Angeles Published: 31 January 2020 by Chelsey Drysdale by Chelsey Drysdale

Los Angeles, January 2020, --John Zabaldo, President and General Manager of Zdatum, recently purchased a Seica Pilot V8 Next Series Flying Prober and plans to begin full test services starting in the early Spring of 2020. The Pilot V8 Next Series is Seicas flagship flying prober and offers a full array of test capabilities.

John understands that to benefit his current and future customers the most, their demands require a quick turn capability that Zdatum will be able to perform with their knowledge of the industry and the technological capabilities that the Pilot V8 Next Series Flying Prober will provide. With 20 years of experience as a service provider in the electronics industry, John at Zdatum understands the demand for quick-turn service on the ever-increasing complexity of circuit board assemblies. With his knowledge, and the technological capabilities the Pilot V8 Next Series Flying Prober offers, Zdatum will be able to fulfill the demand for simple to complex quick-turn Testing within Southern Californias thriving electronics industry.

To understand the excitement from Zdatum, here is an excerpt from the GM of Zdatum, John Zapaldo:

Zdatum is truly excited to add Seica Flying Probe Testing service to our range of Printed Circuit Board services. From PCB Design, Fabrication, Part Procurement, Assembly, to Testing, our circle of services is now complete. We know offering in-house Seica Flying Probe Testing will greatly enhance the value of Zdatum to current and new customers alike.

In addition, Vice President of Seica Inc. David Sigillo offers his thoughts as well:

Seica Inc., is proud to support Zdatum in this new endeavor as a Test House but also to

help them advance their in-house testing needs for their own clients. With the Seica Pilot

V8 Next, Zdatum which is also a Design House will be able to use the V8 for product

design validation as well. So, from design validation, prototype and production test they will

have even superior capabilities than most in their market. Seica will be with them every

step of the way!

The partnership between Seica and Zdatum will be a huge benefit to customers in the West Coast and beyond, who require their circuits boards to be tested. Zdatum will also be available to host a demonstration on their Pilot V8 Next Series to those interested in acquiring a flying prober of their very own. Please reach out to John Zabaldo at Zdatum or Seica for any of your testing needs! We look forward to servicing you.

About ZDatum

Since 1983 ZDATUM has excellent providing quality Printed Circuit Design and Turnkey prototype and production solutions to the electronic community. Our customer's recognition as "Best Valued Supplier" is achieved with accurate and concise data, quality manufacturing, and on-time delivery.

Concurrent Engineering is a primary concern at ZDATUM. Our design team works closely with the customer, the board fabricator, and our in-house assembly personnel with the common goal of producing quality circuit boards that meet our customer's specifications, and exceeds our customer's expectations.

We service the Aerospace, Medical, Automotive, Communication, Commercial and Military industries. You can find our designs in the B1 Bomber, Space Shuttle, Mars Probes, AH-1Z Cobra Helicopter, Radar, Sonar, and Microwave Systems. www.zdatum.com

About Seica

Founded in 1986, Seica S.p.A. is an innovative, high technology company that develops and manufactures leading-edge solutions for the test and selective soldering of electronic boards and modules. Combining deep expertise in electronics technology as well as in industrial machines and processes has enabled Seica to become a global leader and supplier of test and manufacturing solutions, with an installed base of more than 2300 systems on 4 different continents. Seica has fully embraced the concept of Industry 4.0, developing solutions to monitor and collect information from machines and industrial plants to enable the optimization of manufacturing processes, maintenance energy management.

Company headquarters are located in Strambino, Italy, with direct offices in USA, Germany, China, Mexico and France, supported by a vast distribution network covering the rest of the world. The Seica Group includes Seica Automation, located in Milan, which designs and manufactures board handling systems and other automation equipment for the electronics manufacturing industry and Canavisia, which designs and manufactures products, applications, solutions and services for the acquisition and digitalization of data coming from machines, factories, buildings and cities, enabling the connection, monitoring and control of those resources with the goal of optimizing processes, maintenance and intelligent energy management over the web and from the Cloud, as well as analytics. www.seica.com
Last month, Cameron Diaz welcomed her firstborn daughter Raddix into the world.

But even with a new baby in her life, the 47-year-old proved she is still able to make time for herself, as she was spotted arriving to a facial spa in Santa Monica on Friday.

Diaz, who shares Raddix with husband Benji Madden, kept it casual for her allotted 'me time,' which also included a trip to a nearby nail salon.

Treat yourself: Cameron Diaz was spotted hitting up a facial spa in Santa Monica on Friday afternoon

The actress appeared to be rocking faded pink tinge among her signature blonde locks, which were messily tied back into a ponytail.

She concealed her eyes from the California rays with a pair over chunky, tortoise shell shades.

Slung across her chest, was a black cross body bag that featured silver hardware and adjustable strap.

Cameron kept it comfortable in a heather white tee layered with an oversize black cardigan.

New mom: Last month, the actress, along with husband Benji Madden, welcomed their baby girl Raddix Chloe Wildflower Madden

Diaz slipped her slender stems into a pair of distressed denim jeans, then rounded off the look with a pair of white Fila brand sneakers.

Earlier in the day, during her nail salon trip, she opted for a thick turtleneck, which quickly came off as the sun began to peek through the clouds hovering over Santa Monica.

Two weeks ago The Blast obtained a birth certificate revealing the baby was born December 30 at 1:58 pm is called Raddix Chloe Wildflower Madden.

It's official: Following the news breaking about Raddix, Diaz took to her Instagram page to confirm the birth on behalf of herself and husband Benji on January 3rd

Cameron shares her newborn daughter Raddix with her husband Benji Madden of Good Charlotte fame, whom she married in 2015.

The Charlie's Angels star has retired from acting and has not appeared in a movie since the 2014 adaptation of the 1970s Broadway musical Annie.

A People source dished that 'Cameron wants to spend every second with the baby' and that the couple are not looking to employ a nanny.

The parents: Diaz will share daughter Raddix with guitarist Benji Madden who she married in 2015

The public was unaware that Cameron and Benji were going to become parents until they announced Raddix' birth on Instagram this January 3.

'Their close friends are extremely loyal, so its not strange that they were able to keep it quiet,' the People source said explaining the secrecy.

An Us Weekly insider revealed shortly after the announcement that 'Cameron and Benji had been trying to have a baby for a long time.

Retired: Diaz has retired from acting, having not been in a feature length film since 2014

'There were disappointments along the way, so it was difficult and stressful at times. But they say it was a price worth paying. They feel beyond blessed.'

Benji performed in Good Charlotte with his twin brother Joel, who is married to Nicole Richie and shares two children with her - Harlow, 12, and Sparrow, 10.

'Nicole and Joel have been so great, and theyve offered to help in any way they can, both now and moving forward,' dished the Us Weekly insider.
He said he explained to the stylist that hes Korean American and had immigrated here some 15 years ago. While Lee said hes compassionate about mounting anxiety surrounding the new virus that originated in Wuhan, China  hundreds of miles from the nation of his birth  he still found the question about where he was from offensive.
As many as 324 Indians, evacuated from China's Wuhan city, on Saturday reached here on board Air India's jumbo B747 aircraft and were admitted at the two quarantine facilities set up by the Army and the ITBP, though none of them have tested positive for the novel coronavirus, officials said.

The plane, carrying 211 students, 110 working professionals and three minors, reached Delhi around 7.30 am, they said, adding that none of them have tested positive for the coronavirus as yet. Another flight of the airline, which departed for the Chinese city from here around 1.37 pm to bring back Indian nationals, reached Wuhan around 5.40 pm on Saturday, the officials said.

Five doctors from the Ram Manohar Lohia (RML) Hospital, who were on board the first flight, are also in the second flight, an Air India spokesperson said. Out of the total 324 who landed here this morning, 88 women, 10 men and six children were brought to the special quarantine facility of the ITBP in southwest Delhi's Chhawla area, ITBP spokesperson Vivek Kumar Pandey said.

READ: Vietnam Airlines To Suspend Flights To And From Mainland China Amid Coronavirus Outbreak

The Army has also set up a quarantine facility in Manesar near Delhi to keep around 300 Indians being evacuated from China's Hubei province in view of the coronavirus infection outbreak. Separately, border-guarding force ITBP has set up a 600-bedded facility in southwest Delhi's Chhawla area to quarantine and provide basic medical care to those suspected to have been affected by the virus.

The officials said the Indians evacuated from China will be monitored for any signs of the infection for a duration of two weeks by a qualified team of doctors and staff members. The first flight had departed from Delhi airport at 1.17 pm on Friday to evacuate Indian nationals from China, where more than 250 people, none of them Indian, have died due to the deadly coronavirus infection.

Out of the 324 persons that have been evacuated through first Air India flight, 56, 53 and 42 are from Andhra Pradesh, Tamil Nadu and Kerala, respectively. Two more people suspected of being affected by coronavirus have been admitted to the isolation ward of the RML Hospital here, taking the total number of patients housed at the facility to eight, hospital authorities said.

On Friday evening, two men, aged 23 and 46 years, complained of respiratory problems and fever at the hospital which has been designated by the government to deal with such cases, they said.

Wuhan, Hubei's capital, is the epicentre of the deadly coronavirus outbreak. The virus has killed 259 people in China with total confirmed cases surging to 11,791 amid stepped up efforts by a number of countries to evacuate their nationals from Hubei province, officials said on Saturday. Air India has done such evacuations earlier also from countries such as Libya, Iraq, Yemen, Kuwait and Nepal.
Sri Lanka and Turkey are among the latest nations which have started evacuating their citizens from Wuhan. Both nations started evacuating their citizens on Saturday.

READ: German Coronavirus Evacuation Flight Lands In Frankfurt

More countries begin evacuation

A special flight of Sri Lankan Airlines brought back 33 Sri Lankan students from the epicentre of the disease. The island nation's President, Gotabaya Rajapaksa thanked the Chinese government for their cooperation bringing back the students.

Similarly, 42 people arrived in Turkey after being evacuated by a government medical plane from Wuhan on Saturday, amid concern over the rapidly spreading new strain of deadly virus. An ambulance plane commissioned from the military was sent with medical personnel on-board to evacuate Turkish citizens living in Wuhan.

Fahrettin Koca, Turkish Minister of Health said that among the 42 passengers, 32 of them are Turkish, 6 are Azerbaijani, 3 are Georgian and one is Albanian. Speaking earlier, he said, "In accordance with the recommendations of the Science board, we have planned on keeping track of all patients for a span of 14 days in individual rooms. From the first day on, we have planned on taking samples and repeating this process once every three days. All services will be done with single-use materials and all waste will be treated as medical waste."

READ: 'Cancel Weddings, Scale Down Funerals': Chinese Officials Try To Curb Coronavirus Outbreak

Recently, the Coronavirus has been declared as a global public health emergency by the World Health Organisation (WHO). The organisation has maintained that it has full faith in the efforts taken up the Chinese government to control the virus and that the government is doing a remarkable job.

READ: Vietnam Airlines To Suspend Flights To And From Mainland China Amid Coronavirus Outbreak

India, Bangladesh, Indonesia, South Korea, and Turkey are other countries that started evacuating their citizens. 324 people were brought back in a special Air India plane on Saturday morning. A second plane will bring back more citizens.

The USA has asked it's citizens to not visit the country and multiple American airlines have suspended operations to the country.

READ: Africa: Government Ramps Up Preventive Measures Amid Coronavirus Dread
State legislators looking for ammunition to kick the governor off the board of trustees for South Carolinas flagship university got it last month, when experts hired by the University of South Carolina endorsed the idea.

The Association of Governing Boards of Universities and Colleges didnt endorse lawmakers other proposal  shrinking the board  but it seconded the criticism from President Bob Caslens critics that the board is too white, too male, too old and too professionally monolithic.

And it made clear that the board is broken and in deep need of repair. Its misguided governance culture, the association concluded, is a consistent threat to the university system boards ability to address strategic issues in an effective manner and to its reputation.

But its impossible to read the 35-page report, or the organizations testimony to a Senate panel, without seeing that the main thing the Legislature needs to do to fix the board is to get the Legislature out of the selection process.

Editorial: Before we close the door on USC's Caslen controversy, one more thing to do For months, some critics have been warning of the apocalypse first if and then because Bob Caslen was hired as president of the University of South Carolina.

The Legislature, report authors Richard Legon and Ellen Chaffee told senators in the fall, is more involved in trustee selection here than in any other state. Thats why theres something comical about the notion that our lawmakers want to protect the university from undue political influence by removing the governor from a board composed of two gubernatorial appointees and 16 legislative appointees.

No, Gov. Henry McMaster shouldnt have injected himself into the presidential selection process, as it further polarized a campus that was already deeply divided over the prospect of the former West Point superintendent getting the job. And it makes sense to eliminate South Carolinas other distinction, as the only state where the governor serves as ex officio chairman of the board.

But with this one glaring exception, the primary political influence on the board always has been exerted by the Legislature, and often by individual legislators. And unlike the influence that a governor exerts, its an invisible sort of thing. Its one junior House member pledging his vote for a trustee in return for help getting his daughter into college. Its the members of a budget subcommittee explaining to trustees their concerns over certain university programs. Its the fact that, as the association reported, trustees feel beholden to those who select them. That is: to the individual legislators who voted for them.

And its wholly inappropriate.

Editorial: Give new USC President Caslen a chance to succeed That doesnt mean giving him a free pass. It does mean letting him start with a clean slate. It means not standing in the way of his success.

Under the system created by the Founding Fathers, the legislative branch writes the laws, and the chief executive executes those laws, which includes appointing the directors or board members who oversee state agencies.

Gubernatorial appointment of college trustees, in fact, is the system used in most states. By contrast, legislators select trustees in just four states.

Letting the governor appoint trustees also is the best way to address one of the biggest complaints from President Caslens critics: the lack of diversity and turnover on the board. When 170 people make a decision, no one is responsible for that decision; its even worse when its a series of decisions. Individual legislators look at every race individually, form different coalitions in every contest to get their favorite candidate elected and dont have the ability to structure the mix on the board.

Editorial: How secrecy inflamed anger, compounded damage to USC and new president The turmoil that engulfed the University of South Carolina before, during and since the hiring of former West Point Superintendent Robert Caslen as president could have been reduced if trustees had been transparent with the public after their April non-decision rather than hiding behind their executive session secrecy.

The only way to significantly increase diversity and turnover is to let one person appoint the board members. And the only one person it makes sense to give that job to is a governor.

But if legislators are worried about replacing their behind-the-scenes influence with influence thats out there for all the world to see, the Association of Governing Boards of Universities and Colleges has an answer.

A growing number of states, it reports, are creating independent merit-selection commissions, which screen candidates on specific criteria and present two or three nominees to the governor, whose selections often must be confirmed by the Senate.

If legislators actually want to reduce political pressure and increase diversity and turnover  the changes the Association of Governing Boards of Universities and Colleges says are essential to keep accreditors satisfied  theyll switch to this system of trustee selection. If they change the system in a way that leaves the Legislature in charge, then well all know that their motivation is something other than whats best for the University of South Carolina.
Allentown, PA (18103)

Today

Brisk and cold with a mix of clouds and sun. There might be a stray flurry or snow shower later in the day, mainly north of the area..

Tonight

Partly cloudy, breezy, and bitterly cold. Wind chills close to 0 degrees. There might be a flurry or snow shower, especially north.
Former opener Virender Sehwag on Saturday questioned the Indian team's decision to bench Rishabh Pant during the ongoing T20 International series in New Zealand and wondered if skipper Virat Kohli was properly communicating with the youngster.

The 22-year-old Pant has not featured in any match for India since being concussed by a Pat Cummins bouncer during the Mumbai ODI against Australia in January. The talented but inconsistent wicketkeeper-batsman has not so far played in any of the four T20Is of the five-match series in New Zealand.

"Rishabh Pant has been left out, how will he score runs? If you bench Sachin Tendulkar also, he won't be able to score runs. If you feel he is a match-winner, why don't you play him? Because he is not consistent?" Sehwag asked.

"During our time, captain used to go and talk with the player (in question). Now I don't know if Virat Kohli does the same or not. I am not part of the team setup. But people say that when Rohit Sharma went to Asia Cup as captain, he used to talk to all the players," Sehwag told told Cricbuzz.

Stressing that captains need to properly communicate with his players, Sehwag said even Mahendra Singh Dhoni, who is considered one of India's greatest skippers, at times, failed to communicate with his team-mates.

"When MS Dhoni said in Australia that top three are slow fielders, we were never asked or consulted. We got to know from the media. He said at the press conference but not at the team meeting that we are slow fielders," Sehwag said, referring to the 2012 CB series in Australia.

"Talk at the team meeting was that we need to play Rohit Sharma who is new and that's why there will be a rotation policy. If the same is happening now, that's wrong," he added.

During that 2012 series in Australia, Sehwag had said that he, Sachin Tendulkar and Gautam Gambhir were rotated at the playing XI because of question marks on their fielding.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
Growing up on a Wisconsin dairy farm in the 1940s, Orion Samuelson assumed he would end up taking over the operation from his parents. However, life had other plans for him.

When Samuelson was unable to take over the farm due to a health issue, he knew he wanted to stay involved in agriculture in some capacity and decided to turn to broadcasting. The rest, as they say, is history.

Samuelson has become one of the most recognizable voices and faces of agriculture during his time as a farm broadcaster, working with WGN Radio since the 1960s and now helping host This Week in Agribusiness with Max Armstrong.

He has covered many national issues and was on the air at WGN Radio when President John F. Kennedy was assassinated in 1963.

IFT: What drew you to radio and how did you get your start?

SAMUELSON: I would have taken over the dairy farm when I reached the proper age, but when I came out of eighth grade at the one-room country school I attended, I developed a leg disease known as Leggs Perthes and I couldnt walk for two years. The doctor said, You arent going to be able to do the heavy work of farming, so you better start thinking about something else.

I was lucky enough to have an FFA advisor who watched me when he'd come out to bring classes to my farm home. I'd be listening to radio, and one day I said, Do you think Id be able to do that? and he said Well get you into FFA public speaking and well find out.

As a result, I got into broadcasting in Sparta, Wisconsin, at WKLJ radio. I was a polka disc jockey and worked there for about two years  and then in 1956, the manager of the station in Green Bay was covering agriculture on TV and remembered I had grown up on a farm, so I went to work at WBAY in 1956.

I put in four years, and then in 1960, the farm director for WGN Radio in Chicago resigned and the general manager of the station came to Green Bay and said Wed like to hire you. That was going to put me in pretty tall corn because Im just a country boy. Fifty-nine years later Im still there.

IFT: Were there any other career paths you considered?

SAMUELSON: No, I didnt really think of any other career. I was considered at one time to be Secretary of Agriculture when Ronald Reagan was president, but my good friend John Block, hog farmer from Illinois, became the secretary and Im glad he did. He did a great job.

When I gave Secretary of Agriculture Earl Butz a call and asked what I should do, he said Well, if you become secretary of agriculture, half the people in the country will like you and the other half will hate you. I think you can do a better job for agriculture on WGN radio in Chicago. That was good advice because Ive been there ever since.

IFT: Throughout your career at WGN, what did you enjoy covering the most? Do any events stick out to you?

SAMUELSON: How many pages do you have? Sitting on a milking stool in a cold barn in January in Wisconsin, I never could have dreamed Id go to 44 countries, Id meet and interview nine presidents and I would meet and shake hands with Mikhail Gorbachev and Fidel Castro.

But the best part of the job, really, is the farmers and ranchers Ive talked to every day. Thats the highlight, really, the people Ive met in this career of agriculture and the opportunity to talk on both radio and television and tell their stories.

When I first arrived in Chicago, I realized in about a week that, whoa, I have a huge audience in the city. That surprised me. City folks listen because they wanted to learn about agriculture. I realized with some of the questions Im getting I better start using language that city folks will understand and help them understand why the technology is so important.

I had an hour at noon to go on the air to talk about what was happening and why its happening. This is why farmers are concerned about trade with China and why its important to all of us.

But you know, I'm still getting some of the calls that are as misguided now as they were 20 years ago. So I begin to wonder, are we really making progress in developing more understanding?

IFT: Is there a better way, such as person-to-person contact, to improve that communication?

SAMUELSON: We can always improve it. In Illinois, years ago, the Illinois Farm Bureau had a farm-city visit where the city family would go to the farm for a weekend, live in the house and sit with the family at the dinner table and all that. It was very successful. I still hear today from city families who say they learned more from that weekend on a farm than anything else.

With the advent of more farm magazines and papers, with the advent of farm TV and with the growth of farm radio, I guess weve got the tools. Now we have to develop how to use those tools to communicate better.

Anytime we can bring people together at a county fair or a state fair, and let them actually talk to farm people and farm kids to see what they're doing, I think that's probably the best way.

IFT: You were in Washington, D.C., recently to speak with Secretary of Agriculture Sonny Perdue. What is the sense you got from him about the current state of things in agriculture right now?

SAMUELSON: He is one of the more positive people involved in agriculture and Im glad for that, because if you just talk about the negative things all the time, things get more negative, it seems to me.

I enjoy his spirit and his enthusiasm. He is probably the most traveled Secretary of Agriculture Ive known in my years. As he said in our interview, he likes to travel to meetings and events not to talk, but to listen.

I like the fact he always has to use a positive approach. He was criticized pretty strongly at the World Dairy Expo in Madison in October when he said You know, youre going to have to get bigger, because its too challenging with the costs of inputs and equipment today for a small operation to work.

He really got hit hard by media and dairy farmers on that one, but you know what? Hes right. Maybe not to the degree that some people want to see, but our farm disappeared in 1964. Today, the people who bought it are still on it and instead of milking 30 cows, they are milking 150 cows.

You can say all the bad things you want to about that, but it's reality. And I think we have to deal in reality when we talk about things.

IFT: There are a lot of farmers who are disappointed in commodity prices, especially grain farmers, and they are discouraged about farming moving forward. Weve seen tough stretches before. Do you feel there is a light at the end of the tunnel?

SAMUELSON: I certainly do, because I vividly remember the 1980s when almost every evening on CBS or ABC News, we would see another farm auction in Iowa, Nebraska and Ohio.

I remember in those times, country banks were going out of business, they would no longer be able to work with farmers. Farm Credit Association was challenged, it was going out of business according to some of the stories I covered in the 80s.

We came out of it. But unfortunately, when you deal with weather, when you deal with politics, when you deal with the challenges of trade and transportation, you're going to have the downs, but I say, concentrate on the ups, because that's what's going to get you through it all.

Love 0 Funny 0 Wow 0 Sad 0 Angry 0
Students and teachers who recently travelled to China have been advised to skip school until they've been back on home soil for 14 days amid coronavirus fears.

The Queensland Government on Friday acquired a list of Queenslanders under the age of 18 years old who recently returned from mainland China and Hong Kong.

Chief Health Officer Dr Jeannette Young said the state government spent Saturday sending text messages to the parents of those on the list to reinforce the health advice about deadly coronavirus.

Students and teachers who recently travelled to China have been advised to skip school until they've been back on home soil for 14 days. Pictured: Young girls walk in front of the gated entrance of The Palace Museum on January 26

There are now 10 confirmed cases of coronavirus in Australia (pictured) with dozens more people undergoing tests

'The advice is that children who have visited China (including Hong Kong) should not attend school, childcare or TAFE until 14 days after the date of their departure from China (including Hong Kong),' Dr Young said.

'This advice also applies to teachers, staff and anyone else who attends these facilities.

'This is a precautionary measure following the most recent advice around the timeframe that people are contagious before showing symptoms.'

Dr Young said directly communicating with families who have travelled to China will help the state respond effectively to the coronavirus situation and to contain possible further spread.

The text messages, which were sent on Saturday, were in English and have also been translated into both simplified and traditional Chinese.

Queensland Health urges those who become unwell to visit their GP practice or the Emergency Department.

'The advice is that children who have visited China (including Hong Kong) should not attend school, childcare or TAFE until 14 days after the date of their departure from China (including Hong Kong),' Chief Health Officer Dr Jeannette Young said (stock image)

'Please call ahead to inform them you may have been exposed to novel coronavirus,' Queensland Health said.

A 10th case of coronavirus was confirmed in Australia on Saturday.

The woman, who is in her 20s, lives in Melbourne and is at home recovering. She returned from Wuhan, the coronavirus epicentre, on January 25 and fell ill two days later.

There are four confirmed cases of the virus in Victoria and New South Wales each, as well as two in Queensland.

The death toll has passed 200 in China, while confirmed cases of infection are edging towards 10,000.
Feng Zijian (C), deputy head of the Chinese Center for Disease Control and Prevention, and Wu Hao (R), head of the Fangzhuang community health service center in Beijing, attend a press conference held by the National Health Commission in Beijing, capital of China, Jan. 29, 2020. The general public should reach a consensus that early identification, reporting, isolation, diagnosis and treatment is the best and most effective way to contain the pneumonia caused by the novel coronavirus, Wu Hao said in Beijing on Wednesday. (Xinhua/Zhang Yuwei)

BEIJING, Jan. 30 (Xinhua) -- The general public should reach a consensus that early identification, reporting, isolation, diagnosis and treatment is the best and most effective way to contain the pneumonia caused by the novel coronavirus, a health official said in Beijing on Wednesday.

With intensive media coverage of the situation, the public has been aware of the urgency of curbing the outbreak, but efforts are still needed to mobilize the whole society to conduct health management in communities, Wu Hao, head of the Fangzhuang community health service center in Beijing, said at a press conference held by the National Health Commission.

"Such comprehensive prevention and control measures are the best and most effective way to prevent the virus from further spreading and ultimately contain the outbreak," Wu said.

The official also introduced practices of joint prevention work, saying local governments have promoted multiple measures to help residents recognize that the temporary inconvenience to their daily lives is for the good of them and their families and cooperating is their social responsibility.

Information technologies have been used in community-level health consulting, monitoring, and epidemic prevention, and online psychological consultants are also available to help ease anxiety amid the virus outbreak, according to Wu.

In many neighborhoods in Beijing, family doctors have teamed up with neighborhood committees to better manage the health of residents, and family doctors have launched effective checks of suspected patients to avoid unnecessary visits to hospitals, said Wu.

In Fengtai district, a family doctor mobile application is providing health information and sending messages to residents' mobile phones.

All these measures have helped residents recognize that isolation and medical observation at home are necessary parts of epidemic prevention and control, Wu said.

"But the isolation measures have never blocked our communications," he said.

[ Editor: WPY ]
While presenting her second Union Budget in the Lok Sabha on Saturday, Union Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman announced that the Centre this year has allocated Rs 9,000 crore for the welfare of senior citizens.

Also, the government has allocated Rs 53,700 crore for the uplift of Scheduled Tribes, and Rs 85,000 crore for the welfare of Scheduled castes and Other Backward Classes.

The Finance Minister further announced that major reforms will be introduced for recruitment into non-gazetted posts in government and public sector banks. A Recruitment Agency will be set up for conducting a common online eligibility test for recruitment to these posts.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
Sanders campaign officials said they are not focused on labels but on the issues that Sanders has been pushing as he tries to appeal to working-class people. Micah Uetricht, an editor at the socialist magazine Jacobin who canvassed for Sanders two weekends in a row in Iowa, said that no one at the doors he knocked on brought up socialism.
Nor does it mean that anything like a majority of Sanderss supporters support the nastiness carried out in his name. Yet no other Democratic candidate has so many venomous followers  no Biden Brothers or Warren Sisters to return fire with fire. The only real analog in U.S. politics today to the Bernie nasties are the Trump nasties. They resemble each other in ways neither side cares to admit.

The most obvious resemblance is the adulation they bestow on their respective champions, whom they treat less as normal politicians than as saviors who deserve uncritical and uncompromising support.

Surrender to a leader is not a means to an end but a fulfillment, the philosopher Eric Hoffer observed in The True Believer, a book that remains as relevant in our populist era as it was in the totalitarian one. Whither they are led is of secondary importance.

Since its the usual destiny of saviors to be persecuted before theyre exalted, the response of their followers often is to persecute back. But persecute whom? In the demonology of most mass movements there is usually a near enemy and a far one, and the near enemy must be dealt with first and hardest. To this day, hard-core Trump supporters reserve their deepest spite for Republican NeverTrump holdouts (human scum, according to the president).

Just so with the Bernie Bros, who see more moderate Democrats not as kindred spirits or potential converts but as sellouts, even traitors  the proverbial enemy within. Partly this is about the normal competition for power, in which the show of ideological purity is treated as evidence of moral superiority.

But it also goes to the heart of what the Bernie Bros are really about. As they see it, ordinary civility isnt a virtue. Its a ruse by which those with power manipulate and marginalize those without. Democrats like Joe Biden who play by the rules of civility and bipartisanship arent just falling prey to the insidious manipulation. They are perpetrating and legitimizing it. No wonder nearly half of Sanderss supporters wont commit to or are unsure about voting for the Democratic nominee in the event it isnt Bernie, according to a recent poll. Why bother voting for Oligarchy Lite?

If there is a silver lining here, its that the world has long experience with this brand of zealotry. Bernie Sanders may not be one of his own awful Bros, and may condemn their worst excesses. But theres no reason to think theyll lose their influence should he win the White House  just as Trumps presidency has emboldened and empowered many of his own worst followers.

Is this the Democratic Party the Democrats want? They will cast their first votes for president on Monday evening at the party caucuses in Iowa. Now is the moment for second thoughts.

The Times is committed to publishing a diversity of letters to the editor. Wed like to hear what you think about this or any of our articles. Here are some tips. And heres our email: letters@nytimes.com.

Follow The New York Times Opinion section on Facebook, Twitter (@NYTopinion) and Instagram.
Ask Paul Lasley to describe the past decade in agriculture, and he uses one word: Volatile.

The volatility and suddenness of some of these events was just unbelievable, and they took their toll on agriculture, says the Iowa State University Extension sociologist.

The period from 2010 to 2019 saw volatility in commodity prices, weather and markets. Massive flooding in 2011 and 2019 devastated farms and communities along both the Missouri and Mississippi Rivers, as well as their tributaries in several Midwest states. Drought was also an issue over the past decade.

After a strong start to the decade for commodity prices, corn and soybean prices tumbled over the past few years after record yields filled bins. Numerous trade disputes over the past two years contributed to price volatility for crops and livestock.

Advances in technology helped farmers work more efficiently. Improvements in machinery, hybrids and genetics resulted in better yields and larger pig crops, among other things.

I think the weather extremes are what a lot of people will remember about the past decade, says Iowa Secretary of Agriculture Mike Naig, who was elected to his first term in 2018.

We dealt with floods in 2011 on both sides of the state and places in between, then the devastating flooding in southwest Iowa this year. We had major drought issues, particularly in 2012 and 2018. We continue to see this trend of extreme weather events, so we have to work to become more resilient in the face of this change.

Adversity is nothing new for farmers, Lasley says. The past decade, however, dealt blows that damaged even the hardiest of humans.

At times, it seemed like we were in a sea without a rudder and were being tossed from side to side, he says. We had a series of uncontrollable events. We went from record income to record losses in five years. There is a lot of frustration in the farming community. The past decade really took its toll on a lot of people.

While the past decade had its share of devastation, there was also good news. The profitability over several years, especially 2013 and 2014, caused many farmers to reinvest in their operations.

We saw farmers invest in new technology, new buildings and added acres, says John Lawrence, vice president of Iowa State Universitys Extension and Outreach programs.

He says investment was made in other ways, including additional programs at ag schools in the Midwest.

We saw growth here at Iowa State, and not just because farming was cool again, Lawrence says. We have young people who are tech savvy that are going to be in demand in agriculture.

Naig says technological advances over the past decade have been staggering.

We have seen these improvements in precision agriculture, measuring fields down to the smallest parcel, he says. We are going to be able to use precision ag more when it comes to conservation as well.

Livestock diseases continued to be an issue over the past decade. Nearly 50 million birds died as a result of an avian influenza outbreak in 2015.

Porcine epidemic diarrhea (PED) killed millions of pigs in 2013 and 2014. Now the detection of African swine fever in China over a year ago has U.S. ag officials on high alert, and stepped-up precautions included the cancellation of the World Pork Expo in June 2019.

What we have seen from all this is a heightened awareness of biosecurity, Naig says. We are preparing in the event of a foreign animal disease here at the state and industry level.

Lawrence says technology has also advanced when it comes to renewable energy.

Not just ethanol, but with biodiesel, wind and solar, he says. We are seeing farmers use solar energy to power their buildings and shops.

The past decade also brought a boom in the local foods concept and industry.

We are really seeing a maturation there, Lawrence says. We see great support for community supported agriculture, and it helps provide more avenues for people to get involved.

Consolidation in agriculture has continued over the past 10 years, Lawrence says.

Farm sizes have continued to increase, and seed and chemical companies continue to merge, he says.

Multiple states have invested in water quality projects to help decrease nutrient runoff. More farmers have turned to cover crops to help improve water and soil quality, and to provide additional resources for grazing.

More and more ag customers are looking at sustainability.

I think this is something that is emerging, that you need to be able to show how you farm sustainably, Lawrence says, adding customers such as McDonalds are listening to consumers who are more interested in how their food is grown.

Global trade has resulted in some uncertainty, Lasley says. After being elected in 2016, President Donald Trump pulled the U.S. out of the proposed Trans-Pacific Partnership. Increased tariffs with several trading partners, including China, resulted in a shrinking export pool for commodities.

Recently, an updated version of NAFTA, called the United States-Mexico-Canada Agreement was approved by Congress. A bilateral trade agreement with Japan has been tentatively reached, while phase one of a trade agreement with China has been signed.

Lasley says the farm community typically rallies when faced with adversity. He is hopeful farmers are able to weather this latest storm.

Midwesterners are resilient, but are reliant upon the ag economy, Lasley says. The last few years have been tough. Lets hope things start to improve in 2020.

Love 0 Funny 0 Wow 0 Sad 0 Angry 0
India will begin evacuating its citizens from Coronavirus-struck Wuhan in Chinas central Hubei province from Friday, and authorities have reached out to more than 600 Indians to ascertain their willingness to return.

Air India special flight will depart today from Delhi to Wuhan (China) for evacuation of Indians, said Air India spokesperson.

The first flight on Friday is expected to evacuate about 315 Indians from Wuhan and neighbouring areas. A second aircraft will be dispatched thereafter to bring back Indians from other parts of Hubei, people familiar with developments said.

We have made a formal request to operate two aircraft to China to bring back Indian nationals from Hubei province. We are waiting for a formal approval from the Chinese side before we can start the process, external affairs ministry spokesperson Raveesh Kumar told a regular news briefing on Thursday.

We have established contact with over 600 Indians across Hubei and are individually ascertaining their willingness to be repatriated, he added.

At least 170 people have died and more than 7,700 infected in the Coronavirus outbreak in China. A majority of deaths and cases of infection were reported in Hubei. Wuhan, a city of about 11 million, has been under an unprecedented lockdown for almost a week to contain the disease from spreading.

We are preparing for air evacuation from Wuhan tomorrow in the evening. This flight will carry those Indian nationals who are in and around Wuhan and have conveyed consent for their evacuation, said a message from the Indian embassy circulated among Indians in Hubei via the messaging app WeChat on Thursday evening.

The message added: There will be another flight subsequently which will carry those who are from other parts of Hubei province.

The message was circulated after Chinas foreign ministry is learnt to have cleared Indias request to evacuate its citizens.

The embassy cautioned Indians in Hubei that details of the evacuation could change and the message was shared to alert them to be adequately prepared. In an earlier message, the embassy asked Indians to be ready for a 14-day quarantine on return to India.

Kumar said according to information available with Indian authorities, the overall number of Indians based in Hubei was 1,200, though the figure for those currently in the province is yet to be ascertained. He said there were no confirmed cases of Coronavirus infections among Indians in Hubei. I have not heard of any Indians being affected anywhere in the world, he added. He further said India has not put in place any restrictions for Chinese nationals wanting to visit India. Indias health ministry has issued an advisory asking people to refrain from travelling to China.

Ji Rong, spokesperson for the Chinese embassy in New Delhi, said there are sufficient supplies of daily necessities in Wuhan and the Chinese government has mobilised all national resources for the supply of medical equipment and other materials in the city.

The Chinese side pays close attention to the report of the emergence of one confirmed case of pneumonia caused by the novel Coronavirus in India and will cooperate with the Indian side to jointly strengthen the epidemic prevention and control, she said.

China attaches great importance to safeguarding the safety of every foreigner, including Indians, and will provide necessary assistance to ensure the health of Indian citizens and address their legitimate concerns, Ji said.
We use cookies to understand how you use our site and to improve your experience. This includes personalizing content and advertising. By continuing to use our site, you accept our use of cookies, revised Privacy Policy and Terms of Use.
Youngsters with a growth condition that gives them a mis-shapen chest could be spared painful rib-cracking surgery thanks to a simple brace.

However, scores of teenagers miss out on the non-invasive treatment, which can help boost body image and self-esteem.

The brace is designed to correct pectus carinatum, commonly known as pigeon chest, where the cartilage that forms the centre of the ribcage grows and protrudes outwards, instead of being flush with the rest of the chest.

It works by gently exerting pressure on the growing ribcage, helping to flatten it.

But NHS funding watchdogs have yet to assess the device, which was launched in the UK six years ago. This means doctors must apply for funding on a case-by-case basis, and just a handful of UK hospitals currently offer the option.

Its extremely frustrating that young patients are missing out on this simple but very effective treatment, says consultant chest surgeon Ian Hunt, an expert in pectus deformities at St Georges Hospital, London.

Many patients are denied any treatment because pectus carinatum is deemed a cosmetic problem, when there is clear evidence it causes a range of psychological and physical problems.

Amanda Bradshaws 14-year-old son Lewis is currently being treated with the brace and she says the improvement in his chest after just seven months of wearing the brace is already amazing.

Amanda, a 45-year-old sales assistant from Chelmsford, says: In the summer, after three months of wearing the brace, Lewis took off his T-shirt on the beach.

Before, he hated going swimming or getting changed for PE at school. Now, hes got his confidence back.

Pectus carinatum affects one or two children in every 1,000. The condition is often visible from birth but becomes more pronounced during puberty.

Often, the shape of the chest is the only sign a person is affected. However, some patients suffer chest pain, recurrent respiratory infections and asthma, and even heart problems as a result.

Last year, NHS England advised against offering it, as studies into whether the benefits outweighed the risks of such a major operation have proved inconclusive (file photo)

Until bracing was developed, the only way of correcting pectus carinatum was a three-hour operation performed under general anaesthetic, during which the patients ribcage is broken, cartilage is removed and the breastbone reshaped.

Last year, NHS England advised against offering it, as studies into whether the benefits outweighed the risks of such a major operation have proved inconclusive.

Bracing is 100 per cent preferable to surgery, says Mr Hunt. Surgery carries potential risks and there is up to an eight-week recovery period.

However, Mr Hunt adds: GPs often arent aware there are treatment options beyond surgery.

The lightweight, custom-made brace comprises a soft central strap that can be tightened, and a central plate, made from plastic and covered in soft fabric.

The plate sits against the centre of the chest.

The pressure exerted helps to flatten the cartilage as a childs chest walls are still growing and malleable to some degree.

The brace is worn for almost 24 hours a day for the first 12 weeks, removed only to bathe or shower.

Last July Amanda and her partner Brian Smee travelled the 60 miles to see Mr Hunt at his private practice at Spire St Anthonys Hospital (above) in Sutton, Surrey

At six months, it needs to be worn for only 12 hours every day, and much of this can be at night.

Studies suggest the treatment is a success in some 90 per cent of cases, and correction takes eight to nine months on average.

Lewis was in his final year at primary school when Amanda noticed his breastbone was moving to the right and protruding.

It seemed to happen overnight, she says. We knew that we had to do something.

With the help of friends and family, Amanda and her partner Brian Smee, 51, a refuse collector, raised the 3,000 needed for private brace treatment, with a GoFundMe campaign and cake sales.

And last July they travelled the 60 miles to see Mr Hunt at his private practice at Spire St Anthonys Hospital in Sutton, Surrey.

Today, Lewis and his mother are delighted with the results.

I would recommend the brace without a doubt and believe it should be available on the NHS, adds Amanda.
By David Shepardson and Tracy Rucinski WASHINGTON/CHICAGO (Reuters) - All three major U.S. airlines announced the cancellation of flights to mainland China on Friday as the U.S. government unveiled additional steps to curb the spread of the coronavirus, which originated in China.

By David Shepardson and Tracy Rucinski

WASHINGTON/CHICAGO (Reuters) - All three major U.S. airlines announced the cancellation of flights to mainland China on Friday as the U.S. government unveiled additional steps to curb the spread of the coronavirus, which originated in China.

The trio of carriers, United Airlines Holdings Inc , Delta Air Lines Inc and American Airlines Group Inc , had already moved to reduce flights to China amid a sharp drop in demand due to the flu-like virus.

The Trump administration on Friday declared a public health emergency over the coronavirus outbreak and said it would take the extraordinary step of barring entry to the United States of foreign nationals who have recently travelled to China.

As of Sunday, the United States will also limit flights from China to seven U.S. airports and U.S. citizens who have travelled to China's Hubei Province within the last 14 days will be subject to a mandatory 14-day quarantine.

However, the administration was not considering "at the moment" more drastic actions like barring all flights from China, assistant Transportation Secretary Joel Szabat said at a White House briefing, noting that airlines were already voluntarily taking action to stop flights.

"There is no travel ban," said Szabat, adding: "This is an evolving situation."

On Thursday the U.S. State Department elevated a travel advisory, raising China to the same level as Afghanistan and Iraq.

Airline crews had urged carriers stop flights to the country, with American's pilots filing a lawsuit on Thursday seeking an immediate halt.

American on Friday announced cancellations to Beijing and Shanghai starting immediately and running through March 27, though it will continue to fly to Hong Kong.

United and Delta's last flights out of mainland China will be Feb. 5, with cancellations running through March 28 and April 30 respectively.

Some internal messages by employees of United, the largest U.S. carrier to China, seen by Reuters expressed concern that the airline was not stopping flights sooner.

In its statement, United said the decision to operate flights until Feb. 5 would "help ensure our U.S. based employees, as well as customers, have options to return home."

United will also continue to operate a daily flight to Hong Kong.

U.S. airline shares have posted heavy losses this week on concerns of the financial impact of the virus.

Passenger traffic from China had fallen by nearly 20% over the last week as of Thursday, while travel from the United States to China had dropped by more than 50%, Acting Deputy Secretary of Homeland Security Ken Cuccinelli said.

Other airlines that have stopped their flights to mainland China include Air France KLM SA , British Airways , Germany's Lufthansa and Virgin Atlantic.

Major Chinese carriers were still operating flights to and from the United States as of Friday.

(Reporting by David Shepardson and Tracy Rucinski; Editing by Nick Zieminski, Tom Brown and Dan Grebler)

This story has not been edited by Firstpost staff and is generated by auto-feed.
A female Boko Haram insurgent believed to be 12-year-old detonated a bomb, killing three boys at an Islamic seminary in Muna Dalti, on the outskirts of Maiduguri, the capital of Borno State.

According to AFP, a local militia and residents said Friday that the girl detonated the device late Thursday when open-air classes were on the school.

She walked up to the group of boys who were just ending their lessons and blew herself up in their midst. She killed three boys and injured four others, Mohammed Bola, head of the anti-jihadist militia in the area, told AFP.

Moments earlier, another young girl stormed into a house in the area and detonated her explosives, injuring one person, said resident Salisu Mohammed.

The house was totally destroyed. Luckily, no one was killed as the occupants of the house were outside chatting with neighbours, he said.

The two bombers sneaked into the area together but split to attack different targets, Bola said.

The scene of the bombings, a popular night time venue for residents, has been repeatedly targeted by suicide attacks blamed on Boko Haram.

The jihadist group is notorious for suicide attacks on civilian targets including schools, mosques and motor parks.

ALSO READ: 8-Year-Old Boko Haram Insurgent Executes Abducted Maiduguri Student Because Hes A Christian
YEREVAN.  I believe that [renowned Armenian economist] Mr. [Daron] Acemoglu's ideas and his vision for institution-building are fully in line with our policy. Armenias Justice Minister Rustam Badasyan told this to reporters today ahead of a public debate entitled, "An Anticorruption Committee is being created in Armenia: the problems of formation of the structure.

"There was also talk about an anticorruption court, about deep reforms in the judiciary, both with constitutional amendments and other measures envisaged by the judicial strategy," he added. And again you see the latest reactions from all the international structures that are referring to our reform agenda - judicial, anticorruption, penitentiary, and so on. So we're completely on the same line."

To a journalist's observation that the opposition says that what they are saying and doing do not correspond, the Minister noted: That's why I cited the assessment of international organizations; you can see how the latter reacts to the anticorruption and judicial strategies."
D ozens of people have paid tribute to a "lovely and caring" teenager who was stabbed to death in a "targeted attack" outside an Essex pub.

Officers were called at 8pm on Friday to reports two men had been assaulted outside the Rose and Crown pub in The Green, Writtle.

One of the men, named locally as 19-year-old Liam Taylor, died at the scene, while the other, also 19, was taken to hospital with non-life-threatening injuries. He has since been discharged.

Police are treating the incident as a targeted attack and four men have been arrested on suspicion of murder and remain in custody.

Flowers left near to the scene where a man, named locally as Liam Taylor 19, died after being stabbed outside the Rose and Crown pub in Writtle, Essex, on Friday / PA Wire/PA Images

More than 50 people including his mother Michelle Taylor arrived at The Green at around 11am to lay flowers and release balloons in tribute to Mr Taylor.

A procession and prayer was led by a local vicar before well wishers took part in a minute's silence.

Writing on Facebook on Saturday, Ms Taylor said: "Can't even believe my beautiful son has been taken from me.. son u (sic) are my world and I know ur (sic) be looking down on me."

Police outside the Rose and Crown pub in Writtle, Essex / PA Wire/PA Images

Connor Wise, 21, and Georgia Wicks, 19, from the nearby village of Great Baddow, said they received a call from a friend on Friday night about Mr Taylor's death.

Mr Wise, who said he had known Mr Taylor for four years, said: "He was a lovely and caring guy, I would hang out with him in town."

A tearful Miss Wicks, who said she dated Mr Taylor two years ago, added: "It's so shocking, I used to work with his grandmother at St Peter's Hospital in Maldon."

Connor Wise, 21, and Georgia Wicks, 19, attend the scene in Writtle, Essex / PA

Flowers were placed beneath a tree close to the pub.

One message read: "RIP Liam, you will always be in our hearts, too young to die."

Villagers in the area spoke of their shock after hearing news of the stabbing.

Flowers and and a picture left near to the scene where a man, named locally as Liam Taylor 19, died / PA

An 85 year old woman, from Lodge Road, who did not want to be named, said serious incidents were rare in Writtle.

"I've lived here for 40 years and nothing like this ever happens," she said. "It's such a quiet place."

People gather to lay flowers near to the scene / PA

Another 81-year-old dog walker, who lives five minutes away from the pub, said: "It's a shame it happened at that lovely little pub, the owners must be devastated."

A police cordon remained at the scene on Saturday morning, with parts of The Green closed to traffic between the pub and St John's Road. The cordon was moved to allow traffic through The Green shortly before 11am.

Detective Inspector Greg Wood, of the Kent and Essex Serious Crime Directorate, said: "Officers have been working throughout the night and are continuing today to take witness statements and gather information to help establish the circumstances around this tragic incident.

"We are treating it as a targeted attack based on our enquiries so far.

Flowers and messages left near to the scene / PA

"I'd like to thank members of the public for their help and ask anyone who has information but has yet to come forward to please call us, or to contact Crimestoppers anonymously.

"I know people will be concerned and officers are carrying out extra patrols today in Writtle.

"I'd ask anyone who has information or any concerns to please speak to them or to call us."
[January 31, 2020] SHAREHOLDER ALERT: CLAIMSFILER REMINDS FSCT, MAT, MYL, TCNNF INVESTORS of Lead Plaintiff Deadline in Class Action Lawsuits

NEW ORLEANS, Jan. 31, 2020 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- ClaimsFiler, a FREE shareholder information service, reminds investors of pending deadlines in the following securities class action lawsuits: Mylan N.V. (MYL)

Class Period: 5/9/2018 - 5/6/2019

Lead Plaintiff Motion Deadline: February 14, 2020

SECURITIES FRAUD

To learn more, visit https://www.claimsfiler.com/cases/nasdaq-myl-2 Mattel, Inc. (MAT)

Class Period: 10/26/2017 - 8/8/2019

Lead Plaintiff Motion Deadline: February 24, 2020

SECURITIES FRAUD

To learn more, visit https://www.claimsfiler.com/cases/nasdaq-mat-3 Trulieve CannabisCorp. (TCNNF)







Lead Plaintiff Motion Deadline: February 28, 2020

SECURITIES FRAUD

To learn more, visit https://www.claimsfiler.com/cases/view-trulieve-cannabis-corp-securities-litigation Forescout Technologies, Inc. (FSCT)

Class Period: 2/7/2019 - 10/9/2019

Lead Plaintiff Motion Deadline: March 2, 2020

SECURITIES FRAUD

To learn more, visit https://www.claimsfiler.com/cases/view-forescout-technologies-inc-securities-litigation

If you purchased shares of the above companies and would like to discuss your legal rights and your right to recover for your economic loss, you may, without obligation or cost to you, contact us toll-free (844) 367-9658 or visit the case links above. If you wish to serve as a Lead Plaintiff in the class action, you must petition the Court on or before the Lead Plaintiff Motion deadline. About ClaimsFiler ClaimsFiler has a single mission: to serve as the information source to help retail investors recover their share of billions of dollars from securities class action settlements. At ClaimsFiler.com, investors can: (1) register for free to gain access to information and settlement websites for various securities class action cases so they can timely submit their own claims; (2) upload their portfolio transactional data to be notified about relevant securities cases in which they may have a financial interest; and (3) submit inquiries to the Kahn Swick & Foti, LLC law firm for free case evaluations. To learn more about ClaimsFiler, visit www.claimsfiler.com

[ Back To TMCnet.com's Homepage ]
 Flash

China on Friday criticized "unfriendly U.S. comments" amid China's fight against novel coronavirus outbreak, saying what the U.S. side did was "certainly not a gesture of goodwill."

Foreign Ministry spokesperson Hua Chunying made the remarks after certain U.S. officials made some unfriendly comments while China is doing its best to fight the epidemic.

The U.S. Secretary of Commerce said the virus could help bring jobs back to the United States. In addition, the U.S. Department of State issued a notice to raise travel advisory on China to the highest grade of warning, which is currently placed on Iraq and Afghanistan.

Currently the Chinese people are going all out to fight against the epidemic, Hua said, stressing that acting with openness, transparency and a high sense of responsibility, the Chinese government keeps the international community including the United States well-informed with timely updates and shared relevant data.

"A friend in need is a friend indeed. Many countries have offered China support in various means," she said. "In sharp contrast, certain U.S. officials' words and actions are neither factual nor appropriate."

Just as the WHO recommended against travel restrictions, the U.S. rushed to go in the opposite way, Hua said, adding this was certainly not a gesture of goodwill.

China has every confidence that with the resolute leadership of the Communist Party of China, the enormous strength of socialism with Chinese characteristics and the strong support from the international community, the Chinese people, fighting with one heart and mind, will definitely win the battle against the epidemic.

China will also overcome any difficulty lying ahead to realize the great rejuvenation of the Chinese nation, she added.
Illegal armed groups have violated the ceasefire regime in Donbas eight times, no casualties are reported, the press center of the headquarters of the Joint Forces Operation (JFO) has said.

"On January 31, as a result of enemy shelling, there were no casualties among the troops of the Joint Forces," the headquarters said on its Facebook page on Saturday morning.

Over the past day, fighters violated the ceasefire eight times by shelling Ukrainian positions with 82-mm mortars, as well as grenade launchers of various systems, heavy machine guns and other small arms.

Shelling was recorded near Shyrokyne, Starohnativka, Avdiyivka, Lebedynske and Vasylivka in the area of responsibility of the Skhid (East) task force, and near Luhanske and Novoluhanske in the area of responsibility of the Pivnich (North) task force.

"Since the beginning of the current day, the Russian occupation troops have not shown any fire activity. There are no casualties over the current day," the JFO headquarters said.
She's no stranger to showcasing her physique in a number of skimpy ensembles.

And Kimberley Garner was at it again as she showcased her incredible figure while taking a dip in the sea in Miami, Florida on Friday.

The reality star, 28, looked sensational as she donned a plunging blue paisley print swimsuit, which showed off plenty of flesh as she took some downtime in her new hometown.

Stunning: Kimberley Garner looked sensational as she showcased her incredible figure while taking a dip in the sea in Miami, Florida on Friday

The sizzling high-cut one piece allowed the star to display her slender pins and plenty of sun-kissed skin as she sauntered along the shore.

While the back of the number was equally as daring, with a criss-cross back and a thong design, which drew attention to her perky posterior.

The former Made in Chelsea star donned miminal make-up for her day at the beach, while her drenched blonde tresses huung down her back.

Cheeky: The reality star, 28, donned a plunging blue paisley print swimsuit, which showed off plenty of flesh as she took some downtime in her new hometown

Beach babe: The sizzling high-cut one piece allowed the star to display her slender pins and plenty of sun-kissed skin as she sauntered along the shore

Kimberley splits her time between her home in London and Miami after purchasing a dream pad in the coastal city in December 2018.

Speaking to MailOnline about her home last year, she explained: 'I worked very hard last year and had even moved home for a few months to save money.

'I really had my head down working to concentrate on goals, but achieved it on New Years Eve, praise God, and flew over here. Completed the sale on the plane over.'

Sensational: The beauty looked completely at ease as she waded in the in her cleavage-baring swimsuit

Risque: While the back of the number was equally as daring, with a criss-cross back and a thong design, which drew attention to her perky posterior

Making a splash: The star appeared to be lost in thought as she strolled along in the sea

Reflecting on her property empire, the designer admitted it is a world away from the hustle and bustle of her busy life in London.

'It's right on the beach, and really is a dream come true,' she explained.

'I am over doing the interior design, going for a beachy chilled vibe for the place.

'I won't be moving there [permanently], as London is one hundred percent home, but really overjoyed and proud to have achieved it.'

Showstopping: The former Made in Chelsea star donned miminal make-up for her day at the beach, while her drenched blonde tresses huung down her back

Jet-setter: Kimberley splits her time between her home in London and Miami after purchasing a dream pad in the coastal city in December 2018


The aid group Doctors Without Borders says the Boko Haram conflict is blocking aid workers from reaching more than 1.2 million Nigerians.

The group reports that the population of northeast Nigeria is victim to all sides in the conflict. The fight has been going on for 11 years.

The Nigerian military says it has the upper hand over the Islamist extremists. But Doctors Without Borders and United Nations agencies say the humanitarian situation is still urgent, especially in Borno state.

Luis Eguiluz has led the agencys work in Nigeria for the past two years. He says the two main Boko Haram groups and the government are restricting movement.

He says people are subject to attacks, kidnappings, abuse and mistreatment. Women and girls are victims of rape and other forms of sexual assault.

He adds, "We are talking about one of the most or biggest humanitarian crises of the last decades. Seven-point-one million people in need are dependent on humanitarian assistance for survival. They depend upon the most basic needs and services; food, water, health, shelter.

Eguiluz says humanitarian workers still are able to reach the majority of the needy.

But he told VOA that Doctors Without Borders and other agencies have no access to the 1.2 million people living in areas controlled by Boko Haram.

The United Nations reports these Nigerians live in 22 areas in Borno state.

Eguiluz says the Nigerian army does not permit humanitarian agencies to go to these areas because this would be in violation of international counterterrorism laws.

He adds, "These counterterrorism laws prevent humanitarian actors to negotiate with all actors, parties in conflict because they are considered terrorists."

Eguiluz notes these laws are preventing access because negotiating with armed groups is considered a crime.

Doctors Without Borders is calling on the Nigerian government to honor international humanitarian law over international counterterrorism laws. Eguiluz says this would enable humanitarian agencies to get access to the 1.2 million Nigerians in serious need of aid.

Im Jonathan Evans.

Lisa Schlein reported on this story for VOANews.com. Jonathan Evans adapted this story for Learning English. Caty Weaver was the editor.

________________________________________________________________

Words in This Story

access  n. the right or ability to approach, enter, or use

counterterrorism  n. actions by a group, army, etc., that are done to prevent terrorist attacks and destroy terrorist networks

decade  n. a period of 10 years

upper hand  n. mastery; advantage; control
TEHRAN, Iran, Feb.1

Trend:

Victims of Ukraine's crashed plane will be covered by multiple types of insurance, expert Mohammad Mokhtari told Trend.

"Since the plane belonged to foreign airline it has been covered by Ukrainian insurance while it's possible that the plane also had reinsurance," Mokhtari said.

"It is possible the individuals with double citizenship who were the plane passengers had separate insurances as well including work or life insurance and being covered by the plane insurance as well. Each insurance should be paid separately," said the expert.

"Although all these cases depend on whether the insurance covers air attack or not," Mokhtari said.

"It's possible that student in the crashed plane had Iranian insurance alongside foreign insurance that would cover all the costs, but since there is no limitation for life insurance each one will be calculated separately," he added.

On January 8, Ukraine's passenger plane carrying 176 people crashed outside of Tehran, in Iran. Everyone on board was killed in the crash. The plane was shot down by two antiaircraft missiles fired, by mistake. Iran's military was on high alert in early January after the United States ordered a drone strike in Iraq that killed Iranian military commander general Qassem Soleimani.
The Islamic Republic of Iran is celebrating the 41st anniversary of the 1979 revolution, which replaced the country's constitutional monarchy with clerical rule. However, the change in the form of the government was not all that happened 41 years ago.

The celebration takes place while Iran is struggling with the consequences of several major events in the past 10 weeks and are likely to dramatically affect the Islamic Republic's future, as each one of these events eroded the regime's legitimacy in the eyes of many citizens who come out to protest almost on monthly basis.

In mid-November, millions of Iranians took to the streets protesting against the economic hardships and lack of freedoms that critics squarely blame the ruling clerics for. In recent years, even regime insiders have been increasingly admitting rampant corruption among the ruling elite. Nepotism and political favoritism have also led to mismanagement. These coupled with an anti-American rhetoric and aggressive regional policies have stripped the country of economic opportunities, such as foreign investments.

Angry slogans directly addressed Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei during the November protests. Some reports put the number of those killed by security forces during the violent crackdown at 1,500 while around some 8,000 others remain in jail.

In early January a U.S. drone attack outside the airport in Baghdad killed Khamenei's most favored military commander Qassem Soleimani who was characterized by U.S. President Donald Trump as "the world's biggest terrorist." During Soleimani's funeral around 60 Iranians were killed as a result of mismanagement and chaos.



Five days later the Revolutionary Guard (IRGC) downed a passenger aircraft unintentionally, killing all 176 on board and refused to tell the truth for three days about what happened.

All these came as the Islamic Republic has been suffering from its worst economic crisis while the clerical government is still spending the country's diminishing resources on civil wars in other countries such as Syria and Yemen, and on a nuclear program that has created nothing but trouble.

The Islamic revolution started with three demands: "Independence, Freedom and Islamic Republic." Forty-one years on, even regime insiders acknowledge that there is no trace of any one of those "values" left in Iran.

Two military coalitions led by the United States and France have an overwhelming presence in the Persian Gulf. According to many Iranian media reports, in the Caspian Sea Iran has relinquished most of its rights to Russia and its former satellite countries in exchange for Moscow's support at international forums. Russia has been using the The Caspian Sea and the air base in Hamadan at various times to strike targets at other countries while Iranian forces have been doing the foot work for Russia in Syria.

Iranian fishermen have been complaining for a long time about the Chinese sweeping the Persian Gulf leaving nothing for Iranians to catch. In the spring of 2019 Iran called in Iraqi militia Hashd al-Sha'bi possibly to control the angry population following a major flood. These are seen by critics among the population as assaults to national independence.

The situation of freedom in Iran following the Islamic revolution is even worse. The politicians who lost the 2009 allegedly rigged presidential elections are still under house arrest after a decade.

No one has been indicted for killing thousands of prisoners in 1988 and the government refuses to respond to questions about the massacre. Many others have lost their lives during protests in 1999, 2009, 2017, 2018 and 2019 and the government has never acknowledged how many have been killed and arrested during those violent crackdowns.

Meanwhile, according to numerous international reports by the media and human rights watchdogs, Iran has been systematically taking dual nationals hostage for political gain. A former IRGC officer openly suggested that taking hostages should be an outlet for income for the IRGC, prompting the Guard's spokesman to issue an indirect denial.

And as for the Islamic Republic, many former insiders, from Abolfazl Qadyani on the left to Mahmoud Ahmadinejad on the extreme right of the Iranian political spectrum have said that nothing has been left of the Islamism or republicanism of the Islamic Republic.

Financial corruption among clerics and their colleagues in suits particularly during the past year have made many headlines. Even the spokesperson for the Guardian Council has acknowledged lately that both ethical and financial corruptions are major problems in the Islamic Republic.



Both long-time opponents of the Islamic republic and some of its former supporters argue that most of the challenges the country faces are due to the unelected nature of the Supreme Leader and institutions he controls. This has spilled over into the make-up for parliament. In this months parliamentary elections the mostly hardliner candidates were approved to run, making the legislature essentially an appointed body.

One of the icons of the Islamic Republic is a picture of Ayatollah Rouhollah Khomeyni the founder of the Islamic Revolution descending the stairs of an airliner that brought him back from exile in 1979. In the original picture, there are a dozen politicians and clerics accompanying him who have been alienated and pushed aside, some even executed over the years. In recent years, after several photoshop attempts to wipe them off the original picture, there is only the Ayatollah left with the captain who is ushering him out.
- A kind policeman has saved the life of a man who was dying of hunger on the streets of Ghana

- People who stood by before the police arrived at the scene reportedly thought the needy man was actually dead

- The man looked extremely relieved and revived in the video as his saviour came to his aid

A kind policeman has been captured in a viral video exhibiting a profound act of kindness to a stranger lying half-dead on the street.

The Ghanian policeman was reportedly on duty when he received a call to assist a caller at Community 19 in Spintex, Ghana.

READ ALSO: Size 8, DJ Mo provide meals to less fortunate school kids as they celebrate his 33rd birthday

READ ALSO: Hilarious video of lady rehearsing best move to give Makanga KSh 1k note goes viral

Rushing to the scene together with his team, they found the man lying motionless.

It has been reported that many of the people who were around the area thought the man was dead.

READ ALSO: Tomorrow is not promised: Zari Hassan gushes over her children, reminds fans time is limited

READ ALSO: Nyota wa Ohangla Lady Maureen apinga uvumi kuwa ameaga dunia

After the team checked his pulse, it was established he was still alive and tried opening his eyes.

The policeman asked the dying man what was wrong and he revealed to have not eaten in a long time.

Moved by the man's predicament, the policeman rushed to get some food for him.

Bystanders were stunned by the heroic act of the man in uniform and took their phones to record the life-saving incident

Closer home, a policeman was recently praised for his acts of kindness by helping out drivers.

The traffic policeman was spotted filling up potholes that were causing huge risks to the cars and pedestrians alike.

Do you have a groundbreaking story you would like us to publish? Please reach us through news@tuko.co.ke or WhatsApp: 0732482690. Contact Tuko.co.ke instantly.

Kiambu residents want to go back to the polling station and chose a new leader | Tuko TV

Source: TUKO.co.ke
A man rides a bike though an almost empty Nanjing Road, usually a busy commercial street, in Shanghai, China, on Wednesday, Jan. 29, 2020.

The majority of China's growth hubs have delayed the resumption of business by at least a week as the country tries to control the spread of a new coronavirus that has killed more than 200 people.

As of Monday morning, at least 24 provinces, municipalities and other regions in China have told businesses not to resume work before Feb. 10 at the earliest. That's according to publicly available statements from the governments.

Last year, those parts of China accounted for more than 80% of national GDP, and 90% of exports, according to CNBC calculations of data accessed through Wind Information. As a result, these delays in getting back to work could have a significant impact on the growth and international trade of what is now the world's second-largest economy.

Morgan Stanley economists estimated earlier last week that if the Lunar New Year holiday was extended by a week nationwide, January and February industrial production could be hit by as much as 5 to 8 percentage points.

It's unclear yet to what extent these virus-related disruptions will have to China's full-year economic growth. The Chinese government has also mandated that provinces resume the production of medical resources needed to prevent and control the virus. In most regions, businesses involved with public utilities, supermarkets or other essential industries are to remain open.

The Lunar New Year holiday was initially set to run from Jan. 24 to Jan. 30, with work resuming on Jan. 31. Nationwide, the Chinese government has extended the holiday so that businesses would not reopen until Monday, Feb. 3.

These cities, provinces or municipalities have announced a delay to resumption of work:

Beijing: encouraged companies to have employees work from home until Feb. 10.

Hubei, the epicenter of the outbreak, has told businesses not to reopen until at least Feb. 14. However, officials said Friday that Hubei would further extend the holiday to an "appropriate extent," according to state-owned newspaper People's Daily. Hubei residents who work outside the province were also asked to stay put.

Tianjin: Businesses and schools are not to reopen until further notice.

Anhui, Chongqing, Fujian, Guangdong, Guangxi, Guizhou, Hebei, Heilongjiang, Henan, Hunan, Inner Mongolia, Jiangsu, Jiangxi, Jilin, Liaoning, Ningxia, Shaanxi, Shandong, Shanghai, Shanxi, Suzhou, Xi'an, Yunnan, Zhejiang have all said work is to resume no earlier than midnight on Feb. 9.
VALPARAISO  A South Haven woman pleaded guilty Friday to having sex with an underage boy seven years ago.

Kristin Armstrong, 34, appeared before Porter Superior Court Judge Jeffrey W. Clymer to forgo her right to a jury trial, which had been set to begin March 2.

She told the judge she signed a plea agreement with the Porter County prosecutors office in which she would avoid prison in return for her admission to the charge of child molesting.

She could have faced a sentence of more than 20 years in prison if convicted of all the felony counts she was charged with in 2016.

Her attorney, Mark A Chargualaf, said under the terms of the agreement, she would be placed on probation for a term of 10 years and have to maintain a lifetime registry as a sex offender.

Porter County Deputy Prosecutor Rebecca Buitendorp said the victim in the case had been advised of the terms of the agreement.

Clymer said he will decide March 20 whether to accept the terms of the agreement and, if so, sentence her.

Armstrong admitted she performed oral sex on a child under the age of 14 between June 1, 2012, and May 31, 2013.
The United States said Monday it will refuse entry to politically influential Moldovan oligarch Vladimir Plahotniuc over allegations of corruption.

Plahotniuc, whose Democratic Party has sought to keep a balance between Russia and the West, fled Moldova in June under the shadow of graft allegations.

His whereabouts are since unknown but press reports say he was spotted in Miami.

Secretary of State Mike Pompeo said that Plahotniuc, during the time his party was in power, was "involved in corrupt acts that undermined the rule of law and severely compromised the independence of democratic institutions in Moldova."

"Today's action sends a strong signal the United States does not tolerate corruption and stands with the people of Moldova in their fight against it," Pompeo said in a statement.

Under the order, Plahotniuc as well as his wife, son and another minor child will be barred from entering the United States.

When he fled the eastern European country, Plahotniuc denied charges against him and blamed Russia for the investigation.

"Moscow now controls the machinery of law enforcement and justice in Moldova and will seek to abuse those levers to meet their goal of destroying me to achieve their goal of turning Moldova into a client state of Russia," he said.

Moldova has struggled to find its place since gaining independence with the 1991 collapse of the Soviet Union.
Photo: Everett Collection, Getty Images

You know how there are some actors whose iconic roles transcend their celebrity? Its kind of a subjective thing, the celebrity-character association, and its largely dependent on your age and maybe your taste in movies. For instance, Johnny Depp, to me, is and always will be Captain Jack Sparrow; Rachel McAdams is seared onto my brain as Regina George; and Liam Neeson will always just be a more murder-y Liam Neeson in Taken.

So when it was announced today that Imelda Staunton has been cast as Queen Elizabeth II for the fifth and final season of The Crown, my broken brain buckled under the information. Dolores Umbridge as Queen Elizabeth? Its the kind of universe cross-pollination that can take a moment to absorb. (I mean, can you watch Alan Rickman in Love Actually without creating a meta-commentary of Snapes life as a muggle? Truly?)

Staunton will be taking over the role from Olivia Colman, and according to showrunner Peter Morgan, bring the show into the 21st century, meaning the series will likely end shortly after Princess Dianas death in 1997. And while Im not saying I cant picture Staunton as the queen, it will definitely be jarring, at first, to watch someone I know best as a despotic Defense Against the Dark Arts teacher gracefully navigate the vagaries of the modern-day British monarchy and the tabloid press. Now all I need is for Meghan Markle to play herself in a spinoff of The Crown.
I'm an over-the-road truck driver. That means I have lots of time to indulge myself in activities not given to ordinary mortals, such as listening gavel-to-gavel to the Senate's impeachment process (still in progress as of this writing). Most ordinary mortals do not enjoy (?) this luxury, because they have lives of their own: things like home, family, hobbies, jobs that don't permit radio or TV listening. But me, I'm a captive audience in my truck, so if I feel like listening, then listening is what I do. It makes the miles go by.

In the course of my tuning in to the feed from the impeachment hearings, I caught House manager Congressman Adam Schiff telling a huge whopper: that he doesn't know who the "whistleblower" is. That is the individual whose machinations and contacts with Schiff's Intelligence Committee touched off the entire impeachment business. Schiff is asserting that he still, to this day, does not know who this individual is.

This is a lie. There is no way that Schiff cannot have known exactly who the "whistleblower" is, and have known it for nearly three years now. In Schiff's case, it is only the latest in a career of lies, which is well documented. A partial litany would include the contradictory stories he has told about his office's contacts with the "whistleblower," his claims to have conclusive evidence proving that Donald Trump colluded with the Russians (which were blown apart by the Muller Report), and his claim that the FBI didn't use the absurd Steele Dossier as its justification to the FISA Court to surveil Carter Page.

This time, Schiff raised his lies to a whole new level, by repeating his lie inside the halls of Congress. And he did it not once, but three times: once in his own Intelligence Committee and at least twice to the Senate during the question-and-answer phase.

Schiff's assertion isn't perjury, since Schiff wasn't under oath when he made these declarations. But since he repeated these lies in the halls of Congress, and in the most solemn setting possible, it is the next thing to it. It is a lie that was made at the very highest levels of state.

Something similar happened in the United Kingdom in 1963: the Profumo Affair.

John Profumo was secretary of state for war in the Conservative Government of Prime Minister Harold MacMillan. In 1961, he ran afoul of a British showgirl and presumable prostitute, Christine Keeler, embarking on an affair with her lasting a few months. Keeler was also the mistress of a British osteopath and of the senior Soviet naval attache, which compromised Profumo.

When questioned about the affair in the House of Commons, Profumo disgraced himself by lying about it in that he denied the affair. Unheard of! In Britain, lying to Parliament is considered to be one of the worst crimes a person can commit. When Profumo was caught, he had to leave Her Majesty's Government in disgrace, in 1963. The blowback led to the downfall of the MacMillan government and its replacement by the Labor Government of Harold Wilson in 1964.

What will be the effects of Schiff's own history of lies? There are reports that he wants to run for the Senate after Dianne Feinstein enters into her own long overdue retirement in 2024. Perhaps he views his management of the impeachment affair as his audition for the Senate run to succeed her? Maybe he wants to run for president? Bill Clinton and Lyndon Johnson pulled it off, starting with a lot less.

One thing that seems certain is that however Schiff's life turns out, he won't follow the path that Profumo took. That is because Profumo chose a totally different life for himself, something inconceivable for Schiff: that of atonement. He took a job as a janitor in a soup kitchen. Eventually and in the course of time, showing the same abilities that had enabled him to rise high in Her Majesty's Government, he ended up running the place. After a number of years doing that, he became its chief fundraiser. In 1975, he received a knighthood from Queen Elizabeth for his prodigious work in raising money for charities. He did all this work as a volunteer, since he was able to subsist off inherited wealth. One could say John Profumo found redemption and atonement.

Schiff, in contrast, will suffer the same fate liars usually do: his life will end in bitterness and perhaps insanity. That's because it is difficult to be a successful liar; only geniuses can pull it off.

How difficult it is to be a successful liar! The liar, to be successful, has to keep straight in his own mind all the variations and permutations of every lie he ever told. He can't remember all the versions he told, and eventually, he can't tell the differences anymore. This road leads to unreality and surreality, and eventually insanity. By contrast, the truth-teller has to keep only one version straight in his own mind: the truthful one. It makes for an easier life.

However Adam Schiff's political ambitions turn out, a liar's fate is the one he has chosen for himself.

The author is an Iowa truck driver known to some AT readers as Kzintosh.

Image: Donkey Hotey via Flickr.
Share this article Whatsapp

Facebook

Twitter

Linkedin Nina V. Guno (Inquirer.net/Asia News Network)  Sat, February 1, 2020 14:47 709 7f440ff09e92db75a02bbad2062035a0 2 Lifestyle ring,Lord-of-The-Rings,lost-items Free

Police earnestly looking for the owner of a ring recovered in a burglary case failed to realize the value of the itemat least, in terms of its place in pop culture.

The oblivion of a British police force to an epic fantasy novel and its award-winning film adaptations earned them a barrage of memes on Facebook from fans of J.R.R. Tolkiens work.

Read also: 'Lord of the Rings' show to start filming in New Zealand

North Yorkshire Police posted pictures on Facebook on Wednesday, Jan. 29, of a distinctive silver ring, stating that it was found in a house burgled in February 2019.

The ring is a silver version of The One Ring created by antagonist Sauron, the title character of Lord of the Rings. He forged the ring to gain control of Middle-earth. In Tolkiens fantasy epic, a fellowship gathers to destroy it in the volcano Mount Doom.

Social media users who saw the lost-and-found post were quick to point out who the owner wasin the fictional setting of Middle-earth, that is.

Cast the ring into the oblivion of the evidence locker, where it cannot hurt anyone and will never be seen again! urged Jenny Erlien Jennings.

One Mario Caruana advised, That truly is a precious ring. Sadly, I wouldnt translate that. Its in the black tongue of Mordor and isnt very nice. Best off throwing it into a river or mountain volcano or something. If unclaimed can I challenge you guys to riddles for it? I have a buyer with their EYE on it.

It has been lost before and the last time, it turned into a continent-spanning ball ache. Id advise against getting involved, said Facebook user Sam Richards.

Others also advised against giving the ring away to the wrong person. If a bloke with a split personality identifies it as my precious dont believe him, honestly its not his, said Andrew Thistlethwaite in jest.

The Facebook post has about 39,000 shares and 30,000 comments as of this writing.

The police took the reactions lightly amid the overwhelming attention. Thanks for all the comments  we obviously need to brush up on our movie knowledge! However it is someones property and we would like to return it to whoever has had it stolen from them.

Fans remained relentless on the officers ignorance, reminding them that it was not simply a movie. One Sriracha Walker commented, How for the love of god do you not know this knowledge? Im gonna have to call the police on the police, this is a crime."

Topics :

This article appeared on the Philippine Daily Inquirer newspaper website, which is a member of Asia News Network and a media partner of The Jakarta Post
UP: Kafeel Khan remanded to judicial custody, transferred to Mathura jail

India

oi-Madhuri Adnal

Aligarh (UP), Feb 01: Child specialist Kafeel Khan who was accused of making an inflammatory speech at AMU was remanded to judicial custody and later transferred to Mathura jail, officials said on Saturday.

Circle Officer (Civil Lines) Anil Samania said Khan was brought here on late Friday evening and was produced before the remand magistrate who remanded him to judicial custody. He was sent to the Aligarh jail, but within an hour, he was transferred to Mathura jail, the official said.

He was accused of making an inflammatory speech at the university during anti-CAA protests on December 14.

Dr Kafeel Khan arrested by UP STF for making 'inflammatory' remarks at anti-CAA rally in Aligarh

Khan was arrested on Wednesday night with assistance from Mumbai Police at the airport when he arrived in the city to attend anti-CAA protests, an official said.

"Officials of the UP STF arrested Dr Kafeel Khan in a case which was registered at Civil Lines Police Station under section 153 A (promoting enmity between different groups) of IPC. Our police team helped our UP counterparts on their request," said an official from Mumbai Police.

He claimed that Khan had made inflammatory statements on December 12 last year during the protest near Bab E Syed Gate outside the Aligarh Muslim University in front of more than 600 students.

The official also alleged that the Gorakhpur doctor had made objectionable comments against Union Home Minister Amit Shah. The FIR against Khan mentions that Swaraj India's president Yogendra Yadav was also present during the speech at AMU.

Following the arrest in the case, Khan was taken to the Sahar Police Station and after completing formalities he will be taken to UP on transit remand, the official said. Khan, a paediatrician, had come to the limelight in 2017 when a controversy broke out after the death of over 60 children in less than a week at the BRD Medical College in Gorakhpur, UP.
By Express News Service

CHENNAI: A 40-year-old Chennai woman, who returned from China on Thursday, has been put under observation at an isolation ward for novel coronavirus in the Rajiv Gandhi Government General Hospital after she complained of mild fever. Interestingly, she was not stopped during the screening at the airport on Thursday as she did not have any symptoms at that point.

Addressing the media, dean of Rajiv Gandhi hospital R Jayanthi said the patient, a resident of Selaiyur, is normal and stable."She was referred here from the Chromepet GH," said Jayanthi. The woman, who had visited Dongguan in South China, went to Chromepet GH on her own as she was running a mild temperature.

Jayanthi added the patient was not stopped at the airport as symptoms were not visible then. She even passed the thermal screening. Since the woman is normal, no bio-samples were taken for tests. She was clinically declared by physicians as coronavirus-free. However, we do not want to take any chances considering her travel history, said Jayanthi.

A total of 242 people across TN are under observation for novel coronavirus. Of these, only two are in hospitals -- one in Chennai and the other at Tiruvannamalai GH. The rest are in their own homes. The situation is fully under control and there is nothing to worry, said Public Health Director K Kolandaswamy.
Phuket task force targets virus fake news, police asked to press charges over virus death at airport post

PHUKET: Airports of Thailand management at Phuket International Airport (AoT Phuket) has filed a formal complaint with police to press charges under the Computer Crimes Act for a post online that claimed a foreigner infected with the Wuhan coronavirus had died at the airport.

tourismhealthChineseCoronavirusCOVID-19

By The Phuket News

Saturday 1 February 2020, 02:03PM

People are being warned that posting or sharing fake news about the Wuhan coronavirus in Phuket may be charged under the Computer Crimes Act. Image: PR Dept

Phuket Vice Governor Supoj Rotreuang Na Nongkhai confirmed the news to the press yesterday (Jan 31).

The complaint filed by AoT Phuket requests that police press charges under Section 14 of the Computer Crimes Act, Vice Governor Supoj said.

The person posted wrong information and photos about the Wuhan flu, which affected Phukets tourism image, he said.

Among the Wuhan flu reports in Phuket going viral this week was a post claiming that a foreign woman at the airport had died of the Wuhan coronavirus.

The post, uploaded onto Facebook by Konnika Jampaburee on Monday (Jan 27), showed a photo of a person covered with a white sheet being wheeled out of the airport and loaded into an ambulance.

Along with the photo were the words in Thai, One death at Phuket International Airport #Chinese.

Dr Sutsinee Sakswut, the airport doctor on duty on Monday, confirmed to The Phuket News on Wednesday that nobody had died from the Wuhan flu at the airport. The post is wrong, she said. (See story here.)

Vice Governor Supoj pointed out that under Section 14 (1) of the Computer Crimes Act it is illegal to for any person to commit an act that involves import to a computer system of forged computer data, either in whole or in part, or false computer data, in a manner that is likely to cause damage to that third party or the public.

If found guilty, perpetrators may face up to five years in prison or a fine of up to B100,000, or both, he added.

Vice Governor Supoj warned people over posting or sharing news that does not declare its source.

The current situation has found that there is a lot of false news that undermines the credibility and confidence of Phuket, he said.

I want everyone to check before sharing any information on your social media or even face to face, he added.

Phuket Governor Phakaphong Tavitaptana has set up a fake news task force to target and investigate fake news reports online, Vice Governor Supoj added.

There is a working group to monitor fake news presenters in social media, he confirmed.

Vice Governor Supoj confirmed that he has been appointed to lead the working group with the assistance of the Phuket branch of the Internal Security Operations Command (Isoc), which serves as the political arm of the Thai military.

Media that is fake news creates panic among citizens and tourists. Such actions are considered as an offense under Article 14 (1) of the Computer Crimes Act, he said.

Phuket Airport has already reported one case for prosecution, in which damaging messages and clips of Phuket have been presented to the public, including some people presenting panic messages about visiting Phuket and people in Phuket becoming infected, Vice Governor Supoj explained.

All such messages create panic and causing damage to Phuket. Therefore, we ask the public to be careful when sharing [posts online].

In addition, the working group will check various false news posts and reports in order to solve the problem and reduce the damage that will occur to Phuket, he said.
Several universities in Vietnam have extended their Tet break, while parents feel concerned about the safety of elementary school kids amid the coronavirus outbreak.

The Hanoi University of Science and Technology (HUST) has extended the Tet or Lunar New Year break for its students for seven extra days until February 10.

Tran Van Top, Vice Principal of the university, said the decision was taken after the World Health Organization (WHO) declared the new coronavirus (nCoV) a global public health emergency Thursday.

The university has also sent them a handbook of disease prevention measures issued by the Ministry of Health.

Le Manh Cuong, a student, was pleased with the decision.

Cuong said his family was worried about him as he was supposed to return to classes on Monday amidst the spread of the nCoV virus.

"The school's decision shows they care about their students' health. I'm also happy to be in my hometown for another week," Cuong said.

The Ministry of Health on Saturday confirmed four Vietnamese have tested positive for the virus. One was a hotel receptionist in Nha Trang who had contact with two infected Chinese tourists. The other three came back from Wuhan, the epicenter of the outbreak.

Earlier, on January 23, the two Chinese nationals had become the first in Vietnam to test positive for nCoV infection.

Hanois Thuy Loi University has also extended the Tet break to February 10.

Dr Trinh Minh Thu, the university's principal, said they wanted to take precautionary measures to protect the students and school officials. The extension of the holiday won't affect the students' progress, she added.

The Hanoi University of Mining and Geology has also extended the holiday break for another week. The school has warned students who have returned to Hanoi from their hometowns to be highly vigilant and get themselves checked and treated at a medical facility if they experience any symptom of illness.

The school heads have said that the holiday extension is temporary until there is an official decision from the government and the Ministry of Education and Training.

If the outbreak has not been controlled and risks of it spreading still exist by February 10, the school may extend the break even further on safety considerations.

Many other universities are considering further extension of the holidays and are expected to make an announcement soon. The education ministry has authorized universities and schools to suspend classes as they see fit in wake of the health crisis.

Most students have enjoyed a Tet holiday of between 14 to 21 days, starting January 23.

In Lao Cai Province, which shares a long border with China, all students from kindergartens to high schools will get to come back to school three days later than scheduled, on February 6.

Anxious parents

Parents, meanwhile, are worried about the safety of younger children as they decide whether or not to send them to school.

A mother in Hanoi checks the body temperature of her daughter on the way to school, January 31, 2020. Photo by VnExpress/Ngoc Thanh.

Le Thi Thuy Lieu, 31, was hesitant about bringing her daughter to school Friday morning although the kid was all ready, in her uniform and school bag packed.

Lieu joined a group chat created for people whose first-grader children go to the Khuong Thuong Elementary School in Dong Da District. Lieu wasn't alone in her anxiety.

But everyone in the group encouraged each other to stay calm and take the kids to school if they don't have fever or cough, because "skipping classes will make them fall behind, and there was no one to look after them at home anyway."

Lieu took her daughter to school and saw that many children had showed up, which made her even more anxious. She now wants the school to suspend classes so her child can be home and not exposed to the outside environment.

"I haven't stopped worrying about the rapid spread of the coronavirus in the last couple days," Lieu said.

The mother has equipped her child with a 3D medical mask. She has told her daughter to always put her hoodie top on and not to take off the mask.

"Still, she only wears her mask on her way to school and back, not in class, because she feels embarrassed as none of her classmates wear it," Lieu said.

The distance between the school and their home is less than a kilometer, but as soon as her daughter comes home, Lieu has her change her clothes, wash her hands with soap, cleanse her mouth with mouthwash, and her eyes with saltwater. She also bought an air filter for the home.

She and other parents keep each other posted about the virus and measures taken by neighboring schools for reference.

"My phone buzzes all the time, every parent cares about this," Lieu said.

Head teachers at the school have informed the students and parents about the prevention of the nCoV and advised them to put on a facial mask in class. Students who show signs of fever and coughing will be reported to the medical room and their parents immediately.

Since the onset of the epidemic, none of Lieu's daughter's classmates have fallen ill, but many still don't go to school.

"The parents association has decided to buy hand sanitizer for the kids, the more we can protect them the better," Lieu said, adding she will also stock more facial masks at home.

Students wear face masks in class at an elementary school in Hanoi. Photo by VnExpress/Ngoc Thanh.

Nguyen Thi Thu, another parent in Hanoi, said her anxiety mounted after she learnt that some Vietnamese had contracted the virus.

"Some parents bluntly proposed that kids who were traveling during Tet with their family should not send them to school or keep them away from their classmates. If the families can't afford to have their kids skip class and stay at home, then they should tell other parents so that the latter could keep their kids at home to prevent risks," the 30-year-old Thu said, recounting discussions between parents at her daughter's kindergarten.

On Friday, Pham Xuan Tien, Vice President of Hanoi Department of Education and Training, warned parents against being worrying too much and keeping their kids from school, saying it would affect their academic progress.

"Only when the Ministry of Health and official agencies issue a warning should parents allow their children to skip class," Tien said.

Vietnam had 97 coronavirus suspected cases with symptoms like fever and cough as of Friday, and 32 are still isolated, pending test results.

The virus has spread from mainland China to 26 countries and territories: Hong Kong, Macao, Thailand, Singapore, Taiwan, Malaysia, Japan, Australia, the U.S., South Korea, France, Germany, Vietnam, Canada, the UAE, Nepal, Cambodia, Sri Lanka, India, the Philippines, the U.K., Russia, Finland, Nepal, Sweden, and Spain.

Chinese authorities said 259 people had died as of Saturday morning out of almost 12,000 confirmed cases of the disease.
Roger Mabbett was driving along Portside Drive a few months before Christmas when he noticed a small sign on the side of the road.

Puzzled, he went to check it out.

It had museum on it, and I thought: we dont have a museum in Tauranga, says Roger.

So I drove in, got out, walked over and thought: whoa this is a museum to the Rhodesian forces. When I told other people they didnt know anything about it.

Roger had found The Lion and Tusk  a museum of the Rhodesian Services Association, which was established on May 1, 2018, in a unit at Mount Maunganui.

I went to meet him there and he introduced me to some of the hardworking people who are running it.

Diana Bomford, Tony Fraser and Hugh Bomford

Walking in, like Roger, I went: whoa as I stood stunned at the massive collection of artefacts. Over the next hour, I met with Tony Fraser and Hugh Bomford and was given a tour of what is the largest Rhodesian military museum outside Africa.

The Lion and Tusk Museum and the Rhodesian Forces Archives Project contains Rhodesian military history records and exhibits of uniforms, medals and equipment from the Pioneer period, Matabele War, Mashona Rebellion, Anglo-Boer War, World War One, World War Two, Malayan Emergency, Korean War, Aden Conflict, Nyasaland Emergency, Congo Border, Rhodesian Bush War, Commonwealth Monitoring Force and Op Agila.

Upstairs is an extensive library, with a memorial area at one end with Rolls of Honour rescued from Zimbabwe. Downstairs an Alouette III helicopter nestles amongst glassed custom-made displays filled with the dazzling exhibits.

Diana Bomford in the large library upstairs

Roger Mabbett, Tony Fraser and Hugh Bomford in the memorial area.

Theres a private collection of beer mugs showing the cap badge and stable belt colours of every Rhodesian Army unit, donated by Hennie Shoeman.

There are ammunition pouches, a British 1944 water bottle and cup, machetes and bayonets and a silk escape map covering Italy and Yugoslavia issued to Sgt Reg S.J. 'Bok' Parsloe who served in the Rhodesian S Patrol Long Range Desert Group.

Thousands of people have donated over the last 18 years, says Tony. The artefacts, objects and memories help keep everything alive and well be able to pass it on to our children who come after us.

I pause in front of one display and watch part of a war film. Nearby are numerous paintings of aeroplanes by Digby Sinclair; framed rows of medals, berets, caps, helmets and hats; shields, a marching drum from the 2nd Battalion Royal Rhodesia Regiment, dress uniforms, and flags hanging from the rafters above. Nearly hidden amongst it  a small fridge packed with biltong, droewors, borewors and cans of drink.

Roger had met two cruise ship passengers who were happily browsing the movies and artefacts.

When I said that I would take them back to the cruise ships at no charge, I was told that this was the number one of the land-based activity options, in their opinion, and that they had no links with Africa.

Hughs wife, Diana, is one of the volunteers who help run it, ensuring it is open to the public from Thursdays to Sundays.

The first time Tony came around to our place, Hugh had his trunk out - of his army stuff - and the next minute theres a pile on the floor, says Diana. Basically it was Tonys connection with the army here that helped get this started.

Tony, born in Rotorua to NZ Maori parents, joined the New Zealand Army in 1979 when the conflict in Rhodesia was coming to an end.

Wed just sent 74 peacekeepers to monitor the elections and the gathering of the insurgent forces that were outside the country, says Tony.

After my initial five years of regular force service, three of us decided wed like to go and see these countries that wed learned about, but had never visited. So we went to Africa and walked and hitchhiked from Kenya to Johannesburg.

I was quite taken by the Rhodesian  Zimbabwe people. They looked after me. I returned to New Zealand with a wife from Zimbabwe, met up with the Bomfords, and decided that I should give back some of the kindness that Zimbabwe/Rhodesia showed me.

The Rhodesian Services Association was formed in the early 2000s from a basis of people who served, or whose family served, in forces loyal to Rhodesia.

At a social event in NZ, the Commanding Officer of the 6th Battalion (Hauraki) Regiment, Lt Col John Dick ED, invited the association to form a museum display as part of the units history room.

In 2006 the Classic Flyers Museum invited them to form a display in their museum and in May 2018 the Lion and Tusk  Museum of the Rhodesian Services Association was opened to the public in Portside Dr and is now the focal point for social gatherings, ANZAC and Memorial Day commemorations.

Roger Mabbett at the front entrance desk

During the summer, barbecues are fired up in the carpark outside for get-togethers.

People come from all over  Hamilton, Auckland, says Diana.

Its all about the whakapapa, parents bringing their kids, says Tony. A lot of our Rhodesian servicemens sons and daughters have joined the NZ Armed Forces. Weve had a few go over to Afghanistan and Timor. Theres a couple in the navy.

And people just turn up, like Roger, who lived for a while in Africa, and is overjoyed at discovering this museum of treasures amongst us.

Roger Mabbett
New Delhi, Feb 1 : Union Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman on Saturday allocated Rs 35,600 crores for nutrition related programmes.

While speaking in Parliament during the Budget session, she said that the Prime Minister's "Beti Bachao Beti Padhao" scheme had yielded tremendous results.

"Over six lakh Anganwadi workers are equipped with smartphones to upload nutritional status of more than 10 crore households," said the Finance Minister.

She added: "I propose to provide Rs 35,600 crores for nutrition related programmes for 2020-21." Earlier, Sitharaman had said that Mission Indradhanush has been expanded to cover 12 diseases, and five new vaccines have been added.
I have been surprised at the equity market response to the 2020 Union Budget, presented by the finance minister Nirmala Sitharaman. It was her second budget, and the first of this decade. The more than 2% decline in both the NIFTY 50 and Sensex reflects their perplexing disappointment, which may have come about because the markets perhaps expected a big-bang budget. According to street expectations, this would have implied a whopping increase in government expenditure, without any reference to fiscal discipline and the Fiscal Responsibility and Budget Management (FRBM) framework. True to this governments established practice, it has once again not succumbed to the fiscal profligacy that such a big-bang would have implied.

I am confident that in the coming days, the market will recognise the fine balance that the finance minister has achieved in giving private investment and growth a strong push, while retaining fiscal prudence and adhering to the FRBM framework, which permits a flexibility of 0.5% in fiscal deficit when structural reforms are undertaken and revenues have not shown the expected buoyancy.

In my view, this is a budget with strong investment promotion features. These are reflected in several measures of which some of the more important ones are; i) abolition of the dividend distribution tax by the corporates; ii) extending the concessional 15% corporate tax rate to investment in the power sector along with other manufacturing capacities; iii) extending tax concessions to foreign country sovereign wealth funds and also other foreign direct investments, when it is made in priority sectors, including infrastructure; iv) permitting a tax deduction of 100% to start-ups for turnover of up to Rs 100 crore, raised from Rs 20 crore, and extending the concession from five to seven years; v) introducing the Vivad se Vishwas (No Dispute but Trust) scheme for direct tax disputes, which number a whopping 4.88 lakhs, allowing taxpayers to close the dispute by only paying the tax liability and avoiding the payment of interest and penal interest; vi) extending the time limit by one year for tax concessions for builders who take up affordable housing projects; and vii) the announcement of a Taxpayer Charter that will for the first time give the taxpayers their rights and save them from avoidable harassment.

All these measures will give a strong impetus to ramping up investment, which is critical to bring the economy back to a high growth trajectory. This will help the economy achieve the $5 trillion goal by 2025.

The 16-point plan of action for agriculture represents a comprehensive set of measures for accelerating the growth of this crucial sector. It will also attract corporate investment. And together it will enable the doubling of farmers incomes. I am particularly happy at the incentives announced for those states which implement the three modern agriculture laws that were designed in the NITI Aayog. These include the introduction of the model Agricultural Produce and Livestock Marketing Act, 2016; Agriculture Land Leasing Act, 2016; and the Contract Farming Act, 2018.

The implementation of these pending and yet critical structural reforms will go a long way in modernising our agriculture sector, including horticulture and fisheries. This is a very welcome move, as presently hardly 10% of our agriculture output is processed and farmers do not enjoy the benefits of value addition in this sector.

Another notable feature of the budget is the fairly ambitious disinvestment target of Rs 2.1 lakh crore for 2020-21. This is more than double the present years target, but is undoubtedly achievable. More than 25 disinvestment proposals are currently in the pipeline after being cleared by the cabinet. These are currently being processed and will surely be completed in the next 14 months.

Moreover, the listing of the Life Insurance Corporation, and then disinvesting a part of the equity to retail consumers, will yield substantial revenues. This, along with the strategic sale of Air India, when completed, will surely achieve the ambitious disinvestment target. This will also refurbish the governments credentials for its avowed aim of making greater space available for private sector activity and withdrawing the government from non-strategic sectors of the economy.

This pro-private sector approach is also reflected in the budget announcement of establishing a new medical college in public-private partnership mode to be attached to each of the government district hospitals in the country. This will address the acutely felt problem of shortage of health delivery personnel and also help enhance medical services.

With a nominal GDP growth rate of 10%, the budget has assumed a very reasonable rate of growth of only 9.2% in revenue receipts from Rs 18.5 lakh crore to Rs 20.2 lakh crore. With the further simplification and administration of both direct and indirect tax regimes, I expect this estimate to be overachieved in the coming year. For total receipts, including capital revenues from disinvestment, the growth is projected at 14.7%, also a reasonable target. The total public expenditure is expected to grow by 12.7% with public capital expenditures estimated to rise by 23% (BE FY21 over BE FY20). This is a healthy trend.

The finance minister has also provided much-needed succour to the middle class by lowering the personal income tax rates, and more important, perhaps, by taking important steps to simplify the tax payment process. Seventy of the 100 possible deductions and exemptions have been removed and an option has been given to the taxpayers to pay a lower tax rate if they are willing to forego the exemptions and deductions.

Overall, this is a brave and balanced budget that will boost investors sentiments and restore the economic growth momentum.

Rajiv Kumar is vice chairman, NITI Aayog

The views expressed are personal
A Harris County District Court judge issued a temporary restraining order Friday preventing UnitedHealthcare from removing some 600 Houston Methodist physicians from its network Feb. 1.

As many as 100,000 UnitedHealthcare plan members have already lost in-network access to eight Houston Methodist hospitals and dozens of its out-patient facilities as the insurer and hospital network battle over costs. As it became clear that fight would leave patients in the lurch, both sides launched public relations campaigns, taking out advertisements, inlcuding in the Chronicle, accusing one another of failing Houstonians. That dispute landed in court on Friday.

While members of UnitedHealthcares Medicare Advantage and commercials plans lost access to Methodist facilities Jan. 1, UnitedHealthcares contract with Methodist doctors does not expire until April 1.

Until then, plan members will be able to continue seeing Methodist doctors in-network. However, if doctors recommend surgery, physical therapy or other treatment, they will not be able to send patients to a Methodist hospital or clinic without going out-of-network, which would cost patients substantially more money.

The arrangement has caused an issue for Methodist surgeons and other physicians who practice in hospitals and clinics. Such doctors need admitting privileges before they can treat patients in a hospital, and some only had admitting privileges at Methodist.

However, when UnitedHealthcare sent out a letter to roughly 600 of Methodists 800 physicians on Wednesday saying those doctors would be terminated from the network two months early because they could not admit patients to any hospital other than Methodist, many were confused.

David Baskin, a neurosurgeon who practices at Methodist, St. Lukes, Texas Orthopedic and Texas Childrens Hospital, was among those who received the letter, even though he could treat patients outside of Methodist. And 88 letters, according to Methodist, went to primary care doctors, who do not practice in hospitals.

It was a rather haphazard list, said Mick Cantu, executive vice president of Houston Methodist, who estimated that perhaps 100 doctors fell into the category UnitedHealthcare said it was targeting. He also said the letter stood to interrupt patients care.

Everyones been planning for April. And to give us 72-hours notice that it would be Feb. 1  it doesnt make any sense, he said.

"Methodist has known for months that its physicians would need to have admitting privileges at in-network hospitals in order to stay in our network," said UnitedHealthcare in a statement emailed Feb. 1.

On HoustonChronicle.com: Can UnitedHealthcare patients use ER at Houston Methodist? Yes, but theres a catch.

Methodist requested a temporary restraining order that would prevent UnitedHealthcare from removing the doctors from its network before April 1. It also requested that the insurer be restrained from telling plan members, insurance brokers or employers that the Methodist doctors would be removed from the network before that date.

Both were granted.

Regardless of what United has communicated to our patients, it is important for our patients to know that Houston Methodist is committed to ensuring they will still be in-network until April 1, Methodist spokesperson Stefanie Asin said in an email.

The decision gave Houston Methodist and UnitedHealthcare two more months to try to negotiate. Without a new contract, members of UnitedHealthcares Medicare Advantage and commercial plans will no longer be able to receive lower, in-network rates for treatment by Houston Methodist doctors. Medicare Supplement plans, sometimes referred to as Medigap policies, will not be affected.

rebecca.schuetz@chron.com

twitter.com/raschuetz
All 195 US citizens that were repatriated from Wuhan, China, have been placed under a federal quarantine order in an attempt to stop the spread of the coronavirus.

This is the first time the Centres for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) has issued a quarantine order in 50 years.

The order came at the direction of Health and Human Services Secretary, Alex Azar.

On Friday, Dr Nancy Messonnier, director of the CDCs National Centre for Immunisation and Respiratory Diseases, said: While we realise this is an unprecedented action, this is an unprecedented threat.

She added: We would rather be remembered for overreacting than underreacting.

Coronavirus: Cases soar of deadly new flu-like virus Show all 154 1 /154 Coronavirus: Cases soar of deadly new flu-like virus Coronavirus: Cases soar of deadly new flu-like virus Paramedics wearing personal protective equipment carry patient on a stretcher on to an ambulance in North Point district in Hong Kong, China Getty Images Coronavirus: Cases soar of deadly new flu-like virus A medical worker wearing protective gear takes a rest as he waits for ambulances carrying patients infected with the COVID-19 coronavirus at an entrance of a hospital in Daegu, South Korea YONHAP/AFP via Getty Images Coronavirus: Cases soar of deadly new flu-like virus A medical worker sprays disinfectant on an ambulance after carrying a patient infected with the COVID-19 coronavirus at a hospital in Daegu YONHAP/AFP via Getty Images Coronavirus: Cases soar of deadly new flu-like virus People wearing protective face masks shop at a supermarket in Casalpusterlengo, one the northern Italian towns placed under lockdown due to the new coronavirus outbreak EPA Coronavirus: Cases soar of deadly new flu-like virus A trolley bus is disinfected amid fears over the spread of the novel coronavirus in Pyongyang, North Korea REUTERS Coronavirus: Cases soar of deadly new flu-like virus Workers wearing protective gear spray disinfectant as a precaution against the COVID-19 coronavirus in a local market in Daegu, South Korea AP Coronavirus: Cases soar of deadly new flu-like virus A man wearing a protective facemask walks outside a nearly empty shopping mall at lunch time in Beijing AFP via Getty Images Coronavirus: Cases soar of deadly new flu-like virus A man wearing protective facemask and gloves puts a drawing made by a girl living in the area asking residents to wear protective gear, next to a quarantine notice for people who have travelled and a notice asking people to register outside a residential compound in Beijing AFP via Getty Images Coronavirus: Cases soar of deadly new flu-like virus A woman is taken into an ambulance amid a coronavirus outbreak in northern Italy REUTERS Coronavirus: Cases soar of deadly new flu-like virus Ambulances and health workers are seen outside the Padua's hospital, northern Italy EPA Coronavirus: Cases soar of deadly new flu-like virus Passengers in coaches leave MoD Boscombe Down in Wiltshire after being repatriated to the UK from a cruise ship hit by the coronavirus in Yokohama, Japan and head to Arrowe Park Hospital on Merseyside PA Coronavirus: Cases soar of deadly new flu-like virus People rest in a temporary hospital situated in the Tazihu Gymnasium in Wuhan EPA Coronavirus: Cases soar of deadly new flu-like virus Buddhist monks wearing protective face masks pray during a blessing ceremony for the people affected by the COVID-19 coronavirus outbreak, at a temple in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia REUTERS Coronavirus: Cases soar of deadly new flu-like virus Medical workers wearing protective gears carry a patient infecting with a new coronavirus to a hospital in Chuncheon, South Korea AP Coronavirus: Cases soar of deadly new flu-like virus Soldiers in hazmat suits sanitize cargo from a China Airlines plane at the Taoyuan International Airport in Taoyuan City, Taiwan EPA Coronavirus: Cases soar of deadly new flu-like virus Barricades are seen to block the entrance a the gate of a local mall in a nearly empty area in Beijing, China Getty Images Coronavirus: Cases soar of deadly new flu-like virus A vendor wearing a protective facemask waits for customers at a shop in Beijing AFP via Getty Images Coronavirus: Cases soar of deadly new flu-like virus The body temperature of an Iraqi child returning from Iran is measured upon her arrival at the Najaf International Airport AFP via Getty Images Coronavirus: Cases soar of deadly new flu-like virus Volunteers hand out free facemasks at a shopping district in Quezon city, Metro Manila, Philippines Getty Images Coronavirus: Cases soar of deadly new flu-like virus Medical workers wearing protective gears carry a patient suspected of contracting the new coronavirus toward an ambulance at Daenam Hospital in Cheongdo, South Korea AP Coronavirus: Cases soar of deadly new flu-like virus A worker disinfects a shop at a market in Shanghai AFP via Getty Images Coronavirus: Cases soar of deadly new flu-like virus A restaurant worker wearing protective clothing as a preventive measure against the COVID-19 coronavirus passing a bag of food to a customer on the street outside their restaurant in Beijing AFP via Getty Images Coronavirus: Cases soar of deadly new flu-like virus A recovered patient is discharged from Leishenshan Hospital, the newly-built makeshift hospital for novel coronavirus patients, in Wuhan AFP via Getty Coronavirus: Cases soar of deadly new flu-like virus Volunteers in protective suits disinfect a factory with sanitising equipment in Huzhou, China China Daily via Reuters Coronavirus: Cases soar of deadly new flu-like virus Medical workers in protective suits attend to a patient inside an isolated ward of Wuhan Red Cross Hospital Reuters Coronavirus: Cases soar of deadly new flu-like virus A drone operated by the Suwon municipal government flies around Changyong Middle School spraying disinfectant, in Suwon, South Korea EPA Coronavirus: Cases soar of deadly new flu-like virus Workers transfer medical waste at Leishenshan Hospital AFP via Getty Coronavirus: Cases soar of deadly new flu-like virus A man wearing a protective mask rides a bicycle with his children in Guangzhou, China EPA Coronavirus: Cases soar of deadly new flu-like virus Volunteers in protective suits disinfect a railway station as the country is hit by an outbreak of the new coronavirus, in Changsha, Hunan province, China cnsphoto via Reuters Coronavirus: Cases soar of deadly new flu-like virus A woman repatriated from Wuhan carries a child as she walks upon her arrival at the Van Don airport in Vietnam's Quang Ninh province AFP via Getty Coronavirus: Cases soar of deadly new flu-like virus Medical staff checking the body temperature of a patient who has displayed mild symptoms of the COVID-19 coronavirus, at an exhibition centre converted into a hospital in Wuhan AFP via Getty Coronavirus: Cases soar of deadly new flu-like virus A medical worker in protective suit transports oxygen tanks at Wuhan Red Cross Hospital Reuters Coronavirus: Cases soar of deadly new flu-like virus Boys wearing protection masks, gloves and modified water bottles sit on a cart at the airport arrival terminal in Guangzhou EPA Coronavirus: Cases soar of deadly new flu-like virus Employees work on a production line manufacturing protective suits at a clothing factory in Shijiazhuang, Hebei province cnsphoto via Reuters Coronavirus: Cases soar of deadly new flu-like virus Medical workers in protective suits move a patient at an isolated ward of a hospital in Caidian district following an outbreak of coronavirus in Wuhan China Daily via Reuters Coronavirus: Cases soar of deadly new flu-like virus A worker in protective clothing, including face mask and gloves, carries a bucket as he works inside of The County Oak Medical Centre in Brighton, southern England, after it closed for "urgent operational health and safety reasons", following reports a member of staff was infected with the strain of the novel coronavirus AFP via Getty Coronavirus: Cases soar of deadly new flu-like virus Workers of the ecology and environment bureau collect samples from the sewage system of a hospital in Xinle, Hebei province China Daily via Reuters Coronavirus: Cases soar of deadly new flu-like virus A man in protective clothing cleaning the County Oak Medical Centre GP practice The British government warned the outbreak of novel coronavirus was a "serious and imminent threat" and reported four new cases that brought the total recorded in the country to eight. Two hospitals The Royal Free and Guys and St Thomas', have both been designated as "isolation" facilities, with both currently housing Britons who have returned from Wuhan, the Chinese city at the centre of the outbreak PA Coronavirus: Cases soar of deadly new flu-like virus Medical staff transfer patients to the newly completed Huoshenshan temporary field Hospital in Wuhan. The global coronavirus death toll rose again with Hong Kong announcing its first death from the outbreak on 4 February EPA Coronavirus: Cases soar of deadly new flu-like virus Members of staff wait as coaches carrying Coronavirus evacuees arrive at Kents Hill Park Training and Conference Centre, in Milton Keynes, after being repatriated to the UK from the coronavirus-hit city of Wuhan PA Coronavirus: Cases soar of deadly new flu-like virus A crew member of the cruise ship Diamond Princess talks to a worker wearing protective gear standing near the vessel, where dozens of passengers were tested positive for coronavirus, at Daikoku Pier Cruise Terminal in Yokohama Reuters Coronavirus: Cases soar of deadly new flu-like virus Doctors scan a patient's lungs at Huoshenshan temporary hospital built for patients diagnosed with coronavirus in Wuhan Xinhua News Agency/AP Coronavirus: Cases soar of deadly new flu-like virus People wearing protective suits walk from the Diamond Princess cruise ship, with around 3,600 people quarantined onboard due to fears of the new coronavirus, at the Daikoku Pier Cruise Terminal AFP via Getty Coronavirus: Cases soar of deadly new flu-like virus Indonesians who arrived from Wuhan are sprayed with antiseptic at Hang Nadim Airport in Batam. People evacuated from the Chinese city at the centre of a deadly virus outbreak, were transported to a quarantine zone on a remote island at the edge of the South China Sea, shortly after landing Indonesian Foreign Ministry via AP Coronavirus: Cases soar of deadly new flu-like virus A woman wears a protective mask as she shops in a market in Beijing Getty Coronavirus: Cases soar of deadly new flu-like virus Medical staff members hugging each other in an isolation ward at a hospital in Zouping in China's easter Shandong province AFP via Getty Coronavirus: Cases soar of deadly new flu-like virus A portrait of Dr Li Wenliang is left at Li's hospital in Wuhan. He is regarded a whistleblower on the outbreak and died of the coronavirus which triggered wide-spread mourning on Chinese media Getty Coronavirus: Cases soar of deadly new flu-like virus Officers in protective gear enter the cruise ship Diamond Princess, where people tested positive for coronavirus, after the ship arrived at Daikoku Pier Cruise Terminal in Yokohama, south of Tokyo Reuters Coronavirus: Cases soar of deadly new flu-like virus Firefighters and personnel from the health ministry participate in a drill to prepare for the potential arrival of passengers infected with the coronavirus at the Viru Viru International Airport, in Santa Cruz, Bolivia Reuters Coronavirus: Cases soar of deadly new flu-like virus Scientists are at work in the VirPath university laboratory as they try to find an effective treatment against the new Sars-like coronavirus AFP via Getty Coronavirus: Cases soar of deadly new flu-like virus Medical workers in protective suits attend to patients at the Wuhan International Conference and Exhibition Center, which has been converted into a makeshift hospital to receive patients with mild symptoms caused by the virus Reuters Coronavirus: Cases soar of deadly new flu-like virus A girl wears a mask as a preventive measure against the coronavirus outbreak, in Bangkok, Thailand Reuters Coronavirus: Cases soar of deadly new flu-like virus A man is transferred from the World Dream cruise ship to an ambulance at the Kai Tak cruise terminal in Hong Kong as health officials conduct inspections AFP via Getty Coronavirus: Cases soar of deadly new flu-like virus Workers from a disinfection service company enter Lotte Department Store in central Seoul, South Korea EPA Coronavirus: Cases soar of deadly new flu-like virus A man who arrived from Hubei province talks with police at a checkpoint at the Jiujiang Yangtze River Bridge Reuters Coronavirus: Cases soar of deadly new flu-like virus A doctor holds a handheld digital thermometer near health officials preparing a health check for arriving passengers from China at Don Mueang Airport in Bangkok EPA Coronavirus: Cases soar of deadly new flu-like virus A resident walks across an empty track in Wuhan Getty Coronavirus: Cases soar of deadly new flu-like virus A scientific staff member works in a secure laboratory, researching the coronavirus, at the Pasteur Institute in Dakar AFP via Getty Coronavirus: Cases soar of deadly new flu-like virus Medical staff members preparing equipment to meet passengers of a military plane, which evacuated citizens of Russia and ex-Soviet countries from China's Wuhan province Vsluh.ru via Reuters Coronavirus: Cases soar of deadly new flu-like virus Staff wearing protective suits as they prepare to disinfect a Vietnam Airlines plane at Noi Bai International Airport in Hanoi Vietnam Airlines/AFP/Getty Coronavirus: Cases soar of deadly new flu-like virus A South Korean person, who was evacuated from Wuhan, arrives at the National Medical Center after showing suspected symptoms of novel coronavirus, in Seoul EPA Coronavirus: Cases soar of deadly new flu-like virus Officers in protective gear escort a person (under the blue sheet) who was on board cruise ship Diamond Princess and was tested positive for coronavirus Reuters Coronavirus: Cases soar of deadly new flu-like virus A doctor being disinfected by his colleague at a quarantine zone in Wuhan AFP via Getty Coronavirus: Cases soar of deadly new flu-like virus Buses carrying British nationals from the coronavirus-hit city of Wuhan, arrive at Arrowe Park Hospital in Merseyside Getty Coronavirus: Cases soar of deadly new flu-like virus Medical staff transfer patients in Wuhan EPA Coronavirus: Cases soar of deadly new flu-like virus Indonesian health officials conduct an exercise drill in transporting a patient requiring isolation at the Belawan port in Medan AFP via Getty Coronavirus: Cases soar of deadly new flu-like virus The Pasteur Institute in Dakar, designated by the African Union as one of the two reference centres in Africa for the detection of the new coronavirus that appeared in China, is hosting experts from 15 countries on the continent this weekend to prepare them to deal with the disease AFP via Getty Coronavirus: Cases soar of deadly new flu-like virus A government worker disinfects a co-worker after visiting a quarantined woman's home in Qingdao EPA Coronavirus: Cases soar of deadly new flu-like virus An aerial view of the deserted roads and bridges in Wuhan Getty Coronavirus: Cases soar of deadly new flu-like virus Medical workers hold a strike outside the Hospital Authority as they demand for Hong Kong to close its border with China to reduce the coronavirus spreading Reuters Coronavirus: Cases soar of deadly new flu-like virus Reuters Coronavirus: Cases soar of deadly new flu-like virus A person has their tempriture checked in Qingdao, China EPA Coronavirus: Cases soar of deadly new flu-like virus Ultrastructural morphology exhibited by coronaviruses. Note the spikes that adorn the outer surface of the virus, which impart the look of a corona surrounding the virion, when viewed electron microscopically Centers for Disease Control and Prevention/AFP Coronavirus: Cases soar of deadly new flu-like virus Malaysian nationals being directed from a bus by health officials in protective suits as they arrived at Kuala Lumpur International Airport in Sepang, after being evacuated from Wuhan Malaysia's Ministry of Health/AFP Coronavirus: Cases soar of deadly new flu-like virus People hoping to buy face masks crowd outside a medical supply shop that was raided by police for allegedly hoarding and overpricing the masks, as public fear over China's Wuhan Coronavirus grow in Manila, Philippines. The Philippine government has been heavily criticized after failing to immediately implement travel restrictions from China, the source of a deadly coronavirus that has now killed hundreds and infected thousands more Getty Coronavirus: Cases soar of deadly new flu-like virus Residents wearing masks and raincoats volunteer to take temperature of passengers following the outbreak of a new coronavirus at a bus stop at Tin Shui Wai, a border town in Hong Kong Reuters Coronavirus: Cases soar of deadly new flu-like virus Italian citizens repatriated from Wuhan going though a health control zone after landing at the Mario De Bernardi military airport in Pratica di Mare, south of Rome, prior to be placed in quarantine Italian Defence Ministry/AFP Coronavirus: Cases soar of deadly new flu-like virus Workers arrange beds in a 2,000-bed mobile hospital, set up in an exhibition center, in Wuhan EPA Coronavirus: Cases soar of deadly new flu-like virus A doctor checks conditions of occupants in a hotel accommodating isolated people in Wuhan EPA Coronavirus: Cases soar of deadly new flu-like virus Medical staff members wearing protective clothing to help stop the spread of a deadly virus which began in the city of Wuhan, arrive with a patient at the Wuhan Red Cross Hospital. The Chinese army deployed medical specialists to the epicentre of the spiralling viral outbreak that has killed and spread around the world AFP via Getty Coronavirus: Cases soar of deadly new flu-like virus A baby wearing a protective face mask is pushed by a woman as they arrive from Shenzhen to Hong Kong at Lo Wu MTR station AFP via Getty Images Coronavirus: Cases soar of deadly new flu-like virus A health worker checks the temperature of a woman entering a subway station in Beijing Getty Coronavirus: Cases soar of deadly new flu-like virus A young child wears a protective mask and is covered in plastic while waiting to check in to a flight at Beijing Capital Airport The World Health Organization (WHO) on Thursday declared the coronavirus a public health emergency of international concern Getty Coronavirus: Cases soar of deadly new flu-like virus Ambulance crews arrive at RAF Brize Norton in Oxfordshire, as it prepares for a return flight from Wuhan, China. Eighty-three Britons and 27 foreign nationals who were trapped in Wuhan are being flown back to the UK Tom Maddick / SWNS Coronavirus: Cases soar of deadly new flu-like virus A woman carries a baby wearing a protective mask as they exit the arrival hall at Hong Kong High Speed Rail Station Getty Coronavirus: Cases soar of deadly new flu-like virus Camp beds at a Medical Assessment Center set up at the airport in Frankfurt am Main, western Germany, on the eve of the arrival of German citizens evacuated from Wuhan AFP via Getty Coronavirus: Cases soar of deadly new flu-like virus Funeral parlour staff members in protective suits help a colleague with disinfection after they transferred a body at a hospital in Wuhan Reuters Coronavirus: Cases soar of deadly new flu-like virus Muslims wearing masks pray for the victims of coronavirus at a mosque in Ahmedabad, India Reuters Coronavirus: Cases soar of deadly new flu-like virus Medical officials waiting for people who wants to check the novel coronavirus at Myeongdong shopping district Getty Coronavirus: Cases soar of deadly new flu-like virus Children wear plastic bottles as makeshift homemade protection and protective masks while waiting to check in to a flight at Beijing Capital Airport Getty Coronavirus: Cases soar of deadly new flu-like virus A patient assisted by medical staff gets off an ambulance in Wuhan AFP/Getty Coronavirus: Cases soar of deadly new flu-like virus People line up to buy face masks from a medical supply company in Nanning, southern China's Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region. Countries began evacuating their citizens from the Chinese city hardest-hit by a new virus that has now infected more people in China than were sickened in the country by SARS Chinatopix via AP Coronavirus: Cases soar of deadly new flu-like virus Millions spent their normally festive Lunar New Year holiday under lockdown Getty Coronavirus: Cases soar of deadly new flu-like virus Children with face masks wash their hands before prayer at Erawan shrine in Bangkok. Thailand has detected eight Coronavirus cases so far AFP via Getty Coronavirus: Cases soar of deadly new flu-like virus An Indonesian health officer points at the screen of a thermal scanner for passengers China confirmed that the deadly Wuhan coronavirus virus can be transmitted between humans AFP via Getty Coronavirus: Cases soar of deadly new flu-like virus Hospital workers wearing protective eyewear and masks examine an Indonesian student who returned from China in quarantine at a hospital in Banda Aceh AFP via Getty Images Coronavirus: Cases soar of deadly new flu-like virus Ambulance staff dispose of an outfit at the hospital in Wuhan EPA Coronavirus: Cases soar of deadly new flu-like virus A person checks the temperature of a passenger to help stop the spread of a deadly virus as he arrives at the Sultan Mahmud Badaruddin II International airport in Palembang AFP via Getty Coronavirus: Cases soar of deadly new flu-like virus Nepali students, wearing face masks, attend a class at Matribhumi School in Bhaktapur, on the outskirts of Kathmandu AFP via Getty Images Coronavirus: Cases soar of deadly new flu-like virus Medical staff at the Wuhan Red Cross Hospital AFP via Getty Coronavirus: Cases soar of deadly new flu-like virus Two Buddhist monks wear face masks while walking along a street in Yangon AFP via Getty Images Coronavirus: Cases soar of deadly new flu-like virus Staff disinfecting a residential area in Ruichang, part of Jiujiang in China's central Jiangxi province AFP via Getty Coronavirus: Cases soar of deadly new flu-like virus Workers are seen at the construction site of a new hospital being built to treat patients from a deadly virus outbreak in Wuhan in China's central Hubei province on January 27, 2020. - China is rushing to build a new hospital in a staggering 10 days to treat patients at the epicentre of a deadly virus outbreak that has stricken thousands of people, state media reported on January 24. (Photo by Hector RETAMAL / AFP) (Photo by HECTOR RETAMAL/AFP via Getty Images) HECTOR RETAMAL AFP via Getty Coronavirus: Cases soar of deadly new flu-like virus Vapor blurs the goggles of an ambulance driver while they work, in Wuhan EPA Coronavirus: Cases soar of deadly new flu-like virus Workers producing facemasks at a factory in Yangzhou AFP via Getty Coronavirus: Cases soar of deadly new flu-like virus Medical staff getting on an ambulance in Wuhan AFP via Getty Coronavirus: Cases soar of deadly new flu-like virus A vendor of traditional masks wears a facial mask at his shop in Thamel EPA Coronavirus: Cases soar of deadly new flu-like virus An airport official checks the temperature of a passenger upon his arrival at the Bacha Khan International Airport in Peshawar AFP via Getty Coronavirus: Cases soar of deadly new flu-like virus Medical staff members arrive with a patient at the Wuhan Red Cross Hospital AFP via Getty Coronavirus: Cases soar of deadly new flu-like virus An ambulance driver talking with medical staff in Wuhan AFP via Getty Coronavirus: Cases soar of deadly new flu-like virus Wuhan Hygiene Emergency Response Team leave the closed Huanan Seafood Wholesale Market The new coronavirus appears to have its origins in a seafood market in the central Chinese city of Wuhan, a popular transport hub AFP via Getty Coronavirus: Cases soar of deadly new flu-like virus Workers produce protective suits at a factory in Nantong AFP via Getty Coronavirus: Cases soar of deadly new flu-like virus Passengers scanned by thermal imaging for body temperature as they go through health measures and procedures after they landed at Rome's Fiumicino airport on a southern airlines flight from Wuhan Aeroporto Di Roma/AFP via Getty Coronavirus: Cases soar of deadly new flu-like virus A Thai royal guard wears a mask while on duty at the Grand Palace in Bangkok EPA Coronavirus: Cases soar of deadly new flu-like virus A man wearing a face mask rides a nearly empty subway train in Beijing AP Coronavirus: Cases soar of deadly new flu-like virus Medical staff members at the Wuhan Red Cross Hospital AFP via Getty Coronavirus: Cases soar of deadly new flu-like virus A shopper wearing goggles with a face mask and gloves uses a self checkout machine at a supermarket in Wuhan AP Coronavirus: Cases soar of deadly new flu-like virus Medical staff transfer patients to Jinyintan hospital EPA Coronavirus: Cases soar of deadly new flu-like virus Members of the Italian Red Cross putting on protective gear, getting ready to give health checks to passengers that landed at Rome's Fiumicino airport on a southern airlines flight from Wuhan Aeroporto Di Roma/AFP via Getty Coronavirus: Cases soar of deadly new flu-like virus A member of the Hong Kong government's Civil Aid Service gestures at the entrance to the Lady MacLehose Holiday Village which is being used as one of two quarantine centres for people who have been in close proximity with suspected cases of a SARS-type virus. Hong Kong will turn two holiday camps, including a former military barracks, into quarantine zones for people who may have come into contact with carriers of the Wuhan virus, officials announced AFP via Getty Images Coronavirus: Cases soar of deadly new flu-like virus Medical staff wearing protective suits at the Zhongnan hospital in Wuhan STR/AFP via Getty Coronavirus: Cases soar of deadly new flu-like virus A Malaysia Health official checks passengers going through a thermal scanner upon their arrival at the Kuala Lumpur International Airport EPA Coronavirus: Cases soar of deadly new flu-like virus Staff disinfecting Yingtan North Railway Station, China China banned trains and planes from leaving the major city at the centre of a virus outbreak on January 23, seeking to seal off its 11 million people to contain the contagious disease that has claimed lives and spread to other countries AFP via Getty Coronavirus: Cases soar of deadly new flu-like virus A passenger walks past a quarantine control station at Narita airport, Japan EPA Coronavirus: Cases soar of deadly new flu-like virus Patients queue up to seek treatment in Wuhan Tongji Hospital Fever Clinic, in Wuhan EPA Coronavirus: Cases soar of deadly new flu-like virus Quarantine workers spray disinfectant at Incheon International Airport, South Korea EPA Coronavirus: Cases soar of deadly new flu-like virus A member of staff checks the temperature of a guest entering the casino of the New Orient Landmark hotel in Macau, after it reported its first case of the new SARS-like virus AFP via Getty Coronavirus: Cases soar of deadly new flu-like virus Medical staff transfer patients to Jin Yintan hospital Little is known about the new disease which, if confirmed, would be only the seventh coronavirus known to science that can infect humans Getty Coronavirus: Cases soar of deadly new flu-like virus Members of the Three Gorges Medical Laboratory offering free masks to the public in Yichang, China AFP via Getty Coronavirus: Cases soar of deadly new flu-like virus Gabriel Leung, right, chair professor of public health medicine at the Faculty of Medicine at the University of Hong Kong, speaks about the extent of the Wuhan coronavirus outbreak in China AFP via Getty Coronavirus: Cases soar of deadly new flu-like virus Members of staff of the Wuhan Hygiene Emergency Response Team conducting searches on the closed Huanan Seafood Wholesale Market AFP via Getty Coronavirus: Cases soar of deadly new flu-like virus A quarantine officer at Incheon International Airport, South Korea, uses an electronic thermometer to check the temperature of passengers arriving by plane from Wuhan The virus causes symptoms of viral pneumonia, and has already led to several deaths EPA Coronavirus: Cases soar of deadly new flu-like virus A screen shows cancelled flights at Tianhe airport in Wuhan AFP via Getty Coronavirus: Cases soar of deadly new flu-like virus Medical staff transfer patients to Jinyintan hospital EPA Coronavirus: Cases soar of deadly new flu-like virus Health officials hand out information about the current coronavirus at Kuala Lumpur International Airport AP Coronavirus: Cases soar of deadly new flu-like virus A store owner argues with security guards as he attempts to enter the closed Huanan wholesale seafood market AFP via Getty Coronavirus: Cases soar of deadly new flu-like virus Workers producing facemasks at a factory in Handan, China's northern Hebei province AFP via Getty Coronavirus: Cases soar of deadly new flu-like virus Medical staff and security personnel stop patients' family members from being too close to the Jinyintan hospital Reuters Coronavirus: Cases soar of deadly new flu-like virus maya-goodfellowAn airport staff member uses a temperature gun to check people leaving Wuhan Tianhe International Airport AP Coronavirus: Cases soar of deadly new flu-like virus A rescue worker walks past a notice about new coronavirus that has broken out in China Reuters Coronavirus: Cases soar of deadly new flu-like virus Health officials wear face masks at an inspection site at the Kuala Lumpur International Airport in Sepang AP Coronavirus: Cases soar of deadly new flu-like virus Medical staff members carry a patient into the Jinyintan hospital AFP via Getty Coronavirus: Cases soar of deadly new flu-like virus A staff member checks body temperature of a child after a train from Wuhan arrived at Hangzhou Railway Station in Hangzhou AFP via Getty Images Coronavirus: Cases soar of deadly new flu-like virus A quarantine station measures passenger body temperatures at Narita Airport JIJI PRESS/AFP via Getty Coronavirus: Cases soar of deadly new flu-like virus Passengers walk past a notice displayed near a quarantine control station at Narita airport EPA Coronavirus: Cases soar of deadly new flu-like virus Passengers walk past a poster alerting on coronavirus screening ahead upon their arrival at the Kuala Lumpur International Airport EPA Coronavirus: Cases soar of deadly new flu-like virus An employee sprays disinfectant on a train, as a precaution against coronavirus, at Suseo Station in Seoul EPA Coronavirus: Cases soar of deadly new flu-like virus Kazakh sanitary-epidemiological service worker uses a thermal scanner to detect travellers from China who may have symptoms possibly connected with the previously unknown coronavirus, at Almaty International Airport, Kazakhstan Reuters Coronavirus: Cases soar of deadly new flu-like virus Pharmacist Liu Zhuzhen stands near a sign reading "face masks are sold out" at her pharmacy in Shanghai AP Coronavirus: Cases soar of deadly new flu-like virus The Wuhan Medical Treatment Center, EPA Coronavirus: Cases soar of deadly new flu-like virus A worker in a protective suit at the closed seafood market in Wuhan Reuters Coronavirus: Cases soar of deadly new flu-like virus Passengers wear protective face masks at the departure hall of a high speed train station in Hong Kong AP Coronavirus: Cases soar of deadly new flu-like virus A notice for passengers from Wuhan Getty Coronavirus: Cases soar of deadly new flu-like virus A man wears a mask while riding on mobike past the closed Huanan Seafood Wholesale Market Getty

It is believed that the last time the CDC issued such an order was to evaluate a possible small pox outbreak in the 1960s.

While it is unclear if any of the people being held in quarantine at the March Air Reserve Base near Ontario, California, have contracted the virus, Dr Messonnier stated that a negative result on a test will not help us confirm that people will be safe from this disease.

On Thursday, after the specially chartered flight had arrived from China, one of the passengers attempted to leave the base and was placed in quarantine by Riverside County health officials.

The quarantine period for all 195 people is two weeks from when their flight left Wuhan. This corresponds to the incubation period for the virus. Initially they were to stay on the base for three days.

Politico reports that officials are planning to evacuate more Americans next week from Wuhan, and are also considering a mandatory evacuation of all US citizens.

As demand for travel to China plummets, all three US airlines with routes into China are scaling back and halting operations.

American Airlines has cancelled all flights to mainland China beginning immediately after the airlines pilots union filed a lawsuit on Thursday asking to stop flights. Initially the airline said it would cancel some flights between 9 February and 27 March.

United Airlines initially said it would cancel some flights in February due to decreased demand, but joined American on Friday saying that it would suspend all flights between 6 February and 28 March.

Delta Air Lines has the longest suspension of operations of any airline, announcing it would halt flights between 6 February and 30 April.

Airlines across the world have taken similar measures.

On Thursday, the State Department raised the travel advisory level from three to four, or from reconsider travel to do not travel, as well as allowing for the voluntary departure of non-emergency personnel and family members of US government employees from China.

So far there are six confirmed cases in the US. Five patients had recently travelled back to the US from China, and a sixth, who is married to one of the five, was the first person-to-person transmission on US soil.

A further 241 people in the US are being monitored.

Canada confirmed its fourth case on Friday, when a woman in her 20s who had travelled from Wuhan and had initially tested negative, was deemed to have a viral load high enough to be considered positive. She had worn a mask on her journey to Ontario. Officials said had a mild illness and recovered in three days.

On Thursday the World Health Organisation declared the virus a Public Health Emergency of International Concern.
Subdivision to cancel contract with septic company

North Star Water & Sewer LLC's co-owner told the Montana Public Service Commission last week that the company would cancel a contract with a septic company allowing it to discharge its pump trucks into the subdivisions sewage lagoon.

Last year Helena Valley resident Michael Kilbey raised concerns about the operation of North Stars sewage lagoon and the practice of allowing septic pump trucks to discharge waste there.

Kilbey said in May that the pump trucks were coming multiple times per day and dumping in the lagoon in close proximity to wells and homes. He also raised concerns of airborne contamination and potential impacts to groundwater and pipes running beneath the road that he feared could rupture.

In response to questions from the Independent Record, the Montana Department of Environmental Quality admitted that it erred in 2006 when it permitted the lagoon. Its location did not comply with regulations at the time that required it to be at least 500 feet from wells.

DEQ took no enforcement action, however, saying that current regulations would allow the lagoon to be sited at its current location as it did not pose a threat to water. The agency also said it did not have jurisdiction over airborne pollution from the facility.

In response to questioning during North Stars rate case before the PSC on Thursday, North Star co-owner Doug Peterson said that the contract with Helena Septic would be canceled after it expires in April. On the advice of Great West Engineering which built the waste water system, he said that he was instructed that the trucks were dumping too much material into the system and that could cause issues including increased maintenance and repair.

Under questioning from Derek Oestricher, an attorney and North Star resident who intervened in the rate case, Peterson paused and then answered in the affirmative when asked if the $600 contracted dumping fee was a sweet heart deal, but questioning did not offer further explanation about how the terms were decided or who negotiated them.
A pole marks the new geographical centre of the EU. (AP Photo/Michael Probst)

The tiny village of Gadheim is a far cry from the cities of Brussels and Strasbourg but it can now count itself as the centre of the EU.

Geographically, a nondescript field in the Bavarian village of 80 people is now is the central point for the 27-member bloc - with the UKs departure last night shifting the centre spot south-east.

A red and white pole in a boulder marks the new sport, and the flags of the EU, Germany and the Veitshoechheim municipality fly next to it.

On the one hand, of course I am proud and happy that we are becoming the new geographical centre of Europe, said Veitshoechheim Mayor Juergen Goetz.

On the other hand, of course its a sad occasion, because with Britain a country is leaving the EU for the first time.

The new geographical centre of the EU. (AP Photo/Michael Probst)

The EUs centre is calculated by Frances national cartographic institute, IGN. It has calculated the centre to be in Germany since the EU expanded from 15 to 25 members in May 2004 by adding mostly eastern European countries.

Gadheim has taken the sport from another place in northern Bavaria, Westerngrund, 35 miles north-west.

Mr Goetz said he first heard of his villages new status on the local radio, when is broadcast the IGNs calculations in March 2017.

At first, I thought it was an April Fools joke, an early one, he said.

But it turned out very quickly that it was really the case.

Officials in the area spent years considering what to do about it and debating whether the UK would even leave the EU.

Mr Goetz said his solution was to get the new centre point ready and, if Brexit hadnt happened, we would have made a monument for the unity of Europe out of this point.
(Natural News) Nearly 200 Americans who were recently evacuated from Wuhan, China, the epicenter of the novel coronavirus outbreak thats sweeping the globe, have been taken to Southern California where theyll now have to remain in a government-mandated quarantine for two weeks.

This historic decision by the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (C.D.C.)  the first in 50 years  was announced not long after the agency mysteriously diverted the evacuation flight, which was originally supposed to land at Ontario International Airport near Corona, California, to nearby March Air Reserve Base in Riverside.

These individuals evacuated via a chartered Boeing jet are said to be mostly diplomats and other professionals who live in Wuhan. And in order to protect the general American public from potential infection, seeing as how coronavirus is contagious for a long time before symptoms emerge, they will need to stay in monitored isolation.

While the World Health Organization (W.H.O.) has been soft-peddling the situation and almost downplaying it, only reluctantly deciding after a fourth meeting, to declare a global coronavirus emergency, the C.D.C. says that the disease is spreading rapidly throughout China.

As it turns out, the C.D.C. has authorization under section 361 of the Public Health Service Act (42 U.S. Code  264) to mandate isolation and quarantine to prevent the entry and spread of communicable diseases from foreign countries into the United States and between states.

The communicable diseases specifically listed in this section include cholera, diphtheria, infectious tuberculosis, plague, smallpox, yellow fever, viral hemorrhagic fevers, severe acute respiratory syndromes, and flu that can cause a pandemic, the latter of which apparently includes coronavirus.

Under 42 Code of Federal Regulations parts 70 and 71, C.D.C. is authorized to detain, medically examine, and release persons arriving into the United States and traveling between states who are suspected of carrying these communicable diseases, the C.D.C. website states.

As part of its federal authority, C.D.C. routinely monitors persons arriving at U.S. land border crossings and passengers and crew arriving at U.S. ports of entry for signs or symptoms of communicable diseases.

White House considering further restrictions or ban on American travel to China

As this is all occurring, the White House is reportedly considering increased travel restrictions to China, or even a possible ban on all travel to China for Americans. The State Department also increased its travel advisory to a warning level four.

Do not travel to China due to novel coronavirus first identified in Wuhan, China, the agency said in a statement. Those currently in China should consider departing using commercial means.

This announcement came almost immediately after the W.H.O. declared a global emergency over coronavirus, which as of this writing has officially infected nearly 10,000 people and killed another 213 people.

Meanwhile, Iran has reportedly cut of all flights to and from China indefinitely to avoid a potential outbreak.

Thats right: Iran cancelled flights before the U.S., pointed out Zero Hedge.

Its also important to note that a study just published in The Lancet estimates that closer to 75,800 people could be infected with novel coronavirus in Wuhan alone  a figure more than six times higher than the official count.

The transmissibility of 2019-nCoV  or at least its geographical distribution  seems to be higher and broader than initially expected, this study contends.

Why? Partly this may be because of Chinas rapid expansion of its transport networks, especially air and high-speed rail. Wuhan is a crucial hub: linking west to Chengdu, south to Guangzhou and Shenzhen, east to Nanjing and Shanghai, and north to Beijing. With much of December a period when the outbreak went unreported and unrecognised, the population exposed to the virus is far greater than first thought  a cause for heightened concern.

More news about coronavirus is available at Pandemic.news.

Sources for this article include:

ZeroHedge.com

CNBC.com

NaturalNews.com
UW Wont Appeal Ruling on Public Records

The University of Wyoming will not appeal an Albany County District Court ruling granting public access to redacted documents related to the UW Board of Trustees decision not to renew former President Laurie Nichols contract.



In deciding not to appeal to the Wyoming Supreme Court, the Board of Trustees has issued this statement:



The University of Wyoming Board of Trustees seeks consistently to act in the best interests of the university, the state of Wyoming and its residents, and all university employees. Our commitment to the latter typically requires us to maintain confidentiality regarding personnel matters. We strive to respect the privacy of our faculty and staff. When the board opted in March 2019 not to renew President Nichols contract, we observed customary confidentiality practices.



Now the District Court has ordered the university to make public certain documentation related to the boards action. While we always seek to strike a sensitive balance between the transparency required of a publicly funded institution and employees rights to privacy, we accept the District Courts direction.



In early 2019, the Board of Trustees was made aware of two instances when reports were made to human resources by university staff members regarding President Nichols. We retained an employment matters firm to do preliminary interviews and inquiry. The firm reported that the resulting inquiry identified multiple individual accounts or perspectives of a similar and consistent nature. Members of the university community who came forward were promised that UW would attempt to maintain confidentiality if at all possible -- another factor in our choice not to elaborate on the circumstances of the conclusion of Nichols presidency, and to keep the relevant documentation private.



Under the unique circumstances of this case, the District Court has now required us to modify that practice as to this specific matter, and we anticipate the District Court will release that documentation with names and identifying information redacted upon dissolution of its protective order.



While the board continues to believe a policy of confidentiality in personnel matters is most respectful to university employees, both current and former, we are confident the material shows our decision not to renew President Nichols contract reflected prudent judgment and was in the best interest of the University of Wyoming and its people.
President Trumps voters have been on a slow burn ever since the Russia hoax was launched to frame him. We got angrier as it dragged on for two endless years, dirtying the president up with baseless investigations, and suppressing his approval ratings. When the rigged investigation flopped, and the responsible Obama officials came under investigation by the DOJ, we thought it was behind us. The respite was brief. The Ukraine Hoax rolled out, the sham impeachment was launched, and Trump supporters entered a stage of cold, implacable rage and the determination to win.

Dems have no interest in and no idea of the impact of their antics on normal Americans. We deplorables dont count as people to them. Dems have no idea that millions of Americans deeply love and understand the American Constitution. That we see precisely the ugly relationship between Marxist activists, self-serving pols, preening liberals and a corrupt press that is the new Democrat power base.

What we couldnt understand was our fellow citizens, Democrat voters, some of them friends and family and neighbors. Formerly nice people were crazed with spite and venom, spouting the medias fake news like puppets. They opened their mouths and out came ludicrous talking points about Donald Trump being a traitor with Russia, a dictator, a white supremacist. Americans, following along with Trump Derangement like a crazed mob.

Weve never seen anything like this in America. Our beautiful free election system was being sabotaged for the simple reason that Trump is doing a terrific job and the Dems candidates are a bunch of loony losers.

Our fellow citizens were too partisan to care how dangerous this no-limits nonstop partisan agitprop was to our entire American way of life, our sense of union, our freedom and our prosperity, rule of law, and basic fairness.

Trump supporters are no longer frightened, no longer depressed, and feeling too cheerful to even be that angry at the useful idiots. The sham impeachment has gone from a threat to a farce. Its easy to tune out.

More and more Democrats are peeling away from their groupthink and quietly moving over to the Trump camp. And out here in the real world, life isnt just good, its great.

Turn off the TV, look at your bank account, plan a career move, a vacation or a house remodel. Theres a lot to feel cheerful about in 2020. Life is good for Americans of all classes, colors and regions. More families are flusher with cash than theyve been in fifty years. Trumps pro-business , pro-energy, anti-regulation economy hits one record-breaking benchmark after another. Jobs up, wages up, stocks up, spirits up.

We have peace abroad. America is once again able to dominate our enemies, winning greater security and prosperity. Trump is cleaning up one mess after another left by years of timid presidents following conventional wisdom, or in Obamas case, hostility to the United States. Trump is dealing with Iran, China, our lousy trade agreements. It is awesome!

President Trumps happy talk at his Iowa and other recent rallies is shared by his supporters. And more people are going to these rallies than ever. Trumps growing approval numbers tell only a small part of the story. The electrifying good news comes from his election manager, Brad Parscale, who has been counting the number of non-voters, Democrats, independents and minorities attending President Trumps rallies. Any of these numbers alone predict a Trump victory in 2020. Put together, they spell a landslide.

It is obvious that people can tune out the Dems, tune out impeachment, and see what President Trump has delivered for them personally.

They are not talking to pollsters. They are showing up in person, to shout their support, laugh at the Presidents jokes and share their happiness that we have a great President. The number of rally goers who are Dems or independents is through the roof. The number of minorities is in danger territory for any Democrat candidate.

At Trumps El Paso rally last year, near the border of New Mexico  50% Hispanic attendees. In Pennsylvania, 18% minorities. At the Mississippi rally, 27% were Democrat, 20% were black. In Wisconsin 58% Democrats and independents, in Ohio 43%. The rally in Pennsylvania was 20% Democrats and 18% non-whites. Kentucky, a purple state, drew 23% Democrats and almost a third non-voters. The Michigan 17% were Democrats and 15% havent voted in 16 years.

Ohio has selected the president in every election but two since 1896, and every election since 1960. In 2020, Ohio is no longer a swing state. It is a Trump state. At the recent Toledo rally, a quarter of attendees didnt vote in 2016, 22% were Democrats and another 21% are independents  thats almost 70% of the people there didnt vote for Trump in 2016.

These numbers are unbelievably promising for 2020, given the power of fake news and progressive social pressure to distort reality in voters minds. Reality is breaking through. The Democrat party is sinking under their looney load of Marxist feminist global warming LGBTQ+ identity politics.

Look at what Democrats have on offer  the corruptocrat fool Joe Biden, the hate-America, lying harridan Elizabeth Warren who has a number of plans on how to ruin our economy or the millennials favorite, the weird angry Marxist Bernie Sanders.

Why wouldnt we be seeing signs of a Trump landslide, given the presidents accomplishments at home and abroad? Without the Dems war on reality, Trump would have had historic approval ratings long ago, to match the historic jobs, wages and trade gains weve made.

Trump and his voters are feeling good.

Now we have a new worry: over-confidence.

Photo credit: Gage Skidmore
Terming the Union Budget "directionless", the opposition RJD-led mahagathbandhan in Bihar alleged on Saturday that it did not have any words on special package for the state or for the common man.

Leader of Opposition in the Bihar Legislative Assembly and RJD leader Tejashwi Yadav termed the Centre's budget "directionless" and alleged that it did not mention a word on providing employment opportunities to youths and thus will bring recession.

"The #Budget2020 proves that government is clueless on revenue and employment generation, wealth creation & it's distribution!," Yadav asserted.

"In this budget there are no words on special package, no new initiatives or projects for Bihar. We anticipated a lot for our state since there is a double engine government at helms. This #Budget2020 is a reflection of discriminatory intent of the Modi government towards Bihar," Yadav said in a release.

The Union Budget, presented in Lok Sabha by Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman, will reduce spending power of the common man and will increase disparity, he said, adding that subsidies are getting reduced.

Farmers and the common man are equally unhappy with the budget, the RJD's heir apparent alleged.

"The central government is selling other public sector undertakings on the lines of BSNL, Air India to its favourite capitalists at throwaway prices just to make money for election expenditure," Yadav alleged.

Former Bihar chief minister Rabri Devi also termed the Union Budget "directionless", anti-poor and anti-youth and alleged that it will not be beneficial for anyone except the capitalists.

Former Bihar chief minister and Hindustani Awam Morcha (Secular) president Jitan Ram Manjhi described the Union Budget 2020-21 as a "routine" but "disappointing, visionless and directionless" and said it has not talked about anything concrete to deal with the problems of unemployment, price rise and poverty.

"There is nothing in the budget for poor people...It has not said anything for providing common education for all...It has neither talked anything concrete to deal with the problems of unemployment, price rise nor took any measure to eradicate poverty," Manjhi said.

Former union minister Upendra Kushwaha also criticised the Union Budget 2020-21, saying it is meant for rich people, middlemen and corporate houses.

"#Budget2020 is meant for rich people, middlemen and corporate houses. Problems of unemployment, poverty and hunger will aggravate further with the sale of government undertakings and privatisation. The issues of providing quality education, healthcare facilities at ground level and improving the farmers' lot have not found mention in the budget," he tweeted.

The budget has disappointed the people of Bihar as it does not contain anything for the state which its people were expecting from the NDA's double engine government, Kushwaha alleged.

The BJP, which is the alliance partner of the JD(U) along with the LJP in Bihar's NDA, defended the budget saying the opposition parties are unnecessarily making hue and cry over it and they should take tuition from Deputy Chief Minister Sushil Kumar Modi to understand it.

"They (opposition parties) need to understand the whole budget on a positive note rather than propagating a cynical approach," Bihar BJP spokesperson Nikhil Anand said.

"I would request opposition leaders in Bihar to find out time and take tuition from Deputy CM Sushil Modi ji, who is holding the charge of finance minister, to understand the economics of the state which has registered 13.2 GDP to remove the Bimaru tag," he added.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
Researchers have determined that after lungs recover from infection, alveolar macrophages (immune cells that live in the lungs and help protect the lungs against infection) are different in multiple ways and those differences persist indefinitely.

How the lungs protect themselves when they are at their healthiest, like in young adult humans, is complex and only beginning to be understood. Researchers from Boston University School of Medicine (BUSM) propose that the new alveolar macrophage biology resulting from prior experiences with infections is one of the elements helping to protect the lungs of young adults against pneumonia.

"We have determined that these immune cells have a memory of their prior experiences and that memory influences how they will respond to any subsequent challenges like later infections," explained corresponding author Joseph Mizgerd, ScD, professor of medicine, microbiology and biochemistry at BUSM.

Worldwide, pneumonia remains a serious public health burden. Each year more than one million children under the age of five die from pneumonia and associated complications. In the U.S., pneumonia is the most common reason for the hospitalization of children and accounts for nearly half of the infectious disease-related hospitalizations and deaths of older adults.

In this study, experimental models were infected with a bacteria called pneumococcus, which is a normal experience for humans during childhood, and then allowed to recover. Another set of models were never infected. The researchers then compared the alveolar macrophages in the lungs of these two different groups, including the receptors on the cell surfaces, the genes being expressed by these cells and the metabolites inside of these cells. The alveolar macrophages in the models which had recovered from pneumonia had a new baseline in all these read-outs. In addition, their alveolar macrophages responded differently to subsequent infections, compared to the alveolar macrophages in lungs without a history of infections.

According to the researchers, young children are extremely susceptible to pneumonia, but multiple types of lung defense develop during childhood and protect against pneumonia, persisting through young adulthood. "The combination of aging, poor living habits and disease degrade these lung defenses so that pneumonia susceptibility increases again in later years," added Mizgerd.

By working to elucidate the naturally acquired defenses against pneumonia in young healthy adults the researchers hope to find better ways of identifying those most at risk for developing pneumonia and to devise new strategies for preventing or curing pneumonia.
Drug stores in Japan are scrambling to restock their supply of surgical masks to keep up with growing demand as fears deepen over the outbreak of the coronavirus.

Surgical masks are often the first thing people use to protect themselves from infectious diseases, and as reports of the deadly coronavirus thought to have originated in China continue to emerge in countries around the world, they have become increasingly difficult to find.

In Tokyo, daily shipments of masks are arriving later every day and drug stores often find themselves with empty shelves.

aEvery day weare out of masks within a few hours of opening,a said a clerk at a drug store in Shinjuku Ward who asked not to be named. aItas been that way since the outbreak started.a

Other stores nearby were experiencing similar issues. Most of them said surgical masks are typically sold out by 10 a.m. and daily shipments werenat arriving on time. Others had to limit the number of masks each customer could buy to prevent one shopper from emptying their entire stock.
China has urged India to respond to the ongoing Coronavirus outbreak rationally and unlike a certain country without exaggerating tension, the Chinese foreign ministry said on Saturday.

Foreign minister, Wang Yi spoke to external affairs minister S Jaishankar about the outbreak in a recent phone call and is learnt to have apprised him on the steps that local authorities were taking to evacuate Indians from the central Chinese province of Hubei and its capital, Wuhan.

While the foreign ministry did not name the certain country, it is reasonable to assume that the statement was referring to the United States, which has declared a level 4 emergency and barred anyone from China to enter the country.

The province of Hubei and Wuhan are worst hit by the raging outbreak which has claimed 259 lives and affected nearly 12,000 people.

Millions in the province are living under a virtual lockdown, an effort to contain the virulent contagion that can be transmitted between humans. It has spread to at least 20 countries including to India where a confirmed case has been reported from Kerala.

Around 366 Indians were evacuated from Wuhan early on Saturday in a special Air India flight that took off from the citys airport.

A second flight will evacuate another batch of Indians living in other parts of the province.

The Chinese foreign ministry shared few details about the phone conversation between Wang and Jaishankar.

In a recent phone call with Indian EAM Jaishankar, foreign minister Wang said that in response to transnational public health challenges, we need to remain rational, enhance coordination and play a constructive role, rather than exaggerate tension or even create panic as a certain country does, the ministry said.

In the same phone call, FM Wang noted a certain country has turned a blind eye to WHO recommendations and imposed sweeping travel restrictions against China. This kind of overreaction could only make things even worse. Its not the right way to deal with the pandemic, the ministry added.

The US was among the first countries to shut its consulate in Wuhan and evacuate its citizens from the city.

The Chinese foreign ministry issued a strong statement against the US on Saturday.

As the saying goes, a friend in need is a friend indeed. Many countries have offered China help and support through various ways. In contrast, the US comments and actions are neither based on facts, nor helpful at this particular time. While the WHO has only just specifically advised against any travel restrictions, the US has decided to act in the opposite way. This has set a bad example. It is certainly not a gesture of goodwill, it said.

In a statement to HT on Saturday, the Chinese foreign ministry said it was willing to help India if it has decided to move out its citizens from Wuhan.

China attaches great importance to protecting the lives and health of citizens of various countries in Wuhan, Hubei province, and will continue to take effective measures to address their reasonable concerns and demands in a timely manner, the ministry said in the statement.

If the Indian side decides to withdraw its citizens in Wuhan, the Chinese will, in accordance with international practice and in accordance with the relevant provisions of the Chinese side on epidemic prevention, make corresponding arrangements to province necessary assistance and facilities, the foreign ministry added in the statement.

Earlier in the day, Indian ambassador to China, Vikram Misri thanked the Chinese foreign ministry, and the Hubei authorities, for assisting in the evacuation of the first batch of Indians from Wuhan.

Misri also tweeted his appreciation to the Air India flight time and his fellow diplomats at the embassy in Beijing.
The United Kingdom sent its fellow Security Council members an amended draft resolution on Libya Friday, calling for the withdrawal of mercenaries from the country, according to the text, seen by AFP.

The draft expresses the Council's "concern over the growing involvement of mercenaries in Libya," despite commitments made on January 19 at an international summit in Berlin, including "ceasing all support for and withdrawing all armed mercenary personnel."



The text also urged all member states "not to intervene in the conflict or take measures that exacerbate the conflict."



According to diplomats, Russia strongly opposes any mention of mercenaries in the text. No date has yet been set for a vote on the resolution.

Libya has been mired in chaos since a 2011 NATO-backed uprising that killed longtime dictator Moamer Kadhafi, with two rival administrations vying for power.

The conflict deepened last year when military strongman Khalifa Haftar, who controls much of the south and east of Libya, launched an assault in April to seize Tripoli, the base of the UN-recognised Government of National Accord (GNA).

Haftar has the backing of Egypt, the United Arab Emirates and Russia while the GNA is supported by Qatar and Turkey.

The first version of the British draft, dated January 24, contained no mention of armed foreign fighters.

On Thursday, UN envoy Ghassan Salame accused "unscrupulous" foreign actors -- without specifying who -- of continuing to meddle in Libya's conflict, in violation of the Berlin commitments.

Russia is accused of facilitating the arrival of several thousand Russian mercenaries in Libya, while Turkey allegedly brought Syrian rebel fighters into the north African nation.

For the past 10 months, the Security Council has been unable to adopt any resolution on the conflict in Libya.

The amended British text "condemns the recent increase in levels of violence and demands the parties commit to a lasting ceasefire."



It also asks UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres to "submit his views on the necessary conditions for, and proposals on effective ceasefire monitoring."



Unlike the first draft, which only mentioned the importance of the role of neighboring countries and unidentified regional organisations in contributing to a solution, the amended version specifically mentions "the African Union, League of Arab States and European Union.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
Brownsville, Texas  It was about 8:30 in the morning when 15 migrants were led single file into one of six hearing rooms at the U.S.-Mexico border crossing in Brownsville, Texas. They were from El Salvador, Honduras, Venezuela, Guatemala and Cuba. Something they all had in common, beyond the desire for asylum in the United States, was the absence of shoelaces. It is Customs and Border Protection's policy to remove laces from migrants' shoes for the safety of the guards and the migrants, including from the shoes of children, out of fear they could be used as weapons or in a suicide attempts. The hearing rooms at the Gateway Port of Entry are a collection of metal trailers linked together by white-tent corridors. Even though it was January, the air conditioning was on. And jackets were needed to stay comfortable during the three-hour session. On this particular morning, the migrants, including three young kids, were filing into hearing room "A."

We were told to sit in the back. Members of the public and the press were not allowed to attend the hearings in Brownsville until about a month ago.

The complex is at the base of the International Gateway Bridge that spans the Rio Grande and connects Brownsville with Matamoros, Mexico.

We waited in an area with seating for 60 people, 10 porta potties and a heater that seemed as loud as a jet engine. It struck us that we were the only two observers present. Twenty minutes passed before we were led to a second waiting area. It had fewer chairs and porta potties but was equally deafening. The rules for the public to attend the hearing are basic: no cellphones or cameras allowed. A security officer told us we were prohibited from speaking with the migrants.

img-2067.jpg

The complex of hearing rooms in Brownsville, Texas, on January 29, 2020. Guy Campanile

The point of the hearing on that day was for an immigration judge to explain the asylum process to the migrants, including their rights under U.S. immigration law. Many of the people in the room had crossed into the United States illegally last fall. They were subsequently sent back across the border to wait in Mexico until their asylum hearings, in line with the United States' "Migrant Protection Protocols," more commonly known as the "Remain in Mexico" policy. This was their first opportunity to face a judge. But it would not be in person.

Story continues

Everyone faced a large video monitor. On the screen was Judge Sean Clancy in a courtroom 30 miles away. Clancy is with the Justice Department agency that oversees immigration courts. Accompanying him in the closed circuit broadcast was a Spanish interpreter and a court clerk. A Department of Homeland Security lawyer was seated off-camera. He spoke only six times and said no more than a couple of short phrases. The migrants never saw his face. Judge Clancy began by asking the group, through his interpreter, if there was anyone in the room whose first language was something other than Spanish. A 30-year-old man named Alberto raised his hand. He was there with his seven-year-old son, Carlos. The child looked small for his age.

Alberto explained in halting Spanish that he spoke K'iche, a Mayan language common in the central highlands of Guatemala.

Without missing a beat, Judge Clancy dialed a number on a speaker phone and asked the attendant who answered to provide a K'iche translator. After less than a minute of the kind of hold music you would hear if you called a dentist, a cheerful man with a soft Texas accent got on the line and began to speak to Alberto in K'iche.

As Clancy explained the asylum process to migrants, he was clear about the obstacles ahead.

"The nature of these hearings is adversarial," he said. "The Department of Homeland Security will supply reasons why you should not enter the United States."

"DHS will treat you as someone who is attempting to enter against U.S. law," he said.

img-2068.jpg

A camp in Mexico where 2,500 migrants await hearings across the border at the complex in Brownsville, Texas, on January 29, 2020. Guy Campanile

Clancy then reviewed the documents and evidence that Alberto would need to prove that he and his son should be granted asylum. The application for asylum and supporting papers must be in English, accompanied by copies in Spanish.

"I recognize this possesses obstacles and difficulties but there is no way around it. It is what the law requires," Clancy said. "My role is to make sure you have a fair hearing."

Judge Clancy also told Alberto and the other asylum seekers they would be given a list of legal aid organizations that could help them with their paperwork, but it would be the migrants' responsibility to pay for their own attorneys. We were told by immigration lawyers in the area that the vast majority of asylum seekers ultimately end up representing themselves at these hearings.

Alberto said he understood the judge but he was fearful of returning to Mexico with his son because he did not speak Spanish well. "See what you can get done on the application and we'll see where we can go from there," Clancy said in a businesslike tone that was consistent throughout the hearing. The few times he did try to crack a small joke, they seemed lost in translation. After Alberto was given a date for his next hearing, Clancy offered the same explanations on the process to the others with the help of his Spanish interpreter. Seven-year old Carlos, who up to that moment had been remarkably patient for a child his age, began to hum. One of the guards won his silence with a small bag of snacks. Once Clancy finished with his rundown of what was required of the asylum applicants, he asked how many people were afraid to return to Mexico. One hand went up. That was followed by six others. A woman who was there with her 11-year-old daughter was the last to haltingly raise her hand. "Some of us are afraid to say we are afraid to go back to Mexico because we don't want to be sent to Central America," she said. The woman was referring to new agreements the U.S. has with Honduras, Guatemala and El Salvador to send migrants seeking asylum in the U.S. to those countries instead. The only agreement implemented so far is the one with Guatemala. Judge Clancy asked if she was afraid to wait in Mexico. "Honestly, yes," the woman replied. Judge Clancy confirmed with the DHS lawyer just off-screen that he'd noted the migrants' fears of returning to Mexico so that they may have an interview about their reasons for being afraid. It was unclear to us when that would happen. The only asylum applicant who had a lawyer present was a 75-year-old woman from Venezuela. She left her home country in October and took a plane to Panama, then flew to Mexico and illegally crossed the Rio Grande into the United States. She did not say why she wanted asylum. The young lawyer who represented the woman was doing so pro-bono. She had only become aware of the woman's case at 11 o'clock the night before and was not fully acquainted with all the details of her asylum claim. As she leaned over to ask her client a question, Judge Clancy's interpreter began to translate the private conversation. Judge Clancy recognized it was a private attorney-client exchange, stopped his interpreter and apologized to the lawyer. "A lot of things would be easier to deal with if you are here," he noted about his closed circuit courtroom and the distance between all involved. Then the screen temporarily went to black on his end. "I thought I lost you," Clancy said with some relief once the live picture returned. The judge gave everyone in the group a final opportunity to ask questions. They all declined. The next court date for most of the asylum seekers was scheduled for April 30. That's when they would be able to make their best case to stay in the United States. The group then began to file out of the room and head back over the bridge to Mexico, where they will wait three more months for their next appearance before Judge Clancy. The only one who seemed satisfied by the proceedings was little Carlos. The Guatemalan boy looked back into the room and smiled. The security guard had given him a second bag of snacks. Guy Campanile is a producer for "60 Minutes." Lucy Hatcher is an Associate Producer for "60 Minutes"

Marijuana-involved driving deaths on the rise

Trump might be aquitted: What happens next?

Is it the end of the road for Trump's impeachment trial?
Former minister of aviation, Femi Fani-Kayode has described the Minister of Information and Culture, Alhaji Lai Mohammed as the biggest liar in the history of Nigerias politics.

The former minister made this statement in reaction to the interview of the Minister of information with Tim Sebastien of Hardtalk.

Also Read: Buhari Not Fighting Corruption To Impress Any Organisation: Lai Mohammed

According to Fani-Kayode, the Nigerian minister made a huge mistake by going on international TV to cross words with the interviewer.

This is coming a day after Fani-Kayode expressed that President Buhari should be in jail.

See his tweet below:
Bengaluru, Feb 1 : The Karnataka unit of the opposition Congress on Saturday slammed the NDA government for the proposed selling of its equity stake in the state-run Life Insurance Corporation of India (LIC).

"Another blunder of the (NDA) government is the announcement of selling stake in LIC. This is again a bid to privatise LIC and open it to private parties, putting people's deposits in danger," tweeted the party's state unit here.

Presenting the Union Budget for fiscal 2020-21 in the Lok Sabha, Union Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman said that the government proposed to sell a part of its holding in LIC through the initial public offer (IPO)." "The government is hell bent on selling the country to their capitalist friends from railways to LIC India," alleged the party in the tweet.

The minister, however, did not disclose the details of the LIC going public.

The central government owns the entire 100 per cent equity in LIC, which was established in the year 1956 by an Act of Parliament.
The Arab League on Saturday rejected US President Donald Trump's controversial Middle East plan, saying it did not meet the "minimum rights" of the Palestinians.

The pan-Arab bloc convened in Cairo days after the US unveiled its plan which is seen as favouring Israel.

The meeting brought together Arab senior officials including Palestinian leader Mahmud Abbas, Saudi Arabia's foreign minister and the United Arab Emirates' minister of state for foreign affairs.

In a statement released afterwards, the League said it "rejects the US-Israeli 'deal of the century' considering that it does not meet the minimum rights and aspirations of Palestinian people."

Arab states also vowed "not to ... cooperate with the US administration to implement this plan."

They insisted on a two-state solution that includes a Palestinian state based on borders before the 1967 Six-Day War -- when Israel occupied the West Bank and Gaza -- and with east Jerusalem as its capital.

The US plan suggests that Israel would retain control of the contested city of Jerusalem as its "undivided capital" and annex settlements on Palestinian lands.

Trump said Palestinians would be allowed to declare a capital within annexed east Jerusalem.

The only Arab ambassadors present at the plan's unveiling were from Bahrain, Oman and the United Arab Emirates -- three of Washington's closest allies in a region where many nations host US forces.

Other Arab states gave carefully worded initial responses to the plan, which was strongly rejected by Palestinian leaders.

Abbas said on Saturday "there will be no relations" with Israel and the US including on security cooperation following their "disavowal of signed agreements and international legitimacy".

Search Keywords:

Short link:


CROWN POINT  Firefighters battled a house blaze Friday in Crown Point.

Crown Point Fire Rescue was called at 3:50 p.m. to a house fire in the 100 block of North Grant Street, Chief Dave Crane said.

"The crews did an excellent job putting a stop to the fire as fast as they did," Crane said.

By 4:05 p.m., firefighters were able to swiftly extinguish the fire and search the home.

The house was unoccupied and there were no injuries reported. There was, however, damage to the structure.

The cause of the fire remains under investigation, Crane said.

Love 0 Funny 0 Wow 0 Sad 0 Angry 0

Be the first to know Get local news delivered to your inbox! Sign up! * I understand and agree that registration on or use of this site constitutes agreement to its user agreement and privacy policy.
Exum tells Colorado Politics: "We think it's just one less problem for foster kids to have to think about ... to have somebody in their corner to help them with driver education."
Chinese President Xi Jinping (R) and US President Donald Trump attend their bilateral meeting on the sidelines of the G20 Summit in Osaka on June 29, 2019. Brendan Smialowski | AFP | Getty Images

San Jose-based virtual reality start-up uSens was ramping up quickly until late last year when issues over the U.S.-China tech cold war intervened, and the fast-charging company hit a dead end. With patented computer vision technology for smart TVs, mobile devices and cars, an experienced team from Apple, Intel, Samsung, Oracle and Amazon, and $27 million in venture funding in the past three years, uSens had sealed a partnership with San Francisco-based Pico Interactive to bring interactive hands gesturing to its virtual reality headsets. The start-up, formed by CEO Anli He and her husband, CTO Yue Fei, had scaled up from their living room and a Kickstarter campaign in 2015 to 60 staff in Silicon Valley, three offices in China and $2 million in revenue. Their venture funding in three rounds came from a mix of leading U.S. and China venture funds investing in early stage technologies. Among them were cross-border investor IDG Ventures, Fosun Kinzon Capital, backed by Chinese conglomerate Fosun, and venture funds including Shenzhen-based Maison Capital and Lebox Capital in Beijing. Now uSens faces the prospect of shutting down after failing to raise more capital, despite having a term sheet for a new venture infusion. The start-up's office was shut down in the U.S., and everyone was laid off except for one salesperson. Remaining staff, including the co-founders, moved to China. "Terrible things were happening," said He, recalling the succession of events. "Now we are trying to survive." She blames fallout from the U.S.-China tech cold war for investor reluctance, both from China and American funds, to put more money into her high-tech start-up. "It was too easy to get capital from China-backed venture capitalists that had investment branches in Silicon Valley and liked to invest in cross-border deals at pretty high valuations," she noted, adding that "lots of Chinese investors withdrew from the U.S., and then U.S. investors decided not to invest, too," in U.S.-China-rooted start-ups.

To top off the misfortunes, venture capital firm Digital Capital Horizon, run by Stanford physics professor Shoucheng Zhang, dropped out of the picture as a potential source of funds when the professor, a friend of the founding couple, died in a suicide in December 2018 after a long battle fighting depression.

Fallout in Silicon Valley

Issues over national security threats and competition with China for future technology leadership are stopping the flow of China investment in tech companies. In the process, stifling cross-border U.S.-China collaboration that has long fueled next-generation innovations is being stifled. The outbreak of the coronavirus is taking its toll, too, as travel to and from China for firms active in the Mainland is being restricted. Jay Eum, co-founder and managing director of TransLink Capital in Palo Alto, California, points to three roadblocks to continued China investment in U.S. tech. Angel investment from China has "completely dried up," while minority investments by VCs have become "extremely difficult." The parade of acquisitions by China's tech titans such as Alibaba and Tencent over the past few years is gone and most such deals "are not even attempted anymore." He sums it up this way, China has "become a negative for all start-ups in the ecosystem. China is off limits." uSens is hardly the only Silicon Valley-type start-up with China connections that is caught in a cash crunch. Dozens of high-tech start-ups in the U.S. are stuck in getting to the next level of growth without more capital from their previous Chinese sources. These start-ups are victims of heightened political tensions over China's rise as a tech superpower contender and potential risks to America's global leadership. Venture capital deals in the U.S. with at least one China investor fell to 163 deals and $6.5 billion of investment in 2019, according to private equity data tracking firm Preqin in London. That's down from 236 deals in 2018, which had amounted to $10.8 billion. This China-to-U.S. venture boom started in 2014, when 157 deals totaling $2.7 billion were tallied up and grew rapidly.

Fueling the rush were several well-known, privately held Chinese VC firms such as CSC Upshot, ZhenFund and Kai-Fu Lee's Sinovation Ventures, Chinese conglomerate Tencent, financial institution Ping An, accelerator TechCode in Beijing, numerous angel investors and state-owned funds such as Shanghai International Group's Sailing Capital. They targeted deep tech sectors important to global competitiveness such as artificial intelligence, robotics, autonomous vehicles, virtual reality and gene editing, according to a new report by the New York-based Rhodium Group, which tracks U.S.-China investment trends. Now all including tech giant Tencent, one of the more active investors in leading edge U.S. technology companies as a backer of Tesla and Uber, has pulled back.

Trump crackdown

Investment from China into U.S. start-ups slowed last year after the Trump administration in August 2018 stepped up vetting of deals over national security issues in American critical technologies, such as artificial intelligence and autonomous navigation that could be used for military purposes. The Rhodium Report notes that the U.S. has not found any "smoking gun" evidence that Chinese VC in the U.S. has led to leakage of sensitive U.S. technology to China that could harm national security.

President Donald Trump meets with China's President Xi Jinping at the start of their bilateral meeting at the G20 leaders summit in Osaka, Japan, June 29, 2019. Kevin Lemarque | Reuters

Nevertheless, China venture investments and acquisitions in the U.S. face greater scrutiny by Washington, D.C. regulators, and start-ups are getting pinched. In November 2018, the Trump administration introduced pilot regulations to expand the scope of foreign investment transactions reviewed by CFIUS (the Committee for Foreign Investments in the U.S.), requiring notifications and clearance for transactions in emerging technology sectors such as AI, autonomous vehicles, robotics and augmented reality. This stepped-up scrutiny was extended to include deals involving minority stakes below 10%, which takes in venture deals, many of them from China. The vetting also encompasses detailed information on venture fund structures and board seats, and has led to greater caution by U.S. venture firms about inviting limited partners with Chinese citizenship, the Rhodium report notes. Additionally, lawmakers passed new export controls in August 2018 to introduce new safeguards under the Foreign Investment Risk Review Modernization Act. The act modernizes and broadens the authorities of the President and CFIUS to review and take action involving national security concerns over foreign transactions in emerging U.S. technologies such as machine learning, advanced battery technology, gene editing, nanotechnology and augmented reality that could be leaked to foreign entities such as through joint ventures with Chinese firms. Uncertainty over how emerging and foundational technology are defined and long, cumbersome reviews of transactions have delayed and stopped funds to cash-strapped start-ups that are hanging on. Final regulations by the Department of the Treasury are set to become effective by February 13, 2020. Meanwhile, some China acquisitions involving U.S. companies that were made several years ago are now under retroactive reviews. For instance, a deal by Shanghai-based social media service Musical.ly to buy short video app TikTok in 2017 is being re-examined by CFIUS, the Committee on Foreign Investment in the U.S.

A fractured relationship

This increased focus on national security issues and competitive threats has led to a decoupling or split of venture capital firms and their spending to opposite coasts of the Pacific, China on one side and Silicon Valley on the other. In turn, long-time co-investment and collaboration is breaking apart and impacting the pace of technology innovation. Founders of U.S. tech start-ups are thinking hard about accepting Chinese venture capital and are carefully considering any offshore corporate structure to avoid being labeled as Chinese companies. Ben Sun, CEO and founder of medtech startup Evoco Labs in Menlo Park, makes AI-empowered hearing aids and his product was a hit at the recent Consumer Electronics Show. A former product engineer at Apple, he has a head start in raising capital and is now weighing his best options for sourcing venture money when he might have accepted China VC in the past. Venture capital and angel investment for U.S. start-ups with China connections -- through teams combining U.S. and Chinese talents, R&D operations in both countries, and experience in both markets  has been hit. Several prominent U.S.-China venture and angel investor firms have retreated from U.S. investing and returned to Beijing including ZhenFund with $1 billion under management and Sinovation Ventures with $2 billion. Moreover, ZZ Ventures, a San Francisco venture shop investing in technology start-ups and backed by real estate developer Zhongzhi Enterprise Group, has shut down and is selling most of its U.S. portfolio companies. Former managing director Tracy Wang is staying put in the San Francisco Bay Area, and expects to soon launch a new, U.S.-focused fund Agate Capital Partners. Further capital crunches have cropped up as U.S.-anchored venture firms with Chinese limited partners have become more cautious about accepting more money from China for new funds. New restrictions keep foreign limited partners in funds from weighing in on prospective deals, getting access to investment data, and allow only U.S. citizens to become leading partners at venture firms on American turf. Start-ups that previously depended on China capital in the U.S. are now looking to alternative funding. "U.S. VCs are taking advantage of the funding gap while corporate VC arms from the Pacific Rim are jumping into the pool," says Thomas Gaynor, a partner at law firm DLA Piper in Silicon Valley.

SoftBank Group Corp. Chairman and Chief Executive Officer Masayoshi Son speaks during a press conference on November 6, 2019 in Tokyo, Japan. Tomohiro Ohsumi | Getty Images
Maldives, which left the Commonwealth in 2016 at the height of political turmoil in Male and re-applied to join the group following the election of Ibrahim Mohamed Solih as president in 2018, has been re-admitted, official sources said on Saturday.

Maldives became the Commonwealths 54th member-state, marking the end of a process that began in December 2018, when the new president wrote to the secretary-general Patricia Scotland, expressing the countrys interest in re-joining.

After due diligence, which included country assessment and consultations in accordance with the rules and procedures agreed by the Commonwealth Heads of Government in Kampala in 2007, Maldives has been re-admitted, the London-based secretariat said.

Maldives re-admission was supported by India, when external affairs minister S Jaishankar called for the process to be fast-tracked during the 19th Commonwealth Foreign Affairs Ministers Meeting in London in July 2019.

Ibrahim Mohamed Solihs election was welcomed by India. Maldives was the first country Prime Minister Narendra Modi visited after his government was returned to office in May.

Scotland said: I warmly congratulate Maldives on its successful application. We are delighted to welcome the country and its people back to the Commonwealth. The reform process underway in Maldives aligns with the values and principles of the Commonwealth.

Commonwealth members were pleased to note these developments and are happy once again to count Maldives as a member of the family. Together we will support Maldives to realise its ambitions.

President Ibrahim Mohamed Solih said: Today is a happy day for Maldivians. As a young democracy, the Commonwealths foundational values of the promotion of democracy, human rights, good governance, multilateralism and world peace remain relevant to us more than ever.

We gratefully acknowledge the support and help of the Commonwealth to the Maldivian democratic movement, and we look forward to the support of fellow member states to ensure the long term entrenchment of these values in our society.

Maldives, which initially joined the group in 1982 and left in 2016, will now be part of the Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting in Kigali, Rwanda from June 22.

SHARE THIS ARTICLE ON
Prime Minister issues Brexit statement  this is not an end but a beginning  Wrexhams MP has a pint to celebrate

This article is old - Published: Friday, Jan 31st, 2020

The Prime Minister Boris Johnson has issued an address to the nation regarding the UK leaving the EU at 11pm.

Update 11:05pm Wrexhams MP marked the moment on twitter:

BONG  Sarah Atherton MP (@AthertonNWales) January 31, 2020

Original article continues below

The UK Government has issued the full transcript of the rare Prime Ministerial address marking Brexit, releasing it an hour before the 11pm point.

Mr Johnson said, Tonight we are leaving the European Union. For many people this is an astonishing moment of hope, a moment they thought would never come and there are many of course who feel a sense of anxiety and loss. And then of course there is a third group  perhaps the biggest  who had started to worry that the whole political wrangle would never come to an end

I understand all those feelings, and our job as the government  my job  is to bring this country together now and take us forward and the most important thing to say tonight is that this is not an end but a beginning. This is the moment when the dawn breaks and the curtain goes up on a new act in our great national drama, and yes it is partly about using these new powers  this recaptured sovereignty  to deliver the changes people voted for

Whether that is by controlling immigration or creating freeports or liberating our fishing industry or doing free trade deals or simply making our laws and rules for the benefit of the people of this country

And of course I think that is the right and healthy and democratic thing to do because for all its strengths and for all its admirable qualities, the EU has evolved over 50 years in a direction that no longer suits this country and that is a judgment that you, the people, have now confirmed at the polls not once but twice and yet this moment is far bigger than that

It is not just about some legal extrication it is potentially a moment of real national renewal and change. This is the dawn of a new era in which we no longer accept that your life chances  your familys life chances  should depend on which part of the country you grow up in

This is the moment when we really begin to unite and level up defeating crime, transforming our NHS, and with better education, with superb technology and with the biggest revival of our infrastructure since the Victorians

We will spread hope and opportunity to every part of the UK and if we can get this right I believe that with every month that goes by we will grow in confidence not just at home but abroad and in our diplomacy, in our fight against climate change, In our campaigns for human rights or female education or free trade we will rediscover muscles that we have not used for decades. The power of independent thought and action.

Not because we want to detract from anything done by our EU friends  of course not. We want this to be the beginning of a new era of friendly cooperation between the EU and an energetic Britain. A Britain that is simultaneously a great European power and truly global in our range and ambitions and when I look at this countrys incredible assets our scientists, our engineers, our world-leading universities, our armed forces

When I look at the potential of this country waiting to be unleashed I know that we can turn this opportunity into a stunning success and whatever the bumps in the road ahead I know that we will succeed. We have obeyed the people. We have taken back the tools of self-government

Now is the time to use those tools to unleash the full potential of this brilliant country and to make better the lives of everyone in every corner of our United Kingdom.

Wrexhams MP Sarah Atherton also tweeted, noting she is celebrating Brexit this evening by having a Brexit Bevvie:

Finished the day off with a #BrexitBevvie to celebrate getting #Brexit done and fulfilling a promise to the people   pic.twitter.com/8d9xMZ7wMg  Sarah Atherton MP (@AthertonNWales) January 31, 2020

Clwyd South MP Simon Baynes also used twitter to state it was time for us to come together:

At 11pm we will leave the EU. In 2016, like 60% of people in #ClwydSouth, I voted to Leave. But regardless of which way you voted, its time for us to come together as a country and work to unleash the potential of #ClwydSouth and all of Wales in a new spirit of optimism. pic.twitter.com/U62rT5jFbL  Simon Baynes MP (@baynes_simon) January 31, 2020

The in / out Referendum in 2016 saw 41,544 Wrexham people voting to leave the EU and 28,822 voting to remain part of it  with a whopping 71.6% turnout.
Investors who take an interest in Cache Logistics Trust (SGX:K2LU) should definitely note that the Chairman of the Board at ARA Trust Management (Cache) Limited, How Teck Lim, recently paid S$0.72 per share to buy S$143k worth of the stock. That's a very solid buy in our book, and increased their holding by a noteworthy 13%.

Check out our latest analysis for Cache Logistics Trust

The Last 12 Months Of Insider Transactions At Cache Logistics Trust

Notably, that recent purchase by Chairman of the Board at ARA Trust Management (Cache) Limited How Teck Lim was not the only time they bought Cache Logistics Trust shares this year. Earlier in the year, they paid S$0.72 per share in a S$144k purchase. That means that an insider was happy to buy shares at above the current price of S$0.70. While their view may have changed since the purchase was made, this does at least suggest they have had confidence in the company's future. We always take careful note of the price insiders pay when purchasing shares. It is encouraging to see an insider paid above the current price for shares, as it suggests they saw value, even at higher levels. The only individual insider to buy over the last year was How Teck Lim.

How Teck Lim bought 600.00k shares over the last 12 months at an average price of S$0.72. You can see the insider transactions (by individuals) over the last year depicted in the chart below. If you want to know exactly who sold, for how much, and when, simply click on the graph below!

SGX:K2LU Recent Insider Trading, February 1st 2020

Cache Logistics Trust is not the only stock insiders are buying. So take a peek at this free list of growing companies with insider buying.

Does Cache Logistics Trust Boast High Insider Ownership?

Many investors like to check how much of a company is owned by insiders. I reckon it's a good sign if insiders own a significant number of shares in the company. Our data suggests Cache Logistics Trust insiders own 0.9% of the company, worth about S$6.7m. We consider this fairly low insider ownership.

Story continues

So What Does This Data Suggest About Cache Logistics Trust Insiders?

It's certainly positive to see the recent insider purchase. And an analysis of the transactions over the last year also gives us confidence. But we don't feel the same about the fact the company is making losses. While the overall levels of insider ownership are below what we'd like to see, the history of transactions imply that Cache Logistics Trust insiders are reasonably well aligned, and optimistic for the future. Of course, the future is what matters most. So if you are interested in Cache Logistics Trust, you should check out this free report on analyst forecasts for the company.

Of course, you might find a fantastic investment by looking elsewhere. So take a peek at this free list of interesting companies.

For the purposes of this article, insiders are those individuals who report their transactions to the relevant regulatory body. We currently account for open market transactions and private dispositions, but not derivative transactions.

If you spot an error that warrants correction, please contact the editor at editorial-team@simplywallst.com. This article by Simply Wall St is general in nature. It does not constitute a recommendation to buy or sell any stock, and does not take account of your objectives, or your financial situation. Simply Wall St has no position in the stocks mentioned.



We aim to bring you long-term focused research analysis driven by fundamental data. Note that our analysis may not factor in the latest price-sensitive company announcements or qualitative material. Thank you for reading.
The man, who had taken 23 children captive at an Uttar Pradesh village, had apparently planned it over a month and studied similar cases of hostage crisis, police said on Saturday.

Subhash Batham, a murder accused, took the children hostage after inviting them for a birthday party at his house in Farrukhabad's Kasaria village on Thursday afternoon.

The children were freed after police barged into the house late on Thursday night and shot Batham dead.

"It seems Batham had planned it (the hostage taking) for a month," Inspector General of Police, Kanpur Range, Mohit Agarwal, told reporters, adding that his mobile phone has been seized.

Batham's wife, who was lynched by villagers, was involved and had demanded Rs one crore to free each child, he said



Police have analysed Batham's phone and it has been found that "he was planning it for a long time, searching and downloading bomb making techniques", the officer said.

"He had studied in detail a similar case in 2004 in Russia where children were held hostage, besides some other similar cases," the IG said.

The 40-year-old had earlier served jail for 10 years and was out on bail, Agarwal said.

"He was in jail last time four months ago for robbery. It seems that he had planned this (the hostage taking) there, learning the fine details from other inmates. He collected arms and explosives with their help," he said.

Batham's mobile phone is being checked to find out who he was in contact with and the people he had met. Investigations are being carried out to ascertain if any one else was also involved in the incident, the IG said.

The officer said that Batham had threatened on Thursday that he had bombs and had planted them in the his house's basement where he was holding the children hostage.

"We tried to pacify him but he fired two shots and threatened to detonate the bombs," Agarwal said, adding that locals kept him engaged as the police carried out the operation to free the children.

Locals saw Batham pouring some inflammable material on the floor. This suggested that he was going to take a "major step", he said.

The Bomb Disposal Squad from Moradabad has seized a .315 bore rifle, a country-made gun, 20 live cartridges, 11 empty cartridges, one rifle round, 135 country-made bombs, cylinder bombs and material used for making bombs, the officer said.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
Alina Bzhezhinska and her quartet will play two dates in Wicklow in February

Music Network will present two performances by jazz harpist Alina Bzhezhinska, who is on tour with Tony Kofi, Larry Bartley and Joel Prime, in Co Wicklow in the coming weeks.

The quartet will perform at Mermaid Arts Centre in Bray on Friday, February 7, at 8 p.m. and at the Courthouse Arts Centre in Tinahely, on Saturday, February 8 at 8.30 p.m.

Taking inspiration from the ground-breaking work of jazz harp legend Alice Coltrane as a stepping-off point, Alina Bzhezhinska's stellar quartet brings a new perspective to this supposedly dainty instrument.

If you think the harp is for angels then Alina Bzhezhinska and her quartet will set you right during their 10-date Music Network tour.

She and her stellar quartet, featuring Tony Kofi (saxophones), Larry Bartley (double bass) and Joel Prime (drums, percussion), bring a new perspective to this supposedly dainty instrument, taking the ground-breaking work of jazz legends Alice and John Coltrane as a stepping-off point.

The Polish/Ukrainian harpist Bzhezhinska stormed the UK music scene in 2017 when her quartet appeared at the Barbican during the EFG London Jazz Festival and was nominated for Best Live Experience of the Year at the 2018 Jazz FM Awards. In 2018 she produced her critically acclaimed album Inspiration (Ubuntu Music), which tells Alice and John Coltrane's story through her own interpretation of their music and her compositions.

'The idea for my album came to me at the beginning of 2017, the year when the world paid tribute to Alice Coltrane for her amazing contribution to music, celebrating her 80th birthday and paying respect to her memory,' she explained.

After studying Alice Coltrane's music and digging deeper into the history of jazz and her place in contemporary music, Bzhezhinska realised that Coltrane's legacy could not be underestimated nor overlooked.

'Coltrane is a true role model whose art was an example of endless potential and creative possibilities and whose life journey was dedicated to finding the meaning of human existence and universal consciousness,' said Ms Bzhenzhinska.

Tickets for the show in Bray cost 18/16 and are available from the Mermaid.

Tickets for the Tinahely show cost 16/14 and are available from the Courthouse.
The issue is especially resonant for a politician who is known for his personal, homespun style of campaigning, espousing Biden family wisdom and sharing his grief and hugs with people who come to his events. Daily, he tells voters that character is on the ballot, and he frequently touts his championing of the Violence Against Women Act. Biden does not shy away from talking of the tragic deaths in his family, and he offers words of sympathy to those in the audience who have also suffered.
Vice-Speaker of the Crimean Parliament Vladimir Bobkov said that the Ukrainian side is not ready to resume the supply of Dnieper water through the North Crimean Canal, thus, it is unclear, whether the residents of the republic need this water.

In Ukraine, good ideas appear from time to time, but they are never implemented, the parliamentarian said.
The Hospital for Tropical Diseases in Khanh Hoa where the patient is treated

The patient is a 25-year-old woman. She is living in Van Ninh district and working as a receptionist at a local hotel. The patient is said to have had contact with two nCoV-infected Chinese people on January 17.

As of January 31, Khanh Hoa reported one case of infection and 23 others suspicious of coronavirus, 13 of whom were tested negative.

According to the latest update from the Ministry, as of 14 pm February 1, the epidemic was detected in 27 countries with the total number of cases of infection reaching nearly 12,000, including over 11,800 in China. The deadly virus killed 259 people, all of whom are in China.

The coronavirus was detected in 160 patients outside of China, in Thailand (19 cases), Australia (10 cases), Singapore (16 cases), the US (7 cases), Japan (17 cases), Malaysia (8 cases), South Korea (12 cases), France (6 cases), Vietnam (6 cases), Cambodia (1 case), Canada (4 cases), Germany (7 cases), Nepal (1 case), Sri Lanka (1 case), UAE (4 cases), Finland (1 case), Hong Kong (13 cases), Macau (7 cases), Taiwan (10 cases), India (1 case), Sweden (1 case), Spain (1 case), Italy (2 cases), the UK (2 cases), Russia (2 cases), and the Philippines (1 case).

Health ministry updates press on nCoV situation The Health Ministry held a press conference on January 31 to provide latest information on the acute respiratory disease caused by the new coronavirus (nCoV) ...

VN steps up efforts in novel coronavirus prevention and control Prime Minister Nguyen Xuan Phuc has signed the second directive urging ministries, agencies and localities to intensify measures for prevention and control of the pneumonia ...
Countries expanded restrictions on travellers from China over a deadly virus epidemic Friday as an official admitted that a botched response had worsened an outbreak that has now ballooned into a global health emergency.

At least 213 people have died and nearly 10,000 people have been infected in China by the new coronavirus, while fresh cases were found abroad with more than 20 countries now affected.

The top Communist Party official in Wuhan, the central city of 11 million people where the virus first emerged in December, expressed "remorse" because local authorities acted too slowly.

Last week, China's central government finally jumped into action, effectively sealing off Wuhan and surrounding Hubei province, and curbing travel across the nation of 1.4 billion people.

But the epidemic has spread far and wide as Chinese people travelled across the country and abroad over the Lunar New Year holiday that started last week.

Spread of the Wuhan coronavirus. By John SAEKI (AFP)

The World Health Organization on Thursday declared the outbreak a global health emergency, but said it was not recommending any international trade or travel restrictions.

Countries nonetheless intensified travel curbs.

The United States told its citizens not to go to China and urged those already there to leave -- drawing a sharp rebuke from Beijing, which said the move was "certainly not a gesture of goodwill."

Japan has joined the US, Britain, Germany, and other nations that have recommended that their citizens avoid China.

Citing a likely "sharper rise" in the spread of the virus, Singapore's government barred arrivals from China and transit passengers who visited the country in the past 14 days.

Mongolia will ban Chinese nationals and foreigners coming from the neighbouring country by plane, train or road from Saturday until March 2. Mongolians will be barred from going to China as well.

Flights suspended

Buddhist worshippers wearing protective masks attend prayers at Wat Dhammakaya Buddhist temple in Bangkok -- Thailand has announced 14 confirmed coronavirus infections. By Lillian SUWANRUMPHA (AFP)

The WHO's rare declaration of an emergency allows the UN health body to issue recommendations that the international community is expected to follow.

But it warned Friday that closing borders was probably ineffective in halting transmissions of the virus -- and could even accelerate its spread.

China's ambassador to Geneva said his country was controlling the outbreak and insisted there was no need for "excessive measures".

Beyond government travel advisories, businesses and worried travellers have been taking matters into their own hands, with airlines suspending or reducing flights with China.

The virus is believed to have originated in a Wuhan market that sold wild animals. It then jumped to humans.

Wuhan officials have been criticised online for withholding information about the outbreak until the end of last year, despite knowing about the new illness weeks earlier.

A doctor prepares to enter the isolation ward at a hospital in Wuhan, epicentre of the virus outbreak. By STR (AFP)

"Right now I'm in a state of guilt, remorse and self-reproach," said Ma Guoqiang, the municipal Communist Party secretary for Wuhan.

"If strict control measures had been taken earlier, the result would have been better than now," he told state broadcaster CCTV.

People in China have so far directed their anger at local officials in Wuhan and Hubei, but the crisis could pose a challenge to President Xi Jinping, who has called the epidemic a "demon" that China can defeat.

Countries have scrambled to evacuate their nationals from Wuhan, with hundreds of US, Japanese, British, French and South Korean citizens evacuated so far, and more countries planning airlifts.

A flight carrying more than 300 Indian nationals left Wuhan in the early hours of Saturday for New Delhi.

About 200 US evacuees who landed in California on Wednesday have been put under a rare mandatory quarantine order for 14 days.

US carriers United and Delta joined other airlines suspending flights to China, following the State Department travel advisory.

A man wearing a mask, goggles and gloves buys beverages at a supermarket in Beijing. By NICOLAS ASFOURI (AFP)

Russia said it would evacuate more than 2,500 of its citizens holidaying on China's Hainan island, far from the epicentre of the outbreak, a day after sealing its remote far-eastern border.

Global anxiety

Medical staff of the Ethiopian Ministry of Health prepare to screen passengers at Bole International Airport in Addis Ababa. By Michael Tewelde (AFP)

The health crisis has also dented China's international image abroad and put Chinese nationals in difficult positions abroad, with some communities complaining of "latent racism" in Italy.

China said Friday it had sent charter planes to Thailand and Malaysia to bring Hubei residents back to Wuhan, citing the "practical difficulties" that they have encountered overseas.

More than 40,000 workers at a vast Chinese-controlled industrial complex in Indonesia's Sulawesi island have been quarantined, although Indonesia has not reported any cases.

Myanmar sent a plane back to China after a Chinese passenger was hospitalised with possible symptoms.

Britain and Russia each reported their first two cases on Friday, and Sweden announced its first infection.

The number of cases in China soared to nearly 9,700 on Friday -- exceeding the 8,096 cases from SARS (Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome), a similar pathogen that spread to more than two dozen countries in 2002-03 and killed nearly 800 people, mostly in China and Hong Kong.

burs-lth/bgs/sst
Profile of America

The three bestselling books of the week are all new releases. A Very Stable Genius, a critique of the Trump presidency by Washington Post reporters Philip Rucker and Carol Leonnig, came out on top. The much-discussed American Dirt by Jeanine Cummins took the #2 spot, and Profiles in Corruption by Peter Schweizer, subtitled Abuse of Power by Americas Progressive Elite, is #3.

The Long View

Isabel Allendes A Long Petal of the Sea lands at #9 in hardcover fiction. The novel, which our starred review called majestic, incorporates historical figures into a narrative begins during the Spanish Civil War and extends beyond the fall of the Pinochet dictatorship. Seamlessly juxtaposing exile with homecoming, otherness with belonging, and tyranny with freedom, the novel feels both timeless and perfectly timed for today.

NEW & NOTABLE

EL TRAIDOR

Anabel Hernandez

#19 Trade Paperback

In this Spanish-language title, investigative journalist Hernandez delves into the Sinaloa Cartel via the accounts of convicted Mexican drug lord Vicente Zambada Niebla, whose court testimony helped convict El Chapo.

THE AGE OF ENTITLEMENT

Christopher Caldwell

#12 Hardcover Nonfiction

Caldwell delivers the sharpest and most insightful conservative critique of mainstream politics in years, our starred review said of his thesis that the 1964 Civil Rights Act went beyond the project of ending Jim Crow to give government bureaucrats and courts vast powers to regulate business, education, and other institutions.
An Australian family trapped in Wuhan, China have refused to board the Government's emergency evacuation flight to Christmas Island.

Public servant Malcolm Scriber and his family, who live in Hobart, were on holiday visiting relatives in the coronavirus epicentre of Wuhan when the city was put under quarantine on January 23.

Since then, Mr Scriber, his mother June, his wife Wenjuan and their two children Luna, 11 months, and Eli, 3, have been trapped in a small apartment owned his Chinese-born partner's family.

The Australian Government is offering a $1,000-a-head evacuation flight with Qantas but Mr Scriber doesn't see the point in spending money to put his family at risk.

Malcolm Scriber (left), his Chinese-born wife Wenjuan (right), their two young children and mother June have been trapped in a small Wuhan apartment since January 23. They will not board a government evacuation flight for fear they will be exposed to coronavirus

Speaking to The Australian, Mr Scriber said: 'I don't like the idea of being in a confined space with a bunch of possibly ill people for 11 hours, or however long it would take.

'And I don't like the idea of being in the detention centre. I'd rather stay somewhere where I'm comfortable and make it home when I can make it home.'

Mr Scriber's mother June, who lives next door to him in Hobart, agrees with her son and is waiting it out with the rest of the family in Wuhan.

'Im not sure how Id make my way to the airport and then spend $1,000 to go to Christmas Island. People on the plane could potentially have the virus,' she told the publication.

The Scriber family are five of the estimated 450 Australians who are taking their chances in Wuhan rather than making the journey home.

Australians that are making the trip will spend two weeks in a Christmas Island detention centre in isolation before being allowed onto the mainland.

Malcolm's mother June Scriber (pictured) agreed with her son that it was safer to stay in Wuhan. 'Im not sure how Id make my way to the airport and then spend $1,000 to go to Christmas Island. People on the plane could potentially have the virus,' she said.

The Scribers were midway through their holiday when the quarantine began and planned to return to Hobart in February for 11-month-old Luna's first birthday.

Now, young Luna will celebrate her birthday in a cramped apartment in central Wuhan - a city with a population of 11 million which has become a ghost town.

Mr Scriber's wife wants to be close to her family, who live in Wuhan, as the city battles the virus.

At least 259 people have died and 11,791 people have been infected by the disease in China while there are 10 confirmed cases in Australia.

On Saturday, the World Health Organisation (WHO) declared the new strain of coronavirus a global public health emergency.
The Lagos state government, following the ban on Okada and tricycle taxis, in 15 local councils of the state, said the business is not an enduring trade.

The government on Friday, via its Twitter account, said the hailing services were part of the problem, hence their inclusion in the ban.

The truth is that okada, no matter what fanciful name its called, is not part of our greater Lagos journey on which we have embarked, it said.

Our youths no longer learn the trades we used to be proud of- tailoring, bricklaying, printing, painting and others. Now we get artisans from neighbouring countries. Okada is not an enduring trade.

It said it couldnt stand by and watch the problem constituted by these operators therefore it had to enforce the ban without first putting in place palliative measures.

Read Also: No Company Has Been Licensed To Run Okada Services  Lagos Government

According to the government, securing the lives of Lagosians is the top goal of the Babajide Sanwo-Olu administration.

This is why it is moving to stop this fast slide into lawlessness, it said.

On how the ban would affect those operators, it said, The Lagos State Employment Trust Fund, LSETF, is very active, helping many to set up their businesses with cheap funds, it said.

It added also that, The ministry of women affairs and poverty alleviation has also been doing so much training young women in various trades and giving them some money to set up.

The law enforcement agencies are ready to fix anybody who wants to take to crime because he has lost his Okada job, it said.
Local sheriff's departments are adapting in different ways to deal with the new world of bail reforms.

But while the lawmen running some of those facilities continue to bemoan certain aspects of the sweeping criminal justice reform measure that took effect statewide on Jan 1, many continue to hire jail guards even though inmate rolls are in flux.

Albany County Sheriff Craig Apple said he has about 71 vacancies in part because the department stopped hiring corrections officers as discussions heated up about the impending reforms.

Apple said the jail population is around 370, including roughly 100 federal inmates, as well as prisoners from Greene and Schoharie counties that at the moment don't have local jails. He also credited programs at the jail, not just bail reform, for lower recidivism rates and fewer inmates.

The state Commission of Correction sets minimum staffing levels at each county jail, according to Janine Kava of the state Division of Criminal Justice Services.

These staffing analyses are unique to each facility and consider a wide range of factors, such as facility design, programs and services, size and nature of its population, and union contracts, she said. There is no 'one size fits all' ratio of officers to incarcerated individuals.

Apple said he is ready for whatever changes are ahead for bail reform. Even if my population went up by 50 or 60 today, Ive got enough people to handle it, the sheriff said.

So far, only about two dozen inmates have been released in as a result of the changes to the bail, said Apple.

Rensselaer County Sheriff Patrick Russo said the number is about the same at his facility.

He said after initially dipping, hes seen an uptick in more defendants being sentenced to jail penalties ranging from 30 days to six months. He suspects that has a lot to do with the criminal cases moving through the system more quickly.

Russo said the jail is looking to fill seven of the 14 vacancies of corrections officers.

Once that happens, it would boost the number of jail guards at the facility to 137.

I think youre going to see the population flip flop from people who are sitting here on bail who dont come in here anymore but I think youre going to see more people sentenced into the facility, Russo added. I dont think the bail reform is going to affect our numbers in the jail as much as its going to affect public safety.

Special Investigation 147 NY dams are 'unsound,' potentially dangerous Thousands of dams have not been inspected in over 20 years.

He cited an instance in Troy where a defendant arrested for domestic violence was released on bail only to be arrested for a similar offense.

Schenectady County Sheriff Dominic Dagostino said that around this time last year, 259 inmates were housed at the jail. That number now stands at around 190 with about 145 corrections officers. At full strength, the office would have around 154 jail guards, said Dagostino.

For anybody to talk about reducing their numbers (corrections officers) now would be entirely premature, said Dagostino. We dont know how this is going to shake out, we dont know if the Legislature is going to walk back some of these changes.

He also said inmates at the county jail with gang ties, who need to be kept away from each other, are another factor when considering staffing levels.

More Information Jail staff reported to Commission of Correction by each facility as of Oct. 31, 2019. Albany: 285 Rensselaer: 164 Saratoga: 76 Schenectady: 166 Washington: 57 Warren: 87 source: Commission of Correction See More Collapse

Apple said while he understands the intent of the new bail rules, certain aspects of the new legislation is bothersome.

The fact of not having the judges able to make a determination on flight risk or fear of flight, I think that should be changed, he said, adding he now has four employees that he reassigned to downloading video and pulling reports daily to keep up with the demands of the new bail rules. Were going to make do. Its changed, its hard to accept, but at the end of the day, I still have to protect people, and I still have to run a jail.
Todays brands do more than just deliver products and services. They also foster connections among like-minded enthusiasts. That could turn out to be their most vital purpose, considering a 2018 Cigna study found that nearly half of Americans report feelings of loneliness.

When it comes to creating connections, brands are in a unique position to step up. Consumers want to feel like theyre part of something bigger than themselves," explains Kim Lawton, founder and CEO of Enthuse Marketing Group, to Luxury Daily. "While its essential to create an experience that connects them to the brand, connecting them to a bigger community of like-minded people makes a larger impact and builds long-term brand love."

With competition on the rise and imitators everywhere, brand love counts for a lot in todays economy. Moving forward, prosperous companies will be defined as much by their brand and the community around it as the products themselves. We can already see this happening with companies like Apple or Patagonia, which are both backed by passionate communities.

Related: 5 Lessons on Taking a Stand You Can Learn From Patagonia

Customer enthusiasm has always been important, of course. The concept of word-of-mouth marketing is as old as business itself, but it matters so much more now that consumers actively discuss brands online. In a Temkin Group survey, 77 percent of respondents said they would recommend a brand they like. At the same time, consumers are less loyal than ever. Companies have huge opportunities to attract and engage consumers, yet they face just as many challenges. Building a community around a brand serves both objectives: drawing people in and giving them a reason to stay.

Not that its easy. Organically connecting consumers takes more than a token effort, and it has to be a long-term commitment. Here are some strategies other brands have used successfully.

1. Create a mission that helps the larger community

People are drawn to communities that reflect their values and principles. That means brands cant just focus on what they sell; they also need to establish what they stand for. Popular brands TOMS and Bombas donate a pair of shoes or socks, respectively, for every pair sold. Theyre about more than just footwear, a stance that appeals to many consumers and unites them around shared values.

Use a clear and concise mission statement to define what your brand believes in and how it strives to better the world. Then, build those values into the core of what you do. For example, The Giving Keys, a Los Angeles-based jewelry company, proactively employs people transitioning out of homelessness. Not surprisingly, consumers who share the mission of fighting homelessness gravitate toward this brand before others. It doesnt matter what your mission is, as long as its meaningful and the commitment is genuine.

2. Build a space for community connections

Communities need a space to grow, and you need a place where you can engage directly with the community members to create deeper connections. There are plenty of existing opportunities for this on social media, such as creating a Facebook group for your community, but you can create your own platform if you crave more input into the overall look, feel and direction of your brand community.

LEGO recognized this opportunity when it built LEGO Ideas, an online community for people to show off what they build with its multi-hued plastic blocks. By putting its own iconic name on the community, LEGO unified the entire enthusiast population of builders. These spaces can also serve the uninitiated. Made, a UK-based furniture company, uses its Unboxed platform to collect pictures of its pieces in peoples homes, which helps potential buyers understand more about its products.

3. Let the community drive the brand

Communities involve communication and collaboration among equals, not top-down directives. Today, brand-building is not primarily through one-way communication via advertising, explains Ray Li, CEO of custom-made clothing company Sene, in an interview for American Express's blog. The new way is co-creation, enabling customers to build your brand with you. Brands can demonstrate that by incorporating community feedback into future products or social initiatives. More than just listening, however, brands need to relinquish a certain amount of control to the community itself.

The TED Talk lecture series did this when it introduced TEDx in 2009, giving individuals the ability to organize their own lectures under the marquee brand name. Live-streaming company Twitch goes a step further and invites popular streamers to the companys headquarters to have a direct dialogue. The lesson? Always treat community members like participants rather than audience members.

Related: 7 Mission Statements That Inspire You to Buy

Dont expect communities to evolve overnight. Instead, work to build them organically and incrementally. That may take longer and require more creative thinking, but the community that results could easily become your single biggest asset.

Related:

Don't Lose Your Brand's Mojo

Scale Your Business Efficiently with 'GoDaddy Websites + Marketing'

The Naming Book



Copyright 2020 Entrepreneur.com Inc., All rights reserved
Femi Fani-Kayode, former Aviation Minister has again attacked Nigerias Minister of Information and Culture, Lai Mohammed, describing hi...





Femi Fani-Kayode, former Aviation Minister has again attacked Nigerias Minister of Information and Culture, Lai Mohammed, describing him as the biggest liar in the history of Nigerian politics.Fani-Kayode was reacting to the interview Mohammed had with Tim Sebastian, moderator of TV programme: Conflict Zone.Mohammed, who was simply on the hot seat tried to defend President Muhammadu Buharis administration in the area of human rights, free press, insurgents, among others.But Fani-Kayode accused Mohammed of lying about the situation in the nation.Lai Mohammed is the biggest LIAR in the history of Nigerian politics and he should have thought twice before attempting to go toe to toe with Tim Sebastian (of Hardtalk fame) who, in my view is the toughest, most incisive, most insightful and most brilliant television interviewer of his generation.Tim, as usual, had done his research very well and he took the liar to the cleaners and had him stammering like a kindergarten student.Next time, Lai will remain in his very low league and not attempt to cross swords on international television with a well-informed and thoroughly professional journalist with over 50 experience, who knows his onions and who cannot be easily lied to or intimidated, he said.
Thank you for reading!

Please purchase a subscription to read our premium content. If you have a subscription, please log in or sign up for an account on our website to continue.
SAN DIEGO, Jan. 31, 2020 /PRNewswire/ -- The Greater San Diego Association of REALTORS (SDAR) is pleased to announce the addition of Paul Marttila as Vice President of Global Business Development.

Greater San Diego Association of REALTORS

For more than 30 years, Marttila has held senior positions in both the private and not-for-profit sectors. He was a Real Estate Partner at Andersen LLP (in the U.S. and Europe) and a U.S. Tax Partner at BDO LLP, leading those firms' business location and incentives consulting practices. Marttila has also held senior economic development positions, including Managing Director of European Operations for the State of Pennsylvania and SVP of Business Development for the State of Florida.

Immediately prior to joining SDAR, Marttila operated his own location/incentives and economic development consultancy, Business Location Dynamics LLC. To date, Marttila has conducted business in 45 countries on five continents and he worked for 14 years as an expatriate in three foreign countries. Marttila holds an MA from the Patterson School of Diplomacy & International Commerce (UK) and a BA in Economics & Government from Franklin & Marshall College (PA).

Michael Mercurio, CEO of SDAR, said, "We are excited to welcome Paul to our leadership team in order to leverage his extensive experience, both foreign and domestic, in the economic development and site selection/incentives domains. SDAR is embarking on some important new initiatives that will add value to our association and members, and Paul's experience and expertise make him an ideal fit to spearhead these activities."

For more information, contact SDAR at (858) 715-8000 or visit www.sdar.com.

Related Images

paul-marttila-vice-president-of.jpg

Paul Marttila, Vice President of Global Business Development, Greater San Diego Association of REALTORS

SOURCE Greater San Diego Association of REALTORS

Related Links

http://www.sdar.com/


Former White House chief of staff John Kelly says he believes John Bolton's allegation that President Donald Trump told the former national security adviser that US security aid to Ukraine was conditioned on an investigation of the President's political rivals, adding that Bolton should be heard from.

"If John Bolton says that in the book I believe John Bolton," Kelly said Monday night when asked about the leaked draft manuscript during remarks at the Ringling College Library Association Town Hall lecture series, according to the Herald Tribune of Sarasota, Florida.

Kelly said Bolton "always gave the president the unvarnished truth" and is a "man of integrity and great character."

"I mean, half of Americans think this process is purely political and shouldn't be happening, but since it is happening, the majority of Americans would like to hear the whole story," Kelly said.

"So I think if there are people that could contribute to this, either innocence or guilt ... I think they should be heard. I think some of the conversations seem to me to be very inappropriate but I wasn't there. But there are people that were there that ought to be heard from."

Bolton's allegations, contained in a draft manuscript first reported by The New York Times, have led to fresh calls from Democrats for Bolton to testify in Trump's impeachment trial and added uncertainty to a vote, expected this week, to determine whether the Senate should subpoena for witnesses and documents.

A source with direct knowledge of the manuscript has told CNN the Times' telling of Bolton's account is accurate. The President, though, has denied claims he told Bolton aid to Ukraine was tied to an investigation of the Bidens.

Trump's attempts to pressure Ukraine to investigate Hunter Biden and Joe Biden, his potential 2020 rival, are at the center of the President's impeachment trial.

Trump has repeatedly made unfounded and false claims to allege that the Bidens acted improperly in Ukraine. There is no evidence of wrongdoing by either Joe or Hunter Biden.

Kelly, who left the White House under contentious circumstances in January 2019, has occasionally voiced criticisms of the Trump administration since leaving his post.

In October, the retired Marine Corps general said the President would not be in the middle of an impeachment process if he were still chief of staff, implying that White House advisers could have prevented it. He also said before he left the White House he advised Trump on hiring his replacement.

"I said, whatever you do  and we were still in the process of trying to find someone to take my place  I said whatever you do, don't hire a 'yes man,' someone who won't tell you the truth  don't do that," Kelly said at the time. "Because if you do, I believe you will be impeached."

This story has been updated to include additional background information.
RACINE  More schools are registered to participate in the statewide student voucher program next year, but there are two fewer schools signed up for the Racine program.

For the 2020-21 school year, 25 private nonsectarian or religious schools are registered with the Wisconsin Department of Public Instruction to accept students through the local voucher program, called the Racine Parental Choice Program. Student participation in the RPCP increased this school year by more than 400.

There were 27 schools registered for the RPCP this year, according to DPI. Bethany Lutheran School in Kenosha and Saint Thomas More High School in Milwaukee are dropping from the program next school year.

Schools can begin today to accept applications for 2020-21. Schools can accept applications from Feb. 1-Feb. 20; March 1-March 20; April 1April 20; May 1May 20; June 1June 22; July 1July 20; Aug. 1Aug. 20 and Sept. 1Sept. 14.

Some schools accept applications for only a portion of those time periods. To view the list of schools registered to participate in the RPCP for the coming school year and their open application periods go online to dpi.wi.gov.

Across the state

For the coming school year, 134 institutions registered to accept students through the Milwaukee Parental Choice Program and 268 schools registered to be a part of the Wisconsin Parental Choice Program.

The WPCP is for schools across the state that are not located in the Racine Unified or Milwaukee Public Schools districts. There are 26 new schools registered to participate in that program in the coming year.

The voucher programs allow students to attend private or parochial schools with their tuition paid by a taxpayer-funded voucher. Advocates for public and private schools disagree on what this means for public schools and taxpayers. Public schools say the program takes funds from their budgets, while voucher schools argue that the money simply follows the student.

The per-student voucher payments to private schools for 2020-21 are estimated at $8,300 for students in kindergarten through eighth grade, and $8,946 for students in ninth through 12th grades.

Racine Unified receives about $10,000 per student in state aid and local taxes.

Requirements and eligibility

Only students living in the Racine Unified School District and whose families meet certain income requirements when initially applying are eligible to participate in the RPCP.

To qualify for vouchers, new students must come from a family with an income equal to or less than 300% of the federal poverty level. This would be $77,250 for a family of four or $84,250 if the childs parents or guardians are married.

Generally, students new to the program must be applying for 4- or 5-year-old kindergarten, first or ninth grades.

Otherwise, in the prior year the student must have:

Attended a public school in Wisconsin

Attended school in another state

Not been enrolled in school

Participated in the choice program

Been on a choice waiting list

Parents who wish to apply for the RPCP this fall can fill out an application online at dpi.wi.gov/choice. Students must reapply for a voucher every year; however, students continuing in the program do not have to meet the income restrictions.

Love 0 Funny 0 Wow 0 Sad 0 Angry 0

Get local news delivered to your inbox! Subscribe to our Daily Headlines newsletter. Sign up! * I understand and agree that registration on or use of this site constitutes agreement to its user agreement and privacy policy.
Pakistan releases 42 Christians convicted of 'terrorism' for participating in 2015 riots

Email Print Img No-img Menu Whatsapp Google Reddit Digg Stumbleupon Linkedin Comment

An anti-terrorism court in Lahore has acquitted and ordered the release of 42 Christians previously imprisoned for rioting after two churches in Pakistans largest Christian neighborhood were bombed in 2015.

Persecution watchdog group International Christian Concern reports that the verdict was reached this week after settlements were agreed upon with the families of two Muslim men who were wrongfully killed by the rioters.

The riots stemmed from a terrorist bombing of two churches in the Christian neighborhood of Youhanabad, located in Lahore. Fifteen people were killed in the bombings, including 11 Christians and four Muslims. In response, local Christians staged a riot in which two Muslim men suspected of participating in the bombings were lynched.

In the following days, police made several raids in the district, arresting about 500 people. The ATC sentenced 42 Christians for terrorism, while the church attackers reportedly went unpunished.

Two of the Christian prisoners died while waiting for a trial. The others filed an application under Section 345 of the Code of Criminal Procedure which argued that they should be released because they had reached a settlement with the families of the two deceased Muslims.

The ATC accepted this application and acquitted all suspects, including the two who died in custody, after evidence of the settlement with the two families was presented to the court.

The families of the 40 remaining prisoners have welcomed the settlement and the ATCs verdict, notes ICC, and have reported being pleased to see the return of their loved ones after almost five years of imprisonment.

ICCs Regional Manager, William Stark, said, International Christian Concern is happy to see the peaceful settlement of the Youhanabad riots and arrests after almost five years. The bombings of the two churches and the deadly riots that followed truly marked a dark day in Pakistans history. We hope that important lessons can be learned from this tragedy. Lessons that will bring greater protection for Christian places of worship and open dialogue between Pakistans religious communities to settle religious disputes.

The guilty verdict sparked controversy in 2015, with the National Commission for Justice and Peace of the Catholic Bishops expressing disappointment that the police and the authorities focused only on the deplorable act of lynching, to be condemned strongly, while the authors of the criminal attack on churches, on innocent worshipers, are still unpunished.

Additionally, the Centre for Legal Aid, Assistance and Settlement, a nongovernmental organization, said most of the Christians were unjustly accused" and the pressures from Muslim extremists influenced the verdict.

It was previously reported that the 42 Christians were told that if they renounced their faith and embraced Islam, their acquittal would be guaranteed. According to reports, one of the imprisoned men, Ifran Masih, responded by saying that he would rather be hanged than embrace Islam.

Persecution watchdog Open Doors USA ranks Pakistan as the 5th worst on its 2020 World Watch List of 50 countries where it is most difficult to be a Christian.
H ealth officials are on the hunt for anyone who came into contact with two people diagnosed with coronavirus in the UK.

Two people from the same family took ill while staying at the Staycity apartment-hotel, York, on Wednesday night, Public Health England (PHE) said.

They are being treated in a specialist disease clinic at the NHS Newcastle Royal Victoria Infirmary.

The deadly virus has so far claimed 213 lives, Chinese officials said on Friday, with the number of known cases hitting 9,962.

It is understood that the pair diagnosed in Britain returned from China recently. They were taken to hospital on Wednesday night after falling ill at the York hotel.

A convoy escorted Britons evacuated from China to the Wirral on Friday afternoon / PA

The firm says its building has been thoroughly disinfected and PHE has been providing support.

Professor Sharon Peacock, director of the body's infection service, said: Public Health England is contacting people who had close contact with the confirmed cases.

The two cases were staying in York when they became unwell.

Close contacts will be given health advice about symptoms and emergency contact details to use if they become unwell in the 14 days after contact with the confirmed cases.

This tried-and-tested method will ensure we are able to minimise any risk to them and the wider public.

Earlier Prof Peacock admitted that officials do not have any idea how many people they came into contact with.

The PHE definition of close contact is being within two metres of the infected person for 15 minutes.

It comes after more than 80 Britons on an evacuation flight from Wuhan, the Chinese city at the centre of the outbreak, landed at RAF Brize Norton, Oxfordshire, this afternoon.

A convoy carrying 83 Britons and 27 non-UK nationals, mostly from EU countries, arrived in the Wirral for a 14-day quarantine period tonight.

Ministers said the Government will send another plane to Wuhan to rescue British citizens if needed.

Yesterday the World Health Organisation (WHO) declared an international public health emergency over the illness.
Photograph: Denis Balibouse/Reuters

Jared Kushner is a genius. Its all too easy to overlook the sheer brilliance of Donald Trumps son-in-law, not least when he rolls out a Middle East peace plan that destroys the concepts of both the Israeli and Palestinian states.

But for his rapier-like ability to capture the zeitgeist, theres no one quite like the young slumlord to tell it like it really is. Speaking to CNNs Christiane Amanpour, Kushner talked dramatically about this week as a time for leaders to step up.

Related: The only antidote to a campaign of lies is a campaign of truth | Richard Wolffe

What weve done is create an opportunity for their leadership to either seize or not, he explained. If they screw up this opportunity  which again, they have a perfect track record of missing opportunities  if they screw this up, I think they will have a very hard time looking the international community in the face, saying they are the victims, saying they have rights.

Kushner thought he was talking about the Palestinians, in a gloriously brazen blend of racism and gold-leafed ignorance.

But he was in fact describing perfectly the entire caucus of Senate Republicans as they screwed up their last golden opportunity for personal redemption and liberal democracy in the impeachment trial of Donald J Trump.

How will the nations Republican senators look anyone in the face and say they have any rights to keep in check a corrupt and criminal president? How can they pretend to be Trumps victims when they marched themselves off a constitutional cliff?

And how on earth can they pretend to the world that their vision of America  where a president can happily use military aid to coerce a foreign government to smear his political rival in an election  is the model for democracy?

Lets be honest. There was little drama or suspense in Trumps impeachment trial, save for the bat-excrement quality of crazy that tumbled out of Alan Dershowitzs mouth. According to Harvards emeritus law professor, presidents are unimpeachable as long as they think they are acting in the national interest when they use their power to corrupt their own election.

Story continues

This could have been valuable analysis for Richard Nixon, but it also serves to question the value of a Harvard law professor. Perhaps its only the detritus who become emeritus.

Dershowitz claimed he said no such thing, but our eyes and ears suggested otherwise. He also said he supported Nixons almost-impeachment, naturally. Which is to say: the Harvard man is the perfect specimen of what Trump has propagated through the body politic: a contagious coronavirus of chronic lying, cowardly ambition and plain old corruption.

For all the fake angst about calling witnesses  did Mitch McConnell wobble on the votes to stop them or is he actually manipulating the media every day?  the searing testimony of John Bolton would have done nothing, zippo, nada, to change the final vote.

The facts of Trumps corruption were never in dispute. The notion that this doesnt rise to impeachable crimes has always been a joke.

We could play the age-old parlor game of asking how our esteemed Republican senators would have responded to Barack Obama asking the French government to investigate Mitt Romneys missionary exploits ahead of the 2012 election. But whats the point?

Todays Republican party elected to remove their spinal cords three years ago, along with much of their frontal lobe and their self-respect. They wring their hands in private and lament their lampoon-worthy leader whose shoes they must lick on a daily basis.

But they should know they are following in a fine tradition of the worlds puppet legislators, like the Peoples Council of Syria and the Russian Duma under the expert guidance of one Vladimir Putin.

We should in some ways be grateful for the honesty of our pseudo-senators. There is no need for more evidence to prove something that has already been proven, said Lamar Alexander, the Tennessee senator who was supposedly considering Bolton as a witness.

Having decided the facts against Trump, Alexander then decided to trivialize his criminal acts of withholding congressionally mandated foreign aid and demanding foreign interference in his own election. According to Alexander, such stuff was simply inappropriate  much like wearing brogues to the Grand Ole Opry or asking for the fish at Tops Bar-B-Q.

Faced with so many profiles in courage, our reality TV star of a commander-in-chief will carry on regardless, seeking out fellow grifters, foreign strongmen and domestic weaklings

The question then is not whether the president did it, but whether the United States Senate or the American people should decide what to do about what he did, said the senator, elected to make decisions for the American people in one of three co-equal branches of government.

Faced with so many profiles in courage, our reality TV star of a commander-in-chief will carry on regardless, seeking out fellow grifters, foreign strongmen and domestic weaklings. Will he feel liberated by the failure of the Senate trial to seek out more foreign interference in this years election? The answer may be similar to the one about bears dumping in forests.

Short of removal from office or federal indictment, there are no constraints on Trumps conduct. He can hire another goon like Rudy Giuliani to work with sketchy foreigners running businesses called something like Fraud Guarantee. Then he can shovel any amount of sketchy cash on to Facebooks mountain of money to beguile the gullible about the guaranteed fraud. Because a president cant be impeached for inappropriate crimes. And because political free speech is untouchable in the fantasy world where Mark Zuckerberg thinks hes helping humanity.

This has been a historic week for self-destructive politics. Like turkeys voting for Christmas, the British government celebrated its withdrawal from its biggest trading relationships just as Republican senators celebrated their own castration.

Both sets of magnificent morons claimed they were acting for their imaginary friends in the future: a future where Britain will once again bestride the ocean, and presidents will once again lead the free world feeling free from the fear of partisan impeachment.

The Radical Left, Do Nothing Democrats keep chanting fairness, when they put on the most unfair Witch Hunt in the history of the U.S. Congress, tweeted the victim-in-chief sitting in the Oval Office, probably watching Fox News. They had 17 Witnesses, we were allowed ZERO, and no lawyers. They didnt do their job, had no case. The Dems are scamming America!

Donald Trump doesnt know much about history, foreign policy or politics. He cant tell the difference between his own lawyers and no lawyers; between lots of witnesses and no witnesses at all. But he does know a lot about scams, and he cant wait to share them with you.
A 58-bed day hospital for Swords has been granted planning permission by Fingal County Council and will bring some 500 jobs with it to Swords.

The hospital is to be built on a site in Airside Retail Park and will be an eight-storey building with six operating theatres capable of performing procedures up to and including hip replacements. It will include an urgent care centre and it will have on-site diagnostics service as well have 202 car spaces and 84 bicycle spaces

General Election candidate and vocal supporter of the development, Senator James Reilly has welcomed the decision by Fingal County Council to grant planning permission for the hospital. He said: 'This is a major positive development for the people of Dublin Fingal and will have a transformative impact on the delivery of health services locally and beyond.'
(Boston)--For the first time, researchers describe the genetic program behind primordial lung progenitors--embryonic cells that give rise to all the cells that form the lining of the respiratory system after birth. They believe this study has long-term implications for the treatment of diseases affecting the respiratory system, such as chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD), alpha-1 antitrypsin deficiency and cystic fibrosis.

Diseases affecting the lungs are not easily treatable and result in significant morbidity and mortality worldwide. Specialized stem cells with the potential to self-renew have been proposed as a critical component of tissue homeostasis for many organs, including the lung. Similar cells can be engineered in vitro and used in the future in cell replacement therapies for respiratory diseases.

Using a genetically modified experimental model, researchers from the Center for Regenerative Medicine (CReM) of Boston University and Boston Medical Center, were able to isolate and describe the genetic program of the earliest lung progenitor cells and understand the signals that instruct them. They then used computational methods that helped them define how similar their engineered lung cells are to the in vivo progenitors.

"Our findings define in great detail a rare, transient cell, namely the primordial lung progenitor. The knowledge generated from this study will be of great value in the derivation of human primordial lung progenitors in culture, since the equivalent stage in human lung development is not accessible," explained corresponding author Laertis Ikonomou, PhD, assistant professor of molecular and translational medicine at Boston University School of Medicine.

Respiratory system diseases, such as COPD, cystic fibrosis and lung interstitial disease severely affect quality of life. "We hope that our findings will eventually lead to more protocols for, transplantable lung epithelial cells for treatment of such diseases and for drug development," added Ikonomou.

This work is the result of close collaboration with the laboratory of Darrell N. Kotton, MD, director of the CReM (last and co-corresponding author). Other coauthors include BU investigators Michael J. Herriges, PhD; Sara L. Lewandowski, PhD; Robert Marsland III, PhD; Carlos Villacorta-Martin, PhD; Ignacio S. Caballero, MBA; Reeti M. Sanghrajka, PhD, Keri Dame, PhD; Maciej M. Ka?du?a, PhD; Julia Hicks-Berthet; Matthew L. Lawton; Constantina Christodoulou, PhD; Eric Kolaczyk, PhD; Xaralabos Varelas, PhD and Pankaj Mehta, PhD. University of Pennsylvania investigators David B. Frank, PhD and Edward E. Morrisey, PhD; John M. Shannon, PhD from Cincinnati Children's Hospital and Attila J. Fabian from Biogen.

These findings appear online in the journal Nature Communications.

###

Funding for this study was provided by a Boston University Clinical and Translational Science Institute (CTSI) training grant (S.L.L) (TL1TR001410). M.M.K. is a Marshall Plan Scholar supported by the Austrian Marshall Plan Foundation. R.M. and P.M. were supported by NIH NIGMS grant 1R35GM119461 and a Simons Investigator Award in the Mathematical Modeling of Living Systems (MMLS) to P.M. L.I. was supported by NIH grants (R01 HL111574, R01 HL124280), a chILD Foundation/American Thoracic Society award, an Evans Junior Faculty Research Merit Award and a CTSI Pilot Award (1UL1TR001430). D.N.K. was supported by NIH grants U01HL134745, R01HL095993, R01DK105029, R01GM122096, R01HL122442, R01HL128172, and U01HL134766.
Air India's jumbo B747 plane, evacuating 324 Indian nationals from the novel coronavirus-hit Wuhan in China, landed here on Saturday morning, officials said.

The plane reached Delhi around 7.30 am, they said.

There were five doctors from Ram Manohar Lohia (RML) Hospital and one paramedical staff on board, said an Air India spokesperson.

The Indian Army has set up a quarantine facility in Manesar near Delhi to keep those evacuated from China's Hubei province.

Officials said they would be monitored for any signs of infection for a duration of two weeks by a qualified team of doctors and staff members.

"With 324 passengers, special flight has taken off for India from Wuhan. It may reach Delhi at 7.30am," said the Air India spokesperson at 1.19 am on Saturday.

The flight had departed from Delhi airport at 1.17 pm on Friday to evacuate Indian nationals from China, where more than 250 people - none of them Indian - have died due to novel coronavirus.

On Friday evening, the Air India spokesperson had stated that another special flight may take off from Delhi airport on Saturday to evacuate Indians from Wuhan.

The death toll from the novel coronavirus outbreak in China has risen to 259 with total confirmed cases surging to 11,791 amid stepped up efforts by a number of countries to evacuate their nationals from Hubei province, the epicentre of the virus, officials said on Saturday.

About Friday's flight, the spokesperson had said earlier during the day, "A team of five doctors from RML hospital, one paramedical staff from Air India, with prescribed medicines from doctors, masks, overcoats, packed food are in the aircraft. A team of engineers, security personnel are also there in this special aircraft. Whole rescue mission is being led by Captain Amitabh Singh, Director (Operations), Air India."



The spokesperson had added that there were five cockpit crew members and 15 cabin crew members on Friday's flight.

Before departure at Delhi airport, Air India Chairman and Managing Director Ashwani Lohani had said, "No service will take place in the plane. Whatever food is there will be kept in seat pockets. As there will be no service, there will be no interaction (between cabin crew and passengers)."



"Masks have been arranged for the crew and passengers. For our crew, we have also arranged a complete protective gear," he had added.

"Total five doctors from the Health Ministry are also going... The plane will be there (at Wuhan airport) for 2-3 hours," Lohani had said.

Air India has done such evacuations earlier also from countries such as Libya, Iraq, Yemen, Kuwait and Nepal.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
The Louvres retrospective of the career of Leonardo da Vinci (14521519) addresses what might seem an odd question but isnt. Why was he the most famous and esteemed artist of his age and every age since his death 500 years ago?

The Last Supper rocked the art world in 1498 when Leonardo painted it on the wall of a convent dining hall in Milan. His conception was both revolutionary and instantly acclaimed, shocking since the convent was an obscure site, and he worked long before the age of mass dissemination of images. He fashioned himself as a scientist, but his bungled mix of oil paint and unfriendly layers of plaster created a fugitive surface that quickly flaked. Within a few years, it was a ruin but was still more famous than the Parthenon. La Giaconda, or the Mona Lisa, painted between 1503 and 1506, is indeed lovely and cryptic but why does a half-length portrait of a minor dignitary draw people like bees to honey, not just now but over centuries?

Only 15 paintings are attributed to Leonardo. He lived off and on in Florence but for long periods was cosseted by potentates such as the Duke of Milan and the French King Francis I who considered him their pet genius. He took forever to finish paintings, if he finished them at all. He was born out of wedlock, his father a small-town lawyer and his mother a peasant. He had little formal education. When he tried to steal papal work from the young Raphael and Michelangelo, he failed. By 1510 in Rome, however esteemed Leonardo was, they were more fashionable, and reliable. Why, then, is Leonardo the genius for all seasons, the original Renaissance man?

The exhibition explains Leonardos fame with impressive clarity and precision. He mastered movement, which conveys the reality of life on figures represented on a flat surface. He developed an atmosphere for his figures, settings where they convincingly breathe. An understanding of light, especially shade, molds form like putty. Leonardo believed that understanding the material world was essential in representing it. To him, mathematics, geology, anatomy, engineering, aeronautics, and botany werent always detours or diversions, though they sometimes were, hence, only 15 paintings in a 50-year career. He felt he couldnt represent life, its physical and intellectual aspects, without knowing how life ticks.

Story continues

Its mostly a drawings show, along with eight of his paintings and the massive 150708 copy of The Last Supper done on canvas by Marco dOggiono. His story begins in Florence in the shop of Andrea del Verrocchio (14351488) where the savant Leonardo worked as a teenage apprentice. About a dozen large drapery studies by either Verrocchio or Leonardo are somber experiments in achieving form and weight through subtle undulations of lights and darks. These studies feel abstract and modern. Saint-Morys Study, by Leonardo, from the late 1470s, is the most impressive. The subject is a close-up, intense passage of drapery. The colors are an austere brown and gray. Light not only makes the folds and creases but gives whats underneath presence and credibility.

Saint-Morys Drapery Study for a Seated Figure, c. 1475-1482, by Leonardo da Vinci. Distemper on linen.

Verrocchio was Leonardos boss and mentor, but Botticelli, Perugino, and Ghirlandaio were Florences biggest art beasts. They were a few years older than Leonardo, and their work was linear, graceful, and sweet. Every angel looked like an ingenue, and vice versa. Their palettes were bright and saturated. Their figures were given to frolics. Sometimes their work feels like billboards or friezes. Sometimes it seems unserious, lacking for depth, like a Riesling or Beaujolais with celery and cream-cheese canapes. Leonardo gives us Amarone and steak, but he would have called it sfumato.

Sfumato is the blurring of edges to create softer and more gradual transitions from light to dark. It looks like bits of dark gauze applied to create shadows. Think fog at night. By 1500, works such as La Scapigliata or, even smokier, the black chalk Virgin and Child with Saint Anne and John the Baptist are Leonardos calling card. His figures feel and look as if theyre slowly pushed from what feels like a primordial darkness into a world of light. They have weight and gravity but also mystery.

The Virgin and Child with Saint Anne and the Infant Saint John the Baptist, c. 1500. Leonardo da Vinci. Black chalk heightened with white.

The Louvres Virgin of the Rocks, from around 1485, is his first large, multi-figure painting. Its as much a landscape as a figure painting, with the dynamic, even lusty, modeling of Mary, Jesus, and saints reinforced by a vast, deep, craggy landscape. Its a scene from the Apocryphal gospel of St. John the Baptist occurring during the Flight into Egypt. The landscape is daunting, even unforgiving, on the one hand but a good place to hide on the other. Its one of the stars in the exhibition, which also includes paintings by Leonardos students. An installation of work by a heavy hitter like Leonardo demands people-moving skills. I think the curators did a great job giving objects space for contemplation but also signaling to people to move along smartly. The museum was closed the day I went, but I imagine its packed when open. Theres ample distance between objects.

After seeing the exhibition, I visited the Mona Lisa. Its riveting beauty is in its plainness. Its an economical picture. Her hands are elegant but simple. She wears a black dress and a black veil. Shes no Claudia Cardinale. Shes not even pretty. Shes handsome and has a look of experience far beyond her years. Shes very present and looks like flesh and blood, and thats part of the enigma. Shes not approachable. Shes thinking and absorbing but a wall as soft and as impenetrable is hard to imagine.

Leonardos drawings often dont make narrative sense, and thats why they feel so modern. He doesnt draw a scene over and over in search of refinement. In a single large drawing from the Royal Collection, he sketches a scene of Mary and the infant Jesus together and an arbitrary group of human and animal profiles. The juxtapositions on the sheet are as inexplicable as a dream. The look is weird, like Chagalls floating people in his Russian village scenes or Dalis or Tanguys weird mismatches. Its not automatic writing like Pollock or Gorky. Leonardos mind moves quickly, and hes always doodling.

Study of Hands, c. 1485- 1492, by Leonardo d Vinci. Charcoal and metalpoint heightened with white

The cleverest part of the show is the use of wall-mounted infrared reflectograms of Leonardos paintings. Their palette is grisaille or looks like brown or black chalk with gouache. They play well with the drawings. For Leonardo, drawing wasnt so much about developing an overall composition. His drawings were idea-making. They mostly isolate parts of the body. His late 1480s Study of Hands is a beautiful example. Its on the early side so the subjects have crisper contours, but hes after a look, not a whole scene. The X-rays of paintings show what happens as he tackles a canvas with paint. Painstaking, step-by-step planning goes out the door. We can see the hundreds of small changes hes making on the spot, sometimes shifting entire figures, sometimes tweaking a line. The X-rays dont necessarily feel forensic. Theyre really very beautiful.

A big gallery treats Leonardos copious scientific work. His launch toward science came in his days with Verrocchio. There, he took a deep dive into chemistry, plastering, casting, mechanics, and metalwork, in addition to aesthetics. Later, he seemed less practical  he wasnt a tinkerer like, say, Thomas Edison  than philosophical and speculative. He was a what if guy. Can do he wasnt. He was no Benjamin Franklin, out there with kite and key in a lightning storm, or Marie Curie in a lab getting zapped.

His sketchbooks are tiny, but each has as many as a hundred pages packed with drawings and text. Some are straightforward, like studies of bent and straight leg bones. The botany sketches are lovely still lifes of flowers. Optics was a favorite subject. Leonardo wanted to know how the eye worked, so he could paint for the greatest visual impact. Its clear why Leonardo did only 15 paintings. It was a failure of productivity and focus that he acknowledged toward the end of his life. He was a polymath and poster child for ADD. For his main sugar daddies, like the Sforzas in Milan, the Medicis in Florence, and Francis I, he was a one-man think tank and given free rein. He was good to have around, and he set a prestigious, serious tone in any court.

Marco dOggionis copy of The Last Supper is in the science gallery. Its a dazzling aesthetic thing. Nothing like The Last Supper had been done before: a life-size, cinematic, technicolor scene of dramatic movement. Its a snapshot, too. Its the moment when Jesus lets the gang in on a secret: Someone among them will betray him in a matter of hours. The sequence of moving hands, torsos, heads, feet, and faces isnt balletic. Leonardo choreographed it, to be sure, but the movement looks spontaneous, like 13 freestanding, independent units exploded in a single burst of energy, visually captured.

Seeing it in the science gallery made me think of Eadweard Muybridge, the British photographer who did sequential photographs of running men and galloping horses. Leonardo calculated long and hard to make it look immediate and heartfelt, the skulking Judas notwithstanding. The Last Supper must have been dazzling when it was done, and Leonardo, knowing chemistry as well as he did, must have known he was using dodgy materials. He was so immersed in architecture that surely he also understood the wall he used was made of second-rate materials and the room poorly drained. I thought of J. M. W. Turner, who, too, was after immediate sparkle and used unorthodox and incompatible materials to get it. He also knew that after a few years his paintings would peel pigment.

Vetruvian Man, the 1490 drawing about ideal human proportions, is in the show. Its usually seen as a tribute to reason, logic, and the perfectibility of humanity, but the show tells us thats not where Leonardo was heading. That takes us to the late St. John the Baptist, from the 1510s. Hes ideally beautiful, even androgynous, and more otherworldly than corporeal. He emerges from darkness but not all the way into the light. A few weeks ago, I wrote about James Montgomery Flaggs I Want You poster of Uncle Sam. Its in your face, which this isnt. St. John is pointing toward the heavens.

A Deluge, c. 1517-1518, by Leonardo da Vinci. Black chalk.

The last object in the show is A Deluge, a black chalk drawing from about 1518. What Leonardo learned from science wasnt predictability. There were plenty of phenomena he couldnt rationally explain. More often than not, he found impermanence. He was a realist, yes, seeking after convincing form, but he was a realist depicting awe. Tempests are awesome, wild things, and so is what lies in the darkness.

The $450 million painting claimed to be by Leonardo wasnt there. It sold at Christies in 2017, breaking auction records. I saw it during the auction preview. Its still a controversial attribution, with many art historians, connoisseurs, and conservators thinking its a work by someone in Leonardos studio. It wasnt missed. Many of the things on view would have blown it out of the air, up the Seine, and into the deep blue sea.

More from National Review
As for the NUTmobile, the first version of the custom car with the shell-like exterior was created in 1935 and launched in 1937. Today, there are a fleet of three of these 26-foot long converted 2014 Isuzu roadsters, which have been transformed into NUTmobiles to travel the United States for promotional appearances. The luxury legume also has a convenient sunroof to allow Mr. Peanut to poke his familiar cracked face out to smile and wave when featured in parades. The NUTmobile I encountered in Kenosha had a California vanity license plate which read MR PNUT1 attached to the front grill.
On January 31, the European Union allocated EUR 10 million for 'urgent' scientific research into the new coronavirus.

Chinese Premier Li Keqiang has asked the European Union for medicine supplies to battle coronavirus outbreak.

"Chinese Premier Li Keqiang spoke with [European Commission President] Ursula von der Leyen on the phone, asking the EU side to facilitate Chinese side's urgent procurement of medical supplies from EU member countries through business channels," Global Times wrote on Twitter on January 1.

In addition, the Chinese Foreign Ministry sharply criticized the introduction of a public health emergency and announcement of the extraordinary step of barring entry to the United States of foreign nationals who have recently visited China. Americans returning to the United States from China will face enhanced screening and a self-quarantine of up to 14 days.

"Certainly it is not a gesture of goodwill," foreign ministry spokeswoman Hua Chunying said.

On January 31, the European Union allocated EUR 10 million for 'urgent' scientific research into the new coronavirus.

As UNIAN reported earlier, the number of confirmed coronavirus cases grew by 2,102 on Friday, bringing the total to 11,791. The death toll in China is now 259 people.

An outbreak of pneumonia of unknown origin in China's Wuhan was announced in late December 2019. It was established that the agent of a new type of coronavirus is 2019-nCoV. The virus is transmitted from person to person. The incubation period lasts from two to 12 days.

According to the Ministry of Health, no patients carrying the new coronavirus have been reported in Ukraine.

Coronavirus was declared a global emergency by the World Health Organization on January 30.
DES MOINES, Iowa  A small group of Democratic National Committee members has privately begun gauging support for a plan to potentially weaken Bernie Sanders presidential campaign and head off a brokered convention.

In conversations on the sidelines of a DNC executive committee meeting and in telephone calls and texts in recent days, about a half-dozen members have discussed the possibility of a policy reversal to ensure that so-called superdelegates can vote on the first ballot at the partys national convention. Such a move would increase the influence of DNC members, members of Congress and other top party officials, who now must wait until the second ballot to have their say if the convention is contested.

I do believe we should re-open the rules. I hear it from others as well, one DNC member said in a text message last week to William Owen, a DNC member from Tennessee who does not support re-opening the rules.

Owen, who declined to identify the member, said the member added in a text that It would be hard though. We could force a meeting or on the floor.

Even proponents of the change acknowledge it is all but certain not to gain enough support to move past these initial conversations. But the talks reveal the extent of angst that many establishment Democrats are feeling on the eve of the Iowa caucuses.

Sanders is surging and Joe Biden has maintained his lead nationally, but at least three other candidates are widely seen as viable. The cluster raises the specter of a convention requiring a second ballot.

If Sanders wins the Iowa caucuses on Monday and continues to gain momentum, it is possible he could arrive at the convention with the most delegates  but without enough to win the nomination on the first ballot. It is also possible that he and Elizabeth Warren, a fellow progressive, could arrive at the convention in second and third place, but with more delegates combined than the frontrunner.

If, on the second ballot, superdelegates were to throw their support to someone else, tipping the scales, many moderate Democrats fear the upheaval that would cause could weaken the eventual nominee.

Story continues

Conversations about a potential rules change picked up as Sanders ascended in the primary, but they have not gained traction to this point within the DNC.

Theres talk about somehow trying to change this rule at this convention  just casual conversation, and I have participated in it some, said Don Fowler, a former DNC chairman from South Carolina who opposed the DNCs decision in 2018 to strip superdelegates of much of their power in the presidential nominating process. But I want to be clear that I would not be a party to any effort to do that in the 2020 convention  Its bad sportsmanship.

Fowler said, I think it would be not in good faith if those of us who lost that fight in committee would somehow regenerate that fight in a national convention. If they did, he said it would result in the most hellacious fight youve ever seen at the Democratic convention.

Fowler declined to identify members participating in the conversations, and the DNC itself dismissed the idea.

"[DNC Chairman] Tom Perez fought tooth and nail to ensure our nominee would be chosen by pledged delegates, not automatic delegates, David Bergstein, a DNC spokesman, said in an email. The DNC passed these reforms unanimously. These rules make our party stronger and help ensure our eventual nominee has the full support of the party behind them."

The decision to relegate superdelegates  now called automatic delegates  to the second ballot in a contested convention consumed the DNC for nearly two years after the 2016 election. Superdelegates overwhelmingly sided with Hillary Clinton, infuriating Sanders supporters.

The rule change was widely viewed as a major victory for the Democratic Partys left flank. At the time, Perez called the delegate overhaul historic, while progressive Democrats and many moderates lauded its appeal to young voters skeptical of centralized party power.

One DNC member who has advocated for the change in discussions with other members described the effort this week as an uphill battle.

But the member, who declined to be identified, said the convention body is the ultimate authority of the party, so the convention body can do anything they want to.

He added, We havent had the first vote in the primary yet. Lets see how the panic sets in as this thing progresses.

More likely is a bid to rewrite the rules after the convention in Milwaukee  not for this years nominating contest, but for 2024.

Fowler said that theres a great anticipation that after this convention, there will be an effort to adopt the old rules  There are a lot of people who are interested in that.

Following the publication of this report, Perez responded on Twitter: "Absolutely not. We put in the work to ensure power was returned to the grassroots, we will be following the rules set forth by the DNC. We will not bend on this, we will not change our rules."

And Sanders senior adviser Jeff Weaver, citing the party's "multiyear process to reform the nominating contest," said in a text message that "trying to undo those reforms would be a serious mistake.

Even many vocal opponents of the move to dilute the power of superdelegates after 2016 aren't interested in revisiting the decision.

My side, including me, we lost the debate, said Donna Brazile, a former DNC chairwoman who sits on the bodys Rules and Bylaws Committee. I dont believe its wise to re-open a wound once it has healed.

By 2024, she said, the rules will once again be fair game, just like it was after the 2016 presidential election. But right now, we should be comfortable with the process, she said.

Owen, who also opposed reducing superdelegates influence, said Friday that any rule change now would constitute a slap in the face to the people who voted to change it.

I want our team to win, he said. And the way a team wins is through unity, not through division.

Holly Otterbein contributed to this report.
(Brought to you by Honda of Staten Island)

Growing up with a developmental disability is not only challenging for us; it can also be difficult for our siblings. When we are younger, they can be jealous of all the attention we seem to be getting. Medical problems, therapy appointments, and finding programs are some of the things that take up our parents time and concerns. Depending on the disability, communication can also be difficult.

In time, our siblings come to understand more about us, and they help us come up with ways to communicate and have fun with them.

- Sidney Cohen and his brother Allan: I grew up with two brothers. My younger brother Allan has autism and is nonverbal. Allan is a great guy. He likes music, walking, and he LOVES ketchup. I don't get to see him as much as I'd like to nowadays, but I'm forever grateful for our relationship. Having a special needs family member can be very tough, but living with him has taught me patience, understanding and fortitude. All these attributes are important in life and have left me well prepared for my career in the special needs community. I appreciate many things about Allan, but the one thing I appreciate most is his smile when he's happy. It's so genuine. -- Sidney Cohen, right, his brother Manuel, left, and his brother Allan seated. (Photo courtesy of Sidney Cohen) Life-Wire NewsLife-Wire News

Lindsay Hyland, whose sister has an intellectual disability, has embraced a mission to conduct Sibling Workshops to help foster these extraordinary relationships.

Hyland, the mother of two daughters, has three sisters. She shares the middle with her sister Julia Kennedy who attends Eden II Programs.

"[My sister] has taught me how important it is to understand that everyone is capable of learning new things

Hyland, a Livingston resident, is a teacher with the ACES program at IS 34. Her students, who had just celebrated the Lunar New Year by going out for Chinese food, listened quietly while she spoke with the Life-Wire News crew via Facebook Messenger.

Growing up, everybody had their needs. My parents realized I might be interested in other kids who also had siblings with disabilities, said Hyland. I would be able to hang out with these other people. We would learn together and support each other.

- Rebecca Matuszewski and her sister Nicole: Nicole, or as she has her way of reminding everyone that her name is Nicki, has been nothing short of a miracle to myself and my whole family. She is a strong, courageous, and very independent young woman, who doesnt let anything get in her way. Nicki wants to be just like everyone else her age and does not like being excluded for her disability. She enjoys shopping, going out to eat and out for drinks with our friends. I put friends in quotes because all of my friends that have come into her life have accepted her and include her in everything we do together. Although Nicki is my younger sister and looks up to me, one thing she doesnt know is that she is such an inspiration and role model to me, and I look up to her everyday. She has taught me to be more compassionate, loving, and understanding of everyone and not to judge a book by its cover. If I have a bad day all I have to do is look at her and she gives me one of her loving smiles and hugs and makes everything so much better. In other words I would be lost without her. She inspires me everyday to be a better person. (Photo courtesy of Rebecca Matuszewski) Life-Wire NewsLife-Wire News

About 10 years ago, Hyland became involved with SibsNY, part of a national volunteer network, that helps people make connections and find support for siblings with disabilities. She will conduct a Sibling Workshop to help families learn what is like to be a sibling with someone with a disability and to learn about services available.

When I was growing up, I had a lot of support. It made me a better sister, a better advocate, and a better teacher, said Hyland. So I want to pay it forward and make sure everyone gets the support they need.

- Mario Papa and his brother Paul: My relationship with Paul has been one that has brought me so much love and joy to my life. I wouldnt trade anything about him for the world. He loves me unconditionally and that is the one thing I appreciate about him along with his outlook on life. Seeing him happy is all I can ever ask for. He has had a huge effect on my life and has brought so much positivity into it. I look beyond his disability and know that he too has value and a purpose in life. We share a special bond as brothers like no other, and I am incredibly grateful that he is my brother. Without Pauls love and support, I honestly dont know where I would be right now. I will always love him forever. (Photo courtesy of Mario Papa) Life-Wire NewsLife-Wire News

The workshop is for and about siblings, but it is open to parents, teachers -- anyone who wants to help all their children.

The workshop will be held at Person Centered Care Services, 150 Granite Ave., Mariners Harbor, at 6 p.m. on Feb. 6. It will include videos for discussion, a question and answer period and time to socialize. RSVP to Alyssa DAgosto at adagosto@pccsny.org or 718-370-1088 x 219

- Joseph Loglisci and Keri-Anne: Keri-Anne is my youngest sister. She has moments when shes funny. She has moments when shes crabby. When something is bothering Keri, she wont say anything. Shell act out. I can tell by the way shes acting whats bothering her. Her favorite food is salad. Im proud of her. Shes overcome a lot in her time. Her having a disability has gotten me into this field. Who knows where I would have went. (Life-Wire News/Aaron Bialer) Life-Wire NewsLife-Wire News

One of the great things about these workshops is you get to meet other people and talk to each other, said Hyland.

Everyone will leave with a packet with information and resources.

- Anthony Pabon and his brother Tory: I love him because hes my brother. He plays Mario Cart, but with a backwards remote control. Its been hard because he cant really speak, so when you ask him something, he doesnt comprehend. He looks at you when hes affectionate. He loves to hug.I have ADD and he has autism. The different thing is that he is obsessive compulsive. He comes home and he starts putting cups out and fills them with coffee. We go out for Chinese food because he loves Chinese food. I hold his hand because he escapes. (Photo courtesy of Anthony Pabon) Life-Wire NewsLife-Wire News

- Kerry Ryan and her sister Kara: My sister Kara is my sunshine. Weve been close since the day she was born when I was six years old. Me, Kara and my brother James were always together as kids. One of my favorite things we did together was create music (aka, noise) in our Kitchy-Koo Kara Band. It used to drive our parents crazy. But we always had a ton of fun and laughs. And now, even though she sees me as the uncool older sister, I still try to spend time with her when I can. A lot of the times shes busy talking to her boyfriend. But she always has time to be an awesome aunt to my son, Finn and my daughter, Ruby. My world wouldnt be the same without her and her infectious smile. (Photo courtesy of Kelly Ryan) Life-Wire NewsLife-Wire News

-- Written collaboratively by Meredith Arout, Sal DiBenedetto, Joseph Padalino, Dolores Palermo, Gregory Perosi, for Life-Wire News Service with Kathryn Carse

Learn more about the Advance/SILive.coms partnership with Lifestyles for the Disabled, sponsored by Honda of Staten Island.
Top 100 educational institutions will start providing full-fledged degree courses online while the doors for Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) were also opened as Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman made these announcements in the Union budget on Saturday.

India will also start conducting an Ind-SAT test to screen Asian and African students who will become eligible for scholarships.

In her budget speech, the Finance Minister sought to meet the expectations of the aspirational India by focussing on the employability of young graduates.

By 2030, India is set to have the largest working-age population in the world. Not only do they need literacy but they need both job and life skills. Dialogues have been held with State Education Ministries, Members of Parliament and other stake-holders about Education policy. Over 2 lakh suggestions were also received. The New Education Policy (NEP) will be announced soon, Sitharaman said.

Significantly, one of the key elements of the draft NEP being discussed by the HRD ministry is allowing foreign varsities to come and teach in India.

In the budget Sitharaman paved way for greater inflow of foreign funds.

It is felt that our education system needs greater inflow of finance to attract talented teachers, innovate and build better labs. Therefore steps would be taken to enable sourcing External Commercial Borrowings and FDI so as to able to deliver higher quality education, she said.

Sitharaman also said that students in the general stream, vis-a-vis services or technology streams, need their employability improved.

About 150 higher educational institutions will start apprenticeship embedded degree or diploma courses by March 2021, she added. The government also proposes to start a programme whereby urban local bodies would provide internship opportunities to fresh engineers for a period up to one year, she said.

To provide quality education to students of deprived sections, it is proposed to start degree level full-fledged online education programme. This shall be offered only by institutions who are ranked within top 100 in the National Institutional Ranking framework. Initially, only a few such institutions would be asked to offer such programmes, Sitharaman said.

While some universities already provide online degree programmes, the announcement will boost digital learning which is key to enhancing Indias higher education reach. Sitharaman also pointed out that more girls were enrolled in higher education now than boys.

Another key announcement was that under the Study in India programme, an IND-SAT test was announced for Asian and African countries. It shall be used to benchmark candidates who receive scholarships.

Sharing details, Sitharaman said the government proposes to provide about 99,300 crore for education sector in 2020-21 and about 3,000 crores for skill development.

Asked about the budget announcements, Secretary HRD Amit Khare said a scheme was being prepared to attract FDI in line with the declaration.

When contacted, IIT Delhi Director Prof V Ramagopal Rao welcomed the move to encourage online programmes. Rao said though he felt the undergraduate courses would continue to be taught the same way in IITs, he envisaged there would be others like MBA or MAs which his institution would consider delivering in the online mode in the coming time.

Dheeraj Sharma, director of IIM Rohtak said his institute has a large number of programs that are purely online and others offered through blended mode. This is a welcome move and will facilitate degree granting to new applicants and new students to specific programs that are offered online and blended learning mode in various top ranking institutions, he said.

SHARE THIS ARTICLE ON
BRIDGEPORT  A city resident faces attempted murder charges after a dispute led to a stabbing on Myrtle Avenue Saturday morning, according to officials.

Scott Appleby, director of Bridgeports Office of Emergency Management & Homeland Security, said police were alerted to a 911 call about two people fighting in the area of the 300 and 400 block of Myrtle Avenue at 10:39 a.m.

Those involved in the dispute knew each other, the caller told the 911 operator.

Officers responded to the area and found a person with stab wounds. Appleby said the victim was immediately taken to the hospital by medics.

Then, minutes later at 10:42 a.m., 911 fielded another call about a person in the 500 block of Park Avenue with stab wounds and acting out of control, Appleby said.

Police responded and took the person  identified as 47-year-old Terrell Culver, of Bridgeport  into custody. Appleby said he was responsible for the incident on Myrtle Avenue.

He was taken to the hospital by medics for self-inflicted stab wounds.

Culver remains under Bridgeport police guard and under arrest at the hospital due to his injuries, Appleby said.

He has not been formally processed yet. When he is processed at Bridgeport police headquarters, he faces charged of criminal attempt at murder and first-degree assault. His bond will be set at $100,000.
To improve the efficiency of ports in the country, the government will set up a framework and look at corporatisation of at least one major port followed by subsequent listing on stock exchanges, Union Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman said on Saturday.

Presenting the Union Budget for 2020-21, Sitharaman said performance of ports have improved and government is taking steps to further enhance their efficiency.

"Sea ports have improved... Government will come out with a framework for ports and will look into corporatising at least one major port and subsequently its listing on stock exchanges," Sitharaman said.

The government has been striving to improve the operational efficiencies of ports through mechanisation, digitisation and process simplification.

The minister also proposed to set up a landmark maritime museum at Lothal (Gujarat), the artificial dockyard of Harappa Civilisation and a Tribal museum in Ranchi.

As proposed, the Lothal museum will also be an independent research centre of underwater archaeology and will display salvaged material from shipwreck sites in the Indian Ocean waters.

The museum is being set up with technical help from the Portuguese Maritime Heritage Museum. It is the site of one of the oldest ports in India dating to the Bronze Age.

Welcoming the Budget, Shipping Minister Mansukh Mandaviya said: "This budget is the foundation for the new India... I am sure this budget will continue to lead our country's growth much faster along with welfare of the society with a strong focus on all sectors. This budget would also open a vast potential for all the foreign investment in all the businesses sector."



Major ports in the country have an installed capacity of 1,514.09 million tonne per annum as in March, 2019 and handled traffic of 699.09 MT during 2018-19.

As per the Economic Survey, "the average turnaround time in 2018-19 improved to 59.51 hrs as against 64.43 hrs in 2017-18. The average output per ship berth day has increased from 15,333 tonnes in 2017-18 to 16,541 tonnes in 2018-19."



India has 12 major ports -- Deendayal (erstwhile Kandla), Mumbai, JNPT, Mormugao, New Mangalore, Cochin, Chennai, Kamarajar (earlier Ennore), V O Chidambaranar, Visakhapatnam, Paradip and Kolkata (including Haldia).

These ports had recorded a marginal 0.98 per cent growth in cargo volumes at 524.02 million tonnes (MT) during the April-December 2019 period.

Commenting on Ports and shipping sector, K Ravichandran, Senior Vice President & Group Head, Corporate Ratings, ICRA said the announcement on waterways will make movement of freight and passengers cheaper.

"The announcement to continue support for the development of other inland waterways (apart from National Waterway 1) is a positive. Further, announced plans to corporatise at least one of the 12 major ports and subsequently list it on the exchanges is a positive step towards government disinvestment in the ports sector.

"However, as seen in previous years, the budget allocation to Sagarmala projects is lower than the cost of planned initiatives," he said.

The Sagarmala budget allocation for 2020-21 has accordingly been reduced to Rs 297 crore.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
U.S. senators have approved a resolution calling for a final vote in the historic impeachment trial of President Donald Trump on February 5.

The resolution approved on January 31 comes hours after senators voted down by a 51-49 margin a move by Democratic managers to call witnesses and subpoena documents for the trial, blocking what could have been explosive testimony by former national-security adviser John Bolton.

Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell said after the vote that there was no need for witnesses or documents in the trial and that investigations done previously in the House of Representatives were enough.

"Senators will now confer among ourselves, with the [Democratic] House managers, and with the president's counsel to determine next steps as we prepare to conclude the trial in the coming days," McConnell said in a statement shortly before the passage of the resolution setting the final vote for 4 p.m. on February 5.

Republican Senator Lindsey Graham, a vocal Trump supporter, said the trial should end as soon as possible.

"The cake is baked, and we just need to move as soon as we can to get it behind us," he told reporters.

Two Republican senators voted for calling witnesses -- Mitt Romney of Utah and Susan Collins of Maine.

It would have taken four Republican senators to defy the president and vote for witnesses.

An angry Chuck Schumer (New York), the Democratic minority leader, blasted the Republicans' refusal to allow witnesses and documents to be entered into the trial.

Schumer told reporters that "America will remember this day, unfortunately, where the Senate did not live up to its responsibilities, where the Senate turned away from truth and went along with a sham trial."

Trumps acquittal is nearly certain, with Republicans holding 53 seats in the 100-seat Senate. A two-thirds majority would be needed to convict and remove Trump for office.

Closing arguments will begin on February 3 at 11 a.m.

Democrats had hoped to hear from people such as Bolton and others with direct knowledge of the matters at hand.

In a new book, Bolton quoted Trump as telling him in August that he wanted to withhold $391 million in military aid to Ukraine until Kyiv helped by launching investigations into Democrats, including his potential election opponent, former Vice President

Joe Biden, and son Hunter Biden, according to The New York Times.

Trump denied telling Bolton to pressure Kyiv or hold back aid.

New revelations from the book were reported by the newspaper on January 31, even as the vote on witnesses was taking place.

According to the Times, manuscripts from the yet-to-be published book quote Bolton as writing that Trump in May told him to call Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy to ensure Zelenskiy would meet with Trump's personal lawyer, Rudy Giuliani, a key player in the matter, to help in a pressure Kyiv.

Robert Costello, a lawyer for Giuliani, called the report "categorically untrue.

Democrats in the House charged on January 18 that Trump "used his official powers to pressure" Ukraines government to "interfere in a United States election for his personal political gain and then attempted to cover up his scheme by obstructing Congresss investigation into his misconduct."

They accuse him of pressuring Kyiv to investigate his political rivals by withholding aid approved by Congress and a desired White House visit until the Ukraine government made a public announcement of a probe.

Trump has denied he did anything wrong in his dealings with Ukraine and has called the impeachment process a "sham" and an "attempted coup."

With reporting by AP, AFP, and Reuters
With the Iowa caucuses Monday formally initiating the Democratic Party presidential selection process, polls indicate a continued rise in support for Vermont Senator Bernie Sanders.

A Washington Post poll found Sanders and former Vice President Biden in a statistical tie in the state, while the New York Times' polling indicates that Sanders now leads the field, followed by Biden, Elizabeth Warren, Pete Buttegieg and Amy Klobuchar.

A national poll released yesterday by NBC News and the Wall Street Journal reported that Sanders support among Democratic primary voters is at 27 percent, up six percentage points from December, while Biden had fallen to 26 percent, down two percentage points. Warren follows at 15 percent, Michael Bloomberg at 9 percent and Buttigieg at 7 percent.

The growth in support for Sanders comes in the midst of a campaign by top officials within the Democratic Party and from major media outlets against his candidacy. Indeed, several comments in the media have noted with concern that attacks on Sanders from these sources seem to have had the opposite effect than intended.

Following denunciations of Sanders by former presidential candidate Hillary Clinton and a scurrilous attack by Warren earlier this month, the New York Times took a different tack on Monday. In an article titled Bernie Sanders and His Internet Army, the Times portrayed Sanders online supporters as violent and sexist Bernie Bros. The article was virtually devoid of facts, relying instead on Clinton and Obama surrogates in addition to rival campaign advisors for salacious quotes in which Sanders was made responsible for fostering a toxic culture in his campaign.

The hatchet job noted that Sanders has 10 million followers on Twitter--more than Warren, Biden, Buttigieg and Klobachar combined. It added ominously and without substantiation, A sizable number could be automated bots or fictitious accounts. Federal prosecutors have detailed coordinated efforts by Russian nationals to interfere in the 2020 elections, with an emphasis on two candidatesDonald J. Trump and Mr. Sanderswhom the Russians hope to bolster while denigrating their opponents.

Thus the Times invokes the manufactured claims about massive Russian interference in the 2016 elections to bolster the manufactured claims that Sanders followers are similarly manipulating the elections.

Similar articles have appeared elsewhere. The Washington Post wrote that the distribution of images and posts critical of Warren by Sanders used a popular new mass-posting technique that allows ordinary Americans to operate with rapid-fire speed reminiscent of Russian bots or trolls in 2016.

Media reports indicate that Biden and Klubochar have discussed collaboration in the Iowa caucuses to counter support for Sanders in precincts where one or the other candidate is not viable. Biden staffers have also floated the possibility of a Klobuchar vice presidential nomination if she were willing to agree to the deal.

The party establishment has a fall-back plan in the form of billionaire former New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg. In a revealing interview on MSNBCs Morning Joe, Steven Rattner, a longtime Wall Street insider and head of Obama's wage-cutting Auto Task Force, who manages the investments of Bloomberg's $58 billion fortune, explained the centrist fall-back option that a Bloomberg candidacy presented.

Biden is either going to win in Iowa and New Hampshire Or hes not going to do well there, in which case there needs to be a viable centrist alternative in order to stop Bernie Sanders.

Measures have also been taken to establish control over the 2020 Democratic National Convention Platform Committee, which has been packed with figures hostile to Sanders. Some of the more well known names include Randi Weingarten, president of American Federation of Teachers; John Podesta, former chair of Hillary Clintons campaign; and former North Dakota Senator Heidi Heitkamp.

The vice chair of the Platform Committee is Jake Sullivan, a fixture in Democratic Party foreign policy circles for over a decade. Sullivan served as national security advisor to Biden and also advised the Hillary Clinton and Barack Obama campaigns.

The hostility to Sanders from dominant sections of the Democratic Party establishment is motivated not so much by Sanders himself, who is a known quantity, having functioned as a loyal adjunct of the Democratic Party for decades, but by the sentiments driving the popular support for his campaign. Sanders has directed his appeal to opposition to social inequality and war, presenting himself as the voice of opposition to Wall Street, the military-industrial complex, the giant corporations and the political establishment, Republican and Democratic.

The Democratic Party does not want to run an election on the basis of these issues, and is fully prepared to scuttle a Sanders campaign by whatever means necessary.

The hostility toward Sanders is all the more significant given the actual content of his program and his role. Sanders is not a socialist and his reform proposals would fit comfortably within the mainstream of bourgeois politics 50 years ago. On foreign policy, Sanders has consistently declared his support for the military actions of the Obama administration and voted for the war in Serbia under Clinton and the war in Afghanistan under Bush.

Sanders has, moreover, remained shamefully silent on the persecution of WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange, a principal target of the Democrats anti-Russia campaign, as well as the jailing of Chelsea Manning.

The campaign against Sanders exposes the bankruptcy of his own policy of transforming the Democratic Party, a party of Wall Street and the intelligence agencies, backed by privileged sections of the upper-middle class that form the political base for the politics of racial and gender identity.

From the beginning, the aim of Sanders political revolution has been to channel social and political opposition into the Democratic Party. This is the task he carried out in 2016 when, after losing to Clinton in the Democratic Party primarieswhich the Democratic National Committee sought to rig in favor of ClintonSanders went all out to convince his supporters to back Clinton, the widely despised candidate of the banks and the military.

Early in the current presidential race, in February 2019, Sanders explained his intentions clearly at a CNN Town Hall: The truth is that more and more people are disenchanted with both the Republican and Democratic plank. And especially young people. They are registering as Independents or not affiliated folks. And I think as somebody who was an Independent, we can bring them into the Democratic Party.

The party that Sanders wants to bring them into is a party that is thoroughly opposed to any appeal to the issues that are actually animating broad sections of workers and youth. Its opposition to the Trump administration has been based entirely on divisions within the ruling class over foreign policy, reflecting the concerns within dominant sections of the military and intelligence apparatus that Trump has not pursued sufficiently aggressive measures against Russia.

All of this demonstrates that the development of a political movement against social inequality, war and dictatorshipand the Trump administrationmust break free of the stranglehold of the Democratic Party, and therefore of the Sanders campaign. It is not to Sanders' maneuvers that workers and youth must direct themselves, but to the development of the class struggle, in the US and internationally.

The growth of social opposition in the working class must be guided by a revolutionary socialist and internationalist perspective and leadership. The Socialist Equality Party is running candidates in the US presidential elections, Joseph Kishore and Norissa Santa Cruz, to fight to build this leadership.

For more information and to get involved in the SEP campaign, visit socialism2020.org.
(CNN)  Democratic presidential candidate Joe Biden churned through his campaign donations during the last three months of 2019, leaving the former vice president with a little less than $9 million to spend ahead of the first nominating contests of the 2020 race, new filings late Friday show.

That puts him in a potentially precarious financial position.

Sen. Bernie Sanders of Vermont, one of Biden's leading rivals for the Democratic nomination, entered January with double the cash available: $18.2 million, according to reports Sanders' campaigns filed Friday night with the Federal Election Commission.

Another contender, Sen. Elizabeth Warren of Massachusetts, had $13.7 million remaining in her campaign account at the start of the new year, and former South Bend, Indiana, Mayor Pete Buttigieg had $14.5 million banked.

Biden's late-night filing showed his year-end fundraising had picked up during the final months of the year after a summer slump. He raised $23.2 million during the last fundraising quarter, but he spent virtually all of it.

The news comes just days before Monday's first-in-the-nation caucuses in Iowa, a state Biden has barnstormed this week in the hopes of a strong result that could boost donor enthusiasm and fuel his momentum through the early contests.

South Carolina, considered one of Biden's strongest early-voting states, does not hold its primary until February 29. Days later, candidates face 14 Super Tuesday contests.

Biden and Sanders are at the front of the field for the Democratic national primary, a new CNN Poll of Polls shows. But Biden  unlike Sanders and Warren  does not have a vast base of small-dollar donors to fuel his campaign.

Biden received just 38% of his fourth-quarter donations in amounts of $200 or less, the new filings show. By contrast, more than half of Sanders' money came in small amounts, giving him access to supporters who can donate repeatedly before hitting contribution limits.

One sign of financial strain in Biden's camp emerged in recent weeks as it canceled some of the advertising he had planned in New Hampshire and South Carolina and shifted the money to Iowa.

A super PAC run by his allies, called Unite the Country, has scrambled to boost Biden's prospects in the Hawkeye State, running about $4.8 million in ads, according to Kantar Media's Campaign Media Analysis Group.

New campaign finance reports show the group raised nearly $3.8 million in 2019, with about one-quarter of its haul, $1 million, coming from a single individual: George Marcus, a real estate billionaire from Palo Alto, California. Other donors included Roger Altman, a former Clinton administration official and founder of investment bank Evercore; and Dick Harpootlian, a South Carolina lawyer and Biden loyalist.

On Friday, the group announced that new January fundraising had brought the total raised to date to $7.6 million.

This story was first published on CNN.com "Biden burns through cash ahead of early 2020 contests"
Source: Xinhua| 2020-02-02 06:10:43|Editor: yan

Video Player Close

UNITED NATIONS, Feb. 1 (Xinhua) -- UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres on Saturday called for an immediate cessation of hostilities in northwest Syria.

The UN chief is "deeply concerned" about the ongoing military operation in the region, according to a statement issued by his spokesperson.

The secretary-general underlined that attacks against civilians and civilian infrastructure, such as healthcare facilities, are unacceptable.

"Military operations of all parties, including actions against and by designated terrorist groups, must respect the rules and obligations of international humanitarian law, which include the protection of civilians and civilian objects," the statement said.

Guterres reiterated that there is no military solution to the conflict.

Hundreds of thousands of people in Idlib province have been fleeing toward Turkey as government forces attack the last major stronghold held by the opposition, the UN said, citing media reports.

In a briefing on Wednesday, UN humanitarian chief Mark Lowcock told the Security Council that the fighting in Idlib appeared "more intense than anything we have seen in the last year."
[January 31, 2020] Jody Padar, The Radical CPA, Joins the Botkeeper Team

BOSTON, Jan. 31, 2020 /PRNewswire/ -- Botkeeper has announced today that Jody Padar, one of Accounting Today's Top 100 most influential people in the profession, will become Botkeeper's Vice President of Strategy and work to bring the company closer to the accounting profession. As many know, Jody has been working with "the Bots" over the last 18 months, helping to evolve their technology with ongoing customer feedback. "Botkeeper exceeded our hopes and quickly became a partner I sought to join forces with," said Jody Padar, the CEO and Principal of New Vision CPA Group. "Botkeeper shares the same values we have for excellent service, expertise, curating a technology-driven environment which I am excited to be a part of, and which our customers, and the accounting industry as a whole, will significantly benefit from." "I'm so excited to have Jody join the team," said Enrico Palmerino, CEO of Botkeeper. "As an early cloud adopter and practice management innovator, this role will be a commitment to the accounting industry in a way most software vendors can only dream of." Palmerino also noted that it's invigorating to have the industry as excited about this valuable addition as we are. Sandra Wiley, President of Boomer Consulting, said, "Jody will be a tremendous asset to Botkeeper - and our profession - as she assumes the leadership position of Vice President of Strategy for the company. The marriage of Botkeeper and The Radical CPA will create an amazing opportunity to blend machine learning and AI with real life xperts to bring the future of technology to our profession now!"



Samantha Bowling, CPA CGMA  2019 Most Powerful Women in Accounting award winner and immediate past chair of the Maryland Association of CPAs  said, "This transition is important not only for Botkeeper, but also for the entire accounting industry." Bowling went on to say, "Jody Padar's new role as Vice President of Strategy for Botkeeper is the position she was born to do. Her journey of moving her Father's Firm from old school paper to paperless and automated has prepared her for this role. There is always a resistance to technology, but if anyone can navigate our profession through this radical age of change and innovation, it is her!" Bowling continued by saying that she'd "love to see more companies incorporating new technology into their processes." Jim C. Bourke, CPA.CITP.CFF.CGMA also expressed excitement around this exciting industry event. "What a great addition to the Botkeeper team! Jody Padar brings a uniqueness to the table that is not found in many professionals in our space today," said Jim C. Bourke, CPA.CITP.CFF.CGMA. "As VP of Strategy, I am looking forward to her leadership role in taking Botkeeper to the next level across our profession."

Those who work at Botkeeper are excited for her to join forces with them so the company can better serve the accounting industry. About Botkeeper Botkeeper is developing AI to help automate bookkeeping and broader accounting functions for accounting firms. The platform easily integrates with a client's bank accounts, credit cards, HR system, and POS system, and makes appropriate entries and adjustments to their QuickBooks or Xero accounts, providing businesses with a 24/7 AI-driven botkeeper. The new-age software platform coupled with skilled accountants helps to automate common bookkeeping workflows for accounting professionals through the use of machine learning and AI. The company is headquartered in Boston, MA. About Jody Padar Jody is one of the accounting profession's foremost visionaries and pioneers. Consistently named as one of the Top 100 Most Influential to the Profession by Accounting Today, Jody has led the transition of next-generation public accounting firms through open collaboration and change management. She is the author of From Success to Significance: The Radical CPA Guide and The Radical CPA: New Rules for the Future-Ready Firm and is CEO and principal of New Vision CPA Group in Chicago. Contact: Jessica King, 1-800-823-8064, [email protected] View original content to download multimedia:http://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/jody-padar-the-radical-cpa-joins-the-botkeeper-team-300997246.html SOURCE Botkeeper

[ Back To TMCnet.com's Homepage ]
Growing incidence of chronic conditions like heart disease and increasing health care costs, theres clearly room for improvement

Its easy to think about medical care from a narrow perspective. You go to the hospital or clinic for an issue that might be addressed with medication, a procedure, or another type of treatment. But some experts recognize theres potential to create solutions that can improve outcomes for a larger group of people.

Given the rise in chronic conditions like heart disease and increasing health care costs, theres clearly room for improvement. Many professionals in the health care industry believe population health management could be a good solution. The only problem is, there seem to be competing ideas about what that term actually means.



WHAT IS POPULATION HEALTH MANAGEMENT, EXACTLY?



Though youd be hard-pressed to find a consensus on the definition of this term, most experts agree on a pretty clear explanation  Population health management is the proactive application of strategies and interventions to a defined group of individuals in order to improve the health of those in the group at the lowest cost.

Based on this definition, you can see that there are a few primary goals. The first is to yield a healthier population. The second is to reduce the overall cost of care. This should also help drive efficiency. It sounds simple enough, so you might wonder why you stumble across so many definitions that say something different. A lot of this has to do with the sheer volume of companies trying to thrive in a competitive market.

Population health gets confusing because its a name being used by a lot of vendors and service companies that want to work with or provide solutions to hospital systems, large physician groups, and insurance companies. Some people tend to confuse population health management with value-based care. Theyre related, but actually quite different. The second term is a compensation model that pays providers based on successful outcomes rather than the number of services provided. Value-based payment models are used as a mechanism to reward successful population health management.



HOW DOES POPULATION HEALTH MANAGEMENT WORK?



Its obviously appealing to help improve the health of a large group of people. But how do you actually do that? It starts with targeting a specific population.

Most health systems look at people within a defined geographic area. What they then try to do is look at the specific diseases that those people have a propensity to develop throughout their life, starting with paediatrics and going all the way through geriatrics. This differs from one region to another.

The next step is to segment that population into different groups based on their risk for developing those health issues. In the most basic sense, you would identify individuals who already have a diagnosis and those who are likely to have those same issues later on. This requires data analysis.

Once you have the population divided into different segments, you can develop interventions for individuals at every point along the care spectrum. According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), it requires an all-hands-on-deck approach that would require partnerships from professionals in numerous

disciplines.

Theoretically, population health management would prevent people at risk for certain conditions from progressing to the next stage that would require even more intensive care. We can illustrate this using people predisposed to developing type 2 diabetes as an example.

Those in this category can be managed fairly easily by prescribing 30 minutes of walking per daya very inexpensive intervention. If those people never progress to type 2 diabetes, they wont need more costly treatments associated with the condition.



IS POPULATION HEALTH MANAGEMENT POSSIBLE?



Achieving both lower costs and better health outcomes simultaneously would obviously be a win-win scenario. Whether population health management is actually feasible is up for debate, though. One major obstacle is that information isnt standardized.

The biggest issue is that of data analysis and ensuring the various electronic medical record systems have the ability to talk to each other and share data. Unless data can be aggregated, using it for population health management is a pipe dream.

This type of fragmentation is by design in some ways. There are big vendors that are in competition with each other, so its not in their best interest to create an environment that allows the exchange of data for customers in their ecosystem with customers outside their ecosystem.

There clearly need to be changes to achieve widespread population health management. That said, theres already evidence this type of method can work. One study reported success improving health outcomes for children in North Carolina by implementing multi-tiered interventions. And thats not the only example. There are parts of the country right now where Medicare admissions per 1,000 are going down.



WORK TOWARD A HEALTHIER WORLD



Perhaps you now have enough information to chime in the next time you hear someone ask, What is population health management? Engaging in these types of discussions is a good way to get more individuals thinking about how we can improve health outcomes for everyone. One thing is for certain, prevention needs to play a role in helping foster a healthier world. Providing appropriate interventions to high- risk individuals can help prevent common issues.

Satesh Bidaisee, Assistant Dean for Graduate Studies at St. Georges University. Professor, Public Health and Preventive Medicine
I am very concerned with the verdict from the (merit) board regarding multiple high ranking commanders involved in perjury. This type of behavior deserves to be further investigated and not ignored by our sheriff or the County Attorneys Office, Eric Cervantez, deputy sheriffs association president, said in a prepared statement.

Commanders association chairman Gerard Moretz echoed those concerns to the Star, saying the organizations long-term concern is to sort through allegations and get some sort of clarity on what occurred so that can be dealt with head-on.

I believe one of the key strengths of the Pima County Sheriffs Department has been the trust given to us by the public, he further said in a prepared statement. This trust is built on earned legitimacy, which is generated by transparency and integrity. That is all jeopardized without an objective clearing of the air. That can be accomplished by an unbiased investigation conducted by an agency for whom there is no conflict.
Vietnam has reported high GDP growth rate of 7.02 percent for 2019, which was created mostly by industrial production and the construction and service sectors.

However, environmentalists are cautious when talking about the impressive achievements, noting that when industrial production increases to contribute to economic growth, the damages to the environment also increase.





To settle the conflict between the industrial production and the environment, according to Le Cao Doan from the Vietnam Economics Institute, it is necessary to economize and marketize the environment, and calculate the cost when people create impact on the environment.



People have realized that as mass production increases, it has put a burden on the environment. The big volume of CO2 is puncturing the ozone layer. Industrial production also creates a big volume of waste.

A report of the National Assemblys Committee for Science, Technology and Environment showed that in 2015-2018, 25 million tons of ash and slag were emitted from the 12 coal-fired power plants run by the Electricity of Vietnam (EVN) and only 10 million tons were consumed.

A report of the National Assemblys Committee for Science, Technology and Environment showed that in 2015-2018, 25 million tons of ash and slag were emitted from the 12 coal-fired power plants run by the Electricity of Vietnam (EVN) and only 10 million tons were consumed.



The committee reported that EVN is meeting difficulties in storing and consuming the ash and slag produced by its coal-fired power plants, especially in the central and southern regions.

The costs to fix environmental problems are very high, according to Doan.



Services to deal with the problems have been launched.



The services have become a kind of goods, and so, the expenses for the services must be counted when calculating the costs of economic development.



In Vietnam, environmental activities as a business sector have just begun. There are regulations that cover the sector, but many problems still exist in the legal framework.

Project developers are still trying to avoid compensating for environmental damages.



However, Doan admitted that it is difficult to calculate the environmental costs because this is not a kind of good created by humans.



We can measure how much the air quality index exceeds the standard, but we find it difficult to calculate the damages in money, he said.



According to Dinh Duc Truong from Hanoi Economics University, the school has been working on a method to quantify the economic losses from air pollution for the last 10 years.



Truong and his co-workers estimate that the losses are between $10.8 and $13.2 billion, according to 2018 prices.

Thanh Lich

Economic development must go with environmental protection: PM Economic development must go together with environmental protection and social development to ensure sustainable growth and prosperity, said Prime Minister Nguyen Xuan Phuc.
Even though people may know that wealth inequality in the United States is a serious issue, many really dont realize what it actually means to say that the gap between rich and poor is the worst its been in more than a half-century. So CBS News came up with an innovative way to explain it to random people in a mall. The result? People were dumbfounded when presented with an illustration of just how wealth is divided in the country.

Advertisement

CBS This Morning co-host Tony Dokoupil set up a table at a mall in West Nyack, New York, with a pie that represented $98 trillion of household wealth in the United States. The pie was sliced into 10 pieces and Dokoupil asked people to divide up those pieces onto five plates representing the poorest, the lower middle class, middle class, upper middle class, and wealthiest Americans. No one got it right. And, in fact, no one was even kind of close to estimating the real ratio, which involves giving nine pieces to the top 20 percent of Americans while the upper middle class and the middle class share one piece between the two of them. The lower middle class would effectively get crumbs considering they only have 0.3 percent of the pie. What about the poorest Americans? They wouldnt get any pie at all, and in fact would get a bill, considering they are, on average, around $6,000 in debt.

Advertisement

Advertisement

Advertisement

Advertisement

Advertisement

WEALTH INEQUALITY: The richest 1% controls more wealth now than at any time in more than 50 years. But what does wealth inequality really look like?@TonyDokoupil turned Americas economic pie into a real one and asked people a simple question: Who gets what? pic.twitter.com/scGPKcHbie  CBS This Morning (@CBSThisMorning) January 31, 2020

To illustrate just how concentrated wealth is in the country, Dokoupil went on to note that if just the top 1 percent are taken into account, they would get four of the nine pieces of pie that go to the wealthiest Americans.

Advertisement

Those who participated in the informal CBS News survey were shocked with the results with one calling it disturbing. Another one called it very depressing. The little experiment by CBS is obviously just a snapshot but shows how even though the issue of wealth inequality is often talked about in the campaign to become the next Democratic presidential candidate, many people still have trouble realizing what that means.

WATCH THIS VIDEO.



And tell me #capitalism is working. https://t.co/rO2rkiDMty  Peter Daou (@peterdaou) January 31, 2020

Advertisement

Advertisement

Advertisement

Advertisement

The segment received praise on social media. Cant believe this is on CBS, wrote comedian Rob Delaney. Sen. Elizabeth Warren linked to the segment, writing on Twitter that this is what the wealth gap looks like in America today.
A bar has announced it is hosting a coronavirus-themed party, where it will be handing out free face masks.

Fitzgeralds Irish Bar in Bunbury, Australia, shared a post for the upcoming event, planned for this Saturday, on Facebook.

Theres been a LOT of talk about Corona and to be honest it's made us pretty thirsty the bar captioned a flyer that displayed a Corona beer bottle wearing a face mask. Weve heard Corona is pretty popular at the moment. Were not sure why though, its just beer isnt it?

The original post, which has since been deleted but was captured with a screenshot, featured a flyer that promised the party would be the Sickest night of the year. The flyer was later re-uploaded without the sentence.

According to the bar, the event will include $6 Coronas all night, which it (sort of) promises arent contaminated, and free entry for the first 50 attendees.

Coronavirus: Cases soar of deadly new flu-like virus Show all 154 1 /154 Coronavirus: Cases soar of deadly new flu-like virus Coronavirus: Cases soar of deadly new flu-like virus Paramedics wearing personal protective equipment carry patient on a stretcher on to an ambulance in North Point district in Hong Kong, China Getty Images Coronavirus: Cases soar of deadly new flu-like virus A medical worker wearing protective gear takes a rest as he waits for ambulances carrying patients infected with the COVID-19 coronavirus at an entrance of a hospital in Daegu, South Korea YONHAP/AFP via Getty Images Coronavirus: Cases soar of deadly new flu-like virus A medical worker sprays disinfectant on an ambulance after carrying a patient infected with the COVID-19 coronavirus at a hospital in Daegu YONHAP/AFP via Getty Images Coronavirus: Cases soar of deadly new flu-like virus People wearing protective face masks shop at a supermarket in Casalpusterlengo, one the northern Italian towns placed under lockdown due to the new coronavirus outbreak EPA Coronavirus: Cases soar of deadly new flu-like virus A trolley bus is disinfected amid fears over the spread of the novel coronavirus in Pyongyang, North Korea REUTERS Coronavirus: Cases soar of deadly new flu-like virus Workers wearing protective gear spray disinfectant as a precaution against the COVID-19 coronavirus in a local market in Daegu, South Korea AP Coronavirus: Cases soar of deadly new flu-like virus A man wearing a protective facemask walks outside a nearly empty shopping mall at lunch time in Beijing AFP via Getty Images Coronavirus: Cases soar of deadly new flu-like virus A man wearing protective facemask and gloves puts a drawing made by a girl living in the area asking residents to wear protective gear, next to a quarantine notice for people who have travelled and a notice asking people to register outside a residential compound in Beijing AFP via Getty Images Coronavirus: Cases soar of deadly new flu-like virus A woman is taken into an ambulance amid a coronavirus outbreak in northern Italy REUTERS Coronavirus: Cases soar of deadly new flu-like virus Ambulances and health workers are seen outside the Padua's hospital, northern Italy EPA Coronavirus: Cases soar of deadly new flu-like virus Passengers in coaches leave MoD Boscombe Down in Wiltshire after being repatriated to the UK from a cruise ship hit by the coronavirus in Yokohama, Japan and head to Arrowe Park Hospital on Merseyside PA Coronavirus: Cases soar of deadly new flu-like virus People rest in a temporary hospital situated in the Tazihu Gymnasium in Wuhan EPA Coronavirus: Cases soar of deadly new flu-like virus Buddhist monks wearing protective face masks pray during a blessing ceremony for the people affected by the COVID-19 coronavirus outbreak, at a temple in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia REUTERS Coronavirus: Cases soar of deadly new flu-like virus Medical workers wearing protective gears carry a patient infecting with a new coronavirus to a hospital in Chuncheon, South Korea AP Coronavirus: Cases soar of deadly new flu-like virus Soldiers in hazmat suits sanitize cargo from a China Airlines plane at the Taoyuan International Airport in Taoyuan City, Taiwan EPA Coronavirus: Cases soar of deadly new flu-like virus Barricades are seen to block the entrance a the gate of a local mall in a nearly empty area in Beijing, China Getty Images Coronavirus: Cases soar of deadly new flu-like virus A vendor wearing a protective facemask waits for customers at a shop in Beijing AFP via Getty Images Coronavirus: Cases soar of deadly new flu-like virus The body temperature of an Iraqi child returning from Iran is measured upon her arrival at the Najaf International Airport AFP via Getty Images Coronavirus: Cases soar of deadly new flu-like virus Volunteers hand out free facemasks at a shopping district in Quezon city, Metro Manila, Philippines Getty Images Coronavirus: Cases soar of deadly new flu-like virus Medical workers wearing protective gears carry a patient suspected of contracting the new coronavirus toward an ambulance at Daenam Hospital in Cheongdo, South Korea AP Coronavirus: Cases soar of deadly new flu-like virus A worker disinfects a shop at a market in Shanghai AFP via Getty Images Coronavirus: Cases soar of deadly new flu-like virus A restaurant worker wearing protective clothing as a preventive measure against the COVID-19 coronavirus passing a bag of food to a customer on the street outside their restaurant in Beijing AFP via Getty Images Coronavirus: Cases soar of deadly new flu-like virus A recovered patient is discharged from Leishenshan Hospital, the newly-built makeshift hospital for novel coronavirus patients, in Wuhan AFP via Getty Coronavirus: Cases soar of deadly new flu-like virus Volunteers in protective suits disinfect a factory with sanitising equipment in Huzhou, China China Daily via Reuters Coronavirus: Cases soar of deadly new flu-like virus Medical workers in protective suits attend to a patient inside an isolated ward of Wuhan Red Cross Hospital Reuters Coronavirus: Cases soar of deadly new flu-like virus A drone operated by the Suwon municipal government flies around Changyong Middle School spraying disinfectant, in Suwon, South Korea EPA Coronavirus: Cases soar of deadly new flu-like virus Workers transfer medical waste at Leishenshan Hospital AFP via Getty Coronavirus: Cases soar of deadly new flu-like virus A man wearing a protective mask rides a bicycle with his children in Guangzhou, China EPA Coronavirus: Cases soar of deadly new flu-like virus Volunteers in protective suits disinfect a railway station as the country is hit by an outbreak of the new coronavirus, in Changsha, Hunan province, China cnsphoto via Reuters Coronavirus: Cases soar of deadly new flu-like virus A woman repatriated from Wuhan carries a child as she walks upon her arrival at the Van Don airport in Vietnam's Quang Ninh province AFP via Getty Coronavirus: Cases soar of deadly new flu-like virus Medical staff checking the body temperature of a patient who has displayed mild symptoms of the COVID-19 coronavirus, at an exhibition centre converted into a hospital in Wuhan AFP via Getty Coronavirus: Cases soar of deadly new flu-like virus A medical worker in protective suit transports oxygen tanks at Wuhan Red Cross Hospital Reuters Coronavirus: Cases soar of deadly new flu-like virus Boys wearing protection masks, gloves and modified water bottles sit on a cart at the airport arrival terminal in Guangzhou EPA Coronavirus: Cases soar of deadly new flu-like virus Employees work on a production line manufacturing protective suits at a clothing factory in Shijiazhuang, Hebei province cnsphoto via Reuters Coronavirus: Cases soar of deadly new flu-like virus Medical workers in protective suits move a patient at an isolated ward of a hospital in Caidian district following an outbreak of coronavirus in Wuhan China Daily via Reuters Coronavirus: Cases soar of deadly new flu-like virus A worker in protective clothing, including face mask and gloves, carries a bucket as he works inside of The County Oak Medical Centre in Brighton, southern England, after it closed for "urgent operational health and safety reasons", following reports a member of staff was infected with the strain of the novel coronavirus AFP via Getty Coronavirus: Cases soar of deadly new flu-like virus Workers of the ecology and environment bureau collect samples from the sewage system of a hospital in Xinle, Hebei province China Daily via Reuters Coronavirus: Cases soar of deadly new flu-like virus A man in protective clothing cleaning the County Oak Medical Centre GP practice The British government warned the outbreak of novel coronavirus was a "serious and imminent threat" and reported four new cases that brought the total recorded in the country to eight. Two hospitals The Royal Free and Guys and St Thomas', have both been designated as "isolation" facilities, with both currently housing Britons who have returned from Wuhan, the Chinese city at the centre of the outbreak PA Coronavirus: Cases soar of deadly new flu-like virus Medical staff transfer patients to the newly completed Huoshenshan temporary field Hospital in Wuhan. The global coronavirus death toll rose again with Hong Kong announcing its first death from the outbreak on 4 February EPA Coronavirus: Cases soar of deadly new flu-like virus Members of staff wait as coaches carrying Coronavirus evacuees arrive at Kents Hill Park Training and Conference Centre, in Milton Keynes, after being repatriated to the UK from the coronavirus-hit city of Wuhan PA Coronavirus: Cases soar of deadly new flu-like virus A crew member of the cruise ship Diamond Princess talks to a worker wearing protective gear standing near the vessel, where dozens of passengers were tested positive for coronavirus, at Daikoku Pier Cruise Terminal in Yokohama Reuters Coronavirus: Cases soar of deadly new flu-like virus Doctors scan a patient's lungs at Huoshenshan temporary hospital built for patients diagnosed with coronavirus in Wuhan Xinhua News Agency/AP Coronavirus: Cases soar of deadly new flu-like virus People wearing protective suits walk from the Diamond Princess cruise ship, with around 3,600 people quarantined onboard due to fears of the new coronavirus, at the Daikoku Pier Cruise Terminal AFP via Getty Coronavirus: Cases soar of deadly new flu-like virus Indonesians who arrived from Wuhan are sprayed with antiseptic at Hang Nadim Airport in Batam. People evacuated from the Chinese city at the centre of a deadly virus outbreak, were transported to a quarantine zone on a remote island at the edge of the South China Sea, shortly after landing Indonesian Foreign Ministry via AP Coronavirus: Cases soar of deadly new flu-like virus A woman wears a protective mask as she shops in a market in Beijing Getty Coronavirus: Cases soar of deadly new flu-like virus Medical staff members hugging each other in an isolation ward at a hospital in Zouping in China's easter Shandong province AFP via Getty Coronavirus: Cases soar of deadly new flu-like virus A portrait of Dr Li Wenliang is left at Li's hospital in Wuhan. He is regarded a whistleblower on the outbreak and died of the coronavirus which triggered wide-spread mourning on Chinese media Getty Coronavirus: Cases soar of deadly new flu-like virus Officers in protective gear enter the cruise ship Diamond Princess, where people tested positive for coronavirus, after the ship arrived at Daikoku Pier Cruise Terminal in Yokohama, south of Tokyo Reuters Coronavirus: Cases soar of deadly new flu-like virus Firefighters and personnel from the health ministry participate in a drill to prepare for the potential arrival of passengers infected with the coronavirus at the Viru Viru International Airport, in Santa Cruz, Bolivia Reuters Coronavirus: Cases soar of deadly new flu-like virus Scientists are at work in the VirPath university laboratory as they try to find an effective treatment against the new Sars-like coronavirus AFP via Getty Coronavirus: Cases soar of deadly new flu-like virus Medical workers in protective suits attend to patients at the Wuhan International Conference and Exhibition Center, which has been converted into a makeshift hospital to receive patients with mild symptoms caused by the virus Reuters Coronavirus: Cases soar of deadly new flu-like virus A girl wears a mask as a preventive measure against the coronavirus outbreak, in Bangkok, Thailand Reuters Coronavirus: Cases soar of deadly new flu-like virus A man is transferred from the World Dream cruise ship to an ambulance at the Kai Tak cruise terminal in Hong Kong as health officials conduct inspections AFP via Getty Coronavirus: Cases soar of deadly new flu-like virus Workers from a disinfection service company enter Lotte Department Store in central Seoul, South Korea EPA Coronavirus: Cases soar of deadly new flu-like virus A man who arrived from Hubei province talks with police at a checkpoint at the Jiujiang Yangtze River Bridge Reuters Coronavirus: Cases soar of deadly new flu-like virus A doctor holds a handheld digital thermometer near health officials preparing a health check for arriving passengers from China at Don Mueang Airport in Bangkok EPA Coronavirus: Cases soar of deadly new flu-like virus A resident walks across an empty track in Wuhan Getty Coronavirus: Cases soar of deadly new flu-like virus A scientific staff member works in a secure laboratory, researching the coronavirus, at the Pasteur Institute in Dakar AFP via Getty Coronavirus: Cases soar of deadly new flu-like virus Medical staff members preparing equipment to meet passengers of a military plane, which evacuated citizens of Russia and ex-Soviet countries from China's Wuhan province Vsluh.ru via Reuters Coronavirus: Cases soar of deadly new flu-like virus Staff wearing protective suits as they prepare to disinfect a Vietnam Airlines plane at Noi Bai International Airport in Hanoi Vietnam Airlines/AFP/Getty Coronavirus: Cases soar of deadly new flu-like virus A South Korean person, who was evacuated from Wuhan, arrives at the National Medical Center after showing suspected symptoms of novel coronavirus, in Seoul EPA Coronavirus: Cases soar of deadly new flu-like virus Officers in protective gear escort a person (under the blue sheet) who was on board cruise ship Diamond Princess and was tested positive for coronavirus Reuters Coronavirus: Cases soar of deadly new flu-like virus A doctor being disinfected by his colleague at a quarantine zone in Wuhan AFP via Getty Coronavirus: Cases soar of deadly new flu-like virus Buses carrying British nationals from the coronavirus-hit city of Wuhan, arrive at Arrowe Park Hospital in Merseyside Getty Coronavirus: Cases soar of deadly new flu-like virus Medical staff transfer patients in Wuhan EPA Coronavirus: Cases soar of deadly new flu-like virus Indonesian health officials conduct an exercise drill in transporting a patient requiring isolation at the Belawan port in Medan AFP via Getty Coronavirus: Cases soar of deadly new flu-like virus The Pasteur Institute in Dakar, designated by the African Union as one of the two reference centres in Africa for the detection of the new coronavirus that appeared in China, is hosting experts from 15 countries on the continent this weekend to prepare them to deal with the disease AFP via Getty Coronavirus: Cases soar of deadly new flu-like virus A government worker disinfects a co-worker after visiting a quarantined woman's home in Qingdao EPA Coronavirus: Cases soar of deadly new flu-like virus An aerial view of the deserted roads and bridges in Wuhan Getty Coronavirus: Cases soar of deadly new flu-like virus Medical workers hold a strike outside the Hospital Authority as they demand for Hong Kong to close its border with China to reduce the coronavirus spreading Reuters Coronavirus: Cases soar of deadly new flu-like virus Reuters Coronavirus: Cases soar of deadly new flu-like virus A person has their tempriture checked in Qingdao, China EPA Coronavirus: Cases soar of deadly new flu-like virus Ultrastructural morphology exhibited by coronaviruses. Note the spikes that adorn the outer surface of the virus, which impart the look of a corona surrounding the virion, when viewed electron microscopically Centers for Disease Control and Prevention/AFP Coronavirus: Cases soar of deadly new flu-like virus Malaysian nationals being directed from a bus by health officials in protective suits as they arrived at Kuala Lumpur International Airport in Sepang, after being evacuated from Wuhan Malaysia's Ministry of Health/AFP Coronavirus: Cases soar of deadly new flu-like virus People hoping to buy face masks crowd outside a medical supply shop that was raided by police for allegedly hoarding and overpricing the masks, as public fear over China's Wuhan Coronavirus grow in Manila, Philippines. The Philippine government has been heavily criticized after failing to immediately implement travel restrictions from China, the source of a deadly coronavirus that has now killed hundreds and infected thousands more Getty Coronavirus: Cases soar of deadly new flu-like virus Residents wearing masks and raincoats volunteer to take temperature of passengers following the outbreak of a new coronavirus at a bus stop at Tin Shui Wai, a border town in Hong Kong Reuters Coronavirus: Cases soar of deadly new flu-like virus Italian citizens repatriated from Wuhan going though a health control zone after landing at the Mario De Bernardi military airport in Pratica di Mare, south of Rome, prior to be placed in quarantine Italian Defence Ministry/AFP Coronavirus: Cases soar of deadly new flu-like virus Workers arrange beds in a 2,000-bed mobile hospital, set up in an exhibition center, in Wuhan EPA Coronavirus: Cases soar of deadly new flu-like virus A doctor checks conditions of occupants in a hotel accommodating isolated people in Wuhan EPA Coronavirus: Cases soar of deadly new flu-like virus Medical staff members wearing protective clothing to help stop the spread of a deadly virus which began in the city of Wuhan, arrive with a patient at the Wuhan Red Cross Hospital. The Chinese army deployed medical specialists to the epicentre of the spiralling viral outbreak that has killed and spread around the world AFP via Getty Coronavirus: Cases soar of deadly new flu-like virus A baby wearing a protective face mask is pushed by a woman as they arrive from Shenzhen to Hong Kong at Lo Wu MTR station AFP via Getty Images Coronavirus: Cases soar of deadly new flu-like virus A health worker checks the temperature of a woman entering a subway station in Beijing Getty Coronavirus: Cases soar of deadly new flu-like virus A young child wears a protective mask and is covered in plastic while waiting to check in to a flight at Beijing Capital Airport The World Health Organization (WHO) on Thursday declared the coronavirus a public health emergency of international concern Getty Coronavirus: Cases soar of deadly new flu-like virus Ambulance crews arrive at RAF Brize Norton in Oxfordshire, as it prepares for a return flight from Wuhan, China. Eighty-three Britons and 27 foreign nationals who were trapped in Wuhan are being flown back to the UK Tom Maddick / SWNS Coronavirus: Cases soar of deadly new flu-like virus A woman carries a baby wearing a protective mask as they exit the arrival hall at Hong Kong High Speed Rail Station Getty Coronavirus: Cases soar of deadly new flu-like virus Camp beds at a Medical Assessment Center set up at the airport in Frankfurt am Main, western Germany, on the eve of the arrival of German citizens evacuated from Wuhan AFP via Getty Coronavirus: Cases soar of deadly new flu-like virus Funeral parlour staff members in protective suits help a colleague with disinfection after they transferred a body at a hospital in Wuhan Reuters Coronavirus: Cases soar of deadly new flu-like virus Muslims wearing masks pray for the victims of coronavirus at a mosque in Ahmedabad, India Reuters Coronavirus: Cases soar of deadly new flu-like virus Medical officials waiting for people who wants to check the novel coronavirus at Myeongdong shopping district Getty Coronavirus: Cases soar of deadly new flu-like virus Children wear plastic bottles as makeshift homemade protection and protective masks while waiting to check in to a flight at Beijing Capital Airport Getty Coronavirus: Cases soar of deadly new flu-like virus A patient assisted by medical staff gets off an ambulance in Wuhan AFP/Getty Coronavirus: Cases soar of deadly new flu-like virus People line up to buy face masks from a medical supply company in Nanning, southern China's Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region. Countries began evacuating their citizens from the Chinese city hardest-hit by a new virus that has now infected more people in China than were sickened in the country by SARS Chinatopix via AP Coronavirus: Cases soar of deadly new flu-like virus Millions spent their normally festive Lunar New Year holiday under lockdown Getty Coronavirus: Cases soar of deadly new flu-like virus Children with face masks wash their hands before prayer at Erawan shrine in Bangkok. Thailand has detected eight Coronavirus cases so far AFP via Getty Coronavirus: Cases soar of deadly new flu-like virus An Indonesian health officer points at the screen of a thermal scanner for passengers China confirmed that the deadly Wuhan coronavirus virus can be transmitted between humans AFP via Getty Coronavirus: Cases soar of deadly new flu-like virus Hospital workers wearing protective eyewear and masks examine an Indonesian student who returned from China in quarantine at a hospital in Banda Aceh AFP via Getty Images Coronavirus: Cases soar of deadly new flu-like virus Ambulance staff dispose of an outfit at the hospital in Wuhan EPA Coronavirus: Cases soar of deadly new flu-like virus A person checks the temperature of a passenger to help stop the spread of a deadly virus as he arrives at the Sultan Mahmud Badaruddin II International airport in Palembang AFP via Getty Coronavirus: Cases soar of deadly new flu-like virus Nepali students, wearing face masks, attend a class at Matribhumi School in Bhaktapur, on the outskirts of Kathmandu AFP via Getty Images Coronavirus: Cases soar of deadly new flu-like virus Medical staff at the Wuhan Red Cross Hospital AFP via Getty Coronavirus: Cases soar of deadly new flu-like virus Two Buddhist monks wear face masks while walking along a street in Yangon AFP via Getty Images Coronavirus: Cases soar of deadly new flu-like virus Staff disinfecting a residential area in Ruichang, part of Jiujiang in China's central Jiangxi province AFP via Getty Coronavirus: Cases soar of deadly new flu-like virus Workers are seen at the construction site of a new hospital being built to treat patients from a deadly virus outbreak in Wuhan in China's central Hubei province on January 27, 2020. - China is rushing to build a new hospital in a staggering 10 days to treat patients at the epicentre of a deadly virus outbreak that has stricken thousands of people, state media reported on January 24. (Photo by Hector RETAMAL / AFP) (Photo by HECTOR RETAMAL/AFP via Getty Images) HECTOR RETAMAL AFP via Getty Coronavirus: Cases soar of deadly new flu-like virus Vapor blurs the goggles of an ambulance driver while they work, in Wuhan EPA Coronavirus: Cases soar of deadly new flu-like virus Workers producing facemasks at a factory in Yangzhou AFP via Getty Coronavirus: Cases soar of deadly new flu-like virus Medical staff getting on an ambulance in Wuhan AFP via Getty Coronavirus: Cases soar of deadly new flu-like virus A vendor of traditional masks wears a facial mask at his shop in Thamel EPA Coronavirus: Cases soar of deadly new flu-like virus An airport official checks the temperature of a passenger upon his arrival at the Bacha Khan International Airport in Peshawar AFP via Getty Coronavirus: Cases soar of deadly new flu-like virus Medical staff members arrive with a patient at the Wuhan Red Cross Hospital AFP via Getty Coronavirus: Cases soar of deadly new flu-like virus An ambulance driver talking with medical staff in Wuhan AFP via Getty Coronavirus: Cases soar of deadly new flu-like virus Wuhan Hygiene Emergency Response Team leave the closed Huanan Seafood Wholesale Market The new coronavirus appears to have its origins in a seafood market in the central Chinese city of Wuhan, a popular transport hub AFP via Getty Coronavirus: Cases soar of deadly new flu-like virus Workers produce protective suits at a factory in Nantong AFP via Getty Coronavirus: Cases soar of deadly new flu-like virus Passengers scanned by thermal imaging for body temperature as they go through health measures and procedures after they landed at Rome's Fiumicino airport on a southern airlines flight from Wuhan Aeroporto Di Roma/AFP via Getty Coronavirus: Cases soar of deadly new flu-like virus A Thai royal guard wears a mask while on duty at the Grand Palace in Bangkok EPA Coronavirus: Cases soar of deadly new flu-like virus A man wearing a face mask rides a nearly empty subway train in Beijing AP Coronavirus: Cases soar of deadly new flu-like virus Medical staff members at the Wuhan Red Cross Hospital AFP via Getty Coronavirus: Cases soar of deadly new flu-like virus A shopper wearing goggles with a face mask and gloves uses a self checkout machine at a supermarket in Wuhan AP Coronavirus: Cases soar of deadly new flu-like virus Medical staff transfer patients to Jinyintan hospital EPA Coronavirus: Cases soar of deadly new flu-like virus Members of the Italian Red Cross putting on protective gear, getting ready to give health checks to passengers that landed at Rome's Fiumicino airport on a southern airlines flight from Wuhan Aeroporto Di Roma/AFP via Getty Coronavirus: Cases soar of deadly new flu-like virus A member of the Hong Kong government's Civil Aid Service gestures at the entrance to the Lady MacLehose Holiday Village which is being used as one of two quarantine centres for people who have been in close proximity with suspected cases of a SARS-type virus. Hong Kong will turn two holiday camps, including a former military barracks, into quarantine zones for people who may have come into contact with carriers of the Wuhan virus, officials announced AFP via Getty Images Coronavirus: Cases soar of deadly new flu-like virus Medical staff wearing protective suits at the Zhongnan hospital in Wuhan STR/AFP via Getty Coronavirus: Cases soar of deadly new flu-like virus A Malaysia Health official checks passengers going through a thermal scanner upon their arrival at the Kuala Lumpur International Airport EPA Coronavirus: Cases soar of deadly new flu-like virus Staff disinfecting Yingtan North Railway Station, China China banned trains and planes from leaving the major city at the centre of a virus outbreak on January 23, seeking to seal off its 11 million people to contain the contagious disease that has claimed lives and spread to other countries AFP via Getty Coronavirus: Cases soar of deadly new flu-like virus A passenger walks past a quarantine control station at Narita airport, Japan EPA Coronavirus: Cases soar of deadly new flu-like virus Patients queue up to seek treatment in Wuhan Tongji Hospital Fever Clinic, in Wuhan EPA Coronavirus: Cases soar of deadly new flu-like virus Quarantine workers spray disinfectant at Incheon International Airport, South Korea EPA Coronavirus: Cases soar of deadly new flu-like virus A member of staff checks the temperature of a guest entering the casino of the New Orient Landmark hotel in Macau, after it reported its first case of the new SARS-like virus AFP via Getty Coronavirus: Cases soar of deadly new flu-like virus Medical staff transfer patients to Jin Yintan hospital Little is known about the new disease which, if confirmed, would be only the seventh coronavirus known to science that can infect humans Getty Coronavirus: Cases soar of deadly new flu-like virus Members of the Three Gorges Medical Laboratory offering free masks to the public in Yichang, China AFP via Getty Coronavirus: Cases soar of deadly new flu-like virus Gabriel Leung, right, chair professor of public health medicine at the Faculty of Medicine at the University of Hong Kong, speaks about the extent of the Wuhan coronavirus outbreak in China AFP via Getty Coronavirus: Cases soar of deadly new flu-like virus Members of staff of the Wuhan Hygiene Emergency Response Team conducting searches on the closed Huanan Seafood Wholesale Market AFP via Getty Coronavirus: Cases soar of deadly new flu-like virus A quarantine officer at Incheon International Airport, South Korea, uses an electronic thermometer to check the temperature of passengers arriving by plane from Wuhan The virus causes symptoms of viral pneumonia, and has already led to several deaths EPA Coronavirus: Cases soar of deadly new flu-like virus A screen shows cancelled flights at Tianhe airport in Wuhan AFP via Getty Coronavirus: Cases soar of deadly new flu-like virus Medical staff transfer patients to Jinyintan hospital EPA Coronavirus: Cases soar of deadly new flu-like virus Health officials hand out information about the current coronavirus at Kuala Lumpur International Airport AP Coronavirus: Cases soar of deadly new flu-like virus A store owner argues with security guards as he attempts to enter the closed Huanan wholesale seafood market AFP via Getty Coronavirus: Cases soar of deadly new flu-like virus Workers producing facemasks at a factory in Handan, China's northern Hebei province AFP via Getty Coronavirus: Cases soar of deadly new flu-like virus Medical staff and security personnel stop patients' family members from being too close to the Jinyintan hospital Reuters Coronavirus: Cases soar of deadly new flu-like virus maya-goodfellowAn airport staff member uses a temperature gun to check people leaving Wuhan Tianhe International Airport AP Coronavirus: Cases soar of deadly new flu-like virus A rescue worker walks past a notice about new coronavirus that has broken out in China Reuters Coronavirus: Cases soar of deadly new flu-like virus Health officials wear face masks at an inspection site at the Kuala Lumpur International Airport in Sepang AP Coronavirus: Cases soar of deadly new flu-like virus Medical staff members carry a patient into the Jinyintan hospital AFP via Getty Coronavirus: Cases soar of deadly new flu-like virus A staff member checks body temperature of a child after a train from Wuhan arrived at Hangzhou Railway Station in Hangzhou AFP via Getty Images Coronavirus: Cases soar of deadly new flu-like virus A quarantine station measures passenger body temperatures at Narita Airport JIJI PRESS/AFP via Getty Coronavirus: Cases soar of deadly new flu-like virus Passengers walk past a notice displayed near a quarantine control station at Narita airport EPA Coronavirus: Cases soar of deadly new flu-like virus Passengers walk past a poster alerting on coronavirus screening ahead upon their arrival at the Kuala Lumpur International Airport EPA Coronavirus: Cases soar of deadly new flu-like virus An employee sprays disinfectant on a train, as a precaution against coronavirus, at Suseo Station in Seoul EPA Coronavirus: Cases soar of deadly new flu-like virus Kazakh sanitary-epidemiological service worker uses a thermal scanner to detect travellers from China who may have symptoms possibly connected with the previously unknown coronavirus, at Almaty International Airport, Kazakhstan Reuters Coronavirus: Cases soar of deadly new flu-like virus Pharmacist Liu Zhuzhen stands near a sign reading "face masks are sold out" at her pharmacy in Shanghai AP Coronavirus: Cases soar of deadly new flu-like virus The Wuhan Medical Treatment Center, EPA Coronavirus: Cases soar of deadly new flu-like virus A worker in a protective suit at the closed seafood market in Wuhan Reuters Coronavirus: Cases soar of deadly new flu-like virus Passengers wear protective face masks at the departure hall of a high speed train station in Hong Kong AP Coronavirus: Cases soar of deadly new flu-like virus A notice for passengers from Wuhan Getty Coronavirus: Cases soar of deadly new flu-like virus A man wears a mask while riding on mobike past the closed Huanan Seafood Wholesale Market Getty

The questionable event comes after New Zealand bar House on Hood faced a backlash after it also announced it would be hosting a coronavirus-themed event. The bar's original Facebook post, which read: Lets be honest, there are worse things you can catch in Hamilton, and featured two men wearing hazmat suits and drinking Coronas, was later deleted and replaced with another post.

House on Hood advertises coronavirus event on Facebook (Facebook)

Virus or no virus, we still think Coronas are pretty great, so while the pandemic lasts, were selling Coronas for just $6.50 all day, every day!! the bar wrote on Facebook, alongside a photo of a Corona bottle wearing a mask.

Disgusting advert. Find something less deadly to humour about bro, one person wrote in response.

Another said: We dont joke about tragedies mate. People have been and are being killed and threatened by coronavirus. Im sure you have better promoting choices.

In response to the bars initial ad, beverage company Lion, which distributes Corona in New Zealand, reportedly said it wanted the ad removed.

We were unaware of the promotion and we do not condone it, a Lion spokesperson told the DailyMail. We will be asking that it is discontinued.

The Independent has contacted Lion, Fitzgeralds and House on Hood.

As of Friday, the death toll from the coronavirus outbreak has risen to 170.

While most of the cases are in China, the virus has also spread to at least 15 other countries, including Australia, where there have been nine confirmed cases of the infection.
Representative Image

Neethu Nair and Aiswarya Krishnan

The Union finance minister in her Budget speech reiterated the governments commitment to Rs 103 lakh-crore of investment for the infrastructure sector, as underlined in the National Infrastructure Pipeline (NIP).

Earlier, the Economic Survey 2019-20 had noted that the key challenge ahead for infrastructure is to step up annual investment so that lack of infrastructure does not become a handicap for the Indian economy, which is projected to become $5 trillion by 2024-25.

While presenting the Budget 2020, the FM, Nirmala Sitharaman, highlighted that the focus on infrastructure for economic development is key to ease of living for citizens.

The Budget put a premium on accelerated economic growth by investing a total of 1.70 lakh crore in the transport sector, which is 8 percent higher than the previous years Budget figure. The government proposes to construct 9,000 km of economic corridor and three expressways, including Delhi-Mumbai expressway by 2023, in spite of the reduced road construction rates.

The Budget also proposed higher commercialisation measures to raise resources for NHAI through FASTags and monetising 12 lots of highway bundles of over 6,000 km before 2024. There was no mention of the Bharatmala Scheme in this year's Budget speech.

As for the railway sector, cost optimisation strategies have been adopted. Redevelopment of four railway stations and implementing 150 passenger trains through the PPP model is another highlight. The project status of redevelopment of Habibganj and Gandhinagar railway stations, which was expected to be completed this year, did not find a mention in the speech. The Centre proposes 20 percent equity for the Bengaluru Suburban Transport project.

The government proposes to corporatise one major port. Sitharaman also emphasised on the criticality of the inland waterways through the completion of Jal Vikas Marg.

Considering the difficulties faced by the Sagarmala project due to lack of funds and participation of private players, the proposal for achieving connectivity of Dhubri-Sadiya, which is 890 km apart, by 2022 sounds too ambitious.

In order to promote economic activity, Arth Ganga plans have been conceptualised. This time also, the Budget focussed on the Udan Scheme targeting 100 more airports by 2024.

This years Budget allocates 22,000 crore for the power and renewable energy sector. Large solar power capacity is to be set up alongside rail tracks on land owned by the Railways.

Keeping in line with the government's commitment to provide electricity to every household, the Budget also stressed on the need for urgent reforms in the distribution sector through smart prepaid metering and facilitating consumer freedom to choose suppliers and rates. However, no mention was made regarding the revival of the much touted UDAY scheme which is yet to meet its stated objectives of ensuring financial health and operational efficiency of Indias debt-ridden power distribution companies (discoms).

According to the FM, the open acreage licensing policy in the Oil & Gas sector was a success. The National Gas Grid is set to be expanded from 16,200 km to 27,000 km. This seems more like a scaled-down version of the 2014-15 Budget promise of a pipeline length of 30,000 km. However, the only allocation to the gas grid is for Phulpur Dhamra Haldia Pipeline Project and this is close to half of the previous years allocation.

The good news is that the Budget stresses on the job creation potential of infrastructure through the special thrust by the National Skill Development Agency on infrastructure-focussed skill development opportunities. On the flip side, the Budget speech maintains an uneasy silence on the status and the allocation for major projects announced in the past like Smart Cities Mission, UDAY scheme and the like.

A key drag in the infrastructure sector has always been stalled projects. Investment is key hurdle here and under such a situation, the infrastructure finance reforms need to go beyond the Rs 22,000 crore allocated as equity support to two government-owned infrastructure companies.

Given the long term capital requirement for infrastructure projects as well as the fact that most of the implementation happens at state and local levels, innovative financing mechanisms suitable to the local political economy need to be tapped into to fulfil the vision proposed in the NIP.

More often than not, projects are stalled for reasons beyond finance. A robust enabling policy environment with optimal risk allocation between public and private sector entities, a mechanism for project clearance, adherence to international contracting standards and institutionalised procedure for dispute resolution are crucial steps to reinvigorate the infrastructure sector.
Embattled Commonwealth chief Baroness Scotland faced a new row last night after shutting down a centre dedicated to the Queen as a 90th birthday present.

The monarch was guest of honour at the opening of the 'Commonwealth Hub' in Pall Mall, central London, in June 2016, weeks after she turned 90.

Baroness Scotland said the Queen was the 'inspiration' for the centre and said it was to be a home for key Commonwealth organisations and it signalled a 'new future' for the organisation.

But less than four years later, it has closed and been put up for rent because of a cash crisis at the Commonwealth Secretariat  in what insiders say is the latest example of Baroness Scotland's shambolic leadership.

Baroness Scotland said the Queen was the 'inspiration' for the centre and said it was to be a home for key Commonwealth organisations and it signalled a 'new future' for the organisation

The disclosure came as the former Labour Cabinet minister's bid to win a further four-year term as 160,000-a-year Secretary General suffered another blow.

Britain is the current rotating chairman of the Commonwealth, giving Prime Minister Boris Johnson a major say over whether she stays on when her current term ends on April 1. Foreign Office officials say Downing Street has sounded out Commonwealth leaders as to whether they want her to remain  and the response was negative.

Instead, she is due to be given a stay of execution of just two months until the Commonwealth Heads of Government meeting in Rwanda in June. A final decision on whether to sack her will be made there.

Baroness Scotland, 64, has been branded 'Baroness Brazen' and 'Baroness Shameless' over her lavish spending  although she denies all wrongdoing.

Mr Johnson wants her out, but is keen to avoid a public row  or allegations that Britain is bossing the Commonwealth around.

The New Zealand government took the unprecedented step of announcing it was pulling the plug on funding for the secretariat as a direct result of an auditors' report lambasting Baroness Scotland over a 250,000 commission to a firm run by her Labour friend Lord Patel of Bradford.

It has closed and been put up for rent because of a cash crisis at the Commonwealth Secretariat  in what insiders say is the latest example of the Baroness' shambolic leadership

Canada has rejected her pleas to reinstate its funding for the secretariat's 'technical co-operation' fund, which it axed in 2013. Sources say this is linked to Canada's lack of faith in the way the secretariat is run. Baroness Scotland, who was born in Dominica, retains the support of Caribbean countries. However, the Daily Mail has been told that several senior African diplomats are backing moves to oust her.

A senior UK Conservative said: 'Her reputation is undermining the Commonwealth.'

The hub was to be the new home of the Commonwealth Games Federation, the Royal Commonwealth Society and the Commonwealth Local Government Forum  and an education centre would follow, Baroness Scotland said.

After the Queen unveiled a special plaque, Baroness Scotland said: 'This is a hugely wonderful and exciting beginning.' But the hub was closed on December 31 and the Commonwealth groups evicted.

A spokesman for Baroness Scotland said the closure showed 'prudent' management, adding that staff had been relocated.
The Vietnamese finance market has seen many investment deals by foreign investors who have poured money into startups, showing the attractiveness of the new industry.

Last July, Trusting Social, a Vietnamese credit rating startup founded by Nguyen An Nguyen, successfully called for $25 million from Sequoia Capital, 500 Startups and BeeNext.





Utilizing Big Data and AI to assess consumers credit ratings, lending money quickly at reasonable costs, the startup has given credit ratings to 500 million people in Vietnam, Indonesia and India, and strives to have 1 billion customers by the end of 2019.



Trusting Social has set up Avay.vn, an online lending platform which offers to lend up to VND70 million without collaterals. The lending disbursement is made just several minutes after clients enter their personal information.

Utilizing Big Data and AI to assess consumers credit ratings, lending money quickly at reasonable costs, the startup has given credit ratings to 500 million people in Vietnam, Indonesia and India, and strives to have 1 billion customers by the end of 2019.

Cento Ventures now considers Trusting Social as one of four technology firms in Vietnam with assessed value of over $100 million. The other one of the big four is VNG Corporation, considered a unicorn with value of over $1 billion.



Sequoia Capital, one of the best known venture funds, focusing on technology firms, has confirmed that the investment in Trusting Social is the first investment deal in Vietnam.



Just three days before, on July 23, the market was stirred up by the news that the worlds largest startup fund Softbank Vision Fund of the Japanese technology billionaire Masayoshi Son, the owner of Softbank and GIC, may invest $300 million in Vietnams VNPAY, a payment platform.



If the deal succeeds, this will be the biggest capital call campaign for fintechs.



Prior to that, MoMo, an e-wallet, successfully mobilized $100 million from two capital call rounds in 2016 and 2018.



The attractiveness of Vietnam



According to We Are Social 2018, Vietnam has 64 million internet users, or 67 percent of population, 70.03 million mobile phone users, or 74 percent of population. However, Vietnam is listed among the countries with low level of financial service access. Only 30.8 percent of adults have bank accounts.



In P2P lending, while China has entered a recession with high risks it is facing, Vietnam is in the first phase of a boom. Even traditional consumer lenders such as FE Credit also uses Social Trustings personal credit rating solutions.



In recent days, traditional finance institutions such as commercial banks have joined hands with fintechs to take full advantage of each others strength. The cooperation affairs include ones between Nam A Bank and Tima, VP Bank and Timo, Finext andinstant.vn, and TP Bank and Misa.

Mai Chi

Fintech has huge opportunities in Vietnam: experts With cash still being the main payment mode, a youthful demographic and growing smartphone penetration, Vietnam offers great opportunities for fintech developers, experts said.
Bruce landowners sign deal to store nuclear waste, Jan. 25

It is estimated that high-level radioactive nuclear waste remains toxic for about 100,000 years. Nobody can guarantee anything for 1,000 centuries  a period many times greater than all recorded history  so assurances from Ontario Power Generation (OPG) and the Nuclear Waste Management Organization (NWMO) that such material buried near Lake Huron would be safely contained are meaningless, irresponsible and potentially very dangerous.

The Great Lakes contain more than one-fifth of the planets accessible fresh water. To compromise them would be unconscionable at any time, but especially now, as climate change is becoming more widely understood.

Lake Huron does not belong to OPG or the NWMO; it doesnt even belong to Canada. Water is life and no organization nor government has the right to put any source of it in jeopardy, particularly one on which tens of millions of people depend.

This nonsense has gone on far too long and should be shut down permanently as soon as possible.

Brian Hanley, Southampton, Ont.

We laugh at the Romans for their lead water pipes, or ostriches for sticking their heads in the sand. What will future generations think of this debacle?

Hopefully, Indigenous groups will put a stop to this madness. In the meantime, please dont let the genie out of the bottle.

H.J. Rumney, Midland, Ont.

These potential waste sites have gained support from local farmers, who believe it could grow their local economies.

The Ontario government should be more concerned with the spiritual ties associated with this land. What they are requesting is similar to someone asking a priest to dump garbage in a Church. That would never fly, so why should this?

I am studying environmental sustainability and community development. In in order to have a healthy environment, we must have an equally healthy community. This initiative would hinder the well-being of both factors for the Indigenous people. Spirituality and radiation do not mix.
Non-resident Indians not paying taxes in any foreign country will now be taxed in India, the Union Budget for 2020-21 has proposed.

At present, if an Indian or a person of Indian origin managed his stay in India such that he remained a non-resident in perpetuity, he was not liable to pay on his global income in India.

The Union has now proposed to introduce a deeming provision that every Indian citizen who is not liable to in any other country, by virtue of his domicile or residence, shall be deemed as a resident of India. Consequently, his global income would be taxable in India.

Tightening the residency provisions, the Budget also proposed to reduce the period of stay in India to 120 days from 182 days earlier for persons of Indian origin (PIOs) to be categorised as non-resident Indians (NRIs).

"...In many cases we have found that some people are residents of no country in the world, they may be staying a certain number of days in different parts of the world. So... any Indian citizen - if he is not a resident of any country in the world - would be deemed to be resident in India, and then his worldwide income will be taxed," Revenue Secretary Ajay Bhushan Pandey said.

Amending Section 6 of the I-T Act, the Budget proposed that "Notwithstanding anything contained in clause (1), an individual, being a citizen of India, shall be deemed to be resident in India in any previous year, if he is not liable to in any other country or territory by reason of his domicile or residence or any other criteria of similar nature".

Reworking the definition of NRIs, the Budget document said that the I-T Act provides that an Indian citizen or a person of Indian origin shall be Indian resident if he is in India for 182 days in that year.

"This provision provides relaxation to an Indian citizen or a person of Indian origin allowing them to visit India for a longer duration without becoming resident of India. Instances have come to notice where the period of 182 days specified in respect of an Indian citizen or person of Indian origin visiting India during the year is being misused.

"Individuals, who are actually carrying out substantial economic activities from India, manage their period of stay in India, so as to remain a non-resident in perpetuity and not be required to declare their global income in India," said the memorandum to the Budget.

Pandey said changes have been brought about in the Income Tax Act, which states that if an Indian citizen stays more than 180 days out of the country, he becomes a non-resident.

So we have made some changes there. Now, in order for him to become a non-resident he has to stay out of the country for 240 days, Pandey said.

The Budget also proposes to rework the definition of "not ordinarily resident" in India, if the individual has been a non-resident in India in 7 out of 10 previous years preceding that year. Earlier for an individual to be considered "not ordinarily resident", he/she had to be a non-resident in India in 9 out of 10 years.

Nangia Andersen Chairman Rakesh Nangia said, "Residency provisions for the purpose of taxation has been tightened, specifically for stateless persons, who are not liable to tax in any country or jurisdiction. This could impact non-resident Indians staying in countries such as UAE which does not impose income tax on individuals under local tax laws.

Transaction Square Founder Girish Vanvari said, "These changes in definition would deter people from coming to India and some can even think of giving up Indian citizenship".

Gopal Bohra of NA Shah Associates said at present, it is entirely possible for high net worth individuals to arrange his affairs in such a fashion that he would not be liable to tax in any other country and also not in India.

The new provision "will adversely impact High Networth Individuals using the domicile mechanism to evade tax globally," he said.

(Only the headline and picture of this report may have been reworked by the Business Standard staff; the rest of the content is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
Fianna Fail leader Micheal Martin has claimed Taoiseach Leo Varadkar called the election to coincide with Brexit in the belief it will return him to power.

He accused Fine Gael of a "desperate" bid to make the issue centre stage but insisted it "hasn't worked" in a campaign dominated by housing and health.

His remarks came after Mr Varadkar denied he and Fine Gael had ever sought "rewards" for the Government's handling of Brexit. And Mr Varadkar rejected claims his party was seeking to win votes due to fears over the outcome of the UK's departure from the EU.

The Taoiseach also raised the prospect of the Brexit trade negotiations deadline being extended beyond the end of this year. In a speech to the Institute for International and European Affairs, he warned a failure to secure a trade deal would be a "major threat" to Ireland's economy.

Mr Varadkar separately told RTE Radio it is essential an agreement is reached for farmers, fishermen and people employed in export industries.

He added it is also essential for raising revenues and maintaining "the strong economy that we need to invest in health and housing".

Mr Varadkar said that in terms of Brexit being an election issue, Fine Gael is arguing that the team, which includes Tanaiste Simon Coveney and Europe Minister Helen McEntee, "got us this far" and "should be allowed to finish the job".

He said that "things could have been very different" but that people will wake up this morning with no hard Border and the continued existence of the Common Travel Area with the UK.

Canvassing in Dublin, Mr Martin denied his party is on the back foot on Brexit due to Fine Gael's experience and contacts in Europe.

He pointed to his time as foreign affairs minister and insisted Fianna Fail has a "very strong diplomatic team".

He claimed the issue has been politicised by Fine Gael and said: "They've overdone it I think and people aren't going to be taken in by that."

He insisted Brexit is not being raised on the doors by voters and claimed the January 31 Brexit date had influenced Mr Varadkar's decision on when to hold the election.

"When you think about this, he had planned this election and the date a way back. It's very clear now that it was all choreographed and he thought he would get re-elected on the wave of Brexit day," he said.

Mr Martin added that Fine Gael "has been desperate since the beginning of the campaign to put Brexit centre stage... and it hasn't worked."

He claimed the party was "giving it one last effort" on a day that included an early morning Brexit-related visit by Mr Coveney and other ministers to Dublin Port.

"The fact is the health crisis, the housing issue, are very dominant in people's minds," Mr Martin said.

Mr Martin said he believes that he would work "very well" with British Prime Minister Boris Johnson as Taoiseach.

He said Europe will have to work with the UK to "minimise the damage of Brexit and in particular to try to arrive at a trade agreement that will go as close as possible to the current arrangement".
YEREVAN. -- PACE co-rapporteurs statement has to be perceived as a signal and a warning, MP from Prosperous Armenia party Arman Abovyan said.

Abovyan commented for Armenian News-NEWS.am on the statement issued by co-rapporteurs Andrej Sircelj and Kimmo Kiljunen who expressed concern over tension between Armenian PMs office and Constitutional Court.

This is both a signal, why not, a warning and a statement, because the parties have interpreted the statement as it would be favorable to each of them, he said. And, if you look at the text on the whole, there is everything: criticism, facts, and so on. It was expected that there would be a reaction to the fuss over the Constitutional Court that has been going for months, and this is quite serious. It is not a good sign that we get an external reaction to this situation.

The MP believes that Armenian authorities further actions have to be consistent with the law.

In a statement issued on Friday, the PACE co- rapporteurs said they are worried about the long-term damage these tensions, that have reached an unprecedented level, could inflict on the judiciary as a whole, in which trust is already very low.
Helping people to tackle a number of ailments is the main aim of this collaboration

To help people get rid of various fatal diseases, StemRx Bioscience Solutions Pvt. Ltd., in association with Amity Institute of Biotechnology, Navi Mumbai, organized a one day International seminar on how technologies like Tissue Nanotransfection, bone marrow transplant, organ transplant, and umbilical cord blood transplantation can change the future course of various diseases like cancer.

Along with Dr. Pradeep Mahajan, many other dignitaries like Dr. Chandan K. Sen, Director, Indian Center for Regenerative Medicine and Engineering , Indiana University, USA; Dr. M. Gopinath, Principal Scientist, CFTRI, Mysore; Dr. Satyandra Katewa, Head, Department of Paediatric Hematology-Oncology and Bone Marrow Transplant, Jaipur; Dr. Sunali Khanna, Nair Hospital, Mumbai; Dr. Deepa Bhartiya, Senior Scientific Officer, NIRRH, Mumbai, and Dr. Neetin Desai, Director, Amity Institute Of Biotechnology were part of the workshop.

Today, the Indian healthcare sector is growing at a brisk pace. With the help of advanced medical technologies, it is now possible to treat diseases with efficacy. The technological advancements are changing the very face of medicine. Thus, to help people tackle a number of ailments StemRx Biosciences Solutions Pvt. Ltd tied up with Amity Institute of Biotechnology, Navi Mumbai.

Dr. Pradeep Mahajan, Regenerative Medicine Researcher, Mumbai explained, The seminar highlighted how technologies like Tissue Nanotransfection, bone marrow, transplant, organ transplant, and umbilical cord blood transplantation can help treat various diseases like cancer, and infertility. I conducted a session on how new age medicine, regenerative medicine, and cell-based therapy can be a good option for people to tackle cancer, autoimmune diseases, urinary problems, neurological disorders, spinal cord injuries, and weak immune systems. Cell-based therapy can solve the majority of diseases without having conflicts. The newest technology Tissue Nanotransfection is going to create a revolution in cell-based therapy. I am honored, proud, and will look forward to many more associations with Amity in the near future.

More than 300 participants including the students, gynecologists, and government authorities were present for the seminar.
Germany's defence minister said on Saturday a plane carrying 102 people from the Chinese city of Wuhan back to Germany was refused permission to land and refuel in Moscow due to what the Russians said was lack of capacity, and had to divert to Helsinki.

The German Armed Forces Airbus A310 was en route to Frankfurt when the diversion occurred.

German Defence Minister Annegret Kramp-Karrenbauer said the reasons behind the Russian decision will be discussed at a meeting next week with the Foreign Office.

Those who were evacuated from Wuhan, the epicentre of an outbreak of a novel coronavirus, will be kept in quarantine for 14 days.

So far, Germany has confirmed five cases of novel coronavirus.

All five cases involve employees of German vehicle parts supplier Webasto who came into contact with a visiting employee who had travelled from Shanghai.

China has reported 9,692 confirmed cases with a death toll of 213 as of Friday, and the World Health Organization has declared the outbreak a global emergency.
Kendallville, IN (46755)

Today

Occasional snow showers. High near 20F. Winds WNW at 10 to 20 mph. Chance of snow 90%. Snow accumulations less than one inch..

Tonight

Cloudy skies early, followed by partial clearing. Low 9F. Winds NNW at 10 to 15 mph, becoming E and decreasing to less than 5 mph.
By ANI

NEW DELHI: Union Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman on Saturday reiterated that the NDA government is committed to doubling farmers' income by 2022.

"Our government is committed to the goal of doubling farmers' income by 2022," she said during her budget speech.

The Finance Minister while stressing that the Budget 2020 is to boost the income of people and enhance their purchasing power, said: "Farm markets need to be liberalized, farming need to be made more competitive, handholding of farm-based activities need to be provided, sustainable cropping patterns and more tech needed."

She also said that the Centre will encourage state governments to implement following model laws - Model Agricultural Land Leasing Act of 2016, Model Agricultural Produce and Livestock Marketing Act of 2017 and Model Agricultural Produce and Livestock Contract Farming and Services Promotion and Facilitation Act of 2018.

BUDGET LIVE | Nirmala Sitharaman unveils three themes for year ahead

She announced that Pradhan Mantri Kisan Urja Suraksha Evam Utthan Mahabhiyan (PM KUSUM) will be expanded to provide 20 lakh farmers in setting up standalone solar pumps.

"To build a seamless national cold supply chain for perishables, Indian Railways will set up Kisan Rail through PPP model so that perishable goods can be transported quickly. Krishi Udaan will be launched by MoCA on international and national routes," she said.

The Finance Minister during her speech said: "For sector comprising agriculture, allied activities, irrigation and rural development, an allocation of Rs 2.83 lakh crores has been made for 2020-21."
By Trend

A military cargo plane to evacuate the citizens of Turkey and Azerbaijan flew out from the Chinese Wuhan city, Turkeys Ministry of National Defense stated, Trend reports referring to Turkish media.

The plane safely took on board citizens of Turkey and citizens of friendly countries under the supervision of employees of countrys Ministry of Health.

Evacuation is conducted as part of operation, planned by Turkish Ministry of Health. Evacuated citizens will be quarantined in Turkey for 14 days.

Turkeys President Recep Tayyip Erdogan said on January 31 that Turkey will evacuate Azerbaijani citizens from China to their country.

The Minister of Health said that we have no threat so far. But there are citizens of Azerbaijan in China. They want to come back," Erdogan said.

The president instructed relevant authorities to take necessary actions and bring the citizens of Azerbaijan to Turkey.

The 2019-nCoV coronavirus was detected in December 2019 in the Chinese Wuhan city. Infection has already been registered in Thailand, Japan, South Korea, the US, Canada, Vietnam, Singapore, Hong Kong, Nepal, France, Australia, Malaysia, Germany and Finland.

In China alone, the number of patients with pneumonia caused by a new type of coronavirus reached 11,100 people, 258 patients died.

---

Follow us on Twitter @AzerNewsAz
WINNIPEGThe Manitoba government is ending a practice that has allowed hospitals to notify child-welfare agencies about new mothers deemed to be high risk.

We need to ensure the safety of children first, Families Minister Heather Stefanson said Friday.

But there was no evidence of birth alerts increasing the safety, so thats why we are doing away with them.

The alerts have notified hospitals and child-welfare agencies that there should be more of an assessment before a newborn is discharged to a parent deemed high risk.

The government said that from April to December of last year, 281 birth alerts were issued. And there were about 500 alerts annually in previous years.

Provincial statistics also show that newborn apprehensions occur, on average, about once a day.

There are about 10,000 children in care in the province and about 90 per cent are Indigenous.

Stefanson said a review of the practice showed that birth alerts were discouraging expectant mothers and families from reaching out for prenatal support.

They are afraid that their kids are going to be apprehended when they give birth in a hospital.

She said provincial child-welfare standards will be updated to remove references to birth alerts, which are to be discontinued in April.

All Manitobans will still have to report if they believe a child is at risk and, if thats so, the child will still be apprehended, Stefanson added.

The decision by the Progressive Conservative government is a step in the right direction but could have happened sooner, said Opposition NDP legislature member Bernadette Smith. Her private members bill to end birth alerts, introduced last May, was defeated.

She said eradicating the practice has been important to her because she believes her sister, Claudette Priscilla June Osborne-Tyo, was traumatized when her newborn was seized at birth. Osborne-Tyo vanished from Winnipeg in 2008.

We feel that if that wouldnt have happened, Claudette would probably be here today.

The Assembly of Manitoba Chiefs, the Southern Chiefs Organization and Manitoba Keewatinowi Okimakanak, which represents northern Manitoba First Nations, had all called for birth alerts to stop. A national inquiry into missing and murdered Indigenous women and girls echoed the demand.

British Columbia announced it was ending the practice last September.

Cora Morgan, the assemblys First Nations family advocate, said she is encouraged by the governments decision.

Whats most important to us is the end of the practice of newborn apprehension, she said. Its one thing not to put a birth alert on our mothers. Its another thing to ensure that their newborn babies arent being taken at the hospital.

Last year, a video surfaced on social media showing a newborn baby girl being taken out of the arms of her crying mother by police and social workers. The seizure was broadcast live on Facebook by the mothers uncle.

Documents filed in court said child-welfare agencies had been involved with the mother prior to the birth and hospital staff had suspected she was intoxicated. The mother disputed the allegation.

The documents said the mother was honest with social workers during her pregnancy about concerns with addiction and had asked about having family care for the infant.

A judge ruled weeks later that the womans aunt would have guardianship of the baby.

First Nations leaders said the video showed a child-welfare system biased against Indigenous people.

Removing a newborn from a mother is devastating to the child and the parent, Morgan said. She is cautiously optimistic the change will result in Indigenous families receiving more support to stay together.

One baby is too many; one birth alert is too many, she said.

I just hope that this isnt going to be replaced with some other mechanisms of flagging our mothers.

Read more about:
The government on Saturday announced Rs 8,000 crore outlay for developing quantum computing linked technologies under the National Mission on Quantum technologies and Applications.

"Quantum technology is opening up new frontiers in computing, communications, cyber security with with spread applications. It is expected that a lot of commercial applications would emerge from theoretical constructs which are developing in this area. It is proposed to provide an outlay of Rs 8,000 crore over a period of five years for the National Mission on Quantum technologies and applications," Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman announced in her budget speech.

The Ministry of Electronics and IT has signed an agreement with Israel for joint research in 27 possible areas which includes quantum computing as one of the potential segments.

"India would probably be the third biggest and pioneering nation if we are able to break into this technology of quantum technology related computing and other applications," Sitharaman said.

A quantum computers works on principles of quantum physics.

According to industry experts, current computing technology will take billions of years to solve a problem which can be resolved in in minutes, hours, or days by using quantum computing.
Sixty is the new 45, 80 is the new 60, and 100 is  well, really dang old. But even centenarians know that once you stop learning, you star...
By Trend

Over the past 24 hours, Armenian armed forces have violated the ceasefire along the line of contact between Azerbaijani and Armenian troops 24 times, Trend reports referring to Azerbaijan's Defense Ministry on February 1.

The Armenian armed forces were using large-caliber machine guns.

The conflict between the two South Caucasus countries began in 1988 when Armenia made territorial claims against Azerbaijan. As a result of the ensuing war, Armenian armed forces occupied 20 percent of Azerbaijan, including the Nagorno-Karabakh region and seven surrounding districts.

The 1994 ceasefire agreement was followed by peace negotiations. Armenia has not yet implemented four UN Security Council resolutions on withdrawal of its armed forces from Nagorno Karabakh and the surrounding districts.

---

Follow us on Twitter @AzerNewsAz
The government on Saturday announced its plans to divest a part of its stake in Life Insurance Corp (LIC) in a move that could result in the partial listing of the country's largest insurance company. Paring its stake in the insurance giant will help the government meet its divestment target, which has been increased to 2.1 trillion rupees ($29.55 billion) in financial year 2021 compared to 1.05 trillion rupees in the current fiscal. The government currently owns 100% stake in LIC that was set up in 1956. LIC controls a majority share in the life insurance market in ...
American, United and Delta Airlines each made a remarkable decision Friday: they're suspending almost all air service between the U.S. and China as a result of the coronavirus outbreak.

Specific details:

American will continue service to Hong Kong, but is otherwise suspending China service immediately, through March 27.

United also will continue service to Hong Kong, but will suspend its other routes to China beginning next week, through March 28.

Delta doesn't fly to Hong Kong, but said it will suspend its service to China between February 6 and would not restore it until April 30.

As the day went on, other airlines around the world made similar announcements, from Air New Zealand to Vietnam Airlines. The moves came after some U.S. pilots and flight attendants objected to traveling to China--even suing their own airline and advising their union members not to accept assignments.

Obviously this suspension first affects people who would otherwise be going back and forth to China.

However, it also adds up to a warning for anyone running a business, given concerns that the coronavirus could have a significant impact on the world economy.

"It is a wild card," Richard Clarida, the vice chair of the Federal Reserve, said in an interview Friday with Bloomberg Television. "We're looking into how it translates into the outlook for Chinese growth, for global growth and for how it impacts the U.S."

Amazon, Apple, Facebook, Google, and Microsoft all announced restrictions on their employees traveling to China this week, where even densely populated areas are reportedly "almost empty" as a result of fears of the virus.

However, it was the announcement that U.S. airlines will be suspending travel to China for two to three months that seemed especially significant. As the New York Times summarized:

The travel disruption sent shocks through the stock market and rattled industries that depend on the flow of goods and people between the world's two largest economies. Planning was upended for companies across a vast global supply chain, from Apple to John Deere, the tractor company.

The S&P 500 suffered its worst loss since October, falling 1.8 percent, as the spread of the virus -- and the increasingly urgent efforts by companies and governments to contain it -- fanned fears of an economic slowdown.

There are now about 12,000 cases of the coronavirus worldwide, 259 people have died from it, and health officials say they're concerned that as many as 75,000 people in China may be infected but not yet diagnosed.

Fortunately, there have been only a handful of U.S. cases (and no deaths), but Alex Azar, the secretary of health and human services, called the coronavirus "a public health emergency in the United States."

Meanwhile, the U.S. Government made several related moves on late Thursday and Friday:

The State Department advised Americans not to travel to China.

The government announced that it will not allow most foreign nationals who have visited China recently to enter the United States, beginning 5 p.m. Sunday, and

The government took the extremely rare step of quarantining 195 Americans who had recently visited Wuhan, China, the locus of the coronavirus outbreak.

On that last point, a Reuters photo appeared to show at least one quarantined child among the Americans who are now confined to March Air Reserve Base for two weeks, in Riverside, California.

Meanwhile, a passenger who tried to leave the base without permission was "intercepted," the New York Times reported.
By Estelle Liotard



Running an e-commerce store today requires a lot of effort and hard work. Regardless of what you are selling and who your target audience is, you have strong competitors trying to take a piece of your cake.



That means that you have to fight for your place in the market and work hard to win over new customers  and retain existing ones. The only way to do this is to create a strong, effective digital marketing strategy for your e-commerce.



Building a marketing strategy is like building a house of cards. You have to lay solid grounds and carefully build on them from there. And, with the right guidance, it is far from impossible. This article will help you create a spotless digital marketing strategy for your e-commerce.



Let's break it down together.



1. Know your customers



The first thing you need to define is who is your target audience and what do they expect from you.



Building a digital marketing strategy means creating content with a specific set of people in mind. This is why you have to define your target customers:



- What is their sex?

- What is the age range?

- How do they spend time online?

- Where do they live?

- What is their social status?



Once you know the answers to these questions, you'll find it easier to produce significant content and build your digital marketing strategy toward the right goals.



2. Improve product visualization



Today, presentation is everything. People no longer want to spend their precious time reading explanations and long product descriptions.



They might go into such detail once they're interested, but you need to create the perfect hook.



Improved visualization of the products will get you more customers and will motivate people to go ahead and make the purchase. Therefore, you need to:



- Use high-quality product images

- Allow people to zoom in

- Add a 360-degree view

- Use 3D technology



Once you improve the visual aspect of each of your products, you'll see how beneficial for your marketing it actually is. People will spend more time getting to know the product and they'll feel like they know exactly what they're buying.





Capture from AliExpress

3. Use product videos



Product videos are another necessity when it comes to improving your digital marketing strategy. To make your e-commerce stand out from the rest, you should offer product videos.



Product videos should:



- Explain how the product is used

- Explain how to put the product together

- Show close-up footage of the product

- Show different purposes you can use it for



So instead of writing a mile-long instruction manual in the product description section, you should make things simpler for your customers.



Tell them everything they need to know in a single video and show them how the purchase will make their lives easier.



The simpler the presentation, the bigger the chances of people making the purchase.



4. Use social commerce



Capture from Instagram



When we are talking about digital marketing, we cannot forget about social media. Social media is one of the strongest and most powerful marketing tools today.



The best way to use social media for the purpose of advertising your e-commerce is to start using social commerce.



Social commerce allows people to find and buy a product by using your social media.



Consider product tagging on Instagram:



- a customer is looking at your Instagram page

- they see a product they like

- they just click on the post and see the tagged products

- the tag shows the price and leads them directly to your e-commerce where they can purchase it



Social commerce saves your customers time but also promotes your products in the best possible way. It will work wonders for your digital marketing strategy, so make sure you start using it as soon as possible.



5. Employ blogging



Blogging is another inevitable segment of your digital marketing strategy.



Running a blog can improve your digital marketing strategy and make it even more effective and productive. The blog section on your website should:



- Cover trending, niche-related topics

- Provide valuable information

- Give guidance to your customers

- Give them advice



To make each of your blog posts successful and inspiring, make sure that you rely heavily on search engine optimization (SEO). Optimizing your posts for search engines will increase your brand awareness and bring more people to your website.



In case you need help with writing, you can check out writing services such as Studyker and? Write Scout , or turn to a writing tool such as Grammarly or Hemingway .





Capture from Babylist

6. Use email marketing



Email marketing can play a huge role in the way your customers perceive you. It is especially important for e-commerce since it allows you to communicate with your customers freely.



With email marketing, you get to send your customers messages such as:



- Reminders about abandoned carts

- Special offers

- Sales

- Knockouts

- Coupons and gift certificates



You can also send welcome emails to people subscribing to your newsletter and thank them for joining your little family.



7. Turn to user-generated content



Capture from Instagram
Just days before the 2008 Democratic presidential caucuses in Iowa, Hillary Clinton led Barack Obama by four points in the RealClearPolitics average of polls. Obama took the lead, by a few tenths of one percentage point, literally 24 hours before the caucuses. And then he won by nearly eight points.

In retrospect, things were moving very fast in Iowa in those final days before the voting. And now, we are again days away from the Iowa Democratic caucuses. Things might be moving in ways we don't know.

Four candidates have held the lead at various times in the Iowa race. Joe Biden led from the start until the third week in September last year. Then Elizabeth Warren took over and led until mid-November. Then it was Pete Buttigieg's turn; he led until the first week in January.

The new year brought new volatility. First Bernie Sanders led until mid-January. Then Biden led again until Jan. 24. And since then, Sanders has jumped back into the lead.

In the last few days, two candidates -- Sanders and Biden -- seem to be headed up, while the other two -- Warren and Buttigieg -- seem to be headed down. In any event, this seems to be an Iowa caucus in which there is great possibility for last-minute shifts in voter choices. So predictions are useless.

What is undeniable is Democratic establishment nervousness about Sanders. The basic worry is that he is so far to the left that the party might end up nominating the only candidate President Donald Trump can beat.

Just look at some headlines from the last few days:

-- "Dems tormented over how to stop Bernie" (Politico)

-- "'Oh my God, Sanders can win': Democrats grapple with Bernie surge in Iowa" (NBC News)

-- "Worried Democratic operatives scramble to fund a network to take down Bernie Sanders" (Daily Beast)

-- "Fear of Sanders win growing among Democratic establishment" (Associated Press)

-- "'Stop Sanders' Democrats are agonizing over his momentum" (The New York Times)

Actually, that last headline, from the Times, was from April 2019. Democrats were agonizing then, and they're still agonizing now.

It is hard to imagine two more different men than Bernie Sanders and Donald Trump, but establishment Democrats fear that something could be happening in their party that echoes the events of 2016 for Republicans: A candidate with popular appeal who is dismissed by party leaders yet manages to build so much support that the establishment cannot deny him the nomination.

It might seem a little odd that Democrats are so worried by a Trump 2016 scenario. After all, Trump won. But it was, of course, a rocky road, and more than a little unpleasant for GOP bigwigs.

So now Democrats listen when the loser of that race, Hillary Clinton, expresses her apparently undying disdain for Sanders. In an admiring -- aren't they all? -- new documentary on her losing campaign, Clinton says of Sanders: "He was in Congress for years. He had one senator support him. Nobody likes him, nobody wants to work with him, he got nothing done. He was a career politician. It's all just baloney, and I feel so bad that people got sucked into it."

In a promotional interview, the Hollywood Reporter asked Clinton if that assessment still holds. "Yes, it does," she answered.

The only problem for establishment figures like Clinton is that Sanders is leading in Iowa. He is leading in New Hampshire. He is in second place in South Carolina. And then, looking down the road a bit, he is leading in the biggest state of all, California.

The establishment has reason to be worried.

Of course Sanders is far to the left. But there is no doubt the entire Democratic party has moved in his direction in the last four years. There's no indication that movement will stop. The party has come to Bernie, not the other way around. Party leaders might have to come to Bernie, too.

One irrefutable argument the party establishment would have against Sanders is that he is simply too old to be president. He will be 79 years old on Inauguration Day 2021 and will turn 80 that same year. That is unprecedented in American history. And, of course, Sanders suffered a heart attack last October.

Trump, the nation's oldest president ever, could serve four more years, and at the end of two full terms still be younger than Sanders would be on the first day of his presidency.

All that would be an effective argument, except that the establishment's preferred candidate, by the same measure, is also too old to be president. Biden will be 78 on Inauguration Day, and to some observers' eyes looks less energetic and resilient than Sanders.

So, at the moment, the Democratic establishment has no good strategy for dealing with its Sanders problem. In a week, the Iowa caucuses will be over, and the problem could be much, much worse.

Byron York is chief political correspondent for The Washington Examiner.

Love 0 Funny 0 Wow 0 Sad 0 Angry 0
An F-35 demonstration flight at the Wings Over Houston Airshow Oct. 20, 2019, in Houston, Texas. (U.S. Air Force photo by Senior Airman James Kennedy)

Poland Signs $4.6 Billion Contract for US Fighter Jets

Poland signed a $4.6 billion deal with the United States on Friday for the purchase of 32 of its most advanced fighter jets to enhance air defense on NATOs eastern flank at a time of increased Russian military activity.

President of Poland, Andrzej Duda arrives for the NATO summit at the Grove Hotel on Dec. 4, 2019, in Watford, England (Chris J Ratcliffe/Getty Images)

Polish President Andrzej Duda said it was an exceptionally important day for Polands air force and the security of Poland and our part of Europe. It was among the biggest deals in the history of Polands armed forces and also a sign of the strength of relations with the U.S., Duda said.

After purchasing American Patriot missile systems, and High-Mobility Artillery Rocket System (HIMARS), this next big investment, will also contribute to significantly strengthening Polish-American relations, Duda said at the contract signing ceremony.

Poland, as a NATO ally, fulfills its obligations and takes seriously Article 5 of the NATO Treatywhereby all members consider an attack against one ally as an attack on all allies. Poland also proved its commitment to the NATO 360 degrees principlethe principle of allied security and solidarity alliance, by participating in many NATO missions, Duda said. Examples of such missions are, Baltic Air Policingguarding the skies of Baltic states or carrying out observation missions in the Middle East. And this commitment made Poland eligible to join the F-35 program, Duda concluded.

Polish Defense Minister Mariusz Blaszczak signed the deal and handed the document to the U.S. ambassador to Poland, Georgette Mosbacher, during a ceremony at the Polish Air Force Academy in Deblin, Poland.

W polskich Siach Powietrznych konczy sie epoka kokpitow z napisami cyrylica. Rozpoczynamy ere najnowoczesniejszych, budzacych respekt u potencjalnych przeciwnikow, mysliwcow 5. generacji. Umowa na 32 samoloty F-35 podpisana! pic.twitter.com/lhhIdQ7XU7  Mariusz Baszczak (@mblaszczak) January 31, 2020

U.S. State Secretary Mike Pompeo welcomed Polands decision. He praised Duda and the Polish government for its commitment to continue modernizing Polands military through the acquisition of the worlds most advanced fighter aircraft, which will improve Polands ability to provide collective and self-defense. We look forward to working with our NATO Ally Poland on this project and continuing to enhance our long-term strategic partnership, Pompeo said in a statement.

Poland expects to take delivery of the Lockheed Martin F-35 Lightning II combat aircraft between 2024 and 2030. Poland will become the 13th NATO member nation to have F-35 fighters. The contract includes training, logistics, and simulators.

F-35 Lightning II is a 5th Generation multifunction stealth fighter, combining advanced stealth with fighter speed and agility, according to Lockheed Martins website. The Polish air force currently uses Lockheed Martins F-16 fighter aircraft.

The jets will replace some of the Soviet-made MiG-29 fighter aircraft that Polands air force still uses.

Poland obtained clearance from the Department of Defense to buy F-35 in September last year and will become the 13the military customer to join F-35 Joint Strike Fighter Program, according to Military.com.

Grzegorz Schetyna, the former leader of Civic Platform, the Polish opposition party, told Polish Radio station Trojka that every investment in better equipment for the Polish Army, which guarantees better, more complete security makes sense, reported internet portal Interia. However, the opposition party was not informed about this deal but should have been notified about the cost of the purchase, negotiations, contract terms, and potential benefits for the Polish industry, Schetyna said.

Polish parliament member Czeslaw Mroczek a, deputy head of the parliamentary defense commission, representing the same opposition party, had similar concerns. We want to know what the reasons for this decision were and whether from the formal point of view all necessary pre-purchase procedures were carried out, Mroczek said in an interview, according to Wirtualna Polska (WP). He announced that the coalition of opposition parties, including his party, would submit an urgent request to Polands Supreme Audit Office to investigate this deal.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.
The Magic Valley will continue to be the base of operations for both Riverence and Clear Springs Foods, with the intent to maintain existing brands, team members, and the markets they serve. Together, the companies employ over 450 people.

"We believe in aquaculture and sustainable, land-based production of seafood," says Rob Young, CEO of Riverence. "With this investment, we are deepening our commitment to doing what's right in support of our communities, the fish we produce, and the natural resources we share. Together, we stand ready to redefine farm-raised fish and the future of American aquaculture."

"We're starting to reimagine the potential of the US trout industry," says Jeff Jermunson, CEO of Clear Springs Foods. "We are honored to begin the next chapter of our company's long history as part of the Riverence family."

Together with Clear Springs Foods, Riverence controls the supply chain from its brood stock to delivery to distributors. The Riverence portfolio now includes 14 farms able to produce more than 15,000 metric tons annually, four brood stations, two processing facilities, a value-added processing facility, a waste recovery plant, and a feed mill, all of which are BAP certified or pursuing certification. Shared resources also include a modern fleet of 12 over-the-road tractor trailer combos providing nationwide market access to all Riverence and Clear Springs products.

Riverence's mission is to decrease pressure on wild fish by providing an alternative source of premium seafood. Riverence is an IMPACT partner of the James Beard Foundation and the official trout of the James Beard House, recommended by FishWise and Ocean Wise, and a Monterey Bay Seafood Watch "Best Choice". Riverence's reputation for quality and care has quickly earned praise from celebrity chefs such as Andrew Zimmern, and a spot on the menus of restaurants like Tender Greens, GT Fish & Oyster, Sparrow & Wolf, The Breadfruit & Rum Bar, Momofuku, Imoto, and more.

Riverence Holdings LLC

Riverence Holdings is the largest land-based producer of steelhead and rainbow trout in the Americas, with locations across Idaho and Washington. It is the parent company of Riverence Brood (egg production), as well as Riverence Farms and Clear Springs Foods (trout production, processing, and distribution). Together, the companies have full 'egg to plate' control of their supply chain, with nationwide availability. For more information, visit riverence.com and follow Riverence on social, @RiverenceUSA.

Clear Springs Foods

Clear Springs Foods is a rainbow trout producer with a 54-year legacy of fish farming in Idaho. For more information, visit clearsprings.com and follow Clear Springs Foods on social, @FreshFishKitchen.

For more information, email [email protected].

For company logos and photography, visit https://riverence.link/presskit

SOURCE Riverence Holdings LLC

Related Links

http://www.riverence.com


The Chinese city of Wuhan is scrambling to complete construction on two hospitals that will treat coronavirus victims, according to state media. The outbreak has killed 213 people and infected nearly 10,000.

The virus is believed to have originated in Wuhan, a city of 11 million, and most of China's cases have been reported there. Construction began last week on the two temporary hospitals, which are prefabricated buildings. Once finished, they will provide 2,600 beds.

The construction of the new facilities echoes the rapid completion of Beijing's Xiaotangshan hospital in 2003. Built in a week, Xiaotangshan treated patients affected with Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome (SARS).

The hospitals are expected to open next week. Here's how workers are trying to make it happen:
Australian comedian Adam Hills has shaved his "Brexit beard", 15 months after declaring a self-imposed shaving ban until Britain formally left the European Union.

The host of UK talk show The Last Leg was live on air during a special screening of the show as his fellow hosts Alex Brooker and Josh Widdicombe used electric razors to shave his beard.

Hills then tweeted that he would be selling his beard on eBay with all proceeds to go to Australia's Red Cross bushfire relief fund.

"Ive spent just over a year growing a beard. I said I would do it until Brexit was sorted, and now it is, kinda," he wrote on the eBay listing page.
SAN FRANCISCO (BCN)

A transit working group assembled by city leaders last year to assess the reliability of the San Francisco Municipal Transportation Agency reported Friday traffic conditions, employee shortages and aging infrastructure to be the agency's main problems.

Mayor London Breed, Supervisor Mandelman and Supervisor Aaron Peskin convened The San Francisco Muni Reliability Working Group back in June 2019, tasking it with reviewing the performance of Muni buses and its rail system, and to recommend ways to improve service for riders.

Since then, SFMTA's Board of Directors have selected Jeffrey Tumlin as the agency's new director to replace former transportation director Ed Reiskin, who announced back in April 2019 he was stepping down.

"We convened this working group of experts, elected officials, and community stakeholders because we need to work together to ensure Muni is reliable, safe, and efficient for all San Franciscans," Breed said in a statement.

"The findings in this report highlight the most important things we can do to improve transportation, and that to hire more operators, reduce congestion on our streets, and ensure that our infrastructure is up to date. I'm looking forward to working with SFMTA Director Jeffrey Tumlin to prioritize addressing these issues over the coming months," she said.

The group recommended the SFMTA accelerate efforts to hire more transit operators and close employment shortages by 2021. It also recommended the SFMTA speed up programs and projects that seek to improve reliability and combat congestion, like red bus lanes and transit priority signals.

Tumlin said the group's findings "perfectly" matched his own observations since taking over in December.

"As an agency, we need to have the courage to pick up the pace of delivering solutions despite the political obstacles that make change hard in San Francisco. We also desperately need to hire more operators and maintenance workers. I'm grateful they've provided us with a clear work plan," he said.

Copyright  2020 by Bay City News, Inc. Republication, Rebroadcast or any other Reuse without the express written consent of Bay City News, Inc. is prohibited.
NEW DELHI: Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath on Saturday targeted Delhi's ruling Aam Aadmi Party for backing the anti-Citizenship Amendment Act protesters at the Shaheen Bagh for political gains in the upcoming assembly election in Delhi.

The firebrand BJP leader alleged that those who support terrorists in Kashmir were staging protests at Shaheen Bagh and raising slogans of 'azadi'. CM Yogi made these remarks while addressing an election rally in northwest Delhi's Rohini.

Hitting out at the AAP dispensation, the UP Chief Minister said that his Delhi counterpart Arvind Kejriwal was being endorsed by Pakistan.

Live TV

BJP's star campaigner raised 'suspicion' over Pakistan Minister Fawad Choudhry's apparent backing to Arvind Kejriwal in the context of assembly election in Delhi.

Yogi Adityanath reiterated that Kejriwal was not getting the support of Indians and the people of Delhi, but from Pakistan.

Hitting out at the anti-CAA protesters, the monk-politician said that 'their ancestors divided India.'

"These protests happening at various places in Delhi are not about the CAA, but it is happening because those people are questioning as to how can India emerge as a major power in the world, and to stop that rising India," Adityanath claimed.

From Saturday to Tuesday, Yogi Adityanath will be campaigning across Delhi ahead of the Assembly elections on February 8 from Shaheen Bagh to Jamia.

He is scheduled to address 12 rallies in Delhi. Yogi Adityanath is named fifth after Prime Minister Modi, Nadda, Home Minister Amit Shah and Rajnath Singh in BJP's list of star campaigners for Delhi.

Assembly elections will be held in Delhi on February 8 to decide who will rule the national capital for the next five years with the ruling AAP making a determined bid to return to power and the BJP seeking to have a chief minister in the city after 20 years.

The Congress, which has ruled Delhi for 15 successive years, is also making efforts to regain its support base. Counting of votes will take place on February 11.
Huh Hee-young at Korea Aerospace University said, "This is the first time so many negative factors have converged at once. This could accelerate restructuring of the whole aviation industry."

Most of them rely on short-haul flights to Japan and China for the bulk of their revenues. On top of that, the government has issued licenses to three new budget airlines to create more jobs and spur growth in provincial economies, resulting in intensifying competition.

Budget carriers had already been reeling from the boycott of Japan which started in July last year, but the coronavirus panic has made matters infinitely worse.

The call centers of Korea's six budget airlines were inundated with calls on Thursday from customers canceling their bookings to China, as they had been for days. The coronavirus outbreak has plunged Korean low-cost carriers into the worst crisis since they started business here 15 years ago.

A growing number of budget carriers are halting flights to China altogether. Jeju Air is grounding six out of 12 flights to China, Jin Air and Air Seoul both of theirs, T'way Air three out of six, Air Busan five out of nine and Eastar Jet four out of seven. That translates into 58 percent of all budget flights to China.

Budget flyer numbers to Japan dropped 11.6 percent last year, while the number of low-cost flights to the island country has halved since the boycott. Instead, the airlines tried to generate revenues by offering more flights to Southeast Asia and Guam, but intense competition ate into margins.

Five of them -- Jeju Air, T'way Air, Air Busan, Eastar Jet and Air Seoul -- bet everything on flights to China after winning new licenses to operate more flights to Chinese cities. According to the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport, passenger numbers on flights to China jumped 14.4 percent last year, providing a much-needed cushion for the industry.

But now things have changed drastically. One executive at a low-cost carrier said, "We've been offering tickets to Southeast Asia and Guam at a loss to make up for lost passengers to Japan, and to make matters worse, we are now forced to reduce flights to China almost by half due to the coronavirus outbreak. I wonder if we can survive this."

But the airlines have also come under fire for being too aggressive in their expansion. When tourism to Japan surged before the boycott, they bought 19 airplanes in a single year to offer more flights. And the government's short-sighted policy led to more licenses than the market could bear.

Fly Gangwon was cleared for business in March last year and started flying in November, while Aero-K will be launched in March this year and Air Premia in September, bringing the total to nine.

The entire U.S. has as many budget airlines as much smaller Korea, while China only has eight and Japan six.

In the second and third quarters of 2019, all budget carriers here suffered between W10 billion and W20 billion in losses, and fourth-quarter earnings are also estimated in the red (US$1=W1,188). Only three months into business Fly Gangwon is already suffering losses because it has so far only managed to fill 40 to 60 percent of its seats.

With coronavirus making matters worse, Jeju Air will start taking applications for unpaid leave from staff in March. It agreed to buy Eastar Jet last year but has yet to sign the final contract, prompting concerns that the deal may turn sour.

Industry watchers say the sector needs to be streamlined. Kim Byung-jae at Sangmyung University said, "There is too much supply in the airline industry even without all these crises. The situation is very serious."
New Delhi: The parents of 2012 gangrape victim named 'Nirbhaya' by the media are all set to move a Delhi court seeking issuance of fresh death warrants against the four death row convicts after the President on Saturday rejected the mercy plea filed by one of the convicts Vinay Sharma.

Speaking to IANS, Advocate Jitendra Jha, counsel for Nirbhaya`s parents said, "We will move an application in order to inform the court regarding the latest developments stating that no pleas or applications of any of the convict is lying pending in any legal forum and hence they should be hanged."

However, according to the Delhi Prison Rules, after the President rejects the mercy plea of a convict, a period of 14 days is given to settle their earthly affairs.

A Delhi court had on January 31 stayed for an indefinite period, the death warrants issued against the four death row convicts -- Akshay, Pawan, Mukesh and Vinay.

Additional Sessions Judge Dharmendra Rana in his order said, "Without commenting upon the dilatory tactics adopted by the convicts, suffice it would be to state that seeking redress of one`s grievances through the procedure established by law was the hallmark of any civilized society. The courts of this country cannot afford to adversely discriminate against any convict, including death row convicts in pursuit of his legal remedies, by turning a Nelson`s eye towards him."

A 23-year-old woman was gangraped and tortured on December 16, 2012, which led to her death. All the six accused were arrested and charged with sexual assault and murder. One of the accused was a minor and appeared before a juvenile justice court, while another accused committed suicide in Tihar Jail.

Four of the convicts were sentenced to death by a trial court in September 2013, and the verdict confirmed by the Delhi High Court in March 2014 and upheld by the Supreme Court in May 2017, which also dismissed their review petition in July 2018.
Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman on Saturday proposed the setting up of an Indian Institute of Heritage and Conservation with the status of a deemed university under the Ministry of Culture.

Presenting the Budget for 2020-21 in the Parliament, Sitharaman also proposed the setting of eight museums across the country.

According to Budget documents, Rs 109 crore has been earmarked for setting up the museums and an additional Rs 180 crore for the development of the existing ones.

Sitharaman said Rs 3,150 crore has been allocated for the Ministry of Culture and Rs 2,500 crore for the Ministry of Tourism.

"Acquisition of knowledge in disciplines such as museology and archeology are essential for collecting and analysing scientific evidence of such findings and for dissemination through high quality museums," she said.

She also proposed the setting up of a tribal museum in Ranchi, Jharkhand.

"Five archaeological sites in Haryana, Uttar Pradesh, Assam, Gujarat and Tamil Nadu would be developed with on-site museums," the Finance Minister said.

Those, to be developed as iconic sites, will be in Rakhigarhi (Haryana), Hastinapur (Uttar Pradesh), Shivsagar (Assam), Dholavira (Gujarat) and Adichanallur (Tamil Nadu).

Union Culture and Tourism Minister Prahlad Patel said, "The much awaited Indian Institute of Archaeological and Conservation was announced in the Budget. This will enable trained, qualified persons to conserve manuscripts, including monuments, museums. All partner institutions will benefit.

"The Budget has paved the way for creation of new museums and the preservation of existing ones."



For the tourism sector, the government has also allocated Rs 1,200 crore for Swadesh Darshan scheme and a corpus of Rs 208 crore for the Prashad scheme which seeks to build infrastructure for pilgrimage sites around the country.

Highlighting improved tourism revenues due to better rank, the Finance Minister said, "India had moved up from rank 65 in 2014 to 34 in 2019 in the Travel and Tourism Competitive Index (World Economic Forum)."



Due to this, she said, "Foreign exchange earnings grew 7.4 per cent to Rs 1.88 lakh crores for the period January 2019 from Rs 1.75 lakh crores."The FM also proposed the re-curation of the oldest museum in India as announced by Prime Minister Narendra Modi in January 2020.

A Numismatics and Trade Museum will also be located in the historic Old Mint Building in Kolkata.

The FM also announced renovation and re-curation of four more museums across India.

While the allocation for the Tourism Ministry was Rs 2,150 crore in the 2018-2019 Budget, it rose to Rs 2,189.22 crore in 2019-2020.

The allocation for the Culture Ministry, which was Rs 2,843.32 crore in 2018-2019, increased to Rs 3,042.35 crore for 2019-2020.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
SAN FRANCISCO (BCN)

A driver was critically injured early Friday after he crashed a car into a gas station near San Francisco's Parkmerced neighborhood, fire officials said.

The car crashed into a Chevron station at 1100 Junipero Serra Blvd about 3 a.m. and caught fire, according to a Twitter post from the San Francisco Fire Department.

Firefighters extricated the driver and he was taken to a hospital with critical injures, fire officials said.

Copyright  2020 by Bay City News, Inc. Republication, Rebroadcast or any other Reuse without the express written consent of Bay City News, Inc. is prohibited.
Former Nigerian Vice President, Atiku Abubakar has called on United States President, Donald Trump, to reconsider his travel ban on Nigerians and target those in government that have failed in their duties.

KanyiDaily had reported that President Trump imposed a new travel ban restricting Nigerians and nationals of five other countries from moving to the United States of America to live permanently.

In line with the new policy, citizens from Nigeria, Eritrea, Myanmar, and Kyrgyzstan wont be allowed to apply for visas to immigrate to the U.S.

According to the US government, the policy was designed to tighten security for countries that dont comply with the U.S. minimum security standards or cooperate to prevent illegal immigration.

In a statement issued on his social media page, Atiku urged Trump not to punish Nigerians for the failure of President Muhammadu Buhari led administration.

Atiku said the failure of Buharis government to share information and to address issues of terrorism led to the banning of the entire country.

He called on the US President to consider adopting measures that individually target those in government who have failed in their duties, rather than target the entire Nigerian population.
India on Saturday congratulated the Maldives on its return to the Commonwealth as its 54th member.

The Maldives had joined the Commonwealth in 1982, but withdrew its membership in 2016.

"India has always been a key supporter of Maldives' readmission and for it to play a larger role in international organisations and the comity of nations," the Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) said.

The Commonwealth is a key grouping of countries, most of which are former territories of the British Empire.

"We are committed to working closely with Maldives on shared Commonwealth goals like development, democracy and peace," the MEA said.

It said India also acknowledges efforts of the Maldivian government to participate actively in international organisations like the United Nations and increase its global profile as a democratic and dynamic country.

"India will continue working with Maldives in achieving its democratic and developmental aspirations," the MEA said.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
London: The UK's divorce from the European Union (EU) came into force on Friday night as it became the first country to exit the economic bloc after 47 years of membership following the vote in favour of Brexit in June 2016.

British Prime Minister Boris Johnson hailed the historic moment as the dawn of a new era for the UK in his address to the nation just before Brexit.

Brexit came into force at 11:00 pm (2300 GMT).

"This is the moment when the dawn breaks and the curtain goes up on a new act in our great national drama," said Johnson, in his video message which promised hope and opportunity to every part of the United Kingdom.

"It is not just about some legal extrication. It is potentially a moment of real national renewal and change. This is the dawn of a new era in which we no longer accept that your life chances -- your family's life chances -- should depend on which part of the country you grow up in," he said.

While there will be little change instantly as the UK and EU enter into a pre-agreed period of transition from Saturday until the end of December, the process of complete extrication from the now 27-member economic bloc will begin right away.

Live TV

Johnson was keen to highlight his vision of a friendly negotiation process for both sides to thrash out a new trading relationship as the beginning of a "new era of friendly cooperation" between the EU and an energetic Britain.

Celebrating the UK's "recaptured sovereignty" to deliver the changes the June 2016 referendum vote signified, he noted, "Whether that is by controlling immigration or creating freeports or liberating our fishing industry or doing free trade deals...Is the right and healthy and democratic thing to do."

On a critical note on the EU's evolution over the period of the UK's membership, he added, "Because for all its strengths and for all its admirable qualities, the EU has evolved over 50 years in a direction that no longer suits this country."

"And that is a judgment that you, the people, have now confirmed at the polls.?

The Conservative Party leader took charge at Downing Street last year with a "no ifs, no buts" pledge to leave the EU. His General Election campaign pegged around the "Get Brexit Done" message last December won him a thumping majority, after which Britain's exit from the bloc also became a certainty as his Brexit bill easily crossed the parliamentary hurdle.

Acknowledging the long-drawn divorce process and the deep Remain versus Brexit divide within the UK, Johnson said, "Tonight we are leaving the European Union. For many people this is an astonishing moment of hope, a moment they thought would never come and there are many of course who feel a sense of anxiety and loss.

"I understand all those feelings and our job as the government? my job ? is to bring this country together now and take us forward.?

As part of that forward-looking agenda, the government will kick off its "GREAT Ready to Trade" campaign across 13 countries, including India, from Saturday. Johnson has repeatedly committed himself to a new and improved trading relationship with India and now as a non-member of the EU, the UK is free to push ahead with those talks unrestricted by the economic bloc's rules.
President Donald Trump directed his former national security adviser John Bolton to help with his pressure campaign in Ukraine to dig up dirt on Democrats in early May last year, according to a draft manuscript by Bolton reported on by The New York Times.

According to Bolton's account, Trump told him to call Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky to make sure the newly elected leader would meet with his personal lawyer, Rudy Giuliani, the Times reported.

On Friday, Trump denied the allegation in a statement.

"I never instructed John Bolton to set up a meeting for Rudy Giuliani, one of the greatest corruption fighters in America and by far the greatest mayor in the history of N.Y.C., to meet with President Zelensky," Trump said. "That meeting never happened."

CNN has not seen a copy of the draft manuscript. The report would be the earliest known instance of Trump actively trying to exert political pressure on Ukraine in order to find damaging information on his political opponents.

Trump's attempts to pressure Ukraine to investigate Hunter Biden and Joe Biden, his potential 2020 general election rival, are at the center of the President's impeachment trial. Trump and his allies have repeatedly made unfounded and false claims to allege that the Bidens acted corruptly in Ukraine.

Bolton writes that he never made the call to Zelensky, the Times reports.

He claims Trump's request came during an Oval Office conversation that included Giuliani, acting White House chief of staff Mick Mulvaney, and the White House counsel Pat Cipollone, according to the Times. Cipollone has been leading the President's defense team in the impeachment trial.

Giuliani denied the report to the Times, and neither Bolton, a representative for Mulvaney, nor the White House immediately responded to requests for comment to the paper.

The allegation from Bolton's unpublished draft comes as Republicans appear to have enough support for the Senate trial to wrap up, without hearing from witnesses or subpoenaing documents. Bolton has said he's willing to testify if subpoenaed.

The Times had previously reported that Bolton alleges in his forthcoming book that Trump told him over the summer that he wanted to continue holding military aid to Ukraine until the country helped with investigations into his political rivals.

A source with direct knowledge of the manuscript has told CNN the newspaper's telling of Bolton's discussion with Trump is accurate.

The White House has attempted to block Bolton from publishing his book, which is planned for March, saying it contains classified information.

Democrats had also pushed for Mulvaney to testify and point to his October press conference, in which he admitted -- and then denied -- a quid pro quo that Trump help up $400 million in US security aid to Ukraine in exchange for an investigation into Democrats. The President's defense has argued that that there was no quid pro quo, that the President had other motives for withholding the aid, and that the aid was ultimately released.

Giuliani traveled to Ukraine in May to pursue questions about the Bidens' ties to a Ukrainian natural gas company.

He and his associates mounted a smear campaign to remove former US ambassador to Ukraine Marie Yovanovitch from her post in Kiev, viewing her as an impediment to obtain information about Biden from his Ukrainian sources.

This story has been updated.
The federal government says it has committed N220 billion to tackle the out-of-school children menace ravaging the country, an official has said.

Nigeria has about 10.5 million out of school children according to the Universal Basic Education Commission (UBEC)

In a statement sent to PREMIUM TIMES Saturday afternoon, the spokesperson of the Federal Ministry of Education, Ben Gooong, said the Minister of State for Education, Chukwuemeka Nwajiuba said this in Yola, at the launch of the Better Education Service Delivery for All (BESDA) program in the state.

According to the statement, the minister said the fund is a credit facility from the World Bank to Nigeria.

The fund has been given to states on an interest-free basis to enable them fight the scourge.

The cardinal objective of the BESDA program is to increase equitable access for out-of-school children, improve literacy and strengthen accountability at the basic education level, Mr Nwajiuba said.

He said the program will focus on 17states in the country, which includes the 13 states of the North-west and North-east geo-political zones. He also said Oyo, Ebonyi and Rivers states will be captured in the programme.

Selection modality

The minister said the selection of the states is based on the prevalence of the scourge.

He said BESDA became effective in 2018 with the commencement of implementation processes at the Federal level. All key activities at the federal level to kick start implementation of the program by the focus states have been completed.

He said each beneficiary state is expected to commence implementation in line with specific steps and guidelines provided under the program.

READ ALSO:

The statement did not explain the specific steps and guidelines.

Adamawa state has successfully commenced the implementation process ensuring that out of school children are in school is not only a moral and legal obligation but also a productive investment that will guarantee the future of our children as enshrined in the child rights Act of 2003, he added.

Meanwhile, the sthe governor of Adamawa state, Ahmadu Fintiri, also quoted in the statement, said he had directed the implementation of the BESDA program two months after assumption of office to show the enthusiasm of the state towards the program.

So far, over 50,000 children have already been taken off the streets in Adamawa. In order to ensure the success of the program, he said.

The governor said a strong implementation team was established which includes traditional and religious leaders in all the local government and districts of the state.

The training of teachers otherwise known as facilitators for the program has already been completed. Efforts are on to integrate the Almajiri and Tsangaya systems into the BESDA program. Special consideration and arrangements will be made in the program for the girl child, he said.
Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman on Saturday said that the government's debt has reduced to 48.9 per cent from 52.2 per cent, while presenting the Union Budget in the Lok Sabha.

"The government debt came down to 48.9 per cent from 52.2 per cent," she said.

She said: "Our people should be gainfully employed, our businesses should be healthy, for all minorities, women and people from SCs and STs. This Budget aims to fulfil their aspirations."

"With renewed vigour, under PM's leadership, we commit ourselves to present the people of India with all humility and dedication. People have reposed faith in our economic policy," she added.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
Two leopards and two sloth bears were killed on Saturday after coming in contact with live wire in the core area of the Ordnance Factory Chanda in Maharashtra's Chandrapur district, a senior official said.

The factory comes within the Bhadravati Forest Range, some 40 kilometres from the district headquarters, he said.

"Ordnance Factory staff noticed the carcasses of the two leopards (a male and female) and sloth bears (a male and female) at a spot about one kilometre away from Bhadravati Forest range. It seems the electric lines were laid by poachers," said Chief Conservator of Forests (Chandrapur) SV Ramarao.

He said an offence had been registered under the Wildlife Protection Act and Indian Forest Act.

Warora MLA Pratibha Dhanorkar demanded a high-level inquiry into the incident.

A video clip of the two leopards entering the Ordnance Factory premises soon went viral on social media.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
London/Sputnik/UNI: The United Kingdom left the European Union on 23:00 GMT January 31, after 47 years together, including 3.5 years post-referendum.

In 2016, 51.89 percent of the British voted to leave the UK. The almost even split was reflected in the heated Brexit discussions in the UK parliament.

Two prime ministers resigned over Brexit  first David Cameron, then Theresa May. The current prime minister, Boris Johnson, managed to get the parliament to accept his Withdrawal Deal.

Despite almost five decades spent together, the UK never adopted euro or became part to a Schengen agreement on visa-free travel. At the same time, the EU is its largest trade partner.

The UK has now entered a transition period  it has 11 months to agree the details of its future relationship with the EU.
AP

The seemingly inevitable acquittal of Donald Trump in the US Senate would mark just the end to a formal effort by Democrats to hold the president accountable for his actions, but the political ramifications could be felt well into the 2020 election.

In some respects, the acquittal would once again illustrate the remarkable level of control and support that Mr Trump has managed to attract since mounting his long shot bid for the presidency in 2015. Since that time, Mr Trump has managed an extraordinary consolidation of support among Republicans, culminating in Senate majority leader Mitch McConnells determined effort to fast-track the impeachment trial by barring further witnesses.

The strategy, though, does come with political risk, especially given the steady drip of new evidence that has emerged in the press. Those leaks continued even on Friday, hours before the witness vote in the Senate, with a report indicating John Bolton had claimed in his upcoming book that Mr Trump had personally been involved in the effort to coerce the Ukrainian government into investigating Joe Biden as early as last May.

Its a defence of the president that has led many Democrats to cry foul, complaining that the effort represents a partisan circling of the wagons around a president who has been credibly accused of abusing his power and obstructing Congress, all the while refusing to provide new material evidence.

But even a victory in the Senate for Mr McConnell and Mr Trump could weigh heavy on the minds of voters some 10 months before the general election. So, then, could Mr McConnells strategy cost him control of the Senate  the legislative body that has helped Mr Trump to some of his greatest achievements including the appointment of over 100 conservative judges and, likely, acquittal?

As things stand, Republicans are facing a tougher 2020 electoral map than Democrats, who would need to pick up three seats to even the playing field (assuming they do not lose any, and that the two independents in the Senate who caucus with Democrats remain loyal).

Story continues

All told, Republicans are defending 23 seats to the 12 that are being defended by Democrats. Just one of those Democratic seats is considered a toss up by the Cook Political report, that of Alabamas Doug Jones. Meanwhile, three Republicans are in the toss up column  Martha McSally of Arizona, Cory Gardner of Colorado and Susan Collins of Maine.

That vulnerability meant that there was some question about whether some of those Republicans facing tough re-elections would vote for witnesses in the impeachment trial  a question that was resolved on Friday after Ms Collins said she would alongside Utahs Mitt Romney, but no other Republicans did so, eliminating the possibility.

Those decisions were made even as signs have emerged showing that the American people were interested in hearing more about Mr Trumps alleged misdeeds, and after Mr Bolton had said he would be willing to testify if subpoenaed.

Among those signs are the hundreds of protesters who flooded into the Senate on Wednesday to demand witnesses be called, and a recent poll by the respected Monmouth University showing that 75 per cent of voters want to hear from witnesses.

That seemingly losing battle for public sentiment has even been seen in fundraising by the two parties. The National Republican Congressional Committee posted record off-year fundraising totals in 2018 with $205.8 million raised, but the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee topped even that with $296.4 million raised. So far in 2020, Democrats have also outdone Republicans by about $30 million in those same committees. All of this goes to say that it might be difficult for Republicans to regain the House in 2020, much less keep the Senate.

Theyre kicking our ass, House minority leader Kevin McCarthy reportedly said during a closed door Republican meeting this week of the fundraising deficit.

As for Mr McConnell himself, his race appears to be safe  so far.

Up for re-election alongside Mr Trump, Mr McConnell is entering into the 2020 race with a Likely Republican ranking in the Cook Political Report, which is the second safest ranking.

But some troubling signs have emerged, and he may face a strong challenge from Democrat Amy McGrath (who, granted, is a longshot at this time). But, in 2018, Democratic gubernatorial candidate Andy Beshear managed to beat Trump-backed former governor Matt Bevin  who attempted to explicitly make the race a referendum on Trumpian politics.

Mr McConnell can certainly count on support from the president in the coming months, and has even received financial support from some of those who are representing Mr Trump before the Senate impeachment trial. Ken Starr, one of those legal team members, gave Mr McConnell the maximum allowed individual contribution in July, for instance, adding $2,800 to the campaign of a man whose last re-election bid became one of the most expensive in US Senate history.

Read more

What DC insiders really think of Mitch McConnell's trial rules

Mitch McConnell's impeachment 'trial' isn't a trial at all

Mitch McConnell laughs about stopping Obama hiring judges

A premature obituary for the career of Mitch McConnell
IndiGo Airlines on Saturday stated that the company will duly respond to any legal notice that it receives from comedian Kunal Kamra whom it had suspended from flying with it for six months for heckling journalist Arnab Goswami during a flight and making a video of the incident.

"The Company will duly respond to any legal notice that it receives in relation to this matter," said IndiGo airlines in a statement.

In the legal notice issued on Friday, Kamra had demanded a sum of Rs 25 lakh from the airline for the mental pain and losses incurred by him on account of the cancellation of his scheduled shows.

The comedian also demanded that Indigo Airlines revoke the suspension with immediate effect and tender an unconditional apology.

The legal notice also asked the airline, "To take action against the errant officials responsible for imposing the instant ban in abrogation of the DGCA CARs as notified under Rule 133A entailing imposition of penalty under S. No. 13 of Category III of Schedule VI of the Aircraft Rules, 1937."

The notice also said that the suspension was issued "in a completely illegal, high handed and arbitrary manner" and "without following either the principles of natural justice nor the procedure in law" as prescribed under the Civil Aviation Requirements.

Apart from Indigo, Air India, Spicejet, and GoAir also imposed a flying suspension on him.

The pilot, who was operating the flight in which the incident took place, had expressed his concerns over Indigo taking action in the case 'without consulting him' in a letter.

Director-General of Civil Aviation recently said that action taken by the four airlines imposing flight ban on Kamra was "incomplete consonance with civil aviation requirements".

In the video posted by Kamra on his Twitter handle, he asked several questions to Goswami while the latter remained glued to his laptop and did not respond to the former's questions, jibes, and comments.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
Weve got to put people in place that are going to get the government programs and then we have to do what we can on our own to make sure the values that have gotten us through, particularly as black people, all these many, many years are not overlooked, he said.
By Trend

International Finance Corporation (IFC) is committed to supporting Kazakhstan in its strategy to diversify the economy, expand private sector, and achieve sustainable growth, IFCs Regional Manager for Central Asia Cassandra Colbert told Trend.

"IFCs well-balanced Kazakhstan portfolio cuts across diverse segments of the economy; from agribusiness, manufacturing, infrastructure, including logistics, to the financial sector, including microfinance," Colbert said.

She noted that IFC addresses the various needs of Kazakhstans private sector and this includes working with institutions that provide finance to entrepreneurssuch as SMEs and micro-entrepreneursthat IFC cannot serve directly.

Some recent project examples are the second stage of a project that expands availability of housing finance in the country launched by IFC and the Housing Construction Savings Bank of Kazakhstan (HCSBK) in 2019.

"We conducted an assessment of HCSBKs operations as part of a joint advisory project to help the bank grow its housing portfolio by aligning its mortgage lending operations with international best practice. This phase of the project will fine tune HCSBKs product offering and launch new products and services to meet changing market demands," Colbert said.

She continued by saying the IFC has also partnered with Phoenix Commodities Pvt. Ltd. (British Virgin Islands) to invest into Kazakhstans horticulture and help the country modernize its fruit supply chain.

"The new global partnership includes a $20 million risk sharing agreement through a guarantee mechanism in favor of Phoenix Global DMCC, a Dubai-based trading subsidiary of Phoenix, and a $10 million investment in Phoenix Fruits LLP, a Kazakhstan-based subsidiary of Phoenix. The investment will support Kazakhstans horticulture sector and create more than 2,300 full-time and seasonal jobs, mostly for women," she said.

According to Colbert, IFC also looks to increase its presence in the human capital sector of the country; that is, health and education.

"We believe that with stronger private sector participation in the economy, Kazakhstan can become a driver of growth in the Central Asia region. IFC is committed to supporting Kazakhstan in its strategy to diversify the economy, expand the private sector, and achieve sustainable growth," she said.

Talking about IFCs goals in Kazakhstan, Colbert noted that IFC need to be flexible on how it achieves them.

"So our implementation sometimes needs to be adjusted to react to changing market conditions. In Kazakhstan, these adjustments are dictated by market events in the country, global forces, or by shifts in government priorities. With the government looking to move the economy away from natural resources, opportunities are emerging in other sectors and we hope to help the private sector leverage these opportunities," she said.

---

Follow us on Twitter @AzerNewsAz
Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman introduced new slabs and reduced the tax rate for different slabs for an individual income of up to Rs 15 lakh per annum, if a taxpayer opts for foregoing exemptions and deductions.

The new tax regime will be optional and the taxpayers will be given the choice to either remain in the old regime with exemptions and deductions or opt for the new reduced tax rate without those exemptions, she said in the Lok Sabha while unveiling the Budget 2020-21. Read more

Days After Jamia Firing Incident, Another Man Opens Fire In Shaheen Bagh Area, Held By Police

A man reportedly fired bullets in Shaheen Bagh area of the national capital. Police has taken him into their custody, news agency ANI reported.

The development comes days after a juvenile had fired upon Jamia Millia Islamia students who were peacefully protesting against the contentious Citizenship Amendment Act (CAA). Read more

After 50 Days Of Protests, Govt Finally Agrees To Talk To Anti-CAA Protesters In Shaheen Bagh

The ongoing protests at Delhi's Shaheen Bagh against the Citizenship Amendment Act (CAA) and National Register of Citizens (NRC) are unprecedented in several levels. It is probably the longest-running mass protest against the Central government in recent years. It is also probably for the first time in the country, Muslim women have led such an agitation.

It has become so massive, that the women protesters in Shaheen Bagh have inspired similar women-led protests in several parts of the country. Read more

Another Nirbhaya Rapist Akshay Thakur Files Mercy Plea As Delaying Tactics Continue

Akshay Thakur has become the third convict in the 2012 Delhi gang rape and murder case to file mercy plea before the President of India.

Akshay filed a mercy petition to President Ram Nath Kovind on Saturday, minutes after Home Ministry officials confirmed that President Kovind has rejected the clemency plea by Vinay Sharma, another convict in the Delhi gang rape case. Read more

Air India Flight With 324 Indians From Wuhan Lands In Delhi, Evacuees To Be Quarantined For 14 Days

The special Air India flight with 324 Indians who were evacuated from the coronavirus-hit Chinese city of Wuhan has landed in the national capital on Saturday morning.

The Boeing 747 Jumbo aircraft had taken off from Wuhan's Tianhe International Airport in the early hours of Saturday and landed at the Indira Gandhi International Airport in Delhi at 7:26 am. Read more

China Coronavirus Toll Rises To 259 As Over 12,000 New Infection Cases Reported So Far

Since the news of the outbreak of coronavirus came to the fore, China has been on a virtual lockdown.

The number of deaths from a coronavirus epidemic in China has risen to 259, the country's health authority said. Read more
iTrinegy: Testing Key to Providing SD-WAN Proof of Value

By Maurice Nagle , Web Editor

With a plethora of SD-WAN products and services, each with varying levels of features and capability, network professionals are potentially overwhelmed with vendor choice. More importantly, until now this was compounded by not having an appropriate test environment in which to properly operate and compare different SD-WAN vendor products to determine which one is most appropriate to the organizations specific needs.







Likewise, SD-WAN vendors have the dilemma of effectively delivering proof of value demonstrations to their prospective SD-WAN customers. iTrinegys (News - Alert) Software Defined Test Network technology delivers these test environments both for network professionals and SD-WAN vendors alike.

Before SD-WAN market leadership comes together in Fort Lauderdale, Florida for SD-WAN Expo, I had the pleasure of sitting down with iTrinegy Product Director Frank Puranik who will be participating in the panel 20 QuestionsGo!.

Maurice Nagle: Please tell us a bit about the latest news at your company.

Frank Puranik: iTrinegy continues to focus exclusively on the development and delivery of Enterprise-Class Software Defined Test Networks which enable both vendors and enterprises to fully understand the impact new types of network infrastructure, such as SD-WAN, will have on service delivery (applications, video, voice etc.,) and performance. We completed our fourth consecutive year of high growth, with 2019 seeing increased customer acquisition, revenue and profitability. We have just released our all new version (V9) of our software for our full-mesh capable range of high-end Enterprise Emulators. This includes many additional features, especially focused on running in production as well as lab environments. 2020 will also see iTrinegy expand its US operations where we already conduct more than 50% of our business.

MN: What pains are you taking away for customers?

FP: Our customers, whether they are enterprises or vendors, will share a common concern when introducing new networks into the production environment, namely: Will they be able to deliver the anticipated benefits of SD-WAN without compromising existing application performance and service delivery?

So, wouldnt it be useful if there was some way to conduct realistic pre-deployment testing of how applications will behave in the new network environment before actually investing in the proposed new infrastructure? This is where iTrinegy comes in. Our Software Defined Test Network (SD-TN) products enable both enterprises and vendors to recreate network topologies that accurately mimic the proposed real-world networks, like the Internet, MPLS and Cellular and their associated conditions including bandwidth, latency, loss and jitter. As the SD-TN is a test network it is not only possible to test under normal network conditions but to also create more extreme conditions to show how the proposed solution copes in adverse situations. For the enterprise, this ability to see if the proposed SD-WAN solution works effectively in even the most trying of circumstances should provide the reassurance that they are making a sound investment. At the same time, a Software Defined Test Network enables SD-WAN vendors to demonstrate their products operating in a realistic equivalent of the customers network, providing direct proof that it will work as expected when implemented.

MN: Whats your biggest SD-WAN takeaway from 2019?

FP: We first started to see SD-WAN about four years ago when there were about a dozen key vendors and some startups. There are now over 70 providers which means its really difficult to know where to start when choosing appropriate solutions which is why its critical for enterprises and vendors to have effective Proof-of-Concept environments.

MN: Whats your most off-the-wall tech prediction for 2020?

FP: AI will continue to change the way we live and will be able to predict what we need, when we are going to need it, and for how long we will need it (even if we dont know ourselves)!

MN: What do you hope to achieve at the event? Why should people come to SD-WAN Expo, ITEXPO (News - Alert) and its other collocated #TechSuperShow events to meet with your company?

FP: Learn, Learn, Learn! It makes complete sense for enterprises to conduct effective Proof-of-Concept testing of any new network, including SD-WAN, in order to assure themselves that they are making the right decision and fully understand the impact of delivering their applications across new network infrastructures. Enterprises should come to the iTrinegy booth to see just how easy it is to use our Software Defined Test Network technology to help them achieve these objectives. Vendors should come to the booth to understand how our products can help them demonstrate the power of their proposed solutions and reassure potential customers that they are making a wise investment.

While were at the Tech Super Show we would also like to meet resellers who can help us to drive more sales.

MN: Why should your session be on the list of must-attend sessions at this years conference?

FP: The 20 Questions...Go! panel session is a must-see as attendees will be able to draw on the expertise of the panel and gain invaluable insight into what you need to do in the early phases of the SD-WAN research/deployment process, including realistic proof-of-concept testing in order to successful select and implement the right SD-WAN solution for your organization - it could save you big time!

The early phases of any implementation or deployment can be tricky, so its vital to ask the right questions. The panel, 20 QuestionsGo! will offer best practice from the best in the business. Whats in your WAN? Ready for network transformation?

See you in sunny South Florida!

Edited by Maurice Nagle
However, in the end, Russia and Ukraine must settle the issue themselves, Pompeo says.

U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo and Belarusian Foreign Minister Vladimir Makei have said they will make every effort to settle the conflict in Donbas, eastern Ukraine.

Read alsoZelensky thanks Pompeo for continuous support of Ukraine

According to Pompeo, this is just the issue to be addressed by the whole of Europe and the world. But in the end, Russia and Ukraine must resolve it themselves. He assured that the United States would do everything it can, as reported by RFE/RL's Ukrainian service on February 1, referring to the officials' joint briefing in Minsk.

In turn, Makei noted that Belarus is ready to provide a platform for any meetings and negotiations to end the war in eastern Ukraine.

"We are determined, ready and will do everything possible to end the crisis in the east of Ukraine as soon as possible. We are ready to provide a platform in Belarus for any meetings and negotiations," he said.

Makei also added that "the Belarusian side expects the U.S. to play its part in resolving the crisis."

As UNIAN reported earlier, on January 31, Pompeo visited Kyiv, where he met with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky, Foreign Minister Vadym Prystaiko, Defense Minister Andriy Zagorodnyuk, as well as religious leaders and those of business and civil society.

Pompeo assured that the United States would continue to exert pressure on Russia until it fulfills its obligations under the Minsk agreements.
Today we'll look at Synergy Group Holdings International Limited (HKG:1539) and reflect on its potential as an investment. Specifically, we'll consider its Return On Capital Employed (ROCE), since that will give us an insight into how efficiently the business can generate profits from the capital it requires.

First up, we'll look at what ROCE is and how we calculate it. Then we'll compare its ROCE to similar companies. Then we'll determine how its current liabilities are affecting its ROCE.

Return On Capital Employed (ROCE): What is it?

ROCE is a measure of a company's yearly pre-tax profit (its return), relative to the capital employed in the business. Generally speaking a higher ROCE is better. Overall, it is a valuable metric that has its flaws. Author Edwin Whiting says to be careful when comparing the ROCE of different businesses, since 'No two businesses are exactly alike.

So, How Do We Calculate ROCE?

The formula for calculating the return on capital employed is:

Return on Capital Employed = Earnings Before Interest and Tax (EBIT)  (Total Assets - Current Liabilities)

Or for Synergy Group Holdings International:

0.11 = HK$59m  (HK$799m - HK$279m) (Based on the trailing twelve months to September 2019.)

Therefore, Synergy Group Holdings International has an ROCE of 11%.

Check out our latest analysis for Synergy Group Holdings International

Does Synergy Group Holdings International Have A Good ROCE?

ROCE is commonly used for comparing the performance of similar businesses. In our analysis, Synergy Group Holdings International's ROCE is meaningfully higher than the 7.6% average in the Trade Distributors industry. We consider this a positive sign, because it suggests it uses capital more efficiently than similar companies. Independently of how Synergy Group Holdings International compares to its industry, its ROCE in absolute terms appears decent, and the company may be worthy of closer investigation.

Story continues

Synergy Group Holdings International's current ROCE of 11% is lower than 3 years ago, when the company reported a 44% ROCE. This makes us wonder if the business is facing new challenges. The image below shows how Synergy Group Holdings International's ROCE compares to its industry, and you can click it to see more detail on its past growth.

SEHK:1539 Past Revenue and Net Income, January 31st 2020

It is important to remember that ROCE shows past performance, and is not necessarily predictive. Companies in cyclical industries can be difficult to understand using ROCE, as returns typically look high during boom times, and low during busts. ROCE is, after all, simply a snap shot of a single year. If Synergy Group Holdings International is cyclical, it could make sense to check out this free graph of past earnings, revenue and cash flow.

Synergy Group Holdings International's Current Liabilities And Their Impact On Its ROCE

Liabilities, such as supplier bills and bank overdrafts, are referred to as current liabilities if they need to be paid within 12 months. The ROCE equation subtracts current liabilities from capital employed, so a company with a lot of current liabilities appears to have less capital employed, and a higher ROCE than otherwise. To counter this, investors can check if a company has high current liabilities relative to total assets.

Synergy Group Holdings International has total assets of HK$799m and current liabilities of HK$279m. Therefore its current liabilities are equivalent to approximately 35% of its total assets. Synergy Group Holdings International has a middling amount of current liabilities, increasing its ROCE somewhat.

Our Take On Synergy Group Holdings International's ROCE

Synergy Group Holdings International's ROCE does look good, but the level of current liabilities also contribute to that. There might be better investments than Synergy Group Holdings International out there, but you will have to work hard to find them . These promising businesses with rapidly growing earnings might be right up your alley.

If you are like me, then you will not want to miss this free list of growing companies that insiders are buying.

If you spot an error that warrants correction, please contact the editor at editorial-team@simplywallst.com. This article by Simply Wall St is general in nature. It does not constitute a recommendation to buy or sell any stock, and does not take account of your objectives, or your financial situation. Simply Wall St has no position in the stocks mentioned.



We aim to bring you long-term focused research analysis driven by fundamental data. Note that our analysis may not factor in the latest price-sensitive company announcements or qualitative material. Thank you for reading.
Workers are seen near Qantas Airways, Australia's national carrier, Boeing 737-800 aircraft on the tarmac at Adelaide Airport, Australia, on Aug. 22, 2018. (Reuters/David Gray)

Australias Qantas Airlines Suspends Flights to China Amid Coronavirus Outbreak

Australia confirmed its 10th case of the coronavirus (2019-nCoV) on Saturday as its flag carrier Qantas is scheduled to suspend two direct services to mainland China starting Feb. 9, due to travel restrictions imposed by other countries amid the outbreak.

The unidentified woman who was confirmed to be infected on Saturday is in her 20s and lives in Melbourne, Victoria. She is the fourth case of coronavirus in the state and the 10th case in the country.

The woman had traveled to Wuhan, the epicenter of the outbreak, and returned to Australia on Jan. 25. She became ill two days later.

She was seen by doctors in a hospital in Melbourne on Jan. 30 and was deemed well enough to stay at home, where she currently remains since being tested. Health authorities claim that she was not considered infectious on the flight back to Victoria.

Authorities in Victoria are awaiting test results from another 13 people for the respiratory illness. The other nine cases confirmed in Australia are two in Queensland, three in Victoria, and four in New South Wales.

Later Saturday, Qantas said it will suspend its direct Sydney-Beijing and Sydney-Shanghai flights from Feb. 9 to March 29.

This follows entry restrictions imposed by countries including Singapore and the United States, which impact the movement of crew who work across the Qantas International network, the company said. These entry restrictions pose significant logistical challenges for rostering crew to operate mainland China services, leading to the need to temporarily suspend these flights.

There is no change to Qantas services to Hong Kong as its exempt from current travel restrictions, Qantas noted.

The Beijing service was already scheduled to end on Feb. 23 for commercial reasons.

Singapore from Sunday will bar entry or transit to those who have visited mainland China in the past 14 days. The United States will carry out a similar temporary ban but will grant entry to the immediate family of U.S. citizens and permanent residents.

Qantas said the date Feb. 9 was selected as a compromise between high passenger demand in both directions and a number of other travel restrictions, reported Australian news agency AAP.

The suspension may be brought forward if demand levels or other factors change, Qantas said. The date for flights to resume will also be regularly reviewed based on the circumstances.

A growing number of countries are closing their borders or announcing travel restrictions with China. The deadly coronavirus has spread to 23 countries outside of China, with at least 132 confirmed cases.
The views expressed by public comments are not those of this company or its affiliated companies. Please note by clicking on "Post" you acknowledge that you have read the TERMS OF USE and the comment you are posting is in compliance with such terms. Your comments may be used on air. Be polite. Inappropriate posts or posts containing offsite links, images, GIFs, inappropriate language, or memes may be removed by the moderator. Job listings and similar posts are likely automated SPAM messages from Facebook and are not placed by WFMZ-TV.
Goa Chief Minister Pramod Sawant on Saturday welcomed the Union Budget 2020-21, terming it as "common man-centric", while the opposition Congress slammed it saying that Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman was completely silent on the issue of unemployment.

The Shiv Sena also criticised the budget saying there was nothing specific for Goa in it.

"I congratulate Finance Minister Smt. @nsitharaman ji for a common man centric budget, and for taking ahead Prime Minister Shri @narendramodi ji's vision for a robust and vibrant India," CM Sawant said in a tweet.

State Health Minister Vishwajit Rane also welcomed the budget.

Taking to Twitter, he said, "Congratulations to @nsitharaman ji for an outstanding launch of #Budget2020. Also would like to thank you for allocating IRS 3000 crore for skill development. Looking forward to reach newer heights under your able leadership."



Independent MLA Rohan Khaunte also hailed the budget saying, "Propositions that focus of data mining and growing the startup ecosystem with easy policies & ore government support may prove to be a game changer."



"Wish the budget had perks for the Indian Middle Class clear path to solve the employment crisis," he said in the tweet.

Leader of Opposition in the Legislative Assembly, Digambar Kamat, however, said the finance minister neither mentioned anything about unemployment nor gave any action plan to support the proposals she made in the budget.

The Shiv Sena said the budget does not offer anything specific for the state.

Shiv Sena state unit vice-president Rakhi Prabhudesai Naik said the Modi government has specifically left out Goa, as there was nothing encouraging in the budget for the state's tourism and mining industries.

"Moreover, the coastal state has been missing from the list of five iconic heritage sites, where the Centre plans to set up museums," she said.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
UTICA, N.Y.--- Nicholas Durr has been announced as the 2020 St. Patrick's Day Parade Grand Marshal. The big announcement was made at the Great American Irish Festival Hooley. The Hooley is the kickoff for the parade as well as a fundraiser.

Durr is the former Vice President of the Friendly Sons of St. Patrick. He is also in charge of the Great American Irish Festival Mass. Durr has donated to multiple charities across the area including food pantries.

Durr tells NEWSChannel 2 that he is honored to be given this role.

"Well, I didn't believe it. It's something that's not in my comfort zone, having attention put on me. But I lost the battle and everybody said you've gotta do it. It's for the right cause," said Durr.

John Sullivan was last year's Grand Marshal.

This year's parade is set for March 14th.
A 19-year-old French citizen has died a day after a 'suspicious' fire that also left a three-month-old baby injured.

Fifteen residents and a dog were rescued by helicopter from the roof of the burning building and other residents were rescued from ledges of the 25-floor building after threatening to jump to escape the flames.

The deceased man has been named as Jeremy Bru, a foreign exchange student from France. He died in hospital on Friday evening and his cause of death has not been released.

The cause of the fire is still under investigation and arson has not been ruled out.

A resident threatened to jump fro the burning building before being rescued by firefighters

Firefighters took just 73 minutes to stop the blaze in the 25-floor residential building

Thirteen people were injured, including a three-month-old infant and two firefighters who suffered minor burns, after the fire ignited shortly after 8.30 am Wednesday morning at Barrington Plaza, 11740 West Wilshire Boulevard in Brentwood, fire officials said.

Seven residents were taken to hospital including Bru. Four were treated and released. There are no further updates on the conditions of the other injuries.

The dramatic fire spread quickly due to 35-mile-an-hour gusts of wind and when firefighters arrived, two people forced onto the building's ledges by the flames were threatening to jump. A public service announcement system was used to tell them to stay as ladders were raised to bring them to safety.

'We let them know to stay there,' Los Angeles Deputy Fire Chief Armando Hogan told reporters.

'No one jumped.'

Earlier reports that residents had jumped from the building were dismissed but one man was rescued by firefighters as he desperately tried to escape the floor where the fire was worst

Firefighters were quick to the scene traveling three blocks from another high-rise fire

The intense flames meant 'firefighters were literally driven to their bellies halfway through that hallway before they even got to that fire unit', Fire Capt. Erik Scott told NBC News.

'This certainly could have been a lot worse, with 240 units, multiple people living in those units.

'Firefighters did an outstanding job.'

Residents were seen gathering on the top floor of the building awaiting evacuation as fire crews knocked down the blaze.

The fire was confirmed knocked down by 10am, only 73 minutes after the first 911 call was made.

LAFD spokesman Brian Humphrey said that many residents had already left the building for work before the fire broke out.

'We arrived very quickly after the fire reported, within moments, to find heavy fire pouring out of this sixth floor unitInitially there were reports of several person who had jumped from that or upper floors,' he said.

Investigations are underway to determine the cause of the fire which may have been arson

Witnesses said that at least one of the units involved in the blaze was an Airbnb rental

Witnesses said that at least one of the units involved in the blaze was an Airbnb rental. However, city officials told the Los Angeles Times there was no indicated the blaze broke out in a unit being rented on Airbnb.

Residents who rent apartments in the building said that Airbnb sublets are forbidden by the building owners but are nonetheless common. DailyMail.com confirmed there are active listings on Airbnb for the apartment complex.

The Los Angeles Fire Department said that 335 firefighters were assigned to battle the blaze, including four rescue-capable helicopters.

Authorities described the fire as 'possibly suspicious' at a press conference, but declined to specify what evidence may point to arson at this early stage.

LAFD arson investigators and the Los Angeles Police Department are cooperating in an investigation into whether the fire was intentionally set.

'It's very, very early. We don't know if we have an arson or an accidental fire at this point,' said LAPD West Bureau Deputy Chief Justin Eisenberg at a press conference.

'Arson investigators are working closely with LAPD to determine the cause of the fire,' said LAFD Spokesperson: Nicholas Prange.

'The investigation is active and ongoing. Investigators are combing through debris, examining evidence, and questioning witnesses in an effort to uncover facts surrounding the ignition of the fire.'

Initially authorities investigated a possible link to an earlier fire that broke out at 6.30am Wednesday at a different high-rise office building several blocks away.

By Wednesday afternoon, the earlier fire was confirmed as accidental.

LAFD arson investigators are investigating whether the tragic fire was intentionally set

The Barrington Plaza building, which has 39 residents living in 240 units, is the same one where a major fire broke out in October 2013.

The 2013 fire on the 11th floor injured eight people, displaced dozens of residents and caused millions of dollars in damages.

At that time, the building did not have sprinklers installed because it was built 52 years ago and was exempt from safety codes. Officials say that the building still does not have sprinklers.

Scott confirmed that the building does not have fitted sprinklers. Built before 1974, the high-rise is among 55 other residential high-rises in Los Angeles that are not required to have a sprinkler system because of their age.

The building was last been inspected in June 2019 and was up to code.

City Councilman Mike Bonin introduced a council motion on Friday to seek an ordinance that would require sprinklers in residential buildings built more than 50 years ago.

He stated that it should not have taken 'another tragedy' to get sprinklers in older buildings.

Police said that a Red Cross shelter had been set up for any displaced residents at the Westwood Rec Center at 1350 South Sepulveda.

The owner of the Barrington Plaza Douglas Emmett Inc. also reserved rooms in several hotels for tenants and set up a website and hotline.

'Our priority is the safety and well-being of our residents,' the company said in a statement.

'We're tracking the condition of those who may have been injured. We take these matters extremely seriously, and will continue to work with the Fire Department and local authorities.'


Hong Kong is no longer the largest commercial real-estate market in Asia-Pacific, having lost its crown to Tokyo in 2019, data and analytics firm Real Capital Analytics said on Thursday.

Tokyo and Seoul took the first two spots. In 2018, they were in second and third spots, behind Hong Kong.

After experiencing years of strong rental and capital value growth, Hong Kongs property market is entering a downward phase while the local economy faces pressure from both external and internal volatility and tensions, said Terence Tang, managing director, capital markets, Asia, at Canada-based commercial real-estate services company Colliers International.

Since June, the city has been rocked by its worst political crisis in decades, with anti-government protests hurting Hong Kongs tourism and retail sectors in particular. It was also affected by the US-China trade war, which weighed on trade and investment activity.

In the next 12 months, Hong Kong is likely to be a buyers market, with property prices returning to a more reasonable level. This, in turn, will prompt investors to seize opportunities and seek huge discounts.

Affluent investors and institutional funds are also eyeing opportunities presented by distressed sales of assets, Tang said.

Business activity in Hong Kong has also been affected by the Wuhan coronavirus outbreak, which will have short-term implications on investment volume, according to property consultancy CBRE. The company added that, with the exception of 2018, owing to a one-off large commercial property deal in Hong Kong, Tokyo had always been the largest commercial real-estate market in Asia-Pacific.

Funds across the region have raised capital in the past two years, which they are looking for somewhere to deploy. Japan is an attractive destination because of the depth and the breadth of its market, as well as low interest costs, said Ada Choi, head of occupier research, Asia-Pacific, at CBRE.

The Japanese capital is likely to remain an investors darling as demand is expected to continue to outstrip supply, particularly when it comes to offices.

Story continues

In Tokyos office market, asset performance remains solid. A near-term increase in pre-commitments already exceeding 70 per cent of 2020 supply has reduced vacancy, keeping the average rental growth around 3 per cent, said Colliers Tang.

Meanwhile, domestic investors had ramped up activity in Seouls commercial property, which had more than tripled in the period, Real Capital said. Investment momentum in Seoul has been building for some time, it said.

Sydney remains the fourth-largest commercial market in the region, while Beijing has leapt three notches to take the fifth spot. The metro [Beijing] registered a record year for income-producing deal activity and climbed into fifth place, Real Capital said.

More from South China Morning Post:

This article Hong Kong, hurt by US-China trade war, protests, replaced by Tokyo as Asia-Pacifics largest commercial real-estate market in 2019 first appeared on South China Morning Post

For the latest news from the South China Morning Post download our mobile app. Copyright 2020.
Renowned historian Ramchandra Guha on Thursday alleged that Prime Minister Narendra Modi misused Mahatma Gandhi's name to "promote himself", and asked if he was "fond of" Gandhi before becoming prime minister.

Guha, while delivering a lecture on the occasion of Mahatma Gandhi's death anniversary, also slammed the BJP-led Union government over the Citizenship (Amendment) Act (CAA), saying Gandhi would have opposed it if he were alive.

In a piece of advice for Kartikeya Sarabhai, a trustee of the Sabarmati Ashram Preservation and Memorial Trust, Guha said the Ashram should have maintained a distance from Modi after he became prime minister.

READ | Congress Responds To Ramachandra Guha's Criticism Of Rahul Gandhi, Gehlot Chides Historian

Sabarmati Ashram

He also criticised Sabarmati Ashram and other Gandhian institutions such as Gujarat Vidyapith (which was founded by Gandhi himself) for not speaking up against the CAA.

"After May 2014, you (Sarabhai and other trustees) should have kept the PM at arm's length. Was he fond of Gandhi before he became PM? He misused Gandhi's name to promote himself," Guha, who has penned a two-volume biography of the Mahatma, said.

"If Gandhi was alive, he would have opposed CAA. It is deceitful for the PM to misquote Gandhi," said Guha during a question-hour session after his lecture.

The CAA -- which grants citizenship to non-Muslim refugees from Pakistan, Afghanistan and Bangladesh -- is "illogical, immoral and ill-timed", he said.

READ | Ramachandra Guha Apologises For Criticising Rahul Gandhi's Election, Reverts To Type

Any morally upright person who believes in the Constitution and non-violence would oppose it, he added.

"Even if the Supreme Court upholds it, CAA must be resisted, but non-violently," the historian said, before slamming Union Home Minister Amit Shah over his comments about the ongoing protest at Shaheen Bagh in Delhi.

"It's the obligation of political class to try and contain, manage, tame and overcome violence. But here, record of our political leadership has been unfortunate," Guha said.

"Just look at the violence in the language of the two of the most important people in India," he said.

"For the Home Minister of India, the remarks he made about the women in Shaheen Bagh are unconstitutional. In any decent democracy, he should have been dismissed overnight. It is because of what the Home Minister said, the junior minister said even worse things," said Guha.

READ | Ramachandra Guha Claims He Was Distorted, Slams Congress Even In His Clarification

"Abusive and demeaning"

He did not specify exactly which remarks he was referring to.

Guha also accused the PM of using "abusive and demeaning" language for his political opponents.

To a question about why he declined to accept Ahmedabad University's offer of a teaching post in 2018, Guha blamed the BJP, saying "the ruling party did not allow me".

The Akhil Bhartiya Vidyarthi Parishad, the student wing of the RSS, had submitted a memorandum to the private university, seeking cancellation of Guha's appointment.

"Remember, there was Gujarat before Modi and Shah, and there will be Gujarat after Modi and Shah," said Guha, addressing the audience which included prominent intellectuals, lawyers, university students and civil rights activists.

After the lecture, Guha visited Rakhial area of the city where Muslim women have been staging a Shaheen Bagh-like sit-in protest for the last one week against the CAA.

READ | From 'Modi Never Holidays' To 'Badshah' Sonia, Ramachandra Guha Makes Startling Volte-face
Richey Edwards of the Manic Street Preachers is interviewed in the offices of the NME, London, 1992. (Photo by Martyn Goodacre/Getty Images)

He has been missing for 25 years, and presumed dead since 2008, but a fresh appeal has been released for Manic Street Preachers band member Richey Edwards.

The troubled guitarist and lyricist went missing on 1 February 1995, same day he was due to fly to the US to undertake a promotional tour, and his car was discovered near the Severn Bridge, prompting fears he had committed suicide.

However, his body has never been found, prompting rumours and conspiracy theories, helped by alleged sightings, Edwards is alive and living abroad.

Read more: Robbie Williams calls off boxing match with Liam Gallagher after wife Ayda tells him he is not up to it

His sister, Rachel has worked at Missing Persons since he went missing and the charity has issued a new appeal.

Kate Graham of Missing Persons said: Richard, if you are reading this, please call or text us on our free phone number, 116 000. Its confidential and we cant trace your call.

Rachel Elias, sister of missing Manic Street Preachers guitarist Richey Edwards, holds up posters of her missing loved one outside the Houses of Parliament, London, ahead of her giving evidence at the UK's first Parliamentary Inquiry into the rights of families of missing people. (Photo by Clive Gee/PA Images via Getty Images)

We just want to provide you with the support you need and help you to be safe. The helpline is here to support people who are missing  or thinking of going missing  and their loved ones who are left behind.

Rachel said: I was 24 when I last saw my brother and 24 years have passed since the day he went missing. I have been without him for half of my life.

I am almost the same age my mother was when her son disappeared.

Edwards parents both died before discovering what happened to their son.

Read more: Coldplay delay future global tours until they can ensure shows are 'carbon neutral'

The police file is still open and the Met Police have said: Richey Edwards is still listed as a missing person. The case remains open and we welcome any information.

Group portrait of the Manic Street Preachers, Elephant & Castle roundabout, London, 1990. L-R James Dean Bradfield, Nicky Wire, Richey Edwards and Sean Moore. (Photo by Martyn Goodacre/Getty Images)

Since going missing, Edwards has allegedly been spotted in India and Spain, as well as closer to home in Newport.

Welsh rockers The Manic Street Preachers, James Dean Bradfield, Nicky Wire and Sean Moore, continued as a trio to great success after losing their main songwriter.

For many years they set aside 25% of their profits for Edwards should he still be alive.
Source: Xinhua| 2020-02-01 01:46:15|Editor: huaxia

Video Player Close

European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen (R), European Parliament President David Sassoli (C) and President of the European Council Charles Michel attend a press conference on the future of Europe at the Parlamentarium in Brussels, Belgium, Jan. 31, 2020.(Xinhua/Zheng Huansong)

"It's never a happy moment when someone leaves but we are opening a new chapter," says Charles Michel, President of the European Council, vowing that "We will devote all our energy to building a stronger, more ambitious EU."

BRUSSELS, Jan. 31 (Xinhua) -- Top European Union (EU) leaders sent a message of unity and hope on the day of the United Kingdom's departure, vowing that a smaller bloc would not translate into a weaker one.

Presidents Charles Michel, David Sassoli and Ursula von der Leyen, respectively of the European Council, the European Parliament and the European Commission, stood together on Friday morning to deliver remarks meant to elicit optimism and energy on the day when they lose one of the bloc's most important economic, political and military powerhouses.

"We stand at a new departure for Europe. We should not forget how much stronger we are when we act together," said Sassoli.

European Parliament President David Sassoli speaks at a press conference on the future of Europe at the Parlamentarium in Brussels, Belgium, Jan. 31, 2020.(Xinhua/Zheng Huansong)

"It's never a happy moment when someone leaves but we are opening a new chapter. We will devote all our energy to building a stronger, more ambitious EU. With 27 strong democracies, strong values, freedoms, 22 million businesses, and the biggest single market," said Michel.

"Indeed, tomorrow, almost half a century of the United Kingdom's membership of the European Union is over. When the UK joined -- I was still at school -- we were 6 Member States. Tomorrow we will be 27 Member States," said von der Leyen.

"During all these years ... our Union has gained political impetus and has become a global economic powerhouse. Our experience has taught us that strength does not lie in splendid isolation but in our unique Union," she added.

European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen speaks at a press conference on the future of Europe at the Parlamentarium in Brussels, Belgium, Jan. 31, 2020.(Xinhua/Zhang Cheng)

LESSONS FROM BREXIT

Despite their upbeat rhetoric, the departure of the UK remains a significant scar, about which the leaders were pressed by questions what lessons the EU have learned.

"It's essential in the future to take much more into consideration the expectations of the European citizens towards the European Union. It's also very important to explain what is the daily added value of this political project," Michel said, referring to the concept usually repeated by pro-EU figures that the EU is not a perfect final product but an ongoing process that constantly needs adaptations and perfections.

President of the European Council Charles Michel attends a press conference on the future of Europe at the Parlamentarium in Brussels, Belgium, Jan. 31, 2020.(Xinhua/Zheng Huansong)

Von der Leyen stressed the unity, saying within three and a half years of Brexit, there was a very precious experience -- the 27 other EU member states sticking together.

To the surprise of many observers, during the Brexit negotiations, the EU27 held together around Brexit negotiator Michel Barnier to square off with London, where bitter divisions unseated the government of then Prime Minister Theresa May.

"It's way more than each single country would ever have on its own, and we make the experience how strong we are defending our values our interests but also protecting our member state Ireland. And therefore this experience of being together and solving problems together was a valuable one," she said.
Shuddhasattwa Ghosh

Budget 2020 has announced several measures to achieve the objectives of higher growth, a simple tax structure, ease of compliance and reduced litigation for an individual taxpayer.

Some of them are discussed below.

Reduced tax rate along with ease of compliance

Under the current tax regime, an individual taxpayer is allowed several exemptions or deductions to determine the taxable income. However, claim of such exemptions and deductions requires the individual to maintain robust documentation such as rental agreement, investment documents and the like.

Current Tax Rates Proposed Tax Rates Income Tax Rate Income Tax Rate Up to 250,000 NIL Up to 250,000 NIL 250,001 to 500,000 5% 250,001 to 500,000 5% 500,001 to 10,00,000 20% 500,001 to 750,000 10% 10,00,001 and above 30% 750,001 to 10,00,000 15% 10,00,001 to 12,50,000 20% 12,50,001 to 15,00,000 25% 15,00,001 and above 30%

To provide ease of compliance, Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman has introduced a new tax mechanism under which no exemptions or deductions will be available to the individual taxpayer and a reduced tax rate will be applicable on the taxable income. A comparison of the tax rates -- excluding surcharge -- with and without deductions are as follows.

Increase in transparency

The government had, in its previous Budget, introduced faceless e-assessment to eliminate the interface between the taxman and the taxpayer. Buoyed by the success and to further improve tax efficiency, transparency and accountability, the government has proposed to extend the faceless e-assessment for appeal and penalty proceedings.

To boost the trust between taxpayers and the administration, the FM has proposed that a Taxpayers Charter will be framed wherein the rights of the taxpayers will be outlined.

The Sabka Vishwas (Legacy Dispute Resolution) Scheme, 2019, has been a big initiative by the government, which has resulted in reduction of litigation in indirect taxes. It is proposed that a similar scheme will be brought in for direct taxes in which a taxpayer will be required to pay only the amount of the disputed taxes and get complete waiver of interest and penalty, provided the disputed taxes are paid by March 31.

The taxpayer may avail of the benefit under this scheme till June 30 by paying an additional amount. Any taxpayer whose appeal is pending with the authorities at any level, including the Supreme Court, may benefit from the proposed scheme and there could be substantial saving on account of waiver of interest.

Deferred taxation for ESOPs

It is proposed that though income from ESOP (employee stock options) will be calculated in the year of allotment or transfer of shares, the payment of taxes would be deferred to after 48 months from the end of the assessment year of exercise or date of sale of such shares or date of cessation of employment, whichever is earlier. This would address the problem of cash flow for the employees of start-ups when ESOPs are allotted to them and should be a huge incentive.

The Budget also proposes to include the start-ups with turnover of up to Rs 100 crore (currently limited up to Rs 25 crore) in the definition from the eligibility perspective. This means more employees being eligible for the benefit of deferred taxation as mentioned above.

Taxation of the rich

In the spirit that high earners should pay more tax, change is proposed to tax the employers contribution to a recognised provident fund, the national pension scheme and the approved superannuation fund, if such aggregate contribution exceeds Rs 7.5 lakh. Further, any interest, dividend or any other accretion to the above taxable amount will also be considered as a taxable perquisite.

On the other hand, with the removal of dividend distribution tax (DDT), the dividend from shares and mutual funds will now be taxable in the hands of the taxpayer at applicable rates.

Preventing residency misuse

With the intent to curb misuse of tax residency, the definition of a tax resident for an individual is proposed to be changed. Currently, a citizen of India or person of India origin who is outside India and keeps visiting the country, qualifies as a resident if their stay in India is 182 days or more in the financial year concerned. Such an individual will now qualify as a resident if the stay in India is 120 days or more.

Many countries use the domicile or centre of vital interest as the criteria of determining residency of the individual whereas some countries use citizenship. It is proposed to introduce a new rule where a citizen of India will be deemed to be resident in India if he is not liable to pay tax in any other country by reason of his domicile or residence or any other similar criteria.

The definition of not ordinarily resident is proposed to be beneficially changed to cover an individual who is a non-resident in India in seven out of 10 financial years (earlier nine out of 10 financial years or 729 days in the last seven years).

Overall, the Budget is a continuing step in the governments journey of conducive tax environment.
Arab foreign ministers are meeting Saturday in Egypt's capital to discuss a White House plan for ending the Israeli-Palestinian conflict that would grant the Palestinians limited self-rule in parts of the occupied West Bank, while allowing Israel to annex all its settlements there and keep nearly all of east Jerusalem.

The meeting at the Arab League headquarters in Cairo was requested by the Palestinians, who responded angrily to the U.S. deal.

President Mahmoud Abbas, who said ``a thousand no's'' to the proposal, is planning to attend the gathering. He said the Palestinians remain committed to ending the Israeli occupation and establishing a state with its capital in east Jerusalem.

The Arab League's head, Ahmed Aboul-Gheit, said on Wednesday that an initial study of the plan's political framework showed that it ``ignored legitimate Palestinian rights in the territories.''

He said the Palestinian response would be key in shaping a ``collective Arab position'' on the plan, which he noted was a ``non-binding U.S. vision.''

U.S. President Donald trump unveiled the long-awaited proposal Tuesday in Washington. It would allow Israel to annex all its West Bank settlements _ which the Palestinians and most of the international community view as illegal _ as well as the Jordan Valley, which accounts for roughly a fourth of the West Bank.

In return, the Palestinians would be granted statehood in Gaza, scattered chunks of the West Bank and some neighborhoods on the outskirts of Jerusalem, all linked together by a new network of roads, bridges and tunnels. Israel would control the state's borders and airspace and maintain overall security authority. Critics of the plan say this would rob Palestinian statehood of any meaning.

The plan would abolish the right of return for Palestinian refugees displaced by the 1948 war and their descendants, a key Palestinian demand. The entire agreement would be contingent on Gaza's Hamas rulers and other armed groups disarming, something they have always adamantly rejected.

*This story was edited by Ahram Online

Search Keywords:

Short link:


Weather Alert

...Winter Storm System to Impact the Region this Weekend... A strong winter storm system will push east through the Quad State Saturday into Sunday. Wintry precipitation will spread eastward into southern Illinois and southeast Missouri late Friday night, and then southeast over the remainder of the region Saturday morning. The evolution of the storm for the remainder of the weekend is quite uncertain at this time. The ultimate path and intensity of the storm system, along with the temperature forecast, will determine how impactful it will be across the Quad State. For now you are encouraged to monitor the latest forecasts and follow your winter weather preparedness plans ahead of this potentially impactful winter storm.
A Chinese couple who tested positive for the coronavirus in Italy went on a tour of the country visiting Milan, Verona, Parma and Rome before they were quarantined.

The woman, 65, and her husband, 66, are both from Wuhan and landed in Milan on January 23.

They were taken to the Spallanzani hospital from their hotel in Rome after they became feverish. They are now stable.

A Chinese couple who tested positive for the coronavirus in Italy went on a tour of the country visiting Milan, Verona, Parma and Rome before they were quarantined. Pictured: The Palatino hotel where the tourists were staying

The other 18 members of their tour group were found in Cassino by police and were taken to the same hospital.

They remain there to be be monitored by medics, The Times reports.

Italian Prime Minister Giuseppe Conte pledged 5 million to help stop the coronavirus spreading.

He also suspended air travel between Italy and China, added that he would be arranging a meeting with the Council of Ministers today to discuss 'further measures'.

He told CNN: 'We have already prepared all the precautionary measures to isolate these two cases.

The latest cases come after the 7,000 passengers who were kept in lockdown onboard the Costa Smeralda were allowed to leave the boat

'There is no reason to create social alarm or panic.'

The latest cases come after the 7,000 passengers who were kept in lockdown onboard a cruise ship in the Italian city of Civitavecchia were allowed to leave the boat after receiving confirmation that two people onboard did not have the coronavirus.

The people travelling inside the Costa Smeralda ship had been kept on the ship since Thursday morning after a Chinese woman, 54, from Macau, who boarded the ship on January 25, came down with 'mild flu-like symptoms' the previous night.

The woman, who was placed in an isolation unit on the ship with her partner, tested negative for the virus, Italy's health ministry later confirmed.

Costa Smeralda, which is owned by the company Costa Crociere, offered to pay for food and hotels for some 1,140 people who had been due to disembark at the Civitavecchia port near Rome on Thursday.

The cases in Italy come as the World Health Organisation (WHO) declared an international public health emergency over the outbreak.

Pictured: A bus leaves the harbour where the Costa Smeralda cruise ship was docked in Civitavecchia

The Spallanzani hospital where the two Chinese tourists who tested positive are being kept in isolation

Italian Prime Minister Giuseppe Conte has suspended air travel between Italy and China

Following a meeting with an emergency committee in Geneva, WHO Director-General Dr Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus told reporters: 'The main reason for this declaration is not because of what is happening in China, but because of what is happening in other countries.

'Our greatest concern is the potential for the virus to spread to countries with weaker health systems, and which are ill-prepared to deal with it.'

The coronavirus, which has infected nearly 10,000 people and killed 213, is known to spread easily through coughs and sneezes and close contact, and people may be contagious even if they feel well.
STATEN ISLAND, N.Y. -- Everyones favorite childhood cereals -- Cinnamon Toast Crunch and Lucky Charms -- will not only be good for breakfast, but dessert too.

General Mills and Nestle have teamed up to ensure the ice cream flavors are as tasteful as its cereal form, New Yorks Country 94.7 reports.

The Lucky Charms ice cream will offer ice cream eaters the fan-favorite themed marshmallows, with a creamy vanilla base, the report says.

The Cinnamon Toast Crunch ice cream offers a light cinnamon base with a cinnamon graham swirl and cereal pieces, the report says.

The ice creams will be available in both 14 and 48 ounce containers.

The ice creams are expect to come out within the next few months, and will be available at most major grocery stores nationwide, the radio station reports.

Earlier this month, Ben & Jerrys launched a Netflix inspired ice cream, Netflix & Chilld.
Photo Illustration by The Daily Beast/Getty

Late into Wednesdays session of the Senate impeachment trial, Sen. Chris Coons (D-DE) asked a question of President Trumps defense team: did they think foreign involvement in U.S. elections was illegal?

The Trump teams reply: nope. Mere information is not something that would violate the campaign finance laws, responded White House Deputy Counsel Patrick Philbin.

The idea that any information that happens to come from overseas is necessarily campaign interference is a mistake, Philbin calmly suggested.

The question was asked with a focus on Trumps open encouragement of Russian help in the 2016 election. And it was answered against the backdrop of Trumps impeachment for abuse of powerhis attempts to strong-arm Ukraine into investigating his political rival by withholding U.S. aid.

The Government Accountability Office recently found that such withholding was illegal. And federal law prohibits U.S. political campaigns from taking a contribution or donation of money or anything of value from foreign entities. The information Trump sought in Ukraine would seem to be quite valuable indeed.

To many senators listening, these arguments flung open the doors for Trump, or any future president or candidate for office, to engage in that kind of behavior again, knowing that it had been defended by White House lawyers on the Senate floor. Earlier that day, Trump lawyer Alan Dershowitz had already gone even further, arguing that Trump could justify his actions with the reasonable belief that his re-election would be in the countrys interest.

This trial, said Sen. Richard Blumenthal (D-CT), may be seen as a vindication of those very dangerous ideas that foreign interference can be accepted that the president can do anything as long as his motives are to re-elect himself, and he thinks its in the public interest.

Its Orwellian, is what it is, added Sen. Michael Bennet (D-CO), a 2020 presidential candidate.

That Trump would be acquitted at the end of this months-long impeachment process was never truly in doubt. Less clear, however, is what example that acquittal might set for his future conduct, and that of future presidents, on everything from their use of foreign aid to the way they conduct their campaigns.

Story continues

Some Republicans backed away from these expansive arguments, even if they thought they were not wrong. A vocal defender of the presidents, Sen. Josh Hawley (R-MO), said he thought Philbin had the legal case correct. Does that mean you should accept [foreign help]? Hawley asked. No, I don't think so.

But most Republicans shrugged, despite the fact that Trump administration officials are already warning about foreign powers such as Russia interfering in the 2020 U.S. elections. Sen. Richard Burr (R-NC), the chair of the Senate Intelligence Committee that investigated Moscows election interference in 2016, said he had no problem with what Philbin said.

Its not hard to imagine the Pandoras box that such an environment could unleash. Different countries could do battle with each other in the arena of U.S. politics, for example, arming different campaigns with weaponized dirt.

I hope that candidates would return to the high standard that we should have, said Sen. Bob Menendez (D-NJ). But there may be those candidates in the future who say, I don't believe in unilateral disarmamentthat at the end of the day, if they're going to do it, I should be able to do it.

Why does a foreign country ultimately get engaged in our domestic elections? Is it about the interests of the American people? Is it about the business of the American people? asked Menendez. No. It's about their interests and their business.

But its not only Capitol Hill Democrats that are preparing for a new reality. Whatever the White House says in the face of Trumps ultimate acquittal in the Senate, U.S. administration officials and foreign officials acknowledge Trump will increasingly manufacture his own foreign policy decisions, with his personal associates, without the input of his intelligence and national security agencies. That means Trump will more likely have the ability to run his personal political errandsand business agendawith little, if any, scrutiny. And when that scheme falls apart, and Trumps personal associates turn on him, or decide to detail the behind-the-scenes shenanigans, the U.S. will lose credibility on the world stage.

Weve already seen this happen with [John] Bolton, one U.S. official with an extensive foreign policy portfolio, said, referring to the former national security adviser. His own officials will go to conferences, or hold meetings, and well be blindsided by discussions the White House has had behind our backs. And how do you think this makes us look? Disorganized for one. But also that were a country, or at least a government, divided.

That new reality is one thats all but been approved by Republicans in the Senate who are set to sign off on the White House counsels argument that President Trump has complete authority to make crucial national security decisions as he sees fit, even if it threatens American interests overseas or runs roughshod over a process his own deputies had put in place.

A large portion of the Ukraine story has focused on how Trumps personal attorney Rudy Giuliani and other close confidants such as former Energy Secretary Rick Perry and E.U. Ambassador Gordon Sondland carried out a shadow diplomacy effort to run what Democrats have called a political errand.

And it wasnt just Trump administration officials that played those roles. Republicans on Capitol Hill, too, engaged with figures who helped spark the Ukraine counter-narratives touted by the presidents defenders to undermine the Ukraine case. As The Daily Beast reported, Rep. Devin Nunes (R-CA), for one, met last May with a former Ukrainian diplomatAndrii Telizchenkowho once spread the widely-debunked theory that Ukraine worked to assist Hillary Clinton in her 2016 campaign.

Those backdoor, behind-the-scenes efforts have been hailed inside Trumps inner circle as effective and, despite criticism, appropriate. But career civil servants, including some of the administration's current and former top national security officials, have denounced those efforts in interviews with The Daily Beast, claiming it undermines the well-established interagency processone thats meant to act as a safeguard against dangerous ideas and policies moving forward.

National security officials arent worried about Trump cutting them out of the foreign policy process because of their egosthought thats exactly how the White House counsel described Trumps subordinates this week. Theyre genuinely concerned, they said, that the American political system will systematically be compromised by American adversaries and that the foundation of the countrys democracy will be peeled away. And with rogue actors with practically zero experience running the foreign policy channels, off-book, without any oversight, then that scenarioone where the U.S. becomes something of an international cats-paw, in a senseis increasingly likely to happen.

The acquittal will just be another reminder that that kind of behavior is OK, one senior U.S. official said. And whats scary is that it will have real-time national security consequences.

One could argue those are already happening. When the Ukrainians refused the demands of Trumps three amigos, the White House withheld weapons meant to help Ukraine combat Russia on the battlefield. Moscow didnt pouncethis time. Who knows what might happen next?

The Daily Beast reported this week in an interview with former top national security official for Ukraine Oleksandr Danylyuk that the Zelensky administration was in a panic when the aid froze. They worried not only that the U.S.-Ukraine relationship might be teetering, but also because the administration desperately needed that funding for its soldiers who are still fighting a violent war with Russia in the eastern part of the country. That assistance had been promised to Ukraine for years, ever since President Vladimir Putin moved to invade Crimea, and the notion that it was suddenly under a question mark only made Ukraine distrust the trajectory of its partnership with America, Danylyuk said.

Perhaps even more concerning to Democrats and national security officials who spoke to The Daily Beast is Trumps reliance on conspiracy theories to form the basis of his foreign policy objectives. And acquittal, they said, would be a nod to Trump himself that his way of navigating relationships with foreign leaders and countries is not only appropriate, but preferred.

In Ukraine, Trump leaned on Rudy Giuliani to dig up dirt on former Vice President Joe Biden, a possible opponent in 2020, and his son Hunter. The former New York mayor forged relationships with Ukrainian diplomats and officials who regularly propagate Russian conspiracy theories. For example, Andri Derkach, who met with Giuliani in December, and another member of parliament, Oleksandr Dubinsky, have claimed that it was Ukraine, not Russia, that interfered in the 2016 election. U.S. intelligence agencies say this is the product of a Kremlin disinformation campaign.

Yet this theory and others were propped up this week by the White House counsel and other Trump-backing Republican senators who, up until the end of the witness vote, raised the possibility publicly that that theorythe conspiracy theorycould be true.

If Democrats held up Trumps acquittal as a possible enabler of future misdeeds, some Republicans pointed to the intensity of the impeachment investigation and the subsequent trial as a possible deterrent.

Whatever we think this sets as a precedent going forward, I don't worry about it, said Sen. Kevin Cramer (R-ND), who is a staunch defender of the president. The reason I dont worry about it is because I think what president, no matter what you think the boundaries are, would ever want to go through this ever again?

Read more at The Daily Beast.

Got a tip? Send it to The Daily Beast here

Get our top stories in your inbox every day. Sign up now!

Daily Beast Membership: Beast Inside goes deeper on the stories that matter to you. Learn more.
Defying precedent, public opinion and a continuing deluge of damning facts, the U.S. Senates Republican majority barreled toward absolving President Trump of impeachment charges Friday. Having refused to hear from a single witness, including one whose firsthand account was emerging even as senators voted to ignore it, they were poised not so much to acquit the president as to quit considering the case against him.

Fifty-one of 53 Republican senators voted to make the culmination of Trumps impeachment the first of any president or other official to exclude witnesses and other new evidence altogether. While the Republicans were long thought to represent an insurmountable bulwark against the two-thirds vote required to convict and remove the president from office, Mitch McConnells narrow majority exceeded partisan expectations by failing to mount anything resembling a genuine trial.

It did so even after reports indicated that one willing witness, former national security adviser John Bolton, could offer a firsthand account of the plot at the heart of the Houses abuse-of-power charge. On the very day that the Senate voted not to call witnesses, the New York Times revealed more troubling details from Boltons forthcoming book, including his account of Trump enlisting him to pressure Ukraine into smearing his enemies some two months before his infamous phone conversation with the countrys president. Boltons manuscript also reportedly recounts that Trump explicitly tied a freeze of Ukraines military aid to demands that its government announce investigations of Democratic presidential contender Joe Biden and others.

Its no wonder a recent poll found that three-quarters of voters  including a plurality of Republicans  wanted the Senate to call Bolton and other witnesses. Among them was Trumps former Chief of Staff John Kelly, who told a reporter Friday that a Senate trial without witnesses would be a job only half done. The criticism was a reminder that Republicans were shutting their ears not just to their political opponents but also to bona fide conservatives who, like most of the Houses witnesses, once helped the president carry out his agenda.

With the exception of Sens. Mitt Romney of Utah and Susan Collins of Maine, who sided with the Democratic minority in favor of testimony, the Republican caucus supposed moderates adopted remarkable positions in the service of their votes. Sen. Lamar Alexander of Tennessee allowed that House impeachment managers had proved their case and that it was inappropriate for the president to ask a foreign leader to investigate his political opponent and to withhold United States aid to encourage that investigation, but he argued that did not justify the presidents conviction and removal from office. Sen. Rob Portman of Ohio similarly acknowledged that the presidents behavior was wrong and inappropriate but did not call for any penalty.

The Republican defense of Trump thereby completed an astonishing journey from denying his offense to declaring it insufficiently proven to admitting it but judging it inconsequential. The Senate has issued an open invitation to Trump and future presidents to solicit foreign assistance in U.S. elections, leverage U.S. policy and public money to advance that goal, subvert the interests of the nation and its allies, and obstruct every attempt to investigate or hold him accountable.

This commentary is from The Chronicles editorial board. We invite you to express your views in a letter to the editor. Please submit your letter via our online form: SFChronicle.com/letters.
France's left-wing elite have been accused of cowardice for failing to support a 16-year-old girl who has faced death threats after she insulted Islam online.

The girl, known as Mila, said Islam 'is a s*** religion' and the Koran is 'full of hate' in an outburst online after she repeatedly rebuffed a Muslim's advances.

She has been removed from her sixth-form college in Lyon, south-east France, by police 'for her own safety' and has faced a torrent of insults and threats to rape and kill her.

The girl, known as Mila, said in an outburst online that Islam is a 's*** religion' and that the Koran is 'full of hate' after she had rebuffed repeated advances from a Muslim. She has had to withdraw from her sixth-form in Lyon, southeastern France

The teenager's lawyer, Richard Malka, told The Times that her plight has been completely ignored by the left, which would usually leap to her defence.

'It is the left that traditionally defends secularism in this country,' he said. 'It saddens me that it has not done so in this case.'

'She has been stuck at home for two weeks without being able to go to school. She is only a teenager and the sky has fallen on her head.

'No human rights association has protested or expressed solidarity with the girl whose life has suddenly been plunged into hiding.'

He also accused ministers of being fearful of upsetting France's five million Muslim citizens, claiming their inaction amounted to a betrayal of values laid down by Voltaire, the 18th-century champion of free speech.

The teenager's lawyer, Richard Malka, said her plight has been completely ignored by the left, and accused them of disregarding the values laid down by Voltaire in the 18th century

Mila told French publication Bellica how she feels 'the whole of France wants me dead' after no one stood up for her following the attacks, and as though she can 'no longer set foot in my high school, and I can't even change my high school'.

'I am not racist, not at all,' she continues. 'You cannot be racist towards a religion. I said what I thought, you will not make me regret it. There are still people who will get excited, I clearly don't give a damn, I say what I want, what I think.'

In the aggravating video, uploaded to her Instagram profile adorned with LGBT flags, Mila also says she hates all forms of religion. She uses the profile to publish videos of herself singing.

Her angry video also came after she was told she had 'insulted our God Allah, the one and only' and that it was hoped she would 'burn in hell'.

The Director of the French Council of Muslims, Abdallah Zekri, alleged Mila had 'reaped what she had sown' earlier this week, but was forced into an embarrassing retraction following public outcry.

The French justice minister Nicole Belloubet has been accused of failing to come to the teenager's aid after claiming she had breached legal concept 'freedom of conscience' that does not exist in French law

The French justice minister, Nicole Belloubet, has also been criticised after she failed to come to the teenager's defence, and instead accused her of breaching a legal concept that does not exist, 'freedom of conscience'.

When she was told that none exists in French Law, Ms Belloubet apologised for her words and professed they had been a 'mistake'.

The prosecutor's office in Vienne, near Lyon, is understood to be investigating the comments on Mila's profile in an attempt to identify the perpetrators.
The City of Laredo Health department has issued a notice informing the Laredo community that despite rumors spreading throughout social media, there are no cases of the coronavirus currently in Laredo or any suspected cases in Texas.

READ MORE: What travelers need to know about the coronavirus

"The City of Laredo Health Department wants the public to know that we continue to monitor the corona virus illness," Health Director Hector Gonzalez said in a release. "While there are no cases in Texas or Laredo nor suspected ones, we do have constant travel and have worked with the medical, business and school communities to provide guidelines on CV and travel."

According to the release, over 9,000 cases have been confirmed throughout the world, with a majority occurring in China. 213 deaths have been reported, with all of them coming in China, mostly in persons aged over 65. Of the six U.S. cases confirmed thus far, five have been from locals who had recently travelled to Wuhan City, Hubei Province, with one coming via person-to-person transmission.

Two cases were suspected in Texas, affecting two students at Baylor University and Texas A&M University who had both travelled to China. However, both cases were cleared after test results returned negative for the coronavirus.

The Novel 2019-nCoV Coronavirus (CV) causes a cold-like illness that can develop into a lower respiratory infection causing pneumonia. The symptoms, which can appear within 2 to 14 days of exposure, include a fever, cough and shortness of breath. Those infected with CV may also exhibit lower respiratory symptoms such as bronchitis or pneumonia.

"If you have not been around anyone with nCoV or have not visited an ongoing nCoV outbreak area, you are not at risk." Gonzalez said.

The social media rumors began spreading when former Webb County Judge Louis H. Bruni posted about CV on his Facebook account Friday morning. The all caps post has garnered over 1,000 shares as of Friday afternoon.

"LAREDO OFFICIALS; FIRST CASE OF CORONA VIRUS CONFIRMED IN WEBB COUNTY AREA" Bruni posted.

According to a KGNS report, the former judge received the information from a source he considered credible, and relayed it via Facebook.

While Laredo shouldn't worry about the coronavirus just yet, the Laredo Health Department did want to notify citizens to be aware about Flu season. According to the release, over 2,000 cases of the Flu have been confirmed locally since September 2019. As a result of the flu infection, several adult deaths and one pediatric death have been reported in Laredo.

READ MORE: Photos show what goes in Laredo's dirtiest kitchens during December health inspections

The Health Department reminds locals to follow general respiratory precautions to prevent spread of infection, including not touching their mouth, eyes and nose without washing their hands, covering their mouths when coughing & sneezing and washing their hands. The city also advises all locals, regardless of previous illness, to get vaccinated against the flu.
YEREVAN.  Past daily of Armenia writes: Referring to the situation surrounding the Constitutional Court [(CC)] the other day, [PM] Nikol Pashinyan said that "it will be resolved soon." And Vice Speaker of the NA [National Assembly], Alen Simonyan, even mentioned [respective] timeframes yesterday, saying that the topic of the Constitutional Court will be permanently closed within the next 1-2 months.

Other representatives of the ruling party have also touched upon this topic. Some have even mentioned that some CC judges will make use of the possibility of early retirement. Add to that the talk of dissolving the CC with constitutional amendments.

The sources in Past newspaper claim that such statements actually contain elements of manipulation, or, as some analysts already call them, "a political-information bluff" that aim, on the one hand, to form public opinion and, on the other, to influence on the decision of the CC judges.

However, according to our information, the authorities will not go the way of dissolving the CC because they are concerned about the expected sharp response from the international structures. As for the judges, the same sources claim that they are not going to make use of early retirement, which experts have called "bribery by law."
Advertisement

Jubilant Tories have hailed the first day after Brexit - mocking doom-laden predictions about the consequences of leaving the EU.

Defence minister James Heappey joked that the 'sky has not fallen in', tweeting that it was a 'big relief'.

Steve Barclay and James Duddridge were joyful, despite their jobs as Brexit Secretary and minister being axed at 11pm - when the government department was abolished.

It has also emerged Boris Johnson's dog Dilyn was partying last night, as the PM's partner Carrie Symonds posted a picture of their pet clad in a Union flag coat, apparently taken at a reception held in No10 last night.

Parliament Square was back to normal today after the Brexit celebrations last night - although the Union flags are still fluttering

Boris Johnson's partner Carrie Symonds posted a picture of their dog Dilyn clad in a Union flag coat last night

The massive change was recorded in lights on the white cliffs of Dover as the UK came to terms with the new reality

Union flags were prominently on show as Brexit supporters showed their delight about the departure from the EU last night

In an address to the nation last night, the PM shunned triumphalism despite the UK finally leaving the EU after four years of turmoil

Defence minister James Heappey joked today that the 'sky has not fallen in', tweeting that it was a 'big relief'

Steve Barclay tendered his resignation as Brexit Secretary at 11.01pm, saying it had been a 'great honour'

The government had already announced that the Brexit department was being scrapped immediately the UK leaves the EU.

A handful of arrests on Brexit night Brexit night went off in a largely peaceful manner, despite the at-times bitterly divided lengthy run-up to January 31. As people both celebrated and mourned the UK's departure from the EU at major events across the country, there were just a handful of arrests. Police dealt with five people in Whitehall in London, including one man who was charged with criminal damage and being drunk and disorderly. Kevin Murphy, 52, from North London, was due to appear at Westminster Magistrates' Court on Saturday, the Metropolitan Police said. A 28-year-old was arrested on suspicion of being drunk and disorderly, a 52-year-old was arrested for the same offence as well as obstructing a constable, and a 33-year-old was arrested under Section 5 of the Public Order Act and for failing to appear. All three men remain in custody. A 47-year-old man was arrested on suspicion of threatening behaviour but later released from custody and will not face any further action. In Glasgow, there was a heavy police presence as groups for and against Brexit held events near each other. Pro-EU campaigners gathered at the Donald Dewar statue on Buchanan Street ahead of the official departure time of 11pm. Police said one 25-year-old man was arrested over minor disorder. Superintendent Mark Sutherland said: 'On Friday January 31 officers were in attendance at various Brexit-related events which took place in Glasgow city centre. 'A proportionate policing response was in place to ensure public safety and minimise disruption to the wider city centre community. The events passed peacefully with only one arrest of a 25-year-old man in connection with a minor disorder offence in Buchanan Street.' The Police Service of Northern Ireland said there had been no arrests at a celebration in Belfast. Advertisement

The premier is expected to bring forward wider changes to Whitehall when he carries out a major reshuffle over the next couple of weeks.

Mr Barclay tendered his resignation at 11.01pm, saying it had been a 'great honour' - and it is not clear whether he will be brought back into the fold by Mr Johnson in his new-look team.

Mr Duddridge declared it was 'job done' this morning and he was leaving government.

He wrote: 'Last night, we got the job done! It has been a privilege to serve in the team that delivered Brexit, and with @DExEU having achieved its purpose, l have written to @BorisJohnson to formally resign as Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State.'

As the historic moment finally arrived last night, Mr Johnson vowed Brexit will 'unleash' Britain but warned there will be more 'bumps in the road'.

In an address to the nation, the PM shunned triumphalism despite the UK finally leaving the EU after four years of turmoil.

Instead he appealed for unity - and insisted he recognised that not everyone was delighted with the path the country is taking. Mr Johnson said the EU had 'admirable' qualities but was going in a direction that 'no longer suits' the UK.

Speaking from Downing Street in the pre-recorded message - but notably without any patriotic backdrop - the premier said it was crucial to take advantage of reclaiming sovereignty to 'level up' the country, and improve life in left-behind areas.

'For many people this is an astonishing moment of hope, a moment they thought would never come,' he said.

'And there are many of course who feel a sense of anxiety and loss.

'Then of course there is a third group  perhaps the biggest  who had started to worry that the whole political wrangle would never come to an end.

'I understand all those feelings, and our job as the government  my job  is to bring this country together now and take us forward.'

Mr Johnson voiced pride that he was able to 'obey' the verdict of the British people, but stressed the legal exit from the EU was 'not an end but a beginning'.

'This is the moment when the dawn breaks and the curtain goes up on a new act in our great national drama,' he said.

No10 and other government buildings in Whitehall were lit up for the crucial occasion, and Nigel Farage is headlining the party in Parliament Square.

However, the official celebrations were deliberately low-key. Mr Johnson himself hosted a reception in Downing Street, drinking English sparkling wine with guests believed to include girlfriend Carrie and aides.

Meanwhile, Remainers have been showing their dismay across the UK, with angry demonstrations in Scotland.

While Britain is now legally out of the bloc, Brussels rules will still apply for another 11 months under 'transition' arrangements. The EU is gearing up for another major battle over future trade terms.

Mr Duddridge declared it was 'job done' this morning and he was quitting as Brexit minister

Happy Brexiteers were out in force in Parliament Square last night as the clocked ticked down on the UK's time in the EU

Brexit supporters wave Union flags as they watch the big screen in Parliament Square, venue for the Leave Means Leave Brexit Celebration party in central London

Brexit supporters react during a Brexit Celebration party at Morley rugby club. The celebrations got into full swing well before the 11pm, when Britain finally divorces from the bloc after three and half years of wrangling

Union Flags hang in Parliament Square on Saturday morning. The space was quiet after jubilant scenes last night

A Union Flag lies on the ground in Parliament Square in Westminster, London, as Britain woke up free from the European Union

A piper plays outside the Palace of Westminster on Saturday morning, with a wrapped up Elizabeth Tower in the background

Former Brexit secretary David Davis said it would be a 'fair race' to strike a trade deal with the EU by 2021 but that it 'can be done'.

He said extensive work had already been completed when he was in the Cabinet to analyse every free trade deal Brussels had previously struck with other third countries.

Mr Davis told BBC Radio 4's Today programme: 'We should have started last March.

'That being said, a lot of work has been done.

'There's the possibility of a trade deal taking pieces from all the other trade deals that the European Union has done and therefore cannot undermine the single market.

'It is going to be a fair race to do it right now because it was going to be 21 months, now it is only 11, but nevertheless it can be done in the time period.'

Celebrations got into full swing well before 11pm yesterday, when Britain finally divorced from the bloc after three and half years of wrangling.

From the flagship Leavers party in London's Parliament Square, to the social clubs of Warrington in the North West, merry revellers waved Union Jacks and wished each other a 'happy Brexit day'.

Champagne corks were also popped in the other home nations, with gatherings in Glasgow and Belfast continuing long into the night.

People decorated their homes for Brexit-themed dinner parties and planted British flags along their streets amid a wave of patriotism as the country forges a new path.

Town halls and sports clubs were transformed into a sea of red white and blue where Brexiteers glugged down English ales and wine while belting out the national anthem.

Brexit supporters embrace during a Brexit Celebration party at Woolston Social Club in Warrington. From the central Leavers party in London's Parliament Square, to the social clubs of Warrington in the North West, merry revellers waved Union Jack and and wished each other a 'happy Brexit day'

Brexiteer supporters pop Champagne corks in George Square, Glasgow, after Britain exited the European Union at 11pm

Steve Bounds 69 retired architectural consultant at the Robin Hood Inn where they are celebrating Brexit in Boston, Lincolnshire, one of the most Leave-voting areas in the country.

Britain has now entered an 11-month transition period with the EU, during which time the government will race to strike a trade deal before December.

But any future wrangling with Brussels was far from the minds of revellers this evening, who waved Union Jacks and cheered triumphantly following victory speeches by key architects of Brexit including Mr Farage, who is no longer an MEP after being a disruptive force in the European Parliament for over 20 years.

Choruses of God Save The Queen and The Land of Hope And Glory swung round Parliament Square, and were echoed in similar parties up and down the UK.

Ahead of the historic moment, excited Britons posted images of themselves on social media with many using the #BrexitDay hashtag to share snapshots of their celebrations.

While others have donned their most British attire to gather in villages, towns and cities across the country to herald in the 'dawn of a new era' for Great Britain after nearly four years of turmoil.

Brexit supporters celebrate during a rally outside Stormont in Belfast, Northern Ireland

The celebrations inside Woolston Social club in Warrington continued long into the night as revellers toasted in the UK's exit

A band plays as Brexit supporters wave Union flags after the time passed 11pm at a Brexit celebration party at Woolston Social Club in Warrington

A Brexiteer holds up a placard during wild celebrations in Warrington on Friday night to mark Brexit day

With just hours to go until the country leaves the European Union, Britons up and down the country are celebrating in style - with street parties and pub crawls to mark the historic occasion this evening. Pictured: A man dons a Union Jack suit to celebrate

A man waves Union flags from a small car as he drives past Brexit supporters gathering in Parliament Square, near the Houses of Parliament in central London

A woman celebrates Brexit Day with a Union flag wrapped around her shoulders. From Cornwall to Yorkshire and Newcastle, celebrations have commenced

Pro-Brexit supporters gathered in Parliament Square, London, ahead of the UK leaving the European Union at 11pm tonight

The Ministry of Defence is lit up in red white and blue behind the statue of Field Marshall Allanbrooke this evening

Guitar-playing Elvis serenades Brexiteers in London as they begin celebrating leaving the EU - as the country hosts parties, pub crawls and barbecues to mark Britain's departure from the European Union

In London, hundreds are expected to gather in Parliament Square this evening for a a 'once-in-a-lifetime' party. Proceedings will start at 9pm and end shortly after the UK leaves the EU at 11pm (pictured, some have already started to arrive)

The Foreign and Commonwealth Office buildings in London are illuminated to mark Brexit day this evening

Pro-Brexit supporters gather ahead of the Brexit Day Celebration Party hosted by Leave Means Leave at Parliament Square

Brexiteers celebrate outside the Houses of Parliament in London ahead of Britain officially leaving the European Union at 11pm tonight

A group of four women pose for a photograph in Parliament Square in London, the venue for the Leave Means Leave Brexit celebration

A man cheers in front of a huge banner reading 'liberty' and 'democracy'. A bell and a drum are also part of the colourful display

But not everyone was feeling jovial. Pro-EU demonstrators displayed a large banner reading 'We still love EU' onto Ramsgate cliff in Kent

Remainers have staged a demonstration outside parliament. A protestor in a blue wig and a huge blue cape with the words 'rejoin' can be seen as part of the display

A woman with a blue wig and a guitar plastered with the European flag performs in front of a man with a sign that reads 'no border in Ireland

The woman, sporting blue stars on her face, sings and plays the guitar as part of a demonstration by remainers outside parliament

Pro Brexit supporters wear novelty Union flag top hats outside the Houses of Parliament as people prepared for Brexit this evening. A handful of speakers have been confirmed for Parliament Square party including Nigel Farage, Brexit Party chairman Richard Tice and Brexit Party MEP Ann Widdecombe

A pro-Brexit supporter dons a tiny Union Jack hat and red lipstick as she commemorates Britain's departure from the EU

A man carries a flag of St George, the English national flag, along with a Union Flag as he walks along Westminster Bridge by the Houses of Parliament in London. Workers were also busy this afternoon putting up Union flags around the square and along The Mall, ready for the celebrations

People watch a news report on Brexit at the Sawmill Bar in South Elmsall, Yorkshire, where a Brexit party is being held throughout the day ahead of the UK leaving the European Union at 11pm this evening

Many donned the Union Jack to get in on this evening's celebrations, while others held placards reading 'bye bye EU' as Britons prepare to celebrate the country leaving the bloc this evening (pictured, celebrations in London)

Dave Tyrrell, 69, has erected his own 'Brexit Bell' which he will ring this evening at 11pm in celebration of the UK leaving the European Union. A 15ft tower erected out of scaffolding poles and Union Jack flags, is installed in his hometown of Lympstone, Devon

Others have posted cakes to mark Britain's exit from the European Union. Amy Swift said: 'Well I'm guess if my colleagues didn't know I'm a leaver, they sure as hell do now'

Writing on Instagram, one Brexiteer quoted a popular song: 'It's a new dawn, it's a new day and I'm feeling good'. She is among many sharing images using the #BrexitDay hashtag

Social media is abuzz with people sharing images of themselves marking Brexit Day, with many draping Union Jacks over themselves in celebration

The Union Jack flag was flying on every flag pole in Parliament Square during the 'once-in-a-lifetime' party as Britain left the bloc.

And across the country clocks rang out to mark the country's departure, as thousands across the United Kingdom celebrated the 'bright new future' independence from the European Union will bring.

Not everyone was celebrating however, with vigils by pro-EU supporters and flares let off in London as disgruntled Remainers vented their frustration at Britain's eventual departure from the bloc.
The city will have only one major notified wetland, divided into four zones across 181.9 hectares, at Powai Lake, as per the amended wetland rules 2017. This would effectively open up construction on salt pans and other areas, which were earlier identified as coastal wetlands.

On January 30, the state had submitted 59 verified potential wetland zones (10 in the city and 49 in the suburbs) before the Bombay high court (HC). Of these, the Mumbai suburban district administration proposed only the four zones, varying 113.6ha, 46.6ha, 14.3ha, and 7.4ha within Powai lake for final notification as wetlands under the Wetland (Conservation and Management) Rules, 2017. Mumbai city administration has not proposed any wetland under its jurisdiction for the final notification.

The National Wetland Atlas 2011 (Maharashtra), made under the 2010 wetland rules, had marked 475 wetlands in city  412 in the suburbs and 63 in south Mumbai  spread across 14,045 ha. This means Mumbai will witness a 98.7% decrease in recorded wetland area documented from 2010 rules to the 2017 rules.

The development comes ahead of the World Wetlands Day, observed to conserve and protect the wetlands. According to the United Nations, wetlands are permanently or seasonally saturated in water and create habitats for aquatic plants and are vital for flood control, as they absorb excess flow from rain, while recharging ground water.

District collectors from the suburbs and south Mumbai told HT that the conditions imposed under the new rules excluded salt pans, man-made water bodies, creeks, mangrove areas and previously identified coastal wetlands. The locations are either protected as reserved forests or under the coastal regulation zone (CRZ) rules or have already been developed on, said city collector Shivaji Jondhale, adding that the 10 proposed wetland sites in south Mumbai that could not be validated included Wadala, Mahim, Cuffe Parade, Navy Nagar and Malabar Hill.

Satyanarayan Bajaj, deputy collector, Mumbai suburban, said the documentation for each of the four sites in Powai, with characteristic features, location, expanse, threats, an action plan to preserve them, have been submitted in the form of brief documents to the state. The criteria defined under the new wetland rules are stringent and clearly state man-made water bodies or tanks, areas for aquaculture, salt pans, recreation and irrigation purposes etc are not wetlands anymore, said Bajaj.

The 49 locations selected for final verification in the suburbs included 22 in Kurla division, 15 in Borivli, and 12 in Andheri.

The state confirmed that Mumbai has proposed only four wetland sites in Powai for final verification. District administrations were confused about the wetland identification process under new rules. However, now they have submitted their final lists. The state wetland committee, headed by the environment minister, will study proposals from all districts and issue recommendations on findings. This report will be sent to the state for final declaration of wetlands for each district soon, said Sanjay Sandashiv, undersecretary, environment department.

Stalin D, director of environmental group Vanashakti had petitioned the HC and alleged that the government did not want to develop a comprehensive list of wetlands, as it would open up more areas for development. Every mischief by the government to defeat the spirit of the wetland rules will be exposed before the HC and accountability will be sought. Records for intertidal salt pans and wetlands in Bhandup, Charkop, Borivli, Kandivli and Wadala have been manipulated to allow construction, he said. The matter will be heard on Wednesday.

Ironically, Powai was identified to have the worst water quality and wetland health among all major recongised wetlands in Maharashtra by the Salim Ali Centre for Ornithology and Natural History under the Union environment ministrys direction for priority restoration of wetland areas and developing integrated management plans for them. Powai is under maximum stress in Maharashtra and needs urgent attention since it is an urban lake with water quality issues, said Ritesh Kumar, director, Wetlands International South Asia.

SHARE THIS ARTICLE ON
As many as 324 Indians, evacuated from China's Wuhan city, on Saturday reached here on board Air India's jumbo B747 aircraft and were admitted at the two quarantine facilities set up by the Army and the ITBP, though none of them have tested positive for the novel coronavirus, officials said.

The plane, carrying 211 students, 110 working professionals and three minors, reached Delhi around 7.30 am, they said, adding that none of them have tested positive for the coronavirus as yet.

Another flight of the airline, which departed for the Chinese city from here around 1.37 pm to bring back Indian nationals, reached Wuhan around 5.40 pm on Saturday, the officials said.

Five doctors from the Ram Manohar Lohia (RML) Hospital, who were on board the first flight, are also in the second flight, an Air India spokesperson said.

Out of the total 324 who landed here this morning, 88 women, 10 men and six children were brought to the special quarantine facility of the ITBP in southwest Delhi's Chhawla area, ITBP spokesperson Vivek Kumar Pandey said.

The Army has also set up a quarantine facility in Manesar near Delhi to keep around 300 Indians being evacuated from China's Hubei province in view of the coronavirus infection outbreak.

Separately, border-guarding force ITBP has set up a 600-bedded facility in southwest Delhi's Chhawla area to quarantine and provide basic medical care to those suspected to have been affected by the virus.

The officials said the Indians evacuated from China will be monitored for any signs of the infection for a duration of two weeks by a qualified team of doctors and staff members.

The first flight had departed from Delhi airport at 1.17 pm on Friday to evacuate Indian nationals from China, where more than 250 people, none of them Indian, have died due to the deadly coronavirus infection.

Out of the 324 persons that have been evacuated through first Air India flight, 56, 53 and 42 are from Andhra Pradesh, Tamil Nadu and Kerala, respectively.

Two more people suspected of being affected by coronavirus have been admitted to the isolation ward of the RML Hospital here, taking the total number of patients housed at the facility to eight, hospital authorities said.

On Friday evening, two men, aged 23 and 46 years, complained of respiratory problems and fever at the hospital which has been designated by the government to deal with such cases, they said.

The Union Health Ministry on Saturday said passengers arriving from Thailand and Singapore will be screened at airports in addition to those coming from China and Hong Kong for possible exposure to the deadly novel coronavirus.

In Maharashtra, all 15 persons quarantined in hospitals for possible exposure to the novel coronavirus have tested negative, an official statement said. No confirmed case of coronavirus infection has been found in the state so far.

In Gujarat, 64 persons who returned to the state recently from China are under observation at their homes, but no suspected case of coronavirus infection has been found among them so far, a senior health department official said.

Kerala Health Minister K K Shailaja said three people have been arrested in the state for spreading false information in social media on the novel coronavirus.

Meanwhile, IndiGo announced that it will suspend flights on Kolkata-Guangzhou route from February 6 to 25 due to the deadly novel coronavirus outbreak in China.

Air India and Indigo operate flights on five routes, out of these, flights on three routes -- two of Indigo and one of Air India - have been suspended.

Among all Indian airlines, only Air India and Indigo operate flights between India and China.

Wuhan, Hubei's capital, is the epicentre of the deadly coronavirus outbreak. The virus has killed 259 people in China with total confirmed cases surging to 11,791 amid stepped up efforts by a number of countries to evacuate their nationals from Hubei province, officials said on Saturday.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman, while presenting the annual Union Budget 2020, recited a Kashmiri poem by Sahitya Academy Award winner Dina Nath Kaul.

Sitharaman recited the verse Son varan gulzar Shalimar huen, which roughly translated to English means, Our nation is akin to blooming flowers in the Shalimar Bagh; our nation is akin to a lotus in the Dal Lake; our nation is akin to the warm blood flowing in the veins of the youth; our nation is the most beloved in the world.

The recitation of the poem evoked praises and desk thumping from fellow members of Parliament.

The poet, Dina Nath had emerged on the scene when Kashmir was going through a turmoil due to the invasion of Pakistani bandits. Poets and litterateurs are said to have played an important role in retrieving the Valley from the clutches of the enemy, and in this context, Dina Naths work has been etched in the memory of the people.

Dina Nath was born in Kashmir in 1916 to Pandit Shankar Kaul, who died when he was only eight. He was brought up by his mother who belonged to a village called Muran, where oral poetry constituted a part of the culture. Her singing of the vaakhs of Lal Ded and other poems had a huge influence on Dina Nath as a growing boy.

After completing his education, Dina Nath pursued teaching and also became a member of the Sahitya Academy. Throughout his literary journey, he was greatly influenced by communism and progressive writers.

This led him to become one of the founding fathers of the Left movement in Kashmir and also gave him an opportunity to travel to USSR and China.

His inclination towards Left politics made him a contributor to Kwang Posh  a monthly journal run by the communists of Kashmir.

Dina Nath was awarded the Nehru award in 1971 or his writing, and honoured with Sahitya Academy Award for Shihul Kul  a collection of his poems.
Google and Facebook are attempting to stay ahead of coronavirus misinformation and to provide users with helpful, accurate resources. Today, Facebook announced plans to flag and remove false information, and Google has created an SOS Alert for coronavirus searches.

Facebook's third-party fact-checkers are reviewing content related to the virus, now deemed a public health emergency by the World Health Organization. When the fact-checkers rate something as false, Facebook will limit its spread and send a notification to people who have shared or are attempting to share that content. Facebook is also removing content that has been flagged by global health organizations for containing false statements or conspiracy theories -- like fake cures such as drinking bleach. It will restrict or block hashtags used to spread misinformation on Instagram, too.

Google's SOS Alert reorganizes Search results to show top news stories, any relevant local results, helpful information from trusted organizations and verified safety tips. The SOS Alert is one of Google's established crisis alert products, and like Facebook's efforts, it's meant to help users access information they can trust quickly and safely.

Today we launched an SOS Alert for searches at Google related to the 2019 Novel Coronavirus. We do these regularly for crisis events around the world where public safety might be at risk . Here's a refresher on what you'll find.... pic.twitter.com/RpwZE6gTvM  Google SearchLiaison (@searchliaison) January 30, 2020

Facebook is also offering free ad credits to help organizations run coronavirus education campaigns in affected regions, and the company is sharing aggregated and anonymized mobility data and population density maps with researchers at Harvard University's School of Public Health and National Tsing Hua University in Taiwan, so that they can better forecast the spread of the virus.
Australia joined the United States in temporarily banning noncitizens who had recently been in China as the death toll from the coronavirus outbreak increased to 259. The two countries are hardly alone as Russia, Japan, Pakistan, and Italy have all announced some travel restrictions. An increasingly isolated China said that the total number of cases had reached 11,791 and more than 20 other countries have reported an additional 137 cases.

Beijing lashed out against the United States for its restrictions, saying that it contradicts the World Health Organizations recommendations against travel bans. Just as the WHO recommended against travel restrictions, the U.S. rushed to go in the opposite way. Certainly not a gesture of goodwill, said foreign ministry spokeswoman Hua Chunying. On Friday, the WHO reiterated its call to not impose any rules that would limit travel or trade. Travel restrictions can cause more harm than good by hindering info-sharing and medical supply chains and harming economies, WHOs director-general, Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, said. We urge countries and companies to make evidence-based, consistent decisions.

Advertisement

Advertisement

Advertisement

Advertisement

The United States is banning entry to foreign nationals, except the immediate family members of U.S. citizens and permanent residents, who have traveled to China in the past two weeks. The restrictions take effect on Sunday afternoon. Americans who have been to Hubei province, where the outbreak originated, will face a mandatory 14-day quarantine. The risk is low in the United States, Health Secretary Alex Azar said, but our job is to keep that risk low as much as we can. As more places close access to citizens from China, the government in Hong Kong has not closed its border or halted transport links with mainland China. That led a union representing thousands of medical workers in Hong Kong to call for a strike starting Monday if the government does not close the border with mainland China.

Advertisement

Advertisement

There is growing fear about what the new virus will do to the Chinese economy as numerous businesses across the country have been shut. Apple said Saturday all its official stores and corporate offices will be closed until Feb. 9. The Chinese government is moving quickly to impose measure to boost its financial systems as everyone expects a huge sell-off in the markets on Monday. Travel is also being severely restricted as more than a dozen airlines said they were reducing or totally suspending operations to and from China. Delta, for example, said its last China-bound flight would depart on Feb. 1 and the last return flight back to the United States would be on Feb. 2.
Police question more than 80 people in connection with the stoning to death of suspected illegal miners.

Police in South Africa have launched a manhunt and questioned dozens of people over the stoning to death of nine suspected illegal miners.

The miners, believed to have come from Lesotho, were stoned to death by suspected rival workers in Matholeville, a western district of Johannesburg, police said on Saturday, denouncing the barbaric act.

The bodies of the victims were found lying in the streets of Matholeville and a tenth person was seriously hurt in the violence on Friday, the police said in a statement.

We condemn this barbaric attack and we will ensure we leave no stone unturned in making the people of Matholeville and Roodepoort feel safe. The suspects will be arrested as soon as possible and the police will not sleep until we find them, Gauteng police commissioner Elias Mawela said.

During the night operation, police took in 87 people for questioning and to establish if they are not wanted for any crimes, Mawela added.

Thousands of illegal miners, known as Zama Zamas  which means those who try their luck in Zulu  operate in the country, according to the South African Human Rights Commission.

Violent clashes between rival groups of workers are relatively common.

South Africa is one of the most violent countries in the world  more than 21,000 people were killed between April 2018 and March 2019, an average of 58 murders a day, according to government data.
The government will encourage external commercial borrowings and in the sector for financing infrastructure, Union Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman announced on Saturday.

Setting up a National Police University and a National Forensic Science University, linking medical colleges to a district hospital through the public-private-partnership (PPP) mode to meet the shortage of qualified doctors, degree-level full-fledged online programmes in top 100 institutions and holding the Ind-SAT exam in Asian and African countries for benchmarking foreign students interested in studying in India are some of the proposals made in the budget presented by Sitharaman on Saturday.

Presenting the budget for 2020-21, the finance minister said an amount of Rs 99,300 crore was allocated for the sector and another amount of Rs 3,000 crore for skill development.

"It is felt that our education system needs a greater inflow of finance to attract talented teachers, innovate and build better labs. Therefore, steps would be taken to enable sourcing of external commercial borrowings and foreign direct investment so as to be able to deliver higher-quality education," she said in the budget speech.

"A National Police University and a National Forensic Science University are being proposed in the domain of policing science, forensic science, cyber-forensics etc," Sitharaman said.

She added that the new national education policy will be announced soon.

"By 2030, India is set to have the largest working-age population in the world. Not only do they need literacy, but they need both jobs and life skills. Dialogues have been held with state education ministries, MPs and other stakeholders about the education policy. Over two lakh suggestions were received. The new education policy will be announced soon," the finance minister said.

In order to boost employability of general stream students, about 150 higher educational institutions will start apprenticeship-embedded degrees or diploma courses by March 2021.

Similarly, for the students of technology streams, the government has proposed to start a programme whereby urban local bodies across the country would provide internship opportunities to fresh engineers for a period of up to one year.

"In order to provide quality education to the students of the deprived section of the society as well as those who do not have access to higher education, it is proposed to start a degree-level, full-fledged online education programme. This shall be offered only by institutions who are ranked within top 100 in the National Institutional Ranking framework. Initially, only a few such institutions would be asked to offer such programmes," Sitharaman said.

With an aim to boost the "Study in India" programme, the government has proposed to hold Ind-SAT in Asian and African countries.

"India should be a preferred destination for higher education. Hence, under the 'Study in India' programme, Ind-SAT is proposed to be held in Asian and African countries. It shall be used for benchmarking foreign candidates who receive scholarships for studying in Indian higher education centres," the finance minister said.
GREENBELT, Md.  A Coast Guard lieutenant accused by prosecutors of being a domestic terrorist intent on committing politically motivated killings inspired by a far-right mass murderer was sentenced to more than 13 years in prison for firearms and drug offenses.

Christopher Hasson, 50, had faced a maximum sentence of 31 years at sentencing Friday by U.S. District Judge George Hazel. Hazel, who sentenced Hasson to 160 months, said he believes the officer was preparing to carry out a mass casualty assault as a way to act out his white nationalist views.

Hasson, in his first public comments since his arrest, said he wasnt planning to hurt anyone in any way, shape or form. But he apologized to his family, his colleagues and to the public, saying he knew his actions alarmed many people.

Any semblance of hate, bigotry or advocacy of violence has no place in our Coast Guard, said Adm. Karl Schultz, the guards commandant, in an emailed news release. He said Hasson is being involuntarily separated from the Coast Guard.

Federal prosecutors recommended a 25-year prison sentence. They have called Hasson a domestic terrorist and self-described white nationalist, intent on carrying out mass killings. But they filed no terrorism-related charges against him.

Defense attorneys urged Hazel to spare Hasson from prison and sentence him to jail time served since his February 2019 arrest. Hassons lawyers accused Justice Department prosecutors of fabricating a bogus narrative that the married father of two grown children was planning a terrorist attack.

Hasson pleaded guilty in October to possessing unregistered and unserialized silencers, being a drug addict in possession of firearms and illegal possession of tramadol, an opioid painkiller.

In an earlier court filing, prosecutors said Hasson intends to murder innocent civilians on a scale rarely seen in this country.

Prosecutors said Hasson appeared to be planning attacks inspired by the manifesto of Anders Behring Breivik, the Norwegian far-right terrorist who killed 77 people in a 2011 bomb-and-shooting rampage.

Prosecutors also claimed Hasson drew up what appeared to be a hit list naming House Speaker Nancy Pelosi and Senate Democratic Leader Chuck Schumer.

Michael Kunzelman is an Associated Press writer.
Invisible City: Philadelphia and the Vernacular Avant-Garde is a colossally ambitious show. This survey of Philadelphias art, architecture, and design during the 1960s and 1970s sprawls over four Center City venues with hundreds of works by more than 70 artists.

It includes some iconic objects, such as a model of the zigzag structure with which the architects Louis I. Kahn and Anne Griswold Tyng proposed to replace City Hall. A couple of William Daleys monumental terra-cotta urns are here, too, looking great next to Yvonne Pacanovsky Bobrowiczs Nebula Floorscape, a multicolored rug that is the apotheosis of shag.

The show also includes a sketch of Judith Bernsteins enormous drawing of a screw, which was removed by a city official from a 1973 feminist art show. It includes a video of artist Hannah Wilke doing a striptease behind Marcel Duchamps The Large Glass, a Philly-in-the-'70s phenomenon if ever there was one.

Seeing the model of Tyngs Four-Poster House, a structure generated by the idea of a bed at the pinnacle of a pyramidal house, reminded me of visits to Tyngs tiny house on Waverly Street, where she tried out many of her big ideas.

 READ MORE: Kahn collaborator Tyng gets her due in Institute of Contemporary Art exhibit

I had a great time looking at works, both familiar and unfamiliar, by people I used to know. And there are some wonderful things I had never seen before, some of them by people I have never really associated with Philadelphia. Invisible City is a hodgepodge, one that frequently delights, sometimes confuses, and never convinces.

The shows thesis is that Philadelphia was a very creative and fertile spot for the arts at mid-century, and many of the ideas that artists worked on here have been influential worldwide, though Philadelphians have not always been aware of that.

It argues that this vernacular avant-garde was shaped by the brick and stone from which the city is made, by artists exposure to the work of Duchamp and his readymades at the Philadelphia Museum of Art, and by a music scene that spanned from the Orchestras string-driven Philadelphia Sound to Gamble and Huffs string-driven Sound of Philadelphia.

The exhibition grew out of an effort that was even more ambitious: to create a program similar to the Getty Foundations Pacific Standard Time, which involves more than a dozen Los Angeles-area arts institutions doing a wide variety of shows, both historic and contemporary, focused on Southern California. Invisible City is something less.

The show was organized by Sid Sachs, director of exhibitions at the University of the Arts Rosenwald-Wolf Gallery, with assistant curator Jennifer Hirsh. It includes an extensive online component, at invisiblecity.uarts.edu, which contains a detailed illustrated timeline and interviews with some of the people in the show. It is conceived as a single show, though each of the four venues approaches things differently.

 READ MORE: UArts attracts $79 million for a maker space, rehearsal halls, a recording studio  and theres a big dorm coming, too

The display at the UArts Art Alliance is by far the largest, with about 125 works on display. It includes galleries devoted to photography, abstract painting, furniture and craft, and architecture. Among the furniture is Wharton Eshericks classic music stand, George Nakashimas familiar conoid bench, and Harry Andersons lamp made with a deers hoof.

I loved seeing some of the works of the visionary French structural engineer Robert LeRicolais, who taught for many years at Penn, and nearby, a painting by Piero Dorazio inspired by his constructions. It was also witty to hang Edna Andrades geometric painting Zig (1966) next to Kahn and Tyngs zagging City Tower.

While pop is a big part of what Sachs calls the vernacular landscape, the most obvious examples of it here were done by architects, preeminently Robert Venturi and his colleagues.

In a pre-bicentennial project, the architecture firms Venturi and Rauch and Murphy Levy Wurman proposed that the route from Philadelphia International Airport to Center City be beautified with large billboards showing Philly things, such as a pretzel, Billy Penn, and Watteaus Maritime Venus at the Art Museum. The collages they used to present the proposal are here, looking a bit tired.

The Art Alliance also houses some of Philadelphias best-known painters and photographers, including James Havard, Warren Rohrer, Ray K. Metzker, and Will Brown. Indeed, it is difficult to argue that many of those on view here have been invisible at all.

Still, this is the portion of the show that can most easily stand alone, and is comprehensible without extensive wall texts or labels. (When I saw it, there were no labels, though there may be some by the time you read this. They will not attempt to recount all the connections and influences that Sachs yet-to-be-published catalog will describe.)

The second venue, a gallery in the Pennsylvania Academy of the Fine Arts historic 1876 building, consists entirely of works by women. This is a questionable decision. Feminism emerged as an important influence on art during the period and it obviously deserves a focus in such an exhibition. But the extreme separation from the rest of the show makes this outstanding gallery feel like a ghetto.

The PAFA portion, which includes the screw and the striptease, is the most challenging and most playful part of the show (and also the only part you need to pay admission to visit). Catherine Jansens The Blue Room (1970-73) on loan from the Michener, used the now-antique technology of blueprint-making to create a whole domestic environment, complete with radio, light switch, and the ghostly outline of a couple in the bed.

 READ MORE: PAFA moving fast to acquire works by women while other national museums fall short, report says

Yes, there are a few works by women scattered around at the other sites, but their scarcity in these sections of the show suggests, inaccurately, that art in Philadelphia at mid-century was entirely a boys club.

At the UArts Rosenwald-Wolf Gallery, the emphasis is on sculpture and conceptual art. A kayak by Rafael Ferrer hangs overhead, and three pieces by Italo Scanga, which use found religious items, seem to find a new style between Duchamp and baroque.

The fourth venue, the lobby of UArts Gershman Hall, the former Jewish Y which was a venue for outre events of the time, contains posters, chapbooks, and other literary and artistic ephemera, all of them close to Sachs heart, but not scheduled to have labels so they will probably never make sense to most viewers.

Seeing Sam Maitins poster for the Ys pioneering pop art show of 1963 made me wonder why Maitin, who was essentially the citys cultural leader during this period, has been neglected. The career of Edith Neff, subject of a recent, great retrospective at Woodmere, coincided with this period exactly, but it is missing from this show.

Indeed, there are no examples of Philadelphias great tradition of figurative art. Art by and about the African American experience is also missing, which shouldnt happen in Philadelphia.

Overall, the show is an odd melange. Fields in which Sachs seems not to be very interested, such as architecture and design, are represented mostly by well-known works. Meanwhile, the shows aim of introducing us to an avant-garde living in our midst feels half-baked. It rests on a history that is not at all evident in the galleries.

In the end it makes me grateful for the granular, artist-by-artist, movement-by-movement exhibitions that Woodmere has perfected. Over time they delineate the relationships and influences that make art in Philadelphia distinctive.

There is room, too, for encyclopedic shows. But they need to be clearly presented and well-explained, so viewers dont leave wondering, Whats the big idea?

ON EXHIBIT

Invisible City: Philadelphia and the Vernacular Avant-Garde

Through April 4 at four venues

Philadelphia Art Alliance, 251 S. 18th St., hours 10 a.m.-5 p.m. Tue.-Fri. (until 8 p.m. Thurs.) and noon-5 p.m. Sat.. Closed Sun. and Mon.

Rosewald-Wolf Gallery (320 S. Broad St.) and Gershman Hall (401 South Broad St.), both open 10 a.m.-5 p.m. Mon.-Fri. and noon-5 Sat. Closed Sun.

Pennsylvania Academy of the Fine Arts, 118-128 N. Broad St., 10 a.m.-5 p.m. Tue.-Fri. and 11 a.m.-5 p.m. Sat. and Sun. Closed Monday.

Admission: Free except for PAFA, which is $15 ($12 students and seniors, $8 ages 13-18, under 18 free).

Information: Invisiblecity.uarts.edu.
President Donald Trump on Friday voiced confidence a US-brokered deal will come soon on a giant dam Ethiopia is building on the Nile that has fueled fears of conflict with Egypt and Sudan.

In a telephone conversation with Ethiopia's prime minister, Abiy Ahmed, Trump "expressed optimism that an agreement on the Grand Ethiopian Renaissance Dam was near and would benefit all parties involved," the White House said in a statement.

Egypt, Ethiopia and Sudan have gone into overtime in often tense negotiations in Washington on the project, which Egypt has said would threaten its vital Nile water supplies.

The three countries, which had already missed a self-imposed January 15 deadline to resolve the dispute, had agreed to meet Tuesday and Wednesday in Washington to finalize a deal.

The talks are "continuing today for the fourth day in a row," the Ethiopian ambassador to Washington, Fitsum Arega, tweeted Friday before the White House statement.

He renewed Ethiopia's insistence that it will not accept any solution unless it preserves his country's right to use water from the Nile.

At their last meeting, the three countries reported progress, including an understanding that Ethiopia would only fill the Grand Renaissance Dam during the rainy season and would base future water levels on conditions of the Nile.

The colossal 1.8-kilometer-long dam, under construction since 2011, is expected to begin generating power by the end of this year and eventually double Ethiopia's electricity.

While Ethiopia says the dam is crucial for its growing economy, Egypt fears the project will disrupt the river that provides 90 percent of its drinking water.

The US Treasury Department has been leading the talks after Egyptian President Abdelfattah al-Sisi sought intervention from Trump, a close ally.
A spokesman for Greeces government, Stelios Petsas, said the barrier system would have to be tested for safety.

But rights activists warn that the measure would increase the dangers faced by migrants making the short but perilous journey across the Aegean. Amnesty Internationals research director for Europe, Massimo Moratti, condemned the proposal as an alarming escalation in the Greek governments ongoing efforts to make it as difficult as possible for asylum-seekers and refugees to arrive on its shores.

He warned that it could lead to more danger for those desperately seeking safety.

The head of Amnesty Internationals chapter in Greece, Gavriil Sakellaridis, questioned whether the Greek authorities would respond to an emergency signal issued by a boat stopped at the barrier.

The European Commission has expressed reservations and planned to ask the authorities in Greece, which is a member of the European Union, for details about the proposal. Adalbert Jahnz, a commission spokesman, told reporters in Brussels on Thursday that any Greek sea barriers to deter migrants must not block access for asylum seekers.

The setting up of barriers is not in and of itself against E.U. law, he said. But physical barriers or obstacles of this sort should not be an impediment to seeking asylum which is protected by E.U. law, he said, conceding, however, that the protection of external borders was primarily the responsibility of member states.

The barrier was proposed amid an uptick in migrants from Turkey. The influx, though far below the thousands of daily arrivals at the peak of the crisis in 2015, has put an increasing strain on already intensely overcrowded reception centers.

According to Greeces migration minister, Notis Mitarakis, 72,000 migrants entered Greece last year, compared with 42,000 in 2018. The floating barrier will help curb arrivals, Mr. Mitarakis said.
The meeting was attended by more than 100 representatives from UN member countries and observers, including 23 ambassadors and head of missions.

Taking the rotary presidency of the UNSC in the first month of the year marking the 75th anniversary of the UN Charter, Vietnam selected a priority theme of January as adhering to the UN Charter to maintain international peace and security. The initiative was intended to contribute to promoting the adherence to international law, the UN Charter, and to reiterate the importance of multilateral cooperation in maintaining international peace and security.

The second initiative of Vietnam during the month was the first ever meeting at the UNSC on cooperation between the UN and the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN). The event provided an opportunity for the international community in general, and the UNSC in particular, to get an insight into the ASEANs role in the region and discuss ways to further enhance the collaboration between the UN and the regional bloc.

Vietnam took the occasion to affirm that as Chair of the ASEAN in 2020 and a non-permanent member of the UNSC, it will make efforts to promote the comprehensive and effective cooperation between the two organizations, with focus on priority fields such as the peaceful settlement of disputes, preventive diplomacy, disarmament, maintenance of peace, anti-terrorism, maritime cooperation and maritime security. Also, at the same time , Vietnam proposed organizing a high-level ASEAN-UN dialogue on sustainable development on the occasion of the ASEAN-UN Summit, slated for October 2020 in Vietnam.



The initiatives aside, Vietnam has made timely reactions to arising issues that threatened international peace and security, responded to countries ideas and proposals, creatively utilized the UNSCs rules and practices and promoted consensus so that the council could make appropriate decisions.

During the month under the presidency of Vietnam, the UNSC held 30 official activities, including two open debates, eight sessions to listen to reports and four sessions to approve resolutions, which were broadcast live on the UNs media system.

As UNSC president, Vietnam also held an international press conference and many press briefings on the councils work. The council adopted 13 decisions, including four resolutions and a decision on extending the mandate of UN missions, forces and mechanisms, one declaration of the UNSC President, five press statements and two press releases. This is the largest number of decisions made by the UNSC in one month over many recent years.

At the session, many delegates said Vietnam had performed well in its role as president of the UNSC right at the beginning of the first month of its tenure as a non-permanent member. They stated that Vietnam had built a reasonable agenda and handled complicated issues in a flexible manner. Many recognized Vietnams efforts to regularly provide information on the councils work to non-member countries, non-governmental organizations, and the media.

On January 30 evening, Ambassador Quy hosted a reception to mark the end of the month in which Vietnam served as the UNSC president.

Following Vietnam, Belgium will be the next president of the UNSC.
By PTI

NEW DELHI: The Centre will soon announce a new education policy and the government has received over 2 lakh suggestions on it, Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman said on Saturday.

Presenting the Budget for 2020-21, Sitharaman said Rs 99,300 crore has been allocated for the education sector and Rs 3,000 crore for skill development for the next fiscal.

Steps will be be taken to attract external commercial borrowing and FDI in the education sector, the finance minister said.

She further said the government plans to start a programme for urban local bodies to provide opportunities for an internship to young engineers.

She also said National Police University and National Forensic University are being proposed, while planning to allow degree level full-fledged online education programme by institutions ranked in top 100.

The government has also proposed to attach medical colleges with district hospitals on PPP model to deal with a shortage of doctors, she added.

Special bridge courses will be designed for teachers, nurses, paramedical staff, caregivers, she said.

Allocation for Swachh Bharat for 2020-21 stands at Rs 12,300 crore, and the government is proposing Rs 3.6 lakh crore towards piped water supply to households.
New Delhi, Feb 1 : The Budget 2020 allocated the Union Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA) Rs 1.67 lakh crore, an increase of Rs 48,225.05 crore from the previous allocation of Rs 1.19 lakh crore in 2019-20, with the bulk of the money going to police, paramilitary and infrastructure programmes.

Compared with the Revised Estimates of Rs 1.39 lakh crore, the rise is 20.23 per cent or Rs 28,142.14 crore.

Out of total Rs 167,250.33 crore, the government has allocated Rs 151,464.90 crore under the revenue head and Rs 15,785.43 crore under the apital head.

For police, the budget allocation is Rs 105,244.34 crore in the budget. In 2019-2020, it was Rs 98,202.23 crore and as per Revised Estimates, it is Rs 103,202.23 crore.

The paramilitary forces, including the CRPF, the BSF, the ITBP, the CISF, the SSB, the Assam Rifles and the National Security Guard, have been allocated Rs 77,886.52 crore, which is a rise from Rs 71,713.9 crore in the previous Budget.

The CRPF has been allocated Rs 26,259.41 crore in 2020-21 as against Rs 23,963.66 crore in 2019-20. The BSF, which guards the India-Pakistan and India-Bangladesh borders, has been allocated Rs 20,952.49 crore.

The Intelligence Bureau, which is responsible for gathering internal intelligence, has been allocated Rs 2,575.25 crore as against Rs 2,384.1 crore in the last Budget.

Union Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman allocated Rs 30,757 crore for Jammu and Kashmir and Rs 5,958 crore for Ladakh Union Territories for financial year 2020-21.

For cabinet expenditure, the allocation is Rs 1,140.38 crore. In previous fiscal year, the allocation was Rs 828.85 crore and in revised budget, it was Rs 925.28 crore.

The government has been allocated Rs 8,002 crore for the functioning of the ministry in which Rs 7,749.52 crore is under the revenue head and Rs 252.48 crore under capital expenditure. In 2019-2020, the allocation on this score was Rs 4,895.81 crore and in revised budget, it went to Rs 19,955.06 crore.
Window Rock, Ariz.

One of the few remaining Navajo code talkers who used their native language to confound the Japanese in World War II has died.

Joe Vandever Sr. died of health complications Friday in Haystack, N.M., according to his family. He was 96.

Tribal leaders called Vandever a "great warrior" and a "compassionate family man."

Vandever was among hundreds of Navajos who served in the U.S. Marine Corps, transmitting messages using a code based on the Navajo language. The code developed by an original group of 29 Navajos was never broken.

Special Investigation 147 NY dams are 'unsound,' potentially dangerous Thousands of dams have not been inspected in over 20 years.

Vandever's death leaves only a few Navajo code talkers alive.

Vandever enlisted in the Marines in Santa Fe in 1943 and was honorably discharged in 1946. He worked multiple jobs after the war, and was a medicine man.

Vandever is survived by a sister, several children and dozens of grandchildren and great-grandchildren.
A genetic mutation that disrupts how DNA sends messages to the rest of a cell has been linked to a large number of blood cancers. Thanks to a collaboration between biologists at Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory (CSHL) and an oncologist at Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center (MSKCC), we now know how the mutation triggers a chain of biological events that lead to most leukemias.

The deadly chain of events begins with RNA splicing, a process that converts messages from DNA into instructions for making proteins in a cell. Errors in RNA splicing can result in poorly formed proteins that are unable to do their job. The CSHL-MSKCC team found that in blood cancers, a process associated with splicing called Nonsense-mediated mRNA decay (NMD) is excessively active. After splicing converts DNA messages, the NMD process normally serves as "quality control," destroying messages that contain mistakes before a broken protein is made.

The Krainer lab at CSHL determined that when the gene called SRSF2 is mutated, NMD destroys many more messages, including some that have not been likely targets of NMD before. Messages that are important for healthy blood cell production are one of these new targets. The result of excessively active NMD is less healthy blood cells and more sickly or immature cells--a hallmark of blood cancer.

"RNA splicing factor mutations are seen in virtually all forms of leukemia, both chronic as well as acute myeloid leukemias and also even chronic lymphocytic leukemia," said Omar Abdel-Wahab, M.D. at MSKCC. "I'm a hematological oncologist--I think a lot about blood cancer--so this caught my attention right away."

Scientists have seen other cancers manipulate NMD into protecting solid tumors. However, the CSHL-MSKCC discovery, published in Genes and Development, is the first evidence of NMD contributing to blood cancer conditions.

Video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7OoY0tbi8TU

To stop the mutated SRSF2 gene from affecting NMD, the researchers experimented with a technique called antisense oligonucleotide (ASO) therapy. As shown by CSHL Professor Adrian Krainer in past works, ASO therapy has been effective in combating other diseases resulting from defective RNA splicing. The next step will be to test many ASOs in animals, perfecting the team's approach until it is ready for the clinic.

"Before this collaboration, I knew very little about splicing factors or this process of NMD. Conversely, Adrian's lab didn't have much disease-specific experience with blood cancers, so it's been a synergistic experience," Abdel-Wahab added. "By combining forces, we've really been able to address what we've learned."

###
A decision by the United States to lift sanctions on one of two units of the Chinese tanker company COSCO was not a sign that the Trump administration was letting up on its "maximum pressure" against Iran, a senior U.S. official said on Saturday.

The lifting of sanctions on Friday by the U.S. Treasury Department partially reversed its punishment on the company for transporting Iranian oil after China complained about the measure in trade talks with Washington.

The Treasury said it deleted COSCO Shipping Tanker (Dalian) Co from its sanctions list but continues to blacklist a second unit - COSCO Shipping Tanker (Dalian) Seaman & Ship Management Co Ltd.

"This administrative de-listing should not be misinterpreted as a change in policy," a senior administration official said, speaking on the condition of anonymity.

"Our maximum pressure campaign continues as before; we will sanction any sanctionable activity."

China is the world's only major importer of Iranian oil despite sanctions President Donald Trump unilaterally reimposed on Tehran's petroleum exports in 2018 after withdrawing the United States from the 2015 Iran nuclear deal between Tehran and six world powers.

Trump hopes the sanctions will limit Tehran's ballistic missile program and influence across the Middle East. Tehran says its nuclear program is for peaceful purposes.

Search Keywords:

Short link:


Haryana's Adarsh Singh and Madhya Pradesh's Shreya Agrawal won double titles at the ongoing national Shooting trials for rifle and pistol disciplines here on Saturday.

While Adarsh won both the men's and junior men's 25m rapid fire pistol T1 trials, Shreya notched up victories in both the women's and junior women's 10m air rifle T2 trials.

Tokyo Olympics quota winner and Shreya's state-mate Aishwary Pratap Singh Tomar also won the men's 50m rifle 3 positions (3P) T2 trial to continue his good form in the competition.

Adarsh qualified sixth with a score of 578 for the men's final and shot 32 in the final to emerge victorious.

It was a Haryana 1-2-3 with Ayush Sangwan coming second with 26 and Anish third with 25 points.

Anish had the top score in qualifying with a score of 585.

In the women's air rifle T2 final, Shreya prevailed over Mehuli Ghosh of West Bengal, shooting 250.8 to Mehuli's 250.6. Apurvi Chandela came in third with 228.4.

Aishwary also had a stellar day in office, qualifying third for the men's 3P final with a high score of 1172 before a top class final round score of 460.5 to finish well ahead of second-placed Akhil Sheoran (453.7) of the Railways. Parul Kumar of the Air Force was third.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
Amid rising tension over City Council staffers getting paid less on average and having fewer benefits than regular city employees  an attorney has warned a lawsuit could be coming  the San Antonio City Council unanimously approved increasing the fund set aside to pay their aides by 15 percent Thursday.

Read details of the new funding and how the contract workers are paid compared to city workers at ExpressNews.com:

Although no council member specified at the meeting exactly how and when they will use the increased funds, some council aides said their bosses have said they will be seeing raises shortly, while others are still waiting to learn whats going to happen next.

This effort has been years in the making and I am happy to see the funds requested finally made available, said Councilman Roberto Trevino, who proposed the increase last year.

Each council member will now get $592,556 for staff salaries and expenses, including benefits such as health insurance, parking allowance, vehicle allowance, phone allowance, student loan repayment and matching contributions to an individual retirement account.

Click through the gallery to see the median, average, and top salaries of each council member's office:

Including the mayor, who gets the same amount, the council staff compensation fund now totals $6.5 million across the board.

Average salary of each council members office - from lowest to highest:

10. Manny Pelaez -- $42,638

9. Jada Andrews-Sullivan -- $43,625

8. Roberto Trevino -- $47,760

7. Shirley Gonzales -- $50,100

6. Rebecca Viagran -- $51,362

5. Ana Sandoval -- $51,848

4. John Courage  $53,000

3. Adriana Rocha Garcia -- $56,444

2. Clayton Perry -- $57,153

1. Melissa Cabello Havrda -- $60,000

Data is based on the January 2020 payroll figures, which were obtained through a public record request with the city.

sara.cline@express-news.net
5% off your room with this Travelodge discount code

Enjoy 300 off Summer 2022 holidays - TUI voucher code

Family memberships from just 78 a year at National Trust

Extra 10% off with our Hotels.com discount code for NHS

Save 15% or more Booking.com discount codes & cashback in January
(@ChaudhryMAli88)

ABU DHABI, (UrduPoint / Pakistan Point News / WAM - 01st Feb, 2020) Making the UAE the first Arab country to deliver safe, clean and peaceful nuclear energy, Barakah is the first major national achievement this year.

Nawah Energy Company, the subsidiary of the Emirates Nuclear Energy Corporation, ENEC, responsible for the operation and maintenance of nuclear energy plants in the UAE, has confirmed that the World Association of Nuclear Operators, WANO, has cleared Unit 1 of Barakah as ready for start-up.

After it's fully operational, the Barakah Nuclear Energy Plant's four Units will prevent the release of 21 million tons of harmful carbon emissions every year, equivalent to removing 3.2 million cars from the countrys roads on an annual basis.

Located in the Al Dhafra region of Abu Dhabi Emirate, approximately 53km west-southwest of the city of Ruwais, the plant's four APR-1400 design nuclear reactors will also supply up to 25 percent of the UAE's electricity needs in compliance with the highest standards of safety, security and operational performance.

The journey started in April 2008 with the issue of the Policy of the United Arab Emirates on the Evaluation and Potential Development of Peaceful Nuclear Energy.

The Policy focuses on six key principles, which include the UAEs commitment to complete operational transparency, pursuing the highest standards of non-proliferation and adhering to the highest standards of safety and security.

It also includes working directly with the International Atomic Energy Agency, IAEA, and conforming to its standards when evaluating and establishing a peaceful nuclear energy programme, developing any peaceful domestic nuclear energy capability in partnership with the governments and firms of responsible nations, as well with the assistance of appropriate expert organisations, and lastly approaching any peaceful domestic nuclear energy programme in a manner that best ensures long-term sustainability. The UAE programme has since been successfully developed in line with all of these principles, and continues to uphold these going forward.

In 2009, the Korea Electric Power Corporation, KEPCO, which is the largest nuclear power corporation in South Korea, was selected as ENECs Prime Contractor for the development of the Barakah Nuclear Energy Plant in the UAE.

KEPCO is one of the leading nuclear energy companies in the world in terms of safety, reliability and efficiency, as classified by WANO.

The UAE selected this company after a comprehensive year-long process conducted by a team of 75 international energy experts.

The evaluation focused on several factors, most notably, safety and operational excellence. The APR1400 technology selected has since been certified by the US-based Nuclear Regulatory Commission, NRC, highlighting the designs strong safety and reliability characteristics.

In 2010, the environmental impact assessment and licensing requests for preliminary works were submitted, and approval was obtained from the UAEs independent nuclear regulator the Federal Authority for Nuclear Regulation, FANR.

In March 2012, ENEC submitted a construction license application for Barakahs Units three and four, and in May 2013, the safety nuclear concrete was poured for Unit 2 and the installation of major components had begun at Unit 1.

In October 2016, ENEC and KEPCO signed a Joint Venture agreement for a long-term partnership and cooperation for the UAE Peaceful Nuclear Energy programme.

Through the Joint Venture, Nawah Energy Company was established to operate and maintain the Barakah Nuclear Energy Plant.

ENEC and KEPCO also announced the establishment of Barakah One Company PJSC, another independent subsidiary owned by both companies, which represents the commercial and financial interests of the Barakah project.

Under the JV, KEPCO has an 18 percent stake in Nawah Energy Company and Barakah One Company, while ENEC owns the remaining 82 percent.

In November 2016, Barakah One Company signed the first nuclear energy Power Purchase Agreement with Abu Dhabi Water and Electricity Company, now the Emirates Water and Electricity Company, for the purchase of the electricity to be generated at Barakah.

The agreement establishes the contractual framework between the two entities for the sale of the safe, clean, efficient and reliable electricity produced at Barakah.

In March 2018, construction was completed of Barakah Unit 1, and the first batch of Reactor Operators, ROs, and Senior Reactor Operators, SROs, were certified to operate by FANR in July 2019.

Emirati citizens account for 60 percent of the employees in ENEC and its subsidiary companies, and the total number of reactor operators is 72, including 42 Emirati ROs and SROs.

In the past decade, the UAE has welcomed the IAEA and WANO to carry out more than 40 review and inspection missions.

The success of these missions and FANRs stringent oversight has resulted in the UAE Peaceful Nuclear Energy programme being recognized as a role model for the development of a new civil nuclear energy programme and a global benchmark for a new build nuclear energy project.
A state appeals court refused Friday to reinstate a lawsuit by the owner of the San Francisco Examiner that accused The Chronicle of selling advertising below cost to damage competition.

The suit, filed by San Francisco Print Media Co. in 2013, was dismissed in 2016 by Superior Court Judge Curtis Karnow, who found no credible evidence that The Chronicle was pricing ads below its costs or that its rival daily newspaper had suffered the harm it claimed. The First District Court of Appeal upheld Karnows ruling Friday.

In the suit, the company that purchased the Examiner in 2011 said The Chronicle cut prices for display ads. When Karnow heard the case, the Examiner offered an expert witness, economist Richard Eichmann, who concluded most Chronicle ad customers had paid below-cost prices from 2011 onward, and that the Examiner had lost $17 million as a result.

But Karnow found Eichmann unqualified as an expert and excluded his testimony. He said the economist had no experience in assessing a subscription-based newspapers advertising costs and had largely relied on data from a 2010 report by The Chronicles then-finance director, John Sillers. Karnow said Eichmann was apparently unaware that Sillers report was conducted for another purpose and did not use the cost assessment method in Californias Unfair Practices Act, the law invoked in the suit.

The appeals court agreed with Karnows assessment and said Eichmanns proposed testimony was essential to the lawsuit.

Eichmanns uninformed reliance on Sillers analysis is not the mark of an opinion rooted in sound logic, Justice Carin Fujisaki said in the 3-0 ruling. She said Eichmann, in reaching his conclusion about cost-cutting, had allocated all of The Chronicles editorial and production costs to advertising even though only 25% of the newspapers pages were devoted to advertising at that time.

Drought Map Track water shortages and restrictions across Bay Area Check the water shortage status of your area, plus see reservoir levels and a list of restrictions for the Bay Areas largest water districts.

Eichmann lacked the foundational knowledge to conduct the requisite cost analysis, Fujisaki said. She said his analysis was (the Examiners) sole evidence of cost, without which it could not prove sales below cost.

Bob Egelko is a San Francisco Chronicle staff writer. Email: begelko@sfchronicle.com Twitter: @BobEgelko
Virginia Senate passes bill removing abortion safety standards; governor expected to sign

Email Print Img No-img Menu Whatsapp Google Reddit Digg Stumbleupon Linkedin Comment

Virginias state Senate narrowly approved a bill that removes certain regulations on abortion, including an ultrasound requirement and that some abortion clinics be held to the same health and safety standards as hospitals.

The Senate passed Senate Bill 733 on Wednesday in a vote of 21 to 20. The Senators themselves were tied 20-20 until Lt. Gov. Justin Fairfax, who plans to run for governor in 2021 despite multiple sexual assault allegations against him, broke the tie.

Among its provisions, SB 733 states that facilities that perform five or more first trimester abortions per month will cease being designated as hospitals regarding regulations establishing minimum standards for hospitals.

The legislation also repeals a state law requiring that a woman be informed of the benefits and risks of an abortion 24 hours before undergoing the procedure, the National Review reported.

The bill retains Virginias requirement that an abortionist obtain the informed written consent of the pregnant woman seeking an abortion, but it repeals the requirement to perform an ultrasound and offer the woman an opportunity to see the ultrasound, National Review added.

Olivia Gans Turner, president of Virginia Society for Human Life, a pro-life group, denounced the passage of the bill.

This week will be remembered as a tragic one for the well-being of all women in Virginia as well as their unborn children, Turner said Wednesday.

The action of the General Assembly only serves to protect abortionists who once more will be able to hide the truth from the women that come to them.

Virginia Gov. Ralph Northam is expected to sign the bill. Last year, he garnered controversy for, among other things, appearing to endorse infanticide when defending a pro-choice bill.

And its done in cases where there may be severe deformities, where there may be a fetus thats not viable, so in this particular example, if a mother is in labor, I can tell you exactly what would happen, Northam told WTOP at the time.

The infant would be delivered, the infant would be kept comfortable. It would be resuscitated, if thats what the mother and the family desired, and then a discussion would ensue between the physician and the mother. So I think this was really blown out of proportion.

Many pro-life activists and politicians decried Northams comments, among them U.S. Sen. Ben Sasse, R-Neb., who said on the floor of the Senate last year: Let's be clear what we're talking about. We're talking about killing a baby that's been born. We're not talking about some euphemism, we're not talking about a clump of cells.

Everyone in the Senate ought to be able to say unequivocally that killing that little baby is wrong. This doesn't take any political courage. And, if you can't say that, if there's a member of this body that can't say that, there may be lots of work you can do in the world but you shouldn't be here. You should get the heck out of any calling in public life where you pretend to care about the most vulnerable among us.

While Virginia is a step closer to liberalizing its abortion laws, in neighboring Kentucky, the state Senate passed a measure aimed at protecting babies born alive after an attempted abortion.

The Kentucky bill, which mandates that a doctor and other health workers save a child that survives an abortion, unanimously passed the Senate in a vote of 32-0.

We want to make sure that life is protected not only in the womb but certainly after the baby's out of the womb," said Kentucky state Sen. Whitney Westerfield, the bill's lead sponsor, in a statement reported by The Associated Press.
by Wendy Davis @wendyndavis, January 31, 2020

The Federal Communications Commission's enforcement bureau has determined that one or more wireless carriers' practices for handling location data violated the law, Chairman Ajit Pai told Congress Friday.

Pai added he intends to circulate an order for fines.

I am committed to ensuring that all entities subject to our jurisdiction comply with the Communications Act and the FCCs rules, including those that protect consumers sensitive information, such as real-time location data, he said in letters sent to 11 House members.

Pai didn't offer any other details, such as the size of the potential fine or the names of the carriers that unlawfully handled location data.

The move comes more than one year after publication Motherboard reported that the largest carriers sold customers' location data to aggregators and other third parties. Motherboard's report detailed how a reporter paid a bounty hunter $300 to track a phone's location to a neighborhood in Queens, New York.

advertisement advertisement

All four major U.S. carriers have said they no longer sell location data.

Potential FCC fines aren't the only fallout from the revelations. The digital rights group Electronic Frontier Foundation is also suing AT&T for allegedly violating the Federal Communications Act.

That law requires telecoms to preserve confidentiality of customer proprietary network information -- including location data they obtain via their role as carriers.

The digital rights organization is seeking a court order prohibiting AT&T from sharing their location data.

The telecom says the lawsuit should be dismissed, arguing that it stopped providing geolocation data to aggregators last March.

Electronic Frontier Foundation attorney Aaron Mackey called Pai's letter to Congress welcome news.

I'm very pleased that Chairman Pai has determined that this practice of disclosing customers' real time location data violates federal law, he says. We at EFF have been saying the same thing for quite a while.
A number of businesses from Wicklow had the chance to meet international buyers at the Showcase 2020 event.

Holly Somerville, Kaiko Studio and Tweed In The Valley were among those who exhibited their products at the Local Enterprise Showcase, part of Showcase 2020 in the RDS.

Among those exhibiting were Holly Somerville, a botanical artist of illustration and painting. Her illustrations are transferred onto cushions, mugs, make-up bags transforming everyday objects into unique pieces of art. Kaik Studio's founder Linda Legzdina designs and creates contemporary, earthy and industrial concrete home accessories, lighting fixtures, and jewelry. Tweed in the Valley's Anna Dobson designs and manufactures tweed accessories and fashion pieces for men, women and children.

The Wicklow companies were selected by the Local Enterprise Office Wicklow to take part in the Local Enterprise Showcase at Showcase 2020. They have been working closely with the office in recent months to ensure they are in the best possible position to maximise their appearance at the event including sales technique, marketing materials and stand production.

Vibeke Delahunt, Head of Enterprise Wicklow said, 'The Local Enterprise Showcase is always an exciting element of Showcase. The clients here are the up-and-coming talent of Irish craft and design. Many of the exhibitors here will be just starting out, working with their Local Enterprise Office and trying to make the most of the opportunity this event brings. Others have been here before and know the benefits of the Local Enterprise Showcase and the chance to meet buyers from Ireland and all over the world. They have the chance to potentially make business and life changing deals so it's an exciting few days ahead for our clients.'

The show, which ran until Wednesday, January 22, is one of Ireland's largest and most important international trade fairs. Showcase is presented on behalf of Design and Crafts Council Ireland, with support from Enterprise Ireland in promoting the trade show internationally, and the Local Enterprise Offices nationwide. Around 2,700 buyers from retailers attended.
BAKU, Azerbaijan, Feb. 1

By Ilkin Seyfaddini  Trend:

President of Uzbekistan Shavkat Mirziyoyev visited the site of higher educational institutions on Olimlar street in Tashkent, where he laid the capsule for construction of the campus for a new university - the University of Geological Sciences, Trend reports citing Uzbek media.

The University of Geological Sciences will be set up on the basis of four institutions under the State Committee for Geology and Mineral Resources including institutes of geology and geophysics; hydrogeology and engineering geology; mineral resources; and geology and exploration of oil and gas fields.

The material and technical base as well as the scientific potential of the four institutes will be combined and the university will receive the most advanced equipment. Educational programs will be developed organized jointly with St. Petersburg Mining University and other foreign universities and research centers, the report said.

A while ago, geology in Uzbekistan was one of the most advanced and competitive sectors of science, said Shavkat Mirziyoyev. But over the past 30 years, this area has been lagging behind, and we have lost the potential. Scientists have lost motivation, while the new generation of specialists has not been formed. However, geological research is necessary for all sectors of the economy.

Today we are laying the foundation for a scientific and educational institution, which will help boost the development of the area, president said.
(Newser)  It's all in the hormones, apparently. A convicted sex criminal won't be serving a full prison sentence in Iowa after changing gender identity from male to female, KYouTV reports. Joseph Matthew Smithnow Josie Smithwas sent to prison in December 2015 after molesting up to 15 children, and began gender reassignment treatments about two years later. Now court records show the Iowa Attorney General's office is no longer seeking to have the 23-year-old kept behind bars, per the Des Moines Register. "We don't believe we have evidence sufficient to prove Josie Smith has a significant chance of reoffending," said Lynn Hicks, a rep for the AG's office.

story continues below

An early state report said Smith's chance of reoffending topped 20% within five years because Smith was under 25, had never had a long-term relationship, and attacked children of both genders. The report recommended keeping the convict behind bars indefinitely, premised upon Smith's male sex drive. But now, that's changed: "An offenders hormone levels are an important part of substantiating an offenders likelihood of recidivism," said Hicks, per Yahoo News. Upon release, Smith will legally remain a sex-offender for life and meet regularly with a probation officer. The state report noted that Smith had been repeatedly molested as a child in Louisiana. Hicks said the AG's office had never seen a case quite like Smith's. (Read more sex crime stories.)
One lakh workers of the BJP will launch a mega mass contact programme at all the 13,570 polling booths across 70 Assembly constituencies in Delhi ahead of the February 8 polls, the party's Delhi unit president Manoj Tiwari said on Saturday.

The campaign will be simultaneously launched by Union Home Minister Amit Shah in Delhi Cantt, BJP president J P Nadda in Greater Kailash and the party's election in-charge and Union IB Minister Prakash Javadekar in Adarsh ??Nagar constituencies on Sunday, Tiwari said.

Senior party leaders, Union ministers, and party MP's will lead the campaign in other constituencies, he said.

"Under this campaign, one lakh workers of the Bharatiya Janata Party will go from door to door in 13,570 booths of Delhi," Tiwari said.

He said the BJP was contesting the elections in Delhi on the issue of development. BJP workers will go door to door to make people aware of the achievements and the schemes of the central government, he added.

"Awareness will be created about the party's Sankalp Patra for the Assembly polls and voters will also be informed about the last five years of lies, fraud, advertising and corruption of the Aam Aadmi Party and its support to the 'Tukde-Tukde' gang," Tiwari said.

Votes for elections to the 70 Assembly seats in Delhi will be cast on February 8. Results will be announced on February 11.

The BJP, which has been out of power in Delhi for over two decades, was routed by the AAP in the 2015 Assembly elections. The saffron party managing to win just three seats.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
WASHINGTON  The American ambassador whose abrupt recall from Ukraine helped lead to President Trumps impeachment has retired from the State Department, a person familiar with her plans confirmed on Friday.

Marie L. Yovanovitch, a career diplomat, had been expected to leave the Foreign Service after she was ordered back to Washington from Kyiv, Ukraine, ahead of schedule last spring, accused of being disloyal to Mr. Trump.

But documents and testimony later showed that she was the target of a smear campaign for, in part, refusing to grant visas to former Ukrainian officials who were investigating Mr. Trumps political rivals.

On a July 25 telephone call with President Volodymyr Zelensky of Ukraine, Mr. Trump described Ms. Yovanovitch as bad news and said, ominously, Shes going to go through some things.
While a federal appeals court has allowed a Baton Rouge police officer's lawsuit against a Black Lives Matter protester to go forward, one judge said it was unlikely the suit would ultimately succeed.

His argument: First responders can't sue when injured in the line of duty because they assumed the risk when they took the job.

The lawsuit has attracted attention nationwide because it concerns protests held after the fatal police shooting of Alton Sterling in 2016.

The officer, identified in court records only as John Doe, doesn't claim that Black Lives Matter organizer DeRay Mckesson threw a chunk of concrete that seriously injured him. However, he argues Mckesson was a prime leader and organizer of the July 9, 2016 protest and should therefore be held liable. Mckesson argues he is protected by his First Amendment right to protest.

Activist DeRay Mckesson has no First Amendment defense in Baton Rouge protest, court says A federal appeals court says a lower court judge was wrong to throw out a lawsuit against a Black Lives Matter organizer on First Amendment grounds.

Multiple courts have tackled questions about the validity that defense. But Fifth U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals Judge James Ho wrote in a concurring opinion filed Tuesday that Mckesson would likely win the lawsuit for a different reason.

"Police officers and firefighters dedicate their lives to protecting others, often putting themselves in harm's way," he wrote. "What's more, police officers and firefighters assume the risk that they may be injured in the line of duty. So they are not allowed to recover damages from those responsible for their injuries."

Ho cited a common law rule called the "professional rescuer doctrine." He predicted that the suit will fail at the district court level if the defendant's attorneys raise that argument.

Top stories in Baton Rouge in your inbox Twice daily we'll send you the day's biggest headlines. Sign up today. e-mail address * Sign Up

Ho's opinion came as the Fifth Circuit rejected Mckesson's attempt to overturn previous rulings saying the officer can sue him. It's the latest development in a winding legal path.

U.S. District Judge Brian Jackson, of Baton Rouge, previously dismissed the lawsuit in its entirety, citing Mckesson's First Amendment rights and noting the Black Lives Matter group was too loosely organized to sue.

But the 5th Circuit reinstated the suit last year and said the officer can sue Mckesson on the grounds that he acted negligently by leading people to block a highway outside BRPD headquarters. The appellate court then issued a second ruling in the case in August, saying the officer's complaint should not have been dismissed on First Amendment grounds, even if he was injured during a political protest.

In its third written opinion issued last month, the 5th Circuit explained that the injured officer has plausibly alleged that Mckesson breached his duty of reasonable care in the course of organizing and leading the Baton Rouge demonstration.

The U.S. Supreme Court can now choose whether to hear the issue. If it does not, the case would go back to the start and the trial would proceed.

Black Lives Matter organizer sued by injured Baton Rouge cop asks Supreme Court to defend protest rights A civil rights group is urging the nation's highest court to overturn a lower-court ruling that said a Black Lives Matter organizer has no Fir

If it does, Ho argues the professional rescuer doctrine means Mckesson would win.

"This doctrine would seem to require immediate dismissal of this suit. After all, there is no dispute that the officer was seriously injured in the line of duty  specifically, while policing a Black Lives Matter protest that unlawfully obstructed a public highway and then turned violent," he wrote. "The officer deserves our profound thanks, sympathy, and respect. But his case would appear to fall squarely within the scope of the doctrine."
Source: Xinhua| 2020-02-01 16:33:33|Editor: huaxia

Video Player Close

JINAN, Feb. 1 (Xinhua) -- Qingdao customs in eastern China's Shandong Province investigated 190 smuggling cases worth 3.77 billion yuan (around 547 million U.S. dollars) in 2019.

The figures marked a year-on-year increase of 13.8 percent and 24.3 percent, respectively, according to the customs.

The seized items include 48.5 kg of ivory products, 1.2 tonnes of dried seahorses and four tiger skins, as well as products made of endangered species such as rhinoceros horns and pangolin scales.

Qingdao customs has set up special teams to crack down on the smuggling of endangered species and such products.
An Alameda priest found by the Catholic Diocese of Oakland to have sexually harassed employees at St. Joseph Basilica last year was moved to a Pleasant Hill parish, upsetting churchgoers at that location, a diocese spokeswoman said Friday.

The diocese ordered the Rev. George Alengadan to participate in training and receive support at Christ the King Church in Pleasant Hill after the church conducted an internal investigation and found inappropriate behavior, said diocese spokeswoman Helen Osman. The diocese reported the behavior to police as well, she said, but she did not know if any criminal investigation was launched or completed.

We determined through our own investigation there was sexual harassment of employees, Osman said. Hes living (at Christ the King), but it wasnt a transfer. He was ordered to do training and receive some support to address the underlying issues.

The details of the harassment are unclear, but Osman stressed that it did not involve minors. A call to Alengadans Alameda direct line and an email to his St. Josephs email address were not returned Friday. The Chronicle was unable to reach Alengadan at the Pleasant Hill church.

I know it doesnt make it any better for those impacted by his actions, but I want to ensure people that in no way did this involve minors, Osman said. We did turn him into police, so they have been contacted. I dont know the status of their investigation.

Osman said he was sent to Pleasant Hill in the last few months, which has upset some parishioners there.

Theres been some concerns and also some misperceptions unfortunately that the allegations where involving minors, which it is not, Osman said. We removed him from St. Joes because it was not a good thing for him to stay there.

He is not performing any duties at the Pleasant Hill church, she said, hes just in residence. She said shes unaware of any past issues with Alengadan.

Osman, who was traveling Friday, said she didnt have access to her files and wasnt sure if the diocese reported the allegations to the Alameda County Sheriffs Office or city of Alameda police. A sheriffs spokesman said his office was not contacted about the priest and the Alameda police said the departments spokesman was off until Monday.

In a fall St. Josephs parish newsletter, a letter titled: Re: Father George and the allegations described a listening, prayer and healing session on Aug. 19 at the East Bay church with the Grief Ministry Team.

We reflected on questions about our thoughts and feelings, how this impacted our faith, and how we can participate in listening to others to help heal our communitys pain, four parishioners wrote in the newsletter. We prayed for both Father George and the woman who made the accusations against him.

They said they did not know the outcome of the investigations, at the time.

Drought Map Track water shortages and restrictions across Bay Area Check the water shortage status of your area, plus see reservoir levels and a list of restrictions for the Bay Areas largest water districts.

A call to the Alameda church Friday referred a reporter to the diocese. A volunteer at the Pleasant Hill church said there was no way to transfer a call to Alengadan as he didnt have an extension, and the head priest was out of town.

Melanie Sakoda, a member of SNAP, a Catholic priest abuse survivors group, had not heard of the allegations, but wondered if the Pleasant Hill parish had been warned of the accusations after Alengadans move there.

The abuse of adults by clergy can have devastating and long lasting consequences, Sakoda said. It seems like this is just another example where the life of a cleric is considered more important than the lives of believers.

In a 2007 Catholic Voice feature on Alengadan, the diocese newspaper reported the Salesian father was born in Irinjalakvda, Kerala, India. He was ordained by Pope John Paul II in St. Peters Basilica in Rome on June 6, 1982.

He holds a doctorate in theology from the Graduate Theological Union in Berkeley and taught there as an adjunct professor. He was a former pastor of St. Ambrose Parish in Berkeley.

Matthias Gafni is a San Francisco Chronicle staff writer. Email: matthias.gafni@sfchronicle.com Twitter: @mgafni
That's that done. What next? As far as Europe is concerned there is a trade-off between access to EU markets and freedom to set our own regulations, and the Government seems set to prioritise freedom over access.

So how will it use its freedom (and its majority in Parliament) to push through a new set of domestic economic priorities?

We can already catch a glimpse of what these might be. The country is too uneven, and there will be the obvious emphasis on investing in infrastructure as a way of narrowing the North/South divide.

On a roll: How will Boris Johnson use his majority in Parliament to push through a new set of domestic economic priorities?

But, actually, the differences are hugely complex and the need is for thoughtful, cost-effective improvements that can be delivered swiftly rather than grandiose projects that can't.

Whatever you think of HS2, and I am mindful of the economic concept of opportunity cost  what else can you not do because you are putting so many resources into one project?  two things are sure.

If it is ever built, it will open years late and will cost even more than the most pessimistic estimates. At least the additional runway at Heathrow and the runway revision at Gatwick can be delivered, and they are both needed.

There are a host of other smaller projects that should be speeded up. Oxford and Cambridge need their much-delayed rail link because that opens up a belt of high-tech development across Buckinghamshire and Bedfordshire.

Plymouth is the largest industrial town on the South Coast, but has poor connections with the rest of the country. We have to do something about the so-called smart motorways. Lots of things to do.

But the new direction for the Government is not only about infrastructure. It is also about innovation.

One early example is that last week the Government announced that it had more than doubled its funding for mathematical science. Immigration rules for mathematicians are also being relaxed, fast-tracking their path to settling in the UK.

Another way of fostering innovation is regulatory freedom. As Mark Carney, the outgoing Governor of the Bank of England, suggested, the City would be better off setting its own financial regulations even if that means less access to European business.

Last year, the UK was second only to the US in new investment in financial technology, or 'fintech', with just under $5 billion (3.8billion). Next came India and China  Europe barely featured.

Industrial strategy has a bad name in Britain. But that was because it used to be propping up failing businesses. The new industrial strategy will be focused on helping businesses in growth sectors.

The Government will, for example, no longer need to follow European rules on data protection, which hamper innovation and don't offer true privacy as they are not enforceable.

An interventionist government is not necessarily a successful one, and governments can certainly waste a lot of taxpayers' money on grand projects.

But we can be sure of this: government economic policy will, for better or worse, be radically different. We have had a political revolution. Now for an economic one.
The Health Ministry confirmed a new case of nCoV infection on February 1, raising the total number of infections of the new coronavirus (nCoV) in Vietnam to six.

The isolation area for nCoV patients in Khanh Hoa hospital

The latest patient is a receptionist at a hotel in Nha Trang city, the central province of Khanh Hoa. The hotel was where the Chinese father and son, the first nCoV infection cases in Vietnam, stayed during their travel in the country.

The son has so far recovered, while the father is still in isolation and receiving treatment at Cho Ray hospital in Ho Chi Minh City.

According to the ministry, the number of nCoV infections in the world rose to 11,949 as of 8:30 on February 1, with 11,791 cases in China. The death toll increased to 259, all in China./.

Health ministry updates press on nCoV situation

Many people wear face masks while visiting Tay Ho Temple, a place of worship attracting a large number of visitors after the Lunar New Year festival in Hanoi



The Health Ministry held a press conference on January 31 to provide latest information on the acute respiratory disease caused by the new coronavirus (nCoV) in the country and the world.

The ministry said as of 17:00 on January 31, the world reported 9,920 cases of nCoV infection, with 9,779 patients in China. A total 213 have died, all in China.

The virus has spread to 23 countries and territories outside China.

Vietnam has confirmed five nCoV patients, including two who are father and son from Wuhan, China. The son has recovered, while the father is still in isolation at Cho Ray hospital in Ho Chi Minh City.

Three remaining cases, all Vietnamese, were confirmed on January 30.

Of the five patients, four directly came from or returned from Wuhan, while one (the son of the Chinese father) had close contacts with the infected.

Also at the press conference, Sataco Ottshu from the WHO office in Vietnam said the declaration of the nCoV a global health emergency is aimed at promoting global coordination in fighting diseases.

Sataco Ottshu said WHO appreciated the efforts of the Government, the health care sector and ministries, agencies of Vietnam in monitoring, detecting, treating and warning against the virus./.

Former deputy health minister back to old job amidst coronavirus woes

Mr. Nguyen Thanh Long

Prime Minister Nguyen Xuan Phuc on Friday appointed Nguyen Thanh Long, deputy head of the Party Central Committee's Commission for Communications and Education, as deputy minister of health as the country strives to tighten curb on the new China coronavirus or nCoV.

The appointment takes immediate effect, the Government Portal said.

Long, 54, was a deputy minister of health from December 2011 to October 2018 before being taking the current post at the Commission for Communications and Education, which oversees ideological, cultural and press issues in Vietnam.

He started his career at the Health Ministry as a preventive medicine specialist in 1995 and led the Department of HIV/AIDS Prevention between 2008 and 2011.

Returning to the old post, Long will be a member of the Working Group for nCoV Prevention.

Deputy Prime Minister Vu Duc Dam is now in charge of the Health Ministry and the minister post is still vacant after the parliament released Minister Nguyen Thi Kim Tien from her post in November 2019.

Vietnam has confirmed five individuals infected with the nCoV, including two Chinese nationals on January 23 and three Vietnamese citizens on January 30.

The country has recorded 97 suspected cases with signs of fever and cough, all from Chinas virus-stricken areas. Of them, 32 are in quarantine pending test results, according to the Health Ministry.

Vietnams response to nCoV outbreak spotlighted on Asia Times

The Asia Times website on January 30 posted an article reporting on the Vietnamese Governments response to rapid developments of the pneumonia epidemic caused by the novel coronavirus (nCoV).

The story quoted Prime Minister Nguyen Xuan Phuc as stating that fighting the now-global nCoV outbreak is like fighting an enemy, which spoke to the need for government-public unity to combat the diseases spread.

It said the Vietnamese Government has reacted quickly to fast-moving developments, and there also appears to have been competent cooperation between national ministries and regional departments, as well as with provincial Peoples Committees and local governments.

The country has introduced a temporary ban on all tourist visas for people from the affected areas of China, while news reports indicated authorities had shut at least part of the countrys border with China on January 28.

The Ministry of Transport, meanwhile, has requested a suspension of all flights to and from the most infected areas of China.

According to the article, the proximity of China and the importance of Chinese visitors to Vietnams booming tourism sector, worth roughly one-fifth of gross domestic product (GDP) last year, means the gathering health crisis could impact heavily on the economy.

However, Prime Minister Phuc also said that his government accepts economic losses to protect the lives and health of people, Asia Times noted.

As of January 31 morning, 9,805 nCoV cases had been confirmed in 22 countries, with 214 deaths all of which were in China, which reported more than 9,600 infection cases.

The World Health Organisation (WHO) has declared the nCoV outbreak as a global health emergency./.

PM orders intensification of anti-nCoV measures

Children wear facemasks while visiting the Hanoi Book Street on January 31

The Prime Minister freshly issued a directive on the intensification of measures against the nCoV, in face of the complicated developments of the acute respiratory disease caused by the virus.

The directive said Vietnam is facing a very high risk as it has a long border with China which sees busy activities. Authorities have taken many strong and resolute measures against the disease, but in many localities the spirit and the perception on the work are yet to be high while concrete and proactive plans are yet to be worked out.

As such, the Government leader ordered that authorities, organisations and individuals must strictly implement the PMs directives on January 23 and 28, as well as the Party Central Committees document on January 30.

Localities sharing border lines with China must establish communications channels with their Chinese peers to intensify the work, the granting of permission for all the flights from Chinas affected areas to Vietnam and vice versa be suspended except special cases approved by the PM, the directive said.

It further added that the issuance of tourist visas to foreign visitors who are or were in China in the past two weeks must also be suspended except official visas on special cases, and the entry and exit with border passes halted.

Localities are ordered to limit large gatherings, authorities forbidden to send Vietnamese workers to China, and trade and exchanges with China discouraged during the time of the epidemic.

The Ministry of Health must work out a plan and measures to cope with and control the disease, to be submitted to the PM by February 2, the Ministry of Information and Communications must intensify the information and communication on the situation and measures against the disease, and the people are asked to proactively implement advisories by relevant authorities./.

Chinese firms in Hai Phong requested to actively fight nCoV

The meeting between the Hai Phong People's Committee and Chinese businesses on January 31

The Peoples Committee of northern Hai Phong city on January 31 asked Chinese businesses using labourers from China to pay special attention to the fight against the nCoV.

In an urgent meeting with representatives from Chinese firms operating in the city, Vice Chairman of the Committee Le Khac Nam also ordered the municipal Department of Health to direct relevant units to strictly implement measures for preventing the outbreak of the acute respiratory disease caused by the virus.

He laid a special stress on the need to keep a close watch on Chinese citizens working in Hai Phong, and those from affected areas in China that are on their tours to the city.

According to Pham Minh Duc, vice head of the management board of Hai Phong Economic Zone Authority (HEZA), there are 90 Chinese firms operating in the zone using 1,633 labourers of Chinese nationality, including 104 from Chinas Wuhan city.

Nam asked relevant departments and sectors to prepare budget and map out solutions, as well as closely coordinate with Chinese firms to combat the disease./.VNA/VNN
Two days after the festival of Basant Panchami, Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman arrived at the Parliament of India to present her second Union budget wearing a bright yellow coloured saree reviving hopes of spring for Indian consumers.

Looking as confident as ever in a crisp yellow silk saree, the minister carried the documents in a traditional 'Bahi-Khata' (ledger) which she trademarked during last year's budget presentation. The colour yellow is considered as a mark of prosperity and also considered auspicious on important occasions.

Last year, Sitharaman had ditched the long-standing tradition of carrying budget documents in a leather briefcase and went swadeshi with a 'bahi-khata'.

Sitharaman's bright saree could be seen as a mark of the vibrant and dynamic economy that the country is aiming to achieve in the present scenario of an economic slump.

Last year, the Finance Minister wore a bright pink color saree with golden borders for her first budget presentation.

The minister today, is likely to present a 'feel-good' Budget in the backdrop of sliding economic growth despite corporate tax cuts and other stimulus measures.

On January 31, the Economic Survey 2020 was tabled before the Parliament as is customary the day before the presentation of the Budget. The survey stated that GDP would grow at 5 percent this year and is expected to grow at 6 - 6.5 percent over the next financial year.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
Open source

British Prime Minister Boris Johnson has promised that Brexit will be a revival of the British "power of independent thinking and action," "the dawn of a new era." - the Guardian reports.

When the clock was set to Downing Street to count down to the moment Britain exited the EU, Johnson made a video message in which he promised the British "a real national update and change" in connection with Brexit.

In his speech, Johnson emphasized that after Brexit, Great Britain can simultaneously become "a great European and truly global power in its range and ambitions."

"In our diplomacy, in our fight against climate change, in our campaigns for human rights or the education of women, or free trade, we will again show muscles that we have not used for decades. The power of independent thought and action," - the British Prime Minister said.

Johnson did not mention the word "Brexit," which the prime ministers office excluded from government communications, promising instead to "spread hope and opportunity in all parts of the UK."

On the day Britain planned to leave the EU, the Prime Minister invited 10 ministers and veterans of the Vote Leave campaign (vote for Britain's exit from the EU - ed.) To Brexit for a buffet with British treats in his office on Downing Street.

On January 31, the EU flag was lifted at the British representative office in Brussels

As we reported, The United Kingdom is no longer a member of the European Union. The Brexit agreement entered into force at midnight on January 31 Central European Time.
Opposition parties in West Bengal on Saturday criticised the Union Budget for 2020-21, contending that the government made a host of announcements, but indicated no concrete plans to execute them.

Congress MP Adhir Chowdhury said the budget showed no direction on how to take the country ahead on the economic front.

He also took exception to the Centre's plans to sell a part of its shareholding in insurance behemoth LIC.

Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman earlier in the day said LIC will be listed as part of the government's disinvestment initiative.

The Centre proposes to sell a part of its holding in LIC through initial public offer, she said, while unveiling the Union Budget 2020-21.

CPI(M) leader Sujan Chakraborty said the budget is "anti-poor", and it "completely ignored" the rural economy.

The ruling Trinamool Congress in the state said the budget will be of no help for the masses.

"There are no broadbased plans for reviving the economy in the budget. It is a pipeline budget. There are a lot of projects in the pipe, but no plans on how to implement them," TMC MP Sudip Bandopadhyay said.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
A man convicted of sexually assaulting four young women at his Fredericksburg residence in 2017 and 2018 was ordered Friday to serve four years and 45 days in prison.

Larry Ray Owens, 60, was convicted in September of aggravated sexual battery and a misdemeanor charge of possessing a Schedule IV drug. A jury recommended that he serve five years and 45 days and pay more than $40,000 in fines.

Owens was scheduled to be formally sentenced Friday on those convictions. Instead, Commonwealths Attorney LaBravia Jenkins and defense attorney Tara-Beth Coleman made a deal incorporating charges in three other trials that were pending.

The deal included knocking a year and $20,000 in fines off the jurys recommended verdict. Pending felony charges in the cases involving three other victims were reduced to misdemeanors, and Owens received suspended 12-month sentences in those cases. He will also have to register as a sex offender.

All the victims were in their late teens or early 20s at the time of the assaults.
By AFP

SYDNEY: The Australian government on Saturday said it would bar non-citizens arriving from mainland China from entering the country under new measures to combat the spread of the coronavirus epidemic.

Prime Minister Scott Morrison said only "Australian citizens, Australian residents, dependents, legal guardians or spouses" would be permitted into the country from mainland China from Saturday.

"The arrangements are being put in place through our border authorities to ensure that that can be actioned," he added.

Border control authorities would be able to "step up" processes in the next 24 hours to screen those who had departed or transited through China, Morrison said.

"We're in fact operating with an abundance of caution in these circumstances. So Australians can go about their daily lives with confidence," Morrison told reporters.

"We're acting here in advance of many countries in terms of when similar types of arrangements are being put in place."

The requirement of people arriving in Australia from Hubei province to "self-isolate" for 14 days was expanded from Saturday to include anyone travelling from mainland China.

Australia's foreign ministry also updated its travel advice for China to "do not travel".

Qantas Airways, Australia's flag carrier, said earlier Saturday it would suspend its two direct flights to mainland China -- Sydney to Beijing and Shanghai -- from February 9 because of various virus-linked international restrictions.

Air New Zealand followed suit, announcing a suspension of its Auckland-Shanghai service from February 9.
At least 33 Sri Lankan students, who were evacuated on Saturday from the coronavirus-hit Wuhan, will remain under quarantine for two weeks, health officials said.

The death toll from coronavirus outbreak in China rose to 259 on Saturday with total confirmed cases surging to 11,791 amid stepped up efforts by a number of countries to evacuate their nationals from Hubei province, the epicentre of the virus.

The students arrived on a special SriLankan Airlines flight which landed at the southern Mattala airport on Saturday morning and were taken to the central province military facility at Diyathalawa.

The flight departed for Wuhan on Friday to evacuate the students following discussions between the Sri Lankan and Chinese authorities.

Only one positive coronavirus case has been reported from the country so far.

The government had set up a special committee to prevent the spread of the virus given that a large Chinese community is based here working in Chinese construction sites in different parts of the country.

So far about 124 positive cases have been reported in a host of countries.

India, along with several other countries have stepped up evacuating their nationals stranded in Hubei as China continued to deal with spread of the deadly disease.

Hubei province and its capital Wuhan remained the ground zero of the virus with 45 deaths and 1,347 confirmed cases, according to the Chinese commission's report.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
European Commissioner for the Internal Market Breton gestures as he communicates on the EU's 5G plan in Brussels

By Foo Yun Chee

BRUSSELS (Reuters) - EU industry chief Thierry Breton on Friday welcomed U.S. comments on the bloc's decision not to issue an outright ban on Chinese telecoms equipment maker Huawei, while showing no signs of any change in the EU's stance.

The EU this week issued guidelines that, while not naming any company, would in practice restrict Huawei's equipment in 5G infrastructure and possibly exclude it from the core part of the network. EU countries were also advised not to depend on one provider.

On Tuesday Britain, which is about to exit the EU, granted Huawei a limited role in its 5G network.

The U.S. fears that the Chinese government may use Huawei gear for spying, allegations rejected by Huawei. The EU is seeking to maintain good relations with United States and China, both important trading partners.

The EU decision to defy U.S. pressure for an outright ban prompted U.S Secretary of State Mike Pompeo to on Thursday reiterate a call to the bloc to exclude high-risk suppliers from all parts of 5G networks.

Breton responded in a tweet.

"I very much welcome US Secretary Mike @SecPompeo's declaration on our European #toolbox for a secure #5G. As allies and partners, we have a like-minded approach to deploying securely this technology that will bring immense opportunities," he said.

World No. 1 telecoms equipment maker Huawei competes with Sweden's Ericsson and Finland's Nokia.

(Reporting by Foo Yun Chee; editing by John Stonestreet)
On the set of his new film Queen & Slim, the British actor Daniel Kaluuya realised something about himself. Its really difficult to play people that are content, he explains. If you look at Get Out, my character was riddled with trauma, guilt and borderline self-hate. In Queen & Slim, Slim is just, I believe in God, I want a family, I dont think Im gonna change the world. Theres less conflict. But, honestly, those people are so valuable. Because thats the good life. Theyre so content and so fulfilled.

Its a statement that suggests that, deep down, Kaluuya isnt. Which feels wrong. Hes one of our most exciting and multifaceted young actors, an Oscar nominee, and is consistently drawn to momentous and galvanising projects such as Widows (2018), Black Panther (2018) and, pre-Hollywood, Black Mirror and Skins. It sounds like he should be content, surely?

Yeah, but Im black, bro.

He erupts in a cackle.

Now it gets interesting!

I meet Kaluuya, 30, at the end of a press tour that has been dominated by incendiary headlines related to his ethnicity  Daniel Kaluuya fled the UK because the colour of his skin was preventing him getting roles; Daniel Kaluuya says he is tired of being asked about race. Hes still processing it all. He says he was texted by a friend the previous night about the most recent headlines, and has faced a day of interviews in which journalists have repeatedly asked him why he wont talk about race anymore.

What Ive said has been reduced to a headline in order to entice people, he says. But that doesnt mean that thats my perspective. My perspective has been used to spew something. People dont understand how sensitive this issue is. Like this can cause something, but it dont really matter to a lot of people.

The people that see you more as a person, theyre gonna come to you as a more rounded being and theyre gonna ask it in a much more sensitive and nuanced way, he continues. They aint gonna reduce it like that, because they care about the impact of it, and the effect of it. A lot of the people Im talking to arent respectful of the issue, which is why theyll reduce it, and theyll twist it. Look at the Stormzy thing  boom, and its twisted.

Much like Stormzy, whose quotes about racism existing in the UK were distorted by a baying press and weaponised against him, Kaluuya has become a reluctant poster boy for black Britishness. It understandably becomes wearying to talk about when its made the dominant conversation.

'Those people are so valuable': Jodie Turner-Smith and Daniel Kaluuya in 'Queen & Slim' (Universal Pictures)

Queen & Slim tangles with blackness, but at its heart is a story of love. Kaluuya and Jodie Turner-Smith are the young couple of the title  an initially mismatched pair who meet on a Tinder date, only for it to spiral out of control when the car theyre in is stopped by a racist cop. An altercation occurs, leaving Queen injured and Slim shooting the cop dead in self-defence. They then go on the run, recognising that theyd never receive a fair trial. As they plot to flee to Cuba, they fall in love with one another, while becoming mythic heroes to black America.

Kaluuya is bewitching, and appears to relish playing a character who is romantic, sexy and at ease in life. His work in the film, however, hasnt been spoken of as much as his race, and he is visibly frustrated by it. Particularly when he is faced with journalists who have decided to craft a narrative around him before they even meet. He recalls a recent journalist who couched a leading question in a compliment.

Youre in this film Get Out, wicked film, I love that film  lets talk about how you were rejected from England, he sighs. And thats what they lead with, that I said I had to leave the UK. Thats what theyre hearing when I talk. People think that its me bringing up [race] when people are just asking me about it. The person thats asking me about it is more obsessed about it than I am, but then I look more like the one whos obsessed.

Access unlimited streaming of movies and TV shows with Amazon Prime Video Sign up now for a 30-day free trial Sign up

He jumps to his feet in the hotel room hes been sat in for the day, and walks to a nearby window. He flicks the bottle cap hes been playing with for much of our conversation out if it.

Im the one thats having the symptoms of it, and the effect of it, he continues. Come on, man. Its a trap, bro. He returns to the sofa, and clarifies himself. Its not even like its a trap, its just  its odd. Its very odd. And thats all I was saying  its just tiring. Because it is tiring! And more tiring because I know Ill say it and then it gets put in someones hands and theyll just run with it. A lot of people are educated above their intellect, or educated above what theyve seen in the world, so they dont know. There are certain issues that you cant misquote.

(Universal Pictures)

Even removed from the press cycle, Kaluuya emits a discomfort that seems related to his present circumstances. It brings to mind that there are two kinds of famous people: those who take to it as if it were their calling, flourishing amid the attention, and others floored by how unusual their lives have become. The latter tend to be like Kaluuya: working class, deeply empathetic, and told in their most impressionable years that great success would never happen to them.

Kaluuya leans across the table separating us, and fixes his eyes on me. His eyes are captivating things, utilised to their fullest by the filmmakers he works with. In Queen & Slim they convey sass and flirtation, in Widows they were piercing tools of intimidation, and their teary, terrified stare in Get Out was so effective that his eyes made up the entirety of the films poster.

The thing is: look at me, he begins, stroking his sleeve. I love this coat, Im having the career of my dreams. My lifes sick! Last night I was surrounded by people that I love. Yet theres still something. He enthusiastically rubs his hands together, as if imitating a villain, or someone with ulterior motives. Like you reach your goals, but there seems to be a narrative. Its not the reality. I have to be aware that its not about me, its about how people see me. It affects me, but its not from me. Yet even though its not from me, Im still questioned about it.

I know that Ive been working my ass off all of my life to get in the position Im in, he continues. Im very blessed to be in the position Im in. Im very blessed to have the opportunities I have. And I prefer my narrative of myself than anyone elses narrative who doesnt understand me, of me. People need to know that. Thats them. They need to not look like its them for it to feel real and for it to spread. So it is what it is.

Intimidation: Alongside Brian Tyree Henry in 'Widows' (Fox/Film4)

When Kaluuya was 16 and growing up in Camden Town, London, he told his mum that he wanted to be an actor. She was all stressed and that, he remembers with a laugh, so she took him to Connexions. It was basically youth advice. So we sat down with this woman in Connexions who told me, Acting is not gonna work out. Could you imagine if I listened to her?

As worried as his mother was, Kaluuya quickly embodied a drive and determination that would put many teenagers to shame. Amid drama workshops and plays at the Anna Scher Theatre, he found work as a runner on a shopping channel at 16 and began writing and performing at a local theatre company. It was there that he was swooped up by Company Pictures, who were looking for young writers to advise on scripts for a forthcoming Channel 4 teen drama they were producing.

The series was called Skins, and Kaluuya contributed to its scripts in the first series. At the same time, he attended an open casting call for a mystery project that coincidentally turned out to be Skins, too  he would subsequently portray Posh Kenneth, a hip-hop fan with a plummy accent who recurred through the shows first two series. By night, Kaluuya would work behind the scenes on the show, eventually scripting two episodes himself. The show would become a wellspring of young British talent: Nicholas Hoult, Dev Patel, Hannah Murray, Kaya Scodelario, Jack Thorne and Josie Long all came up through the school of Skins.

I was still in education, I was still getting EMA [education maintenance allowance], he remembers. I was figuring s*** out. But I was just like, Yo, this s***s fun. I loved being around creative people. It was a great space to be in. I hosted the Skins podcast, and I wrote their MySpace pages. It was like this thing that allowed me to stretch all these muscles that I didnt even realise I had. I was like, Ooh, let me try this, let me try that. Looking back, it was really enriching.

He remembers with fondness his time in Bristol, the city in which Skins was filmed. Its a beautiful city to walk in, he says. Id already had holidays, because my mum made sure we went on holidays growing up, but it was weird to have my worldview changed by just going to a different part of your own country. Camden is kind of like a village, and so inward. Bristol gave me an exposure to things. Its like what I presume people who go to uni feel  I didnt go. So it shifted something in me.

Fearless: Kaluuya stars alongside Mitch Hewer in 'Skins' (Channel 4)

He describes himself back then as fearless. I didnt give a s***! I could do anything, and I didnt even have to say that out loud  I just did it, you know what Im saying?

He also says that hes trying to keep that spirit intact. I know where I want to head, I know that I can get an idea and I go for it, he explains. Im trying to keep that fearlessness, but what happens is when youre more visible, that becomes harder. There are just more voices. I feel like you grow up and people try and project their own insecurities and fears onto you, to dull that sense thats just in you when youre a young person. Like, You cant play this, you cant do that  its the antithesis of creativity.

From Skins came appearances in Johnny English Reborn (2011), Sicario (2015) and Psychoville, as well as the starring role in Roy Williams acclaimed play Sucker Punch. It was his presence in the second episode of Black Mirror, playing a young man trapped in an enclosed space and generating power in exchange for money, that caught the attention of filmmaker Jordan Peele. He was subsequently cast in Peeles Get Out, which scored him an Oscar nomination in 2018.

Today, Kaluuya is a major industry player  his production company 59% signed a deal with Paramount Pictures last year, and hes just finished filming the starring role in a Warner Bros biopic about the murdered Black Panther Fred Hampton. The film also reunites him with his Get Out co-star Lakeith Stanfield. Were on the same journey, Kaluuya explains, so its pure pleasure to connect with him.

For his next project, hes looking for what he describes as something with vibes. He wants to do a romantic comedy, and discover roles that continue to challenge him.

I think your life is a true art piece, he explains. When you look back at your life, and youre about to bounce  say Im in a hospital bed, say I get hit by a train, you just look back and go, You know what, I liked that piece and what I created there, or I like who I touched there, and I like who touched me. And then you just keep on pushing.

Queen & Slim is in cinemas now
In route news, passenger numbers at Mineta San Jose reached another new peak in 2019, as the airport struggles to accommodate the crowds; airline service into China is in freefall as airlines cancel more routes and a quarantine goes into effect; Delta reveals new first-class seats for A321neos; Phoenix Sky Harbor shuts down Terminal 2; troubled South African Airways secures new financing; Germanys Condor Airlines gets a new owner; Frontier will bring commercial airline service to the only state that doesnt have it; American revises baggage policy for South American flights; and Norwegian does the same for lowest-fare travelers.

Those big expansion plans revealed by Mineta San Jose Airport last month are going to be sorely needed: The airport just announced its year-end statistics for 2019, showing that passenger numbers last year jumped by 1.3 million over 2018, or 9.3 percent, to a total of 15.7 million arriving and departing travelers. Part of that big increase can no doubt be explained by Southwests launch of Hawaii service from SJC, giving Southwest an 18.4 increase in passenger numbers last year; Southwest controls 50 percent of SJCs traffic. But big traffic gains were also recorded at SJC by Delta (18.9 percent) and Alaska (12.2 percent).

The Silicon Valley airport handled 147,000 passenger flights last year, up from 135,000 in 2018, and it opened six new gates as well as 11 new retail and food-and-beverage concessions. SJC also started construction on a new parking garage that will add 900 long-term spaces to the capacity currently provided by Economy Lot 1. New or expanded airline service coming to SJC in 2020 includes Southwests routes to Kauai and Kona that started last month, new American service to Austin beginning in April, and additional JetBlue flights to Boston coming in June, and more Delta flights to Detroit starting in July. On the international side, Alaska Airlines will launch Puerto Vallarta service in March and Air Canada starts flying to SJC from Toronto in May.

Flight cancellations to China were coming thick and fast at weeks end after the State Department upgraded its advisory on that country to an unequivocal do not travel warning due to the coronavirus scare. Health and Human services also announced new quarantine measures for travelers arriving from China that go into effect Sunday. More about that here. Delta, which had earlier announced a reduction in flight frequencies on China routes, said Friday that it would suspend all flying to China (Beijing and Shanghai) from Feb. 6 through April 30. Also Friday, American said it was suspending all flights to the Chinese mainland, effective immediately through March 27. And United suspended operations between the United States and Beijing, Chengdu and Shanghai, beginning Feb. 6 until March 28. A number of foreign airlines have also eliminated or curtailed service to China.

Delta has placed orders for up to 200 Airbus A321neos for delivery starting by the end of this year, and it said this week that those planes will feature a new first-class seat. It's most notable feature is a new wraparound headrest design that Delta says will provide more privacy and easier sleeping. The seats will also provide 25 percent more tray table space and three times more storage volume than comparable A321s in Deltas fleet. Other new touches include memory foam seat cushions, customer-facing power ports and large seatback video screens. The new A321neos will have 20 seats in first class, 42 in Comfort+ and 132 in the main cabin.

Delta

Phoenix Sky Harbor Airport next week will open the north concourse of its Terminal 3, the last stage of a $590 million modernization of that terminal. As a result, airlines still using Terminal 2 (which will be shut down) will move to Terminal 3 next week, including United, Air Canada, Alaska and Boutique Air. United flyers will lose United Club access at PHX until the carrier can get a new one open in T3.

Because South African Airways has been canceling an unusually large number of flights in recent weeks, some observers have speculated that the carrier  which was already in a state of business rescue, a form of bankruptcy -- might be on the verge of shutting down. But the company said this week that its discussions with the government and financial institutions have given the airline access to $244 million in new funding from the Development Bank of Southern Africa. Stakeholders of the airline should now have comfort that the rescue process is on a significantly sounder footing, and that passengers and travel agencies and airline partners may continue to book air travel on SAA with confidence, the company said. Meanwhile, SAA  a Star Alliance member -- has just started using a new Airbus A350-900 on its New York JFK-to-Johannesburg route.

Don't miss a shred of important travel news! Sign up for our FREE bi-weekly email alerts

Since its former owner, the U.K.-based Thomas Cook Travel group, shut down last year, Germanys Condor Airlines has managed to keep operating thanks to a bridge loan from the German government. But now Condor has a new owner  Polish Aviation Group (PGL), the owner of LOT Polish Airlines. Condor will become the center of PGLs leisure strategy with a focus on growth in Germany as well as adjacent markets, building one of the leading European leisure airlines, PGL said. Going forward, Condor will continue to operate under the leadership of its successful management team and with its own brand as Germanys most popular leisure airline. Condors international route map includes Seattle, Portland, Las Vegas and Phoenix; the airline carries more than 9 million passengers a year from eight German airports to 90 destinations in Europe, Africa and North America with a fleet of more than 50 aircraft. LOT doubled its passenger count in the past four years to more than 10 million in 2019, with a fleet of 80 aircraft. LOT Polish plans to introduce San Francisco-Warsaw 787 service four days a week starting August 5.

At the weekly pub quiz we attend, a question a couple of years ago was, What is the only U.S. state that has no commercial airline service? The answer was Delaware, but that is about to change. Frontier Airlines plans to start flying out of Wilmington in May with service to Orlando three times a week. The low-cost carrier previously operated several routes out of Wilmington but abandoned the airport in 2015. Wilmington service has always been a hard sell for airlines because it is so close to the Baltimore/Washington and Philadelphia airports. Speaking of Philadelphia, Frontier plans to launch new seasonal service there this spring, with daily flights to Los Angeles starting April 23, followed by daily PHL-Boston service May 1 and daily PHL-Chicago OHare flights May 17.

Heading to South America on American Airlines? The carrier has changed its baggage policy so that main cabin travelers can no longer check two bags for free; instead, passengers headed to South American destinations (except for Ecuador, Guyana and Colombia) will now face a $65 fee for the second checked bag. Premium economy passengers will still get two bags free, and all economy flyers will get one checked bag free (except for basic economy ticket purchasers, who will pay $45 for the first bag and $65 for the second)  Norwegian has also tightened up baggage restrictions for its LowFare purchasers. They can now bring nothing on board for free except one personal item that fits under the seat; a larger bag for the overhead bin will cost $8 to $12. The carrier has also cut back on airport lounge access for its PremiumFlex ticket purchasers.

Read all recent TravelSkills posts here

Chris McGinnis is SFGATE's senior travel correspondent. You can reach him via email or follow him on Twitter or Facebook. Don't miss a shred of important travel news by signing up for his FREE biweekly email updates!

SFGATE participates in various affiliate marketing programs, which means we may get paid commissions on editorially chosen products purchased through our links to retailer sites.
01/02/2020 Storm Stormont mental health march. Hundred of people pictured at todays rally at Stormont where people are calling for better health care for Mental Health patients Mandatory Credit  Presseye/ Stephen Hamilton

01/02/2020 Storm Stormont mental health march. Hundred of people pictured at todays rally at Stormont where people are calling for better health care for Mental Health patients Mandatory Credit  Presseye/ Stephen Hamilton

01/02/2020 Storm Stormont mental health march. Hundred of people pictured at todays rally at Stormont where people are calling for better health care for Mental Health patients Mandatory Credit  Presseye/ Stephen Hamilton

01/02/2020 Storm Stormont mental health march. Hundred of people pictured at todays rally at Stormont where people are calling for better health care for Mental Health patients Mandatory Credit  Presseye/ Stephen Hamilton

01/02/2020 Storm Stormont mental health march. Hundred of people pictured at todays rally at Stormont where people are calling for better health care for Mental Health patients Mandatory Credit  Presseye/ Stephen Hamilton

01/02/2020 Storm Stormont mental health march. Hundred of people pictured at todays rally at Stormont where people are calling for better health care for Mental Health patients Mandatory Credit  Presseye/ Stephen Hamilton

01/02/2020 Storm Stormont mental health march. Hundred of people pictured at todays rally at Stormont where people are calling for better health care for Mental Health patients Mandatory Credit  Presseye/ Stephen Hamilton

01/02/2020 Storm Stormont mental health march. Hundred of people pictured at todays rally at Stormont where people are calling for better health care for Mental Health patients Mandatory Credit  Presseye/ Stephen Hamilton

01/02/2020 Storm Stormont mental health march. Hundred of people pictured at todays rally at Stormont where people are calling for better health care for Mental Health patients Mandatory Credit  Presseye/ Stephen Hamilton

01/02/2020 Storm Stormont mental health march. Hundred of people pictured at todays rally at Stormont where people are calling for better health care for Mental Health patients Mandatory Credit  Presseye/ Stephen Hamilton

01/02/2020 Storm Stormont mental health march. Hundred of people pictured at todays rally at Stormont where people are calling for better health care for Mental Health patients Mandatory Credit  Presseye/ Stephen Hamilton

01/02/2020 Storm Stormont mental health march. Hundred of people pictured at todays rally at Stormont where people are calling for better health care for Mental Health patients Mandatory Credit  Presseye/ Stephen Hamilton

01/02/2020 Storm Stormont mental health march. Hundred of people pictured at todays rally at Stormont where people are calling for better health care for Mental Health patients Mandatory Credit  Presseye/ Stephen Hamilton

01/02/2020 Storm Stormont mental health march. Hundred of people pictured at todays rally at Stormont where people are calling for better health care for Mental Health patients Mandatory Credit  Presseye/ Stephen Hamilton

01/02/2020 Storm Stormont mental health march. Hundred of people pictured at todays rally at Stormont where people are calling for better health care for Mental Health patients Mandatory Credit  Presseye/ Stephen Hamilton

01/02/2020 Storm Stormont mental health march. Hundred of people pictured at todays rally at Stormont where people are calling for better health care for Mental Health patients Mandatory Credit  Presseye/ Stephen Hamilton

01/02/2020 Storm Stormont mental health march. Hundred of people pictured at todays rally at Stormont where people are calling for better health care for Mental Health patients Mandatory Credit  Presseye/ Stephen Hamilton

01/02/2020 Storm Stormont mental health march. Hundred of people pictured at todays rally at Stormont where people are calling for better health care for Mental Health patients Mandatory Credit  Presseye/ Stephen Hamilton

Hundred of people pictured at todays rally at Stormont where people are calling for better health care for Mental Health patients Mandatory Credit  Presseye/ Stephen Hamilton

Hundreds of people have stormed Stormont to demand better mental health services in Northern Ireland.

A number of campaigners with mental health groups joined the grassroots protest organised by Helena Palmer and Chloe Murphy, both 22.

The activists said they were motivated to organise the Storm Stormont rally by the high number of suicides in Northern Ireland.

People of all ages waved placards as they marched up to the gates of the Parliament Buildings.

They called on the newly restored Northern Ireland Executive to make mental health a priority and demanded more action from MLAs.

Miss Palmer said: Everyone is sick of hearing about suicides and deaths and then nothing is done about it.

Expand Close Helena Palmer, 22, was one of the organisers of the event (Cate McCurry/PA) / Facebook

Twitter

Email

Whatsapp Helena Palmer, 22, was one of the organisers of the event (Cate McCurry/PA)

We want our voices to be heard. There is an epidemic in Northern Ireland and theres so many people that suffer day after day and have to beg for help.

People suffer in silence and are afraid to speak up because we all know there is such a stigma around mental health, and thats what we want to get rid of.

We know nothings going to change overnight, but we just want the Government to know that were here and we do want change and we want it soon.

We want something put in place for people, and to let people know we are listening to them.

Mental health has killed too many people.

Miss Murphy said she was shocked by the number of people who joined the event on Saturday.

She told the crowd: We didnt expect so many people, its just unbelievable.

Speaking from the steps of Stormont, campaigner Karl Bennett told the crowd he has been touched by a mental health illness.

Expand Close Music was playing during the rally outside Stormont (Cate McCurry/PA) / Facebook

Twitter

Email

Whatsapp Music was playing during the rally outside Stormont (Cate McCurry/PA)

He said: I know what the consequences are, not just for the person whos suffering, but those who are around those who are suffering and those who are left behind.

Mental health is raised in the media by politicians, celebrities and many others, but we need action.

We want to start to see less of that talking and see more about action that has been promised.

Im asking the minister for health Robin Swann to treat the mental health crisis as a health emergency in Northern Ireland.

How many more of our young people must die? How many more attempted suicides must there be? How many more sons, brothers, godfathers, brothers, grandsons, mums, dads must die before we take action?

Its too little, too late for some.

Expand Close Organisers said they were surprised so many people had joined the rally (Cate McCurry/PA) / Facebook

Twitter

Email

Whatsapp Organisers said they were surprised so many people had joined the rally (Cate McCurry/PA)

Northern Ireland has the highest suicide rate in the UK, with figures showing five people take their own life every week.

Statistics show that in 2018, there were 307 suicides.

Mr Bennett has called on the Government to establish a separate accident and emergency unit for mental health patients only.

We need a proper support system because our mental health care system is not fit for purpose and not for what we need, he added.

He urged Mr Swann to speak to mental health support groups as well as health practitioners about the issue.

He added: Mental health does not care about age, religion, colour, nor class, if youre rich or poor, live in the city on the country, it just seeks out the next vulnerable victim.

The Department of Health has been contacted for comment.
(CNN)  Brexit has happened. After 1,316 days of political turmoil, the UK now stands alone as the first nation to have ever left the European Union.

It has ended the careers of two Prime Ministers and left the very future of the United Kingdom in question. Scotland's case for independence is becoming harder to ignore while Britain's perceived selling out of Northern Ireland has played into the hands of those wishing to see Irish unification.

That's just the politics: Britain's economic future and place in the world have not been this uncertain since the end of the World War II.

Speaking to the nation an hour before Brexit finally happened, Prime Minister Boris Johnson acknowledged that the country was divided: "For many people this is an astonishing moment of hope, a moment they thought would never come. And there are many of course who feel a sense of anxiety and loss ... I understand all those feelings, and our job as the government -- my job -- is to bring this country together now and take us forward."

Johnson has political capital to spend. His election landslide last year means he has the power to start rebuilding the UK in his own image. It also means he can remold the country's position on the international stage. And in a world of shifting geopolitics, whatever path Johnson decides to walk will have implications beyond Britain's borders.

The key question that needs answering in the next 11 months: Will the UK stick with its European neighbors and their multilateral view of the world? Or will it drift across the Atlantic and team up with an increasingly confrontational American foreign policy?

Why 11 months? Because, according to the deal Britain signed with the EU, this Brexit transition period ends on December 31, and whatever deal the two parties have reached on their future relationship -- if any -- kicks in.

Mark Leonard, director of the European Council on Foreign Relations think tank, says that Johnson faces a huge strategic choice: "For decades, the foundation of British foreign policy has rested on two pillars: the UK has been an influential member of the EU; it is also part of the transatlantic alliance, with NATO and the US at its core."

In an ideal world, post-Brexit Britain would now be free to forge new economic relations with both the EU and the US, while maintaining a diplomatic equilibrium that allows it to be a power broker between the two.

But as Trump's America drifts further from the European agenda on so many big issues -- from climate change to Iran engagement with China -- any decision Johnson makes favoring one party risks straining relations with the other.

Johnson is already attempting to navigate the China minefield that stretches across Europe.

The EU's China problem is acute. On one hand, stagnating European economies benefit from Chinese investment. On the other, that investment comes with the potential security risk of allowing state-owned Chinese companies to operate in Europe. And that has implications for Europe's intelligence-sharing allies, such as the US.

Earlier this week, Johnson's government decided that it would allow the Chinese telecoms firm Huawei to build part of the UK's 5G network, despite serious security concerns. The government said Huawei's role in the project would be restricted to areas that meant it wasn't a risk to the UK.

One person unlikely to be happy about this is US President Donald Trump. In his economic war with China, Trump is looking for friends. And as the UK leaves the EU, desperate to sign trade deals -- especially with the US -- he sees an opportunity to pull the UK into his orbit.

Trump seemed distracted as the news broke on Tuesday and it's possible that London's assurances were enough for the President. However Johnson chooses to handle the Huawei issue going forward, officials in both Brussels are DC will be paying very close attention. And whatever decisions he takes, it creates an immediate short-term problem for Europe's own power-balancing act between the US and China.

"The EU's top priority is balanced relations between the big two: China and America," says Steven Blockmans, head of foreign affairs at the European Center for Policy Studies. "If the UK has a closer relationship with either, it could create problems for Europe."

Europe also has a complicated relationship with Russia. Many EU nations rely on Russian investment and natural resources. But Europe has led a sanctions charge on Russia for its illegal annexation of Crimea and alleged state-sanctioned attacks on Russian dissidents living in Europe. Arguably the most high-profile of these cases was the poisoning of Sergei Skripal in England. Russia has repeatedly denied any involvement.

Johnson was British foreign secretary at the time and was quick to blame Moscow, driving a push for the international expulsion of Russian diplomats.

That was then. During last year's election, Johnson made big spending promises to the public he now leads. Russian investment could help make ends meet, given that the City of London is a favored destination for wealthy Russians.

"A clampdown on assets that are held or transferred through the city is crucial to maintaining a common European stance," says Blockmans. Johnson's advisers assume he will stick to his hard line on Russia, but there are long-term concerns in eastern Europe. If he budges even slightly, it causes problems for Ukraine, whose independence from Russia is an EU priority.

Sarah Lain, an associate fellow at the Royal United Services Institute, says that Brexit "creates uncertainty over what resources the UK will have to maintain its position on eastern Europe."

While the UK remains committed to supporting Ukraine, Kiev's concern is that, "given the possible economic impact from Brexit and the perceived blow to the UK's reputation as a strong foreign policy actor," Britain might be unable to support Ukraine in the same way, says Lain.

Johnson's policy shifts could be subtle. But they will color a complicated picture in the international community. A big economy with serious diplomatic power nudging in one direction shifts the weight in a delicate balancing act.

The most complicating factor in all of this, of course, is the unreliable figure currently occupying the White House -- who happens to be up for reelection in November.

"We are in a period of negotiating a new world order, and Britain needs to navigate a path that maintains strong relations with as many of our allies as possible," says Sophia Gaston, managing director of the British Foreign Policy group.

That new world order will largely be determined by how successful Trump is in his attempts to reshape the world to America's advantage, and of course, if he's still in the White House this time next year. "The UK is leaving the EU at a time when Trump is trying to renegotiate the transatlantic relationship as he pivots his attention from Europe and the Middle East to competition with China and Asia," says Leonard.

It's no secret that Trump's priority with Brexit is a trade deal that could buck global norms on food standards and the regulation of medicines. Doing so would present the US with the opportunity to set precedents in trade that were previously unthinkable -- and could even see a hike in global drug prices.

For Johnson, a trade deal with Washington would be a political prize, proving that Brexit had been worth it all along. However, a wide-ranging deal with America could damage the UK's relationship with the EU. Leonard says that Trump, unlike presidents before him, is "much more transactional" in his dealings with other nations. The price of cozying up to him could cost Johnson big with European allies.

So, what will he do? Gaston believes that Britain will ultimately "operate as a mid-tier military power with top-tier assets in soft power, diplomacy and development."

The big question: what global status does Johnson want the UK to have five years from now, when Brexit is done and dusted? "There's a danger that as Britain leaves the EU, it puts getting trade deals above all else and will not be a big strategic player as it becomes obsessed with bilateral relationships," says Leonard.

As foreign secretary, Johnson didn't say much about how he saw the new world order. As the UK moves into its brave new future, the world is still in the dark as to exactly who will benefit from its considerable heft.

And while some claim that this won't matter, it's not a view shared by those at the helm of many world powers. If Johnson does decide to move further from Europe, there's "a danger from a European perspective that Britain could become a disrupter, a bit like Turkey or Russia, that tries to divide and rule different European countries, is not reliable and is unpredictable," says Leonard.

And if it does drift across the Atlantic towards America, Brussels could soon miss having one of the world's loudest diplomatic voices, with nuclear weapons, a big economy, a world-class intelligence network and a permanent seat on the UN security council, firmly in its ranks.

This story was first published on CNN.com "The UK has left the EU -- and the implications for the world are huge"
Russian woman, 34, drowns at Patong Beach

PHUKET: Police have yet to reveal details of how a 34-year-old Russian woman drowned at one of the busiest sections of Patong Beach this morning (Feb 1).

patongRussiandeathpolicemarineSafety

By Eakkapop Thongtub

Saturday 1 February 2020, 11:14PM

An ambulance crew arrive at Patong Hospital with the 34-year-old Russian woman, who was later pronounced dead. Photo: Eakkapop Thongtub

Lt Col Sarit Butnongsaeng of the Patong Police reported that police were notified of the incident at 9am.

The woman* had travelled to Phuket with two male friends on a holiday package provided by Pegas tour company. The trio had arrived in Phuket on Jan 24 and were staying at a resort in Patong, he said.

The womans boyfriend explained to police that the couple were on the beach about 100 metres south of the police box at the end of Bangla Rd, Lt Col Sarit said.

They took turns swimming in the water so that one of them could watch over their belongings on the beach while the other went for swim, he explained.

The woman had been swimming for about 20-30 minutes, and was last seen about 30m from the beach.

The boyfriend saw a commotion on the beach near the police box and went to investigate. He was told that a woman in green swimming costume had drowned, and fearing the worst he made his way to see a lifeguard performing CPR on his girlfriend, Lt Col Sarit added.

The boyfriend accompanied the woman in the ambulance as she was rushed to Patong Hospital, but she was later pronounced dead, he said.

Police have informed officials at the Russian embassy of the incident, Lt Col Sarit noted in his report.

The death of the Russian woman today follows a South African man being found unconscious in the water off Patong Beach on Monday (Jan 27).

Patong lifeguards said they were alerted to the incident by foreigners on rented jet-skis at about 5:45pm

The South African man, whose name has not been released, was found floating near the jet-ski that he had rented.

He was brought back to shore and administered CPR, but later pronounced dead, Patong lifeguards explained. (See here.)

* The Phuket News is withholding the womans name until it has been confirmed that his next of kin have been notified.


As February begins, Britain is no longer a member of the European Union (EU). The British withdrawal from the EU comes 3 and a half years after the countrys voters decided to leave the union.

The move, known in news reports as Brexit, was one of the biggest issues in the history of the 62-year-old political and economic partnership.

Britain was never a full EU member. It always had its own national currency, but no one actually believed it would ever leave the EU. But the idea grew within Britains Conservative Party, which had a small group of people who opposed EU membership.

In 2016, Prime Minister David Cameron agreed to hold a nationwide referendum, saying he wanted to settle the issue. Most people believe he wanted kill the idea.

It did not happen. In 2016, a majority of voters decided to leave, shocking Britains political class. It has taken several years to work out the details of the break-up, and the British people are still as divided as they were on the day of the referendum.

The city of London is home to more than 1 million EU citizens. People there voted by a large majority to stay in the union. London Mayor Sadiq Khan has linked the decision to a rise in racist and anti-immigrant abuse. He said Britains capital would remain a trulyEuropean city.

We will continue to welcome people from around the world, (without concern for) the color of their skin, the color of their passport or the colors of their national flag, he added.

People in the United Kingdom (U.K.) will notice few changes immediately. The U.K. and the EU will have an 11-month transition period. During this time, the country will continue to follow the EUs rules while it organizes new agreements on trade, security and other issues. It is all likely to be difficult.

Many people are celebrating Brexit. However, few remember just how difficult it was for Britain to join in the first place. After World War II, Britains worldwide empire was dying. Its economy was failing. In 1957, it looked over at the European continent, where the newly created European Economic Community (EEC) brought in industry and investment.

In the 1960s, the British government pushed to join the EU, but was stopped two times by French President Charles de Gaulle, who had veto power.

De Gaulle had spent much of the war in London when France was under occupation. He warned the EEC members that Britain had a deephostility to Europe that could bring about the end of what was then called the common market. He worried that in times of trouble, Britain would always agree with the United States over its European neighbors.

The French kept the British out of the EU until 1973. Every British political party agreed with the decision to join what was now called the EU. The British government would follow the laws and the rules of the EUs leadership on trade, security and other areas.

Soon, in March, British politicians will start the work of pulling their country out of those regulations when they begin negotiating new agreements. Already, it does not appear it will be easy.

British Prime Minister Boris Johnsons government hopes to negotiate a deal with the EU, as well as a free trade agreement with the United States. That is likely to be unpopular with many Britons. There are already questions and worries about American food-safety issues and drug prices.

Still others remain certain that Brexit holds a better future for Britain.

In the English port of Dover, just 32 kilometers from France, retiree Philip Barry welcomed the new reality.

My expectation is that there may be a little bump or two in the road but in the end it will even out, he said. Somebody once said short-term pain, but long-term gain.

Im Susan Shand.

The Associated Press reported this story. Susan Shand adapted it for VOA Learning English. George Grow was the editor.

Write to us in the Comments Section or on our Facebook page.

_____________________________________________________________

Words in This Story

currency  n. the money that a country uses

transition  n. a time when change takes place

referendum  n. a special election

empire  n. a large grouping of states under a single leadership

bump  n. a small raised area on a surface
As the Jersey City Board of Education works to fill a $150 million budget gap, a local advocacy group is urging the district to increase its spending, not cut it.

Jersey City Together says New Jerseys second largest school district is vastly underfunded by the state, and as a result, must add $50 million to its budget to offset cuts in state aid and fill positions that have either been lost or remained vacant in recent years.

Members of the organization  which comprises faith leaders, parents, and others  called for the increase in spending during Thursdays school board meeting at School 41. Parents and children toted signs and chanted Fund our schools," as speakers addressed the board.

We need an investment in our schools, we need to see the investment, said Brigid DSouza, a Jersey City Together member. Weve done the research and we can back up that number as to why that number is needed.

The district is facing an estimated $150 million deficit for the 2020-2021 fiscal year that will need to be addressed in the coming months. Under a revised school funding formula, the state is phasing out form a aid hat would have brought the Jersey City schools $175 million over a seven-year period. The district lost $27 million in state aid last year, money that was replaced in the budget by Jersey Citys payroll tax.

The Jersey City Board of Education has filed a lawsuit against the state Department of Education, calling the cuts unconstitutional.

Agreeing that the district is underfunded, Board Trustee Mussab Ali said he would meet with Jersey City Together as a member of the BOE finance committee.

Going to teachers and administrators and say to do more with less is an impossible task, Ali said. Its a miracle that our schools are still functioning.

Mayor Steve Fulop, the City Council, several members of the BOE, and parent groups have been meeting regularly to brainstorm budget solutions. Fulop has since called on the board to make tough choices as he proposes his budget with no municipal tax increase.

The school taxes are one of three components of a homeowners property tax bill. The others are municipal tax and county taxes.

Jersey City Together members passed out handouts at Thursdays meeting explaining how to offset the additional spending. The group says the $50 million increase in spending will require a school tax hike, adding that a majority of the money would be invested back into the classroom.

The group suggests the mayor and the City Council find places to cut spending from the city budget and identify shared services with the school district. The group also said the city will see a tax base growth of 8 percent and the additional revenue should be given to the schools.

The group also said the board can identify some savings  including those recommended by an audit released last year  that do not impact the classroom and are not designed to bust unions.

We want to fix the system responsibly, said Kimberly Wallace-Scalcione, a city spokeswoman. The mayor firmly believes that the long-term solution needs to include cost reductions on the city side, cost reductions on the BOE side per their own forensic audit, as we all as new revenue from taxes. The long-term solution needs to include all of the above.

Board President Lorenzo Richardson said he would be open to raising taxes, but stressed that it would be only as a final option.

We should exhaust all options before we raise taxes, Richardson said. What we need to do is make sure we are being responsible and that we are not asking for money if we dont need to ask for money.

But Richardson said public meetings should first be held between officials from City Hall and the school board to discuss the districts budget.

Jyl Josephson, a School 26 parent and a member of Jersey City Together, said her son has never experienced a fully funded school district.

This is investing in our children, Josephson said. You are our trustees, we trust you to invest in our children and to lead.
Pranab Mondal By

Express News Service

KOLKATA: The Bengal BJP has decided to field some of the party heavyweights to contest the civic polls in Kolkata to gauge its strength in the state capital.

However, most of them informed the leadership that they are not interested to participate in the civic poll battle.

Sources in the party said the leaders are not keen to contest the civic poll because the CAAs beneficiaries, mainly refugees who had migrated from Bangladesh before and after the Partition, do not form majority in Kolkata Municipal Corporation (KMC) area.

Besides, the city has been witnessing large-scale protest over the amended Citizenship Act. Our potential candidates are not feeling comfortable with the ire among the people, said a BJP leader.

He also pointed out that most of the leaders whom the party is planning to field as its candidates are aspiring for tickets in 2021 Assembly polls.

"They told our leadership in Kolkata that if they fail to win in the civic poll, it will send a wrong message and securing victory in the crucial 2021 Assembly elections will be difficult if they are given tickets, he explained.

BJPs VP Rajkamal Pathak, who is being considered as a candidate from a south Kolkata ward, clearly said he would not contest in the civic polls.
China's Permanent Representative to the UN Zhang Jun briefs UN media on China's decisive and strong measures to combat the novel coronavirus at the UN headquarters in New York, Jan. 30, 2020. China's UN envoy on Thursday called on the international community to adopt a responsible attitude, work together to combat the novel coronavirus, and avoid overreaction that may result in more negative spillover effects. (Xinhua/Li Muzi)

3

1

[ Editor: WPY ]
JAKARTA (Reuters) - Malaysian palm oil futures fell for a second straight session on Friday, set for the biggest monthly drop in more than five years as the coronavirus epidemic added to demand concerns fuelled by a diplomatic spat with India.

The death toll from the virus that the World Health Organization declared a global emergency reached 213 in China on Friday, with the number of confirmed cases rising to 9,820.

"Coronavirus issue is still a concern because if this continues, economy in China will really be impacted," a Kuala Lumpur-based trader said.

The epidemic may slow economic growth in China, the second-biggest buyer of Malaysian palm oil, to 5% or even lower, a Chinese government economist said earlier this week.

The benchmark palm oil contract for April delivery on the Bursa Malaysia Derivatives Exchange was down 1.6% at 2,609 ringgit ($641.82) per tonne by the midday break on Friday. The contract has lost 14.5% so far this month, on track for its biggest drop since August 2014.

Palm oil prices were already under pressure after top-buyer India restricted imports of refined palm oil and stopped all purchases from Malaysia following a diplomatic row between the two nations.

A fall in Chicago soyoil prices were also weighing on palm prices, traders said.

Soyoil futures on the Chicago Board of Trade lost 2.8% on Thursday but recouped some losses early on Friday and last traded 0.5% higher.

China's Dalian Commodity Exchange is closed for the Lunar New Year holidays and will open on Feb. 3.

Palm oil is affected by price movements in related oils as they compete for a share in the global vegetable oils market.

Palm oil may fall to 2,533 ringgit per tonne, according to Reuters technical analyst Wang Tao.

(Reporting by Fransiska Nangoy; editing by Uttaresh.V and Aditya Soni)
Islamabad, Feb 1 : Zalmay Khalilzad, the US special envoy on Afghan reconciliation, held crucial meetings in Islamabad with Pakistani authorities in order to fine tune the contours of the Afghan peace deal likely to be signed between Washington and the Taliban soon.

Khalilzad, who is spearheading the Afghan peace efforts, flew from Doha on an unscheduled visit to Islamabad on Friday, reports The Express Tribune.

He first held talks with Foreign Minister Shah Mehmood Qureshi at the Foreign Office and later met Chief of the Army Staff General Qamar Javed Bajwa.

Informed sources said that the US envoy was in Islambad to take the Pakistani authorities into confidence about the imminent peace deal.

However, certain issues have not yet been sorted out and hence Khalilzad made an unannounced visit.

The US is believed to have been pushing the Taliban to immediately start intra-Afghan dialogue once the framework agreement regarding the troop withdrawal is signed.

The Taliban, however, are reluctant to commit to the dialogue as they seek at least a month to start talking to other Afghan groups, including the Kabul administration.

In a statement issued by the Foreign Office, Qureshi termed the resumed US-Taliban engagement in Doha as a "positive development", said The Express Tribune report.

Qureshi stressed the need for early conclusion of negotiations and peace deal in the larger interest of the peace process and reiterated that the only solution of the conflict was an Afghan-led and Afghan-owned process that would help create a peaceful, stable and prosperous country.
A new study by the Washington D.C.-based nonprofit Free Press Action names Vermont Senator Bernie Sanders and Massachusetts Senator Elizabeth Warren as the two best candidates in the 2020 presidential race when it comes to supporting internet freedom.

The finding comes despite the fact that both Sanders and Warren voted in favor of FOSTA/SESTA in 2018. The supposed anti-sex trafficking law rolls back the protections to online expression included in Section 230 of the Communications Decency Act, which is generally considered the foundation of internet freedom.

Also, earlier this week, Warren proposed what the tech news site Motherboard called a worrying proposal to combat online disinformation.

The reason why a lot of the internet can legally function is due to Section 230 of the Communications Decency Act, Motherboard reporter Gita Jackson explained. Section 230 prevents online publishers from being held liable for content posted by third parties.

For example, if a Facebook user posts a copyrighted image on the social media site, only that user can be sued for violating the copyright. Facebook cannot.

But just as FOSTA/SESTA poked holes in Section 230, Warrens new plan to fight disinformation appears certain to create further exceptions to the law holding Facebook, Google, and other big tech companies criminally accountable for the spread of false information that disempowers voters and undermines democracy.

The Free Press Action study, however, appears to have simply ignored attacks on Section 230 as factors in its evaluation of the 2020 candidates. Instead, the study rated the candidates in six categories: net neutrality, affordability, surveillance and privacy, media ownership & mergers, reliable networks, and journalism.

Sanders and Warren, according to the study, were the only two candidates who received the highest ratings in all six categories. Donald Trump was the only candidate from either party who received the lowest rating across the board.

The only other Republican candidate included in the study, former Massachusetts Governor William Weld, received the lowest rating in the media ownership and surveillance categories, as well a questionable rating on net neutrality and affordability.

Democratic frontrunner Joe Biden, the former U.S. vice president, also received the lowest rating in the surveillance category, and a questionable rating on net neutrality, but received the top rating in the other four categories.

Photo By Edward Kimmel / Gage Skidmore Wikimedia Commons
Until 12 months ago, businessman Harry Miller led a blameless existence. He was running his successful plant and machinery company in Humberside, happily married and watching his four children grow up.

But at 3pm on January 23 last year  a Wednesday he will never forget  he received a call from one of his company's staff just as he had finished shopping at Tesco. The staff member said a group of police had made an unannounced visit to Harry's workplace and needed to talk to him. They had left a number for him to ring.

He had no inkling of what it was about, but Harry made the call as he sat in the supermarket's car park, with his plastic bag full of food on the car seat beside him.

And what happened in the next 34 minutes has changed his life.

Harry Miller (pictured) was accused of transphobia due to 30 messages he had tweeted or retweeted the previous year

During a lengthy conversation with a police constable who said he was from Humberside Constabulary and represented the LGBTQ community, Harry was accused of transphobia due to 30 messages he had tweeted or retweeted the previous year.

His posts were being investigated as a hate incident, the constable told him, because they questioned whether a transgender woman could really be a biological woman.

Then, using a phrase with chilling Orwellian implications, Harry claims the officer added that the police wanted to 'check his thinking'.

One of the messages which Mr Miller retweeted was a limerick which included the line, 'Your vagina goes nowhere'

Today, Harry, a former police officer himself, is at the centre of a momentous legal case concerning one of the most controversial issues of our time: the extent to which the police should exert control over free speech, and even the thoughts of ordinary people.

He has been granted a judicial review against the College of Policing, which trains officers and sets standards. He is challenging its guidelines on 'hate crimes' in all walks of life, and particularly on social media. The judgment will be announced in the next few days.

Only this week, the veteran newscaster Alastair Stewart was forced to leave ITN after 40 years for tweeting a passage from Shakespeare's Measure For Measure which included the words 'angry ape'. He sent the post to Martin Shapland, who is black and took offence.

Only this week, the veteran newscaster Alastair Stewart (pictured) was forced to leave ITN after 40 years for tweeting a passage from Shakespeare's Measure For Measure which included the words 'angry ape'

There were no police involved, but the furious backlash against Stewart's 'sacking'  with thousands signing a petition to have him reinstated, and a Shakespeare scholar pointing out that the Bard used the word 'ape' to mean someone who is ignorant  shows just how pervasive people believe the 'hate crime' industry has become.

It is, in part, for this reason that Harry Miller launched his case. He has handed over the day-to-day running of his business so he can concentrate on the highly contentious legal battle.

Ten days ago, he and his family were threatened with murder and rape in a YouTube video he assumes was sent by pro- trans activists.

'I have broad shoulders, but this fight is hard,' he told the Mail this week. 'If ordinary people like myself don't stand up against what I see as over-reaching authority by the police, who will?

'It is definitely not the job of the State to restrict what we can or cannot talk about, either in face-to-face conversation or online.'

And then, referring to George Orwell's dystopian novel Nineteen Eighty-Four in which 'thought police' control the State, punishing personal political views which are not officially approved, Harry says: 'It's as though our police have concluded: 'Good book. Let's try it'.'

Hate incident investigations are diverting officers from the priority of tackling violent crime, according to Cressida Dick (pictured)

What happened to Harry in the Tesco car park makes one wonder if he is right. The PC said he had received a complaint about Harry's tweets from a 'victim'  an unnamed member of the public 'down south'  who had alerted the hate crime unit of Britain's biggest police force, London's Scotland Yard.

Officers at the Yard, in turn, asked Humberside police to interview Harry after tracing him to his plant and machinery business in the force's area.

The policeman told Harry that he was in trouble for retweeting a 'transphobic' limerick.

He was told that he was also being investigated for tweeting support for BBC Woman's Hour presenter Jenni Murray, who had been criticised by Oxford students after writing a newspaper article questioning whether transgender women are 'real women'.

Harry was told in the conversation at Tesco that he had not broken the law but was guilty of a 'non-crime' hate incident. According to court papers, the constable explained to him: 'Sometimes, a woman's brain grows a man's body in the womb and that is what transgender is.'

When Harry asked why the officer kept calling the person who had made the complaint a 'victim', when no crime had been established, he was told 'that's just how it works'.

The upshot of all this? The 55-year-old now has an official police record stating he has committed a 'non-crime' transphobic hate offence. And, remember, as yet Harry does not know who pointed the finger at him, and probably never will.

At the two-day judicial review hearing in the High Court last autumn, he challenged Hate Crime Operational Guidance issued by the College Of Policing in 2014, which was sent to all England and Wales forces. It states a comment that is reported as hateful by a victim must be recorded 'irrespective of whether there is any evidence to identify the hate element'.

Written with the help of pro-trans lobby groups, the guidelines say police should also pursue 'any non-crime incident which is perceived, by the victim or any other person, to be motivated by hostility or prejudice against a person who is transgender or perceived to be transgender'.

The same strict rules apply to matters of race, religion, sexual orientation, and disability.

Since the catch-all guidance was released, police forces have recorded at least 87,000 non-crime hate incidents  none of which break the law.

Scotland Yard, which now has a staggering 900 hate crime officers, has chalked up the highest number  9,473 over the past five years.

And hate incident investigations are diverting officers from the priority of tackling violent crime, according to Cressida Dick, Scotland Yard's Commissioner and Britain's most senior police officer.

'We should be focusing on what the public tell me they care about,' she said in November 2018, in response to the idea that London's hate crime units should expand their remit beyond the 2014 guidelines to include misogyny (ingrained prejudice against women).

'My officers are very busy, they are very stretched. We have young people in London subject to gang violence, getting involved in drug dealing, stabbings . . . lots of priorities'.

Her concerns are only too understandable.

The number of recorded crimes resulting in a person being charged or summonsed in England and Wales has halved in the past five years to just 7.8 per cent, according to the latest Home Office statistics. Meanwhile, violent crime is on the rise, with offences involving knives rising from 41,000 to more than 44,000 in the 12 months to June 2019.

Maya Forstater (pictured), a 45-year-old tax expert, lost her job at a London think-tank last year after tweeting that transgender women cannot change their biological sex

But police priorities aside, Harry Miller and his lawyers are also fighting to save free speech. They point out that the European Court of Human Rights ruled that 'freedom of expression . . . constitutes one of the essential foundations of a democratic society, and one of the basic conditions for each individual's self-fulfilment'.

The judges in Strasbourg added: 'This is applicable for information or ideas that are favourably received or regarded as inoffensive . . . but also to those that shock or disturb the State or any section of the population.'

Significantly, Mr Justice Julian Knowles, the judge overseeing the judicial review, appears to agree. He claimed the police had become too quick to report hate incidents without proper proof.

'It doesn't make sense to me. How can it be a hate incident if there is no evidence of the hate element?' he said at the hearing at the High Court in London.

'We live in a pluralistic society where none of us have a right to be offended by something that they hear,' he added.

'Freedom-of-expression laws are not there to protect statements such as 'kittens are cute', but they are there to protect unpleasant things. Their utility lies in exposing people to things that they do not want to hear.'

As Harry himself says, 'We have to be allowed to debate an issue without one group being able to call on the police to shut another group down. Free speech in Britain is being stalked by a climate of fear and secrecy to which the police now contribute.

'I am pro-police, but it is definitely not the job of the State to restrict what we can talk about.'

But not even legal minds agree over this issue. Maya Forstater, a 45-year-old tax expert, lost her job at a London think-tank last year after tweeting that transgender women cannot change their biological sex. She was accused of using 'offensive and exclusionary language' before her contract was not renewed.

Her appeal to an employment tribunal, claiming that the European Convention on Human Rights protected her free speech, was unsuccessful.

The judge said Ms Forstater's views were 'not worthy of respect in a democratic society'.

This declaration appeared to infuriate Harry Potter author J. K. Rowling, who came out in support of Ms Forstater, tweeting: 'Call yourself whatever you like. Sleep with any consenting adult who'll have you. Live your best life in peace and security. But force women out of their jobs for stating that sex is real? #IStandWithMaya #ThisIsNotADrill'.

In contrast, Britain's first transgender hate-crime trial was halted last March, after just one day, as the judge said there 'is no case and never was a case'.

Miranda Yardley, a 51-year-old accountant who, despite his name, identifies as a transsexual male, claimed he had been put through 'ten months of hell' after being accused by police of harassing a transgender activist on Twitter.

After his successful acquittal over his tweets contending that individuals cannot change sex, Miranda Yardley claimed police were being used to 'enforce a political ideology'.

So what exactly are the Twitter messages that have got Harry Miller into such trouble  tweets that were deemed so serious that two police forces and many officers, hundreds of miles apart, were involved?

The Mail has been shown some of them. One merely says 'Huh'  and Harry cannot even remember what he was responding to. In a second, he talked about trouble at a University of Oxford debate, commenting: 'The anti-Jenni Murray crowd were out baying, screaming and spitting at (other students)'.

And then there is the retweeted limerick. It included a crude, even cruel, line about transgender women which read: 'You're a man. Your breasts are made of silicone. Your vagina goes nowhere.'

Offensive, yes. But worthy of attention from the hard-pressed police? Many will undoubtedly think not.

In a written submission to the judicial review, the College of Policing stoutly defended its hate-crime guidelines, saying that Harry Miller had 'engaged in regular tweeting relating to transgender people', and in one message said: 'I was assigned mammal at birth, but my orientation is fish. Don't mis-species (sic) me . . . ' Harry then added an F-word in plural.

The College also said that it was 'not beyond reason that a transgender person reading those messages would consider them to be motivated by a hostility or prejudice against a person who is transgender.'

Humberside Police told the judge that its action over Harry's tweets had resulted in only 'minimal' interference with his freedom of expressions.

Harry, of course, disagrees. He is unrepentant as he waits anxiously for the outcome of the judicial review. Speaking from his pleasant family home in a peaceful part of East Anglia, he says: 'I've broken no law. I have done nothing illegal. Yet I now have a police record on file for retweeting a limerick. It is completely mad.

'My view is that transwomen are not biological women. But how do I air my views without drawing the criticism of the police?'

It is a question many in Britain might ask themselves today.
The Pentagon deployed a new, smaller nuclear warhead aboard the ballistic missile submarine USS Tennessee as it sailed into the Atlantic last month in the midst of the spiraling crisis with Iran. The weapon, known as the W76-2 warhead, has an explosive yield of roughly five kilotons, a third of the destructive power of the Little Boy bomb that claimed the lives of some 140,000 people in Hiroshima in 1945.

The Federation of American Scientists (FAS) revealed the deployment this week, citing unnamed civilian and military figures. It stated that two of the 20 Trident submarine-launched ballistic missiles onboard the USS Tennessee and other subs will be armed with the W76-2 warheads. Each missile can be loaded with as many as eight such warheads, capable of striking multiple targets.

First launch of a Trident missile on January 18, 1977 at Cape Canaveral, Florida [Credit: U.S. Navy file photo]

The new weapon has been rolled out with remarkable speed. The Trump administrations 2018 Nuclear Posture Review called for the development of a low-yield SLBM [submarine-launched ballistic missile] warhead to ensure a prompt response option that is able to penetrate adversary defenses and close an exploitable gap in US regional deterrence capabilities.

The pretext for the warheads deployment was the unsubstantiated claim that Russia is developing similar weapons and has adopted a doctrine of escalate to de-escalate or escalate to win by utilizing low-yield nuclear weapons, with the expectation that Washington would not retaliate with strategic warheads for fear of initiating an all out thermonuclear war. The Pentagons argument has been that a low-yield and rapid reaction ballistic missile is needed to restore deterrence.

The report by the FAS strongly suggests, however, that this alleged Russian doctrine is a pretext and that it is much more likely that the new low-yield weapon is intended to facilitate first-use of nuclear weapons against North Korea or Iran.

It points out that both the US National Security Strategy and the Nuclear Posture Review (NPR) envision the use of nuclear weapons in response to non-nuclear attacks, and large-scale conventional aggression, and that the NPR explicitly stated that the W76-2 warhead was designed to expand the range of credible US options for responding to nuclear or non-nuclear strategic attack. Washington does not rule out a nuclear strike, including against non-nuclear armed countries like Iran.

The deployment of the USS Tennessee with its new usable nuclear warheads came at roughly the same time as President Donald Trump huddled with his top aides on December 29 at his Mar-a-Lago resort in Florida, ordering the criminal drone missile assassination of Gen. Qassem Suleimani, one of Irans top officials. The drone killing was carried out at Baghdads international airport five days later.

In a report Thursday, NBC News, citing unnamed senior US officials, established that at the same meeting in Florida, Trump also authorized the bombing of Iranian ships, missile launchers and air defense systems... Technically, the military can now hit those targets without further presidential authorization, though in practice, it would consult with the White House before any such action.

The report warned that the two sides remain in a dangerous boxers clench, in which the smallest miscalculation, some officials believe, could lead to disaster.

In other words, for all the talk of war having been averted following the act of war and war crime carried out by Washington in the murder of Suleimani, the reality is that the world remains on the knifes edge of a catastrophic military confrontation, which could rapidly escalate into the first use of nuclear weapons in three-quarters of a century.

The threat against Iran is part of a far broader buildup to global war through which US imperialism is seeking to offset the erosion of its previously hegemonic domination of the global economy by resorting to the criminal use of overwhelming military force.

After securing a $738 billion military budget for 2020 with the support of an overwhelming majorityDemocratic and Republican alikein the US Congress, the Trump administration is now preparing to push through a 20 percent increase in the budget for the National Nuclear Security Administration (NNSA), the agency overseeing the buildup of the US nuclear arsenal. This $20 billion budget proposal, made public this week, represents only a fraction of the more than $1 trillion the US is projected to spend on modernizing the arsenal over the next three decadesplans that were set into motion under the Democratic administration of Barack Obama, before Trump took office.

Trump is a war criminal. His threats to carry out the obliteration of Iran and to rain fire and fury upon North Korea are not merely hyperbole. The usable nuclear weapons to commit such atrocities have already been placed in his hands.

As the Senate impeachment trial of the US president limps to an ignominious close, it is striking that Trumps greatest crimes, including acts of war and his threat to drag the world into a nuclear war, feature in no way in the charges against him. On the contrary, the articles of impeachment center on allegations that he withheld lethal military aid to Ukraine and has been insufficiently aggressive in confronting Russia.

This charge is made, as Newsweek pointed out this week, after the Pentagon staged an unprecedented 93 separate military exercises between May and the end of September of last year, all of them simulating or preparing for war against Russia. This includes practice bombing runs less than 500 miles from the Russian border and the steady build-up of ground forces in the three Baltic states and Poland, together with escalating US air deployments described as bomber assurance and theater security programs.

The drive to war has its source not in the diseased mind of Donald Trump, but rather in the insoluble crisis of global capitalism. There exists no antiwar faction within the US ruling class, including its Democratic representatives, only tactical differences over how US imperialist interests should best be pursued on the global arena.

The struggle against a new imperialist world war and the threat it poses to the survival of humanity can be based only upon the struggles of the working class, which is engaged in a wave of strikes and social upheavals across the planet. These emerging mass struggles must be armed with a socialist and internationalist program to unify workers in the common fight to put an end to the source of war and social inequality, the capitalist system.
While the proposal is all but dead on Capitol Hill, it could be a rallying point politically as Trump seeks reelection. School choice is popular among social conservatives, who want the power to use tax dollars for religious and other private schools. Supporters argue it also will resonate among middle class voters who cannot afford to pay for private school on their own.
It took the 12-month anniversary of the final report into the banking royal commission to get the Morrison government to take legislative action to fix a broken system after decades of unfettered greed and shoddy behaviour.

There wasn't a lot of conversation when banking royal commissioner Kenneth Hayne (left) delivered his final report to Treasurer Josh Frydenberg. "A handshake or something ...?" implored a photographer. Credit:AAP

The government was late to the party in calling for a banking royal commission and no matter which way it wants to spin it, has been slow implementing the bulk of Commissioner Kenneth Haynes recommendations outlined in his final report.

Of Haynes 76 recommendations, 54 were directed to the government, of which more than 40 required legislation. Until Friday, too few had been implemented.

In an attempt to stem the growing swell of criticism, Treasurer Josh Frydenberg used the anniversary of the final report to release a suite of draft legislation on more than royal commission recommendations.
In what began first as a discussion around the 2020 budget for Gorey Kilmuckridge Municipal District on the topic of festival spending, the same meeting ended with a Council official walking out following remarks made by Fine Gael councillor Diarmuid Devereux.

The budget for this year's festivals, concerts and festive lighting is 125,000, the same amount as the 2019 budget which included an additional 15,000 for the Norman Invasion celebration.

Council officials said that this years' total budget, going from 291,000 in 2019 to 336,000 in 2020, reflected the enlargement of the district.

A breakdown of spending on festivals and civic functions during 2019 was circulated to committee members on December 20, 2019.

Officials noted in the correspondence that there had been extra spending on festivals outside of the budget, and Cllr Devereux called that in to question asking how it is that this happened.

'The nature of festivals and the various items that are funded through that, there's a lot of man-led expenditure there,' said Michael Drea.

'The members have been saying that we need to spend more on festivals here to equate ourselves with Wexford town and the allocation for 2020 was approved by everyone, sought and agreed, and the fact is that we have to spend more,' said Eddie Taaffe.

Chairman Cllr Joe Sullivan said that he understood that there are variables when it comes to festivals.

'With festivals and events like that, it's very hard to just put a budget on it and stick within that and give the value that people are looking for. All the festivals listed from last year were highly successful, and that's a tribute to the people in the council and those members of the public that worked so hard. We should look at our achievements.

'Going over budget, I'm sure the officials will look at that and will try to ensure that if there are savings that can be made, they will make them.

'I don't believe for a minute that the overruns were anything but necessary. It's almost impossible to do these type of festivals without some overrun. I one hundred percent accept that the officials set out with the greatest of intentions to work within that budget.

'We're either going to have these festivals and we're going to make them enjoyable and invest money in them, but if we start penny pinching, are we reducing cultural and artistic input in to our town.

'I would be very slow to criticise the officials because they do put in extra hours to make sure these festivals are successful.

'There's transparency, and any money that is spent is accounted for publicly,' he said.

Cllr Devereux said that he was raising the point because he feels councillors are responsible for the budget and the spending of funds.

'It's 125,000 now, but I see that we've no intention of sticking to it, that's what you're telling us. Not everybody in Gorey thinks that the amount spent on the Market House Festival is money well spent'.

This comment was deemed unfair, and after being asked to withdraw the comment, Cllr Devereux did so.

District Manager Michael Drea said that all expenditure within the Council observes national and European procurement standards.

'There seems to be a perception that these are unforeseen out of control spends that perhaps the local authority isn't getting value for money on. We have a discretionary budget each year, the cost of the additional expenditure comes from my own discretionary budget.

'If there are concerns about the Market House Festival, there's a position of treasurer on the committee that I would be happy to fill from this chamber. If Cllr Devereux wants to take up that position, I'd happily welcome him on to that.

'There is no money being spent without due thought, procurement and without value for money in the long run. All expenditure is to enhance the offering of what we already have'.

Responding, Cllr Devereux said he was asking from a place of concern.

'All I'm asking is if it's policy that when we set a budget, do we set out with the pure purpose of sticking to it? Secondly how are we going to manage the festivals with 125,000 when we now have the Kilmuckridge area? We know now at this stage that it's not enough,' he said.

The concerns were raised again at the end of the meeting, when Cllr Mary Farrell asked the Council to consider the plea of Ballycanew Ballyoughter Community Development Association in relation to upgrading work to the premises at Ballycanew resource centre.

Cllr Farrell made the case that if the centre got some more funding to develop the centre, a large amount more than the 5,000 annual cost for rent that was paid by the Municipal District last year, they could fundraise for the remainder.

'They have assured me that they could be up and running, and open a second part of the building which is currently closed off with our assistance. If something crops up within the next 12 months, are we saying that within the budget we can't deal with it?

'The message should be going out that we will try to help the best way we can. If we've to look for the funding, let's look for it,' she said.

Answering this, Michael Drea said that he was aware of the circumstances of the group but he said 'Everyone understands that we are working within a budget and that funding has to come from somewhere'.

Eddie Taaffe said 'Nobody is arguing about merit of the cause, the only thing I'd say is where do you want the 15,000 to come from (in the budget), as it has to come from somewhere.'

The case brought up by Cllr Farrell resulted in mixed reaction from the rest of the councillors, with Cllr Kavanagh saying that if the Municipal District gave money to one centre, every other one would be looking for the same.

It was Cllr Devereux that vocalised his views, which resulted in Eddie Taaffe walking out of the chamber.

'All this proves that in the absence of strict financial governance, this is where you end up. I find this crazy, where is the record of this 5,000 paid in rent? I find this bizarre.

'We are sitting here wasting our time. Where is the statement of record? It's an economic zoo,' said Cllr Devereux.

Cllr Joe Sullivan asked the councillors to stay quiet after these remarks were made, and Eddie Taaffe responded immediately by leaving the chamber.

'I've never walked out of a meeting in 20 years on the Council, but I'm walking out now'.

When things had settled, Michael Drea responded to Cllr Devereux.

'The minutes of the meeting of the 5,000 allocation will be forwarded by the district manager, but in this chamber, I expect grand slams and political point scoring occasionally, what I don't accept is comments and remarks being directed at employees of Wexford County Council without foundation.

'There is a distinct tone to this meeting today that I take grave exception to, election coming up or not, about how Gorey Kilmuckridge Municipal District is spending its funding.

'We will open up books, accounts and give them full transparency but I will not stand by and accept any accusations that we are in some way hoodwinking members, misappropriating funds in some way whether it's overspending or diverting.

'We work on absolute trust, and open and transparent relationships with the members. If we don't have that, I don't see how as a district Council we can deal and have a working relationship going forward,' he said.

Cllr Devereux said that he had concerns about governance of Wexford County Council as a whole and that he wanted someone to engage with him, and he was told to write his complaint to the head of internal audit.

'Do you think I'm a fool? Every time I raise something you tell me what to do when I know what to do. They all say take it up within the chamber, I have concerns about procurement, insurance, payment of moneys and consultants within the general taxation. I'd like someone in the council to address them,' said Cllr Devereux.

Cllr Sullivan said that he would confer the concerns to the appropriate person, as he is part of a committee with them, even though he did not share the views of Cllr Devereux.

'As chairman, I've full confidence in the financial dealing of the officials of Wexford County Council both at local and county wide level. Everyone has to be challenged and everyone has to be accountable, but I wouldn't like to undermine the officials without solidly being able to back it up.

'Allegations are simply that, allegations. I would ask the members to be mindful,' he said.

There has been mixed reaction from all concerned as to what happened at last week's meeting.

'My role is to work with the elected members and have the best possible relationship with them, we work as collaboratively as we can,' said Michael Drea.

Cllr Devereux said that he was simply making the point and asking the question, after he had sent an email in relation to the budget.

He said that he felt he was under attack by those in the Chamber, and that coming from the private sector, he would see it as normal circumstances to ask about spending and budgets.

'I'm not against anything, but I simply made the point: should we not know where money comes from and whether it's value for money'.

A spokesperson for Ballycanew Ballyoughter Community Development Association said that the group were deeply saddened about the events of the meeting.

'I'm sure that no voluntary group would like that politics are overriding requests from members of the community, where we are working so hard and finding that our elected members and managers are not addressing them in a fair and professional manner'.

A Council spokesperson said that since last week's meeting, the Council itself has written to Cllr Devereux.

'The January meeting was the first time Councillor Devereux raised such issues with district staff and staff remain unaware of the exact nature or basis of these concerns as Councillor Devereux did not substantiate any of his concerns at the meeting.

'The Council has robust measures in place to ensure proper management of each district, including governance and financial management.

'Since the meeting the Council has written to Councillor Devereux respectfully requesting that he fully outline his concerns in writing and that they will be considered and dealt with in full by the Council'.
BAY CITY, MI  A Saginaw woman has received probation for threatening to blow up a Social Security office building.

U.S. District Judge Thomas L. Ludington on Thursday, Jan. 30, sentenced Latashya L. Brooks to two years of probation. While on probation, Brooks must participate in a mental health treatment program, take all prescribed medications, and submit to psychological evaluations as directed by her probation officer.

Brooks in October appeared in the federal courthouse in downtown Bay City and pleaded guilty to interstate communication to make a bomb threat. The charge is punishable by up to 10 years imprisonment, a fine of $250,000, and three years of supervised release.

The plea agreement stated Brooks sentencing guidelines were one year to 18 months. Court records show Judge Ludington departed downward from the guidelines due to Brooks limited mental conditions, reduced mental capacity, and it being her first criminal conviction.

The agreement states that Brooks was upset over the Social Security Administration withholding things from her checks. On May 3, she called the administration office at 611 E. Genesee St. in Saginaw and spoke with an employee.

During the call, Brooks threatened to blow up your (expletive)ing building and accept the consequences, the plea agreement states. When the employee told Brooks she should not threaten government buildings, Brooks replied that she didnt care and would do the time, the document states.

Emergency personnel evacuated the building and swept it for explosives.

No explosives were found but this evacuation caused a substantial disruption of government functions or services at that office, the document states.

Investigators determined Brooks had been in the Social Security building less than an hour before she made the call.

Later that day, investigators located and interviewed Brooks. She admitted to having made the threat, adding she had been upset over her checks withholdings and was not sorry that she made the threat, investigators alleged.

Saginaw woman pleads guilty in bomb threat to Social Security office

Woman threatened to blow up Social Security building in Saginaw, police say
Liza Barratachea, the head of the San Antonio Hotel and Lodging Association, is leaving the lobbying organization after four years.

Barratachea, whose background is in public policy, will be working with local political consultant Christian Archer.

It has been an honor to be a part of this exciting industry, she said.

Before joining the hotel group, Barratachea was the vice president of public affairs at the San Antonio Chamber of Commerce. She has also worked for several City Council members and as a policy analyst for former Texas Gov. Rick Perry.

At SAHLA, Barratachea worked on the creation of a tourism public improvement district, established several events and initiatives, and worked with local high schools and organizations on workforce needs.

I love the people, and I feel like Ive been able to contribute in a substantial way, she said.

The industrys primary challenge continues to be finding workers and people who want to make their career in tourism, Barratachea said.

To attract entry-level workers, companies have been forced to raise wages and change hiring practices, hoteliers told the San Antonio Express-News last year. Earlier this month, the Grand Hyatt San Antonio and the Hyatt Regency San Antonio Riverwalk finalized a new deal with its 500 hourly workers that included a hourly pay bump of about 30 percent.

The $15.2 billion sectors biggest opportunity is in continuing to work together to showcase the citys myriad attractions, Barratachea said. During her tenure at SAHLA, There was a renewed sense of excitement about what we were doing as an industry, she said.

Barratachea will leave SAHLA in February. Michelle Whitlow Madson has been appointed interim president and CEO until a new leader is selected. A committee will interview candidates and give their recommendation to board members.

madison.iszler@express-news.net
Keeping a rock band together is hard. Anytime you read about the clashes of The Who or the dissolution of The Beatles, you cant deny that. But getting famous musicians together for a benefit show might be almost as hard.

George Harrison learned that while organizing the Concert for Bangladesh in 1971. In the end, neither John Lennon nor Paul McCartney played the shows. But the concert ended up being a big success in spite of their absence.

Later in the decade, McCartney found himself in a similar position when he put together the Concert for Kampuchea (1979). While he got The Clash, The Who, and The Pretenders to perform over two nights, McCartney decided to put his all-star Rockestra band on the bill as well.

That meant dealing with Pete Townshend during his peak drinking years. When Townshend showed up piss-drunk on the second night and refused to dress like the rest of the Rockestra, McCartney called him a poof in front of the audience.

McCartney may have grown tired of Townshends antics

Paul McCartney and Pete Townshend of The Who joke during the Concerts for Kampuchea, 29 December 1979. | Mike Lawn/Evening Standard/Hulton Archive/Getty Images

In Who Are You: The Life of Pete Townshend, author Mark Wilkerson describes the state of his books subject those nights in December 79. On the first evening of performances, Townshend and The Who (minus the late Keith Moon) played a long set.

Wilkerson notes that Townshend was clearly drunk and delivered often out-of-tune guitar work at that show. At times, Townshend didnt play at all, preferring to fill the spaces in the music with embarrassing dancing. Worse, he belittled the country benefiting from the concert at one point.

Arent you glad you were born in London and not in poxy Kampuchea? Townshend asked the crowd. The following day, Townshend got the Rockestra rehearsal time wrong and went drinking when he found no one at the venue.

By the time he made it back, Townshend was hammered. At 1:30 in the video posted above, you see the Who guitarist approach McCartney (at that point, singing Lucille). After standing immediately behind him for a few seconds, Townshend gives him a demonic, mocking look.

At the close of the following track (Let It Be), Townshend cranks out a guitar flourish (at 7:20) that gets McCartneys attention. Thank you, Peter, he says. And, after pointing out how everyone wore silver suits except Townshend, McCartney said Townshend declined cause hes a poof.

No one reacted strongly at all to McCartneys word-choice

1979: Paul McCartney and an all-star band (including Pete Townshend) play a benefit concert for Kampuchea in 1979. | Evening Standard/Getty Images

Clearly, the days of the Concert for Kampuchea were of a different time. Townshends tasteless comment about the country was one thing ; McCartneys equally tasteless choice of words was another. And the moment recalled a Lennon interview from the start of the decade.

When asked about Mick Jagger and the Rolling Stones, Lennon tore into Jagger for copying The Beatles and what he described as Jaggers f*g dancing. Indeed, it was an era when those types of references were common in the mainstream.

In the 21st century, you will still hear that sort of thing in rap music, but the mainstream rock and pop scene has changed. Certainly, you can bet youd never hear McCartney use any such words these days. But in 1979 no one really batted an eye.

Also see: Why The Beatles Knocked George Harrisons Guitar Solo Off Mr Moonlight
According to the non-profit group, World's Children, an estimated 21 million people are victims of human trafficking. Many of them are undocumented Hispanic women who are hard to track because they are often afraid to seek help from authorities. VOAs Cristina Caicedo Smit reports.
Two tankers containing asphalt, tar, and a cleaning agent caught fire near Finch Avenue West and Keele Street Friday evening, prompting GO delays and the closure of CN lines, a street shutdown, and a heavy fire truck presence.

Toronto Fire got the call at 7 p.m., reporting a fire at Bakersfield Street and Ashwarren Drive, and witnessed heavy black smoke upon arrival, according to Toronto Fire spokesperson Stephan Powell. At the fires peak, there were roughly a dozen fire trucks on scene.

The fire was extinguished around 10 p.m. There were no injuries to report.

Toronto Fire Chief Matthew Pegg told reporters at the scene that firefighters tamed the blaze with a combination of foam and water. Pegg also confirmed on Twitter that Haz-Mat crews were on scene and engaged.

As a result of the fire, Bakersfield Street was briefly shut down while GO and CN lines around the area were temporarily closed as well. All have since reopened.

Toronto Paramedics said that they were on scene by 7:30 p.m., but that there were no reports of patients. Powell said that it was too early to speculate on the cause of the fire and Toronto police refused to comment on the matter.
Secondary students across County Wicklow will be hoping their entrepreneurial ingenuity will help them secure a spot in the grand final of the Local Enterprise Offices' Student Enterprise Programme.

As an ambassador for the programme - not to mention a former participant - Wicklow-man and Leinster and Ireland rugby star Josh Van Der Flier was on hand to launch the Student Enterprise Programme. Also present was the Minister for Trade, Employment, Business, EU Digital Single Market and Data Protection, Pat Breen, and the Head of Enterprise at LEO Wicklow, Vibeke Delahunt.

Over 1,000 students from 16 secondary schools in Wicklow are taking part in this year's Programme in the hope of making the national finals in Croke Park on May 1.

The programme sees students from first year to sixth year set up and run their own business and find out what it's really like to be an entrepreneur by taking part in this 8 month long enterprise education learning programme. The programme runs from September to May, and students get to do everything a real life entrepreneur would do, from coming up with the business idea to marketing, sales and preparing a business plan.

At the end of the programme in May, one student business from each region will compete at the national final in Dublin for the 'Student Enterprise of the Year' award.

Wicklow has a strong track record in the programme and local students have brought home national titles in the Intermediate and Senior categories in recent years. Cillian Scott, a pupil of Colaiste Chill Mhantain in Wicklow town, was the national winner of the Intermediate category in 2017, while Luke Byrne, from Colaiste Craobh Abhann in Kilcoole, developed a simple silicone band called Headphone Helpers and took the Senior title in the national competition in 2016.

Josh Van Der Flier, said: 'Having a good grasp of business will stand by you at any age and in any profession and that's why the Student Enterprise Programme is such a great initiative by the Local Enterprise Offices. I know from having been involved myself at school how great it is to learn how to create that idea, make it happen and then make sales from scratch.

'I certainly didn't win any awards for my business, but it gave me a great knowledge of how a business works at an early age and the thousands of students who take part will always have that,' he said.

Ms Delahunt said that the aim of the Student Enterprise Programme is to 'instil that little bit of entrepreneurship in every student' that takes part.

'The Local Enterprise Offices work closely with the schools to help spark their ideas but also ground them in what will help them make sales. These skills are invaluable and to see the amazing ideas, year on year, many of which have become viable businesses, is inspirational not only to their fellow students but to anyone involved in business and entrepreneurship,' she said.

This year's programme will see two new pilot competitions across the junior, intermediate and senior categories.

The first, the 'My Entrepreneurial Journey' pilot, will be run in the junior and intermediate cycle and is open to any students involved in the wider competition. It requires them to map out the life of a successful entrepreneur and what it takes to be your own boss.

In the senior category there is a new 'Most Creative Business Idea' section. Under the theme 'Go Green: Be Sustainable', students can push their most innovative ideas, without having to produce a product or service and it is open to all senior students taking part in the wider competition.
The country's aviation sector is going through a rough patch and there's an increasing demand that the Centre should bring in FDI (foreign direct investment) to help revive the sector. The combined operating profits of Indian carriers in 2018/19 turned red for the first time since 2015/16. The aviation sector bore the brunt of Air India's failure as it contributed 61 per cent to total operating losses of all airlines put together in 2018/19. The closure of Jet Airways in April last year also left a big dent on the industry as a whole.

Also read: Budget 2020: Watch Live Streaming on Aaj Tak, India Today, live telecast channels

While efforts are on to revive both these airlines -- the government has invited bids for Air India with a sweetened deal this time and Jet Airways is undergoing insolvency -- there's a buzz that the government could increase FDI to 100 per cent, which could help them find suitable buyers.

As per Care Ratings, there's a demand for "increasing permissible limit of FDI from 49% to 100% in aviation sector thus helping Air India and Jet Airways find buyers". "In the airline operation, there is an issue of substantial ownership and effective control. Thus, the Civil Aviation Ministry will have to see all these to sell Air India, which would require liberalising FDI in the sector," IANS quoted an official as saying.

FULL COVERAGE: Union Budget 2020

Notably, substantial Ownership and Effective Control (SOEC) clause bar overseas companies from taking 100 per cent control of an airline. In her Budget 2019 speech, Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman had also said that the Centre could raise the FDI in aviation.

Foreign investments are considered crucial, which needs around billions of dollars for overhauling its infrastructure to boost growth. FDI helps improve the country's balance of payments situation and strengthen the rupee value against other global currencies, especially the US dollar.

The government recently announced it would give up 100 per cent stake in the national carrier. Jet Airways stopped operations on April 17 last year after it ran out of funds and was admitted to the Insolvency and Bankruptcy Code (IBC) proceedings in June. It has over Rs 30,000 crore of dues which are claimed by a long list of financial and operational creditors.

Also read: Budget 2020: Date, timings, where to watch, expectations from Modi govt's most challenging Budget
I have spent the last week glued to the impeachment trial on TV, watching and listening carefully to the presentations of the House managers and President Donald Trump's defense lawyers.

Two things struck me as crystal clear: First, although one might disagree with the arguments being made, each side was represented by very capable advocates. Second, each team mostly spoke to their side of the aisle; they seemed to have no real expectation that the other side would consider their views. As Paul Simon sang in "The Boxer," "a man hears what he wants to hear and disregards the rest." The same is probably true of the American public.

That said, I think that overall, the House managers made the stronger case.

Article One: Abuse of power

As to Article One, the House managers alleged, in essence, that President Trump corruptly asked the President of Ukraine, Volodymyr Zelensky, to launch an investigation (or, at least, announce the launching of an investigation) into Vice President Joe Biden and his son, Hunter Biden, for the benefit of his reelection.

Although President Zelensky assured President Trump that he would be very serious in looking into the case, when the investigation did not appear to be moving forward, President Trump withheld congressionally authorized military aid to Ukraine and a president-to-president White House meeting.

I believe that the House managers effectively made the case that President Trump improperly demanded the Biden investigation for his personal political advantage, and not to further the United States' national security interests. In my view, Trump's initial demand and his subsequent withholding of aid to Ukraine until President Zelensky publicly announced the investigation of the Bidens constituted an abuse of the powers of his office.

As the House managers demonstrated through their dissection of the July 25, 2019, call summary, Trump told Zelensky that he wanted a favor and that he expected an investigation because "the United States has been very, very good to Ukraine. I wouldn't say it's reciprocal..."

The President's request was confirmed by multiple witnesses, most notably David Holmes, who overheard the President specially ask about the status of the investigation on his call with US Ambassador to the European Union Gordon Sondland soon after Sondland met with the Ukrainians in Kiev to discuss the matter.

Instead of fully responding to the impropriety of the initial ask by Trump on the July 25 call, President Trump's lawyers focused primarily on the secondary issue -- whether the President improperly withheld military aid when the announcement of the investigation was not immediately forthcoming (the so-called quid pro quo), and the lack of direct evidence to support the accusation.

Leaving aside the revelation by former national security adviser John Bolton that the President told him personally that there was a direct link between the freezing of military aid to Ukraine and the sought-after investigation of the Bidens, and the testimony of State Department officials, such as Bill Taylor, who called the withholding of military aid "crazy," the Trump lawyers failed to adequately rebut the primary assertion that the "ask" for the Biden investigation was an abuse of power because it was made with the corrupt purpose of aiding Trump's reelection efforts.

Article Two: Obstruction of Congress

Article Two, obstruction of Congress, is predicated on the President's blanket refusal to cooperate in any meaningful way with the House investigations.

Which side made the better case is a close call. I see the equities on both sides. I believe, however, that when viewed in its entirety, the complete record of the President's response through his counsel and in the public domain (Twitter, campaign rallies and press statements) reflects a complete unwillingness to cooperate well beyond the position articulated in the trial by deputy White House counsel Patrick Philbin.

The House, exercising its sole power of impeachment, as well as its general investigatory authority, properly issued multiple subpoenas with 71 individualized requests for records in the possession or control of the White House, the Office of the Vice President, the Office of Management and Budget, the Department of State, the Department of Defense or the Department of Energy.

It did so pursuant to the rules of the 116th Congress and House Resolution 660 directing three House Committees (Intelligence, Foreign Affairs and Oversight) to "continue their ongoing investigations as part of the existing House of Representatives inquiry into whether sufficient grounds exist for the House of Representative to exercise its Constitutional power to impeach [President] Trump."

In response to the House subpoenas for witnesses and documents, White House counsel Pat Cipollone advised Speaker Nancy Pelosi in an October 8, 2019, letter that, because the House investigation lacks any legitimate constitutional foundation, any pretense of fairness, or even the most elementary due process protections, the Executive Branch cannot be expected to participate in it. Executive Branch agencies reaffirmed that it was the position of the President to refuse to comply with subpoenas issued for documents.

The outcome of this directive was that the Office of Management and Budget, the Department of State, the Department of Energy and the Department of Defense refused to produce any documents or witness testimony.

Philbin elaborated that the position of the President not to cooperate wholesale with the House investigation was grounded in well-established separation of powers concepts that the Executive Branch enjoyed absolute immunity and that the requested documents potentially could implicate executive privilege. (It is noteworthy that, typically, claims of executive privilege fail if asserted to conceal wrongdoing.)

According to Philbin, if Congress believed that the subpoenas were authorized, the House should have gone to court to enforce them.

But this argument rings hollow, given the President's position that the courts have no jurisdiction to resolve this conflict.

In addition, Trump made repeated public statements that he would fight all subpoenas and that the Constitution allows him to do anything he wants as president.

It also invites the question: If the President believed that the subpoenas were constitutionally defective, why didn't he go to court to quash them, as is typical in litigation throughout the country?

In the end, it became clear that the House could not rely on the President to comply with their requests, given his overly broad interpretation of privilege, his belligerence and White House counsel's unwillingness to cooperate in good faith.

Indeed, the President's obstructive conduct continues to this day with the Trump administration's improper redaction of emails detailing how Department of Defense and the White House Office of Management and Budget officials reacted to President Trump's decision to halt military aid to Ukraine ordered to be released in response to Freedom of Information Act litigation, the President's announcement that he would seek to enjoin publication of certain aspects of John Bolton's forthcoming book, and Trump lawyer Alan Dershowitz's outlandish position on the Senate floor that if a President thinks that his reelection is in the national interest, any actions that he takes toward that end cannot, by definition, be impeachable.

Consequently, Trump left the House with no choice but to proceed as it did with the second article of impeachment.

In my view, the House managers were more persuasive in arguing that, if the President is able to declare the circumstances under which he will cooperate with Congress and he can refuse unilaterally to cooperate when his conditions are not met, the House's investigatory powers would be null and void. This is not a tenable outcome.

Is a crime required?

Constitutional lawyer Alan Dershowitz and former independent counsel Robert Ray argued that, even if all the facts were accepted as true, the articles of impeachment would be defective because they do not allege a criminal offense.

In their view, abusive conduct and an interbranch dispute over witnesses and documents does not meet the constitutional standard of a high crime and misdemeanor. During the House Judiciary Committee hearing, constitutional law experts Noah Feldman, Pamela Karlan and Michael Gerhardt disputed the Dershowitz/Ray position, arguing that impeachable conduct does not have to constitute a crime.

According to the experts, "offenses," which is the word used by Alexander Hamilton in the Federalist Papers, relates to the misconduct of public officials in violation or abuse of the public trust -- irrespective of whether a crime is committed. This view is consistent with the overwhelming weight of authority and is widely held by constitutional scholars. The Dershowitz/Ray position is a constitutional outlier.

In my view, the late Charles L. Black Jr., Sterling Professor Emeritus of Law at Yale Law School, best articulates the appropriate standard for evaluating what meets the definition of high crimes and misdemeanors in the constitutional sense: That is, offenses that are clearly wrong, even if not criminal, and in Black's words, "seriously threaten the order or political society as to make pestilent and dangerous the continuance in power of their perpetrator."

President Trump's alleged conduct -- in soliciting Ukraine to investigate his political rival and, then, in withholding military aid until the investigation is publicly announced-- violates the public trust and renders his continuation in office a danger to the Constitution. His obstruction of Congress compounds the offense.

Witnesses

If the Senate does not call Bolton and the other witnesses who have firsthand knowledge of the President's actions, it would be facilitating a cover-up.

The Senate needs to perform its constitutional duty to hold a full and fair trial in which all relevant witnesses testify under oath and all pertinent documentary evidence is disclosed irrespective of whether the House was unsuccessful in obtaining these witnesses and documentary evidence. To do otherwise is to set the dangerous historical precedent that full and fair Senate impeachment trials are not constitutionally required.
SALEM  Public workers who expected to contribute more to their savings in July to make up for cuts to retirement benefits will have to wait until September.

The agency that pays out billions in retirement benefits to Oregon public workers is delaying a new program designed to allow employees to try to counterbalance recent benefit cuts by the Legislature.

Last year, lawmakers changed Oregons costly pension system, which is facing about $27 billion in debt. Legislative budget analysts expected the changes to save public employers $1.2 to $1.8 billion in pension costs every two years, starting in 2021.

The Oregon Public Employee Retirement System, known as PERS, is a hybrid. Theres a basic pension and a 401(k)-style savings account on top.

One revision rerouted a slice of employees salary that previously went to the savings account to help pay for the pension instead.

Employees will contribute the same amount of money to their retirement, but a greater portion will go to fund pensions. As a result, employees say they will end up with less money when they retire.

The new law included a provision where employees could choose to send some more money to the savings account to make up for the decrease.

If theyre going to delay the implementation of the part that would allow members to spend their own money to keep their retirement whole, says Joe Baessler, associate director of AFSCME Council 75, a union representing mostly public workers, they probably should also suspend the diversion, at least until they can figure all this stuff out.

Delaying the new savings option was necessary, PERS Director Kevin Olineck said in a phone interview Thursday.

The agency will let workers make additional payments to equal what they would have put in had the program started as scheduled.

The members will be kept whole, Olineck said.

The delay in the savings accounts start is one signal that the reforms in Senate Bill 1049 appear to be stretching the agencys abilities.

State workers have spent 17,200 hours over six months, through December, putting the changes into place, according to PERS records. More than 150 employees have been involved to some degree in helping to make the changes, according to PERS.

When you have to ramp up to put into place a project of this magnitude, you have to take people off their day-to-day jobs and move them over to project work, Olineck said. That results in them not being able to support their co-workers or theyre taking off doing their regular operational work.

The Legislature allotted about $39 million to incorporate the PERS reforms.

But Olineck expects the project will cost an additional $1.7 million, according to a Jan. 17 letter he sent to key legislators who lead committees on budget and information technology.

The project requires more office space and money to pay workers from the Department of Administrative Services and Department of Justice, Olineck said, and more money to support program management and project execution.

The agency could need even more money on top of that to finish the delayed project to let employees contribute more to their retirement.

But Olineck says the amount that government employers will avoid paying in pension costs will be greater than the costs the state will incur for putting the reforms into action.

Olineck, who took the helm in 2018 after running large public pension systems in Canada, said he now runs the second-most complex pension system in the U.S.

That complexity is due, in part, to the constant reforms in recent years intended to tame the systems staggering debt.

Last year, Sen. Betsy Johnson, D-Scappoose, asked Olineck in a public hearing whether the agency, charged with running an oft-tweaked system, was hitting a legislative fatigue wall.

At times, the agency has relied on manual fixes to meet tight deadlines set by new reforms, and reforms that have been passed and then later deemed unconstitutional by courts impeded forward progress on much needed operational process and system changes, Olineck responded in a letter last February to Senate President Peter Courtney, D-Salem.

There is a risk that any future changes to the plan that arent given the appropriate time and resources for implementation could negatively impact the agency and its ability to function in a cost effective, efficient and risk-mitigated fashion, Olineck wrote.

The agency has been clear from the beginning  while the legislation was being considered  that implementing the PERS changes would be a challenge, particularly from an IT perspective, said Kate Kondayen, a spokeswoman for Gov. Kate Brown.

Legislators and the governors office were told that during bill deliberations, Kondayen said in written responses to questions from the Oregon Capital Bureau. We always expected that temporary solutions would be needed in order to implement on the timeline the Legislature set.

She said Brown is monitoring developments closely and providing support as needed.

The Department of Administrative Services, the states hub for operations, also is monitoring the work.

PERS has been receptive and responsive to the feedback provided by an analyst from the states central IT office, said Liz Craig, a spokeswoman for the Oregon Department of Administrative Services.

Reporter Claire Withycombe: cwithycombe@eomediagroup.com or 971-304-4148.

Love 0 Funny 0 Wow 0 Sad 0 Angry 0
Republican senators began Monday in a bad spot. They ended it feeling like they were in a better one, at least for now. What changed? A late-morning pep talk from Senate Majority Leader McConnell and a rousing argument from White House defense attorney Alan Dershowitz that gave many Republican senators the answer to the key question of the day: Why shouldn't John Bolton testify in the impeachment trial?

At the Capitol on Monday, the revelations contained in a draft manuscript from the former national security adviser (reported by The New York Times) were unavoidable. Long a point of intrigue, Bolton's unpublished book claims that President Donald Trump withheld aid to Ukraine to pressure the country to announce investigations into Democrats.

That would appear to confirm the central accusation of a quid pro quo against the President, and has reanimated what seemed like a dead question a day earlier of whether enough GOP senators would vote to have Bolton and perhaps other witnesses testify.

For a Republican party that has remained remarkably unified throughout the Trump era and in the impeachment process in particular, the Bolton news presents the biggest challenge yet. While there is still the possibility that enough Republicans vote to allow witnesses, the pressure to do so, while seeming red hot Monday morning, appeared to have cooled by the evening.

Ducking and dodging

As senators arrived at the Capitol Monday morning, many Republicans seemed unprepared to hand the onslaught of questions. Several simply declined to answer.

Others diverted attention. When Sen. Pat Roberts was asked Monday morning to respond to the Bolton news, he responded, "I was reading Gone With the Wind."

Reporters pressed: Why wouldn't the Senate want to hear from a firsthand witness like Bolton? "Well, that's a good question," Roberts admitted.

As senators ducked and dodged, privately some GOP aides were more frank about the effect of the Bolton news.

"No one believed the White argument that Trump didn't do it," one aide told CNN. "He called for the investigations on TV! So, it is still a question of whether this is impeachable or if we should let the election happen."

At a morning press conference, Sen. Mike Braun of Indiana admitted the obvious, that the Bolton news had indeed changed things.

"I think yes it probably will make the dynamic different," Braun said. "I'm not going to deny it's going to change the decibel level and probably the intensity of which we go about talking about witnesses."

Calming the storm

At a pre-trial GOP conference meeting at 11:30 a.m., McConnell tried to calm everyone down. According to senators in the room, McConnell offered one simple piece of advice: take a deep breath.

It seems to have worked. The change was perhaps best reflected by West Virginia Sen. Shelley Moore Capito. The typically talkative Republican declined to answer questions about Bolton as she entered the conference meeting.

"I don't have any comments right now, thanks," she said.

But after Monday's session closed, Capito sounded more supportive than ever before that she would oppose allowing witnesses, telling CNN she hasn't "fully made up my mind yet."

"I think a lot of points were made tonight that would discount" calling witnesses, Capito said.

Not long after, Trump defenders in the Senate got some back-up from their GOP House colleagues, a group of whom made their way to the Capitol to provide cover from the Bolton fallout.

"It should surprise no one that in the eleventh hour that we would see a replay of what we saw over in the House, which are selective leaks designed to create a narrative that ultimately will change the conversation," said Rep. Mark Meadows, a North Carolina Republican. "But this is nothing new."

Rallying the troops

If there was an indication where things were going it came just minutes before the trial began at 1 p.m., in the form of a tweet from Georgia Sen. Kelly Loeffler, who aimed her fire at Utah's Mitt Romney, who has clearly indicated he wants to hear from Bolton.

"After 2 weeks, it's clear that Democrats have no case for impeachment," Loeffler tweeted. "Sadly, my colleague @SenatorRomney wants to appease the left by calling witnesses who will slander the @realDonaldTrump during their 15 minutes of fame. The circus is over. It's time to move on!"

Loeffler's shot across the bow was a key indication that the Bolton news is testing the unity of the Republican Conference. Loeffler, just three weeks on the job, has been friendly with Romney and previously given money to his 2012 presidential campaign and super PAC.

By the time the trial gaveled into session just after 1 p.m., it appeared Republican senators were largely in the place they were before the Bolton revelations broke Sunday night: Sens. Susan Collins and Romney in support of them, Sen. Lisa Murkowski remaining "curious" about Bolton's testimony, and no real sense of movement from any of the other 50 GOP senators.

Dershowitz resets the mood

As the White House legal team went through its second day of opening arguments, Bolton loomed like an elephant in the room, present but unmentioned. It was only in the final presentation of the night when Dershowitz addressed Bolton head-on.

"Nothing in the Bolton revelations -- even if true -- would rise to the level of an abuse of power or an impeachable offense," Dershowitz said in the middle of what otherwise sounded more like an law-school lecture than an opening argument in a trial.

Dershowitz continued with an argument meant to reassure the rattled GOP senators.

"Even if the President, any president, were to demand a quid pro quo as a condition to sending aid to a foreign country, obviously a highly disputed matter in this case, that would not by itself constitute an abuse of power," he argued, adding, "Quid pro quo alone is not a basis for abuse of power, it's part of the way foreign policy has been operated by presidents since the beginning of time."

The entire presentation made a splash with the Republican conference, with multiple senators shaking Dershowitz's hand. McConnell could be heard telling Dershowitz the performance was "wonderful." Sen. Mike Lee of Utah told CNN he thought Dershowitz was "brilliant."

On Tuesday morning, Braun was still singing Dershowitz's praises. "I think he probably gave a lot more peace of mind to people that were wanting to see how to sort through it, when he made a strong case that each article was ill-founded," Braun told reporters in the Capitol Monday morning.

The Dershowitz closing only strengthened the status quo, with multiple Republicans reiterating they'll make the decision when the time for a vote on witnesses -- which will likely be later this week -- comes.

"Still going to make my decision when we finish this phase," said Pennsylvania Sen. Pat Toomey.

Even Romney, who has been speaking in support of witnesses, seemed unwilling to make the effort when asked by reporters about his position following the conclusion of Monday's trial session.

"I'm really not going to comment on the process until it's all completed," Romney said as he boarded a Senate subway car. Then he added, as an afterthought, "I'd like to hear from John Bolton."

As the subway car pulled away from the Capitol station, Romney -- alone with an aide -- took in a breath and sighed.
gabriel87 wrote:

The administrators of a music downloading website were worried that the lack of downloadable movies and TV shows could diminish the popularity of their site. Accordingly, they decided to survey their existing customers in order to determine whether adding movies would increase interest. The survey found that only a small percentage of their current customers were interested in purchasing movies online, and the administrators concluded that adding movies would not significantly increase traffic to their site.



Which of the following, if true, shows a flaw in the administrator's reasoning?



a) The perceived demand for online movie purchases has been overstated



b) Customers who purchase music online are as likely to purchase movies as music



c) Surveys conducted by email are the best way to assess interest in a new online product.



d) There is only one other website currently offering both music and movies.



e) This website's existing customers are exclusively music aficionados.



Please help me to understand on how the OA is correct as I am still not convinced of it. Also help me to approach Flaw in Reasoning questions.



Source: 800score

Analysis :

Music website administrators worry :

Survey result :

Conclusion by admin:

Option A: Incorrect

Option B: Incorrect

Option C: Incorrect

Option D: Incorrect

Option E: Correct

Please let me know if I am going in wrong direction.

Thanks in appreciation. Signature Read More

that the lack of downloadable movies and TV shows could diminish the popularity of their site.only a small percentage of their current customers were interested in purchasing movies onlineadding movies would not significantly increase traffic to their site.The question to be asked what is the subject of the interest for the surveyed population. In could be the case that as that was a music download site, the customers are also only into music. Thus the survey result aws bad as the current customers don't like movies at all. Now, say if the company adds movie & TV shows , probably they can attract the people who love those. And thus in tern can get huge new subscriptions.: No where it is mentioned in the passage that there is a perceived demand for online movie purchases. To me it was only the admins thought. And if I go to some extent and take that as a perceived demand , then this 'overstated perceived demand for online movie' is supportive.: This is completely outside information. This could be true or could be false.: How the survey is conducted is not at all related to the topic of argument.: Competitions , their presence and the effects are not at all related to the topic of argument.: This matches with our analysis that the sample chosen does not like movie but there is every possibility that if the company adds movie & TV shows , probably they can attract the people who love those. And thus in tern can get huge new subscriptions._________________
The family of a missing 54-year-old Antrim man are becoming "increasingly concerned for his welfare".

Patrick was last seen in the Antrim area on Wednesday January 29 at around 1am.

He is is described as being around 56 in height, slim build and has short dark hair.

Patrick has a number of tattoos including a Celtic Cross on his arms and has a scar on his right cheek.

He was last seen wearing a dark blue anorak with blue jeans.

Police would ask Patrick or anyone who knows of his whereabouts to get in touch with them at Antrim Station on 101, quoting reference number 1759 29/01/20.
BAKU, Azerbaijan, Feb. 1

Trend:

Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev has expressed condolences to Chairman of People's Republic of China Xi Jinping.

I am deeply saddened by the news of the deaths of people as a result of the outbreak of the new coronavirus in your country, President Aliyev said.

I highly appreciate the steps taken by the government of China and the perseverance shown by the people of China in order to prevent the spread of epidemic and human casualties, the Azerbaijani president said. I believe that under your leadership the People's Republic of China will decently cope with this disaster.

You can rest assured that even in these temporary tough times, the people of Azerbaijan stand in solidarity with the friendly people of China, and we are ready to provide any assistance, President Aliyev said.

On my own behalf and on behalf of the people of Azerbaijan, I extend my deepest condolences to the families of those who died of the disease and wish those infected the swiftest possible recovery, the Azerbaijani president said.
BAKU, Azerbaijan, Feb. 1

By Rufiz Hafizoglu  Trend:

Export of grain and legumes from Turkey to Uzbekistan increased by 6.85 percent in 2019 compared to 2018 and amounted to $12.2 million, Turkeys Ministry of Trade told Trend.

In December 2019, Turkeys export of grain and legumes to Uzbekistan increased by 1.56 percent compared to December 2018 and exceeded $1.2 million.

In 2019, Turkeys export of these products amounted to $6.7 billion, which is 1.64 percent more compared to 2018.

Export of grain and legumes from Turkey increased by 5.95 percent in December 2019 compared to the same month of 2018, and amounted to $628.8 million.

----

Follow the author on Twitter: @rhafizoglu
CONCERNS have been raised surrounding the impact Ardnacrusha Power Station is having on the population of local salmon and eels.

A local resident, Ken OConnell claims that the ESB, who manage the station have neglected to manage fish stocks in the area - resulting in hundreds of fish being killed every year.

This has been happening for a number of years, said Ken, they say they have a fish pass and they're trying to promote the salmon but theres no actual way for the fish to come down. When the fish spawn in the lake and then come down to the power station, theres no way for them to come down through as theres no pass. They all have to come down the turbines. Between 30 to 40 percent of them are killed.

Ken, who worked in the power station in previous years as did his father and grandfather, said: the workers there now are genuine and they're not doing anything wrong. Its the ESB policy, they just dont care. Theyre saying the plant is sustainable and renewable but its not, the water is renewable but the plant is not sustainable to the local environment.

Ken added that the most affected species is migrating juvenile eels, known as elvers, and adult eels, as well as migrating salmon.

There should be 46,000 salmon going up, and apparently now theres only 2,000, Ken added, the full extent isnt seen as wildlife then eat the dead fish immediately.

Meanwhile, Green Party Energy spokesperson and general election candidate for Limerick city Brian Leddin has expressed concern at the recent reports of the fish kills.

We have a national and global biodiversity crisis, he said, the ESB must do all it can to remove barriers to fish migration at Ardnacrusha and Parteen weir and to restore populations of lamprey species and critically endangered salmon and eel. Increased fish populations could have huge biodiversity and economic benefits for Limerick and other towns along the Shannon.

Read also: Feasibility study could see famous Limerick bridge reopened

Noting the low contribution that Ardnacrusha has to the countrys electricity needs, he continued: Theres an important question over the future operation of Ardnacrusha hydroelectric station. At the moment it is operated to generate a fairly small amount of power at a very significant environmental cost and flooding risk. Its future may be as a means of controlling water levels to restore the environment and protect against flooding.

An ESB spokesperson said: The Shannon eel population is broadly similar to all other Irish and European eel populations being in decline for the past decade. As a conservation measure, ESB carry out an eel Trap and Transport (T+T) system for both juvenile eels moving upstream and again for adult eels as they migrate downstream.

This activity is undertaken each year for elvers (March-September) and for adult eel (referred to as silver eel) from September to February. This programme operates under the Irish National Eel Management Plan (NEMP). This NEMP came about as a result of the 2009 EU Eel Regulation which specified that all Irish large-scale hydro stations undertake T+T on each of the catchments affected.

ESB has heavily invested resources into the trapping and transport programme and protocols for both juvenile and adult eels with Ireland now at the forefront in Europe in this regard. Details of these activities may be found at Inland Fisheries Ireland website with whom ESB work in partnership with, along with the Marine Institute.

Both Ardnacrusha Station and Parteen Weir operate fish passes. ESB also operates a salmon smolt (juvenile salmon) migration protocol each year at Ardnacrusha Station. This means that there is a generation regime in place which assists the downstream movement of juvenile salmon for the period mid-March to June. In addition, a spillway gate at Parteen Regulating Weir is used to assist downstream movement and attracts fish to the entrance of the fish pass.

ESB also operate a salmon conservation hatchery (near Birdhill, Co Tipperary) which produces hatchery salmon for onwards migration to sea, and also assists with the restocking of the upper Shannon catchment with juvenile salmon. The fish passes at both Ardnacrusha Station and Parteen Weir, the smolt protocol and the T&T processes, all combine to assist in the downward migration of fish species in the river Shannon.
Changes to BART train schedules intended to improve service will begin Feb. 10, officials said Friday.

Transit district officials said that most changes involve "small tweaks," while others are more significant and that changes will involve all lines, particularly the first and last runs each day.

"Major improvements include the return of two-line service into San Francisco on Sunday, the addition of Fleet of the Future trains on Saturday, earlier weekday train service for many riders, increased peak service for Concord riders in the morning and evening, and later evening direct service from San Francisco into Warm Springs," BART said in a news release.

Trains that originated or turned back at Pleasant Hill during weekday morning peak periods will now do the same at the Concord station, which will allow the line to serve more riders by giving them the option of going to Concord said, BART said.

"Pleasant Hill will still be served by the same number of trains in the morning, but many of them will no longer originate at the station," the district said. Three trains will originate at Pleasant Hill at 6 a.m.

Some evening commute trains will also end at Concord instead of Pleasant Hill, which will be reflected on the platform destination signs.

Service from Richmond to Warm Springs will start at 5:04 a.m., -17 minutes earlier than before.

The 5 a.m. northbound train from South Hayward will be on the Warm Springs/Richmond line instead of the Warm Springs/Daly City line, meaning San Francisco-bound passengers will need to use trains on the Dublin/Pleasanton to Daly City or Antioch/SFO lines for the first San Francisco arrivals, arriving in San Francisco eight minutes later.

Morning service to San Francisco from Warm Springs will begin 14 minutes earlier, departing at 5:01 a.m.

Evening direct service from Daly City to Warm Springs will be extended with an added train departing at 7:12 p.m.

The morning peak 9:12 a.m. Antioch/SFO train from MacArthur to Daly City is being eliminated to allow the Concord turnback trains to serve more riders.

BART says its evening schedule is being adjusted to better accommodate single-tracking in the Transbay Tube.

On Saturdays more Fleet of the Future trains are being added, with two each on the Antioch/SFO, Dublin/Pleasanton, and Richmond/Millbrae lines, and four on the Warm Springs/Daly City line.

The first northbound Warm Springs/Richmond train on Saturday will be at 5:52 a.m. at Bay Fair instead 6 a.m. at the Coliseum station.

The first Saturday train westbound Dublin/Pleasanton to Daly City train will be at 5:58 a.m. at Bay Fair instead of 6 a.m. at the Coliseum.

Sundays will see the return of two-line service to San Francisco. Dublin/Pleasanton line trains will terminate at Montgomery or Daly City depending on the time of day and whether there is single tracking. Riders on that line going will transfer to an Antioch/SFO train at Montgomery Street.

The Warm Springs/Daly City and Richmond/Millbrae trips to San Francisco on Sunday are being eliminated to allow the return of Dublin/Pleasanton service to San Francisco.

Headways on Sundays will be every 24 minutes on all lines, four minutes longer than the current schedule, which BART believes "will provide greater predictability and resilience in the event of a service delay."

Sunday trips to Millbrae will not require a transfer at SFO.

The first northbound train on Sunday is Dublin/Pleasanton, which will leave the 24th Street/Mission station at 7:50 a.m., and Civic Center at 7:54 a.m., 10 minutes earlier than before.

The first northbound train on the Warm Springs/Richmond line will leave South Hayward at 7:54 a.m. and arrive at the Coliseum station at 8:10 a.m.

BART says the updated schedule will be available on its online Trip Planner before the changes start.

Copyright  2020 by Bay City News, Inc. Republication, Rebroadcast or any other Reuse without the express written consent of Bay City News, Inc. is prohibited.
The 31st edition of the OBrien Awards, celebrating and honouring the best in Canadian harness racing, took place on Saturday, February 1 at the Hilton Mississauga / Meadowvale Hotel in Mississauga, Ont.

The red carpet show and cocktail reception kicked the evening off at 5:30 p.m. Dinner was at 6:45 p.m. and the award presentations started at roughly 9:00 p.m. A dance capped off the evening.

2019 O'Brien Award Red Carpet Show

2019 O'Brien Award Red Carpet Wrap-Up

The OBriens were video streamed live on standardbredcanada.ca starting at approximately 9:00 p.m. (EST).

Live updates were posted from @trotinsider on Twitter and on the Standardbred Canada Facebook page. The hashtag for the OBriens is #obriens19.

The Standardbred Canada Industry Communications team provided live news and commentary on all the happenings from the Hilton Mississauga / Meadowvale Hotel throughout the night. Winners were announced through the live twitter feed below as they happened.

The whos who of the harness racing was on hand to receive their coveted OBrien bronzes. The awards are named in honour of the late Joe OBrien, a trainer-driver from Prince Edward Island who was highly regarded and is a member of the Canadian Horse Racing Hall of Fame.

Eighteen O'Brien Awards were given out for the 2019 harness racing season. Thirteen of the awards honour the premier horses over the past racing season, including the most coveted trophy, Canada's Horse of the Year. The horse awards are divided by age, sex and gait. There are two finalists in all of the categories.

There are five people awards, one each for Driver of the Year, Trainer of the Year, Armstrong Bros. Farm Breeder of the Year, the O'Brien Award of Horsemanship, and Future Star. In addition, the Cam Fella Award, three Media Excellence Awards and an award for Outstanding Groom were doled out.

Standardbred Canada extends its congratulations to all of the evenings finalists!
With a focus on developing and operating industry-leading inpatient rehabilitation facilities (IRFs) who care for patients with debilitating illnesses and injuries across the U.S., Nobis Rehabilitation Partners names their initial leadership team  each member with deep experience in healthcare operations.

Anis Sabeti joins Nobis as Vice President, Operations. Anis will lead the operation and management of each of the new rehab hospitals. Prior to Nobis, he was the Market CEO of LIFECARE Hospitals of DFW, where he improved underperforming hospitals. Anis holds a degree in Legal Studies from the University of Texas at Arlington, and a Master of Business Administration from the University of Texas at Dallas.

Tracey Nixon joins Nobis as Chief Compliance Officer. Tracey oversees the companys Compliance, Quality, Privacy and Audit Programs. She has more than 30 years of experience in post-acute care. Her prior positions included IRF CEO, Regional Operations Coordinator, and National Director of Clinical Operations of more than 100 IRFs with the former HealthSouth. Tracey holds a Bachelor and Master degree in Speech Pathology from Texas Christian University.

Jerry Huggler joins Nobis as Chief Financial Officer with over 20 years of healthcare experience in acute and post-acute organizations. Jerry will manage all financial operations within Nobis Rehabilitation. Prior to this role, he was the SVP/Controller of AccentCare, Inc.  an industry-leader in home health, personal care and hospice services. A licensed CPA, he holds a Bachelor degree in Accounting from Wesley College and a Master's degree in Taxation from Widener University.

Gina Thomas joins Nobis as Chief Development Officer. Gina brings more than 35 years of healthcare expertise to lead development planning for the targeted markets. Prior to Nobis, Gina served as the Chief Development Officer at Lumere where she built the commercial foundation. Her career spans business development, consulting and clinical roles. Gina is a licensed Registered Nurse and holds a Master of Business Administration.

Kyle Johnson joins Nobis as Director, Information Technology. With nearly two decades as an IT professional in healthcare  Kyle will oversee the architecture and implementation of all operational and business support systems. Prior to joining the company, he was the Director of IT at LIFECARE Health Partners. Kyle holds a Bachelor degree in Information Technology from Harding University.

To bring a team together of this caliber who have developed innovative healthcare institutions in just a few months is phenomenal said Chester Crouch, CEO of Nobis. In fact, as a team, we have completed 35 inpatient rehab facilities and specialty hospital openings, so we have a jump start to build upon past successes to further advance rehab care. This is hands down the best start up team I have ever worked with in my career, said Crouch. Additional executives are expected to join Nobis later in 2020.

About Nobis Rehabilitation Partners

Nobis Rehabilitation Partners brings together hospitals, developers, and investment partners to develop, operate, and manage inpatient rehabilitation facilities (IRFs) throughout the United States. With vast experience developing IRFs across the country, the Nobis team has refined both the physical design and operational functionality of the hospital; ultimately streamlining outcomes and profitability. Learn more at nobisrehabpartners.com.
The Egyptian foreign minister's speech came during an urgent meeting requested by Palestine to oppose the controversial US MidEast plan

Achieving a fair political settlement for the Palestinian cause is one of the keys to restore peace, Egyptian foreign minister Sameh Shoukry said during an emergency meeting by Arab foreign ministers at the Arab League in Cairo amid the US-proposed MidEast plan dilemma.

Shoukry reiterated the necessity of restoring the legitimate rights of the Palestinian people, pointing out that developments in the crisis reaffirm Egypt's steadfast position on a number of points in the 2002 Arab Peace Initiative, which include the establishment of a Palestinian state with Jerusalem as its capital.

He said the comprehensive resolution for the Palestinian cause will be through establishing the Palestinian state, stressing the necessity of a clear Palestinian position with a vision.

The Egyptian foreign minister's speech came during an urgent meeting requested by Palestine to oppose the US' MidEast plan, which has sparked criticism since it was announced by US President Donald Trump last week.

Last week, Trump unveiled the peace proposal, which would allow Israel to annex all its West Bank settlements, that the Palestinians and most of the international community view as illegal, as well as the Jordan Valley, which accounts for roughly a fourth of the West Bank. It also includes further aspects which Palestinians consider as limiting their statehood.

The proposal was criticised by several countries, yet several key Arab leaders, including Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates, backed the US initiative in a surprising shift in foreign policy towards the Palestinian cause.

Search Keywords:

Short link:


International health chiefs last week declared a global emergency and the first two cases of the deadly coronavirus, inevitably, emerged in the UK.

A further 83 Britons have now been evacuated from Wuhan  where the virus was first recognised  and are being held in quarantine in a Merseyside hospital.

NHS bosses reassured the public about robust measures already being in place to prevent the spread of the illness. With the number of confirmed cases soaring worldwide, as well as the toll of deaths, an increasing number of people want to know: what can I do to best protect myself?

Desperate measures: Masks in China made of tin foil and tape, left, and a grapefruit skin, right. Last week there were mask shortages, with people resorting to makeshift protection

In many Asian countries, face masks  the reusable cloth ones, or the disposable surgical type worn by doctors and nurses  have been a common sight on commuters for decades, often as protection from pollution.

The spectre of successive health outbreaks since SARS in 2002  including H1N1 swine flu, avian or bird flu, and MERS  all of which could kill, also means the public are on high alert.

Last week in China, amid nationwide shortages of masks, people began resorting to using bras, plastic bags and containers over their heads as makeshift protection.

The new virus has so far proved fatal in about three per cent of infected patients. This doesnt sound high, but it is about the same death rate as the 1918 Spanish flu that killed millions worldwide.

And that number may well rise.

So concern is understandable. But are masks  which, except for being worn by a few supermodels and celebrities, have never really caught on in the UK  a good idea?

Some masks could be worse than useless

There are three basic types of face mask you can buy. First are washable cloth masks  often sold in bright colours. Theyve become something of a fashion item in Asia.

Then there is the light, loose surgical mask, made of a type of paper and other fibres. These are designed to be thrown away after each use.

Finally, there are close-fitting masks worn by hospital staff  and some London cyclists and builders  called the N95 or FFP3 respirators. These are also single-use.

The effectiveness of each type in any given outbreak will depend on how the virus spreads.

Home-made: Others used plastic bottles (right) and even lettuce leaves (left). You can buy washable cloth masks, light, loose surgical masks or close-fitting masks

People wearing protective face masks walk in a commuter train station in Bangkok, Thailand

Some viruses travel in larger droplets of saliva or mucus. These are coughed or sneezed out by an infected person, propelled forward, and dont float in the air. They can be either directly inhaled or, commonly, picked up from surfaces by the hands, and then transferred when someone touches their face.

Other viruses are airborne or aerosol, and exist in tiny particles of moisture  in our breath and floating in the air  and spread more easily. Despite their popularity, theres not much evidence that surgical masks are an effective way to stop infection, although they may provide a physical barrier, protecting against any significant spray of saliva or mucus.

Viruses and other pathogens can live on surfaces. People then touch these surfaces with their hands, and then touch their mouth or nose  infecting themselves. Surgical masks may have a use in preventing this kind of transmission.

However, we dont yet know how the coronavirus spreads. If it travels via the droplet method, as SARS and MERS mainly did, surgical masks may help protect you from particles expelled from coughs or sneezes. But viruses arent always one or the other, according to researchers.

Both SARS and MERS also spread, occasionally, via fine aerosols.

And because most masks do not fit closely around the face, tiny airborne particles could still get through to the mouth and nose.

As Professor Raina MacIntyre, of the University of New South Wales in Sydney, Australia, says: The effectiveness of surgical masks against airborne infections is low, because they do not provide a seal around the face and do not have good filtration.

A girl, left, with an orange-peel mask and a man, right, wearing a large plastic bottle over his head, with his mouth also covered by a face mask

Some viruses travel in larger droplets of saliva or mucus. These are coughed or sneezed out by an infected person, propelled forward, and dont float in the air (file photo)

And the cloth masks popular in Asia (and make-shift bra masks, in case you were considering one) may be worse than useless.

Prof MacIntyre led the only scientific study of them so far, in 14 hospitals in Hanoi, Vietnam.

Cloth masks have no efficacy at all, and may even increase your risk of infection  especially if they are not washed regularly, she says.

However, fellow University of New South Wales researcher Dr Abrar Chughtai says: Something is better than nothing.

If the mask fits, it will protect you

Most effective, research suggests, is the close-fitting mask. Doctors and nurses are advised to wear these against germs that are properly airborne, in tiny particles that float on air currents and go deep into your lungs  like measles, the most contagious virus known.

A tight fit is essential (they dont work with a beard) to keep out these particles.

Doctor Li Zhang, of Wuhans Jinyintan Hospital, is fighting the new coronavirus at the epicentre.

Writing this week in the British medical journal The Lancet, he was clear: medical staff need the disposable close-fitting masks that stop fine aerosols.

Workers produce masks at the Thai Hospital Product Company in Bangkok. Doctors and nurses are advised to wear the close-fitting mask, which research suggests is the most effective

But do ordinary people? They are uncomfortable to wear  not to mention expensive, working out at about 1.50 each on online sites.

And, according to Dr Abrar Chughtai and Prof Raina MacIntyre, the tight-fitting kind should be reserved for medical responders anyway. They are at the greatest risk, to themselves and others  and were key in spreading SARS.

Prof David Heymann, of the London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine, who led the fight against SARS while at the World Health Organisation, is more dubious about the value of wearing a mask.

In general they are not known to be effective in protecting against infection, he says.

Viruses invade eyes, too, and masks dont cover those.

Surgical masks can, however, stop someone from infecting other sick people. At the Beijing United Family Hospital last week, all visitors were required to wear surgical masks  to protect patients.

The best defence? Washing your hands

Despite questions over the effectiveness of masks, worried Chinese are buying them  with retailers selling out and reports of prices soaring ten-fold.

The World Health Organisation advises wearing washable or disposable gloves in public, and washing hands regularly with soap or alcohol-based cleaner (file photo)

With most medical protective equipment made in China, that shortage could spread. Some European countries are also warning of shortages. You could improvise, of course, with some in China even resorting to orange rinds and plastic bottles cut in half.

You can use bras as masks  which is what people did during SARS 17 years ago when masks sold out, says Julian Tang, of the Leicester Royal Infirmary.

But there are, perhaps, more useful things you can do.

The World Health Organisation advises wearing washable or disposable gloves in public, and washing hands regularly with soap or alcohol-based cleaner. Avoid touching doorknobs and other public surfaces. Stand 3ft from sick people and cough and sneeze into a tissue  then throw it away and wash your hands. Dont share towels.

Asked what single thing he would advise, Prof Heymann doesnt hesitate. Handwashing, he says.

So maybe you dont need to worry about masks after all.
It's not easy being a Republican. Especially these days, especially in the U.S. Senate, particularly when commanded to overlook our current tantrum-prone president continually in a twitter. And most especially as your sacrifice is demanded in the name of power and faction, not in the name of the republic you have sworn to protect.

On the one hand, there is the august chamber of the Senate  marble, rare woods, secured within heavy drapery and resonant with the aura of the great men who've gone before. And on the other hand you have this impulsive, erratic, unpredictable child on Pennsylvania Avenue holed up in his Oval Office with his thumb on his iPhone, his eye on Fox News, chattering to distraction while the senators attempt to put a dignified face on a deplorable situation. For of what is he accused if nothing more than a low rent, most ordinary shakedown?
The Centre on February 1, 2020 allocated Rs 69,000 crore for 2020-21 to the health sector and stressed on expanding Pradhan Mantri-Ayushman Bharat Scheme (PMABY), billed as the worlds largest government-funded health assurance scheme to more aspirational districts.

Out of the total allocation, a sum of Rs 6,000 crore has been allocated to PM Jan Aarogya Yojana.

The expansion of Ayushman Bharat scheme will see setting up and development of more hospitals in Tier-II, Tier-III cities under the PPP model, which, the FM said will be funded from the proceeds from taxes on medical devices.

The government will provide viability gap funding for the process.

The Ayushman Bharat scheme, launched in 2018, provides health insurance cover to almost 40 percent of Indias population, benefitting 100 million families which aims to provide a coverage of Rs 5 lakh per family annually, benefiting more than 10.74 crore poor families or over 50 crore people for secondary and tertiary care hospitalisation through a network of empanelled health care providers.

As on November 25, 2019, as many as 114 million e-cards have been issued under PMABY.

It subsumes the current schemesthe Rashtriya Swasthya Bima Yojana and the Senior Citizen Health Insurance Scheme, and the cover will take care of almost all secondary care and most of tertiary care procedures.

To ensure that nobody is left out (especially women, children and elderly) there is no cap on family size and age in the scheme. The benefit cover will also include pre and post-hospitalisation expenses, and covers all pre-existing conditions will be covered from day one of the policy.

Benefits of the scheme are portable across the country and a beneficiary covered under the scheme will be allowed to take cashless benefits from any public/private empanelled hospitals across the country.

The total number of hospitals covered by this scheme are both government hospitals and private hospitals presently numbering 16,000 and increasing steadily. More than 50 percent of the implementing hospitals are in the private sector.

Under Ayushman Bharat, the government had also initiated a programme to set up 1,50,000 health and wellness centres (HWCs) by 2022.
Irish GPs are to be provided with full head-to-toe protective gowns and masks next week after warning the failure of the HSE to provide safety gear left them at risk of the deadly coronavirus.

It follows growing concern about the virus threat here, following the detection of the first two cases of the killer infection in the UK.

The HSE confirmed that the packs will be sent to GP surgeries after angry doctors' protests and the revelation that two Chinese tourists staying in an English hotel are infected with the virus.

The HSE's official guidance to GPs on caring for a patient suspected of having the deadly virus is to wear a protective gown and goggles.

But Dublin doctor Dr Maitiu O Tuathail said their protection was ignored by the HSE.

"GPs are responsible for 92pc of all patient activity," he said.

"We need to be resourced to tackle the challenge."

The World Health Organisation (WHO) declared the spread of the virus an international public health emergency.

There is particular concern at the human-to-human transmission of the virus, which increases the risk of it spreading.

The virus has infected 10,000 people and killed 213.

It has spread to 20 countries outside China.

Two Chinese tourists became the first patients in Britain to test positive for coronavirus during a holiday to York.

Meanwhile, three Irish people who were on a rescue flight to the UK from coronavirus-hit Wuhan in China are spending two weeks in quarantine at NHS staff accommodation in Arrowe Park Hospital, in the Wirral, Merseyside.

They include Kildare teacher Ben Kavanagh, who posted a selfie on Instagram showing him on an almost empty aircraft, with a caption jokingly saying: "Group selfie of me and my friends."

The Irish were among a group of more than 100 passengers on the RAF flight which landed at an airbase in Oxfordshire before travelling to Spain with other Europeans.

The passengers had to sign a contract agreeing to isolation before they could board the flight, and also underwent temperature checks.

The quarantined group will be given free accommodation in fully furnished rooms, and food and laundry facilities.

Kitchens are available if people want to cook for themselves.

A team of medical staff, who will wear protective suits, will closely monitor their condition.

If any of them become ill they can be treated at the nearby Royal Liverpool Hospital, which has a high-level infectious diseases unit.

Meanwhile, Chinese nationals in Ireland who want to stay here and reschedule their return to China are expected to be granted an extension.

The Department of Justice and Equality said that it is "currently examining the immigration position of Chinese nationals, currently in Ireland, who require an extension of their permission as a result of the coronavirus outbreak in China".

A statement said that the department is liaising closely with the HSE.

And it is monitoring the ever-evolving situation.

"In relation to both visas and immigration permissions" it will "adopt a pragmatic approach" to those whose terms are coming to an end here.

A number of Irish people who have families and partners remain in lockdown in China.
Srinagar, Feb 1 : The security grid along the Jammu-Srinagar national highway is being upgraded, following the killing of three militants on Friday, the CRPF said on Saturday.

CRPF DG A.P. Maheshwari stated this at a press conference in Jammu.

On Friday, three Jaish-e-Mohammed militants in a truck who had infiltrated from the international border at Hira Nagar in Kathua were killed in an encounter with security forces on the highway at Nagrota, 20 kilometres from Jammu.

One policeman sustained injuries. Three over ground workers of the militants, including the driver and conductor of the truck were arrested. A large cache of arms and ammunition was also recovered.

Maheshwari said the CRPF responded very promptly during Friday's encounter. He said there is complete coordination between different security agencies in Kashmir.

"Gunning down the terror module is a big achievement," he said. "There is a dynamic security system in place." He said questioning of the three over ground workers of militants arrested in Nagrota is going on. He said that a low intensity conflict is on Kashmir but the security forces are committed to deal with it.

"Security grid is being improved, zero tolerance towards terrorism is a national policy," he said.
President Ram Nath Kovind on Saturday said the government is working to make minorities, especially women, self-reliant through welfare and skill development programmes, including 'Hunar Haats'.

Speaking after inaugurating the 34th Surajkund International Crafts Mela in Faridabad, he said these Haats have proved to be a strong campaign in providing employment opportunities to artisans, craftsmen and chefs. About 2.65 lakh skilled people from minority communities have been provided employment opportunities under 'Hunar Haat', he added.

Surajkund International Crafts Mela has become a platform to showcase the art-skills, talent and entrepreneurship of the people of India. For the past 33 years, the number of visitors and craftsmen in this fair has increased significantly, he said.

The president also said that the 150th birth anniversary of Mahatma Gandhi is a golden opportunity to convey his ideas to the country and the world.

President Kovind was accompanied by his wife Savita Kovind at the function. Haryana Governor Satyadeo Narain Arya, Haryana Chief Minister Manohar Lal Khattar and his Himachal Pradesh counterpart Jai Ram Thakur were also present.

The fair attracts tourists not only from India but all over the world. This year Himachal Pradesh is the "theme state" and Uzbekistan is the 'partner nation'.

India and Uzbekistan share strong cultural and diplomatic ties, the president said.

"Our geographical boundaries are not contiguous but our hearts are united together. Due to close partnership between the two countries in the areas of culture, art and agriculture, the people of Uzbekistan and India enjoy the warmth of closeness," he said.

"I am confident that the Surajkund Mela will also make an effective contribution to the economy and to the development of arts and business and this tradition will be continuously strengthened," he said.

Uzbek Ambassador to India Farhod Arziev said a delegation from Uzbekistan, comprising 100 artisans and craftsmen, are participating in the Surajkund Mela.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
Union Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman on Saturday said that deposit insurance cover for bank deposits would be increased from Rs 1 lakh to Rs 5 lakh.

"Insurance cover per depositor is Rs 1 lakh. It has been now revised to Rs 5 lakh," she said in Lok Sabha while presenting the Union Budget 2020-21.

The proposal has come in the wake of the crisis at Mumbai-based Punjab and Maharashtra Co-operative Bank. There have been demands to increase the deposit insurance cover.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
The SFI unit of Jadavpur University took out a rally here on Saturday evening in protest against back-to-back firing incidents targeting anti-CAA protesters at Jamia Millia and Shaheen Bagh in the national capital.

Nearly 100 students went around the 8B bus stand area near the JU campus, chanting slogans against "fascist forces who have opened fire on peaceful anti-CAA protesters" near the Jamia university on January 31 and again fired two rounds in the air close to the sit-in protest site at Saheen Bagh on Saturday.

"Down with BJP, down with Amit Shah, down with Fascism," the protestors chanted.

They also raised slogans of "Shaheen Bagh means freedom from divisive politics" and "Shaheen Bagh means freedom from discrimination."



"This is our way of protest against the BJP's gameplan to silence democratic protests by students, minorities against the discriminatory NRC by using right wing organisations like VHP," Ushashi Paul, a leader of SFI, JU, said.

On Saturday, two days after a youth fired a pistol at a group of anti-CAA protesters near the Jamia Millia university, another man fired two rounds in the air at Shaheen Bagh and was later taken into custody.

No one was injured in the incident.

The man, who identified himself as Kapil Gujjar, chanted "Jai Shree Ram" and said, "hamare desh me aur kisi ki nahi chalegi, sirf Hindu ki chalegi (only Hindus shall have a say in our country, no one else)," as he was taken into custody by the Delhi Police.

The incident, which comes days after a local contractor armed with a gun had come to the site and asked the people to end the protest against the Citizenship (Amendment) Act, has triggered panic in the area.

On Thursday, a youth had fired on anti-CAA protesters at Jamia Millia Islamia, injuring a student in the presence of police personnel, triggering a massive protest by Jamia students.

Hundreds of people, including women and children, have been protesting since December 15 at Shaheen Bagh, which has attracted attention across the country among those opposing the CAA, but at the same time the agitation has been severely criticised by others, including the BJP Union ministers and leaders.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
The Massachusetts State Police is declining to release the names of the 22 troopers it seeks to terminate in connection with the overtime scandal, a spokesperson for the state agency wrote in an email Friday.

Whether we do at the conclusion of the disciplinary process will be a decision the Department makes in light of our legal counsels interpretation of public records law related to personnel actions, David Procopio wrote following a press conference earlier on Friday detailing the disciplinary process for the troopers.

During the press conference, Massachusetts State Police Colonel Christopher S. Mason said he is also seeking restitution from the 22 troopers, but officials have not disclosed a total amount.

We are not disclosing a number today because the disciplinary process is still underway, Procopio wrote.

Of the 22 troopers, 13 were still on active duty during the course of the investigation, which involved dozens of troopers who were allegedly paid for hours they did not work. Nine were suspended without pay, Procopio wrote. Those troopers were part of a now-disbanded unit called Troop E tasked with monitoring the Mass. Pike.

Altogether, 46 troopers were flagged for potential criminal prosecution for their alleged participation in the overtime scandal. Of those, 10 were charged criminally by the U.S. Attorneys office or the Office of Attorney General Maura Healey. Healey announced late Friday afternoon that her office has closed its investigation.

Eight of the 10 charged have since been convicted and sentenced, including most recently former Lt. David Wilson, who on Wednesday was ordered to pay $18,994 in restitution and serve 200 hours of community service. Daren DeJong, another trooper, will appear in Boston federal court on Feb. 4 for sentencing after being found guilty, a year ago, to a charge of embezzlement from an agency receiving federal funds.

State police also say they will not be auditing pay records prior to 2015, noting they believe theyve identified all whove taken part in the scheme.

We now have to weigh the best use of our resources, and we have determined that the best use of our Internal Affairs and Staff Inspections units going forward is to resolve these cases, some of the other high profile cases you are aware of, and to ensure compliance moving forward with time and attendance regulations, supervisory policies, and other enhancements to our improved systems of ensuring accountability, Procopio wrote.
France's Orange chooses Nokia and Ericsson to deploy its 5G network at home FILE PHOTO: The logo of French telecoms operator Orange is pictured in a retail store in Bordeaux

By Mathieu Rosemain and Sudip Kar-Gupta

PARIS (Reuters) - Orange <ORAN.PA>, France's biggest telecoms company, said it had chosen Nokia <NOKIA.HE> and Ericsson <ERICb.ST> to deploy its 5G network in mainland France, as China's Huawei Technologies faces intense political scrutiny in Europe.

The former monopoly's decision is likely to please U.S. authorities, which have been seeking for months to convince European allies to ban Huawei from telecoms networks on concerns that the Chinese firm could be used to steal Western secrets -- assertions it strongly denies.

Orange, considered a strategic asset by the French government, uses Finland's Nokia and Sweden's Ericsson for its current mobile networks, on which part of the next mobile technology will be built.

"For Orange France, it was the easiest solution," a source close to the operator said, adding that it followed negotiations and experiments using Nokia, Ericsson and Huawei products.

Huawei was not immediately available for comment.

A recent decree aimed at screening all telecoms equipment to prevent espionage did not offer enough clarity for Frances telecoms lobby FFT, which insisted that guarantees needed to be made on the issue.

The general fear in the French telecoms industry is that the authorities actually want to ban Huawei but will not say it publicly.

In an interview in Les Echos on Thursday, FFT's head Arthur Dreyfuss said the industry would ask for compensation in the event that Huawei's equipment ends up being de facto excluded from the deployment of 5G in Europe.

Comments by the European Union industry chief Thierry Breton in an interview with Le Monde on Wednesday supported this interpretation, as he noted that China had laws allowing the state to have access to all kinds of data.

"Telecoms operators mustn't select risky suppliers, which could allow a state, for example, to take control of strategic sites such as capital cities, areas of intense military activity or nuclear power plants," Breton said.

Story continues

France's cybersecurity agency ANSSI is set to issue its first decisions regarding equipment it has screened in the coming weeks.

Earlier this week, the EU followed Britain's example in allowing members to decide what part Huawei can play in its 5G telecoms networks and resisting pressure from Washington for an outright ban.

EU countries can either restrict or exclude high-risk 5G vendors such as Huawei from core parts of their telecoms networks, according to the new guidelines, which seek to address the cybersecurity risks to the bloc's 28 countries at a national and EU level.

(Reporting by Mathieu Rosemain, Benoit Van Overstraeten and Sudip Kar-Gupta; editing by David Evans)
Starting from February 1, Russia has limited air travel with China, due to novel coronavirus outbreak - regional regular flights between the countries are closed, flights from Moscow will continue to be operated by Aeroflot, Air China, Hainan Airlines, China Eastern Airlines, China Southern Airlines. At the same time, Russian airlines will be able to fly to China in a charter mode, TASS reports.

All flights from Moscow to the cities of China will be operated only from terminal F at the Sheremetyevo International Airport, however, while the rest of international flights on January 31 were transferred from terminal F to B.

Aeroflot will maintain a flight program to Beijing, Shanghai, Guangzhou and Hong Kong. Moreover, according to the Russian Ministry of Transport, "Russian scheduled carriers operating flights to and from China will change their operation mode from a regular to a charter regime."

Prior to this, Russian airlines operated about 150 flights to China per week, while Chinese airlines operated about 40 flights per day. Until February 1, in addition to Aeroflot, direct flights between Moscow and China were carried out by airlines Iraero, Aurora, Yakutia Airlines, Ural Airlines, and S7 Airlines. The last two have already announced suspension of flights.
Scotlands largest union has backed renewed calls for another independence referendum in the wake of the UKs departure from the EU.

Unisons endorsement of Indyref2 came as hundreds of campaigners for a second vote gathered outside the Scottish parliament in Edinburgh.

The unions members agreed overwhelmingly that powers should be transferred to Scotland to enable a referendum to be held at a time determined by Holyrood.

Following the announcement by Unisons Scottish Council in Glasgow, SNP deputy leader Keith Brown said there is now unstoppable momentum behind a fresh vote.

He said: Unison, Scotlands biggest trade union, is the latest respected body to support a transfer of powers so the Scottish parliament can hold a fresh referendum at a time of its choosing.

The democratic right of the people of Scotland to determine our own future cannot be ignored by Westminster.

Brexit day: UK says goodbye to EU Show all 66 1 /66 Brexit day: UK says goodbye to EU Brexit day: UK says goodbye to EU A message projected onto the White Cliffs of Dover Sky News/AFP via Getty Brexit day: UK says goodbye to EU Getty Brexit day: UK says goodbye to EU Big Ben, shows the hands at eleven o'clock at night AFP via Getty Images Brexit day: UK says goodbye to EU Nigel Farage speaks to pro-Brexit supporters PA Brexit day: UK says goodbye to EU Pro-Brexit demonstrators celebrate on Parliament Square REUTERS Brexit day: UK says goodbye to EU The Union flag is taken down outside the European Parliament in Brussels PA Brexit day: UK says goodbye to EU Pro-EU campaigners outside the Scottish Parliament, Edinburgh PA Brexit day: UK says goodbye to EU A pro-Brexit supporter jumps on an EU flag in Parliament Square PA Brexit day: UK says goodbye to EU EU Council staff removed the Union Jack-British flag from the European Council in Brussels, Belgium EPA Brexit day: UK says goodbye to EU A pro-Brexit supporter pours beer onto an EU flag PA Brexit day: UK says goodbye to EU Pedestrians pass in front of the Ministry of Defence Building on Whitehall, illuminated by red, white and blue lights in central London AFP via Getty Images Brexit day: UK says goodbye to EU A Brexit supporter shouts during a rally in London AP Brexit day: UK says goodbye to EU Pro-EU campaigners outside the Scottish Parliament, Edinburgh PA Brexit day: UK says goodbye to EU Pro-EU campaigners take part in a 'Missing EU Already' rally outside the Scottish Parliament, Edinburgh PA Brexit day: UK says goodbye to EU A large pro-EU banner is projected onto Ramsgate cliff in Kent PA Brexit day: UK says goodbye to EU Pro-EU supporters light candles in Smith Square in Westminster PA Brexit day: UK says goodbye to EU A man waves Union flags from a small car as he drives past Brexit supporters gathering in Parliament Square AFP via Getty Images Brexit day: UK says goodbye to EU The five-year old Elisa Saemann, left, and her seven-year old sister Katie hold a placard during a rally by anti-Brexit protesters outside the Scottish parliament in Edinburgh AP Brexit day: UK says goodbye to EU Pro Europe supporters gather on Brexit day near the British embassy in Berlin, Germany EPA Brexit day: UK says goodbye to EU Anti-Brexit protester hugs a man while holding a placard REUTERS Brexit day: UK says goodbye to EU A decorated, old fashioned fire pump in Parliament Square PA Brexit day: UK says goodbye to EU Pro Brexit Elvis impersonator performs at Parliament Square Getty Images Brexit day: UK says goodbye to EU An anti-Brexiteers stands with his dog in Parliament Square AFP via Getty Images Brexit day: UK says goodbye to EU Paddy from Bournemouth wears Union colours as he sits next to an EU flag decorated bag in Parliament Square AFP via Getty Images Brexit day: UK says goodbye to EU A pro-EU activist plays a guitar decorated with the EU flag during a protest organised by civil rights group New Europeans outside Europe House, central London AFP via Getty Images Brexit day: UK says goodbye to EU People celebrate Britain leaving the EU REUTERS Brexit day: UK says goodbye to EU A Pro Brexit supporter has a Union Jack painted onto his face at Parliament Square Getty Images Brexit day: UK says goodbye to EU Men hold placards celebrating Britain leaving the EU REUTERS Brexit day: UK says goodbye to EU Pro Brexit supporters dance in the street draped with Union Jack flags at Parliament Square Getty Images Brexit day: UK says goodbye to EU An anti-Brexit demonstrator spreads his wings during a gathering near Downing Street AP Brexit day: UK says goodbye to EU Pro EU supporters display a banner ' Here to Stay, Here to Fight, Migrants In, Tories Out' from Westminster bridge EPA Brexit day: UK says goodbye to EU Pro-Brexit supporters burn European Union flags at Parliament Square Getty Brexit day: UK says goodbye to EU A man poses for a picture on Parliament Square in a 'Brexit Day' t-shirt Reuters Brexit day: UK says goodbye to EU People celebrate Britain leaving the EU Reuters Brexit day: UK says goodbye to EU AFP via Getty Brexit day: UK says goodbye to EU A man wears a pro-Brexit t-shirt Reuters Brexit day: UK says goodbye to EU Anti-Brexit demonstrators visit Europe House to give flowers to the staff on Brexit day Reuters Brexit day: UK says goodbye to EU Pro Brexit supporter wears a novelty Union Jack top hat outside the Houses of Parliament Getty Images Brexit day: UK says goodbye to EU Customers Scott Jones and Laura Jones at the Sawmill Bar in South Elmsall, Yorkshire, where a Brexit party is being held throughout the day PA Brexit day: UK says goodbye to EU AP Brexit day: UK says goodbye to EU Getty Brexit day: UK says goodbye to EU Getty Images Brexit day: UK says goodbye to EU Pro-EU activists protest Getty Images Brexit day: UK says goodbye to EU A pro-Brexit demonstrator burns a European Union flag AP Brexit day: UK says goodbye to EU Pro Brexit supporters Getty Images Brexit day: UK says goodbye to EU Pro Brexit supporters Getty Images Brexit day: UK says goodbye to EU A Brexit supports holds a sign in Parliament Square AP Brexit day: UK says goodbye to EU A man carries an EU themed wreath Reuters Brexit day: UK says goodbye to EU Ann Widdecombe reacts with other members of the Brexit party as they leave en masse from the European Parliament PA Brexit day: UK says goodbye to EU Anti-Brexit demonstrators in Parliament Square PA Brexit day: UK says goodbye to EU Pro EU supporters let off flares from Westminster Bridge Getty Brexit day: UK says goodbye to EU British MEPs Jonathan Bullock, holding the Union Jack flag and Jake Pugh leave the European Parliament, in Brussels on the Brexit day AFP via Getty Brexit day: UK says goodbye to EU Newspapers and other souvenirs at a store, near Parliament Square Reuters Brexit day: UK says goodbye to EU Brexit supporters hold signs in Parliament Square AP Brexit day: UK says goodbye to EU Pro-EU protesters hold placards in Parliament Square AFP via Getty Brexit day: UK says goodbye to EU French newspapers PA Brexit day: UK says goodbye to EU Sinn Fein leader Mary Lou McDonald with a Border Communities Against Brexit poster before its unveiling in Carrickcarnon on the Irish border PA Brexit day: UK says goodbye to EU National growers organisation British Apples & Pears has renamed a British apple to EOS, the Greek goddess of dawn, to commemorate Brexit day AP Brexit day: UK says goodbye to EU Pro-EU protesters hold placards in Parliament Square AFP via Getty Brexit day: UK says goodbye to EU Britain's departure from the European Union was set in law on January 29, amid emotional scenes, as the bloc's parliament voted to ratify the divorce papers. After half a century of membership and three years of tense withdrawal talks, the UK will leave the EU at midnight Brussels time (23.00 GMT) on January 31 Reuters Brexit day: UK says goodbye to EU A man poses with paintings on Parliament Square Reuters Brexit day: UK says goodbye to EU People sporting Union Flags gather in Parliament Square Getty Brexit day: UK says goodbye to EU A man walks with a St. George's flag at Westminster bridge on Brexit day Reuters Brexit day: UK says goodbye to EU A British bulldog toy and other souvenirs at a souvenir store Reuters Brexit day: UK says goodbye to EU British pro-brexit Members of the European Parliament leave the EU Parliament for the last time Reuters Brexit day: UK says goodbye to EU Jonathan Bullock waves the Union Jack as he leaves the European Parliament EPA

The Scottish Greens described Unisons endorsement as a totemic moment for the independence movement.

Co-leader Patrick Harvie MSP said Scotland was facing a democratic deficit that can only be resolved by putting the question of Scotlands future back to the people.

Unisons backing for a second referendum raised cheers from the crowds of supporters at the rally in Edinburgh 50 miles away.

However SNP MSP Stuart McMillan told the gathering that there was still a job to do to garner more support across the country.

He said: For us to win the fight for independence, we need to talk to more people.

Were not yet over that threshold. The opinion polls have shown its around 50 per cent, last week they said it was 51 per cent  weve still got a job to do. We need to talk to more people.

Mr McMillan claimed that around 15 per cent of the Scottish electorate were floating voters who could be convinced to back independence.

He added: I dont believe in little Britain, I believe in a larger Europe.

Recommended Sturgeon floats idea of consultative vote on independence for Scotland

One supporter who took part in the rally, Andrew Allan, admitted that another vote was currently too close to call but added: I think its looking quite good for Scotland.

Paul Robertson, who had travelled to Edinburgh with his son Colin, said he believed independence was the only way.

First minister Nicola Sturgeon has already raised the prospect of holding a non-binding consultative referendum to gauge opinion on Scottish independence if Boris Johnson continues to refuse another vote.

She also intends to establish a new constitutional convention to endorse a modern Claim of Right for Scotland to declare the sovereignty of the Scottish people.

On Brexit Day, Ms Sturgeon wrote a letter to Europe urging them to leave a light on for Scotland.

Scotland very much hopes to resume our membership of the European Union in the future, as an equal member, she added.

Additional reporting by Press Association
(TNS)  The U.S. Census Bureau is looking for more workers in the Ann Arbor, Mich., area to help with the 2020 count, and its offering competitive wages.The bureau is recruiting to fill hundreds of thousands of temporary positions across the country.Right now were at 47% for Washtenaw County for hiring, and so we need to hire approximately another 2,000 jobs, so thats what were recruiting for, said Charmine Yates, a Census Bureau spokeswoman for Michigan.Pay for census-taker jobs in Michigan can vary from $14 to $25 an hour, depending on the county, and in Washtenaw County, its $23 an hour, according to 2020census.gov.The census is coming upon us quickly, said City Council Member Zachary Ackerman, who said the recruitment manager for the Ann Arbor area informed him hiring was behind schedule.Ackerman, D-3rd Ward, encourages residents to apply and help make a difference in their community, as the census is a pretty critical need and impacts all our lives.Census counts are used to determine representation in Congress and inform how billions of federal dollars are distributed for hospitals, schools, roads and more.According to 2020census.gov, wages are paid weekly and authorized expenses such as mileage are reimbursed.With flexible hours, the temporary jobs are a perfect fit for anyone looking to earn extra money, even if they already have other commitments, the Census Bureau website states, encouraging people to be a part of history.The United States has undertaken a census count every 10 years since 1790.The 2010 census put Ann Arbors population at just under 114,000. As the city has grown, most notably the downtown area, it was estimated at just under 122,000 in July 2018.The Census Bureau opened more than 200 local offices across the country in 2019 to support and manage census takers, who worked into the fall canvassing areas that have experienced a lot of change and growth to ensure address lists are up to date.The bureau has five local census offices in Michigan  in Detroit, Lansing, Traverse City, Macomb County and Oakland County. Yates, based in Detroit, said several thousand census jobs are still available across the state.A minimum of 6,571 and a maximum of 19,714 census takers are needed for Michigan, plus 329 to 924 field supervisors, according to a chart provided by the bureau.The actual number of census workers needed will depend on the self-response rate from residents, said Dan Velez, a Census Bureau national spokesman. If theres a high self-response rate, fewer census workers will be needed.Weve made some good progress recently toward achieving our recruiting target, he said, adding recent steps taken to raise awareness of 2020 census job opportunities have resulted in accelerated rates of application submissions.As of Jan. 27, 2.5 million people had applied nationally, Velez said, expressing confidence in the Census Bureaus ability to hire the needed workforce for the massive undertaking.According to the census schedule, households will begin receiving census mail March 12-20, with details on how to respond online, by phone or by mail.The bureau plans to count people experiencing homelessness March 30 through April 1.That includes counting people at shelters, soup kitchens, tent encampments and elsewhere.Census Day will be observed nationally April 1. By that date, every home should have received an invitation to participate and tell the bureau where they live as of April 1.In April, census takers will begin visiting college students who live on campuses, people living in senior centers and others who live among large groups of people.Census takers also will begin conducting quality-check interviews to help ensure an accurate count.In May, June and July, census takers will visit homes that haven't responded to the census to help make sure everyone is counted. In December, the bureau will deliver apportionment counts to the president and Congress.By March 31, 2021, the bureau will send counts to states to redraw legislative districts based on population changes.
Photo: The Canadian Press Michael van Hemmen, head of Western Canada for Uber

Mayors in British Columbia's Lower Mainland have reached an agreement on an interim business licence for ride-hailing companies that want to operate in the region.

Surrey Mayor Doug McCallum, who has previously resisted the idea, threw his support behind the interim licence, saying it takes a major step forward in addressing the "unfair advantage" ride-hailing companies have over taxi businesses.

The mayors' council on regional transportation, made up of 23 mayors, endorsed the proposed bylaw covering Metro Vancouver, the Fraser Valley and Squamish-Lillooet on Thursday, with the details released publicly on Friday.

The council urged municipalities to begin adopting the interim bylaw as soon as possible, which would be in place until a permanent regional licence can be developed.

The proposed bylaw would establish a single set of requirements for all participating municipalities, charging ride-hailing companies a $155 annual fee plus a $150 per-vehicle charge, which would be waived for accessible vehicles. The fee would be set at $30 for zero-emission vehicles.

Vancouver is the only municipality that has its own business licence for ride-hailing companies and it would administer the interim regional business licence.

New Westminster Mayor Jonathan Cote, chairman of the council, said the licence "has demonstrated how our region can work collaboratively together."

"The framework that has been developed gives cities a say in managing our roadways while keeping the application process simple and reasonable," he said in a statement. "This industry has the potential to improve transportation options in our region, if we take steps to properly manage it."

The regional business licence would be required on top of provincial permits to operate.

The council also encouraged municipalities to harmonize current fees for cabs with fees set out in the regional business licence, while urging the provincial government to ensure fairness for the taxi industry by reviewing taxi boundaries, fleet caps and insurance requirements.

The B.C. Taxi Association said this week that it would stop subsidizing accessible vehicles because they are too expensive, and the mayors' council said Friday that the province should ensure a mechanism is put in place to subsidize accessible cabs or ride-hailing vehicles.

The council requested a meeting with the province and Passenger Transportation Board to discuss these issues.

Unlike other jurisdictions in North America, B.C. has only recently allowed ride-hailing companies, such as Uber and Lyft, to operate. The roll out has been fraught with growing pains, including legal action filed by taxi companies in an effort to revoke ride-hailing permits.

McCallum has been especially resistant, declaring that Uber is operating illegally in Surrey and threatening drivers with $500 tickets. The company responded by filing a court challenge.

The mayor said in a statement Friday he has not budged from his position that a level playing field must be in place for ride-hailing and taxi companies to compete.

"The (regional licence) approved by the mayors' council today levels the playing field and it has my support," he said. "By having a single ride-hailing business licence for the region, this will eliminate duplication, confusion, and waste of time and money for both those issuing and seeking a licence."
By Elizabeth Kwiatkowski, 02/01/2020



ADVERTISEMENT

ADVERTISEMENT

ADVERTISEMENT

ADVERTISEMENT

Elizabeth Kwiatkowski is Associate Editor of Reality TV World and has been covering the reality TV genre for more than a decade.

star Ronald Smith has apologized to Tiffany Franco for claiming she cheated on him during their marriage and admitted their recent split is actually his fault.Tiffany initially took to her Instagram Stories on January 28 to reveal she and her husband Ronald are "separating" less than seven months after the pair welcomed a daughter, Carley Rose, together.After Tiffany revealed "some things are just irreparable" in her post but declined specifics, Ronald claimed on social media he'd be "filing for divorce in South Africa" due to "adultery" on his wife's part. (however Ronald deleted the post shortly afterwards.)Now, Ronald is taking it all back, and he seems to feel guilty for having falsely accused Tiffany of cheating on him."[Let me] set something straight. Me and Tiff, yes we [are] going through some sh-t that got out of hand and went viral, but what I noticed was a lot of hatespeech towards her about [cheating] which isn't true," Ronald wrote in a lengthy message to fans in Instagram Stories."It's a personal feeling I had because [our] marriage is not registered in the USA, so I felt like idk insecure, which was wrong from me! I was an assh-le towards Tiff and even though we [are] having a hard time, I'll still stand up for her [and] still love her."Ronald confirmed in his post of Tiffany, "She's still my wife." (The pair got married in October 2018).When Ronald alleged Tiffany had been unfaithful earlier this week, Tiffany lashed out and called Ronald "toxic" and manipulative, although she didn't name him directly in that part of her Instagram post."She had every reason to act the way she did -- reasons you don't know of, so why give her sh-t if you don't have full story. We are human. We make mistakes right?" Ronald continued."Tiff only tried to do good, not really control me but more protect me from wrong [people], places and temptations, and the more I think about it now, it makes sense. All she did was actually care for me and wanted me not to fall... She wanted me locked up [etc] (selfish me) and I apologize to her for making her look like the bad guy."Ronald insisted he's not trying to butter up his wife in order to reconcile and get her back."Don't get me wrong, I'm not kissing ass, but what's right is right. She's a good woman and mother. I took her for granted, so please don't give her trouble. She went [through] enough things," Ronald wrote.Ronald therefore asked fans not to give Tiffany "a hard time, please.""She was more the victim and I'll admit here I was a dick to her at times, worrying about me, me, me and not looking after her feelings or needs," Ronald confessed."What was seen about her on TV is opposite of who she is and TV would only show the bad of you, not the good, right? She's a true gem. I'm not posting this to score brownie points by her; I'm posting this to make things right. She went through a lot with me for 3 years and only wants what's best for us obviously."Ronald went on to admit he's actually at fault for the couple's falling out."So if it comes down to who's to blame, I'll take it full on. Tiffany is [a] wonderful woman besides my mom lol. Best I know. Caring, loving, she worries more about my needs than her own, she makes a way for me to see Carley," Ronald wrote."I was upset [the] other day posting [when] she denies me from calls, and that was stupid of me and [I was] being a d-ck. Sorry for that. Fact is she's still my wife. I love her no matter what, and I will stand up for her where need be."Ronald then asked trolls and haters to reach out to him if they have a problem with the mother of his child."Please, [people] want to give someone sh-t for the way she is, contact me because it's my fault. Once again, I'm sorry for [that] post of mine towards her -- was cruel and wrong of me. Hope you guys can forgive me and leave her," Ronald added.Ronald concluded his message by saying he's pretty sure Tiffany will allow him to continue seeing their daughter Carley, who was born in July 2019 Meanwhile, Tiffany has posted a series of Instagram replies to comments from some of her followers in which she has insisted she "made a big mistake with" Ronald and he had "messed up time and time again.""He has never stopped lying and I've been trying to work things out... But he is just not really there. He is just interested in other things," Tiffany claimed."He worked after I left [South Africa] and lost the job -- never sent money to Carley [and] only messed up time and time again."Tiffany also claimed the former gambling addict has suffered multiple relapses and his addiction had continued to be an issue in their relationship after 's cameras stopped following the couple."Okay I understand where you are coming from. But it was never the past it's never stopped," Tiffany replied to a poster who accused her of "continually" throwing Ronald's "past in [his] face.""You guys see one tiny piece of a very complicated story it never ever ever stopped it just kept going and going and going," she continued."It was my mistake my very enormous mistake thinking everything was OK After the wellness center it was absolutely not."In addition, Tiffany claimed Ronald's relapses began before she even left South Africa and returned to the United States to give birth to their child and also occurred while : The Other Way was filming."People have called me controlling for so long because of the scenes in the show where I'm lashing out on him telling him I don't trust him," Tiffany wrote in another Instagram comment."What they don't know is a few days before filming that saying he had relapsed. That is a perfect example."Tiffany also addressed another follower's criticism that her decision to return to America had contributed to Ronald's relapses."Yeah I also thought maybe he needs us there to feel strong but he also relapsed when we were right there with him so no my love you are [wrong] there as well," Tiffany wrote."I had to take his daughter and give birth to her in a safe place where I knew she was going to have a bed to sleep on and a roof over her head and milk to drink same for my son if that makes me shitty in your eyes then so be it.""I don't care I don't need you to think anything of it I know I'm a great mother and I know I was a wonderful wife to him," she continued."He got very used to making a very big mess and to [mistreating] me very badly and to hurting to the point that it was second nature to him he didn't even feel the need to apologize anymore at this point that's how bad things got.""He would lie and do his things and make a mess and if I have something to say about it he would call me crazy and when I was right and the truth would come out he would say OK.""But I am the bad guy right? Do not pretend you know me you will never have the luxury. I'm a wonderful person with a huge heart and I try to see the good in everyone and I will do everything I can even at the cost of my own well-being."Tiffany and Ronald's split seemed to be pretty sudden, as Ronald just gushed about his wife on Instagram last week."I truly with out a doubt have the cutest and most beautiful wife @tiffanyfrancosmith and blessed with 2 gorgeous kids. just look at them !!!! #proudAF #prouddad #proudhusband @tlcupdates @90dayfiancenews @90dayfiancetheotherway #90dayfiance_tlc #90dayfiancetheotherway #90dayfiance," Ronald captioned a slideshow of family photos on January 19.Tiffany was a 27-year-old from Frederick, MD, and Ronald was a 29-year-old from South Africa when they starred on : The Other Way last year.: The Other Way followed American citizens moving across the globe and living in foreign countries for the sake of love and their future partners.The Americans had 90 days to wed in order to stay in their new countries, and Tiffany and Ronald's October 20, 2018 wedding was shown on the TLC reality series.But Tiffany said because South Africa turned out to be a dangerous place to live for her young children, she wanted to move back to the United States and attempt to relocate Ronald to America on a spousal visa.After giving birth to Carley in Summer 2019, Tiffany revealed on Part 1 of : The Other Way's Tell-All special, which aired in October 2019, that life in the U.S. was "so much harder" than she could have ever anticipated without her husband by her side.In Part 2 of the Tell-All special, Tiffany revealed she had already purchased plane tickets so she and her children could visit Ronald again in South Africa soon.Ronald, however, had yet to apply for the visa because he said it was going to cost him a lot of money."If Ronald's visa does not get approved, that's something we're going to have to face if it happens, but I'm not making a plan for that," Tiffany explained on the show.Tiffany said at the time she wouldn't accept anything other than Ronald coming to the United States because she simply wasn't ready to move her kids to another country. However, Ronald had a prior lengthy criminal record standing in his way stemming from his gambling addiction.Although the couple continued to live apart after the show, they documented their love story on social media and there didn't appear to be any real trouble in paradise.Tiffany and Ronald maintained faith and optimism they could get through anything together -- at least for a while.Want spoilers? Click here to visit our Spoilers webpage!
Source: Xinhua| 2020-02-01 15:29:26|Editor: huaxia

Video Player Close

BEIJING, Feb. 1 (Xinhua) -- China's Supreme People's Procuratorate (SPP) has asked procuratorates nationwide to fully play their role to create a favorable judicial environment in the fight against the novel coronavirus outbreak.

Procuratorates across the country are required to severely punish those found guilty of dereliction of duty, including withholding information, in strict accordance with the law on the prevention and control of infectious diseases and the criminal law, according to a circular issued by the SPP.

The crackdown on criminal activities including pushing up prices, profiteering and severely disturbing market order during the period of outbreak control should be intensified, the circular said, adding that the production and sale of fake and shoddy protective equipment and medicines should be harshly punished.

It stressed strong actions against patients infected with the novel coronavirus who intentionally spread the virus or refuse any examination or compulsory isolation and treatment thus leading to serious consequences.

It urged procuratorates to strengthen the crackdown on violence against medical personnel amid the virus outbreak to ensure the safety of medical workers at the frontline.

Crimes including fabricating coronavirus-related information that may lead to panic among the public, making up and spreading rumors about the virus, sabotaging the implementation of the law and endangering public security will be strictly cracked down upon to ensure the epidemic prevention and control work is conducted in an orderly way, the circular said.

It also stressed harshly punishing illegal hunting of wildlife under state protection, as well as improving inspection and quarantine measures for fresh food and meat products.
The 2016 law makes that practice a felony unless the person doing the collecting is a family member, living in the same household, or a caregiver. Supporters said that limits the potential for fraud.

Fletcher, writing the majority opinion, found the law had substantial impact on minority communities by denying them the right to give their ballots to a volunteer. The judges also concluded there was racial motivation in the decision to enact the law by the Republican-controlled Legislature. The court also noted there was no actual evidence of fraud in Arizona.

Brnovich, in his new filing, does not dispute that. But he instead cited what happened in the 2018 congressional race in North Carolina where the Board of Elections found overwhelming evidence of a coordinated and illegal campaign by the Republican contender and his supporters to collect and then refuse to deliver absentee ballots to be counted.

That shows what can go wrong, Brnovich said.

Fraudulent ballot harvesting thus can  and probably has  left hundreds of thousands of voters disenfranchised, he said in the new filing.
Hyderabad: Nigerian fraudsters are cautious in hiding their money, which makes it extremely difficult for authorities to recover the defrauded money. Earlier, they used to transfer money using hawala transactions. With advent of cryptocurrencies, like bitcoin, stashing money with their family members in Nigeria and other African countries has become much easier for them.

This month, Hyderabad cyber crime police nabbed two Nigeran nationals involved in different crimes. While they were successful in arresting them, money was not in their possession. Police suspect that by the time they reached the accused, the money had been transferred to four to five different overseas accounts.

In the first case, Nigerian national Ezumezu Lucky Ozah of New Delhi hatched a criminal conspiracy with one Deepak and swindled money. The cyber crime police arrested Ezumezu but were unable to recover money. Vizag police were relatively lucky though when they nabbed the same Ezumezu, who impersonated as a woman to commit a cyber fraud involving `34 lakh. However, they could recover only `2 lakh.

In another case booked by Cyber crime police station in Hyderabad, Nigerian national James Lucky Obasi was arrested for an online gift fraud case on January 5, 2020. Investigators made strenuous efforts, but nothing could be recovered.

Sharing his experience, an investigating officer said that in one case, they landed in Tiruppur of Tamil Nadu after they got to know that the Nigerian involved in a narcotics case had used his illegally earned money to buy clothes and export the same to his home country, where there is a high demand for Indian clothes. Speaking to Deccan Chronicle, K.V M. Prasad, Assistant Commissioner of Police, Cyber Crime, Hyderabad, said, Earlier, they converted defrauded money into clothes and exported them to their home countries. Later, they started using hawala transactions. But with advancements in technology and advent of digital currencies like bitcoin, they are easily transferring money to family members in Nigeria and other African countries.

Bitcoins and other cryptocurrencies are decentralised. There is no central organisation, which is aware of all transactions. To avoid suspicion, the accused usually save money in the bank accounts of their friends and relatives, who are not involved in any crime, Prasad disclosed.

He cautioned people not to transfer funds online over marketing websites or social media platforms, unless they receive the product into their hands. Job or loan seekers should also not pay or transfer money without verifying the genuineness of persons and companies.
The death toll from China's coronavirus outbreak has surpassed 250, the government said Saturday, as foreign nations tightened restrictions on travellers from China in response to the rapid spread of the illness.

At least 258 people have died and more than 11,000 people have been infected in China by the new coronavirus, according to new figures from officials in hard-hit Hubei province.

Fresh cases have been detected abroad, with more than 20 countries now affected.

The top Communist Party official in Wuhan, the central city of 11 million people where the virus first emerged in December, on Friday expressed "remorse" because local authorities acted too slowly.

Last week, China's central government finally jumped into action, effectively sealing off Wuhan and surrounding Hubei province, and curbing travel across the nation of 1.4 billion people.

But the epidemic has spread far and wide as Chinese people travelled across the country and abroad over the Lunar New Year holiday that started last week.

Spread of the Wuhan coronavirus. By John SAEKI (AFP)

The World Health Organization has declared the outbreak a global health emergency, but said it was not recommending any international trade or travel restrictions.

Countries nonetheless intensified travel curbs.

The United States told its citizens not to go to China and urged those already there to leave -- drawing a sharp rebuke from Beijing, which said the move was "certainly not a gesture of goodwill."

On Friday, Washington doubled down, declaring its own public health emergency and temporarily barring entry to any foreign nationals who have travelled to China in the past two weeks.

Japan has joined the US, Britain, Germany and other nations that have recommended that their citizens avoid China.

Singapore's government barred arrivals from China and transit passengers who visited the country in the past 14 days.

Mongolia will ban Chinese nationals and foreigners coming from the neighbouring country until March 2.

World markets tumbled Friday on the mounting concerns.

Flights suspended

Buddhist worshippers wearing protective masks attend prayers at Wat Dhammakaya Buddhist temple in Bangkok -- Thailand has announced 14 confirmed coronavirus infections. By Lillian SUWANRUMPHA (AFP)

The WHO's rare declaration of an emergency allows the UN health body to issue recommendations that the international community is expected to follow.

But it warned Friday that closing borders was probably ineffective in halting transmissions of the virus -- and could even accelerate its spread.

China's ambassador to Geneva said his country was controlling the outbreak and insisted there was no need for "unnecessary panic".

Beyond government travel advisories, businesses and worried travellers have been taking matters into their own hands, with airlines suspending or reducing flights with China.

The virus is believed to have originated in a Wuhan market that sold wild animals. It then jumped to humans.

Wuhan officials have been criticised online for withholding information about the outbreak until the end of last year, despite knowing about the new illness weeks earlier.

A doctor prepares to enter the isolation ward at a hospital in Wuhan, epicentre of the virus outbreak. By STR (AFP)

"Right now I'm in a state of guilt, remorse and self-reproach," said Ma Guoqiang, the municipal Communist Party secretary for Wuhan.

"If strict control measures had been taken earlier, the result would have been better than now," he told state broadcaster CCTV.

People in China have so far directed their anger at local officials in Wuhan and Hubei, but the crisis could pose a challenge to President Xi Jinping, who has called the epidemic a "demon" that China can defeat.

Countries have scrambled to evacuate their nationals from Wuhan, with hundreds of US, Japanese, British, French and South Korean citizens evacuated so far, and more countries planning airlifts.

A flight carrying more than 300 Indian nationals left Wuhan in the early hours of Saturday for New Delhi.

About 200 US evacuees who landed in California on Wednesday have been put under a rare mandatory quarantine order for 14 days.

US carriers American, United and Delta joined other airlines suspending flights to China, following the State Department travel advisory.

A man wearing a mask, goggles and gloves buys beverages at a supermarket in Beijing. By NICOLAS ASFOURI (AFP)

Russia said it would evacuate more than 2,500 of its citizens holidaying on China's Hainan island, far from the epicentre of the outbreak, a day after sealing its remote far-eastern border.

Global anxiety

Medical staff of the Ethiopian Ministry of Health prepare to screen passengers at Bole International Airport in Addis Ababa. By Michael Tewelde (AFP)

The health crisis has also dented China's international image abroad and put Chinese nationals in difficult positions abroad, with some communities complaining of "latent racism" in Italy.

China on Friday sent charter planes to Thailand and Malaysia to bring Hubei residents back to Wuhan, citing the "practical difficulties" that they have encountered overseas.

More than 40,000 workers at a vast Chinese-controlled industrial complex in Indonesia's Sulawesi island have been quarantined, although Indonesia has not reported any cases.

Britain and Russia each reported their first two cases Friday, and Sweden announced its first infection.

The number of cases in China now far exceeds the 8,096 cases from SARS (Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome), a similar pathogen that spread to more than two dozen countries in 2002-03 and killed nearly 800 people, mostly in China and Hong Kong.

burs-lth/sst/bfm
Staff members, wearing protective suits, watch as a plane carrying 32 Mongolian citizens for their evacuation from the Chinese city of Wuhan arrives in Ulaanbaatar, the capital of Mongolia on Feb. 1, 2020. (Byambasuren Enbyamba-OChir/AFP via Getty Images)

Countries Enact Entry Restrictions, Flights Disrupted Amid Worsening Coronavirus Outbreak

SHANGHAIAs the coronavirus outbreak worsens in China, the United States and other nations announced new border curbs on foreigners who have been in China.

The central province of Hubei, the center of the epidemic, is under a virtual quarantine, with roads sealed off and public transport shut down. Elsewhere in China, authorities have placed restrictions on travel and business activity in a bid to contain the spread of the virus.

Official figures place the number of infections at more than 10,000 and over 200 deaths in China, with numbers drastically rising on a daily basis, however, experts say the actual number of infections is likely to be far higher.

More than 20 other countries and territories have reported confirmed cases of the virus. No deaths have been reported outside China.

Amid growing international concern, Singapore and the United States announced measures on Friday to restrict entry to foreign nationals who have recently been in China.

Australia followed suit, with Prime Minister Scott Morrison saying the country will deny entry to all foreign nationals traveling from mainland China from Saturday.

Were in fact operating with an abundance of caution in these circumstances, Morrison told reporters in Sydney. So Australians can go about their daily lives with confidence.

However, the World Health Organization, which this week declared the outbreak a public health emergency of international concern, reiterated global trade and travel restrictions were not needed.

Qantas Airways Ltd and Air New Zealand said international travel bans had forced them to suspend their direct flights to China from Feb. 9.

All three major U.S. airlines said on Friday they would cancel flights to mainland China.

Nearly 10,000 flights have been suspended since the outbreak of the new coronavirus, according to travel and data analytics firm Cirium, illustrating concerns about a slowdown in economic activity in China and elsewhere.

Evacuations

Many nations have put on special charter flights to repatriate citizens from China.

More than 300 South Koreans arrived home on Saturday on a second charter flight from China and have been transported to a facility where they will be isolated for two weeks, the health ministry said. Seven people on the flight exhibited symptoms and were sent to hospital.

Indonesian officials said around 250 nationals being evacuated from Hubei will be quarantined on a military base on the remote Natuna Islands.

Britain said it was withdrawing some staff from its embassy and consulates in China.

In the event that the situation deteriorates further, the ability of the British Embassy and Consulates to provide assistance to British nationals from within China may be limited, the UK government said in a statement.

Infections have jumped in two cities flanking Wuhan, raising concerns that new hot spots are emerging despite strict travel restrictions.

In one of them, Huanggang, authorities are requiring households to designate one individual who can leave the home every two days to buy supplies, a local newspaper said. The city has a population of about 7.5 million.

The northern city of Tianjin, with a population of about 15 million, suspended all schools and businesses until further notice, joining other cities across China in implementing measures aimed at curbing the spread of the pathogen.

A senior Chinese regime leadership group tasked with handling the crisis said it would take action to prevent a big surge in the number of people traveling after the extended Lunar New Year holiday.

The team led by Chinese Premier Li Keqiang said they would coordinate with local governments to stagger the times when people are asked to go back to work.

Businesses, Events Disrupted

Still, efforts to contain the virus have caused major disruptions and threaten to exacerbate a slowdown in the worlds second-biggest economy.

Growth had already slowed in the fourth-quarter to a 30-year low of 6 percent. But the impact of the virus prompted Capital Economics to almost halve its estimate for first-quarter growth to 3 percent from 5.7 percent.

Chinas central bank said the impact was temporary and economic fundamentals remained sound, but it would increase monetary and credit support, including lowering lending costs for affected companies.

The United Nations has announced it has moved a key round of talks on a new biodiversity treaty originally scheduled to take place in Kunming in southwest China on Feb. 24. The talks will now take place in Rome.

Several high-profile sporting events have also been moved or postponed, the latest a badminton Olympic qualifier in Hainan province.

Apple Inc said on Saturday it would close all of its official stores and corporate offices in China until Feb. 9, the latest of dozens of major companies, including Swedens IKEA and Walmart Inc, restricting travel and operations due to the outbreak.

By David Stanway and Winni Zhou
Share this article Whatsapp

Facebook

Twitter

Linkedin Marwa (The Jakarta Post) Yogyakarta  Sat, February 1, 2020

It is easy to blame climate change for the devastating flood in Jakarta this year. However, the persistent and worsening flooding shows us that a deeper issue lies in Jakartas water governance that cannot be simply solved by technological fixes.



In 2018, the World Economic Forum declared Jakarta as the fastest sinking city in the world with an average sinking rate of 3 to 13 centimeters per year, three times higher than it was 20 years ago.



One of the identified causes was overextraction of groundwater, which accounts for 70 to 80 percent of land subsidence in Jakarta, while weak soil was another factor.



The citys heavy reliance on groundwater is mainly due to a lack of access to piped water. Since it was installed back during the Dutch colonial era, the centralized water distribution network has neither served the majority of the population nor fulfilled their water needs. The current service coverage is said to have reached 65 percent, yet the piped water infrastructure still struggles to provide water to 50 percent of the citys population, with the majority of customers coming from middle to lower income households.



Therefore, since piped water is not an option, groundwater is the alternative for the majority of the Jakarta population, which consumes 630 million cubic meters out of an annual water consumption of 1 billion cubic meters.



The problem of water access in Jakarta is not just a matter of water scarcity; rather, it is an issue of governance failure, which is visible in three aspects.



First is that the urban poor have limited access to clean water. Urban water inequality in Jakarta goes beyond the water distribution network, since unconnected wealthy households are also extracting a huge amount of groundwater, which exposes the urban poor in marginal areas to poorer water quality.



Second is that the rights and responsibilities of the stakeholders in Jakartas water governance are blurred. Ever since the water utility industry was privatized in 1997, the local and central governments have played no significant role in protecting public access to water, despite their constitutional responsibility.



Last is the decision-making process that is restricted to the elite, as reflected in the current remunicipalization of water, in which the water supply was reportedly returned to the municipal administration with only limited public participation.



Nevertheless, discussions on Jakartas water governance have mainly focused on technical issues, like the normalization or naturalization of rivers as a flood mitigation strategy. Though they were presented as contradictory strategies, they both serve the purpose of clearing riverbank settlements in order to restore rivers to their natural states.



Additionally, the central government has also started construction on the Giant Sea Wall, which was introduced under the umbrella of the National Capital Integrated Coastal Development program.



The project, which costs some US$40 billion, intends to build a 25-mile-long embankment that will block the seawater from overflowing into Jakarta.



Having neglected the underlying failure in water governance, such technological fixes are merely band-aid measures for the ticking time bomb of environmental catastrophe.



Moreover, while these strategies havent necessarily targeted the root cause of flooding in the capital, their implementation has nonetheless led to the forced eviction of residents from hundreds of informal settlements in the targeted areas, including along the Ciliwung River and the Jakarta coast.



As urban planning and flood mitigation experts have argued, both neutralization and naturalization require land, which has typically led to forced eviction.



According to the Jakarta Legal Aid Institute (LBH Jakarta), 193 evictions affecting around 5,720 families and 6,380 businesses were carried out in 2016 alone, with flood mitigation as one of their main reasons.



Though the government has provided alternative housing for evictees, the Jakarta administration requires identity cards and vehicle registration documents that many poor migrants are unable to provide. The impacts of forced evictions are not limited to material losses and also incur immaterial losses such as social disruption and lost business opportunities.



There is thus a need to shift Jakartas flood management debate toward a more constructive discussion that tackles inequality in urban water governance. The ongoing debate on remunicipalization could be an opportunity to create a more transformative form of water governance that goes beyond the public-private binary.



Water governance researchers have called for coproduction: the provision of public services through a long-term partnership between state agencies and civil groups in which both contribute substantially to resource management.



In practice, coproduction seeks to rescale the decision-making process to smaller spatial units to expand the room for public participation. Different approaches have been used to implement coproduction in several countries. In Colombia, the government and the public are coproducing a water management initiative, while in Bolivia and Malawi, community organizations are involved in water utility services through a coproduction scheme.



Since there is no such a thing as one size fits all, however, co-production still needs to consider the dynamics between the diverse stakeholders in Jakartas water governance.



Yet, as a concept, coproduction indeed provides a base for developing a scheme that allows for substantial public participation in Jakartas water governance, something which is currently lacking.

***

Researcher, Center for World Trade Studies, Gadjah Mada University (UGM), Yogyakarta

to Read Full Story SUBSCRIBE NOW Starting from IDR 55,000/month Unlimited access to our web and app content

e-Post daily digital newspaper

No advertisements, no interruptions

Privileged access to our events and programs

Subscription to our newsletters We accept Register to read 3 premium articles for free Already subscribed? login

Disclaimer: The opinions expressed in this article are those of the author and do not reflect the official stance of The Jakarta Post.
Source: Xinhua| 2020-02-01 21:21:05|Editor: huaxia

Video Player Close

SHANGHAI, Feb. 1 (Xinhua) -- Theaters in Shanghai have canceled most of the performances in February to prevent crowds from gathering and contain the spread of the novel coronavirus.

Shanghai Grand Theater, a major theater in the city, has canceled more than 10 performances, including the Chinese New Year's performance of the Moscow Ballet of Russia and a concert on Valentine's Day.

"Loss is inevitable, but we have to be accountable to our audience first," said Zhang Xiaoding, general manager of the Shanghai Grand Theater.

The Boston Symphony Orchestra has also canceled its tour in Shanghai from Feb. 6 to 16 as its last stop in Asia. Tickets will be refunded online for the full purchase amount, including fees, according to the Shanghai Oriental Art Center, the organizer.

The epidemic has led to temporary closures of public venues such as tourist sites, museums and cinemas, and cancellations of gatherings in China.
Photo illustration by The Daily Beast/Photo Win McNamee/Getty

Days before the Iowa caucuses, a group of moderate Democrats is making a final attempt to stop a surging Bernie Sanders with warnings about the politically toxic background and ideas of the Vermont senator that make him the Trump teams ideal Democratic opponent.

Third Way sounded the alarm in early January about the potential of a Sanders general election disaster, and they upped the ante this week with a hard hitting two-pager distributed in Iowa urging caucus-goers to google Bernie for the easily available opposition research that will arm the Trump team with the political equivalent of nuclear weapons, and, they say, make Sanders the easiest target for Trump to beat.

Dem Centrist Group Launches Twitter Campaign to Get People to Ignore Twitter

While Trump will lie to discredit any Democratic nominee, with Bernie, much of what hed say would be easily backed up. When political charges are supported by evidence, they are very tough to combat, Third Way President Jonathan Cowan writes.

The charges are familiar: that Sanders is a socialist; that his spending plans are unrealistic and would raise taxes on the middle class; that he has said many problematic things over his long career; that Medicare for All is deeply unpopular, especially in the battleground states of Michigan and Pennsylvania; and that Sanders at the top of the ticket would likely doom Democratic chances of picking up Senate seats in swing states.

Supporters of Sanders may know all this and dont care, but theyre not the target audience for Third Ways critique.

Bernies people are immovable, same as Trumps, says Matt Bennett, a co-founder of the moderate Democratic group.

We want to reach Democrats who think its going to be relatively easy to beat Trump, and so why not go with the most liberal candidate and shoot for the moonand those who buy Bernies spin that the inverse of Trump is the best candidate, an angry liberal populist as opposed to a right wing populist.

Story continues

Its begun to dawn on Democrats that Sanders could sweep the first three contests: the Iowa caucuses on Feb. 3, the New Hampshire primary on the 11th, and then the Nevada caucuses on Feb. 22. Sanders typically does well in caucuses, where the most highly motivated voters turn out.

Its not until South Carolinas primary on Feb 29 that black voters, so far much less enamored of the senator from Vermont, are expected to back Joe Bidens candidacy. That could be too little, too late for Biden, or anyone else for that matter if Sanders is able to steamroll before then.

You cant control for what momentum is built on, says Bennett. Iowa might not be a clean win; maybe three or four candidates will all be bunched up within a few percentage points. New Hampshire neighbors Vermont, Sanders home state, and a win there should be discounted as it was for Massachusetts Senator Paul Tsongas, who won the New Hampshire primary in 1992 only to see Bill Clinton anoint himself the Comeback Kid and turn his second place finish into a win.

Third Way is not alone in trying to put a speed bump in Sanders path. A pro-Israel super PAC began airing ads this week questioning Sanders electability, and former Obama campaign officials Jim Messina and Ben LaBolt are speaking out about Sanders being the worst candidate to go up against Trump.

All Democrats, even Wall Street-funded groups like Third Way, should be ecstatic to witness this movement attracting new supporters to strengthen the party and expand the electorate, Sanders campaign manager Faiz Shakir told Iowa Starting Line, an influential news site, earlier this week. To win seats up and down the ballot, we need to generate excitement and enthusiasm that drives a huge voter turnout among working people, not stifle it to protect special interests.

For Democrats, taking on Sanders has unique risks. Hes the Borg, as they say in Star Trekshoot at him and he gets stronger, says Bennett. Its true when groups like Third Way stir things up, he says its the corporate whores, blah, blah, blah. But were less than a week out from people actually voting, and the people were trying to reach with this last-ditch communication are people who dont care who we are. This isnt about us. We want to get the information into their brains.

The latest UC Berkeley Institute of Governmental Studies poll adds to the mounting panic among moderate Democrats. It shows Sanders leading with 26 percent of the vote in delegate-rich California, which votes on March 3, Super Tuesday. Elizabeth Warren is second with 20 percent of the vote while Biden barely makes the threshold of 15 percent to be awarded delegates. Strong backing among Latinos and young voters is making the difference for Sanders.

Sanders has pretty much gotten a free ride until now with the other Democrats not wanting to alienate him knowing hes in the race to stay and could be kingmaker for one of them. Instead, hes the one whos charting the most obvious path to the nomination

Read more at The Daily Beast.

Get our top stories in your inbox every day. Sign up now!

Daily Beast Membership: Beast Inside goes deeper on the stories that matter to you. Learn more.
Mera ek mahina Ramzan bhi hai / maine kiya toh Ganga snaan bhi hai / apne hi taur se jeeta hoon / daaru cigarette bhi peeta hoon (I celebrate a month of Ramzan, bathe in the Ganga too, I live by my own rules, smoke and drink too) - Hussain Haidry

When Hussain Haidry wrote Hindustani Musalmaan in 2016, it was meant to bust preconceived notions and stereotypes about Muslims. He performed it at an open mic night in Mumbai, it was shared online and went viral.

But when he first recited it at a public protest in Mumbai last month, he says, he knew it was going to be different. Its earlier purpose was to shatter the monolithic image of Muslims but at that venue it was meant to unite.

Amid the voices of protest across the country after the Citizenship (Amendment) Act came into being last December, a generation of young spoken-word poets has emerged. Their lines are being quoted on placards, in tweets and memes online, and in conversation; their poetry is being performed by themselves and others. The most popular of these poems are Hum Kagaz Nahi Dikhayenge by Varun Grover, Tum Kaun Ho Be by screenwriter Puneet Sharma, Hindustani Musalmaan by Haidry and Sab Yaad Rakkhha Jayega by Amir Aziz.

Haidry, 34, says he wrote Hindustani Musalmaan to bust preconceived notions about Muslims. But when he recited it at a public protest in Mumbai last month, it was meant to unite.

For Aziz and Grover, the poems were a creative response to events as they unfolded  the anxiety over the phrasing of the Act, and the police violence involving students in Uttar Pradesh and Delhi.

The attack on the library at Jamia Milia was the trigger for me, says Grover, 40. A library is the most sacred place in any civilised society and students among the most vulnerable demographics. The poem was my way of saying Im here, and our great country is worth fighting for.

Yeh desh hi apna haasil hai / jahaan Ram Prasad Bhi Bismil hai / mitti ko kaise baantoge / sabka hi khoon toh shaamil hai (This nation is ours / A place where Ram Prasad is also Bismil / How will you divide this earth / when it holds the blood of every Indian) - Varun Grover

Hum Kagaz Nahi Dikhayenge was my way of saying, Im here, and our great country is worth fighting for, Varun Grover, 40, says.

Grover posted Hum Kagaz Nahi Dikhayenge on Twitter with the message that anyone could use, adapt, sing, modify or quote it. I dont own it. Its a collection of slogans meant to remind us of the love and diversity that make this country great, he says.

Haidry, 34, says that as a performance poet he understands that a crowd as diverse as one attending a mass protest does not really connect with all kinds of writing. So the amount of emotion in a poem has to be high. I would never read a heavy Urdu poem at a gathering like this. Id imagine people wouldnt be able to connect.

Which is why he was pleasantly surprised when Faiz Ahmed Faizs Hum Dekhenge became such an anthem. I hope this leads to people reading other works by Faiz, and other progressive writers too, Haidry says.

Tum kaala kamal likho / hum lal gulaab likhenge / Tum zameen pe zulm likkho / aasman pe inquilab likha jayega (You write about the dark lotus / we will write about the red rose / You inscribe oppression on the land / in the skies we will write revolution) - Amir Aziz

Amir Aziz feels he can now say a lot more through his poetry. I have people paying attention, he adds.

Sharma, 32, believes people connect better to poetry when its language and content feel contemporaneous. I wrote the poem Tum Kaun Ho Be early last year, but when I read it out in Mumbai after the JNU incident where students were attacked by masked goons, it struck a chord, he says.

So what is the role of poetry in a political movement? I think all peaceful protest requires clear and non-confrontational engagement with the authorities, and poetry as well as other art forms perform that role, says Grover. But ultimately poetry is a harmless, unarmed, abstract thing just a small voice from the back of a huge protest.

The popularity of these poems has meant different things to the poets. Whereas Sharma now has a challenging time juggling protest appearance and his commitments as a screenwriter, Amir Aziz feels that now he can say a lot more through his poetry. I now have people paying attention, he says.

Grover feels that his lines going viral is superfluous. To me, what matters is that protests have continued with so much energy all over India, he says.

SHARE THIS ARTICLE ON
: The ruling YSR Congress and the opposition Telugu Desam Party in Andhra Pradesh on Saturday dubbed the Union budget 2020-21 as disappointing for the state.

Both parties decried non-allocation of grants that were overdue to the state.

YSRC Parliamentary Party leader V Vijayasai Reddy said the budget was totally disappointing as the state got only an empty hand.

"There was no mention of the special category status to the state or various incentives. Neither was there a mention of the special grant for backward districts development nor promises made in the AP Reorganisation Act, 2014, he lamented.

Noting that the Centre should have released more funds for the Polavaram multipurpose project, the Rajya Sabha member said they would raise the injustice done to Andhra with the Centre.

TDP politburo member Yanamala Ramakrishnudu blamed the YSRC government for failing to extract the states due from the Centre.

The faulty policies of the Jagan Mohan Reddy government have brought disgrace to the state, which has been in chaos because of the "inept" governance. Though the YSRC leadership boasted it would force the Centre to release more funds to the state, it has clearly failed as the Budget indicated," the former Finance Minister said.

Yanamala said the Chief Minister owes an explanation to people on the failure to secure adequate Central grants.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
SIOUX CITY -- An Iowa resident convicted of multiple child sex crimes has been transferred to a Sioux City halfway house after a judge ordered the individual's release from prison.

Joseph Michael Smith, 23, who now identifies as a female and goes by the name Josie, was convicted in 2014 of molesting a fellow resident at Midwest Christian Services the year before, when he was 16. Smith was sent to the Peterson, Iowa, facility as part of his sentence for previous sexual misconduct incidents in Pottawattamie County when he was 15.

Smith was initially given a suspended 10-year sentence and three years' probation in connection with the Buena Vista County case. The probation was revoked in 2015 and he began serving his sentence of up to 10 years in prison.

Smith admitted to several other incidents in which he was never charged, according to a July 2018 court evaluation written by a physician, obtained by the Storm Lake Times and provided to the Journal.

The report said Smith acknowledged abusing 15 victims, ranging in age from 1 to 13 years old, dating back to 2011 when he lived in Louisiana, though the evaluation also cited a total number of victims of "more than 15."

Smith was considered to be "well-above" average risk for recidivism at the time of the evaluation, while his cooperation with supervision in custody was described as "poor." Smith had a series of disciplinary infractions while incarcerated between 2015 and 2018, many sexual in nature.

While in state custody, Smith was diagnosed with gender dysphoria. In October 2017, he reported he wished to identify as a female and wanted to be called Josie Maria Dunham.

Smith was originally scheduled to be released from custody in July 2018, but Iowa Attorney General Tom Miller's office had sought to keep Smith in custody upon the completion of his prison sentence, under civil commitment in a special ward for sexual offenders in the Cherokee Mental Health Institute.

In a November filing, defense attorney Thomas J. Gaul reported that Smith was "undergoing medical treatment that is needed prior to his potentially undergoing gender reassignment procedure. Besides this medical treatment being necessary, if Respondent does undergo such a procedure, it may affect whether he is eligible for civil commitment, the basis for this proceeding."

Lynn Hicks, a spokesman for the Iowa attorney general's office, noted Smith's medical records are sealed by the court.

On Jan. 9, District Judge David A. Lester ordered Smith be released upon completion of sex offender registration, after Miller's office filed a motion to dismiss the case.

Hicks said there was nothing the attorney general's office could do to keep Smith incarcerated after a state's expert issued an opinion that she did not present a high risk of re-offending. The expert opinion left the AG's office with no viable case to keep Smith incarcerated, Hicks said.

Smith was transferred to the state Residential Treatment Facility in downtown Sioux City on Jan. 11.

Maureen Hansen, district director of the Third Judicial District's community-based corrections program, said the date of Smith's release from the facility will depend on factors including her behavior and progress made in treatment.

Hansen stressed that residents of the facility are under fairly tight supervision, with some having to wear GPS monitors when they leave to go somewhere.

"Our residents can't just come and go," she said.

Hicks also stressed the public should not be concerned about Smith's eventual release; she will be under life-long supervision and registered as a sex offender.

"The public should be reassured that Josie Smith will be on lifetime supervision," Hicks said.

Love 7 Funny 1 Wow 3 Sad 3 Angry 84

Sign up for our Crime & Courts newsletter Get the latest in local public safety news with this weekly email. Sign up! * I understand and agree that registration on or use of this site constitutes agreement to its user agreement and privacy policy.
At least six Indians are staring at an uncertain future after Chinese authorities stopped them from boarding the special Air India flight, which flew out of coronavirus-struck Wuhan city early on Saturday with 324 of their compatriots on board.

The six Indians, comprising four students and two trainees from a Shenzhen-based Chinese electronics company, were stopped at immigration during their medical screening just before they were to board the New Delhi-bound aircraft.

All six displayed either above normal or fluctuating temperatures during the screening, and were immediately asked to step aside from the immigration line.

Fever, cough and shortness of breath are three key symptoms of the novel Coronavirus, a previously unknown strain.

Soon after, they were whisked away in local government vehicles to their campuses for displaying, what local authorities felt, could be symptoms of the virulent disease.

They were told their return to India would be indefinitely postponed.

A message from the Indian embassy on Saturday confirmed their fear.

As you are aware, yesterday at the airport you were not allowed to board the flight as the Chinese authorities felt that your body temperature was of concern. As a result, we have been advised that you may be placed under observation before you are considered for repatriation to India, the Indian embassy said in the message sent to the six over the social media app, WeChat.

The embassy had taken up the issue of their repatriation with the Chinese authorities.

Embassy has formally taken up the issue with Chinese authorities and have requested that adequate and proper health care support is provided to you during this period. We request you to follow the advice given by the Chinese authorities so that your health returns to normal at the earliest, the message said.

HT spoke to two among the six now stranded in Wuhan.

I dont know why they are not allowing me? I have been inside my dormitory on self-quarantine for more than a week. The slight rise in temperature could be for any reason. I dont have any issue of cold and cough, the company trainee said.

The trainee added that local Chinese officials havent shared any information about the number of days they have to be under observation.

They know little else about what is store for them in the next few days.

What do we do next? What will I do for food? What happens if I actually contract the disease here? the trainee asked.

Initially, the six thought that they will be allowed to leave Wuhan in the second Air India flight that will take off for India tonight with Indians living in other parts of Hubei.

At least three buses from their different cities in Hubei are bringing the Indians to the Wuhan airport on Saturday evening.

As it turned out, the six are unlikely to be allowed to board the second flight.

They said they cannot allow us to leave immediately. We need to stay in observation, the second one among the six told HT from Wuhan.

Its not exactly quarantine but they will not allow us to go back to India early, the person added.

The Indians who had agreed to be evacuated had to sign on an Indian embassy form that said it was possible that their application could be rejected on health parametres.

I am aware that it is likely that on the basis of medical checks performed as part of the evacuation process, I may be rejected for evacuation or even placed in quarantine by authorities in China, the embassy form had pointed out.
Success! An email has been sent to with a link to confirm list signup.
People rejected DCC elections and deprived pride and joy of victory

The much talked about elections to Dhaka North and South City Corporations ended yesterday amid low turnout of voters. The doubters of fair and free election under this government have to be let down.





The voters showed no faith in city corporations' elections in which two mayors, 127 councillors, and 41 quota-allocated women councillors for North and South City Corporations in Dhaka are to be elected officially.





Chief Election Commissioner KM Nurul Huda admitting the situation said the voter turnout was "poor". Though the Election Commission officials said that presence of voters was 30%, different media outlets and eyewitnesses reported that it was hardly 20%.







Usually, the level and type of election create a great impact on the rate of electoral participation. The electoral participation rates depend on some vital factors, such as - the type of electoral system, the social groupings to which voters belong and most of all the voters keep faith in clean election.







Witnessing the last general election, it was clear to the people that the government was going to get a big win in the City Corporation elections without voters' participation.







The police were used in every way to ensure election victory without people's vote. The people were denied their right to vote.





This time the people repudiated the election by officially showing 70 to 80 percent voters did not care to turn up to vote. When such huge majority does not vote then the government cannot claim victory. They voted 'no-faith' in the election held under this government and the Election Commission.





The government has been successful in destroying election as a public institution for legitimising the government.





Despite such massive expression of no-confidence in the mayoral elections there will be shame for those who have been shown elected by the Election Commission.





The Election Commission is not to be deterred by public criticism about its gutlessness. It also cannot deny their failure to inspire people in the meaningfulness of the election for popular participation.





The EC introduced EVM machines with built-in arrangement for programming the election results. The voters pressed the button to vote but there was no knowing that the vote was registered in support of his or her chosen candidate. Why the machines should not show the result in favour of the voters' desired candidates after pressing of the button?







It is also found in many cases that machine was not correctly identifying the voter. Dr Kamal Hossain, the chief of Gano Forum, had to spend some half an hour to find the machines not being responsive to his thumb impression.







One can argue that machines were rejected machines not worth the money they cost. Taka around 4 thousand crore were spent on the EVM machines.





We cannot say there is no substance in the claims that the voters were fearful of violence and police action so found it not safe to go out. Undeniably some violent incidents took place though there was no such need.





All in all, the crucial reason for rejecting the election by voters is that the votes they cast will not be counted. The government will decide results in favour of their own candidates no matter how the voters voted. The people saw how the last general election was hijacked in a big way.





The shamefully low turnout of the voters will be taken in a democracy as declaring loudly no-confidence in the government and such a government should have resigned. But we have no democracy and there was need for wasting crores of taka for the fun of the election circus.





The ineffectiveness of the main opposition party BNP is a mysterious puzzle. The leadership of BNP has also to take the blame for the weakness of such a huge party contributing to the boldness of the government as well as the Election Commission. They easily get away with the lie of elections.





Many doubt about BNP's role and competence as the biggest political opposition. It is their failure why the people did not find courage in the leadership of BNP to come out for exercising their voting right.





The mayoral election should have been taken by BNP as a challenge of strength. They had no reason to believe that the mayoral election would be free. They believed so wrongly that they will make some concessions to them. The BNP leadership, for its own silly ideas, has made the whole nation more helpless.





There is no resistance against the undemocratic politics of corruption and failures. So the government feels assured about their way of denying the people and public accountability.





Those who have been declared to have won, have also no cause for pride and joy of victory when the voters have rejected the election itself so roundly and so loudly.
CLEVELAND, Jan. 31, 2020 /PRNewswire/ -- Today, the U.S. International Trade Commission (ITC) issued preliminary affirmative determinations that imports of forged steel fluid end blocks (FEBs) from China, Germany, India, and Italy are causing material injury to domestic producers and workers. This unanimous decision follows a January 8, 2020 decision from the U.S. Commerce Department to investigate claims that FEB imports from China, Germany, India, and Italy are being illegally subsidized and/or dumped in violation of U.S. trade laws.

According to the petitions filed by the FEB Fair Trade Coalition in December 2019, FEB imports from these countries have surged by more than 600 percent since 2016. Fluid end blocks are typically used in the manufacture or service of hydraulic pumps for drilling or shale fracturing in the oil and gas industry.

"The Forging Industry Association welcomes today's unanimous, bipartisan decision from the International Trade Commission. This decision validates the claims of American forgers that FEBs are being imported in violation of U.S. trade laws," said James Warren, President & CEO of the Forging Industry Association (FIA), a trade association that is a member of the petitioning coalition. Mr. Warren added that "We look forward to cooperating with the remainder of the U.S. Government's investigation to address illegal subsidies and dumping behavior, and ensure that American forgers can compete on a level playing field."

SOURCE FEB Fair Trade Coalition
Afripromotions.com scored 40 Social Media Impact. Social Media Impact score is a measure of how much a site is popular on social networks. 2/5.0 Stars by Social Team

This CoolSocial report was updated on 29 Oct 2013, you can refresh this analysis whenever you want.

The total number of people who shared the afripromotions homepage on Delicious. This is the sum of two values: the total number of people who shared the afripromotions homepage on Twitter + the total number of afripromotions followers (if afripromotions has a Twitter account). The total number of people who shared the afripromotions homepage on Google Plus by a google +1 button. This is the sum of two values: the total number of people who shared, liked or recommended the afripromotions homepage on Facebook + the total number of page likes (if afripromotions has a Facebook fan page). The total number of people who shared the afripromotions homepage on StumbleUpon.

Basic Information

PAGE TITLE Staffing, CENTRAL STAFFING GROUP WORCESTER, MA Home DESCRIPTION The Central Staffing Group is committed to providing a level of service you will not find anywhere else. Flexible staffing options. Whether you need a staff of one or one-hundred, we can customize a staffing plan to meet your needs for temporary or full-t KEYWORDS Staffing WORCESTER MA, Jobs WORCESTER MA, Employment WORCESTER MA OTHER KEYWORDS staffing, medical, patients, central staffing, central, group, nursing



The description meta-tag found in the head section of the homepage. The keywords meta-tag found in the head section of the homepage. CoolSocial advanced keyword analysis tool is able to detect and analyze every keyword on each page of a site. The URL (Uniform Resource Locator) is the address of the site. The title found in the head section of the homepage.

Domain and Server

DOCTYPE XHTML 1.0 Transitional CHARSET AND LANGUAGE ISO-8859-1 DETECTED LANGUAGE English English SERVER Apache/2.2.22 (Unix) FrontPage/5.0.2.2635 OPERATIVE SYSTEM Linux Linux

Type of server and offered services. Operative System running on the server. The language of afripromotions.com as detected by CoolSocial algorithms. Represents HTML declared type (e.g.: XHTML 1.1, HTML 4.0, the new HTML 5.0) Character set and language of the site.

Site Traffic trend during the last year. Only available for sites ranked <= 100000 in the world.

Referring domains for afripromotions.com by MajesticSeo. High values are a sign of site importance over the web and on web engines.

Facebook link

FACEBOOK PAGE LINK NOT FOUND

The total number of people who like website Facebook page. The total number of people who tagged or talked about website Facebook page in the last 7-10 days. Facebook Timeline is the new layout of Facebook pages. The URL of the found Facebook page. The description of the Facebook page describes website and its services to the social media users. The type of Facebook page. A Facebook page link can be found in the homepage or in the robots.txt file.

Twitter account link

TWITTER PAGE LINK NOT FOUND
Pam Cleary, Sylvia Evans and Zoe Woodward at Delgany Dramatic Societys production of Before Dawn by Terence Rattigan

Enniskerry: History Society - James Scannell, Bray Cualann Historical Society and the Old Dublin Society, will be the guest presenter for the Thursday, February 13, 8.30pm meeting of the Enniskerry History Society which meets the guidance of its president, John Callan, in the Powerscourt Arms Hotel.

He will present his lecture 'A Brief History of the Great Northern Railway (Ireland), 1876 - 1958' and all are welcome to attend - admission 5.

Some events taking place which may be of interest to members and supporters of the Enniskerry History Society are tomorrow night's (Thursday, 30th) 8pm talk by Ged Walsh covering 'On the Banks of the Dodder: Rathgar and Churchtown, An Illustrated History' to the Rathmines, Ranelagh and Rathgar Historical Society in Rathmines Town Hall, Rathmines Road, Rathmines, Dublin six. Admission 3 - Swan Centre car park Evening Rate, 3 (Total) from 5 p.m. to Midnight;

Saturday mornings Medal Society of Ireland's 'Medals, Militaria and Collectables Fair' between 11 a.m. and 3 p.m. in the Knox Memorial Hall, 79 Mountown Road, Monkstown Village, Co. Dublin. All welcome - admission 4, members 2 - children free; next Monday night's 7.30 p.m. talk by Dr Laura Johnstone, UCD, on 'The nineteenth-century suburbs of Monkstown and Glasthule; the impact of estate management on their design and formation' to the Royal Society of Antiquaries of Ireland in the Helen Roe Theatre, Society House, 63 Merrion Square South, Dublin two. All welcome - admission free; and next Tuesday night's 8 p.m. lecture by Frank Nugent on 'Irish Arctic Explorers' to the Kilmacanogue History Society in the Glenview Hotel, Glen of the Downs, Delgany, Co. Wicklow. All welcome - admission 3. Further information about the Enniskerry History Society available from John Callan at 01 2867853.

Powerscourt with Kilbride

Services of Worship in Powerscourt for this Sunday - The Third Sunday after the Epiphany: 8.30am - Holy Communion One (Said); 11.30am - Holy Communion Two.

Services of Worship in Kilbride for this Sunday - The Third Sunday after the Epiphany: 10 a.m. - Holy Communion Two.

Music Night: On Saturday night there will be 'A Music Night to Remember for Cancer Research' at 7.30 p.m. in Christ Church COI, Church Road, Bray, Co. Wicklow. 5 entry.

St Mary's Church

Parish Website: The parish of the Immaculate Heart of Mary has its own website. Please check out 'Enniskerryparish.ie' for the latest information about our parish.

Exposition of the Blessed Sacrament: Kilmacanogue - First Wednesday of each month in St Mochonog's Church, from 7 p.m. to 8 p.m.; Enniskerry - After 10.15 a.m. Mass each Friday morning in St Mary's Church.

Pilgrimages: This year we hope to organise a number of pilgrimages - Lourdes, Garabandal, Medjugorge, Rome/Assisi - Pietrelcina - as well as Knock. If you have an interest in travelling please talk to Fr Hyacinth or Sadie in St Mary's Sacristy after Sunday Masses.

Parish of Immaculate Heart of Mary Fund Raising Appeal: Parishioners have received an invitation to donate to the Parish Fund Raising Appeal either by increasing their Direct Debit/Family Offering Envelope donation or by donating through our website. Envelopes are available at the rear of church.

Legion of Mary - Kilmacanogue Presidium: Meet at 11.30 a.m. every Tuesday in the sacristy of St Mochonog's. New members are most welcome. Group recite the Rosary on the first Saturday of each month at midday at the Grotto in the church grounds. Click on the link legionofmary.ie to view website.

Enniskerry Library

Opening hours for the library on Church Road, Enniskerry, are - Tuesday and Friday: 11 a.m. to 1 p.m. and 2 p.m. to 5 p.m.; Wednesday: 2 p.m. to 5 p.m. and 6.30 p.m. to 8.30 p.m., and Saturday: 11 a.m. to 1 p.m. New members to the library are always very welcome. Please phone 01 2864339 for further info.

Enniskerry 125

At the end of January 1905 it was announced that at the next meeting of the Rathdown No. Two Rural District Council, consideration would be given to tenders received for the construction of labourer's cottages at Monastery and Kiilegar.

Craft Fair

A Craft Fair takes place in the Parochial Hall, Enniskerry, on Sundays from 10 a.m. and 6 p.m.

Glenealy

Glenealy Card Drive

Whist partner card drive will be on this Thursday night, January 30, at 8.30 p.m. 45 card drive will be on the following Thursday night, February 6, at 8.30 p.m. New players always welcome.

St Josephs Church 150th

St Joseph's church Glenealy celebration book is on sale at 5 per copy in Earls Newsagents Wicklow, The Village Store Glenealy and at Glenealy hall.

Indoor Bowls

Indoor bowls is played in Glenealy Village Hall every Wednesday night from 8 p.m. to 10 p.m. Just drop in any Wednesday night if you would like to start playing in door bowls. For more information contact 0404 44040.

Foroige Youth Club

Glenealy Foroige Youth club meet in Glenealy Village Hall every Friday night from 8 p.m. to 9.30 p.m. for youths aged from 12 years to 18 years. For more information contact the club phone number at 087 0973519.

Gymboree

Gymboree Play and music classes are on every Tuesday morning at 11 a.m. in Glenealy village hall. Suitable for babies, toddlers and Pre-Schoolers from six months - four years.

Teach your child a love of music through songs, dance, movement fun and musical instruments, exploring various different music styles. Booking is essential as places are limited. Contact Rachel at 086 8330212 for more information and to book your place.

Saturdays Playgroup

The Saturdays playgroup is in Glenealy Village Hall every Saturday morning for Pre - School children from 10 a.m. to midday. Cost is just 3 per family. Just drop in any Saturday morning.

Pilates classes

Pilates classes are ongoing in Glenealy Village Hall on Tuesday evenings from 8 p.m. to 9 p.m. Beginners/improvers and all ages welcome. seven weeks for 70 or drop-in-rate 12. Pilates strengthens core muscles, improves muscle control, flexibility, co-ordination, strength and tone, as well as alignment and breathing. To book your place contact Zara Elkinson at 087 9367474. For more info and to keep up to date like on Facebook at pilates with Zara.

Astro Turf

Our state-of-the-art astroturf pitch is available. We are taking bookings for morning, afternoon or evening times at very competitive rates. Please contact us at 0404 44040 for more information.

Village Hall

Glenealy village hall is now available for corporate and social events, meetings, parties, workshops etc. with great facilities and keen rates. Mornings, afternoons and evening times are now available. For more information contact us at 0404 44040 or email us at glenealyvillagehall@eircom.net.

Kilcoole

Community Policing Clinic

Garda Molly Corbett's community policing clinic takes place from 6 p.m. to 8 p.m. every Monday at the community centre.

Community Yoga

Beginners yoga at Kilcoole Community Centre Fridays at 7.30 p.m. 10 drop in.

Indoor Bowls

Bowls takes place on Tuesday and Thursday evenings at 8 p.m. in St Patrick's/Forrester's Hall. New members are welcome.

Bingo

Come join us for Monday Night Bingo in St Patrick's Hall, Kilcoole. First game at 8 p.m. 10 per book (to include loose sheet and jackpot game). Extra loose sheet 1. Raffle Tickets on sale on the night. All welcome to attend.

Community Centre

The centre is available for bookings (e.g. classes and meetings). Bookings can be made via email kilcoolecc@gmail.com or by phone 01 2872017. The office is open Monday to Thursday from 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. and on Fridays from 9 a.m. to 12.30 p.m.

Parent/Toddler Group

All are welcome to come along to the parent and toddler group at the community centre from 10.30 p.m. to midday every Wednesday. 2 per child.

Notes

If you would like to have a notice included in the Kilcoole Notes please email jenniferwicklow2016@hotmail.com.

Rathdrum

St Patrick's Day

The St Patrick's Day parade committee will hold a meeting on Monday, February 3, at 7 p.m. in the Anne Devlin Annex.
A teenager has died in hospital after being stabbed in the chest during a Brisbane hotel room brawl on Australia Day.

Kane Alexanderson, 18, and two 17-year-olds were stabbed during the altercation at the IStay River City hotel on Brisbane's Albert St in the late hours of January 26.

Mr Alexanderson was rushed to Royal Brisbane and Women's Hospital with a life-threatening injury and died from his wounds on Saturday.

One of the younger teens suffered significant facial injuries while the other suffered wounds to his abdomen and shoulder but both have been discharged from hospital.

Kane Alexanderson (pictured), 18, and two 17-year-olds were stabbed during the altercation at the IStay River City hotel on Brisbane's Albert St in the late hours of January 26

One of the younger teens suffered significant facial injuries while the other suffered wounds to his abdomen and shoulder but both have been discharged from hospital. Pictured: Paramedics at the scene on Australia Day

Before the stabbing, the three teenagers and five other people followed guests into the IStay River City hotel shortly before 9.20pm on January 26.

After getting into the building, the group of eight entered a room that was being occupied by a man, who was known to them.

However, a fight broke out and the three teenagers were stabbed with Mr Alexanderson suffering the most serious wound in the chest.

On the night of the stabbing, Inspector John Kent told 9News there were two crime scenes.

'It appears that one of the higher floors is where the initial incident may have occurred. The victims have been made their way down to another floor, and then further out into the street,' he said.

Police are investigating the incident.

Mr Alexanderson was rushed to Royal Brisbane and Women's Hospital with a life-threatening injury and died from his wounds on Saturday
Akshay Thakur, a death row convict in the Nirbhaya gang-rape and murder case, on Saturday filed a mercy petition before the President of India.

Thakur has become the third convict in the case to file a mercy petition before the President.

So far, President Ram Nath Kovind has rejected the mercy petitions of convicts Vinay Sharma and Mukesh Singh in the matter.

Meanwhile, a Delhi court on Friday stayed till further orders the execution, which was earlier scheduled to take place on February 1, of the four convicts in the case.

A Delhi court had earlier issued a death warrant for convicts -- Akshay Thakur, Mukesh Singh, Pawan Gupta, and Vinay Sharma -- for their execution on February 1.

The case pertains to the gang-rape and brutalising of a 23-year-old paramedical student in a moving bus on the night of December 16, 2012, by six people including a juvenile in Delhi. The woman had died at a Singapore hospital a few days later.

One of the five adults accused, Ram Singh, had allegedly committed suicide in the Tihar Jail during the trial of the case.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
DES MOINES, Iowa - A handwritten sign posted inside a Bernie Sanders campaign office tells volunteers how to respond to concern about something that sets Sanders apart from all of his presidential rivals - his identity as a socialist.

"Affirm -> I get that! Labels can be intimidating," the sign instructs them to say, especially "those unfamiliar to us." It encourages them to say Sanders stands for "social equality" and "equal opportunity for all" and ends with a suggestion to "redirect" prospective supporters to other topics.

Three miles across town, in a Thursday-night rally here, President Donald Trump was eager to talk about socialism, bringing it up in the first two minutes and returning to the theme over and over. "This November, we're going to defeat the radical socialist Democrats that are right down the street," he blared.

As Sanders closes in on a potential win in Monday's Iowa caucuses and Trump sharpens a general election message designed to portray Democrats as radical leftists, a heated debate is emerging over whether America is ready to embrace at least some aspects of socialism - if not a socialist president.

Sanders is portraying his agenda as a modern liberal movement, while Trump wants to conjure images of the old Soviet Union and oppressive foreign leaders such as Nicolas Maduro and Fidel Castro. The president intends to return to the topic during his State of the Union address on Tuesday, according to a senior administration official.

The conflict over socialism is far from settled - even within the Democratic Party. Former vice president Joe Biden, one of Sanders's top rivals, alluded this week to Sanders's political affiliation, which critics have long used to portray the senator from Vermont as disloyal.

Pressure on both fronts has prompted Sanders and his allies to mount an aggressive defense of his worldview and clarify his positions in the closing days before Iowa holds the first nominating contest.

Sanders's lead in recent polls has forced members of both parties to more seriously contemplate the possibility of something unusual - a Democratic nominee who does not officially belong to the party. Such an outcome could have far-reaching implications in the battleground states that will be fiercely contested in November.

Sanders, the most liberal candidate in the top tier of the Democratic field, has long identified as a "democratic socialist," a philosophy he detailed in a speech last year. "Democratic socialism means to me requiring and achieving political and economic freedom in every community in this country," he said in June. He often emphasizes the "democratic" to distinguish it from authoritarian socialism.

Although he is officially an independent, Sanders caucuses with Democrats in the Senate and has pledged to support whomever the Democratic Party nominates for the presidency. But he has distanced himself from party leaders more than his opponents have done, and he has frequently lambasted the "Democratic establishment."

His posture has prompted some criticism. "I'm a Democrat," Biden said Thursday. "He says he's not. He says - you know, he's not registered as a Democrat, to the best of my knowledge. And Bernie has a different view."

The tension was evident Friday morning at a Des Moines coffee shop where Sanders's wife, Jane Sanders, campaigned for him as he tended to his duties in Washington as a juror in Trump's impeachment trial.

"I noticed that just recently, one of our chief opponents in the race started talking about how Bernie isn't a Democrat," Sanders supporter Michael McKinley, 68, told Jane Sanders and her son, David Driscoll.

"What do we say when they come right back and they say, 'Well, he's not a Democrat?' " he asked.

Driscoll encouraged party unity. "Let's try to keep it as positive as possible," he said.

Jane Sanders offered a more robust defense of her husband's politics.

"In Vermont, we don't have party registration," she said. "So, you just say what you are." She pointed out that Sanders has belonged to the Democratic caucus for years and was appointed by Senate Democrats to represent them in leadership on two committees.

"So, I don't know how else to do it," she said. "If he had been in another state, he would have had to register as a Democrat. We can't as a Vermonter."

Still, other lawmakers from Vermont, such as the state's other senator, Pat Leahy, explicitly identify as Democrats.

Asked after the event about Trump's attacks on socialism, she declined to engage him.

"I don't give President Trump a lot of thought," she said. "I think that he's a very dangerous president for our country."

Sanders has sought to aggressively distinguish his brand of socialism from the ideas practiced by oppressive leaders abroad. The sign in the Des Moines campaign office, which was on a wall near supporters making phone calls to caucusgoers Tuesday, said that Sanders wants health-care and education systems, as well as the government more broadly, to be "reliable, accessible, and effective."

"That's what he means by 'socialism,' " it concludes.

Sanders campaign officials said they are not focused on labels but on the issues that Sanders has been pushing as he tries to appeal to working-class people. Micah Uetricht, an editor at the socialist magazine Jacobin who canvassed for Sanders two weekends in a row in Iowa, said no one at the doors he knocked on brought up socialism.

"What's more common is that we talk to someone who's dependent on Medicaid, which brings up a discussion on Bernie's record defending those programs," he said.

Polls show socialism remains largely unpopular, though how it plays politically among Democrats remains an open question.

A Fox News poll from December found that 57% of Americans said they were unfavorable toward socialism while 32% were favorable. Fifteen percent said they couldn't say.

But Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, D-N.Y., a Sanders supporter and fellow democratic socialist, has quickly become one of the most electrifying politicians in the country. The Democratic Socialists of America saw its membership increase dramatically after her 2018 upset primary win.

Advocates say that the world is no longer gripped by the paranoia of the Cold War era and that younger voters are not put off by the idea as their parents and grandparents were.

Sanders is pushing an ambitious policy agenda, including enacting a Medicare-for-all health-care system and a Green New Deal climate initiative, both of which would mean sweeping changes to current laws.

Not all Democrats favor those proposals, which would complicate the Republican pitch if the nominee is someone more moderate than Sanders. Biden, for example, favors expanding the Affordable Care Act, not introducing Medicare-for-all.

GOP officials said they are determined to portray the nominee as too far left, no matter who it is. This strategy reprises what the party did in the 2018 midterms, when it sought to cast Democratic congressional candidates as soft on immigration, crime and other highly charged topics.

"Is it going to be Bernie, who has Medicare-for-all, who says, outright, 'I'm going to eliminate private insurance'? " said Trump campaign spokeswoman Kayleigh McEnany. "Or is it Biden, who has a public option - the logical endpoint of that being that private insurance is crowded out?"

But the 2018 GOP blueprint was largely unsuccessful. Democratic candidates, mostly running on noncontroversial platforms, flipped dozens of seats, which returned control of the House to Speaker Nancy Pelosi, D-Calif.

Nevertheless, there were a few key examples of success for the Republican Party. In Florida, where many Hispanic voters have roots in Latin American countries with a history of authoritarian leftist regimes, Andrew Gillum, the Democratic nominee for governor, fell in defeat amid attacks casting him as a socialist.

Some Democrats are concerned that if Sanders is the nominee, the prized swing state may be difficult to pry away from Trump's grip. Democrats have also warned that socialism could be a liability in other battlegrounds.

Over the past year, Trump's campaign has come up with different events and gimmicks aimed at branding the full Democratic field as socialist. "Socialism destroys Ohio Jobs. Vote Trump!" read a banner flying above the Democratic debate site in Ohio last October.

The attacks serve a dual purpose for Trump: rallying his GOP base and inflaming internal tensions in the Democratic Party, said Republican strategist Doug Heye.

"It very smartly drives a very blunt wedge into the Democratic debate in the days leading up to the kickoff for really the whole campaign," he said.

Trump has never specifically defined what he is referring to when he talks about socialism, regularly using the term broadly to discuss Democrats' positions on energy, health care, taxes, immigration and more.

"This election is a choice between American freedom and Democratic socialism, and in some cases, in my opinion, it's worse than socialism," Trump said in one of 10 mentions of socialism during his speech in Des Moines on Thursday. "Socialism's a kind word by comparison. The Democrats will lose because America will never be a socialist country."

Trump's own policies, including a $28 billion bailout program for farmers struggling under the effect of his trade war, have led to charges of government intervention in the free market.

During the Iowa rally Thursday, Trump appeared to acknowledge the sensitive nature of the massive bailout, saying that he had to use his words carefully as he described it.

"I said to this group of farmers that came in, 'Subsidy.' I used the word subsidy," he said. "That was the worst word. 'Sir, we don't want subsidy! Please don't ever use that word. 'I said, 'I won't, I promise.' "

- - -

The Washington Post's David Weigel in Des Moines and Emily Guskin in Washington contributed to this report.
A duo have become the first brother and sister team to row across the Atlantic Ocean.

Cameron and Anna McLean, aged 32 and 25, completed the 3,000-mile Talisker Whisky Atlantic Challenge race in 43 days, 15 hours and 22 minutes.

The pair arrived in Antigua on Sunday, having left the Canary Islands on December 12.

The McLeans, who were raised in Gloucestershire, were rowing to raise awareness and money for the gender equality charity UN Women UK.

Ms McLean's love of rowing began at Cheltenham Ladies' College, where she was co-captain of the rowing team before moving to the US to attend university.

Her brother also started rowing while a student at Cheltenham College before moving to Miami for three years.
Prime Minister Shri Narendra Modi asked the Members of Parliament to work towards laying a strong foundation for a bright future of the country in the new decade. In his customary remarks to the media before the commencement of the Budget session of the Parliament the Prime Minister called for wide discussions on the economic issues in the country and how to maximize benefits to India in the current global economic scenario.

We should focus mostly on economic issues in this session and we should to try to see how India can benefit most out of the present global economic scenario and how it can take forward the country's economy. Calling for enriched discussions in both the Houses of Parliament, the Prime Minister said it should also focus on the empowerment of the people. Our Government is known for striving for the empowerment of all the underprivileged sections and women. We would continue to work in this direction even in this decade. I wish that both the houses have great discussions on economic issues and empowerment of people. I am confident that the discussions would be enlightening and enriching all of us', he said.

Powered by Capital Market - Live News

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
As the coronavirus crisis has deepened in China, Sri Lanka on Saturday evacuated its citizens from the Chinese city of Wuhan which has emerged as the epicentre of the deadly virus.

A special Sri Lankan Airlines flight brought 33 Sri Lankan Students from Wuhan. President Gotabaya Rajapaksa thanked the Chinese government for their cooperation bringing back the students.

"Due to great diplomatic relations between #LKA & #China we were successful in evacuating our citizens in #Wuhan, under lockdown. I thank Govt of #China for their cooperation, and @MFA_SriLanka @airforcelk @Sri_Lanka_Army @MoH_SriLanka & @flysrilankanfor your incredible support," Rajapaksa tweeted.

Several countries have sped up the evacuation process after the Health Organisation (WHO) declared the coronavirus outbreak as a global health crisis.

India and Turkey have also carried out the evacuation of their citizens from Wuhan as the death toll from the disease spiked to 259 and with over 11,000 confirmed cases in China alone.

A cargo plane evacuated 42 Turkish and Georgia nationals from Wuhan to Ankara, Al Jazeera reported.

Earlier, India evacuated 324 Indian nationals, including three minors and 211 students, from Wuhan.

Moreover, Russia's aerospace defence forces, part of the armed forces, will start evacuating Russian citizens on Saturday from China.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
We are listening, said the announcement. To everyone.

Well, not everyone. Just everyone who is demanding that any voice of dissent from their own views be denied a microphone.

The store has stressed that the book itself is still for sale there. You have to wonder if it gave them pause to have to specify that, no, they arent actually banning the book from their shelves. For now, anyway. Who knows what happens next time some in the community decide to push back.

It isnt just traditional conservatives who are facing a crisis of identity these days, watching their half-century-old movement being twisted by Trumpist populism into something unrecognizable. In the toxic fog of todays polarized political atmosphere, the left, too, is losing pieces of its soul. Including the once-sacred liberal imperative of free and open debate.
This new addition comes as a part of Google's SOS Alerts feature.

The Google search engine would now be directing the users searching coronavirus to systematically arranged results about safety tips, situation updates, and resources from the World Health Organisation.

According to The Verge, Google announced this joint effort with the WHO on its official Twitter handle.

This new addition comes as a part of Google's SOS Alerts feature.

The company has also donated a sum of 250,000 dollars -- through its charitable arm Google.org -- to the Chinese branch of Red Cross to aid the coronavirus relief work.

Click on Deccan Chronicle Technology and Science for the latest news and reviews. Follow us on Facebook, Twitter.
Japanese Finance Minister Taro Aso takes questions from reporters at the annual meetings of the International Monetary Fund and World Bank in Washington

By Tetsushi Kajimoto and Leika Kihara

TOKYO (Reuters) - A group of ruling party lawmakers are working on a proposal for Japan to issue its own digital currency, one of the members said, in a sign of alarm Tokyo is feeling about Facebook's Libra and China's drive to create a digital yuan.

The digital currency could be a joint initiative between the government and private companies that would put Japan in tune with global changes in financial technology, Norihiro Nakayama, parliamentary vice minister for foreign affairs, told Reuters.

"The first step would be to look into the idea of issuing a digital yen," said Nakayama, a key member of the group comprised of about 70 Liberal Democratic Party lawmakers.

"China is moving toward issuing digital yuan, so we'd like to propose measures to counter such attempts," he said on Thursday.

The group, led by party heavyweight and former economy minister Akira Amari, plans to submit its proposal to the government as early as next month, Nakayama said.

While Japan is unlikely to issue digital currencies any time soon due to technical and legal hurdles, the move comes in the wake of a decision by the Bank of Japan to join six other central banks to share expertise on doing so in the future.

In a sign of increased attention on digital currencies in political circles, Prime Minister Shinzo Abe told parliament on Friday the government will work with the BOJ in studying digital currencies and find ways to enhance the yen's convenience as a settlement means.

Facebook's push to launch its Libra cryptocurrency has prodded central banks to quicken the pace at which they look at issuing digital currencies.

Of the major central banks, China's has emerged as the frontrunner in the drive to create its own digitized money, though details of its project are still scarce.

Some Japanese lawmakers have voiced concern over Beijing's move as an attempt to expand the yuan's use as a settlement currency in emerging economies.

Story continues

Finance Minister Taro Aso said earlier this month that it would be a "very serious problem" if digital yuan becomes a popular means for international setttlement, as Japan settles transactions mostly in dollars.

Former BOJ board member Takahide Kiuchi, however, said China and Japan have different reasons to consider issuing digital currencies.

For China, the motivation is to enhance the yuan's clout in the global community; for Japan, it would be to change the country's cash-loving culture, he said.

"The BOJ probably won't want to do anything that would stifle private-sector innovation. The best way could be to issue a hybrid-type digital currency that is operated and issued by private firms, with the central bank's involvement," he said.

(Reporting by Tetsushi Kajimoto and Leika Kihara, additional reporting by Takahiko Wada and Hiroko Hamada; Editing by Kim Coghill)
A case of coronavirus has been detected in Boston, the first case in Massachusetts which brings the nationwide total of infected people up to eight.

The states department of public health said the man, in his 20s, recently returned from Wuhan, China - the epicentre of the virus.

He has been isolated since falling ill, and test results confirming the diagnosis were received on Friday night.

He will remain isolated until he is deemed to be no longer a risk. Those who he has closely associated with since returning from China are being monitored for signs of symptoms.

It comes as the Pentagon said it had approved a request for housing support for 1,000 people who may need to be quarantined after arriving from abroad. US citizens arriving back in the country who have been in Hubei in the past two weeks will be subject to a mandatory quarantine of 14 days.

Coronavirus: Cases soar of deadly new flu-like virus Show all 154 1 /154 Coronavirus: Cases soar of deadly new flu-like virus Coronavirus: Cases soar of deadly new flu-like virus Paramedics wearing personal protective equipment carry patient on a stretcher on to an ambulance in North Point district in Hong Kong, China Getty Images Coronavirus: Cases soar of deadly new flu-like virus A medical worker wearing protective gear takes a rest as he waits for ambulances carrying patients infected with the COVID-19 coronavirus at an entrance of a hospital in Daegu, South Korea YONHAP/AFP via Getty Images Coronavirus: Cases soar of deadly new flu-like virus A medical worker sprays disinfectant on an ambulance after carrying a patient infected with the COVID-19 coronavirus at a hospital in Daegu YONHAP/AFP via Getty Images Coronavirus: Cases soar of deadly new flu-like virus People wearing protective face masks shop at a supermarket in Casalpusterlengo, one the northern Italian towns placed under lockdown due to the new coronavirus outbreak EPA Coronavirus: Cases soar of deadly new flu-like virus A trolley bus is disinfected amid fears over the spread of the novel coronavirus in Pyongyang, North Korea REUTERS Coronavirus: Cases soar of deadly new flu-like virus Workers wearing protective gear spray disinfectant as a precaution against the COVID-19 coronavirus in a local market in Daegu, South Korea AP Coronavirus: Cases soar of deadly new flu-like virus A man wearing a protective facemask walks outside a nearly empty shopping mall at lunch time in Beijing AFP via Getty Images Coronavirus: Cases soar of deadly new flu-like virus A man wearing protective facemask and gloves puts a drawing made by a girl living in the area asking residents to wear protective gear, next to a quarantine notice for people who have travelled and a notice asking people to register outside a residential compound in Beijing AFP via Getty Images Coronavirus: Cases soar of deadly new flu-like virus A woman is taken into an ambulance amid a coronavirus outbreak in northern Italy REUTERS Coronavirus: Cases soar of deadly new flu-like virus Ambulances and health workers are seen outside the Padua's hospital, northern Italy EPA Coronavirus: Cases soar of deadly new flu-like virus Passengers in coaches leave MoD Boscombe Down in Wiltshire after being repatriated to the UK from a cruise ship hit by the coronavirus in Yokohama, Japan and head to Arrowe Park Hospital on Merseyside PA Coronavirus: Cases soar of deadly new flu-like virus People rest in a temporary hospital situated in the Tazihu Gymnasium in Wuhan EPA Coronavirus: Cases soar of deadly new flu-like virus Buddhist monks wearing protective face masks pray during a blessing ceremony for the people affected by the COVID-19 coronavirus outbreak, at a temple in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia REUTERS Coronavirus: Cases soar of deadly new flu-like virus Medical workers wearing protective gears carry a patient infecting with a new coronavirus to a hospital in Chuncheon, South Korea AP Coronavirus: Cases soar of deadly new flu-like virus Soldiers in hazmat suits sanitize cargo from a China Airlines plane at the Taoyuan International Airport in Taoyuan City, Taiwan EPA Coronavirus: Cases soar of deadly new flu-like virus Barricades are seen to block the entrance a the gate of a local mall in a nearly empty area in Beijing, China Getty Images Coronavirus: Cases soar of deadly new flu-like virus A vendor wearing a protective facemask waits for customers at a shop in Beijing AFP via Getty Images Coronavirus: Cases soar of deadly new flu-like virus The body temperature of an Iraqi child returning from Iran is measured upon her arrival at the Najaf International Airport AFP via Getty Images Coronavirus: Cases soar of deadly new flu-like virus Volunteers hand out free facemasks at a shopping district in Quezon city, Metro Manila, Philippines Getty Images Coronavirus: Cases soar of deadly new flu-like virus Medical workers wearing protective gears carry a patient suspected of contracting the new coronavirus toward an ambulance at Daenam Hospital in Cheongdo, South Korea AP Coronavirus: Cases soar of deadly new flu-like virus A worker disinfects a shop at a market in Shanghai AFP via Getty Images Coronavirus: Cases soar of deadly new flu-like virus A restaurant worker wearing protective clothing as a preventive measure against the COVID-19 coronavirus passing a bag of food to a customer on the street outside their restaurant in Beijing AFP via Getty Images Coronavirus: Cases soar of deadly new flu-like virus A recovered patient is discharged from Leishenshan Hospital, the newly-built makeshift hospital for novel coronavirus patients, in Wuhan AFP via Getty Coronavirus: Cases soar of deadly new flu-like virus Volunteers in protective suits disinfect a factory with sanitising equipment in Huzhou, China China Daily via Reuters Coronavirus: Cases soar of deadly new flu-like virus Medical workers in protective suits attend to a patient inside an isolated ward of Wuhan Red Cross Hospital Reuters Coronavirus: Cases soar of deadly new flu-like virus A drone operated by the Suwon municipal government flies around Changyong Middle School spraying disinfectant, in Suwon, South Korea EPA Coronavirus: Cases soar of deadly new flu-like virus Workers transfer medical waste at Leishenshan Hospital AFP via Getty Coronavirus: Cases soar of deadly new flu-like virus A man wearing a protective mask rides a bicycle with his children in Guangzhou, China EPA Coronavirus: Cases soar of deadly new flu-like virus Volunteers in protective suits disinfect a railway station as the country is hit by an outbreak of the new coronavirus, in Changsha, Hunan province, China cnsphoto via Reuters Coronavirus: Cases soar of deadly new flu-like virus A woman repatriated from Wuhan carries a child as she walks upon her arrival at the Van Don airport in Vietnam's Quang Ninh province AFP via Getty Coronavirus: Cases soar of deadly new flu-like virus Medical staff checking the body temperature of a patient who has displayed mild symptoms of the COVID-19 coronavirus, at an exhibition centre converted into a hospital in Wuhan AFP via Getty Coronavirus: Cases soar of deadly new flu-like virus A medical worker in protective suit transports oxygen tanks at Wuhan Red Cross Hospital Reuters Coronavirus: Cases soar of deadly new flu-like virus Boys wearing protection masks, gloves and modified water bottles sit on a cart at the airport arrival terminal in Guangzhou EPA Coronavirus: Cases soar of deadly new flu-like virus Employees work on a production line manufacturing protective suits at a clothing factory in Shijiazhuang, Hebei province cnsphoto via Reuters Coronavirus: Cases soar of deadly new flu-like virus Medical workers in protective suits move a patient at an isolated ward of a hospital in Caidian district following an outbreak of coronavirus in Wuhan China Daily via Reuters Coronavirus: Cases soar of deadly new flu-like virus A worker in protective clothing, including face mask and gloves, carries a bucket as he works inside of The County Oak Medical Centre in Brighton, southern England, after it closed for "urgent operational health and safety reasons", following reports a member of staff was infected with the strain of the novel coronavirus AFP via Getty Coronavirus: Cases soar of deadly new flu-like virus Workers of the ecology and environment bureau collect samples from the sewage system of a hospital in Xinle, Hebei province China Daily via Reuters Coronavirus: Cases soar of deadly new flu-like virus A man in protective clothing cleaning the County Oak Medical Centre GP practice The British government warned the outbreak of novel coronavirus was a "serious and imminent threat" and reported four new cases that brought the total recorded in the country to eight. Two hospitals The Royal Free and Guys and St Thomas', have both been designated as "isolation" facilities, with both currently housing Britons who have returned from Wuhan, the Chinese city at the centre of the outbreak PA Coronavirus: Cases soar of deadly new flu-like virus Medical staff transfer patients to the newly completed Huoshenshan temporary field Hospital in Wuhan. The global coronavirus death toll rose again with Hong Kong announcing its first death from the outbreak on 4 February EPA Coronavirus: Cases soar of deadly new flu-like virus Members of staff wait as coaches carrying Coronavirus evacuees arrive at Kents Hill Park Training and Conference Centre, in Milton Keynes, after being repatriated to the UK from the coronavirus-hit city of Wuhan PA Coronavirus: Cases soar of deadly new flu-like virus A crew member of the cruise ship Diamond Princess talks to a worker wearing protective gear standing near the vessel, where dozens of passengers were tested positive for coronavirus, at Daikoku Pier Cruise Terminal in Yokohama Reuters Coronavirus: Cases soar of deadly new flu-like virus Doctors scan a patient's lungs at Huoshenshan temporary hospital built for patients diagnosed with coronavirus in Wuhan Xinhua News Agency/AP Coronavirus: Cases soar of deadly new flu-like virus People wearing protective suits walk from the Diamond Princess cruise ship, with around 3,600 people quarantined onboard due to fears of the new coronavirus, at the Daikoku Pier Cruise Terminal AFP via Getty Coronavirus: Cases soar of deadly new flu-like virus Indonesians who arrived from Wuhan are sprayed with antiseptic at Hang Nadim Airport in Batam. People evacuated from the Chinese city at the centre of a deadly virus outbreak, were transported to a quarantine zone on a remote island at the edge of the South China Sea, shortly after landing Indonesian Foreign Ministry via AP Coronavirus: Cases soar of deadly new flu-like virus A woman wears a protective mask as she shops in a market in Beijing Getty Coronavirus: Cases soar of deadly new flu-like virus Medical staff members hugging each other in an isolation ward at a hospital in Zouping in China's easter Shandong province AFP via Getty Coronavirus: Cases soar of deadly new flu-like virus A portrait of Dr Li Wenliang is left at Li's hospital in Wuhan. He is regarded a whistleblower on the outbreak and died of the coronavirus which triggered wide-spread mourning on Chinese media Getty Coronavirus: Cases soar of deadly new flu-like virus Officers in protective gear enter the cruise ship Diamond Princess, where people tested positive for coronavirus, after the ship arrived at Daikoku Pier Cruise Terminal in Yokohama, south of Tokyo Reuters Coronavirus: Cases soar of deadly new flu-like virus Firefighters and personnel from the health ministry participate in a drill to prepare for the potential arrival of passengers infected with the coronavirus at the Viru Viru International Airport, in Santa Cruz, Bolivia Reuters Coronavirus: Cases soar of deadly new flu-like virus Scientists are at work in the VirPath university laboratory as they try to find an effective treatment against the new Sars-like coronavirus AFP via Getty Coronavirus: Cases soar of deadly new flu-like virus Medical workers in protective suits attend to patients at the Wuhan International Conference and Exhibition Center, which has been converted into a makeshift hospital to receive patients with mild symptoms caused by the virus Reuters Coronavirus: Cases soar of deadly new flu-like virus A girl wears a mask as a preventive measure against the coronavirus outbreak, in Bangkok, Thailand Reuters Coronavirus: Cases soar of deadly new flu-like virus A man is transferred from the World Dream cruise ship to an ambulance at the Kai Tak cruise terminal in Hong Kong as health officials conduct inspections AFP via Getty Coronavirus: Cases soar of deadly new flu-like virus Workers from a disinfection service company enter Lotte Department Store in central Seoul, South Korea EPA Coronavirus: Cases soar of deadly new flu-like virus A man who arrived from Hubei province talks with police at a checkpoint at the Jiujiang Yangtze River Bridge Reuters Coronavirus: Cases soar of deadly new flu-like virus A doctor holds a handheld digital thermometer near health officials preparing a health check for arriving passengers from China at Don Mueang Airport in Bangkok EPA Coronavirus: Cases soar of deadly new flu-like virus A resident walks across an empty track in Wuhan Getty Coronavirus: Cases soar of deadly new flu-like virus A scientific staff member works in a secure laboratory, researching the coronavirus, at the Pasteur Institute in Dakar AFP via Getty Coronavirus: Cases soar of deadly new flu-like virus Medical staff members preparing equipment to meet passengers of a military plane, which evacuated citizens of Russia and ex-Soviet countries from China's Wuhan province Vsluh.ru via Reuters Coronavirus: Cases soar of deadly new flu-like virus Staff wearing protective suits as they prepare to disinfect a Vietnam Airlines plane at Noi Bai International Airport in Hanoi Vietnam Airlines/AFP/Getty Coronavirus: Cases soar of deadly new flu-like virus A South Korean person, who was evacuated from Wuhan, arrives at the National Medical Center after showing suspected symptoms of novel coronavirus, in Seoul EPA Coronavirus: Cases soar of deadly new flu-like virus Officers in protective gear escort a person (under the blue sheet) who was on board cruise ship Diamond Princess and was tested positive for coronavirus Reuters Coronavirus: Cases soar of deadly new flu-like virus A doctor being disinfected by his colleague at a quarantine zone in Wuhan AFP via Getty Coronavirus: Cases soar of deadly new flu-like virus Buses carrying British nationals from the coronavirus-hit city of Wuhan, arrive at Arrowe Park Hospital in Merseyside Getty Coronavirus: Cases soar of deadly new flu-like virus Medical staff transfer patients in Wuhan EPA Coronavirus: Cases soar of deadly new flu-like virus Indonesian health officials conduct an exercise drill in transporting a patient requiring isolation at the Belawan port in Medan AFP via Getty Coronavirus: Cases soar of deadly new flu-like virus The Pasteur Institute in Dakar, designated by the African Union as one of the two reference centres in Africa for the detection of the new coronavirus that appeared in China, is hosting experts from 15 countries on the continent this weekend to prepare them to deal with the disease AFP via Getty Coronavirus: Cases soar of deadly new flu-like virus A government worker disinfects a co-worker after visiting a quarantined woman's home in Qingdao EPA Coronavirus: Cases soar of deadly new flu-like virus An aerial view of the deserted roads and bridges in Wuhan Getty Coronavirus: Cases soar of deadly new flu-like virus Medical workers hold a strike outside the Hospital Authority as they demand for Hong Kong to close its border with China to reduce the coronavirus spreading Reuters Coronavirus: Cases soar of deadly new flu-like virus Reuters Coronavirus: Cases soar of deadly new flu-like virus A person has their tempriture checked in Qingdao, China EPA Coronavirus: Cases soar of deadly new flu-like virus Ultrastructural morphology exhibited by coronaviruses. Note the spikes that adorn the outer surface of the virus, which impart the look of a corona surrounding the virion, when viewed electron microscopically Centers for Disease Control and Prevention/AFP Coronavirus: Cases soar of deadly new flu-like virus Malaysian nationals being directed from a bus by health officials in protective suits as they arrived at Kuala Lumpur International Airport in Sepang, after being evacuated from Wuhan Malaysia's Ministry of Health/AFP Coronavirus: Cases soar of deadly new flu-like virus People hoping to buy face masks crowd outside a medical supply shop that was raided by police for allegedly hoarding and overpricing the masks, as public fear over China's Wuhan Coronavirus grow in Manila, Philippines. The Philippine government has been heavily criticized after failing to immediately implement travel restrictions from China, the source of a deadly coronavirus that has now killed hundreds and infected thousands more Getty Coronavirus: Cases soar of deadly new flu-like virus Residents wearing masks and raincoats volunteer to take temperature of passengers following the outbreak of a new coronavirus at a bus stop at Tin Shui Wai, a border town in Hong Kong Reuters Coronavirus: Cases soar of deadly new flu-like virus Italian citizens repatriated from Wuhan going though a health control zone after landing at the Mario De Bernardi military airport in Pratica di Mare, south of Rome, prior to be placed in quarantine Italian Defence Ministry/AFP Coronavirus: Cases soar of deadly new flu-like virus Workers arrange beds in a 2,000-bed mobile hospital, set up in an exhibition center, in Wuhan EPA Coronavirus: Cases soar of deadly new flu-like virus A doctor checks conditions of occupants in a hotel accommodating isolated people in Wuhan EPA Coronavirus: Cases soar of deadly new flu-like virus Medical staff members wearing protective clothing to help stop the spread of a deadly virus which began in the city of Wuhan, arrive with a patient at the Wuhan Red Cross Hospital. The Chinese army deployed medical specialists to the epicentre of the spiralling viral outbreak that has killed and spread around the world AFP via Getty Coronavirus: Cases soar of deadly new flu-like virus A baby wearing a protective face mask is pushed by a woman as they arrive from Shenzhen to Hong Kong at Lo Wu MTR station AFP via Getty Images Coronavirus: Cases soar of deadly new flu-like virus A health worker checks the temperature of a woman entering a subway station in Beijing Getty Coronavirus: Cases soar of deadly new flu-like virus A young child wears a protective mask and is covered in plastic while waiting to check in to a flight at Beijing Capital Airport The World Health Organization (WHO) on Thursday declared the coronavirus a public health emergency of international concern Getty Coronavirus: Cases soar of deadly new flu-like virus Ambulance crews arrive at RAF Brize Norton in Oxfordshire, as it prepares for a return flight from Wuhan, China. Eighty-three Britons and 27 foreign nationals who were trapped in Wuhan are being flown back to the UK Tom Maddick / SWNS Coronavirus: Cases soar of deadly new flu-like virus A woman carries a baby wearing a protective mask as they exit the arrival hall at Hong Kong High Speed Rail Station Getty Coronavirus: Cases soar of deadly new flu-like virus Camp beds at a Medical Assessment Center set up at the airport in Frankfurt am Main, western Germany, on the eve of the arrival of German citizens evacuated from Wuhan AFP via Getty Coronavirus: Cases soar of deadly new flu-like virus Funeral parlour staff members in protective suits help a colleague with disinfection after they transferred a body at a hospital in Wuhan Reuters Coronavirus: Cases soar of deadly new flu-like virus Muslims wearing masks pray for the victims of coronavirus at a mosque in Ahmedabad, India Reuters Coronavirus: Cases soar of deadly new flu-like virus Medical officials waiting for people who wants to check the novel coronavirus at Myeongdong shopping district Getty Coronavirus: Cases soar of deadly new flu-like virus Children wear plastic bottles as makeshift homemade protection and protective masks while waiting to check in to a flight at Beijing Capital Airport Getty Coronavirus: Cases soar of deadly new flu-like virus A patient assisted by medical staff gets off an ambulance in Wuhan AFP/Getty Coronavirus: Cases soar of deadly new flu-like virus People line up to buy face masks from a medical supply company in Nanning, southern China's Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region. Countries began evacuating their citizens from the Chinese city hardest-hit by a new virus that has now infected more people in China than were sickened in the country by SARS Chinatopix via AP Coronavirus: Cases soar of deadly new flu-like virus Millions spent their normally festive Lunar New Year holiday under lockdown Getty Coronavirus: Cases soar of deadly new flu-like virus Children with face masks wash their hands before prayer at Erawan shrine in Bangkok. Thailand has detected eight Coronavirus cases so far AFP via Getty Coronavirus: Cases soar of deadly new flu-like virus An Indonesian health officer points at the screen of a thermal scanner for passengers China confirmed that the deadly Wuhan coronavirus virus can be transmitted between humans AFP via Getty Coronavirus: Cases soar of deadly new flu-like virus Hospital workers wearing protective eyewear and masks examine an Indonesian student who returned from China in quarantine at a hospital in Banda Aceh AFP via Getty Images Coronavirus: Cases soar of deadly new flu-like virus Ambulance staff dispose of an outfit at the hospital in Wuhan EPA Coronavirus: Cases soar of deadly new flu-like virus A person checks the temperature of a passenger to help stop the spread of a deadly virus as he arrives at the Sultan Mahmud Badaruddin II International airport in Palembang AFP via Getty Coronavirus: Cases soar of deadly new flu-like virus Nepali students, wearing face masks, attend a class at Matribhumi School in Bhaktapur, on the outskirts of Kathmandu AFP via Getty Images Coronavirus: Cases soar of deadly new flu-like virus Medical staff at the Wuhan Red Cross Hospital AFP via Getty Coronavirus: Cases soar of deadly new flu-like virus Two Buddhist monks wear face masks while walking along a street in Yangon AFP via Getty Images Coronavirus: Cases soar of deadly new flu-like virus Staff disinfecting a residential area in Ruichang, part of Jiujiang in China's central Jiangxi province AFP via Getty Coronavirus: Cases soar of deadly new flu-like virus Workers are seen at the construction site of a new hospital being built to treat patients from a deadly virus outbreak in Wuhan in China's central Hubei province on January 27, 2020. - China is rushing to build a new hospital in a staggering 10 days to treat patients at the epicentre of a deadly virus outbreak that has stricken thousands of people, state media reported on January 24. (Photo by Hector RETAMAL / AFP) (Photo by HECTOR RETAMAL/AFP via Getty Images) HECTOR RETAMAL AFP via Getty Coronavirus: Cases soar of deadly new flu-like virus Vapor blurs the goggles of an ambulance driver while they work, in Wuhan EPA Coronavirus: Cases soar of deadly new flu-like virus Workers producing facemasks at a factory in Yangzhou AFP via Getty Coronavirus: Cases soar of deadly new flu-like virus Medical staff getting on an ambulance in Wuhan AFP via Getty Coronavirus: Cases soar of deadly new flu-like virus A vendor of traditional masks wears a facial mask at his shop in Thamel EPA Coronavirus: Cases soar of deadly new flu-like virus An airport official checks the temperature of a passenger upon his arrival at the Bacha Khan International Airport in Peshawar AFP via Getty Coronavirus: Cases soar of deadly new flu-like virus Medical staff members arrive with a patient at the Wuhan Red Cross Hospital AFP via Getty Coronavirus: Cases soar of deadly new flu-like virus An ambulance driver talking with medical staff in Wuhan AFP via Getty Coronavirus: Cases soar of deadly new flu-like virus Wuhan Hygiene Emergency Response Team leave the closed Huanan Seafood Wholesale Market The new coronavirus appears to have its origins in a seafood market in the central Chinese city of Wuhan, a popular transport hub AFP via Getty Coronavirus: Cases soar of deadly new flu-like virus Workers produce protective suits at a factory in Nantong AFP via Getty Coronavirus: Cases soar of deadly new flu-like virus Passengers scanned by thermal imaging for body temperature as they go through health measures and procedures after they landed at Rome's Fiumicino airport on a southern airlines flight from Wuhan Aeroporto Di Roma/AFP via Getty Coronavirus: Cases soar of deadly new flu-like virus A Thai royal guard wears a mask while on duty at the Grand Palace in Bangkok EPA Coronavirus: Cases soar of deadly new flu-like virus A man wearing a face mask rides a nearly empty subway train in Beijing AP Coronavirus: Cases soar of deadly new flu-like virus Medical staff members at the Wuhan Red Cross Hospital AFP via Getty Coronavirus: Cases soar of deadly new flu-like virus A shopper wearing goggles with a face mask and gloves uses a self checkout machine at a supermarket in Wuhan AP Coronavirus: Cases soar of deadly new flu-like virus Medical staff transfer patients to Jinyintan hospital EPA Coronavirus: Cases soar of deadly new flu-like virus Members of the Italian Red Cross putting on protective gear, getting ready to give health checks to passengers that landed at Rome's Fiumicino airport on a southern airlines flight from Wuhan Aeroporto Di Roma/AFP via Getty Coronavirus: Cases soar of deadly new flu-like virus A member of the Hong Kong government's Civil Aid Service gestures at the entrance to the Lady MacLehose Holiday Village which is being used as one of two quarantine centres for people who have been in close proximity with suspected cases of a SARS-type virus. Hong Kong will turn two holiday camps, including a former military barracks, into quarantine zones for people who may have come into contact with carriers of the Wuhan virus, officials announced AFP via Getty Images Coronavirus: Cases soar of deadly new flu-like virus Medical staff wearing protective suits at the Zhongnan hospital in Wuhan STR/AFP via Getty Coronavirus: Cases soar of deadly new flu-like virus A Malaysia Health official checks passengers going through a thermal scanner upon their arrival at the Kuala Lumpur International Airport EPA Coronavirus: Cases soar of deadly new flu-like virus Staff disinfecting Yingtan North Railway Station, China China banned trains and planes from leaving the major city at the centre of a virus outbreak on January 23, seeking to seal off its 11 million people to contain the contagious disease that has claimed lives and spread to other countries AFP via Getty Coronavirus: Cases soar of deadly new flu-like virus A passenger walks past a quarantine control station at Narita airport, Japan EPA Coronavirus: Cases soar of deadly new flu-like virus Patients queue up to seek treatment in Wuhan Tongji Hospital Fever Clinic, in Wuhan EPA Coronavirus: Cases soar of deadly new flu-like virus Quarantine workers spray disinfectant at Incheon International Airport, South Korea EPA Coronavirus: Cases soar of deadly new flu-like virus A member of staff checks the temperature of a guest entering the casino of the New Orient Landmark hotel in Macau, after it reported its first case of the new SARS-like virus AFP via Getty Coronavirus: Cases soar of deadly new flu-like virus Medical staff transfer patients to Jin Yintan hospital Little is known about the new disease which, if confirmed, would be only the seventh coronavirus known to science that can infect humans Getty Coronavirus: Cases soar of deadly new flu-like virus Members of the Three Gorges Medical Laboratory offering free masks to the public in Yichang, China AFP via Getty Coronavirus: Cases soar of deadly new flu-like virus Gabriel Leung, right, chair professor of public health medicine at the Faculty of Medicine at the University of Hong Kong, speaks about the extent of the Wuhan coronavirus outbreak in China AFP via Getty Coronavirus: Cases soar of deadly new flu-like virus Members of staff of the Wuhan Hygiene Emergency Response Team conducting searches on the closed Huanan Seafood Wholesale Market AFP via Getty Coronavirus: Cases soar of deadly new flu-like virus A quarantine officer at Incheon International Airport, South Korea, uses an electronic thermometer to check the temperature of passengers arriving by plane from Wuhan The virus causes symptoms of viral pneumonia, and has already led to several deaths EPA Coronavirus: Cases soar of deadly new flu-like virus A screen shows cancelled flights at Tianhe airport in Wuhan AFP via Getty Coronavirus: Cases soar of deadly new flu-like virus Medical staff transfer patients to Jinyintan hospital EPA Coronavirus: Cases soar of deadly new flu-like virus Health officials hand out information about the current coronavirus at Kuala Lumpur International Airport AP Coronavirus: Cases soar of deadly new flu-like virus A store owner argues with security guards as he attempts to enter the closed Huanan wholesale seafood market AFP via Getty Coronavirus: Cases soar of deadly new flu-like virus Workers producing facemasks at a factory in Handan, China's northern Hebei province AFP via Getty Coronavirus: Cases soar of deadly new flu-like virus Medical staff and security personnel stop patients' family members from being too close to the Jinyintan hospital Reuters Coronavirus: Cases soar of deadly new flu-like virus maya-goodfellowAn airport staff member uses a temperature gun to check people leaving Wuhan Tianhe International Airport AP Coronavirus: Cases soar of deadly new flu-like virus A rescue worker walks past a notice about new coronavirus that has broken out in China Reuters Coronavirus: Cases soar of deadly new flu-like virus Health officials wear face masks at an inspection site at the Kuala Lumpur International Airport in Sepang AP Coronavirus: Cases soar of deadly new flu-like virus Medical staff members carry a patient into the Jinyintan hospital AFP via Getty Coronavirus: Cases soar of deadly new flu-like virus A staff member checks body temperature of a child after a train from Wuhan arrived at Hangzhou Railway Station in Hangzhou AFP via Getty Images Coronavirus: Cases soar of deadly new flu-like virus A quarantine station measures passenger body temperatures at Narita Airport JIJI PRESS/AFP via Getty Coronavirus: Cases soar of deadly new flu-like virus Passengers walk past a notice displayed near a quarantine control station at Narita airport EPA Coronavirus: Cases soar of deadly new flu-like virus Passengers walk past a poster alerting on coronavirus screening ahead upon their arrival at the Kuala Lumpur International Airport EPA Coronavirus: Cases soar of deadly new flu-like virus An employee sprays disinfectant on a train, as a precaution against coronavirus, at Suseo Station in Seoul EPA Coronavirus: Cases soar of deadly new flu-like virus Kazakh sanitary-epidemiological service worker uses a thermal scanner to detect travellers from China who may have symptoms possibly connected with the previously unknown coronavirus, at Almaty International Airport, Kazakhstan Reuters Coronavirus: Cases soar of deadly new flu-like virus Pharmacist Liu Zhuzhen stands near a sign reading "face masks are sold out" at her pharmacy in Shanghai AP Coronavirus: Cases soar of deadly new flu-like virus The Wuhan Medical Treatment Center, EPA Coronavirus: Cases soar of deadly new flu-like virus A worker in a protective suit at the closed seafood market in Wuhan Reuters Coronavirus: Cases soar of deadly new flu-like virus Passengers wear protective face masks at the departure hall of a high speed train station in Hong Kong AP Coronavirus: Cases soar of deadly new flu-like virus A notice for passengers from Wuhan Getty Coronavirus: Cases soar of deadly new flu-like virus A man wears a mask while riding on mobike past the closed Huanan Seafood Wholesale Market Getty

We are grateful that this young man is recovering and sought medical attention immediately, said Massachusetts public health commissioner Monica Bharel.

Massachusetts has been preparing for a possible case of this new coronavirus, and we were fortunate that astute clinicians took appropriate action quickly. Again, the risk to the public from the 2019 novel coronavirus remains low in Massachusetts.

She added: Our priority is not only to protect and inform the residents of Boston but also to help this man continue to recover. We are pleased that he is doing well.

Coronavirus has resulted in thousands of confirmed human infections in more than 20 countries, with more than 99 percent of cases in China.

The flu-like virus, which is believed to have originated in a market that traded illegally in wildlife in Hubei province, has so far resulted in 259 deaths in China.

 Residents chastised by talking drones for not wearing face masks amid coronavirus outbreak.mp4

In the US, three people have been diagnosed in California, two in Illinois and one individual each in Massachusetts, Washington State, and Arizona. The Center for Disease Control reported the second Illinois case was the only instance of person-to-person transmission of the virus within the US.

The World Health Organisation this week declared that the coronavirus outbreak is a public health emergency of international concern.

On Friday the US announced measures to ban foreign nationals who have recently been in China from entering the country. Australia has since followed suit.
It must have been a crushing burden for Senate Republicans, having to sit silently and listen to the substantial evidence justifying the impeachment of President Donald Trump. Whether to remove a sitting president is only the most important question many will face in their lifetimes. Didnt they owe it to the nation to carve out just a few extra minutes for testimony from a direct eyewitness who was in the room while Trump was abusing his office?

Apparently, they just couldnt be bothered, voting 51 to 49 Friday not to call witnesses. Rather than inform themselves of facts and 100% first-hand witness testimony from former national security adviser John Bolton, they opted for blindness and ignorance. This after weeks of dismissing the Democratic case against Trump as being based on hearsay and second-hand sourcing.

The idea of securing a majority vote just to hear testimony was never meant to indicate a willingness to convict Trump and remove him from office. It was merely a bid to give senators the fullest possible picture of Trumps actions from someone who was in the room when the president articulated his motives for withholding $391 million in military aid from Ukraine.
The Cronology of Leaders

In 1868 Fante states join in a U.K.-sponsored Fanti Confederation (dissolved in 1873); the following are members according to the "constitution of Mankessim" of 1871, which gave the confederation its definitive organization:

(1) Kingdoms

Kings (signatories of the constitution)

Mankessim Kwasi Edo

Abura Anfo Oto

Assin Kudmin Inhie and Tshibu Dhahon

Ayan Kuo Yanfo

Edgimaku Kudmin Mayua

Inkosokoomper Esando

Komminda Kudgse Okro

(2) Chiefdoms

Chiefs (signatories of the constitution)

Abakrampa Kwasi Nakko

Abbankrom Kwarsu Arkwayno

Abuardi Kwa Amissa

Ahiru Kwabina Bovada

Akrofome Kwarsu Ansa

Ampinafon Brelwi

Arnun Luabina Sason

Balhyn Kuo Sassan

Bohhen Kwabina Odom

Bokan Kwasi Bekki

Dominassie Thomas Salomon

Donassie James Simons

Dongua Kwarsu Yarsu

Impessidardi Kwasi Buargua

Kwaman Luassie Larla

Mankessim Kwabina Archwayo

Odomana Kwamin Atta

Saltpond Luabina Luagrene and Joseph Graham

Tchafu Kwasi Imana

Zuarko Kofi Adoobah



Presidents

1868 - 1869 Kwasi Edo, Omanhene of Mankessim

+ Anfo Oto, Omanhene of Abura

+ Ortabil, Omanhene of Gomoa

+ Anfo Oto, Omanhene of Abura + Ortabil, Omanhene of Gomoa 1869 - 18 November 1871 Gyateh Kuma = R.J. Ghartey (b. c.1820 - d. 1897)

18 November 1871 - July 1872 Kwasi Edo, Omanhene of Mankessim

+ Anfo Oto, Omanhene of Abura

+ Anfo Oto, Omanhene of Abura July 1872 - 1873 Kwasi Edo, Omanhene of Mankessim

Chairman of the Council and Chief Secretary

1868 - 1871 Geo Amissa

Chairman of the Government

1871 - 1873 W.E. Davidson

History of the Fante

The Fante live around Cape Coast and Elmina and are one of the Akan peoples. The Fanei speak a Twi language, which is part of the Kwa group, and number about 1,170,000. Inheritance and succession to public office are determined mostly by matrilineal descent. According to their oral traditions, the Fanti arrived in their present habitat from the north by the 17th cent. They served as middlemen in the commerce between the interior and British and Dutch traders on the coast. In the early 18th cent. the Fanti formed a confederation, primarily as a means of protection against Ashanti incursions from the interior. Several Fanti-Ashanti wars followed. The Fanti were aided by the British, who, however, destroyed the strong Fanti confederation established between 1868 and 1872, believing it a threat to their hegemony on the coast. In 1874 a joint Fanti-British army defeated the Ashanti, and in the same year the Fanti became part of the British Gold Coast colony.

The Asafo Warrior Clans

The word `Asafo' is derived from 'sa' (meaning war) and 'fo' (meaning people). Warrior groups are active throughout the Akan area, but it is the Fante tribe which inhabit the coastal region of Ghana, that has developed a sophisticated and expressive community with a social and political organization based on martial principles, and elaborate traditions of visual art.



It is certain that the local organization of warriors into units of fighting men was an established practice well before the arrival of Europeans. Nevertheless, the influence on - and the manipulation of - these groups to suit the trading and colonial ambitions of the foreigners has created many of the qualities of the Fante Asafo that continue to this day.



The situation throughout the Fante region is fraught with political complexities, for there are twenty-four traditional states along an eighty- mile stretch of the Atlantic coast, and each state is independently ruled by a paramount chief or 'omanhen', supported by elders and a hierarchy of divisional, town and village chiefs. In any one state there may be from two to fourteen Asafo companies, with as many as seven active companies in a single town. There is a lack of political unity within the Fante culture as a whole, so that inter-company rivalries - as well as disagreements between the states - are, not surprisingly, endemic. When the Fante were not fighting together against a common enemy, these antagonisms often extended to open conflict among themselves. observers report that battles between Asafo companies in the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries left many dead and wounded.



By exploiting these divisions, the Europeans could `divide and rule' and ensure that their control of the coast went unchallenged. At the same time, by organizing the Asafo warriors into efficient military units, they could bring together an army for a quick reaction to any threat from the interior. The enemy was, more often than not, the powerful Ashanti kingdom, a traditional opponent of the Fante, and a dangerous and unpredictable supplier of gold and slaves to the European traders on the coast. The primary function of the Asafo, as we have seen, was defence of the state, Nevertheless, the companies are key players in a balance-of- power struggle - typical of the many that exist in communities the world over - between the military and civilian groups within government. Although the Asafo are subordinate to their chiefs and paramount chief, they are intimately involved in the selection of the chief and are responsible for his crowning or 'enstoolment'. As long as the chief has the support of the people - as represented by the Asafo - he has the authority accorded to him by tradition; the prerogative to appoint and remove chiefs remains with the people. Asafo elders also serve as advisers to the chief.



While Fante chieftaincy is aristocratic and matrilineal - the chief tracing his descent through females back to the founders of the community - the Asafo are patrilineal and democratic, Every child, male or female, automatically enters his father's company, and membership is open to all classes, from stool holders to fishermen.
Russia fears an escalation between Iran and Israel and wants to avoid it at any cost.

On January 23, Russian President Vladimir Putin travelled to Israel to attend the commemoration of the 75th anniversary of the liberation of the Auschwitz-Birkenau concentration camp by Soviet forces. This was only his third official trip to the country since he became president in 2001 (he previously visited in 2005 and 2012).

Putin and Russian officials were welcomed in Israel as important guests and the Israeli leadership made clear it was taking Russias side in its dispute with some Eastern European countries on the Soviet role in the liberation of Europe from the Nazi rule, an issue that is extremely important to the Russian president, who focuses much of his domestic political rhetoric on the Soviet victory in World War II.

Just a week later, on January 30, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu travelled to Moscow to meet the Russian president. This was the fourth trip of the prime minister to Russia over the past year alone. He visited Putin ahead of the Israeli elections in April and September, hoping to boost his electoral chances. This time, Putin did not disappoint.

He took the decision to release from prison Naama Issahar, an Israeli citizen arrested for alleged drug smuggling at a Moscow airport in 2019. Her detention was deemed a political move aimed at pressuring Israel to release Alexey Burkov, a Russian hacker who faced extradition to the United States.

Significantly, the Kremlin made the decision to let Issahar go despite the fact that Burkov was handed over to the US authorities in November. Her release was another major diplomatic victory for Netanyahu (after the announcement of US President Donald Trumps Middle East plan).

The Kremlin likely calculated that it is better off helping Netanyahu win another term and avoid jail, given that under his government, Russian-Israeli relations have flourished  something Moscow has been pushing for since the 1990s.

At this moment, close relations with Israel, a close ally of the US and the European Union, are important to Moscow for several reasons. First, they undermine Western efforts to put Russia under international isolation for its rule in the Ukrainian war and its annexation of Crimea. Israel is also playing a certain role in helping Moscow leverage its gains in the Middle East in its dialogue with the West for normalisation.

Second, Russia needs close coordination with Israel, which plays a significant role in determining security and political arrangements in the Levant (especially through its alliance with the US), to secure its positions in Syria. The stability of a Russian-backed regime in Damascus is contingent on Israels cooperation.

Thirdly, Russia and Israel also have strong economic and cultural ties, given the significant population of Jewish immigrants from the former Soviet Union. In 2019, Russian-Israeli trade reached $5bn, bringing Israel into the cohort of Russias main trade partners in the region.

Significantly, this exchange of visits came just weeks after US drones assassinated Iranian General Qassem Soleimani in Iraq, sparking another escalation of regional tensions. For Tehran, Moscows strategic partner in the region, these visits must have caused some anxiety.

After all, they were preceded by a rather muted reaction from the Kremlin to Soleimanis killing. While Moscow officially condemned the incident and even offered its mediation to defuse tensions between the US and Iran, it still preferred to distance itself from the situation by keeping relatively silent. This may have seemed surprising to some given the close ties between Russia and Iran and the key position Soleimani within the hierarchy of the Islamic Republic.

Some Kremlin critics explained this reaction with theories about how Russia stands to gain after Soleimanis assassination, but that is really not the case. Moscow neither benefitted much from the temporary and short-lived spike in oil prices after the incident nor from an alleged power vacuum in Syria.

Those gains that Moscow received from high oil prices after Soleimanis killing has already been counterbalanced by the subsequent drop in oil prices due to fears caused by the coronavirus outbreak.

Soleimanis death is also not going to open up much space for Russia in Syria. The late general was definitely an important figure in Irans foreign operations, but his work was institutionalised and his successor  appointed shortly after his death  will pick up where he left off.

Russias silence after the assassination had much more to do with its perception that Iran brought this upon itself by provoking the US in Iraq and the Gulf, and with its fear that the incident could lead to aggressive Iranian action against Israel, which is not in its interest.

For years now, Russia has been striking a balancing act between Israel and Iran in the region. By 2015, the Kremlin managed to make Iran and Israel accept the fact that Moscow is not going to choose between them while being equally ready to develop cooperation with both.

This policy has been repeatedly challenged by events surrounding the Syrian civil war, where Israel and Iran have come into direct confrontation. In the spring of 2018, Moscow managed to negotiate an informal agreement between the two countries which largely kept the Iranians and their proxies away from the Syrian-Israeli border in exchange for a halt to Israeli air raids against Iranian positions that did not threaten Israeli security directly.

Since then, the agreement has been violated by both sides repeatedly, but Russia has continued to put pressure on Iran and Israel to de-escalate. The Kremlin has threatened to leave the Iranian forces and proxies without Russian air support and has warned Israel that if it continued its aggressive air raids against the Iranians beyond southern Syria, it will supply Damascus with additional air defence systems (S-300, TOR-M1 and etc).

This position of an arbiter gives Russia both political leverage in the region and international prestige and for this reason, it would very much like to preserve the status quo of Israeli-Iranian tensions without open conflict.

An Iranian strike against Israel, however, would disrupt this status quo. Iran has always clearly articulated that in the case of US actions against Iran, US allies in the region will be the main targets of Iranian retaliation. Consequently, after Soleimanis assassination, Haifa, one of the largest Israeli cities, was named as one of the potential targets for a revenge attack.

While the US showed little interest in protecting Gulf countries against Iranian aggression, Israel could be different. An attack on its closest ally would likely elicit a response from Washington, plunging the region into a major conflict. And that is what Russia wants to avoid at any cost because it would force it to take sides and get involved, which would inevitably result in diplomatic losses.

Another conflict near the borders of Russias sphere of influence in Central Asia would also negatively affect the stability of the post-Soviet space and divert its attention from the wars in Syria and Libya, where it is playing a pivotal role.

The fall of the current regime in Tehran as a result of US military action is also not in Russias interest. It considers Iran an important player in the Middle East, a bulwark against US hegemony and a convenient partner on occasion which can give Russian diplomatic initiatives in the region important backing. A new government in Tehran may not necessarily have pro-Russian sentiments or be interested in working with Moscow on a wide array of issues.

For this reason, while the Russian leadership may enjoy its rapprochement with Israel and the international diplomatic gains that come with it, it would always staunchly oppose any action that threatens the regime in Tehran.

In this context, Irans decision to de-escalate after Soleimanis death by launching limited attacks against US positions in Iraq has come as a relief for Russia. Yet, the risk of another US-Iran escalation remains high, which means Moscow will likely have a difficult time maintaining its balancing act between Tehran and Tel Aviv in the future.

The views expressed in this article are the authors own and do not necessarily reflect Al Jazeeras editorial stance.
For the second time this week, Portland police are investigating incidents of adults approaching children they didnt know and trying to lure them into their cars.

Officers said on Wednesday, a woman in a black four-door sedan approached a 14-year-old girl near Southwest Skyline Boulevard and Highway 26 and tried to get her to come toward the car. The girl refused, ran to a nearby business and called 911. The woman, who appeared to be in her 30s, drove away.

The day before, police said, a 9-year-old girl was near Kelly Elementary School at Southeast 89th Avenue and Southeast Cooper Street, when two men in a white Ford Econoline with no rear windows approached her. The girl said the passenger in the van offered her candy and a ride. She ran to a nearby house and told an adult, and the two men drove away.

Police said the two incidents were unrelated and happened in separate parts of the city. But earlier in the week, law enforcement in Vancouver also reported that they were investigating two incidents of adults trying to lure children.

According to the Clark County Sheriffs Office, on Monday a woman drove up to a bus stop at Jason Lee Middle School and approached a student who was standing there. Police said the car was a Toyota Camry, and had tinted windows and stains and scratches on the exterior. The student said they saw a frayed rope and plastic bags in the back seat. The woman said, your grandma told me to pick you up. The student didnt accept the ride, and the woman drove away.

The Columbian newspaper reported that a similar thing happened near Jason Lee Middle School and nearby Eisenhower Elementary School on Jan. 14, with a woman driving a white van.

Police have not yet publicly identified any of the suspects.

Jayati Ramakrishnan; 503-221-4320; jramakrishnan@oregonian.com; @JRamakrishnanOR

Subscribe to Oregonian/OregonLive newsletters and podcasts for the latest news and top stories.
President Donald Trump is expected to allow the US military to once again use landmines in conflict zones across the world.

An internal US State Department cable suggests that President Donald Trump will roll back President Barack Obamas 2014 policy that ended the production of anti-personnel landmines.

The United States will not sacrifice American service members safety, particularly when technologically advanced safeguards are available that can allow landmines to be employed responsibly to ensure our militarys war-fighting advantage, while also limiting the risk of unintended harm to civilians, the cable reads.

The Obama-era policy adhered to the 1997 Ottawa Convention, an international agreement banning the use, production and stockpiling or transfer of anti-personnel mines.

Yemen's battle to clear the country of landmines and explosives Show all 10 1 /10 Yemen's battle to clear the country of landmines and explosives Yemen's battle to clear the country of landmines and explosives Emad, 14, lost both his legs in a mortar attack near Aden, Yemen Bel Trew/The Independent Yemen's battle to clear the country of landmines and explosives Young trainees are schooled in how to identify mines and Improvised Explosive Devices in Mukalla, Yemen Bel Trew/The Independent Yemen's battle to clear the country of landmines and explosives Information leaflets warn civilians of the dangers of landmines in Yemen Bel Trew/The Independent Yemen's battle to clear the country of landmines and explosives A young boy looks out the window of a prosthetic limb and rehabilitation centre in Aden, Yemen Bel Trew/The Independent Yemen's battle to clear the country of landmines and explosives Land mines IEDS, and suicide belts found by the mine clearance teams are laid out during training sessions Bel Trew/The Independent Yemen's battle to clear the country of landmines and explosives This suicide belt packed with nails was made by al-Qaeda militants in south Yemen Bel Trew/The Independent Yemen's battle to clear the country of landmines and explosives The de-mining teams have compiled booklets educating local populations about looking out for mines and IEDS Bel Trew/The Independent Yemen's battle to clear the country of landmines and explosives Posters line the walls of a training centre alerting civilians to the dangers of mines Bel Trew/The Independent Yemen's battle to clear the country of landmines and explosives These anti-tank and anti-vehicle mines are among thousands pulled out of the ground by mine clearances crews every year Bel Trew/The Independent Yemen's battle to clear the country of landmines and explosives Mine clearance crews say Al-Qaeda militants make their own suicide vests as well as victim-activated explosive devices Bel Trew/The Independent

Since the implementation of Mr Obamas policy, the US has only been authorised to use anti-personnel mines in defence of South Korea.

The change in policy is expected to be implemented in the next few days and was prompted by a Pentagon review launched in 2017 by then-Secretary of Defense Jim Mattis.

The review found that landmine prohibitions increased risk to mission success and increased the chance of US casualties. It states than any landmines used moving forward must also include a 30-day self-destruct or self-deactivation mechanism.

Many landmine deaths occur when non-combatants stumble upon long-abandoned munitions buried in former warzones. A timed self-deactivation would help prevent those deaths.

Despite the safety measure, the international community largely opposes the use of landmines. The Mine Ban Treaty  established during the 1997 Ottawa Convention  was signed by 164 nations, though the US declined to sign.

The International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) characterises landmine injuries as particularly horrific and are considered among the worst injuries by war surgeons. For those who do survive an encounter with a mine, theyre likely to spend the rest of their lives dealing with the injury.

The victim who survives an anti-personnel mine blast typically requires amputation, multiple operations and prolonged physical rehabilitation. Mine survivors commonly suffer permanent disability  with serious social, psychological and economic implications, the ICRC wrote in a 2009 FAQ.

According to the ICRC, the most likely victims of an anti-personnel mine will be civilians attempting to carry on their daily business.

The groups most at risk from anti-personnel mines are typically men and boys involved in livelihood activities, such as farming, herding and the collection of firewood and water. In many affected communities, people have no choice but to enter areas that may be dangerous due to economic need, the ICRC statement read.

Rob Berchinski, the White House National Security Council director who coordinated landmine policy during the Obama Administration, took to Twitter onThursday to refute the idea that anti-personnel mines were especially useful military tools.

The main point is that theyre not only massively harmful to civilians after wars end, but theyre also of very negligible military utility, He wrote. Farmers and kids with legs blown off long after the war ends? Yep. A particularly useful tool for our service members? Nope.

Mr Berschinski went on to say the DoD acknowledged that these weapons serve no good purpose on modern battlefield. In fact, DoD-commissioned studies have shown that during the Gulf War they mainly served to limit US ground forces maneuver capability.
(Natural News) There is an old saying that a little knowledge is a dangerous thing. Sometimes good intentions combined with a lack of knowledge can make for a really toxic combination.

An excellent example of this is State Representative Katherine Rogers proposed legislation as outlined in New Hampshire House Bill 1389. The bill would impose criminal penalties on pet owners who do not provide adequate food, water or shelter for their animals.

While the architects of this bill clearly have good intentions and are trying to ensure that pets are treated humanely, provided with decent shelter and given access to food and water, some elements of the way it is structured reflect a lack of understanding  a dangerous thing. (Related: FDA approves anxiety drug for your dog  so he doesnt react to his normal animal instincts.)

No dog shall be left outside

As reported by the organization Sportsmens Alliance, HB 1389 would make it illegal to leave your dog outside for any period longer than 30 minutes, even in a fenced backyard, if the pet owner has not purchased a special dog house manufactured to meet strict state building codes.

The bill stipulates:

For any dog left outside and unattended for more than 30 minutes during any period, the dog shall be provided a shelter that is moisture-proof, wind-proof and of suitable size to accommodate the dog, allowing for freedom of movement to make normal postural adjustments, including the ability to stand, turn around and lie down with limbs outstretched. Such shelter shall be made of durable material with a solid, moisture-proof floor raised at least 3 inches from the ground. The roof shall extend 8 inches over the doorway and not permit rain to enter inside the shelter. Such shelter shall not be constructed of metal or any other material that readily conducts heat or cold.

In addition, the bill would also make it a crime to leave a dog outside for any period longer than 15 minutes, even when the special shelter has been provided, if the temperature is below 32 degrees.

No dog shall be left outside and unattended, regardless of access to an outdoor shelter, for more than 15 minutes during any period in which a severe weather advisory or warning has been issued for the area by the National Weather Service, or if the temperature is below 32-degrees Fahrenheit or above 90-degres Fahrenheit. This includes but is not limited to a dog in a securely fenced in yard, a dog in a kennel, or a tethered dog.

Again, the bills architects clearly believe that they are protecting the welfare of the animals in this way. But, again, a little knowledge is a dangerous thing. As explained by Sportsmens Alliance, certain dogs are accustomed to cold weather and would far rather be outside playing, even in very cold weather, than being trapped inside in an artificially controlled temperature. Labrador retrievers and huskys, for example, have cold weather coats ideally suited to spending long periods outdoors. (Related: Scientific study confirms that dogs grasp what their owners are saying.)

In addition, for sporting and hunting dogs, spending time outdoors acclimating to extreme weather can mean the difference between life and death. These dogs need to be exposed to cold weather over a period of several weeks so that their dense winter coats can grow in.

What is important for these dogs, however, is making sure their caloric needs are met. Hunting dogs can burn between 3,000 and 4,000 calories a day, and depending on their workload, with every 10 degree drop in temperature, their caloric needs will increase by 7 to 7.5 percent.

Clearly, good intentions and a little knowledge are not enough when it comes to the welfare of mans best friend. Different species have very different needs, and a one-size-fits-all bill that will essentially criminalize activities that are really in the best interests of some dog species will do more harm than good. This is what happens when we try to legislate common sense.

Learn more about the best way to care for your fur babies at NaturalNewsPets.com.

Sources include:

SportsmensAlliance.org

LegiScan.com

AKCCHF.org

WideOpenSpaces.com
Ottawa waits for Chinas go-ahead to fly Canadians out of Wuhan, Jan. 30

The Canadian governments knee jerk reaction to evacuate Canadian and U.K. citizens from Wuhan seems ill-advised.

With what would appear to be a growing concern for an evolving pandemic, the very sad reality is the best response the Canadian government might offer is to leave those individuals there within the quarantine zone.

This is one of those rare occasions where the common good of the herd needs to prevail over the desires of individuals.

Rest assured, China has responded decisively and swiftly and has far greater capacity to manage this outbreak. But the risks for transmission in North America increase if governments start repatriating individuals, and the virus with them.

Notwithstanding political differences, we can trust that China has a full and co-ordinated response. It would be surprising if they authorized travel in or out of the quarantine zone.

A better response would be for the Canadian government to restrict entry to any flight carrying a passenger originating from any part of China, until there is reasonable confidence that the virus has been contained.

Alan Gorman, Toronto

Read more about:
That exquisite legal reasoning flew in the face of clear video of the shooting and the pursuit that preceded it, recorded by a Fairfax County police cruiser that trailed both the Park Police vehicle and Ghaisars car. It showed the officers, apparently exasperated, opening fire when Ghaisars car slowly crept away from them after he had driven off twice before. At no point did Ghaisar present a credible threat to the officers or anyone else. And exasperation is not a license to kill.
Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman made a big announcement, reducing the income tax rate for individual taxpayer. She also introduced new slabs for taxation purpose.

People earning till Rs 5 lakh need not pay any income tax. For those who have an income between Rs 5 lakh and 7.5 lakh, will now pay 10 per cent tax; those earning between 7.5 lakh and 10 lakh will pay an income tax of 15 per cent. For income between 10 to 12.5 lakh, the new tax rate is 20 per cent and for income between 12.5 lakh and 15 lakh, the revised tax rate will be 25 per cent, said the Finance Minister.

There is no change for those earning above Rs 15 lakh per annum. They will be taxed at 30 per cent, Sitharaman added. She also said that Income tax reforms have been proposed to promote growth. The collection of taxes go back to the people manifold, said Sitharaman.

The Finance Minister also slashed the corporate tax to that India remains competitive.

She had earlier said that the government wont let taxpayers be harassed at the hands of officials.

We wish to enshrine in the statutes a taxpayer charter through this Budget. Our government remains committed to taking measures to ensure that our taxpayers are free from tax harassment of any kind, Sitharaman said in her budget speech.

She also promosed amendments to Companies Act that will take away criminal penalties for civil acts.

Wealth creators will be respected in this country, she added.
(Bloomberg Opinion) -- Shortly after his election victory in December, it was reported that Boris Johnson wanted the word Brexit retired. Not just retired, but expunged as a matter of urgency once the U.K. has left the European Union on Jan. 31.

This would be like Donald Trump telling White House staff that they need to drop the Make America Great Again thing. Without Brexit  and his Get Brexit Done campaign  wed mainly know Boris Johnson as just another former mayor, a talented politician who wrote amusing newspaper columns.

This attempted change of language seems trivial, but its not. For nearly four years, the neologism Brexit has dominated British politics, and resonated around the world. Why try to retire it now? I can see two reasons: The word is a constant and powerful reminder of the division and open wounds in British society; and while it was a weapon Johnson wielded successfully against his opponents, it might easily be used against him in future. The first concern is honorable, the other more Orwellian. But how successful Johnson is in changing the language of British politics might prove as important as anything he gets around the trade negotiating table with the European Union and the U.S. this year.

The word Brexit appeared back in 2012. Peter Wilding, a former lawyer and aide to former Prime Minister David Cameron, had little idea of its impact when he coined it in a May 2012 blog, inspired by the Greeks:

Unless a clear view is pushed that Britain must lead in Europe at the very least to achieve the completion of the Single Market, then the portmanteau for Greek euro exit [Grexit] might be followed by another sad word, Brexit.

A few years later, it spread like bush fire. By 2016, it had a place in the Oxford English Dictionary and was later named word of the year. But Wilding was appalled to find his invention used as a tool of destruction. Now chairman of the British Influence think tank, he sees Brexit as a narcissistic victim syndrome ignited by charlatan nostalgists. He has said it might do to Britain what the Treaty of Versailles did to Germany.

Story continues

Brexit, in Johnsons hands, wasnt a flaccid noun but a powerful verb. One might argue that you could have called Britains EU departure campaign pretty much anything and the result would have been the same. Perhaps, but something happened when those two words  British exit  fused. It became a rallying point for a passionate, but small, euroskeptic core of Johnsons ruling Conservative party. It anchored a Leave campaign whose language invoked national pride, appealed to peoples bias for action over inaction and their preference for simplicity.

In his book, The Language of Brexit, the linguist Steve Buckledee shows how skillfully this was done. Brexit stirred passion and represented action; Remainer language was limp by comparison and passive. The British Twitter poet Brian Bilston captured the power of the word in the last stanzas of a poem titled Meaningful Vote, which was the name given to the attempts of Johnsons predecessor, Theresa May, to win parliamentary approval for her Brexit deal:

How foolish, it seems;

How senseless, absurd,

To re-define a nation

In pursuit of a word.

Johnson, of all politicians, understands the mobilizing and seducing power of language. Hes probably the most prolix (and prolific) political leader Britain has had since Winston Churchill. He loves words that pack heat. He famously denied an affair by calling the allegations an inverted pyramid of piffle. He often invents words where a conventional formula wont do  such as backstop-ectomy to denote his determination to remove an element of Mays Brexit deal known as the Irish backstop, which he and other Brexiters disliked.

But now that the war is over, the weapon looks unsightly. Brexit represents a heroic and victorious campaign for freedom to one side of the divide, but a perfidious act of self-harm to the other.

RELATED: Why Brexit Opponents Lost the Vote and the Argument

Even many Brexiters are battle-weary and spent, no doubt worried about how well things will go from here for Britain. Hedge fund manager Crispin Odey, a vocal Brexiter, is holding back on the mirth. Sarah Vine, the columnist wife of cabinet member Michael Gove, says being on the winning side has left her numb. I think, like many Leave voters the length and breadth of the country, I have found the hatred and vitriol of the past few years ultimately very brutalizing, she wrote for the Daily Mail (not exactly a bastion of temperateness). We Leavers have been accused of innumerable crimes, cast as racist, short-sighted, xenophobic and, above all, thick and uneducated. Weve been compared to the Nazis, been blamed for the actions of every lunatic extremist, accused of lying  not to mention held responsible for every stock market fluctuation (downwards, naturally) or passing economic squall.

If thats how the victors feel, spare a thought for the losers. Johnson won the war, but he wont succeed in keeping his new Conservative coalition together (which includes plenty of Remain voters who were fearful of allowing Labours hard-left leader Jeremy Corbyn into power) if the loaded language of Brexit frames all discussion.

But burying Brexit, the word, is a way of shirking responsibility too. If everything that happens from now is just another tick on the plus or minus side of the Brexit ledger, the divisions will eventually tear away at Johnsons power and every concession over fish or drop in GDP growth will be seen as an indictment of the Brexit campaign that swept him into Downing Street.

By getting rid of the Department for Exiting the EU and rechristening the U.K. negotiating side something positive like Taskforce Europe, Johnson is saying nothing to see here but some tedious trade negotiations. Why should voters worry about such minutia as will be discussed when Britain and the EU sit down to work out their future trade relationship? If the word Brexit is a call to battle, trade taskforce is an invitation to snooze. That must be the hope, anyhow: That if Brexit is only muttered occasionally, somewhat apologetically, or better yet, not said at all, there will be less scrutiny  and criticism  of what lies ahead.

Separating Britain from the EU is bound to be painful. Johnsons ultimate political survival may depend on whether he can denuclearize the domestic conflict he waged so successfully with Wildings B-bomb.

To contact the author of this story: Therese Raphael at traphael4@bloomberg.net

To contact the editor responsible for this story: James Boxell at jboxell@bloomberg.net

This column does not necessarily reflect the opinion of Bloomberg LP and its owners.

Therese Raphael writes editorials on European politics and economics for Bloomberg Opinion. She was editorial page editor of the Wall Street Journal Europe.

For more articles like this, please visit us at bloomberg.com/opinion

Subscribe now to stay ahead with the most trusted business news source.

2020 Bloomberg L.P.
The rationale behind this move is simple. People are psyched on owning and driving SUVs, so the chance of picking an all-electric high-riding vehicle are higher than buying a BEV sedan or sports car. Genesis is one of the carmakers that seem to have understood that very well, because its third SUV is set to pack an all-electric powertrain.

Most carmakers are still afraid of going full-electric on their lineups. And for good reason: EVs still have some work to do to gain credibility and until that happens, brands will play it safe in harnessing the power of electricity. That is, theyll use it in todays hottest car body shape: the crossover/SUV.

Genesis Is Looking to Capitalize On The Customers Love of SUVs In Promoting Its Electric Powertrain

According to MotorTrend, Genesis plans to offer three crossovers as part of its lineup but also a third SUV that would be fully electric. Proportions-wise, it will be a midsize layout, sitting on a new electric platform that will be coming next year, according to William Lee, global head of the Genesis brand.

Unfortunately, other details about the upcoming all-electric Genesis SUV are not specified, so well have to wait until the company decides to spill some of the beans. Of course, Genesis could get inspired from Hyundais Kona Electric, which makes do with a permanent-magnet synchronous electric motor good for 150 kilowatts (201 horsepower) and 291 pound-feet of torque.

The e-motor is fed by a Lithium-ion polymer battery pack with a capacity of 64 kWh. The setup is able to return an all-electric range of 258 miles according to EPAs estimates, but remember that the report mentions a new EV platform for the luxury divisions third SUV, so the powertrain found inside the Kona Electric might not be an option for Genesis. Well have to wait and see about that.

Hyundai Electric Kona specifications Electric Motor Motor Type Permanent Magnet Synchronous Motor (PMSM) Power Output 150 kW (201HP) Torque 290. lb-ft. All Electric Range 258 miles (est.) Battery Type Lithium-ion Polymer Voltage 356V Battery System Capacity 64.0 kWh Max Vehicle Operation Speed, Electronically Governed 104 MPH Charge Time Level II, Standard (7.2 kW onboard charger) 9 hrs 35 min Level III, Quick Charge- 50kW 75 min Level III, Quick Charge- 100kW 54 min Charge Port Front Grille / Driver Side MPGe (City / Highway / Combined) 132 / 108 / 120

Tell me more about the upcoming crossovers then

MotorTrend also writes that Luc Donckerwolke, Hyundai Motors chief design officer, was adamant that while the three SUVs share DNA, they each have their own character and will not be clones - the better to court different consumers. We like what were hearing, because cloning cars between segments is something a lot of carmakers are doing, under the pretext of brand design identity. Yes, BMW and Mercedes-Benz, its you Im looking at.

As you know, Genesis recently took the wraps off the GV80, its first-ever SUV that sits on the so-called M3 rear-wheel-drive platform. We expect it to be shared among Genesis high-riding vehicles, but again, its too early to speculate. Motor1 also talks about a new GV70, a compact SUV thatll sit on the same underpinnings as the G70 sedan.

While theres a long way to go before we know more, Genesis looks poised to adopt the three sedans, three SUVs scheme for the near future.

Source: Motor Trend
Trump added 6 nations to his travel ban. Here is a look at which countries are included and what the restrictions mean.

US President Donald Trump has expanded his controversial travel ban, often referred to by critics as a Muslim ban, to target citizens from six additional countries.

The move on Friday was slammed by immigrant advocates and critics who say the policy discriminates against Muslims and others.

The announcement comes three years after Trump sparked outrage by signing an executive order suspending immigration from several Muslim-majority countries. That travel ban, which caused chaos and protests at airports, was challenged in the courts and eventually amended to target five Muslim-majority countries  Yemen, Syria, Iran, Libya and Somalia  as well put restrictions on nationals from Venezuela and North Korea.

The Trump administration maintains that the six additional countries  Eritrea, Kyrgyzstan, Myanmar, Nigeria, Sudan and Tanzania  failed to meet US security and information-sharing standards, which necessitated the new restrictions. The problems officials cited ranged from subpar passport technology to a failure to sufficiently exchange information on terrorism suspects and criminals. The restrictions on the six new countries will take effect on February 21.

Here is a look at which countries are included in the expanded travel ban and what restrictions have been put in place.

Eritrea, Kyrgyzstan, Myanmar and Nigeria

The United States will suspend the issuance of visas that can lead to permanent residency for nationals of Eritrea, Kyrgyzstan, Myanmar and Nigeria, acting Secretary of Homeland Security Chad Wolf said on Friday.

Non-immigrant visas will not be affected. According to the State Department, non-immigrant visas include those for tourism, short-term business, medical purposes, education, and journalism, among other types of visas.

During December, for example, about 650,760 non-immigrant visas were granted worldwide.

Immigrant visas include those for spouses, certain family members, certain sponsored employment and other purposes.

The Trump administration said there are exceptions to the restrictions.

Sudan and Tanzania

The US government will also stop issuing diversity visas to nationals of Sudan and Tanzania, according to a presidential proclamation.

These visas  which Trump has criticised in the past  are available by lottery for applicants from countries with low rates of immigration to the US.

The State Department uses a computer drawing to select people from around the world for up to 55,000 diversity visas. Nigeria is already excluded from the lottery along with other countries that had more than 50,000 natives immigrate to the US in the previous five years.

A protester holds a sign outside the US Supreme Court [Andrew Chung/Reuters]

Yemen, Syria, Iran, Somalia and Libya

The existing version of the ban includes the Muslim-majority nations of Iran, Libya, Somalia, Syria and Yemen. North Korea and Venezuela also face visa restrictions, but those measures affect relatively few travellers.

The current ban suspends immigrant and non-immigrant visas to applicants from the affected countries, but it allows exceptions, including for students and those who have established significant contacts in the US.

These restrictions will remain in place, the proclamation said.

North Korea and Venezuela

Most North Koreans are barred from entering the US.

The Venezuelan ban mostly affects government officials and their family members.
President Ram Nath Kovind has rejected the mercy petition of a second convict in the 2012 Nirbhaya gang-rape and murder case even as the Centre told the Delhi High Court on Saturday that the four condemned prisoners have taken the judicial process for a "joyride" and are acting in tandem to delay their execution.

Hours after the clemency plea of Vinay Kumar Sharma (26) was dismissed by the President, Akshay Thakur (31), a third death row convict, filed a mercy petition. The 32-year-old Mukesh Kumar Singh, whose mercy plea has been rejected, and Pawan Gupta (25) are the other two condemned prisoners.

A trial court on Friday postponed the execution of the four men scheduled at 6 am on Saturday in Tihar jail, giving the condemned prisoners a reprieve for the second time in two weeks.

In the order, the judge noted that if an appeal or an application is made by even one convict, the execution of the death warrant shall be also postponed in the case of co-convicts also.

The Centre rushed to the Delhi High Court on Saturday challenging the trial court's order staying the execution and mentioned the plea before Chief Justice D N Patel for an urgent hearing. The plea was heard by Justice Suresh Kait towards the end of the day after which the judge sought the response of the four convicts. The high court will again hear the matter on Sunday.

During the hearing, Solicitor General Tushar Mehta said the four convicts have taken the judicial process for a "joyride" and are acting in tandem to delay their execution.

"This is a classic case where the convicts have taken the process of law for a joyride," Mehta contended.

He argued that the convicts were not only abusing the process of law, but they were testing everyone's patience.

"This is grossest abuse of process of law."



Mehta submitted that the convicts wanted the trial court to understand the value of a human life, but they forget the girl (victim) also had a life.

"This was one of the cases which shook the conscience of the nation and the society is waiting for justice," he added.

Justice Kait then issued notice to the four convicts, DG(Prisons) and Tihar Jail authorities seeking their stand on the Centre's plea. The Centre contended that the trial court judge has acted beyond its jurisdiction in postponing the death warrants issued against the four convicts.

The plea said the trial court, while postponing the death warrants "till further orders", has failed to consider that the convicts were found guilty for gruesome and horrible offence of gang-rape and murder of a woman.

It further said the convicts were given sufficient opportunity to avail all the remedies available to them but they deliberately chose to delay the process of filing their pleas.

The plea said the conduct of the convicts clearly shows their intention to delay the process of execution of death sentence, which is not only an abuse of process of law but also mockery of courts and the judicial system.

Union Home Ministry officials said the President has rejected Vinay's mercy plea which was filed on Wednesday.

Director General (Prisons) Sandeep Goel said Akshay Thakur filed the mercy plea before President Kovind on Saturday.

The 23-year-old physiotherapy intern, who came to be known as 'Nirbhaya' (fearless), was gang-raped and savagely assaulted on the night of December 16, 2012, in a moving bus in South Delhi. She died of her injuries a fortnight later in a Singapore hospital.

Six people including the four convicts, Ram Singh and a juvenile -- were named as accused. The trial of the five adult men began in a special fast-track court in March 2013.

Ram Singh, the prime accused, allegedly committed suicide by hanging himself in Tihar jail days after the trial began. The juvenile, who was said to be the most brutal of the attackers, was put in a correctional home for three years. Singh was released in 2015 and sent to an undisclosed location amid concerns over a threat to his life. The juvenile, when released, was 20 years old.

Mukesh, Vinay, Akshay and Pawan were sentenced to death in September 2013.
Shocking X-ray scans of 33-year-old show the effect that coronavirus has had on her lungs.

The woman arrived at hospital in Lanzhou, China, with a temperature of 102F and 'coarse' breathing after suffering from a cough for five days.

She had travelled to Lanzhou a day before her symptoms had started and works in Wuhan.

Doctors diagnosed her with the new strain of coronavirus after her white blood cell count was low which determined an infection.

The white patches appear more pronounced in the second X-ray, labelled B, which was taken three days after the first and further into her treatment

The scans show white patches in the lower corners of the lungs which indicates what radiologists call ground glass opacity - the partial filling of air spaces in the lungs.

The white patches appear more pronounced in the second X-ray, labelled B, which was taken three days after the first and further into her treatment.

The images were presented by a group of researchers at The First Hospital of Lanzhou University to the journal Radiology.

Radiologist Paras Lakhani from the Thomas Jefferson University, who was not involved in the study but examined the images, said: 'If you zoom in on the image, it kind of looks like faint glass that has been ground up.'

A World Health Organisation official said other governments need to prepare for a 'domestic outbreak control' if the disease spreads in their countries

'What it represents is fluid in the lung spaces,' he told Business Insider.

The virus has been identified as a new type of coronavirus. Coronaviruses are a large family of pathogens, most of which cause mild lung infections such as the common cold.

But coronaviruses can also be deadly. SARS, or severe acute respiratory syndrome, is caused by a coronavirus and killed hundreds of people in China and Hong Kong in the early 2000s.

Some people who catch the Wuhan coronavirus may not have any symptoms at all, or only very mild ones like a sore throat or a headache.

Others may suffer from a fever, cough or trouble breathing.

And a small proportion of patients will go on to develop severe infection which can damage the lungs or cause pneumonia, a life-threatening condition which causes swelling and fluid build-up in the lungs.

The woman was treated by inhaling a protein used to treat viral infections called interferon.

A shop assistant re stocks boxes of surgical masks as many people queue to purchase protective items

Radiologist Paras Lakhani told how doctors at Lanzhou would have likely administered fluids, steroids or a medication to open the woman's airways.

However pneumonia was ruled out after symptoms persisted and white patches extended to the edges of her lungs.

Lakhari said pneumonia is usually treated with antibiotics and doesn't usually 'rapidly progress'.

He added how ground glass on its own is not 'particularly helpful' in identifying coronavirus as bacterial, viral or even vaping can cause it to appear on X-rays.

Customers queue in a store in Hong Kong to buy surgical masks. Employees in China are being urged to work from home and cease non-essential business travel in the first week of February

People queue up to buy face masks in Hong Kong. Apple has said it will close all of its official stores and corporate offices in mainland China until February 9 as fears over the coronavirus outbreak have mounted

The extended white patches were also identified with severe acute respiratory syndrome (SARS) and Middle East respiratory syndrome (MERS).

Both are also coronaviruses and SARS resulted in 8,000 cases and 774 deaths in China from November 2002 to July 2003.

The radiologist said the scans of those viruses bear 'a lot of similar features' to that of the 33-year-old from Wuhan.



However the best way to identify coronavirus is to take swabs of saliva or mucus from a patient's nose or mouth or alternatively testing phlegm they produce.

Yet the test is only effective when the patient is showing symptoms.
The Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation on Saturday felicitated Mumbai's famous Dabbawalas (tiffin carriers) during its ongoing 25th Annual Flower Show and Exhibition at the Veermata Jijabai Bhosale Zoo here.

A flower model of the iconic Dabbawala with trademark Gandhi 'topi' (cap) and a rack full of lunch boxes on his head has been put up at the show, which started on Friday.

The theme of this year's show is 'icons of Mumbai' and it features topiary models of things that are associated with the megapolis, such as a textile mill and film camera as a symbol of the city's film industry.

More than 5,000 Dabbawalas deliver over two lakh tiffins to office-goers in the city every day, and are known globally for their punctuality and near-zero error rate.

The three railway lines -- Western, Central and Harbour -- that link 70 stations in the city ensure that lunch boxes travel from the farthest northern suburbs to business areas in south Mumbai within a maximum of two hours.

In 1998, the Forbes Global magazine gave a 'Six Sigma' rating of efficiency to Dabbawalas, whose business dates back 100 years.

Subhas Talekar, president of the Mumbai Dabbawala Association, said the BMC had specially invited association members to the exhibition.

They were overwhelmed by the felicitation by the civic body, he said.

"Without cooperation from the BMC, we would not be able to run our business. The BMC has provided us bicycle stands outside railway stations. It has also installed a statue of Dabbawala at Haji Ali junction," he said.

The exhibition features 25,000 species of shrubs, flowering plants, fruit-bearing trees, bonsai trees, exotic vegetables and spice shrubs to mark its 25th anniversary. It would end on Sunday.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
Trump impeachment trial: Senate votes no to witnesses, acquittal vote Wednesday originally appeared on abcnews.go.com

Senate votes 51-49 against allowing witnesses at Trump impeachment trial

The Democratic defeat comes even with a new Bolton bombshell

Final vote on acquittal set for Wednesday at 4 p.m.

Before Friday's session of President Donald Trumps impeachment trial began, the spotlight was on four moderate GOP senators Democrats hoped would vote with them on allowing new witnesses, but by evening, after days of arguments meant to persuade the Republicans, Democrats had lost the crucial issue by a vote of 51-49.

A member of the Senate's GOP leadership, Sen. Roy Blunt, said a final vote on acquittal was set for 4 p.m. Wednesday, the day after Trump is scheduled to come to the Capitol to deliver his State of the Union Address. He had left the White House before the Friday vote headed for his Mar-a-Lago resort in Florida.

PHOTO: President Donald Trump and first lady Melania Trump walk to Marine One before departing from the South Lawn of the White House on Jan. 31, 2020, in Washington. (Andrew Caballero-reynolds/AFP via Getty Images)

Democratic hopes for witnesses were dashed earlier in the day when Republican Sen. Lisa Murkowski, one of the targeted moderates, announced she would vote "no" just as Friday's Senate trial session was getting underway.

Democrats worked to sway her following revelations from former national security adviser John Bolton earlier in the week that seemed to undermine the president's defense.

PHOTO: National security adviser John Bolton adjusts his glasses before an interview at the White House in Washington, March 5, 2019. (Jacquelyn Martin/AP, FILE)

But Democrats ultimately failed, even though, just before her announcement and ahead of the start of the day's session, The New York Times published a new account of additional details from Bolton's book in which he says Trump directed him in May 2019 to help the president's personal lawyer, Rudy Giuliani, set up a meeting with Ukraine's president. If true, that would have been two months before Trump's controversial July 25 phone call with Volodymyr Zelenskiy -- a key issue in the trial.

MORE: Trump impeachment trial: Question period ends as GOP swing votes emerge

Republicans had hoped to move to a final vote on whether to acquit the president shortly after the vote on witnesses -- but ABC News' John Parkinson reports Blunt said the Senate would continue voting on Democratic amendments to a resolution on next steps Friday night, then take off the weekend before returning Monday for closing arguments and a chance for senators pn Monday and Tuesday to explain their votes on the Senate floor.

Story continues

The ABC News team of correspondents and producers has been covering every aspect of this story.

Here is how the day unfolded.

Senators cast their vote on the motion to allow additional witnesses and evidence to be allowed in the impeachment trial against President Donald Trump in the Senate at the Capitol on Jan. 31, 2020, in Washington. The motion failed with a vote of 51-49 (ABC News )

7:58 p.m. The Senate adjourns until Monday, Murkowski 'angry at all sides'

McConnell announces the Senate will return at 11 a.m. Monday when the trial will continue with closing arguments.

Senators head home for the weekend -- except Democratic presidential candidates who make a quick exit for Iowa ahead of Monday's caucuses.

GOP Sen. Lisa Murkowski tells reporters that she knows exactly how she will vote next Wednesday on the two articles of impeachment against President Trump - but shes not announcing anything just yet.

Ive had so much drama today, Im just gonna chill, Murkowski says on her way out of the Capitol.

ABC News' Mariam Khan reports from the Capitol:

Asked about her no vote on witnesses and what she would have considered to be a fair trial, she responds: A fair trial would have been one where we could have remedied the defects that came out of the House. I think we got to a point where you just realize that [it] would never be sufficient to meet the demands of those who were seeking the results they wanted.

We started with a flawed product, she says, adding, Im at that point where I'm frustrated and disappointed  angry at all sides.

She says the possibility of Roberts having to vote in a potential tie break weighed heavy on her mind.

Presiding officer Chief Justice of the United States John Roberts reads the result of the vote to allow additional witnesses and evidence in the impeachment trial against President Donald Trump in the Senate at Capitol on Jan. 31, 2020, in Washington. (Senate Television via AP)

7:15 p.m. Roberts announces he won't cast tie-breaking votes

The Senate returns after a long break to vote on a series of Democratic amendments to a resolution on what happens next -- measures that would have the Senate pursue subpoenas for John Bolton and other key witnesses -- in order to get Republicans on the record voting against the idea. Democrats say they will pay a price with voters who polls showed were highly in favor of the Senate hearing witnesses at Trump's trial.

All the Democratic efforts are defeated.

Before those votes, in a moment that will go down in history, Minority Leader Schumer makes a parliamentary inquiry, asking Chief Justice John Roberts whether he would cast a tie-breaking vote.

"Is the chief justice aware that in the impeachment trial of President Johnson, Chief Justice Chase, as presiding officer, cast tie-breaking votes on both March 31st and April 2nd, 1868?" Schumer asks.

There have been lingering questions about how Roberts would handle a 50-50 vote on the question of witnesses, and any other matters, during the Trump impeachment trial, but he puts that notion to rest.

"I am Mr. Leader," Roberts replies. "The one concerned a motion to concern, the other to close deliberations."

He continues, "I do not regard those isolated episodes 150 years ago as sufficient to support a general authority to break ties. If the members of this body elected by the people and accountable to them divide equally on a motion, the normal rule is that the motion fails. I think it would be inappropriate for me, an unelected official from a different branch of government, to assert the power to change that result so that the motion would succeed."

-- ABC News' Benjamin Siegel

PHOTO: In this screengrab, Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell speaks during the impeachment trial of President Donald Trump at the Capitol on Jan. 31, 2020, in Washington. (Senate TV via Reuters)

5:42 p.m. Senate defeats Democrats' effort to call new witnesses

As expected, by a vote of 51-49, Republicans defeat the Democrat's effort to call additional witnesses, and Majority Leader Mitch McConnell announces the Senate will be recess subject to a call of the chair.

It's unclear what the Senate will do next and when.

"The motion is not agreed to." Chief Justice John Roberts announces 49-51 Senate vote against new witnesses in the impeachment trial of Pres. Donald Trump. https://t.co/28NqSImdfi pic.twitter.com/VLibEDa0Tw  ABC News Politics (@ABCPolitics) January 31, 2020

"To not allow a witness, a document - no witnesses, no documents - in an impeachment trial is a perfidy. It's a grand tragedy. One of the worst tragedies that the Senate has ever overcome, an angry Minority Leader Chuck Schumer tells reporters after leaving the Senate chamber.

America will remember this day, unfortunately, where the Senate did not live up to its responsibilities, where the Senate turned away from truth and went along with a sham trial, he says.

If the President is acquitted with no witnesses, no documents, the acquittal will have no value because Americans will know that this trial was not a real trial, he says.

It had no witnesses, no documents. It is a tragedy on a very large scale, he says.

I will be now going up to my caucus to discuss what we're doing next, he says, before turning and walking away. He does not take any questions.

NEW: Minority Leader Chuck Schumer says the no vote on witnesses is "a grand tragedy, one of the worst tragedies that the Senate has ever overcome." "America will remember this day unfortunately, where the Senate did not live up to its responsibilities." https://t.co/y3kw6U7AYQ pic.twitter.com/6Ue3mGmTfA  ABC News Politics (@ABCPolitics) January 31, 2020

Following the vote McConnell issues a statement that indicates the trial will not be ending tonight or early Saturday as once thoughy.

"A majority of the U.S. Senate has determined that the numerous witnesses and 28,000-plus pages of documents already in evidence are sufficient to judge the House Managers accusations and end this impeachment trial," his statement reads.

"There is no need for the Senate to re-open the investigation which the House Democratic majority chose to conclude and which the Managers themselves continue to describe as overwhelming and beyond any doubt. Never in Senate history has this body paused an impeachment trial to pursue additional witnesses with unresolved questions of executive privilege that would require protracted litigation. We have no interest in establishing such a new precedent, particularly for individuals whom the House expressly chose not to pursue.

"Senators will now confer among ourselves, with the House Managers, and with the Presidents counsel to determine next steps as we prepare to conclude the trial in the coming days," McConnell says.

--ABC News' Mariam Khan, Trish Turner and John Parkinson

5:36 p.m. Senate votes on allowing witnesses

After an extended break, the Senate begins voting Friday evening on the question of whether to call witnesses, all 100 senators announcing their votes while sitting at their desks as the clerk called the roll.

PHOTO: Deputy Counsel to the President Patrick Philbin addresses the Senate during the impeachment trial against President Donald Trump at the Capitol on Jan. 30, 2020, in Washington. (ABC News )

4:02 p.m. Trump lawyers: Witnesses not necessary because no impeachable offense

The president's defense team continues to argue that additional witnesses aren't necessary because the president's behavior doesn't warrant an impeachable offense.

Both White House deputy counsel Patrick Philbin and the president's personal attorney, Jay Sekulow, argue hearing from additional witnesses would be asking the Senate to do something the House should have done in its investigation.

Philbin argued the framers wanted the impeachment process in the Senate to be "swift" while the House handled the potentially slower investigation to present the case, something they allege Democrats' rushed because of the partisan nature of the charges against President Trump.

"That's all part of what makes this even more political especially in an election year. It's not the process that the framers had in mind," he said.

"I think it's very dangerous if the House runs up, which they did, articles of impeachment quickly, so quickly, that they are clamoring for evidence despite the fact that they put all of this evidence forward," Sekulow says.

They got their wish of an impeachment by Christmas that was their goal but now they want you to do the work they failed to do," he says.

Trump's legal team used just 27 minutes of their two hours allotted.

PHOTO: In this screengrab, House manager Rep. Hakeem Jeffries speaks during impeachment proceedings against President Donald Trump in the Senate at the U.S. Capitol on Jan. 31, 2020, in Washington. (ABC News )

3:33 p.m. Jeffries: Mulvaney can give 'firsthand account'

House manager Hakeem Jeffries argued why acting White House Chief of Staff Mick Mulvaneys testimony is important for the Senate to hear.

He says Mulvaney was in every meeting with Trump at every stage of the scheme and can give a firsthand account for why the aid was withheld for the undisputed quid pro quo.

We just talked about motive and intent. Well if you want further insight into the president's motives or intent further direct evidence of why he withheld the military aid in the White House meeting, you should call his acting chief of staff who had more access than anyone. Theres only one way to find out let's all just question Mister Mulvaney under oath, Jeffries says.

--ABC News' John Parkinson

3:19 p.m. Schumer: Don't want votes 'in the dark of night'

During a break Minority Leader Chuck Schumer says there is no agreement with Majority Leader Mitch McConnell on how to proceed in the final votes of the impeachment trial, casting some doubt on earlier expectations the Senate could vote on the articles late Friday night or even in the early hours of Saturday morning.

Schumer says they want all senators to have the chance to put their views and explain their vote on the record.

"We have stood for one thing, we do not want this rush through. We do not want it in the dark of night. Members have an obligation to tell the American people and to tell the people of their states why they are voting," he tells reporters.

--ABC News' Mariam Khan

PHOTO: In this screengrab, House manager Rep. Adam Schiff begins speaking during impeachment proceedings against U.S. President Donald Trump in the Senate at the U.S. Capitol on Jan. 31, 2020, in Washington. (ABC News )

2:48 p.m. Schiff: 'The facts will come out'

Schiff emphasizes the same point as House managers wrapped up their arguments in favor of more witness testimony.

"Even over the course of this trial, we have seen so many additional facts come to light. The facts will come out. In all of their horror, they will come out," Schiff says.

"And there are more court documents and deadlines under the Freedom of Information Act, witnesses will tell their stories in future congressional hearings, and books, and in the media, this week has made that abundantly clear."

"And we will be asked why we didn't want to hear that information when we had the chance," he says, asking "what answer will we give?"

He argues that senators' decision on witnesses is even more important than the ultimate vote on whether the president is guilty or innocent.

"Rob this country of a fair trial and there can be no representation that the verdict has a clear meaning, how could it if the result is baked into the process? Assure the American people that whatever the result may be that they got a fair shake." he says.

.@RepAdamSchiff: "If we tell the president, effectively, 'You can act corruptly'...the president becomes unaccountable to anyone." "The president, effectively, for all intents and purposes, becomes above the law." https://t.co/VMlTpxF4GE pic.twitter.com/gEG4pSkBYF  ABC News Politics (@ABCPolitics) January 31, 2020

PHOTO: In this screengrab, House manager Rep. Jason Crow speaks during impeachment proceedings against President Donald Trump in the Senate at the U.S. Capitol on Jan. 31, 2020, in Washington. (ABC News )

2:16 p.m. Crow: Bolton could address GOP concerns about Trump's state of mind

House manager Jason Crow argues that John Bolton could corroborate the testimony of other witnesses in the impeachment inquiry, some of whom Republicans have criticized for being cited without having firsthand knowledge of the president's state of mind.

"The truth will come out and it's continuing to," Crow says, citing The New York Times report this morning with additional information from Bolton's unpublished manuscript.

"The question here before this body is what do you want your place in history to be? Do you want your place in history to be let's hear the truth or that we don't want to hear it," Crow asks senators.

Rep. Jason Crow: "The truth will come outand it's continuing to. The question here, before this body, is what do you want your place in history to be?" https://t.co/FmL0Z0Kd9y pic.twitter.com/cbLdCQ5smI  ABC News Politics (@ABCPolitics) January 31, 2020

Crow extensively outlines the questions Bolton could answer for the Senate, in light of the defense presented by Trump's lawyers.

"The president has publicly lashed out in recent days against Ambassador Bolton," Crow says. "He says that what Ambassador Bolton is saying is nasty and untrue. But denials in 280 characters is not the same as testimony under oath."

PHOTO: Pat Cipollone, an attorney for President Donald Trump, answers a question during the impeachment trial against President Donald Trump in the Senate in Washington, Jan. 30, 2020. (ABC News)

2:08 p.m. Schiff notes White House counsel Cipollone mentioned in Bolton report

-- From ABC News' Ben Siegel:

House Democrats on Friday began the trial by continuing what is likely to be a fruitless push for witnesses, repeatedly targeting White House counsel Pat Cipollone and the rest of Trump's legal team in light of the New York Times report that claimed he was present for a conversation between the president and John Bolton about the Ukraine pressure campaign.

"You will recall Mr. Cipollone suggesting that the House managers were concealing facts from this body. He said, 'All the facts should come out,'" manager Adam Schiff said. "Well there's a new fact which indicates that Mr. Cipollone was among those who are in the loop."

"The facts will come out, and they will continue to come out," he continued. "The question before you today is whether they will come out in time for you to make a complete and informed judgment."

Rep. Sylvia Garcia, D-Texas, played a clip of Cipollone's remarks a few minutes later.

"We are not the ones hiding the facts," she said.

PHOTO: In this screengrab, Rep. Adam Schiff, Chairman, US House Permanent Select Committee on Intelligence) speaks during the impeachment trial of President Donald Trump in the US Senate at the Capitol in Washington on January 31, 2020. (ABC News)

1:24: New Bolton book report lands like bombshell as witness debate begins

As he opens the debate over witnesses, lead House Manager Adam Schiff quickly brings up a new report in The New York Times referencing more of the manuscript of former national security adviser John Bolton's book.

Bolton is one of the key witnesses Democrats are demanding he heard.

The report says Bolton writes in his manuscript that Trump instructed him at a May 2019 meeting to help Trump's personal lawyer, Rudy Giuliani, set up a meeting with Ukraine's President Volodymyr Zelenskiy. The account says acting White House Chief of Staff Mick Mulvaney and White House counsel Pat Cipollone -- who is leading the president's defense on the Senate floor - were also present.

The White House and Giuliani deny the conversations described in the Times report. ABC News has not independently reviewed Bolton's manuscript.

House manager Rep. Schiff: "The facts will come out. They will continue to come out. And the question before you today is whether they will come out in time for you to make a complete and informed judgment as to the guilt or innocence of the president." https://t.co/VMlTpxF4GE pic.twitter.com/UpTc3BAxsi  ABC News Politics (@ABCPolitics) January 31, 2020

PHOTO: Sen. Lisa Murkowski walks in the basement at the U.S. Capitol on Jan. 30, 2020, while leaving at the end of a session in the impeachment trial of President Donald Trump on charges of abuse of power and obstruction of Congress, in Washington. (Julio Cortez/AP)

1:17 p.m. Murkowski announces she's a 'no' on witnesses'

As Friday's Senate trial session is getting underway, Sen. Lisa Murkowski announces she will vote against having the Senate allow new witnesses.

Her statement is below:

I worked for a fair, honest, and transparent process, modeled after the Clinton trial, to provide ample time for both sides to present their cases, ask thoughtful questions, and determine whether we need more."

The House chose to send articles of impeachment that are rushed and flawed. I carefully considered the need for additional witnesses and documents, to cure the shortcomings of its process, but ultimately decided that I will vote against considering motions to subpoena.

Given the partisan nature of this impeachment from the very beginning and throughout, I have come to the conclusion that there will be no fair trial in the Senate. I dont believe the continuation of this process will change anything. It is sad for me to admit that, as an institution, the Congress has failed.

It has also become clear some of my colleagues intend to further politicize this process, and drag the Supreme Court into the fray, while attacking the Chief Justice. I will not stand for nor support that effort. We have already degraded this institution for partisan political benefit, and I will not enable those who wish to pull down another.

We are sadly at a low point of division in this country.

That word comes as The New York Times reports new excerpts from former national security adviser John Bolton's new book. According to the account, Trump instructed Bolton in May to help the president's personal lawyer, Rudy Giuliani, set up a meeting with Ukraine's President Zelenskiy. That would be two months before Trump's controversial July 25 phone call.

--ABC News' Trish Turner

Reporters reach out with their cell phones and audio recorders trying to get a statement from republican Sen. Lamar Alexander as he passes by during a recess in the Senate impeachment trial of President Donald Trump on Jan. 30, 2020, in Washington. (Samuel Corum/Getty Images)

11:50 a.m. Alexander: Concerned about Senate as institution

ABC News' Devin Dwyer reports from Capitol Hill:

GOP Sen. Lamar Alexander says he was most swayed by concerns for the institution of the Senate in making his decision he announced last night to vote against witnesses.

The founders said there should never be a partisan impeachment, he tells me. I was concerned about the Senate as an institution being created as a weapon of perpetual impeachment.

Should a censure be on the table?

I dont see a need for that. This is an inappropriate act by a president,' he says. "The remedy for that is the election. The American people starting on Monday on Iowa can say what they think about it. They can take the phone call with Ukraine and add it to the good economy and whatever they think of the president behavior and decide between him or Elizabeth Warren.

Alexander has not yet heard from Trump. He says the last time they spoke was in December.

PHOTO:(L-R) Sen. Patty Murray, Sen. Kamala Harris, and Sen. Sherrod Brown listen while Sen. Charles E. Schumer holds a press conference during the impeachment trial of President Donald Trump on Capitol Hill, Jan. 31, 2020, in Washington. (Brendan Smialowski/AFP via Getty Images)

11:15 a.m. Schumer: 'The president's acquittal will be meaningless'

Minority Leader Chuck Schumer, at a morning news conference, says, "the result of today's vote is still an open question" but he and other Democrats seemed resigned to losing the battle.

"The president's acquittal will be meaningless," he says, "because it will be the result of a sham trial."

Schumer said "there will be "a permanent asterisk next to the acquittal of President Trump -- written in permanent ink."

"Every Republican who voted to hide the truth in an impeachment trial of the president" will have to answer for that, he says. "The truth -- the truth -- will come out."

"Republican senators who decide to go against the will of the people will have to reckon with them," he says. "If my Republican colleagues refuse to even consider witnesses and documents in this trial, this country is headed towards the greatest cover-up since Watergate."

Sen. Chuck Schumer: "If my Republican colleagues refuse to even consider witnesses and documents...what will the president conclude?" "He'll conclude he can do it againand Congress can do nothing about it. He can try to cheat in his election again." https://t.co/Y8px2RKguo pic.twitter.com/QfaCYw9TD9  ABC News Politics (@ABCPolitics) January 31, 2020

PHOTO: Sen. Susan Collins arrives as the impeachment trial of President Donald Trump on charges of abuse of power and obstruction of Congress resumes in Washington, Friday, Jan. 31, 2020. (J. Scott Applewhite/AP)

From earlier today:

Besides Alexander and Murkowski, the two other moderate Republicans Democrats had set their hopes on -- Sen. Mitt Romney of Utah and Sen. Susan Collins of Maine -- both broke with their party late Thursday, issuing statements in support of hearing new testimony. But without four Republicans joining Democrats, their votes likely wont make a difference.

MORE: Democrats to ask Chief Justice Roberts to rule on witnesses amid fading hopes of winning vote

Chief Justice John Roberts remains the wild card. As the presiding officer, essentially assuming the ceremonial role of the vice president, he could -- in theory -- break a tie vote and Democrats are pushing for him to get more involved, but that seems unlikely.

PHOTO: Deputy Counsel to the President Patrick Philbin answers a question during the impeachment trial against President Donald Trump in the Senate in Washington, Jan. 30, 2020. (ABC News)

Senators raised the issue of adding witness testimony to the trial several times in their questions for the House managers and the White House defense counsel.

At one point late Thursday at the Senate trial, Sen. Murkowski, essentially asked Trumps lawyers point-blank: Why not call John Bolton to testify?

PHOTO: Supreme Court Chief Justice John Roberts prepares to start the day's proceedings during the impeachment trial against President Donald Trump in the Senate in Washington, Jan. 30, 2020. (ABC News)

"I think the primary consideration here is to understand that the House could have pursued Ambassador Bolton," White House Deputy Counsel Patrick Philbin responded, noting that the House chose not to subpoena Bolton.

He said admitting Bolton would set a lower standard of what the House is required to do in pursuing impeachment, sending a message that, "you don't have to do all of that work before you get to this institution.''

"That's not the way that this chamber should allow impeachments to be presented to it," Philbin said.

MORE: Democrats seize on Dershowitz impeachment argument at Senate trial

ABC News' Mychael Schnell contributed to this report.
The Duke of York was under renewed pressure last night after four of Jeffrey Epstein's alleged victims signed an open letter urging him to talk to the FBI for the sake of his 'daughters and their children'.

It warns the Queen's second son that 'the world is watching' and says he has the chance to be on the right side of history.

The victims say the Duke has the ability to create positive change, and they exhort him to take 'the decent and moral path' to help authorities in the US with anything he had observed during his friendship with the convicted paedophile.

Last week, the Duke's accuser Virginia Roberts, who claims she was forced to sleep with him three times, issued a similar plea, saying he should do the right thing and adding: 'Tick tock, Andy  time to talk!!'

The open letter is written by a former model who uses the name 'KiKi' (pictured) and is countersigned by three unnamed 'Jane Doe' victims

Her intervention came as a top US prosecutor accused Andrew of providing 'zero co-operation' despite a request for an interview.

The open letter is written by a former model who uses the name 'KiKi' and is countersigned by three unnamed 'Jane Doe' victims. All four are clients of Los Angeles-based lawyer Lisa Bloom.

It says: 'Please help the US authorities with anything you may have observed in your time spent with Jeffrey Epstein.

'Do it for the victims who have lived a life of suffering, shame and humiliation. You can make things better for us and for future generations with your co-operation.

'Do it for your daughters and their children. You have a chance to be on the right side of history. The world is watching.'

On the spot: Prince Andrew peers out from inside Jeffrey Epsteins New York home

KiKi broke down in tears on a US talk show last year as she described being assaulted as a teenager by Epstein at his mansion in Palm Beach, Florida. Epstein, 66, killed himself last year as he awaited trial on child sex abuse charges.

Last week, Andrew and the FBI were at odds over whether the Prince had ignored requests for help in the Epstein inquiry. The Duke's friends claimed he would be happy to speak to US investigators but 'hasn't been approached yet'.

However, the Americans insisted that was untrue, claiming they had tried several times to arrange an interview. On Monday, New York attorney Geoffrey Berman accused the Duke of 'zero co-operation'.

The letter sent by Jeffrey Epstein's alleged victims Prince Andrew, the world is watching. You have been blessed with a privileged life and with the ability to influence and create positive change. Please help the US authorities with anything you may have observed in your time spent with Jeffrey Epstein. Do it for the victims who have lived a life of suffering, shame and humiliation. You can make things better for us and for future generations with your co-operation. Do it for your daughters and their children. Do it for your family, so that they may be proud that you have taken the decent and moral path. You see, the dilemma we face as victims is not so different from your choice to hide in order to protect yourself. The difference is that we are trying to right wrongs, despite our crippling fears, and you are perpetuating them through apathy, inaction and denial. You have a chance to be on the right side of history. The world is watching. Please look past your fear and help those who could not help themselves. Advertisement

He gave a press conference outside Epstein's New York mansion, where Andrew had stayed, and said that the Duke had failed to keep his promise to help police probing 'co-conspirators'.

He claimed the FBI and US prosecutors had written to Andrew's lawyers seeking an interview but were snubbed.

On Tuesday, an anonymous source close to the Duke said 'nothing could be further from the truth' and stressed that Andrew was 'more than happy to talk to the FBI but he hasn't been approached by them yet'.

In December, The Mail on Sunday revealed that a new witness had come forward to corroborate claims that Andrew was dancing with Ms Roberts at Tramp nightclub in London.

Ms Roberts says Epstein forced her to have sex with the Prince after a night of dancing at the club in March 2001.

After watching the Prince deny Ms Roberts's claims during his 'car-crash' interview with Emily Maitlis on Newsnight, a woman came forward to insist that she had seen him at Tramp that evening.

Lisa Bloom flew to London to interview her and also tracked down a second person  a friend of the woman she originally came to interview  who supports her account of the night in question.

During the Newsnight interview at Buckingham Palace, the Prince said he was not at Tramp and had taken his eldest daughter Beatrice to a party at Pizza Express in Woking that afternoon, and then went home.

Ms Bloom told The Mail on Sunday: 'The first woman, a Londoner, contacted me after she saw Prince Andrew's interview.

'She was very disappointed that he denied knowing Virginia and denied being at the club.

Last week, Andrew and the FBI were at odds over whether the Prince had ignored requests for help in the Epstein (pictured) inquiry

'That is what spurred her to come forward. No one should be above the law.'

She added: 'The FBI is looking into Prince Andrew. They want to speak to him.

'He has said he wants to co-operate with law enforcement and yet it doesn't seem to be happening, so I would like to help this move forward.'

The Duke of York has vehemently denied Ms Roberts's claims that she had sex with him on three occasions.
Weather Alert

...The Flood Warning is extended for the following rivers in Kentucky...Illinois...Indiana... Ohio River at Olmsted Lock and Dam. Ohio River at Mount Vernon. Ohio River at Shawneetown. Ohio River at J.T. Myers Dam. Ohio River at Newburgh Dam. Ohio River at Paducah. ...The Flood Warning continues for the following rivers in Kentucky...Illinois...Missouri... Ohio River at Golconda. Ohio River at Cairo. .Heavy rainfall and recent snow melt will continue to keep water levels on the lower Ohio River in or near minor flood this week. PRECAUTIONARY/PREPAREDNESS ACTIONS... Motorists should not attempt to drive around barricades or drive cars through flooded areas. Caution is urged when walking near riverbanks. Turn around, don't drown when encountering flooded roads. Most flood deaths occur in vehicles. Additional information is available at www.weather.gov. && ...FLOOD WARNING NOW IN EFFECT FROM THIS EVENING THROUGH WEDNESDAY EVENING... * WHAT...Minor flooding is forecast. * WHERE...Ohio River at Paducah. * WHEN...From this evening to late Wednesday evening. * IMPACTS...At 39.0 feet, Minor flooding occurs affecting mainly bottomland and surrounding low lying areas. * ADDITIONAL DETAILS... - At 11:00 AM CST Sunday the stage was 38.0 feet. - Forecast...The river is expected to rise above flood stage late this evening to a crest of 39.5 feet early tomorrow afternoon. It will then fall below flood stage Wednesday afternoon. - Flood stage is 39.0 feet. - http://www.weather.gov/safety/flood &&
,



We're sorry, this article is not currently available
Philadelphia Deputy Commissioner Joe Sullivan speaks to reporters after the shooting of a 10-year-old boy on Margaret Street on Wednesday, Nov. 6, 2019. Read more

Philadelphia Deputy Police Commissioner Joseph P. Sullivan resigned Friday, 10 days before a new top cop is set to take over the department.

Sullivan, who joined the department in 1982, confirmed his departure in a text message Friday evening, calling it effective immediately but declining to comment further.

Danielle Outlaw, the former chief of police in Portland, Ore., will begin her tenure as Philadelphias new police commissioner on Feb. 10. Sullivan was interviewed for the job during Mayor Jim Kenneys search process following the August resignation of Richard Ross.

It was not clear what role Sullivan might have had in Outlaws administration.

Inspector Sekou Kinebrew, a department spokesperson, declined to comment Friday, and Acting Commissioner Christine M. Coulter did not respond to requests for comment.

A Philadelphia native and the son of a civilian employee of the Police Department, Sullivan was named a deputy commissioner  the second-highest rank in the 6,500-member department  in 2017 and placed in charge of patrol operations. At the time of his promotion, Ross called him a tactical genius. He was paid an annual salary of $208,000, according to payroll records.

Sullivan became widely known several years earlier, when, as a chief inspector, he oversaw the departments response to a variety of large-scale events, including frequent protests, the visit by Pope Francis in 2015, and the Democratic National Convention in 2016.

In 2016, he was awarded the Richardson Dilworth Award for Distinguished Public Service, the citys most prestigious honor for public employees.

That year, he was reportedly under consideration to become police chief in Memphis, Tenn.

His departure leaves Outlaw with three active deputies, down from five when Ross was in charge. In addition to Sullivans departure, former first deputy Myron Patterson is using up his vacation time in order to retire.

Two other deputies  Dennis Wilson and Robin Wimberly  are enrolled in the Deferred Retirement Option Plan (DROP), meaning they are set to retire within the next four years.

Coulter, meanwhile, has been acting commissioner since Ross stepped down amid claims in a lawsuit that he retaliated against a former love interest. Ross has denied the allegations.

Coulter interviewed to keep the top cop job permanently. Its not clear what role she might play when Outlaw takes over.
11:11 | Curitiba (Brazil), Feb. 1.





The Lava Jato team members traveled to Brazil to interrogate ex-Odebrecht officers as part of the investigation on alleged bribes paid by the company to former Peruvian Government officials in exchange for projects.





Speaking to the press in Curitiba (Brazil), after the interrogation of Barata , Vela explained that Friday's proceedings came to an end because they had a fixed schedule with Brazilian judicial authorities, which they respected.





"The continuation of Jorge Barata 's interrogation has been scheduled for March 10 and 11, based on the information that GR Compliance the company responsible for managing My Web Day and Drousys servers is committed to delivering," he said.





The prosecutor recalled that, next week, said company will provide information related to the year 2009 and will progressively reach the data related to 2014, "which are the last operations listed on these servers."





"Once all the information is processed, we will interrogate Jorge Barata again, who does not rule out the possibility of formally declaring in other investigations such as that of the Southern Gas Pipeline (Gasoducto del Sur) case, in which his statement is required and where the defense of those investigated may eventually participate," he added.





Yehude Simon





On the other hand, Vela said the interrogation suggested the existence of a payment made by Odebrecht in favor of Yehude Simon's regional re-election campaign although he said "he was not allowed to comment on the details of said story."





In addition, he affirmed that this case is linked to the Olmos irrigation project.





(END) JCC/RMB

Loading...

Lava Jato Case Special Prosecution Group Coordinator Rafael Vela has announced that the interrogations of former Odebrecht representative in Peru Jorge Barata, regarding the information obtained from My Web Day and Drousys servers will continue on March 10 and 11.Publicado: 1/2/2020
Heavy rainfall will continue to lash the west of the state, while the east will remain dry as firefighters brace for another night of challenging conditions.

Emergency Management Commissioner Andrew Crisp said the wild weather conditions are a tale of two states.

Yesterday's sudden downpour caught Melburnians by surprise. Credit:Joe Armao

"What we have in the west of the state ... weve had quite significant rainfall and we've got further storms developing at this very point in time," he said.

"In the east its dry as was forecast and we might only see 5-10mm of rain."
Linguistics question, but when transcribing her name in 100% English characters, wouldn't the eth be written as a th instead of d?

Reply

Thread

Link

no i dont think so, because the word dottir means daughter. its written with a d in norwegian, the language icelandic stems from, so it seems right to me

Reply

Parent

Thread



Link

this is based on wikipedia knowledge, but isn't thorn usually written as th and eth as d?

Reply

Parent

Thread



Link

 is a soft th sound yes, but it's usually written with a d in english characters

Reply

Parent

Thread



Link

Joaquin's acting, cinematography, and her score were legit the best things about it.

Reply

Thread

Link

I still haven't watched this movie.

Reply

Thread

Link

slay mawma!

Reply

Thread

Link

i love her music sooo much, i rly hope she gets nommed n subsequently wins the oscar

Reply

Thread

Link

She deserves. The score in that was incredible.

Reply

Thread

Link

Her score for Chernobyl is also incredible.

Reply

Parent

Thread



Link

Yesss

Reply

Parent

Thread



Link

Good for her.



I still haven't seen the movie. The hullabaloo over it kind of put me off wanting to watch it. Every time I see Jokin's face in the clown make up I'm legitimately annoyed.

Reply

Thread

Link

Really liked her music for Joker, also I read an article about her and apparently for the soundtrack to Chernobyl she went to the actual Chernobyl and recorded some sounds there? I admire the creativity



The composers of the soundtrack for The Witcher are also both female IIRC and the soundtrack was so popular it got released on Spotify etc. even though I don't think Netflix originally planned to. Nice to see women succeeding in traditionally very male fields

Reply

Thread

Link

no she went to the power plant in lithuania where Chernobyl was shot to record the sounds. that plant is apparently identical to the chernobyl plant i think

Reply

Parent

Thread



Link

Her soundtrack for Chernobyl was amazing. I haven't seen the Joker yet but I'm glad her talent is being recognised and is opening more doors for women.

Reply

Thread

Link

Still havent seen Joker, but I loved her compositions for Chernobyl

Reply

Thread

Link

the chernobyl soundtrack was SOOOO good, too. she's very talented!!

Reply

Thread

Link

So I'm def rooting for her!



Woodwinds >>>>



unless youre a flute. yall were way too intense tbh

Reply

Thread

Link

i haven't seen joker but her chernobyl soundtrack is amazing.



Also all these nominations and wins are so amazing, not only is she the first solo female composer to be nominated, but apparently less than 1% of best soundtrack nominees ever have been female, so it's an amazing accomplishment and i hope she inspires more women to join the industry.

Reply

Thread

Link

Wasn't Mica Levi nominated for Jackie a couple of years ago? She's an awesome solo female composer too. And I'm still bitter she wasn't even nominated for Under the Skin.



Anyway, love the Chernobyl score and rooting for her to win.

Reply

Parent

Thread



Link

Rachel Portman won an Oscar in the 90s for the score for Emma as a solo composer and was nominated a few times afterwards.



The Best Cinematography Oscar is the one where only a single woman has ever even been nominated.

Reply

Parent

Thread



Link
The CPWD, which is executing the Modi government's ambitious Central Vista redevelopment project, witnessed a three-fold increase with an allocation of around Rs 3,000 crore in the Union Budget.

In the revised budget of 2019-20, the Central Public Works Department (CPWD), a prime construction agency of the Union government, had been given Rs 1,135.72 crore.

In the 2020-21 budget presented by Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman in Lok Sabha on Saturday, the agency has been given Rs 3,033.41 crore.

The redevelopment project of Central Vista envisages a triangular Parliament building next to the existing one, common Central Secretariat and the revamping of the three-km-long Rajpath, from Rashtrapati Bhavan till India Gate.

According to an official, the CPWD has estimated that the redevelopment of Central Vista will cost around Rs 12,879 crore.

The triangular Parliament building is targeted to be constructed by August 2022, when the country will be celebrating its 75th Independence Day. The common Central Secretariat is likely to be built by 2024.

Under the project, the prime minister's residence and office are likely to be shifted near the South Block and the vice-president's new house will be in the vicinity of the North Block.

"The residence and office of the prime minister will be close enough so that the prime minister can walk to office from home," a source had said last month.

The common Central Secretariat will comprise 10 buildings, five on each side of Central Vista. Each building will have eight floors, which will house various ministries.

There are currently around 25,000 to 32,000 employees working in various ministries situated in different locations in the Lutyens' Delhi. The common Central Secretariat will accommodate more employees at one place.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
GUILDERLAND  Forever 21 at Crossgates Mall, which appeared on a list of stores the retailer planned to close after filing for Chapter 11 bankruptcy reorganization, will remain open, a mall spokeswoman confirmed Friday.

The store on Friday afternoon appeared to have plenty of inventory.
Nearly 80 years after the first casino blinked to life along the stretch of Las Vegas Boulevard now known as the Strip, the re-illumination of Las Vegas is nearly complete. Call it the end of the neon era or the beginning of the LED epoch. Either way, in the next two years, numerous hotels, casinos and other attractions, eager to boost tourism after several relatively flat years, are unveiling ...
Saturday Sunday lockdown in Delhi: Know timings, guidelines, rules, What is allowed, what is not allowed

DDMA orders DMs to number all shops within 24 hours as odd-even rule being violated in markets

Police arrest man who fired bullets at Shaheen Bagh

India

oi-Mousumi Dash

New Delhi, Feb 01: Two days after a man brandished a gun at a group of students near Jamia area, another man fired bullets in Shaheen Bagh in Delhi on Saturday. Police has taken the accused into custody.

This comes two days after a man fired with a pistol at a group of anti-CAA protesters in the Jamia area in Delhi, injuring a student, before walking away while waving the firearm above his head and shouting "Yeh lo aazadi" amid heavy police presence.

Chinmoy Biswal, Deputy Commissioner of Police (southeast) Delhi, on incident of firing in Shaheen Bagh said that the man had resorted to aerial firing. Police immediately overpowered and caught him.

According to eyewitnesses, the man appeared be in his 20s identified himself as Kapil Gujjar, he opened fire close to the police barricades, nearly 250 metres behind the stage. Later, he was overpowered by police personnel and taken into custody.

"Only Hindus will get to call the shots in our country and nobody else (Hamare desh mein sirf Hinduon ki chalegi. Aur kisi ki nahi chalegi)," the man shouted while he was being taken into custody.

The incident triggered huge tensions in the Jamia area in Delhi on Thursday.

The injured student of Jamia Millia Islamia University, Shahdab Farooq was taken to the AIIMS Trauma Centre, later released was a mass communications student, who hails from Kashmir.

Student injured in firing at Delhi during anti-citizenship law protests

The Delhi Police will verify the documents to ascertain the age of the person who brandished a gun at a group of students near Jamia, as his family claimed that he was a minor.
(Newser)  Can you put out a fire with gasoline? Sen. Lamar Alexander says you really can't. The Tennessee Republican is getting a lot of attention for his key vote to block witnesses from the Senate impeachment trial of President Trump, and now the press is quoting him on it. "For the Senate to tear up the ballots in this election and say President Trump couldn't be on it, the country probably wouldnt accept that," Alexander told the New York Times. "It would just pour gasoline on cultural fires that are burning out there." Like Sen. Lisa Murkowski, Alexander was considered a possible GOP swing vote, but Politico notes that both stayed with their party in a tight 51-49 vote against allowing witnesses. More from Alexander:

story continues below

"I think it is inappropriate for the president to ask the leader of a foreign nation to investigate a leading political rival, which the president says he did. ... But that is not treason, that is not bribery, that is not a high crime and misdemeanor."

"We're pretty accustomed in our everyday life to being able to distinguish between things that are inappropriate and things that deserve capital punishment. When you don't give capital punishment to somebody who left the scene of an accident, you disapprove of what they did. You may penalize them in the next election, but you don't throw them out of office, and tell the American people they can't vote for him in the election that's already underway."

Alexander said three things bothered him: the impeachment being totally partisan; possibly lowering the bar for cause of impeachment; and the closeness of the 2020 election. "I made the decision gradually during the week," the 79-year-old retiring senator told USA Today. "I did it the way I think a juror or a judge is supposed to make it."

(Read more about the vote on witnesses .)
On Monday night, a Maryland police officer in the eastern suburbs of Washington, D.C. shot 43-year old William Green seven times while he was handcuffed, with his arms behind his back, and seated in the front seat of the officers police car.

With highly unusual swiftness, Prince Georges County police charged the officer, Michael Owen, 31, with second-degree murder and manslaughter within 24 hours of the shooting. At a Tuesday press conference Prince Georges County police chief Hank Stawinski admitted that he was unable to come to our community this evening and offer you a reasonable explanation for the events that occurred last night. I have concluded that what happened last night is a crime.

At a court hearing Wednesday, a judge denied Owen bond, on the grounds that he is a danger to the community. States Attorney Aisha N. Braveboy told the Washington Post that a grand jury will be convened in the case and she promised a full investigation.

Owen and another cop initially alleged that Green was under the influence of phencyclidine, known as PCP, when they arrested him after responding to reports of a car slamming into parked vehicles. According to police, when the officers arrived, Green was passed out behind the wheel of his vehicle. Stawinski stated at the press conference announcing the officers arrest that We do not believe PCP was involved.

In other words, Owen and his partner lied in an attempt to justify Greens murder. Owen and the other officer also told police investigators that a struggle ensued in the police car before Green was shot. Stawinski, however, said, That was not corroborated.

The charging of officer Owen is the rare exception in police killings. Between 2005 and 2015, the Washington Post found that only 54 police were charged, despite close to 1,000 police killings every year in the United States. That works out to police facing charges in well under 1 percent of cases, with convictions or jail time even less common.

Owen, who joined the police in 2009, had a history of suspicious shootings. In 2011, he fatally shot 35-year-old Rodney Edwards. Owen alleged at the time that, as he was leaving an event, he saw Edwards lying on the side of a road and stopped to check on him. According to Owen, Edwards pulled a gun, causing Owen to shoot him multiple times. After an investigation, police declared Owens actions justified. Prince Georges County prosecutors say they are now reviewing the 2011 shooting.

In 2009, Owen claimed that a person tried to rob him outside his home while he was off-duty. According to police, the would-be robber shot at him and Owen fired back, at which point the would-be robber fled.

Green, Owens latest victim, was a Megabus luggage loader. According to John Mathis, whose mother was engaged to Green, he was slated to be promoted to dispatcher the day after he was shot. Green also leaves behind two adult children.

We have a lot of questions, Mathis told the Washington Post, adding that the initial suggestion of PCP use wasnt like him.

At a Thursday press conference, Greens mother, Brenda Green stated through tears, I am here for my son, William Green. He needs justice because it's just not right. I love and miss my son. I will not see my son again.

The day after the shooting, Green told a local ABC affiliate, How you gonna shoot somebody sitting in a front seat of a car in handcuffs and with a seat belt on? Why would you do that?

At the Thursday press conference, Greens daughter, also named Brenda Green, said, I am the true definition of a daddy's girl who no longer has her daddy with her. I dreamt of the day my daddy could be able to walk me down the aisle and I wanted him to be able to see his future grandchildren. But that day will never come now.

Attorney William Murphy, representing the Green family, told the Washington Post, I have seen a lot of horrible fatal police shootings, but this one is in the top 10. Murphy also represented the family of Freddie Gray, who died in April 2015 after being subjected to a rough ride by Baltimore officers in the back of a police van.

Murphy explained at Thursdays press conference that the family was pushing for a thorough investigation not only into the [Green] incident but into the officer's past uses of force. We ought to look at the police policies which have let this officer continue to serve given his capacity to do what he did two days ago."

Far from a bad apple, Owen represents the large rotten bushel in the Prince Georges County Police Department (PGPD). The department was the subject of numerous complaints regarding the use of force in the 1990s, leading to federal oversight which lasted until 2009. According to the ACLU of Maryland, the department is again under investigation by the U.S. Department of Justice.

In the wake of Greens murder, the ACLU noted a series of recent violent incidents carried out by PGPD officers, including the September 2019 shooting of Leonard Shand. Police allege they spent 30 minutes containing Shand, who was apparently in a disoriented state, and used less than lethal force before he was shot and killed. The ACLU noted that less than lethal force is not the same thing as de-escalation, nor were any mental health professionals called to the scene in an attempt to peacefully resolve the situation.

During a traffic stop in October, Demonte Ward-Blake was beaten by PGPD officers and paralyzed from the waist down. The ACLU reports that it is not known if any officers were held responsible.

In none of these incidents, including the Green murder, did police wear body cameras. Braveboy, the States Attorney, said that just 80 PGPD officers, out of more than 1,500, have body cameras. We believe that the public should have that high level of transparency, but we only have what we have, Braveboy told the Washington Post.

The ACLU criticized the lack of body cameras in the PGPD. It is absolutely senseless for full transparency to not be a number one priority for this department, the ACLU said. These deaths are completely preventable. Police characterize them as unavoidable, but they are not. And body camera footage will show that.

The liberal immigrant rights group Casa de Maryland, in line with the ACLU, has also pushed for the use of body cameras. Last year, it advocated for a bill before the Prince Georges County council to require PGPD police to wear body cameras. The bill did not pass. After Greens killing, Jorge Benitez-Perez, an organizer with Casa de Maryland, emphasized the need for the cameras, telling the Washington Post, There is no accountability without transparency.

The ACLU of Maryland sought to paint Greens killing in racialist terms, even though both the police officer and the victim were African-American. In a statement on the Maryland ACLU website, legal director Debbie Jeon stated Police departments in Marylandand across the nationare built on white supremacy and have a serious problem with targeting and harming People of Color, particularly Black people. Just last week, in Stark, MD, a white man who was reported to be a danger to the community, and who shot hundreds of bullets at Harford County Sheriffs deputies, was arrestedalive  We must put a stop to systemic police brutality and the needless killings of Black people.

Focusing the issue solely on race, as liberal and pseudo-left groups do, ignores the fact that, while blacks are disproportionately the victims of police violence, the largest number of victims continue to be white. Connecting the vast majority of those who are killed or wounded by the police is that they are working class or poor, regardless of their race.

Consistent with their efforts to divide the working class along racial lines, such groups instead peddle the myth that reforms of the police are possible under the capitalist system, whether through increasing the use of body cameras, pushing for civilian review boards of police activity, or through hiring more minorities into the police.

In fact, the root cause of endless police violence is the capitalist system, which the police operate to uphold, along with all of the dire conditions it produces for the working classpoverty, social inequality and war. Police killings will be stopped only through the unification of the working class in the US and internationally, across all artificial racial, ethnic and national lines, in the fight for a socialist society based on human need and not the profit interests of a rapacious ruling elite, which controls the entire political system and both big business parties.
Local health experts said that test kits would greatly help Vietnam deal with the situation.

The Vietnamese government has asked scientists to produce test kits for the new coronavirus (nCoV) which has killed more than 200 people in China as of January 31.

Vietnam is making efforts to produce test kits

Addressing at a meeting chaired by the Ministry of Science and Technology on January 30, Prof. Nguyen Van Kinh, former director of National Hospital of Tropical Diseases, said its necessary to conduct research and produce test kits to screen suspected cases and test them to make sure they are positive or not with the virus.

Scientifically, producing test kits will enable Vietnam to confirm the nCoV infection in a shorter time, Kinh said.

Currently, Vietnam is facing the shortage of test kits, Kinh said, adding that the US Department of Health and Human Services Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) has provided Vietnam 30 test kits, insufficient for 68 suspected cases found in the country so far.

Kinh express concern that the epidemic is starting in Vietnam but the country does not have knowledge on that strain of virus except for the first cases found by Ho Chi Minh City-based Pasteur Institute. The difficulty is that China does not share the virus with any country except Russia. So its impossible for Vietnam to produce vaccines against it.

Prof. Phan Trong Lan said Vietnam is able to produce test kits thanks to researches based on nCoV from the first patients who are two Chinese nationals confirmed positive with the virus a week ago.

The locally-made test kits could be used within a week to curb the epidemic, Prof. Lan affirmed.

Regarding the production of vaccines against the virus, Dr. Do Tuan Dat, director of state-owned Vaccine and Biological Production Company No.1 (VABIOTECH), said local health experts are working with international scientists but the research will take at least three months.

So far, VABIOTECH has worked with British partners in the production of vaccines.

As of January 31, three Vietnamese citizens tested positive with nCoV. They all returned to the country from Chinas Wuhan city where the nCoV broke out in December 2019.

Linh Pham

nCoV: Vietnam capable of producing sufficient medical masks Prices of masks have been driven up by hoarding and citizens spookiness.
Copyright  2020 Albuquerque Journal

One bill would increase sentences for those caught using a firearm to commit a crime.

Another would increase the penalties for being a felon in possession of a firearm.

And a third would make it a crime to take a gun to a drug deal.

These are three tough-on-crime bills making their way through the Legislature this session, with the backing of Gov. Michelle Lujan Grisham  who said the measures are also smart on crime by targeting the worst of the worst.

The bills would pave the way for judges to impose longer prison sentences for violent criminals, and that would keep our communities safer, Tripp Stelnicki, the governors spokesman, wrote in a statement. And while no law can deter all crime, these bills certainly would prevent some crime by keeping violent felons off our streets for longer periods of time.

At a briefing last week, Lujan Grisham said her administration is taking an all-of-the-above approach to battling high crime rates in Albuquerque and other parts of the state, which includes tougher criminal penalties and efforts to provide more substance abuse and mental health treatment programs.

Im trying to do all of that, she said. I dont know when those things became mutually exclusive.

However, civil rights advocates, community groups and defense lawyers say the bills increasing penalties are not the answer and in fact say more severe sentences do little to deter crime or make communities safer in the long run.

New Mexico SAFE  a coalition of more than 30 faith-based, nonprofit or community organizations representing the homeless, women, Native Americans, immigrants and others  graded the three bills and didnt award any higher than a C. The coalition analyzes each piece of legislation on whether it would make the community safer and whether its apolitical, fiscally responsible and evidence-based.

Jennifer Burrill, vice president of the New Mexico Criminal Defense Lawyers Association, said she sees the bills as consistent with failed tough-on-crime policies that dont do anything to address drug addiction or mental illness.

I think its a backwards movement in terms of trying to address the root causes of crime in our communities, Burrill said. I dont think that this is going to solve anything. If the goal is to reduce crime, this wont do it. This will only incarcerate and warehouse people.

However, Rep. Bill Rehm, R-Albuquerque, who introduced the three bills, said he hopes they will curb the persistently high rates of violent crime in the states largest city. Police say about two-thirds of last years record number of homicides in Albuquerque were committed with a gun and hundreds of people were shot and injured in the metropolitan area over the past year.

We have violence all across the state, but in particular in Albuquerque right now, Rehm said. What were trying to do in a bipartisan way is push these bills to get them on through to try to address some of the violence we see.

He said he believes the bills would make criminals think twice about getting a gun or using one during a crime.

We know that being a criminal, you make bad decisions, Rehm said. If youre in possession of a firearm and youre already making a bad decision  this is going to go ahead and say, Dont have a firearm with you. 

Second Judicial District Attorney Raul Torrez said in a statement that he supports a multifaceted approach to tackling violent crime.

That includes keeping guns out of the hands of dangerous individuals and enhanced penalties for anyone who uses a firearm in the commission of a crime, wrote Michael Patrick, the DAs spokesman. He strongly supports these proposals and believes they will help prosecutors better protect our community from harm.

All three bills, House Bill 35, House Bill 113 and House Bill 114, have already cleared one committee and will be heard next in the House Judiciary Committee.

They will also be part of a larger, bipartisan crime bill package, Rehm said. He said he didnt know all of the bills that will be included in that package.

House Bill 35 would increase the sentencing enhancement for using a gun to commit a crime from one year to three years for a first offense, and from three years to five years for the second offense.

New Mexico SAFE said each count a person is charged with could be separately enhanced, making it so even a first-time offender could receive 10 to 15 extra years. This could also have the effect of significantly increasing the number of people in New Mexico prisons.

Moreover, the enhancement time is mandatory; a judge does not have discretion to suspend that prison time in favor of probation, no matter the circumstances, the scorecard says. Meanwhile, an offender need not even pull the trigger to receive a firearm enhancement; not a single bullet need be fired.

House Bill 113 would change the crime of being a felon in possession of a firearm from a fourth-degree felony to a third-degree felony, meaning a basic sentence would double, from 18 months to three years. It also would expand the definition of a felon to include anyone who has ever been convicted of a felony. Currently, the definition includes only those who have completed a sentence in the past 10 years.

Burrill said for her personally its the most troubling of the crime bills proposed this year.

It makes us lose sight of humanity, that people grow and change, she said. One of the things we see with just a simple felon in possession of a firearm (charge) is that, lets say, someone moves back in with their parents and their dad has a gun in the house, they can still be charged with felon in possession of a firearm because it was within their household.

House Bill 114 would make it a crime  a third-degree felony  to carry a firearm while trafficking a controlled substance.

New Mexico SAFE pointed out that drug trafficking is already a second-degree felony for a first offense and carries a basic sentence of nine years. The bill would create a new crime with an additional three-year sentence, and a person could be charged with it regardless of whether a gun was used, fired or even shown.

Steven Robert Allen, policy director at the American Civil Liberties Union of New Mexico, said he thinks a better use of resources would be to invest in substance abuse treatment and programs that lift people out of poverty.

If one thing is for certain, its that the war on drugs and the resultant mass incarceration crisis thats been caused over the past several decades hasnt done anything to increase public safety in our communities, Allen said.

Journal staff writer Dan Boyd contributed to this report.
By PTI

NEW DELHI: Days after IndiGo banned Kunal Kamra for a six-month period for allegedly heckling journalist Arnab Goswami on a flight, the comedian has sent a legal notice to the airline demanding an unconditional apology, revocation of the ban and Rs 25 lakh compensation.

In the notice sent to the airline on Friday, Kamra's lawyer stated that his client has suffered "mental pain and agony" due to "illegal, arbitrary and high-handed decision" of the airline.

Kamra was banned by IndiGo for six months on Tuesday for allegedly harassing the Republic TV Editor on its Mumbai-Lucknow flight.

As Aviation Minister Hardeep Singh Puri advised other airlines to impose similar restrictions on the comedian, SpiceJet, GoAir and Air India imposed a similar ban on him without specifying any period.

However, two airlines of the Tata group - Vistara and AirAsia India - have stated that they are "reviewing" the matter.

An IndiGo statement on Saturday said, "The company will duly respond to any legal notice that it receives in relation to this matter."

ALSO READ | Kunal Kamra flying ban: On-air heckling leaves Bengaluru comedians divided

Kamra has given IndiGo one week's time to respond to the legal notice, accessed by PTI.

While aviation regulator DGCA had on Wednesday stated that the action by the four carriers is in "complete consonance" with its regulations, the pilot-in-command of the Mumbai-Lucknow flight had told IndiGo management on Thursday that Kamra's actions were "unsavoury" but not "unruly" and this incident was not "reportable in any way".

Hours after the captain's letter to his management became public on Thursday, the Aviation minister justified IndiGo's action, stating that airlines must ensure 'zero tolerance' for any activity that has the potential to jeopardize passengers' safety.

In the legal notice to IndiGo's CEO Ronojoy Dutta, Kamra's lawyer Prashant Sivarajan said that Goswami -- against whom Kamra's "exchanges" were directed -- neither made any complaint nor requested the intervention of the cabin crew at any point of time during the flight.

Kamra first came to know about his ban through the airline's post on Twitter on Tuesday night, Sivarajan said.

"It was only subsequently the next day at 9.38 am that my client received an email from your consumer relations team officially intimating him about the six-month ban," said Sivarajan.

As per the 2017 rules of aviation regulator DGCA, if a passenger engages in any unruly behaviour, the pilot-in-command has to file a complaint and only then an internal committee of the airline can probe the matter and take punitive action based on findings of the investigation.

The pilot-in-command has not made any complaint against him and therefore, as per the regulations, no action can be initiated against him, Sivarajan said.

The 2017 DGCA rules state that a passenger who verbally assaults anyone is deemed as "level 1" unruly passenger and he or she can be banned up to maximum of three months by the airline's internal committee.

Therefore, Sivarajan said, even if Kamra is found guilty by the internal committee, the maximum penalty under law is of three months.

"Thus imposition of six months' ban is wholly illegal, manifestly arbitrary and non-est in law".

At the end of 10-page legal notice, Sivarajan asked IndiGo to "revoke the suspension" of Kamra from flying with IndiGo airlines for a period of six months with immediate effect".

The lawyer also asked IndiGo to "tender unconditional apology towards my client in all leading newspapers as well as electronic media and on all of the social media platforms currently being operated by you".

He also asked the airline to take action "against the errant officials for imposing the instant ban in abrogation of the DGCA CARs (civil aviation requirements) as notified under...Aircraft Rules, 1937".

Sivarajan asked the airline to "pay compensation towards my client in sum of Rs 25 lakhs on account of the mental pain and agony suffered by my client as well as losses incurred on account of cancellation of his scheduled shows and programmes in India as well as aborad on account of adoption of a totally illegal, arbitrary and high-handed procedure which is against the extant DGCA CAR (regulations)".

Apart from the 25 lakh compensation, Sivarajan also asked the airline to "pay a sum of Rs one lakh towards the cost of the present legal notice".

In a video clip posted by Kamra on his Twitter handle on Tuesday, he is seen asking Goswami if he is a "coward or a journalist".

While Goswami can be seen sitting in the plane and watching something on his laptop with his earphones plugged in, Kamra is heard telling him, "You should fight against dynasts like Rahul Gandhi, who I support, on 10 Tughlaq Lane.

Arnab, you should have a reply, Arnab.

Arnab, are you a coward or are you a journalist?" A section of people on social media has questioned the stiff penalty on Kamra, asking why no action was taken against BJP MP Pragya Thakur, an accused in the Malegaon blasts, who was also involved in an incident on a SpiceJet plane last December.

SpiceJet had stated that Thakur was asked by the crew on its Delhi-Bhopal flight -- which she was taking on December 21 -- to move to a non-emergency row seat as she was on a wheelchair but she refused, causing a delay in the flight.

While some restless passengers requested Thakur to change her seat others asked the crew to offload her.

However, Thakur was not banned by SpiceJet or any other airline from flying in their flights.
Foundations of Amateur Radio

How I host a weekly amateur radio net for new and returning amateurs

If you've ever had the pleasure or misfortune to hear an on-air net, you might have considered, however briefly, how that net came to be, how it's run and what's involved behind the scenes to make it happen.

I host a weekly net called "F-troop". It's been running every week since the 12th of June in 2011. Since then I've made over 5000 contacts with stations scattered all over the globe. A typical net has about ten people, but depending on the weather, what's on TV or if people had a hard Friday night that number fluctuates. The biggest was about 40, the smallest just two.

At this point I could tell you that the infrastructure to make this happen, the preparation, management processes, network and marketing are what take up the bulk of my week. I mean, there might be a weekly stand-up between stakeholders on a Wednesday, a plan for the content, what to discuss, you know, the typical.

If I told you that, I'd be lying.

The reality is that F-troop is an organic animal. I generally get to my radio a couple of minutes before we start, midnight UTC, switch on, kerplunk the local repeater and wait for the clock to tick over.

I then launch into my opening spiel, something along the lines of: "Hi folks, it's me, it's F-troop, who's awake?"

After taking a few calls and logging them, I'll circulate through, call for more people, rinse and repeat.

There are two invisible things happening, one required, the other I do because I'm a computer geek. The required activity is logging. I chose to log in an online spreadsheet. It's helpful because it makes for a single place where all contacts are stored and it allows for others to host the net if I happen to fall off the air, either by being somewhere else, like a holiday every decade or so, or because my radio isn't being cooperative.

The other thing that logging gives you is a memory. I generally recall a person's name from their callsign, but if you listen closely you'll notice that every now and again I'll extend my babble so I can search for a callsign and appear not to be suffering from memory loss.

The other thing that happens is that I update the website. I'll be merrily adding articles from emails or discussion as it's happening. If someone mentions a product or a website, a callsign or a project, I'll often be searching for it in real time and adding it as a post to the F-troop website. That way people who want to refer back at a later time, that includes me, can search and find the thing that someone showed us.

As simple or as complex as that sounds, depending on your level of experience, it's really not rocket science. You can do this with pen and paper. I know, I've done it, standing in a car-park with a notepad, whilst dodging rain showers and preparing for a field-day. It's fun to test your skill and to get out of your comfort zone every now and again.

I should interrupt this story for a word from our sponsors. Don't have a kitten, we're not talking about advertising, we're talking about repeater and network operators who graciously give of their time and resources to link the main F-troop repeater to others around the world. The network of AllStar, Echolink, IRLP and IRN radios that carry F-troop is astonishing to me. We have regular participants all over Australia, the United States and the United Kingdom. There have been contacts with stations in Asia and Europe.

For that to happen I don't do a single thing. Well, technically I let repeater operators know I exist and when it breaks, but that's pretty much the sum total of my efforts.

Why am I telling you this?

Last week it broke. My radio was acting up and someone commented on that. I handed over the reigns and let them at it. They were very unsure. I let them know that F-troop is for beginners. It's expected that people are going to make a mistake, I know I do, plenty of times.

It occurred to me afterwards that hosting a net can be scary. If you have no idea what's involved, how to make it happen, what to do, then hosting must be immensely daunting.

I hope that sharing how I do this will give you the confidence to host your own net in your own community. Perhaps you can tell me more about it, or come and visit F-troop. Saturday morning at midnight UTC. If you want I'll even help you host it.

I'm Onno VK6FLAB

 This article is the transcript of the weekly 'Foundations of Amateur Radio' podcast, produced by Onno Benschop, VK6FLAB who was licensed as radio amateur in Perth, Western Australia in 2010. For other episodes, visit http://vk6flab.com/. Feel free to get in touch directly via email: cq@vk6flab.com
Budget 2020: National Police University, National Forensic Science varsity to be set up

India

oi-Madhuri Adnal

New Delhi, Feb 01: The government has proposed to set up a National Police University and a National Forensic Science University, Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman said on Saturday during her second union budget presentation.

Presenting the Budget for 2020-21, Sitharaman said Rs 99,300 crore has been allocated for the education sector and Rs 3,000 crore for skill development. Sitharaman said the Narendra Modi government will soon announce a new education policy.

Budget 2020: GST a historic reform says FinMin

According to new proposals announced in the budget, urban local bodies will provide internship to young engineers for a year so that they get an idea about the functioning of the government.

"Degree level online education courses will be introduced which can be provided by colleges figuring in top 100 in National Institutional Ranking Framework," she said in her budget speech. In order to boost the Study in India programme, the Finance Minister proposed "conducting IND-SAT exam to be held in African and Asian countries for benchmarking foreign candidates who wish to study in India".
- The United Kingdom officially ceased to be a member of the European Union on Friday, January 31

- The exit comes after more than three years after it voted to do so in a referendum

- The UK's Prime Minister Boris Johnson vowed to bring the country together after the exit

- Brexit parties were held in pubs and social clubs across the UK as Boris and his team celebrated with English sparkling wine

The United Kingdom (UK) is officially no longer a member of the European Union (EU) after 47 years of membership.

The historic moment, which happened on the night of Friday, January 31, was marked by both celebrations and anti-Brexit protests.

READ ALSO: US pastor claims locust invasion in Kenya is punishment for corruption

Brexit: UK officially leaves European Union

Source: Facebook

READ ALSO: African billionaire apologises for saying continent loves US President Donald Trump

The UK Prime Minister Boris Johnson. through a message shared on social media, vowed to bring the country together and take its citizen forward.

"For many people, this is an astonishing moment of hope, a moment they thought would never come. And there are many of course who feel a sense of anxiety and loss" read the message.

"And then, of course, there is a third group - perhaps the biggest - who had started to worry that the whole political wrangle would never come to an end," he added.

READ ALSO: Blind single mum appeals to Kenyans to raise funds for son's neck operation

The prime minister also said that the EU had evolved over 50 years and that its strengths and admirable qualities no longer suited the UK.

"The most important thing to say tonight is that this is not an end but a beginning and a moment of real national renewal and change," he said.

Hundreds gathered in Parliament Square to celebrate Brexit, singing patriotic songs and cheering speeches from leading Brexiteers.

READ ALSO: Jamaa aliyemuua mamake kufuatia mzozo wa mlo wa mayai akamatwa

Boris marked the historic moment with his team at his Downing Street office, celebrating with English sparkling wine and an array of British culinary treats.

Anti-Brexit campaigners mounted several protests along the Irish border.

Under the terms of the withdrawal agreement between the UK and EU, Britain now enters a transition period until the end of 2020.

READ ALSO: Arya Permana: World's heaviest boy shows off weight loss success story

This means London will abide by most EU laws while their future relationship is hashed out and Boris must achieve a trade deal with the EU within 11 months.

Most experts have described the task as ambitious at best, but his wider mission over the next five years will be to find a way to repair the country's divisions.

Brexit has caused the downfall of two prime ministers. David Cameron resigned after the unexpected win for the Leave camp and his successor, Theresa May.

Do you have an inspirational story you would like us to publish? Please reach us through news@tuko.co.ke or WhatsApp: 0732482690. Contact Tuko.co.ke instantly.

Are Kenyans happy with the leaders they elected? | Tuko TV

Source: TUKO.co.ke
Three decades after he was sued for sexual misconduct, pastor Terry Smith is again facing public scrutiny.

This time its from abuse survivors and activists who say Smiths continued ministry, following a judges ruling that his conduct was improper and outrageous, shows the limitations of the Southern Baptist Conventions efforts to combat sexual abuse.

The renewed attention to Smith started with former SBC President Paige Patterson tweeting earlier this month that Smiths congregation, Victory Baptist Church in the Dallas suburb of Rowlett, had honored him as a defender of the faith.

Many abuse survivors and activists quickly denounced the decision to recognize Patterson, citing his recent ouster as president of Southwestern Baptist Theological Seminary over his handling of multiple abuse claims.

Attention then turned to Smith, who has a record of abuse allegations and was sued by a woman who said he took advantage of counseling sessions to sexually abuse her. Critics asked why that history  easily available by googling his name  hadnt kept him and others with similar histories out of Baptist pulpits.

Neither Smith nor Victory responded to repeated requests for comment this week. Victory joined the Southern Baptist of Texas Convention in 2007, before Smith was pastor, according to a group spokesman, who said he was not aware of the allegations until the Chronicle sought comment.

Reviews of churches fitness for membership can be prompted by media reports. But Gary Ledbetter, the spokesman, said it is against policy to confirm whether there are open inquiries.

Rachael Denhollander, a lawyer who was the first person to publicly accuse now-imprisoned USA Gymnastics doctor Larry Nasser, said it was concerning that Smith and the church may have escaped scrutiny had it not been for Pattersons social media post.

That, she said, shows what can go wrong when Baptists dont hold one another accountable or arent transparent about abuse allegations.

If you dont have information, you cant do anything, she said.

Historically, like all of SBCs 47,000 autonomous and self-governing churches, Victory has been free to host, hire or ordain whomever it wants as pastor, provided the candidates are neither gay or female, both of whom are ineligible, according to SBC rules.

But in June, thousands of delegates from SBC churches approved language that also would bar churches with leaders whove been convicted or credibly accused of sexual misconduct. The faith group also empowered a committee to make inquiries into any churchs handing of abuse and, if needed, refer them to leaders, who would then decide whether to oust the church from the SBC.

Activists such as Denhollander, who also advises SBC leaders on abuse reforms, have said the measures are a good first step, but that more needs to be done.

This week, Denhollander called on the SBC to consider creating a third-party database that would maintain a list of allegations against church leaders. The convention in 2008 rejected such a proposal, citing local church autonomy as a hurdle.

Denhollander argues that autonomy does not relieve Baptists of the requirement to keep your brothers accountable.

Communication between churches is a very Biblical concept, she said. Vetting your elders is a very Biblical concept. Having an informed congregation is a very Biblical concept.

The SBC reform efforts followed a Chronicle investigation, Abuse of Faith, that found hundreds of Southern Baptist church leaders and volunteers had been criminally convicted of sex crimes. The investigation also revealed dozens of instances in which accused predators remained in the pulpit or found work at other churches.

A recent Fort Worth Star-Telegram investigation found similar issues at many independent fundamental Baptist churches that also practice local church autonomy.

Smith first faced misconduct complaints in the late 1980s as pastor of Canyon Creek Baptist Church, an IFB church. They came from numerous women, according to Dallas County court records and news reports at the time.

In 1988, one woman filed a lawsuit in which she accused Smith of using counseling sessions to repeatedly have sex with her. Such behavior was legal at the time in Texas.

A judge later ruled in the womans favor, writing that Smiths actions were improper and outrageous conduct and (a) breach of common and lawful standards of moral turpitude, court records show. Still, she won only a small amount of money from the suit.

In 2012, Smith became Victorys lead pastor, according to his LinkedIn page.

One IFB pastor said its not surprising pastors with problematic pasts alternate between churches of the two faith groups given they share similar beliefs and both are decentralized.

Say a man burns his bridges in the independent Baptist church and everybody knows everybody, said Maryland IFB pastor Stacey Shiflett. All hes gotta do is start hanging out with SBC people and in most cases, you get a fresh start because they dont really interact. Youre virtually an unknown.

Shiflett, also an abuse survivor, said both faith groups are doing a lousy job of vetting their pastors. A lousy job.

Those shortcomings dont just put people in danger  they unfairly burden survivors of abuse, said activist and abuse survivor Christa Brown.

Brown spent years contacting churches about her former pastor, armed with civil court records and a church apology letter over the handling of her abuse.

Yet few people listened, Brown said. She continues to push for SBC leaders to adopt reforms, but says the broader culture needs to change so survivors wont pay a high price for disclosing abuse.

Until state and local Baptist leaders are more vigilant of who is pastoring nearby congregations, Brown said, the burden will fall on survivors or journalists to track and raise awareness about predatory church leaders.

The entire burden fell on me, she said. And sometimes I still wonder, Was it worth the enormous angst that it required?  It is beyond exhausting.

robert.downen@chron.com

sarah.smith@chron.com
PLEASE BE ADVISED: Soon we will no longer integrate with Facebook for story comments. The commenting option is not going away, however, readers will need to register for a FREE site account to continue sharing their thoughts and feedback on stories. If you already have an account (i.e. current subscribers, posting in obituary guestbooks, for submitting community events), you may use that login, otherwise, you will be prompted to create a new account.
Israeli warplanes hit the Gaza Strip's Islamist rulers Hamas on Saturday after cross-border mortar fire by Palestinian militants, the Israeli army said.

Fighter aircraft hit "Hamas terror targets in the northern Gaza Strip," an army statement said.

"Among the targets were weapon storage facilities and an underground infrastructure used by the Hamas terror organisation," the English-language statement said.

There were no reports of casualties.

The strikes followed successive rounds of cross-border fire from Gaza on Friday and the launch of balloons fitted with incendiary devices into southern Israel.

Israel retaliated to Friday's first volley with tank fire on what an army statement called a "Hamas military post" in southern Gaza.

The latest uptick of violence came after US President Donald Trump enraged Palestinians with a controversial peace plan which would allow Israel to annex swathes of territory in the occupied West Bank.

But it has so far been on nothing like the scale of flare-ups last year.

Israel carried out air strikes on Hamas targets in Gaza early Friday after three rockets were fired the previous evening, causing neither casualties nor damage, the army said.

Hamas and Israel have fought three wars since 2008, but over the past year, the Islamists have gradually shaped an informal truce with Israel, under which the Jewish state has eased its crippling blockade of Gaza in exchange for calm.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
CHICAGO  Brian Duncan, an Ogle County farmer, has led the charge for the last two years in trying to find an affordable health care option for Illinois Farmer Bureau members. At the annual meeting in Chicago on Dec. 9, he said he was hopeful at one point, but regulations are blocking efforts.

Health care expenses repeatedly come up as a top concern for farmers, so the Illinois Farm Bureau set up a team to investigate options. Progress has been frustratingly slow, said Duncan, the Illinois Farm Bureau vice president who spearheaded the effort.

Duncan and the team looked to neighbors to the west. Iowa passed a law in 2018 that allows the Iowa Farm Bureau Federation to provide an underwritten health benefit plan for its members. But the Illinois team could not find an insurance carrier to take on the task after court decisions made the effort more challenging.

To introduce another health care option here would require legislative change in Illinois, and Duncan said that is not likely to happen.

We believe it is unlikely the General Assembly will do something that would be seen as undermining the Affordable Care Act, he said.

Instead, the group is focusing on things it can do, which include offering grants to county Farm Bureaus to run health and wellness programs and offering scholarships for young people to pursue health careers in rural areas.

During their research, the message he heard from insurers was that farmers should take better care of themselves.

We took that to heart, Duncan said.

A health fair during the IFB annual meeting in Chicago offered hearing, skin cancer and blood screenings as well as yoga and massage. Speakers presented healthy eating and safety tips.

A good friend of mine had blood drawn at a Farm Bureau health fair, Duncan said, and it lead to the discovery that his friend had cancer. It was treated and he survived.

Dr. Josie Rudolphi, an assistant professor of agriculture safety and health at the University of Illinois, talked to farmers about some of the stressors this season, including weather, harvest delays, commodity prices and family issues. She said statistics show that white males ages 45 to 55 are at the highest risk for suicide.

Look around at this conference, Rudolphi said at the event where many farmers fell into that category.

Her research talking to young farmers, and those who work with farmers, including equipment dealers and rural bankers, confirmed concerns about high stress among farmers.

At times a chat with a friend or minister may be a big help, other times a professional might be the answer, Rudolphi said.

Symptoms of high stress can include aches and pains, ulcers, nausea, dizziness, headaches and chest pain that can be related to heart concerns or anxiety, she said. Eating too much or too little, sleeping too much or too little, using alcohol or drugs can be reactions to stress.

Ways to manage stress include having hobbies, exercise and diversions  which could be watching a 20-minute Netflix show or taking a walk. During busy harvest times, for example, it may be difficult to take even a short break, but she encourages finding time when possible.

Dont let perfect get in the way of better, she said.

Love 0 Funny 0 Wow 0 Sad 0 Angry 0
China's Premier Li Keqiang has asked the European Union for medical supplies to help battle the coronavirus outbreak.

It comes as the number of deaths from a coronavirus epidemic in China rose to 259, as the United States and other nations announce new border curbs on foreigners who have been in China.

Li spoke to the President of the European Commission Ursula von der Leyen on the phone, a statement said.

Li (pictured as he visits a construction site of a new hospital this week) spoke to the President of the European Commission Ursula von der Leyen on the phone and asked for help in procuring medical supplies

Almost 12,000 people in 24 countries and territories have now been diagnosed with the Wuhan coronavirus and 259 people have died, all in China

It revealed that he is hoping to buy the medical supplies from EU member countries 'through commercial channels.'

'And we are willing to strengthen information, policy and technical exchanges and to cooperate with international communities including EU,' Li said, according to the statement.

The central province of Hubei, the centre of the epidemic, is under a virtual quarantine, with roads sealed off and public transport shut down.

Elsewhere in China, authorities have placed restrictions on travel and business activity in a bid to contain the spread of the virus.

In its latest figures, China's National Health Commission said there were 2,102 new confirmed infections in China on Friday, bringing the cumulative total to 11,791.

Around two dozen other countries have reported confirmed cases of the virus.

Amid growing international concern, Singapore and the United States announced measures on Friday to restrict entry to foreign nationals who have recently been in China.

Australia followed suit, with Prime Minister Scott Morrison saying the country will deny entry to all foreign nationals travelling from mainland China from Saturday.

'We're in fact operating with an abundance of caution in these circumstances,' Morrison told reporters in Sydney. 'So Australians can go about their daily lives with confidence.'

China's Premier Li Keqiang (pictured) asked the European Union for help amid the coronavirus outbreak that has killed more than 250 people and infected over 10,000

However, the World Health Organization, which this week declared the outbreak a public health emergency of international concern, reiterated global trade and travel restrictions were not needed.

'We would want countries to focus on the mitigation efforts of identifying the possible importation of cases and responding to any domestic outbreak,' China WHO representative Gauden Galea said today.

Qantas Airways Ltd and Air New Zealand said international travel bans had forced them to suspend their direct flights to China from Feb. 9.

All three major U.S. airlines said on Friday they would cancel flights to mainland China.

Nearly 10,000 flights have been suspended since the outbreak of the new coronavirus, according to travel and data analytics firm Cirium, illustrating concerns about a slowdown in economic activity in China and elsewhere.

Many nations have put on special charter flights to repatriate citizens from China.

More than 300 South Koreans arrived home on Saturday on a second charter flight from China and have been transported to a facility where they will be isolated for two weeks, the health ministry said. Seven people on the flight exhibited symptoms and were sent to hospital.

Indonesian officials said around 250 nationals being evacuated from Hubei will be quarantined on a military base on the remote Natuna Islands.

Britain said it was withdrawing some staff from its embassy and consulates in China.

'In the event that the situation deteriorates further, the ability of the British Embassy and Consulates to provide assistance to British nationals from within China may be limited,' the UK government said in a statement.

Hubei province residents, disembarking a chartered Xiamen Airline plane, arrive at Wuhan Tianhe International Airport in Wuhan, Hubei Province, China today

People arrive from the Hubei province at a checkpoint at the Jiujiang Yangtze River Bridge in Jiujiang, Jiangxi province, China, as the country is hit by an outbreak of a new coronavirus, February 1

Despite this, China has flown two planeloads of its citizens back home to Hubei, the locked-down province at the centre of the deadly coronavirus outbreak where they were greeted by authorities in full-body protective suits.

A Xiamen Airlines charter flight from Bangkok touched down late Friday in the provincial capital Wuhan, where the infection is believed to have originated in a market that sold wild animals.

Infections have jumped in two cities flanking Wuhan, raising concerns that new hot spots are emerging despite strict travel restrictions.

In one of them, Huanggang, authorities are requiring households to designate one individual who can leave the home, a local newspaper said. The city has a population of about 7.5 million.

The northern city of Tianjin, with a population of about 15 million, suspended all schools and businesses until further notice, joining other cities across China in implementing measures aimed at curbing the spread of the pathogen.

A senior leadership group tasked with handling the crisis promised to take action to prevent a big surge in the number of people travelling after the extended Lunar New Year holiday.

The team led by Premier Li Keqiang said they would coordinate with local governments to stagger the times when people are asked to go back to work.

Although the WHO has praised China's efforts to contain the virus, the U.S.-based China Human Rights Defenders urged Beijing to ease restrictions on movement and counter discrimination against residents of Wuhan and Hubei.

'Human rights must not be a casualty of the governmentas work to contain the coronavirus outbreak that has killed nearly 200 people and affected millions,' the group said.
In July of 2017, International Business Machines Corp. executive Arvind Krishna walked into a routine meeting with senior leaders and delivered a surprise pitch that changed the course of the iconic 108-year-old companys future.

For months Krishna, the head of IBMs cloud computing division, had been thinking about a way to connect clients most important data, which was often held on private servers, to public cloud servers run by others including IBM, Amazon.com Inc. and Microsoft Corp. Finally he proposed a way, creating IBMs so-called hybrid multi cloud strategy.

The company was coming off of 19 consecutive quarters of shrinking revenue and lagging far behind rivals in cloud computing, the lucrative new field in business technology, when Krishna stood in front of a crowd of executives, including Chief Executive Officer Ginni Rometty, at the companys Armonk, New York, headquarters. He ran a live demonstration of some of the hybrid cloud products from his Mac laptop.

I showed an early version, not yet complete, of what we could do to about 60 or 70 senior leaders from inside IBM, Krishna said in an interview last year. I think the light-bulb went off for everybody. The first question he received from the group was: when will it be ready to go to market?

IBM launched its hybrid cloud product three months later. Rometty called it a game changer for the company. Last year, at Krishnas suggestion, IBM acquired open source software provider Red Hat for $34 billion to further that vision  a strategy some Wall Street pundits believe will finally breathe life back into Big Blue.

On Thursday, IBM announced that Rometty would be stepping down after almost 40 years at the company and Krishna would be taking over. Though generally respected by her peers, Rometty, 62, inherited many challenges that she was ultimately unable to overcome. During her tenure, revenue and IBMs valuation shrank by 25%, in opposition to other tech companies and the broader market, which have seen spectacular gains. Rometty, who will step down as CEO effective April 6, will stay on as executive chairman through the end of the year.

Restoring IBM even part way back to its glory days will require a radical transformation, steering the company away from its slow-growing unprofitable legacy businesses and toward the future of modern computing. Analysts say Krishna is up for the task.

Krishna, 57, has spent his entire career at IBM and witnessed the companys ups and downs as it went from the world leader in computing and IT services to missing the cloud revolution and falling behind nimbler, younger rivals like Amazon.

Krishnas elevation is reminiscent of the appointment of Satya Nadella, Microsofts cloud chief, into the CEO role in 2014. Like Krishna, Nadella also bet big on the cloud and won, boosting Microsofts market valuation to more than $1 trillion. IBM shares gained 4.5% Friday after the announcement of the leadership change, valuing the company at about $126 million.

As the new CEO of IBM, Krishna would be a Nadella-like leader  calm but deep, firm but unaggressive, said Rishikesha Krishnan, a professor of strategy at the Indian Institute of Management in Bangalore. If a company intends to make a serious shift or change, hed be the man.

Krishnan studied with Krishna at Indias premier engineering school, the Indian Institute of Technology Kanpur. IQ levels on the campus are high, but even then he stood out as smart and articulate, Krishnan said.

Soft-spoken, relaxed and accessible, Krishna represents a new leadership style for IBM, which has an entrenched culture of bureaucracy and formalities. On a recent trip to India, he spent hours in the IBM cafeteria chatting to whomever approached him, according to a person who observed the interaction but didnt want to be named describing a private event. He socialized with team members until the early hours of the morning, answering questions and offering market insights.

Krishna joined IBM in 1990 after studying in Kanpur and obtaining a Ph.D. in electrical engineering from the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign. With vast industry knowledge and a tendency to speak at a rapid pace, Krishna can be hard to keep up with but is known for a willingness to simplify complex terms.

In an interview last February, Krishna was asked to describe hybrid-cloud computing in two sentences. He gave a thorough and speedy analysis of the intersection between public cloud, private cloud, data centers, applications, existing infrastructure and other technical terms. At the end of his answer, Krishna said: Now that wasnt quite two sentences, but it was no more than two minutes. He then laughed, adding was that all intelligible?

IBMs hybrid cloud strategy was a long time coming, Krishna said. Maybe we should have done it a year or two earlier, but then theres this question of would the world be ready? I think if wed done it in 2015 it mightve been too early.

Others disagree, saying one of the main criticisms against Rometty was not launching IBMs transition soon enough. IBM has a lot of catching up to do in the trillion-dollar cloud market where Amazon and Microsoft are far out in front, followed by Alphabet Inc.s Google. They are all developing similar software in the hybrid-cloud market too. While IBM gained ground with the Red Hat purchase, the fierce competition with such formidable rivals wont leave much room for error.

Former longtime IBM employee and historian James Cortada, a senior research fellow at the University of Minnesota, said hybrid cloud represents the companys third radical transformation in its history. In the 1950s IBM moved from tabulating equipment to computers; in the 1990s it shifted to software and services; and now hybrid is the future. Rometty initiated that next fundamental transition or transformation for the company, but that went too slowly for a lot of people, Cortada said.

Krishna will also benefit from a strong partner in Jim Whitehurst, the 52-year-old CEO of Red Hat who was elevated to IBM president, the first time the company has given an executive that title on its own.

Whitehurst has been running a smaller but much faster growing company at the cutting edge of cloud migration, said Stifel Nicolaus & Co. analyst David Grossman. The combination of the two of them sets up a very interesting and complimentary team.

Together, Krishna and Whitehurst bring software to the core of the company.

Now the two top dogs running IBM are cloud purists, said Steve Duplessie, founder of Enterprise Strategy Group. The old IBM died a while ago and they had to change. This lets them remake themselves before its too late.
The UK's divorce from the European Union (EU) came into force on Friday night as it became the first country to exit the economic bloc after 47 years of membership following the vote in favour of Brexit in June 2016.

British Prime Minister Boris Johnson hailed the historic moment as the dawn of a new era for the UK in his address to the nation just before Brexit.

Brexit came into force at 11:00 pm (2300 GMT).

"This is the moment when the dawn breaks and the curtain goes up on a new act in our great national drama," said Johnson, in his video message which promised hope and opportunity to every part of the United Kingdom.

"It is not just about some legal extrication. It is potentially a moment of real national renewal and change. This is the dawn of a new era in which we no longer accept that your life chances -- your family's life chances -- should depend on which part of the country you grow up in," he said.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman on Friday announced the governments decision to raise the Rs 1-lakh insurance cover limit to Rs 5 lakh for greater protection of depositors money in banks.

The limit was last revised nearly 25 years ago in 1993.

Sitharaman, who was presenting her budget proposals for 2020-21, said the Deposit Insurance and Credit Guarantee Corporation has been permitted to increase deposit insurance coverage to Rs 5 lakh per depositor from Rs 1 lakh.

Deposit Insurance and Credit Guarantee Corporation (DICGC), a wholly owned subsidiary of the Reserve Bank of India, provides insurance cover on bank deposits.

The limit had not been revised since 1993, when it was increased from Rs 30,000. Officials had earlier indicated that the government could raise the limit by Rs 2 lakh. Sitharaman went beyond this recommendation and proposed to quintuple the limit to Rs 5 lakh.

The move comes in the wake of the crisis at Mumbai-headquartered Punjab and Maharashtra Cooperative Bank (PMC) where customers had not been able to withdraw money after the central bank found violations of banking rules and under-reporting of bad loans.

Sitharaman also announced the governments decision to amend the Companies Act to decriminalise civil offences. She said her government would not tolerate tax harassment and added that wealth creators will be respected in the country.

Taxpayers charter will be part of statute, the finance minister added.
Prices of masks have been driven up by hoarding and citizens spookiness.

Medical mask has been one of the most sought-after products in Vietnam. Photo: Zing

Companies in Vietnam are capable of producing sufficient medical face masks for domestic consumption as locals are rushing to buy the masks on fear of getting infected with the nCoV, a health official has been quoted by local media as saying.

Vietnam has more than 30 mask producers, but they are facing a shortage of laborers who have yet to return to work after the Lunar New Year holiday, Nguyen Tu Hieu, deputy head of the Medical Equipment Department under the Ministry of Health, said at a press conference just concluded.

Prices of medical masks and hand sanitizers have jumped in recent days, especially in major cities like Hanoi, as locals seek after the products to prevent nCoV infection.

Hieu said prices of masks have been driven up by hoarding and citizens spookiness.

He added that the ministry has asked producers not to raise prices or sell to hoarders or export to other countries. He also called on producers not to take advantage of the epidemic to make a profit.

The official denied the rumors saying that Vietnam was selling medical equipment to China to help deal with the coronavirus.

The Market Surveillance Authority has sent a dispatch asking provincial forces to handle hoarding of medical masks, hand sanitizers and medical gloves.

The Hanoi government has said it will store up to 20 million medical masks to deliver to local citizens for free when the epidemic spreads in the city.

At the press conference, Tran Dac Phu, former head of the ministrys Preventive Health Department, suggested people wear a mask when being at or traveling in crowded places like public means of transport or hospitals.

Its not necessary to were a sophisticated mask such as N95 in daily activities, an ordinary medical mask is enough to prevent nCoV infection at public places, Phu said.

Prices of medical face masks in Hanoi skyrocket amid possible nCoV outbreak

Amid a possible outbreak of the new deadly coronavirus (nCoV) in Hanoi, locals are rushing to stockpile medical face masks and hand sanitizers, sending prices of these products skyrocketing in recent days.

An increasing number of customers have been looking for medical masks at drug stores, super markets and convenient stores, including Aeon Mall, Vinmart, or Circle K, as well as on major e-commerce platforms such as Sendo, Tiki, Shopee and Lazada.

A number of online stores on Shopee have announced the out of stock for Japanese Unicharm 3D Mask, which is said to be able to block virus, while others raised prices from VND16,000 (US$0.69) for a 5-piece pack to VND23,000  25,000 (US$1  1.08) with five to seven days until delivery.

Notably, single-use medical masks with prices of VND30,000  40,000 (US$1.29  1.73) per box have nearly tripled to VND80,000  120,000 (US$3.45  5.18). Others brands of active charcoal face masks such as Kissy, Kari Bon, Kitty, Anvilife, or Leo also witnessed price hikes from VND10,000  20,000 (US$0.43  0.86) apiece to VND30,000  60,000 (US$1.29  2.59).

Most store owners attributed prices hikes of facial masks to a sudden rise in demand. Some even declined customers request for purchase of facial masks in large quantity, due to the supply shortage.

Nguyen The Trung, a reader on the Vnexpress, said that the Market Surveillance authority should step in and stabilize the prices of facial masks.

Meanwhile, another said there should be no shortage of facial masks, as they are easy to produce at low price, adding it is unacceptable for those that hoard the products to sell at high prices.

They are prioritizing profits at the expense of the fear of the public, he said.

Chairman of the Hanoi Peoples Committee Nguyen Duc Chung on January 30 urged city agencies to store between 15 and 20 million medical masks to cope with the possible outbreak of nCoV.

For a city of eight million people, Chung requested the municipal Department of Health to check the production of medical face masks to ensure sufficient quantity.

In case of disease outbreak, the masks would be delivered for free to local people, local media quoted the mayor as saying.

Shortage of facial masks currently is a common issue on global stage, as people around the world are stockpiling these products to protect themselves from the deadly virus, depleting online malls and store shelves from California to Beijing, Bloomberg reported.

Across China, Hong Kong and Singapore, people lined up for hours at stores and pharmacies hoping to secure dwindling supplies. People from San Francisco to Orlando said they were unable to find surgical masks at their usual outlets. Hanoitimes

Anh Minh/Ngoc Thuy

Prices of pork, face masks heat up pricing committees meeting The prices of pork and face masks were the centre of discussion at an extraordinary meeting of the steering committee for pricing on January 31 under the chair of its head, Deputy Prime Minister Vuong Dinh Hue.
Leaking propylene fuel ignited by routine electric arcing likely caused the calamitous explosion at the Watson Grinding and Manufacturing facility in northwest Houston, authorities said Friday. There is no evidence the explosion was caused by a criminal act.

The early morning blast destroyed the manufacturing facility, killed two people, wounded others, damaged hundreds of structures  and created a shockwave that woke Houston residents living more than a dozen miles from the site.

We have no indication that would lead us to believe this was a traditional criminal act, said Fred Milanowski, special agent in charge of the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives Houston Field Division. No indication it was arson, no indication it was sabotage, no indication of vandalism.

For subscribers: I thought somebody attacked us: Gessner chemical explosion devastates west Houston neighborhoods

Fire Chief Sam Pena said Fridays news came as the result of a systematic, forensic reconstruction of the incident.

It takes a lot of time, its very meticulous, and theres a process, he said.

Local police, arson investigators and dozens of ATF agents spent hundreds of hours in the aftermath of the explosion to try to determine exactly what happened, he said. Milanowski said the fuel that propelled the explosion was propylene. Investigators determined that the facilitys normal fuel use drained about 6 to 7 percent of its propylene tank every day.

Investigators found that in a 24-hour period shortly before the explosion, 29 percent of the tanks fuel drained from the vessel, Milanowski said. Normal arcing within the facilitys electrical systems provided the spark necessary to trigger the blast, he said.

Watson was founded 60 years ago by James Watson, who died in 2014. It is now owned and headed by his son, John M. Watson.

The blast killed Watson employees Frank Flores and Gerardo Castorena Sr., ages 44 and 45.

In the days since the explosion, lawyers representing Flores relatives, Harris County and numerous residents whose homes were damaged all filed lawsuits against Watson Grinding and Manufacturing.

Also on Friday, a judge granted a temporary restraining order and injunction and forbade the City of Houston from cleaning up the area around the explosion  a move that came as plaintiffs attorneys sought to preserve evidence as they built their cases against Watson Grinding.

County lawsuit: Harris County to sue Watson Grinding and Manufacturing in wake of deadly Gessner blast

And late Friday afternoon, attorneys representing relatives of one of the two people who died in the explosion announced theyd also sued two propylene distributors, arguing they were negligent in relation to their maintenance, supply and monitoring of the propylene equipment at Watson Grindings facility.

Propylene distributors have a duty to ensure that storage and delivery equipment is free of leaks, attorney Mo Aziz said in a news release detailing the new filing. We now know that there was a significant propylene leak before the explosion.

st.john.smith@chron.com

twitter.com/stjbs
New Delhi: The man who fired three bullets in the air in Delhi's Shaheen Bagh area where an anti-Citizenship (Amendment) Act (CAA) protest has been underway for over a month, on Feb 1, 2020. The man has been identified as Kapil, a resident of Dullupu Image Source: IANS News

New Delhi: Bullets at the site where three of them were fired in the air by an unidentified man in Delhi's Shaheen Bagh area where an anti-Citizenship (Amendment) Act (CAA) protest has been underway for over a month, on Feb 1, 2020. The man has been Image Source: IANS News

New Delhi, Feb 1 : Two days after a youth opened fire on the anti-CAA protesters here, a similar incident happened on Saturday as a man fired bullets in the air in Shaheen Bagh area -- a key site of the protests. The police have detained the man.

No one was injured in the firing but following the incident, there was panic and anger in the area where an anti-Citizenship (Amendment) Act (CAA) protest has been underway for over a month.

According to Deputy Commissioner of Police (DCP) Chinmoy Biswal (south-east district), the man has been identified as Kapil Gujjar, a resident of Dallupura village in east Delhi.

Soon after he fired in the air, the police overpowered and apprehended him. Bullet shells have also been recovered from the site of the firing.

A police officer present at the spot said "three bullets were fired in the air".

The local residents, however, claimed Kapil was overpowered by them and then handed over to the police.

He was allegedly "very close to the police" when he opened fire. He was standing near the second barricade which is partially open. The Shaheen Bagh protest site has four layers of barricades.

A local resident at the protest site said: "It is a major security lapse... anything can happen here. Police are doing nothing for the security of the people here who are protesting peacefully." In a video tweeted by a TV channel, the shooter could be heard saying: "Iss desh mein kisi ki nahin chalegi, sirf Hinduon ki chalegi. (In this country, no one but Hindus can have their say)." The people present at the protest site said he threatened protesters, warning them to vacate the site where they have been holding a protest against the CAA and the National Register of Citizens since December, before firing in the air.

The man has been taken away by the police amid tight security to an unknown place where he is being questioned, a police officer told IANS.

The crowd wanted to rough up the youth but the police prevented the situation from getting out of hand. The people also raised slogans against the police.

On Thursday, a youth opened fire with a country-made .315 bore pistol when the Jamia students were to start their march from Jamia Millia Islamia to Rajghat. It left a journalism student, Shadab, with injuries on his arm.
Absurdly Driven looks at the world of business with a skeptical eye and a firmly rooted tongue in cheek.

At the time, it seemed a moving story.

A North Carolina Popeyes had run out of its suddenly popular chicken sandwiches. So the local Chick-fil-A manager walked over to the disappointed Popeye customers and offered some of Chick-fil-A's fare for free.

It was a lovely gesture. And, of course, a highly competitive statement.

I'm reminded of this tale because of a new story emerging from the closure of a McDonald's.

This franchise, in the Tokyo district of Akihabara, put up a sign in its window. As Sora News 24 reported, it read:

Thank you for your 22 years of patronage. The Akihabara Showadori branch McDonald's will be permanently closing at 6 p.m. on January 31. Thank you for the past 22 years. We deeply appreciate the customers who supported this branch, and hope you will continue to dine at other McDonald's locations.

The sign was accompanied by a picture of Ronald McDonald turning his back and waving, which some might find imperfect symbolism.

Fast food is hard. It seems that, in a district well known for its concentration of tech types, and aficionados of video games and anime, McDonald's was no longer a thing. Or, at least, this McDonald's. There are three others in the area.

Still, the local Burger King decided to offer a public show of respect. It put up a sign featuring a bowing Burger King employee and these words:

Thank you for 22 happy years. Our neighbor two buildings over, McDonald's, will be closing today. Esteemed rival, and fellow friend who loved Akihabara,

because you were close by, we also could do our best. Without you here, McDonald's, thinking of the future fills us with sadness. Selfish though it is for us to say this, everyone, please go to McDonald's today. Challenging ourselves to be as good as McDonald's has been our goal, so with a smile, we say thank you.

In the midst of competition, it's easy to forget that there's a certain camaraderie between competitors. They know they endure many of the same issues. Staffing, the dictatorial behavior of head office, customer dissatisfaction, they see it all. Your competitors often really aren't so different from you. They obsess about you, just as you obsess about them.

Many might think that Burger King's gesture was, therefore, a sort of "there, but for the grace of the King, go we." The mere idea of sending customers to a competitor looked like a beautiful existential gesture.

Until, that is, a tweeter called @sato322 pointed out that reading the initial character of each line, you get something akin to "our win" or "victory is ours." As @sato322's tweet reverberated around the web, gaining tens of millions of views, he mused he was shocked by the numbers in the audience.

It's not for me to suggest that Burger King's intentions were mean-spirited. Then again, the chain does have a previous charge of sending customers to McDonald's with trolling intentions.

The award-winning Whopper Detour campaign sent customers to order a one-cent Whopper at McDonald's. The idea was that anyone who ordered a Whopper on the Burger King app and was within 600 feet of a McDonald's would get one for a ridiculous price. Geotargeting is the future, after all.

One has to remain open-minded, then, whether the Akihabara Showadori Burger King was respectful or crowing.
Share this article Whatsapp

Facebook

Twitter

Linkedin Westra Tanribali (The Jakarta Post) Jakarta  Sat, February 1, 2020 10:57 709 7f440ff09e92db75a02bbad2061f795b 3 Opinion opinions,coronavirus,health,healthcare,disease,virus,outbreak,outbreak-in-Indonesia,Wuhan-coronavirus,Wuhan-coronavirus-in-Indonesia,wuhan,#Wuhan,#coronavirus,workplace,employer,workers-in-Indonesia,workers-protection,lifestyle Free

Panic about the recent outbreak of a new coronavirus that has spread beyond China seems slated to continue. This virus, first detected in Wuhan city, has affected business and travel in several parts of the world.

Though at the time of writing Indonesia has had no confirmed cases of coronavirus infection, to prevent its spread, every layer of society needs to play a part, including employers.

Employers have the interest and responsibility to make sure that both employees and nonemployees remain uninfected in the workplace.

Adopting strategies and measures in the workplace to ensure a healthy working environment will allow organizations to better protect employees, to increase their health and well-being and to allay the panic. Employers have at least three basic roles when there is a potential disease risk in the workplace:

Firstly, employers should take the lead in providing reliable and up-to-date information about the outbreak and how it will impact their business and operations.

Employees working abroad and traveling internationally should be aware of other geographic areas exposure to the virus. As employees spend most of their day in their workplace, employers should provide employees with education and training on preventing infection and spread of the virus as well as possible, including on protective behavior such as coughing etiquette. A commendable measure is providing a hotline for employees to contact management immediately when they feel they may have been exposed to a disease.

Secondly, organizations should provide resources and basic infrastructure to support workplace hygiene. This could be started by providing tissues, masks, no-touch trash cans, hand soap, hand sanitizer and disinfectants for employees to clean work facilities. The next step is to promote protective behavior for personal health and well-being by utilizing facilities provided in the workplace.

Lastly, employers need to instate a healthy workplace culture. This might not be the immediate and exclusive solution for the new coronavirus outbreak, but it will help organizations to minimize the risk of illnesses faced by employees in the long run.

Some companies might instate further health programs and policies, for example fitness and gym benefits, flexible working hours, flexible benefits and other competitive healthcare benefits. These programs aim to proactively improve employees health and well-being.

Additionally, organizations need to change to build a healthy workplace culture. They must remove the stigma of taking time off and sick leave.

Studies show that many employees still come to work when they are sick as they fear judgment and mistrust from their supervisors and coworkers. It is important for sick employees to stay at home  especially in the case of contagious diseases such as infection of the new coronavirus, though its exact source, let alone cure, is still unknown.

At least for the first couple of days, any employee who feels sick needs enough time to rest, seek medical help and, in the case of viral infections, for instance, prevent the spread of the virus to colleagues. Employers need to reinforce a culture where taking sick leave is normal or even suggested when employees have infectious diseases.

While the government takes action to check the new coronavirus at the national level, we are also responsible for taking care of our own health and hygiene to prevent the spread of the virus to ourselves, our workplace and households.

Disclaimer: The opinions expressed in this article are those of the author and do not reflect the official stance of The Jakarta Post.
Assam Finance Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma on Saturday described the Union Budget presented by Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman in Parliament as pragmatic and innovative.

Talking to media persons at Kokrajhar in lower Assam, Sarma said the budget will create employment opportunities for the youth as well as improve the rural economy through increased focus on agriculture, health and education.

He complimented Union Finance Minister Sitharaman for giving benefits to the income tax payers among the middle class people.

Sarma also said Prime Minister Narendra Modi is scheduled to visit Kokrajhar on February 7 to join the celebration of the Bodo Accord that was signed on January 27 in New Delhi.

During his visit, Prime Minister Modi will meet all the signatories of the recently signed peace accord and address the people of the area, he said.

Sarma, who is also the convener of the NEDA, visited Kokrajhar and selected the venue for the grand celebration of the programme to be addressed by the prime minister.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
Noted actor Shabana Azmi, who was injured in an accident last month, on Saturday said that she is back home now and thanked her fans for praying for her speedy recovery.

The 69-year-old actor suffered head injuries when her car met with an accident on the Mumbai-Pune Expressway on January 18. Her husband, veteran lyricist Javed Akhtar, was also there in the vehicle but escaped unhurt.

The actor and her driver Kamlesh Kamath were taken to the MGM hospital in Navi Mumbai and later shifted to the Kokilaben Dhirubhai Ambani Hospital in suburban Andheri the same day.

"Thank you all for your prayers and wishes for my recovery



. I'm back home now," Azmi wrote on Twitter alongside a post-recovery photo of herself.

"Thank you #Tina Ambani and Kokilaben Ambani hospital for the sterling care provided by the doctors team and the nursing staff. Im indebted and grateful," she added.

Azmi's driver has been booked for rash driving and negligence.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
Bernie Sanders told a group of Vermont high school students in 1972 that the United States' actions in Vietnam were 'almost as bad as what Hitler did.'

Sanders, the 78-year-old senator who is currently surging in the race for the Democratic nomination for president, made the remark when he was running for governor of Vermont.

The comment was reported at the time by The Rutland Herald. It was unearthed recently by the right-leaning web site Washington Free Beacon.

Sanders, who was 31 years old at the time, was running as the candidate for the Liberty Union Party, which was an offshoot of the antiwar movement.

Senator Bernie Sanders of Vermont, whose campaign for the Democratic nomination for president has been surging in recent weeks, told a group of ninth graders in Vermont in 1972 that what the United States did in Vietnam was 'almost as bad as what Hitler did'

He told a group of ninth grade students at a junior high school in Rutland that the North Vietnamese 'are not my enemy'.

Sanders continued: 'They're a very, very poor people. Some of them don't have shoes. They eat rice when they can get it.

'And they have been fighting for the freedom of their country for 25 years.

'They can hardly fight back.'

According to the report in The Rutland Herald, Sanders also supported a proposal to grant amnesty to those who evaded the draft.

Students reportedly pushed back against Sanders' position on amnesty, saying it would be unfair to the parents of those whose children were killed fighting the war.

The Vietnam War was a conflict which began in 1955 and ended with the fall of Saigon in April 1975.

The US intervened militarily to prop up its ally, the government of South Vietnam, against the communist North.

The American effort, which included bombardment of Cambodia and Laos, proved unsuccessful as Vietnam was reunited under communist rule.

Sanders made the comment during his unsuccessful run for governor of Vermont in 1972. He is seen above in 1972

More than 58,000 American soldiers died in the conflict.

It is estimated that a total of three million Vietnamese - including soldiers and civilians - were killed during that period.

Sanders' campaign for governor of Vermont was a failure. He received around one per cent of the vote.

He ran again as the Liberty Union candidate for both governor and for senator, but lost in those races as well.

He eventually won office as mayor of Burlington, a position he held from 1981 until 1989.

In 1991, he was elected to the US House of Representatives as the candidate from Vermont's at-large district.

He held that position until 2007, when he defeated incumbent Jim Jeffords to become a US senator from Vermont.

The senator from Vermont is a well-known - and self-described - democratic socialist, and has remained independent in the Senate even though he caucuses with Democrats.

Sanders, who has emerged in recent weeks as the most serious threat to defeat longstanding frontrunner Joe Biden in the race for the Democratic nomination, has made controversial statements in years past about America's Cold War enemies.

The Vietnam War was a conflict which began in 1955 and ended with the fall of Saigon in April 1975. The US intervened militarily to prop up its ally, the government of South Vietnam, against the communist North. The American effort, which included bombardment of Cambodia and Laos, proved unsuccessful as Vietnam was eventually reunited under communist rule

Last April, video surfaced online showing the then-Burlington mayor praise Cuba's late communist ruler Fidel Castro during a lecture in 1986.

'I remember being very excited when Fidel Castro made the revolution in Cuba,' Sanders is seen telling students at the University of Vermont in 1986.

'It seemed right and appropriate that poor people were rising up against ugly rich people.'

Sanders told the students how he became so disillusioned by John F. Kennedy when he ran for president in the early 1960s that he wanted to 'puke' because of his hardline anti-communist stance.

Last April, video posted to social media showed Sanders praising Fidel Castro and the Cuban revolution during a lecture to students at the University of Vermont in 1986. Sanders was the mayor of Burlington, Vermont, at the time

Video: @BernieSanders, University of Vermont, 1986, recalls his excitement watching Castros revolution rising up against the ugly rich people. & his sick feeling watching JFK speak out against communism in Cuba.



Also bashes the @nytimes for lying about communism. pic.twitter.com/OUqzLFbsvz  Reagan Battalion (@ReaganBattalion) February 21, 2019

'Kennedy was saying Nixon was too soft on communism in Cuba,' Sanders said.

'For the first time in my adult life, what I was seeing is the Democrats and Republicans ... clearly that there really wasn't a whole lot of difference between the two.'

During his unsuccessful bid to defeat Hillary Clinton in the Democratic primary in 2015-16, a video from 1985 was dredged up in which Sanders is seen heaping praise on Castro.

The grainy 1985 interview footage from Chittenden County, Vermont, shows Sanders praising Castro's policies on education, health care and society in general.

At the time, Sanders had been on a recent trip to Nicaragua to observe the sixth anniversary of the Sandinista regime.

He compared Sandinista leader Daniel Ortega - who is now president of Nicaragua - to Castro.

'In 1961, [America] invaded Cuba, and everybody was totally convinced that Castro was the worst guy in the world,' he said.

'All the Cuban people were going to rise up in rebellion against Fidel Castro.

'They forgot that he educated their kids, gave their kids health care, totally transformed society.

'You know, not to say Fidel Castro and Cuba are perfect - they are certainly not - but just because Ronald Reagan dislikes these people does not mean to say the people in these nations feel the same.'

Indeed Sanders was sharply critical of Reagan, who had just been overwhelmingly re-elected to a second term the year before.

Castro ruled Cuba from 1959 until 2008, when he turned over control of the country to his brother, Raul. A Cold War foe of the US, Castro's government imprisoned dissidents and imposed one-party rule on the island nation. He is pictured above in 2000

'If President Reagan thinks that any time a government comes along, which in its wisdom, rightly or wrongly, is doing the best for its people, he has the right to overthrow that government, you're going to be at war not only with all of Latin America, but with the entire Third World,' Sanders said.

Castro ruled Cuba from 1959 until 2008, when he turned over control of the country to his brother, Raul.

A Cold War foe of the U.S., Castro's government imprisoned dissidents and imposed one-party rule on the island nation.

Ortega has ruled Nicaragua for more than four decades. The Sandinista movement of which he is apart has also been accused of widespread human rights violations in the impoverished Central American country.

In November 2016, Sanders appeared on ABC News' This Week, where he was asked about his comments praising Castro.

'No, of course, [the Cuban] economy is terrible,' he told host Martha Raddatz.

'You're right, it is a dictatorship. They did have a good health - do have a decent health care system and a decent educational system.

'A lot of people have left Cuba for better dreams, to fulfill their aspirations.

'So, no, the Cuban economy is a disaster. No, I do not praise Fidel Castro.'
ALBANY  With the start of a plastic bag ban just a month away, a group of environmentalists on Friday urged the state Department of Environmental Conservation to tighten up the final regulations against possible loopholes including one that might allow retailers to keep handing out bags as long as they are of a certain thickness.

Those are the three concerns with the regulations, but my major message is that New Yorkers are ready for this, said Judith Enck, a former regional EPA Administrator and founder of Beyond Plastics, a group seeking to reduce the use of wasteful plastics in packaging and other uses.

People will support it and the time has come to stop using so much single-use plastic packaging in New York.

She was joined by other advocates as well as Albany Democratic Assemblywoman Patricia Fahy at the state Capitol to urge the changes. They also sent a letter to DEC Commissioner Basil Seggos.

Plastic Ban Letter by rkarlin on Scribd

One of the biggest concerns centers on what they say is a loophole that doesnt specifically prevent the use of plastic bags that are thicker than 10 mils. A mil is a thousandth of an inch and most supermarket bags are less than 2 mils. Ten mil bags arent in use but the advocates fear the law may prompt manufacturers to make and sell them for use.

Additionally, the new law doesnt exempt carryout restaurants that often put their orders in plastic bags.

The new law also allows stores to seek case-by-case exemptions from the ban.

The public comment period for the rules enacting the ban, which lawmakers passed last year, ends on Monday.

Special Investigation 147 NY dams are 'unsound,' potentially dangerous Thousands of dams have not been inspected in over 20 years.

Enck added that reusable bags, of canvas or woven material, are already in wide use and shoppers will quickly adapt to the lack of plastic bags.

Environmentalists have long decried the heavy use of plastic bags which consume fossil fuels for manufacturing and which create litter and pollution in waterways and other places where they have been known to kill wildlife that eats or becomes entangled in them.

Reusable bags is mainstream, she said. Half of all Americans use reusable bags when they go grocery shopping, one-third use them almost all the time.

rkarlin@timesunion.com  518-454-5758  @RickKarlinTU
It isnt just by the way of saying that 'finding a silver lining in the gravest of situations' makes us that much more of a positive individual. While for some of us tracing the silver lining comes naturally, in many cases it is just forced. Just like the Indonesian authoritys offer to reward anyone who can risk their lives to free a saltwater crocodile of a motorcycle tyre stuck around its neck, and survive it.

 AFP

While the final reward money hasnt been announced yet, the lookout for the brave soul is already on. Once found, the person will have to face the 4-meter-long giant croc named Palu.



As attempts to free the reptile failed over the years, the conservation authorities have become more and more concerned about Palus well-being and therefore decided to host the competition in a desperate attempt.

 BCCL

It has been two years since Palu has been suffering from the tyre around his neck which is slowly choking him to an early end. After multiple failed rescue attempts, the authorities have reached out to the common man (or rather rescue specialists) for help.



The provinces governor has since stepped in and asked his conservation agency to find a guaranteed solution. However, they have also made it clear that only a skilled hunter with enough experience in rescue and conversation will be allowed to take up the task.

 Shutterstock

Palu, who has been living with the tyre around his neck for the last two years is slowing losing this battle, and only a silver lining can save him now.


Share this article Whatsapp

Facebook

Twitter

Linkedin Daphne Rousseau with Charlotte Durand in London (Agence France-Presse) Paris  Sat, February 1, 2020 16:33 709 7f440ff09e92db75a02bbad20620a625 2 News Train,Eurostar-trains,Brexit,travel Free

Paris Gare du Nord and London St Pancras stations were on Friday united by a dark humor and a wistful nostalgia as the final trains pulled out linking Britain with mainland Europe before the country's EU divorce.

The Eurostar trains that whizz passengers from Paris to London through the Channel Tunnel in less than two-and-a-half hours should continue as normal, even when Britain wakes up on Saturday as no longer a European Union member.

But there was a sense in both giant stations in the capitals Friday evening of an emotional parting, a fitting feeling perhaps in historic rail hubs that for decades have witnessed dramatic farewells in times of love, peace and war.

"It's not the last one forever right? They are not gonna break the tunnel tonight?," asked John Burke, a British doctor who was leaving Paris after attending a conference.

For him, the best way to get over the bitterness of Brexit was a "good bottle of French wine".

For his colleague Arup Paul the sadness of their trip was "we knew we were leaving as EU citizens and returning as non EU citizens."

But the French capital will remain within easy reach of Londoners nonetheless. "You know for us it's easier to go to Paris than to go to Scotland," he said.

Eurostar began services in 1994 as a symbol of Franco-British cooperation and with its service beneath the Channel has transformed the lives of regular travelers who previously had to opt for ferry or air travel to reach France from Britain.

John Earwicker, a pensioner from Oxford who took a group of friends to Paris, admitted he was plunged into nostalgia as he presented his British passport at the border as an EU citizen for the last time.

"I am especially sad for my grandchildren. They will not know the freedom of traveling, working that we had. It will disappear. And they didn't even vote for that, because they were too young. It is very unfair to them."

"Champagne for everybody?!" interjects one of his friends in a bid to raise spirits. "No, this evening, I will be crying into my cocoa," lamented Earwicker.

Read also: UK will be more welcoming to Indonesians after Brexit, ambassador says

'Strange and sad'

British passengers at St Pancras in London were also struck by the strange sensation that they would no longer be Europeans by the time their late night trains pulled into Gare du Nord.

"It's strange and I'm sad, as I didn't vote to leave the EU," said Dominic, 27, who was planning to meet his girlfriend in Paris.

French traveler Klervi, 24, said he is sad to think of Britain leaving the European Union but it is "their choice" and should not have any practical impact in the short term.

"I think so many French will be going backwards and forwards that not much will change, even later," he said

In case the symbolism was not enough, a man strikes up John Lennon's iconic paen to love between peoples "Imagine" on the piano left for musical travelers on the station concourse.

A more light-hearted musical celebration is in progress nearby. "So goodbye Brussels, Amen! Here's hoping we don't meet again!" sings Sally lustily, while her husband Peter dressed in a Union Jack T-shirt accompanies her on the piano.

Impassioned Brexiteers? Nothing of the sort. Just good old British humor. The couple are "totally pro-EU" but have decided to play the unity card.

They have three songs for the Remainers, three for Brexiteers and, last but not least, "one for everybody".

"We are here because it's fun. It's a pleasurable thing to do with my wife Sally," pointed out her husband Peter. "Brexit has become far too serious. Far too many people in Britain are upset one way or the other."
The Director-General of the Ghana Health Service, Dr. Nsiah Asare has explained why some of the health facilities started under the erstwhile Mahama administration have not been completed.



Former President John Mahama after President Akufo-Addo commissioned some 307 ambulances asked which hospital the patients will be admitted in after being carried in the vehicles.



All the hospitals that were being built to improve access to healthcare, you have brought them to a standstill and instead you are glorifying in distributing ambulances? Where do ambulances take sick people? They take them to the hospitals and so your priority should be to complete the hospitals so that if an accident happens and you pick the patient, youll have a good facility to take them to...and yet Fomena Hospital, Kumawu Hospital, Abetifi, Bekwai, Tepa, Upper West Regional Hospital in Wa, Bolgatanga hospitals, University of Ghana Health Center, Bank Hospital, International Maritime Hospital, all those hospitals we started have all come to a standstill. Yet you are distributing ambulances, and so you pick the person and send them where? And they say there is no bed, and then you get there, theyll have to put a plastic chair in accident and emergency wards for the people to sit in? I mean theres a complete loss of prioritization he said while addressing Ghanaians in his second Facebook Live video.



Speaking to this on UTV's 'Mpu Ne Mpu' programme, Dr. Nsiah Asare expressed surprise at the former President's comments and disclosed which hospital has been completed and those still in progress.



Watch his submission in the video below





Source: Rebecca Addo Tetteh/Peacefmonline.com









Disclaimer : Opinions expressed here are those of the writers and do not reflect those of Peacefmonline.com. Peacefmonline.com accepts no responsibility legal or otherwise for their accuracy of content. Please report any inappropriate content to us, and we will evaluate it as a matter of priority.

Featured Video
The warrant alleges Franks is suspected of sex crimes, stalking, battery and official misconduct. Franks denied any wrongdoing to the Chicago Sun-Times, which first reported the investigation, and said he was unaware of the search warrant and has not been notified by anyone about any matter,'" according to the newspaper.
The Cole Hardware in downtown San Francisco usually sells about 10 N95 masks a day. In the past two days, as the number of coronavirus cases increases across the globe, the Fourth Street store has sold 3,000.

"We were out Monday, Tuesday and Wednesday," said Renato Geslani, who manages the downtown store. "We didn't get more masks in until Thursday."

Geslani said that customers are buying the masks to protect themselves from the pneumonia-like virus, and while he doesn't tell shoppers they need them, they're adamant about having them on hand.

ALSO: What you need to know about coronavirus as Bay Area confirms its first case

Panic about the coronavirus is spreading more rapidly than the virus itself, and many are stocking up on masks designed to filter small particles. In recent days, there have been reports of stores selling out of masks, even though the majority of the 9,800 confirmed cases remains in Wuhan, China. But with the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention confirming the first Bay Area case on Friday, the mask mania will likely explode even more.

But should Bay Area residents even be wearing masks?

The short answer: there's currently no need for residents to wear masks when they leave their homes as the virus risk in the Bay Area and throughout the country remains extremely low.

"Currently, the recommendations arent for the public to wear masks," said Dr. Charles Chiu, a professor of laboratory medicine and infectious disease at UC San Francisco. "I think the risk in the U.S. is still close to zero. We havent seen any evidence of sustained transmission currently, but I emphasize currently because that may change. Although we have confirmed cases, they have been coming from returning travelers from Wuhan, or a household member of a returning traveler."

Dr. Chiu said the only people who need to wear masks are travelers returning from Wuhan and household members, family members and friends of those travelers.

That said, if a mask puts you at ease, there's likely no harm in using one, according to Dr. Susan Philip, San Francisco's deputy health officer and director of Communicable Disease Prevention. And to stop the spread of viruses, you should consider wearing a mask in public if you're coughing or have a fever. While there continues to be low risk of coronavirus in the Bay Area, flu and cold viruses are rampant at this time of year.

"Masks do have a role," Dr. Philip said. "If people are sick, we prefer they stay home. But if they do have to go out, then wearing a mask is a great idea to prevent the spread of germs to people around you."

Philip said in this case a surgical mask is sufficient. N95 masks are often touted as being more effective at filtering small particles, but these are tricky to fit tightly on the face and often don't work as they were designed.

"For an N95 mask to work effectively, you have to be fit tested," she said. "For example, people with beards, they dont fit right and arent effective. Health officials go through training on how to use these masks."

All of that said, the most important thing the public can do right now to protect themselves from any virus is frequent hand-washing.

"There are things people can do to make themselves safer, and by far the most effective way to do this is really good hand-washing," said Dr. Philip. "We dont do that as much as we should, especially when riding public transit. We dont realize how much we touch surfaces and then our faces."

Amy Graff is a digital editor with SFGATE. Email her: agraff@sfgate.com.
The government and the HSE have once again been accused of gambling with the lives of the people of Wexford after the cath lab for administering cardiac care in University Hospital Waterford was out of action for maintenance for two days last week.

Currently, the Cath Lab in Waterford is only open from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. Monday to Friday, meaning that anyone from Co Wexford requiring cardiac care outside those times would be facing a long transfer to either Cork or Dublin for life-saving treatment. General Election candidates Cllr Ger Carthy and Seanie O'Shea have branded the situation a disgrace.

'I'd be very concerned with the frequency of technical problems at the cath lab in Waterford,' said Cllr Carthy, who also works with the National Ambulance Service. 'There's an issue there on a bi-fortnightly basis at this stage and diversion protocol is put in place for patients coming from Wexford.'

'For nearly three years now there's been talk of a second cath lab in Waterford and it hasn't happened. Minister Harris has had numerous reports and deputations from cardiac specialists from across the region and still nothing has been done. Time is muscle in these cases and, for a region with over 500,000 people, we need a 24/7 service. People in County Wexford have died as a result of this.'

Speaking from experience, Cllr Carthy says that the amount of trauma that can be inflicted on a patient in one of these transfers can't be overstated.

'If I or one of my colleagues attend a scene at rural Wexford in the middle of the night and we're professional enough to be able to resuscitate the patient, they'll usually require intervention,' he said. 'In that case, time is against them. Depending on availability, you'd be looking at getting the Rescue 117 helicopter, because our Air Ambulance doesn't fly at night. All this takes time. It's not a pleasant experience for the patient either. It really adds to the trauma.'

Independents4Change candidate Seanie O'Shea pointed out that Waterford is the only nationally designated cardiac centre that doesn't operate on a 24/7 basis.

'The lack of 24/7 cardiac care in Waterford affects people throughout Wexford more than anyone, because obviously we're geographically further away from Cork,' he said.

'So when the Waterford Cath lab is closed on weekends people in South Wexford have just 90 minutes to get to Cork.'

'In the three years up to May 2019 not one of the 37 emergency cardiac transfers from Wexford to Cork was completed within 90 minutes. Not one. Zero. It's not an exaggeration to say some Wexford people didn't survive to tell their tale.'

Both Wexford candidates were extremely critical of the government's inaction on the issue of cardiac care in the region and O'Shea went on to add that, as a result, 'voting Fianna Fail instead of Fine Gael or Labour is like punching yourself in the head to cure a headache.'
YEREVAN, FEBRUARY 1, ARMENPRESS. The Azerbaijani troops violated the ceasefire regime nearly 200 times on Artsakh-Azerbaijan contact line in the period of January 26-February 1, during which over 1150 bullets were fired in the direction of Armenian border guards from different caliber weapons.

As ARMENPRESS was informed from the press service of the Defense Ministry of Artsakh, the front line units of the Defense Army of Artsakh keep full control of the situation and continue to make necessary measures for protecting their military positions.

Edited and translated by Tigran Sirekanyan
Error. Page cannot be displayed. Please contact your service provider for more details. (21)
One of the best ways to stop a virus is to contain it. And thats exactly what hospitals will be doing if they have patients suspected of having the coronavirus. In some cases, theyll use negative-pressure rooms.

Negative pressure rooms are designed to keep the air circulating in the room of patients with contagious diseases contained in that room only and not released into other patient areas and common spaces throughout the hospital.

The World Health Organization (WHO) taking the rare step of declaring the spread of the coronavirus, which originated in Wuhan, China, a health global emergency. And facilities, such as the Humber River Hospital, are equipped with an abundance of virus and disaster-response tools, including negative-pressure and haz-mat rooms.

Since SARS was foremost in our mind, we wrote our specifications to be a pandemic-safe building, said Humbers president and CEO Barbara Collins about the hospital, which opened in 2015. There are already initiatives afoot to ensure that the environment is safer for people.

Officials at older facilities, such as those in the University Hospital Network, have also expressed confidence in their level of readiness. But they may not boast the same post-SARS facilities available at Humber, which is capable of placing patients into system of isolation the moment they arrive.

Collins said the hard lessons learned from SARS, served as a catalyst for the suite of 85 negative-pressure rooms at the Humber hospital. Pre-SARS, the North York hospital only had three such rooms.

We choose to put negative-pressure rooms in every department, she said. Many of the rooms also come with a separate ante room (decontamination room), lowering the risk of contamination when staff move between rooms.

The negative-pressure rooms are used for regular patient care when theyre not handling patients with contagious illnesses.

We have 100 per cent fresh air in the patient care areas, so we dont have recirculating air in this building, she said.

The hospital is also capable of isolating entire departments under negative pressure. The ambulance bay and an adjoining haz-mat room, is also tailored for seamless transformation into a pandemic-ready area, Collins said.

Torontos leading childrens hospital, Sick Kids, has 58 negative-pressure isolation rooms in 11 different areas across the hospital.

The University Health Network (UHN), which includes Toronto General Hospital, isnt as fortunate as Humber River, in being built after SARS, says Dr. Susy Hota, medical director of infection prevention and control.

Those of us with older infrastructure have to work with our existing footprint, Hota said.

She said the hospital has sufficient capacity, but that would be tested if there was a sudden spike in demand.

It really depends on how many patients we would have to receive, she said, pointing to overcrowding faced by hospitals across the province. Its a concern for sure, because were so busy to begin with, but we would do it in the safest way possible.

Decontamination room, such as the one at Humber River, are rare in older facilities and thats not something we think we need for this coronavirus, Hota said.

She said the hospital is constantly reinforcing protocol for how to put on and remove personal-protection equipment.

Every hospital has to have a plan for decontamination, which she said extends beyond viruses and into handling disasters such as chemical spills.

Hospitals in Ontario are required to have airborne, droplet and contact isolation, to manage patients with the new coronavirus, although its the general consensus that the coronavirus is unlikely to spread via airborne transmission, she said.

This (coronvirus) is an early and evolving situation, so we apply that principle of using a high-level of precaution, she said.

Patients who arent deemed to be critically ill with the virus can be safely managed outside of a negative-pressure room, she said.

Hota said negative-pressure rooms exist on every in-patient unit across UHN hospitals. The emergency and intensive-care units are also equipped with negative-pressure rooms.

Every level of care that a patient would require in the acute care hospitals have these kind of rooms, she said.

Although the number of available rooms did not increase after previous outbreaks, such as SARS in 2003, there is an heightened awareness of the need for viral-disease containment spaces, she said. Also, because things like measles and other vaccine-preventable diseases have been coming back, she added.

Jason Miller is a breaking news reporter based in Toronto. Reach him on email: jasonmiller@thestar.ca or follow him on Twitter: @millermotionpic

Read more about:
Defence Minister Rajnath Singh on Saturday hailed the Union Budget 2020 presented by Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman saying that it is "promising, proactive and progressive Budget which will make India healthy and wealthy in coming years."

"The first Budget of the new decade presented today by Finance Minister Smt. @nsitharaman gives an outline of a New and Confident India. It is a promising, proactive and progressive Budget which will make India healthy and wealthy in coming years," he said in a series of tweets.

Stressing that the measures announced today will spur growth and create job opportunities, the Defence Minister said: "Budget 2020-21 has a clear focus on the welfare and development of all sections of our society and gives special attention to farmers and promoting ease of living in India. The measures announced today will certainly spur growth and create new job opportunities."

Terming the tax reforms introduced in the budget as "progressively, bold and unprecedented", Singh said, "This new tax regime will reduce tax burden on common man. It will pave the way for an efficient tax system, in sync with the best practises in the world."

The Defence Minister underlined that the Budget is not only investment-friendly but it will go a long way in doubling the farmers' income and unshackling the Indian industry.

It also promises the investors, tax payers and wealth creators a predictable environment by assuring them of protection against tax harassment, he said.

The Defence Minister said: "Strategic allocations have been made in this Budget for agriculture, education, health, water, sanitation and skill development. Policy intervention in new tech economy is indeed a welcome move. Investments in these areas will build a strong foundation for New India."

Lauding Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman, the Defence Minister said: "I must congratulate the Prime Minister Shri Narendra Modi and the Finance Minister Smt. @nsitharaman for giving the country an excellent Budget by addressing the aspirations of the people and at the same time clearly underling our goals and priorities."

"Under the leadership of Prime Minister Shri @narendramodi the nation aspires to be a 5 Trillion economy. The Budget today has emphatically laid down this goal to be achieved by 2024-25," he said.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
Atlanta

Anne Cox Chambers, heir to the Cox family media empire who went door-to-door campaigning for Democratic politicians, served as ambassador to Belgium during the Carter administration and helped bankroll museums and other causes, died Friday at her home in Atlanta. She was 100.

Chambers was the daughter of James Middleton Cox, who was a three-term governor of Ohio, an unsuccessful Democratic candidate for president in 1920, and the founder of Cox Enterprises.

That privately held business grew to include newspapers, radio stations, cable television systems and one of the world's largest automobile-auction businesses, with annual sales of more than $21 billion in 2019 and about 55,000 employees.

For more than 30 years Chambers and her sister, Barbara Cox Anthony, had controlling ownership of that empire. Her sister died in 2007 at 84. Forbes magazine estimated Chambers' wealth at $17 billion in 2016, before she dissolved a family trust and gave away most of that fortune to her children.

In a rare interview with Fortune magazine in 1991, Chambers said: "The more anonymous you can be, the better. Why, then you can just do whatever you want."

She nonetheless left a trail. In 1970, she and her husband at the time, Robert W. Chambers, were among the largest supporters of Jimmy Carter's victorious run for governor of Georgia, giving $26,500. They contributed $39,400 to Carter's presidential campaign in 1976. President-elect Carter appointed her ambassador to Belgium, and she resigned her chairmanship of Cox Broadcasting Co. to accept.

In Europe she attended NATO military exercises in military fatigues and hunted rabbits with Arab diplomats.

Her involvement in politics continued after her term as ambassador ended in 1981 with the arrival of the Reagan administration. During the 1988 Democratic National Convention in Atlanta she opened up her home for fundraising. Her outspokenness caused a stir when she said that despite a strong race for the presidential nomination, the Rev. Jesse Jackson was not qualified to be on a national ticket.

Special Investigation 147 NY dams are 'unsound,' potentially dangerous Thousands of dams have not been inspected in over 20 years.

Some of her politicking was of the shoe-leather, door-to-door variety. In Carter's 1976 campaign, she was part of the "peanut brigade" of volunteers that traveled to contested states. She did the same thing in later elections, including 2004, when she was 84, supporting Sen. John Kerry's bid to unseat President George W. Bush.

In a 2011 interview with Atlanta magazine, which noted that she had a cardboard cutout of President Barack Obama in her living room, she credited her father for her lifelong affiliation with the Democratic Party.

Anne Beau Cox was born Dec. 1, 1919, in Dayton, Ohio. Anne attended Miss Porter's School in Farmington, Conn., spent a year in Paris and graduated from Finch College in Manhattan. She liked to say that she first went to Atlanta to attend the premiere of "Gone With the Wind," on Dec. 15, 1939, and never left. She married Louis G. Johnson six months after the premiere. That marriage ended in divorce, as did a second marriage, in 1955, to Robert William Chambers.

She is survived by two daughters from her first marriage, Katharine Rayner and Margaretta Taylor; a son, James Cox Chambers, from her second marriage; and several grandchildren and great-grandchildren. One grandson, Alex Taylor, is the president and chief executive of Cox Enterprises.
(Bloomberg) -- Apple Inc. will close its corporate offices, stores and contact centers in mainland China through February 9, a move the company says comes out of an abundance of caution and based on the latest advice from leading health experts.

The move comes as global companies with heavy Chinese footprints weigh how to respond to the threat of the spreading coronavirus that has prompted worldwide concern but remains primarily concentrated in China, the country where it first surfaced.

Australias largest airline Qantas Airways Ltd. and Cebu Air Inc., the Philippines largest budget carrier, announced today theyd halt flights to China. Automakers Honda Motor Co. and Nissan Motor Co. have evacuated workers from Wuhan, where the virus first surfaced, while Starbucks Corp. closed more than 2,000 locations in mainland China.

Apple is restricting employee travel to China to business-critical situations and it issued a revenue forecast that was wider than usual due to uncertainty surrounding the virus. The company said it would also increase the cleaning of its stores and take the temperature of retail workers.

The company said its online store in China will remain open even while its brick-and-mortar presence in China remains closed.

(Adds details from Apple statement starting in first paragraph.)

To contact Bloomberg News staff for this story: Mark Gurman in Los Angeles at mgurman1@bloomberg.net;Dandan Li in Beijing at dli395@bloomberg.net

To contact the editors responsible for this story: Shamim Adam at sadam2@bloomberg.net, Siraj Datoo, Derek Wallbank

For more articles like this, please visit us at bloomberg.com

Subscribe now to stay ahead with the most trusted business news source.

2020 Bloomberg L.P.
The Prime Minister has set himself the ambitious target of ensuring more than three-quarters of UK trade is covered by free-trade agreements within three years of Brexit.

Boris Johnson told Cabinet ministers in a meeting in Sunderland that a new chapter in the United Kingdoms story would start after 11pm  the official moment of the countrys departure from the European Union.

And in an indication of the Conservative Party leaders visions for the UKs future on the eve of its EU exit, he told his close circle of ministers that he wanted 80% of UK trade to be covered by free-trade arrangements by 2023.

In a symbolic move, Mr Johnson chose to chair the Cabinet meeting in Sunderland, the city which was the first to back Brexit when results were announced after the 2016 referendum.

Car manufacturing giant Nissan, Sunderlands largest employer, providing 7,000 jobs at its Wearside factory, used the opportunity to call for clarity on what the trading relationship with the EU will look like.

Ministers gathered at the National Glass Centre, situated where the citys former ship building industry once stood, to discuss Britains post-Brexit future.

From tomorrow, the UK will also be free to begin trade negotiations with countries around the world  with the aim to have 80% of our trade covered by FTAs within three yearsDowning Street

A Downing Street spokesman said: Cabinet discussed the Governments future trade agenda, which includes seeking a Canada-style FTA with the EU.

From tomorrow, the UK will also be free to begin trade negotiations with countries around the world  with the aim to have 80% of our trade covered by FTAs within three years.

As an EU member, Britain was not able to strike trade deals of its own accord, but instead delegated responsibility to Brussels.

Mr Johnson said delivering on his get Brexit done pledge would now allow him to focus on his domestic priorities and levelling up the nations regions.

The Prime Minister began by saying that, today, we start a new chapter in the United Kingdoms story, turning a page on the division of the last three-and-a-half years and going full steam ahead to bring the nation together and level up opportunity for everyone, right across the country, added the Number 10 spokesman.

Expand Close Prime Minister Boris Johnson chairs a Cabinet meeting in Sunderland, the city which was the first to back Brexit when results were announced after the 2016 referendum (Paul Ellis/PA) PA Wire/PA Images / Facebook

Twitter

Email

Whatsapp Prime Minister Boris Johnson chairs a Cabinet meeting in Sunderland, the city which was the first to back Brexit when results were announced after the 2016 referendum (Paul Ellis/PA)

He also used the meeting to thank outgoing Brexit Secretary Stephen Barclay for his fantastic work, as he prepares to go back to being a backbench MP.

Mr Barclays department, the Department for Exiting the European Union (Dexeu), is being disbanded once Britains divorce from Brussels is finalised.

While Mr Johnson talked up the UKs prospects if it seals a Canada-style free trade deal, European leaders warned that Britain faces a more distant relationship with Brussels if it insists on leaving the EUs regulatory orbit.

European Commission president Ursula von der Leyen said relations with the UK would never be as close once it is outside the EU.

We want to have the best possible relationship with the United Kingdom, but it will never be as good as membership, she said.

Earlier, in a BBC interview, she made clear the EU would battle to protect the integrity of the single market in the negotiations.

Her comments reflect a determination to prevent the UK undermining EU rules and regulations through undercutting.

Cabinet minister Michael Gove however reaffirmed the Governments commitment to break with Brussels regulatory regime.

We are moving further away from the orbit of EU rules and laws, he told the BBC.

A Number 10 spokesman added: You can only have fully frictionless trade if you accept their rules. We have been clear we will not be doing so.

And in what Number 10 billed as an address to the nation, to be released an hour before the moment the UK leaves the EU, the Prime Minister will promise to heal the bitter divisions opened up by Brexit.

He will call Brexit the moment when the dawn breaks and the curtain goes up on a new act.

It is a moment of real national renewal and change.

Expand Close Pro-Brexit supporters in Parliament Square (Jonathan Brady/PA) PA Wire/PA Images / Facebook

Twitter

Email

Whatsapp Pro-Brexit supporters in Parliament Square (Jonathan Brady/PA)

Expand Close Pro-EU supporters light candles in Smith Square in Westminster (Dominic Lipinski/PA) PA Wire/PA Images / Facebook

Twitter

Email

Whatsapp Pro-EU supporters light candles in Smith Square in Westminster (Dominic Lipinski/PA)

As Brexiteers prepare to celebrate the UKs withdrawal at the stroke of 11pm on Friday, in European capitals there was sadness at the breaking of a bond dating back 47 years.

Mr Johnson will spend the evening in Number 10 hosting a celebratory reception for senior ministers, officials, and supporters of the 2016 referendum campaign to leave the EU.

Brexiteers will gather for a party in Parliament Square led by Nigel Farage, while Union flags are already flying around Westminster.

In official events, Downing Street will be illuminated with a light show while a new commemorative 50p coin is entering circulation.

Expand Close (PA Graphics) Press Association Images / Facebook

Twitter

Email

Whatsapp (PA Graphics)

In Brussels, the UK flag was removed from the EU institutions, with one expected to be consigned to a museum.

In Scotland, which voted to stay in the EU in the 2016 referendum, candlelit vigils are planned.

The Leave a Light On gatherings are taking place in Aberdeen, Dundee, Glasgow, and Stirling, among other locations, and participants intend to send a message to the EU to keep open a place for Scotland.

In Northern Ireland, the campaign group Border Communities Against Brexit was staging a series of protests in Armagh, near to the border with the Republic of Ireland.
Worcester Public Schools Superintendent Maureen Binienda on Friday broke down recent student discipline data showing a decrease in suspensions, a year after community members cried out at data indicating a higher percentage of Hispanic students were disciplined compared to their white classmates.

Preliminary data for discipline and suspension from August to December 2019 shows a slight decrease compared to the same period in 2018, but some members of the community feel the district is still not doing enough to train its administration and staff.

Hispanic students and students with disabilities both see high rates of discipline, the data shows.

In 2018, 2,345 students were disciplined at the Worcester Public Schools, a rate of 8.5%, according to the data Binienda presented in front of principals, local representatives and state senators, members of the school committee and the public during an information session at North High School. In 2019, the number of students disciplined dropped to 1,765, a rate of 6.5%.

All students were disciplined at a rate of 6.5% in 2019. By ethnicity, Hispanic students were disciplined at a rate of 8.5%, African American students at 6.7%, white students at 4.3%, and Asian students at 1.4%.

The data also indicates that in 2019, students who are economically disadvantaged were disciplined at a rate of 8.1%, students who are English learners at a rate of 6% and students with disabilities at 12.4%.

Students with disabilities received the highest rate of emergency removals, at 3.3%, and the highest rate of in-school and out-of-school suspensions at 4.5 and 7.7%, respectively.

I just want to caution us as a community that is what leads us into these discussions where parents are frustrated and it then leads to legal consequences, said Hilda Ramirez of the Latino Education Institute of Worcester State University.

Superintendent Maureen Binienda presented student discipline data during a public meeting at North High School on Jan. 31, 2020.

Emergency removals take a child out of school for two days when administrators deem the student is a danger to themselves or to others in the school.

Binienda said the district is focusing on emergency removals this year.

The two-day emergency removal happens in elementary school because of the inability to really calm the student down over a period of time. The school tries absolutely not to send that student home. They try to keep that student for several hours, Binienda said. The challenge sometimes occurs when the behavior continues day after day.

Binienda offered some examples of incidents that have resulted in emergency removal. One incident, she read from an elementary school report included a students two consecutive days of behavior, including pushing over computer, climbing furniture, grabbing scissors, bolting from room. Administration caught up to student as they were reaching the main door to the building. In the office, the student began kicking, punching, climbing furniture, tossing items [off] desk, biting principal on hand. Intervention included calm tone, choices, use of timer, if/then statement, district behavior intervention liaison was in building, called in to work with student.

That behavior repeated and a parent was called after two hours including consultation by the behavior intervention team.

The superintendent said the district is working to hire five or six mental health counselors to help address the issue.

Sarah Stewart, a member of the Worcester Interfaith Board, asked if during emergency removals, if students are transferred to mental health care.

An ambulance is sometimes called to get the student emergency mental health help, Binienda says. Other times, a parent takes the child and the school recommends services. In some cases, parents do not seek mental health services for their child, the superintendent said.

Of the 1,765 students disciplined the majority of offenses, 1,010 students were disciplined for non-violent, non-criminally-related or non-drug offenses, according to the data. Specifically, those offenses included incidents like repeated school violations, disruption of school and leaving school without permission.

Thats a number that is too high," Binienda said.

Superintendent Maureen Binienda presented student discipline data during a public meeting at North High School on Jan. 31, 2020.

Binienda named a number of initiatives in motion to help address the issue. She said the Elementary and Secondary Discipline Task Force is meeting every other month to review data, theres an ongoing review of chronic absenteeism, trauma training with Dr. Heather Forkey from UMass Memorial Medical Center, training on culturally responsive practices and the hiring of mental health counselors and an increase in school adjustment counselors.

Isabel Gonzalez-Webster, the director of Worcester Interfaith and part of the Worcester Coalition for Education Equality, said shed like to see more of those activities focused on the schools administration and staff.

A lot of them to me seem focused on the child, the traumatized child, the child thats not coming to school," Gonzalez-Webster said, adding that she thought it seemed like victim-blaming.

Gonzalez-Webster said shed like to see more work on the 14 points of reform given to the superintendent last year.

You really talked about having training for your administration, for your staff and for the school committee on unconscious bias, racial disparities, so thats not just a three-day training," she said.

Binienda said the three-day training is complemented by ongoing implementation in the school.

Comparing preliminary data between the beginning of the 2018-2019 year to the beginning of the 2019-2020 year, the district has seen 50 fewer discipline incidents. The number of in-house suspensions did increase by 50, but Binienda amounted that to some out-of-house suspensions moving in-house.

A total of 767 students were disciplined from August to December 2019 compared to 831 students during the same months the year prior. All ethnicities saw a decrease in the rate of discipline comparing those periods, aside from white students, with a rate increase from 2.41% to 2.57%.

Of the 767 students disciplined 270 are girls and 497 are boys; 320 are students with disabilities, 208 are English learners and 665 are economically disadvantaged.

We feel were heading definitely in the right direction, our numbers are, were always informed by our data. Our data is showing us that all these things that were doing are moving in the right direction and so were optimistic and are feeling that were really going to be able to tackle the concerns of the community regarding discipline," Binienda said.
NASHVILLE, Tenn. - "I'm not anti-hospice at all," said Joy Johnston, who relocated to New Mexico years ago at age 40 to care for her dying mother.

"But I think people aren't prepared for all the effort that it takes to give someone a good death at home."

Surveys show dying at home is what most Americans say they want. But it's "not all it's cracked up to be," said Johnston, a caregiver advocate and writer from Atlanta.

She wrote an essay about her frustrations with the way hospice care often works in the United States. Johnston, like many family caregivers, was surprised that her mother's hospice provider left most of the physical work to her. She said that during the final weeks of her mother's life, she felt more like a tired nurse than a devoted daughter.

Hospice allows a patient deemed to have fewer than six months to live to change the focus of their medical care - from the goal of curing disease to a new goal of using treatments and medicines to maintain comfort and quality of life. It is a form of palliative care, which also focuses on pain management, but can be provided while a patient continues to seek a cure or receive treatments to prolong life.

ADVERTISEMENT

According to a recent Kaiser Family Foundation poll, 7 in 10 Americans say they would prefer to die at home. And that's the direction the health care system is moving, as part of an effort to avoid unnecessary and expensive treatment at the end of life. (Kaiser Health News is an editorially independent program of the foundation.)

The home hospice movement has been great for patients and many patients are thrilled with the care they get, said Dr. Parul Goyal, a palliative care physician with Vanderbilt Health.

"I do think that when they are at home, they are in a peaceful environment," Goyal said. "It is comfortable for them. But," she noted, "it may not be comfortable for family members watching them taking their last breath."

When it comes to where we die, the U.S. has reached a tipping point. Home is now the most common place of death, according to new research, and a majority of Medicare patients are turning to hospice services to help make that possible. Fewer Americans these days are dying in a hospital, under the close supervision of doctors and nurses.

Hospice care is usually offered in the home, or sometimes in a nursing home. Since the mid-1990s, Medicare has allowed the hospice benefit to cover more types of diagnoses, and therefore more people. As acceptance grows among physicians and patients, the numbers continue to balloon - from 1.27 million patients in 2012 to 1.49 million in 2017.

According to the National Hospice and Palliative Care Association, hospice is now a $19 billion industry, almost entirely funded by taxpayers. But as the business has grown, so has the burden on families, who are often the ones providing most of the care. For example, one intimate task in particular - trying to get her mom's bowels moving - changed Joy Johnston's view of what hospice really means. Constipation plagues many dying patients.

"It's ironically called the 'comfort care kit' that you get with home hospice. They include suppositories, and so I had to do that," she said. "That was the lowest point. And I'm sure it was the lowest point for my mother as well. And it didn't work."

Hospice agencies primarily serve in an advisory role and from a distance, even in the final, intense days when family caregivers, or home nurses they've hired, must continually adjust morphine doses or deal with typical end-of-life symptoms, such as bleeding or breathing trouble. Those decisive moments can be scary for the family, said Dr. Joan Teno, a physician and leading hospice researcher at Oregon Health and Science University.

ADVERTISEMENT

"Imagine if you're the caregiver, and that you're in the house," Teno said. "It's in the middle of the night, 2 o'clock in the morning, and all of a sudden, your family member has a grand mal seizure."

That's exactly what happened with Teno's mother.

"While it was difficult for me to witness, I knew what to do," she said.

In contrast, Teno said, in her father's final hours, he was admitted to a hospice residence.

Such residences often resemble a nursing home, with private rooms where family and friends can come and go and with round-the-clock medical attention just down the hall.

Teno called the residence experience of hospice a "godsend." But an inpatient facility is rarely an option, she said. Patients have to be in bad shape for Medicare to pay the higher inpatient rate that hospice residences charge. And by the time such patients reach their final days, it's often too much trouble for them and the family to move.

Hospice care is a lucrative business. It is now the most profitable type of health care service that Medicare pays for. According to Medicare data, for-profit hospice agencies now outnumber the nonprofits that pioneered the service in the 1970s. But agencies that need to generate profits for investors aren't building dedicated hospice units or residences, in general - mostly because such facilities aren't profitable enough.

Joe Shega is chief medical officer at the for-profit VITAS Healthcare, the largest hospice company in the U.S. He insists it is the patients' wishes, not a corporate desire to make more money, that drives his firm's business model.

ADVERTISEMENT

"Our focus is on what patients want, and 85 to 90% want to be at home," Shega said. "So, our focus is building programs that help them be there."

For many families, making hospice work at home means hiring extra help.

---

On the day I visit her home outside Nashville, hospice patient Jean McCasland is at the kitchen table refusing to eat a spoonful of peach yogurt. Each morning, nurse's aide Karrie Velez pulverizes McCasland's medications in a pill crusher and mixes them into her breakfast yogurt.

"If you don't, she will just spit them out," Velez said.

Like a growing share of hospice patients, McCasland has dementia. She needs a service that hospice rarely provides - a one-on-one health attendant for several hours, so the regular family caregiver can get a break each day. When Velez is not around, John McCasland - Jean's husband of nearly 50 years - is the person in charge at home.

"I have said from the beginning that was my intention, that she would be at home through the duration, as long as I was able," John said.

But what hospice provided wasn't enough help. So he has had to drain the couple's retirement accounts to hire Velez, a private caregiver, out-of-pocket.

Hospice agencies usually bring in a hospital bed, an oxygen machine or a wheelchair - whatever equipment is needed. Prescriptions show up at the house for pain and anxiety. But hands-on help is scarce. According to Medicare, hospice benefits can include home health aides and homemaker services. But in practice, that in-person help is often limited to a couple of baths a week. Medicare data reveals that, on average, a nurse or aide is only in the patient's home 30 minutes, or so, per day.

Jean McCasland's husband hasn't complained. "I guess I've just accepted what's available and not really thought beyond what could be," he said. "Because this is what they say they do."

Families often don't consider whether they're getting their money's worth because they're not paying for hospice services directly: Medicare gets the bills. John keeps his monthly statements from Medicare organized in a three-ring binder, but he had never noticed that his agency charges nearly $200 a day, whether there is a health provider in the home that day or not.

That daily reimbursement covers equipment rentals and a 24-hour hotline that lets patients or family members consult a nurse as needed; John said it gives him peace of mind that help is a phone call away. "There's a sense of comfort in knowing that they are keeping an eye on her," he said.

The rate that hospice charges Medicare drops a bit after the patient's first two months on the benefit. After reviewing his paperwork, John realized Medicare paid the hospice agency $60,000 in the first 12 months Jean was on hospice.

Was the care his wife got worth that?

"When you consider the amount of money that's involved, perhaps they would provide somebody around the clock," he said.

Sue Riggle is the administrator for the McCaslands' hospice agency and said she understands how much help patients with dementia need. Her company is a small for-profit business called Adoration; she said the agency can't provide more services than what Medicare pays for.

"I think everybody wishes we could provide the sitter-service part of it," said Riggle. "But it's not something that is covered by hospices."

I checked in with John and Velez (Jean's longtime private caregiver) this winter. The two were by Jean's side - and had been there for several days straight - when she died in October. The hospice nurse showed up only afterward, to officially document the death.

This experience of family caregivers is typical but often unexpected.

---

"It does take a toll" on families, said Katherine Ornstein, an associate professor of geriatrics and palliative medicine at Mount Sinai Hospital in New York, who studies what typically happens in the last years of patients' lives. The increasing burden on loved ones - especially spouses - is reaching a breaking point for many people, her research shows. This particular type of stress has even been given a name: caregiver syndrome.

"Our long-term-care system in this country is really using families - unpaid family members," she said. "That's our situation."

A few high-profile advocates have even started questioning whether hospice is right for everybody. For some who have gone through home hospice with a loved one, the difficult experience has led them to want something else for themselves.

Social worker Coneigh Sea has a portrait of her husband that sits in the entryway of her home in Murfreesboro, Tennessee. He died of prostate cancer in their bedroom in 1993. Enough time has passed since then that the mental fog she experienced while managing his medication and bodily fluids - mostly by herself - has cleared, she said.

But it was a burden.

"For me to say that - there's that guilt," she said. "But I know better. It was a burden that I lovingly did."

She doesn't regret the experience but said it is not one she wishes for her own grown children. She recently sat them down, she said, to make sure they handle her death differently.

"I told my family, if there is such a thing, I will come back and I will haunt you," she said with a laugh. "Don't you do that."

Sea's family may have limited options. Sidestepping home hospice typically means paying for a pricey nursing home or dying with the cost and potential chaos of a hospital - which is precisely what hospice care was set up to avoid. As researchers in the field look to the future, they are calling for more palliative care, not less - and, at the same time, they are advocating for more support for the spouses, family members and friends tasked with caring for the patient.

"We really have to expand - in general - our approach to supporting caregivers," Ornstein said, noting that some countries outside the U.S. pay for a wider range and longer duration of home health services.

"I think what we really need to do is be broadening the support that individuals and families can have as they're caring for individuals throughout the course of serious illness," Ornstein said.

"And I think that probably speaks to the expansion of palliative care, in general."

---

(Kaiser Health News (KHN) is a national health policy news service. It is an editorially independent program of the Henry J. Kaiser Family Foundation which is not affiliated with Kaiser Permanente. This story is part of a partnership that includes Nashville Public Radio, NPR and Kaiser Health News.)

---

(c)2020 Kaiser Health News

Visit Kaiser Health News at www.khn.org

Distributed by Tribune Content Agency, LLC.
Mai Huu Tai had a successful career as a forestry engineer, but he knew he wanted to do more for others.

Mai Huu Tai (standing, centre) and other members of the project Dichobiet receive the award in the competition Ho Chi Minh Innovative Start-ups in Tourism 2018.  Photo Courtesy of Mai Huu Tai

The 54-year-old man from the southern province of Long An saw his local area had huge potential for community tourism, so he launched his own start-up.

In 2017, he decided to set up the community tourism project Dichobiet (Travel to broaden your knowledge.

Speaking about his daring decision to enter new field despite being older than most start-up founders, Tai told Kinh te&o thi (Economy and Urban) newspaper: I have passion for beautiful sites across Vietnam and the countrys long-standing traditions."

However, Tai said that alongside the country's rapid development, people had exploited nature a lot, so he hoped to help preserve Vietnams beauty, and widen community tourism in remote areas.

Using modern technology, people living across Vietnam can invite others to visit their hometowns by supplying accommodation and introduce their local traditions, festivals, architecture and history.

To make his idea come true, Tai chose Thieng Lieng Village in Thanh An Commune, Can Gio District in HCM City to set up a community tourism ecosystem.

The village, which is about 13,000ha with 200 households, has a simple beauty and peaceful atmosphere with long and wide salt fields.

More than 100 households in the village make a living by producing salt, which they can make during six summer months only. They thought tourism had little hope of developing in the area, but Tai found himself inspired by the villages simple and peaceful life.

Tai spent much time carefully studying the village and spent time with locals to convince them of the village's potential.

Tais team includes young people who also have a passion for community tourism. The team visited every household to give them guidance on preparing accommodation, meals and how to serve tourists.

Tai said his project took advantage of everything available in the area, meaning locals act as tour guides, their houses become accommodation for tourists and tourists eat meals like locals to understand their traditions.

The project divides households into different groups. One group takes care of meals while another takes care of houses, another takes care of automobiles to transport tourists and other acts as tour guides.

They help each other develop, said Tai.

Thanks to its smooth start, Dichobiet received the award 'Devotion for the community' at the Ho Chi Minh Innovative Start-ups in Tourism 2018 awards.

In addition, his two-day tour to Thieng Lieng Village made the final round of a competition for agricultural ecological tourism products, the first of its kind in the country, last year.

Sustainable tourism

Sustainable tourism needs close connections between the economy, society and environment, thus more and more State management organisations pay a lot of attention to it, Tai said.

Understanding this, the Dichobiet project focuses on changing peoples awareness and helps them to protect their local cultural heritage and character.

Connections between economic development, cultural experience and environmental protection are highly appreciated and will be one of the top choices for tourism in the future, said Tai.  VNS

Phuong Nga & Cac Ngoc

Green tourism: the way for Vietnams sustainable tourism development Sustainable tourism on the basis of green tourism is the path for Vietnam to go in the next 10 years, experts say.
As a successful actress, she never fails to light up the screen.

And Emma Roberts was just as dazzling off-screen as she stepped out following a low-key dinner at Madeo Italian restaurant in Beverly Hills, California on Friday.

The Scream Queens star, 28, looked chic in a black halterneck top and pale blue jeans as she made her way to her waiting car.

Off-duty: Emma Roberts dazzled off screen as she stepped out following a low-key dinner at Madeo Italian restaurant in Beverly Hills, California on Friday

Emma showcased plenty of skin in her skimpy top which featured a daring backless design.

The star jazzed up her outfit, and considerably boosted her height, by donning a quirky pair of butterfly print platform heels.

Finishing her look with a black handbag, Emma looked chilled as she made her way from her night out.

She swept her blonde tresses into a simple up do, while she kept her make-up to a minimum for the outing.

Flash the flesh: The Scream Queens star, 28, showcased plenty of skin in her skimpy top which featured a daring backless design

Style: Emma looked chic in her black halterneck top and pale blue jeans as she made her way to her waiting car

Emma was without her beau Garrett Hedlund for the dinner, with the couple soon set to celebrate their first anniversary.

The couple have been together since March 2019, after Emma ended her famously tumultuous relationship with former fiance Evan Peters, 32, following numerous splits.

Emma and Evan first started dating in 2012 after filming Adult World, and went on to work together again on American Horror Story for four seasons.

Since parting ways for a final time, Evan has moved on with pop star Halsey, 25, with the couple confirming their relationship in October.

Funky: The star jazzed up her outfit, and considerably boosted her height, by donning a quirky pair of butterfly print platform heels

While Emma and Garrett have been friends for years, they are believed to have turned their friendship to romance at the start of last year.

Garrett was previously in a relationship with actress Kirsten Dunst, 37, for four years until March 2016.

Emma has become the de facto muse and final girl of Ryan Murphy's American Horror Story universe, having headlined the most recent season AHS: 1984.

She also is potentially returning to the Murphy crowd favourite Scream Queens.

Emma has several other titles in various stages of development, including RRR, Now I See You, Betches and Anya's Ghost.

The actress also recently wrapped two feature films, Holidate opposite Kristin Chenoweth and The Hunt with Hilary Swank.
In the Union Budget 2020, Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman has suggested a new education policy, besides several measures that will bring in a paradigm shift in the educational systems and creation of employment in India and abroad. "By 2030, India is set to have the largest working-age population in the world. Not only do they need literacy but they need both job and life skills," she said in the budget speech.

The budget earmarked Rs 99,300 crore for education sector in 2020-21 and about Rs 3,000 crore for skill development. In the previous Union Budget, the government's allocation for the sector was Rs 94,800 crore.

"I feel the rise is just not enough to match the current need. Considering the option of External Commercial Borrowings (ECBs) and Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) for education sector was much-needed. The government should look beyond ECB & FDI but also attract more domestic investments and talents", said Amol Arora, Vice Chairman and managing director, Shemford Group of Futuristic Schools.

FULL COVERAGE: Union Budget 2020

The FM said about 150 higher educational institutions will start apprenticeship embedded degree/diploma courses by March 2021 and will start a programme whereby urban local bodies across the country would provide internship opportunities to fresh engineers for a period up to one year. To create infrastructure in education sector, steps would be taken to enable sourcing External Commercial Borrowings (ECB) and FDI so as to able to deliver higher quality education. Institutions that are ranked within top 100 in the National Institutional Ranking framework will start degree level full-fledged online education programme for students of deprived section of the society.

"The major step towards boosting online education is the introduction of degree-level full-fledged online education programme. It would be a game changer as education sector is under focus and the introduction of online courses and degrees will definitely proved to be a big step towards digitalisation of Indian education system", said Akhand Swaroop Pandit, CEO and Founder of online learning platform Catalyst Group.

Also read: Budget 2020: Why infra companies' share prices fell despite Rs 100 lakh crore investment announcement

The budget also suggested under the 'Study in India' programme, Ind-SAT, to be held in Asian and African countries to benchmark foreign candidates who receive scholarships for studying in Indian higher education centres. A National Police University and a National Forensic Science University is another proposal in the budget.

The minister also suggested allowing a medical college to be attached to an existing district hospital in PPP mode. The states that fully allow the facilities of the hospital to the medical college and provide land at concession would receive Viability Gap Funding. This will allow large hospitals with sufficient capacity to offer resident doctors DNB/FNB courses under the National Board of Examinations. The Finance Minister also proposed special bridge courses to be designed by the ministries of Health, Skill Development together with professional bodies for teachers, nurses, para-medical staff and care-givers in the healthcare sector.

It's disappointing that the government hasn't passed on any benefits for the ed-tech and skill-tech sectors by extending tax benefits and incentives for players, corporate or education institutions by giving tax exemption, felt Amol Arora.

Also read: Budget 2020: FM Nirmala Sitharaman delivers longest Union Budget speech, breaks record
The teachers' strike on Tuesday will close at least 45 more second-level schools than originally feared.

The spread of the disruption could bring the number of schools that will not be open to about 400, forcing up to 200,000 pupils to stay at home.

It was known that up to half of post-primary schools - those in the education and training boards (ETB) sector and the overwhelming majority of community and comprehensive schools - would be closed by the one-day stoppage by members of the Teachers' Union of Ireland (TUI). These are schools where the TUI is the sole or main union.

There was uncertainty about the 380 schools in the voluntary secondary sector - those traditionally run by the religious as well as the growing number under the patronage of Educate Together.

Now, the Joint Managerial Body (JMB), which represents school management in that sector, said it was aware of 45 of its 380 schools taking a decision to close. The final figure may be even higher than this.

In most of these schools, the Association of Secondary Teachers' Ireland (ASTI) is the sole or dominant union representing members and it is not engaging in strike action.

However, ASTI has directed its members not to cover for striking TUI colleagues and not to co-operate with any changes in the timetable designed to get around their absence.

Supervision

The absence of teachers does not only mean lessons have to be cancelled, but has implications for health and safety because of a school's wider responsibility around supervision of students.

Scoil Bride in Clondalkin, Dublin, is among those that have advised parents that they cannot open because of the large number of TUI members on it staff.

The TUI stoppage is part of its campaign to end two-tier pay scales. It will also hit colleges of further and adult education and institutes of technology, and overall 19,000 members and 1,100 workplaces will stop work for the day.

While much progress has been made in restoring cuts in the austerity era, the current arrangements mean teachers employed after January 1, 2011, would still earn 110,000 less than longer-serving colleagues over the course of a career.

About half of that loss would be in the first 10 years of their career when key life choices are made.

The pressure on Government over pay inequality is showing no signs of easing up, with a decision by ASTI last week to ballot members on possible strike action.

Meanwhile, up to 1,300 creche owners are set to march with staff and parents in a national protest rally over the "worsening childcare crisis" next Wednesday, which will disrupt childcare services.

However, a threatened strike by up to 500 home-helps in Dublin and Wicklow planned for Friday has been deferred.

They say they will mount pickets on February 21 if the HSE does not transfer money to staff as part of a pay restoration agreement.
OTTAWA - The Prime Minister's Office has announced Justin Trudeau will travel to Ethiopia, Senegal and Germany in the coming week.

Hey there, time traveller!

This article was published 1/2/2020 (708 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

Prime Minster Justin Trudeau is photographed during a Lunar New Year celebration at Casa Deluz in Scarborough, Ont., Saturday, Feb. 1, 2020. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Tijana Martin

OTTAWA - The Prime Minister's Office has announced Justin Trudeau will travel to Ethiopia, Senegal and Germany in the coming week.

The PMO says the trip will begin on Feb. 6 and will focus on economic opportunity, climate change, democracy and gender equality.

It says Trudeau will first travel to Addis Ababa to meet with Ethiopia's prime minister and president.

There, he's also due to meet with world leaders at the 33rd African Union Summit in a bid to deepen relationships with African countries.

Then he's on to Dakar, where he's set to meet with the president of Senegal.

Finally, Trudeau will travel to Germany for the Munich Security Conference before returning to Canada on Feb. 14.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published Feb. 1, 2020.
Subscribing to our services is a three step process. First you have to create an account and then you have to pick if you want to subscribe to digital and or print.

Some people only want to be a digital subscriber to get access online and others want to also receive the print edition.

If you are already a print subscriber and want online access, it is free, you simply have to create an online account and then attach your print subscription account number to the online account you create.
Groundhog Club co-handler A.J. Dereume holds Punxsutawney Phil, the weather prognosticating groundhog, during the 133rd celebration of Groundhog Day on Gobbler's Knob in Punxsutawney, Pa. Saturday, Feb. 2, 2019. Read more

Above-normal temperatures in January:

Boston : 9 degrees above normal

Burlington, Vt. : 7.4 degrees above normal

New York : 6.5 degrees above normal

Chicago : 6.3 degrees above normal

Philadelphia: 5.9 degrees above normal

Punxsutawney Phils forecast notwithstanding, the winter of 2019-20 indisputably has been a shadow of itself. And the higher-order mammals who forecast the weather say it is unlikely to change for the foreseeable future.

In fact, it might be time to issue an Amber Alert for winter, Judah Cohen, a scientist with Atmospheric and Environmental Research in Massachusetts, suggested Thursday.

All winter, models have consistently promised cold shots, behaving something like the SEPTA app on a snowy day: When you get to the station its says the train is three minutes late, then five, then 20. Then the train is canceled.

Im not complaining, said Mike Halpert, deputy director of the governments Climate Prediction Center, whose winter forecast did favor above-normal temperatures in much of the nation. He obviously doesnt run a ski resort.

 READ MORE: How Pennsylvania ski resorts make fake snow to get by in warm winters like this one

Philadelphias official snow total through the end of January, 0.3 inches, was the lowest to date in 25 years, and only three other years were as snow-deprived through Jan. 31 in records dating to 1884. Snow deficits have been common throughout the Mid-Atlantic and Northeast, even in the Great Lakes snow belts.

 READ MORE: No one lives at the airport. So why is Phillys snowfall measured there?

January averaged about 6 degrees above normal around here, and 9 in Boston. In the early going, February evidently is ready to play one-upmanship: The high in Philadelphia could reach 60 Tuesday.

Folklore has it that since groundhog Phil did not see his shadow this year, spring is around the corner.

On Sunday morning, thousands of people gathered in snowy conditions in Punxsutawney, Pa., about 80 miles northeast of Pittsburgh, for the states annual Groundhog Day tradition: a weather prognostication from Punxsutawney Phil. When the groundhogs interpreter proclaimed that Phil did not see his shadow  portending an early spring  the crowd erupted in cheers.

That marks the first time in the 134-year history of the tradition that Phil has predicted an early spring two years in a row, according to state officials. The 22-inch, 20-pound groundhog usually predicts six more weeks of winter (Phil has only predicted an early spring 20 times).

Whatever happened to the polar vortex?

Its still very much there, doing what its been doing for millennia. It has been a major player, said Cohen, just not in the role it assumed in the winters in which it gained celebrity.

The vortex is a swirling cyclonic mass that allows cold air to build in the Arctic. On occasion some of that air breaks away and oozes deep into the United States riding a buckling jet stream. This winter, however, the vortex has been so strong that in effect it has been a cold-air dam.

 READ MORE: 'Suspiciously nice day' brings record-breaking heat  and concerns about climate change

The snow cutters

The Philadelphia region has been affected by its share of winter storms  its just on the wrong side of them for snow.

A lot of these storms have been cutters," said Dave Dombek, a meteorologist with AccuWeather Inc., so called because they cut to the west. "Theyve been heading up to the Great Lakes, Ohio Valley, west of the mountains.

Winds circulate counterclockwise around centers of low pressure. Areas to the east  in this case that would be the likes of Washington, Philadelphia, New York, and Boston  get warming, sometimes very warming, winds from the south.

An area of higher pressure, or storm-discouraging heavier air, has persisted over the Southeast, repelling snowmaking noreasters, said Dombek. It has been quite warm down that way, save for the night of the falling iguanas on Jan. 22, when temperatures dropped to 40 in Miami.

 READ MORE: It was so cold in Miami, iguanas fell from trees

What about global warming?

In this climate-change environment its been proving hard to get sustained cold, said AERs Cohen.

The planet is warming. Thats indisputable," said Halpert. Thats one reason the climate centers seasonal outlooks have tended to favor above-average temperatures.

Global temperatures have increased at the rate of about 0.3 degrees Fahrenheit per decade since 1981, according to the National Centers for Environmental Information. The 2019 global temperature was about 1.7 degrees higher than the 20th-century average, a difference of about 3%.

 READ MORE: Feds say world was 1.4 degrees warmer last year than in 20th century. But how on Earth is that measured?

But while the planet has less of it, it still has a generous supply of cold air available.

And while going warmer in a winter forecast generally is a safe bet, if you keep going with it, said Halpert, some years youre going to be woefully wrong.

So it is going to snow again someday?

Snow isnt all that frequent around here in any winter. On occasion a megastorm can be a showstopper, but officially Philadelphia has only five days a winter with snowfall of an inch or more.

The fact that snow comes so infrequently, it has such a huge interannual variability, said David. A. Robinson, a Rutgers University professor who has become an international go-to person on snow matters. In the winter of 2009-10, a record 78 inches was measured in Philadelphia, or 260 times what has fallen so far this winter.

 READ MORE: Plowed in or dug out: Where do we put it all?

By contrast, there were virtual snow shutouts in Philadelphia through Jan. 31 in 1898-90, 1972-72, and 1994-95.

People say it never happens," Dombek said. Sure it has.

 READ MORE: How Pennsylvania ski resorts make fake snow to get by in warm winters like this one

On the plus sides

Along with energy-bill savings, this has been a great season for the aching backs of those who must shovel.

And with all that cold locked in by the North Pole, says Cohen, it should be a relatively good season for the build-back of Arctic ice.

The abject wimpiness has made a mess out of winter outlooks, but Cohen said his forecast for above-normal snowfall for the Northeast might have positive consequences.

Said Cohen: You learn more from your failures than your successes.
Ashton Irwin channeled his inner rockstar on a day out in Los Angeles on Friday.

The 25-year-old drummer relaxed in the Californian sun at a local cafe, sipping on what appeared to be an Iced Americano.

He looked every bit the pop-rocker, donning an effortlessly cool black leather jacket.

Retro rocker! 5 Seconds Of Summer drummer Ashton Irwin looked effortlessly cool in a black leather jacket on Friday, as relaxed at a Los Angeles cafe

The Sydney-born star styled his vintage-inspired biker jacket with a relaxed grey T-shirt and black, distressed skinny jeans.

The 5SOS songwriter paired the classic look with black Ray-Bans, subtly gelling his dyed hair back.

His signature red choker hung loosely around his neck, partially concealed by the graphic tee.

Relaxed vibe: The 25-year-old drummer relaxed in the Californian sun, sipping on what appeared to be an Iced Americano from a local cafe

He appeared in high spirits on the outing, and appeared to be chatting to someone.

Ashton is a member of 5 Seconds of Summer alongside Luke Hemmings, Calum Hood and Michael Clifford.

The band were formed when the lads were just teenagers, and they are now considered one of Australia's most successful exports.

Rock on: Ashton is a member of 5 Seconds of Summer alongside Luke Hemmings, Calum Hood and Michael Clifford

The group won three ARIA awards last year, including Best Group, Best Australian Live Act and Song of the Year for Youngblood

The boys will return Down Under this month for the bushfire charity concert, Fire Fight Australia 2020.

They will be joined by more than 20 local and international acts at Sydney's ANZ Stadium on February 16.
Max and Katherine Pitcairn enjoyed Shen Yun Performing Arts at The Long Center for the Performing Arts in Austin, Texas, on Jan. 31, 2020. (Sophia Zheng/The Epoch Times)

AUSTIN, TexasUniversal values and classical art forms resonate across culture, faith, and ethnicity. Through the timeless art forms of orchestral music and classical Chinese dance, Shen Yun Performing Arts brings together the best of East and West, and portrays the universal values we all share.

Ten out of 10. I did not know what to expect but I was blown away  Its breathtaking, said Max Pitcairn, a graduate student.

Max and his wife Katherine Pitcairn, saw New York-based Shen Yun for the first time at The Long Center for the Performing Arts in Austin, Texas, on Jan. 31, 2020. Not knowing what to expect, they were blown away by what they saw.

It was absolutely phenomenal. I was shocked. I didnt know what to expect but it was so much better than what I could have expected! They were all wonderful, said Katherine, who works in digital marketing.

Shen Yuns Universal Values Resonate Across Faith and Culture

Max said that he and his wife were Christians, and for this reason, Shen Yuns messages really hit home for them. Max saw rebirth, new life, new beginnings, forgivenessvalues from ancient Chinese culture that he felt close to himself.

China was once known as the Divine Land and Shen Yun seeks to bring that divinely inspired culture alive. The opening scene of Shen Yun depicts the Creator coming down through the cosmos, calling upon the heavenly beings to descend to the mortal world with Him. First arriving in China, they begin to impart divine culture to man in the form of an emperor and his dynasty.

I loved the opening scene. That was probably my favorite, the opening scene was really, really impressing, said Max.

The final piece brought back similar themes, which Katherine loved.

It helped bring everything together. I think at first its kind of sad, the persecution, but at the end, there was hope that theres something more, and its coming all together at the end, said Katherine.

The final piece portrays practitioners of the spiritual discipline, Falun Gong, being persecuted in modern-day China by the Chinese Communist Party (CCP). Because of their unshakable faith, and devotion to following universal values of truthfulness, compassion, and forbearance amidst the hardship, a profound miracle happens.

So, its uplifting. It felt graceful. And just relaxing. There was a flow to it that kind of made you stop and think and not worry about everything else, and there was that feeling of serenity, of course, I love that, Katherine said.

Max said this piece reinforced the idea that if you keep strong, keep true to what you believe in, and look after your fellow man, theres something [good] waiting for you at the end of the road.

Not knowing anything about the spirituality or culture of the ancient Chinese, Max felt that seeing such a spiritual performance in the US was inspiring and a big treat.

It made me feel good about myself, he said.

Seeing it for Yourself

Max had a message for those who havent yet seen Shen Yun:

[Its] mind-blowing. Dont believe what you read online. Its not what people put online. They dont understand it. They dont have background knowledge of it. They fear what they dont understand. Go in with an open mind and youll be blown away by the costumes, choreography, the dancing, the background, storyeverything was a 10/10. I would tell people, just go, you have to see it, said Max.

Max was referring to some articles that have been circling online, written with skepticism of Shen Yun and its connection to the spiritual discipline, Falun Gong.

Because Shen Yun sheds light on the persecution of Falun Gong in China through its performances, as well as showcases the authentic Chinese culture that was almost entirely destroyed during the Cultural Revolution, the CCP has been trying to block Shen Yun from performing since its inception. The CCP has used multiple tactics to try and sabotage Shen Yuns performances. This includes slashing the tires of their tour buses, threatening theater companies, and having people pose as Falun Gong practitioners and write letters containing delirious, nonsensical content to give a negative impression to theater companies.

Articles written with negative and skeptical views of Shen Yun often contain content that can be found on Chinese Embassy websites, where the CCP urges people not to see Shen Yun.

Shen Yuns website states that despite employing these multiple tactics, the CCP has been unable to stop the performances. Shen Yun now has seven dance companies touring the world simultaneously, performing in over 100 cities every yearwith most shows sold-out.

With reporting by Sophia Zheng and Grace Coulter.

The Epoch Times considers Shen Yun Performing Arts the significant cultural event of our time and has covered audience reactions since the companys inception in 2006.
Vietnam has suspended all flights from mainland China as part of strengthening measures against the coronavirus outbreak, its civil aviation authority said Saturday.

The body earlier took sweeping measures to also bar flights from Hong Kong, Taiwan and Macau in a bid to slow the spread of the virus, but later backtracked.

We have suspended flights from Vietnam to mainland China only, Trinh Quoc Tuan, chief of staff at the Civil Aviation Administration of Vietnam (CAAV), told AFP.

Hong Kongs civil aviation authority confirmed in a statement late Saturday that the brief flight ban on the territory had been reversed.

The suspensions apply to flights to and from mainland China to prevent and control new infections, the CAAV said.

It came into effect at 0600 GMT Saturday and several airports in Vietnam showed cancelled flights from Chinese cities by evening.

Vietnam is the latest country to impose extraordinary travel barriers after the virus spread to two dozen nations and killed 259 people in China where it originated in the city of Wuhan.

The United States temporarily barred entry to foreigners who had been in China within the past two weeks and Australia said it was barring entry to non-citizens arriving from China.

Italy, Singapore and Mongolia have taken similar sweeping measures, while Vietnam has suspended new tourist visas for Chinese nationals and foreigners who have travelled to China in the past two weeks.

The World Health Organization declared the coronavirus outbreak a global health emergency on Thursday but did not advise international trade or travel restrictions.

Vietnams announcement came after the country confirmed its sixth case of the coronavirus.

A 25-year-old hotel receptionist working in the popular coastal resort city Nha Trang contracted the SARS-like pathogen after coming into contact with a Chinese father and son -- the first two confirmed cases of coronavirus in Vietnam.

Hers is the second case of human-to-human transmission in Vietnam after the Chinese father from Wuhan infected his son who had been in Vietnam for several months.

The three other cases are Vietnamese nationals who had been in Wuhan, the epicentre of the outbreak.

Vietnam has joined Thailand, China, Germany, Japan, South Korea, France and the United States as the only countries with confirmed domestic coronavirus infections.

SHARE THIS ARTICLE ON
Just as we recover View(s):

Aiyo mage ath hodanna oney (I must wash by hands), exclaimed Kussi Amma Sera. The corona-bug seemed to have got to her this morning, in a positive sense with health foremost in her mind, as she waited under the margosa tree for her friends  Serapina and Mabel Rasthiyadu for their regular Thursday morning gossip.

As the two walked through the gate and made their way to the bankuwa (wooden seat) under the tree, Serapina asked: Monawada thorathuru (whats the news)?

Okkoma coronavirus eka gena (Its all about the coronavirus), replied Kussi Amma Sera. Api apema arakshawa balaganna one (We have to take our own precautions), said Mabel Rasthiyadu.

The three then engaged in a long conversation about the new virus and its impact on Sri Lanka, while I turned away from the office room window to answer the mobile phone which ironically has a ringing tone of a song from US folk-singing duo Simon and Garfunkel.

Ironic because an enterprising musician has released a parody of Simon and Garfunkels acclaimed Sound of Silence with the song titled Fight the virus.

Its first few lines go like this: Hello virus from Wuhan (Hello darkness my old friend)//Another problems here again (Id come to talk to you again)///Because you see the contagion creeping (Because a vision softly creeping)//And the virus is indeed spreading (Left its seeds while I was sleeping)// If interested in listening to this version, go to this YouTube link: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JYTzX9JCbDY

Back to the ringing phone, its Kalabala Silva, the often agitated academic, on the line. After the usual long-time-no-see welcome, we get onto the talk-of-the-town coronavirus and its impact on Sri Lanka.

There is a lot of misinformation going around about taking precautions and no one knows what to believe and what not to believe, he said. On that point I agree my friend, I said as we discussed Monday night when it was announced that Sri Lanka had its first case of a person (a Chinese tourist) being affected by the virus.

People seem to have panicked and everyone began looking for face masks with pharmacies running out of stocks, he said. Yes there was panic but I think it stabilised after the health authorities, through the media, acted to inform the public on the steps taken to prevent the disease from spreading, I said.

The first blow to Sri Lanka was in the tourism industry as the authorities were preparing to welcome dozens of Chinese tourists for the Chinese New Year holidays.

China is Sri Lankas third largest tourism source, but last year arrivals fell by 37 per cent to 167,863, largely owing to the drop in tourist traffic arising from negative publicity after terrorist bombs rocked three luxury hotels and three churches in Sri Lanka during Easter Sunday celebrations in April 2019.

While on-arrival visas for Chinese tourists were suspended, the Chinese government also urged travel agents to postpone their outbound tours across the world until the crisis ended. This meant many industry operators would have lost millions of dollars due to postponed or cancelled tours.

The main opposition United National Party (UNP), battling an internal crisis over leadership, urged the government to have a debate in Parliament over the coronavirus crisis, which Kalabala Silva alluded to in our conversation. The UNP, rather than resolving its own internal issues, wants Parliament to be summoned to discuss the virus crisis, he said.

This may not be a bad idea. On the other hand, have debates on special issues and crises generated any positive outcomes? More often than not, these irrespective of their importance, turn into slanging matches and accusations being hurled from one side to the other. Often the main purpose of the debate gets lost in the process, I said.

While sections of the media are being accused of overplaying the seriousness of the virus by, for example saying (quoting various officials) that people should wear face masks, the crux of the matter is that there is a tendency for the public  going on previous experiences  to be wary of various government pronouncements fearing that some information is being hidden from the people. People have little faith in the system and whether they actually work even though the authorities, in this case, seem to be moving in the right direction.

Authorities seem to be on the ball, urging people not to panic and that the health officials were on top of the situation.

To counter panic, rather than relying only on media conferences and other pronouncements, the government should have taken out full page ads in the print media and similar ads on radio and television with a checklist of dos and donts on the coronavirus, how to take precautions and counter bogus messages like the one on social media about the different ways in which a person should wear face masks.

One of the challenges of taking preventive measures is that there is an explosion of information through social media unlike the time when another coronavirus  Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome (SARS)  was first discovered in Asia in February 2003. It is reported that the outbreak lasted approximately six months and, fortunately, Sri Lanka didnt have a single case.

For the tourism industry struggling to recover after the devastating blow from the Easter Sunday attacks (tourist arrivals dropped last year when compared to 2018), this is another unfortunate impact on tourism. The industry has seen a large number of cancellations from China, while this is also likely to impact arrivals from other countries as travellers mull postponing a holiday as a means of avoiding mingling with crowds.

Colombo airport authorities have taken precautionary steps like suspending on-arrival visas for Chinese visitors, having separate parking bays for planes arriving from China, installing scanners at the airport to check the temperature of incoming passengers and making the arrival and departure terminals temporarily out of bounds for people other than travellers. Scanning the temperature at airports is not a foolproof mechanism since the virus can live in an individual for two weeks (incubation period) before manifesting symptoms.

Tourism has become one of Sri Lankas predominant lifelines in terms of accumulation of foreign exchange (particularly to pay for imports and borrowings in foreign exchange), providing thousands of employment opportunities to the countrys youth and enriching village communities. With the latest crisis impacting on tourism, the recovery of the industry after the Easter Sunday attacks will now take longer than originally planned.

As I pressed the button on the computer to complete writing this weeks column, Serapina walked in to the office room with a cup of coffee (which I had requested), saying Me saukhya arbudaya ikmanata evara wei kiyala mama balaporottu venawa (I hope this health crisis is over soon).

I nodded my head, pondering over the fact that even if it impacts on the economy, jobs and foreign exchange, the nations first obligation is to ensure that its population is safe from the spread of any disease.
Start-ups: Fishing for small fish in a large pond By Duruthu Edirimuni Chandrasekera View(s): View(s):

Sri Lankas start-ups have come a long way  powering innovation, pushing limits and boosting the extraordinary influence entrepreneurs have on the marketplace. As a result venture capitalists, which sort of ignite start-ups, now have a big pool to choose from. So much so that a local venture capitalist had met over 250 start-ups last year alone.

BOV Capital (Blue Ocean Venture), the first venture capital fund focused on early-stage startups in the country, now has two funds and Kishan Nadarajah, Principal BOV told the Business Times in an interview that the fund is eyeing more start-ups in five key sectors.

Big pond

In this effort, he met with some 250 start-ups last year alone but ended up putting cash in just three. So he has so many to choose from. This, he says may not be so bad, because it will further push start-up entrepreneurs to strive for excellence. Venture Capital is a distinctive vertical in finance that fetch two very singular worlds as one  financiers, entrepreneurs at one end and professionals at the other with a lot of experience to operate start-ups. A start-up must have a good elevator pitch and robust investor pitches to draw the interest of a VC, he explained the entire time noting that local talent is unprecedented.

BOVs fund I has invested in nine companies over the last five years. Out of this, seven are Sri Lankan and the balance are Indian. nCinga, Linear Squared, Simplex, ZigZag, Roar, Takas and Omac are all local start-ups while Aecumen (digitising data on buyer behaviour in stores) and Trivillas (which aggregates all villas in the South East Asian region) are Indian.

Software-as-a-service (SaaS) firm nCinga Innovations was acquired by Singapore-based fashion platform Zilingo for US$15.5 million this month. This is one of the largest tech exits in Sri Lanka in recent times and also the first exit for the fund after a 100 per cent return by nCinga. The fund, he said has completed half its life, and will be exiting from about three more firms either through IPOs or trade sales.

BOV fund II now has cash to invest and is looking at companies with Fintech (the integration of technology into offerings by financial services companies in order to increase their use and delivery to consumers) being an area that they are very bullish about. We are looking at investing in Fintech companies. Still banks in Sri Lanka carry out traditional business. But Fintech will disrupt traditional banking in a big way. We are aware of this and we are very upbeat on this sector, he said. He added that the fund is in discussions with a prospective Fintech start-up which is building a lending platform. We have a dire need of carrying out lending in a non-traditional way.

Solutions-based start-ups

Also SaaS start-ups are on the cards. As an example, Mr. Nadarajah noted that a customer or a company does not need to buy a Microsoft package to use it but instead can use it monthly by paying a fee. Most big companies in the enterprise software are becoming SaaS. We are looking at start-ups which can come up with solutions based on SaaS.

Healthcare start-ups are also in their radar. With tech, we feel that healthcare can be impacted at grassroots levels. For an example with the Mydoc app, anyone can access a doctor 24/7 spending only Rs.2, Mr. Nadarajah said. He also said that taking healthcare to the rural areas is easy as smartphone penetration in Sri Lanka is currently at over 40 per cent and growing.

Education is yet another sector the fund is eyeing. This is a sector that is even more exciting. I feel that the education system in Sri Lanka is massively broken. But with technology, information is out there for everyone to access. However the lack of English knowledge is a big issue. We want to discuss with companies who use technology to democratise education through tech, Mr. Nadarajah noted. He added that he met a few companies which are in education, but they had solutions more on exam preparation or which is popularly known as test prep. But that is not very attractive and it isnt creative thinking. I still have not found someone who has made a breakthrough in education.

Direct sales

Direct-to-consumer (selling your product directly to your end customers without third-party retailers, wholesalers, or other middlemen), is another area that is not prevalent in Sri Lanka which BOV has set its sights on. With a phone call or a touch of a button products are bought by consumers. With technology more products are moving fast and the middleman is eliminated, Mr. Nadarajah said. This is transforming how people shop. In the process, brands, across the whole lot from detergens to sneakers, are totally changing consumer preferences and expectations. Mr. Nadarajah also added that large brands are being created through such tech-based platforms.

The fund rarely looks at firms which are in the seed (initial) stage. We generally go for companies that are in Series A stage (the second stage of start-up financing and the first stage of venture capital financing)  which can scale up quickly, Mr. Nadarajah added.

According to the Sri Lanka Association of Software and Service Companies (SLASSCOM), 55 per cent of Sri Lanka entrepreneurs start-ups are generating early revenues but only 14 per cent new start-ups are growing into new markets. New IT innovations can reverse this low 14 per cent rate to higher levels, analysts say. There are a lot of projects and a lot of themes that are ready to be defined for international capital but all these need to be scalable models which can go regional.
Staten Island man to spend 9 years in prison after selling AK-47s, rocket launcher overseas

A Staten Island man was sentenced for international arms trafficking and money laundering, officials announced on Thursday.

United States District Judge Kiyo A. Matsumoto sentenced Albert Veliu, 37, to nine years in prison after he purchased and sold an anti-tank rocket launcher and AK-47 rifles in Kosovo, according to the U.S. Attorney, Eastern District of New York.

Click here for more details.

Don't Edit

Firefighter charged with DWI after allegedly crashing, abandoning FDNY van

Police arrested and charged a New York City firefighter after he allegedly crashed and abandoned and FDNY van in Westerleigh on Friday night.

Police charged Robert Diaz, 42, with driving while intoxicated, driving while ability impaired and refusal to take breath test, according to a written statement from the NYPDs Deputy Commissioner of Public Information.

Click here for the full story.

Don't Edit

Man sought for questioning in connection with Dongan Hills church burglary

Police are asking for the publics help to locate a man sought for questioning in connection with a burglary where donation boxes were broken into at St. Anns R.C. Church in Dongan Hills.

Cops are searching for a white male in the break-in at the church last Nov. 24, according to a message posted on the 122nd Precinct Twitter feed.

Around 3 p.m. on that Sunday, an unidentified male used an unknown object to force open a side door where he entered the location at 101 Cromwell Ave. He remained inside and broke into locked donation boxes before fleeing, according to a spokeswoman for the NYPDs Deputy Commissioner of Public Information.

Click here for the story.

Don't Edit

A bench, a fall afternoon and a gun prove a bad combo for man

Hanging out on a bench with a loaded gun on an autumn afternoon proved to be a bad move for a New Brighton man.

Lawrence Williams, 43, faces two years in prison after pleading guilty to a weapon charge stemming from his arrest on Oct. 2, 2018.

The events unfolded around 3:45 p.m. when police responded to a 911 call of a man with a firearm sitting on a bench in front of 1075 Castleton Ave., according to an NYPD spokesman.

Click here for the story.

Don't Edit

Judge scolds college grad sentenced in major gun case

Saying he should have known better, a justice sentenced Anthony Clark, a Georgia resident and former New Yorker, on Friday to six years in prison for bringing a cache of guns and ammunition into the borough last Feb. 26.

Clark, 33, is licensed to buy and carry a concealed weapon in Georgia. However, he is not licensed to have a gun in New York.

The defense highlighted Clark's college education, but this might have actually worked against him.

Click here for the full story.

Don't Edit

Don't Edit

Dad who drove drunk with son, 7, in the car avoids jail at sentencing

A Brooklyn man whose blood alcohol content, authorities said, was more than twice the legal limit while driving in Bulls Head with his young son last year, had a felony DWI conviction vacated after completing a drug-monitoring program.

As a result, Johnny Neri, 27, avoided jail and has been sentenced to a one-year conditional discharge for misdemeanor drunken driving stemming from an incident last May 7. He was also fined $500.

Click here for the story.

Don't Edit

A gun in a nightstand, drugs, ammo and some time upstate

A police raid of a Concord mans home netted guns, drugs and ammunition.

And it has also earned Jorge Gonzalez a felony conviction and a soon-to-start 42-month prison stay.

Gonzalez, 34, has pleaded guilty to a weapon charge stemming from his arrest March 20.

Click here for the story.

Don't Edit

NYPD responds to bank robbery on Forest Avenue; suspect flees with cash

Police are investigating a bank robbery on Forest Avenue in Port Richmond on Wednesday.

The incident was reported around 11:30 a.m. at the Northfield Bank at 1481 Forest Ave., according to police.

A man entered the branch and passed a note demanding cash, according to an NYPD spokeswoman.

He fled the location in a light-colored sedan, police said.

Click here for the story.

Don't Edit

Police probe robbery at Santander bank in Grasmere

A man robbed a bank in Grasmere last Saturday afternoon, police said.

Police responded to a call for a robbery at 1:45 p.m. at a Santander bank located at 1320 Hylan Blvd., an NYPD spokesman said.

The man passed a note to a cashier demanding money, according to the spokesman.

The man received an unknown amount of cash and fled the location in an unknown direction, the spokesman said.

Click here for the story.

Don't Edit

Cops: Man busted in alarming incident at bank on Forest Avenue

A 25-year-old man was arrested in connection with incident initially reported as an attempted bank robbery in West Brighton.

Augustin Nadreau, 25, of the 100 block of Treadwell Avenue, was apprehended for the incident that occurred on Thursday around 1:30 p.m. inside the Northfield Bank at 519 Forest Ave., according to a statement from the NYPDs Deputy Commissioner of Public Information.

Click here for the story.

Don't Edit
A leading Tanzanian politician who launched a crackdown on homosexuality has been banned from visiting the United States, the US State Department said.

In a statement dated Friday, the US said the sanctions on Paul Christian Makonda, the Regional Commissioner of Dar es Salaam, Tanzania's economic capital, come amid Washington's growing concerns about basic freedoms in the East African nation.

"These actions against Paul Christian Makonda underscore our concern with human rights violations and abuses in Tanzania," the statement read.

Both Makonda and his wife, Mary Felix Massenge, are now barred from visiting the US.

"The Department of State is publicly designating Paul Christian Makonda... due to his involvement in gross violations of human rights, which include the flagrant denial of the right to life, liberty, or the security of persons," the statement read.

"He has also been implicated in oppression of the political opposition, crackdowns on freedom of expression and association, and the targeting of marginalised individuals."



In October 2018, Makonda announced a project to hunt down homosexuals.

President John Magufuli later distanced himself from this initiative, explaining that it did not reflect the views of his government.

But it comes amid rising criticism of Magufuli by watchdogs for his human rights record.

"The United States remains deeply concerned over deteriorating respect for human rights and rule of law in Tanzania," the statement read.

"We call on the Tanzanian government to respect human rights and fundamental freedoms, including the freedom of expression, association, and the right of peaceful assembly," it added.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
By PTI

NEW DELHI: Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman on Saturday said 100 more airports will be developed by 2025 to support the UDAN scheme.

Presenting the Budget for 2020-21, Sitharaman said Rs 1.7 lakh crore has been provided for transport infrastructure in 2020-21.

She also said 1,150 trains will run under the public private partnership (PPP) mode, also four stations will be redeveloped with the help of the private sector.

Besides, the minister promised more Tejas type trains to connect tourist destinations.

She said a proposal for setting up large solar power capacity alongside rail track is under consideration.
352 Shares Share

In a shocking development that could transform the medical profession, the International Journal of Health Services published the findings of a study titled, Primary care, specialty care, and life chances.

Using multiple regression analysis, the researchers concluded that primary care is by far the most significant variable related to better health status, correlating with lower mortality, fewer deaths from heart disease and cancer, and a host of other beneficial health outcomes. By contrast, and perhaps equally deserving of shock-value, the researchers determined the number of specialty physicians [i.e., surgeons, cardiologists, orthopedists, etc.] is positively and significantly related to total mortality, deaths due to heart diseases and cancer, shorter life expectancy, along with a host of other worrisome health outcomes.

What might these findings mean for the future of medical care?

From a policy perspective, a likely implication is to reorient the medical profession from its current expensive, clinically based, treatment-focused practice to a more cost-effective, prevention-oriented primary care system, according to the studys research abstract, which was published July 1, 1994.

Thats correct: The study was published 25 years ago.

This isnt a belated April Fools joke. Its a reminder of medicines reluctance to change in the face of powerful data. Instead of acknowledging the inconvenient facts and heeding the conclusions of the study, the health care system hasnt budged in the last quarter-century.

As a result, our nations primary-care problem has only gotten worse. So, too, has the health of American patients.

The most recent study to analyze the value of primary care  published February 18, 2019, in JAMA Internal Medicine  not only confirms decades of prior research, but also spotlights troubling trends in workforce planning, physician reimbursement, and residency training.

The studys research team, a Harvard-Stanford collaboration led by Dr. Sanjay Basu, examined life expectancy rates in the United States from 2005 to 2015. The team found that adding ten primary care physicians to a population of 100,000 people is associated with an average life-expectancy increase of 51.5 days. Thats compared to a 19.2-day increase for an equal number of specialists.

In other words, adding ten primary care physicians has a 250% greater influence on life expectancy than an equivalent bump in specialists.

Nevertheless, the research also found this concerning fact: When looking at the overall U.S. population, the density of primary care physicians declined by 11% between 2005 and 2015, falling from 46.6 to 41.4 per 100,000 people.

In a Stanford press release, Basu predicted that despite the clear correlation between better health and primary care, the number of primary care physicians is likely to continue to decline.

Hes absolutely right. In the United States, primary care is like healthy food. We all know its good for us, but most Americans prefer the burger on the menu over the salad.

And, in that sense, the jokes on us: One of the few things scientifically proven to increase longevity is the very thing patients, U.S. legislators, and health care leaders dont fully appreciate or rally behind.

At the heart of this data conflict is an American medical culture with deeply ingrained perceptions, values, and norms that all-too-frequently clashes with the science.

For example, the culture of medicine values all doctors, but it values doctors who deliver immediate and visible results the most. Thats not only bad news for primary care physicians and their relative status in the medical profession, its bad news for patients.

Through preventive screenings and chronic disease management, primary care doctors help patient populations avoid heart attacks, strokes, and kidney failure. But the results dont manifest for several years. The lives saved by primary care physicians are more statistical than visible.

Meaning, if Patient X lives until his nineties, no one can be sure whether he would have had a heart attack or developed cancer without the work of his primary care doctor. By contrast, when a cardiac surgeon unblocks the blood vessels to the heart or a general surgeon successfully removes a large tumor, Patient X knows exactly who saved him.

Therefore, Americans label cardiologists and neurosurgeons as lifesavers, but not the primary care doctors who keep them off the operating table in the first place.

These faulty perceptions, shared by patients and medical professionals alike, have serious and far-reaching consequences. Look at the distribution of money, for starters.

The most recent physician compensation report shows primary care doctors earn an average salary of $223,000, whereas specialists make an average of $329,000, with orthopedic surgeons earning close to half-a-million dollars annually.

From an economic perspective, paying specialists nearly 50% more than the primary care physicians is illogical. It only makes sense from a cultural perspective. Primary care isnt perceived as prestigious, sexy, or heroic. Therefore, its relegated to a lower status tier and paid accordingly.

Medical cultures distorted values dont end with physician reimbursements. They also influence residency training programs, which year after year, churn out more medical specialists (and fewer primary care doctors) than we need.

On March 15, 2019, approximately 30,000 graduating medical students gathered at their respective schools for Match Day, the annual rite of passage that invites newly minted doctors to tear open their envelopes and find out which residency program has selected them.

And despite the dire shortage of primary care physicians in the U.S., nearly 1,000 medical school graduates were left empty-handed that day. Those not selected didnt fail their requisite courses, clinical rotations, or national exams. They didnt match because there were more applicants than available training positions.

Residency training programs throughout the country are administered by hospitals and funded by the federal government through Medicare. The program pays equal dollars to hospitals, regardless of whether that money is used to train a primary care resident or a specialist.

Thanks to a U.S. insurance system that doles out much higher reimbursements for complex interventions than for primary care, its no wonder hospitals prefer to train residents in specialties like orthopedic surgery.

Glaring problem, meet untapped opportunity.

If we have a national shortage of primary care physicians, why not add enough primary-care resident spots to train every new graduate? If we assume it costs $100,000/year in salary and training for each additional resident, the total expense for this program would be $100 million dollars. Thats less than 0.003% of the $3.6 trillion Americans spend each year on health care with a guaranteed return on investment.

And since rural communities and minority populations are being hit hardest by the shortage, why not establish a national program that forgives the student-loan debt of any newly trained doctor who agrees to two or three years of primary-care service in underserved areas? The cost to the government would be offset long-term by improved community health and reduced hospitalizations.

And if the agency that administers Medicare didnt think we could afford to staff all these new primary-care positions, why not pay hospitals less when their residents train in specialty departments? And if we wanted to correct the supply-demand mismatch among practicing physicians all across the country, why not increase Medicare reimbursements by 10% for primary care and lower them by 10% specialty physicians?

As logical as these data-driven changes would be, dont expect health care leaders, policymakers, or patients to jump on board. When it comes to making important decisions about health care, culture crushes data every time. As a nation, we to prefer burgers to salads.

Robert Pearl is a physician and CEO, Permanente Medical Groups. He is the author of Mistreated: Why We Think Were Getting Good Health CareAnd Why Were Usually Wrong and can be reached on Twitter @RobertPearlMD. This article originally appeared in Forbes.

Image credit: Shutterstock.com
Andy Gill, the guitarist for post-punk band Gang Of Four, has died aged 64.

It comes just two months after the band finished their 40th anniversary world tour. His death was announced to the band's fans in a statement on Twitter on Saturday.

The guitarist was described as 'one of the best ever to do it', and 'a bit of a genius' by his bandmates.

Andy Gill (pictured), the guitarist for post-punk band Gang Of Four, has died aged 64

The statement added: 'This is so hard for us to write, but our great friend and supreme leader has died today.

'Andy's final tour in November was the only way he was ever really going to bow out; with a Stratocaster around his neck, screaming with feedback and deafening the front row.

'His uncompromising artistic vision and commitment to the cause meant that he was still listening to mixes for the upcoming record, whilst planning the next tour from his hospital bed.'

The post-punk band added that they would 'remember him for his kindness and generosity, his fearsome intelligence, bad jokes, mad stories and endless cups of Darjeeling tea'.

In 2019, Gang Of Four embarked on a 40th anniversary world tour, playing in countries including Japan, Greece, Spain, Australia and New Zealand.

His death was announced to the band's fans in a statement on Twitter on Saturday

Gill was the only remaining founding member of the band, which was formed in Leeds in 1976 and released 10 albums over its 40 year history.

Gang of Four is known for combining punk-rock, funk and dub with lyrics focusing on Marxist politics and the social and political ills of society. The influential band are considered one of the leading bands of the late 1970s and early 1980s post-punk movement.

Rolling Stone editor David Fricke previously described the band as 'probably the best politically motivated band in rock & roll.'

He leaves behind his wife Catherine Mayer, an American-born British author and journalist who co-founded the Women's Equality Party in 2015.

She tweeted: 'This pain is the price of extraordinary joy, almost three decades with the best man in the world.'
5.6k SHARES Facebook Twitter Whatsapp Pinterest Reddit Print Mail Flipboard

Sen. Ben Cardin (D-MD) said the vote to block witnesses was about Senate Republican misconduct than the misconduct of Trump.

Senate Republicans Accused Of Misconduct

Cardin said on CNN, Yesterday was more about the misconduct of the Senate than the misconduct of the president. The Senate led by the Republicans failed to carry out their constitutional responsibility for a fair trial, and regardless of how you feel about whether this is a removable offense or not, the Senate has a constitutional obligation to conduct a trial, and you cant conduct a trial without hearing from the witnesses and looking at the documents.

Video:

Yesterday was more about the misconduct of the Senate than the misconduct of the President," Democratic @SenatorCardin tells @smerconish after the Senate voted to block any witnesses from being called in President Trump's impeachment trial. https://t.co/fwdGBK8GBO pic.twitter.com/r7URltUC2I  CNN (@CNN) February 1, 2020

McConnells Cover-up is going to follow Senate Republicans Through The Election

Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell thought that he could brush Trumps impeachment under the rug and move on, but that is not whats happening. McConnell created a moment that the entire country will remember in November. Democrats have been looking for a concrete moment to tie Senate Republicans to Trumps corruption and crimes for years, and McConnell gave it to them on a silver platter, but he betrayed the independence of the Senate to protect Donald Trump.

Mitch McConnell jammed through an acquittal for Donald Trump, but the process, he indicted his own Senate majority and set the stage for their defeat in November.

For more discussion about this story join our Rachel Maddow and MSNBC group.

Follow Jason Easley on Facebook
Hong Kong Chief Executive Carrie Lam wears a mask during a news conference in Hong Kong this week. Reuters



By Amanda Price



Hong Kong's immune system has taken a beating over the past seven months. Still bruised and limping from the countless assaults on its people and property, Hong Kong is now reeling with a new crisis.



No nation is unmoved by the threat of the coronavirus. But for Hong Kong, the threat is especially potent. For many, still wounded emotionally or physically, the onset of the virus would be akin to being punched in an open wound.



Every Hong Kong citizen is aware that they are among the most vulnerable region in the world right now. As a major global transit hub, Hong Kong is connected to the mainland through multiple air, road, sea and rail crossings, used by thousands upon thousands of people every day.



Although this vulnerability has not been politically constructed, it is for many in Hong Kong illustrative of a future in which the mainland's problems will be Hong Kong's, and where Hong Kong's problem will no longer matter.



In an article for the Los Angeles Times, Anthony Dapiran, author of "City of Protest: A Recent History of Dissent in Hong Kong," explained, "The coronavirus sits in the very centre of the vortex of anger at any incompetent Hong Kong government (and) distrust of Beijing  issues that have driven the past seven months of protests in Hong Kong  and as such, risks becoming a 'perfect storm' of dissent."



The desire for autonomy from the mainland has become cemented, as citizens realize that their borders, and the remnants of their semi-autonomy, are protection against more than autocracy.



But even within their borders, citizens are keenly aware that protection is far from guaranteed.



As criticism still surrounds Carrie Lam's unwavering loyalty to Beijing during protests, there is strong suspicion that Beijing is guiding Lam as she plans to protect Hong Kong from a virus that has already killed.



Part of the belief that Lam is leading only with "the mainland's approval," stems from her hesitancy to act when she has herself has seen the tragedy of inaction.



In 2003, the SARS epidemic hit Hong Kong like a thunderbolt. Triggered by a Chinese doctor who visited Hong Kong while already symptomatic, the SARS virus infected 1,799 citizens, 299 of whom died. Doctors and nurses, overworked, under-equipped and under-protected, were among the dead.



Like the coronavirus, SARS was linked to the sale of wild animals in markets in mainland China. This common practice which, despite the undeniable and often deadly consequences, continues unchecked by authorities.



The tragedies resulting from the 2003 epidemic led to reforms in Hong Kong's Healthcare, all of which were demanded by outraged healthcare workers, citizens and bereaved family members. These reforms have kept the coronavirus from ravaging Hong Kong, but they have not done enough, and neither Lam nor Xi can plead ignorance.



As early as March 2018, leading virologists and infectious disease specialists who had been at the forefront of combating the SARS virus, publicly warned officials that the region had slipped back into complacency, and needed to be on the alert and prepared for the next outbreak of a deadly virus.



The World Health Organization (WHO) echoed this sentiment on a wider scale, alerting governments to the high-level potential of a superbug emerging as an "increasingly serious threat" to the global community. WHO also warned that high-density communities with poor air quality were at greatest risk of outbreaks.



Public awareness, access to healthcare and rapid response protocol were also critical, authorities warned. As one recent medical research paper into the SARS virus explained, "History will eventually repeat itself unless we are prepared, and at present we are not."



The distrust of Hong Kong's government is present even among doctors and nurses. The newly formed "Hospital Authority Employees Alliance" had threatened to strike if Carrie Lam continued to ignore experts' advice to close borders.



Further frustrating Hong Kong citizen is that under "the Prevention and Control of Disease Ordinance" the Chief Executive could have immediately "invoked powers" to secure the region's safety while the window of opportunity was open.



Now, after 10 deaths and many more cases of infections, pressure, anger and grief have forced Lam to act, albeit only to the extent she was likely permitted.



Although Lam has called any suggestion that she is working under Beijing's oversight "fake news", her reluctance to act on the advice of Hong Kong's experts, and her initial decision to implement only moderate measures to separate Hong Kong from the mainland can mean only two things  either Lam is simply a poor leader, or expert advice is overridden by instructions from Beijing.



But citizens of China and Hong Kong have been given good reason to believe that their governments do not value expert advice above their own non-expert choices.



Under Xi Jinping's imperious-styled governance, the virus found opportunity to do more damage than it should have. First responders and local authorities were hamstrung by a political system in which they had to ask permission to sneeze. But as citizens in Wuhan sneezed, collapsed on the streets and gasped for breath, local authorities were sending memos up a ziggurat-sized chain of bureaucracy. People dying would need to wait until a rubber stamp declared them sick. Those already dead were refused even their cause of death.



China does not deserve a pat on the back for offering the genome sequence to other countries. That is the least expectation we should have of any nation with a disease that poses a global threat. While Xi was shaking hands with the Director General of WHO, Xi's State Censorship Department was still erasing criticisms from Weibo. The data so desperately needed to help scientists understand how the virus spread, was still quietly lacking.



Lam has lost political ground through her handling of this crisis, but Xi has made a grab for more, by painting himself as the "destroyer of demons." If the coronavirus has shone light on China's politics, it is that you can work anything to your advantage if you control information and have the ability to demonize misguided cellular organisms.



Viruses do not announce themselves, neither do they explain themselves, but they are not "demons." Such nonsensical talk is just an attempt to shift blame from a regime that is so top heavy that those at the bottom are too terrified to help a dying man, as was the case for a gentleman name Li.



When tear gas replaces antiseptic spray, as it will eventually do, protesters will fight for autonomy with renewed vigor. They will know now with more certainty that they cannot trust either the mainland or the regional government to protect them.



The coronavirus will meet its match in the anti-viral drugs and vaccines that trustworthy experts will create. But people will have died, many needlessly, and that cannot be undone.


After World War II, our nation forged new trade deals and opened markets to create unprecedented economic growth. However, in the decades that followed, some interests and priorities have shifted. America needed to refocus and update our trade deals to level the playing field and restore fairness and reciprocity for the hardworking men and women of the heartland.

When one in four of our states jobs are directly related to production agriculture, Nebraskans need certainty that our trading markets are secure.

For years now, thats exactly where my focus has been, and I have worked closely with President Trump to build on the tremendous momentum our economy has created to deliver trade deals with Canada, Mexico, China, and Japan. These historic agreements restore principles of fairness, reciprocity, and prioritize Nebraskas families and workers.

I was proud to join some of my Midwest Senate colleagues as we took part in a signing ceremony for the USMCA and sent the agreement to the presidents desk for his signature.

Passage of the USMCA meant securing our states two largest markets. Currently, Canada and Mexico receive 44 percent of Nebraskas total exports. In 2018, Nebraska sent nearly $1.5 billion of ag products to our neighbors to the north and south. According to USDA, Canada and Mexico purchase more than 82 percent of distillers grains exports and nearly 80 percent of our dairy exports. There is no doubt that this broad bipartisan agreement will benefit Nebraskas farmers and ag producers both now and in the future as they continue to feed the world.

The new decade also ushered in encouraging progress in strengthening our trade relationship with China.

On Jan. 15, President Trump and Chinese representatives signed a Phase One agreement, which is a significant win for Nebraska and represents Chinas return to the table as a major customer of our agricultural products. China has agreed to purchase, on average, $40 billion of U.S. agricultural goods per year for the next two years.

Nebraska Farm Bureau predicts that, At the very least, agricultural exports to China this year should be $32 billion and should equal $39 billion in 2021. For context, peak U.S. agricultural exports to China were nearly $26 billion in 2012. The agreement also includes provisions that address a multitude of non-tariff barriers for commodities like beef, dairy, animal feed, and biotech products.

In addition to agriculture, the agreement makes important strides concerning intellectual property services, currency manipulation monitoring, and a process for dispute resolution. This Phase One deal will help expand market access for Nebraska and bring much needed economic certainty to Nebraskas manufacturing, agriculture, and energy sectors.

All of these trade deals follow the progress made with Japan last year. The first stage of the U.S.-Japan deal took effect January 1, 2020, reducing tariffs and raising quotas on many U.S. agriculture exports. Japan is our largest customer for all ag exports, beef, pork, eggs, and wheat. In 2018 alone, Nebraskas exports to Japan totaled nearly $1.2 billion.

Our states manufacturers, small businesses, families, and communities are going to benefit from all of these trade agreements. Weve made great progress in securing more customers for the world-class products that Nebraskans produce. Now, we are setting our sights on the United Kingdom to secure more valuable trading markets in the future.

I want to thank President Trump for keeping his word and following through for our state and Americas heartland. I am proud of the work we have been able to accomplish by working together with this administration and with my colleagues in the United States Senate.

Thank you for participating in the democratic process. I look forward to visiting with you again next week.

Love 0 Funny 0 Wow 0 Sad 0 Angry 0
Aptar Pharma along with Lupin Limited has launched ADHERO which helps patients with chronic respiratory diseases.

With the help of this initiative, Navia Life Care is helping Aptar Pharma to offer Indias first e-connected inhaler for Lupin Pharmaceuticals.

Navia Life Care has recently joined hands with Aptar Pharma to launch the digital ecosystem of MyAdhero App. ADHERO is Indias first connected device for metered-dose inhalers (MDI) whereas MyAdhero App which is its technology platform, including a Patient App, Care Provider App and the Doctor Portal.

Aptar Pharma along with Lupin Limited has launched ADHERO which helps patients with chronic respiratory diseases. It tracks their MDI usage and facilitate improved adherence to their prescribed therapy.

With the help of this initiative, Navia Life Care is helping Aptar Pharma to offer Indias first e-connected inhaler for Lupin Pharmaceuticals. The inhaler is connected to their technology platform through a patient-facing mobile app, a dashboard for doctors and an advanced analytics tool that will provide Aptar and Lupin greater understanding and insights into patient behavior. Also, it is benefitting patients through improved adherence and compliance.

By connecting ADHERO device to their MyAdhero App, patients can access the information on their smartphones. The app sends reminders, provide contextual health alerts based on factors like the Air Quality Index at the patients current location and enable visual analytics. Patients can also grant their physician access to their information and medical tracking data through the dashboard portal as well as the app.
Beijing: The death toll in China's virus outbreak rose to 259 on Saturday and Beijing criticised Washington's tightening of travel controls to bar most foreign nationals who visited the country within the past two weeks.

Medical workers in protective suits move a coronavirus patient into an isolation ward at the Second People's Hospital in Fuyang in central China's Anhui Province. Credit:AP

South Korea and India evacuated their citizens from the locked-down Chinese city at the centre of an area where some 50 million people are barred from leaving in a sweeping anti-disease effort. Indonesia was sending a plane.

The number of confirmed infections in China rose to 11,791.

The United States declared a public health emergency on Friday and President Donald Trump signed an order barring entry to foreign nationals, other than immediate family of American citizens and permanent residents, who have travelled in China within the last 14 days, which scientists say is the longest incubation period for the virus.
By Express News Service

BENGALURU: In a surprise move, the State Government on Friday appointed Praveen Sood, an IPS officer of the batch of 1986, as the new Director General & Inspector General of Police (DG&IGP), overlooking the seniority of 1985 batch officer Ashit Mohan Prasad. Sood will be the longstanding DG & IGP of the state, as he is still left with another four years and four months of service.

Sood, who was DGP-Criminal Investigation Department, took charge as the Head of Police Force from outgoing DG&IGP Neelamani N Raju, who was the first woman officer to hold the top post in Karnataka.

The State Government had not issued the order appointing the new DG&IGP till 6 pm. Officers and staff, waiting to receive the new DG&IGP at the police headquarters, were curious to know who it will be. It was only by 6.15 pm that the state government cleared the decks for Sood to take charge.

ALSO READ| Top brass of IPS officers go through evening of suspense ahead of appointment of new Karnataka DGP

Sood to be longest-serving DG & IGP

It is learnt that the government chose Sood over AM Prasad, who is currently DGP-Internal Security Division, as the latter is set to retire in another nine months. While Prasad will retire in October this year, Sood has until May 2024.

Also, it is said that a few factors like serving as the intelligence chief for almost four years during the Congress government and his name figuring in DySP Ganapatis suicide case (Prasad was given clean chit by the CBI in the case) worked against Prasad.



3 Addl DGPs promoted as DGPs

As three DGP-rank officers  Neelamani N Raju, MN Reddi and Raghavendra H Auradkar  retired on Friday, the government promoted three Additional Director Generals of Police (ADGPs) to the rank of DGP. Alok Mohan, who was ADGP-Railways, has been posted as the DGP of the Prisons department.

NS Megharikh, who was heading the Prisons Department, has been posted as DGP-CID, Special Units and Economic Offences, replacing Praveen Sood. RP Sharma, ADGP (Communication, Logistics & Modernisation), has been posted as DGP & Chairman of Karnataka State Police Housing Corporation.

ALSO READ| Citizen-centric policing is top priority: New Karnataka DGP Praveen Sood

Three IGPs promoted as Addl DGPs

Three Inspector Generals of Police (IGP) were also promoted to the rank of ADGPs. The IGP of Eastern range, Amrit Paul, has been promoted and posted as ADGP-Recruitment and Umesh Kumar, who was Additional Commissioner of Police, Bengaluru West, is posted as ADGP & Secretary to Government (PCAS), Home Department. The IGP of Western range, Arun Jeji Chakravarthy, has been posted as ADGP-Railways.
In conjunction with Black History Month, Regal Theaters will offer free screenings of the movie Harriet on Feb. 4 and Feb. 11 at the Regal UA Riverview Plaza IMAX & RPX on Columbus Boulevard. The free screenings take place at 7 p.m. and 9:30 p.m. each day. You can find a link here for free tickets.

Harriet chronicles events in the adult life of Harriet Tubman, beginning in 1849, and concentrates on the period when she escaped slavery in Maryland, arrived in Philadelphia, then returned multiple times to rescue more than 70 enslaved people.

The film stars Cynthia Erivo as Tubman, and Philadelphias Leslie Odom Jr. as William Still, a key figure in the Underground Railroad in Philadelphia and a man who recorded the personal history of those rescued by Tubman and brought to the city.

The film (shot in Virginia) is directed by Kasi Lemmons, who said Philadelphia played a huge part in Tubmans story. Tubman, as seen in the film, used the city as the base for several dangerous missions back to Maryland to rescue other enslaved people (including members of her own family), even after the 1850 passage of the Fugitive Slave Act made Philadelphia dangerous for free blacks.

Erivos performance earned an Academy Award nomination for best actress. Some have criticized the decision to cast an actress who is not an American descendant of slaves (Erivo is British), but Lemmons (Eves Bayou) said: It could not have been a better actor-director relationship. We could not have done more work to try to prepare her, and she could not have been more prepared.

Erivo has also been nominated for best original song for Stand Up, which she cowrote with Joshuah Brian Campbell.
New Delhi, Feb 1 : Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman, citing pollution as a matter of concern, said the government proposes to encourage states that are formulating and implementing plans for ensuring cleaner air in cities with a population of one million. The Union Budget allocated Rs 4,400 crore for National Clean Air Programme (NCAP) for the year 2020-21.

Detailing the plans for environment and climate change in the Budget 2020 speech, Sitharaman said, "In large cities having population above one million, polluted air is a matter of concern... Parameters for the incentives would be notified by the Ministry of Environment, Forests and Climate change. Allocation for this purpose is 4400 crore for 2020-2021." Emphasizing the Prime Minister's international initiative - Coalition for Disaster Resilient Infrastructure (CDRI) with its Secretariat in Delhi, 2019 and International Solar Alliance, 2015, Sitharaman said this will help strengthen global partnership to address a number of Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), as also it aims for Sendai framework for disaster risk reduction. "It will enhance climate change adaptation with a focus on disaster resilient infrastructure", she said.

She also added India submitted its Nationally Determined Contribution, under the Paris Agreement in 2015 on a "best effort" basis, bearing in mind the development imperative of the country. "Its implementation effectively begins on January 1, 2021. Our commitments stand as action will be executed in various sectors by the Departments/Ministries concerned through the normal budgeting process", she said further.

According to India's Intended Nationally Determined Contribution (INDC), the energy intensity is targeted to decline by 33 to 35 percent by 2030, in comparison with 2005, in addition with 40 percent of power from non-fossil sources.

The FM also said the government will advise utilities to close down thermal power plants if their emission is above prescribed norms under the National Clean Air Programme (NCAP). "There are yet, thermal power plants that are old and their carbon emission levels are high. For such power plants, we propose that utilities running them would be advised to close them, if their emission is above the pre-set norms. The land so vacated can be put to alternative use." Sitharaman said.

The government had directed all the thermal power plants to install Flue Gas Desulphurization (FDG), which reduces emissions of sulphur dioxide in phases. By December 2022, all the 440 coal-fired plans that produce 166.5 GW have to comply with the regulation. The FM also proposed to provide about Rs 22,000 crore to power and renewable energy sector in 2020-21.
Two more foreign nationals who arrived in Goa after visiting China have been quarantined at the Goa Medical College and Hospital after developing flu-like symptoms, state health authorities said on Saturday.

Medical college dean Dr S M Bandekar said the two will be kept under observation until their samples sent to the National Institute of Virology in Pune are tested.

They will be quarantined and the samples which have been sent to Pune are expected in a few days, Dr Bandekar said.

Prior to this, a Serbian national was quarantined at the special ward set up at the hospital but was later discharged after found to have not contracted the deadly virus.

Passengers at the Goa International Airport are being screened and asked to declare if they have travelled to China recently and if so, they will be further screened for symptoms and quarantined.

A special task force has been set up to tackle positive cases that may emerge. It is headed by the Dean of the medical college.

I would like to assure our residents that the task force is reviewing the preparedness and are on the vigil to tackle the virus, Goa Health Minister Vishwajit Rane tweeted.

Coronavirus is a large family of viruses that cause respiratory illness ranging from the common cold to more severe diseases such as Middle East Respiratory Syndrome (MERS-CoV) and Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome (SARS-CoV). The symptoms reported in patients with nCoV include acute onset of fever, cough, and difficulty in breathing.

Several isolation wards and testing facilities have been created across the country and passengers at the international airports are being screened with special focus on those arriving from China.
By Michelle Nichols

UNITED NATIONS (Reuters) - U.S. Ambassador to the United Nations Kelly Craft warned the Palestinians on Friday that bringing their displeasure with the U.S. peace plan to the world body would only "repeat the failed pattern of the last seven decades."

Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas will speak in the U.N. Security Council in the next two weeks about the plan, Palestinian U.N. envoy Riyad Mansour said on Wednesday, adding that he hoped the 15-member council would also vote on a draft resolution on the issue.

However, the United States is certain to veto any such resolution, diplomats said. That would allow the Palestinians to take the draft text to the 193-member U.N. General Assembly, where a vote would publicly show how the Trump administration's peace plan has been received internationally.

Craft said that while the Palestinians' initial reaction to the plan was anticipated, "why not instead take that displeasure and channel it into negotiations?"

"Bringing that displeasure to the United Nations does nothing but repeat the failed pattern of the last seven decades. Let's avoid those traps and instead take a chance on peace," she told Reuters.

Craft said the United States was ready to facilitate talks and that she was "happy to play any role" that contributes to the Israeli-Palestinian peace plan unveiled by U.S. President Donald Trump on Tuesday.

Mansour said on Thursday: "There is not a single Palestinian official (who) will meet with American officials now after they submitted an earthquake, the essence of it the destruction of the national aspirations of the Palestinian people. This is unacceptable."

Israels U.N. mission signaled on Tuesday that it was preparing for the Palestinians to pursue U.N. action, saying in a statement that it was "working to thwart these efforts, and will lead a concerted diplomatic campaign with the U.S."

(Reporting by Michelle Nichols; editing by David Brunnstrom and Dan Grebler)
Veteran actor Jackie Shroff has joined the team of Sooryavanshi, director Rohit Shetty announced on the actors birthday on Saturday. Sooryavanshi is the fourth film in Rohits cop franchise and features Akshay Kumar and Katrina Kaif in lead roles. The three actors will be working with Rohit for the first time in the film.

Sharing a picture with Jackie, Rohit wrote on Instagram, Just when you thought you knew all the characters of Our Cop Universe...Presenting to you The Man Himself...JACKIE SHROFF... And...Surprise Abhi bhi baaki hai mere Dost @apnabhidu #sooryavanshi. With Rohit promising more surprises, fans were all over the post, guessing that it could be none other than Salman Khan who has his own hit cop franchise, Dabangg.

Also read: Priyanka Chopras mom Madhu is glad the Grammys dress controversy happened: I feel it made her stronger, trollers dont have joy in their lives

Praising his director, Jackie told BollywoodHungama, I have worked with his father Mr. Shetty sahaab whom I respected a lot. I have done a lot of work with him and now working with his son Rohit has been fantastic. He has the story in his head. He is the boy who has come right from the soil. He knows his job and I loved working with him. It is an experience I will never forget. I cant disclose my character but its an interesting role.

He added, To be in the same film with all these young stars is fantastic. It is a great opportunity to be part of a film like this, which gives me a lot of strength. It has been a great experience and a fantastic feeling working in Sooryavanshi.

Rohit had earlier shared a video with all his cops - Ajay Devgn (Singham and Singham Returns), Akshay and Ranveer Singh (Simbaa) standing with their backs to each other and firing their guns. Major portions of Sooryavanshi have been shot in Bangkok, Thailand and Hyderabad.

Akshay plays the title role of Sooryavanshi, a character that was introduced as an anti-terrorist squad officer in Simmba last year. The film also features Gulshan Grover and Sikander Kher. Jointly produced by Rohit Shetty Picturez, Cape Of Good Films and Dharma Productions, Sooryavanshi is set to hit theatres on Matrch 27, 2020.

Follow @htshowbiz for more
Union High School was locked down twice on Friday morning for different reports of students with weapons, according to a statement from the Union County Prosecutors Office.

The first lockdown occurred when school officials found out that two students had weapons inside the school, the office said.

Union Police officers arrived, seized a knife and hammer and removed the two students from the school, authorities said. The lockout was then lifted.

Later in the morning, the school was locked down a second time by security after they were told a student may have had a gun inside the building, the office said.

As rumor spread through the student body, a large group of students ran from the building prior to the arrival of law enforcement, resulting in an inadvertent injury to one student during the flight, a prosecutors office spokesman said in the statement.

The spokesman did not comment on the severity of the students injury or if they required medical attention.

Multiple law enforcement agencies responded to the school and conducted a sweep of the building, the office said. When the building was deemed secure, all students were dismissed.

The incidents remained under investigation Friday night by the Union Police Department.

Chris Sheldon may be reached at csheldon@njadvancemedia.com. Follow him on Twitter @chrisrsheldon Find NJ.com on Facebook.

Have a tip? Tell us. nj.com/tips. Get the latest updates right in your inbox. Subscribe to NJ.coms newsletters.
Paschal Donohoe has raised the political heat by describing Sinn Fein leader Mary Lou McDonald as "dangerous" and arguing that she will be put into power by Micheal Martin's "spineless" Fianna Fail party.

It is a claim that has been rejected outright by senior figures in Fianna Fail who believe the outgoing Government party is now becoming desperate in its attacks.

In an interview with the Irish Independent, Mr Donohoe said there was a "cocktail of risk to jobs, taxpayers, public services" and the economy from such an alliance.

The minister's intervention came after Taoiseach Leo Varadkar was forced to defend Fine Gael TDs who said they were open to working with Sinn Fein in government.

Mr Varadkar said there was a "difference" between his party's members saying there are "good people" in Sinn Fein and Fianna Fail TDs saying they would be open to going into coalition with Ms McDonald.

Fine Gael claims there is sufficient support among Fianna Fail TDs to go into such a coalition with Sinn Fein.

Mr Donohoe said: "I believe we could have a government that will be a combination of the dangerous and the spineless.

"Dangerous in that we will have policies from Sinn Fein that could scorch our economy; spineless because I don't believe that Fianna Fail will be able to resist those ideas."

The Fine Gael director of elections says the party will be hammering the point home on doorsteps over the next week that there is a huge risk to the country.

"Fianna Fail on its own, I would have grave concern about. Fianna Fail and Sinn Fein together is a policy cocktail that would be bad for jobs, bad for taxpayers and bad for our ability to improve public services," he added.

Fianna Fail finance spokesman Michael McGrath rejected Mr Donohoe's claims and accused Fine Gael of leaving the door open to going into power with Sinn Fein.

"As each day passes, the Fine Gael campaign becomes more dishonest, more desperate and more duplicitous," he said.

"Our leader and our party have been very clear that in no circumstance will we be having any arrangement with Sinn Fein after the election.

"We made and kept that promise in 2016 and w e have made and will keep that promise in 2020."

Mr Varadkar said he has "nothing personally against individuals in Sinn Fein".

"I worked closely with some of them on Northern Ireland," he added.

"There is a big difference between saying that there are people in Sinn Fein who are good people, and people who you can work with on the situation in Northern Ireland, and being open to a coalition with them."

The Taoiseach's comments came after he listed the Fianna Fail TDs who previously said they were open to going into government with Sinn Fein during a live televised election debate.

He said Fianna Fail TDs Mary Butler, Kevin O'Keeffe, Darragh O'Brien and Pat 'The Cope' Gallagher backed a coalition with Sinn Fein.

Last night Mr O'Brien said the Taoiseach was "wrong" in his suggestion.

"I fully support the leader and as you can see from his comment, it is Leo who has cozied up to Mary Lou not Micheal," he added.

Mr Martin dismissed Fine Gael claims his party is divided, and claimed that it's Mr Varadkar who couldn't be trusted on the issue.

He said that the same argument was made by Fine Gael before the 2016 election and "I didn't do business with Sinn Fein".

He said Mr Varadkar's comments on Fianna Fail TDs in favour of a coalition with Ms McDonald's party was "more electioneering".

Mr Martin added: "He [Mr Varadkar] had some TDs in his own party as well - Jim Daly, Kate O'Connell - who were arguing for a Sinn Fein alliance.

"I wouldn't trust Leo in terms of not doing a deal with Sinn Fein. I think Leo would do whatever it takes to get himself back in the Taoiseach's position.

"My record speaks for itself. I've said at the last election what I would do and I stood by what I said."

Mr Martin said he wasn't concerned that some high-profile members of his own party have said in the past they would be open to working with Sinn Fein.

He added: "The vast majority of Fianna Fail don't want any truck with Sinn Fein."

A number of Fine Gael figures have said they would be happy to participate with Sinn Fein. Social Protection Minister Regina Doherty said there were "fabulous" people in Sinn Fein.

High-profile Fine Gael TD Ms O'Connell also left the door open to a coalition with Sinn Fein, saying "anything can happen" when asked about working with the party. She also called Ms McDonald a "very capable woman".

Outgoing Fine Gael Junior Minister Mr Daly said he had "no ideological objection to Sinn Fein being part of a government".
Aurangabad: In a bid to improve students' focus on education, a women's college in Maharashtra's Aurangabad city has banned the use of mobile phones inside its campus. The move comes at a time when mobile phones have become an indelible part of everyday living, where youngsters are glued to social media.

Speaking to PTI, Principal of Dr Rafiq Zakaria Women's College, Dr Maqdoom Farooqui said, "We were searching for measures to enhance the process of learning and we found that students could concentrate better when they are not allowed to carry their cellphones to classrooms."

With more than 3,000 students, the women's college offers undergraduate and postgraduate courses.

The ban, which was imposed 15 days ago, has not only helped students focus better in classrooms, but also improved their interaction with their peers, Dr Farooqui said.

Although students are not allowed to carry their own phones on campus, a couple of handsets are kept in the reading room for emergencies, he added.

"Initially, the decision was taken as a punishment for overuse of cellphones, but now students and staff are cooperating in the effort to enhance the learning and teaching process," the principal claimed.

Students, who travel to the college from far away places, have to deposit their phones once they enter the campus and collect them on their way home, he added.

Head of the Political Science department Prof Dr T A Paithankar said, "Initially, we also found the decision to be restrictive, but now studentsare concentrating on their studies and I am sure that this will reflect in their exam results."

A student on the condition of anonymity said, "We are getting to know the world around us, as now have plenty of time to read newspapers and magazines in the library."
Consolidation in the M&E sector will continue in FY2020, predicts MK Anand, MD & CEO, Times Network. He believes that this will have a positive impact on cost efficiencies and overall competitiveness of the broadcast industry.

Anand further says that, After months of tepid and negative performance across the board, some ad categories are expected to see resurgence in FY2020, which will be a welcome respite to broadcasters.

TRAIs new tariff order (NTO) has impacted the broadcast industry in major ways. Anand points out, NTO, implemented in February 2019, impacted reach and ad sales and broadcasters have been managing this change to get to a new equilibrium.

Earlier in January this year, TRAI effected amendments to the regulatory framework (NTO 2.0) in a move to address the issue of freedom of choice of the consumer.

NTO 2.0 ensures that prices of a-la-carte channels are not illusory, said the regulator, adding that the amendments prescribe a linkage between a-la-carte price and bouquet price while allowing broadcasters to have full flexibility to select the MRP for their channels.

Anand expresses the hope that the proposed tweaks to the regulation will further help stability.
By Andrea Shalal WASHINGTON (Reuters) - A future U.S.-UK trade agreement must incorporate strong provisions on worker rights, environmental protection, and enforcement to ensure bipartisan support, U.S. House Ways and Means Committee Chairman Richard Neal said on Friday, staking out a claim for Congress to help shape any such accord.

By Andrea Shalal

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - A future U.S.-UK trade agreement must incorporate strong provisions on worker rights, environmental protection, and enforcement to ensure bipartisan support, U.S. House Ways and Means Committee Chairman Richard Neal said on Friday, staking out a claim for Congress to help shape any such accord.

Neal, a Democrat, said many important questions needed to be resolved in coming months, and he expected to work closely with U.S. Trade Representative Robert Lighthizer in forging a new U.S.-UK trade deal after Britain's exit from the European Union on Friday.

Britain is the closest U.S. ally but the two countries face big hurdles in working out a new trade agreement, including a dispute over Britain's plan to impose a unilateral digital tax.

Washington argues that such taxes would discriminate against big U.S. tech companies like Alphabet Inc's Google, Apple Inc , Facebook Inc and Amazon.com .

Neal's comments came days after President Donald Trump signed a revamped North American trade accord at a White House ceremony that excluded Neal and other House Democrats who ensured its congressional passage by adding better protections for workers' rights and the environment, increased enforcement and steps to avert higher drug prices.

Both Democratic and Republican lawmakers are growing concerned that Trump is circumventing Congress's constitutional role in setting trade policy by imposing tariffs and signing smaller trade deals that do not need congressional approval.

Neal's comments made clear that U.S. lawmakers expect to be closely involved in mapping out the terms of U.S.-UK trade after being shut out of Washington's bilateral trade negotiations with China, Japan and others.

He said the new U.S.-UK trade deal also needed to preserve the freedom of Congress to regulate areas of domestic policy, and respect the achievement of the 1998 Good Friday peace agreement between the British and Irish governments, and most of the political parties in Northern Ireland.

In addition to disputes over digital taxes, the Trump administration has also threatened to tax foreign car imports, which could hit British-made Jaguar, Land Rover , Mini , and Honda Civic hatchback <7267.T> cars.

Britain and the United States are also at odds over Huawei, and London's decision this week to shrug off U.S. objections and give the Chinese telecoms giant a limited role in Britains 5G mobile network.

Britain's outgoing ambassador to Washington, Kim Darroch, told the Guardian newspaper on Friday there was a "narrow and rocky path" to a U.S.-UK deal and questioned what Britain had to gain in following it.

(Reporting by Andrea Shalal in Washington; Editing by Matthew Lewis and Tom Brown)

This story has not been edited by Firstpost staff and is generated by auto-feed.
Prime Minister Nguyen Xuan Phuc issued a decision declaring the novel coronavirus (nCoV) outbreak an epidemic in Vietnam on Saturday.

The starting date of the epidemic was noted to be January 23, when the first two cases of the coronavirus infection, a Chinese man from Wuhan and his son, were confirmed. As of Saturday afternoon, Vietnam had confirmed six cases of infection with the epidemic being present in the south-central province of Khanh Hoa, the northern province of Vinh Phuc and the north-central Thanh Hoa Province.

The government has classified the coronavirus infection a "class A infectious disease of global emergency" that can transmit from human to human through the respiratory system.

According to the Law on Prevention and Control of Infectious Diseases, class A infectious diseases consist of extremely dangerous infectious diseases that are capable of rapid, widespread transmission with either a high mortality rate. Class A infectious diseases currently include polio, influenza A-H5N1, plague, smallpox, Ebola, Lassa and Marburg hemorrhagic fever, West Nile fever, yellow fever, cholera, severe acute respiratory infections caused by viruses and other dangerous infectious diseases of unknown cause.

The government has implemented disease prevention and control measures in accordance with the law, including establishing a national steering committee for the prevention and control of the epidemic, declaring and reporting on the epidemic, providing emergency care, medical examination, quarantine and treatment for patients, cleaning and disinfecting areas with the epidemic, implementing personal protective measures, controlling entry and exit to and from infected areas, mobilizing and requisitioning resources for combating the epidemic and participating in international cooperation against the epidemic.

District and municipal hospitals, as well as the military and police forces, have all been mobilized to help receive, quarantine, monitor and treat patients.

Despite the World Health Organization (WHO) declaring the nCoV a global emergency, Vietnam has yet to declare it a national health emergency as the number of infected cases and deaths, as well as the extent of the epidemic and the ineffectiveness of preventive measures are still insufficient to warrant such declaration, according to Nguyen Thanh Long, Deputy Minister of Health.

"In 2009, Vietnam had nearly 10,000 people infected with the H1N1 virus and 22 deaths, but even then we did not declare a health emergency," he said.

According to Long, the nCoV epidemic is having complicating development and Vietnam "has been and is still implementing prevention and control measures that are even stronger than those recommended by the WHO."

Deputy PM Vu Duc Dam, head of the National Steering Committee for the Prevention and Control of the acute respiratory infection caused by nCoV, has requested that preparations be made for even the worst case scenario.

The Ministry of Health has instructed local health departments to publicize their hotlines latest by Saturday afternoon to answer people's questions about the disease, as well as requested that local authorities disinfect schools, offices, markets and other crowded areas.

Deputy Minister of Health Nguyen Truong Son also added that different types of face masks could be used to prevent coronavirus infection. Medical masks should be prioritized when visiting medical centers, stations, airports and crowded places, while for other places cloth face masks that are washed regularly with detergents could be used.

According to Deputy Minister of Industry and Trade Dang Hoang An, Vietnam currently has 38 units producing three-layer face masks with a total capacity of 1.2 million masks per day, as well as two units producing N95 face masks with a combined capacity of 32,000 masks per day, which are sufficient to meet the public's demand.

The Ministries of Health and of Industry and Trade are both closely monitoring the face mask and disinfectant markets to ensure production and strictly punish speculative trading and illicit gains. Various pharmacies have also been inspected and fined for raising the price of face masks.

"From now on, if people have evidence or photos of any pharmacy that raises the price of medical masks then there's no need for inspectors to be dispatched, the Ministry of Health could withdraw that pharmacy's business license immediately. This is a disciplinary and ethical issue that needs to be taken seriously," Dam said.

The deputy PM called for the epidemic to be tackled with a fighting spirit and requested that localities proactively develop plans to combat the epidemic, even for the worst-case scenario.

He also asserted that Vietnam always publicly and transparently identifies all cases of coronavirus infection and timely quarantine them so that the public could be well aware of the situation and take preventive measures against the disease.

Vietnam has reported 153 suspected cases, who suffered high fever, coughing and/or coming back from the infected areas, as of Saturday. Of them, 27 are being quarantined pending test results.

Besides mainland China and Vietnam, the virus has spread to 25 other countries and territories: Hong Kong, Macao, Thailand, Singapore, Taiwan, Malaysia, Japan, Australia, the U.S., South Korea, France, Germany, Canada, the UAE, Nepal, Cambodia, Sri Lanka, India, the Philippines, the U.K., Russia, Finland, Nepal, Sweden, and Spain. It has infected more than 12,000 people and killed 259 in China.
DES MOINES, Iowa  Pete Buttigieg's campaign has done 50 town halls in the last five weeks statewide and he's visited 25 of the 31 counties that went from Barack Obama in 2012 to Donald Trump in 2016  but aides say he doesnt have to win the caucuses to become the nominee.

What they're saying: In the first four states  but especially in Iowa and New Hampshire  we need to demonstrate that we are viable for Super Tuesday and for the larger primary," senior advisor Michael Halle told reporters at a Bloomberg News roundtable.

Why it matters: Democratic campaigns are already trying to redefine what will constitute a win in Iowa in what looks like a four-way fight coming Monday.

This year is the first time we will get raw vote totals for each candidate in Iowa  not just delegate count.

we will get raw vote totals for each candidate in Iowa  not just delegate count. That means there could be multiple "winners" coming out of Monday and different ways for campaigns to tout their momentum heading into New Hampshire, Nevada, and South Carolina.

coming out of Monday and different ways for campaigns to tout their momentum heading into New Hampshire, Nevada, and South Carolina. "It depends on the spread [of votes] here and in New Hampshire, said Hari Sevugan, deputy campaign manager. We're going to have to do well, there's no question about that. But that does not necessarily mean we have to win" in Iowa.

here and in New Hampshire, said Hari Sevugan, deputy campaign manager. We're going to have to do well, there's no question about that. But that does not necessarily mean we have to win" in Iowa. This is a contest about delegates, ultimately," said Sevugan. "We see it not as a series of state contests, but as a series of district-level contests to accumulate delegates because ultimately that is what is going to matter."

The latest: Polls show a close race between Bernie Sanders, Joe Biden, Buttigieg and Elizabeth Warren.

Buttigieg's closing argument to Iowans has focused on contrasting himself with Sanders and Biden, and reminding voters that he is a Washington outsider.

to Iowans has focused on contrasting himself with Sanders and Biden, and reminding voters that he is a Washington outsider. "The data that we see is literally every poll showing Washington experience becoming less and less popular," said Lis Smith, senior advisor to the campaign. "Washington is a symptom of everything thats wrong."

The bottom line: Winning begets more winning, but watch for the campaigns to highlight a message of momentum and enthusiasm after the caucuses.
WILMINGTON, DELAWARE, Jan. 31, 2020 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Henkel recognized Ashland Global Holdings Inc. (ASH) as a top supplier for best-in-class performance in 2019 during the 2020 American Cleaning Institute (ACI) Annual Meeting and Industry Convention, Jan. 27,  Feb. 1, 2020 in Orlando, Florida.

Ashland received second prize in the Best Innovation Contributor Laundry & Home Care 2019 for captivates technology that provides visible benefits in Henkels Power & Pearls hand dishwashing detergents.

Ashland Captivates GL encapsulates are custom-manufactured, spherical matrix particles that are naturally-derived and create novel sensory experiences. The beads are produced using a proprietary technology that creates hydrogel beads from a continuous stream of viscous liquid. The resulting droplets are transformed into solidified beads or pearls using gelation techniques. The mineral pearls, filled with pumice, provide an eye-catching design. They clean grease and starch residues and are more than 99 percent natural.

Ashlands solvers delivered an innovative solution that adds allure to Henkels product on the retail shelf with the efficacy that consumers demand, said Guillermo Novo, chairman and chief executive officer, Ashland.





Ashland was among more than 30 suppliers that were recognized by Henkel.

About Henkel

Henkel operates globally with a well-balanced and diversified portfolio. The company holds leading positions with its three business units in both industrial and consumer businesses thanks to strong brands, innovations and technologies. Henkel Adhesive Technologies is the global leader in the adhesives market  across all industry segments worldwide. In its Laundry & Home Care and Beauty Care businesses, Henkel holds leading positions in many markets and categories around the world. Founded in 1876, Henkel looks back on more than 140 years of success. In 2018, Henkel reported sales of around 20 billion euros and adjusted operating profit of around 3.5 billion euros. Henkel employs more than 53,000 people globally  a passionate and highly diverse team, united by a strong company culture, a common purpose to create sustainable value, and shared values. As a recognized leader in sustainability, Henkel holds top positions in many international indices and rankings. Henkels preferred shares are listed in the German stock index DAX. For more information, please visit www.henkel.com .

Story continues

About Ashland

Ashland Global Holdings Inc. (ASH) is a premier global specialty materials company serving customers in a wide range of consumer and industrial markets, including adhesives, architectural coatings, automotive, construction, energy, food and beverage, nutraceuticals, personal care and pharmaceutical. At Ashland, we are approximately 4,700 passionate, tenacious solvers  from renowned scientists and research chemists to talented engineers and plant operators  who thrive on developing practical, innovative and elegant solutions to complex problems for customers in more than 100 countries. Visit ashland.com to learn more.

 Trademark, Ashland or its subsidiaries, registered in various countries.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION:

Ashland

Investor Relations Media Relations

Seth A. Mrozek Carolmarie C. Brown

+1 (302) 594-5010 +1 (302) 258-5549

samrozek@ashland.com c cbrown@ashland.com
Health and family welfare was allocated 67,484 crore in the union budget 2020, a 3.8% increase over last years budgetary outlay of 64,999 crore.

Although there was no budgetary increase for the Narendra Modi governments flagship health insurance scheme, Ayushman Bharat-Pradhan Mantri Jan Arogya Yojna (AB-PMJAY), it got the biggest share of the health allocation, receiving 6,429 crore for 2020-21.

We have a holistic vision of healthcare that translates into wellness of the citizen. Mission Indradhanush has been expanded to cover 12 such diseases, including five new vaccines. Fit India movement is a vital part of the fight against non-communicable diseases coming out of lifestyle issues. A very focused safe water (Jal Jeevan Mission) and comprehensive sanitation programme (Swachch Bharat Mission) have been launched to support the health vision. That would reduce the disease burden on the poor, finance minister Niramala Sitharaman in her budget speech.

The finance minister underlined the need to strengthen medical infrastructure and build human resources to improve the quality of medical colleges, especially at the district level, and increase the number of empanelled hospitals under the Ayushman Bharat scheme in tier-2 and tier-3 cities.

Around 20,000 hospitals are empanelled with AB-PMJAY, with the majority being in metropolises and state capitals.

Budget 2020 has sharpened the focus on skilling and upgradation of medical human resources. Under the National Board of Examinations, large hospitals with sufficient capacity will be encouraged to train resident doctors in super-speciality courses. Bridge course for nurses and paramedics for equivalence with foreign courses will be designed by health ministry and Skill Development together with professional bodies, said Union health minister Harshvardhan.

There is a significant increase  from 4,733 crore in 2019-20 to 6,020 crore this year -- for the Pradhan Mantri Swasthya Suraksha Yojna, which is the central scheme that deals with tertiary care hospitals, including new All India Institute of Medical Sciences (AIIMS) or AIIMS-like hospitals, and medical education.

The budget estimates for the department of health and family welfare show an appreciable increase of 3.75%, while there has been a 10% hike in the allocation for the department for health research. This indicates the governments strong focus on the health sector, said Harshvardhan.

Policy think tank Niti Aayogs proposal to allow private entities to run medical colleges attached to district hospitals under the public private partnership (PPP) model found mention in the finance ministers speech.

Following the National Health Policy document, Sitharaman stressed the need for public-private partnerships to help build hospitals and sustain health infrastructure in underserved areas.

Apart from running medical colleges, the PPP model will also be used to create more hospitals in tier-2 and tier-3 cities to be empanelled under the Ayushman Bharat scheme.112 aspirational districts to get priority, she said.

Proceeds from taxes on medical devices would be used for development of hospitals... The government will provide viability gap funding (VGF) for the process, said Sitharaman.

Using VGF to set up hospitals in 112 aspirational districts has been welcomed by industry. It will help create robust health infrastructure especially in areas where Ayushman Bharat benefits have not reached yet especially to the weaker section. We hope to see more investments in primary care and digital health to achieve the goal of Health for All, said H Sudarshan Ballal, president, NATHEALTH, a healthcare industry body.

Sudarshan Jain, secretary general, Indian Pharmaceutical Alliance, said, While the incentives in terms of using taxes on medical devices to build the health care ecosystem and additional hospitals in tier 2 and 3 are commendable, other initiatives, such as the New Export Incentive Scheme, are needed to really give India a competitive edge in the global health care market.

The central allocation for crucial programmes such as the National Health Mission ( 34,290 crore to 34,115 crore) and National AIDS Control Programme ( 2,956 crore to 2,900 crore) remained almost the same.

The government-run Jan Aushadhi stores that sell generic medicines at cheaper than market rates will be expanded to every district in the next four years, with improved number of medicines and surgical items, said the finance minister.

Dr K Hari Prasad, President, Apollo Group Hospitals, told news agency IANS that after many years, health care received significant importance in the budget. Swachch Bharat, clean drinking water, improved nutrition for women & children, Fit India movement and wellness centres are great initiatives promoting wellness and are welcome, he said.

SHARE THIS ARTICLE ON
Elena Forrest won The New Icon's Model Search hosted by fashion brand, Simply Be

Elena Forrest, a restaurant hostess is the model the majority of women in Britain can relate to according to a new national contest.

The 24-year-old Londoner beat off stiff competition from more than 3,000 other hopefuls to be crowned winner of the The New Icon's Model Search organised by size inclusive fashion brand, Simply Be in partnership with Milk Model Management.

Her prize is a year's contract with the modelling company.

Elena said she was delighted with the win.

'I entered as I didn't really feel my body type is represented in fashion the way I would like and I wanted to be able to contribute to positive change and now I hopefully can'.

'I never had anyone of my shape to look up to.

'Every woman should feel confident to express who they really are, and I hope this puts me in a position to be a positive role model to younger girls when it comes to their shape, something which I never had.'she added

The search was prompted by a study for Simply B which revealed that two thirds of women said they can't relate to established supermodels and famous faces currently used by fashion brands.

Elena (left), 24, from London, pictured with Felicity Hayward (right) is the model that most British women say they can relate to, according to the survey

When asked to define an 'icon' almost half of women questioned said they considered it to be someone who is confident in their own skin, while 21 per cent said an icon is someone who is outspoken about what they believe in.

Elena beat competition from 3,000 hopefuls to be crowned winner of the competition

Elena was one of 17 girls, who after weeks of deliberation were chosen to attend a casting day in London.

The finalists were put through their paces by a judging panel which included Fashion News Editor, Billie Bhatia; Founder of Milk Management, Anna Shillinglaw; Model, Felicity Hayward and Isla Kirby, Head of Brand at Simply Be.

Elena said: 'We will never move forward with things like size and representation unless women of all shapes and sizes bang the doors of agencies and brands down and make them see us.

Isla Kirby from Simply Be said: 'Our own insight revealed that women are calling out for a new kind of fashion icon while also wanting to see models they can relate to on a deeper level; rather than just superficially.

'We wanted to find someone bold, confident and not afraid to push the boundaries and in Elena we have done just that.'

Model Felicity Hayward, who was one of the judges, added: 'It was a privilege to be part of this competition and to meet all of the incredible women who made the shortlist.

Elena was one of 17 women (above) whittled down from 3,000 who was invited to a casting day in London before being awarded with a year-long contract with Milk Model Management

'There were so many wonderful contestants which made choosing one winner a really tough job, but Elena really stood out to us all.'

As well as winning a year's modelling contract with Milk Management, Elena will also have the chance to take part in Simply Be's Summer 2020 advertising campaign.

For more information on Simply Be's The New Icons Model Search, click here.
After the democratic decision of the people of the United Kingdom to leave the EU, many will have welcomed 11pm on January 31, 2020 as a historic moment in the history of the United Kingdom as it departs.

However, many will also look on with trepidation at a withdrawal deal which effectively puts a border in the Irish Sea and sets Northern Ireland on a different direction of travel from the rest of the UK.

I do not believe for one moment that many who voted for Brexit endorsed this as the outcome, which is a threat to the constitutional and economic position of Northern Ireland as an integral part of the United Kingdom.

Comments from Prime Minister Boris Johnson MP and Secretary of State Julian Smith MP claiming that Northern Ireland will have unfettered access to our biggest market in Great Britain run in direct contradiction to the content of the withdrawal agreement.

Both can't be right and the people of Northern Ireland, its business organisations and politicians, deserve absolute clarity rather than easy cliches.

As things stand, on Friday January 1, 2021, Northern Ireland will be in the unique position of having to enforce the EU's customs code at our ports and airports whilst in law having left the EU customs union.

Technically, we will be remaining within our nation's customs territory, while at the same time having access to the EU's single market by being, in all but name, a part of that market - with all the contradictions and complications that this implies.

In less than 11 months we have to establish mechanisms, structures, legislation, training, education and a whole raft of other measures to make sure our economy doesn't suffer, or even worse, implode.

Huge strategic errors were made throughout the negotiations that led to the final withdrawal agreement and now we need to focus on putting them right or at least mitigating its worst constitutional and economic impacts.

The implications of this for the Belfast Agreement and the Union itself are unsettling, disrupting potential investment and also the growth of our economy.

Bearing in mind the short timelines, coupled with previous political and governance failures in the implementation of the renewable heating scheme, the lack of a dedicated minister, government committee or even Assembly oversight, is nothing short of a complete abrogation of responsibility and accountability.

The need to take action now and the absence of any outward signs of activity or even recognition of the problem, is again sending out the wrong signal and message about the future.

The opportunity should be seized to make this a transformational turning point to mitigate the worst aspects of the withdrawal agreement. We need to take this chance to boost and reinvigorate our economy.

Only a joined-up and co-ordinated approach from Northern Ireland will deliver.

We now have the opportunity to build a proper partnership - between the political parties, industry, business, civil society and academia - that can shape the future for Northern Ireland.

There must be no more 'business as usual' from our political and business leadership.

The choice may be stark for some, but for those of us who believe in the Union, grasping the new reality and accepting the challenge must be the way ahead.

No matter what, leadership, so far sadly lacking, is urgently required and the decisions that are needed must be made now - time has run out.
Oregon is facing a dental health epidemic, and a lack of access to care is at the root of the problem for many children, rural residents and low-income families.

Legislators will consider improving access to education and services in schools, as well as create licensing for a new type of practitioner who can complete many of the same tasks as a dentist, but at a lower cost.

In the House, the Oregon Community Foundation has partnered with state Rep. Cedric Hayden, R-Roseburg, and Rep. Alissa Keny-Guyer, D-Portland, to pass the Healthy Teeth, Bright Futures campaign. The program would direct Oregon school districts to include age-appropriate dental health instruction as part of their health education.

It would also create the Community Dental Health Coordinator Pilot Program under the Oregon Health Authority to bolster school dental health services.

According to a study published by the Oregon Health and Sciences University, 40% of Medicaid-enrolled children didnt receive any dental services in 2018. Access to service varied between counties, and the study shows 21% difference between Malheur and Columbia counties. They represent the highest and lowest percentages of children with no dental care.

The study also showed black children in Oregon have the least access with just 45% of Medicaid-enrolled kids receiving any dental services.

According to Melissa Freeman, the community foundations director of strategic projects, Oregon is struggling from an oral disease epidemic with 49% of children having a cavity by age 9. And two in every nine children have untreated cavities.

Unfortunately, 17,000 children in Oregon have rampant decay as classified by the Oregon Health Authority, which means seven or more untreated cavities, Freeman said.

Those numbers are even more dire among children of color, children in rural areas and of low-income, according to Chris Coughlin, legislative director at nonprofit childrens advocacy group Children First for Oregon.

There are still real barriers keeping families from getting the preventative dental care that kids need to be healthy and do well in school, and we know specifically that certain populations are impacted most, Coughlin said.

The issue is important in the context of helping Oregons kids remain in school. According to the community foundation, dental pain is a leading cause of absenteeism for school children in Oregon and nationwide.

Eating, sleeping, concentrating at school are all difficult with a cavity problem, Freeman said.

Several years ago, the foundation starting awarding grants for school-based dental health services. So far, 275 schools across 22 counties have benefitted.

The foundation wants the expansion now to implement school-based dental health services in all Oregon schools.

The group began working with lawmakers like Hayden in September and have recruited support from more than two-dozen legislators.

Hayden worked in the 2019 session in an unsuccessful effort to expand oral health education.

Rep. Hayden spent his professional career as a dentist before joining the Legislature and now sits as the vice chair of the House health care committee, so he has always been involved with health care bills and specifically dentistry since his first session in 2015, said Austin Parrett, Haydens chief of staff. There is lots of support and we are not expecting any issues.

In the Senate, Sen. Laurie Monnes-Anderson is shepherding her own bill to allow the Oregon Dentistry Board to issue dental therapy licenses and allow dental therapy education programs to be built throughout the state.

Dental therapists are mid-level practitioners, similar to a physicians assistant in medicine. They provide a range of critical routine and preventative services such as oral evaluation and assessment, treatment plan formulation, nonsurgical extraction of diseased teeth.

The concept of dental therapy has been around for more than a hundred years in foreign countries such as New Zealand, and was first brought to the United States 15 years ago.

Two pilot programs in Oregon currently exist. One is administered by the Northwest Portland Area Indian Health Board. The other is based at Pacific University in Forest Grove and sponsored by Willamette Dental Group and the Ford Family Foundation.

Dr. Miranda Davis is a Washington dentist with the Puyallup Tribal Health Authority who helps oversee the native effort in Portland.

She believes the new licensing could give many Oregonians access to lower-cost dental health services, especially in rural areas.

According to Davis, dental therapists can meet most dental needs in small communities where residents otherwise have to drive hundreds of miles for care. She pointed to the success of the program started in Minnesota back in 2009. Minnesota has since licensed more than 100 dental therapists.

Its an efficient model of care where you have specially trained staff to complete these smaller tasks, Davis said.

The urgency is that untreated dental problems can turn into emergency room visits. When a child or adult visits and emergency room for dental pain, treatment is often limited to prescribing opioids or antibiotics. Both legislative proposals are intended to curb such costly visits.

Access and cost are extreme barriers to (dental health services), Monnes-Anderson said. These pilot programs are making a difference, and the tribal communities really want this because theyve been very successful in their pilot programs.

Love 0 Funny 0 Wow 0 Sad 0 Angry 0
To augment infrastructure, an accelerated highways development programme will be taken up that includes constructing 15,500 kms of highways including 9,000 kms of economic corridors, Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman said on Saturday.

The budgetary allocation for the Ministry of Road Transport and Highways has also been enhanced to Rs 91,823.22 crore as against Rs 83,016 crore earlier.

"Accelerated development of highways will be undertaken. This will include development of 2500 Km access control highways, 9000 Km of economic corridors, 2000 Km of coastal and land port roads and 2000 Km of strategic highways," Sitharaman said.

Tabling the Union Budget 2020-21 in Parliament, Sitharaman said the Delhi-Mumbai Expressway will be completed in three years, in addition to two more express highway projects.

"Delhi-Mumbai Expressway and two other packages would be completed by 2023," she said.

Work on Chennai-Bengaluru Expressway would also be started, she said.

Welcoming the Budget as growth oriented, Road Transport and Highways Minister Nitin Gadkari said it is full of innovative initiatives for aspirational India.

"A massive boost to investment in infrastructure, MSME, affordable housing, agriculture, irrigation, rural development, solar energy, education, healthcare and drinking water and sanitation and enhanced allocations for different sectors would help revive industrial production and generate employment opportunities creating more than two crore jobs," he said.

The Budge for 2020-21 sees enhanced allocation for Ministry of Road Transport and Highways at Rs 91,823.22 crore.

Terming a sound highways network essential to propel the economy, the Economic Survey had on Friday said the highways sector needs Rs 19.63 lakh crore investment by 2024-25.

Total investment in the roads and highway sector has gone up more than three times in the five-year period of 2014-15 to 2018-19, the survey had said.

Of about 59.64 lakh kms of roads in India, total length of National Highways was 1.32 lakh kms as on March 1, 2019.

"The pace at which roads have been constructed has grown significantly from 17 km per day in 2015-16 to 29.7 km per day in 2018-19," it said.

Road transport is the dominant mode of transportation in terms of its contribution to Gross Value Added (GVA) and traffic share.

The share of transport sector in the GVA for 2017-18 was about 4.77 per cent, of which the share of road transport is the largest at 3.06 per cent, followed by railways (0.75 per cent), air transport (0.15 per cent) and water transport (0.06 per cent).

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
Ambassadors of 40 countries visited Saturday Abdeen Palace in Cairo at the invitation of Tourism and Antiquities Minister Khaled El-Anani.

A host of tourism investors were also invited by the minister to visit the historical building in eastern Downtown Cairo.

The visit is part of a state policy to highlight historical landmarks and tourist destinations nationwide.

Planning and Tourism Minister Hala El-Saeed, Minister of Communications and Information Technology Amr Talaat and State Minister for Immigration and Egyptian Expatriates Affairs Nabila Makram were present.

Abdeen Palace was built in 1863 by Egyptian, Italian, French and Turkish architects.

The palace is one of the most famous buildings erected during the reign of Mohamed Ali Pasha Dynasty. It was the seat of the government as of 1872 till 1952.

During this eventful period of time, the palace witnessed unforgettable events that undoubtedly affected Egypt's modern and contemporary history.

Search Keywords:

Short link:


A scientific expedition to the Galapagos Islands has discovered a tortoise with a "strong" genetic link to a presumed-extinct subspecies made famous by the popular Lonesome George, national park officials said Friday.

George, the last known member of the Chelonoidis nigra abingdonii Pinta tortoise species, died in 2012 in captivity aged over 100 after refusing to provide any offspring.

The Galapagos National Parks (PNG) said the expedition had discovered a young, female specimen deemed "a high-importance find because it has a strong genetic component of the species 'Chelonoidis abingdonii.'"



She "could be a direct descendant of a pure individual, which could still be alive somewhere," the park said.

Park rangers and scientists from PNG and the Galapagos Conservancy found an additional 29 tortoises -- 11 males and 18 females -- that share part of their genetic makeup with the Chelonoidis niger Floreana subspecies, also thought to be extinct.

Researchers chose Wolf Volcano for their expedition because whalers and pirates who would eat the animals were thought to have dumped some of the tortoises there in the past to lighten their ships' loads.

The Galapagos Islands, located 620 miles (1,000 kilometers) off the coast of Ecuador in the Pacific Ocean, were made famous by Charles Darwin's studies of their breathtaking biodiversity.

The park says there are 10,000 to 12,000 tortoises on the volcano.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
Many people wear face masks while visiting Tay Ho Temple, a place of worship attracting a large number of visitors after the Lunar New Year festival in Hanoi (Photo: VNA)

The ministry said as of 17:00 on January 31, the world reported 9,920 cases of nCoV infection, with 9,779 patients in China. A total 213 have died, all in China.

The virus has spread to 23 countries and territories outside China.

Vietnam has confirmed five nCoV patients, including two who are father and son from Wuhan, China. The son has recovered, while the father is still in isolation at Cho Ray hospital in Ho Chi Minh City.

Three remaining cases, all Vietnamese, were confirmed on January 30.

Of the five patients, four directly came from or returned from Wuhan, while one (the son of the Chinese father) had close contacts with the infected.

Also at the press conference, Sataco Ottshu from the WHO office in Vietnam said the declaration of the nCoV a global health emergency is aimed at promoting global coordination in fighting diseases.

Sataco Ottshu said WHO appreciated the efforts of the Government, the health care sector and ministries, agencies of Vietnam in monitoring, detecting, treating and warning against the virus.
France announced its sixth case of the new coronavirus this week and repatriated a planeload of its citizens from the virus-stricken Chinese city of Wuhan. But back at home, Chinese and others in the wider East Asian community there say they are becoming targets for discrimination.

Just as fast as the coronavirus is spreading, so too seems to be prejudice. In Japan, South Korea and Italy -- and now France. This week the French hashtag #JeNeSuisPasUnVirus -- I Am Not A Virus -- was trending on Twitter.

One Chinese man interviewed on France's BFMTV -- his face hidden so he wouldn't be recognized -- described walking out of a Paris gym and being accosted by teenagers, who laughed and said, "There's coronavirus coming."

Ethnic Chinese aren't the only ones being targeted. One account on social media describes a Vietnamese woman being shunned by those around her. Other East Asians say fellow passengers on public transport move away from them, or put scarves in front of their faces.
The campus and city news desks have compiled a list of events going on throughout the upcoming week that are open to Athenians and University of Georgia students.

The list features a silent disco, free gallery exhibit and a lunar new year festival. Follow the links for more information for any event.
American Airlines removed a passenger who boarded a flight in Dallas on Thursday while wearing a gas mask - causing panic among the other fliers.

The incident took place at Dallas Fort Worth International Airport, where American Flight 2212 was preparing to depart to Houston in the evening.

But passengers grew alarmed at the unusual sight - a man boarded wearing a gas mask over his face and a black beanie covering his head.

'Just FYI flight 2212 to Houston was delayed an hour because you let this guy on the plane wearing a gas mask,' Joseph Say wrote on Twitter in a tweet directed at the airline as well as news media outlets.

Passengers aboard an American Airlines flight waiting to take off from Dallas Fort Worth International Airport on Thursday were alarmed when they saw a man board wearing a gas mask and a black beanie

'Just FYI flight 2212 to Houston was delayed an hour because you let this guy on the plane wearing a gas mask,' Joseph Say wrote on Twitter

'This then panicked people on the plane and we had to wait for him to be escorted off.'

Say told ABC 13 TV: 'I had a seat in the back. I was sitting there. I was talking to the lady next to me.

'We heard a little bit of commotion. I looked up and saw a guy coming onto the plane wearing a full gas mask, which was kind of odd.

'He didn't have a filter, which I thought was more strange. Immediately, people start talking in the back of the plane. They were worried.

'Most people wanted him off the plane.'

Say said passengers wanted to know why the unidentified person was wearing a gas mask.

A flight attendant then came over to the man and asked him to remove the gas mask, but he refused, according to Say.

After the flight crew called security, the man left the aircraft.

'What we heard from the lady sitting next to him was he said he wanted to make a statement,' Say said.

'I don't know what the statement was. I'm not sure what his goals were. To me, it seemed inconsistent.'

American Airlines said that the man was removed from the plane and was rebooked on the next flight to Houston. The image above shows an American Airlines Boeing 737 passenger jet taxiing at Dallas Fort Worth International Airport in September 2017

Say said: 'You couldn't see his face. You couldn't identify any features on him.

'People were worried he had sneaked something on-board and that he had the mask for his own safety.'

After a 50-minute delay, the plane departed Dallas Fort Worth and landed at Bush Intercontinental Airport at 9:07pm local time.

It is not known if the man wearing the gas mask was charged with a crime.

An American Airlines spokesperson told ABC 13 TV: 'The passenger was rebooked on the next flight to Houston, and flew without the mask on yesterday evening.'

The airline said that the masked man had flown into Dallas Fort Worth from Los Angeles, though it is not known if he wore the mask during that flight.
Donabate Active Age for All recently held its Annual General Meeting which was well attended.

The new committee was welcomed on board and wished the best of luck in the year ahead.

There was a very successful registration for classes and most of the classes have been filled with still a few places left for Yoga, Pilates, Spanish, Bridge, and Singing and Music at the time of writing.

The Silver Threads Poster Exhibition is on show in the lobby of the Donabate Portrane Community Centre, in Donabate until the end of the month. It is worth a look, lovely old photographs and stories, memories to cherish.

It was the end product of a series of workshops run by Active Age for All and Silver Thread where stories and memories were explored through an old photographs.

Active Age for All will be running a new series of Silver Threads classes in February, if you want to participate in this or any of our classes or activities, please contact activeageforall@gmail.com or TEXT only to 086 8806808.
As senators mull a proposal by two Republican colleagues for the White House to send them John Bolton's book manuscript to review, an open question is whether the administration would even be legally allowed to do such a thing.

Bolton's attorney and book publisher would almost surely argue that giving Congress a manuscript that had been submitted as part of a prepublication review process should be protected -- at the very least -- under the very executive privilege notion that Republicans have argued they are trying to guard.

Bolton attorney Chuck Cooper hinted at concerns and hesitation about the manuscript being shared unnecessarily in his letter accompanying the manuscript sent to the White House on December 30. In that letter, he noted that Bolton's team did not believe there was anything actually classified in the book, but submitted it as a courtesy and asked that it be reviewed only by officials typically involved in the prepublication process.

"I appreciate your assurance that the sole purpose of prepublication security review is to ensure that SCI or other classified information is not publicly disclosed. In keeping with that purpose, it is our understanding that the process of reviewing submitted materials is restricted to those career government officials and employees regularly charged with responsibility for such reviews," Cooper wrote.

Still, some legal experts tell CNN that President Donald Trump would in fact have the power to make his former aide's explosive manuscript available for senators to review.

"The White House can make the manuscript available to the senators to review in a SCIF in whatever manner the President seems fit to permit. That said, unless the President is declassifying the manuscript it remains presumptively classified pending the ongoing review, so the senators can't take notes, can't remove a copy of the manuscript and can't discuss its substantive contents," according to Bradley Moss, a national security lawyer who is a partner at the Washington law office of Mark S. Zaid, the attorney who represents the whistleblower whose disclosure is central to the ongoing impeachment trial.

"(Bolton) had an obligation under his clearance NDA to submit for review. Until it's cleared for publication, it's presumed to be classified," he added.

These legal experts argue that any judgment regarding classified material is no longer in the hands of Cooper or Bolton now that the manuscript has been submitted for prepublication review.

They tell CNN that the White House likely has the ability to hand the manuscript over to senators for review in a secure setting known as a SCIF, if Trump chooses to do so. This is especially true because there is no indication that the National Security Council has completed its prepublication review of the materials.

Others argue the issue isn't about classified materials, it's about other issues -- from Bolton's, or any author's, First Amendment rights to matters of executive privilege.

The idea of getting Bolton's manuscript from the White House came from Sen. James Lankford, an Oklahoma Republican, who said senators would review it in a classified setting. This proposal was quickly endorsed by Sen. Lindsey Graham, a South Carolina Republican who chairs the Senate Judiciary Committee and is a top Trump ally.

Lankford's proposal would guarantee that "each Senator has the opportunity to review the manuscript and make their own determination" before deciding Trump's fate, Graham tweeted.

Their plan could give Republicans some political cover, by opening up the process and allowing some new testimony, without taking the major step of issuing subpoenas for additional witnesses. The White House and Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell, a Kentucky Republican, have made it clear in recent weeks that they oppose any additional subpoenas and prefer a quick vote on acquittal.

"The move to provide senators with the manuscript in a SCIF could be a questionable strategic move," according to Jamil N. Jaffer, former associate White House counsel to President George W. Bush and founder and executive director of the National Security Institute at George Mason University's Antonin Scalia Law School.

"While it is unclear whether the White House could appropriately release the Bolton manuscript in response to Senator Lankford's suggestion, to do so could be a particularly high-risk move because such a release could be viewed as a waiver of any executive privilege the White House might seek to assert with respect to matters covered in the book," Jaffer said.

Until Republicans secure the 51 votes needed to defeat Democrats' push for witnesses, Lankford's manuscript option remains a possibility, raising questions as to whether it is legally feasible. CNN reported Tuesday that Republicans haven't yet locked up the 51 votes needed to block witnesses.

The New York Times has published stories about the contents of the unpublished manuscript, and a source with direct knowledge of the draft told CNN that the Times reporting was accurate.

In the manuscript, Bolton implicates Trump in the scheme to withhold nearly $400 million in US military aid until Ukraine's leaders announced an investigation into former Vice President Joe Biden, according to The New York Times. Bolton's account severely undercut the many denials from Trump that he had never attempted a quid pro quo or withheld the aid for political reasons.

Some Democrats on Tuesday quickly poured cold water on Lankford's idea. Sen. Sheldon Whitehouse of Rhode Island said it was a "laugh out loud" proposal that had a "whiff of desperation."

Since the beginning of the trial, senior Democrats have pressed their Republican colleagues to break ranks and support their calls for additional witnesses. The Democratic House managers have said a trial without any witnesses would be tantamount to a "cover-up" and a "rigged trial."
Despite a long-term trend of improvement, the Midstates air quality is still the worst in Pennsylvania, and some of the worst in the nation, according to a study released this week by environmental groups PennEnvironment and PennPIRG.

The Harrisburg-Carlisle metro region saw 114 days in 2018 in which more than half of the regions air quality monitors reported ozone and/or fine particulate matter at elevated levels.

This was the second worst in the state, behind Lancasters 119 days, and among the worst on the Eastern seaboard. California has the most consistently bad air in the nation.

The extent of the problem, and the degree to which it has changed over time, is difficult to quantify on local levels, given that the network of monitoring systems that report to the Environmental Protection Agencys air quality database dont all measure the same thing at the same time.

Its also difficult to decisively identify the culprit of heightened air pollution levels, said Zachary Barber with PennEnvironment. But the fact that poor air quality days are more frequent in the Midstate and the Lehigh Valley, amidst a general decline in pollution, does mean that the common scapegoat of trucking plays a role.

In these regions in central and eastern PA that are along these major shipping routes, where the truck traffic is picking up, we do know that thats going to be contributing somewhat, Barber said.

Data

The PennEnvironment report is based off EPA data on two of the most common-measured contaminants, ozone and PM2.5, the latter of which refers to particulate matter less than 2.5 micrometers in diameter. But the number of readings available often varies by year, and not every monitoring site measures everything.

The PennEnvironment report shows that, between all of the monitoring points in the Harrisburg-Carlisle region, more than half had elevated PM2.5 levels on 102 days in 2018, and elevated ozone levels for 29 days, for a total of 114 days (some days had elevated levels of both).

However, the Carlisle monitoring point only collects PM2.5 readings, meaning that the actual number of compromised days could be higher if Carlisle monitors tracked ozone as well.

According to the EPAs 2014 National Emissions Inventory, mobile sources account for about 13% of Cumberland Countys PM2.5 output, with stationary activities making up the other 87%.

Days of heightened PM2.5 levels  including the Code Orange days of potentially hazardous air that are often announced in the Midstate region  are also heavily dependent on weather, as air layer inversions trap particulate emissions near the surface and increase their concentration.

But that doesnt mean that the growth of the transportation and warehousing sector isnt a significant factor in the Midstates elevated number of days with high PM2.5 readings. Output from warehouse sites themselves would contribute to the stationary readings, and the 13% of output from vehicles may well be whats holding the region back.

If we do want to get that number down, we will need to make changes to our transportation system, Barber said. If anything, transportation pollution is one of the things that is really holding us back.

PM2.5

PM2.5 is a pollutant of key concern for researchers because it has recently begun to creep back up after years of decline. A Carnegie Mellon University study found that PM2.5 levels declined 24% from 2009 to 2016, but went back up 5% between 2016 and 2018.

This is also the experience of Carlisle, where EPA data shows 89 days of elevated PM2.5 in 2016, and 95 days in 2018. Overall, PM2.5 levels in Pennsylvania have dropped 27% since 1996, according to the state Department of Environmental Protection.

Chronic exposure to heightened ozone and PM2.5 levels is linked to respiratory problems, particularly in children, and lung cancer, according to the American Lung Association.

Researchers have put a significant amount of responsibility for the recent reversal on the Trump administration, whose regulatory rollbacks have loosened cleanliness standards for power plants, automobiles and even lightbulbs.

Pennsylvania was one of 23 states to join a lawsuit against the administration after it revoked Californias ability to set its own automotive emissions standards, which many states have relied on to bring down car manufacturers emissions in their own markets.

Gov. Tom Wolfs administration has also pursued a number of pollution-reduction policies, including a plan to join the Regional Greenhouse Gas Initiative, an interstate cap-and-trade system that would put the proceeds from polluters credit purchases toward green energy programs.

The DEP is also running programs to increase the use of solar and alternative fuels, said DEP spokesperson Elizabeth Rementer, and it is promulgating regulations that would cut methane emissions from oil and gas operation by 75,000 tons per year.

As the PennEnvironment report shows, theres much work to be done to decrease air pollutants; however, Pennsylvania has and continues to address this issue, and we are seeing results, Rementer said in an email.

Email Zack at zhoopes@cumberlink.com.

Love 0 Funny 0 Wow 1 Sad 1 Angry 3

Get local news delivered to your inbox! Subscribe to our Daily Headlines newsletter. Sign up! * I understand and agree that registration on or use of this site constitutes agreement to its user agreement and privacy policy.
New Delhi, Feb 1 : Within hours of the Union government's 'structured talk' offer to Shaheen Bagh protesters, the Jamaat-e-Islami Hind (JIH) said on Saturday that it welcomed the government's willingness to hold a dialogue with those protesting against the CAA and NRC.

JIH chief Syed Sadatullah Husaini said: "If somebody is sitting on a protest against any law got passed by the government, it's the government's duty to talk to the people who are expressing their dissent; if the government is willing to talk to them, it's a welcome step." His response came after Union Law Minister Ravi Shankar Prasad's statement that the government is willing to hold "structured talk" with those protesting against the Citizenship (Amendment) Act and the National Register of Citizens.

Prasad had tweeted: "Government is ready to talk to protesters of Shaheen Bagh but then it should be in a structured form and the @narendramodi govt is ready to communicate with them and clear all their doubts they have against the CAA." The JIH has condemned what it calls the government's continued disregard of the countrywide protests against the CAA, NRC, and the National Population Register.

"The government's dogged persistence on the CAA and execute the NPR -- despite the poor state of our economy and faltering GDP growth, rising unemployment, and weak tax collection -- exposes its incompetence and inability to steer the nation with wisdom and foresight, a JIH statement said.

The Jamaat appeals to the government to announce the withdrawal of CAA, NPR and NRC as the "nation is paying a heavy price for the intransigence of a few at the helm of power", JIH Vice President Muhammad Salim Engineer said.
Vancouver, British Columbia--(Newsfile Corp. - January 31, 2020) - Ely Gold Royalties Inc. (TSXV: ELY) (OTCQB: ELYGF) ("Ely Gold") or the ("Company") is pleased to announce that it has entered into an equity research agreement (the "Agreement") with Noble Capital Markets ("Noble"), a Florida corporation. Noble is a FINRA and SEC registered broker dealer.

Noble's research department has followed the Company, gaining extensive knowledge about the Company's business and assets. Noble has the capacity, knowledge and experience to assist Ely Gold by building greater awareness of Ely Gold in the investment community through continued monitoring, and through the publication of research reports on the Company's business, securities, and financial position, and on the economic and geopolitical events affecting the Company's business, that Noble believes will be relevant to the investment community's perception and assessment of the Company. The Company expects that Noble's services will be supportive of its future capital markets transactions, capital markets structuring, long-range planning, and growth.

The Agreement will run for an initial one-year term, subject to extension. In consideration for the services provided by Noble, the Company has agreed to pay a total cash fee of US$50,000 the first year of the Agreement, payable in equal quarterly instalments.

Ely Gold and Noble are not related, and Noble does not have any direct or indirect material interest in the Company or its securities or any rights to acquire Company securities. The Agreement, and the performance of Noble's services under the Agreement, are subject to TSX Venture Exchange acceptance, and to compliance with all applicable regulatory requirements.

About Ely Gold Royalties Inc. Ely Gold Royalties Inc. is a Vancouver-based, emerging royalty company with development assets focused in Nevada and Quebec. Its current portfolio includes 36 Deeded Royalties and 22 properties optioned to third parties. Ely Gold's royalty portfolio includes producing royalties, fully permitted mines and development projects that are at or near producing mines. The Company is actively seeking opportunities to purchase existing third-party royalties for its portfolio and all the Company's option properties are expected to produce royalties, if exercised. The royalty and option portfolios are currently generating significant revenue. Ely Gold is well positioned with its current portfolio of over 20 available properties to generate additional operating revenue through option and sale agreements. The Company has a proven track record of maximizing the value of its properties through claim consolidation and advancement using its extensive, proprietary data base. All portfolio properties are sold or optioned on a 100% basis, while the Company retains royalty interests. Management believes that due to the Company's ability to generate third-party royalty agreements, its successful strategy of organically creating royalties, its equity portfolio and its current low valuation, Ely Gold offers shareholders a low-risk leverage to the current price of gold and low-cost access to long-term mineral royalties.

On Behalf of the Board of Directors

Signed "Trey Wasser"

Trey Wasser, President & CEO For further information, please contact:

Trey Wasser, President & CEO

trey@elygoldinc.com

972-803-3087



Joanne Jobin, Investor Relations Officer

jjobin@elygoldinc.com

647 964 0292

FORWARD-LOOKING CAUTIONS: This press release contains certain "forward-looking statements" within the meaning of Canadian securities legislation, including statements regarding the anticipated Noble analyst coverage of the Company and its expected impacts, the Company's current mineral property and royalty assets, the Company's plans to acquire additional royalties, the expectation that the Company's current and future royalty holdings will generate material revenues for the Company, and prospects for appreciation in the Company's share price and the relative risk-to-value proposition for the Company's shareholders. All of these matters are subject to significant risks and uncertainties. Although, based on current information, the Company believes that such statements are reasonable, it can give no assurance that such expectations will prove to be correct. Forward-looking statements are statements that are not historical facts; they are generally, but not always, identified by the words "expects," "plans," "anticipates," "believes," "intends," "estimates," "projects," "aims," "potential," "goal," "objective," "prospective," and similar expressions, or that events or conditions "will," "would," "may," "can," "could" or "should" occur, or are those statements, which, by their nature, refer to future events. The Company cautions that Forward-looking statements are based on the beliefs, estimates and opinions of the Company's management on the date the statements are made and they are exposed to a number of risks and uncertainties. Consequently, there can be no assurances that such statements will prove to be accurate and actual results and future events could differ materially from those anticipated in such statements. Except to the extent required by applicable securities laws and the policies of the Exchange, the Company undertakes no obligation to update these forward-looking statements if management's beliefs, estimates or opinions, or other factors, should change. Factors that could cause future results to differ materially from those anticipated in these forward-looking statements include risks that the Company may not secure the required regulatory approvals for future transactions, including the acceptance of the TSX Venture Exchange, and the Company may not be able to identify suitable new royalty acquisitions, the risks associated with mineral exploration and production activities underlying the value of the Company's royalty assets, the risks associated with the volatility of precious metals markets, and the risk of political uncertainties and regulatory or legal disputes or changes in the jurisdictions where the Company carries on its business that might interfere with the Company's business and prospects. The reader is urged to refer to the Company's reports, publicly available through the Canadian Securities Administrators' System for Electronic Document Analysis and Retrieval (SEDAR) at www.sedar.com for a more complete discussion of such risk factors and their potential effect.

Neither the TSX Venture Exchange nor its Regulation Services Provider (as that term is defined in the policies of the TSX Venture Exchange) accepts responsibility for the adequacy or accuracy of this release.

To view the source version of this press release, please visit https://www.newsfilecorp.com/release/52014
Budget 2020 saw the Housing and Urban Affairs Ministry outlay touch Rs 50,039.90 crore, a nearly 18.39 percent increase from the revised estimate of Rs 42,266.72 crore for 2019-2020.

In 2020, the outlay for the flagship scheme of the government  the Pradhan Mantri Awas Yojana  has been granted Rs 27,500 crore as against the revised estimates of Rs 25,328 crore in 2019-2020, nearly an 8.5 percent increase.

The government in 2020 has allocated Rs 13,750 crore for the Smart Cities Mission and AMRUT for 2020-2021 against Rs 9,842 crore in 2019-2020, which is about 40 percent more than the amount set aside last year.

Under the SCM, 100 Smart Cities have been selected in four rounds based on an all India competition. All 100 cities have incorporated Special Purpose Vehicles (SPVs).

Since the launch of the mission, a total of 5,151 projects have been identified for implementation by the cities worth more than Rs 2 lakh crore which are in various stages of implementation in the 100 cities.

The Atal Mission for Rejuvenation and Urban Transformation (AMRUT) scheme that is targeted at upgrading urban infrastructure across 500 towns and cities.

The Metro has received an allocation of Rs 17,482 crore, a .73 percent decrease from the revised estimates of Rs 17,612 crore last year.

In 2019, the Delhi Metro Rail Corporation (DMRC) had been given Rs 414.70 crore grant as against Rs 50 crore in 2018-19. This was almost an eight-fold increase.

The Housing for All by 2022 initiative was launched by the Modi government within five months of assuming office. Its all about ensuring a home for every Indian by 2022. To boost affordable housing and achieve the vision of Housing for all by 2022, the government (Central and State) have undertaken several initiatives, such as Pradhan Mantri Awas Yojana (PMAY) that aims to build 1 crore homes in urban and rural India by 2022.

Affordable housing has also been accorded infrastructure status, ensuring that developers in this segment have access to cheaper loans.

The Credit Linked Subsidy Scheme for the Middle Income Group (CLSS for MIG) was announced by Prime Minister Narendra Modi on December 31, 2016 and was earlier extended twice till March 2019. The government in the last week of December 2018 extended the interest subsidy scheme till March 2020 for first time urban home buyers who have annual income between Rs 6 lakh and Rs 18 lakh.

The carpet area of a housing unit was initially revised to up to 120 sq m and up to 150 sq m for MIG I and MIG II respectively in November, 2017 and further enhanced to up to 160 sq m and up to 200 sq m for MIG I and MIG II, respectively in June, 2018.

As per data shared by ministry of urban affairs and housing, out of a validated demand of 1.12 Cr houses in urban areas, 1 crore houses have already been sanctioned under PMAY (Urban). Further, a total of 57 lakh houses are in various stages of construction of which, nearly 30 lakh houses have been completed.

The houses sanctioned so far under the Mission involve an investment of about Rs. 5.70 lakh crore with Central assistance of Rs. 1.6 lakh crore. The Central Government is contributing Rs.1.00 lakh to Rs.2.67 lakh for each house under different verticals of the scheme.

As on date, nearly Rs. 60,000 crore of Central Assistance has already been released. Presently, works of about Rs. 3 lakh crore is ongoing and by the time Mission accomplishes its target of 1.12 crore houses, the entire activity will trigger an investment of more than Rs. 7 lakh crore.

In order to supplement the additional requirement of providing the Central Assistance, over and above the budgetary support, Government had made a provision for raising Extra Budgetary Resources (EBR) to the tune of Rs 60,000 crore of which, Rs 38,000 crore have already been raised and disbursed. The government has also created an Affordable Housing Fund (AHF) worth Rs 25,000 crore has been set up to aid stuck housing projects.

The Credit Linked Subsidy for the Middle Income Group (MIG) was introduced for the first time in the housing sector with effect from 1 January 2017. The MIG beneficiaries with annual income upto Rs. 18 Lakh are eligible for claiming interest subsidy on their housing loans. For the MIG, the Government has increased the area of house up to 200 sq m. The government has developed a web based real time monitoring system called CLSS Awas Portal (CLAP) to ensure peoples participation and transparency leading to efficient delivery and minimising grievances.

Land is the biggest challenge for implementing this scheme. Its current shortage in major city-centric areas prevents the development of affordable housing in areas where it is most direly needed. The cost of land currently accounts for as much as 30-50 percent of the cost of a project within city limits. However, RBI regulations do not allow banks to fund land purchase.
Iran recently issued a press release boasting of its new underground missile storage sites. These missile cities are usually dug into mountains, sometimes by expanding existing natural cave systems. Iran revealed that in the last six years it had built three of these underground missile garages. Pictures have been released showing dozens of missiles stored in what appears to be underground settings. The recent construction program was made possible by the growing use of solid-fuel missiles, which do not require the time-consuming fueling process that older liquid-fuel rockets undergo before launch. For solid-fuel missiles, you need a truck capable of carrying, erecting the missile into an upright position and firing it. Each launch usually does some damage to the vehicle, which must undergo repairs or at least close inspection, before reuse. The Iranian missile bunkers are built mainly to prevent missiles from being destroyed by airstrikes. As has been demonstrated in Syria, Iranian missiles stored aboveground are extremely vulnerable.

The underground bunkers also have shortcomings. For example, the recent press release was mainly intended for foreign audiences. Reminding Iranians about the expense of building these underground facilities is not wise. Since 2017 Iranians have been increasingly outspoken about the amount of money spent on military projects, especially the $16 billion cost of the Syrian war since 2012,s very unpopular. More and more Iranians attribute their growing poverty and rising unemployment rates to all the money lavished on military efforts and these underground sites are very expensive to build and maintain.

Underground facilities also have drawbacks, aside from the high construction cost. The main problem is vulnerability to smart bombs and penetrator bombs designed to burrow deep into the ground, and through concrete, before detonating. Iran is aware of these and its latest press release also pointed out that the new missile bunkers were often built into mountains so that there are hundreds of meters of rock and earth between the missiles and the surface. Not mentioned was the vulnerability of entrances and air vents.

The main reason for all this use of underground facilities since the mid-20th century was the realization that air superiority enabled an enemy to freely bomb aboveground storage areas and military facilities in general. These underground bunkers proved useful against that type of attack using unguided bombs. This led to massive underground construction projects after World War II. The older unguided bombs were not accurate enough to do much damage to those underground facilities until the 1990s.

The development of smart bombs in the late 20th century provided other ways to deal with these fortifications. These bombs and missiles can be dropped in large quantities outside the range of air defenses and disable most of these underground facilities by destroying their entrances and air vents. The U.S. and South Korean air forces have invested in a lot of smart bombs for just that sort of attack. Many of these bombs are penetrators that burrow through many meters of earth and concrete before exploding. These are used against the largest and most important underground facilities. The Americans and South Koreans have trained to do this on a large scale in the event of a war and the North Koreans are faced with a countermeasure they never anticipated or prepared for.

Underground facilities have other vulnerabilities. Many of the underground factories near the Chinese border depend on hydroelectric dams and generators for power. Take these out and the facilities quickly become useless. Backup diesel generators dont last long, especially if there are problems with the air supply. For underground storage facilities, the roads leading from the facilities road networks or nearby launch areas are vulnerable. Another factor is the late 20th century development of persistent surveillance using space satellites and high flying UAVs. This allows repair efforts to be spotted and quickly attacked. In this way, the underground storage areas become inaccessible and useless. At that point, the main function of these underground storage sites is to protect the missiles from destruction by airstrikes but not from being trapped and inaccessible underground.

Iran has long relied on underground facilities as protected spaces where they could build weapons and for ballistic missile and nuclear weapons development efforts. Iran and North Korea have cooperated on the design and construction of these facilities and the Iranians dont have any solution for the smart bomb attacks either. Or, if they do, they are not publicizing it.

World War II (1939-45) saw extensive use of underground facilities because of the new threats from the air. Even before that, there was a threat from mass use of longer range and more accurate artillery systems developed early in the 20th century. During the 1930s the French built the Maginot Line along their German border. This was largely a series of tunnels and underground bases with aboveground cupolas for various weapons. The Germans built many underground structures during the war, including a large one for building their V-2 ballistic missiles. After the Korean War (1950-53) North Korea began building numerous underground facilities. What got this going was the extensive and effective use of American airpower against the North Koreans and their Chinese allies during the war.

Currently, there are believed to be about 10,000 underground facilities worldwide, including recently built ones for construction and/or storage of nuclear weapons. Most of these North Korea underground facilities are for storing weapons. These include tunnels dug under the DMZ (Demilitarized Zone) which forms its border with South Korea. Some of the tunnels that extended into South Korea were discovered and destroyed but South Korea believes there are still about twenty of them that extend into the five kilometer wide DMZ. These tunnels can accommodate up to 30,000 troops as well as vehicles and enable the troops to quickly exit near or in the DMZ if there were another war.

North Korea has built many smaller naval bases into mountains along the coast for small boats and mini-subs. Most of these tunnels are less than a kilometer long but in wartime would provide shelter for small subs and boats carrying commandos. These were based on the success of such seaside bunkers built and used successfully by the Germans during World War II to protect their submarine bases. These ship facilities can still be attacked and disabled, but damaging the protected facilities is much more difficult than simply bombing berths and dry docks built in the open. Even neutral Sweden built one of these facilities during World War II for small surface ships and recently put it back into use because of the growing Russian threat.

Most of the North Korean underground facilities (at least half) are for artillery and rocket launchers and are built close to the DMZ. In wartime, the artillery and rocket launchers emerge from tunnels, fire, and then withdraw back into the tunnels to avoid air attack or, for the rocket launchers, to reload. Many of these artillery tunnels are built on the reverse (facing north) slope of hills and mountains near the DMZ. Some of the heavier guns and rocket launchers are on rails and behind steel doors. The launchers or guns slide out on the rails, fire, then slide back in and the door is shut to avoid damage from air attacks. Many of these artillery tunnels are meant for bombarding South Koreas largest city and capital, Seoul which is 50 kilometers south of the DMZ. Since the 1960s Seoul has expanded enormously and some of the suburbs are a lot closer to the DMZ.

There are also about 200 North Korean underground factories and weapons storage/repair sites. Most of these are near the Chinese border. The most recently built facilities, also near the Chinese border, are for the nuclear weapons program and assembling and launching larger ballistic missiles. There are also about ten underground living/working facilities around the North Korean capital Pyongyang. This includes at least 40 kilometers of underground roads and extremely well protected bunkers for the most senior leader.

During World War II the Japanese built more and more underground facilities on Pacific islands with the most extensive system built under the island of Iwo Jima. American marines suffered 26,000 casualties, including 6,800 dead, during five weeks of fighting to take Iwo Jima. Most of the 21,000 Japanese troops manning these fortifications fought to the death and only 216 were taken prisoner. The Japanese were observed building similar facilities on their home islands to oppose a planned 1946 invasion. It was estimated that the invading allied forces would suffer over half a million casualties dealing with these fortifications and fanatical resistance as demonstrated on the islands. The initial alternative was to completely blockade and bomb the home islands for another year, which would have left several million Japanese dead and many more starving. The successful alternative was the two atom bombs dropped in mid-1945, which compelled the Japanese to do the (to them) unthinkable and surrender unconditionally and immediately.

Use of smart bombs and penetrator weapons are not without their problems. Smart bombs dependent on GPS guidance can be forced, by jamming, to fall back on less accurate but unjammable INS systems. This means more smart bombs have to be used to destroy tunnel entrances and ventilation systems. A more insidious problem is penetrator bombs that work during tests but perform less well under combat conditions. A recent example of this was revealed in 2018 when U.S. Air Force ordered production of the BLU-137/B bomb as a replacement for the older BLU-109/B penetrator Bunker Buster. BLU-109 has been in use since 1985 and is usually mated with a Paveway laser-guidance kit like the GBU-27. Currently, the most frequently use penetrator bomb is this laser-guided 909 kg (2,000 pound) BLU-109/B. This bunker buster can penetrate five meters (16 feet) of concrete and even more of just dirt. This is accomplished using a 25mm thick steel cashing filled with 240 kg (530 pounds) of Tritonal. In the rear of the bomb is a time delay fuze.

Details of how the BLU-137/B is different were not revealed but it is known that the air force has been concerned for years with the number of BLU-109/Bs that failed to detonate after penetrating. This is not a new problem. Back in 2011, the U.S. Air Force spent $36 million to develop a new Hard Target Sensing Fuze for its large (BLU-109 and larger) penetrator bombs. The new fuze would also be reprogrammable by the pilot, while in the air. The pilot can specify how deep the bomb should go before detonating, as well as how many voids (levels of an underground bunker) to go through before detonating. A time delay can also be specified. The new fuze was able to survive a penetration force of 15,000 pounds per square inch (one ton per square cm). The new fuze is used with the BLU-109, 113 or 122 bombs. Improvements to the BLU-109 fuze and detonation system were not sufficient. As more BLU-109s were used against underground targets in Iraq and Syria (and Gaza, by Israeli aircraft) BDA (Bomb Damage Assessment) teams eventually got to target areas and confirmed what prisoner interrogation and other intel reports were describing as an unacceptable level of failed detonations. So the air force ordered a major redesign of its 2000 pound penetrator bomb and apparently tested it sufficiently to be satisfied the reliability problems were fixed and now ordered it into mass production. The BLU-137/B will be interchangeable with the BLU-109/B so that equipment on aircraft or guidance kits wont have to be modified.

The failure rate of the BLU-109/B was not so high that could not be used. Instead, to ensure destruction of an underground target, multiple BLU-109/Bs would be used on certain targets. Many BLU-109/B targets were based on imperfect intel and were hit just to take the chance that the enemy bunker would be there and it would be destroyed. Many ISIL (Islamic State in Iraq and the Levant) members believed themselves protected by Allah when the penetrating bomb did indeed penetrate but did not detonate. Not exactly the sort of morale impact such weapons are supposed to have. If the BLU-137/B proves as reliable in combat as it did in testing Islamic terrorists will find their divine intervention has diminished when it comes to penetrating bombs. ISIL made extensive use of deep tunnels and bunkers. In Gaza, Hamas has been getting expert advice from Iranian tunnel builders on how to build more effective tunnels and bunkers. Israel had watched (from the air, and via spies on the ground) as Hezbollah used lots of its Iranian money to build underground bunkers in the areas of southern Lebanon that Israel withdrew from in 2000.

In 2012 Israel developed its own penetrator bomb design. This MPR-500.was for a 500 pound (227 kg) penetrator bomb. The MPR-500 can smash through more than a meter (39 inches) of concrete or four 200mm (8 inch) concrete barriers (floors or bunker walls) and then detonate. When the MPR-500 explodes it releases 26,000 fragments, which will wound or kill out to 100 meters. Satisfied with the effectiveness of the MPR-500 Israel went on to design 1,000 pound and 2,000 pound versions. It is unclear if the BLU-137/B design owes anything to the MPR line but Israel and the United States have freely exchanged design info and user experiences for decades and many American designs are heavily influenced and improved by Israeli technology.
Bihar Deputy Chief Minister Sushil Kumar Modi on Saturday said the Union Budget 2020-21 will not only help in generating employment opportunities and income but will also be able to tackle recession in a better way.

After incorporating the 15th Finance Commission's recommendations in this year's budget, Bihar's share in central taxes has increased by 0.396 per cent from 9.665 per cent in 2019-20 to 10.061 per cent in 2020-21, said Modi, who also holds finance and commercial taxes portfolios in Bihar's NDA government.

With this, the state's share in central taxes has increased by Rs 15,000 crore from Rs 63,406 crore in 2019-20 to Rs 78,896 crore in 2020-21, he said.

The simplification of income tax slabs, besides several proposals with regard to small and medium sector enterprises and agriculture sector have been made in this year's budget, he said, adding that these measures would create employment opportunities, enhance people's income and give more money into people's hands to save and consume which would help in tackling the recession in a better way.

A host of opposition leaders, including RJD's Tejashwi Yadav, RLSP chief Upendra Kushwaha, former Bihar chief minister and HAM (S) president Jitan Ram Manjhi criticised the Centre's budget, presented by Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman, asserting that it did not contain anything for Bihar.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
New Delhi, Feb 1 : The BJP terms the Union Budget "pro-farmer" in which fertiliser subsidy has gone down quite a bit. Against last year's Rs 79,998 crore, this year's estimated fertilizer subsidy is Rs 71,309 cr.

The government claims it has kept farmers in mind by allocating Rs 2.83 lakh crore for agriculture and allied sectors, but the fine print speaks of a different story.

The 'Pradhan Mantri Kisan Urja Suraksha evam Utthan Mahabhiyan' (PM-KUSUM) will be expanded to help 20 lakh farmers in setting up standalone solar pumps, said Sitharaman. But it was not revealed how much money it will cost and where it will come from.

The Budget speech claimed to set the agricultural credit target at Rs 15 lakh crore.

"The Village Storage Scheme run by self help groups will provide holding capacity for farmers, and women in villages can regain their status as 'Dhaanya Lakshmi'," said Sitharaman. While details are given about land required for the same or areas shortlisted, the amount it will cost is not known.

The Finance Minister also announced Kisan Rail and Kisan Udan -- farmer-centric railway and aviation services -- in her Budget speech. But again, the cost that the programme will incur is not mentioned in detail.

Moreover, food subsidy and petroleum subsidies have gone up by wafer thin margin. The estimate for rural development has also just gone up by Rs 1,408 crore.

Interestingly, the Prime Minister lauded the Budget calling it "visionary" and "action packed". He said with its efforts of doubling the income of the farmer, 16 action points have been created which will work to increase employment in rural areas.

"Integrated approach to agriculture was adopted in the Budget, which along with traditional methods will increase value addition in horticulture, fisheries, animal husbandry and also increase employment," Modi said.

But Sitharaman's "pro-farmer" budget that lacks specifics on cost and the means to cover the same raises questions on the success of the Finance Minister's intent to double farmers' income.

Earlier the BJP's demanded a 'Gaon, Gareeb, Kisan Budget' in its three-hour-long pre-Budget meeting with the Finance Minister on January 9. BJP General Secretary Arun Singh, who had attended the meeting, told the media after its conclusion that it will be a "Gaon, Gareeb, Kisan" (village, poor, farmer) driven budget.

As Sitharaman read out the details, it turned out, she respected the BJP's sentiment. But with the coffers running dry, the question that begs an answer is: how can she fulfil her promises?

Latest updates on Howdy Modi Houston
Hes best-known for playing one of the most loathsome TV characters in recent history  cheating husband Simon in Doctor Foster, opposite Suranne Jones.

Now Bertie Carvel is back at his duplicitous best in a gripping new six-part Channel 4 thriller set against the politically charged backdrop of Iraq during the US occupation after Saddams defeat in 2003.

Baghdad Central follows Iraqi ex-policeman Muhsin al-Khafaji, whos at rock bottom after his wife has died and his son has been executed.

He then decides to risk his own life to track down his estranged elder daughter, Sawsan, whos gone missing, but soon discovers shes been leading a double life that puts her and others in grave danger.

Pictured left to right: Corey Stoll as Parodi, Bertie Carvel as Temple, Waleed Zuaiter as Muhsin and July Namir as Mrouj in new six-part Channel 4 thriller, Baghdad Central

So he reluctantly teams up with the Iraqi Police Force  led by Berties ruthless former British police officer Frank Temple  in the hope that it will not only help him find her, but also enable him to get the treatment he needs for his sick younger daughter, Mrouj.

What begins as a desperate mans hunt for one child  and his determination to protect the other  soon escalates into a captivating game of cat and mouse.

There have been countless protagonists in TV thrillers who are motivated by loss and find themselves caught up in a mystery that goes deeper than they could ever have anticipated, but Baghdad Central flips the narrative completely.

The hero of this story Muhsin, played by Waleed Zuaiter, is an Iraqi, while the Brits and Americans play supporting roles.

And for both Bertie and Waleed, having an Arab Muslim as the lead character is nothing less than historic.

Why shouldnt the roles be occupied by characters were used to seeing as terrorists? Its a story that travels like a bullet and its about this cast of characters that we feel we havent seen before.

'I think thats brilliant, says Bertie, 42.

It feels like quite a familiar story from a very unfamiliar angle. Its long overdue.

'I was excited to read something and think, Why havent I seen this before?

Bertie Carvel, 42, who recently featured in Doctor Foster, stars alongside Waleed, 49, in the adaptation of Elliott Collas 2014 novel

The two actors first met at a read-through of the script and describe their chemistry as instantaneous and effortless.

Yet things could have turned out very differently, as Waleed, 49, was initially unsure about taking on the role because his father had just died.

It was only when he read the script that he realised how much he could relate the character of Muhsin to the loss that he too was going through.

I felt like I was born to play this role, and everything about it resonated with me, he says.

Sometimes the most perfect thing for you is the thing that you fight the most, and this was one of them.

'Its so refreshing not to fall into stereotype, to play a heroic character who could be from anywhere but just happens to be from Iraq.

'I love that. It was such an honour to walk in this mans shoes.

Bertie likens Baghdad Central  based on Elliott Collas 2014 novel of the same name and adapted for the screen by Stephen Butchard (who also adapted The Last Kingdom)  to a modern-day Poirot, but says he was interested in playing Frank Temple because, like many of the characters hes played, hes not someone you can take at face value.

People are fascinating, even the most apparently ordinary people, he explains.

Bertie (pictured) revealed he was interested in playing former British police officer Frank Temple, because he's not someone you can take at face value

In fact, especially the most apparently ordinary people.

Growing up, it struck me that people would often pre-judge me and others, and its so obvious to me that you cant judge a book by its cover.

'Having had that experience all my life, Im preoccupied with trying to find characters with enough depth that people realise theres more to everyone than meets the eye.

'I definitely look for opportunities to prove that rule.

Portraying Temples sworn enemy in the US-led coalition, American Military Police Captain John Parodi, is Corey Stoll, who played Buzz Aldrin in 2018 film First Man.

Parodi is cocky and unlikeable at first, but Corey also promises theres more to his character than that initial impression suggests.

If anything typified the invasion and occupation of Iraq, it was unearned self-assurance.

Its a familiar story from an unfamiliar angle

'I wouldnt go so far as to say that my character is the occupation in microcosm, but he has a self-assurance that cant survive the events of the story, says Corey, 43.

Its a given that the world of Baghdad and Iraq has been turned upside down, rules have been thrown out and authority is ambiguous to say the least.

'But this is a story about a man and his family, and for Parodi and Temple its about finding your moral compass within this upside-down world.

The cast and crew couldnt have predicted when they started making the drama that the situation in Iraq at the time of its release would make it especially pertinent, yet Bertie for one cannot ignore the wider political messages behind Baghdad Central.

Bertie (pictured right with July Namir, Waleed Zuaiter and Leem Lubany) revealed he insisted on having a moustache for his role in Baghdad Central

Im keen to say how gripping it is, its a brilliant thriller, but if Im really honest what fascinates me about this is absolutely its politics, he says.

You cant tell a story about that part of the world without it being political. And for my money, its politics are in the right place.

Its a topic thats close to the two-time Olivier Award-winners heart.

His father, grandfather and great-grandfather were all political journalists, so is that what piqued his interest in the show in the first place? Im sure thats true, he says.

Im the one that got away, so Im making up for some of it...

While Baghdad Central takes place across six episodes, Channel 4 is leaving the door open to continue the story.

Which is good news for Bertie fans, as Suranne Jones and Doctor Foster creator Mike Bartlett have cast doubt on the show returning any time soon.

Bertie doesnt rule it out, though.

The fact they got our band back together and we made a second series was not a fait accompli, because nobody was under option to do it, he says.

So to do it a third time would be even more complicated. But Id love to do more.

'Maybe there could be a crossover, maybe Doctor Foster could go to Iraq.

The success of his co-stars since the second series makes things trickier.

Suranne certainly hasnt been putting her feet up.

'Tom Taylor, who played our son, is a bigger movie star than any of us [he appeared in 2017s The Dark Tower and last years The Kid Who Would Be King] and deservedly so.

'Hes got an enormous career now. Jodie Comers not exactly lazy either, so there we are. Well see, though, wed love to do more.

In the meantime, viewers hungry for a similarly addictive drama starring Bertie need look no further than Baghdad Central.

Lets just hope his admirers recognise him under the facial hair he claims to have fought tooth and nail for.

I lost the fight about being from Stockport, he says, but I insisted, Im not doing it unless I have a moustache!

Baghdad Central begins on Monday at 10pm on Channel 4.
She has been keeping a low-profile in recent months.

Yet Chloe Crowhurst made a rare public appearance on Friday night, as she headed to celeb hotspot STK restaurant in London with a group of gal pals.

The Love Island star put on a very busty display in a deeply plunging khaki mini dress, which showcased her sensational frame in the figure-hugging number.

Wow! Chloe Crowhurst made a rare public appearance on Friday night, as she headed to celeb hotspot STK restaurant in London with a group of gal pals

The scanty dress featured caped sleeves and silver button detailing down the front of the garment, teamed with a pair of strappy snakeskin heels.

The reality star wore her blonde tresses in big bouncy curls and opted for a typically thick layer of make-up, including lashings of make-up and a plump pink pout.

Chloe kept the attention on her thigh-grazing number by forgoing any accessorises, in favour of keeping her look simple yet stylish.

Wow: The Love Island star put on a very busty display in a deeply plunging khaki mini dress, which showcased her sensational frame in the figure-hugging number

Chloe has built up her loyal empire of 416k followers following her brief stint on Love Island in 2017 alongside stars including Olivia Attwood and Amber Davies.

The dumped islander failed to find love on the show and she eventually returned to the arms of her ex-love Jon following her exit from series three.

However, it wasn't meant to be as the former flames went their separate ways once again in November.

Glam: The reality star wore her blonde tresses in big bouncy curls and opted for a typically thick layer of make-up, including lashings of make-up and a plump pink pout

The model's journey on the show came to an end at the hand of her fellow Islanders, as she was booted off the series for being in the 'least compatible' couple, as voted by the others.

At the time she was coupled with Sam Gowland - with the pair agreeing their relationship was purely platonic - who later returned to the villa and coupled up with Georgia Harrison.

During her time on the show, scandal arose as season one Islander turned TOWIE star Jon Clark, claimed she had dumped him to appear on the series.
GLENS FALLS  U.S. Rep. Elise Stefanik, R-Schuylerville, on Friday defended calling House Intelligence Committee Chairman Adam Schiff a liar because he said there was no coordination with the whistleblower in preparing the complaint that led to the investigation into President Donald Trumps phone call with the Ukrainian president.

There was coordination between Adam Schiffs staff and the whistleblower. We know that because The New York Times reported that, she said following a legislative luncheon at The Queensbury Hotel.

The Times reported that Schiff knew more about the makings of the whistleblower complaint than he initially let on, according to the PolitFact fact-checker website.

In addition, media outlets, including The Times and The Washington Post, have reported that the whistleblower came to Schiffs aides with a vague accusation against the president.

The aides did not share the identity of the whistleblower, a CIA officer, with Schiff. There is no evidence that Schiff helped write the complaint that led to the impeachment inquiry that Trump held up military aid to Ukraine seeking investigations into former Vice President Joe Biden and his son Hunters business dealings in the country, according to PolitFact.

Stefanik said Schiff initially was adamant in media interviews that he wanted to hear from the whistleblower.

He only stopped requesting to hear from the whistleblower and refused to call the whistleblower when it became clear that there was coordination, she said. He knows who the whistleblower is because when certain lines of questions get asked that dont even reference the term whistleblower, he didnt allow the witness to answer the questions.

We all know that Adam Schiff is covering up the fact that there was coordination with the whistleblower, she added.

Stefanik made the same points on Wednesday on Sean Hannitys Fox News television program. She reacted to a clip that Hannity played of Schiff, a California Democrat, saying there has been politicization of intelligence gathering.

No one has been more political in manipulating intelligence and the media than Adam Schiff. He has consistently abused his power. Even today from the well of the United States Senate, Adam Schiff lied to millions of Americans who are tuning in saying that there was no coordination with the whistleblower, she said.

We know that there is coordination between Adam Schiff, his staff and the whistleblower. Before the whistleblower complaint was even issued, they helped put together the complaint and he withheld that information from his colleagues on the committee, she added.

Stefanik said Friday she looked forward to putting the impeachment trial behind and getting back to the peoples work in Washington including focusing on the economy and health care.

Stefanik said she has received a lot of support from her constituents for her defense of the president.

I got a lot of positive feedback for standing up on behalf of the voters in this district who voted overwhelmingly to support President Trump, she said.

Reach Michael Goot at 518-742-3320 or mgoot@poststar.com and follow his blog poststar.com/blogs/michael_goot/.

Love 30 Funny 1 Wow 0 Sad 3 Angry 27

Get Government & Politics updates in your inbox! Stay up-to-date on the latest in local and national government and political topics with our newsletter. Sign up! * I understand and agree that registration on or use of this site constitutes agreement to its user agreement and privacy policy.
Defense Ministry reports one ceasefire violation in Donbas since early hours of Feb 1

The illegal armed groups from the beginning of the day on Saturday carried out one shelling of the positions of the Joint Forces Operation (JFO), Spokesperson of the Ministry of Defense of Ukraine Mykhailo Sharavara has reported.

From 09:25 to 09:50 the enemy using easel anti-tank grenade launchers and heavy machine guns fired at the positions of Ukrainian units near the village of Krasnohorivka, Donetsk region.

According to the Defense Ministry, no casualties among the Ukrainian military are reported.
MINSK, Belarus - U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo said Saturday that the United States is willing and able to provide Belarus with 100% of its oil and gas, taking a slap at Russia which recently cut off supplies.

Pompeo is the first secretary of state to visit Belarus in 26 years and arrived in Minsk amid new tensions between Minsk and Moscow over energy. In a meeting with authoritarian President Alexander Lukashenko, Pompeo said he hoped to help provide an opportunity for Belarus to achieve the sovereignty and independence it seeks.

The United States wants to help Belarus build its own sovereign country, Pompeo said at a joint news conference with Foreign Minister Vladimir Makei. Our energy producers stand ready to deliver 100% of the oil you need at competitive prices. Were the biggest energy producer in the world and all you have to do is call us.

Belarus fears Russia is trying to absorb it and last month began purchasing gas from Norway after Russian supplies were cut off. Last week, Lukashenko accused Russia, the countrys main provider of cheap oil and gas, of stopping supplies to dissolve Belarus.

Pompeo said the U.S. wants to help fill the vacuum and will continue to boost staffing at its embassy in Minsk, which was severely reduced 12 years ago when the U.S. imposed significant sanctions on the country over human rights abuses. The two countries agreed in September to exchange ambassadors for the first time since 2008. Pompeo said a new U.S. ambassador would be named soon.

Noting the recent history of poor relations, Lukashenko lamented the absolutely groundless misunderstandings of the past authorities and welcomed Pompeos visit.

Belarus had been a candidate to be included in the Trump administrations expanded travel ban that was announced on Friday but avoided it by taking measures to improve security co-operation and potential traveller threat information with the United States.

In addition to trying to boost American influence in Belarus, Pompeo urged economic and political reforms as well as improved human rights conditions  a message similar to those he will be bringing to his next stops in Kazakhstan and Uzbekistan later this weekend. At each stop, Pompeo will warn of attempts by Russia and China to aggressively assert themselves in Europe and Central Asia.

Russia stopped supplying oil to Belarus after Dec. 31. The two nations had failed to renegotiate an agreed oil price for this year during drawn-out negotiations on deepening the integration of their economies.

Moscow argues that Belarus should accept greater economic integration if it wants to continue receiving energy resources at Russias domestic prices.

This has prompted fears in Belarus that the Kremlin is plotting to form a single state with Belarus to keep Russian President Vladimir Putin in power well past the end of his term in 2024.

Lukashenko has repeatedly rejected the idea, saying that Belarus would never become part of Russia.

The Russian suspension did not affect oil crossing Belarus to Europe or the supply of natural gas, but had consequences for Belarus, which relies on Russia for more than 80% of its energy needs.

Lukashenko has since vowed to find alternative oil suppliers and said Friday that Belarus is currently negotiating additional supplies with the United States, Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates.

In the news conference, Pompeo also said Belarus has made real progress in reforms, including on human rights, but that more needs to be done to bring about a lifting of U.S. sanctions. Further progress in those areas and others is the only path towards lifting U.S. sanctions, he said.

Makei acknowledged that Belarus recognized the necessity of making changes. Belarus is probably not a most ideal country in this regard, and we do understand that we must implement some reforms in many areas, including the area of human rights  and we are doing this, he said.

Since Lukashenko came to power in 1994, Belarus has suppressed opposition and its human rights record has been widely criticized. Then-U.S. Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice in 2005 called Belarus Europes last dictatorship.
In a new study published in Science, LSU chemistry professor emeritus George Stanley and fellow LSU researchers from the Department of Chemistry and the Department of Biological Sciences discovered a new cationic cobalt bisphosphine hydroformylation catalyst system that is highly active and extremely robust.

Catalysts can be viewed as a parallel of the infamous philosopher's stone. They cannot change one element to another, but they can aid in transforming one chemical substance into another, while remaining unchanged themselves. Cobalt, a common mineral, does well in accepting atoms from other molecules and forming complex molecules.

Fellow researchers working on the study alongside Stanley include assistant professor of biological sciences David Vinyard and chemistry graduate students Drew Hood and Ryan Johnson. Researchers from ExxonMobil Chemical Company also contributed to the project.

Majority of industries -- about 75 percent -- choose to use rhodium-based catalysts because of the low-pressure technologies and cheaper-to-build facilities, but Stanley said not only can cobalt-based catalysts make more -- and better versions -- of certain aldehyde products, but the price of rhodium is excessive in comparison.

"A cationic cobalt bisphosphine catalyst is only about 20 times slower than the best rhodium catalysts," he said, "despite being 10,000 times less expensive." Today, the price of rhodium has reached closed to $9,800 an ounce, while cobalt has been steady around only 90 cents per ounce.

Louisiana, alone, has three large hydroformylation chemical plants: the ExxonMobil facility in Baton Rouge that uses the high-pressure cobalt catalyst technology; the Shell plant in Geismar that uses the medium-pressure phosphine-modified cobalt catalyst system; and the Dow chemical plant in Taft that uses low-pressure phosphine-modified rhodium catalysts.

"About 25 percent of products produced by hydroformylation require high-pressure cobalt or rhodium technologies," he explained. "This new cationic cobalt bisphosphine technology offers a far more energy efficient catalyst that can operate at medium pressures for these reactions."

Hydroformylation, or oxo, is the catalytic reaction that converts alkenes, carbon monoxide, and hydrogen into more complex organic products, like plasticizers -- a substance added to produce flexibility and to reduce brittleness -- and cleaning detergents.

Although the group's new cobalt catalyst has low selectivity to the generally desired linear aldehyde product for simple alkenes, Stanley said it has excellent activity and selectivity for internal branched alkenes that are difficult to hydroformylate.

For example, researchers are finding that washing detergents are less likely to dissolve in cold water because of their linearity -- a trait found in rhodium catalysts. Cobalt catalysts can make detergent molecules with more "branches" that can react to grease and water in a more efficient way.

Stanley said this is the first major discovery in hydroformylation in at least 50 years.

"What excites me the most is to have a discovery that could have real-life practical applications," he said. "Coming up with a catalyst that is very energy efficient, very green, that can actually be used on the large-scale, industrial side of things is the dream of every chemist."
In the Israeli Arab town of Umm al-Fahm residents are scared and angry over US President Donald Trump's peace plan which sees them as part of a future Palestinian state. At the same time, the "deal of the century" would give the Jewish state a green light to annex chunks of territory in the occupied West Bank, where more than 400,000 Israelis live in settlements deemed illegal under international law. In Umm al-Fahm, a hilltop town of over 50,000 people in northern Israel, locals are aghast at a clause on page 13 of the 181-page plan, which would barter their Israeli citizenship for the interests of the settlers. As part of an "exchange" of territory, the Trump deal, entitled Peace To Prosperity, could transfer control of the Arab "triangle" -- a cluster of 14 towns and villages where more than 260,000 Israeli Arabs live -- from Israel to a mooted Palestinian state. "The Vision contemplates the possibility, subject to agreement of the parties that the borders of Israel will be redrawn such that the Triangle Communities become part of the State of Palestine," reads the text published by the White House. That idea was welcomed by former defence minister Avigdor Lieberman, head of the secular nationalist Yisrael Beitenu party, who proposed such a swap in 2004. But triangle residents find it a bitter pill to swallow. "We don't take this lightly. This situation is very serious, and it makes me very afraid," said Rosine Zaid, sitting in an Umm al-Fahm cafe. "We're not going to let that happen," adds her friend Lubna Asali, between sips of coffee. A group of five teenagers, shawarma meat sandwiches and soft drinks in their hands, say they will take part in a protest against the Trump plan due to take place Saturday in Umm al-Fahm. - 'Canton' - "We are ready to defend our land. We are against this programme," said 16-year-old Abdel. He supports a Palestinian state, but with its capital in Jerusalem, which the plan acknowledges as Israel's "undivided" capital. "If they want to get us out of Israel, we want Jerusalem to follow us," he says. The Trump proposal does not in fact advocate the physical relocation of triangle residents. Instead it would change the status of their communities, making them a Palestinian enclave, cut off from the neighbouring West Bank by an Israeli barrier erected during the bloody second Palestinian intifada in the early 2000s. They fear that as citizens of a Palestinian state they would lose the benefits of Israel's thriving economy, its health and welfare system and the freedom to enter Israel, where many of their relatives have lived since before the creation of the Jewish state in 1948. "We are part of the Arab minority in Israel and we live on our national land," says Yousef Jabareen, a member of the Israeli parliament and an Umm al-Fahm native. "We refuse this plan, we want to continue to exist both socially and politically. "I am Arab, I am Palestinian, and I am also a citizen of the State of Israel," he added, saying that he feared that the triangle would become a "canton" landlocked in Israel. - 'Racially-motivated separation' - Jabareen, who belongs to the mainly-Arab Joint List opposition alliance, says implementing the plan would shrink the Arab population of Israel and erode its influence. Arabs currently number about 1.8 million, around 20 percent of Israel's population. The Trump plan would take about 260,000 Arabs out of that total, leaving the remainder politically weaker, Israeli Arab NGO Adallah writes on its Website. "According to the plan, the residents of the earmarked communities would remain in their homes but Israel's borders would simply be redrawn to leave them outside its border," it says. If executed, it says, it would bring about a demographic shift through "racially-motivated separation." Jabareen's Joint List backed Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's rival Benny Gantz for prime minister in a September general election. But neither man was able to muster enough votes to form a government and a new poll is scheduled for March, the third within a year. Gantz backs the Trump plan and has said he will submit it to Israel's parliament for its endorsement in the coming week, drawing fire from Israeli Arabs. For former MP Mohammed Barakeh, their choice at the polling booths will be clear. "It will be the Arab list against the entire Israeli political establishment," he said.
STAMFORD  The citys top prosecutor was sworn is to the chief states attorney position in a ceremony at the Stamford courthouse Friday afternoon.

The Criminal Justice Commission unanimously appointed Richard J. Colangelo Jr. to the top state spot Thursday at a public meeting at the Legislative Office Building in Hartford. Colangelo has served as states attorney for the Judicial District of Stamford/Norwalk since July 2015.
[January 31, 2020] NOTICE TO UPS EMPLOYEES WITH ACCOUNTS AT MERRILL LYNCH: KlaymanToskes Continues to Investigate and Pursue Claims on Behalf of UPS Employees Who Sustained Losses from Unsuitable Covered Call Writing Strategies

KlaymanToskes ("KT (News - Alert)"), www.klaymantoskes.com, continues to investigate FINRA arbitration claims for current and former UPS (NYSE: UPS) employees with accounts at Merrill Lynch, for losses sustained from unsuitable covered call writing strategies for concentrated UPS stock positions. According to multiple FINRA claims, Merrill Lynch employed an unsuitable covered call writing strategy. After hard-working UPS employees accumulated thousands of UPS shares through UPS's Employee Stock Purchase Program and the Manager Incentive Program, they were solicited to invest with Merrill Lynch. Merrill Lynch recommended a call writing strategy, to earn stable income. The strike prices that the call options were sold at were far too low given market conditions. The strategy was improperly implemented, and it led to UPS employees losing thousands of shares or significant amounts of money buying back the shares. The UPS employees did not want to lose shares, which they were assured they would not. More importantly, the shares paid out much needed quarterly dividends, which are relied upon in retirement. Further, the sale of such large positions typically ended in signifiant tax liability to investors.



The sole purpose of this release is to investigate the sales practices of Merrill Lynch for FINRA sales practice violations including: unsuitable recommendations, misrepresentation and omissions of material facts, and failure to supervise. Current and former UPS employees who held accounts at Merrill Lynch, and have information relating to the manner in which the firm handled their concentrated portfolios, are encouraged to contact the attorneys of KlaymanToskes at (888) 997-9956, or visit our firm's website at www.klaymantoskes.com. About KlaymanToskes

KT is a leading national securities law firm which practices exclusively in the field of securities arbitration and litigation on behalf of retail and institutional investors throughout the world in large and complex securities matters. The firm represents high net-worth, ultra-high net-worth, and institutional investors, such as non-profit organizations, unions, public pension funds, and multi-employer pension funds. KT has office locations in California, Florida, New York, and Puerto Rico. Destination: https://klaymantoskes.com/notice-to-ups-employees-with-accounts-at-merrill-lynch-klaymantoskes-continues-to-investigate-and-pursue-claims-on-behalf-of-ups-employees-who-sustained-losses-from-unsuitable-covered-call-writing-s/ View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20200131005611/en/

[ Back To TMCnet.com's Homepage ]
Ethiopian Airlines has said it is keeping its flights to and from China open, in spite of the new strain of virus spreading across mainland China and beyond.

The airline said on Friday it has put in place a system of precautionary measures that measure the temperatures of all passengers arriving.

Ethiopia Airlines CEO Tewolde Gebremariam said: "those who have the symptom of a high temperature more than 38 degree centigrade will be isolated here and tested and quarantined depending on the situation."

Ethiopian airlines has not followed the banning of its flights to China, unlike other African airlines, as well as other countries across the world, as the World Health Organisation (WHO) had not yet banned flights to and from China.

Kenya, South Africa and Rwanda have all suspended their flights to and from China.

"So we are exactly following WHO procedures but WHO has not said or has not banned any travel as you know. So, we have no reason to suspend," said Gebremariam.

Many passengers arriving on a flight to the Ethiopian capital were wearing masks.

(Representational image)
Chetumal driver flees scene after woman on bike killed

Chetumal, Q.R.  A car believed responsible for the death of an elderly woman was located on city streets of Chetumal after the driver fled the scene.

The accident happened in the states capital city of Chetumal Friday along Avenida Centenario when the woman, who was riding a bicycle, was hit by a car. The driver of the vehicle then fled the scene, however, one of the license plates from the car fell upon impact with the woman and the bicycle.

La Policia Ministerial were quick to set out in search of the vehicle, which they later found in the Pacto Obrero neighborhood. An investigation into the hit and run continues.

The woman, who has been identified on social media as Dona Mary N, was pronounced on scene by paramedics. She was riding her bike to work as she did every day. Witnesses said the driver was speeding and dragged the bicycle for nearly 20 meters before it dislodged from the car.
San Francisco is one of the most rapidly changing cities in the world, making it easy to dwell on the negative. The 2019 film, The Last Black Man in San Francisco, tackles some of the thorniest topics facing the Bay Area, but also celebrates its resilience and unique character.



After director Joe Talbot released the film to critical and commercial acclaim, he wanted to find a way to build on the films success to share more things that he loves about his city. The result is Joe & Jimmies San Francisco Field Guide, an illustrated map of his favorite places (scroll through the above slideshow to see examples).

The idea was to try to capture San Francisco, our side of San Francisco, that we know and love and still exists, he says. At some times, it can feel like an unfamiliar city, but all you need to do is walk down a street you havent been to in a few years. Its a way to fall back in love with San Francisco, even though weve lived here our whole lives.

RELATED: These are the local filming locations for 'The Last Black Man in San Francisco'



Originally, Talbot thought of creating a map of walks that he likes to take with Jimmie Fails, his high school friend and filmmaking partner who starred in The Last Black Man in San Francisco. The illustrations were created by local artist David Jones, who also did the sketches featured in the character Montgomerys notebook throughout the film. Christian Baba, another native crucial to the making of the movie, handled the logistics.



We imagined the map would almost be out of the mind of Montgomery, because he is this San Franciscan that really explores every corner of the city. It felt like what better way to do it than with the hands of Montgomery, David, says Talbot.



The map still features walks, but the project grew into a fully formed exploration of the city, complete with over 450 landmarks organized into categories ranging from cinematic filming locations to restaurants to drinking cuts, smoke spots & lovers lookouts. Theres also a lengthy section memorializing businesses that were burned down, priced out & shut down, but meant as a celebration, not a death toll.



Some of Talbots most beloved places on the map that he shared during a phone interview with SFGATE include Marios Bohemian Cigar Store (the hot focaccia sandwich is his personal favorite in the city), Relic Vintage (where they found inspiration for Jimmies shirt for the film), and Basa Seafood in the Mission. Theyre just part of a long list of reasons he thinks that the news of San Franciscos decline is wildly exaggerated.

The city has been punched in the mouth, but its alive and vibrant. We just elected Chesa. Silver Crest Donuts still exists! Eddie Muller is packing them into the Castro Theatre every night this week to watch noir films from the 40s. George Crampton is still making beautiful art in the Mission, he said. So this map is a celebration of all those reasons and many more that San Francisco most certainly does not suck.

SEE ALSO: Here are the San Francisco locations, cameos we spotted in 'Always Be My Maybe'



In addition to sharing his favorite places in physical form, he wanted to show the project directly to fans. So after a quiet rollout in the web shop of his films distributor (A24) back in December, he took to the streets to hand them out for free as a Christmas present to the people of San Francisco. He announced the plan on Instagram, and people took note in a big way, traveling from as far away as Los Angeles and sharing their personal histories of the city.

It accidentally became this really great bonding experience, because invariably when we gave someone a map, theyd look to where they grow up and point to their part of town, and that of course sparks conversation about what San Francisco was like in their memories.



Talbot plans to hand out more maps for free in the near future, but for now hes been too tied up with working on his next movie, which will feature the same team and shoot in San Francisco late next year, but be more ambitious than his debut.



Itll be very much another San Francisco story, but a bit bigger and a bit stranger.



Dan Gentile is a digital editor at SFGATE. Email: Dan.Gentile@sfgate.com | Twitter: @Dannosphere
Share this article Whatsapp

Facebook

Twitter

Linkedin Budi Sutrisno (The Jakarta Post) Jakarta  Sat, February 1, 2020

A brief rain dampened Jakartas roads on Monday morning, but many residents in flood-prone areas were gathering up belongings on the ground floor, worrying that water would enter the house.

It rained on Saturday and the water pooled again as high as 15 centimeters. We had to go upstairs, and we have not been relaxed since the flooding on New Years Eve, said Ratih Ana, a homemaker living in the Kebon Jeruk Baru housing complex in West Jakarta.

Tens of houses in the densely populated area, along with other flood-prone locations including Semanggi Interchange in Central Jakarta and Jl. Boulevard Barat in North Jakarta, were hit by a flash flood on Saturday morning as the result of a downpour that started on Friday night.

to Read Full Story SUBSCRIBE NOW Starting from IDR 55,000/month Unlimited access to our web and app content

e-Post daily digital newspaper

No advertisements, no interruptions

Privileged access to our events and programs

Subscription to our newsletters We accept Register to read 3 premium articles for free Already subscribed? login
A member of the medical team of the Second Military Medical University puts on protective clothing at Hankou Hospital in Wuhan, central China's Hubei Province, Jan. 27, 2020. (Xinhua/Xiao Yijiu)

"China's performance received compliments from all over the world, which, as WHO's current director-general Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus said, has set a new standard for countries around the world in epidemic prevention and control," former WHO chief said.

by Annie Cheung, Gao Jie, Zhu Yuxuan

HONG KONG, Feb. 1 (Xinhua) -- "This is a scientific judgment, a prudent and reasonable decision, with the aim to better control the epidemic and prevent it from spreading around the world," Margaret Chan, former director-general of the World Health Organization (WHO), commented after the organization announced the novel coronavirus outbreak a Public Health Emergency of International Concern (PHEIC).

"Human-to-human infections have been found in three countries outside China and none of the patients involved have visited China, prompting the WHO to make such a scientific judgement," Chan said in an interview with Xinhua on Friday.

Chan stressed the decision did not target China nor did it mean the WHO distrusted China's ability to handle the epidemic.

The decision was made to call on other countries to take measures to prevent and control the outbreak, she said.

Members of the medical team of the Second Military Medical University receive praise from a patient at Hankou Hospital in Wuhan, central China's Hubei Province, Jan. 27, 2020. (Photo by Chen Jing/Xinhua)

"China's performance received compliments from all over the world, which, as WHO's current director-general Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus said, has set a new standard for countries around the world in epidemic prevention and control," Chan said.

In about a week's time, China finished sequencing the genes of the new virus and shared the information with the world, she noted.

Chan, an expert in dealing with public health emergencies, said a level of panic was understandable as the epidemic was caused by a novel coronavirus unfamiliar to most people.

She pointed out that it was important for all governments in different countries and regions to take scientific and accurate measures to control the epidemic.

Chan believes that the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region (HKSAR) government is apt at preventing and controlling infectious diseases thanks to its past experience. Hong Kong has experienced Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome (SARS), bird flu and other severe infectious diseases.

A Hubei resident arrives at Tianhe International Airport in Wuhan, central China's Hubei Province, Jan. 31, 2020. The first charter flight sent by the Chinese government to bring home stranded Hubei residents from overseas arrived in Wuhan Friday evening.(Xinhua/Xiong Qi)

A number of people proposed shutting down checkpoints between Hong Kong and the Chinese mainland along with other suggestions to contain the spread of the coronavirus.

"WHO has declared that all countries shall not impose travel or trade restrictions on China. This is also the spirit of international health regulations valued by the WHO," Chan said.

Australia, for instance, once adopted measures that prohibited entry and exit of people during a global flu pandemic, but the measures failed to prevent an outbreak in the country, she pointed out.

Chan acknowledged that it is still difficult to estimate when the current pneumonia epidemic will abate since it was caused by a new virus whose source and hosts have yet to be determined by scientists.

She stressed that effective implementation of existing prevention and control measures should be the top priority at this stage.

"The mainland has done what it should. China has set a new standard for other countries to prevent and control the epidemic, while no other country has the scale, speed, transparency and openness comparable to China," Chan said.

[ Editor: WPY ]
Barry Ludwig first started giving blood at a time when donors got a shot of whiskey at the end.

During the last 50 years, the senior from Teeswater, Ont. has given blood 255 times. Since the age of 17, he's kept his schedule of five to six donations a year, even planning vacations around it.

"It's the pleasure of knowing it could save somebody, or help them out," said Ludwig, who avoids travel to Zika or malaria-risk countries if it might interfere with his donation schedule.

He's planning to visit the jungle in Mexico next month, but only after getting clearance from the clinic first.

'It helped people, so I just continued'

Ludwig first heard about blood donation in high school. He was inspired by a TV news story in the 1970's about a woman who donated "umpteen times" during the war.

He thought to himself, "maybe I could be the youngest person to give the most blood during peace time."

That set Ludwig on a path, diligently rolling up his sleeve every eight weeks for five decades, only missing out if he felt sick.

"I thought it was good, it helped people, so I just continued," said Ludwig, whose next goal is to hit the 300 mark. He estimates it will take eight or nine years, if he stays on track.

"I hope to be healthy for a long time yet."

From whiskey shots to cookies

Ludwig made most of his donations in Windsor, Ont., where he worked in a salt mine for 36 years before retiring. He remembers the days when a Southwestern Ontario distillery supplied whiskey shots in a Dixie cup.

"The nurse would come up to you and say, 'would you like a little mouthwash?'"

Another incentive, for Ludwig, was the two hours of paid time his company offered staff to go donate blood.

Over the years, his routine has shifted from Red Cross to Canadian Blood Services, from whiskey to cookies. He's only had one incident during fifty years of donating, when started bleeding as the needle was removed.

Story continues

"I just said, 'wrap me up, give me a bandage, and I'll get out of here."

Submitted

Honoured for his ongoing generosity

Ludwig was honoured earlier this month at Huron-Bruce MPP Lisa Thompson's annual New Year's Levee at Teeswater Town Hall.

"I was almost embarrassed, emotional, but it felt good," he said.

Until now, only close family and friends, plus clinic staff, knew about his consistent donations.

Ludwig said strangers approached him after the ceremony, wanting to say thank you. One lady told Ludwig her son's life was saved after a blood transfusion. That man's son followed up afterward, thanking Ludwig because his dad was still alive.

"That was very emotional. I had to really choke it back to talk to the young man, because it meant so much," he said. "It made the last 50-some years worthwhile."
Israel's interior ministry said Saturday it was broadening border restrictions to bar entry to anyone who has visited China in the past two weeks.

On Thursday the country barred all flights from China over concern about the coronavirus epidemic, amid growing fears of global contagion.

Saturday's interior ministry announcement went further, blocking passengers from third countries if they had been in China at any time in the past 14 days.

The ban covers air and sea ports as well as land crossings from neighbouring Jordan and Egypt.

The order does not apply to Israeli citizens. Israelis who have been in China have been told to quarantine themselves at home for 14 days, even if they have no symptoms.

There have been no recorded incidents of coronavirus in Israel yet, but the health ministry said Wednesday it was "a matter of time".

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu will on Sunday convene government ministers, top civil servants, health officials and the head of Israel's National Security Council to assess the country's preparedness, a statement from the premier's office said.

"We are aware of the fact that it will be impossible to completely prevent the entry of the virus," it quoted him as saying.

"Therefore, we will be prepared in advance to deal with the virus after its first entry to Israel.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
(TNS)  At some uncertain point in the future, printing cash may be a waste of money. As Americans increasingly rely on credit cards, online transfers, mobile apps and cryptocurrencies to complete transactions, a House panel debated Thursday the promise and potential pitfalls of a cashless society.In recent years, some stores have decided theyd rather not ask paper or plastic? to customers at checkout. Instead, theyve gone cash free, accepting only smartphone apps such as Apple Pay, mobile payments like Venmo, or debit and credit cards.Thats led to a legislative response, with left-leaning cities and states banning cashless stores and a bill from New Jersey Democrat Donald M. Payne Jr. that would do the same across the country.The House Financial Services Committees task force on financial technology heard witnesses tout how new payment technologies would save consumers time and money, while others warned that that innovation alone would not solve the systemic problems keeping the American dream out of reach for many.Too often, we see these companies claiming to eliminate banking deserts or empowering communities when in fact they are perpetuating segregation in our banking system, said Deyanira Del Rio, co-executive director of the New Economy Project. This is not to malign innovation or technology. Theyre not intrinsically bad or good, and thats the point.Cash may have once been king, but in 2018 it lost its crown as top payment method. Debit cards were used that year in 28% of U.S. transactions to cashs 26 percent, according to the Federal Reserve. Credit cards and electronic payments have also seen their shares grow in recent years.Thats led some businesses to stop accepting cash. While merchants have to pay transaction fees on card and mobile payments, cash isnt free, either. Physical money means regular trips to the bank to make deposits, making change, reconciling cashier tills and risk of theft. As electronic payment transaction times have dropped, high-volume retail businesses can move customer lines quickly relying just on electronic payments.But not everyone has adopted the new technologies, almost all of which rely on the user maintaining an active bank account. According to a Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation survey in 2017, 6.5% of the nation is unbanked. Lower income and minority populations are more likely to rely on cash than to use cards or electronic payments.To me, its about choice, said Payne. What happens to that segment of the country that does not come along with this move towards other currencies? What happens to the grandmother that just cant learn all of this rigmarole on the phone?New Jersey instituted a cashless ban last year, as did Philadelphia and San Francisco. New York City passed its own ban last week. Massachusetts, which has had a ban on the books since 1978, is considering a repeal.But whether to take cash should be a choice for companies, too, Republicans on the task force contended. Some companies have decided that its worth losing some cash-only customers to save the headaches of dealing with physical money. It would be folly, Republicans said, to stifle innovation and adoption of new technologies with overly broad regulations.By acting before we really understand what were dealing with, we have a tendency to drive innovation  and, more importantly, the entrepreneurs responsible for it  out, said Tom Emmer, R-Minn., the ranking member of the task force.
Though many factories across China remain empty amid mass quarantine campaign to curb the novel coronavirus spreading, companies that produce masks are going all out to churn out much-needed supplies.

The latest figure shows the novel coronavirus has infected 11,791 people.

China produces around 50 percent of the world's masks. However, the current outbreak has increased public needs and put great pressure on production.

"Everybody is wearing masks, from medical staff to ordinary people, and the masks are disposed of every day, so the demand for masks has exploded, causing the temporary shortage," said Li Lingshen, head of China Nonwoven and Industrial Textiles Association.

Manufacturing facilities for masks, protective wear, and screening facilities and other medical supplies are going full throttle.

Jinxian County in east China's Jiangxi Province is home to 136 companies specialized in medical equipment production. More than 60,000 people are involved in the production and sales of medical equipment. By Thursday, all 30 companies that have mask production credentials have resumed production.

"The government is providing the maximum level of support in the purchase of raw materials and subsidies," said Chen Jian, who heads county department of science, industry, and information technology.

The county government has forked out 3.5 million yuan (about 507,000 U.S. dollars) to help companies buy materials. Some companies pay as much as 600 yuan extra to each worker every day.

China's Ministry of Industry and Information Technology said the country produces eight million masks every day. As more companies resume production, the shortage is expected to be eased.

Overseas purchases are also arriving. On Thursday, 149,000 masks were sent via air from Vietnam to Lanzhou, capital of northwest China's Gansu Province.

Overseas Chinese have donated over one million masks, said Wu Nanxiang, head of Fujian provincial department of commerce.
Danish based Grundfos promotes intelligent water solutions in Sri Lanka View(s):

Global pump manufacturer Grundfos recently opened its digital lab in Singapore  the first of its kind by the industry leader in Asia-Pacific  as a strategic initiative to drive greater adoption of intelligent water solutions in countries in the region including Sri Lanka, company officials said.

The lab will showcase Grundfos range of I SOLUTIONS products, which leverage intelligent technology to deliver optimal performance, greater energy efficiency and reliability.

These products are used for a wide range of applications across sectors  from water distribution and wastewater treatment by water utilities, pressure boosting and heating, ventilation and air conditioning in commercial buildings, to industrial applications such as washing, cleaning and industrial cooling.

Kim Jensen, Regional Managing Director of Grundfos Asia Pacific region, said that establishing a dedicated lab in the region is a demonstration of the companys confidence in Asia-Pacifics digitalisation potential, as well as recognition of Singapore as the hub for this digital transformation, due to its Smart Nation ambitions.

Asia-Pacific countries including Sri Lanka is poised for digital growth  by 2021, approximately 60 per cent of the regions GDP will come from products and services created through digital transformation.

Through the lab, Grundfos seeks to demonstrate the value of intelligent pump solutions, with the aim of driving greater uptake among its wide customer base, which range from utilities and government agencies to property owners and major industries, he explained in an email communique to Business Times.

A representative office is already in operation in Colombo under the aegis of Singapore headquarters for sales production and logistics.

Grundfos is working with four local partners Hayleys PLC Groups Hayleys Aventura Ltd for commercial building services, Sierra Engineering and Construction Ltd for water utility projects and public tenders, Analytical Instrument Ltd for medical, analytical and agricultural sectors, infrastructure development and Solar Therm.

Grundfos has provided SEV wastewater pumps and hydro MPC booster stems for plumbing and sanitary applications for the 47-storey mixed development Colombo City Centre.

The company has also handled several projects in Sri Lanka such as pressure boosting and wastewater solutions to the Coca Cola plant in Biyagama, the Unichela plant in Panadura and the MAS Intimates in Ratmalana, chilled water circulation and delivery and automated chemical dosing water intake for Unilever for its plant in Horana.

The other ventures are a water supply project in Galigamuwa for which it provided drainage pumps, suction and water pumps among others to enable water treatment and transmission, and dry zone water supply and sanitation in Mannar. Grundfos recently secured two contracts concerning flood control including the Ambatale project.

Through the lab, Grundfos seeks to demonstrate the value of intelligent pump solutions, with the aim of driving a greater uptake among its wide customer base, which range from utilities and government agencies to property owners and major industries.
A former employee of Lisa Vanderpumps dog adoption service is suing the foundation for sexual harassment.

In the complaint document obtained by PEOPLE and filed on Jan. 24, Damiana Guzman alleges that she was forced to resign from Vanderpump Dogs after only two months due to intolerable workings conditions at the hands of her manager, who is also named as a defendant.

Guzman says in the lawsuit that her former manager harassed her based on her sex, gender and sexuality.

She alleges her manager mocked her figure referring to her as a skinny no-ass fool and a flat-ass bitch.

Guzman also alleges in the lawsuit that her manager mocked her for her sexual orientation, saying he could turn her straight and that she had not found the right man.

Not a day went by where the Defendant didnt make a comment about the Plaintiffs body, her sexual preference, or his sexual prowess, the lawsuit states.

Guzman is seeking to be compensated for damages as she claims she has suffered economic loss and loss of employment-related opportunities.

Guzman says she has also suffered humiliation, mental anguish, distress and has been harmed in mind and body.

A rep for Vanderpump replied to PEOPLE with a statement from Dr. John Sessa of Vanderpump Dogs: Its a shame that someone who worked for the Foundation for less than 90 days would choose to sue or try to malign an organization whose sole purpose is dedicated to being a voice for the voiceless. Working to resolve unnecessary cases like this just takes away from being able to save more lives.

Lisa Vanderpump | Jon Kopaloff/Getty

The lawsuit comes after Vanderpump and her husband Ken Todd were accused in a class action lawsuit of not paying their restaurant employees.

RELATED: Lisa Vanderpumps Restaurant Blasts Guest Claiming They Got Sick and Defecated on Floor

Former employee Adam Pierce Antoine filed the class action lawsuit on Dec. 16 on behalf of himself as well as a number of other former employees, accusing Vanderpump, 59, and her husband Ken Todd of violating a number of California labor laws  something Antoine claims has gone on for at least four years.

Story continues

The complaint, obtained by PEOPLE, alleges that Vanderpump  who owns the famed West Hollywood, California restaurants SUR, Villa Blanca, Tom Tom, and Pump  has failed to pay wages, including overtime wages.

Antoine says that when restaurant staffers worked over 8 or 12 hours in a work day or more than 40 hours in a workweek they were not properly compensated.

Lisa Vanderpump at Vanderpump Dogs

The lawsuit also accuses Vanderpump of manipulating or editing time records to show lesser hours than actually worked.

Antoine also accuses Vanderpump of not paying minimum wages for hours that were worked off the clock, during training or when an employee was on call.

RELATED: Lisa Rinna Threatens Legal Action Against RHOBH Costar Lisa Vanderpump Over Rumored Spinoff

As a result of the alleged infractions, Antoine says he has suffered damages in an amount subject to proof and is owed over $25,000.
At least 21 civilians have been killed in attacks by Syrian forces backed by Russian airpower in recent days.

Air raids on opposition-held territory in northern Syria are forcing hundreds of thousands of people to flee to the Turkish border.

At least 21 civilians have been killed in attacks by Syrian forces backed by Russian airpower in recent days.

Al Jazeeras Raheela Mahomed reports.
Former vice-president, Atiku Abubakar has called on President Donald Trump not to punish Nigerians for the shortcomings and failure of the Muhammadu Buhari-led administration.

Reacting to the immigrant visa ban placed by the United States on Nigeria, the former presidential candidate of the People Democratic Party (PDP) said Nigeria has been a major force for Americas development.

I received with sadness the policy of the government of the United States of America to place Nigeria on its travel ban list, Atiku said via a statement on Saturday.

While I understand the reasons given by the Trump administration (the failure of the Muhammadu Buhari led administration to share information and to address issues of terrorism), the ban does not take into account the pro-American sentiments of the Nigerian public and the solidarity previous Nigerian administrations have had with the United States.

I urge the government of President Donald Trump to consider the history of US-Nigerian relationships.

Atiku said Nigeria was one of the few African nations that joined the US-led coalition during Operation Desert Storm between 1990-1991 when the United States championed the liberation of Kuwait.

The Trump administration may also consider the pivotal role Nigeria, in partnership with the US, played in bringing peace to Liberia, an American sphere of influence, that now enjoys democracy because Nigerian blood and money paved the way for peace in that nation.

Nigeria has also consistently voted in support of the United States and her allies at the UN and other multilateral world bodies. This is even as we are perhaps the biggest trading partner that the United States has in Africa, even where we had alternatives.
The finance minister said a scheme will be introduced to provide subordinate debt to MSME entrepreneurs.

New Delhi: The government on Saturday unveiled measures aimed at facilitating growth of the country's micro, small and medium enterprises including raising the turnover threshold for audit of their accounts to Rs 5 crore and a scheme to provide subordinate debt to MSME entrepreneurs.

"Currently, only businesses having a turnover of more than Rs 1 crore are required to get their books of accounts audited by an accountant. In order to reduce compliance burden on small retailers, traders, shopkeepers who comprise the MSME sector, I propose to raise by five times the turnover threshold for audit from the existing rupees one crore to five crore," Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman said while presenting the Budget 2020-21.

She said a scheme will be introduced to provide subordinate debt to micro, small and medium enterprises (MSMEs) entrepreneurs.

Besides, the government has also asked the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) to extend the debt restructuring window for micro, small and medium enterprises by a year to 31 March 2021, Sitharaman said.

"An app-based invoice financing loans product will be launched. This will obviate the problem of delayed payments and consequential cash flow mismatches for the MSMEs," said the Finance Minister.

She said necessary amendments will be made to the Factor Regulation Act 2011 to enable non-banking financial companies (NBFCs) to extend invoice financing to the MSMEs through TReDS, thereby enhancing the economic and financial sustainability.

"Working capital credit remains a major issue for MSMEs. It is proposed to introduce a scheme to provide subordinate debt for entrepreneurs of MSMEs. This subordinate debt to be provided by banks would count as quasi equity and would be fully guaranteed through the Credit Guarantee Trust for the Medium and Small Entrepreneurs," Sitharaman observed.

TReDS is an institutional mechanism to facilitate the trade receivable financing of MSMEs from corporate buyers through multiple financiers.

Highlighting that more than five lakh MSMEs have permitted from restructuring of debt permitted by RBI in the last year, she said the restructuring window was to end on 31 March 2020, but the government has asked RBI to consider extending this window till 31 March 2021.
Award-winning Netflix show 'The Crown' will end after season five and the British actor Imelda Staunton is set to play Queen Elizabeth in its final season.

Staunton playing the role of Queen Elizabeth was confirmed by the creator and executive producer of the show, Peter Morgan, reported Variety.

"I'm absolutely thrilled to confirm Imelda Staunton as Her Majesty The Queen for the fifth and final season, taking 'The Crown' into the 21st Century. Imelda is an astonishing talent and will be a fantastic successor to Claire Foy and Olivia Colman," he said.

The production of season four is already on floors and will see the introduction of Princess Diana played by actor Emma Corrin.

'God's Own Country' actor Josh O'Connor plays Prince Charles, while Colman will also return as the Queen, reported Variety.

Talking about his vision to have run the show for six seasons during the initial stages, Morgan added that "now that we have begun work on the stories for season five it has become clear to me that this is the perfect time and place to stop. I'm grateful to Netflix and Sony for supporting me in this decision."

The first two seasons of the critically acclaimed show saw Claire Foy play the Queen, which earned her a Golden Globe and Emmy Award.

The previous season which was premiered last year had Oscar-winning 'The Favorite' actor Olivia Colman portraying the monarch.

According to Variety, Staunton further stated: "I have loved watching 'The Crown' from the very start. As an actor, it was a joy to see how both Claire Foy and Olivia Colman brought something special and unique to Peter Morgan's scripts. I am genuinely honoured to be joining such an exceptional creative team and to be taking 'The Crown' to its conclusion."

Bankrolled by Left Bank Pictures and Sony Pictures Television for the online streaming platform Netflix, the historical drama 'The Crown' revolves around the reign of Queen Elizabeth ll.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
The reaction of Western media to the 75th anniversary of the Auschwitz liberation by the Soviet army became a litmus test for assessing the attitude of the world countries towards modern Russia, Vestnik Kavkazas senior analyst Andrey Petrov said in the National Question program on Vesti.FM.

The analyst drew attention to the fact that there was almost no direct negative reaction towards Russia. "The key position in the Holocaust issue is held by Israel and the Jewish diaspora, and they directly emphasize that only the Red Army managed to end the horrors of Auschwitz," he said.

"There was only one vivid anti-Russian publication consistent with the statements of Zelensky and Duda - Polish Prime Minister Mateusz Morawieckis interview to the British Telegraph. In the interview, Morawiecki repeated all Warsaws current ideas about the Holocaust, including the responsibility of the Soviet Union for this crime and the intention of the present Russian state to rewrite the history of the Holocaust. Thus, the newspaper published an article in line with the anti-Russian policy of London washing its hands of it, because the accusations were made by the representative of the Polish government, the senior analyst drew attention.

The Die Welts article, where the Auschwitzs liberation was turned into the listing of Stalins crimes, was less prominent. At least, it does not deny the role of the Soviet troops in ending the Holocaust and Jewish pogroms in Poland. Thus, the event itself was used more as an excuse to state something against Russia rather than to support Poland, with which Germany, of course, cannot agree due to its desire to evade the responsibility, Andrey Petrov said.

The expert drew attention that he did not see the publications in support of Duda and Zelenskys words in the US media. Obviously, the Holocaust does not allow the American propaganda to compose post-truth. There were no complimentary articles addressed to the Red Army and the Soviet Union for the liberation of Auschwitz, but the publicatiatons that I read at least did not say that it was done by someone else and the Kremlin was responsible for the Holocaust. The only thing worth mentioning is an article in Bloomberg, where both Poland and Russia were convicted of trying to distort history, the expert added.

"In general, the statements of Duda and Zelensky did not find much support in the West. That is, Ukraine and Poland are used by the West as the leaders of the struggle against Russia, but no one is going to agree with them when they are solving internal problems," Andrey Petrov concluded.
As Prime Minister Narendra Modi announced in his last Independence Day speech, the government plans to invest Rs 100 lakh crore in the infrastructure sector in the next five years. The finance minister Nirmala Sitharaman said she had launched the National Infrastructure Pipeline (NIP) on December 31, 2019 of Rs 103 lakh crore. It consists of 6,500 projects across sectors -- including housing, drinking water, clean and affordable energy, healthcare, educational institutions, railway stations, airports, bus terminals, metro and railway transportation, logistics and warehousing and irrigation.

Sitharaman said that NIP envisions improving ease of living. "A huge employment opportunity exists for India's youth in construction, operation and maintenance of infrastructure," she added.

FULL COVERAGE: Union Budget 2020

Despite the big announcement, the share prices of infrastructure companies failed attract the buyers. Larsen & Toubro (L&T) shares fell 6.15 per cent on BSE to Rs 1284.95. The share price of Nagarjuna Construction Company (NCC) fell 6.76 per cent to Rs 51. Rail Vikas Nigam Ltd fell 9.31 per cent to Rs 24.85, when the Sensex tanked 988 points immediately after the budget.

"The past governments used to announce all these projects separately in the budget. Now we realise that these are not new projects. It will be an aggregation of the pending projects under one cost head. The Rs 100 crore investment theme is just a process, not projects," said an executive with an major infrastructure company.

The minister said that the government will attract start-ups into public infrastructure. But she did not detail how it will be executed. She informed about the National Logistics Policy and said that the government will create a single window e-logistics market and make MSMEs competitive. Again, there is no roadmap given in Budget 2020.

The government plans to build 2,500 km access control highways, 9,000 km of economic corridors, 2,000 km of coastal and land port roads and 2,000 km of strategic highways. The industry experts say that it is not a big deal considering the past numbers. "When Vajpayee was Prime Minister, there were a large number of such projects created across the country," said a Mumbai-based expert.

Also read: Budget 2020 Speech: Successful disinvestments to happen in next few months, says FM Sitharaman

Also read: Budget 2020: FM Nirmala Sitharaman delivers longest Union Budget speech, breaks record
2.4k SHARES Facebook Twitter Whatsapp Pinterest Reddit Print Mail Flipboard

Lead House Impeachment Manager Adam Schiff and his fellow impeachment managers warned Mitch McConnell that the truth couldnt be denied for long.

In a statement provided to PoliticusUSA, the House managers said:

Senators just voted to make this the first impeachment trial in the history of the United States without witnesses and documents, which were blocked by President Trump during the inquiry.

The House Managers proved their case with a mountain of evidence, as some Republican Senators have acknowledged. And there is more direct evidence of the Presidents corrupt scheme only a subpoena away. But, at the Presidents urging, the Senate chose not to hear from people like John Bolton, knowing they would only add to the overwhelming evidence of the Presidents guilt.

The truth cannot be denied, not for long, and the facts will continue to come out as they did today. Senators who opposed hearing from these witnesses, when their testimony would have better informed a judgment on the guilt or innocence of the President, will be hard pressed to explain why.

Senators chose instead to set a dangerous precedent that will have long-lasting repercussions for the United States Congress, the balance of powers, and our democracy as a whole.

Schiff is right. With each new revelation in the Ukraine scandal, the truth is coming out. Mitch McConnell can hold a sham trial. He can rig the process to deny documents and witnesses, but what he cant do is hide the truth.

The new Senate schedule that delays the final vote on the articles of impeachment until Wednesday is a dangerous time for Republicans. With new information coming out daily, the truth will be revealed, and Trump and his accomplices will pay a price for their cover-up.

For more discussion about this story join our Rachel Maddow and MSNBC group.

Follow Jason Easley on Facebook
A staff at Noi Bai Airport in Hanoi enters an isolation room for passengers suspected with the new coronavirus, January 31, 2020. Photo by VnExpress/Gia Chinh.

Vietnamese localities have quarantined dozens of Chinese and Vietnamese citizens for coronavirus tests over the past two days.

Two Chinese nationals were isolated and sent to a Hanoi hospital Thursday afternoon after showing signs of high fever on arrival at the Noi Bai International Airport. They had come in from the central province of Quang Nam.

Hoang Duc Hanh, deputy director of Hanoi's Health Department, confirmed that the two had been taken to the National Hospital for Tropical Diseases for observation.

Health officials in the northern port city of Hai Phong have quarantined a Vietnamese woman and her son after they showed symptoms of high fever when they flew from Ho Chi Minh City to Hai Phong Thursday.

A representative of the Hai Phong Health Department said Friday that Vo Thi Thanh Tuyen, 21, had a body temperature of 37.7 degrees Celsius, but was not coughing. Her 17-month-old son had low fever, purple lips and looked fatigued.

Between January 5 and 18, they had traveled to Nanning, Shandong and Guangzhou that have been hit by the deadly new coronavirus outbreak before returning to Ho Chi Minh City.

In Khanh Hoa Province, home to the popular resort town of Nha Trang, 13 people, including seven Chinese tourists, have been quarantined pending tests for the coronavirus infection tests.

All the quarantined patients are in stable condition, but must be closely monitored and await the test results, said Le Tan Phung, deputy director of the provinces Health Department.

A general hospital in the Mekong Delta province of Ben Tre said a Chinese worker has been quarantined pending virus test results.

Zhang XiaPeng, a 46-year-old worker at the Giao Long Industrial Park in Chau Thanh District, had gone home in China's Shanghai to celebrate the Lunar New Year and returned to Ben Tre Wednesday. A day later, he was hospitalized with high fever, cough, headache and sore throat.

Vietnam has so far recorded five confirmed cases of infection: three Vietnamese returning from Wuhan and two Chinese nationals.

In total, the Health Ministry said the nation had quarantined 97 people as of Friday, of whom 32 remain isolated pending test results.

The Vietnamese government has deployed various measures to combat the virus, including halting all flights to coronavirus-hit areas, suspending visas for visitors from those regions and quarantining Chinese workers returning to Vietnam after Tet.

The World Health Organization (WHO) declared the outbreak a global public health emergency on Thursday.

The virus has spread from mainland China to Hong Kong, Macao, Thailand, Singapore, Taiwan, Malaysia, Japan, Australia, the U.S., South Korea, France, Germany, Canada, Vietnam, the UAE, Nepal, Cambodia, Sri Lanka, India, the Philippines, the U.K., Russia and Spain.

Chinese authorities said 259 people had died as of Saturday morning out of more than 11,000 confirmed cases of the disease.
Kolkata, Feb 1 : Bengal inc on Saturday hailed the Budget presented by Union Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman, particularly lauding the steps to boost agriculture, rationalise personal income tax and give fillip to infrastructure.

N.H. Bhansali, CEO, Finance, Strategy & Business Development, and CFO, Emami Limited, called the Budget balanced.

"Looking at the current market scenario, where growth has slowed down, the focus is on stimulating growth rather than fiscal discipline. Accordingly, the Finance Minister has announced many steps for furtherance of agriculture, commerce, industry, services and exports.

"Withdrawal of DDT and relaxation of FPI norms are welcome steps to boost investor confidence. This should also result in building consumer confidence gradually over a period of time.

"Overall, this Budget appears to be balanced with no big immediate impact on the current state of economy," said Bhansali.

Sanjiv Goenka, Chairman, RP-Sanjiv Goenka Group, said the Finance Minister's resolve to double Indian farmers' income by 2022 was 'courageous'.

"Equally encouraging is her commitment to provide Rs 99,000 crore for education. Another courageous step is the simplification of the Income Tax Act. Its implications will be clearer only when further details are available," said Goenka.

He also thanked Sitharaman for the decision to raise the insurance coverage of bank deposits from Rs 1 lakh to Rs 5 lakh and slashing the income tax rates.

Harshavardhan Neotia, Chairman, Ambuja Neotia Group, said that notwithstanding the limited fiscal headroom available, the Finance Minister has tried to address many of the issues confronting the economy.

"There has been an effort to rationalise personal income tax so as to make some additional money available in the hands of the common man, with the hope that it would push consumption," said Neotia.

He also welcomed the announcement of significant investments in infrastructure and agriculture sectors, which in turn had led to relaxing fiscal deficit target.

"This is expected to provide the much-needed investment push to catalyse the economy," said the industrialist.

He also expressed happiness over the many references in the Budget speech giving due importance to the role of entrepreneurs and wealth creators.

"This will go a long way towards bridging the perceived trust deficit between the tax authorities, the government and the business community," he added.

B.B. Chatterjee, President of The Bengal Chamber, called the Budget "aspirational", focusing on boosting demand and consumption through tax relief, particularly DDT, spurring investment through corporate measures and deepening infrastructure and agriculture led spending.

"Notwithstanding the possible breach of fiscal deficit target while trying to boost exports, The Bengal Chamber rates the Budget 6/10," said Chatterjee.
Ex-minister named as Iraq prime minister-designate, but anti-government demonstrators say he is part of ruling elite.

Baghdad, Iraq  Anti-government protesters in Iraq have been quick to dismiss President Barham Salihs appointment of Mohammed Tawfiq Allawi as prime minister-designate, as rallies took place in the capital, Baghdad, and cities in the countrys southern provinces.

The presidents move to end more than two months of political deadlock came after he issued an ultimatum to Iraqs fractious parliament, warning that if they did not appoint a new prime minister by Saturday he would do so himself.

But Salihs announcemnet was not welcomed by the protesters who have camped out for months calling for an overhaul of Iraqs political system, with hundreds in the capitals Tahrir Square chanting Mohammed Allawi, rejected!, according to videos posted on social media.

In the southern city of Nasiriyah, demonstrators issued a statement saying they categorically rejected Allawis selection.

He is the compromised candidate that belongs to the sectarian power sharing political system (muhasasa) we are protesting against, and does not represent the aspirations of the protest sites, the statement said. Based on this, our response will be to escalate things stronger than on previous occasions.

Allawis appointment, the statement continued, was brought about by the same criminal, corrupt class that brought us to where we are now.

Since October, the leaderless anti-government protest movement has demanded the removal of the countrys ruling political elite and an end to corruption. The protesters demands include the appointment of a politically independent figure as prime minister, early elections, and holding accountable those who have killed at least 500 protesters so far.

Despite ex-prime minister Adel Abdul Mahdi formally resigning on November 30, he agreed to continue in a caretaker capacity until a successor was chosen, with the resulting deadlock leading demonstrators to accuse the establishment of deliberate stalling.

According to the constitution, a replacement for Abdul Mahdi should have been identified 15 days after his resignation. Instead, it has taken rival blocs more than two months of jockeying to select Allawi as their consensus candidate.

We will escalate

Allawi, 65, served as a communications minister under the government of former prime minister Nouri al-Maliki in 2006 and 2010. Two years later, he resigned from his post, accusing al-Maliki of political interference in his ministry.

Moments after his appointment was announced, Allawi shared a pre-recorded video on his Twitter page, where he addressed the protesters directly.

My power is derived from you, he began. If it were not for your courage and sacrifices then there would have been no changes in the country.

You protested for your homeland, and if I am not able to fulfill your demands that I am unworthy of this position, he added.

However, protesters in the capital reacted with dismay, saying that he represented the old ruling elite.

One protester, 25-year-old Yousef Abd, said there is no doubt we reject Allawi in the position of prime minister.

If the government insists on forcing him on us we will definitely escalate things, he told Al Jazeera via telephone from Tahrir Square.

Mohammed Aqeel, another protester, agreed.

The general feeling from most protest sites is that they view Allawi as being cut from the same cloth as the politicians in power, he told Al Jazeera. He belongs to the same system we dont want.

According to Aqeel, large student demonstrations were expected to take place on Sunday against Allawis appointment, which he hoped would unite the protest movement in Tahrir.

Earlier on Saturday, skirmishes had taken place between supporters of powerful Shia leader Muqtada al-Sadr and politically independent protesters, after the former took over the strategic Turkish restaurant building and drove out the other demonstrators from there.

The Sadrists, along with members of an affiliated militia Saraya al-Salam, had rejoined the protest a week after al-Sadr, head of the largest bloc in Parliament, announced his withdrawal. But on Friday, al-Sadr called for a renewal of the peaceful reformist revolution.

Test of independence

Sajad Jiyad, managing director of Bayan Centre, a think-tank, said there had been an agreement between the largest parties in Parliament to nominate Allawi.

Now that has happened we can expect a lot of negotiation around cabinet formation and this will be a test to see how much independence Allawi has and how much support for his nominees to the cabinet he can get from the parties in Parliament, he told Al Jazeera.

Jiyad added that protesters who have rejected Allawis nomination believe he will be beholden to the same political system they accuse of corruption and are protesting against.

Political analyst Sarmad al-Bayati said it was still too early to see what affect the appointment of Allawi would have.

Allawi was not a new name to be suggested as a candidate  But I dont think he represents the aspirations of the Iraqi people, he told Al Jazeera.

He will probably face the same limitations that Adel Abdul Mahdi experienced, al-Bayati said.

Abdul Mahdis rise to power was the product of a provisional alliance between parliaments two main blocs  Sairoon, led by al-Sadr, and Fatah, which is headed by Hadi al-Amiri and includes leaders associated with the paramilitary Popular Mobilisation Forces (PMF, or Hasdh al-Shaabi).
An American spy satellite is apparently being stalked by a Russian satellite in the Earth's orbit.

Space trackers suggest that the Russian device is up to some snooping as it is already known that it is purposed for the inspection of other satellites, reported The Verge.

Throughout January, amateur satellite spotters have been closely monitoring the inexplicable behaviour of the Russian Kosmos 2542 that was launched last November.

The Kosmos 2542 is now orbiting in the same path as that of National Reconnaissance Office's classified spy satellite which is designated as USA 245.

NRO is an arm of the US military that carries out reconnaissance and surveillance with its vast constellation of spy satellites.

However, the closeness of the Russian satellite is not a reason to panic in itself as both of them pass each other every ten days.

Michael Thompson, a satellite and astrodynamics expert from Purdue University told the Verge that "[It] is suspicious, but doesn't prove anything, as there are a lot of different satellites in that plane."

But in a worrying development for the Americans, Kosmos 2542 fired up its onboard thrusters and placed itself uncomfortably close to its US counterpart.

Now the two satellites are separated by a distance of just 150 to 300 kilometres, which is rather minuscule when the vast expanse of the low earth orbit is taken into consideration.

Although the sneaky Russian satellite has started to gradually drift away, it would still be within eyeshot of the USA 245 for weeks to come.

In a Twitter thread, Thompson suggested that the behaviour of Kosmos is by no means completely unexpected as the Russian Military had already stated that it was tasked with inspecting other satellites in the orbit.

Earlier, the general assumption was that it was launched to inspect Russian equipment in the orbit instead of US spy satellites.

Now a majority of experts are of the opinion that the Russian satellite is doing exactly what people have been doubting this whole time i.e. stalking US space assets.

Brian Weeden, from Secure World Foundation, told The Verge in an email:

"The conclusion that it's shadowing the NRO satellite is speculation but one that's informed by the orbital data."

"Right now it's the most likely explanation we have for why the Russian satellite has been manoeuvring the way it has and why it's in that orbit.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
MEXICO CITY (Reuters) - Mexico is negotiating with Brazil to expand economic cooperation and believes it can find areas of mutual benefit even though the Brazilian economy is 'very closed,' Economy Minister Graciela Marquez said on Friday. Mexico's powerful automotive industry has for years been seeking to improve access to Brazil's car market, while Brasilia has sought to protect local industry. In March, the two reached a deal to liberalize trade of light vehicles

MEXICO CITY (Reuters) - Mexico is negotiating with Brazil to expand economic cooperation and believes it can find areas of mutual benefit even though the Brazilian economy is "very closed," Economy Minister Graciela Marquez said on Friday.

Mexico's powerful automotive industry has for years been seeking to improve access to Brazil's car market, while Brasilia has sought to protect local industry. In March, the two reached a deal to liberalize trade of light vehicles.

Marquez said Mexico was talking to Brazil, as well as its second-biggest Latin American trading partner, Argentina, to broaden existing economic cooperation agreements.

"Brazil is a difficult country, it's the opposite of Mexico," she told a government news conference. "Mexico is a very open economy, Brazil is very closed."

However, Marquez said she believed there were areas ripe for growth where the two economies complemented each other.

"We're sitting at the table with Brazil to expand (our) complimentary agreement and see the possibilities of making a broader, more ambitious agreement," said Marquez, whose government assumed power in December 2018.

Brazil's foreign trade secretary, Marcos Troyjo, said in Rio de Janeiro later on Friday that the country is very interested to work on a broad deal with Mexico.

Troyjo said it was not in the interest of Brazil and its partners in the South American trade bloc Mercosur to work on a deal that targets only some specific sectors.

The Brazilian government has pushed for some trade agreements recently, having clinched a large deal with the European Union. Troyjo also said Mercosur will seek a post-Brexit deal with the United Kingdom.

Total trade between Latin America's two biggest economies was worth $14.7 billion in 2018, according to Mexican data.

Bilateral trade volume fluctuated significantly under the previous government of Enrique Pena Nieto and has yet to surpass the $15 billion peak reached in 2013.

(Reporting by Dave Graham and Raul Cortes Fernandez in Mexico City; Additional reporting by Rodrigo Viga Gaier in Rio de Janeiro; Writing by Drazen Jorgic and Marcelo Teixeira; Editing by Dan Grebler and Matthew Lewis)

This story has not been edited by Firstpost staff and is generated by auto-feed.
Third generation Corner Inlet commercial fisher Neville Clarke Clarke partly attributes the fish price hike to pressures ranging from the cost of diesel and licences to what they believe to be a wholesale system that lacks competition and takes too big a cut. Then there are the wider forces of demand and supply. On the question of demand, there is agreement across industry and government that the combination of a booming population and growing interest in fresh, healthy, local food, is a big factor.

Travis Dowling, chief executive of state regulator the Victorian Fishing Authority, says a burgeoning middle class with a taste for local beers, wine, cheese, meat and fish, is the key driver of seafood prices. People want them [fresh local fish] and they want to be able to connect with them and say this is fresh, its local, he says. There just started to be a much greater value placed upon species that had been $20 to $30 a kilo and are now being sold at $60 to $70 a kilo. At Melbournes biggest wholesale fish market, the Melbourne Seafood Centre, chief executive Barbara Konstas, says young Victorians have become enamoured with local fish white-fleshed fish fillets in particular. Were discarding up to 50 per cent [of the fish] every time [de-boning them to create fillets]. And that translates to price, she says. We should be more open to trying different fish and making better use of them.

Where the government and the industry disagree, with feeling, is on the question of supply. Central to the debate is Labors decision to close commercial net fishing in Port Phillip Bay, the most local of our local fisheries. It promised the closure at the 2014 election campaign in a policy shared by the Coalition but opposed by the Greens. Licences are being gradually withdrawn from Port Phillip Bay until net fishing ends entirely in 2022. Commercial netting was phased out in Western Port in 2009. Last year the government also announced the closure of net fishing in the Gippsland Lakes, a fishery known for its bream and flathead that is popular with both commercial and recreational fishers.

Labors policy unashamedly favours recreational fishing over commercial and includes a goal of having one million Victorians involved in the activity by 2020. Mr Dowling describes it as resource real-location. The industry blames the closures for the price hike in fresh local fish and says Labors position is all about winning the votes of hundreds of thousands of amateur fishers, and the sandbelt swing seats in Melbournes south-east along Port Phillip Bay. Travis Dowling dismisses the Port Phillip Bay closure as insignificant to price, noting that it contributed a tiny proportion of the 59,000 tonnes of fish and seafood that Victorians consume annually. But that figure from 2013 is arguably misleading in a discussion about price rises, especially since two-thirds are foreign imports. Of the total wild catch from Victorian-managed waters, about 27 per cent come from Port Phillip Bay and the Gippsland Lakes. George Kydas of Sea Merchant Seafood wheels a tuna through the floor of the Melbourne Wholesale Fish Market, West Melbourne. Credit:Chris Hopkins

Take more than a quarter of the supply out of any market and the impact on price is going to be big. Headed for closure, the bay and lakes now supply just 11 per cent. Ms Konstas believes the government is contributing to price increases by closing inshore net fishing. She says the wholesale price of whiting has risen by about a third since 2014 and the price of local sardines has doubled. We told them [the government] it would not be good for Victorians, for the health of Victoria. Loading Neville Clarke agrees.The price of the fish has gone up astronomically because the supply isnt there. Overall fish supply and price are also likely being affected by climate change and rising sea temperatures. On Saturday The Age reported on how the climate was being blamed for the failure of stocks of popular eating fish in Australias Southern Ocean to recover from declines despite more than a decade of protection.

On ice at the fish market. Credit:Chris Hopkins And new modelling from the CSIRO shows further temperature rises already locked in by past emissions could see fish stocks fall by another 20 per cent within the next two decades. This week John Christopoulos, co-owner of wholesaler Ocean Made Seafood, said the ending of commercial fishing in Port Phillip Bay and the Gippsland Lakes would slash supply of what consumers want  fresh, sustainable and consistent local fish. I hope when the politicians go out they like a good steak or a piece of chicken. Fresh local fish is another matter. What are they going to eat? Whats the option C? With commercial fisheries closing and the number of commercial licensees and boats dwindling accordingly, consumers keen on fresh local catches should brace themselves for ever-higher prices, or find the money and time to do their own fishing.
Jharkhand Chief Minister Hemant Soren on Saturday claimed that the Union Budget, presented by Union Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman in Parliament, was prepared "to address the interests of capitalists and big industrialists".

Soren said he had recently urged Prime Minister Narendra Modi to give a tribal university to Jharkhand, but the budget mentions only a tribal museum.

"I met Prime Minister Modi and requested a tribal university for Jharkhand. But the budget mentions opening a tribal museum Once again tribals have been hoodwinked," he said.

Alleging that the budget frustrates the poor, the farmers, the labour force and the unemployed, Soren said, "Economists are analysing the budget and only after their analysis, it can be ascertained how it will help the progress of the country, what impact it will have on our financial system and to what extent it will meet expectations of the people. But prima facie, the Union Budget is not visionary."



"The Union Budget has been prepared, keeping interests of capitalists and big industrialists in mind. There has been an attempt to give relief to big industrialists, who evade tax, through the budget. Now they neither have to pay interest nor penalty if caught evading tax," Soren told reporters here.

He further said that the budget has failed to give a much-needed income tax relief to the middle-class.

"The budget is also an attempt to encourage disinvestment of public assets, which is not in the interest of the country," Soren added.

"The budget is contrary to the common people's expectations. Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman did not spell out what steps the government is going to take to confront unemployment, price rise and poverty," the chief minister said.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
A woman, a dog and a cat died in a house fire Saturday morning in midtown Tucson, officials said.

Firefighters were sent to the house about 8 a.m. after reports that a person was in the burning home in the 1800 block of North Belvedere Avenue, near East Pima Street and North Swan Road, Tucson Fire Department said in a news release.

Bystanders told firefighters a person was trapped inside.

Firefighters found a woman inside the front door but were unable to resuscitate her, the department said. The woman has not been identified.

Firefighters went on to find a dog and cat that also died in the fire, the department said.

The cause of the fire is under investigation.

Contact reporter Stephanie Casanova at scasanova@tucson.com. On Twitter: @CasanovaReports

Get local news delivered to your inbox! Subscribe to our Daily Headlines newsletter. Sign up! * I understand and agree that registration on or use of this site constitutes agreement to its user agreement and privacy policy.
Countries including the U.S., Japan and Singapore are imposing tougher restrictions on Chinese visitors in a bid to keep out potential carriers of the novel coronavirus, as its outbreak spreads further in China beyond the epicenter of Wuhan.

The U.S. on Friday announced that it will bar entry of foreign nationals who have traveled to China in the past 14 days, effective Sunday 5 p.m. Eastern time.

"Following the World Health Organization's decision to declare the 2019 novel coronavirus a public health emergency of international concern, I have today declared that the coronavirus presents a public health emergency in the United States," U.S. Secretary of Health and Human Services Alex Azar said at the White House.

"The actions we have taken, and continue to take, complement ... the work of China and the World Health Organization to contain the outbreak within China."

Permanent residents and immediate family of American citizens are exempt from the travel ban.

Meanwhile, regarding U.S. citizens, Azar said that those who have traveled to Hubei Province, where Wuhan is located, will be subject to 14 days of mandatory quarantine. Those who have been in mainland China will undergo health screening before entry and be required to self-quarantine.

All incoming flights from China will be funneled through only seven airports: New York's John F. Kennedy, Chicago's O'Hare, San Francisco, Seattle, Atlanta, Honolulu and Los Angeles.

A passenger wearing a mask, amid the health threat of novel coronavirus, arrives on a direct flight from China at Chicago's O'Hare airport on Jan. 24.  Reuters A passenger wearing a mask, amid the health threat of novel coronavirus, arrives on a direct flight from China at Chicago's O'Hare airport on Jan. 24.  Reuters

The ban, along with those in Japan and Singapore, would contribute further to the rapid curtailing of travel between China and the rest of the world. Data from flight-tracking site Flightradar24 showed 91 canceled international flights from China as of noon on Friday Japan time, double the previous day's 44.

Japan will bar non-Japanese travelers who have recently visited Hubei Province, where Wuhan is located, from entering the country, Prime Minister Shinzo Abe told a meeting Friday of a government virus response task force. This marks the first time Japanese immigration law has been used to keep out visitors from a specific location.

The ban, which took effect Saturday at 12:01 a.m., applies to visitors who either have visited Hubei Province in the preceding two weeks or hold a Chinese passport issued in the province.

The move follows two Japanese evacuees from Wuhan testing positive for the virus despite showing no symptoms, making it impossible to detect through normal screening processes. Recent reports indicate the virus can be spread by asymptomatic carriers.

The WHO declared the outbreak a public health emergency of international concern Thursday.

"We'll take all possible measures to enhance the effectiveness of our border controls and check the spread" of the virus, Abe said.

Japan may let in Hubei passport holders who are married to Japanese nationals or have resided for an extended period outside the province. The government looks to have travelers report their status during immigration procedures, with false information punished by visa revocation.

The government will also move up its date for classifying the virus as a "designated infectious disease" to Saturday from Feb. 7. This will allow such steps as forced hospitalization of infected patients and restrictions on work activities.

Chinese tourists at the Erawan Shrine in Bangkok on Jan. 30.  Reuters Chinese tourists at the Erawan Shrine in Bangkok on Jan. 30.  Reuters

Singapore on Friday said it will restrict entry by nearly all Chinese nationals. It will stop issuing new visas to Chinese travelers, and starting Saturday, it will bar any travelers who have been to China in the past 14 days.

Singapore citizens, permanent residents and holders of long-term visas will be exempt but will be encouraged to stay home for two weeks in case of infection.

The city-state had confirmed 16 cases of the new virus as of Friday, all in people who had visited Wuhan, including one Singapore national. It had already closed its borders to holders of passports from Hubei province and non-Singaporeans who had been in the province recently.

Singapore reported 18.5 million foreign visitors in 2018, with nearly a fifth hailing from China. The ban is expected to deal a blow to a wide range of industries, including tourism and hotels. Inbound travelers from China have dropped by 80% compared with before the outbreak, according to Lawrence Wong, minister of national development.

The U.S. State Department issued a "do not travel" alert, its highest advisory level, for all of China on Thursday local time. Japan's Foreign Ministry has raised its travel advisory for mainland China to level 2, urging people to avoid nonessential travel. Hubei Province is under a level 3 warning recommending that all travel there be avoided.

Japanese Foreign Minister Toshimitsu Motegi said Friday that a fourth charter flight will be sent to Hubei Province sometime next week to evacuate more Japanese nationals.

All Nippon Airways has canceled all direct flights between Narita Airport near Tokyo and Wuhan through March 1. The ANA Holdings unit -- which serves 11 Chinese cities and generates more than 10% of its international revenue from China routes -- reported this week that its bookings for flights from China have fallen by half year on year for the month of February.

Rival Japan Airlines has been hit by the outbreak as well. "25% of our February bookings on China routes were canceled in the 10 days from Jan. 20," said Hideki Kikuyama, a senior executive managing officer.

Japanese travel agency JTB on Friday suspended all package tours from Japan to mainland China, Hong Kong and Macao through Feb. 29. Peer H.I.S. canceled Hong Kong- and Macao-bound tours departing between Feb. 1 and Feb. 10, on top of an earlier move to scrap tours to the mainland over the same period.

Companies are taking precautions with incoming tourism as well. Oriental Land, operator of Tokyo Disneyland and Tokyo DisneySea, on Friday restricted interactions between park guests and characters such as Mickey Mouse -- its first such step since the resort was established in 1983.

The company began letting the parks' roughly 20,000 employees wear masks on the job for the first time on Tuesday.



Nikkei
The High Court has overturned a decision by An Bord Pleanala to grant planning permission for an electricity generating solar farm.

In judicial review proceedings, environmental activist Peter Sweetman sought orders against both the board and the State aimed at quashing the November 2018 decision giving the go-ahead for the solar farm on a 67.8 hectare site at Fiddane, Ballyhea, Co Cork.

The board opposed the application and had argued that the its decision remain undisturbed by the court.

The board granted permission after Mr Sweetman, appealed a decision by Cork County Council to grant permission for the development.

The developer of the proposed solar farm, IGP Solar 8 Ltd, was a notice party to the proceedings.

On Friday Mr Justice Denis McDonald found that that the board did not carry out a proper screening exercise for Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA) in relation to the proposed development.

This failure by the board, the Judge said, rendered its decision to grant permission invalid.

Other arguments advanced on behalf of Mr Sweetman including that the proposed solar farm required to be assessed under the European Environmental Impact Assessment Directive were dismissed after the judge found the arguments had not been properly made out.

The judge also held that the proceedings against the State must also fail on the grounds that the case against Ireland and the Attorney General was not properly pleaded as is required.

The court, after hearing submissions from the parties, will rule at a later date if the matter can be remitted back to the Board for a fresh consideration.

The judge adjourned the matter to allow the parties consider his decision.
Company's logo is seen on Ararat Park Hyatt Moscow hotel in central Moscow

(Reuters) - Hyatt said it was extending its cancellation policy for Chinese travellers and hotels by nearly three weeks to Feb. 29 amid the coronavirus epidemic.

The extension will apply to guests from mainland China, Hong Kong, Macau and Taiwan looking to stay at any Hyatt hotel globally, the hotel group said on its official WeChat account on Saturday.

The policy allows guests who had booked stays through Hyatt's official channels and are canceling due to coronavirus or Chinese guests outbound to its Asia Pacific hotels, to cancel or change dates free of charge. The cancellation policy was initially offered for bookings made up to Feb. 10.

Customers that had booked to stay at Hyatt hotels in mainland China, Hong Kong, Macau and Taiwan can also cancel or change their reservations free of charge, it said.

Shangri-la Hotels also said on Saturday it would allow travellers from China to cancel hotel bookings through Feb. 29. Customers booked into its Chinese hotels can also cancel free of charge, it said in a statement posted on WeChat.

And Chinas Meituan Dianping said it would extend a free refunds policy for hotel reservations on its travel booking platform, also until the end of February.

(Reporting by Aishwarya Nair in Bengaluru and Brenda Goh in Shanghai; Editing by Clelia Oziel)
A worker disinfects the square in front of the Hankou train station in Wuhan on January 30, 2020. Photo by Reuters.

The Vietnamese government will donate $500,000 worth of goods and medical supplies to help China deal with the fast-spreading new coronavirus epidemic.

Besides this, the Vietnam Red Cross will give $100,000 in similar aid directly to 31 localities in China, including Wuhan City in Hubei Province, the epicenter of the new outbreak.

Vietnam has also asked seven northern provinces that share a border with China  Dien Bien, Lai Chau, Lao Cai, Ha Giang, Cao Bang, Lang Son and Quang Ninh  to provide all help they can for the Chinese people.

Prime Minister Nguyen Xuan Phuc had said earlier this week that Vietnam was willing to actively coordinate efforts with China in fighting the new coronavirus epidemic.

In the note sent to his Chinese counterpart Li Keqiang, Phuc expressed his sympathy for the losses and hardship that Chinese people were experiencing and hoped that with its vast experience in curbing the severe acute respiratory syndrome (SARS) epidemic in 2003, China will successfully stop the new coronavirus soon.

China has confidence and capability to win the war against the new coronavirus, a Reuters report quoted the countrys foreign ministry spokeswoman as saying in response to the World Health Organization (WHO) declaring the outbreak a global emergency.

The virus has spread from mainland China to Hong Kong, Macao, Thailand, Singapore, Taiwan, Malaysia, Japan, Australia, the U.S., South Korea, France, Germany, Canada, Vietnam, the UAE, Nepal, Cambodia, Sri Lanka, India, the Philippines, the U.K., Russia, Finland, Nepal, Sweden, and Spain. Almost 12,000 people have been confirmed infected with the virus.

Chinese authorities said 259 people had died of the coronavirus infection as of Saturday morning.

They had confirmed Thursday that a Vietnamese woman in Jiangxi Province has tested positive for the new coronavirus.

Vietnam has recorded six infections so far - four Vietnamese and two Chinese nationals.

The Vietnamese government has deployed various measures to combat the virus, including halting all flights to coronavirus-hit areas, suspending visas for visitors from those regions, quarantining Chinese workers returning to Vietnam after Tet and suspending spring festivals as well as temporarily closing schools.
COLUMBIA, S.C. - South Carolinas military museum covers 250 years of artifacts and stories of brave soldiers fighting for their country, from men with muskets facing the British before the U.S. was even a country to troops who fought the war or terror in Afghanistan.

But the museums official name  the South Carolina Confederate Relic Room and Military Museum  is stuck in the four years that South Carolinians didnt fight for the U.S.

And when anything involving the Confederacy comes up, it drags on fund raising and even admissions at the museum, Executive Director Allen Roberson said.

When recently working on renewing its national accreditation, the American Alliance of Museums Accreditation said the museum could make it easier on itself by eliminating Confederate from its name.

Roberson has his own reason for suggesting the change. The name right now is too long. And what do you think about when you hear relic? I prefer artifacts, said Roberson, who said a relic would be a small bottle of sand from a desert battle while an artifact would be the pen a president used to sign a declaration of war.

Right now, the suggestion to drop Confederate Relic Room is just a part of the long term strategic plan for the museum Roberson is writing, based on suggestions from the accreditation group. It was also discussed at a recent meeting of the museums board.

But any change in the name will have to come from lawmakers and that would be an uphill fight. A law passed in 2000 when the state moved the Confederate flag from atop the Statehouse dome to a pole by a monument on the capitol lawn requires a two-thirds vote of the Legislature to alter any historic names or monuments.

Once the Confederate flag came down permanently in 2015  with Roberson delegated to put on white gloves and take the final flag to his museum as part of the quickly put together ceremony  House Speaker Jay Lucas issued a statement saying the House wouldnt take up any other discussion over Confederate monuments and names while he is speaker.

The Daughters of the Confederacy helped raise the money to open the museum in what was then one of the poorest states in the county in 1896.

When Roberson made his 15-minute budget presentation Tuesday to a handful of South Carolina House members, he mentioned the Civil War just once, answering a question from a representative about a project to conserve its existing collection of uniforms.

Instead, Roberson spent most of his time talking about a full bottle of whisky the museum obtained from the final survivor of a group of three friends in World War I and a huge Vietnam War exhibition planned to open Labor Day,

Roberson told lawmakers Tuesday that attendance at the museum was finally back on the rise. It dropped 5,000 people  about 20%  in the year after the museum handled that final Confederate flag with a vague, unfunded mandate to display it properly. The first proposal was a $4 million multimedia display that included massive renovations. It was roundly criticized.

After years of asking for money and wrangling, the flag was quietly put in a $1,400 viewing case hanging between two offices amid a display of other historical South Carolina flags in November 2018.

Roberson never wanted the flag. He thought it was a political item that didnt need to be in a military museum beside flags that went into battle, including one from an unit of African American soldiers from South Carolina who fought for the Union in the Civil War.

 lot of these flags have gunpowder, blood, bullet holes  they were what 18- and 19-year-old boys died fighting under, Roberson said in June 2017. This is not the same thing.

___

Follow Jeffrey Collins on Twitter at https://twitter.com/JSCollinsAP
Kiran Narayanan By

Express News Service

KOCHI: When the state government banned single-use plastic from January 1, the aim was to achieve the green dream. However, the absence of adequate infrastructure for managing the existing plastic waste in several local self-government institutions is proving to be a dampener. The nearby local bodies of Kochi city are no different.

Barring Pallippuram panchayat, the civic bodies under Vypeen block panchayat such as Kuzhuppilly, Edavanakkad, Nayarambalam and Njarakkal are having a tough time disposing of the ever-increasing loads of plastic waste.

"Even before the ban on single-use plastic, we were facing problems in handling plastic waste. Now, our collection facility is overloaded making it impossible for us to collect plastic waste from homes," said an official with Njarakkal panchayat.He said the ban on single-use plastic had also put a huge financial burden on the panchayat.

"Workers of agencies are asking Rs 7 for removing per kilogram of waste from our collection facility. This means removing a load of plastic will cost around Rs 21,000. While it was decided to collect Rs 50 per month from the 5,000-odd households in the civic bodies, most families are reluctant to pay. Since the panchayat does not have a separate fund for the purpose, we are forced to source the money from our plan fund. This would take a toll on the civic bodys development activities," he said.

Pallippuram better off

Pallippuram panchayat has set up its own shredding unit with a material collection facility (MCF) and a resource recovery facility (RRF). "We set up the unit with our fund. However, at its present capacity, the unit can only cater to our demands. Hence, we cannot accommodate (the waste from) other panchayats. We are now expanding the facility to store more plastic waste," said Pallippuram panchayat president PK Radhakrishnan.

Unscientific segregation

Experts said scientific measures are not being followed in the segregation process. "In many places, segregation is not being done properly," said Sreelal S, Ernakulam district in-charge of Clean Kerala Company.Without proper segregation, the waste will not fetch any money to the panchayat, he added.

Upcoming Clean Kerala shredding units

Maradu municipality

North Paravur block panchayat (Chendamangalam panchayat)

Vadavucode block panchayat (Koothrikka panchayat)

Muvattupuzha block panchayat (Location not finalised)

Clean Kerala godown at Edayar

The process
He saw her playing in front of the house, lured her into his residence and sexually assaulted her.

Hyderabad: A 74-year-old allegedly sexually assaulted a seven-year-old girl on Thursday after luring her with tender coconut water. Neredmet police said the accused, Hyder alias Yusuf, has been arrested. Police said the victim is Yusufs neighbour in Ambedkarnagar, Sainikpuri.

He saw her playing in front of the house, lured her into his residence and sexually assaulted her. Her parents, daily wage labourers, were away at work. After they returned home, the victim narrated her ordeal. Her parents approached the Neredmet police and lodged a complaint.
A simple message was delivered at Saturday's 'Standing Together' march in Drogheda to those intent on causing murder and misery - end it - now.

In a passionate speech to close the rally, attended by thousands, Mayor Paul Bell laid it on the line.

To those 'enforcing misery' on the people of the town, he remarked, 'go and go now.'

Looking back on the day, he said it was one of his proudest days as mayor and felt that the town delivered a message to the country.

'Today is a special moment and one that changes will be born from.

'The legislators came to town and got the message. The turnout came as a build up over time, people just felt neglected.'

He said he was happy at the attendance and understood many supported the march but did not come along.

'I wanted to speak for everyone, those there, those not there.

'We have to tackle this in a multi agency way now and that's the way forward.'

He thanked the Gardai for their sterling efforts on the day and those that spoke as part of the rally.
Alexandra Waterbury (left) led the protest against Amar Ramasar, who stars as Bernardo in West Side Story on Broadway. Here, she poses with her friend, Shilpa Yarlagadda. Photo: Lila Shapiro

On a cold Friday night, a small crowd was gathered outside a neon marquee for the new production of West Side Story on Broadway. But they werent there to see the show. They held up signs: Sexual predators shouldnt get leading roles on Broadway, read one; Is Me Too just for Hollywood? asked another. A third bore a photograph of a ballerina glancing over her shoulder: We Stand with Alexandra Waterbury. Nearby was the ballerina herself, wearing a black leather jacket and white sneakers, blonde hair spilling over a chunky black and white scarf; she held up an awkwardly large piece of poster board: Still not your farm animal, it read.

Two years ago, when Waterbury was 19, she woke up in her boyfriends apartment, checked her email on his computer, and accidentally discovered a series of photographs of naked girls and their private parts. They included ones of herself, as well as a short video of her having sex. Her boyfriend at the time, Chase Finlay, was then a principal dancer at the New York City Ballet; theyd met when she was a student at the School of American Ballet, the companys affiliate academy. Finlay had been sharing the photographs  which Waterbury says were taken without her consent or knowledge  on group chats with friends, including other members of the company. I bet we could tie some of them up and abuse them like farm animals, a young donor wrote in response to one of the photos, according to a lawsuit Waterbury filed back in 2018. Amar Ramasar, a friend of Finlays and a star dancer at the company, shared a shot of another ballerina, bare-chested, along with a photograph of her vagina. A few months later, in the midst of an investigation into the incident, Finlay voluntarily resigned from the company. Ramasar was fired, along with another principal dancer in the group chat. Both dancers were reinstated to the company after the dancers union challenged the firing and brought in an arbitrator who ultimately ruled that the company had gone too far in disciplining the two men. As part of their rehabilitation, they were assigned mandatory counseling.

Today, Ramasar is starring in West Side Story as Bernardo, the leader of the Sharks*, and hes the reason Waterbury and about two dozen others  an eclectic group including ballerinas, aspiring actors, and a 75-year-old retired history professor  were protesting the show. As Waterbury sees it, he has yet to be held fully accountable for his actions.

Its bullshit, said Waterbury, hoisting up her sign.

Not everyone shares her perspective. On Friday, Ramasars girlfriend, whose nude photos he shared two years ago, put out a statement saying he has been unfairly targeted. Alexa Maxwell, a New York City Ballet corps dancer, has been dating Ramasar for five years. In an interview with the New York Times, Maxwell called his text messages a misstep in judgment. She said he had apologized to her multiple times, and that she had already forgiven him. When asked about Maxwells statement, Waterbury said it didnt change her view of the situation. Whether or not she says its okay now, what he did was illegal. The things that Chase did to me, Amar did to her, she said. Shes going to deal with it in whatever way she needs to deal with it, and thats obviously trying to avoid the truth of the situation.

Waterbury and her fellow protesters see Ramasar as part of a larger system of abuse in the often brutal world of ballet. Itd be hard to find a dancer in New York City, male or female, who hasnt experienced some sort of sexual misconduct in their career, said Waterburys best friend, Emmy, a fellow ballet dancer and her classmate at Columbia University.

The same year that Waterbury discovered the photographs, the director of the New York City Ballet abruptly retired in the midst of an investigation into his abusive behavior, which had been public knowledge for decades. To pick one of many well-documented instances, back in the 80s, Peter Martins spent a night in jail after beating his wife, a ballerina at the company nearly 20 years his junior, whom hed first met as a 16-year-old student at the School of American Ballet. The issue is that theres no checks in place for administration and management to rectify situations, Emmy said. And thats partly because what is valued in ballet is artistic innovation as opposed to professional integrity. Theres this glorification of the struggle of the pain you put yourself through. She gestured at her sign: Talent cannot justify abuse.

A line started to form outside the theater as the protesters chanted, Hey, hey! Ho, ho! Amar has got to go!

Some of the ticket-holders took photographs; others willingly accepted the informational postcards the protesters handed out. Waterbury offered one to a man in long camel overcoat. He raised his hand in dismissal and resumed studying his iPhone.

I feel like my sign is pretty off-putting, she said, shrugging. An older woman in a fur coat was more receptive. He should not be in this show, she said, shaking her head. Im embarrassed I bought tickets.

Its okay, Waterbury offered. Just boo him.

That was so disgusting. He got away with it? she asked. No punishment, no anything?

He had to go to therapy.

How did they allow that?

Thats why were here, Waterbury said.

Screw Bernardo, the woman said emphatically as she walked inside.

Waterbury and the two other women organizing the protest  a young dancer named Megan Rabin from Boston and a local high-school student named Paige  said they hoped Ramasar would be held accountable. I am pursuing a career in theater, so obviously Broadway is a big dream of mine, said Paige. But the idea of going into a career where someone whos done something like this is not only tolerated but accepted  She took a breath. Theres nothing else that I want to be doing, but I dont want to be doing it while powerful men continually decide to completely demean women by supporting people like this.

L-R: Ballerinas, aspiring actors, local high school students, and others showed up to support Waterbury. L-R: Ballerinas, aspiring actors, local high school students, and others showed up to support Waterbury.

This is the second protest theyve held during the shows previews; several others are scheduled over the next few weeks leading up to the opening on February 20. I cant even imagine what it feels like to be an actor who has to work with him, said Rabin. Although no one in the cast has officially spoken out about Ramasar, after walking by the protesters last week, a cast member anonymously reached out to the theater blog, On Stage, with a note. Im writing this to you on my way home from the theatre and my hands are shaking. Is it from the cold or my nerves writing this? I cant tell, the person wrote. What I do know is that I support anyone and everyone protesting Amars casting. Im not speaking for anyone else in the cast but its been an issue for me from the moment he showed up to rehearsals.

As the line grew longer, many ticket-holders walked by the protesters without making eye contact; those who stopped to talk seemed to mostly agree that Ramasars behavior was bad, though none that I observed chose to throw out their ticket and walk away. A man in a striped scarf studied Waterburys sign then paused to speak with her. Tell me the quick story, he commanded.

He sent and received naked photos of people without them knowing or consenting, she said.

Obviously thats no good, the man said.

Google Peter Martins, Waterbury advised. They all learned from him.

So, hes encouraging proteges to behave like himself, said the man. Thats sick and bad. I hate that. Okay. He accepted a postcard and walked into the theater. Waterbury set down her sign and rubbed her hands together, shivering in the cold. Shed been nervous heading over, but now she was feeling better. I spent all day at school not doing my homework, which is what I really needed to be doing, she said. But that wasnt so bad. Im feeling pretty good.

*An earlier version of this piece stated that Bernardo is the leader of the Jets in West Side Story. He is in fact the leader of the Sharks.
The New York State Bar Association released and approved a report Friday that supports the legalization of adult recreational marijuana use in New York, the bar association said.

The report, created by the bar associations committee on cannabis law, recommended any law legalizing recreational marijuana include:

 USDA mandated cannabis testing

 A comprehensive state Office of Cannabis Management

 Provisions for local municipality opt-out

 Social equity provisions

 State tax

 Advertising and marketing guidelines

 State environmental protections

The report also noted that New York State would benefit from enlisting the RAND Corporation, a nonprofit global policy think tank, or a similar organization to analyze a recreational marijuana legalization policy. The RAND Corporation has been used by other states looking to legalize recreational marijuana, the bar association said.

Last year, a bill legalizing the recreational use of marijuana did not pass in the New York State Legislature.

Currently, New Yorkers can only legally use marijuana if they have a prescription to treat a medical condition.

In 2019, possession of up to two ounces of marijuana was decriminalized and reduced to a violation in New York State.

The report by the New York State Bar Association also endorsed a resolution by the American Bar Association that suggested exempting marijuana from the federal Controlled Substances Act.

Thanks for visiting Syracuse.com. Quality local journalism has never been more important, and your subscription matters. Not a subscriber yet? Please consider supporting our work.
Cassie Randolphs family wasnt so sure about Colton Underwood when they first met him. Matt Randolph, Cassies father, even flew to Portugal to talk his daughter out of going any further on the show.

Shortly after filming wrapped, however, Underwood assured Bachelor Nation that he was on good terms with the Randolphs (even Matt).

Cassie Randolph and Colton Underwood | Morgan Lieberman/Getty Images

In a recent interview Underwood and Cassie did with the Cody Cast podcast, Underwood says theres a section in his upcoming book, The First Time, where he thanks his girlfriends family for letting him flip their lives upside down.

Theres a section where I get to thank people and I thank the Randolph family for letting me come in and flip their lives upside down. I mean thats basically essentially what happened after the show. And I talk about the battles of really struggling with still finding yourself and still figuring out who you are and what you want out of life while youre dealing with this and it was overwhelming for me. I struggled with it at times, he said.

How Cassie Randolph and Colton Underwoods lives have changed since The Bachelor

Randolph and Underwoods lives (as well as their families lives) have changed greatly since their season of The Bachelor.

For one thing, they get stopped by fans all the time.

Most people are very respectful, say hello, cheers, and we keep on our way but its just nice seeing people smile, said Underwood. If they want to stop and take a photo then we do that. But I think the show is just so unique that they feel like they know us personally. You know, I see why they relate. Its a good time.

Cassie agrees that members of Bachelor Nation talk to them like theyre friends.

Well be doing our thing with Coltons family and theyll come up and be like, Oh my gosh how are you? And Im like, I think I havent met them before but I dont know.'

How Cassie Randolph and Colton Underwood stay grounded

Randolphs advice for future Bachelor stars or anyone whos suddenly thrust into fame is to stay close to friends and family.

Its definitely a huge life change because I think before going into it I had no idea life would change that much. You know, you dont expect it to. But I think the one thing thats kept me grounded so much is keeping the same people around me and staying close to my family and constant friends. And having a relationship that really grounds me. And not forgetting: Dont be entitled. Everyones just a person. Even if you get annoyed in situations, dont, because theyre just people and theyre excited to see you and its not a big deal, she said.

Underwood has the same strategy: Just stick with the people who were there before it all.

Read more: Mike Johnson Was Seen out With This Contestant From Peter Webers Bachelor Season
NEW DELHI: The Centre on Saturday told the Delhi High Court that the convicts in 2012 Nirbhaya gangrape and murder case were taking the law and the judicial process for a ''joyride.'' This submission was made by Solicitor General Tushar Mehta on behalf of the Centre before the Delhi court.

''Convicts in Nirbhaya case have taken the process of law to "joyride" and are acting in tandem to delay the execution,'' Mehta said. He also lamented that the Nirbhaya gangrape case will go down in the history of India where convicts of the heinous crime are trying the patience of country.

After hearing Mehta's submission, the high court issued a notice to all 4 convicts in the case and the Tihar Jail officials. The hearing will now take place on a special Sunday sitting on February 2 at 3 pm, the court said.

The extremely critical remarks from the Solicitor General came a day after a Delhi court stayed till further orders the execution of the Nirbhaya gangrape and murder convicts, which was earlier scheduled to take place on February 1. Additional sessions judge Dharmender Rana had reserved the order in the matter earlier today.

During the hearing on Friday, public prosecutor Irfan Ahmad said that convict Mukesh has no legal remedies available and the sentence on Mukesh should be executed.

Advocate AP Singh, appearing on behalf of the convicts, submitted that some legal remedies are still available for the convicts adding that Mukesh has been sincerely pursuing all legal remedies without delay.

Live TV

On the other hand, Ahmad argued that the application moved by Vinay and Akshay is non-maintainable as per the Delhi Prison Rules but said that the execution of Vinay can be postponed.

Recently, another convict Vinay Sharma had filed a mercy petition in the matter. Advocate Seema Kushwaha, representing the victim`s side, said that the convicts herein are adopting delay tactics to thwart the speed of justice.

A Delhi court had earlier issued death warrants for the four convicts - Akshay Thakur, Mukesh Singh, Pawan Gupta, and Vinay Kumar Sharma - for their execution on February 1. The case pertains to the gang-rape and brutalising of a 23-year-old paramedical student in a moving bus on the night of December 16, 2012, by six people including a juvenile in Delhi.

The woman had died at a Singapore hospital a few days later. One of the five adults accused, Ram Singh, had allegedly committed suicide in the Tihar Jail during the trial of the case.
The ban will take effect on February 1st.

At Changi international airport in Singapore (Photo: AFP)



Citizens of Singapore and long-time passport holders who have been to China will be able to come into the city state.

Speaking to the media, Singaporean Minister for National Development Lawrence Wong said the government has decided to widen travel restrictions to all new visitors.

Singapore has so far recorded 13 infection cases, all from Chinas Wuhan, the epicenter of the outbreak.

The same day, Japan advised its citizens in China to consider returning home and limited travelling in Wuhan.

Its Foreign Ministry also urged Japanese citizens to avoid unnecessary trips to China./.
China has jetted off two planeloads of its citizens back to Hubei, the quarantined province at the centre of the deadly coronavirus outbreak where they were welcomed by authorities in full-body protective suits. A Xiamen Airlines charter flight took off from Bangkok landed late on January 31 in the provincial capital Wuhan, which is believed to be the main epicenter of the infection.

The health authorities covered themselves with white, full-body protective gear stood by the cabin door as the 73 passengers deboarded the aircraft, smiling through the face masks and waving to the photographers.

READ: Coronavirus Outbreak: Sri Lankan Students From Wuhan To Be Kept Under Quarantine

250 died, more than 12000 infected

A second flight landed soon afterwards carrying Hubei residents from Kota Kinabalu, a famous coastal tourist destination in Malaysia. The Foreign Ministry said on Friday that the country is trying to bring back Wuhan residents back from overseas as soon as possible. The move was taken after more than 30 airlines worldwide announced that they are reducing or halting flights to China as the country struggles to contain the spread of the epidemic. The death toll for the Wuhan 2019-nCoV has spiked to more than 250 and infection cases surged nearly 12,000 by Saturday, February 1, confirmed Chinas National Health Commission as per reports.

READ: Ethiopian Airlines Continues Flights To China Amid Coronavirus Outbreak

Several countries suspend airlines

The Communist Party officials in Wuhan, the epicenter in Hubei province where the virus emerged, reportedly expressed remorse over the local authorities lethargy in taking adequate containment measures to have prevented the epidemic in time.

According to reports, only last week, Chinas central government took a dramatic step as it issued restraint orders, imposing mass coronavirus quarantine that now encompasses 12 cities with approximately 1.4 billion citizens on lockdown. Several countries across the world, including the US, have suspended major airline services and immigration facilities placing travel restrictions on Chinese nationals. According to the World Health Organization (WHO), majority infection cases outside of mainland China are associated with global contagion outbreak that involved travel.

READ: Africa: Government Ramps Up Preventive Measures Amid Coronavirus Dread

READ: Coronavirus Infected More Than 75,000 People In Wuhan: Study Estimates
RESEARCH TRIANGLE PARK, N.C. -- New Army research provides a better understanding of the swelling that occurs in the brain during a stroke, which could contribute to new treatment strategies for stroke patients and have potential implications for traumatic brain injuries.

Cerebral edema, swelling that occurs in the brain, is a severe and potentially fatal complication for stroke victims. Research, funded in part by the Army Research Office and conducted at The University of Rochester Medical Center, shows for the first time that the glymphatic system -- normally associated with the beneficial task of waste removal -- goes awry during a stroke and floods the brain, promoting edema and drowning brain cells.

The research, conducted with mice, appears in the journal Science.

"These findings show that the glymphatic system plays a central role in driving the acute tissue swelling in the brain after a stroke", said Maiken Nedergaard, M.D., D.M.Sc., co-director of the University of Rochester Medical Center Center for Translational Neuromedicine and senior author of the article. "Understanding this dynamic -- which is propelled by storms of electrical activity in the brain -- point the way to potential new strategies that could improve stroke outcomes."

The glymphatic system, first discovered by the Nedergaard lab in 2012, consists of a network that piggybacks on the brain's blood circulation system and is comprised of layers of plumbing, with the inner blood vessel encased by a 'tube' that transports cerebrospinal fluid. The system pumps the fluid through brain tissue primarily during sleep, washing away toxic proteins and other waste.

Before the findings of the new study, scientists assumed that the source of brain swelling was exclusively the result of fluid from blood.

"Our hope is that this new finding will lead to novel interventions to reduce the severity of ischemic events, as well as other brain injuries to which Soldiers may be exposed," said Matthew Munson, Ph.D., program manager, fluid dynamics, ARO, an element of the U.S. Army Combat Capabilities Development Command's Army Research Laboratory. "What's equally exciting is that this new finding was not part of the original research proposal. That is the power of basic science research and working across disciplines. Scientists 'follow their nose' where the data and their hypotheses lead them -- often to important unanticipated applications."

AN ELECTRICAL WAVE, THEN THE FLOOD

Ischemic stroke, the most common form of stroke, occurs when a vessel in the brain is blocked. This blockage denies the nutrients and oxygen cells need to function, which results in their rapid depolarization. As the cells release energy and fire, they trigger neighboring cells, creating a domino effect that results in an electrical wave that expands outward from the site of the stroke, called spreading depolarization.

During the spreading depolarization, vast amounts of potassium and neurotransmitters released by neurons into the brain cause the smooth muscle cells that line the walls of blood vessels to seize up and contract, cutting off blood flow in a process known as spreading ischemia. Cerebrospinal Fluid then flows into the ensuing vacuum, inundating brain tissue and causing edema. The already vulnerable brain cells in the path of the flood essentially drown in fluid and the brain begins to swell. These depolarization waves can continue in the brain for days and even weeks after the stroke, compounding the damage.

"When you force every single cell, which is essentially a battery, to release its charge it represents the single largest disruption of brain function you can achieve -- you basically discharge the entire brain surface in one fell swoop," said Humberto Mestre, M.D., a Ph.D. student in the Nedergaard lab and lead author of the study. "The double hit of the spreading depolarization and the ischemia makes the blood vessels cramp, resulting in a level of constriction that is completely abnormal and creating conditions for CSF to rapidly flow into the brain."

The study correlated the brain regions in mice vulnerable to the fluid propelled by the glymphatic system with edema found in the brains of humans who had sustained an ischemic stroke.

POINTING THE WAY TO NEW STROKE THERAPIES

The findings suggest potential new treatment strategies that, used in combination with existing therapies, focus on restoring blood flow to the brain quickly after a stroke. The study could also have implications for brain swelling observed in other conditions such as subarachnoid hemorrhage and traumatic brain injury.

Approaches that block specific receptors on nerve cells could inhibit or slow the cycle of spreading depolarization. Additionally, a water channel called aquaporin-4 on astrocytes -- an important support cell in the brain -- regulates the flow of the fluid. When the research team conducted the stroke experiments in mice genetically modified to lack aquaporin-4, the fluid flow into the brain slowed significantly.

Aquaporin-4 inhibitors currently under development as a potential treatment for cardiac arrest and other diseases could eventually be candidates to treat stroke.

###

In additional to the Army Research Office, the research was supported with funding from National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke, the National Institute of Aging, Fondation Leducq Transatlantic Networks of Excellence Program, the Novo Nordisk and Lundbeck Foundations, and E.U. Horizon 2020.

CCDC Army Research Laboratory is an element of the U.S. Army Combat Capabilities Development Command. As the Army's corporate research laboratory, ARL discovers, innovates and transitions science and technology to ensure dominant strategic land power. Through collaboration across the command's core technical competencies, CCDC leads in the discovery, development and delivery of the technology-based capabilities required to make Soldiers more effective to win our nation's wars and come home safely. CCDC is a major subordinate command of the U.S. Army Futures Command.
President Trump adds Africas biggest country, Nigeria, as well as Myanmar, Eritrea, Kyrgyzstan, Sudan and Tanzania, to his restricted travel list.

WASHINGTON  The Trump administration on Friday added six countries to the nations facing stringent travel restrictions, virtually blocking immigration from Africas most populous nation, Nigeria, and from Myanmar, where refugees are fleeing genocide.

Beside Nigeria, varying degrees of restrictions will hit three other African countries, Eritrea, Sudan and Tanzania, and one former Soviet state, Kyrgyzstan. Myanmars Muslim Rohingya could also be caught in the crossfire. The total number of countries on the restricted travel list now stands at 13.

Immigrant visas, issued mostly to foreigners intending to live in the United States, will be banned from Nigeria, Myanmar, Eritrea and Kyrgyzstan. The ban would prevent immigrants from Sudan and Tanzania from obtaining diversity visas. Homeland Security and State Department officials said some immigrants would be able to obtain waivers from the restrictions.

The proclamation, which President Trump was expected to sign on Friday, will take effect on February 22.

The administration has argued that the ban, enacted in 2017 to restrict travel from Muslim-majority countries, is necessary to ensure that countries satisfy security requirements for travel into the United States, or face restrictions until they do.

The expansion of the restrictions, which already affected more than 135 million people in seven countries, is likely to hinder more than 12,300 potential immigrants from resettling in the United States or reuniting with their family. The effect on Nigeria, not only Africas most populous country but also its largest economy, could be particularly severe.

A United States government official said the administration was adding Nigeria and Tanzania to the list because of the number of people who come from the African countries on a visa and end up illegally staying in the United States. The official said Sudan and Eritrea had not satisfied the administrations information-sharing requirements.

Share this:
Christine McGuinness has revealed she is aching to get on her dancing shoes and join the next cast of Strictly.

The Real Housewives Of Cheshire star, 31, added that she doesn't think the show's romance 'curse' would be a problem for her husband Paddy.

She was seen arriving back at Manchester Airport on Saturday after attending an event in Dublin.

Keen: Christine McGuinness has revealed she is aching to get on her dancing shoes and join the next cast of Strictly Come Dancing

Christine gave a wide smile as she wore a fluffy pink jacket and white slacks and carried a Louis Vuitton handbag.

Her lustrous golden locks were styled into neat waves that flowed over her shoulders.

She completed her look with a pair of tinted butterfly sunglasses.

Busy: The mother-of-three was seen arriving back at Manchester Airport on Saturday after attending an event in Dublin as she revealed her plans to appear on the show

'I would love to do Strictly. Learning a new skill and wearing sparkles... I am there,' she told the Daily Star in a plea to Strictly Come Dancing bosses.

'I have always wanted to learn to dance like they do in Dirty Dancing too. It's my fave movie.'

And while an alleged 'curse' has seen several couples break up after one partner has appeared on the show, Christine added that comedian husband Paddy would be 'fine with it'.

Passion: During her trip to Ireland, she posted as video of herself dancing in a stunning red scarlet dress at the GOSSIE Awards with the caption: 'Every floor is a dance floor'

During her trip to Ireland, she posted as video of herself dancing in a stunning red scarlet dress at the GOSSIE Awards with the caption 'Every floor is a dance floor' in a nod to Strictly.

The mum-of-three has appeared in the limelight more and more over the years, while partner Paddy has taken on more high-profile television roles like Take Me Out and Top Gear.

She often speaks about life with their autistic children and also appears on Loose Women from time to time.

She recently spoke candidly about family life over Christmas and how her twins Leo and Penelope, six, who have autism, coped over the festive period.

Christine and Paddy are also parents to daughter Felicity, three, and she said Christmas last year was the most successful one they've had, but the 'aftermath' following the big day was 'awful'.

Last year the children achieved a number of impressive firsts including having a tree up in their home for the first time in years as they usually struggled with the sensory overload.

Love: The mum-of-three has appeared in the limelight more and more over the years, while partner Paddy has taken on more high-profile television roles like Take Me Out and Top Gear

In a post on Instagram, Christine revealed: 'Walking away from Christmas... Last week I told how proud I was to have a Christmas tree up at home.

'I am still very proud that my children coped well over Christmas as they struggle so much with sensory overload, anxiety, they become easily overwhelmed.'

They also managed to go on their first family holiday this summer, which Christine revealed had been 'six years in the making, planning and dreaming.'
(Newser)  Britons counted down the hours Friday to their countrys departure from the European Union  some joyous, some sad, many just hopeful the divorce would mark the end of an anguished chapter in their countrys history. The 11pm London departure6pm Washington timecomes 3 years after the 52%-48% vote to walk away from the club that Britain had joined in 1973. Throughout the day, Brexit backers draped in Union Jack flags gathered outside Parliament in London to celebrate, the AP reports, their numbers growing and volume increasing as the time grew closer. Nearby, pro-Europeans waving the blocs blue-and-yellow flag came to commiserate. Whether Brexit makes Britain a proud nation that has reclaimed its sovereignty, or a diminished presence in Europe and the world, will be debated for years to come.

story continues below

The date marks the end of the first stage of the Brexit saga. When Britons wake up Saturday, they will notice little change. The UK and the EU have an 11-month transitionin which the UK will continue to follow the blocs rulesin which to strike new agreements on trade, security and other areas. French President Emmanuel Macron called Brexit a "historic alarm signal" on Friday. "It's a sad day, lets not hide it, he said in a televised address. "But it is a day that must also lead us to do things differently." At EU Council headquarters in Brussels, Britain's flag was quietly removed with no leaders watching; an official simply folded it and walked away. The EU Commission president warned that the UK is heading for a lonelier existence. British Prime Minister Boris Johnson recorded an address to be broadcast an hour before the departure, in which he says it's "not an end but a beginning." Brexit champion Nigel Farage and his devotees planned to gather in Parliament Square for patriotic songs and speeches. Others were more low-key. "Many of us want to just mark our sadness in public," said one opponent marching in London.

(Read more Brexit stories.)
Suicide prevention help available through Live On Utah

As the calendar turns to the new year, people often look for ways to help one another. For some, this means working to reduce suicide  something that can be done through Utahs "Live On" campaign. The statewide public-private campaign, which started in 2020, is aimed at educating and helping those who are struggling with their mental health. Utah has been in the top ten for suicide deaths for over two decades. For us to truly change the culture around suicide and mental health, we have to get rid of the stigma that surrounds talking about these issues, said Taryn Hiatt, ...
District of Columbia

FDA OKs treatment for peanut allergy

WASHINGTON  The first treatment for peanut allergies is about to hit the market, a big step toward better care for all kinds of food allergies  but still a long way from a cure.

Fridays approval by the Food and Drug Administration promises to bring some relief to families who have lived in fear of an accidental bite of peanuts at birthday parties and play dates, school cafeterias and restaurants. Named Palforzia, it was developed by Aimmune Therapeutics.

The treatment is a specially prepared peanut powder swallowed daily in tiny amounts that are gradually increased over months. It trains childrens and teens bodies to better tolerate peanut so that an accidental bite is less likely to cause a serious reaction.

Trump signs human trafficking order

WASHINGTON  President Trump marked the 20th anniversary Friday of federal legislation to help combat human trafficking by dedicating a new White House position to the issue.
The second flight to evacuate Indian nationals from coronavirus epicentre Wuhan in China will leave today, national carrier Air India said. Another flight will depart from Delhi to Wuhan at 12.50 pm today with different set of crew, same team of doctors with different aircraft. The rescue team will be again headed by Capt Amitabh Singh, Director Operation, Air India, the airlines spokesperson Dhananjay Kumar said.

The special Air India flight with 324 Indians landed in Delhi from Wuhan early on Saturday, and were taken to the medical observation camps (quarantine facilities) set-up by Indian Army and Indo-Tibetan Border Police Force (ITBP) in Manesar near Gurgaon and Chhawla in West Delhi respectively.

Among the rescued passengers, 211 are students, 110 are working professionals and three minors. Twenty-two of them belong to Maharashtra, and the rest are from Andhra Pradesh and Kerala.

The Boeing 747, one of the largest in Air Indias fleet, had reached Wuhan on Friday evening with a team of doctors to bring back the Indians who had been stranded in a city in Hubei province, which is now completely locked down over the outbreak.

Chinese health officials said on Saturday at least 259 people have died and nearly are 11,800 infected with the novel coronavirus and that the hardest-hit central Chinese province of Hubei reported 45 new fatalities until Friday midnight.

The World Health Organization (WHO) on Friday declared the outbreak as an international public health emergency.

India thanked China for facilitating the special flight to evacuate its citizens from Wuhan.

Two Indians were prevented from boarding the special Air India flight from Wuhan by the Chinese immigration authorities because both were running high temperatures. The barred passengers included a man and a woman and they are likely to be quarantined at a facility in Wuhan and checked for coronavirus symptoms.
Rajasthan Chief Minister Ashok Gehlot on Saturday alleged that the government did not know what people really expected of it, leading to protests and tensions in the country.

Gehot was addressing a public meeting here to campaign for party candidate from Badali Assembly constituency, Devendra Yadav.

"There is a lot of tension in the country since over a month. There was no requirement of protests but if this government understood what citizens want, this situation wouldn't have arrived," he said.

He said the Congress believes in keeping all religions, sections and classes together.

"Whether it was the time of Jawaharlal Nehru, Indira Gandhi, Rajiv Gandhi or the present leadership, they have always looked at Indians as one. Neither their policies nor decisions affected citizens in a wrong way," Gehlot said.

Applauding Yadav's work in Rajasthan, Gehlot said leader like him, who believes in inclusive development, should get an opportunity. He said Delhi needs an emphatic and progressive leader.

Yadav said, "When I was in Rajasthan and had a challenge to develop the rural areas of the state, I received immense support from citizens and Congress to bring that development at the ground level. Delhi has expanded further and there is a requirement of infrastructure development at many places."



Yadav is a former MLA from the Badli constituency and was succeeded by AAP leader Ajesh Yadav in the 2015 Delhi Assembly election.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
Share this article Whatsapp

Facebook

Twitter

Linkedin (Agence France-Presse) Macau, China  Sat, February 1, 2020 15:22 709 7f440ff09e92db75a02bbad206205ed7 2 News Macau,travel,tourism,destination,Wuhan-coronavirus,coronavirus Free

Macau is usually bustling with gamblers during China's Lunar New Year holiday but the flood of tourists has been reduced to a trickle this year as fears grow over a coronavirus that has killed almost 260 people.

The number of visitors to the world's largest casino hub has plunged nearly 80 percent in the past week, transforming the city into a shadow of its former self.

As the only place in China that allows gambling, the former Portuguese colony is normally a huge draw for people from other parts of the vast country.

But on the sixth day of the holiday, only several dozen people were seen at the usually teeming ruins of the 17th-century St Paul's church -- a tourist hotspot.

Most wore surgical masks as a preventative measure against the novel coronavirus, which has infected almost 12,000 people across the nation.

"Everyone is wearing a mask. It is not convenient to take pictures -- we dare not remove the masks," 23-year-old Wei I Ting, a tourist from Taiwan, told AFP.

Read also: Chinese tourists desert Thai resort as coronavirus spreads

Shotah Zhang, who owns a pastry shop, said he was worried about the future of his business.

"As you can see, almost no one is here. We have quite a big problem because we are a small business," Zhang said.

The outbreak is dealing a heavy blow to Macau's economy, which has bet most of its chips on gambling and tourism. Figures for January show gaming revenue fell 11.3 percent on the same month last year.

The city had confirmed seven cases of the virus as of Saturday and authorities have announced measures to curb its spread, including temperature checks and mandatory health declarations for visitors at the border with mainland China.

In casinos, all staff have been ordered to wear masks and temperature checks are being carried out at entrances.

The government has also banned anyone who has visited Hubei province -- the epicenter of the outbreak -- from entering casinos altogether.

But a 24-year-old marketing supervisor for a coffee shop was more hopeful.

"We believe that after the virus is gone, customers will come back," she said.
Metro Manila (CNN Philippines, February 1)  The Department of Health (DOH) said it will recommend a wider travel ban to include other provinces in China when the situation requires it.

Health Undersecretary Eric Domingo said Friday that the task force created to fight the novel coronavirus in the Philippines is thinking of including Chinese provinces with 100 confirmed cases of the new virus which originated in Wuhan City in December last year.

But he added that the actual criteria will be coming from the World Health Organization.

Upon the recommendation of the Health department, President Rodrigo Duterte on Friday issued an order to temporarily stop the entry of all tourists from Hubei province  where Wuhan is located.

Filipinos who are from Wuhan could go home but they will be subjected to a mandatory quarantine for 14 days, which is believed to be the incubation period of the 2019-nCoV.

The first batch of Filipinos will be evacuated next week, the Department of Foreign Affairs said Thursday. Health Secretary Francisco Duque III previously said the travel cost will be shouldered by the government.

Philippine Ambassador to China Chito Sta. Romana earlier said about 30 to 50 Filipinos from Hubei have indicated they want to leave the province. Sta. Romana added there are 300 Filipinos in Hubei, half of them in Wuhan.

Defense Secretary Delfin Lorenzana told reporters the DOH is eyeing two possible quarantine areas for overseas Filipino workers from Wuhan: Caballo Island, a naval station at the entrance of Manila Bay, and the drug abuse treatment and rehabilitation center in Fort Magsaysay, province of Nueva Ecija.

In 2014, the government used Caballo Island to quarantine Filipino peacekeepers from Liberia amid the outbreak of Ebola, a virus with high fatality rate.

The number of 2019-nCoV cases is nearing 12,000 worldwide, with 149 confirmed cases outside of China. Spain is the latest country to report its first case of the new coronavirus.

On Friday, Singapore and the United States announced that visitors who have traveled to China within the last 14 days will not be allowed to enter their countries, CNN reported.

In a study released Friday, Hong Kong researchers said that the number of actual 2019-nCoV cases in China could be far higher than what was being reported. An estimated 75,815 people could be infected with the new coronavirus in Wuhan, China, CNN cited the researchers as saying. The number includes the infected people who do not need or seek medical attention.
By Trend

Azerbaijani and Turkish citizens were evacuated in a plane belonging to Turkey from Wuhan, China on February 1 in the spirit of fraternal relations between Azerbaijan and Turkey in accordance with the decision of Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev and Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan, the Azerbaijani Foreign Ministry said.

In this regard, Azerbaijan expresses appreciation to fraternal Turkey, the ministry said, Trend reports on February 1. This also testifies to the brotherhood of Azerbaijan and Turkey.

"Before the departure, the evacuated Azerbaijani citizens underwent a medical check-up, their health condition is satisfactory, the ministry said. Azerbaijani citizens will be quarantined in Turkey for two weeks and then will return to Azerbaijan.

Azerbaijan also expresses gratitude to the Chinese government for the assistance and support rendered to Azerbaijani citizens and expresses solidarity in these difficult days with China and friendly Chinese people, the ministry said.

---

Follow us on Twitter @AzerNewsAz
Taoiseach Leo Varadkar has launched a blistering attack on Fianna Fail leader Micheal Martin, saying his criticism of EU trade commissioner Phil Hogan was bad-tempered and ill-judged.

Mr Martin said on Thursday that Mr Hogan, a former Fine Gael minister, toshould stay out of domestic politics for the next week. The comments have drawn a sharp response from the Taoiseach.

His intervention comes as the UKs formal departure from the EU occurred at 11pm last night.

In an interview with the Irish Examiner, Mr Varadkar accused his main rival for the role of taoiseach of taking potshots at Mr Hogan, who is likely to be pivotal to Irelands chances of achieving a successful Brexit deal.

I think it was ill-judged and bad tempered of Deputy Martin to be taking potshots at Phil Hogan, said Mr Varadkar. I dont see what was achieved by that.

I just dont think it is realistic to expect the EU trade commissioner to say nothing about Brexit the day before it happens. If he had been handing out leaflets for us or overtly calling for people to vote one way or the other, he [Mr Martin] may have had a case. But he actually didnt do that.

Phil Hogan is the EU cCommissioner for tTrade, he is going to be a pivotal person for Ireland in the next couple of months and years. He has been appointed as EU trade commissioner by Ursula von der Leyen. He is the sort of person the incoming taoiseach  hopefully me  will have to have a close relationship with.

Mr Varadkar is in Cork to canvass in Kinsale and Ballincollig today. During a visit to the Irish Examiners head office yesterday evening, he accused the opposition, particularly Mr Martin, of playing down the dangers Brexit continues to pose.

What the opposition are trying to do, and what Fianna Fail are certainly trying to do, is to try and make out that everything that happens from now on, when it comes to Brexit, is some form of automated process and it doesnt matter who is in charge and that it will all just work out.

I guarantee you that is not the case. What is not resolved is the economic and trading relationship between Britain and Ireland and what will happen with our fisheries, for example, which is going to be particularly sensitive.

Fianna Fail would like to make out that, when it comes to economic issues or European issues or foreign policy issues, these things will sort themselves out automatically and the government is only involved in areas like health and housing, which is just not accurate.

The Taoiseach also rejected Mr Martins claims that Fine Gael is seeking to scare people into voting for them under the cover of Brexit.

The only thing we have done when it comes to Brexit is to tell the people the truth, he said. Just the facts. If Fianna Fail dont want the people to know, why dont they want the people to know the facts?

Data courtesy of The Irish Times

Mr Martin had accused Mr Varadkar of calling the general election to coincide with Brexit because he thought it would return him to power. Mr Martin insisted Brexit is not coming up on the doors, and accused Fine Gael of a desperate bid to put the issue centre stage in a campaign dominated by housing and health.

Meanwhile, Mr Martin suffered his first real setback of the campaign during a below-par interview with RTE broadcaster Bryan Dobson last night.

Mr Martin blamed unnamed people in Fianna Fail headquarters for signing a pledge to introduce a rent freeze, and appeared to struggle on several other questions about his track record in previous governments.

He then said there was a typo in his manifesto which was explained to journalists, where it claimed that up to 250,000 new homes would be built, only to later state 200,000 would be built.
Dumaguete City (CNN Philippines February 1)  All tourists from China, including Hong Kong, will be placed under quarantine for 14 days once they set foot in Negros Oriental, the governor of the province said Friday.

Negros Oriental Roel Ragay Degamo made the order through Executive Order No. 4 after meeting with provincial heath officials on Friday.

Health Secretary Francisco Duque III previously said the symptoms of the new coronavirus infection, now named as 2019 novel coronavirus acute respiratory disease, or 2019-nCoV ARD, may begin to show ten days to two weeks after exposure to the virus.

The order comes a day after the Philippines reported its first case from the 2019-nCoV in the country, a 38-year-old Chinese woman from Wuhan, China, who visited a resort and two hotels in Dumaguete City with a partner last week, according to the Department of Health.

The provincial health office of Negros Oriental has started tracing persons who might have come into contact directly with the Chinese national who tested positive for the novel coronavirus.

In a press conference on Friday, the local health officials said they had gone to the two hotels and a resort, which were identified as the places visited by the Chinese guests. The hotel and resort owners were advised to disinfect their establishments.

Negros Oriental Provincial Health Officer Dr. Liland Estacion said they also identified the hotel personnel who have may have come into contact with the guest and were advised to do a self-quarantine.

To prevent the new viral illness from spreading in the country, President Rodrigo Duterte issued an order to temporarily stop the entry of all nationals from Hubei province  where Wuhan, the ground zero of the diseases outbreak, is located.
Living in a metro, we have access to great amenities that come in really handy in case of emergencies. However, things get a lot difficult for the people who live deep inside villages, in the jungles where there are far away from getting even the most basic medical help in case of emergencies.

Youtube: Asianet News

Jungles are also prone to dangerous plants and creatures that can be poisonous in nature, that can be fatal if medical attention isnt delivered in time. However, tribals of the Kallar forest area at Thiruvananathapuram in Kerela has their own Vanamuthassi which is Malayalam for Grandmother Of The Jungle.

She goes by the name of Lakshmikutty and has been born and raised in the very forest, belonging to the Kaani tribe. The 75- year old Padma Shri awardee is known for her knowledge of traditional medicine and can heal poison attacks. Over the years she has learned over 500 varieties of medicine and remembers each and every one of them, till this date.

Youtube: Asianet News

Her knowledge of medicinal plants has been passed on to her by her mother, who during her lifetime helped as a midwife. People often come to Lakshmikutty for curing snake and insect bites, among other health issues.

For her contributions to the society and immense knowledge, she was awarded the Naatu Vaidya Rathna (Award for Naturopathy) by Kerela government. She has also been awarded the Padma Shri -- the fourth highest civilian honour for an Indian citizen in 2018.

Youtube: Asianet News

Apart from helping cure people, she also writes poems, drama and teaches at the Kerela Folklore Academy. During the 1950s shed go to school walking around ten kilometres daily and was motivated to learn. She managed to study till 8th standard.



Even though she has travelled places, imparting knowledge about natural healing, she still chooses to live in the jungle that she calls her home.
The farming community from across the North Cork region have once again been invited to have their say on the future of the sector and the challenges it faces over the coming years.

IFAC, the farming, food and agribusiness firm, is encouraging people to take part in its second online Irish Farm Report survey, the findings of which were used to compile a thought-provoking report into the current state of the industry.

The survey, which combined the replies of more than 2,000 farmers with a detailed analysis of 21,700 sets of farm accounts, addressed key issues facing the sector from sectoral and environmental challenges, to pensions, labour management and succession.

The results made for stark reading, finding the future of Irish farming was buy no means certain, with low profitability leaving many farmers seriously questioning the long-term viability of their holdings.

Key findings of the report included that between 2017 and 2018 average dairy farm profits were down by 25% (from 1,077 to 804 per hectare), the average tillage profit per hectare was 252 and the average beef farm loss per hectare (excluding EU subsidies) was 116, with 61% of beef farmers not making a profit before EU subsidies and 38% of them unsure if they will still be farming in five years times.

The survey found that pig farmers had incurred losses over the three of the last four years and that forestry planting had declined by 30% over the past three years.

It found that almost half of Irish farmers still do not know how Brexit will affect them, 68% expressed serious concerns about environmental legislation and 46% of farmers over 65 have no life cover.

Perhaps one of the most concerning findings of the survey was that a staggering 86% of all farmers do not have a clear succession plan in place for when they retire.

Of the Cork farmers surveyed for the report some 43% admitted they did not have a succession plan in place, with 31% saying their business was not viable enough to encourage the next generation to take it on.

Commenting on the report IFAC's head of farm support, Phillip O'Connor, said the latter finding was "alarming" given the rising age profile of farmers, with 56% over the age of 65.

"It is important to realise that regardless of viability, a farm is a valuable asset and that failure to plan for succession can have substantial tax consequences for farmers and their successors," said Mr O'Connor.

"Similarly, many farmers do not have a pension plan or life assurance, leaving them with no option but to continue to work on past the age of 65 in order to maintain a household income," he added.

Further focussing on Cork, the report found that 80% of those surveyed said they have an 'off-farm' source of income coming into the household, 64% depend exclusively on family members to help on their farms and that 28% of farm households in Cork have no pension plan for the farmer or their spouse in place.

Stuart Crowley, partner at the IFAC Mallow branch, The Irish Farm Report was a great way to obtain and share invaluable insights about farming in Ireland today.

"Its findings inform our business strategy and the products and services we offer our clients," said Mr Crowley.

"Last year's report uncovered many challenges facing the sector and we are repeating the survey to see if this picture has changed and to ensure we can continue to support and meet the evolving needs of our farming clients."

To take the survey visit www.ifac.ie.
ONLY the President of the Philippines can prevent foreign nationals from entering the country. Local government units can only recommend a ban.

Gov. Gwendolyn Garcia made the clarification after some netizens criticized her move to quarantine for 14 days travelers from mainland China instead of banning their entry.

Garcia reiterated that a quarantine was the best thing the Province could do to avoid the spread of the 2019 novel coronavirus-acute respiratory disease (2019-nCoV-ARD). Imposing a ban has repercussions on foreign policy and international relations which are matters that concern the President, she said.

This is what I wish to clarify because after we had announced our plans to impose a quarantine, I have had a lot of bashing by mediocre keyboard warriors who insist that I should ban. Some even go so far of accusing me of really below-the-belt statements, she said on Saturday, Feb. 1, 2020.

The governor is set to sign an executive order (EO) on the quarantine on Monday, Feb. 3, which is expected to take effect on Wednesday, Feb. 5.

Garcia also clarified that she had no plans to house quarantined travelers at the Mactan-Cebu International Airport (MCIA) after Lapu-Lapu City Mayor Junard Chan was quoted as saying he found it hard for the MCIA to house at least 14,000 travelers at one time.

Ahong earlier said he was more in favor of banning direct flights from China.

The governor said she strongly encouraged the mayor to issue an EO to impose the temporary ban against arrivals from China.

... if, in fact, he, as a local chief executive, can impose such a ban, which already borders on foreign policy and international relations, then I would be the first to congratulate him because he would be the very first local chief executive to take upon himself matters and powers exclusively granted to the President of the Philippines under our Constitution, Garcia said.

Chan, in a statement sent to SunStar Cebu on Saturday, said the City does not oppose quarantining travelers from China.

Story continues

While it is my personal view that expanding the temporary suspension of flights to include other cities outside Hubei Province with confirmed case of 2019-nCoV is a more apt solution, I am fully aware that such power to suspend rests with the President upon recommendation of appropriate agencies. Hence during my presscon, I made an appeal to DOH (Department of Health) to recommend to the President the expansion of the travel ban. I maintain that protecting my constituents is primordial over economic enterprise, reads a portion of his statement.

On Saturday, Cebu Pacific Air (CEB) announced that it would cancel all flights between the Philippines and mainland China (Beijing, Shanghai, Xiamen, Guangzhou and Shenzen) from Feb. 2 to March 29, 2020 amid the developments related to the 2019-nCoV-ARD.

It also said flights between the Philippines, Hong Kong and Macau, on the other hand, have been reduced.

CEB said passengers affected by flight cancellations have been notified through contact details provided upon booking.

They may also check the status of their flights through the manage booking portal in CEBs website.

Meanwhile, Philippine Airlines (PAL) on Friday, Jan. 31, announced that starting Feb. 1, it would reduce flights between Manila and greater China by over 50 percent.

There is a need to maintain a number of our flights on various Manila-China routes, so that we can serve the urgent travel needs of our passengers, including many Chinese nationals returning to the mainland following their Lunar New Year holidays and Filipinos who are returning home from their stays in China, PAL said in a statement.

PAL has yet to reduce or suspend flights from Cebu to China (Beijing, Shanghai, Guangzhou, Xiamen and Quanzhou) and to its neighboring areas Hong Kong, Macau and Taiwan.

We cannot cancel all. We have to maintain some flights to enable travelers to return home, said Cielo Villaluna, PAL spokesperson, adding that the airline does not operate regular commercial flights between Cebu and China.

Moreover, PAL expects it will need to further reduce its China flights in the coming weeks, based on its daily assessment of the situation and subject to guidelines and instructions from the DOH and the Bureau of Quarantine and concerned government authorities.

It also asked passengers to check its advisories in the coming weeks for further changes. / WBS, KOC
Over 20 thousand faithful present at the celebration. Bishop of Jowai: "Priests are agents of God's blessings and healers of those who bear physical and spiritual wounds." The occasion served to commemorate the extraordinary presence of the Salesians, who for over 100 years have contributed to the development of India.

New Delhi (AsiaNews / Agencies) - Catholics from north-east India are celebrating: over 20 thousand people participated in the ordination of 11 new priests, including six of them Salesians from Don Bosco. The ceremony took place in the Cathedral of Mary Help of Christians in Shillong, Meghalaya, on January 19. Bishop Victor Lyngdoh of Jowai, presided over the liturgy.

Directly addressing the newly ordained, he said: Priests are the apostles of Christ, they represent Christ to the faithful. They are agents of God's blessings and healers of those who bear physical and spiritual wounds. "

Mass was concelebrated by hundreds of priests. Dozens of nuns and brothers were also present. The candidates were presented by Fr. John Madur, diocesan administrator, and Fr. Paul O Lyngkot, provincial of the Salesians of Shillong. In addition to the six Salesians, a Capuchin friar, two Claretians and two diocesans were also ordained.

In his homily, Msgr. Lyngdoh explained: Priests are teachers and guides of the faithful on how to live a virtuous life, becoming models of holiness in words and deeds. Priests are prophets like the prophet Jonah who worked for the conversion of the people of Nineveh. "

The bishop then urged the new priests: They should bring the faithful back to God by preaching [the Gospel]. They should lead the people to Christ and spend their lives in eternal things, like Moses and the other prophets. Priests should make themselves available to be with the Lord at all times through prayer and the celebration of the Eucharist. "

The ordination ceremony was a time to remember the presence of the Salesians in India. The first group of missionaries arrived in Thanjavur, Tamil Nadu, in 1906. THe group comprised three priests, a deacon, a coadjutor and a seminarian. In 1922, the congregation began a new phase of expansion in the northeastern regions, settling in Assam and Meghalaya.

Today the Society of Don Bosco has over 2,500 members distributed in 11 provinces. The order manages a university, 28 colleges including two engineering schools, more than 100 technical schools, a vast network of high schools and dozens of non-formal technical and agricultural centers. It is also involved in literacy centers, hospices for street children and rehabilitation and rescue clinics.
On Wednesday, Alan Dershowitz basically argued that President Trump was a king. By Thursday, Senate Republicans were indicating they would happily pick up the crown and place it on Trump's head.

We've long known the acquittal of President Trump was all but certain, but how we got there mattered. The arguments from House impeachment managers and Trump's lawyers mattered. Whether the trial was fair mattered. In the end, what the American people were given was more akin to a coverup than a trial. Senate Republicans have now acknowledged that President Trump is guilty of what he's accused of and they just won't do anything about it.

The two days of the Senate trial's Q&A session can be summed up in three sentences: President Trump's lawyers made an authoritarian argument that he's above the law. The House impeachment managers argued he's not. Senate Republicans sided with Trump and put a rubber stamp on authoritarianism. As House impeachment manager Rep. Adam Schiff (D-CA) put it, what we saw in Trump's defense over the course of this trial was "a descent into constitutional madness."

The crux of Dershowitz's argument was that even if President Trump was looking out for his own personal interests when withholding the aid from Ukraine and pushing for the probes, that's not impeachable. Dershowitz claimed that if a president believes his own re-election is in the public interest he can essentially do anything in pursuit of that end.

In other words, Dershowitz said that when you're a president, you can do anything, and Congress should let you do it. You can just grab foreign countries by their points of leverage and extort them to get re-elected. Dershowitz subsequently tried to walk back what he said, putting more emphasis on the claim that a crime would be impeachable. But even his clarifying argument is false, given the fact no statutory crimes existed at the time the impeachment clauses were adopted in the Constitution.

Schiff argued that if the Senate accepted Dershowitzs argument, they would be validating President Nixons claim that if a president does it, then it is not illegal. Schiff said it would be a normalization of lawlessness" and a "bastardization of the Constitution." But Schiff's powerful counterarguments appeared to ring hollow as Senate Republicans made statements signaling an endorsement of the core of Dershowitz's argument.

On Thursday night, Senator Lamar Alexander (R-TN) announced that he would be voting "no" on the resolution to subpoena witnesses and documents. Alexander's statement was truly stunning, as it conceded that the House impeachment manager's proved their "overwhelming" case: "It was inappropriate for the President to ask a foreign leader to investigate his political opponent and to withhold United States aid to encourage that investigation." Lamar said the Senate shouldn't remove a president for "inappropriate" behavior, reducing Trump's alleged abuse of power down to the word "inappropriate."

 Schiff speaks on importance of protecting whistleblowers during impeachment trial

Senator Susan Collins (R-ME), in what appeared to be a hall pass from Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-KY) to aid her struggling re-election bid, said she will vote "yes" on witnesses. Senator Mitt Romney (R-UT) said he would vote "yes." But Senator Lisa Murkowski (R-AK) said she would vote "no," likely killing the witness vote.

Ahead of today's proceedings and the vote on witnesses, Senator Marco Rubio (R-FL) released a statement asserting that even if President Trumps conduct was impeachable, it still wouldn't warrant removal: "Just because actions meet a standard of impeachment does not mean it is in the best interest of the country to remove a president from office." Rubio said the voters should decide in November, but the fact its an election year is precisely why President Trump must be removed. Trump's corrupt conduct was an effort to cheat in the election.

After this trial, prepare for an even more unhinged President Trump. The day after Trump fired FBI Director James Comey, he told Russian officials in the Oval Office that he fired "nutjob" Comey and the "pressure" from the Russia investigation was taken off. The day after Special Counsel Robert Mueller's hearings, Trump called President Zelensky and pressured him to investigate the Bidens. What will Trump do the day after his acquittal?

All the president's lawyers: The team fighting Trump's impeachment Show all 6 1 /6 All the president's lawyers: The team fighting Trump's impeachment All the president's lawyers: The team fighting Trump's impeachment Alan Dershowitz Dershowitz is a controversial American lawyer best known for the high-profile clients he has successfully defended. Those clients have included OJ Simpson, Jeffrey Epstein and Harvey Weinstein. One longtime Harvard Law associated told the New Yorker Dershowitz "revels in taking positions that ultimately are not just controversial but pretty close to indefensible." Getty All the president's lawyers: The team fighting Trump's impeachment Ken Starr Starr became a household name in the 1990s as the independent counsel who led the investigation that led to Bill Clinton's impeachment. That investigation began as a look into a real estate scandal known as Whitewater, and eventually led to impeachment after Mr Clinton lied under oath about having an affair with White House intern Monica Lewinsky. AP All the president's lawyers: The team fighting Trump's impeachment Jay Sekulow Sekulow is the president's longtime personal attorney, and, now, personal lawyer in the White House. He has been accused by former Rudy Giuliani associate Lev Parnas of being "in the loop" during the Ukraine scandal. Getty All the president's lawyers: The team fighting Trump's impeachment Pam Bondi Bondi is the former attorney general in Florida, and a longtime backer of the president's. She made a name for herself in Florida for taking hyper partisan stances on issues, and her penchant for publicity. She is likely to be a prominent public-facing figure during the trial. AFP/Getty All the president's lawyers: The team fighting Trump's impeachment Pat Cipollone Cipollone is the White House counsel, and leading the president's defence team. Getty All the president's lawyers: The team fighting Trump's impeachment Rudy Giuliani While not officially named as one of the president's impeachment lawyers, it is hard to ignore Giuliani's outsized role in this process. The former mayor of New York has been making headlines for months as he defends his client, and for his apparent role in the effort to compel Ukraine to launch the investigation into Joe Biden. We'll see how he figures in the actual trial, which he has said he would like to be a part of. Reuters

If Senate Republicans acquit Trump, they will be emboldening a lawless president and weakening the legislative branch as a whole. It's a shortsighted, self-defeating move. They're saying it's OK for a president to extort countries for personal gain and to obstruct Congress. They're saying a president can do anything as long as he's a Republican.

Impeachment manager Rep. Hakeem Jeffries (D-NY) captured what this all boils down to by quoting Thomas Jefferson: Tyranny is defined as that which is legal for the government but illegal for the citizenry.

What the Republican Party is endorsing is nothing short of tyranny, and Americans will remember this cowardice in November.
A group of 150 Pakistani citizens is stranded at an airport in Xinjiang as Islamabad suspended its flights to and from China amid the coronavirus outbreak.

According to The Dawn, the stranded Pakistanis are mostly students and their families with the rest being traders, have been trapped at the airport in Urumqi, the capital of the Xinjiang Uighur Autonomous Region. They can neither leave the airport because many of them have reached the expiry of their visas.

A Ph.D. scholar, Tariq Rauf, from Khyber Pakhtunkhwa's Shangla district who was studying in China, in a video message, said that Pakistanis were stuck in Urumqi because their onward flight to Pakistan had been cancelled.

"We request the Pakistani government to evacuate us from here ... this is our constitutional right," he said.

The embassy has reportedly contacted the citizens stuck at the airport and ensure assistance.

However a few days back, Special Assistant to Prime Minister on Health Zafar Mirza had said that the Pakistani government has decided not to repatriate its citizens stranded in China from the coronavirus-hit Wuhan city to show "solidarity" with the Asian country.

"We believe that right now, it is in the interest of our loved ones in China (to stay there). It is in the larger interest of the region, world, country that we do not evacuate them now," The Dawn quoted him while addressing the media at a press conference in Islamabad.

"This is what the Health Organisation is saying. This is China's policy and this is our policy as well. We stand by China in full solidarity," he said.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
The new coronavirus roiling financial markets and prompting travel bans is taking on a life of its own on the internet, once again putting U.S.-based social media companies on the defensive about their efforts to curb the spread of false or dangerous information.

Researchers and journalists have documented a growing number of cases of misinformation about the virus, ranging from racist explanations for the diseases origin to false claims about miracle cures. Conspiracy theorists, trolls and cynics hoping to use the panic to boost traffic to their own accounts have all contributed to the cloud of bad information.

Its the perfect intersection of fear, racism and distrust of the government and Big Pharma, said Maarten Schenk, co-founder of the fact-checking site Lead Stories. People dont trust the official narrative.

The novel coronavirus, which originated in the Chinese city of Wuhan, has killed at least 259 people and infected over 11,000, with cases in more than 20 countries.

One set of tweets and Facebook posts from U.S. conspiracy theory accounts said drinking bleach could protect against the virus or even cure it. On YouTube, a series of videos accusing media organizations of suppressing information had hundreds of thousands of views.

Fact-checkers, medical experts and academics reviewing coronavirus-related misinformation said some of the most viral hoaxes have concerned vaccines that claim to prevent or cure the disease and that would soon be commercially accessible to the public. Though medical authorities and biotechnology companies have begun researching and developing vaccines, theyre far from being stocked on pharmacy shelves.

Rumors can travel more quickly and more widely than they could in an era before social media, said Thomas Rid, a professor of strategic studies at Johns Hopkins University, who has a forthcoming book on the history of disinformation. That of course lends itself to conspiracies spreading more quickly. They spread more widely and they are more persistent in the sense that you cant undo them.

Some of the internet traffic and misinformation has been outright racist against Chinese people and Asians in general. Posts attributing the coronavirus to Chinese culinary practices have blown up, and a review of a new Chinese restaurant in Toronto was swarmed by racist trolls.

Theres a lot of misinformation out there, and some of that can be quite dangerous, Maria Van Kerkhove, head of the World Health Organizations emerging diseases unit, said at a Wednesday press conference in Geneva.

Viruses have always sparked fear and misinformation, striking panic as rumors spread and people desperate for information latch onto whatever snippets they can find  whether theyre true or not. But the advent of social media has supercharged this process, leading to waves of misinformation over elections, mass shootings, plane crashes and natural disasters.

The outbreak is just the latest test of social networks ability to handle the spread of false and dangerous information.

Twitter Inc. is trying to stave off bad information related to coronavirus by directing users to more reliable sources, prompting users who search for coronavirus to visit the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention website. The company has not seen an uptick in disinformation since coronavirus became a worldwide problem, a spokeswoman said. Twitter has a policy against people trying to mislead others with deceptive activity.

It permanently suspended the financial website Zero Hedge on Friday after it published an article questioning the involvement of a Chinese scientist in the outbreak of the virus.

Facebook Inc.s fact-checking partners  independent organizations that flag problematic posts on the platform  have been labeling misinformation about the coronavirus so users know its false, according to a company spokeswoman. Facebook is also alerting people who may have shared misinformation before it was fact-checked. On Tuesday, Facebook searches for coronavirus and related terms surfaced mostly credible reports from sites like the BBC and CNN, but there were also links touting dubious immune-boosting services and posts from users that questioned whether the virus news was a conspiracy from the World Health Organization.

Information shared in private groups are outside of Facebooks fact-checking apparatus, and they have been known to incubate conspiracies on many different topics.

Alphabet Inc.s Google searches for the virus are topped with a panel linking to the Centers for Disease Control. A special section of search results also includes news from mainstream sources, as well as a link to the World Health Organizations latest updates on the situation.

On Googles YouTube, coronavirus was being treated as a news event, so searches for videos related to the outbreak mostly returned results from large, mainstream news organizations, though some conspiracy theory videos slipped through. Much of the dubious information being shared could be considered what YouTube labels borderline content. Thats information that isnt necessarily wrong or racist but peddles unconfirmed conspiracies or shoddy medical information. YouTube said its algorithms are built to lower the number of times borderline content is recommended to viewers.

In China itself, where homegrown social media apps like WeChat and Weibo dominate, misinformation has spread alongside protests against the governments handling of the situation. Generally, social media is closely monitored and censored by the communist party. But the sheer amount of posts criticizing the government and demanding more action mean some have evaded censors. Videos and posts that otherwise wouldnt have left China have circulated through the internet, giving the world a view into the situation that isnt totally controlled by the government.

Early days in an outbreak, theres so much uncertainty. People dont like uncertainty. They want answers, said Timothy Caulfield, a health law professor at the University of Alberta.

Social media is a polarization machine where the loudest voices win, he said. In an outbreak, where you want accurate, measured discourse, thats kind of a worst-case scenario.

(Updates number of confirmed coronavirus vases, and adds Twitter suspension of Zero Hedge, and special panel screen on Google results)

With assistance from Kurt Wagner, Kartikay Mehrotra and Sarah Frier.
Union Home Minister Amit Shah on Saturday said that the general budget will contribute significantly towards fulfilling the government's resolve to double the income of farmers.

"This general budget will contribute significantly in fulfilling the Modi government's resolve to double the income of the farmers by making available, better irrigation and grain storage facilities, as well as a fair price for their produce," Shah tweeted from his official handle.

He also outlined different schemes of the central government for the welfare of farmers and said, "Through Kisan Rail and Kisan Udaan Yojana, our Kisan brothers will join the and international market and their products will be able to be sold at a better price at the right time. This scheme will especially benefit fruit and vegetable growers, especially tribals and farmers from the northeast".

The Union Home Minister also talked about the simplification of the tax system and its benefits to the middle class.

"The Modi government through this budget has provided a major and unprecedented relief in income tax to taxpayers of every category. Particularly middle-class salaried taxpayers will not only have to reduce tax but will also get relief from the simplification of the tax system," Shah said.

Home Minister Shah also lauded the steps taken in the budget for the infrastructure sector.

"With the allocation of 100 lakh crores for basic infrastructure in the country by Modi government, world-class highways, railways, ports, airports, metros, etc will be built in the country, which will not only improve the life of common people, but it will also give a significant boost to economic activities," he said.

The Home Minister hailed the allocations in the budget to further expand the Ayushman Bharat scheme in all corners of the country.

"In keeping with the pledge of a healthy India, Modi Ji launched new hospitals by the PPP model to bring Ayushman Bharat Yojana to every nook and corner of the country, especially in the Tier-2 and Tier-3 cities and 112 aspirational districts where there is no hospital," he said.

"Taking forward the campaigns like home, electricity, toilets, gas and health facilities for all, I welcome PM's resolve to provide clean drinking water to everyone. The allocation of 3.60 lakh crores in this scheme shows the commitment of Prime Minister Modi, which will improve the life and health of common people," he added.

Shah praised the resolve of the government to work for the neglected sections of the society.

"The Modi government has shown its sensitivity towards the development of the neglected sections of society and connecting them to the mainstream by making a provision of Rs 85,000 crore for Scheduled Castes and Other Backward Classes and Rs 53,700 crore for Scheduled Tribes," he said.

He further lauded the raising of insurance cover for bank deposits.

"In this general budget, the insurance cover for those depositing money in banks has been increased from Rs 1 lakh to Rs 5 lakh by the Modi government, so that the depositor will now get a guarantee of up to five lakh rupees," he said.

Union Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman on Saturday presented Union Budget for 2020-21, which proposes to give the Indian economy an impetus to emerge as more vibrant and stronger.

In the longest Union Budget speech in history, Sitharaman talked about tax regime, finance, agriculture, irrigation, water, sanitation, healthcare, education, infrastructure, women, digital connectivity among others.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
NEAt the terminal that serves planes bound for China, people wear medical masks at John F. Kennedy Airport (JFK) out of concern over the Coronavirus on January 31, 2020 in New York City.

Authorities said on Saturday that the eighth U.S. case of the new coronavirus was detected in Massachusetts.

The Massachusetts Department of Health said in a press release that a man in his 20s, who recently returned from China and lives in Boston, tested positively. The man, who was not named, had traveled to Wuhan, the city where the virus originated.

"We are grateful that this young man is recovering and sought medical attention immediately,'' said Massachusetts Public Health Commissioner Dr. Monica Bharel. "Massachusetts has been preparing for a possible case of this new coronavirus, and we were fortunate that astute clinicians took appropriate action quickly."

The case was the first reported in Massachusetts. Health officials said that the risk to those living in the state remained low. The previous U.S. cases were reported in California, Illinois, Washington state and Arizona. The outbreak has spread to more than 20 countries, but the overwhelming majority of cases have occurred in China.

President Donald Trump on Friday declared that the new coronavirus was a public health emergency in the U.S. and imposed new travel restrictions between the U.S. and China.

Health and Human Services Secretary Alex Azar said the U.S. will deny entry to foreign nationals who have traveled to China within the past two weeks, aside from the immediate family of U.S. citizens.

More than 12,000 cases of the new coronavirus have been reported globally. The death toll reached 259 as of Saturday morning.

Massachusetts health officials said that they were working closely with the federal Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
The virus has infected almost 10,000 people globally in just two months, a troublesome sign that prompted the World Health Organization to declare the outbreak a global emergency. The death toll stood at 213, including 43 new fatalities, all in China.

A public health emergency in the U.S. allows the government to tap additional resources to send to states, such as emergency funding and if necessary drugs or equipment from the national stockpile, and to suspend certain legal requirements.

Robert Redfield, director of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, also said the risk to the American public currently is low. He added: I want to emphasize that this is a significant global situation and it continues to involve."

There are six cases of this virus in the U.S. and 191 individuals are being monitored, Redfield said.

Dr. Anthony Fauci, infectious diseases chief at the National Institutes of Health, said one reason the U.S. stepped up its quarantine measures was an alarming report from Germany that a traveler from China had spread the virus despite showing no symptoms. Fauci contrasted it with the response to recent outbreaks of Ebola, which cant be spread unless someone is very ill.
You are here: China

China's residents in poverty-stricken rural areas saw their per capita disposable income at 11,567 yuan (about US$1,668) in 2019, official data showed.

The reading was up 11.5 percent from the previous year, according to the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS).

The growth, in real terms after deducting price factors, stood at 8 percent, 1.8 percentage points faster than that of rural areas nationwide.

In terms of income sources, the per capita wage income of rural residents in poor areas was 4,082 yuan, an increase of 12.5 percent over the previous year, contributing 38 percent to their income growth.

Per capita income from net operation rose 7.1 percent from a year ago to 4,163 yuan, a 23-percent contribution to the income growth, according to NBS data.

By 2020, China aims to double the per capita income of its urban and rural residents from 2010 levels.
Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev has expressed condolences to Chairman of People's Republic of China Xi Jinping.

I am deeply saddened by the news of the deaths of people as a result of the outbreak of the new coronavirus in your country, President Aliyev said.

I highly appreciate the steps taken by the government of China and the perseverance shown by the people of China in order to prevent the spread of epidemic and human casualties, the Azerbaijani president said. I believe that under your leadership the People's Republic of China will decently cope with this disaster.

You can rest assured that even in these temporary tough times, the people of Azerbaijan stand in solidarity with the friendly people of China, and we are ready to provide any assistance, President Aliyev said.

On my own behalf and on behalf of the people of Azerbaijan, I extend my deepest condolences to the families of those who died of the disease and wish those infected the swiftest possible recovery, the Azerbaijani president said.

---

Follow us on Twitter @AzerNewsAz
Doctors fear that the only drug approved to prevent preterm birth, the nation's leading cause of infant mortality and disability, will no longer be available to expectant mothers.

The drug, sold under the brand name Makena, has been in limbo since October, when an expert panel convened by the Food and Drug Administration reviewed the accumulated evidence and concluded that Makena is not effective in preventing preterm birth.

In a close vote, the panel recommended the FDA withdraw approval and pull the drug off the market.

That recommendation has sparked a fierce debate within the health care community. Doctors are torn between two clinical studies of the drug that had differing results: An older trial of American patients at high risk of having a preterm delivery showed Makena's active ingredient seemed to be effective. But, more recently, a larger trial of lower-risk, international patients _ a study conducted by the drug's manufacturer after the FDA's request _ suggested that the medicine did not work.

Complicating matters is the possibility that even if the FDA decides to let Makena remain for sale, or permits pharmacies to create their own versions of the drug for use, insurers might well refuse to pay.

ADVERTISEMENT

Insurers are generally under no obligation to cover drugs just because the FDA approves them. And Cathryn Donaldson, a spokesperson for America's Health Insurance Plans, said AHIP is convinced by the larger, more recent trial. "Now it is clear it is not effective," she said.

This puts the FDA in a bind.

Many practicing obstetricians have been prescribing some form of the drug as standard treatment since around 2003, when the smaller clinical trial _ a National Institutes of Health study _ showed that the synthetic hormone 17-hydroxyprogesterone caproate, or "17P," was effective in preventing preterm delivery in women with a history of preterm labor.

In 2011, sensing a market opportunity, a drug manufacturer jumped in to offer Makena _ the only branded, FDA-approved version of 17P.

Makena has since effectively cornered the market. And if the FDA complies with the recommendation of its advisory panel to order Makena off the market, the action might remove all options for treating premature labor. By law, if the FDA withdraws its approval for Makena, generic versions of 17P must be pulled, too, and the FDA could decide to also stop specialty pharmacies from compounding Makena's active ingredient.

That's why seven of the 16 members of the FDA panel have argued that removing Makena's FDA approval could do more damage than simply leaving a drug on the market that may, or may not, work.

Cutting off all access to the drug, whether it is Makena or its compounded versions, would be "a big disaster," especially for women in disadvantaged communities who are at a higher risk of preterm birth, said Dr. George Saade, the director of maternal-fetal medicine and chief of obstetrics at the University of Texas Medical Branch at Galveston. (Saade has chaired panels awarding research grants from Makena's manufacturer.)

"It's not like, Oh, they're going to be fine," he said. "No, they're not."

ADVERTISEMENT

If Makena stays on the market, doctors and insurers will be left to haggle over prescribing a drug that can cost an average of more than $10,000 per pregnancy. If the FDA blocks further sales, a treatment that many doctors and patients rely on will disappear overnight.

GIVING INFANTS THEIR BEST START

Babies born prematurely can have problems breathing or digesting food or experience bleeding in their brains, among other life-threatening risks. Some of the children who survive struggle with lifelong disabilities. Giving them an extra few days or weeks in the womb can be transformative.

So it was considered a major breakthrough when the NIH released the results of its study in 2003, showing 17P was effective at preventing delivery before 37 weeks' gestation for many women who had previously experienced preterm birth and were carrying a single baby.

That clinical trial, which studied more than 450 women in the United States, showed that about 37% of participants who received 17P had given birth before 37 weeks _ contrasted with about 55% of participants who received the placebo. Researchers found no major safety concerns.

The drug seemed so clearly effective that researchers ended the study early. And the American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists recommended that all pregnant women who fit that criteria be given 17P.

"The only problem was, no one was making it," said Dr. Alan Peaceman, the chief of maternal-fetal medicine at Northwestern University's Feinberg School of Medicine and a researcher on the 2003 study.

Thus, for more than a decade, compounding pharmacies _ specialty pharmacies that typically make prescription drugs for patients who have allergies or other conditions _ created cheap injections of 17P for use by pregnant women.

ADVERTISEMENT

At the time, a weekly dose of the compounded drug cost about $10-$20. For the same dose, Makena, the branded version that emerged in 2011 and cornered the market, cost about $1,500 from the get-go.

In 2017, a study of the drug's cost by researchers from Harvard University found no notable difference between the outcomes of women who took Makena and women who took compounded 17P _ even though the mean per-pregnancy cost of Makena was $10,711 more than that of 17P.

HOW MAKENA CORNERED THE MARKET

In less than 10 years, the makers of Makena pushed its competition, particularly low-cost compounding pharmacies, out of the market.

Many of the women at risk of preterm birth, and the babies they have, are on Medicaid. Compounding facilities can be difficult to find. The drug was rendered inaccessible to many of the women who doctors thought needed it most.

When Makena first arrived, doctors, advocates and, eventually, members of Congress objected to its high price. Insurers, including government programs like Medicaid, refused to cover it.

At the time, Makena's manufacturer struggled to compete with the cheaper, compounded 17P. In 2012, it sued the FDA in an unsuccessful attempt to stop compounding _ gaining some ground later that year when a meningitis outbreak caused by a different compounded drug drew federal scrutiny of specialty pharmacies.

In 2014, the manufacturer went bankrupt and sold Makena to AMAG Pharmaceuticals, which owns the drug today.

But compounding of 17P continued until 2016, when the FDA approved a preservative-free version of Makena and, in doing so, handed AMAG Pharmaceuticals the exclusive right to make the drug, ending the compounding of 17P.

In a press release noting its victory, AMAG said at the time that about 38% of patients were taking compounded 17P instead of Makena.

"Ultimately, we felt pressured into prescribing the Makena because it was FDA-approved," Peaceman said. "And especially in big systems, you are discouraged from using non-FDA-approved medicines when there is an FDA-approved medicine available."

A SECOND CLINICAL TRIAL MUDDIES THE WATERS

For years, the results of the NIH's 2003 study reassured many doctors, insurers, health officials and patients: 17P, Makena's active ingredient, had been proven to prevent preterm birth.

When Makena's original manufacturer sought FDA approval, it cited the NIH's results to vouch for the drug's safety and effectiveness. But while the FDA granted it approval to market Makena, the agency also ordered the company to conduct its own trial to confirm it was safe and effective, though with stricter requirements: Among other things, the company would have to prove the drug was effective at preventing preterm birth before 35 weeks, rather than 37.

Nearly a decade later, AMAG released the long-awaited findings of that nine-year scientific study: Although the company also turned up no major safety issues, researchers said last fall they could not prove Makena is effective at preventing preterm birth.

With more than 1,700 women participating, AMAG's study was much larger than the NIH's. But, critics said, for a clinical trial ultimately intended to prove whether Makena works for American women at high risk of preterm birth, AMAG's trial was deeply flawed.

For one thing, 35% of participants in the NIH trial had experienced preterm birth more than once, putting them at higher risk, compared with just 15% in AMAG's trial.

Also, the majority of participants in the NIH trial _ about 59% _ were black, while the vast majority in AMAG's trial _ about 89% _ were white. According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, preterm birth is more common among babies born to black mothers.

AMAG told the FDA that it had had difficulty enrolling enough women who fit its criteria in the United States _ because if a woman was already taking 17P, generally speaking, then she was not eligible for the study. And because the drug was already considered the standard of care, a lot of American women were taking it.

Instead, 61% of women involved in the trial were from Russia and Ukraine _ countries that have notably different demographics than those of the United States. Patients from the United States made up just 23% of participants in the study.

Based largely on AMAG's findings, the FDA's expert panel recommended in October, in a 9-7 vote, that the FDA withdraw its approval of Makena. The seven dissenting members recommended keeping the drug on the market while conducting further study.

So far, pending a final FDA decision, Makena is still on the market. The FDA does not have to accept the recommendations of its expert panels, though typically it does. Amanda Turney, a spokesperson of the agency, said there is no established timeline for when the FDA will announce whether it will withdraw its approval of Makena.

But the about-face from the expert panel about the drug's usefulness has left all sides trying to figure out their next steps.

On Jan. 9, AMAG announced that because of "uncertainty" over Makena, it would divest itself of two of its other drugs, including one that was approved by the FDA last summer. In a statement in which the drugmaker also announced plans for its chief executive, William Heiden, to step down, Heiden was quoted as saying that the ambiguity about Makena's future revenue "makes it challenging to invest in both our promising pipeline and in the physician and consumer marketing required to support these two new products."

The American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists has said it will continue to monitor the issue but has not changed its guidance to doctors in the meantime. Makena remains the standard of care for many pregnant women who have given birth prematurely in the past.

As doctors stand by for the FDA's decision on withdrawing Makena from the market, many have suggested they will turn to compounding again if Makena disappears.

However, many withdrawn drugs are added to a federal list of drugs that may not be compounded due to failures of safety or efficacy _ and if Makena is withdrawn, 17P could end up on that list, too.

That decision would also be made by the FDA, after receiving the recommendation of a different panel of experts on compounding, said Jeremy Kahn, an FDA spokesperson.

Dr. Kimberly Hickey, chief of maternal-fetal medicine at Walter Reed National Military Medical Center in Bethesda, Md., and a member of the FDA panel that voted for Makena to be withdrawn, said even if the drug is pulled from the market, obstetricians will seek out whatever version of its active ingredient remains for sale.

"People will look for progesterone wherever they can find it," she said during the panel's meeting, referring to the hormone 17P mimics. "They're not just going to say, 'I'm not going to treat you.'"

___

(Kaiser Health News (KHN) is a national health policy news service. It is an editorially independent program of the Henry J. Kaiser Family Foundation.)

___

(c)2020 Kaiser Health News

Visit Kaiser Health News at www.khn.org

Distributed by Tribune Content Agency, LLC.
The Houston GLBT Political Caucus on Saturday endorsed Harris County district attorney candidate Audia Jones, a rebuke of incumbent DA Kim Ogg, who is openly lesbian and won the caucus endorsement last cycle.

Caucus members voted 121-95 in favor of Jones, a Democratic Socialist who is pledging to make a vigorous push for criminal justice reform policies. She argues that Ogg, who was elected in 2016, has insufficiently championed such reforms.

The vote came after a contentious debate among members and the 13 people on a screening committee that vetted the candidates. Eleven screeners recommended Jones, with some describing an antagonistic meeting with Ogg.

Speaking to the caucus Saturday, Ogg defended her record as DA, arguing that she has started criminal diversion programs for nonviolent offenders while working with 87 law enforcement agencies, leading 800 employees, to protect you and this community.

Theres a balance as the DA, and I represent that balance, Ogg said. My record shows it. Ive made difficult decisions to exonerate people against perhaps the police unions recommendation, and I have stood for crime victims and the LGBT community.

Ogg spoke minutes after Jones, who criticized the incumbent for asking commissioners court for more prosecutors in her office. Jones also contended that Ogg has not done enough to root out policies that are disproportionately targeting our communities of color.

In 2016, we got nothing but promises, and in 2020, we are standing here with nothing but failures from our current district attorney, who stated that she was going to support cash bail reform when in fact she was the only Democrat that opposed it, Jones said.

Democrat Carvana Cloud, the former chief of the special victims' bureau under Ogg, argued that her experience would help her enact criminal justice reform more effectively than Jones.

When you understand reform principles, you can take those reform principles and you can apply them to every practice to make sure you have true criminal justice reform, she said.

Last month, Jones picked up an endorsement from the Texas Organizing Project, a progressive advocacy group that backed Ogg in 2016.

Ogg, meanwhile, is endorsed by the Victory Fund, a national political organization that supports gay, lesbian and transgender candidates. The groups president, former Houston mayor Annise Parker, attended the caucus meeting Saturday and voted for Ogg.

In an interview, Parker said "the far left, which is what was represented largely in the room today, and the far right are opposing (Ogg) because she has chosen over and over again to do what she thinks is right."

Parker, a former caucus president, argued that Jones' supporters want Ogg to "stop prosecuting certain crimes," but "she swore an oath to the Constitution and the laws of the state of Texas, and she will use her discretion to the best of her ability. But she's not going to arbitrarily not enforce laws."

"It's a combination of the changing of the guard, and that Kim is doing exactly what you would want from a DA, and that is going forward where she sees fit and not catering to either side," said Parker, who was Houstons first openly gay mayor.

GLBT Caucus President Mike Webb shot back at Parker on Twitter, writing, "We are at a point in our history where we need leaders that fight for the ENTIRE LGBTQ+ community, particularly advocating for our queer communities of color."

Todd Overstreet, another Democratic candidate, did not attend the caucus meeting. Three Republicans also are running for DA: Mary Nan Huffman, a former Montgomery County prosecutor and current legal counsel to the Houston Police Officers Union; Lori DeAngelo, who was a Harris County prosecutor for more than 20 years, including in Oggs office; and Wayne Lloyd Oliver, a defense lawyer who has run unsuccessfully for several offices as a candidate for both major parties, primarily as a way to advertise for his legal practice.
The United States conducted a strike recently targeting Qassim al-Rimi, the leader of al-Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula, the terror groups franchise based in Yemen that has repeatedly expressed interest in conducting attacks targeting the United States, a U.S. official told CNN on Friday.

The New York Times reported that three current or former American officials expressed confidence that Rimi had been killed in a January airstrike in Yemen.

Asked about the report, the Pentagon would not elaborate on the situation.

While we are aware of the reports alleging the death of AQAP leader Qassim al-Rimi, the Department of Defense has nothing to offer on this matter, a U.S. Defense Official told CNN.

The U.S. government through its Rewards for Justice program had offered up to a $10 million reward for information on him.

Officials continue to assess whether Rimi was killed in the strike through a variety of methods including monitoring social media and messaging apps regarding chatter about his possible death.

The CIA declined to comment on the report.

Many observers have considered AQAP among the most dangerous, if not the most dangerous, branch of al-Qaeda since its formation in 2009.

Rimi reportedly became its leader following a 2015 drone strike that killed Nasir al-Wuhayshi.

He released an audio message taunting President Donald Trump days after a 2017 U.S. Special Operations Forces raid on an al-Qaeda compound in Yemen that led to the first U.S. military combat death during the Trump administration.

In an 11-minute recording, the AQAP leader condemned the raid, saying, The new fool of the White House received a painful slap across his face.

U.S. officials said that valuable intelligence was retrieved in the raid.

Last April, the U.S. military carried out a series of six airstrikes in Yemen targeting the local al-Qaeda affiliate there.

They were the first U.S. airstrikes in Yemen since Jan. 1, 2019 when the United States conducted two strikes, including one that killed Jamal al-Badawi, an al-Qaeda operative linked to the 2000 attack on the USS Cole.

The United States has sought to prevent al-Qaeda from exploiting the chaos of Yemens civil war to establish a safe haven, but the number of U.S. military strikes has declined sharply over the last few years.

In coordination with the government of Yemen, U.S. forces continue to support ongoing counterterrorism operations against AQAP and ISIS-Y to disrupt and destroy militants attack-plotting efforts, networks, and freedom of maneuver within the region, Lt. Col. Earl Brown, a spokesman for U.S. Central Command, said in a statement at the time.

The United States did not release details of any casualties from those strikes.

The U.S. military carried out 131 airstrikes in Yemen in 2017 and conducted 36 strikes in 2018, nearly all of them targeting al-Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula.

The CIA also carried out at least one strike in Yemen and U.S. officials told CNN in August 2018 that a 2017 CIA drone strike killed Ibrahim al-Asiri, a senior al-Qaeda bomb-maker behind the underwear bomb attempt to detonate on a flight above the skies of Detroit on Christmas Day in 2009.

The U.S. efforts to combat al-Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula are separate from U.S. efforts to support the Saudi-led coalition fighting in the Yemen civil war.

The-CNN-Wire

 &  2020 Cable News Network, Inc., a WarnerMedia Company. All rights reserved.
The cash-strapped Pakistan government has recorded a near 40 per cent increase in public debt and liabilities in the last 15 months, according to a media report on Saturday.

The finance ministry conceded major violations under the Fiscal Responsibility and Debt Limitation Act (FRDLA), presenting a debt policy statement in the Parliament on Friday.

Total debt and liabilities stood at Rs 29.879 trillion at the end of fiscal year 2018, which crossed Rs 41.489 trillion at the end of September 2019, recording an increase of Rs 11.6 trillion or 39 per cent, Dawn reported quoting the finance ministry report.

The report said the FRDLA required the federal government take measures to reduce fiscal deficit and maintain public debt within "prudent" levels.

The FRDLA was required to limit the fiscal deficit, excluding foreign grants, to 4 per cent of gross domestic product (GDP) during the three years -- beginning from financial year 2018-19 and maintaining it at a maximum of 3.5 per cent of the GDP thereafter.

"The federal fiscal deficit (excluding grants) was recorded at Rs 3,635 billion or 9.4 pc of the GDP during FY 2018-19, remaining higher than the threshold of 4 per cent," said the debt policy statement.

The ministry, however, justified this citing policy changes among other factors.

It said the one-off factors, which were not expected to carry over into FY 2019-20, contributed around 2.25 per cent of the GDP towards federal fiscal deficit.

These factors included delay in renewing telecom licences, delay in sale of envisaged state assets and weaker than anticipated tax amnesty proceeds contributed around 1 per cent of the GDP.

A shortfall in the transfer of State Bank profits contributed an additional 0.5 per cent of the GDP.

The policy statement said the law also required the government to ensure that within two fiscal years, beginning from the fiscal 2016-17, the total public debt shall be reduced to 60 per cent of the estimated GDP by end June 2018.

"However, total public debt to GDP ratio reached 72.1 per cent while total debt of the government to GDP ratio was 66.5 per cent. Total public debt and total debt of the government as percentage of GDP stood at 84.8 per cent and 76.6 per cent, respectively at end June 2019, thus, increasing further during the FY 2018-19," the finance ministry conceded.

Apart from fiscal deficit, it said, unprecedented revaluation loss on account of currency depreciation and build-up of liquidity buffer contributed significantly towards the increase in debt to GDP ratio during FY 2018-19.

The ministry also put on record that total debt and liabilities increased by 86.3 per cent of the GDP at the end of FY18 to 94.3 per cent of GDP at the end of September 2019.

It said the government's domestic debt increased by Rs 6.234 trillion or 38 per cent in 15 months (end-June 2018 to end-September 2019).

It said the government domestic debt that stood at Rs 16.416 trillion at end-June 2018 increased to Rs 20.73 trillion by end-June 2019 and reached Rs 22.65 trillion at end-September 2019.

The government's external debt during the 15-month period also increased by 36 per cent or Rs 2.8 trillion to Rs 10.598 trillion from Rs 7.796 trillion.

External liabilities on the other hand increased by 160 per cent to Rs 1.6 trillion by end of September 2019 from Rs 622 billion in June 2018, according to Dawn.

The Pakistan government has been implementing austerity measures to improve the country's finances. In July last year, Pakistan registered a currency reserve of less than USD 8 billion -- enough to cover only 1.7 months of imports.

In August 2018, Pakistan approached the International Monetary Fund for a bailout package after the Khan government took over.

The IMF formally approved the USD 6 billion loan to Pakistan in July 2019, citing "significant" economic challenges.

Pakistan has so far received billions in financial aid packages from friendly countries like China, Saudi Arabia and the UAE during the current fiscal year.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
Nitin Sonawane has seen some sights in his three years on the road.

In 2016, he left his home in India and decided to undertake a peace walk - by foot and bicycle - around the world.

He was inspired to do the walk to mark 150 years since Gandhi's birth (on October 2 2019).

In those three years, he has met and couraged peace in places from Thailand, Vietnam, China, and Hong Kong to El Salvador, Colombia,, South Africa, Ethiopia and the United States.

Last week, he experienced something totally different - traditional Irish music in a pub in Annagassan!

'It was incredible,' Nitin (28) told the Drogheda Independent.

He had arrived in Belfast and walked from there into Co Louth and ended up at the Glyde Inn in Annagassan.

There, Conor O'Neill welcomed him in and gave him a room for the night. The Dunleer crew arrived to play some music and Nitin was in heaven.

In usually spends his nights in a tent and lives on about 5 a day, getting help from members of the Indian community wherever he goes.

But Annagassan gave him a glimpse of the sea and he loved it.

'Everyone was so welcoming,' he stated.

Then he headed to Drogheda and was shocked by the events of recent times in the town, maybe appropriate that a peace walker should arrive by the banks of the Boyne at this time.

'What has happened is terrible,' he stated.

Nitin, an Information Technology graduate, left his small town of Rashin, near Pune, in India to spread the word of peace, following at times in the footsteps of Ghandi.

Next, he was off to Dublin and then over to Portugal and a further stretch, before he arrives back in Pakistan later in the year.

As for this part of the world, he says he left with good memories of a place that gave him great friendship - even for a short time.
New Delhi, Feb 1 : To increase participation of non-resident Indians, some categories of government securities will be opened fully for non-resident investors, apart from being available to domestic investors as well.

Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman announced in the Union Budget on Saturday that NRIs will be allowed to invest in certain categories of GSecs.

One of the Budget proposals is that the limit for foreign portfolio investment (FPI) in corporate bonds, currently at 9% of outstanding stock, will be increased to 15% of the outstanding stock of corporate bonds. This will in turn open avenues for foreign investments in the debt market.

The Budget also contains a provision for improving investors' confidence and to expand the scope of credit default swaps, the government proposes to formulate a legislation, to be placed soon before the House, for laying down a mechanism for netting financial contracts.

The Finance Minister also announced that the debt-based Exchange Traded Fund (ETF) recently floated by the government was a big success. Government proposes to expand this by floating a new Debt-ETF consisting primarily of government securities.

This will give retail investors access to government securities as much as giving an attractive investment for pension funds and long-term investors.

In order to incentivise the investment by the Sovereign Wealth Fund of foreign governments in the priority sectors, The Finance Minister announced a grant of 100% tax exemption to their interest, dividend and capital gains income in respect of investment made in infrastructure and other notified sectors before March 31, 2024 and with a minimum lock-in period of 3 years.
A second suspect has been charged in the case of a man found shot to death in a Huntsville alleyway.

Matthew Wayne Fowler, 31, was charged today with capital murder for the killing of Gilberto Estrada, a 21-year-old from Mexico, according to Huntsville police. Estrada was found dead on the 3000 block of Seventh Avenue Southwest on Jan. 18.

Thirty-one yr old Matthew Wayne Fowler has been served with a Capital Murder warrant today. This is the second arrest for the murder of 21 yr old Gilberto Estrada, that occurred on 1/18/20. Haley League has also been arrested and charged in this case. pic.twitter.com/FHoSQqVUjw  Huntsville Police (@HsvPolice) January 31, 2020

Fowler has been held in the Madison County jail since Jan. 25 he was taken into custody on unrelated charges following a standoff at a home in New Hope, a tiny city in southern Madison County. Also arrested in the standoff was 26-year-old Haley League, who is charged with murder in connection with Estradas slaying.

Huntsville police Lt. Michael Johnson said police got a murder warrant for Fowler after further investigation.

League had met Estrada online, police said. Something went wrong when they met face-to-face, Johnson said, and Estrada was shot to death. Its unclear what exactly happened during the moments before the shooting. Police havent said whether Fowler or League was the shooter.

Estrada is one of four people shot to death in the city so far this year.


1 / 10 1. Asia: Asian markets were mixed on Friday as fears over the ongoing coronavirus outbreak in China continued to weigh on investor sentiment. Japanese stocks closed higher as the Nikkei 225 rose 0.99 percent to 23,205.18, while the Topix index also added 0.58 percent to end its trading day at 1,684.44. South Koreas Kospi, on the other hand, dropped 1.35 percent to close at 2,119.01. Meanwhile, Hong Kongs Hang Seng index shed earlier gains as it fell into negative territory, declining 0.13 percent as of its final hour of trading. (Image: Reuters)



2 / 10 2. US: Wall Street's major averages tumbled more than 1.5 percent on Friday, sealing its worst week in six months, as the spreading coronavirus outbreak, coupled with sluggish US economic data and a mixed batch of corporate earnings, fuelled concerns about global growth. The Dow Jones Industrial Average fell 603.41 points, or 2.09 percent, to 28,256.03, the S&P 500 lost 58.14 points, or 1.77 percent, to 3,225.52 and the Nasdaq Composite dropped 148.00 points, or 1.59 percent, to 9,150.94. (Image: AP)



3 / 10 3. Markets At Close On Friday: Indian markets ended lower on Friday, dragged by metals, IT stocks, after the economic survey predicted FY20 GDP growth at 5 percent, slowest since the global financial crisis of 2008-09. The BSE Sensex ended 190 points lower at 40,723, while the Nifty50 index fell 74 points to settle at 11,962 dragged by metal, auto and IT stocks. Meanwhile, foreign institutional investors sold Rs 4,179 crore in the cash market while the domestic institutional investors bought Rs 3,816 crore. (Image: Reuters)



4 / 10 4. Crude Oil: Oil prices fell on Friday and were on track for a fourth straight weekly loss on mounting worries about economic damage from the coronavirus that has spread from China to around 20 countries, killing more than 200 people. Brent crude fell 13 cents to settle at $58.16 a barrel and was down about 4 percent on the week. US West Texas Intermediate (WTI) fell 58 cents to end the session at $51.56 a barrel, down 4.8 percent on the week. (Image: Reuters)



5 / 10 5. Rupee Close: The Indian rupee on Friday surged by 26 paise to end at 71.32 against the US dollar, buoyed by the Economic Survey projecting a revival in economic growth next fiscal. At the interbank foreign exchange market, the local currency opened at 71.46. During the day, it saw a high of 71.28 and a low of 71.52. The domestic unit finally settled at 71.32, up 26 paise over its previous close. The rupee had settled at 71.58 against the American currency on Thursday. (Image: Reuters)



6 / 10 6. Economic Survey GDP Forecasts: The Economic Survey on Friday projected India's economic growth at 6 percent to 6.5 percent in the next financial year starting April 1, saying growth has bottomed out. The growth in 2020-21 compares to a projected 5 percent expansion in 2019-20. "The deceleration in GDP growth can be understood within the framework of a slowing cycle of growth with the financial sector acting as a drag on the real sector," it said. "The government must use its strong mandate to deliver

expeditiously on reforms, which will enable the economy to strongly rebound in 2020-21," it said. (Image: Reuters)



7 / 10 7. Economic Survey On Farmers' Income: To achieve the target of doubling farmers' income by 2022, the Economic Survey on Friday said there is an urgent need to address some of the basic challenges like credit, insurance coverage and irrigation facilities in the agriculture and its allied sectors. There is also a need to reallocate labour resources to other sectors, give increased focus on exploring global markets for agricultural commodities besides supplementing efforts of farmers with direct income support, it said. "The realisation of the objective of doubling farmers' income necessitates addressal of some of the basic challenges of agriculture and allied sector," according to the Economic Survey 2019-20 tabled in Parliament. (Image: Reuters)



8 / 10 8. Fiscal Deficit Hits 132 Percent Of Budget Estimate: The government's fiscal deficit touched 132.4 percent of the full-year target at December-end mainly due to slower pace of revenue collections, official data showed on Friday. In actual terms, the fiscal deficit or gap between expenditure and revenue was Rs 931,725 crore, the data released by the Controller General of Accounts (CGA) showed. The government aims to restrict the gap at 3.3 percent of the GDP or Rs 703,760 crore in the year ending March 2020. The deficit was 112.4 percent of the 2018-19 Budget Estimate (BE) in the corresponding period. According to the CGA, the government's revenue receipts were Rs 11.46 lakh crore or 58.4 percent of 2019-20 BE. In the same period last fiscal, the collections were 62.8 percent of the BE. (Image: Reuters)



9 / 10 9. FICCI On India Inc's Optimism Level: India Inc is facing huge risks from delays in necessary structural reforms in the factor markets and lack of adequate credit availability to MSMEs, Ficci said on Friday, citing findings from its Business Confidence Survey that saw improvement in the optimism level of industry members after seven quarters. The Overall Business Confidence Index improved to 59 in the current round as against an index value of 55 reported in the last survey. However, a majority of respondents continued to cite weak demand situation as a worrying factor for their business. In the current survey, 76 percent of participants reported weak demand conditions as a bothering factor as compared to 73 percent stating the same in the previous round.

In addition, respondents highlighted the need for undertaking taxation reforms to remove anomalies in the tax regime. With regard to indirect taxes, companies felt that GST rates should be revisited and be further rationalized. (Image: Shutterstock)
London, Feb 1 : European leaders have expressed sadness at the UK leaving the European Union (EU) after a long association of 47 years, with French President Emmanuel Macron emphasising Britain's "unrivalled ties" with France.

Macron said he was "deeply sad" while EU's Guy Verhofstadt pledged to try and "ensure the EU is a project you'll want to be a part of again", the BBC reported.

Celebrations and anti-Brexit protests were held on Friday night to mark the UK's departure.

Ex-Brexit Secretary David Davis said everyone would be a winner in the end.

The UK officially left the EU on Friday at 11 p.m. after 47 years of membership, and more than three years after it voted to do so in a referendum.

Brexit parties were held in some pubs and social clubs as well as in London's Parliament Square, as the country counted down to its official departure.

In Scotland, which voted to stay in the EU, candlelit vigils and anti-Brexit rallies were held.

In a message released on social media an hour before the UK left, Prime Minister Boris Johnson vowed to bring the country together and "take us forward".

"For many people this is an astonishing moment of hope, a moment they thought would never come," he said. "And there are many of course who feel a sense of anxiety and loss." In an open letter to the British public, Macron said he was thinking of the millions of Britons "who still feel deeply attached to the European Union".

"You are leaving the European Union but you are not leaving Europe," he said. "Nor are you becoming detached from France or the friendship of its people.

"The Channel has never managed to separate our destinies; Brexit will not do so, either." Macron also said the EU must learn lessons from the "shock" of Brexit, adding: "I am convinced therefore that Europe needs new momentum." And he defended the way France acted in the Brexit negotiations, saying neither the French nor anyone else in the EU was "driven by a desire for revenge or punishment".

Meanwhile, the EU Parliament's Brexit coordinator Verhofstadt responded to a message which had been projected onto the White Cliffs of Dover by a pro-EU group.

"We will look after your star and work to ensure the EU is a project you'll want to be a part of again soon," he said.

Speaking on BBC Radio 4's Today programme, Davis - who quit as Brexit secretary in protest at former prime minister Theresa May's Brexit plan - said it would be a "fair race" to reach a trade deal with the EU by the end of 2020 but "it can be done".

The UK is aiming to sign a permanent free trade agreement with the EU, along the lines of the one the EU has with Canada, by the end of the transition period in December.

Davis said reaching a deal was "not a charitable exercise, this is an exercise of both sides recognising their own best interests".

European leaders have warned that the UK faces a tough battle to get a deal by that deadline.

Mairead McGuinness, the vice president of the European Parliament, said progress to agree a trade deal "might be left to the very last minute".

"Normally in trade negotiations we're trying to come together," she told BBC.

"For the first time we're going try and negotiate a trade agreement where somebody wants to pull away from us. I can't get my head around that and I think it's going to be quite complicated." Thousands gathered in Parliament Square to celebrate Brexit on Friday night, singing patriotic songs and cheering speeches from leading Brexiteers, including Nigel Farage.

The Brexit Party leader said: "This is the greatest moment in the modern history of our great nation." Pro-EU demonstrators earlier staged a march in Whitehall to bid a "fond farewell" to the union.

Police in Whitehall arrested four men and also charged one man with criminal damage and being drunk and disorderly, while in Glasgow one man was arrested.

Meanwhile, other symbolic moments on a day of mixed emotions included:

The Union flag being removed from the European Union institutions in Brussels

The Cabinet meeting in Sunderland, the first city to declare in favour of Brexit when the 2016 results were announced

A light show illuminating 10 Downing Street and Union flags lining The Mall

A 50p coin to mark the occasion entering circulation

The building of the UK government's delegation to the EU changed its name and signMeanwhile, US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo said he was "pleased" the UK and EU had agreed a Brexit deal and the US would continue to build its "strong, productive, and prosperous relationship with the UK".

Washington's ambassador to the UK, Woody Johnson, said Brexit had been "long supported" by US President Donald Trump.
In the impeachment of President Bill Clinton, more senators voted to convict (50-50) for obstruction of justice than for perjury (45-55). This is ironic, because there was pretty clear evidence that Clinton had lied under oath, while proof of obstruction by a president can be murky  as special counsel Robert Mueller found in his investigation into Russian interference in U.S. elections and alleged links between Russian officials and operatives for Donald Trump.

In the Andrew Johnson impeachment, the Senate failed to convict by a single vote. The senator who cast the deciding vote, Edmund Ross of Kansas, had been considered a sure thing by the impeachment managers. His vote outraged his party and many in his home state. He was not re-elected to the Senate.

While the chances of convicting President Trump in the Senate are nil, it will be a shame if the vote is strictly along party lines on both articles. It would be great to see a Republican or Democrat buck their party and vote on principle. We will find out if America still has any senators worthy of a profile in courage.

Edward O. Coates

Albemarle County

References:
At the start of President Donald Trump's impeachment trial, Democrats pinned their hopes on Sen. Lamar Alexander, R-Tenn., whose reputation as an institutionalist might lead him to back a call for witnesses.

Democrats were sorely disappointed late Thursday night as Alexander, who is retiring at the end of his third term, announced his opposition to such a move - and offered an explanation they found lacking.

Alexander said the president did use military aid as leverage to pressure Ukraine's leader to investigate a Trump political rival, but he wouldn't join Democrats on calling witnesses.

"I think there's a big gap between this conduct and impeachable conduct; I don't think this is close. I think it's inappropriate," Alexander said in an interview Friday morning.

Democrats had hoped that Alexander, 79, could build a coalition of Republicans who would at least support calling witnesses such as John Bolton, the former national security adviser whose forthcoming book alleges that Trump's goal in delaying $391 million in security aid to Ukraine was to force that nation to launch damaging political investigations of former vice president and 2020 candidate Joe Biden.

As Friday's debate over witnesses began, Sen. Lisa Murkowski, R-Alaska, issued a statement opposing witnesses, eliminating the chance of a 50-50 vote that would have compelled Chief Justice John Roberts to decide whether to break the tie or let the motion for witnesses die.

Unlike Alexander, Murkowski called the case against Trump "rushed and flawed" but said that the Senate was incapable of curing "the shortcomings" and that she would oppose additional witnesses.

"I have come to the conclusion that there will be no fair trial in the Senate. I don't believe the continuation of this process will change anything. It is sad for me to admit that, as an institution, the Congress has failed," said Murkowski, who also cited attacks on Roberts as a factor in her decision.

Trump's legal team has multiple arguments against impeachment. Letting the voters decide is the latest rationale.

That left Sens. Susan Collins of Maine and Mitt Romney of Utah as the only two Republicans poised to join all 47 members of the Democratic caucus in asking for more witnesses in a vote destined to fail.

Democrats had hoped that Alexander's background as a protector of the Senate's institutional prerogatives would make him a supporter of expanding the trial, especially given his early years as a top aide to then-Sen. Howard Baker of Tennessee, who served as the top Republican on the Senate Watergate Committee, which helped lead to Richard Nixon's resignation in the face of likely impeachment and removal in 1974.

"I was certainly hoping he would have a Howard Baker moment, you know, but it appears he will not," Sen. Richard Durbin, D-Ill., said Friday morning.

Durbin said he was "disappointed but not really surprised" by Alexander's decision, particularly because the Tennessean has been a close ally of Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell, R-Ky., since their shared days as Senate staffers.

While even-tempered and pragmatic in working with Democrats on legislation, Alexander has built a solid conservative record far different from those of the few remaining moderate GOP senators, who were closely watched for their votes.

In his own telling, Alexander said that he was never that close to voting for witnesses and that he delayed in stating a position in order to act as a prudent jurist in the trial while leaving open the possibility of wanting to hear more evidence.

To prepare for the trial, he said, he read two books: one by Edmund Ross, the senator from Kansas who cast the decisive vote in 1868 against removing President Andrew Johnson from office, and the other, "Impeachment: An American History," a collaborative book published in 2018 about all the cases against presidents.

Alexander read the newer book at his desk during Thursday's question-and-answer session, focusing on the chapter by Jon Meacham on Johnson's trial.

The senator said that "many presidents have probably done similar things," citing a talk he had with Jimmy Carter's attorney general, Griffin Bell, in which Bell said Carter had ordered him to indict on civil rights charges a Texas police officer who had received a short sentence in a brutal murder. Bell refused.

Alexander said a similar scenario should have happened when Trump wanted a probe of the Ukrainian energy firm that had Joe Biden's son Hunter on its board. "If he wants to investigate the Bidens, he should give that information to the attorney general and let him handle it," said Alexander, who continues to support Trump's reelection as honorary chairman of his Tennessee campaign.

He said that he has not spoken to Trump since a bill-signing ceremony at the White House in mid-December but that he came under fierce pressure from a collection of colleagues, close friends and others who had access to the president.

"I got some very impassioned emails from people who canonize President Trump or people who hate him," Alexander said.

Three key elements convinced him that it was time to move.

First, with the election already underway and ballots printed in many early primary states, prolonging the trial could blow up that campaign. "So we're tearing up the ballots and telling people basically, as an election is starting, you can't vote for or against President Trump," he said.

Second, he said that the Founding Fathers disapproved of party-line impeachments in the House and that the Senate should dismiss those. "I did not want to create a weapon of perpetual impeachment that the House could use to immobilize the Senate and immobilize the executive," he said.

Finally, he believes that the House managers documented their case but did not show that it rose to an impeachable offense.

"Did he, at least in part, withhold aid in order to encourage that investigation? I thought the evidence was conclusive that he did," Alexander said. "The president might very well say, 'I did it because I cared about corruption,' but I was convinced that at least in part, he did it to encourage the investigation of the Bidens."

Alexander said he is not sure what defines a "high crime or misdemeanor" - which the Constitution sets as the basis for removing a president - but added that one key requirement is bipartisan support.

"I think you step back and say, is it something about which there is such a consensus that both Republicans and Democrats think the president ought to be removed? I guess the only example we really have of that is President Nixon," he said.
Thiruvananthapuram, February 01 : Kerala finance minister Thomas Isaac on Saturday described the union budget as a virtual declaration of war on the state.

Addressing a press conference, Isaac alleged that the budget presented by union finance minister Nirmala Sitharaman was but an attempt to choke Kerala. This years budget was the worst setback Kerala had suffered in its history, he said.

The allocation for Kerala last year was Rs. 17,872 crore. This year it came down to Rs. 15,236 crore as against the expectation that the state would receive up to Rs. 20,000 crore.

The union government had slashed the budgetary allocation to the state from 2.5 per cent to 1.9 percent, the Kerala finance minister said.

Isaac described the budget at large as an exercise aimed at covering up the economic slowdown.

This years budget was a mere encore of last years. It would not alleviate the countrys financial crisis but aggravate it. The budget contained instructions to plunder the reserve bank in the form of dividends to the tune of Rs. 1.9 lakh crore, he alleged.

Last year also there was an announcement that the centre would take a similar amount as dividend from the central bank. Then it was explained away as the centres dipping into the surplus reserve of the reserve bank. This year also the centre was not borrowing from the RBI but plundering it, he charged. This would erode the credibility of the reserve bank and the centre would have to pay a huge price for it, he added.

The Kerala finance minister has been critical of the centres general attitude towards Kerala for a while now. He had blamed the resource crunch being faced by the state on the BJP-led union governments failure to release GST compensation dues to the state to the tune of Rs. 1,600 crore and its stubborn refusal to raise the states annual borrowing limit.
Each loss meant that Mary had to work harder. To help pay expenses after her fathers death, she got after-school jobs. In one of those jobs, as a switchboard operator at the Shelton Hotel in Manhattan, she eavesdropped on inhabitants, including Tennessee Williams  who, she noted in her memoir, had the cheapest room in the hotel, at $30 a month.

In listening to his conversations, Ms. Higgins Clark wrote, I didnt hear anything that fascinated me.

Years later, she wrote, when a mutual friend gave Williams a copy of the manuscript for Where Are the Children?, which had just sold to Simon & Schuster, his comment was, I have a lot of friends who can write better than that, so I guess I didnt fascinate him either. Well call it a draw.

She and Warren Clark, from her neighborhood in the Bronx, fell in love, and he proposed on their first date. They determined that she should continue with her plan to become a flight attendant for Pan Am and planned a wedding for the next year, 1949.

Although she had begun pitching her first short stories to confession magazines when she was 16, Ms. Higgins Clark endured a rain of rejection slips for the next several years before she sold her first story, Stowaway, to Extension magazine in 1956. By then she had three children: Marilyn, Warren Jr. and David. The fourth, born in 1956, was named Carol for a character in that story. The youngest, Patricia, was born in 1958.

After 14 years of a marriage, Warren Clark, who worked in the shipping and airline industries, died of a heart attack in 1964, when Ms. Higgins Clark was 37. Soon she was looking for a job again, but she did not abandon her fiction writing. She rose before dawn to churn out pages while her children slept, then car-pooled to Manhattan to work at the Gordon R. Tavistock advertising agency.

Her first novel, Aspire to the Heavens (1969), was not about a murderous psychopath or a jealous friend bent on bloody revenge, but rather about George and Martha Washington. It failed to make a splash, but was republished in 2002 as Mount Vernon Love Story and joined the other Higgins Clark titles on the best-seller lists.
The Italian government declared a state of emergency on Friday to fast-track efforts to prevent the spread of the deadly coronavirus strain after two cases were confirmed in Rome. Italy had said Thursday it was stopping all flights to and from China following the news that a Chinese couple visiting Italy from Wuhan had tested positive for the virus. The husband and wife were being treated in isolation in Rome's Spallanzani infectious diseases institute. The state of emergency, a fairly common procedure after natural disasters like earthquakes or floods, gives regional authorities special powers and cuts red tape. It will last six months, the government said. An initial five million euros ($5.3 million) has been allocated to tackle the virus, according to Italian media. The Chinese couple, a 65-year-old woman and her 66-year-old husband, reportedly arrived in Milan and then travelled to Rome, where they started showing symptoms on Wednesday. Police sealed off the room where the couple had been staying at a hotel in the centre of the capital. "The patients are doing well, they're young and it's as if they have the flu," said Giuseppe Ippolito of Spallanzani hospital. "They will remain in isolation for a few days," he told Italian radio. "We're almost certain there are no other infections," he said, adding that the virus "isn't contagious during incubation". Twenty people who had come into contact with the couple, but showed no symptoms, were being held for observation. Another 12 people from areas of China affected by the virus had been admitted to the hospital and were undergoing tests. Italy's civil aviation authority said all flights in the air before the suspension was declared were permitted to land, and passengers' temperatures checked. The planes were also permitted to take off again with passengers who had been scheduled for the return leg. The SARS-like virus epidemic which originated in the central Chinese city of Wuhan has so far killed 213 people and spread to at least 18 countries. The World Health Organization on Thursday declared it an international public health emergency. Some 70 Italians still in Wuhan will likely be flown back on Monday, Italian media reported, before spending two weeks in quarantine.
Hyderabad: Testing times await Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister Y.S. Jagan Mohan Reddy and former chief minister N. Chandrababu Naidu in the Budget Session of Parliament.

It remains to be seen whose stand on the AP Legislative Council will be backed by Prime Minister Narendra Modi. Political circles are waiting with bated breath.

The AP Assembly passed a resolution on abolition of the Council and it was sent to Union home ministry for action.

The procedure is that the Union Cabinet has to approve the decision of AP government and then ask the Parliamentary affairs ministry to move it in both houses of Parliament. Once they approve the state governments decision, it will be sent to the President, who has to issue a notification on the abolition of the Legislative Council.

Mr Reddy wants Parliament to approve his governments decision at the earliest. He will bring pressure on all people concerned to approve the measure in the ongoing Budget Session.

Mr Naidu is determined to stall the decision. There are speculations that, if necessary, Mr Naidu might send about 15 TD MLCs to impress upon the BJP leadership not to approve the controversial decision. Sources said Mr Reddy has directed YSRC MPs to follow-up the issue and to see that the Union government will introduce the resolution in Parliament.

Meanwhile, the sources said that Centre may not introduce the resolution rightaway. It might do so in the second phase of the session, which will begin in March.

The AP Assembly Budget session will start in February. The AP Legislative Council also will meet to discuss on the AP Budget. If the Centre introduces the Bill in March, the AP Budget Session will be the last meeting of the Council.

Incidentally, since Mr Modi became the Prime Minister for a second time, Mr Reddy has met him on four separate occasions while Mr Naidu has not him even once.

According to political circles, Mr Modi has a soft corner for Mr Reddy. It is more so because his government may require the support of YSRC in the Rajya Sabha to pass crucial bills. The YSRC has 22 members in the Lok Sabha and two in the Rajya Sabha. The TD has 3 Lok Sabha members and two Rajya Sabha members.

A TD Rajya Sabha member will retire in April, the month in which YSRC will have four new members and its strength will go to six. The BJP requires outside support in the Rajya Sabha.

A senior political leader commented that comparatively speaking Mr Reddy is a more reliable friend and hence the Union government may back abolition of AP Legislative Council.
It was one of the most eagerly anticipated novels of the year.

Stephen King praised it. John Grisham said it was brilliant. Oprah picked it for her book club.

The author received a whopping seven-figure advance and the movie rights were sold for another large sum.

Up to last week, everything looked rosy for Jeanine Cummins and her book, American Dirt.

The tale of a woman struggling through Mexico on her way to America was hailed as a "groundbreaking insight into the modern migration story".

Then everything went kablooey as the author had her speaking engagements cancelled amid death threats and protests.

Why the sudden turnaround? Well, as soon as it was discovered that Cummins is not actually Mexican but an American with Puerto Rican heritage, accusations of cultural appropriation began to swirl around her baffled head.

One reviewer was apoplectic at such "stealing of our stories" and in the frenzied culture wars which are currently destroying America and much of the West, Cummins merely became the latest victim.

There were several undeniable criticisms of the book, which mostly concerned some minor factual discrepancies and inaccurate phrases. But the heat was really all about the fact that a predominantly white American woman, whose husband was Irish, had the temerity to write about a story that wasn't from 'her' culture

There's one obvious retort to all the brouhaha - it's a work of fiction, of the writer's imagination and invention, and it doesn't claim to be a memoir or a work of fact.

We're all in trouble if authors are only allowed to write about their own experience.

Who wants to live in that dull world?
A 42-year-old worker died allegedly after an ammonia gas leak at a Haldiram's building in the city, while more than 300 others were evacuated from there on Saturday, officials said.

The leakage was reported around 12 pm, prompting immediate deployment of police force, firefighters and the National Disaster Response Force (NDRF), they said.

There are two adjoining units of Haldiram's in the building, one was the production unit and the other was its cooling or the maintenance unit, an NDRF official said.

"The gas leak had occurred through the valve of one of the four ammonia condensers in the maintenance unit where around 22 people were working and evacuated. One of them was taken to a hospital, where he died later," NDRF Assistant Commandant Anil Kumar Singh told PTI.

The man who died has been identified as ammonia operator Sanjeev Kumar, he said.

More than 300 other workers were in the production unit and they were also evacuated immediately and the building marked isolated for the time being, he said.

A team of 47 NDRF personnel was at the spot and the situation was brought under control by 3 pm, as firefighters and Noida Police officials, including senior officers, remained deployed at the site.

"An alert call was received on emergency 112 service of the police. People were immediately evacuated from the building," a police spokesperson said.

Firefighters, who responded to the emergency, had diluted the ammonia gas which had got mixed in the air in and around the building, a Fire Department official said.

"We sprayed water in the air to neutralise the ammonia. Ammonia solution was also used on the condensers to check the leak. The main gas pipeline has been closed since," the official said.

Exposure to high concentrations of ammonia, also used as a refrigerant gas, causes immediate burning of eyes, nose, throat and respiratory tract and can result in blindness, lung damage or death.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
Air India's jumbo B747 plane took off from the Wuhan airport in the early hours of Saturday for Delhi, evacuating 324 Indian nationals from China as the neighbouring country continued to deal with the outbreak of novel coronavirus,

New Delhi: Air India's jumbo B747 plane, evacuating 324 Indian nationals from the novel coronavirus-hit Wuhan in China, landed here on Saturday morning, officials said. The plane reached Delhi around 7.30 am, they said.

There were five doctors from Ram Manohar Lohia (RML) Hospital and one paramedical staff on board, said an Air India spokesperson.

The Indian Army has set up a quarantine facility in Manesar near Delhi to keep those evacuated from China's Hubei province.

Officials said they would be monitored for any signs of infection for a duration of two weeks by a qualified team of doctors and staff members.

"With 324 passengers, the special flight has taken off for India from Wuhan. It may reach Delhi at 7.30 am," said the Air India spokesperson at 1.19 am on Saturday.

The flight had departed from Delhi airport at 1.17 pm on Friday to evacuate Indian nationals from China, where more than 250 people - none of them Indian - have died due to novel coronavirus.

On Friday evening, the Air India spokesperson had stated that another special flight may take off from Delhi airport on Saturday to evacuate Indians from Wuhan.

The death toll from the novel coronavirus outbreak in China has risen to 259 with total confirmed cases surging to 11,791 amid stepped-up efforts by a number of countries to evacuate their nationals from Hubei province, the epicentre of the virus, officials said on Saturday.

About Friday's flight, the spokesperson had said earlier during the day, "A team of five doctors from RML hospital, one paramedical staff from Air India, with prescribed medicines from doctors, masks, overcoats, packed food are in the aircraft. A team of engineers, security personnel are also there in this special aircraft. The whole rescue mission is being led by Captain Amitabh Singh, Director (Operations), Air India."

The spokesperson had added that there were five cockpit crew members and 15 cabin crew members on Friday's flight.

Before departure at Delhi airport, Air India Chairman and Managing Director Ashwani Lohani had said, "No service will take place in the plane. Whatever food is there will be kept in seat pockets. As there will be no service, there will be no interaction (between cabin crew and passengers)."

"Masks have been arranged for the crew and passengers. For our crew, we have also arranged a complete protective gear," he had added.

"Total five doctors from the Health Ministry are also going... The plane will be there (at Wuhan airport) for 2-3 hours," Lohani had said.

Air India has done such evacuations earlier also from countries such as Libya, Iraq, Yemen, Kuwait and Nepal.
The Armenian authorities have acted in a completely legitimate field, seeking legitimate ways to resolve the crisis around the Constitutional Court, Armenian Minister of Justice Rustam Badasyan told reporters on Saturday.

His remarks came after PACE co-rapporteurs expressed their concern by high level of tension between Armenia PM's Office and Constitutional Court Presidency.

I consider the three observations noted by the co-rapporteurs on the issue of Armenia important. The first is the following: remember that they tried to convince us for a long time that the Constitution, as amended by the 15th year, clearly regulated everything and therefore the current attempts are inappropriate, and the reaction of the co-rapporteurs is more than convincing that our goal is to create a model of the Constitutional Court with the noted changes from 15 years is completely legitimate," he said.

According to him, the second circumstance is that the reforms that began in Armenia should not be threatened by the crisis, that is, the importance of reforms in the Armenian agenda is noted, and the general impression of the reaction is that the approaches of the Armenian authorities are completely understandable, emphasizes that the government and parliament until this moment acted in a completely legitimate field, looking for legitimate ways to resolve the crisis around the Constitutional Court, and I must again note that the crisis around the Constitutional Court should not become a threat for the course of our reforms, and I think that this crisis should be resolved.

Armenia minister also commented on the statement of the co-rapporteurs that there is tension between the office of the Prime Minister and the Constitutional Court, noting that the tension is obviously present.

He added that they took note of the statement of the co-rapporteurs and wanted to take steps that would not lead to tension.
Two days after a teenaged minor from Jewar opened fire at a group of protesting students near Jamia Millia Islamia, injuring one of them, a 23-year-old man from Delhi on Saturday fired two rounds in the air at the Shaheen Bagh protest site, where anti-Citizenship (Amendment) Act (CAA) demonstrators have been agitating for over a month and a half.

The gun shots were fired less than 150 metres from the protest site  the epicentre of anti-CAA protests in Delhi where hundreds of men, women and children are present daily. No one was injured.

As he was being detained by the police, the man was caught on camera saying, No other community will have a say in this country. Only Hindus will.

Police arrested the man, identified as Kapil Gujjar, a resident of Dallupura in east Delhi. Police said he is married and has studied up to Class 12.

The man, they said, had claimed he opened fire because there was a wedding in his family and his relatives had problems going shopping to the Lajpat Nagar market due to the road blockade at Kalindi Kunj.

Since December 15, 2019, hundreds of residents have been protesting against CAA at road number 13A. The police have since blocked the road that connects South Delhi and Noida.

According to the senior police officers, the firing took place between 4.45pm and 5pm. Eye witnesses told us that the man arrived in an auto-rickshaw around 4.30pm and went to a local tea shop. He sat there for about 15-20 minutes and then walked towards the protesters. He crossed the first barricade and after reaching the second one, he took out a pistol and fired one shot in the air. Before anyone could respond, the man fired another shot, said a senior police officer.

Joint commissioner of police (southern range) Devesh Srivastava said some policemen who were standing near the barricade overpowered the man and his pistol was snatched. We recovered only one pistol from him. He was immediately put in a car and was taken to Sarita Vihar police station. He has been booked under the Arms Act. He will be questioned to trace the source of the weapon, the joint commissioner said. He added that security had been tightened in the area ad all visitors to the protest site were being frisked with the help of volunteers.

Srivastava said they were verifying if the man had any political affiliations.

According to eyewitnesses, the shooter was pointing his weapon at the protesters. When I heard the first shot, I looked behind and saw him. Within seconds, he shouted Jai Shri Ram and again opened fire. He was pointing his weapon towards the protest site. People ducked to protect themselves. We saw him trying to fire again but his weapon jammed, said Ahtemama, a law student from Jamia Millia Islamia.

Another police officer, who questioned Gujjar after his detention, said the man claimed he was angry about the road blockade at Kalindi Kunj (connecting South Delhi and Faridabad to Noida).

He said he had a wedding in the family and they had to often go to Lajpat Nagar market. Since they were having trouble accessing this stretch, he got angry and fired near the protest site, the officer said.

Gujjars father, Gaje Singh, and elder brother, Sachin, who went to Sarita Vihar police station, told reporters they had they no clue about his plans. We came to know through TV news channels that he was involved in this. He was not upset over anything particular but had been irritated over the road blockade in Shaheen Bagh as most of our relatives live there and accessing that area has been a problem, the elder brother told ETV.

Sachin said that Kapil was very religious and participates in Kanwar Yatra every year. We dont know where he got the weapon from. He has never been involved in any criminal activity before, the family said.
You have permission to edit this article.

Edit Close
Wyatt recalled a conversation with an Indigenous woman who called him late last week. "She said, I have a fair-skinned child who is now worried they are going to be asked to prove their Aboriginality'," he said. "I dont need that, given the level of suicides we have in our communities." An eminent Noongar woman from Wyatts home state of Western Australia raised the same issue. "She said, Ken, I am now fielding questions about my fair-skinness. I thought I had gotten over that. Bruce Pascoe at his property in Gipsy Point last month as bushfires ripped through the region. Credit:Rachel Mounsey "This has opened up a debate for some people who continuously question the identity of Indigenous Australians," Wyatt said. Cashman says the problem isnt identity, its money  literary grants and other financial support intended for Aboriginal recipients that helped establish Pascoe as a best-selling author. The allegations raised by Cashman that Pascoe may have benefited financially from falsely claiming to be Indigenous have been assessed and dismissed by the Australian Federal Police.

"Aboriginal families have always adopted people, I have no problem with that. But you cant claim to be Aboriginal if you are not Aboriginal. The money is not getting to the ground and you have got someone who is quite privileged, compared to someone at Wilcannia, who is getting these grants." Pascoe has previously told The Sunday Age he believes the attacks on his ancestry are an attempt to discredit his best-selling book, Dark Emu, which argues that Indigenous Australians had sophisticated farming methods before European settlement. Professor Marcia Langton, a key figure in the push towards constitutional recognition of Indigenous Australians, Credit:Eddie Jim He says he has Indigenous ancestry on both sides of his family. "I know who I am and I know who my family is, and I know my place in the community." Wyatt does not believe it is his place to question Pascoes Aboriginality. That judgment belongs to the Indigenous communities with whom Pascoe identifies. Cashman accepts the role of Aboriginal communities to affirm the ancestral bona fides of their own people but says there needs to be more rigour.

Her suggestion for the establishment of a national Indigenous registry put her at odds with Professor Langton, other members of the advisory group and Wyatt, who grew up with a file registered to the state native welfare department. "I dont want to go back to a system where we are allocated a number on a register," he said. Professor Langton, the chair of Australian Indigenous Studies at the University of Melbourne and a key figure in the push towards constitutional recognition of Indigenous Australians, declined to be interviewed about her relationship with Cashman and the part she played in her removal from the advisory group. The breakdown of their once-close relationship is evident in an email exchange between the pair shortly after the first meeting of the senior advisory group last November. The exchange, which Cashman last week published on social media, begins as a demand by Cashman for the advisory group to be briefed by federal police agencies about what she claims are "organised crime networks operating in Aboriginal communities and often run by leaders of Aboriginal community organisations". "Unless this abuse of power is addressed, the voice process cannot work and I will not be able to support it," she wrote.

In response, Langton urges Cashman to rethink what she is saying. "Please withdraw this email and write a proposal not a threat," she said. "I dont think you can see how badly this reads." By the next morning, the dispute reached Wyatts inbox. One of the ministers advisers, Jarrod Lomas, subsequently contacted Cashman to arrange a meeting with the AFP for her to detail her allegations. By then, Wyatt had made public his support for Pascoe, and Cashman refused to take his call. Minister for Indigenous Australians Ken Wyatt. Credit:AAP At the time, both Langton and one of Pascoes publishers, Morry Schwartz, were directors of the Big River Impact Foundation, a business founded by Cashman to provide Aboriginal housing. That partnership ended abruptly in December, when Cashman made her first appearance on Andrew Bolts Sky News television show to denounce Pascoe and his book. Cashman says Schwartz called her to say that unless she recanted her attack against Pascoe, she risked losing her foundation. Schwartz confirmed the exchange but denied her allegation of an attempted boardroom coup. He says he and other former directors intervened to protect Cashman, not Pascoe.

"We said your focus should be on the work of the foundation and not on this other nonsense which is going to come to grief and is wrong, nasty and unnecessary," he told The Sunday Age. "She wouldnt pull back. There was no coup; she pushed it to the edge. Loading "She is really bright and strong and articulate and was building something fantastic. I just see the tragedy of a person who has marginalised themself and an organisation that was starting to look strong and do good things." Langton and Schwartz, who had served for two years as the foundations vice-chairman, immediately quit the board. Cashman kept control of the foundation and says she is re-evaluating her business plans. She has also withdrawn from a doctorate she was studying at the University of Technology Sydney. For Langton, the final breaking point was the emergence of a letter, attributed to Yolngu elder Terry Yumbulul, calling for an investigation into Pascoes claims to Aboriginal ancestry. The letter was provided by Cashman to Bolt. Yumbulul has since denied, to SBS National Indigenous Television journalist Jack Latimore, that he consented for the letter to be written under his name.

"This one is probably the straw that broke the camels back because there have been too many misrepresentations and unfounded accusations and abuse," Langton told Radio Nationals Patricia Karvelas. "She submitted this fraudulent letter to Andrew Bolt and he published it." Loading For Ken Wyatt, doubts over the veracity of the letter added to an already thorny problem. "You have a significant elder from a very strong clan headed by Galarrwuy Yunupingu being cited as having written that letter and then he comes out and says he did not write it. There are cultural sensitivities because Galarrwuy Yunupingu sits on the same body as Josephine and I cant afford to have tension. We have to focus on the outcome for Indigenous Australians as opposed to the differences of opinions between two individuals." Cashman feels betrayed that Wyatt moved against her without seeking her side of what had happened. Wyatt, who still considers Cashman a friend, says he needed to stay clear of the fray. "I think if I had rung Josie she may not have taken my call." The provenance of the letter remains unclear. Yumbulul did not write it but he had multiple communications with Cashman about its contents as it was being written.
Bari Brahmana Industries Association (BBIA), a Jammu-based body of industrialists, on Saturday hailed the Union Budget allocations for Jammu and Kashmir but requested long-term fiscal incentives for existing and new units.

"We welcome the union budget and the allocation of Rs 27300 crore for the promotion of Industrial sector," BBIA said in a statement after a meeting to discuss the Union Budget 2020-21, presented by Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman.

The members conveyed their heartiest thanks to Lt Governor G C Murmu for his efforts for grant of Rs 30,757 crores in the Budget for Jammu and Kashmir.

They also expressed hope that the administration would provide adequate share from the Budget for the grant of incentives to the existing as well as new industrial units in respect of reimbursement of CGST/SGST/turnover for the import of raw materials and export of finished goods.

It also said the Union Territory of Jammu and Kashmir should be allotted the requisite funds for the grant of Central government fiscal incentives for the existing and new units on long-term basis in 2020-21.

"The rapid Industrialization in Jammu is the need of the hour to provide employment to the local youths and therefore we request the Lt Governor to take up the matter with the Central government for the grant of Fiscal Incentives on long term basis to the existing units, units under substantial expansion and new units to create the employment avenues," the BBIA said.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
It's been just six days since the start of hospital building tp accommodate Coronavrus patients and seems like construction team are already nearing completion.

According to reports, Construction started on Jan. 23 and four companies have been working around the clock to build the two structures.

More than 4,000 workers and 1,000 vehicles have been used to build the Huoshenshan Hospital a sprawling 25,000 sq.-m., with 1,000 beds and Leishenshan Hospital, which is 40 km away,



Livestreaming the construction of the two hospitals has become popular Chinese social media platform and on YouTube.







China State Construction Engineering, one of the companies building the hospital, told Reuters that it was doing all it can and would overcome difficulties to play its part, adding it now had more than 100 workers on the site.

Twitter

Cement mixers have found themselves with nicknames like "The Cement King", "Big White Rabbit" and "The White Roller" and are being hailed as heroes on Chinese social media for their strength and dedication in the construction of the hospitals.



The hospital aims to copy the experience and design of Beijing in 2003 when the city battled Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome (SARS). As many as 774 people died globally in the SARS epidemic, which reached nearly 30 countries.

At the time, Beijing built the Xiaotangshan hospital in its northern suburbs in just a week. Within two months, it treated one-seventh of all the countrys SARS patients, the Changjiang Daily said.

To save time and money, the hospitals will be built with prefabricated materials, Yanzhong Huang, a senior fellow for global health at the Council on Foreign Relations, told the BBC.



The coronavirus has now spread to at least 20 countries worldwide and currently 10,000 people in the country infected, and over 200 dead.
: The Federation of Telangana Chambers of Commerce and Industry (FTCCI) on Saturday said the Union Budget is balanced and addressed the needs of all sections of society - farmers, women SHG groups, salaried class, individual tax payers, MSMEs and companies.

The Finance Minister (Nirmala Seetharaman) has considered majority of the concerns expressed by industry and given major reliefs like: increasing the turnover limit from one crore to five crore for compulsory audit, abolition of dividend distribution tax for companies, bringing smaller NBFCs under SARFAESI Act, FTCCI president Karunendra S Jasti said in a statement.

The budget has reduced the loan size from Rs one crore to Rs 50 lakh for applicability of SARFAESI Act, extension of debt restructuring facility for MSMEs till March 2021, extension of tax holiday for developers of affordable housing by one year, Jasti said.

The theme of the budget, based on the three aspects of Aspirational India, Economic Development and Caring Society, is aimed at giving equal importance to welfare, well-being and development, he said.

The government has more or less succeeded in addressing all three - by giving enough impetus - agriculture, irrigation and rural development, he said.

The expenditure on infrastructure projects is essential to revive the economy facing recessionary trends, he said.

The changes in personal income tax slabs and rate cuts are welcome step and help improve the purchasing power in turn leading to increase in consumption demand, Jasti said.

But the net effect of the reductions can be known only after examining the exemptions and deductions removed/retained, he said.

Chairman of Dr Reddys Laboratories Ltd Satish Reddy said he is happy to see healthcare continuing to be an integral part of the governments key priorities as per the Union Budget.

But, there is disappointment in some quarters with expectations of the industry not being met, as the budget was seen to be an opportunity to announce bold reforms, he said.

The industry had high expectations of this budget as it was seen to be an opportunity to announce big, bold reforms given the state of the economy. On that count, there is a degree of disappointment in some quarters as expectations have not been met, he said.

Reddy, who is president of the Indian Pharmaceutical Alliance, said he is, however, happy to see that healthcare continues to be an integral part of the governments important priorities.

The announcement on the expansion of the Ayushman Bharat programme by setting up additional hospitals in tier 2 and 3 cities is a welcome move. Other measures in improving the healthcare infrastructure and capacity-building in the sector are also commendable, he said in a press release.

"I would have, however, liked to see a significant financial incentive to boost exports and improve the competitiveness of the pharmaceutical sector. I hope this will take shape with a new export incentive scheme," Reddy said.

The overall thrust on ease of doing business, regulatory simplicity and policy stability should help the pharma industry scale new heights, he added.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
Aspirational India, economic development and a caring society for all are the three prominent themes of the Union Budget 2020-21, said Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman on Saturday.

"This budget is woven around three prominent themes, aspirational India, in which all sections of society seek better standards of living, economic development for all, indicated in Prime Minister's exhortation 'Sabka Saath, Sabka Vikaas', and lastly, ours shall be a caring society," Sitharaman said during the presentation of the Budget.

She further said that the digital revolution will play a big role in delivering services to the people in India in the coming days.

"The digital revolution, which has placed India in a unique leadership position, globally will see the next wave. We shall aim to achieve seamless delivery of services through digital governance," Sitharaman said.

Earlier the Union Cabinet, chaired by Prime Minister Narendra Modi, approved the Budget ahead of its presentation in the Parliament.

The Cabinet meeting was held after Sitharaman, who carried a 'Bahi-Khata', met President Ram Nath Kovind, accompanied by MoS Finance Anurag Thakur and other officials from her ministry.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
Impeachment will backfire because the D.C. Leviathan still does not understand why Donald Trump was elected. After all this time, the Democrats, the NeverTrump Rump, and permanent bureaucratic power-grabbers still believe that the 2016 election was about a cult of personality. To them, President Trump is a mere carnival barker, some unholy mixture of P.T. Barnum, Franz Mesmer, and Huey Long. They have therefore spent the last three years trying to convince his supporters that he is a pretender, a Republican interloper, an emperor with no clothes. They have been convinced that if they can only expose Mr. Trump as a fake billionaire, an apostate of conservatism, or an un-American foreign agent, then his voters will pack up, retreat from his rallies, and demand his removal from office. Instead, his appeal has become more robust, and once lukewarm support has turned hot.

What the bow tiewearing myopics of the swamp can't or refuse to see is that President Trump's support comes, at its source, from growing animal spirits in America convinced that the federal government is a major problem. The country elected Mr. Trump, in part, because he promised to be a giant club willing to bash the D.C. hull repeatedly until it sinks into the Potomac River basin. You can't fight a war if you don't even understand the positions of the players or the stakes involved, and the D.C. denizens prove every day that they have no idea what's going on in the minds of those living between the coasts.

We have watched the federal government grow and transform into something we hate and fear. There were no constitutional conventions or amendments for these changes; rather, the federal courts took it upon themselves to reinterpret the Constitution with the silent consent of Congress and successive presidents until they had effectively co-opted power originally guaranteed to the individual states or the American people themselves. Giant administrative agencies now tower over our lives, even if they reside in D.C. They conjure power for themselves out of thin air, but their application of power is very real. They choose whom to tax, what land to seize, whose gods must be respected, and whose faith must be destroyed. Administrative agencies force American citizens to bend to the wills of faceless swamp things, and nobody in D.C. sees this as the direct assault on Madisonian republicanism that it is. Vesting all the awesome powers of the Executive, Legislative, and Judicial Branches in the unmitigated wisdom of twenty-seven-year-old cubicle kings is tyranny, and that is what we have.

Lies have always accompanied the struggle for human power, but the federal government today trades in the currency of deceit with such gusto that it should offend any free people. It is hysterically ironic to hear Deep State acolytes attempt to separate President Trump from his voters by accusing him of being untruthful. We've watched President Obama sabotage the peaceful transition of power, John Brennan and James Comey conspire with the FISA Court to frame President Trump as a Russian spy, news personalities routinely spread the lie that President Trump is racist, and Democratic moles and fake whistleblowers falsely accuse President Trump of crimes actually committed by President Obama and Vice President Biden. Hearsay and innuendo against President Trump are the only news of the day. For those living between the coasts, the federal government and the legacy media vomit forth such unrelenting and inscrutably mad deceptions upon the American people that any exaggeration from the president seems nostalgically folksy in a Huck Finn type of way by comparison. And like Finn, if the president occasionally fibs, at least we know he is a hero with a good heart who works on our behalf. The D.C. coup-plotters and power-grabbers, in contrast, sacrificed their souls long ago in service to the cretinous golem into which they've breathed life.

It has troubled us deeply that the Left has succeeded in capturing almost all of the permanent bureaucratic government in D.C. What many of us did not know, however, was how successful they had been in capturing the Republican leadership as well. All this time, the very intellectual and political leaders who have cautioned restraint, urged our moral compromise, and forced us to accept that some legislative goals are simply beyond our reach had more in common with the champagne socialists of the D.C. circuit than with the voters in the middle of the country who provide for their comfortable lifestyles. After all, once we handed the Republican Party control of the House, Senate, and presidency, they made sure to thank us by saving Planned Parenthood and Obamacare and giving credibility to the Russian collusion con. Many of us had a great epiphany: what if most of these conservative and Republican leaders had abandoned us long ago and merely served to keep us docile until the Marxist-socialist conquest was complete?

No, there will be no going back to former pundits and party leaders who dishonored us with lies while working alongside the very people and institutions we have spent a lifetime opposing. Like the Leviathan they revere, their mettle is based on adornment and fluffy stuff. They are playthings of the Left, obsequious creatures beholden to their paymasters and status friends, men and women with no honor, no moral codes, no great understanding of what it means to be free. They take and give oaths to themselves, and we shall forever see them as political whores.

So when President Trump's enemies seek to manipulate us into acquiescing and consenting to his removal from office, their strategy is all backwards. The Left long ago learned to use our virtue against us by appealing to our moral leanings and our sense of shame. They cry out at us: "Look at this man. He betrays all of the customs and traditions of the American government. He lies to us and threatens us and dares to question the absolute truth of the press. He is uncouth and ill mannered and actively seeks to find our pressure points and pour salt in our wounds. He is no true Republican. He is no true conservative. He countermands everything we've stood for, everything we've worked for, everything we've promised to the rest of the world. He finds nothing sacred in what we do." Nothing could make us happier. The more they protest and accuse him of terrible things, the more we see him as a great and dangerous club with which to pound the Deep State and post-constitutional order into the ground.

They would have been better off actively courting him, conquering him, and converting him, as the federal Borg has so successfully done in the past. If the State Department, Congress, and the spongy Republicans were all singing his praises right now, then we would have known that our 2016 bet had failed and seen the wisdom in looking for leadership elsewhere. As it stands now, there is no greater honor than being despised by the very collection of people who have so richly earned our derision. These impeachment proceedings should be considered nothing less than public meetings of the Committee to Re-Elect the President.

Image: Gage Skidmore via Flickr.
The intellectual goal the editors set themselves is indeed ambitious. To rectify the present lack of any sense of a feasible alternative that extends the social democratic ethosinto the future and above all to liberate public imagination from largely nationalist frames of reference that have fueled the surge of ultranationalist populisms





by Dr. Dayan Jayatilleka





The book is titled On Public Imagination and subtitled A Political and Ethical Imperative. It is edited by Victor Faessel, Richard Falk and Michael Curtin. It is a Routledge, Taylor and Francis Group publication out of New York and London. The introductory thematic essay is by Richard Falk and Victor Faessel and its title lets us straight into the problem that is sought to be tackled. Public Imagination: The Challenge of 21st Century Populist and Authoritarian Politics.









The date of publication of the slim volume is 2020. It is classified as Politics/Current Affairs, while in the descriptive text on the back cover the publishers place it more specifically in the category Political Thought. In the sphere of Politics/Political Thought, it deals with the most important theme or problem of the current period in world history.





I was lucky to get the volume in the mail in Moscow and have it collected from Customs the day before I left. I read it all the way through on the flight back to Colombo. It is co-edited by the man I most respect intellectually and am proud to call a friend, who was also the primary author of the volumes Introduction, namely Prof Richard Falk.





Richard Falk is Professor Emeritus of International Law at Princeton University. Victor Faessel is managing editor of The Oxford Handbook of Global Studies as well as the four-volume Encyclopedia of Global Studies. Michael Curtin is Distinguished Professor of Film and media studies at the University of California, Santa Barbara.





On the flyleaf the publishers had identified the books emphasis as dealing with problems of public imagination in an era paradoxically marked by intensifying globalization and resurgent nationalism





Typical of Falk, whose ethics and lucidity are welded together and wielded like a light-saber, the introductory essay gets right to the point. It hopes to heighten sensitivity to the wider political and historical context of our time, at this critical juncture in human history. Falk and Faessel sound the alarm that this regressive trend visible throughout the world signals what may be an epoch-defining abandonment of post 1945 commitment to democratic forms of governance and advocacy of human rights.





Falk and Faessel pull no punches while describing the tectonic shift: the election of autocratic and demagogic leaders adhering to ultranationalist agendasthe rising populist backlash against globalization in many societies has been marked by resurgent right-wing nationalism and in many cases, authoritarianismRightwing populism and nativism warn us that more primitive, chauvinist forms of collective political imagination are asserting themselves over what now appears to be a vanishing veneer of tolerance and political civility...and [have] engendered toxic forms of polarization





Catherine Keller, Professor of Constructive Theology at Drew Theological College recapitulates the main point of the Introduction in its identification of the problem: what Richard Falk and Victor Faessel call in the introduction to this anthology, the regressive politics of rightwing populism and nativism, intensified by disinformation, fake news and corporatized media .





This is by no means a purely Western progressive humanist or left-liberal perspective. Professor Emerita of Political Science at Delhi University, Neera Chandhoke opens her essay on The making of an Indian Public Space endorsing and extending the diagnosis: The important introductory chapter by Richard Falk and Victor Faessel in this volume lays out clearly and cogently the dangers that stalk our world today: rabid intolerance, fear of the stranger, and the closing down of minds. Across the world people seem to inhabit frighteningly blinkered worldsSince the end of the twentieth century religious identities have made more strident demands and engaged in state-breaking and state-making endeavors.





This is echoed by Luis Cabrera, Associate Professor at the School of Government and International Relations, Griffith University, who writes of this era of populism and nativism, when battles for some of the most basic principles of rights and equality must seemingly be re-fought daily





The main thesis of the volume is that neoliberalism, liberal democracy and the left lost-- actually forfeited-- their appeal to the public imagination, because of the failure, falsity or obsolescence of their stories, their narratives, their myths and legends, while the authoritarian rightwing nationalists succeeded in appealing to the public imagination. The challenge for progressives is to come up with the elements of a viable alternative appeal to the public imagination which can rival and displace the hold of authoritarian rightwing nationalism and nativism.





The intellectual goal the editors set themselves is indeed ambitious. To rectify the present lack of any sense of a feasible alternative that extends the social democratic ethosinto the future and above all to liberate public imagination from largely nationalist frames of reference that have fueled the surge of ultranationalist populisms





Does the volume work and how does it work? In the editorial reviews, Craig Calhoun, former Director of the LSE and currently Professor of Sociology at Arizona State University writes that without imagination our public debates are inanimate and our politics mere power struggles. This book brings 30 exciting perspectives on how to renew public imagination. Saskia Sassen, Professor of Sociology at Columbia and visiting Prof at the LSE says this is a much-needed angle into the larger debate about the decay of liberal democracy. Manfred Steger, Professor of Sociology at the University of Hawaii opines that our 21st century world is in desperate need of collective action based on a pluralistic public imagination. This highly readable anthology presents the concise and innovative views of dozens of influential intellectuals on the critical role of an ethical imagination





The volume is divided into five parts, covering Imagination: Theory and Engagement, Imagining Communities and Rights, Ecological Imaginations, Rupture and Revolution, and Across the Border. The contributors include two respected former Foreign Ministers, Celso Amorim (Brazil) Ahmet Davutoglu (Turkey), iconic futurist thinker Johan Galtung, top journalists and writer Victoria Brittain, famous civil society figure Chandra Muzaffer, and respected senior academics Fred Dallmayr, Stephen Gill, Marjorie Cohn, Mary Kaldor and Neera Chandhoke.





The contributors as listed in alphabetical order in the volume are: Celso Amorim, Akeel Bilgrami, David Bollier, Chiara Bottici, Victoria Brittain, Luis Cabrera, Julie A. Carlson, Neera Chandhoke, Allen Chun, Kevin P. Clements, Marjorie Cohn, Drucilla Cornell, Michael Curtin, Fred Dallmayr, Ahmet Davutoglu, Victor Faessel, Richard Falk, Tom Farer, Johan Galtung, Behrooz Ghamari-Tabrizi, Stephen Gill, Anna Grear, Penny Green, Abdellah Hammoudi, Dayan Jayatilleka, Paul W. Khan, Mary Kaldor, Catherine Keller, Sara Lafia, Chandra Muzaffar, Stephen D Seely, Vandana Shiva, Kamal Sinclair and Elizabeth West. I was privileged to be invited to contribute.





Mary Kaldor, the renowned writer and scholar of global militarization, identifies with enormous lucidity in her chapter, the responsibility of the left for the catastrophe that has befallen humanity with the triumph of the nationalist right. Her analysis is true of all countries, except, I would argue, for those such as Argentina and Mexico in which the left adopted a Left Populist strategy and program. It was a failure of the leftthe belief by representatives of the left that they needed to compromise with market fundamentalism in order to capture powerthat created a gaping hole in the creative imagination. So it was that the new, claiming to be old, scions of the right were able to manipulate nostalgia for a time when our institutions seemed to work and to attribute blame for the breakdown of our institutions on the so-called newcomer, the other who spoiled our golden past. In the 1930s, this kind of thinking led to the rise of fascism and culminated in a warCurrently the dominant narratives are polarized between a rightwing nationalist populism and global neoliberalism. The left is divided between the old nationalist left and those, like Clinton and Blair, who compromised with neoliberalism. What we need is a new global emancipatory narrative that is global, green, socially just, and realistic, another way of seeing the world...





Fred Dallmayr, Professor Emeritus of Political Science at Notre Dame recalls at the conclusion of his contribution Public Space: thinking at the Edge of the Cave, that the antidote to the ultranationalist public imagination of our time has been Richard Falks long standing (2002) advocacy of the archetype and mentality of the citizen pilgrim. For his part, Celso Amorim, Brazils former Foreign Minister and Defense Minister under President Lula, counterposes the conceptual-cum-value cluster of national sovereignty, human rights, democratic governance and above all solidarity, against the conservative nationalist ideologies of the kind represented by Donald Trump or Marine Le Pen.





Kevin Clements, Professor of Peace and Conflict Studies, University of Otago, NZ, argues for a Politics of Compassion in an age of ruthless power, pointing to the familiar reality of a deliberate cultivation of existential fear and anxiety by opportunistic leaders and their media allies. This has been used to justify the expansion of dominatory and authoritarian politics. The new category he mints dominatory politicsmay be profitably deployed to understand the unilateral redesign of the politico-Constitutional and social (ethnic, religious, linguistic and gender) relations that is being attempted by right-wing nationalist authoritarianism the world over. In his definition dominatory politics/processes refer to all those exchanges that result in the intentional or unintentional subordination of others and the development of persistent hierarchies based on age, race, gender or class.





Clements posits instead a Politics of Compassion comprising genuine paradigm shiftfrom power over others to power with othersThe politics of compassion, therefore, is the opposite of dominatory, fear driven, xenophobic politics based on a monopoly of force and coercionmore attention should be directed to enhancing the power of unifiers in communities and diminishing the power of dividers. The challenge however, is understanding and combatting all the dynamics which threaten to undermine these valuespossessive individualism, neoliberalism and elite-driven politics For a new, socially driven imaginary to succeed it must first, however, analyze and negate politics and practices of domination everywhere.





My only point of disagreement is with the bottom line of the impassioned essay by Behrooz Ghamari-Tabrizi, Professor of Near Eastern Studies at Princeton in his contribution to Part IV, the section on Revolution and Rupture, in which Stephen Gill, Distinguished Research Professor of Political Science at York University, and I have had our contributions housed by the Editors. Ghamari-Tabrizi draws a distinction in his essay on Revolutionary politics and Public Imagination between possible realities and real possibilities, and counterposes them, arguing for fidelity to the former and lamenting the latter. Prof Gill and I, writing totally independently of one another, have both leaned heavily on Antonio Gramsci. It is from a neo-Gramscian perspective that I demur from that contradistinction and would argue instead that the late-modern Prince or post-modern Prince/Princess (this latter is Stephen Gills coinage) must be capable of mediating and managing adroitly the dialectic of real possibilities in the short term and possible realities in the longerthus able to think of a feasible utopia (Gill), a new realistic utopia (Kaldor).





In the concluding Coda written with lyricism and passion, primary co-editor Victor Faessel urges that In an age of authoritarian and populist politics, of recrudescent nativism, racism, and revanchism and of ecological calamitys arrivalThe social facts of justice, equality, tolerance, freedom to the extent that they actually exist where one happens to liveare only facts in this sense that they have been and continue to be fought for by coalitions of conscience and commitmentmedleys of cooperative ethical passion become concrete acts toward a future





I prefer to read Victor Faessels Coda together with the concluding passage of the contribution to the volume by Drucilla Cornell, Distinguished Professor of Political Science, Womens and Gender Studies and Comparative Literature at Rutgers University, who deploys the luminous term political spirituality and reminds us of the stakes and risks, and the appropriate attitude with which to view them. For us the challenge of political spirituality is to dare to risk the kind of dangerand it was Foucault who said that everything is dangerous, but this means we always have something to dothat our imagination of a more just world can only be opened in and through actual struggles that expand our material possibilities.





Or if you prefer, the last word or words are the first words, right in front, on the cover of the volume. It features a photograph of the London Extinction Rebellion mural at Marble Arch, widely thought to be by Banksy. It is a wall, with a sketch of a little girl holding a small placard with the extinction symbol, while the writing in chalk on the wall reads: FROM THIS MOMENT DESPAIR ENDS AND TACTICS BEGIN.





(Dr Dayan Jayatilleka is author of The Great Gramsci: Imagining an Alt-Left Project, in Part IV Rupture and Revolution, On Public Imagination: A Political and Ethical Imperative eds. Victor Faessel, Richard Falk and Michael Curtin, Routledge, Taylor and Francis Group, New York and London, 2020, Ch 23, pp 92-95.)
Award-winning film director Vishal Bhardwaj on Friday gave the example of Mahatma Gandhis long struggle for Indias freedom to say people have the democratic right to protest and it cannot be taken away.

He was speaking on the first day of the Deccan Literature Festival during a session on Creative Side of Commercial Cinema at Balgandharva Rangmandir in Pune.

Bhardwaj made the comment while referring to his film Haider during a conversation with theatre director Salim Arif.

If you ask whether I would have been able to make Haider today, then I would be lying. All that is happening across the country is sad and pains the countrymen. Who likes protests, gunshots and fights daily? he asked.

Protest is a democratic right and it cannot be taken away at any cost. The Father of the Nation protested hard and that too for a very long time for India to get freedom. The movie Haider could not have been made in this kind of environment and a completely different movie would have emerged, he said.

He also said that India is a country with strong secular artistic and literary talent which promotes a vibrant democracy and instils constitutional values among the citizens at large. He also appealed to vested interest to refrain from levelling baseless criticism on festivals related to literature and art.

Bhardwaj, who has supported protests against the right at Jawaharlal Nehru University (JNU) and Jamia Millia Islamia university and against the Citizenship Amendment Act and National Register for Citizens, had earlier said that dissenting citizens were within their constitutional rights to step out and protest.

It was unfair on the part of the government to brand them as urban Naxal or anti-national, he had said.

SHARE THIS ARTICLE ON
Month after month in poll after poll South Carolina Democrats have consistently put Joe Biden at the top when asked to give their presidential pick.

And now, with less than a month to go until the Feb. 29 primary, his name is still first out of the mouths of nearly all of the state's county Democratic Party top leaders reading their home turf.

"Comes down to 'He's good enough for Obama, he's good enough to me,'" Kershaw County Democratic Party Chair Phyllis Lloyd-Harris said.

Lloyd-Harris was one of 35 of the state's 46 county party chairs who spoke with The Post and Courier's political team in recent days to casually discuss who they see as the top picks among the party faithful. Two county party chairs are vacant.

With its large population of African American voters, South Carolina is the state Biden is banking on to be his firewall after unpredictable contests ahead in Iowa and New Hampshire. That's good news for Biden who was consistently the top pick in all four regions of the state: the Lowcountry, Pee Dee, Midlands and Upstate.

Moving past the former vice president, the picture is much more of a free-for-all. Biden's two major progressive challengers  Vermont Sen. Bernie Sanders and Massachusetts Sen. Elizabeth Warren  are next in line, though not always in that order, the leaders say.

Plus, there are two others creeping into the conversation: surprising surges by both billionaire Tom Steyer and former South Bend, Ind., Mayor Pete Buttigieg.

Also evident from some of the interviews: Party leaders characterize support for Biden as more of a "shrug" vote, indicating Democrats are supporting the better-known entity out of deference, rather than full-volleyed enthusiastic support.

"The Bernie people do the fist-pumping," Berkeley County Democratic Party Chairman Chester Willis said with a chuckle. "The Biden people, for the most part, do the shrug (of acceptance)."

Willis supported the liberal Sanders in 2016, but said he's unsure if he's the right candidate for the job now.

The newspaper's telephone survey with the party leaders was more conversational than scientific. The chairs were asked to list their top four candidates and told their comments did not amount to an endorsement, only what they see as a snapshot where the race stands today for themselves or their county.

The phone calls were done just days ahead of Monday's lead-off contest, the Iowa caucus.

Overall, Biden was the most popular candidate and was mentioned by 33 of the 35 S.C. county chairs when asked to name four candidates they see drawing the most interest.

Sanders was mentioned by 32 of the 35 county chairs; Warren was listed by 30.

Pickens County Chairman Richard Byrd and Georgetown County Chairwoman Debbie Smith were the two leaders who excluded Biden from their respective lists.

Byrd said many Sanders backers from 2016  including himself  are sticking with him. He rejected claims that Sanders' progressive policies are too far from the mainstream.

"The last time we had a candidate who pursued these types of policies, the country elected him four times," Byrd said, referring to Franklin Delano Roosevelt.

Though Smith likes Biden policy-wise, she said her issue is whether or not Biden can hold his own on a debate stage with President Donald Trump.

"His performance in the debates has been so shaky," she said.

One question guiding many county chairs right now is simple: Who can beat Trump?

"My concern now is who can win? I think all the top four can do the job but who can win?" Lee County's Ennis Bryant said.

This is the second time during the course of the primary that the newspaper has done this survey. The previous instance was this past March, before Biden formally entered, and New Jersey Sen. Cory Booker and California Sen. Kamala Harris drew the most interest.

With both of them gone from the race, Clarendon County Democratic Party Chairwoman Patricia Pringle is faced with having to find a candidate to support all over again.

Sign up for updates! Get the latest political news from The Post and Courier in your inbox. Email

Sign Up!

As the county's auditor, she endorsed Booker. But she also liked Harris, Julian Castro and Kirsten Gillibrand in the last survey. Looking around now, she sees a field that's mostly white and lacking color.

African American support is crucial for candidates hoping to do well in South Carolina, where the demographic is expected to make up some 65 percent of the turnout. The state is also seen as more reflective of the party than the very white Iowa and New Hampshire.

Outside of the top three, two other candidates are gaining traction: Steyer, who has blanketed the state with TV ads and home mailers, and Buttigieg.

In the Pee Dee and the Midlands, Steyer was the fourth pick overall. In the Lowcountry and the Upstate, it was Buttigieg who rounded out the top four.

"Even my 15-year-old son knows who Tom Steyer is now, said Chester County Chairwoman Anne Puccio.

But Greenville County Chairwoman Kate Franch said Steyer needs to keep showing up in person to translate that media interest into votes.

"Voters want to get a feel for you and look you in the face," Franch said, pointing to a similar level of curiosity for tech entrepreneur Andrew Yang and Minnesota Sen. Amy Klobuchar.

"If they can come, they may win people over," Franch said.

Charleston County Democratic Party Chairwoman Colleen Condon said Buttigieg could still impress Democrats in the coming weeks, saying she has seen his campaign represented at every Democratic Party event in Charleston, and has received more messages from that campaign than any other.

Condon, who identifies as a member of the LGBTQ community, said the historic nature of Buttigieg's bid as the first openly gay presidential candidate is generating excitement, particularly among younger voters. But more so, she said, voters are drawn to his passion and his fresh perspective on politics.

Aiken County Democratic Party Chair Harold Crawford Jr. called Buttigieg a "breath of fresh air" but he also said Buttigieg's "personal choices" could hurt him among more socially conservative Democrats in the state.

Others in the survey said they are preparing for the nation to be surprised. Several chairs named Yang outside of their top four picks but as a potential wildcard in the race.

They cited an uptick in organizing along with voters who like his "freedom dividend" idea of giving every adult U.S. citizen $1,000 a month.

Others were high on Klobuchar, the senator from Minnesota.

"Klobuchar is my up and coming," said Sumter County chairwoman Barbara Bowman. "Klobuchar is a quiet killer. People want to know about her."

Said Bowman: We are going to get the shock of our lives. We are going to get shocked.

Because Warren is one of just three female candidates left (along with Klobuchar and Hawaii Rep. Tulsi Gabbard) Spartanburg Democratic County Chairwoman Angela Geter said Warren may garner significant support from women, another key demographic in the primary.

"A lot of women are energized and excited about the possibility of a woman, and we don't have Kamala Harris anymore," Geter said.

A few of the chairs said it is still too early in the process to offer a top four, with some opting to share a top five instead. Others declined to give any names, wanting to preserve their neutrality.

"You could say it's almost anybody's race," said Jasper County Democratic Party Chairman Earl Bostik, who said he is still deliberating who will get his vote.

Bostik said he worries about the task ahead for voters, who have already had to contend with sizing up the largest Democratic presidential field in history.

Beaufort County Chair Mayra Rivera-Vasquez said coalescing around the eventual Democratic nominee is top of mind.

"It's a primary, but it's a primary between family," she said. "At the end of the day, whoever is going to be the nominee, we are going to be here and we are going to have his or her back."

The race is expected to intensify in the coming weeks, particularly after New Hampshire's Feb. 11 primary.

The campaigns will then have 18 days to make their final pitch to South Carolina voters.

Post and Courier reporters Jamie Lovegrove, Andy Shain and Schuyler Kropf contributed.
Stock Market Combination Topping Pattern Is Setting Up

Our research team has highlighted a number of technical and other factors that point to a very real potential of a major market top setting up across the global markets. Weve highlighted a number of research articles over the past 30 to 45 days that clearly illustrate our interpretation of the US and global markets.

Our research team believes the Coronavirus outbreak in Wuhan china will cripple economic expansion and consumer economic activity in China and much of SE Asia over the next few weeks and months. If the virus spreads into India, it could quickly target large portions of Indias economic capabilities. We are very early into this potential pandemic event. The growth rates reported by China suggest only a 2~3% death rate, yet an almost exponential growth rate for the number of invested. It started off below 100 about 10+ days ago and is now almost ready to break 10k.

Skilled traders must understand that the world is far more inter-connected economically and via transportation than it was even 50 years ago. More people travel to various parts of the world more often than ever before. More goods and services travel back and forth across oceans and continents than ever before. This inter-connected world is actually quite small when you consider a student or vacationer can travel more than halfway around the planet in less than 35 hours, access two or three major transportation hubs (airports) and have direct contact to dozens of people and indirect contract to thousands of people within that span of time.

January 23, 2020: JANUARY 2018 STOCK MARKET REPEAT  YIKES!

December 20, 2019: WHO SAID TRADERS AND INVESTOR ARE EMOTIONAL RIGHT NOW?

December 16, 2019: CURRENT EQUITIES RALLY SIMILARITIES TO 1999

Our concern is, quite literally, that the growth of the number of infected people related to this Coronavirus is only just starting to explode.

One analyst we were watching on TV suggested waiting for a -5% price correction in high-value US equities before attempting to buy back into this weakness. Knowing that any type of global pandemic even could continue to expand for many months, years of decades, we believe a large number of these analysts are failing to understand the total scope of this potential event.

Our research team believes the next 6 to 12 months will become very telling regarding the real economic contraction resulting from the Coronavirus spread. We believe the initial measures governments and world organizations are taking will shrink economic opportunity by at least 10 to 20% for certain nations. If the virus explodes into Africa, or the Middle East, or North America, then we have another set of problems to deal with. At that point, the economic ramifications could result in a 30 to 50% contraction in certain segments of the US and Global economy.

Let us try to explain our thinking

No, people will not stop buying toilet paper, toothpaste, food, and other essential supplies, but they will likely slow their purchases at Starbucks, Movie Theaters, Social Events, Traveling to unknown areas and shopping in large exposed areas (big box stores). Anything that is perceived as a risk will be viewed as potentially dangerous and unwanted.

Consumers and Businesses are like flocks of birds or schools of fish, they all seem to turn to follow the others and move as a single group or beast. If consumers start to pull back as this issue extends, we expect the beast will follow this trend until the risk is minimized.

Even though the US economic numbers from Q4 are still landing with very strong numbers  remember this data does not include any real data from the current quarter. Everything looks really good if you ignore the threat of the Coronavirus going forward (which is rather foolish). Q1 and Q2 2020 could become a completely different set of numbers.

January 29, 2020: ARE WE SETTING UP FOR A WATERFALL SELLOFF?

We believe the waterfall even that we highlighted earlier this week is still a very valid interpretation of the global market future reaction throughout most of Q1 and Q2 of this year. We dont see any real alternative other than price contraction as long as the Coronavirus continues to wreak havoc across the planet. If the virus is suddenly contained and diminishing, or cured, then we believe the global perception will change back to positive very quickly.

We believe the first waterfall event is already taking place. We believe the second waterfall event will produce a downside price move targeting recent support near $307 on the SPY. We believe any further breakdown of the price below this support level will prompt a downside price move targeting the $260 level. These rotations will come in waves or waterfall events and could target various sectors of the US and global markets.

Pay attention to what the Transportation Index is doing as this outbreak continues. Slowing consumer activity means essential items will still be in high demand, but big-ticket items, cars, luxury, and vacations may see a dramatic slowing in sales and activity. Even homes and apartments may slow in sales. People tend to become very protective and secure in these economic modes.

The Transportation Index may initially fall to levels near 10,200 before finding any real support. Then a further downside move may target longer-term support near 8,500. Below that level.. well, lets just say that below that level and we could be well into a very serious Bearish contraction phase of the global markets.

Take this time to reposition your assets and protect your value. You can always redeploy your capital when you feel the time is right to jump back into the markets. We believe the next 60 to 90 days will become very informative relating to the spread and capabilities of this virus and our ability to fight it. Dont let this volatility be something like 2009 when you look back and say I should have known better.

Join my Wealth Building Newsletter if you like what you read here and ride my coattails as I navigate these financial markets and build wealth while others lose nearly everything they own.

Chris Vermeulen

www.TheTechnicalTraders.com

Chris Vermeulen has been involved in the markets since 1997 and is the founder of Technical Traders Ltd. He is an internationally recognized technical analyst, trader, and is the author of the book: 7 Steps to Win With Logic



Through years of research, trading and helping individual traders around the world. He learned that many traders have great trading ideas, but they lack one thing, they struggle to execute trades in a systematic way for consistent results. Chris helps educate traders with a three-hour video course that can change your trading results for the better.



His mission is to help his clients boost their trading performance while reducing market exposure and portfolio volatility.



He is a regular speaker on HoweStreet.com, and the FinancialSurvivorNetwork radio shows. Chris was also featured on the cover of AmalgaTrader Magazine, and contributes articles to several leading financial hubs like MarketOracle.co.uk

Disclaimer: Nothing in this report should be construed as a solicitation to buy or sell any securities mentioned. Technical Traders Ltd., its owners and the author of this report are not registered broker-dealers or financial advisors. Before investing in any securities, you should consult with your financial advisor and a registered broker-dealer. Never make an investment based solely on what you read in an online or printed report, including this report, especially if the investment involves a small, thinly-traded company that isnt well known. Technical Traders Ltd. and the author of this report has been paid by Cardiff Energy Corp. In addition, the author owns shares of Cardiff Energy Corp. and would also benefit from volume and price appreciation of its stock. The information provided here within should not be construed as a financial analysis but rather as an advertisement. The authors views and opinions regarding the companies featured in reports are his own views and are based on information that he has researched independently and has received, which the author assumes to be reliable. Technical Traders Ltd. and the author of this report do not guarantee the accuracy, completeness, or usefulness of any content of this report, nor its fitness for any particular purpose. Lastly, the author does not guarantee that any of the companies mentioned in the reports will perform as expected, and any comparisons made to other companies may not be valid or come into effect.

Chris Vermeulen Archive

 2005-2019 http://www.MarketOracle.co.uk - The Market Oracle is a FREE Daily Financial Markets Analysis & Forecasting online publication.




The Nigerian government has created a committee to address the issues that led to a suspension of U.S. immigrant visas to its citizens, the presidents office said on Saturday, Trend reports citing Reuters.

Nigeria was among six countries, four of them in Africa, added to a visa ban announced on Friday in a presidential proclamation.

U.S. officials said the countries failed to meet U.S. security and information-sharing standards, which necessitated the new restrictions.

Nigeria remains committed to maintaining productive relations with the United States and other international allies especially on matters of global security, the statement said.

Nigeria, the most populous nation in Africa, is the biggest country on the list whose citizens will be suspended from U.S. visas that can lead to permanent residency. The list also includes Eritrea, Kyrgyzstan and Myanmar.

The U.S. government also said it will stop issuing diversity visas to nationals of Sudan and Tanzania.

Nigerias information minister told Reuters they had no warning of their inclusion on the list before it appeared in the media.
The Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) has continued to mount pressure on the Supreme Court over the judgment on the Imo governorship election which the party is demanding review of the removal of Emeka Ihedioha who won the March 2019 election while the apex court computed its own result to declare Hope Uzodinma of the All Progressives Congress (APC), winner.

The PDP besides supporting Ihedioha to approach the Supreme Court for review, further petitioned the United States, United Kingdom, and the European Union, and followed with mass protest to the foreign governments.

PDP leaders during mass protest to the Embassies and High Commissions of the US, UK and EU on Friday appealed for their interventions to restore justice in the judgment of the Supreme Court on the Imo State governorship election.

PDP National Chairman, Prince Uche Secondus, led the party stakeholders who included Senator Enyinaya Abaribe, to storm the US embassy and UK High Commission in Abuja on Friday.

ALSO READ: Obaseki boxes Oshiomhole into submission

It was gathered PDP National Working Committee (NWC), Board of Trustees (BoT), including National Assembly, members, among other stakeholders participated in the proterst.

PDP National Organising Secretary, Colonel Austin Akobundu (rtd), had in a statement on Thursday indicated that demonstrators would use individual vehicles or join the street walk in the peaceful and non-violent protest.

In continuation of our protests as ordered by NEC, the National Chairman has directed that all members of the NWC, BOT, leadership, and members of the National Assembly, and other critical stakeholders of our great party would be presenting our petitions to the embassies of the United States of America, United Kingdom, and the European Union on the State of Affairs in the country, he had said.

PV: 0
Just a few days after Arnab Goswami and Kunal Kamra mid-air fiasco, the comedian has sent a legal notice to Indigo Airlines demanding an unconditional apology, revocation of the ban and Rs 25 lakh compensation.

Reuters

In a legal notice sent to the airline on Friday, Kamra's lawyer asked the airline to:

"Pay compensation towards my client in sum of Rs 25 lakhs on account of the mental pain and agony suffered by my client as well as losses incurred on account of cancellation of his scheduled shows and programs in India as well as abroad on account of adoption of a totally illegal, arbitrary and high-handed procedure which is against the extant DGCA CAR (regulations)".

Kamra and Goswami were traveling in an IndiGo flight 6E 5317 from Mumbai to Lucknow on Tuesday when the incident happened.

In the video posted by Kamra on his Twitter handle, Goswami, who can be seen glued to his laptop, did not respond to the former's rant.

SpiceJet, GoAir and Air India also imposed a similar ban on Kamra without specifying any period. Kamra was banned by India's largest airline for six months on Tuesday for allegedly harassing Goswami on the Mumbai-Lucknow flight.
The death of Qassem Soleimani is one of the significant landmarks. The Iranian supreme leader Ali Khamenei lost his right hand for preserving the regimes strategic depth with the death of the commander of the Revolutionary Guards Quds Force (IRGC-QF).

In recent years, Soleimani was saving the regimes interests beyond and he was playing an essential role in funding the Iran-backed proxies in the Middle East such as Lebanese Hezbollah, Shiite militias in Iraq, as well as keeping Syrias dictator Bashar al-Assad in power.

In this context, the IRGC-QFs head committed many crimes in these countries and had the blood of many innocent people on his hands. However, after the elimination of Soleimani and the dramatic continuation of the Iraqi protests across the country, Khamenei was compelled to use his preservations to protect his authority in Iraq.

Therefore, he employed Moqtada al-Sadr, as a cleric politician, to deviate demonstrations in Iraq, which constantly target the Iranian malign influence in this country. But as soon as the Iraqi people grasped that he was serving someone else somewhere else, they rejected him and his mission by continuing their path toward expelling all Iran-backed parties, militias, and politicians. This adoption by the people of Iraq is accounted as a key step to ending the Iranian regimes meddling forever.

Observers believe that the Iranian regime made a strategic mistake along with its other miscalculations that led to irreparable blows. Khamenei truly gambled on his regional power in the Middle East, however, he proved that it was only a lie beside many claims that he raised in the recent months.

In fact, he prompted sentiments of the Iraqi people against himself by entering his last card. In this respect, the international community has come to realize that the Iranian regime, particularly Khamenei, has no more popular and religious credibility among the ordinary people in Iraq.

Earlier, the organizing committee for demonstrations in Iraq stated that the people of Iraq demand the resignation of all current politicians and parties who control the countrys destiny. Additionally, they believe that the Iran-dependent parties are the root of Iraqs problems that have mired the country into collapse and misery.

Following ceaseless protests of the people, then-prime minister Adil Abdul-Mahdi, who has known links to the Iranian regime, was compelled to resign. Afterward, Iraqi president Barham Saleh offered his resignation to the parliament.

However, due to the Iranian regimes scramble for preserving its authority in Iraq, a new prime minister hasnt been named so far. Notably, Khamenei time and again tried to impose his intended nominees but the people of Iraq vehemently rejected Iran-linked nominees.

As the last attempt, Moqtada al-Sadr emerged as a leader of the Iraqi people. On Friday, January 24, he called on his supporters to hold a demonstration for the benefit of his leadership. In fact, he was ordered by Iranian mullahs to deviate the Iraqi protests from their main path.

The pro-Moqtada al-Sadr demonstration looked to achieve two goals: first, ending the long-time rally in the Tahrir Square in the downtown of Baghdad, second, imposing the Iranian regimes allies on seats of governing in this country.

Notably, when the plan of Iran-backed parties was defeated, the Iraqi security forces in cooperation with al-Sadrs forces attacked and cruelly cracked down on peaceful protesters who had rallied in the Square.

However, Iraqi protesters resistance against the pro-Iranian regimes plans resulted in a revelation of the genuine nature of al-Sadr and his conspiracy. The Iraqi people well realized that Moqtada al-Sadr neither is a patriot Iraqi nor intends to preserve Iraqs interests. Meanwhile, Moqtada al-Sadrs move caused a defection among the force loyal to him.

In love with Iraq, Nasiriyah and [protesters], I take off my turban. I was, am, and will be with the Iraqi people. Please, hasten in my [assassination] because I am very eager to join the martyrs, Asad al-Nasseri, one of the prominent leaders of the Sadr movement, tweeted on January 26.

     .       .

       .#_ pic.twitter.com/dL1rhUgOXE    (@asaadalnaseri) January 26, 2020
You could go to jail if you use chemicals to ripen fruits

India

oi-Vicky Nanjappa

New Delhi, Feb 01: Use of pesticides and chemicals to ripen fruits amounts to poisoning the consumer, the Delhi High Court has observed and said invoking penal provisions against the culprits would have a deterrent effect.

"Using chemicals like calcium carbide to ripen mangoes is like poisoning somebody. Why should the Indian Penal Code be not invoked against them?

"Send such persons to jail, even if for 2 days and it would have a deterrent effect," a bench of Justices G S Sistani and A J Bhambani said while hearing a PIL initiated by the court to monitor the use of pesticides on fruits and vegetables.

The bench asked the Food Safety and Standards Authority of India (FSSAI) whether calcium carbide was still being used to ripen fruits, like mangoes, and sought the presence of its Chief Executive Officer to assist it on the next date of hearing.

Sadhvi Pragya alleges receiving envelopes with chemicals

The court also asked the Ministry of Agriculture as to whether any kit was available for consumers to themselves test for calcium carbide in their homes.

The ministry said no such kit was available as the presence of calcium carbide can only be tested in laboratories with the help of proper equipment and additional chemicals.

The Delhi government, represented by its additional standing counsel Naushad Ahmed Khan, told the court that it has been picking up samples from the various markets in the national capital for testing purposes and also carrying out awareness drives.

It also told the court that some of the samples were tested and no chemicals were found and results regarding other samples were awaited.

Apart from the PIL initiated by the court on its own, it is also hearing two other pleas by private individuals seeking directions to the authorities to curb the use of pesticides and other chemicals on food products, especially the agricultural produce, coming into the national capital.

According to a report filed by amicus curiae Rajul Jain earlier, due to excessive usage of pesticides in fruits and vegetable, "various countries have banned the import of Indian vegetables and fruits and many more were under scrutiny".

In the wake of terror threat, Swiss limits on sale of chemicals

The high court had initiated the issue on its own after an NGO had found that vegetables and fruits sold in the Delhi markets contained poisons capable of causing cancer and harming the nervous system and liver.

The court has in the past suggested several measures to curb adulteration of eatables, especially fruits and vegetables, like large-scale testing and sending back contaminated food products to manufacturers or farmers.
Photo: Ben S./Yelp

A new chicken shop has opened its doors in the neighborhood. Called BirdieBop, the fresh arrival can be found at 2000 W. Berry St. in Fort Worth near TCU.

BirdieBop specializes in Southern-style fried chicken with influences from Japan and Korea, as explained on its website. On the menu, look for crispy chicken salad with deviled eggs, chicken nuggets tossed in buttermilk powder, Korean sticky wings and fried chicken buns with pickles.

The new chicken joint has already attracted fans thus far, with a 4.5-star rating out of three reviews on Yelp.

Locke N., who was among the first Yelpers to review BirdieBop on Jan. 23, wrote, "Unequivocally the best fried chicken in DFW. Don't be fooled by the location, this food is on another level."

And Ben S. noted, "BirdieBop, a counter serve restaurant tucked away inside The Moon Bar, is a real gem in Fort Worth. ... The stuffed eggs bring all the flavor you'd expect from dishes like takoyaki, okonomiyaki or ajitsuke tamago. They're flavorful and approachable, and my favorite dish of the night!"

Swing on by to take a peek for yourself: BirdieBop is open from 511 p.m. on Tuesday-Thursday, 5 p.m.1:30 a.m. on Friday and Saturday and from 9 a.m.3 a.m. on Sunday. (It's closed on Monday.)

Want to keep your finger on the pulse of new businesses in Fort Worth? Here's what else opened recently near you.

This story was created automatically using local business data, then reviewed and augmented by an editor. Click here for more about what we're doing. Got thoughts? Go here to share your feedback.
Russia obtains ease on C.Africa arms embargo at UN Security Council



United Nations, United States, Jan 31 (AFP) Jan 31, 2020



The UN Security Council on Friday approved a slight relaxation of the arms embargo on the Central African Republic, an issue that has been a source of friction between France and Russia.

A resolution drafted by France that extends the embargo by only six months to July 31 was approved by 13 votes with Russia and China abstaining.

It allows the CAR to acquire military vehicles mounted with up to 14.5mm weapons, provided the United Nations is notified ahead of time.

According to the diplomats, negotiations on the draft were held amid sharp tensions between France and Russia.

A former colonial power, France did not want any easing of the embargo in light of conditions in the country, according to sources who spoke on condition of anonymity.

The European and African members of the council supported France's draft, but Russia, backed by China, supported Bangui's longstanding call for the embargo to be completely lifted.

Moscow this week proposed a concurrent resolution to France's. However, a compromise was worked out on Thursday that avoided a vote on two resolutions, and the risk that the embargo would be lifted entirely.

France's deputy representative to the United Nations, Anne Gueguen, said she "profoundly" regretted that the resolution was not unanimously adopted.

She said the Security Council is receptive to the CAR authorities but stressed the need for a "responsible approach."



- Six month extension -



Her Russian counterpart, Dmitry Polyanskiy, complained that none of Moscow's arguments had been taken into account, and he warned these would be raised again in July, indicating the Security Council fight over the embargo would resume in six months.

"We wanted a greater easing of the arms embargo," he said, arguing that while it was useful initially it had become an obstacle to re-equipping the military and security forces.

Niger's ambassador Abdou Abarry, speaking also on behalf of South Africa and Tunisia, said the resolution represented a response to the CAR's legitimate demand to move towards the lifting of the arms embargo.

He said the easing of the embargo would help the CAR's government to retake control of the entire country.

The United States noted that Bangui had made no requests for exemptions to the embargo since September, even though the possibility was open to it.

The latest relaxation of the embargo follows a Security Council decision in September 2019 to allow delivery of individual weapons of up to 14.5mm in caliber to the CAR security forces, which was the first time an easing occurred.

The embargo has been in place since 2013, when the CAR was rocked by civil war following the fall of president Francois Bozize.

But the government has long demanded that it be lifted altogether, contending that armed groups continue to control vast areas of the country and can easily resupply their forces through contraband, putting Bangui at a disadvantage.

Since 2017, exceptions to the embargo have been accorded by the United Nations on a case by case basis, including when Russia and France gave arms to the CAR.
The United Kingdom's divorce from the European Union came into force on Friday night as it became the first country to exit the economic bloc after 47 years of membership following the vote in favour of Brexit in June 2016.

IMAGE: People stand at the statue of Winston Churchill as they celebrate Britain leaving the EU on Brexit day in London. Photograph: Russell Cheyne/Reuters

British Prime Minister Boris Johnson hailed the historic moment as the dawn of a new era for the UK in his address to the nation just before Brexit.

Brexit came into force at 11:00 pm (2300 GMT).

"This is the moment when the dawn breaks and the curtain goes up on a new act in our great national drama," said Johnson, in his video message which promised hope and opportunity to every part of the United Kingdom.

"It is not just about some legal extrication. It is potentially a moment of real national renewal and change. This is the dawn of a new era in which we no longer accept that your life chances -- your family's life chances -- should depend on which part of the country you grow up in," he said.

While there will be little change instantly as the UK and EU enter into a pre-agreed period of transition from Saturday until the end of December, the process of complete extrication from the now 27-member economic bloc will begin right away.

Johnson was keen to highlight his vision of a friendly negotiation process for both sides to thrash out a new trading relationship as the beginning of a "new era of friendly cooperation" between the EU and an energetic Britain.

IMAGE: Pro-Brexit demonstrators celebrate on Parliament Square on Brexit day in London. Photograph: Simon Dawson/Reuters

Celebrating the UK's "recaptured sovereignty" to deliver the changes the June 2016 referendum vote signified, he noted, "Whether that is by controlling immigration or creating freeports or liberating our fishing industry or doing free trade deals...is the right and healthy and democratic thing to do."

On a critical note on the EU's evolution over the period of the UK's membership, he added, "Because for all its strengths and for all its admirable qualities, the EU has evolved over 50 years in a direction that no longer suits this country."

"And that is a judgment that you, the people, have now confirmed at the polls.

The Conservative Party leader took charge at Downing Street last year with a "no ifs, no buts" pledge to leave the EU. His General Election campaign pegged around the Get Brexit Done message last December won him a thumping majority, after which Britain's exit from the bloc also became a certainty as his Brexit bill easily crossed the parliamentary hurdle.

Acknowledging the long-drawn divorce process and the deep Remain versus Brexit divide within the UK, Johnson said, "Tonight we are leaving the European Union. For many people this is an astonishing moment of hope, a moment they thought would never come and there are many of course who feel a sense of anxiety and loss.

"I understand all those feelings, and our job as the government  my job  is to bring this country together now and take us forward.

As part of that forward-looking agenda, the government will kick off its GREAT Ready to Trade campaign across 13 countries, including India, from Saturday. Johnson has repeatedly committed himself to a new and improved trading relationship with India and now as a non-member of the EU, the UK is free to push ahead with those talks unrestricted by the economic bloc's rules.

IMAGE: Anti-Brexit protesters hold banners outside the Scottish parliament, in Edinburgh, Scotland. Photograph: /Reuters
A Santa Clara County man is the first confirmed Bay Area case of the novel coronavirus, which has killed 213 people in China since it first spread to humans in December, county public health officials announced Friday.

The man, whose name and city of residence were not released, traveled to Wuhan, China and Shanghai before returning home to Santa Clara County via the San Jose Mineta International Airport on Jan. 24, according to Dr. Sara Cody, the county's Public Health Officer and the head of the Santa Clara County Public Health Department.

The man didn't begin to exhibit symptoms until after he returned home, Cody said at a Friday afternoon press conference

"This one case, in fact, does not raise the risk to the general public," Cody told a gathering of news media at the county's Public Health Laboratory Friday afternoon. "He has been self-isolating at home and did not leave home at all except to seek medical care."

County and state health officials, in cooperation with the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, are now in the process of contacting everyone the man may have encountered since his return home, including his fellow airline passengers, Cody said.

In addition to keeping him at home and away from people until he's no longer considered contagious, Cody said that anyone he was in close contact with will also be kept isolated in their own homes for 14 days.

In an effort to easy people's fears over the spread of the virus, Cody noted that far more people get sick and die from the flu in the U.S. -- 36,000 annually -- than have so far been afflicted by the coronavirus, which to date hasn't resulted in any fatalities in the country.

Two inmates were stabbed to death Wednesday at the California State Prison-Solano in Vacaville in what officials are calling "separate but related" attacks.

Both men, Mizrain Nava Cano, 26, and Jorge Cruz-Banuelos, 30, were outside in a general population yard when they were attacked within seconds of each other about 3:30 p.m., according to prison officials.

The victims, both from Solano County, were stabbed multiple times -- Nava Cano in the neck and back and Cruz-Banuelos in the neck, chest and back, prison officials said.

Nava Cano was allegedly attacked by inmates Pedro Garcia, 31, and Greg Medrano, 38, both from Kings County, according to prison officials.

Cruz-Banuelos was allegedly attacked by inmates Gabriel Mora, 42, from Tulare County, and Richard Raya, 25, of San Joaquin County.

Prison officials did not cite a possible motive for the killings.

Oakland police said on Friday that they've arrested a third suspect in the death of a man who was killed after he tried to get back his laptop computer, which was stolen while he worked in a coffee shop in Oakland's Montclair district last month.

Byron OJ Reed Jr. 22, of San Francisco, and 21-year-old Javon Lee were previously arrested and charged for their roles in the death of 34-year-old Shuo Zeng in the 2000 block of Mountain Boulevard shortly after 11:30 a.m. on Dec. 31.

Oakland police previously said only two suspects were involved in the incident but on Friday they issued a tweet saying, "OPD makes the 3rd arrest in connection with the homicide of Shuo Zeng. This is still an active investigation. There will be no additional information released at this time."

Reed and Lee were charged and arraigned on Jan. 3 and returned to court on Friday to possibly enter pleas. But their plea entries were postponed to a later date.

Reed is charged with murder and the special circumstance of committing a murder, Lee is charged with involuntary manslaughter and both men are charged with second-degree robbery.

Court records indicate that the third suspect hasn't yet been charged.

PG&E officials were hoping to resolve a power outage affecting about 100 customers in Foster City by late Friday night.

Around 10:35 a.m., a third-party construction crew unrelated to PG&E struck an underground electric line on East Hillsdale Boulevard, PG&E officials said.

The power outage affected City Hall and other facilities. City officials said around 2 p.m. that City Hall would be closed for the remainder of the day, as well as the Senior Center and The Vibe Teen Center.

The city's Fire and Police departments, however, are not affected and will be providing normal services.

PG&E crews expected to restore power by midnight.

A transit working group assembled by city leaders last year to assess the reliability of the San Francisco Municipal Transportation Agency reported Friday traffic conditions, employee shortages and aging infrastructure to be the agency's main problems.

Mayor London Breed, Supervisor Mandelman and Supervisor Aaron Peskin convened The San Francisco Muni Reliability Working Group back in June 2019, tasking it with reviewing the performance of Muni buses and its rail system, and to recommend ways to improve service for riders.

Since then, SFMTA's Board of Directors have selected Jeffrey Tumlin as the agency's new director to replace former transportation director Ed Reiskin, who announced back in April 2019 he was stepping down.

The group recommended the SFMTA accelerate efforts to hire more transit operators and close employment shortages by 2021. It also recommended the SFMTA speed up programs and projects that seek to improve reliability and combat congestion, like red bus lanes and transit priority signals.

Tumlin said the group's findings "perfectly" matched his own observations since taking over in December.

Changes to BART train schedules intended to improve service will begin Feb. 10, officials said Friday.

Transit district officials said that most changes involve "small tweaks," while others are more significant and that changes will involve all lines, particularly the first and last runs each day.

"Major improvements include the return of two-line service into San Francisco on Sunday, the addition of Fleet of the Future trains on Saturday, earlier weekday train service for many riders, increased peak service for Concord riders in the morning and evening, and later evening direct service from San Francisco into Warm Springs," BART said in a news release.

A driver was critically injured early Friday after he crashed a car into a gas station near San Francisco's Parkmerced neighborhood, fire officials said.

The car crashed into a Chevron station at 1100 Junipero Serra Blvd about 3 a.m. and caught fire, according to a Twitter post from the San Francisco Fire Department.

Firefighters extricated the driver and he was taken to a hospital with critical injures, fire officials said.

Saturday will be mostly cloudy before becoming partly cloudy. Highs will be in the lower 60s. North winds will be around 5 to 10 mph before switching to northwest winds of 10 to 15 mph in the afternoon.

Saturday night will be mostly cloudy and breezy. Lows will be in the lower 50s. West winds will be 10 to 20 mph before increasing to northwest winds of 20 to 30 mph after midnight.

Sunday will be mostly cloudy in the morning before becoming sunny. It will be breezy. Highs will be in the mid 50s. Northwest winds will be 20 to 30 mph with gusts of up to 45 mph.

Copyright  2020 by Bay City News, Inc. Republication, Rebroadcast or any other Reuse without the express written consent of Bay City News, Inc. is prohibited.
1K Shares Share

Boxed warnings or black boxes are the strictest FDA label warnings. They appear on cigarettes, fluoroquinolones (for tendon rupture), Lamictal (for SJS and TEN), Accutane (birth defects), and other products with well-known risks.

The industry obviously dislikes black boxes since they reduce sales (though their lobbyists charge the boxes confuse and unnecessarily alarm patients).

So it was no surprise that when the FDA held a Joint Meeting of the Pediatric and Drug Safety and Risk Management Advisory Committees on September 27, 2019, to address growing reports of neuropsychiatric events from montelukast in pediatric patients there was a lot of talk about black boxes.

Montelukast, marketed as Singulair, is a leukotriene receptor antagonist used in asthma and allergy.

Singulair was Mercks biggest seller when on patent, bringing in $3.3 billion in 2011 and named one of Kiplingers 15 all-time best-selling prescription drugs. Merck used Scholastic, the educational publishing group, and the American Academy of Pediatrics to help market it.

Testifying at the hearings were parents whose children had taken their own lives on the drug or experienced other severe harm.

The parents, from groups like Parents United for Pharmaceutical Safety and Accountability and the Montelukast Side Effects Support and Discussion Group, asserted that a black box warning would prevent future tragedies. The current montelukast label only warns against neuropsychiatric events.

Many safety signals

Fox 5 first reported neuropsychiatric events in late 2010  parents seeing aggressive behavior, hostility, hallucinations, night-terrors, tremors, irritability, anxiety, depression, and even suicide in their children taking montelukast.

But red flags existed much earlier, especially regarding montelukasts effect on children. In the late 1990s, FDA reviewers note in montelukasts new drug approval documents note that infant monkey had to be euthanized and may be more sensitive to the toxicity.

In 1998, Peter Honig and John Jenkins of the FDA repeated the warning cautioning in the New England Journal of Medicine that adult studies of the montelukast may not be predictive of the response, in children.

In 2016, a Vigibase report found that suicidal behavior and completed suicide appear to be more frequently reported than previously thought in practice. In 2018, research in the Springer journal Drug Safety reported that ten pharmacovigilance studies using different global databases detected the signals of neuropsychiatric events.

Even the briefing documents released by the FDA for montelukast September hearings were something of a red flag. They acknowledge, for the first time, the drugs action on the brain as a competitive antagonist of GPR17, not merely acting on the CysLT1 receptor as prescribing information portrays. The new information is relevant to the neuropsychiatric events under investigation, said parents at the hearings.

To add a black box to montelukast or not?

Steven Meisel, PharmD, CPPS, Director of Medication Safety Fairview Health Services, and a FDA committee member agreed that a black box is necessary. The FAERS data shows that between six and 800 neuropsychiatric events have been reported every year, he said, and the 35 million montelukast prescriptions written a year tell me that this drug is being prescribed in a cavalier manner.

Christy Turer, an internist and a pediatrician on the committee, also recommended a black box. In thinking about risk-benefit, I think the black box would send a message and would decrease prescribing, she said. We as a country, our physicians, our prescribers, we over-prescribe.

But others on the FDA committee disagreed. Jim Tracy, an allergist and associate professor at the University of Nebraska, said black boxes would create obstacles to care, and that patients could all of a sudden get terrified. And they, without supervision, they just stop their drug.

Committee member James McGough, a child psychiatrist at UCLA, concurred, recalling the FDAs 2004 addition of black box warnings for child and adolescent suicide on SSRIs and which, in his opinion, backfired. Theres a clear association between declining antidepressant use and increased suicide among youth, he said.

It is noteworthy that while industry fought and continues to fight SSRI black boxes, both their use and the suicide rate have never been higher. U.S. suicide is 33 percent higher than it was two decades ago, and one in eight Americans is on antidepressants. Declining prescriptions of antidepressants clearly arent causal.

Patient safety or profit safety?

Sadly, when warnings could affect drug sales, there is often a battle. When the huge Salmeterol Multi-center Asthma Research Trial, or SMART trial was terminated in 2003 after 16 deaths, 44 intubations, and 369 hospitalizations, mostly in African-Americans, black boxes were added to Advair and Serevent which contain salmeterol and to Symbicort, Dulera and Foradil which contain the similar, formoterol fumarate. The drugs are known as long-acting beta-agonists or LABAs.

The industry assailed the warnings as it did SSRI black boxes, citing the National Asthma Education and Prevention Program Expert Panel Report 3 as proof of LABA safety though it was written almost exclusively by industry-funded physicians. For example, William W. Busse, MD, who chaired the expert panel, listed 21 relationships with drug makers.

But there were other safety signals, especially concerning Glaxos Advair. According to ProPublica, in 2011, the Justice Department said Glaxos Advair promotion had exposed patients to significant safety risks, and there were scores of lawsuits from people whose relatives have died while taking Advair.

Nevertheless, the FDA asked Glaxo and other LABA makers, AstraZeneca, Novartis, and Merck in 2011 to conduct studies on LABA safety despite objectivity questions and the cloud over Glaxo. In 2017 the FDA repealed the LABA black boxes on the basis of the industry studies. William Busse led the analysis.

Is montelukast so safe it needs no black box? Are LABAs so safe their black box can be removed? Unfortunately, black boxes are too frequently regarded by the influential drug industry as profit warnings, not health warnings.

Martha Rosenberg is a health reporter and the author of Born With a Junk Food Deficiency.

Image credit: Shutterstock.com
There are a lot of things you might expect to find inside your couch. A 6-foot snake is probably not one of them.

It was a set of keys that a man from Rose Hill, Kansas. was after Monday when he dug under the furniture cushions at his home. Instead, he found an enormous snake.

"I figured (the keys) slipped through the couch cushions. And so when I moved them, there was a giant brown snake," the man said during a 911 call obtained by CNN affiliate KWCH.

While the small city's police department usually handles animal control, no one knew what to do with the snake, which was identified as a red-tailed boa constrictor.

Luckily, Butler County Fire District #3 had a snake charmer of its own.

Deputy Fire Chief Melvin Linot safely wrangled the snake out of the couch.

The reptile was "very docile and very gentle," Butler County Fire Chief James Woydziak told CNN.

The fire department has yet to find the snake's owner, so for now, the intruder is spending his days at the Tails & Scales Pet Shop.

"We've gotten at least a dozen calls from as far away as Jacksonville, Florida, on people wanting to adopt the snake," Woydziak said. "It's a very unusual case for us."

If an owner does not come forward, the boa constrictor might be donated to a program that visits local schools to teach children about reptiles, Woydziak said.
The BBC has provoked outrage by screening an 'anti-British' children's programme on Brexit Day.

Hosted by Left-wing comedian Nish Kumar, Horrible Histories Brexit suggested Britain had historically failed to produce anything of note, relying instead on imports.

Amid a chorus of protest, even one of the BBC's broadcasters launched a stinging attack on the show. Leading political commentator Andrew Neil last night called it 'anti-British drivel of a high order' and asked: 'Was any of the licence fee used to produce something purely designed to demean us?'

Kumar begins by introducing a series of CBBC 'comedy' clips. In one sequence, Queen Victoria is labelled 'foreign' and portrayed as a dullard who is shocked to discover that sugar, tea and cotton do not come from England.

Her manservant performs a song suggesting that Victorians only had access to these goods because of slavery and imperial might. Yet slavery was abolished four years before Victoria came to the Throne.

Hosted by Left-wing comedian Nish Kumar, Horrible Histories Brexit suggested Britain had historically failed to produce anything of note, relying instead on imports

He sings: 'Sugar is Caribbean-imported. For sugar in your cup of tea, slavery's been supported. I know it's wrong, your Majesty, but slaves in Africa worked hard in fields of sugar cane to sweeten up your char.'

The Queen and her servant then sing: 'British things, British things, I thought that they were many. British things, British things, afraid there's hardly any.' The servant then adds: 'Your British things are from abroad and most are frankly stolen.'

The song describes Victoria as 'foreign' and concludes: 'British things, British things, there are none we declare. All our favourite British things seem to come from elsewhere.'

Kumar begins by introducing a series of CBBC 'comedy' clips. In one sequence, Queen Victoria is labelled 'foreign' and portrayed as a dullard who is shocked to discover that sugar, tea and cotton do not come from England

Her manservant performs a song suggesting that Victorians only had access to these goods because of slavery and imperial might. Yet slavery was abolished four years before Victoria came to the Throne

Historian Andrew Roberts described the ten-minute show  released on Friday on BBC iPlayer to coincide with the departure from the European Union  as 'a stream of bigoted hatred directed against this country'.

He added: 'These sneering attitudes to all things British should not be forced down the throats of children by the BBC. It is an attempt to make us despise our ancestors in a purely ahistorical way.'

Kumar, who hosts the comedy satire show The Mash Report on BBC2, begins the show by talking sarcastically about Brexit.

The truth is that we LED the fight against slavery The skit lambasts Britain's role in the slave trade but fails to mention that it was abolished in 1833, four years before Queen Victoria came to the throne. The sketch depicts Victoria in the mourning clothes she wore after Prince Albert's death in 1861  which suggests she was still consuming slave-produced sugar at least 28 years after the practice was abolished. Of course, British merchants had grown rich on the profits from cruelly shipping African slaves to the Americas, but almost all European colonial nations took part too. In fact, this country was the first nation to abolish slavery, with evangelical campaigners led by William Wilberforce turning public opinion against the trade. 'Let us put an end at once to this inhuman traffic,' Wilberforce begged Parliament. 'Let us stop this effusion of human blood.' Spain and Portugal followed  albeit after being bribed  but France resisted, holding out until 1848. As part of their anti-British propaganda, the Horrible Histories also condemn Britain's colonial rule in India. It is accepted that the partition of the Raj last century was a colossal human tragedy stained with blood, but the early colonialists were considered by some as humane men. The respected historian Lawrence James has said: 'On balance, the British Empire was a force for good and should be a source of national pride. It provided an interlude of stability in which countries divided by race and religion could develop and, in the case of India, discover a national identity.' The Royal Navy's West Africa Squadron seized roughly 1,600 slave ships and freed 150,000 Africans. Britain also used its influence to force other countries to agree to end their slave trades and allow the Navy to seize their slave ships. Victoria herself forged a close relationship with an Indian attendant called Mohammed Abdul Karim for the final 14 years of her reign. The friendship between Karim and the Queen led to friction within the Royal Household, whose members thought the relationship was inappropriate. But the Queen insisted on taking Karim with her on her travels and described him as 'a real comfort to me'. Advertisement

In a mocking tone, he says: 'Here we are on the verge of Brexit. The UK is leaving the European Union. You might not have heard much about it because things have been so quick and so smooth. I mean, if anything, it's going too well.

'I thought as we stand on the verge of this historic moment we would look back at what Europe has done for us.'

The film also features comedy sketches about several European nations, including France, Germany and Italy.

Mr Roberts, the author of Churchill: Walking With Destiny, said: 'No one has ever suggested that sugar, cotton and tea were grown domestically. The idea that there are hardly any British things ignores the Industrial Revolution, the English language which is spoken in the Caribbean and India, English common law which is practised in the Caribbean and India and the abolition of the slave trade four years before Queen Victoria came to the Throne.'

The row came as a BBC reporter faced criticism for describing the Brexit crowds celebrating in London on Friday night as 'very white'.

Geeta Guru-Murthy, whose younger brother is Channel 4 presenter Krishnan, told one Brexit supporter: 'It's a very white crowd mostly.' Twitter users said Guru-Murthy should be sacked for her comments, while many Asian and black Brexit supporters who had celebrated in Westminster posted selfies on Twitter. One wrote: 'The BBC are racist against white people.' Another said: 'Just a group of 'white racists' celebrating Brexit last night... Oh wait, Brexit doesn't make you white or racist. If only the BBC and Channel 4 knew this.'

Channel 4 news presenter Jon Snow faced similar uproar last year when he said on air that he had 'never seen so many white people' at a pro-Brexit rally.

Of the Horrible Histories film, Mail on Sunday columnist Piers Morgan said on Twitter: 'Why is the BBC paying nasty pieces of work like Kumar to trash Britain like this? An outrageous and shameful abuse of public money.'

Former MP Douglas Carswell wrote: 'The crassness of this BBC children's clip is remarkable. The slave trade was made illegal before Victoria became Queen. Her governments went to great lengths to stamp it out. Brits had access to tea and sugar due to free trade. Buying imports is not un-British.'

Several BBC critics last night claimed the sketch featuring Queen Victoria, which was previously broadcast in 2009, bordered on racist because it claimed that people, goods and traditions from elsewhere could never be British.

One viewer said: 'Anti-British propaganda like this has led people to stop paying their licence fee.'

James Cleverly, co-chairman of the Conservative Party, said: 'Are Nish and the Horrible Histories Team saying that no matter for how long and how intimately things are part of mainstream life, they aren't really British if they originated overseas? Sounds a lot like the argument made by the BNP about people like me. And Nish.'

Oscar winner Lord Fellowes, who wrote the screenplay to the film Young Victoria, said: 'It's pretty rough involving Queen Victoria in the slavery argument. Slavery had been ruled illegal in Britain in the 1770s and it was abolished in the colonies in 1833.'

Daisy Goodwin, the screenwriter for television drama Victoria, also raised concerns about her portrayal.

She said: 'He [Nish] is completely right to point out that the British Empire was based on the exploitation of other people... but I think it's a bit unfair on Queen Victoria who was neither racist nor stupid.'

The video received mixed reaction on Twitter with some saying it was accurate and others criticising the BBC

The BBC defended the show, saying: 'The Horrible Histories video is light-hearted and not anti-British. We are a nation, like most others, that enjoy a patchwork of traditions and culture from other countries. Our children's audience are able to take these things as intended.

'Horrible Histories takes historical accuracy incredibly seriously. Many goods common in Britain during the Victorian era were harvested or produced by slaves in other countries  even though Britain abolished the slave trade before Victoria became Queen.'

The row comes as the BBC is at loggerheads with the Government over alleged bias in its Brexit coverage. In protest, Ministers are refusing to take part in programmes, including Radio 4's Today programme and Newsnight.

Meanwhile, the BBC's Ten O'Clock News coverage of the moment of departure at 11pm on Friday infuriated many viewers, who considered it negative and pre-occupied with the concerns of Remain supporters.

One viewer wrote: 'Anyone else think that the coverage of the Brexit Day celebrations was a bit like them covering the FA Cup final and then showing the losing captain, team and fans being interviewed in preference to the winning side?'

A BBC spokesman said: 'We think our coverage gave a good overall picture of events.'
President Trump on Friday added six countries to his list of nations facing stringent travel restrictions, a move that will virtually block immigration from Africas most populous nation, Nigeria, and from Myanmar, where the Muslim minority is fleeing genocide, The New York Times reported.

Beside Nigeria, three other African countries, Eritrea, Sudan and Tanzania, will face varying degrees of restrictions, as will one former Soviet state, Kyrgyzstan. Myanmars Rohingya Muslims could also be caught in the crossfire.

All six countries have substantial Muslim populations. The total number of countries now on the restricted travel list stands at 13.

Immigrant visas, issued to those seeking to live in the United States, will be banned for Nigeria, Myanmar, Eritrea and Kyrgyzstan. The ban will also prevent immigrants from Sudan and Tanzania from moving to the United States through the diversity visa lottery, which grants green cards to as many as 50,000 people a year.

The proclamation will take effect on February 22. Immigrants who obtain visas before then will still be able to travel to the United States, officials said. Nonimmigrant visas, including those for students and certain temporary workers, as well as visas reserved for potential employees with specialized skills, will not be affected by the ban.

Immigrants will be able to apply for waivers from the restrictions. The administration has said waivers are issued to those who would experience undue hardship if denied entry into the United States, although the process has been criticized as opaque.
VANCOUVERA Vancouver man who exploited an international park to smuggle Chinese migrants into this country will have to spend another 17 months in jail, a judge ordered Friday.

Michael Kong, 63, dressed in a pink shirt and navy slacks, showed little emotion as B.C. provincial court Judge Patrick Doherty sentenced him to 3 1/2 years, but gave him credit for the time he has served in pre-trial custody. Doherty also ordered Kong to pay a $175,000 fine.

The judge said that while human-smuggling poses a threat to border integrity and security, Kong is not a violent person and has shown genuine remorse. He also noted that Kong was dealt a severe personal blow when his wife died by suicide while he was in custody.

Unfortunately, he has suffered significant personal tragedy as a result of his detention. He has pleaded guilty and shown true remorse for his behaviour, the judge said.

The announcement of Kongs sentence brings to an end a case that stood out for the scope, novelty and sheer audacity of the crime.

According to the agreed statement of facts, the scheme originated in China. Chinese nationals agreed to pay people in that country, described by prosecutors as snakeheads, between $20,000 and $30,000 US to help them get fraudulent student or visitor visas to travel to the United States. Most visas were obtained from the U.S. consulate in Guangzhou, a major city north of Hong Kong.

Once in the U.S., Kong would arrange for drivers to pick up the migrants in the Seattle area and drop them off near a set of washrooms on the U.S. side of Peace Arch Park, an international park that straddles the B.C.-Washington State border and is located next to a busy port of entry. The park itself had no physical barriers.

The migrants were surreptitiously guided through the park to a waiting vehicle on the Canadian side. (Investigators found an aerial image of Peace Arch Park on Kongs home computer with coloured dots indicating the washrooms on the U.S. side and a gap in a hedge on the Canadian side, as well as WeChat text logs on his iPhone discussing arrangements to bring people across the border). Most migrants were taken to the Vancouver International Airport and flown to Toronto, where they made refugee claims.

Mr. Kong, controlled, coordinated and facilitated the movement of the irregular migrants during a critical stage of the human smuggling operation  from the U.S. into Canada across an international land border, federal Crown prosecutor Charles Hough wrote in his sentencing submissions.

Kong told investigators he typically charged $1,500 to $2,000 US per person for this portion of their journey. When investigators searched his home, they found a box under a desk containing $119,000 in U.S. bills.

Although Kong pleaded guilty to five counts of violating Section 117 of the Immigration and Refugee Protection Act involving the smuggling of 27 individuals, including children, he may have helped many hundreds more sneak into the country, Hough told the court.

Though not part of the agreed statement of facts, an affidavit previously filed by Canada Border Services Agency investigator David Ng indicated an electronic ledger  or score sheet  found on Kongs home computer contained the names of 932 people believed to have been irregular migrants or foreign suspects involved in the smuggling scheme.

When those names were run through a federal database, investigators learned that 330 of them had made refugee claims in Canada  most of them in an immigration office in Etobicoke, the affidavit said.

The large volume of refugee claims from Chinese nationals at that Etobicoke office  and the similar patterns of travel  triggered the CBSA investigation, court documents state.

Kong, who immigrated to Canada from Hong Kong in 1976 and had spent three decades working in B.C.s sawmill industry, became a person of interest because of two previous convictions for similar offences at Peace Arch Park  one involving the illegal entry of two Mexican nationals, the other involving three Chinese nationals.

Mr. Kongs contribution to this sophisticated organized international human-smuggling operation was motivated by unadulterated greed, Hough told the court. Prior convictions and incarceration did not deter Mr. Kong.

While Kongs repeat offences were an aggravating factor, the judge said Friday there was no indication that Kong ever mistreated the migrants or that they were the subject of violence or intimidation.

The judge noted that while in remand, Kong had taken a number of self-improvement courses.

The events of Ms. Kongs suicide, he added, I view as a significant and adverse collateral consequence of Mr. Kongs offending behaviour. This event will affect him adversely for the remainder of his life.

As the Star reported earlier this week, Kong wrote a letter to the judge in which he expressed regret for his actions and acknowledged how they had potentially jeopardized the security of the country.

I have been ignorant, selfish and never honestly thought of the repercussions that I was causing, he wrote.

Kongs lawyer, Shelley Sugarman, told the court that Kong believed the people he was aiding deserved a better life.

Speaking generally and not about this specific case, Shelley Levine, an immigration lawyer who has been helping people file and appeal refugee claims in Toronto for 30 years, said it is not uncommon for smugglers to exploit the people they help across the border.

They either charge them exorbitant amounts of money or peddle a fantasy life in Canada that is unrealistic, he said.

Smugglers will tell people they can take them out of whatever situation theyre in in China and theyll arrive in a country where the roads are paved in gold, he said.

Levine said migrants, whether legitimate refugee claimants or not, dont usually share their life story with him. But over 30 years he has picked up bits and pieces. In some instances, Levin said, again speaking generally, people who are smuggled into Canada end up in indentured labour where they have to work ridiculously low pay for ridiculously long hours in order to pay off the smuggling debt," he said.

Some migrants resort to paying a smuggler because they are fleeing a legitimate threat and this is the only way they can escape. Others are simply trying to make a better life for themselves economically.

But either way, these migrants often end up being victims of economic exploitation, he said.

You feel sympathetic toward people who think their circumstances are so bad that that is considered preferable to whatever they are living through in China, he said.

Before adjourning Friday, the judge addressed Kong directly.

Mr. Kong, best of luck to you, he said. Make the best of it and get on with your life.

With files from Wanyee Li

DQ Douglas Quan is a Toronto Star reporter based in Vancouver.

Read more about:
Former New York City mayor and 2020 presidential candidate Michael Bloomberg during the U.S. Conference of Mayors in Washington on Jan. 22, 2020. (Charlotte Cuthbertson/The Epoch Times)

Democratic Presidential Candidates Unhappy With Rule Change That Could Benefit Bloomberg

Rival Democratic presidential candidates expressed displeasure with a shift in rules that was widely perceived to benefit former New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg, enabling him to make a debate stage for the first time.

The Democratic National Committee (DNC) dropped a requirement for a certain number of donors, leaving only a polling threshold to qualify for debates. Now that the grassroots support is actually captured in real voting, the criteria will no longer require a donor threshold, said Adrienne Watson, a DNC spokesperson.

Out of the leading candidates in the field, the rule change appears to only benefit Bloomberg. Other candidates took notice, hammering the 77-year-old over his prolific personal spending on the race and decrying the change.

The DNC didnt change the rules to ensure good, diverse candidates could remain on the debate stage. They shouldnt change the rules to let a billionaire on. Billionaires shouldnt be allowed to play by different ruleson the debate stage, in our democracy, or in our government, Sen. Elizabeth Warren (D-Mass.) said in a statement on Twitter.

Rep. Tulsi Gabbard (D-Hawaii) was even more direct. Billionaire Bloomberg just bought the DNC, she wrote in a tweet.

Lets make one thing clear: changing the rules now to accommodate Mike Bloomberg and not changing them in the past to ensure a more diverse debate stage is just plain wrong, fellow billionaire Tom Steyer added in a statement.

Jeff Weaver, a senior adviser to Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.), said in a statement that the change in rules was made to accommodate Mike Bloomberg, who is trying to buy his way into the Democratic nomination.

Thats the definition of a rigged system, he added.

(L-R) Tom Steyer, Sen. Elizabeth Warren (D-Mass.), former Vice President Joe Biden, former South Bend, Indiana Mayor Pete Buttigieg and Sen. Amy Klobuchar (D-Minn.) listen as Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.) (3rd R) speaks during the Democratic presidential primary debate at Drake University in Des Moines, Iowa, on Jan. 14, 2020. (Scott Olson/Getty Images)

Former Vice President Joe Biden, campaigning in Iowa, was asked about his thoughts on the change for the Feb. 19 debate in Las Vegas. Hes not even on the ballot in Nevada, Biden told reporters.

Former South Bend Mayor Pete Buttigieg declined to criticize Bloomberg or the rule change.

Ill leave it to the DNC to set the rules and then we compete under them, he told reporters on the campaign trail in Council Bluffs, adding that the change signaled a different focus.

It is important that we have that process where folks have to stand with their competitors and explain why each of us is the best, he said.

The Bloomberg campaign didnt respond to a request for comment. Earlier in the week, a spokesperson told The Epoch Times by email: If the rules change and we meet the eligibility criteria, we will participate.

A number of candidates pushed the DNC to change the debate qualifying thresholds earlier in the campaign, including several who later dropped out. Julian Castro, the former Housing Secretary, said in a tweet that it appeared the committee made the change to benefit Bloomberg.

When @CoryBooker led an effort to change the debate thresholds, the DNC refusedsaying they couldnt benefit any candidate, he said. It seems the only candidate theyre willing to benefit is a billionaire whos buying his way into the race. Total mess.
The 2020 Coronavirus outbreak had become a global concern. Despite the hardships that it had cause to many nations of the world, some humorous information circulating the internet had transformed into misinformation regarding the dreaded virus.

In an article from wearemitu, it said that there had been some speculations that China may have been creating a health-threatening biological weapon. The 2010-nCoV outbreak may have been the consequence of the country's failure to control its operations. This is not just a single rumor that relates to the virus epidemic.

The Beer Associated with the 2020 Coronavirus

The Mexican Beer 'Corona Extra' had been making it into memes concerning the 2020 Coronavirus outbreak. In some comedic stunts by the online community, some say that it was the source of the virus.

Some fans joke about it such as begging to be infected with the virus if its source were the Mexican beer.

Some people were sharing jokes such as blaming the 2020 Coronavirus for being drunk from drinking the Mexican Corona Beer.

One meme shared that the presence of Corona (pertaining to the beer) includes the lime (pertaining to the Lyme disease). Lyme disease is acquired through a tick bite from an infected tick. This is a vector-borne illness in the US.

Political Humor from the Virus

Some people from the online community made the Wuhan virus epidemic as a source of humor regarding the relationship of the United States of America with China. It had been observed in the past since Donald Trump's leadership in the United States that its relationship with China has been deteriorating.

The Truth about the 2020 Coronavirus

A report issued by the health authorities from China revealed that the virus originated from a market in Wuhan, China. The market sells various types of exotic wildlife as food.

It is believed by experts that the Wuhan virus came from a wild snake sold in the Wuhan market. The crowned-shape virus may have been transferred to humans after such snakes were consumed as food.

There has been an increase in google searches about the virus. This trend has been increasing for days. As the virus spreads to the different parts of the world, different nations' governments are implementing strict preventive measures to control the spread of the virus infection.

The virus primarily affects the upper respiratory tract of a person which later causes alarming complications to a person's health. Its infection may be fatal and can be the cause of the infected person's death.

Proof of People's Ignorance about the 2020 Coronavirus Infection

The increase of keywords such as "how do I prevent coronavirus" and "coronavirus symptoms" to 1050% in just 7 days is proof of an alarming matter.

This search trend proves that people are showcasing their ignorance of the Wuhan virus infection. This issue reveals that people are insufficiently informed when it comes to personal and public health concerns.

One proof of the people's ignorance of the disease in the search for the 'corona beer virus.' This means that some people are misinformed due to the comedic acts made to the 2019-nCoV and its relation to the Mexican Beer 'Corona.'
A London-based firm is offering investors a slice of the cannabis market - but interested locals may have to wait for it to be passed along.

JPD Capital this week launched a fund that backs offshore growers of medicinal cannabis, targeting assets of 100m (90.2m) by the end of the year.

It's so far raised about 35m from mainly overseas investors, because a catch-all piece of UK legislation means any British participants could be breaching the law.

"We haven't got time to wait for the licensing process to come into the UK," JPD founder and chief executive officer Jon-Paul Doran said in an interview in London. "For now, I believe it's a closed market."

JPD hopes to draw global investors who'd rather back private firms instead of the likes of US and Canadian cannabis stocks that underperformed last year. Cannabis-related listings in the UK have been rare, and small in size, meaning banks don't stand to gain a lot by taking on the risk. Startups in the sector are raising money privately instead.

"There is a lot of volatility, a lot of companies highly inflated," said Mr Doran. "We want to start to generate revenue and then look at a stock market listing."

JPD owns a company in Zimbabwe - where Mr Doran was born - that has acquired one of five licenses in the country to cultivate and export cannabis globally, according to its website.

While recreational use of cannabis remains unlawful in the UK, the drug was legalized for medical prescription in 2018.

Commenting at the fund's launch in London on Wednesday, Conservative member of parliament Crispin Blunt said he believed the UK government was open to an evidence-based change in cannabis legalisation.

Bloomberg
WASHINGTON - It was not a perfect phone call.

That was the message to President Donald Trump from a range of Republican senators on Friday - even as they voted to block witnesses from the Senate impeachment trial and signaled they would vote to acquit him on charges that he sought to tie foreign aid to Ukraine launching an investigation into a political foe.

In sparing the president a continued spectacle, the senators pointedly offered the defense that many GOP senators wished to make all along: That Trump's actions, while odious, were not deserving of the political death penalty.

As more revelations from former national security adviser John Bolton's book flowed, senators shrugged. They knew what he'd done, they said. It was not great, they added, but not that bad. They were ready to move on.

"It was inappropriate for the president to ask a foreign leader to investigate his political opponent and to withhold United States aid to encourage that investigation," Sen. Lamar Alexander, R-Tenn., said of the July 25 phone call between Trump and Ukraine's Volodymr Zelensky.

He then explained why he would not vote against the president. "The Constitution does not give the Senate the power to remove the president from office and ban him from this year's ballot simply for actions that are inappropriate," Alexander said.

While the terms were entirely different, it was in one respect similar to former president Bill Clinton's impeachment trial: Democratic senators impugned Clinton's conduct and questioned his morals for lying about sex in the White House - but did not believe it rose to the level of impeachable offenses.

A number of Republican senators agreed that Trump should not have asked President Volodmyr Zelensky to investigate Hunter Biden during phone call while raising a debunked theory about a Democratic Nationial Committee server and Ukrainian interference in the election, the senators said.

That Trump should not have withheld foreign aid to Ukraine for months, raising questions about the United States support for the country at war with Russia and sending Congress and the foreign policy firmament into a perplexed tizzy.

That Trump should not have involved his personal lawyer Rudy Giuliani in an irregular foreign policy channel to "attempt to interfere in an investigation," in Giuliani's own words.

And that Trump should not have ousted Marie Yovanovitch, a career ambassador to Ukraine, after a smear campaign that even some of his own administration officials admitted was filled with erroneous information.

Many of the senators did not try to justify or explain the president's conduct. Some mentioned an election in nine months or other Trump accomplishments. "Just because actions meet a standard of impeachment does not mean it is in the best interest of the country to remove a president from office," Sen,. Marco Rubio, R-Fla., said.

Alexander said the case had been proven. Trump was guilty. He was just not going to convict.

"Wrong and inappropriate," said Sen. Rob Portman, an Ohio Republican who repeatedly asked the administration to release the aid to Ukraine. That was in a statement when he declared he wanted to hear no more.

Sen. Lisa Murkowski of Alaska, a moderate Republican who delivered the death blow for a Democrat-led bid to hear from more witnesses, instead attacked Congress for not doing its job.

The terrible-but-not-impeachable defense rang hollow to some of the president's critics. Rep. Adam Schiff, D-Calif., one of the House impeachment managers, referred to the "Dershowitz Principle of Constitutional Lawlessness," referring to Alan Dershowitz, one of Trump's attorneys, and his expansive legal arguments.

Trump was unlikely to enjoy the statements, even if he liked the votes. He had repeatedly told lawmakers that he did want to give an inch, and wanted lawmakers, surrogates and allies to reiterate his oft-said statement that the call was "perfect."

"JUST GOT IMPEACHED FOR MAKING A PERFECT PHONE CALL," he posted, in all caps, on Jan. 16. "What I said on the phone call with the Ukrainian President is 'perfectly' stated," Trump tweeted on November.

"READ THE TRANSCRIPT!" he said, turning what some advisers believed was the most damning piece of evidence into his cri de coeur of innocence.

He told senators and allies that he did not want to distance himself from Giuliani when they suggested the lawyer's actions were potentially an albatross. In a statement Friday, he called Giuliani "one of the greatest corruption fighters in America and by far the greatest mayor in the history of N.Y.C."

He never conceded - as some lawmakers did - that his treatment of Yovanovitch was poor, instead taunting her on Twitter as she testified in the House about her abrupt firing and the threats she received.

"Everywhere Marie Yovanovitch went turned bad. She started off in Somalia, how did that go?" he wrote as she spoke. "...It is a U.S. President's absolute right to appoint ambassadors."

As he stepped out of the White House one week after the impeachment inquiry was launched, he did not back down from calling for political investigations into his opponent. Instead, he called for China to investigate the Biden family as well - doubling down on the original sin with a new country.

Even in private, advisers say Trump has repeatedly stated it was a perfect phone call, that he does not understand, or at least will not admit, the impropriety of what he did.

"He genuinely believes he did nothing wrong," Sen. Lindsey Graham, R-S.C., a Trump ally, said in a recent interview.

Dershowitz said he was pleased with the statements from the senators who criticized the president's conduct but said they would not remove him.

"That's right," he said, asked if that was the point of his argument. "My argument was whether or not you think he did anything wrong, it was it did not rise to the level of impeachment."

Dershowitz declined to comment when asked if he thought the president did anything wrong, or whether the call was perfect.

"That's something we should all take into account when we vote in nine months," he said.
Source: Xinhua| 2020-02-01 00:09:05|Editor: yan

Video Player Close

BEIJING, Jan. 31 (Xinhua) -- The Chinese government has taken the strictest measures to prevent and control the novel coronavirus epidemic, said the country's health authorities on Friday.

China is confident in and capable of effectively containing the novel coronavirus epidemic, and eventually defeating it, said the National Health Commission (NHC) at its daily press briefing on the epidemic.

The NHC made the remarks while responding to reports that the World Health Organization (WHO) said on Thursday the novel coronavirus outbreak has become a Public Health Emergency of International Concern.

According to the NHC, as of Thursday, 9,692 confirmed cases of novel coronavirus infection had been reported nationwide. A total of 213 people have died of the disease.

Also 1,527 patients remained in critical conditions, and 15,238 people were suspected of being infected with the virus.

The experts and the Director-General of the WHO, Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, appreciated China's efforts to prevent and control the epidemic, noting that the designation was aimed at mobilizing more international resources to deal with the epidemic, according to the NHC.

To curb the spread of the novel coronavirus, China has rolled out a host of unprecedented moves, including extending the Spring Festival holiday, postponing the spring semesters of schools and universities, and adopting transport restrictions in various areas.

Wuhan, the epicenter of the epidemic, has been put on lockdown for more than a week to prevent further outbreaks. As a megacity with a population of over 10 million, Wuhan has seen 2,639 confirmed cases as of the end of Thursday.

Doctors and nurses are rushing to Wuhan at the same time. Over 6,000 medical staff and 52 medical teams from all over the country are now in Wuhan to join the fight against the virus.

Wuhan authorities decided to build two hospitals dedicated to treating the novel coronavirus patients. The 1,000-bed Huoshenshan Hospital and the 1,500-bed Leishenshan Hospital will begin admitting patients on Feb. 3 and Feb. 6, respectively.

According to the Ministry of Finance, China has allocated 27.3 billion yuan (about 3.94 billion U.S. dollars) to support the battle across the country as of Jan. 29.

China also ordered community organizations to suspend mass gatherings amid coronavirus outbreak.

The NHC hoped the international community understand and support China's efforts in preventing and controlling the epidemic and make concerted efforts with China to contain the epidemic, and maintain global health security together.
Businesses across Kilkenny city and county who want to save money, cut harmful emissions and transition to a low carbon economy now have a unique opportunity to learn for free from fellow enterprises and energy experts in their bid to go green.

Local Enterprise Office (LEO) Kilkenny has teamed up with energy engineers at the 3 Counties Energy Agency (3cea) for an informative, easy-to-understand Going Green for Business breakfast briefing at Kilkennys Newpark Hotel on Thursday, February 13, from 8am to 9.30am. Details of all the expert and financial help available will also be shared at the free, no-obligation event.

Attending enterprises of all shapes and sizes will hear from local businesses, Trudies Kitchen and Country Style Foods and the green measures theyve implemented. Trudies Kitchen supplies packaged foods to a number of large retails across the southeast. They are part of the Origin Green programme and are working towards certification. Trudie will give an overview of what they have completed in terms of waste management in achieving zero waste going to landfill, reducing water consumption by up to 50%, route planning for delivery and implementing a LED retrofit to reduce energy costs.

Country Style Foods is a well-known brand of Irish meats and Rory Williams will talk about making the business more sustainable from a cost competitiveness and marketing point of view. They have completed a large LED upgrade and have further plans to make the business even more sustainable.

Local Enterprise Office (LEO) Kilkenny Head of Enterprise, Fiona Deegan, said: We urge businesses to attend, to hear directly from enterprises who have already made progress. Low carbon translates into savings in water, energy, waste, procurement and transport management.

Sustainable competitive advantage is the key to business success. It is the force that enables a business to have greater focus, more sales, better profit margins and higher customer and staff retention than competitors, she added

Hands-on tips, expertise and more will be shared by 3cea Energy Engineer, Jane Wickham, and the energy team. We will show businesses how little changes in key areas can make a massive difference. We will help businesses make more informed, environmentally-friendly choices and will take them through the expert help and the grants and other financial incentives available, she added.

Going Green for Business is phase one of a wider, Enterprise Ireland-funded and South East-wide Green for Micro initiative. It is one of three projects grant-aided to the tune of 345,000 by Minister for Business, Enterprise and Innovation, Heather Humphreys TD. It is led by Local Enterprise Office Kilkenny and Carlow Local Enterprise Offices in collaboration with the Local Enterprise Offices from Tipperary, Waterford and Wexford.
Two of the most trenchant critics of the Citizenship Amendment Act (CAA)  the Trinamool Congress (TMC) and Hyderabad Lok Sabha MP Asaduddin Owaisis All India Majlis-e-Ittehadul Muslimeen (AIMIM) now find themselves pitched against each other over the murder of two anti-CAA protesters in Bengals Murshidabad district on January 29.

The AIMIM which has emerged as a challenger to the TMC in Murshidabad district has said that it will launch a movement in the districts Jalangi community block if police fail to arrest Tohiruddin Mondal, the TMC Jalangi (north) block unit president who is the main accused and has been named in the FIR.

Muslims comprised 66.27 per cent of the districts population during the 2011 census. Both the victims were Muslims.

We will launch a bigger movement this month if police fail to arrest the accused. People have understood that TMC leaders are stabbing the movement against CAA and national register of citizens (NRC) in the back, said AIMIMs Murshidabad unit president Asadul Sheikh.

District police superintendent A S Yadav said, On the basis of two FIRs we have already arrested three persons and they are in police custody. Mondal and some other accused men are on the run. Raids are on to nab them.

The AIMIM is said to have that set up the platform, CAA Birodhi Nagorik Mancha (citizens forum against CAA) that called a bandh to protest the citizenship law. Two of its supporters, Anarul Biswas (55) and Salauddin Sheikh (17) died when Mondals associates allegedly attacked the protesters with guns and bombs.

AIMIM leaders warned that said they will not wait indefinitely for the police to arrest Mondal. Sheikh said, We have come to know that the TMC is spreading a rumour that our party members were involved in the violence.

On January 29, Maulana Sajjad Nomani of the All India Muslim Personal Law Board called the bandh and members of the Manch were supporting it. Mondal and his associates opened fire on them in front of eyewitnesses. Two innocent people were killed, said Sheikh.

Local TMC legislator Abdur Razzak claimed that there were some AIMIM supporters in the anti-CAA movement on January 29. He said, We cannot deny that MIM tried to spread its base in Murshidabad. But most of their supporters returned to mainstream parties when they understood the ideology of AIMIM.

He said, I have information that some youths from the Sahebnagar area, where the violence took place, are still supporting AIMIM. They might have been involved in the violence. Like the police, I am also clueless about Mondals location.

The AIMIM district president said, Right now we have more than 4.5 lakh members in Murshidabad district and 11,000 of them are from Jalangi.

In the last one year, the number of AIMIM members has drastically increased in Murshidabad. We are going to field candidates in more than 70 seats in the seven municipal bodies of the district in the coming elections, said Sheikh. AIMIM did not field any candidate in Murshidabad in the previous civic polls.

Sheikh said, People of Murshidabad saw the real face of TMC in the Jalangi bloodshed. We are ready to lead the movement against the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) in this district.

BJPs Murshidabad (north) unit president, Gouri Shankar Ghosh described both the TMC and the AIMIM as terrorists for opposing the CAA. Those who oppose a law passed by Parliament are nothing but terrorists. The TMC and AIMIM, along with some other parties, are working against the nation for the sake of votes, he said.
Source: Xinhua| 2020-02-01 18:57:49|Editor: huaxia

Video Player Close

Britain officially left the European Union (EU) at 11 p.m. (2300 GMT) Friday, putting an end to its 47-year-long membership of the world's largest trading bloc.

The Brexit Day was marked with both celebrations and protests across Britain, leaving the EU in mixed feeling and the remaining EU members calling for stronger solidarity within the bloc.

LONDON, Jan. 31 (Xinhua) -- Memories, celebrations and commiserations marked a historic day that will be narrated differently by the Brexiteers and Europhiles in the future.

Britain officially left the European Union (EU) at 11 p.m. (2300 GMT) Friday, putting an end to its 47-year-long membership of the world's largest trading bloc.

The Brexit Day was marked with both celebrations and protests across Britain, leaving the EU in mixed feeling and the remaining EU members calling for stronger solidarity within the bloc.

Supporters of a pro-Brexit group celebrate at Parliament Square in London, Britain, on Jan. 31, 2020. (Photo by Stephen Chung/Xinhua)

HISTORIC MOMENT

In a televised special address to the nation, British Prime Minister Boris Johnson, who took office amid the Brexit crisis, called the moment of departure "the dawn of a new era" when "the curtain goes up on a new act."

"Our job as the government -- my job -- is to bring this country together and take us forward," he said. "And the most important thing to say tonight is that this is not an end but a beginning."

A countdown clock is projected onto the wall of 10 Downing Street in London, Britain, on Jan. 31, 2020. (Xinhua/Han Yan)

A joint statement of EU leaders said that the day is of "reflection and mixed emotions" for themselves and many others, and that Britain and EU will have to work hard to weave together a new way forward "as allies, partners and friends."

The moment also marked the start of a transition period which will last till the end of this year as negotiators try to forge a trade arrangement between Britain and the remaining EU nations.

Workers remove the signs at the European Commission in Northern Ireland office in Belfast, Northern Ireland, Britain on Jan. 31, 2020. (Photo by Paul McErlane/Xinhua)

Big Ben, which has been mostly silent since restoration work began in 2017, did not chime at the historic moment for the nation that was hugely divided by the Brexit referendum in 2016.

The Big Ben Clock shows 11 p.m. (2300 GMT), in London, Britain on Jan. 31, 2020. (Photo by Tim Ireland/Xinhua)

10 Downing Street, the prime minister's residence, counted down to the 11 p.m. deadline with a light display. Government buildings in central London were lit up to celebrate the special occasion.

The British government has hailed the Brexit Day as a significant moment in the country's history and said it intends to use the event to bring communities back together and "heal divisions."

On Friday, a British government cabinet meeting took place in Sunderland, the first city to declare support for leaving the EU three and a half years ago.

A commemorative Brexit coin which reads "Peace, prosperity and friendship with all nations" also went into circulation in Britain on the day.

At London's Parliament Square, the Union flags were flown from flag poles outside the Houses of Parliament as Brexiteers chanted slogans to celebrate the moment.

For the Brexiteers, the day signifies that Britain has once again become a truly independent, sovereign state and a normal self-governing, parliamentary democracy.

"We will now be fully in control of our own, laws, finance, borders and trade," Alan Sked, founder of leading Brexit political party UK Independence Party, told Xinhua.

A demonstrator poses at the Parliament Square in London, Britain on Jan. 31, 2020. (Xinhua/Han Yan)

On the other side of the English Channel, the Union Jack was lowered for the last time outside the building of the European Parliament in Brussels.

Despite challenges, leaders of the EU and remaining member states have pledged to turn Brexit into an opportunity of forging a more competitive, integrated and influential bloc.

"It's never a happy moment when someone leaves, but we are opening a new chapter," European Council President Charles Michel said, vowing that "we will devote all our energy to building a stronger, more ambitious EU."

BEGINNING OF THE END OF UNITED KINGDOM?

To some, Brexit also means an uncertain future for the United Kingdom.

Brian Renaghan, whose farmland straddles the border between Northern Ireland and Republic of Ireland, fears that he may lose the annual EU subsidies to keep his business afloat.

"I will have to come up with another way to make money, perhaps turning it into a recreational farm or something," he told Xinhua.

He said he believed Brexit was the beginning of the end of the United kingdom, adding that he could see a United Ireland coming within 10 years.

In Dundee, a high-profile "Yes City" in the 2014 Scottish independence referendum, city council leader John Alexander said he was eager to get a good sleep before starting the next day campaigning even harder for Scottish independence.

The message "We still love EU" is projected on the cliffs of Ramsgate in Ramsgate, Britain, on Jan. 31, 2020. (Photo by Ray Tang/Xinhua)

"Brexit has not only resulted in huge political upheaval and public anger, but is already having a negative impact upon the UK's, and therefore Scotland's, economic outlook," he told Xinhua, adding the British government's position "does not in any way reflect the views of the Scottish population."

In the 2016 Brexit referendum, every single voting district in Scotland voted to remain in the EU, the largest and most strategically important economic partner for Scotland.

"Independence offers Scotland an opportunity to right that wrong," Alexander said. "It is not a question of whether it will happen but when."

FUTURE PARTNERSHIP

Withdrawing from the EU is merely the first hurdle that will be followed by negotiations on a permanent trade and working arrangement between Britain and Brussels. The tough talks are expected to be wrapped up within this year as the Brexit transition period ends.

Britain's departure from the EU will be just the starting point in a rocky and uncertain journey that may continue for years, and almost certainly into the second half of the 2020s, said Ivan Rogers, Britain's former permanent representative to the EU.

The veteran ex-diplomat warned that Jan. 31 is just the beginning of Brexit rather than the end of it.

People hold a Brexit Day press call at Parliament Square, in London, Britain, on Jan. 31, 2020. (Photo by Stephen Chung/Xinhua)

In Dover, one of Europe's busiest ferry ports and Britain's closest physical point to mainland Europe, residents voiced their optimism despite the warning.

"I know it will be a tough road ahead, but I am confident that we will find a way out," said Stuart Ord-Hume, who has been a stock broker for 23 years. "I believe the government has the ability to deal with all the challenges, and they don't want the country to collapse."

Brexit has also cast doubt on the future of the EU, which expanded a number of times throughout its history, and the trend of globalization as a whole.

Martin Albrow, a renowned British sociologist and a pioneer of the theory of globalization, told Xinhua that he thinks Brexit will make no difference to globalization which is driven by technology, culture and ideas.

"Brexit itself contains contradictions between desire to access global markets and aim to restrict immigration," said the academic. "The more there is a drive to integrate further, the greater the internal resistance will be."

Martin Wolf, chief economics commentator at the business news daily Financial Times, said in a recent column piece that Britain after Brexit will not be alone, but it will be lonelier.

"The UK will frequently find itself a supplicant in relations with powers greater than itself." Enditem

(Video reporters: Zhai Wei, Zhao Yuchao, Han Chong, Shen Zhonghao, Tang Ji, Wang Zichen, Li Jizhi, Bai Hua, Liang Xizhi, Jin Jing, Yu Jiaxin;



Video editor: Zhu Chong)


A Formula 1 Canadian billionaire has saved Aston Martin from almost certain collapse as he leads a 500 million bailout of the troubled car maker.

Aston Martin confirmed plans to sell a 182million stake in the business to Canadian billionaire Lawrence Stroll, 60, after the board held an emergency meeting last night.

The luxury car maker, famed for being James Bond's favourite marque, has been in talks to secure funding by selling a chunk of the business to a strategic investor for several months.

Aston Martin also announced a 318million rights issue supported by major shareholders. Shares jumped on Friday to close 24 per cent higher 4.98.

Aston Martin confirmed plans to sell a 182million stake in the business to Canadian billionaire Lawrence Stroll (pictured with his wife Claire-Anne) after the board held an emergency meeting last night

The cash injection prevents Aston Martin from going bust for the eighth time in its 107-year history.

Stroll, owner of Formula One team Racing Point, bought a 16.7 per cent stake, with the option of increasing to 20 per cent once the rights issue takes place. He will also provide 55.5million of short-term working capital.

The sale comes as Aston Martin is struggling to stay afloat after a disastrous stock market debut in October 2018.

In the first year of being listed its shares lost 75 per cent of their value, after its initial listing price of 19 per share was vastly overvalued and it subsequently released a slew of disappointing updates and a rescue financing.

Stroll, owner of Formula One team Racing Point, bought a 16.7 per cent stake, with the option of increasing to 20 per cent once the rights issue takes place

The cash injection prevents Aston Martin from going bust for the eighth time in its 107-year history. Pictured: An Aston Martin DBS Superleggera

The 107-year-old group is pinning any hopes of a recovery on the performance of its 158,000 SUV, the DBX, launched in November.

Stroll, who owns F1 team Racing Point, made his $2.6bn (2bn) fortune through investing in fashion houses such as Tommy Hilfiger and Michael Kors.

As well as his base in Geneva, he has homes in London, Quebec and on the Caribbean island of Mustique, according to the Telegraph.

He collects vintage Ferraris and more recently has taken an increasing role in the high-octane world of motor sport.

In December rumours surfaced that Stroll, whose son Lance is a Formula 1 driver, would take a stake in the famous brand.

Aston Martin chair Penny Hughes said: 'The difficult trading performance in 2019 resulted in severe pressure on liquidity which has left the Company with no alternative but to seek substantial additional equity financing. Without this the balance sheet is not robust enough to support the operations of the group.

'Notwithstanding recent weak trading, the strength of the Aston Martin brand and our expanding portfolio of cars has allowed us to attract a strong new partner in Mr. Stroll to support the turnaround of the business.'

Stroll is set to join the company's board as executive chairman, replacing Hughes, as part of the deal.

He said their investment 'underpins the company's financial security and ensures it will be operating from a position of financial strength.'

Andy Palmer, Aston Martin president and group chief executive, said the past year had been 'regrettably disappointing' and said the fundraising was necessary to support the long-term future of the company.

Stroll is set to join the company's board as executive chairman, replacing Hughes, as part of the deal

Stroll made his $2.6bn (2bn) fortune through a series of investments in the global expansion of fashion brands

Markets.com analyst Neil Wilson questioned whether Stroll's 55million short-term cash injection will be enough to prop up Aston Martin.

'It will do a lot to alleviate immediate cash flow concerns  not least the fact that earlier this month it reported net debt and leverage ranges of 875m-885m and 6.2-6.8x respectively,' he said.

'However, Aston could well have to go cap in hand to investors again if the sales of its DBX don't take off.'

'Planned launches of electric vehicles are going to be delayed  they will require a lot of investment and it risks falling behind peers in this space at a critical juncture of EV take-off.'
Workers assemble face masks on an emergency production line at a factory in Nantong in eastern China's Jiangsu Province, Feb. 1. AP



The number of deaths from the coronavirus epidemic in China has risen by 46 to 259, the country's health authorities said Saturday, as the United States and other nations announced new border curbs on foreigners who have visited the country recently.



Wuhan in Hubei Province, the epicenter of the epidemic, is under a virtual quarantine, with roads sealed off and public transport shut down. Elsewhere in China, the authorities have placed restrictions on travel and business activity in a bid to contain the spread of the virus.



In its latest figures, China's National Health Commission said there were 2,102 new confirmed infections in the country as of Friday, bringing the cumulative total to 11,791. Around two dozen other countries have reported confirmed cases of the virus.



Amid growing international concern, Singapore and the United States announced measures to restrict entry to foreign nationals who have recently been in China.



Australia followed suit, with Prime Minister Scott Morrison saying the country will deny entry to all foreign nationals travelling from mainland China from Saturday.



"We're in fact operating with an abundance of caution in these circumstances," Morrison told reporters in Sydney. "So Australians can go about their daily lives with confidence."






WASHINGTON - President Donald Trump added six countries to his administration's travel ban Friday - including Nigeria, Africa's most populous country - in a widely anticipated expansion that Democrats blasted as "clearly discriminatory" against people from predominantly black and Muslim nations.

Citing national security concerns, officials from the Department of Homeland Security and the State Department said the U.S. government will bar citizens from the six countries from immigrating to the United States. The expansion applies to four nations in Africa - Nigeria, Eritrea, Tanzania and Sudan - and two in Asia: Kyrgyzstan and Myanmar.

The new ban takes effect Feb. 22; travelers who have received visas or are in transit at that time will not be affected. Travelers who have not received visas will be subject to the ban but will be automatically considered for waivers.

The American Immigration Lawyers Association said the new ban will impede citizens of Nigeria, Eritrea, Kyrgyzstan and Myanmar from coming to the United States permanently to join their family members or to work. The proclamation also bars citizens of Tanzania and Sudan from the visa lottery program, but it doesn't affect other forms of immigration from those countries, the association said.

Officials estimate the policy will affect several thousand people a year, on the basis of recent immigrant arrivals from those countries. The policy will now limit immigration from 13 countries.

Trump's initial ban in 2017, which initially targeted Muslim countries, ignited chaos during his first days in office amid allegations that the ban was discriminatory and illegal. The policy was knocked down in federal courts and then reinstated by the U.S. Supreme Court, and the new expansion signals that the administration is not going to relent in its efforts to slash immigration during an election year.

Added to robust measures at the U.S. southern border that have curbed Central American migration in recent months, the targeting of immigrant visas also allows the president to advance his goal of reducing family-based migration.

Trump, in a proclamation issued Friday, said the countries were chosen after an extensive evaluation that examined travel security and measures, and national security threats in dozens of countries; those that made the list were chosen from a recommendation that U.S. officials made in January.

"The six additional countries recommended for restrictions in the January 2020 proposal are among the worst performing in the world," Trump said in the proclamation, but he said he was encouraged by their "willingness to work with the United States" to correct the deficiencies.

A statement from the White House said that it is "fundamental to national security, and the height of common sense, that if a foreign nation wishes to receive the benefits of immigration and travel to the United States, it must satisfy basic security conditions outlined by America's law-enforcement and intelligence professionals."

Refugees from the six countries are exempt from the ban.

House Democrats attacked the expansion hours before the Trump administration unveiled it, calling the ban "xenophobic" and "reckless" and saying there is no evidence of national security threats that would warrant such restrictions.

Speaking on the condition of anonymity on a call with reporters, federal officials would not detailspecific national security threats in the six countries for fear of disclosing information to "nefarious" actors there. But officials said there were "gaps and vulnerabilities" in each nation that could be exploited by terrorists and criminals.

Officials said the countries had been selected on the basis of a ranking system that evaluated countries for compliance with various vetting and information standards as well as terrorism risks. The standards they looked at included whether the countries use biometric passports; whether the country reports theft and loss of passports adequately to the United States or Interpol; whether it shares information on known or suspected terrorists and criminals; whether it shares examples of its passports with the United States so they can be used to determine signs of fraud.

The current ban prohibits immigrant and most temporary forms of travel to the United States for citizens of Iran, Libya, Somalia, Syria, Yemen and North Korea, as well as certain visits for some Venezuelan government officials. All but two, Venezuela and North Korea, are majority Muslim. Trump in 2018 complained about accepting too many immigrants from Africa, Haiti and El Salvador, which he labeled "shithole countries."

"Our country has to be safe," Trump told reporters last week at a news conference in Davos, Switzerland.

U.S. Rep. Sheila Jackson Lee, D-Texas, who represents Houston, home to a large number of Nigerians, said there are concerns with terror groups in some countries but that there are "bad actors" in China and Russia, both not included in the ban.

"We believe in the process of due process, freedom of movement. . . . They are the national and international values that we show to the world," she said, adding that Trump abused his power because he bypassed Congress. "This administration has stripped and shredded those values with no basis in security."

House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, D-Calif., said Congress plans to vote soon on legislation that would substantially restrict the president's authority to limit such travel to the United States, but the measure is unlikely to clear the Republican-dominated Senate.

Jessica Vaughan, the director of policy studies at the Center for Immigration Studies, a nonprofit organization that favors restrictions on immigration, said she hopes Trump's proclamation will lead to greater passport controls in the targeted countries.

"Everybody's being evaluated, and these are countries that didn't make the cut," said Vaughan, who was a U.S. consular officer in the early 1990s.

But she said it would have been more effective had Trump also imposed restrictions on temporary visas, because security lapses could still occur. "All it takes is one entry by a terrorist to cause a problem," she said.

Of the six new countries, Nigeria also has the largest number of immigrants in the United States - about 300,000, not counting their U.S.-born children - with many in Texas, Maryland and New York. Nigerian immigrants and their children were more likely to have college degrees than the overall U.S. population, according to a Migration Policy Institute report. Nigerians also accounted for one of the largest groups of visa overstays in 2018, according to DHS.

The ban is expected to disrupt millions of dollars of business deals, analysts say, as well as freeze a robust flow of Nigerian students to the United States that, according to the Department of Commerce, contributed approximately $514 million to the U.S. economy in the past academic year. The number of Nigerian travelers to the United States dropped 20 percent last year after the U.S. government ended a frequent-traveler program and increased entry fees.

Republicans and Democrats have raised questions about the effectiveness of the travel ban and other "extreme vetting" measures under the Trump administration. After a Saudi military trainee shot and killed three sailors in December at a naval air station in Florida, Republican lawmakers asked the Trump administration to explain why it allowed Saudi military trainees into the country.

Though citizens of the banned countries can apply for waivers if they are denied entry, few receive them. Approximately 10 percent of the 72,000 applications for waivers to the ban filed by citizens of Iran, Somalia, Yemen, Libya and Syria were granted in the past two years, according to the State Department.

- - -

Paquette reported from Dakar, Senegal.
The Trump administrations expansion of the nations contentious travel ban on Friday to include Nigeria, Africas most populous nation, and several other countries deeply rattled immigrants, leaving some Nigerians in New York worried that it would break family ties and have a negative effect on both countries.

Africans have very strong family ties, said Henry Ukazu, 35, of the Bronx, warning that not allowing people from Nigeria to come to the United States to live would result in negative consequences for both the United States and Nigeria.

Mr. Ukazu, who immigrated to the United States 10 years ago, predicted that the travel ban would bring about a level of detachment from family members, and that is not a welcome development.

We are not wired to be an individual, Mr. Ukazu said. We are raised like a bond because we are like a broom, when we are mixed together, we perform very, very well.
If that happens, and Britain is able to establish a stable trading relationship with the European Union, Brexits champions may claim a measure of vindication. That is even more likely if, as many experts predict, the bloc enters a bumpy stretch economically.

Boris Johnsons argument is that 10, 15, or 20 years from now, well look back and say, Getting out was in our national interest, said Mujtaba Rahman, a managing director at the political risk consultancy Eurasia Group. The jury is out on that, but if he can pull this off, there are reasons to think Britain will prosper.

The Brexiteers are far less guarded. They speak of a global Britain, bursting with technological innovation, unencumbered by regulations  an agile free agent, ready to do business with the world. Britain, they said, would strike lucrative trade deals and become a magnet for foreign investment.

It starts with free trade, said Patrick Minford, an economist at Cardiff University. Everyone talks about the E.U. as if it is a bastion of free trade, but its not. We want to trade freely with everybody, especially the United States.

Professor Minford contends that Britain could add 8 percent to its gross domestic product over the next decade if it is able to strike down all trade barriers, and 4 percent if it is able only to eliminate a portion of them. There could be further gains from technological innovations in industries like artificial intelligence, he said.

Most mainstream studies, though, predict Brexit will cut the rate of Britains growth by depriving it of gains to gross domestic product it would otherwise have had. Those lost gains could amount to between 1.2 percent and 4.5 percent of its gross domestic product, depending on the terms of Britains exit from the European Union.
Dads in a gang and Mum was a sex worker but Connor Boyd has quite a different plan for his life.

At 26-years-old Connor Boyd or Kayz 1 has been through a lot, but is now out the other side of his youth wanting to use his experiences to make a name for himself.

The musician from Christchurch has chosen Tauranga as his safe place away from the violence and the gangs.

My father was trying to push me into his gang and Im not a mean person. Im not like them. I dont take joy in hurting people. Thats why I left, because otherwise they would have pushed me into it, says Connor.

He says it was a bit scary at times with Dad being in a gang and Mum in the sex industry, but at the time he didnt really know what was going on.

I just always liked music and I started writing [songs] at like 10 or 11-years-old. I think it was my childhood way of trying to process what was going on.

It wasnt until about intermediate age that he started to realise what his parents did for a living wasnt normal.

It was embarrassing because my mum was sleeping with some of my friends parents, and thats how I figured it out because I started getting bullied at school. Thats how I started to figure out it wasnt a normal job.

Cautious to not fall down the same path, Connor has turned to music as an outlet and his way to tell his story of what he has been through.

Connor says Eminem was a big influence for him and he would always be rapping along to his songs.

I figured out that I could do his whole songs and then I eventually just started to try and write my own.

At the start they really sucked but I just kept at it.

He describes his music as a positive outlet covering issues like mental health, not letting things bottle up, but getting it out in a positive way.

To date, his hardest song to write is one he wrote about his great-grandad who died a little while ago.

It was my way of trying to process the grief. It took about a month because I did bits at a time. If I get sudden inspiration for something I just write it, but sometimes I can sit there for ages and not come up with anything.

Some days I can write half a song in 15 minutes, its strange.

Usually Ill start with a line or something that Ive thought of and then Ill try and search like a beat or something to match that, or if I listen to a beat first and then the first bit might just pop up.

He says people have reacted positively towards his music and he is now studying a Diploma in Music at Toi Ohomai.

Ive been told Ive got to work on a couple of tiny things, but some of my new stuff that Im working on is a bit more upbeat and a little bit more poppy.

Ive done a show at Our Place with the school and its really helped my confidence. Its a big difference from singing to yourself then in front of even 20 people. It doesnt feel like much but when youre up there its daunting.

His message to others is simple: just keep pushing and keep going until someone hears you. Just dont give up.

I had thoughts of giving up after my first song thinking it was no good, and sometimes youve got to just take a bit of a break from it because if you overdo it, everything will start to sound like crap  even if it sounds good.

Youve got to just make time to actually focus on it.

In a sad way, Im not good at anything else. That was my motivation because every other course Ive failed and Ive just been drifting through life since I was 16, but once I fully found music, it just clicked that I knew thats what I was born to do in a cheesy way.

For Connor, 2020 will hopefully see the release of his first album. He has written seven songs for the album and wants to push the total up to ten before he releases it. He also wants to continue doing live shows and try and get his name out there more.

To listen to Connors music and his story, you can find him under Kayz 1 on YouTube, or Connor Boyd on Facebook.

A mothers story

During the week, Connors mum got in touch with The Weekend Sun to validate his childhood story.

She said she was only 20 when she had Connor but was quick to realise her relationship with the father was unhealthy.

After a nasty custody battle and an arson attack that destroyed their home when Connor was five, she said she turned to drugs and alcohol to numb the pain. They did not have insurance so lost everything they had in the fire.

Because of the financial cost, I ended up in the sex industry for a time trying to get money to replace our possessions, she says.

I was suffering from deep depression and eventually I pulled myself out as I knew it wasnt what I wanted or needed for my son or me.

For many years after I had problems with alcohol which I deeply regret as it caused numerous fractures in my and Connors relationship.

Music has always been a huge part of our lives and a great outlet. Im hugely proud of and encourage Connor 100 per cent to follow what he loves and to always reach for the stars."
Source: Xinhua| 2020-02-01 16:38:34|Editor: huaxia

Video Player Close

HANGZHOU, Feb. 1 (Xinhua) -- China has found effective ways of treating critically ill patients who are affected by the novel coronavirus (2019-nCoV), renowned Chinese epidemiologist Li Lanjuan told Xinhua.

China's National Health Commission said Saturday that 11,791 confirmed cases of novel coronavirus infections had been reported in 31 provincial-level regions and the Xinjiang Production and Construction Corps by the end of Friday. A total of 243 patients had been cured and discharged from hospital.

Measures to treat patients in critical condition are known as the "four fights and two balances," said Li, an academician with the Chinese Academy of Engineering, who heads the State Key Laboratory for Diagnosis and Treatment of Infectious Diseases.

"The first is to fight the virus. We found that if we start antiviral treatment a day earlier, the rate of patients in critical condition decreased by 10 percent, and the mortality rate fell 13 percent," she said in an exclusive interview by Xinhua Wednesday.

"The second is to prevent shock through supplementing a saline substance. The third is to prevent hypoxemia and multiple organ failure. The fourth is to prevent and fight secondary infections. We adopt antiviral treatment in the early stage, and use antibiotics when a secondary infection occurs," she said.

The "two balances" refer to maintaining water electrolytes, acid-base balance and micro-ecological balance, Li said.

"The treatment of critically ill patients is of great significance. Only by lowering the mortality rate can we allay the fears of the public," she said.

Li said the "four fights and two balances" is a new overall strategy for the rescue of critically ill patients.
Imperial Valley News Center

Briefing by Members of the Presidents Coronavirus Task Force

Washington, DC - Briefing by Members of the Presidents Coronavirus Task Force:

SECRETARY AZAR: Well, good afternoon, everyone. Im Alex Azar, Secretary of Health and Human Services, and Chairman of the Presidents Task Force on the Novel Coronavirus.

Im going to start by turning things over to Dr. Robert Redfield, the Director of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, to discuss the current situation on the novel coronavirus. Dr. Redfield.

DR. REDFIELD: Thank you, Mr. Secretary. Let me give you an update on the current situation of the novel coronavirus. First though, I want to emphasize that this is a serious health situation in China, but I want to emphasize that the risk to the American public currently is low. Our goal is do all we can do to keep it that way.

Second, I want to recognize the concern that the American public may have. And I want to reiterate what I just said: Currently, the risk of the American public is low.

As of today, there are nearly 9,700 cases in China, with more than 200 deaths. Additionally, currently there are another 23 countries that have confirmed, totally, 132 cases. This also includes 12 individuals who have been confirmed in six countries who did not travel to China.

CDC has launched an aggressive public health response focused on early case recognition, isolation of those cases identified, and contact tracing around those individuals. This response is a layered response, which includes both targeted airport screening, as well as heightened education and awareness of the American healthcare community to be vigilant in ascertaining the possibility of recent travel to China when they are evaluating patients with upper respiratory tract infection.

To date, we have confirmed six cases of this novel virus in the United States. The most recent case had no travel history to China, but was a close personal contact of one of the previous cases that we had identified through our aggressive contact tracing. In addition, there are currently 191 individuals that are under investigation.

Once again, I want to emphasize that this is a significant global situation, and it continues to evolve. But I also want to emphasize again that the risk at this time to the American public is low.

Mr. Secretary.

SECRETARY AZAR: Thank you, Dr. Redfield. I would now like to invite Dr. Anthony Fauci, the Director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Disease, to discuss the underlying rationale for the actions that I will be discussing after he concludes. Dr. Fauci.

DR. FAUCI: Thank you very much, Mr. Secretary. The concept thats underlying the action that youll hear about shortly is the issue of the unknown aspects of this particular outbreak. So let me enumerate just a few of these.

I can start off by putting it into perspective by telling you I often get asked  we have an influenza outbreak here. We have about 8,000 deaths already. We have about 100,000 hospitalizations. Why are we paying such attention? And why are we doing the kinds of things were doing here right now?

Well, the reason is, despite the morbidity and mortality with influenza, theres a certainty, for example, of seasonal flu. I can tell you all, guaranteed, that as we get into March and April, the flu cases are going to go down. You could predict pretty accurately what the range of the mortality is and the hospitalizations, as weve done over the years.

The issue now with this is that theres a lot of unknowns. As you can see just from the media, the number of cases have steeply inclined each and every day. You know that, in the beginning, we were not sure if there were asymptomatic infection, which would make it a much broader outbreak than what were seeing. Now we know for sure that there are.

It was not clear whether an asymptomatic person could transmit it to someone while they were asymptomatic. Now we know from a recent report from Germany that that is absolutely the case.

There are a number of countries outside of China that have travel-related cases. And now what were seeing is that there are secondary cases from them, and, as Bob mentioned, we also have that in this country. The WHO has issued, as you know, a Public Health Emergency of International Concern declaration.

If you put all these things together, I underscore what Bob said: We still have a low risk to the American public, but we want to keep it at a low risk. And because there are so many unknowns here, were going to take the action that the Secretary will describe, in a temporary way, to make sure we mitigate, as best as we possibly can, this risk. Thank you.

SECRETARY AZAR: Thank you, Dr. Fauci. Today, President Trump took decisive action to minimize the risk of the spread of novel coronavirus in the United States. Since taking office, President Trump has been clear: His top priority is the safety of the American people. In addition to the steps that the doctors have outlined, we continue to operationalize a multi-layered, cross-agency, public health response.

Following the World Health Organizations decision to declare the 2019 novel coronavirus a Public Health Emergency of International Concern, I have today declared that the coronavirus presents a public health emergency in the United States. The actions we have taken and continue to take complement  complement the work of China and the World Health Organization to contain the outbreak within China.

In accordance with the declaration, beginning at 5:00 p.m., Eastern Standard Time; Sunday, February the 2nd, the United States government will implement temporary measures to increase our abilities to detect and contain the coronavirus proactively and aggressively. Any U.S. citizen returning to the United States who has been in Hubei Province in the previous 14 days will be subject to up to 14 days of mandatory quarantine to ensure they are they are provided proper medical care and health screening.

To be clear, this applies only to U.S. citizens who have been in Hubei Province in the past 14 days prior to their attempted entry into the United States.

Any U.S. citizen returning to the United States who has been in the rest of Mainland China within the previous 14 days will undergo proactive entry health screening at a select number of ports of entry and up to 14 days of monitored self-quarantine to ensure theyve not contracted the virus and do not pose a public health risk.

Additionally, the President has signed a presidential proclamation, using his authority pursuant to Section 212(f) of the Immigration and Nationality Act, temporarily suspending the entry into the United States of foreign nationals who pose a risk of transmitting the 2019 novel coronavirus.

As a result, foreign nationals, other than immediate family of U.S. citizens and permanent residents, who have traveled in China within the last 14 days will be denied entry into the United States for this time.

Once again, these actions will become effective at 5:00 p.m., Eastern Standard Time; Sunday, February 2nd. These prudent, targeted, and temporary actions will decrease the pressure on public health officials screening incoming travelers, expedite the processing of U.S. citizens and permanent residents returning from China, and ensure resources are focused on the health and safety of the American people.

I want to stress: The risk of infection for Americans remains low. And with these and our previous actions, we are working to keep the risk low. All agencies are working aggressively to monitor this continually evolving situation and to keep the public informed in a constantly transparent way.

The United States appreciates Chinas efforts and coordination with public health officials across the globe, and continues to encourage the highest levels of transparency.

It is likely that we will continue to see more cases in the United States in the coming days and weeks, including some limited person-to-person transmission. The American public can be assured the full weight of the U.S. government is working to safeguard the health and safety of the American people.

Id now like to invite Deputy Secretary of State Steve Biegun for an update.

DEPUTY SECRETARY BEIGUN: Good afternoon. And thank you, Secretary Azar. My name is Steve Biegun, and I am the Deputy Secretary of State, and I represent the State Department on the Presidents Novel Coronavirus Task Force.

Let me describe briefly the role of the Department of State in the proceedings of this task force and our contributions. Our first responsibility is to monitor events on the ground in China where we have the presence of U.S. diplomats, and to give clear and accurate advice to American citizens and, in particular, American travelers considering visiting or staying in China.

In this particular case, this includes identifying any health or safety risks to which they may be subjected, but also, very importantly, identifying their access to essential services such as healthcare in parts of China that are affected by this coronavirus.

China has an excellent healthcare system, but, in parts of the country, it is simply overwhelmed and the accessibility to that healthcare for any reason  including potential infection, but also any other type of accident in need of medical care  may be compromised during the Chinese governments own treatment of the consequences of this virus.

Finally, we also make our judgments based upon any obstacles, particularly obstacles to movement that American citizens might face in the country. And in China, we have seen barriers to travel, both within and without China, as well as between the United States and China. And so weve given prudent advice, over the course of the week, to American citizens in order for them  to allow them to make the best possible choices for themselves.

Our second responsibility is to assist U.S. citizens in the affected areas as much as possible. Because we have a presence on the ground, we can provide advice and, in some cases, we can make other arrangements. But I want to emphasize this is as possible, and we will continue to review what we can do in certain circumstances.

Finally, and very importantly, the core mission of the Department of State is to work closely with our international partners. And in this case, we are working very closely with the Chinese government in order to address a number of related matters.

But let me start, on behalf of the President and the Secretary of State, by extending our deepest compassion to the people of China. This has been a very difficult time for the Chinese people. It came at a point of their peak holiday season. Many are affected. Many have lost loved ones or are enduring the illness of loved ones. And I want the Chinese people to know that they have the deepest sympathies of the United States of America.

Let me also say and echo what Secretary Azar said, which is we are deeply appreciative of the close cooperation we have with the Chinese government as we work together to try to find appropriate ways to address any risks and challenges from this virus.

And finally, the United States will continue to cooperate with China in ways that we could potentially provide assistance, including technical assistance, and also, to the extent possible, any critical supplies that the Chinese need in order to address this virus. And we are working very hard to find donors and make arrangements so that we can  we can undertake a robust effort to help the Chinese people get their arms around this outbreak.

Thank you.

SECRETARY AZAR: Thank you, Secretary Biegun. Let me  let me next invite the Acting Deputy Secretary of the Department of Homeland Security Ken Cuccinelli to take the podium for some comments.

ACTING DEPUTY SECRETARY CUCCINELLI: Thank you, Mr. Secretary. I am Ken Cuccinelli. Im the Acting Deputy Secretary at the Department of Homeland Security, and Im the Departments representative on the task force led by Secretary Azar.

Several elements of the Department of Homeland Security are engaged in implementing the medical strategy you heard described here, including Customs and Border Protection, which stands at our land ports, seaports, and airports  and Ill come back to the airports in a moment  particularly the Office of Field Operations personnel who you see when you come back into the country from your travels. Theyre the first line of defense when you land and come to the country.

Additionally engaged is TSA  the security and the engagement with the airlines. Our chief medical officer in the department is in CWMD and theyre  we were providing medical support at the airports.

So were using contract authority that we have to backfill the CDC personnel, so they can be freed up for other missions at the airports where medical screening is being focused.

FEMA continues to prepare and support HHS preparations themselves. And then the United States Coast Guard, of course, commands the ports of the United States and deals with incoming shipping, which is obviously slower than the airplanes but coming nonetheless, and we are prepared to deal with each of those.

The Presidents proclamation will have Customs and Border Protection ensuring that United States citizens, legal permanent residents, and their immediate families continue to enter the United States, though they  those coming from Hubei Province, as you heard from the Secretary, will be subject to quarantine and the others from China to screening.

We will be implementing a funneling effort at the airports. This is done under the authority of the Customs and Border Protection, and it will include seven airports. So starting five oclock on Sunday, Eastern Time, incoming flights from China will be funneled through seven airports. Those airports are JFK, Chicagos OHare, in San Francisco, Seattle, Atlanta, Honolulu, and LAX.

This is done under CBPs authority. It will be executed by the Secretary the Department of Homeland Security, consistent with the Presidents proclamation and in support of that effort  again, so we can focus the expertise of the medical professionals that will do the screening to implement this.

Well continue to support the medical efforts across the country both at our ports  our land, sea, and air  as well as with personnel standing up some of the resiliency measures that HHS has been working on for some time. Thank you.

SECRETARY AZAR: Thank you, Secretary Cuccinelli. At this point, wed be happy to take some of your questions. Kevin, would you like to get started?

Q Thank you, Mr. Secretary. If the risk is really low, could you talk about why go to such an extreme as a public health emergency? If the risk is that low, why are we taking such measures?

SECRETARY AZAR: So these are actually fairly incremental, measured steps, on top the steps weve already progressively been taking. Youll notice that many airlines have already stopped direct flights from China. They have pulled that down. Were seeing a significant  and the Department of Transportation could comment on the numbers were seeing or Homeland Security. Weve seen a significant reduction in people from the U.S. going to China, people from China coming to the U.S., already.

This just helps us focus our efforts so that we  as were dealing with the unknowns that Dr. Fauci spoke about earlier  unknowns around incubation period, unknowns about the speed of transmissibility, unknowns about asymptomatic transmission, unknowns about severity  that we take appropriate, measured, prudential steps so we can focus our resources. Because its the bread and butter  Ive talked to you before about  the bread and butter of public health is: identify people who might be symptomatic or might have the disease, diagnose, isolate, treat, contact trace.

Thats a significant undertaking, as we have already done with the six individuals in the United States whove been positively identified. We have to focus those resources.

John.

Q Mr. Secretary, the mandatory quarantine for people coming in Hubei Province  will that be home quarantine or will that be in an institutional setting?

SECRETARY AZAR: That would be at an appropriate quarantine facility of some kind for those individuals. For the U.S. citizens returning to the United States from having been in China within the previous 14 days, they would be funneled, as Secretary Cuccinelli spoke of; they would be screened appropriately to see if they present any type of symptoms of the disease; and then they would be asked to self-isolate at home over the 14 days.

But for individuals from Hubei  because that is the epicenter of this, with such high immediate transmission  we feel that these additional measures of quarantine for up to 14 days are appropriate.

Q And can I just follow that: Have you selected specific quarantine centers?

SECRETARY AZAR: We have selected them. Were  we will announce those as DHS implements, with the airlines, that funneling activity.

Q To follow up on John, what does self-quarantine look like for the people who are self-quarantining? How do you enforce that? What are the mechanisms surrounding that?

And if you could you also speak to  you just described this as sort of an incremental step, I believe. This is obviously significant: the quarantine of citizens in this country.

What is your message to Americans who are watching this on the news, who are seeing this, who are feeling really alarmed by the steps that this administration is taking and by the spread of coronavirus in general? They hear you say the risk is low, but then they see this action being taken, and I think some people might be freaked out by that.

SECRETARY AZAR: I hope not. I hope that people will see that their government is taking responsible steps to protect them. These are  these are preventive steps. The risk is low in the United States. The risk is low of transmissibility, the risk of contracting the disease is low, but our job is to keep that risk low, as much as we can, by taking appropriate preventative steps.

So thats  thats the approach were taking.

Let me ask Dr. Redfield if he can talk a bit about  we  this is  we do this type of quarantine and self-isolation work basically every day, working very closely  I want to stress something that weve not mentioned enough  working very closely with our state and local public health partners. Theyre  just as we do with emergency response, we serve as a backup and expertise and a border-type force, but the state and local authorities are the backbone of our public health infrastructure and we work with them to daily to help with our quarantine stations and activities.

So, Dr. Redfield, could you talk a bit about self-isolation?

DR. REDFIELD: Thank you, Mr. Secretary. Clearly, weve stratified the risk groups here, as it was already alluded to, from Hubei Province, where there really is aggressive transmission. Those individuals are going to come and be required to have 14 days of  up to 14 days of (inaudible) transmission.

Then, theres a large category of individuals coming back to China. As we stand here today, over half of the reported cases in China now are not in Hubei, but when you look at their history its  they got infected  probably over 80, 85 percent of them got infected from Hubei.

Those individuals will then be actively screened when they come into one of the seven airports, for significant risk, as well as any evidence of any symptoms. In the absence of any reason to advance them into a clinical evaluation at that port of entry, they will be allowed to complete their travel back to their home, where they then will be monitored by the local health departments in a self-monitoring situation their home.

We did this in the West Africa Ebola outbreak.

Q That sounds Ebola. Right.

DR. REDFIELD: We did it in the  but I want to emphasize: At that time, over 98 percent of the American public voluntarily accepted the importance of this. And we think and we continue to believe the American public will see this as something to their benefit, to their familys benefit, obviously their communitys benefit. So thats the current situation.

DR. FAUCI: Theres one other aspect of this that I think is important. Very recently, there was a case of a woman who was in China, and came to Germany, and had an interaction  professional interaction  with a professional partner.

She had no symptoms at the time. She went back to China and got sick. This individual, with whom she had an interaction, contracted the coronavirus at a time that she had no symptoms. He then transmitted it to two of his colleagues, so they now have four cases. One of the problems with when the virus is transmitted in an asymptomatic way and has its implications  it puts a terrible burden on the screening process. How do you screen somebody?

You know, remember back with Ebola? Ebola doesnt get transmitted unless youre actively very ill, and you know that. Its very, very clear. When you can transmit a virus at a time when youre asymptomatic, that just puts that extra burden on screening. And as a lot of people come in, its going to be very difficult.

Q Dr. Fauci, can I follow up on that? I  just what he was just saying. Given that Germany data that you just cited, are the 195 people being quarantined right now  are they getting tested every day for coronavirus?

SECRETARY AZAR: Lets ask Dr. Redfield to describe their care.

DR. REDFIELD: Clearly, theyre all isolated and will be for the 14 days. We have done virus isolation, but I want to be clear: The current tests that we developed at CDC is not  were not sure of the natural history of how the virus is isolated. Can you isolate it one day, then three days later you cant? And we are seeing  in the cases that are in the hospital, weve seen people who had detectable virus, then they didnt have detectable virus, and then three days later they had detectable virus.

Were using the virus cultures right now in these individuals more to help us learn about this virus. How much asymptomatic carriage, in fact, is there? So I want people to understand that distinction. Were not using it as a release criteria because we dont know the natural history of how this virus is secreted, and this is what were continuing to learn.

Q And are you comfortable that the thousands of people that pass through the U.S. screening so far are not car-  that they dont have coronavirus?

DR. REDFIELD: So this is why its such a layered approach. We are going to see additional cases in this country. Weve already seen, in the six cases weve defined: A number of them came in asymptomatic. So this is why we have that multi-layered approach and have really worked hard to engage the medical community in the United States.

Of the six cases that we diagnosed so far, one was picked up by hospi-  airport screening. Four were picked up by astute doctors. And the most recent one was picked up by CDC doing aggressive contact tracing.

Q Thank you, Mr. Secretary. Jeff Mason from Reuters. Can you  you referenced airlines earlier. Can you or your colleague from the Department of Transportation give us an update on the administrations thinking about a travel ban on airlines, in general, being prohibitive for flying to and from China?

ASSISTANT SECRETARY SZABAT: There is no travel ban  Joel Szabat, Assistant Secretary of Department of Transportation. I think many of you whove been following this are aware: All of the three U.S. carriers whove flying between the U.S. and China have announced that they are taking down all of their passenger flights, and they announced that before any action by the administration.

So we are working closely with our counterparts in the  our Chinese aviation counterparts. And well be working, going forward, with both the U.S. and the Chinese passenger airlines about their flight plans going forward.

Q Are you considering more drastic action beyond the voluntary measures that the airlines have taken so far?

ASSISTANT SECRETARY SZABAT: As Secretary Azar mentioned earlier, this is an evolving situation  but, at the moment, no.

SECRETARY AZAR: Would you mind giving some numbers on  I dont know if you or Ken can talk a bit about what were seeing on air traffic numbers, perhaps.

ASSISTANT SECRETARY SZABAT: So Ill start it off and then turn over to Acting Deputy Secretary Cuccinelli.

So, in terms of passengers traveling between United States and China, as you might expect, over the course of the last couple of weeks, the passengers loading in the U.S. to fly to China have dropped to almost none. Passengers continue to have a high, what we call, load factor  a high rate of passengers coming from China to United States. However  so the U.S. carriers, though, as theyre (inaudible) they represent just under 40 percent of the passenger capability.

So with that, we have been seeing already, in the course of the last week to 10 days, a significant decrease in the number of passengers that have been going between United States and China. And the Department of Homeland Security does an excellent job of tracking those numbers day to day.

ACTING DEPUTY SECRETARY CUCCINELLI: So, just to speak to the numbers: Since the Chinese have locked down Wuhan and the Hubei Province  which was eight days ago, if memory serves  travel from China to the United States, as of yesterday, had dropped by close to 20 percent

Travel from the United States to China had dropped by well more than 50 percent, and this is with the sort of market response that Joel referenced by the airlines and the voluntary actions taken by travelers.

I would note for you all that its not a lot of data, but over the last five days, the number of American citizens traveling from China back to the United States has been rising. So even while the total number is going down, it does look to us, initially, like Americans, at least some of them, are returning back home.

Q Dr. Fauci, how confident are you in the accuracy of these tests? If somebody is testing negative and then they later test positive, can you have confidence, if youre testing negative for something, that you dont have it?

DR. FAUCI: So, you mean  I think the question you ask is really one of the fundamental bases of why this decision was made. If we had an absolutely accurate test that was very sensitive and very specific, then we could just test people and say, Okay, were good to go.

I want to get back to that broad concept that I mentioned when I made my brief introduction about the unknowns. We dont know the accuracy of this test. We havent done enough  people who came in with negative, then all sudden they were positive. You could have virus in your nasal secretions or you couldnt and still be infected. I mean, it isnt like its a horrible test, but it is not a test thats absolute.

I spoke to a reporter the other day, talking about tests. So when youre talking about HIV, if a person has HIV and I draw their blood, I can tell you 100 percent whether they have HIV or not  100 percent. Thats not even near where we are with this.

Q You talk about a gradual approach, Mr. Secretary, in terms of what youre doing right now. What measures do you have, sort of, in the toolkit if this gets worse?

SECRETARY AZAR: Well, let me ask, perhaps, Dr. Kadlec to talk a bit about our approach. Obviously, at this point, as Ive said, the risk here in the United States is quite low for any individual. The risk is low. Our job is to work to keep that that way.

But we have public health tools that we use, we exercise constantly in the event of larger-scale infectious disease outbreaks. And thats what we would  that what we would rely on should we end up seeing more cases in the United States. But its exactly these measures that help make any additional cases more manageable to use the tools Dr. Kadlec will talk about.

DR. KADLEC: Well, thank you very much, Mr. Secretary. And my role in this is really precautionary at this stage. And everything thats been done at this point has been incremental, proportionate, and precautionary. And so my responsibilities are to work across the federal government, as well as within HHS, to ensure that were postured should this virus, kind of, continue to expand.

And so, domestically, were working on  working with our private sector healthcare preparedness. Were working specifically around supply chain resilience because much of our healthcare products come from overseas. And were also working actively with NIH and our DOD colleagues, as well as our DARPA colleagues and the private industry to develop better diagnostics, possible therapeutics, as well as vaccines, which Dr. Fauci can speak more about.

So were really taking a very  I wouldnt say cautious  but deliberate and methodical approach to ensure that, come what may, were prepared. Thank you.

SECRETARY AZAR: Kristen.

AIDE: Im going to call the last question so that we can ensure we get you guys out for departure. So last question.

SECRETARY AZAR: Kristen.

Q Any concerns about legal challenges, international travel, in general, to the region? Whats the message to people who need to travel to the region, and what benchmark will you have for when this gets lifted?

SECRETARY AZAR: So let me ask Dr. Redfield if he could talk a bit about  just giving your assessment as a health professional about international travel generally. And then the types of factors  maybe for Dr. Fauci  that well be looking at as we, again, temp-  hopefully, temporary measures, titrated, try to just keep a pause on the situation.

DR. REDFIELD: Thank you, Mr. Secretary. I think, as Dr. Fauci said, right now theres a lot of unknowns. Obviously, almost every other day, were learning something we didnt the day before about this. And well continue to do that.

Probably the most important thing, from our perspective, is whether or not theres expansion of what I call sustained community human-to-human transmission. Right now, that is limited, in large part, to Hubei area and the broader China.

Weve had some isolated human-to-human transmission in some of the cases that have gone internationally. I mentioned weve had 12 so far that have been defined in the whole world. So thats going to be important to see if theres broadening of sustained human-to-human transmission. I think thats going to really be the major  the major thing that were going to be looking.

And, as the Secretary said, these precautionary messages and actions that have been put out today, it really is intended to keep this virus from causing significant consequences to the American public.

SECRETARY AZAR: Thank you all very much. And again, I just want to stress: First, the most important thing that we can be doing is what we are doing, which is offering to help the Chinese government and assist them in helping them to control the spread of the novel coronavirus in China  working with them as closely as possible, as well as with the World Health Organization.

Second, the risk to Americans is low. You have a team here. You have an experienced, first-class  the worlds best public healthcare system, infrastructure, and professionals looking out for you, making judgments like this, scaling them up, as appropriate, to work to keep this from becoming an issue that would be of concern for you  to keep that risk low.

So thank you all very much.
Atlanta

Anne Cox Chambers, heir to the Cox family media empire who went door-to-door campaigning for Democratic politicians, served as ambassador to Belgium during the Carter administration and helped bankroll museums and other causes, died Friday at her home in Atlanta. She was 100.

Chambers was the daughter of James Middleton Cox, who was a three-term governor of Ohio, an unsuccessful Democratic candidate for president in 1920, and the founder of Cox Enterprises.

That privately held business grew to include newspapers, radio stations, cable television systems and one of the world's largest automobile-auction businesses, with annual sales of more than $21 billion in 2019 and about 55,000 employees.

For more than 30 years Chambers and her sister, Barbara Cox Anthony, had controlling ownership of that empire. Her sister died in 2007 at 84. Forbes magazine estimated Chambers' wealth at $17 billion in 2016, before she dissolved a family trust and gave away most of that fortune to her children.

In a rare interview with Fortune magazine in 1991, Chambers said: "The more anonymous you can be, the better. Why, then you can just do whatever you want."

She nonetheless left a trail. In 1970, she and her husband at the time, Robert W. Chambers, were among the largest supporters of Jimmy Carter's victorious run for governor of Georgia, giving $26,500. They contributed $39,400 to Carter's presidential campaign in 1976. President-elect Carter appointed her ambassador to Belgium, and she resigned her chairmanship of Cox Broadcasting Co. to accept.

In Europe she attended NATO military exercises in military fatigues and hunted rabbits with Arab diplomats.

Her involvement in politics continued after her term as ambassador ended in 1981 with the arrival of the Reagan administration. During the 1988 Democratic National Convention in Atlanta she opened up her home for fundraising. Her outspokenness caused a stir when she said that despite a strong race for the presidential nomination, the Rev. Jesse Jackson was not qualified to be on a national ticket.

Some of her politicking was of the shoe-leather, door-to-door variety. In Carter's 1976 campaign, she was part of the "peanut brigade" of volunteers that traveled to contested states. She did the same thing in later elections, including 2004, when she was 84, supporting Sen. John Kerry's bid to unseat President George W. Bush.

In a 2011 interview with Atlanta magazine, which noted that she had a cardboard cutout of President Barack Obama in her living room, she credited her father for her lifelong affiliation with the Democratic Party.

Anne Beau Cox was born Dec. 1, 1919, in Dayton, Ohio. Anne attended Miss Porter's School in Farmington, Conn., spent a year in Paris and graduated from Finch College in Manhattan. She liked to say that she first went to Atlanta to attend the premiere of "Gone With the Wind," on Dec. 15, 1939, and never left. She married Louis G. Johnson six months after the premiere. That marriage ended in divorce, as did a second marriage, in 1955, to Robert William Chambers.

She is survived by two daughters from her first marriage, Katharine Rayner and Margaretta Taylor; a son, James Cox Chambers, from her second marriage; and several grandchildren and great-grandchildren. One grandson, Alex Taylor, is the president and chief executive of Cox Enterprises.
The Lee University Board of Directors has chosen a new president to succeed Dr. Paul Conn, who announced late last year that he will step down on Aug. 1.

The next president will be Dr. Mark L. Walker, who has been a vice president at Lee since 2017. The announcement of Dr. Walkers selection was made by Dennis Livingston, chairman of the university Board of Directors, following an extensive search which included faculty, alumni, community leaders, and the Church of God Executive Committee.
(TNS)  On the same day a county schools computer system was the apparent target of a cyberattack, Administration Secretary Allan McVey on Thursday told members of the Senate Finance Committee approximately 22 percent of positions in the states Office of Technology are unfilled.Were on it. Were going to help them through it, McVey said of the school system, whose identity he did not disclose. He said it is too early to know if the cyberattack involved ransomware.With cybersecurity a growing issue, McVey said, staffing that office is increasingly important. Comparatively low pay and better opportunities in the private sector, he said, have contributed to the vacancies.They do get trained, and then there are spaces out there in the private sector that unfortunately  or, fortunately for the economy  pay more than we can, McVey said during the departments budget presentation.About 48 of 216 full-time positions in the agency are open in a competitive market for Information Technology jobs, Josh Spence, state chief technology officer, said.He said there is less turnover among who stay with the state long enough to be vested in the state pension plan, but added it is hard to keep recent college graduates from looking at private sector opportunities.Its hard to retain employees coming out of college, he said.
Experts from the energy industry lauded the governments' decision on expanding the PM-KUSUM scheme and a proposal to allocate about Rs 22,000 crore to power and renewable energy sector in 2020-21, saying the step will help generate employment opportunities and give a boost to the agriculture sector.

While presenting the budget for 2020-21, Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman on Saturday announced expansion of Pradhan Mantri Kisan Urja Suraksha Utthan Mahabhiyan (PM KUSUM) Scheme under which 20 lakh farmers would be provided funds to set up standalone solar pumps.

While presenting the budget for 2020-21, the minister said that farmers would be provided funds to set up grid-connected 15 lakh solar pumps.

In her budget speech, she also proposed an outlay of Rs 22,000 crore for power and renewable energy sector for 2020-21.

Imaan Javan, the director of operations at Suntuity Renewable Energy India, "We welcome the decision which reflects the union government's commitment and concern for renewable energy generation. One of the heartening features of the Union budget is its provision for the use of renewable energy sector of Rs 22,000 crore."



Sitharaman deserves praise for this innovative measure which will widen the scope of the PM-KUSUM scheme and enable farmers to set up grid-connected solar power generation capacity on barren land and renewable energy sector as a way to address pollution and climate change, poverty and give the farmers their livelihood."



The industry hope the measures will give boost to the agriculture sector, and help generate employment as well in rural India, he said.

Nikunj Ghodawat, Chief Financial Officer, CleanMax opines for the renewable energy sector, the extension of the 15 per cent and 22 per cent tax rate to the new and existing power generation companies, which was earlier only earmarked for the manufacturing sector, is a welcome move.

The new personal income tax structure should help to increase liquidity at the hands of the individuals, which will have a trickle-down effect to boost demand and consumption across multiple sectors, he said.

Anas Rahman, Programme Associate, Council on Energy, and Water (CEEW), said the announcement of the expansion of the PM-KUSUM scheme is a very positive move as it can significantly benefit the Indian farmer.

"However, the government must address certain concerns before scaling up the scheme. The current demand-based allocation of off-grid pumps among the states does not incentivise states to better target and address the inequity in irrigation access for small and marginal land farmers," Rahman said.

Anil Chaudhry, Zone President and Managing Director, Schneider Electric India, said the Budget has affirmed its commitment to clean energy with a proposal to allocate Rs 22,000 crore for the renewable sector.

The plan to provide standalone solar powered pumps to 20 lakh farmers, allows farmers to generate solar power and set up large solar power capacity along the rail tracks will encourage the use of clean and renewable energy.

"Further, the decision to extend concessional corporate tax rate of 15 per cent to new power generating companies engaged will give a major boost to the renewable sector," Chaudhry said.

Additionally, the focus on ensuring smart metering replacing conventional energy meters by prepaid smart meters in the states and UTs over the next 3 years will prove to be a positive step in addressing the financial stress of DISCOMs, he added.

Anish De, Partner and leader for Energy and Natural Resources practice at KPMG India, said, "Big push for solar power for farming and for fallow lands by extending the Kusum scheme. This could potentially result in 10-15 GW of new capacity creation if it materializes. This will be a big push for framer's income, but will in turn require lesser demand for grid scale power, targets for which then should be adjusted downwards."



Somesh Kumar, National Leader, Power and Utilities, EY India, said, "The budget for power sector is quite progressive. The overall outlay of 22,000 crores as well mass measures like replacement of meters with prepaid meters and freedom to choose suppliers, could bring in much needed reforms in the distribution sector reducing losses and improving customer satisfaction. Further, closure of polluting plants can go a long away in reducing carbon footprint. The success will lie in the implementation of these measures which should be taken up the in the right earnest by the States.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
Major steps taken by the UAE government and an increased number of pro-growth initiatives over the past year will boost sentiment and drive demand in the countrys real estate market, according to leading industry expert JLL.

While most sectors across the real estate market remained challenged in the UAE during 2019, pro-growth government initiatives, rising investment ahead of Expo 2020 Dubai and expansionary fiscal stances by the federal and local governments will further improve the broad economic backdrop this year, stated JLL in its 2019 Year in Review report.

Last year saw the introduction of several government initiatives to boost the hospitality sector, such as the exemption of the visa fee for transit passengers and a focus on increasing the popularity of Dubai in the cruise industry, among others.

While, overall, the hotel sector witnessed subdued performance in 2019, the demand is expected to recover considerably with various government initiatives set to take effect this year, and the expected strong visitor growth associated with Expo 2020 Dubai, said the JLL report.

Other popular events such as the annual Formula 1 Etihad Airways Abu Dhabi Grand Prix in Abu Dhabi will also continue to attract international visitation to the UAE, it added.

Large-scale projects, new visa rules and Expo 2020 Dubai will boost tourist arrivals in the coming months, remarked Dana Salbak, the Head of Research Mena at JLL.

"Around 25 million visitors are expected in Dubai from 192 countries during Expo 2020 Dubai alone. These factors have ensured the hotel market, specifically, will maintain healthy performance levels, continuing the UAEs status as a major global tourist and business destination," said Salbak.

"That said, in the year ahead, market performance will also heavily depend on how quickly some of the newly announced initiatives take effect," she added.

According to her, UAE GDP grew at around 1.9% in 2019, higher than 1.7% in 2018 and is expected to grow 2.2% in 2020.

Dubai also recently announced a budget of Dh66.4 billion for 2020, the largest ever annual budget approved, she stated.

Additionally, a recent initiative declared 2020: Towards the next 50, will this year witness the biggest national strategy to prepare for the coming 50 years on the federal and local level as the country approaches its Golden Jubilee in 2021.

Both Dubai and Abu Dhabi, which comprise the lions share of the UAE GDP, are embarking on major stimulus plans to facilitate doing business, whilst continuing to attract foreign direct investment, retaining human capital and improving the overall business environment, added Salbak.

On the office market, JLL report said it remained in favour of tenants for all of 2019 and the trend is expected to continue in the year ahead as well.

The steps taken by the government to attract new tenants, such as, making business conditions favourable by reducing costs and restrictions on ownerships, are expected to improve demand in the long run, it added.-TradeArabia News Service
Ask any well-dressed man and bona fide fashion icon worth their salt, what is that one piece of menswear that all men should have in their closet, and the answer will be a suit of some sort. Now, whether you go for a bandhgala suit or a European tuxedo with a shawl collar, all of them will suggest that you go for a well-tailored, bespoke suit.

 Instagram/sshomme

Sandeep & Sarah Gonsalves, the designer duo behind one of India's most prominent bespoke menswear designers, Sarah & Sandeep, are perhaps perfectly suited (no pun intended) to explain what makes bespoke suits so appealing.

 Sarah & Sandeep

Having dressed the finest actors of our generation, along with several other stalwarts from various other fields in some of the most sublime suits we have seen in the last decade or so, Sandeep Gonsalves has truly made a mark for the label. Just take a look at their clientele and you'll get an idea why, for India's elite, contemporary and luxury bespoke suiting has become synonymous with Sarah & Sandeep.

 Instagram/sandeepmxg

From stalwart actors like Shahid Kapoor, Rajkummar Rao and Ayushmann Khurrana, to business tycoons like Mazahir Mandasaurwala & Akash Ambani, Sarah & Sandeep have truly dressed the who's who of India.

We sat down for a brief chat with Sandeep Gonsalves, talking about the Indian fashion scene, what does the richest family in India look for exactly when getting their suits made, and how bespoke clothes, maketh the man. Edited Excerpts:

 Sarah & Sandeep

As a member of the Indian Fashion industry, how would you say has the industry grown over the years?

It is my belief that the Indian fashion industry is currently at its peak, creatively speaking. The more informed designers are, the more they can evolve their imagination and that is exactly what Indian designers are working towards. There is also a visible amalgamation of traditionalist culture and contemporary new-age design that incorporates some design techniques that have never been seen before and I appreciate this direction that Indian fashion is moving toward.

 Instagram/sshomme

You created bespoke suits for some of the ceremonies for Akash Ambani's wedding. Tell us something about that, what were their requirements, how was the fitting process?

The experience was really something special and we are really impressed with the way the styles turned out. For the winter wonderland themed occasion in St. Moritz, Switzerland, we created a bespoke sea-green checked suit with a custom cashmere turtleneck. We also crafted a kurta with a specially designed embroidery pattern with Akash and Shloka's initials. That is probably the first time we had to innovate with personalized embroidery but we wanted it to be wearable art and it came together beautifully.

As artists who are also invested in the commercial side of things, did the fact that you were catering to the Ambanis, ever put pressure on you?

I think that it can get overwhelming only if the client's vision is not matching with the vision of the designer but Akash is always on the same page so it is always a great experience when designing for him.

We've often seen Ayushmann Khurrana in your creations. What is it that catches his eye? Is there anything specific that he asks for?

It has been a pleasure having Ayushmann Khurrana wear our creations over the years. It is always a great experience working with his stylist extraordinaire, Isha Bhansali. The synergy is always perfect and her vision for our looks on Ayushmann is always on point. Most of the creations that are selected for him are unique well-tailored western styles that have unique colour variations and patterns.

 Instagram/sshomme

What direction do you see the Indian fashion industry taking?

I expect the Indian fashion industry to move toward a more future-forward approach in the coming years. Designers are moving towards a more contemporary approach towards fashion design and they are looking to experiment with minimalistic, clean designs that are not only aesthetically pleasing but also extremely functional.

What is that one current trend that we see today on the ramp, that has the potential of making it big among common, regular people in the future?

Experimental cuts on hems are by far the best example of a mass trend that has originated from the ramp.

 Instagram/sshomme

What creative and commercial directions do you envision?

Creatively, I like to keep working on improving my designs of both western and Indian styles. I would like to work towards imagining the most contemporary and clean ensembles that are not only functional but truly exhilarating to look at. I think Sarah & I have evolved drastically in the past few years and we will always attempt to create the most unique menswear styles possible.

From a commercial perspective, we plan to expand our retail presence and turn the store into a one-stop destination for formal menswear solutions. Our goal has always been to provide the best possible quality of garments, shoes and accessories and we are devising new ways to make the in-store experience for our clients simply incredible. Just to give you an example, we have just recently invested in fragrancing the entire flagship store.

 Instagram/sshomme

Your creations tend to be very fluid and an amalgamation of classic silhouettes with contemporary and modern aesthetics. Where do you draw your inspiration from?

I think we draw most of our inspiration from what we perceive as contemporary art and we add our touch of what may be a future-forward version of the same. Sometimes it may lead to us experimenting with the silhouettes whilst using pure Australian merino wool, and sometimes we may come up with a sherwani that displays the strategic use of beadwork.

What is that one trend in men's fashion that you don't like, or don't agree with?

I am not particularly a fan of over-accessorizing an ensemble just for the sake of it. I feel that menswear styles should be simple, clean and minimal. One should pick maybe one or two accessories that compliment the look fashionably instead of adding as many accessories as possible.

 Instagram/sshomme

How do you think the industry as a whole is dealing with this issue of sustainable and eco-friendly fashion?

I feel that every successful fashion designer in India has considered going toward a sustainable direction by now. And that in itself is a great example of the power an informed consumer can have in shaping the future of designer retail. We at Sarah & Sandeep have also been working towards reducing our carbon footprint. For instance, our collaboration with Carlo Barbera comprised of business suits that were made using biodegradable Bemberg lining and instead of fusing, we turned towards only full or half-canvassed suits to reduce the use of polyester to a bare minimum.

 Instagram/sshomme

What are your views on the debate around Maximalism vis-a-vis Minimalism?

I think Sarah & I have been promoting the concept of minimalism in fashion design since our brand's inception back in 2012. We do not argue against maximalism but we believe that minimal design is future-forward and as clients evolve, they care more about the quality of the fabric and less about the quantity of hand-work on it.

 Filmfare

In spite of its clear advantages and finesse, people tend to go for readymade suits over bespoke made and tailored suits. How do we change this? How can we make tailored suits more accessible for the masses?

Traditional tailoring is not the way forward if you are looking to make tailored suits more accessible to the masses. In order to do so, we will have to rely on technology and some AI applications that have recently come out that considerably cut down the timeline for manufacturing a tailored suit. If the demand for instantly created tailored suits rises to a certain point, I can see the value in that business model.

 Instagram/sshomme

Tell us something about your creative process.

My creative process is all about gathering information and using my imagination to depict what I can relate to. Sarah & I also tend to keep in mind trends and customer feedback, to ensure that the functionality of every garment is well thought of.

Where do you think men's fashion in India is heading?

Men's fashion in India is evolving spectacularly and with great promise. The category has seen a lot of growth in the past few years and we can see a bright future ahead. I see the growth shifting from workplace clothing to ceremonial clothing which would be great for Sarah & Sandeep because we are a designer label at the end of the day and most of our offerings are for special occasions. Our hope is that luxury menswear in India is driven by innovation and we expect to be at the forefront of that effort.

 Instagram/sshomme

Three words you'd use to describe your signature style.

Clean, Contemporary, Geometric

What is your favourite historical era in terms of menswear, and why?

The 1960s was a great era of menswear to look back at because that is when experimental silhouettes came into play.

Do you think traditional Indian menswear is evolving?

Yes, of course. It will continue to evolve as men's tastes become more individualistic and personalized.

 Instagram/sshomme

One celebrity who can teach everyone else a lesson or two on how to pull off the Indian aesthetic elegantly, when it comes to menswear.

Shahid Kapoor pulls off the Indian aesthetic beautifully.

One thing men should never do while dressing up in traditional Indian wear.

Overembellishment with accessories is not something I recommend to Sarah & Sandeep grooms.

 Instagram/sshomme

One traditional Indian menswear item you believe every Indian man should have in his wardrobe, and why.

I think a classic bandhgala in a unique colour is an absolute necessity. It's the most versatile Indian style I can think of that can also be used for occasions that call for western wear.

Men's fashion in India slipped through the cracks of the mainstream fashion scene and has stayed under the radar for far too long. Take a look at any fashion event - fashion weeks, fashion shows et all, and you'll see how in most of them, menswear seems to be an afterthought. Furthermore, shows focusing exclusively on menswear are a rarity.

As a series, 'Ace Indian Designers' is an earnest attempt to celebrate the changing phase of men's fashion in India, and those pioneering geniuses who have come to define our sartorial sensibilities
If [a] judge or president believes that it is to his or her advantage that there shall be a trial with no witnesses, they will cite the case of Donald Trump, said Rep. Adam B. Schiff (D-Calif.), one of the House impeachment managers. They will make the argument that you can adjudicate the guilt or innocence of the party without hearing from a single witness, without reviewing a single document. . . . I would submit that will be a very dangerous and long-lasting precedent that we will all have to live with.
WHAT'S going viral aside from the new coronavirus from China? A virus that is infecting computers, not humans, taking advantage of the heightened interest in this public health emergency.

Technology websites from different countries reported a rise in computer infection caused by a virus that gets introduced into the system through an information packet on how to protect yourself from the 2019 novel coronavirus acute respiratory disease or 2019-nCoV ARD.

Interest in this new illness grew as more countries reported cases of the disease that experts said originated from Wuhan, China. The World Health Organization (WHO) declared a global emergency last Thursday, Jan. 30, 2020, as it said the new virus in China has spread to more than a dozen countries and the number of cases spiked more than tenfold in a week.

The main reason for this declaration is not what is happening in China but what is happening in other countries, WHO chief Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus reportedly said.

In the Philippines, people started sharing social media posts on the proper ways to use a mask, tips on how to prevent getting infected and updates on the number of infection cases.

After the Department of Health (DOH) confirmed last week that a 38-year-old woman from Wuhan became the Philippiness first positive case of the 2019-nCoV ARD, lines of people wanting to buy face masks grew longer. Posts on social media increased as people were hungry for information and updates on what to do next.

In the frenzy, cybercriminals started releasing malicious computer files that appeared to carry tips on how to protect yourself from the new coronavirus. These hackers are taking advantage of peoples interest in the topic and their curiosity to find out the number of deaths and infection cases.

Reporters said Kaspersky, a cybersecurity company, detected malicious files that came in the form of pages or videos in pdf, mp4 or docx format.

The video showed how not to get infected and how to determine if you have the virus. Once the file is clicked, a program is introduced that is capable of destroying or copying data in the computers or computer networks.

Story continues

This is similar to the computer virus that came in Happy New Year! video greetings at the end of December last year. The files were shared through Facebook posts and Messenger chats. Recipients clicked on the video greetings only to find their computers hacked by cybercriminals and their passwords and other personal details stolen.

To prevent getting infected, experts suggest that you go to official sources, such as websites of the WHO at https://www.who.int/ and the DOH at https://www.doh.gov.ph/ and your favorite news website to get information. These sites offer up-to-date reports on the spread of the virus and what to do to prevent infection.

Do not click on suspicious links even if you know the person who sent it.

Protect yourself from the 2019-nCoV ARD and this computer virus.
HOUSTON - An electrical spark likely ignited a gas leak that led to a massive explosion in Houston last week, killing two workers, injuring 20 others and damaging hundreds of buildings, law enforcement officials said Friday.

Highly flammable propylene gas started leaking in the piping connected to a tank inside a warehouse at Watson Grinding and Manufacturing within about 24 hours of the predawn blast, said Fred Milanowski, the local special agent in charge for the U.S. Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives.

Sensors could have detected a leak, Milanowski said, but its unclear whether sensors were in place, operating correctly or able to notify the company of a problem.

There is no evidence to indicate arson, vandalism or other criminal wrongdoing behind the Jan. 24 explosion, Milanowski said.

Houston Fire Chief Samuel Pena said the ATFs finding is preliminary, and that determining a final cause could take up to two months.

Company employees Frank Flores and Gerardo Castorena were killed. Two other warehouse workers were injured, along with 18 people from neighbouring homes and businesses.

City officials say 450 structures  mostly homes  were damaged in the explosion at the metal fabricating and manufacturing company. Of those homes, 35 were seriously damaged.

City representatives say they are working with non-profit groups to see what assistance can be offered to residents whose homes were damaged but who might not have the financial resources to repair and rebuild.

John Watson, the CEO of Watson Grinding and Manufacturing, told KTRK-TV on Tuesday: I will repair all the damaged homes ... My insurance company will.

However, later Tuesday, Watson issued a statement taking back his earlier comments, saying, Who is at fault and who will pay for damages cannot be determined at this early stage.

Mayor Sylvester Turner said this week that the citys legal department has reached out to Watson to see what it will do to help those whose homes are damaged. The city was also looking at whether any federal assistance might be available.

Volunteers from several community groups have also helped residents with cleanup and repairs.

At least 13 lawsuits have been filed against the company since the explosion, including a wrongful death suit by Flores family. Harris County and the state of Texas filed one of the suits, alleging Watson violated the Texas Clean Air Act.

Officials say propylene  a colorless gas used to produce chemicals in plastics, synthetic rubber and gasoline  burned after the blast. The gas was in a 2,000-gallon tank at the facility. People exposed to propylene can become dizzy and light-headed, and the gas can also cause liver damage.

The county and state also allege the company might have failed to properly maintain equipment and properly store chemicals at its facility.

Houston and Southeast Texas are home to the highest concentration of oil refineries in the U.S. The region has experienced a series of explosions in recent years. Last July, a blast at an ExxonMobil refinery in Baytown, east of Houston, left more than a dozen people with minor injuries and put nearby residents under a shelter-in-place advisory for three hours.

In December, two blasts in the coastal city of Port Neches shattered windows and ripped doors from nearby homes.

___

This story was first published on Jan. 31. It was updated on Feb. 1 to correct the spelling of the last name of the special agent in charge of the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Exlosives Houston field division. His name is Fred Milanowski, not Fred Malinowski.
Kolkata/Chennai, Feb 1 : Life Insurance Corporation of India employees will hold a nationwide one-hour strike on February 4 in protest against Union Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman's budget proposal to sell a part of the Central government's holding in the state run financial institution.

"We will hold a one-hour nationwide strike on Tuesday from 12.15 to 1.15 p.m. We will stage a demonstration in all our offices also then," Life Insurance Employees Association's Kolkata division Vice President Pradip Mukherjee told IANS.

"We will then hit the streets to protest and resist the step. We will also go to all the MPs," he added.

Describing the proposal of partial disinvestment of LIC as "against national interest", Mukherjee said the company was now India's biggest financial corporation in terms of assets, even surpassing the State Bank of India.

As per figures released in December, LIC cornered about 80 per cent of the market share in the insurance business despite the presence of 24 private companies. The year on year growth is 19 per cent, despite the business slowdown in the country and the global economic downslide, said Mukherjee.

"We have given a dividend of Rs 2611 crore to the government for the financial year 2018-19. We have an income of over Rs 3 lakh crore," he said.

"Since its formation in 1956, LICI has made signal contribution in nation building, and spends lakhs and crores of rupees in implementation of schemes in every five year plan, besides an unparalleled role in social sector reforms.

"The efforts which the centre was making to open its doors to serve the interest of Indian and foreign private capital, has been formally announced by Sitharaman today. We feel it is a big danger to the nation's economic sovereignty," he said, appealing to all patiriotic and right thinking people to support and express solidarity with the struggle of the LICI employees.

Also opposing the government's decision to list LIC through an initial public offering (IPO), the All India Insurance Employees' Association (AIIEA) had said will first go on one hour walk-out strike on February 3 or 4, a top union leader said on Saturday.

"We are opposed to the move. We will first go on one hour walk-out strike on February 3 or 4. After that we will plan our further course of action," AIIEA General Secretary Shrikant Mishra told IANS in Chennai.

He said that the process of listing LIC may not be easy as there are several procedures that have to be followed including the approval of the Parliament.

Mishra said the government was not able to attract any buyer for Air India and it has to show some blue chip disinvestment and hence, decided on LIC.

Employees of public sector general insurance companies will also show their support by holding demonstration outside their offices on that day.

"If listed and LIC turns into truly board managed than, the biggest cash cow may not be available for the government in its disinvestment process as it the case of listing of General Insurance Corporation of India, IDBI Bank and New India Assurance," an industry official told IANS preferring anonymity.

"The pensioners of LIC and the four public sector general insurers will also join the protest," J.Gurumurthy, vice President, All India Insurance Pensioners' Association told IANS.
ANKENY, IowaNeither Joe Biden nor Bernie Sanders have a lot to say about Pete Buttigieg in the closing stretch of the Iowa caucuses, but Pete Buttigieg has plenty to say about them.

Ive seen Vice President Biden making the case that we cannot afford to take a risk on a new person now, Buttigieg said at a sizable rally in Ankeny, a Des Moines suburb, on Thursday night. I would argue that at a time like this, what you cant afford to take a risk of is falling back on the familiar, because history has shown us we have to look to the future in order to win.

Advertisement

And Bernie? No thanks, pal. Senator Sanders is speaking to goals for America that I think we all share, [but] is nevertheless offering an approach that tells folks who are not sure about going all the way to one side that they dont fit, Buttigieg said.

Advertisement

Advertisement

Advertisement

By contrasting himself against the two leading candidatesone representing the centrist pole, the other the leftButtigieg is positioning himself as the middle-ground candidate. While Sanders and Biden argue over their Iraq War votes or their records on Social Security, Buttigieg dismisses those disputes as bickering over questions from decades past that voters are tired of hearing about. His frequent references to setting aside old arguments and looking toward the future usefully remind likely caucus-goers that he, unlike the frontrunners, will not become an octogenarian early in his first term.

Advertisement

Advertisement

His sales pitch about being neither Biden nor Sanders has found a customer base. The question is whether that base is big enough to sustain a candidacy. Speaking to Buttigieg supporters in Iowa about previous candidates theyve supported this cycle is like walking through a graveyard of candidates who failed to thrive in the consensus position between Biden and Sanders. Yvonne Welshhons, of Ankeny, told me that she was originally supportive of Beto ORourke, but he turned out to be a flash in the pan. Cindy Blay, from Ankeny, also had looked at Kamala* Harris before committing to Buttigieg in September, as had Barbara Nelson, who also considered Cory Booker and Elizabeth Warren but discounted the latter given her support for Medicare for All. (Thats a hard one to swallow, Nelson said.)

Advertisement

Advertisement

Its hard to find and hold a stable preference in the middle ground. Michael Van Essen, from Mason City, has always considered Buttigieg his first choiceas a gay man, he said, he will feel honored to caucus resolutely for Buttigieg on Monday nightbut his second choices have rotated between Harris, Booker, and Warren.

Harris, Booker, and ORourke all tried to occupy the middle, but couldnt last long in the exposed turf between the trenches. Warren briefly seemed to have found her footing there early in the fall, before her rivals to the right used her Medicare for All position to shove her into the left camp. Warren is still around, even if her numbers are down, because there are plenty of left voters who want what the left is selling, not because she was able to keep moderate voters engaged. Similarly, moderates Biden and Klobuchar are there to serve the moderate voters who appreciate pragmatic accomplishments and the ability to win over lapsed Republicans.

Advertisement

Advertisement

Advertisement

Advertisement

How is Buttigieg still standing there in the perilous center of things? He isnt, really.

Many of the Buttigieg supporters I spoke to had considered either Biden or Klobuchar, who remained at the forefront of their second-choice preferences. None of them were considering Sanders.

Advertisement

Advertisement

Francie and Howard Sonksen, of Mason City, who had leaned toward Biden until observing that the former vice-president was past his prime when they finally tuned into a debate, said theyd considered Sanders too extreme from the start. Van Essen said that he would vote for Sanders if he were the nominee, but would rather not have to. Well, obviously I would rather not have to, I dont want to at all. These were voters who wanted one of the moderates to earn the nomination. And the member of the moderate lane they had landed on was Pete Buttigieg.

Advertisement

Buttigieg may be pitting himself against Sanders and Biden, but hes doing it on different terms. With Sanders, his objection is that his platform goes all the way to one side; with Biden, his objection is that hes too familiar a face. Buttigieg presents himself as an ideological alternative to Sanders, but his point of contrast with Biden is simply that the Democrats need a newer model, with less Washington baggage.

Buttigieg may have first gained attention with assertive positions on eliminating the Electoral College and expanding the Supreme Court, but by summers end he had unsubtly transformed himself into something of a Biden backup. It was Buttigieg who did the shoving when Elizabeth Warren was shoved out of the consensus position, joining Amy Klobuchar to press her on whether her Medicare for All plan would require tax increases during an October debate that, in retrospect, was the most (only?) significant debate of the cycle.

Advertisement

Advertisement

Advertisement

While Buttigieg claims that hes reaching out to both the left and the right, his right arm is getting much more tired. In Mason City, and at other events hes been doing around the state, he spoke about how pleased he was to see future former Republicans at his events who are just ready to put this flavor of chaos behind us. He is directly trying to win Iowa by expanding the caucus electorate to the right. Ankeny, where Biden held an event days earlier, is the ideal place to do so. In his 2016 run, Republican Sen. Marco Rubio ran a suburban-focused campaign that was internally dubbed the Ankeny Strategy. Other candidates, as the Washington Post reported at the time, joked that it felt like Rubio was running to be mayor of the Des Moines suburb.

Advertisement

Its been surprising speaking to voters in Iowa (a small sample of them, sure) and hearing how well the lanes theory of primary electorates is holding up. Usually such high-pundit methodologies for analyzing the thoughts of real human beings expire the first time the thoughts of a real human being are probed. But I have yet to meet the usual Yeah, Im stuck between Bernie and John Delaney types. The left-wing voters are choosing between the left-wing candidates, and the moderates are choosing between the moderates. Maybe Pete Buttigieg is the special Obama-esque figure hes pitching himself as, who can heal divisions both within the party and the country. But theres no question to which division he belongs.
Boris Johnson will use his first speech since delivering Brexit to tell Brussels negotiators he is not afraid to accept border checks and that no concessions will be made.

The Prime Minister is due to lay out his plans on Monday for the upcoming negotiations with the European Union following the UKs formal withdrawal from the bloc at 11pm on Friday.

Mr Johnson is expected to tell his audience  due to gather at a London venue with historic trade ties, according to insiders  that no achievement lies beyond our reach.

It is understood Mr Johnson will put his cards on the table in asking for a Canada-style free trade deal with Brussels  and he is expected to make clear he will accept no alignment, no jurisdiction of the European courts, and no concessions to any Brussels demands.

The EU has been calling for a level-playing field to be agreed, pressing for Britain to sign-up to adhering to Brussels-set environmental and social standards, as well as rules on state subsidies, to prevent the UK undercutting the single market once the transition period ends in 2021.

A Government source told PA news agency said: There are only two likely outcomes in negotiation  a free trade deal like Canada or a looser arrangement like Australia  and we are happy to pursue both.

Critics have hit out at the proposals, accusing the PM of adopting a scorched earth approach to the talks, in a move that flies in the face of his pledges to unite the country after Britains January 31 departure from the EU.

Mr Johnson will reveal his post-Brexit vision next week in front of an audience of national and international businesses, along with ambassadors to the UK from countries across the globe.

The EU is expected to publish its own negotiating mandate on the same day, in preparation for the start of the formal discussions in March, which will take place in both London and Brussels.

Story continues

November marks the deadline for finalising a deal, with agreements on financial services and fishing due to be announced beforehand in June.

The UK formally left the European Union at 11pm on January 31 (Aaron Chown/PA)

The tough approach to the talks from the Conservative Party leader means Britain could face stunted economic growth and customs checks.

The so-called Canada model  previously offered to the UK by Brussels chief negotiator Michel Barnier as an off-the-shelf solution for a trade deal  allows for almost complete tariff-free trade in goods, but entails some border checks and does not include the UKs dominant services sector.

Analysis undertaken by the Treasury in 2018 predicted that Britains economy would be 4.9% worse off under such a deal within 15 years, when compared with expected growth if it had remained in the EU.

Government sources suggested Mr Johnson will state firmly that the NHS is not on the table in any trade talks  and that workers rights, food hygiene standards and environmental protections will not be relaxed.

The PM is set to announce that he has ordered his crack team of negotiators to pursue free trade agreements with the likes of the United States, Japan, Australia and New Zealand at the same time as going back and forth with Brussels.

Michel Barnier will lead trade talks for the EU, having fronted the withdrawal negotiations (Liam McBurney/PA)

The former foreign secretary is expected to go so far as to name areas in the UK that would benefit from increased trans-Atlantic relations, with Liverpool and Glasgow said to be on the list.

Sir Ed Davey, acting leader of the Liberal Democrats, said Mr Johnson was backtracking on his promise of uniting the nation following years of division over Brexit.

Boris Johnson talks about bringing the country together and building a prosperous future, said the former Cabinet minister.

Neither of those things can be done by deliberately hollowing out our existing trade relationships with our most important economic partners. This is nothing short of a scorched earth policy.

Johnson is only interested in bringing the Brexit vote together, not the country. He is more than happy to leave the 48% behind.

As well as the PMs keynote speech, a ministerial statement will also be issued setting out the Governments position on its impending negotiations with the EU.
Two day after a man fired a pistol at a group of anti-CAA protesters near the Jamia university, another man on Saturday fired two rounds in the air at Shaheen Bagh, the epicentre of the protest against the country's new citizenship law, and was later taken into custody.

No one was injured in the incident that came even as Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath during a poll rally in Delhi's northwest Rohini area alleged that those who support terrorists in Kashmir are staging protest at Shaheen Bagh.

The man, who identified himself as Kapil Gujjar, chanted Jai Shree Ram and said, "hamare desh me aur kisi ki nahi chalegi, sirf Hindu ki chalegi (only Hindus shall have a say in our country, no one else)," as he was taken into custody by the Delhi Police.

"The accused fired in air near police barricades. He was overpowered by police personnel and taken into custody. Further investigation is on," Chinmoy Biswal, Deputy Commissioner of Police (southeast) said.

The police said they are verifying his identity.

According to eyewitnesses, the man shouted "Hindu Rashtra Zindabad" and fired two rounds.

The incident, which comes days after a local contractor armed with a gun had come to the site and asked the people to end the protest against the Citizenship (Amendment) Act, has triggered panic in the area.

A woman protestor, who didn't wish to be named, said the incident has created panic among them as well as children.

"Many women and children were inside the tent when the incident occurred. We rushed to the spot after hearing a gunshot. Everyone is scared. But we won't leave the spot, she said.

Notwithstanding the unnerving incident, many people thronged the protest site to express solidarity with the protestors. Many of them sung the national anthem while others offered namaz there.

The protestors also raised slogans against the Delhi Police.

Abu Ala Suhani, a publisher and resident of Shaheen Bagh said,"the man appeared to be in his 20s and fired two rounds. While he was being taken into custody, we heard a policeman asking him his name. The man said his name was Kapil Gujjar and he belongs to Dallupura village in Uttar Pradesh."



On Thursday, a youth had fired on anti-CAA protesters at Jamia Millia Islamia injuring a student in the presence of police personnel, triggering massive protest by the Jamia students against the police inaction.

Hundreds of people, including women and children, have been protesting since December 15 at Shaheen Bagh, which has attracted attention across the country among those opposing the CAA, but at the same time the agitation has been severely criticised by others, including the BJP Union ministers and leaders.

Hitting out at the AAP dispensation, Adityanath said that the Arvind Kejriwal government "supplies biryani" to protesters at Shaheen Bagh.

Addressing another poll rally at Karawal Nagar Chowk in east Delhi, the BJP leader lashed out at the anti-CAA protesters, saying "their ancestors divided India, so they have a grouse against this emerging 'Ek Bharat Shrestha Bharat'."



"These protests happening at various places in Delhi are not about the CAA, but it is happening because those people are questioning as to how can India emerge as a major power in the world, and to stop that rising India," he claimed.

BJP leaders have been urging people to vote for the party in Delhi assembly polls on February eight to show their disapproval for the ongoing anti-CAA protest at Shaheen Bagh.

Reacting to the incident, AAP leader Sanjay Singh said they had already warned the Election Commission that a conspiracy is being hatched by the BJP to postpone the polls.

"There is no law and order in the country. The gun-toting men are not making Delhi their bastion (adda).We have been seeking time from the Election Commission since yesterday so that we can make them aware of these developments but they have not given us any time," he said.

However, senior BJP leader B L Santhosh insinuated involvement of party's rivals in the recent shooting incidents, saying the "great drama party of Delhi is becoming too costly for the country".

"One more drama today. This time the gun shot is near Shaheen Bagh. The acts are looking too dramatic to be real. Person brandishes gun...shoots couple of bullets...shouts some words against a community .The great drama party of Delhi is becoming too costly for the country," he tweeted.

In a veiled attack on the BJP over the incident, the Congress said the shooter has changed but the ideology pulling the trigger in 1948 or 2020 has remained the same.

A man fired two rounds in air in the Shaheen Bagh area in Jamia Nagar, where an anti-CAA protest is on, following which he was taken into custody by police, eyewitnesses said.

Congress spokesperson Jaiveer Shergill tweeted,"Shooter changes but ideology pulling the trigger either in 1948 (Nathuram Godse) or 2020 remains the same 'Goli Maro' -- Hands which should be pulling India's growth are now firing guns."



"Instead of 'Make in India' focus is on 'spreading hate in India'," he alleged.

On Monday, Minister of State for Finance Anurag Thakur while addressing a election rally, had raised the slogan of desh ke gaddaron ko' (traitors in the country) as the crowd responded with goli maaron sa***n ko'.

The next day, BJP MP Parvesh Sahib Singh Verma said protesters at Shaheen Bagh could "enter homes and rape our sisters and daughters.

The Election commission asked the BJP to remove both Thakur and Verma from the list of star campaigners.

It also barred Thakur from campaigning for three days and Verma for four days for their controversial remarks.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
Source: Xinhua| 2020-02-01 13:18:13|Editor: huaxia

Video Player Close

BEIJING, Feb. 1 (Xinhua) -- China's residents in poverty-stricken rural areas saw their per capita disposable income at 11,567 yuan (about 1,668 U.S. dollars) in 2019, official data showed.

The reading was up 11.5 percent from the previous year, according to the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS).

The growth, in real terms after deducting price factors, stood at 8 percent, 1.8 percentage points faster than that of rural areas nationwide.

In terms of income sources, the per capita wage income of rural residents in poor areas was 4,082 yuan, an increase of 12.5 percent over the previous year, contributing 38 percent to their income growth.

Per capita income from net operation rose 7.1 percent from a year ago to 4,163 yuan, a 23-percent contribution to the income growth, according to NBS data.

By 2020, China aims to double the per capita income of its urban and rural residents from 2010 levels.
Writings on the Wall

In 1990, my wife Rose and I decided to take my three nephews on a vacation to Huntsville, Alabama, and Disney World in Orlando, Florida. They  Read more
Newlyweds Roxanne Pallet and Josh Carrion had their honeymoon dreams dashed after he had to go back to work days after their secret wedding.

The New York fireman, 33, and the former Emmderdale actress, 37, did manage to enjoy a quick spa break together before Josh resumed his duties.

Roxanne told The Mirror: 'It was the most perfect day saying 'I do' to the most perfect man I've spent my life praying for.

Ouch! Newlyweds Roxanne Pallet and Josh Carrion had their honeymoon dreams dashed after he had to go back to work days after their secret wedding

'We are now going to a spa retreat to relax before J returns to full duty at the firehouse.'

Roxanne married Jason just two months after getting engaged.

The disgraced CBB star and the former Married At First Sight contestant wed in the Big Apple in a small ceremony, in front of just 10 close friends and family.





This comes after Roxanne revealed her fiance was one of the reasons she was able to battle thoughts of suicide following her explosive CBB 'punchgate' scandal which saw her sensationally fall from grace in 2018.





Married! The New York fireman, 33, and the former Emmderdale actress, 37, did manage to enjoy a quick spa break together before Josh resumed his duties

For the wedding, Roxanne wore an ivory strapless gown embellished with a beaded detailing and a fishtail finish.

She added a sparkling tiara and a traditional veil to the look and carried a single white rose.

Jason wore his FDNY uniform for the ceremony, at which Roxanne's mother read a poem, written by Jason's late mother.

Bling: She showed off her engagement ring for the first time after becoming secretly engaged to the former Married At First Sight contestant in November

The former Emmerdale actress and Jason announced their engagement in November on Instagram.

Roxanne revealed that by practising 'gratitude', her life changed from 'not having showered for days' to meeting the love of her life.

Over Thanksgiving, Roxanne shared a smitten snap of herself kissing Jason on the cheek with the Verrazzano-Narrows Bridge in the background.

She utilised the American holiday to reflect on how far she had come over the past year.

Roxanne began: 'This time last year, I was in my scruffs, sobbing into a bowl of mac n cheese, having not showered for days.'

She went on to explain that her mother ended up giving her some 'tough love' by forcing her to focus on the people who were 'holding her up rather than kicking her down.'

It was then Roxanne began to practise gratitude - focusing on how lucky she was to have family and friends who loved her, as well as a roof over her head.

Candid: The ex Emmerdale actress revealed it was only when she started practising 'gratitude' when her life changed from 'not having showered for days' to meeting the love of her life

'Amazing new memories': Jason also uploaded a similar snap from the Verrazzano-Narrows Bridge as he issued a gushing Thanksgiving caption

'As I began to realise how lucky I actually was, the tough times that had broken me soon faded into the background. I began to see my life change shape for the better. A day at a time. It was almost like the moment I looked for the good, it actually blossomed into a better view from where I was standing,' Roxanne explained.

She offered further advice to others: 'To anyone who is in the midst of their darkness right now, I promise you, with the right thought process you can & will come through it, as I have. Just find little blessings in every day & let those overshadow the difficulties.'

Lastly she gushed: 'And to my incredible man @bklynbad who saw my fire & ran towards it not away from it, thank you for loving me.  #happythanksgiving.'

Proving she was completely besotted with Jason, the brunette also went to flashed her sparkly engagement ring on Instagram Stories.

'This time last year I hadn't showered in days': She utilised the American holiday to reflect on how far she had come over the past year (Pictured on CBB in 2018)

Sources revealed to The Sun last year that Jason became 'a rock' to Roxanne one year after she was panned for falsely accusing her CBB co-star Ryan Thomas of punching her.

Jason married Cortney Hendrix when he starred on Married At First Sight in 2014, however the couple split last February.

It was revealed in August that Jason and Roxanne were dating and living together in New York, in a union that came seven months after she was dumped by her fiance Lee Walton following CBB punchgate.

The actress confirmed her romance with Jason as she shared a loved-up snap at the time - shortly before the engagement news arose.

Journey: She went on to explain that her mother ended up giving her some 'tough love' by forcing her to focus on the people who were 'holding her up rather than kicking her down'

On the engagement and romance, an insider said: 'Jason met Roxanne's mum for the first time during their recent trip to the UK and she absolutely adored him. Jason has been a rock to Roxanne since they've been together...

'They've had very parallel lives and share an intense connection because of their past struggles. He's fiercely protective over her and has told friends that she's the one he's been searching for all this time...

'They began talking and went for coffee which then turned into an inseparable week. It was love at first sight. Friends say he never clicked with the girl the show matched him with and there was a great deal of pressure to keep up appearances for it'.

In October, Roxanne detailed her suicidal thoughts and Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) following her scandal in the Celebrity Big Brother house last year.

The actress was blasted when she falsely accused housemate Ryan of being a 'woman beater' after a playfight - which she alleged saw the actor 'repeatedly punch' her before she demanded he was removed from the house.

Love: In October, it was revealed that Roxanne was secretly engaged Jason after he became her 'rock' in the aftermath of her explosive claims that CBB co-star Ryan Thomas punched her

Together: It was revealed in August that the couple were dating and living together in New York, in a union that came seven months after she was dumped by her fiance Lee Walton

Speaking to Jeremy Vine about the scandal, Roxanne said: 'It was a really awful time for a lot of people. It's only now when I watch those back I realised how far I've come. It's like watching somebody else.'

When asked about her disappearance from the spotlight she responded: 'I had to. I had to get off the grid. That meant turning down any appearances.

'I'll be honest with you, it's been a long time coming. Things that were wrong were so wrong. And it's only now, since I've been having therapy, I've been doing some reflecting and soul searching - I've thought about why I felt that way.'

Aftermath: In October, Roxanne detailed her suicidal thoughts and Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) following her scandal in the Celebrity Big Brother house in 2018

When asked if she felt suicidal, Roxanne said yes.

After her exit from the Channel 5 show, she returned for a pre-recorded interview with host Emma Willis to apologise for the incident.

Roxanne recently claimed she sent a suicide message to her family and friends after she falsely accused Ryan of punching her.

Roxanne said she told her family 'she didn't want to be here anymore' after she was accused of over-exaggerating the playful punch from her co-star.

For confidential 24/7 support in the UK, call Samaritans on 116 123 or visit a local Samaritans branch, see www.samaritans.org for details.
Married At First Sight Credit:

MARRIED AT FIRST SIGHT

Series return 

7.30pm, Nine

With its heady combination of hysterics and dress-ups, this reality romance appeals even to people who would normally shun the genre. More than once Ive been shocked by confessions of addiction from strictly ABC viewers who might consider themselves too highbrow for such nonsense. Such is the genius of the casting, the direction and the splicing of what must be hours of dull domesticity. This season includes previous scene stealers and fresh faces, including a lesbian pairing.
US President Donald Trump on Friday signed a proclamation placing new, tailored visa restrictions on countries that failed to meet a series of security criteria, demonstrating that they could be a risk to the United States, the White House said.

President Donald J Trump has issued a proclamation maintaining entry restrictions on certain nationals of Iran, Libya, North Korea, Syria, Venezuela, Yemen, and Somalia; suspending the overseas issuance of immigrant visas for certain nationals of Burma (Myanmar), Eritrea, Kyrgyzstan, and Nigeria; and suspending participation in the Visa Lottery for certain nationals of Sudan and Tanzania, White House Press Secretary Stephanie Grisham said.

The new restrictions will not apply to tourist, business, or other nonimmigrant travel. The Administration will work with the non-compliant countries to bring them into compliance with United States security standards, she said.

Acting Secretary Chad F Wolf said the US has raised the bar for global security by requiring nations to meet the Departments stronger security standards and by making it clear to countries what they must do to meet those standards.

The top responsibility of the President and the Department of Homeland Security is the safety and security of the American people, and these new vetting criteria accomplish that goal and are raising the bar for global security, Wolf said.

It is logical and essential to thoroughly screen and vet everyone seeking to travel or immigrate to the United States. However, there are some countries from whom the US does not receive the necessary information about its travellers and, as a result, pose a national security or public safety risk that warrants tailored travel restrictions, he said.

Department of Homeland Security, he said, has refined its robust security standards, including enhanced screening and vetting capabilities, that allow it to better identify terrorists and criminals attempting to enter the United States.

These screening and vetting capabilities are most effective when foreign governments contribute to our ability to verify a travellers identity and assess whether they pose a national security or public safety risk, Wolf said.

For a small number of countries that lack either the will or the capability to adhere to these criteria, certain travel restrictions have become necessary to mitigate potential threats, he noted.

The new, additional restrictions are not blanket restrictions, he said, adding that these tailored restrictions will make the US safer and more secure. And countries that make the necessary improvements will have their restrictions removed accordingly, as was done in 2018, he said.

Beth Werlin, executive director of the American Immigration Council, decried the travel ban. The new ban blocking immigration from six nations is unnecessary and un-American. We decided long ago that the United States does not exclude people based on where they were born or what religion they belong to. These policies call into question our commitment to those principles, he said.

Werlin alleged that the Trump administrations earlier travel ban was also cloaked in the mantle of national security, but instead, needlessly divided families. It has yet to demonstrate any meaningful value as a national security tool. This new ban is an extension of this misguided policy, he said.

Senator Chris Murphy said that Trumps decision to continue to go down this cruel path betrays who we are as a nation.

People who live in these countries are not a threat to us simply because of the place they were born, and these senseless restrictions will devastate immigrant communities. People come to America with the hope of finding a better life, and in turn, they contribute to our economy and our society. This expansion of his Muslim Ban does nothing to make us safer, is antithetical to our values, and makes our society less resilient and less prosperous. I wont stop fighting until Trumps discriminatory bans are repealed, said Murphy.

Congressman Bennie Thompson, Chairman of the Committee on Homeland Security, said that the announcement is a brazen step to begin dismantling the Diversity Visa program.

This has been a longstanding political priority for the President and is consistent with what has been widely reported about his thoughts on immigration from countries with predominately black and brown populations, he said.

The fact that he has couched this political decision in homeland or national security terms is grotesque. Both the timing and the focus of these new restrictions represent a shameful political maneuver that hurts thousands of people and families. Using our national security structure for political benefit will not make America great, Thompson said.
Anne Cox Chambers, the billionaire heiress of Cox Enterprises and former U.S. ambassador during the Carter era, has died, her familys company confirmed. She was 100.

Chambers died peacefully at her home in Atlanta on Friday, the media company said in a statement on their website. Her family also confirmed the sad news to The Atlanta Journal-Constitution (AJC).

My aunt leaves behind a remarkable legacy for our family and the many organizations she generously supported with her time and financial gifts, Jim Kennedy, Chambers nephew and the Chairman of Cox Enterprises, said on the companys website.

Aunt Anne was a wonderful, kind and elegant lady who cared deeply about her family, her company and her country, Kennedy added to the AJC. She took the responsibility of good fortune very seriously and gave back to the best of her ability to the many causes she cared about.

Born in 1919 to Ohio governor and presidential candidate James M. Cox and his wife Margaretta Parker Blair, Chambers grew up to be a business leader, passionate supporter of the arts, champion of animal welfare and generous philanthropist, the company said.

Anne Cox Chambers

RELATED: Huguette Clark Dies Leaving Behind $500 Million Fortune

For 33 years, she and her sister Barbara Cox co-owned their familys media conglomerate, which began with their fathers decision to buy a single newspaper in Dayton, Ohio, according to The New York Times.

Over the years, the company has grown to include newspapers, radio stations, cable television networks, and automobile-auction businesses, and has earned more than $21 billion in 2019, the outlet reported.

Chambers, who served on Coxs board of directors and was a former chairwoman of Atlanta Newspapers, also made strides beyond the media world and especially in Atlanta, the company shared.

She blazed a trail in the business world at Fulton National Bank as the first woman in Atlanta to serve as a bank director. She was also the first woman to be appointed to the board of Atlantas Chamber of Commerce and was director of the board of the Coca-Cola Company during the 1980s, Cox wrote on their website.

Story continues

In 1977, Chambers was appointed by former president Jimmy Carter to serve as an ambassador to Belgium. She remained in that position until 1981 when Carters term ended, Cox noted.

Chambers was also a generous donor and passionate supporter of the arts, often working with Atlanta Symphony Orchestra, Fernbank Museum of Natural History, the Jimmy Carter Library and Museum, Shepherd Center and the High Museum of Art, where a wing is named after her, according to the company.

Mrs. Chambers influence on Cox and her work on behalf of Atlanta and the world will not soon be forgotten, Cox wrote. Moving forward, Cox will continue to uphold her legacy of giving back while growing our businesses for the future.

RELATED VIDEO: LOreals Liliane Bettencourt, the Worlds Richest Woman and Focus of Scandal, Dies at 94

In the wake of her death, many influential figures who personally knew Chambers have spoken out, including Carter and Atlanta Mayor Keisha Lance Bottoms.

Carter, 95, who issued a statement on his website on behalf of his wife Rosalynn, said Chambers was an important part of our lives for over six decades.

Rosalynn joins me in sharing our condolences to the extended family and friends of Anne Cox Chambers, the 39th U.S. president said. Her life serves as a path for fairness and equality for everyone and especially for women and girls. Atlanta, our state of Georgia and the world has lost a wonderful woman, business leader, and philanthropist. Rosalynn and I are grateful to have been among those whose lives were so richly touched by her.

Bottoms, 50, also touched on Chambers influence in a statement to the AJC on behalf of her husband Derek.

Derek and I convey our deepest condolences to the family of Anne Cox Chambers, she said, according to AJC. She was generous to the community she loved, deeply cherished Gods gifts found in nature, and was a force to be reckoned with. Our thoughts and prayers are with her family and all those who loved and admired her.
Source: Xinhua| 2020-02-02 01:36:30|Editor: yhy

Video Player Close

LONDON, Feb. 1 (Xinhua) -- It is possible for Britain to conclude a "bare bones" Free Trade Agreement (FTA) with "zero tariff, zero quota" on goods with the European Union (EU) by the end of this year, a trade expert has told Xinhua in an interview via email.

"The political declaration (on Britain's future relationship with the EU) says that both sides will work to conclude a free trade agreement," said Amar Breckenridge, senior associate at the Frontier Economics (Europe), noting that "a bare bones FTA on goods is in essence."

In his view, what Britain and the EU would aim for by the end of this year is an agreement on basic FTA giving tariff free and quota free access to each others' markets, covering customs and border procedures, and including rules of origin.

Britain officially left the EU at 11 p.m. (2300 GMT) Friday, putting an end to its 47-year-long membership of the world's largest trading bloc. The moment marked the start of a transition period which will last till the end of this year as negotiators try to forge a trade arrangement between Britain and the remaining EU nations.

"How far agriculture will be covered is open to question," said the former economist at the World Trade Organization (WTO), "given the importance of food safety and environmental regulation in this area."

He stressed that a basic FTA would need to be accompanied by either an agreement or an understanding, which would further address the more complicated issues such as financial services and fisheries.

"It won't be realistic to expect negotiations on these to be completed, given the red lines set out by both parties," he said.

The expert also estimated that the option of simply rolling over existing arrangements or parts of them into a new formal agreement is not on the cards by the end of the year because in that case, a tacit extension of the transition period would be in essence.

However, in order to avoid disruption, Breckenridge believed both parties would probably need to come to an understanding that present rules will apply in some form.

"This isn't straightforward as it will likely require a waiver from other WTO members," Breckenridge added, "it will also require putting in place some interim arrangements for settling litigation and disputes."

"All this sounds like an extension of the transition period, without calling it an extension," he said, noting that fudge will probably be necessary to satisfy Britain's political demands while avoiding serious disruption to the country and the EU.
Days after a 17-year-old opened fire at anti-Citizenship Amendment Act protesters near Jamia Millia Islamia university, another man has opened fire in Delhi's Shaheen Bagh area, according to several media reports.

Days after a 17-year-old opened fire at anti-Citizenship Amendment Act protesters near Jamia Millia Islamia University, another man opened fire in Delhi's Shaheen Bagh area on Saturday, according to several media reports.

#WATCH Delhi: Man who had fired bullets in Shaheen Bagh area being taken away from the spot by police. pic.twitter.com/lenDhRcWGD  ANI (@ANI) February 1, 2020

According to eyewitnesses, the man shouted "Hindu Rashtra Zindabad" and fired two rounds, PTI reported. No one was injured and the shooter has been taken into custody, News18 reported.

The shooter, being led away by the police, said, "In our country, no one else will rule. Only Hindus will rule." India Today reported that the shooter identified himself as Kapil, he is a resident of Dallupura village in East Delhi, neighbouring Noida in Uttar Pradesh. The police said they are verifying his identity.

This incident came even as Uttar Pradesh chief minister Yogi Adityanath during a poll rally in Delhi's northwest Rohini area alleged that those who support terrorists in Kashmir are staging protest at Shaheen Bagh.

"The accused fired in air near police barricades. He was overpowered by police personnel and taken into custody. Further investigation is on," Chinmoy Biswal, Deputy Commissioner of Police (southeast) said. A woman protester, who didn't wish to be named, said the incident has created panic among them as well as children. "Many women and children were inside the tent when the incident occurred. We rushed to the spot after hearing a gunshot. Everyone is scared. But we won't leave the spot, she said.

Notwithstanding the unnerving incident, many people thronged the protest site to express solidarity with the protesters. Many of them sung the national anthem while others offered namaz there. The protesters also raised slogans against the Delhi Police.

Kejriwal and Owaisi slam BJP

Delhi chief minister Arvind Kejriwal, reacting to the incident, took to Twitter to slam Union home minister Amit Shah:

Reacting to the incident, AAP leader Sanjay Singh said they had already warned the Election Commission that a conspiracy is being hatched by the BJP to postpone the polls.

"There is no law and order in the country. The gun-toting men are making Delhi their bastion. We have been seeking time from the Election Commission since yesterday so that we can make them aware of these developments but they have not given us any time [sic]," he said.

AIMIM president Asaduddin Owaisi on Twitter took the BJP to task:

A terrorist is one because he says so. For decades, "jo Hindu hitt ki baat karega wahi desh par raj karega" has been @BJP4Indias war cry. This man just echoed it Hes forced you to choose between gunmans side or the side of peaceful, democratic citizens Its as simple as that https://t.co/8kCedZWCY2  Asaduddin Owaisi (@asadowaisi) February 1, 2020

In a veiled attack on the BJP, the Congress said the shooter has changed but the ideology pulling the trigger in 1948 or 2020 has remained the same. Congress spokesperson Jaiveer Shergill tweeted, "Shooter changes but ideology pulling the trigger either in 1948 (Nathuram Godse) or 2020 remains the same 'Goli Maro' Hands which should be pulling India's growth are now firing guns."

"Instead of 'Make in India' focus is on 'spreading hate in India'," he alleged.

Adityanath slams AAP

Hitting out at the AAP dispensation, Adityanath said that the Arvind Kejriwal government "supplies biryani" to protesters at Shaheen Bagh.

Addressing another poll rally at Karawal Nagar Chowk in east Delhi, the BJP leader lashed out at the anti-CAA protesters, saying "their ancestors divided India, so they have a grouse against this emerging 'Ek Bharat Shrestha Bharat'."

"These protests happening at various places in Delhi are not about the CAA, but it is happening because those people are questioning as to how can India emerge as a major power in the world, and to stop that rising India," he claimed.

BJP leaders have been urging people to vote for the party in Delhi assembly polls on February eight to show their disapproval for the ongoing anti-CAA protest at Shaheen Bagh.

Senior BJP leader BL Santhosh insinuated involvement of party's rivals in the recent shooting incidents, saying the "great drama party of Delhi is becoming too costly for the country".

"One more drama today. This time the gun shot is near Shaheen Bagh. The acts are looking too dramatic to be real. Person brandishes gun...shoots couple of bullets...shouts some words against a community. The great drama party of Delhi is becoming too costly for the country," he tweeted.

On Friday, a 17-year-old youth who fired at protesters near the Jamia Millia Islamia university during an anti-Citizenship Amendment Act (CAA) protest, injuring one, was sent to 14-day protective custody by a Delhi court.

The youth was earlier produced before the Juvenile Justice Board, PTI reported.

On Tuesday, BJP MP Parvesh Sahib Singh Verma said protesters at Shaheen Bagh could "enter homes and rape our sisters and daughters.

On Monday, Minister of State for Finance Anurag Thakur while addressing a election rally, had raised the slogan of desh ke gaddaron ko' (traitors in the country).

The Election commission asked the BJP to remove both Thakur and Verma from the list of star campaigners. It also barred Thakur from campaigning for three days and Verma for four days for their controversial remarks.



With inputs from PTI
Political party sweeps at the polls have wreaked havoc with the Texas justice system.

In recent elections, political party affiliation of the victorious candidates at the top of the ballot has determined the outcomes of most judicial races at the bottom of the ballot. Partisanship was all that mattered, not legal expertise and judicial experience. This has left few long-tenured jurists on the bench. Many quality and experienced judges in both parties have been replaced by the very inexperienced.

We must change that, and while we await change at the state level, voters can do their part by making informed decisions at the polls. By all means do your own research, but we offer the following recommendations in some of the local judicial races in which there are multiple candidates.

In the race for the Democratic nomination to the 399th District Court, we recommend incumbent Frank J. Castro for a second term.

The 399th District Court handles criminal matters. Four years ago, Castro, a newcomer to Bexar County with a last name popular in local politics, defeated the incumbent in the Democratic primary and went on to win in the general election.

A former prosecutor, Castro has presided over several high-profile cases during his three years on the bench, and he has earned the respect of those who practice before him. His court statistics show he has presided over 50 felony jury trials and handled two capital murder cases.

His opponent, Gabe Quintanilla, is employed in the intake section of the district attorneys office. Quintanilla lacks the judicial temperament the job requires. Years ago, Quintanilla gained a reputation for setting $1 million bonds as a city magistrate and earned the nickname The Hammer when he held the job. While his tough-on-crime stance played well with the general public, other judges had to come in behind him to reset bonds so they conformed with state law.

In the 407th District Court race for the Democratic nomination to this civil court bench, we recommend Tina Torres.

She has 23 years of legal experience and served a short stint on a county court-at-law bench.

Bexar County commissioners appointed Torres as judge of County Court-at-Law No. 10 in November 2013 to fill an unexpired term after Judge Irene Rios stepped down to run for the 4th Court of Appeals. Torres made a bid for a full term but lost in a strong Republican year.

This is an open civil court bench being vacated by Karen H. Pozza, a Democrat, who has held the post for 20 years.

The only other candidate in the Democratic primary is Maribel Cruz, a sole practitioner who has been a lawyer since 2002. She has a background in family and insurance defense work. She has solid credentials, and we hope to see her on the ballot again.

In the race for the Democratic nomination for the 37th District Court, a civil bench, we recommend the re-election of Michael Mery, who has been a judge a total of 20 years, but we do so with some reservation. He brings decades of judicial experience to the job, but his judicial temperament is a cause for concern. Temperament came up without prompting by multiple people when we made inquiries about how his court operates.

Still, he has impressive experience. Mery began his judicial career as an appointed magistrate judge. In 1999, when three county courts were created, he was appointed by county commissioners to the County Court-at-law No. 12. During his tenure on that criminal bench, he helped establish the countys first mental health court. He lost the county court bench in 2010 in a Republican sweep at the polls. He then worked as a visiting judge and as a magistrate. He was elected to the 37th District Court in 2012.

His opponent in this race is Nicole Garza, a former schoolteacher who has spent the past 20 years practicing law. She ran against Mery in 2012 under the name Nicole Elizalde Henning. She does not have any judicial experience.
-Governments disinvestment target for FY21 now hinges on listing LIC-Over the years, LIC has been the lifeline for the Governments disinvestment program-LIC will be Indias most valuable firm if listed-Listing LIC will improve Government finances, enhance corporate governanceThe Union Budget 2020 proposes to sell a part of the governments holding in Life Insurance Corporation (LIC) by way of Initial Public Offer (IPO). This was the most positive announcement amongst the measures announced for the financial sector and could go down in the history as real big reform if it paves the way for privatisation of the insurance behemoth.

While it wouldnt be an easy task, we assess and try to understand why listing LIC is imperative, how it can help unlock value and most importantly how much it can add to the governments kitty.

Over the years, LIC has become the lender of last resort to the Government of India.

Thanks to its huge corpus of funds, LIC has been the governments go-to lender for all its funding needs. It has come to the governments rescue in capitalising state-run banks (LIC holds equity stake in many public sector banks), bailing out a weaker company (it bought the troubled IDBI bank) and investing in various Government initiatives (it subscribed to UDAY bonds and invested in National Investment and Infrastructure Fund).

Additionally, LIC has been the lifeline for the Governments disinvestment programme for many years now. Successive governments  earlier the Congress-led United Progressive Alliance (UPA) and now the BJP-led National Democratic Alliance (NDA) in an unprecedented manner  have used LIC to meets its divestment agenda.

Back in FY10, LIC accounted for more than half the money raised through disinvestment as it invested more than Rs 10,000 crore in Initial Public Offers and Follow-on Public Offers of state run companies.

The reliance on LIC continues till date, whenever the government faces trouble in finding private takers of public companies. For instance, in March 2018, LIC subscribed to 70 percent of shares on offer in the Hindustan Aeronautics Limited IPO.

Is the government right in treating LIC as a sovereign wealth fund and using its funds whenever required? Definitely not. The money that LIC manages is not the governments money. All of LICs money comes from the premium paid by policyholders on which it has to offer competitive returns.

While LICs investment decisions are supposedly backed by a due diligence process, its pretty clear that it obeys government diktats. The insurance and pension funds of millions of policyholders demands far greater transparency and accountability.

Since LIC is entrusted with the hard earned savings of the people of India, creating a culture where shareholders exercise control over the company run by professional managers is a must. And this can only be achieved by listing LIC.

That said, we have also seen that many public sector undertakings that are listed and have board-driven mechanisms are not totally independent of the Government.

We have to hope, therefore, that LICs listing announcement is not just to raise funds but also to help achieve the real objectives of the governments disinvestment programme, which also includes improving corporate governance of the public entity, as put up on the website of Department of Investment and Public Asset Management (DIPAM).

Listing LIC could also help reduce costs of the exchequer. LIC does not need capital today, but given the rate at which it is used as the governments financier, at some point in time in future a situation may well arise where the government might have to fund its savior.

History will render its own verdict on Mr Arun Jaitleys performance as finance minister between 2014 and 2019. However, the shepherd of many legislative accomplishments hinted at something big at the Diamond Jubilee celebrations of the LIC in September 2016 when he said that If LIC is listed, it would be the most valued company in the country with the highest valuation as well as one of the largest across the world.

LIC continues to be advantaged by its status under special legislation (it is not a company), with an explicit government guarantee for all sums which it assures. Thanks to this, LIC enjoys market leadership even as India opened up the insurance sector to private players 19 years ago.

It is a monolith with an investment book of around Rs 29 trillion as at end March-19, more than the total assets under management of the entire mutual fund industry.

Though private insurers are catching up fast, LIC continues to have a giant market share. LIC has continued to lead the market with a 66.24 percent of the market share in total first year premium and 75 percent in new policies in FY19.

ICICI Prudential life, which is cheapest of the three listed life players is trading at 40 percent of assets under management. Given LICs strong market position and financials today, it may command a valuation of around Rs 8-10 lakh crore (assuming 30 -40 percent of AUM), making it Indias largest company by market capitalisation.

This implies that divesting 5-10 percent stake and eventually bringing down stake to 50-60 percent can help put government finances in a better shape.

However, listing LIC wouldnt be an easy task and calls for a political will. LIC is a statutory corporation set up by an act of Parliament passed in 1956. As a first step, the act needs to be repealed and LIC has to be converted into a company.

The International Monetary Fund (IMF) in April 2018 has asked the Indian government to remove the explicit sovereign guarantee on every LIC policy and convert LIC into a company. Earlier, the Financial Sector Legislative Reforms Commission (FSLRC) had given the same advice to the former UPA government.

Given the dire state of the economy and sluggish tax revenues, government finances need a big shot in the arm and listing LIC could be just what the doctor ordered.

For more research articles, visit our Moneycontrol Research page
China is ready to cooperate with India in strengthening measures towards preventing the spread of the new strain of deadly coronavirus, Chinese Ambassador to India Sun Weidong said on Friday.

"China is ready to cooperate with India to respond to the outbreak and work together to prevent and control the epidemic. We also hope India will continue to give understanding and support to China's efforts in this regard," he said in an exclusive interview to ANI.

The Ambassador's statement came in response to a question on the evacuation of Indian nationals from China.

He said China has done a lot of work to ensure the health and safety of Indian nationals in China.

The Ambassador stressed that as a responsible country, China has always given top priority to the health and safety of all Chinese and foreign nationals in Wuhan, the epicentre of the deadly virus outbreak.

He said China has been in communication with India to keep it informed of the developments concerning the epidemic and its prevention and control efforts."We have done a lot of work to ensure the health and safety of Indian nationals in China. We believe that through bilateral cooperation, India's concerns can be properly addressed," he said.

Referring to one confirmed case of the virus in India, Sun Weidong said: "We pay close attention to the report of one confirmed case of pneumonia in India. I would like to express my sympathy to the patient and her family, and wish her an early recovery."

He also noted that Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi had a telephonic conversation with External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar in which he reiterated that the Chinese government has taken the most rigorous control measures.

"State Councilor and Foreign Minister Wang Yi had a telephone conversation with External Affairs Minister Dr. Jaishankar. Wang reiterated that the Chinese government has taken the most comprehensive and rigorous prevention and control measures. Many of these measures go well beyond the requirements of the International Health Regulations. We have full confidence and ability to win the battle against the outbreak," he said.

Earlier in the day, Jaishankar had thanked Wang for the cooperation extended by the Chinese government for the departure of Indian students and professionals from Wuhan.

"Called Chinese State Councilor and Foreign Minister Wang Yi today to thank him for the cooperation extended by the Chinese government for the departure of Indian students and professionals from Wuhan. As China deals with the #coronavirus challenge, we agreed to stay in touch," Jaishankar in a tweet.An Air India special flight from the coronavirus-struck Wuhan city landed in Delhi earlier today carrying 324 Indians.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
President Donald Trump and First Lady Melania Trump walk along the South Lawn to Marine One as they depart from the White House for a weekend trip to Mar-a-Lago, in Washington, on Jan. 31, 2020. (Sarah Silbiger/Getty Images)

Trump to Chart Vision of Relentless Optimism in State of the Union Address, Official Says

President Donald Trump is expected to lay out an agenda focused on the needs of working families during his State of the Union Address on Feb. 4 and propose optimistic solutions to address the issues that affect Americans quality of life, according to a senior administration official.

The theme of the presidents speech will be The Great American Comeback, the official told reporters on Jan. 31. Trump is expected to focus on five areas during the speech: the booming economy, efforts to support working families, health care, immigration, and national security.

He will encourage Congress to work with him to continue to building an inclusive economy where the least well-off are making some of the fastest gains and where people of every background are finding new opportunities, the official said.

Trump will give the speech one day before the Senate is expected to vote to acquit him of the impeachment charges brought by House Democrats. The senior administration official didnt say whether the speech would touch on the trial.

Similar to last years address, Trump will challenge the growing socialist wing of the Democratic Party with a specific focus on the health care reforms being proposed by the Democrats, including some of the 2020 presidential hopefuls.

Clearly, socialism is a rising force in the Democratic Party, with very specific designs on our health care system. And the president will build on last years address and present a sharp difference, the senior administration official said.

The president will highlight how the strong economy is lifting Americans across the board. Hell note the signing of the United StatesMexicoCanada Trade Agreement and the first phase of the trade deal with China. Hes expected to celebrate the United States becoming a net energy exporter in 2020. Hell also touch on his administrations Opportunity Zones program, designed to spur investment in economically distressed areas.

In terms of helping working families, Trump will explore the issues facing parents who work while raising children and the challenge of improving the quality of public education. Hes also expected to underline his support for paid family leave and affordable childcare. The president will call on Congress to pass legislation on school choice, which would allow parents to take the federal funds allocated to their children to a school of their choice.

On the issue of immigration, the president is expected to celebrate the progress made in stemming the flow of illegal immigrants across the southern border, while criticizing illegal alien sanctuary cities that are actively undermining federal immigration enforcement efforts.

Trump will zoom out to the world at large to discuss national security. While the senior administration official didnt provide details, the president is likely to discuss Iran and North Korea.

As part of an annual tradition, Trump will introduce a number of guests during the speech. One of the guests, Tony Rankins, lost his job and family when he became addicted to drugs after suffering from post-traumatic stress disorder due to his service in the U.S. Army in Afghanistan. Rankins learned construction trades from a company called Our Investments, which led him to get a new job, overcome addiction, and reunite with his family.

Another guest will be Deputy Chief of U.S. Border Patrol Raul Ortiz, who started as a border patrol agent in 1991 and climbed through the ranks to become the second in command, overseeing 22,000 Border Patrol agents and staff.
T he Crowns reign over Netflix is coming to an end - but not just yet.

Despite insisting in January that the show would finish after five series, contrary to previously outlined plans, show creator Peter Morgan has taken an about turn, announcing that we will get six seasons of the royal drama after all.

As we started to discuss the storylines for series five, it soon became clear that in order to do justice to the richness and complexity of the story we should go back to the original plan and do six seasons," he explained.

Imelda Staunton will take over from Olivia Colman as Queen Elizabeth II for the final two series, with Lesley Manville stepping into the role of her younger sister Princess Margaret.

Morgan previously told reporters that he had found a "perfect" end point for the show - one which will take it "into the 21st century" - and has now confirmed that the additional series "will not bring us any closer to present day - it will simply enable us to cover the same period in greater detail." We can assume, then, that the new plans won't compromise the grand finale he has already sketched out.

Olivia Colman will hand the throne over to Imelda Staunton in series five (Netflix ) / Netflix

Its become a punchline to suggest that every twist and turn of recent royal dramas (and there have certainly been many to choose from) would be excellent fodder for future instalments of The Crown - but getting to the point where the show would catch up with the present day was really never Morgans intention.

Instead, by looking at the time frames of past series - and taking his 21st century comment into account - we can expect things to tie up in the early to mid 00s.

Characters from The Crown Series 3 versus real life 1 /14 Characters from The Crown Series 3 versus real life Olivia Colman as the Queen Netflix Tobias Menzies as Prince Philip Netflix Josh O'Connor as Prince Charles Helena Bonham Carter as Princess Margaret Netflix Marion Bailey as the Queen Mother Netflix Jason Watkins as Harold Wilson Netflix Erin Doherty as Princess Anne Charles Dance as Lord Mountbatten Netflix Ben Daniels as Antony Armstrong Jones, Lord Snowden Netflix Derek Jacobi as the Duke of Windsor Netflix Emerald Fennell as Camilla Shand / Parker Bowles Netflix

Season three spanned 13 years (from 1964 to 1977), so we can safely assume that the next instalment will cover a similar time frame, potentially kicking off in 1980, when Prince Charles and Diana were first linked. The events leading up to their separation in 1992 might make a sensible end point for round four - so series five could then perhaps deal with the royals' response to the death of Princess Diana (which Morgan has previously explored in his film The Queen) and season six could potentially cover the early 00s (we're holding out for an episode devoted to the dramatic opening of the Millennium Dome, featuring a bomb alert thought to threaten the Queen and the Prime Minister, Tony Blair - which was later revealed to be a hoax.)

But what will this perfect conclusion be? Compared to the scandals - and tragedies - of the 90s, the 00s were a smoother ride for the royals, but there are still a handful of milestone events that could each make for a fitting - and emotional - finale to the series...

Princess Margaret and the Queen Mothers death (2002)

2002 was a difficult year for the Queen / Sion Touhig/Getty Images

For Her Majesty, 2002 was a year marred by grief as she mourned two deaths in quick succession. Her younger sister, Princess Margaret, died in February after suffering a stroke; her mother Elizabeth then passed away in March at the age of 101.

Given that so much of Morgans series has been dedicated to exploring the Queens sometimes uneasy relationship with her sister (and, to a lesser extent, her close bond with her mother), the loss of those closest to her will surely cast an indelible shadow over the series end.

The Golden Jubilee (2002)

The Queen and Prince Philip celebrating the Golden Jubilee in 2002 / Georges De Keerle/Getty Image

Morgan loves to play with contrasts, so the juxtaposition of the Queens double bereavement with her Golden Jubilee just weeks later will surely prove irresistible material for his finale.

Think along the lines of the last episode of series three, which contrasted national celebrations for the 25th anniversary of Elizabeths reign with the Queens internal tumult as she attempted to rally Margaret following her overdose. A jubilee is a natural point for reflection, too - cue a soft focus montage of The Crowns Queens past, like a greatest hits reel.

Prince Charles' wedding to Camilla Parker Bowles (2005)

Prince Charles married the Duchess of Cornwall in 2005 / Georges De Keerle/Getty Images

Should Morgan wish to draw the show out a little longer, Prince Charles second wedding to his long-time love Camilla could be another fitting end point.

After their romance in the late 70s (as played out by Josh OConnor and Emerald Fennell in series three), followed by their respective marriages (to other people) and the very public splits that ensued, the couple finally tied the knot in a civil ceremony at Windsor Guildhall in 2005, chosen to avoid potential religious controversy over the future head of the Church of England marrying again in a church.

The Queen and Prince Philip did not attend the civil wedding (due to the monarchs religious role as Defender of the Faith, it was rumoured) but were present at the subsequent Service of Prayer at St Georges Chapel and hosted a reception for the pair at Windsor Castle.

Series three established a fascinating dynamic between the Queen and her eldest son - and hinted at the familys attempts to split Charles from his unsuitable first love - so finishing with a very modern royal wedding would be an intriguing conclusion for this storyline.
U.S. Secretary of Education Betsy DeVos has cleared four states to participate in the Education Flexibility program , which will allow them to waive certain federal requirements so school districts can pilot new approaches.

Massachusetts, North Carolina, Texas, and Vermont will have new authority under the program, which is also known as Ed-Flex, DeVos announced Friday, though the U.S. Department of Educations website says some were cleared to participate late last year.

Ed-Flex predates the current administration. The authority was first created under a 1994 demonstration program and later extended under the Every Student Succeeds Act, the newest version of the federal education law that passed in 2015.

To qualify for Ed-Flex, states must demonstrate that they have challenging academic standards, that they have assessments aligned to those standards, and that they have plans to hold participating school systems accountable for the achievement of their students. The flexibility allows them to waive certain requirements under Title I, which relates to students from low-income homes; Title II, which relates to educator preparation; and the Student Support and Academic Enrichment grants under Title IV.

Here is how the Education Department described the participating states plans:



Massachusetts will enhance educator recruitment and licensure.

North Carolina will address class size, school year schedule, and funding to schools in areas of need.

Texas will provide flexibility around staff development requirements, teacher certification and attendance requirements.

Vermont enhance school districts ability to implement long-term improvement initiatives.

Follow us on Twitter @PoliticsK12 . And follow the Politics K-12 reporters @EvieBlad @Daarel and @AndrewUjifusa .
By Jonathan Allen

NEW YORK, Jan 31 (Reuters) - Jonathan Niu got to New York's John F. Kennedy International Airport five hours early on Friday, not least because he had a lot of luggage to check for his flight to his native China: He was hauling back boxes filled with hundreds of face masks.

His mother and father, both in their 70s, came to visit him in New York about five months ago, their first trip there in 20 years. In the interim, a new coronavirus has emerged in China and become a fast-spreading global health crisis, prompting foreign governments to fly their citizens out of the country.

Niu was among those who were traveling against the tide along with his parents, who missed their home after months away.

"Now it's time to go back," said Niu, 44, who moved to the United States more than 20 years ago and lives in Manhattan, where he works in finance.

The family remembers past virus outbreaks, including severe acute respiratory syndrome, or SARS, and survived them, he said. He thought the U.S. State Department was wise to warn Americans against nonessential travel to China because of the epidemic, which has infected nearly 10,000 people. But he wanted to shepherd his parents home.

Delta Air Lines Inc and American Airlines Group Inc joined other airlines on Friday in suspending all remaining U.S.-China flights.

Even so, Niu's father seemed relaxed ahead of his flight on China Eastern Airlines from Terminal 1. He smiled broadly, urging a reporter to immediately book a flight to China as well.

His mother had been less sure. "She was so nervous, she couldn't get any sleep," Niu said.

After arriving, Niu said he planned to make sure his parents' home in Hefei, capital of the eastern province of Anhui, was well stocked with groceries and other supplies. He would then settle in and stay with them for a month or two in a sort of self-imposed quarantine before returning to New York.

"It's like a zombie movie," Niu said, although he imagined he might venture outside to a nearby store if he really needed to. "I've downloaded a lot of movies on my iPad."

Story continues

Niu figured he would cheer up his parents' neighbors by sharing some of his supply of face masks and drop off some at a nearby hospital.

"Everybodys panicking there," he said. "People can't get the masks." The stash cost him about $400.

He had also packed five or so masks in his carry-on luggage, thinking he would hand them to his seatmates on the plane.

'WE NEED TO STAY HOME'

Almost everyone waiting on line to check in to flights to Shanghai and Beijing at Terminal 1 on Friday were Chinese citizens returning home after a U.S. vacation or work trip.

Linda Xu, 40, had visited New York with her young son and daughter and her husband, and was bracing to be mostly confined with them indoors in their home in Beijing.

"We need to stay home," she said, her voice muffled by a mask.

"No school," said Shawn Xu, her 11-year-old son, seeming pleased.

Two Americans in the line declined to answer questions about their trip. Four other Americans said they were connecting in Shanghai to other flights to Thailand or the Philippines and had no plans to leave the airport in China.

All the airline staff at check-in desks wore face masks, as did about half of the passengers waiting in line. An employee for China Eastern Airlines at one of the desks said the masks had become mandatory for staff members in the last couple of days.

After most passengers had checked in, two China Eastern flight attendants stood waiting on the terminal floor, their faces mostly hidden by masks. Another employee soon dashed over, bearing three boxes filled with another 150 face masks, which the attendants dropped in a plastic bag before turning to head toward the plane. (Reporting by Jonathan Allen; writing by Bill Tarrant; editing by Frank McGurty and Jonathan Oatis)
Syntegon Technology is the new name among the market leaders in the processing and packaging industry

Syntegon Technology is the new name among the market leaders in the processing and packaging industry. Known as Bosch Packaging Technology until late 2019, the former Bosch division today presented itself as an independent enterprise at the company headquarters in Waiblingen (Germany). Syntegon Technologys business focus is on intelligent and sustainable technologies for the pharmaceutical and food industries. Extending the service range is a priority for the company. Syntegon Technology employs 6,100 people at more than 30 locations worldwide. It posted 1.3 billion euros in sales in 2019. Bosch disclosed its plans to sell the packaging machinery division to a newly incorporated entity managed by CVC Capital Partners, a leading private equity and investment advisory firm, in July 2019. The transaction was completed according to plan, with the company gaining full independence at the turn of the year.

Transaction wrapped up on schedule as business development remains stable

The sale of Bosch Packaging Technology was completed on January 2, 2020, as envisioned. Bosch had announced in June 2018 that it intended to sell its packaging division, finding a buyer a year later in CVC Capital Partners (CVC). Bosch Packaging Technology then expanded its headquarters in Waiblingen, Germany, augmenting it with new departments required for the switch. Business developments remained stable in the interim, bucking the trend in the sluggish machine engineering sector. Sales in 2019 came to 1.3 billion euros, matching the previous years figure.

The new owner, CVC, aims to vigorously develop the company as a whole and expand intra-group synergies. Commenting on the closing of the sale, Marc Strobel, a partner at CVC Capital Partners said, CVC is delighted to see the transaction completed on schedule. Syntegon Technology has a strong presence in many market segments, great technological know-how, and innovative power. We want to build on these strengths jointly with management and the entire workforce.

Into the future with a new brand

Processing and packaging technology for a better life! This is Syntegons mission statement. The company is determined to improve the lives of consumers and patients with intelligent and sustainable processing and packaging solutions. A new corporate brand was developed over the past few months. The name Syntegon stands for synergy, technology, and focus on the future. The new corporate colour green underscores the importance of sustainability and health. The square in the newly designed logo symbolizes a package as well as packaging technologys ability to protect products.

The entire workforce will celebrate the independent companys launch with management on January 16, 2020. The ceremony at the Waiblingen headquarters, broadcasted live around the world, will be followed by events held at the individual locations. Syntegon Technology will share the news with its business partners today. Chairman of the Executive Board Dr Stefan Konig takes this opportunity to send an emphatic message: We are building on 150 years of experience and the 64,000 machines deployed by our customers, and pursuing new avenues of business. Now, more than ever before, we are working on intelligent and sustainable technologies and embracing the collaboration with our business partners in the true spirit of partnership.

Greater flexibility and focus on caring partnerships

This newly gained independence enables Syntegon Technology to be even more flexible. And newly added departments at the headquarters such as Purchasing and IT shorten the distances between in-house units and facilitating interaction with customers and suppliers. Whereas the company had been part of a large corporation with diverse divisions, it can now create a business framework that is an even better fit for the industry. This new setup will enable the company to enhance its profile as a leading processing and packaging company.

Syntegon Technology aims to set new priorities for services. Impelled by the spirit of partnership with its customers, the company is striving to improve its processes. One goal is to reduce response times to customer enquiries; another is to further increase the availability of service technicians. Syntegon Technology is also investing in a customer and technology centre at its Waiblingen headquarters. The processing and packaging technology company collaborates with global corporations and regional market leaders and is determined to offer even more attractive services for medium-sized enterprises and startups.

Intelligent and sustainable technologies

Syntegon Technology has intensified its efforts to develop intelligent and sustainable technologies. Drawing on a deep well of experience in developing and integrating software solutions, the company uses connected components as well as components enhanced with artificial intelligence to this end. It puts a premium on ensuring sophisticated technologies are simple to use. The greater goal is to collect and evaluate data to avoid machine downtime, maximize product quality, and optimize overall plant efficiency.

The enterprise is pursuing two approaches to produce sustainable packaging  one is to use mono materials rather than conventional multilayer films, and the other is to use paper packaging as an alternative to plastic. Syntegon Technology supports its customers on the path to a sustainable future with material testing, machine applications, and innovative packaging designed to meet the requirements of products, transport modes, and regional circumstances. The company has also significantly reduced its machines energy consumption.
Snow avalanche in Zakarpattia region AFP

A significant avalanche hazard is expected in the mountains of Transcarpathian and Ivano-Frankivsk regions on February 1-2. The State Emergency Service (SES) reported this.

"In connection with snowfalls and snowstorms on February 1-2, a significant snow avalanche danger (Level 3) remains in the highlands of the Transcarpathian region and in the mountains of Ivano-Frankivsk region," the statement said.

As we reported before, rescuers announced the opening of the snow avalanche season in western Ukraine.

Also, rescuers assisted two tourists from Kyiv who got lost in the mountains when they descended from Hoverla Mountain in Ivano-Frankivsk region.

On January 5, at 16:10, the rescue service received information that two tourists, while descending from Hoverla Mountain towards the Zaroslyak tract, got off the route and were lost.

Rescue workers were sent to conduct search and rescue operations. At 17:45, they met the stray tourists in a satisfactory condition; they did not need any medical help. At 18:30 rescuers escorted them to the place of temporary residence, in the village of Vorokhta.
The UK faces tough negotiations with Brussels as the country reaches a turning point following Brexit.

Almost half a century as a member of the Brussels club came to an end at 11pm on Friday, with jubilant Brexiteers partying in Parliament Square in Westminster and a light show illuminating 10 Downing Street.

But even Boris Johnson acknowledged there could be bumps in the road as the UK moves into a new era, with uncertainty still surrounding the future relationship between Britain and its closest neighbours.

French president Emmanuel Macron underlined the difficulties that will be encountered in the trade talks.

It is in our common interest to define as close and deep a partnership as possible in defence and security, and in police, judicial, environmental, scientific and cultural co-operation, he wrote in The Times.

At the same time let me be honest, as I have always been: ease of access to the European market will depend on the degree to which the European Unions rules are accepted, because we cannot allow any harmful competition to develop between us.

With Big Ben silenced as a result of repair work, a projection of Parliaments clock was beamed onto 10 Downing Street and a recording of the famous bongs signalled the moment of the UKs exit from the European Union.

Outside Parliament, Brexit Party leader Nigel Farage hailed the greatest moment in the modern history of our great nation.

But the Prime Minister struck a more moderate tone, recognising the mixed feelings in a nation that remains deeply divided after years of bitter Brexit battles.

Tonight we have left the EU  an extraordinary turning point in the life of this country.

Tonight we have left the EU  an extraordinary turning point in the life of this country. Let us come together now to make the most of all the opportunities Brexit will bring  and lets unleash the potential of the whole UK.   Boris Johnson (@BorisJohnson) January 31, 2020

Let us come together now to make the most of all the opportunities Brexit will bring  and lets unleash the potential of the whole UK.

Story continues

The Prime Minister acknowledged that while for some it was an astonishing moment of hope for others there was a sense of anxiety and loss.

The UK joined the then European Economic Community in 1973 but the 2016 referendum signalled the beginning of the process which resulted in Britains membership of the bloc coming to an end at 11pm on Friday.

Mr Johnson said his job was now to bring this country together.

We want this to be the beginning of a new era of friendly cooperation between the EU and an energetic Britain, a Britain that is simultaneously a great European power and truly global in our range and ambitions, he said.

And whatever the bumps in the road ahead I know that we will succeed.

Pro-EU campaigners take part in a Missing EU Already rally outside the Scottish Parliament (Jane Barlow/PA)

There will be few practical changes due to Brexit as the deal negotiated by the UK and EU keeps Britain aligned with EU rules for the rest of the year.

But in a potent symbol of the changed relationship, the Union flag was removed from the European Union institutions in Brussels.

Attention has already turned to the next set of talks aimed at the relationship in trade and other areas which will apply from January 1, 2021.

Brussels is pessimistic about the 11-month timetable for reaching a deal and made clear that Britain will have to accept worse terms and conditions for trade than if it were still a member of the EU.

European Commission president Ursula von der Leyen said: We want to have the best possible relationship with the United Kingdom, but it will never be as good as membership.

(PA Graphics)

Senior Cabinet minister Michael Gove acknowledged the trade-offs that would have to be made in any deal.

There will be some regulations that will differ in Britain so that may mean that when it comes to trading with Europe there are some bureaucratic processes there that arent there now, the Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster said.

The Daily Telegraph reported that Mr Johnson is prepared to impose full customs and border checks on all European goods entering the UK in an effort to create leverage in the negotiations with Brussels.

The newspaper also said Brussels had issued Britain with a bill for 1.09 billion as it left, as a result of recalculations due to higher gross national income and VAT receipts.

The Prime Minister hosted a reception in Number 10 for senior ministers, officials and supporters of Vote Leave who drank English sparkling wine while the light show was beamed onto the exterior of the building.

Nigel Farage speaks to pro-Brexit supporters in Parliament Square, London (Jonathan Brady/PA)

Mr Farage told cheering crowds at the rally in Parliament Square: We did it. We transformed the landscape of our country.

There are some that say we shouldnt celebrate tonight, but we are going to celebrate tonight.

He added: The people have beaten the establishment. The real winner tonight is democracy. And I am someone who believes we should be pro-Europe, but not the European Union.

German Chancellor Angela Merkel said Brexit was a deep break for us all and warned the negotiations will certainly not be easy.
Washington: The US Senate on Friday rebuffed Democratic calls for new witnesses at President Donald Trump's impeachment trial, paving the way for his acquittal next week of charges of abuse of power and obstruction of Congress.

Following the 51-49 vote, the Senate scheduled four hours of closing arguments by Democratic prosecutors and White House defense lawyers on Monday and a vote for acquittal on Wednesday.

A Wednesday vote will mean the historic trial will not have concluded before Tuesday, when Trump is scheduled to give his nationally televised annual "State of the Union" speech to a joint session of Congress.

Trump is all-but-assured of being acquitted by the Senate, where Republicans hold 53 seats to 47 for the Democrats and a two-thirds majority - or 67 senators - is needed to remove a president from office.

Two Republican senators - Mitt Romney of Utah and Susan Collins of Maine - joined 47 Democrats in voting to introduce further witnesses into the trial.

But Democrats failed to muster the four votes needed to allow testimony from Trump's former national security advisor John Bolton, acting White House chief of staff Mick Mulvaney and others.

Senate Democratic Minority Leader Chuck Schumer called it a "grand tragedy."

"America will remember this day - a day when the United States Senate did not live up to its responsibilities, turned away from truth and instead went along with a sham trial," Schumer said.

'Impeached forever'

Nancy Pelosi, the Democratic speaker of the House of Representatives, which impeached Trump on December 18, accused Republicans who voted against allowing witnesses of being "accomplices to the president's cover-up."

"He is impeached forever," Pelosi said. "There can be no acquittal without a trial. And there is no trial without witnesses, documents and evidence."

Democrats had been eager to hear from Bolton following reports that he claims in an upcoming book to have been personally told by Trump that military aid to Ukraine was tied to Kiev investigating Joe Biden, his potential Democratic rival in November's presidential election.

The charge is the crux of the case which led to Trump becoming just the third president in US history to be impeached by the House of Representatives.

Republican Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell, a Trump ally, said House prosecutors, known as "managers," had already presented enough evidence to make their case and there was no need for further witnesses.

"A majority of the US Senate has determined that the numerous witnesses and 28,000-plus pages of documents already in evidence are sufficient to judge the House Managers' accusations and end this impeachment trial," he said.

"There is no need for the Senate to re-open the investigation," he said. "Never in Senate history has this body paused an impeachment trial to pursue additional witnesses."

McConnell said the Senate would resume as a court of impeachment at 11:00 am (1600 GMT) on Monday to allow House prosecutors and White House lawyers to deliver their final arguments. Each side will have two hours to speak.

The Senate will then vote at 4:00 pm on Wednesday on the two articles of impeachment passed last month by Democrats in the House.

'Partisan nature'

With the focus shifting to the final vote, all eyes will be on whether any Democrats facing potential tough re-election battles in November will vote to acquit the president.

Democratic Senator Doug Jones, for example, is facing what is shaping up to be a tough re-election fight in Alabama, a state which voted overwhelmingly for Trump in the 2016 election.

Democrats had been hoping to sway enough Republicans to support the call for further witnesses but efforts collapsed when Alaska Senator Lisa Murkowski said she would vote "no" to new testimony.

"Given the partisan nature of this impeachment from the very beginning and throughout, I have come to the conclusion that there will be no fair trial in the Senate," Murkowski said.

"I don't think the continuation of this process will change anything," she added.

Republican Senator Lamar Alexander of Tennessee, who had also been considered a possible swing vote, also said there was no need for more evidence.

"It was inappropriate for the president to ask a foreign leader to investigate his political opponent and to withhold United States aid to encourage that investigation," Alexander said.

"But the Constitution does not give the Senate the power to remove the president from office and ban him from this year's ballot simply for actions that are inappropriate," he said.

Before the Senate vote, Adam Schiff, the leader of the House impeachment prosecutors, made an impassioned last-ditch argument for witnesses.

"A trial without witnesses is simply not a trial," the California lawmaker said.

"This trial is supposed to be a quest for the truth," he said. "Let's not fear what we will learn."
The government on Saturday increased customs duty on several products, including toys, footwear and furniture items, with a view to promote 'Make in India' and boost domestic manufacturing.

Customs or import duty on footwear has been increased from 25 per cent to 35 per cent and on parts of footwear to 20 per cent from 15 per cent.

Similarly, on toys like tricycles, dolls, and puzzles of all kinds, the duty has been hiked to 60 per cent from 20 per cent at present.

On furniture goods such as seats, mattress support, articles of bedding, and lamps and lighting fittings, the import duty has been increased to 25 per cent from the current 20 per cent.

"Labour intensive sectors in MSME are critical for employment generation. Cheap and low-quality imports are an impediment to their growth," Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman said in her Budget speech.

She said that special attention has been taken to put measured restraint on import of those items which are being produced by our MSMEs with better quality.

"Keeping in view the need of this sector, customs duty is being raised on items like footwear and furniture," she added.

The Commerce and Industry Ministry in its pre-Budget recommendations to the Finance Ministry had proposed rationalisation of basic customs or import duty on over 300 items from different sectors.

"There is a significant increase in imports of undervalued and cheap footwear. Hike in the duty will help address the issue of price competition. Majority of imports are coming from ASEAN countries, with which India has a free trade agreement. It is also suspected that China is re-routing large quantities of footwear through these countries," an official had said.

Import of these toys increased to USD 304 million in 2018-19 from USD 281.82 million in 2017-18 from China and Hong Kong.

Trade Promotion Council of India (TPCI) Chairman Mohit Singla said the hike in duty on furniture is a "great move" by the government which will provide impetus to domestic manufacturers to augment 'Swadeshi' products.

"This move will allow Indian furniture products to find space in the global retail shelf and also meet the burgeoning domestic demand by leveraging its potential," Singla said.

He added that despite the rich geographical diversity, technical know-how and ample availability of skills, the domestic industry could not so far tap the latent opportunity.

"The restrictions in imports by enhancing custom duties will lead to the level playing field where the domestic companies can now compete at global platforms," he said.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
COLUMBUS, OhioGov. Mike DeWine is only a year into his four-year term, but his campaign is still bringing in the bucks.

The governors campaign reported raising just under $1.4 million between July and December, leaving the campaign with almost $1.8 million in the bank, according to newly filed campaign-finance records.

Thats more than four times what the DeWine campaign brought in during the first half of 2019, when his staff was still catching their breath from the most expensive campaign for governor in Ohio history.

Three of the top five contributors to DeWine during the last half of the year were labor unions: Northwestern Ohio building and construction trades council, the Ironworkers Political Action League, and the International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers political action committee each gave $13,292. In all, unions gave a total of more than $165,000 to DeWine during that time, records show.

Thats a reflection of how organized labor  especially building and construction trade unions  are increasingly donating to Republicans as the GOP continues its dominance over all three branches of state government.

The other two top donors were Jimmy Haslam and his wife Dee, who own the Pilot Flying J truck stop chain, as well as the Cleveland Browns. They each also gave $13,292.

Just behind them were former Ohio Republican Party chair-turned-lobbyist Matt Borges, Cleveland restauranteur Tony George, and ex-Hamilton County Commissioner Greg Hartmann, who each gave $13,000. Earlier this month, DeWine appointed Hartmann, a well-known Republican in the Cincinnati area, to the University of Cincinnati board of trustees.

The Ohio Republican Party gave the governor a total of $735,000 worth of in-kind contributions for communications, fundraising and political consulting work between July and December, according to the records.

In addition, DeWine still has not repaid himself any of the $4 million he loaned his campaign, the records indicate.
Nearly a week after honoring Sean Diddy Combs at the Clive Davis pre-Grammys gala, rapper Mase lashed out at the Bad Boy Records founder and accused Combs of ripping him off along with others signed to his label.

I heard u loud and clear when u said that u are now for the artist and to that my response is if u want to see change you can make a change today by starting with yourself, Mase posted on Instagram. Your past business practices knowingly has ... been extremely unfair to the very same artist that helped u obtain that Icon Award on the iconic Badboy label.

A representative for Combs did not immediately respond to an email request for comment Friday.

In a fiery, 50-minute speech at the Jan. 25 gala, Combs sharply criticized the Grammy Awards for dissing rap and R&B stars in its major categories. Combs was honored at the event and received an all-star tribute from artists he's worked with, including Mase, Lil Kim, Faith Evans and Carl Thomas.

In his speech, Combs demanded change from the Grammys within the year.
CHAMBERSBURG, Pa.  An owner of a shuttered creamery faces federal charges for allegedly running a Ponzi scheme that tricked members of his own religious community to support the business.

According to the Department of Justice, Philip Elvin Riehl's suspected $60 million scheme "targeted members of the Mennonite and Amish communities in Pennsylvania and elsewhere and is one of the largest Pennsylvania-based alleged Ponzi schemes in history."

Riehl, an accountant from Berks County, Pennsylvania, is accused of fraudulently soliciting tens of millions of dollars into a bogus investment program, then diverting those funds to Trickling Springs Creamery, LLC, according to a news release from the United States Attorney's Office for the Eastern District of Pennsylvania. He also allegedly solicited investments that went directly to Trickling Springs.

Riehl misrepresented the safety and security of the investments, and made misrepresentations and omissions about the creamery's business and financial condition, according to the DOJ.

Trickling Springs Creamery, pictured in 2015.

Trickling Springs Creamery used milk purchased from 32 family farms to make products that it sold along the East Coast. Its store and production facility in Chambersburg shut down suddenly at the end of September, though the store remained open a few more days. It filed for bankruptcy in December.

More: Pennsylvania slaps Trickling Springs Creamery owners with $4 million fine for fraud

Phishing scam: Texas school district reports $2.3 million loss

A Pennsylvania Department of Banking and Securities filing from a year prior showed that Riehl, the majority owner of the company, and co-owners Gerald Byers, Elvin Martin and Dale Martin were accused of bilking nearly $9 million from more than 100 investors in Pennsylvania and around the country. The order sought a response from the owners as to why the department should not impose sanctions and remedies concerning the alleged violation.

According to the DOJ, a scheme such as the one alleged is sometimes called "affinity fraud." These are investment scams that prey upon members of identifiable groups, such as religious or ethnic communities.

Story continues

Riehl, himself a Mennonite, generally targeted "members of the Mennonite and Amish communities who wanted a safe and secure investment, operated within their community and in a manner consistent with their religious principles," the DOJ's release states.

These investors were looking for honesty and integrity when deciding where and with whom to invest their money, said U.S. Attorney William McSwain.

Michael T. Harpster, special agent in charge of the FBI's Philadelphia Division, said, So long as there are people with money to invest, there will be swindlers ready to take their money under false pretenses. But it is particularly loathsome when these criminals exploit trusting members of their own church or community."

Riehl is charged with conspiracy, securities fraud and wire fraud.

If convicted, he could face a maximum sentence of 45 years in prison, a $5.5 million fine, a three-year term of supervised release, forfeiture and mandatory restitution.

A call to an attorney listed for Trickling Springs Creamery in the Department of Banking and Securities filing was not immediately returned Friday.

Trickling Springs opened in June 2001. The founders established strict guidelines for the farms producing their milk  including requiring grass-fed, heritage breed cows and no use of synthetic hormones  and would pay farms above-average prices to maintain these standards, according to the company's website. With this milk, the creamery used minimal processing and simple ingredients to produce its milk products, butter, cream, cheese, ice cream and other dairy products.

Follow Amber South on Twitter: @aesouthpo

This article originally appeared on Chambersburg Public Opinion: Amish, Mennonites targeted in Pennsylvania Ponzi scheme, feds say
Keeping the marsh: The people-friendly approach By Tharuka Dissanaike Today, February 2 is World Wetlands Day View(s): View(s):

Wetlands give us clean air, water, food and recreational spaces. If treated right, they may even save us from future climate change A kilometre or so from the bustling, congested sprawl of Rajagiriya lies an urban oasis. Mangrove fringed waterways, a dirt track winding through deep marsh, reedbeds swaying in the breeze and scattered everywhere evidence of non-human life  animal droppings, birds nests etc. Luxury apartment buildings tower over the Madinnagoda wetland, but the people closest to the marsh live in a parallel universe. Islands of poverty in a shrinking sea of green hemmed in by the fast expanding urbanscape of Colombo.

For too long, wetlands were considered wastelands. I remember, as a young reporter to this newspaper almost two decades ago, writing about the first attempts to protect wetlands in and around Colombo. At this time, Attidiya, Kotte and Muthurajawela had been declared protected areas. Compromise between development needs and conservation was exemplified in the Muthurajawela development plan which allowed a portion of the vast wetland to be filled in and developed for industrial demand (the Kerawalapitiya Industrial Zone) and most of it to be conserved. Since then, however, Muthurajawela has been subjected to much abuse  municipal waste dumping, housing, power projects and even the expressway decimated the marsh and not much of it remains in its pristine state. Even the notices that declared it a protected area have been taken down.

Colombos wetlands received Ramsar status in 2018  a much celebrated achievement. But protecting and conserving these lands (much of which is privately owned) has been an uphill battle for government authorities. Sometimes, according to civil society watchdog groups, both local and national government agencies are found guilty of filling and building on the marshes or using them to dump municipal or industrial waste.

Due north, the Kala Oya snakes through some of the richest mangrove areas in the country to meet the sea in a surreal landscape of sky, river, sea and lagoon. Wilpattu to its north and Aruwakkalu Forest and Puttlam lagoon to the south, the Kala Oya river mouth has a rich diversity of mangroves including the threatened Scyphiphora hydrophilacea, which is featured on a new stamp issued to commemorate World Wetlands Day 2020. A sleepy fishing village is situated on the river mouth. One would imagine that protecting such a wetland is a non-issue. But efforts to demarcate and protect this no-mans land have been quite an uphill task in an area with uncontrolled fishery, tourism and waste dumping.

Many attempts have been made to value wetlands. The value of an urban wetland like Madinnagoda versus the Kala Oya river mouth may be as different as chalk and cheese. The aesthetic and recreational value of urban wetlands is well known. Lesser known, however, is the role they play in flood control and purifying the water cycle.

More than 15 years ago, the value of the goods and services derived from Muthurajawela wetland was estimated by IUCN at Rs. 725 million per year. This considered the direct benefits such as fishery, flood control, water purification and tourism. Today the value of these services would easily be doubled and the population living in the wetland area would have increased tenfold. However, the marsh is still considered an expendable wasteland to be exploited for waste dumping, haphazard industrialisation and housing.

In our attempt to conserve sensitive ecosystems that are not formally under any protection regime, the UNDP is drawing up a management plan for the Kala Oya river mouth area. It is interesting to view conservation from a user perspective  through the eyes of fishermen and farmers and tourist boat operators  who are the immediate stakeholders of this natural landscape.

Contrary to conventional conservation-oriented wisdom, communities closest to the resource are not generally the worst exploiters. Poverty ridden and marginalised, these remote and rural villagers can see the direct value of this ecosystem, and have more stakes in its conservation. The more direct benefits they derive from it for their own food and income, people are invested in conservation of nature. However, poor communities who live beside wetlands are not the only ones deriving benefit from it. Benefits spill over to the government (flood control, tourism income, water purification) to society as whole (clean air, biodiversity, recreation). If communities in the front lines are to play a key part in conservation, I strongly argue that we need to offset their risk and compensate for their loss of opportunity.

Why should this be? Imagine you are a landowner in Thalangama tank surroundings. Because it is declared an environment protection area, landowners forego the right to develop their private holdings in ways that are damaging to the environment (set up polluting industries for example) and aesthetically challenging (tall buildings). Agriculture should also desist from chemical use to the extent possible minimising threats to the fish, reptiles and plants in the wetland. While the resource is being enjoyed by many, the price of this conservation is the burden of a few.

Take another example of a paddy farmer in Colombo. Many wet zone paddies are abandoned because they are not economical and because people have other incomes. However, the UNDP has demonstrated through community grants bringing wet zone paddies back into cultivation in areas such as Homagama and Godagama. The most immediate benefit is urban flood control. The benefit, therefore, is reaped by urban dwellers and government rather than the farmer  hence we argue that there should be incentives (financial or otherwise) to encourage farmers to cultivate fallow paddies and compensate their losses from flood. If not for this natural flood interceptor, the government would be paying a heavy price to restore damaged infrastructure  and insurance payouts for homes and shops would be huge.

Coming back to Kala Oya, the UNDPs work focuses on co-management of the natural resource with users on the premise that those who derive direct benefit from the ecosystem have greater stake in its conservation. As such, we have managed to negotiate agreement between fishermen, tourist boat owners, Forest Department and local authorities on how to manage economic activity and recreation in this sensitive landscape with enough attention to conserving wetlands. Again, the interest and commitment of District and Divisional bureaucracy was high  this we can attribute to the approach that encouraged wise use of natural resources instead of militarised, fortress-like conservation which shuts people out.

Food for thought, in an age where traditional conservation is increasingly challenged, the only way to stem the tide would be to take the development approach and work with people closest to the resource.

(The writers is Policy Specialist and Team Leader, Climate Change and Environment, UNDP Sri Lanka)
Through acts of tikkun olam, Jewish people have longed engaged in good works aimed at improving the conditions of the disadvantaged.

In South Carolina, the disadvantaged includes thousands of women who live in poverty. Their struggle to afford feminine hygiene products impacts their daily lives, and faith groups are looking to help.

"Enabling women to have dignity to go to their jobs and go to school  thats helping heal the world," said Sharon Hox, president of the Charleston chapter of Hadassah, the Womens Zionist Organization of America, Inc.

The group recently held a "period party," where volunteers collected just under 300 bags packed with tampons, sanitary pads, wipes and pantyliners for schoolchildren and homeless individuals. The effort seeks to address the issue of "period poverty," which underscores the reality of thousands of women who can't afford feminine hygiene products.

A 2017 survey conducted by Always, a menstrual hygiene brand, showed that one in five girls in the U.S. have either left school early or missed school entirely due to lack of period protection.

Advocates say part of the reason is because the products are not affordable for low-income residents since feminine hygiene items aren't covered by government assistance programs, such as WIC, SNAP or Medicaid, leading some to use socks and plastic bags instead of professional hygiene resources, said Sharron Champion, co-founder of the Greenville-based Homeless Period Project.

Additionally, in S.C., a state where hundreds of thousands of women live in poverty, feminine products aren't exempt from sales taxes.

While many are still unaware of the issue, advocates, elected officials and faith leaders have worked in recent years to address the problem.

The Homeless Period Project was established in 2015 when the group began hosting period parties to offer products to schools and shelters.

Since its founding, the Greenville-based period project has helped organize hundreds of parties across the Palmetto State, donated almost 400,000 period packs and established a presence in every middle and high school in South Carolina, Champion said.

Hadassah collaborated with the project in a recent event where volunteers gathered at a private home in West Ashley and assembled hundreds of bags of menstrual hygiene products.

Hox said the group became aware of the issue surrounding period poverty some months ago, but she believes awareness will now begin to rise within the Jewish community.

The group also plans to advocate for a statehouse bill aimed at helping women in need. The measure was introduced by State Rep. Krystle Matthews, D-Ladson, who previously cited the bill as a matter of equality.

The legislation would free the products from being taxed.

To tax them is to say to women and girls, 'These products are not a necessity,'" Champion said.

Religious leaders and advocacy organizations recognize that shedding the stigma is part of the challenge.

Those who attend period parties are often a bit reserved at first. But after joining an assembly line of volunteers manufacturing bags of feminine products, those who were embarrassed become more comfortable, Champion said.

"You see the stigma wash away," she said.

Champion hopes to expand her organization to more directly address systemic issues, like poverty and joblessness.

Her organization recently received a $10,000 grant to examine the feasibility of attaching a workforce development program to the organization.

She also hopes the Homeless Period Project could, at some point, manufacture menstrual products, giving the organization a regular means of income to sustain the project, as well as developing a yoga program and daycare.
A staff member at Tan Son Nhat Airport checks the body temperatures of passengers arriving in Viet Nam. Listed aviation and tourism stocks dropped significantly due to information about the coronavirus pandemic. VNA/VNS Photo Dinh Hang.

On the Ho Chi Minh Stock Exchange (HOSE), the VN-Index lost 2.39 per cent to end at 936.62 points.

The index slumped 3.22 per cent to 959.58 points by the end of Thursdays session.

After the first two sessions of the year, the VN-Index has lost by up to 5.61 per cent, while the whole year of 2019 the index climbed by only 7.67 per cent.

A total of 254 million shares worth VND4.88 trillion (US$210.6 million) were traded on the southern market.

The large-cap VN30-Index dropped 3.1 per cent to close at 848.63 points with 25 of the 30 largest stocks by market capitalisation and trading liquidity falling.

Remarkably on Friday, while aviation stocks dropped to the floor prices, pharmaceutical and medical equipment groups gained ground.

Listed aviation and tourism stocks dropped significantly due to the coronavirus. The leading stocks of aviation groups hit the daily limit decline. Vietjet (VJC) on HOSE dropped 7 per cent to the floor price of VND130,200. Vietnam Airlines (HVN) on the Unlisted Public Company Market (UPCoM) dropped 6.9 per cent to the floor price of VND28,450.

Other large-cap stocks such as dairy firm Vinamilk (VNM), PetroVietnam Fertiliser and Chemicals Coporation (DPM), Bao Viet Holdings (BVH), Refrigeration Electrical Engineering Corporation (REE), IT giant FPT Corporation (FPT), Hoa Phat Group (HPG) and Vincom Retail (VRE) also lost ground.

Petroleum stocks also dropped strongly with PetroVietnam Gas (GAS) falling by 6 per cent, Binh Son Refining and Petrochemical Company (BSR) declining by 6.2 per cent, PVPower (POW) losing by 5.4 per cent, PetroVietnam Technical Services Corporation (PVS) decreasing by 5.8 per cent and PVD falling by 6.7 per cent.

Pharmaceuticals and medical equipment saw positive growth. A series of stocks in this group increased to the ceiling price such as American Vietnamese Biotech INC (AMV), DHG Pharmaceutical Joint Stock Company (DHG), Ha Tay Pharmaceutical Joint Stock Company (DHT), Japan Vietnam Medical Instrument Joint Stock Company (JVC).

Phan Dung Khanh, director of investment consultancy department at Maybank Kim Eng Securities Co Ltd, said Viet Nam's stock market dropped sharply because investors were worried that a pneumonia outbreak, caused by a new strain of the coronavirus, would spread out on a larger scale affecting the financial market.

The World Health Organisation on Thursday declared a global emergency as the virus spread to more countries.

The disease first surfaced in Wuhan, China, in December. It has spread to many other countries and territories. China's National Health Commission has confirmed nearly 9,700 infection cases and 213 deaths by Friday.

On the Ha Noi Stock Exchange, the HNX-Index lost 1.68 per cent to end at 102.36 points.

The northern market index dropped 2.04 per cent to 104.11 points on Thursday.
One of Britain's biggest health chains is selling illegal cannabis oil, The Mail on Sunday can reveal.

High-street favourite Holland & Barrett stocks a brand of oil that contains more than four times the legal limit of tetrahydrocannabinol, or THC, the psychoactive ingredient in cannabis.

Manufactured in Holland, Jacob Hooy oil is reportedly the best-selling cannabidiol, or CBD oil, product in Britain.

CBD products have surged in popularity and are now taken by more than six million Britons, attracted by claims that they help with conditions such as skin complaints, depression and insomnia.

On its website, Holland & Barrett, which has 800 stores across Britain, says the oil is 'non-psychoactive and the content of THC is tested on every batch to meet specification requirements of less than 0.05 per cent'.

On offer: A Holland & Barrett advert promoting its Buy One Get One Half Price deal for the CBD oil (left). Manufactured in Holland, Jacob Hooy oil is reportedly the best-selling cannabidiol, or CBD oil, product in Britain

The oligarch owner building a VERY fancy joint Mikhail Fridman Holland & Barrett's status as Britain's biggest health-food retailer was underlined when it was bought for 1.8 billion in 2017 by a Russian oligarch. Mikhail Fridman, who was ranked tenth on The Sunday Times Rich List last year with an estimated fortune of 10.9 billion, has made his home in Highgate, North London, where he is restoring Athlone House, a 19th Century mansion modelled on the Palace of Versailles. The 55-year-old grew up in the Ukrainian city of Lviv where he ran a student disco called Strawberry Fields and started a window-washing business. In 2003, he struck a deal with BP that formed his company TNK-BP, before creating Alfa-Group, one of Russia's largest multinational conglomerates. His North London mansion Mr Fridman, a divorced father-of-four, plans to leave his fortune to charity and has denied reports of links to the Kremlin. Holland & Barrett was established in 1870 by Major William Holland and Alfred Slapps Barrett in Bishop's Stortford, Hertfordshire, as a grocery and clothing store. The company now has 1,300 shops in 16 countries, including China, the Netherlands, India and Saudi Arabia. It faced criticism in 2012 for employing about 1,000 unpaid people through a government jobs programme. Advertisement

But the Jacob Hooy website says a 10ml bottle of its CBD oil contains 4.4 milligrams of THC. Under the Misuse of Drugs Regulations 2001, the legal limit of THC in any one product is 1mg.

Last night, Holland & Barrett, which sells the oil for 19.99 but is offering a Buy One, Get One For Half Price deal on its website, said it was satisfied that it was 'lawfully marketing these products'.

This newspaper has seen results from tests on a bottle of Jacob Hooy CBD bought from a branch of Holland & Barrett that showed levels of 12.4mg of THC  more than 12 times the legal limit.

The tests were conducted by Fera Science, a laboratory part-owned by the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs. Fera Science works for several Government departments.

Analysis of 31 brands of CBD oil sold in stores and online found ten had THC levels above the legal limit, including one with almost 24mg of THC.

Experts say levels above 10mg can have an adverse effect on cognitive functions.

The revelations will reignite concerns about the safety of products sold in the ever-growing and lucrative CBD market and the ability of regulators to enforce rules.

The CBD industry is overseen by a variety of different Government departments, but critics say this has caused confusion.

The Food Standards Agency (FSA) is the main regulator, but the Home Office is responsible if products contain controlled substances such as THC.

Another watchdog, the Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency, can intervene if CBD products make medicinal claims.

Manufacturers of CBD products are required by the FSA to prove they are safe.

However, the FSA last night admitted that no CBD products in the UK market have been authorised but declined to say why, as a result, it was not pulling products off the shelves.

Tory MP Craig MacKinlay, the chairman of an all-party parliamentary group exploring the dangers of cannabis, said: 'A limit has been set for a reason and the thought that big, respected health food companies are exceeding these limits is not only a worry, it's making our entire cannabis policy a laughing stock.'

Rebecca Sudworth, director of policy at the FSA, said: 'The FSA has persistently made clear to the CBD industry that they need to apply for authorisation.

'If we don't see compliance soon we will take further action. If any evidence is found to suggest CBD is harmful, it will be removed from shelves immediately.'

Holland & Barrett said the CBD oil was sold as a food supplement and was clearly not designed for administration of controlled cannabinoids as evidenced by its packaging and labelling.

A spokesman said negligible quantities of THC in the oil was due to the technical difficulty in obtaining pure CBD but all steps were taken to minimise the THC levels. In any event, it said the THC would have no adverse effect on consumers.

Before the product went on sale in 2016, the firm said it had consulted with the Home Office and lawyers over current legislation and that based on our due diligence we believe that we are lawfully marketing these products, which are also lawfully marketed elsewhere in the EU with similar levels of THC.
Le gouvernment lors de sa reunion du cabinet du 31 janvier 2020 a pris connaisance des mesures et des protocoles mis en place pour mitiger les effets et larrivee de ce virus qui est apparu dans la ville de Wuhan en Chine/

Cabinet has taken note of the prevailing situation regarding the novel coronavirus detected in Wuhan City in the Peoples Republic of China and the precautionary measures being taken by the Ministry of Health and Wellness to safeguard Mauritians against any risks.

In Mauritius, there are presently no confirmed cases of the novel coronavirus.

The following precautionary measures are effective as from 20 January 2020:

(a) all passengers travelling from China are screened at the airport through the thermal scanner. Similarly, passengers arriving by cruise ships at Port-Louis Harbour are also being screened. Passengers coming from China are closely monitored by the Public Health Inspectors, for a period of 14 days post arrival;

(b) passengers showing signs of fever and cough are being assessed by the Rapid Response Team consisting of Regional Public Health Superintendents, Medical Health Officers, Ambulance Staff and the Public Health Inspectors. The team is operational at each regional hospital;

(c) specimens from suspected cases are being sent to the Virology Laboratory, Victoria Hospital, for investigation; and

(d) suspected cases are being admitted at the New Souillac Hospital for investigation and treatment.

The Ministry of Health and Wellness has also issued press communiques to inform the general public about the novel coronavirus and the precautions that need to be taken to avoid any risk of infection. Meetings have been held with Tour Operators and Directors of

Travel Agencies in order to sensitise them on the preventive measures and to seek their close collaboration concerning the surveillance of passengers arriving from China.

The Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Regional Integration and International Trade has also issued a communique to request Mauritian nationals in China to stay in contact with the Embassy of Mauritius in Beijing in order to provide information pertaining to their health conditions and to extend the necessary support and assistance they may require.

The Ministry is also looking into the request for evacuation of Mauritian nationals in Wuhan City.

Cabinet has also taken note that a High Level Committee chaired by the Prime Minister would meet that very afternoon to take stock of the situation and of the impact of the novel coronavirus on the various sectors of the economy.
The vegan bakery chain Cinnaholic, which gained notoriety on the ABC show Shark Tank, will celebrate the opening of its first San Antonio location with $1 gourmet cinnamon rolls from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. Feb. 14.

The plant-based bakery, which uses no dairy, eggs or other animal products, specializes in cinnamon rolls with more than a dozen flavors of frosting, from cream cheese to hazelnut to amaretto and peanut butter. The menu also includes brownies, cookies, cakes, tea and coffee.
S Lalitha By

Express News Service

BENGALURU: The GPS-Aided Geo-Augmented Navigation (GAGAN) system for aircraft, aimed at boosting passenger safety by guiding pilots to precision landing on runways, will be a big gamechanger for Indias aviation industry.

Domestic airlines, which stand to benefit from reduced fuel costs it will bring about, still have six months on hand to install this system, due to a revised deadline. The sophisticated system was meant to be mandatorily installed in all aircraft by January 1, 2019, as per the National Civil Aviation Policy.

However, poor compliance by the domestic aviation sector forced the Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) to reschedule the deadline by 18 months, after the deadline expired,.

The Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) and Airports Authority of India are jointly developing this project at a cost of Rs 774 crore, he said. The first GAGAN system was launched in 2015. "The accuracy and integrity that GAGAN provides will help aircraft maintain a close but safe distance from each other, and its precision signals will help them land much quicker instead of hovering around the skies over airports. Aviation Turbine Fuel is the biggest daily expense for any airline, and this system will help them bring it down," an aerospace source privy to the developments said. In fact, airlines need to go all out to install them as they will benefit in the long run, he added.

The indigenous regional Satellite Based Augmentation System (SBAS) uses ground stations to send signals to the aircraft. From the point of passenger safety, midair collisions and bad landing of aircraft can be averted, another source said.

"It will particularly benefit small airports across the country, which do not have the resources to become CAT-III compliant (which helps landing and take off in zero-visibility conditions). In flights which do not have the GAGAN receiver, the decision to take off or land is heavily dependent on the pilots decision. This will be an accurate reference tool for the cockpit crew, thereby ensuring momentary bad judgments do not result in loss of lives or damage the aircraft," he said.

No agency was able to provide an estimate of how many aircraft in the country have the GAGAN receiver installed. "The latest aircraft come equipped with it due to its advantages, but the older ones need to be retrofitted," he said.
An Army jawan and his wife were killed after their motorcycle was hit by a tractor-trolley in Himachal Pradesh's Kangra district, police said on Saturday.

Anil Kumar (42) and his wife Suman (41) of Bai Indoria village were on their way to Murthal in Haryana from Pathankot in Punjab when the accident occurred at Chhani Bailey area on National Highway-1, they added.

The couple sustained critical injuries and were taken to a hospital in Pathankot where they succumbed to injuries, they said.

The driver of the tractor-trolley fled from the spot, police said, adding that a case had been registered at Damtal Police Station.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
Gully Boy actor Vijay Varma has thanked stand-up comedian Kunal Kamra for his by-now viral in-flight verbal attack on journalist Arnab Goswami.

In his post for Kamra, the actor has mentioned that even though he does not subscribe to what Kamra did, he is happy because the "tormentor" has been "shut up for once". He wrote,

"Thank you Kunal Kamra for treating us with a rare sight of silent Arnab. A pleasant change from his t*tti-u*ti-acid-spewing self." He added: "P.S. I don't think I subscribe to what Kamra did. But by God, it felt good to shut that tormentor up for once".





Not just Vijay Verma, Bollywood actress Raveena Tandon too feels it's not justified.





Insisting that she does not like Kunal Kamra as a comedian, Raveena Tandon said that the ban on him was not justified, adding, That I will stand for this. Speaking at an event, Raveena said, Ok, I like Kunal Kamra. Does that help? No? That doesnt help! Actually, personally I dont like him because he makes very personal and bad jokes but the ban on him was not justified. That I will stand for. Nonetheless, everyone has two sides of the coin.

Alia Bhatt's mother, veteran actor Soni Razdan, too has bashed the four airlines that have banned Kunal Kamra.

She tweeted: "Airlines seem to have suddenly turned into headmasters. Dear God whatever next ..."

Reacting to a tweet by Spice Jet that reads the airline has decided to suspend Kunal Kamra till further notice, Soni Razdan tweeted.

"And you have all become absolutely and utterly ridiculous".

And now, after a few days after Arnab Goswami and Kunal Kamra mid-air fiasco, the comedian has sent a legal notice to Indigo Airlines demanding an unconditional apology, revocation of the ban and Rs 25 lakh compensation.


The civic-run Kasturba Hospital in Chinchpokli might start testing samples for coronavirus from across India in its laboratory in order to ease the burden on Punes National Institute of Virology (NIV), which is currently the only testing centre analysing the virus in the country.

The development comes in the wake of health officials from the Centre visiting the hospital this week. The officials recommended the hospital start testing samples for coronavirus if the infrastructure of its laboratory meets the parameters set by the Centre.

The Central health department is planning to turn the laboratory of Kasturba Hospital into another national testing centre for coronavirus for faster processing of reports. They instructed us to submit the report on the medical facility, which was done on Friday, said Dr Suresh Kakani, additional municipal commissioner (health), BMC. It would take a week for us to get response from the Centre. If we get approval, we will be able to provide test reports faster.

The hospital has already sent a report of its available equipment and medical facilities for testing the virus to the Centre. It has a state-level testing facility to analyse samples such as HIV, E-coli and other viral infections.

Currently, all samples in India are being sent to NIV. Till Thursday, the centre had received 49 samples from across the country.

Staff not given proper masks

Meanwhile, staff members working near the isolation ward housing five suspected patients of coronavirus at Kasturba Hospital have complained that they have been provided single-layer surgical masks, which do not provide adequate protection from the virus. They have demanded respirator-N95 masks, as recommended by the World Health Organization (WHO).

The new strain of coronavirus  2019-nCoV  has symptoms similar to that of cough and cold and spreads through droplets released during coughing, sneezing or during unprotected physical contact with a sick person. We are working in close proximity to the isolation ward. The virus can spread through air, so we are at a vulnerable position. We have informed the officials, but so far, we have been only given surgical masks, said a nurse working near the isolation ward. However, doctors said only those who come in direct contact with the quarantined patients require the N95 masks.

Epidemiologist Dr Om Shrivastav said N95 masks are recommended for those working in the isolation ward.

Surgical masks are loose and fail to block tiny particles in air so, we recommend N95 for staffers working inside the isolation ward. Those working outside the ward do not require a respirator, he said.
Treasury bonds: Parliament can act on forensic audit reports, say officials By Bandula Sirimanna View(s): View(s):

With all the documents released to Parliament by the Central Bank on the forensic audits on Treasury bonds, the Speaker can instruct the Attorney General to file a case against those implicated in the losses from Treasury bond sales, officials familiar with the process, said.

This, however, can happen only after Parliament debates the five audit reports on February 18-19, and until then there is unlikely to be any movement on these reports, one official said.

The five forensic audit reports revealed details of billions of rupees in losses from Treasury bond sales between 2002 and 2016, periods covering the former Mahinda Rajapaksa and previous Maithripala Sirisena-Ranil Wickremesinghe governments.

However, it is likely that the findings of the forensic audits will be confined only to a parliamentary debate, and no judicial action will follow thereafter on its outcome, as the affiliates of both the present government and the opposition have been accused in this great bond robbery, said the senior official at the Auditor Generals (AG) Department who was actively involved in the preparation of the investigation report on the Central Bank Bond issue from February 2015 to May 2016. He declined to be named.

The material including annexure and exhibits along with forensic reviews are now available publicly providing sufficient information to take legal action against perpetrators, he revealed.

He noted that most of the 18 plus recommendations made in the AGs investigation report have been implemented by the Central Bank under the directions of previous Governor Dr Indrajit Coomaraswamy.

Central Bank Governor Prof W D Lakshman pointed out that the government is currently considering action, and the Central Bank will also have to take measures in accordance with the recommendations of the forensic audit.

Separate action will have to be taken by the judiciary and intelligence authorities with regard to findings in the report; he said adding that the Central Bank is still to take any action as it is now studying the very complex matter.

Senior Deputy Governor Dr Nandalal Weerasinghe noted that the Central Bank will be taking appropriate measures on the forensic audit recommendations relating to procedures and processes of bond transactions after studying the reports.

Former Chairman of the Committee on Public Enterprises (COPE) and MP Sunil Handunnetti told the Sunday Times that Prime Minister Mahinda Rajapaksa in his capacity as the countrys Finance Minister can direct the Attorney General to file a separate case making use of the forensic audit reports. This is possible as the Treasury Secretary is the Chief Accounting Officer in accordance with administrative regulations, he explained.

These reports will also be useful for the ongoing four Treasury bond cases, he said adding that this will never happen as the ruling party affiliates like Udaya Gammanpila have launched a media campaign to whitewash their own bond and EPF manipulators, Mr Handunnetti said.

Through COPEs scientific investigations the capacity for legal action has been strengthened. The forensic audit report was prepared on a request by COPE mainly for legal action. Therefore, making use of it is no waste of time and money spent on obtaining it, Mr Handunnetti said.

As the forensic audit report has revealed information from the very beginning of frauds and irregularities in connection with bond transactions, it has confirmed significantly that the conflict of interests adversely affected the operations of the Central Bank.

Another important fact the forensic audit report on bond transactions points out is that the impact of the bond scam does not limit only to the Central Bank.

Former Finance Ministers Ravi Karunanayake and Mangala Samaraweera and State Minister Harsha de Silva are among those listed to speak on behalf of the UNP at the parliamentary debate.
Construction works to expand infrastructure in some senior high schools (SHSs) in Accra, to end the double-track system are expected to be completed by March this year.



Currently, most of the works are at advanced stages of completion, while others have already been completed.



This came to light when the Greater Accra Regional Minister, Mr Ishmael Ashietey, visited some schools in Accra to inspect works being carried out in those schools.



The schools he visited are the Accra Technical Training Centre (ATTC), Accra Girls Senior High School, Achimota School, Odorgonno Senior High School, Wesley Grammar School and Accra Academy.



GETFund projects



The construction works are all under the Ghana Education Trust Fund (GETFund) Emergency Intervention Projects aimed at providing more infrastructure for SHSs to deal with the double-track system currently being operated in majority of schools in the country.



At the ATTC, it was realised that a two-storey 12-unit classroom block was 95 percent complete at the time of the ministers visit.



According to the Consultant of Edmund Taylor Architects, Mr Philip Bioh, the work was expected to be completed by the end of this February.



At the Accra Girls SHS, the construction of a six-unit classroom block, which began last year, had been completed and was being used by the students.



The consultant said it was handed over two weeks ago.



Two eight-unit classroom blocks, each for the Achimota and the Wesley Grammar schools on which works began last year, were also complete.



The block at Achimota School was awaiting furnishing while the Wesley Grammar School dormitory had some bunk beds in it.



At the Odorgonno SHS, workers were seen feverishly working on a three-storey 18-unit classroom block and a 16-unit two-storey dormitory block, which were 70 percent and 80 percent done.



The contractors said the two projects were expected to be ready next month.



At Accra Academy, the Technical Director of Sand Park Properties Limited, the contractor, Mr George Blankson, said the project would be completed next month.



Minister impressed



After the inspections, Mr Ashietey told journalists that he was impressed with the work done so far and that the quality was good.

Source: Graphic Online









Disclaimer : Opinions expressed here are those of the writers and do not reflect those of Peacefmonline.com. Peacefmonline.com accepts no responsibility legal or otherwise for their accuracy of content. Please report any inappropriate content to us, and we will evaluate it as a matter of priority.

Featured Video
Email To : Multiple e-mail addresses must be separated with a comma character(maximum 200 characters) Email To is required.

Your Full Name: (optional)

Your Email Address: Your Email Address is required.
NOT FOR DISTRIBUTION TO UNITED STATES NEWSWIRE SERVICES OR FOR DISSEMINATION IN THE UNITED STATES

CALGARY, Alberta, Jan. 31, 2020 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- XORTX Therapeutics Inc. ("XORTX" or the Company) (CSE: XRX; OTCQB: XRTXF), a biopharmaceutical company focused on developing innovative therapies to treat progressive kidney disease announces that it has re-priced its non-brokered private placement originally announced on April 29, 2019 to more accurately reflect the current market price of the Companys common shares.

The private placement will now consist of up to 36,000,000 units (the Units) at $0.14 per Unit for gross proceeds of approximately $5 million (the Private Placement), with each Unit consisting of one common share and one common share purchase warrant exercisable at $0.25 for a period of one year from the issuance of the Units, provided, however, that if, at any time following the expiry of the statutory four month hold period, the closing price of the common shares on the Canadian Securities Exchange (CSE) is greater than $0.35 for 10 or more consecutive trading days, the Company may notify the holder, by way of news release, that the warrants will expire on the 20th business day following the date of such notice, unless exercised by the holder before such date. The Company may pay finders fees on a portion of the Private Placement in accordance with applicable securities laws and the policies of the CSE.

Allen Davidoff, XORTXs President & CEO stated,

2020 has begun with flurry of positive activity. XORTX accepted an invitation to the JP Morgan Biotech Conference in San Francisco earlier this month where a large number of partnering and banking discussions related to both our autosomal dominant polycystic kidney disease (ADPKD) and type 2 diabetic nephropathy (T2DN) clinical programs occurred. As a result of recent positive developments related to both programs, interest in our ADPKD and T2DN programs has attracted broad interest from around the world in the past year. We are continuing these discussions with a goal to finalizing licensing agreements this year.

Alongside these licensing discussions, the Company is also continuing its efforts to advance clinical development of XRx-008 for polycystic kidney disease (a phase 3 ready program) and XRx-221 for T2DN (a phase 2b ready program) and to this end, and in response to the challenging capital markets, we have repriced the private placement.

The securities issued under the Private Placement will be subject to a statutory hold period expiring four months and one day from the date of issuance of such securities. Closing of the Private Placement is subject to regulatory approval.

The net proceeds of the offering will be used to advance XORTXs development of XRx-008 and XRx-221 for polycystic kidney disease (a phase 3 ready program) and type 2 diabetic nephropathy (a phase 2b ready program) including operations and ongoing licensing discussions.

The securities offered have not been registered under the U.S. Securities Act of 1933, as amended, and may not be offered or sold in the United States absent registration or an applicable exemption from the registration requirements. This press release shall not constitute an offer to sell or the solicitation of an offer to buy nor shall there be any sale of the securities in any State in which such offer, solicitation or sale would be unlawful.

About XORTX Therapeutics Inc.

XORTX Therapeutics Inc. is a biopharmaceutical company focused on developing innovative therapies to treat progressive kidney disease. XORTX has two lead programs to develop treatments for progressive kidney disease due to diabetes, diabetic nephropathy and polycystic kidney disease. XORTXs XRx-008 (a proprietary reformulation of Oxypurinol) is a late stage drug development program to treat autosomal dominant polycystic kidney disease (ADPKD). TMX-049, is a late phase 2b stage program in treat type 2 diabetic nephropathy (T2DN), under a Letter of Intent, that proposes a co-development agreement with Japans Teijin Pharma Limited. Secondary programs focus on developing therapies for health consequences that accompany pre-diabetes, diabetes and cardiovascular disease. Additional information on XORTX Therapeutics is available at www.xortx.com .

For further information, please contact:

Allen Davidoff, CEO - adavidoff@xortx.com or +1 403 455 7727

or Erik Matthews, Corporate Communications - erik@xortx.com or +1 747 203 5240

The CSE has neither approved nor disapproved the contents of this news release. No stock exchange, securities commission or other regulatory authority has approved or disapproved the information contained herein.

This news release includes forward-looking statements that are subject to assumptions, risks and uncertainties. Statements in this news release which are not purely historical are forward-looking statements, including without limitation any statements concerning the Company's intentions, plans, estimates, beliefs or expectations regarding the future. Although the Company believes that any such intentions, plans, estimates, beliefs and expectations in this news release are reasonable, there can be no assurance that any such intentions, plans, beliefs and expectations will prove to be accurate. The Company cautions readers that all forward-looking statements, including without limitation those relating to the Company's future operations and business prospects, are based on assumptions none of which can be assured, and are subject to certain risks and uncertainties that could cause actual events or results to differ materially from those indicated in the forward-looking statements. Readers are advised to rely on their own evaluation of such risks and uncertainties and should not place undue reliance on forward-looking statements. Any forward-looking statements are made as of the date of this news release, and the Company assumes no obligation to update the forward-looking statements, or to update the reasons why actual events or results could or do differ from those projected in the forward-looking statements. The Company assumes no obligations to update any forward-looking statements, whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise.
Nexans Maroc and ENGIE Services Maroc recently signed a 15-year contract for the design, construction, supply, upkeep and maintenance of a photovoltaic rooftop plant with a 2.5 MW installed capacity.

This output of the installation, to cover an area of 13,000 m2, will supply nearly 22% of Nexans plants annual electricity needs and avoid the emission of more than 700 tons of CO2 per year, a press release said.

The installation of the photovoltaic power plant on our industrial site in Mohammedia is part of Nexans strategy to be a player in sustainable development through investments contributing to the preservation of the planet. In addition, this self-production strengthens Nexans positioning in renewable energy projects both by producing and marketing cables and substations for wind and solar power plants and by being a consumer of clean energy, said Karim Bennis, Managing Director of Nexans Maroc.

This project is part of the new strategy dedicated to the energy transition implemented by ENGIE Services Maroc. ENGIE recently grouped its three subsidiaries dedicated to energy services into a fully integrated entity to offer its customers in Morocco an As a Service energy transition offer, and support them in a zero carbon energy transition.

With its solar photovoltaic offer dedicated to self-production, ENGIE allows its customers to produce all or part of their own energy needs by using the sun-flooded surfaces available to them (roof or parking). The ENGIE offer includes the financing of the solar power plant, the design, installation, operation, and maintenance of the facility, the press release explained.

ENGIEs photovoltaic solar supply contributes to the development of decentralized electricity production in Morocco and confirms ENGIEs ambition to become the leader in the zero carbon transition in the country. With this photovoltaic solar power plant, we are making an innovative offer in the energy sector in Morocco for Nexans. The as a service offer reconciles value creation and positive impact by offering an integrated, tailor-made and co-funded solution model. This contract is fully in line with ENGIEs strategy to accelerate the zero carbon transition of its customers, said Philippe Miquel, President and CEO of ENGIE Services Maroc.
Party General Secretary and President Nguyen Phu Trong, Prime Minister Nguyen Xuan Phuc and Chairwoman of the National Assembly Nguyen Thi Kim Ngan sent their congratulatory letters to Chairman of the Workers Party of Korea and Chairman of the State Affairs Commission of the DPRK Kim Jong Un, Prime Minister Kim Jae Ryong and Chairman of the Supreme Peoples Assembly Pak Thae Song, respectively.

In their messages, the Vietnamese leaders articulated that over the past 70 years, the traditional friendly relationship between the two Parties and countries, built up by President Ho Chi Minh and Chairman Kim Il Sung, has overcome many difficulties and challenges and has continually been strengthened, with new developments recorded in recent times. Particularly, the official friendly visit to Vietnam made by Chairman Kim Jong Un in March 2019 marked an important milestone in relations and cooperation between the two Parties and States. They affirmed that the Vietnamese Party, State and people attach great importance to and wish to continue consolidating and developing the traditional friendly relationship between the two countries for the benefits of their people and for peace, stability, cooperation and development in the region and the world.

In their letters sent to the Vietnamese leaders, the DPRK leaders also emphasised that the Vietnam-DPRK friendly relationship, built up by Chairman Kim Il Sung and President Ho Chi Minh, has been unceasingly enhanced throughout the two countries joint struggle over the cause of building socialism for the past 70 years. They voiced their belief that the traditional friendly relationship between the two Parties and countries will continue to grow and be further deepened in the time ahead.

On the occasion, Deputy PM and Foreign Minister Pham Binh Minh also exchanged a congratulatory message with DPRK Foreign Minister Ri Son Gwon.
The World Health Organisation (WHO) thanked global technology giants for helping spread relevant information and taking down misinformation regarding the Coronavirus outbreak.

READ: WHO Declares Coronavirus Outbreak A Global Health Emergency

WHO working towards combating misinformation

It's time for facts, not fear.

We appreciate @Google, @Facebook, @TencentGlobal, @Tiktok and @Twitter's efforts to combat misinformation and rumors on #2019nCoV & direct users to reliable sources. We ask all digital companies to step up and help the world beat this outbreak.  Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus (@DrTedros) January 31, 2020

In a tweet, the WHO's Director-General Dr. Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus thanked Google, Twitter, Facebook, Tencent, and TikTok for their efforts to tackle misinformation regarding the virus that has claimed hundreds of lives. The Director-General also asked all digital firms across the world to step up and help flag misinformation and defeat the outbreak.

Google, on Thursday, launched the SOS alert in collaboration with WHO to make information easily accessible. The results will include safety tips, situation updates, and other resources from the WHO. The firm also issued a $250,000 direct grant to the Chinese Red Cross.

READ: Facebook Working To Provide Helpful Coronavirus Information

Facebook has also taken up steps to deal with misinformation regarding the virus. In a statement, the firm said "Our global network of third-party fact-checkers are continuing their work reviewing content and debunking false claims that are spreading related to the coronavirus. When they rate information as false, we limit its spread on Facebook and Instagram and show people accurate information from these partners." The firm has also partnered with Harvard Universitys School of Public Health and National Tsing Hua University in Taiwan 'by sharing aggregated and anonymized mobility data and high resolution population density maps to help inform their forecasting models for the spread of the virus as part of our broader Data for Good program.'

Keeping People Safe and Informed About the Coronavirus https://t.co/DZ1R5EMr3u  Facebook Newsroom (@fbnewsroom) January 31, 2020

READ: WHO Warns Shutting Down Borders Could Allow Coronavirus To Spread Faster

The steps come hours after the WHO declared the declared the outbreak of the virus a global public health emergency.

WHO chief Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus said, "We dont know what sort of damage this virus could do if it were to spread in a country with a weaker health system. We must act now to help countries prepare for that possibility. For all of these reasons, I am declaring a public health emergency of international concern over the global outbreak of novel coronavirus. The main reason for this declaration is not because of what is happening in China, but because of what is happening in other countries. Our greatest concern is the potential for the virus to spread to countries with weaker health systems, and which are ill-prepared to deal with it."

READ: US Raises Travel Advisory Over Coronavirus; Asks Citizens To Not Travel To China
Pushpesh Pant By

According to some uber patriots, the whole world is infected with an anti-India virus, a strain more virulent than the deadly coronavirus that at the moment threatens to lay low the mighty Chinese. The Economistnot some easy-to-dismiss leftist raghas published a stinging cover story about intolerant India and the EU is debating a resolution about the Citizenship (Amendment) Act expressing grave apprehensions about the violation of human rights and religious persecution this may follow consequentially.

The Indian government has warned all its friends and foes not to meddle in its internal matters and respect its sovereignty. From Nepal and Bangladesh to Malaysia to now the EU, not many are convinced that all those who are protesting against the CAA are parts of a diabolical conspiracy to destabilise India. Its not only the fraternity of Islamic nations that has rallied around the co-religionists who appear to be targeted, but its also potential investors who have started voting with their feet. The IMF and the US lawmakers are not inhibited any more to offer unsolicited advice to India to restore normalcy to avert catastrophic impact of prejudiced politics on our countrys once-promising economic prospects. Much of the goodwill earned in the NDAs first term in office has been squandered.

The central government has dug in its heels with growls announcing that it will not yield an inch prompting many to ask disturbing questions about Achilles heel and feet of clay. The legal eagles in the ruling party are busy reminding us that according to our Constitution, India is a Union of States not a Federation of States. What these experts conveniently forget is that the spirit of the Constitution is no less significant than its letters. Four states have already passed resolutions in their legislative assemblies that they will not implement the CAA. The number of naysayers is likely to rise sharply. Its difficult to imagine how the Central government is going to resist parties to submission. Chief Ministers are NOT comparable to errant wayward students who can be taught lessons or silenced by imposition of anti-sedition laws or letting loose vigilante goons on campus.

The President and the Prime Minister have repeatedly reminded the protesters that violence has no place in a democracy. Differences must be reconciled through a process of peaceful dialogue. Also, that citizens clamouring for fundamental rights should also constantly keep in mind corresponding duties. This has not reassured anyone. Such sage words have only added fuel to the proverbial fire. What about the governments duties to protect the citizen and provide good governance? No one is arguing that anti-national miscreants should not be swiftly punished. What is frightening is the suspension of the due process of law. Any rabble rouser claiming to be a desh bhakt nowadays feels empowered to brand anyone suspect in his/her eyes as a gaddar (traitor) and incite a bloodthirsty crowd with inflammatory statements to unleash jungle raj.

Sadly, the judiciary has been sending confusing signals. It has thundered more than once about the irrelevance of archaic colonial era laws in India more than seven decades after Independence. It has pronounced that there can be no mindless statewide and indefinite imposition of restrictions like Section 144. Access to internet, it has made clear, is in this day and age an integral part of fundamental rights. But the apex court for reasons best known to itself has shied away from providing relief to aggrieved citizens. It has at times tossed the ball back in the legislative court (pun unintended) or passed the contentious issue to a larger/constitutional bench. The instruments such as PIL and RTI forged to provide legal redress over years have lost their edge.

No one in right senses can suggest that national security be compromised. What needs to be debated is the concept of security. Can a house divided against itself be considered secure? If everyone from tiny Nepal to mighty US is tempted to offer mediation in what must remain bilateral issues between India and Pakistan, its only because our country today projects a strife-torn image that encourages all and sundry to rush in.

We just cant get the coronavirus scare out of our mind. It is highly contagious and as yet there is no cure for it. Prevention it is said is better than cure. But while this applies to infectious diseases and outbreaks of pandemics, this cant be a blanket prescription to protect the nation or defend democracy. Indiscriminate use of Preventive Detention Act and the draconian NSA can only be counterproductive. Drug-resistant swiftly mutating strains of deadly virus are not unknown to scientists. pushpeshpant@gmail.com
The Senate narrowly rejected Democratic demands to summon witnesses for Donald Trumps impeachment trial late Friday, all but ensuring Trump's acquittal in just the third trial to threaten a president's removal in US history

Washington: The Senate narrowly rejected Democratic demands to summon witnesses for President Donald Trumps impeachment trial late Friday, all but ensuring Trump's acquittal in just the third trial to threaten a president's removal in US history. But senators pushed off final voting on his fate to next Wednesday.

The delay in timing showed the weight of a historic vote bearing down on senators, despite prodding by the president eager to have it all behind him in an election year and ahead of his State of the Union speech Tuesday night.

Trump and Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell spoke by phone to lock in the schedule during a tense night at the Capitol as rushed negotiations proceeded on and off the Senate floor. The trial came to a standstill for about an hour. A person unauthorized to discuss the call was granted anonymity to describe it.

The president wanted to arrive for his speech at the Capitol with acquittal secured, but that will not happen. Instead, the trial will resume Monday for final arguments, with time Monday and Tuesday for senators to speak. The final voting is planned for 4 pm Wednesday, the day after Trump's speech.

Trump's acquittal is all but certain in the Senate, where his GOP allies hold the majority and there's nowhere near the two-thirds needed for conviction and removal.

Nor will he face potentially damaging, open-Senate testimony from witnesses.

Despite the Democrats' singular focus on hearing new testimony, the Republican majority brushed past those demands and will make this the first impeachment trial without witnesses. Even new revelations Friday from former national security adviser John Bolton did not sway GOP senators, who said they'd heard enough.

That means the eventual outcome for Trump will be an acquittal in name only, said Rep Val Demings, D-Fla, a House prosecutor, during the final debate.

Trump was impeached by the House last month on charges that he abused power and obstructed Congress as he tried to pressure Ukraine to investigate Democratic rival Joe Biden, using military aid as leverage as the ally fought Russia. He is charged with then blocking the congressional probe of his actions.

Senators rejected the Democrats' effort to allow new witnesses, 51-49, a near party-line vote. Republicans Susan Collins of Maine and Mitt Romney of Utah voted with the Democrats, but that was not enough.

Senate Democratic leader Chuck Schumer called that decision a tragedy on a very large scale. Protesters' chants reverberated against the walls of the Capitol.

But Republicans said Trump's acquittal was justified and inevitable.

The sooner the better for the country, said Sen. Lindsey Graham, a Trump confidant. Let's turn the page.

The next steps come in the heart of the presidential campaign season before a divided nation. Democratic caucus voting begins Monday in Iowa, and Trump gives his State of the Union address the next night. Four Democratic candidates have been chafing in the Senate chamber rather than campaigning.

The Democrats had badly wanted testimony from Bolton, whose forthcoming book links Trump directly to the charges. But Bolton won't be summoned, and none of this appeared to affect the trial's expected outcome. Democrats forced a series of new procedural votes late Friday to call Bolton and White House acting chief of staff Mick Mulvaney, among others, but all were rejected.

In an unpublished manuscript, Bolton has written that the president asked him during an Oval Office meeting in early May to bolster his effort to get Ukraine to investigate Democrats, according to a person who read the passage and told The Associated Press. The person, who was not authorized to disclose contents of the book, spoke only on condition of anonymity.

In the meeting, Bolton said the president asked him to call new Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy and persuade him to meet with Trump's personal lawyer, Rudy Giuliani, who was planning to go to Ukraine to coax the Ukrainians to investigate the president's political rivals. Bolton writes that he never made the call to Zelenskiy after the meeting, which included acting chief of staff Mick Mulvaney and White House Counsel Pat Cipollone.

The revelation adds more detail to allegations of when and how Trump first sought to influence Ukraine to aid investigations of his rivals that are central to the abuse of power charge in the first article of impeachment.

The story was first reported Friday by The New York Times. Trump issued a quick denial.

"I never instructed John Bolton to set up a meeting for Rudy Giuliani, one of the greatest corruption fighters in America and by far the greatest mayor in the history of NYC, to meet with President Zelenskiy," Trump said. That meeting never happened.

Key Republican senators said even if Trump committed the offences as charged by the House, they are not impeachable and the partisan proceedings must end.

"I didn't need any more evidence because I thought it was proved that the president did what he was charged with doing," retiring GOP Sen. Lamar Alexander of Tennessee, a late holdout, told reporters Friday at the Capitol. But that didn't rise to the level of an impeachable offence.

Republican Sen. Lisa Murkowski of Alaska said she, too, would oppose more testimony in the charged partisan atmosphere, having "come to the conclusion that there will be no fair trial in the Senate.'' She said, "The Congress has failed.

Eager for a conclusion, Trump's allies nevertheless suggested the shift in timing to extend the proceedings into next week, acknowledging the significance of the moment for senators who want to give final speeches.

To bring the trial toward a conclusion, Trump's attorneys argued the House had already heard from 17 witnesses and presented its 28,578-page report to the Senate. They warned against prolonging it even further. The House impeached Trump largely along party lines after less than three months of formal proceedings, making it the quickest, most partisan presidential impeachment in US history.

Some senators pointed to the importance of the moment.

What do you want your place in history to be? asked one of the House managers, Rep. Jason Crow, D-Colo., a former Army Ranger.

To hear more witnesses, it would have taken four Republicans to break with the 53-seat majority and join with all Democrats in demanding more testimony. But that effort fell short.

Chief Justice John Roberts, in the rare role presiding over the impeachment trial, could break a tie, but that seemed unlikely. Asked late Friday, he told senators it would be inappropriate.

Murkowski noted in announcing her decision that she did not want to drag the chief justice into the partisan fray.

As protesters chanted outside the Capitol, some visitors watched from the Senate galleries.

Bolton's forthcoming book contends he personally heard Trump say he wanted military aid withheld from Ukraine until it agreed to investigate the Bidens. Trump denies saying such a thing.

The White House has blocked its officials from testifying in the proceedings and objected that there are significant amounts of classified information" in Bolton's manuscript. Bolton resigned last September  Trump says he was fired  and he and his attorney have insisted the book does not contain any classified information.
Parvaneh Salahshouri, a reformist lawmaker, who on Saturday was summoned to court and charged with "spreading lies to affect public opinion and propaganda against the system", said she was freed after taking a pledge to return if a subpoena is issued.

While Salahshouri was still held by the court, the Revolutionary Guard-affiliated Fars News Agency in a tweet claimed that Salahshouri refused to post bail to be freed, in contempt of court.

In a post published on her Telegram channel, Salahshouri said the Revolutionary Guard and "certain other bodies" had lodged complaints with the court against her. She maintains that the charges brought violate articles 84 and 86 of the Constitution which allow lawmakers "to speak about all of the affairs of the country".

In recent months Salahshouri has made some fiery speeches. In one of her speeches in the Parliament, she strongly criticized the "objectionable governance of the country and grim despotism and the ever-increasing powers of parallel, unelected centers of power."

After the November protests in Iran Salahshouri disclosed that several children among the protesters had been shot dead by the security forces in the crackdown. She also called for a "truth-finding committee" to investigate the killing of protesters including children, such as 14-year-old Nikta Esfandani who was shot to death in the west of Tehran.

The details of charges brought against Salahshouri have not been announced. Some Iranian media outlets including the Iranian Students News Agency (ISNA) had earlier reported that the reason she was called to the court was the content of some of her tweets and interviews.
Quang Ngai industrial parks have been asked to quarantine 15 Chinese employees for 14 days to test and treat Wuhan coronavirus (2019-nCoV) infections.

The workers have just returned Vietnam after coming home for the Lunar New Year holiday. They will be quarantined, tested and treated in a facility that belongs to the Binh Son District Medical Center, according to a directive issued Friday by the vice chairman of the central province, Dang Ngoc Dung.

The facility is located in the Dung Quat Economic Zone, where a majority of the province's foreign workers are employed.

According to the management boards of the Dung Quat Economic Zone and other industrial parks in the province, Quang Ngai currently has 33 companies employing 593 foreign workers, 491 of them Chinese nationals working for 14 companies. Currently six of the companies that employ 286 Chinese workers have resumed operations following the Lunar New Year holiday.

Provincial authorities have also instructed the management boards to stop receiving Chinese workers returning from infected areas in China, and to quarantine those that have already returned and monitor them for 14 days. Those suspected of being infected with the coronavirus need to be reported immediately for further isolation and treatment to prevent it spreading.

At a meeting held Friday between Quang Ngai's Department of Health and leaders of companies that employ foreign workers, clarifications were requested on the timing of the quarantine from the department. The companies were also asked to provide frequent updates on the status of foreign workers, especially Chinese nationals.

A representative of the Hoa Phat Dung Quat Steel JSC. said the currently has about 10,000 workers, including 308 Chinese nationals. Sixty of the 308 Chinese workers returned to China for the Lunar New Year holiday, but none of them has come back to work due to an exit ban by the Chinese government.

The company therefore requested that the management board of the industrial park to set up a quarantine zone for foreigners so as to facilitate monitoring and make regular body temperature checks easier. This would, in turn, enable early detection and timely treatment, the company representative said.

Hoa Phat Dung Quat Steel has proactively taken several measures against the coronavirus, including installing five infrared thermometers at all entrances, spraying disinfectant, handing out free medical masks to workers and working closely with local medical centers to handle any infection detected, the representative said.

Quang Ngai authorities have instructed the provincial Health Department to prepare sufficient quantities of medicines, supplies, equipment and allocate enough human resources to be ready to handle any coronavirus infection case that is suspected or detected.

The department has also been tasked with preparing quarantine zones; developing plans for screening, testing, diagnosing, receiving and treating infected patients; establishing rapid response teams to deal with infected cases and publicizing the hotlines of facilities capable of receiving, isolating and treating infected patients.

Meanwhile, Quang Ngai's Department of Tourism has been instructed to ask hotels, motels and other accommodation businesses to monitor travelers from infected areas within the first 14 days of them entering Vietnam, and the Department of Education and Training has been tasked with disseminating information on preventive measures related to the coronavirus infection to students, teachers and other school staff.

After originating in Wuhan City of Hubei Province in mainland China two months ago, the nCoV has spread to 25 other countries and territories, infecting nearly 12,000 people and claiming 259 lives.

As of Friday afternoon, five people in Vietnam, two Chinese nationals and three locals, had tested positive for the nCoV.
The Pakistan government has declared a national emergency to eliminate the attacking swarms of desert locust which are destroying crops on a large scale in Punjab after wiping it out in Sindh, the media reported on Saturday.

The decision was taken at a meeting on Friday convened by Prime Minister Imran Khan, reports Dawn news.

The meeting attended by federal ministers and senior officials of the four provinces also approved a national action plan (NAP) that requires a sum of 7.3 billion Pakistani rupees to overcome the crisis.

Khan directed the authorities concerned to take all the necessary steps on emergency basis to contain the locust outbreak in the country and to prevent crop losses.
Tang Zhihong, chief of Huanggang health commission, is keeping silent when Beijing experts asked her the epidemic status in Huanggang, China on Jan. 29, 2020. (Screenshot)

Chinas Senior Health Officials Struggle to Answer Questions about Coronavirus, as Another City is Under Full Lockdown

Several Chinese officials recently had media interview mishaps in which their lack of knowledge about measures to contain the coronavirus was on full display.

The outbreak was first reported by Chinese authorities on Dec. 31, 2019, but the disease first emerged in the central Chinese city of Wuhan in early December. Wuhan is the capital of Hubei Province.

It has since spread to all Chinese provinces and regions, as well as more than 20 countries around the world.

Meanwhile, Huanggang City, to the east of Wuhan, decided to enact a ban against vehicles from entering and leaving the citysuggesting that the scale of the outbreak there is far worse than what authorities are reporting.

Huanggang Officials

On Jan. 29, the Beijing central government sent a working team to Huanggang. The team held a meeting with Tang Zhihong, chief of the citys health commission, and Chen Mingxing, director of the citys Center for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC).

State broadcaster China Central Television (CCTV) accompanied the working team and recorded the meeting.

When prompted with questions by the experts from Beijing, Tang couldnt answer.

In the CCTV video, the Beijing experts asked the current capacity of hospitals in the city. Tang kept silent. When pressed again, Tang answered: We have an official who is in charge of this issue.

The experts asked what was the current number of confirmed cases in Huanggang. Tang first said it was more than 200, but Chen chimed in and said: 118.

They also asked, How many patients are being treated in the hospitals? Both Tang and Chen didnt answer.

This angered Chinese netizens, who commented on the news segment on social media.

The next day, the Huanggang government announced that Tang has been dismissed from her position.

Previously, on Jan. 23, Sheng Wenjun, the Chinese Communist Party secretary of the quarantined Chibi City, inspected the areas response to the coronavirus. He wore a surgical mask, but the mask only covered his mouth. His nose was exposed to the air directly.

Sheng Wenjun, Party secretary of the quarantined Chibi city, wears a mask but doesnt cover his nose in Chibi, China on Jan. 23, 2020. (Screenshot)

During a recent press conference, some officials also revealed that they could not wear their masks properly.

At a Jan. 26 press conference, governor of Hubei Province Wang Xiaodong did not wear a mask; but Hubei secretary Bie Bixiong did. However, his mask also did not cover his nose. Wuhan mayor Zhou Xianwang wore a mask, but wore it inside out.

Hubei governor Wang Xiaodong (center) doesnt wear a mask; Hubei secretary Bie Bixiong (left) wears a mask, but the mask isnt covering his nose; Wuhan mayor Zhou Xianwang (right) wears a mask inside out at press conference in Wuhan, China on Jan. 26, 2020. (Screenshot)

New Lockdown

The Huanggang government announced on Jan. 30 new lockdown measures.

According to the new rule, all roads in the Huanggang municipal area would be closed at midnight Jan. 31, with physical barriers and checkpoints.

No vehicles can use the roads except those for outbreak prevention and control, medical rescue, basic needs, and emergency rescue, the announcement read.

Taxis will only be allowed for expectant mothers, patients of severe illness, and so on. Only a certain number of taxis are allocated to each neighborhood.

Hubei governor Wang said at a Jan. 29 press conference that the number of confirmed cases are quickly increasing in Huanggang and three other nearby citiesXiaogang, Jingmen, and Xianning. He said he was worried Huanggang could become another Wuhan.

According to official statistics as of January 2019, Huanggang has 6.34 million residents.

Fake Data

Chinese authorities only began updating the outbreak death toll since Jan. 22. But experts from the UK and Hong Kong have estimated that the true figure of infections could reach 250,000 people in Wuhan alone by Feb. 4.

In recent days, some Chinese officials have made indirect hints at the true scale of the outbreak.

Liu Yingzi, director of the Hubei health commission, said on Jan. 29 that there were more than 170,000 medical staff working on the frontlines treating coronavirus patients.

Meanwhile, doctors from Hubei hospitals told state-run media that they lack the human resources to treat patients. Some of them have worked for more than 24 hours straight.

On Jan. 22, state-run Jiangsu Television reported that a Wuhan doctor was infected with the coronavirus after treating patients for 11 days. He was under self-quarantine and told his family members that he had worked 26 hours straight, as there were too many patients at the hospital.

And at a Jan. 30 press conference, Zhang Wenhong, leader of the outbreak response team in Shanghai, said: Based on the current situation, this coronavirus will spread more broadly. Im responsible for my words here and I can tell you the estimation of overseas experts are correct, he said, without naming which experts he was referring to.

Official figures report less than five thousand infections in Hubei.

On Jan. 29, Zeng Guang, the chief scientist of epidemiology at Chinas CDC, made a rare candid admission about why Chinese officials cannot tell people the truth, in an interview with the state-run tabloid Global Times.

They [the officials] need to think about the political angle and social stability [in order to keep their positions], Zeng said.
CARBONDALE  Carbondale man Judious Kizeart was sentenced to 10 years in state prison for his role in an armed robbery and shootout that left his apparent accomplice, Brandon Brooks, dead, Jackson County States Attorney Mike Carr said in a news release Friday.

On Feb. 15, 2018 Kizeart, 26, and Brooks, then 35, met with two individuals from St. Louis behind an apartment complex on Mill Street in Carbondale to complete a previously arranged sale of a pound of cannabis, Carrs office indicated.

One of the individuals entered Brooks' and Kizearts car to seal the deal, Carrs office said, while the other remained in another vehicle.

Brooks and Kizeart robbed the individual who entered their car, and Brooks opened fire on the other vehicle, hitting its occupant in the throat and wrist.

That person returned fire, hitting Brooks in the chest and back, and ultimately killing him.

The individuals from St. Louis fled the shooting and headed to Carbondale Memorial Hospital.

On the way, they got in a crash near Illinois Avenue and Main Street, Carrs office indicated. A passing vehicle picked up the man with the gunshot wounds and delivered him to the hospital, likely saving his life.

Kizeart, meanwhile, fled the scene of the shooting and headed to an apartment on South Logan Street, where he abandoned the car he was driving, which was a rental, dumped Brooks body, and fled with money and Brooks handgun, according to the statement from Carr's office.

He was arrested months later at the St. Louis airport, Carrs office stated, after getting off a flight from California.

Kizeart pleaded guilty to robbery, a Class 2 felony, carrying a seven-year prison sentence, and calculated criminal cannabis conspiracy, a Class 4 felony carrying a three-year sentence. He will serve three years of mandatory supervised release after completing his sentence in the Illinois Department of Corrections.

Kizeart was originally accused of felony murder in the case, though he did not shoot or carry a weapon during the incident.

Carr could not be reached Friday afternoon to discuss that charge. However, in a recent interview with The Southern, he explained that defendants may be charged with murder under the doctrine of transferred intent in Illinois.

That policy states that if a person is killed while committing an inherently violent felony, their accomplices may be charged with murder if they knowingly created a strong probability of death or great bodily harm to the deceased.

The murder charge was ultimately dropped as part of Kizearts plea deal, Carrs office indicated. Kizeart was also originally charged with armed robbery, a Class X felony that could have carried a potential sentence of six to 30 years.

In the summer of 2017, Kizearts name was in the news as one of three alleged targets of a contract assassination, to be executed by three Salina, Kansas, men.

The suspects, Alex B. Karcher, 22; Xavier L. McCray, 22; and Xavier E. Lewis, 24, were arrested in Southern Illinois without harming any of their alleged targets. However, in the police chase that led to their arrest, Karcher fired seven shots from a high-powered rifle toward pursuing officers, striking Officer Trey Harris in the eye. Harris survived the injury.

Love 0 Funny 0 Wow 3 Sad 1 Angry 4
A person was transported to the hospital after they were shot while driving on Tucsons south side early Saturday, officials said.

Deputies and Rural Metro Fire responded to a report of a shooting on Irvington Road east of Country Club before 3 a.m. Saturday, Deputy James Allerton, spokesman for the Pima County Sheriffs Department said in a news release.

One person was taken to the hospital with minor injuries, Allerton said. The incident involved two vehicles, he said.

No arrests were made in connection to the shooting and the department does not have any information about the suspect, Allerton said.

Eastbound Irvington Road was closed for a few hours while the department investigated. The road has since been reopened.

Anyone with information about the incident is asked to call 88-CRIME, an anonymous tipster line.

Contact reporter Stephanie Casanova at scasanova@tucson.com. On Twitter: @CasanovaReports

Sign up for our Crime & Courts newsletter Get the latest in local public safety news with this weekly email. Sign up! * I understand and agree that registration on or use of this site constitutes agreement to its user agreement and privacy policy.
As well as sequencing the whole genome of coronavirus 2019-nCoV, the Institut Pasteur continued to work on the samples taken from the first confirmed cases. The quality of these initial samples enabled rapid cell-culture isolation of the new virus. The Institut Pasteur's scientists now have access to the virus responsible for the infection. The isolation of the virus paves the way for new diagnostic, therapeutic and prophylactic approaches.

With the whole viral genome of coronavirus 2019-nCoV having recently been sequenced at the Institut Pasteur, the isolation of strains of coronavirus 2019-nCoV detected in France has now been successfully finalized, in a very short space of time, using the samples taken from the first confirmed French cases.

Coronavirus 2019-nCoV, responsible for the cases of pneumonia that emerged in China (see the Institut Pasteur's fact sheet on the Wuhan coronavirus - page in French), differs from two other viruses that are well known for causing respiratory outbreaks in recent years: the SARS-CoV virus, responsible for the SARS outbreak in 2003, and MERS-CoV, responsible for an outbreak that has been under way since 2012 in the Middle East.

The Institut Pasteur was actively involved in tackling these previous outbreaks, which yielded valuable lessons for the current situation. "For both SARS-CoV and MERS-CoV, cells known as Vero E6 were identified to culture the two coronaviruses," explains Sylvie van der Werf, Director of the National Reference Center (CNR) for Respiratory Viruses at the Institut Pasteur. "In January 2020, we brought them out of our collection, which is kept under strictly controlled conditions, so that we would be ready as soon as we detected a positive sample for coronavirus 2019-nCoV."

Extremely rapid growth of the virus in culture

The Institut Pasteur was therefore well prepared, and on Friday January 24, 2020, the very day that the first cases were confirmed, it began the process of culturing the samples that had tested positive for the virus on Vero E6 cells. "Using detection methods, we had observed a high viral load in the samples taken from the patients in hospital in Paris. This enabled us to identify which samples should be cultured first," says Sylvie Behillil, Deputy Director of the CNR at the Institut Pasteur.

The viruses continued to be cultured over the weekend of January 25-26, 2020. By the morning of Monday January 27, the culture had already grown! "We didn't think that it would grow so quickly," continues Sylvie Behillil. The rapid growth of the culture may be explained by "the high viral load in the samples," but also by "the quality of the samples," adds Vincent Enouf, Deputy Director of the CNR at the Institut Pasteur.

"We could see the cells becoming damaged and then grouping together, which can indicate that they have been infected. But we did not observe this cytopathic effect for all the inoculated samples; that reassured us that we had managed to isolate the strains, and this was then confirmed by additional analyses."

Virus 2019-nCoV now available for research

Now that the Institut Pasteur's scientists have access to coronavirus 2019-nCoV, they can set out to improve scientific knowledge about the virus.

Research will focus on four main areas.

Serology. Analyzing antigen-antibody reactions based on the antibodies found in patients' blood serum, and developing an effective serology test to screen for the infection among the population.

NB: This is not a rapid diagnostic test for hospital use; it is a test to identify seroconversion in the population.

Analyzing antigen-antibody reactions based on the antibodies found in patients' blood serum, and developing an effective serology test to screen for the infection among the population. NB: This is not a rapid diagnostic test for hospital use; it is a test to identify seroconversion in the population. Development of specific treatments . Testing known antiviral molecules that act on the replication cycle of some viruses to assess their therapeutic or even prophylactic potential, and looking for antibodies that may have therapeutic applications.

. Testing known antiviral molecules that act on the replication cycle of some viruses to assess their therapeutic or even prophylactic potential, and looking for antibodies that may have therapeutic applications. Vaccination. Based on the virus, developing vaccine approaches that have already been explored for other viruses  Ebola, MERS-CoV and SARS-CoV , with the aim of proposing a vaccine candidate.

Based on the virus, developing vaccine approaches that have already been explored for other viruses  Ebola, MERS-CoV and SARS-CoV , with the aim of proposing a vaccine candidate. Viral pathogenesis. Understanding how the virus works, how it replicates and interacts with the cell and the host organism, to gain a clearer picture of its pathogenic nature and identify biomarkers for infection or new targets for the development of treatments.

###

The National Reference Center (CNR) for Respiratory Viruses at the Institut Pasteur in Paris is one of WHO's reference laboratories for coronavirus 2019-nCoV.

A total of eight people from the CNR and two from the P2M sequencing platform have been working on the virus this week and will continue to monitor the outbreak in France.

In response to the announcement of the first cases and the declaration of the outbreak by the Chinese authorities, the Institut Pasteur has set up a task force for the novel coronavirus

The isolation of coronavirus 2019-nCoV clears a vital hurdle for research, which has now begun. The Institut Pasteur immediately set up a task force to mobilize its experts with the aim of developing diagnostic, prevention and treatment tools as quickly as possible to tackle the novel coronavirus.

Several Institut Pasteur teams are represented on the task force, which will focus its research on various scientific areas:
In order to justify the effort of selecting individual stocks, it's worth striving to beat the returns from a market index fund. But even the best stock picker will only win with some selections. At this point some shareholders may be questioning their investment in Vastned Retail Belgium SA (EBR:VASTB), since the last five years saw the share price fall 20%. Unhappily, the share price slid 1.7% in the last week.

Check out our latest analysis for Vastned Retail Belgium

To quote Buffett, 'Ships will sail around the world but the Flat Earth Society will flourish. There will continue to be wide discrepancies between price and value in the marketplace...' One way to examine how market sentiment has changed over time is to look at the interaction between a company's share price and its earnings per share (EPS).

During the five years over which the share price declined, Vastned Retail Belgium's earnings per share (EPS) dropped by 30% each year. The share price decline of 4.4% per year isn't as bad as the EPS decline. The relatively muted share price reaction might be because the market expects the business to turn around. With a P/E ratio of 154.90, it's fair to say the market sees a brighter future for the business.

You can see how EPS has changed over time in the image below (click on the chart to see the exact values).

ENXTBR:VASTB Past and Future Earnings, January 31st 2020

Before buying or selling a stock, we always recommend a close examination of historic growth trends, available here.

What About Dividends?

It is important to consider the total shareholder return, as well as the share price return, for any given stock. The TSR is a return calculation that accounts for the value of cash dividends (assuming that any dividend received was reinvested) and the calculated value of any discounted capital raisings and spin-offs. So for companies that pay a generous dividend, the TSR is often a lot higher than the share price return. We note that for Vastned Retail Belgium the TSR over the last 5 years was -5.0%, which is better than the share price return mentioned above. This is largely a result of its dividend payments!

Story continues

A Different Perspective

Vastned Retail Belgium provided a TSR of 2.8% over the last twelve months. But that was short of the market average. But at least that's still a gain! Over five years the TSR has been a reduction of 1.0% per year, over five years. So this might be a sign the business has turned its fortunes around. While it is well worth considering the different impacts that market conditions can have on the share price, there are other factors that are even more important. To that end, you should learn about the 4 warning signs we've spotted with Vastned Retail Belgium (including 1 which is is a bit concerning) .

If you are like me, then you will not want to miss this free list of growing companies that insiders are buying.

Please note, the market returns quoted in this article reflect the market weighted average returns of stocks that currently trade on BE exchanges.

If you spot an error that warrants correction, please contact the editor at editorial-team@simplywallst.com. This article by Simply Wall St is general in nature. It does not constitute a recommendation to buy or sell any stock, and does not take account of your objectives, or your financial situation. Simply Wall St has no position in the stocks mentioned.



We aim to bring you long-term focused research analysis driven by fundamental data. Note that our analysis may not factor in the latest price-sensitive company announcements or qualitative material. Thank you for reading.
Metro Manila (CNN Philippines, January 31)  The anti-trust body has flagged a planned cement company buyout, saying it could potentially lead to an industry monopoly.

In a Friday statement, the Philippine Competition Commission's (PCC) Merger and Acquisitions Office (MAO) said San Miguel Corporation's (SMC) planned takeover of Holcim Philippines could lead to "monopoly, increased market power, and potential collusion" in the sector, particularly for four big markets.

San Miguel unit First Stronghold Cement Industries, Inc. first revealed its plan to buy 5.5 billion shares in Holcim for $2.15 billion (about 127 billion) in May 2019, which triggered the PCC review of the transaction. This would give the cement maker an 85.73 percent stake in Holcim, making it the controlling shareholder.

Holcim Philippines, a unit of global giant LafargeHolcim Ltd., manufactures and distributes grey cement and its aggregates in eight facilities.

SMC President and Chief Operating Officer Ramon Ang also serves as chairman of Eagle Cement Corporation, the PCC said. All these companies fall under the umbrella firm Top Frontier Investment Holdings, Inc.

The competition body said the SMC-Holcim merger would eliminate Top Frontier's only competitor in Northwest Luzon and will make it very hard for any new player to enter the cement distribution market in Greater Metro Manila, Central Luzon, and Northeast Luzon.

"Top Frontier and Northern Cement were reported to have coordinated marketing strategies and exert influence on the board of directors of each other," the PCC said, adding that the holding company "has access to sensitive corporate information of Northern Cement."

CNN Philippines has sought for SMC's comment on the issue.

The MAO also said that Top Frontier "exercises control and influence" over Northern Cement's policies and operations," even if the company owns a 35 percent stake on paper.

PCC has put the deal under a more thorough review since September 2019, citing the need for a more detailed analysis of market implications should the deal push through. It added that Top Frontier and Holcim Philippines have proposed a set of "voluntary commitments" to diffuse monopoly concerns, but these will still be reviewed by the regulator.
Deno, a secure JavaScript and TypeScript runtime devised by Node.js creator Ryan Dahl, is close to a 1.0 release, Dahl said this week. Dahl also elaborated on features in the works for Deno.

Intended to provide a productive, secure scripting environment for the modern programmer, Deno arose from Dahls dissatisfaction with the popular Node.js JavaScript runtime, particularly in regards to security. The only major feature still missing is debugger support, Dahl said, adding that the project aims to draw on Chrome Devtools for debugging.

The to-do list for Deno 1.0 includes the following items:

Correct loading and execution of modules, either JavaScript or TypeScript.

Support for the Import maps standard for JavaScript via a command line flag.

Dynamic import.

Support for d.ts files.

A mechanism to call into the Rust language.

Faster speed for the web server.

Loading of TypeScript dependencies in parallel.

The addition of signal handler APIs.

Like Node.js, Deno uses Googles V8 JavaScript engine. While supporting TypeScript, Deno maintains a philosophy of being JavaScript-first, which means Deno does not pass through the TypeScript compiler. The platform thus far has been used only in experiments. Node.js makes more sense for business concerns, said Dahl, who now is co-lead on engineering for Deno.

Dahl suspects the transition to Deno will be akin to the transition from GCC (Gnu C Compiler) to Clang/LLVM, where LLVM saw little usage until it offered feature parity with GCC, and then everyone switched.

The module system represents the most radical change in Deno, Dahl explained. When he built Node, JavaScript did not yet have a module system. Then the web caught up and adopted ECMAScript modules. However, ES modules do not use the NPM package repository as a way to look up module specifiers. The only way to import code when using ES modules in browsers is by specifying a URL.

With Deno, the plan is to use web standard ES modules for modules outside the browser. A side effect is that Deno does not require a package manager; third-party code can be imported via HTTP. Thus Deno aligns server-side JavaScript modules with web standards and allows modules to be hosted on any web server, not just in NPM. The result is that Deno is less monolithic than Node.

The Deno development team publishes internal parts of Deno, which was written in Rust, on crates.io, the Rust package registry. In addition to a deno-core crate there is deno-typescript, which allows developers to compile and snapshot TypeScript code. Deno developers also have built a crate featuring raw V8 bindings in Rust.

Weekly Deno releases are made available for Mac, Windows, and Linux.
Nationalist Congress Party leader Majeed Memon on Saturday, February 1, took a jibe at Union Minister Ravi Shankar Prasad after the Centre extended an olive branch to the people protesting against the Citizenship Amendment Act at Shaheen Bagh. Memon said the Government of India has now realised that no words can help them to stop the indefinite protest at Shaheen Bagh. Memon also questioned the Centre's offer of having a dialogue with the protesters.

Speaking to the media Memon said, "The law minister has woken up a little too late. Why he did not do it before. The government of India has now realized that no words were enough for persuading Shaheen Bagh to get up. I am afraid of whether it's a genuine offer. It's not just the Shaheen Bagh whole country is protesting against this unconstitutional act."

READ | NCP's Majeed Memon Jumps In To Back Soni Razdan Over Afzal Guru Remark

On Saturday, Union Law and Justice Minister Ravi Shankar Prasad stated that the government was ready to initiate a structured dialogue with the protesters. He noted that this could pave way for the people to clear their misgivings about the CAA.

READ | NCP's Majeed Memon Slams Congress Leaders For Doubting The Role Of States In Rejecting CAA

BJP's stance on Shaheen Bagh

Many BJP leaders have cast aspersions over the Shaheen Bagh protest alleging that it has the tacit backing of Congress and AAP. However, the worst remark was perhaps made by BJP Lok Sabha MP Parvesh Verma on January 28 who contended that the people gathering at the Shaheen Bagh protests had the potential to rape and kill women. Maintaining that both Delhi CM Arvind Kejriwal, as well as his deputy Manish Sisodia, had extended their support to Shaheen Bagh, he warned the voters in the national capital to make a conscious choice in the upcoming Delhi Assembly elections. Subsequently, the Election Commission of India barred Verma from campaigning for 4 days.

READ | Majeed Memon Says PMO & MEA Need To Ensure Safety Of Indians In Gulf Amid US-Iran Conflict

Shaheen Bagh protests

The Parliament on December 11 passed the contentious citizenship amendment act. The act seeks to grant citizenship to Sikhs, Parsis, Hindus, Jains, Christians, Buddhists from Afghanistan, Pakistan and Bangladesh. The exclusion of Muslims from the act prompted a nationwide protest. After the violence in Jamia Millia Islamia University, Shaheen Bagh protest started spearheaded mostly by women.

The 24x7 movement on Road No. 13A  the 2.5km-long stretch connecting Delhi and Noida, has been closed since December 15 as the protestors demand a full withdrawal of the amended act. While the Shaheen Bagh Coordination Committee Chief Sharjeel Imam, who is now arrested by Delhi police had called off the protests claiming that it had been hijacked by political parties, the protests continued with several inflammatory slogans being raised like 'Jinnah Wali Azadi', as the entire matter became more and more political.

READ | BIG: Centre Reaches Out To Shaheen Bagh Protesters, Ready To Clear Misgivings About CAA
Three personnel of Chhattisgarh Armed Force (CAF) were injured after they allegedly opened fire at each other in Bijapur on Saturday, said IG Bastar P Sundarraj.

"They are undergoing treatment in the hospital," Sundarraj said.

Out of three, two injured CAF personnel are in critical condition. The incident took place at CAF camp in Farsegarh at around 4 pm today.

Further details are awaited.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
Banque du Caire wants to direct its contributions for the benefit of various vital sectors in the country, foremost of which is the health sector

Banque du Caire announced its donation of two devices to the Endoscopy Unit of the Chest Diseases Department at the Faculty of Medicine of Kasr El-Aini.

The first device is a speculum that removes lung tumours and improves breathing functions. The second is an ultrasound scope that helps diagnose many cases, including lung tumours and the possibility of their surgical removal.

The donation was made during the reception of Hala Salah, dean of the Faculty of Medicine of Kasr El-Ainy, to Tareq Fayed, chairman of the board and CEO of Banque du Caire, to hand over the two devices, with the participation of Heidi El-Nahhas, head of the foundation's Communications Sector and Sustainable Development.

Fayed said the bank's donations were part of its social role, and that social responsibility should go hand-in-hand with the economic role they play. He added that the bank donated last year an ultrasound device to the Kasr El-Aini emergency unit.

Banque du Caire is keen to direct its contributions for the benefit of various vital sectors in the country, foremost of which is the health sector. Over the past years the bank has developed and equipped a large number of university and government hospitals and supplied them with medical devices in many governorates.

The contributions include supporting medical research in hospitals, such as the Children's Cancer Hospital 57357, participating in the campaign to eradicate Hepatitis C virus, donating to build Ahl Masr Hospital in Egypt, and contributing to the restoration of the Oncology Institute

The bank also donated to the Egyptian Liver Foundation for the second year in a row and the Magdy Yacoub Foundation treating heart patients in Aswan, and it contributed to the completion of the third stage of Shifa Al-Orman Hospital in Luxor.

The bank has offered donations to the Ministry of Health and Population in a project to eliminate waiting lists and build a floating hospital with the participation of Rotary clubs in Egypt to serve the people of Upper Egypt.

Search Keywords:

Short link:


Ethiopia, Egypt and Sudan on Friday pushed back their deadline to resolve a bitter row on a dam on the Nile until the end of February, but President Donald Trump voiced confidence that a deal was near.

It was the latest delay in the US-brokered talks on the giant Grand Ethiopian Renaissance Dam, which is slated to begin operations later this year and has sparked fears of conflict over scarce water resources.

But the talks have appeared to make progress. The latest session, held over four days in Washington among foreign and water resources ministers, focused on mitigation measures during droughts and other dry years.

"The ministers have instructed their technical and legal teams to prepare the final agreement," a joint statement said, "for a signing of the three countries by the end of February 2020."

The three countries "reaffirmed the importance of transboundary cooperation in the development of the Blue Nile to improve the lives of the people of Egypt, Ethiopia and Sudan."

Ethiopia says the dam -- which will be the largest in Africa -- is crucial for its growing economy, but Egypt fears the project will disrupt the river that provides 90 percent of its drinking water.

The US Treasury Department has been leading the talks after Egyptian President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi sought intervention from Trump, a close ally.

The turbine construction site at the Grand Ethiopian Renaissance Dam in December 2019. By EDUARDO SOTERAS (AFP/File)

The White House said that Trump on Friday spoke by telephone about the negotiations with Ethiopian Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed.

Trump "expressed optimism that an agreement on the Grand Ethiopian Renaissance Dam was near and would benefit all parties involved," the White House said in a statement.

Progress but delays

Egypt, Ethiopia and Sudan have gone into overtime in often tense negotiations in Washington.

They had earlier set a deadline of January 15 before agreeing to seal the deal during a January 28-29 meeting, which wound up going two days longer than planned.

The Grand Ethiopian Renaissance Dam, near Guba in Ethiopia, in December 2019. By EDUARDO SOTERAS (AFP/File)

In the latest talks, the countries discussed setting up ways in which they can share information and resolve potential future disputes about the dam.

They also agreed to address dam safety standards and look further at the environmental and social impacts, according to the joint statement.

In earlier talks, the three countries said they had reached an understanding that Ethiopia would only fill the Grand Renaissance Dam during the rainy season and would base future water levels on conditions of the Nile.

The colossal 1.8-kilometer-long (1.1-mile-long) dam, under construction since 2011, is expected to begin generating power by the end of this year and eventually double Ethiopia's electricity.

The country expects the $4.2 billion hydroelectric barrage to be fully operational by 2022.

Abiy, whose democratic reforms won him the Nobel Peace Prize, has promised to cooperate with the other countries.

But Ethiopia has also made clear that it will insist on its rights to the water from the Nile.

The International Crisis Group, in a report last year, warned that the dam risked triggering violent conflict if it becomes operational without an agreement among the affected countries.
The countrys TB medication inventory will not run out in June 2020. The Eugene Bell Foundation will be the only provider of multidrug-resistant medication. Treatment may soon be available to all North Koreans who need it.

Seoul (AsiaNews)  After lengthy consultations, the North Korean government has reached an agreement with the Global Fund to combat AIDS, tuberculosis and malaria (Global Fund) on a US$ 41.74 million funding grant.

The successful conclusion of these negotiations may have averted a crisis, as there is no longer a threat that North Korea will exhaust its inventory of regular TB medications in June of 2020 as was feared when the previous grant was terminated in 2018, the Eugene Bell Foundation (EBF) announced today in a press release.

The US-based Christian charity is involved in medical and humanitarian assistance that benefits thousands of TB patients in rural North Korea.

The three-year agreement between North Korea, the Global Fund and implementing partners of will last until 30 September 2022.

Thanks to its work over the years and the trust the authorities place in it, EBF will be the sole provider of assistance for multidrug-resistant tuberculosis (MDR-TB), whilst United Nations Children's Fund (UNICEF) and the World Health Organisation (WHO) will be responsible for providing assistance for malaria and drug-susceptible tuberculosis (regular TB).

According to WHO, about 130,000 North Koreans suffered from tuberculosis in 2017, and more than 16,000 died from the disease that same year.

In cooperation with EBF, the North Korean government operates 12 medical centres treating thousands of patients in four provinces: North Pyongan, South Pyongan, North Hwanghae and South Hwanghae.

The EBF statement goes on to say that US$ 12.49 million earmarked for MDR-TB is intended to cover MDR-TB assistance for the entire country and will be made available to EBF for purchasing diagnostic equipment and medications for MDR-TB patients living in provinces where EBF's treatment program has been established. It is hoped that the program will soon be extended to provinces currently not covered by the program.

The new Global Fund initiative is good news for everyone. It would be a mistake, however, to assume that the tuberculosis problem has been solved as much more support is needed for a comprehensive program.

Nevertheless, with further encouragement and support, particularly from Koreans on the Korean peninsula, multidrug-resistant TB treatment could soon be available to all North Koreans suffering from multidrug-resistant TB.
WASHINGTON  In multiple votes, the Senate rejected the idea of calling new witnesses in President Donald J. Trump's impeachment trial on Friday night.

The trial's final vote, widely expected to acquit Trump, will be held on Wednesday.

Trump's trial will continue, admitting no new evidence, on Monday. House impeachment managers and Trump's lawyers will make their closing arguments on Monday and then senators will have the opportunity to give floor speeches on Tuesday, according to rules agreed to by the Senate Friday night. Trump will also give a speech at the U.S. Capitol on Tuesday, his State of the Union address.

Friday evening, the Senate voted 51-49 against the idea of witnesses testifying or subpoenaing documents in the impeachment trial. U.S. Sens. Mitt Romney, R-Utah and Susan Collins, R-Maine, sided with all Democrats.

The close vote was a devastating blow to Democrats who have spent more than a month pressing for the admittance of new evidence in the trial, claiming it was imperative to make the proceeding fair. Immediately after the vote, Senate Minority Leader Charles E. Schumer, D-N.Y., told reporters the dismissal of witnesses and documents was one of the worst tragedies that the Senate has ever overcome. America will remember this day, unfortunately, for the Senate did not live up to its responsibilities.

"To not allow a witness, a document  no witnesses, no documents  in an impeachment trial is a perfidy," Schumer said. "If the president is acquitted with no witnesses and no documents, the acquittal will have no value."

Later in the evening, Schumer tried to make several amendments to the rules for the remainder of the trial in order to, again, seek witness testimony and documentary evidence. All four of the votes also failed.

Democrats wanted to hear from John Bolton, former National Security adviser, Michael Duffey, an official in the White Houses Office of Management and Budget, Mick Mulvaney, the president's acting chief of staff and Robert Blair, a top aide to Mulvaney  all people with first hand knowledge of Trump's effort to compel Ukraine to conduct investigations that would benefit him in the 2020 election. Democrats also sought documents related to the administration's decision to withhold important military funds to Ukraine, which several witnesses called by the House said was used as leverage to pressure Ukraine to do the investigations.

But the fate of Democrats' quest for more evidence was sealed when Republican Sens. Lamar Alexander of Tennessee and Lisa Murkowski of Alaska both announced they would vote against the motion to permit witnesses. Alexander revealed his position on Thursday night and Murkowski, hers, on Friday.

After the votes Friday night, Murkowski said she was "frustrated and disappointed and angry at all sides"

"We started with a flawed product," she added, referring the House impeachment inquiry.

Alexander explained Friday morning that he was swayed by institutional arguments that impeachment should never be partisan.

This is an inappropriate act by a president," Alexander said. "The remedy for that is the election. The American people starting Monday in Iowa can say what they think about it.

Friday afternoon, the House impeachment managers and Trump's lawyers both made passionate arguments, presenting their cases for and against allowing more evidence into the trial.

Those arguments came on the heels of a new report by the New York Times Friday revealing Boltons book manuscript says Trump told Bolton in May to ensure Ukraine would meet with his personal lawyer Rudy Giuliani to discuss the investigations Trump wanted.

Special Investigation 147 NY dams are 'unsound,' potentially dangerous Thousands of dams have not been inspected in over 20 years.

This conversation came earlier than the July 25 call that the White House released a transcript of. The report also said White House Counsel Pat Cipollone, who is now leading Trumps defense to the Senate, participated in the meeting.

The report formed a new line of attack for Democrats and bolstered their arguments that regardless of whether witnesses are called, information about Trump's conduct toward Ukraine will continue to emerge.

Mr. Boltons manuscript portrays the most senior White House advisers as early witnesses in the effort that they have sought to distance the president from, including the White House counsel, said Rep. Adam Schiff, D-Calif., the lead House manager.

Lev Parnas, an associate of Giuliani, also made a bid to testify on Friday that was knocked down.

Mr. Parnas would testify that at all times he was acting at the direction of Mr. Giuliani, on behalf of his client the president, and that the president and a number of the people in his administration and the G.O.P. were aware of the demands being imposed upon Ukraine, Parnas's lawyer, Joseph A. Bondy, wrote in the letter sent to Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell, R-Ky., and Schumer.

Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand, D-N.Y., said Republicans conducted a "sham trial" by barring witnesses and documents Friday.

"Its clear that Senate Republicans will vote to acquit the president, and in doing so, will excuse proven criminality for political expediency," she said in a written statement. "As we head into an election year, Republicans have declared that President Trump has free rein to pressure foreign governments into investigating his political opponents, even if his actions threaten our national security and the security of our allies."

U.S. Sen. Marco Rubio, R-Fla., said Friday night after the trial concluded that impeachment is "designed as a last resort" to remove a president, but America has another option in 2020. He said a "far preferable remedy" is to allow voters to decide whether to remove Trump at the polls in November.
The Kut Factory Barbershop Boutique is a family-friendly barbershop that opened Feb. 1 at 5119 FM 1960 Rd. E, Humble.

Co-owners, Nico Williams and Elijah Davis, said this will hopefully be one of many Kut Factory locations around Houston. The Kut Factory services all hair types and is a welcoming space, offering a boutique, a decorated waiting area and laid-back music. Their goal is to eventually become a one-stop-shop by leaving different than you came, including a new haircut, a new piece of clothing and new shoes that Davis customizes.

Davis and Williams met in barber school five years ago, although Davis has been cutting hair for over 20 years unlicensed.

We just decided that we wanted to team up and do something different, Davis said. I mean it took us a while to get here, we worked at a couple shops.

After working in various other shops where Davis said the owners didnt want to listen to them for improvement suggestions, Williams and Davis built their shop by knowing what not to do.

I guess for this inspiration behind this shop is like every other shop that we worked in. It really wasnt for us, Davis said. So all we did was take all of the bad experiences and just put this shop together. We know what not to do.

Williams emphasized that their shop is safe and comfortable for families and they have a professional manner.

For mothers when they come into a barbershop, its typically an all-male staff so when they come in theyre not as comfortable because they are like the center of attention basically, Williams said. So with our shop being set up the way it is, they can be comfortable and sit here and the child can go to the back, get their service and they can feel comfortable knowing that theyre in the same room with their child without feeling all that extra pressure.

Her Healthcare joins Greater East Montgomery County Chamber of Commerce

Her Healthcare, a womens clinic in Kingwood, held a ribbon-cutting on Jan. 28 for joining the Greater East Montgomery County Chamber of Commerce.

Dr. Amy Plummer, a partner at Her Healthcare, said when she first came out of her residency and formed Northeast OB-GYN Associates with a partner. Plummer and Dr. Noel Boyd split from their partnerships at the time to form Her Healthcare in their own practice, but still maintain a working relationship with their previous location by taking calls for them on the weekends.

Plummer said they have always been a womans advocate by supporting FamilyTime and other groups who work in womens issues and support women themselves. They also focus on the whole woman, not just general physical health, Plummer said.

Related: Taste of Greek to open brick-and-mortar in March

We both feel like practicing medicine is like a calling, Plummer said. And so for us, its all about the patient and the care that we can give the patient, and we both are strong Christians so we believe that this is where God wants us to be and this is what we are meant to do, so we bring a lot of that into our practice.

Her Healthcare is family and patient-oriented, Plummer said. She has had people in her practice for over 20 years and takes care of kids she delivered now. She said they would not do any procedure that they wouldnt do for their own family and have completed research on the procedures offered.

To me its all about the patient and I think thats whats important, Plummer said. Dr. Boyd and I both feel very strongly about everythings about the patient and about their care and about what we can do to keep them healthy and happy.

Her Healthcare is located at 23802 Highway 59 North, Kingwood.

Taco Cabana opening soon in Summerwood

A new Taco Cabana is opening in Summerwood at the corner of West Lake Houston Parkway and Timber Forest Drive.

Taco Cabana is a Mexican fast-food company offering breakfast options, tacos, quesadillas, taco bowls and more, as well as catering options. According to a representative from the Houston marketing team, there is not a set opening date yet but they are aiming to open toward the first part of February. On Feb. 22 they will be running specials for National Margarita Day.

When we open our doors in a new community, we make a commitment to give back and become a true partner to its citizens, Chuck Locke, President of Taco Cabana, said in an emailed statement. Were excited to begin this new chapter in Houston. Providing delicious food is only the start of it, and we cant wait to show the community what Taco Cabana is really all about.

savannah.mehrtens@chron.com
Share this article Whatsapp

Facebook

Twitter

Linkedin Budi Sutrisno (The Jakarta Post) Jakarta  Sat, February 1 2020

A brief rain dampened Jakartas roads on Monday morning, but many residents in flood-prone areas were gathering up belongings on the ground floor, worrying that water would enter the house.

It rained on Saturday and the water pooled again as high as 15 centimeters. We had to go upstairs, and we have not been relaxed since the flooding on New Years Eve, said Ratih Ana, a homemaker living in the Kebon Jeruk Baru housing complex in West Jakarta.

Tens of houses in the densely populated area, along with other flood-prone locations including Semanggi Interchange in Central Jakarta and Jl. Boulevard Barat in North Jakarta, were hit by a flash flood on Saturday morning as the result of a downpour that started on Friday night.

to Read Full Story SUBSCRIBE NOW Starting from IDR 55,000/month Unlimited access to our web and app content

e-Post daily digital newspaper

No advertisements, no interruptions

Privileged access to our events and programs

Subscription to our newsletters We accept Register to read 3 premium articles for free Already subscribed? login
Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman presented Union Budget 2020-21 on February 1, 2020. The finance minister began her speech by saying that the Budget was based on three themes: Aspirational India, economic development for all and caring society. Here are the key takeaways from the Budget. (Image: Reuters)

The Centre introduced a new simplified personal tax regime, optional for payers foregoing all deductions and exemptions. The finance minister has proposed 10 percent tax for income between Rs 5 lakh-7.5 lakh vs current 20 percent. 15 percent for income between Rs 7.5 lakh-10 lakh against 20 percent. 20 percent for income between Rs 10-12.5 lakh against 30 percent. 25 percent for income between Rs 12.5 -15 lakh against 30 percent. 30 percent for income above Rs 15 lakh.

The finance minister announces Rs 2.8 lakh crore spending on agriculture, irrigation and allied sectors.

Rs 12,300 crore has been allocated for the governments Swachh Bharat scheme.

Government is to guarantee Rs 5 lakh to account holders in case of bank failures.

The government has sets aside Rs 99,300 crore for the education sector in FY21. Of this, Rs 3,000 crore will be allocated for the skill segment.

The government also plans to offer full-fledged online education programmes to help students belonging to deprived sections of the society, who do not have access to higher studies.

Rs 1.7 lakh crore has been provided for transport infrastructure in 2020-21. 1,150 trains to run under the PPP mode and four stations to be developed with the help of the private sector. Also, 100 more airports will be developed by 2025 to support the UDAN scheme.

The fiscal deficit target for next financial year beginning has been pegged at 3.5 percent of the gross domestic product (GDP).
A delegation from County Kildare Chamber is heading to the USA this week.

The group is going to Boston to attend functions and meet key stakeholders in the city.

The Kildare Chamber is hosting annual trade missions to Boston next September 2020, when a number of Kildare companies will take part in a five day trade mission to the city.

The Chamber said the purpose of the visit next week is to continue to promote Kildare as the location of choice for potential business enterprises seeking a headquarter in Ireland and to build and develop the relationships the Chamber already have in Boston in advance of their trade mission in September. They also aim to support businesses looking to break into the US market.

SEE ALSO: Public auditor highlights delays in Kildare education board accounts

Allan Shine, chief executive of the Chamber said 2020 is the second year of the Chambers five year commitment to visiting Boston and promoting Kildare for inward and outward investment. Our schedule is busy with meetings with Boston College, Boston Chamber, IDA Ireland, the Irish Consulate, Boston Irish Business Association and Quincy Chamber.

Last month they hosted a business delegation to Kildare from Boston and in March they have a business delegation again coming to Kildare with 20 businesses taking part on a two day visit to Kildare.

SEE ALSO: more Kildare stories

County Kildare Chamber is at an advanced stage of signing a memorandum of understanding with the Boston Chamber.

Areas within the draft MOU that both Chambers are discussing include encouraging , promoting and facilitating effective cooperation in relation to trade, economic and industrial activities between businesses in Kildare and Boston.

The two Chambers will exchange visits of delegations and help their members to overcome the difficulties that may arise from trade and exchange operations.

Mr Shine concluded:The opportunities are vast and varied for our members in Boston. Next week we will be focusing on trade opportunities for Kildare businesses looking to enter the US market
The Supreme Court effectively has taken over the work of regulating campaign finance by striking down congressional efforts to restrict money in politics and substituting more permissive standards. The first such decision, Buckley v. Valeo, in 1976, held that election spending is a form of constitutionally protected free speech, although it permitted some restrictions to prevent corruption. Under Chief Justice John Roberts, who was installed in 2005, the court has issued a series of rulings significantly expanding what counts as free speech while simultaneously restricting what can be done to prevent corruption.

In Citizens United, the court struck down restrictions on election spending by corporations and unions, leaving only flimsy prohibitions on giving the money to a candidate or taking instructions from a candidate. The court justified this stance by defining political corruption narrowly  as quid pro quo arrangements in which donations effectively purchase desired political outcomes  and then concluding that the protections it had preserved were sufficient.

Mr. Trump, whose administration has been shaped by his willingness to stretch the law, is providing an object lesson in the consequences of the courts capacious standards. Theres no reason to think the April 2018 dinner was an unusual event.

The unusual part is only that it was taped by one of the supplicants, Mr. Fruman. The guests were donors or potential donors to America First Action SuperPAC, a political organization with no legal ties to Mr. Trump that still managed to obtain more than an hour of the single most valuable commodity in Washington: the presidents time.

Such super PACs are vehicles for complying with the letter of the law by maintaining the legal fiction that their spending is not controlled by any particular politician or party, while still allowing donors to feel confident that the money will be used for a specific purpose and that the beneficiaries  but often not the general public  will know who deserves their thanks.

Barry Zekelman, the billionaire who spoke with Mr. Trump about steel making, is a Canadian who does not hold American citizenship and therefore cannot legally make donations to American politicians or to super PACs. Instead, Wheatland Tube, an American company that Mr. Zekelman partly owns, donated the $1.75 million to America First Action.

Mr. Zekelman complained to Mr. Trump that mandatory rest breaks for truck drivers made it harder to move his steel pipes to market  and also that they might force a driver to pull over when the driver was close to home. Mr. Trump expressed surprise that the government could enforce such a rule. They have a method that you shut down a truck? he asked. Wow.
Source: Xinhua| 2020-02-01 23:56:22|Editor: yhy

Video Player Close

Soldiers shout slogans during a ceremony marking the anniversary of the victory of the Islamic Revolution in 1979 at Khomeini's mausoleum in the suburb of Tehran, Iran, on Feb. 1, 2020. Iran on Saturday started 10-day Fajr (Dawn) celebrations for the anniversary of the victory of the Islamic Revolution in 1979. The first day of the celebrations on Feb. 1 marks the return of Sayyid Ruhollah Khomeini, the late leader of the Islamic Revolution, to Iran from exile. (Photo by Ahmad Halabisaz/Xinhua)

TEHRAN, Feb. 1 (Xinhua) -- Iran on Saturday started 10-day Fajr (Dawn) celebrations for the anniversary of the victory of the Islamic Revolution in 1979.

The first day of the celebrations on Feb. 1 marks the return of Sayyid Ruhollah Khomeini, the late leader of the Islamic Revolution, to Iran from exile.

Earlier in the day, the incumbent supreme leader of Iran Ali Khamenei, in the company of the senior Iranian civil and military officials, paid tribute to Khomeini's mausoleum in the suburbs of the capital Tehran, the state TV reported.

The Islamic Revolution in Iran resulted in the overthrow of the U.S.-backed Shah regime on Feb. 11, 1979.

For the past decades, the Iranian governments have launched major civil projects during the annual 10-day Fajr celebrations.

A notable project to be launched this year is to send the Zafar (Victory) satellite to space by the indigenous Simorgh rocket.
No coronavirus case has been reported in Kashmir so far, officials said on Saturday, asserting the administration is geared to meet any exigency in case of the virus outbreak in the Valley.

A meeting was convened here on Saturday to review the preparedness of the divisional administration to meet any exigency in case of the coronavirus outbreak in the valley, the officials said.

They said the meeting, chaired by Divisional Commissioner Kashmir Baseer Ahmad Khan, was informed no coronavirus-infected case was reported in the valley till date.

"However, the administration has activated rapid response teams and made arrangements to tackle the disease, they added.

During the meeting, Khan asked the officers concerned to maintain a travel inventory of students, businessmen and traders in each district from December 1, 2019, who have been travelling to China and other reportedly infected countries.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
Photo: CTV News

New evidence shows 4.7 million people in B.C. may have had their privacy breached following a hack at LifeLabs.

The Office of the Information and Privacy Commissioner for B.C. confirmed to CTV News on Friday that "up to five million" British Columbians might be affected. That's almost all of the people who live in the province.

Statistics Canada data from last year indicates there are only 5.071 million residents in B.C.

According to the company's website, one million-plus people use its services, mostly in B.C. and Ontario.



A class-action lawsuit has been launched on behalf of potential victims, alleging inadequate security and a delay in informing clients about the hack.

The OIPC was notified by LifeLabs in November, but it took the company six weeks to inform clients.

Anyone concerned about their private information being hacked is asked to contact the LifeLabs hotline at 1-800-431-7206.

 with files from CTV Vancouver
Cold conditions tightened grip in most parts of Punjab and Haryana on Saturday, with a thick blanket of fog covering both states.

At 2.5 degrees Celsius, Halwara in Punjab was the coldest place in both states, the Meteorological Department.

Chandigarh, the joint capital of Punjab and Haryana, recorded a low of 7 degrees Celsius, one degree above the normal.

Amritsar, Ludhiana and Patiala recorded the minimum temperature at 3.5, 3.4 and 5 degrees Celsius respectively, upto three degrees below the normal.

Pathankot, Adampur, Bathinda, Faridkot and Gurdaspur recorded their respective minimum at 5.9, 3.8, 4.5, 5 and 5.8 degrees Celsius respectively.

The minimum temperature in Ambala, Hisar and Karnal in Haryana settled at 4.8, 2.8 and 4 degrees Celsius respectively, up to four degrees below the normal.

Narnaul, Rohtak, Bhiwani and Sirsa recorded 3.8, 4.8, 5.8 and 4.1 degrees Celsius respectively.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
A charge sheet was filed in a local court on Saturday against IAS officer Sriram Venkitaraman, arraigned as the first accused in the case relating to fatally knocking down a journalist while driving a car in an intoxicated state in August last year.

Wafa Feroze, his woman friend, who was also in the luxury car, is the second accused in the case and has been charged with abetting the officer to drive the car rashly.

The around 70-page charge sheet was filed before the Judicial First Class Magistrate court here by the Special Investigation Team of the Crime branch, which probed the case.

The charge sheet has listed 100 witnesses and submitted 75 materials of evidence.

It states that the 33-year-old officer, now under suspension, was drunk and was behind the wheels in the over speeding car while returning from a private party on August 3 last year past midnight, police sources said.

The over speeding car hit journalist K M Basheer, who was on his motorcycle, killing him on the spot.

Venkitaraman, a doctor himself, allowed police to collect his blood sample for examination nine hours after the mishap and after getting himself admitted to a private hospital here.

His arrest was recorded nearly 17 hours later.

The officer was shifted to the Medical college hospital after Basheer's family and media personnel protested over the "five star treatment" being given to him at the private KIMS hospital.

Appointed Survey Director by the state cabinet in August 2019, Venkitaraman was booked under Sections 279 (rash driving on a public way) and 304 (punishment for culpable homicide not amounting to murder) of the Indian Penal Code and damaging public property.

He was suspended from service and his driving licence cancelled.

On Thursday, the state government extended his suspension by another 90 days.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
He is the pitbull lawyer determined to seek justice for Jeffrey Epstein's victims and will 'ruthlessly pursue all leads' in his quest for the truth.

Geoffrey Berman, the 60-year-old US Attorney for the Southern District of New York, has been compared to Chuck Rhoades, the dogged prosecutor who has exactly the same role in hit TV drama Billions.

In the show, Rhoades pursues crooked hedge fund billionaire Bobby Axelrod, played by British actor Damian Lewis.

Like Rhoades  noted for quips such as 'No one quits while they're ahead. This isn't France. It's America' and 'A good matador doesn't try to kill a fresh bull. You wait until he's been stuck a few times'  Berman has no fear of standing up to powerful figures such as Prince Andrew.

Attorney Geoffrey Berman speaks during a press conference outside of Jeffrey Epstein's apartment in the Manhattan borough of New York City, where said Prince Andrew has not been cooperative in the case

Berman has been compared to Chuck Rhoades, the dogged prosecutor who has exactly the same role in hit TV drama Billions (pictured)

Lawyer Kevin Marino, Berman's friend of 24 years, told The Mail on Sunday: 'The last person you would ever see caring one whit about the fact that an accused person has powerful friends is Geoff. He's committed to doing the right thing and will not be deterred.'

The role of US Attorney for the Southern District of New York is one of America's most prestigious and high-profile legal positions, filled in the past by ambitious lawyers including President Trump's lawyer Rudy Giuliani.

But Mr Marino says: 'Geoffrey Berman is not a political person, he's not power-hungry. He's as honest, balanced and straightforward a prosecutor as you could find. He's not intoxicated by the power and prestige of his office.'

Asked whether Prince Andrew, who Berman publicly accused last week of providing 'zero co-operation' in the Epstein case, could expect any special treatment, Mr Marino said: 'Geoff isn't someone who will be cowed in these circumstances.

'If he feels the right thing is to pursue a case, even if there are obstacles, he will pursue it.'

Prince Andrew leaves sex offender Jeffrey Epsteins home and go for a stroll together through New York's Central Park in 2011

Sources close to the Prince have questioned Berman's account, saying that Andrew was yet to be contacted.

The Duke has vehemently denied any wrongdoing. In Billions, brash Rhoades, played by Paul Giamatti, fights against the wealthy and powerful in New York.

Berman, married to fellow lawyer Joanne Schwartz, also has a hard-earned reputation for standing up to powerful figures.

He investigated former President Ronald Reagan and successfully prosecuted a CIA agent for tax fraud.

He was hand-picked by President Trump in January 2018 for his job, which has jurisdiction over much of Trump's own property empire.

In July last year, Berman charged Epstein with multiple child sex offences despite the billionaire previously accepting a controversial plea deal.

When Epstein was found dead in his jail cell a month later, the lawyer vowed to track down his co-conspirators and promised victims that he would see justice done.
Former Vice President Joe Biden speaks at a campaign stop in Burlington, Iowa, on Friday, Jan. 31, 2020. Read more

COUNCIL BLUFFS, Iowa  Since the night Donald Trump won in 2016, Democrats have wondered: How can we beat him?

Would they need an exciting liberal agenda? A more moderate approach? A fresh face? A familiar one? A woman? A white man? A person of color?

Monday in Iowa, theyll start answering those questions.

The Iowa caucuses that night will provide the first actual votes after months of speculation and debate, sending a signal that could ripple through other states that follow in quick succession. The results wont settle the Democratic nomination, but they could establish a clear front-runner, cull some high-profile hopefuls, or vault an underdog upward.

Or, with several candidates bunched near the top of the polls and a new, potentially confusing method of reporting results, Iowa could also create a jumble that presages a long, drawn-out fight.

Seven of the last 10 Democrats to win Iowa have gone on to become the partys nominee, including every winner since 2000. But Iowans can remember few parallels to the number of options and level of uncertainty this year, all amplified by an overriding desire to unseat Trump.

The race is exceedingly close and fluid," said Jeff Link, an Iowa Democratic strategist. "Probably closer and more fluid than its been in a long time.

The event arrives amid a roller-coaster stretch including the Super Bowl Sunday, the caucuses Monday, Trumps State of the Union on Tuesday, and a final vote set for Wednesday in his impeachment trial.

No candidates have more riding on Iowa than former Mayor Pete Buttigieg of South Bend, Ind., and Sen. Elizabeth Warren, of Massachusetts. Each surged early and has been part of a foursome atop the polls. But both have faded more recently, and need strong showings to jolt their campaigns as former Vice President Joe Biden and Sen. Bernie Sanders of Vermont have pulled ahead.

With Biden and Sanders looking like strong favorites in the states that follow, Buttigieg and Warren have invested heavily in Iowa, hoping to show they, too, can win, and to build momentum.

Buttigieg, speaking to a crowd of about 400 Friday in Council Bluffs, near the Nebraska border, explicitly contrasted himself with Biden and Sanders, urging a turn to a new generation.

Biden will say that we cannot take a risk on someone new, Buttigieg said. I would argue that what history has taught us is that in a moment like this, we cannot take the risk of trying to fall back on the old playbook and rely on the familiar to deal with a fundamentally new challenge.

And he warned that Sanders calls for rapid, revolutionary change risk alienating majorities who are otherwise ready to throw out Trump and embrace Democratic ideas on expanding health care, fighting climate change, and making college more affordable.

We actually have an opportunity to energize, not polarize, that majority, not only to win the election but in order to govern what will be a dangerously divided nation, he said from a small stage.

Several Iowa Democrats said in interviews this week that theyre thinking about who can win swing voters, the kind of people who flipped from Barack Obama to Trump in places like Northeastern Iowa  and who resemble those who tipped key states like Pennsylvania, Michigan, and Wisconsin.

 READ MORE: Pennsylvania is critical in 2020. Heres how Trump could win or lose it.

The closing arguments reflected that focus on winning above all else.

Warren, long seen as a liberal fighter for big policy plans, released a set of ads Friday portraying her as the candidate who can unify the progressive and establishments wings of her party. One spot features a trio of Warren supporters who each backed Hillary Clinton, Sanders, or Trump in 2016. "We cant afford a fractured party, one of her supporters says.

The senator, one of several candidates held in Washington during the impeachment trial, dispatched allies across Iowa, including her golden retriever, Bailey.

In an airy Des Moines event space with open ductwork, Warrens husband, Bruce Mann, spoke for the senator before a crowd of around 700 Friday night, along with three House members supporting the senator.

Rep. Katie Porter (D., Calif.), who stressed that she recently won a previously Republican-held district in Orange County, said Warren "can reach into every pocket of our community  rural, urban, white, brown, black, young, old, LGBTQ, adding: I represent a Republican district and I am all in for Elizabeth Warren.

Iowa sends a signal  but maybe a mixed one

A relatively tiny fraction of Democratic delegates are at stake in Iowa.

But the first results "send a signal to the rest of the party ... about what real, on-the-ground party activists think, said Dennis Goldford, a political science professor at Drake University in Des Moines.

 READ MORE: From an Iowa kitchen, the crazy but kind of reassuring path toward the presidency

That signal might be harder to interpret this year.

In a new twist, Democrats will release not just one result, but three  potentially leading to competing arguments over who did best.

As usual, the party will tally the state delegate equivalents each candidate wins. But now theyll also release the results of two caucus alignments  one when caucus-goers pick their first choices, and another when those supporting lagging candidates get a chance to switch to a second choice.

 READ MORE: How the Iowa caucuses work

One candidate could win the most first-choice support, but another might lead when first and second choices are considered. Both might declare victory.

With polls suggesting a tight race, if you find the top three, top four are a whiskers width away from each other, then the caucuses decide nothing, Goldford said.

The expectations game

Much depends on a candidates perceived stature.

Every caucus participant has exactly the same opponent, and that opponents name is expected, " Goldford said. The central question is: Did you do better than expected or worse than expected?

Polls suggest Biden and Sanders are ending the Iowa campaign where they started, on top. If either wins, he would become the clear front-runner.

Strong support for Sanders in New Hampshire and Nevada, and for Biden in South Carolina  all states that vote in February  also means they could survive a disappointing Iowa finish. Still, if Sanders slips, it could reinforce concerns about his appeal beyond his fervent base. A Biden flop might dent his central argument that he is the most electable.

The Bloomberg factor

If anyone else cracks the top four, it would shake up the race and potentially decimate whichever front-runner fell to fifth. Many Iowa insiders say Sen. Amy Klobuchar, a moderate from neighboring Minnesota, has the best chance of a surprise breakthrough.

Looming in the background is Michael Bloomberg, the billionaire former New York mayor. Hes sitting out Iowa and other early voting states while spending more than $200 million elsewhere, including more than $10 million in Pennsylvania  setting himself up as an alternative if no one can establish a clear lead, or if a liberal such as Sanders emerges as the front-runner.

Democratic eyes across the country will be watching. Its so close, Buttigieg said, we can taste it.
Chennai, Feb 1 : Opposing the government's decision to list Life Insurance Corporation of India (LIC) through an initial public offering (IPO), the All India Insurance Employees' Association (AIIEA) will first go on one hour walk-out strike on February 3 or 4, a top union leader said on Saturday.

"We are opposed to the move. We will first go on one hour walk-out strike on February 3 or 4. After that we will plan our further course of action," AIIEA General Secretary Shrikant Mishra told IANS.

He said hat the process of listing LIC may not be easy as there are several procedures that have to be followed including the approval of the Parliament.

Mishra said the government was not able to attract any buyer for Air India and it has to show some blue chip disinvestment and hence, decided on LIC.

Employees of public sector general insurance companies will also show their support by holding demonstration outside their offices on that day.

"If listed and LIC turns into truly board managed than, the biggest cash cow may not be available for the government in its disinvestment process as it the case of listing of General Insurance Corporation of India, IDBI Bank and New India Assurance," an industry official told IANS preferring anonymity.

"The pensioners of LIC and the four public sector general insurers will also join the protest," J.Gurumurthy, vice President, All India Insurance Pensioners' Association told IANS.
A pregnant woman has died of Lassa fever at the University of Nigeria Teaching Hospital, Utuku-Ozalla, according to the Enugu state ministry of health.

This makes it the second death recorded in the state, after the first, which was recorded eight days ago at Enugu State University Teaching Hospital, Parklane.

Confirming the case, Ifeanyi Agujiobi, permanent secretary of the ministry of health, said during a press briefing at the state secretariat, on Friday that it involved a 24-year-old pregnant woman who died on Thursday night, and that the preparations for safe burial are underway.

According to her, three cases have been confirmed out of the six suspected cases of Lassa fever while two have died since the outbreak in the state.

Follow Us on Facebook  @LadunLiadi; Instagram  @LadunLiadi; Twitter  @LadunLiadi; Youtube  @LadunLiadiTV for updates
Source: Xinhua| 2020-02-01 14:53:22|Editor: huaxia

Video Player Close

BEIJING, Feb. 1 (Xinhua) -- Customs authorities across China have stepped up customs clearance for epidemic prevention materials from overseas amid the fight against the novel coronavirus.

A customs office in the city of Guangzhou, capital of south China's Guangdong Province, said from Jan. 24 to 29, more than 10,000 postal parcels of epidemic control materials enjoyed fast customs clearance.

To speed up clearance services for imported materials, the custom office opened special channels, gave priority to the customs clearance for medical supplies, and added staff to ensure that the materials can be handled in time.

Customs of Kunming, Yunnan Province, said several batches of medical materials from Myanmar, including millions of disposable medical masks, gloves, disinfectant and infrared thermometers, have been cleared by the customs in the past few days.

Kunming customs also joined hands with airports and airlines, and customs officers worked around the clock to facilitate the customs clearance procedures of the materials.

Hefei Xinqiao International Airport, in eastern China's Anhui Province, said they worked with local customs to give the green light to a flight from Thailand loaded with 170,000 medical masks, taking only 90 minutes from the landing of the flight to the completion of the customs inspection.

Northwestern Gansu Province's Lanzhou Zhongchuan International Airport said that two batches of 122,000 surgical masks airlifted from Vietnam have been quickly cleared by the customs. The masks are donated by a tour guide group of Gansu and some overseas Chinese societies.

Shanghai customs said a batch of epidemic relief supplies donated by UNICEF were quickly cleared at Shanghai Pudong International Airport.

Beijing customs have set up fast-tracks for imported relief supplies including medicine, disinfectant, protective equipment, medical devices and other epidemic prevention and control materials, at airports and customs offices.

Chinese health authorities announced Saturday that the novel coronavirus had claimed 259 lives by the end of Friday, with 11,791 confirmed cases nationwide.
KYODO NEWS - Feb 1, 2020 - 16:00 | All, Japan

A Fukushima prefectural police helicopter transporting a heart for transplant crash-landed Saturday in the northeastern Japanese prefecture, injuring all seven persons on board, including one seriously, authorities said.

Three police officers, two technicians and two medical workers were on board the aircraft when it came down in a rice field in the city of Koriyama. It was taking the heart from a Fukushima hospital in the city of Aizuwakamatsu to the prefectural airport, local police said.

One of the medical workers has been seriously hurt but the injuries are not life-threatening, the police said.

(Photo taken Feb. 1, 2020, from a Kyodo News helicopter shows a Fukushima prefectural police helicopter that crashed into a paddy field in Koriyama, Fukushima Prefecture, northeastern Japan.)

The heart had been extracted on Saturday from a man in his 50s at another hospital in Fukushima after he had been declared brain dead two days earlier, according to the Japan Organ Transplant Network.

The heart transplant operation, which had been scheduled for the University of Tokyo Hospital, was cancelled.

As donor organs can only be stored for a brief time, transplant operations must in principle be completed within four hours of organ removal.

The Fukushima meteorological office had issued a strong wind warning for Koriyama at the time of the accident, which occurred around 12 kilometers west of JR Asakanagamori Station. The tail and main rotor blades of the AgustaWestland AW139 snapped off on impact.

The regional rescue association said a call was made to emergency services around 8:10 a.m. The nearest residence to the crash site was around 200 meters away.

Related coverage:

Japan stars mourn tragic death of basketball legend Kobe Bryant

French man caught in Hokkaido avalanche confirmed dead

Taiwan's top military officer, 7 others killed in helicopter crash
The United States has declared a public health emergency and announced the dramatic step of barring entry into the country of foreign nationals who have recently visited China.



The U.S. administration on January 31 also said that U.S. citizens who have traveled within the past two weeks to China's Hubei Province will be subject to a mandatory quarantine of 14 days.



Americans returning from other parts of China will be subject to screening at airports and will be required to take 14 days of "monitored self-quarantine" screening measures at home.



The new restrictions take effect at 5 p.m. Eastern time on February 2. Health and Human Services Secretary Alex Azar announced.



"It is likely that we will continue to see more cases in the United States in the coming days and weeks, including some limited person-to-person transmissions," Azar said.



"The American public can be assured the full weight of the U.S. government is working to safeguard the health and safety of the American people."



China slammed the U.S. decision to bar foreign travelers who had visited the country, saying it contradicted the World Health Organizations (WHO) appeal to avoid travel bans, and "unfriendly comments" that Beijing was failing to cooperate.



Hubei Province and its capital, Wuhan, are considered to be the epicenter of the coronavirus epidemic that has killed at least 259 people and infected nearly 11,800 in China.



At least 25 countries throughout the globe have reported infections on their territory, mainly from people returning from China or having contact with such people. No deaths have been reported outside of China.



The World Health Organization (WHO) has declared the outbreak a global emergency.



The public health emergency declaration in the United States allows the government to tap additional resources to send to states, including, if necessary, drugs or equipment from national supplies.



The White House said an average of more than 14,000 people traveled by air to the United States from China each day last year on direct or indirect flights.



Even with the new measures, U.S. officials stressed that the overall risk to Americans was low.



"I want to emphasize that this is a serious health situation in China, but I want to emphasize that the risk to the American public is currently low," CDC Director Robert Redfield told reporters.



"Our goal is to do all we can do to keep it that way."



On January 30, the State Department warned Americans not to travel to China because of the outbreak.



Japan and Germany also advised against nonessential travel to China. Britain did as well, except for Hong Kong and Macao. Singapore barred Chinese from traveling to the city-state, becoming the first Southeast Asian nation to do so.



The flu-like coronavirus is believed to have originated in a seafood and animal market in Wuhan.



The virus has infected more people globally than were sickened during the 2002-03 outbreak of severe acute respiratory syndrome (or SARS), which is related to the new virus. Both are from the coronavirus family, which also includes those that can cause the common cold.

With reporting by AP and Reuters




Many tour agencies in Vietnam have started reporting losses due to the coronavirus outbreak as China is a huge market.

Many tours to China cancelled

Many tour agencies have cancelled all tours to China even to areas that are not in the epicentre of the outbreak like Beijing in order to ensure safety.

Le Cong Nang, head of the Marketing Department of Viet Tour, said, "Cancelling tours will affect our business but we also have plans to open new tours and services that will provide new experiences to tourists."

According to Nguyen Cong Hoan, director of HanoiRedtours, China had become a popular destination in recent years, especially during the spring. Tours to China may account to 30-40% of the total Tet Festival tours at major companies. Many companies will suffer huge losses from the outbreak.

"During Tet Holiday, we had to cancel tours of five groups. We usually have 30-35 tourists per group. Moreover, tours to North Korea that have to transit through China must also be cancelled," he said. "Companies lost their deposit money, and had to refund to customers and pay other fees."

Hoan said the airlines have agreed to refund prepaid ticket costs but they were still waiting for feedback from other service providers in China.

Tran Trung Kien, the representative of Vietrantour, said right after they heard the news about the outbreak, they quickly stopped all Tet tours to China. They had 20 customers at the time and some tours would only start in one to two days.

"We will lose billions of VND in deposits for services in China," he said. "But this is a necessary decision to protect everyone."

He went on to say that they would refund the money to tourists. Those that want to switch to other tours will be offered incentives. However, no one has provided an estimated figure on the losses to the tourism industry.

On January 31, WHO declared the novel coronavirus as a global health emergency. 9,480 infection cases and 214 deaths have been reported. Many countries have urged against travelling to China or closed the border. Vietnam will stop issuing visas for Chinese tourists.

The Vietnam National Administration of Tourism also asked tour agencies to not run tours to affected areas in China. Lao Cai provincial authorities then asked local tour agencies to stop bringing tourists to China via border gates. Dtinews
US Food and Drug Administration has accepted a supplemental New Drug Application and granted Priority Review for Farxiga (dapagliflozin) to reduce the risk of cardiovascular (CV) death or the worsening of heart failure (HF) in adults with heart failure with reduced ejection fraction

AstraZeneca has announced the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has accepted a supplemental New Drug Application (sNDA) and granted Priority Review for Farxiga (dapagliflozin) to reduce the risk of cardiovascular (CV) death or the worsening of heart failure (HF) in adults with heart failure with reduced ejection fraction (HFrEF) with and without type-2 diabetes (T2D). Farxiga is a first-in-class, oral once-daily selective inhibitor of human sodium-glucose co-transporter 2 (SGLT2).

The Prescription Drug User Fee Act date, the FDA action date for this supplemental application, is scheduled for the second quarter of 2020.

The sNDA was based on results from the landmark Phase III DAPA-HF trial published in September 2019 in The New England Journal of Medicine, which showed Farxiga on top of standard of care reduced the incidence of the composite outcome of CV death or the worsening of HF versus placebo.

Mene Pangalos, Executive Vice President, BioPharmaceuticals R&D, said: Farxiga is well established in the treatment of type-2 diabetes and this Priority Review shows its potential to also impact millions of patients with heart failure. If approved, Farxiga will be the first and only medicine of its kind indicated to treat patients with heart failure.

In September 2019, the FDA granted Fast Track designation for the development of Farxiga in HF. In August 2019, the FDA also granted Fast Track designation for the development of Farxiga to delay the progression of renal failure and prevent CV and renal death in patients with chronic kidney disease, with and without T2D.

Farxiga is indicated as a monotherapy and as part of combination therapies to improve glycaemic control in adults with T2D. In October 2019, the FDA also approved Farxiga to reduce the risk of hospitalisation for heart failure in patients with T2D and established cardiovascular disease or multiple CV risk factors.
The British public has been told that something stupendously important happened yesterday; something so huge and historic that nothing will be the same again.

Tory MP Mark Francois planned to get very emotional about it all. Not the getting-blind drunk-and-bursting-into-patriotic-song kind of emotional  he simply wants a quiet moment to process the profundity of the Brexiteers triumph over Brussels dictatorial rule. Im not going to bed. Im going to stay up and watch the sun rise on a free country, he said of his Brexit celebration plan.

It is tempting to imagine this newly zen Francois  a Francois less red-faced and combustible  sitting close-eyed and cross-legged on a rooftop, mediating on the dawn and his own future on the Conservative backbenches  but it is not going to happen. Brexit is not actually over. And Mark Francois wont stop appearing on TV, turning crimson and saying very stupid things.

The initial phase is now done, it is true. But little about the United Kingdoms relationship with European Union is resolved. We have a rough outline on the terms of our departure, full of awkward fudges on very basic things, like border arrangements between Great Britain and Northern Ireland.

As we move into the transition period and the nitty-gritty of trade deal negotiations gets underway, there is a painful inevitability about reliving the same theatre of the absurd, in which the same players donning the same guises will take the stage and reel off the same lines.

Brexit timeline: How did we get here? Show all 20 1 /20 Brexit timeline: How did we get here? Brexit timeline: How did we get here? Britain votes to leave the European Union - 23 June 2016 A referendum is held on Britain's membership of the European Union. Fifty-two per cent of the country votes in favour of leaving AFP via Getty Brexit timeline: How did we get here? David Cameron resigns - 24 June 2016 David Cameron resigns on the morning of the result after leading the campaign for Britain to remain in the EU Getty Brexit timeline: How did we get here? Theresa May takes the reins - 13 July 2016 Theresa May becomes leader of the Conservative party and prime minister, winning the leadership contest unopposed after Andrea Leadsom drops out Getty Brexit timeline: How did we get here? High Court rules parliament must vote on Brexit - November 2016 - 3 November 2016 The High Court rules that parliament must vote on triggering Article 50, which would begin the Brexit process Brexit timeline: How did we get here? Article 50 triggered - 28 March 2017 The prime minister triggers Article 50 after parliament endorses the result of the referendum Getty Brexit timeline: How did we get here? May calls snap election - 18 April 2018 Seeking a mandate for her Brexit plan, May goes to the country Getty Brexit timeline: How did we get here? May loses majority as Labour makes surprise gain - 8 June 2017 After a disastrous campaign, Theresa May loses her majority in the commons and turns to the DUP for support. Jeremy Corbyn's Labour party makes gains after being predicted to lose heavily AFP/Getty Brexit timeline: How did we get here? Negotiations begin - 19 June 2017 David Davis and Michel Barnier, chief negotiators for the UK and EU respectively, hold a press conference on the first day of Brexit negotiations. Soon after the beginning of negotiations, it becomes clear that the issue of the border between Northern Ireland and the Republic will prove a major sticking point AFP/Getty Brexit timeline: How did we get here? MPs vote that withdrawal deal must be ratified by parliament - 13 December 2017 The government suffers a defeat in parliament over the EU withdrawal agreement, guaranteeing that MPs are given a 'meaningful vote' on the deal Brexit timeline: How did we get here? Boris Johnson resigns as foreign secretary - 11 July 2018 Following a summit at Chequers where the prime minister claimed to have gained cabinet support for her deal, Boris Johnson resigns as foreign secretary along with David Davis, the Brexit secretary Reuters Brexit timeline: How did we get here? Draft withdrawal agreement - 15 November 2018 The draft withdrawal agreement settles Britain's divorce bill, secures the rights of EU citizens living in the UK and vice versa and includes a political declaration commiting both parties to frictionless trade in goods and cooperation on security matters. The deal also includes the backstop, which is anathema to many brexiteers and Dominic Raab and Esther McVey resign from the cabinet in protest Getty Brexit timeline: How did we get here? May resigns - 24 May 2019 After several failed attempts to pass her withdrawal agreement through the commons, Theresa May resigns Reuters Brexit timeline: How did we get here? Johnson takes over - 24 July 2019 Boris Johnson is elected leader of the Conservative party in a landslide victory. He later heads to Buckingham Palace where the Queen invites him to form a government Getty Brexit timeline: How did we get here? Parliament prorogued - 28 August 2019 Boris Johnson prorogues parliament for five weeks in the lead up to the UK's agreed departure date of 31 October. Stephen Morgan MP Brexit timeline: How did we get here? Prorogation ruled unlawful - 24 September 2019 The High Court rules that Johnson's prorogation of parliament is 'unlawful' after a legal challenge brought by businesswoman Gina Miller Getty Brexit timeline: How did we get here? Johnson agrees deal with Varadkar - October Following a summit in Merseyside, Johnson agrees a compromise to the backstop with Irish prime minister Leo Varadkar - making the withdrawal agreement more palatable to Brexiteers Getty Brexit timeline: How did we get here? Final Say march demands second referendum - 19 October 2019 As parliament passes the Letwin amendment requiring the prime minister to request a further delay to Brexit, protesters take to the streets in the final show of force for a Final Say referendum Getty Brexit timeline: How did we get here? Johnson wins 80 seat majority - 12 December 2019 The Conservatives win the December election in a landslide, granting Boris Johnson a large majority to pass through his brexit deal and pursue his domestic agenda Getty Brexit timeline: How did we get here? Withdrawal deal passes parliament - 20 December 2019 The withdrawal agreement passes through the commons with a majority of 124 Getty Brexit timeline: How did we get here? EU parliament backs UK withdrawal deal - 29 January 2020 Members of the European parliament overwhelmingly back the ratification of Britain's departure, clearing the way for Brexit two days later on 31 January. Following the vote, members join hands and sing Auld Lang Syne AFP/Getty

Over the past 12 months, we have been pummelled with talk about deadlines, possible extensions and the threat of a cliff-edge exit. In 2020, we will be pummelled with talk about deadlines, possible extensions and the threat of a cliff-edge exit. If you thought Francois, Steve Baker, Iain Duncan Smith and the rest of the goon squad in the European Research Group (ERG) were telling us how those arrogant, controlling bullies in Brussels are trying to screw us over, you are sorely mistaken. For as the orgy of Union Jack-waving recedes and details of necessary trade-offs and compromises emerge, the Tory ultras will be raging once more, telling us that those arrogant, controlling bullies in Brussels are trying to screw us over.

The ERG still needs a bogeyman, and the EU will continue to fit the bill. Boris Johnson and his key ministers  if they arent seen to be standing up to the enemy  might just replace those pesky Remainer MPs as partners in the terrible crime of failing to deliver the one, true, rock-hard Brexit.

Recommended Brexit has turned us into the biggest laughing stock on the planet

This is not what the British people voted for, they will say. This is not really Brexit at all. Can we have back our proper Brexit please?

Brexit remains a fantasy of splendid isolation in an interdependent world. It is also a chance to bathe in martyrdom when those forces of interdependence become real.

Francois, a former part-time officer in the Territorial Army, likes his military metaphors. He is also fond of thinking in quasi-religious terms about the good versus evil struggle for political freedom. Remember when he channelled Jesus Christ himself after a disappointing defeat in the Commons last April? Forgive them father, he said in earnest. For they know not what they do.

So lets allow Francois his moment of calm to watch the sunrise. He and the others have time yet before they pick up their crosses and cry out to the heavens about the great Brexit betrayal that lies ahead.
The Constitution does not give the Senate the power to remove the president from office and ban him from this years ballot simply for actions that are inappropriate, he said. The question then is not whether the president did it, but whether the United States Senate or the American people should decide what to do about what he did. I believe that the Constitution provides that the people should make that decision in the presidential election that begins in Iowa on Monday.
US President Donald Trump on Friday slapped immigration restrictions on citizens of six countries including Nigeria, in addition to the list of nations already targeted by his controversial travel ban.

In addition to Africa's most populous nation, the new measures also pertain to Myanmar, Eritrea, Kyrgyzstan, Sudan and Tanzania, administration officials said.

"The president's decision is the product of a comprehensive and systematic assessment that was conducted by the Department of Homeland Security, as well as in partnership with other federal agencies," said one of the officials.

The official added that the decision was the "result of these countries' unwillingness or inability to adhere to certain baseline identity management, information sharing and national security and public safety assessment criteria that were established by the department in 2017."

Unlike the travel ban Trump unveiled in January 2017 shortly after taking office, which banned citizens of certain Muslim-majority countries from entering US territory, the latest directive was less sweeping.

The official said it would only target certain visa categories and would focus primarily on people seeking to move to the United States rather than those simply aiming to visit.

The American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU)was quick to condemn the new restrictions, saying that three years after the initial ban, the administration is continuing and "expanding its scope."

"President Trump is doubling down on his signature anti-Muslim policy  and using the ban as a way to put even more of his prejudices into practice by excluding more communities of color," the ACLU said in a statement.

"Families, universities, and businesses in the United States are paying an ever-higher price for President Trump's ignorance and racism," it said.
Jeff Lewis apologized for his racially insensitive behavior on Thursday's episode of his SiriusXM radio show Jeff Lewis Live.

The former Flipping Out star, 49, had earlier this week spoken about the coronavirus outbreak that originated in China, joking that all the Asian-American employees working on his show were going to be quarantined.

He then told listeners, 'It's racist Wednesday, here at Jeff Lewis Live.'

However he was later forced to backpedal, telling listeners, 'We love our Asian listeners and we would never want them to feel excluded. We also never meant to spread hate or breed racism with our comments.'

Racially insensitive: Jeff Lewis apologized on his SiriusXM radio show Jeff Lewis Live on Thursday for his racially insensitive behavior on the preceding two editions of his show

'Apparently, I did incense a few people. I actually feel bad about it. I was joking around and it went a little too far,' Lewis continued.

'I apologize for being such an a**. I want people to have fun when they listen to this show... So I just wanted to apologize. Im very sorry for crossing the line.'

On Tuesday's show, the radio personality welcomed SNL alum Cheri Oteri, interior designer Megan Weaver, actor Doug Budin, actress Monika Casey and real estate agent Carrie Lewis as guests.

But the conversation quickly went off the rails when they began joking about precautions they were taking against the spreading respiratory disease.

In poor taste: Jeff and his guests broached the subject of mounting fears in relation to the coronavirus outbreak that originated in China earlier this month, and under the guise of humor he allowed things to steer into decidedly racist territory

'There used to be three Asian American people working here, but Megan has locked them in the greenroom because shes so concerned. She is so concerned, she has quarantined them,' Lewis joked of Weaver, saying as justification that 'she is so afraid of the coronavirus.'

In response, Weaver joked she was 'terrified,' and added that she would not be eating at Panda Express 'until this is all over.'

Budin even teased, 'What if an Asian person calls into the show? We shouldnt even take the call.'

The off-color joking continued, with Jeff quipping that he had cancelled events in Wuhan, China  the epicenter of the virus outbreak  and Megan saying that she was afraid the Chinese foot massage therapist she recently saw may have infected her: 'He was very sick. He was really sick!'

Then, on Wednesday's episode, Lewis said he was 'advising that we quarantine all Asian SiriusXM employes' and that 'This would include Chinese, Japanese, Korean, Taiwanese, Vietnamese, Burmese, Filipino, Indonesian, etc... Im sure theres more. Thats all we could think of. Well see how that goes.'

He even went so far as to recommend his listeners avoid popular Los Angeles destinations such as Chinatown or even Grauman's Chinese Theatre, simply because of their Asian connotation.

After added comments painting Asian students largely as cheaters, Jeff said, 'Its racist Wednesday, here at Jeff Lewis Live.'

Out of turn: Lewis even went so far as to recommend his listeners avoid popular destinations such as Chinatown or Grauman's Chinese Theatre, simply because of their Asian connotation

Finally, he ended his diatribe by blaming Asian eating habits as the sole cause of the outbreak of the disease.

'Theyre saying the coronavirus is a bat virus that then transmitted to snakes because snakes eat bats. The Chinese eat snakes, they eat all kinds of s*** over there.'

'Thats probably why were in this trouble,' he added. 'And then they wonder why theyre sick!'

As part of his apology on Thursday, Lewis said, 'I personally, truly, was kidding  was joking. Being sarcastic.

'I love all my listeners and I truly do not care about their ethnicity. I dont care about their religious background. I dont care about income level. I dont care about their height. I dont care if theyre three feet tall. I dont care if they dont have arms. I dont care if theyre transitioning. I dont care if they have special needs. I dont care. I really dont care. I just want to connect with people,' he added.
"I believe that no winter is never-ending, and this virus-stricken winter will eventually end," wrote Sun Wanqing in a new year greeting card to her father, a doctor fighting against the novel coronavirus in the city of Wuhan, central China's Hubei Province.

The 14-year-old girl, a middle school student, had a quiet and unforgettable Spring Festival, without the company of her parents. Since the novel coronavirus started to wreak havoc in the country, her father has been working on the frontline and her mother, an anesthesiologist, is required to remain on standby. It is difficult for the family to reunite during the traditional Chinese festival.

"I hadn't seen my father for a week when I began to write the card," Sun said.

Her father, Sun Peng, works in the emergency and fever department of Wuhan Union Hospital, one of the city's designated hospitals to admit patients infected with the new virus. For fear that his constant exposure to patients would infect himself and his family, Sun Peng rented a room nearby the hospital.

The last time that the daughter and father met was on Jan. 22, two days before the Chinese New Year's Eve, when Sun Peng had to go home to deliver medicine to his elderly mother and had a meal at home.

"We didn't have much time to chat that day, though my greeting card was ready. I filled his bowl with rice. He ate it in the doorway, refusing to sit together with us at the table. He didn't want to put us at risk of contracting the virus," the girl recalled.

On the first day of the Lunar New Year, the girl took a photo of the 200-character card and sent it to her father. Later, the photo, which contained her pride in his father's career and understanding of his work, went viral online. Viewers from across the country were deeply moved by the family's sincere love.

Wuhan, the center of the coronavirus outbreak, reported 576 new confirmed cases and 33 new deaths on Friday.

Hubei had reported 7,153 confirmed cases of the novel coronavirus infection by Friday, with 249 deaths and 956 patients in severe or critical condition.

Sun Peng is one of the thousands of medics fighting the epidemic at the forefront. More than 6,000 medical workers from other provincial-level regions and the military have joined hands with local medical workers to combat the epidemic.

Yang Xiao, a doctor of Zhongnan Hospital of Wuhan University, could not help crying when calling her daughter in the hospital lounge. Having been away from home for a week, her baby could barely recognize her during the video chat.

"No big deal. It's good that she doesn't look for Mom," said Yang, choking back her tears.

At the Wuhan Union Hospital West Campus, one of the latest designated hospitals to admit novel coronavirus patients, 31 nurses cut their long hair before their medical training.

"Cutting hair short makes it convenient to wear protective clothing. And as we will be busy taking care of patients, there is limited time for us to take a shower or wash our hair," said Ge Lin, head nurse of the hepatobiliary surgery department.

Thanks to the efforts of the medics, as well as donations, funds and medical supplies from across the world, Hubei has made some progress in the fight. By Friday, the province has seen 166 patients discharged from hospital. More cured patients have also been seen in the country.
The consumer durables industry expects finance minister Nirmala Sitharaman to announce incentives in budget 2020 to aid the sector, drive consumption and strengthen the government's Make in India story. The industry is seeking incentives for local manufacturers, reduction in taxes on eco-friendly and energy-efficient products and waiver of customs duty on imported inputs to make components.

Here are some of the key demands of the consumer durables industry from budget 2020:

1. Announce more exemptions on the lines of last year's cut in basic customs duty on open cells from 5% to 0%. This move helped companies pass on the benefits to the customers by decreasing TV prices.

2. Reduce basic customs duty on inputs used in producing key components such as motors and printed circuit board (PCB) which currently vary from 7.5%-10%. Components such as motors and PCB are further used for manufacturing air conditioners, refrigerators and washing machines etc. Customs duty reduction on these (components) will reduce input cost, enabling domestic manufacturers become more competitive.

3. Announce more positive policies for the consumer appliance industry on account of a flat growth over the last two years. This will help aid and drive growth in the sector.

4. Reduce GST on TV and refrigerators as it will help lower costs for the customers and push further penetration of these products in the consumer market especially in rural India.

5. More efforts under National Policy on Electronics (NPE) to help boost the government's Make in India vision and make India a hub for electronics manufacturing.

6. Incentivise domestic businesses and create an ecosystem for local manufacturing to improve India's exports.

7. Establish favourable trade agreements with consumption economies to boost exports.

FULL COVERAGE:Union Budget 2020

Meanwhile, the Consumer Electronics and Appliances Manufacturers Association (CEAMA) has also urged the government to offer incentives for manufacturers to produce energy-efficient products which will be in line with the government's focus on sustainability in a pre-budget memorandum. "Lowering the GST tax slabs for eco-friendly and energy-efficient products like air conditioners (4-star, 5-star models) and refrigerators (direct cool and frost-free) to 12 per cent will drive demand and increase the adoption of sustainable appliances by Indian consumers," CEAMA President Kamal Nandi told PTI.

Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman will present the Budget for the financial year 2020-21 on February 1. According to CEAMA, the industry has largely been stagnant this year and with increased customs duties, global economic changes and fluctuations in currency and commodity, the demand levels for next year are difficult to predict.

Indian component suppliers are facing difficulty in competing with cheap Chinese imports, it said.

Also read: Budget 2020 Live Updates: FM Nirmala Sitharaman to present budget at 11 AM; middle class, corporate await surprise

Also read: Budget 2020: What can auto sector expect?
President of Belarus Alexander Lukashenko met with US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo in Minsk, Foreign Minister Vladimir Makei said noting that the main topic of the discussion was the search of ways for the country's interaction with the NATO bloc.

The Belarusian Minister noted that the meeting was held in an atmosphere of absolute trust and mutual understanding. The parties discussed a wide range of issues in bilateral relations. In particular, an exchange of views took place on the situation in the region and on the prospects for Belaruss interaction with NATO. The intention of Belarus to make efforts to maintain peace and security on the continent was noted, TASS quotes Makei as saying.
The general elections of 2016 and 2020 are markedly different in terms of the candidates involved, the strategies being adopted and, most particularly, in the composition of the constituency.

The 2016 election was contested along different geographical lines with West Cavan and South West Donegal joining the entire Counties of Sligo and Leitrim.

This time round, West Cavan has returned to the Cavan-Monaghan constituency and Counties Sligo and Leitrim are still joined by South West Donegal (including the towns of Bundoran and Ballyshannon) with the addition this time of a portion of North Co Roscommon (including population points such as the town of Boyle, the villages of Ballyfarnon and Keadue and the wider Cortober area of Carrick-on-Shannon).

The change in the structure of the constituency and the different personnel running for election makes it more difficult to hazard a guess at what might happen this time round.

Take for instance the Leitrim-based TD, Martin Kenny of Sinn Fein.

His circumstances and that of his party have changed utterly since the last election. On that occasion they ran a two candidate strategy.

Cllr Chris MacManus polled very strongly with about 3,400 first preference votes in Sligo and almost 1,000 in Donegal, while Deputy Kenny, according to the tallies, claimed 4,200 first preferences in Leitrim and over 1,100 in West Cavan.

There is a core Sinn Fein vote in this constituency with over 11,100 votes for the party last time round. However, approximately 1,200 of those were in West Cavan but there are party votes to be had in Roscommon so it should even itself out to some degree.



Sinn Fein votes among two candidates always transfer strongly and with Cllr MacManus now campaigning for Deputy Kenny in Sligo, it should give the Leitrim TD a strong footing to get re-elected.

There's no doubt, however, that while Deputy Kenny will rely heavily on Leitrim support, he will feel the heat in Ballinamore town and surrounds where there is a divisive split in the party.

He secured approximately 500 votes in the Ballinamore and Aughawillan areas last time and it will be interesting to see how he fares when those boxes are opened on this occasion.

Another issue that Sinn Fein will have to consider and could have an impact on their overall vote is the gap that Cllr MacManus will leave in Sligo Town in particular.

There is the opportunity for current Sligo Mayor, Cllr Gino O'Boyle (People Before Profit) and the long-serving councillor and former TD, Declan Bree (Independent), to benefit from the Sinn Fein vacuum in the town.

Martin Kenny will likely need transfers from both of those candidates if he is to make it over the line. Last time out, Cllr Bree transferred over 2,000 votes to Sinn Fein, 1,400 to MacManus and 600 to Kenny.

Cllr O'Boyle is an unknown quantity in terms of national elections but he is a big vote getter in Sligo Town and his transfers could be crucial for the hopes of more than one candidate before the four seats are filled.

The situation regarding the candidates for Fine Gael and Fianna Fail are less clear and that has to do with a number of factors which includes the candidates themselves, their political experience, and the geography of the constituency.

Fine Gael in Leitrim got off to a very messy start with the two selected candidates, Gerry Reynolds and Cllr Sinead Maguire stepping down for personal reasons.



It became a bit of a circus before the party finally settled on two candidates, Cllr Thomas Walsh in Sligo and Senator Frank Feighan who, while living now in Sligo, immediately set his focus on Co Leitrim and of course on his native North Co Roscommon.

The Fine Gael Senator is a former TD for the now defunct Roscommon-South Leitrim constituency and would expect strong support from the party faithful in Co Leitrim.

Former Leitrim TD, Senator and Councillor, Gerry Reynolds narrowly missed out on the last occasion with 1,600 votes coming from West Cavan.

Those votes are not there anymore and you would expect Frank Feighan to pick up the party vote in both Leitrim and in the new part of the constituency, his heartland of Boyle and surrounds.

How Cllr Walsh will fare is less clear. He is a first time candidate but is up against some heavy hitters in Co Sligo. The retirement of Tony McLoughlin as a TD will ensure Cllr Walsh picks up that core party vote in Sligo.

The decision of former TD and Minister of State, John Perry to run again, this time on an Independent ticket, will put pressure on the Fine Gael vote, particularly in South Sligo and around his own base in Ballymote.

He polled 4,400 first preferences the last time while running under the Fine Gael banner and will be hoping to significantly improve on that this time round.

First preferences will have a big bearing, but more so will transfers, and votes in Sligo will cross party lines and stay within a geographic area as they have done in the past.



This will also affect another South Sligo candidate and another Ballymote man, Eamon Scanlon. The Fianna Fail TD picked up a healthy 1,000 transfers from Perry on the last occasion and will feel it is imperative he stays ahead of his rival to get the most benefit from transfers.

Fianna Fail's other political heavyweight comes in the form of Sligo Town's Marc MacSharry who topped the poll on the last occasion with 8,856 first preferences.

The opinion polls at this stage are showing a bounce for Fianna Fail and the member of the Dail's powerful Public Accounts Committee would be expected to retain his seat.

That leaves Fianna Fail in Co Leitrim who have selected first time candidate Shane Ellis from Fenagh to contest the election.

Son of former Leitrim TD, John Ellis, this is his first foray into politics at any level. What he has going for him is that he is the only party candidate in Co Leitrim and one of only a handful of candidates from the county.

That leaves a lot of territory to cover but also a lot of votes to be hoovered up. How he or any first time candidate fares is always difficult to tell.

The party ran Cllr Paddy O'Rourke on the last occasion but the inclusion of West Cavan was a big factor in Cllr O'Rourke decision to go forward. He was incredibly successful in that regard with over 1,800 votes from that area. That was coupled with 3,200 votes from Leitrim.

In the interim, Fianna Fail has probably benefitted from a bit of a recovery in the polls, and the party will be hoping that it, through Shane Ellis, will be the big beneficiary from that.

The big imponderable in relation to the other candidates running is that of former TD and MEP Marian Harkin who has thrown her hat into the ring.

Having retired from the European Parliament, the former schoolteacher and community activist, is having another go at national politics and is running on a ticket of balanced regional development, among other things.

Her introduction into the race is seen either as a breath of fresh air by someone who is needed to break the stranglehold of the political parties, or a candidate who has already held office and has nothing left to prove.

It is likely Marian Harkin will be in the running for one of the four seats on offer but where she will get the votes and who she will affect remains to be seen.

Certainly her old stomping grounds of Sligo and North Leitrim in particular will be her target.

Others who are running include Blaithin Gallagher for the Green Party. The Mohill native now resident in Creevelea will benefit from what is regarded as a 'green wave' across the country.

She is joined by first time candidate Nessa Cosgrove for the Labour Party who will be trying to build on the 1,800 votes picked up by Susan O'Keeffe on the last occasion.

Smaller parties such as Renua will run Drumshanbo man and former local election candidate Oisin O'Dwyer, the National Party are running Paul McWeeney from near Carrick-on- Shannon and Aontu are putting forward Derry woman Anne McCloskey.

In the Independent ranks, Dromahair woman Bernie O'Hara is running again on a policy of common sense politics and an end to the neglect of rural Ireland. She polled over 1,200 first preferences the last time and will be hoping to improve on that.

She will be joined on the ballot by Drumshanbo teacher and former local election candidate Sean Wynne, James Conway from Ballinacarrow, Co Sligo and Mary O'Donnell from Ballinameen, Co Roscommon.
MICHIGAN -- A restaurant chain based in West Michigan is facing a lawsuit over claims of workplace discrimination, including an accusation that a worker was asked to remove her hijab.

The lawsuit was filed Thursday, Jan. 30 in U.S. District Court in Detroit against Annas House.

In it, two former workers at the chains Westland location claim they were fired without justification. Leaders with the Michigan chapter of Council on AmericanIslamic Relations announced the court case the same day it was filed.

One of the workers was a manager at the Westland restaurant and the other was a kitchen manager at the same location.

According to the lawsuit, the manager was asked to tell a front-counter worker that she needed to remove her hijab at work. A hijab is a head covering worn by some Muslim women as governed by a religious code.

The manager refused to inform the worker and, instead, texted Annas House owner Josh Beckett that he should consult with an attorney to make sure the restaurants practices are legal and ethical.

Lawyers for the fired workers allege Beckett ordered general managers at other Annas House restaurants not to hire anyone wearing a hajib.

Before she was fired, the Westland location manager said she also was asked to remind two black workers they could not dye their hair red. At the same time, no such requests were given about white workers who died their hair, lawyers said.

According to the lawsuit, Beckett allegedly asked another worker at the Westland location whether the kitchen manager prayed at work. The kitchen manager is a Senegalese Muslim and, in fact, did pray in an office.

Lawyers for the fired workers, dismissed on June 19, allege the question about praying targeted (the kitchen manager) because he is Muslim.

Beckett released a statement about the lawsuit.

Annas House is aware of the lawsuit filed today. We have retained counsel and will defend against these claims in Court. Annas House has and continues to be a place that employs and serves people of all backgrounds and beliefs.

Annas House, according to the company web site, has eight locations around the state.

Also on MLive

Teen shot in arm during horseplay with other teen in Ottawa County

Study reveals Michigans most popular breweries based on social media

3 supermoons, an extra full moon, a blue moon and a micro-moon all to occur in 2020
She then pivoted to her new theme as a unity candidate, encouraging supporters to see her as the Democratic hopeful best able to bind a fractured party. Whats important is, we come together as a party because we have one really important job, and that is to beat Donald Trump, Warren said. But some of Sanderss allies are not backing away. At campaign stops in Iowa last weekend, filmmaker Michael Moore, who introduced the candidate, brought along a printed list of campaign events Sanders held for Clinton after losing to her in 2016, a pointed effort to rebut the notion that he did little to help her.
Donna Air says she isn't what you would call a 'jobbing actress'.

She might have started out as one  she was just a child when she got her first acting role, in Byker Grove alongside Ant and Dec  but in the three decades since, she's become more famous as a presenter, personality and general socialite whose main role seems to be appearing in the gossip columns.

Every so often she does dip her toe back into the world of fictional TV, though.

This time she's back with quite a corker, having landed a part in the returning BBC drama The Split, joining a top-notch cast including Nicola Walker, Stephen Mangan and Frances Barber.

The series, set in the world of the divorce lawyer, sees her play Fi, a glamorous celebrity who is trapped in a high-profile but miserable marriage, and with a suffocating pre-nuptial agreement in place.

Donna Air, 40, (pictured) from Newcastle, who got her first acting role in Byker Grove as a child, is set to return to screens as Fi in BBC drama The Split

The role involves much wafting around, showing off an Instagram-enviable life in public, but also much weeping in private.

'It's a horrible marriage, a s**tshow,' she says. 'She's got a terrible husband. He gaslights her. He's a pathological liar, controlling and narcissistic. She starts to lose her mind.

'I mean, you think the one person you can trust is your husband, but that isn't the case. She was a dream to play, though.'

Marriage gets a bit of a bum rap in general in this rather excellent drama.

Clients are warring, desperate to escape their unions. The lawyers are cheating in their own marriages.

The unrelenting message? Marriage is a messy business. Thank God, says Donna, she never succumbed herself.

'It made me relieved I'm not married,' she admits.

'I'm so glad I've waited this long and I haven't rushed down the aisle. My daughter, who's 16, teases me about it.

Donna has had high profile relationships with Damian Aspinall and James Middleton. Pictured, Donna with James and Pippa Middleton at an event in London in 2015

'She's desperate for me to get a husband but she does say that at least when I do it, it will be for keeps, and that if I'd married years ago I'd probably be on my second or third marriage by now.

'Some of my friends are.'

She jokes about the fact that there's a family history of taking some time over the marriage question.

'My mum is on her second marriage now but she only got remarried last year. She'd been with him for 22 years, though.

'The Air women aren't known for rushing down the aisle.

'Yes, I probably would like to marry Mr Right, but I'm glad I didn't marry the wrong man for the wrong reasons.'

If you only know about Donna through Hello! magazine, you might be surprised that she hasn't hot-footed it up the aisle before now.

Donna gushes that it's amazing how Prince Harry has put his wife, Meghan (pictured together) and their child first with their new life

Her life, outwardly, has seemed one big preparation for the sort of wedding that keeps high-society milliners in business.

Previous high-profile partners have included multi-millionaire conservationist Damian Aspinall  the father of her daughter Freya and James Middleton, brother of the Duchess of Cambridge.

Neither of those relationships worked out (we will come to that), but today, as we meet for lunch, the surprise is that she says she's not actually that keen on weddings  not the big socialite ones anyway.

Not all my boyfriends are posh She's dated multi-millionaire Damian Aspinall and Kate Middleton's brother James, but mercifully Donna can laugh about her reputation as a woman who only goes for posh boys. It's not entirely true, she says, when I ask if she's ever had a boyfriend who isn't posh. 'Yes. Yes! They only write about the posh ones, though. I've definitely had a couple of very unposh ones. 'And some of the ones who are posh really aren't that posh at all. 'Just because you went to a fancy school doesn't mean you're posh, let me tell you. You can't buy manners and class.' She always did like a posh boy, though. When she was at comprehensive school, it was the public school lads getting on the bus who caught her eye. 'It was the voices,' she admits. 'And the uniform. The private school boys had bottle-green uniforms. 'I was a sucker for that. Advertisement

'I don't go to that many. I find them terribly boring.

'It's such a long day, and there's a lot of small talk. They're not that exciting. Some of them go on for days too.'

But she does weddings so well! Back in 2017, when she seemed poised herself to marry into the Middleton clan, she was a guest at the society wedding of the year  that of Pippa Middleton and James Matthews.

There she met that other happy couple, the not-then-engaged Prince Harry and Meghan Markle. She's at pains to stress that this one did not come under the 'boring society wedding' bracket.

'I don't think Pippa would want me talking about her wedding.

'There may have been people standing outside taking photos, but inside it was very much a private wedding, a genuine family wedding, and those ones are lovely.'

We are meeting at a time when the whole world is talking about the Harry and Meghan bombshell, and their decision to jack in royal duties for a new life in Canada.

Having actually met them, and having some awareness of what life in the goldfish bowl is like, can she empathise? She can indeed.

'I've met the prince and he's lovely, but we did get our knickers in a right big old twist over this, didn't we? They're just going on an aeroplane, for goodness sake.

'My mum said the other day that she was thinking of moving somewhere hot and I said, 'Good for you, Mum, do it.' I'd have the same view with them.

'They seem a very nice couple. Why should they not have the best shot at their relationship, a bit of private time? I know a lot of people don't feel like that but are we really bothered where they live?

Donna is still, underneath the social gloss, a very down-to-earth Newcastle lass, although as has been pointed out, the accent comes and goes a bit

'And they're going to be making their own money, so they can do what they like. Yes, we love Harry but we don't own him. They're not our prisoners.'

Given half a chance, she'd go with them. 'I would! Their new life sounds wonderful  outdoorsy and healthy. Good for them.'

Actually, this latest debacle has made her love Harry even more.

I think it's quite amazing that Prince Harry has put his wife and child first. Isn't that how we're supposed to be? Shouldn't most men put their wife and children first?

'I think it's quite amazing that he's put his wife and child first. Isn't that how we're supposed to be? Shouldn't most men put their wife and children first?

'I do think it's an incredibly brave thing to do. But can you imagine if he didn't?

'He'd be damned that way too. Don't we all want a husband like Harry? Of course we do.'

In the flesh, Donna Air is great fun.

Her presenting skills might have once led to her being dubbed Donna Airhead (her most famous gaffe was when she asked Irish band The Corrs, at the time perhaps the most famous siblings in the pop world, how they met), but there is nothing airheady about her today.

She's 40, smart and seemingly sorted.

She is still, underneath the social gloss, a very down-to-earth Newcastle lass, although as has been pointed out, the accent comes and goes a bit.

Donna as Fi in The Split with her characters controlling husband Richie (Ben Bailey Smith)

She grew up in a two-bedroom house with a mum who was a BT receptionist and a dad who was a bus mechanic.

In the past, much has been made about her humble Geordie roots, with general astonishment that one can go from them to moving in royal circles with apparent ease. She is (rightly) offended at this.

'I always tell them, 'People from Newcastle can go all sorts of places. They can even get on aeroplanes.'

Her non-TV work does seem to involve endless charity fundraisers and hob-nobbing.

She's involved with the Elephant Family charity, whose royal presidents are Charles and Camilla, and is an adviser to a retail company that runs luxury shopping outlet Bicester Village.

And she's at pains to point out that it was not her ex James Middleton who opened the door into that society.

She had highly connected friends before (Princesses Beatrice and Eugenie are part of her circle).

Donna admits she was torn when her daughter Freya recently signed a modelling contract. Pictured, mother and daughter

'He didn't take me into any circles,' she says. 'We had mutual friends from the start. London is a small place. We all eat in the same restaurants, go to the same places.' She sighs.

'It's not that much of a stretch, but the trouble is that if a woman has anything, people assume it has been given to her by a man.'

She was never supposed to be a damsel-in-waiting, though. She moved to London at the tender age of 15, having been offered a recording contract on the back of her Byker Grove success.

Her parents, who are divorced, stayed up north. Although she had a chaperone ('my London mum'), it was a brutal entry into a very adult world.

Her own daughter recently signed a modelling contract, becoming the youngest model on the agency's books. She admits she was torn.

'But it's a different world now. I had my share of having to bat off sleazy guys.

'It's just how it was then. My daughter's generation are in a completely different environment. They wouldn't stand for that.'

She was a pop star for a bit, then landed a dream job as a presenter on MTV.

There was a stint on The Big Breakfast which seemed to be putting her on the same trajectory as her old mates Ant and Dec.

No, they aren't still in touch to the same degree, but she has watched their careers  and personal ups and downs  with interest.

Was she surprised to learn about Ant's well- documented addiction issues? She shrugs. 'I'm never surprised. You just don't know what's going on with anybody.

'People have all sorts of struggles. Us Brits can get judge-y about it, but are you going to punish anyone for having an illness?'

While Ant and Dec were born presenters, she says she wasn't.

'I'm happier acting. I like not being me for a bit. You can lose yourself in a good part.'

She's rather good in her latest role, holding her own against some of the most respected names in the business.

I thought that acting was a young person's game and that the roles would dry up as I got older. Actually, I was wrong. 'Things have changed and there are brilliant roles for women of my age now

She's dipped in and out of acting over the years, but admits today that although it's her 'first love, and the thing I'm most passionate about', she never considered it would be her mainstay.

'I thought that acting was a young person's game and that the roles would dry up as I got older. Actually, I was wrong.

'Things have changed and there are brilliant roles for women of my age now.'

Back then, she was part of the young and beautiful set.

She hung about with the likes of Kate Moss and Sadie Frost, and when she was 21 was introduced (by Tara Palmer-Tomkinson) to the person she thought would be her husband, Damian Aspinall, son of the conservationist and wildlife park owner John Aspinall, and a man worth 42 million.

A whirlwind romance followed, and home became Howletts, the grand Palladian mansion in Kent.

She was 24 when she had their daughter Freya. The couple were together for six years and  in her eyes  as good as married.

People even used to call her Mrs Aspinall. Damian, though, had been married before and famously said that rich men should stay single.

Donna (pictured in 2000) spent her twenties hanging around with the likes of Kate Moss and Sadie Frost, before being introduced to Damian Aspinall by Tara Palmer-Tomkinson

She admits that she did want to marry him  though never for the money.

'That's no reason to marry, is it?' she says. 'But there was definitely a moment when I wanted to marry Damian.'

That split was one of the great heartbreaks of her life.

She says she's been in love 'probably three times in my life, deeply in love' and came close to marriage 'a couple of times, but I couldn't do it, and I haven't done it, so I have to accept the universe had a different plan'.

She and Damian now co-parent Freya, and successfully so.

With James it wasn't meant to be, but we were together for five years and he's a great guy, we had a lot of fun. I wish him nothing but happiness

'I think our situation does prove it can come right in the end. We are good friends.

'I've said that in the past when it wasn't entirely true, but we've reached a place where it works for us.

'You don't get everything you want in life and it didn't work out  I know Freya hoped it would, every child wants their parents to be together  but I'm lucky with Damian.

'I know a lot of women who don't have an active, reliable, present father in their child's life, and I do. But it can be the luck of the draw.'

Damian has since married, though, which must rankle. She insists not.

'I'm happy for him. We are still family.' Do they do a Rod Stewart and all go on holiday or have Christmases together? She smiles.

'No. You've got to have boundaries. I don't think any wife would want the ex on holiday.'

Then came another high-profile romance. She was with James Middleton for five years, quite a stint. He too, though, is off down the aisle with someone else.

He announced his engagement to French girlfriend Alizee Thevenet in October.

'With James it wasn't meant to be, but we were together for five years and he's a great guy, we had a lot of fun. I wish him nothing but happiness.'

So what went wrong? 'The timing wasn't right.'

Then there was an 18-month relationship with yet another posh boy, Harrow-educated property developer Ben Carrington.

Donna described the wedding of Pippa Middleton and James Matthews as a beautiful family affair. Pictured, Donna greeting Spencer Matthews (centre) with James Middleton on the day

She's now been single for six months, the longest time she's ever been on her own. Actually, her life seems quite perfect as it is.

'It's quite liberating, but it's also nice to share things. I mean my life is not empty.

'I don't need to be in a relationship. I function well on my own, but I probably would still like to get married at some point. Why would you not?'

Some day her prince might come, then, but she says, 'God knows where he'll be from, because when you get that flutter in your heart it could be from anywhere.'

She confides that in her Byker Grove days she was smitten with Ant.

'He was my first crush, but he was with someone else,' she says.

'I've still got a bit of a crush on both Ant and Dec, hasn't everyone?' How history might have been rewritten, had she and Ant teamed up.

She roars with laughter.

'Maybe I should have married Ant, found a nice lad from Newcastle. It's not too late. I could still end up marrying a plumber from Newcastle.'

The Split returns 11 February, 9pm, BBC1.
Sakuramen | Photo: C.C./Yelp

Looking for a yummy Korean meal near you?

Hoodline crunched the numbers to find the top Korean spots around Washington, using both Yelp data and our own secret sauce to produce a ranked list of the best spots to achieve your dreams.

Looking to catch up on the latest popular spots? There's no time like the present, since consumer spending at restaurants tends to climb in February in the Washington area, according to data on local business transactions from Womply, a software provider that also helps companies find free business advertising. Daily spending at Washington-area restaurants last year rose by 15% in February over the month before.

Hoodline offers data-driven analysis of local happenings and trends across cities. Links included in this article may earn Hoodline a commission on clicks and transactions.

1. Sakuramen

Photo: samantha l./Yelp

First on the list is Sakuramen. Located at 2441 18th St. NW in Adams Morgan, it is the most popular Korean restaurant in Washington, boasting four stars out of 1,572 reviews on Yelp.

2. Kochix

PHOTO: dale j./YELP



Next up is Shaw's KoChix, situated at 400 Florida Ave. NW. With 4.5 stars out of 293 reviews on Yelp, it has proved to be a local favorite.

3. Bibibop Asian Grill

Photo: dayne p./Yelp

Georgetown's Bibibop Asian Grill, an outpost of the chain located at 2805 M St. NW, is another top choice, with Yelpers giving the fast-food spot 4.5 stars out of 83 reviews.

4. Bonchon

Bonchon in Navy Yard is another go-to, with four stars out of 455 Yelp reviews. Head over to 1015 Half St. SE to see for yourself.

This story was created automatically using local business data, then reviewed and augmented by an editor. Click here for more about what we're doing. Got thoughts? Go here to share your feedback.
By Ogochukwu Anioke, Abakaliki

The Indigenous People of Biafra (IPOB) has warned the Federal government against arresting the Minority leader of the Senate, Enyinnaya Abaribe or risk its wrath.

The group was reacting to a statement by a presidential spokesman that Abaribe should be in jail for standing as surety for its Leader, Nnamdi Kanus bail in 2017.

Abaribe had on Wednesday called for the resignation of President Muhammadu Buhari for failure to protect the country and its citizens from Boko Haram and bandits.

He made the call on the Senate floor during deliberations on the rising insecurity in the country.

But the Presidency in a swift reaction by spokesman, Garba Shehu, said Abaribe deserves to be in jail for failure to stop Kanu from jumping bail.

But spokesperson to IPOB, Emma Powerful in a statement on Friday said Kanus home was invaded in a bid to kill him forcing him to flee the country.

The recent incoherent and roundly childish tirade by the presidency of Nigeria against Senator Enyinnaya Abaribe, unarguably the only distinguished senator in the whole of Nigeria, is confirmation of the paranoia that has gripped the government in Aso Rock.

Garba Shehu has not only showcased his ignorance of the law as it pertains to bail forfeiture proceedings in a law court, but his pathetic attempt to rewrite the history of the unprovoked bloody invasion of the home of our leader Mazi Nnamdi Kanu by soldiers which directly resulted in his inability to attend Binta Nyakos court is well documented.

It doesnt matter how many times Aso Rock rehearsh this purile line of jumping bail argument, the facts are very clear and in the public domain for any sensible person to comprehend.

If you went to Mazi Nnamdi Kanus house to kill him, is it a court in Abuja, where judges are impotent, that he wont be attacked? Mr Powerful said.

The spokesman said that it speaks to the intellectual vacuousness of this APC regime that a seemingly high ranking presidential spokesperson is blissfully ignorant of the constitution they swore to uphold.

Does it mean that Garba Shehu, Malami the Attorney General of Nigeria and the Tanko Muhammad the Chief Justice of Nigeria are ignorant of the section of the constitution that stipulates by law a senator is not allowed to stand surety for an accused person?

Therefore Abaribe has no case to answer, that is why neither Binta Ntakos court nor the Court of Appeal is willing to entertain the bond forfeiture case any longer. Garba Shehu should stop disgracing himself and his government with their nauseating ignorance of judicial process.

This same Garba Shehu who said they dont take advice from the likes of Abaribe were the same people that publicly called for Goodluck Jonathan to resign. Why is it that Senator Abaribes legitimate call for the resignation of Buhari is suddenly treasonable felony.

The pro-Biafran group said that any plans against Abaribe and others will fail because ordinary people are now wiser thanks to the gospel of liberation being preached by its leader Mazi Nnamdi Kanu.

Since the failure to eliminate our great leader during the invasion of his country home at Afaraukwu in Umuahia Abia State, Aso Rock with their truth averse misguided friends in some sections of the cash and carry news media in Nigeria, have been scrambling to see what false allegation against Enyinnaya Abaraibe will stick.

Each time they have failed as they will also fail in this latest charade. We are now all familiar with the usual rage and fury anytime their corrupt regime in Aso Rock is held publicly accountable. They cannot fool the masses anymore, we are all wiser.

We should remind Garba Shehu and Nigerians alike that Federal High Court in Abuja presided over by Justice Binta Nyako granted our leader bail on 23rd of March 2017 and a few months after that, the Federal Government of Nigeria on 14th of September 2017 to be precise ordered the Nigeria Army, Police, Navy, Air Force and DSS to invade kill and maim our leader Mazi Nnamdi Kanu.

The fact they failed in that murderous mission that took the lives of 28 Biafrans is the reason why there is so much meaningless vitriol directed at Abaribe to cover up their murderous intent against our leader.

On the state of insecurity in the country, Mr Powerful said the government of Buhari has failed woefully and should be removed.

It is important we let the masses that inhabit the colonial contraption called Nigeria know that any government that fails to protect the lives and properties of her citizens is a total failure, therefore this regime is a complete and utter failure and should be removed.

It is unfortunate that Nigerians do not know what democracy and opposition politics is all about. An opposition party is there to oppose and that is what Abaribe did but surprisingly this rudimentary requirement of democratic governance is lost on the government hence their hysteria.

We are warning and cautioning any person, persons or group who are making frantic efforts to endear themselves to the caliphate by issuing unguarded press statements to retrace their step because Senator Enyinnaya Abaribe is not to be toyed with or his name ridiculed by any faceless, non-existent Igbo group.

IPOB is still in court challenging the Nigeria Army, Police, Navy and DSS invasion of our leaders compound in 2017. Garba Shehu and his colleagues in Aso Rock should always be mindful of these irrefutable facts before opening their mouth again in public, he said. ENDS
Source: Xinhua| 2020-02-01 04:33:27|Editor: zyl

Video Player Close

CAIRO, Jan. 31 (Xinhua) -- Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas and Arab League (AL) Secretary General Ahmed Aboul-Gheit, discussed Friday the developments on the Palestinian issue, especially the recent U.S. peace plan.

During their meeting in Cairo, Aboul-Gheit affirmed that "the Arabs represent a supportive backup to the Palestinians," according to an statement by AL.

The meeting came days after U.S. President Donald Trump revealed the long-awaited political aspect of his controversial Middle East peace plan, calling for a two-state solution while recognizing Jerusalem as Israel's "undivided capital."

The U.S. president outlined the 80-page plan at the White House along with visiting Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, saying it proposes a "realistic" two-state solution.

Abbas completely rejected Trump's peace plan, saying the plan "will not pass and will end in the dustbin of history."

The Trump administration has postponed several times the publication of its "Deal of the Century," a proposal that has been criticized repeatedly by the Palestinians who have little engagement in it.

The Palestinian president arrived in Cairo earlier in the day to participate in the emergency meeting of Arab foreign ministers that will be held on Saturday to discuss Trump's deal.

"The timing of the plan and the way of proposing it raise doubts and require a firm response from the Arabs," Aboul-Gheit told Abbas.
Pro-Brexit supporters gather in Parliament Square, London, as the UK prepared to leave the European Union at 11pm UK time. Picture date: Friday January 31, 2020. Photo credit should read: Matt Crossick/Empics

Britain has officially left the European Union, beginning an 11-month transition period following years of turmoil around Brexit following the 2016 referendum.

Yahoo News UK has put together a timeline detailing tense negotiations, multiple resignations, and a controversial prorogation in the years leading up to the UKs departure from the bloc on January 31, 2020.

January 23 2013

Under intense pressure from many of his own MPs and with the rise of Ukip, Prime Minister David Cameron promises an in-out referendum on EU membership if the Conservatives win the 2015 general election. Mr Cameron pledges to campaign with all my heart and soul for Britain to vote to Remain in the referendum, which he says will take place by the end of 2017.

May 7 2015

The Tories unexpectedly make sweeping gains over Ed Milibands Labour Party and secure a majority in the Commons. Mr Cameron vows to deliver his manifesto pledge for an EU referendum.

June 23 2016

The UK votes to leave the EU in a shock result that sees 52% of the public support Brexit in a humiliating defeat for the Prime Minister. Mr Cameron quickly resigns, saying: I dont think it would be right for me to try to be the captain that steers our country to its next destination.

July 13 2016

Theresa May takes over as Prime Minister. Mrs May, who had backed Remain, promises to rise to the challenge of negotiating the UKs exit.

Prime Minister David Cameron with his wife Samantha and children Nancy, Arthur and Florence speaks with the press before leaving 10 Downing Street for the last time on July 13, 2016 (GETTY)

Theresa May was David Cameron's successor following his resignation (GETTY)

November 10 2016

The High Court rules against the Government and says Parliament must hold a vote to trigger Article 50, the mechanism that begins the exit from the EU. Mrs May says the ruling will not stop her from invoking the legislation by April 2017.

March 29 2017

Mrs May triggers Article 50 of the Treaty on European Union. European Council president Donald Tusk says it is not a happy occasion, telling a Brussels press conference his message to the UK is: We already miss you. Thank you and goodbye.

April 18 2017

Mrs May announces a snap general election to be held on June 8. Justifying the decision, she says: The country is coming together but Westminster is not. The Prime Minister adds that division in Westminster will risk our ability to make a success of Brexit.

Story continues

June 8 2017

There is humiliation for Mrs May as she loses her Commons majority after her election gamble backfires. She becomes head of a minority Conservative administration propped up by the Democratic Unionist Party.

September 22 2017

In a crucial Brexit speech in Florence, Mrs May sends a message to EU leaders by saying: We want to be your strongest friend and partner as the EU and UK thrive side by side. She says she is proposing an implementation period of around two years after Brexit when existing market access arrangements will apply.

December 8 2017

The European Commission announces it is recommending to the European Council that sufficient progress has been made in the first phase of Brexit talks. European Commission President Jean-Claude Juncker tells a press conference in Brussels that negotiations had been difficult for the EU and the UK.

The announcement comes after Mrs May and Brexit Secretary David Davis make an early-hours journey to Brussels. The PM says the Brexit deal is a significant improvement which required give and take on both sides, and that it will ensure no hard border in Ireland.

March 19 2018

The EUs chief Brexit negotiator, Michel Barnier, says he and Mr Davis have taken a decisive step towards agreeing a joint legal text on the UKs EU withdrawal. He warns there are still outstanding issues relating to the Irish border, saying: We are not at the end of the road and there is a lot of work still to be done.

European Commission negotiator Michel Barnier arrives at 10 Downing Street for talks with Brexit Secretary David Davis.

June 19 2018

Britain and the European Union publish a joint statement outlining the progress that has been made since negotiations in March. Brussels warns that serious differences remain over how to deal with the border between Northern Ireland and the Republic after Brexit.

July 6 2018

A crunch Cabinet meeting at Chequers agrees Mrs Mays new Brexit plans, including the creation of a new UK-European Union free trade area for goods. But not all who attend are happy with the compromises.

July 8 and July 9 2018

Brexit Secretary Mr Davis resigns from the Government. In his resignation letter he tells Mrs May the current trend of policy and tactics is making it look less and less likely that the UK will leave the customs union and single market. The following day Boris Johnson quits as Foreign Secretary, claiming the plans mean we are truly headed for the status of colony of the EU.

November 14 2018

In a statement outside 10 Downing Street after a five-hour Cabinet meeting, Mrs May says that Cabinet has agreed the draft Brexit Withdrawal Agreement and she believes it is the best that could be negotiated.

November 15 2018

Dominic Raab resigns as Brexit Secretary, saying he cannot in good conscience support the terms proposed for our deal with the EU. More resignations follow, including Work and Pensions Secretary Esther McVey. Leading Brexiteer Jacob Rees-Mogg submits a letter of no confidence in Mrs May.

November 25 2018

The 27 European Union leaders endorse the Brexit deal.

December 12 2018

Mrs May survives an attempt to oust her with a vote of no confidence as Tory MPs vote by 200 to 117 in the secret ballot in Westminster.

January 15 2019

MPs reject Mrs Mays Brexit plans by an emphatic 432 to 202 in a historic vote which throws the future of her administration and the nature of the UKs EU withdrawal into doubt.

Mrs May reiterated that a no-deal Brexit is better than a bad deal in a speech to the British people after the EU rejected her Chequers Plan for leaving the European Union (GETTY)

January 16 2019

Mrs May survives an attempt to oust her as Prime Minister, as MPs reject Labour leader Jeremy Corbyns motion of no confidence in the Government by 325 to 306.

March 12 2019

MPs again reject the Governments Brexit deal by 391 votes to 242.

March 14 2019

MPs vote to delay Brexit in dramatic parliamentary scenes which see the Conservative Party split down the middle. More than half of Tory MPs  including seven Cabinet ministers, at least 33 other ministers and whips, and five party vice-chairs  vote against Mrs Mays motion to put back the date when Britain leaves the EU.

March 20 2019

Mrs May tells the House of Commons that she has written to Donald Tusk to request an extension to the Article 50 Brexit negotiations to June 30. The PM describes the delay to Brexit as a matter of great personal regret, adding: It is now time for MPs to decide.

March 29 2019

MPs reject Mrs Mays Withdrawal Agreement by 286 votes to 344, majority 58, on the day when the UK was due to leave the European Union.

April 10 2019

A flexible extension to Brexit is agreed until October 31. Mrs May says the choices we now face are stark and the timetable is clear.

Nigel Farage, leader of the Brexit Party and a Member of the European Parliament (MEP) for South East England is seen speaking during the EU election results press conference in Westminster (PA)

May 21 2019

The Prime Minister says there is one last chance to help MPs deliver the result of the 2016 referendum, as she offered a new Brexit deal. She says a failure to reach agreement on Brexit would lead to a nightmare future of permanently polarised politics.

May 23 2019

The UK votes in the European elections which Mrs May hoped would never have to be held. Nigel Farages Brexit Party come out on top, while the pro-EU Liberal Democrats also make gains.

May 24 2019

Mrs May announces she is standing down as Tory Party leader on Friday June 7. She says: It is and will always remain a matter of deep regret to me that I have not been able to deliver Brexit.

Read more:

What happens with Brexit after Saturday? Your transition questions answered

How will the UK's relationship with the EU change during the Brexit transition period?

16 pictures that tell the story of five years of utter Brexit chaos

July 23 2019

Boris Johnson is elected as leader of the Conservative Party and becomes the UKs new Prime Minister after defeating Jeremy Hunt. Mr Johnson secures 92,153 of the vote compared with 46,656 for Mr Hunt.

July 24 2019

Mr Johnson uses his first speech in Downing Street to say that critics of Brexit  the doubters, doomsters and gloomsters  are wrong. He says he is convinced we can do a deal to resolve the issue of the Irish border but he would prepare for a no-deal Brexit.

August 20 2019

Mr Johnson is rebuffed by Brussels after demanding major changes in a new Brexit deal. European Council president Mr Tusk defends the backstop  the contingency plan to keep the Irish frontier open  and warns that those seeking to replace it would risk a return to a hard border.

August 28 2019

The Queen is dragged into the Brexit row as Mr Johnson requests the prorogation of Parliament. Mr Corbyn says the Prime Ministers plan to suspend Parliament is an outrage and a threat to our democracy. The Queen approves an order to prorogue Parliament no earlier than September 9 and no later than September 12, until October 14.

Crowd of protesters holds placards outside Downing Street in London demonstrating against British Prime Minister Boris Johnsons plans to suspend UK parliament for five weeks ahead of a Queens Speech on 14 October, just two weeks before the UK is set to leave the EU. The Queen has approved Boris Johnson's request to prorogue UK Parliament after the Prime Minister stepped up his plans for a no deal Brexit. (Photo by Steve Taylor / SOPA Images/Sipa USA)

September 3 2019

Mr Johnson says Parliament is on the brink of wrecking any deal with Brussels after MPs voted to give a cross-party alliance control of the Commons agenda in a bid to block a no-deal Brexit on October 31.

September 4 2019

MPs including 21 rebel Tories vote to approve legislation aimed at preventing a no-deal Brexit. The Benn Act compels the Prime Minister to ask Brussels for an Article 50 extension to the end of January 2020 if MPs do not back a deal by October 19.

Mr Johnson, who had repeatedly ruled out requesting any further delay, accuses them of having scuppered negotiations. He withdraws the whip from the rebels in a major purge. Among those exiled are former chancellors Philip Hammond and Sir Kenneth Clarke, and Winston Churchills grandson, Sir Nicholas Soames.

The PM attempts to trigger an early general election but fails because he does not win the required support of two-thirds of MPs.

September 10 2019

Mr Johnsons second attempt to trigger an early general election fails after his motion does not secure the required support of two-thirds of MPs, with the Commons voting 293 to 46.

September 17 2019

A legal battle over Mr Johnsons decision to suspend Parliament for five weeks begins at the UKs highest court. The Supreme Court in London hears appeals from two separate challenges brought in England and Scotland to the prorogation of Parliament over three days.

September 24 2019

The Supreme Court rules that the Prime Ministers advice to the Queen to suspend Parliament until October 14 was unlawful because it had the effect of frustrating Parliament.

British Prime Minister Boris Johnson delivers a speech outside 10 Downing Street following the Conservative Party's landslide victory in the UK General Election on 13 December, 2019 (GETTY)

October 2 2019

Mr Johnson puts forward his formal Brexit plan to the EU, revealing his blueprint to solve the Irish border issue, and says it is a compromise, but European Commission President Jean-Claude Juncker says there are still problematic points.

October 10 2019

Mr Johnson and Irish Taoiseach Leo Varadkar say a Brexit deal is in everyones interest and they can see a pathway to a deal, in a joint statement after talks at a luxury hotel in Cheshire.

October 17 2019

After intense negotiations, the Prime Minister announces the UK has reached a great deal with the EU which takes back control and means that the UK can come out of the EU as one United Kingdom  England, Scotland, Wales, Northern Ireland, together.

But the DUP says it cannot support the deal in Parliament, citing a series of objections over the integrity of the union and Northern Irelands economy.

Boris Johnson welcomes the European Comission President Ursula von der Leyen on the steps of 10 Downing Street ahead of their meeting on 08 January, 2020 (GETTY)

October 19 2019

The first Saturday sitting of the Commons in 37 years is set to see MPs hold a meaningful vote on the new deal and the pressure is particularly strong because it is also the deadline for the PM to ask for an extension under the Benn Act.

But MPs instead vote for an amendment tabled by exiled Tory Sir Oliver Letwin to compel Mr Johnson to comply with the Benn Act requesting a delay to Brexit.

Mr Johnson gets a senior diplomat to send Brussels an unsigned copy of a letter asking for the delay, with a cover note stressing his detachment from the move. He dispatches a second note to European Council president Donald Tusk saying the extension would be deeply corrosive.

October 22 2019

Mr Johnson mounts an attempt to fast-track his Brexit deal through Parliament. This requires two votes: one on the Withdrawal Agreement Bill (WAB) to implement the deal, and another on the accelerated timetable.

The WAB is approved in principle at its first hurdle when MPs vote 329 to 299 for it. But the blow comes when they reject the hasty timetable by 322 to 308. The PM puts his plans on ice, saying he will pause the WAB until the EU makes a decision on granting a delay.

October 28 2019

EU leaders agree to a Brexit flextension until January 31 unless Parliament ratifies the deal sooner.

October 29 2019

The Prime Minister succeeds in winning support for a general election on December 12.

December 12 2019

Having campaigned on a promise to get Brexit done, Mr Johnson secures a landslide win at the election and with a comfortable 80-seat majority is able to command the Commons in a way Mrs May never could.

January 8 2020

New European Commission president Ursula von der Leyen visits Downing Street for talks with Mr Johnson. She makes clear that the timetable for a Brexit trade deal is very, very tight and it will be impossible to agree everything by December 31. But Mr Johnson is clear there will be no extension to the transition period, which expires at the end of 2020.

Boris Johnson marked the signing of the Withdrawal Agreement with a photo backed by Union Jacks (Picture: Twitter/Boris Johnson)

January 9 2020

Mr Johnson gets his Brexit deal through the Commons as the European Union (Withdrawal Agreement) Bill is given a third reading with a majority of 99. Downing Street warns peers not to hamper the progress of the legislation as it heads to the Lords.

January 31 2020

A special Cabinet meeting outside London, a clock counting down the moments until Brexit on the walls of Downing Street, and the Union flag flying in Parliament Square herald the UKs departure from the European Union.

At 11pm the UK leaves the bloc but further wrangling with Brussels will continue on the terms of a trade deal due to be signed by the end of the year.
Technological progress in the 2010s was defined by smartphones and cloud computing. The 2020s will surely be defined by accelerated progress in artificial intelligence.

The risks of artificial intelligence are camouflaged by the promises of convenience and comfort. Alongside the potential for quality of life improvements, serious and unavoidable concerns of job displacement, personal safety and data privacy are mounting. We are lagging in regulation for privacy and security, and need a workable regulatory framework. Google CEO Sundar Pichai acknowledged as much in a speech in Brussels: There is no question in my mind that artificial intelligence needs to be regulated. The question is how best to approach this.

Political leaders seem more concerned about job displacement, and their concerns are warranted. An Oxford Economics report predicted 20 million jobs will be lost in the global manufacturing sector, with one industrial robot replacing an average of 1.6 workers. The impact of robotic innovation on the manufacturing sector receives the most attention because manufacturing jobs largely created the middle class in the United States and other developed economies. This has enormous political implications.

Sens. Elizabeth Warren and Bernie Sanders are proposing legislation that would fundamentally shift corporate governance and empower workers in management and investment decisions. They are explicit that these proposals target job loss to automation. Former Vice President Joe Biden and former South Bend, Ind., Mayor Pete Buttigieg focus more on workforce training programs. These competing approaches are a microcosm of the larger ideological differences between the candidates.

The Trump administration has focused its policy on positioning the United States as the world leader in artificial intelligence. The White House Office of Science and Technology Policy has released an artificial intelligence regulatory framework that encourages private sector investment in robotics.

The Trump administrations American AI Initiative is widely seen as a step in the right direction. The Initiative has five pillars for advancing AI in the U.S. that roughly include promoting AI investment and federal resources, removing barriers to AI innovation, promoting education and training for the American worker, and encouraging innovative and safe AI use on an international scale.

Local leaders are taking steps to insulate San Antonio from job losses with key workforce development initiatives, a renewed spirit of collaboration among pillar institutions to improve research and attract grant dollars, and a truly regional strategy for economic development. The economic consequences of the artificial intelligence evolution for San Antonio will likely be positive.

The community has rallied around growth in the cybersecurity sector. The need for cybersecurity services will only increase as emerging artificial intelligence technology is applied to traditional industries. San Antonio is building a workforce that is, and will only become more so, capable of handling new opportunities with area academic institutions doubling down on cybersecurity and programming coursework, and large numbers of high school students participating in cyber cup competitions.

The San Antonio manufacturing industry employs more than 50,000 residents and is steadily growing. In recent years, the San Antonio Economic Development Foundation and its partners have quietly pursued a regional approach to attracting manufacturing investment. This has proven successful, with recent announcements by Navistar International of its intention to employ 600 workers at a new South Side facility and Toyota to invest an additional $391 million in its plant. Key workforce initiatives like SA Works are helping to train the incoming generation of workers for the evolving reality. All signs point to the conclusion that San Antonios strategy of creating an advanced manufacturing hub with industry-driven workforce programs is paying dividends.

Proponents of artificial intelligence are most excited about the opportunities to improve health care delivery and outcomes. The health care and bioscience sectors employ more than 160,000 San Antonio residents, and the field continues to grow. A new era of collaboration among institutions such as UT Health San Antonio, Southwest Research Institute, Texas Biomedical Foundation and UTSA will help San Antonio researchers attract grants from the growing federal investment in artificial intelligence and robotics in the health sector.

While many San Antonio businesses and institutions are poised to take advantage of the artificial intelligence revolution, a rising tide will not necessarily lift all boats. The emergence of technological displacement in the hospitality and service industries could jeopardize an important  if often overlooked  sector of the local economy. Think of automated fast-food kiosks and self-checkout lines. Workforce training programs like Alamo Promise will be important to equip workers with the skills necessary in this evolving landscape.

We need to strike a balance between workforce training, empowering workers who are at risk of losing jobs to displacement, and encouraging the development of artificial intelligence technologies to ensure American leadership. This merits serious attention in the 2020 election.

T.J. Mayes is a San Antonio-based attorney and community volunteer.
A series of privacy bills have been introduced in Washington state, but they present conflicting regulatory visions and their sponsors don't necessarily see eye-to-eye.After what was designed to be the state's landmark privacy law failed to materialize last year , its primary sponsor, Sen. Reuven Carlyle, D-Seattle, has introduced Senate Bill 6281 , which he hopes will be able to appeal to a diversity of stakeholders in its pursuit of an overarching policy framework.The bill, whose stipulations apply to companies with 100,000 customers or more, set out a framework in which consumers have "data rights of access, correction, deletion, data portability and opt out of the processing." However, the bill has also left out several consumer privileges long sought by privacy rights activists, like a private right action provision, which would allow individuals to sue technology companies for abuses and leaves enforcement authority instead to the state's attorney general."When the previous bill didn't pass the House, we spent an incredibly robust six-plus months since the last session working with stakeholders, working with consumer privacy groups and advocates [and the House] ... in a thorough, expansive effort to reach consensus so that we can move forward," Carlyle said, speaking withThose stakeholders included powerful technology lobby groups like CompTIA, TechNet, and the Internet Association. Carlyle said he also took input from consumer and civil rights groups like Consumer Reports and the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU), which he said were sometimes involved in negotiations over bill language with industry representatives.But some of those rights groups have actually lined up behind several opposing pieces of legislation introduced by Rep. Norma Smith, R-Clinton . Smith, who is the ranking member of the state's House Innovation, Technology and Economic Development Committee, has worked together with the ACLU and other consumer groups to craft five bills that would create consumer rights over a persons data and biometric identifiers Smith's legislation would do a number of things to expand consumer rights. They include creating a charter of consumer data rights around which companies would have to structure their data policies as well as transforming the office of the state's chief privacy officer from an appointed one to an elected one, making it more accountable to the public. It would also provide for a private right of action and force data brokers to register with the state, among other things.Smith said that Carlyle's legislation leaves numerous loopholes that will allow companies to take get away with privacy abuses."It is a very corporate-centric bill," she said. "You [should] start with a consumer focus. You build a bill that really empowers consumers, that provides clear direction as regards to the corporate responsibility ... and then [provide] strong enforcement mechanisms."Smith also providedwith copies of letters from the Consumer Federation of America, a consumer lobbying group, which were submitted to the Senate and House that argue Carlyle's legislation would "do little to change business practices built on exploiting individuals personal information for profit or provide meaningful privacy protections for Washingtonians," and were overly influenced by "Big Tech.""I just have a different policy view," Carlyle said, responding to Smith's criticism. "Her work is very thoughtful ... I think her policy position is just as legitimate as the approach I'm taking on."Carlyle said that his bill, which is built to take on the abuses of large companies, has been instructed by large privacy bills that came before it and that the law, should it pass, would continue to evolve and be adapted to improve consumer rights."What we learned from GDPR and from California is that [it's important to] get the larger entities data right relative to the consumer's right to opt out, delete and correct, [which] then allows us to learn and bring smaller businesses onboard down the road as we fine tune, rather than thrusting this obligation on every single industry in every single sector," he said."I don't think that we're ever going to be done dealing with the regulatory framework of consumer data and the issue of privacy. We're living in a new era," he said.
STATEN ISLAND, N.Y.  He blew it, and its going to cost him big time.

Mariners Harbor resident Jameen Braan could have avoided prison time under a plea agreement in a narcotics case if he completed drug treatment and stayed out of trouble.

But Braan later got busted with an illegal gun; now, hes going to spend 66 months behind bars.

Braan, 25, of Holland Avenue, was originally accused of peddling heroin to an undercover cop on multiple occasions between November 2016 and March 2017.

In November 2018, he pleaded guilty in state Supreme Court, St. George, to third-degree criminal sale of a controlled substance to satisfy all charges against him.

In doing so, the defendant admitted to selling the drug on Nov. 30, 2016.

His plea agreement called for Braan to continue receiving drug treatment.

If he stayed the course, he was told hed be sentenced to five years probation.

Failing to finish treatment or getting re-arrested would result in a two-year prison sentence.

As it turned out, last Sept. 10 the defendant was busted for possessing a loaded 9 mm semiautomatic Luger.

In December, he pleaded guilty to second-degree criminal weapon possession to resolve that case.

In exchange, Braan was sentenced on Thursday to 42 months in prison and 30 months post-release supervision on the gun conviction.

That sentence will run consecutively to a term of two years behind bars and two years post-release supervision in the drug case.

Mr. Braan took immediate responsibility for his actions, has strong family support, and he looks forward to continuing his education when released, said defense lawyer Mario F. Gallucci.
Few things embody the Wisconsin Idea more than UW Extension agricultural agents.

Scattered across the state, they offer expertise to farmers and connect them to the latest research coming out of University of Wisconsin System campuses about cows, corn, cranberries and more.

But steep budget cuts imposed during former Republican Gov. Scott Walkers tenure reduced the number of agents working statewide. As many as 23 of the states 72 counties were without an agent in 2018. Staffing has slightly recovered since Extension shifted to UW-Madison oversight as part of a System restructuring. There are 62 agents this year, all of which are partially funded by counties and a dozen of whom cover multiple counties.

Democratic Gov. Tony Evers wants $2.5 million to fund 20 additional agents, a bill that could have rare bipartisan support during this period of divided government. Both Republicans and Democrats agree that the states dairy industry is in crisis, with farmers suffering under low milk prices.

I think we could always use more (ag agents), Rep. Todd Novak, R-Dodgeville, vice chairman of the Assembly Committee on Agriculture, said in an interview. More boots on the ground is a good thing and theyre invaluable resources for farmers.

Several counties in Novaks district, which covers swaths of southwestern Wisconsin and is one of the most agriculturally diverse areas of the state, were without agents at some point in recent years but now have a dedicated Extension employee.

Ten of Wisconsins other 72 counties are without their own agricultural agent, though Extension officials said those without one still have access to a statewide network of resources.

Marquette County lost its agent in the fall, and the County Board has already funded its portion, county administrator Gary Sorensen said. He said sharing an agent with another central Wisconsin county is a possibility.

Five counties took it upon themselves to fully fund the agent working for their communities.

Dane County did so last year, said Josh Wescott, chief of staff to Dane County Executive Joe Parisi. With the dairy industry facing its greatest challenge in decades and the county down 73 herds since 2014, officials pulled together nearly $53,000 in local tax dollars to hire a full-time dairy and livestock coordinator.

Help to bring back state ag agents is incredibly welcome news, Wescott said of Evers proposed bill to backfill some of the cuts Extension has made.

Interim Extension dean and director Karl Martin, who was not available for an interview last week, said in a statement that the proposed legislation would create new opportunities to connect and apply the latest university research with those who can benefit from it the most. More staff would mean more capacity to teach farmers and community members about topics such as commercial vegetable production, soil management and water quality.

Senate Majority Leader Scott Fitzgerald, R-Juneau, told reporters after Evers State of the State speech in late January that the Legislature is all ears on the governors series of agriculture bills.

The governor is right; were losing two dairy farms a day, he said.

But others Republicans are signaling concern about the bills.

Farmers are already telling us the governors package does more to grow the size of government than actually help our rural areas, Assembly Speaker Robin Vos, R-Rochester, said in a statement last week. His spokeswoman did not respond to a request for comment last week on the Extension bill specifically.

Sen. Howard Marklein, R-Spring Green, chairman of the Senate Committee on Agriculture, Revenue and Financial Institutions, said he is willing to look at all of Evers agriculture proposals, but that farmers support for ag agents varies. Some are well-respected, but Marklein said he didnt know if that was true across the board.

I want to deliver what farmers want, not what somebody in Madison thinks they need, he said.

Richard Halopka works as a crops and soil educator in Clark County, one of the highest milk-producing counties in the state. Previously a two-agent county, Clark County found itself down to one after budget cuts. County officials decided in the fall to fully fund their own part-time dairy educator, who is bringing in state specialists, working with at-risk farms and collaborating with the Wisconsin Farm Center.

Additional agents would reduce some of the stress, said Halopka, who also serves as president of the Wisconsin Association of County Agricultural Agents.

You get spread thin some days, he said.

Agriculturists are accustomed to being reactive, he said. For example, programming plans went out the window last year when Mother Nature dropped a polar vortex, shifting agents focus to the effect on perennial crops.

No matter the winds  political or literal  Halopka said the agents will do what theyve always done: We work with what we have.

Love 0 Funny 0 Wow 0 Sad 0 Angry 0
The girlfriend of a Broadway star facing backlash for sharing a naked photo of her without her consent in 2018 has slammed protests calling for him to be fired, stating she 'is not a victim'.

Groups of protesters gathered outside previews for Broadway's West Side Story on Friday night, calling for the dismissal of Amar Ramasar, 38, who they have branded a 'rapist', 'pedophile', and 'sexual predator'.

His girlfriend, Alexa Maxwell, 25, claims the actor and ballet dancer - who has been her boyfriend for five years - is being unfairly targeted and that the photo was a 'personal matter'.

A protest on Friday night called for Ramasar's dismissal from the West Side Story cast

Alexa Maxwell, 25, is pictured with her boyfriend Amar Ramasar, 38, who shared a sexually explicit photo of her without her consent with two male dancers in the New York City Ballet

Alexandra Waterbury, 22, filed a lawsuit in 2018 accusing three male dancers in the New York City Ballet, of sharing sexually explicit photos of her and another female dancer

More than 40 fans of dancer Alexandra Waterbury, 22, gathered outside West Side Story on Friday calling on the show to fire Ramasar, who plays Bernardo, the leader of the Sharks gang, in West Side Story.

In 2018, Ramasar was fired from New York City Ballet after Waterbury accused him and two other male dancers of sharing sexually explicit photos of her and another female dancer without the women's consent.

He was later reinstated and continues to be a member of the ballet company.

Ramasar's involvement in the accusations included a 2018 incident in which fellow dancer Chase Finlay sent a sexually explicit photo of Waterbury to Ramasar and another male dancer.

In response, Ramasar sent a naked picture of his girlfriend Alexa Maxwell, who is also a dancer, to the other two men without her consent.

At the time, Finlay was Waterbury's boyfriend and he is the main defendant. She is seeking damages in the ongoing lawsuit.

Waterbury did not organize the protest but attended and thanked the group for their support

Protesters continue an online campaign to have Ramasar dismissed from West Side Story

Alexa Maxwell spoke for the first time on Friday about her picture being shared by Ramasar

Maxwell hit back at the protesters on Friday evening saying that he was being unfairly targeted and that she 'is not a victim'.

Friday's protest was the second in two weeks and there has been an ongoing social media campaign and an online petition calling for Ramasar's dismissal.

As well as the public outrage, Maxwell revealed she is receiving private messages criticizing her for staying with Ramasar.

'I am not a victim in this and no longer wish for my truth to be misrepresented. It is not my mission to diminish the feelings of Alexandra's but I want to bring to light some facts that have been misrepresented across multiple platforms,' Maxwell said in a statement posted just before the protest began.

The statement adds that the 'only photograph that was shared by Amar was of me, his girlfriend of nearly five years. I knew about the photos of me when they were taken, and while sharing it privately with a close friend was a misstep in judgment, Amar immediately told me when he sent them to Chase and his sincerest regrets have led us to today, where we reside together and are building a loving and happy relationship.

'The incident was a personal matter between me and Amar, and I am okay with what happened.'

Actor and dancer Amar Ramasar, 38, was fired from the New York City Ballet when accusations were first made but was later reinstated and continues to be a member of the ballet company

Maxwell added she wanted to clear up her story before the protest began and to highlight that Ramasar had not originally been accused by Waterbury of things that she and members of the public are now claiming.

'On social media, Alexandra and other people out there have recklessly tossed around phrases like 'rapist,' 'sexual predator,' and 'pedophile' when referring to Amar,' she said.

'Amar never raped anyone  and Alexandra in her lawsuit does not allege that he did.

'Amar is not a sexual predator  and Alexandra in her lawsuit does not allege that he is. And Amar is no pedophile  and Alexandra in her lawsuit does not allege anything like that.

'And while Alexandra in her lawsuit makes allegations about group texts in which men spoke of women in horrible terms, Amar was not a participant in those group texts, and Alexandra does not allege that he was.'

Waterbury was not the organizer of the protests or the online campaign but she joined the group on Friday night.

In response to Maxwell's statement, she told the New York Times: 'He still asked for photos of me. He still wronged me.'

She also offered her support for the protest posting a thank you message to Instagram and stating that she is 'excited to continue raising awareness about these abuses and fighting for justice'.

'Cannot believe 40+ people showed up tonight to protest Amar's casting in @westsidestorybway We handed out 400+ flyers to audience members,' she wrote in the post.

'I'm excited to continue raising awareness about these abuses and fighting for justice. It's time to hold people accountable for their actions. Talent is not an excuse or a justification for sexual assault or misogynistic slander.

'Thank you to everyone who came out tonight and to those who organized everything. The support received is overwhelming and humbling. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you.'

The newly re-imagined West Side Story is currently in previews and set to open on Broadway on February 20, 2020.

The show's producer Scott Rudin has voiced his support for Ramasar and stated that the production stands behind him. Rudin told the New York Times that Ramasar is 'an exemplary company member' and 'has more than earned our trust'.

In the 2018 lawsuit filed by Waterbury, she accuses Ramasar of sharing explicit photos of another dancer which Maxwell has now confirmed was she.

Maxwell claims that in 2018, Waterbury attempted to convince her to join the lawsuit during an hour-long phone conversation, advising Maxwell that it 'is worth half a billion dollars'.

Waterbury's lawyer, Jordan K. Merson claims this is inaccurate.

'It is unfortunate that Ms. Maxwell would try to taint Ms. Waterbury with all that she has done for the #MeToo movement,' he said, adding that her statement a year after the lawsuit was filed is problematic.
A MAN has appeared before a special court sitting after he was charged with raping a woman in West Limerick two and-a-half years ago.

The Director of Public Prosecutions has directed that the 39-year-old should be prosecuted on indictment before the Central Criminal Court.

A European Arrest Warrant was previously issued and the defendant was extradited from Scotland on Friday evening and taken to Newcastle West garda station where he was subsequently charged.

The man, who can't be named for legal reasons, is accused of raping the woman at a house at Dromcollogher on a date in July 2017.

The complainant was aged in her mid-40s at the time of the alleged offence.

After noting the DPP's directions, Judge Mary Larkin adjourned the matter to facilitate the preparation of a book of evidence.

No application for bail was made and the defendant was remanded in custody to appear before Newcastle West Court next Tuesday.

Reporting restrictions are in place in order to protect the identity of the complainant.
Getty Images

A Seattle woman has sued Uber, claiming a driver sexually assaulted her during a ride in 2018.

Daniel Swinford, the womans attorney, said his client began recording her Uber driver when the man began asking her if she was single and if she liked single.

My client got very uncomfortable with where the conversation was going, Mr Swinford told KIRO 7 news. And it prompted her, rightly so, to start recording.

The video shows the driver reaching back to touch the woman, saying seeing how you look so nice," according to Mr Swinford.

A Seattle police report includes a claim that the driver overcharged the woman $60 after she demanded he let her out immediately after he began touching her.

She had to go through treatment, Mr Swinford said. And our claim is for damages to compensate her for the pain and suffering and the economic damages she sustained.

Uber released a safety report in December that revealed there were nearly 6,000 reports of sexual assault involving passengers and drivers across the two year span examined, 2017 and 2018.

In Chicago, another Uber driver was convicted of sexually abusing a passenger and was tried on charges that he had attempted to hire someone to hurt or silence the woman.

The Chicago Tribune reported that Ahmed Tawfeeq, 29, had been found guilty in November of criminal sexual abuse, attempted sexual assault, promoting prostitution, aggravated battery and unlawful restraint while working as an Uber driver.

Tawfeeq was arrested after he picked up a woman on 16 June 2017 and began making unwanted sexual comments to her, including asking if shed be interested in becoming a prostitute.

Prosecutors said Tawfeeq turned off the Uber app after the drive and sexually abused her in a parking lot while she begged him to stop.

Uber began using a PIN system this month which is designed to improve the safety of riders by ensuring theyre getting into the correct car.

Under Ubers verify your ride PIN system, a rider will receive a PIN number shortly before their driver arrives. The passenger tells the driver the PIN, and only after the driver enters the number can the ride begin.

Read more

Uber driver who exposed himself to passenger avoids jail
Beijing: A new coronavirus originating from central China has killed 259 people and infected thousands others, stirring memories of the SARS outbreak nearly two decades ago.

Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome -- which also began in China -- killed almost 800 people worldwide in 2002-03, with the Chinese government drawing condemnation for attempting to cover up the outbreak.

But dramatic lifestyle changes mean this epidemic is shaping up differently. Here are five ways life in China has changed since SARS:

Travel Boom

Rising incomes have turned China into the world's biggest source of outbound tourists over the past decade, according to the World Tourism Organization, and Chinese tourists are a huge source of revenue for many countries.

They made almost 150 million trips abroad in 2018 -- nearly ten times the 16.6 million made in 2002, according to tourism ministry figures.

The travel boom has complicated efforts to control the spread of the novel coronavirus, with Chinese authorities urging citizens on Tuesday to delay trips abroad.

Social Media

China's online population grew from 68 million in 2003 to 829 million in 2018, according to the country's cyberspace authority.

The popularity of social media platforms Weibo and WeChat has fuelled misinformation and memes alike, with users heading online to share bogus remedies for the virus and shame inept local officials.

The internet has also become a battleground between authorities keen to maintain stability and citizens alleging a cover-up.

Eight people were reprimanded by Wuhan police for allegedly publishing untrue claims on WeChat that SARS had re-emerged in the city, while hundreds of other people across the country have received punishments for "spreading rumours", according to rights group Chinese Human Rights Defenders.

But China's top court later admonished Wuhan for its heavy-handed response to the rumours, saying the city might have benefited from greater alarm earlier in the crisis.

Migrant Nation

China became a majority urban country in 2011, with the country's population of internal migrants nearly doubling from 2005 to 2018 to reach more than 240 million, according to the National Bureau of Statistics.

Every year the world's biggest travel rush takes place in China as workers head back home for the Lunar New Year from the cities where they work.

The timing of the coronavirus outbreak around the Spring Festival period has complicated efforts to control its spread. Authorities have set up temperature checkpoints at airports and train stations across the country and extended the long holiday by two days.

Millions of migrant workers are also locked out of public healthcare systems by strict urban registration rules.

Surveillance

With growing internet and smartphone use, Chinese people's everyday actions are increasingly being mined for data by the government and corporations.

Beijing has come under increasing scrutiny for high-tech surveillance -- from facial recognition-enabled security cameras to apps used by police to extract personal information from smartphones at checkpoints.

China's railway authority on Thursday said it had set up a dedicated team to trawl through data and track down close contacts of infected train passengers.

E-commerce

At the time of the SARS outbreak, Chinese consumers shopped almost exclusively at brick-and-mortar stores and malls, with only 0.07 percent of shopping in 2003 done online, according to the UN Industrial Development Organization.

Now, e-commerce and local delivery apps have become commonplace in Chinese cities, and citizens worried about the coronavirus can choose to shop online instead of stepping foot in crowded stores.
Dad-to-Be Usain Bolt Says He 'Won't Push' His Child to Run Track: 'There Is So Much Pressure'

Usain Bolt will be more than happy if his future child does not follow in his Olympic footsteps.

The retired Olympian  who is currently expecting his first child with longtime girlfriend Kasi Bennett  recently told PEOPLE that hes in favor of their baby on the way not pursuing track and field.

People always say, Are you going to put your kids in sports?  Bolt, 33, said at the Bolt24 By Gatorade pop-up studio in Miami during Super Bowl weekend. But for me, if they want to be in sports, fine, I dont really care. But, I wont push them to do track and field. I think its going to be hard.

I think its the hardest thing when you have a dad that is a superstar in a supersport, I dont think you should do that sport, Bolt added. I think you should do something else because there is so much pressure on you to live up to expectations.

Never miss a story  sign up for PEOPLEs free daily newsletter to stay up-to-date on the best of what PEOPLE has to offer, from juicy celebrity news to compelling human interest stories

BEN STANSALL/AFP/Getty Images

RELATED: Baby on the Way! Usain Bolt and His Longtime Girlfriend are Expecting Their First Child Together

The nine-time gold medalist admitted that he is more nervous than Bennett, 30, to become a first-time parent. My girlfriend is really excited, shes excited to be pregnant, and Im like, What am I going to do, Im about to be a dad. You know? Im that guy.

Bolt also said that he anticipates being a dad will be much harder than conquering the Olympics.

The good thing about it is that I have a lot of experience with my friends kids and my aunts kids and stuff like that, so I kind of understand but Ive never had a kid 24/7, he said. You know what I mean? This is 24/7, so its going to be challenging but Im so excited.

Story continues

Kasi Bennett and Usain Bolt | Shutterstock

RELATED: Usain Bolt Announces Retirement from Athletics Following Soccer Stint: My Sports Life Is Over

Bolt announced Jan. 23 that the couple is expecting with a breathtaking photo of Bennett on the beach dressed in a billowing red dress that showed off her baby bump.

I just want to say a KING or QUEEN is about to be HERE. @kasi.b, he captioned the stunning photo by Lexon Photography.

Bennett also shared the news on her own social media, sharing a series of three posts with additional photos from her red dress maternity shoot. Each photo was consecutively captioned, Our biggest blessing.., Our greatest celebration, and finally, Our golden child  Coming soon

The pair, who are both originally from Jamaica, have been dating for nearly seven years. In 2017, Bolt told PEOPLE that they were ready to start a family together.

I have [had] a girlfriend for four years now [and] its going steadily, so were thinking about kids very soon, he said at the time. Well see how it goes, were taking our time.

The couple became more serious following Bolts retirement in 2016, right after he took home his ninth consecutive Olympic gold medal in Rio. When Bolt announced the retirement news, he told PEOPLE that he planned to dedicate more of his time to his relationship with Bennett.

Shes happy, Im happy! Bolt said of his relationship. We just got really serious, we are taking it one step at a time.
New Covid curbs in UP: Government and private employees to work at 50 per cent capacity

Night curfew in Andhra Pradesh: Know timings, guidelines, rules; What is allowed, what is not allowed

Contacts of confirmed cases don't need to get tested unless identified as high risk: Govt

2019-nCoV: 324 Indians evacuated from virus-hit Wuhan, quarantined in Manesar near Delhi

India

oi-Madhuri Adnal

New Delhi, Feb 01: Air India's jumbo B747 plane, evacuating 324 Indian nationals from the coronavirus-hit Wuhan in China, landed on Saturday morning, officials said. The plane reached Delhi around 7.30 am, they said. The passengers have been quarantined in a specially prepared facility in Manesar near Delhi, the Indian Army, which has mounted a full-fledged operation for this purpose, said.

This is in continuation on the travel advisory issued by the Union Health Ministry regarding the threat of novel coronavirus in Wuhan, Hubei province of China asking citizens to follow certain precautionary measures while visiting the country.

The departure of the flight was delayed from Wuhan airport as the immigration and Chinese authorities did not allow six Indians on board after they reported high temperatures during screening. "Six passengers were offloaded as they had high temperatures," a passenger told news agency ANI.

"With 324 passengers, the special flight has taken off for India from Wuhan. It may reach Delhi at 7.30 am," said an Air India spokesperson at 1.19 am on Saturday. There are five doctors from Ram Manohar Lohia (RML) Hospital and one paramedical staff on board, said the Air India spokesperson.

Coronavirus: Special Air India flight to airlift stranded Indians from Wuhan lands in India

The flight had departed from Delhi airport at 1.17 pm on Friday to evacuate Indian nationals from China, where more than 200 people - none of them Indian - have died due to novel coronavirus. On Friday evening, the Air India spokesperson had stated that another special flight may take off from Delhi airport on Saturday to evacuate Indians from Wuhan.

The coronavirus (CoV) is a large family of viruses that causes illnesses ranging from the common cold to acute respiratory syndromes, but the virus that has killed four people in China is a novel strain not seen before.

Common symptoms of the novel coronavirus (nCoV) strain, which has infected more than 300 people since the outbreak in Wuhan in December, include respiratory symptoms such as fever, cough, shortness of breath and breathing difficulties, the World Health Organisation (WHO) said.

In more severe cases, infection can cause pneumonia, severe acute respiratory syndrome, kidney failure, and even death.

The death toll from the novel coronavirus outbreak in China has risen to 259 with total confirmed cases surging to 11,791 amid stepped-up efforts by a number of countries to evacuate their nationals from Hubei province, the epicentre of the virus, officials said on Saturday.
A woman was sentenced on Friday to eight years in prison after she pleaded guilty to breaking into a Southwest Portland home, then firing three rounds at police who arrived at the scene.

Initially charged with 25 criminal counts related to the March 2018 shooting, Sarah Brown pleaded guilty to six  three of first-degree attempted murder, two of unlawful use of a weapon and one of first-degree burglary.

According to court documents, Brown had stolen the gun she used to fire at officers. It was fully loaded and left in an unlocked car. Officers fired back at Brown, but a grand jury later found that the officers were justified.

Court documents show that on March 7, 2018, a homeowner at Southwest King Avenue noticed his cordless landline phone was in use, and that when he picked it up, he heard a womans hushed voice talking to someone. The homeowner didnt recognize the womans voice and called the police on his cellphone.

When police arrived, they didnt find anyone at the home, but they found the handset for the home phone missing and found an outside window of the home damaged. As they were investigating, police heard that someone had stolen clothing and other items from a motel near the home. Police found some of those stolen items at the home that had been targeted earlier that night but left because they didnt find a suspect.

A few hours later, an employee at the motel heard suspicious noises coming from the area behind the home and the motel and looked out to see a woman, later determined to be Brown, pacing back and forth in the back yard, looking into the home. The employee called the police.

According to police reports, officers arrived, surrounded the home and told Brown to surrender. She didnt answer, and a few seconds later, when an officer opened the door of a storage area, Brown pointed a gun at his face from 1 or 2 feet away.

Police told Brown to drop the gun, and one officer fired his gun. Officers moved away from Brown for protection but continued to try and negotiate with her. Brown kept threatening to shoot them and said she didnt believe the people talking to her were police officers.

More officers arrived and brought ballistic shields to protect the officers who were closest to Brown. Crisis negotiation team members kept talking to Brown, but she fired several gunshots toward officers. No officers were struck, but in response, a police officer fired a rifle.

Brown was struck twice  once in the finger and once in the leg.

Police continued to negotiate with Brown, and one officer noticed that she no longer had a gun in her hand. They arrested her.

The Multnomah County District Attorneys Office said the eight-year sentence takes into account Browns mental health, drug addiction and the fact that she had no prior criminal record but also acknowledges how much danger her behavior posed to the public and to officers.

The two officers who fired at Brown, Joseph Webber and Darrell Shaw, were placed on paid administrative leave while the case was investigated. Although both were found to have acted lawfully, Shaw had been involved in several on-duty shootings, including the fatal Portland police shooting of a man in 2005. A Portland Tribune investigation in 2006 found that at that time, Shaw had sent more people to the hospital during a two-year period than any other Portland officer. He was also sued at least twice by people who claimed hed used excessive force against them.

Jayati Ramakrishnan; 503-221-4320; jramakrishnan@oregonian.com; @JRamakrishnanOR

Subscribe to Oregonian/OregonLive newsletters and podcasts for the latest news and top stories.
The Delhi High Court on Saturday sought response of the four convicts in the 2012 Nirbhaya gangrape and murder case on the Centre's plea challenging the stay on their execution.

The court will hear the petition on Sunday.

Justice Suresh Kait issued notice to the four convicts, Mukesh Kumar, Vinay Sharma, Pawan Gupta and Akshay Singh.

The court has also issued notice to DG (Prisons) and Tihar Jail authorities, seeking their stand on the central government's plea.

The lawyer of the DG (Prisons) told the court that its orders would be complied with.

During the hearing, Solicitor General Tushar Mehta told the court that the convicts in the Nirbhaya case have taken process of law on a "joyride" and are acting in tandem to delay their execution.

He further told the court that the Nirbhaya gangrape case will go down in history of India where convicts of the heinous crime are trying the patience of the country.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
Coronavirus Ravages Wuhan as Hospitals Turn Fever, Pneumonia Patients Away

2020-01-31 -- Wuhan residents and a citizen journalist at the epicenter of the coronavirus epidemic say the city is fighting a losing battle as the death toll rose on Friday to 213, with nearly 10,000 confirmed cases around the world.

Of the 9,776 cases confirmed globally, 5,806 were in the central Chinese province of Hubei, of which Wuhan is the capital.

Several hundred cases have now been confirmed in each of Zhejiang, Guangdong, and Henan, with Hunan, Jiangxi and Anhui reporting more than 200 apiece.

One death has been confirmed in Shanghai and one each in Shaanxi and Heilongjiang, with two in the southwestern province of Yunnan, according to a map of the epidemic compiled by researchers at Johns Hopkins University in the United States.

Reports from inside quarantined Wuhan draw a picture of a city where normal life has been largely abandoned, where hard-pressed medical teams routinely turn away patients for lack of beds or supplies, and where the majority of infections may not even have been counted.

A medical worker in Wuhan said hospitals in the city are now full of pneumonia patients, and are turning more away, meaning that they go back home and infect their families.

"Many of my friends have gotten sick, but they can't get admitted to a hospital, and those who have managed it are usually private patients who can pay the bills themselves," the healthcare worker said.

"We have seen the official count of confirmed cases, but a lot of people who have the coronavirus in Wuhan right now aren't getting diagnosed by the hospitals, because the government said that any coronavirus patients can get treatment at government expense," they said.

"If you don't get diagnosed, then once your medical insurance runs out you have to pay the bill yourself, so a lot of hospitals won't give you a diagnosis."

Pushed beyond capacity

Citizen journalist Chen Qiushi, who traveled to Wuhan to report on the situation on the ground, painted a picture of a system pushed far beyond its capacity to cope.

In a video posted to YouTube, Chen also said that the majority of cases would never get diagnosed or included in the official figures.

"The majority of people are now confined to their homes," Chen said. "They don't even want people going outside within their residential compounds."

"If there's no transportation, how are you going to get to the hospital? And when you get there, you don't get admitted. So what's the point of going to the hospital if you can't get diagnosed?"

Chen said many people were walking to the hospital or riding motorbikes or three-wheelers because there weren't enough ambulances or even taxis to cope with demand.

"Yesterday I went to Wuhan No. 5 Hospital. I lined up as if I was sick ... and the triage nurse said to me, you are 168th in line," he said.

"There's a shortage of supplies, of masks, of protective clothing, and most importantly, of test kits," Chen said. "You can't get to see a doctor without a hospital bed, you can't get a hospital bed without a positive diagnosis, and you can't get a diagnosis without a test kit."

"There's no point in lying there with all those other people if you can't get seen by a doctor. That's why so many people are just 'suspected cases' at home," he said.

Chen showed video clips of rows of beds and reclining chairs with people on drips and wearing masks in the waiting room of Wuhan No. 5 Hospital's ER.

"Every hospital I went to said they didn't have enough beds, that there were no available beds," he said. "Some of the people in the waiting room were in a very bad way. Some were still in their vehicle, and they had hung a drip from a nearby branch and were getting their drip right there. Some were sitting outside in the open air on the steps with a drip."

He said he had already heard from police, who wanted to know where he was staying.

"In my face is the coronavirus, and at my back is the entire law enforcement system of China," Chen said. "But I will carry on reporting from Wuhan for as long as I am still alive. If I'm not afraid to die, why would I fear the Communist Party?"

Unbearable to watch

Beijing-based independent journalist Gao Yu said she had the impression of "total chaos" from reading social media posts from the frontline of the epidemic, and from watching Chen's video.

"There seems to be total chaos, all the way from the [ruling Chinese Communist Party] central leadership, to Hubei province, to Wuhan municipality, and all the way down to village level," Gao said.

"The situation in the hospitals is unbearable to watch."

Sun Ru, a resident of Wuhan, said her father had become infected after believing the initial claim from health authorities that the virus wasn't transmissible between people.

"The government propaganda was saying no human-to-human transmission back then, so nobody thought they could catch it," Sun told RFA. "Now even the medical staff are catching it."

Early warning given

Eight people "summoned" and questioned by police on Jan. 1 for "rumor-mongering" about the virus have since been found to be doctors working at the front line of the outbreak, according to Weibo CEO Wang Gaofei.

"If the public had listened to this so-called rumor at the time, and started wearing masks and disinfecting everything ... we would be in a better situation today," Wang wrote.

The Supreme People's Court recently decided that no charges would be brought against them, it said via its Weibo account.

"It turns out that although the new type of pneumonia is not SARS, the content published by the people concerned is not completely fabricated," the Court said.

According to Chen Qiushi, Wuhan's taxi drivers were talking about a SARS-like illness in connection with the Huanan Market as early as mid-to-late December.

Chen Bingzhong, former director of the China Institute of Health Education under the ministry of health, said if the doctors were listened to instead of being summoned by police and accused of spreading rumors, the epidemic might have been better controlled.

"Whenever there is a major emergency, the first step [the government takes] is always to maintain stability," Chen said. "It comes before anything else."

"This sort of tragedy will repeat itself unless the system is changed," he said. "Those with wealth and power look out for their own interests."

Wuhan's health authorities continued to deny that the coronavirus was transmissible between humans until the beginning of this month.

Reported by Woo Hoi-man, Ma Lap-hak, Qiao Long, Lau Siu-fung, Jia Ao and Gao Feng for RFA's Mandarin and Cantonese Services. Translated and edited by Luisetta Mudie.

Copyright  1998-2020, RFA. Used with the permission of Radio Free Asia, 2025 M St. NW, Suite 300, Washington DC 20036. For any commercial use of RFA content please send an email to: mahajanr@rfa.org. RFA content January not be used in a manner which would give the appearance of any endorsement of any product or support of any issue or political position. Please read the full text of our Terms of Use.

NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address






Representatives of the Dont Extradite Assange (DEA) organisation revealed last week that if Julian Assange is extradited from Britain to the US, he will be held in almost total isolation and subjected to draconian conditions usually inflicted on those convicted of terror offences.

The information, which was sourced from official US court filings, was relayed in a statement by John Rees outside Westminster Magistrates Court after Assanges most recent case management hearing on January 22. Rees said that Assange would be placed under Special Administrative Measures as soon as he arrives in the US and prior to any trial.

WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange as he is transported in a police vehicle to a hearing [Credit: AP Photo/Matt Dunham]

WikiLeaks editor-in-chief Kristinn Hraffnsson said the US State Department had indicated that the First Amendmentthe central US constitutional protection for free speech and freedom of the presswould not apply to Assange, despite the fact that he has been charged under domestic American law.

Taken together, the revelations damn the attempt to extradite Assange to the US as an extraordinary rendition operation, where he faces espionage charges and the prospect of life imprisonment, or even the death penalty, for exposing US war crimes. In violation of fundamental precepts of international law, Assange, a journalist and publisher, will be treated as a national security threat and deprived of his fundamental democratic rights.

Special Administrative Measures (SAMs) were introduced by the Democratic Party administration of Bill Clinton in 1996. They were legislated with bipartisan support in the wake of the right-wing terrorist Oklahoma City bombing.

SAMs provide for the intensive monitoring and isolation of prisoners already in solitary confinement, on the pretext of preventing any threats to national security, including violent acts and disclosures of classified information. The already draconian measures were expanded in the aftermath of the 9/11 terrorist attacks in 2001, including providing authorities the right to spy on prisoners privileged attorney-client conversations.

A 2017 report by the Allard K. Lowenstein Human Rights Clinic at Yale Law School and the Center for Constitutional Rights (CCR) described SAMs as the darkest corner of the US federal prison system.

The report explained that SAMs combine the brutality and isolation of maximum security units with additional restrictions that deny individuals almost any connection to the human world. They prohibit prisoners who live under them from contact or communication with all but a handful of approved individuals, and impose a second gag on even those few individuals. The net effect is to shield this form of torture in our prisons from any real public scrutiny.

Underscoring the intensity of the US-vendetta against Assange, there were just 51 SAMs prisoners in 2017 out of a federal prison population of more than 183,000. Most had been convicted of terror-related offences and were held at ADX Florence, a supermax prison in the Colorado Desert. The facility has been described as a clean version of hell by one of its former wardens, Robert Hood.

Prisoners held under SAMs are denied even the narrow avenues of indirect communicationthrough sink drains or air ventsavailable to prisoners in solitary confinement. They are generally held in single cells for all but 10 hours a week. Their recreation hours are spent alone in a confined space with few or no amenities.

SAMs detainees are only allowed to communicate with lawyers and relatives who have been screened by authorities, including the intelligence agencies. All outbound and incoming mail is read by the Federal Bureau of Investigations (FBI).

The Yale-CCR report presented case studies of prisoners at ADX Florence who had to wait months before their letters to relatives were cleared for sending. Visitation rights are also extremely curtailed and are monitored by the FBI.

The reports authors bluntly stated that pretrial prisoners were placed under SAMs with the aim of compelling them to plead guilty, fundamentally undermining the presumption of innocence.

The coercive nature and harsh conditions placed on pretrial SAMs detainees was no accident: experience shows that the DOJ uses total isolation as a tool to break people, just as the CIA did during its foray into detention, the report states.

Because SAMs prisoners are barred from communicating with the outside world, and are denied any information, they are effectively prevented from participating in their own defence.

One attorney cited in the report stated that SAMs dehumanise defendants and create a situation where they cannot exist in a defiant posture to fight the case, serving to eliminate them as participants in their defence. Another noted that SAMs prisoners are expected to give testimony before a jury, after having been prevented from speaking to anyone for months, or even years.

SAMs prisoners have no access to the internet and when they receive newspapers, weeks after publication, they arrive with substantial redactions. In many cases, they are arbitrarily prevented from receiving reading materials. In one incident recounted in the report, the authorities prevented a prisoner at ADX Florence from getting books by former President Barack Obama, on the grounds that it would threaten national security.

SAMs prisoners are also barred from speaking to reporters, or anyone other than their attorney and FBI-approved family visitors. Lawyers are also gagged from relaying anything said by their client, or even talking about the conditions they face. If they violate these draconian conditions, which are aimed at suppressing any discussion of their clients plight or attempting to win public support, they face criminal prosecution.

In 2005, famous civil rights attorney Lynne Stewart and her Arabic interpreter were convicted of conspiracy and of providing material support to terrorists, after publicly-releasing statements from her client, Sheikh Omar Abdel-Rahman. Lynne Stewart was sentenced to a decade in prison and was only released early on compassionate grounds in the late stages of her terminal cancer.

The authorities can also spy on private communications between lawyers and their SAMs clients. Under official regulations, this material supposedly cannot be provided to prosecuting authorities. However the ability of the state to monitor defence strategies effectively erodes the Fifth Amendment right to due process and the Sixth Amendment right to counsel.

Lawyers quoted by the Yale-CCR report, moreover, disclosed they had been placed under pervasive government surveillance while representing SAMs prisoners, including being placed on airport watch lists. Such measures are aimed at intimidating attorneys and preventing SAMs inmates from receiving legal counsel.

The report documents the harrowing conditions faced by convicted inmates, who are afflicted with psychological disorders after years of isolation under SAMs. In a number of cases, prisoners had entered an almost catatonic state, which prevented them from communicating, or carrying out any activities, including reading.

The report continues, Physical conditions are similarly inhumane at pre-trial facilities where SAMs detainees are heldthat is, facilities designed to hold individuals who have been charged, but not convicted, of a crime. Conditions at the Metropolitan Correctional Center (MCC) in Manhattan, where defendants charged with terrorism-related offenses are often held pre-trial, are particularly harsh. Detainees in the MCCs 10 South, where high-level defendantsincluding those under SAMsare held, have little natural light and no possibility for outdoor recreation. Recreational time is provided in a closed room identical to the detainees cell. Unable to open windows or spend time outdoors, detainees in 10 South have no access to fresh air.

The SAMs measures would be compounded by the fact that Assange would appear before the Eastern District Court of Virginia, the preferred government venue for national security cases because it is located close to the Pentagon and CIA, with the largest concentration of intelligence agency employees in the US. It has registered a conviction rate in such trials of more than 98 percent.

Assange has already endured almost a decade of US-led persecution. He was arbitrarily detained in Ecuadors London embassy for almost seven years, as a result of British threats to arrest him if he set foot outside the tiny building. Since being dragged out of the embassy by British police on April 11, Assange has been held in the maximum-security Belmarsh Prison, where his health has continued to deteriorate, to the point that the UN Rapporteur on Torture has warned that he might die.

The revelation that Assange would be placed under SAMs makes clear that his extradition to the US would be nothing less than a death sentence. In a 2015 interview, Assange himself warned that if extradited, he would likely be subjected to SAMS, which he described as a sort of living death.

The lawless character of the US attempt to prosecute Assange underscores the necessity for workers, students, young people and all defenders of democratic rights to prevent his extradition. The Socialist Equality Parties in Britain and Australia have announced meetings and rallies next month, coinciding with the beginning of the extradition hearing, to galvanise the widespread support for Assange into a political movement to secure his freedom.
Riverton Republican Tim Salazar had nine town hall meetings last year. And in each of those meetings, he said, two issues came up more than any other: taxes and guns.

And over the years, Salazar has represented those issues consistently.

One of the Legislatures most ardent supporters of the Second Amendment, Salazar has reflected his constituents pro-gun, anti-tax sentiments during his two terms in office. In three years in office, Salazar has amassed a voting record that not only consistently ranks among the Legislatures most conservative but has granted him the rank of one of the Legislatures most pro-gun lawmakers, sponsoring bills like the states new stand your ground law and a hotly debated bill last session to ban gun-free zones in Wyoming, which gained 30 co-sponsors in the House and Senate.

I am very much aware my constituency is concerned for anything that would restrict their Second Amendment gun rights, Salazar said Wednesday. So that kind of tells you, at least in my constituency, how strongly my constituents feel about it.

We enjoy our freedoms in Wyoming, he added. Wyoming has the highest number of registered guns per capita of any state in America. And I think thats for a good reason. Its because we can. Were gun owners.

Its a cause Salazar and other conservative members of the Legislature intend to continue fighting for, particularly as the U.S.  easily the most firearm-friendly country in the developed world  begins to pursue stricter controls on guns. In the Democratic presidential primaries, most candidates have included numerous proposals for stricter gun regulations in their platforms while, in states like Florida, Virginia and Indiana, legislatures are gaining momentum to implement tighter regulations on firearms.

Wyoming is aware of whats coming. Earlier this year, Sundance Republican Rep. Tyler Lindholm introduced a bill seeking to preemptively ban gun buyback programs while, in communications with their memberships, pro-gun groups are already pushing legislative agendas urging the revival of legislation to ban gun-free zones in the state.

Meanwhile, other legislation like a bill to fix the states mental health reporting protocols for background checks  a bill some equated to a red flag law  has gained significant attention from gun rights advocates, who have raised concerns about the bill after it was brought back from a late death in the Joint Judiciary Committee earlier this year.

Even in a budget year  where hot-button topics are often pushed aside  Salazar believes gun rights could be a defining topic in the abbreviated 2020 session.

A budget session is not a prohibitor on good Second Amendment legislation, Salazar said, noting his Stand Your Ground bill passed into law during a budget session.

Can conservative states regulate guns?

Pro-gun bills remain extremely popular in Wyoming, considered one of the nations 10 most Second Amendment-friendly states by Guns & Ammo magazine. Bills like last years proposed ban on gun-free zones in Wyoming  which passed the House of Representatives before being defeated at the committee stage in the Senate  gained co-sponsorship by a third of the Legislature. Other bills, like the states controversial stand your ground law, passed by healthy margins.

Wyomings loose regulations on firearm sales  which include a lack of restrictions on black rifles, or assault-style weapons banned in several other states  have contributed to one of the nations highest rates of criminal gun exports, according to an analysis of data from the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco and Firearms, as well as the nations eighth-highest gun death rate, garnering Wyoming an F rating from anti-gun violence nonprofit the Giffords Law Center.

Figures like these have begun to shift the conversation toward stricter regulations even in red states, argues Robert Spitzer, a professor of political science at the State University of New York at Cortland and an author of numerous books on gun control. A growing number of conservative states, he notes, have recently pursued lower-level gun reforms like red flag laws, spurred in part by a change in political attitudes nationally.

That, he said, is a relatively new development in national politics, where gun reforms have had little success in red and purple states.

You are beginning to see this kind of movement, Spitzer said. Its not a tidal wave or an earthquake, like its not gigantic. But I do think its an indication that theres sort of a slow-moving wave on this issue, where people are finally saying that Look, we can enact some reasonable gun laws without threatening peoples actual gun rights, and the world isnt going to come to an end. You can still hunt, you can still engage in sporting and recreational activities, you can still own your guns and it wont be the end of the world.

That tide, however, has been especially slow in traditionally conservative states like Wyoming, he added, where support for Second Amendment rights has remained significantly stronger. Other conservative states, like Kentucky, Tennessee and West Virginia, have pursued greater Second Amendment protections like permitless concealed carry and less stringent regulations on handgun owners.

While Salazar believes Republicans will retain control of the White House and Senate in November, the prospect of a Democratic win this fall is still on the mind.

Wyoming is not Virginia, and we dont want to be Virginia or New Jersey or New York, he said. So I wouldnt be surprised if we see some preemptive bills in this session.

A shifting conversation

That level of advocacy has inspired similar concerns among the most ardent supporters of the Second Amendment in Wyoming. Nationally, groups like Moms Demand Action for Gun Sense in America  part of the high-powered national gun control group Everytown for Gun Safety  have begun to organize in states around the country, including Wyoming, to advocate for increased firearm regulations. Last year, the group maintained a presence in Cheyenne in the lead-up to the committee stage defeat of Senate File 75, a bill that would have repealed most gun-free zones in Wyoming.

Heading into this years session, the group plans to make its presence known once more.

Wyomings gun death rate is among the highest in the country, Beth Howard, a volunteer with the Wyoming chapter of Moms Demand Action, said in an emailed statement to the Star-Tribune. Well be at the statehouse this legislative session encouraging lawmakers to support common-sense measures to reduce daily gun violence and to fight back against extremist bills that would jeopardize the safety of our communities. Well also keep working to raise awareness of the steps we can all take to keep our families safe by fostering a culture of responsible gun ownership and keeping guns securely stored.

An eye on the election

But political pressure  both against and in support of gun rights  could play a significant factor in this years session, as lawmakers consider the implications their records on Second Amendment issues might have. This is particularly true on the campaign trail, where a lawmakers support for the Second Amendment is consistently called into question by pro-gun special interest groups.

Heading into the 2020 election, groups like Wyoming Gun Owners are already prepared to take their fight to the ballot box.

The 501(4) organization, which cannot directly lobby the Legislature, took a significant amount of credit for hardline Cheyenne Republican Sen. Lynn Hutchings defeat of former Sen. Fred Emerich, a moderate on gun control issues, in 2018. In recent weeks, Wyoming Gun Owners has renewed fundraising efforts in anticipation of both the 2020 election as well as the start of the legislative session next month.

In an email to members earlier this month, the organization said it planned to go on the attack ahead of both the 2020 Primary and General Elections in an effort to ensure that every anti-gun member of our State Legislature in BOTH parties is exposed, and laid out an ambitious legislative agenda for this years session that included a renewal of efforts to repeal gun-free zones and oppose a mental health reporting mechanism deemed by some to be a precursor to a red flag law.

Its an election year, so well be doing what weve always done, the organizations state policy director, Aaron Dorr, said in an interview earlier. Well be holding lawmakers accountable in the primaries for what they do or dont do this session. Two years ago, Sen. Emerich found out what happens when you try to be a pro-gun Republican and then fight tooth-and-nail in the Capitol against the rights of gun owners. Hes now retired, Sen. Emerich, and we look forward to exposing as many rotten RINOs as we possibly can in the upcoming election.

Theyre going to need to make a decision, he added. Are they going to sit there and lie to gun owners and say theyre pro-gun and run the risk of voters finding out the truth? Or do they want to do the right thing? That choice is up to them.

Love 3 Funny 0 Wow 0 Sad 0 Angry 2

Get Government & Politics updates in your inbox! Stay up-to-date on the latest in local and national government and political topics with our newsletter. Sign up! * I understand and agree that registration on or use of this site constitutes agreement to its user agreement and privacy policy.
Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal on Saturday said that the Union Budget 2020, which is being presented merely a few days ahead of the Assembly election in Delhi, will reflect how much the BJP cares about the people of the city.

Taking to Twitter, Kejriwal said that in view of the upcoming Assembly polls, Delhi should get more prominence in the Budget.

"The people of Delhi are hopeful that the Central government will protect their interests in the Budget. In view of the elections, Delhi should get even more. The Budget will reflect how much BJP cares about the people of Delhi," he tweeted ahead of the Budget presentation in the Parliament.

Union Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman is presenting the Union Budget 2020 in the Parliament today.

Delhi Assembly elections are scheduled to be held on February 8 and the counting of votes will take place on February 11.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
Yusufu Aminu Idegu, Jos

An indication emerged in Jos on Saturday that the Academic Staff Union of Universities (ASUU) has commence the mobilization of its members across the country for a strike action.

The chairman of the University of Jos chapter of ASUU, Dr Lazarus Maigoro gave this indication after a special congress of the body held behind close door at ASUU secretariat in University of Jos.

According to the branch chairman, Dr Maigoro, We are just coming out of a special congress which was conveyed to review the extent to which the federal government has implemented the agreement it reach with ASUU since 2009

After the review, we have realized that the federal government has reneged in most of the agreements, they have only implemented a part of it. Recalled that we embarked on strike in 2015 and had to suspend it later when the federal government promised to implement the agreement in full, reason we suspended the strike, but the federal government has failed to keep its promises to implement these agreements.

He said, Some of issue not implemented in the 1999 agreements includes the issue of funding of the universities. For instance, in the agreement, there are modalities for the release of funds, there are timelines for the releases of funds to the universities, government only released N25 billion after the suspension of the strike and since then nothing has been released again.

Then there is the issue of renegotiation of that 2009 agreement, what was signed in that agreement has to be reviewed every three years, but since it was signed in 2009, it has not been reviewed.

Then the issue of balance of our earned allowances has not also been attended to since then.

It is very unfortunate that government will often force ASUU to embark on strike before doing what is required of them, this one we are talking of an agreement they signed. So the next strike is not basically on IPPIS as Nigerians are already meant to belief, it is going to be on this pending breach of agreement. However, the issue of IPPIS is a new development that also affects us and we have made our position known to government.

READ ALSO: Varsities face strike as govt pays lecturers on IPPIS

That if government wants to introduce IPPIS, we are not saying they should not implement it, all we are saying it they should follow the due processes and do it right. The introduction of IPPIS violates some existing laws guiding the university system. For instance, the issue of finances is incorporated in the Nigerian University commission [NUC], IPPIS violates this provision. The NUC law stipulates that as a lecturer you can go visiting in two universities, but IPPIS does not recognize that.

It is a known fact that there is no university in the world that can survive without visiting or sabbatical, these are global practices, its not just Nigerian universities that are practicing it, but this is a provision IPPIS is meant to abolish.

So if you introduce a payment platform that violates all these existing laws, you will have to go back to the national assembly to have the existing law reviewed. It is the issue of law here; just get the law reviewed before you begin implementation, that has not been done in this case. The IPPIS issue came through a presidential fiat, via a mere circular from office of the accountant general of the federation. Accountant general of the federal is a mere keeper of government fund or public funds, he is not a law maker, so he does not have that right or power to give directive to Nigerians to begin to implement IPPIS.

So if government wants the implementation of IPPIS, let them follow the due process and do the right thing

But rather doing the right thing, all you hear in the media has been that lecturers wants to be paid salaries in three or four universities, that is not true he said.

On some members of ASUU that have signed the IPPIS payment platform, Dr. Maigoro said, Yes, we are aware some few of our members have signed to take part in the IPPIS, the numbers of those members is so insignificant to affect our resolve to key into the program. For instance if you have a branch comprising about 1,800 members and 3 of them signed, do you call that one division. There are Judases in every struggle, so we are not surprise by the action of those 3, but that is insignificant to weaken our unity as ASUU.

So in spite of the 3 that betrayed us our members should remain resolute in this struggle. They should know that whatever they are benefiting today is the result of the struggle of past ASUU, so we should also struggle so that the system will be better for those coming after us.
Source: Xinhua| 2020-02-01 12:08:07|Editor: huaxia

Video Player Close

FUZHOU/BEIJING, Feb. 1 (Xinhua) -- More hospitals designed to replicate the SARS treatment model are popping up across China as the country mobilizes medical resources nationwide to contain the coronavirus outbreak.

Beijing has begun to renovate the city's Xiaotangshan Hospital, formerly used to quarantine and treat SARS patients, as a precaution in the face of the novel coronavirus outbreak.

Whether the hospital will be put into use will be based on the future development of the outbreak, officials said.

In the treatment and control of SARS, or Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome, which spread rapidly on the Chinese mainland in 2003, Beijing built Xiaotangshan Hospital, a temporary medical center in the northern suburb of the city, in just a week.

The hospital admitted one-seventh of the SARS patients in the country within two months.

The hospital requires renovation due to some aging facilities and pipelines.

Now, several cities are building their own versions of Xiaotangshan.

Wuhan, for instance, is building two hospitals to treat patients infected with the novel coronavirus. The two facilities are expected to be put into use on Feb. 3 and Feb. 5, respectively, at the epicenter of the coronavirus outbreak in central China.

Workers, trucks and excavators are racing against the clock to meet the deadline at the construction sites.

At around 6 p.m. Wednesday, construction of power facilities concluded at Leishenshan (Thunder God Mountain) Hospital, one of the two Wuhan sites.

In only three days, more than 300 workers toiled around the clock to install and adjust 7-km-long high-voltage cables and 26 supporting facilities.

The hospital will accommodate 1,600 beds, 300 more than the previous design, as the number of local patients increases. It will expand to 60,000 square meters and provide working space to over 2,000 medical staff.

Meanwhile, more than 4,000 workers have been toiling away at the Huoshenshan (Fire God Mountain) Hospital site day and night. They have finished about 400 prefab rooms so far. Work is largely complete on the main pipeline of the drainage system at the hospital site.

More than 900 km away, dozens of bulldozers and cranes are working on a 3,000-square-meter plot of land for a hospital to isolate and treat patients infected with the coronavirus in the suburb of Fuzhou, capital of east China's Fujian Province.

The first phase will include an outpatient building and isolation wards with 200 beds. It will be ready for use on Feb. 2, said Liu Yunzhong, president of the construction company in charge of the project.

The second phase will cover an area of 5,100 square meters and work will be completed within 20 days, Liu said.

"We've mobilized over 100 workers to work in shifts to ensure round-the-clock construction," said Liu. "We are sparing no effort to build the hospital, and I am confident we can get the job done in time."

In northeast China's Heilongjiang Province, authorities have planned a similar hospital in the provincial capital Harbin, local authorities said on Thursday.

By Thursday, Heilongjiang had reported 59 confirmed cases, with 18 in Harbin.

The provincial government decided to transform the Hanan branch of the Second Affiliated Hospital, Heilongjiang University of Chinese Medicine, into one dedicated to treating patients infected by the novel coronavirus.

The hospital is in Pingfang District, Harbin city. It officially went into operation in 2016, with 500 beds and a floor space of 48,900 square meters.
Guidebooks have mastered the where and when of whats happening around the world, says Tomaso Biancardi, an editor at Italian publisher Iperborea, but not necessarily the why. As passionate travelers, he says, he and his colleagues are interested in seeing the sights, but also in the political and social contexts surrounding them.

With that impulse in mind, Iperborea launched the Passenger series in 2018. Each volume focuses on a single city or country, compiling essays and long-form narratives, photojournalism, book and film recommendations, a suggested playlist, and more. The stories explain what we cannot see as tourists, Biancardi says.

In May, Europa Editions is bringing the Passengers first English translations to the U.S. These pieces are taking a deep dive into whats going on culturally and socially, says Europa editor-in-chief Michael Reynolds of the various contributions to the series. These are lived experiences.

Each book features a single cover image, framed in a way meant to evoke a passengers view from a train. At first it was a plane, but we chose a train because of the environmental footprint, Biancardi says, echoing a growing consciousness among publishers. (See Change in Climate.)

Here, we look at forthcoming titles that focus as much on the inner journey as the physical destination.

Braver Than You Think Maggie Downs. Counterpoint, May Grief stricken by the death of her mother, Downs quits her job as a newspaper journalist and embarks on the travels the pair had once imagined while poring over issues of National Geographic. As she touches down in a Cairo on the cusp of a revolution or suffers from asthma in Cuscos thin air, she remembers her mothers words: You are braver than you think.

Crossing Boundaries Aziz Abu Sarah. Berrett-Koehler, July Travel isnt about distance, Palestinian peace activist Abu Sarah writes. Its about self-transformation, which, he says, can occur just by crossing into a different neighborhood. Drawing on his experiences leading cross-cultural exchanges in conflict zones around the world, Abu Sarah explores how travel can serve as a tool for positive change.

For the Love of Europe Rick Steves. Avalon, July Steves collects 100 of his favorite stories published over the course of his career. Harking back to when he was a lone backpacker scribbling in his journal rather than a guidebook author, he leaves out the logistics and instead shares the memories hes accrued. A night of fado in a tiny Lisbon bar leaves him feeling oddly uplifted, though the songs are studded with sadness. In a newly independent Montenegro, a 200-year-old embroidery hanging in the sacristy of a churchwoven over two decades from silk and the weavers hairprompts Steves to question the durability of his own lifes work.

High Tech and Hot Pot Stephan Orth., trans. from the German by Jamie McIntosh. Greystone, Aug. German journalist Orth, whose previous books chronicled treks through Iran and Russia, here offers an account of couch surfing across China. Spanning the physical and psychic distances between Macaus casinos and the countrys far northwestern fringes, Orth hopes to glean how Chinas rise will influence the rest of the world by understanding how its citizens make sense of the change all around them.

Leave Only Footprints Conor Knighton. Crown, Apr. In 2016, on the occasion of the National Park Services 100th anniversary, CBS Sunday Morning correspondent Knighton sets off on a yearlong quest to visit every national park from Acadia to Zion. Crisscrossing America amid an increasingly polarized and divisive election year, Knighton reflects on how public lands can serve as common ground.



more

The Meaning of Travel Emily Thomas. Oxford Univ., Apr. The philosophy of travel isnt a thing, but it should be, writes Durham University professor Thomas. While traveling solo in wintry Alaska, a taxidermied musk ox prompts Thomas to contemplate Francis Bacon, who expanded intellectual horizons as explorers pushed the limits of the known world. A search for backcountry maps launches Thomas into a meditation on whats actually being mapped. Travel, she writes, is tangled with philosophy.

Menno Moto Cameron Dueck. Biblioasis, July Dueck travels 28,000 miles from his Mennonite hometown in Manitoba to Argentina on a motorcycle to meet the communities that left Canada in the last century and pushed south seeking greater isolation. As Dueck, a former financial journalist, makes his way through the Americas, he considers the changing landscape and what ties, if any, he shares with the communities he meets.

The Passenger Europa Editions and Iperborea, May Highlights of volumes one and two, which focus on Japan and Greece, include works of nonfiction by notable authors from those countries. Novelist and essayist Banana Yoshimoto reflects on a changing Japan as she says goodbye to her old home in Tokyos Shimokitazawa district and moves one station up the rail line to a home she suspects will be her last. In The Lost Generation, short story writer Christos Ikonomou looks at the lingering effects of Greeces economic crisis.

Try to Get Lost Joan Frank. Univ. of New Mexico, Feb. Frank, best known for her fiction, looks back on a lifetime of travel to question whether such experiences really lead to instant wisdom, and examines what people carry along in their luggage, and why. The 16 scintillating essays, PWs review said, map psychological interiors as much as they do geographic landscapes.



more

Return to main feature.
Palestinian leader Mahmud Abbas announced Saturday a cut of all ties with Israel and the United States, including security cooperation, after Washington unveiled a controversial Middle East plan seen as favouring Israel.

Abbas has made similar declarations before and it was not immediately clear what it would mean in practice.

His comments came as the Arab League rejected US President Donald Trump's plan, which had enraged Palestinians.

"We are informing you that there will be no relations with you (Israel) and the United States, including on security cooperation," Abbas said at an extraordinary meeting of the pan-Arab bloc in Cairo.

He said the move followed the "disavowal of signed agreements and international legitimacy" by the US and Israel.

Israel will have to "bear responsibility as an occupying power" for the Palestinian territories and Palestinians will press ahead with resistance using peaceful means, he added.

Abbas made a similar declaration in July 2017, announcing the suspension of security coordination with Israel during a dispute over the flashpoint Al-Aqsa mosque compound in Jerusalem.

It was resumed later that year, though the Palestinian police chief said that even during the suspension they had maintained regular contact, with 95 percent of the activities continuing.

"The only thing we stopped is we didn't meet them in the field," Hazem Atallah said at the time.

The Cairo meeting brought together senior Arab officials, including Saudi Arabia's foreign minister and the United Arab Emirates' minister of state for foreign affairs.

Arab League chief Ahmed Aboul Gheit said the US plan was tantamount to creating "a one state with two categories of people, meaning an apartheid system, as it makes Palestinians second class citizens".

"It is our right to accept or reject (the plan)... though the American proposal in reality appeared to be a dictation, or an offer that cannot be rejected or even discussed," he added.

The Arab League rejected Trump's plan, saying in a statement it failed to meet "the minimum rights and aspirations of Palestinian people".

Arab leaders also vowed "not to... cooperate with the US administration to implement this plan".

They insisted on a two-state solution that includes a Palestinian state based on borders before the 1967 Six-Day War -- when Israel occupied the West Bank and Gaza Strip -- and with east Jerusalem as its capital.

There was no immediate reaction from the Israeli government, but Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's chief rival in next month's general election, Benny Gantz, criticised the Palestinian response, saying Abbas "doesn't miss an opportunity for refusal".

"The time has come to begin working for the future generations and toward peace, instead of remaining stuck in the past and preventing a future of hope in this region," Gantz added.

The US plan suggests that Israel would retain control of the contested city of Jerusalem as its "undivided capital", but Palestinians would be allowed to declare a capital adjacent to Israeli-annexed east Jerusalem.

Trump announced the plan on Tuesday flanked by Netanyahu and in the presence of Arab ambassadors from Bahrain, Oman and the United Arab Emirates.

Other Arab states gave carefully worded initial responses to the plan.

On Saturday, Abbas met Egyptian President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi, who called for direct negotiations between Israelis and Palestinians.

Abbas told the Arab League the US plan was in "violation of the (autonomy) accords" launched in Oslo in 1993 by Israel and the Palestinians.

The accords included the creation of the Palestinian Authority, currently led by Abbas, and outlined delineations of the West Bank.

They were seen as key to Israeli-Palestinian peace process, which hit an impasse in the years following the signing.

The Trump plan also gives Israel the green light to annex the strategic Jordan Valley -- constituting some 30 percent of the West Bank -- and all Israeli settlements, which number more than 200.

Abbas said that while Israel would immediately start annexation, under the plan the Palestinians would have to wait four years, until they show "good will", to get a limited state.

He said he would go to the United Nations Security Council soon to call for an international conference to re-launch negotiations with Israel, under the auspices of the diplomatic Quartet comprised of the US, the EU, the UN and Russia, Abbas said.

"But we will not accept the US alone. We have tried it already," he added.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
Ukraine International Airlines (UIA, Kyiv) maintains constant liaison with Iranian officials and the Embassy of Ukraine in the Islamic Republic of Iran regarding baggage that is currently under the authority of Iranian bodies, the press service of the airline reported on Friday.

"We realize fully that timely financial support is crucial for the families of passengers and crew. We appreciate the dedication and efficient efforts of international lawyers, insurance and reinsurance companies that they make in order to undergo specific procedures aimed at obtaining licenses in the United States and starting with reimbursement under the conditions of sanctions regime. Comprehension and contribution of the respective authorities of all jurisdictions regarding the reimbursement terms is both crucial and essential. In this regard, we expect all formalities to be finalized in the immediate future," the press service said, citing UIA President Yevhen Dykhne.

The airline expressed gratitude to the Governments of Ukraine and Canada for assigning experts to investigate the tragedy on site. Ukraine International calls the Governments of Ukraine, Canada, the U.K., Sweden, and Afghanistan on staunch international stance that would enable a profound and transparent investigation into the cause of the UIA aircraft crash, help define liability and compensation.

In addition, UIA continues providing the families of PS752 passengers and crew with the information, legal, and emotional support in the company's Head Office in Kyiv as well as the Family Assistance Centers abroad.

"We are unable to turn back time. However, in these difficult times, we make every effort to provide maximum support to the families of PS752 passengers and crew," Dykhne said.
Source: Xinhua| 2020-02-01 14:35:21|Editor: huaxia

Video Player Close

WUHAN, Feb. 1 (Xinhua) -- "I believe that no winter is never-ending, and this virus-stricken winter will eventually end," wrote Sun Wanqing in a new year greeting card to her father, a doctor fighting against the novel coronavirus in the city of Wuhan, central China's Hubei Province.

The 14-year-old girl, a middle school student, had a quiet and unforgettable Spring Festival, without the company of her parents. Since the novel coronavirus started to wreak havoc in the country, her father has been working on the frontline and her mother, an anesthesiologist, is required to remain on standby. It is difficult for the family to reunite during the traditional Chinese festival.

"I hadn't seen my father for a week when I began to write the card," Sun said.

Her father, Sun Peng, works in the emergency and fever department of Wuhan Union Hospital, one of the city's designated hospitals to admit patients infected with the new virus. For fear that his constant exposure to patients would infect himself and his family, Sun Peng rented a room nearby the hospital.

The last time that the daughter and father met was on Jan. 22, two days before the Chinese New Year's Eve, when Sun Peng had to go home to deliver medicine to his elderly mother and had a meal at home.

"We didn't have much time to chat that day, though my greeting card was ready. I filled his bowl with rice. He ate it in the doorway, refusing to sit together with us at the table. He didn't want to put us at risk of contracting the virus," the girl recalled.

On the first day of the Lunar New Year, the girl took a photo of the 200-character card and sent it to her father. Later, the photo, which contained her pride in his father's career and understanding of his work, went viral online. Viewers from across the country were deeply moved by the family's sincere love.

Wuhan, the center of the coronavirus outbreak, reported 576 new confirmed cases and 33 new deaths on Friday.

Hubei had reported 7,153 confirmed cases of the novel coronavirus infection by Friday, with 249 deaths and 956 patients in severe or critical condition.

Sun Peng is one of the thousands of medics fighting the epidemic at the forefront. More than 6,000 medical workers from other provincial-level regions and the military have joined hands with local medical workers to combat the epidemic.

Yang Xiao, a doctor of Zhongnan Hospital of Wuhan University, could not help crying when calling her daughter in the hospital lounge. Having been away from home for a week, her baby could barely recognize her during the video chat.

"No big deal. It's good that she doesn't look for Mom," said Yang, choking back her tears.

At the Wuhan Union Hospital West Campus, one of the latest designated hospitals to admit novel coronavirus patients, 31 nurses cut their long hair before their medical training.

"Cutting hair short makes it convenient to wear protective clothing. And as we will be busy taking care of patients, there is limited time for us to take a shower or wash our hair," said Ge Lin, head nurse of the hepatobiliary surgery department.

Thanks to the efforts of the medics, as well as donations, funds and medical supplies from across the world, Hubei has made some progress in the fight. By Friday, the province has seen 166 patients discharged from hospital. More cured patients have also been seen in the country.
JACKSON, MI  Doug Brinker walked into LifeWays Community Mental Health 20 years ago without hope.

Hours before, he had survived his first suicide attempt by alcohol poisoning.

When you go to the emergency room at 3 a.m. so drunk that you dont know life exists and they shove a bunch of charcoal down your stomach, you sober up real quick, said Brinker, then 37.

I think my blood-alcohol level was six times the legal limit that night.

A former U.S. Navy helmsman with three years active service, Brinker, now 57, was honorably discharged in 1984 and unable to reconnect with society when he returned home.

For four or five years, I was in a very dark place in life with broken relationships and a change of job every six months, he said. Basically, I spent 15 years just running around in circles on a merry-go-round.

That merry-go-round led to a second suicide attempt in February 2001, this time with a knife, he said.

Only a handful of people knew about either attempt until three years ago. Among them were people at LifeWays, where Brinker now uses his experience to connect with patients as a peer support specialist at Crisis R&R.

Crisis R&R is undergoing a renovation to make it a 24-hour facility. This means hiring more peer support specialists like Brinker.

Each time a patient comes in during a mental health crisis, they meet with a peer support specialist within 15 minutes. CEO Maribeth Leonard said the specialists are a nationwide trend with evidence to support their success.

It is more powerful for someone experiencing the same situation to have an interaction with someone who has walked the walk youre going through, she said.

The peer support specialists, like Brinker, have struggled with their own mental health crisis and are in recovery.

When its feasible to share, I ask permission, Brinker said. I dont give them any of the details, I just generalize my recovery story of my attempts. I try to make myself as relatable as possible, but I dont allow myself to over-step that position. When a guest comes into the room, its all about them and their crisis, not mine.

The goal is to send each person coming to Crisis R&R home with a safety plan on how to proceed using support systems and coping skills. The peer support specialists make follow-up phone calls 24, 48 and 72 hours after each visit.

Discussing what a guest is going through can be difficult for Brinker, especially if it pertains to suicide.

I have my setback days, he said. I dont have a specific go-to coping skill for that. I try to just know that Im grateful that God gave me a different purpose in life and that Im able to have the strength to overcome that weak part.

Brinkers day can be extremely busy, with multiple patients with varying needs. Or the day can be devoted to training, office support and follow-up calls.

Several guests specifically ask for Brinker when they come in, he said. Having sought help himself during the dark parts of his life, Brinker is happy to be the person some are willing to trust.

Outside his shift at LifeWays, Brinker is involved in Toastmasters International and Junior Achievement and serves as post commander and Department of Michigan PTSD director for the Veterans of Foreign Wars.

He believes recovery is an ongoing, everlasting process. But he uses community involvement to work through it.

I stay busy, he said. That is my therapy. If I stay busy, I dont have time to reflect back on that dark part of my life.

Brinker also recently finished writing a 50-page book detailing his life leading up to his suicide attempts. It has 22 chapters to represent the approximate number of veterans who die by suicide daily, he said.

The book includes details on his being adopted, put into a childrens home, nearly drowning, surviving being hit by a car twice, moving often, his time in the Navy, surviving Iraq and starting college for the first time at 42 years old.

Im a survivor  a victor, Brinker said. We know, unfortunately, that my voice needs to be heard because that is my purpose, to be that awareness factor for other people that hope is real, and it does exist if you are open to allowing it to exist.

Brinker is hoping his book will be released late this summer. Half of the proceeds will go to the Jackson County Suicide Coalition.

Im not writing the book and selling it for fundraising for myself and my financial needs, Brinker said. Im doing it to continue that hope bridge where we can outreach to more people that are struggling.

In about 10 weeks, Brinker will graduate with his master's degree in communication from Eastern Michigan University. His goal is to work full time as an advocate for suicide awareness and prevention and PTSD.

Brinker maintains a tagline he stole from a friend as his mission in life: Hope is helping one person every day.

In doing so, he has managed to help his younger self, too.

I probably would suggest to that younger self that you have to be vulnerable to reach out for help when youre to that point, Brinker said. Help is out there, its all around us.
STATEN ISLAND, N.Y. -- After thousands of protesters flooded the citys transit system Friday to revolt against the MTA and the NYPD, local elected official spoke out on social media to condemn the actions.

The protests came after the MTA and the NYPD decided to increase police presence on subways stations in a effort to tackle fare evasion.

Photos and videos circulating social media show gated subway entrances chained open, OMNY and MetroCard readers rendered inoperable, and phrases like F--- MTA" and NYPD KKK written on the walls of subway platforms.

The anti-government protests were part of day-long acts of disobedience titled F--- The Police III." In a video released Tuesday by the group, Decolonize This Place, three masked men encouraged people to build and f--- s--- up on J31 -- short for Jan. 31.

Heres what local politicians had to say about Fridays events:

This behavior isnt brave, its dangerous and idiotic, Rep. Max Rose (D-Staten Island/Brooklyn) wrote on Facebook. Our police officers, civil servants and commuters shouldnt have to deal with this asinine behavior.

This behavior isnt brave, its dangerous and idiotic. Our police officers, civil servants and commuters shouldnt have... Posted by Max Rose on Friday, January 31, 2020

Rose wasnt the only Staten Island elected officials to publicly condemn yesterdays protests.

Assemblyman Mike Reilly (R-South Shore) blamed the result of the protests on elected leaders.

This is the sort of behavior that some of our so called elected leaders at the city, state and federal levels empower and even cheer on. Reilly wrote on a Facebook post. These people are anti-police, and theyre anti-law and order.

Councilman Joseph Borelli (R-South Shore) called the protests a mob violence on Twitter adding that he was rooting for the cops.

In case anyone had doubts, when Im watching all the protest mob violence in #NYC tonight, Im rooting for the cops. #NYPD #MTAPD #NYSP  Joe Borelli (@JoeBorelliNYC) January 31, 2020

I think people who incite violence against cops, cause dangerous situations, deface our public property, and ruin working folks Friday night commute home are complete bell ends, Borelli continued. Dont equate them with normal protestors. Dont be impartial. Support our cops.

Assemblywoman Nicole Malliotakis (R-East Shore/Brooklyn) demanded Mayor Bill de Blasio to get the city under control.

I wrote to the MTA in April advocating for more police and I applaud the governors decision to add them, Malliotakis wrote on Twitter. This anarchy is unacceptable & Mayor de Blasio needs to get the city under control.

Councilman Steven Matteo (R-Mid-Island) called the protests ridiculous.

Absolutely ridiculous, Matteo wrote on Twitter. Thanks to our brave men and women in blue and all of our emergency responders who are trying to keep everyone safe.

Absolutely ridiculous.



Thanks to our brave men and women in blue and all of our emergency responders who are trying to keep everyone safe. https://t.co/yMNls8HU3Y  Steven Matteo (@StevenMatteo) February 1, 2020

Former Mayor Rudy Guiliani, who during his mayoral time used a law and order approach to drastically decrease crime in New York city, shared a video of protesters at Gran Central on Twitter calling it heartbreaking.

This was the City I worked so hard to reform. Its heart breaking. https://t.co/lUizzE0fpD  Rudy Giuliani (@RudyGiuliani) February 1, 2020

This was the City I worked so hard to reform, Giuliano wrote. Its heart breaking.
ATTICA, Ind. - Five months ago, Katy Kays was in Attica looking at a property she was thinking about buying, renovating and reselling.

As Kays poked around a house that could have used a handy touch before the general manager of Lafayettes Achieve Marketing and Consulting tried to flip it, she said she had a visit from James DeGrazia.

He said, Want something you can really sink your teeth into? Kays said. I knew exactly what he was talking about.

When she went with DeGrazia to 500 E. Jackson St., where the 4,800-square-feet of the McDonald House had been empty since the early 2000s, Kays said things were rough, inside and out. DeGrazia, as he told the J&C in 2015 and told Kays again in summer 2019, had bought the Greek Revival home, built in 1855 by Attica businessman James D. McDonald, at a tax sale in 2013, with hopes that someone would come along with the chops and wherewithal to save it.

It was bad, Kays said. The whole back wall was open in the back. There were raccoons inside. It needed, I dont know  everything.

But given a price so low she wouldnt repeat it and a promise of help when she needed it, Kays said she was in. Other projects were set aside. And she and a crew of five bombed the first phase of a McDonald House restoration that continues to have people slowing down on their way in and out of the Fountain County city on Indiana 28.

As Attica looks to entice HGTVs Home Town to bring its show  and restoration muscle  to town to look at a downtown thats listed as a whole a one of Indiana Landmarks 10 Most Endangered list, a restored McDonald House will get its big unveiling Jan. 31 and Feb. 1, as it opens as an inn five years after it, too, had been listed as one of Indianas most endangered structures.

Last week, Kays and Brittany Smith, innkeeper for the newly branded Historic McDonald Airbnb, and others were buttoning up a few things, as Kays put it, before guests started to arrive and ahead of the foot traffic of an open house.

As you can see, Kays said, theres still a lot to do.

James and Lucinda McDonald built the three-story brick home on a hill where Jackson and Main streets merge, near a park that bears their name. The home sat on an acre and featured eight bedrooms and six fireplaces. A walnut staircase climbs through the middle of the home and up to the roof. Iron balcony rails ran along the second story. The house provided a hilltop view of downtown Attica to the west.

After the McDonalds died, the property passed through several hands during the remainder of the 19th century and through the 20th century.

Dolly Poston-Zollars spent part of her childhood growing up in the house, which she said her mother used as six apartments as well as a home when the family owned it.

I used to slide down those bannisters, Poston-Zollars said. I cant wait to see my old bedroom.

The house stayed in the family until 1997, she said. Fountain County property records show that the McDonald House traded hands several times after that, before DeGrazia bought it.

Indiana Landmarks included the McDonald House in its 10 Most Endangered lists in 2014 and 2015, hoping to draw attention to a property that had growing problems, including brick work that had been destabilized by water gushing from failing gutters.

In 2016, then Mayor Bob Shepherd told the J&C the McDonald House an integral part of Attica and its history. DeGrazia told J&C reporter Kevin Cullen that he bought it knowing that he wouldnt sell it if they want to demolish it.

Enter Kays.

Kays said the past five months have been a blur of foundation work, rebuilding a back wall that had given way, tuck pointing the rest of the brick, installing streel beams to shore up floors, replacing 89 window panes, adding insulation and HVAC systems, hanging drywall, painting and cleaning.

And cleaning and cleaning, Kays said. Were still at it.

That was just to get the property, as she said, through phase one, which meant habitable. She said work on the next phases will continue on rough spots still evident, even as the inn opens for guests this week.

Kays said McDonald House is ready for Mayor Duane Roderick to cut a ribbon for a grand opening.

Poston-Zollars said shes watched the renovation from afar. And she booked several rooms around the time her son will graduate from Attica High School in the spring.

It provides a much-needed spark to the community to see someone from the outside come and join us in our bid to preserve the historic integrity of the town, Poston-Zollars said. This, to me, is such a focal point of the entrance to the community when you come in off (Indiana) 28. I think its just a huge showpiece when you see this beautiful home thats been redone rather than coming into town and the first big historic home you see looks like it did.  What a blessing.

IF YOU GO: An open house for the Historic McDonald Airbnb, 500 E. Jackson St. in Attica, will be 3-5 p.m. Friday, Jan. 31, and noon-2 p.m. Saturday, Feb. 1. Parking will be available at Attica Elementary School across the street.

__

Source: Journal & Courier
A driver and a toddler in the back seat were shot and wounded in Camden County Thursday night after a robbery attempt by three men ended with gunshots, police said.

The Woodlynne Police were called to Cooper Hospital around 7:30 p.m. after the driver and the 2-year-old child showed up there suffering from gunshot wounds, according to a joint statement from the department and the Camden County Prosecutors Office.

The man was shot in the upper body and the child was shot in the foot, but their conditions were not made public by authorities Friday.

The man told detectives that he was in his car and that the child and another passenger, a man, were in the back seat at the intersection of 4th and Chestnut streets when three men approached them, the office said.

After they demanded money, one of them fired multiple shots at the car, hitting the driver and child inside, police said.

The prosecutors office and police were still searching for the men as of 4 p.m. Friday.

Anyone who can open fire on a vehicle with a child inside is an extremely dangerous individual, said Acting Prosecutor Mayer. Our Major Crimes Unit is working hard with Woodlynne Police to find those responsible.

Anyone with information on the shooting was asked to contact Camden County Prosecutors Office Detective Allison Dube-Smith at 856-225-7105 or Woodlynne Police Detective Edgar Feliciano at 856-535-6780 or to email ccpotips@ccprosecutor.org.

Chris Sheldon may be reached at csheldon@njadvancemedia.com. Follow him on Twitter @chrisrsheldon Find NJ.com on Facebook.

Have a tip? Tell us. nj.com/tips. Get the latest updates right in your inbox. Subscribe to NJ.coms newsletters.
New Delhi, Feb 1 : For upkeep of cattle at the British-era military farms, the government has allocated Rs 263.52 crore in the budget. The army had shut these farms three years ago, but with no takers for cows, it's forced to upkeep them.

In previous budget, the government had allocated Rs 293.42 crore and in the revised budget it was Rs 205.42 crore.

Upkeep of the cattle involves maintenance of acres of land and payment of staff salaries.

There are over 1,000 employees who maintain these 39 farms spread across 20,000 acres. After the closure of farms, the army had engaged many contractual workers.

Three years ago, the army had 25,000 cows at these shelters. Now the number has come down to 15,000 with army selling 10,000 cows of Frieswal breed.

The Frieswal breed of cows is known for high milk yields and cost around Rs 1 lakh. But most cows were sold to state governments and other departments just for Rs 1,000 per head.
Banking services in the northeastern states were badly affected for the second consecutive day on Saturday as most major banks remained closed due to a two-day countrywide strike by their employees. Image Source: IANS News

Guwahati/Agartala, Feb 1 : Banking services in the northeastern states were badly affected for the second consecutive day on Saturday as most major banks remained closed due to a two-day countrywide strike by their employees.

A large number of ATMs were closed, causing inconvenience to the people. Government and foreign exchange transactions were also affected.

The striking employees held demonstrations in front of different bank branches in many cities across the region.

Besides nationalised banks, the staff of various regional rural banks also participated in the strike. Employees of state cooperative banks are not part of the strike.

Over 80,000 employees of nationalised banks in the eight northeastern states are taking part in the strike.

Leaders of the United Forum of Bank Unions (UFBU), an umbrella organisation of nine employees' unions which had called for the two-day strike, claimed a very good response to the strike call in the eight northeastern states, including Assam and Sikkim.

UFBU leader Jawaharlal Dey said that the unions had already served a notice on the Indian Banks Association and the government about a proposed three-day shutdown from March 11 and then an indefinite strike from April 1.

The striking employees are protesting against "anti-people banking reforms" and also demanding a 20 per cent pay hike, five-day working week, and improvement in pension and family pension schemes.

Dey and other UFBU leaders said that the UFBU had been demanding the scrapping of the new pension scheme, equal wages for equal work for contract employees and business correspondents.

The banking employees have also been protesting against the outsourcing of non-core activities.

Tripura government officials and employees said that the strike taking place just before pay day, badly hit withdrawal of salaries by lakhs of staff.
Brandon University says an internal investigation found that second-year nursing students used a pirated test bank to write a "seriously compromised" exam last semester.

Hey there, time traveller!

This article was published 31/1/2020 (709 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

Advertisement Advertise With Us

The Brandon University Health Studies Complex. (File)

Brandon University says an internal investigation found that second-year nursing students used a pirated test bank to write a "seriously compromised" exam last semester.

The university sent out a statement late Friday afternoon.

"Brandon University is working to build a collaborative culture of ethical and empathetic behaviour in the wake of a significant recent challenge to academic integrity on campus," the statement reads. "Academic integrity is paramount, and deeply valued at Brandon University. We have a commitment to our community and to our students that everyone who graduates will have earned their degrees both with the knowledge and skills required and also with the ethics and integrity to guide them in their careers and lives."

The university said an investigation over the past few weeks confirmed the exam "was seriously compromised."

"The exam had been prepared based on a Test Bank provided by a textbook publisher and was believed to be secured for faculty use only. This is common practice," the statement reads. "These professionally written Test Banks include answer rationales, desired learning outcomes and expected sources of knowledge along with links to professional standards and competencies.

"These Test Banks have been crafted by testing experts to ensure a full and fair assessment of all of the knowledge covered by the curriculum while freeing up teachers to focus on their students in the classroom. Unfortunately, todays technology means that pirated versions of these exams and Test Banks can be found for sale online.

"This compromised exam and its Test Bank was purchased on a website specifically devoted to the sale of such materials, then circulated and made available to students in the class. The investigation discovered that students used the Test Bank questions they had obtained to prepare for their class exam expecting, and then finding, the questions to be the same."

Other students declined to make use of the Test Bank, the university said.

"Brandon University was faced with a limited amount of time to deal with a large and complex situation that is unlike anything envisioned by our existing policies," the statement reads. "As an expedient, all students were offered the immediate opportunity to write a new version of the exam, with a penalty applied, so that upon satisfactory completion they would be able to move on to second-term classes and clinical placements without having to lose a year of their studies. All students rewrote the exam, and all students passed.

"Penalties may be adjusted as appropriate for individual circumstances as determined in the fullness of the investigation. Students also have the opportunity to appeal their penalties or final grades through the normal university appeal processes."

Faculty of Health Sciences dean John Moraros wrote a letter to students saying there is "strong evidence to corroborate the fact that the 71:250 Nursing Foundations II course (Fall term, test II, Final Exam) was compromised by a large number of students," the Sun reported earlier this month.

Moraross letter said all students in the class are being punished for academic dishonesty by being made to rewrite the exam, with a penalty lowering the maximum attainable mark to 70 per cent.

The initial exam took place at the end of November.

"To be as fair as possible to everyone involved in this recent case, we have carefully limited our public statements while we began our investigation, and as we assessed and worked through the processes outlined in our policies," the university's statement continues.

"This takes time, and we regret that our silence allowed rumours to circulate in the community and online. We must balance the legitimate public interest in this incident against our equally vital need to protect the interests and the privacy of all of our students, both during the past few weeks and in the future."

The statement notes the university has already had a series of discussions with both students and faculty since the start of the year, "and we will be considering important changes to our admissions criteria, curriculum delivery and student evaluation processes in Health Studies. The aim is to better support our students personal growth and professional development and to continue to foster a caring and collaborative culture on campus and among our graduates."

The changes will also aim to de-centre the longstanding focus on grades as the sole measure of student performance, the statement reads.

"New criteria will be used to expand our consideration of the full measure of each student as a whole person, starting with their admission, which may include personal interviews and portfolios. There will be renewed focus on professionalism, ethics, collaboration, team building and empathy.

"These are in line with current best practices in health care education and are expected to make BU a leader in this area and improve our already excellent outcomes for nursing graduates."

Brandon University Students' Union president Olusola Akintola said Friday the union will be issuing a statement on Monday following an emergency meeting of the union executive.

In the meantime, he said the students accessed a readily available test bank online and paid for it. The site was not hacked, he added.

"No student should be unfairly punished," Akintola said, adding even BU's statement shows some students did not even use the test bank.

"So why should there be a blanket punishment for all the students?"

He added, "Why did the lecturer, the professor ... have to lift all his questions from a test bank?"

A spokesman for Brandon University could not be reached for further comment late Friday afternoon.

 brobertson@brandonsun.com, with files from Colin Slark
T he UK has left the European Union, but there is still a long way to go in the Brexit saga.

Negotiations with Brussels are still to be had, with a series of crucial issues needing to be resolved in the coming months.

Prime Minister Boris Johnson said Brexit can unleash the full potential of the UK but admitted there will be "bumps in the road".

So what happens now?

Boris Johnson chairs a cabinet meeting at the National Glass Centre at the University of Sunderland in the hours before the UK officially left the EU / REUTERS

The UK and European Union need to reach agreements by the end of the year to prevent what is effectively another no-deal scenario.

Is that likely?

The kind of partnership envisaged in the Political Declaration goes far beyond a traditional trade deal, promising an "ambitious, broad, deep and flexible partnership" including law enforcement and criminal justice, foreign policy, security and defence.

British citizens' ability to work and travel across the EU, as well as healthcare access, from 2021 will all be on the table in the negotiations - with the same being true for EU citizens in the UK.

Trade deals alone usually take years to negotiate and are mostly aimed at bringing the two sides closer together rather than, as is the case with Brexit, allowing one party to drift away from the other.

German chancellor Angela Merkel said "these negotiations will certainly not be easy" adding that the EU would be "representing its own interests, and Britain will do the same".

Celebrations and protests across the country as the UK leaves the EU

Why has the deadline been imposed?

The declaration commits both the UK and EU to begin negotiations as soon as possible so that new arrangements can come into force by the end of 2020.

The Withdrawal Agreement allows for an extension of up to two years, if agreed before July 1 - but Prime Minister Boris Johnson has enshrined in law a promise not to seek a delay.

European Commission president Ursula von der Leyen has said that without an extension "you cannot expect to agree on every single aspect of our new partnership" by the deadline.

Brexit Day at Parliament Square - In pictures 1 /22 Brexit Day at Parliament Square - In pictures Anti-Brexit protesters in Parliament Square, London PA Police presence at anti-Brexit protests in Parliament Square, London PA The Winston Churchill statue and Union flags in Parliament Square, London PA Pro Brexit supporters hold placards at Parliament Square as people prepare for Brexit Getty Images A man carries an EU themed wreath at Parliament Square Reuters Anti-Brexit demonstrators in Parliament Square, London, ahead of the UK leaving the European Union PA Pro Brexit supporters hold placards at Parliament Square as people prepare for Brexit Getty Images A man wears a President, Donald Trump mask and holds an American flag at Parliament Square as people prepare for Brexit Getty Images People hold placards in Parliament Square opposite the Houses of Parliament in London AFP via Getty Images A man holds up a President, Donald Trump, American flag at Parliament Square as people prepare for Brexit Getty Images A Red Viking apple with the Union Jack is displayed and given out for free to promote British produce as an Anti-Brexit demonstrator waves the European Union flag in Parliament Square AP Joseph Afrane in Westminster Jeremy Selwyn Pro-EU anti-Brexit protesters hold placards in Parliament Square AFP via Getty Images A man takes a photo of political artist Kaya Mar's paintings in Parliament Square Getty Images A man in an oversized 'Keep America Great' hat and draped with a US flag holds a Union Flag in Parliament Square opposite the Houses of Parliament AFP via Getty Images A woman holds a newspaper at Parliament Square Reuters A woman wears a face mask in Parliament Square PA

What will the trade deal look like?

The aim is for a deal with no tariffs and no quotas on goods crossing between the UK and EU.

But that does not mean friction-free trade, as the further the UK wants to diverge from EU regulations the harder it will be to maintain access to the single market.

Cabinet minister Michael Gove acknowledged there "will be some regulations that will differ in Britain" so "that may mean that when it comes to trading with Europe there are some bureaucratic processes there that aren't there now".

Ms von der Leyen has said that "with every decision comes a trade-off " and "the more divergence there is, the more distant the partnership has to be".

Brexit Party leader Nigel Farage laughs as he celebrates the UK's exit from the EU / AP

What about fisheries policy?

The Government has introduced legislation which it says ensures the UK will become an independent coastal state, quitting Europe's common fisheries policy and ending automatic access for EU vessels to fish in British waters.

But with future access and quotas set to be negotiated with the EU, there are concerns in the fishing industry that it could lose out if it is traded off in return for securing a beneficial outcome for other areas of the economy such as financial services.

The Political Declaration targets a UK-EU deal on fisheries by July 1.

Pro-EU activists protest at Parliament Square / Getty Images

When will talks begin?

Downing Street has said the UK Government is ready for talks to begin as soon as possible.

But the EU needs to get its negotiating objectives endorsed by all 27 members, meaning it may be March before talks formally begin - further squeezing the tight timetable.

Who will be involved?

The Department for Exiting the European Union has been scrapped now Brexit has happened, so a new taskforce will lead the negotiations for the UK.

It will be led by Mr Johnson's chief Europe adviser David Frost, reporting directly to the Prime Minister.
Investigators couldnt determine what led to a Portland police recruits serious injuries in a dorm of the states basic police academy because other students who were with him gave inconsistent accounts and the injured officer had no memory of how he got hurt, according to the Marion Countys District Attorneys Office.

The explanations from three police recruits who witnessed what occurred werent credible based on the medical evidence and revealed a shocking lack of candor and judgment, Deputy District Attorney Matt Kemmy wrote in a memo released Friday.

The injured recruit, Dustyn Matlock, 28, was knocked unconscious in a dorm room, spit up blood after he came to, complained he may have broken his arm and wondered if he was suffering from a brain bleed.

But no one in the group called for medical attention or notified anyone in authority that Matlock was in distress, the prosecutor noted.

When Matlock was suffering from clearly visible body tremors and asked the three recruits to call an Uber ride so he could go to the hospital, they refused. Instead, Joseph Delance, Austin Daugherty and Dylan Hansen tried repeatedly to convince Matlock to just take ibuprofen and sleep it off,'' Kemmy wrote.

If Matlocks roommate hadnt taken him to the hospital and Matlock had been allowed to just "sleep it off,'' he may have died due to brain swelling, according to physicians who treated him. The roommate, Jonathan Martin, wasnt present when Matlock was injured.

Matlock was hospitalized for more than a week with a brain bleed, a cervical spine fracture of his first cervical vertebra, an orbital fracture and a broken wrist.

While not criminal, the behavior of Delance, Daugherty and Hansen on Oct. 17 raises serious concerns about their character and credibility and is antithetical to what real officers do: protect others, Kemmy wrote.

Instead of helping their fellow recruit, they made up accounts to save themselves,'' according to Kemmy.

Their circle the wagons version of what took place that night is not credible,'' his memo said. "Whether their story was created by some misguided belief that they needed to cover for one another or whether it was done for self-preservation, it is disturbing either way. However, even more disturbing is their disgraceful and irresponsible attitude towards Dustyn Matlocks injuries. 

Delance, Daugherty and Hansen were allowed to graduate from the state police academy in Salem on Nov. 1. Delance was hired by the Deschutes County Sheriffs Office and Daugherty and Hansen by Oregon State Police.

State police Capt. Tim R. Fox said Friday night that Daugherty and Hansen have been placed on paid administrative leave while the agency conducts its own investigation. "These findings, if proven to be accurate, fall disappointedly far below the standards we expect of an Oregon State Police Trooper  which these recruits were striving to one day become,'' Fox said.

Delance also has been placed on paid administrative leave, Deschutes County Sheriffs Sgt. Troy Gotchy said. "The conduct described in Marion County District Attorneys Office findings does not meet the expectations of the Deschutes County Sheriffs Office,'' the sheriffs office said in a statement.

The Oregonian/OregonLive in October broke the story of the after-hours roughhousing and Matlocks hospitalization.

Matlock, through his lawyer, said, "I am very grateful to the Portland Police Bureau and all those who have supported me throughout my recovery. I am especially grateful to the healthcare providers who cared for me in the hours and days following my injuries. My focus right now is on my health and regaining my strength so I can fully return to my training and duties.''

The state Department of Public Safety, Standards and Training chose to wait until Salem police completed a criminal investigation this week before starting an internal inquiry, said Eriks Gabliks, executive director of the department.

"I can say that in my almost 30 year career with DPSST we have never had an incident like this occur at the Academy and this is not the type of behavior we tolerate at a professional training organization entrusted with training men and women from diverse backgrounds around our state who will protect and serve our communities,'' Gabliks said in a statement.

According to the District Attorneys Office, the injuries occurred after a number of the police recruits had gone out for dinner and drinks. Matlock and the three other recruits returned to Delances dorm room.

Delance, Daugherty and Hansen told investigators they were practicing so-called clinchwork when Delance grabbed Matlock in a bear hug and lifted him slightly off the ground and then let go, according to the memo.

Matlock somehow then fell over and hit the ground. All three deny that Delance slammed Matlock in any way, Kemmy wrote.

But the accounts by Delance, Daugherty and Hansen were not supported by medical opinion evidence based on Matlocks injuries; nor were their versions consistent with a common sense analysis of how injuries such as Matlocks could ever be sustained, he wrote.

Doctors said the injuries suggested Matlock was body slammed into the ground, Kemmy said. One physician was extremely skeptical of accounts given by Daugherty and Hansen, for example, that Matlocks injuries could have been caused by being "dropped to the floor.''

Matlock recalled grabbing Delances biceps "as they tied up,'' but his memory of the events from that point forward is unclear. He told investigators that he was knocked unconscious but doesnt know how long he was out. The next thing he recalled was waking up on the floor of Delances door room in extreme pain, according to Kemmys report.

Matlock also remembered Delance telling him, 'Youre really tough, youre ok, and that you can tell everyone in Portland youre tough, Kemmy wrote.

When Matlock asked what happened, Daugherty told him, You got (expletive) tossed and your feet were up here, indicating upper chest to chin height, according to the memo. Matlock also remembered that Hansen looked terrified.

When Matlock stood up, he spit blood into the sink, was unsteady on his feet and repeatedly told the others that his head and wrist hurt. No one in Delances dorm room notified anyone at the police academy. Instead, Daugherty tried to check Matlocks eyes to determine if he suffered a concussion and checked WebMD to see if Matlock had signs of a brain bleed. Daugherty decided, no, Matlock was "good,'' Kemmy wrote.

By the time Matlock had returned to his own room, his roommate noticed Matlock was acting strangely. Martin, the roommate, heard Matlock moaning in the shower, said Matlocks speech was "confused,'' his body was shaking and Matlock told him, "Somethings not right,'' according to the prosecutors memo. Martin left with Matlock to take him to the hospital about 10:30 p.m. From the hospital, Martin alerted a police academy supervisor.

Two of the recruits who were with Matlock when the injuries occurred refused to take a polygraph test, according to the District Attorneys Office.

Hansen refused when asked to take a polygraph about whether Delance had slammed Matlock to the ground, claiming that, "its just gonna be a waste of your time and money to do it, cause I dont lie ... so, according to the memo. Daugherty at first agreed to take the test, then obtained a lawyer and never took it.

Gabliks, the director of the department that runs the basic police academy, said none of the three recruits involved have received their police certification yet. They must complete their field training at the agencies where they were hired. Matlock was still hospitalized and unable to graduate on Nov. 1 with his class.

The public safety department will now conduct an internal review, Gabliks said.

"This incident in the dorms occurred after hours and was not connected to any DPSST training, nor was it DPSST sanctioned,'' Gabliks wrote in an email.

The dorms are on the fenced-in grounds of the state Department of Public Safety Standards and Training.

"This is a serious matter and in addition to our review, I am sure that all of the employing agencies will be looking at the information to determine what actions they may take as the individuals involved are their employees,'' Gabliks said.

-- Maxine Bernstein

Email at mbernstein@oregonian.com

Follow on Twitter @maxoregonian

Visit subscription.oregonlive.com/newsletters to get Oregonian/OregonLive journalism delivered to your email inbox.

Subscribe to Facebook page
Civil society groups in the South East Nigeria led by Voice from the East-VEAST , have staged a protest walk along the streets of Enugu City in complete allegiance to the Distinguished Senator of the Republic of Nigeria, Enyinnaya Abaribe, who had called on Buhari to resign due to what he termed  glaring security lapses . Recall that the same Abaribe in the company of PDP National Chairman- Uche Secondus and others , has staged a demonstration at Ambassadorial offices of the USA , UK , Russia, Australia and others in Abuja, demanding for the unconditional resignation of Buhari .

Be in the know also that USA has blacklisted Nigeria as a terrorist nation and has banned Nigerians from travelling to America , stipulates VEAST . Abaribe made the call on the floor of the Senate as the Senate threw open the security challenges facing the Nation over which Buhari has no solution because Mr. Presidents stance on islamization and nepotistic Fulaninization appear most zealously unstoppable.

The placards of the demonstrators variously read :  Security Failure ! Buhari Resign now !! Abaribe is 100% Right !!! ;  bokoharan killings ! Buhari is 100% a failure !! Buhari resign now !! Abaribe is 100% right !!!!  ;  Leah Sharibu and bokoharam! Buhari is a failure !! Buhari resign now !!! Abaribe is right !!!! ;  Fulaniherdsmen kilkings ! Buhari is 100% a failure!! Buhari resign now!!! Abaribe is 100% right !!!! ; muslims in Nigeria burning American Flag in Abuja! Buhari resign now !! Abaribe is 100% right !!! ;  Amotekun in the West ! Forest Guard in the East !! Buhari is 100% a failure !!! Abaribe is 100% right !!!! ;  America places Nigeria on security watch ! EU decries killing of Christians in Nigeria!! CAN Chairman killed at Mitchika in Adamawa State !!! Abaribe is 100% right  ;  Nepotism and Fulaninization! Islamization!! Jihad and sharia !!! Buhari sponsors both bokoharam and Fulaniherdsmen!!!! Abaribe is 100% right!!!!! 
The United States carried out an airstrike in January that killed a leader of Al Qaeda's affiliate in Yemen after months of tracking him, according to current and former government officials.

Qassim al-Rimi, 41, was killed in the January strike but officials had been waiting to confirm the information before making public statement, the New York Times reports.

The Yemen branch, Al Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula, has been keen to attack the U.S. and Europe. Confirmation of al-Rimi's death would mean a significant blow for the group.

Qassim al-Rimi, 41, was killed in the January strike but officials had been waiting to confirm the information before making public statement

U.S. officials have taken the gentle approach when announcing the success of this particular drone strike as they have learned in the past that they were too-quick to do so for other CIA drone strikes.

While military officials said they weren't aware of any other attacks, both the CIA and the National Security Council would not comment.

In November, CIA personnel learned of al-Rimi's location from an informant. The government then started using surveillance drones to track him, according to an U.S. official who was briefed on the strike.

Local news in Yemen reports that the strike killed two militant suspects in the area of Wadi Abedah in central Yemen, but did not identify who those people were

Local news in Yemen reports that the strike killed two militant suspects in the area of Wadi Abedah in central Yemen, but did not identify who those people were.

A $5million reward for any information leading to his capture was offered by the State Department. It was late doubled to $10million as al-Rimi was linked to numerous plots against the U.S.

Al-Rimi is a veteran of the Queda training camps in Afghanistan and whose 'terrorist pedigree traces to the era before the September 11 attacks,' NYT reports.

He then returned to Yemen and was sentenced to five years in prison there for plotting to kill the American ambassador there.

Al-Rimi broke out of jail after only a year and quickly rose in the ranks of the Qaeda affiliate.

A $5million reward for any information leading to his capture was offered by the State Department. It was late doubled to $10million as al-Rimi was linked to numerous plots against the U.S.

In 2017, al-Rimi notably sent President Donald Trump an audio message taunting him for a Special Operations Forces raid on an al Qaeda compound in Yemen that led to the first military combat death under the Trump administration, CNN reports.
U.S. health authorities have confirmed the eighth case of the Novel Coronavirus in the United States.

The virus was detected in a man in his 20s from Boston who recently traveled to Wuhan, the central Chinese city where the outbreak originated, the Massachusetts Department of Health announced in a press release on Feb. 1.

The health officials later confirmed he is a student at the University of Massachusetts. He has been under self-isolation at his off-campus home since Jan. 29, after complaining of flu-like symptoms.

The officials said he has had very limited contact with others since his trip back from Wuhan on Jan. 28, but declined to provide further details, according to a media conference briefing on Saturday afternoon.

The man will continue to be isolated until cleared by health officials, who said he is clinically healthy and does not require hospitalization. He has been in regular contact with the medical personnel, the officials said.

Officials from the Massachusetts Department of Public Health said the decision to place the patient under self-isolation, rather than a hospital quarantine, was consistent with recommendations from the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), and partially due to concerns that the virus could spread more easily at a hospital setting.

The screening at Boston Logan International Airport, where he landed, did not begin screening until Jan. 29, a day after the patient was back. So far, 20 airports have been screening passengers from China to identify possible coronavirus patients.

It remains unclear how long he had stayed in Wuhan.

This marks the eighth confirmed case of the virus in the United States: three people in California, two in Illinois and one individual each in Massachusetts, Washington State, and Arizona. In one of these cases, a man from Chicago who had not been to China contracted the virus from his spouse who had returned from Wuhan.

The CDC is currently monitoring another 121 possible cases of the virus.

U.S. health officials have said that the risk of infections on Americans remains low.

We are grateful that this young man is recovering and sought medical attention immediately, Massachusetts Public Health Commissioner Monica Bharel said in the statement.

The mans few close contacts are currently being monitored for any signs of illness.

State health authorities were notified by the CDC of the positive test results on late Friday evening.

The U.S. administration declared the coronavirus a public health emergency on Jan. 31, and enacted temporary travel restriction and quarantine measures in a bid to contain the spread of the disease in the country.

From 5 p.m. Sunday, all foreign nationals who have been in mainland China for the past 14 days will be denied entry into the United States, excluding U.S. residents or immediate family of U.S. citizens.

In addition, returning U.S. citizens from Hubeithe Chinese province that contains Wuhanwill be required to undergo a mandatory quarantine of up to 14 days.

For U.S. citizens returning from the rest of mainland China, they will undergo health screenings at selected ports of entry and then be subject to up to 14 days of monitored self-quarantine.

All three major U.S. airlinesDelta Airlines, American Airlines, and United Airlinessaid Friday they would cancel flights to mainland China. American Airlines announced today the suspension would be extended to flights to Hong Kong.

The World Health Organization (WHO) earlier in the week declared the outbreak a global health emergency. Currently, more than 20 other countries and territories have reported confirmed cases of the virus. No deaths have been reported outside China.

Inside China, official figures place the number of infections at more than 10,000 and over 200 deaths, with numbers drastically rising on a daily basis, however, experts say the actual number of infections is likely to be far higher.

Epoch Times reporter Eva Fu contributed to this report.
On the social and humanitarian side, Asiacell was granted the International Finance Award of the best Corporate Social Responsibility "CSR" category. It won the Award in recognition of the efforts it made to serve different sections of the community in many areas such as education, health, women affairs, sports, arts, environment, serving people with special needs, as well as providing support to nascent business projects and many more.

The third award was the "Stevie Award" of the best Corporate Social Responsibility 'CSR' category in the Middle East and Africa which was granted to Asiacell in a high-level ceremony held in Vienna, Austria.

Commenting on the event, Abdulla Hassan, Asiacell Official Spokesperson said: "We feel very proud of this recognition where we won many awards for being the best company in terms of Corporate Social Responsibility, and for being the best telecom company. I would like to take this opportunity to thank all those who work for the Company for this great achievement. This appreciation will inspires us to make more efforts to maintain our leading position both locally and internationally."

Worthy to mention, Asiacell has received many more awards, which we feel proud of as they reflect the enormous capacity that Asiacell employees have to preserve its leading position as a telecom and high quality data provider.

About "Asiacell"

Asiacell is a leading provider of quality mobile telecommunications and data services in Iraq with a subscriber base of more than 14 million customers as of January 1, 2019. Asiacell was the first mobile telecommunications provider in Iraq to achieve nationwide coverage, offering its services across all the Iraqi governorates. Asiacell's network covers 99.06% of the Iraqi population, which makes its national coverage the widest among the mobile operators in Iraq. Asiacell is also the best 3.9G data provider offering nationwide coverage since January 2015.

About "International Finance"

International Finance is a London-based premium finance and business magazine with a prime focus to cover and connect investors, markets and industry sectors  predominantly from the Middle East, Asia, Europe, Africa and Latin America.

International Finance magazine and website have a growing readership in Europe, the Middle East and Asia-Pacific. The magazine in particular covers trending stories on banking and finance, Islamic finance, asset management, wealth management, hedge funds, pension funds, sovereign wealth funds, real estate, FinTech, currencies, oil and gas, telecom, ports and shipping, technology, healthcare and SMEs across markets. Also, International Finance is strengthening its readership presence in some parts of Latin America, such as Brazil, Argentina, Mexico, Chile, Colombia and Uruguay.

International Finance hosts the annual awards which aim to recognise and reward industry talent and leadership skills of companies from around the world. The publication focuses on honouring the outstanding work achieved by companies in both finance and non-finance sectors year after year.

Contact Details:

Public Relations Department, Asiacell Telecommunications PJSC

+964 770 111 5120

[email protected]

SOURCE Asiacell
[February 01, 2020] New Angel Activity Will Unlock $6.9 Billion for Canadian Entrepreneurs

New programs and expanded support for connectivity between urban and emerging ecosystems are driving growth for The National Angel Capital Organization (NACO) across Canada. This spring NACO is launching a Western Canada Regional Headquarters in Calgary, AB. As well, Canada's industry association for angel investors is expanding its investor education programming in Atlantic Canada and collaborating on new programs with the 40+ regional angel groups and 45+ innovation hubs in the NACO network to support the emerging trend of syndicated angel investing. This press release features multimedia. View the full release here: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20200201005003/en/ Claudio Rojas, CEO at NACO and Mary Long-Irwin, Executive Director of Northern Ontario Angels. (Photo: Business Wire) New Programs Expand Canadian Angel Activity NACO's expansion into Calgary recognizes Alberta as an emerging source of early-stage capital for Canadian entrepreneurs. NACO's data findings indicates that Western Canada has significant untapped pools of capital. In global rankings, Startup Genome's 2019 Report listed Calgary and Edmonton as ecosystems that are in the early stages of emergence. Furthermore, Vancouver is listed as one of the top 30 startup ecosystems in the world, despite needing to close the gap in early-stage funding. "Expanding angel activity will allow emerging ecosystems, including Western Canada, to successfully diversify their economies, promote inclusive economic prosperity, and benefit from growth in the innovation sector" said Claudio Rojas, CEO of NACO. "Enhancing national connectivity benefits entrepreneurs in all communities and regions across the country. Urban centres have an important role to play in flowing investment into non-urban communities." In Atlantic Canada, NACO has new programming that includes delivering NACO Academy throughout the region. A series of roundtables with key stakeholders are planned to help establish a regional angel network, which is vital to supporting entrepreneurs in Atlantic Canada. Other regions that have successfully activated deep pools of angel capital include Northern Ontario, where the most successful angel investment group in North America resides. Northern Ontario Angels, the region's leading group of investors, have invested over $132M into entrepreneurial Canadian companies. This is equivalent to unlocking $821 million in Alberta and $6.9 billion in angel capital across the country. Watch the Northern Ontario Angels story here. Connectivity Between Urban Centres and Emerging Ecosystems



Canada's leading innovation hubs also play a critical role in bridging connections between angel investors and entrepreneurs. NACO has piloted a new Investment Readiness Program with Ryerson University. This education and mentoring platform will give entrepreneurs at Canada's leading innovation hubs access to angel investors.

As a national platform, NACO is building programs to support its more than 40 angel groups ensuring that angel networks have the operational tools and educational resources they need to advance inclusive access to capital. More importantly, NACO works with its members to ensure that its regional programming is sensitive to the needs of entrepreneurs in their local communities. New Trends Emerge with Nationally Focused Sector-Based Angel Groups In Ontario, NACO is collaborating with regional angel groups to ensure the sustainability of angel activity in the wake of provincial cutbacks for early-stage innovation. This is important because angel groups attract and channel investment into ventures that will have a positive impact on Canadians from coast to coast to coast. "We are pleased to support a newly formed angel group of Canadian physicians, HaloHealth. Recently accepted into NACO's national network, the founding MDs behind this initiative are sharing their accumulated healthcare expertise to shape the future of our healthcare system," said Rojas. Physicians in Toronto-based HaloHealth invested in Vancouver-based CareTeam. Co-founded by CEO Dr. Alexandra Greenhill, HaloHealth physicians, alongside fellow NACO member Montreal-based BCF Ventures, provided funding to help CareTeam build an AI-enabled digital health platform allowing patient-centered care collaboration for individuals suffering from chronic illnesses. Angel investors in urban centres and throughout Canada have a significant role to play in ensuring continuity in the funding continuum. Entrepreneurs in all parts of the country benefit from national connectivity between angel investors in other regions, as this attracts greater levels of investment into high potential entrepreneurs. New Trend in Angel Syndication Fills Funding Gaps A new trend is emerging around syndicated deals. National data indicates that these types of deals have more than doubled since 2015. In 2018, total investments from syndicate deals was $262.7 million. This trend is expected to continue and is directly related to the evolution and increased sophistication of the angel investment asset-class in Canada over the past 10 years. Larger syndicated deals and follow-on investments between $500,000 to $3 million in funding serve as the necessary gateway to later-stage capital for scaling companies. This trend highlights the critical role that angel capital plays in filling funding gaps in the innovation ecosystem. "A smooth funding continuum reduces frictions in the capital raising process, which allows entrepreneurs to better focus on building their businesses and avoid early exits. NACO remains focused on supporting early-stage capital for Canadian entrepreneurs. In activating more angel activity across both urban centres and emerging regional ecosystems, NACO's programming has expanded to address the scale-up funding gap between angel and venture capital," commented Rojas. NACO's expanded programming, which includes the newly launched Built By Angels events, is consistent with NACO's mission to support the vibrancy of angel activity in Canada by ensuring that Canadian entrepreneurs have access to capital across the entire funding continuum. For media inquiries or to arrange an interview, contact: [email protected] High resolution photo, available for download here. - Photo caption: Claudio Rojas, CEO at NACO and Mary Long-Irwin, Executive Director of Northern Ontario Angels. High resolution video, available for download here. Broadcast resolution version available upon request. - Video Caption: Interview between Mary Long-Irwin, Executive Director at Northern Ontario Angels and Claudio Rojas, CEO at NACO About NACO Over nearly 20 years, the National Angel Capital Organization ("NACO") has emerged as the bedrock of Canada's entrepreneurial and innovation economy, as Canada's national platform for regional collaboration and national connectivity. NACO represents a growing membership of over 4000 angel investors, incubators, and accelerators as they help Canadian entrepreneurs access capital and mentorship to grow their companies. Over the past nine years, NACO members have made investments in over 1400 companies totalling more than $850 million of direct investments, resulting in the creation of 7700 Canadian jobs. As a national platform, NACO enables national connectivity, regional collaboration, and faster access to Canada's innovation ecosystem. NACOCanada.com View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20200201005003/en/

[ Back To TMCnet.com's Homepage ]
Thailand confirms first local transmission of coronavirus

BANGKOK: The Public Health Ministry on Friday (Jan 31) confirmed Thailands first case of person-to-person transmission of the novel coronavirus, as the government started preparing to repatriate 161 Thai nationals from China next week.

healthChinesetourismCoronavirusCOVID-19

By Bangkok Post

Saturday 1 February 2020, 10:18AM

A nurse helps a medic don protective gear during a demonstration at a press briefing on the launch of the Emergency Operations Centre by the Bangkok Metropolitan Administration to respond to the spread of the deadly coronavirus. Photo: Chanat Katanyu / Bangkok Post

Air Asia which has several direct flights between Bangkok and Wuhan has offered to provide flights to bring the Thais back home.

Dr Sukhum Kanchanapimai, permanent secretary for public health, said the virus was contracted by a local taxi driver who had never travelled to China.

He was one of the five new confirmed cases, bringing the total number of people infected by the virus in Thailand to 19.

The four other new patients were Chinese nationals travelling from Wuhan, while the other 11 were either Chinese tourists or Thais who had visited the Chinese city, where the outbreak of the respiratory illness began.

Dr Sopon Iamsirithavorn, director of the Bureau of General Communicable Diseases, said the latest patient was one of two taxi drivers suspected of contracting the virus. The second man, however, tested negative.

He added that 13 people who were in close contact with the newest patient, including three members of his family, tested negative but were still under surveillance for 14 days.

Sopon believes the taxi driver was possibly exposed to the virus when he drove a Chinese national to hospital. The Chinese citizen was one of the confirmed coronavirus cases, who recovered and was discharged.

Human-to-human transmission of the virus has also been confirmed in other countries, including Germany, Japan, South Korea and the United States, Dr Sopon said.

Dr Tanarak Pipat, deputy director- general of the Department of Disease Control, yesterday allayed anxieties about the potential ease with which the virus is spreading, saying the taxi driver had taken sick leave and immediately sought treatment.

If we can contain it, we will return to phase 1, where all the cases will be coming from outside the country, he said.

Tanarak said that compared to other countries, Thailand was at a greater risk when it comes to human-to-human transmission.

Prime Minister Prayut Chan-o-cha who returned to work on Friday after taking Thursday off sick said a series of measures were being put in place to prevent the spread of the virus.

Separately, the government is working on arranging a flight to evacuate Thais from virus-prone areas in China, though the date of the operation still needs to be set.

Deputy Prime Minister Prawit Wongsuwon said a chartered plane will leave today to pick up Thais now that China has agreed to let planes land in Wuhan.

They said Thailands turn is on Feb 1, he told reporters, though this claim has not been confirmed by anybody else.

Public Health Minister Anutin Charnvirakul said Air Asia has offered to send a plane to pick up 161 Thais living in Wuhan and nearby areas as soon as China gives it the go-ahead.

I want to accompany them because I can make an absolute decision if any problem occurs, he said.

In a statement, Tony Fernandes, CEO of Air Asia Group, said he was obliged to offer support due to his special friendship and close cooperation with Mr Anutin.

In Phuket, meanwhile, as a proactive measure to avoid the novel coronavirus from spreading any further, health officials have started visiting Chinese tourists in hotels to check their health.

Read original story here.
* Stocks under pressure on Coronavirus cases in UK, Italy

* STOXX 600 down 0.6%, FTSE 100 falls 0.9%

* Euro zone GDP data disappoints

* Spain's Caixabank falls, Banco Sabadell rises after results Welcome to the home for real-time coverage of European equity markets brought to you by Reuters stocks reporters and anchored today by Joice Alves. Reach her on Messenger to share your thoughts on market moves: joice.alves.thomsonreuters.com@reuters.net

HATED BULLS SEEK LOVE, ANY CORRECTION WILL DO (1452 GMT)

European shares are set to end the first month of the decade down around 1%, the worst January performance since 2016.

That's however not much of a correction in the grand scheme of things, considering the damage an escalating coronavirus could do to the global economy.

It won't, for instance, help all the sell-side analysts secretly praying for valuations to go sizeably down and justify bullish 'buy the dip' notes and overweight rating on ever outperforming stocks or PE-expensive indexes.

If the current longest bull market in history is indeed the most hated one, considering how equity flows are reluctant to chase it, there's a good chance a limited correction now would be one of the most loved dips in traders' memory too.

As put by Citi analyst, the big paradox of 2019 was how flows completely failed to take a ride on the rally.

(Julien Ponthus)

****

CRACKS IN THE 'BOTTOMING UP' NARRATIVE (1340 GMT)

There's just no way around it: this morning's euro zone data was truly grim.

Not only did the bloc miss expectations but both France and Italy shocked investors with their GDP actually contracting in Q4.

One of the rare glimpses of light in 2019 was the Gallic relative economic performance but there's fear that the social unrest against the pension reform has undermined that.

"In France, the unexpected GDP contraction of 0.1% q/q marked the end of the countrys resilience to the blocs slowdown during much of last year", Oxford Economics' Rosie Colthorpe wrote in a note.

Story continues

While the contraction may very well be a one-off, it will no doubt fuel some worries among economists.

Many bullish strategies regarding European equities have been based on European PMIs improving but there are now evidently cracks in that narrative.

"We still think growth should gradually improve this year as the manufacturing sector bottoms out, although annual GDP growth will slip to 1%", Colthorpe believes for her part.

While she's not alone in that view, there's no shortage of analysts who believe the coronavirus outbreak and the trade tensions with the U.S. might weigh on any recovery.

"Escalating trade tensions between the US and the EU are a risk to economic growth in the Eurozone", Rabobank noted.

Anyhow, talking about long term economic performance and as it is Brexit day, here's an interesting chart by DWS which shows how Britain's outperformance since it joined the EU:

(Julien Ponthus)

*****

UK'S FIRST CORONAVIRUS CASES KILL TENTATIVE REBOUND (1107 GMT)

Well that rebound didn't last long, did it?

About an hour and a half into the trading session, the announcement of the UK's first two virus cases killed a modest, timid and definitely tentative rebound.

"Stocks in mainland Europe are broadly lower too as the deepening health crisis continues to chip away at market confidence", wrote David Madden at CMC Markets.

As some traders also note, there was also a big batch of gloomy macro which didn't help, notably with euro zone economic growth slower than expected in Q4 and France's GDP shrinking in Q4. But as you can see below, as a trigger, these news flashes: Followed by this

Had this effect (note that the chart is GMT+1):

And now instead of having most of the regional bourses in the black, the picture has turned quite red: Taking a broader view on the market, Stephane Barbier de la Serre at Makor Capital Markets said there was a sense of angst on trading floors.

"Obviously people are fearful of what is going to happen when Asia reopens on Monday, if it opens at all", he said.

"Why should you take chances? I think the market will be fragile until mid-February", when there is likely be a better picture on the coronavirus' impact on the global economy.

(Julien Ponthus and Joice Alves)

*****

OPENING SNAPSHOT: SPANISH BANKS, ELECTROLUX AND HARGREAVES (0830 GMT)

With three Spanish banks reporting results today it should come as no surprise that they took the center stage in European markets this morning.

Banco Sabadell fell as much as 10% after its results missed estimates on larger costs. Caixabank gained 4.6% after the bank said Q4 net profit more than doubled to 439 million euros.

Overall European bourses are trading in positive territory with the pan European index up 0.3%, led by travel and leisure stocks, which are slowly bouncing back from a week of stress as some major airlines announced they will not be flying to China, the epicentre of the coronavirus outbreak.

The virus was also the main reason for some single stocks moves. Shares in Swedish home appliances maker Electrolux fell 8% as the company warns the coronavirus may affect its Chinese vendors.

Healthcare company Novacyt shares jumped as much as 44% after the company said it launched a new molecular test for the coronavirus.

Back to results, British investment platform Hargreaves Lansdown dipped 5.5% after it said a slowdown in net new business growth overshadowed an increase in HY profits.

Britain's blue chip index started the day in positive territory but quickly slipped as the pound gained in a historic day for the UK, which leaves the European Union today.

(Joice Alves)

*****

EUROPEAN STOCKS SEEN HIGHER IN HISTORIC DAY (0755 GMT)

European stocks are seen rebounding after yesterday's heavy losses as some decent corporate results offset coronvirus concerns at the moment. It's also worth noting that today's is the UK's last day in the European union putting an end to more than three years of political uncertainties across the region.

In the corporate front, all eyes on Spanish banks: Caixabank is seen up 2% after the bank said Q4 net profit more than doubled to 439 million euros, BBVA is also seen 2% higher after it booked a Q4 loss of 155 million euros but above expectations.

In Italy, fashion retailer Tod's is seen higher as sales pick up in Q4 and in the UK Boeing supplier Senior is under the spotlight after it warned of lower aerospace revenue and margins.

Aerospace and defence group Leonardo is also seen higher as it said it expected full-year orders and revenue to exceed its 2019 guidance, thanks to a strong performance of its main businesses in the final part of the year.

On the M&A front, Volkswagen AG's Traton commercial truck unit offered $35 a share, or $2.9 billion, for the shares of U.S. truck maker Navistar International that it does not already own.

Canadian billionaire Lawrence Stroll will take a roughly 20% stake in Aston Martin for nearly 200 million pounds as the ailing carmaker raises funds to turn around a poor performance hit by weaker-than-expected sales.

Other corporate headlines:

East African Breweries' H1 profit jumps 9%

Laura Ashley Says Kwan Cheong Ng Will Retire As Executive Director & CEO

Hargreaves Lansdown assets up 3.3% in December quarter

TalkTalk adds 148,000 fibre customers, on track for year

(Joice Alves)

*****

BREXIT DAY: EUROPEAN BOURSES SEEN HIGHER(0640 GMT)

European bourses are expected to open higher as the UK leaves the bloc today in its most significant geopolitical move since the loss of empire, putting an end to more than three years of political uncertainty over the future of the country.

As Brexit uncertainties ease, investors are nervous about the coronavirus impact on the global economy as the World Health Organization declared yesterday a global emergency because the virus spread to more countries.

But investors also took heart from WHO comments that the drastic steps Beijing was taking would "reverse the tide" and contain the outbreak.

Financial spreadbetters at IG expect London's FTSE to open 47 points higher at 7,381, Frankfurt's DAX to open 77 points up at 13,157 and Paris' CAC to open 36 points higher at 5,871.

(Joice Alves)

*****

(Reporting by Danilo Masoni, Joice Alves, Julien Ponthus and Thyagaraju Adinarayan)
WOODLYNNE, N.J.  A street shooting in southern New Jersey has left a man and a toddler wounded, authorities said.

The shooting in Woodlynne occurred around 8:30 p.m. Thursday.

The man and a 2-year-old boy were on Chestnut Street when a shooter opened fire, authorities said. The man was shot in the back, while the boy was hit in the foot.

Both victims were taken to a hospital, but their names and further details on their conditions have not been disclosed. No other injuries were reported in the shooting.

The shooter fled the scene on foot and remains at large.

A motive for the shooting remains under investigation.
There were no Ukrainian army casualties in the past day.

Russia's hybrid military forces on Friday mounted eight attacks on Ukrainian positions in Donbas, eastern Ukraine.

Read alsoUkraine's JFO HQ reports enemy death toll in Donbas in January

"The armed forces of the Russian Federation violated the ceasefire eight times on January 31," the press center of Ukraine's Joint Forces Operation said in a Facebook update as of 07:00 Kyiv time on February 1, 2020.

The enemy opened fire from 82mm mortars, which are banned under the Minsk peace agreements, as well as grenade launchers of various systems, heavy machine guns, and other small arms.

In particular, five attacks were reported in the Skhid (East) sector: near the town of Avdiyivka, as well as near the villages of Shyrokyne, Starohnativka, Lebedynske, and Vasylivka.

Three enemy attacks were recorded in the Pivnich (North) sector: near the villages of Luhanske (twice) and Novoluhanske.

There were no Ukrainian army casualties in the past day.

Since Saturday midnight, Russian-led forces have been observing the ceasefire.
Air India said another special flight to evacuate Indians from coronavirus-hit Wuhan in China would depart from the Delhi airport on Saturday afternoon, hours after the first flight with 324 passengers landed in the Indian capital.

Wuhan is the epicentre of novel coronavirus outbreak, which has killed more than 200 persons in China itself.

Air India spokesperson said on Saturday, "Another flight will depart to Wuhan from Delhi at 12.50 pm today with a different set of crew, same doctors' team with other aircraft. The rescue team is again headed by Capt Amitabh Singh, Director Operation, Air India."



The first flight - which evacuated 324 passengers from Wuhan - had a team of five doctors from Ram Manohar Lohia hospital, one paramedical staff, five cockpit crew members, and 15 cabin crew members.

The 324 passengers comprised 211 students, 110 working professionals and three minors, the Air India spokesperson said.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
Five local area high school seniors and one local community leader were honored at the Martin Luther King Jr. Regional Scholarship Program Awards Ceremony at Saginaw Valley State University on Jan. 22, where 18 total regional students and leaders were celebrated.

The Midland Area Community Foundation (MACF), along with Bay Area Community Foundation and Saginaw Community Foundation awarded the Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Regional Scholarship to local students who have embraced Dr. King's teachings on racial harmony and social justice. Midland County students who received the scholarship are Luca Jolly from Midland High School, Zoe Merillat from Coleman Jr. Sr. High School, Lindsay Thompson from Herbert Henry Dow High School, Taryn Vielma from Midland High School, and Hannah Woehrle from Midland High School.

"This opportunity has shown me age and impact are not always proportional. Young people can make a big difference in their community and the world around them," said Thompson.

Honorees had an opportunity to meet with keynote speaker Dr. Ruth D. Jones prior to the award ceremony. Jones works as the branch chief for the Industrial Safety Branch NASA/Marshall Space Flight Center in Huntsville, Alabama. A trailblazer in her field, Jones was the first woman to ever receive a bachelor's degree in physics from the University of Arkansas and second African American woman to earn a Ph.D. in physics in the state of Alabama.

Jones, known as one of NASA's Modern Figures, is passionate about inspiring and motivating youth on the importance of education, especially math and science. Her goal is to be a role model for the youth and illustrate to them they can do anything despite their race, gender and/or social class.

"It has been an incredible honor receiving this scholarship, because being a minority in Midland, Michigan, it really allows me to strive to be who I am and who I want to be, and I value immensely inclusion. It means a lot to me," stated Vielma.

In addition to the scholarship awards, three local community leaders received the Martin Luther King Jr. Drum Major Award. The three Martin Luther King Jr. Drum Major Award recipients received a $1,000 award for a charitable organization of their choice.

Dave Stickles was recognized as the Midland County recipient of the Martin Luther King Jr. Drum Major Award for his dedication to the STEM community, exemplified by his organization of the Midland based Sci-fest event. Stickles also dedicates himself to the community through volunteering with Midland Special Olympics and Big Brothers Big Sisters of the Great Lakes Bay Region. Stickles was an employee of the Dow Corning Corporation for 32 years and currently serves as Midland Section Director of the American Chemical Society and Vice President of the Michigan Chapter of the Huntington's Disease Society of America.

"The Midland Area Community Foundation is proud to be part of this regional collaboration celebrating the life of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. along with our regional partners Bay Area Community Foundation, Saginaw Community Foundation, and Saginaw Valley State University," said Sharon Mortensen, Midland Area Community Foundation president and CEO. "We are pleased to honor students who emulate the life and teachings of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. We look forward to the impact these students will have as they move forward into their next phase of life."

In addition to the MLK Regional Scholarship, the Midland Area Community Foundation awards hundreds of scholarships annually through individual funds that organizations and individuals have established at MACF for the sole purpose of curbing the costs of attending post-secondary institutions to area students. Applications for these additional funds are open until March 1. If you have any questions regarding scholarships, or any other activities of the MACF, call the MACF at 989-839-9661 or email info@midlandfoundation.org.
Regular readers of my scribblings will be familiar with the fascination I have for place names. Occasionally letters, documents and books on the topic will arrive in the post. Such arrivals are as welcome as the flowers in May.

One of the loveliest publications to land in my post box was The Field Names of County Louth, published in 2014, and sent by John McCullen, project facilitator for the Louth Field Names Project.

The initiative took the form of collaboration involving a wide range of people and organisations including the County Louth Archaeological and Historical Society, Louth County Council, Louth County Library, the Louth Leader company, private sponsors, the IFA, the farming and broader community and 154 volunteers.

The result is a most beautiful publication, a joy to behold and a delight to read.

For anyone with a passing interest in how things came to be and how the places around us were formed and christened, this book is a goldmine.

It goes beyond its brief in relation to field names to give a broad historical, social, archaeological and environmental context for the development of these names.

There is a wonderful early chapter on the history of enclosures and boundaries.

In early mediaeval Ireland there were four types of field boundaries: the stone wall or 'corae'; the trench and earthen bank known as the 'clas'; the bare fence - the 'nochtaile' or wattle fence; and the oak fence or the 'dairmhe'.

The stone walls were expected to be four feet high and three feet wide with three courses of stone. The raw materials available in the immediate vicinity often determined the fencing.

The names designating types of field were generally associated with the purpose for which the land was used. 'Gort' refers to a tilled field, 'faiche' or 'pairc' to open ground and grazing, while 'cluain' refers to meadow and grazing ground.

I always wondered where the name 'haggard' came from. I knew it wasn't an Irish word, but I thought perhaps it might be Anglo-Saxon. This book enlightened me.

It is a Norse word 'heygarthr' from the Norse 'hey' for hay and 'garth' for enclosure. The haggard was the place where the haybarn was located; the corn reek was built where many a match was made, a blow struck and a kiss stolen.

The practice of enclosing fields came about with the decline of the feudal system. By the late 17th century laws were passed in relation to land enclosure. An Act of Parliament in 1697 compelled landowners to erect permanent fences between their properties.

The importance of boundaries is illustrated by one of the contributors, Declan Breathnach, who recalls his father referring to the significance of a stream called Hoey's Stream on the Louth-Monaghan border.

The water course not only divides two land holdings, it divides the townland of Drumcah from Drumass, the parish of Knockbridge from Iniskeen, the county of Louth from Monaghan, the Archdiocese of Armagh from the diocese of Clogher and the province of Leinster from Ulster.

Siege

The book methodically goes through the things that inspired the various place names, including the natural features, the built environment along with farming and commercial pursuits common to an area.

An example is a field in Tullyallen known as the Gealadh Mor that got its name in the days when it was used for drying flax.

And of course many field names are like pages from a history book.

A plot of high ground at Bryanstown outside Drogheda is called Cromwell's Mount, where Oliver Cromwell mounted his siege guns during the vicious siege of 1648.

In Ballymascanlon a place called Reilly's Field is said to contain the spot where Edward Bruce was killed by a spy.

The Hanging Field at Bellurgan beside the Dundalk-Carlingford Road is where a certain James Wolfe McNeale is said to have left corpses hanging.

I could go on for pages. This lovely book could be produced in every county. In fact a similar publication in Meath preceded the Louth version.

The funding was provided mainly by the local Leader company, complemented by other public and private resources.

The material sources included the Ordnance Survey, local historical maps, the school folklore collection and, fascinatingly, the Department of Agriculture records from the fertiliser scheme of the 1950s and '60s.

Field names were used in the register to record the amount fertiliser spread and the date of spreading. Bureaucracy has its uses.

This book is a gem, the like of which every county should have.
Source: Xinhua| 2020-02-01 21:57:09|Editor: huaxia

Video Player Close

BEIJING, Feb. 1 (Xinhua) -- More Chinese provinces and cities have declared they are postponing the resumption of business and school semesters to curb the spread of the novel coronavirus.

On Friday, the municipal government of Wenzhou, in east China's Zhejiang Province, announced that civil servants and employees of public institutions shall start work from Feb. 9.

According to the government, Wenzhou enterprises shall not start work earlier than at midnight on Feb. 17, except for those related to epidemic control. All levels of schools, colleges and universities shall not start their spring semesters before March 1.

As of Jan. 31, Wenzhou, with a population of nearly 10 million people, had reported 241 confirmed cases of novel coronavirus infection, ranking highest among all Chinese cities outside Hubei Province.

The decision was made after the State Council, China's cabinet, extended the seven-day Spring Festival holiday, scheduled to end on Jan. 30, to Feb. 2 and postponed the opening of the spring semesters.

A growing number of Chinese provinces and cities including Heilongjiang, Shandong, Guizhou, Hebei, Hunan, Shanghai and Xi'an have taken similar measures by asking enterprises, except those involved in key sectors, not to resume their work earlier than at midnight on Feb. 9, in a move to reduce crowds and prevent the spread of the coronavirus outbreak.

In the northwestern Chinese city of Xi'an, local authorities have asked enterprises to arrange their production flexibly, while employees were encouraged to work at home.

According to the provincial government of central China's Hunan on Friday, primary and secondary schools and kindergartens shall not start their spring semesters earlier than Feb. 17, and colleges and universities shall not resume class earlier than Feb. 24.

Local authorities also said that all kinds of schools (including training institutions) in Hunan are not allowed to organize any form of offline teaching, training or collective activities.

Chinese health authorities announced Saturday that 11,791 confirmed cases of novel coronavirus infection had been reported in 31 provincial-level regions and the Xinjiang Production and Construction Corps by the end of Friday. A total of 259 people have died of the disease.
Clem Chambers is the CEO of ADVFN plc (LON:AFN). First, this article will compare CEO compensation with compensation at similar sized companies. After that, we will consider the growth in the business. Third, we'll reflect on the total return to shareholders over three years, as a second measure of business performance. This process should give us an idea about how appropriately the CEO is paid.

View our latest analysis for ADVFN

How Does Clem Chambers's Compensation Compare With Similar Sized Companies?

At the time of writing, our data says that ADVFN plc has a market cap of UK4.6m, and reported total annual CEO compensation of UK395k for the year to June 2019. We think total compensation is more important but we note that the CEO salary is lower, at UK342k. We looked at a group of companies with market capitalizations under UK152m, and the median CEO total compensation was UK250k.

As you can see, Clem Chambers is paid more than the median CEO pay at companies of a similar size, in the same market. However, this does not necessarily mean ADVFN plc is paying too much. We can better assess whether the pay is overly generous by looking into the underlying business performance.

The graphic below shows how CEO compensation at ADVFN has changed from year to year.

AIM:AFN CEO Compensation, February 1st 2020

Is ADVFN plc Growing?

ADVFN plc has increased its earnings per share (EPS) by an average of 23% a year, over the last three years (using a line of best fit). Its revenue is down 5.3% over last year.

This demonstrates that the company has been improving recently. A good result. While it would be good to see revenue growth, profits matter more in the end. Although we don't have analyst forecasts you might want to assess this data-rich visualization of earnings, revenue and cash flow.

Has ADVFN plc Been A Good Investment?

Given the total loss of 35% over three years, many shareholders in ADVFN plc are probably rather dissatisfied, to say the least. This suggests it would be unwise for the company to pay the CEO too generously.

Story continues

In Summary...

We compared total CEO remuneration at ADVFN plc with the amount paid at companies with a similar market capitalization. As discussed above, we discovered that the company pays more than the median of that group.

However, the earnings per share growth over three years is certainly impressive. Having said that, shareholders may be disappointed with the weak returns over the last three years. While EPS is positive, we'd say shareholders would want better returns before the CEO is paid much more. Whatever your view on compensation, you might want to check if insiders are buying or selling ADVFN shares (free trial).

Arguably, business quality is much more important than CEO compensation levels. So check out this free list of interesting companies, that have HIGH return on equity and low debt.

If you spot an error that warrants correction, please contact the editor at editorial-team@simplywallst.com. This article by Simply Wall St is general in nature. It does not constitute a recommendation to buy or sell any stock, and does not take account of your objectives, or your financial situation. Simply Wall St has no position in the stocks mentioned.



We aim to bring you long-term focused research analysis driven by fundamental data. Note that our analysis may not factor in the latest price-sensitive company announcements or qualitative material. Thank you for reading.
The last Eurostar before Britain's historic exit left London's St Pancras station at 8.10 pm on Friday

Eurostar: On the last train to Europe before Britain left the EU on Friday evening, passengers leaving London expressed sorrow, optimism and anger, reflecting the emotions of a nation conflicted ahead its great leap into the unknown.

Martin Kavanagh, a security consultant, crammed his tall frame into a window seat and contemplated Britains uncertain journey ahead after ending 47 years of European Union membership.

It is just the saddest day, ever, he said, heading for Paris to watch England play France at rugby. It sends a message to the rest of the world that we are turning inwards when we should be looking out.

Bayan Patel, a 27-year-old British dentist on the way to Paris for a short break with his Spanish fiancee, said Britains distinctiveness should be celebrated and there is too much pessimisim about Brexit.

We can stand on our two feet, he said. Leaving the EU might turn out to be a fantastic decision. Right now people are focusing too much on the negatives.

Destination unknown

The last Eurostar before Britains historic exit left Londons St Pancras station at 8.10 pm (20.10 GMT) on Friday. There were no extra checks at customs.

A transition period preserves Britains EU membership in all but name until 2021. There were no protests, celebrations or tears on the journey. There was no official announcement over the intercom as the train went into the tunnel under the Channel.

Many passengers said this felt like just another train ride. But it was not.

The Britain, the train left behind will undergo the most significant change to its place in the world in its recent history.

The EU it arrived in faces a huge challenge to its project of forging unity after World War Two now that it has lost such a rich, powerful member state.

No one wins from this, we will all be worse off, said Alan Ron, a 35-year-old French citizen who works in London and was returning home to visit friends and family.

Grand ambitions

The idea of a tunnel between Britain and France has been around for centuries. In 1802, a French engineer envisaged a tunnel with horse-drawn carriages, illuminated by oil lamps and ventilated by chimneys poking above the surface of the Channel.

But Victorian-era British prime minister John Palmerston dismissed the idea because it would shorten a distance we already find too short.

It took a further 192 years after the first detailed plans were submitted to complete the job.

Now the future of the Eurostar is uncertain. The service was seen as a symbol of a Europe without borders, but it has failed to meet expectations, especially in terms of passenger numbers.

The ease of travel the train has depended on, with quick immigration checks for British and EU passport holders, seems certain to change.

The British and French government have warned that if the EU fails to agree an amicable trade deal then the Eurostar may be brought to a standstill.

French passenger Jean-Marc Charles, a 47-year-old IT manager, struck a note of optimism, saying he hoped Britain might rejoin the EU before too long.

This could be just a short goodbye, he said We hope that you will be back with us soon.
Current Print Subscribers will be prompted to either login to their current site user account or to create a new one. A confirmation email will be sent when a new user account is created, which must be confirmed within three days in order to provide uninterrupted online access through your Print Subscription.

Once the email address is confirmed please provide your Account Number to activate your Print Subscription Service.
The UK has finally left the European Union after years of tense negotiations, many resignations, and a controversial prorogation.

 January 23 2013

Under intense pressure from many of his own MPs and with the rise of Ukip, Prime Minister David Cameron promises an in-out referendum on EU membership if the Conservatives win the 2015 general election. Mr Cameron pledges to campaign with all my heart and soul for Britain to vote to Remain in the referendum, which he says will take place by the end of 2017.

 May 7 2015

The Tories unexpectedly make sweeping gains over Ed Milibands Labour Party and secure a majority in the Commons. Mr Cameron vows to deliver his manifesto pledge for an EU referendum.

 June 23 2016

The UK votes to leave the EU in a shock result that sees 52% of the public support Brexit in a humiliating defeat for the Prime Minister. Mr Cameron quickly resigns, saying: I dont think it would be right for me to try to be the captain that steers our country to its next destination.

 July 13 2016

Theresa May takes over as Prime Minister. Mrs May, who had backed Remain, promises to rise to the challenge of negotiating the UKs exit.

Expand Close Theresa May becomes Prime Minister (Hannah McKay/PA) PA Archive/PA Images / Facebook

Twitter

Email

Whatsapp Theresa May becomes Prime Minister (Hannah McKay/PA)

 November 10 2016

The High Court rules against the Government and says Parliament must hold a vote to trigger Article 50, the mechanism that begins the exit from the EU. Mrs May says the ruling will not stop her from invoking the legislation by April 2017.

 March 29 2017

Mrs May triggers Article 50 of the Treaty on European Union. European Council president Donald Tusk says it is not a happy occasion, telling a Brussels press conference his message to the UK is: We already miss you. Thank you and goodbye.

 April 18 2017

Mrs May announces a snap general election to be held on June 8. Justifying the decision, she says: The country is coming together but Westminster is not. The Prime Minister adds that division in Westminster will risk our ability to make a success of Brexit.

 June 8 2017

There is humiliation for Mrs May as she loses her Commons majority after her election gamble backfires. She becomes head of a minority Conservative administration propped up by the Democratic Unionist Party.

 September 22 2017

In a crucial Brexit speech in Florence, Mrs May sends a message to EU leaders by saying: We want to be your strongest friend and partner as the EU and UK thrive side by side. She says she is proposing an implementation period of around two years after Brexit when existing market access arrangements will apply.

 December 8 2017

The European Commission announces it is recommending to the European Council that sufficient progress has been made in the first phase of Brexit talks. European Commission President Jean-Claude Juncker tells a press conference in Brussels that negotiations had been difficult for the EU and the UK.

The announcement comes after Mrs May and Brexit Secretary David Davis make an early-hours journey to Brussels. The PM says the Brexit deal is a significant improvement which required give and take on both sides, and that it will ensure no hard border in Ireland.

 March 19 2018

The EUs chief Brexit negotiator, Michel Barnier, says he and Mr Davis have taken a decisive step towards agreeing a joint legal text on the UKs EU withdrawal. He warns there are still outstanding issues relating to the Irish border, saying: We are not at the end of the road and there is a lot of work still to be done.

 June 19 2018

Britain and the European Union publish a joint statement outlining the progress that has been made since negotiations in March. Brussels warns that serious differences remain over how to deal with the border between Northern Ireland and the Republic after Brexit.

 July 6 2018

A crunch Cabinet meeting at Chequers agrees Mrs Mays new Brexit plans, including the creation of a new UK-European Union free trade area for goods. But not all who attend are happy with the compromises.

 July 8 and July 9 2018

Brexit Secretary Mr Davis resigns from the Government. In his resignation letter he tells Mrs May the current trend of policy and tactics is making it look less and less likely that the UK will leave the customs union and single market. The following day Boris Johnson quits as Foreign Secretary, claiming the plans mean we are truly headed for the status of colony of the EU.

Expand Close David Davis (Stefan Rousseau/PA) PA Archive/PA Images / Facebook

Twitter

Email

Whatsapp David Davis (Stefan Rousseau/PA)

 November 14 2018

In a statement outside 10 Downing Street after a five-hour Cabinet meeting, Mrs May says that Cabinet has agreed the draft Brexit Withdrawal Agreement and she believes it is the best that could be negotiated.

 November 15 2018

Dominic Raab resigns as Brexit Secretary, saying he cannot in good conscience support the terms proposed for our deal with the EU. More resignations follow, including Work and Pensions Secretary Esther McVey. Leading Brexiteer Jacob Rees-Mogg submits a letter of no confidence in Mrs May.

 November 25 2018

The 27 European Union leaders endorse the Brexit deal.

 December 12 2018

Mrs May survives an attempt to oust her with a vote of no confidence as Tory MPs vote by 200 to 117 in the secret ballot in Westminster.

 January 15 2019

MPs reject Mrs Mays Brexit plans by an emphatic 432 to 202 in a historic vote which throws the future of her administration and the nature of the UKs EU withdrawal into doubt.

 January 16 2019

Mrs May survives an attempt to oust her as Prime Minister, as MPs reject Labour leader Jeremy Corbyns motion of no confidence in the Government by 325 to 306.

Expand Close A Brexit protester (Victoria Jones/PA) PA Archive/PA Images / Facebook

Twitter

Email

Whatsapp A Brexit protester (Victoria Jones/PA)

 March 12 2019

MPs again reject the Governments Brexit deal by 391 votes to 242.

 March 14 2019

MPs vote to delay Brexit in dramatic parliamentary scenes which see the Conservative Party split down the middle. More than half of Tory MPs  including seven Cabinet ministers, at least 33 other ministers and whips, and five party vice-chairs  vote against Mrs Mays motion to put back the date when Britain leaves the EU.

 March 20 2019

Mrs May tells the House of Commons that she has written to Donald Tusk to request an extension to the Article 50 Brexit negotiations to June 30. The PM describes the delay to Brexit as a matter of great personal regret, adding: It is now time for MPs to decide.

 March 29 2019

MPs reject Mrs Mays Withdrawal Agreement by 286 votes to 344, majority 58, on the day when the UK was due to leave the European Union.

 April 10 2019

A flexible extension to Brexit is agreed until October 31. Mrs May says the choices we now face are stark and the timetable is clear.

 May 21 2019

The Prime Minister says there is one last chance to help MPs deliver the result of the 2016 referendum, as she offered a new Brexit deal. She says a failure to reach agreement on Brexit would lead to a nightmare future of permanently polarised politics.

 May 23 2019

The UK votes in the European elections which Mrs May hoped would never have to be held. Nigel Farages Brexit Party come out on top, while the pro-EU Liberal Democrats also make gains.

 May 24 2019

Mrs May announces she is standing down as Tory Party leader on Friday June 7. She says: It is and will always remain a matter of deep regret to me that I have not been able to deliver Brexit.

 July 23 2019

Boris Johnson is elected as leader of the Conservative Party and becomes the UKs new Prime Minister after defeating Jeremy Hunt. Mr Johnson secures 92,153 of the vote compared with 46,656 for Mr Hunt.

Expand Close Boris Johnson (Dominic Lipinski/PA) PA Wire/PA Images / Facebook

Twitter

Email

Whatsapp Boris Johnson (Dominic Lipinski/PA)

 July 24 2019

Mr Johnson uses his first speech in Downing Street to say that critics of Brexit  the doubters, doomsters and gloomsters  are wrong. He says he is convinced we can do a deal to resolve the issue of the Irish border but he would prepare for a no-deal Brexit.

 August 20 2019

Mr Johnson is rebuffed by Brussels after demanding major changes in a new Brexit deal. European Council president Mr Tusk defends the backstop  the contingency plan to keep the Irish frontier open  and warns that those seeking to replace it would risk a return to a hard border.

 August 28 2019

The Queen is dragged into the Brexit row as Mr Johnson requests the prorogation of Parliament. Mr Corbyn says the Prime Ministers plan to suspend Parliament is an outrage and a threat to our democracy. The Queen approves an order to prorogue Parliament no earlier than September 9 and no later than September 12, until October 14.

 September 3 2019

Mr Johnson says Parliament is on the brink of wrecking any deal with Brussels after MPs voted to give a cross-party alliance control of the Commons agenda in a bid to block a no-deal Brexit on October 31.

 September 4 2019

MPs including 21 rebel Tories vote to approve legislation aimed at preventing a no-deal Brexit. The Benn Act compels the Prime Minister to ask Brussels for an Article 50 extension to the end of January 2020 if MPs do not back a deal by October 19.

Mr Johnson, who had repeatedly ruled out requesting any further delay, accuses them of having scuppered negotiations. He withdraws the whip from the rebels in a major purge. Among those exiled are former chancellors Philip Hammond and Sir Kenneth Clarke, and Winston Churchills grandson, Sir Nicholas Soames.

The PM attempts to trigger an early general election but fails because he does not win the required support of two-thirds of MPs.

 September 10 2019

Mr Johnsons second attempt to trigger an early general election fails after his motion does not secure the required support of two-thirds of MPs, with the Commons voting 293 to 46.

 September 17 2019

A legal battle over Mr Johnsons decision to suspend Parliament for five weeks begins at the UKs highest court. The Supreme Court in London hears appeals from two separate challenges brought in England and Scotland to the prorogation of Parliament over three days.

 September 24 2019

The Supreme Court rules that the Prime Ministers advice to the Queen to suspend Parliament until October 14 was unlawful because it had the effect of frustrating Parliament.

 October 2 2019

Mr Johnson puts forward his formal Brexit plan to the EU, revealing his blueprint to solve the Irish border issue, and says it is a compromise, but European Commission President Jean-Claude Juncker says there are still problematic points.

 October 10 2019

Mr Johnson and Irish Taoiseach Leo Varadkar say a Brexit deal is in everyones interest and they can see a pathway to a deal, in a joint statement after talks at a luxury hotel in Cheshire.

 October 17 2019

After intense negotiations, the Prime Minister announces the UK has reached a great deal with the EU which takes back control and means that the UK can come out of the EU as one United Kingdom  England, Scotland, Wales, Northern Ireland, together.

But the DUP says it cannot support the deal in Parliament, citing a series of objections over the integrity of the union and Northern Irelands economy.

 October 19 2019

The first Saturday sitting of the Commons in 37 years is set to see MPs hold a meaningful vote on the new deal and the pressure is particularly strong because it is also the deadline for the PM to ask for an extension under the Benn Act.

But MPs instead vote for an amendment tabled by exiled Tory Sir Oliver Letwin to compel Mr Johnson to comply with the Benn Act requesting a delay to Brexit.

Mr Johnson gets a senior diplomat to send Brussels an unsigned copy of a letter asking for the delay, with a cover note stressing his detachment from the move. He dispatches a second note to European Council president Donald Tusk saying the extension would be deeply corrosive.

 October 22 2019

Mr Johnson mounts an attempt to fast-track his Brexit deal through Parliament. This requires two votes: one on the Withdrawal Agreement Bill (WAB) to implement the deal, and another on the accelerated timetable.

The WAB is approved in principle at its first hurdle when MPs vote 329 to 299 for it. But the blow comes when they reject the hasty timetable by 322 to 308. The PM puts his plans on ice, saying he will pause the WAB until the EU makes a decision on granting a delay.

 October 28 2019

EU leaders agree to a Brexit flextension until January 31 unless Parliament ratifies the deal sooner.

 October 29 2019

The Prime Minister succeeds in winning support for a general election on December 12.

 December 12 2019

Having campaigned on a promise to get Brexit done, Mr Johnson secures a landslide win at the election and with a comfortable 80-seat majority is able to command the Commons in a way Mrs May never could.

 January 8 2020

New European Commission president Ursula von der Leyen visits Downing Street for talks with Mr Johnson. She makes clear that the timetable for a Brexit trade deal is very, very tight and it will be impossible to agree everything by December 31. But Mr Johnson is clear there will be no extension to the transition period, which expires at the end of 2020.

 January 9 2020

Mr Johnson gets his Brexit deal through the Commons as the European Union (Withdrawal Agreement) Bill is given a third reading with a majority of 99. Downing Street warns peers not to hamper the progress of the legislation as it heads to the Lords.

 January 31 2020

A special Cabinet meeting outside London, a clock counting down the moments until Brexit on the walls of Downing Street, and the Union flag flying in Parliament Square herald the UKs departure from the European Union.

At 11pm the UK leaves the bloc but further wrangling with Brussels will continue on the terms of a trade deal due to be signed by the end of the year.
A 34-year-old man serving prison time in a domestic violence case pleaded to a refiled charge on Friday.

Todd Michael Johnson pleaded no contest in Yellowstone County District Court to a felony partner or family member assault. The offense took place in Billings in 2014.

Johnson was previously convicted of the offense at trial and sentenced to 20 years. But he successfully appealed to the Montana Supreme Court.

The court ordered a new trial, saying the lower court wrongly denied a request by Johnson to excuse a prospective juror he believed could not be fair. That prospective juror was taken off the list using another mechanism, and she did not sit on the jury that heard the case.

Under a plea deal, Senior Deputy Yellowstone County Attorney Brett Linneweber and defense attorney Craig Buehler will jointly recommend seven years in prison on the refiled charge. Linneweber will then dismiss other pending charges related to other alleged assaults in 2014.
Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath on Saturday said India's stature is growing on the global stage under the leadership of Prime Minister Narendra Modi and the entire world now wants it to resolve the dispute between Iran and the US.

Addressing an election rally in Rohini here, the BJP leader said PM Modi has shown India the right path to progress -- 'Ek Bharat, Shreshtha Bharat'.

"Earlier, when small nations sparred over various issues, the United States would jump in.

"Now the difference is that ... when the US and Iran are engaged in a dispute, the entire world is saying only India can mediate and resolve it," the UP chief minister said.

Earlier, he also alleged that those who support terrorists in Kashmir were staging protests in Shaheen Bagh and raising slogans of 'azadi'.

"Their ancestors divided India, so they have a grouse against this emerging 'Ek Bharat, Shrestha Bharat'," he alleged and slammed the AAP government, saying it "supplies biryani" to protesters in Shaheen Bagh.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
Brussels is to be warned that EU exports to the UK will face tariffs unless a free trade deal is agreed by the end of this year.

In a major speech on Monday, Boris Johnson will set out his negotiating aims for trade talks, which are expected to begin next month.

Downing Street said yesterday that the PM was clear that we are seeking a Canada-style free trade deal  in which most goods traded between the EU and UK would be duty free  and would not extend the Brexit transition period beyond the end of this year.

The EU has warned that there is not enough time to agree a comprehensive free trade deal by the end of the year, and suggested that the Brexit transition period should be extended. But Mr Johnson will reject this on Monday. He is pictured above at a Cabinet meeting in Sunderland

Cabinet minister Michael Gove said this would mean the UK taking full control of its laws, including the right to diverge from EU regulations.

He also confirmed this was likely to mean the introduction of some customs and regulatory checks on exports and imports. This could mean tariffs on goods such as German cars, French cheese and Italian wines.

We want trade to be as frictionless as possible, he said, but the EU is clear  you can only have fully frictionless trade if you accept all of their rules. If you accept all their laws, you are subordinate to their judges, you are subordinate to their political structures.

Cabinet minister Michael Gove (pictured above arriving in Sunderland yesterday) said this would mean the UK taking full control of its laws, including the right to diverge from EU regulations

We voted to be independent. Now, we want to have as close as possible a relationship with the EU, and the approach that we want to take is built on the relationship that they have with Canada. That means we want to have a relationship where there are ultimately no tariffs, no quotas on our trade, but there will be some regulations that will differ in Britain. We will do things in a way which is better for our economy.

Mr Johnson is also expected to rule out continuing with the EUs state aid regime, which limits the support that governments can give to struggling domestic industries.

And Downing Street also said the UK would not accept any oversight from the European Court of Justice, which Brussels wants to police the final trade deal.

A No 10 spokesman said: We will have control of our laws.

The EU has warned that there is not enough time to agree a comprehensive free trade deal by the end of the year, and suggested that the Brexit transition period should be extended.

But Mr Johnson will reject this on Monday, and warn the EU that failure to agree a deal by the end of the year would mean slapping tariffs on many popular EU goods, which could lower demand by raising prices.

The Prime Minister is also expected to rule out EU demands for access to the UKs fishing waters.

France is seeking a 25-year guarantee for trawlers, and Brussels has suggested it will limit EU access for the UKs lucrative financial services sector unless the Government caves in to its demands.

But when asked if Britain was willing to trade fishing access, Mr Gove said: No. We will be an independent coastal state. If people want to fish in our waters, we will decide.

European Council president Charles Michel warned yesterday that Mr Johnsons negotiating red lines were likely to mean significant barriers to access for British exporters.

He added: The more the UK will diverge from EU standards, the less access to the single market they will have.
WASHINGTON D.C  Ambassador Mull Katende has on Friday, January 31 received paintings of Ugandas wildlife from Ugandan artist Solomon Jjagwe and his wife Kim, as part of a cultural and tourism promotion partnership with the Uganda Embassy, Washington, DC. His artwork will be on loan to the Uganda Embassy and will be displayed on some of the Official Chancery walls as well as at the Official Residence.

Solomon, is an independent film director, 3D artist and animator originally from Uganda, currently based in the US. He attended Ohio Valley University, Montgomery College and George Mason University, majoring in Art and Visual Technology.

Since November of 2009, Solomon works full time on projects that emphasize wildlife conservation through his animated mountain gorilla film, Galiwango, Obulamu Bwekisodde (The Life of a Mountain Gorilla).

He is also the creator of the Nkoza and Nankya series, a story about two children who live both in Uganda and in the diaspora, as well as the Nkoza and Nankya App that teaches children to learn local Ugandan languages through, counting, song, rhymes and storytelling.

Solomons animation work will be used by the Uganda Embassy as a teaching resource in the DC Public Schools Embassy Adoption Program (EAP).

TEAP is a unique education program that exposes DC Public Schools students to international perspectives and cross-cultural lessons through direct interactions with embassies and other global entities. In this program, Fifth and Sixth-grade students attending DC Public Schools have the opportunity to learn about the language, customs, history and culture of their partners home country and culture.

Solomon will partner with the Uganda Embassy in providing class-friendly tools that are user-friendly for non-Ugandan children by communicating lessons about Uganda in a format they are familiar with.

Related
A man on Saturday fired two rounds in air in the Shaheen Bagh area, where an anti-CAA protest is on, following which he was taken into custody by police, eyewitnesses said.

No one was injured in the incident which occurred at around 4:53 pm.

According to eyewitnesses, the man opened fire behind the stage at the site where the protest against the Citizenship (Amendment) Act has been going on since over a month.

The man was overpowered by locals and handed over to the police.

The incident comes days after a local contractor armed with a gun had come to the site and asked the people to end the protest.

On Thursday, a youth had fired on anti-CAA protesters at Jamia Millia Islamia injuring a student.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
Mitt Romney has been barred from a major conservative conference after he voted to hear from additional witnesses in Donald Trumps impeachment trial.

The senator and former presidential nominee was one of only two Republicans who sided with Democrats by voting to hear new evidence against the president on Friday.

In response to Mr Romney's decision, Matt Schlapp, chair of the American Conservative Union, wrote on Twitter: BREAKING: The 'extreme conservative' and Junior Senator from the great state of Utah, @SenatorRomney is formally NOT invited to #CPAC2020.

Senator Mitt Romney speaks to reporters during the second week of the impeachment trial of Donald Trump: EPA

CPAC is an annual political conference for conservative activists and politicians, which has featured appearances from Republican presidents such as Mr Trump, George W Bush and Ronald Reagan.

Despite Mr Romneys efforts, the Republican-controlled Senate voted by 51-49 to block a push by Democrats to hear testimony from new witnesses, such as former national security adviser John Bolton.

Mr Bolton is thought to have first-hand knowledge of Mr Trumps efforts to pressure Ukraine into announcing an investigation into his 2020 election rival Joe Biden.

In a manuscript for his upcoming book, the former national security advisor alleged that Mr Trump linked freezing military aid to Ukraine with forcing an investigation into Mr Biden.

With no new witnesses, it is almost certain the president, who has denied wrongdoing, will be acquitted next week.

Mr Romney has previously been a favourite of CPAC attendees and holds the record for winning the most CPAC straw polls for the most popular potential presidential candidate among conservative activists.

The senator has not yet commented on the decision and it is unclear if he was planning on attending the conference this year.

Michael Steele, a former chair of the Republican National Committee, described the decision to not invite the Republican senator to the conference as embarrassing, stupid and juvenile.

Soon after Mr Schlapps tweet, Mike Lee, Utahs other Republican senator, tweeted in support of Mr Romney.

Story continues

Mitt Romney is a good friend and an excellent Senator. We have disagreed about a lot in this trial, Mr Lee wrote.

But he has my respect for the thoughtfulness, integrity, and guts he has shown throughout this process.

The speakers at CPAC 2020, which will take place from 26-29 February, will include Nigel Farage, senior Republican Devin Nunes and Eduardo Bolsonaro, the son of Brazilian president Jair Bolsonaro.

Additional reporting by AP

Read more

Five key takeaways from the Trump impeachment trial
STATEN ISLAND, N.Y. -- Protestors brought havoc to the citys transit system on Friday vandalizing turnstiles, and writing graffiti on subway platforms.

Photos and videos circulating social media show gated subway entrances chained open, OMNY and MetroCard readers rendered inoperable, and phrases like F--- MTA" and NYPD KKK written on the walls of subway platforms.

The anti-government protests are part of day-long acts of disobedience titled F--- The Police III." In a video released Tuesday by the group Decolonize This Place, three masked men encouraged people to build and f--- s--- up on J31 -- short for January 31.

The mood for J31 is simple, one of the masked men says in the video before listing an apparent list of demands. F--- your $2.75; no cops in the MTA; free transit; no harassment, period; and full accessibility.

Police have dispatched additional officers to transit hubs around the city. Protesters were expected to descend on Grand Central Terminal at 5 p.m. A spokesman for the NYPD said it did not appear any significant actions had taken place in Staten Island.

MTA Chief Safety Officer Patrick Warren said the authority is monitoring the protests in coordination with the NYPD and MTA PD, and that they "divert valuable time, money and resources away from investments in transit services that get New Yorkers to their jobs, schools, doctors and other places they need to go.

The MTA has zero tolerance for any actions that threaten the safety of the public and our employees, and impede service for millions of customers, he continued.

NYPD Chief of Department Terence Monahan said in a video posted to Twitter that the vandals actions had not caused disruptions to service, but did put cops and commuters in danger.

We believe that the same individuals will again attempt to disrupt the evening commute in the subway system by causing disorder, vandalizing property, endangering commuters, and even attempting to assault our officers, Monahan said. In no way, will this be tolerated.

The NYPD shared a photo on social media of Chief of Transit Edward Delatorre, Staten Islands former commanding officer, patrolling a Q train in Brooklyn.

Checking in on our subway riders this afternoon, and each of our transit officers who are working to keep our subway system safe, the department wrote on Twitter.

The Police Benevolent Association referred to the protests as the "true endgame of the anti-police movement, an end of all policing & destruction of public order.

Two people were arrested in similar protests that took place in November in Brooklyn. One protester was taken into custody after writing the word Pigs on an NYPD patrol car, and another was given a summons for spitting at an officer.
British couple nabbed for illicit removal of wrecks: Who freed the culprits? Policing the Police View(s): View(s):

This is the third in a series of articles by retired SSP Tassie Seneviratne on Grave miscarriages of justice at the hands of Police Chiefs

In 1982, when I was ASP Trincomalee, I was invited to by the then National Aquatic Resources Agency (NARA) Chairman, Dr. Hiran Jayewardene, to be an honorary representative of NARA. I accepted the offer with the Inspector Generals approval.

In May 1983, I had information about a British couple engaging in illicit removal of wrecks around the coast of Sri Lanka. Sri Lanka has been the epicenter of shipping in the Indian Ocean, from ancient times. Ship-wrecks of archaeological interest abound in our waters.

Surveillance was mounted on this couple who were staying at Orrs Hill Road in Trincomalee, and it was observed that they were salvaging artifacts and collecting them at their premises. Further information was received that the then Trade and Shipping Minister had given his blessings to them and also that officials of the British High Commission had connections in this venture.

Under these circumstances, I worked in concurrence with the Director of Merchant Shipping, the NARA Chairman, the Attorney General, the Principal Collector of Customs and the Trincomalee Government Agent.

On May 7, 1983, I obtained warrants to search the couples Orrs Hill Road premises in and a temporary residence at Indibindibedde Road in Moratuwa. At the Orrs Hill premises, I recovered a large amount of artifacts removed from shipwrecks, particularly artifacts identified as from the Orient, a French man-of-war. Rreference to this shipwreck is available in the History of the French Navy, by E. H. Jenkins under the heading Loss of the Orient (with 74 guns) and the Bizarre (with 64 guns). Historical references to these were also recovered. With evidence of Illegal activities by this couple on wrecks round the coast of Sri Lanka, a multimillion dollar racket was bared.

The fact that even hull sheaths had been salvaged was evidence enough of their plans to salvage the entire shipwreck. Incriminating documents relating to removal of and smuggling out artifacts (antiques) were taken to custody along with the British couple, James S. Laurance and Andrea Cordani. They were produced in the Trincomalee Magistrates Court and remanded, pending completion of investigations.

A further search had to be carried out at their temporary residence in Moratuwa. This had to be done without giving the collaborators an opportunity to remove incriminating evidence. I contacted S/DIG Ranges, Ernest Perera (EP), by telephone and explained the circumstances and importance of the investigation. I requested him to place a guard at the Moratuwa premises till my arrival with the search warrant. EP, considering the importance and confidentiality, had handpicked ASP Panadura, R. N. Benjamin, and instructed him to place a guard at the Moratuwa house. But before I could reach Moratuwa, I was informed by EP: My order had been countermanded by the IGP and the police guard withdrawn.

There was more to the background of this episode. The British couple had first approached Cedric Martenstyn, an expert in marine affairs and diving, and started a joint diving enterprise for tourists. When discussing finer points, it had been revealed that the couple was really interested in marine salvaging. Cedric being a stickler for the law had explained the legal ramifications in diving on and salvaging wrecks. The couple had shown an interest to bypass the law, and finding Cedric to be a stumbling block, the enterprise had fallen through.

The couple had then joined another Diving and Marine Salvage entrepreneur, allegedly with the blessings of the Shipping Minister. It was during this joint enterprise that my detection took place. The entreprenuer claimed he had obtained approval from the minister.

While I was out on further investigations following the detection, the miniser tried to contact me several times on the telephone. I avoided taking the call or returning it, because I knew why he was calling. Later, I obtained a letter from the Director Merchant-Shipping and Receiver of Wrecks, making a water-tight case. The letter is reproduced:

Ministry of Trade and Shipping

Rakshana Mandiraya,

21, Vauxhall Street

Colombo 2

My No. 5  2/008 Your No.

P O Box 560, Tele: 35601  4

6- 5-1983

Deputy Solicitor General

Colombo

Illicit Removal of Wrecks

I am informed that some unauthorised persons have begun to remove wrecks lying off the coast of Trincomalee. As you are no doubt aware, approval has to be given by me or by the GA concerned in his capacity as a Receiver of Wrecks for any person to remove any wreck or part thereof. It is considered very essential to ensure that no unauthorised person removes any wrecks since certain wrecked vessels provide ideal breeding ground for fish and other forms of marine life, while wrecks which are over 75 years old have very high antique value.

I also understand that the Trincomalee Police which suspect that several persons are engaged in the removal of wrecks without any authority need the assistance of a State Counsel, in order to advise them on measures to be taken to apprehend those who are operating in an illegal manner.

I shall therefore, be most grateful if you would kindly give assistance to the Trincomalee Police and the GA Trincomalee.

Please also see copy of a letter addressed to GA Trincomalee for your information.

W. D. Soysa

Director of Merchant Shipping

Cc: 1. GA, Trincomalee

2. ASP Trincomalee &

3. Chairman NARA

The above letter makes it clear that the Shipping Minister had no authority to approve salvaging of wrecks, and in effect became an accomplice to the offence.

Then strange and curious developments began to take place. On May 9, 1983, the IGP ordered the CID to take over the investigation from me. On May 12, 1983, a bail application was filed by the suspects. With the CID not objecting, the suspects were released on bail. Subsequently the case was withdrawn.

A conviction and sentence in this multimillion dollar racket would have been a land-mark case, especially as it involved a Cabinet Minister and officials of the British High Commission. But alas! It was not to be. The IGP, preferring to please a powerful yet implicated politician, without deference to the law, intervened to free the culprits.

(seneviratnetz@gmail.com)
Zidane says 'not contemplating' Bale leaving on transfer deadline day. (Photo: AFP/Jose Jordan)

Bale came close to joining Chinese Super League side Jiangsu Suning last summer and English newspaper the Times reported on Friday the Welshman was in talks to rejoin his former club Tottenham.

But a source at Spurs has told AFP they are not in negotiations to sign Bale this month. Another source close to the player insisted earlier this week that "nothing has changed" and he would not be leaving Real Madrid in January.

Asked about the possibility of Bale being sold on Friday, Zidane said in a press conference: "Gareth is with us, I'm counting on him. I do not contemplate this possibility."

Bale was left out of the squad to face Real Zaragoza in the Copa del Rey on Wednesday, having completed only one full training session following an ankle injury.

Zidane would not say if he would return for the city derby against Atletico Madrid at the Santiago Bernabeu on Saturday.

"I'm not going to tell you who is going to play," Zidane said. "The players all have to be prepared."

There was also a positive update regarding the fitness of Eden Hazard, who has recovered from his foot injury and could feature against Atletico.

"We'll see but he has been training with us all week," Zidane said. "He could be included tomorrow but we will never take any risks."

Hazard has not played since fracturing his foot against Paris Saint-Germain on Nov 26.
Chennai, Feb 1 : Union Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman, announcing the disinvestment of Life Insurance Corporation of India (LIC), has scored a self goal against that proposal with her new tax slabs that would impact sales of insurance policies and valuation of insurers, said experts.

The new personal income tax slab announced by Sitharaman will impact the valuation of all insurers - life and general - including LIC, they said.

Presenting the budget for 2020-21 in the Parliament on Saturday, Sitharaman while retaining the old rates for personal income tax also announced a reduced rates for individuals who do not want any tax savings schemes.

"It will be a big blow for the insurers as insurance cover is sold and not bought. Tax payers buy insurance covers - life and health - in order to save tax outgo. When there is an option, then the general human tendency is not to buy insurance," practicing chartered accountant P.S. Prabhakar told IANS.

"When the top line of insurers is affected then the enterprise valuations would also get impacted. Seems the Finance Minister has scored a self goal with the new tax slabs while announcing the government's plans to divest a part of its holding in LIC," Prabhakar said.

In her budget speech Sitharaman on divestment said: "Listing of companies on stock exchanges discipline a company and provides access to financial markets and unlocks its value. It also gives opportunity for retail investors to participate in the wealth so created." "The government now proposes to sell a part of its holding in LIC by way of Initial Public Offer (IPO)," Sitharaman said.

A senior insurance industry official told IANS preferring anonymity: "Health and life insurance policies are bought mainly as a tax saving measure. Now there seems to be a disincentive for an individual to buy such insurance covers thereby putting his family finances at risk." The two also said one of the casualty of the new tax proposal would the Charitable Institutions as people do make donations to them for getting tax exemptions.

"These institutions do what the governments don't do. And for funds they are dependent on donations. Now the government is sort of plugging that route," Prabhakar said.

According to him, such tax proposals are fine in countries where there is strong social security system, whereas in India a person has to fend for himself during his old age. And compulsory tax saving schemes during his younger age is his social security during his old age.

"There is no guarantee that the government would continue with the old systems and can very well scrap the same in the future, Prabhakar said.
Pre-schools in Bray will be closing their doors on Wednesday, February 5, to participate in the Early Years Alliance protest march to Dail Eireann.

'This is a last resort, we are being treated like dirt,' said one Montessori school owner based in Bray. 'I love my school and don't want any negativity, but just want to be treated correctly by the state,' she said.

'One of my issues is having so many different inspectors. We have three separate inspectors - all of them come at us in different ways and contradict one another by times.'

'Every provider that I know of is closing and going into Town next Wednesday to protest,' she said.

Schools taking part in the protest have written to parents outlining their reasons for their demonstration.

'The last term was a particularly difficult one for everyone working in early years,' they wrote.

'We had to re-register with Tusla under a new process which was very arduous, time consuming and costly, and then the week before Christmas, Ironshore, an insurer, pulled out of the Irish market.'

With just one child care insurer in the country, premiums have doubled and even tripled in some cases. 'The recent payment given by the minister made little difference, some providers received as little as 100, nowhere near the average of 1,500 we thought we would receive,' local providers told families in the letter.

The average wage in the sector is currently 12 per hour. Providers are not paid by the government for holidays or for training days. They are also deducted money if a child shows a pattern of non-attendance for sickness or lateness.

If a child is out sick one day for four weeks in a row the government takes back the funding, something which does not happen in primary schools.

'Staff across the country are overworked and underpaid and many are leaving the sector on a daily basis,' providers wrote to parents.

'All of these reasons, and many more, are making early years unsustainable and many schools and creches are being forced to close.'

Different groups have formed the Early Years Alliance and are demanding a funding model that supports affordable and accessible childcare for parents, high quality for children, and sustainability for providers. They want the introduction of funding for an appropriate professional wage for educators, and a single inspection process with a graded compliance system.

They are currently inspected by Tusla, Department of Children and Youth Affairs, and the Department of Education.
The Tripura High Court on Saturday granted bail to former PWD minister Badal Chowdhury as the police did not file a chargesheet against him 87 days after he was booked in a Rs 638 crore graft case.

Public Prosecutor Ratan Dutta said that according to the legal procedure any accused holds the right to get bail by default if the police is unable to submit a chargesheet within 90 days of arrest.

Chowdhury, who is also a CPI(M) central committee member, was arrested on October 21 last year in connection with alleged irregularities in the PWD in 2008-09.

His counsel Purusottam Roy Burman said the high court granted the sitting MLA bail because the police was not able to file a charge sheet against him even though 87 days had passed since he was booked on October 21 last year.

However, the court imposed some conditions on him like that he would not influence the investigation process or witnesses, and try to tamper evidence. The accused would also need to submit Rs 1 lakh bail bond along with a surety.

Former engineer-in-chief Sunil Bhowmik and former chief secretary Yashpal Singh were also booked in the alleged corruption case.

The public prosecutor said police have completed investigating Chowdhury and Bhowmik, who was previously released on bail, but they have not filed the chargesheet yet.

Since Bhowmik was released on bail 87 days after arrest, the court headed by Justice Arindam Lodh ruled in favour of extending Chowdhury the same benefit and him granting bail.

"We seriously objected against granting him bail as three days were still left and within the three days, police could file chargesheet. However, the court decided to grant him bail," he said.

On January 17, the entire opposition had staged a walkout in the state assembly alleging that Chowdhury was arrested for political vendetta and demanded his unconditional release.

Leader of the opposition and former chief minister Manik Sarkar had earlier said that Chowdhury, also the deputy leader of the opposition, was arrested in framed up charges and the allegations against him were "baseless".

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
Dairy farmers "must play their part in ensuring the welfare of calves" this spring, Agriculture Minister Michael Creed warned in a letter to the country's 17,000 milk suppliers.

Minister Creed urged farmers to put a "very strong focus on the health and welfare of calves and cows, in the interests of the entire dairy sector".

His comments come as the busy calving season starts on dairy farms. Up to 1.5m cows are due to calve down over the coming three months, with serious concerns expressed that some farmers could struggle to find markets for many bull calves, and particularly those that are Jerseys or Jersey crosses.

"It is farmers who make the critical decisions when it comes to the health and welfare of their animals... and this is generally done to a very high standard in Ireland," Minister Creed said.

He added that it was essential that calves that are not being kept as replacements are "as well looked after as those being retained".

Minister Creed's letter said farmers must ensure to have:

Adequate calf rearing facilities and feeding equipment, as well as labour this spring;

A robust calf care regime that ensures all calves receive sufficient colostrum within two hours of birth, and are subsequently fed adequate volumes of milk/milk replacer;

Farmers develop a plan for calves not being retained on the holding.

The Minister warned that the Department of Agriculture will also carry out "risk-based animal welfare inspections" at relevant locations.

Meanwhile, Glanbia Ireland (GI) stressed that the on-farm slaughter of healthy calves "is strictly prohibited on its milk-supplying farms".

"All milk suppliers must comply with our  high animal welfare standards (or) there are various actions (we) can take - from the imposition of fines to the complete refusal to collect milk," it said.

Glanbia said it will not inspect farms to ensure that its suppliers meet calf welfare standards, pointing out that this was the remit of the Department and Bord Bia.

However, it said its advisors, plus vets, will visit farms and work closely with suppliers to provide "practical advice and guidance where required to resolve any issues".
That bill had the support of 47 Democrats and 25 Republicans in the state Assembly and Senate, where it already passed, but has stalled in the Assembly.

The new Republican bill, which some Democrats have already criticized as a political stunt, would impose more compressed timelines for processing sexual assault kits.

The bill also includes proposals attractive to Republican voters, targeting immigrants in the country illegally and expanding access to parental choice programs for students. It also would require the Department of Justice to provide reports to the Legislature each year, allow victims to anonymously track their sexual assault kits and provide them the right to have evidence tested within 90 days and be notified 60 days before evidence was destroyed.

Sanfelippo said the requirements in the new bill, which he views as more comprehensive, are key to his support.

This is a much better bill, comprehensive, and it provides a better way for us to make sure a backlog doesnt occur in the future, Sanfelippo said.
Despite a man in Boston testing positive for the coronavirus, health officials in Connecticut say the risk of residents contracting the virus remains low.

Av Harris, director of communications and government relations for the Connecticut Department of Public Health, said state officials are monitoring the situation very closely.

The Massachusetts Department of Public Health and the Boston Public Health Commission announced that both agencies received notification from the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention of the positive test results late Friday evening, the DPH said in a Saturday news release.

A Boston man, who is in his 20s, recently traveled to Wuhan, China  ground zero for the virus. He sought medical care soon after he returned to Massachusetts, officials said.

Despite the positive test in Massachusetts, the DPH said the risk to the public from the coronavirus remains low there.

Massachusetts Department of Public Health in its statement to media on this today reiterated that the risk to its residents of contracting coronavirus is still low, Harris said Saturday night, adding that the same holds true for Connecticut.

Thousands of confirmed human infections of coronavirus have been reported in more than 20 counties. More than 99 percent of the cases have been recorded in China.

The unidentified man has been isolated since he sought medical care and will remain in isolation until public health officials clear him. The DPH said his few close contacts have been identified and are being monitored for any signs of symptoms.

We are grateful that this young man is recovering and sought medical attention immediately, said Massachusetts Public Health Commissioner Monica Bharel. Massachusetts has been preparing for a possible case of this new coronavirus, and we were fortunate that astute clinicians took appropriate action quickly. Again, the risk to the public from the 2019 novel coronavirus remains low in Massachusetts.

More Information Symptoms of coronavirus may include Runny nose Headache Cough Sore throat Fever A general feeling of being unwell See More Collapse

This man marked the eighth case of infection with coronavirus in the United States. Three of those cases were in California residents, two in Illinois and one each in Massachusetts, Washington and Arizona.

Around 4 p.m. Saturday, the New York City Department of Health and Mental Hygiene announced that an individual in New York City is being tested for the coronavirus.

This means they had recently traveled from China and presented with fever and cough or shortness of breath without another common cause, like influenza and other cold viruses, identified on testing, the agency said.

The individual in New York City, who officials said is less than 40-years-old, is hospitalized at Bellevue Hospital Center in stable condition. Officials said testing to determine if the individual has the coronavirus will take a minimum of 36 to 48 hours and depends on CDC testing capacity.

Boston Public Health Commission Exective Director Rita Nieves said residents can continue to go about their daily routine without any interruption after the positive test of the man.

Right now, we are not asking Boston residents to do anything differently, Nieves said. The risk to the general public remains low. And we continue to be confident we are in a good position to respond to this developing situation.

The DPH and BPHC will continue to work closely with the CDC, officials said.

More than 11,900 people have been infected from the coronavirus across the globe.

The virus rapid spread over the past month prompted the World Health Organization to declare on Thursday that the outbreak is a public health emergency of international concern. That same day, the CDC reported the first case of person-to-person transmission of the coronavirus between household members in Illinois.

U.S. Health and Human Services Secretary Alex Azar on Friday declared the 2019 novel coronavirus a public health emergency. Azar ordered any U.S. citizens returning from the center of the outbreak in Chine to be quarantined for two weeks as a precaution.

In Connecticut, there are no confirmed cases of any resident testing positive for the coronavirus.

A high school student from China who participated in the Yale Model United Nations conference on the New Haven campus last week was put in isolation pending a diagnosis on whether the youth had the coronavirus. The student tested negative.

A Wesleyan University student was also monitored for coronavirus and was briefly in isolation until test results from Monday confirmed the student did not contract the virus.

Dr. Matthew Cartter, state epidemiologist with the Connecticut state health department, said earlier this week that the state has started to see a stigmatization of people from China. He said this also happened in 2003 during the epidemic of severe acute respiratory syndrome, which also started in China.

In Bridgeport, officials say the citys Office of Emergency Management and Department of Public Health are keeping a close eye on the coronavirus outbreak.

Scott Appleby, director of emergency management and homeland security for Bridgeport, said all teams that staff the citys Emergency Operation Center are aware of the outbreak and the various cases throughout the United States.

At this time the risk is very low for our residents as there has been no confirmed cases within Connecticut, Appleby said Saturday night. However, we do urge all residents to get familiar with the facts regarding the virus and practice healthy habits such as, for example, covering your cough, stay home or seeking medical assistance if you are experiencing a high fever, washing your hands regularly and disinfecting areas regularly to minimize germ spread.

Andrea Boissevain, Stratfords director of health, said Saturday night that the towns Health Department  as well as those across the state  participate in CDC and DPH conference calls several times a week to stay abreast of the outbreak.

We will work side-by-side with our partners at DPH should we have to follow any potential person under investigation identified in our area, Boissevain said. We are still operating under the assumption that the risk is low in our area, but we are prepared to spring into action should that change.

Boissevain said for now, most officials in Connecticut are focused on reiterating the tips Appleby shared, adding that this is exactly the type of advice we publicize during flu season, which we are in the thick of right now.

For more information on the coronavirus, visit the CDC website.
We are part of a thriving, young, and vibrant nation. We also belong to a civilization that is timeless in age backed by a culture that has gifted the world spiritual enlightenment, technological progress and unbound and selfless wisdom. At no point in time were we anything but givers to the global community as a whole. Today, as the winds of technology blow, Indian minds are not just powering this revolution but leading it as well.

A nation of our stature also attracts the attention of the wrong kind. In the last few years, we have seen reports of how actors backed by nation-states and non-state actors consistently attacking our critical and non-critical infrastructure for various reasons. These attacks are not limited to the defense sector alone. Healthcare, transport, IT, telecom have each been attacked in the recent past. Such attacks point to the activation of bot farms consisting of millions of zombie devices that have been hacked to serve as a source of processing capacity for launching cyberattacks on India.

Some of these attacks are being carried out with the discipline of a regular army. It carries all the signatures thereof -- including high levels of research and reconnaissance, multiple attacks to gain entry, precision targeting, disciplined and patient approach towards creating a beachhead, and, last but not least, persistent attempts to hack and acquire information. Such attacks need to be countered at various levels, and we need to evolve and deploy a cybersecurity doctrine that affords us protection and secures our infrastructure, minds, and resources.

The environment There is a rapid deterioration of international stability across our immediate neighborhood, the Middle East, Eastern, and Central Europe alone with continuing geopolitical turmoil that is shaping foreign and domestic policy decisions around energy and defence. The challenge for all of us is the character of the competition being fueled by nefarious means is being conducted by authoritarian opponents who are part of nations that have not tasted democracy in its entirety ever. They also have armed forces who have been issued carte blanche by their political masters to indulge in international chicanery that ends at the doorsteps of democracies like ours and harms our growth aspirations.

Our adversaries are not just attacking the foundational pillars of our existence as a nation but also attacking our way of life and our freedoms in a manner that is quite difficult to defeat without undermining those very freedoms we seek to protect. Our adversaries are making a concerted attempt to undermine cohesion, erode economic, political, and social resilience, and challenge our strategic position in our part of the world. Such efforts have to be met with a level of resistance that doesn't merely defeat these machinations but also serves to deter future attempts.

The increasing digitization of our growth is opening new ways to execute a type of "political warfare" that relies on the use and abuse of information, online espionage, state-backed cyberattacks, and intellectual property theft, among other things. The chain doesn't stop here. It is often backed by the promotion of misinformation and fake news in cyberspace.

Our response We need to address this challenge through a strategic response that integrates all levers of power and operations. We need to bring in a renewed coherence and consistency to our defence strategy for the next decade, which will be a critical one as we aim at becoming a $5 trillion economy. We need to be able to strike and protect a dimension that emerges from the integration of five domains that are space, cyber and information, air, maritime, and land. This integration will change the way we fight and the way we develop the capability to protect and defend.

We need to engage and sustain our advantage in the cyberspace through: a Identifying new sources of threats by deciphering their motivation

a Early identification and mitigation of risks in the digital space

a Preventing our citizens from being used as conduits to attack us

a Preventing espionage through social engineering

a Scuttling attempts to spread misinformation through digital means and agencies

a Attempts to steal our IP

a Preventing hackers from monetizing stolen data

a Gathering the right data that can feed into actionable intelligence

a Preventing online terror funding using cryptocurrencies

Our armed forces, in the future, will have to develop and deploy a strategy that gives them the ability to operate at a micro and nano levels with a small force while moving faster relying on a very high degree of mobility, electronic warfare and passive deception measures to maintain the information advantage we possess now. More and more automated, supervised, and autonomous platforms will be integrated in a manner to enable the faster introduction of new tech as also the ability to defend or strike hard as required while maintaining a deterrence posture that conveys strength and resilience. Disabling of adversarial infrastructure for the short or long term will be a part of this measure.

Such a high level of modernization will need us to embrace information-centric technologies and approaches. We also need to recognise the need for the application of a blend of technologies such as computing power, connectivity, machine learning, IoT and artificial intelligence [AI], automation, autonomy, and quantum computing to attain the disruptive power we need.

The path ahead We need to initiate work on multiple projects in parallel to support the goals I have outlined previously without losing focus. These projects should focus on areas where ethical technologies and a high level of automation can bring a plethora of advantages while we redefine data as a strategic and uncompromisable asset. The industry in India needs to back us on this front.

We must embrace open, outwardly facing innovation across all segments and outsource to strategic partners. No one can do everything anymore, as this leads to erosion of core competencies and dilution of strengths. A high level of collaboration with the academic and entrepreneurial ecosystem is the need of the hour. We must utilise technology scouts to amplify our R&D capabilities and support universities, research centres, startups, and established companies looking to develop strategic alliances with the right partners.

Ten mantras for growing and sustaining our digital dreams: a Vigilant diligence by all players in the ecosystem keeping national interests in mind

a Supporting indigenous technology agencies and firms, talent and other components to maintain our organic growth

a Invest in developing capabilities and capacity in India's academic institutions

a Encourage research and publication and sharing of knowledge and best practices

a Just like we have become a power to reckon with in space and IT, we need to become a cybersecurity superpower as well

a Evolve a mission approach and relentlessly pursue excellence by increasing the standards for all aspects

a Gamify and conduct drills and audits at regular frequencies to ensure readiness in case of a major attack

a Establish a series of malware labs across the country to enable the evolution of countermeasures

a Develop and use minimum penalty thresholds on cybercriminals and state-backed actors to deter them

a Blend technologies to get the best of all worlds

(Vinit Goenka is Secretary, Centre for Knowledge Sovereignty and author of Data Sovereignty: The Pursuit of Supremacy. The views expressed are personal)
As the emerging Wuhan coronavirus outbreak dominates the daily news, you might be wondering just how the pathogen is working its way around the world. This virus travels from place to place by infecting one person at a time. Some sick people might not spread the virus much further, but it looks like some people infected with the novel coronavirus are what epidemiologists call super spreaders.

Elizabeth McGraw, the director of the Center for Infectious Disease Dynamics at Pennsylvania State University, explains just what that means and why super spreaders can be crucial to a diseases transmission.

What is a super spreader?

Researchers currently estimate that a person carrying the Wuhan coronavirus will, on average, infect approximately 2.6 people.

Recent reports out of Wuhan also cite a case of a single patient who infected 14 health care workers. That qualifies him as a super spreader: someone who is responsible for infecting an especially large number of other people.

During an emerging outbreak, epidemiologists want to determine whether super spreaders are part of the picture. Their existence can accelerate the rate of new infections or substantially expand the geographic distribution of the disease.

In response to super spreaders, officials can recommend various ways to limit their impact and slow the spread of disease, depending on how the pathogen is transmitted. Pathogens transmitted via air droplets, contaminated surfaces, sexual contact, needles, food or drinking water will require different interventions. For example, the recommendation for face masks would be specific to airborne transmission, while hand-washing and surface sterilization are needed for germs that can live for a while on surfaces.

What are the characteristics of a super spreader?

Whether someone is a super spreader or not will depend on some combination of the pathogen and the patients biology and their environment or behavior at the given time. And in a society with so much global connectivity, the ability to move pathogens rapidly across great distances, often before people are even aware they are sick, helps create environments ripe for super spreading.

Some infected individuals might shed more virus into the environment than others because of how their immune system works. Highly tolerant people do not feel sick and so may continue about their daily routines, inadvertently infecting more people. Alternatively, people with weaker immune systems that allow very high amounts of virus replication may be very good at transmitting even if they reduce their contacts with others. Individuals who have more symptoms  for example, coughing or sneezing more  can also be better at spreading the virus to new human hosts.

A persons behaviors, travel patterns and degree of contact with others can also contribute to super spreading. An infected shopkeeper might come in contact with a large number of people and goods each day. An international business traveler may crisscross the globe in a short period of time. A sick health care worker might come in contact with large numbers of people who are especially susceptible, given the presence of other underlying illnesses.

When have super spreaders played a key role in an outbreak?

There are a number of historical examples of super spreaders. The most famous is Typhoid Mary, who in the early 20th century purportedly infected 51 people with typhoid through the food she prepared as a cook. Since Mary was an asymptomatic carrier of the bacteria, she didnt feel sick, and so was not motivated to use good hand-washing practices.

During the last two decades, super spreaders have started a number of measles outbreaks in the United States. Sick, unvaccinated individuals visited densely crowded places like schools, hospitals, airplanes and theme parks where they infected many others.

Super spreaders have also played a key role in the outbreaks of other coronaviruses, including SARS (severe acute respiratory syndrome) and MERS (Middle East respiratory syndrome). A traveler sick with SARS and staying in a Hong Kong hotel infected a number of overseas guests who then returned home and introduced the virus into four other countries.

For both SARS and MERS, super spreading commonly occurred in hospitals, with scores of people being infected at a time. In South Korea in 2015, one MERS patient infected over 80 other patients, medical personnel and visitors in a crowded emergency department over a three-day period. In this case, proximity to the original patient was the biggest risk factor for getting sick.

Can super spreading occur in all infectious diseases?

Yes. Some scientists estimate that in any given outbreak, 20% of the population is usually responsible for causing over 80% of all cases of the disease. Researchers have identified super spreaders in outbreaks of diseases from those caused by bacteria, such as tuberculosis, as well as those caused by viruses, including measles, MERS and Ebola.

The good news is that with the right control practices specific to how pathogens are transmitted  hand-washing, masks, quarantine, vaccination and so on  the transmission rate can be slowed and epidemics halted.

This article has been updated to correct a typo concerning the disease Typhoid Mary spread.

Elizabeth McGraw, Professor of Entomology and Director of the Center for Infectious Disease Dynamics, Pennsylvania State University

This article is republished from The Conversation under a Creative Commons license. Read the original article.
Soldiers have discovered a drug-smuggling submarine that was used by a Colombian cartel to ferry cocaine with a street value of up to 100million.

The 17-metre long fibreglass submarine, known as a 'narco-sub', was found in the municipality of Bajo Baudo in the western Colombian department of Choco, near the border with Panama.

Authorities believe it was due to be loaded with cocaine that was to be distributed along the Pacific coast.

Scroll down for video.

The 17-metre long fibreglass submarine, known as a 'narco-sub', was found in the municipality of Bajo Baudo in the western Colombian department of Choco

Authorities believe it was due to be loaded with cocaine that was to be distributed along the Pacific coast. The material found in the jungle was destroyed (pictured)

The submarine, which can cost up to 2million to build but can hold up to 100million of cocaine

The submarine, which can cost up to 2million to build, was found by Colombian soldiers in a swamp and taken to their barracks in the municipality of Pizarro.

Battalion commander Giovanni Carrillo told local media that the submarine was recently constructed and that the fibreglass structure had already been completed - ready for use.

As the narco-sub's position was close to the Pacific coast, Carrillo explained that it would have been 'easy' for the traffickers to 'load and unload the cargo before going out to sea'.

Carrillo added that other similar submarines have been found along the coast recently as they are proving to be a 'cheap, stable and discreet' way of smuggling expensive items into other countries.

Battalion commander Giovanni Carrillo told local media that the submarine was recently constructed and that the fibreglass structure had already been completed - ready for use

As the narco-sub's position was close to the Pacific coast, Carrillo explained that it would have been 'easy' for the traffickers to 'load and unload the cargo before going out to sea'

The authorities said the submarine was capable of carrying three tons of pure cocaine.

No arrests have been made yet as the investigation continues.

In October 2019, Colombian soldiers coming across a camp in the middle of the jungle where two fibreglass submarines were found.

A spokesperson for the Pacific Naval Force said: 'They were built in a makeshift shipyard and were waiting to be loaded with cocaine before sailing up the estuary to the bay of Buenaventura and then up to Central America.'

Carrillo added that other similar submarines have been found along the coast recently as they are proving to be a 'cheap, stable and discreet' way of smuggling expensive items

One sub was reportedly capable of transporting between six and seven tons of pure cocaine. The other could transport between three and four tons of cocaine, according to reports.

Although the camp was deserted and some material evidence was found destroyed, the authorities believe it was a strong blow to the criminal gang's operations.

The first narco-sub was discovered in 2006. When the DEA found it they nicknamed it 'Bigfoot' because they believed those kind of submarines were just an urban legend.
Two more people suspected of being affected by coronavirus have been admitted to the isolation ward of RML hospital here, taking the total number of patients housed at the facility to eight, hospital authorities said on Saturday.

On Friday evening, two men, aged 23 and 46 years, complained of respiratory problems and fever at the hospital which has been designated by the government to deal with such cases, they said.

The 23-year-old had been staying in Wuhan for the last five years and he returned to India on January 24. The other man visited Changsa and returned to India on January 18, they added.

Six people, suspected of being affected by novel coronavirus, were already under observation at the isolation ward.

The samples of the eight people, who are all residents of Delhi, have been sent for testing and reports are awaited, the hospital authorities said.

India reported its first case of novel coronavirus in Kerala on Thursday and the patient, a female medical student, has been kept in an isolation ward in the state.

The government has stepped up its efforts to detect and prevent the spread of the virus that has killed 259 people and infected 11,791 in China and has spread to at least 17 countries already.

Cabinet Secretary Rajiv Gauba on Thursday reviewed the country's preparedness with the ministries concerned to tackle the spread of the virus, an official release said.

He also spoke to chief secretaries of the states and UTs through video-conference, it added.

During these meetings, it was decided that all those who have come from China after January 15 will be tested for the exposure to the virus.

Apart from putting measures in place to battle the spread at home, 324 Indians came back to India on Saturday morning from Wuhan.

Authorities have been screening patients at 21 airports, ports and borders for possible coronavirus infection and the Health Ministry has urged people to report themselves if they show symptoms of the virus, such as cold and respiratory distress, on the 24x7 helpline (011-23978046).

The ministry has asked people to refrain from travelling to China and the states bordering Nepal -- Uttarakhand, UP, Bihar, West Bengal and Sikkim -- have stepped up vigil.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
NORWALK  A local man who was arrested in August after police said he expressed interest in mass shootings and they found illegal high-capacity gun magazines at his residence is facing new charges after he allegedly assaulted someone Saturday morning.

According to a release from Norwalk police, Brandon Wagshol, 22, pushed an individual into a wall and hit the person with a pipe around 5 a.m. He has been charged with second-degree assault, disorderly conduct and criminal mischief, police said.

Wagshol has another pending case for four counts of illegal possession of large-capacity gun magazines. He was released on a $250,000 bond but ordered to wear an ankle bracelet and remain under house arrest.

Wagshol is being held on $500,000 bond and will be arraigned Monday on the new charges in state Superior Court in Norwalk.

Darnell Crosland, Wagshols attorney, noted Saturday that Wagshol has been in total compliance with his conditions of release and that its too early to tell whether hes culpable in the latest arrest.

Police said officers were called to the scene after Wagshol shoved the victim inside a residence at the same Bedford Avenue apartment complex where he lives.

The alleged assault left a large laceration on the victims head, according to police.

Last year, Wagshol was arrested after the FBI received a tip from a family member who said he was trying to buy magazine clips, officials said. An investigation revealed that Wagshol had shown interest in mass shootings as early as sixth grade, according to a search warrant for Wagshols fathers apartment.

At the residence, police found a .40 caliber handgun, a .22 caliber rifle, a rifle scope with a laser, four firearm optic sites, a firearm flashlight, body armor with a titanium plate, a full camouflage outfit, a ballistic helmet, tactical gloves, a camouflage bag, computers, and numerous .40 caliber, .22 caliber and .300 blackout rounds of ammunition, per the search warrant.

Police said the guns were registered to Wagshols father, who was not charged.

In his witness statement, Wagshol said he had no intention of committing a mass shooting and that he had purchased the magazines in New Hampshire to circumvent what I viewed as an unconstitutional restriction on the second amendment.

Wagshols earlier case is still pending, with the next court date set for Feb. 20, according to Connecticuts online court database.
A German plane with German citizens evacuated from Wuhan landed in Helsinki instead of a planned landing in Moscow, media reports.

"Shortly before landing in Moscow, Russia refused the landing of the aircraft. The plane eventually landed in Helsinki-Vantaa," the reports read.

The fact of the aircrafts landing was confirmed by the Finnish airport Finavia managing company. This is a technical stop when passengers do not leave the plane, but the crew changes. On the board, there are 126 people heading to Frankfurt, RIA Novosti reports.
US President Donald Trump has imposed an immigrant visa ban on Nigeria and six other countries, earlier confirming media reports on t...

US President Donald Trump has imposed an immigrant visa ban on Nigeria and six other countries, earlier confirming media reports on the policy.





Immigrant visas are issued to those who want to relocate to the US.





It also leads to the issuance of permanent residency.





Eritrea, Myanmar and Kyrgyzstan are also affected in the new ban.

However, the ban is not expected to adversely affect the regular visitor visa, although there may be restrictions.





Chad Wolf, acting secretary of the department of homeland security, said the new immigration restrictions are designed to address security concerns in the way the banned countries track their own citizens, share information with the U.S. and cooperate on immigration matters.





Quoting diplomatic sources, NE earlier reported that the inability of the US to gain access to critical data about Nigerian travellers is behind the consideration of a visa ban on the country.





Although Nigeria partners with the US in the war on terror, drugs and cyber crimes, a problematic information flow between the Nigerian immigration and the International Police Organisation (Interpol) has made it difficult for the US to track critical data, the highly placed sources had disclosed.





This is contrary to speculations that the US was planning a visa ban because of reported human rights infractions in Nigeria.





A third party company currently holds Nigerias passport database and this is considered a hang-up by the Americans who would be more comfortable with a better information flow between Nigeria and Interpol, a diplomatic official revealed.





Interpol is an international organisation that facilitates worldwide police cooperation and crime control in its 194 member countries.





The US has also clamped down on birth tourism with a recent policy to deny visas to foreign women who want to give birth in the US and get automatic citizenship for their children.




A resolute European Union sought Friday to turn the page on Brexit and move on to negotiating a looser, less favourable trading relationship with its departing British partner. Chief EU negotiator Michel Barnier will present his draft negotiating directives to the media on Monday as Brussels prepares to take a tough stance on defending its single market. "We want to have the best possible relationship with the United Kingdom, but it will never be as good as membership," European Commission president Ursula von der Leyen said. "Our union has gained political impetus and has become a global economic powerhouse," she said, just hours before the British flag was due to be lowered outside the European Parliament. British Prime Minister Boris Johnson's government has made it clear that Brexit means it will be free to diverge from EU laws on goods standards, working practices and the environment. But European Union leaders warn that the more Britain moves away from EU regulations, the less access it will have to the bloc's huge market of around 440 million consumers. Britain is the European Union's second biggest economy, the second biggest net contributor to the European Commission budget and represents more than 15 percent of the bloc's total GDP. Nevertheless, while the messy divorce is a blow to EU prestige, the remaining 27 members remain by far the bigger commercial power. - 'Law of the jungle' - Johnson's negotiators may hope to exploit divisions between the remaining 27 member states to push Brussels into a favourable deal, but EU leaders insist unity will be their strength. Appearing with EU Council President Charles Michel and European Parliament speaker David Sassoli, Von der Leyen expressed the now standard nostalgic lines of regret about the UK decision. But all three, having met the day before at a country retreat to ensure the EU institutions were singing from the same hymn sheet, were clear that Britain can not have its cake and eat it. "On Monday, we will open a new page in our history," von der Leyen, the former German defence minister, said. "The Commission will present its position for the negotiations. "We want the best partnership possible with the United Kingdom but it's clear that there will always be a difference. Being a member of the European Union counts. There is strength in a union." London understands this, as senior British minister Michael Gove told the BBC on Friday. "We want trade to be as frictionless as possible, but the EU is clear -- you can only have fully frictionless trade if you accept all their rules, you accept all their laws," Gove said. "But we voted to be independent." In Brussels, Sassoli, an Italian socialist, warned that there are "forces trying to weaken the European Union" and said Brexit should be an occasion to strengthen the bloc's core values. "We are the largest economy in the world," the leader of the European Parliament declared, warning of "those who want to divide us because they're afraid of a rule-governed world." "There is an obsession that has been rammed home to us by our British friends -- and we're grateful to them for this -- we want proper rules to govern this European dimension," he explained. "Because rules allow you to live better -- and you can defend the more vulnerable when you have rules. But when you have an absence of rules it's the law of the jungle -- might becomes right." Johnson is also expected to announce his government's negotiating agenda next week, perhaps -- like Barnier -- as early as Monday. But if a new trade deal is to be agreed it will have to be done in record time -- the post-Brexit "standstill" period when the rules remain the same will expire in 11 months. - 'Existential threat' - After that, on January 1 next year, Britain could be out of Europe and trading on WTO rules, facing tariff and regulatory barriers between its firms and its nearest neighbours. Some EU capitals are aware of that threat. Irish Prime Minister Leo Varadkar warned Friday that a failure to reach deal by the deadline would pose an "existential threat" to his economy. But Europe will not let just anything go to secure a deal. France, Denmark and the Netherlands -- among others -- will drive a hard bargain on access to Britain's fishing waters. Germany is concerned for its motor industry, Spain is watching the situation in Gibraltar closely and many share Dublin's concern over border controls between Ireland and Northern Ireland. Britain wants, Gove said, a free trade deal like Canada has with the EU -- one that took eight-and-a-half years to negotiate. It may have to settle for a "bare bones" arrangement on goods tariffs. dc-burs/pdw/bp
The price of masks and hand-wash has been skyrocketing since coronavirus inspections were detected in Vietnam. Source: vov.vn

Pham Thi Huong (Tay Ho district, Hanoi) bought a package of masks for VND100,000 ($4.35). However, only 30 minutes later, when she returned to the same store near her house for more masks, the price climbed was already VND200,000 ($8.7) per package.

Ha also added that many drugstores in the area are out of stock while many people still come asking for masks and dry hand-wash since these items are recommended to prevent coronavirus infection in public.

Many customers searched for the N95 mask as it was advertised to be able to keep the wearer safe from the coronavirus. Cuong (Truong Chinh, Hanoi) said while many stores still have masks, however, prices have increased. In particular, medical masks cost up to VND150,000-200,000 ($6.52-8.7), while dry hand-washing bottles now can fetch VND280,000 ($12.17).

During the weekdays, these products only cost VND60,000-70,000 ($ 2.61-3.04)per package of masks. A pharmacist said that the demand to buy masks has increased, so the stores are out of stock. Many wholesalers also reported running out of stock, beating prices higher.

Although prices at drugstores are spiralling out of control as stocks run out, most supermarkets keep steady inventories of masks and mouthwash at stable prices.

On the morning of January 31, after the first three cases of coronavirus infection were discovered in Vietnam, many residents of Vinh city, Nghe An flocked to pharmacies and medical supplies shops to buy masks and dry hand wash.

Without detecting a local infection, the people of Danang have taken to wearing masks everywhere.

The director of Medical Equipment and Construction Department under the Ministry of Health, Nguyen Minh Tuan, said that, Most materials used for manufacturing masks are imported from China, but with the current outbreak, China keeps the materials for domestic use. So we are asking businesses to find new sources of raw materials to ensure the quality and supply of medical products immediately.

Facing this situation, on the morning of January 31, the Vietnam Directorate of Market Surveillance issued Document No.149/TCQLTT-CNV to request the strengthening of prevention and control of nCoV in which it requested the market surveillance agencies in provinces and cities to intensify activities to detect and promptly handle individuals profiteering on this health emergency.

In the evening on January 31, the Department of Economic Police (PC03, Hanoi Police Department) in collaboration with Hanoi market management team No.1 inspected a number of medical equipment shops which were raising the price of masks to many times the usual price for personal gain.

At the time of checking, a store representative said that medical mask packages were sold for VND130,000-220,000 ($5.6-9.6). Normally, a package costs VND50,000 ($2.17).

Also, on the night of January 31, the working group checked Medical Equipment Trading Shop No.118 Ngoc Khanh owned by Nguyen Thi Thu. She claimed to have sold 134 boxes of medical masks during the day for 6-7 times the usual price, for about VND300,000-350,000 ($13-15).

Deputy Prime Minister Vu Duc Dam checking the situation at National Hospital for Tropical Diseases. Source: VNA

On the morning of February 1, Deputy Prime Minister Vu Duc Dam, head of the national steering committee for coronavirus prevention and control, chaired an online conference with leaders of provinces, cities, and departments on the implementation of the committee's instructions on strengthening measures to prevent the spreading of the epidemic.

The deputy prime minister said, From now on, if people can produce evidence, such as photos of any drugstore that increases prices, the Ministry of Health can immediately withdraw the licence of these stores.
China central bank

China's central bank said it will use various monetary policy tools to ensure liquidity remains reasonably ample, and added that the broader economic impact from a fast-spreading coronavirus outbreak in the country should be temporary.

In multiple statements issued on Saturday afternoon, the People's Bank of China (PBOC) said that it will appropriately lower lending rates to support firms affected by virus outbreak.

It added that the impact from the epidemic on the broad economy should be temporary. So far, the virus has claimed the lives of nearly 260 people.

Investors are bracing for a volatile session in Chinese markets when onshore trades resume on Monday after a break for the Lunar New Year which was extended by the government due to the virus outbreak.

The statements from the PBOC were jointly issued with banking and insurance, securities, foreign exchange regulators and the finance ministry.

COVID-19 Vaccine Frequently Asked Questions View more How does a vaccine work? A vaccine works by mimicking a natural infection. A vaccine not only induces immune response to protect people from any future COVID-19 infection, but also helps quickly build herd immunity to put an end to the pandemic. Herd immunity occurs when a sufficient percentage of a population becomes immune to a disease, making the spread of disease from person to person unlikely. The good news is that SARS-CoV-2 virus has been fairly stable, which increases the viability of a vaccine. How many types of vaccines are there? There are broadly four types of vaccine  one, a vaccine based on the whole virus (this could be either inactivated, or an attenuated [weakened] virus vaccine); two, a non-replicating viral vector vaccine that uses a benign virus as vector that carries the antigen of SARS-CoV; three, nucleic-acid vaccines that have genetic material like DNA and RNA of antigens like spike protein given to a person, helping human cells decode genetic material and produce the vaccine; and four, protein subunit vaccine wherein the recombinant proteins of SARS-COV-2 along with an adjuvant (booster) is given as a vaccine. What does it take to develop a vaccine of this kind? Vaccine development is a long, complex process. Unlike drugs that are given to people with a diseased, vaccines are given to healthy people and also vulnerable sections such as children, pregnant women and the elderly. So rigorous tests are compulsory. History says that the fastest time it took to develop a vaccine is five years, but it usually takes double or sometimes triple that time. View more Show

The virus outbreak will have a short-term and temporary impact on the country's financial markets, said Cao Yu, vice chairman of the China Banking and Insurance Regulatory Commission (CBIRC), in a separate statement made on Saturday.

He also called on banking sector to offer comprehensive credit support to listed companies that might have reasonable funding needs in the wake of disruptions caused by the epidemic.

The efforts to contain the virus have caused major disruptions and threaten to knock growth in China and globally, just when it looked like some relief was in store following the recent preliminary Sino-U.S. trade deal to defuse their protracted tariff war.

Authorities in China had already stepped up support measures last year when growth in the world's second-biggest economy slumped to a near three-decade low, as demand at home and abroad shriveled.
Lisa Murkowski gun control

AP

Sen. Lisa Murkowski, an Alaska Republican, announced on Friday that she'd vote with the majority of her party to block witnesses from testifying in President Donald Trump's impeachment trial.

That could secure Trump's acquittal after months of testimony and debate over his campaign to pressure Ukraine to investigate his political rivals.

Murkowski, a moderate, had indicated as late as Thursday that she might be willing to hear witnesses.

Just two Republicans, Sens. Susan Collins of Maine and Mitt Romney of Utah, have announced that they'll vote "yes" on the motion to call witnesses.

Visit Business Insider's homepage for more stories.

Sen. Lisa Murkowski, an Alaska Republican, announced on Friday that she'd vote with the majority of her party to block witnesses from testifying in President Donald Trump's impeachment trial.

Murkowski condemned Congress as she argued that Trump's trial hadn't been fair and thus shouldn't continue.

"Given the partisan nature of this impeachment from the very beginning and throughout, I have come to the conclusion that there will be no fair trial in the Senate," she said in a statement. "I don't believe the continuation of this process will change anything."

She added, "It is sad for me to admit that, as an institution, the Congress has failed."

Her vote could secure Trump's acquittal after months of testimony and debate over his campaign to pressure Ukraine to investigate his political rivals.

Murkowski, a moderate, had indicated as late as Thursday that she might be willing to hear witnesses. Just two Republicans, Sens. Susan Collins of Maine and Mitt Romney of Utah, have announced that they'll vote "yes" on the motion to call witnesses.

A key turning point came on Thursday night when Sen. Lamar Alexander, a Tennessee Republican who was considered a possible vote for witnesses, said that while Trump's actions concerning Ukraine were "inappropriate," he'd vote "no" on the motion.

Story continues

"Let the people decide," he concluded, referring to the 2020 presidential election.

Alexander's move made it likely that Democrats would fail to win over the four Republican votes they need to reach a 51-senator majority required to call witnesses.

On Thursday night, Murkowski asked Trump's defense team why Americans shouldn't hear more evidence, including from the former national security adviser John Bolton.

"This dispute about material facts weighs in favor of calling additional witnesses with direct knowledge," Murkowski said. "Why should this body not call Ambassador Bolton?"

Democrats have been pushing to hear from four key witnesses, including Bolton and Mick Mulvaney, the acting White House chief of staff, both of whom were direct witnesses to the president's Ukraine pressure campaign that is at the center of his impeachment.

If Republicans succeed in blocking witnesses, the trial will proceed to its final stages. The timing for a vote to remove or acquit the president remains unclear and will depend on whether senators want to debate into the night on Friday or opt to adjourn and continue the process into the weekend.

Read the original article on Business Insider
Source: Xinhua| 2020-02-01 04:39:28|Editor: yan

Video Player Close

UNITED NATIONS, Jan. 31 (Xinhua) -- The United Nations is concerned about the current desert locust outbreak in the Horn of Africa, Stephane Dujarric, spokesman for UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres, said Friday at the daily news briefing.

"In the Horn of Africa, the UN is increasingly concerned about the current desert locust outbreak, which is the worst to strike Ethiopia and Somalia for 25 years and the worst infestation that Kenya has experienced in 70 years," said the spokesman.

"A small swarm of locusts can actually consume the equivalent of food for 35,000 people in just one day," he said.

"Djibouti and Eritrea are also being affected," the spokesman added.

Dujarric said that the UN chief tweeted that "the outbreak is making the dire food security situation in the region even worse."

"The Food and Agriculture Organization's (FAO) director-general today appealed for urgent funding to tackle the outbreak, noting that it now threatens to become a humanitarian crisis," the spokesman said.

"FAO has already mobilized 15.4 million U.S. dollars of the 76 million dollars requested for the five countries, but expects the needs will rise amid concern that the outbreak will spread to other countries, in particular South Sudan and Uganda," Dujarric added.

"The agency is also working to monitor the situation in Oman, Saudi Arabia, Sudan and Yemen for any developments," he said.
You are here: Business

China's Ministry of Transport Thursday required efforts to guarantee the smooth flow of traffic during the Spring Festival travel rush.

Local transport authorities are not allowed to close expressways or block main highways at the national and provincial levels for epidemic prevention and control, the ministry said in a circular.

They may work with public security and health departments to regulate traffic and check body temperature of passengers at entry and exit points of expressways, provincial borders, expressway service stations, state and provincial trunk highways and rural roads.

People found with a fever should be handed over to relevant parties in accordance with regulations.

"Hard isolation" methods, such as excavations and erecting road-blocks, aimed at hindering rural road traffic, are also forbidden, said the ministry.

Transportation firms offering passenger transport, taxi, and online ride-hailing services are asked to report information of passengers designated as close contacts of suspected patients to health authorities, said the circular.

Illegal acts such as setting up roadblocks and cutting off roads without approval shall be reported to local authorities immediately to restore normal traffic order in accordance with the law, the circular said.




San Francisco Public Works Director Mohammed Nuru knew he was in trouble with the FBI when he met with agents who detailed allegations of corruption and attempted bribery. But what he did next  telling City Administrator Naomi Kelly and others that he was being investigated  prompted the feds to drop the criminal hammer on the veteran bureaucrat and charge him with fraud.

I was shocked by what he said, Kelly said.

Nuru was initially arrested on Jan. 21 and confronted with allegations that he had provided inside information on city contracts for public toilets and homeless shelters to his longtime friend, restaurateur Nick Bovis.

Nuru is accused of conspiring with Bovis and two undercover informants to bribe Airport Commissioner Linda Crayton with $5,000 in an attempt to win a restaurant lease at San Francisco International Airport. Bovis has also been charged with fraud.

During the meetings with the FBI, a second criminal complaint dated Jan. 28 alleges, Nuru admitted that he had accepted gifts in exchange for official acts as the director of San Francisco Public Works. Those involved a Chinese developer who was having difficulties on a Hayes Valley project.

The feds, however, were apparently looking for bigger fish, so they released Nuru on the condition that he cooperate with a pending public corruption investigation.

He also agreed that he would not tamper with any witness or obstruct any criminal investigation or disclose his cooperation with the government. Nuru also agreed that statements he made during meetings with the government  including his agreement to keep quiet  could be used against him and possibly result in charges of perjury, making false statements or obstruction of justice, the complaint states.

But Nuru chose not to keep quiet.

According to the FBI complaint, within a week of his agreement, he had in fact disclosed his arrest, the investigation and his cooperation to Kelly, as well as other subjects and witnesses in the investigation.

Kelly confirmed to The Chronicle that Nuru had communicated with her. Kelly is Nurus direct supervisor.

I dont want to get into what was said in my conversation with Mr. Nuru, as this is an ongoing investigation, Kelly said of their telephone discussion last week.

The next day Kelly informed Mayor London Breed that Nuru had told her hed been approached by the FBI.

The mayor immediately recognized the severity of the situation and reported it to the city attorney, mayoral spokesman Jeff Cretan said.

On Monday, Kelly also contacted the city attorney, then went over to the Federal Building and sat down with investigators. The next day, the FBI hauled Nuru back in.

Drought Map Track water shortages and restrictions across Bay Area Check the water shortage status of your area, plus see reservoir levels and a list of restrictions for the Bay Areas largest water districts.

Initially, Nuru allegedly claimed that he had not talked about his arrest, the investigation or his cooperation to anyone that he worked with at City Hall, according to the criminal filing.

After being confronted about his conversation with Kelly, Nuru allegedly confessed that he had lied and admitted that, on multiple occasions the prior week, he had discussed the investigation and his cooperation with the government with the senior city official.

He also identified several other witnesses in the investigation with whom he had discussed the charges against him and or the investigation, the criminal complaint alleges.

The agents promptly pulled the plug on the cooperation agreement and charged Nuru and Bovis with one count each of wire fraud in connection with the alleged scheme to bribe Crayton.

Nuru is separately charged with lying to the FBI for failing to keep quiet about the investigation. Both men face up to 20 years in prison on the fraud charge.

San Francisco Chronicle columnist Phil Matier appears Sundays and Wednesdays. Got a tip? Call 415-777-8815, or email pmatier@sfchronicle.com. Twitter: @philmatier
China's Ambassador to India Sun Weidong on Friday said that of the 9,300 confirmed patients of Coronavirus in China, 218 have recovered and have been discharged from hospitals. He reiterated that the Chinese government and people were making every effort to fight the disease.

"I can tell you as of tonight (Friday), 218 confirmed patients have recovered and been discharged from hospitals. You can see the epidemic is generally preventable, controllable and curable. China's system enables us to mobilize all the resources for big undertakings," Sun Weidong said.

The envoy said, China was now in a critical period of epidemic control, as they have found confirmed cases in 31 provinces, autonomous regions and municipalities in Mainland China, and in Hong Kong, Macao and Taiwan regions.

READ | Chinese Envoy Cautions On 'excessive' Coronaviirus Measures

Improved measures of treatment

Sun Weidong said that Chinese President Xi Jinping has attached great importance and given several instructions since the outbreak of the epidemic. The CPC Central Committee China is strengthening treatment to reduce severe and fatal cases by setting up a national expert group on scientific research to speed up the development of vaccines.

"The State Council of China has established a unified national dispatch system for epidemic prevention and control materials to timely coordinate the dispatch of medical personnel, medical supplies and daily necessities," the Chinese envoy said.

READ | Coronavirus Death Toll Soars To 213; Over 9,300 Confirmed Cases In China

Restrictions imposed in Wuhan

Wuhan, which is the origin of the epidemic is also the core area of prevention and control. In order to contain the spread of Coronavirus, Wuhan has imposed several restrictions over urban transport and movement of people, he said.

"These are strict, decisive but necessary measures to control the epidemic in a bid to bring the situation back to normal as soon as possible," he added.

READ | French Doctor Stays In Wuhan To Fight Coronavirus, Says 'I'm More Useful Here'

Sun Weidong also mentioned that the Chinese government has gathered national resources and opened green channels to ensure the supply of medical equipment in Hubei province. He added that all supermarkets are open, the commodity prices are stable and supplies of daily necessities are sufficient in Wuhan.

"Entrusted by President Xi Jinping, Premier Li Keqiang went to Wuhan to give directions about prevention and control work. As of January 30, over 50 medical teams with over 6,000 doctors and nurses have arrived in Hubei to support the battle against the epidemic. Donations of money and materials have poured into the region," he said.

READ | China's Coronavirus May Help Boost US Jobs, Says US Secretary Of Commerce

(With inputs from ANI)

(Image credits: PTI)
Everyone, especially high-ranking military officers, should read Richard L. Hasens Jan. 26 Outlook essay, The 2020 loser may not concede. Their voters wont, either. Even if defeated at the polls, President Trump may not concede, staying in the White House and giving orders, backed by his enablers and his armed militia allies.
Nouakchott, Mauritania (PANA) - The Nouakchott tribunal Friday sentenced to two years imprisonment eight members of a homosexual community who pleaded guilty to the offense of indecency, judicial sources told PANA here
Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan said that the country's authorities will limit the cash turnover in the republic. The announcement was made during a working discussion in the government of the draft bill On non-cash payments in Armenia.

"This issue is important for us not only in economic or anti-corruption but also in civilization terms," the prime minister said.

According to Pashinyan, such a measure will help to increase the international rating of Armenia.
Tiffany Dena Loftin stood barefoot inside a slave dungeon at Cape Coast Castle in Ghana and cried. A tour guide was explaining the horrific conditions captured Africans endured inside those walls more than 400 years ago.

Black bodies were chained together; women on one side, men on the other. There was no toilet or light or water, and little air. Food was thrown onto the floor through a tiny slit in the wall. The small dungeons were hot and dark, each crowded with as many as 100 bodies steeped in blood, sweat, tears and human waste. Those who did not survive the horrific conditions were thrown into the Atlantic Ocean and eaten by sharks.

White chalk markings on the walls three or four feet high were left by the archaeologists who had to dig through centuries-old piles of dirt, food and human remains to get to the bottom of the dungeon.

They had to live in their own filth, sleep in it for months, said Loftin, 30. (Slave traders) didnt even consider us human beings.

She took off her shoes in the dungeon to feel the floor underneath her feet where so many Africans had suffered. Overwhelmed, she broke down and cried. A tour guide, Michael Orleans, comforted her.

He told me, I want you in your tears to recognize that your ancestors who fought, struggled and died are rejoicing because the journey that they could not complete to return back home, they used you to do it. They used you to finish the journey that they could not finish. Welcome home, remembers Loftin. I cannot tell you how powerful that moment was to me.

A tour guide comforts NAACP Youth and College Director Tiffany Dena Loftin iinside the Cape Coast Slave Castle on Ghana's coast. Africans captured by slave traders were herded inside small dungeons and endured horrendous conditions before being put on a ship to lands unknown. Those who died were thrown to the sharks; those who survived were sent across the sea in chains.

Loftin, director of the NAACPs Youth and College Division, was part of a nearly 300-person delegation from the organization that visited Ghana last August in celebration of the countrys Year of Return. The NAACPs journey started in Jamestown, Virginia, the first permanent English colony, less than an hours drive from where the 20 and odd Africans landed at Point Comfort in 1619.

For 400 years we have been here, building, participating, liberating as well as making democracy work, NAACP President Derrick Johnson told the crowd in Jamestown as they prayed and held rituals to honor the ancestors. We are embarking on this journey in this 'Sankofa' moment to understand the ground we stand on. (The term Sankofa is of Ghanaian origin and relates to the concept of finding wisdom in the past and bringing it into the present.)

Story continues

The spirit of DuBois

The first stop after landing in Ghana was to another Jamestown, one of the oldest districts in the capital city of Accra, to be welcomed by President Nana Akufo-Addo for a 10-day visit that included an economic business summit and tours of the W.E.B. DuBois Memorial Centre for Pan African Culture and the Kwame Nkrumah Memorial.

DuBois, who in 1909 was a principal co-founder of the NAACP, is recognized as the father of Pan-Africanism, an idea that Africans on the continent and those of African ancestry in Western countries should bond over their shared heritage and work together toward common social and economic goals. DuBois moved to Ghana in 1961 at the invitation of Nkrumah, Ghanas first president, after the country gained its independence from Great Britain in 1957. DuBois died on the eve of the 1963 March on Washington, while working on an encyclopedia of Africa. He and his wife, Shirley Graham DuBois, are buried in a mausoleum on the grounds of the DuBois Centre.

More: Martin Luther King Jr.'s son still works to achieve the dream: 'The work is nowhere near complete'

More: Martin Luther King III on MLK legacy: Respect, reason work better than political insults

DuBois was not the only U.S. civil rights leader to embrace Ghana. The King Papers Project at Stanford University notes that Martin Luther King Jr., who attended Ghanas independence ceremony, saw parallels in the country's struggle for freedom and the civil rights movement in America. Coming as it did after the success of the Montgomery bus boycott, the celebration in Ghana gave him hope.

Cape Coast Castle is a fortress used to confine Africans in Ghana before they were shipped abroad in the trans-Atlantic slave trade. Between 1513 and the end of the 19th century, when the slave trade ended, some 24 million Africans were shipped to the Americas by English, Portuguese, French and Dutch traders.

King told a Ghanaian radio station that Ghanas new independence, will give impetus to oppressed peoples all over the world. I think it will have worldwide implications and repercussions  not only for Asia and Africa, but also for America It renews my conviction in the ultimate triumph of justice.

Former congresswoman Diane Watson (D-Calif.) joined the NAACPs journey to mark African Americans' connections to Ghana. During her 12 years in Congress, Watson served on the foreign affairs committee and traveled to Africa many times.

More on Ghana: They came to Rochester from Ghana dreaming of making 'America's Got Talent.' Can they beat the odds?

These are our roots. These are our people, Watson said during a bus ride to the village of Kumasi, about 130 miles from Cape Coast Castle. Were learning about the passage that brought us to the United States, the hardship we endured, and that only the strong survived.

One hardship was a miles long trek to the Assin Manso Slave River, where captured Africans were bathed before they were branded, auctioned and either marched or taken by boat 40 miles to the slave dungeons on the coast.

Our souls floated through that water, said Paul Wallace, 65, a cosmetic dermatologist from Los Angeles interested in opening medical spas in Ghana. And the river flowed like tears, the tears of our ancestors.

Tears and awakening

The journey to Ghana was emotional for many in the group, including the nearly 100 people in the delegation who were on an active search for their roots. They had sent in DNA samples to African Ancestry to find out where on the continent they might come from. The reveal took place at Cape Coast Castle and the Hanes family of Howard County, Maryland, was called up last.

While others in the group had DNA that could be traced to Senegal, Sierra Leone, Nigeria and other African countries, the Haneses were the only ones whose DNA could be traced to Ghana.

Dr. Lesley Hanes stands outside the Assin Manso Last Bath Slave River with her daughters, Jasmine, 14, (left) and Maya, 10. The river is where captured Africans were taken for their last bath before being shipped to the western world.

Lesley Hanes, who traveled to Ghana with her two daughters, Maya, 10 and Jasmine, 14, and her 75-year-old mother, Ophelia Stephens, says she was shocked.

That means that there was a girl who was able to survive in one of those dungeons right underneath our feet, said Hanes, 43. To think that there was a girl who looked like me or one of my daughters who was down there, who was able to make it, gave me chills. 

Hanes says she had an awakening in Ghana. Some parts of the trip were mesmerizing, she said. The group learned about Ghanas history at Independence Square in Accra. They were guests at the Akawasidae Festival in Kumasi, a commemoration of ancestors held every 42 days. The group visited Ashanti craft villages and bartered at the open air Makola Market, where between 6,000 and 8,000 vendors sell everything from food to jewelry to household goods.

Other parts, like the tour of the Cape Coast Slave Castle, left her speechless.

To have this architecturally and structurally beautiful place, a very majestic and pretty castle, but then to know these demonic practices were happening within its bowels  enslaved people, tortured people, depriving people of their humanity  the juxtaposition was a little overwhelming, said Hanes, a physician for the Food and Drug Administration.

Wallace left Africa recharged. Im so proud that those individuals, my people who had the will to live and the belief of a living spirit held on, said Wallace. Ive got to pass this on to the next generation. I have a moral obligation to pass on what I saw and let everyone know who we are.



Lottie L. Joiner is editor-in-chief of The Crisis magazine. Her visit to Ghana with the NAACP was partially funded by the Pulitzer Center.

This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Year of Return: NAACP honors African ancestors with journey to Ghana
Margie Kenny, Billy Dixon,Sean Whelan, Una Heffernan, Sheila Whelan, Mary Dixon and Geoffrey Johnson at Avoca Senior Citizens recent party in the Woodenbridge Hotel

Annacurra: Couple to be awarded Bene Merenti Medal - Father John-Paul Sheridan is delighted to announce that Pope Francis has awarded the Bene Merenti Medal to Jimmy and Maura Whelan, in acknowledgement of their long and dedicated service to the parish of St. Brigid. Annacurra.

Bishop Brennan will confer the honour at the Saturday evening mass at 6.30pm, on Saturday 1st February, Feast day of the patron of the Parish. Please come and join in the celebration that night.

Refreshments will be served in the hall afterwards.

Fitness class

Ais is excited to be offering a half price taster workshop on Thursday morning the 27th of February at 10am. This workshop will be a combination of pound and stretching.

Class will begin with a 30 minute pound Rockout drumming inspired Workout. This is a full body workout that combines cardio, conditioning, and strength training with Yoga and Pilates movements, while using lightly weighted drumsticks.

One of the best things about pound is that it can be modified to work for a wide range of ages and abilities. You can adapt the movements and intensity to suit you.

We will end the class with a slow gentle 15 minute stretch. This will give you the opportunity to nourish your body and mind.

Date and time : Thursday 27th February 10am to 10.45am . Cost : 4

All you need to bring along is yoga mat/towel.

This class will continue if there is enough interested, which will then be a 4 week block period payment of 30 per block. Feel free to contact Ais with any questions you may have on 0860692799.

Yoga class for children

Proposed Yoga class for Children with Aoife from Enlighten Yoga. Due to expression of interest a proposed children's yoga class may commence Thursday 5th March. Venue: Annacurra Community hall. We are offering two times you can choose from as need numbers to proceed. Times 2.45pm to 3.30pm and 4.15pm to 5.00pm. Age group 5 to 11. Cost: 24 per four-week block

Introducing yoga to your children helps establish healthy habits at an early age. Yoga can enhance your child's strength, coordination and flexibility, while encouraging body awareness and self-esteem. It can reduce your child's anxiety and stress and promote a sense of calmness

Please note minimum numbers need to be reached before class can commence

For more information or to secure a place for your child, please call Aoife from Enlighten Yoga on 085 130 2360.

Tae Kwon Do Class for children

Doreen Kenny, recently made history, by becoming the first woman in Europe to achieve the rank of Tae Kwan Do master. Doreen continues her classes in Annacurra Community hall on Wednesdays from 4.30. Book now to secure place. Time: 4.30 to 5.30.

Cost : 25 per month ( monthly fees only ). Age group: 5 to 12

Taekwon Do is renowned for developing focus, co-ordination, physical strength, self confidence, agility, balance, discipline and respect

For further information or to book a place in class, please contact Doreen on 086 1631271

Adult tai chi class

Tai Chi & Qi Gong beginners class . Venue :Annacurra Community Hall.

Wednesday mornings from 11.00 am to 12 midday. Cost 80 for 8 week block Class suitable for adults of all ages.

Tai Chi & Qi Gong helps to relieve stress, increase stamina, improve balance and prevent falls. It also helps to increases flexibility and mobility and has many other health benefits.

For further information or book a place please contact Ann @ 087/6081219 Solarsoundhealingwicklow@gmail.com

Ann Martin is a Registered Instructor with the Jade Sun School of Tai Chi & Qi Gong www.jadesuntaichi.com.

Barnardos used stamp appeal

Thank you to all who have helped with this appeal. Thousands of stamps collected during the past few weeks.

The collection boxes, are still at the following locations Annacurra Church. The Saltee Pub and Londis, Aughrim.

Please help spread the word, by asking your family, friends and colleagues, to help with this worthy cause.

GAA Lotto

Results for January 20th. Numbers drawn 4-6-11-22. No jackpot winner. Match 3 winner Kathleen Carr, Annacurra. Next Jackpot 2400.

Draw held in Saltee on Monday night.

45 Card Drive

45 card drive will be on Friday January 31 in The saltee starting at 9pm.

Notes

Items to be included in Annacurra notes can be emailed to annacurra@gmail.com by 9 pm on Sunday evening or phone 0833136925 .

Avoca

Bingo

Bingo is played eery Wednesday Night in Avoca Community Hall at 8.30 p.m. Jackpots were not won on Wednesday, January 22. Next Bingo will be on Wednesday, January 29. The Small jackpot will be 375 and Main jackpot will be 2,475. Make sure you all come along for a great night out. Hope to see you there.

GAA lotto

On January 22 the winning numbers were 6, 10, 11 and 13. No jackpot winner. Seven match-three winners: Ava Doyle c/o Ger; PJ O'Neill, Corballis; Allison Dickenson; Tommy Byrne, Arklow; Liam Reid, Avoca; Fluskey Boys, Avoca and David Massey c/o P Hickey, who each receive 15. Seller's prize: Liza and Laura c/o Glenhaven Next draw takes place on January 29 when the jackpot will be 1,000. Best of luck to everyone.

St Pat's 50/50 Draw

Winners for January 20 to January 1 80: Josh Cheetham, c/o Mairead; second 50: Mairead Snell, Avoca; third 30: Noel Doran, Avoca. Seller's prize: Hendley's Shop. Next Draw in Fitzgerald's.

Avoca Community Hall

Avoca Community Hall staff, users and managing committee are delighted to welcome five new directors to the Avoca Community Hall's Limited Company. They were elected on Thursday, January 16, at an EGM called by the outgoing directors, all of whom have retired.

The managing committee and the local community look forward to working with our new directors to ensure the hall continues to provide Avoca with this much valued community facility.

Bookings are welcome as we have some availability. The hall may be booked by phoning 0402 30549 or alternatively our email address is avocacommunityhall@hotmail.com. As a committee working to maintain this community resource we welcome all feedback and any assistance from the community.

Avoca National School

If you wish to enrol your child at Avoca NS for the coming academic year, please call to the school for an application form or alternatively one can be downloaded and printed off from the school website: avocaschool.ie. The school will hold an Open Morning on Friday, February 7, from 10 a.m. to 11.30 a.m. All are welcome.

Castletown

GAA club news

Castletown Liam Mellows GAA Healthy Clubs would love for you to be part of our 'get up, get active and get involved' initiative for 2020.

We have lots of classes and events happening over the coming months.

Chair yoga continues every Monday morning at 10.45 a.m. in the Golden Anchor.

Yoga with Caroline runs every Monday night in the clubhouse from 8 p.m. to 9 p.m.

Thursday morning yoga class from 10.30 a.m. to 11.30 a.m. in the clubhouse, starting Thursday, January 23, for four weeks. All yoga classes are 6 per class and are open to both men and women.

ART CLASS - Introduction to acrylic painting. A six-week course (80) starts on Wednesday, February 5, from 7 p.m. to 9 p.m. in the clubhouse, Castletown. Course instructor: Margaret Condren.

Course suitable for complete beginners. This six-week course will give students the basics of acrylic-painting, introducing them to materials, techniques and good painting-habits. Working from an image meaningful to them. Participants will learn by first observing and then by 'doing',

Anyone can attend, whether they're a beginner or a more experienced painter looking to 'brush up' on their art-making through the medium of painting.

For more information, and to book your place, please contact Margaret after 5 p.m. at 086 1799541 or Liz at 086 3879322.

A men's health event will also be happening shortly. Watch this space ...

Giant Poker Drive

Giant Poker Drive in aid of Castletown Liam Mellows G.A.A. takes place on Friday February 7 in The Golden Anchor at 8p.m.

Coolgreany-Johnstown

Coolgreany Drama

The AGM of Coolgreany Drama will be held in St Mogue's Hall, Inch on Tuesday, January 28, at 8 p.m.

The group will be electing a new committee for the coming year at the meeting. Some exciting and interesting drama activity is planned for 2020. New members are very welcome.

For further information, phone 086 8907118.

We would like to wish our members, friends and supporters all the best for 2020.

Fun Variety Night

Please join us for a variety night showcasing lots of local talent. The night will be packed with many of our very talented young performers from across the community. Comedy sketches/song/dance/recitation/stand-up/drama. A fun-filled night suitable for the whole family.

St Mogue's Hall Inch Friday, February 7, at 8 p.m. 10 adult/5 under-16

80th birthday

Congratulations to Joanie Fanning Gurteen, who celebrated her 80th birthday with a big gathering with her family, some of whom came home from America for the occasion, and a number of close friends, who all enjoyed a great night together.

Castletown - Liam Mellows GAA

Castletown Liam Mellows GAA Healthy Clubs would love for you to be part of our 'get up, get active and get involved' initiative for 2020.

We have lots of classes and events happening over the coming months.

Chair yoga continues every Monday morning at 10.45 a.m. in the Golden Anchor.

Yoga with Caroline runs every Monday night in the clubhouse from 8 p.m. to 9 p.m.

Thursday morning yoga class from 10.30 a.m. to 11.30 a.m. in the clubhouse, starting Thursday, January 23, for four weeks. All yoga classes are 6 per class and are open to both men and women.

Art class

Introduction to acrylic painting. A six-week course (80) starts on Wednesday, February 5, from 7 p.m. to 9 p.m. in the clubhouse, Castletown. Course instructor: Margaret Condren.

Course suitable for complete beginners. This six-week course will give students the basics of acrylic-painting, introducing them to materials, techniques and good painting-habits. Working from an image meaningful to them. Participants will learn by first observing and then by 'doing',

Anyone can attend, whether they're a beginner or a more experienced painter looking to 'brush up' on their art-making through the medium of painting.

For more information, and to book your place, please contact Margaret after 5 p.m. at 086 1799541 or Liz at 086 3879322.

A men's health event will also be happening shortly. Watch this space ...

45 Card Drive

There will be a 45 card Drive in the Woodenbridge Hotel on Sunday, February 9, at 7.30 p.m.

Old Kilnenor Historical Society Talk

We are delighted to announce that our next talk will be from Dr Cliodhna Ni Lionain on 'The find of a lifetime'. The recently discovered burial chambers on the historic Bru na Boinne Heritage Site - Thursday, February 20, in Shamrock Hall, Kilanerin Y25 RC58 at 8 p.m. Admission 5.

Local Notes

May we wish everyone who has been good enough to supply messages and emails for the Local Notes a very Happy New Year and a sincere thanks for all your efforts and looking forward to that support again in 2020. Phone: 087 4605166.
We have to make sure that we empower people to assist them Quit or Switch

With a large disease and economic burden due to tobacco harm, India is among the top countries with a high rate of oral cancer. India sees around one lakh new cases of oral cancer each year with more than 90 percent of these attributed to tobacco use Smokeless tobacco products (SLTs) account for over onethird of all tobacco consumed in India. It wouldnt be surprising to know that oral cancer incidence rates are at an all time high of 20 per 100000 population. Oral cancer now accounts for about 30% of all types of cancers in India. Chewing betel quid containing tobacco is a well established cause of oral cancer in India. Apart from this traditional form of smokeless tobacco, tobacco with lime, tobacco tooth powder and other new branded products have gained popularity recently, especially in the backdrop of the gutka ban in several states across India. Nilesh Jain, Managing Director, Harm Reduction Research & Innovation Centre unveils the enormous harm caused by SLTs and the importance of harm reduction intervention for better public health.



What do you feel about the addiction of SLT among people in India?



According to the available literature25.9% of adults use smokeless tobacco in India. People often perceive smokeless as harmless and these products are often promoted and marketed as a less harmful alternative to smoking. The most consumed SLT in India is the chewing form of smokeless tobacco which contains nicotine, the factor responsible for tobacco addiction.

Some chewing tobacco products contain microscopic abrasives which increase the rate of absorption of nicotine and carcinogens into cell membranes. Another factor is the disparities found in the tobacco market due to socio-demographic neighborhood. Lower-income societies often become victims of tobacco marketing. The adults are often induced to start using harmful substances through innovative marketing strategies or through cultural influence. Apparently, women are most commonly found using SLT products. They use their children to purchase tobacco for them, thus exposing children at a very young age resulting in early initiation and addiction. Due to less knowledge and awareness in such communities the usage of smokeless tobacco products is higher. In addition to this, low socio-economic groups also lack the resources required to combat the ill effects or morbidities associated with tobacco consumption making it a clear case of an addiction crisis.

How does the consumption of SLT impact oral health?



For smokeless tobacco users, the risk of cancer to the cheek and gum is nearly 50 times greater than non-users. 60-78% of smokeless tobacco users have been found to have oral lesions. Smokeless tobacco products are known to contain more than 28 constituents that are carcinogenic in nature. The most harmful compounds in smokeless tobacco are tobacco- specific nitrosamines (TSNAs) and their levels are directly related to the risk of cancer. The commonly consumed SLT products like Khaini, Mishri, etc. have a high concentration of TSNAs and have been detected in the saliva of tobacco chewers. Studies state that based on the behavioral differences in the usage of SLT products, the risk of oral cancer is higher among females than in males. Carcinogens present in SLT products are ingested and processed, leading to metabolic activation of carcinogens. Chewing tobacco consists of areca nut, slaked lime, and tobacco which elevates generation of reactive oxygen species (ROS), cellular turnover, collagen synthesis, causes damage to DNA, fibroblast and even chromosomal which overall contributes to oral mucosa fibrosis and ultimately oral cancer. In addition to oral cancer, women also experience increased risk of infertility, pregnancy complications, premature births, low birth weight infants, and stillbirths. Most of the oral cancer cases are diagnosed in the advanced stages and the disfigurement as well as dysfunctionality caused by the treatment further affects the quality of life apart from imposing a financial burden.



What do you think is the remedy?



I believe we need further evidence-based published literature on SLT cessation at par with smoking cessation. Vast amounts of data convincingly demonstrate their presence in various forms of smokeless tobacco, but products available in India have been examined in only scattered studies. Studies assessing the efficacy of SLT cessation interventions must be carried out. Another way to address this will be public education for awareness building on behavioral change on Tobacco consumption and the introduction of harm reduction concepts. Also, there should be an integrated health-care delivery mechanism under the National Health Mission framework working at the district / rural level that is focused on curbing TB, oral cancers and COPD.



How can harm reduction interventions reduce the lethal impact of SLT?



The ability of the person to succeed in quitting substances completely depends on the balance between the individual's motivation to quit substance use and his level of dependence on the substances. We have to make sure that we empower people to assist them to quit or switch to a healthier alternative. For any harm reduction intervention to be effective, the motivation of the substance user is indispensable. Also, the method of intervention is directly related to the assessment of nicotine dependence. Public health professionals can use the Fagerstrom Test for Nicotine Dependence to assess nicotine dependence for referrals and appropriate interventions in the outreach programs. Training related to the well being of the health after substance use through social workers, NGOs and health professionals through cessation techniques and tools can help users understand Reduced Risk Products like proven Swedish Snus. Setting-up and strengthening of cessation facilities including the provision of pharmacological & other RRP treatment facilities at the district level can help us address the issue at the grassroot level. SLT cessation intervention-based research needs to be encouraged, especially in the low-income group countries which have weak tobacco cessation support. Organizations like Harm Reduction Research & Innovation center are actually working towards tobacco cessation and adopt an evidence-based approach to support the policymakers, social planners and product developers to deliver innovative harm reduction techniques and further reduce individual drug-related harm.
La Fheile Bhride - Saint Brigid's Feast Day is celebrated today, Saturday February 1.

The day which has long celebrated the arrival of Spring in Ireland is still alive in Leitrim, with many people recognising the day in various ways.

Brigid is one of Irelands patron saints and was known also as a fertility goddess in Celtic mythology. She is also associated with perpetual, sacred flames, and there is also a shrine dedicated to her in Kildare.

One of the most common traditions of the day is to make a Saint Brigid's Cross. These crosses are relatively simple to make, and traditionally are usually made from fresh rushes, but can also use straw. They are made in a cross shape with a square shape in the middle and then four arms coming along each side. Some believe that the crosses have the power to protect the owners home from harm.

There are two St Brigid's Wells in Leitrim, one is in Inismagrath parish,the other in Oughteragh parish. The wells originate from pagan times and people walk around the wells in a particular order, saying prayers before collecting holy water from the well.

The day is also marked with cooking and baking of new foods and meals to celebrate the end of the long dark winter.

If you need to make a St Brigid's Day cross, check out this video.

Also read: 4.3 million French to read all about Lovely Leitrim
Britain is withdrawing some staff from its embassy and consulates in China due to the coronavirus, the UK government said in a statement on Saturday, Trend with reference to Reuters reports.

As of 31 January, some staff and dependants from the British Embassy and Consulates are being withdrawn from China. Essential staff needed to continue critical work will remain, the statement read.

In the event that the situation deteriorates further, the ability of the British Embassy and Consulates to provide assistance to British nationals from within China may be limited, it said.

As of January 31, the U.S. State Department said it required family members of embassy staff in China under the age of 21 to leave China immediately, a U.S. embassy spokeswoman said.
The first batch of 324 Indians who arrived in Air India special flight from Wuhan (China) in Delhi Saturday morning are being taken to Indo-Tibetan Border Police Chhawla camp in Delhi and an army camp at Manesar in Haryana for medical observation, ANI reported.

Two hundred and eleven of the evacuees are students. Most of the evacuees are from Andhra Pradesh and Kerala and 22 are from Maharashtra.

The Air India Boeing 747 had reached Wuhan on Friday evening with a team of doctors to bring back the Indians who had been stranded in a city in Hubei province, which is now completely locked down over the outbreak.

Also Watch | Air Indias jet carrying Indians from coronavirus-hit Wuhan lands in Delhi

Chinese health officials said on Saturday at least 259 people have died and nearly are 11,800 infected with the novel coronavirus and that the hardest-hit central Chinese province of Hubei reported 45 new fatalities until Friday midnight.

The World Health Organization (WHO) on Friday declared the outbreak as an international public health emergency.

India thanked China for facilitating the special flight to evacuate its citizens from Wuhan.

An Air India flight carrying 324 Indian nationals from the coronavirus hit Hubei Province of China took off from Wuhan in the early hours of Feb 1. Majority of the passengers were Indian students. We sincerely thank the Chinese government for facilitating this flight, the Indian embassy tweeted.

Two Indians were prevented from boarding the special Air India flight from Wuhan by the Chinese immigration authorities because both were running high temperatures. The barred passengers included a man and a woman and they are likely to be quarantined at a facility in Wuhan and checked for coronavirus symptoms.

Screening, isolation

The government had set up a joint team of Airport Health Authority (AHO) and Armed Forces Medical Services (AFMS) for screening the evacuees at the airport. Those suspected of infection will be shifted to an isolation ward at Base Hospital in Delhi Cantonment (BHDC).

The government has also set up two facilities in Delhi and neighbouring Haryana to quarantine the evacuees.

The Indian Army has set up a facility in Manesar near Delhi to screen evacuees from Wuhan. And, the other is a 600-bed hospital in west Delhi identified by the Indo-Tibetan Border Police (ITBP) as an isolation area.

The Indian Army has acted swiftly and created a facility near Manesar where the students can be monitored for a duration of two weeks by a qualified team of doctors and staff members, to watch for any signs of infection, the force said in a statement.

The evacuees will be classified into three groups of suspect case showing any signs of fever, cough, or respiratory distress, close contact and non-contact case and will be treated accordingly.

A close contact person, who is without symptoms but may have visited a seafood, animal market or a health facility or come into contact with a Chinese with symptoms in the last 14 days will be escorted in an earmarked vehicle directly to the quarantine facility.

A non-contact case, who is without any symptom or contact or who does not fit into either (a) or (b) will also be clubbed along with the close contact category and sent to the quarantine facility.

After 14 days, persons with no symptoms will be allowed to go home with their detailed documentation sent to the District/ State surveillance units for further surveillance. Those found infected will be shifted to BHDCs isolation ward for further medical exams and recovery, the army said.

Samples for viral confirmation will be sent to NCDC, Delhi and patients will be discharged only after clinical recovery and two successive negative samples tested for n-COV, it said.

The previously unknown viruswhich is why it is called the novel coronavirusis believed to have emerged in December at a seafood market, which also traded in wild animals in the provincial capital of Wuhan, undergoing an unprecedented lockdown to contain the spread.

The epidemic has spread all across over 20 countries as the Chinese travelled for the Lunar New Year holiday that started last week. It has since ballooned into a global health emergency.

SHARE THIS ARTICLE ON
Source: Xinhua| 2020-02-01 22:14:11|Editor: huaxia

Video Player Close

Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas (C) speaks during an emergency meeting of Arab foreign ministers at the Arab League headquarters in Cairo, Egypt on Feb. 1, 2020. Mahmoud Abbas said here on Saturday that his authority informed the Israeli and U.S. sides that it will "cut all relations" with them over the recently released U.S. peace plan. (Xinhua/Ahmed Gomaa)

CAIRO, Feb. 1 (Xinhua) -- Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas said here on Saturday that his authority informed the Israeli and U.S. sides that it will "cut all relations" with them over the recently released U.S. peace plan.

"We told the Israelis that we will not have any relations with them or with the United States, including security relations," Abbas told an emergency meeting of Arab foreign ministers at the Arab League (AL) headquarters in the Egyptian capital of Cairo.

Announced in Washington on Jan. 28 by U.S. President Donald Trump, in the presence of Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, the U.S. peace plan was rejected by the Palestinians.

Abbas said his authority sent two letters to both Netanyahu and the U.S. Central Intelligence Agency to convey the Palestinian rejection of the deal.

"The U.S. deal is completely rejected once they announced annexing Jerusalem to Israel," Abbas told the Arab foreign ministers in the meeting attended by AL Secretary-General Ahmed Aboul-Gheit.

The Palestinian president said that the United States is a biased mediator, saying that he will head to the United Nations Security Council to protest the deal and find a solution.

He added that Washington wants to abolish former UN resolutions and international legitimacy decisions related to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict and use the new U.S. plan as the only reference.

Abbas revealed that he declined the U.S. requests to receive a copy of the proposed deal, known as the "Deal of the Century," or to receive letters or phone calls from Trump after the deal was announced.

"We have the right to continue our legitimate struggle through peaceful means to end the (Israeli) occupation and establish our independent state," said Abbas, calling for international and regional support for the legitimate rights of the Palestinians.

Abbas urged the formation of an international mechanism to implement the resolutions of international legitimacy and the Arab Peace Initiative endorsed by the AL in Beirut in 2002.

"We will not accept the United States to be the sole mediator of the peace process," Abbas added.

The United States, Israel's main backer, officially recognized Jerusalem as Israel's capital in late 2017 and moved its embassy from Tel Aviv to the holy city later in May 2018.

The Palestinians seek to establish an independent state with East Jerusalem as its capital in light of the UN-proposed two-state solution based on the pre-1967 borders.
The mother of a man killed in Wednesdays oil well blowout in Burleson County has filed a lawsuit against the company responsible for the well.

According to Zehl and Associates PC in Houston, Linda Milanovich of Morris County has filed a temporary restraining order and temporary injunction against Chesapeake Energy Corp. Milanovich is the mother of Windell Beddingfield, who was killed in the blast.

The lawsuit, which asks Chesapeake to preserve all evidence such as safety warnings, photographs and videotape and OSHA records, was filed in Burleson County late Friday. The injunction notes that Milanovichs representation also request their own access to the scene to photograph and document evidence for their own case, should Beddingfields family move to seek a claim against Chesapeake.

Also Friday, the company announced that a second person had died from injuries from the well explosion and fire. Two other people remained hospitalized. The company has not identified the workers.

The accident happened Wednesday afternoon along County Road 127 near Deanville.

Company spokesman Gordon Pennoyer said late Friday afternoon that he was unable to comment on Milanovichs legal filing.
Mother Nature caused some literal whiplash across western Montana Saturday, first teasing people with spring-like record-breaking warmth, then whipping the region with winds that flipped a semi-truck and downed power-lines, leading to outages and road closures.

A 100 mph gust was recorded at Point 6 above Snowbowl, at an elevation of 7,897 feet on Saturday, while the top of Mount Sentinel saw a 96 mph gust at 1:30 p.m., said Bob Nester of the National Weather Service.

Gusts of up to 93 mph, and sustained winds at 60 mph, had all three chair lifts at Snowbowl shut down by noon.

Snowbowl owner Brad Morris said all three will be operating tomorrow morning, so long as the weather permits it.

In the valleys, Missoula saw peak gusts of 56 mph, while winds of 51 mph were recorded in Bonner, 55 mph in Stevensville, and 47 mph in Kalispell, Nester said.

Temperatures likewise climbed Saturday, all the way to 60 degrees in Missoula, setting a record for January and February both, Nester said.

"This will be the warmest day we've ever had this early in the year," he said. "We've never hit 60 between Jan. 1 and Feb. 1, and the same goes through the end of February.  The last time we hit 60 in February was in 2006, on the last day of the month."

But the winds made it tough to enjoy the balmy temperatures.

Deputy Jonathan Stineford with the Missoula County Sheriffs Office said crews responded to power outages and downed lines across the city. Along with downed lines, he said traffic lights malfunctioned.

"We're seeing outages across pretty much the entire south end of the city," he said Saturday afternoon.

NorthWestern Energy posted a warning about downed power lines on its Facebook page and urged caution Saturday afternoon: "Winds are expected to get worse throughout the day, and we anticipate additional outages. If you see a downed line please stay clear and call or report online immediately."

Winds gusting up to 60 mph knocked trees into power lines throughout Flathead County, with the county sheriffs office reporting that nearly the entire area of Libby had no power as of 1 p.m.

We have multiple transmission lines down causing large pockets of outages in Whitefish and Glacier. Crews are working on the transmission line from Hungry Horse to West Glacier as well as the one impacting the Whitefish area, said a statement posted to the Flathead Electric Cooperatives website.

The Montana Department of Transportation also reported that traffic was down to a single lane on U.S. Highway 93 some 4 miles south of Lakeside due to a downed power line Saturday afternoon.

A mile north of Stevensville, a semi-truck flipped over due to high winds at 11 a.m., blocking all four lanes.

Montana Highway Patrol Officer Scott Bennett said the truck was carrying a pallet of produce, heading south to Darby. A towing crew responded from Missoula, but was delayed due to power lines strewn across Highway 93 five miles north of the crash. The truck was righted at about 1:30 p.m.

The 52-year-old driver was transported to the hospital, authorities said.

Even as crews worked to repair downed power lines throughout the western part of the state, high winds pushing tree limbs into power lines continued to knock out power throughout the morning.

According to the Ravalli County Electric Coops website, a power outage just south of Lolo left more than 1,300 people without power. It estimated power would return at around 3 p.m.

An outage map for Northwestern Energy showed power losses in Stevensville, Missoula and throughout Lincoln County.

Missoula Electric Cooperatives website reported that as of 1:45 p.m., more than 1,400 customers had no power.

An approaching cold front shoving warm air ahead of it accounted for the winds, said Nester. "Those peak winds should diminish" by Saturday evening, he said.

"But they'll likely be followed by snow," he said, "as much as 4 inches to 8 inches on Lolo and Lost Trail passes, and maybe an inch in the Missoula Valley."

You must be logged in to react.

Click any reaction to login. Love 0 Funny 0 Wow 0 Sad 0 Angry 1
Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Saturday praised the budget for having "vision" as well as "action" and for its focus on boosting economic growth, as BJP leaders highlighted Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman's key announcements to assert that they will help India become a five trillion-dollar economy by 2024.

BJP leaders, ranging from Modi to Union ministers and organisational leaders, and their allies showered praises on the budget which, however, drew mixed reactions from economists and sharp criticism from the Opposition.

Home Minister Amit Shah said the budget will help fulfil the Modi government's resolve to double the income of farmers and provide "unprecedented" relief to the taxpayers.

In a series of tweets, Shah said world-class highways, railways, ports, airports and metros will be built in the country with the allocation of Rs 100 lakh crore.

"In this budget, the Modi government has taken effective steps to rationalise the tax system, boost basic infrastructure, strengthen the banking system, promote investment and ease of doing business, which will further the Modi government's resolve to make India a five trillion-dollar economy," he said.

BJP president J P Nadda hailed the budget as "visionary, futuristic, growth oriented, transformative and all-inclusive" and said it will ensure development of all sections of society.

Prime Minister Modi dwelt at length on the budget to refer to its various aspects and said it has both "vision and action".

He said the budget has strengthened his government's resolve for "minimum government, maximum governance", will boost the ease of living for the common people, will leave more money in the hands of companies and help farmers double their income.

"I am confident that this budget will boost income and investment, demand and consumption, and energise credit flow and the financial system. The budget will not only fulfil our current needs but also realise our future aspirations in this decade," Modi added.

BJP ally and LJP leader Ram Vilas Paswan, also a Union minister, praised the budget as "historic" and "development-oriented".

Union minister Prakash Javadekar described the budget as "most pragmatic" at a time when the world economy is facing headwinds.

India has not only managed a "good growth rate" but is also marching towards a better rate, he said, adding that the budget will usher in all-round development.

Defence Minister Rajnath Singh said the budget will revive growth and rejuvenate demand in the economy.

It is investment friendly and will go a long way in doubling farmers' income and unshackling Indian industries, he said



"The first budget of the new decade presented by Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman gives an outline of a new and confident India. It is a promising, proactive and progressive budget which will make India healthy and wealthy in coming years," Singh said.

Union minister Nitin Gadkari asserted that the budget will boost growth.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
The Honourable Minister of Mines and Steel Development, Arc. Olamilekan Adegbite, has commended and applauded the officers and men of the Nigeria Security and Civil Defence Corps (NSCDC) over security measures taken to protect the mineral resources in Nigeria. The minister appreciates the Corps effort in tackling the illegal mining of mineral resources in Nigeria despite no financial support from the ministry, which he noted was a drain on the economy that offers no benefit to both States and the Federal Government.

Adegbite gave this commendation while on a courtesy visit to the Commandant General NSCDC Abdullahi Gana Muhammadu at the Corps' headquarters, Abuja on Friday. Though the Minister of State for Mines and Steel Development Dr. Uchechukwu Ogah has been here before onbehalf of the ministry but I decided to be here in person to appreciate the leadership of NSCDC for the efforts giving to the ministry despite no financial backing by the ministry for now, Adegbite stated.

On the other hand, the Commandant General NSCDC Abdullahi Gana Muhammadu, expressed satisfaction for the visit made by the minister, he applauded the Minister's professionalism in co-coordinating the activities in the Mining Sector, since his assumption of office.

Gana assured the Minister that the Corps would continue to support the ministry's initiative in enhancing the mineral sector to ensue national growth. Our mandate is to ensure security of lives and properties. This, we have been doing, and we wont relent, Gana said.

Signed

Ekunola Gbenga

Media Assistant to the Commandant General
Kerala Health Minister KK Shylaja on Saturday said that the cyber cell has arrested three people for spreading misinformation on social media about the deadly coronavirus that traces its origins from the seafood market in the central Chinese province of Wuhan.

A case will also be filed against those who forwarded these messages, the minister added.

The arrested persons hail from Thrissur. Meanwhile, providing updates regarding the condition of the patient found positive with the deadly virus after his return from Wuhan, the minister said, "The patient with coronavirus is stable. 69 people who were in contact with this patient have been identified. A total of 1793 people are currently under monitoring."

A total of 24 results of samples have been received from the Virology Institute, Pune but none of them has turned out to be positive. Another five samples were sent today, she added.

"No need to be afraid," Shylaja stressed.

On Friday, the patient was shifted from Thrissur General Hospital to the isolation ward of Thrissur Medical College.

"The state is not in a difficult situation today," she said.

A total of 1793 people are currently under monitoring.

But today, an additional 322 people have been monitored. 23 people who were diagnosed with the symptoms were admitted to hospitals today. With this, the total number of people who are admitted has increased to 71, the minister noted.

A total number of 268 people have been admitted to the hospital in Kozhikode district in Kerala.

The deadly virus has claimed lives of at least 259 people and infected more than 10,000 others in mainland China.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
A Brisbane couple presumed dead after their hired plane plunged into the sea last week have been identified as Tim and Julie Hudson.

Mr Hudson, 70, an experienced pilot, made a frantic final call for help as their plane rocketed into the ocean.

'Mayday, mayday, mayday, Whiskey November Romeo,' he said to officials as the plane spiraled downwards.

The husband and wife, aged 70 and 52, took off from Caloundra on a scenic flight towards Moreton Island when the man made a mayday call and lost contact with flight controllers on January 22.

Scroll down for audio

Tim and Julie Hudson (pictured) are missing and presumed dead after their hired plane crashed into the ocean

He did not respond to repeated attempts from officials to make further contact with him.

Medical advice provided to the Australian Maritime Safety Authority suggested the couple, who lived in Brisbane's southern bayside area, would not have survived a high speed crash.

A major search was launched for the couple, with authorities finding sheet metal from the body of the aircraft and a wheel scattered north of the island in the hours after the crash.

Aircraft wreckage was later found by police 36 metres below the surface this week, however the bodies of the couple have not been found.

The incident is being investigated by the Australian Transport Safety Bureau.

On Wednesday, another light plane crashed into the ocean off the coast of Fraser Island in Queensland.

The aircraft fell into the water around 100 metres out to sea from the township of Happy Valley, but miraculously the passengers survived.

The couple took off from Caloundra on a scenic flight towards Moreton Island (pictured) when the man made a mayday call and lost contact with flight controllers on January 22

Veteran pilot Gerry Geltch was one of two men on board the plane when it plunged into the sea off Fraser Island in Queensland at about 1.30pm on Wednesday.

Paramedics swam 100 metres out to the wreckage of the plane which landed near the Happy Valley Ambulance base.

Mr Geltch said the pair kicked out the door to the plane to escape aircraft while it was still in the air.

'With an exit out of the water, it's very difficult to exit out of the aircraft. We just kicked the doors open as the aeroplane was going down,' Mr Geltch said, told 7 News.

A spokesperson from the Australian Maritime Safety Authority told Daily Mail Australia that a stress beacon was released from the aircraft prior to the plane hitting the water.

Witnesses on the scene reported two men seen swimming next to the plane in the water before making it to the shore after the crash.

Dramatic footage has shown the moment the men arrived on the beach, with both men wearing white pilots uniforms.

The plane occupants were assisted from the water by other swimmers, before meeting with paramedics on the beach.
By PTI

NEW DELHI: Anger had been building up inside the youth who fired on anti-CAA protesters in Jamia Nagar as he used to watch videos and read content on social media about the killing of two men belonging to right-wing outfits in Uttar Pradesh, a police official said on Friday.

He also used to read reports of protests against the amended law and considered these protests to be "anti-national activities", the official said.

On Thursday, the accused fired a pistol at a group of anti-CAA protesters, injuring Jamia student Shadab Farooq, before walking away while waving the firearm above his head and shouting "Yeh lo aazadi" amid heavy police presence.

He was apprehended from the spot and taken into police custody.

During interrogation, it was revealed that he boarded a bus from his hometown in UP's Jewar and took an auto to the protest site at Jamia after reaching Delhi.

He had planned to go to Shaheen Bagh from there.

He carried a countrymade pistol in his bag and went live on Facebook five times from the protest site and the cover picture of his profile showed him brandishing a sword, a police official said.

He was angry with the protests happening at Jamia and Shaheen Bagh and considered them "anti-national activities" and believed that such protests caused inconvenience, the official said.

In his Facebook profile which has now been deleted, he mentioned that he was taking revenge for "Chandan Bhai", apparently referring to a Chandan Gupta who died after being shot at a motorcycle rally taken out to celebrate Republic Day in 2018 in Uttar Pradesh's Kasganj area.

The shooter was also angry with the killing of Hindu Samaj Party leader Kamlesh Tiwari.

ALSO READ | Jamia firing: Bajrang Dal distances itself from shooter, condemns violence

Tiwari was killed at his house in Lucknow on October 18, 2019 allegedly because of certain provocative statements he had made in the past, the officer said.

On Friday afternoon, the accused was presented before the Juvenile Justice Board and sent to a 14-day protective custody, Deputy Commissioner of Police (Crime) Rajesh Deo said.

The police said they have urged the board to form a medical panel to conduct a bone ossification test to verify his age.

Another official, who did not wish to be identified, said the accused will be given counselling on regular basis to ascertain the circumstances under which he committed the act and if he is suffering from any kind of mental illness or if he was manipulated or influenced by someone which led him to commit the offence.

The counselling by psychiatrists will also help to understand if he is addicted to any drugs.

Since he is a student, textbooks will also be given to him and in case he requires a tuition facility, the same will be offered, he said.

Special attention will be given to the accused at the juvenile home, the official added.
Steve Culbertson has joined Wellspring as the Assistant Director of Education for Wellsprings Arch Bridge School. With 35 years of experience in the field of education, Steve has focused his career on working with students with learning disabilities and emotional trauma. He credits his lifelong commitment, compassion and student championing to his parents, both educators, who managed residential campuses for children.

Steve has worked at psychiatric hospitals and regional education centers throughout Connecticut, Massachusetts and Rhode Island. He has a Bachelor of Science in Elementary Education from Eastern Connecticut State University; Master of Arts and Certificate of Advanced Graduate Studies in Vocational Rehabilitation and School Guidance from Assumption College and a Connecticut Administrative Certificate in Educational Leadership from Southern Connecticut State University.

Steve lives in Torrington and when he has free time, he fosters animals and enjoys traveling.

About Wellspring and the Arch Bridge School

Since its beginning in 1977, Wellspring has progressively expanded its services to provide residential treatment programs in a private school environment for adolescent girls and adult women; therapeutic special education services for residential and day students at their NEASC accredited Arch Bridge School, and extensive outpatient services in Bethlehem, Connecticut.

Wellspring is a multi-service mental health agency and educational center, licensed by the State of Connecticut and accredited by The Joint Commission. Wellsprings excellent reputation for quality care, comprehensive mental health treatment and special education services has accompanied its growth. Wellspring is a non-profit 501(c)(3) organization. Learn more at www.wellspring.org.

xxx

North Kingstown, RI - (January 23, 2020) - Nearly 30,000 winter coats from Ocean State Job Lots Buy, Give, Get program are being distributed in partnership with the USA Veterans & Military Support Foundation throughout New England, New York, New Jersey and Pennsylvania to help local veterans stay warm this winter season.

The Buy, Give, Get program at the closeout discount retailers 139 stores in nine states ran from November - December. The program allowed customers to provide a brand-new, warm winter coat to a veteran in their state and throughout the region. Customers purchased a quality, brand name mens or womens winter coat for $40 (retail value: $80-$120), then gave it back to the store for donation to a veteran. In appreciation of the donation, customers received a $40 Crazy Deal Gift Card to be used for a future purchase at Ocean State Job Lot.

"What started out as a 600-coat test just a few years back has blossomed into one of the largest programs of its kind serving veterans in need across the region, said David Sarlitto, Executive Director, Ocean State Job Lot Charitable Foundation. This program is a true testament to the generosity and patriotism of our customers.

The coats are currently being distributed to veterans organizations throughout the Northeast, in partnership with a multi-state network of more than 50 veteran support agencies, organizations, assistance programs and action groups serving New England, New York, New Jersey and Pennsylvania.

Since 1977 when Ocean State Job Lot was founded, philanthropy has been a critical component of the companys mission. Ocean State Job Lot has the buying power and know-how to acquire product - most notably food, and in this case winter coats - from manufacturers at a fraction of what others, including many food banks pay. All costs such as fees, taxes, labor, warehousing and transportation involved in food donation procurement and logistics are paid by Ocean State Job Lot, ensuring that 100% of every foundation dollar goes to those in need.

For more information about Ocean State Job Lot, visit www.oceanstatejoblot.com or visit the store nearest you.

Residential community welcomes executive director

WATERTOWN  The nearly completed The Ivy at Watertown Assisted Living Residential Community at 655 Straits Turnpike on the Watertown/Middlebury border, recently welcomed Jason Rieger of Wallingford as executive director.

The Ivy is a family-run business, said Rieger. So it is more resident- and employee-centered in regards to the companys focus. With my first interview, I could tell that this company sincerely cares about every person they hire as team members.

Officially named executive director in October 2019, Rieger has been focused on hiring the complete line of staff required in an assisted living community, from RNs, LPNs and C.N.A.s to reception, housekeeping, activities, dining room, and maintenance personnel. The number one thing I search for in every job applicant is that he or she is a warm and approachable person. Team members who care for residents with compassion and respect, and are willing to go the extra mile for the residents and their team members, are the individuals we seek.

As executive director, Rieger will oversee the administration of operations including the many amenities and services such as dining, housekeeping, activities, maintenance, transportation, nursing, and wellness plus service providers such as physicians, home health providers, life enhancement professionals and entertainers from the greater local Watertown/Middlebury community.

To learn more about The Ivy at Watertown Assisted Living Residential Community, visit https://arborsassistedliving.com/location/Watertown, call 860-483-8141, or email to ivy@ivyassistedliving.com. The facility is scheduled to open in February.

Fund supports affordable childcare for single working moms

TORRINGTON  The Women & Girls Fund, a fund of the Northwest Connecticut Community Foundation has awarded a grant of $1,000 to Winsted Area Child Care Center to support child care tuition subsidies for children of single working mothers.

Getting a job is just half the story for single working moms, said Frances Stoffer, Vice Chair of the Women and Girls Executive Committee, in a statement. They also need dependable, secure childcare before they can take that job. With this grant, we help women and their families get one step closer to financial independence.

The Women & Girls Fund awards grants in support of local organizations that are working to develop economic self-sufficiency for women by means of education, financial literacy and social services.

Established as a giving circle in 1999 by a small group of women who shared a concern for the real-life needs of local women and girls, the Women & Girls Fund has awarded more than $60,000 to organizations that work to help women and girls develop skills, attain economic security, and improve their quality of life.

In recent years, the fund has awarded grants to support childcare scholarships for working mothers, assist unemployed women to enter the workforce, provide automobiles to working women who need transportation, enhance economic opportunities and promote self-sufficiency for women leaving abusive relationships, and fund leadership and assertiveness workshops for high school girls.

For more information, visit www.northwestcf.org/womenandgirls
President George Washington was unambiguous: It is our true policy to steer clear of permanent alliance with any portion of the foreign world.

President Jefferson was equally explicit: Peace, commerce, and honest friendship with all nations, entangling alliances with none.

President Monroe formalized that policy. The Monroe Doctrines first point stated the U.S. wouldnt interfere in the internal affairs or wars of other nations.

Sadly, weve abandoned the Founders intentions, engaging in a series of undeclared wars the last 75 years at great cost of lives and treasure, forgetting Ben Franklins wise counsel: There never was a good war or a bad peace.

Today, in the 19th year of an undeclared war, Afghanistan has cost us thousands of lives lost, tens of thousands wounded, and $1 trillion. The broader war on terror, including the undeclared war in Iraq, totals $7 trillion.

Why are we losing trillions of dollars and thousands of lives in foreign conflicts? Because Congress refuses to follow the Constitution and  if these conflicts truly require our involvement  declare war before committing American troops.

Section 8 of the Constitution makes clear: only Congress shall have the power to declare war.

So whats the purpose of declaring war? More than just a piece of paper. Declaring war puts another country or faction on notice, changing the relationship between the citizens and governments of countries involved. Historically, letters of marque and reprisal allowed actions considered naval piracy during peace to become legal under declaration of war.

Words have meaning, and ignoring them has results; 230 years after ratifying our Constitution, the U.S. has gone from having no standing army to more military spending than the next seven highest-spending countries combined.

Attempting to be the worlds police force comes at a staggering cost, compounded year after year. This years federal deficit was $1 trillion despite record tax collections. Even if you have no moral issue with policing the world, American taxpayers simply cant afford it. Were tired of the death and destruction stretching us to the breaking point, with a record-high national debt of $23 trillion.

A poll by Concerned Veterans for America found 60 percent of veterans and military families support removing troops from Afghanistan. A Politico poll found 81 percent of Trump voters in particular support withdrawal, and Pew Research found 59 percent of adults and 58 percent of veterans said it wasnt worth fighting there in the first place. Even higher numbers agreed regarding Iraq.

As former Congressman Ron Paul wrote in his book, Freedom Under Siege, Carelessly entering into conflicts jeopardizes our liberty. It does not protect it. Intervention abroad causes us to neglect our obligations at home. The moral and constitutional obligations of our representatives in Washington are to protect our liberty, not coddle the world, precipitating no-win wars, while bringing bankruptcy and economic turmoil to our people.

And as President Trump said in his 2019 State of the Union Address, Great nations do not fight endless wars. ...After two decades of war, the hour has come to at least try for peace.

I agree. I support our troops. I salute their commitment and heroism. What I cannot support are unconstitutional, undeclared wars that force our troops to fight and die in foreign lands.

Congress has a duty and obligation to decide when war is necessary and when its not, but they have refused to declare war or to exercise responsible oversight over use of our military. To abdicate this vital responsibility to the executive branch is a dereliction of duty.

But we have a duty and opportunity to act here at home as well.

Recently, the Idaho Republican Partys state central committee adopted resolutions urging our Congressional delegation to support President Trumps efforts to end what he called these ridiculous endless wars and bring our troops home.

As lieutenant governor, I support efforts by Rep. Tammy Nichols  backed by former Idaho National Guard Sgt. Dan McKnight and BringOurTroopsHome.US  to enact Defend the Guard legislation requiring that Idahos Guard personnel shall not be activated for combat duty overseas unless Congress has first declared war. In November, I chaired a meeting of state legislators in Washington, D.C., who plan to introduce similar legislation in multiple states.

Its time to leave Afghanistan and Iraq and stop engaging in undeclared wars and attempts to police the world. We shouldnt sacrifice American lives intervening in the conflicts of other nations, and we cant afford it. Congress should do their job, end these undeclared wars, and bring our troops home.

Love 1 Funny 0 Wow 0 Sad 0 Angry 0
Appreciations View(s):

A doyen of the public service

Shelton Wanasinghe

Born on June 16, 1926 in Seeduwa, Shelton Wanasinghe was educated at St. Marys College, Negombo. He graduated from the University of Ceylon (1943-1946). He married Ruby and they had two children-Mala and Jayani. Jayani, a dear friend of my eldest daughter married Upali Amarasiri, a student of mine.

In 1967 when I joined the Ceylon Administrative Service, Shelton Wanasinghe was my Chief Trainer in public administration. When I published a book in 2008 he chaired the book launch.

In September 1967 I was admitted to the then Ceylon Administrative Service (CAS), as a probationer. The CAS appointment letter informed me that I should report for training at No. 3 Glen Aber Place, near Bambalapitiya Railway Station, on October 1st 1967. My batchmates and I met a person who headed the training institute  one of the most senior Ceylon Civil Service products  Shelton Wanasinghe. He belonged to the era of Godfrey Gunatilleke, Mahinda Silva- very senior Civil Servants of the day. In fact, they too joined our Induction Training Programme as Resource Persons on his invitation. It took only a short while for us to realise that Shelton Wanasinghe was the best dressed, friendly, kind hearted Chief Trainer who dealt with any serious issue with ease.

When we were told that Shelton Wanasinghe had been the Government Agent (GA) -Vavuniya and Kurunegala, we were excited. Our view of a GA was that he was not only Government Agent, but God Almighty too. When we heard that he was the Commissioner of Cooperative Development and Registrar of Cooperative Societies (CCD), it gave us extra attraction to the public service, especially because it was another down to earth peoples movement. That was an era where we had only one CCD, unlike today where we have one at the centre and nine others in the Provinces.

His knowledge on agriculture and land development was enhanced with his service in the dry zone. As a GA he had accumulated wide knowledge and experience in district administration- drought-related disaster management, water management in irrigation systems, and poverty alleviation methodologies. Working in the Treasury as a Deputy Secretary he earned knowledge in Revenue  Expenditure administration. This was further exhibited latterly as the Chairman of the Tax Commission. As CCD he expanded his vistas to grass-root level development, thrift, savings, and consumer needs administration. He was the Director General Public Administration at the time when the public service was under the Secretary to the Treasury. With human resources management activities he focused on upgrading the skills of public officers at all levels and general improvement of public administration.

With all this expertise he was an instant choice to serve the UN in Bangkok as Special Advisor, Economic and Social Commission for Asia (ESCAP) which he did for nearly 15 years. His spell at the ESCAP was as productive as his career here. He serviced the neighbouring country programmes excellently, which made the ESCAP extend his services for a long duration, a tribute to his knowledge and capacity.

On his return he was engaged by the government and private sector in other areas of management. He was in the private banking sector in the Commercial Bank as a Director, Chairman, Director of the Centre for Policy Alternatives, a well-recognized non-governmental organization, Chairman, Human Resource Development Council  a state sponsored human resource development organization, and, Senior Researcher, Institute of Policy Studies dedicated to policy development and research. He was essentially a man for all seasons. His academic focus was evident with his service rendered to Marga Institute headed by his friend Godfrey Gunatilleke.

Being the Chairman of the Administrative Reforms Committee was a landmark combination of his experience and deep conceptualization, since it looked at reforms in the public sector, which is a crying need even today. He was a great believer in power sharing and a Government executing the principle of subsidiarity. He considered that some centralized public administration structures are a bane for development, less democratic and that social and political issues should be dealt with at the most immediate and accountable local level. Therefore, for this he focused on a strong devolved government system to be in place.

His Committee Report went through as ten reports covering important topics. Unfortunately, his recommendations fell by the wayside, allegedly due to lack of political will, resistance from conservative bureaucrats and public apathy. Shelton Wanasinghe himself has told us that presentation of the recommendations on a staggered basis in ten different topics encouraged a piecemeal approach to implementation. He lamented on this and expressed at discussions that his findings, assumptions and recommendations are still valid and appropriate any day.

He was at many events that promoted power sharing mechanisms. I was aware that he was interested in improving the 13th Amendment and was involved in trying to rationalize the three lists in it to two, for better acceptance and ease of implementation.

I think the present government which is also lamenting the performance of the public service and the public sector could study the reports and select suitable recommendations to make the public service efficient and effective. His works would be a great source to identify the best solutions for the problems we face in public administration. If reforms are to be introduced, rather than appointing Experts Committees, as the usual practice by politicians, one may look at the Wanasinghe Committee Reports for appropriate solutions, which will also amount to respecting a deserving individual the most, while saving time.

Therefore, his not being among us is a sad loss at this juncture.

For his overall and comprehensive contribution in the said fields, he was conferred an Honorary Doctorate by the Sri Jayewardenepura University in 1992.

Now when a new SLAS officer enters the colossal training institute, the Sri Lanka Institute of Development Administration(SLIDA) at Longdon Place, he or she may not be remember the initiator of the Institute, and what he was. The induction training, on the job training, upgrading of various managerial skills required for efficient and effective governance were introduced during his short tenure as the Director of SLIDA. The SLIDA Library has a section dedicated to him with his donated collection of books and the library has been named after him too.

To those who knew him as a superior or subordinate or colleague, this appreciation is to be grateful to an honourable human being and friend, who indulged in policy reform in many sectors and a happy but serious, straightforward public officer. It is shared with his family who miss a beloved family member, from whom they received unlimited love, religious attachment, friendliness and guidance.

On his fifth death anniversary, let us pray we meet many like Dr. Shelton Wanasinghe. May we foster many like him. May he rest in peace.

Austin Fernando

A beloved brother who played the role of a mother

V. PAVITRA NAIDU

Those were the days, my dearly beloved brother, when we flew around on the gossamer wings of love and laughter. Yes, those were the wonderful and exquisite moments of our childhood and adolescence, which are etched so deeply in my heart, that they can never be erased.

Even today I can still visualize your face, hear your voice and feel that same emotional tug at my heartstrings, when I think of you. Our house in Daryaganj, Delhi, that haven of repose and calm, was where I had my life  the Mathematics tuitions, with a very proficient teacher  you, and an extremely dull student  me. You truly toiled and laboured to put some Maths sense into my thick head. Unfortunately, all your sincere efforts were in vain. Every Maths class became a debacle. You declared that I was definitely a dunce (accompanied by a knock on my head), followed by a shrill, piercing cry, which would have put a banshee to shame and so the class ended. How I wish you can return and knock me on the head even ten times once again my dear Annan.

Another aspect of my life after we moved to Calcutta, which you influenced in a great manner, was my academic performance at school. I remember clearly, how I returned home, on shaky legs, holding my report card with trembling hands. Every mark, every comment went through a detailed scrutiny, which was followed by an eloquent lecture on the value of education in a persons life. Thank you, for exercising that degree of concern and care, for being strict with me, not only in studies, but in every single aspect of my life. Where did I learn the importance of punctuality, regularity, neatness and decorum? From an extraordinary disciplined person  YOU.

This intense thirst for knowledge and reading in particular was something I learnt, by trying to imitate you. What pleasant hours were they, when I, a teenager, indulged in very rewarding and insightful discussions with you?

What pleasant hours were they when you shared your experiences on the trips you had abroad, as an Assistant Manager in Air India? What pleasant hours were they, when I looked in your wardrobe, found some bottles of Old Spice, some fragrant mens colognes, and used them? Only to be reprimanded later.

Our mothers sudden death at the age of 58, caught all of us unawares. How kind you were to me by transforming yourself into my surrogate mother. Every evening, while returning from office, you bought me chocolates and goodies of all sorts. Every Sunday, you took me to watch a Hindi movie. You bought me books and magazines galore to take my mind off the loss. All your free time after office hours and on Sundays you devoted to me. You helped me to combat that feeling of a vacuum left by our Amma.

I still remain your Pappa (baby), as you always called me, even after I became a grandmother. You have not left us, you are still alive, encapsulated in those nostalgic, precious memories, locked away in that treasure trove of my soul,

For life and death are one, as the river and sea are one

Your ever-loving-sister Jamna

You were my best friend and soulmate

Dr. Iyesha Maharoof (nee Jabir)

Iyesha was a devoted wife to me for 30 years and a wonderful mother to Nusrath and Awad. We are blessed to have had her love and presence in our lives. The three of us were by her side when she passed away in the ICU of the Kandy General Hospital on January 28, 2019. Not a single day passes without our eyes getting blurred, when we think about her.

She lived a useful life and to the fullest. She was God-fearing, righteous and lived by the teachings of the Quran and hadith. She stood by the family through thick and thin and enjoyed every minute of it. The well-being of everyone; family, patients, relatives, friends was her priority. She always had time for the sick and the needy. She never spoke ill of anyone and was generous, always willing to share whatever she had. She had Rheumatoid arthritis, but never complained when in pain.

Iyesha had a passion for cooking and loved to entertain her friends and family at home. She was a jovial person, full of energy and life. She wasnt interested in establishing a private practice, but sacrificed the time for the sake of the childrens education. Her efforts are bearing fruit and I sure she must be watching from her permanent abode. She was aware she was going to become a grandmother, but was not able to be there when the baby was born. As a tribute to her, the grandchild was named Yarah Aisha.

Memories of you are all that I am left with. You were my best friend and my soulmate. I am lucky to have a supportive family and many good friends. Friends tell me that time will help me adapt, but it is hard to accept that I wont see your smiling face or hear your gentle voice anymore. None can fill the void. When you passed away, I learned firsthand what loneliness is all about. You would always ask me to please come home early. Now that you are gone, I have found that time to come home early, but there is nobody to come home to. There is nobody to do those simple little things with, such as watching the evening news, listening to music, doing crosswords and reading the papers. I always cherish the moments we spent together, the places we visited. You would join me on my visit to the hotels and the guest houses in all parts of the country and how well you played the part of a constructive critic, which was useful for the reports that I had to write. You used to be my co-driver, enjoy fast driving, always awake and on the lookout for the double lines,the cops and wild elephants.

We will always remember you and have you in our thoughts and prayers and we all hope that we can carry forward your legacy. May Allah be merciful, forgive Iyesha and elevate her rank to be amongst those who are at the highest level of Jannah. Ameen.

Niaz
Two patients from the same family in England have tested positive for coronavirus, the first such cases in Britain, health chiefs said on Friday as an evacuation flight brought Britons home from the centre of the outbreak in China, Trend reports citing Reuters.

Officials had warned that the United Kingdom was highly likely to have cases of the new coronavirus, which first emerged in Chinas central province of Hubei and has killed 213 people so far.

The patients are receiving specialist National Health Service (NHS) care and we are using tried and tested infection-control procedures to prevent further spread of the virus, said Englands chief medical officer, Chris Whitty.

He said the two infected patients, who local media said had been staying at a hotel in the city of York, had been transferred to a specialist infectious disease unit in Newcastle, northeast England.

Whitty said it could turn out to be a relatively minor infection as there was only a 2% mortality rate.

Staff, other patients and the general public would not be at risk, he said, and health officials were tracing those who had been in close contact with the pair.

Whitty also said they were extending their advice so that anyone who had returned from China should self-isolate if they developed symptoms of any kind.

On Thursday, Britain raised the perceived risk level to the country to moderate from low after the World Health Organization (WHO) declared a global health emergency.

A plane transported 83 British nationals from Wuhan, the capital of Hubei, to Britain on Friday before flying on to Madrid to deposit another 27 European Union (EU) citizens, mostly Spaniards.

The Spanish passengers will be quarantined at a military hospital in Madrid, while four Danish citizens and one Norwegian will be flown back to their home countries, according to Spains Health Ministry.

The returning Britons will be quarantined for 14 days at an NHS facility in northwest England.

One of those on board, Ben Williams, told BBC TV he had just got married in China and had been on his honeymoon. He said he had been forced to leave behind his wife, a Chinese national, because they had not had time to arrange for her to come.

Hopefully its only a few months, he said. Its good to be back but I also miss China as well.

Whitty said the intention was to keep those who had returned close to medical services in case they needed them.

What we hope is that all these people will have 14 days isolated from the general public, but not in the sense of solitary confinement, and then they will be able to be released without any symptoms at all, he said.

Senior British minister Michael Gove said Britain would send another plane to Wuhan if necessary.
Akshay Thakur, the third of the four death row convicts at Tihar jail, has filed a mercy petition to President Ram Nath Kovind, according to news agency ANI.

News of Akshay Thakurs request for a presidential pardon emerged minutes after Home Ministry officials confirmed that President Kovind had rejected the mercy plea filed by Vinay Sharma, another convict in the Delhi gang rape case.

Four men - Mukesh Singh (32), Pawan Kumar Gupta (25), Akshay Thakur (31) and Vinay Sharma (26) - were sentenced to death by a fast-track court within a year of the 2012 rape and murder of a 23-year-old paramedic on her way home after watching a movie.

Mukesh Singh and Vinay Sharma had separately filed mercy petitions earlier. Mukesh Singhs request for pardon was rejected last month; Vinay Sharmas request earlier this morning. Both requests were rejected within a record four days.

Akshay Thakur is the third convict to have approached Rashtrapati Bhavan.

The mercy petitions have insulated the death row convicts from execution so far and led a Delhi court to twice freeze the death warrant that had been issued, first to carry out the death sentence on January 22 and next, on February 1.

On Friday, Delhi judge Dharmendra Rana put off the hanging of the four convicts because Vinay Sharmas mercy petition was still pending. Under a 2014 Supreme Court verdict, the judge will have to give the convicts 14 days after the rejection of the mercy petitions to carry out the death sentence.
Email special events to news@registerbee.com. The deadline is noon Wednesday.

FREE COMMUNITY STEW/BAKE SALE

Wesley Chapel United Methodist Church, 2041 Kentuck Road, will hold a free community stew from noon to 1 p.m. Feb. 8. Pre-order and take home a quart for $6 by calling (434) 793-9368, (434) 793-7717 or (434) 203-0617. The United Methodist Women will hold a bake sale with proceeds to go toward the scholarship fund.

BLACK HISTORY PROGRAMS

Zion Grove Baptist Church, 1007 Zion Grove Trail, Clover, will hold a black history program at 3 p.m. Sunday with guests the Rev. Michael Bethel and For God So Loved the World Ministries church family.

Shiloh Missionary Baptist Church, 13602 Martinsville Highway, Cascade, will hold a black history observance each Tuesday in February with Sup and Learn Series at 6 p.m. Tuesday with Howard G. Adams.

GUEST

Senior pastor Apostle Waddell Bulter, of Exousia Outpour International Deliverance Ministries at 785 Edmonds St., will be guest at the House of Prayer and Faith Ministry for the 3 p.m. service Sunday.

SERVICE TIMES FOR NEW CHURCH

Exousia Outpour International Deliverance Ministries, 785 Edmonds St., with senior pastor Apostle Waddell Butler, will hold Sunday worship services at noon; Wednesday service at noon for noon day prayer; Bible study at 7 p.m. Wednesdays; and intercessory prayer at 6 p.m. Wednesdays.

WISDOM WALK FUNDRAISER

The scholarship ministry of New Ephesus Baptist Church, 375 Ephesus Church Road, Semora, North Carolina, will conduct a Wisdom Walk fundraiser beginning at 9 a.m. today in the church parking lot. The purpose is to combine exercise with meditation on the scriptures, reflecting on the blessings of last year and faithful planning for 2020. Certificates and goodie bags will be given to all participants. All donations will be used for scholarships.

ANNIVERSARIES

Pleasant Chapel Baptist Church, Sutherlin, will celebrate its 70th church anniversary at 3 p.m. Feb. 9 with the Rev. Walter Tinsley, pastor of White Rock Baptist Church in Danville, as the anniversary messenger.

Mount Freeman Baptist Church, 2100 Laniers Mill Road, will celebrate the 16th anniversary of the Rev. Robert L. Millner with service at 2:30 p.m. Sunday with the Rev. Marlon Glass, pastor of Guildfield Baptist Church of Dry Fork. as guest minister, accompanied by his church family. Lunch will be served in the lower fellowship hall at 1:30 p.m. The Rev. William Lovelace, associate minister of Mount Freeman, will be the 11 a.m. speaker.

FOUR CHAPLAINS SERVICE

American Legion Post 325 will hold the Four Chaplains Service at 11 a.m. Sunday at Whitmell United Methodist Church, 121 Sunset Drive. All veterans, their families and guests are invited to hear the inspiring true story of the four chaplains who gave more than their lives to save others during a disaster at sea during WWII.

GUEST SPEAKERS

Kirby Wright, CEO and owner of Negril Inc., will be the black history speaker during the 11 a.m. Sunday worship service at Bethel Baptist Church, 6620 Old Richmond Road.

Minister LaKiesha Wilson, associate minister of Bennett Memorial Baptist Church, will be guest speaker at Sunny Level Baptist Church, 485 Milton Highway, Ringgold, for the 11:30 a.m. service Sunday.

BCG OF VIRGINIA

Area E Men & Women Executive Session will meet at Cherrystone Center, Ringgold, at 9 a.m. Feb. 8.
Rajesh Asnani By

Express News Service

JAIPUR: Rajasthan Labor Minister Tika Ram Julie has strongly opposed Central governments plan to bring Coronavirus suspected Indian citizens, who have been brought back from China, to the ESIC Hospital in Alwar.



While speaking to reporters in Alwar, Tika Ram Julie openly expressed his opposition to the Centres plan, 'It's very unfair to bring citizens who might be infected by a disease which has been declared an epidemic by the World Health Organization to Alwar. I have been asking the central government for six years that this hospital, built at a cost of 1000 crores should be run effectively or it should be handed over to the state government. However, the central government did not run this hospital but now they want that victims of the Coronavirus epidemic should be brought to Alwar.'



ALSO READ: Screening for coronavirus to be extended for travellers coming to India from Thailand, Singapore

The Labor Minister further said that this decision could even lead to spreading of the deadly virus in Alwar and said he will take this issue up to higher authorities.

It is to be noted that the central government has set up an isolation ward at the ESIC Hospital in Alwar in which Indians living in China will be staying for 14 days.

Already, 300 Indians have been airlifted from China to protect them from being infected by the deadly Coronavirus.



Special arrangements have been made in the Isolation Ward at the Alwar hospital. A total of 19 doctors and 33 nursing staff from Medical Colleges in Jaipur, Udaipur and Jhunjhunu have been specially posted to the ESIC Hospital in Alwar.

A team of specialists from the Health and Labour ministries in Delhi had visited the Alwar hospital on Friday and inspected all the facilities in the Isolation Ward.



Sources say the Centres plan is to keep Indians brought from China for a '14-day observation' at the Alwar Hospital but if anyone is found a confirmed Coronavirus patient, she will be referred to the local general hospital.



As Dr Ravi Sharma, Co-ordinator PRO says, 'No Coronavirus affected victims are being brought to Alwar.
The commission of inquiry, which was constituted by the Maharashtra government to probe the Bhima-Koregaon violence, has written to the Chief Secretary of the state government stating that it is "unable to function for want of money even for day to day expenses".

The commission was constituted by the Government of Maharashtra vide a notification dated February 9, 2018 under the provisions of Section 3 of the Commissions of Inquiry Act, 1952.

"The commission is unable to function for want of money even for day to day expenses. The staff may not be able to continue due to want of salary," the letter read.

"The commission has observed that after exhausting initial budget of about Rs 52 lakhs, which was hardly adequate, the government either committed delay in sanction of supplementary budget or sanctioned much less amount than was required," it added.

On January 1, 2018, violence had erupted during the 200th-anniversary celebrations of the Bhima-Koregaon battle. One person had lost his life while several others were injured in the incident.

The police had filed 58 cases against 162 people in the matter.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
Giving in to a long-standing demand by domestic companies, finance minister Nirmala Sitharaman on Saturday abolished the Dividend Distribution Tax (DDT), which will now be imposed on investors instead.

We propose to abolish DDT and go back to the old classical way of it being charged in the hands of the receiver, said Sitharaman, adding that the total tax foregone because of the move was estimated at 25,000 crore.

DDT is a tax on dividends distributed by profit-making firms. Given the difficulty of collecting it from individuals, the government asks firms to deduct the tax and pay it on behalf of the investors. Currently, domestic companies pay DDT at 15%, but coupled with a surcharge and cess, the effective tax rate on the shareholder is 20.56%.

Multinational companies headquartered outside India pay a higher tax rate, lower surcharge and no DDT.

DDT was hugely unpopular because it did not allow foreign investors to claim credit in their home jurisdiction and led to increased compliance for companies. Domestic companies were also unhappy, seeing it as an unfair second layer of taxation.

Since dividends have been axed for both stocks and mutual funds, this will be favourable for investors who are in the lower tax brackets while resulting in additional outgo for higher tax bracket investors, said Mrin Agarwal, founder Finsafe India Pvt Ltd.

Particularly in debt funds, abolition of dividends will vastly improve returns for investors in the lower tax brackets, she added. An investor in the 10% tax bracket who earlier paid DDT at 29% on debt fund dividends will now only pay 10%. Capital gains, which are the other way of getting returns in debt funds, are taxed at slab rate for holding periods less than three years. This makes a lower DDT highly beneficial to low tax bracket investors.

The stock market failed to be enthused by the DDT abolition. The benchmark Sensex index of the Bombay Stock Exchange shed 987.96 points or 2.43%, to end at 39,735.53 points at the close of trading. This was largely owing to the levy continuing at marginal rates.

Abolition of DDT could be detrimental to the stock markets. As the dividends will be taxed in the hands of the shareholders at regular tax rate and in case of high net worth individuals at the maximum marginal rates of 43%. This may lead to a higher tax burden for many investors. The expectation was that the shareholders should be taxed at a concessional rates, said Girish Vanvari, founder of tax consultancy Transaction Square

This move was expected to augment the investible funds for corporate entities but it is the impact on individual investors that weighed on market sentiment.

Foreign shareholders stand to gain from the move, as treaties cap the dividend tax at 10% and 15% and can be even claimed as credit in their home jurisdictions, said Amit Maheshwari, partner at Ashok Maheshwary & Associates, a chartered accountants firm.

SHARE THIS ARTICLE ON
The family of Mary Cremin has paid tribute to the much-loved Ballinskelligs woman, who died recently just days short of her 100th birthday.

Her Wake at Fitzgerald's Home, Waterville, and Funeral at St Michael's Church, Dungeagan, were well attended and a fitting tribute to a woman held in high regard.

"Mary was to celebrate her 100th birthday on January 16," her niece, Catherine, told The Kerryman. She had anticipated this greatly and looked forward to celebrating with her extended family and friends but, alas, due to suffering a stroke at her home six days previously, this was not the case despite the efforts of the ambulance crew, the air ambulance crew and staff at University Hospital Kerry.

Mary was born in Meeligoleen on January 16, 1920, and was the third of Julia and Andrew Cremin's eight children.

She helped her siblings on the family farm until her late 20s, before moving to the US with her brother, John. After securing sponsorship courtesy of their Boston-based aunts, they spent some 40 years stateside before returning to their native shores. Their brother, Bobby, had also moved to the US in the interim.

During her time in America, Mary became best-known as Head Supervisor at St Louis Nursing Home in Manhattan, a role she carried out diligently and in an organised manner for over 35 years.

Mary always kept in touch with home, and she returned on holiday annually.

"She never arrived without bringing presents for her family and especially her nieces and nephews in Ballinskelligs," Catherine said. "Her annual trip home was the highlight of the summer holidays, both for her and for the family at home.

"When she returned to the USA, within a few months a parcel would follow to the family at home and to her four young nieces and nephews. The 'Parcel from America' was most exciting and nobody was left disappointed."

After retiring to Ireland in 1987, she surrounded herself with family, neighbours, and pastimes aplenty. She also witnessed great changes in her locality, and while she reminisced on times gone by, she was open-minded and welcoming of change. Described as stoic, resilient, and a woman of strong faith, she also pushed through some difficult times in New York, not least when her nephew was killed in a road accident not far from where she lived.

"Mary was lucky to be able to spend her life in her own home," Catherine said. "This would not have been possible without the help of family and carers, and one in particular, a wonderful lady, Mary Cronin, who was carer to the Cremin family for 15 years.

"She was a wonderful sister and aunt, whose generosity knew no bounds: her wisdom, her memory, her conversations will be remembered by many."

Mary is sadly missed by sisters Tessie and Katie (O'Connell); nieces Catherine, Sheila, Mary and Sheila; nephews, Paudie, Andrew, John and James; grandnephews and grandnieces; relatives; extended family; neighbours; and friends.
DES MOINES  With so much happening on Caucus Day  there are more than 1,700 caucus precincts statewide, 28 national and international satellite locations and expected record-breaking turnout  keeping track of results in real time will be overwhelming.

Here's a way to focus in on Monday: Watch what's unfolding in three counties where voting patterns could signal trends across Iowa and the nation  trends that could prove critical to the outcome of the presidential race.

The three key counties, which the Des Moines Register has profiled over the course of the 2020 caucus cycle, are:

Clinton County, in eastern Iowa, which could be a bellwether for more rural and micropolitan parts of the states with strong union ties and blue-collar roots.

The uber-progressive Johnson County, which will give insight into the progressive battle between U.S. Sens. Bernie Sanders and Elizabeth Warren, as well as youth turnout.

Polk County, where returns will spotlight the states largest Democratic base as well as suburban precincts surrounding Des Moines that were critical to the 2018 Democratic surge.

Clinton County

When Republican President Donald Trump was elected, the spotlight turned to places like Clinton County, with a mostly white and aging population. The county, which borders the Mississippi River, supported Trump in 2016. Voters there had not chosen a Republican for president since Ronald Reagan sought reelection in 1984.

Clinton County was among 31 Iowa counties that flipped from Obama to Trump, with many of them clustered in eastern Iowa and along the Mississippi River. Their communities were built on manufacturing and have been hit hard by declines in population and the economy.

Clinton's caucus night winner may resonate in similar counties across the country. That could be a critical point for candidates who want to argue they're best positioned to win back blue-to-red swing states in the industrial Midwest like Michigan and Pennsylvania.

Story continues

More: How do the Iowa caucuses work and how they are different than a primary?

Picnicgoers listen to speakers at the Clinton County Democrats' Labor Day Picnic on Sept. 1, 2019.

Precincts to watch

Clinton County's largest turnout has typically been in the city of Clinton's 22nd precinct, said county party chairman Bill Jacobs.

"That's kind of the heart of the town, really," he said.

But look to Dewitt's 2nd precinct as a place where the results will be more reflective of the county's preferences overall, he said. DeWitt has about 5,300 people and sits 20 miles west of Clinton.

"We have a large number of activists in that precinct, and itll be really well run," Jacobs said. "Its our largest (precinct), in terms of the number of people who show up outside of the city proper."

Two precincts in even less populous parts of the county could show how Iowa's rural voters are leaning on caucus night: The Elk River-Hampshire-Andover and Spring Rock-Wheatland precincts are ones to watch, Jacobs said.

More: Could multiple candidates 'win' the Iowa Democratic caucus? New rules make it possible.

Candidates to watch

Former Vice President Joe Biden, former South Bend, Indiana, Mayor Pete Buttigieg and Warren are the only campaigns to open field offices in the area, Jacobs said, though Sanders has staffers there.

Sanders, running on a populist agenda with an outsider's mentality, earned half of Clinton County's caucus night support in 2016.

Jean Pardee, a longtime county party leader and Clinton resident, said she's interested to see whether Sanders' support holds or tapers off, or if his supporters "feel they got so burnt last time" they stay home entirely.

"Earlier, I thought Bernie was doing well, had a solid base. But I'm not sure thats being totally maintained," she said. "Apparently, at least some of it is going to Warren."

Biden, who has ties to the area's union and blue-collar roots, also entered the race as a known commodity after his previous presidential runs in 1988 and 2008. Clinton County is among the places his campaign officials have said they expect to do well.

"The other (way to win) is who beats the expectations, which is probably (U.S. Sen. Amy) Klobuchar or Warren," Jacobs said. "I think the expectations of Warren are definitely lower than they were a few months ago."

Pardee and former Lt. Gov. Patty Judge both said they also will be watching to see if Klobuchar beats expectations, particularly among the county's more rural voters.

"She's our girl next door," Judge said. "She's worked hard here."

Minnesota Sen. Amy Klobuchar speaks at the Clinton County Democrats' Labor Day Picnic on Sept. 1, 2019.

Watch for rural voter participation

Local party leaders say they expect rural caucus participation to skyrocket as part of increased participation statewide. Jacobs said Clinton County party officials are preparing for turnout to surge by a minimum of 25% at local precincts.

He said 66 people caucused at the rural Elk River-Hampshire-Andover precinct in 2016, and he is watching to see whether attendance hits 100 people this year. At the even smaller Spring Rock-Wheatland precinct, 30 people caucused in 2016. Jacobs said he's hoping to see 50 people turn out there this year.

Jacobs said he is reluctant to speculate which candidate will emerge from rural precincts like those. But if turnout grows substantially over 2016, he said it will show there is "a dissatisfaction with the Republican Party and with Donald Trump, in particular," that could benefit Democrats overall.

That could be key to Iowa Democrats' chances of flipping the state from red to blue in the 2020 general election.

Loading...

Johnson County

As Democratic presidential candidates vie for Iowas progressive vote, they're battling to lock down supporters in what's known colloquially as the Peoples Republic of Johnson County.

Johnson County has a higher percentage of active registered Democrats  46.7%  than any other county in Iowa. It also boasts a far younger population in large part because of the University of Iowa in Iowa City. With a median age of 29.9 years, Johnson is the second-youngest county in a state known for its aging population (edged only by Story County, home to Iowa State University).

Both demographics helped boost Sanders' overall support on caucus night in 2016.

Though he won about half of the vote statewide, Sanders finished at nearly 60% in Johnson County to Hillary Clinton's 40%, one of his best showings in the state.

A campaign volunteer asks people in the crowd if they would like to sign up to volunteer too before the start of U.S. Sen. Elizabeth Warren's, D-Mass., rally outside the Iowa Memorial Union on Thursday, Sept. 19, 2019 on the University of Iowa campus in Iowa City.

Precincts to watch

Young voters broke hard for Sanders in 2016, according to exit polling. And he continues to lead among young likely Democratic caucusgoers in Iowa this year, according to recent Register/CNN/Mediacom Iowa Polls.

Pay attention to Iowa City's 5th precinct, where many University of Iowa students will caucus. Organizers have paid to rent the Englert Civic Theatre, a large venue, to accommodate an expected surge in turnout.

The results in this precinct will signal whether Sanders has maintained his 2016 student support or whether others have wrested it from him.

Iowa City's 23rd precinct is also key, according to local organizers. It is on Iowa City's east side, where many of the city's full-time residents live.

Though still ardently liberal, these caucusgoers are more likely to be university faculty and staff rather than students. A precinct like the 23rd will have a high turnout of older caucusgoers and people finished with their post-secondary education.

"What really makes us the most liberal county in the state is the faculty and staff," said John Deeth, a member of the Johnson County Democrats' executive committee.

But Johnson County is more than just Iowa City. Penn-East Lucas N, for example, is a precinct southeast of North Liberty, a suburban area. Results may look different there than in city precincts. Results in the suburbs surrounding Iowa City may show how moderate Democrats in a very liberal area are feeling, come caucus night.

Candidates to watch

Organizers predict Sanders and Warren, two of the most progressive candidates in the 2020 Democratic primary field, will win big in Johnson County.

"We're not expecting any surprises: Warren and Sanders are going to do well with young voters," said Nick Pryor, president of the University of Iowa College Democrats. "But how it breaks down, that's what I'm really interested to see."

Sanders and Warren led the latest Iowa Poll at 20% and 17%, respectively. Among those younger than 35, Sanders led Warren 36% to 20%.

If the polling remains that close on caucus night, Johnson County could be the place where one of them gains an edge over the other.

Democratic presidential candidate U.S. Sen. Bernie Sanders, I-Vt., walks up to the stage before speaking to supporters, Sunday, Sept. 8, 2019, on the Pentacrest in front of the Old Capitol Building on the University of Iowa campus in Iowa City, Iowa.

Watch the popular vote

Since the Iowa Democratic Party will release the raw vote totals in addition to the traditional state delegate equivalents, candidates can compete to win the "popular" vote as well as the delegate count.

Previously, Iowa's caucus rules dissuaded candidates from concentrating too heavily in one area because the available number of delegates they could win was capped. Now that candidates get credit for every person who shows up to caucus for them, their campaigns could choose to run up the score in places where they know they're likely to do well to help cushion losses in other parts of the state.

If there's any county where it makes sense to do that, it's Johnson, where local party leaders have argued for years that they're apportioned fewer delegates than their population and turnout deserve.

Watch to see whether Warren or Sanders wins the popular vote here  if they drive up the score enough, it could ultimately help them swing the final statewide popular vote tally in their favor.

Polk County

White, educated, suburban women drove election turnout in 2018, helping to flip seats from Republican to Democrat in both the Iowa House and the U.S. House. They're also a key constituency for Democratic presidential candidates seeking to win caucus support and boost turnout in the 2020 general election.

The debate over health care has been especially pertinent in these suburban neighborhoods outside of Des Moines. In 2018, candidates won in part by running hyper-disciplined campaigns focused on protecting 2010's Affordable Care Act and its insurance coverage for people with preexisting conditions. But Democratic presidential candidates like Sanders and Warren are pushing the party further to the left in the debate over "Medicare for All."

The candidate who can energize suburban voters in the caucuses could make the case they're best positioned to continue the momentum of 2018 into 2020.

The crowd listens to U.S. Sen. Elizabeth Warren, D-Mass., speaking outside of the Iowa Memorial Union during a presidential campaign rally on Thursday, Sept. 19, 2019 on the University of Iowa campus in Iowa City.

Precincts to watch

Polk County, which includes Iowa's capital city of Des Moines, is the state's most populous  a fact that makes it worth watching on its own. About 12% of the state's precincts are in Polk County.

But a little less than half of Polk County residents live in Des Moines. The rest of its nearly 500,000 people reside in suburban and exurban areas.

To capture the sentiment among suburban voters, watch Ankeny's 12th precinct, said Ankeny Area Democrats chair Mary McAdams, who recently endorsed Warren. The northern Des Moines suburb has grown by more than 42% since the 2010 census, when precinct lines were last determined, according to U.S. Census Bureau estimates. There are now 1,300 registered Democrats in Ankeny's 12th.

In addition to its size, the precinct will likely be "representative of what's happening in the suburbs at large," said Polk County Democrats executive director Judy Downs.

Another precinct to watch is Des Moines' 62nd, a large area that includes parts of the Waterbury, Ingersoll Park, Westwood and Linden Heights neighborhoods, where local party leaders, activists and donors are concentrated. That makes it a bellwether for candidates' support among some of Iowa's most engaged Democrats, Downs said.

Polk County Democrats chair Sean Bagniewski said he expects Polk County's results to be available relatively early in the night, close to 8 p.m.

Candidates to watch

Buttigieg, Sanders and Warren each have clear paths to victory in Polk County, Bagniewski said. He and Downs expect Biden to fare better in rural counties than in Polk County as a result of his organizing and messaging.

Johnston Area Democrats chair Dave Vawter, who is a precinct captain for billionaire businessman Tom Steyer, said he anticipates some lower-polling candidates to come out with support that the national media has not ... anticipated.

He pegged Klobuchar as someone to watch.

I still think Klobuchar could actually do pretty well, he said. She's a Midwesterner and she's more than qualified for the position.

It would surprise me if the front-runners who were leading ... six months ago win the caucus, Downs said. It's going to surprise me if there isn't some story or some surprising win.

Pete Buttigieg, right, a 2020 Democratic hopeful, talks to attendees during a campaign event at Vintage Cooperative on Friday, Feb. 8, 2019, in Ankeny.

Watch for busy caucus sites

In addition to the recent population increase in Ankeny, Democratic turnout in recent local elections has also been up. As a result of both, Bagniewski expects two Ankeny precincts to have three times as many caucusgoers as they did in 2016.

He said a recent spate of Democratic victories in local suburban elections is evidence of an engaged voter base. Meanwhile, the Iowa suburbs have seen record growth in the last decade.

McAdams said it's been difficult to find caucus sites big enough to accommodate anticipated crowds, but that people shouldnt complain.

It is what it is. We redistrict every 10 years and there's growth, she said. There's nothing you can do except turn out for the future so that you get more delegates for the future  it's based on past turnout, so you can kind of say, Hey, where was everybody in 2016? We're paying for that now.

She said her team has worked 'round the clock to ensure this years caucuses run smoother than in 2016. They've recruited and trained more people and invested in larger spaces  even if that means that 60 percent of Ankeny voters will have to travel slightly outside their own precincts to caucus.

Theyre not going to be crowded this time, she said. We have worked our butts off to make that not happen.

Loading...

About this project

In the six months leading up to Iowa's first-in-the-nation caucuses, the Des Moines Registers chief political reporter, Brianne Pfannenstiel, and other Register journalists have told the stories of Clinton, Johnson and Polk counties and their residents as they sort through messages and messengers.

This unique journey through history, economies and culture has brought Register subscribers to a county that flipped from supporting President Barack Obama to candidate Donald Trump, one that embraces deep liberal politics and a third that has growing suburbs. The decisions made by voters in these three Iowa counties in 2020 could signal decisions that will be made in similar places across Iowa and the nation and prove key to the outcome of the 2020 presidential election.

The series features deep research and rich storytelling from Pfannenstiel and reporters Kim Norvell, Shelby Fleig and Robin Opsahl, combined with compelling imagery from political team photographer Kelsey Kremer and data journalism from Tim Webber.

Brianne Pfannenstiel is the chief politics reporter for the Register. Reach her at bpfann@dmreg.com or 515-284-8244. Follow her on Twitter at @brianneDMR. Kim Norvell covers Elizabeth Warren and growth and development for the Register. Reach her at knorvell@dmreg.com or 515-284-8259. Shelby Fleig covers Amy Klobuchar, news and features for the Register. Reach her at shelbyfleig@dmreg.com or 515-214-8933. Robin Opsahl covers political trends for the Register. Reach them at ropsahl@registermedia.com or 515-284-8051.

This article originally appeared on Des Moines Register: Iowa caucus: The counties crucial to a Democratic caucus night victory
President of Turkey Recep Tayyip Erdogan iarex.ru

Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan will visit Ukraine with a working visit on February 3. The press service of the Office of the President of Ukraine reports.

"Within the framework of the visit, a meeting of heads of state will be held face-to-face, as well as the eighth meeting of the High-level Strategic Council between Ukraine and Turkey, co-chaired by Volodymyr Zelensky and Recep Tayyip Erdogan," the statement said.

It is noted that during the negotiations the parties will discuss ways to deepen strategic partnership and cooperation in all areas of cooperation.

Also, following the meeting of the Strategic Council, it is planned to sign a number of bilateral documents and the participation of the heads of countries in the Ukrainian-Turkish business forum.

As we reported before, Mike Pompeo, the U.S. Secretary of State arrived in Ukraine to meet with President Volodymyr Zelensky.

Earlier, Pompeo accused an NPR reporter of lying about whether a conversation he initiated with her had been deemed off the record, a charge that NPR denied.

Pompeos statement, however, did not address NPRs explosive account of the conversation  that he shouted at reporter Mary Louise Kelly, used expletives, indicated that she had questioned him about Ukraine under false pretenses in a just-completed interview, and asked her, Do you think Americans care about Ukraine?.
A British Pakistani known as Sultan in an international drug procurement and distribution syndicate who sourced ephedrine (a commonly abused drug used as a stimulant) from India was on Friday allowed to appeal against his extradition to the United States to face charges of attempting to import heroin.

Muhammad Asif Hafeez, 61, was arrested in London in 2017 by Britains National Crime Agency (NCA) and US Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) and lodged in the high security Belmarsh prison in the drug trafficking case also involving an Indian national Vijay Goswami.

After the Westminster Magistrates Court cleared his extradition, he appealed in the high court against the home secretarys subsequent approval to the order.

Justice William Davis and Lord Justice Hamblen of the high court of England and Wales dismissed various grounds to block extradition, but said they had been persuaded that if extradited, he would face life imprisonment without parole, which would potentially violate his human rights.

According to court documents, the DEA between 2014 and 2017 conducted an investigation into proposed importation of drugs into the US, the geographical centre of the investigation being Kenya.

In the course of that investigation, the DEAs co-operating sources were used to contact a man named Baktash Akasha (sentenced to 25 years in US jail in August 2019). The sources posed as Columbian drug traffickers wishing to obtain heroin for importation into the US.

They had various discussions with Akasha during the autumn of 2014 during which he apparently agreed to obtain heroin. He told the sources that his supplier was from Pakistan and went by various pseudonyms, one of which was Sultan.

Akasha was part of a criminal group which included his brother, Ibrahim, Vijay Goswami and Ghulam Hussein. In October 2014, 98 kilos of heroin were delivered to the sources, the delivery was organised by the four men in conjunction with Sultan.

In November 2014, the four men were arrested in Kenya, but were later released on bail before being handed over to DEA. The US Government said Sultan was later identified as Muhammad Hafeez.

The US Governments case is that Goswami agreed with Hafeez to set up a factory to manufacture methamphetamine. The proposal was for the factory to be in Mozambique. Methamphetamine is a powerful, highly addictive drug abused for recreational purposes and is popularly known as blue, crystal, ice and meth.

A precursor chemical element in the manufacture of methamphetamine is ephedrine. In 2016 authorities in India seized a very large quantity of ephedrine from a factory in Solapur in India, this said to have been intended for use in the factory in Mozambique. The intended destination of the methamphetamine, once produced, was said to be the United States, the judgement noted.

Hafeez is reported to have had links with Bollywood actors and members of the royal family in Britain.

SHARE THIS ARTICLE ON

ABOUT THE AUTHOR Prasun Sonwalkar Prasun Sonwalkar was Editor (UK & Europe), Hindustan Times. During more than three decades, he held senior positions on the Desk, besides reporting from Indias north-east and other states, including a decade covering politics from New Delhi. He has been reporting from UK and Europe since 1999. ...view detail
A Yemeni police wanted poster shows image of al-Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula (AQAP) military chief in Yemen Qassim al-Rimi. (AFP via Getty Images)

US Conducts Strike Targeting Al-Qaeda Leader in Yemen

The United States conducted a strike recently targeting Qassim al-Rimi, the leader of al-Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula, the terror groups franchise based in Yemen that has repeatedly expressed interest in conducting attacks targeting the United States, a U.S. official told CNN on Friday.

The New York Times reported that three current or former American officials expressed confidence that Rimi had been killed in a January airstrike in Yemen.

Asked about the report, the Pentagon would not elaborate on the situation.

While we are aware of the reports alleging the death of AQAP leader Qassim al-Rimi, the Department of Defense has nothing to offer on this matter, a U.S. Defense Official told CNN.

The U.S. government through its Rewards for Justice program had offered up to a $10 million reward for information on him.

Officials continue to assess whether Rimi was killed in the strike through a variety of methods including monitoring social media and messaging apps regarding chatter about his possible death.

The CIA declined to comment on the report.

Many observers have considered AQAP among the most dangerous, if not the most dangerous, branch of al-Qaeda since its formation in 2009.

Three different images of al-Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula (AQAP) military chief in Yemen Qassim al-Rimi, on Oct. 11, 2010. (AFP via Getty Images)

Rimi reportedly became its leader following a 2015 drone strike that killed Nasir al-Wuhayshi.

He released an audio message taunting President Donald Trump days after a 2017 U.S. Special Operations Forces raid on an al-Qaeda compound in Yemen that led to the first U.S. military combat death during the Trump administration.

In an 11-minute recording, the AQAP leader condemned the raid, saying, The new fool of the White House received a painful slap across his face.

U.S. officials said that valuable intelligence was retrieved in the raid.

Last April, the U.S. military carried out a series of six airstrikes in Yemen targeting the local al-Qaeda affiliate there.

They were the first U.S. airstrikes in Yemen since Jan. 1, 2019 when the United States conducted two strikes, including one that killed Jamal al-Badawi, an al-Qaeda operative linked to the 2000 attack on the USS Cole.

Jamal al-Badawi, a suspect of the USS Cole destroyers bombing in 2000 in the Yemeni port of Aden, gestures after an appeal court announced his judgment to 15 years in prison in the final appeal session trial, 26 Feb. 2005. (Khaled Fazaa/AFP/Getty Images)

The United States has sought to prevent al-Qaeda from exploiting the chaos of Yemens civil war to establish a safe haven, but the number of U.S. military strikes has declined sharply over the last few years.

In coordination with the government of Yemen, U.S. forces continue to support ongoing counterterrorism operations against AQAP and ISIS-Y to disrupt and destroy militants attack-plotting efforts, networks, and freedom of maneuver within the region, Lt. Col. Earl Brown, a spokesman for U.S. Central Command, said in a statement at the time.

The United States did not release details of any casualties from those strikes.

The U.S. military carried out 131 airstrikes in Yemen in 2017 and conducted 36 strikes in 2018, nearly all of them targeting al-Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula.

The CIA also carried out at least one strike in Yemen and U.S. officials told CNN in August 2018 that a 2017 CIA drone strike killed Ibrahim al-Asiri, a senior al-Qaeda bomb-maker behind the underwear bomb attempt to detonate on a flight above the skies of Detroit on Christmas Day in 2009.

The U.S. efforts to combat al-Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula are separate from U.S. efforts to support the Saudi-led coalition fighting in the Yemen civil war.

The-CNN-Wire

 &  2020 Cable News Network, Inc., a WarnerMedia Company. All rights reserved.
On the other hand, if you take the same young woman, and shes in her home, and she looks at her watch and says, Oh gosh, its time to pick up the baby from Mothers, and she gets in the car and at the end of the driveway, from the floor of the back seat someone says, Dont turn right, dear. Turn left, then she is your sister or your daughter and you become emotionally involved in it. I write about nice people whose lives are in danger.
Sanders, whose 2016 campaign was the first to put peer-to-peer texting to use at scale, now employs a text team director, two English-language texting organizers and a Spanish-language texting organizer. The platform his team used in 2016, called Hustle, saw its campaign clientele multiply in two years, while also giving rise to competitors, including Relay. The software, developed by alumni of the Sanders campaign, was used by Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-N.Y.) to deliver 170,000 texts to voters in her successful bid to oust incumbent Rep. Joseph Crowley (D) in New York in 2018, according to her campaigns spokesman, Corbin Trent.
Like most Indians, I was also caught up in the confusion regarding the Citizenship (Amendment) Act and the National Register for Citizens when I tweeted, Never thought I would ever see Asad Owaisi and MIM in a rally holding Indian flags. Maybe we should thank PM Modi. This half-joking tweet got a huge response, both on the social media and among my personal friends  there was criticism and compliments in equal measure.

I did not expect such a major response. Perhaps, this reflects deep divisions and growing suspicion within our society. That has led me to write this article.

This is not to clarify the tweet or set the record straight  I dont need to do that. Whoever knows my work and my family, particularly my grandfathers contribution to politics and communal harmony, knows clearly what I stand for. I dont need to dwell on it.

The CAA and NRC are supposed to resolve some longstanding issues. Instead, the same has created deep divisions and suspicions that have spilled onto the streets, in the form of crowds shouting slogans, waving flags and citing the Constitution.

The Partition of India and its aftermath occurred more than 70 years ago. More than 96 per cent of the Indian population today is born after Independence. Over 45 per cent are below the age of 25 years. For most Indians, particularly millennials, Partition is history. That generation has totally different dreams and aspirations. Instead of seriously focusing on the future, our subcontinent is stuck in the past. Settling scores, hurting each other, continuing with old rhetoric and wasting precious resources on purchasing arms have become the rule rather than the exception. Why are we surviving by showing the people the ghosts of the past? If given a real democratic opportunity, populations in these countries, particularly the young, totally reject these divisive politics. Other regions have come out of terrible conflicts and are now cooperating with each other. We too can do it.

The CAA and NRC and the reactions to it, too, unfortunately seem to be rooted in that past. Let us examine four aspects of the controversy.

First, no Indian  Hindu or Muslim  can deny that there was, and still is, large scale, systemic discrimination aga-inst Hindus in Pakistan and in Afghanistan and Bangladesh. That is a fact. India, as a secular and democratic nation, upholding human rights and the rule of law, has a responsibility to provide a safe and secure home to those forced to flee their homes and countries. We have historically done that. Even as recently as 1970, India gave shelter to almost 10 million people, mostly Muslims, who were forced to flee their own country. We need to ask two questions: Is the CAA the only way to give citizenship to those Hindus discriminated against in other countries? Do we need to create insecurity within our own society, particularly our Muslim population, in order to provide citizenship to Hindus?

We never had a serious, open and honest debate about this. Protests are essential in a democracy, but protests must lead to dialogue. It is not too late to have that dialogue. And I am happy to hear that the government is open to dialogue.

My second point is about the NRC  every country needs to have two things  a well-defined geography and its citizenry. Some countries might dispute borders and stake a claim; similarly some individuals might sneak in and claim the benefit of citizenship or subvert the democratic political process. The NRC is supposed to find a solution for citizenship. While the number of people who might have sneaked in illegally may be pretty small, it is significant in certain parts of the country. Unfortunately, the NRC seems to have opened a Pandoras box requiring every Indian to prove that he/she is indeed Indian purportedly by producing the birth certificates of their father and mother. Is this really required? Is it not possible to do it differently? Common sense suggests it is. So, the question is the same, is the NRC creating insecurity among Indians in the name of identifying illegal aliens?

Governments of the day need to resolve these issues, without fomenting insecurity, doubts and unrest. There used to be an old rural saying, do we burn our house to get rid of the rats? In this case, it is entire villages and towns. There are better and cost-effective as well as acceptable methods first to prevent rats from entering the house, and if they do, to catch them. It is not a perfect analogy, but a close one. Since we are dealing with human beings, the process must be humane. India is a signatory to many human rights conventions and international covenants. More important, we have always upheld values of openness, secularism, pluralism and humanitarianism.

Third, there is the issue of Kashmiri Pandits. It has a certain connection with what is happening. Great injustice has been done to Kashmiri Hindus; according to some estimates, over seven lakh fled Kashmir due to discrimination, systemic harassment and direct violence. This led to untold misery for more than three decades. Those who wish to go back will have to be resettled safely. This is a major challenge for our nation for two reasons: a) Unless a Muslim majority state does not treat its minorities well, the demand by Muslims for equal treatment in the rest of India will not be seen as morally defensible, b) the CAA and NRC, which are being seen as discriminatory to Muslims, need to highlight the plight of Hindus in the past, present and future.

Fourth, in Independent India, secularism as a concept has never become a target. But today, whatever might be the problem of definition, it appears that there is a concerted effort on to seriously undermine our own Constitution and its core principle  secularism. Projecting secularism as anti-Hindu is dangerous not only for India but for Hindus living worldwide. Governing a country like India without secular values is not possible, given its diversity  religious, cultural, linguistic, geographic, ethnic and even racial. That is exactly what is enshrined in the Constitution. India should and will be an example for governing a country as large and diverse as ours.

Let me return to the tweet. In India, some Muslims, even after seven decades, feel the need to show their patriotism by waving the tricolour or singing the anthem. That is not fair. Equally unfair is that some people who promoted a divisive culture are today trying to use the flag to serve their own agendas. Statesmanship, not politicking, is the need of the hour.

In times of crisis, the only arbiter, protector and comfort are the flag and the Constitution. The flag is not a piece of cloth, neither the Constitution a book, and they represent our long-cherished history and values. But we need to do more than waving flags. The insaniyat-jamhooriyat principle of former Prime Minister Atal Behari Vajpayee is something to which we can all hark back. Lets all together ensure that we stand by this ideology and protect it zealously. In fact, secularism and nationalism are both required as they go hand in hand.

The writer is an engineer, entrepreneur, politician and a former elected member of Parliament from Chevella, Telangana state
Questo comunicato e stato pubblicato piu di 1 anno fa. Le informazioni su questa pagina potrebbero non essere attendibili.

The latest trending report Global Digital Business Support System (BSS) Market 2020 by Manufacturers, Regions, (---Type and Application--), Share, size, recent trends, growth and Forecast to 2026 offered by Value Market Research is an informative study covering the market with detailed analysis. The report will assist reader with better understanding and decision making.

The entire digital business support system (BSS) market has been sub-categorized into component, deployment model, and end-user. The report provides an analysis of these subsets with respect to the geographical segmentation. This research study will keep marketer informed and helps to identify the target demographics for a product or service.

Request a FREE Sample Copy of Digital Business Support System (BSS) Market Report with Full TOC At: https://www.valuemarketresearch.com/contact/digital-business-support-system-bss-market/download-sample

By Component

 Solutions

 Services

By Deployment Model

 Public Cloud

 Private Cloud

 Hybrid Cloud

By End-User

 Small Enterprises

 Medium Enterprises

 Large Enterprises

The research report also covers the comprehensive profiles of the key players in the market and an in-depth view of the competitive landscape worldwide. The major players in the digital business support system (BSS) market include Accenture, Amdocs, Capgemini, CSG International, Huawei Technologies Co. Ltd., Infosys Limited, Netcracker Inc., Nokia, Tata Consultancy Services Limited, Telefonaktiebolaget LM Ericsson, ZTE Corporation, and others. This section includes a holistic view of the competitive landscape that includes various strategic developments such as key mergers & acquisitions, future capacities, partnerships, financial overviews, collaborations, new product developments, new product launches, and other developments.

This section covers regional segmentation which accentuates on current and future demand for digital business support system (BSS) market across North America, Europe, Asia-Pacific, Latin America, and Middle East & Africa. Further, the report focuses on demand for individual application segment across all the prominent regions.

Browse Full Global Digital Business Support System (BSS) Market Research Report With TOC At: https://www.valuemarketresearch.com/report/digital-business-support-system-bss-market

About Us:

Value Market Research was established with the vision to ease decision making and empower the strategists by providing them with holistic market information.

We facilitate clients with syndicate research reports and customized research reports on 25+ industries with global as well as regional coverage.

Contact:

Value Market Research

401/402, TFM, Nagras Road, Aundh, Pune-7.

Maharashtra, INDIA.

Tel: +1-888-294-1147

Email: sales@valuemarketresearch.com

Website: https://www.valuemarketresearch.com
Bruce Levine in Counterpunch:

Getting rid of Trump means taking seriously shit-life syndromeand its resulting misery, which includes suicide, drug overdose death, and trauma for surviving communities. My state of Ohio is home to many shit-life syndrome sufferers. In the 2016 presidential election, Hillary Clinton lost Ohios 18 electoral votes to Trump. She got clobbered by over 400,000 votes (more than 8%). She lost 80 of Ohios 88 counties. Trump won rural poorer counties, several by whopping margins. Trump got the shit-life syndrome vote. Will Hutton in his 2018 Guardian piece, The Bad News is Were Dying Early in Britain  and Its All Down to Shit-Life Syndrome describes shit-life syndrome in both Britain and the United States: Poor working-age Americans of all races are locked in a cycle of poverty and neglect, amid wider affluence. They are ill educated and ill trained. The jobs available are drudge work paying the minimum wage, with minimal or no job security. The Brookings Institution, in November 2019, reported: 53 million Americans between the ages of 18 to 64accounting for 44% of all workersqualify as low-wage. Their median hourly wages are $10.22, and median annual earnings are about $18,000.

For most of these low-wage workers, Hutton notes: Finding meaning in life is close to impossible; the struggle to survive commands all intellectual and emotional resources. Yet turn on the TV or visit a middle-class shopping mall and a very different and unattainable world presents itself. Knowing that you are valueless, you resort to drugs, antidepressants and booze. You eat junk food and watch your ill-treated body balloon. It is not just poverty, but growing relative poverty in an era of rising inequality, with all its psychological side-effects, that is the killer. Shit-life syndrome is not another fictitious illness conjured up by the psychiatric-pharmaceutical industrial complex to sell psychotropic drugs. It is a reality created by corporatist rulers and their lackey politicianspretending to care about their minimum-wage-slave constituents, who are trying to survive on 99 boxed macaroni and cheese prepared in carcinogenic water, courtesy of DuPont or some other such low-life leviathan. The Cincinnati Enquirer, in November 2019, ran the story: Suicide Rate Up 45% in Ohio in Last 11 Years, With a Sharper Spike among the Young. In Ohio between 2007 and 2018, the rate of suicide among people 10 to 24 has risen by 56%. The Ohio Department of Health reported that suicide is the leading cause of death among Ohioans ages 1014 and the second leading cause of death among Ohioans ages 1534, with the suicide rate higher in poorer, rural counties.

More here.
BAKU, Azerbaijan, Feb.1

By Fakhri Vakilov - Trend:

Uzbekistan and European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD) signed a loan agreement for three projects which includes construction of sewage systems and electricity lines, EBRD representative told Trend.

"The projects are Navoi Transmission Upgrade Project, Kashkadarya Wastewater Project and Khorezm Wastewater Project. Their total, according to our books is just over 200 million," the official stated.

The representative noted that these projects are essential upgrades of key national infrastructure, which is suffering from decades of under investment.

"The maturity of EBRDs loan for these projects is 10+ years," the official stressed.

In 2018, the EBRD Board of Directors approved a new strategy for Uzbekistan, which defines the bank's priorities for the next five years.

Following the adoption of a new country strategy for Uzbekistan, in 2018 EBRD signed 12 projects worth almost 400 million, a record level of business for the Bank in the country in a single year. Significant investments were made in the municipal and power infrastructure sectors, including the rehabilitation of water and wastewater infrastructure in the Fergana Valley, as well as in banking and industry.

In 2019, the EBRD has already invested almost 250 million into Uzbekistan's economy.

To date, the EBRD has invested 1.3 billion through 70 projects in economy of Uzbekistan. Support of small businesses is particularly important as the country moves to reform its economy and strengthen its private sector.
Source: Xinhua| 2020-02-01 08:16:46|Editor: huaxia

Video Player Close

BEIJING, Feb. 1 (Xinhua) -- The municipal government of Beijing announced Friday that enterprises in the city should make arrangements for employees to work at home before the end of Feb. 9 to contain the spread of the novel coronavirus.

Employees of enterprises related to disease control and prevention, the city's operation such as water and electricity supplies, as well as citizens' basic needs should go to their workplaces during the period, the government said.

It asked those enterprises to strengthen body temperature testing and health protection for their employees, and ensure full coverage of the protection against the novel coronavirus.

The government also required that company employees currently in central China's Hubei Province should strictly abide by the measures taken by the local government and should not leave the province without permission.
All four major state-run banks, including Vietcombank, Vietinbank, Agribank and BIDV, are expected to qualify for Basel II standards in 2020.

The Vietnamese government plans to raise registered capital of two major state-run banks Vietcombank and Vietinbank by around VND10 trillion (US$432.32 million) right in the first quarter of 2020, according to Deputy Prime Minister Vuong Dinh Hue.

Illustrative photo.

In case of Agribank, the lenders taxable profit in 2020 would be used to increase its registered capital, Hue informed at a meeting with senior leaders of Hanoi-based Military Bank (MB Bank) on January 30.

Hue suggested MB Bank consider solutions to increase the bank's registered capital. It is one of the first three banks in Vietnam qualified for requirements on capital adequacy ratio (CAR) under Basel II standards.

In a meeting last December, Hue expected all four major state-run banks, including Vietcombank, Vietinbank, Agribank and BIDV, to qualify for Basel II standards in 2020.

By the end of 2020, all commercial banks are required to qualify for Basel II standards, a condition for local lenders to expand their respective credit growth limit and increase registered capital.

To date, only 16 out of 38 local banks are able to meet the Basel II standards.

As of present, the respective CAR of Vietcombank, BIDV, Vietinbank and Aribank is approaching the minimum requirement of around 8% for Basel II, while the total assets and outstanding loans at these four banks account for nearly 50% of the total in the countrys banking system.

Meeting with President of global private equity firm Warburg Pincus Timothy F.Geithner on December 17, 2019, Hue revealed the government would consider reducing its ownership at these banks to 65% by 2025.

The move would be part of the governments efforts to open the financial market to foreign investors, particularly in financial services, in compliance with Vietnams commitments in multilateral and bilateral trade agreements, Hue stressed.

In a government press conference last November, Nguyen Thi Hong, deputy governor of the countrys central bank State Bank of Vietnam, said without a permission to increase registered capital, these lenders would have to limit or even suspend lending. This would cause negative impacts on the economy, as a major source for investment capital in Vietnam comes from banks credit. Hanoitimes

Ngoc Thuy
Source: Xinhua| 2020-02-01 06:28:36|Editor: huaxia

Video Player Close

A Hubei resident arrives at Tianhe International Airport in Wuhan, central China's Hubei Province, Jan. 31, 2020. The first charter flight sent by the Chinese government to bring home stranded Hubei residents from overseas arrived in Wuhan Friday evening. The airplane departed from Thailand's Bangkok and arrived at the Wuhan Tianhe International Airport, bringing back 76 Hubei residents. (Xinhua/Xiong Qi)

WUHAN, Feb. 1 (Xinhua) -- The first batch of charter flights sent by the Chinese government Friday evening brought back 199 stranded Hubei residents from overseas following the novel coronavirus outbreak in Wuhan, capital of central China's Hubei Province.

The two charter flights operated by Xiamen Airlines departed from Thailand's Bangkok and Malaysia's Kota Kinabalu and arrived at the Wuhan Tianhe International Airport at 8:53 p.m. and 10:32 p.m. respectively.

Passengers on board were tested if they had a fever. Those with the symptoms of fever will be quarantined immediately.

Gao Huilin, one of the passengers, was travelling in Malaysia and had been stranded there as the flight back to Wuhan was canceled on Jan. 27 amid the novel coronavirus outbreak.

Gao said the flight bringing them home made careful preparations including checking the passengers' temperature before boarding the plane, and safety precaution to reduce the risk of infection.

"I'm grateful to our country, which leaves no one behind," Gao said.
The Big Ben is projected onto the wall of 10 Downing Street in London, Britain, on Jan. 31, 2020. Britain officially left the European Union (EU) at 11 p.m. (2300 GMT) Friday, marking a historic end of its 47-year-long membership of the world's largest trading bloc. (Xinhua/Han Yan)

Britain officially left the European Union (EU) at 11 p.m. (2300 GMT) Friday, putting an end to its 47-year-long membership of the world's largest trading bloc.

In a televised special address to the nation, British Prime Minister Boris Johnson, who took office amid the Brexit crisis, called the moment "the dawn of a new era" when "the curtain goes up on a new act."

"Our job as the government -- my job -- is to bring this country together and take us forward," he said. "And the most important thing to say tonight is that this is not an end but a beginning."

The moment also marked the start of a transition period that will last till the end of this year as negotiators face an uphill struggle for trade arrangement between Britain and the remaining EU nations.

Big Ben, which has been mostly silent since restoration work began in 2017, did not chime at the historic moment for the nation that has been hugely divided since the Brexit referendum in 2016.

10 Downing Street, the prime minister's office and residence, counted down to the 11 p.m. deadline with a light display. Government buildings in central London were lit up to celebrate the special occasion.

The British government has hailed the Brexit Day as a significant moment in the country's history, and said it intends to use the event to bring communities back together and "heal divisions."

On Friday, a British government cabinet meeting took place in Sunderland, the first city to declare support for leaving the EU three and a half years ago.
When the Manitoba government under Tory premier Gary Filmon brought in new freedom of information legislation in 1997, there was one nagging section of the bill that raised eyebrows.

Hey there, time traveller!

This article was published 31/1/2020 (709 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

When the Manitoba government under Tory premier Gary Filmon brought in new freedom of information legislation in 1997, there was one nagging section of the bill that raised eyebrows.

Many provincial governments began codifying freedom of information rules in the 1990s, to spell out the publics legal right to access government records.

The right to obtain copies of written and recorded material, as well as images, held by government is a fundamental part of a free and democratic society. The records are owned by the public, not bureaucrats, nor elected officials. Government therefore has an obligation to disclose them upon request.

Naturally, rules must be drawn up. Individual privacy must be protected, public safety must be safeguarded, and the day-to-day operations of government should not be undermined.

Thats why exemptions  discretionary and non-discretionary  are included in freedom of information laws. No public access to someone elses health records or income tax returns, for example.

The right to obtain copies of written and recorded material, as well as images, held by government is a fundamental part of a free and democratic society.

Classified government information which, if released, could threaten public safety or national security requires safeguards. Also, elected officials and senior bureaucrats should be able to conduct a certain amount of government business in private, including cabinet deliberations, without every policy option and correspondence between them subject to public scrutiny.

Effective freedom of information laws attempt to strike the right balance between the harm of releasing a record against the publics right to access it.

When the Filmon governments original Freedom of Information Act (as it was then-called) was drawn up, there was one series of exemptions that raised questions: the business interests of third parties.

They are mandatory exemptions, meaning if government officials believe the release of a record could reasonably harm the business interest of a third party  such as a company that has a contract with government  theyre required, by law, not to disclose. Those exemptions are still in the act (which has been revised over the years).

Some of those exemptions are reasonable, including the refusal to disclose information if it reveals a trade secret, or technical information submitted to government by a third party on a confidential basis. The refusal to disclose in those cases is justified; releasing the info could cause demonstrable harm to the business interest of a third party.

Demonstrating harm is the key ingredient.

Government shouldnt refuse to release simply because a business prefers the public didnt know how much its charging taxpayers for a service. Business transactions between two private entities may be confidential, but when taxpayers are footing the bill, they have a right to know where the money is going.

Which is why it was maddening last week, when the Winnipeg Regional Health Authority refused to disclose how much it was paying KPMG for consulting services to help manage the second phase of its clinical consolidation plan.

Government shouldnt refuse to release simply because a business prefers the public didnt know how much its charging taxpayers for a service.

The WRHA claimed, under Sec. 18(1) of the Freedom of Information and Protection of Privacy Act, it couldnt release that information. It cited the subsections that prevent a public body from releasing information if it is expected to "harm the competitive position of a third party, interfere with the contractual or other negotiations of a third party, (or) result in significant financial loss or gain to a third party."

Want more great journalism? Get our best news and features delivered in your inbox every weekday evening. Sign Up I agree to the Terms and Conditions, Cookie and Privacy Policies, and CASL agreement.

The WRHA didnt give reasons to explain its stance; it simply used that section of the act as a blanket reason not to disclose.

Its not the first time government has done so.

Unless harm can be demonstrated, the cost of taxpayer-funded consulting services should be released. Its in the public interest to know how government is spending health-care dollars. If a company doesnt want such information made public, it can choose not to do business with government.

The Pallister government is currently reviewing the provinces FIPPA law. That section should be amended to prevent the kind of unjustified secrecy weve seen from time to time around government contracts.

Allowing bureaucrats to rely on vague exemptions to prevent the public from knowing how tax dollars are being spent must stop.

tom.brodbeck@freepress.mb.ca
Firm Takes Near 10% Market Share in 2019 London Markets Activity

ST. LOUIS and LONDON, Jan. 31, 2020 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Stifel Financial Corp. (SF) is pleased to announce that its European subsidiary, Stifel Nicolaus Europe Limited (Stifel Europe), was ranked among the top investment banks in UK equity capital markets for activity in 2019.



Stifel Europe successfully executed a total of 26 ECM deals last year across the London markets, representing a near 10% market share. According to data from ECM Insight, Stifel Europe ranked second among all investment banks, as measured by volume of UK deals, up from No. 4 in 2018.

Stifel Europe raised more than 1.3 billion pounds for clients in 2019. Notable transactions include a secondary share placing for Diversified Gas & Oil PLC (DGOC.L), which ranked as the years third largest fundraise on the AIM market and the initial public offering of DWF Group PLC (DWF.L), the largest UK law firm to ever go public.

The fact that we were able to gain share during an incredibly challenging market environment is a testament to our strategy of focusing on key verticals and bringing a high level of focus and expertise to every client assignment, said Eithne OLeary, President of Stifel Europe.

In its chosen sectors, Stifel Europe offers advice across the capital structure, connecting growing companies with investors who are willing and able to support their expansion. The firm has now participated in 176 transactions that have raised more than 33 billion pounds for clients in Europe since entering the London market in mid-2014.

Stifel Company Information

Stifel Financial Corp. (SF) is a financial services holding company headquartered in St. Louis, Missouri, that conducts its banking, securities, and financial services business through several wholly owned subsidiaries. Stifels broker-dealer clients are served in the United States through Stifel, Nicolaus & Company, Incorporated, including its Eaton Partners business division, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods, Inc., Century Securities Associates, Inc., Miller Buckfire & Co., LLC and MainFirst Securities US Inc., each of which is a broker-dealer registered with the SEC and members of FINRA. Stifel Financial Corp. has the following non-U.S. subsidiaries. In the United Kingdom, Stifel Nicolaus Europe Limited is authorized and regulated by the United Kingdom Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) (FRN 190412) and is a member of the London Stock Exchange and also trades under the name Keefe, Bruyette & Woods Europe. In Germany, MainFirst Bank AG is regulated by the German Federal Financial Services Authority (Bundesanstalt fur Finanzdienstleistungsaufsicht, or BaFin), as well as MainFirst Schweiz AG, which is regulated by the Eidgenossische Finanzmarktaufsicht (FINMA). MainFirst Bank AGs London branch is authorized by BaFin and supervised by the Financial Conduct Authority for the conduct of UK business, its Milan branch is authorized and regulated by BaFin and supervised by CONSOB/Bank of Italy, and its Paris branch is authorized and regulated by BaFin and supervised by AMP/Autorite de Controle Prudentiel. In Geneva, Stifel maintains Stifel Europe Geneva S.A. In Canada, Stifel Nicolaus Canada, Incorporated is authorized and regulated by Investment Industry Regulatory Organization of Canada (IIROC) and also trades under the names Stifel GMP and Stifel First Energy. The Companys broker-dealer affiliates provide securities brokerage, investment banking, trading, investment advisory, and related financial services to individual investors, professional money managers, businesses, and municipalities. Stifel Bank and Stifel Bank & Trust offer a full range of consumer and commercial lending solutions. Stifel Trust Company, N.A. and Stifel Trust Company Delaware, N.A. offer trust and related services. To learn more about Stifel, please visit the Companys website at www.stifel.com.

Story continues

Media Contact

Neil Shapiro, +1 212-271-3447

shapiron@stifel.com

Investor Relations Contact

Joel Jeffrey, +1 212-271-3610

investorrelations@stifel.com
A colleagues relative flew through a bunch of airports on the way to Cleveland this week and said two out of 10 people she saw were wearing masks, which is evidence of how much the coronavirus has permeated our thoughts.

And the coronavirus is the basis for the first of the lingering questions we ask on our bonus episode of This Week in the CLE, the news podcast from cleveland.com.

Listen to the episode here.

We also ask about the ramifications of Clevelands decision not to prosecute minor marijuana cases.

We wonder how effective a countywide plastic ban bag can be when it is anything but countywide, and we ask if whats happening with bags in Cuyahoga County and Cleveland is evidence of a failure of elected leadership.

We seek to identify who is to blame for the high number of teenagers being prosecuted as adults and, more important, who is best to step up and reduce that number.

We wrap up by asking when the screwups by Cuyahoga County government will stop and whether anyone in county government will have the humanity to help the low-paid workers who have been harmed by the latest mistake.

You can get our podcasts delivered directly to your phone, and we have an Apple podcasts channel exclusively for this podcast. Subscribe here.

Do you get your podcasts on Spotify. Find us here.

If you use Stitcher, we are here.

RadioPublic is another popular podcast vehicle, and we are here.

On Google Podcasts, we are here.

On PodParadise, find us here.

And on PlayerFM, we are here.
The UN Security Council on Friday approved a slight relaxation of the arms embargo on the Central African Republic, an issue that has been a source of friction between France and Russia.

A resolution drafted by France that extends the embargo by only six months to July 31 was approved by 13 votes with Russia and China abstaining.

It allows the CAR to acquire military vehicles mounted with up to 14.5mm weapons, provided the United Nations is notified ahead of time.

According to the diplomats, negotiations on the draft were held amid sharp tensions between France and Russia.

A former colonial power, France did not want any easing of the embargo in light of conditions in the country, according to sources who spoke on condition of anonymity.

The European and African members of the council supported France's draft, but Russia, backed by China, supported Bangui's longstanding call for the embargo to be completely lifted.

Moscow this week proposed a concurrent resolution to France's. However, a compromise was worked out on Thursday that avoided a vote on two resolutions, and the risk that the embargo would be lifted entirely.

France's deputy representative to the United Nations, Anne Gueguen, said she "profoundly" regretted that the resolution was not unanimously adopted.

She said the Security Council is receptive to the CAR authorities but stressed the need for a "responsible approach."

Six month extension

Her Russian counterpart, Dmitry Polyanskiy, complained that none of Moscow's arguments had been taken into account, and he warned these would be raised again in July, indicating the Security Council fight over the embargo would resume in six months.

"We wanted a greater easing of the arms embargo," he said, arguing that while it was useful initially it had become an obstacle to re-equipping the military and security forces.

Niger's ambassador Abdou Abarry, speaking also on behalf of South Africa and Tunisia, said the resolution represented a response to the CAR's legitimate demand to move towards the lifting of the arms embargo.

He said the easing of the embargo would help the CAR's government to retake control of the entire country.

A French soldier participates in a European training mission in the Central African Republic in August 2019. By FLORENT VERGNES (AFP)

The United States noted that Bangui had made no requests for exemptions to the embargo since September, even though the possibility was open to it.

The latest relaxation of the embargo follows a Security Council decision in September 2019 to allow delivery of individual weapons of up to 14.5mm in caliber to the CAR security forces, which was the first time an easing occurred.

The embargo has been in place since 2013, when the CAR was rocked by civil war following the fall of president Francois Bozize.

But the government has long demanded that it be lifted altogether, contending that armed groups continue to control vast areas of the country and can easily resupply their forces through contraband, putting Bangui at a disadvantage.

Since 2017, exceptions to the embargo have been accorded by the United Nations on a case by case basis, including when Russia and France gave arms to the CAR.
The grisly murder of a popular dumpling bar owner found dead by his son has been described by homicide detectives as 'very violent and disturbing'.

Melbourne man Vincent Chi, 57, was discovered in his Michael Street property, in Templestowe Lower, by his youngest son at 11.15pm on Friday.

The father-of three owned China Bar, in Northland Shopping Centre's food court, and had left his business at 9pm before he was brutally attacked in his front hallway.

Vincent Chi, 57, (pictured with his wife and kids) was brutally murdered in his Michael Street home on Friday night

His daughter, Ella Chi, told the Herald Sun 'it was a 'very sad time' for the family.

She had worked alongside him at the family business only hours before he was stumbled upon by her brother, who then contacted police.

'It's still unbelievable. It's still like I'm dreaming. I can't believe it's real,' she told 7 News.

Detective Sergeant Sol Solomon said Mr Chi suffered 'a very violent death'.

'We have a man killed in his own home under very violent circumstances. Its extremely disturbing,' he said.

Forensic police spent more than 12 hours gathering evidence from the crime scene. No suspects have been identified.

Police confirmed that a weapon had been used but would not provide further details. It is yet to be located.

Mr Chi has been remembered by his family as a 'strict father' and a 'popular man'.

Neighbour Graeme Floody, described Mr Chi as 'a perfect neighbour'

Mr Chi was discovered by his youngest son in the hallway just, inside his home, who then called police

Mr Chi's family own China Bar Group, a dumpling chain with 20 restaurants (the store he owned pictured)

'We never heard much from there  I used to mow the nature strip when it got too long but thats about the extent of our interaction,' he said.

The Malaysian national had been living alone at the rental property after the death of his wife seven years ago.

Ms Chi said her father had recently fallen out with a friend.

Detectives are investigating the possibility that someone was waiting for him to arrive home.
New Delhi, Feb 1 : The government is likely to unveil, in the Union Budget 2020, a Troubled Assets Relief Programme (TARP) similar to what the US initiated during the financial crisis in 2008.

Under the proposed scheme, the troubled or stressed assets of the non-banking finance companies (NBFCs) will be bought by a government fund to revive the sector.

A high-level review meeting on this was held on Monday, chaired by Prime Minister Narendra Modi, for a final decision on the matter.

The US government had initiated the TARP at the height of the Wall Street financial crisis of 2008.

The US Treasury Department created the TARP fund to stabilise the financial system and restore economic growth. TARP was rolled out to accomplish targets by purchasing troubled companies' assets and stock.

September 2008 saw a worldwide freeze as global credit markets came to a near standstill as several major financial institutions, such as Fannie Mae, Freddie Mac, and American International Group (AIG), experienced severe financial stress and others, like Lehman Brothers went bankrupt due to the effects of the sub-prime mortgage crisis that had begun the previous year.

Investment companies Goldman Sachs and Morgan Stanley became commercial banks, in an attempt to stabilise their capital situations.

The US government bought stock in eight banks: Bank of America/Merrill Lynch, Bank of New York Mellon, Citigroup, Goldman Sachs, J.P. Morgan, Morgan Stanley, State Street, and Wells Fargo.

In India, since last year, the NBFC sector has been under severe stress driven by problems in real estate loans, and the economic slowdown which led to defaults. The crisis in IL&FS has led to shock waves in the financial sector.

The so-called shadow banks have missed payments and defaulted, among the biggest cases being DHFL.

There have been calls by central bank intervention but the RBI has refrained from specific company-wise bailouts.

The NBFC domino also caused stress in mutual funds which had exposure to these debt instruments. Consumer lending has been hurt by the NBFC stress and is seen among the major reason for lower consumption aggravating the economic woes.
In the email chain, during a discussion about internal policies under the attorney generals office, Allison wrote: Im thinking Ill just drop the confidentiality paragraph in the report and beef up the personal email/personal calendar section. One minute later, she followed up with: Please disregard that last email.

Hawley apparently discovered the comments in audit documents that were copied to his office this month. Employing a big dose of cynical assumption, he took to Twitter and alleged that the email is proof that Galloways office was CHANGING & manipulating the audit to make it more critical of my office or me.

A plain reading of the short, vague email doesnt prove that at all, but it definitely raises the question. By beef up, was she suggesting embellishing it with negative conclusions, as Hawley assumes? Or is it something less sinister? There simply isnt enough context to know  though the followup note to disregard it doesnt bode well for an innocent explanation.
The United States has declared a public health emergency because of the coronavirus which has hit China and has spread to other nations.

Health and Human Services Secretary Alex Azar also announced that President Donald Trump will temporarily bar entry to the US of foreign nationals believed to be a risk of transmitting the virus. The new restrictions will begin on Sunday afternoon.

The risk of infection for Americans remains low and with these and our previous actions we are working to keep the risk low, Mr Azar said.

At this time, the risk to Americans remains low, and we are working to keep it that way. We will continue our work to monitor, respond to, and mitigate the spread of the #coronavirus and ensure that Americans have the most accurate and up-to-date health and travel information. https://t.co/eb4YN1H7QN  Alex Azar (@SecAzar) January 31, 2020

Americans returning from Hubei province, the centre of the outbreak, will be required to undergo 14 days of quarantine.

Others returning from elsewhere in China will be allowed to self-monitor their condition for a similar period.

The US will also begin funnelling all flights from China to seven major airports where passengers can be screened for illness.

The virus has infected almost 10,000 people globally in just two months, a troublesome sign that prompted the World Health Organisation to declare the outbreak a global emergency.

The death toll stood at 213, including 43 new fatalities, all in China.

The announcement came hours after the State Department issued a level 4 Do Not Travel advisory, the highest grade of warning, and told Americans in China to consider departing using commercial means.

Travellers should be prepared for travel restrictions to be put into effect with little or no advance notice, the advisory said.
CHICAGO  Illinois State Police on Wednesday executed a search warrant at the Capitol offices of House Speaker Michael Madigan as part of an ongoing investigation into a former state lawmaker accused of sexual harassment.

The state police investigation stems from a November 2018 complaint that alleged a former Illinois state representative sexually harassed an employee, according to a news release from Madigans office. The Chicago Sun-Times reported that the former lawmaker in question is Jack Franks, who denied any wrongdoing and told the newspaper he was unaware of the search warrant and has not been notified by anyone about any matter.

Madigans office did not identify Franks as the target of the search warrant, and a spokesman did not respond to questions about the incident. Franks did not respond to several messages the Tribune left seeking comment.

After receiving a report of alleged sexual harassment, my office immediately took steps to protect the alleged victim and conducted an investigation, Madigan said in a statement.

Three months after receiving the initial complaint, Madigans office concluded the allegations were credible, the release said. His office then took additional steps to protect the alleged victim and barred the former lawmaker from entering the Capitol without a security escort, the release said.

On Jan. 24, five days before the search warrant was executed, Illinois State Police contacted Madigans office to request its investigation records, the release said.

State police executed the search warrant at Madigans office to expedite receipt of documents, and the sought-after documents were immediately handed over to the authorities, the release said.

Madigans office has been under scrutiny stemming from #MeToo related scandals at the Capitol, and the speaker has split with several aides and longtime allies as a result. Madigan also has admitted he failed to do enough to address the culture of sexual harassment at the Capitol.

Last August, an outside investigation into Madigans office and the Democratic caucus he controls found people across the Capitol repeatedly faced sexual harassment and bullying, and feared retaliation if they spoke out.

Gov. J.B. Pritzker last year signed into law sweeping sexual harassment legislation that extends protections against harassment and discrimination to public- and private-sector workplaces statewide.

Franks, a Marengo Democrat, was a member of the Illinois House from 1999 to 2017 and is currently the McHenry County Board chairman.

In his statement Friday night, Madigan said his office has taken significant steps for people to file sexual harassment complaints.

I remain committed to better protecting employees and ensuring a safe and supportive workplace for all, Madigan said.

Love 0 Funny 0 Wow 0 Sad 0 Angry 0
Secretary of State Mike Pompeo gestures as he speaks during a joint press conference with Belarusian Foreign Minister Vladimir Makei (not pictured) in Minsk, Belarus on Feb. 1, 2020. (Kevin Lamarque/Pool/Reuter)

US Offers to Supply Belarus With All of the Oil It Needs

The United States said it would supply Belarus with all of its oil and gas after Russia scaled back its delivery of the products to the eastern European country.

The United States wants to help Belarus build its own sovereign country, Secretary of State Pompeo said at a joint news conference on Saturday with Belarus Foreign Minister Vladimir Makei.

Our energy producers stand ready to deliver 100 percent of the oil you need at competitive prices. Were the biggest energy producer in the world and all you have to do is call us.

Belarus and Russia failed to reach an agreement on oil supplies and Moscow stopped providing oil before sending limited supplies earlier this month. Belarus began buying gas from Norway last month.

Makei told reporters that Belarus would welcome more U.S. involvement in his country.

We would welcome the more active role of the United States here in Belarus, and taking into account the significance and the role the United States are playing on the world arena. We are quite interested in the American business coming here to Belarus and working quite actively, he said at the press conference.

Pompeos visit was the first time a U.S. secretary of state went to Belarus for 26 years.

U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo and Belarus Foreign Minister Vladimir Makei arrive for a joint press statement in Minsk on Feb. 1, 2020. (Sergei Gapon/AFP via Getty Images)

This visit is an obvious proof that Belarus and American relations are become more active, and the visit, as we see it, must give a new impetus to the normalization of the relations between the two states, Makei said, adding that he hoped that improved relations between the countries would include bringing ambassadors back after a break of 12 years.

Belarus, a former Soviet state, declared its independence in 1991 days after the Soviet Union collapsed. It has a population of around 9.5 million and sits next to Russia, Latvia, Lithuania, Poland, and Ukraine.

Pompeo noted that the United States was one of the first countries to recognize Belarus independence and that American remains strongly committed to the country remaining independent. He said he spoke with Belarus President Alexander Lukashenko about tackling some of the obstacles that present American businesses for more readily and easily accessing this market, and emphasized the need for a level playing field.

World Trade Organization accession, increased private sector development, and legal and regulatory reforms will all help Belarus unlock its trade potential and secure its own sovereignty, he added.

Pompeo is on a trip to five countries. Belarus marks the middle of the trip. Pompeo plans to continue to Kazakhstan and Uzbekistan in the coming days.

Before Belarus, Pompeo stopped in Ukraine to declare U.S. support for Ukraine amid the countrys battle with Russian separatists in the eastern region of Donbas.

Well maintain support for a diplomatic solution to the Russia-instigated conflict in east Ukraine, and well maintain financial support for Ukraines security. We will never accept anything less than the full restoration of Ukraines control over its sovereign territory, Pompeo said, referring in part to Russias annexation of Crimea during the Obama administration.
The bench of the Northampton County Court of Common Pleas is back to full strength, following the retirements of Judges Emil Giordano and F.P. Kimberly McFadden.

Elected last year, Judge John M. Morganelli on Friday and Judge Abraham P. Kassis on Jan. 17 were administered their oaths of office by President Judge Michael Koury Jr. during induction ceremonies attended by hundreds of supporters in Courtroom 1 of the county courthouse in Easton.

Here is a look back at the ceremonies.

Northampton County Judge Abraham Kassis is administered the oath during an induction ceremony Jan. 17, 2020, in Courtroom 1 of the courthouse in Easton, alongside his mother, Berlin Kassis, and brother, Art Kassis.Courtesy photo | For lehighvalleylive.com

Kassis, of Bethlehem Township, ran a civil law practice in addition to working two decades as a Northampton County assistant district attorney, most recently as chief of the office's domestic violence unit.

Through the years, the judge was never without a cause  to the court, his colleagues, his parish church and his community, Theresa Hogan, an Easton attorney and chairwoman of Kassis campaign for judge, said in remarks prepared for Jan. 17.

Hes a recognized volunteer who quickly answers every call, Hogan added. His signature humility and unrelenting goodwill is written across his record of accomplishments in his work and community.

In his remarks, Kassis drew upon his experience growing up in Eastons Lebanese community. Among those he thanked were his large, immediate family, including his late immigrant father, John, and mother Berlin.

It was their American dream to have a better life for their kids, Kassis said to a packed courtroom. "They realized it. Its now my job to earn it.

"Although today is the beginning of service to this court, I would like today to also be about all of you. Although you are all here for me, I am standing here because of you. Many if not all in this room have had a significant impact in my life, certainly to help me get to this point."

Northampton County Judge John Morganelli is joined by his wife, Diana, as he is sworn-in by President Judge Michael Koury Jr. on Friday, Jan. 31, 2020, in Courtroom 1 of the courthouse in Easton. Kurt Bresswein | For lehighvalleylive.com

Morganelli, of Bethlehem, was introduced by Bethlehem Mayor Bob Donchez, a friend since elementary school, and U.S. District Judge Joseph Leeson Jr., a friend since high school. Morganelli served as president of Pennsylvania District Attorneys Association. As Pennsylvanias longest-serving district attorney, from January 1992 until last month, he won convictions on 25 murder cases out of 25 he personally tried.

"It is truly remarkable and it is unheard of for a state prosecutor, county prosecutor or even an appointed federal prosecutor for that matter to try cases," Leeson said. "Almost all of them serve as administrators only.

"But John did both. He ran the office and he tried cases, and he did both exceedingly well."

Donchez looked back on their time growing up on Southside Bethlehem that helped shape their lives and led to work in Democratic politics, beginning as volunteers with the office of U.S. Rep. Fred Rooney and leading to work on city political campaigns.

"John is a person of deep faith, integrity and passion," Donchez said, continuing on to say Morganelli closely values his community, family and friends. "He's one of the hardest working people I've ever known.

"As judge he will bring his legal knowledge, legal skill, good judgement and adherence to the bench of Northampton County."

Morganelli recalled while growing up dreaming of becoming an attorney to represent average folks like my parents, his late father, John A. Morganelli, who had a sixth-grade education and mother, 89-year-old Marguerite, who completed 11th grade.

He said he decided against running for another term as DA because he had accomplished all he set out to do. He continued on to say he believes his experience and hard work have positioned himself to be a fair trial judge.

A few principles that will guide me: One, I will always be prepared, Morganelli said. "Two, I will treat attorneys and litigants with respect. And three, I will always keep in mind that what may be routine for me as a judge is not routine for the parties in court.

"The folks deserve a judge who will listen patiently and decide fairly. In return, I ask the lawyers who will appear before me to also be prepared and treat opposing counsel and the court with civility and always keep in mind the awesome responsibility of being an advocate for a party."

Morganelli was succeeded as DA by Terry Houck, who had been the offices first deputy district attorney. Houck was sworn in as district attorney Jan. 10.

Kurt Bresswein may be reached at kbresswein@lehighvalleylive.com. Follow him on Twitter @KurtBresswein and Facebook. Find lehighvalleylive.com on Facebook.
WINNIPEG - A Manitoba First Nation has lost its bid to have Ottawa continue paying evacuation benefits to people forced from their homes by flooding in 2011.

Hey there, time traveller!

This article was published 31/1/2020 (709 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

The Canadian flag flies on the Peace Tower on Parliament Hill in Ottawa on October 10, 2019. A Manitoba First Nation has lost its bid to have Ottawa continue paying evacuation benefits to people forced from their homes by flooding in 2011. Lake St. Martin First Nation was seeking an injunction of a decision to cut off benefits for evacuees who still do not have homes in the Indigenous community. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Paul Chiasson

WINNIPEG - A Manitoba First Nation has lost its bid to have Ottawa continue paying evacuation benefits to people forced from their homes by flooding in 2011.

Lake St. Martin First Nation was seeking an injunction of a decision to cut off benefits for evacuees who still do not have homes in the Indigenous community.

"The LSM (Lake St. Martin First Nation) cannot succeed because it has failed to meet its burden of establishing irreparable harm," Federal Court Justice Cecily Strickland wrote in a decision dated Jan. 29. "The motion is therefore denied."

The First Nation said it had been told that benefits would be discontinued at the end of last month, although an extension was given until the end of January.

Lake St. Martin Chief Adrian Sinclair said he is shocked by the ruling.

"That was pretty hard to accept with the amount of evacuees that we're going to be leaving on the streets here in Winnipeg without rent and housing," said Sinclair. "It's a very hard decision to take."

Members of the band were forced to leave their homes when water was diverted from the Assiniboine River into Lake Manitoba to reduce the risk of flooding in Winnipeg.

Water from the lake then flooded the community and caused extensive damage. All housing and infrastructure on the reserve needed to be replaced.

A lawsuit by Lake St. Martin and three other First Nations affected by the flooding alleged the province "knowingly and recklessly'' caused the disaster.

It was settled in 2018 when the federal and Manitoba governments agreed to pay out $90 million to about 7,000 people from the communities.

As Lake St. Martin was rebuilt in a new location at a higher elevation, most members lived in Winnipeg with support from evacuation benefits. As homes and infrastructure were constructed, most returned home and their benefits stopped.

As of November, however, 992 evacuees had still not returned.

Lawyers for the federal government argued there are enough homes in the new First Nation to accommodate community members.

According to numbers in the court decision, there will soon be a total of 310 houses in the rebuilt community plus an additional 40-unit apartment building for a total of 350 homes.

"There will now be 1191 bedrooms available for 1297 evacuees, their children born since 2011, and children who have since turned 18," Strickland wrote.

"It is reasonable to think that some of these evacuees will be couples who will share a bedroom and small children who will be able to do the same."

She noted that this significantly exceeds the pre-flood housing of 182 homes and it was on this basis that the federal government determined that there was sufficient housing to accommodate all evacuated residents, as well as children born since 2011, and that benefits could, therefore, be ended.

"The difficulty I am faced with is that there is little evidence to support the LSM (Lake St. Martin) First Nation's position that evacuees have nowhere to return to on reserve and will be rendered homeless if evacuees benefits are terminated."

Sinclair said he disagrees with the court's assessment.

"All the houses in the reserve are taken and they're maximized to the space that they're required to for each family," said Sinclair.

"A lot of people want to go home. The problem is we just dont have enough housing."

Indigenous Services Canada said as of Jan. 9, 475 evacuees have returned to the rebuilt Lake St. Martin community. The government said there are 130 evacuees whose benefits will continue until the end of March when their homes are to be ready. (CTV Winnipeg, The Canadian Press)

This report by The Canadian Press was first published Jan. 31, 2020
Ella Chi, daughter of Vincent Chi who was killed in his Lower Templestowe home on Friday night. Credit:Nine News "[I'm] still like dreaming and can't believe it's real," she said. "He [her younger brother) just found his body in front of the door. "Only three of us left as a family ... finally he can meet my mum at the heaven." Detective Solomon said the Mr Chi lived at the property alone but was frequently visited by family, including his adult children.

As far as we know the deceased lives alone here and the only people that come and go are members of his family. Police search the area near where a 57 year old man was been found dead. Credit:Nine News We still dont know a lot about this homicide, were just speaking to known associates and trying to trace his movements during the evening. Detective Solomon appealed for anyone who might have seen or heard anything in the vicinity of Michael Street between the hours of 9pm and midnight on Friday to contact Crimestoppers or their local police station. Upon arrival police located a deceased male person inside the premises, who resides here... Ambulance Victoria also attended and it was quickly established that he had sustained some significant injuries and that the death is being treated as suspicious, he said.

The Templestowe Lower crime scene where a 57-year-old man's body was found. Credit:Nine News The investigation is in its very early stages. We have forensic crime scene investigators here conducting a forensic examination of the scene. Its too early at this stage to make any determination at all as to a motive or the identity of the person or persons responsible for the death of the victim. A woman, who said her daughter owned the property and rented it to the deceased man, arrived in the street mid-morning. She said the victim worked at a very famous Chinese restaurant at Northland. He was a very nice man. He was softly spoken. He wasnt a violent man. I am very sad, she said.

"His children were living here but they moved out a few weeks ago or a month, Im not sure." She said they had been living at the property for a few years". Neighbour Teresa Scilipoti said she was woken by sirens at about 11.30pm. When she looked down the street there were police everywhere. She said a short time later three carloads of people arrived at the house.

They were Asian in appearance. They could have been family. We dont know. But they left about half an hour later. We didnt know the man who lives there. We walk the dog all the time but we had never seen him. Its usually a very quiet street and neighbourhood, said Ms Scilipoti, who has lived in the area for four years. Other neighbours said they didnt know what was unfolding in their neighbourhood until police knocked on their doors around 2.30am. I heard sirens just after 11 and then I got a knock on the door at 2.30, said another neighbour Bill Rama, who has lived in the street for 40 years.

But apart from that I didnt hear anything, he said. I dont even know who lives there. Ive never seen him, so its a bit of a surprise, he said. Next door neighbour Graeme Floody said they were perfect neighbours. We never had a hassle. They are so quiet you wouldnt even know they were there. For the most part I think there was only one gentleman [living] there but they were perfect as far as neighbours were concerned. "We never heard any arguments. We never heard any noise."
An Alabama Department of Corrections officer and his cousin -- already serving time for theft -- were arrested Thursday as part of an ongoing ADOC drug investigation, the agency said Friday.

Officer Christian Deshawn Esco, 27, and his 27-year-old cousin, Joshua Duana Esco, both of Montgomery, were nabbed at a Montgomery eatery around 5:15 p.m. Thursday in connection with the investigation by ADOCs Investigations and Intelligence Division.

Christian Deshawn Esco, who was assigned to the Kilby Correctional Facility in Mt. Meigs and has been with the corrections department since May 2017, was arrested and charged with trafficking illegal drugs, the agency said. Disciplinary actions are pending against the corrections officer.

Joshua Duane Esco was nabbed as part of the same investigation that led to the arrest of his cousin. He is currently serving a 27-month sentence on theft of property charges at Tuscaloosa Community Corrections.

Joshua Duane Esco

The Escos were booked at the Montgomery County Jail on $500,000 bond each.

The Investigations and Intelligence Division continues to investigate the case.
PCUSA, Episcopal churches rank themselves low on evangelism abilities: survey

Email Print Img No-img Menu Whatsapp Google Reddit Digg Stumbleupon Linkedin Comment

When it comes to marks of congregational vitality, the Presbyterian Church (USA) and the Episcopal Church congregations rank themselves lowest on evangelism, according to a recent survey.

PC(USA)s Research Services department released an analysis of the U.S. Congregational Vitality Study centered on PC(USA) and the Episcopal Church congregations.

The survey, released Monday, included 156 congregations, 78 from PC(USA) and 78 from the Episcopal Church, with the opinions of about 9,000 church members taken, according to Presbyterian News Service.

PC(USA) looked at responses centered on what they described as the Seven Marks of Congregational Vitality, which include caring relationships, ecclesial health, intentional, authentic evangelism, lifelong discipleship, outward incarnational focus, servant leadership, and Spirit-inspired worship.

Taken on a scale of 1-100, the survey found that of the congregational vitality marks, evangelism was ranked the lowest at 69, deemed the equivalent of a D+ grade.

Within the overall questions pertaining to evangelism, the statement I try to ensure that visitors to my church feel welcome was the most popular of the responses, while I invite people who do not attend church to come visit mine was the least popular.

The highest of the vitality marks was caring relationships, scoring at 81 percent, or a B to B-, followed by worship and ecclesial health, both at 79 and servant leadership at 78.

Angie Andriot, a research analyst with the PC(USA)s Research Services, said in comments to Presbyterian News Service that this marked the first deep analysis of the congregational vitality data, with more analysis expected in the near future.

Regarding differences in responses between Presbyterian and Episcopal congregations, Andriot said both denominations tended to have similar responses.

We think we are better at outward focus, Andriot told Presbyterian News Service. They think they are better at worship.

Over the past several years, much has been made about the decline of membership for both PC(USA) and The Episcopal Church.

While still the largest Presbyterian denomination in the United States, last April PC(USA) reported losing 143 churches and about 5% of its active members in 2018.

This means that PC(USA) ended 2018 with 9,161 member congregations and approximately 1.35 million active members.

In a statement released last year, PC(USA) General Assembly Stated Clerk, the Rev. J. Herbert Nelson II, said he felt encouraged that the decline in members appeared to be slowing.

The church of the 21st century is changing and we still believe God is preparing us for great things in the future, he said.

God is moving through churches, presbyteries and synods, finding new, innovative ways to share the Gospel with a lost world and we are thankful for that.

PC(USA) and The Episcopal Church are not the only denominations that appear to have issues with evangelism, according to Kevin Palau, president and CEO of the Luis Palau Association.

In an interview on the Dallas Theological Seminary podcast "The Table" last September, Palau said he believed most American Christians are skittish about evangelism.

"They hope someone else will do it, they hope the pastor will do it. They really dont want to do it themselves," Palau said at the time.

"With all the cultural pressures, young people, even if they live in the Bible Belt, theyre affected very much by social media, and its just not comfortable to express clearly the uniqueness of Jesus Christ."
This was Iowa caucus night back in the mid-1970s. And these are members of the national media covering the voting. It was so unusual to see national media in Iowa back then that people actually paid to watch them. The Democratic Party charged $15 a head for people to watch the media watch the people. See, in previous years, Iowas caucuses just hadnt attracted national attention. There are 3,000 frozen media members in downtown Des Moines  Just over a decade later, Iowa is the place to be.  Its Iowa caucus night. Lets party. [shouting] The caucuses are now a key part of the presidential election cycle. Bush, 57. Theyre the first chance to see what kind of support candidates have among voters. So how did we get here, from caucuses that only Iowans seem to care about to the national spectacle we see today? Turns out, a lot of it was accidental. For most of Iowas history, its caucuses were dominated by political insiders. There was little room for input from rank-and-file members. An historian writing in the 1940s put it like this: The larger number of party voters were deprived of a voice. But the old ways start coming to an end in 1968. The countrys in turmoil, and so is the Democratic Party, mostly over the Vietnam War and civil rights. Basically, the party establishment wants to handle things one way, and many rank-and-file members have other ideas. All this comes to a head as the Democrats hold their national convention. Protesters gather outside. So do police. Inside, the mood is also tense. All this division leads the Democratic Party to rethink the nomination rules to include the voices of all party members in the process. This is how we come to the moment when Iowa becomes key to electing a president, basically by accident. First up, how Iowa became first to hold a presidential contest. It starts with new rules to give everyday members more of a say. So by 1972, winning Iowa now involves four stages. Iowans choose their top candidates, first at the precinct level. These are the caucuses at the heart of this story. But technically, theres further voting at the county, congressional district and state levels. The new rules make things a lot more inclusive, but this creates new delays. Committees need to be formed, and everyone needs to have up-to-date party materials. The problem is, the state party only has an old mimeograph machine to make copies of all this. Its really slow. So because of an old machine and a bunch of new logistics, the party decides it needs at least a month between each step to do it all. The national convention is set for early July, so youd think that the state-level convention would happen about a month before, in June. Except, the party cant find a venue thats available to hold everyone. That little detail helps push everything earlier in a chain reaction. See whats going on here? The precinct caucuses now have to happen early in the year. The party chooses a date that makes Iowas the first presidential contest. The New Hampshire primary has been the first kickoff contest since the 1950s, but Iowa Democrats arent necessarily looking for national attention. They just think itll be fun to be first. Still, attention is what they get. The story begins with George McGovern. People didnt know much about the Iowa caucuses. As a matter of fact, there wasnt a great deal of interest in them. Hes the long-shot candidate. Hes been at the bottom of national polls. He often walked the campaign trail alone, little known by the voters. Most people think this guy, Edmund Muskie, is going to be the big winner in Iowa. That challenge is great, but we can meet it. Then comes caucus night. As the people vote, state party officials gather at their headquarters. Richard Bender is one of them. And we had about 10 or 12 press people show up. These press people included one guy, Johnny Apple. Johnny Apple, a 37-year-old political correspondent for The New York Times. Iowas Democrats arent ready to publicize the results right away. They hadnt expected much demand. According to Bender, only Johnny Apple asked for them that night. I happen to be fascinated with such things, so I made it my business, beforehand, to understand it. Bender sets up a phone tree to gather results from across the state. He adds them up himself with a calculator. And the next day, Apples article helps swing the national spotlight onto the caucuses. Hes got quite the story to tell. Muskies won, but just barely. Not the runaway win people were expecting. And McGovern comes in a strong second. No one expected that, either. The reformed caucus rules helped a long-shot candidate rise to the top. And because this is happening so early in the election now, and because Apples article gives the results national coverage, something else happens. That got picked up by some of the national news shows. The Democratic front-runner has been damaged in Iowa. And wow, all of a sudden, we were being paid attention to. McGovern eventually wins the Democratic nomination. I accept your nomination with a full and grateful heart. He loses the presidential election, but some havent forgotten what those early caucuses did for McGovern, including Georgias former governor, Jimmy Carter. Three years later  There was a major headline on the editorial page of the Atlanta Constitution that said, Jimmy Carters running for what? [laughter] And the What was about this big. [applause] Im running for president.  Carter heads to Iowa before any other Democratic candidate. Hes got no national profile. He didnt have hordes of press following him around. It was a very lonely campaign. Washington pundits call his candidacy laughable. I remember when we couldnt find a microphone. Jimmy Who? becomes a catchphrase. Carters own campaign film plays it up. Jimmy who? I dont know who he is. But as long as Iowans come to know him and like him, Carter bets that the media will start paying attention, just like with McGovern four years earlier. Carter campaigns as locally as possible. One day, he learns that hes been invited on a local TV show. And I said, that is great. I cant believe it. I said, What are we going to do? He said, Do you have any favorite recipes? And I said, What do you mean, recipes? He said, Well, this is a cooking show. Well, they put a white apron on me and a chefs hat. That was my only access to TV when I first began to campaign in Iowa. His opponents are in Iowa, too, but they spend far less time there. Carter wins. Surprisingly top of the class after his win in a somewhat obscure race in Iowa against the others. You cant tell until we go to the other 49 states, but its encouraging for us. A year later  I, Jimmy Carter, do solemnly swear   he becomes the 39th president. Now we need to head to 1980 because we havent talked about the Republicans yet. Heres the states Republican chairman that year. Hes asked why Iowas caucuses have become so important. I think because Jimmy Carter got his start in Iowa in 1976. The Republicans in Iowa are keen to copy the Democrats success, and one candidate in particular gets inspired by Carters underdog win: George H.W. Bush. Hes running against Ronald Reagan, Bob Dole and others, and hes near the bottom of the pack. Your name isnt really a household word, but Ronald Reagan can  But Bush goes big in Iowa. He gets a surprise win. Its a far cry from just months before. I was an asterisk in those days. And my feelings got hurt. And now, Im no longer an asterisk. Bush is now the third underdog to get a boost from the caucuses. The next morning on CBS, he distills the essence of this new Iowa effect. We will have forward, Big Mo on our side, as they say in athletics.  Big Mo?  Yeah. Mo  momentum. Bush loses to Reagan, but becomes vice president. And the desire to capture the Big Mo from Iowa has only grown, thanks in large part to Iowas embrace of being first, and the media storm that descends every four years. Thats despite the fact that most candidates who win  This is a job interview.  dont become president. Plus, many point out that the states overwhelmingly white population doesnt reflect the countrys diversity. I actually think that we can find places that represent that balance of urban and rural better. But the race to get the Big Mo out of Iowa persists because its the first chance to upend expectations, and put political fates in the voters hands.
The coronavirus outbreak is beginning to seriously impact travel, and now, seven major airlines have suspended all routes to China:

Delta Airlines DAL

American Airlines AAL

United Airlines UAL

Air India

Indonesias Lion Air

South Koreas Seoul Air

British Airways

Many airlines have also waived change and cancellation fees for China routes through the end of February; its likely more carriers will follow suit.

The coronavirus originated in Wuhan City, China, which is in the Hubei provice. As of today, 213 people have died and almost 10,000 people are infected in mainland China (according to Chinese officials). The World Health Organization recently declared the outbreak a global health emergency, and the coronavirus has now spread to 22 other countries; six cases have been confirmed in the U.S.

Biggest Tech Breakthrough in a Generation

Be among the early investors in the new type of device that experts say could impact society as much as the discovery of electricity. Current technology will soon be outdated and replaced by these new devices. In the process, its expected to create 22 million jobs and generate $12.3 trillion in activity.

A select few stocks could skyrocket the most as rollout accelerates for this new tech. Early investors could see gains similar to buying Microsoft in the 1990s. Zacks just-released special report reveals 8 stocks to watch. The report is only available for a limited time.

See 8 breakthrough stocks now>>



Want the latest recommendations from Zacks Investment Research? Today, you can download 7 Best Stocks for the Next 30 Days. Click to get this free report



American Airlines Group Inc. (AAL) : Free Stock Analysis Report



United Airlines Holdings Inc (UAL) : Free Stock Analysis Report



Delta Air Lines, Inc. (DAL) : Free Stock Analysis Report



To read this article on Zacks.com click here.



Zacks Investment Research
Amid stepped efforts by several countries to evacuate their citizens from coronavirus-hit Wuhan, Sri Lankan students evacuated on February 1 will be kept under quarantine for two weeks. The evacuation plan was given a formal nod after discussions between the Sri Lankan and Chinese authorities following the declaration of a global health emergency by the World Health Organisation (WHO).

Sri Lankan Airlines flight landed at the southern Mattala airport and the students were taken to a military facility in Diyathalawa as per the standard protocol set for health emergencies. The island nation has established a special committee to prevent the spread of the deadly virus since a large Chinese community work at construction sites in different parts of Sri Lanka.

At least 259 deaths due to the coronavirus have been reported with more than 11,000 confirmed cases of infection. WHO now declared the new coronavirus outbreak as a Public Health Emergency of International Concern (PHEIC) after the second meeting of the International Health Regulations (2005) Emergency Committee. The committee also acknowledged that human-to-human transmission has occurred outside Wuhan and outside China.

Read: Coronavirus: 324 Indians Evacuated From Wuhan, Another AI Flight Departs From Delhi

WHO Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus congratulated the Chinese government for the extraordinary measures it took to contain the virus, despite the severe social and economic impact those measures are having on the Chinese people. We dont know what sort of damage this coronavirus could do if it were to spread in a country with a weaker health system. We must act now to help countries prepare for that possibility," said Ghebreyesus.

Read: Ethiopian Airlines Continues Flights To China Amid Coronavirus Outbreak

India sends another flight

India has also started evacuating its nationals and an Air India flight carrying 324 Indian citizens, with a majority of students, landed in Delhi earlier today. Indians who arrived at the Delhi airport will be taken to an Indo-Tibetan Border Police (ITBP) camp where they will be kept in isolation for 14 days for medical observation.

Another Air India flight has taken off for Wuhan to evacuate remaining citizens who gave their consent to leave Hubei Province for the time being. Indian Embassy in Beijing urged all Indian nationals living in Hubei province to contact the embassy through hotlines if they intend to avail the next flight.

Read: Coronavirus: 104 Evacuated From China Admitted To ITBP Facility In Delhi

Read: Africa: Government Ramps Up Preventive Measures Amid Coronavirus Dread

(With PTI inputs)
The Member of Parliament for Ablekuma Central Constituency, Hon Ebenezer Gilbert Nii Narh NARTEY yesterday, 31st January 2020 donated Laptops to some students of Kaneshie Secondary and Technical School(KATECO).

Hon. Ebenezer Nartey who is also the Vice-Chairman of the Lands and Forestry Committee in Parliament said the donation was in fulfillment of a promise made by him to the students who participated in the Independence National Debate and placed 1st in Greater Accra Region and later went on to place 5th position at the National level which took place at Koforidua.

The Legislature said the laptops are to support their learning process to prepare them adequately for any challenge that will come up in the future.

Mr. Charles Kojo Poku, A Board member at Kaneshie Secondary Technical School and Dean of Students Methodist University College Ghana expressed gratitude to the MP for his continuous support to the school.

Ms Pearl Bruce, Headmistress of the School, thanked the Member of Parliament and assured him that the Laptops would be put to good use and for the purpose for which it was donated.
STATEN ISLAND, N.Y. -- Following the devastating attacks on the World Trade Center on Sept. 11, 2001, thousands of rescue workers from across America responded to ground zero.

However, not all of those workers were human. There were hundreds of specially trained dogs who aided workers in rescue, police work, therapy and comfort, according to the 9/11 Museum.

Thats why a new exhibit, dubbed K-9 Courage, pays tribute to these fearless canines who helped in the massive recovery efforts.

Search and rescue dogs (SAR) specialize in disaster response skills. Trained to search and detect the scent of living humans, their mission was to find survivors buried in the rubble, said the 911 Museum in a blog post on its website.

The dogs worked alongside handlers for countess hours, climbing across huge piles of debris looking for victims and their remains.

K-9 Courage honors the hundreds of dogs that participated in the response to the 9/11 attacks. With dedication and specialized expertise, these four-legged responders made a difference with their handlers during the rescue and recovery effortsand made a lasting impression on people around the world, says the 911 website.

After September 11, 2001, K-9 teams searched the wreckage of the crash sites for survivors and victims, and they comforted responders and the families of victims. When images of the dogs at work appeared in news coverage, they brightened 9/11s dark aftermath, the website adds.

The exhibit features images captured by photographer Charlotte Dumas, who visited 15 of these rescue dogs 10 years after the attacks.

This exhibition combines photographs of the dogs during their service with Dumass portraits of them later in life. It also includes artifacts that tell stories of working dogs and disaster response veterinary teams, said 9/11 Museum on its website.

FOLLOW TRACEY PORPORA ON FACEBOOK and TWITTER
Hi Future Tensers,

Did you detect a ripple in the space-time continuum? Oh wait, that was just the Future Tense newsletter coming back to bring our citizens guide to the future. In the months since we hit pause on the newsletter, we published Future Tense Fiction: Stories of Tomorrow, the first anthology of our fiction, and continued to ask you, dear reader, to consider how emerging technologies are transforming the way we live. Now that were back, well be sending out the newsletter on Saturdays, every other week.

Advertisement

Speaking of fiction: Last Saturday, we published our latest short story, The Truth Is All There Is, by Emily Parker. Blockchain cheerleaders say that the technology can revolutionize everything from spotting fake news to tuna conservation (seriouslycheck out this long list Future Tense published a while back). But Parkers story, about a future in which the blockchain provides perfect transparency, shows the folly here. In the response essay, blockchain expert Jill Carlson writes, We can record false claims on a blockchain. We can omit data. Suddenly, that source of truth does not appear so honest.

Advertisement

Advertisement

Advertisement

Here are some other pieces we published recently:

Alex Trembath What Is the Doomsday Clock Really Counting Down Toward?

Jane C. Hu Catching a Glimpse of a Dead Loved One on Google Street View

Marjorie Perry How the Chinese Government Is Trying to Quash Coronavirus Rumors on Social Media

Chloe Hadavas Unpacking the Spectacle of Jeff Bezos Driving an Electric Rickshaw in India

Stephen Harrison How Wikipedia Fought Back Against a Ban in Turkey

Wish Wed Published This

The U.S. Is Losing Its Fight Against Huawei, by Garrett M. Graff, Wired. For more on Huawei, listen to this weeks episode of What Next TBD.

Three Questions for a Smart Person

Josephine Wolff is an assistant professor of cybersecurity policy at Tufts Fletcher School of Law and Diplomacy and a fellow at New America.

Advertisement

Advertisement

Margaret: Whats the area of data vulnerability we dont talk about enough?

All the different forms online extortion can take not just ransomware but also using bits of information about people (e.g., stolen passwords or personal files/photos) to make online extortion demands and all the possible ways that can be used to compromise individuals.

What will the future of elections look like for politicians that have been online their entire lives?

Well get much more accustomed to seeing embarrassing types of personal information coming out around the time of elections, and I think well see more people taking into consideration what they have online.

Should we all get a backup clamshell or other analog backup to the cloud?

Yes, I think even a USB drive is a good idea for things that are special to you to have somewhere unplugged.

Advertisement

Advertisement

Want to learn more? Check out this Future Tense story by Josephine that asks: Do more patients die at hospitals that experience data breaches?

Future Tense Recommends

Besides The Crown, which is sorely lacking in sci-fi, my latest Netflix binge has been Ad Vitam, a fascinating French show about the downside of life extension. Thanks to a process called regeneration, people can live in perpetual health, looking like theyre in their 30s. But out of fear of overpopulation, the country begins pondering restrictions on child-bearing. Meanwhile, young peopleconsidered minors until theyre 30are angry at a world that refuses to make space for them. (They cant even drink or do drugs to kill time, because it would mess up their future regeneration.) Despite the French angst, a sinister conspiracy, and the dystopian premise, it doesnt feel as joyless or didactic as Black Mirror.Torie Bosch, Future Tense editor

Upcoming Future Tense Events

If youre in Washington, join us on Feb. 5 for Kickstarting the Digital Heartland, a lunchtime discussion of how to bridge the digital divide in America. And if you cant make it in person, well have a livestream. For more information and to RSVP, visit the New America website, where you can also watch the event from afar.

Well see you again in two weeks!

Margaret from Future Tense

Future Tense is a partnership of Slate, New America, and Arizona State University that examines emerging technologies, public policy, and society.
Firefighters deal with a blaze in an apartment block on Divis Street, west Belfast on February 1st 2020 (Photo by Kevin Scott for Belfast Telegraph)

Firefighters deal with a blaze in an apartment block on Divis Street, west Belfast on February 1st 2020 (Photo by Kevin Scott for Belfast Telegraph)

Firefighters deal with a blaze in an apartment block on Divis Street, west Belfast on February 1st 2020 (Photo by Kevin Scott for Belfast Telegraph)

Firefighters deal with a blaze in an apartment block on Divis Street, west Belfast on February 1st 2020 (Photo by Kevin Scott for Belfast Telegraph)

Firefighters deal with a blaze in an apartment block on Divis Street, west Belfast on February 1st 2020 (Photo by Kevin Scott for Belfast Telegraph)

Firefighters deal with a blaze in an apartment block on Divis Street, west Belfast on February 1st 2020 (Photo by Kevin Scott for Belfast Telegraph)

Firefighters deal with a blaze in an apartment block on Divis Street, west Belfast on February 1st 2020 (Photo by Kevin Scott for Belfast Telegraph)

A west Belfast man had a lucky escape in the early hours of Saturday morning after his microwave caught alight at a block of flats in the area.

Police and the Northern Ireland Fire and Rescue Service (NIFRS) were called to the scene on Divis Street at around 2am.

NIFRS dispatched three appliances to the scene and the blaze was quickly extinguished,

The 57-year-old man was treated by the Ambulance Service at the scene.

Station Commander Stephen Abrol said the man and other residents of the block of flats had been alerted to the fire by a smoke alarm.

He stressed the importance of regularly checking you have a working smoke alarm.

"The man and other residents were quickly alerted to the small fire by the alarm and the matter was resolved quickly," he said.

A PSNI spokesperson confirmed they were also in attendance.

"Police attended a report of a fire at a flat in Divis Street at 1.50am. The fire is believed to have been accidental," the spokesperson said.
BOSTON  Boston Logan International Airport in the coming days will begin enhanced screening of passengers arriving from China to help guard against the spread of coronavirus, state health officials said Friday evening.

The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention earlier this week identified Logan as one of 20 additional airports that will have enhanced screening, according to the state Department of Public Health and Massport. Enhanced screening was already in place at five airports.

Customs and Border Patrol already conducts passive screening for signs of illness of all passengers entering the U.S., DPH said.

Logan has three daily nonstop flights from Beijing, Shanghai and Hong Kong. It does not have any flights originating in the city of Wuhan and Hubei Province, where the outbreak originated.

There have been no confirmed cases of coronavirus infection in Massachusetts and the risk of contracting it here is low, DPH said.

Six cases have been confirmed in the U.S. in California, Illinois, Washington state and Arizona, DPH said. There are thousands of confirmed human infections worldwide, with the vast majority of them in China, DPH said.

U.S. Health and Human Services Secretary Alex Azar on Friday declared a public health emergency and ordered any U.S. citizens returning from the center of the outbreak to be quarantined for two weeks. The declaration limits arrivals from China to a handful of airports starting Sunday, meaning plans for Logan could change.

The State Department, meanwhile, has advised U.S. citizens not to travel to China.

The World Health Organization on Thursday declared a global health emergency in response to the outbreak.

DPH said it has taken the following steps to prepare against coronavirus:

Launched a website that provides up-to-date information on the status of novel coronavirus for all residents: mass.gov/2019coronavirus

Developed and disseminated clinical advisories to all Massachusetts health care providers and issued guidance to hospitals, health systems and emergency medical services.

Established an Incident Command Structure to facilitate the dissemination of information from federal and state partners to statewide stakeholders regularly.

Scheduled calls with other key health care partners including local boards of health.

Our priority is protecting public health as we work with our state and federal partners to provide the most up to date information and guidance to our residents, said Public Health Commissioner Dr. Monica Bharel. We understand that this new virus is causing public concern, but I want to reassure people that at this time, the risk to Massachusetts residents remains low.
Shares of IDBI Bank spiked over 17% per cent in intraday trade on Saturday after the Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman announced in her Budget speech that the government will be selling stake in the lender to private retail investors.

Reacting to the news, shares of IDBI Bank climbed 17% intraday to the high of Rs 39.80, as against the last closing price of Rs 33.90. IDBI stock price trades higher than 100 and 200-day moving averages but lower than 5, 20 and 50-day moving averages.

IDBI Bank stock has gained after 8 days of consecutive fall. IDBI Bank shares have risen 8% in a week, 3.4% in one month and 3.38% year-to-date. Although the shares have 30% in one year, 50% in 3 years and 46% in 5 years.

Volume-wise, 15 lakh and 174 lakh shares were trading on BSE and NSE counters, both above the 5, 10 and 20-day average volume traded.

In January 2019, government had sold stake in IDBI Bank to insurance behemoth Indian state-owned insurance group Life Insurance Corporation of India (LIC).

LIC had completed the process of picking up a controlling 51% stake in IDBI Bank, which had the highest NPAs and was under the RBI's prompt corrective action (PCA) framework. LIC has often bailed out public sector companies and banks.

As of now, LIC owns 51 per cent stake in IDBI Bank, while government holds 46 per cent shares in the lender.

FULL COVERAGE: Union Budget 2020
01.02.2020 LISTEN

As part of the economic right people have in their country, everybody has the right to work. As the Articles 21(1) of the 1992 Ghanas constitution puts it Every person has the right to work under satisfactory, safe and healthy conditions, and shall receive equal pay for equal work without distinction of any kind yet one thing we should also be conscious of is that despite the enjoyment of this right nobody has the right to allow the enjoyment of his right to override those of others.

In this write up, I will be discussing the work of a group of traders who are popularly known as Quackeries, who I call Health rebels. These are the group of people who carry all forms of medicine from traditional to orthodox, and sell to innocent people on the street without having the necessary license or permits to do so. These people are basically defined as Health frauds.

Maybe you have not noticed one or more of these people in this business venture. Sit in a public transport in Kaneshie to Cape Coast or from Accra to Kumasi and you will be actively engaged for hours by these traders of herbal and orthodox medicine. These people sell drugs that heals the piles, cancer, stroke, running stomach, waist problems, Sexual health, Penis enlargement, vaginal contraction, and interestingly, HIV. I have no doubt that the ones on Coronavirus and Ebola will soon be out.

I sincerely dont hate these people, but from the critical lens from which I look at the work they do, the questions that fills up my mind anytime I see them are that are these people certified by any State health agency to do this business? Have these people actually passed the requirement outlined by Sections 18 of the Food and Drugs Law, 1992 (PNDCL 305b)? If not, what are some of the measures the Food and Drugs Authority are putting in place to crack down on these people? Are these drugs or herbs healthy enough for human consumption? How well are their prescriptions? What is the Ghana Health Service even doing to ensure that drugs in the licensed pharmaceutical shops are fit for human consumption?

From a personal experience in my early years in the University, a trader of herbal medicine once entered our room to advertise a medicine. After his persuasive speech that almost made me want to buy the whole pack and use for a year, I took one of the products and began to make an inspection on the ingredient that was used for the product. I also looked out for the seal of the Food and Drugs Authority (FDA) on the product, but just as I expected, there were no seal of the FDA on the product. The sections 18 of the Food and Drugs Law, 1992 (PNDCL 305b) states that No person shall manufacture, prepare, sell, supply, export or import into Ghana any drug, cosmetic, device or chemical substance unless the article has been registered with the Food and Drugs Board established under section 27 (hereafter referred to as "the Board"). So, in the first instance, the drug has failed.

More of these cases occur every day on the streets of Accra, Kumasi, and others. Are we turning a blind eye to this form of trade? Should we allow a group of health rebels to continue to take the life of innocent men and women, young and old, boys and girls because they have the right to engage in trade?

According to the findings of the World Health Organization (WHO) on 17th January, 2020 as published by Al-Jazeera, it was revealed that hundreds of thousands of people are killed by fake medicine, both Orthodox and Herbal, every year in Africa. Ghana has become the hub for the elusive importation of everything including drugs. The news source revealed that the center for these fake medicine importation into Africa include China, India and Nigeria. How can we stay in our country, Ghana and allow a few other corrupt foreigners to kill us slowly? Its good to fight against terrorism, and vigilantism, but in my own perspective, the war against fake medicines and quack medical practitioners should be given more attention.

It is about time we got serious in this country Ghana. Let us trace some of the source of the health complicated issues and even death in this country, and we would find a link with some totally unsafe medicines people use. This is not to say that all herbal and orthodox medicines that are sold out there are poisonous, but the argument is how well are those that sell the medicine qualified to do so? How legit are their prescriptions?

With respect to prescription of drugs, countless research has shown of some medication errors that even qualified health care providers cause in each year. Prominent of these researches is the work of Aronson (2009) in his research work titled Medication errors: what they are, how they happen, and how to avoid them. In his research he refers to a survey that was conducted by the National Patient Safety Agency in the United Kingdom. The research revealed a survey of some 40 000 medication errors in hospitals trusts in England and Wales. Of this, twenty percent were identified with complications.

Similarly, in the USA, it was posited that since 3 Billion prescriptions are dispensed each year, 50 Million would contain errors. If in these developed nations such erroneous prescriptions are recorded annually, and from qualified health care providers, how well can we trust the uneducated or half-baked educated folks who are in the business of selling drugs and herbs to people?

According to the Ghana National Drug Policy (2004), The Ministry of Health, through the Traditional Medicine Practice Council (TMPC), shall supervise training and register herbal practitioners and regulate their activities to ensure that they conform to the standards set by the TMPC. Sixteen years down the line, to what end has this Policy Statement been fulfilled with respect to the issues being discussed.

The government of Ghana in 2003 introduced the National Health Insurance Scheme (NHIS) to ensure more equitable financing of health care and to improve access to health service in the country. It may be argued that the introduction of the National Health Insurance Scheme (NHIS) has removed barriers that could have otherwise prevented people from having access to proper medications from Health providers; hence there is greater access to quality healthcare. Although the scheme has improved health care in the country, the challenges of the scheme lead health care providers into requesting some monies from patients, most of whom have their own assumption of the scheme to mean totally free.

In an extract from Ashigbe et.al . (2016) research paper on the topic Challenges of Medicines Management in the Public and Private Sector under Ghanas National Health Insurance Scheme- a Qualitative Study he records from some NHIS health care providers that If the price (of drugs) is high, and the person wants the drug, he may pay the difference. We call it top-up. These top-ups which are most often equal to the drug itself deter people from accessing the hospital, hence their access to these traditional herbal medicines which are mostly cheap. There is therefore the need for strict supervision and regulation of all of these herbal medicines in Ghana.

Still talking about medicines, how are pharmaceutical shops regulated? Few years ago, I was infected with something called Apollo, an inflammation of the eye which causes the eye to redden and itchy. I purchased an eye drop from a well-known pharmacy in my community and applied it to my eye. It was later in the evening when I applied the medication. Few minutes after the application, I realized the itch increased. I felt I was getting blind. Early the following morning, I decided to inspect the medicine, maybe I had misapplied the drug. I shockingly realized that the eye drop had expired. Oh my God! Really? I rushed back to the shop to report and take my money; I wouldnt even take a brand new one.

On this issue, Mr. Isaac Adupong, Greater Accra Regional Chairman of the Pharmaceutical Society of Ghana stated explicitly in 2017 during an orientation workshop organized for newly qualified pharmacists in Accra that selling expired or almost expired drugs is illegal and a criminal transgression. Let the Police launch an Operation Clean the Counter tomorrow and we shall see the number of expired drugs that will be pulled out from the shelves of pharmaceutical shops in Ghana.

We have come far as a country, and if we really want to improve the quality of health care provision in the country we need to make a conscious effort to ensure that institutions that are in charge of making this happen really work at making this happen. If even a National Health Insurance Scheme will work to provide health care to people who can afford to pay part of the cost of health care, how about the poor person living in a rejected community, such as Gyaekasa, Kote ye Aboa, Etwe nim Nyansa, and others where health care can be accessed kilometers away or perhaps miles? How about setting up a community task force that will not only inspect sanitation but more so, check out for these health rebels, who do not even have a Standard Seven Certificate to operate?

We cannot claim to be fighting Tramadol and whatever abuse in this country when we have plenty of its traders in the Kaneshie, Makola, Ashiaman and the Kejatia Markets. How about intensifying public education on the risk of self-medication? How about developing a system that makes it possible to verify the authenticity of any drug that is sold in this country? How about introducing a policy of one family one doctor in the country? Ghanaians deserve better.

The respective authorities should work hard to make life better for the people who gave them the authority, just as they do for their own children and family. Lets come together to work and make the world a better place for ourselves, our fellow human beings, and generations to come. Lets work to eliminate quack street doctors from our markets and communities. I humbly submit.

By: Michael Ofori

( [email protected] )
Passengers arriving from Thailand and Singapore will be screened at airports in addition to those coming from China and Hong Kong for possible exposure to novel coronavirus (nCoV), the Union Health Ministry said on Saturday.

The decision was taken at a high-level review meeting held by Cabinet Secretary Rajiv Gauba here on the preparedness to deal with the virus amid mounting global concern over increasing number of cases in China and several other countries.

"Apart from passengers coming from China and Hong Kong, passengers coming on flights from Singapore and Thailand shall also be universally screened at the airports, henceforth," the ministry said.

The secretaries of Health, Civil Aviation, Textiles and Pharmaceutical ministries among others attended the meeting. The cabinet secretary has held five review meetings so far.

As of Saturday, a total of 52,332 passengers from 326 flights have been screened for the nCoV infection symptoms.

COVID-19 Vaccine Frequently Asked Questions View more How does a vaccine work? A vaccine works by mimicking a natural infection. A vaccine not only induces immune response to protect people from any future COVID-19 infection, but also helps quickly build herd immunity to put an end to the pandemic. Herd immunity occurs when a sufficient percentage of a population becomes immune to a disease, making the spread of disease from person to person unlikely. The good news is that SARS-CoV-2 virus has been fairly stable, which increases the viability of a vaccine. How many types of vaccines are there? There are broadly four types of vaccine  one, a vaccine based on the whole virus (this could be either inactivated, or an attenuated [weakened] virus vaccine); two, a non-replicating viral vector vaccine that uses a benign virus as vector that carries the antigen of SARS-CoV; three, nucleic-acid vaccines that have genetic material like DNA and RNA of antigens like spike protein given to a person, helping human cells decode genetic material and produce the vaccine; and four, protein subunit vaccine wherein the recombinant proteins of SARS-COV-2 along with an adjuvant (booster) is given as a vaccine. What does it take to develop a vaccine of this kind? Vaccine development is a long, complex process. Unlike drugs that are given to people with a diseased, vaccines are given to healthy people and also vulnerable sections such as children, pregnant women and the elderly. So rigorous tests are compulsory. History says that the fastest time it took to develop a vaccine is five years, but it usually takes double or sometimes triple that time. View more Show

"A total of 97 symptomatic travellers picked up by the IDSP have been referred to the isolation facilities. 98 samples have been tested, of which 97 have been found to be negative. The earlier positive case found in Kerala is being monitored and is stable," the Health Ministry said.

India has reported a positive case of nCoV from Kerala. A female medical student of a university in the Chinese city of Wuhan, the epicentre of the outbreak, has tested positive for the virus that has claimed over 250 lives in China.

The Union Health secretary also held a video-conference to review the process of screening passengers from different countries.

As many as 324 Indians, evacuated from Wuhan, on Saturday reached here on board Air India's jumbo B747 aircraft and were admitted to two quarantine facilities set up by the Army and the ITBP, though none of them have tested positive for the novel coronavirus, officials said.
Scarcely more than 100 miles north of the Golden Gate is a wild, fog-drenched land where a roiling ocean and pristine views are calling for a weekend escape.

This secluded section of the North Coast, also called the Mendonoma Coastsituated bluffside between Jenner-by-the-Sea in Sonoma County and Point Arena in Mendocino Countyhas food, architecture and adventure, whether you're a bona fide weekend warrior or just looking to chill and enjoy the beauty of the Pacific. Let our weekend itinerary do the planning for you.

Friday: Hit the Road for Sea Ranch Dinner of locally foraged produce and wild game awaits in the lovely dining room at St. Orres. (Courtesy of St. Orres) Check In You know the picturesque planned community at the tippy-top of the Sonoma Coastbut have you stayed there? Known for its bare, midcentury modern architecture that rises in perfect harmony from the coastal landscape as though it had been built by Howard Roark himself, the village is surrounded by Monterey Cyprus and rocky bluffs. On its southern side sits the Sea Ranch Lodge (rooms starting at $271/night; 60 Sea Walk Dr.), where dog-friendly guest rooms are 1970s-chic and have picture windows looking onto the ocean; some have gas fireplaces and cushy window seats so you can stay warm on foggy days without missing the view. At the lodge's restaurant, Black Point Grill, new chef Rebecca Stewart is combining fresh seasonal ingredients with international flair. Consider staying in for dinner and a massage at the cozy two-room spa. If you can sneak away from the Bay Area early in the day, take Sir Francis Drake Boulevard west from the 101 to hit the coast at Olemathe drive up north promises views of the Pacific Ocean at her most dramatic. Evening: Dinner at St. Orres About 15 minutes north of Sea Ranch Lodge, the magical St. Orres (Hwy. 1, Gualala), designed to reflect the Russian heritage of the area, welcomes guests for inspired dinners in the restaurant (for those with reservations). Dubbed North Coast cuisine, the menu highlights hyper-local fare including seafood, foraged mushrooms, and wild game. If you're not a planner, the adjacent tavern serves the full dinner menu as well oysters and small platesthink wild game pate or garlic flan with black chanterellesto walk-ins.

Saturday: Get Outside Bowling Ball Beach. (Shoshi Parks) Early Morning: Stroll the Coastal Bluff Trails Wake up and step right outside the Sea Ranch Lodge to find the start of an oceanside bluff-top trail that stretches all the way to Gualala. Pass the historic barn and shepherd's shack and walk north through groves of windswept trees and open grassy meadows. The trail is flat, but adventurers can explore the rocky outcroppings that dip into the Pacific below. In the spring and fall, you may catch sight of migrating whales or sea lions and seals at play. Late Morning: Point Arena + the Lighthouse The iconic Point Arena Lighthouse (45500 Lighthouse Rd., Point Arena) was constructed in 1908 to replace an original version that was destroyed in the 1906 earthquake. Standing 115 feet tall, the flashing light here once had to be hand-cranked by a lighthouse keeper every 75 minutes. Today the lighthouse is managed by the Point Arena Lighthouse Keepers who have restored the structure to its former glory and keep it and a small museum open to the public daily from 10am to 3:30pm ($5/person, $7.50/person with a tour). There's beach time in your near future, so stock up on snacks on the historic Main Street in Point Arena. At Arena Market and Cafe (185 Main St.), you'll find a deli counter, lots of fresh organic fruits and veggies, and local beer and wine. If you're hankering for something sweet, stop in at Franny's Cup and Saucer (213 Main St.), an adorable bakery with cookies, confections, and home-baked breads galore. Need a pick-me up? Pop in to the Little Green Bean (240 Main St.) for freshly roasted coffee. Afternoon: Bowling Ball Beach Whether the weather is cooperating or not, you just can't come to the North Coast without setting foot on the beach. Bowling Ball Beach, about five miles south of Point Arena, is named for the curious section of sand where dozens of large, perfectly rounded rocks pop right out of the ocean tide. Check out these geological oddities then lay out your blanket for a picnic. Word to the wise: Wear layers. To get there, look for the sign on Highway 1 that reads "Park Facing South," just north of Schooner Gulch River. Walk a few minutes down the trail toward the ocean, keeping right at the fork. Descend the wooden stairs to the beach and then continue north a few minutes to the bowling balls. Dinner in Gualala After you've freshened up and had some relaxation time on the seaward facing adirondack chairs back at the lodge or by the communal fireplace inside, hop back in the car and head to Gualala for some good no-frills dinner options including the Upper Crust Pizzeria (39331 S. Hwy 1) and Antonio's Tacos (38820 S. Hwy. 1). For something a little more special, check out the brand new Vue Kitchen (39300 S. Hwy. 1), on the south side of town, which serves elevated delightsthink fried crab dim sum, mussel linguine, and pumpkin gnocchiwith an ocean view.
Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas threatened to cut security ties with both Israel and the U.S. on Saturday, in a lengthy speech delivered at an Arab League meeting in Egypt's capital that denounced a White House plan for ending the Israeli-Palestinian conflict.

The U.S. plan would grant the Palestinians limited self-rule in parts of the occupied West Bank, while allowing Israel to annex all its settlements there and keep nearly all of east Jerusalem.

The summit of Arab foreign ministers in Cairo was requested by the Palestinians, who responded angrily to the American proposal.

Abbas said that he told Israel and the U.S. that "there will be no relations with them, including the security ties" following the deal that Palestinians say heavily favors Israel.

There was no immediate comment from U.S. or Israeli officials.

The Palestinian leader said that he'd refused to take U.S. President Donald Trump's phone calls and messages "because I know that he would use that to say he consulted us."

"I will never accept this solution," Abbas said. "I will not have it recorded in my history that I have sold Jerusalem."

He said the Palestinians remain committed to ending the Israeli occupation and establishing a state with its capital in east Jerusalem.

Abbas said that the Palestinians wouldn't accept the U.S. as a sole mediator in any negotiations with Israel. He said they would go to the United Nations Security Council and other world and regional organizations to "explain our position."

The Arab League's head, Ahmed Aboul-Gheit, said the proposal revealed a "sharp turn" in the long-standing U.S. foreign policy regarding the Israeli-Palestinian conflict.

"This turn does not help achieve peace and a just solution,'' he declared.

Aboul-Gheit said that the Palestinians reject the proposal. He called for the two sides, the Israelis and the Palestinians, to negotiate to reach a "satisfactory solution for both of them."

President Trump unveiled the long-awaited proposal Tuesday in Washington. It would allow Israel to annex all its West Bank settlements, which the Palestinians and most of the international community view as illegal, as well as the Jordan Valley, which accounts for roughly a fourth of the West Bank.

In return, the Palestinians would be granted statehood in Gaza, scattered chunks of the West Bank and some neighborhoods on the outskirts of Jerusalem, all linked together by a new network of roads, bridges and tunnels. Israel would control the state's borders and airspace and maintain overall security authority. Critics of the plan say this would rob Palestinian statehood of any meaning.

The plan would abolish the right of return for Palestinian refugees displaced by the 1948 war and their descendants, a key Palestinian demand. The entire agreement would be contingent on Gaza's Hamas rulers and other armed groups disarming, something they have always adamantly rejected.

Egypt urged in a statement Israelis and Palestinians to "carefully study'' the plan. It said it favors a solution that restores all the "legitimate rights'' of the Palestinian people through establishing an "independent and sovereign state on the occupied Palestinian territories.''

Jordan, meanwhile, warned against any Israeli "annexation of Palestinian lands'' and reaffirmed its commitment to the creation of a Palestinian state along the 1967 lines, which would include all the West Bank and Israeli-annexed east Jerusalem.

Search Keywords:

Short link:


Budget 2020: Union Budget 2020 comes at a critical time for the telecom sector. Hot on the heels of the Supreme Court's AGR (Adjusted Gross Revenue) blow, the telecom industry is expecting several revival measures from the Centre. As part of the Budget wishlist on the direct tax front, the industry expects the Centre to announce steps to expedite the tax litigation process. A huge amount in tax refund is stuck with the government, which is adding to their woes.

The telecom industry has also demanded a reduction in levies, both licence fee and Spectrum Usage Charges (SUC). It has also asked the Centre to create an infrastructure bank that would raise tax-free bonds, the proceeds of which can be used to lend to the companies at lower rates.

Also read: Budget 2020: Watch Live Streaming on Aaj Tak, India Today, live telecast channels

In December last year, the COAI also raised the issue of AGR, licence fee and SUC. The telecom players want licence fee to be cut to 3 per cent from the current 8 per cent, while SUC should be 1 per cent compared to current 5 per cent, they believe.

FULL COVERAGE: Union Budget 2020

"The government aims to connect, propel and secure India with the help of digitisation. Therefore, the government will continue to allocate funds towards the development of telecom infrastructure in rural and remote areas, which is expected to result in significant allotment of funds for Universal Service Obligation Fund (USOF)," says Care Ratings.

Though any announcement on the AGR front from the Centre seems unlikely -- as the DoT is pushing hard on recovering pending dues from telcos -- any positive announcement regarding rationalising of the definition of AGR to exclude non-telecom revenues could be a big relief for them.

The telecom industry is saddled with Rs 1.47 lakh crore in additional statutory dues in the wake of the Supreme Court ruling on AGR. Telecom companies owe the government Rs 92,642 crore in unpaid licence fee and another Rs 55,054 crore in outstanding spectrum usage charges.

Government data shows Bharti Airtel's liabilities stand at Rs 35,586 crore, of which Rs 21,682 crore is licence fee and another Rs 13,904.01 crore is the SUC dues. Vodafone Idea's total dues amount to Rs 53,038 crore, including Rs 24,729 crore of SUC dues and Rs 28,309 crore in the licence fee.

Also read: Budget 2020: Date, timings, where to watch, expectations from Modi govt's most challenging Budget
BLOOMINGTON  Collin Cliburn works as a carpenter in Athens, a city of about 1,900 in southern Menard County, but his latest project involves cutting of a different kind.

Cliburn is part an effort to slice Illinois into two states, with Cook County as one and everything else as another. The way Cliburn sees it, the state's Democrat-dominated northeast corner has had outsized influence, with treacherous results.

Im impacted severely by every decision these guys are making," he said.

The long-shot divorce by downstate residents isnt a new concept, but recently a resurgence has popped up in counties such as Cumberland, Douglas and Shelby. The goal is to add the question to the ballot and let residents decide.

The Effingham County Board was the first to approve adding the referendum, and other boards such as Massac and Fayette counties have followed suit successfully.

Shelby County resident Jeremy Williams has been collecting signatures. Another dozen people are working with him.

You will find corruption anywhere, Williams said. But it seems to be more prevalent and pronounced in Chicago, and we feel like that is probably driving some of the representation, some of the policy, some of the tax initiatives that go on, so we would rather be free from that.

Another group, called New Illinois, is working to constitutionally separate the state.

Cliburn is head of Illinois Separation and began his social media page empire and brand after a longtime displeasure with politics in the state, specifically in Chicago and Cook County. His efforts have spread through different Facebook pages, one for each county in the state.

Cliburn cited Article 4, Section 3 of the U.S. Constitution, which says a resident can form a new state with approval from state legislatures and Congress. He and the Illinois Separation supporters are open to splitting constitutionally, but he said theyre open to trying other techniques successfully used in the past. He gave the example of West Virginia breaking off from Virginia, a separation that was successful, but technically unconstitutional.

Kentucky and Maine also were created through similar efforts, and there have been numerous proposals in other states, from breaking off South Florida from the rest of the state to creating a new one by combining Delaware with parts of Maryland and Virginia.

The 51st state

Several bids also have been made in Illinois over the years, including one in the 1970s by the "Republic of Forgottonia" in the western portion of the state.

Most efforts have focused on the political, economic and cultural differences between the Chicago area and the other mostly rural counties, and how local residents are represented.

Cook County, home to the third most populated city in America, represents about 40 percent of the state's population, and five of the six executive state offices are occupied by Chicago residents. House Speaker Michael J. Madigan also is from Chicago and the new Senate president, Don Harmon, represents the Chicago suburbs. All also are Democrats.

And while Republican lawmakers dominate many of the downstate seats, because of lopsided population of the Chicago area, the General Assembly has long been controlled by Democrats. That's been the source of continued friction on key issues such as gun control, abortion and spending.

The issue has long frustrated state Rep. Brad Halbrook, R-Shelbyville. He refiled legislation last year to get Congress to make Chicago the 51st state. He had six co-sponsors.

The reason for the resolution HR101, is just because of this growing divide between rural and urban, Halbrook said. Its really about the lack of representation.

Chicago lawmakers approve bills downstate residents dont resonate with, Halbrook said, giving the minimum wage increase as an example. They include us in that, and those arent problems for us."

He said the majority of representation comes from such a small geographic region and they just "drown out the rest of us."

Ed Luth is one Douglas County resident who has been collecting signatures and is hopeful the county board will vote on the matter.

The main thing is not having our voice heard, and I think enough people are getting their toes stepped on, Luth said.

A petition-signing event is planned Feb. 22 at the Tuscola Community Building, 122 W. North Central Ave. Douglas County needs 509 signatures to push the referendum on the ballot.

He said hed like a government who doesnt wastefully spend or enact unnecessary laws.

I want to see our new state fiscally responsible, Luth said.

Population consideration

The Effingham County Board voted in April to include the question on the March ballot. Voters will be asked: Shall Effingham County collaborate in discussions with the remaining 101 counties of the state of Illinois, with the exception of Cook County, the possibility of forming a new state and ultimately seeking admission to the Federal Union as the 51st state, pursuant to the provisions of the United States Constitution?

The board in 2018 also made Effingham County a "sanctuary" for gun owners, telling its employees not to enforce any new Illinois law that would "unconstitutionally restrict the Second Amendment." The vote brought national media attention.

I feel like Effingham has leaps and bounds above other counties in their thinking, said Lorri Dunn, who is collecting signatures in both Cumberland and Clark counties.

She said Cumberland County has enough signatures, which will show officials the communitys support.

It lets the county board know that the community is definitely interested in having that on the ballot, Dunn said.

She plans to turn the signatures into the county clerk, however Dunn would additionally like to present the signatures to the county board.

I think that were in trouble, Dunn said. The people of southern Illinois, Central Illinois, we have different beliefs than Chicago. I feel like the beliefs arent being heard.

Cumberland County Board Chairman Roy Clapp said the board hasnt come to a position on the matter, but he has been in contact with Dunn.

Halbrook, along with Rep. Blaine Wilhour, R-Beecher City, is also holding a meeting in Greenville as well.

The Fayette County Board in September approved adding a referendum to the 2020 General Primary Election Ballot in a 12-1 vote, with one member being absent. The Massac County Board voted Tuesday to approve the referendum be added to the November ballot. County boards in Marion, Jefferson, White, Johnson and Pope counties have also approved.

Separation supporters understand this is a long process, but are hopeful for a brand new start.

What I see happening is a state that will enact more business-friendly policy and it will attract business and attract citizenry instead of repelling them, Williams said. The out-migration will hopefully stop and we will regain some of what we lost. I also look forward to downstate values and rural values being better represented.

Contact Kennedy Nolen at (217) 421-6985. Follow her on Twitter: @KNolenWrites

Love 22 Funny 8 Wow 1 Sad 0 Angry 8
They are in the midst of the European leg of their Happiness Begins tour.

Yet the Jonas Brothers still managed to give it their all as they took to the stage in front of a fun-loving crowd at the at 3Arena in Dublin, Ireland, on Friday night.

The boy band has already boxed off the American stretch of the tour and are now cruising the length of the U.K. for their London, Glasgow and Manchester dates.

Wow! The Jonas Brothers gave it their all as they took to the stage in front of a fun-loving crowd at the at 3Arena in Dublin, Ireland, on Friday night

The band brought good vibes to the arena as they put on an animated display for their fans, after kicking off their UK dates in serious style.

Joe, 30, looked typically look in denim co-ords, which consisted of a patterned Louis Vuitton jacket teamed with a pair of matching trousers and basic white T-shirt.

Meanwhile, Nick, 27, looked suave in a two-piece black suit with a smart double-breasted jacket and tailored trousers, kept casual with a simple T-shirt.

Living it large: The boy band has already boxed off the American stretch of the tour and are now cruising the length of the U.K. for their London, Glasgow and Manchester dates

Stylin: Joe, 30, looked typically look in denim co-ords, which consisted of a patterned jacket teamed with a pair of matching trousers and basic white T-shirt

Kevin, 32, who took centre stage while playing the guitar, made a statement in a daring geometric print suit, consisting of a long line jacket and trousers.

Later in the evening, Joe and Nick were seen making their way back to the London apartment where they were staying.

Joe was wrapped up warm in a beige teddy bear jacket which featured large lapels.

All done: Later in the evening, Joe and Nick were seen making their way back to the London apartment where they were staying

His own style: Nick was wrapped up warm in a beige teddy bear jacket which featured large lapels over his Coach x Richard Bernstein Michael J. Fox jumper

Night owl: The singer carried his essentials in a large leather flat pouch

Home time: Nick looked rather weary as he made his way back to his accomodation

Keping warm: Nick donned a dark grey checked jacket for the evening as he joined his brother at their temporary apartment

While Nick donned a dark grey checked jacket for the evening.

The Jonas Brothers' world tour began back in August.

The band formed in 2005 and sold more than 20 million records worldwide, but confirmed their split in 2013.

Where it all began: The Jonas Brothers' world tour began back in August

But they reformed earlier this year to much fanfare and released their first album in a decade, Happiness Begins, on June 7.

After wrapping up in America, the band kicked off their U.K leg of the tour in Birmingham in the New Year.

However when the end of their tour rolls around, the group have no plans to slow down as they announced a Las Vegas residency on Friday.

Dapper: Meanwhile, Nick, 27, looked suave in a two-piece black suit with a smart double-breasted jacket and tailored trousers, kept casual with a simple T-shirt

The success of their reunion has granted them a residency at the Park MGM resort.

'Let's get it! Let's gooooo!!' shared the brothers excitedly to the band's Twitter page.

The Jonas Brothers are the latest musical act to call Park MGM 'home,' following residencies by both Lady Gaga and rock n' roll legends, Aerosmith.

The band will occupy the Park Theater and, hopefully fill its 5,200 seats, from April 1st to April 18th.

Let's get it! 'Let's get it! Let's gooooo!!' shared the brothers excitedly to the band's Twitter page
But the company said it would not announce the headquarters location of the new business units until the merger was finalized.

The so-called "merger of equals" will create an aerospace and defense behemoth with annual revenues of $74 billion, second only to Boeing in the industry.

Raytheon and United Technologies shareholders have approved the merger of the two companies, which is also contingent on United Technologies successful spinoff of its Carrier heating, ventilation and air-conditioning business and its Otis Elevator subsidiary.

The deal is also subject to federal anti-trust approval, which is expected after the Defense Department said it had few concerns about the merger.

Raytheon is the Tucson region's largest employer with about 13,000 local workers. The company has been working to expand its campus at Tucson International Airport amid a plan to add more than 2,000 jobs. Raytheon also has significant operations at the University of Arizona Tech Park.

The company makes many of the nation's front-line defense systems, including the Tomahawk cruise missile and the Standard Missile series of ship-defense and ballistic missile interceptors, and more recently has been working on hypersonic missiles and laser weapons to defeat drones and other threats.
Union Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman on Saturday reiterated that the NDA government is committed to doubling farmers' income by 2022.

"Our government is committed to the goal of doubling farmers' income by 2022," she said during her budget speech.

The Finance Minister while stressing that the Budget 2020 is to boost the income of people and enhance their purchasing power, said: "Farm markets need to be liberalized, farming need to be made more competitive, handholding of farm-based activities need to be provided, sustainable cropping patterns and more tech needed."

She also said that the Centre will encourage state governments to implement following model laws - Model Agricultural Land Leasing Act of 2016, Model Agricultural Produce and Livestock Marketing Act of 2017 and Model Agricultural Produce and Livestock Contract Farming and Services Promotion and Facilitation Act of 2018.

She announced that Pradhan Mantri Kisan Urja Suraksha evam Utthan Mahabhiyan (PM KUSUM) will be expanded to provide 20 lakh farmers in setting up standalone solar pumps.

"To build a seamless cold supply chain for perishables, Indian Railways will set up Kisan Rail through PPP model so that perishable goods can be transported quickly. Krishi Udaan will be launched by MoCA on international and routes," she said.

The Finance Minister during her speech said: "For sector comprising agriculture, allied activities, irrigation and rural development, an allocation of Rs 2.83 lakh crores has been made for 2020-21.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
authorities will move the Patiala House Court for fixing the date of execution of all four convicts in the Nirbhaya gang-rape and murder case, officials said on Saturday.

"In view of rejection of mercy petition of Vinay Kumar Sharma by the President, the is approaching the Patiala House Court for fixing the date of execution in respect of all the four convicts," Director General (Prison) Sandeep Goel said.

On Saturday, Akshay Thakur, one of the convicts of the Nirbhaya case, filed a mercy plea before President Ram Nath Kovind.

Earlier in the day, the President rejected the mercy plea of Sharma.

The four convicts were to be hanged on Saturday but a city court indefinitely postponed their execution.
The hospitals in the quarantined cities in China are turning away patients with Coronavirus symptoms. This has led the country to build a new hospital just to deal with the outbreak of the virus.

Chinese authorities sa y the hospital will have 1,000 beds intended for patients that have coronavirus symptoms. They also said that they will finish the hospital in just six days.

The drastic construction of the hospital is the result of the unraveling situation in Wuhan City. A city which has been locked down to control the spread of the virus. Many hospitals in the quarantined city are running out of beds and medical supplies. As a result, patients who have coronavirus symptoms are no longer being accepted in the city's hospitals. The situation in the city is becoming worse due to a slow response from authorities in Wuhan and Beijing.

As of the latest numbers, Coronavirus has killed 26 people and has infected more than 830 worldwide. The Chinese state media reported that the hospital worked immediately last Thursday to quarantine the infected persons in the Caidian district of Wuhan. Officials, and those who are working to build the hospitals, gave assurance that the hospital will be available and ready to use by the middle of next week.

Still, many are questioning if the hospital can actually be built, and more so, functional, in just six days. However, it can be recalled that during the SARS outbreak in 2003, China was able to build a 1,000-bed Xiaotangshan hospital in just a week with a workforce of around 7,000 people.

At present, The South China Morning Post reported that there are hundreds of workers who began working on the site. They worked along side locals and are paid three times their normal rate of $173 per day.

The plans for the building are still being finalized, but it is expected to be delivered on Friday to the general contractor company. Moreover, while waiting for the final plan, there are many images and video footage showing dozens of diggers, bulldozers, and trucks that are posted all across social media. The heavy equipment is working feverishly to clear the site.

Meanwhile, residents in Wuhan are expressing their frustration and anger on social media despite the effort of the government to build a hospital in just six days. State-run media is urging the citizens to stay calm.

There was footage posted on social media showing the present situation of patients in Wuhan. Patients lying in hospital hallways, doctors screaming at patients, and long queues of Chinese individuals lining up and waiting to be seen and checked by a doctor.

However, residents say that many hospitals turned them away and they were told that there were no available test kits for the virus. In the posts of Wuhan Children's Hospital, they wrote in their social media account "Shortage of medical supplies, request help!" on Thursday. Other hospitals also did the same while at the same time requested for surgical masks, disposable garments, protective goggles, and gloves.

The situation in Wuhan has put the Chinese government under pressure in controlling the spread of the infectious virus. The report of the virus was reported in mid-December and Beijing was criticized for their delayed action.

The plan of the Chinese government right now is to lock down entire cities infected by the virus, most especially Wuhan. In the past few days, the Chinese government has imposed severe travel restrictions in nine cities on the central province of Hubei, a decision that has impacted an estimated 30 million people.
Assyrian Twins: We Are Resisting the Grandchildren of Ottomans

Basil and David, Assyrians who are resisting the Turkish incursion into Syria. The Turkish occupation forces continue their attacks on northern Syria in order to enlarge the occupation zone. Til Temir in particular is at the centre of the attacks. The region is defended by the Syriac Military Council and the Khabur Guards.

The Syriac Military Council (Mawtbo Folhoyo Suryoyo, MFS) was founded on January 8, 2013, and the Khabur Guards on April 1, 2012. Hundreds of Assyrian, Syriac and Armenian people have joined both armed groups since then.

Twins Basil HesekA and Dawid Dibaz are Assyrians. They have been defending their homeland as fighters of the Khabur Guards against the occupation for five years. "In the face of the cruelty taking place, we could not stand to do nothing. We joined the Assyrian forces to avenge the attacks on our people and to protect the people," explains Basil HesekA.

"In one night, hundreds of Assyrians were kidnapped by the ISIS. But the barbarity of the ISIS has not been able to break our will. On the contrary, our will became stronger with each attack. What impressed me most in the struggle was the fact that all peoples are fighting together against the ISIS. It is through this unity that the ISIS has been defeated.

The same jihadists who overrun the region in 2015 under the name of ISIS are now attacking again under a different name and Turkish command, Basil says: "All the mercenaries of the Turkish state are ISIS jihadists. The Turkish state wants to repeat the massacres the Ottoman Empire committed against the Assyrians."

His brother Dawid Dibaz notes that their grandfather told of the massacres of that time: "What is happening today brings these stories to life again. We are resisting the grandchildren of the Ottomans who massacred our ancestors. We have sworn to avenge them. We are the grandchildren of the survivors. We will never allow a Turkish occupation."
Given the deadly novel coronavirus spreading rapidly outside China, Noida's district health department has issued advisory to industrialists on precautionary measures to be followed on international travels. Apart from this, the district health department has asked for a list on people coming from China from the Airport Authority of India to scan those in Gautam Buddh Nagar. Awareness workshop was also conducted in the district on Friday.

The district health department has also arranged 10 quarantine beds in Kasana Medical College and 10 beds in Super Speciality Paediatric Hospital and Post Graduate Teaching Institute- SSPHPGTI Sector 30. Dr Anurag Bhargava, CMO of GB Nagar told the media that one resident of Sector 75 has just returned from China. The person tested negative for Novel coronavirus. The health professionals are alert and scanning all the residents who have returned from overseas.

In order to able to screen the passengers arriving from overseas travels, the district health department of Noida has issued an advisory on precautions to be taken while on international travels, both to industrialists and residents. Dr Bhargava also stated that while many Chinese nationals worked in Noida, there are also many industrialists in the district who travel to China for work related purposes. Anyone who is unwell is advised to get themselves screened at any designated screening centre for coronavirus. Dr Bhargava also stated that there was no coronavirus case reported from Noida.

Also read: Coronavirus update: 324 Indians evacuated from Wuhan, second Air India flight to leave Delhi

Also read: Coronavirus update: Air India plane with doctors to fly Indians from Wuhan today; first case confirmed in country
The Israeli military has said it launched "wide-scale" airstrikes on militant targets in the Gaza Strip shortly after Palestinian militants fired three rockets into Israel, two of which were intercepted.

There were no reports of casualties or major damage from the exchange of fire overnight, which came amid heightened tensions after President Donald Trump released his Middle East plan, a US initiative aimed at ending the conflict, which heavily favours Israel and was rejected by the Palestinians.

The Israeli military said Palestinian militants launched "explosive balloons" towards Israel and a sniper had shot an observational antenna. It said it struck Hamas targets in response, including "underground infrastructure used to manufacture weapons".

Later yesterday, the military said Gaza militants fired three mortar rounds, and an Israeli tank responded by firing on a Hamas military post. There were no reports of casualties

Gaza has been relatively calm in recent months as Egyptian and UN mediators have worked to shore up an informal truce between Israel and Hamas, the Islamic militant group that rules the coastal territory.

Hamas has curbed rocket fire and rolled back weekly protests along the frontier that had often turned violent.

In return, Israel has eased the blockade it imposed on Gaza after Hamas seized power from forces loyal to the Palestinian Authority in 2007.

Hamas and the Palestinian Authority have rejected the Trump plan, which would allow Israel to annex all of its Jewish settlements, along with the Jordan Valley, in the occupied West Bank. The Palestinians were offered limited self-rule in Gaza, parts of the West Bank and some sparsely populated areas of Israel in return for meeting a long list of conditions. Hamas has vowed that "all options are open" in responding to the proposal, but is not believed to be seeking war with Israel.

Palestinians have held small, scattered protests in recent days condemning the Trump initiative amid concerns that larger protests might erupt at a holy site in Jerusalem that is sacred to Muslims and Jews.
The President had, on January 17, rejected the mercy petition of another convict -- Mukesh Singh -- in the matter. File Photo

New Delhi: President Ram Nath Kovind on Saturday rejected the mercy petition of second death row convict -- Vinay Sharma -- in Nirbhaya gang-rape and murder case.

Recently, Vinay Sharma had filed a mercy petition in the matter.

The President had, on January 17, rejected the mercy petition of another convict -- Mukesh Singh -- in the matter.

Meanwhile, a Delhi court on Friday stayed till further orders the execution, which was earlier scheduled to take place on February 1, of the four convicts in the case.

A Delhi court had earlier issued a death warrant for convicts -- Akshay Thakur, Mukesh Singh, Pawan Gupta, and Vinay Sharma -- for their execution on February 1.

The case pertains to the gang-rape and brutalising of a 23-year-old paramedical student in a moving bus on the night of December 16, 2012, by six people including a juvenile in Delhi. The woman had died at a Singapore hospital a few days later.

One of the five adults accused, Ram Singh, had allegedly committed suicide in the Tihar Jail during the trial of the case.
The Republican Party-controlled US Senate on Friday narrowly rejected the opposition Democrats' motion to call new witnesses and documents for the impeachment trial against President Donald Trump.

As a result, the Senate is expected to acquit Trump of the charges early next week. He is scheduled to deliver his third State of the Union Address on February 4. The move to invite new witnesses was defeated by 51 to 49 votes.

In the 100-member Senate, the Republican Party has 53 seats and the Democrats 47. Two of the Republican Senators, Mitt Romney and Susan Collins, sided with the Democrats in this vote to call former White House national security advisor John Bolton and other Trump aides to testify.

The Democrats need 67 votes to convict and remove Trump from the White House.

"The vote represented a major victory for Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell and Trump, both of whom have been calling for Republicans to reject the motion and move toward ending the trial, Politico said.

The House, wherein the Democrats enjoy a majority had impeached Trump on two counts of misuse of power and obstruction to the Congress.

The Senate started the impeachment trial last week.

The Radical Left, Do Nothing Democrats keep chanting fairness, when they put on the most unfair Witch Hunt in the history of the U.S. Congress. They had 17 Witnesses, we were allowed ZERO, and no lawyers. They didn't do their job, had no case. The Dems are scamming America! Trump said in a tweet moments before the voting on move to call new witnesses.

Democrats = 17 Witnesses. Republicans = 0 Witnesses, Trump tweeted after the vote justifying the Senate vote against the move to call new witnesses.

The vote Friday represented a major victory for Republican leadership, The Wall Street Journal said. According to the Journal, the vote on whether to convict or acquit Trump may not take place until next week, likely on Wednesday.

There was "no need" for the Senate to re-open the investigation which the House Democratic majority chose to conclude and which the managers themselves continue to describe as overwhelming and beyond any doubt, Senate Majority Leader Senator Mitch McConnell said.

Never in Senate history has this body paused an impeachment trial to pursue additional witnesses with unresolved questions of executive privilege that would require protracted litigation, he said.

We have no interest in establishing such a new precedent, particularly for individuals whom the House expressly chose not to pursue," McConnell told reporters.

We knew this was an uphill fight, said Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer told reporters.

We're not in the majority; we have a president who strikes fear in the hearts of Republicans, he added.

To not allow a witness, a document--no witnesses, no documents--in an impeachment trial is a perfidy. It's a grand tragedy, one of the worst tragedies that the Senate has ever overcome. America will remember this day, unfortunately, where the Senate did not live up to its responsibilities, where the Senate turned away from truth and went along with a sham trial, Schumer said.

If the president is acquitted with no witnesses, no documents, the acquittal will have no value because Americans will know that this trial was not a real trial. It had no witnesses, no documents, is a tragedy on a very large scale, the Senate Minority Leader alleged.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
The Telangana government said on Saturday that 11 of the 18 samples tested for the novel coronavirus in the state have turned out to be negative.

Eighteen people have so far sought medical help, of whom 11 had tested negative. Results of seven samples are awaited, an official release said.

State Health Minister E Rajender said tests to determine positive cases of cornonavirus would be conducted in Hyderabad from Monday as the centre has despatched kits for the purpose.

The samples from Telangana were till now being sent to the National Institute of Virology (NIV) in Pune.

The government has earlier urged the Centre to provide the kits for the tests in the city as government hospitals in the city have advanced facilities.

Urging the people not to panic about the virus, Rajender asked them to follow safety measures like washing their hands to check its spread.

The state government has set up a 24-hour call centre (040-24651119) to clarify doubts on the Coronavirus, Rajender added.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
Australians who are trapped in Wuhan will be evacuated to Christmas Island on a Qantas flight leaving the locked down city on February 3.

Those shortlisted for the assisted departure flight were told in an email from the Australian government on Saturday that the evacuation "remains subject to Chinese authority approval".

China Eastern Airlines cabin crew are seen wearing protective face masks at Brisbane International Airport. Credit:AAP/Darren England

Foreign Minister Marise Payne said the government expects the evacuation "process to be finalised and finally agreed soon and we are proceeding on that basis".

Both Australian citizens and permanent residents will be allowed to board the flight after initial concerns that the Chinese government would only allow foreign citizens to be evacuated from the epicentre of the coronavirus outbreak.
A man alleged to have been the leader of Al-Qaeda terrorists was arrested in Arizona on accusations of killing two Iraqi police officers in 2006 in Al-Fallujah, Iraq. Ali Yousif Ahmed Al-Nouri, 42, appeared before a federal magistrate judge on January 31 in Phoenix in connection with the extradition request made by Iraq.

Michael Bailey, US Attorney for the District of Arizona, and Assistant Attorney General Brian Benczkowski announced the arrest of the alleged Al-Qaeda leader on two charges of premeditated murder. US Magistrate Judge John Boyle had issued the warrant on January 29 based on the extradition request.

According to the information provided by the Government of Iraq in support of its extradition request, Ahmed served as the leader of a group of Al-Qaeda terrorists in Al-Fallujah, Iraq, which planned operations targeting Iraqi police, said the US Attorneys Office in Arizona.

Read: Al-Qaeda's Indian Subcontinent Chief, Pakistan-based Asim Omar Killed

Ahmed is accused of shooting the first lieutenant and a police officer in the Fallujah Police Directorate in 2006. The US Secretary of State will decide on Ahmeds extradition of the alleged Al-Qaeda leader if the court certifies it. However, the allegations made by Iraq have not yet been proven in court.

Read: Imran Khan Admits Pakistan Army, ISI Trained Al-Qaeda, Justifies Links

Manhunt for other terrorists

It is believed that some of the US residents are linked to terrorist groups operating in Africa and the Middle East, and the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) has been announcing rewards to get information of such suspects. In December 2019, federal investigators raised the reward up to $5 million for information leading to arrest of a man listed on the FBIs most wanted terrorists.

Jehad Serwan Mostafa, 37, is believed to be the highest-ranking United States citizen fighting for a Somalia-based terrorist organization, al-Shabaab. Mostafa was raised in San Diego, California and graduated from a college in his hometown. According to the FBI, Mostafa joined al-Shabaab around 2006 and served in many capacities, including a military instructor at al-Shabaab's training camps, a leader of the foreign fighters, a leader and propagandist in al-Shabaab's media wing, and an intermediary between al-Shabaab and other terrorist organizations.

Read: FBI Probes Vandalisation Of Newly Inaugurated Gurdwara In California

Read: Bhima-Koregaon Case: FBI To Assist Pune Police To Crack Varavara Rao's Hard Disk
Click here to read the full article.

Hours after Senate Republicans voted to block any witnesses from being called in the impeachment proceedings against President Trump, a morose Bill Maher welcomed Democratic candidate Pete Buttigieg to his HBO talk show but also wondered aloud several times if things like the upcoming election really have relevance now.

I dont know if voting matters, the comedian said at one point during Friday nights edition of Real Time with Bill Maher.

More from Deadline

Maher also described the Senates cynical move as a finish line moment for American experiment that began in 1776: I feel like anything we talk about tonight is almost moot. Were going to talk about politics in Iowa and whos going to win and I feel like were talking about a world that doesnt exist anymore.Were in a post-democracy world.

Maher had already opened the show with a downbeat welcome: Good news: the impeachment trial is almost over. The bad: so is rule of law in America.

It was a drumbeat for the night. Among Mahers other appraisals of Trumps America in the shadow of the now feckless impeachment:

On his own mood: Okay, Im going to try not to cry during the show because we lost Democracy this week. I feel like Im standing over a casket and thinking: Hmm I should have been nicer when it was alive.

On the GOP: Its a done deal. This is going to happen. Trump will be acquitted on Wednesday. Republicans have nothing left to do but dot the is, cross the ts, and f*ck the us.

On ethics: We always knew Trump was corrupt but now we found out the Senate is too.

Story continues

On cronyism: In the future when Donald Trump shoots somebody on 5th Avenue Mitch McConnell will be there to lick the blood off his shoes.

On national identity: We are officially living in a dictatorship and not even one with good rail service.

On Trumps credibility: A guy who lies like raccoons eat trash.

On a lighter note: In happier news, the coronavirus is spreading

Buttigieg, the former mayor of South Bend, Indiana, was featured as Mahers top-of-the-show guest but beamed in from Iowa. Maher asked the candidate what he would do if the incumbent decides to invalidate an unfavorable election result  a scenario that Maher has described as a near certainty,

Well, its going to be a little awkward when Chasten and I are moving into the White House, Buttigieg said to gales of approving laughter from Mahers Los Angeles audience. The reference was to Chasten Buttigieg, the gay candidates husband.

Buttigieg closed out his appearance by asking Mahers viewers to consider a $5 or $10 donation to his campaign. Then the candidate deadpanned: Actually, this is HBO, so feel free to do $100

The mid-show guest was Michael Eric Dyson, author of Jay-Z: Made in America and The Black Presidency: Barack Obama and the Politics of Race in America. Late in the show Maher moderated a round table discussion with Louisianas former Lt. Governor Mitch Landrieu; New Jersey Congresswoman and former U.S. Navy aviator Mikie Sherrill; and GOP strategist and Lincoln Project co-founder Rick Wilson.

Democrats were chided for championing fringe causes in a time of existential crisis ( Dont run for boutique issues in a Wal-Mart country) and Elizabeth Warren was jeered in particular (Is she running for president of Berkeley?

Sign up for Deadline's Newsletter. For the latest news, follow us on Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram.
Johnny Sexton starred on his first outing as permanent Ireland captain as Andy Farrells tenure as head coach began with an unconvincing 19-12 victory over Scotland.

Match-winner Sexton scored and converted the hosts opening try of the Guinness Six Nations clash in Dublin before adding four penalties.

Saturdays match was far from the one-sided encounter many predicted and the outcome could have been completely different had new Scotland skipper Stuart Hogg not cost his side a second-half score with a bizarre fumble.

Scotlands Stuart Hogg knocks the ball on at the try line. Photo: INPHO/Dan Sheridan

Adam Hastings, in at stand-off for the Scots owing to the ill-discipline of star man Finn Russell, kept Gregor Townsends visitors in contention until the final whistle with four penalties of his own.

But, despite a largely positive display, the unfancied visitors paid for their lack of clinical edge as their abysmal away record in this competition continued.

Meanwhile, Farrell, who stepped up to replace Joe Schmidt after the World Cup, has plenty to ponder following a disjointed performance which was compounded by debutant Caelan Doris leaving the field injured inside five minutes.

Ireland head coach Andy Farrell speaks to his players at the Aviva Stadium. Photo by Brendan Moran/Sportsfile

Scotland arrived at the Arriva Stadium as rank outsiders, priced at 7/1 for victory with some bookmakers, and on the back of dismal trip to Japan at the back end of last year.

Townsends men flew out of the traps looking like a team with a point to prove and were rewarded for their fast tempo by an early lead as Hastings kicked a straightforward penalty.

Ireland, meanwhile, were forced into a premature reshuffle as the maiden Test appearance of 21-year-old Doris was agonisingly cut short, with the experienced Peter OMahony brought on his place.

James Ryan of Ireland is tackled by Huw Jones of Scotland. Photo by Ramsey Cardy/Sportsfile

The hosts quickly regrouped and conjured up a slick opening try in the 10th minute.

After attempting to bulldoze over the line, quick ball from a resultant ruck culminated in skipper Sexton crossing unchallenged after a neat pass from Murray, and then converting his own score from wide on the left.

It was a special moment for Dubliner Sexton, appointed skipper at the age of 34-year-old following the retirement of Rory Best and cheered on from the stands by his family.

Townsends preparations for this tournament were severely disrupted by influential stand-off Russell being sent home for breaching team rules following an alleged late-night drinking session.

Russells notable absence at number 10 had afforded Hastings opportunity in that role.

The 23-year-old son of Scotland great Gavin Hastings converted a far more difficult penalty from wide on the left to quickly reduce the deficit to a single point, but was later off target moments after Hogg escaped punishment for a late tackle on Jordan Larmour.

Garry Ringrose looks to offload to his Ireland team-mate Andrew Conway while being tackled by Ali Price of Scotland. Photo by Ramsey Cardy/Sportsfile

Scotland almost went ahead in the closing stages of a breathless first half after Huw Jones intercepted a slack pass from Murray inside his own 22 and raced away.

The ball was eventually worked to Sean Maitland but, with the try line in sight, a superb last-ditch tackle from Iain Henderson brought the breakaway to an end, leaving Murray to breathe a sigh of relief and the home side 10-6 in front at the break following Sextons first penalty.

Scotland played the better of the rugby in the opening period of the second half and repeatedly came within striking distance of the Irish line before coughing up possession.

They were punished further for their profligacy minutes into the second period when fly-half Sexton added another three points, before a calamitous error from Hogg cost them a 50th-minute try.

Full-back Hogg was left with a simple finish in the left corner but somehow dropped the ball before grounding, a costly error initially missed by the on-field officials but picked up by the TMO.

Scotland had to settle for just three points as Hastings subsequently kicked another penalty after Ireland were penalised for not rolling away.

Tadhg Furlong of Ireland is tackled by Jamie Ritchie, left, and Hamish Watson of Scotland. Photo by Seb Daly/Sportsfile

Ireland obliterated their opponents during their World Cup opener just over four months ago but this was a far more competitive affair.

Appearances off the bench for in-form John Cooney, who had challenged Murray for the number nine jersey, World Cup absentee Devin Toner and debutant Ronan Kelleher each brought rapturous receptions from the home crowd.

Ireland produced some staunch defending on their own try line in the final few minutes to prevent Scotland potentially snatching a draw, after a couple more Sexton penalties  either side of one from Hastings  moved the scoreboard to 19-12.

The failure to break through from close range left Scotland to rue another fruitless away trip.

Aside from a handful of victories against perennial wooden spoon winners Italy in Rome, the Scots remain without an away success in this competition since a 23-20 win at Croke Park a decade ago.
The seemingly inevitable acquittal of Donald Trump in the US Senate would mark just the end to a formal effort by Democrats to hold the president accountable for his actions, but the political ramifications could be felt well into the 2020 election.

In some respects, the acquittal would once again illustrate the remarkable level of control and support that Mr Trump has managed to attract since mounting his long shot bid for the presidency in 2015. Since that time, Mr Trump has managed an extraordinary consolidation of support among Republicans, culminating in Senate majority leader Mitch McConnells determined effort to fast-track the impeachment trial by barring further witnesses.

The strategy, though, does come with political risk, especially given the steady drip of new evidence that has emerged in the press. Those leaks continued even on Friday, hours before the witness vote in the Senate, with a report indicating John Bolton had claimed in his upcoming book that Mr Trump had personally been involved in the effort to coerce the Ukrainian government into investigating Joe Biden as early as last May.

Its a defence of the president that has led many Democrats to cry foul, complaining that the effort represents a partisan circling of the wagons around a president who has been credibly accused of abusing his power and obstructing Congress, all the while refusing to provide new material evidence.

But even a victory in the Senate for Mr McConnell and Mr Trump could weigh heavy on the minds of voters some 10 months before the general election. So, then, could Mr McConnells strategy cost him control of the Senate  the legislative body that has helped Mr Trump to some of his greatest achievements including the appointment of over 100 conservative judges and, likely, acquittal?

Trump impeachment: Who's who in the Ukraine scandal Show all 26 1 /26 Trump impeachment: Who's who in the Ukraine scandal Trump impeachment: Who's who in the Ukraine scandal Donald Trump Accused of abusing his office by pressing the Ukrainian president in a July phone call to help dig up dirt on Joe Biden, who may be his Democratic rival in the 2020 election. He also believes that Hillary Clintons deleted emails - a key factor in the 2016 election - may be in Ukraine, although it is not clear why. EPA Trump impeachment: Who's who in the Ukraine scandal The Whistleblower Believed to be a CIA agent who spent time at the White House, his complaint was largely based on second and third-hand accounts from worried White House staff. Although this is not unusual for such complaints, Trump and his supporters have seized on it to imply that his information is not reliable. Expected to give evidence to Congress voluntarily and in secret. Getty Trump impeachment: Who's who in the Ukraine scandal The Second Whistleblower The lawyer for the first intelligence whistleblower is also representing a second whistleblower regarding the President's actions. Attorney Mark Zaid said that he and other lawyers on his team are now representing the second person, who is said to work in the intelligence community and has first-hand knowledge that supports claims made by the first whistleblower and has spoken to the intelligence community's inspector general. The second whistleblower has not yet filed their own complaint, but does not need to to be considered an official whistleblower. Getty Trump impeachment: Who's who in the Ukraine scandal Rudy Giuliani Former mayor of New York, whose management of the aftermath of the September 11 attacks in 2001 won him worldwide praise. As Trumps personal attorney he has been trying to find compromising material about the presidents enemies in Ukraine in what some have termed a shadow foreign policy. In a series of eccentric TV appearances he has claimed that the US state department asked him to get involved. Giuliani insists that he is fighting corruption on Trumps behalf and has called himself a hero. AP Trump impeachment: Who's who in the Ukraine scandal Volodymyr Zelensky The newly elected Ukrainian president - a former comic actor best known for playing a man who becomes president by accident - is seen frantically agreeing with Trump in the partial transcript of their July phone call released by the White House. With a Russian-backed insurgency in the east of his country, and the Crimea region seized by Vladimir Putin in 2014, Zelensky will have been eager to please his American counterpart, who had suspended vital military aid before their phone conversation. He says there was no pressure on him from Trump to do him the favour he was asked for. Zelensky appeared at an awkward press conference with Trump in New York during the United Nations general assembly, looking particularly uncomfortable when the American suggested he take part in talks with Putin. AFP/Getty Trump impeachment: Who's who in the Ukraine scandal Mike Pence The vice-president was not on the controversial July call to the Ukrainian president but did get a read-out later. However, Trump announced that Pence had had one or two phone conversations of a similar nature, dragging him into the crisis. Pence himself denies any knowledge of any wrongdoing and has insisted that there is no issue with Trumps actions. It has been speculated that Trump involved Pence as an insurance policy - if both are removed from power the presidency would go to Democratic House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, something no Republican would allow. AP Trump impeachment: Who's who in the Ukraine scandal Rick Perry Trump reportedly told a meeting of Republicans that he made the controversial call to the Ukrainian president at the urging of his own energy secretary, Rick Perry, and that he didnt even want to. The president apparently said that Perry wanted him to talk about liquefied natural gas - although there is no mention of it in the partial transcript of the phone call released by the White House. It is thought that Perry will step down from his role at the end of the year. Getty Trump impeachment: Who's who in the Ukraine scandal Joe Biden The former vice-president is one of the frontrunners to win the Democratic nomination, which would make him Trumps opponent in the 2020 election. Trump says that Biden pressured Ukraine to sack a prosecutor who was investigating an energy company that Bidens son Hunter was on the board of, refusing to release US aid until this was done. However, pressure to fire the prosecutor came on a wide front from western countries. It is also believed that the investigation into the company, Burisma, had long been dormant. Reuters Trump impeachment: Who's who in the Ukraine scandal Hunter Biden Joe Bidens son has been accused of corruption by the president because of his business dealings in Ukraine and China. However, Trump has yet to produce any evidence of corruption and Bidens lawyer insists he has done nothing wrong. AP Trump impeachment: Who's who in the Ukraine scandal William Barr The attorney-general, who proved his loyalty to Trump with his handling of the Mueller report, was mentioned in the Ukraine call as someone president Volodymyr Zelensky should talk to about following up Trumps preoccupations with the Bidens and the Clinton emails. Nancy Pelosi has accused Barr of being part of a cover-up of a cover-up. AP Trump impeachment: Who's who in the Ukraine scandal Mike Pompeo The secretary of state initially implied he knew little about the Ukraine phone call - but it later emerged that he was listening in at the time. He has since suggested that asking foreign leaders for favours is simply how international politics works. Gordon Sondland testified that Pompeo was "in the loop" and knew what was happening in Ukraine. Pompeo has been criticised for not standing up for diplomats under his command when they were publicly criticised by the president. AFP via Getty Trump impeachment: Who's who in the Ukraine scandal Nancy Pelosi The Democratic Speaker of the House had long resisted calls from within her own party to back a formal impeachment process against the president, apparently fearing a backlash from voters. On September 24, amid reports of the Ukraine call and the day before the White House released a partial transcript of it, she relented and announced an inquiry, saying: The president must be held accountable. No one is above the law. Getty Trump impeachment: Who's who in the Ukraine scandal Adam Schiff Democratic chairman of the House intelligence committee, one of the three committees leading the inquiry. He was criticized by Republicans for giving what he called a parody of the Ukraine phone call during a hearing, with Trump and others saying he had been pretending that his damning characterisation was a verbatim reading of the phone call. He has also been criticised for claiming that his committee had had no contact with the whistleblower, only for it to emerge that the intelligence agent had contacted a staff member on the committee for guidance before filing the complaint. The Washington Post awarded Schiff a four Pinocchios rating, its worst rating for a dishonest statement. Reuters Trump impeachment: Who's who in the Ukraine scandal Lev Parnas and Igor Fruman Florida-based businessmen and Republican donors Lev Parnas (pictured with Rudy Giuliani) and Igor Fruman were arrested on suspicion of campaign finance violations at Dulles International Airport near Washington DC on 9 October. Separately the Associated Press has reported that they were both involved in efforts to replace the management of Ukraine's gas company, Naftogaz, with new bosses who would steer lucrative contracts towards companies controlled by Trump allies. There is no suggestion of any criminal activity in these efforts. Reuters Trump impeachment: Who's who in the Ukraine scandal William Taylor The most senior US diplomat in Ukraine and the former ambassador there. As one of the first two witnesses in the public impeachment hearings, Taylor dropped an early bombshell by revealing that one of his staff  later identified as diplomat David Holmes  overheard a phone conversation in which Donald Trump could be heard asking about investigations the very day after asking the Ukrainian president to investigate his political enemies. Taylor expressed his concern at reported plans to withhold US aid in return for political smears against Trumps opponents, saying: It's one thing to try to leverage a meeting in the White House. It's another thing, I thought, to leverage security assistance -- security assistance to a country at war, dependent on both the security assistance and the demonstration of support." Getty Images Trump impeachment: Who's who in the Ukraine scandal George Kent A state department official who appeared alongside William Taylor wearing a bow tie that was later mocked by the president. He accused Rudy Giuliani, Mr Trumps personal lawyer, of leading a campaign of lies against Marie Yovanovitch, who was forced out of her job as US ambassador to Ukraine for apparently standing in the way of efforts to smear Democrats. Getty Images Trump impeachment: Who's who in the Ukraine scandal Marie Yovanovitch One of the most striking witnesses to give evidence at the public hearings, the former US ambassador to Ukraine received a rare round of applause as she left the committee room after testifying. Canadian-born Yovanovitch was attacked on Twitter by Donald Trump while she was actually testifying, giving Democrats the chance to ask her to respond. She said she found the attack very intimidating. Trump had already threatened her in his 25 July phone call to the Ukrainian president saying: Shes going to go through some things. Yovanovitch said she was shocked, appalled and devastated by the threat and by the way she was forced out of her job without explanation. REUTERS Trump impeachment: Who's who in the Ukraine scandal Alexander Vindman A decorated Iraq War veteran and an immigrant from the former Soviet Union, Lt Col Vindman began his evidence with an eye-catching statement about the freedoms America afforded him and his family to speak truth to power without fear of punishment. One of the few witnesses to have actually listened to Trumps 25 July call with the Ukrainian president, he said he found the conversation so inappropriate that he was compelled to report it to the White House counsel. Trump later mocked him for wearing his military uniform and insisting on being addressed by his rank. Getty Images Trump impeachment: Who's who in the Ukraine scandal Jennifer Williams A state department official acting as a Russia expert for vice-president Mike Pence, Ms Williams also listened in on the 25 July phone call. She testified that she found it unusual because it focused on domestic politics in terms of Trump asking a foreign leader to investigate his political opponents. Getty Images Trump impeachment: Who's who in the Ukraine scandal Kurt Volker The former special envoy to Ukraine was one of the few people giving evidence who was on the Republican witness list although what he had to say may not have been too helpful to their cause. He dismissed the idea that Joe Biden had done anything corrupt, a theory spun without evidence by the president and his allies. He said that he thought the US should be supporting Ukraines reforms and that the scheme to find dirt on Democrats did not serve the national interest. Getty Images Trump impeachment: Who's who in the Ukraine scandal Tim Morrison An expert on the National Security Council and another witness on the Republican list. He testified that he did not think the president had done anything illegal but admitted that he feared it would create a political storm if it became public. He said he believed the moving the record of the controversial 25 July phone call to a top security server had been an innocent mistake. Getty Images Trump impeachment: Who's who in the Ukraine scandal Gordon Sondland In explosive testimony, one of the men at the centre of the scandal got right to the point in his opening testimony: Was there a quid pro quo? Yes, said the US ambassador to the EU who was a prime mover in efforts in Ukraine to link the release of military aid with investigations into the presidents political opponents. He said that everyone knew what was going on, implicating vice-president Mike Pence and secretary of state Mike Pompeo. The effect of his evidence is perhaps best illustrated by the reaction of Mr Trump who went from calling Sondland a great American a few weeks earlier to claiming that he barely knew him. AP Trump impeachment: Who's who in the Ukraine scandal Laura Cooper A Pentagon official, Cooper said Ukrainian officials knew that US aid was being withheld before it became public knowledge in August  undermining a Republican argument that there cant have been a quid pro quo between aid and investigations if the Ukrainians didnt know that aid was being withheld. Getty Images Trump impeachment: Who's who in the Ukraine scandal David Hale The third most senior official at the state department. Hale testified about the treatment of Marie Yovanovitch and the smear campaign that culminated in her being recalled from her posting as US ambassador to Ukraine. He said: I believe that she should have been able to stay at post and continue to do the outstanding work. EPA Trump impeachment: Who's who in the Ukraine scandal Fiona Hill Arguably the most confident and self-possessed of the witnesses in the public hearings phase, the Durham-born former NSC Russia expert began by warning Republicans not to keep repeating Kremlin-backed conspiracy theories. In a distinctive northeastern English accent, Dr Hill went on to describe how she had argued with Gordon Sondland about his interference in Ukraine matters until she realised that while she and her colleagues were focused on national security, Sondland was being involved in a domestic political errand. She said: I did say to him, Ambassador Sondland, Gordon, this is going to blow up. And here we are. AP Trump impeachment: Who's who in the Ukraine scandal David Holmes The Ukraine-based diplomat described being in a restaurant in Kiev with Gordon Sondland while the latter phoned Donald Trump. Holmes said he could hear the president on the other end of the line  because his voice was so loud and distinctive and because Sondland had to hold the phone away from his ear  asking about the investigations and whether the Ukrainian president would cooperate. REUTERS

As things stand, Republicans are facing a tougher 2020 electoral map than Democrats, who would need to pick up three seats to even the playing field (assuming they do not lose any, and that the two independents in the Senate who caucus with Democrats remain loyal).

All told, Republicans are defending 23 seats to the 12 that are being defended by Democrats. Just one of those Democratic seats is considered a toss up by the Cook Political report, that of Alabamas Doug Jones. Meanwhile, three Republicans are in the toss up column  Martha McSally of Arizona, Cory Gardner of Colorado and Susan Collins of Maine.

That vulnerability meant that there was some question about whether some of those Republicans facing tough re-elections would vote for witnesses in the impeachment trial  a question that was resolved on Friday after Ms Collins said she would alongside Utahs Mitt Romney, but no other Republicans did so, eliminating the possibility.

Those decisions were made even as signs have emerged showing that the American people were interested in hearing more about Mr Trumps alleged misdeeds, and after Mr Bolton had said he would be willing to testify if subpoenaed.

Among those signs are the hundreds of protesters who flooded into the Senate on Wednesday to demand witnesses be called, and a recent poll by the respected Monmouth University showing that 75 per cent of voters want to hear from witnesses.

That seemingly losing battle for public sentiment has even been seen in fundraising by the two parties. The National Republican Congressional Committee posted record off-year fundraising totals in 2018 with $205.8 million raised, but the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee topped even that with $296.4 million raised. So far in 2020, Democrats have also outdone Republicans by about $30 million in those same committees. All of this goes to say that it might be difficult for Republicans to regain the House in 2020, much less keep the Senate.

Theyre kicking our ass, House minority leader Kevin McCarthy reportedly said during a closed door Republican meeting this week of the fundraising deficit.

 Donald Trump supporters deny being in denial about present's impeachment

As for Mr McConnell himself, his race appears to be safe  so far.

Up for re-election alongside Mr Trump, Mr McConnell is entering into the 2020 race with a Likely Republican ranking in the Cook Political Report, which is the second safest ranking.

But some troubling signs have emerged, and he may face a strong challenge from Democrat Amy McGrath (who, granted, is a longshot at this time). But, in 2018, Democratic gubernatorial candidate Andy Beshear managed to beat Trump-backed former governor Matt Bevin  who attempted to explicitly make the race a referendum on Trumpian politics.

Mr McConnell can certainly count on support from the president in the coming months, and has even received financial support from some of those who are representing Mr Trump before the Senate impeachment trial. Ken Starr, one of those legal team members, gave Mr McConnell the maximum allowed individual contribution in July, for instance, adding $2,800 to the campaign of a man whose last re-election bid became one of the most expensive in US Senate history.
David Anton Funston was born July, 17, 1942, the son of Neal and Gertrude (Ness) Funston. He was the sixth of eight siblings raised near Sterling. He attended Bismarck High and enlisted in the United States Army, serving three years.

After being honorably discharged he returned home to help on the family farm.

He met and married Sharon Nelson in 1964 and together the family grew to include three children: Michael (Cindi), Bismarck; Kimberly Funston Repnow, Mooresville, N.C., and Cyndi (Maynard) Zueger, Pick City.

In 1965, David joined the Iron Workers Local 793  serving North Dakota, South Dakota and parts of Montana and Minnesota. At that time, North Dakota did not offer apprentice training. His first job was as a permit hand, building the American Crystal Sugar facility in Drayton.

He and Sharon moved their young family to Eveleth, Minn., where he worked for American Bridge in the taconite plants of the Iron Range. During his first assignment, he so impressed the company with his knowledge and skills that he was sent to Texas for more training. There, he studied, tested and become a card-carrying member of Local 510, of Corpus Christi.

David now was known as a boomer he continued work on the Iron Range until Local 512 of Minneapolis needed help erecting structural steel buildings. By this time, David had recruited his younger brother, Clifton; his brother-in-law, Gary Nelson and cousin David Ness to work alongside him.

Living in Minneapolis was enjoyable. Many times, David and his family would spend time with other relatives in the Cities. His sisters, Jean and Marie, lived in the area and frequent get-togethers would include pinochle, barbecues and fondue.

Employment with the Iron Workers provided David many opportunities all over the Midwest. He was even called upon to lend his hand in the building of the Sears Tower in Chicago. But he loved North Dakota and it wasnt long before he moved back.

Once settled again in Bismarck, his job took him to the power plants of North Dakota, where he worked in Beulah, Underwood, Stanton and Center. Before, during and even after retirement, his skills as a permit hand were respected and needed by the Boilermakers Local 647 and also the Insulators Local 133.

He was a proud and active member of the union. He was elected president of the Iron Workers Local 793 in 1979 and served until 1983. After his term, he often could be found at the Capitol lobbying for fair and safe working conditions for all working men and women. David was also elected to the North Dakota Building and Construction Trades Council in 1981 and served as its president until 1994, when he chose not to seek reelection. He continued to serve on the Council as executive director until December 1996.

David didnt always work. He enjoyed hunting, fishing, snowmobiling and riding all-terrain vehicles. He was active in politics serving as a delegate to several state and national Democratic conventions. He was a member of the AmVets in Bismarck. And he also was the one to initiate many reunions to keep family far and wide close and connected.

In 1987 David married Bonnie (Krom) Wolf, and his family expanded to include Lezlie (Mike) Kleingartner, Mandan, and Steven (Jamie) Wolf, Goodyear, Ariz. They also served as foster parents for five years.

Expanding along with his new family were his hobbies. Over the years, David and Bonnie enjoyed the company of horses and all they entailed. Together, they contributed to the cognitive, physical, emotional and social well-being of individuals with special needs by providing Horse Play N More, a therapeutic riding program they operated with Bonnies sister, Kathy Retterath and her daughter, Brooke. When the grandkids starting coming, David and Bonnie happily spoiled them with horseback riding, four wheeling and all the fun activities only a farm could offer.

For the past three years, David and Bonnie have wintered in the horse-loving community of Wickenburg, Ariz. Together they enjoyed watching rodeos, steer roping, meeting new friends and bonding over their love of horses.

David is survived by his wife of 33 years, Bonnie; five children; eight grandchildren, Chance Gaylord (Troy Bender), Mandi (Chris) Robertson, Kasey (Jared) Opalewski, Ryan (Cassie) and Shannon Zueger, Landon Kleingartner, Dillon and Logan Wolf; eight great-grandchildren: Tayler, Jacob, Jack, Max Robertson, and Destinee, Devin, Drew and Colin Steidler; brothers Lt. Col (ret.) Neal Lloyd (Patricia) Funston Jr., Orlando, Fla., Clifton (Clara); and Stanley, Bismarck; and a sister Marie (Dale) Saunders, Appleton, Wis.

Also surviving is Davids mother-in-law, Susie Krom, Cando; sisters-in-law Kathy (Terry) Retterath, Warwick, and Arlie Bredeston, Bakersfield, Calif; brothers-in-law, Donnie (Ellen) Krom, Larimore, Rocky (Donna) Krom, Bismarck, Stacy Krom, Cando, and Vernon Tom Weidmeier, Augusta, Ga.; as well as many special nieces, nephews including Torrey and Travis Krom, and many foster children.

He is preceded in death by his parents; sisters, Jean Jeannie Schossow and Shirley Weidmeier; brother, Merle; father-in-law, Cyril Krom; and brother-in-law, Dr. George Schossow.

Funeral Service: 10 a.m. Friday, Feb. 21, Trinity Lutheran Church, Bismarck.

Private Interment: North Dakota Veterans Cemetery, Mandan.
A young man and teen from Newark have been arrested in the fatal shooting of 19-year-old, whose family says was gunned down in Elizabeth late last month when he went to buy a snack at a gas station near his home.

George Thompson, 22, and a 17-year-old, who name authorities did not make public because he is a juvenile, are charged with murder and weapons offenses in the killing of Haneef Chino Brockington. Acting Union County Prosecutor Lyndsay Ruotolo announced the arrests on Friday.

Brockington, of Elizabeth, was shot multiple times on the night of Dec. 29 at an EZ Quick gas station on the 300 block of Morris Avenue, about a block away from where his family says he was living with his ill grandmother. He was pronounced dead at the scene.

The arrests came as a relief to Brockingtons mother, who had called for justice in her sons death nearly three weeks after he was gunned down.

"Im hanging in there, said Brockingtons mom, Deborah Thomas, of the arrests. I feel a big relief since they got somebody.

Authorities in Union County and police from Elizabeth, Newark and East Orange helped identify Thompson and the juvenile as suspects in the shooting. Additional details about the shooting were not immediately available.

Authorities had previously offered a $10,000 reward for information in the shooting. The juvenile was arrested without incident on Thursday and Thompson was taken into custody Friday morning, the prosecutors office said.

Brockingtons mother told NJ Advance Media she did not know any connection between her son and Thompson. Several of Brockingtons family members said he was never involved in any gang activity.

The 19-year-old had recently graduated from high school in Elizabeth. His family said Brockington worked while attending high school, enjoyed rapping and eventually planned to join the military.

Thompson is scheduled to make a first appearance in Superior Court of Union County on Saturday.

Authorities are still looking for information in the case. Anyone with information about the shooting is urged to contact Prosecutors Office Sgt. Andrew Dellaquila at 973-274-5771 and/or Detective Nicholas Falcicchio 908-721-8186.

Rebecca Panico may be reached at rpanico@njadvancemedia.com. Follow her on Twitter @BeccaPanico.
I was in the government, so I know how you have to think there, he told the Times in 1981. You have to worry about your four years in office.  Its very rare you have the time in an important government office to think about what this country will be like 20 to 30 years from now. So there are certain things we should take on to help the government.
The UK formally withdrew from the European Union on January 31, after its 47-year membership and three years after the Brexit referendum vote, BBC News reports.

This historic moment, which took place at 11pm local time, was marked by festivities as well as protests by the opponents of Brexit.

A candlelight vigil was held in Scotland, which had voted against Brexit, protests against Brexit were held at County Armagh of Northern Ireland, whereas the supporters of Brexit celebrated the event at London's Parliament Square.
- with reporting from Daniel McConnell

The equivalent of a ships crew has left the naval service since it was forced to tie up two vessels due to manpower shortages.

The crisis, which is expected to become even more pronounced in the coming months, could lead to yet another ship being taken off operational duties.

Figures obtained by the Irish Examiner show that 44 enlisted personnel, many of them highly trained, left the naval service since it tied up flagship LE Eithne and coastal patrol vessel LE Orla last June due to manpower shortages.

The vast majority of them had not reached retirement age and were so determined to get out some even paid up to 20,000 for their discharge.

Servicemen who have acquired technical training from the Defence Forces are required to pay a penalty if they leave before fulfilling a certain number of years of a contract.

Many of those who left were technicians. The situation has become so acute that one electrician section in the naval service is only operating at 5% of its designated manpower strength.

It can take up to five years to fully train a specialist technician.

The loss of personnel also comes after the Government decided to increase some previously reduced allowances for Defence Forces members. However, the Government failed to increase core pay for what are the lowest-paid public servants.

The Government also undertook to review the pay of technicians in the naval service, air corps, and in certain sections of the army.

It promised the Defence Forces representative associations that the report on this review would be published on October 4. It has still not materialised.

Meanwhile, figures obtained by Sinn Fein TD Aengus O Snodaigh from minister of state for defence Paul Kehoe show that three officers and 22 enlisted personnel left the air corps between July 4 and November 20, 2019. Of the 22 enlisted staff who left, 13 were technicians.

PDForra, which represents enlisted personnel, said some of those who left the naval service were going to jobs with lower base pay, but knew they would earn more in the long term from generous overtime payments, which the Defence Forces do not get.

PDForra president Mark Keane said that, despite years of warnings that the Defence Forces was in crisis, the point of no return is now upon the Government.

An increase in core pay is vital, otherwise the Defence Forces will become dysfunctional, he said. The failure to address this issue over the last number of years has come home to roost.

He criticised the Governments failure to publish the report on the review of technicians pay, saying people waiting for it had become so disillusioned they had left.

Taoiseach Leo Varadkar told the Irish Examiner he still hopes to publish the technicians report.

I am still trying to get this done before the election, by the way, he said. I had hoped it would be done by Christmas, I have to double-check with my people but one side of the tech pay review is done and published and another isnt.

We got into some technical issues with the Department of Public Expenditure around the legal mechanism by which we pay. But we will pay it. I would have liked to have got that done before the election. Not sure we can.
India's privately-owned airline SpiceJet has denied the data breach reports of about a million passengers.

The airline also said that there was no security lapse in its systems.

"There was no data breach in any of SpiceJet's servers. At SpiceJet, safety and security of our fliers' data is sacrosanct. Our systems are fully capable and always up to date to secure the fliers' data which is a continuous process. We undertake every possible measure to safeguard and protect this data and ensure that the privacy is maintained at the highest and safest level," a SpiceJet spokesperson said.

According to TechCrunch, a security researcher "gained access to one of SpiceJet's systems by brute-forcing the system's easily guessable password" and described their actions as ethical hacking.

The database backup file on the system was unencrypted, allowing access to private information of more than 1.2 million passengers last month, the report said.

The details allegedly included flight information and details of each passenger, including their name, phone number, email address, and date of birth.

Click on Deccan Chronicle Technology and Science for the latest news and reviews. Follow us on Facebook, Twitter.
GLENS FALLS  Expanding broadband and cellular access, lowering the cost of health insurance, fixing bail reform and possibly legalizing marijuana are among some of the top issues facing local legislators in Albany this year.

Nearly 200 people attended a legislative luncheon at The Queenbury Hotel on Friday to hear from state and federal representatives on these issues.

The panel consisted of U.S. Rep. Elise Stefanik, R-Schuylerville; state Sen. Betty Little, R-Queensbury; Assemblyman Dan Stec, R-Queensbury; and Assemblywoman Carrie Woerner, D-Round Lake.

In her last year in the Legislature, Little said she is going to make a priority the expansion of broadband and cell coverage to all places in her district.

Theres just way too many spaces where they dont (have coverage), she said.

Woerner said she participated in a hearing on rural broadband this past summer that identified reasons why it is more expensive to deliver services to some rural areas. She is going to work to see how to reduce those costs.

Thats whats keeping economic development out of our more rural communities, she said.

Stefanik said she recently called the chairman of the Federal Communications Commission and was able to get him to reverse the agencys decision that would have excluded New York from accessing a $16 billion pot of funds to expand high-speed internet.

Stefanik, who cited the United States-Mexico-Canada-Agreement opening up markets, such as Canada, for U.S. farmers, said business confidence is at an all-time high.

I think thats why youre seeing crowded forums like this  people that are excited about the investments they are able to make, she said.

Stec said Gov. Andrew Cuomo highlighted the need for more cell service, but did not include additional funding in his budget.

Wastewater and water projects are another one of his priorities, Stec said.

Its not sexy stuff. Its not too exciting or controversial, but its important to everybody in the room here, he said.

Marijuana legalization debated

Cuomo has once again called for the legalization of recreational marijuana in his budget.

Little said she has not decided how she comes down on the issue. She said she has talked to officials from drug and alcohol rehabilitation organizations who believe it is a gateway drug. Law enforcement professionals worry about traffic safety, she said.

She said possession of small amounts of marijuana was decriminalized last year.

Why wouldnt we wait until we see how that works? she said.

Woerner said technology has come on the market to test if someone has consumed marijuana either through smoking or through edibles.

There is a $2 billion black market and Massachusetts has already legalized it, she added.

If you go to the parking lot of the dispensaries over there, they are filled with cars with New York state plates, she said.

Woerner said if recreational marijuana is legalized, it could be regulated and taxed.

Stec reiterated his complaint about the governor putting policy initiatives in the budget that have nothing to do with spending. A similar issue happened last year with bail reform measures, he said.

He agreed with Little to hold off on legalizing recreational marijuana and see how decriminalization is going.

Stec said he is a firm no.

I think the costs are going to outweigh any financial benefit, he said.

Health care, red tape

Other issues that came up during the 90-minute discussion included reducing health care costs and regulations facing businesses.

Stefanik pointed to legislation that has been passed to repeal the tax for not having a health care plan, medical device tax and the so-called Cadillac tax on expensive health plans.

The cost continues to be an issue  whether its out-of-pocket co-pays or whether its rising premiums, she said.

Stefanik said there is bipartisan legislation to rein in the costs of prescription drugs. However, she faulted House Speaker Nancy Pelosi for bringing forth what Stefanik called a partisan bill that would have imposed a hefty tax on some prescription drugs that are used to fight rare diseases.

Woerner suggested one way to reduce health care costs is to make it possible for emergency medical services organizations to transport to places like urgent care facilities. The law currently requires that they transport patients only to hospital emergency rooms, but Woerner pointed out that, particularly for elderly people who are living alone that have a medical issue, an urgent care facility can provide services at a lower costs.

Also, Woerner said EMS staff should be allowed to do wellness checks.

On another issue, Woerner said it can take a year for a business to get a liquor license. That process should be sped up, and if the state does not comply with a certain time frame, the applicant should get their fees refunded, she said.

New York City drives agenda

This is the second year that Republicans are in the minority in the Senate. The priorities have been very focused on New York City, according to Little. She said she believes there has been a pent-up desire for Democrats to push through bills that had been blocked for years in the Senate.

Theyre just flipping through and finding those bills and passing them in the Senate and now theyre becoming law. There isnt a lot of forethought. There isnt a lot of research, she said.

The bail reform that passed last year was an example, she said. The local district attorneys and sheriffs offices were not contacted.

There will be a big rally in Albany on Tuesday on the issue, she said.

Stec agreed that the legislation went far beyond addressing the issue of someone being locked up because they could not post bail for a minor crime.

There are some dangerous people that are being let out right now and theyre mandated to be let out, he said.

Those people can go out and rob more banks or commit other crimes, Stec said.

Being heard

Local advocacy groups such as the chamber have to be as vocal as possible at the state level, Little said.

You can scream, holler, send emails, write letters and state your case. Everyone counts who they hear from, the number of people they hear from, she said.

Woerner encouraged people to show up in person in Albany to lobby.

Its that face-to-face communication that has the biggest impact, she said.

Stec agreed.

What moves the needle in Albany is people wearing the same colored T-shirt yelling and screaming at us, he said.

Reach Michael Goot at 518-742-3320 or mgoot@poststar.com and follow his blog poststar.com/blogs/michael_goot/.

Love 0 Funny 1 Wow 0 Sad 0 Angry 1

Get local news delivered to your inbox! Subscribe to our Daily Headlines newsletter. Sign up! * I understand and agree that registration on or use of this site constitutes agreement to its user agreement and privacy policy.
LOS ANGELESA 19-year-old French citizen who was gravely injured when flames tore through a high-rise apartment tower this week died Friday evening at a hospital, authorities said.

The Fire Department announced the death but provided no details.

The Los Angeles County coroners office identified him as Jeremy Bru of France. But it had no other details, and there was no immediate word on the exact cause of his death.

Bru was a foreign exchange student, KCBS-TV reported.

Bru was among 11 people who were treated after Wednesdays fire, mostly for smoke inhalation. Seven of them, including a 3-month-old child and a man in critical condition, were sent to hospitals. There was no updated word on their conditions Friday.

In addition, two firefighters received minor burns as they scrambled to reach the apartment where the blaze began using bottled oxygen, fire Capt. Erik Scott said.

In some dramatic rescues, helicopter crews plucked 15 people from the roof and a ladder was used to save a man who clung to the outside of the building as flames raged in nearby apartments.

The fire displaced 339 residents, and some wondered why the management company didnt install sprinklers after another destructive blaze seven years ago

City officials said after the 2013 fire that it shouldnt take another tragedy to get sprinklers into older buildings that are exempt from retrofitting rules, City Councilman Mike Bonin said Thursday. But it did.

Bonin introduced a council motion Friday to seek an ordinance that would require sprinklers in residential buildings built more than 50 years ago, before regulations required fire-suppression systems in buildings taller than 75 feet.

Its an issue that officials in other U.S. cities have grappled with in recent years. Honolulu passed regulations requiring stricter safety rules for buildings with 10 floors or more after a fire raged through a 35-story condominium in 2017, killing four people. It was built in 1971, before the city required condos to have a sprinkler system.

In Chicago, a 2015 law required residential high-rises that were built before 1975 to install fire sprinklers. In New York City, many older residential buildings lack sprinklers, a fact that made headlines in 2018 when a fire at Trump Tower killed a resident and injured firefighters.

The Los Angeles City Council has considered expanding the sprinkler requirement for years, but they petered out in committee, Bonin said.

Previously, the effort faced objections from building owners who said the fixes would be too expensive and would drive up rents. This time, council members are committed to getting the law passed, and they have the backing of building owners and tenants groups, Bonin said.

He said officials hope to find federal grants to cover the installation costs, but if not, he wants to see management companies pick up the tab. For the most part, they are corporationsnot mom-and-pop ownersthat can afford the costs.

Los Angeles Fire Chief Ralph Terrazas recommended in 2017 that sprinklers be installed in all 55 high-rise buildings that still lacked them. At the time, the department estimated that the updates would cost about $6,000 per unit.

Is someone really going to come to council chambers and argue that the life of a tenant isnt worth 6,000 bucks? Bonin asked.

Greg Brown, senior vice president of government affairs at the National Apartment Association, said in a statement that apartment owners face complex and expensive challenges in retrofitting existing buildings.

Existing apartment buildings already operate under fire codes, required evacuations and safety plans, and annual municipal inspections processes to ensure resident safety, he said. Mandating such retrofits would negatively impact an already inadequate affordable housing supply and discourage investment in older housing stock.

Images of flames spewing from the seventh floor of the Barrington Plaza were eerily similar to those from the 2013 fire that caused injuries and gutted the 11th floor.

Puja Oza and her roommate Dalia Kingsbury got calls and texts from friends about the fire before they heard smoke alarms. Still wearing pajamas, they ran with their golden retriever, Seymour, and their panicked neighbors down 16 flights.

In a hotel the next day, Oza wondered whether a sprinkler system would have doused the flames before they got out of control.

The fire destroyed three other apartments in the time it took for firefighters to get up there, she said. I just dont understand how its not already a law. Its really ridiculous.

Tenants filed a class-action lawsuit Thursday accusing the buildings owner, Douglas Emmett Inc., of negligence.

In response to a request for comment on the lawsuit, the fire and the lack of sprinklers, the company said in statements Friday that its thoughts and prayers are with those who are injured and its focus was on getting residents back into their homes.

The company said floors 10 through 25 were cleared for residents to return to their units and residents of the lower floors were being accommodated in hotels until further notice.

The statements did not address the lawsuit but said the building had passed its most recent Fire Department inspection and that the company was interested in learning the results of the investigation into the cause of the fire, which appears to have started inside one of the residential units.

Landlords neglecting fire safety is an ongoing issue, said Jacob Woocher of the Los Angeles Tenants Union.

Across the city, we see owners minimize spending on maintenance and upkeep in order to maximize profits, and cutting corners on fire safety is just one particularly egregious way their greed can endanger the lives of tenants, he said.

The complex has 240 units that range in rent from $2,350 to $3,695 per month, according to Zillow.

The building passed a fire inspection in June, Scott said.

By Christopher Weber
- President Akufo-Addo has announced that the construction of the national cathedral will start in March

- He gave three reasons why the construction must happen with nothing hindering it

- The president mentioned that Ghana has been spared war, famine, and epidemics, and so building the cathedral was apt

Our manifesto: This is what YEN.com.gh believes in

Install our latest app for Android and read the best news about Ghana

President Akufo-Addo has announced the construction of the proposed national cathedral which is to start in March.

He said the construction will start on the eve of Ghanas 63rd independence celebration.

This is contained in reports sighted by YEN.com.gh on social media.

READ ALSO: Maame Serwaa is getting married in 4 years; drop arrangement in new video

According to the president, there are three solid reasons for the cathedral to be built, and these cannot be glossed over.

He mentioned these three things as a civil war, famine, and epidemics  all of which Ghana has been spared since gaining independence some 63 years ago.

There are some people who still ask some questions about why a national cathedral? I will give three reasons:  since gaining our freedom and independence from the British colonial power nearly 63 years ago in 1957, Ghana has been spared civil war, famine, and epidemics, Akufo-Addo said with emphasis.

He added that Ghanaians are no better than citizens of any country, and so, building the cathedral to thank God was in the right direction.

I believe it is by the grace of God that we have been preserved and sustained, and that the construction of the cathedral will be an act of thanksgiving to the Almighty for His blessings, favor, grace, and mercy on our nation, Akufo-Addo said.

READ ALSO: Thief, God will punish you - Efia Odo curses Shatta Wale; exposes his "evil deeds"

He was reportedly speaking at a fund-raising event in Kumasi on Thursday, January 30, 2020.

Telling the details of the construction, the president said the national cathedral would have a bible museum, a mausoleum, a restaurant, and others.

He added that the edifice will also serve as a tourist site for Ghana, while still serving national, regional and international pilgrimage purposes.

READ ALSO: Gory accident on Accra-Takoradi road kills 5; 15 in critical condition

Meanwhile, Ghanaians kicked against the idea of the national cathedral saying it is an issue of misplaced priority.

There was a massive controversy when beautiful and expensive apartments of judges had to be demolished to pave way for the construction, leaving Ghanaians very angry.

Many argued that a different site could have been used in order to save Ghana some financial loss.

READ ALSO: Ghanaian man starts business that can build roads & houses with 100% plastic

Ghana News Today: First Female Police Officer Turns 90, Reminisces Her Days In Service | #Yencomgh

Have national and human interest issues to discuss?

Know someone who is extremely talented and needs recognition?

Your stories and photos are always welcome. Get interactive via our Facebook page.

Source: YEN.com.gh
The Union Budget 2020-21, which Union Finance and Corporate Affairs Minister Nirmala Sitharaman presented in the Lok Sabha on Saturday, aims at energising the economy of India through a combination of short-term, medium-term, and long term measures.

"I congratulate Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman and her team for presenting the first Budget of the decade that has vision as well as action," said Prime Minister Narendra Modi. "India will now move to become a key member of the global value chain. Skill sets needed for the development of a modern and New India have been focussed," he said, adding that key announcements have been made to aid exports and MSME sector.

The Union Budget has been structured on the overall theme of 'Ease of Living' which has been achieved by farmer-friendly initiatives such as agriculture credit target of Rs 15 lakh crore for 2020-21, schemes of 'Kisan Rail' and 'Krishi Udaan' for a seamless cold supply chain for perishables, and expansion of PM-KUSUM to provide 20 lakh farmers for setting up stand-alone solar pumps.

Chief Statistician of India and Secretary, Ministry of Statistics & Programme Implementation, said the bold initiatives in the Union Budget are crucial to India for achieving a 5 trillion-dollar economy.

In a statement, he said the government's focus on developing infrastructure and its emphasis on health, education, skill development, innovations, tourism, MSMEs, agriculture and allied areas will contribute to economic growth.

For the year 2020-21, nominal growth of GDP has been estimated at 10 pc, while receipts have been pegged at Rs 22.46 lakh cr and expenditure at Rs 30.42 lakh cr. For the FY 2019-20, revised estimates of expenditure were Rs 26.99 lakh crore and revised estimates of receipts Rs 19.32 lakh crore.

Net market borrowings were at Rs 4.99 lakh crore for 2019-20, which have been pegged at Rs 5.36 lakh crore for 2020-21. A good part of the borrowings for the financial year 2020-21 to go towards capital expenditure that has been scaled up by more than 21 per cent.

In the health sector, the Budget proposes more than 20,000 empanelled hospitals under the PM Jan Arogya Yojana for poor people; and expansion of Jan Aushadhi Kendra Scheme to all districts offering 2000 medicines and 300 surgicals by 2024.

Infrastructure receives a boost, with 100 more airports by 2024 to support Udaan scheme; and operation of 150 passenger trains to be done through PPP mode. Starting apprenticeship embedded courses through 150 higher educational institutions by March 2021 and a proposal to establish the Indian Institute of Heritage and Conservation are some of the other major highlights.

Finance Minister Sitharaman said: "The Union Budget aims to achieve seamless delivery of services through digital governance, improve the physical quality of life through Infrastructure Pipeline, risk mitigation through disaster resilience social security through pension and insurance penetration."

The Finance Minister said that more than Rs 2.83 lakh crore would be spent on agriculture, rural development, irrigation and allied activities as farmers and rural poor continue to remain the key focus of the government.

Moreover, comprehensive measures for 100 water-stressed districts, proposal to expand PM-KUSUM to provide 20 lakh farmers for setting up stand-alone solar pumps and for another 15 lakh farmers to solarise their grid-connected pump sets, setting up of efficient warehouses at the block level.

Dwelling on the wellness, water and sanitation theme, Sitharaman said Rs 69,000 crore is being provided for health care including Rs 6400 crore for Prime Minister Jan Arogya Yojana (PMJAY) under which there are more than 20,000 empanelled hospitals more in Tier-2 and Tier-3 cities for poorer people.

On education and skill front, Rs 99,300 crore has been allocated in 2020-21 and Rs 3,000 crore for skill development. New Education Policy will be announced soon. About 150 higher educational institutions will start apprenticeship embedded degree and diploma courses by March 2021.

Referring to economic development, the Finance Minister said that Rs 27,300 crore would be allocated for development and promotion of industry and commerce for the year 2020-21. An Investment Clearance Cell will be set up to provide 'end to end' facilitation. It is proposed to develop five new smart cities in collaboration with States in PPP mode.

A scheme to encourage the manufacture of mobile phones, electronic equipment and semi-conductor packaging is also proposed. A Technical Textiles Mission would be set up with a four-year implementation period from 2020-21 to 2023-24 at an estimated outlay of Rs 1,480 crore to position India as a global leader in technical textiles.

On infrastructure sector, as highlighted by Prime Minister Modi that Rs 100 lakh crore would be invested over the next five years, the National Infrastructure Pipeline was launched on December 31, 2019, of Rs 103 lakh crore. It consists of more than 6500 projects across sectors and is classified as per their size and stage of development.

On the new economy, Sitharaman said that a policy to enable the private sector to build Data Centre parks throughout the country will be brought out soon. Fibre to the Home (FTTH) connections through Bharatnet will link 100,000-Gram Panchayats this year. It is proposed to provide Rs 6,000 crore to Bharatnet programme in 2020-21.

Harping on the theme of a caring society, she said that Rs 35,600 crore proposed for nutrition-related programmes for the financial year 2020-21. Rs 28,600 crore proposed for programmes that are specific to women. Moreover, Rs 85,000 crore would be allocated towards the welfare of Scheduled Castes and Other Backward Classes for 2020-21.

Similarly, for furthering development and welfare of Scheduled tribes, Rs 53,700 crore is proposed for 2020-21. She said the government is mindful of the concerns of senior citizens and Divyang. Accordingly, an enhanced allocation of Rs 9,500 crore is being provided for 2020-21.

On environment, states that are formulating and implementing plans for ensuring cleaner air in cities above one million will be encouraged. Parameters for the incentives to be notified by the Ministry of Environment, Forests and Climate change and the allocation for this purpose is Rs 4,400 crore for 2020-21.

She said that in the last few years, the Government of India has infused about Rs 3,50,000 crore by way of capital into public sector banks (PSBs) for regulatory and growth purposes. The governance reforms would be carried out in these banks so that they become more competitive.

On disinvestment, the Finance Minister said that listing of companies on stock exchanges discipline a company and provides access to financial markets and unlocks its value. It also gives an opportunity for retail investors to participate in the wealth so created. The government now proposes to sell a part of its holding in LIC by way of Initial Public Offer (IPO).

On fiscal management, she announced to transfer to the GST Compensation Fund balances due out of the collection of the years 2016-17 and 2017-18, in two instalments. Hereinafter, transfers to the fund would be limited only to the collection by way of GST compensation cess.

She said the government has estimated nominal growth of GDP for the year 2020-21, on the basis of trends available, at 10 per cent. Accordingly, receipts for the year 2020-21 are estimated at Rs 22.46 lakh cr and, keeping in mind commitment of the government towards various schemes and need for improvement in the quality of life, level of expenditure has been kept at Rs 30.42 lakh cr.

She said that to make sure India stays globally competitive and a favoured destination for investment, a bold historic decision was taken to reduce the corporate tax rate for new companies in the manufacturing sector to an unprecedented level of 15 per cent. For existing companies, the rate has been brought down to 22 per cent.

According to the new regime of personal income tax, individual taxpayers will pay tax at a reduced rate of 10 per cent for income between Rs 5 lakh and 7.5 lakh against the current rate of 20 per cent.

"Those with an income between Rs 7.5 lakh and Rs 10 lakh will pay tax at 15 per cent against the current 20 per cent. Those with income between Rs 10 and Rs 12.5 lakh will pay tax at 20 per cent, down from 30 per cent," she said.

The Finance Minister further said that tax rates for income between Rs 12.5 lakh and Rs 15 lakh will be 25 per cent under the new regime.

"To provide significant relief to individual taxpayers and simplify the tax law, a new regime of personal income tax to be introduced," she said.

To boost start-ups, the tax burden on employees due to tax on Employee Stock Options (ESOPS) has been deferred by five years or till they leave the company or when they sell, whichever is earliest.

Around 70 of more than 100 income tax deductions and exemptions have been removed, in order to simplify the tax system and lower tax rates, said the minister, adding that substantial tax benefit will accrue to individual taxpayers under the new personal income tax regime.

Key HIGHLIGHTS

* Those earning up to Rs 5 lakh in a year will pay no tax.

* Income between Rs 5-7.5 lakh, the tax rate is 10 pc.

* Income between Rs 7.5-10 lakh, the tax rate is 15 pc.

* Income between Rs 10-12.5 lakh, tax rate cut to 20 pc from 30 pc.

* Income above 15 lakh rupees will continue to be taxed at 30 pc.

* A person earning Rs 15 lakh per anum and not availing any deductions will now pay Rs 1.95 lakh tax in place of Rs 2.73 lakh.

* The new personal income tax regime entails an estimated revenue foregone amounting to Rs 40,000 crore per year.

The new tax regime shall be optional for taxpayers. An individual who is currently availing more deductions and exemption under the Income Tax Act may choose to avail them and continue to pay tax in the old regime.

The Finance Minister said she had reviewed all exemptions and deductions which got incorporated in the income tax legislation over the past several decades. Currently, more than one hundred exemptions and deductions of different nature are provided in the Income Tax Act. She said that she has removed around 70 of them in the new simplified regime.

She said that the remaining exemptions and deductions would also be reviewed and rationalized in the coming years, with a view to further simplifying the tax system and lowering the tax rate.

Currently, companies are required to pay Dividend Distribution Tax (DDT) on the dividend paid to its shareholders at the rate of 15 per cent plus applicable surcharge and cess, in addition to the tax payable by the company on its profits.

In order to remove the cascading effect, the Finance Minister has proposed to allow a deduction for the dividend received by holding company from its subsidiary. The removal of DDT will lead to estimated annual revenue foregone of Rs. 25,000 crore. This will further make India an attractive destination for investment.

The Finance Minister noted that during their formative years, Start-ups generally use Employee Stock Option Plan (ESOP) to attract and retain highly talented employees. Currently, ESOPs are taxable as perquisites at the time of exercise.

In order to give a boost to the start-up ecosystem, the Finance Minister has proposed to ease the burden of taxation on the employees by deferring the tax payment for five years or till they leave the company or when they sell their shares, whichever is earliest.

In order to reduce the compliance burden on small retailers, traders, shopkeepers who comprise the MSME sector, the Finance Minister has proposed to raise by five times, the turnover threshold for audit from the existing Rs 1 crore to Rs 5 crore. In order to boost a less-cash economy, she has proposed that the increased limit shall apply only to those businesses which carry out less than 5 per cent of their business transactions in cash.

On the customs side, India has taken a quantum leap in the 'Trading across border' parameter of Ease of Doing Business rankings by the World Bank. India's rank has improved from 146 to 68. Imports under Free Trade Agreements are on the rise.

Keeping in view the need of the MSME sector, customs duty is being raised on items like footwear and furniture. Rate of duty for footwear is being raised from 25 pc to 35 pc, and for 'parts of the footwear' from 15 pc to 20 pc. Rate of duty for specified furniture goods is being raised from 20 pc to 25 pc.

To give impetus to the domestic industry, and to generate a resource for health services, it is proposed to impose a nominal health cess of 5 per cent on imports of specified medical equipment. Basic customs duty on imports of newsprint and light-weight coated paper is being reduced from 10 per cent to 5 per cent.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
Yang Xiayu and his mother. [For chinadaily.com.cn]



An essay written by a teenager gathered many likes online recently, in which the student told the story of her mother, a military medic, going to Wuhan to fight the novel coronavirus, the news portal The Paper reported on Friday.

The writer of the essay, Yang Xiayu, is a sixth grader at No 2 experimental school affiliated to Shanghai Normal University in Putuo district, and her mother is a chief nurse of orthopedics at No 905 military hospital of the Navy, People's Liberation Army.

The essay was a winter break assignment, and Yang said she wrote the story because she was moved by her mother's answer to the call to serve.

Yuan Jianzhou, the vice-president of the school, said Yang's essay was one of the 191 essays the school received. It was so touching that her Chinese teacher submitted it to Shanghai Morning Post's social media on WeChat, which later published the essay online and received a lot of touching responses, such as "This mother sets the best example for her child" and "Thumbs-up for this heroic mother".

Liu Jun, an education officer of Putuo district, said the district called for essays documenting the "unusual winter holiday" recently, and students in the district started telling different stories of people fighting against the epidemic. Some wrote about their parents who are medical professionals, some wrote about their donations of masks and money, and some wrote about social workers' efforts in stopping disease transmission.

The essays documented this unusual holiday  a hard time yet with warm deeds by individuals, Liu said.

Below are two essays from the students:

Yang Xiayu and his mother. [For chinadaily.com.cn]

An unusual winter holiday

By Yang Xiayu,

Class 4, Grade 6, No 2 experimental school affiliated to Shanghai Normal University

Jan 24 was the eve of the Lunar New Year. A ringing phone call woke me up from a sweet dream. As I opened my drowsy eyes, Mom was already on the phone: "Yes, director, I am on holiday with my family in Changzhou (a city in Jiangsu province). When is the time? Okay, we will be on our way at once."

Click! Mom turned on the bedroom light, and jostled my dad and me awake. "Quickly, we have to pack up and go back to Shanghai now. I need to report to urgent work for Wuhan at 11 am."

Dad grumbled, "It's just five o'clock, don't you let me have a good holiday!"

The sudden exposure of light made it hard for me to open my eyes, as I snuggled myself with the blanket and complained, "Today is the eve of the Lunar New Year, and we have a family dinner with great grandfather and the aunties. I want to receive lucky money when we pay visits to relatives. I haven't celebrated the Spring Festival in the countryside for years!"

"My baby, I will explain to you on our way. Now, get up and pack up your stuff," said Mom as she pulled me out of bed and put clothes on me.

In the wake of our noises, grandpa and grandma sleeping in the next room got up. One started to prepare breakfast, and the other started packing things up and making phone calls.

At 7 am, we had a simple and quick breakfast and put luggage in the car, leaving stuff that could not fit in to relatives. It was raining outside, the sky was still dark, and it was foggy.

Mom dragged me into the car, despite my crying for New Year visits, and Dad started the engine. The rain got heavy and the road was permeated with fog. The windshield wipers worked at the highest frequency but we could only see the road 50 meters ahead. At one time Mom urged Dad to drive faster, but at another time she warned him to slow down, which made me carsick and feel awful about this Spring Festival.

The rain stopped when we drove on the highway to Shanghai, and Mom finally had time to turn around and talk to me.

"I know you are not happy, but do you know why Mom has to give up the holiday and go to Wuhan?" she asked, and added: "Because there is a new type of virus in Wuhan, and hundreds of people are infected and thousands are in quarantine."

"Is it more serious than the flu?" I asked.

"Definitely. Remember those 16 classmates who couldn't come to school last month because of having the flu? This pneumonia-like virus is more dangerous. In 2003, a similar virus called SARS broke out in Beijing, infecting thousands and claiming 700 lives, and you were not born then."

I felt so upset when Mom showed me the old pictures of the SARS outbreak: People wore masks everywhere, doctors and nurses put on hazmat preventive clothes, and few people walked on the streets.

"Mom, must you go?" I was worried.

"Yes, I am a chief nurse, and I am a military medic. My job is to heal the wounded and rescue the dying," she said. "Now Wuhan is in danger. It is your father's hometown, and your mom must go and save it."

We arrived in Shanghai in time, and Mom rushed home. Only after 10 minutes, she was downstairs again with a small bag. Looking at Mom, I was about to cry. I knew Mom won't be with us for a long time, and I won't be able to eat her dishes  Mom is going to brave the dangerous virus.

Mom hugged me and patted my head. "Be strong," she said to me when leaving, and I nodded.

The dinner for our Lunar New Year was noodles cooked by my grandpa. There was little festivity, and I didn't even want to watch the Spring Festival Gala on television. Outside, there were no sounds of traffic, nor of firecrackers. Time seemed to stop.

At 8 pm, Mom called home. "Watch the news on (China) Central Television," she said and hung up before we talked. I turned on the television. It was broadcasting the reinforcement by military medics from Shanghai to Wuhan, and Mom was on the screen.

Wearing the navy's blue uniform, Mom and other 150 medics from the navy were on their way to the airplane. The cargo plane had its back door wide open, and Mom and her comrades rushed to board the plane, quietly and orderly. The faces of everyone were solemn and yet anxious, and the only sound there was the unison of shoes hitting the ground and the order given by the commander. Finally, the airplane taxied to the runway, and took off to the night sky.

Wuhan, tonight you will be no longer be on your own! Mom and her comrades are coming!

After watching the live broadcast, I was not upset anymore and fell asleep. Tomorrow is the first day of the Lunar New Year. Life will continue, Mom will triumph, and Wuhan will be safe again.



Ordinary family's contribution indispensable to society

By Zhan Yuxiao

Class 1, Grade 8, No 2 experimental school affiliated to Shanghai Normal University

As the final exams finished, the first semester of the academic year drew to an end. But the weather wouldn't chill down. December was unusually warm, with the temperature rising and falling dramatically from time to time  there seemed to be something special about this winter. At home, everything went on as usual. Like in previous years, we spent the Spring Festival holiday in my mother's hometown of Yangzhou.

Spring Festival celebrations in Yangzhou started as early as a week before the big day. Walking around on the streets, you could easily feel that the festival was just around the corner. The whole city was immersed in the joyful holiday mood.

Everything was just like it used to be  the view, the buildings, the happy family gatherings. It was only after two days when news poured in: A new coronavirus broke out in Wuhan's seafood market.

Panic brought by the virus was all over the place. TV and social media were broadcasting breaking news every day: Confirmed infections increased by a few hundred in one day, the virus can be transmitted among humans. All of a sudden, surgical masks were sold out, fever clinics were overcrowded, doctors rushed to Wuhan. As I browsed through the worrying headlines, I secretly hoped that Dad wouldn't go. After all, he wasn't in the fever clinic department.

The Chinese Lunar New Year's Eve was a time for family reunions. We prepared dinner together. I was so happy that Grandpa taught me how to cook Yangzhou meatballs. After dinner, we watched the Spring Festival Gala on TV. Everyone was happy, except for Dad. He kept checking the phone, his looks getting solemn.

On the morning of the Spring Festival, Mom and Dad made the announcement: Time to go back to Shanghai. Before I could digest what was happening, we were already driving on the highway, as trees and streetlamps flashed outside my car window.

I couldn't shake off all the questions in my head. Why were we going back all of a sudden? Dad is not a doctor in a fever clinic after all. There were already confirmed cases in Shanghai and the news said tourists from Hubei were all settled in a hotel for now, so there were still risks. How could Mom disregard all these factors and agree to return? She was the one who always made health the top priority of the family

When we got closer to home, I noticed something different. The usually busy shopping mall was quiet. At gates to residential communities, doctors in protective suits and volunteers wearing surgical masks were doing checkups of passersby. That's when I realized the pneumonia had spread from Wuhan to other places, so Dad must cancel the holiday and go back to work. When people stayed home amid the crisis, doctors and nurses had to do their jobs, even when it meant facing the disease.

When Dad was about to leave home, he turned around. I recalled what I read online and said: "Avoid going out. Wear a mask if we have to." Dad paused, and broke a smile: "That's my good boy. Dad will help the other doctors save lives. You will now help take care of our family." Mom put a mask over Dad's mouth: "Just go. I will be here."

I feel so proud. My dad is just an ordinary man, but he's also a doctor willing to take risks to save lives. My family is just an ordinary family, but we are willing to sacrifice for the whole society and make our contribution, just like every other family of many other doctors.

It is said that life is easy only because others are shouldering all the difficulties. In this unusual winter break, I came to understand that every ordinary family contributes indispensable strength to the society. As the epidemic rages, it is my dad and his fellow doctors and nurses who are holding up the sky for this country.

(Source: China Daily)
(Newser)  President Trump will use next week's State of the Union to promote what he calls the "Great American comeback," according to a senior administration official. The speech comes at a moment when Trump is hoping to put his Senate impeachment trial behind him. White House officials say. Trump wants to use the nationally televised address to highlight his administration's efforts to bolster the economy, tighten immigration rules and lower prescription drug costs just as his reelection effort accelerate, the AP reports. "I think it's safe to say the speech will celebrate American economic and military strength and present an optimistic vision of America's future," said the senior administration official, who briefed reporters on the speech that Trump is scheduled to deliver before a joint session of Congress on Tuesday.

story continues below

But for the second straight year, Trump will deliver his speech with a cloud over his presidency as his Senate impeachment edges to a rancorous close. Last year, Trump was forced to postpone his speech because of the longest government shutdown in the nation's history, triggered by bitter partisan battle over his push for funding for a wall along the US-Mexico border. The official who briefed reporters declined to comment on how the speech will address impeachment. White House officials stressed Friday that the president was determined to offer an optimistic message. Trump has invited Army veteran Tony Rankins, who has battled post-traumatic stress disorder and drug addiction, and Raul Ortiz, a deputy chief of the Border Patrol, to be among his guests at the speech.

(Read more State of the Union Address stories.)
The three day EUS-ERCP-PTBD convergence which kicks started on Jan 24th drew participation from over 400 young doctors from across the globe

The three-day SYNERGY 2020 convergence hosted by SL Raheja Hospital, Mahim and Institute of Digestive & Liver Care concluded yesterday. It was aimed at engaging young doctors from across the globe about the relevance of Endoscopic Retrograde Cholangio-Pancreatography techniques (ERCP), Endoscopic Ultrasound (EUS), Percutaneous Trans- Hepatic Biliary Drainage (PTBD) in the management of Biliary & Pancreatic diseases. The convergence was spearheaded by Dr. Vinay Dhir, Executive Director, Institute of Digestive & Liver Care and supported by Thailands Prof. Rungsun Reknimitr, Australias Prof. Arthur Kaffes & Spains Prof. Manuel Perez Miranda.

The journey of endoscopy from a simple diagnostic tool to an advanced therapeutic tool has evolved over the last few decades. The convergence drew focus to this evolution; it witnessed participation from 24 experts across 09 countries, who shared insights, discussed and debated about newer techniques, medical advancements & management of disorders like Gall Stones, Bile Duct Stone, Biliary Tumors, Pancreatic Tumors, treatment of Jaundice, etc. Over 400 freshly graduated doctors from across 11 countries attended the session. Experts hosted hands-on training sessions for the doctor as a part of the conference in three important areas of advanced endoscopy i.e. ERCP, EUS module and third space. Live demonstration helped explain

- The ERCP module which is a procedure that involves the entry of the pile and pancreatic duct using accessories to treat stones, tumors and the pancreatic system

- The EUS module which is a combination of endoscopy and ultrasound is used to detect abnormalities including lumps or lesions

- Third Space which is a relatively new technique where endoscopic work is performed between the layers of the intestinal wall, also useful for non-surgical removal of tumors in the intestine

Speaking at SYNERGY 2020, Dr. Vinay Dhir, Executive Director, Institute of Digestive & Liver Care, SL Raheja Hospital, Mahim-A Fortis Associate, said, This year we celebrate five decades of ERCP, a procedure which transformed the management of Biliary and Pancreatic disease. Like ERCP, EUS also remained a pure diagnostic procedure for a long time. PTBD, the first non-surgical technique for biliary drainage is now seven decades old has given excellent results in patients with failed ERCP and complex hilar structure. Our aim at the IDL Care is to bring experts from across the globe on a single platform to share their knowledge and expertise, helping provide a bountiful learning experience for young doctors.

Speaking about SYNERGY 2020, Dr. Hiren Ambegaokar, CEO, SL Raheja Hospital, Mahim-A Fortis Associate, said, I thank all the experts who have shared their experience-based learnings at this conference, and encourage young doctors to come forth and learn from these stalwarts.
Explained: What you should know about the first phase of Malabar Exercise 2020

Malabar Gold and Diamonds aims to become world's largest jeweller in next 3 years

India

oi-Oneindia Staff

By Anuj Cariappa

New Delhi, Feb 01: Malabar Gold & Diamonds, India's leading jeweller in terms of revenues and one of the top five jewellery retailers worldwide, has announced that it has plans to become the world's largest jeweller with revenue worth Rs.50,000 crore within the next three years.

With revenues of $4.51 billion in FY2018-19, Malabar Gold & Diamonds, has embarked upon an aggressive expansion spree in India and abroad to achieve that milestone.

"Demand for gold and jewellery will continue to grow and our target is to double the number of showrooms in India and to enter ten more countries within the next three years. By the end of the current financial year, our business should grow to about US $5 billion. Considering the growth we have achieved so far when compared to our leading global competitors, we should reach our target to become the world's largest within three years," said M P Ahammed, Chairman, Malabar Group.

Headquartered in Kozhikode, Malabar Gold & Diamonds presently has 257 showrooms including 117 showrooms in India and 140 showrooms spread across ten countries like the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) countries, Singapore, Malaysia and the US.

To support its expansion plan and cater to the growing customer base, Malabar Gold & Diamonds which was established in 1993 has set up an end-to-end manufacturing and supply chain management system comprising of 14 jewellery manufacturing units including four outside India.

Malabar Gold & Diamonds opened its second showroom in Mumbai at the Palladium mall last week and has plans to open more showrooms in Mumbai and its suburbs like Vashi, Thane, and Borivali etc.

Malabar Gold & Diamonds which follows a unique model of co-operative entrepreneurship has about 4,700 investors. Approximately 27 per cent of the total 13,000 employees of the company are also part of the investor community.

The jeweller has also signed Bollywood actors like Anil Kapoor and Kareena Kapoor Khan, South Indian film actor Tamannaah Bhatia and former Miss World Manushi Chillar as brand ambassadors.
Patricia O'Connor's son has said that when he and his father decided to go to gardai days after she went missing, his sister Louise "didn't want us to report it".

Richard O'Connor also told a Central Criminal Court jury his sister "wore the trousers" in her relationship with murder accused Kieran Greene, who was "something of a fool and a moron".

Mr O'Connor was giving evidence for the prosecution in the joint trial of four people who are charged over the grandmother's death in 2017.

Kieran Greene (34), then-partner of Louise O'Connor, is charged with murder.

Louise (41), her ex -partner Keith Johnston (43) and their daughter Stephanie O'Connor (22) are accused of impeding the investigation.

Friction

Expand Close Patricia O'Connor / Facebook

Twitter

Email

Whatsapp Patricia O'Connor

They all deny the charges.

Patricia O'Connor (61) was allegedly murdered on May 29, 2017, at the house at Mountain View Park, Rathfarnham she shared with family, including Louise, Stephanie and Mr Greene.

Her remains were found scattered in the Dublin and Wicklow mountains between June 10 and 14 that year.

Richard O'Connor, who had not lived at the family home for years, said "there was a fair bit of friction", in the house that "stemmed from Louise and her family living in the home and not keeping the usual upkeep of the house".

Expand Close Left to right: Keith Johnston and Stephanie OConnor, who are accused of impeding the murder investigation. Photo: Collins Courts / Facebook

Twitter

Email

Whatsapp Left to right: Keith Johnston and Stephanie OConnor, who are accused of impeding the murder investigation. Photo: Collins Courts

His mother had retired from her hospital cleaning job and "was at home more often".

"There wasn't enough being done for the amount of them in the house," he said. "It put a strain on her constantly."

"I saw my mam giving out, saying 'move your lazy arses', or tidying up after the kids. Most of that was directed at Louise."

May 30 was his birthday and when he had no contact from his mother, he contacted Louise on May 31.

"That is when she informed me that my mam had left with a suitcase and run off somewhere after an argument," Mr O'Connor said.

He was asked to describe his mother.

"She was a straight shooter and if you were in the wrong, she would tell you you were in the wrong," he said.

He was "worried" when his mother was missing and had "no idea" where she might have been.

On June 1, he went to the house, and Louise, their father and Kieran Greene were there.

Prosecuting counsel Roisin Lacey SC asked if an agreement was reached that Patricia should be reported missing.

"I agreed with my father, Louise didn't want us to report it," he replied. Kieran Greene "didn't say a thing", he said.

On June 11, he said he walked to the shops with Mr Greene and asked about his mother being missing.

"There wasn't a budge out of him," he said.

He agreed with Mr Greene's barrister Conor Devally SC he had told gardai Mr Greene was "something of a fool and a moron".

He agreed Louise was "sharper" than Mr Greene, saying "she would be cute enough, yeah."

Doer

"Louise wore the trousers, yeah," he agreed.

Mr O'Connor had described his mother as "a bit of a doer, who would get stuck in", and "hated laziness".

Cross-examined by Louise O'Connor's barrister Michael Bowman SC, he said Louise had told him "there's no need to involve the guards. I said: 'I don't care, I'm going down, even if I have to go myself'."

It struck him as unusual, he said, and "my mam wouldn't just run off for no reason."

He agreed he did not mention this in his garda statement.

The trial continues.
There are proposals to install disabled and age friendly parking spaces on St Mary's Road as part of the Parade Ground regeneration.

At their January meeting, members of Arklow Municipal District received a progress report from ARUP about the design of the project in response to concerns outlined at the December meeting about the provision of car parking in the area. The design team now propose installing two to three age friendly and disabled spaces near the pedestrian crossing at the side entrance at Ss Mary's and Peter's Church.

Cllr Miriam Murphy (Ind) said there were no easy options to the issue.

Councillors also raised concerns about the potential impact on parking arrangements for businesses on St Mary's Road.

Acting district engineer Rob Mulhall said that many of the parking spots used by businesses would be free at the weekends. Arup had indicated the project was due go out to tender shortly with construction expected to begin later this year.

Cllr Pat Fitzgerald (FF) stated Arklow needs an 'upgrade' and he was happy with the proposed solution.

Cllr Tommy Annesley (FF) noted that many people had made submissions on the issue of parking in the area. He asked if they would receive responses as members of the public had contacted councillors about this issue.

Mr Mulhall said those who made submissions were entitled to an acknowledgement, but he did not think they would receive individual responses. Each submission had been reviewed and included in a report presented to the CEO of Wicklow County Council.

Cllr Annesley said he still had concerns that there were only three parking spaces at the Parade Ground. He said he felt that more spaces could be included in the area.

Mr Mulhall said there had been support previously from members for this approach to parking at the Parade Ground. There was 'ample parking' in town for vehicles. He noted that allowances had been made for disabled and age friendly parking in the area.

The discussion then turned to illegal parking in the Parade Ground area, particularly at weekends.

Cllr Fitzgerald said it was for the gardai to deal with this issue. He added there was parking at Arus Lorcain which did not appear to be used. Cllr Fitzgerald said there may be a concern that businesses would have no parking on St Mary's Road. He also asked about the restrictions for the age friendly parking spaces.

Mr Mulhall confirmed anyone over the age of 55 could park in the age friendly spaces.

Cllr Fitzgerald suggested that a request could be made to Irish Rail for use of the Arklow train station car park at weekends, when it was not in high demand.

Cllr Sylvester Bourke (FG) said that this request had been made before and had been refused at that time.
So a Sanders economy would have fetters, which is defined as a chain or manacles used to restrain a prisoner.

Sanders also fundamentally would change the limits on government imposed by the U.S. Constitution. To its framers a limited government was a goal, not an obstacle.

Not to Sanders. He wants not just a big government, but an activist big government  one that has a controlling say in almost every aspect of our lives.

Dont think the Framers intended the federal government to run the health care system, pay everyones college tuition, take your guns or force you to use only renewable energy? Too bad, thats what Sanders and his followers want.

Dont think the Framers would have allowed the government to tax, most or all of your income and assets above a government-allowed amount? Look at his tax plan.

Dont think the Framers would have supported the government prohibiting or criminalizing long-standing religious beliefs, forcing people to engage in or accept practices they believe are religiously precluded? Listen to Sanders when hes condemning those he considers bigots.
Washington: The US Senate voted on Friday against calling witnesses and collecting new evidence in President Donald Trump`s impeachment trial, clearing the way for Trump`s almost certain acquittal next week.

By a vote of 51-49, the Republican-controlled Senate stopped Democrats' drive to hear testimony from witnesses like former national security adviser John Bolton, who is thought to have first-hand knowledge of Trump`s efforts to pressure Ukraine to investigate a political rival, former Vice President Joe Biden.

Those actions prompted the Democratic-controlled House of Representatives to formally charge Trump with abuse of power and obstruction of Congress in December, making Trump only the third president in US history to be impeached.

He denies wrongdoing and has accused Democrats of an "attempted coup."

The Senate approved on a party-line vote a timeline for the rest of the trial that calls for a final vote on the impeachment charges at 4 p.m. EST (2100 GMT) on Wednesday.

Live TV

Closing arguments will begin at 11 a.m. EST (1600 GMT) on Monday, with four hours split between the prosecution and defense. That will give the four Democratic senators who are running to be their party`s presidential nominee time to get to Iowa for that night`s first nominating contest.

In between the closing arguments and final vote, senators will have an opportunity to give speeches on the Senate floor, but the trial will not formally be in session. Trump will deliver his State of the Union speech to a joint session of Congress on Tuesday night.

The Senate is almost certain to acquit Trump of the charges, as a two-thirds Senate majority is required to remove Trump and none of the chamber`s 53 Republicans have indicated they will vote to convict.

Trump is seeking re-election in the Nov. 3 vote. Biden is a leading contender for the Democratic nomination to face him.

In Friday`s vote on witnesses, only two Republicans - Mitt Romney, the 2012 Republican presidential nominee, and Susan Collins, who faces a tough re-election in November in her home state of Maine - broke with their party and voted with Democrats.

"America will remember this day, unfortunately, where the Senate did not live up to its responsibilities, where the Senate turned away from truth and went along with a sham trial," Senate Democratic Leader Chuck Schumer told reporters.

After the first vote on calling witnesses, Schumer offered more amendments seeking to call witnesses and obtain more evidence, but the Senate rejected them all. Romney and Collins were again the only Republicans to support calling Bolton as a witness.

Republican Senator Lindsey Graham said the trial should end as soon as possible. "The cake is baked and we just need to move as soon as we can to get it behind us," he told reporters.

NEW DETAILS

Friday`s vote on witnesses came hours after the New York Times reported new details from an unpublished book manuscript written by Bolton in which the former aide said Trump directed him in May to help in a pressure campaign to get Ukraine to pursue investigations that would benefit Trump politically.

Bolton wrote that Trump told him to call Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy to ensure Zelenskiy would meet with Trump`s personal lawyer Rudy Giuliani, a key player in the campaign, the Times reported.

Robert Costello, a lawyer for Giuliani, called the Times report "categorically untrue." Bolton`s lawyer and spokesman did not respond to requests for comment.

The Times previously reported that Bolton - contradicting Trump`s version of events - wrote the president told him he wanted to freeze $391 million in security aid to Ukraine until Kiev pursued investigations of Democrats, including Biden and his son, Hunter Biden.

Democrats had said the news illustrated the need for the Senate to put Bolton under oath.

But Republicans said they had heard enough. Some said they did not think that Trump did anything wrong, while Senators Lamar Alexander and Rob Portman said his actions were wrong but did not amount to impeachable conduct. Senator Marco Rubio said impeachment would be too divisive for the country, even if a president engaged in clearly impeachable activity.

Lisa Murkowski, a Republican moderate who Democrats had hoped would vote with them to extend the trial, said the case against Trump was rushed and flawed. She told reporters she was "angry at all sides" and the prospect of a tie vote on witnesses weighed heavily on her decision.

After the Senate adjourned on Friday, she said she knew how she would vote on the charges but she would not reveal it yet.

"Will I share it with you tonight? Ive had so much drama today, Im just going to chill. Hows that? Was that fair?" Murkowski told reporters.
The coronavirus outbreak is turning into a living nightmare as hundreds fall prey to the deadly condition. First reported in December 2019 from Wuhan in Chinas Hubei province, the virus has since affected more than 6,000 people around the world. Whats even more worrying is that the virus is rapidly spreading to other parts of the world.

 Twitter

Recently, India also got its first confirmed case in Keralas Thrissur district where a Wuhan University student has been now kept in observation in isolation. Given the current scenario, the WHO has decided to declare a public health emergency of international concern over the global outbreak of novel coronavirus.



 Getty Images

Obviously the growing buzz inspired certain people to take a serious interest in the matter and turn to Google for some guidance. However, instead of coronavirus people began searching for corona beer virus, beer coronavirus and beer virus.



 Getty Images

As the Google search surged, it was understood that people had somehow linked the popular beer brand and the deadly virus. Curiosity is surely capable of killing the cat because people wanted to find out if the beer was responsible for the health hazard.



 Google

Google Trends shows that search volume for corona beer virus, beer coronavirus and beer virus began rising since 21st January and has only grown since. Nepal has made the most number of corona beer virus searches followed by Qatar, Croatia, Slovakia and Hong Kong.



 Pexels

A simple Google search for coronavirus will tell you that the Corona beer has nothing to do with the virus which is transmitted between animals and humans.



So, we suppose you can laugh this one off and continue to jug those beers all you want.
New Delhi, Feb 1 : In what may lead to India's own Aramco moment, Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman on Saturday proposed to launch an initial public offering (IPO) of insurance major, Life Insurance Corporation of India (LIC).

With an over 70 per cent market share in India's insurance market, LIC is the largest player in the segment and experts believe its listing is likely to fetch a huge premium due to its low equity base.

Presenting the 2020-21 Union Budget, Sitharaman said: "Listing of companies on stock exchanges discipline a company and provides it access to financial markets and unlocks its value.

"The move also gives an opportunity to retail investors to participate in the wealth so created. The government now proposes to sell a part of its holding in LIC by way of Initial Public Offer (IPO)." LIC is the largest financial institution in India and, experts say, it could become one of the top listed companies in the country with shares listed on the stock exchanges.

It may turn top-most in terms of market valuation, ahead of the current market leaders Reliance Industries and Tata Consultancy Services (TCS).

"It will be the largest player and people will trust this kind of companies... I am sure people will appreciate it," said Rahul Sharma of Equity99, adding that LIC will be a "really good" IPO and there would be good returns.

The current leader in terms of market capitalisation, Reliance Industries, is the largest player in India with a market cap of nearly Rs 8.77 lakh crore.

Experts feel LIC might turn out to be India's Aramco as the Saudi Arabian oil major recently turned out to be the company with the largest market capitalisation globally.

In December, the Saudi company priced its initial public offering (IPO) at the high end of the targeted range, a level that will allow the company to raise a record total of at least $25.6 billion with a plan to sell 100 crore shares, or 1.5 per cent of its total shares, at a price of 32 Saudi riyals ($8.53) per share.

Aramco became the first company to hit a $2 trillion valuation on December 12.

LIC has total investment assets of Rs 31 lakh crore as of September 30, 2019. For the first time, LIC's surplus has crossed the Rs 50,000-crore mark at Rs 53,214 crore in the financial year 2018-19, an increase of nearly 10 per cent.

LIC paid a dividend of Rs 2,610.74 crore in December for the financial year 2018-19 to the government. It has a market share of 76.28 per cent in a number of policies and 71 per cent in First-year Premium categories as of November 30, 2019.

The state-run insurer had expanded its annual surplus by 10.1 per cent to Rs 48,444.82 crore in fiscal year 2017-2018 and paid Rs 2,430.19 crore as the government's share in FY18.

Among the insurance companies, most of the other private insurers are listed, with SBI Life Insurance Company having a market capitalisation of Rs 89,400.35 crore and ICICI Prudential Life Insurance with a market capitalisation of Rs 65,345.64 crore.
Riders of Max and Gokada, motorbike hailing services, have protested against the ban on okada in several parts of Lagos state.

The state government earlier announced its decision to implement the ban on okada and tricycle taxis in 15 local councils from February 1.

Commissioner for Information and Strategy, Gbenga Omotoso had said Max and Gokada would be affected by the ban.

Unsatisfied with the announcement, the riders protested against the decision on Friday, saying our jobs matter.

The protesters, who include operators of Gokada and Max and a few other motorbike hailing services, staged a peaceful protest from Oregun road to Alausa secretariat in Ikeja, the state capital.

Displaying various placards, the protesters lamented the governments decision, saying okada riding is their source of livelihood.

The protesters appealed to the state government to seeks ways of regulating their services and not restrict them from operating in several parts of the state.

At a press conference, the management of Max and Gokada had said the state government did not consult them before announcing its decision to ban motorcycle taxis in selected areas across the state.

Addressing the protesters, Bisi Yusuf, a member of the state house of assembly who represents Alimosho constituency 1, said the riders would be called for meeting by the assembly.

He asked them to adhere to the law and to conduct themselves appropriately, promising that the issue would be addressed.

We will do the reasonable thing. But pending that very time, please conduct yourself the way you have done today, he said.

Now the government has made pronouncement on this issue. Kindly keep to the law until we call you back. Please we will call you back but you have to maintain the law and exhibit the same conduct which you have exhibited today.

Below are photos from the protest;
One party I certainly wasn't going to miss was the surprise joint 60th birthday and 30th wedding anniversary party for John and Frances Brennan from Knockbridge and there to make sure they had a fantastic night were their kids Tony, Niall, Sarah and Grace and a huge collection of family and friends.

The couple thought they were going out for a quiet meal in the Lisdoo, only to find the place completely packed (easily one of the biggest crowds I've ever seen at a function there) with well wishers ready to make it a real night to remember.

I was only in the door when I met up with my old friend Jack and Kathleen Mulholland from Carrick Road who were sitting with John's sister Mary Conlan from Kilmainhamwood and niece Sandra Farrell from Culloville, John's brother Tom Brennan from Meigh and Carol Brennan who wanted to wish the couple all the best on their big night.

Heading for another table I then caught up with Annmarie McCartan from Laurelstown and Frances' sister Eileen and Seamus McDermott from Banbridge who wanted to wish the happy couple all the best on their big surprise celebrations.

After this I then got a few words with Eileen and Michael Connolly from Blackrock who are family friends and were enjoying the evening with Kathleen and Eugene McElroy from Knockbridge who told me the ladies are in the Knockbridge Choir with Frances and who wanted to tell their neighbours were having a fantastic night.

Also at the same table I then met up with more from the choir and they included Joan Aherne from Knockbridge and Margaret Nugent from Louth Village who assured me there was every chance there'd be a singsong later on, but surely not all hymns?

Also in their company were Veronica McMahon and Mary Kirk both from Knockbridge and both in the choir who were delighted to be there and up for making it a real night to remember.

After this I got talking to Geraldine Mohan with husband Brian and Dorothy Gilligan both from Knockbridge who assured me the weren't in the choir but were definitely choir groupies!

Making my way through the huge crowds I then met up with niece Catherine and John Higgins who had travelled from Derry specially to be there on the night and were up for a real night of fun with the happy couple.

Meanwhile up near the bar I then got a word with Sean McDonnell and Raymond Mulholland from Kilkerley who told me they were having no crack but there were with John and Frances' son Niall who was having loads of crack and felt he'd better keep an eye on the lads, just in case they might start to enjoy themselves too much, you'd never know where that might lead to!

Not too long later I got taking to Maurice and Evelyn Shevlin from Knockbridge who were up for a crazy celebration with Deirdre and John Mathews from Kilcrowney who wanted to wish their neighbours all the best and honestly tried to tell me it was going to be a quiet night, eh not from where I was standing!

I then headed over for a chat with David Loughran from Little Ash who told me he was with Eimear Lynch from Castlebellingham who wanted to congratulate the happy couple on an excellent night.

After this I caught up with Frances' brother Felix and wife Pauline McCartan from Laurelstown who had a laugh at me when I suggested it was going to be a quiet night.

Finally, before I departed, I then got talking to John O'Neill from Channonrock and John Neary from Dromiskin who were with wives Rosaleen and Aine and wanted to wish their friends a very happy 60th for John and 30th wedding anniversary to him and Frances and to say it was a great night altogether.
Tomorrow, it will be eight long months since dealings in investment fund Woodford Equity Income were abruptly suspended, marking the beginning of the end for the Woodford investment empire.

During that time, we've had an emphatic Conservative victory at the polls (hurrah, I hear you shout) and we've even managed to leave the European Union.

Who would have thought that last autumn when Remainers sabotaged the workings of Parliament? Another spontaneous burst of hurrahs.

Slow progress: Precious little has been done to reassure fund investors that another 'Wood ford' will never be allowed to happen again

Yet, since June last year, precious little has been done to reassure fund investors that another 'Woodford' will never be allowed to happen again. Boos all round.

Although the powder-puff City regulator that is the Financial Conduct Authority has launched an investigation into the demise of Woodford Investment Management, this probe seems to be progressing at a snail's pace. For former fans of TV children's programme The Magic Roundabout, more Brian-like than jack-in-the-box Zebedee.

Maybe it's partly a result of vacillation stemming from a changing of the guard at the regulator  with boss Andrew Bailey moving to the Bank of England to take over the governorship from Mark Carney and Chris Woollard stepping into Bailey's old shoes on an interim basis.

For the record, Woollard was previously the regulator's director of 'strategy and competition'  hardly the credentials, I would have thought, to oversee a rigorous investigation into the Woodford debacle.

But more likely it's because the regulator is about as effective a protector of consumers' financial interests as Woodford was in managing fund portfolios stuffed to the rafters with illiquid stocks. In other words, totally useless.

Think about its failure to take decisive action over Royal Bank of Scotland's appalling treatment of many small businesses in the wake of the 2008 financial crisis. And think about its failure to protect savers who bought London Capital & Finance mini-bonds, only to lose all their money when the company collapsed last year.

This very point was made to me last week by Alan Miller, chief investment officer of wealth manager SCM Direct and a former fund manager with Gartmore, Jupiter and New Star.

More than anyone else, he helped me pick my way through the Woodford wreckage in the aftermath of Equity Income's suspension in June last year  and convinced me that brand Woodford was finished when others thought he (Neil Woodford) would come back from the proverbial dead.

Miller is incandescent with rage over the regulator's failure to act swiftly on Woodford (and other financial scandals) and believes that the FCA is not fit for purpose.

He says that had the Woodford scandal occurred in the United States, 'we would have witnessed the FBI visiting Woodford's offices and those of the various connected parties to quickly establish whether there was evidence of fraud or gross negligence'.

He says any investigation would have been 'quick, efficient and thorough'  with any parties found guilty of wrongdoing spending 'a long time in prison'.

In contrast, Miller believes UK investors are treated as 'third-class consumers' by the regulator  with the promise of nothing but delayed investigations into wrongdoing that end up going nowhere.

He believes that until such time that the regulator starts putting investors first, there will always be the potential for another 'Woodford'.

He adds: 'The message this sad affair sends to others in the asset management industry is  do whatever you like. Put profit before people and take on as much risk as you can because the regulator is unlikely to come after you.'

His final words on the issue? 'The Woodford affair is scandalous, but even more of a scandal is the tardy response and lack of protection ordinary investors receive from the regulator.' I couldn't agree more.

Time for a change in strategy at the top of the FCA. Maybe after all, Chris 'strategy and competition' Woollard is the right individual for the job.
What a week it has been for everyone involved in the Mercy Mounthawk 'Hairspray' musical which finished up a fantastic four night run in Siamsa Tire last week.

The last of the completely sold-out shows took place on Saturday night and judging by the level of huge critical acclaim that the show has received from audiences over the last week, this will surely go down in the school's history as the standard to reach every year.

The icing on the top of the cake for the production came in the form of a special message of congratulations all the way from New York by the original writers of the music to 'Hairspray', Scott Wittman and Marc Shaiman which was posted on the Siamsa Tire Instagram page.

Posting about the success of the play, the school described it as "a fantastic show and it became the talk of the town."

"The standard of the production and performances was absolutely top notch and will live long in the memory. Well done to everybody," the post read.
The Southeast Tennessee Veterans Coalition has again teamed up with Aspen Dentals MouthMobile Clinic to provide free dental care to veterans.

For the second consecutive year, the MouthMobile van will arrive in Chattanooga at Rosss Landing on Thursday, April 2. Chattanooga is one of 30 stops that the MouthMobile is making across the country.

Appointment times are required; veterans may call Barbara Agee at 756-2212 or email: Barbara@riverbendfestival.com.

"Aspen Dental is meeting a real need that many veterans have and I am so appreciative for the Aspen Dental teams who are volunteering their time, said U. S. Navy Captain (Retired) Mickey McCamish, Coalition chairman.
Source: Xinhua| 2020-02-01 20:06:57|Editor: huaxia

Video Player Close

Chinese authorities have imposed more measures to fight against the novel coronavirus epidemic as a growing number of people hit the road and return to work after the Spring Festival holiday.



The number of passengers is expected to rise during this weekend as the Spring Festival holiday ends on Sunday.

BEIJING, Feb. 1 (Xinhua) -- Chinese authorities have tightened measures to battle the novel coronavirus epidemic as a growing number of people hit the road and return to work after the Spring Festival holiday.

Railway stations, airports, and highways have all joined the campaign to protect passengers and contain the spread of the epidemic while ensuring smooth traffic flow.

The number of passengers is expected to rise during this weekend as the Spring Festival holiday ends on Sunday. Hubei Province, hit hard by the virus outbreak, has gained approval from the central authorities to further extend the holiday. Many cities have asked companies to postpone business operations to curb the epidemic.

A staff member disinfects a car at an expressway toll station in Wanzhou, southwest China's Chongqing Municipality, Jan. 30, 2020. (Xinhua/Wang Quanchao)

By the end of Friday, a total of 259 people had died and 11,791 confirmed cases of novel coronavirus infection had been reported in 31 provincial-level regions in China.

"More than half of those confirmed cases were reported in Wuhan and other parts of Hubei Province," said Zhang Wenhong, who heads a Shanghai medical team to fight the epidemic.

According to Zhang, the fast increase of confirmed cases in the past few days was partly due to a large number of second- and third-generation infections of the novel coronavirus in Wuhan.

Meanwhile, some of those infected in Wuhan may have traveled to other parts of Hubei as well as to Zhejiang, Henan, Chongqing and other provinces and cities that have close contacts with Wuhan, Zhang said.

A staff member checks a passenger's body temperature at the entrance of the Wanzhou North Railway Station, southwest China's Chongqing Municipality, Feb. 1, 2020. (Xinhua/Wang Quanchao)

As a transport hub in western China and a city bordering Hubei, Chongqing Municipality has seen a major increase in passenger flow at railway stations since Friday.

All passengers have been required to wear masks when they take public transport in Chongqing since Wednesday.

Staff members disinfect facilities on the train K5227 which runs from Beijing West Railway Station to Qinghecheng Railway Station of Xingtai, north China's Hebei Province, Jan. 30, 2020. (Xinhua/Ren Chao)

As a major destination for returning travelers, Beijing is now in a critical period of epidemic prevention and control, facing an increasing number of local cases and a rising risk of the virus spreading, said Pang Xinghuo, vice director of the Beijing Center for Disease Prevention and Control.

The city has already introduced a sound system of patient notification, transportation, treatment in isolation, as well as contact tracing and management, Pang said.

Custom authorities have ordered temperature detection at all exit-entry points in Beijing. All passengers coming in or out of the city are required to fill in health declaration cards, and medical services are provided to passengers with symptoms.

Motorists in east China's Shandong Province, a source of the labor force for many other provincial regions, are required to undergo temperature detection before entering highways.

"My family is very supportive of the temperature screening, as it is not only a responsible behavior for public health but also good for us," said Zhao Hui, a resident in Shandong's Zibo.

In Fuzhou, the capital of east China's Fujian Province, LED billboards displaying signs such as "Epidemic prevention is the responsibility of everyone" are set to alert drivers and passengers to the raging novel coronavirus, and those with abnormal body temperatures will be sent to hospital.

Fuzhou's transport traffic is expected to pick up on Feb. 9 after companies return to business.

Staff members record a disinfection log at a bus station in Beijing, capital of China, Jan. 27, 2020. (Xinhua/Ren Chao)

Subway and railway stations and buses across the country have also stepped up cleaning and disinfection, with each train carriage ordered to be disinfected every day.

Besides the efforts to race against time to treat patients, a sufficient supply of medical resources is also required to ensure a safe journey for returning passengers.

Railway public security authorities across the country have distributed over 1 million face masks, 280,000 pairs of protective gloves and over 14,800 sets of protective suits to frontline railway police as of Thursday.

Railway public security organs across the country have also purchased a batch of goggles and disinfectant for frontline police.

Eastern China's Anhui Province has also sped up efforts to ensure the supply of emergency resources and daily necessities ahead of the travel peak.

Zheng Hui (R), a senior doctor of a local health center, shows a villager how to wash hands correctly at Huatai Township in Wuxi County, southwest China's Chongqing, Jan. 28, 2020. (Xinhua/Huang Wei)

"Communities are the cornerstone of epidemic prevention and control," said Zhao Jigui, deputy director of the Beijing Municipal Civil Affairs Bureau.

To cope with the coming travel peak, Beijing requires returning travelers to register their health conditions with their residential communities and is strengthening medical observations for those coming back from high-risk areas.

"As long as it's not a confirmed case and they have no fever, cough or other symptoms, returning travelers should be allowed to enter their neighborhoods," Zhao said. "But they have to wear masks and take protective measures."

Zhao called for concerted efforts to minimize the spread of the epidemic caused by the large passenger flow.

"The fundamental purpose of community-level prevention and control is to ensure people's health and safety, and mutual support is the basis for winning this war of epidemic prevention," Zhao said.

(Video reporter: Yu Guoqing, Wang Siban, Meng Jing, Wang Pu, Tai Sicong, Tian Chenxu, Wu Wenxu, Sun Qi, Guan Guifeng, Xia Zilin; Video editor: Zheng Xin)
Rhodes is accused of spoofing caller IDs with the intent to cause harm, thereby violating the Truth in Caller ID Act.

The accused, Scott D. Rhodes, is said to be behind robocalling campaigns consisting of over 6,000 calls placed across six states. (Photo: ANI)

Other than harassing the end-user, spoof calling can get you a serious fine. A man accused of making a series of racist and anti-semitic robocalls is reportedly set to face a hefty fine of almost USD 13 million from the Federal Communications Commission (FCC).

The accused, Scott D. Rhodes, is said to be behind robocalling campaigns consisting of over 6,000 calls placed across six states; ranging from attacking political candidates, threatening newspapers, and spreading conspiracy theories, The Verge reports.

Rhodes is accused of spoofing caller IDs with the intent to cause harm, thereby violating the Truth in Caller ID Act. He will have 30 days to respond to the FCC's findings before the agency decides to impose the USD 12,910,000 fine.
In a much awaited move, the government has decided to increase the deposit insurance cover to Rs 5 lakh per depositor from the current level of Rs 1 lakh, Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman said while presenting the Union Budget for 2020-21 on February 1.

"The Deposit Insurance and Credit Guarantee Corporation (DICGC) has been permitted to increase deposit insurance coverage for a depositor which is now standing at Rs 1 lakh to Rs 5 lakh per depositor," Sitharaman said.

She added that there is robust mechanism in place to monitor health of all scheduled commercial banks and all depositors money is "absolutely safe" in the country.

The move comes as a relief to scores of depositors in the country, after recent incidents relating to frauds in banks, co-operative banks and deposit-taking non-banking finance companies (NBFCs) raised concerns on safety of depositors' savings.

While several requests had been made through various customer forums over the past years, the issue came back into the limelight after a fraud of Rs 4,355 crore unfolded at the Punjab and Maharashtra Co-operative (PMC) Bank last year.

The Union Budget 2020-21 also proposed amendments to the Banking Regulation Act to strengthen the co-operative banks for increasing professionalism, enabling access to capital and improving governance and oversight for sound banking through the Reserve Bank of India (RBI).

The DICGC is a wholly owned subsidiary of RBI that provides insurance cover to deposits in all commercial banks including local area banks, payments banks, small finance banks, regional rural banks and co-operative banks. It does not cover non-deposit taking NBFCs as of now.

As per existing norms, DICGC charges 10 paise per deposit of Rs 100, which is entirely borne by the bank. It builds the Deposit Insurance Fund (DIF) which is accumulated through premium income from insured banks and interest income on investment. The size of DIF stood at Rs 93,750 crore as on March 31, 2019.

The total insured deposits stood at Rs 33.7 lakh crore as at end-March 2019, according to RBI data. The number of fully protected accounts stood at 92 percent of total number of accounts, as against the international benchmark of 80 percent, RBI said.

At the level of Rs 1 lakh, the insurance cover worked out to be 0.8 times of per capita income in 2018-19, the RBI said.

The deposit insurance cover was last revised in May 1993.
On Friday, another person died of suffocation in a fire in a supermarket in the Chilean capital. The number of people who died due to burns or suffocation from the fire has increased to four. One person was injured in police clashes. In this demonstration, the number of people who died from the fire has increased to four.

Locust wreaks havoc in Pakistan, National Emergency declared

According to media reports, at least three people died in a fire in October 2019 following violent clashes between protesters and security forces inside the Santiago Super Bazaar. The death toll in the exhibition has crossed ten. The anger of people against the Metro fare hike in Chile came on the streets against the government. This protest spread to many places in the country. Chile is counted among the most volatile countries in Latin America. The performance due to the increase in fares is being seen as dissatisfaction among the general public.

Polio makes Pakistan cry, many cases encountered in this province

Protesters in Chile have been protesting the increase in fares in the metro since 6 October 2019. This protest started quite peacefully, but this movement took a big form. A large number of people died in this as well. Recently, the government had imposed curfew in view of this raging protest, but the protesters are continuously violating it. Authorities have also proposed several measures to pacify this entire matter. Even after this, this movement has started again. More than 700 protesters have been detained by the local police on charges of robbery and other serious crimes. Local officials said that keeping in mind the deteriorating law and order situation, several times the curfew was imposed here.

Tire stuck to crocodiles neck for years, person will be rewarded for removing it
Tripuras former Public Works Department (PWD) minister and incumbent Communist Party of India (Marxist) MLA Badal Choudhury who was accused of corruption case of over Rs 600 crores has been granted bail by the High Court on Saturday 87 days after his arrest.

Investigation on Badal Choudhury and Sunil Bhowmik has progressed. There is still time on the part of the investigating officer to file the charge sheet before the deadline as three days are left. But the High Court has granted bail to Choudhury with certain conditions, said public prosecutor Ratan Datta.

He further added, He needs to submit Rs 1 lakh as bail bond. If he attempts to distort evidence we have the chance to cancel his bail.

According to law, an accused can be granted bail if police does not file charge sheet against within 90 days of arrest.

A case was lodged against the former minister along with former chief secretary Yashpal Singh and retired PWD chief engineer Sunil Bhowmik on October 13 last year on the charge of corruption, cheating, criminal breach of trust, and for causing disappearance of evidence of offence etc., in connection with construction work which was undertaken back in 2008-09.

Choudhury was arrested on the night of October 21 while he was admitted in an ICU of a private hospital in Agartala.

After he was brought to the police custody he complained of breathing difficulties and was rushed to government-run GBP hospital.

PWD chief engineer Sunil Bhowmik was arrested in the case on October 14 and was kept in police remand. He was granted bail after earlier part of January this year.

Chief Secretary Yashpal Singh is yet to be arrested.

Choudhury, incumbent MLA, had served as PWD minister for four terms during the erstwhile Left government period.

SHARE THIS ARTICLE ON
First Baptist Church hosts a performance by Dove and Grammy award-winning recording artist David Phelps at 7 p.m. Feb. 16. The event is free but advance registration is required at eventbrite.com/e/david-phelps-in-concert-tickets-900489257. 735 Park St. (434) 296-6195.

New Beginnings Christian Community hosts the Rev. Michael Cheuk to continue the Bible study "Reading the Scripture with Other Eyes" from 6:15 to 7:30 p.m. Wednesday and Feb. 11. 1130 E. Market St. (434) 872-0800.

Operation Esther Prayer Circle meets at 6 p.m. Tuesdays and Thursdays at the Christian Study Prayer Room. 128 Chancellor St. (434) 227-0811.

Park Street Christian Church will host Dave Ramsey's Financial Peace University workshops at 6:15 p.m. each Tuesday beginning this Tuesday. 1200 Park St. (434) 987-0628.

Peace Lutheran Church continues the Building Peace: Inner Peace activity series with "Spread the Love: Building Peace Through Service" from 4 to 6 p.m. Feb. 9. plchurch.org. 1510 Broad Crossing Road. (434) 978-4357.

This calendar, published every Saturday, lists special events of a religious nature. Because of space constraints, notices about regular worship services cannot be included. Items intended for publication, including an address and phone number, should be faxed to (434) 978-7252; mailed to Worship Calendar, The Daily Progress, P.O. Box 9030, Charlottesville, VA 22906; or emailed to ewood@dailyprogress.com. Material must be received by 4 p.m. the Wednesday prior to publication.
In this Wednesday, Jan. 15, 2020, photo scientist and study director Jennifer Molignano uses an electronic pipette to prepare culture medium, a dark pink fluid that provides nutrition to living human skin tissue, as she sets up a demonstration of experiments at a MatTek Corporation lab, in Ashland, Mass. Molignano demonstrated experiments created to evaluate the effects of exposing living human skin tissues to commercially available skin care products, as well as an experiment to evaluate the effects of ultraviolet B rays, a simulation of exposing skin tissues to sunlight. (AP Photo/Steven Senne)

A growing number of U.S. states are considering a ban on the sale or import of cosmetics that have been tested on animals, as advocates argue testing products such as lotions, shampoos and makeup on rabbits, mice and rats is cruel and outdated.

The cause has gained support from consumers and many cosmetics companies, but the biggest hurdle is China, which requires that cosmetics sold in its large, lucrative market undergo testing on animals.

California, Nevada and Illinois all saw new laws take effect this year that ban the sale or import of animal-tested cosmetics.

The laws, which apply to tests performed after Jan. 1, aren't expected to cause much disruption for the industry because many companies already use non-animal testing. Instead, they draw a line in the sand that puts pressure on the U.S. government to pass a nationwide ban and help end China's requirement that most cosmetics sold in that nation of more than 1.4 billion people undergo testing on animals by Chinese regulators.

China's policy applies to all imported cosmetics, including makeup, perfume and hair care products, along with some "special use" goods produced in China, such as hair dye, sunscreen and whitening products that make functional claims.

Animal-tested cosmetics already are banned in Europe, India and elsewhere. A ban in the United States, one of the world's largest economies, would put further global pressure on China to end its policy and push Chinese cosmetics companies to rely on non-animal tests if they want to sell their products in the U.S.

In this Wednesday, Jan. 15, 2020, photo, scientist and study director Jennifer Molignano transfers a sample of living human skin tissue, grown on a porous membrane inside a plastic insert, to a culture plate with fresh medium, a dark pink solution that provides nutrition to the tissue, while demonstrating an experiment created to evaluate the effects of exposing human skin to commercially available skin care products, at a MatTek Corporation lab, in Ashland, Mass. (AP Photo/Steven Senne)

"We're not trying to create an island out here in Nevada," said state Sen. Melanie Scheible, who sponsored Nevada's law. "We are trying to join a group of other communities that have stood up and said, 'We don't support animal testing.'"

Animal-rights groups like Cruelty Free International and the Humane Society of the United States hope to get more states to pass bans this year.

Legislation has been introduced or will soon be made public in Hawaii, Maryland, New Jersey, New York and Virginia, according to Cruelty Free International, and a national ban has been introduced in Congress since 2014, though the bipartisan measure has been slow to advance. The most recent version introduced in November marks the first time the country's leading cosmetics trade group, the Personal Care Products Council, has become a vocal backer of the ban, support that should ease lawmaker concerns about business opposition.

In this Wednesday, Jan. 15, 2020, photo, scientist and study director Jennifer Molignano pipettes a sample of commercially available skin care product onto the surface of living human skin tissues while demonstrating an experiment created to evaluate the effects of exposing the product to skin tissues, at a MatTek Corporation lab, in Ashland, Mass. MatTek is a tissue engineering company that performs non-animal testing on cosmetics, skin care products and pharmaceuticals. (AP Photo/Steven Senne)

The California, Nevada and Illinois laws create exemptions for any cosmetics that were tested on animals to comply with regulations of a foreign governmentan exception that acknowledges the reality that most companies will see their products tested on animals if they sell in China.

China is a "big complicating factor," said Monica Engebretson, who leads public affairs for Cruelty Free International in North America. "That's put companies that want to enter that Chinese market in a real bind."

Scheible said her aim in Nevada was not to punish those multinational corporations but to raise awareness and put pressure on other governments, like China, to act.

"A lot of people thought that we no longer tested on animals at all," she said. "They thought that this was already a thing of the past."

The bans in all three states require cosmetics sellers to use non-animal tests to prove their products are safe. Many international companies are already doing that after the European Union passed a series of similar bans on animal testing, culminating with a 2013 ban on the sale of animal-tested products.

In this Wednesday, Jan. 15, 2020, photo, scientist and study director Jennifer Molignano uses an electronic pipette to prepare culture medium, a dark pink fluid that provides nutrition to living human skin tissue, as she sets up a demonstration of experiments at a MatTek Corporation lab, in Ashland, Mass. (AP Photo/Steven Senne)

Supporters note that science has advanced, allowing companies in most cases to use non-animal alternativessuch as human cell cultures or lab-grown human skin and eye tissueto test whether a product or ingredient is safe.

For example, EpiDerm, a synthetic skin tissue made by Massachusetts-based MatTek Corp., is created from cells taken from skin donated during procedures such as breast reduction surgery, circumcision and tummy tuck procedures.

Products can be applied to synthetic tissue to determine whether they cause skin irritation, damage, sensitivity or other issues. That can be used in place of a testing a product on the back of a shaved rabbit, animal rights supporters say.

Some of the biggest names in personal care and beauty, including Avon, Unilever and Procter & Gamble, have used MatTek's tissues for testing.

In this Wednesday, Jan. 15, 2020, photo, scientist and study director Jennifer Molignano notates the time she begins dosing living human skin tissues with two types of commercially available skin care products during a demonstration of experiments at a MatTek Corporation lab, in Ashland, Mass. MatTek is a tissue engineering company that performs non-animal testing on cosmetics, skin care products and pharmaceuticals. (AP Photo/Steven Senne)

Carl Westmoreland, a safety scientist with Unilever, said the European Union ban drove more innovation in non-animal testing. Companies like Unilever, trade groups and advocates are among those working with Chinese regulators and scientists to push for new rules, helping to familiarize them with procedures and results from non-animal tests.

"They have been changing and are continuing to change," he said, noting China in recent years has allowed some cosmetics produced within the country to avoid animal testing.

Francine Lamoriello, executive vice president for global strategies at the Personal Care Products Council said it's a slow process, but Chinese regulators are working to accept non-animal tests.

"They're having conferences. They really seem to be quite motivated to do as best as they can to accept and validate certain methods," she said.

In this Wednesday, Jan. 15, 2020, photo, scientist and study director Jennifer Molignano places living human skin tissue samples into a 98.6 degrees Fahrenheit incubator during a demonstration of experiments on the tissues at a MatTek Corporation lab, in Ashland, Mass. Molignano demonstrated the experiments created to evaluate the effects of exposing human skin tissue to commercially available skin care products, as well as exposing the tissues to ultraviolet B rays, a simulation of exposing skin tissues to sunlight. (AP Photo/Steven Senne)

In this Wednesday, Jan. 15, 2020, photo, scientist and study director Jennifer Molignano places living human skin tissues under a solar simulator machine that emits ultraviolet B rays, while demonstrating an experiment created to simulate the exposure of human skin to sunlight, at a MatTek Corporation lab, in Ashland, Mass. MatTek is a tissue engineering company that performs non-animal testing on cosmetics, skin care products and pharmaceuticals. (AP Photo/Steven Senne)

In this Wednesday, Jan. 15, 2020, photo, scientist and study director Jennifer Molignano places living human skin tissues under a solar simulator machine that emits ultraviolet B rays, while demonstrating an experiment created to simulate the exposure of human skin tissue to sunlight, at a MatTek Corporation lab, in Ashland, Mass. MatTek is a tissue engineering company that performs non-animal testing on cosmetics, skin care products and pharmaceuticals. (AP Photo/Steven Senne)

In this Wednesday, Jan. 15, 2020, photo, scientist and study director Jennifer Molignano uses forceps to transfer living human skin tissue to plates with saline solution, below left, in preparation for ultraviolet B exposure, while demonstrating an experiment created to evaluate the effects on skin of ultraviolet B rays, a simulation of skin tissue exposure to sunlight, at a MatTek Corporation lab, in Ashland, Mass. (AP Photo/Steven Senne)

In this Wednesday, Jan. 15, 2020, photo, scientist and study director Jennifer Molignano uses forceps to hold a sample of living human skin tissue, grown on a porous membrane inside a plastic insert, while using saline solution to wash a skin care product off the tissue, during a demonstration of an experiment created to evaluate the effects of commercially available skin care products on human skin, at a MatTek Corporation lab, in Ashland, Mass. MatTek is a tissue engineering company that performs non-animal testing on cosmetics, skin care products and pharmaceuticals. (AP Photo/Steven Senne)

In this Wednesday, Jan. 15, 2020, photo scientist and study director Jennifer Molignano uses a swab to dry living human skin tissues after washing them with saline solution to remove a commercially available skin care product, during a demonstration of an experiment created to test the effects of skin care products on human skin tissue, in a lab at MatTek Corporation, in Ashland, Mass. (AP Photo/Steven Senne)

The Personal Care Products Council supports most of the state legislation but is pushing for a nationwide law instead of a patchwork of rules across the country.

Similar to the state laws, the proposed ban before Congress would exempt cosmetics required to undergo testing in China. It would allow those products to be sold in the U.S. as long as sellers relied on additional, non-animal tests to show they are safe.

California was first to pass the legislation in 2018, a move that's part of the state's pattern of wielding its status as the world's fifth-largest economy to push change.

"That's the beauty of doing things in California," said Judie Mancuso with the group Social Compassion in Legislation who pressed for that state's ban. "You set the stage, you set the standard, and others grab it and grow."

Explore further California law banning sale of cosmetics tested on animals goes into effect January 1st

 2020 The Associated Press. All rights reserved.
Clay Sterling Harvey, 44, of Beaumont, traded 15 hours of freedom for 40 years in prison.

The sentence was assessed on Jan. 22 in the 75th District Court by Judge Mark Morefield following his guilty plea to the escape charge and admission to possessing 14 ounces of methamphetamine, the charge he was in jail for at the time of the escape.

Harveys saga began on Aug. 20, 2019 around 1 a.m. when he and cell mate Chance Hunt stacked items in their cell in the Liberty County Jail so they could reach and enter a maintenance hatch in the ceiling.

Once inside, prosecutors said they crawled through duct work and exited onto the roof where they used bed sheets to cover razor wire and climb down the side of the building.

They entered the recreation yard and located wire cutters which had been thrown over the fence by accomplices on the outside. Using the wire cutters to create a hole in the exterior fence, they ran south over the railroad tracks to a waiting car.

Several hours passed without the discovery of their escape because guards falsely indicated on their count sheets that all inmates were present. When the next shift began, a proper count was done. It was then that the discovery of the missing inmates was made but they had a five and-a-half hour head start.

A manhunt ensued that resulted in the quick capture of the inmates in San Jacinto County around 5 p.m. the same day.

With Harveys guilty plea, sentencing was on the docket.

Prior to sentencing and in exchange for Harveys waiver of a jury trial, District Attorney Logan Pickett agreed to a cap on sentencing of 45 years. Harveys minimum possible sentence because of his status as a habitual offender was 25 years.

Pickett presented evidence of numerous prior felony convictions including felony drug possessions, burglary of a habitation and aggravated assault with a deadly weapon. The defense offered evidence of Harveys cooperation after his capture as mitigation for his punishment and asked for 25. Pickett countered that the criminal resume of Harvey necessitated the maximum of 45. Judge Morefield heard both arguments, considered the evidence and sentenced Harvey to 40 years in the Texas Department of Corrections.

Though Harvey is eligible for release on parole after serving less than five years of his sentence, it is unlikely he will be released for a long time after that because of his criminal history and the danger a convicted escapee poses to the community.

He also has a hold on him out of San Jacinto County for evading arrest with a vehicle, tampering with evidence and delivery of a controlled substance.

Four jail guards were terminated stemming from the incident and all face tampering with government document charges for their false statements in the count sheets. The two accomplices who drove Harvey and Hunt away from the jail await disposition or trial of their cases.

dtaylor@hcnonline.com
In a New York City courtroom on Friday, former actor Jessica Mannwho alleges that Harvey Weinstein raped and sexually assaulted her on multiple occasions in 2013gave detailed descriptions of his body and genitals, claiming that he smelled like shit and had a lot of blackheads on his back. But it was this testimony that drew the most attention: The first time I saw him fully naked, I thought he was deformed and intersex. He has an extreme scarring that I didnt know, maybe [he] was a burn victim, she said. Mann also alleged that Weinstein does not have testicles, and it appears that he has a vagina.

Advertisement

Graphic descriptions of genitals have played roles in several other high-profile allegations of sexual abuse and harassment. Theyre usually introduced in an attempt to corroborate the alleged victims claim that he or she has seen the genitals of the accused. During one 2009 deposition, Jeffrey Epstein was asked whether his penis was egg-shaped, as one accuser had said. In 1993, when the Los Angeles Police Department was looking into allegations that Michael Jackson had sexually abused 13-year-old Jordan Chandler, investigators had Chandler draw a picture of Jacksons penis. Jackson had vitiligo, a skin condition that causes discoloration, and Chandlers drawing included some distinctive markings. Later that year, police forced Jackson to undress and took photos of his penis, prompting Jackson to deliver a televised denial of the allegations, in which he called the strip search the most humiliating ordeal of my life, one that no person should ever have to suffer. Though police found that Chandlers drawing was accurate, prosecutors dropped the charges against Jackson when Chandler stopped cooperating.

Advertisement

Advertisement

Advertisement

Advertisement

Advertisement

In 1994, Jackson settled a civil suit filed by Chandler for $23 million. That same year, Paula Jones filed a legal complaint alleging that Bill Clinton had exposed himself to her, fondled himself in front of her, and asked her to kiss his penis. There were distinguishing characteristics in Clintons genital area that were obvious to Jones, the claim said. A judge barred Jones from explaining those characteristics before her case went to trial (which it never did). Still, Jones team put forth that claim of distinguishing characteristics as proof that Clinton had shown her his penis.

In response, Clintons personal lawyer obtained sworn statements from multiple doctors that refuted the existence of any abnormalities, then delivered one of the most indelible lines of Clintons presidency. In terms of size, shape, direction, whatever the devious mind wants to concoct, the president is a normal man, the lawyer said. There are no blemishes, there are no moles, there are no growths.

Advertisement

It later came out that Jones wasnt referring to a skin condition, but to the suggestion that Clintons penis tilted at an angle. (Meanwhile, Monica Lewinskythough she didnt want to go into any details herselfallegedly disagreed with Jones assessment during conversations with prosecutors before she appeared before Ken Starrs grand jury.) Jones first lawyer said Jones had never mentioned any distinguishing characteristics to himthat it wasnt until she changed legal teams that she made that particular claimwhich some have used to argue that Jones invented or embellished her story.

Advertisement

Its not entirely clear why Mann decided to include a description of Weinsteins body and genitals in her testimony. Weinsteins defense team isnt trying to prove that these women never saw his genitals, or that theyre fabricating the sexual encounters. His attorneys are arguing that they happened, but that they were consensual. Weinstein attorney Donna Rotunno has characterized the encounters as regret sex. I think its easy to look back and say, Oh, you know, maybe I didnt love that experience, she told Vanity Fair. She said the women who are accusing Weinstein were using him by implicitly trading sex for career advancement: They didnt look at Harvey and say, Oh my god, hes the most gorgeous guy Ive ever seen and I want to go to his hotel room. They looked at Harvey and said, Harvey can do something for me.

Even if Manns account of Weinsteins genitals is accurate, Rotunno can still argue that what Mann calls rape was actually consensual sex that Mann came to regret. Mann may be trying to elicit feelings of repulsion from the jury to bias them against Weinstein or sow disbelief that a beautiful woman in her 20s would elect to have consensual sex with a man whose body meets the description she offered in court. But Rotunno seems to have anticipated Manns evident disgust with Weinsteins body, too, by portraying the sex as transactional.
Share this article Whatsapp

Facebook

Twitter

Linkedin Editorial Board (The Jakarta Post) Jakarta  Sat, February 1, 2020 08:49 709 7f440ff09e92db75a02bbad2061f3016 1 Editorial #Editorial,public-space,street-food,street-food-vendors,cheap-eats,City-administration,Thamrin-parking-lot,Thamrin10,culinary-business Free

Like any other big Asian city, Jakarta has an array of tasty and cheap food choices, be they on the street or from small and micro enterprises opening their business at home. And millions of residents, especially workers, rely on this informal sector for their daily intake of nutrition.

The latest initiative by the Jakarta administration and city-owned market operator PD Pasar Jaya, Thamrin 10, serves as a reminder that if given a decent space in a great location, street food vendors can not only better serve customers and improve their hygiene standards, but also keep their prices lower than those in restaurants.

There are 54 street vendors and seven food trucks in Thamrin 10 in Menteng in Central Jakarta. Once an 8,000-square-meter parking lot, the city has transformed it into a bustling space for Jakartans to find cheap eats in a business district and for small and micro enterprises to open for business without the fear of eviction.

The city also has a new plan to revitalize Jl. Sabang, a long-time culinary center in Central Jakarta. Although some food entrepreneurs are worried about the new rents, they are hopeful that the plan will help improve their business.

Last year, the Indonesian Solidarity Party (PSI) and Jakarta Pedestrians Coalition demanded the Jakarta administration clear sidewalks of street vendors. They want sidewalks to be exclusively for the use of pedestrians.

However, if the city administration agrees to this demand, Jakarta needs to ensure that Jakartas white- and blue-collar workers still have easy access to affordable food and the small and micro entrepreneurs still have access to earning a livelihood. Witness the daily lunch hour  the food courts at malls are not as bustling as the alleys in office areas that house a multitude of food carts all day.

Jakarta  both the administration and the private sector  has ample experience of creating affordable culinary centers by embracing the informal sector. Lenggang Jakarta at the National Monument is one example and the Metropole Food Court in Cikini is another. The Blok S food center in South Jakarta and street vendors behind office buildings along Jl. HR Rasuna Said in South Jakarta are also other examples.

These have all embraced the original sellers in the area and improved their service with training and facilities like running water for the benefit of both customers and the businesspeople themselves.

As one customer of Thamrin 10 said in our report, she and her friends went there because she was bored with malls and sought a different experience.

Indonesias cities must shed the image of the past; when vendors ran helter-skelter during raids by baton-wielding public order officers, while they claimed to have actually paid various fees to officials such as for monthly security and even electricity bills.

Todays city inhabitants no longer accept the old paradigm that street vendors and entertainers are an eyesore and deserve to be punished for illegal use of the sidewalks  while bureaucrats and security officers, including the police, pocket sizable, regular income from the informal economy that today employs many more people than the formal sector.
The Europeans are arguing with the Russians and the Chinese, but are also squabbling among themselves over how to deal with Iran. The Americans are hectoring everyone. France and Germany worry about London breaking ranks and joining Washingtons maximum pressure campaign against Iran, a move which would destroy faltering efforts to salvage the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA), the nuclear deal forged over years of diplomacy and actively being sabotaged by the United States.

Meanwhile, day by day, Irans nuclear programme grows. Last weekend Iran surpassed the threshold of 1,200kg of stockpiled reactor-grade uranium which, if Tehran were to make a headlong rush towards weaponisation, could be used to fuel a single nuclear warhead.

Iran is increasing its stockpile of enriched uranium with full speed, Ali Asghar Zarean, an Iranian atomic energy official, boasted last weekend.

Though the threat of an all-out war has receded following the assassination of Iranian commander Qassem Soleimani and retaliatory airstrikes on a US airbase in Iraq, experts and diplomats say the crisis between Washington and Tehran is far from over.

The situation remains fraught with many dangers, a potentially explosive slow-burning crisis which could eventually overshadow all others.

Theres a consensus that we want things to cool down a bit, a senior European foreign policy official tells The Independent. We may end up in a doomsday scenario, but were not there yet. Were trying to avoid that.

Protests in Iran over downing of plane and tensions with the west Show all 23 1 /23 Protests in Iran over downing of plane and tensions with the west Protests in Iran over downing of plane and tensions with the west Anti-government protest at Amirkabir University Iranian police officers take position while protesters gather in front of Amir Kabir University AP Protests in Iran over downing of plane and tensions with the west Anti-government protest at Amirkabir University Iranians demonstrate following a tribute for the victims of the Ukraine Boeing 737 crash in front of the Amirkabir University in the capital Tehran EPA Protests in Iran over downing of plane and tensions with the west Anti-government protest at Amirkabir University Iranian police dispersed students chanting "radical" slogans during a gathering in Tehran to honour the 176 people killed when an airliner was mistakenly shot down AFP via Getty Protests in Iran over downing of plane and tensions with the west Anti-government protest at Amirkabir University - People hold flowers as tear gas fired by police rises Online videos purported to show that Iranian security forces fired both live ammunition and tear gas to disperse demonstrators protesting against the Islamic Republic's initial denial that it shot down a Ukrainian jetliner AP Protests in Iran over downing of plane and tensions with the west Anti-government protest at Amirkabir University Iranian police officers take position while protesters gather AP Protests in Iran over downing of plane and tensions with the west Anti-government protest at Amirkabir University AFP correspondents said hundreds of students had gathered early in the evening to pay respects to those killed in the air disaster ISNA/AFP via Getty Protests in Iran over downing of plane and tensions with the west Anti-government protest at Amirkabir University Iranian protester prepares to throw a tear gas canister back at police AP Protests in Iran over downing of plane and tensions with the west Anti-government protest at Amirkabir University A protester confronts an Iranian police officer AP Protests in Iran over downing of plane and tensions with the west Anti-government protest at Amirkabir University EPA Protests in Iran over downing of plane and tensions with the west Anti-government protest at Amirkabir University Iranian police officers take position while protesters gathe AP Protests in Iran over downing of plane and tensions with the west Anti-government protest at Amirkabir University Iranians light candles for victims EPA Protests in Iran over downing of plane and tensions with the west Anti-government protest at Amirkabir University EPA Protests in Iran over downing of plane and tensions with the west British embassy protest in Tehran People burn British and Israeli flags during a protest in front of the British embassy, in Tehran. Hundreds of Iranian hardliners gathered for a protest against Britain, a day after the UK ambassador to Iran Robert Macaire was detained after attending a a vigil for the victims of Ukraine passenger jet EPA Protests in Iran over downing of plane and tensions with the west British embassy protestBritish embassy protest in Tehran Chanting "Death to Britain", up to 200 protesters rallied outside the mission a day after the brief arrest of British ambassador Rob Macaire AFP via Getty Protests in Iran over downing of plane and tensions with the west British embassy protest in Tehran EPA Protests in Iran over downing of plane and tensions with the west British embassy protest in Tehran AFP via Getty Images Protests in Iran over downing of plane and tensions with the west AP Protests in Iran over downing of plane and tensions with the west British embassy protest in Tehran EPA Protests in Iran over downing of plane and tensions with the west AP Protests in Iran over downing of plane and tensions with the west British embassy protest in Tehran EPA Protests in Iran over downing of plane and tensions with the west British embassy protest in Tehran EPA Protests in Iran over downing of plane and tensions with the west British embassy protest in Tehran EPA Protests in Iran over downing of plane and tensions with the west Protesters chant slogans while holding up posters of Gen. Qassem Soleimani during a demonstration in front of the British Embassy in Tehran, Iran, Sunday, Jan. 12, 2020. AP

Indeed, as bad as the situation with Iran is, it could easily get far worse. The potential sources of friction between Washington and Tehran and their respective allies are many.

Iranian-backed forces and allies in Syria are conquering Idlib province in an unrelenting offensive that has appalled and horrified Washington, James Jeffrey, US Syria and Isis envoy, told reporters on Thursday.

In Yemen, Iranian-allied Houthi fighters are holding their own against US-backed Saudi forces and their local allies. And in Iraq and Lebanon, Irans allies are suppressing protests tacitly supported by Washington.

Iranian lawmakers and officials, insisting they are being backed into a corner, are also increasingly warning they could leave the Non-Proliferation Treaty (NPT), the five-decades-old agreement by which countries forego atomic weapons in exchange for access to peaceful nuclear technology. Western diplomats are not taking the threat lightly.

If this is escalated, exiting the NPT would be one of their options, the European official says. They could go down the path of North Korea. Were not not sure if they would; they could just be trying to build leverage. But I dont think we want to find out if this is a bluff or not.

Donald Trumps 2018 move to exit the JCPOA and reimpose sanctions sparked the ballooning crisis. The administrations scheme, peddled by a narrow coterie of Washington hawks who have the presidents ear, was meant to strangle the Iranian economy, impose limits on Irans nuclear programme, starve its overseas paramilitary operations and missile programme of funds, and force Iran back into negotiations for a better, broader deal.

But the plan appears to have so far failed on all counts.

Iran has demanded that US sanctions are removed before talks reopen.

After an initial free-fall following the resumption of sanctions, Irans currency has stabilised, its stock market is up 138 per cent since the beginning of the Iranian calendar year last March, and there are indications that China is surreptitiously buying increasing quantities of Irans oil, the mainstay of its economy, according to experts.

Arguing that Europeans are not moving fast enough to offer Tehran economic incentives to stick to the deal, Iran has begun to steadily break its JCPOA commitments, increasing the number of centrifuges it spins and breaking through limits on fuel stockpiles.

Irans breakout time  the amount of time it would take for Iran to assemble enough fissile material for a nuclear weapon after a decision to do so  is now below the one-year timeframe that the JCPOA was designed to maintain, said a note issued this week by the Soufan Group, an intelligence and risk-management consultancy.

The American withdrawal from the JCPOA has also triggered a cycle of ever-escalating threats and armed confrontations between Iran and the US.

Last summer Iran downed a pricey US drone along the northern shores of the Persian Gulf and allegedly attacked oil tankers in the Strait of Hormuz, while it or its Yemeni allies launched a devastating and complex drone attack on Saudi oil facilities.

The president doesnt want a war. In fact, the only underlying principle of the Iran policy is that Trump truly doesnt want a war with Iran Jeffrey Lewis, nuclear non-proliferation expert and former US defence official

This year the US assassinated Soleimani as he was departing the international airport in Baghdad, and Iran retaliated on 8 January by launching airstrikes on a US base in Iraq, injuring at least 50 service people, 19 of whom were so badly hurt they had still not been returned to active duty by last week.

For months, European officials had been counting on Emmanuel Macron, the French president, to lay on the charm and talk some sense into Mr Trump and Hassan Rouhani, the Iranian president. That approach was a flop. Now they are pinning their hopes on Boris Johnson, who shares some of the same populist attributes. But few are hopeful he can achieve much.

More plausible is the possibility of waiting for Mr Trump to lose the US election in November, and for Joe Biden or Elizabeth Warren to return to the deal come 20 January 2021.

At the moment were at a stalemate, says Ellie Geranmayeh, an Iran expert at the European Council on Foreign Relations. The diplomatic initiatives are focused on damage limitation rather than any sort of political breakthrough. The best we can hope for with the multiple tracks of diplomacy is that you extend the cooling off period before the next round of escalation.

Iran watchers and Persian Gulf security experts believe another military confrontation between Iran and the US is likely. Despite Mr Trumps promise to end the endless wars, the US has increased its military presence in the Middle East by more than 13,000 troops.

Iran is doing little to ease tensions, matching every American provocation with its own.

 Richard Ratcliffe says 'the government needs to be tougher on Iran' as he takes their daughter to see the PM

It recently conducted its first-ever joint military exercises with China and Russia. It is also reportedly preparing fresh satellite launches with rockets that non-proliferation experts believe could be trial runs for intercontinental delivery systems.

Overwhelmed by Brexit, and international crises from Libya to Ukraine, European leaders and foreign services have little capacity to deal with the burgeoning crisis between Tehran and Washington. But they know they must.

Talks with Iranian officials over the countrys missile programme and regional deployment of armed forces, have become more intermittent, and have reached a dead end. But in some ways, dialogue with Washington has become as futile, as the complicated dynamic of the 2020 election cycle enters the fray.

More than three years into the Trump administration, most European leaders still dont act or speak as if they understand how dangerously adrift and incoherent US foreign policy has become, especially on matters pertaining to Iran.

In part, theyve never encountered a US leader who fails to abide by conventional American tenets of national interest, and who appears only concerned with his own political and financial wellbeing.

The Trump administration has no idea what its doing, says Jeffrey Lewis, a nuclear non-proliferation expert and former US defence official who now teaches at the Middlebury Institute of International Studies in California.

They have a strategy that I believe is entirely domestic, says Mr Lewis, who is a vocal supporter of the JCPOA. Its all about talking tough for a US audience. They repeat maximum pressure like its some kind of mantra.

At the moment were at a stalemate The best we can hope for with the multiple tracks of diplomacy is that you extend the cooling off period before the next round of escalation Ellie Geranmayeh, an Iran expert at the European Council on Foreign Relations

Mr Lewis says the strategy appears to be designed by Washington hawks with the aim of triggering a war that could lead to regime change in Tehran.

But the president doesnt want a war, he says. In fact, the only underlying principle of the Iran policy is that Trump truly doesnt want a war with Iran.

Worried about Irans expanding nuclear programme, the UK, France and Germany, the so-called E3, last month triggered a dispute-resolution mechanism in the JCPOA that could bring Iran before the United Nations Security Council and effectively torpedo the deal for good.

The Trump administration had been pressuring UK and European diplomats for months to invoke the measure, threatening to slap 20 per cent tariffs on their automobile exports to the US if they did not. But they were inclined to do so anyway, in part to maintain their credibility in the face of Irans increasing belligerence, but also because of their own lack of remaining options and diplomatic channels.

Adding to the complications are cracks within the ranks of the JCPOAs remaining supporters. Moscow and Beijing are adopting the Iranian position that the dispute-resolution mechanism should first address the reimposition of US sanctions. There are questions about the UKs post-Brexit stance on the JCPOA. After 31 January, does the E3 still exist?

The E3 is a group of EU member states but formally and institutionally independent from the European Union, says one EU official. So it boils down to the future intentions of the individual member states.

There is also some confusion as to what the dispute mechanism actually is.

There are differences of views as to what were triggering, the European official continues. Theres an aim to establish common ground. No one wants a rush towards additional steps.
SAN FRANCISCO - Facebook Inc said it will take down misinformation about Chinas fast-spreading coronavirus, in a rare departure from its usual approach to dubious health content that is presenting a fresh challenge for social media companies.

The coronavirus outbreak has stoked a wave of anti-China sentiment around the globe.

Hoaxes have spread widely online, promoted by conspiracy theorists and exacerbated by a dearth of information from the cordoned-off zone around Chinas central city of Wuhan, where the outbreak began.

Nearly 12,000 people have been infected in China, according to local health authorities, and more than 130 cases reported in at least 25 other countries and regions.

Facebook said in a blog post that it would remove content about the virus with false claims or conspiracy theories that have been flagged by leading global health organizations and local health authorities, saying such content would violate its ban on misinformation leading to physical harm.

The move is unusually aggressive for the worlds biggest social network, which generally limits the distribution of content containing health misinformation to its 2.9 billion monthly users through restrictions on search results and advertising, but allows the original posts to stay up.

It also puts it at odds with other major U.S.-based social networks.

Alphabet Incs YouTube, which has two billion monthly users and Twitter and Reddit, which have hundreds of millions of users, confirmed they do not consider inaccurate information about health to be a violation of their policies.

Those companies, like Facebook in other cases, rely on techniques such as elevating medical information from authoritative public health sources and warning users about content that has been debunked.

TikTok, owned by Chinas Bytedance, and Pinterest Inc do ban health misinformation and are actively removing false coronavirus content, they told Reuters.

Fake news, physical harm

Fact-checking initiative PolitiFact said misinformation about the virus online included hoaxes about its source, its spread, and how to treat it, as well as false conspiracies about its connection to biological warfare and the Chinese government.

Rumors about the coronavirus have also spread widely on Chinese social networks, which are usually quick to remove sensitive content but have in recent days allowed an unusual level of public criticism over the governments handling of the crisis.

Information in China is tightly controlled, and Chinese laws dictate that rumor-mongers can face years in prison.

In the early days of the outbreak, Chinese state media reported that police in Wuhan had detained eight people for spreading rumors about a local outbreak of unidentifiable pneumonia.

Suspicion also lingers over accusations that Beijing initially covered up the 2003 Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome (SARS) outbreak.

A spokeswoman for Tencent Holdings Incs Chinese messaging app WeChat, which has 1.15 billion monthly users, told Reuters the company was removing posts containing coronavirus-related misinformation.

The U.S. tech industrys mostly hands-off approach has angered critics who say social media companies have failed to curb the spread of medical inaccuracies that pose major global health threats.

In particular, misinformation about vaccination has proliferated on social media in many countries in recent years, including during major vaccination campaigns to prevent polio in Pakistan and to immunize against yellow fever in South America.

Facebook, under fierce scrutiny worldwide in recent years over its privacy and content practices, has previously removed vaccine misinformation in Samoa, where a measles outbreak killed dozens late last year.

The spread of illness there was so severe that the company classified anti-vaccination content a risk of physical harm, a spokeswoman told Reuters, calling the move an extreme action.

The coronavirus and Samoa decisions indicate Facebook is expanding its definition of physical harm to include misinformation contributing to the rapid spread of illness.

The company did not say whether it had acted in a similar way in other cases.

It removed misinformation about polio vaccines in Pakistan, but the imminent harm in that case involved risks of violence against the health workers carrying out the immunization campaigns, the spokeswoman said.
Actress Vicky Zugah has asked movie lovers to stop pitching Ghanaian movies against those of Nigerians.



For years, critics have pointed to the Nigerian film industry, popularly known as Nollywood and the strides it is making in discussions about the declining Ghanaian industry but in Vicky Zugah's opinion, the comparison is not necessary because both industries are unique and doing well in their own way.



Both industries are doing well; if one would recall, during a particular period, Nigerian movies were nowhere close to ours. Everything was about us, then the tables turned but that doesnt mean we are not doing well.



Yes things may be down and all but it doesnt mean we are not trying and it hurts that people do that. I know the work we are putting into this industry to make it work, she told Graphic Showbiz recently.



Vicky also shared her opinion on the current state of the movie industry. "You see over there in Nigeria when a fraternity member is doing something, everyone is involved.



"When it is the premiere of a movie, all the big guys in the industry grace it but here, it takes the Grace of God to get such people around which is very disturbing.



They are who they are because they decided to make it so but in our case, we are not united, there is so much backbiting. We do not agree on so many things so we cant move forward. However, there is hope. We will get back, she said.



Vicky Zugah has movies like Girls Connection, Agatha, Who Knows Tomorrow and Pretty Queen to her credit.

Source: Graphic Online









Disclaimer : Opinions expressed here are those of the writers and do not reflect those of Peacefmonline.com. Peacefmonline.com accepts no responsibility legal or otherwise for their accuracy of content. Please report any inappropriate content to us, and we will evaluate it as a matter of priority.

Featured Video
(Natural News) Officials in New York are backtracking after reports emerged about a possible case of novel coronavirus in the Big Apple.

Not long after the New York Daily News published a story about one confirmed case of the illness, the citys Department of Health issued a statement claiming that this isnt true.

A message about Elmhurst Hospital in Queens that was sent at 1:56 a.m. claimed that the facility had 1 confirmed case of coronavirus, but a New York City health spokesman has since announced: NO CONFIRMED, SUSPECTED CORONAVIRUS CASES.

While it could be that this was simply a false report, the other potential scenario is that New York City is trying to cover up the truth to avoid panic in one of the most tourist-visited cities in the world.

We have no cases, said health department spokesman Patrick Gallahue. There have been no cases transmitted from New York City to the C.D.C. for additional testing of the 2019 novel coronavirus.

The Fire Department of New York (F.D.N.Y.) and the New York Police Department (N.Y.P.D.) have likewise both denied that there are any confirmed cases of coronavirus in the city.

Is there still a POSSIBLE coronavirus case in N.Y.C. that hasnt yet been confirmed?

Whats interesting about the original message obtained by The News and reiterated to the N.Y.P.D. is that, while it warned about a confirmed case, possibly incorrectly, the health department didnt deny that there could still be a possible case.

In part of his statement, Gallahue reportedly stated that he doesnt know why N.Y.P.D. precincts were told about a confirmed case when there hasnt yet been a confirmed case.

But in the original message it was stated that law enforcement officers, should they visit Elmhurst Hospital, need to make sure they have proper gear (mask) to protect themselves.

Reading between the lines, here, it would seem as though some type of incident occurred at Elmhurst Hospital to suggest that there could be a coronavirus case there. This potential case, however, has just not been officially confirmed.

Time will certainly tell if theres anything to this report or not, and Zero Hedge is of the opinion that it is likely just a matter of time before Coronavirus does make landfall in the Big Apple.

Two Chinese nationals in the United Kingdom test positive for coronavirus

Meanwhile, the United Kingdom (U.K.) is reporting its first cases, plural, of coronavirus.

Professor Chris Whitty, Englands chief medical officer, has announced that two people from the same family, both Chinese nationals, tested positive for the illness. They were guests at the Staycity apartment-hotel in York before being taken to the Royal Victoria Infirmary in Newcastle. They have since been moved to a hospital in Wirral, where they will remain quarantined for 14 days.

The hotel will remain open for business, reports indicate, but the apartment section will be thoroughly disinfected, the owners have indicated.

According to Whitty, Englands National Health Service (N.H.S.) is extremely well-prepared for managing infections, and is right now trying to identify any and all close contacts of these two individuals to have them tested and prevent any further spread of coronavirus.

In the U.K., a close contact is considered to be anyone who was within six feet of an infected person for at least 15 minutes.

A lot of people will end up with a relatively minor disease, Whitty claims, admitting that coronavirus more than likely still has a long way to go.

Those who develop more serious respiratory symptoms, he further adds will be dealt with as anyone else with a respiratory disease.

To keep up with the latest coronavirus news, be sure to check out Pandemic.news.

Sources for this article include:

ZeroHedge.com

NYDailyNews.com

BBC.com

NaturalNews.com
Palestinian leader Mahmud Abbas has cut all ties with Israel and the US following Donald Trump's long-awaited Middle East peace 'vision'.

Abbas said the plan unveiled on Tuesday was in 'violation of the (autonomy) accords' launched in Oslo in 1993 by Israel and the Palestinians.

Trump's 'two-state solution' involves a tunnel linking the West Bank to the Gaza Strip.

Palestinian leader Mahmud Abbas (left) has cut all ties with Israel and the US following Donald Trump's (right) long-awaited Middle East peace 'vision'

While it more than doubles the territory currently under Palestinian control, it also recognises Israeli sovereignty over major settlement blocs in the West Bank.

Abbas said Israel will have to 'bear responsibility as an occupying power' for the Palestinian territories at an emergency Arab League meeting in Cairo.

Speaking in the White House at the plan's unveiling, US president called his proposal a 'vision for peace, prosperity and a new future' on Tuesday and said it 'provides a win win solution for both sides.'

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu called it the 'deal of the century'.

Abbas said plan unveiled on Tuesday was in 'violation of the (autonomy) accords' launched in Oslo in 1993 by Israel and the Palestinians. Pictured: Egyptian President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi with Abbas

KEY ELEMENTS OF TRUMP'S MIDDLE EAST PEACE 'VISION' Two-state solution meaning Israel will exist beside neighbor Palestine

Palestinian-controlled territory is increased

But they concede sovereignty in a series of areas including part of the Jordan Valley

Palestinian state is 'demilitarized,' with Israel 'retaining security responsibility west of the Jordan River.'

West Bank and Gaza Strip to be joined by a tunnel and roads to create a 'contiguous' state

Palestinian capital is in East Jerusalem with a U.S. embassy built there, but the city of Jerusalem is 'undivided'

Four-year freeze on Israeli settlements Advertisement

The White House pointedly did not call it a 'plan,' and Trump himself said Netanyahu had agreed it was a basis for 'negotiation.'

But there was confusion over exactly what it was with Trump also tweeting that it was a 'plan.'

Trump claimed Israel had a taken 'a giant leap' by signing up to a two-state solution.

He said: 'We will also work to create a contiguous territory within the future Palestinian state, for when the conditions for statehood are met, including the firm rejection of terrorism.'

Netanyahu said he backed the starting point for talks because it 'recognized Israeli sovereignty over sections of Judea and Samaria' - meaning sections of what is currently defined as the West Bank - 'which are vital to our security.'

He said Trump had recognized that 'Israel must have sovereignty in the Jordan Valley,' something which Palestinians have said they will never agree to.

Abbas said Israel will have to 'bear responsibility as an occupying power' for the Palestinian territories at an emergency Arab League meeting in Cairo. Pictured: Abbas holding a placard showing maps of (L to R) historical Palestine, the 1947 United Nations partition plan on Palestine, the 1948-1967 borders between the Palestinian territories and Israel, and a current map of the Palestinian territories without Israeli-annexed areas and settlements

The plan does call for a four-year freeze in new Israeli settlement construction, during which time details of a comprehensive agreement would be negotiated. However, it was not immediately clear if the freeze could be extended if a final deal is not concluded in the four years.

The 50-page political outline goes further in concessions to the Palestinians than many analysts had believed was likely. However, it would require them to accept conditions they have been previously unwilling to consider, such as accepting West Bank settlements. It builds on a 30-page economic plan for the West Bank and Gaza that was unveiled last June and which the Palestinians have also rejected.

Under the terms of the 'peace vision' that Trump's son-in-law and senior adviser Jared Kushner has been working on for nearly three years, the future Palestinian state would consist of the West Bank and Gaza, connected by a combination of above-ground roads and tunnels.

Two-state solution? Trump embraced Benjamin Netanyahu, the embattled Israeli prime minister as he unveiled a Middle East peace 'vision'

Trump use the speech to say he had been 'good for Israel.'

He boasted about moving the U.S. embassy to Jerusalem and recognizing the Golan Heights as Israeli territory - reversing decades of U.S. policy - and also boasted about leaving the Iran nuclear deal.

He claimed it could be a 'last opportunity' for the Palestinians to achieve statehood.

He also said he had told Abbas, the Palestinian prime minister that he needed to act while there was a four-year freeze on Israeli settlements in Palestinian territory.

Side by side: Trump and Netanyahu arrive for the announcement on his peace 'plan' or 'vision' on Tuesday

Trump said: 'I explained to (Abbas) that the territory allocated for his new state will remain open and undeveloped for a period of four years.

'This could be the last opportunity they will ever have.

'Palestinians are in poverty and violence, exploited by those seeking to use them as pawns to advance terrorism and extremism.'

U.S. Ambassador to Israel David Friedman echoed the president's words, saying Palestinian had time to get on board.

A future state of Palestine (left) and the state of Israel (right) drawn in maps released by the White House

'Our goal is to demonstrate to the Palestinians that it's a state to aspire to and achieve,' Friedman told reporters on a conference call after the president unveiled his vision.

'They have time. They have four years to figure this out,' he said, adding 'it's theirs for the taking.'

Earlier this week, Abbas said he would not support any proposal that would not see a Palestinian capital in all of East Jerusalem, which includes the walled Old City and numerous sites holy to Muslims, Jews and Christians.

Abbas, in a televised address in Ramallah in the Israeli-occupied West Bank, said: 'I say to Trump and Netanyahu: Jerusalem is not for sale, all our rights are not for sale and are not for bargain. And your deal, the conspiracy, will not pass.'

Abbas said it was 'impossible for any Palestinian, Arab, Muslim or Christian child to accept' a state without Jerusalem.

Israel captured the eastern part of the city along with the West Bank and Gaza in a 1967 war.

The Palestinians would only accept negotiations based on international law and supported by U.N. Security Council resolutions, said Abbas, whose Palestinian Authority has limited self-rule in parts of the West Bank.
The commander of U.S. forces in the Pacific has banned travel to China for all service members and civilian personnel under his authority and ordered those now in China to leave immediately, officials said late Friday.

Following on a coronavirus directive issued earlier by Defense Secretary Mark Esper, Adm. Phil Davidson, commander of U.S. Indo-Pacific Command, "has restricted all Defense Department travel to the People's Republic of China (PRC)," according to a statement from Marine Maj. Cassandra Gesecki, deputy director of media relations for INDOPACOM.

In addition, all DoD personnel currently in China "on temporary duty and in leave status are directed to depart mainland China immediately," Gesecki said.

The travel restrictions are specific to China and apply to all U.S. military, civilians and DoD contractors in INDOPACOM, Gesecki said. There are no travel restrictions to other areas in the command's area of operations.

Esper's earlier directive aligned with State Department travel warnings on China and Centers of Disease Control guidance, advising troops to avoid contact with persons suspected of having the virus, and stay vigilant to recognize symptoms of the illness.

Other combatant commands are also expected to issue guidance on the coronavirus response specific to their areas of operations.

On Friday afternoon, the Trump administration declared a public health emergency in the U.S. in response to the coronavirus outbreak.

At a White House news conference, Health and Human Services Secretary Alex Azar said that President Donald Trump took the action "to minimize the risk of novel coronavirus in the United States," where at least seven confirmed cases of pneumonia-like coronavirus have been reported.

The risk of contracting the coronavirus in the U.S. is low, Azar said, but "we are working to keep the risk low."

Under the public health emergency, which will become effective Sunday at 5 p.m. Eastern time, all U.S. citizens who have been in China's central Hubei province, the epicenter of the virus, will be subject to 14 days of mandatory quarantine upon returning to the U.S., Azar said.

Other federal officials at the White House news conference said that about 200 U.S. citizens who were evacuated from the city of Wuhan in Hubei province on Wednesday and taken to March Air Reserve base in southern California would be held there in quarantine for 14 days, the incubation period for the virus.

In addition, "Foreign nationals other than immediate family of U.S. citizens and permanent residents who have traveled in China in the last 14 days will be denied entry into the United States" as long as the emergency continues, Azar said.

All flights from China to the U.S. also will be restricted to seven airports, beginning Sunday, the officials said.

Ken Cuccinelli, acting Homeland Security deputy secretary and a member of the White House task force on the coronavirus, said the airports included San Francisco International Airport,, Los Angeles International Airport, Seattle-Tacoma International Airport, New York's John F. Kennedy International Airport, Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International Airport, Honolulu's Daniel K. Inouye International Airport and Chicago's O'Hare.

-- Richard Sisk can be reached at Richard.Sisk@Military.com.
Hyderabad: Chief Minister K. Chandrasekhar Rao is said to have decided to hold the Budget Session of Legislature after the completion of elections to the primary agriculture cooperative societies (PACS).

The election schedule for the PACS was released on Thursday according to which the election process will be completed on February 18.

Sources close to the Chief Ministers Office said that though Mr Rao had decided to hold the session from February 9, he changed his mind after the notification of the elections to the PACS.

Sources said that as per the earlier schedule, the session was to start on February 9 with Governor Tamilisai Soundararajan addressing a joint session of the Assembly and the Council. The next two days were given for the discussion on the motion of thanks for the Governors address. The Budget was to have been placed in the House after February 12.

With the notification for the PACS elections issued, the Chief Minister asked all legislators to stay in their respective constituencies till the completion of the polls, sources added.

The Budget Session for the financial year 2019-20 was held in September 2019 for nearly 10 days. The session had been delayed because the Centre had presented only an interim Budget in January because of the Lok Sabha elections in April-May last year. The full Budget was presented after the elections. This year also the Chief Minister is thinking of holding the session for 10 days.
Blog Archive June 2021 (1) May 2021 (77) April 2021 (77) March 2021 (82) February 2021 (68) January 2021 (64) December 2020 (67) November 2020 (66) October 2020 (66) September 2020 (67) August 2020 (74) July 2020 (83) June 2020 (92) May 2020 (86) April 2020 (104) March 2020 (105) February 2020 (74) January 2020 (75) December 2019 (75) November 2019 (70) October 2019 (89) September 2019 (69) August 2019 (81) July 2019 (77) June 2019 (73) May 2019 (110) April 2019 (110) March 2019 (102) February 2019 (85) January 2019 (123) December 2018 (116) November 2018 (112) October 2018 (121) September 2018 (107) August 2018 (150) July 2018 (163) June 2018 (190) May 2018 (145) April 2018 (112) March 2018 (124) February 2018 (113) January 2018 (164) December 2017 (150) November 2017 (144) October 2017 (169) September 2017 (171) August 2017 (135) July 2017 (131) June 2017 (147) May 2017 (160) April 2017 (138) March 2017 (156) February 2017 (143) January 2017 (203) December 2016 (208) November 2016 (185) October 2016 (173) September 2016 (194) August 2016 (232) July 2016 (225) June 2016 (238) May 2016 (231) April 2016 (215) March 2016 (246) February 2016 (226) January 2016 (252) December 2015 (230) November 2015 (250) October 2015 (234) September 2015 (222) August 2015 (253) July 2015 (275) June 2015 (279) May 2015 (223) April 2015 (226) March 2015 (243) February 2015 (258) January 2015 (281) December 2014 (292) November 2014 (296) October 2014 (413) September 2014 (472) August 2014 (506) July 2014 (483) June 2014 (488) May 2014 (512) April 2014 (497) March 2014 (531) February 2014 (482) January 2014 (535) December 2013 (482) November 2013 (441) October 2013 (416) September 2013 (491) August 2013 (521) July 2013 (491) June 2013 (470) May 2013 (457) April 2013 (426) March 2013 (420) February 2013 (414) January 2013 (489) December 2012 (433) November 2012 (504) October 2012 (469) September 2012 (430) August 2012 (427) July 2012 (360) June 2012 (336) May 2012 (362) April 2012 (322) March 2012 (263) February 2012 (224) January 2012 (291) December 2011 (295) November 2011 (325) October 2011 (330) September 2011 (319) August 2011 (333) July 2011 (318) June 2011 (387) May 2011 (373) April 2011 (389) March 2011 (375) February 2011 (335) January 2011 (400) December 2010 (445) November 2010 (395) October 2010 (312) September 2010 (262) August 2010 (277) July 2010 (323) June 2010 (386) May 2010 (360) April 2010 (333) March 2010 (351) February 2010 (336) January 2010 (384) December 2009 (353) November 2009 (300) October 2009 (308) September 2009 (350) August 2009 (298) July 2009 (255) June 2009 (203) May 2009 (193) April 2009 (186) March 2009 (197) February 2009 (173) January 2009 (148) December 2008 (181) November 2008 (197) October 2008 (236) September 2008 (304) August 2008 (314) July 2008 (273) June 2008 (27) May 2008 (1) April 2008 (6) October 2007 (1) May 2007 (1) April 2007 (6) March 2007 (2) February 2007 (1) October 2006 (1) September 2006 (1) August 2006 (4) July 2006 (4) June 2006 (1) July 2005 (1) May 2005 (2) March 2005 (1) June 2004 (2) May 2004 (1) April 2004 (4) March 2004 (2) February 2004 (2) July 2003 (2) June 2003 (5)
Long ago but not so far away, the tough-guy political boss of the community where I was then editing a newspaper demanded an audience with my publisher and me. The big shot, it seemed, didn't like what our reporters had been writing about him  specifically, the suggestion that he was perhaps corruptly drawing money from unsuspecting taxpayers.

As I walked into the publisher's office, the pol glared at me, then poked a finger at my chest and warned, "I will not be intimidated by a morning glory."

This was a new term for me. Not having grown up around the track, I didn't know that "morning glory" is a horse that posts eye-catching times in morning workouts but wilts under the pressure of an afternoon race.

Let the record of that particular meet note that the tough guy went to federal prison and I've been a newspaper editor ever since. Not to boast, but he wasn't the last bully my newspapers outlasted.

Indulge me, please, for this column being a bit more personal than most. For with this edition of the paper, I cross a sort of finish line: I'm stepping away from newsroom leadership and into a new role as Editor-at-Large of the Times Union  a title that carries fewer responsibilities but still connects me to the work of my lifetime. This is a move I'm pleased to make in no small part because I have such confidence in my successor, Casey Seiler, and in the remarkable team of journalists in our newsroom who will carry on this work.

A lot has changed since my first newspaper job, in a smoke-clouded newsroom filled with clattering manual typewriters, with a gluepot on every desk to paste together the shards of newsprint (or "takes") that carried a story forward. A wire machine rattled in the corner, bells ringing whenever an urgent news item printed.

Today the print newspaper remains important for many readers, but we break most stories online first, and we increasingly focus our energy on building a report for tomorrow's digital-only audience. Readers who get their news from mobile devices have appetites for different kinds of stories than those who only read on newsprint, so to remain useful to our readers, our reporting must shift, too.

People want news that will help them transact the business of life. Because they can get information about world and national developments instantly from so many sources, we need to focus on great storytelling about our community and our state.

In the coming months, you'll notice that we will increasingly deliver sophisticated graphics and engaging videos to tell a newspaper's stories, as well as podcasts  a term that my first editor probably would have figured to be some sort of science fiction device.

Sign up for The Knick  Get the latest news and some area history with our afternoon newsletter.

Yet the fundamental task of journalism hasn't changed: to give people a true view of what lies beyond their own experience. And the ethical charge for tomorrow's journalists must be the same as it was when I started reporting: to seek the truth and report it as fully as possible.

Sometimes it's hard to tell what's true. When I was all of 21 years old, I was named managing editor of a tiny daily paper in northwest Indiana. One of the three reporters who worked for me, with perhaps misguided zealotry for investigative journalism, fashioned a Thanksgiving story revealing that the local supermarket had engaged in a bait-and-switch scheme by advertising inexpensive turkeys in our paper that weren't available when customers showed up.

Was he right? Not in the eyes of our publisher, who pulled the story off the page and met the reporter at the newsroom door, roaring in anger. The grocer had sold out of turkeys, he insisted, because of effective newspaper advertising  under a contract the grocer had just canceled. To this day, I don't know who I should have believed.

It's even harder now to know what's real. We live in a perilous time when many of our leaders and plenty of media outlets show little respect for truth-telling. If that sounds to you like partisanship, I can only conclude that you aren't paying attention to credible news sources. Facts are stubborn, and somebody who lies to you about something as observable as the weather, say, or who misrepresents the conclusions of scientists, is not to be trusted on any score. It's our job as journalists to try to help you find the side of truth.

That politician decades ago who thought I wouldn't last in journalism insisted that our stories were untrue right up to the moment he faced justice in a courtroom. We get such bunk all the time from people who don't like what we report. But as I turn away from the tasks of daily journalism, I'm proud that we are still on the track, driving hard for a cheering grandstand.
Young boys ride their bikes past boarded-up and abandoned row of houses in Baltimore, Md., on May 26, 2019. (Stephanie Keith/Reuters)

Unaffordable Rental Housing May Be New Normal in the United States

A growing number of Americans cannot afford to pay their rent as rental property prices hit a record high, researchers said on Jan. 31, amid an outcry over rising evictions and homelessness.

The number of U.S. households living in rentals also surged to 43.7 million in 2018up 21 percent from 2004a study by Harvard University found, as a growing share of older, larger families can no longer afford to buy their own homes.

This is like nothing that weve seen, said Whitney Airgood-Obrycki, the studys lead author, pointing to the rising number of households who are cost-burdenedor spend more than 30 percent of their income on housing.

Some 21 million U.S. renters are cost-burdened, according to the reportaccounting for almost half of all rentersin both urban and rural areas across the country, with minorities disproportionately affected.

When we talk about cost burden, this could be the new normal, Airgood-Obrycki, a researcher with Harvard Universitys Joint Center for Housing Studies, told the Thomson Reuters Foundation.

The problem of unaffordable rental housing is a global one, according to World Bank, which found that the only affordable rentals in most fast-growing developing countries were insecure, in the informal sector and with poor living conditions.

About 65 percent of the U.S. population are homeowners, according to federal statistics, with most of the rest in rentals.

The downtown skyline of Los Angeles on Oct. 12, 2017. (Frederic J. Brown/AFP via Getty Images)

Since the 2008 recession, caused in part by a wave of homeowners unable to repay their mortgages, the number of cost-burdened renters has risen by 2.8 million, according to Apartment List, an online rental platform.

These people are forced to make difficult trade-offs.

You might cut back on health care to pay for rent, or you might miss a rent payment, which could trigger eviction or homelessness, Airgood-Obrycki said.

High-income renters have flooded the U.S. market, having either lost their homes or unable to afford to buy, leading to higher rents, the lowest vacancy rates since the mid-1980s and a spurt of rental construction tailored to them.

Households earning at least $75,000 per year accounted for three-quarters of the growth in renters since 2010up by 3.2 millionthe Harvard study found.

In turn, the property prices for rental apartments have reached record highs, rising 150 percent between 2010 and late 2019.

In the past decade, the lowest-income renters have seen a loss of more than 2 million apartments affordable to them and experienced increased evictions, said Diane Yentel, chief executive of the National Low Income Housing Coalition.

The report makes clear that the housing crisis is most acute for the lowest-income renters, particularly low-income black and Latino renters, she said in emailed comments.

By Carey L. Biron




Haiti - FLASH : The CEP rejects the request of the former senators on the duration of their mandate





Thursday, January 30, the members of the Provisional Electoral Council (CEP), met in an extraordinary session, at the CEP headquarters in Petion-ville, to rule on the request received on January 16, 2020 by citizens Jean Renel Senatus, Jean Marie Junior Salomon, Dieupy Cherubin, Ronald Lareche, Youri Latortue, Nenel Cassy, Onondieu Louis, Willot Joseph and the citizen Dieudonne Luma Etienne have submitted a request to the CEP, bearing their signature, as Senators.



These former senators of the second third asked in their request :



"to hear the CEP examine its competence, say that it is competent to know the species;

To recognize that the President of the Republic violated the Electoral Decree by violating articles 50.3,50.7,45.2, and 239;

To declare that the applicants are senators in office until the second Monday of the sixth year of their mandate, that is, January 10, 2022;

To recognize the applicants' right to bring any civil action for compensation for the damage suffered in a timely and timely manner. " I>



The CEP explains in its decision :

"[...] Can the CEP's litigation bodies examine the applicants' requests ? To answer this question, it is necessary to determine whether it is a matter related to an electoral competition or a species of another nature. Considering that the answer to this question remains the necessary and essential condition for the purposes of determining whether one of the bodies for litigation at first instance, Bureau du Litieux Electoral Communal (BCEC) and Bureau du Litigation Electoral Departemental (BCED) may be seized or if the Office for National Electoral Disputes (BCEN), in its special powers, may be directly seized as a last resort at the behest of the President of the CEP;



Considering that the applicants declare that the supporting documents for the appeal will be filed at the hearing of the case, thus prejudging the referral to the BCEN by the Provisional Electoral Council;



Considering that the CEP is seized of an appeal concerning the respect of the duration of the electoral mandate of the applicants;



Considering that the duration of an elective mandate is a matter of the Constitution and not of electoral disputes;



Considering that there is no reason to seize, therefore, the bodies of electoral litigation given the nature of the appeal;



The Provisional Electoral Council, after deliberation,



Declares that it does not have, in this case, any legal reference to seize the bodies of Electoral Dispute"



Decision adopted by: Leopol Berlanger FILS, President, Carols Hercule, vice-President, Marie Frantz JOACHIM, General secretary, Frinel JOSEPH, Treasurer, Lucien Jean BERNARD, member; Marie Herolle MJCHEL, member; Kenson POLYNICE, member; Josette J. DORCELY, member and Jean-Simon SAINT-HUBERT, member.



See also :

https://www.haitilibre.com/en/news-29811-haiti-politic-journalist-delva-ironizes-at-his-colleagues-who-contest-the-end-of-their-mandate.html

https://www.haitilibre.com/en/news-29792-haiti-news-zapping.html

https://www.haitilibre.com/en/news-29760-haiti-flash-the-senators-react.html



HL/ HaitiLibre


















Source: Xinhua| 2020-02-02 01:36:30|Editor: yan

Video Player Close

TEHRAN, Feb. 1 (Xinhua) -- Iran has launched two solar power plants in two counties of Tehran Province, Eghtesadonline news website reported Saturday.

The two plants, respectively in the countries of Shahr-e-Rey and Damavand, were built at a cost 10 million U.S. dollars, according to the report.

They will generate more than 34 gigawatts of electricity per year, and prevent the emission of 29,000 tons of carbon dioxide.

Tehran Province now has eight large solar farms.

Iran has achieved self-sufficiency in the construction of solar power plants, Mohammad Sadeqzadeh, Iranian deputy energy minister, was quoted as saying.

Currently, more than 115 large-scale solar power stations and over 3,560 smaller installations in urban and rural areas are producing green energy across Iran, according to Eghtesadonline.
American Boyce Avenue Live in Colombo View(s):

Popular American band, Boyce Avenue will come alive at the South Lawn of the Taj Samudra Colombo on 9th February 2020 from 5.00pm onwards.

Boyce Avenue-Live in Concert is a presentation of Sun FM Radio collaborating with Hutch Telecommunications

Boyce Avenue is a popular American pop band, formed by brothers Alejandro Luis Manzano, Daniel Enrique Manzano and Fabian Rafael Manzano. Best of Colombo audiences will be treated to the bands original music as well as covers of CHR (Contemporary Hit Radio) and classic songs belted out by Boyce Avenue.

Formed in 2004, Sarasota, Floridas Boyce Avenue is part of the millennial wave of artistes who have used the Internet, rather than extensive touring, to get their music out to the masses. The Puerto Rican-American rock band dabble in the genres of Pop Rock, Power Pop and Alternative Music are the founders of the label 3 Peace Records. The guys are not only talented but very intuitive and have released many songs and even their first album All youre Meant to Be under their very own record company 3 Peace Records which the boys themselves started in 2006, showing just how ready they were to conquer the globe.

The band gained popularity in 2007 when they began posting videos online on the popular website YouTube.

Ramzeena Morseth Lye, Head of Sales and Marketing at Hutch, states: We are delighted to join Sun FM the Number ONE radio station in presenting Boyce Avenue to the Sri Lankan audience. They are a part of the millennial wave of artistes and will definitely connect with our millennials and Gen Z as well as all music enthusiasts for an evening of great music! Hutch is a brand that appeals to the youth in Sri Lanka and supports their evolving lifestyles.
Police take away an unidentified person after he allegedly opened fire in the Shaheen Bagh area of New Delhi on Saturday. (PTI)

NEW DELHI: A gun-wielding man fired two shots from a country-made pistol near the Shaheen Bagh protest that entered 50 days on Saturday.

Eyewitnesses said that the man, who was standing near the police barricades, which are placed about 100 metres from the Shaheen Bagh protest site, fired two rounds in the air while shouting Hindu Rashtra Zindabad.

The man, identified as Kapil Baisla (25), a resident of East Delhis Dallupura village, is a milk supplier. He was nabbed by the protesters on the spot and handed over to the police. Even while the man was in the grip of police, he was heard chanting, Jai Shri Ram and was also shouting, Hamare desh mein kisi ki nahi chalegi, sirf Hinduon ki chalegi.

The incident occurred around 4:45 pm on Saturday, two days after a teenager fired from a pistol at anti-Citizenship Amendment Act (CAA) protesters at Jamia Millia Islamia, injuring a student.

According to sources, "Couple of days ago Baisla got stuck in a traffic jam while going to his sisters wedding in Lajpat Nagar from Noida. He felt agitated which made him very upset and angry."

One of the women protesters said they were inside the tent when the incident happened.

"We rushed to the spot after hearing gunshots. Many women and children were inside the tent when the incident happened and started crying. Everyone is scared about their safety," she said.

Another woman protester said that those who are against their protest are trying to scare them but the protesters will not step back.
Had Murkowski voted to call more witnesses, the tally would have been 50-50 and, as he later said, Roberts had no intention of weighing in with a tiebreaker vote. She seemed to indicate that one reason for voting against witnesses was to spare Roberts from a decision that could open him to attacks.
A man accused of killing two police officers while acting as the leader of an al Qaeda group in Iraq was arrested in Phoenix, Arizona, federal officials said.

It is not known how long the man was living in Arizona or what he was doing there.

He will now face being extradited to Iraq.

Ali Yousif Ahmed Al-Nouri, 42, is wanted in Iraq on charges of the premeditated murder of two Iraqi police officers in 2006, according to a statement by the U.S. Attorney's Office District of Arizona.

According to the Iraqi government, al-Nouri was the leader of an al Qaeda group in the Iraqi city of Al-Fallujah which planned operations targeting Iraqi police.

He and other members of al-Qaida allegedly shot and killed a lieutenant on June 1, 2006, and an officer with the Fallujah Police Directorate on October 3, 2006.

An Iraqi judge issued a warrant for Al-Nouri's arrest and the government there issued an extradition request to the U.S. Justice Department.

The Justice Department sought an arrest warrant for Al-Nouri Wednesday and he was taken into custody on Thursday in Phoenix.

The arrest was announced by Assistant Attorney General Brian A. Benczkowski of the Justice Departments Criminal Division and U.S. Attorney Michael Bailey for the District of Arizona.

Assistant Attorney General Brian A. Benczkowski of the Justice Departments Criminal Division (left) and U.S. Attorney Michael Bailey for the District of Arizona (right) announced the arrest

He appeared before a federal magistrate judge in Phoenix on Friday in connection with proceedings to extradite him to Iraq, the statement said.

It noted the details in the Iraqi complaint were allegations that had yet to been proven in court.

Al-Nouri's extradition will have to be certified by the U.S. court and the U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo will then decide whether to surrender him to Iraq.

The statement from federal officials did not provide information on when Al-Nouri entered the United States or how long he had lived in Phoenix.

No further information was released.
By Associated Press

CAIRO: Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas threatened to cut security ties with both Israel and the US on Saturday, in a lengthy speech delivered at an Arab League meeting in Egypt's capital that denounced a White House plan for ending the Israeli-Palestinian conflict.

The US plan would grant the Palestinians limited self-rule in parts of the occupied West Bank, while allowing Israel to annex all its settlements there and keep nearly all of east Jerusalem.

The summit of Arab foreign ministers in Cairo was requested by the Palestinians, who responded angrily to the American proposal.

Abbas said that he told Israel and the US that "there will be no relations with them, including the security ties" following the deal that Palestinians say heavily favours Israel. There was no immediate comment from US or Israeli officials.

The Palestinian leader said that he'd refused to take US President Donald Trump's phone calls and messages "because I know that he would use that to say he consulted us."

ALSO READ: Donald Trump's Middle East plan calls for Palestinian state, settlement freeze

"I will never accept this solution," Abbas said.

"I will not have it recorded in my history that I have sold Jerusalem."

He said the Palestinians remain committed to ending the Israeli occupation and establishing a state with its capital in east Jerusalem.

Abbas said that the Palestinians wouldn't accept the US as a sole mediator in any negotiations with Israel.

He said they would go to the United Nations Security Council and other world and regional organisations to "explain our position."

The Arab League's head, Ahmed Aboul-Gheit, said the proposal revealed a "sharp turn" in the long-standing US foreign policy regarding the Israeli-Palestinian conflict.

ALSO READ: Israeli warplanes hit Hamas in Gaza after cross-border fire

"This turn does not help achieve peace and a just solution," he declared.

Aboul-Gheit said that the Palestinians reject the proposal.

He called for the two sides, the Israelis and the Palestinians, to negotiate to reach a "satisfactory solution for both of them."

President Trump unveiled the long-awaited proposal Tuesday in Washington.

It would allow Israel to annex all its West Bank settlements, which the Palestinians and most of the international community view as illegal, as well as the Jordan Valley, which accounts for roughly a fourth of the West Bank.

In return, the Palestinians would be granted statehood in Gaza, scattered chunks of the West Bank and some neighbourhoods on the outskirts of Jerusalem, all linked together by a new network of roads, bridges and tunnels.

Israel would control the state's borders and airspace and maintain overall security authority.

Critics of the plan say this would rob Palestinian statehood of any meaning.

The plan would abolish the right of return for Palestinian refugees displaced by the 1948 war and their descendants, a key Palestinian demand.

The entire agreement would be contingent on Gaza's Hamas rulers and other armed groups disarming, something they have always adamantly rejected.

Ambassadors from the United Arab Emirates, Bahrain and Oman attended the Tuesday unveiling in Washington, in a tacit sign of support for the US initiative.

Saudi Arabia and Egypt, Arab states that are close US allies, said they appreciated President Trump's efforts and called for renewed negotiations without commenting on the plan's content.

Egypt urged in a statement Israelis and Palestinians to "carefully study" the plan.

It said it favours a solution that restores all the "legitimate rights" of the Palestinian people through establishing an "independent and sovereign state on the occupied Palestinian territories."

The Egyptian statement did not mention the long-held Arab demand of east Jerusalem as a capital to the future Palestinian state, as Cairo usually has its statements related to the Palestinian-Israeli conflict.

Jordan, meanwhile, warned against any Israeli "annexation of Palestinian lands" and reaffirmed its commitment to the creation of a Palestinian state along the 1967 lines, which would include all the West Bank and Israeli-annexed east Jerusalem.

Jordan and Egypt are the only two Arab countries that have peace treaties with Israel.
by Willy Wo-Lap Lam

Tsai Ing-wen was re-elected president with 57.13% of the vote. A defeat for Beijing and for the "fifth column" on the island. The contribution of Hong Kong demonstrations to Tsai's victory. Xi Jinping, also defeated, in search of new military strategies.

Hong Kong (AsiaNews) - Tsai Ing-wen's astonishing victory in the presidential elections in Taiwan is a defeat for China which for years has nourished through numerous economic benefits a "fifth column" on the island, which preaches reunification and the return to the motherland. It is also a defeat for President Xi Jinping, who has always cultivated the idea of a military reunification of the island and who today is instead faced with an even closer alliance between the United States and Taiwan. The way Beijing is treating Hong Kong also had an influence on Tsai's victory. The analysis of journalist and political scientist Willy Lam. Courtesy of the Jamestown Foundation

Introduction

How will Beijing react to Taiwan President Tsai Ing-wens resounding re-election victory on January 11, when she garnered a historic 8 million votes, or 57.13 percent of the electorate? So far, Beijings response to this triumph by the candidate of the theoretically pro-independence Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) has been relatively non-belligerent. The spokesman of the cabinet-level Taiwan Affairs Office said a few hours after the polls that Beijing would insist on the basic objective of peaceful unification and one country, two systems, even though he also indicated that Beijing would not tolerate any form of Taiwan independence. Another post-election commentary by the official Xinhua News Agency said that the mainland firmly holds the initiative in bilateral relations. In an article in the usually hawkish Global Times, Editor-in-Chief Hu Xijin said Chinese society was prepared for war with Taiwan independence, but that it was not yet ready for immediate warfare (Xinhua, January 12; Phoenix TV News, January 12; Global Times, January 11; South China Morning Post, January 11).

Observers of Taiwan Strait dynamics have noted that Chinese Communist Party (CCP) General Secretary Xi Jinping, the highest-ranking decision-maker on Taiwan issues, was bitterly unhappy about the margin of Tsais victory; and that the commander-in-chief will likely order a series of measures to boost war preparation, squeeze Taiwans diplomatic space, suppress Taiwans economy, and nurture the so-called fifth column in Taiwan society (Chinatimes.com, January 12; HK01.com, January 11). The fifth column is a reference to Taiwanese politicians and businesspeople who, while professing to defend their island against Communist aggression, are proposing more communication and even pro-unification talks with Beijing as a result of their dependence (financial or otherwise) on the CCP.

Potential Forms of Military and Political Coercion Against Taiwan

The military strategy that the Peoples Liberation Army (PLA) might use against Taiwan is relatively simple: the goal is to erect at least a temporary air force and naval blockade so that Taiwan will become isolated from the rest of the world. Coinciding with the election, naval forces of the PLA Eastern War Theatre engaged in a five-day war game involving two state-of-the-art Type 052D-class destroyers (Apple Daily.com, January 13). According to the results of hundreds of computerized simulations of an island invasion, the PLA Navy (PLAN) will need to build at least a few aircraft carrier battle groups in the coming decade or so. Aircraft carrierstogether with platforms such as nuclear submarinesare crucial to a successful blockade of the island (Mil.sina.cn, July 29, 2019; Radio French International Chinese Edition, July 29, 2019). There was a tense confrontation last Christmas in the waters off Hainan Island and Taiwan between the aircraft carrier USS Abraham Lincoln and the PLANs own carrier Shandong (Ming Pao, January 2). Xis advisers seem confident that as the differentials in military strength between both sides narrow, the U.S. Pentagon will think twice about taking on increasingly sophisticated Chinese naval vessels.

A traditional beach-landing on the Taiwan coastlinewhich might result in thousands upon thousands of casualties, and lead to worldwide condemnation of the CCPseems unlikely. More probable scenarios would include decapitation of the DPP leadership, followed by pro-Chinese appeasement tactics by a fifth column painstakingly nurtured by the CCP for years (Apple Daily, January 13; Tv.cntv.cn, January 8; Mil.ifeng.com, April 3, 2019). According to one version of a computerized war game, the PLA will use its missile force to decapitate the entire upper echelon of the DPP. The result would be immediate chaos and widespread panic, as there would not be any legal leaders left. At this stage, representatives of the fifth column (who may include Taiwan businesspeople and politicianssome might say characters similar to the defeated Kuomintang presidential candidate Han Kuo-yu) will attempt to take over the political arena. They will try to reassure the public by claiming that Xi Jinping will not invade Taiwan and that the mainland will prop up Taiwans economy on condition that Taiwanese jettison the DPP and immediately begin open and fair reunification talks with the CCP. [1] This and similar tactics are behind the billion dollars worth of preferential economic policies that Beijing showered on Taiwan before the DPPs Tsai came to power in 2016.

Taiwans Resilience and Will to Resist

According to an old dictum of Chairman Mao, the peoples will is the determinant of any major battle. The question for Taiwan is, do Taiwanese have the will to withstand the threats and blandishments from Beijing? Is the fifth column nurtured by Beijing, which consists of powerful politicians (especially from the KMT) and parts of the business elite, already very strong on the island? According to Yan Jian-fa, Vice-President of the Taiwan Foundation for Democracy, Taiwan has already become the playground for the fifth column (Tw.appledaily.com, February 19, 2019). For Tung Li-wen, a Professor of Public Security at the Central Police University, the fifth column has become a formidable actor in Taiwan politics. Sometimes, one requires courage to expose and criticize the CCP, he said. One example is that the CCP Propaganda Department already controls several influential newspapers and TV stations on the island (Itn.com.tw, January 18, 2019).

For many Taiwan academics and commentators, the massive support that various sectors of Taiwan have shown toward Hong Kongs recent anti-CCP political campaign demonstrates that Taiwan people have an iron will to counter Beijings united front tactics. However, one must not forget the fact that among the tens of thousands of big and small Taiwanese investors in the mainland, their future depends on Beijings largesse. Late last month, Tsai passed an Anti-Infiltration Law (, fan shentou fa) to stop Taiwan businesspeople, commentators and the media from openly praising the CCP and advocating peaceful talks with the Communists (Central News Agency, January 1; RTHK.hk, January 1; South China Morning Post, December 31, 2019).

It remains to be seen whether the peoples livelihood issuesparticularly improving the living standards of average Taiwanesewill enable Beijing to continue to win hearts and minds in Taiwan. After all, KMT candidate Han, who has been criticized for being pro-Beijing, won more than 5 million votes in the presidential polls. And Han apparently had only one strong point: his ability to appease the CCP and to persuade Beijing to grant preferential business policies to Taiwanese investors, merchants, and traders, as well as farmers and fishermen (BBC Chinese Service, December 31, 2019; Cn.nytimes.com, June 10, 2019). The appeal of suspected fifth columnists like Han must be taken seriously.

Taiwans Relations with the United States and Hong Kong

The historic victory of Tsai will likely exacerbate already tense relations between China and the United States. This is despite the fact that the DPP has apparently embraced the American agenda of maintaining the status quo in the Taiwan Strait instead of actively seeking independence. According to Xinhua, Tsais triumph was a function of the control of foreign dark forces and the intrusion of Western forces into the island (Xinhua, January 13). Part of the rationale behind the Tsai administrations defiance of the CCP was President Donald Trumps pledge to sell F-16 aircraft and other sophisticated weapons to the island. Quasi-diplomatic ties between the United States and Taiwan have also been elevated in the past year (China Brief, July 31, 2019).

The morning after the election, Tsai met with William Brent Christensen, the President of the American Institute in Taiwan (Washingtons de facto embassy on the island). She indicated that the Taiwan-U.S. partnership has already grown from a bilateral partnership to a global partnership. The two quasi-allies have continued to expand our cooperation across security, the economy, and our shared values based on the foundation of democracy and freedom, she said (Taiwan Presidential Office, January 12). The subtext of Tsais message seems to be that Taiwan would help Washingtons quasi-Cold War policy of containing an anti-democratic China. While Phase One of the U.S.-China trade accord was signed on January 15, Phase Two of the trade talks could touch upon issues including the Chinese party-states control of the economy, and geopolitical sticking points including Taiwan, Xinjiang and Hong Kong.

The Taiwan elections will also have a sizable impact on relations between Beijing and Hong Kong. Public administration Professor Xiang Cheng-hua of Taiwans Culture University is among a large number of observers who believe that the anti-Beijing crusade in Hong Kong over the past year has immensely benefited the Tsai campaign. The Hong Kong experience has made possible the spiritual mobilization of the DPP, he told the Taiwan media. And almost all young voters have been swayed [by the DPP] (United Daily News, January 11). It is significant that in her acceptance speech on election night, Tsai thanked her friends in Hong Kong for support. For President Xi, however, the Hong Kong rebellion that has helped Tsai will likely render him more disposed toward a hardline policy on the special administrative region (SAR). After all, Xi and many of his colleagues are convinced that the unpatriotic and intransigent anti-CCP mentality of Hong Kong residents has threatened the viability of one country two systems (China Brief, December 10, 2019). Xi has already mapped out plans to promote nationalism in Hong Kong schools, as well as to give more powers to the Hong Kong police to handle protests against Chinese rule (Radio French International Chinese Edition, January 12; Deutsche Welle Chinese Edition, January 12).

Conclusion

Overall, the possibility of the Xi administration admitting that the Tsai victory demonstrated imperfections in Beijings Taiwan policy is not high. This is despite the fact that at a recent year-end forum hosted by the Global Times, Wang Zaixi, a former deputy director of the Taiwan Affairs Office, indirectly admitted Beijings failure to win large numbers of converts on the island. Winning over the hearts of the people and doing well in work with the masses was always the Communist Partys strong suit, our special skill, Wang said at the forum. So why has it failed in the face of our Taiwan compatriots? Can you blame them? Wang noted that Beijing needed to reappraise its working methods and approach toward the breakaway island (New York Times Chinese Edition, January 9; Uzbcn.com, December 12, 2019). In early January, Xi fired Wang Zhimin, the Director of Beijings Central Liaison Office in Hong Kongwhose position is equivalent to acting as party secretary of the SARfor mishandling the anti-China protests in the former British colony. It is likely that the Taiwan Affairs Office will witness a reshuffle of top personnel soon. The probability, however, that the super-nationalist Xi will abandon his long-standing policy of trying to vanquish Taiwan by force remains low, given Xis poor understanding of the Taiwanese mentalityand the tradition that a top CCP leader must be seen to be tough to preserve his core status in the party.

Notes

[1] Authors interview with four sources with the rank of government bureau head or above, who are knowledgeable about the Taiwan Strait crisis.

.
Sen. Bob Mensch (R-24th District) announced this week a round of state grant funding for fire and EMS companies in Montgomery, Bucks and Berks counties in the 24th Senatorial District.

The grants are awarded as part of the Volunteer Fire Company and Volunteer Ambulance Company Grant Program, which helps eligible organizations fund facility renovations and construction, equipment purchases, debt reduction and training.

Firefighters and first responders are on the front lines of public safety in our communities, said Mensch in a statement.

Providing these grants is recognition that the equipment, training and other investments required to do this work properly are very expensive. Many of these fire companies are volunteer, and simply cannot bear the burden without support such as this, he said.

Communities in the North Penn and Souderton areas that will receive grant funding include:

Fairmount Fire Company of Lansdale  $11,718

Harleysville Area Emergency Medical Service  $9,192.44

Harleysville Community Fire Co.  $13,563.39

Skippack EMS  $9,192

Skippack Fire Co.  $14,248

Telford Volunteer Diving and Rescue Unit  $11,509

Trappe Fire Co. No. 1  $14,248

Towamencin Volunteer Fire Co.  $12,878

Volunteer Medical Service Corps of Lansdale  $9,192 and $12,878

Other grant recipients in Montgomery County include:

East Greenville Fire  $13,015

Empire Hook & Ladder Co. 1  $12,878

Gilbertsville Area Community Ambulance Service  $7,341

Gilbertsville Fire and Rescue Co. $14,111

Goodwill Steam Fire Engine Co. No. 1  $12,878 and $9,192

Green Lane Fire Co.  $12,194

Lower Frederick Fire Co.  $14,248

New Hanover Volunteer Fire & Rescue  $25,474

North End Fire Co.  $14,248

Pennsburg Fire Co. No. 1  $13,837

Perkiomen Township Fire Co. No. 1  $14,248

Philadelphia Steam Fire Engine Co. No. 1  $13,974

Red Hill Fire Co.  $13,700

Ringing Hill Fire Co.  $14,248

Tylersport Volunteer Fire Co.  $14,248

Upper Frederick Fire Co.  $12,952

Upper Perkiomen Valley Ambulance  $9,192

Upper Pottsgrove Township Fire Co. No. 1  $14,248

Upper Salford Volunteer Fire Co.  $13,015

West End Fire Co. No. 1  $14,248

For more information including a list of similar grant recipients in Bucks County and Berks County, visit www.SenatorMensch.com.
El-Oued (Algeria), 1 January 2020 (SPS) - 260 tonnes of humanitarian aid has been sent from El-Oued to the camps of Sahrawi refugees, the Algerian-Western Sahara Friendship Group told APS.



The caravan, which left Wednesday evening, carries various aid, including fruit, vegetables, foodstuffs and blankets, on board a dozen heavy-duty trucks, president of the Group, Abdallah Ghourabi, told APS.



Decided on by the Algerian-Western Sahara Friendship Group, the initiative is part of a humanitarian support programme aimed at strengthening the bonds of brotherhood and solidarity between Algerian and Sahrawi people, he said.



According to Ghourabi, the programming of this first caravan for the current year was decided the day after a recent visit by a delegation of the Foundation to the Saharawi refugee camps, during which they perceived the difficult living conditions endured by the Sahrawi people, who need a multifaceted solidarity assistance to alleviate their suffering.



Ghourabi also assured that the Algerian-Western Sahara Friendship Group will soon organize, in coordination with associations, other humanitarian caravans. (SPS)



062/SPS/APS
RICHMOND  Why would a legislator file a bill to do something he doesnt want done?

Del. Wendell Walker, R-Lynchburg, introduced a bill at the start of the General Assembly session calling for the removal of the statue of former governor and U.S. Sen. Harry F. Byrd from Capitol Square.

The reason I put that in was more of a political reason, Walker said.

Gov. Ralph Northam made remarks about his support for allowing local governments to remove Confederate monuments as well as creating a commission to recommend a replacement of the statue of Confederate Gen. Robert E. Lee that Virginia contributed to the U.S. Capitol grounds.

With all of the talk about taking down statues, Walker decided to file his bill about Byrd. He acknowledged it was more tit-for-tat rather than about a statue memorializing Byrd, who is well-known for his painful role in Virginias history.

Byrd is considered the architect of Massive Resistance, a set of policies that aggressively pushed back against racial integration of public schools following the landmark U.S. Supreme Court ruling in Brown v. Board of Education.

If were going to do this, then Im going to request to remove the Harry Byrd statue, Walker said. He was a Democrat and advocated for Massive Resistance.

Quite a few Democrats said they looked forward to voting for Walkers bill.

Id love to vote for the bill, said Del. Mark Sickles, D-Fairfax.

Walker didnt want the Byrd statue taken down, so he requested that it no longer be considered by the legislature.

I think history is very important, whether its good, bad or ugly, Walker said. I was not willing to allow the governor to have the opportunity to remove statues.

On Friday, the Democrat-controlled House Rules Committee rejected his request and asked that he come before the committee at a later date to explain why he wanted to scrap his bill.

I thought he was serious and had a reason for taking the statue down, and so he put in a bill in good faith, said House Majority Leader Charniele Herring, D-Alexandria, who asked that Walker come and speak to his request.

Herring, who is black, also said she looked forward to voting for the bill.

I walk by the statue of him and think, This is ridiculous,  she said.

After making the decision on Walkers bill, the committee turned to advancing a batch of bills dealing with repealing discriminatory language and segregation policies from the Virginia code.

Panel backs tax breaks for gun safes

A subcommittee of the House Finance Committee backed a proposal to provide a tax exemption for gun safes that cost $1,500 or less.

The proposal, introduced by House Speaker Eileen Filler-Corn, D-Fairfax, is one of the few gun-related bills that has the support of both gun control and gun rights groups. This is the second year that Filler-Corn has introduced this legislation.

What this bill would do is promote gun safety ownership by incentivizing it rather than penalizing it, Del. Rip Sullivan, D-Fairfax, said.

The bill advanced from the subcommittee to the full Finance Committee on a 5-1 bipartisan vote.

Del. Sam Rasoul, D-Roanoke, asked that his bill that would boost the sales tax by 15% on firearms and ammunition not be taken up this year. The money would have been put into a fund to support violence prevention programs.

Mark Levine, D-Alexandria, filed a similar bill, and the committee voted to have it considered next year. Del. Vivian Watts, D-Fairfax said the proposal did not rise to the top of the list of many gun violence bills filed this session, and it deserved more scrutiny.

Be the first to know Get local news delivered to your inbox! Sign up! * I understand and agree that registration on or use of this site constitutes agreement to its user agreement and privacy policy.
Zelensky, Erdogan to take part in Ukrainian-Turkish business forum in Kyiv on Feb 3

Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan will visit Ukraine on Monday, February 3, the press service of Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky has reported.

During the visit, a meeting with Zelensky and the holding of the eighth meeting of the Ukraine-Turkey High Level Strategic Council are planned. The parties will discuss ways to deepen strategic partnership and cooperation in all areas, after which the signing of Ukrainian-Turkish bilateral documents and a joint meeting with media representatives at 13:40 at the Mariyinsky Palace are expected.

Zelensky and Erdogan will also visit the Ukrainian-Turkish business forum, which will be held at the Ukrainian Chamber of Commerce and Industry.
New Delhi: Amid the scare caused by the outbreak of Coronavirus in China, Air flight's jumbo B747 plane carrying 324 Indians took off from Wuhan on Saturday (February 1) morning and landed in Delhi at around 7:30 am. According to PTI, there were five doctors from Ram Manohar Lohia (RML) Hospital and one paramedical staff on board, said an Air India spokesperson.

According to news agency ANI, the Indian nationals returning back from India will be kept at specially created quarantine centres for two weeks, as a precautionary measure. The Union Health Ministry informed that the government has made adequate quarantine centres at Manesar and Chawal camp.

"The national carrier once again comes to the rescue - this time to evacuate Indians from Wuhan, the site of the outbreak of coronavirus. This mission begins today with a Jumbo 747 operating between Delhi and Wuhan," AAir India Chairman and Managing Director Ashwani Lohan had said in a tweet on January 31.

Live TV

Sanjeeva Kumar, Special Secretary at the health ministry said that a team of doctors, public health specialists have been sent in the aircraft of Air India. "The incoming Indian passengers will be quarantined for 14 days at the two Quarantine Centres set-up at Manesar (managed by Armed Forces Medical Services) and Chawla Camp (managed by ITBP). About 80 male passengers are proposed to be sent to Manesar Camp and families/females (approximately 90) can be housed in the ITBP camp."

In addition, a 50-bedded critical care facility has been set-up at Safdurjung Hospital in Delhi for the critical care of the patients. All persons admitted to both the quarantine facilities will be monitored on a daily basis for a period of 14 days.

A nodal officer will be deputed from each Ministry of Home Affairs, Ministry of Defence and Ministry of External Affairs for effective coordination.

The flight had departed from Delhi airport at 1.17 pm on January 31 to evacuate Indian nationals from China, where more than 250 people - none of them Indian - have died due to novel coronavirus. On Friday evening, the Air India spokesperson had stated that another special flight may take off from Delhi airport on Saturday to evacuate Indians from Wuhan.

The death toll from the novel coronavirus outbreak in China has risen to 259 with total confirmed cases surging to 11,791 amid stepped up efforts by a number of countries to evacuate their nationals from Hubei province, the epicentre of the virus, officials said on Saturday.
Scott Weaver, the former manager of Marysville Borough, has pleaded guilty in county court to nine charges of corruption and theft relating to an alleged bribery scheme going back five years that cost the borough $29,000, according to online court documents and prosecutors.

The guilty plea is an abrupt change in the case, which was nearing trial this year.

We werent positive we were going to pick a jury this month or not, said District Attorney Andrew Bender.

Weaver, 58, of Enola, had pleaded not guilty in May of last year to the charges, which originally included felony bribery and conflict of interest, as well as misdemeanor theft by unlawful taking and corruption.

Weaver entered the guilty plea agreement on Jan. 14 before President Judge Kathy Morrow, according to court documents. The felony charges of conflict of interest and accepting improper influence  state statutes to punish corruption of public officials  were dismissed. Instead, Weaver pleaded guilty to charges in the regular criminal code. The guilty pleas include one charge of misdemeanor theft by unlawful taking, and eight misdemeanor charges of being a corrupt employee, agent or fiduciary.

We pursued what we believed would be the strongest case, Bender said, noting that maximum sentences for the felonies would be the same as the misdemeanors. The first-degree misdemeanor would carry a maximum penalty of five years in prison and a $10,000 fine, he said.

A sentencing hearing for Weaver is scheduled for March 5 at the courthouse in New Bloomfield.

Bender said Weavers plea agreement includes a provision to pay Marysville Borough more than $29,000 in restitution. Thats the amount of borough money that was spent in four years through inflated purchases of cleaning supplies.

Part of the reason for the plea agreement was that the taxpayers be fully repaid, Bender said.

In May 2019, Weaver was arrested by state police and charged with accepting bribes, corruption, and theft for taking gift cards worth hundreds of dollar from Florida companies that sold cleaning supplies to Marysville.

Soon after, Marysvilles council fired Weaver as borough manager. He also resigned leadership posts with the Marysville Fire Company.

Police said, between 2015 and 2018, Weaver had taken Bass Pro gift cards sent from Prestige Chemicals and Nationwide Chemical Products, the Florida companies selling cleaning supplies. The gift cards were in exchange for Weavers making increased purchases from the companies, which borough employees told police Marysville did not need. The gift cards would arrive about a week after the borough paid the bills for cleaning supplies.

Police were able to track the gift cards, which Weaver used in 2017 and 2018 to buy $629 worth of goods at Bass Pro in Harrisburg.

At this time, Bender said no charges have been filed against anyone else in the case.

Jim T. Ryan can be reached via e-mail at jtryan@perrycountytimes.com
United Nations, Feb 1 : The United Nations is urgently seeking ways to scale up aid in the face of reports of continuing airstrikes and shelling in northwest Syria that have claimed the lives of dozens, including women and children, a UN spokesman has said.

Recent reports indicate airstrikes and shelling continue in southern Idlib with frontlines moving quickly along the M5 highway towards Saraqeb, said Stephane Dujarric, spokesman for UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres.

The United Nations and humanitarian organizations are urgently looking at all options to increase humanitarian aid for displaced families, Xinhua news agency reported.

"Across numerous villages, dozens of civilians, including women and children, have reportedly been killed or injured in the fighting," Dujarric told reporters at a regular briefing. "Many medical facilities have suspended activities due to growing insecurity." Humanitarian organizations are still trying to organize and support evacuations of people seeking to leave Ariha, Saraqeb and the surrounding areas, he said, adding that many civilians are leaving spontaneously by whatever means available.

In Idlib, an already dire situation is getting worse, the spokesman said. Families are traumatized and feel totally abandoned by the world. Their message is simple: "We are afraid. Please help us. Make it stop." The United Nations urges all parties to the conflict to spare civilians and civilian infrastructure and to facilitate humanitarian activities without hindrance, he said. For humanitarian reasons and as a matter of international humanitarian law, human suffering must be minimized.
Very. While economies around the world have decelerated recently, India has slammed into a wall: In just over a year, economic growth tumbled by nearly half from a rate of 8 percent to 4.5 percent in the latest quarter. For a developed country, that would still be a healthy rate of expansion. But in a developing economy like India that hopes to pull tens of millions out of poverty and employ a young and burgeoning workforce, it feels almost like a recession.
Prime Minster Mahinda Rajapaksa pays a courtesy visit to NSBM Green University View(s):

Displaying goodwill and appreciation to NSBM Green University and its many efforts to Drive the nation towards a knowledge-based economy, Prime Minister of Sri Lanka,Mahinda Rajapaksa, paid a courtesy visit to the university premises in Homagama on 27th January 2020.

The Prime Minister was welcomed by Prof. E.A. Weerasinghe Vice-Chancellor, NSBM and The Management. The Minister of Higher Education, Technology and Innovation, Dr.Bandula Gunawardane also graced the occasion.

This visit is significant as its the first visit to NSBM, a project which commenced under his Presidency in 2011.

The Prime Minister appreciated the efforts of NSBM Green University in continuously elevating the standards of higher education in order to align with The countrys need of the hour  intellectual empowerment, whilst being a self-financed Government-owned institute.

The Vice-Chancellor also briefed the Prime Minister on the Universitys future plans and expansions, as it begins constructions in another 16 acres of Land, adjoining the current premises, which shall encompass a School of Nursing, in addition to Faculties of Law and Humanities.
Representative Image (REUTERS/Denis Balibouse/Illustration)

Most power stocks jumped in intraday trade on February 1 after the Finance Minister Nirmala Sithraman in her Budget speech announced allocation of Rs 22,000 crore to the power and renewable energy sector.

A total allocation of Rs 22,000 crore will be given to the power and renewable sector, said Sitharaman.

The Finance Minister also proposed a new scheme of smart meters will be launched.

"Here, the prepaid meters will give freedom to give consumers to choose suppliers and rate as per their requirement," said FM.

Shares of Adani Green jumped 5 percent while those of GVK Power, Suryachakra Power, Adani Transmission jumped up to 4 percent.

Besides, the government expressed its intent to help farmers set up solar power units. Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman in her Budget 2020 speech said that the government is going to help farmers to set up solar power units. The government is expanding 'PM Kusum Scheme' to 20 lakh farmers to set up solar pumps.

"Solar plans for agri and railways will boost Indias renewable energy sector," said CRISIL.
VANCOUVER, BC / ACCESSWIRE / January 31, 2020 / GREAT ATLANTIC RESOURCES CORP. (TSXV:GR) (the "Company" or "Great Atlantic") is pleased to announce that is has closed the first tranche of the non-brokered private placement previously announced on January 13, 2020 for gross proceeds of $210,000. The units of the financing are comprised of one common share at a price of $0.50 and a full share purchase warrant, which may be exercised for a period of 18 months at a price of $0.75 per share. The term of the warrants may be accelerated in the event that the issuer's shares trade at or above a price of $1 per share for a period of 10 consecutive days. In such case of accelerated warrants, the issuer may give notice, in writing or by way of news release, to the subscribers that the warrants will expire 30 days from the date of providing such notice. The hold expiry date for this financing is May 28, 2020. The proceeds of the private placement will be used for general working capital and exploration work on the Company's properties.

On Behalf of the Board of Directors

"Christopher R Anderson"

Mr. Christopher R. Anderson "Always be positive, strive for solutions, and never give up"

President CEO Director

604-488-3900 - Dir

Investor Relations:

Please call 604-488-3900

About Great Atlantic Resources Corp.: Great Atlantic Resources Corp. is a Canadian exploration company focused on the discovery and development of mineral assets in the resource-rich and sovereign risk-free realm of Atlantic Canada, one of the number one mining regions of the world. Great Atlantic is currently surging forward building the company utilizing a Project Generation model, with a special focus on the most critical elements on the planet that are prominent in Atlantic Canada, Antimony, Tungsten and Gold.

This press release includes certain statements that may be deemed "forward-looking statements". All statements in this release, other than statements of historical facts, that address future exploration drilling, exploration activities and events or developments that the Company expects, are forward looking statements. Although the Company believes the expectations expressed in such forward-looking statements are based on reasonable assumptions, such statements are not guarantees of future performance and actual results or developments may differ materially from those in forward-looking statements. Factors that could cause actual results to differ materially from those in forward-looking statements include exploitation and exploration successes, continued availability of financing, and general economic, market or business conditions.

Neither TSX Venture Exchange nor its Regulation Services Provider (as that term is defined in the policies of the TSX Venture Exchange) accepts responsibility for the adequacy or accuracy of this release.

SOURCE: Great Atlantic Resources Corp.

View source version on accesswire.com:https://www.accesswire.com/574898/Great-Atlantic-Provides-Corporate-Update
STATEN ISLAND, N.Y. -- Though Staten Island Chuck may be the furry face of weather-predicting groundhogs in New York City, people across the country often turn to Punxsutawney Phil to find out whether or not they can pack away their winter coats.

Every year, thousands of people travel to Punxsutawney, Pa., on Groundhog Day, Feb. 2, to see Phil make his annual prediction in Gobblers Knob.

Local legend has it that if Phil sees his shadow, winter will last for six more weeks, but if he doesnt see his shadow, we can expect an early spring.

But just how accurate is Phil?

We compared Phil's previous predictions to data from the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA).

The data, which is only available until 2017, shows that over the course of 29 years, Phil was completely correct only 13 times. However, in some years, Phils predictions received a mixed grade, when temperatures fell below-average in February, then rose to above-average for a warm March.

The table shows no predictive skill for the groundhog during the most recent years of this analysis, the NOAA reports.

From 1887 to 2017, Phil predicted long-lasting winters 103 times while predicting only 18 early springs. During that time, there were 10 years where no record of Phils prediction were documented.

Stormfax, an independent almanac with Groundhog Day predictions dating back to 1887, claims that Punxsutawney Phil has been right just 39% of the time.

For comparisons sake, our Hometown Hog, Staten Island Chuck, has a 79% accuracy rate since 1981, with just one inaccurate prediction in the past decade.
When Rodger Corsers party boy heart surgeon Dr Hugh Knight, was sentenced in 2016 to a years probation in a general practice in his hometown, the fictional backwater of Whyhope, the #Me Too movement was yet to shake the entertainment industry. Four seasons ago, Nines local romantic comedy could get away with a doctors-and-nurses fantasy. Now, says, Corser, who is also co-producer, the balance of power between Hugh and his romantic interests is a consideration. Hence, his next fling is with a doctor.

Our show was never Californication, says Corser, referencing Showtimes 2007 comedy starring David Duchovny as a philandering writer. People describe Hugh as a womaniser but hes had semi-consistent long-term relationships. The difference between season one and season four is that we were quite conscious of the hierarchical structure. Kate (Jenkinson from Wentworth) plays Tara, a female version of Hugh. They become each others enablers  having a lot of fun but ultimately spiralling.

Its not a good outlook for the single father of baby Eliza, whose American mother has fled the scene. Luckily, Whyhope has its share of strong women to admonish Hugh and pick up the pieces. This season, Robyn Nevin arrives as Dinah, Elizas American grandmother, joining a cast that includes Hayley McElhinney and Nicole da Silva (both as Hughs former flames), and Tina Bursill as Meryl, Hughs mum and the town mayor. Corsers Glitch castmate, Dustin Clare, also joins as a love rival.

For Lothario to be palatable now, he must be kept in check. Every scene of hedonistic abandon (theres a doozy straight up, involving Tara and recurring pharmaceutical rep, Kimberley, played by Vanessa Buckley), has sobering consequences for the leading man.

A two-dimensional bad boy or girl is a bit boring. Its fine to be flawed and everyone has a bit of ego. But if you make that decision that the character is going to go through a personal crisis because of their behaviour, that makes them accountable to themselves. Or theyll double down and be in denial, but just explore the repercussions of peoples actions.

With showrunner Tony McNamara lost to bigger things after his black comedy, The Favourite won a BAFTA, its up to Keith Thompson (whose substantial body of screenwriting includes The Sapphires) to keep the long-running commercial drama from slipping into soap territory.
Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman may hike customs duties on more than 50 items comprising chemicals, electrical products and handicrafts in her second budget announcement.

The finance minister is likely to make this announcement in her budget 2020 speech as the government is aiming at nearly $56 billion worth of imports from China and elsewhere.

She may also make other announcements along with other measures to revive slackening economic growth.

FULL COVERAGE:Union Budget 2020

The hike in import duty is expected to affect goods such as candles, handicraft items, industrial chemicals, jewellery, lamps, mobile phone chargers and wooden furniture, government sources told Reuters.

The move could hit smartphone manufacturers that still import chargers or other components such as vibrator motors and ringers, along with retailers such as giant IKEA that is in the process of expanding its footprint in India.

ALSO READ:Budget 2020 Date: When is Union Budget, Expectations from Modi govt, Time, where to watch

IKEA had previously flagged higher Indian customs duties as a challenge.

The government had identified items and decided to increase import tariffs by 5%-10% as recommended by a panel of trade and finance ministry officials, among others, a government official told the news agency.

"Our aim is to curb imports of non-essential items," said the official, adding a hike in import duties would provide a level playing field for local manufacturers hit by cheap imports from China, the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN), and other countries that enjoy trade pacts with India.

Also Read: Budget 2020 Live Updates: FM Nirmala Sitharaman to present budget at 11 AM; middle class, corporate await surprise

Since taking charge in 2014, Prime Minister Narendra Modi has imposed several restrictions on imports while allowing more foreign investment in manufacturing, defence and other sectors.

The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) has also asked the government to increase duties on non-essential items to boost local manufacturing.

"We expect the budget will address the issue of ... cheap imports under free trade pacts," Gopal Krishan Agarwal, the head of BJP's Economic Affairs Cell, told the news agency.

Also Read:Budget 2020: Watch Live Streaming on Aaj Tak, India Today, live telecast channels

India's goods imports, which had been growing faster than exports in the last several years, fell around 8.90% during the April-December period from year-earlier levels, compared to a roughly 2% decline in exports.

This has helped the Modi administration cut its trade deficit that stood at $118 billion during April-December, down from $148 billion a year earlier.
BAKU, Azerbaijan, Feb. 1

Trend:

The 12th meeting of the intergovernmental commission on economic cooperation between Azerbaijan and Ukraine has been recently held in Kyiv, Trend reports referring to the Azerbaijani Ministry of Energy.

Azerbaijani Minister of Energy, co-chairman of the commission Parviz Shahbazov said that crude oil was among the main products exported from Azerbaijan to Ukraine in 2019.

SOCAR Energy Ukraine company has so far invested more than $304 million, the minister said. The company has more than 60 filling stations and four oil depots in this country. SOCARs proposals on expanding its activity in Ukraine and development of cooperation in non-oil sector, along with the oil and gas sector, renewable energy and energy efficiency, are among the potential new spheres of economic ties between Azerbaijan and Ukraine.

As part of this visit, we review the infrastructure projects in Odessa and Kyiv and listened to the suggestions, the minister added. I think that following these discussions we will be able to implement joint investment projects in many spheres and further strengthen our cooperation. There is a political will, intentions and ample opportunities for this. We are open to the cooperation in all spheres and I think that the meeting of the commission will contribute to the settlement of these issues."

A protocol was signed following the meeting of the Intergovernmental Commission.

Moreover, the sides signed Memorandum of Cooperation between the Ministry of Energy of Azerbaijan and the Ministry of Energy and Environmental Protection of Ukraine and the Agreement between the Cabinet of Ministers of Ukraine and the Government of Azerbaijan on cooperation between the diplomatic mission and employees of consular agencies related to the paid activities carried out by the members of their families.

The Agreement on cooperation between the executive power of the city of Nakhchivan and the state administration of the Lviv region, Memorandum on mutual understanding between the Agency for Development of Small and Medium-Sized Enterprises of Azerbaijan and the Chamber of Commerce and Industry of Ukraine, Agreement on scientific and technical cooperation between the Research Institute of Viticulture and Winemaking of the Ministry of Agriculture of Azerbaijan and the Institute of Viticulture and Winemaking of Ukraine were also signed.
Figures from the National Health Commission showed an increase of 45 in the death toll and 2,590 in the number of cases for a total of 14,380, well above the number of those infected in in the 2002-03 outbreak of SARS, or severe acute respiratory syndrome, which broke out in southern China before spreading worldwide.
London: That ... was it? Given all the division, the turmoil, the political carnage and the economic upheaval, the most remarkable thing about this chapter in history is how unremarkably it concluded.

Slipping by late on Friday night, Britain's formal departure from the European Union had all the energy and excitement of someone who was desperate to just hit the sack at the end of a big week. Or in the case of Brexit, a very big decade.

Brexit supporters gather outside Parliament to mark the moment. Credit:Getty Images

"I voted Leave in 2016 but I really couldn't give a toss about all the celebrations tonight," said retired cook Jenny Blake, who was enjoying a pint in a pub just a few blocks away from a rally outside Downing Street and the Palace of Westminster. "It's good it is finally happening but it's not like everyone is jumping out of their skin."

The United Kingdom formally left the bloc at 11pm following 47 years of membership, however the existing relationship will remain in place during an 11-month transition period in which new trade, security and immigration deals will have to be thrashed out.
Louisiana needs to take a deeper look at how it uses fines and fees to pay for its courts, because the current system doesn't raise enough money and hurts poor, vulnerable residents. That's the conclusion of an unofficial report sent to the Legislature by the Louisiana Commission on Justice System Funding this week.

The Commission approved recommendations Thursday to expand research on criminal fines and fees and create consistent standard for how they are reported.

"We've all acknowledged we have more work to do," said Rep. Tanner Magee (R-Houma) in Thursday's meeting.

Established by the Legislature in 2019, the commission was designed to research and recommend ways to fund the court system during the implementation of Louisiana's 2017 criminal justice reforms. Those reforms were intended to, among other goals, remove barriers to successful re-entry for people leaving prison.

And court fees, according to advocates, create real, lasting challenges for formerly incarcerated people struggling to fulfill the requirements of their parole  or for those trying to comply with their probation terms to avoid prison time.

Fees ranging from the cost of regular drug tests to bills from the public defender can leave people in the system scrambling to make ends meet so that they don't miss a payment.

We hear from clients all the time I know that shes going to ask me to make a payment and I dont have the money to pay," said Sarah Whittington, staff attorney with the advocacy group the Justice and Accountability Center of Louisiana. "You go into court and its shameful to say, I dont have the money to pay."

A 2019 study from the Prison Policy Initiative noted that 69 percent of Louisianans on probation make less than $20,000 annually, further pressuring individuals and families already struggling to afford essentials like housing and groceries.

Whittington noted that if a probationer skips a court date out of fear they cannot pay a required fee, a warrant may be issued for their arrest. Similarly, if they miss out on a program required by their probation, they could be found in technical violation of their sentence. This places them at risk of having their probation revoked, she said.

"If a person is arrested and unable to afford an attorney, then they are not likely to be able to afford the hundreds or thousands of dollars in fees at the conclusion of their case," said East Baton Rouge Public Defender and commission member Lindsay Blouin.

One part of the 2017 criminal justice reform package was a new law that says probationers cannot be imprisoned solely because they can't pay fines and fees. It aims to address the very issue Whittington and others have identified.

But the effective date for this act has been pushed back twice, according to an unofficial draft of the commission's report, primarily due to concerns about how the state's courts will be funded if they cannot collect the fines and fees that constitute a significant portion of their revenue.

Louisiana's courts are overly reliant on fines and fees, the report says, placing the system at risk of financial collapse and compromising the administration of justice. A 2018 legislative audit revealed self-generated funds covered an estimated 51 percent of district court spending and an estimated 71 percent of city and parish court spending  rendering a large chunk of a court's income reliant on inconsistent funding streams.

Instead, the report suggests, the system should be funded primarily from the state general revenue, a far more stable source.

+2 East Baton Rouge Metro Council approves supplemental funding for DA, public defender's office The East Baton Rouge Parish Metro Council approved a nearly half million dollar budget supplement Wednesday for the District Attorneys Office

The report says the current funding model is ineffective and unreliable, at the ever-fluctuating whim of traffic tickets, crimes committed and people in the system actually able to pay. Sometimes, a jurisdiction will end up spending more to incarcerate people unable to pay the fines and fees than they collect in revenue each year.

For instance, the Vera Institute of Justice reported that the City of New Orleans spent $6.4 million to jail people who could not make these payments in 2015, but managed to collect only $4.5 million in fines and fees  spending more than it collected.

Top stories in Baton Rouge in your inbox Twice daily we'll send you the day's biggest headlines. Sign up today. e-mail address * Sign Up

While members of the commission have acknowledged the abundant inefficiencies of the current fiscal model, attempts to investigate the system have been stymied by a dearth of consistent reporting data. The legislative auditor tasked with surveying district courts in recent years realized there is no standardized method for reporting how much money was collected in fines and fees in a given year between jurisdictions, or even a set way to determine how such income was dispersed between agencies.

"This extreme level of opacity creates conditions ripe for abuse," the report notes. In earlier meetings, members of the commission questioned whether this inability to accurately assess a court's funding basics could leave the system susceptible to fraud.

In addition to expanding the commission's mandate to assess all costs associated with Louisiana courts, the commission recommended on Thursday that the Legislature require a uniform reporting system for all court revenue to ensure transparency.

Beyond these concerns, the report emphasizes how a system dependent on fines and fees further entrenches "poverty and racial disparities," often by targeting poor communities of color, jailing those unable to pay.

Baton Rouge grant to address racial imbalances in fines, fees that can have 'rippling effect' Fines for nonviolent offenses like traffic tickets start out small but can snowball into crippling debt, especially for people already struggl

"The laws are vague enough to allow the criminal legal system to incarcerate people for being poor, said Vanessa Spinazola, executive director of the Justice and Accountability Center of Louisiana.

Furthermore, if a person can't pay the court fees, in many cases family will step in to cover them, placing the onus of a person's poverty on their community and loved ones.

"When these families have to come together to support the incarcerated person or formerly incarcerated person, youre actually draining money from the entire family or community just to try and get them out of jail if necessary, or to try and keep them out," Whittington said. "It just creates a lot of instability for the person, but also for the family, and making sure that family can stay together in a supportive environment."

There are an estimated 1200-plus collateral consequences of incarceration in the state of Louisiana alone, ranging from restricted employment to severely limited housing options, according to a tally by the federal National Reentry Resource Center. Spinazola noted that incarceration and re-incarceration as a result of unpaid fines and fees may have devastating consequences down the road.

"Just because you have this scarlet 'A' of a criminal record, its a cycle for your whole life," she said. "Its a generational cycle that affects your kids and your kids kids."

The commission will deliver their recommendations, along with the report, to the Legislature for consideration during the 2020 regular session.

"The commission's work this year highlighted that the criminal justice system cannot continue to be primarily funded through user paid fines and fees," Blouin said. "With the commission's recommendation to implement a uniform reporting system, I am hopeful that we can get an accurate and complete picture of the full impact that fines and fees have on our communities."

Prison reform advocates tackle Baton Rouge's 'broken' bail system, call for changes Bail records are still being faxed from the 19th Judicial District courthouse to East Baton Rouge Parish Prison, a sometimes slow and unreliab

Advocates, meanwhile, are hopeful this conversation will lead to decisive action.

Spinazola, while cautiously optimistic, emphasized that another year's delay could be potentially catastrophic for the average person overwhelmed by the requisite fines and fees of their probation.

"The people that this is affecting cant wait," Spinzaola said. "Every day there are so many Louisianans whose lives are being derailed because its taking so long to do. I hope that theres still some will and some heart to continue to make changes this year and not wait."
A central team of health officials visits a hospital in Hyderabad to review preparedness for surveillance of suspected novel coronavirus (nCoV) cases on Tuesday, Jan. 28, 2020. (PTI Photo)

HYDERABAD: The Telangana government has set up a 24-hour call centre (040-24651119) to clarify queries on the global coronavirus outbreak.

The states health minister said Saturday that 11 of the 18 samples tested for the novel coronavirus (nCoV) in the state have returned negative.

Eighteen people have so far sought medical help, of whom 11 have tested negative. Results of seven other samples are awaited, an official release said.

Rajender said tests to determine positive cases of cornonavirus would be conducted in Hyderabad from Monday as the centre government has despatched diagnostic kits for the purpose.

Samples from Telangana were till now being sent to the National Institute of Virology (NIV) in Pune.

The government has earlier urged the Centre to provide the kits for the tests in the city as government hospitals in the city have advanced facilities.

Advising people not to panic, Rajender asked them to follow safety measures like washing their hands to check its spread.
Source: Freenome

Getting a blood test to screen for cancer in the earliest stages might seem like a pipe dream. But a group of biotech entrepreneurs say they're close to making it a reality. If Gabriel Otte's start-up, Freenome, is successful, millions of people could get a blood test to screen for early-stage colorectal cancer. Freenome looks for two major biomarkers in the blood. It's simultaneously hunting for tiny fragments of DNA that are shed into the bloodstream from a tumor, as well as early signals that the patient's immune system is starting to respond. The medical industry has known for years that that blood-based "liquid biopsies" can find signatures of cancer. But the tests on the market today focus on monitoring the progression of the disease once a patient has been diagnosed with cancer, including how it's responding to treatment. The next generation of companies want to detect cancer while it's early and often easier to treat. These companies have connections to some of tech's giants. Freenome has funding and close ties to Alphabet's Verily, while Grail, another company in the space, is backed by Amazon. Thrive, the new kid on the block, is financed by former Google Ventures chief Bill Maris' new fund, Section 32, and a slew of other health investors. All three of them say they're starting to see results that could someday help their technologies save millions of lives.

Freenome's latest study shows promising results

Otte, who started the company in 2014 with his co-founder Riley Ennis, wasn't always intending to focus on colorectal cancer. In the company's early days, he used a nascent version of Freenome test to diagnose his dad with prostate cancer after a screening test came back negative. For a while, the company looked at prostate cancer as a first focus for its test and Otte is still hoping to bring that to market at some point. But Freenome, which is backed by more than $230 million in venture capital, honed in on colorectal cancer because so many patients avoid getting colonoscopies and providing stool samples for analysis. It's also a common cancer type, with the American Cancer Society estimating that there will be more than 150,000 new cases of the condition in the United States alone this year, and it's the second deadliest cancer after lung cancer. There are some promising signs the approach is working. This month, Freenome started releasing data from its prospective study of 3,000 participants. For the study, it recruited healthy patients undergoing a routine colonoscopy and those who were recently diagnosed with colorectal cancer. It asked the group for both fecal and blood samples. The company said it analyzed a "statistically significant" sub-cohort of 574 of the 3,000 patients. Otte shared in an interview that the test picked up on 32 people with cancer and missed a few cases. The company demonstrated a sensitivity of 94 percent, and specificity of 94 percent for early-stage colorectal cancer overall. In other words, it provided some false positive results, meaning it alerted someone to cancer that did not show up in further tests 6 percent of the time, and it missed several of the patients that did in fact have cancer. Otte said that Freenome's test performed better than the stool test in a side-by-side comparison, and that far fewer people returned the fecal samples than blood. The company's next study, which represents a step towards FDA approval, will involve more than 10,000 patients. "Within three years from now, we will hopefully see this test FDA approved and out so it can begin to save lives," Otte explained. Public market investors are keeping a close eye on Freenome, and the results from its prospective study caused major fluctuations to the stock price for its competitor Exact Sciences, which also provides a DNA based approach to colon cancer screening called Cologuard. Exact requires a stool sample that can be collected from home.

Bert Vogelstein, a leading cancer researcher Johns Hopkins Kimmel Cancer Center

While Freenome is focused on colorectal cancer, Thrive and Grail are working on tests that can sniff out multiple types. Thrive, the new kid on the block, is looking to commercialize a cancer-detecting blood test developed by researchers out of Johns Hopkins including oncology professor Dr. Bert Vogelstein. The company says it's already identified pancreatic and ovarian cancers, two of the deadliest types, for its screening test.

Which is worse: False positives, or false negatives?
Special team to tackle coronavirus threat; first patient cured and cleared By Kumudini Hettiarachchi, Ruqyyaha Deane and Meleeza Rathnayake View(s): View(s):

As health officials fine-tuned Sri Lankas multi-pronged campaign to face the threat posed by the new coronavirus, the Chinese tourist who was detected with the infection (2019-nCoV) has been declared safe to be discharged from hospital.

She doesnt have the virus now, Director-General of Health Services, Dr. Anil Jasinghe told the Sunday Times on Saturday evening.

The ultra-modern coronavirus test, which Sri Lanka has at the Medical Research Institute, has now come negative in the case of the Chinese tourist, it is learnt.

A senior health official, Dr. Hemantha Herath, meanwhile, has been appointed as the overall coordinator to oversee all operations with regard to combating the nCoV, while a three-member committee has also been set up drawing from three crucial institutions which are in the frontline. The committee members are from the sectors of health, airport and aviation and immigration and emigration. Dr. Herath is well-equipped and conversant in handling this crisis, Dr. Jasinghe said. He is the coordinator of the ministrys disaster preparedness unit and oversaw the work at Menik Farm in Vavuniya as the North-East conflict was drawing to an end.

Thirty-three Sri Lankans, including 25 students, who were living in the locked down city of Wuhan, China, arrived at Mattala airport last morning and have been quarantined in well-equipped rooms specially built by the army in Diyatalawa.

As the World Health Organisation (WHO) declared a Public Health Emergency of International Concern (PHEIC) on Thursday, all those entering Sri Lanka were required to fill detailed Health Declaration Forms. These forms are given to all passengers onboard the flights, said Dr. Jasinghe, adding that they are also issued an information sheet with details about the virus, how to protect themselves and hotlines to call if needed.

When contacted by the Sunday Times, Sri Lankas SARS buster based in Hong Kong, Prof. Malik Peiris said that there is clearly human-to-human transmission with the nCoV.

At this point we are not sure how efficient this is. But clearly, most of the recent cases are as a result of human-to-human transmission. Not new bat to human jumps. The question of whether it will become a pandemic is unclear, he said, adding that there is hope that the strong measures put in place by mainland China would reduce the transmission sufficiently to bring the outbreak in China under control.

Reiterating that what other countries need to do is to avoid the chance of the virus getting established, Prof. Peiris expressed worry over reports from Germany and Japan that there were some local transmissions from imported cases.

However, detection of the first case of nCoV or possibly even some more cases does not mean that the virus is transmitting within Sri Lanka. At the moment, there is no reason for panic, he added.

Meanwhile, the Lancet, a weekly peer-reviewed medical journal, has published online on January 24, the first study conducted with regard to the nCoV by Chaolin Huang et al titled Clinical features of patients infected with 2019 novel coronavirus in Wuhan, China.

Port on health alert, as two cruise ships arrive Two large passenger liners, including the Queen Mary, will be arriving at the Colombo harbour next Wednesday with nearly 5,000 passengers set to disembark. One of the ships, the Bowdice will be arriving from Indo-China countries that have been hit by the coronavirus, but health authorities said they were ready to check the passengers, some of whom would be leaving the country via the BIA to their next destination.

The high-end passengers from both these cruise ships are also scheduled to do local tours after they disembark. There were concerns that the Colombo port was not geared to meet the challenge of testing incoming passengers unlike the BIA.
FARMINGTON  Two women accused of abusing an Aztec boy diagnosed with Down syndrome were found guilty on multiple counts, including child abuse, on Friday.

Lindsey Moss and Dallas Baron were convicted in separate jury trials in Aztec District Court, according to a news release from the New Mexico Office of the Attorney General.

Court records show that Moss faced three felony charges of child abuse, a felony count of contributing to the delinquency of a minor and two petty misdemeanor counts of battery. Baron was charged with two felony counts of child abuse, according to court records.

The Attorney Generals Office news release states that, while babysitting the boy, Moss and Baron made video recordings of themselves throwing items at the child, teaching him to smoke from a bong and pushing around him.

The women were heard laughing about their actions in the recordings, the release states.

The two incidents occurred in May 2017 when Moss and Baron were looking after then-8-year-old Bricen Greenhaus, according to Daily Times archives.

No child, especially children with special needs, should have to be put through such abusive bullying by the people entrusted to protect them, Attorney General Hector Balderas said in the release.

San Juan County District Attorney Rick Tedrow said in the release that he was pleased with the verdicts.

District Court Judge Daylene Marsh ordered Moss and Baron to undergo 60-day diagnostic evaluations at the New Mexico Behavioral Health Institute in Las Vegas before sentencing, which has not been scheduled.

Moss faces a prison sentence up to eight years and Baron faces a prison sentence up to 11, according to the release.
Even if it's not a huge purchase, we think it was good to see that Shun Tsing Yang, the Executive Director of Microware Group Limited (HKG:1985) recently shelled out HK$353k to buy stock, at HK$0.73 per share. That might not be a big purchase but it only increased their holding by 0.2%, and could be interpreted as a good sign.

View our latest analysis for Microware Group

Microware Group Insider Transactions Over The Last Year

In fact, the recent purchase by Shun Tsing Yang was the biggest purchase of Microware Group shares made by an insider individual in the last twelve months, according to our records. That means that an insider was happy to buy shares at above the current price of HK$0.72. While their view may have changed since the purchase was made, this does at least suggest they have had confidence in the company's future. To us, it's very important to consider the price insiders pay for shares is very important. It is encouraging to see an insider paid above the current price for shares, as it suggests they saw value, even at higher levels. Shun Tsing Yang was the only individual insider to buy shares in the last twelve months.

Shun Tsing Yang bought a total of 1.03m shares over the year at an average price of HK$0.80. You can see the insider transactions (by individuals) over the last year depicted in the chart below. If you click on the chart, you can see all the individual transactions, including the share price, individual, and the date!

SEHK:1985 Recent Insider Trading, January 31st 2020

There are always plenty of stocks that insiders are buying. So if that suits your style you could check each stock one by one or you could take a look at this free list of companies. (Hint: insiders have been buying them).

Insider Ownership of Microware Group

Looking at the total insider shareholdings in a company can help to inform your view of whether they are well aligned with common shareholders. Usually, the higher the insider ownership, the more likely it is that insiders will be incentivised to build the company for the long term. Microware Group insiders own 72% of the company, currently worth about HK$155m based on the recent share price. Most shareholders would be happy to see this sort of insider ownership, since it suggests that management incentives are well aligned with other shareholders.

Story continues

So What Does This Data Suggest About Microware Group Insiders?

It's certainly positive to see the recent insider purchase. And the longer term insider transactions also give us confidence. When combined with notable insider ownership, these factors suggest Microware Group insiders are well aligned, and quite possibly think the share price is too low. Looks promising! I like to dive deeper into how a company has performed in the past. You can find historic revenue and earnings in this detailed graph.

If you would prefer to check out another company -- one with potentially superior financials -- then do not miss this free list of interesting companies, that have HIGH return on equity and low debt.

For the purposes of this article, insiders are those individuals who report their transactions to the relevant regulatory body. We currently account for open market transactions and private dispositions, but not derivative transactions.

If you spot an error that warrants correction, please contact the editor at editorial-team@simplywallst.com. This article by Simply Wall St is general in nature. It does not constitute a recommendation to buy or sell any stock, and does not take account of your objectives, or your financial situation. Simply Wall St has no position in the stocks mentioned.



We aim to bring you long-term focused research analysis driven by fundamental data. Note that our analysis may not factor in the latest price-sensitive company announcements or qualitative material. Thank you for reading.
London, Feb 1 : Britain officially left the European Union (EU) on Friday, marking a historic end of its 47-year-long membership of the world's largest trading bloc.

The historic moment, which happened at 23:00 GMT, was marked by both celebrations and anti-Brexit protests.

It also marks the start of a transition period that will last till the end of this year as negotiators try to forge a trade arrangement between Britain and the EU, Xinhua news agency reported.

The departure, 1,317 days after Britain voted to leave the bloc, carries not only enormous symbolic weight, but also significant legal consequences.

It concluded three years of fractious debates over whether the country should really leave the bloc, the terms of its departure and the kind of relationship it should forge with Europe.

Prime Minister Boris Johnson and his cabinet began on Friday with a meeting in Sunderland, a city in northern England that was the first to announce it had voted in favor of leaving the European Union on the night of the 2016 referendum.
By Express News Service

THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: Six months after the accident in which journalist KM Basheer was killed when he was hit by a speeding car driven by IAS officer Sriram Venkataraman, allegedly in an inebriated state, the Kerala Police on Saturday submitted the chargesheet before the Court, with the IAS officer as the first accused.

The chargesheet clearly states that it's a case of drunken driving. Wafa Firoz, the owner and co-driver, has been named as the second accused and charged with abetment of the crime.

Venkataraman is currently under suspension. Last week, a chief secretary led panel had recommended that the government reinstate him in service as the police had failed to submit a chargesheet till now. However chief minister Pinarayi Vijayan had rejected the recommendation and ordered that the suspension be extended.

On Saturday, the chargesheet was filed before the Chief Judicial Magistrate Court III, Thiruvananthapuram. As per initial information, the 66-page chargesheet covers 84 documents and mentioned 100 witnesses. Cases have been charged under section 304, 201 and MV Act section 184, 185 and 188.

It was after midnight on August 3, 2019 that journalist KM Basheer, bureau chief of Malayalam daily Siraj, was killed in a road accident in the state capital. His motorcycle was knocked down by a car, allegedly driven by the IAS officer.
APM Terminals Bahrain, the operator of Khalifa Bin Salman Port (KBSP) has appointed Yosra Abdulla as its new general manager of Human Resources department.

Abdulla joins the leadership team of APM Terminals Bahrain with 16 years experience in Human Resources with specialisation in employee welfare relations in addition to administrative experience.

At APM Terminals Bahrain, she will be focusing on strategic orientation of HRM practices and training and development of employees at all levels, with emphasis on career progression and women empowerment.

She will also be looking into stakeholder engagement programmes with various government entities to explore opportunities and programmes in line with the companys strategic planning and long-term goals.

Before taking on her role at APM Terminals Bahrain, Abdulla was associated with Nass Corporation, handling its corporate divisions Nass Contracting Company in Bahrain and UAE, Nass Landscapes and latest was Nass Electrical.

Here, she was instrumental in streamlining efforts and boosting engagement with blue collar workers in addition to other key initiatives.

Lauding the appointment, CEO/Managing Director Susan Hunter, said: "Abdulla brings significant experience to her new position as HR General Manager of our operations, as she joins the APM Terminals Bahrain team to support us in our efforts to empower employees with skills development while promoting a strong culture of equal opportunity employment."

"With her expertise in working with people across levels and ethnicities, we look forward to her contribution in strengthening the role of our HR practices to better serve our operation requirements and help cultivate Bahrains future maritime workforce. We wish her good luck on this new journey," stated Hunter.

On her new role, Abdulla said: "I am excited to be a part of the APM Terminals Bahrain team, an organization that is fully committed towards Bahrains economic and social growth. In the fast-paced globalized world, sustaining employee well-being is extremely important for organizational growth, which is a key focus area for us at APM Terminals Bahrain."

"This year, we will be focusing on talent succession programmes and reward initiatives to enhance our employee experiences and equip them to help achieve our long-term strategic goals," he stated.

In addition to her experience, Abdulla also brings a wealth of knowledge that aides her in her career in Human Resources as she holds a BSc degree in International Studies, an advanced training licence from ECITB (Engineering Construction Industry Training Board), certification in Fair Recruitment from the International Labour Organisation, Talent leadership and Integrated management system and a Member of the BSTD Bahrain Society for Training & Development.-TradeArabia News Service
Prime Minister Narendra Modi's government is likely to increase state spending on infrastructure and offer some tax incentives in its Union Budget 2020 on February 1, aiming to get growth back up from its lowest in a decade.

In its annual economic report, released on January 31, the government predicted that economic growth would pick up to 6.0-6.5 percent in the fiscal year beginning April 1, but warned that it may have exceeded its deficit target to revive growth.

India is facing its worst economic slowdown in a decade. The government estimates economic growth this year, which ends on March 31, will slip to 5 percent, the weakest pace since the global financial crisis of 2008-09.

Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman, who will present her second full-year annual budget to parliament, could defer the earlier target of cutting the deficit to 3 percent of gross domestic product (GDP) in FY20-21 by at least two years, government sources told Reuters.

This will be on top of roughly $28 billion of spending from off-budget borrowings, as the government seeks to keep the deficit in check.

Economists in a Reuters poll predicted the government would set a deficit target of 3.6 percent of GDP for 2020/21, up from 3.3 percent targeted for the current year.

Sitharaman is expected to announce plans to spend over Rs 102 trillion (1.09 trillion pounds) on roads, ports, airports, irrigation and other infrastructure over the next five years.

The government may also announce an income tax amnesty, after collecting over Rs 350 billion ($4.92 billion) from an amnesty this year to settle tax disputes on service and factory gate duties, the sources said.

Some experts said global trade tensions and the outbreak of coronavirus in China, which has killed more than 200 people so far, pose a new risk to economic recovery by hitting cross-border commerce and supply chains.

"The economic recovery is likely to be slow and shallow despite the recent measures to boost investments," said Anagha Deodhar, an economist at ICICI Securities.

Last month, the statistics office said investment growth was expected to fall to just 1% in the current financial year from 10 percent the previous year. Private consumption growth might slip to 5.8 percent from 8.1 percent.

Krishnamurthy Subramanian, the chief economic adviser to the finance ministry, said the government could push economic reforms to boost growth.

The government should rationalise food subsidies to create additional fiscal space, push exports and adopt "counter-cyclical fiscal policy" to boost the sluggish demand and consumer sentiments, he said.

The government is expected to earmark around 1.90 trillion rupees for food subsidies in the next financial year, though the food ministry has sought more than Rs 2 trillion to run the world's biggest food welfare programme.
After a six-week long recess, the members of the House of Representatives resumed plenary last Tuesday.

However, Tuesday plenary was adjourned to mourn the death of Muhammadu Fagengawo who represented Garki/Babura federal constituency of Jigawa State.

Discussions in the green chamber varied but insecurity in the country was the main point.

At a press briefing on Tuesday, the House, through its spokesperson, Benjamin Kalu (Abia, APC), raised concerns over the security situation in the country. He called it alarming, adding that the House would ensure it implements certain reforms and constitutional amendments to strengthen security in the country.

It is the responsibility of the police to take care of internal security, a role the constitution gave them mandate to play.

The recent reports we are getting shows that the police is capable of handling our internal security. We are going to use legislative intervention to support them the more, and all the other role players within the Armed Forces, Mr Kalu said.

Emphasising this, the Speaker of the House of Representatives, Femi Gbajabiamila, on Wednesday said under his leadership, there would be legislative move to give Amotekun and other regional security outfits constitutional backing.

The members of the House on the same day further demanded the resignation of the nations military commanders, all of whom are due for retirement but had remained in office on the directive of the president.

Also, upon his victory in the rerun election in Tudun Wada/Doguwa federal constituency of Kano State, Alhassan Doguwa, was reinstated as the Leader of the House of Representatives.

Mr Doguwas reinstatement followed the inauguration of five other members who won at their respective rerun elections the previous weekend.

The members are: Munir Danagundi (APC, Kano), Egbona Alex (APC/Cross River), Aliyu Datti-Yako (PDP, Kano), Mariam Odinaka (APC, Imo) and Jafar Auwwal (PDP, Bauchi).

On Thursday, a similar procedure was carried out on four other members. They are: Abdullahi Abubakar (PDP, Sokoto), Jerry Alagboso (PDP, Imo), Nsikak Ekong (PDP, Akwa Ibom) and Kolapo Osunsanya (APC, Osun).
What food will you be feeding your family after Brexit? What will be filling your fridge in the future? The chances are you may not have even considered this.

For generations, shoppers up and down the country have had a guaranteed supply of food produced to some of the highest animal welfare, environmental and food safety standards in the world, all produced with care by British farmers.

I want that to continue because we have standards that should be shouted about across the world. Brexit offers us the opportunity to be a global leader in our food production and all it delivers  environmental protection, care for the countryside and climate-friendly food.

We have an opportunity to export more and to showcase our food system, one we are all rightly proud of, on a global stage. We should be capitalising on our domestic story of food traceability, safety and provenance with the intention of putting more British food on more global plates, while at the same time ensuring that our high-standard environmental delivery is echoed by all those future trading partners.

There is an enormous opportunity  but there is also a huge risk.

Brexit day: UK says goodbye to EU Show all 66 1 /66 Brexit day: UK says goodbye to EU Brexit day: UK says goodbye to EU A message projected onto the White Cliffs of Dover Sky News/AFP via Getty Brexit day: UK says goodbye to EU Getty Brexit day: UK says goodbye to EU Big Ben, shows the hands at eleven o'clock at night AFP via Getty Images Brexit day: UK says goodbye to EU Nigel Farage speaks to pro-Brexit supporters PA Brexit day: UK says goodbye to EU Pro-Brexit demonstrators celebrate on Parliament Square REUTERS Brexit day: UK says goodbye to EU The Union flag is taken down outside the European Parliament in Brussels PA Brexit day: UK says goodbye to EU Pro-EU campaigners outside the Scottish Parliament, Edinburgh PA Brexit day: UK says goodbye to EU A pro-Brexit supporter jumps on an EU flag in Parliament Square PA Brexit day: UK says goodbye to EU EU Council staff removed the Union Jack-British flag from the European Council in Brussels, Belgium EPA Brexit day: UK says goodbye to EU A pro-Brexit supporter pours beer onto an EU flag PA Brexit day: UK says goodbye to EU Pedestrians pass in front of the Ministry of Defence Building on Whitehall, illuminated by red, white and blue lights in central London AFP via Getty Images Brexit day: UK says goodbye to EU A Brexit supporter shouts during a rally in London AP Brexit day: UK says goodbye to EU Pro-EU campaigners outside the Scottish Parliament, Edinburgh PA Brexit day: UK says goodbye to EU Pro-EU campaigners take part in a 'Missing EU Already' rally outside the Scottish Parliament, Edinburgh PA Brexit day: UK says goodbye to EU A large pro-EU banner is projected onto Ramsgate cliff in Kent PA Brexit day: UK says goodbye to EU Pro-EU supporters light candles in Smith Square in Westminster PA Brexit day: UK says goodbye to EU A man waves Union flags from a small car as he drives past Brexit supporters gathering in Parliament Square AFP via Getty Images Brexit day: UK says goodbye to EU The five-year old Elisa Saemann, left, and her seven-year old sister Katie hold a placard during a rally by anti-Brexit protesters outside the Scottish parliament in Edinburgh AP Brexit day: UK says goodbye to EU Pro Europe supporters gather on Brexit day near the British embassy in Berlin, Germany EPA Brexit day: UK says goodbye to EU Anti-Brexit protester hugs a man while holding a placard REUTERS Brexit day: UK says goodbye to EU A decorated, old fashioned fire pump in Parliament Square PA Brexit day: UK says goodbye to EU Pro Brexit Elvis impersonator performs at Parliament Square Getty Images Brexit day: UK says goodbye to EU An anti-Brexiteers stands with his dog in Parliament Square AFP via Getty Images Brexit day: UK says goodbye to EU Paddy from Bournemouth wears Union colours as he sits next to an EU flag decorated bag in Parliament Square AFP via Getty Images Brexit day: UK says goodbye to EU A pro-EU activist plays a guitar decorated with the EU flag during a protest organised by civil rights group New Europeans outside Europe House, central London AFP via Getty Images Brexit day: UK says goodbye to EU People celebrate Britain leaving the EU REUTERS Brexit day: UK says goodbye to EU A Pro Brexit supporter has a Union Jack painted onto his face at Parliament Square Getty Images Brexit day: UK says goodbye to EU Men hold placards celebrating Britain leaving the EU REUTERS Brexit day: UK says goodbye to EU Pro Brexit supporters dance in the street draped with Union Jack flags at Parliament Square Getty Images Brexit day: UK says goodbye to EU An anti-Brexit demonstrator spreads his wings during a gathering near Downing Street AP Brexit day: UK says goodbye to EU Pro EU supporters display a banner ' Here to Stay, Here to Fight, Migrants In, Tories Out' from Westminster bridge EPA Brexit day: UK says goodbye to EU Pro-Brexit supporters burn European Union flags at Parliament Square Getty Brexit day: UK says goodbye to EU A man poses for a picture on Parliament Square in a 'Brexit Day' t-shirt Reuters Brexit day: UK says goodbye to EU People celebrate Britain leaving the EU Reuters Brexit day: UK says goodbye to EU AFP via Getty Brexit day: UK says goodbye to EU A man wears a pro-Brexit t-shirt Reuters Brexit day: UK says goodbye to EU Anti-Brexit demonstrators visit Europe House to give flowers to the staff on Brexit day Reuters Brexit day: UK says goodbye to EU Pro Brexit supporter wears a novelty Union Jack top hat outside the Houses of Parliament Getty Images Brexit day: UK says goodbye to EU Customers Scott Jones and Laura Jones at the Sawmill Bar in South Elmsall, Yorkshire, where a Brexit party is being held throughout the day PA Brexit day: UK says goodbye to EU AP Brexit day: UK says goodbye to EU Getty Brexit day: UK says goodbye to EU Getty Images Brexit day: UK says goodbye to EU Pro-EU activists protest Getty Images Brexit day: UK says goodbye to EU A pro-Brexit demonstrator burns a European Union flag AP Brexit day: UK says goodbye to EU Pro Brexit supporters Getty Images Brexit day: UK says goodbye to EU Pro Brexit supporters Getty Images Brexit day: UK says goodbye to EU A Brexit supports holds a sign in Parliament Square AP Brexit day: UK says goodbye to EU A man carries an EU themed wreath Reuters Brexit day: UK says goodbye to EU Ann Widdecombe reacts with other members of the Brexit party as they leave en masse from the European Parliament PA Brexit day: UK says goodbye to EU Anti-Brexit demonstrators in Parliament Square PA Brexit day: UK says goodbye to EU Pro EU supporters let off flares from Westminster Bridge Getty Brexit day: UK says goodbye to EU British MEPs Jonathan Bullock, holding the Union Jack flag and Jake Pugh leave the European Parliament, in Brussels on the Brexit day AFP via Getty Brexit day: UK says goodbye to EU Newspapers and other souvenirs at a store, near Parliament Square Reuters Brexit day: UK says goodbye to EU Brexit supporters hold signs in Parliament Square AP Brexit day: UK says goodbye to EU Pro-EU protesters hold placards in Parliament Square AFP via Getty Brexit day: UK says goodbye to EU French newspapers PA Brexit day: UK says goodbye to EU Sinn Fein leader Mary Lou McDonald with a Border Communities Against Brexit poster before its unveiling in Carrickcarnon on the Irish border PA Brexit day: UK says goodbye to EU National growers organisation British Apples & Pears has renamed a British apple to EOS, the Greek goddess of dawn, to commemorate Brexit day AP Brexit day: UK says goodbye to EU Pro-EU protesters hold placards in Parliament Square AFP via Getty Brexit day: UK says goodbye to EU Britain's departure from the European Union was set in law on January 29, amid emotional scenes, as the bloc's parliament voted to ratify the divorce papers. After half a century of membership and three years of tense withdrawal talks, the UK will leave the EU at midnight Brussels time (23.00 GMT) on January 31 Reuters Brexit day: UK says goodbye to EU A man poses with paintings on Parliament Square Reuters Brexit day: UK says goodbye to EU People sporting Union Flags gather in Parliament Square Getty Brexit day: UK says goodbye to EU A man walks with a St. George's flag at Westminster bridge on Brexit day Reuters Brexit day: UK says goodbye to EU A British bulldog toy and other souvenirs at a souvenir store Reuters Brexit day: UK says goodbye to EU British pro-brexit Members of the European Parliament leave the EU Parliament for the last time Reuters Brexit day: UK says goodbye to EU Jonathan Bullock waves the Union Jack as he leaves the European Parliament EPA

In order for British food and farming to achieve the opportunities promised by Brexit, we need the government to commit that they will not agree to trade deals that allow in food that would be illegal for our farmers to produce here.

If we have legal requirements for home-produced food, those requirements must also set the standards for all food imports too. If we set a high standard at home and then sign a deal waving in sub-standard food from the rest of the world, what message does that send out? What risks does that create, and what impact will it have on our own food producers?

We have been clear that the government needs to introduce a commission to scrutinise trade deals and make recommendations on future food trade policy. This is essential not just for the food well feed our families, but for the way in which well protect and enhance our environment and tackle climate change  one of the greatest issues of our time.

The global Britain I see is one that solidifies its place as a global leader in producing climate-friendly food and tackling climate change. We are already one of the first countries to legislate our net-zero commitment, and British farmers have taken this challenge head-on by setting our own goal to reach net-zero by 2040.

For generations, the land I farm in Wiltshire has been grazed by sheep and cattle, producing some of the most climate-friendly meat in the world from Britains extensive grasslands. And I am not alone growing and rearing climate-friendly food.

If Brexit is done right, the world-leading food we produce across the country on farms like mine can be exported across the world, showcasing what British farmers do best.

I believe the months ahead are critical not just for British farming, but for the nation. We must get Brexit right. To do that, we must capitalise on what we do well in this country. Our soils, our weather and our climate mean we can and must produce food for both home and abroad and make a viable return from the market.

A successful farming sector means a successful Britain not just in terms of the food on our plates but in the landscapes we walk, the health of our soils and rivers, and the positive impact we make on climate change.

That is why today, as we enter this new phase in our history and take our place on the world stage, I am calling on our prime minister to lead a government that truly backs British farming.

Minette Batters is the president of the National Farmers Union
Yesterday Gisborne reached 38.2 degrees Celsius and the Australian heatwave hasn't even reached our shores yet.

There is a chance 40 degrees could be reached somewhere in the east says WeatherWatch.co.nz.

Latest reliable forecast data from WeatherWatch shows a forecast high of 37 degrees on Monday in the shade in communities around Gisborne.

"It is incredibly rare to see a forecast high like that in the North Island and there's always a few degrees wriggle room around daily highs in New Zealand so we can't rule out 40 degrees being met, says head forecaster Philip Duncan.

"New Zealand's highest temperatures don't often occur on a calm day, it needs a nor'west flow out of Australia and with that still to arrive it boosts the chances of climbing to 40 degrees.

Philip says certain valleys in the east can enhance the heat further, especially when timed with clear skies and peak mid to late afternoon heat.

"Under the right conditions we do have the ingredients for some isolated parts of eastern New Zealand to reach 40 degrees in the next 72 hours.

The eastern side of the North Island was the highest candidate for reaching the rare temperature and WeatherWatch.co.nz says again Gisborne region looks to be the hottest, probably on Monday when the heat peaks over New Zealand.

On the western side of the island and towards the north, places like Auckland will get more warmth, with daytime highs possibly reaching 30 degrees inland.

Waikato is forecast to reach the low 30s in the days ahead and inland Auckland matches Waikato heat - which many people may not be aware of.

The daytime highs for Auckland are usually for the airport which is cooler by about 5 degrees due to being coastal. Add on top of that Auckland and other northern centres will have humidity between 65 and 95 per cent in the days and nights ahead, making it feel another four or five degrees warmer than it is. So yes, it will feel like the low to mid 30s at times.

The heatwave from Australia moves into the South Island today, then across the North Island and upper South Island for Sunday, Monday and Tuesday.

Monday looks to be the peak of the heat for NZ. On Tuesday a cooler change moves up the South Island and it moves into the North Island's eastern side on Wednesday and Thursday - with temperatures tumbling over 10 degrees.

NZ's record is 42.4 degrees Celsius, set in Rangiora in 1973.
BAKU, Azerbaijan, Feb. 1

Trend:

Over the past 24 hours, Armenian armed forces have violated the ceasefire along the line of contact between Azerbaijani and Armenian troops 24 times, Trend reports referring to Azerbaijan's Defense Ministry on Feb. 1.

The Armenian armed forces were using large-caliber machine guns.

The conflict between the two South Caucasus countries began in 1988 when Armenia made territorial claims against Azerbaijan. As a result of the ensuing war, Armenian armed forces occupied 20 percent of Azerbaijan, including the Nagorno-Karabakh region and seven surrounding districts.

The 1994 ceasefire agreement was followed by peace negotiations. Armenia has not yet implemented four UN Security Council resolutions on withdrawal of its armed forces from Nagorno Karabakh and the surrounding districts.
A SPECIAL school in Limerick is to lose its much-needed nurse service this summer, as it is set to be transferred to an adult facility, leaving a number of children without a nurse in September.

On Wednesday night, the parents association of St Vincent's Lisnagry Special School took to social media to announce that it is to lose its nurse, provided by Daughters of Charity, "due to lack of HSE funding".

However, the HSE has refuted this claim, saying that no funding has been cut.

A spokesperson for the HSE Mid-West Community Healthcare said that the withdrawal of St Vincent's nursing service "has no relevance to funding" and that this "is a matter for the Daughters of Charity with the school to resolute and not the HSE".

St Vincent's Special School is Ireland's third largest school of its kind, with 117 pupils, five of whom have life-limiting conditions and require full-time nursing supports.

However, as of this June, these children will no longer have this crucial support, following the transfer of a nurse to an adult facility.

The announcement has caused considerable upset among parents of pupils and the wider community.

In a statement to the Limerick Leader on Friday afternoon, the Daughters of Charity Disability Support Service said that it had a number of children living in residential services that attended St Vincent's school and required specialist nursing support.

"We by way of an agreement with the school, provided nursing care support to those children and others with complex needs. Over time as these children in residential services have left school and transitioned to adult services, the nursing support understandably transferred with them to adult day services."

"As the last remaining pupil from our residential services will be leaving school in June 2020 that nurse must transfer to support the transition to adult services."

The spokesperson added that the arrangement is "not in any way linked to the lack of funding from the HSE but rather a transfer of our resources to adult services".

Have you been affected? We want to hear from you. Contact us at news@limerickleader.ie.

It is understood that the school has, for a number of months, raised concerns with various Government and State authorities in relation to the prospect of losing this vital nursing support.

Senator Kieran O'Donnell has written to the HSE and the Minister for Health, Simon Harris, requesting that funding be provided for a full-time nurse at the school.

In a statement on Friday, Sen O'Donnell said the Minister is looking into the matter.

"Action must be taken on this critical issue to provide certainty and alleviate the genuine worries of both parents and staff at St Vincent's special school for the well-being of all students needing nursing support and care from next September."

The senator met with the principal, Bridann O'Callaghan, on Thursday morning to discuss the matter.

"We discussed the sitation unfolding where the school is facing the daunting prospect of having no Nursing support from September 2020. The medical needs of many of the pupils attending St Vincent's makes it imperative that they have a full-time dedicated nurse at the school."

The nursing support in this case is paid for by the Daughters of Charity and funded by the HSE, and was not acting as a school nurse for the wider school but as a support to children with special needs.

A nurse for the wider school would fall under the governance of the Department of Education.
Asia

India: Mumbai municipal workers oppose privatisation

Hundreds of workers from Brihanmumbai Electric Supply and Transport (BEST), a public utility company administered by the Brihanmumbai (Mumbai) Municipal Corporation (BMC), demonstrated in Dadar, Mumbai on Monday. They were opposing the BMCs plan to move towards privatisation of BEST, which runs buses with a daily patronage of three million, and supplies electricity to Mumbai homes.

The demonstration was organised by a joint union action committee (BEST Sanyukta Kamgar Kruti Samiti) and with Amchi Mumbai Amchi BEST citizens group. Protest organisers want management to review its decision to cut jobs, hire private buses and conductor-less vehicles.

Management has begun advertising for 400 contract conductors on a contract basis to fill vacant permanent positions. Workers fear that their jobs are under threat.

Assam postal workers demand civil service status

About 60 Gramin Dak Sevaks (GDS) or part-time employees occupied the Guwahati city post office and held a hunger strike on January 22 over a range of demands. The protest was organised by the Assam branch of the All India Gramin Dak Sevaks Union (AIGDSU).

Workers want all GDS employees to be given civil servant status, wages and length of service promotions as recommended by the Kamlesh Chandra Committee (KCC), increased group insurance, medical facilities, and payment of termination benefits on the day workers retire.

The KCC pay review report increased the minimum working day from three to four hours for Grade 1 workers and five for Grade 2, and recommended a 3 percent pay increase.

The protest followed a strike on December 19 over the same demands. A union representative said a demonstration would be held in New Delhi on February 20, followed by an indefinite walkout if workers demands are not resolved.

Auto parts workers in Karnataka demand union rights

Assembly line workers at Exedy Clutch India in the Narasapura Industrial Area, Kolar, demonstrated at the factory security gate on January 25 for full recognition of their union and collective bargaining rights. Workers accused management of repeatedly victimising young workers for demanding their legitimate rights. More than 50 percent of the companys employees are contract workers.

The same workers held a protest march in November after all union office bearers, apart from the president, were suspended. Management is refusing to negotiate on the unions charter of demands. Workers allege that increases due on April 1 have not been paid and that management has illegally reduced workers wages.

Karnataka transport workers stage a hunger strike

Hundreds of Karnataka state-government transport corporation workers held a hunger strike at Freedom Park in Thrissur on January 27. They want to be classified as government employees and on the same salary scales as other government workers. They called on the state government to legislate their demands in the Karnataka state assemblys upcoming budget session.

A representative of the Karnataka State Road Transport Employees League, representing drivers, conductors and mechanics, said workers would start ticket-less travel if their demands are not granted. Workers are currently paid 30-40 percent less than other government corporation employees.

Punjab public works department employees protest

Public Works Department (PWD) workers in Bathinda city on January 27 protested to demand payment of outstanding salaries, employee state insurance and employee provident fund arrears. Protesters chanted slogans against sewage board senior officials. Punjab Field and Workshop Workers Union representatives allege that December salaries have not been paid and that their longstanding demand to be given permanent jobs has been ignored.

Pakistan: Islamabad retired medical workers demand unpaid pension

More than 250 retired Pakistan Medical Research Council workers demonstrated outside the Islamabad National Press Club on Tuesday to demand the government immediately pay all their pension entitlements. The affected workers have not received the pension for the past 12 months. They have petitioned the Islamabad High Court seeking a resolution to the issue.

Pakistani media workers demand unpaid salaries

Media workers from Islamabad and Rawalpindi protested outside the Ministry of Information on January 23 over salary payment delays. Some media workers alleged that they have not received a salary for several months.

The protest was sparked after Capital TV, a private network, refused to distribute 10 months unpaid salary to a deceased cameramans family.

Hong Kong nurses call in sick over governments response to coronavirus

Over 90 nurses at three Hong Kong hospitals took sick leave on Wednesday, ahead of a potential strike planned by a health care workers union over the governments refusal to close the borders with the mainland to prevent the spread of the coronavirus.

Of those that called in sick, 26 work at Pok Oi Hospital in Yuen Long, while 41 were based at the intensive care unit or operation theatres at the Pamela Youde Nethersole Eastern Hospital in Chai Wan. Another 23 took sick leave at Princess Margaret Hospital in Kwai Chung. On Tuesday, 15 nurses at Pamela Youde Nethersole Eastern Hospital, and five nurses at Princess Margaret Hospital also called in sick.

The government has so far only closed six of the existing 15 border checkpoints. The 15,000-strong Hospital Authority Employees Alliance said it would convene a general meeting on Saturday to discuss strike action, which could begin as early as next week, if the government did not close all of the citys borders.

Australia and New Zealand

South Australian roadside assist workers strike

Roadside breakdown assist workers from the Royal Automobile Association (RAA)-South Australia walked off the job for four hours on Tuesday and protested in Adelaide over pay and conditions. The strike was sparked when RAA management broke off negotiations after members of the Australian Manufacturing Workers Union (AMWU) rejected a proposed enterprise agreement which included cuts to conditions and allowances.

Electrical services workers in Queensland walk out

Some 35 members of the Electrical Trades Union (ETU) from Energy Queensland contractor Smart Metering Services (SMS) stopped work four hours and picketed the companys office in Yatala, south of Brisbane, after overwhelmingly rejecting the companys proposed enterprise agreement.

According to the ETU, the non-union proposed agreement attacked working conditions and entitlements within the electrical supply industry. Fifty-one of the 64 union members of SMS union voted for strike action in a ballot on January 16.

Pipe manufacturing workers in New South Wales strike

Around 50 workers from Rocla, a concrete pipe manufacturing plant at Emu Plains, west of Sydney, resumed protected industrial action on Thursday as part of ongoing industrial action for a new enterprise agreement. Australian Workers Union (AWU) members walked off the job twice in November.

The AWU has been negotiating a pay rise with Rocla since May. The union has called for 3 percent annual pay increase. Roclas latest offer was just 2 percent, up from its original offer of 1.5 percent.

New Zealand: Woburn Masonic Village aged-care workers demand improved conditions

The year-long dispute for better penalty rates, set-shift working hours, long-service leave and improved conditions by Woburn Masonic Village aged-care workers in Lower Hutt has entered compulsory bargaining talks. The workers, who are currently on call at all times of day and night, held three limited strikes in December.

The E tu union, which represents the workers, announced this week that the Employment Relations Act has imposed facilitated bargaining on Masonic Village Limited. While the union is casting the compulsory bargaining as a significant win, it will negotiate an agreement that waters down workers demands and imposes the cost-cutting requirements of the company.
The healthcare industry on Saturday welcomed the initiatives announced by the government in Budget 2020-21 to improve the access to medical care across the nation.

"Budget 2020 is a definitive step forward in the Government of India's commitment to making India healthier and a model for the world to emulate," Apollo Hospitals Group Chairman Prathap C Reddy said.

In addition to initiatives announced to improve access to medical care across the nation and boost human health resources, it was encouraging that vital determinant of good health which includes wellness, nutrition, clean drinking water, and sanitation were at the forefront of this Budget, he added.

Calling it a farsighted budget, Reddy said the Finance Minister has announced "innovative initiatives that will enhance ease of living, improve the health quotient and boost opportunities for education and job creation, for all sections of our society and meet the expectations of an aspirational India."



In similar vein, NATHEALTH President H Sudarshan Ballal said the budget accorded priority on capacity building by improving health infrastructure in Tier II & III cities and rural areas.

"Setting up hospitals on private public partnership with the provision of viability gap funding in 112 Aspirational Districts in the country go a long way in creating a robust health infrastructure especially in areas where Ayushman Bharat benefits have not yet reached especially to the weaker section," he added.

Calling it a directionally sound Budget, Biocon Chairperson & MD Kiran Mazumdar-Shaw said: "I am happy to see the government's focus on reviving economic growth."



The proposed amendments to the Companies Act for removing criminal action in case of tax disputes is a step towards infusing trust among India Inc, she added.

The use of Machine Learning and Artificial Intelligence for preventive healthcare along with increasing the number of Jan Aushadhi Kendras will take forward the government's agenda of healthcare for all, she added.

"The measures announced in this Budget can give returns in the medium to long-term. However, we need to make sure they are implemented fast to have immediate impact. Overall a satisfactory budget," Mazumdar-Shaw said.

Highlighting that budget was prepared in difficult Economic scenario , Aster DM Healthcare founder chairman Azad Moopen said the Union Budget has managed to create opportunities for growth within limited resources.

"Eradication of tuberculosis in the country by the year 2025 is a great step towards healthier India," he added.

"There is proposal for viability fund gap support for hospitals in Tier 2 and 3 cities for meeting the requirement for Ayushman Bharat. This will give more accessibility to the people in the smaller cities and villages," Moopen said.

However, it is unfortunate that the allocation of Rs 69,000 crore for the sector is only just 1 per cent of GDP which will be highly inadequate for any major leap forward in the sector, he added.

Applauding the announcement providing boost to the domestic medcial device sector, Association of Indian Medical Device Industry (AiMeD) Forum Coordinator Rajiv Nath said: "Finally we may have something to help address over Rs 38,837 crore, 80-90 per cent import dependent Indian Medical Devices Sector."



It's an excellent idea to tax imports of medical devices to fund the capacity building of healthcare delivery in public healthcare and with twin advantage of accelerating medical devices manufacturing as a Make in India enabler so that Indian national healthcare security concerns are addressed, he added.

Deloitte India, Partner, Lead- Life Science and Health Care Charu Sehgal said "the budget 2020 has continued with the healthcare themes announced in 2018 but has not made any significant increase in allocation or incentives."



The overall allocation has increased marginally to Rs 69,000 crore from 63,000 crore last year. "We will be nowhere closer to the long awaited target of 2.5 per cent of GDP," she added.

"The budget is focused on the holistic vision of healthcare, which proposes to provide Rs 69,000 crore that includes Rs 35,600 crore for nutrition related programs for 2020-21, and the same will enable to reduce pre-term death and malnutrition in society," Paras Healthcare COO Shankar Narang said.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
ASHLAND  Nebraska Nurses Honor Guard (NNHG) will offer tribute services to everyday nursing heroes who have dedicated their lives to the nursing profession.

This special service will be offered to active or retired nurses in the Omaha metro area and 30 miles outside that perimeter.

We are using a community leader system as we branch out across the state, wrote Debra Zobel in an email. I am both the founder and community leader for Ashland and the surrounding area with the assistance of Melinda Pike RN and Phyllis Behrens NP. We all three are Ashland residents and have a total of 23 members in Omaha and the surrounding area.

Zobel added that if any nurses family in the state of Nebraska calls and requests the honor guard, they will attempt to attend or provide video services.

Our plan is to develop a community leader system throughout the state in 2020, she said.

According to the NNHG website, an official tribute will be bestowed at the time of the nurses passing. At the memorial service, the Florence Nightingale Pledge will be recited, a white rose will be placed on the casket or urn and a nursing lamp will be given to the family or friend of the deceased.
Farewell on Yingfeng Mountain Author: Zhang Ni Publishing House: Sichuan People's Publishing House Publishing Time: December 2018 Zhanguo Red Agate Author: Teng Zhenfu Publishing House: Chunfeng Literature & Art Publishing House Publishing Time: March 2019

More and more Chinese writers are writing the extraordinary stories of their country's fight against poverty.

If Zhang Ni had never visited the poverty-stricken areas in Southwest China's Sichuan Province and witnessed their actual changes, she could never have imagined that she would write the novel Farewell on Yingfeng Mountain.

"The visits to the poverty-stricken areas made 'poverty alleviation' no longer just a phrase," Zhang said. "The real life (of the people) in the areas stimulated the inspiration of writing works through the visits."

Zhang witnessed the great improvement in the living conditions of impoverished households, the meticulous work of poverty-alleviation officials and workers, and the input of resources from all aspects of society. Her story characters are all based on prototypes in real life.

The abundance of social realities gives writers rich materials, inspiration and motivation of writing works, and also ignites their passion for faithfully documenting the touching details of poverty alleviation work.

Lao Teng, in the novel Zhanguo Red Agate, writes about the poverty-alleviation efforts of three officials in Liucheng, a small village in the western region of Northeast China's Liaoning Province. The novel focused on the ways of resolving disputes during the poverty relief process and the villagers' changes of thought.

Transformation of ideas within poverty-stricken households is at the heart of the novel, said Lao Teng. "The novel highlights growth of young people through poverty-alleviation work and the change within people."

It is particular important for impoverished people to increase confidence in their own ability to lift themselves out of poverty. .

The Chinese Writers Association has done a lot in this respect, promoting the role of literature in helping people get rid of poverty.

On May 21, 2019, the association held a literary lecture given by famous writers Ye Mei and Yi Zhou in Zhaotong City, Southwest China's Yunnan Province, as part of its Open Literature Class brand event.

"Holding a public class in Zhaotong, a city with a large population of impoverished people, gives local people the opportunity to meet famous writers, which will ignite the literary dreams in their hearts," said Li Xiaoming, Director of the Social Liaison Department of the CWA.

In addition, with writers' support, grassroots literary organizations have been established in some poverty-stricken areas.

In Lintan, a poverty-stricken county assisted by the association in the Tibetan Autonomous Prefecture, literary and cultural training activities have been offered, giving full play to the role of literature in poverty-alleviation work.

Since 2017, Sichuan has been working on poverty relief through capital input, book donation, and literary creation activities. More than 890 literary works themed on poverty reduction, including publications and articles, have been published, said Hou Zhiming, Secretary of the Leading Party Members' Group of the Sichuan Writers Association.

(Source: China Youth/Translated and edited by Women of China)
So how did you feel when you opened your eyes this morning? A bit let down maybe? No chorus of angels heralding the dawn of our new nation?

Or maybe you leaped out of bed with a smile on your face and toasted Freedom Day with a nice British cuppa from your 'I Got Brexit Done' official merchandise mug, to the sound of some rousing Elgar? Or maybe not.

As you read this I imagine myself trotting around my local park for my usual early morning run and greeting the dog walkers with a hearty 'Happy Independence Day!' salute. But I'm not expecting much of a response. Why should there be?

Everything has changed, nothing has changed.

Jubilant Brexiteers heralded the moment with celebrations across the country, including a flagship bash in London's Parliament Square (pictured) where Nigel Farage led a chorus of God Save The Queen

Sure, we will gaze on anxiously as vast teams of trade experts baffle us with the details of their interminable negotiations and hope desperately that in a year from now we'll still be selling a few bits and pieces to our former partners. But it's not whether deals will be done. It's when.

I know common sense is seldom allowed to intrude into these negotiations. After all, the wheeler-dealers must preserve their mystique at all costs. But we probably all assume that in the fairground of trade talks it will be more swings and roundabouts than death-defying descents in a theme park rollercoaster. We shall survive.

And anyway it's not trade that will define us. The big question we face on this new dawn is what sort of country we are going to be. We know we are no longer Europeans but that's not terribly helpful because we never really figured out what 'being European' meant anyway.

On the stroke of 11pm, the UK officially divorced from the bloc after three years of bitter political struggle that split families and paralysed Westminster

What we do have to worry about is how the rest of the world will view us. Where do we expect to stand in relation to the power blocs of America, China and, yes, the European Union?

But I use the word 'we' too loosely. It's not old-timers like me who will dictate our destiny.

It is not those of us who embarked on the Europe adventure all those years ago who will determine our future. It is those who have never known what it is like not to be a part of Europe.

When I think of my own life in the context of Europe I do so through the lens of Shakespeare's Seven Ages of Man.

Stage One

In 'All the world's a stage' Shakespeare described the baby 'mewling and puking' in the nurse's arms. I'm told that I was bawling my eyes out in a cardboard box in the cellar of our local chemist's shop.

It was the only safe place to be when the Germans were dropping bombs on our street in Cardiff, too close to the steelworks and docks to escape the attentions of the Luftwaffe.

Revellers waved Union Jacks and cheered triumphantly in Westminster tonight after Britain finally left the European Union (Parliament Square pictured)

Stage Two

A small boy growing up in poverty in the post-war years. Work for my father was scarce and hunger was never terribly far away. Rationing meant luxuries were non-existent, though one or two families managed to beat the system. We envied and hated them  especially the boy who lived opposite.

The only fat boy in the street. His father was a butcher and he would saunter out of his house and greet the rest of us with a lamb chop in his hand. He'd take a bite and drop it in the gutter. It didn't stay there long. And we hated Europeans too  or, at least, the Germans. Same thing really, we thought.

In all the agonised geopolitical psychology about our relationship to Europe, there is a simple root explanation. It is World Wars I and II.

I do not think it is our failure to look beyond the past. It is that the past has shaped us, just as it has shaped Germany. We did not have the same profound need to create a structure of peace and security. We had already fought our battles for that.

Stage Three

An idealistic teenager. My mother forced me and my siblings to do homework. She was determined we should have the education denied to her and my father  and it worked. We all managed to get into high school. The anti- German rage of the street was mitigated  to some extent at least  by those teachers who had survived the war and believed the best way to avoid another one was through a united Europe.

Hadn't Churchill himself made a speech in which he said if Europe were united there would be 'no limit to happiness and prosperity'? So we must unite!

Brexit supporters wave Union flags as they watch the big screen in Parliament Square, venue for the Leave Means Leave Brexit Celebration party in central London

Stage Four

I was 22 when I first went on a plane. It was to Dublin and it was to celebrate our honeymoon. I didn't go 'abroad' until three years later. To me, by then, Europe was more of an impression, a romantic and slightly risky concept.

How could we possibly imagine what it might come to mean to working-class kids like me? Somewhere a British prime minister had described as 'a faraway country of which we know nothing' would become an easyJet destination, a weekend break, the ideal place for a stag night in its capital Prague.

Stage Five

Disillusion had begun to set in. A creeping realisation that the EU was less Ode To Joy and more a gilded carriage on a gravy train for a privileged elite. It meant rules upon rules pumped out by that same elite while the elected, but virtually impotent, Parliament looked on.

Some MEPs did their best but most just sighed a little and got on with enjoying the benefits of lavish pensions and expenses. A budget that was less transparent than the heavily tinted windows of the Commission cars gliding through Brussels.

A political club of privileged bureaucrats with an insatiable lust for power. An economic arrangement which became a political federation.

They wanted integration. Had we really signed up for this? Were we no longer a sovereign island nation? I learned another of Churchill's quotes: 'If Britain must choose between Europe and the open sea, she must always choose the open sea.'

Stage Six

My older self was now faced with a referendum and a chance to break free. I voted to remain. I persuaded myself that peace in Europe was still the ultimate prize  but had it not already been won? Could I really see German bombs ever again falling on the tiny terraced houses of my childhood? And in truth, fear of the unknown had probably replaced those high ideals of my youth.

I really did not want to go through a complicated divorce. These are bad enough in our personal lives without landing the country with one. Better stick with the devil you know than risk the deep blue sea. Project Fear was doing its job.

Stage Seven

In this final stage scepticism was replaced with cynicism. The shock of watching patronising patricians trying to subvert the democratic process because they knew better than us poorly educated plebs what was good for us.

The preposterous proposal for a 'People's Vote' was based on the claim that it was the only truly democratic road to take. It was, of course, the negation of that  or at least it would have been had the nation not spotted it for what it really was: an attempt at a parliamentary coup.

Dominic Cummings, creator of the brilliant 'Take back control' slogan that had tipped the balance in the referendum, invented another one to unleash on the second referendum. It was: 'Tell them again.' That became the message of the election. The Remainers did not believe it then. They believe it now.

A farewell message projected onto the White Cliffs of Dover, the closest point of the British peninsula to the European mainland

So here we are  celebrating the dawn of the new age.

There is a view out there  so often expressed in The Guardian  that this new age is racist, populist, still sexist. In so many ways shameful. Hugh Grant, bizarrely the go-to source for apocalyptic doomsday quotes, says the 'country is finished'.

Really? Isn't the opposite true? Much of the rest of the world is puzzled by the way that Britain is behaving. But it is also intrigued. The French are REALLY interested in what is going on across the Channel. What is that small island with its extraordinary history up to?

We have been on the right side of history before and I believe we may well be again.

We will not simply revert to the way we were in my youth. We have absorbed so much of Europe  its food, its different cultures, its faiths. The young today travel, study, work, marry in Europe. We can keep the best of all that while breaking free of the bureaucratic dominance, what Dominic Cummings terms The Blob.

There are roughly 45 million people in this country who have been members of the European Union all their lives. The vast majority may not speak a single language apart from English but is 'Europe' foreign to them? I doubt it. As I write, my house is full of builders trying to put right 20 years of neglect. They're all Bulgarian. Their English is more than adequate.

All those doomsday prophecies in the immediate aftermath of the referendum about hate crime against Europeans because they were now 'foreign' were rubbish. Nasty, ill-informed malicious rubbish from people who, for reasons I have never been able to figure out, were determined to see the democratic rejection of a political construct as an expression of racism. One man, we were solemnly informed, was murdered for being foreign. That was a lie.

So if not that caricature, what sort of country are we and how will we be seen in our post-independence era? What does the equivalent of my idealistic young self want Britain to be? Do those who have lived their entire lives as citizens of Europe even care about the concept of Britain?

Do they have ANY fear of war?

What can we/they realistically hope for from our new reality  putting aside the tedious details of trade negotiations? Has our dream of a truly democratic society at peace with itself been permanently damaged by the political ructions of the past three years?

Brexit supporters react during a Brexit Celebration party at Morley rugby club. The celebrations got into full swing well before the 11pm, when Britain finally divorces from the bloc after three and half years of wrangling

Are we doomed to division and discontent?

The young may care about the cost of housing and getting a decent job but do they care about whether our welfare state is working for all and are they prepared to bear the burden of an ageing population with vast numbers threatened by dementia?

Do they really believe the NHS is still (if it ever was) the envy of the world? Do they sense that higher education has become a sad joke for millions? Is 'wokeness' a fad or a new way of viewing the world?

Is biological sex an outmoded concept and are they relaxed about everyone deciding on their own gender?

Do they really believe that if youngsters are not always happy they must be suffering from a mental health 'issue'? Do young people have an idealistic inner core?

It has taken me a couple of thousand words to say something about the biggest question facing this nation today. The best cartoonists of our time are often able to do it with a single drawing. And the work of the truly greats will live on in our memories. David Low was one of those giants. Perhaps his greatest was printed in the Evening Standard in 1940.

It showed a British soldier standing on a rock in the Channel looking up at a squadron of enemy bombers. The caption read: 'Very well, alone!'

That was our darkest hour but our isolation may suit us again in peaceful times. We can be innovative. We can be imaginative. We can be courageous in the face of threats from beyond our shores and here at home. And we can, sometimes, be generous.

It's sad there is no eighth age. But maybe not. The future is in the hands of the young.

And I'll bet they will do no worse than we did.
The Union budget for 2020-21 offered an estimated Rs 40,000 crore of tax concessions to individual taxpayers, following up its September decision to offer Rs 1.45 lakh crore of the same to companies, resorting to a straightforward (and obvious) budgetary stimulus to revive the economy. Cooperatives have also been given the option to move to a low-exemption, low-tax regime.

It also increased government spending, the second way to deliver a budgetary stimulus, albeit by a modest amount, but with a sharp focus on capital expenditure (or asset creation).

The 2020-21 budget comes against the backdrop of the slowest rate of growth in 10 years. To be sure, the historical comparison improved after Fridays revision in the 2018-19 GDP figures pushed this years growth to 5.7% from 5%, yet, the biggest expectation from the budget was that it would give a boost to aggregate demand in the economy.

Finance minister Nirmala Sitharaman, visibly tiring towards the end of a two-hour-40-minute-long speech, said in an interview that she wanted to touch each and every section of society and I wanted to give out the message that this government is a responsible one.

She described the budget as a Jan Jan Ka Budget, or a budget for everyone, as did Prime Minister Narendra Modi.

In a tweet shortly after the budget speech, Modi tweeted: JanJanKaBudget places immense faith in Indias youth. That is why there is emphasis on MSME sector, skill development, boosting exports and creating next generation infrastructure. The start up and real estate sector have got significant benefits.

Sitharaman said the three themes of the budget were: Aspirational India; economic development; and a caring society.

However, the Opposition was quick to pan the budget. The main issues confronting this country today are unemployment and the situation as far as the economy is concerned. I did not see any concrete idea... The governments approach is visible in this budget. It was hollow, Congress leader Rahul Gandhi told reporters after the presentation in Parliament.

Between the out-of-budget, September 2019 move on corporate tax and the 2020-21 budget, the government has given Rs 1.85 lakh worth of tax concessions to the businesses and individuals. This includes the reduction in corporate tax rates (Rs 1.45 lakh crore of revenue forgone); the reduction in income tax rates announced in the budget (Rs 40 thousand crore of revenue forgone); in addition, theres the scrapping of Dividend Distribution Tax (an estimated Rs 25,000 crore benefit for companies, although there will be an increase in income tax on account of the fact that dividends will simply be added on to taxable income in the hands of recipients as and where applicable).

There are other, smaller measures as well, sharply focused on specific kinds of companies or sectors.

The revenue implications of these moves are clear, with budgeted gross tax revenue of the Centre expected to come down from Rs 24.61 lakh crore in 2019-20 to Rs 24.32 lakh crore in 2020-21. To be sure, the 2020-21 budget estimates (BE) are higher than the revised estimates (RE) of Rs 21.63 lakh crore for 2019-20. These revenue projections are based on the assumption of a 13% growth in GST collections.

On the expenditure front, there is less of a stimulus. Total budgetary expenditure in 2020-21 will grow by 12.7% between 2019-20 (RE) and 2020-21 (BE). This is less than the 16.6% growth between 2018-19 actual figures and 2019-20 RE figures. Injecting rural demand was seen as one of the key challenges for this budget. Total spending of ministry of agriculture and ministry of rural development -- this includes spending on MGNREGS and PM-KISAN -- is expected to grow by 13.4% between 2019-20 (RE) and 2020-21 (BE). However, the growth is considerably smaller (2.6%) if ones looks at the growth between 2019-20 (BE) and 2020-21 (BE) figures. A slowdown in the economy and the resultant hit in revenue collections has forced the government to cut down on what it would have spent on the rural economy had the overall economic situation been better.

The appropriate way to look at the budget is to see how the government has honoured its past commitments. There has been a trend where budgetary allocations have not been honoured for some time, this makes one suspect whether a similar thing will happen next year too, said Himanshu, associate professor of economics at the Jawaharlal Nehru University.

To be sure, the government has ensured that capital spending, which matters more for future growth, has not suffered because of the economic slowdown. Total capital spending in 2019-20 (RE) is Rs 3.48 lakh crore, more than the 2019-20 (BE) figure of Rs 3.38 lakh crore, and is expected to go up to Rs 4.12 lakh crore in 2020-21 (BE). This bodes well for future growth. Social sector spending such as in health, education, social justice has also been largely kept intact between 2019-20 (BE) and 2020-21 (RE) estimates. The overall spending pattern of the government suggests that it believes that the worst is over for the informal and rural economy  the biggest proof of this is a sharp reduction in MGNREGS spending between 2019-20 (RE) and 2020-21 (BE)  and the tax stimulus which has been provided will give a boost to economic activity in the next fiscal. The government also seems to be hoping that some of the stimulus will also come from a revival in investment. Sovereign wealth funds have been promised tax incentives in lieu of investments in infrastructure. And PPPs (public private partnerships) have been envisaged in several areas.

PPP projects in agri-warehousing, medical colleges attached to district hospitals, development of cities, and railways, will boost confidence towards organised and sustainable business model, which will attract private and foreign investment. Commitment towards infusing equity of Rs 22,000 crores into IIFCL and subsidiary of NIIF will help create long term debt funding towards capital expenditure for creating new infrastructure. Fresh investment in capex for infrastructure sector will not only create new employment and leave more disposal income in hands of common man but create a pipeline to repay the capital or debt, Samir Kanabar, tax partner, EY India, said.

Whether or not these assumptions will hold is a question that cannot be answered immediately, analysts said. The first big test will be when GDP figures for the third quarter of the current fiscal are released towards the end of this month. If the economy does not show a significant recovery, it could further worsen sentiment.

Experts said one question worth looking at is the revenue projections and underlying tax buoyancy assumptions which have been made in the budget. Tax buoyancy is growth in tax revenue per unit change in GDP. This number is expected to be 1.2 for 2020-21. This number was 1.1, 0.8 and 0.5 for 2017-18, 2018-19 and 2019-20 (RE) figures. This means that the government is banking of the significant widening of the tax net compared to what it has been in the recent past. Given the fact that the budget assumes a nominal GDP growth of 10%, the lowest since 2008-09, it is clear that the revenue projections are relying more on ensuring better tax compliance than reaping the tailwinds of economic growth. The other big area the government is banking on is disinvestment proceeds, which are expected to fetch Rs 2.1 lakh crore in 2020-21. A strategic disinvestment of the Life Insurance Corporation is likely to be the biggest contributor to this target.

The budget overall was good in intent in which all important and necessary sectors were touched upon and a growth trajectory was chalked out. However, we feel the spending on each sector could have been doubled as compared to what has been allotted. Overall, I feel that the finance minister did not take the bull by the horns, Niranjan Hiranandani, president of the Associated Chambers of Commerce and Industry of India (ASSOCHAM) said.

SHARE THIS ARTICLE ON
01.02.2020 LISTEN

A long habit of not thinking a thing wrong gives it a superficial appearance of being right and raises at first a formidable outcry in defense of custom. But the tumult soon subsides. Time makes more converts than reason.

For decades now, many professionals and stakeholders in education have had cause to complain about the copycat curriculum used in basic schools in Ghana. The concerns, seem like the usual daily rants on our media space with little or no attention. The latest global school ranking by the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) based on test scores in mathematics and science from Fifteen year olds in seventy-six nations however, learns credence to the concerns of these people.

Refer to the site below for the detail report: (https://www.oecd.org/education/singapore-tops-latest-oecd-pisa-global-education-survey.htm)

The rankings were based on an amalgamation of international assessments including the OECD's Pisa tests, the TIMSS test run by the United States based academics and TERCE tests of Latin America which puts developed and developing countries on a single scale. Out of seventy-six countries on which this test was conducted, Ghana was at the bottom with Singapore topping the list of countries.

An immediate knee jerk reaction was the announcement of a new curricular and a rushed training of teachers and instructors for same. In the usual Ghanaian manner of getting politicians to do the work of technocrats, most of the teacher unions were not consulted.

Please refer to the link below for details;

(NAGRAT was consulted on new education curricular, Education Ministry fights backhttps://www.myjoyonline.com/news/2019/February-22nd/nagrat-was-consulted-on-new-education-curricula-education-ministry-fights-back.php)

A curriculum is designed to reflect the aspirations and hopes of a nation. Common sense will tell us, that the power which has endeavoured to subdue us, is of all others, the most improper to defend us. Though there has been several reviews and reforms to the basic education curriculum in Ghana, the Gold Coast Curriculum, the legacy of our colonial masters has outlived its usefulness and must be completely discarded.

Whilst discarding the old curriculum is long overdue, the quest for a new curriculum, however, must not be based on the usual copycat approach where we visit a developed country and copy everything including their culture. It must rather be a meticulous process taking into account our national development agenda, our hopes, and aspirations as a nation and most importantly involve all the relevant stakeholders in education. As a man who is attached to a prostitute is unfit to choose or judge of a wife, so is the politician unfit and must be completely removed from the design and implementation of a new curriculum.

Quite recently, there have been debates on the introduction of comprehensive sexuality education into the basic school curriculum in Ghana. In an era where leading countries in education like Singapore and Hong Kong are introducing networking, coding and nanotechnology, Ghana is thinking about comprehensive sexuality education. An absurd and controversial American educational program that has been rejected by many countries. Why do we not learn from the best countries but only from the countries we borrow from? The conversation on the introduction of comprehensive sexuality education in the curriculum has returned again with the Ghana education service calling for stakeholder engagements. Is sexuality our major hope and aspiration for Ghana? Is this our priority? Are the benefits of comprehensive sexuality education more than technological courses like coding and networking that is developing countries like Singapore? Is this not a mere absurdity?

The proponents of this program of course cannot be truthful to the Ghanaian, that is, they have barrowed huge amounts of money from America and as part of the conditions they are required to introduce this program into our education system in Ghana. This is of course the only logical push for an absurd program such as this. From the errors of other nations, let us learn wisdom. The American society today is bedeviled with many ills as a result of absurd programs like the one we are intend to introduce into the curriculum.

According to the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organisation (UNESCO), Comprehensive sexuality education is a curriculum-based process of teaching and learning about the cognitive, emotional, physical and social aspects of sexuality. It aims to equip children and young people with knowledge, skills, attitudes and values that will empower them to realize their health, well-being and dignity; develop respectful social and sexual relationships; consider how their choices affect their own well-being and that of others; and understand and ensure the protection of their rights throughout their lives. (https://en.unesco.org/news/why-comprehensive-sexuality-education-important).

UNESCO further outlined some of the advantages of Comprehensive Sexuality Education (CSE) as follows; Too many young people receive confusing and conflicting information about relationships and sex, as they make the transition from childhood to adulthood. This has led to an increasing demand from young people for reliable information, which prepares them for a safe, productive and fulfilling life. When delivered well, CSE responds to this demand, empowering young people to make informed decisions about relationships and sexuality and navigate a world where gender-based violence, gender inequality, early and unintended pregnancies, HIV and other sexually transmitted infections (STIs) still pose serious risks to their health and well-being. Equally, a lack of high-quality, age- and developmentally-appropriate sexuality and relationship education may leave children and young people vulnerable to harmful sexual behaviours and sexual exploitation.

CSE plays a crucial role in addressing the health and well-being of children and young people. Applying a learner-centered approach, CSE not only provides children and young people with age-appropriate and phased education on human rights, gender equality, relationships, reproduction, sexual behaviours risks and prevention of ill health, but also provides an opportunity to present sexuality with a positive approach, emphasizing values such as respect, inclusion, non-discrimination, equality, empathy, responsibility and reciprocity.

Whilst I admit some of the points raised above are genuine and worth considering, let me say that men are strangely inclined to worship what they do not understand. Below are the counter arguments as provided by Julie Blonigen, Executive Director of Human Life Action Council.

Public school sex classes ignore individual differences among children and break down the natural modesty of boys and girls. When children are taught academics, such as math and reading, they are given material suitable to their level of readiness for this material. Yet, when it comes to the extremely sensitive area of sexuality, all children in the same grade level are given the same material, even if some are not yet physically or psychologically ready for the material. This is insensitive and harmful. Forcing boys and girls to listen to, view and openly discuss the sexual functioning of the opposite sex anatomy while in their presence is embarrassing and contributes to the breakdown of the modesty that is natural and appropriate in human beings.

What is taught behind the closed doors of the sex education classroom can never be known by parents. Learner out-comes and curriculum objectives do not tell parents the teacher's words, actions, attitudes, and responses that occur as the sex education lesson is actually taught. This means there is absolutely no way parents can control or even find out what their children are being taught about sex unless they sit in the classroom alongside their children for each and every sex lesson.

Public school sex education has never been shown to reduce teenage pregnancy or abortion. As a matter of fact, a study in the March 2002 issue of the Journal of Health Economics, entitled The Economics of Family Planning on Underage Conceptions, debunks the typical sex-education theory that providing contraceptives to teens will reduce underage conceptions and abortions. Indeed, the study found some evidence that greater access to contraception is associated with an increase in underage conceptions.

The public school has no right to judge the quality of information on sexuality that parents provide their children. Some do a good job, some do a poor job. The school has no right to say they must teach sex because they do not like the job parents do. The school should stay out of the bedroom.

Sexuality involves more than plumbing and birth control pills. The school sends the wrong message to students when their sex education courses are mere how to do it and how not to get caught lessons. The best lesson in sex, parents can provide their children is the love and respect they show for each other.

When proponents of public school sex education say kids need to know more, what they really mean is they want to teach our kids to use condoms, the pill, and the IUD, and if they fail, where to get an abortion. These people just do not want any more babies. They never talk about reducing fornication or meeting the spiritual needs of our children. They focus on bodies when the real concern is souls.

Children do not need sex education. They need chastity education. Kids need to learn how to say no and why saying no is in their best interest physically, emotionally and spiritually. The biology of sex takes ten minutes to teach, so what are the teachers talking about in a five or ten-week course?

There is no such thing as value-free sex education. When anything more than biology is taught, someone's values are going to be presented. Telling students to make up your own minds, tells them there are no standards to go by. Telling students it is best to say 'no', but if you are going to be sexually active, be protected sends them the message that the teacher does not really expect them to control themselves. Presenting birth control without saying it is wrong for them to use it tells the students the teacher does not think it is wrong.

Public school sex education attacks and undermines the religious faith of many students. Catholic and Christian students who have been taught by their parents that premarital sex, birth control and abortion are wrong must sit in class and hear an authority figure contradict their beliefs.

In a nutshell, CSE cannot be our priority at this time in our development. I call on the Ghana education service, as a matter of urgency get rid of the CSE idea as we stand to gain nothing from its introduction.

The author is a political commentator

Email: [email protected]
"Montreal and Quebec's economy is performing admirably well, and Quebec companies that are active internationally are contributing a great deal to this vitality. Today's forum showed us concrete examples of exporting companies that are seeing international success. The business community is currently focused on growth sectors such as cybersecurity and green technologies. It's clear that we can indeed repeat our successes with artificial intelligence and the video game industry. The conditions are ripe for Montreal to benefit in an unprecedented way from the innovation and confidence of our companies," said Michel Leblanc, President and CEO of the Chamber of Commerce of Metropolitan Montreal.

"This forum was an opportunity to celebrate the 61 new subsidiaries of international companies that were supported by Montreal International and that set up shop in the Greater Montreal area in 2019, or a rate of over one a week! This is great news, as they all help create our collective wealth throughout Greater Montreal," added Stephane Paquet, President and CEO of Montreal International.

"The internationalization of our companies is an essential component of the Quebec economy. Thanks to the creation of Investissement Quebec International and close collaboration between organizations that support the internationalization of our companies, we will be able to increase Quebec's level of exports. Today's forum has provided many success stories to inspire our entrepreneurs as well as possible avenues for breaking into foreign markets. The three international Delegate Generals of Quebec who attended the forum also highlighted opportunities in strategic markets that can accelerate the internationalization of Quebec companies," concluded Hubert Bolduc, President of Investissement Quebec International.

AlayaCare, CAE, Epic Games and Framestore win the first-ever Montreal International Awards

The Chamber, Montreal International and Investissement Quebec also handed out the Montreal International Awards, a competition that recognizes Montreal organizations and companies that have an international focus and contribute to the influence and growth of Greater Montreal. Over 80 companies applied for the four awards, and the winners were announced at the Forum:

Winner of the "Best Digital Data Management Strategy": AlayaCare

AlayaCare won this award for the clarity of its strategy in a highly sensitive regulatory and data protection environment. It also stood out through its innovative mission and use of technology in the sector of home care for seniors.

AlayaCare won this award for the clarity of its strategy in a highly sensitive regulatory and data protection environment. It also stood out through its innovative mission and use of technology in the sector of home care for seniors. Winner of the "Best Export Strategy": CAE

CAE was selected for its ability to constantly renew itself and innovate thanks to new technologies. The company, which translates its simulation innovations to other industries, brings great added value to its own sector and far beyond.

CAE was selected for its ability to constantly renew itself and innovate thanks to new technologies. The company, which translates its simulation innovations to other industries, brings great added value to its own sector and far beyond. Winner of the "Best Foreign Investment Strategy": Epic Games

Epic Games received this award for its reputation and unique vision. It created a very high-level subsidiary in Montreal that has become competitive by developing attractive working conditions. The company greatly contributes to the city's economic development and the success of the video game industry.

Epic Games received this award for its reputation and unique vision. It created a very high-level subsidiary in Montreal that has become competitive by developing attractive working conditions. The company greatly contributes to the city's economic development and the success of the video game industry. Winner of "Best International Talent Attraction and Retention Strategy": Framestore

Framestore was awarded this prize for the attraction and retention strategy that it clearly defined in its application as well as the many concrete initiatives that it has launched. The impact of its strategy has been impressive in terms of not only attracting but also onboarding and retaining talent and diversity.

About the Strategic Forum International Trade at the Heart of Economic Growth

This Strategic Forum is part of the second edition of the internationalization initiative co-developed by the Chamber of Commerce of Metropolitan Montreal, Montreal International and Investissement Quebec, in collaboration with Air Canada, the Communaute metropolitaine de Montreal, the Ville de Montreal, the Government of Quebec and RBC Royal Bank.

About the Montreal International Awards

The Montreal International Awards are part of the second edition of the internationalization initiative co-developed by the Chamber of Commerce of Metropolitan Montreal, Montreal International and Investissement Quebec, in collaboration with RBC.

About the Chamber of Commerce of Metropolitan Montreal (CCMM)

With a network of over 7,500 members, the CCMM is active on two fronts: being the voice of the Montreal business community and delivering specialized services to businesses and their representatives. With its finger on the pulse of current events, it acts on issues that are decisive for the prosperity of the city's businesses. With the support of the Acclr experts, the CCMM's goal is to accelerate the creation and growth of businesses of all sizes, at home and around the world.

About Montreal International

Established in 1996, Montreal International is a non-profit organization funded by the private sector, the governments of Canada and Quebec, the Communaute metropolitaine de Montreal and the Ville de Montreal. Its mandate is to attract and retain foreign investment, international organizations, skilled workers and international students to Greater Montreal by providing support services tailored to their needs. www.montrealinternational.com

About Investissement Quebec

Investissement Quebec's mission is to foster the growth of investment in Quebec, thereby contributing to economic development and job creation in every region. The Corporation offers businesses a full range of financial solutions, including loans, loan guarantees and equity investments, to support them at all stages of their development. It is also responsible for administering tax measures and prospecting for foreign investment.

SOURCE Chamber of Commerce of Metropolitan Montreal

For further information: Julie Serero, Advisor, Media Relations, Chamber of Commerce of Metropolitan Montreal, Tel.: 514-871-4000, ext. 4042, [email protected]; Ariane Lafreniere, Advisor, Communication and Public Relations, Montreal International, Tel.: 514-987-9327, [email protected]; Isabelle Fontaine, Senior Director, Media and Government Affairs, Investissement Quebec, Tel.: 514-876-9359, [email protected]

Related Links

https://www.ccmm.ca/


Current and past presidents of the Nebraska Firearms Owners Association will speak about the current state of the Second Amendment in Nebraska and gun legislation being considered in this season of the Nebraska Legislature. Time will then be allowed for questions from the audience.
STATEN ISLAND, N.Y. -- Its almost Groundhog Day, when the country relies on a rodent to predict the weather. While New York City is familiar with Staten Island Chuck, just how much do we know about that other famous groundhog, Punxsutawney Phil?

Here are some fun facts about Phil and his Groundhog Club, based in Punxsutawney, Pa.

THE PROCLAMATION

Every year on Feb. 2, Phil emerges from him his burrow in Gobblers Knob and communicates with the president of Punxsutawney Groundhog Club -- speaking to him in a language only the president understands. The proclamation is then translated to the nation.

HOW OLD IS PHIL?

According to Groundhog Club members, there has only been one Phil -- and he has been predicting the weather for over 120 years.

THE CLUB

The Punxsutawney Groundhog Club was established in 1887 by a group of groundhog hunters. The editor of the Punxsutawney newspaper was also a member of the group, and claimed that Punxsutawney Phil was the only true weather-predicting groundhog.

THE INNER CIRCLE

The inner circle is made up of a group of dignitaries who are responsible for caring out the Groundhog Day traditions and celebration. The group also takes care of him all year long.

Earlier this week, People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals called for Phil to be replaced with a robot, citing that the annual Pennsylvania Groundhog Day event places an undue burden on the furry prognosticator.

FAMOUS FACES

Phil has met some very prominent people, and has had nationwide exposure over the years.

-- Phil traveled to Washington, D.C., in 1986 to meet with President Reagan.

-- He met Pennsylvania Gov. Dick Thornburg in 1987.

-- Phil appeared on the Oprah Winfrey show in 1995.

-- In 2001, Phils prediction was shown live on the JumboTron at Times Square.

PHILS PREDICITIONS

Groundhog Club records show that Phil has seen his shadow 104 times since he made his first prediction in 1887.

The science behind the predictions is based on whether Phil sees his shadow. If the groundhog sees his shadow, there will be six more weeks of winter. If the groundhog doesnt see his shadow, spring will come early.

THE FIRST PREDICTION

Phil made his first recorded prediction on Feb. 2, 1887.
SV Krishna Chaitanya By

Express News Service

CHENNAI: Air pollution remains a top concern in Chennai with the Particulate Matter (PM) levels rocketing several times above the permissible limit in recent times. In January, the Air Quality Index (AQI) in the city was close to poor for about 12 days post Pongal.

Real-time air monitoring data by Care Air Centre of the State Pollution Control Board (TNPCB) on Friday shows that oxides of Nitrogen emitted from NTPC Unit1 ranged between 569 and 950 mg/m3, more than thrice the accepted levels.

A TNPCB official told Express, "Not only Tamil Nadu, but units of almost all coal-fired power plant operators in India have missed the deadline for compliance to the 2015 NOx and SO2 limits. The power ministry has proposed extending the deadline by another two years, to enter into compliance by the end of 2021. We are constantly asking power plants to invest on emission checks."

Chandra Bhushan, CEO of iFOREST said, "Not just Chennai, several other cities record increased pollution levels. It is now quite common to hear about poor air quality in the metropolitan cities. Around 12.5 per cent of total deaths in India are due to air pollution. Also, we are losing at least 5 per cent of our GDP due to this menace."

He added that the government has to prioritise action on coal power plants and cooking fuel.

My suggestion would be to announce a fiscal package to support power plants, to install pollution control equipment, and a programme to reduce cooking fuel consumption by 75 per cent over the next 5 years.

Climate Trends, a Delhi-based climate communication initiative, analyses that Tamil Nadu has to stop any further coal power production.

"Rajasthan, Karnataka, and Tamil Nadu account for more than half of the countrys Electricity Distribution Companies debt at Rs 43,562 crore. If emissions go unabated, it will sink our economic goals before they are even afloat," Aarti Khosla, Director of Climate Trends said.

Shiva Nagendra from IIT Madras said that the government should allocate more funds under the National Clean Air Programme (NCAP) to encourage research at the city level.

Each city should have an emission inventory and pollution modelling be done to understand the sources of pollution for effective action, he said.

MSMEs, Income Tax and more

Most people in Tiruchy expect a revision of personal income tax rates and Long Term Capital Gains tax, while industrialists hope for reforms to tackle the recession. MSME unit owners here feel the government must not encourage new units now

Delta districts agriculture hopes

Farmers Association says that agriculture allocation should be on par with that of defence sectors and that there is a need for Rs 25 lakh crore investment for the sector.

Import duty on raw materials

Chairman of Southern India Mills Association (SIMA) in Coimbatore said, Import duty on man-made fibers and anti-dumping duty on basic raw materials must be removed. In addition, the inverted duty on various raw materials and intermediate products need to addressed."
Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas on Saturday said the Palestinian Authority had cut ties with both the Israeli and US governments in response to the White House plan for ending the Israeli-Palestinian conflict.

Abbas made the announcement at a special meeting of Arab League foreign ministers, requested by the Palestinians to discuss the US peace proposal.

The Palestinian leader also said he refused to take President Donald Trump's phone calls and messages before the presentation of the plan, because he knew the US leader "would build on these, (saying) that he consulted with us".

Abbas has been under mounting pressure from ordinary Palestinians and its rivals in the Islamic militant group Hamas to cut off security ties with Israel and the US or even dismantle the increasingly unpopular Authority.

That would leave Israel responsible for the complicated and expensive task of providing basic services to hundreds of thousands of Palestinians in the West Bank.

The Palestinians have made such threats in the past, with few people taking them seriously.

But this time might be different, especially if Israel proceeds with annexation of its West Bank settlements as well as the Jordan Valley, which accounts for roughly a fourth of the West Bank, according to the US plan.

Abbas could also cut off agreements with US intelligence agencies to combat extremism.

There was no immediate comment from US or Israeli officials.
The royal year may have got off to a tumultuous start with the resignation of Harry and Meghan from The Firm, but the gap they leave in their wake creates a ready-made opportunity for other members of the family.

Step forward Sophie, the Countess of Wessex, who looks set to have a great 2020. After a couple of years when Kate, Meghan and to a lesser degree Camilla dominated Press coverage, the wife of Prince Edward now finds herself propelled into the public spotlight again.

And reliable, personable and - when the occasion demands it - glamorous Sophie is set to prove quite an asset to The Firm.

For years, Sophie was the most senior female member of the royal family after the Queen. In the early days of her relationship with Prince Edward - Her Majesty's youngest son - she made a positive impression on the monarch that would last decades and earn her the reputation of 'the Queen's favourite'.

But Sophie started to dropped off the reporters' radar as other developments unfolded...

Prince Charles' decision to marry Camilla (now Duchess of Cornwall) in 2005 set the wheels in motion for the next phase of the royal news cycle, much of which involved allowing the public to familiarise themselves with 'the other woman' and adjust to the idea of her now-defined fate as Queen Consort.

Charles' children Princes William and Harry were growing up, and more attention was diverted towards the good-looking young boys and their youthful exploits, and eventually to their wives.

So it's easy to forget that for several years before that Sophie (nee Rhys-Jones) enjoyed huge access to her mother-in-law. The pair began to spend a great deal of time together. They were regularly photographed out riding and both share a keen interest in military history. At family gatherings the two are often locked in conversation and some courtiers believe that Sophie filled the gap left by the late Princess Margaret and the Queen Mum. On non-official occasions, the Queen often asks Sophie to share her car.

Perhaps, then, it's not surprising that HM has come to regard the ordinary girl from a working family in Kent (her dad was a retired tyre salesman and her mother was a secretary) as one of the royal family's greatest assets - and undoubtedly the Queen's support and affection for her have boosted Sophie's confidence.

For Sophie, just like Meghan, marrying into the Windsors made sustaining the career she had built prior to her marriage all the more problematic. Before her 1999 wedding (the first of the resurgence of royal nuptials at St George's Chapel in Windsor), Sophie had built a successful CV in public relations and launched her own eponymous firm in 1995. Two years after her wedding, however, she left her independent work after she and Edward had been accused of profiting from their royal titles in what became known as the 'Sophie tapes'.

In 2001 the now-defunct News of the World ran a transcript of tapes in which they said she was exploiting her Buckingham Palace connections for personal financial gain. The fall-out from the scandal prompted the Wessexes to quit their 'day jobs' (at the time Edward was trying to carve out a role as a film producer) and instead, focus on being full-time royals.

Since then, Sophie has played by the rules and discreetly got on with building a fulfilling life for herself in the monotonous palace system. Motherhood followed, albeit after she almost lost her life when she suffered an ectopic pregnancy in December 2001. She was airlifted to hospital for surgery to remove the foetus from a Fallopian tube.

Two years later, in December 2003, Sophie had a daughter - not without difficulty, again, as she nearly died in childbirth and the baby, Lady Louise Windsor, remained in intensive care for several weeks. Four years later, James, Viscount Severn, was born, and Sophie's family was complete.

In some senses it could be argued that Sophie has been preparing for two decades for what will become the role of her life. The void left by Meghan and Harry's departure means there is a vacancy for a qualified person who isn't planning their exit and is prepared to endure the laborious nature of royal work, coupled with the immense attention that comes with it.

Last week, Sophie stepped to the fore alongside the Duchess of Cambridge at an event in Buckingham Palace, shunning her 55th birthday celebrations that same day in favour of work. Shortly after that she headed to Sierra Leone as part of a two-day diplomatic visit and the trip has attracted significantly more coverage than usual as interest in her amps up.

Of course, Sophie is already familiar with the highs and lows of being such a public figure, having learned her lesson from that fall from grace in front of the world 18 years ago.

"(The Countess) is probably the best example of an outsider coming into the family and learning on the job," royal biographer Robert Jobson told the Daily Telegraph in 2017, in a piece which advised Meghan to take a steer from Sophie's experience as an outsider entering the fold.

The commonalities between Sophie and Meghan are many: both had independent careers before becoming royals and Edward was similarly protective of his wife in the Nineties, writing to newspaper editors asking them to stop "destroying our private life and, more importantly, Sophie's life".

When faced with a similar dilemma and only two visible options, the Sussexes made the decision to leave their titles and tiaras behind for a new life in Canada, while the Wessexes packed in their day jobs and committed to a royal life and all the confines within it.

Sophie manages her public duties with 70 private patronages including women's and children's charities, all of which will enjoy a higher profile now that their patron is being primed for a more central role within the family.

She takes a particular focus on issues through which she has personal experiences, like Kate Middleton's early start mental health campaign and previously Meghan's work with women's organisations and animal welfare.

Suddenly, profiles and fashion analysis around her have emerged of her appearances in recent days and she is front page news instead of the more low-key way in which she would have been reported on even just a few weeks ago.

Interest in the royal family is at a new peak, thanks in no small part to the decision by Meghan and Harry to quit - now that they will be operating independently, there's a need to satiate the public appetite for reports on royal goings-on.

The positioning of Sophie in a more prominent role will likely be part of The Firm's strategy to ensure its relevance into the next generation.

Behind the scenes, considerable time and money has been invested in Harry's professional role as a prince and now that plans have changed, it's imperative they show their adaptability.

And the fact that at 55 Sophie is being heralded as a new generation style icon can only help the devoted royal fashion watchers, who spend hours analysing the outfits and changing hairstyles of duchesses.
Shehu Sani, lawmaker who represented Kaduna Central at the 8th Senate has accused the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) of subjecting him to trauma, arising interrogation in their custody.

The former Senator, who spent a month in the custody of the anti-graft agency, made this known in a press statement made available to the media on Saturday.

He accused operatives of the EFCC of subjecting him to polygraph lie detector tests and also seized his phones.

My incarceration for 30 days in the jail of EFCC was unfair, unjust and a clear breach of my fundamental rights and hence stands condemned.

During my unjust stay in the EFCC cell, I was subjected to traumatizing interrogations; My houses and offices were searched.

They compelled me to declare my assets, they tried to subject me to polygraph lie detector tests, my accounts were blocked, and my phone was seized, all in the name of fictional $24,000 or $25, 000 extortion.

He added also that; Any Information planted in the media by the EFCC spokesperson while I was in their custody about me is outrightly false and nothing but a bacterial and fungal infested concoctions, typical of their style.

Read Also: After Spending 30 Days In EFCC Net, Shehu Sani Regains Freedom

Our country will continue to be at the bottom strata of the transparency International index as long as our anti-graft agencies only use their might and arsenal to crush ants while lacking the courage, the heart, and the liver to confront the snakes, the vultures and the hyenas of the ruling establishment.

They can frame me, detain me but cant silence me.

I shall abide by all the conditions of my bail and appreciate the courage, compassion, and wisdom of the court in granting me the bail.

In an ideal democratic state, all agencies of the government are obliged to operate within the dictates and the ambit of the rule of law or the nation leaps into tyranny.
If that happens, it will lead to much colder temperatures, he said.

The weather service, in its long-term forecast through Feb. 21, gives eastern Nebraska a slightly better than 50-50 chance of colder-than-normal weather.

Lincoln has not seen much cold weather so far this winter.

The average temperature in December was nearly 6 degrees above normal, and despite the fact that Lincoln has hit 40 degrees only once since Jan. 9, the month overall was about 2 degrees above normal.

That's thanks in large part to cloud cover for much of the past two weeks, which, while it kept daytime highs below 40, also kept the nighttime lows much higher than normal.

Though the average high temperature for the month was right around the normal of 35, the average low for the month was nearly 4 degrees above normal.

In January, Dewey said, Lincoln has been pretty much "spot-on" for high temperatures and snowfall compared with the average, while morning lows have been "amazing."
Free domestic alarms - Muintir na Tire is offering free carbon monoxide alarms to senior citizens or people living on their own in the Oylegate area.

If anyone is interested in getting the free alarms, they are asked to contact Eamon Mernagh or Cllr Willie Kavanagh for more details.

These alarms could prove life-saving in the long term and the fact they are being provided free-of-charge means all seniors in the community and those living alone are encouraged to avail of them.

Grandparents Day in school

Castledockrell National School will hold its annual Grandparents Day on Wednesday, January 29, at 1 p.m.

It should be a lovely, fun-filled afternoon for everyone involved.

Whist Drive sessions

The local whist drive sessions will take place in St Anthony's Unit at the CWCW on Friday, February 14 and 28, at 8 p.m.

Everyone in the community is welcome to attend the session.

Castledockrell enrolments

Castledockrell National School is now taking enrolments for September 2020.

The school will host an enrolment open evening on Wednesday, February 5, from 6 p.m. to 7.30 p.m. Everyone is welcome to attend.

If you are unable to attend on the evening, and would like an enrolment form, contact the school or visit the school website at www.castledockrellns.weebly.com for further information.

Retirement group news

The next AGM members meeting of Enniscorthy Retirement Group will take place on Tuesday, February 4, in the Seamus Rafter Room, at the Riverside Park Hotel.

The meeting will get under way at 2.30 p.m. and membership renewals are due.

Prospective new members are also very welcome to go along.

Ongoing activities in the group include: Mondays and Fridays - Pitch and Putt at 10 a.m. at St Patrick's Park (weather permitting); line-dancing (11a.m.) and bowls (at 1 p.m.) - both at astro-turf; Tuesday: cards at astro-turf at 2 p.m. (February 25); Wednesday - Riverside Walk at 11 a.m. meeting up at the hotel; quiz on Wednesday, February 12, at 2.30 p.m., and bingo on February 19 - both at Loreto Village; Thursdays: Scrabble at 10.30 a.m. and crafts at 2 p.m. - both at astro-turf.

Fishy tales on the way

The legendary Jerry Fish will be making a welcome visit to Enniscorthy when he stops off at the Presentation Centre on Friday, March 13, at 8.30 p.m.

'Songs and Tales of Jerry Fish' is sure to attract a capacity crowd to the venue and the show will undoubtedly be one of the most entertaining events staged in the venue all year.

Renowned for his showmanship and Vaudeville-style stage antics almost as much as he is for his fantastic music, this is a show for lovers of theatre as well as music.

Every show on this tour will be unique and the boundaries between audience and performer will be completely eroded.

With two new singles in the pipeline, including one featuring Enniscorthy's very own majestic songsmith, Wallis Bird, this will be a show not-to-be missed.

Tickets, priced 22, are available online and through the Presentation Centre reception.

Photography in the library

Professional photographer Ger Carty will give a presentation in Enniscorthy Library on Thursday, January 30.

The session will focus attention on camera equipment.

Mr Carty will also show attendees how to improve their photography skills.

The event will get under way at 7 p.m. and admission will be free of charge.

For more information, contact the library directly on 053 9196732.

Short film premieres

The world premiere of a new short film titled 'Besties' will take place in the Presentation Centre, Enniscorthy at 7.30 p.m. on Friday, February 7.

The film features members of Enniscorthy Drama Group among the cast.

The launch is being organised to raise money for Focus Ireland.

The cast includes some well-known faces from the acting world in Enniscorthy, including Karen Franklin; Jennifer Boyd; Fintan Kelly; Summer Venn-Keane; Maeve Ennis and Jennifer Kelly.

The film was directed by local filmmaker Dick Donoghue and was produced by Jer Ennis.

There will also be two other short films premiered on the night: 'Dark Waters', which was filmed in Bridgetown, starring Sharon Griffiths, with David Parsons, and 'What Next Mother', which is a comedy filmed in Bunclody.

Beautiful Day launch

An exhibition of works by artists involved with Wexford Residential Intellectual Disability Services (WRIDS) will take place in the Presentation Centre, Enniscorthy at 1 p.m. on Wednesday, January 29.

The guest speaker at the event will be Dr Stephen Chan from the HSE.

The launch will also include a screening of the Arts Ability video and music performances.

Light refreshments will follow the launch from 2 p.m. to 5 p.m.

Arts Ability is a long-term programme led by the Arts Office of Wexford County Council in partnership with the HSE's Disability and Mental Health Services, along with other partner venues.

Obituaries

This newspaper offers tribute pieces for bereaved family members and friends within the local community who have recently suffered the loss of a loved one.

The weekly service is available free of charge and all obituaries are completed in a manner that is sensitive to your own personal wishes and requests, shaped entirely by your direction.

Please feel free to contact the journalist above if an obituary tribute is something that interests you or if it's something you would like to have written to honour the memory of a loved one who has passed away.

Bree Centre AGM

The Bree Community Centre AGM will take place on Monday, February 10, at 8.30 p.m. All are welcome to attend and all organisations using the community centre are especially asked to be represented at the meeting.

Bingo for Lourdes trip

The bingo in Mernagh's pub in Oylegate is now being run to raise much-needed funds to assist with helping the girls in Colaiste Bride, Enniscorthy, as they prepare to help with the IHCPT trip to Lourdes.

The bingo sessions commence at 9.15 p.m. on Thursday nights. All support for this worthy cause will be greatly appreciated.

Fun bingo night

A fun bingo night will take place in Ballymurn Hall on Friday, January 31, at 7.30 p.m.

The event is being organised in support of the local youth club and the cost of participating will be 5 per book.

Adventure race time

The Slaney Adventure Race will take place on Saturday, February 8.

It will incorporate the same routes and events as last year.

There will be a 30km cycle (from Bree Community Centre); a 1km kayak (Killurin); and a 6.5km forest run, finishing in Bree Community Centre.

Registrations are still being taken online.

Bree capers reach finals

The Bree Macra Capers team have made it through to the national final of the Capers Show competition.

The final will be held in Eire Og Hall in Ovens, Co. Cork on Saturday, February 1, at 8 p.m.

All support for the event will be greatly appreciated.

Macra 60th anniversary

Bree Macra is celebrating its 60th anniversary with a function in the Riverside Park Hotel, Enniscorthy on Friday, March 27.

Tickets for the event, priced 35, are now available from any committee member.

For more information, feel free to contact 087 7660602.

Memorial for graves

The 'Caim Memorials to the Dead' graveyard booklet is now available for sale.

The book contains details of the burials in the graveyards, as well as some old photographs of sporting and school groups in the area. It's a very useful aid for those interested in family history.

The booklet costs 10 (with postage extra). For further details, contact Sinead at 087 9519422 or Joan at 086 3236676.

Text alert subscriptions

Caim text alert annual subscription fees for members are now due.

Anyone who is not already a member and wishes to join the text alert group can do so by paying the annual fee of 10 to Robert Rackard at Rackard's of Caim.

Defibrillator checks

Clubs, groups and organisations throughout the Enniscorthy town and district areas that have defibrillators are reminded to ensure they are in perfect working order.

Batteries need to be checked to ensure they are fully charged, while care should be taken that pads are always maintained within their specified working date.

To have a free, professional audit carried out on your defibrillator, contact Paddy Redmond at 087 6843637.
PR-Inside.com: 2020-02-01 00:07:31

Press Information





Published by

ACCESSWIRE News Network

888.952.4446

e-mail

http://www.accesswire.com







# 402 Words

ACCESSWIRE News Network888.952.4446

LOS ANGELES, CA / ACCESSWIRE / January 31, 2020 / Andrew Waters, Executive Chairman of Florida-based company eCom Products Group Corporation (EPG) (OCTPINK:EPGC): announced today their agreement to acquire ELLESHOP China. Thanks to the efforts of Mr. Waters and CEO Jody Sigmund, the acquisition will be a smooth transition into EPG's already expansive social commerce services, sales channels, and cross-border portfolio.China's leading online fashion portal linking brands and influencers, and engaging consumers totransact.As part of its continuing strategy to own several social commerce-based sales and service platforms, EPG, with operations in key strategic, high-growth markets, will acquire a controlling shareholding in Hearst Communication's ELLESHOP China. "We are commingling our media assets and increasing global brand reach for clients like Bloomingdale's looking to enter high-growth markets," said Sigmund.Joint efforts are underway, with CEO Jack Wang of ELLE Shop China and CEO Jody Sigmund of EPG services to incorporate social commerce strategies and create a more organic engagement with China's sought-after KOLs (influencers). The merger will incorporate an in-house affiliate program to EPG's expansive eCommerce and cross-border offering. Brands will now access a full suite of services ranging from social influence management, online sales channels, destination marketing platforms, e-commerce, logistics and import/export services.Mr. Waters stated, "The opportunity to acquire controlling interest in ELLE Shop China is an exciting addition to the sales channels and marketing platforms EPG offers our clients. The intended acquisition also strengthens our investor's portfolio." ELLESHOP China is a growing fashion and lifestyle platform with strong brand positioning, key media channel partnerships, A-list celebrities, and high-profile influencers (KOLs). ELLE SHOP China's 15+ million consumer reach offers brands exclusive access entering China.END###About eCom Products Group"Simplifying brand success, from click to ship." For brands looking to enter high-growth markets, EPG simplifies market entry through social commerce, logistics, and a full suite of eCommerce service solutions.CONTACT:Michael CoxeCom Products Groupmichaelcox@ helloepg.com Related FilesEPG Acquires ELLE-20-1-28-FinanceMPG Intro 1080 V1Related ImagesELLE ShopChina's leading online fashion portal linking brands and influencers, and engaging consumers to transact.Say helloEPGEPG - "Simplifying brand success, from click to ship." For brands looking to enter high-growth markets, EPG simplifies market entry through social commerce, logistics, anda full suite of eCommerce service solutions.Related LinksEPG ServicesBeauty WebinarSOURCE: eCom Products Group
(TNS)  Alto CEO Will Coleman is used to getting lots of questions when he tells people he leads a ride-hailing company. When he founded the startup a year ago, Uber and Lyft were already household names. Now theyre publicly traded giants.But the Dallas-based company is showing signs of growth, even in a competitive industry. It has about 10,000 active members who pay a subscription-based fee. Its driven nearly 100,000 rides. It serves more than 900 square miles of the Dallas-Fort Worth area.Alto has also raised an additional $6 million to expand in Dallas and enter two new markets  another metro area in Texas and one in California  by the end of the year. Its venture capital backing now totals $20.5 million, with most from Road Ventures, a Swiss fund focused on transportation.The company wants to operate in 15 large U.S. metro areas in 3 to 4 years, Coleman said.Altos business model is nearly the opposite of its better-known rivals, who rely on contract workers who drive their own cars. Alto owns a fleet of about 60 SUVs. It employs more than 100 drivers who get health insurance and other benefits, along with pay. It has a membership-based model and a higher price tag.Instead of competing on price, the company seeks out riders who are willing to pay for a more upscale experience.We are an accessible luxury," Coleman said. "We are focused on safety, consistency and quality, and for people that care about that, we think were the best in the space. If all you care about is getting the absolute cheapest ride from point A to point B, thats not Alto.Coleman would not share Altos annual revenue but said the companys Dallas operations will become profitable in late 2020 or early 2021. Starting in October, Altos revenue covered the direct operating cost of each ride, including drivers, vehicles, fuel and insurance.Coleman, a Dallas native and former McKinsey & Company consultant, said Altos focus on profitability is timely. Uber and Lyft are under pressure from Wall Street as investors push for proof that they can make money.Alto spends a higher percentage of its revenue on employees. About 60% of its overall costs are employee salaries and benefits, Coleman said, but that allows the company to train and screen drivers, he said. It also translates to lower insurance costs and lower vehicle expenses, since the company can buy and maintain the SUVs at scale.Altos major backer, Road Ventures, was instrumental in its founding, and it led the recent round of funding. Road Ventures is majority owner of Alto. Patrice Crisinel, a Road Ventures board member, said it owns just a little more than the majority" but wouldnt disclose the percentage.The venture firm hired consultants to explore investing in a ride-hailing company. Through the research, the firms leaders met Coleman and decided to fund a new company instead.Crisinel said the research uncovered large segments of the market that didnt use ride-sharing as much  particularly professional women and families. He said Road Ventures believed a new kind of company focused on safety and superior customer service could appeal to those customers.Our bet was right, he said.In addition to drivers, Alto has grown to about 25 home office employees, including software engineers and a customer experience team. It hires an average of eight drivers a week to keep up with demand.Customers are equally split between men and women but tend to be more affluent. Most have household incomes of $100,000 or higher, Coleman said.Unlike Uber or Lyft, Alto doesnt raise prices during busy times  but riders must plan ahead for trips. Riders request a ride through a smartphone app. The wait is typically about 10 minutes. It doesnt have a shared ride option either. (Uber and Lyft dont have a carpooling option in Dallas but offer it in cities like San Francisco and New York.)Over the past year, Alto has expanded its coverage area in Dallas and tweaked its approach. It launched with a members-only subscription model but now allows guests to pay per ride. Membership costs $12.95 a month or $99 a year, in addition to the cost of rides. For guests, there is no membership fee, but rides cost about 30% more. About 85% of its rides are taken by members.Alto isnt the only company putting its own spin on ride-hailing. Via offers ride-hailing in several major cities and has struck deals with public transit agencies. Zum and HopSkipDrive market themselves as a solution for busy parents who need help with kids pickups and dropoffs. Dallas-based Bubbl hires drivers who are off-duty police officers, veterans and first responders.Alto has tried to stand out with unique touches. Uniform-wearing drivers pick up customers. All rides are in white Buick Enclave SUVs with vanity license plates and a leather interior. Riders can pick music or select Do Not Disturb," if they have a work call or prefer quiet. And the company borrowed a strategy from high-end hotels by developing a signature scent that drivers spray before each ride. Its a subtle mix of cypress, vetiver and bergamot.Alto plans to add other customized features, such as allowing riders to turn up the air conditioning or dim the lights. In the future, the seats may be preprogrammed to adjust for customers, for example, Coleman said.We want our customer to feel like they are in control and to feel like they are getting in their car  not someone elses car, Coleman said. Thats really the feeling that we think differentiates us from our competitors.
A group of nearly 150 Pakistani nationals stuck at an airport China's Xinjiang region for the past four days amidst the deadly coronavirus outbreak have appealed to the Imran Khan-led government in Islamabad to evacuate them.

The Pakistani citizens, most of whom are students and their families with the rest being traders, have been trapped at the airport in Urumqi, the capital of the Xinjiang region, for several days as the death toll from the coronavirus outbreak in China rose to over 250, prompting the World Health Organisation to declare it as a global health emergency, reports Dawn news.

They can neither leave the airport because many of them have reached the expiry of their visas, nor can they fly home due to Pakistan's suspension of its flights to and from China in the wake of the outbreak.

Tariq Rauf, a PhD scholar from Khyber Pakhtunkhwa's Shangla district who was studying in China, in a video message sent to Dawn news said that members of the Pakistani community were stuck in Urumqi because their onward flight to Pakistan had been cancelled.

Accompanied by other Pakistani nationals and children in the video, Rauf said the visas of many of them had expired and they were told to remain inside the airport.

He told Dawn news that the Pakistani nationals were having to fend for themselves while at the airport, sleeping on benches and purchasing food using their own money.

"We request the Pakistani government to evacuate us from here ... this is our constitutional right," Rauf added.

After the scholar's video went viral on social media, the Pakistan Embassy contacted the citizens stuck at the airport to assure them that they will be provided a hotel until their departure from China was sorted out.
Rep. Ilhan Omar (D-Minn.) was never aborted. This fact has not, however, kept her from condemning efforts to curb the slaughter of unborn babies. Ironically, Omar, a Muslim anti-Semite, recently blasted "religious fundamentalists" for attempting to limit the ongoing holocaust of innocent babies. Omar also referenced the failed proposal in Texas that would have potentially allowed women seeking abortions to be charged with assault or criminal homicide. The proposal never even made it to a vote, but it triggered Omar to say: "If that was being proposed by any other country, we would be calling it a dangerous violation of human rights. But because it's happening here with the support of the ultra-conservative, religious right, we call it religious freedom."

No, we wouldn't. Forced female genital mutilation is the norm in several Muslim countries, and it doesn't get much play here in the U.S., though it should. Women can't leave the home without a hijab on or a male relative in some of those same nations. Oh, and slavery still exists in Islamic nations such as Chad, Mauritania, Niger, and Sudan, and we aren't badgering you about it on a daily basis, are we, Rep. Omar? So put that in your shisha pipe and smoke it. (And there are perhaps a few thousand "ultra-conservative, religious right" non-Muslims residing in the U.S. today.)



Rep.lhan Omar (file photo via Flickr).

Nonetheless, Rep. Omar continued: "I feel that we must point out how ironic it is that women now are facing these challenges to their freedom in the week that we're marking the 100th anniversary of the 19th Amendment. How can it be that an entire century has passed and we are still forced to fight for our rights as women, as human beings, and as Americans?" The 19th Amendment gave women the right to vote, Rep. Omar, not murder.

And then the coup de grace: Omar said laws that protect the unborn "criminalize women for simply existing." That's exactly backward, the opposite of the obvious truth. Women are not put in jail for being women. This is simply an observable fact. We know this because all women aren't in jail. In fact, the vast majority of women aren't in jail. Nor are they even incarcerated for aborting their babies. And they have the right to choose not to have sex or to use protection.

The truth is, "pro-choice" activists like Rep. Omar believe that the unborn child should be criminalized for simply existing. And then be removed...from existence.

And he had no choice as regards his conception or death.
Hong Kong Threatened With Medical Strike Over Refusal to Shut Border

2020-01-31 -- Medical staff in Hong Kong are threatening to strike if the city's government doesn't shut down its border with mainland China in the face of the coronavirus epidemic now spreading outwards from central China with nearly 10,000 confirmed cases and more than 200 deaths reported on Friday.

A recently formed HA Employees Alliance says its 6,700 members, all of whom are employed by the government's Hospital Authority, will vote on Saturday whether or not to strike over the demand.

The union says that most coronavirus patients in Hong Kong are from the mainland, and hospitals won't be able to cope if the number of such cases keeps rising.

If it votes to strike, then its members will walk out for five days started Monday. Around 70 percent of them are nurses and eight percent are doctors. The initial phase won't include emergency services, but the second phase will, its spokesman said.

Hong Kong chief executive Carrie Lam has refused to shut the border, relying on partial closure of some routes into the city from neighboring Guangdong province, but not the busiest road crossings.

Lam said a total shutdown would go against World Health Organization (WHO) guidelines.

"Let me quote what is in the World Health Organization statement," she said. "It makes it very clear that countries and governments are cautioned against actions that promote stigma or discrimination."

She called on medical staff not to go on strike.

"I sincerely hope and appeal to our health staff in the Hospital Authority to consider very seriously any plan to have a strike, because at the end of the day, those who suffer will be the patients and Hong Kong's healthcare system," Lam said.

Protecting lives

Democratic Party lawmaker Helena Wong said protecting the lives of Hong Kong's seven million residents couldn't be seen as discrimination.

"If this is a form of discrimination, then what about the city lockdowns that are happening across all provinces and cities in mainland China?" Wong said. "Are the Chinese discriminating against the Chinese?"

A recent opinion poll shows that around 80 percent of Hong Kong people are in favor of a total border shutdown to limit the impact of the Wuhan novel coronavirus epidemic, called nCoV-2019 (Wuhan) by the WHO.

Several countries, including the United States, issued travel warnings for China, a day after the WHO declared the coronavirus a global health emergency.

As the U.K. reported its first confirmed cases, the U.S. and Japan warned their nationals to abandon any non-urgent travel plans to China, while Iran's health minister called for a ban on any incoming travelers from China.

Singapore has already shut its borders to anyone with a recent history of travel to China, and won't be issuing any visas to Chinese nationals.

Meanwhile, the Italian government has declared a state of emergency and stopped all air traffic with China after two Chinese tourists were confirmed to have the virus.

'Full confidence and capability'

China said it has taken "the most comprehensive and rigorous prevention and control measures," a foreign ministry spokeswoman said in response to the WHO declaration.

"We have full confidence and capability to win this fight," Hua Chunying said in a statement.

WHO Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus had commended China for its efforts and said the WHO was not recommending curbs on travel or trade with Beijing. A WHO spokesman said keeping borders open prevented illegal or unofficial border crossings.

Dutch airline KLM, Air France KLM SA, British Airways, Germany's Lufthansa and Virgin Atlantic have suspended flights to China.

The virus has spread more rapidly than the Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome (SARS), to which is very similar, but appears to have a lower mortality rate, estimated at two percent.

Harvard epidemiologist Dr. Eric Feigl-Ding said that the WHO's declaration of a public health emergency of international concern sends a warning to governments to be on high alert and legally binds them to coordinate their response with the WHO.

"There's so much that is political, when it comes to pandemic announcements," Feigl-Ding said. "[But] the numbers aren't going to slow down. We don't expect this to plateau until at least mid-to-end of February, if we're lucky, maybe even March."

"It all depends on public health control measures, and what else we learn about the virus, and how it spreads."

Feigl-Ding said he was "very concerned," by the situation, but that quarantining an entire country wasn't a reasonable response.

"Some of these [measures] are very extreme, I will say, and I'm not sure if I agree with all of them," he told RFA."

Reported by Lu Xi for RFA's Mandarin and Cantonese Services. Translated and edited by Shen Hua and Luisetta Mudie.

Copyright  1998-2020, RFA. Used with the permission of Radio Free Asia, 2025 M St. NW, Suite 300, Washington DC 20036. For any commercial use of RFA content please send an email to: mahajanr@rfa.org. RFA content January not be used in a manner which would give the appearance of any endorsement of any product or support of any issue or political position. Please read the full text of our Terms of Use.

NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address






Washington: An informational handout recently shared by the University of California at Berkeley's health services centre has drawn fire after identifying xenophobia as a "normal reaction" people may be experiencing as the coronavirus crisis continues to unfold.

The coronavirus outbreak has posed special problems for universities. Credit:Erin Jonasson

"Xenophobia: fears about interacting with those who might be from Asia and guilt about those feelings," the handout posted to Instragram said was another reasonable way for people to feel, alongside feeling panicked, socially withdrawn and angry.

As Asians, especially Chinese people, worldwide have experienced heightened tensions in their communities and an increasing number of racist incidents sparked by fears of coronavirus contamination, the post struck a nerve.

Many critics slammed the graphic, expressing disbelief that a prominent university with a large Asian student body appeared to be "normalising racism."
Source: Xinhua| 2020-02-01 16:40:34|Editor: xuxin

Video Player Close

Samdech Techo Hun Sen (R), president of the Cambodian People's Party (CPP) and prime minister of Cambodia, presides over the CPP's 42nd congress in Phnom Penh, Cambodia, on Feb. 1, 2020. The ruling CPP held its 42nd congress on Saturday to review achievements in 2019 and to set targets for 2020. (Photo by Li Lay/Xinhua)

PHNOM PENH, Feb. 1 (Xinhua) -- The ruling Cambodian People's Party (CPP) held its 42nd congress on Saturday to review achievements in 2019 and to set targets for 2020.

The congress was presided over by CPP's President Samdech Techo Hun Sen, who is the prime minister of Cambodia, and was attended by about 3,420 party members from across the kingdom.

CPP's Honorary President Samdech Heng Samrin said the two-day congress was to evaluate general situation and to review achievements last year and to determine direction and measures for the implementation this year.

The CPP won all 125 National Assembly seats in a general election in July 2018.

"For over a year, the CPP, led by Samdech Techo Hun Sen, has achieved a lot of new and remarkable feats for the country," Samrin said in an opening speech.

"Independence, sovereignty, territorial integrity, peace, political stability, security, social order and state's power have been firmly maintained and protected," he said.

Samrin, who is also the president of the National Assembly, said overall, political situation and business atmosphere in the kingdom were good last year.

The CPP has ruled the country since 1979. The party's leadership is currently comprised of 37 standing committee members and 865 central committee members.
Foreign ambassadors lavished praise on Vietnam as the country has successfully fulfilled its role as the rotary president of the United Nations Security Council (UNSC) in the first month of 2020.

Ambassador Marc Pecsteen de Buytswerve, Permanent Representative of Belgium to the UN

Ambassador Marc Pecsteen de Buytswerve, Permanent Representative of Belgium to the UN, told Vietnam News Agencys correspondents at the UN that Vietnam had done a good job despite formidable challenges when it took up the presidency of the UNSC immediately at the beginning of its tenure as a non-permanent member of the council.

Vietnam had really left its imprint with the open debate on the 75th anniversary of the UN Charter, particularly in the context of mounting tensions in the UN as well as in the world.

He stressed that in its rotary presidency, Vietnam worked to ensure all sessions and events in January ran smoothly.

Meanwhile, Ambassador Dian Triansyah Djani, Permanent Representative of Indonesia to the UN, said that Vietnams efforts during the presidency month has helped increase ASEANs position in the international arena.

He hailed Vietnams initiative to bring forward cooperation between the UN and the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) at the UNSC, saying it is significant to help both sides exchange experience in assuring a peaceful environment in the Southeast Asian region.

According to Deputy Permanent Representative of France to the UN Anne Gueguen, thanks to Vietnams effective coordination, the UNSC was able to adopt several important resolutions that have influence on millions of people worldwide, for example the resolution on extending the authorisation for the mechanism that allows cross-border humanitarian aid to Syria.

Besides, all UNSC members made concerted efforts to discuss measures to reduce tensions in the Middle East, especially in Libya, she added.

She said she was impressed with what the head of Vietnams mission to the UN Ambassador Dang Dinh Quy and his team did in the past month, and congratulated Vietnam on its successful presidency./.VNA


United States and United Nations agencies launched a program this week to help tens of thousands of Venezuelan migrants settle in Brazil.

The U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID) and the U.N.s International Organization for Migration (IOM) are leading the effort.

USAID officials said the agency will provide $4 million to support the program. The money will help Venezuelan migrants get official employment, business training and language classes. Venezuela is a Spanish-speaking nation while Brazil is a Portuguese-speaking country.

About 4.6 million Venezuelans have fled the political and economic crisis in that country. Almost 900,000 have crossed the border into Brazil since 2018. The Brazilian government says they are still entering Brazil at an average rate of 500 a day.

Most have continued on to other Spanish-speaking countries. But 264,000 Venezuelans have applied to stay in Brazil. As a result, social services in the Brazilian border state of Roraima have struggled to deal with immigrants.

The program supported by USAID and the IOM will work with the Brazilian militarys efforts to move Venezuelan immigrants to cities further south. Migrants will have more opportunities for sustainable work and a new life there.



The program is called Economic Integration of Vulnerable Nationals from Venezuela in Brazil. John Barsa, USAID assistant administrator for Latin America, launched the program in Brazils capital, Brasilia. He said it is not a long-term answer, but provides needed help until stability returns to Venezuela.

He added, That will only happen when the illegitimate Maduro regime is no longer in power. U.S. President Donald Trumps administration supports opposition leader Juan Guaido rather than Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro.

USAID said it has already provided nearly $15 million to support Venezuelans in Brazil.

The Trump administration lowered the number of refugees from any country it will permit to resettle in the United States in 2020 to 18,000. That is the lowest level in the history of the modern refugee program.

Army Colonel George Kanaan oversees the border processing operation. He said since April 2019, Brazil has moved 27,222 Venezuelan refugees and migrants to southern cities.

Jose Angel Perez and his family are among those refugees. Perez was an oil truck driver for state oil company PDVSA in Anaco in eastern Venezuela. He is hoping the new program will help find him work in Brazil.

He said, I need a job, so does my wife. We plan to stay. Change will not come quickly in Venezuela.

Im Jonathan Evans.

Anthony Boadle reported on this story for the Reuters news service. Jonathan Evans adapted this story for Learning English. Mario Ritter, Jr. was the editor.

________________________________________________________________

Words in This Story

stability n. the quality or state of something that is not easily changed or likely to change

illegitimate adj. not allowed according to rules or laws

regime n. a form of government; a particular government
The cooperation portfolio between South Korea and Egypt records approximately $458 million, including projects to upgrade the transport sector in Egypt

Executive Director at Korea Eximbank Hwan Joon Yang said the bank is eager to introduce support to and exchange experience with Egypt, adding that South Korea in keen on increasing partnership with Egypt in a number of development projects.

Hwan's comments came on the sidelines of a meeting held on Saturday with Egypts Minister of International Cooperation Rania El-Mashat.

A delegation from the Korean bank visited Egypt for four days in late January to hold meetings with the ministries interested in boosting Egypt-Korea cooperation.

Hwan and El-Mashat reviewed the bank's new projects that will be implemented in Egypt over the coming phase.

Eximbank is the largest Korean corporation that introduces intelligence funds for development projects.

The cooperation portfolio between South Korea and Egypt records approximately $458 million, including projects to upgrade the transport sector in Egypt.

Search Keywords:

Short link:


Passengers look on from a vehicle carrying French citizens evacuated from Wuhan, China, near Marseille, France on January 31, 2020 AFP/GERARD JULIEN

Stephane Bancel is chief executive of Moderna Therapeutics, one of several entities involved in an all-out international effort to create a vaccine as soon as possible for the deadly SARS-like virus, also known as nCoV-2019, that has already killed more than 200 people.

Moderna is working in coordination with the US National Institutes of Health, while Inovio Pharmaceuticals and the University of Queensland in Australia are pursuing alternative tracks.

They have all received funding from the Coalition for Epidemic Preparedness Innovations (CEPI), an international body established to finance costly biotechnology research.

But Bancel warned that "no manufacturer will be able to have a vaccine ready for the summer".

In a French-language interview with AFP, Bancel also described the technology Moderna was using in its approach.

"It is based on messenger RNA technology. Messenger RNA (mRNA) is a coded information molecule," he said.

"MASTER THE TECHONOLOGY"

Moderna's website explains that "mRNA medicines are sets of instructions that cells in the body use to make proteins to prevent or fight disease."

Bancel added that "once we have managed to master the technology that works on humans, things could go very quickly because it is always the same manufacturing process ... for messenger RNA against the flu or against the coronavirus, it is the same method of manufacturing, the only difference is the order of letters that code the proteins.

"For the coronavirus, we are working with the US National Institutes of Health (NIH). They acquired the virus' sequence from the Chinese government, then the NIH and our teams analysed it to understand the protein structures, which are different from other viruses.

"Our teams near Boston are making a vaccine now, and as soon as it is ready, it will be sent to the NIH which will carry out clinical phase 1 trials" Bancel said in reference to initial safety tests on humans.

Asked if a vaccine could be developed in time to respond to the epidemic, he cautioned that "the vaccine will have to undergo several clinical trials.

"The challenge is that it could quickly be given to millions of people. The responsibility for its safety is therefore very important. Even going quickly with technolgy like mRNA, no manufacturer will be able to have a vaccine ready by the summer, or even by the autumn."

Bancel emphasised that "the only answer now is public health actions, trying to contain human to human transmission as much as possible.

"I think the biggest public health challenge will be during winter in the southern hemispere, along with the risk that it comes back to the northern hemisphere in the fall," he forecast.

"It is very had to predict today if the situation will be serious in the fall or if the virus will have disappeared.

"But one advantage of getting a coronavirus vaccine approved, is that if there is a mutation to another virus later, it will be possible to have a product available quickly."

In a separate interview with the European Pharmaceutical Review, CEPI chief executive Richard Hatchett said: "Our aspiration with these technologies is to bring a new pathogen from gene sequence to clinical testing in 16 weeks - which is significantly shorter than where we are now."

RISKY PROJECT

Brancel told AFP there were risks for his company to take on this kind of project, but that CEPI funding removed a major obstacle.

"There is a risk that the product does not work, because biotechnology is complicated. There is also a risk that another solution is found before we do and that it becomes the blockbuster product that everyone prescribes.

"That is why partnerships with CEPI are very important. CEPI provides us with the funds to make the first batch of vaccines for the NIH. That removes a big thorn from our side.

"The idea behind CEPI is to obtain regulatory approval for a dozen vaccines, for viruses like Zika or coronavirus, because they pose a great threat to humans.

"We need approved vaccines so that if there are mutations within a strain of virus, we can produce vaccines in large quantities within a few months."
Hitting out at the Opposition for "creating a misunderstanding" among Muslims over the amended Citizenship Act, Defence Minister Rajnath Singh said Prime Minister Narendra Modi is 24-karat gold and his intention should not be doubted. Addressing a rally at Mehrauli, Singh asserted that no one could raise a finger at any bonafide "Muslim brother".

He said fear was being instilled by the opposition among Muslims to garner votes.

"Our Prime Minister is 24-karat. His intention cannot be doubted," he said, adding that his government believes in 'Sabka Saath, Sabka Vikas and Sabka Vishwas'.

Taking aim at Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal, Singh said instead of maintaining good relations with the Centre, he often got into a fight (dangal) with it and squandered five years.

The defence minister said issues like abrogation of special provisions of Article 370 that gave special status to Jammu and Kashmir, Triple Talaq and Ram Temple in Ayodhya have always been the promises made by the BJP in its manifesto.

He said there was a difference in Kejriwal's "kathni" (words) and "karni" (deeds).

"I think, leaders should not make promises, and if they do, then they have to go any extent to fulfil it," Singh said.
The last cross Channel ferry, the Spirit of Britain, leaves Calais (Steve Parsons/PA)

The first Calais to Dover cross-Channel ferries due to arrive in post-Brexit Britain have departed from the French port.

The three boats  the first DFDS, and the others P&O  left Calais while Britain was still a member of the EU, but will arrive after the departure time of 11pm GMT.

The DFDS craft, named Cotes des Dunes, will be the first Calais to Dover vessel to arrive in Kent after the UK has left the bloc.

It left France at around 11:15pm local time, and will arrive in the UK around 90 minutes later.

The P&O ship, Spirit of Britain, which left Calais at around 11:50pm local time, was the last cross-Channel boat to leave Calais for Dover before Britain left the EU.

Shortly before that, the Pride of Canterbury P&O craft also departed, heading for the White Cliffs.

All of the boats had to contend with rain and high winds as they set off on Friday, with bad weather also predicted around the English coast.

Their arrival in Kent will come less than one day after a love letter to the EU from two Second World War veterans, Stephen Goodall and Sidney Sid Daw, was projected onto the cliffs at Dover.

In a film arranged by activist group Led by Donkeys, the pair lamented the UKs imminent departure from the EU in an emotional video in which they talked about their hopes of a return one day.

After the touching words from the two veterans, the video ended with the stars on the EU flag slowly disappearing.

With just one star remaining, the line read: This is our star. Look after it for us.
Several Indian citizens living in Wuhan are expected to arrive in the country on Saturday. PTI Photo

New Delhi: India on Friday banned the export of personal protection equipment such as masks and clothing amid a global coronavirus outbreak.

It did not give a reason for the ban but it reported its first case of the new coronavirus on Thursday, a woman in Kerala who was a student of Wuhan University in China.

The central Chinese city of Wuhan is the epicentre of the outbreak, and the virus has since spread to more than 9,800 people globally and killed 213 people in China.

Several Indian citizens living in Wuhan will arrive in India by plane on Saturday and be taken to a quarantine centre on the outskirts of the capital New Delhi.

India, the worlds second most heavily populated country after China, has taken measures to ensure that all people arriving from China report to health authorities.
Britain left the European Union on Friday after 47 years of membership, taking a leap into the unknown in a historic blow to the bloc, but on Saturday morning life appeared to continue as normal in the coastal town of Dover, a major port for ferries going to France. No traffic jams could be observed at the harbour and people were going about their business as usual.

Negotiations between Britain and the EU on their new relationship are due to start in earnest in March, and the early signs are not encouraging.

The EU says Britain can't have full access to the EU's single market unless it follows the bloc's rules, but Britain insists it will not agree to follow an EU rule book in return for unfettered trade. The U.K.'s departure became official at 2300 GMT, midnight in Brussels, where the EU is headquartered.
US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo is in Belarus seeking to improve ties with the former Soviet republic as its relations with Russia become further strained.

Pompeo is the first secretary of state to visit Belarus in more than two decades and arrived on Saturday amid new tensions between Minsk and Moscow over energy.

In a meeting with President Alexander Lukashenko, Pompeo said he hoped to help provide an opportunity for Belarus to achieve the "sovereignty" and "independence" it seeks.

Belarus fears Russia is trying to absorb it and last month began purchasing gas from Norway after Russian supplies were cut off. Last week, Lukashenko accused Russia, the country's main provider of cheap oil and gas, of stopping supplies "to dissolve Belarus".

Pompeo said the US wants to help fill the vacuum and will continue to boost staffing at its embassy in Minsk, which was severely reduced 12 years ago. The two countries agreed in September to exchange ambassadors for the first time since 2008.

Belarus had been a candidate to be included in the Trump administration's expanded travel ban that was announced on Friday but avoided it by taking measures to improve security cooperation and potential traveller threat information with the United States.

In addition to trying to boost American influence in Belarus, Pompeo will be urging economic and political reforms as well as improved human rights conditions a message similar to those he will be bringing to Kazakhstan and Uzbekistan later this weekend. At each stop, Pompeo will warn of attempts by Russia and China to aggressively assert themselves in Europe and Central Asia.

Russia stopped supplying oil to Belarus after December 31. The two nations had failed to renegotiate an agreed oil price for this year during drawn-out negotiations on deepening the integration of their economies.

The Russian suspension did not affect oil crossing Belarus to Europe or the supply of natural gas, but had consequences for Belarus, which relies on Russia for more than 80 per cent of its energy needs.

Lukashenko has since vowed to find alternative oil suppliers and said Friday that Belarus is currently negotiating additional supplies with the United States, Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates.

The Kremlin has recently increased pressure on Belarus, raising energy prices and cutting subsidies. It argues that Belarus should accept greater economic integration if it wants to continue receiving energy resources at Russia's domestic prices.

This has prompted fears in Belarus that the Kremlin is plotting to form a single state with Belarus to keep Russian President Vladimir Putin in power well past the end of his term in 2024.

Lukashenko has repeatedly rejected the idea, saying that Belarus would never become part of Russia.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
Wuhan market

Stringer/Getty Images

Wuhan, the epicenter of the coronavirus outbreak, has been under lockdown since January 23. According to the South China Morning Post, there are roughly 9 million residents currently in the city, and about 5 million left before the lockdown.

Authorities shut down Wuhan's airport and public transportation on January 23 and banned private cars in the city's downtown area three days later.

As of Friday morning, the coronavirus has killed at least 213 people and infected more than 9,700 people in China. Cases have been confirmed in 22 other countries, including six in the US.

The quarantine and fears around the deadly virus have made Wuhan a ghost city. Residents only go out occasionally to stock up on supplies at supermarkets and pharmacies.

Visit Business Insider's homepage for more stories.

Wuhan, the city in the Chinese province of Hubei that is the epicenter of the deadly coronavirus outbreak, has been under an unprecedented quarantine since January 23.

Roughly 9 million residents are currently trapped in the city, and about 5 million left before the lockdown began, according to Hubei officials cited by the South China Morning Post.

The lockdown started on January 23, with closures of airports and public transportation in Wuhan. Authorities then banned all private cars in the city's downtown area on January 26, according to China's state-run press agency, Xinhua.

As of Friday morning, the coronavirus has killed at least 213 people and infected more than 9,700 people in China, and it is continuing to spread globally. More than 100 cases have been confirmed in 22 other countries, including six in the US. On Thursday, the WHO declared the novel coronavirus outbreak a global health emergency.

The quarantine, traffic bans, and fears around the deadly virus have made Wuhan a ghost city. Residents only go out occasionally to stock up on supplies at nearby supermarkets and pharmacies.

Story continues

Locals have been lining up in front of pharmacies to buy face masks since mid-January as officials confirmed that the virus could be transferred among people.

Wuhan pharmacy

Hector Retamal/AFP via Getty Images

Source: Business Insider

Pharmacy workers serve shoppers in full-body protective suits, face masks, and surgical gloves.

Wuhan pharmacy workers

Hector Retamal/AFP via Getty ImagesSome photos of insanely long lines for face masks have gone viral on social media.

pharmacy queue

Hector Retamal/AFP via Getty Images

Source: Business Insider

A shortage of protective face masks has been reported in Wuhan and other Chinese cities, as well as in countries like Australia and on online retail platforms like Amazon.

Masks

Hector Retamal/AFP via Getty Images

Source: Business Insider, The New York Post, Business Insider

The lockdown happened just before the Lunar New Year, also called "Spring Festival," the most-celebrated festival in China and many other Asian countries.

Supermarket Wuhan

Feature China/Barcroft Media via Getty ImagesThe 15-day holiday mean that demand for supplies was already high, as households prepare family banquets and invite friends and relatives over to celebrate.

Wuhan market

Stringer/Getty Images

Stringer/Getty ImagesThe city's traffic bans and fears around the deadly virus further prompted citizens to stock up on necessities and groceries.

supermarket wuhan 2

Stringer/Getty ImagesShelves are reportedly clearing quickly after supplies arrive, though there hasn't been a shortage of food in general.

shortage Wuhan

Stringer/Getty Images

Source: Reuters

Authorities have reportedly told farmers to step up food production and opened roads for delivery trucks to meet the daily needs of millions of residents.

supermarket spring wuhan

Stringer/Getty Images

Source: Reuters

Vegetables, meat, and instant foods often sell out quickly.

wuhan buy

Feature China/Barcroft Media via Getty Images

Source: Business Insider

There are police guarding the entrances to big supermarkets.

police Wuhan

Feature China/Barcroft Media via Getty ImagesMasked workers disinfect the hands of customers before shoppers walk into the supermarket.

Wuhan market

Feature China/Barcroft Media via Getty ImagesResidents are required to wear face masks outside. Some are fully protected with glasses and gloves.

mask in wuhan

Feature China/Barcroft Media via Getty Images

Source: CNN

Zhongbai, a major supermarket chain with locations dotting Wuhan, is a key shopping destination for residents in the city.

neighbor market in wuhan

Hector Retamal/AFP via Getty ImagesNeighborhood markets are also teeming with shoppers who want to buy fresh vegetables and meat.

market wuhan

Stringer/Getty ImagesAt the same time, couriers have become major suppliers for the city due to the traffic bans.

Delivery wuhan

Stringer/Getty ImagesJingdong, a major online retailer in China that has its own delivery operation, has continued to provide speedy service in Wuhan during the lockdown.

jingdong wuhan 2

Stringer/Getty Images

Source: Weibo

The company has opened a special donation channel and has been delivering supplies to hospitals and charity organizations.

Jingdong wuhan

Stringer/Getty Images

Source: Weibo

Community workers check the temperature of the couriers frequently.

courier wuhan

Stringer/Getty Images

Read the original article on Business Insider
Aphria workers process cannabis. (YouTube)

Canadian cannabis producer Aphria (APHA.TO)(APHA) announced a $100 million investment from an unnamed institutional investor shortly before the start of trading on Friday.

Toronto-listed shares dropped 5.01 per cent to $7.20 at 9:54 a.m. ET. In New York, the stock fell 3.82 per cent to $5.54.

Aphria said the investor has agreed to purchase 14 million units of the company priced at $7.12. Each unit includes one common share and half of one common share warrant, entitling the holder to purchase a share at $9.26 for 24 months after the closing date.

Given the strength of our leadership team, the continued execution of our strategic plan and the robust opportunities we have for growth in the global cannabis industry, we were able to secure this additional capital from a single investor, a significant endorsement of Aphria in these market conditions, Aphria chief financial officer Carl Merton said in the statement.

We expect this strategic investment to strengthen our balance sheet and propel Aphria forward as we continue to differentiate ourselves in the industry.

Aphria said it intends to use the funds to finance expansion, as well as for working capital and general corporate purposes.

The company said the investment strengthens its cash position to nearly $600 million. The offering is expected to close on or about Jan. 31, and is subject to regulatory approval.

If approved, the institution behind the investment would become the companys biggest institutional shareholder.

The cash injection comes as cannabis companies face a capital drought brought on by a protracted string of weaker-than-expected financial results and a broad-based selloff of cannabis shares.

In the midst of a liquidity crisis and with peers scrambling for cash, this strength really sets them apart from the pack, especially as, unlike other peers on a large cash balance, Aphria is also EBITDA positive. Jefferies analyst Owen Bennett wrote in note to clients on Friday.

This means they are in a very strong position to continue to invest behind current Canadian momentum, invest in international expansion (Colombia opportunity and Aphria One just received GMP certification this week to service Europe), while also pursuing value-accretive opportunities as they come along.

Aphria is Jefferies top pick among Canadian cannabis companies. Bennett maintains a buy rating on the stock and a $7.58 price target on Toronto-listed shares.
People around the world are buying up protective face masks in hopes of keeping the new virus from China at bay.

Some companies have required them for employees. Schools in South Korea have told parents to equip their children with masks and hand sanitizer when they return from winter vacation.

But do the masks work? It depends.

All viruses are small enough to get through a typical strap-on medical mask, but the germs donat generally spread through the air one at a time, said Dr. Mark Denison of Vanderbilt University Medical Center in Nashville. Denison studies SARS and MERS, which are coronaviruses, the same family as the new virus.

Instead, viruses ride from person to person on droplets from a sneeze or cough. Those droplets land on hands and other surfaces, where they are touched by others, who then touch their own eyes, noses or mouths.

Masks can block large droplets from a sneeze or cough. That means they have some value, Denison said.

Also, someone in a mask canat touch their own nose and mouth. That can prevent the wearer from picking up germs left on surfaces by someone who is sick, he said.

Masks are aa very sensible precautiona while scientists work to study exactly how the new virus is transmitted, said University of Oxford researcher Trudie Lang.

None of this, however, is based on rigorous research. Nobody has compared groups of masked and unmasked people by exposing them to the new germ, Denison said. A 2017 review of studies in health care workers suggested masks offer some protection against SARS, but the authors noted aexisting evidence is sparse and findings are inconsistent.a
Letters to the Editor View(s):

Come Tuesday, let the National Anthem be sung in both languages

The LLRC recommendation 8.296 states: On the question of the National Anthem, the practice of the National Anthem being sung simultaneously in two languages to the same tune must be maintained and supported. Any change in the practice at the present time would only create a major irritant which would not be conducive to fostering post conflict reconciliation.

A final decision has not been taken about the language or languages in which the national anthem should be sung at the next Independence Day, which falls on Tuesday, according to the Prime Minister. Singing the national anthem in both official languages has not caused any damage to the sovereignty or unitary nature of our state or our country. The same practice should be continued on Tuesday, as a step towards reconciliation under the new Government too. Singing the National Anthem in Tamil would in no way violate the Constitution; comments are being made by several pundits with a range of perceptions regarding the matter.

Article 7 of the Constitution states: The National Anthem of the Republic of Sri Lanka shall be Sri Lanka Matha, the words and music of which are set out in the Third Schedule. The Article also lists Article 83, as one of several Articles that require a 2/3 majority and approval by the People at a referendum if any of its provisions are amended. The National Anthem in Tamil does not interfere with the words and music of Sri Lanka Matha given in the Third Schedule. It could be sung anywhere regardless of the composition of the audience. The 13th Amendment to the Constitution declared Sinhala and Tamil as both official and national languages, whereas English was declared the link language.

National anthems are usually patriotic musical compositions  classically in the form of a song of respect  that evokes and pays tribute highly, to customs, to the history, or great effort of its people. National anthems are either formally accepted by the Constitution or by a ratification or simply by observance. Every individual, by virtue of the establishment is entitled to equal rights regardless of divisions formed by humans. If the Tamil speaking citizens demand that the National Anthem be sung in Tamil the other communities have no legal or moral right to obstruct it.

An alternative proposal would be to adopt a Tamil- Sinhala national anthem, like in many nations. The South African anthem, for instance is sung in five official languages; namely, Xhosa, Zulu, Sesotho, Afrikaans, and English. South Africa, an apartheid state just two and a half decades ago has advanced to be a nation of tolerance far ahead of us.

In 2016, the government declared that there is no ban on singing the Tamil version of the national anthem. At the Independence Day commemoration the same year, the Tamil national anthem was sung for the first time since 1949. The assertion of a few with a Sinhalese-Buddhist identity may cause a deepening lack of sympathy between the different ethnic and religious sectors in this multi-cultural, multi-ethnic, multi-religious Sri Lanka. Respecting linguistic rights is one way to avoid the past blunders. Any attempt to prohibit or restrict rights of a section will set a dangerous precedent; further, it would be ironic to urge minorities to join the new governments development strategies as envisaged by the President at his swearing-in ceremony held in the precincts of Ruwanveliseya two months ago.

K.K.S. Perera Panadura

Long queues to pay rates at the Colombo Town Hall

On January 22, I went to the Colombo Town Hall to pay the annual rates. The congestion and delay were unprecedented. The counters for billing and paying have been shifted to a new building that has only one flight of steps that could be used. The billing and paying areas were severely congested.There were too many long queues for every counter. It was difficult for any person to pass through.

I had to wait for a long time to get the invoice written. Again I had to wait a long time to pay the money. In my queue one person was paying about ten bills. The queues were broken by many including those brought by supposed Municipal staff. The staff looked very tired. It took about two hours for me to complete my work.

The area in the old building where I used to pay rates had reasonable facilities. There were enough counters and space for the ratepayers. In the billing area there should be only one queue leading to all counters, serving people on a first-come first-served basis. In the same way there should be only one queue for the paying area.People need a sitting area to wait till their turn comes like what happened in the old place.

Parking was another problem. One side of the road in front of the Town Hall was closed for parking. It took a long time to park.The Municipal Council should have a parking area inside the premises.

Do the Mayor, Municipal Commissioner and other bigwigs ever come round and see what is going on?

Nimala Jayasuriya Rajagiriya

Never-ending traffic chaos in Kandy and its impact on peoples health

Traffic chaos in Kandy is getting worse and so far there is no solution in sight. Those who use public transport as well as pedestrians are subjected to severe health hazards due to noxious emissions and dust. The prevailing dry weather has exacerbated the problem. Traffic comes to a standstill during the morning and afternoon school hours. Mind you, there are more than 14 schools along Peradeniya Road and most schools open and close at the same time. School buses parked outside schools during this time add to the traffic chaos, but they have no alternative parking.

There are several causes for the present situation. First and foremost the narrow roads cannot cope with the ever-increasing traffic that comes and leaves Kandy. The Old Peradeniya Road is so narrow that pedestrians have no pavement to walk on. Pedestrians are risking their lives each time they walk along this road. Apart from the risk of being knocked down by a vehicle, the air one inhales is so polluted that it can cause severe respiratory problems. Schoolchildren, both young and old, face this problem daily and several doctors have highlighted the health hazards faced by children in Kandy.

The narrow cross roads in the city are used by three wheelers, motor cycles and even push carts. It is dangerous to walk along these cross roads as there is no pavement. Why do authorities allow three wheelers and motor cycles to use these narrow streets? In other countries such narrow streets are closed for traffic and meant only for pedestrians. This is to save lives and prevent accidents. During the rainy season, these streets get water logged and pedestrians get splashed with mud when vehicles pass by.

To ease the situation the Police took certain steps in the past. One was to make Old Peradeniya Road and William Gopallawa Road one way streets. It caused lot of inconvenience to the public, especially school children but it eased the traffic chaos considerably. Shop keepers objected and protested to the Municipality saying they were losing business. There were not enough overhead crossings for pedestrians. People had to walk long distances to reach home or work.

The only solution is to make Old Peradeniya Road a dual carriage way like William Gopallawa Road. There are so many old buildings, some collapsing, along Old Peradeniya Road which could be demolished to make way for a dual carriage way. It may cost a lot but the benefits to road users would be immense. Pedestrians will be walking on a pavement and not exposed to accidents or noxious fumes day in and day out.

I hope the new government will understand the difficulties faced by the public young and old, and take urgent steps to remedy this problem. It would save lives by preventing accidents and reducing respiratory ailments.

J.W. Devasiri Kandy
SYRACUSE, N.Y. -- The outbreak of the novel coronavirus has led Syracuse University to ban all university-related travel to China.

All SU students, faculty and staff are now prohibited from travelling to China for university purposes, the university announced Friday. The university also urged anyone planning to head to China for personal reasons to reconsider their plans.

Anyone who goes to China while travel is banned will not be allowed to enter any university buildings or facilities for 14 days -- allowing the returning traveler to watch for coronavirus symptoms, the university said.

The cornovirus outbreak was first reported in Wuhan, China on Christmas Eve.

Close to 12,000 people have come down with the coronavirus across the world; all but about 100 of the cases have been traced back to China. Over 2,000 new cases of the virus were recorded in China the past 24 hours alone, reported The New York Times.

The World Health Organization has declared the coronavirus outbreak a global health emergency.

The U.S. State Department is advising Americans not to travel to China. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention is urging residents to avoid going to China unless absolutely necessary.

Seven cases of the novel coronavirus have been confirmed in the United States, the CDC said Friday.

SU has asked any faculty, staff or students who have been to China in the last two weeks to contact Seth Tucker, director of global safety and support, at satucker@syr.edu or (315) 443-1968. For support, students have been encouraged to call the Barnes Center at The Arch at (315) 443-8000.

Cornell University has also banned university-related travel to China.

Thanks for visiting Syracuse.com. Quality local journalism has never been more important, and your subscription matters. Not a subscriber yet? Please consider supporting our work.
Two more people suspected of being affected by novel coronavirus have been admitted to Ram Manohar Lohia hospital in the capital on Saturday.

With this, the total number of coronavirus cases have reached eight in the capital.

One patient is a 23-year-old male who had been staying in China for the last five years and returned on January 24 from Wuhan city.

The second patient, a 46-year-old man, had lived in Changsha for two months and returned to India on January 18.

All the samples have been sent and reports are awaited of all the suspected patients.

Meanwhile, the first flight carrying 324 Indians on board landed at the Indira Gandhi International Airport here at 9:26 am today. Of the 324 passengers, three are minors and 211 are students.

Of the 324 passengers, 95 were taken from the Airport to Indo-Tibetan Border Police (ITBP) Chhawla Camp in Delhi, for medical observation at the camp.

The second Air India special flight will depart today afternoon from New Delhi to Wuhan for the evacuation of Indians stranded in the coronavirus-hit Chinese city, carrier's spokesperson Dhananjay Kumar said.

The aircraft will depart at around 12:50 pm. The team of doctors on the aircraft will be the same as on the first, while the crew has changed, Kumar told ANI, adding that the flight operations will be still led by Air India's Director of Operations Captain Amitabh Singh.

The Union Health Ministry had said on Friday that the government has made adequate quarantine camps at Manesar (managed by Armed Forces Medical Services) and at Chhawla (managed by ITBP).

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
New Delhi, Feb 1 : With the emphasis on zero emission, Union Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman on Saturday stressed on setting up a large solar power capacity along railway tracks, which the Indian Railways said will be able to generate 1,000 MW by 2021-22 and it will achieve the capacity of 5 gigawatt (GW)by 2030.

Presenting the Union Budget 2020-21, Sitharaman said: "About Indian Railways, there are five measures that I wish to highlight. Setting up a large solar power capacity alongside the rail tracks on the land owned by railways. A proposal is under consideration." Addressing a press conference at the Rail Bhawan here, Railway Board Chairman V.K. Yadav said: "The railways has planned to tap solar power to lower its expenses. The railways plans to become self sufficient in solar power by 2030." He said this will be in line with the commitment made by Prime Minister Narendra Modi at the International Paris Agreement on Climate change, 2015, where India has pledged a reduction of 33-35 per cent in emission intensity by 2030 from 2005 levels.

He said that the Railways will also contribute towards National Solar Mission. It will also fulfill in meeting renewable purchase obligations of Indian Railways as a deemed licensee. Stressing on the need for zero emission, he said that the national transporter will go green by 2024 as its entire network will be electrified.

Yadav said the Railways has identified its land pool, which can be used for solar power generation. He said about 51,000 hectare of land is available with it which is fit for the solar power generation and railways requires about 5 GW power for its usage.

"So by 2030, we will generate 5 GW of solar power and in next financial year, we will be able to achieve 1,000 MW of solar power target," he said. The Railways will adopt the solar power generation in a phased manner as the 50,000 hectare land pool is able to generate 10 GW of power.

He also said that as there are limitations with solar power, where the power is generated only during day. "We are in talks with states for power banking engagement, where the surplus power will be shared with the states during the day and in night, we can use their power," Yadav said.

On the REailways' solar plans, he said: "As a part of this plan, Indian Railways has planned to set up 1,000 MW solar power plant and about 200 MW of wind power plants by 2021-22 across zonal railways and production units." Noting that the Railways, till date has installed 100.99 MW solar and 103.4 MW wind power across railway installations, the Chairman said that Railways primarily uses electricity and diesel for its traction applications. "In 2018-19, Indian Railways consumed about 18 billion units of electricity, which is around 1.27 per cent of the country's total power consumption, and 3,069.30 tonne kilo litres of diesel in 2018-19 for its traction needs. With 100 per cent electrification and rail traffic projected to grow, it is estimated that railways will be consuming around 28-30 billion units for its traction requirement.

"The requirement is expected to increase further with commissioning of dedicated freight corridor routes and decongestion of railway routes." With Modi's ambitious plan to install 175 GW of solar power by 2022-23, and to reduce fuel burden of railways, it has been endeavoured to install land-based solar plants across the Rrailways network.

The Chairman said that the solar power generated will be fed to CTU/STU grid or directly to 25 kV AC traction system. A proof of concept of feeding solar power directly to 25 kV AC traction system of 5 kVA capacity is already demonstrated. Further, to scale up 2 pilot projects of 2 MW at Diwana in Haryana and 1.7 MW at Bina in Madhya Pradesh are already under different stages of execution and likely to be commissioned by March 2020.

The Railways is also setting up a 50 MW land solar power plant at Bhilai in Chhattisgarh, which is likely to be commissioned by January 2021. He said railways has also tied up for 400 MW solar power for its traction energy need through Rewa Ultra Mega Solar Ltd (RUMSL), a Joint Venture of Madhya Pradesh Urja Vikas Nigam Ltd (MPUVNL) and Solar Energy Corporation of India (SECI).

"Tender for this is likely to be opened in month of June, 2020. Railway is also installing rooftop solar plants at various railway installations for which solar plants works of 245 MW are under different stages of execution," Yadav said.

The Chairman further said that for meeting requirement of 30 billion units of power, it has been to utilize vacant unused railways land for installing solar plants of 2 GW. "Initial survey of about 4,500 acre land is already carried out and is under different stage of processing. This land is capable of installing 1 GW of solar plants. Survey for another 4,400 acre of land is currently under way which will install another 1 GW of solar plants on Railway land," he added.
Tony Hetherington is Financial Mail on Sunday's ace investigator, fighting readers corners, revealing the truth that lies behind closed doors and winning victories for those who have been left out-of-pocket. Find out how to contact him below.

K.H. writes: I had hoped that following your intervention with Revolut, we could move on.

However, Revolut has messaged my wife, saying that her account has been closed and funds returned 'to source'.

Well, I was that source, and nothing has been returned to me, so where has the money gone?

Flashback: Our story in December pictured alongside Revolut boss Nikolay Storonsky

In December, I reported how Revolut had 'temporarily disabled' your account without notice, trapping 10,000 of your money while it carried out unspecified enquiries for what it said were 'security reasons'.

These words and actions invariably mean that you are suspected of being a criminal money launderer, and you are guilty until proven innocent. You and I both found that Revolut does not reply to emails.

Its published phone number simply offers useless options, none of which allow you to speak to a human being. It has no branches, and its only office in London does not welcome callers or customers.

I finally made contact with this ultra-modern company by sending an old-fashioned signed-for letter by snail mail to Revolut's Russian-born boss Nikolay Storonsky.

This won me a vaguely worded statement explaining how Revolut keeps its customers safe from fraud, sometimes by freezing their account if there is anything it regards as 'suspicious activity'.

With no explanation of what that activity was, Revolut restored your account and your cash. But in the same breath, it seems to have spotted that your wife has an account, so it first froze it and then closed it. About 2,500 of your wife's money vanished.

Revolut unilaterally decided to send her money back to an account you have at Transferwise, so I asked Revolut where the cash had actually gone. And just as importantly, I asked why it should not have been your wife's decision as to where her money went. Suppose, for example, she had struggled to get a refund from a shop, only to have Revolut send the money straight back to the shop's bank.

I never did get an answer to this second question, but it appeared the 2,500 had disappeared because Transferwise had changed its IBAN, the international bank account number used in transfers.

And when the money bounced back to Revolut, it went into a dumping ground holding account where Revolut said it could not find it unless Transferwise, which had not requested or expected the money in the first place, provided details that would allow Revolut to trace it.

This was ridiculous, so I offered to accompany your wife to Revolut's offices and go through its records until we found the missing money. And I asked, would it be OK for me to bring a Mail on Sunday photographer to record the event?

Suddenly, Revolut found the funds, updated the IBAN, and made the transfer to Transferwise, depriving me of a day out at its Canary Wharf offices. But it still refused to explain why it closed your wife's account. 'We cannot disclose details on individual accounts,' I was told.

Which is fair enough  except that your wife had signed a legally binding authority allowing Revolut to do exactly that.

Finally, in December, I described Revolut as a bank. It has asked me to say that it is not a bank, but a 'global financial platform'.

In which case, it might want to correct any false impression customers might get from its own website, which advertises 'a next generation banking experience,' and proclaims: 'Revolut is building a global bank to suit your lifestyle.' Strange lifestyle, strange banking experience.

Why does the Revenue keep trying to pay me?

P.K. writes: I need your help in my unusual dispute with Revenue and Customs  they wish to pay me refunds and grant me tax allowances to which I know I am not entitled.

Money for nothing: Revenue staff have now spring-cleaned your own records and taken steps to make sure the same mistake does not happen again

You are 73, a retired engineer and teacher, and your tax affairs are straightforward. Out of the blue, you received a claim form from the Revenue, and when you checked your online tax account, it showed you were due a refund of 1,385.

This was apparently tax overpaid on your business income  except you have no such income.

After lots of phone calls from you, the tax office deleted the refund from your account. But now the same thing has happened again.

You have been invited to reclaim 461, and the Revenue has changed the tax it collects from your pension because, it says, 'you now get job expenses worth 2,310'. Again, you have tried to alert the tax office to this, but without success.

I asked officials at the Revenue head office to investigate, and they told me: 'We received an online tax return for a different customer which used an incorrect reference number.'

In short, a firm of accountants with no connection to you has put your tax reference on their client's file by mistake. Revenue staff have now spring-cleaned your own records and taken steps to make sure the same mistake does not happen again.

If you believe you are the victim of financial wrongdoing, write to Tony Hetherington at Financial Mail, 2 Derry Street, London W8 5TS or email tony.hetherington@mailonsunday.co.uk.

Because of the high volume of enquiries, personal replies cannot be given. Please send only copies of original documents, which we regret cannot be returned.
By buying an index fund, you can roughly match the market return with ease. But if you buy good businesses at attractive prices, your portfolio returns could exceed the average market return. For example, Xior Student Housing NV (EBR:XIOR) shareholders have seen the share price rise 52% over three years, well in excess of the market return (-9.7%, not including dividends). However, more recent returns haven't been as impressive as that, with the stock returning just 41% in the last year , including dividends .

See our latest analysis for Xior Student Housing

To paraphrase Benjamin Graham: Over the short term the market is a voting machine, but over the long term it's a weighing machine. By comparing earnings per share (EPS) and share price changes over time, we can get a feel for how investor attitudes to a company have morphed over time.

During the three years of share price growth, Xior Student Housing actually saw its earnings per share (EPS) drop 2.3% per year.

Given the share price resilience, we don't think the (declining) EPS numbers are a good measure of how the business is moving forward, right now. So other metrics may hold the key to understanding what is influencing investors.

It may well be that Xior Student Housing revenue growth rate of 48% over three years has convinced shareholders to believe in a brighter future. In that case, the company may be sacrificing current earnings per share to drive growth, and maybe shareholder's faith in better days ahead will be rewarded.

The image below shows how earnings and revenue have tracked over time (if you click on the image you can see greater detail).

ENXTBR:XIOR Income Statement, February 1st 2020

If you are thinking of buying or selling Xior Student Housing stock, you should check out this FREE detailed report on its balance sheet.

What About Dividends?

When looking at investment returns, it is important to consider the difference between total shareholder return (TSR) and share price return. Whereas the share price return only reflects the change in the share price, the TSR includes the value of dividends (assuming they were reinvested) and the benefit of any discounted capital raising or spin-off. So for companies that pay a generous dividend, the TSR is often a lot higher than the share price return. We note that for Xior Student Housing the TSR over the last 3 years was 80%, which is better than the share price return mentioned above. And there's no prize for guessing that the dividend payments largely explain the divergence!

Story continues

A Different Perspective

Pleasingly, Xior Student Housing's total shareholder return last year was 41%. That includes the value of the dividend. That's better than the annualized TSR of 22% over the last three years. These improved returns may hint at some real business momentum, implying that now could be a great time to delve deeper. While it is well worth considering the different impacts that market conditions can have on the share price, there are other factors that are even more important. For example, we've discovered 3 warning signs for Xior Student Housing that you should be aware of before investing here.

If you are like me, then you will not want to miss this free list of growing companies that insiders are buying.

Please note, the market returns quoted in this article reflect the market weighted average returns of stocks that currently trade on BE exchanges.

If you spot an error that warrants correction, please contact the editor at editorial-team@simplywallst.com. This article by Simply Wall St is general in nature. It does not constitute a recommendation to buy or sell any stock, and does not take account of your objectives, or your financial situation. Simply Wall St has no position in the stocks mentioned.



We aim to bring you long-term focused research analysis driven by fundamental data. Note that our analysis may not factor in the latest price-sensitive company announcements or qualitative material. Thank you for reading.
Imagine going through 19 job changes in the course of a career. Even more unsettling: consider that many of those shifts will not be by choice, but by the reality that some of those jobs will become extinct.

Those were among the takeaways from a wide-ranging discussion about the future of work with two of Gov. Gavin Newsoms key economic advisers I moderated at the California News Publishers Association in Sacramento last week.

The issue of calibrating employment and the workforce to the ever-evolving realities has long been a fascination for the governors wonkish side. He spoke extensively about it when he met with The Chronicles editorial board before the 2018 election. Now, as governor, he wants to do something about it.

But can he? Are the forces of automation and globalization too unrelenting and irresistible to offer any hope to the 35% of Californians who are making less than $15 an hour in a high-cost state.

Newsom last year created a Future of Work Commission to explore the possibilities.

In recent years, various think tanks have put out reams of studies on the future of work, but few of their ideas have yet to be reflected in public-policy action. After all, the course to address the future of work is a bit more abstract than the typical challenges taken on by elected officials: build roads, cut or raise taxes, reduce prescription drug prices, promote housing construction.

This governors not interested in another study, said Lenny Mendonca, the governors chief economic and business adviser. The challenge he gave the group when it first got together was: Be bold. Give us your best ideas and then leave how we get that done to us.

Mendonca and Aneesh Raman, senior adviser for economic strategy and external affairs, each talked about how Californias robust economy  which attracts 50% of the nations venture capital  is not working for many who are not in the tech sector. Another challenge will be to structure an economy that is sustainable through climate change, Mendonca said.

They both emphasized that promotion of lifelong learning and better distribution of opportunity must not come at the expense of the innovation that has been such a generator of prosperity.

So what would be the role of public policy? That may become clearer when the commission issues its initial recommendations this spring.

Change, by the numbers 40% of Americans are in occupational categories that could shrink by 2030. 25 urban areas accounted for two-thirds of U.S. job growth in 2007 and could generate 60% of U.S. job growth through 2030. -3% potential job growth through 2030 in distressed American counties. 14.7 million young workers are in highly automatable jobs. 58% share of net job growth that women could capture. 4X higher risk of displacement for workers with high school diplomas or less. Source: McKinsey Global Institute study on the "Future of work in America," July 2019 See More Collapse

It starts with us as individuals, Raman said. We have to be constantly learning and adjusting.

Raman was perhaps exaggerating only slightly when he said the generation coming of age is going to have 19 jobs over the course of a career. A Deloitte Insights study in November 2017 predicted the half-life of skill sets will decrease to five years in the future of work  meaning an individual would need to update and refresh his or her skills six times over the course of a 30-year career.

The bottom line is that no one can assert with certainty how many transitions would be required or even what those new jobs might be.

Among Deloittes policy recommendations:

 Make it easier for entrepreneurs to launch  and exit  endeavors through rules on business formation and bankruptcy. It said policymakers should encourage the emergence of new forms of work as a way to raise standards of living  while addressing the stresses of the transition.

 Rethink education to establish a framework to help everyone develop their talent more rapidly, with a focus on uplifting marginalized populations.

 Update the definition of employment to account for freelance and gig economy work.

Newsom signed a bill (AB5) last year to address the latter issue by severely cutting back the ability of businesses to use contract work. Many industries have complained that the union-pushed bill is far too restrictive and could push some businesses to leave the state. Some of the workers supposedly helped by AB5 like the flexibility of being an independent contractor and are pressing the Legislature to revise it. In the case of the newspaper industry, its application to carriers  which takes effect in a year  could curtail or even end home delivery in many communities.

Thus the challenge of government trying to guide the future of work. Globalization and the advancement of artificial intelligence further complicate the ability to anticipate the necessary policy steps.

We are not in a robot apocalypse where there will be no jobs in the future, Mendonca said.

But that economy is going to reward the players who are poised to adapt. Its heartening to know that Californias governor is on the case.

John Diaz is The San Francisco Chronicles editorial page editor. Email: jdiaz@sfchronicle.com Twitter: @JohnDiazChron
A lot goes into a two-week (if were lucky) vacation. Theres the pretrip research, on-the-ground logistics, and the postvacation assessmentwhere to go next, and how to have an even better time when you do. In this feature, we look at an array of forthcoming travel guides and discuss what readers will get out of them before, during, and after their holidays.

If the before part of a vacation sounds more like work than pleasure, consider this: an oft-cited 2010 study from the journal Applied Research in Quality of Life found that vacationers experience most of their joy in the planning phase of the trip, before they ever leave home.

In Unforgettable Things to Do Before You Die (BBC Books, May), travel writer-photographers Steve Watkins and Clare Jones take the bucket-list approach to vacation planning. Bear tracking with First Nations guides in Canada and attending an opera performance in the ancient ruins of Verona are among the 40 options the authors propose, assuming the traveler wants to experience something out of the ordinary and has no more than two weeks off in which to do it.

A short vacation is more attainable than an extended sojourn for most, but Frances Mayess 1996 memoir, Under the Tuscan Sun, inspired many to fantasize about picking up and moving to the Italian countryside. For Mayess first book with National Geographic, Always Italy (Mar.), she teamed up with frequent New York Times travel writer and Conde Nast Traveler contributing editor Ondine Cohane to explore Italys 20 regions, with each writer focusing on her particular interests. Mayes, for instance, recommends favorite places to nibble on little-known cheeses and sample regional wines, while Cohane seeks out stylish finds and outdoor activities.

This was a new direction for us, says executive editor Hilary Black of the coffee-table hardcover, which is heavier on personal narrative than NatGeos typical travel reference book. But the photography and cartography make the book distinctly NatGeo, Black adds.

Thats also what connects it to the publishers other spring offerings. 100 Hikes of a Lifetime by Kate Siber and Complete National Parks of Europe, both out in February, and Marchs 100 Drives, 5,000 Ideas by Joe Yogerst all deploy color photos and detailed maps alongside essential planning information like the best times of year to visit.

Like NatGeo, Lonely Planet aims to spark wanderlust with forthcoming photo-heavy volumes such as The Joy of Water (May), which profiles 80 aquatic destinations: pristine cays, rock pools, and hot springs, and more. National Trails of America (June) outlines 60 hikes, including the scenic, such as the Pacific Crest Trail, and the historicfor instance, the path followed by civil rights marchers between Montgomery and Selma, Ala.

There she goes

Lonely Planet is also one of a few publishers with forthcoming travel books that focus, in some form, on women. Aprils In Her Footsteps pays homage to 280 women around the world who have done extraordinary things, associate publisher Robin Barton says, and provides information on where to find the landmarks that honor their work.

Contemporary activists such as Amal Azzudin, who formed the Glasgow Girls to protest immigration raids against classmates seeking asylum in Scotland, are featured, as are historical figures like Rachel Carson, who warned about the dangers of pesticides in Silent Spring. Readers will see the high school from which the Glasgow Girls launched their protests in 2015, and get information on staying at Carsons cottage off the coast of Maine, a locale that sustained her love of the natural world.

In The New Parisienne (Abrams, Apr.), Lindsey Tramuta explores the mystique of the Parisian womanforever slender, effortlessly cool, and almost always portrayed as whiteand updates it with profiles of 50 women who are celebrated as activists, creators, educators, and more. Each entry ends with the subjects favorite neighborhoods and women-run businesses; addresses are at the back of the book.

Documentarian Rokhaya Diallo, for instance, compares the experiences of the African diaspora in the U.S. and France and celebrates the 19th arrondissement, the artsy Muslim and Jewish neighborhood where she grew up. Elisa Rojas, a disability-rights activist, wonders whether gentrification threatens the working-class roots of her home base, the 12th arrondissement. She recommends strolling through the Musee des Arts Decoratifs and the vintage shop MamzElle Swing.

We wanted to suggest places to go to allow people to experience the world that these women are inhabiting, says Abrams senior editor Laura Dozier. Its a more multifaceted version of Paris to plan around.

An all-women team of contributors documents the worlds palette in The Rainbow Atlas (Chronicle, May). The book, which lead author Taylor Fuller says was influenced by how people discover new places by scrolling through Instagram and Pinterest, is divided geographically by longitude lines. It contains snapshot-like photos and brief descriptions of 500 color-saturated locations, such as the deep indigo of bluebonnet-covered prairie in North Texas and the citrus-colored homes of New Orleanss Bywater neighborhood.

Beyond Big Ben, Parliament

Thirty-five years after National Lampoons European Vacation depicted the hapless Griswold familys misadventures as they tried to check off all of the continents greatest hits, that approach to travel has largely gone the way of the VHS cassette. Likewise, the one-size-fits-all guidebook has had to adapt. This season, publishers continue to invest in books that target idiosyncratic interests. Bonus: these typically slimmer volumes take up less space in a carry-on.

Graphic designer Betsy Beier set out to create a set of guides that educate visitors and deepen their engagement with the locale. Most of all, says Jennifer Newens, publishing director at West Margin Press, Beier wanted travelers to get off their screens and into their surroundings. The result is West Margins new Wanderlust series, which launches in May with guides to San Francisco and Seattle, both written and illustrated by Beier.

The guides offer background on notable landmarks and then prompt readers to find comfortable nooks and get creative. Taking inspiration from 1990s Seattle, Beier suggests writing some grunge lyrics within the blank space provided. In San Francisco, visitors might sketch an escape from Alcatraz. Beier provides the framework, and within that people are able to curate the content of their trips, Newens says. Its like creating your own customized travel guide.

Other forthcoming titles speak to an array of intereststhe literary, the historical, the architectural. Colleen Dunn Bates, publisher at Prospect Park Books, says that the wealth of basic travel info online has freed up publishers to take guides in new directions.

Prospect Parks Read Me, Los Angeles (Mar.), by bookstore manager Katie Orphan, doesnt include information on accommodations, unless they once housed the likes of Joan Didion. This celebration of literary L.A. instead focuses on illustrated maps of fictional and historical landmarks, city-centric reading lists, and profiles of authors who are most closely identified with the city, such as Raymond Chandler and Michael Connelly.

Another literary guide, Jane Was Here by Nicole Jacobsen and Devynn MacLennan Dayton, illustrated by Lexi K. Nilson (Hardie Grant, June), leads readers to locales related to Jane Austens life and workChawton Cottage in Hampshire County, where she spent the last eight years of her life, and Burghley House, the Tudor mansion in the East Midlands that served as Rosings Park in the 2005 film version of Pride and Prejudice, to name two.

A more gruesome view of English history is on illustrated display in Bloody London (Conway, June). David Fathers maps out 20 walking routes through notoriously macabre settings, such as Jack the Rippers presumed haunts and burial pits of plague victims.

Guides that approach a city from a particular angle may be of interest to residents as well as tourists, publishers say. That was part of the appeal of Walking Broadway (Monacelli, June). We see this book as a complement to more comprehensive books like the AIA Guide and Magnetic City, says Elizabeth White, the books editorcitywide architectural guides that serve both curious New Yorkers and visitors. Art historian William Hennessey breaks down the 13-mile thoroughfare into 14 walks, starting from the Battery and heading toward the Bronx. Readers can start their explorations from any part of the route, White says. The books first walk begins in pre-Revolutionary New York at Bowling Green, the citys oldest park, and heads north, observing several centuries of financial history on the way to Fulton Street.

Similarly, The Architecture Lovers Guide to Rome by Elizabeth F. Heath (White Owl, Feb.) examines the overlapping layers of Romes physical remains to unearth the citys history. Heath, an American travel writer and editor living in central Italy, has completed doctoral studies in archaeology, and is also the author of Frommers Rome Day by Day. Her book emphasizes history while also hewing closely to guidebook conventions, with detailed maps and information on opening hours and admission fees.

Imperial history of another kind emerges in A Peoples Guide to Greater Boston (Univ. of California, June) by Joseph Nevins, a Boston native and a professor of geography at Vassar College; Suren Moodliar, who lives in Chelsea, Mass., and edits the journal Socialism and Democracy; and Eleni Macrakis, who grew up in Cambridge, Mass., and works in affordable housing development in greater Boston. The authors examine the citys colonial legacy through more than 150 sites.

Looking at the dynamics of power is essential to understanding what shapes a place, says Kim Robinson, editorial director at University of California Press. Central Wharfbuilt in 1816 and now home to the New England Aquariumonce housed dozens of warehouses for trading companies that had roots in the slave and opium trade. The family behind one such enterprise, James and Thomas H. Perkins and Co., later founded the Boston Athenaeum and Massachusetts General Hospital with profits from trafficking enslaved Haitians and smuggling opium into China.

Each listing includes information on how to get there and a bibliography of related histories. Were presenting an alternative spin in a familiar package, Robinson says. Forthcoming titles in the series, which began eight years ago with A Peoples Guide to Los Angeles, will cover New York City; Orange County, Calif.; Richmond, Va.; and New Orleans.

Sight specific

Major guidebook publishers, too, are homing in on smaller regions and defined interests. Travelers are looking for deep coverage, where you can really sink into a place and gets lots of detail, says Grace Fujimoto, acquisitions director at Moon. In order to make each region more manageable, weve been trying to find those places where we can really take a closer look.

June brings Moons first dedicated Bali & Lombok guide. Chantae Reden, who specializes in adventure travel writing, covers rainforest treks, surfing, and scuba diving, and also emphasizes respectful engagement with local communities. In Moon New Orleans (May), Nora McGunnigle navigates the Crescent City beyond the French Quarter, covering its distinct neighborhoods, monuments to African-American history, and independent shops along Magazine Street.

Cody Copeland, who wrote Moon Oaxaca (May), tours mezcal distilleries, parses out the flavors of mole, and snacks on fried grasshoppers, reflecting the serious foodie attention the Mexican state has attracted in recent years. And in Moon Greek Islands & Athens (Apr.), Sarah Souli covers 18 islands out of hundreds of possibilities, allowing for deeper exploration at each location, Fujimoto says. We want people to pick an island and get into the mind-set, rather than try to hop onto five different islands in one trip.

The publisher is also adding to its recently launched Road Trip series with a guide to the Oregon Trail by Katrina Emery in July. Rather than defaulting to the typical white pioneer narrative, Emery also highlights the experiences of Native Americans and African-Americans. Names carved into stone 200 years ago by pioneers at Register Rock in Idaho are considered alongside 10,000 years of oral Umatilla history in what today is Eastern Oregon.

DK is releasing a pair of new titles in its Top 10 series that reflect the rising popularity of trips outside hub destinations. Top 10 Porto (May) and Top 10 Valencia (June) respond to the steep rise in tourism to Lisbon and Barcelona in recent years, a phenomenon thats given rise to complaints about overtourism.

A key trend is increased travel to secondary cities and the recognition that people want to go somewhere less touristy, says DK publishing director Georgina Dee. More people are going to those types of destinations.

At Fodors, Portland, Ore. (Apr.), and Mexico City (June) join the Inside guides, an illustrated series. Those cities are hardly undertouristed, so while the books glance at major draws, such as Portlands Powells Bookstore, they focus on experiencing the surrounding neighborhoods in which those attractions are located.

A softer landing

Upon returning home, some travelers experience a bit of vacation regret, especially if the trip was less than perfect. Those whose memories are colored by the interminable lines, missed flights, and lost luggage they endured may want to seek advice from Keith Bradford. With Travel Hacks (Adams, June), Bradford, whose previous books covered holidays, college, and life, offers more than 600 tips for finding cheaper tickets, packing wisely, and avoiding crowds, so the next trip goes more smoothly.

The most eager vacationers start planning a repeat experience before theyve even unpacked, and This Is a Book for People Who Love the National Parks by Matt Garczynski (Running Press, May) will help them do just that. The illustrated guide profiles each of the 61 national parks in the U.S., illuminating their unique characteristics while presenting them as parts of a cohesive whole.

Still others may strategize how to hit the road permanently. Lonely Planets The Digital Nomad Handbook (May), which includes input from the publishers roving band of travel writers, walks readers through the practical details of a career changehow to set up remote employment; where to keep all the possessions that arent coming alongand then profiles the destinations that best support the lifestyle. Many people entertain the idea of giving up the boring commute through downtown traffic, says Lonely Planets Barton. Were trying to help them take the next step in making their travel plans happen.

Jasmina Kelemen is a writer in Houston.

Below, more on the subject of travel books.

Change in Climate: New Travel Books 2020

Publishers contend with the environmental costs of travel

Psychic Explorations: New Travel Books 2020

New travel narratives follow the authors around the globe and on interior journeys

Game On: New Travel Books 2020

As visitors finalize their travel plans for the Tokyo Summer Olympics, publishers are releasing new guides to getting the most out of the city.
New Delhi, Feb 1 : Airline major IndiGo will suspend its Kolkata-Guangzhou flight owing to the outbreak of Coronavirus.

The airline will suspend Kolkata-Guangzhou flight from February 6 until February 25 and Guangzhou-Kolkata from February 7 until February 26.

"These are purely temporary and precautionary measures," the airline said in a statement.

"We understand that these measures will cause inconvenience to our customers and we will be refunding the full amount to the impacted passengers." Currently, IndiGo operates four services to China and one to Hong Kong. IndiGo's flights connect New Delhi, Kolkata, Mumbai and Bengaluru to destinations in China and Hong Kong.

Last Wednesday, Air India and IndiGo had said that they will suspend some flight services to mainland China and Hong Kong.

IndiGo has suspended two of its flight services to China, including Hong Kong, from February 1.

Similarly, Air India has cancelled its flight to Shanghai from January 31 to February 14.

At present, Air India operates flights to Shanghai and Hong Kong.

Health Ministry in its advisory has suggested to carry out only essential travel to China.

Additionally, international major airlines have either reduced or suspended their operations to China.

European aviation agency EASA has also issued a set of precautions for airlines operating to and from China.

The new virus, which is of the same genre as SARS of 2003, was first reported in WHO Disease outbreak news on January 5 in China's Wuhan. Till now, it has progressively spread across many countries.

However, the new virus has spread at a much faster pace than the 2003 SARS epidemic.

In a bid to curb the spread of the virus, Chinese authorities have closed transportation services across many parts of the country, including Wuhan.

Latest updates on Coronavirus (COVID-19)
U.S. Ambassador to the United Nations Kelly Craft warned the Palestinians on Friday that bringing their displeasure with the U.S. peace plan to the world body would only "repeat the failed pattern of the last seven decades."

Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas will speak in the U.N. Security Council in the next two weeks about the plan, Palestinian U.N. envoy Riyad Mansour said on Wednesday, adding that he hoped the 15-member council would also vote on a draft resolution on the issue.

However, the United States is certain to veto any such resolution, diplomats said. That would allow the Palestinians to take the draft text to the 193-member U.N. General Assembly, where a vote would publicly show how the Trump administration's peace plan has been received internationally.

Craft said that while the Palestinians' initial reaction to the plan was anticipated, "why not instead take that displeasure and channel it into negotiations?"

"Bringing that displeasure to the United Nations does nothing but repeat the failed pattern of the last seven decades. Let's avoid those traps and instead take a chance on peace," she told Reuters.

Craft said the United States was ready to facilitate talks and that she was "happy to play any role" that contributes to the Israeli-Palestinian peace plan unveiled by U.S. President Donald Trump on Tuesday.

Mansour said on Thursday: "There is not a single Palestinian official (who) will meet with American officials now after they submitted an earthquake, the essence of it the destruction of the national aspirations of the Palestinian people. This is unacceptable."

Israels U.N. mission signaled on Tuesday that it was preparing for the Palestinians to pursue U.N. action, saying in a statement that it was "working to thwart these efforts, and will lead a concerted diplomatic campaign with the U.S."

Search Keywords:

Short link:


Mumbai, Feb 1 : Box-office battles normally happen between films released on the same day, but there seems to be an exception right now. This week's big 'desi' release -- the Saif-Ali Khan starrer "Jawaani Jaaneman" -- is facing real opposition from Ajay Devgn's "Tanhaji: The Unsung Warrior", which released on January 10.

Entering fourth week, "Tanhaji" has impressively grossed Rs 243 crore so far. The film surpassed the lifetime collection of the Ranveer Singh-starrer "Simmba" (Rs 240.31 crore) on Friday, reports buinesstoday.in.

According to trade sources, "Tanhaji" has remained steady ever since it opened on January 10 alongside the Deepika Padukone-starrer "Chhapaak". While "Chhapaak" has slowed down, the January 17 release "Jai Mummy Di" failed to put up much of a fight for "Tahnaji". Neither did last week's releases -- "Panga" and "Street Dancer 3D" -- manage to scale a similar box-office high.

In its fourth week, "Tanhaji" collections continue to be the best in Maharashtra, with the state contributing nearly 60 per cent of the film's overall collection, reports timesofindia.com.

Notably, "Tanhaji" collected more in the Mumbai circuit on Friday, which was day 22 for the film, than "Jawaani Jaaneman" on the same day, which was its day one. The Saif Ali Khan-starrer saw a slow start, managing only Rs 3.24 crore upon release on Friday.

For Saif personally, though, this is better that the fate his recent films have seen. "#JawaaniJaaneman does much better than several solo #SaifAliKhan movies released in the recent past... Biz witnessed an upward trend towards evening shows at metros... Needs to trend well over the weekend for a respectable total... Fri 3.24 cr. #India biz," tweeted trade analyst Taran Adarsh.

While it seems unlikely that "Jawaani Jaaneman", primarily an urban multiplex entertainer, will reach anywhere near the imposing figures of "Tanhaji", Ajay Devgn's film is now close to taking on the 2019 blockbuster, "Uri: The Surgical Strike", which has recorded a lifetime collection of Rs 245.36 crore, according to business today.in Makers of the other two releases of this week -- Himesh Reshammiya's Happy Hardy And Heer" and the Malala Yousafzai biopic "Gul Makai" -- would be lucky to see their films last the entire week. While "Happy Hardy And Heer" managed less than 10 lakh on day one, the collections of "Gul Makai" hovered around Rs 4-5 lakh, according to timesofindia.com.
It took 40 years and three bouts of cancer for Larry Giacalone to report his claim of childhood sexual abuse at the hands of a Boston priest named Richard Donahue.

Giacalone sued Donahue in 2017, alleging the priest molested him in 1976, when Giacalone was 12 and Donahue was serving at Sacred Heart Parish. The lawsuit never went to trial, but a compensation program set up by the archdiocese concluded that Giacalone suffered physical injuries and emotional injuries as a result of physical abuse and directed the archdiocese to pay him $73,000.

Even after the claim was settled and the compensation paid in February 2019, however, the archdiocese didnt publish Donahues name on its list of accused priests. Nor did it three months later when Giacalones lawyer, Mitchell Garabedian, criticized the church publicly for not adding Donahues name to the list.

Church leaders finally added Donahue to the list last month after ProPublica asked why he hadnt been included. But that, too, sowed confusion. Despite the determination that Giacalone was entitled to compensation, Donahues name was added to a portion of the list for priests accused in cases deemed unsubstantiated  where the archdiocese says it does not have sufficient evidence to determine whether the clergy member committed the alleged abuse.

To award a victim a substantial amount of money, yet claim that the accused is not a pedophile, is an insult to ones intelligence, said Garabedian, who has handled hundreds of abuse cases over the last 25 years. Its a classic case of the archdiocese ducking, delaying and avoiding issues.

Donahue, in an interview with ProPublica, denied the allegation by Giacalone.

Even when dioceses and religious orders identify credibly accused clergy members, the information they provide about those named varies widely. Some jurisdictions turn over far more specifics about problem priests  from where they worked to the number of their victims to the details of their wrongdoing  than others.

The U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops, or USCCB, has issued no instructions on disclosures related to credibly accused priests, leaving individual dioceses and religious orders to decide for themselves how much or how little to publish. The USCCB says it does not have the authority to order dioceses to release names or to resolve disputes over who should be on the lists, though in 2002 after a scandal in Boston, the conference did put in place new protocols intended to ensure alleged abuse by clergy was reported and tracked.

Recognizing the authority of the local bishop, and the fact that state and local laws vary, the decision of whether and how to best release lists and comply with varying civil reporting laws have been the responsibility of individual dioceses, said Chieko Noguchi, a USCCB spokeswoman.

While the USCCB can propose policies for church leaders in the U.S., the bishops themselves are appointed by the pope and answer to him.

ProPublica has collected the 178 lists released by U.S. dioceses and religious orders as of Jan. 20 and created a searchable database that allows users to look up clergy members by name, diocese or parish. This represents the first comprehensive picture of the information released publicly by bishops around the country. Some names appear multiple times. In many cases, that accounts for priests who were accused in more than one location. In other instances, dioceses have acknowledged when priests who served in their jurisdiction have been reported for abuse elsewhere.

A photo of Richard Donahue, a Boston priest accused of sexual abuse, in the Archdiocese of Bostons 1993 Catholic Directory. Donahue has denied abuse allegations. (Archdiocese of Boston)

Kathleen McChesney, a former FBI official who helped establish a new set of child protection protocols within the USCCB in the early 2000s, has urged bishops and religious orders for nearly two decades to create a comprehensive list of accused clergy. She said our database will allow the public to better track dioceses disclosures, rather than seeing each list in isolation.

People dont know where to look, McChesney said. The contribution of the one list will help a lot of people to perhaps identify someone that they believe abused them.

Still, much crucial information remains missing. Despite the recent surge of releases, 41 dioceses and dozens more religious orders have yet to publish lists, including five of seven dioceses in Florida, home to more than 2 million Catholics.

The database also doesnt include many accused clergy members whom bishops have yet to acknowledge, even if theyve issued lists. An organization called Bishop Accountability has long maintained its own database of publicly accused priests, drawn from court records, news articles and church documents. The organizations list includes more than 450 names connected to dioceses that have not released disclosures.

The Survivors Network of those Abused by Priests, or SNAP, an advocacy organization for victims of clergy abuse, has pushed dioceses to identify known abusers and turn over records on them for decades. This process has finally begun, but the churchs obdurate culture of concealment remains, said David Clohessy, who led the group for nearly 30 years.

Larry Giacalone at his home. Giacalone, 55, says Donahue molested him at the age of 12 at his East Boston parish. (Kayana Szymczak for ProPublica)

They continue to be as secretive as possible, parceling out the least amount of information possible and only under great duress, Clohessy said. They are absolute masters at hairsplitting  always have been and still are.

Do we now know the names of more predator priests than before? Yes, of course. Are we anywhere near full transparency? Absolutely not.

A Lack of Standards

Until recently, only a few dozen bishops had released lists of priests with credible allegations against them. Many did so only when compelled by courts, as a condition of bankruptcy proceedings.

That changed after August 2018, when the Pennsylvania attorney general, Josh Shapiro, published a 900-page grand jury report detailing not only abuse but a systematic cover-up by church leaders throughout the state. The report came just weeks after the resignation of then- Cardinal Theodore McCarrick, the former archbishop of Washington, D.C., and one of the highest ranking Catholic leaders ever felled by abuse allegations.

The overall feel was like 2002 happening all over again, Kevin Eckery, a Diocese of San Diego senior administrator, said, referring to the intense scrutiny that followed a Pulitzer Prize-winning Boston Globe investigation into sexual abuse by priests. You could see that there was a need for a response that was about action and not a response that was about more words.

Many of the 178 dioceses that have released new or updated lists of accused clergy since last year have cited the Pennsylvania grand jury report as a reason for doing so.

Still, without a consensus among church leaders on what constitutes a credible accusation, bishops have used vastly different standards to determine who should be named.

The Archdiocese of Seattle, which released its list prior to the grand jury report, began by dividing allegations into three categories: cases in which priests admitted the allegations or where allegations were established by reports from multiple victims; cases that clearly could not have happened; and cases that fell into a gray area, like those that were never fully investigated at the time they were reported. The archdiocese decided it would name priests whose cases fell into the first category and leave out the second group, but it sought additional guidance on the third set of cases.

Theres the question of who determines it to be credible, said Mary Santi, the chancellor and chief of staff for the Archdiocese of Seattle. We decided that we couldnt be the determiners of that.

The Seattle Archdiocese brought in McChesney to help choose which names to disclose. Dozens of dioceses have turned to outside advisers, hiring former judges, former local law enforcement agents and law firms while others relied on internal review boards, composed of mostly non-clergy members.

Ultimately, dioceses have set different limits on what to publish. The Archdiocese of Kansas City in Kansas disclosed the names of priests even in cases in which officials could not substantiate the allegations themselves. In New Hampshire, the Diocese of Manchesters bishop also opted for greater transparency than most, disclosing clergy members who were currently under investigation and who had died before an inquiry was complete.

Other jurisdictions, however, drew tighter lines, sometimes based on idiosyncratic criteria. In Nebraska, the Archdiocese of Omaha leaves out names of seminarians with substantiated allegations of abuse against minors. In Ohio, the Diocese of Toledo did not identify priests who died before a victim came forward because they posed no threat, the dioceses website explained.

SNAP leaders have pushed the diocese to publish those names, so far to no avail. Their lack of transparency is devastating to those left in their wake, Claudia Vercellotti, a SNAP leader in Toledo, said. It defies logic that even when the church leader is dead, they are still protecting them over offering healing and transparency to the victims.

Many dioceses have chosen not to include members of religious orders, such as the Jesuits, who have been accused of abuse. Religious order members, who make up 30% of U.S. priests, are taught and ordained within those orders, but they often spend much of their time working in the parishes and schools of local dioceses.

The Archdiocese of Milwaukee, at the direction of its court-appointed bankruptcy committee, discloses extensive information about each accused priest it names, including timelines of their careers and documentation of when and where they abused their victims.

But it leaves out religious order priests and priests who died before victims reported the abuse. Names of the deceased are only added if enough victims come forward to show a trend, though the archdiocese does not define how many allegations that would require.

Jerry Topczewski, chief of staff for Milwaukee Archbishop Jerome Listecki, said theres room for debate over which accused clergy members should be named, but each diocese has to draw the line somewhere.

At some point you have to make a decision, Topczewski said. Someones always going to say your list isnt good enough, which we have people say, Your list is incomplete. Well, I only control the list I can control and thats diocesan priests.

Its impossible to know how many accused clergy members dioceses have opted not to put on their lists.

Bishop Accountability applies different standards for inclusion on its list than church leaders, tracking public accusations against nuns and other clergy members often left off the official rolls.

As a result, there are sometimes substantial gaps between the groups tallies and those of dioceses.

The Archdiocese of Boston currently lists 171 names. Bishop Accountability lists 279, including dozens of religious order priests omitted from the official list as well as several priests who died before victims came forward.

For every person whos left off a list, bishops ought to be aware that they are retraumatizing survivors and doubling the insult and doubling the pain, Terence McKiernan, the founder of Bishop Accountability, said.

Lost in the Archives

Over his 40-year career, Alfredo Prado was accused of abusing children repeatedly, in nearly every corner of Texas where he was assigned by his order, the Missionary Oblates of Mary Immaculate.

Today, hes named on six separate diocesan lists of credibly accused priests. Yet each jurisdiction gives different information about him, making it difficult to piece together the arc of his career, the totality of his wrongdoing or what became of him.

The several variations of Alfredo Prado

The year Prado was ordained is shown on one list as 1958 and on two lists as 1957. The Diocese of San Angelo and the Diocese of Victoria refer to him as Alfred rather than Alfredo. San Antonio is the only diocese that discloses the total number of children he was accused of abusing within its jurisdiction, five.

His status is also characterized differently from one diocese to another. Hes described as suspended by the Diocese of Corpus Christi, dismissed from his religious order and the clerical state by the Archdiocese of San Antonio, and laicized (or returned to the lay state) by the Diocese of San Angelo. The Diocese of Amarillo adds that he fled to Costa Rica, but it doesnt say when (according to news reports, it was in the early 2000s). The Diocese of San Angelo says Prado died, but doesnt list the year. Only the Diocese of Victoria provides a complete bio for Prado, noting each time his status changed, though the list does not confirm hes dead.

ProPublica contacted Prados order, which has not released its own list; an administrator said the order did not know if Prado was alive or dead.

Prados story is a striking example of inconsistencies in the information that bishops disclose about accused clergy members. Perhaps most remarkable is that it happened in Texas, where church leaders have made an effort to coordinate their releases. Nationally, the disparities in disclosures are even more pronounced.

At one end is the Diocese of Sacramento in California, which issues a release on each credibly accused clergy member, outlining identifying information that helps distinguish one priest from another such as their ordination dates, seminaries, birthdays and every place they served within the diocese. Leaders also disclose each accusation submitted against the clergy member, including the year it was reported, the nature of the abuse and the victims age and gender.

The Diocese of Ogdensburg in upstate New York is at the other end of the spectrum. Its list provides the first and last name of accused priests, with hardly any additional information.

Most disclosures fall somewhere in between. The Diocese of San Bernardino in California, for example, outlines each clergy members current status in the church, the assignments they held within the diocese, the dates of abuse and when the diocese reported the incident to law enforcement.

Dioceses consistently label clergy who have died as deceased, which accounts for about half of the priests in ProPublicas database. Jurisdictions are far less uniform in giving information about living members current locations or standing in the church. Over 700 clergy members status isnt given or is marked as unknown.

Details about credibly accused priests abuse are scarce. Church leaders have disclosed the number of allegations made against roughly 10% of the clergy members theyve named, according to a ProPublica data analysis.

In the early 2000s, dioceses across the country filled out detailed surveys compiled by researchers at the John Jay College of Criminal Justice for the first-ever nationwide study of sexual abuse by clergy. The USCCB mandated the study as one of the new safety initiatives outlined in the 2002 Charter for the Protection of Children and Young People. Dioceses have continued reporting new allegations annually to the Center for Applied Research in the Apostolate at Georgetown University.

Two John Jay researchers who helped diocesan employees fill out the initial surveys say that sometimes the lack of details about abuse by priests stems from sparse recordkeeping or different ways of defining abuse, especially when it comes to older allegations.

It was thought about differently, so it was recorded differently than it would be today, one of the researchers, Karen Terry, said.

Still, dioceses have other information that they often do not disclose, including schools or parishes clergy members were assigned to while serving in a diocese.

McChesney, whose firm, Kinsale Management Consulting, has worked with a few dozen dioceses and religious orders on their disclosures over more than a decade, says dioceses typically keep thorough records of who is serving and when.

If you want to find out if somebody was baptized in 1889 in La Crosse, Wisconsin, you can find that, she said.

Disclosing those details can help survivors, especially those who were young at the time of their abuse, to distinguish between clergy with common or similar names, McChesney said.

Only about 58% of the clergy members listed have information about what parishes or schools they served in. Often, the assignment histories provided by dioceses list only a priests appointments within that diocese, not where they worked or what positions they held over the rest of their careers.

Its so simple, McChesney said. All it takes is a good research look and frankly, if you look sometimes at websites of dioceses and universities in the area, you can put that together.

Mary Gautier, a senior research associate at the Georgetown center, said smaller dioceses with limited budgets dont always have the money or staff to dig through their archives.

One thing that the church is very good at is recordkeeping ... but its very, very time consuming and labor intensive to really go through years and years and years of personnel records and track all this out, Gautier said. And I mean doing hand searches. Theres none of this computerized, of course.

Giacalone says the sexual abuse he endured as a child has colored his life. (Kayana Szymczak for ProPublica)

Decades of Rage

After his years in Boston, Donahue spent much of the last 20 years of his career serving in Honduras, where he established and ran schools funded by his organization, the Olancho Aid Foundation. He was back in the United States for medical care in 2015 when he was informed of the first of two abuse allegations made against him. The second accusation, by Giacalone, came in 2017.

In the interview with ProPublica, Donahue denied both mens allegations and said he assumed his accusers had confused him with someone else or were looking for a payoff from the church. One accuser says he was abused for several years, up until 1981, but Donahue noted that in 1980, he moved to another assignment, elsewhere in Massachusetts.

I never met either one of them, Donahue said in the interview at his house in Cape Cod. From a faith perspective, Im trying to think theres a reason Ive gone through this cross, for the last three years, with these false allegations. Why me? I dont know.

After the first abuse allegation, in 2015, Donahue was prohibited by the archdiocese from participating in public ministry or entering parish or school property and was barred from returning to his work in Honduras.

The accuser who came forward in 2015, also represented by Garabedian, has submitted a claim through the archdioceses compensation program and is waiting for the church to decide if the claim is credible, Garabedian said.

Giacalone, now 55, says Donahues abuse led to decades of rage, alcoholism and drug use. He said he started drinking the day Donahue touched him. What was I going to turn to? he told ProPublica. I thought Id get relief. The first couple times, yeah, it helped me forget. But getting stinking drunk doesnt really do anything for you.

Giacalone said that he was held back in school and dropped out at one point, and that he had trouble holding down work and had run-ins with the police from an early age. In December 2010, he faced assault charges after his wife told police he had threatened and pushed her; the charges were dropped after she refused to go forward with a case.

He doesnt blame the dispute with his wife or other low points in his life directly on his sexual abuse, but says it colored everything that followed. It all stems, mostly, from that incident, he said.

When a reporter told Giacalone that the Boston Archdiocese had found his accusation against Donahue to be unsubstantiated, even after the decision that Giacalone had to be compensated, he shook his head.

I feel bad for their parishioners, he said. They are living a lie too.

This story was co-published with the Houston Chronicle. ProPublica is a nonprofit newsroom that investigates abuses of power.
The government is likely to unveil, in the Union Budget 2020, a Troubled Assets Relief Programme (TARP) similar to what the US initiated during the financial crisis in 2008.

Under the proposed scheme, the troubled or stressed assets of the non-banking finance companies (NBFCs) will be bought by a government fund to revive the sector.

A high-level review meeting on this was held on Monday, chaired by Prime Minister Narendra Modi, for a final decision on the matter.

The US government had initiated the TARP at the height of the Wall Street financial crisis of 2008.

The US Treasury Department created the TARP fund to stabilise the financial system and restore economic growth. TARP was rolled out to accomplish targets by purchasing troubled companies' assets and stock.

September 2008 saw a worldwide freeze as global credit markets came to a near standstill as several major financial institutions, such as Fannie Mae, Freddie Mac, and American International Group (AIG), experienced severe financial stress and others, like Lehman Brothers went bankrupt due to the effects of the sub-prime mortgage crisis that had begun the previous year.

Investment companies Goldman Sachs and Morgan Stanley became commercial banks, in an attempt to stabilise their capital situations.

The US government bought stock in eight banks: Bank of America/Merrill Lynch, Bank of New York Mellon, Citigroup, Goldman Sachs, J.P. Morgan, Morgan Stanley, State Street, and Wells Fargo.

In India, since last year, the NBFC sector has been under severe stress driven by problems in real estate loans, and the economic slowdown which led to defaults. The crisis in IL&FS has led to shock waves in the financial sector.

The so-called shadow banks have missed payments and defaulted, among the biggest cases being DHFL.

There have been calls by central bank intervention but the RBI has refrained from specific company-wise bailouts.

The NBFC domino also caused stress in mutual funds which had exposure to these debt instruments. Consumer lending has been hurt by the NBFC stress and is seen among the major reason for lower consumption aggravating the economic woes.

(Only the headline and picture of this report may have been reworked by the Business Standard staff; the rest of the content is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
U.S. Raises Injury Toll In Iran Attack For Fourth Time, Now Says 64 Hurt

By RFE/RL January 31, 2020

The U.S. military has once again raised the number of U.S. service members who suffered traumatic brain injuries in Iran's missile strike on an Iraqi base earlier this month.

Pentagon spokesman Thomas Campbell said that as of January 30, "a total of 64 U.S. service members have been diagnosed with mild traumatic brain injury, or TBI."

In remarks that have angered many U.S. veterans groups, President Donald Trump initially claimed that no Americans were harmed in Iran's January 8 attack on the Ain al-Asad air base in western Iraq.

The military later said that 11 troops had suffered injuries, then raised it to 34 before saying on January 28 that 50 personnel had been injured.

Trump has downplayed the injuries, saying he "heard that they had headaches and a couple of other things."

Iran said the missile attack on the bases hosting U.S. troops was revenge for the killing of Iranian Major General Qasem Soleimani, leader of Iran's elite Quds Force, in a U.S. air strike near Baghdad's airport in early January.

The Pentagon spokesman said that of the 64 injured U.S personnel, 39 have returned to duty.

"Since the ballistic-missile attack, we have seen a persistent and dedicated effort by our medical professionals on the ground in Iraq, Kuwait, and Germany to diagnose and treat any and all members who needed assistance," he added.

"This is a snapshot in time and numbers can change. We will continue to provide updates as they become available," the spokesman said.

William Schmitz, national commander of the Veterans of Foreign Wars, has said the group "expects an apology from the president to our service men and women for his misguided remarks" in downplaying the seriousness of the injuries.

With reporting by dpa, AP, and Reuters

Source: https://www.rferl.org/a/us- missile-attack-injuries-iran-iraq- trump/30409419.html

Copyright (c) 2020. RFE/RL, Inc. Reprinted with the permission of Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty, 1201 Connecticut Ave., N.W. Washington DC 20036.

NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address






According to the release, there are typically two stages of symptoms. The first includes a fever of more than 101 degrees, coughing, runny nose and watery red eyes. In the second stage, starting after three to seven days, a rash begins to appear on the face and spreads over the entire body.
Now that the lean month of January has passed, you might consider investing in something wine related. I'm talking about wine books. Google any of the top sellers before Christmas, and you are likely to see them for half price, 'used', but as new.

One that I would recommend is the new World Atlas of Wine 8th Edition by Hugh Johnson and Jancis Robinson. Just be sure to check that it's the eighth edition and not the previous book. Considered by most of the world's wine writers to be the single most important book on wine, see it as an inexpensive wine course. If you own just one wine book, this is it.

Jancis Robinson often describes wine as "geography in a bottle", and that's why learning this way makes it so interesting. But before getting into all of this, you'll find sections on the history of wine and a look at the most common varieties, with a guide to how each grape typically tastes.

This is followed by numerous sections which highlight the importance of climate where vines are grown, the impact of temperature and sunlight, water availability, and climate change. Looking beneath the vines, geology is discussed, how different soil profiles and rock formations influence wine and the threats that are posed by pests and diseases.

If you've ever wondered how a vineyard is created, you'll get an insight into it here, the importance of site and aspect, organic and biodynamic practices, and a really interesting look at a year in the vineyard, tracking the progress of the vine from the time the sap rises to start the new year's growth to harvest time. Then it moves on to the production of wine, wine labels explained, and a guide on how to taste and discuss wine.

After you've done this, you'll be ready to delve into each country, learn what grapes belong where, and why the same grape makes a different tasting wine in another place. There are 220 maps in total, and reading about the soil, climate, and the grapes of different regions, brings it alive. If you want to get geeky, the fact boxes detail latitude, average growing-season temperature, average annual rainfall, harvest month, and principal viticultural hazards.

Don't be put off by the amount of detail in each section. France runs for 100 pages, so rather than dive into the intricacies of Burgundy, skip ahead to more familiar territory, perhaps somewhere you've visited on holidays. This is a book you will get through in a few weeks. It is a true tome, a reference book that you can dip into for years to come.

There are other ways you can add to your wine knowledge, and many of them are free. The Wine Folly blog is well worth checking out, and if you're a podcast fan, subscribe to The UK Wine Show, GuildSomm, and I'll Drink to That, and, on YouTube, I like the Unknown Winecaster.

Grapevine

There are two great winemaker dinners coming up. On February 6, Emeline Borie of Chateau Grand-Puy-Lacoste will be at The Wild Goose in Ranelagh, Dublin, with six wines ranging from Lacoste-Borie 2012 to Grand Puy Lacoste 1985. Tickets, 110, searsons.com. And on February 5, Bruce Cakebread of Cakebread Cellars in Napa Valley, will be visiting The Westbury to host a WILDE exclusive winemaker dinner with his Napa Chardonnay and Cabernet Sauvignon wines. Tickets 125, wilde.ie

Wine of the week

Delheim Shiraz/Cabernet Sauvignon 2017

13.95, or 10.46 buy one and get second half price, 13.5pc, from O'Briens nationwide

About 50km outside Cape Town, the family-owned Delheim estate has two vineyards, growing white grapes on the slopes of the Simonsberg Mountain, and red grapes in the slightly warmer Vera Cruz vineyard. This red blend is packed with fresh flavours and ripe forest fruit; with blackberry, blackcurrant and redcurrants, kissed with a gentle bit of spice. Great with roast aubergine, winter casseroles and roast meat.

Albet I Noya Curios Tempranillo

14.50 approx, 14pc, from O'Donovan's, Cork; Field's, Skibbereen; Morton's, Galway; The Little Green Grocer, Kilkenny

An organic wine from Penedes in Spain, this 100pc Tempranillo has a touch of rose on the nose, with fresh, juicy flavours of lush red cherries, blackberries and red plums. Beautiful with pizza, stews and grilled meat.

Tesco Finest Passerina

10, 13pc, from Tesco

From the Abruzzo region of Italy, the Passerina grape is named after the sparrow that is particularly fond of eating it. Fresh, with fruity citrus flavours and a note of peach, it works nicely with fish, seafood and roast chicken.

Poggio Al Casone Chianti DOCG Riserva 2015

12.99, 12.5pc, from Spar, Eurospar, Londis and Mace

Italian Chianti is familiar to most of us, and it pairs particularly well with food. As a Riserva, this has got a bit more complexity from longer aging, so notes of balsamic, spice and prune combine with bright cherry and red fruit.

Petite Arvine Domaine Rene Favre et Fils 2018

28.95, 14pc, from Searsons

For something more unusual, Petite Arvine is a grape that is indigenous to Switzerland. This has a perfumed nose with a touch of honey, is broad yet mineral on the palate, rolling around the mouth with ripe citrus flavours.
Srinagar, Feb 1 : The Srinagar administration has stepped up efforts to tackle threat of coronavirus. Apart from screening all arriving passengers at the airport, the health department has set up diagnosis and isolation facilities across the district.

Isolation wards for suspected cases have been set up at hospitals, including at SMHS and SKIMS hospitals, and ventilator facilities have also been kept ready.

These facilities, also set in Chanpora, Sanatnagar and Noorbagh areas in both uptown and downtown, will be operational 24X7.

The administration has designated nodal officers and set up dedicated helpline numbers to report suspected cases or to seek diagnosis requests. They are District Epidemiologist Dr Tasaduq (9906666077), ZMO SR Gunj Dr Mumtaza (9419062633), ZMO Khanyar Dr Tariq (9596007400), ZMO Batamaloo Dr Sameena (9906721302), ZMO Zadibal 9419078467, Dr Fozia (9419078467) and BMO Hazratbal Dr Hashmat (9419018715).

The helpline numbers are 9419028251, 9419028242, 9419014723 and 9419010363.

Meanwhile, a sensitisation meeting of officials was held here on Saturday under the chairmanship of Srinagar Deputy Commissioner Shahid Iqbal Choudhary.

Regional Director Health & Family Welfare Dr Shazia Wafai and Srinagar Chief Medical Officer Talat Jabeen also briefed the meeting.

Choudhary appealed for public cooperation, emphasising importance of self-reporting and quarantining to prevent the spread of disease.

The preparedness follows the World Health Organisation's declaration of coronavirus as a global health emergency.

Rapid response teams have been activated, one in each health zone of the district. These teams will be monitoring the situation 24X7.

Latest updates on Coronavirus (COVID-19)
Screen Ireland has said more than 40 Irish-linked productions will be release on the international market this year.

The body said the industry's contribution to the economy has more than doubled from 164m in 2010 to 357m last year.

Among the productions for this year will be the TV series based on Sally Rooney's best-seller Normal People, which is produced by Oscar-nominee Lenny Abrahamson of Element Pictures.

Starring newcomers Daisy Edgar-Jones and Paul Mescal as young protagonists Marianne and Connell and featuring scenes filmed around Trinity College, the 12-part series will air on the BBC.

Animation

Ireland will also see the biggest production ever coming here in the form of Foundation, an Apple original drama series which has a budget of 45m and has created more than 500 production jobs.

A major driving force in the industry's growth is the animation sector, which has increased four-fold in the past 10 years, surging to 180m last year.

Also due for release this year is a new feature film, Wolfwalkers, which stars Sean Bean and features a uniquely Irish tale about demonic wolves.

It's made by Academy Award-nominated Cartoon Saloon.

The Kilkenny animation company signed a deal last year with Apple TV+.

Other big releases include Sundance Film Festival entry Herself.

Starring Irish actor and screenwriter Clare Dunne, it's described as an inside-look at the Irish housing crisis and domestic abuse.

Netflix production Valhalla is also set to film in Wicklow's Ashford Studios.

Screen Ireland chair Dr Annie Doona said the entire sector has more than doubled in the past decade and continues to be a "critical component of both our economy and our social fabric".

"Our indigenous industry is growing and we are active participants in the global growth story, with all the major streaming giants now among our production partners," she said.
Manama:

The Shura Council has signed a memorandum of understanding with the Arab Organisation for Administrative Development (ARADO)  an offshoot of the Arab League. Shura Council President Ali Al Saleh sealed the deal with ARADO director-general Dr Nasser Al Hatlan Al Qahtani.

Mr Al Saleh stressed the Shura Councils keenness on strengthening co-operation with official administrative development so as to obtain the necessary legislations and laws. He underlined the role of the Arab Organisation for Administrative Development (ARADO) in organising conferences and holding workshops and activities in all fields, in addition to benefiting from the ARADO digital services. He stressed the importance of the memorandum of understanding in holding workshops and specialised training courses and scientific conferences, in addition to building relations of partnerships with Arab organisations and centres. ARADO is a leading non-profit organisation affiliated to the League of Arab States. ARADO was founded in 1961 with the mandate of promoting and advancing administrative development in the Arab region.

Within ARADO, the General Assembly is the main decision-making body of the organisation, which is responsible for formulating its policy. All member States are represented in the General Assembly. The Executive Council consists of seven members which are elected by the General Assembly for a term of two years. The Executive Council is responsible for the general direction of the operations of ARADO and for developing and overseeing the implementation of ARADO policy and business plans. The Director General is the head of the organisation.

The General Assembly appoints the Director General and his deputy for a term of four years. The Director General formulates ARADO policies, and manages its programs and activities in coordination with the Executive Council. ARADO has provided more than 200 regional consultancy services for ministries and governmental bodies. Besides, ARADO trains more than 7000 trainees annually. Strong ties connect ARADO with more than 600 Arab institutions. ARADO developed co-operation relationships with 17 international institutions and executed joint programs with more than 60 regional and international organisations.
Two men joined the protesters, shouted pro-CAA slogans and later issued threats saying that Bengaluru would witness a repeat of Jamia

The day a shooter injured a student outside Jamia Millia Islamia university in New Delhi during an anti-CAA protest, two men threatened protesting students in Bengaluru with a repeat of the incident.

According to a report in the Times Of India, the incident happened during a protest against the Jamia firing at Bengaluru's Maurya circle.

On Thursday, a 17-year-old youth fired a pistol at a group of anti-CAA protesters at Jamia, injuring a student. Videos showed him waving the firearm over his head shouting "yeh lo aazadi" before firing at the protester.

Following the firing in Jamia, students from several colleges in Bengaluru gathered and began demanding that Union Home Minister Amit Shah resign and that BJP MP Anurag Thakur be booked for hate speech. They also chanted slogans against the Citizenship Amendment Act.

As per the report, two men joined a group of demonstrators who had stayed back to protest against the alleged attack by police at the Jamia varsity and began chanting pro-CAA slogans.

"While we were raising anti-CAA slogans, two men from among us began shouting pro-CAA slogans. The duo was unknown and when we looked at them, they quietly moved away, the report quoted Adrian, a student present at the protest site, as saying.

The men, who were drunk, returned after a few minutes, he added.

Teresa Braggs, a student protester, told The News Minute that the men circled the area for more than an hour before threatening the protesters.

They began saying, its not down down CAA but you people will go down just like Jamia," she said.

Another student, Saqib Idrees, said that the duo abused the protesters in Kannada, saying that they would repeat the Jamia incident in Bengaluru.

Braggs added that the miscreants got their photos clicked with another protester before fleeing the site. However, a group of protesters including Braggs, as well as some police personnel nabbed the miscreants, who were then detained.

The men, who are bank employees and were reportedly drunk, were booked for causing public nuisance, the Times of India report quoted the High Grounds Police as saying. However, they were let off after the students decided not to press charges, the report quoted.
New Delhi, Feb 1 : In her 160-minute Budget presentation in Parliament Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman quoted four renowned poets -- from 19th Century to 4th Century -- who are known for their works in Kashmiri, Tamil and Sanskrit languages.

The four poets mentioned in Sitharaman's speech in the Lok Sabha were of Kashmiri poet Pandit Dinanath Kaul Nadim (1916-1988), two Tamil poets -- women saint poet Avvaiyar and male poet Thiruvalluvar (both contemporary writers of 6th century) -- and classical Sanskrit poet and dramatist Kalidas.

Before elaborating three key themes of Budget 2020-2021, Sitharaman recited a small verse of Kashmiri poet Pandit Dinanath Kaul Nadim, a Sahitya Academy Award winner.

Reciting the verse in Kashmiri, she said: "Saun Watan Gulzar Shalamaar Hyur. Dal Maz Pholvun Pamposh Hyuv. Navajavan-an-hund, Vushunkhumaar Hyuv. Myonwatan, Chyon Watan. SaunWatan, Nundbony Watan." Sitharaman translated it in Hindi as: "Humara watan khilte hue Shalimar Bagh jaisa, humara watan Dal Lake mein khilte hue kamal jaisa, naujawanon ke garam khoon jaisa, mera watan tera watan, humara watan, duniya ka sabse pyara watan (our nation is like Shalimar Bagh, our nation is like the lotus in the Dal Lake, our nation is like the energy of the youth, my nation your nation, our nation, the most adorable nation in the world." This evoked a thunderous applause from parliamentarians. Pandit Dinanath Kaul Nadim mostly wrote in Kashmiri language and his first Kashmiri poem in 1942 'Maej Kashir' was dedicated to the Valley.

There is a collection of about 150 poems written by Nadim, which includes English, Hindi, Urdu and Kashmiri. His notable poems include: 'Bombur Te Yambarzal' (opera), 'Trivanzah' (monologue), 'Gris Kur' (Peasant Girl), 'Dal Hanzni Hund Vatsun' (The song of the Dal lake boatwoman), 'Lachhi Chu Lakhcun' (experimentation).

He was also honoured with the Sahitya Academy Award in 1986 for 'Shihul Kul', a collection of his poems.

While mentioning "our government shall encourage balanced use of all kinds of fertilizers including the traditional organic and other innovative fertilizers", and explaining that "this is a necessary step to change the prevailing incentive regime, which encourages excessive use of chemical fertilizers, Sitharaman recited 'Bhumitiruthi Unn" - a Tamil word derived from the verse 81 of 6th Century women Tamil poet and saint Avvaiyar.

Describing the meaning of the saying, Sitharaman said that one must "first tend to till one's land and then eat. "One must eat only after work." Avvaiyar who lived during the Sangam period is considered contemporary of poets Paranar, Kabilar and Thiruvalluvar. She is known as the author of seven verses in NaaYa Yiaai, 15 in Kua Yuntokai, four in Akananuru and 33 in Purananuru. Legend has it that she was a court poet of Tamil chieftains.

On clean air, the Finance Minister said the problem is a matter of concern in large cities having population above one million. She said the government proposes to encourage those states which are formulating and implementing plans for ensuring cleaner air in cities with population above one million.

While stating that parameters for the incentives would be notified by the Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate change and allocation for this purpose is "Rs 4,400 crore for 2020-2021, the Minister recited the verse of Tamil poet and philosopher Thiruvalluvar, commonly known as Valluvar.

Translating the Tamil verse in English, Sitharaman said: "A good nation is characterized by disease-free society and wealth creation efforts".

Thiruvalluvar was a celebrated Tamil poet and philosopher. He is best known as the author of 'Thirukkuaa', a collection of couplets on ethics, political and economical matters, and love. The exact date of Thiruvalluvar is unclear while his work 'Tirukkuaa' has been dated variously from 300 BCE to about the 6th century CE.

Tirukkural is the primary work credited to Thiruvalluvar. It contains 1,330 couplets, which are divided into 133 sections of 10 couplets each. The first 38 sections are on moral and cosmic order, the next 70 are about political and economic matters, and the remaining 25 are about pleasure.

In her speech's Part-B section, Sitharaman recited two lines from 4th Century Sanskrit poet and dramatist Kalidas's notable work 'Raghuvansa'.

Describing it in English, the Minister explained: "Surya (the Sun), collects vapour from little drops of water. So should the kings -- they collect only for people's wellbeing.

Kalidas was a classical Sanskrit writer, widely regarded as the greatest poet and dramatist in the Sanskrit language. His plays and poetry are primarily based on the Vedas, the Ramayana, the Mahabharata and the Puranas. His period is learnt to be 4th-5th century CE and his notable works were 'Abhijnansakuntalam', 'Raghuvansa', 'Meghadutam' and 'Kumarasambhavam'.

(Rajnish Singh can be contacted at rajnish.s@ians.in)
At least eight people demonstrating against proposed constitutional changes in Russia were detained in St. Petersburg on February 1. Police in riot gear targeted a few dozen activists whom they deemed to be violating public order. Protesters, some holding handwritten signs, had rallied against constitutional changes put forward by President Vladimir Putin on January 15. The draft proposals are seen by many as laying the groundwork for Putin's future political role after his current presidential term ends in 2024.
There is a possible case of the deadly coronavirus in Ireland, according to a Longford passenger who flew from Moscow to Dublin earlier today.

Ballymahon doctor, Laura Noonan, has been receiving regular treatment in Russia for a rare illness she has been suffering for a long number of years.

Due to complications in Moscow, the local woman flew home a day early and found herself on a flight with a passenger suffering from what paramedics believe could be the deadly virus, which has been spreading from China.

The virus can cause symptoms such as cough, fever and shortness of breath. In a limited number of cases, it has led to more severe infections and death.

"Russia is very close to China and there were no checks in the airport whatsoever regarding previous travel or current health status," Ms Noonan posted on her Facebook page, Laura's Russian Lifeline.

"A sick man got on this plane knowingly."

When her plane landed in Dublin, passengers were not allowed to disembark and Ms Noonan explained in her Facebook post that paramedics believe the sick man may have the fast-spreading virus.

The man was escorted from the plane by a paramedic wearing a full hazmat suit, while the patient was given a mask.

"We are terrified," said Laura.

In a later post, Laura published a photo of a health warning given to passengers of the plane, advising them that they have been on a flight with a possible case of novel coronavirus. The notice warns passengers to stay away from other people and to contact a doctor should they experience illness.

"I'm too sick for this. I was too sick to fly home today only for Archie helping in every way to get me home and now this," Laura posted.

"I have zero immune system. No hope of fighting anything. Hoping my mask and hand gel were enough to protect me."

The information handed to passengers on the plane warns that the virus could spread through close contact with a person who has symptoms from the virus, mainly coughing.

Passengers are advised to stay home and phone a doctor or 999 for advice, mentioning that they were on the flight. A Public Health doctor will contact each of the passengers tomorrow.

Laura added that she noticed a scary increase in the number of people wearing masks in the airport compared to her last trip to Moscow.

Laura and her husband Archie are still on the plane along with other passengers.

For more information on novel coronavirus, go to www.hpsc.ie.
Sinduja Jane By

Express News Service

CHENNAI: The now-dreaded coronavirus has created a great sense of alarm among people world over. A regular sneeze is suspected as a symptom and anyone coming from China is viewed with caution. In the midst of the ongoing medical mayhem is M Velam, a fifth year medical student of Tianjan Medical University and College, and a native of Vanagaram in Chennai.

She is back home and speaks to Express about her arduous experience before she left Tianjin province, more than 1000 km away from Wuhan. "Only a few people were seen on the streets, because of the coronavirus scare," says Velam.

"Only a few shops remained open and they had put up noticeboards that read wear mask and come inside. The management of the hostel used to check our temperature everyday and give one mask daily," she said. She added that almost all students had vacated the hostel, except a few Nepalese and Africans, along with two Indian students.

About availability of food and water, Velam said the hostel ensured food from the hostel kitchen as they didnt want the students to step out. "We got strict instructions that unless we had special reasons, we should not step out. So, we didnt dare to get out of the hostel even to buy masks," she says.

The medical student in her wanted to stay on. But when day by day, open shops got fewer and water supply to the hostel got cut, her hope of staying on and sustaining on available sources, faded. And that was when her father booked tickets for her to return to India.

Velam said she was the lone passenger in one deck of Scoot airlines flight from Tianjin to Singapore. "I was alone. And the flight from Singapore to Chennai was fully packed as there were a lot of people coming to Chennai," she added.

As per protocol, Vellam was subjected to thorough screening at China, Singapore and also Chennai airport and made to sign a self-declaration form with questions whether she was from Wuhan, visited the sea food market, had cough, cold or fever, etc. After such a nerve-racking experience, Vellam sure is happy to be home.
If anyone believed that Vancouver and British Columbia was a strange place for Meghan Markle and Prince Harry to pick for their new life  Markle worked in Toronto previously, making it the obvious choice  a detail about the area could explain why they picked the city. In a report by People, legal experts explained that privacy laws in British Columbia would allow Meghan and Harry to take legal action if they feel like photographers and reporters are being too invasive and encroaching on their personal privacy.

"British Columbia is one of a handful of provinces that has a law like this, which specifically creates a right to sue if your privacy is invaded," expert David Fraser of law firm McInnes Cooper, told People. "It specifically says that surveillance can be a form of privacy invasion."

WPA Pool/Getty Images

RELATED: Meghan Markle and Prince Harry Could Be Headed to Los Angeles

The Canadian approach to privacy is surprisingly straightforward. Fraser says that it's about feeling watched or just "creeped out." Thanks to that broad language and a general attitude towards celebrities in Canada, Markle and Harry could live a more normal life.

"Privacy is also one of the only areas of law that protects a certain set of feelings related to being surveilled or being 'creeped out,'" he added. "So, if you think you're alone and somebody steps out from a shadow, that jarring feeling of intrusion is something that privacy law increasingly is protecting."

RELATED: Is Meghan Markle Getting an Agent?

Canadian media isn't about just leaving people alone, however. While there are rules, Fraser says that since the royals have voiced their concerns about their safety and privacy, reporters and photographers are likely to understand. They didn't step back from their royal duties for no reason, after all.

"We have a notion here in Canada that if you are a public figure  if you have stepped into the spotlight  along with that you have to accept that there is a reduced expectation of privacy. But with Harry and Meghan in particular, they have specifically said that they are stepping out of the spotlight. They have specifically said that they are moving from the U.K. in order to preserve their privacy  and some of the statements I have seen have tied it to the experience of Princess Diana or mental health concerns associated with perhaps unfair media coverage or unfair scrutiny of their private life," Fraser finished. "So, I would imagine that there would be a sympathetic ear within the courts that would at least take a look at all these factors without kind of dismissing it outright by saying, 'Look, you're a member of the royal family. You may no longer be a senior royal, but ...'"

Story continues

RELATED: People Think Queen Elizabeth Is Being Shady After Giving Prince William a New Royal Title Amid Megxit

Another legal expert agreed with Fraser, saying that reducing their royal duties also means that Meghan and Harry are reducing the opportunities that photographers will have to snap photos of them. He adds that, like the United States, Canada has "freedom of the press," but it's not as "absolute," according to People. It also differs from the U.K.'s press policies, so Meghan and Harry obviously did their homework before settling on this specific spot.

"The point is that we all have a zone of privacy  even around famous folk," Mark Stephens, partner at London law firm Howard Kenned, added. "That zone of privacy is slightly smaller around famous folk than it is around somebody ordinary walking along the street. What they are doing is essentially giving themselves a larger zone of privacy  what they're saying is, 'We're not going to the opening of an envelope anymore. Were not going to be spending all of our waking hours in the public eye and thereby we're going to live a life of greater seclusion, which gives us a greater degree of privacy as a matter of law.'"
Imperial Valley News Center

Proclamation on Improving Enhanced Vetting Capabilities and Processes for Detecting Attempted Entry

Washington, DC - In Executive Order 13780 of March 6, 2017 (Protecting the Nation from Foreign Terrorist Entry Into the United States), I temporarily suspended entry of nationals of certain specified countries and ordered a worldwide review of whether the United States would need additional information from each foreign country to assess adequately whether nationals of that foreign country seeking to enter the United States pose a security or public-safety threat to the United States, and if so, what additional information was needed.

The Secretary of Homeland Security, pursuant to Executive Order 13780 and in consultation with the Secretary of State and the Director of National Intelligence, developed an assessment model using three categories of criteria to assess national security and public-safety threats: whether a foreign government engages in reliable identity-management practices and shares relevant information; whether a foreign government shares national security and public-safety information; and whether a country otherwise poses a national security or public-safety risk.

Following a comprehensive worldwide review of the performance of approximately 200 countries using these criteria, the Secretary of Homeland Security presented the results of this review, focusing in particular on those countries that were deficient or at risk of becoming deficient in their performance under the assessment criteria. After a subsequent period of diplomatic engagement on these issues by the Department of State, the Acting Secretary of Homeland Security submitted a report in September 2017, which found that eight countries were hindering the ability of the United States Government to identify threats posed by foreign nationals attempting to enter the United States. The Secretary of Homeland Security then recommended that I impose travel restrictions on certain nationals of those countries. After consultation with relevant Cabinet officials and appropriate Assistants to the President, I issued Proclamation 9645 of September 24, 2017 (Enhancing Vetting Capabilities and Processes for Detecting Attempted Entry Into the United States by Terrorists or Other Public-Safety Threats).

In Proclamation 9645, I suspended and limited the entry into the United States of certain nationals of eight countries that failed to satisfy the criteria and were unable or unwilling to improve their information sharing, or that otherwise presented serious terrorism-related risks. Those travel restrictions remain in effect today, with one exception. On April 10, 2018, I issued Proclamation 9723 (Maintaining Enhanced Vetting Capabilities and Processes for Detecting Attempted Entry Into the United States by Terrorists or Other Public-Safety Threats), removing travel restrictions on nationals of the Republic of Chad. Chad had improved its identity-management and information-sharing practices by taking steps to issue more secure passports and by increasing the integrity of how its government handles lost and stolen passports. Chad also began to share information about known or suspected terrorists in a manner that makes that information available to the United States screening and vetting programs, and it created a new, standardized process for the United States to request relevant criminal information.

Pursuant to my directives in section 4 of Proclamation 9645, the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) has continued to assess every 180 days and report to me on whether the interests of the United States require the suspension of or limitation on entry of certain classes of foreign nationals. DHS has also continued to assess ways to further improve its processes for measuring how countries perform under the assessment criteria. From July 2018 through August 2019, DHS updated its methodology to assess compliance with the assessment criteria, which has allowed for more in-depth analysis and yields even more granularity and increased accuracy regarding each countrys performance under the criteria.

In this updated methodology, the general overall criteria for review have not changed. The United States Government still expects all foreign governments to share needed identity-management information, to share national security and public-safety information, and to pass a security and public-safety risk assessment. Building on experience and insight gained over the last 2 years, DHS has, however, refined and modified the specific performance metrics by which it assesses compliance with the above criteria. For example, while the prior model determined whether a country shares certain needed information, the revised model accounts for how frequently the country shares that information and the extent to which that data contributes to border and immigration screening and vetting. As another example, the prior system asked whether a country issued electronic passports at all, whereas the refined metrics assess whether a country issues electronic passports for all major classes of travel documents. Similarly, the lost and stolen passports criterion previously assessed whether a country had prior instances of reporting loss or theft to the International Criminal Police Organization (INTERPOL), whereas the revised model now assesses whether the country has reported lost or stolen passports to INTERPOL within 30 days of a report of a loss or theft.

The DHS improvements to the assessment criteria also involve additional, and more customized, data from the United States Intelligence Community. DHSs original evaluation under Executive Order 13780 relied on existing intelligence products to assess the threat from each country. With the benefit of 2 years of experience, DHS has worked closely with the Intelligence Community to define intelligence requirements and customize intelligence reporting that offers a detailed characterization of the relative risk of terrorist travel to the United States from each country in the world. This additional detail improves DHSs assessment of national security and public-safety risk.

In addition, DHS greatly increased the amount of information obtained from United States Embassies abroad, which work closely with foreign governments. United States Embassies are best positioned to understand their host countries ability and willingness to provide information to the United States, and United States Embassies assessments contribute to a clearer understanding of how well a foreign government satisfies the assessment criteria. DHS also consolidated statistical information on operational encounters with foreign nationals. This information speaks to the frequency with which a countrys nationals commit offenses while in the United States or otherwise develop grounds for inadmissibility under the Immigration and Nationality Act (INA).

Finally, as more precise, granular data became available, it became clear that many countries were only partially implementing each criterion. The 2017 process had three basic potential compliance ratings for each criterion: in compliance, out of compliance, or unknown. The updated methodology allows the United States to account for ways in which countries partially comply with the metrics associated with each criterion. As a result, for example, countries that DHS assessed in the 2017 review have now received more nuanced, partial compliance ratings. In addition, the process now weighs each criterion and risk factor based on its degree of importance to the United States Government for conducting screening and vetting of visa applicants and other travelers to the United States.

Using this enhanced review process, DHS conducted its most recent, worldwide review pursuant to Proclamation 9645 between March 2019 and September 2019. The process began on March 11, 2019, when the United States Government formally notified all foreign governments (except for Iran, Syria, and North Korea) about the refined performance metrics for the identity-management and information-sharing criteria. After collecting information from foreign governments, multilateral organizations, United States Embassies, Federal law enforcement agencies, and the Intelligence Community, multiple subject matter experts reviewed each countrys data and measured its identity-management and information-sharing practices against the criteria. DHS then applied the data to an algorithm it developed to consistently assess each countrys compliance with the criteria.

DHS identified the worst-performing countries for further interagency review and for an assessment of the potential impact of visa restrictions. As in the worldwide review culminating in Proclamation 9645, the Acting Secretary of Homeland Security assessed that Iraq did not meet the baseline for compliance. As part of the interagency review process, the Acting Secretary of Homeland Security determined, however, not to recommend entry restrictions and limitations for nationals of Iraq. In his report, the Acting Secretary of Homeland Security recognized a close cooperative relationship between the United States and the democratically elected government of Iraq, the strong United States diplomatic presence in Iraq, the significant presence of United States forces in Iraq, and Iraqs commitment to combating the Islamic State of Iraq and Syria (ISIS). The Acting Secretary of Homeland Security considered another similarly situated country and determined that, for reasons similar to those present in Iraq, entry restrictions and limitations would not be appropriate.

In addition, the United States Government, led by the Department of State, continued or increased engagements with many countries about those countries deficiencies. A number of foreign governments sent senior officials to Washington, D.C., to discuss those issues, explore potential solutions, and convey views about obstacles to improving performance. As a result of this engagement, one country made sufficient improvements in its information-sharing and identity-management practices and was removed from consideration for travel restrictions.

On September 13, 2019, the Acting Secretary of Homeland Security, after consulting with the Secretary of State, the Attorney General, the Director of National Intelligence, and the heads of other appropriate agencies, submitted a fourth report to me recommending the suspension of, or limitation on, the entry of certain classes of nationals from certain countries in order to protect United States national security, including by incentivizing those foreign governments to improve their practices. The Acting Secretary of Homeland Security recommended maintaining the current restrictions on the seven countries announced in Proclamation 9645 (apart from Chad), as well as implementing suspensions and limitations on entry for certain nationals of twelve additional countries.

Since the Acting Secretary of Homeland Security issued his report on September 13, 2019, the Secretary of State, consistent with section 4(b) of Proclamation 9645, has continued to engage many foreign governments regarding the deficiencies identified in DHSs report and has continued to consult with the Acting Secretary of Homeland Security, the Secretary of Defense, and other Cabinet-level officials about how best to protect the national interest. Based on these engagements, in January 2020, those senior officials recommended that I maintain the entry restrictions adopted in Proclamation 9645 (as modified by Proclamation 9723), and that I exercise my authority under section 212(f) of the INA to suspend entry into the United States for nationals of six new countries  Burma (Myanmar), Eritrea, Kyrgyzstan, Nigeria, Sudan, and Tanzania  until those countries address their identified deficiencies.

The January 2020 proposal recommended visa restrictions on fewer countries than identified by the September 2019 DHS report. For example, the January 2020 proposal recommended no entry restrictions on nationals of one country that had been recommended for restrictions in the September 2019 report. This country made exceptional progress in correcting deficiencies since the September 2019 report, such that it could no longer be characterized as a country that is among those posing the highest degree of risk. In addition, the January 2020 proposal recommended that, for five poorly performing countries, foreign policy interests warranted a different approach than recommended in the September 2019 report. Specifically, the January 2020 proposal suggested that diplomatic engagement and requests for specific improvements during a defined 180-day period would be more appropriate and more likely to result in immediate improvements in these five countries. Each of these five countries provides critical counterterrorism cooperation with the United States and therefore holds strategic importance in countering malign external actors. In several of the five countries, the United States has experienced a recent deepening of diplomatic ties that generally mark increased cooperation toward achieving key regional and global United States foreign policy goals. Importantly, all five countries have credibly communicated willingness to work directly with the United States Government to correct their outstanding deficiencies, and the United States believes progress is imminent for several countries and underway for others. For these reasons, these countries will be given an opportunity to show specific improvements in their deficiencies within the next 180 days.

Consistent with recommendations contained in the January 2020 proposal, I have decided to leave unaltered the existing entry restrictions imposed by Proclamation 9645, as amended by Proclamation 9723, and to impose tailored entry restrictions and limitations on nationals from six additional countries. I have decided not to impose any nonimmigrant visa restrictions for the newly identified countries, which substantially reduces the number of people affected by the proposed restrictions. Like the seven countries that continue to face travel restrictions pursuant to Proclamation 9645, the six additional countries recommended for restrictions in the January 2020 proposal are among the worst performing in the world. However, there are prospects for near-term improvement for these six countries. Each has a functioning government and each maintains productive relations with the United States. Most of the newly identified countries have expressed a willingness to work with the United States to address their deficiencies, although it may take some time to identify and implement specific solutions to resolve the deficiencies.

Consistent with the January 2020 proposal, I have prioritized restricting immigrant visa travel over nonimmigrant visa travel because of the challenges of removing an individual in the United States who was admitted with an immigrant visa if, after admission to the United States, the individual is discovered to have terrorist connections, criminal ties, or misrepresented information. Because each of the six additional countries identified in the January 2020 proposal has deficiencies in sharing terrorist, criminal, or identity information, there is an unacceptable likelihood that information reflecting the fact that a visa applicant is a threat to national security or public safety may not be available at the time the visa or entry is approved.

For two newly identified countries that were among the highest risk countries, but performed somewhat better than others, I have decided, consistent with the January 2020 proposal, to suspend entry only of Diversity Immigrants, as described in section 203(c) of the INA, 8 U.S.C. 1153(c). Such a suspension represents a less severe limit compared to a general restriction on immigrant visas, given the significantly fewer number of aliens affected. The Acting Secretary of Homeland Security considers foreign-government-supplied information especially important for screening and vetting the Diversity Visa population in comparison to other immigrant visa applicants, and I agree with that assessment. In many cases, the United States Government may not have the same amount of information about Diversity Visa applicants compared with other categories of immigrant visa applicants because Diversity Visa applicants, with limited exceptions, do not have the burden to show certain family ties to or employment in the United States, or particular service to the United States Government, as required for other immigrant visa categories.

Consistent with the January 2020 proposal, I have decided not to impose any restrictions on certain Special Immigrant Visas for nationals of the six newly identified countries. Applicants under Special Immigrant programs generally do not need to demonstrate the same work or familial ties as other immigrant visas, but do need to show other unique qualifications. This exception is intended to cover those Special Immigrants who have advanced United States interests (and their eligible family members), such as foreign nationals who have worked for a United States Embassy for 15 years or more and are especially deserving of a visa.

As President, I must continue to act to protect the security and interests of the United States and its people. I remain committed to our ongoing efforts to engage those countries willing to cooperate, to improve information-sharing and identity-management protocols and procedures, and to address both terrorism-related and public-safety risks. And I believe that the assessment process, including enhancements made to that process, leads to new partnerships that strengthen our immigration screening and vetting capabilities. Until the countries identified in this proclamation satisfactorily address the identified deficiencies, I have determined, on the basis of a recommendation from the Acting Secretary of Homeland Security and other members of my Cabinet, to impose certain conditional restrictions and limitations on entry into the United States of nationals of the countries identified in section 1 of this proclamation, as set forth more fully below.

NOW, THEREFORE, I, DONALD J. TRUMP, President of the United States of America, by the authority vested in me by the Constitution and the laws of the United States of America, including sections 212(f) and 215(a) of the INA, 8 U.S.C. 1182(f) and 1185(a), and section 301 of title 3, United States Code, hereby find that, absent the measures set forth in this proclamation, the immigrant entry into the United States of persons described in section 1 of this proclamation would be detrimental to the interests of the United States, and that their entry should be subject to certain restrictions, limitations, and exceptions. I therefore hereby proclaim the following:

Section 1. Suspension of Entry for Nationals of Countries of Identified Concern. The entry into the United States of nationals of the following countries is hereby suspended and limited, as follows, subject to section 2 of this proclamation.

(a) The entry suspensions and limitations enacted by section 2 of Proclamation 9645 are not altered by this proclamation, and they remain in force by their terms, except as modified by Proclamation 9723.

(b) Burma (Myanmar)

(i) Although Burma has begun to engage with the United States on a variety of identity-management and information-sharing issues, it does not comply with the established identity-management and information-sharing criteria assessed by the performance metrics. Burma does not issue electronic passports nor does it adequately share several types of information, including public-safety and terrorism-related information, that are necessary for the protection of the national security and public safety of the United States. Burma is in the process of modernizing its domestic identity-management and criminal-records systems and has worked with the United States to develop some of those systems. It has also recognized the need to make improvements. As its capabilities improve, the prospect for further bilateral cooperation will likely also increase. Despite these encouraging prospects, Burmas identified deficiencies create vulnerabilities that terrorists, criminals, and fraudulent entrants could exploit to harm United States national security and public safety.

(ii) The entry into the United States of nationals of Burma as immigrants, except as Special Immigrants whose eligibility is based on having provided assistance to the United States Government, is hereby suspended.

(c) Eritrea

(i) Eritrea does not comply with the established identity-management and information-sharing criteria assessed by the performance metrics. Eritrea does not issue electronic passports or adequately share several types of information, including public-safety and terrorism-related information, that are necessary for the protection of the national security and public safety of the United States. Further, Eritrea is currently subject to several nonimmigrant visa restrictions. Eritrea does not accept return of its nationals subject to final orders of removal from the United States, which further magnifies the challenges of removing its nationals who have entered with immigrant visas. Eritrea has engaged with the United States about its deficiencies, but it also requires significant reforms to its border security, travel-document security, and information-sharing infrastructure. Improvements in these areas will increase its opportunities to come into compliance with the United States Governments identity-management and information-sharing criteria.

(ii) The entry into the United States of nationals of Eritrea as immigrants, except as Special Immigrants whose eligibility is based on having provided assistance to the United States Government, is hereby suspended.

(d) Kyrgyzstan

(i) Kyrgyzstan does not comply with the established identity-management and information-sharing criteria assessed by the performance metrics. Kyrgyzstan does not issue electronic passports or adequately share several types of information, including public-safety and terrorism-related information, that are necessary for the protection of the national security and public safety of the United States. Kyrgyzstan also presents an elevated risk, relative to other countries in the world, of terrorist travel to the United States, though it has been responsive to United States diplomatic engagement on the need to make improvements.

(ii) The entry into the United States of nationals of Kyrgyzstan as immigrants, except as Special Immigrants whose eligibility is based on having provided assistance to the United States Government, is hereby suspended.

(e) Nigeria

(i) Nigeria does not comply with the established identity-management and information-sharing criteria assessed by the performance metrics. Nigeria does not adequately share public-safety and terrorism-related information, which is necessary for the protection of the national security and public safety of the United States. Nigeria also presents a high risk, relative to other countries in the world, of terrorist travel to the United States. Nigeria is an important strategic partner in the global fight against terrorism, and the United States continues to engage with Nigeria on these and other issues. The Department of State has provided significant assistance to Nigeria as it modernizes its border management capabilities, and the Government of Nigeria recognizes the importance of improving its information sharing with the United States. Nevertheless, these investments have not yet resulted in sufficient improvements in Nigerias information sharing with the United States for border and immigration screening and vetting.

(ii) The entry into the United States of nationals of Nigeria as immigrants, except as Special Immigrants whose eligibility is based on having provided assistance to the United States Government, is hereby suspended.

(f) Sudan

(i) Sudan generally does not comply with our identity-management performance metrics and presents a high risk, relative to other countries in the world, of terrorist travel to the United States. Sudan is, however, transitioning to civilian rule, a process which should improve opportunities for cooperation in the future, and it has already made progress in addressing its deficiencies in several areas. For example, Sudan now issues electronic passports and has improved its coordination with INTERPOL in several respects. Sudan has also shared exemplars of its passports with the United States and now permanently invalidates lost and stolen passports and fraudulently obtained travel documents. Because Sudan performed somewhat better than the countries listed earlier in this proclamation and is making important reforms to its system of government, different travel restrictions are warranted.

(ii) The entry into the United States of nationals of Sudan as Diversity Immigrants, as described in section 203(c) of the INA, 8 U.S.C. 1153(c), is hereby suspended.

(g) Tanzania

(i) Tanzania does not comply with the established identity-management and information-sharing criteria assessed by the performance metrics. Tanzania does not adequately share several types of information, including public-safety and terrorism-related information, that is necessary for the protection of the national security and public safety of the United States. The Government of Tanzanias significant failures to adequately share information with the United States and other countries about possible Ebola cases in its territory detract from my confidence in its ability to resolve these deficiencies. Tanzania also presents an elevated risk, relative to other countries in the world, of terrorist travel to the United States. Tanzania does, however, issue electronic passports for all major passport classes, reports lost and stolen travel documents to INTERPOL at least once a month, and has provided exemplars of its current passports to the United States. Further, Tanzania does share some information with the United States, although its processes can be slow, overly bureaucratic, and complicated by limited technical capability. In light of these considerations, different travel restrictions are warranted.

(ii) The entry into the United States of nationals of Tanzania as Diversity Immigrants, as described in section 203(c) of the INA, 8 U.S.C. 1153(c), is hereby suspended.

Sec. 2. Scope and Implementation of Suspensions and Limitations. (a) Subject to the exceptions set forth in section 3(b) of Proclamation 9645, any waiver under section 3(c) of Proclamation 9645, and any enforcement provision of section 6(b) through (e) of Proclamation 9645, the suspensions of and limitations on entry pursuant to section 1(b) of this proclamation shall apply to foreign nationals of the designated countries who:

(i) are outside the United States on the applicable effective date of this proclamation;

(ii) do not have a valid visa on the applicable

effective date of this proclamation; and

(iii) do not qualify for a visa or other valid travel document under section 6(d) of Proclamation 9645.

(b) The Secretary of State and the Secretary of Homeland Security shall coordinate to update guidance, if necessary, to implement this proclamation as to nationals of the six countries identified in section 1(b) of this proclamation, consistent with the provisions of this section.

(c) For purposes of this proclamation, the phrase Special Immigrants whose eligibility is based on having provided assistance to the United States Government means those aliens described in section 101(a)(27)(D) through (G) and (K) of the INA, 8 U.S.C. 1101(a)(27)(D) through (G) and (K), any alien seeking to enter the United States pursuant to a Special Immigrant Visa in the SI or SQ classification, and any spouse and children of any such individual.

Sec. 3. Reporting Requirements. (a) Section 4 of Proclamation 9645 is amended to read as follows:

Sec. 4. Adjustments to Removal of Suspensions and Limitations.

(a) The Secretary of Homeland Security, in consultation with the Secretary of State, shall on October 1, 2020, and annually thereafter, submit to the President the results of an evaluation as to whether to continue, terminate, modify, or supplement any suspensions of, or limitations on, the entry on certain classes of nationals of countries identified in section 2 of this proclamation and section 1(b) of the Proclamation Improving Enhanced Vetting Capabilities and Processes for Detecting Attempted Entry into the United States by Terrorists or Other Public-Safety Threats, signed on January 31, 2020.

(b) The Secretary of Homeland Security, in consultation with the Secretary of State and the Director of National Intelligence, shall not less than every 2 years evaluate whether each country in the world sufficiently shares relevant information and maintains adequate identity-management and information-sharing practices to mitigate the risk that its citizens or residents may travel to the United States in furtherance of criminal or terrorist objectives, or otherwise seek to violate any law of the United States through travel or immigration. In doing so, the Secretary of Homeland Security shall:

(i) in consultation with the Secretary of State, Attorney General, and the Director of National Intelligence, report to the President, through the appropriate Assistants to the President, any instance in which, based on a review conducted under subsection (b) of this section, the Secretary of Homeland Security believes it is in the interests of the United States to suspend or limit the entry of certain classes of nationals of a country; and

(ii) in consultation with the Secretary of State and the Director of National Intelligence, regularly review and update as necessary the criteria and methodology by which such evaluations are implemented to ensure they continue to protect the national interests of the United States.

(c) Notwithstanding the requirements set forth in subsections (a) and (b) of this section, the Secretary of Homeland Security, in consultation with the Secretary of State, Attorney General, and the Director of National Intelligence, may, at any time, recommend that the President impose, modify, or terminate a suspension or limitation on entry on certain classes of foreign nationals to protect the national interests of the United States.

(b) Section 5 of Proclamation 9645 is revoked.

Sec. 4. Effective Date. This proclamation is effective at 12:01 am eastern standard time on February 21, 2020. With respect to the application of those provisions of Proclamation 9645 that are incorporated here through section 2 for countries designated in section 1(b), and that contained their own effective dates, those dates are correspondingly updated to be January 31, 2020, or February 21, 2020, as appropriate.

Sec. 5. Severability. It is the policy of the United States to enforce this proclamation to the maximum extent possible to advance the national security, foreign policy, and counterterrorism interests of the United States. Accordingly:

(a) if any provision of this proclamation, or the application of any provision to any person or circumstance, is held to be invalid, the remainder of this proclamation and the application of its other provisions to any other persons or circumstances shall not be affected thereby; and

(b) if any provision of this proclamation, or the application of any provision to any person or circumstance, is held to be invalid because of the lack of certain procedural requirements, the relevant executive branch officials shall implement those procedural requirements to conform with existing law and with any applicable court orders.

Sec. 6. General Provisions. (a) Nothing in this proclamation shall be construed to impair or otherwise affect:

(i) United States Government obligations under applicable international agreements;

(ii) the authority granted by law to an executive department or agency, or the head thereof; or

(iii) the functions of the Director of the Office of Management and Budget relating to budgetary, administrative, or legislative proposals.

(b) This proclamation shall be implemented consistent with applicable law and subject to the availability of appropriations.

(c) This proclamation is not intended to, and does not, create any right or benefit, substantive or procedural, enforceable at law or in equity by any party against the United States, its departments, agencies, or entities, its officers, employees, or agents, or any other person.

IN WITNESS WHEREOF, I have hereunto set my hand this thirty-first day of January, in the year of our Lord two thousand twenty, and of the Independence of the United States of America the two hundred and forty-fourth.

DONALD J. TRUMP
A live band on hi-tech hyperdrive, EOTO has forged new territory in the electronic dance music movement. Locked and loaded with computers, loopers, midi controllers, routers, software, mixers, and the latest in music technology, multi-instrumentalist Michael Travis and percussionist/vocalist, Jason Hann have sent a speeding bullet through the electronic dance community due to their innovative 100% improvised approach and as a result, their exclusive sound. Not just a haphazard foray into experimental music, the duo starts their musical adventure from scratch (there are no pre-recorded loops, no backing tracks, and no pre-constructed songs in their live production) building each set, note-by-note, beat by beat, live before the audience as each show explodes into a full-scale dance party.

A double-headed juggernaut, the duo works effortlessly as they twist and turn through a series of genres including Drum & Bass, Electro, Dubstep, House, and Glitch Hop dance music; virtually constructing a new sci-fi soundtrack each night they perform.

What makes EOTO extraordinary is the way the duo designs their performance by looping live guitar, bass, and keyboard synths, alongside with live drums and vocals, to carve out their sound right before the eyes and ears of the audience. No small feat in music production; even the highest order of studio producers, audiophiles, and musicians have a hard time wrapping their head around EOTOs approach, and the wild ride that results.

Much of EOTOs other-worldy sound takes place long before the band takes the stage. Using unique mic placement and internal software EQ for the drums, combined with an internal system for self mixing and monitoring, EOTO is able to craft its sound to the audience in a way that most sound engineers might overlook when mixing an electronic band. Its not just rock instruments on stage mixed with computer sounds, its live instruments treated in a different way, sonically, for the purpose of performing a different style of music. These nuances are always a source of amazement when EOTO is approached about how they get their sound.

Best known as the drummer and percussionist for the wildly successful String Cheese Incident, Michael Travis cut his musical teeth in the junior high school marching band playing the French horn in the early eighties. However, his deep love for rhythm has always played a major role in his career. In 1986, Travis picked up the hand drum and started playing guitar in Santa Cruz, California. It wasnt until 1995, when the drum kit found its way into his life, a moment that would shape his career forever. For more than twenty years he has held down the rhythm section for audiences spanning hundreds of thousands of fans, in cities around the globe. His keen interest in international and world music has dotted his career allowing him to explore multiple genres of music, while keeping dexterity in each instrument he plays. His ability to perform as adeptly on the guitar, bass and drums allow EOTO to create a rich organic sound, often overlooked in todays press-play DJ community.

When Jason Hann joined Michael Travis in the rhythm section of the String Cheese Incident in 2004, he was no stranger to the big stage. Performing professionally since the age of 12, he has toured and recorded internationally with the likes of Isaac Hayes, Loreena McKinnett, Dr Dre, Rickie Lee Jones and Vinx. His depth and knowledge of percussion has taken him around the world to study in countries as far as Mali, Ghana, Haiti, and Korea allowing him a rare deftness to switch seamlessly through a variety of genres of music, whether its Rock, R&B, Pop, Jazz, Latin, Latin-Jazz, Flamenco, African, Persian, Electronica, Techno and World music. With an extended biography that reads like the whos who of music, its no wonder he found himself naturally drawn to developing a more experimental sound of his own, with EOTO.

As the perfect musical pairing, EOTO draws upon their rich history, training, and diverse influences to create an innovative yet fully improvised electronic music experience unlike any other on the scene today. EOTO has had many unique sit-ins that have allowed for, yet, another mark of their original sound including, The drummers of Stomp, members of String Cheese Incident, members of Umphreys McGee, Stanley Jordan, Dominic Lali (Big Gigantic), David Satori & Sidecar Tommy (Beats Antique), Billy Kreutzman, Vinx, Toni Childs, Karsh Kale, Jamie Janover, Steve Kimock, Jamie Shields (New Deal), and Adam Deitch (Lettuce) just to name a few.
Washington DC: Priyanka Chopra Jonas looked stunning at the 62nd annual Grammy Awards, where she was seen flaunting Ralph & Russo gown that plunged as low as Jennifer Lopez`s Versace dress did in 2000. The star got candid about the iconic red carpet fashion moment including how she managed to avoid a wardrobe malfunction with a dress so low-cut.

According to Us Weekly, the 37-year-old star revealed that the key was a piece of fabric that was practically invisible. The actor shared that whenever Ralph & Russo, make couture or custom outfits for her, "they always do them fitted to my body, keeping these things" -- wardrobe malfunctions -- "in mind."

She continued: "So as much as people might think it would be hard to manage, they found this incredible tulle the same colour as my skin tone and sort of held the dress together with that. So you can`t even see it in the pictures but there was no way it would have happened if they didn`t have that. It was like a netting."

The `The Sky is Pink` actor also made it clear that she won`t take a fashion risk for an awards show. She also stated that in fact, the dress needs to be glued to her body. The star explained that "When I decide to wear an outfit I`m not someone who`s really nervous because when I walk out of the door, I`m very secure," explained Chopra. "I don`t leave unless I`m super secure."

The actor laughingly added, "I don`t like wardrobe malfunction! Nobody does!"The other best thing about the awards season is that the internet is flooded with pictures of the entire Jonas family, including Priyanka`s sisters-in-law Sophie and Danielle.

The `Baywatch` actor also gave the tit-bits of her group chat with her fellow Jonas wives and revealed that they text each other outfit details on awards show days. She stated that we send each other pictures of what we are going to be wearing before and this was not for comparison but they ask each other, "What do you think about this?"

The star also shared that, "We`re all as a family very individual in our choices and we`re also women who don`t let fashion dictate us, really, "So it`s just for fun, we`re all really tight and we`re close." She also stated that it`s just for fun and disclosed that "we`re all really tight and we`re close -- it`s not stressful."

Chopra will be hosting a European-style festival celebrating music, style, and food- the Stella Artois Port de Stella in Miami, which is one of her upcoming gigs.
BAKU, Azerbaijan, Feb. 1

Trend:

Azerbaijani and Turkish citizens were evacuated in a plane belonging to Turkey from Wuhan, China on February 1 in the spirit of fraternal relations between Azerbaijan and Turkey in accordance with the decision of Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev and Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan, the Azerbaijani Foreign Ministry said.

In this regard, Azerbaijan expresses appreciation to fraternal Turkey, the ministry said, Trend reports on Feb. 1. This also testifies to the brotherhood of Azerbaijan and Turkey.

"Before the departure, the evacuated Azerbaijani citizens underwent a medical check-up, their health condition is satisfactory, the ministry said. Azerbaijani citizens will be quarantined in Turkey for two weeks and then will return to Azerbaijan.

Azerbaijan also expresses gratitude to the Chinese government for the assistance and support rendered to Azerbaijani citizens and expresses solidarity in these difficult days with China and friendly Chinese people, the ministry said.
STEPANAKERT.  The adversary breached the truce at the zone of contact between the Karabakh and Azerbaijani opposing forces about 200 times, from January 26 to February 1.

During this time the Azerbaijan armed forces fired more than 1,150 shots toward the military positions of the Republic of Artsakh (Nagorno-Karabakh Republic), and with various-caliber rifle weapons, the Artsakh Ministry of Defense (MOD) informed.

But vanguard units of the Artsakh Defense Army maintain full control of the frontline, and continue to take the necessary steps to maintain their combat positions.
Washington, Feb 1 : A former US Coast Guard officer has been jailed for 13 years for stockpiling weapons to carry out an alleged white supremacist attack, it was reported on Saturday.

Officials said Christopher Hasson, 50, was planning to target liberal politicians and news broadcasters, reports the BBC.

When he was arrested in February 2019, officers found a cache of 15 firearms - which, as a drug user, Hasson was banned from owning - and two illegal gun silencers. He was also in possession of the narcotic Tramadol without a prescription.

Before and during his sentencing hearing, prosecutors and defence attorneys sparred on whether or not Hasson would have gone on to commit mass murder.

The former lieutenant was inspired by racist mass murderers and "intended to exact retribution on minorities and those he considered traitors", prosecutors told the court on Friday ahead of the sentencing.

He created an Excel spreadsheet with a list of targets, which included 12 prominent Democrats in Congress and a number of CNN and MSNBC journalists.

US Federal Attorney Robert Hur added that if he hadn't been arrested when he was, "we now would be counting bodies of the defendant's victims instead of years of the defendant's prison time".

Hasson pleaded guilty to firearms and drugs charges.
Sydney and Melbourne were set to welcome more airline travellers from mainland Chinese cities at highest risk in the coronavirus outbreak than any other cities outside Asia.

Prime Minister Scott Morrison on Saturday announced a two-week ban on passengers who had visited mainland China, other than citizens and permanent residents, from entering Australia  cutting into two weeks of the three-month figure.

The university sector has been preparing for an influx of students returning from China. Credit:Yianni Aspradakis

Research published in WorldPop shows 207,400 passengers from 18 high-risk cities in mainland China would arrive in Sydney in the three months from mid-January to mid-April.

Melbourne was expected to receive 154,500 over the same timeframe, which represented the 15 days before and the two and a half months after Lunar New Year's Day.
Miles of shoreline that once protected and nourished the Gullah-Geechee are eroding, subjected to harsh storms that have damaged the delicate coastal ecosystem of South Carolinas Sea Islands. In 2018, when Hurricane Florence caused flooding in Cheraw, contaminated soil containing elevated levels of cancer-causing PCBs from an Environmental Protection Agency Superfund site flushed into peoples homes. Bacteria-rich pluff mud that makes up the states saltwater marshes could potentially aid in the cleanup, but the marsh grass is waning, and it cant hold the soil in place. So it washes away.

Advertisement

Its a straightforward statement of fact that climate change is among the biggest imminent threats to humankindand Black communities such as those in South Carolina are going to take a disproportionate hit. Contamination, sweltering days, and rising sea levels that drown out the low country are among the issues that have made South Carolina somewhat of a hot spot in terms of environmental issues, said Brenda Murphy, the president of the states chapter of the NAACP.

Advertisement

Advertisement

Advertisement

South Carolina, like other states in the Southeast, has warmed at a less accelerated rate than other parts of the U.S., according to an August 2016 EPA pamphlet. But as global temperatures continue to rise, South Carolina is likely to experience unstable crop yields, livestock damage, more powerful tropical storms, increased inland flooding, a jump in uncomfortably hot days, and a subsequent increase in the risk of heat-related illnesses.

Advertisement

Advertisement

Democratic candidates have made it a point to include climate change and issues of environmental justice in their policy platforms. The party has had a difficult time engaging with voters on the issue in previous cycles, but this go-around there have been more specific efforts to elevate the topic nationally.

With the South Carolina primary approaching, though, Slate wanted to find out how the candidates are drawing the connection between the Black votersparticularly those in rural areasthey want to reach and the subject of climate change. I asked all 11 Democratic campaigns what they were doing to discuss climate change with Black voters and how they might be personalizing the issue for folks who, for example, may notice that its hotter outside or that a food item they like is regularly out of stock, but dont necessarily link it to climate change or environmental injustice.

Advertisement

Advertisement

Eight campaigns responded (well add more if they reply). Few of them had a specific, tailored effort to address how climate change and environmental injustice affects Black communities in particular and how to engage with them on the subject. Often they presented their work in both the climate sector and racial justice while noting that the two do indeed overlap. Or they mentioned the disparate impact on Black communities in the climate plan, while the policy proposals themselves remained overarching, with nothing as targeted as, say, Sen. Elizabeth Warrens education plan to pour much-needed funding into historically Black colleges and universities.

Advertisement

Advertisement

But a more nuanced connection could lead to a better understanding of how Black Americans are being affected and will be critical to any campaign initiative to adequately shape policy. The language used and how the issue is perceived is different within Black rural communities, according to Cliff Albright, a co-founder of Black Voters Matter. A change in monthly expenses, such as a utility bill, or the increased frequency and disastrous impact of the past couple of hurricane seasons is how many people notice climate change.

Advertisement

Advertisement

If you just ask about climate change, you may not get much of a responsewhich doesnt mean that we dont care about climate change, said Albright. It just means our entry point is different.

Advertisement

Advertisement

Michael Bennet

Americas Climate Change Plan was the first policy platform Bennet released upon launching his campaign, a campaign spokesperson said. It calls for the creation of an Office of Climate and Environmental Justice at the EPA and says a Bennet presidency plans to reorient the organization and mission of the Department of Health and Human Services as part of a plan to focus on public health, especially for vulnerable populations.

The plan emphasizes the need for a Climate Bank, which would allot $10 trillion toward fighting climate change while focusing on communities affected heavily by pollution. Two bullet points, about job creation and building an EPA climate office, likewise mention helping communities that have borne the brunt of environmental harm. But there is no specific mention of Black people, or any community of color for that matter.

Advertisement

Bennet traveled to Gulfport, Mississippi, in July, where he met with NAACP Climate Chair Kathy Egland and Ruth Story, the former Gulfport branch president of the NAACP. During that same visit, Bennet met with a group of crabbers and discussed climate changes impact on local fisheries.

Joe Biden

Vice President Biden knows people of color in rural communities across America are more likely to live in areas most vulnerable to flooding and other climate changerelated weather events, said Jamal Brown, the national press secretary for the Biden campaign.

Advertisement

Advertisement

A piece of Bidens climate plan states how Black Americans are uniquely affected by climate change. Overall, the plan holds polluters accountable for the damage theyve caused, particularly in low-income communities and communities of color, not only due to climate change but the pollution they are pumping into the air that is breathed and into the water that is drunk in those communities, said Brown. And it ensures that communities across the country including Flint, Michigan, and Denmark, South Carolina, have access to clean, safe drinking water.

Advertisement

The campaign also pointed to Bidens rural plan as well as his health care plan to expand Medicaid in rural red states.

Michael Bloomberg

Environmental justice must be at the heart of our climate work, said a campaign spokesperson. The burden of climate change and pollution too often falls heaviest on low-income and minority communities. As president, Mike will focus federal investments in communities disproportionately impacted by climate pollution.

Bloomberg recently announced the Greenwood Initiative, focused on economic justice for Black America; it does have one mention of environmental justice. The campaign also released a climate change policy agenda, which includes details about investment in vulnerable communities. A bullet point within the climate change resilience portion of the plan mentions the disparate impact climate change has on Black Americans. Communities of color are mentioned once more in terms of outcomes in his clean transportation plank.

Advertisement

Advertisement

Advertisement

Bloombergs campaign said that, in addition to listening to voter concerns on the matter, it has also briefed a number of environmental justice organizations, including the North Carolina Environmental Justice Network and the Greater New Orleans Foundation, on its policy plans.

Pete Buttigieg

The Buttigieg campaign has hosted several roundtables in rural South Carolina, including one in Denmark, where conversations regarding environmental justice were featured.

Advertisement

Advertisement

Climate change is the greatest threat of our time, and often low-income, Black Americans are hit first and hardest, wrote a spokesperson for the former mayor. That is why our campaign has made addressing climate change a prioritywhether its holding pollsters accountable, ensuring Black neighborhoods have the infrastructure and resilience they need to survive and thrive after climate disaster or ensuring our public health systems are equipped to support their needs.

Advertisement

The spokesperson wrote that Buttigiegs plan focuses on gaps in our public health systems and infrastructure that disproportionately affect communities of color and the poor. The Buttigieg climate plan has a few mentions of Black Americans and the disparate impact. It also mentions deploy[ing] community-centric resourcessuch as sending federal assets to assist during natural disastersto help communities.

Advertisement

Buttigiegs Douglass Plan offers a bit more nuance into policies that would help Black Americans suffering environmental injustice specificallyincluding a push to remove lead paint from old houses and the creation of a public health data system.

Amy Klobuchar

The Minnesota senators campaign pointed Slate to her climate plan, which notes that she would prioritize assisting [communities of color] as they adapt to the effects of climate change and make sure they are included within any policy decision making.

Advertisement

Her plan also promises to strengthen the EPA, the Low Income Home Energy Assistance Program, and the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program, all of which play a role in mitigating the direct and indirect effects felt by communities.

Deval Patrick

Deshundra Jefferson, a spokesperson for the former Massachusetts governor, said Patricks campaign is talking to voters everywhere about the issue of climate change, including those in communities like Round O, South Carolina.

Rural communities often see and feel the impact first. When we address climate change, we are keeping our most vulnerable communities at the top of mind, said Jefferson.

Advertisement

Patricks climate plan doesnt have any specific mention of Black people or any community of color, but it does note that the greatest impact has been and will continue to be on some of the most vulnerable people in the United States and abroad. The former governor would also seek to bolster EPA cleanup efforts in communities that have been underserved. His opportunity agenda mentions that he will make various investments in rural communities.

Bernie Sanders

The Sanders campaign provided several examples of how the Vermont senator is reaching Black rural voters, including his tour of South Carolinas low country, an area that has been affected by the increased frequency and severity of storms; a climate-focused town hall in Myrtle Beach; an environmental justice town hall in Denmark; and breakfast in Georgetown. Sanders has also visited Williamsburg County, where he toured a local hospital that was closed due to damage sustained in the 2015 thousand-year flood.

Advertisement

Advertisement

Advertisement

Surrogates, according to the campaign, also regularly address climate change when engaging with Black communities.

Personal storytelling is a huge part of our organizing program, and weve done a lot of training with our volunteers on how to have personal and [persuasive] conversations with people they know and with people they dont know, said national constituency organizing director Yong Jung Cho.

Our supporters use their personal stories when they volunteer with our campaignand study after study shows that its one of the best tools of persuasion, she added.

And, of course, the campaign pointed to Sanders Green New Deal, which puts forth a number of policy proposals and federal regulations that seek to address the disparate impact Black Americans face in the climate crisis.

Tom Steyer

Steyers plan for climate justice mentions that though climate change affects us all, it hurts low income communities and communities of color first and worst. The interconnected problems of poverty, systemic racism, and pollution demand urgent solutions. There is no specific mention of Black Americans.

Advertisement

Advertisement

Axel Adams, the Steyer campaigns director for African American outreach, explained the ground game in Black communities in an interview with Slate. He said the team engages with voters in meetings at churches and also reaches out to officials and activists. Often campaign staffers talk to folks who arent certain that what theyre experiencing is related to climate change, but they do notice changes in weather patterns or food shortages. They dont tie it to the ecosystem, said Adams. When you explain that to them  they pay more attention to it.

The same goes for environmental justice: They know something is happening. A lot of times they know the people in their community are sicka high rate of asthma, a higher rate of cancers. And they may assume that something is going on in that area, but they dont know what it is.

Adams said the Steyer campaign explains that the issues people are noticing could be associated with climate change or environmental injustice. The campaign makes the connection by pointing out food shortages or how certain crops like peaches arent growing as great as they once did.

We make it relative and real, said Adams.
JK Tyre, a leading tyre manufacturer in India, is setting a benchmark in the automobile segment by integrating innovations and latest technology in their recent product, 'Smart Tyre'.

The brand hosted an influencer meet-up in Bengaluru at Lono Cafe, Indiranagar for tech & automobile enthusiasts.

The Smart Tyre technology is the latest indigenous offering from the house of JK Tyre created to provide real-time information about the condition of tyres using IoT based sensors (TreelCare).

This one-of-a-kind technology-based tool is geared to provide customers with unique smart monitoring and efficient tyre maintenance services.

'Smart Tyre' is a value proposition product for JK Tyre's customers which will help them in enhancing the tyres life by digitally tracking real-time tyre performance, vehicle location, air-leaks detection, engine diagnosis etc.

Amit Gujral, Marketing Head - JK Tyre, took a small session during the event, where he talked about the latest innovations and benefits of 'Smart Tyre'. On the other hand, the product team lead by Sanjeev Sharma, Head - Mobility Business, performed a demo session for the Influencers showing the real-time monitoring and functioning of the product integrated with a smartphone app (TreelCare).

"We are elated to meet the young Influencers of South India today who are so passionate about automobiles as a category and have so much zeal to know about the latest innovations & developments happening in this segment. We, at JK Tyres, strongly believe in addressing key market requirements with a close amalgamation of advanced technologies & innovations. The Smart Tyre solution is equipped with some exciting advanced functionalities that will provide real-time information about the health of the tyres via Smart Sensors, which enhances the safety, security and performance of vehicles. The Indian market has always accepted us with great trust, and we are looking forward to receiving the same healthy response from the market again for our latest innovation", said Amit Gujral, Marketing Head - JK Tyre & Industries Ltd.

The Smart tyre technology helps maintain optimal tyre pressure, increasing road safety besides adding to best practices for the good of the environment.

With Smart Tyre technology, the company has introduced Tyre Pressure Monitoring Systems (TPMS) to monitor the tyre's vital statistics, including pressure and temperature.

The information collected is relayed on a real-time basis to the vehicle owner's smartphone via Bluetooth on to a mobile application, allowing for early detection of issues and deployment of timely preventive measures.

TPMS also helps Smart Tyres deliver higher fuel efficiency and with additional GPS feature enabled; it lets you know the location of your vehicle at any instance.

For further details, please visit www.jktyre.com/SMARTTYRE.

The product is available for sale in India at JK Tyre brand stores called as, Steel Wheels & Xpress wheels, leading multi-brand tyres & auto accessories outlets and online at amazon.in (from 1st Feb'20) and treel.in.

This story is provided by NewsVoir. ANI will not be responsible in any way for the content of this article.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
Three additional people have been infected with the coronavirus in the United States, bringing the total number of cases to 11.

On Friday, a seventh infection was detected in California, according to a statement from the CDC. The patient had recently returned from Wuhan, China, which is the epicenter of the disease.

The Massachusetts Department of Public Health announced on Saturday that an eighth infection had been confirmed in Boston. The man, who is in his 20s, had recently returned from Wuhan.

Three additional cases were confirmed in California on Sunday, according to The New York Times. San Benito Countys Health and Human Services agency said in a statement that a husband, who had recently traveled to Wuhan, and his wife had contracted the disease, making it the second case of human to human transmission in the country.

As of Sunday, Chinas Health Commission reported that the number of fatalities from the coronavirus had reached 361 nationwide, meaning the death toll had exceeded that of the SARS outbreak, which killed 349 people in mainland China, the Times reported. Chinas Health Commission also reported that there had been 475 recoveries.

Over the weekend, the first death outside of China was reported, the CDC confirmed at a press conference on Monday. The man, who was 44 and lived in Wuhan, died in the Philippines on Saturday, the Worldwide Health Organization said in a statement.

The U.S. is among 19 countries that the virus, currently referred to as 2019-nCoV as researchers work to understand more about this version of coronavirus, has spread to.

Until Thursday, all U.S. cases of the disease were in people who had traveled to Wuhan. But the CDC announced that the first U.S. case of human to human transmission occurred in a husband and wife in Chicago.

Still, the CDC has stressed that the majority of Americans are at low risk of contracting the virus, particularly as several major airlines, including Delta and American, have announced that they are canceling all flights to or from China for the next few months.

Story continues

RELATED: First Person to Person Transmission of Coronavirus in the U.S. Identified in Chicago

In a press briefly on Friday, Messonnier also urged Americans to not let fear or panic guide your actions, emphasizing that it is not right to assume that a person of Asian descent has the coronavirus.

Please do not assume that because a person is of Asian descent, that they have this new coronavirus, she said. There are 4 million Chinese-Americans in this country.

PEOPLE

RELATED: Over 200 People Have Died from Coronavirus as CDC Makes First Federal Quarantine in 50 Years

The World Health Organization has declared the outbreak a public health emergency, after a week of deliberations and a previous decision to hold off on any declarations.

On Friday, a high-ranking Chinese official said he feels guilty for not acting quicker to stop the spread of coronavirus, The New York Times reported.

Above all, I feel guilty and remorseful and I reproach myself, Feng Guoqiang, the Communist Party secretary of Wuhan, said in an interview on Chinas main television network, CCTV. Ive been constantly thinking that if Id made the decision earlier to take the kind of strict controls we have in place now, the outcome would have been much better than now.
ATLANTA - Less than a month after being sworn in as Georgias new U.S. senator, Republican Kelly Loeffler faces a 2020 election battle thats already shaping up to be so contentious that odds are it wont be over until 2021.

Loeffler, a wealthy businesswoman and political newcomer, is running her first campaign to fill the remaining two years of a Senate vacancy after the governor appointed her in December. Georgia law requires a free-for-all special election where all contenders face off Nov. 3, allowing multiple Democrats and Republicans on the same ballot.

And in the past week, Loeffler picked up potent challengers on either side of the political spectrum, underscoring the necessity  and the risks  of courting loyal Trump voters as Loeffler tries to keep her seat in a state where the GOP still dominates but Democrats have gained ground among suburban women and an increasingly diverse electorate.

To her right theres U.S. Rep. Doug Collins, a fellow Republican whos well-known to viewers of Fox News Channel as an ardent defender of President Donald Trump. On her left is the Rev. Raphael Warnock, the activist pastor of the Atlanta church where Martin Luther King Jr. preached whose campaign was quickly endorsed by one of Georgias most popular Democrats, Stacey Abrams, as well as the Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee.

Two other contenders, both Democrats, are also running for the seat that opened when GOP Sen. Johnny Isakson retired in December. And more could still join. No deadline for signing up has been set, though Georgias secretary of state is eyeing the first week of March.

There will be other people getting in the race, Republicans and Democrats, predicted Democrat Michael Thurmond, the elected CEO of metro Atlantas DeKalb County, who said he hasnt ruled out joining the Loeffler race. This thing is extremely fluid and thats not going to stop.

Jack Kingston, a former Republican congressman who sought the governors appointment, said he wont run for the Senate and questioned whether others still have much time to decide.

Youve got a short sprint between now and November in a really big state, Kingston said. You just need to be out there working already.

One thing that increasingly seems like a safe bet: a field crowded with enough candidates to divide Democratic and Republican voters alike probably wont end with anybody winning with more the 50% of the vote on Nov. 3.

If thats the case, the winner wont be determined until nearly a year from now  in a runoff election on Jan. 5, 2021.

Its a key race at a pivotal time in Georgia, where Republicans still dominate but Democrats have made significant strides in recent elections. Loefflers race will share the November ballot with those of Trump and fellow GOP Sen. David Perdue. Democrats insist they have a shot in Georgia at all three.

Though shes never run before and remains virtually unknown to many Georgia voters, Loeffler wont be a pushover. Shes pledged to spend $20 million of her own money on the race. Gov. Brian Kemp is actively promoting his appointee to conservative groups, and key staff from the governors 2018 campaign have joined Loefflers team.

She wouldnt be the first political novice to be elected to the Senate from Georgia. Perdue, the former CEO of Dollar General and Reebok, ran his debut race in 2014 as a political outsider and bested three GOP congressmen in the primaries, then went on to defeat Democrat Michelle Nunn, the daughter of former Sen. Sam Nunn.

Collins had openly lobbied the governor to appoint him to the Senate seat, with support from Trump. By choosing Loeffler, Kemp outraged Trump loyalists who felt he had defied the president.

Collins decision to challenge Loeffler has forced her to lean to the right. Shes frequently taken to Twitter to defend Trump, criticize his impeachment and even attack one fellow Republican, Utah Sen. Mitt Romney, for being open to calling witnesses at Trumps Senate trial.

The National Republican Senatorial Committees executive director, Kevin McLaughlin, accused Collins of being driven by selfishness and said his candidacy puts Loeffler and other Republicans on Georgias statewide ballot at risk. Collins dismissed the criticism as unfounded.

Despite having opponents from both parties, Loefflers smartest bet is to focus on beating Collins among Republican voters in November and then advance to a runoff, where Georgia Democrats historically have struggled to match the GOP in getting voters back to the polls, said Brian Robinson, a Republican political adviser who served as communications director for former Gov. Nathan Deal.

The only way for Kelly or Doug to get there is to win a majority of Republicans, not independents in the November race, Robinson said. And in Georgia, that is an extraordinarily conservative, pro-Trump voter.

On the other side, many Democrats believe their best shot is to win outright in November and avoid coming back for a runoff.

Democratic Party leaders had hoped to unite their voters behind a single candidate to maximize their chances of winning on Nov. 3. As pastor of Ebenezer Baptist Church, where hes followed Kings example of promoting political activism from the pulpit, Warnock brings a touch of celebrity to the campaign.

But there are also two other Democratic candidates  Matt Lieberman, the son of former senator and vice-presidential candidate Joe Lieberman, and Ed Tarver, who served as U.S. attorney for Georgias Southern District under the Obama administration.

I know that the more people that get in the race, resources are split and our party has the potential to be split, said state Sen. Nikema Williams, who chairs the state Democratic Party. Still, she insisted Georgia Democrats are keeping our eyes on the prize.

Warnock scored big wins in the first days of his campaign with endorsements from Abrams on Thursday and the Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee Friday.

The DSCC endorsement essentially declares Warnock the favoured candidate of national Democrats. Abrams support also carries great weight in Georgia, where shes among the states most popular Democrats. Still, the early support for Warnock hasnt caused either of his fellow Democratic contenders to back down.

Many in the Democratic Party are proud of what Stacey accomplished in her unsuccessful run for governor, Tarver said in an interview, adding he plans to officially kick off his campaign in February. But I dont think that by any means has anointed her as the spokesperson of the party or of all Georgians.

Lieberman, a metro Atlanta educator, was the first Democrat to announce for the Senate race back in October. He said high-profile opponents like Warnock and Collins wont affect his campaign.

Who I am doesnt change based on who else is in the race, Lieberman said.

___

Bynum reported from Savannah, Georgia.
Expression of dissent from the states is a plea to reinstate the federal spirit to defend constitutional values.

Valerian Rodrigues writes:

As we go to press, already four states in IndiaKerala, Punjab, Rajasthan and West Bengalhave passed resolutions against the Citizenship (Amendment) Act (CAA), 2019 and asked the centre to withdraw it. They have also expressed their unwillingness to cooperate in gathering data for the National Population Register (NPR), if the information is connected to the National Register of Citizens (NRC). It is quite likely that some more states would add their voice to this dissent. While there are shared concerns in these resolutions, the distinct set of reasons that each state has highlighted are noteworthy: Kerala considers that the CAA has violated the principle of equality, freedom and secularism; Punjab has referred to the threat to national security that the act may make way for by facilitating infiltration; Rajasthan feels that discrimination is in-built into this law; and West Bengal has pointed out how the act has been the cause of unrest and widespread popular protest across the country and undermines the very foundation of a law-governed polity. Meanwhile, the central government seems to be keen on drawing up rules and guidelines to operationalise the CAA, and, given the scale of the opposition, may delink it from the NRC and NPR, and merely call for applications to be submitted for citizenship under the provisions of the act.
US' China travel ban an 'overreaction' to WHO declaration

Global Times

By GT staff reporters Source:Global Times Published: 2020/1/31 15:53:46

The US warning against traveling to China due to the novel coronavirus spread is an overreaction, which would greatly hurt global tourism and hinder people-to-people exchanges, Chinese experts say.

Experts called on other countries not to follow the US unilateral move but the World Health Organization (WHO) advise. They suggested the international community believe in China and work together with China to combat the novel coronavirus and safeguard global health security.

The comments came after the US State Department warned Americans not to go to China after the WHO labeled the novel coronavirus outbreak a Public Health Emergency of International Concern on Thursday night.

However, the WHO issued guidelines that suggest countries do not need to set travel and trade restrictions amid the coronavirus situation.

A US State Department notice said travelers should be prepared for travel restrictions with little or no advance notice. Commercial carriers have reduced or suspended flights to and from China.

Those currently in China should consider leaving using commercial means, it said, noting that the department has requested all non-essential US government personnel to defer travel to China because of the novel coronavirus. The travel warning is the highest Level 4 - Do Not Travel - in the US.

The US is overreacting and the warning would hinder many people from traveling to China, Ni Feng, deputy director of the Institute of American Studies of the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences, told the Global Times on Friday.

Ni predicted that other Western countries may follow the US in issuing travel restrictions to China.

Zeng Guang, chief epidemiologist of the China Center for Disease Control and Prevention, noted that the US government's move shows its unilateralism, which is unsurprising.

The WHO clarified that they did not suggest other countries impose travel and trade restrictions on China. The advise was made based on multidimensional considerations and global public health interests, which the US ignored, Zeng told the Global Times.

The US government had ordered the departure of all non-urgent US personnel and their family members from Wuhan, Central China's Hubei Province, the coronavirus' epicenter, on January 23.

Some foreign airlines have suspended flights to China including Air Canada, United Airlines, British Airlines and IndiGo.

Imposing restrictions on personal exchanges between the US and China would significantly weigh on US interests in China, considering the huge presence of American companies in China, Li Haidong, a professor at the Institute of International Relations of the China Foreign Affairs University, told the Global Times.

"It may also trigger a humanitarian crisis, as American citizens have married Chinese people, and if they are forced to leave, many families would be separated," Li said.

Many US companies are becoming increasingly entrenched in China, including major US-listed firms such as Tesla, Starbucks, Apple and Boeing, therefore restricting personnel exchanges between China and the US would also have an impact on the US stock market, analysts noted.

The US government had also issued travel alerts on previous public health incidents declared by the WHO, including the H1N1 virus that caused an influenza pandemic in 2009, Ebola outbreak in West Africa and polio in 2014, media reported. During the Ebola outbreak, the State Department alerted US citizens to follow screening procedures and travel restrictions, and reduce air travel to countries including Guinea, Liberia, Sierra Leone and Mali.

Diao Daming, an associate professor at the Renmin University of China in Beijing, urged other countries to abide by the WHO's instructions instead of blindly following the US move.

Diao also noted that at this crucial stage, the most urgent thing for China to do is to try our utmost to contain the coronavirus as soon as possible.

NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address






Two inmates were stabbed to death in separate but related attacks at California State Prison-Solano in Vacaville on Wednesday, according to the California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation.

The incident began in the prisons general population yard at about 3:20 p.m. on Wednesday, when corrections officials said inmates Pedro Garcia and Greg Medrano attacked Mizrain Nava Cano, 26, with unspecified weapons.

Less than a minute later in the same yard, officials said inmates Gabriel Mora and Richard Raya attacked inmate Jorge Cruz-Banuelos, 30.

Correctional officers in the area used blast grenades and pepper spray to stop the separate attacks, correctional officials said.

Nava Cano sustained multiple stab wounds to his neck and back, officials said. He died at 3:45 p.m. Cruz-Banuelos sustained multiple stab wounds to his neck, chest and back, officials said. He died at 3:42 p.m.

Correctional officers found three unspecified weapons at the scene, officials said. Officials have not released a potential motive in either attack, or explained how the attacks are related.

Dana Simas, the press secretary for the California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation, told The Chronicle Saturday that officials are conducting an internal investigation of the attacks.

Activities on Facility D, where the stabbings occurred, have been limited to allow officials to investigate, officials said.

Once we finish our internal investigation well refer the case to the local district attorney who will then make the decision on filing charges, Simas said.

The four men suspected in the stabbings have been moved to the prisons Administrative Segregation Unit, officials said.

Garcia, 31, had been admitted to the Vacaville prison from Kings County in February 2018 to serve a sentence for manufacture of a controlled substance, officials said.

Medrano, 38, was also admitted from Kings County in August 2012 and is serving a 32-year sentence for attempted second-degree murder, discharging a firearm, inflicting great bodily injury and carjacking, officials said.

Drought Map Track water shortages and restrictions across Bay Area Check the water shortage status of your area, plus see reservoir levels and a list of restrictions for the Bay Areas largest water districts.

Mora, 42, was admitted in August 2014 from Tulare County on a 15-year sentence for assault with a firearm, inflicting great bodily injury, use of a firearm, and possession of a firearm by a felon or addict, officials said.

Raya, 25, was admitted from San Joaquin County in February 2018 and is serving a 12-year sentence for assault with a semiautomatic firearm and inflicting great bodily injury, officials said.

Cano and Banuelos, the two men killed, had been serving 13- and 17-year sentences, respectively. Cano was serving time for voluntary manslaughter with an enhancement for committing a street gang act in the commission of a violent felony. Banuelos was serving time for assault with a deadly weapon, inflicting great bodily injury, criminal gang activity, and prior felony conviction of a serious offense.

The prisons Investigative Services Unit, the Solano County district attorneys office and the Vacaville Police Department are investigating.

The Vacaville prison, which houses 4,310 inmates and employs 1,197 people, opened in 1984.

Lauren Hernandez is a San Francisco Chronicle staff writer. Email: lauren.hernandez@sfchronicle.com Twitter: @LaurenPorFavor
Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman has proposed to put a cap on tax exemption on employer's contribution under Employees' Provident Fund (EPF), National Pension System (NPS) and superannuation fund. In her Budget speech, the Finance Minister proposed a cumulative upper ceiling of Rs 7.5 lakh for these three investments which offers tax benefits.

"It is proposed to put an upper cap of Rs 7.5 lakh in a year on tax exempt employer's contribution in recognised provident fund, superannuation fund and NPS in the accounts of an employee," the Budget document says.

The proposed amendment will be effective from April 1, 2021, and will apply from assessment year 2021-22. This means that an employer's contribution beyond this limit will be subject to tax in the hands of the employee.

Also Read: Income Tax calculation: You can save up to Rs 31,200 under new tax slabs

As of now, employer's contributions to provident fund and NPC are exempted from tax without an amount-specific ceiling. Only ceiling being that the employer's has to contribute 12 per cent of the basic pay towards the EPF, which is a part of the cost to company (CTC).

"There is no combined upper limit for the purpose of deduction on the amount of contribution made by the employer. This is giving undue benefit to employees earning high salary income," as per the Budget document.

Also Read: Earn between Rs 10-15 lakh? These are your new income tax rates

The Budget proposed a host of proposals on the personal tax front including a "new, simplified tax regime", deferment of stock awards taxation in certain cases, etc. Sitharaman revised income tax rates for earning up to Rs 15 lakh, while no tax will be applied on earnings up to Rs 5 lakh. The new slabs have significantly reduced the taxes for most of the brackets, given that the taxpayers forego deductions and exemptions. Those earning Rs 5-7.5 lakh will now pay just 15 per cent, while those earning up to Rs 5 lakh in a year will pay no tax. If you are earning between Rs 10 lakh to Rs 12.5 lakh and between Rs 12.5 lakh and Rs 15 lakh, you will have to pay lesser tax than before.

By Chitranjan Kumar
The French rail company is under fire for paying handsome bonuses to employees who refused to join the national strike against pension reform. Commuters affected by the strikes are entitled to compensation. But on Friday, the website for them to claim a refund crashed within hours of its launch.

"In the battle against pension reform, bosses are using company means to serve government policy. And afterwards, we're told off for being partisan," Laurent Brun, secretary general of the hard-left CGT union tweeted on Thursday.

The controversy erupted after a CGT union member tweeted that state operator SNCF had awarded non-strikers a bonus of between 300 to 1500 euros.

In his tweet, Berenger Cernon copied a letter sent to him by a rail worker who was awarded "an exceptional bonus of 500 euros" on his January pay to thank him for his "professionalism and availability".

The worker in question is said to have donated his bonus to a strike fund donation.

Dirty tricks

Left unions have slammed the bonuses as an "illegal and discriminatory practice" and are threatening to take legal action.

France's New Anti-Capitalist Party condemned what it called "dirty tricks" and pledged its support to the RATP and SNCF workers.

The industrial action that began on 5 December has petered out in recent weeks although another inter union demonstration is planned for next Thursday 6 February.

Public transport has more or less returned to normal and the head of the RATP operator Catherine Guillouard announced this week that the unending strike is behind us."

Faulty refund site

Unions may have something to say about that, and for Paris commuters affected by the travel chaos, they are still waiting for compensation.

A website for them to claim a refund on their transport costs for December crashed within hours of its launch on Friday, leaving many users frustrated.

Meanwhile the hunt to find the necessary funds to pay for France's new pension system continues, with talks on Thursday between unions and government ministers.

They have three months to balance the books and meet President Emmanuel Macron's plea to streamline the country's pension systems and rules into a universal pension.
Bala Chauhan By

Express News Service

BENGALURU: On Friday, the government kept the police brass on tenterhooks till after office hours. Through the day, there was a lot of anxiety over who would be the next Director General & Inspector General of Police, with speculation flying high between DGP, Internal Security Division (ISD) AM Prasad and DGP, Criminal Investigation Department (CID) Praveen Sood.

Sources said the CM signed the file on the appointment of Praveen Sood as new DG&IGP after he returned from New Delhi, but it was kept confidential by the CMO till past 5.30 pm, the official closing hour.

Besides the DG&IGP, three Additional Director Generals -- Alok Mohan, NS Megharikh and RP Sharma -- were to be promoted and posted in vacancies that arose following the superannuation of DG&IGP Neelamani N Raju, MN Reddi and R Auradkar on January 31.

A retiring officer cannot conduct official work after 5.30pm, including handing over charge to his or her successor. All IPS officers were waiting in their offices with their ceremonial uniforms. There were frantic phone calls to each other and media on the classified information. No one knew what was happening and who would be the new police chief till almost 6pm, when Soods appointment order was issued, some senior police officers said.

The DG Control Room relayed the name of the new police chief to police officers and media. The handing of baton by outgoing DG&IGP to her successor happened after 6.30pm. Minutes later, the government order on the promotion and appointment of Mohan, Megharikh and Sharma was issued.

"What happened today was unnecessary and avoidable. Government orders on postings are issued after office hours to avoid the affected officers from getting a stay from the Central Administrative Tribunal (CAT). The delay in issuing the GO on new DG&IGPs appointment may have been issued to prevent Prasad, the senior-most IPS officer in the state, from getting a stay on Soods appointment," said an officer.

KNOW YOUR DG & IGP

Hailing from Himachal Pradesh, Praveen Sood is an IIT Delhi alumnus. Starting his career at the age of 22 as Assistant SP of Nanjangud, Mysuru, Sood has also served as SP of Ballari, Raichur, Railways, advisor to the government of Mauritius/Commissioner of Police (Foreign deputation), and police commissioner of Bengaluru and Mysuru cities. As DGP, he headed the Internal Security Division and CID.
Logo of Bayer AG at a plant of the German pharmaceutical and chemical maker in Wuppertal

By Tina Bellon

(Reuters) - Bayer AG is set to face a fourth U.S. jury trial over allegations that its Roundup weed killer causes cancer, with four cancer patients in the hometown of its agricultural subsidiary Monsanto scheduled to begin making their case on Friday.

The lawsuit marks the first multi-plaintiff trial in the litigation over whether glyphosate, Roundup's active ingredient, is carcinogenic, and is the first trial outside of California. It is being held in St. Louis, where Monsanto was headquartered before Bayer bought the company in a $63 billion deal in 2018.

Three consecutive juries found the company liable for causing cancer with damages of tens of millions of dollars awarded to each plaintiff. Bayer is appealing those verdicts.

Court-appointed mediator Ken Feinberg has put the number of Roundup cancer claimants at more than 75,000 while Bayer said the claims it has been served with in court were below 50,000.

Bayer's share price has tumbled since the first verdict in August 2018 but the stock rose 3% on Friday after Bloomberg reported a possible out-of-court settlement with some plaintiffs that could lead to a total payout of about $10 billion.

While traders said the market likes the idea of Bayer settling the litigation, some cautioned that the prospect of a comprehensive deal remained uncertain.

Analysts have estimated the size of any such settlement at $8-$12 billion.

SEE YOU IN COURT

While most plaintiffs' lawyers have agreed to postpone trials pending negotiations, some have decided to pursue their clients' day in court.

The case in Missouri's Circuit Court for the 22nd Judicial Circuit of the City of St. Louis is scheduled to last several weeks, with both sides presenting extensive scientific evidence through expert witnesses.

Bayer denies all allegations that Roundup or glyphosate causes cancer, saying decades of independent studies have shown the world's most widely used weed killer to be safe for human use and noting that regulators around the world have approved the product.

Story continues

"At the end of the day, this trial should come down to the weight of the science, and we remain confident in the extensive scientific record and regulatory assessments that support the safety of our glyphosate-based herbicides and that they do not cause cancer," the company said in a statement.

Several court cases have been postponed by both parties in the past to expedite settlement talks. By pursuing the St. Louis trail The Miller Firm LLC, a key player in the litigation, is seeking to increase pressure on Bayer.

The case involves the claims of Bryce Batiste from Louisiana, Ann Meeks from Florida, Glen Ashelman from Pennsylvania and Christopher Wade, a St. Louis resident. All four have been diagnosed with non-Hodgkin's lymphoma, a blood cell cancer that plaintiffs in the litigation allege is caused by Roundup.

Some legal experts said Bayer could benefit from a home advantage in the St. Louis trial, where Monsanto has century-old roots. But juries in the city are also known to dole out massive damages awards against large corporations.

(Additional reporting by Ludwig Burger; Editing by Leslie Adler and Elaine Hardcastle)
Imagine being able to go the dentist, get new clothes, update your driver's license, take your pet to the vet and get a haircut in the same day.

Missoula residents without homes could do all that and more on Friday under one roof during the Missoula At-Risk Housing Coalition's 14th annual Project Community Connect event held at Revive Church.

"The premise of it is to really bring all the basic, vital community resources into one easy location for folks to access," said Theresa Williams, the event's organizer and coordinator of a Missoula city-county initiative called Reaching Home, Missoulas 10-year Plan to End Homelessness.

The one-day event aims to help those in Missoula who are experiencing homelessness or at risk of homelessness by providing them with critical services such as legal assistance, dental cleanings and extractions, crisis counseling and mental health screening and referrals, veterinary care, job registration, and a variety of medical services.

"I came for a warm coat and just got some dog food, and I had to get an ID," said Jennifer Fyant.

Fyant and Trevor Rusek stopped by a booth offering veterinary care where their pit bull, Sixx, was a very good boy while getting his vaccinations updated.

Rusek, who works at Walmart, said she also came to the event for housing assistance. She has struggled to find an affordable rental in Missoula that allows dogs, so she has settled for staying in motels and her car.

Veterinary care is one of the most popular booths at the event, said Lisa Smith, as she handed out dog food, treats and leashes.

"Pets are really important to people, and they offer a lot of emotional support," Smith said. "People will do anything to take care of them, and sometimes that means feeding them before themselves but this helps them plan to get at least some food and vaccinations for free."

Over 100 people volunteered to help with the event this year, which usually sees anywhere from 350 to 400 people. Williams said that in addition to veterinary care, some of the most popular services are haircuts, fair housing advice, and clothing. Birth certificates and IDs are also a sought-after service because they're required when people are applying for jobs and housing, and are easily lost among those who live out of a backpack or outdoors.

This year, the event also added legal support.

"While they're getting their basic needs met, they can address any outstanding legal issues," Williams said.

Missoula County Justice Court, Missoula Municipal Court, Montana Legal Services, and the City and County Attorney's Office were all on site to help provide court services, resolve cases and help people update their contact information and addresses, for which they could get a credit off fines in Justice and/or Municipal Court.

"A lot of times this population is transient, and their warrants end up in the system," Missoula County Justice of the Peace Landee Holloway said. "This helps them address that and saves taxpayers money if we can resolve their cases here."

Holloway said one woman told her the event "made it all worth it to get out of bed" after getting her license reinstated. It had been suspended from failure to pay.

Everyone seemed to be in a positive mood Friday. People walked around with their dogs, ate pizza and waited in line for haircuts while a band played classic feel-good songs like "Wagon Wheel."

"We're here to help our neighbors in need," Williams said. "All too often, folks that are in poverty are pushed to the margins of society, and we want people to feel welcome and we're just here to help no matter what."

Others browsed clothing racks in search of winter layers and outdoor gear in an effort organized by River of Life Church, which worked with Holy Spirit Episcopal Church and Blessed Trinity Catholic Community.

"We have nothing but quality," said Janel Samsel. "We don't take anything with rips or tears, stains, buttons or zippers missing."

Samsel helped organize donations with Carla Mettling. For this event, they focused mostly on warm, winter clothing but she said River of Life also helps get people clothes for job interviews throughout the year.

You must be logged in to react.

Click any reaction to login. Love 1 Funny 0 Wow 0 Sad 0 Angry 0

Get local news delivered to your inbox! Subscribe to our Daily Headlines newsletter. Sign up! * I understand and agree that registration on or use of this site constitutes agreement to its user agreement and privacy policy.
(Island Government is a periodic roundup of Staten Island political and civic events.)

CITY HALL -- Rep. Max Rose has invited Great Kills retired firefighter Rob Serra to President Donald Trumps State of the Union on Tuesday.

Serra helped rally fellow first responders to fully fund and permanently authorize the 9/11 Victims Compensation Fund. Trump signed the VCF into law over the summer, which fully finances and reauthorizes a federal compensation fund through 2092.

Im honored to be joined by Rob Serra, a patriot and true public servant, at next weeks State of the Union, said Rose, Rob didnt only selflessly serve our City in the aftermath of 9/11, he continued to fight for all first-responders and their families to make sure we never forgot their sacrifices and always kept our promises. My hope is that he can serve as a reminder to all of us that when we put partisanship aside and focus on doing the right thing, Congress can still work the way its supposed to and tackle the issues that matter.

Serra said: Its humbling to receive this invite from my Representative, Max Rose, Serra said. Ive long believed that our post 9/11 veterans took the baton from those of us that responded that fateful day. Max not only continued our fight through his military service but he continues to fight for us as a Member of Congress. Im truly honored to join him on behalf of the 9/11 community and my fellow Staten Islanders.

STATEN ISLAND REPUBLICAN PARTYS EXECUTIVE COMMITTEE ENDORSES LANZA

The Staten Island Republican Partys Executive Committee unanimously endorsed State Sen. Andrew Lanza (R-Staten Island) in his re-election for state senator.

Senator Lanzas commitment to Staten Island is indisputable, said Republican Party Chairman Brendan Lantry. His track record of accomplishment on behalf of the people of Staten Island has made our community a better and safer place to live. Senator Lanza remains on the front lines of the heroin and opioid epidemic, he has passed legislation to support and protect law enforcement, and he is passionately fighting against the radical leftist policies permeating the halls of the State Capitol. Senator Lanza is undoubtably the right person to continue representing us in the State Senate.

So far, no other challenger has emerged to challenge Lanza.

It is an honor to have the trust of Chairman Lantry and the Executive Committee as I enter my campaign for re-election to the NYS Senate, Lanza said.

CUSICKS BILL TO PROVIDE TAX CREDIT TO SMALL BUSINESSES FOR EMPLOYING PEOPLE WITH DISABILITIES PASSES ASSEMBLY

Assemblyman Michael Cusicks legislation that would provide a tax credit for small businesses that employ people with disabilities passed in the state Assembly.

The credit would be available to companies with less than 100 employees in an effort to boost the number of people with disabilities in the workplace (A8996).

New Yorkers deserve fair treatment, and that includes people living with disabilities, Cusick said. People living with disabilities have often been unfairly passed over for employment opportunities even when theyre the most qualified applicant. My legislation would help address this problem.

REP. ROSE INTRODUCES BILL DIRECTING DHS TO ASSESS WHITE SUPREMACIST SUPREMACIST GROUPS

Rep. Max Rose introduced legislation this week called the Transnational White Supremacist Extremism Review (WSER) Act that would direct the Department of Homeland Security to develop and disseminate a terrorist threat assessment of foreign violent white supremacist extremist groups.

We cant only be focused on the threats of yesterdaywe need to stay ahead of the curve and ensure law enforcement has the tools and information needed to keep us safe against the threats of today and tomorrow, said Rose. Weve seen the horrific acts of terrorism that have been inspired and carried out by violent white supremacist groups and we cannot sit idly by. Through our Committee work, including hearings and briefings on this issue, its clear that law enforcement needs to be equipped with key information and a full understanding of the nature and scope of the threats we face by transnational violent white supremacist groups.

Roses office said experts have found that the threat posed by violent white supremacist extremism is transnational. Some white-supremacist extremists have even traveled abroad to train in warzone environments: by one estimate, 17,000 individuals from 50 countries have traveled to battlefields in Ukraine to train and fight, including white supremacist extremists seeking training from neo-Nazi militant groups.

SCOTT STRINGER, CHARLES FALL CALL ON STATE TO APPOINT AFRICAN HAIR BRAIDER TO APPEARANCE COMMITTEE

City Comptroller Scott Stringer and Assemblymembers Charles Fall, Latoya Joyner and Diana Richardson sent a joint letter this week to New York Secretary of State Rossana Rosado calling on the state to appoint an African hair braider to the New York State Appearance Enhancement Advisory Committee.

The committee serves as a statewide body that sets policies on licensing and training requirements for hair stylists.

In New York City, our immigrant communities contribute to not only our cultural richness but our economic vitality. And thats why diversity shouldnt just be a buzzword, but a commitment enshrined in all aspects of government, said Stringer. African hair braiders across the city come from all walks of life, and their voices should be heard by our State government in employment, licensing, and registration. We should widen the circle of opportunity to include these hair stylists and support them learning their trade, excelling in their field, and advancing their businesses and careers. Government must act now to meet the needs of every community  in every language and neighborhood.

Fall said: As a strong proponent of ensuring equal access and opportunity regardless of race and hair texture, I am proud to have voted in favor of New York becoming the second state to outlaw discrimination based on natural hairstyles. We must work to continue supporting and empowering our diverse communities by ensuring government is making decisions for and by the people it serves. The 61st district of Staten Island has a flourishing multicultural community with dozens of small natural hair businesses, as such, I wholeheartedly stand with Comptroller Stringer and my colleagues in the Assembly on this effort to create a more inclusive hair industry. Appointing an African hair braider to the New York State Appearance Enhancement Advisory Board is a small but monumental step in promoting culturally diverse business practices that will help small businesses succeed.

ASSEMBLYMAN MIKE REILLY APPOINTED TO ASSEMBLYS CODES COMMITTEE

Assemblyman Micheal Reilly was appointed to the Assemblys Standing Committee on Codes by Minority Leader William Barclay.

This committee has jurisdiction over legislation that pertains to criminal and civil justice systems in New York State.

I want to thank Minority Leader Barclay for this enhanced opportunity to contribute my knowledge and expertise as a former member of law enforcement to our conference, said Reilly. I truly look forward to being part of this committee as we discuss matters concerning safety of all New Yorkers

BOROUGH HALL SEARCHES FOR INTERNS

Borough President James Oddo is accepting applications for student internship positions at Borough Hall.

Borough Hall has internships in its Communications and Special Projects, Video, Tourism and Cultural Affairs, Tourism Kiosk Volunteer, Education, and Accounting. Descriptions for each departments positions and a portal for applications can be found here.

We are big believers in the power of mentorship, which is why I invite Staten Island students to apply to intern with us here at Borough Hall. We want to help our students in any way we can, said Borough President Oddo.
Shilajit Mitra By

Express News Service

At a London club, someone calls Saif Ali Khan uncle. There are women around and the music is loud. This is a familiar stomping ground for the character, so the insult hurts. Ticked off, he joins his detractor for an impromptu drinking contest. It ends disastrously, with Saif crashing from bartop to floor. Now he has a bust on his leg and a staff in his hand. Thats the films way of visually cuing us in: this uncle is about to become a grandfather.

Jassie (Saif) is a real estate broker. Hes 40, single, and always on the prowl. He has a family, but he lives alone. Occasionally, when flirting with a girl at his best friends club, he drifts off to another time. 90s ki woh khusboo (the scent of the nineties), he tells a perfectly contemporary-looking woman, rightly picking out her perfume while messing up her name. One evening, at the same club, Jassie runs into a 21-year-old girl. They meet again, and he brings her back to his pad. Hes inches away from kissing her  when she breaks the news.

This girl, Tia (debutante Alaya F), claims she might be his daughter. Theres a 33.33 per cent chance, she says  not an instantly incriminating percentage but worth checking out. Jassie, after all, is a broker; he understands relative risk or at least the risk of relatives. Reluctantly, he goes in for a DNA test. There, hes told that not only is Tia very much his daughter but that shes also carrying a child of her own. Its the strangest of double whammies, a confusion aggravated by Tias absent mom (shes meditating) and Jassies utter disregard for kinship. Marriage makes a man chomu, he frets, while pairing dinner jackets with metal tees and getting his hair dyed.

If all of this sounds trite, its because it is. Nitin Kakkars Jawaani Jaaneman is a languid stroll through old cliches, a refresher playing out like a flashback. Drifting playboys, strained relationships  you can skip half of Saifs filmography and reach back to 1998, when Salman Khan grudgingly parented Aditya Narayan in Jab Pyaar Kisise Hota Hai. Its no coincidence that Farida Jalal  who often played the grandmother in those movies  turns up here as well. A more recent strand, however, can be found farther west. In Harmony Korines Beach Bum (2019), Mathew McConaughey floated along as a carefree, middle-aged poet. Jassie too sings of flying away solo, but, being the Hindi film hero that he is, must prepare for some stiff grilling and a climactic sprint to the airport.

Turning 50 this year, Saif has been looking back for a while. There was a Dil Chahta Hai reference in Chef (2017). In Baazaar, his hair had an extra dash of grey. Still in theatres is Tanhaji: The Unsung Warrior, where he teamed up with Ajay Devgn, the cracker co-star from Kachche Dhaage and Omkara. In Jawaani Jaaneman, the self-referencing is both literal and flat. We see him recreate the zippy energy of Ole Ole, but theres no added glint of melancholy. Its not the same as, say, Sanjay Kapoor grooving to Ankhiyaan Milaoon Kabhi in Mission Mangal, or John Travolta twisting in Pulp Fiction. Its a recreation for recreations sake, and it takes a different scene  and a different actors song  for Saif to really whoop it up.

Theres another problem. Jassie  who insists on the even shorter Jazz  is a stock character. Theres nothing to distinguish him from a playboy in his 30s or 20s. The film tries to flip the script by introducing his daughters pregnancy. But it doesnt work. We spend so long hanging out with the character that, when the time comes, his transformation feels fake. This is partly achieved through Tias boyfriend  a character Jassie keeps putting down, but who is really an echo of his past. Saif rocks his signature clowning, prancing around in a bathrobe, but cant sell the mature bits.

Not that the film cares. Jawaani Jaanewan is, like I said, a hangout film. It trims conflict for humour and chill vibes. It stars the majestic Tabu, dropping in as a stoner mom with a delectable reading of the word Sambhog. Alaya, making one of the most assured debuts in recent memory, is both confident and frail. Her character finds herself in a tough spot, but theres no bitterness in her performance. Its all easy, and its all good. Even Farida Jalal has eased up. Speaking to Tia, she tells her she can come home, but only if she feels like it. No pressure.
Kyrgyzstan closed borders with China and suspended air traffic with the country due to an outbreak of the deadly coronavirus, the press service of the Kyrgyzstan government reports.

According to the Kyrgyz government, the corresponding decision was made today to prevent the further spread of coronavirus.
According to intelligence personnel, a Philippines-based consortium of medical colleges appointed a principal education associate (PEA), registered in Pune and Chennai, who in turn appointed agents in different parts of country.

Hyderabad: The Directorate General of Goods and Service Tax Intelligence (DGGI) arrested the chairman of a Pune-based company, which deals with medical education consultancy services, for evading approximately Rs 11.81 crore of GST and sent to judicial custody.

According to intelligence personnel, a Philippines-based consortium of medical colleges appointed a principal education associate (PEA), registered in Pune and Chennai, who in turn appointed agents in different parts of country. These agents advertise and interact with students, who aspire to pursue medical education in Philippines, and their parents. For recruiting students and ensuring their smooth admission, huge amounts are collected by the associates, part of which is shared with the PEA. Most of these transactions, involving tuition fees, visa processing fees, hostel fees and other related charges are in cash. As they are not accounted for in books of accounts, they escape all taxes, including service tax, GST and income tax. No invoices are issued and services are provided clandestinely in order to evade tax.

Based on intelligence inputs, officers from Warangal Regional Unit (WRU) of DGGI, simultaneous searches were conducted at several businesses as well as residential premises of certain taxpayers in Hyderabad, Vijay-awada, Chennai and Pune. They are all into providing medical education consultancy services to students aspiring for MBBS and MD in the Philippines.

Searches were carried out on December 20 and 31 and January 6 and 8. Investigation reve-aled that the Hyderabad-based associate dealing with the two Telugu-speaking states has sponsored over 550 students. Incriminating documents and voluntary depositions made by various directors and other key persons, suggest that PEA has evaded Rs 11.81 crore of GST.
Still Golden Social House isnt going anywhere.

After the entire block northeast of Broadway and East Grayson Street was purchased to make way for Jefferson Banks new headquarters, with Still Goldens building at 1900 Broadway set to be demolished, the popular bars future turned hazy.

But Jefferson Bank and Milam Real Estate Capital, the firm developing the project, announced this week that Still Golden will be moving into the banks tower.

Reaching an agreement for Still Golden to continue their business is what Jefferson Bank is all about, Paul McSween, Jefferson Banks president, said in a statement. We want to see small businesses be successful.

Still Goldens final day of business will be May 23, the lease ends May 31 and its building will be demolished in June. Construction on the banks headquarters is expected to wrap up in spring 2022 and the bar will move into the ground floor.

Texas Inc.: Get the best of business news sent directly to your inbox

We are in the process of installing a wind-down clock counting down until May 23, said Jeret Pena, a managing partner at the Boulevardier Group, who opened the bar last year. Expect to see regular parties and events that get bigger and bigger as we get closer to the end. Were going to have some fun with it.

When Still Golden returns, Pena said its unlikely the bar will have major changes to its current atmosphere. Until it re-opens, he said hes developing two additional concept properties near the Pearl in 2020: one with a Tiki bar feel to it, with a full Thai-style kitchen, and another that he wants to keep secret.

Stil Golden has been displaced by a financial institutions headquarters before. In 2017, an earlier incarnation, Stay Golden Social House, was knocked down to make room for Credit Humans new headquarters.

That site, where Credit Human is building its corporate offices and a second building for Bank of America and other tenants, is a block over from Still Goldens current location.

Jefferson Banks new building will include about 15,000 square feet of retail and 190,000 square feet of offices, though its unclear how much of that space the bank will occupy and how much of it will be leased to other tenants.

The bank is moving from its current headquarters off Loop 410 near Harry Wurzbach.

madison.iszler@express-news.net
Blood donors are needed, particularly this time of year as the number of regular volunteers typically drops during winter.

Pennsylvania's health secretary on Thursday visited the Lehigh Valley to put out a call for people who can donate blood to make an appointment to do so or find a blood drive in their area.

With various illnesses preventing some donors from giving and winter weather affecting the scheduling of blood drives, there is a critical shortage of blood across the country, Dr. Rachel Levine said in a news release from her stop at Lehigh Valley Hospital in Salisbury Township. Blood is essential for surgeries, traumatic injuries, cancer treatment and chronic illnesses, which is why it is so important for individuals to go to their local blood bank or find a blood drive near them and donate.

"An adequate supply of blood is essential to ensure Pennsylvanians have safe, continuous access to the highest quality of health care.

The Lehigh Valley's blood supplier, Miller-Keystone Blood Center, says it has an urgent need for O-negative, A-negative, B-negative and AB-negative blood types, as well as the O-positive blood type and platelets.

The center at 1465 Valley Center Parkway in Hanover Township, Northampton County, urges younger donors in particular to consider giving blood.

"Since 2011, our donations have declined by roughly 36% as many of our donors are long-time, older generation blood donors," center spokeswoman Qianna Cressman said.

Nationwide, around 36,000 units of red blood cells are needed every, according to the Pennsylvania Department of Health. The type of blood most commonly requested and used by hospitals is type O. Type O blood can be transfused to patients with any blood type, which is why it is often used in emergencies when there is not enough time to determine a patients blood type.

You are eligible to donate in Pennsylvania if you are:

In good health.

16 years old or older.

Weigh at least 110 pounds.

Miller-Keystone has a blood drive coming up this week, set for noon to 7 p.m. Thursday, Feb. 6, at Coca-Cola Park in Allentown. Those interested in donating can learn more and register at giveapint.org.

Kurt Bresswein may be reached at kbresswein@lehighvalleylive.com. Follow him on Twitter @KurtBresswein and Facebook. Find lehighvalleylive.com on Facebook.
T wo people have been charged by detectives investigating a 50 million jewellery raid on heiress Tamara Ecclestone's west London home.

Tower Hamlets residents Maria Mester, 47, and 29-year-old Emil-Bogdan Savastru have both been charged with conspiracy to commit burglary.

They will appear in custody at Westminster Magistrates' Court.

Police said a 21-year-old man arrested at Stansted Airport with Mester on Friday has been released under investigation, as has a 31-year-old man arrested in east London on Thursday.

Savastru was detained at Heathrow Airport on Thursday afternoon on suspicion of conspiracy to commit burglary and money laundering.

The Met has said the arrests were in relation to the burglary in Palace Green, Kensington, on December 13 in which all of Ms Ecclestone's jewellery was reportedly taken.

The haul included rings, earrings and an 80,000 Cartier bangle wedding gift.
Los Angeles, Feb 1 : Actor Owen Wilson will join Tom Hiddleston in upcoming Marvel's "Loki" series.

Wilson is headed to the Marvel Cinematic Universe with the series for streaming giant Disney+, according to deadline.com.

The series stars Hiddleston as Loki, the trickster demi-god and brother to Thor.

There's no update on the exact role for Wilson, but it is being said that it will be a prominent character.

Wilson, also an Oscar-nominated screenwriter, is known for "The Royal Tenenbaums", "The Grand Budapest Hotel", "Wedding Crashers", "Shanghai Noon" and "The Interns". He will next be seen in "The French Dispatch".

At the moment, filming is underway on "Loki". The series is expected to premiere in 2021.

"Loki" will be executive produced by Kevin Feige. Michael Waldron and Kate Herron are also executive producing the series, with Waldron also writing the project and Herron also attached as a director.

As per sources at Marvel Studios, Disney+ series will tie-in the launch of th show with supernatural sequel "Doctor Strange and the Multiverse of Madness".
New Delhi: Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman on Saturday (February 1) proposed to allocate Rs 2,500 crores in 2020-21 for the tourism sector in the Union Budget 2020-21, making India an attractive destination for both international and domestic tourists.

Presenting Budget 2020 in Parliament, Sitharaman also proposed to allocate Rs 3,150 crore for the Ministry of Culture. She also proposed to establish the first Indian Institute of Heritage and Conservation with the status of a deemed university to operate under the Ministry of Culture for having a well-trained resource in the disciplines of museology and archeology.

Live TV

She said, Acquisition of knowledge in disciplines such as museology and archeology are essential for collecting and analysing scientific evidence of such findings and for dissemination through high-quality museums.

The Finance Minister said, India had moved up from rank 65 in 2014 to 34 in 2019 in the Travel and Tourism Competitive Index (World Economic Forum), adding Foreign Exchange earnings grew 7.4% to Rs 1.88 lakh crores for the period January 2019 from Rs 1.75 lakh crores.

In a bid to revitalise tourism, Sitharaman proposed 8 new museums, which include building infrastructure around 5 Iconic sites, besides proposing renovation of 5 major museums across the country.

The 5 Archeological sites to be set-up/developed as Iconic Sites with on-site Museums are:

1.Rakhigarhi (Haryana)

2.Hastinapur (Uttar Pradesh)

3.Shivsagar (Assam)

4.Dholavira (Gujarat)

5.Adichanallur (Tamil Nadu)

She also proposed maritime museum to highlight Harappan Age at Lothal, Ahmedabad, by Ministry of Shipping

Recognising the role of states in the proposed scheme for growth and employment generation, Sitharaman said, Growth of tourism directly relates to growth and employment. States have a critical role to play. I expect State Governments expected to develop a roadmap for certain identified destinations and formulate financial plans during 2021 against which specified grants will be made available to the States in 2020-21.

Other proposals of Union Budget 2020-21:

-Indian Museum, Kolkata: Re-curation of the oldest museum in India as announced by Prime Minister Narendra Modi in January 2020.

-Numismatics and Trade Museum to be located in the historic Old Mint Building

-Support for setting up Tribal Museum in Ranchi (Jharkhand)

-Renovation and re-curation of 4 more museums across India
Farm bodies and agriculture experts on Saturday termed the 2020-21 general budget announced by Union finance minister Nirmala Sitharaman as disappointing, claiming it does not spell out anything tangible for the farmers to bail out the agrarian sector which is in a deep crisis.

Harvinder Singh, general secretary of the Bharatiya Kisan Union (BKU-Lakhowal) said, The farmers have not got anything. How is doubling of income going to become a reality when the sectoral allocation is not increased?

During the pre-budget discussions, we were promised minimum support price (MSP) for all crops but it was not talked about in the budget. It was also promised to reduce Goods and Service Tax (GST) on pesticides but even it was not mentioned in the budget speech by the minister, added Lakhowal.

Food policy analyst Devinder Sharma said, At the time of slowdown when it was expected that rural demand can boost consumption which could lead to growth, it was expected that more money would be allocated for the countryside but the hopes it fell flat.

Budgetary allocation for agriculture and allied sectors is 2.83 lakh crore, which is 20,000 crore more than the allocation last time.

In my view, 10% increase in the sectoral allocation is not significant. As far as food subsidy is concerned, there is a drastic fall from 1.84 lakh crore to 1.15 lakh crore in 2020-21. Moreover, the allocation for the PM-KISAN scheme was not enhanced as per expectations, he said.

BKU (Rajewal) president BS Rajewal said, The government has no agriculture policy or diversification plan. Starting the Kisan Rail for transporting perishable goods across the country at a faster pace is a good step but farmers cant make the best use of it as theres no plan on focus crops.

I am afraid the central government has plans to hand over agriculture to the corporate houses at the cost of farmers. Doubling of farmers income is only an announcement. At present, when a farmer family earns per capita 1,666 a month, how will the government increase it to 3,332? he said.

On the announcement by Sitharaman to pump in 15 lakh crore more into the agriculture sector, Rajewal said it would put extra burden on farmers who are already under huge debt. He also questioned the proposal to double milk production in the country as farmers are not getting good price for the commodity in the market.

Calling it a flat budget, Punjab State Farmers Commission chairman Ajay Vir Jakhar said the allocation for food and fertiliser subsidy has been cut drastically.

The fertiliser subsidy alone has been reduced by 9,000 crore. I think the government lacks revenue generation due to which allocations are going down. Also, the Union agriculture ministry is to be blamed for not spending its yearly allocations The only good thing about this budget is the announcement to double milk processing, increase fish production and reduce income tax on cooperative farm bodies from 30% to 22%, he said.

SHARE THIS ARTICLE ON
For better and for worse, our lives have been revolutionised by the internet. But a new high-tech innovation known as 5G is set to transform everything once again.

The internet plays a pivotal role in our lives thanks to broadband piped through our homes. But 'fifth generation' 5G will take this a giant step forward.

It will enable mobile phones to use wireless broadband that matches the best fibre optic speeds. We will be able to rip out old phone lines and internet cables that clutter the house  and instead use mobile reception for all our needs.

Experts believe 5G will lead to an explosion of new 'smart' gadgets that talk to our mobile phones through more reliable superfast signals  offering everything from fridge cameras that order groceries when the contents are running low, to robot chauffeurs that can take us around in a self-driving car.

The possibilities of this connection of gadgets  known as 'the internet of things'  seem almost limitless.

The 5G technology will start by making pin-sharp video phone calls the norm so we can ditch our landlines, if we haven't already.

And with broadband download speeds of perhaps 200 Megabits per second (Mbps)  which is more than four times faster than the current average home broadband speed  the technology will also help us economise, clean the home and be more secure.

Smartphone apps controlled by 5G will monitor our heating and lights  turning gadgets off when not needed  while providing 24-hour security with cameras viewed from our phones.

They will also run robotic vacuum cleaners and lawn-mowers when we are away on holiday.

But 5G is not without its critics. Last week, the Government came under fire when it announced Chinese firm Huawei would be allowed to be a major player in the building of the UK 5G network.

Experts fear it could allow Chinese spies to eavesdrop on private conversations and install 'a Trojan horse'  holding communication networks to ransom with the threat of a cyber war.

Ernest Doku, a technology expert at comparison website uSwitch, says: '5G has the potential to transform the way we live  but at this stage it is no silver bullet as we still need to ensure everyone has access to the connection before it can change the world.

'Last year, it started to be rolled out in major cities such as London, Edinburgh, Cardiff and Belfast  though connectivity is still small and patchy. And you need an expensive new smartphone such as the 800 Samsung Galaxy S10 to gain access.

'So far Apple devices cannot connect to the 5G network and the revolution cannot begin in earnest until they do  which may happen when the latest iPhone models come out in September.'

Download speeds are at least ten times faster with 5G than on the previous best 4G technology  far better than most people's home broadband and in line with top fibre optic speeds.

It means not only lightning fast access to the internet but the ability to download music and movies much quicker. Downloading a feature film on 4G can take a quarter of an hour  but with 5G it might take just 90 seconds.

BUT WATCH OUT FOR STINGRAYS! New 5G technology offers an exciting opportunity to improve our networks  but it also opens a new door for fraudsters. One of the key concerns is the threat of so-called stingrays. This is where a criminal intercepts your mobile signal with a copycat aerial that tricks it into sharing encrypted identifying data about the phone. Using this information, the fraudster knows what handset you are using, can track your exact whereabouts and might even be able to hack into your phone operating systems software. If this is achieved it might be possible to break into your apps that control and monitor 5G smart gadgets. By cracking such codes criminals can eavesdrop on phone conversations and even spy on what you get up to from security cameras you place around the home. Harvesting information that can be seen when you tap into a mobile phone could also enable a fraudster to steal identities, using your personal information to go on an online spending spree or using personal details to empty your bank account. Cyber security expert Colin Tankard, of Digital Pathways, says: The public needs to be aware of the dangers of this new technology  and with more gadgets being hooked up to 5G it increases the risk of problems if you should get hacked. Tankard believes those that embrace 5G must ensure they add a layer of security to their smartphones by downloading virtual private network software on to their handsets via an app. Such free software is available from security specialists such as Avira, Symantec and Sophos. Decrypting your phone signals to spy on private conversations is one of the key concerns of the critics of the Chinese 5G manufacturer Huawei. The Government is adamant that it has addressed such security issues by only allowing it to have a maximum 35 per cent stake in any projects  with sensitive areas such as military bases and nuclear facilities strictly off limits. But this has not stopped the National Cyber Security Centre  the cyber war combat arm of the Governments intelligence service  from voicing concern. The NCSC has listed Huawei as a high-risk firm for security. NCSC technical director Dr Ian Levy says: The level of security in our networks needs to improve as our reliance on them increases. The threat for UK operators ranges from hostile states to organised crime and petty fraudsters.

There are just a handful of main providers of the technology that supply 5G to customers of mobile networks such as EE, Vodafone and O2. These include Finnish phone giant Nokia, Swedish company Ericsson, South Korean firm Samsung and Chinese part-state run ZTE. But the most controversial is Huawei.

Last week, it was licensed to have up to a 35 per cent market share in 5G projects  supplying masts, antennae and cables. But it was banned from participating in 5G provision for military bases and nuclear plants.

The mobile market leader in 5G is EE. Even though 5G reception at the moment is almost non-existent outside cities (though EE claims it is available in 50 UK locations), signing up to the new technology is not cheap.

You pay 54 a month to EE for its best-selling Samsung Galaxy S10 5G deal  which includes 10GB of data a month, enough for 500 hours of internet browsing. You then pay a further 30 upfront for the device and must sign up for two years. Vodafone has slightly less 5G nationwide coverage and costs 56 a month with 49 upfront for the same phone and 5GB of data each month if you sign up for two years.

Another company that recently joined the fledgling 5G party is O2. It charges 54.64 a month plus an upfront 30 for a Galaxy S10 5G phone and 15GB of data usage a month  but only if you are willing to sign up for at least 36 months.

If you are using your phone in an area with no 5G reception then the mobile automatically reverts to the previous fastest-speed service 4G  or goes on to 3G or 2G if this reception is not available either.

THE way the technology works is by using a new radio bandwidth that allows more information to be packed into a broadcast than previously possible. But it also requires older 4G masts to be adapted so they can send and receive data on the new wavelength.

The 5G technology will also require small transmitters to be positioned on streets outside people's homes to ensure 'smart' devices in the home can be connected with no interference or loss of signal.

Such building work will cost many millions of pounds and because it is still in the early stages, the 'smart' gadgets that can use it are not widespread.

Although we might expect 5G to become more popular this year  so far it has a geographical coverage of less than 5 per cent  it could take a decade before devices other than mobile phones catch up with this super-fast broadband wireless technology.

Doku says: 'Although it may be exciting to be among the first people to embrace this new technology, prices for 5G phones and access to the 5G network should fall if you hold on for at least 12 months.

'Also, as a newbie, you may initially be disappointed as national coverage is still poor and the number of gadgets connecting to 5G is limited.

'But the potential for 5G to transform the way we live and manage our homes is really exciting.'
Crystals riding shotgun. Peering out the window into the pre-dawn darkness of 5:45 a.m., she gives the rundown of spots where shes slept, smoked or ridden her skateboard.

Theres the now-fenced-off lot near a grocery store and the dog cages (street grates that exude heat) where shes stayed a few nights. Then theres the steep parking garage ramp in downtown where she says shes afraid to ride her board. And the park where she was caught smoking weed by the nice cop who asked her to snuff it out.

Its a brisk morning in January, and Crystals leading a group at Napas point-in-time homeless count. The nationwide annual outing provides an estimate of how many people are experiencing homelessness  living in a shelter, tent, automobile or the streets  in Napa at that given moment.

Counties are required to report the data to the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development every two years, and it informs the amount of federal funding they receive from the agency. Napa opts to do it annually.

The number of people counted during this single roughly four-hour period will also influence the amount of emergency homeless funding each jurisdiction receives from the states coffers. California distributed $500 million in 2018 and $650 million last year.

Governor Gavin Newsom requested the Legislature allocate $750 million this year to fight growing homelessness but, according to reporting from the Fresno Bee, it remains unclear how that allocation will be tied to the point-in-time count.

Napa had 323 homeless individuals last year, according to the PIT count, and 322 the year prior. Data for this years count, conducted Thursday, wont be available for at least a few months, according to county officials.

Some people love the PIT count, some people hate it, said Emma Moyer, Napa Countys Homeless Programs manager. Its an imperfect system but its a good indicator of a baseline number.

PIT counts use the federal definition of homelessness, which excludes people living doubled-up, a term to describe crashing with family or friends, as well as those who may just be paying nightly for cheap lodging. Advocates say this almost certainly undercounts the actual number.

This year marks the first time Napa County has contracted the work out to Applied Survey Research, a firm that handles the PIT counts in almost all Bay Area counties. The new approach relies on an observational count and assigns groups to census tracts to ensure most, if not all, corners of the county are methodically covered.

The blitz method where we go everywhere allows us to comfortably say that we looked in as many places as possible to find out where individuals experiencing homeliness may have been, John Connery, ASRs project manager, said.

Approximately 47 people were responsible for counting all of Napas homeless Thursday. They convened at 5 a.m. at Napas South Shelter where, armed with coffee, home-cooked muffins and county census maps, they were instructed on how the morning would go.

Those present were a mix of county staff, employees from local service providers, Napa Police Department Outreach and resident volunteers. They were divided into 12 groups and assigned two to three census tracts each. Led by a peer leader like Crystal  someone who is currently or formerly experienced homelessness  the team would set out to their respective geographies and canvas the area by car and foot.

Any person they see who they believe to be homeless is catalogued, but the groups are told to avoid approaching the people they encounter. Instead, their gender, approximate age and type of housing  tent, RV, van, car or street  is denoted on the bubble sheet printout each group carries.

Later, many of those same peer guides along with outreach workers and shelter staff will go back into the field to gather qualitative data, Connery explained. They will spend a few weeks gathering information on topics like health, shelter use, and demographic details.

Without census tracts as a guide, its easy to default into hot zones, areas outreach workers knew already had populations of homeless individuals. Participants used to approach the people they encountered and embark on a series of questions.

We had people saying to us would you go knock on the door of a housed person first thing in the morning and ask them these questions? recalled Moyer, who described the old approach as way behind relative to Napas peers in the region.

Crystal was born in Napa, but she spent most of her life bouncing around between foster families all over Northern California before making her way back to her hometown. She spent about five years living on the streets, she says, and, at one point, was incarcerated.

With a quick smile, bright blue eyes and a talkative streak, Crystals bubbliness animates the entire morning. She talks about the Oreo birthday cake her boyfriend bought her on her most recent birthday, says she wants to buy a car with back-up mirrors and loves Earl Grey tea because its so aromatic.

But even though shes no longer experiencing homelessness, Crystals life isnt so simple. She says the couple lost their home in September and now live in a trailer. She recalls being diagnosed with mental health problems at a young age, and she says they often manifest as anger outbursts. A few have gotten her into some trouble  once with a roommate, once with a coffee shop barista, maybe more she didnt share.

When shes in-between places, Crystal avoids Napas shelters. She had something stolen from under her pillow once, she says, so shed prefer to stay away if she can.

Crystal finding outlets, though. Her favorite is studying photography at the Napa Valley College. Im trying to go pro, she said. Her phones camera roll is filled with shots.

Today, her outlet is serving as a peer guide for the PIT count. Paired with a group, she uses her own experience to help identify where individuals may be living and discern who is and isnt experiencing homelessness. Shes paid $15 dollars an hour in cash for her work, which she says shell likely use for a new pair of paints and some groceries.

We heard a few times as folks got back that they found people who without the guides they would never have noticed, they would not have been able to find those locations, Connery said.

To go through Napa as a housed individual is to never see the oft-hidden subculture that exists among the citys homeless population. Crystal points out how people living in cars wont leave shoes outside because theyre afraid they could get stolen, but they may leave a plastic bin of non-essentials; how a van with curtains drawn or items piled high in the windows is likely to be someones home; where an encampment used to be and how to discern if a tent is sleeping one or two people; and even where all the public bathrooms are throughout the city, and which Starbucks location is friendlier to the homeless.

Californias been singled out for its jarring homeless statistics. Federal data says it accounts for almost 25 percent of the nations total. As the problem deepens across the state, so too does the fight for each countys slice of the proverbial funding pie. Getting an accurate number, then, becomes all the more important.

According to the Department of Education, which includes children living doubled up or in temporary lodging in their homeless numbers, 246,000 California students were homeless in 2018. Californias official HUD statistic, fed by PIT counts around the state, put the number only at 129,972.

The glaring discrepancy is undeniable.

We dont ever feel that were going to get 100 percent of the population thats experiencing homelessness, but we do feel like we do as good of a job as possible  We think of our number as representing the bare minimum at this one point in time, Connery said.

Feel free to reach Carly Graf at @carlykgraf, cgraf@napanews.com or (713)-817-4692.

Get local news delivered to your inbox! Subscribe to our Daily Headlines newsletter. Sign up! * I understand and agree that registration on or use of this site constitutes agreement to its user agreement and privacy policy.
The Fridays For Future movement and activist Greta Thunberg held a news conference with the activists to spotlight the marginalization of African voices a week after The Associated Press cropped Nakate out of a photo at the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland.

Nakate, Makenna Muigai of Kenya, Ayakha Melithafa of South Africa and climate scientist Ndoni Mcunu of South Africa pointed out the various challenges both in combating climate change on the booming continent of some 1.2 billion people and in inspiring the worlds response.

African activists are doing so much, Nakate said.

Mexico

Guardian of Monarch butterfly eulogized

OCAMPO  Hundreds of farmers and agricultural workers thronged the funeral of activist Homero Gomez Gonzalez on Friday, and the homage to him was like a tribute to the monarch butterfly he so staunchly defended.

The butterflies annual migration, threatened by logging, avocado farming and climate and environmental change, has also represented a ray of hope and income for the impoverished, pine-clad mountains of Michoacan state.
Sygnature Discovery hires new scientist to the management team

UK based company Sygnature Discovery has further strengthened its DMPK (drug metabolism and pharmacokinetics) capabilities, with the addition of new senior scientists to the management team.

Clive Dilworth has been recruited as Director of DMPK. He replaces Tim Schulz-Utermoehl, who had been heading up the DMPK team on a part-time basis alongside his work with several biotech start-ups, on which he is now going to focus on full time.



Dilworth joins from a management role at the Alderley Park life science campus, where he provided strategic and scientific guidance for start-ups and CROs at the site. Prior to this, he spent 20 years working in DMPK roles at various CROs, most recently Cyprotex and Evotec. He has a PhD in toxicology from the London School of Pharmacy.



Another recent recruit to the DMPK team is Robert Kime, who joined Sygnature as Associate Director of DMPK in November, and reports to Dilworth. He was recruited from the mid-sized pharma company Grunenthal, where he was Associate Scientific Director. Before that, he had roles at CROs including Quintiles.



Kime brings important client-side experience to the team. Having run drug discovery projects within a pharma company using an integrated approach, I understand what a client needs from a CRO, Kime says. My experience on both sides of the fence gives me an insight into client thinking, and what they need from us to be reassured we can do the job for them.



In addition to Dilworth and Kime, Sally Lee has joined Sygnature Discovery as a Principal Scientist bringing over 20 years of DMPK experience in both assay and Project Management roles. In her previous position at AMR (AntiMicrobial Resistance) Centre, she coordinated DMPK requests for novel antimicrobials targeting the threat of antibiotic resistance.



Sygnatures DMPK team now numbers 37, with a group of 24 in the Nottingham labs and a further 13 in Alderley Park. Further expansion is planned this year in order to meet the growing global demand for Sygnatures DMPK capabilities.



As well as adding new skills and techniques to our DMPK portfolio, we are strengthening the expertise we already have, Dilworth says. Our presence in both Nottingham and Alderley Park gives our clients access to a large pool of talented scientists and capabilities. We aim to expand the DMPK groups in both sites to provide our clients with a harmonised and efficient service.
The Kerala police filed a charge sheet against IAS officer Sriram Venkitaraman accusing him of knocking down journalist KM Basheer while driving in a drunken state in August 2019 in a court in Thiruvananthapuram on Saturday .

Journalist KM Basheer who was the bureau chief of a Malayalam daily died on the spot. The charge-sheet has arraigned the 33-year-old IAS officer as the first accused and his fellow traveller Wafa Firoze as the second accused. The SIT which probed the case said that there are enough material evidence along with 100 witnesses in the 70-page charge sheet that it filed before the judicial first class magistrate.

Journalists had decried the move to shield the 33-year old IAS officer when state chief secretary Tom Jose had recommended his reinstatement saying the charge sheet was not filed last week.

Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan had extended his suspension for three more months and gave strict instructions to the SIT to file it at the earliest.

The victims relatives and journalists said there were many attempts to weaken the case and his blood was taken after eight hours when they threatened a sit-in before the police commissioners office. The case was registered 17 hours after the incident had occurred.

Venkitaraman was arrested after three days and even managed to get a bail.

Sriram Venkitaraman became popular in the state following his crusade against land encroachers in hill destination Munnar two years back during his stint as the Devikulam sub-collector.

Known to be gallant, Venkitaramans image took a beating after the incident. He was ranked second in the 2013 civil service examinations.

SHARE THIS ARTICLE ON
Chief Constable Simon Byrne said the service needs to be "representative of the community we serve" (stock photo)

The PSNI is seeking more people from Catholic and working class backgrounds and the LGBT community as part of its new recruitment campaign.

Chief Constable Simon Byrne said the service needs to be "representative of the community we serve".

His comments came during a presentation hosted by Mid and East Antrim Policing and Community Safety Partnership at Carrickfergus Town Hall on Thursday night.

Mr Byrne, speaking ahead of a recruitment drive which opens next week, said: "We need to encourage more people from a Catholic background, more women, more people from working class communities, both nationalist and unionist and more people from minority ethnic communities and more people from the LGBT community."

He said that he was "particularly concerned about recruitment from the Catholic community and under-represented groups" which he believes "is stalling and risks slipping backwards".

He added: "A police service anywhere in the world will always be more effective if it is reflective of the make-up of the community it serves."

Overall, there are 6,848 police officers in Northern Ireland.

According to PSNI statistics, 66.6% are perceived as Protestant and 32% as Catholic.

The Chief Constable said "ultimately any decision on 50:50 is a political decision".

A 50/50 recruitment policy refers to the employment in equal numbers of recruits from Catholic and Protestant backgrounds.

"I believe it is a tool that has provided results in the past and should not be dismissed in the future," he added.

"It would, however, be wrong to believe that 50:50 in itself would solve the issue. It may be an effective short-term fix but we need to find a long-term solution too.

"There are some real challenges for people considering a career in policing. The security threat is very real and enduring.

"The unresolved approach to dealing with the past impacts on people's confidence and trust in policing today."

Mr Byrne said PSNI officers are "contributing every day to supporting and protecting our community".

"The police service belongs to everyone and every part of the community should feel they have an opportunity to be part of our team," he added.

Chief Inspector Michael Simpson reiterated the importance of the PSNI being "representative of the community we serve" and a "diverse workforce".

"People ask what are the barriers to joining the police. We want more people to view it as normal," he said. "The security threat in Northern Ireland is severe. That is very real."

He said new recruits must be prepared to serve in any part of Northern Ireland although the PSNI tries to "facilitate people close to home".

Applications will be accepted online from February 4 until 25.
The long-simmering issue of charter school reform in Pennsylvania was brought to the forefront last week, which was National School Choice Week, by a legion of school superintendents banding together in a call for change in charter school laws.

More than 30 superintendents from districts in five counties across the greater Philadelphia region stood together at a press conference in Eagleville, Montgomery County, to announce themselves as a new coalition, the Leaders for Educational Accountability and Reform Network.

LEARN is comprised of school leaders who are standing up for public education and fighting for charter school reform, said Frank Gallagher, superintendent of Souderton Area School District.

Superintendents from districts, large and small, with diverse demographics took to the podium with statistics and anecdotes about the damaging effect of current charter school law on local public school finances.

Jim Scanlon, superintendent of the West Chester Area School District, said the only reforms to charter school law in Pennsylvania in recent years have further undermined the local control and reduced our ability to hold schools accountable.

Chris Dormer, superintendent of the Norristown Area School District, said his district spends roughly $9.5 million on charter school tuition payments for 550 students to attend schools that are not located within the district.

Gallagher cited differences in teacher certification and evaluations, noting that only 75 percent of charter school teachers need to be properly certified.

Superintendents cited inequity in special education costs: A special education program within a school district costs about $7,000 per student for the district to provide, compared to $24,192 per pupil the district pays to a charter school, according to June 2018 records from the Pennsylvania Association of Superintendents.

Superintendents also pointed to statistics about graduation rates among charters and public schools. According to 2018 statistics for Southeastern Pennsylvania from Public Citizens for Children and Youth, an average 51 percent of cyber charter school students graduated as compared to the 93 percent average within school districts.

The coalitions points were immediately refuted in a statement by Ana Meyers, executive director of the Pennsylvania Coalition of Public Charter Schools. She criticized LEARN for making their stand at the start of National School Choice Week which is intended to showcase charter schools in a positive light.

Its clear to anyone paying attention that their political agenda is to put more money in their coffers, not help students seeking the best educational options available, she said, of the superintendents. A statement on the groups website refuted comments from the LEARN press conference point by point.

For their part, the superintendents made it clear they have no problem with school choice for families, as long as that choice is held accountable both in funding equity and in performance standards. The superintendents called on state lawmakers to propose reform and get it done.

The one group left out in this perennial back and forth are local taxpayers, who have no say in the drain on public school finances created by current charter school law. If all schools were funded through state coffers, the debate might be different. As long as Pennsylvania funds education through the local property tax, charter reform proponents say legislators have an obligation to free the local districts from mandates and laws that drain their finances.

During the past few years, calls for reform have been growing as several common-sense proposals have been floated in Harrisburg. House Bill 526 and Senate Bill 34  neither of which made it to floor votes  could save $19.6 million in school taxes each year in Montgomery County alone, according to a March 2019 analysis by the Montgomery County Intermediate Unit. The bills would put the burden of tuition onto parents choosing a cyber charter if their home school district operates a comparable cyber program. The Senate bill was sponsored by Berks Countys State Sen. Judy Schwank, D-11th Dist.

Current charter school law creates a critical financial burden for local districts, superintendents say, a fact that drives the passion for reform on display Monday.

We applaud this group for showing leadership on behalf of local school boards and taxpayers, and we urge state lawmakers to heed their call. This debate should not be partisan nor should it hinge on attitudes about school choice. Reform is needed to manage the tax burden and to ensure that children, regardless of choice, are in schools that are held accountable to high standards.

We urge lawmakers to learn from these school leaders and enact needed reforms.
Support Local Journalism Your membership makes our reporting possible. {{featured_button_text}}

The committee will help identify places where residents may not have a traditional house address, like a shelter, assisted living home or a Wayland Academy dorm. A census official will be available to help reach out to Spanish-speaking populations. The effort could involve schools and churches as well.

Over $675 billion in federal funds will be distributed around the country based on the results of the census. Mayor Becky Glewen said everyone involved understands the importance of the census for the community, including for the dollars it will bring here.

The population results from the census will also help determine how to draw the lines for congressional, state and local legislative districts.

This year, residents can take the census online or over the phone in addition to the old mailed paper form. There will also be locations where people can receive assistance in participating.

The 2020 Census has already started in remote Alaskan villages, though most households in the US will begin to receive information in March. The official census will not ask about politial leanings or for money, and any such forms are scams.
You are here: China

Railway public security authorities across the country have distributed over 1 million face masks, 280,000 pairs of protective gloves and over 14,800 sets of protective suits to frontline railway police as of Jan. 30.

Railway public security organs across the country have also purchased a batch of goggles and disinfectant for the frontline police.

The railway public security bureau under the Ministry of Public Security has distributed over 80,000 masks and 1,000 sets of protective suits to the railway public security bureau of Wuhan, the epicenter of the outbreak.

Railway public security authorities at all levels are required to give special care to police families with underaged children and sick elderly people, the bureau said.
Two young artists have been selected as winners of the 'The Salmon of Colour' colouring competition which was organised by Inland Fisheries Ireland and the National Museum of Ireland - Natural History to mark International Year of the Salmon.

Maisy, age 8 from Lusk, was selected as the winner of the 8-11 category while Molly, age 12 from Clonsilla, scooped the top prize in the older 12-14 category.

There were over 1000 participants for the competition, which ran throughout the summer months, with artists asked to colour in the designated image of the lifecycle of an Atlantic salmon. The winners will now receive a 100 voucher for the National Museum of Ireland- Natural History shop and a private, guided tour of the museum. The competition was delivered as part of awareness raising activities for International Year of the Salmon, which aims to engage the public around the challenges facing salmon today.

Speaking about the competition, Suzanne Campion, Head of Business Development at Inland Fisheries Ireland said: 'We are delighted that so many children took part and have engaged with us on the issues affecting salmon populations today by colouring in the salmon lifecycle and learning more about the importance of this fish and the precious nature of its existence across the Northern Hemisphere.'

Lorraine Comer, Head of Education at the National Museum of Ireland - Natural History said: 'We are pleased to announce the two winners of 'The Salmon of Colour' competition as part of our joint programme of events with Inland Fisheries Ireland in celebration of the International Year of the Salmon. The competition had a large uptake and we would like to congratulate all of the participants involved and we look forward to similar activities in the future. We strive to get young people to come to our Museum and enjoy their visit; therefore the Education Department are very much looking forward to giving the two prize winners a guided tour.'

In addition to the 'Salmon of Colour' Colouring Competition, Inland Fisheries Ireland and the National Museum of Ireland partnered on a one day Fishy Fun event in July which engaged the general public around the fisheries resource and the importance of its conservation through a range of interactive activities for International Year of the Salmon.

The initiative hopes to raise awareness around the different challenges facing salmon today.
(Reuters) - Triple world champion Jorge Lorenzo could make a wild card comeback to MotoGP after Yamaha signed the Spaniard as a factory test team rider on Thursday.

The 32-year-old retired last year after struggling alongside six-times world champion Marc Marquez in an injury-plagued season at Honda.

Lorenzo won his 2010, 2012 and 2015 titles with Yamaha.

Yamaha said in a statement that Lorenzo would ride the YZR-M1 at next week's MotoGP shakedown test in Sepang, Malaysia, and will also take part in some tests later in the year.

"So far, no wild card rides are planned for Lorenzo in 2020, but Yamaha is open to the possibility, should he decide to race again," the team said.

Yamaha have Spaniard Maverick Vinales and Italian great Valentino Rossi, a nine-times world champion across all categories, as their factory team riders this season.

Rossi, 40, is mulling his options after the team announced on Wednesday that French youngster Fabio Quartararo will be replacing him from 2021.

Lorenzo said he had always planned to stay involved with MotoGP.

"I think this is a suitable role for me. I know the team and the M1 well. The Yamaha really suited my riding style, and it will be very interesting to meet up with my old bike again'," he said.

"This allows me to do what I love -- riding motorbikes and pushing the limit -- whilst enjoying a slightly calmer lifestyle than I did in previous years."

Lorenzo will work with Rossi's former crew chief Silvano Galbusera in the test team.

(Reporting by Alan Baldwin, editing by Pritha Sarkar)
Source: Xinhua| 2020-02-02 02:02:31|Editor: yan

Video Player Close

NEW YORK, Feb. 1 (Xinhua) -- The Metropolitan Museum of Art, the Met, in New York City held its annual Chinese Lunar New Year festival Saturday to celebrate the Year of the Rat, one of the 12 animals of the ancient Chinese zodiac.

The festival featured dozens of engaging programs, including performances, art activities and demonstrations, and artist-led workshops, for visitors of all ages.

Highlights included Sesame Street puppeteers featuring Alan Muraoka along with artist-led workshops and interactive activities like a hand-pulled noodle demonstration.

Artists from the Chinese Center on Long Island Lion Troupe, New York Chinese Cultural Center, and New York Korean Performing Arts Center staged entertaining performances to celebrate the Chinese Lunar New Year with visitors.

The museum hopes to make visitors from China, which tops its sources of international visitors, feel proud of their history and culture, said Maxwell K. Hearn, Douglas Dillon Chairman of the Department of Asian Art at the Met, in a recent interview with Xinhua.

The festival was presented by the Met's Advisory Committee on Cultural Engagement and Education Department.

Founded in 1870, the Met is the largest art museum in the United States and is among the top three most visited art museums in the world.
The Chief Executive Officer of Bahrain Tourism and Exhibitions Authority (BTEA), Mr. Nader Al Moayyed, applauded the efforts of the organizers and participants of the 31st edition of the Autumn Fair, which was held under the patronage of the Minister of Industry, Commerce and Tourism and Chairman of BTEA, His Excellency Mr. Zayed bin Rashid Al Zayani.

Held between the 23rd and 31st of January at the Bahrain International Exhibition and Convention Centre (BIECC), the Autumn Fair 2020 attracted 159,217 visitors. The event featured an extensive variety of merchandise that was sold from over 650 exhibitors from 16 countries around the world, namely, Bahrain, China, Egypt, India, Kuwait, Lebanon, Morocco, Oman, Pakistan, Palestine, Saudi Arabia, Singapore, Tunisia, Turkey, UAE, and Yemen. The fair also included specialty food stalls featuring culinary delights from around the world, alongside the variety of stalls dedicated to fashion, beauty, home decor, technology, toys, textiles and more.

Autumn Fair is one of Bahrains biggest and most popular events which brings together local, regional and international retailers who offer a variety of products, attracting a large number of visitors from the Kingdom of Bahrain and abroad. This event comes in line with the BTEAs efforts to drive the development of the tourism sector and we will continue to support such events as we also strive to further promote the Kingdoms Meetings, Incentives, Conferences and Exhibitions (MICE) sector, said the CEO of BTEA, Mr. Nader Al Moayyed.

The Autumn Fair 2020 aims to support the development of the Meetings, Incentives, Conferences and Exhibitions(MICE) sector, one of the fundamental pillars of the BTEAs strategy aimed at developing and strengthening the tourism sector under the slogan Ours. Yours, which contributes towards the Kingdoms economy and 2030 Economic Vision.
Iraq's president has named Mohammed Allawi as the country's new prime minister - who has instantly called on protesters to continue uprising against corruption.

The choice comes as the country weathers troubled times amid ongoing violent anti-government protests, while under the constant threat of being ensnared by festering tensions between the US and Iran.

The selection of Mr Allawi, 66, Iraq's former minister of communications, to replace outgoing Prime Minister Adel Abdul-Mahdi was the product of many back-room talks over months between rival parties.

Iraqi President Barham Salih gave parliamentary blocs until Saturday to select a candidate or he would exercise his constitutional powers and choose one himself.

Iraqi President Barham Salih, right, shakes hands with the newly appointed Prime Minister Mohammed Allawi in Baghdad, Iraq

In a pre-recorded statement posted online, Mr Allawi called on protesters to continue with their uprising against corruption and said he would quit if the blocs insist on imposing names of ministers.

Addressing anti-government protesters, he said: 'If it wasn't for your sacrifices and courage there wouldn't have been any change in the country. I have faith in you and ask you to continue with the protests.'

Mr Allawi was born in Baghdad and served as communications minister first in 2006 and again between 2010-2012. He resigned from his post after a dispute with former prime minister Nouri al-Maliki.

The newly appointed Prime Minister of Iraq, Mohammed Tawfiq Allawi delivers a televised speech in Baghdad

Parliament is expected to put his candidacy to a vote in the next session, after which point he has 30 days to formulate a government programme and select a cabinet of ministers.

According to the constitution, a replacement for Mr Abdul-Mahdi should have been identified 15 days after his resignation in early December.

Instead, it has taken rival blocs nearly two months of jockeying to select Mr Allawi as their consensus candidate.

Mr Abdul-Mahdi's rise to power was the product of a provisional alliance between parliament's two main blocs  Sairoon, led by cleric Muqtada al-Sadr, and Fatah, which includes leaders associated with the paramilitary Popular Mobilisation Units headed by Hadi al-Amiri.
Goa Forward Party chief Vijai Sardesai on Saturday said his party would try to unite the opposition to demand discussion on issues like the Citizenship Amendment Act and the Mahadayi river dispute in the Budget session of the state Assembly scheduled to begin from February 3.

He said the Congress, NCP and MGP will coordinate with the GFP on the floor of the House.

"The three GFP MLAs and Independent legislator Rohan Khaunte have moved amendment to the governor's address which was delivered last month during the first session of the year," he said.

He said GFP would demand short duration discussion of two-and-half hours on the issue of Mahadayi river diversion, CAA, National Register of Citizens and reservation in the Goa Assembly for Scheduled Tribes.

"We want discussion on the statement of the governor that Goa has been cheated on the Mahadayi river issue by the Centre. We have already spoken to Leader of Opposition Digambar Kamat on the CAA-NRC discussion," he added.

Sardesai, who is MLA from Fatorda seat, said his party would raise in the House the confusion regarding arrest of men who allegedly threatened state PWD minister Deepak Pauskar.

Rishikesh Patil (27), Pravin Naik (28) and Amol Sami (28), all hailing from Sangli in Maharashtra, were held under IPC section 384 (extortion) on January 22.

Pauskar had said at the time that he was receiving threatening calls from Mumbai and Dubai over the past few days. The callers were demanding Rs 3 crore, he had said.

Sardesai said the three were given "overnight bail" whereas they should have been subjected to "custodial interrogation".

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
The Enugu State Government on Friday confirmed that a pregnant woman died of Lassa fever at the University of Nigeria Teaching Hospital, Utuku-Ozalla.

With this, two deaths have been recorded in Enugu in 2020.

The first was at the Enugu State University Teaching Hospital, Parklane involving a 75-year-old woman.

Permanent Secretary, Ministry of Health, Dr Ifeanyi Agujiobi, who announced the death of the second person during a joint press briefing with other relevant ministries at the state Secretariat, said the case involved a 24-year-old pregnant woman.

Agujiobi said the woman died on Thursday night.

According to the permanent Secretary, out of six suspected cases of Lassa fever, three have been confirmed while two have died.

He said the third victim, a female corps member, who just returned from Benue State, survived the attack and responding to treatment.

While he assured residents that the scourge has been under control since the first reported case in January, Agujiobi explained that the pregnant woman who died from the disease was as a result of late reporting to health facilities.
Hyundai Motor India Ltd (HMIL) on Saturday reported a 3.37 per cent decline in total sales at 52,002 units in January.

The company had sold 53,813 units in the same month last year, HMIL said in a statement.

Domestic sales were down 8.3 per cent to 42,002 units as against 45,803 units in January 2019, the company added.

The company also said that it has commenced bookings for BSVI versions of Elite i20, Venue and Grand i10.

Hyundai has already initiated sale of BSVI compliant Nios, Elantra, Santro and the newly launched Aura compact sedan.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
Charleston, SC (29403)

Today

Cloudy skies this morning will become partly cloudy this afternoon. High 52F. Winds N at 10 to 20 mph..

Tonight

Clear skies. Low 33F. Winds N at 5 to 10 mph.
President Muhammadu Buhari has established a committee to study and address the updated requirements by the U.S. government, after Nigeria was added to countries with temporary restrictions into its country.

The committee will work with the U.S government, INTERPOL, and other stakeholders to ensure all updates are properly implemented.

On January 31, the U.S. Department of Homeland Security (DHS) announced a temporary travel restriction on six countries, including Nigeria. The proclamation, signed by President Donald Trump on Friday, is expected to take effect on February 22.

In a statement signed by Femi Adesina, Special Adviser to the President on media and publicity on February 1, the president has established a committee, to be chaired by the Hon. Minister of Interior, to study and address the updated U.S. requirements. The committee will work with the U.S Government, INTERPOL and other stakeholders to ensure all updates are properly implemented.

On 31st January 2020, the United States (U.S) Department of Homeland Security (DHS) announced temporary travel restrictions on six (6) countries including Nigeria.

For Nigeria, the restriction is the suspension of the issuance of immigrant visas to Nigerian passport holders only. This suspension shall come into effect on 21st February 2020. The suspension does not apply to other U.S visas such as those for official, business, tourism and student travel.

The DHS states the suspension of immigrant visas became necessary following a review and update of the methodology (performance metrics) adopted by the U.S Government to assess compliance of certain security criteria by foreign governments. This resulted in certain enhancements on how information is shared between Nigeria and the U.S.

Nigeria remains committed to maintaining productive relations with the United States and its international allies especially on matters of global security.

Earlier, the Coalition of United Political Parties (CUPP) on Saturday said that it was shocked to receive the news of visa restriction placed on Nigerians by the United States government.

In a statement in Abuja by the national spokesperson, Ikenga Ugochinyere, the coalition declared that the development was one of the visible signs of the pariah state which Mr Buhari had turned the country into.

The coalition said, the truth is that the regime of the military junta, General Sani Abacha, in all its ingloriousness, was far better than this present administration.

All indices are pointing to the fact that this All Progressives Congress government is bent on running this country aground.

All parts of the country are currently under security siege with killings, kidnappings, banditry and insurgency becoming the order of the day.

The electoral impunity being displayed under this government has reversed the gains of electoral reforms carried out by past administration.

Poverty is endemic on a large scale and it is visible wherever one turns to in the country while corruption, especially in high places, has continued unabated.

All of these and more are consequences of Buharis incurable incompetence.

The coalition, while expressing concern about the future of the country as well as the fate of Nigerians and generation yet unborn, called on Mr Buhari to resign before it is too late to save the republic from the consequences of his legendary incompetence.
Chinese workers in protective suits make detection kits for coronavirus in Taizhou, Jiangsu Province, China. Photo by Reuters.

The Ministry of Science and Technology has called on scientists to help deal with the new coronavirus, saying making test kits is a priority.

Deputy Minister of Science and Technology Pham Cong Tac met leading experts in epidemiology, vaccines and other related fields this week to discuss the nCoV epidemic.

Tac called for an extensive investigation into the source of the disease, modes of transmission and others. There is no conclusive understanding of the Wuhan virus yet.

Nguyen Van Kinh, chairman of the Vietnam Society of Infectious Diseases (VSID), said Vietnam must produce its own biological test kit to avoid relying too much on international support and enable it to thoroughly screen people.

Phan Trong Lan, director of the Ho Chi Minh City Pasteur Institute, and Tran Dac Phu, former director of the General Department of Preventive Medicine, also agreed that the country should make its own test kits.

Do Tuan Dat, director of the state-owned Vaccine and Biological Production No.1 (VABIOTECH) company, said it would take at least three months to develop a vaccine for the nCoV virus.

The company has sought help from the U.K. to make the genome for the vaccine, he said.

China's National Medical Products Administration recently approved new test kits for the coronavirus, according to media reports.

In Vietnam, five people have contracted the disease, three locals coming from Wuhan and two Chinese.

The World Health Organization (WHO) has said that an animal is most likely the primary source of the virus. China says the virus could have come from a market in Wuhan where wildlife was traded illegally.

WHO estimated the virus' incubation period to be two to 14 days.

The new coronavirus can be transmitted from person to person, most likely through close contact via particles in the air from coughing or sneezing, or by someone touching an infected person or object with the virus on it and then touching their mouth, nose or eyes.

WHO has declared the outbreak a global public health emergency.

The virus has spread from mainland China to Hong Kong, Macao, Thailand, Singapore, Taiwan, Malaysia, Japan, Australia, the U.S., South Korea, France, Germany, Canada, Vietnam, the UAE, Nepal, Cambodia, Sri Lanka, India, the Philippines, the U.K., Russia and Spain.

Chinese authorities said more than 11,000 people have contracted the infection and 259 people had died as of Saturday morning.
Representatives of retailers, hotels, government and law enforcement say they will continue to seek out the best ways to counter the recent wave of retail crime in Manitoba.

Hey there, time traveller!

This article was published 31/1/2020 (709 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

Representatives of retailers, hotels, government and law enforcement say they will continue to seek out the best ways to counter the recent wave of retail crime in Manitoba.

A by-invitation-only round table of about 100 people came together Friday morning at the Metropolitan Theatre to discuss numerous potential ideas (including having retailers share photographs of people caught shoplifting).

John Graham, of the Retail Council of Canada, said those discussions will next be put together in a report, with recommendations for further study.

"We're at the point where the business community is determined to have collective action," he said. "No community is immune to crime."

Graham said 11 different breakout sessions were formed Friday, where participants brainstormed ideas.

MIKAELA MACKENZIE / WINNIPEG FREE PRESS Marco Addesa, Best Buy Canada regional loss prevention manager.

"Hopefully, it will lead to a strategy," he said. "We want to identify the best strategies and then meet with (Manitoba Justice) Minister (Cliff) Cullen. We want to come up with real solutions that will address real change.

"We don't just want a report."

Cullen called the round table "a very productive discussion."

"We look forward to the report that comes out... This is not just a business concern, every Manitoban has the same concern," the Tory minister said.

"There's no simple solution, there's no one answer to the challenges we are facing. That's why it is so important to get everybody at the table to have this discussion and figure out what the best practices are."

The round table was organized by six business organizations, including the Retail Council of Canada, Winnipeg Chamber of Commerce, Manitoba Chambers of Commerce, and Canadian Federation of Business.

MIKAELA MACKENZIE / WINNIPEG FREE PRESS Justice minister Cliff Cullen speaks about retail crime at The Met in Winnipeg on Friday.

It came after several months of widespread media and social media coverage of brazen shoplifters at liquor stores, locations having to hire extra security, and the recorded assault of a Liquor Mart employee.

Marco Addesa, regional loss-prevention manager for electronics retailer Best Buy Canada, said one possible idea is to share information about people committing thefts with other retailers.

Want to get a head start on your day? Get the days breaking stories, weather forecast, and more sent straight to your inbox every weekday morning. Sign Up I agree to the Terms and Conditions, Cookie and Privacy Policies, and CASL agreement.

"We can build a network of sharing of intelligence and, from there, obviously, apprehend individuals who are allegedly responsible for thefts and frauds in our store," he said Friday.

Overall, Addesa said he was pleased with the meeting, because "we were all definitely talking the same language."

"We want some resolution and some control around the crime that is taking place... I'm very confident that over time, we will figure out strategies that are sustainable in controlling retail crime."

Addesa said while he doesn't see shoplifting as simply a Winnipeg problem, the violence and brazen attitudes displayed is at a different level in the city.

"Large groups are walking (out of) stores with product, and that seems to be happening in a lot of retailers, from what we're seeing," he said.

kevin.rollason@freepress.mb.ca
A total of five shells struck a military base housing U.S. forces in Iraq's northern province of Nineveh, the Iraqi military said, Trend reports citing Xinhua.

The attack took place in the night when the shells landed on al-Qayyara air base in south of the provincial capital city of Mosul, the media office affiliated with the Iraqi Joint Operations Command said in a statement.

The were no human or material casualties by the attack, the statement said.

A security source in Mosul told Xinhua that Katyusha rockets landed at the perimeter of al-Qayyara air base without causing casualties.

The attack came a week after thousands of demonstrators took to the streets in Baghdad upon the request of the Iraqi prominent Shiite leader Moqtada al-Sadr, in which he called for a scheduled withdrawal of U.S. troops from Iraq through peaceful means.

The Iraqi parliament passed a resolution requiring the government to end the presence of foreign forces in Iraq on Jan. 5, two days after a U.S. drone strike killed Qassem Soleimani, commander of the Quds Force of Iran's Islamic Revolution Guards Corps, and Abu Mahdi al-Muhandis, deputy chief of Iraq's paramilitary Hashd Shaabi forces.

Over 5,000 U.S. troops have been deployed in Iraq to support the Iraqi forces in the battles against Islamic State militants, mainly providing training and advising to the Iraqi forces.
- The East African Breweries Ltd has been laying claim to the Euro bottle by engraving its logo on it

- The matter which has resulted in several court cases has Kenyans wondering how the giant brewer is laying claim to universally used bottles

- Unlike EABL, Keroche Breweries does not engrave its initials or logo on beer bottles

- The main suit between EABL and Keroche Breweries, over the Euro bottle will be heard on Tuesday, March 10

A section of Kenyans on Twitter on Saturday, February 1, weighed in on the ongoing fight between two of Kenyas biggest alcohol manufacturers over the use of the universal Euro beer bottle.

The East African Breweries Ltd has been laying claim to the bottles by engraving its logo on the same and accusing Keroche Breweries of illegally using the bottles to package its beer brands.

READ ALSO: Kajiado bar owner wins suit against EABL on bottle controversy

READ ALSO: Court throws out EABL's bid to dismiss Euro bottle case filed by distributors

The matter which has since resulted in several court cases has Kenyans wondering how EABL is laying claim to universally used bottles.

I'm still wondering how EABL can claim that brown Euro bottles belongs to them. Since decades, beer has been packaged in the same bottle across countries. Now that competition has been stiff they want to fake claims, wonders a Kenyan on the twitter.

The practice of making or engraving universal bottles is well designed and orchestrated scheme to obtain undue value and instigate unlawful harassment of other market players. It is a potential tool for unfair trade practices and unfair competition in a market, quips another Kenyan.

In one of the numerous active matters in court, EABL had a female bar owner in Kajiado arrested for allegedly selling Keroche Breweries beer packaged in the now contentious Euro bottles.

The bottles were engraved with East African Breweries initials.

But in her defence, the bar owner says everyone in Kenya who starts a bar is required to purchase own empty bottles so they can exchange while buying beer from distributors of Keroche Breweries, EABL or any other beer manufacturer who uses Euro bottles.

This thus means beer bottles are interchangeable and bottles initially packaged in Keroche Breweries beer could end up at EABL depots and vice versa.

Unlike EABL, Keroche Breweries does not engrave its initials or logo on beer bottles and a spot check by TUKO.co.ke found this to be true as it established some EABL beer brands were packaged in non-engraved Euro bottles.

The main suit between EABL and Keroche Breweries, over the Euro bottle will be heard on Tuesday, March 10.

In its suit, Keroche Breweries is asking the court to issue a declaratory order stating that EABL and Kenya Breweries do not have any proprietary right or any right to the exclusive use of the Euro bottle design.

Do you have a groundbreaking story you would like us to publish? Please reach us through news@tuko.co.ke or WhatsApp: 0732482690. Contact Tuko.co.ke instantly.

Crime of passion | Tuko TV | Tuko Investigates

Source: TUKO.co.ke
A man was mauled to death after being 'bitten multiple times' by his pitbull after suffering a medical episode.

Police shot the dog after 35-year-old Jonny Halstead was killed at a property in Oldham, Greater Manchester.

They were originally alerted a man had collapsed after falling ill at home and went on to be bitten, according to the Manchester Evening News.

Devastated: Pals of Jonny Halstead are coming to terms with his death after he was mauled by his pitbull after suffering a medical episode

Neighbours revealed police cars and ambulances, including forensic teams and plain-clothes officers, rushed to the scene on the quiet street on Wednesday afternoon.

Teams were seen in and out of the property throughout the day and following their work the front door of the house was boarded up.

A GoFundMe page has been set up following his death, which has raised more than 1,000 towards the cost of his funeral.

His friends have been left devastated following his death, with one saying: 'Jonny Halstead was taken far too soon.

'If you knew him and fancy doing one positive thing today try and support his family cover some costs.

'You had me in stitches every time we met.'

Another added: 'We lost a good friend yesterday.

'Lots of good memories to look back on but we would rather had him here to make some more.

'RIP Jonny.'

And another said: 'God I'm absolutely gutted. The saying is true he only takes the best.

'Jonny you will be missed so much by so many people. I wish it wasn't true.

'Nightmare': One of his friends said 'Jonny Halstead was taken far too soon' following his tragic death

One said: 'I was hoping to wake up and it all be a nightmare, unfortunately it's not and you really have gone, Jonny Halstead, can't get my head around it all.

'RIP you'll be missed.'

A post-mortem has yet to take place into Mr Halstead's death.

In a statement, a Greater Manchester Police spokesman said: 'Shortly before 2pm on Wednesday January 29, police were called to a report that a man had been bitten multiple times by a dog at a property on Duckworth Street, Shaw, Oldham.

'Emergency services attended and sadly found the body of a 35-year-old man.

'The dog was destroyed by officers at the scene.'
The government has proposed to set up a National Police University and a National Forensic Science University, Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman said on Saturday.

Presenting the Budget for 2020-21, Sitharaman said Rs 99,300 crore has been allocated for the sector and Rs 3,000 crore for skill development.

Sitharaman said the Narendra Modi government will soon announce a new policy.

According to new proposals announced in the budget, urban local bodies will provide internship to young engineers for a year so that they get an idea about the functioning of the government.

"Degree level online courses will be introduced which can be provided by colleges figuring in top 100 in National Institutional Ranking Framework," she said in her budget speech.

In order to boost the Study in India programme, the Finance Minister proposed "conducting IND-SAT exam to be held in African and Asian countries for benchmarking foreign candidates who wish to study in the India".

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
We should do some research into how fintech can help the New Zealand economy for the benefit of all New Zealanders. When companies are looking to scale up they generally need to go offshore to find investment and sometimes they dont come back so we lose them to other markets, Brown said, as reported by IT Brief.

Across our three super funds we only invest 9% in the New Zealand market. Lets increase that to 10% and give the 1% to the tech sector, which will resolve all our funding problems. This will also tackle climate change by investing in more sustainable technology which is less harmful for the environment.

Read more: Fintech company launches model to calculate rebuild costs

Brown noted that the beginning of the new decade brings much uncertainty.

During the last decade we have seen investment in technology around the world, some countries and cities do this very well, he said. However, when you look at the figures from the OECD, New Zealand is lagging behind and I wonder if this has an impact on the way we think about tech, especially fintech.

When you look at our productivity levels, they are lower than other OECD countries, with the introduction of meatless meat and unemployment around 4.2%, how do we expect to create an increase in productivity? In years gone by, our geographical location was a barrier. Today, with low barriers to entry and time zone, we actually can use this to our advantage.
A mother 'completely broke down' when she discovered a massive metal container had been dumped on the grave of her son who was shot dead in Iraq.

Diane Douglas had gone to lay flowers on son Allan's grave at Dyce Cemetery in Aberdeen, Scotland, on the anniversary of his death.

Allan was just 22 when he was shot while on routine patrol in Al Amarah, Iraq.

He was serving as a Lance Corporal with the 1st Battalion The Highlanders in 2006.

Allan Douglas (pictured) was killed while he was serving as a Lance Corporal with the 1st Battalion The Highlanders in 2006

Diane, who makes monthly visits to the grave from her home in Arbroath, was with daughter Donna and son-in-law Paul. Husband Walter did not accompany them as he's suffering ill health.

The mum was left in tears after seeing the container positioned on his resting place - and claimed it is the second time this had happened.

The box is 'stood on top of everything', according to the heartbroken mum.

His grave at Dyce Cemetery in Aberdeen, Scotland, has been dumped with a large metal box (pictured). The soldier's mother Diane Douglas was shocked when she discovered her beloved son's resting place had been covered

'I know people need to be buried but surely they can read the front of the headstone and realise it is the anniversary and that their relatives would more than likely visit that day.'

She 'completely broke down' when she got home from seeing the metal box which left her feeling like the graveyard is 'completely out-of-hand'.

'Upset is not the word to describe how I felt, it was just a massive letdown.'

Diane (pictured with partner Walter) who makes monthly visits to the grave from her home in Arbroath, was with daughter Donna and son-in-law Paul. She claimed 'upset' would not come close to describing her feelings and felt the graveyard was a 'massive letdown'

A city council spokesman apologised for the upset caused by the 'unavoidable grave digging works' and explained a similar box would have been used when digging Allan's grave.

He said: 'The box in question is a soil box which is required for the digging of the grave. This is common practice in cemeteries across the country and a similar box would have been laid on the adjoining graves when Mr Douglas' grave was being prepared'

They added how workers have 'no option' but to walk on either side of the grave and the site would be restored once the burial has taken place.
Riding the tram to Heavenlys ski slopes, a stoic-looking golden retriever named Peak stands still as a statue. When the tram doors open, Peak sees his friend Wheeler in the distance, sprints down a steep hill toward the eight-month-old Australian Shepherd and then the pair tumble together through the fresh powder like the happiest dogs in the world.

The only time I see them happier is when Wheeler digs his trainer, Jon Wilson, out from under two feet of snow (scroll through the slideshow to see him in action).

Peak and Wheeler are two of Heavenlys six snow rescue dogs, trained to assist search parties during avalanches. Its such a harrowing and very serious job that their trainers wont confirm or deny whether Peak or Wheeler have mission experience, although Peak does come from a lineage of dogs whose heroics have been memorialized at the base of the mountain with a regal statue. Some dogs have been reported to occasionally show signs of PTSD from their work, but for most of the animals, the rescues feel more like hide and seek.

For the dog, its not life or death; its just a game, says Colton Terry.

RELATED: The story behind how a 21-year-old bought North Lake Tahoe's most beloved burger joint

Some resorts own their dogs, but at Heavenly, the animals belong to their patrollers. They dont earn a salary, but do have excellent health benefits (the most common injury is cuts on paws), food sponsorships, retirement at age 8 or 9, and  the biggest perk  they rarely leave their owners side. When the patrollers ride in a tram, snowmobile, or even a helicopter, the dogs go with them. Should they change employers, the dogs go with them. At the end of the night when they head home, the dogs go with them (and immediately pass out from exhaustion).

The bond between pet and owner is undeniably adorable. Wilson and Terry look like any other bearded ski bums jostling their outdoorsy pets, but its even more powerful to watch once you realize that their unconditional affection is actually one of the reasons these dogs may someday save a life.

Wilson gives a demo of how that unconditional love ties into their training. While another trainer holds Wheeler on a leash, Wilson walks 40 yards away and steps into a cave dug into the snow. Once hes inside the miniature underground igloo, the hole is closed off with snow to trap him inside.

Up until this point, Wheelers acted like any other playful puppy. The patrollers encourage guests to pet the dog  the happier it is, the better. But as soon as Wilson disappears in the snow, Wheeler turns into a different beast.

When you put a leash on them, youll notice a change right off the bat, says Terry. Wilson echoes the sentiment on the tram ride up. Once I put a leash on him, he knows its time to go into work.

With his master trapped underground, the previously happy-go-lucky Wheeler yanks his leash taut, screeching in a high pitched howl that sounds like a hyena crossed with the Demogorgon monster from Stranger Things. Its one of the quirks of the breed, which almost never serve as patrol dogs.

Wheeler flies off the leash at the command word (search!) and covers the 40 yards to his owner at Olympic-dash speed, paws furiously tunneling through the snow until hes reunited with his trainer/bestie, whom he drags out of the hole by pulling on a rope toy held in Wilsons hand. Suddenly, Wheelers once again bounding with joy, his tongue wagging out of a mouth curled into a canine smile.

Although Wheelers practice rescue is impressive, hes not yet a fully certified rescue dog. The exercise they just performed is only the second stage of a training regiment called the Swiss 4 Phase Progression. Next, theyll add a second person in the hole. And in the final stage, the handler wont be in the hole at all, to reinforce that idea that the dog is searching for humans in general, not just their best friend.

Now that Wheeler has dug out his master, its time for Peak to show off what a fully certified rescue dog can do.

Somewhere out here in this area, theres a wool piece of clothing about the size of a torso, explains Terry. The clothing has been scented for four days at the foot of a bed, so Peak will be able to recognize the human smell. Its been buried under two feet of snow to simulate a deep burial. In a real rescue situation, a human would give off an exponentially stronger smell, so this test proves just how powerful a canine nose can be.

I have no idea where it is, but hell tell me where its at, says Terry. All of the sudden his head will pop, his butt will turn, and hell go right towards it.

RELATED: Blindness, amputations and paralysis can't stop these veterans from skiing Tahoe

Terry yells out the command (search!) and the dog methodically paces back and forth in an expanding grid. After about a minute traversing the area, his tail shoots up and paws go down, snow flying behind him. He pulls out the backpack and bounds back to Wilson, once again looking like the happiest animal in the world (partly thanks to treating himself to a little fresh snow as a snack).

The staff at Heavenly wouldnt share any details on their own rescue efforts, but statistics show that over the last decade, an average of 28 people died from avalanches in the US every year. The dogs are just one of many tools patrollers use, but the animals sense of urgency is one of their greatest strengths. If a victim is found within the first 18 minutes of burial, theres a 91% chance of survival. After that the rate falls sharply to 34% between 19 and 35 minutes.

Most avalanches dont happen at resorts, but rather in back country scenarios, so dogs like Peak and Wheeler serve as shared resources for local police rescue teams. In a real rescue scenario, they wouldnt actually be tunneling out people, but rather signaling locations of buried individuals for retrieval by barking and starting to dig.

The dogs and trainers run through drills a few times a week, but whats harder than developing the prey drive for finding things under the snow is just general obedience. In real rescue scenarios, a dog will need to ride calmly in a noisy snowcat or helicopter and not become distracted by huge teams of patrollers and other animals.

The bonds between rescue dog and their trainers are truly unique, but for Terry, his favorite part of working with Peak isnt actually much different from most other pet owners.

Its seeing the excitement on his face when were going out to do a search or a sweep, Terry says. And honestly, sometimes its just grabbing my backpack and then grabbing his stuff and jumping in the truck. Him sitting in the front seat with his arm on the window, like, here we go.

Dan Gentile is a digital editor at SFGATE. Email: Dan.Gentile@sfgate.com | Twitter: @Dannosphere
Just over one year ago, Amanda Krueger got the news no mother ever wants to hear. Her son, Giancarlo Baldini, had died of an accidental drug overdose.

He was just 19 years old.

Giancarlo had been actively recovering from a heroin addiction for more than a year when he died on Dec. 16, 2018. With the support of his family and girlfriend Lucy, the young man was living a sober life.

He had everything going for him, said Krueger, who lives in Napa.

And then he was gone.

Krueger has spent the past 13 months processing and moving through the trauma of Giancarlos death.

She continues to grieve, but now has a new focus in her life: to help prevent others from suffering the same fate as her son.

Before this tragedy, I lived in a bubble, said Krueger. I didnt ever think terrible things happened, she said.

This was soul shattering, she said.

Any of her previous challenges or obstacles seem so small now.

The first months: shockThose first few months after Giancarlo died were a blur, said Krueger.

I dont remember it very well, she said. It was a shock to my system.

In the immediate aftermath of her sons death, I had the highest level of anxiety, Krueger recalled. Terrible images of shattering mirrors would come to her mind when she closed her eyes.

I thought I was having a nervous breakdown, she said. I was terrified of the world. Nothing made sense. It was terrible.

Krueger credits her friends, family and husband Brian for their extensive support. People brought food, flowers, called, visited, and even brought toys for her younger son, who is in elementary school.

I get so touched at that, she said during an interview this past week.

Krueger also went public with Giancarlos story, in the hopes of bringing more awareness to the problem of opioid addiction and removing the stigma of such addiction.

Im passionate about being honest, said Krueger. Were a normal family, we raised him well, she said, but addiction can strike any family. She thought by sharing her story, maybe it can help other people.

In response, Krueger received thousands of messages and emails of condolence and appreciation. She also received another kind of message: parents asking for help for their own sons and daughters who were facing addiction.

One Napa father who has also lost a child also made a huge difference, said Krueger.

Arik Housley, whose daughter Alaina was killed by gun violence in Thousand Oaks just weeks before Giancarlo died, came to see Krueger one day.

I remember looking at him, she said. Even though Housley was also grieving, he was still upright. Dressed. Talking. Alive. He was moving forward, she said.

Housleys steady presence and his own perseverance, He touched me at my lowest moment. He really inspired me, she said. Seeing Eric, a light switch went on for me.

It made me think thats the right way to do it. To move forward.

Arik changed my process, she said. It was just what I needed. I dont know if he knows the magnitude of what he did for me. It wasnt anything profound. It was just his way  so genuine and strong.

At the same time, Krueger had a vision of her younger son as an adult, remembering how his mother grieved for his brother. Would he remember that as the time when his mom persevered and tried to make a difference? Or when his mom stopped living?

I couldnt go that route, she said. Krueger said she knew she had to be a good example for her son, so when he faces hardships or tragedies he can look back and see how we handled it. Thats really important to me.

A path to healingOver the past year, Krueger also sought out other ways of healing. She attended grief and loss groups. She took antidepressants.

She also tried alternative healing methods such as sound healing, Reiki, floating therapy, talking to a psychic, grief yoga and light therapy. She also started exercising, something shed never been into before.

I was looking for something that would heal my soul rather than something that would distract me, she said. I wanted to come to understand this spiritually. And it all helped, she said.

My soul was like a broken bone that I had to be easy with or I would cause permanent damage. Ive been really mindful to how I treat and talk to myself.

I wanted to be able to smile for my son and mean it. And my husband. I dont want to be a shell. Giancarlo wouldnt have wanted that.

The number one thing that helped was my husband  hes my rock. The two have a small business, Ironside Construction, and he was able to shoulder much of the responsibility for that company in those early months.

Stepping into advocacyAfter spending the first six months soul searching, Krueger began speaking and visiting at the sober living house in Marin County that Giancarlo had once lived at.

I have a lot of empathy and love for these young men who are struggling to stay sober, she said. I just want to hug them all, because its rough. I just love being a mom and seeing these boys who remind me so much of Giancarlo.

There are still moments of heartbreak, for example, when her younger son says he doesnt remember Giancarlos voice anymore.

But Giancarlos girlfriend Lucy and his best friend Oliver still visit often. They hang out with her younger son and share memories about Giancarlo. Im very happy they are such a big part of our lives.

Shes also recently joined the Napa Opioid Safety Coalition. That group works to create community awareness and a dialogue about the opioid epidemic in the United States.

More specifically, shes starting a nonprofit called Giancarloslight.org. Efforts will include a fundraiser to make Narcan accessible and free to the community. Narcan is a nasal spray that can help reverse an opioid overdose.

There is nowhere currently to get it for free. I want to change that, she said. Narcan needs to be easy to get. It should be on the streets as much as drugs are.

Shed also like to raise money to provide scholarships for those who need sober housing.

Remembering GiancarloIn the months leading up to the one year anniversary of Giancarlos death, Krueger said she felt a wave of grief coming. Thats when she started going to a fitness center called Orange Theory in Napa.

Im going to arm myself, she recalled. If I fall apart right now before Christmas, what kind of memory would that leave for her younger son?

Her workouts at Orange Theory got me through Christmas,  along with her family and son.

On Nov. 7, on what would have been Giancarlos 20th birthday, Krueger planned a day of self-care including grief yoga and meditation. She laid out photos, clothing and books that belonged to Giancarlo. I dived into it rather than avoid her grief, she said. And it helped.

Krueger and her husband have also taken another big step forward: they plan to become a foster family.

She knows there is a need for more foster families in Napa, said Krueger. I was born to be a mom and having a house full of love is where I want to be.

I loved being a mom to Giancarlo. I have a lot more mom in me and my husband feels the same.

I feel like we have more room in our house  and in our hearts to care for other children that need it.

She commented on the perception that it can be hard for a foster parent to say goodbye to foster child. But Krueger thinks she can handle that challenge. Ive said the hardest goodbye.

Moving forwardAs she enters the second year after Giancarlos death, Krueger has new perspective on her grief and loss.

At first you are overcome and sinking and drowning, she recalled. Today, waves of grief still wash over her, but they dont last as long.

I feel like I spent the first year collecting all the right tools to navigate her loss, reflected Krueger. I have myself surrounded by the right people at the right time. I feel fortunate for that.

I didnt think I could possibly be here as she is today, but Giancarlo is an angel and he guides me, said Krueger.

When asked what she would say to others who have lost a loved one, Krueger had this reply: Dig deep and soul search. It can get better. And know that you will find joy again. True joy.

Just like Arik, Im up and Im walking.

If her son could see her now and her plans to help others in need, I know he would give me a big hug and say, I love you mom, said Krueger.

You can reach reporter Jennifer Huffman at 256-2218 or jhuffman@napanews.com

Get local news delivered to your inbox! Subscribe to our Daily Headlines newsletter. Sign up! * I understand and agree that registration on or use of this site constitutes agreement to its user agreement and privacy policy.
Enbridge, which wants to change the contract terms on the largest Canadian oil pipeline network, believes that Canadian producers who have opposed that change may want to stall a review of the proposal in the hope that the fate of the other pipelines in the works could become clearer soon, a senior Enbridge executive told Bloomberg.

Enbridge operates Mainline, the largest pipeline network that sends Canadian crude oil to the United States with capacity of 2.85 million barrels per day (bpd).

In December, Enbridge filed an application to the Canada Energy Regulator (CER), proposing a new framework on the way crude volumes are being contracted and shipped via the Mainline pipeline. Currently, Enbridge allocates capacity on the Mainline on an uncommitted basis, using a monthly nomination system. But the pipeline company wants to change that allocation system by contracting 90 percent of the capacity under long-term contracts, leaving only 10 percent for uncommitted or spot shipments.

Enbridge argues that the new system will ensure non-discriminatory and open-access to capacity, improve takeaway capacity out of Western Canada, and support Western Canadian oil prices.

Shippers representing approximately 70 per cent of the Mainline's current throughput support our approach, Guy Jarvis, Enbridge Executive Vice President, Liquids Pipelines, said in December when Enbridge filed its application.

But several oil producers, including the largest, Canadian Natural Resources, oppose the move and asked this week the CER to split the review process into two parts, the first being the fundamental question if Enbridge should be allowed to convert access to the pipeline to long-term contracting.



Related: Exxons Earnings Slump On Poor Petrochemical, Refining Results

Asked to comment on the opposition from some producers, Enbridges Yu told Bloomberg:

It might be strategic from some of these shippers because it would help them gain more clarity on whats happening on some of the other pipelines that are under development.

Canadian oil producers have been struggling with insufficient pipeline takeaway capacity in recent years. As a consequence, producers have been suffering from depressed Western Canadian oil prices while Line 3, the Trans Mountain Expansion, and Keystone XL are months and even years away from start of operations. That is, if they clear all legal and regulatory hurdles, which opponents of the pipelines have filed in courts over the past few years.

By Tsvetana Paraskova for Oilprice.com

More Top Reads From Oilprice.com:
Maldives (Representative image)

Maldives was officially readmitted to the Commonwealth on Saturday more than three years after the Indian Ocean archipelago nation quit the organisation over criticism of its human rights record, taking the count of the bloc's membership countries back to 54.

The island nation's rejoining came just over an hour after the United Kingdom left the European Union following 47 years of membership.

The island nation had quit the Commonwealth in October 2016 after being threatened with suspension over its human rights record and lack of progress on democratic reform.

It submitted a request to rejoin in December 2018, when President Ibrahim Mohamed Solih wrote to Commonwealth Secretary-General Patricia Scotland.

"The reform process underway in Maldives aligns with the values and principles of the Commonwealth and we encourage the nation to continue on this path," said Baroness Scotland, as she welcomed the country and its people back to the fold.

"Commonwealth members were pleased to note these developments and are happy once again to count Maldives as a member of the family. Together we will support Maldives to realise its ambitions," she said.

The readmission followed "due diligence", which included country assessment and consultations in accordance with the rules and procedures agreed by the Commonwealth Heads of Government (CHOGM) in Kampala in 2007. India was one of the countries that had supported the country's readmission.

"Today is a happy day for Maldivians as we return to the family of Commonwealth nations. As a young democracy, the Commonwealth's foundational values of the promotion of democracy, human rights, good governance, multilateralism and world peace remain relevant to us more than ever," Maldives President Solih said.

"We gratefully acknowledge the support and help of the Commonwealth to the Maldivian democratic movement, and we look forward to the support of fellow member states to ensure the long term entrenchment of these values in our society," he said.

The Commonwealth Secretariat said the assessment included two site visits to the country followed by positive feedback given by a Commonwealth Observer Group which was present for the Parliamentary Elections in April 2019.

Members subsequently agreed to invite Maldives to submit a formal application, which it did on December 25 last year. The country presented evidence of functioning democratic processes as well as popular support for re-joining.

The Secretary-General then consulted with all 53 Commonwealth members and received no objections. The country will now be part of the CHOGM scheduled for Kigali in Rwanda on June 22-28.

Maldives Ambassador to the UK Farah Faizal, now becomes its High Commissioner, signifying Commonwealth membership.

Maldives joined the Commonwealth in 1982 and was a member until it withdrew in 2016.

The Commonwealth is a political association of 54 member states, nearly all of them former territories of the British Empire. Its members have agreed to shared goals like development, democracy and peace.

Any country can join the modern Commonwealth. The last country to join the Commonwealth was Rwanda in 2009.
With Iraq in turmoil, questions grow over the future of the protests which have seized most of the country for months

Since the beginning of October, most of Iraq has been gripped by massive and disaffected crowds filling the streets of Baghdad and major cities in the south protesting against the misrule of the countrys self-serving elite, together with its profiteering and dependency on Iran.

The protesters have been demanding jobs, better public services, security and an end to widespread corruption. But as the ruling class foundered in its response, the crowds have gone on to call for the ouster of the government and a halt to Irans overweening influence in Iraq.

For more than four months, the countrys ruling factions have continued to delay, alternating vague promises of reform with brutal crackdowns on the protesters by the security forces.

More than 650 protesters have been killed and tens of thousands wounded as the security forces have increased their use of tear gas, live bullets and beatings in confronting the peaceful protesters.

Nevertheless, Iraqs October Revolution, as is has come to be known, has been resilient and has succeeded in attaining one of its main demands  the resignation of the government of Prime Minister Adel Abdul-Mahdi.

But a key question that has confronted the uprising remains: can the protesters, most of whom are disgruntled young people, succeed in challenging Iraqs entrenched political class and achieve their goals?

An answer to this question is by necessity contextual and depends largely, as the classic literature on revolutions explains, on how far factors coincide and major conditions are fulfilled.

A guide to the protests in Iraq will show how the strategies and tactics adopted by the protesters have shaped the policies and skills that have been exercised during the process and determined the uprisings outcome.

The ongoing Iraqi uprising stretches back to the protests against the corruption and mismanagement of then prime minister Nouri Al-Malikis government in the wake of the 2011 Arab Spring revolutions that rocked several Arab countries.

The protests have been periodically renewed, and though they were forcibly crushed by the security forces at the time and later their effects have shaken up the dysfunctional sect-based political system which was created after Saddam Husseins fall in 2003.

The latest wave of protests, which started in October, have targeted the government of Abdul-Mahdi, who failed to deliver on promises he had made to reform the government and tackle the dismal state of Iraqs essential infrastructure and lack of basic services.

The protests started as peaceful sit-ins and marches as the demonstrators tried to make their demands heard. Then came the crackdown and a government that refused to back down.

In the days that followed, Baghdad and other southern cities in Iraq were roiled by protests and the violence of the security forces as the demonstrations mushroomed into a broader call for government reform.

While this brief account gives the reasons behind the current standoff, a broader view of the timeline and major events of the uprising can help us to understand why the protesters have so far failed to achieve their goals despite their heroic sacrifices.

The first phase of the uprising started on 1 October, when the demonstrators gathered in Baghdads Tahrir Square and a few towns in southern Iraq in response to calls on social media by civil activists to voice socioeconomic grievances against the government.

The lack of government response to their demands and the security forces brutal crackdown pushed the protesters to move to a second phase and call for political and economic reforms and a curb on the Iranian influence in the country.

When the Iraqi ruling elite turned a deaf ear to the protesters, a third phase of the uprising was triggered, pushing for Abdul-Mahdis resignation and the installation of a government not affiliated to the political factions.

In the fourth phase when the uprising reached a moment of reckoning after it had turned into a mass movement, the protesters began calling for the end of the current political system in Iraq, emphasising their longing for an end to sectarianism and for the rebuilding of the nation as indicated by the widely used slogan we want a homeland.

Two main trends or currents of thinking among the activists have emerged, with one side wanting to give the establishment a chance to reform itself through a new government and the other continuing to press for an overhaul of the entire system.

Both camps are made up of activists who are not officially organised but work through what they call provincial coordination committees that help to bring together the nationwide protests.

While the organisers have discouraged the political factions from joining the protests, some groups have been attending the sit-ins either to show support and solidarity or in an attempt to influence the protests.

Not unexpectedly, some loyalists to the former ruling Baath Party in Iraq have been seen in the protests, even though they have tried to keep a low profile. The Baathists are active on social media in mobilising against the government, however.

Behind the scenes, the protests are backed by a vast network of people who cook meals, drive cars, provide funding, food or logistics, or give medical attention to the injured and legal counsel to those arrested.

Among those who oppose the protests are defenders of the status quo who want to see order restored along with hardliners eager to intervene to end them.

The protests have been largely restricted to Shia-majority neighbourhoods in Baghdad and the southern provinces. Those in the Kurdish and Sunni-populated provinces of Iraq have remain largely uninterested in what they probably see as simply Shia-Shia infighting.

These are generally the faces of the uprising, which indicates that it is a spontaneous and leaderless movement without a clear project, socio-political framework or strategy.

As the scale of the government response has intensified, it has raised the question of how long such a disorganised movement can last and whether it could precipitate regime change in Iraq.

The question about the future of the Iraqi uprising follows in the footsteps of intellectual debates about grassroots movements without clear organisers at the helm, or what are commonly known as revolutions without revolutionaries, and whether change can be brought about through such an unorganised peoples movement.

For many on both sides of the debate, re-triggered by a new wave of worldwide protests, the question is whether an active citizenry can create alternate visions of social change through lived experience.

In the case of the Iraqi uprising, the problem that the protests have no centralised leadership that can carry the role of a political counterweight to the ruling factions and their paramilitary affiliates has been self-evident.

To many critics, in addition to lacking leadership, the Iraqi protests have had no revolutionary programme, or even clear political agenda, that would spell out its objectives and provide an alternative to the ruling cliques.

As the uprising nears its fifth month, activists in Baghdad and other provinces of Iraq have failed to unify their fragmented networks into a coordinated national movement that can act with a collective voice and leadership and steer the uprising away from spontaneity and confusion.

Among the criticisms of the uprising is that the protesters have not tried to nurture reliable political allies from among independent politicians, lawmakers, tribal leaders, celebrities, political activists and others who could help in bringing local support and global attention to its cause.

Judged on its merits, however, the uprising has sometimes succeeded. It has forced the Iraqi prime minister to resign, pushed the political elite to rewrite the election law and forced amendments to the constitution.

It is true that none of these things has so far brought about real change, but they could be a good start to the protesters demands.

One of the most significant achievements of the uprising has been the creation of a massive grassroots movement of a type unseen before in Iraq which has suffered for decades first from Saddams totalitarian regime and then from his successors kleptocracy.

This movement has acted as a catalyst to overthrow sectarianism and stir up patriotism by injecting new hope that the various components of Iraqi society can be brought together under the umbrella of broader Iraqi nationalism.

The other important outcome of the protests thus far has been the huge gap it has highlighted between the ruling Shia elite and its communal powerbase that forms the backbone of the protests.

This schism has been dismantling the political power of the Shia elite to control Iraqs government and rendering its ability to sustain itself and expand impossible.

The Iraqi uprising seems to be special in the sense that it faces very complex conditions and has to deal with difficult circumstances related to the nature of the countrys political system, unique state apparatus and social and communal composition.

Even with the authorities and their allied militias brutally trying to quell the uprising, the demonstrations are still strong, and the protesters demands have only grown and with them their expectations.

*A version of this article appears in print in the 30 January, 2020 edition of Al-Ahram Weekly.

Search Keywords:

Short link:


ISRO

In her Budget speech, Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman has proposed the setting up five new Smart Cities.

The government in 2020 has allocated Rs 6,450 crore for the Smart Cities Mission for the year 2020-2021. There has been no change in allocation from what was budgeted last year.

There is a case for maximising the benefits of three separately developing economic activities: (1) the upcoming economic corridors; (2) revitalisation of manufacturing activities; and (3) Technology and the demands of aspirational classes. We have to benefit from their convergence. Hence, it is proposed to develop five new smart cities in collaboration with States in PPP mode. Such sites would be chosen that offer the best choices in terms of aforementioned principles, the finance minister said in her Budget speech.

Experts have welcomed the announcement. Focus has been retained on urban development by committing to five additional smart cities, said Anurag Mathur, chief executive officer, Savills India.

In 2019, a sum of Rs 6,450 crore was allocated for the Smart Cities Mission for 2019-20 against Rs 6,169 crore in 2018-19.

The government in 2018 had proposed over 50 percent increase in the allocation for smart cities from Rs 4,000 crore for 2017-2018 to Rs 6,169 crore for 2018-2019.

Under the SCM, 100 Smart Cities have been selected in four rounds based on an all India competition. All 100 cities have incorporated Special Purpose Vehicles (SPVs).

Since the launch of the mission, 5,151 projects, worth more than Rs 2 lakh crore, have been identified for implementation which are at various stages of implementation.

As per statistics made available by the ministry of housing and urban affairs, the value of tendered smart city projects is over Rs 1,62,000 crore, the value of work orders issued is around Rs 1,20,000 crore and the value of all completed projects is more than Rs 25,000 crore.

The Smart Cities Mission was launched on June 25, 2015. The first list of 20 cities announced on January 28, 2016. A fast-track list of 13 cities was announced on four months later. The second list of 27 cities was announced on September 20 2016. The third list of 30 cities announced on June 23, 2017 and the final list was announced in January 2018.

Under the mission, the Centre allocates Rs 500 crore to each of the cities for implementing projects proposed by it. This amount is matched with a grant of the same amount by the respective state.
Bus services offered to Missouri City residents are being changed, according to officials from the with Metropolitan Transit Authority of Harris County (METRO). Beginning in February one of the citys two bus routes, the 364 Missouri City Flex Route, is being discontinued and the 363 Missouri City Community Connector will be expanded to include portions of the discontinued area down Hwy. 6, METRO officials said during a public hearing at the Missouri City Community Center on Tuesday, Jan. 28.

Missouri City Mayor Yolanda Ford opened the meeting by welcoming guests and introduced METRO officials. Ken Brown, METRO manager of service planning for METRO, led a presentation outlining the changes, which were made because the 363 route drew few riders.

For those who depend on the 363 route, METRO officials said riders can call and schedule a ride to and from any destination within the zone including the routes anchor stops the Walmart on Hwy. 6, the Missouri City Park and Ride on Fondren.

A question-and-answer session after the presentation drew comments from riders and a number of Missouri City elected officials. During the recent city elections last November, elected officials at times faced criticism at forums and on social media fom voters concerned that METROs service offerings to Missouri City riders were lackluster.

Related: City Council Candidates speak out during Missouri City Election forum

At-large councilmember Chris Preston echoed others comments that the citys bus services were a topic of disccusion during his campaign.

Some residents are very favorable of Metro and some are not, Preston said. I want to make we get this right because we owe it to the residents. Missouri City has a lot of future growth potential. But we want to mindful of the impact to our infrastructure. Thats very important. Please do your best in making sure we are successful with this, and we're going to do what we can.

We want to make sure that this is a great partnership that's fair and equitable for our residents because for those that are still on the fence about this, we want to give them something, Preston said.

Councilmember Floyd Emery questioned the level of bus service available to the city as a whole.

All of Missouri City citizens pay sales tax, Emery said. We should provide the same service to all of those folks. They deserve it.

Thomas Jasien, METROs deputy chief operating officer, said there is a limit to what Metro can spend to provide services.

METRO serves an area that is 1,300 square miles and I have to tell you there are large parts of this city and this service area that pays taxes to METRO that do not have the METRO Lift service; they do not have any bus service or anything else. I hear you, but Missouri City is not alone. And you can't afford to cover every single thing on every single street.

Missouri Citys current partnership with METRO stipulates that one percent of the citys sales tax is paid to METRO, with roughly $10.3 million paid last year, according to city officials.

Beginning in February, the 363 Missouri City Community Connector will be discontinued.

Following the comments, Mayor Ford thanked the officials from METRO for the presentation.

I foresee moving forward that this service will be successful. I think we just both have to do our part to market (the service).
Former Ukrainian ambassador Marie Yovanovitch, who testified in the House impeachment inquiry, is retiring from foreign service, CBS News' Margaret Brennan confirmed. In a recording made by an associate of Rudy Giuliani, Lev Parnas, in April 2018, President Trump was heard saying "get rid of her" and "take her out."

Yovanovitch testified in November that she was prematurely removed from her post due to a smear campaign orchestrated by "foreign corrupt interests" in Ukraine who worked with Trump allies to tarnish her reputation after 33 years in public service.

The news of Yovanovitch's retirement was first reported by NPR. Despite being forced out from her post in Kiev in May 2019, she had remained on the payroll, according to NPR.

In her six-hour testimony in November, Yovanovitch said she was given no reason for her removal from Kiev and did not know why she was targeted by Rudy Giuliani. Giuliani told CBS News in January that he had "no idea" about efforts to track Yovanovitch.

Trump Impeachment

Former U.S. Ambassador to Ukraine Marie Yovanovitch testifies before the House Intelligence Committee on Friday, November 15, 2019, on Capitol Hill Jacquelyn Martin / AP

"There's a question as to why the kind of campaign to get me out of Ukraine happened, because all the president has to do is say he wants a different ambassador," Yovanovitch testified. "And in my line of work, perhaps in your line of work as well, all we have is our reputation. And so this has been a very painful period."

She said she felt threatened when she learned what Mr. Trump said about her on his now-infamous July 25 phone call with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky. Mr. Trump said Yovanovitch was "bad news" and would be "going through some things," comments that she said provoked a physical reaction when she learned of them in September.

In a recording of a dinner of Trump donors provided to CBS News last week by Parnas' attorney, a man told Mr. Trump that the "the biggest problem  where we need to start  is we gotta get rid of the ambassador."

Story continues

"Who? The ambassador to Ukraine?" Mr. Trump asked.

"Yeah, she's basically walking around telling everybody, 'Wait, he's gonna get impeached. Just wait.' You're going to be impeached," the person said.

"What's her name?" Mr. Trump asked.

"I don't remember," the person said.

"Get rid of her," Mr. Trump answered. "Get her out tomorrow. I don't care. Get her out tomorrow. Take her out. OK? Do it."

Mr. Trump has previously denied knowing Parnas, despite the existence of photos of the pair together. In an interview with Fox News on Sunday, White House press secretary Stephanie Grisham said she believed Parnas and another associate, Igor Fruman, were at the dinner at the invitation of Giuliani.

Parnas and Fruman helped Giuliani in his attempts to investigate former Vice President Joe Biden and his son Hunter Biden in Ukraine. Parnas, a Ukrainian-born U.S. citizen, and Fruman, originally from Belarus, were arrested on campaign finance charges at Dulles International Airport in October.

The United Kingdom leaves the European Union

White House grapples with reality of a longer Senate trial

Toledo students surprised with free college tuition
A former Senator representing Kaduna Central senatorial district, Shehu Sani, has said operatives of the Economic and Financial Crimes...





A former Senator representing Kaduna Central senatorial district, Shehu Sani, has said operatives of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission, breached his fundamental human rights during his 30 days incarceration.





Sani in a statement on Saturday said apart from searching his houses and offices, the EFCC agents also forced him to declare his assets.





The rights activist also said they tried to subject him to polygraph lie detector tests, blocked his accounts, seized his phones and kept him in the underground cell of the agency for 30 days.





While pledging to abide by the bail conditions, Sani urged Nigerians to disregard the "lies against him by the EFCC spokesperson."









Part of the statement read, "I wish to thank all individuals and groups that have shown concern, support, solidarity, and prayers during my 30 days of incarceration in the underground cell of the EFCC on the orders of its chairman.





"With gratitude to Almighty Allah, my special appreciation to Amnesty International, SERAP, HURIWA, and other groups, numerous to mention.





"My incarceration for 30 days in the jail of EFCC was unfair, unjust and a clear breach of my fundamental rights and hence stands condemned.





"During my unjust stay in the EFCC cell, I was subjected to traumatizing interrogations; My houses and offices were searched.





"They compelled me to declare my assets, they tried to subject me to polygraph lie detector tests, my accounts were blocked, and my phone was seized, all in the name of fictional $24,000 or $25, 000 extortion.





"Any Information planted in the media by the EFCC spokesperson while I was in their custody about me is outrightly false and nothing but a bacterial and fungal infested concoctions, typical of their style.





"Our country will continue to be at the bottom strata of the transparency International index as long as our anti-graft agencies only use their might and arsenal to crush ants while lacking the courage, the heart, and the liver to confront the snakes, the vultures and the hyenas of the ruling establishment.





"They can frame me, detain me but cant silence me.





"I shall abide by all the conditions of my bail and appreciate the courage, compassion, and wisdom of the court in granting me the bail.





"In an ideal democratic state, all agencies of the government are obliged to operate within the dictates and the ambit of the rule of law or the nation leaps into tyranny.





"The rule book of Stalin, The manual of Hitler or road map of Mussolini should not be the guidance and the compass of the nations security and anti-corruption agencies in their quest to sanitize our country," Sani added.
Hahm Chul-ho



By Lee Hyo-sik



A former CEO of T'way Air has set up SKYWORKS, Korea's first aviation consulting firm offering comprehensive services to people planning to start and operate airlines.



Hahm Chul-ho, who headed the country's third-largest low-cost carrier from 2011 to 2015, has been busy over the past year working with Palau government officials on the Pacific island nation's efforts to establish its first flagship carrier. He has also been consulting Philippine Airlines on its plan to set up a low-cost carrier.



"My partners and I have also been working closely with U.S. aviation consulting firm ICF to produce studies on the impact of climate change on airports here for the Korea Airports Corp., which runs 14 airports nationwide," Ham said.



"In addition to strengthening its ties with our existing partners at home and abroad, SKYWORKS will soon start working with budget carriers here and entities planning to launch airlines by offering much-needed consulting on revenue management, hospitality services, pilot training and recruiting, and more," he said.



According to Hahm who began his career as a public relations officer at Korean Air in 1976, with their decades of experience, staff and advisors at SKYWORKS have the capabilities and know-how to establish and start a new airline or to restructure existing companies to stay relevant and competitive in today's rapidly changing market.



"We shape and optimize every aspect of the airline business, providing optimal solutions to transform existing businesses for a stronger performance," he said. "We also conduct various surveys and feasibility studies for airlines and airports to make strategic decisions in starting or expanding their business, or reevaluating their current practices."



Hahm, who headed Korean Air's international affairs division before retiring in 2009, has been widely known in the airline industry for transforming the money-losing T'way Air into one of the most profitable and efficiently-run budget carriers in Korea during his 5-year tenure.


Democratic Sen. Bob Casey had a question about his Republican counterparts on Thursday: "What are they afraid of?"

"Put people under oath! I don't know why Republicans seem to be afraid," Casey said as he lobbied for witnesses in the trial for the impeachment of President Trump.

Those are common talking points for Democrats, but Casey's forum was far from common: A live shot on Fox News.

Democrats in the Senate devised a TV-centric strategy for Trump's trial, which included numerous appearances on Fox, the network Trump's supporters love and Democrats generally loathe.

"The caucus is so confident and comfortable pushing the witnesses and documents message, we are fanning out every chance we get to blanket the airwaves and make the case to the American people," Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer told CNN Business through a spokesman.

The Senate Democratic leadership has been keeping track of the TV interviews. According to their count, 38 different Senate Democrats have given at least 240 TV interviews on broadcast networks and cable news channels since the trial began in earnest on January 21. Their count includes Spanish-language TV networks, but does not include numerous other interviews on radio or local TV.

The strategy is obvious: Democrats are trying to win on TV, in the court of public opinion, while resigning themselves to losing in the final vote to remove Trump from office.

In private meetings, Schumer has encouraged senators to continue going on TV to push the party's message about needing additional witnesses and documents, according to a person familiar with the meetings.

With the broadcast networks providing daily afternoon coverage of the trial, and the cable news channels going late into the night with coverage, there has been plenty of airtime to fill, and plenty of bookers seeking interviews with senators.

Schumer pointed out the Democrats' accessibility in one of his own interviews, on MSNBC's "Hardball," earlier this week. Then he said "very few Republicans go on, because they know we're right and they don't want to carry the argument."

Some GOP senators have, indeed, avoided TV cameras during the trial. Others have said yes to Fox's pro-Trump shows while declining interviews in journalistic settings.

Democratic leadership has pushed to have representatives on Fox, in particular, to counter what Trump-aligned hosts like Sean Hannity have been saying.

This is notable because Democratic politicians often keep their distance from Fox. The Democratic National Committee has refused to let Fox host a primary debate. Sen. Elizabeth Warren has called the network a "hate-for-profit racket."

But some House Democrats agreed to interviews on Fox to make their case during the impeachment inquiry last fall. At least 14 Senate Democrats have appeared on Fox during the trial for a couple dozen interviews, according to Schumer's office.

The President has noticed. On Tuesday Trump lashed out at Fox News, claiming that it is "really pathetic how @FoxNews is trying to be so politically correct by loading the airwaves with Democrats like Chris Van Hollen, the no name Senator from Maryland."

Van Hollen jumped in and replied to Trump. "Glad you tuned in, Mr. President," the senator tweeted. "Now that I have your attention, how about coming down to the Senate to share your side of the story under penalty of perjury?"

Fox declined to comment on Trump's criticism of its booking practices.
On Jan. 28, 2020, BTS tied Justin Biebers record on Billboards Social Top 50 chart after spending 163 weeks at No. 1 on the chart. While BTS fans are well known for their social media presence, fans reach extends far beyond breaking social media records. Over the past two months, BTS fans have raised money for Australian wildfire relief, donated to multiple charities, and helped find a comic book writers family teddy bear by using social media.

BTS | Kevin Winter/Getty Images for iHeartMedia

BTS fans raised money to help those affected by the Australian wildfires

Fire season began in Australia in July 2019. Over the past several months, destructive fires have destroyed homes and wildlife, particularly in New South Wales. In early January 2020, a BTS fanbase in Australia started a fundraiser for the Australian wildfires. The fanbase posted the fundraiser link on Twitter and encouraged BTS fans around the world to donate.

Within two days, the fanbase raised over $10,000. Over the course of 30 days, the campaign raised over $20,000. So far, the money raised has been distributed to the Australian Red Cross and the NSW Rural Fire Service.

#AustraliaFires



With the fires in Australia continuing to progress, we would like to begin another fundraiser to help those who have been affected by the fires. We believe the power of ARMY can assist us. Any amount helps. Please RT to spread



: https://t.co/LfU9h8ZM36 pic.twitter.com/4WeCRmLDcb  Australia BTS  Comeback Support Project (@australiabts) January 3, 2020

ARMY helped Kingsman writer Mark Millar

On Dec. 27, 2019, BTS performed at the 2019 KBS Song Festival. Their performance of Dionysus was based off of the Kingsman film franchise. The films are based on a comic book series created by Mark Millar and Dave Gibbons.

After learning about BTSs appreciation of the Kingsman franchise, Millar tweeted about the performance. ARMY then discovered a tweet of Millars from a few weeks prior explaining that his familys teddy bear was lost on vacation.

The tweet read, Dear @SantasLapland, one of my daughters left this 37- year old family bear behind at the ski-suit shop 2 days ago. Our holiday was AWESOME, but any chance you could complete this Christmas miracle and find him for us? Many thanks, The Millar Family!!

I love how much @bts_bighit love Kingsman. Check out my Instagram page for some examples & a thank you to their wonderful fans for finding my daughter's missing teddy bear last month.https://t.co/4mGa5PXvhQ pic.twitter.com/bY6xdyzIwC  Mark Millar (@mrmarkmillar) January 20, 2020

BTS fans shared the post on Twitter, urging each other to try and help find the familys bear. After fans started spreading the word, Millar heard from Santas Lapland that the bear was found in Finland.

Millar thanked ARMY on Twitter, writing, AMAZING NEWS! We just had word from @SantasLapland that our missing bear was found in Finland this morning! Huge thanks to them and the thousands of @BTS_twt fans who posted tweets like the one below over the past 24 hrs. My kids are SO DELIGHTED!!!

BTS fans donated to charities for James Corden and Ashton Kutcher

BTS appeared on The Late Late Show with James Corden on Jan. 28. At the end of the show, the group played hide-and-seek with Corden and Kutcher. As a way to honor Corden and Kutcher, BTS fans donated to two different charities.

Magic Breakfast is a charity based in London that provides nutritious breakfasts to disadvantaged children in the U.K. Corden previously donated to the charity, so BTS fans encouraged each other on social media to donate as well.

Buzzfeed News confirmed that BTS fans donated 7,500 in 17 hours. The 585 donations came from 54 different countries and provided 25,419 breakfasts. Magic Breakfast later confirmed on Twitter that the donations ended up totaling 36,271 breakfasts.

Kutcher co-founded Thorn, an anti-human trafficking organization that focuses on preventing the sexual exploitation of children internationally. As a way of thanking Kutcher for his respect and having fun with BTS, fans donated to Thorn as well. Both Corden and Kutcher thanked BTS fans for their donations and support.

Thank you @BTS_twt and the army for the love for @thorn, Kutcher tweeted.

Oh man. This BTS army is real and full of love and its great! You have no idea how many children you have helped. Thank you thank you thank you x, Corden tweeted.
Six more tourists suspected of infection in Phuket

PHUKET: Six more tourists in Phuket are under observation on suspicion of being infected with the Wuhan coronavirus, local officials have announced.

healthtourismtransportChineseCoronavirusCOVID-19

By The Phuket News

Saturday 1 February 2020, 12:47PM

Tourists arriving on a direct flight from Shenzhen are screened on arrival at Phuket International Airport. Photo: AoT Phuket

Tourist Police Region 3 Commander Maj Gen Krissak Songmoonnak was at the airport to oversee the arrival. Photo: AoT Phuket

Tourists arriving on a direct flight from Shenzhen are screened on arrival at Phuket International Airport. Photo: AoT Phuket

Tourists arriving on a direct flight from Shenzhen are screened on arrival at Phuket International Airport. Photo: AoT Phuket

Tourists arriving on a direct flight from Shenzhen are screened on arrival at Phuket International Airport. Photo: AoT Phuket

So far no people in Phuket have been confirmed as infected with the virus, Dr Chalermpong Sukontapol, Director of Vachira of Phuket Hospital, stressed at the mandatory daily update on the current situation regarding the virus in Phuket yesterday (Jan 31).

They are only suspected of being infected, and are under observation only, Dr Chalermpong said.

The six new cases brought to 29 the total number of people in Phuket held for observation since officials started scanning new arrivals for elevated body temperatures on Jan 5, he added.

Of those, 19 have been already discharged from hospitals, he said, adding that the remaining 10 are in hospital care, as follows: eight at Vachira Phuket Hospital, one at Patong Hospital and one at Thalang Hospital.

Officials are screening all people arriving on inbound direct flights from the risk areas designated by the Ministry of Public Health, namely Mainland China but not Macau and Hong Kong, Dr Chalermpong explained.

A total of 1,336 new arrivals from mainland China landing at Phuket International Airport on 43 flights were scanned on Thursday (Jan 30), he said.

Meanwhile, while not screening all international arrivals, officials are screening all people leaving the island, Dr Chalermpong said

Officials on Thursday scanned 20,048 tourists departing the island on 107 international flights, and 10,113 people departing on 62 domestic flights, he noted.

One of the new six being held for observation was identified while boarding a flight departing Phuket on Thursday, Phuket Vice Governor Supoj Rotreuang Na Nongkhai confirmed at the meeting.

The scanning of tourists arriving in Phuket on cruise liners is continuing, Vice Governor Supoj said, with officers from the Phuket Provincial Health Office screening some 3,800 tourists coming ashore at Patong Beach.

So far no cruise liner tourist arrivals are suspected to be infected, he added.
FILE PHOTO: A worker unloads palm oil fruits from a lorry inside a palm oil factory in Salak Tinggi, outside Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia

MUMBAI (Reuters) - India has raised import tax on crude palm oil to 44% from 37.5%, a government notification said on Saturday, as the world's biggest palm oil importer tries to boost local oilseed production.

The notification confused traders as on Dec. 31, India cut import tax on crude palm oil imported from Southeast Asian (ASEAN) countries to 37.5% from 40%, said the Solvent Extractors' Association (SEA), a trade body.

"The budget notification says import duty is 44%. However, if you import under ASEAN agreement, the concessional duty rate of 37.5% would be applicable," said Sandeep Bajoria, chief executive of the Sunvin Group, a Mumbai-based vegetable oil importer.

India primarily imports palm oil from Indonesia and Malaysia, which are members of the ASEAN group, refiners said.

Last month, India restricted imports of refined palm oil and asked importers to avoid purchases from Malaysia after its criticism of India's actions in Kashmir and a new citizenship law.

India relies on imports for 70 percent of its edible oil consumption, up from 44 percent in 2001/02. Palm oil accounts for nearly two-thirds of India's edible oil imports of around 15 million tonnes, according to data compiled by SEA.

(Reporting by Rajendra Jadhav; Editing by Shri Navaratnam and Angus MacSwan)
Abbotts Principal Scientist for diagnostics business, Mary A Rodgers is a pioneer in ensuring the safety of the worlds blood supply and the detection of constantly changing viruses

In India there are approximately 2.14 million people living with HIV, with 88,000 new HIV infections and 69,000 deaths occurring due to HIV related causes in 2017. 2,234 persons, including children, got HIV infection between October 2014 and March 2016 due to unsafe blood transfusion across India. In 2018-19, these infections stood at 1342. Nearly 1000 people in Maharashtra have contracted HIV through blood transfusion Government of India has made HIV screening of donated blood mandatory. As per the NACO guidelines, it is mandatory to screen donors/donated blood for transmissible infections of HIV, HBV, HCV, malaria and syphilis. Abbotts Principal Scientist for diagnostics business, Mary A Rodgers is a pioneer in ensuring the safety of the worlds blood supply and the detection of constantly changing viruses. Moreover she has been credited with identifying new strains of viruses that threaten the global population, including the first time a new subtype of HIV-1 has been identified in 19 years. In a one to one interaction with BioSpectrum, Mary A Rodgers speaks about the Abbotts partnership with YRF India, research endeavours, and new diagnostic methods for the screening of deadly viruses.

What is the progress on Abbotts collaboration with YRGCARE since 2018?

Our partnership with YRG Care, which commenced in January 2018, aims to study the countrys viral diversity to improve accuracy of diagnostic tests. Abbott has provided study protocol and diagnostic equipment, while YRGCARE has helped in screening and sequencing rich patient data from infected populations in India.

Some initial findings from the Abbott and YRG Care Surveillance Program research:

We are seeing diverse strains of HCV in India. Once were closer to publishing this research, we can share details about the specific genotypes detected in the region.

The geographical classification of the HIV and HCV strains identified confirmed that higher levels of viral diversity were present in cities near borders with neighboring countries where drug trafficking routes exist.

Of note were the HCV strains that predominated in the Northeastern region varied dramatically from those identified in the Northern border. These results support the hypothesis that new strains have been imported to India via the Golden Triangle and Golden Crescent opium trade routes.

Which is the newly discovered strain of HIV by Abbott and the cutting-edge diagnostic method for the identification of this new strain of viruses?

In November 2019, Abbott announced the discovery of a new strain of HIV called HIV-1 Group M, subtype L. This research was published online in the Journal of Acquired Immune Deficiency Syndromes (JAIDS), and marked the first time a new subtype of HIV-1 has been identified in 19 years. This new strain is a part of the major group of HIV, which is responsible for 90% of the pandemic, and has been traced back to the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC). Abbotts tests are used to screen more than 60% of the worlds blood supply. And so part of that comes with a responsibility to make sure that we can detect every type of virus that could be in those samples. Abbott is making this new strain available to the research community to evaluate its impact on diagnostic testing, treatments and potential vaccines. Today, next-generation sequencing technology allows researchers to build an entire genome at higher speeds and lower costs. Abbott scientists had to develop and apply new techniques with next generation sequencing technology to help narrow in on the virus portion of the sample to fully sequence and complete the genome. Abbotts technique lowered the amount of virus needed to get a complete genome. Genomes are the complete set of genes or genetic material present in a cell or organism. Identifying new viruses such as this one is like searching for a needle in a haystack. By advancing our techniques and using next generation sequencing technology, we are pulling the needle out with a magnet. This scientific discovery can help us ensure we are stopping new pandemics in their tracks.

Which are the novel diagnostic product in line in the Abbotts diagnostic business for the screening of viruses?

We are currently offering more sensitive version of tests, in terms of HCV we are also making a version of tests that is a combination of antigen antibody similarly like HIV, these new tests are currently in development. The surface antigen sensitive for HBV has launched and has recently approved in India. The other two like HIV and HCV tests are still in the pipeline.

Provide some insights on the Abbotts Global Surveillance Program.

In 1994, we created the Abbott Viral Surveillance Program to monitor the diversity of HIV and Hepatitis virus globally so our tests can detect them. We have invested in this program because our tests are used to screen over 60% of the worlds blood supply. We have partnered with organizations around the world- such as blood centres, hospitals, and academic institutes  to collect samples of HIV and viral hepatitis. Abbott is a leading diagnostics company with such a unique, longstanding, and large scale virus surveillance program
LOS ANGELES, Jan. 31, 2020 /PRNewswire/ -- Last week's terrifying fire at a Westside Los Angeles apartment building has led to swift legal action by the building's residents. Attorneys for the residents of Barrington Plaza Apartments, led by tenant Charles Agozino, have filed a class action lawsuit against the building's owner, Douglas Emmett Inc. (NYSE: DEI), for its negligence in failing to adequately protect residents from a blaze that engulfed the building's sixth and seventh floors. The fire, the building's second in less than eight years, shined a harsh light on the landlord's failure to improve fire safety in the building.

The damage and injuries from the fire, which injured at least 13, endangered first responders and required trapped residents to be airlifted to safety, were exacerbated by Barrington Plaza's lack of adequate fire prevention systems. The building lacks a sprinkler system, serviceable alarms, and usable fire exits. Residents have pleaded with Douglas Emmett Inc. for years to improve fire safety measures, particularly after a previous blaze on October 18, 2013 highlighted the building's inadequate fire safety system. Still the building owners have taken no action.

"There is only one word I can offer Douglas Emmett, Inc following another devastating fire that was exacerbated by their inaction: shameful," said Brian Dunne. Co-lead counsel for the building's residents and a partner at Pierce Bainbridge Beck Price & Hecht LLP. "This is a multi-billion dollar, publicly traded company that for years, knew of the danger it was placing its tenants in  in fact, it had evidence of the danger in the form of a previous fire  but did nothing. It is essentially saying that human life is not worth the relatively small cost of basic fire prevention. That is both sad and unacceptable, and we hope to finally set things right with this legal action."

Dunne, and his Pierce Bainbridge colleague, Daniel Dubin, are joined by Ben Meiselas of Geragos & Geragos in filing the lawsuit. Dunne and Meiselas are available for interviews on this case and the years of negligence by Barrington Plaza's owners that led to the latest fire.

The Barrington Plaza fire has also revived calls from City officials to require sprinkler systems to be retrofitted into buildings more than 50-years-old.

The case, filed in California Superior Court, is Charles Agozino v. Douglas Emmett Inc., et.al. Case No. 20STCV03962

If you or someone you know has be affected by the fire, please go to www.piercebainbridge.com/barringtonplazafire/.

About Pierce Bainbridge Beck Price & Hecht LLP

Pierce Bainbridge is a top-tier litigation firm that is changing the way companies and individuals approach major disputes. We are relentless, creative, and aggressive, and we're always on the hunt for strategic and tactical advantages that can benefit our clients and secure victory. Our team is composed of the finest trial lawyers from the best law schools who were trained at the biggest law firms in the world. We know how to win  and that's what we do best. Attorneys at our firm have won jury verdicts and settlements totaling well over $3 billion dollars. We provide our clients with a high-stakes litigation force to vindicate and protect their rights.

SOURCE Pierce Bainbridge Beck Price & Hecht LLP
Budget 2020: Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman announced a host of measures to give a boost start-ups. The minister announced a relaxation of taxes on employee stock ownership plans (ESOPs), fresh tax rebates as well as a dedicated early-stage fund.

Finance Minister Sitharaman said that a startup with an annual turnover of up to Rs 25 crore will be allowed a 100 per cent deduction of its profits for three consecutive assessment years out of the first seven years. "Moreover, considering that during the initial years a startup may not have adequate profits to avail this deduction, I propose to extent the period of claim of deduction from the existing 7 years to 10 years," said the minister.

FULL COVERAGE: Union Budget 2020

The minister also proposed deferring of tax payment by five years or until employees leave the company or when they sell their shares - whichever is earlier - to avoid dual taxation on ESOP shares. Currently start-up employees are required to pay tax whenever they sign up for ESOPs as well as pay capital gains tax on whenever they redeem their ESOPs.

FM Sitharaman also said that the government will directly provide seed funding to support the start-ups in their early days. A centralised investment clearance cell for end-to-end facilitation, support and pre-investment advisory was also proposed by the minister.

The minister also announced the creation of data centre parks for private and public sectors that will boost start-up activity in the country. "The government will setup a policy to enable setting up of data centre parks throughout the country... It will enable our private and public sector firms to incorporate data into their business, and even in anganwadis, government schools, police stations, and panchayats," said the minister.

Also read: Budget 2020 Speech: Successful disinvestments to happen in next few months, says FM Sitharaman

Also read: Budget 2020: FM Nirmala Sitharaman delivers longest Union Budget speech, breaks record
The controversial queen of Telugu cinema Sri Reddy knows how to stay in limelight. Recently, the actress, who is known for taking digs at popular actors of Tollywood, made surprising comment on Mahesh Babu when his film Sarileru Neekevvaru was released. She called him 'Prince of Tollywood' and a 'moon'. Now, she made a positive comment on Naga Shaurya, whose movie Aswathama was released yesterday (January 31).

Sri Reddy shared a post on Facebook that read, "Naga Sourya lanti talented n handsome heroes ni thokkakandi ra thokkalo mega heroes kosam. (Do not underestimate talented heroes like Naga Shaurya for the sake of other useless mega heroes.)"



(Images Source: Instagram)

Many users agreed with Sri Reddy's comment and said that Naga Shaurya is indeed a talented actor. Take a look at a few users' comments:

Mahi Mahesh Reddy: Kada he is really talented hero.

CH Babu S: he is really talented Sri garu.

Prasanth Verma: Bagundi movie. He is our responsible star.

Ranga Swamy: Movie already got hit talk..... blockbuster.

For the uninitiated, Aswathama, which features, Naga Shaurya, Mehreen Pirzada, Sargun Kaur Luthra in the pivotal roles, has been getting positive responses from the audiences. Apparently, the movie is based on a shocking incident that happened in the life of the actor's close friend in Mumbai. The film discusses the atrocities and issues concerning woman's safety.

(Social media posts are not edited)

Also Read: Sri Reddy Makes Surprising Comment On Sarileru Neekevvaru Actor Mahesh Babu!
Budget 2020: With the finance minister Nirmala Sitharaman all set to present Budget 2020 on February 1, the Indian economy is hoping for robust policy intervention to reinstate liquidity as swiftly as it has been swept away by nearly two fiscals of headwinds.

The SMEs that the government had hoped to strengthen at the start of its second term have pinned their hopes on this budget. It is an opportune time for the government to empower SMEs with the essential tools of 'technology' and 'trade reforms' to fight the economic slowdown. One hopes to see four key focus areas make an appearance in the Budget 2020:

Digitisation

Digitisation needs to be incorporated at all steps of the business cycle. Especially for the growth of exports, it is essential for the traders to be able to use technology to win global business.

One of the major focuses of FTP 2015-2020 was to move towards paperless working in a 24X7 environment. To encourage an efficient and transparent mode of business, the government needs to introduce strict compliance rules regarding the digitisation of accounts, processes, deliveries and trade, thus increasing the overall efficiency and output.

Digital upskilling

FULL COVERAGE: Union Budget 2020

Digital upskilling needs to be on the government's cards this year to generate jobs by 2022 that will meet the workforce demands of the fourth revolution. At the grassroots level, a large section of the population requires basic digital upskilling to meet the demands for skilled professionals in upcoming fields like big data and machine learning. Budget 2020 must address this with a vision of India's sustained inclusive growth and development.

Online infrastructure

Digital infrastructure must be strengthened to ensure digital exposure opportunities for SMEs. The Budget must address the allocation of funds for requirements like basic public Wi-Fi and centralised communication systems to improve business and the economy's agility.

Conducive policies

In the past, measures for exporters such as tax neutralisation schemes have proved to be beneficial and yielded results. While the WTO is in favour of such policies, the Indian government has instead focused on providing subsidies or incentives wherein exports are rewarded a fixed percentage on the value of an exported item, capped at a specific amount regardless of the item value. The WTO has made it clear that these measures cannot continue any longer. Hence, for this budget, the finance minister should avoid the allocation of funds for such schemes.

The government needs to understand that to boost exports, we need to stop focusing on just exports. There is a need for a larger environment and ecosystem that enables the production of superior goods at competitive prices by providing access to technology and capital.

This can lead to an upgrade in the quality and quantity of exports and simultaneously reduce the need to import high-quality goods or ingredients for goods from overseas markets.

ALSO READ: Budget 2020 Date: When is Union Budget, Expectations from Modi govt, Time, where to watch

After technologically advancing the exports ecosystem and controlling imports into the country, the government must also recognise the role of fintech and alternate finance providers.

Financial services offered by these providers are always crucial to emancipate the growth of small exporters by providing them with desired working capital.

This will enable them to produce better and cheaper goods, which will provide a competitive advantage in export markets down the line.

The Ministry's Economic Survey released on 31st January has already mentioned the importance of the fintech sector to the financial health and efficiency of PSBs and the economy; one can only hope that FM Sitharaman takes cognizance of the same in Budget 2020.

(The author is Co-Founder & Co-CEO of Drip Capital)
Former Vice President Joe Biden (L) speaks next to Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.) and former South Bend Mayor Pete Buttigieg at the Democratic presidential primary debate in Des Moines, Iowa, on Jan. 14, 2020. (Scott Olson/Getty Images)

Transit Union Announces Biden Endorsement After Supporting Sanders in 2016

A major transit union is backing former Vice President Joe Biden in the Democratic presidential race after supporting Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.) in 2016.

Joe Biden has been a true champion of working Americans throughout his career, John Costa, President of the Amalgated Transit Union, said in a statement.

We know he will fight to rebuild the middle class by restoring the rights of labor, advancing racial justice and equity, and bolstering our economy through unprecedented investment in public services like transit.

The decades Biden, 77, served in the U.S. Senate in addition to his eight years as vice president played a large role in the endorsement decision by the unions General Executive Board, Costa said. The vote came after an extensive poll of the unions membership that evaluated the field of candidates and which issues were most important to them.

Costa cited Bidens support for the Transit Worker and Pedestrian Protection Act, proposed legislation that would protect transportation workers from attacks, and said Biden would help push an initiative from House Democrats that calls for investing $760 billion in infrastructure improvements.

This is a pivotal moment in U.S. history and our nation needs a leader that will bring back respect, dignity, and civility to our country. Joe Biden is the right person for working people and America, said Costa.

The union represents more than 200,000 members, including school bus drivers, subway operators, and mechanics, in the United States and Canada.

Democratic presidential nominee former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton looks on as Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.) speaks during a campaign rally at University of New Hampshire in Durham, New Hampshire, on Sept. 28, 2016. (Justin Sullivan/Getty Images)

The union supported Sanders in 2016, citing his sincerity and long standing fidelity to the issues that are so important to the working people. Sanders vied for the Democratic presidential nomination but ultimately lost to Hillary Clinton, who went on to lose to Donald Trump in the general election.

The endorsement came after Sanders, 78, was endorsed by the American Postal Workers Union, which also has over 200,000 members.

Were pleased that a number of presidential candidates have positions and have taken actions supportive of postal workers and expanding union rights. But when we judge candidates by their long-term and consistent actions, Bernie Sanders stands out as a true champion of postal workers and all workers throughout the country, Mark Dimondstein, the unions president, said in a statement announcing the endorsement on Thursday.

Bernie Sanders has proven he is a fierce advocate on the side of postal workers. He has opposed the closures of postal facilities and reduced service standards. He has been a leader in the fight for expanded postal financial services and was the lone senator who stopped postal privatizers from appointments to the Postal Board of Governors.

Sanders has also been endorsed by the National Nurses United, a nurses union, and the National Union of Healthcare Workers, which also endorsed Sen. Elizabeth Warren (D-Mass.), 70.

Bidens other labor union endorsements include the International Association of Bridge, Structural, Ornamental, and Reinforcing Iron Workers and the International Association of Fire Fighters.
India on February 1 congratulated the Maldives on its return to the Commonwealth as its 54th member. The Maldives had joined the Commonwealth in 1982, but withdrew its membership in 2016.

"India has always been a key supporter of Maldives' readmission and for it to play a larger role in international organisations and the comity of nations," the Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) said.

The Commonwealth is a key grouping of countries, most of which are former territories of the British Empire.

"We are committed to working closely with Maldives on shared Commonwealth goals like development, democracy and peace," the MEA said.

It said India also acknowledges efforts of the Maldivian government to participate actively in international organisations like the United Nations and increase its global profile as a democratic and dynamic country.

"India will continue working with Maldives in achieving its democratic and developmental aspirations," the MEA said.
Democratic candidates made their frantic, final campaign pitches Sunday in Iowa, on a mission to persuade undecided voters one day before the state's nominating contest officially starts the US presidential election season. Iowa, a largely rural state of three million people, has traditionally served as a vital launching point -- or burial ground -- for presidential hopefuls. Even as all eyes turn to the debut vote, Donald Trump's US Senate impeachment trial weighs over the Democratic kick-off, with the president expected to be acquitted just days after the Iowa contest. "This is the most consequential election, certainly in the modern history of this country... and it all begins tomorrow night," Senator Bernie Sanders, the leading progressive in the race, told invigorated supporters at a meet-and-greet event in Iowa City. Similar scenes played out across the state this weekend as most of the 11 remaining candidates made their final push to convince undecided voters that they are best positioned to defeat Trump. Monday's caucuses have created an air of suspense with no clear frontrunner. Several hopefuls look to strike gold here and seize the momentum going into the next contest, in New Hampshire on February 11. Leftist Sanders holds only a narrow lead over moderate former vice president Joe Biden. South Bend, Indiana ex-mayor Pete Buttigieg and Senator Elizabeth Warren are mere points behind. "Tomorrow, you can ruin Donald Trump's night!" Biden said as he rallied 1,100 supporters at a Des Moines middle school. "I promise you: if you stand with me, we will end Trump's reign of hatred and division." Three of the leading candidates seized on a brief break from their duties as impeachment jurors to barnstorm Iowa. The senators -- self-styled democratic socialist Sanders, progressive Warren and pragmatist Amy Klobuchar -- each hosted multiple events Sunday. The impeachment trial -- only the third in history of a US president -- created an unprecedented situation by limiting the senators' ability to campaign ahead of Iowa's vote. They must return to Washington Monday for the trial's resumption. Senate leaders have scheduled a Wednesday vote that will almost certainly acquit Trump on charges of abuse of power and obstruction of Congress. - 'He's a communist' - Trump will likely claim victory over Democrats' efforts to oust him when he delivers his State of the Union speech Tuesday -- although he told reporters he would be delivering "a very, very positive message." That did not stop him from branding Biden "Sleepy Joe" and hurling an epithet at Sanders. "I think he's a communist," Trump told Fox News in an interview that aired before the Super Bowl got underway Sunday. With campaigns loath to door-knock during American football's championship game, some candidates like Sanders and Klobuchar attended Super Bowl watch parties. Underdog Klobuchar argues that her Midwestern roots and propensity to work with Senate Republicans can help her win Iowa and defeat Trump. She compared the big game to the last-gasp nature of the final weekend before Iowa's vote. "I would call it the Super Bowl of campaigns," she told supporters in Cedar Rapids. Turnout will be critical, as candidates seek to persuade voters on issues including health care, improving conditions for the working class and ending Washington corruption. They were also pushing their own electability, as Buttigieg did repeatedly on the stump and during Sunday TV talkshows. "I certainly think that I am better positioned to beat Donald Trump than any of my competitors," Buttigieg told CNN. A former consultant and US Navy reservist who became a mayor at 29, Buttigieg portrays his youth as a reason voters should prefer him over the gray-haired Biden, 77, and Sanders, 78. One in two Iowa voters claimed to still be undecided ahead of the quirky caucus process. Among them was Kim Robinson, 67, a precinct caucus chair in Clive who said he switched support Sunday from Biden to Buttigieg. "And I might change to Amy Klobuchar" before the vote, he told AFP. "Right now it's a matter of who I think will win" against Trump. At 7:00 pm Monday (0100 GMT Tuesday), Democrats take part in caucuses at about 1,700 venues -- schools, libraries, churches -- to publicly declare their choice by standing under one candidate's banner. Candidates who reach 15 percent support can earn delegates for the nomination race. If a candidate does not meet this threshold after the first alignment of caucus-goers, their supporters can shift to other candidates. At that point, the rallies and TV advertising fade away, as neighbors seek to convince and persuade the undecided, or those from unviable candidates, to align with another. Iowans take their role as first-in-the-nation voters to heart, and their pick has a recent historical track record of becoming the Democratic nominee. At an Iowa City home that Warren supporters were using as a base, people streamed in and out, looking for extra posters or lists of doors that still needed to be knocked on. Ayana Elizabeth Johnson, a marine biologist, traveled from far-off New York to help Warren. "Having a good showing in Iowa is so important to build momentum," Johnson said. Democratic presidential candidate Senator Bernie Sanders holds only a slight lead over former vice president Joe Biden White House hopefuls Joe Biden, pictured campaigning in West Des Moines, Iowa, and Bernie Sanders are both in their late 70s Senator Amy Klobuchar (R), argues that her Midwestern roots and history of reaching across the aisle to Republicans can help her win Iowa and defeat President Donald Trump The Kansas City Chiefs have a huge Iowa following, which could affect last-minute campaigning in a tight race because the team plays in the Super Bowl on the eve of the Iowa caucuses Pete Buttigieg says he is "better positioned" to beat President Donald Trump than any of the other Democratic hopefuls How the Democratic and Republican party primaries and caucuses choose presidential candidates for the 2020 election
Governments around the world should prepare for controlling domestic coronavirus outbreaks, a World Health Organization (WHO) official said.

Countries need to get ready for possible importation in order to identify cases as early as possible and in order to be ready for a domestic outbreak control, if that happens, WHO official Gauden Galea told The Associated Press in Bejing on Saturday.

WHO earlier in the week declared a global health emergency, which flipped the switch from a cautious attitude earlier to recommending governments prepare for the possibility the virus might spread, Galea said.

WHO Director-General Dr. Tedros Ghebreyesus said in announcing the outbreak that the organizations greatest concern is the potential for the virus to spread to countries with weaker health systems, and which are ill-prepared to deal with it.

China has reported thousands of caseshealth experts believe the Chinese Communist Party is consistently underreporting the number of casesand hundreds of deaths. The virus has spread from Wuhan to roughly two dozen countries, with no deaths reported so far outside of China.

Cases have been confirmed in five continents, with a slew of suspected cases in Africa but none confirmed. Spain, Russia, Italy, the United Kingdom, and Sweden announced the first confirmed cases in the countries in the past few days.

Governments are ramping up efforts to stop the spread of the disease, restricting or banning travel to and from mainland China, evacuating citizens from Wuhan or Hubei province, and isolating people who have traveled recently to China.

The United States on Friday announced a public health emergency. Officials said they were motivated by the number of unknowns with the new coronaviruswhich started last month, has no vaccine, and has an unconfirmed originand the rapidly rising number of cases.

Anthony Fauci, director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, also noted that officials now know that an infected person could transmit the disease to another person even if they did not exhibit any symptoms. He cited a recent case in Germany; other countries have also reported asymptomatic transmission.

The United States also announced a ban on foreign nationals who have been in mainland China in the past 14 days and a mandatory quarantine of any U.S. citizens who traveled to Hubei province in the past 14 days.

Outside of government action, airlines around the world have stopped or announced plans to stop operating flights into and out of mainland China and companies operating in the country announced widespread closures.

The three biggest carriers in the United StatesUnited, American, and Delta Airlinesmade announcements on Friday. Air New Zealand and Qantas Airlines also announced plans to stop flying between China and their home countries, joining, among others, British Airways, Japan Airways, Virgin Atlantic, Air Canada, and Lion Air.

Deere & Co closed all facilities in China, as did Apple, joining dozens of other companies either shutting down operations or restricting travel to the country.

Our thoughts are with the people most immediately affected by the coronavirus and with those working around the clock to study and contain it, Apple, based in Cupertino, Calif., said in a statement. Out of an abundance of caution and based on the latest advice from leading health experts, were closing all our corporate offices, stores and contact centers in mainland China through Feb. 9.

Cathy He contributed to this report.

From The Epoch Times
Volkswagen offered to buy the rest of Navistar International Corp. in a $2.9 billion bid to secure a bridgehead in the U.S. heavy-truck market and step up its challenge to Daimler and Volvo.

The deal comes amid a jittery market, with heavy-truck makers preparing for a downturn after years of growth. Navistar, truck-engine maker Cummins Inc. and supplier Meritor Inc. announced thousands of job cuts late last year.

Yet, the potential acquisition  by Volkswagen truck and bus subsidiary Traton  isnt expected to affect Navistars plan for a heavy-truck plant in the Mitchell Lake area, Bexar County Judge Nelson Wolff said.

He said Navistar CEO Troy Clarke told him Thursday that the project remained on track.

Lisle, Ill.-based Navistar will announced its San Antonio plans in September. Wofff said Clarke told him Thursday that the project was approved by Navistars board of directors, which included two representatives of the Volkswagen truck and bus division.

Traton has seats on the Navistar board because it already owns a nearly 17 percent stake in the company.

Wolff said he expects groundbreaking for the facility to occur in March.

Navistar had said it will create 600 jobs locally, but Wolff believes it could be more, with suppliers also potentially moving into the San Antonio area.

Navistar would be only Tratons latest acquisition.

VW's heavy-truck and bus division was created from acquisitions of Germany's MAN and Sweden's Scania. The unit for years had struggled to combine the operations before hiring former Daimler executive Andreas Renschler, who successfully spearheaded a partial listing of Volkswagons Traton last year.

Traton offered Navistar holders $35 a share in cash, 45 percent higher than its Thursday closing price.

Navistar  which builds International-brand trucks, school buses, defense vehicles and engines  said its board will review the proposal, and there's no assurance the deal will take place.

VW purchased its stake in Navistar in September 2016, laying the groundwork for a footprint in North America, the truck industry's largest source of profits. Daimler's Freightliner and Volvo's Mack divisions generate significant sales in the region.

It's unclear whether VW's offer will satisfy Icahn, 83, and Mark Rachesky, the founder and chief investment officer of MHR Fund Management, which is Navistar's third-largest shareholder with a 16 percent stake.

Icahn, who first bought into Navistar in 2011, built his holding with an average cost per share of $33.62, and the stock has traded below that level for most of the last year. Rachesky's average price paid was $27.80, data compiled by Bloomberg indicate.

If a deal closes, VW will take over a company in the midst of a fix-it job. Navistar said in December it will reduce employment by 10 percent and cut its 2020 revenue forecast to a range of $9.25 billion to $9.75 billion, below analysts' lowest estimate.

Alongside the expansion, Wolfsburg, Germany-based VW agreed to sell Renk to private equity firm Triton Partners. The company was acquired as part of the automaker's acquisition of MAN and represents a rare streamlining move by VW, which has been reviewing its non-core businesses for years with little progress.

Staff Writer Randy Diamond contributed to this report.
As the campaign for the February 8 Delhi elections enters its last leg, political parties have upped the ante, which is apparent in their speeches and social media posts.

Union Home Minister Amit Shah on February 1 challenged Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal to take a dip in the Yamuna if he believes that the river is clean.

"I challenge Arvind Kejriwal to take a dip in the Yamuna. If he does so, we will believe that the river Yamuna is clean now," NDTV has quoted Shah as saying at a public meeting in Delhi.

He "suggested" Kejriwal to take a dip in River Ganga at Prayagraj "to know how rivers are maintained clean". "Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath have made efforts to make Ganga clean," Shah added.

Shah further attacked the ruling AAP government for its state schemes such as subsidized water and electricity, installation of CCTV cameras, betterment of the education sector and the running of Mohalla clinics.

The BJP leader alleged that the Delhi Jal Board was running at a profit of Rs 178 crore per anum before Arvind Kejriwal-led AAP came to power, but today it is incurring yearly losses to the tune of Rs 800 crore.

"AAP has been in the government in Delhi for five years. There is competition among governments as to who will deliver electricity, water, gas to every household. But if there is a competition for lying to the public, the Kejriwal government will be at number one," Shah claimed.

Shah said that before the elections, Kejriwal had stated that he won't take the official bungalow and car provided by the government, but he is actually availing the facilities.
New Delhi, Feb 1 : With cyber crimes increasing at a rapid rate, the government on Saturday proposed National Police University and National Forensic Science University for policing science, forensic science and cyber-forensics.

A single organisation in India was attacked an alarming 1,565 times per week on an average in the second half of 2019, compared to 474 attacks per organisation globally, according to researchers at Israeli cybersecurity firm Check Point Research.

As hackers evolve new mechanisms to infiltrate into systems, 61 per cent Indian enterprises say the risk of cyber attacks is stalling their digitalisation progress, said a December study by leading cybersecurity firm Forcepoint along with Frost & Sullivan.

"The need for cyber forensics has become more important than ever for a rapidly digitising country like India. The setting up of a cyber forensics university is a welcome move from the government. This will definitely help improve India's expertise to solve complex cyber crimes," said Sanjay Katkar, Joint Managing Director and Chief Technology Officer, Quick Heal Technologies.

Saket Modi, Co-founder and CEO, Lucideus, said the proposal of a national cyber forensic university would not only boost cybersecurity skills, but also help develop a more mature cybersecurity ecosystem in India.

"The opening of Cyber Forensic University will give a big boost to the cyber security industry," said Trishneet Arora, Founder and CEO, TAC Security.

According to a recent report, Indian IT managers detected 39 per cent of threats on servers, 35 per cent on the network and 8 per cent on endpoints and 18 per cent on mobile.

"Additionally, 90 per cent of IT managers believe cybersecurity awareness and education among employees is a major challenge for organisations. We need more impetus on building skilled cybersecurity professionals in the country," said Sunil Sharma, Managing Director-Sales, Sophos India & SAARC.
Crazy academic job advertisements are a dime a dozen these days, which is one reason Ive stopped covering them closely. But sometimes an institution goes the extra mile, such as Champlain College in Vermont, where this job ad sounds like it was written by the Bernie Sanders campaign:

Champlain College invites applications for a full-time faculty at the rank of Assistant Professor in Interdisciplinary Studies to begin August 2020. We specifically welcome candidates with interdisciplinary teaching expertise in one or more of the following areas: postcolonial studies, decoloniality, critical race theory, queer of color critique, ethnic studies, indigenous and/or settler colonialism studies, disability studies, feminist theories, gender and sexuality studies, transnational studies, or composition and rhetoric with a specialization in any of the above areas. As we strive to create the most intellectually diverse, equitable, and inclusive institution that we can, we especially encourage candidates from historically underrepresented groups to apply. . . Additionally, submit a separate statement describing your experience with and/or vision for mentoring underrepresented students, as this could contribute to Champlains diversity, equity and inclusion goals.

Cost to attend Champlain College: $57,694.

P.S. Before much longer, any college claiming to offer an intellectually diverse, equitable, and inclusive institution ought to be vulnerable to a consumer fraud lawsuit, since more and more colleges are not the least bit diverse in a meaningful way. Of course, Champlain College may not be around long enough to worry about such things.
Britain has officially left the European Union (EU), marking a historic end to its 47-year-long membership of the world's largest trading bloc.

The historic moment happened at the stroke of 23:00 GMT on Friday, more than three and half years after an in and out referendum exposed deep rifts across British society.

It also marks the start of a transition period that will last till the end of this year as negotiators try to forge a trade arrangement between Britain and the EU, Xinhua news agency reported.

While celebrations to mark " Brexit day" saw EU flags being burned on the streets of London, UK Prime Minister Boris Johnson marked the historic moment with his team at his Downing Street office, celebrating with English sparkling wine and an array of British culinary treats, Aljazeera reported.

As the clock ticked down the final seconds, thousands of Brexiters partied outside Parliament, while anti- Brexit campaigners mounted several protests along the Irish border.

In a televised address to the nation, Johnson called the UK's withdrawal from the EU "an astonishing moment of hope" .

"This is the moment when the dawn breaks and the curtain goes up on a new act in our great national drama," he said.

"And yes, it is partly about using these new powers, this recaptured sovereignty, to deliver the changes people voted for. Whether that is by controlling immigration or creating freeports or liberating our fishing industry or doing free trade deals. Or simply making our laws and rules for the benefit of the people of this country.

"And of course, I think that is the right and healthy and democratic thing to do," he added. "Because for all its strengths and for all its admirable qualities, the EU has evolved over 50 years in a direction that no longer suits this country."

Prime Minister Boris Johnson called for "a new era of friendly cooperation between the EU and an energetic Britain".

In Scotland, which voted to stay in the EU in the 2016 referendum, rallies and candlelit vigils took place as activists sought to send a message to the EU to keep open a place for Scotland.

In Northern Ireland, the campaign group Border Communities Against Brexit staged a series of protests in Armagh, near to the border with the Republic of Ireland.

In Cardiff, First Minister Mark Drakeford said Wales would "remain a proudly European nation".

Meanwhile leaders across Europe gave their reactions to the first country leaving the EU.

German Chancellor Angela Merkel said Brexit was "a deep break for us all" and warned the "negotiations will certainly not be easy".

French President Emmanuel Macron said Brexit was an "alarm signal" for the EU and hit out at the "lies, exaggerations, simplifications" that led to the Leave vote.

The departure, 1,317 days after Britain voted to leave the bloc, carries not only enormous symbolic weight, but also significant legal consequences.

It concluded three years of fractious debates over whether the country should really leave the bloc, the terms of its departure and the kind of relationship it should forge with Europe.
By ANI

NEW DELHI: Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman on Saturday presented the Union Budget 2020 and followed the tradition of reciting poetry and couplets with a Kashmiri verse, outlining the inclusiveness of the country.

She translated the verse to Hindi during her speech.

"Humara watan khilte hue Shalimar bagh jaise, humara watan Dal lake mein khilte hue kamal jaisa, nau jawanon ke garam khoon jaisa, mera watan tera watan, humara watan, duniya ka sabse pyara watan (Our nation is like a blooming Shalimar Bagh, our nation is like a lotus blooming in Dal lake, like the hot blood of younger generation, my nation, your nation, our nation, world's most beautiful nation)."

BUDGET LIVE | Nirmala Sitharaman unveils three themes for year ahead

The choice of a Kashmiri verse is significant after the government's landmark move of abrogating Article 370 which gave a special status to the region of Jammu and Kashmir.

The Budget speech by the Finance Minister is being keenly watched by members of all different parties in the Parliament. Investors, service-class, business community are also glued to their television sets to hear every word being narrated by her.

In her budget speech, which is ongoing as of now, Finance Minister Sitharaman has also stated that efforts made in the last five years and the enthusiasm and energy of our youth are the ignition of the country's growth.
Flynn Alleges Former Lawyers Misled Him on Their Conflict of Interest

On Nov. 30, 2017, just as Lt. Gen. Michael Flynn was preparing to sign his guilty plea, he again told his lawyers he didnt believe he was guilty of the crime the government was accusing him oflying to the FBI. He told them to go back to the prosecutors and ask whether the FBI agents believed he lied to them. The lawyers left the room. When they returned, they informed Flynn that the agents stand by their statements.

The agents believed that I had lied, Flynn recollected his understanding from that day in Jan. 29 declaration to court. Fearing the government would put him in prison for 15 years and perhaps imprison his son, too, he signed the plea.

But he was wrong. What his then-attorneys were actually toldand what he now asserts they failed to tell himwas that one of the agents believed that Flynn had sure demeanor during the interview 10 months earlier and that he did not give any indicators of deception, the prosecutors later told the court (pdf). Both interviewing agents had the impression at the time that the defendant was not lying or did not think he was lying.

Flynn now wants to withdraw his plea. He has accused the prosecutors of acting in bad faith and his former lawyers of providing faulty advice due to a conflict of interest.

On Nov. 29, Flynns lawyers filed more than 200 pages of documents, including declarations of Flynn and his wife, arguing his previous lawyers betrayed him (pdf).

As God is my witness, the truth is I am innocent of these charges and any other alleged criminal conduct, and I request to withdraw my plea of guilty, and I will fight to restore my good name, Flynn said in the declaration.

A spokesperson for Flynns previous attorneys at international law firm Covington and Burling responded via email to a request for comment.

Under the bar rules, we are limited in our ability to respond publicly even to allegations of this nature, absent the clients consent or a court order.

In a separate Jan. 29 filing, Flynn is also asking the judge to dismiss the case against him for government misconduct.

The FARA Letter

Flynn, a veteran of military intelligence, was formerly the national security adviser to candidate and President-elect Donald Trump before resigning less than a month into Trumps presidency. For a few years, he also headed the Defense Intelligence Agency during the Obama administration.

His problems started in December 2016 when he was working on Trumps transition team. During a Christmas party at the offices of Flynn Intel Group (FIG), a consultancy he shuttered the month before, he went through FIGs mail and found a letter from the Justice Departments Foreign Agents Registration Act (FARA) unit, Flynn later told prosecutors (pdf). The government wanted to know about a job FIG did earlier that year for Turkish businessman Kamil Ekim Alptekin.

The job focused on researching and lobbying in the United States against Fetullah Gulen, an Islamic cleric living in exile in Pennsylvania who runs a group Ankara blames for an attempted 2016 coup.

Alptekin told FIG the point of the job was to improve business confidence in Turkey. If Gulen was extradited, it would both improve U.S.-Turkey relations and boost confidence in Turkeys political stability.

The FARA officials argued the job was actually done for the Turkish government and FIG thus had to register as a foreign lobbyist under FARA.

According to Flynns lawyers, both current and former, he wasnt particularly involved with the Alptekin job as he was busy promoting his book and campaigning for Trump.

Flynn indicated he was upset by the FARA letter, saying he went to Bijan Rafiekian, his former partner in FIG who largely handled the Alptekin job, and stuck the letter in his chest telling him to look at it.

At a recommendation of FIGs former lawyer, Kristen Verderame, Flynn then hired Robert Kelner, Covingtons FARA expert, to handle the registration paperwork.

The FARA Unit

FARA has seldom been enforced. Over the past more than 50 years, only seven FARA violations have been prosecuted. The FARA unit has only issued 130 inquiry letters, such as the one received by Flynn, over the decade ending 2015.

This time, however, Heather Hunt, then-FARA unit chief, was prompting Covington again and again to file the papers expeditiously.

Weve never seen her this engaged in any matter (ever), Kelner noted in a Feb. 9, 2017, email.

Even the Justice Departments then-counterintelligence chief, David Laufman, got personally involved and questioned Covington on the FARA filings.

Laufman played a key role in overseeing both the Clinton email investigation and the Russia investigation, which were both handled by FBIs counterintelligence division. Upon resigning in 2018, he became an attorney for the longtime friend of Christine Blasey Ford, Monica McLean. Ford gained media attention in 2018 after she accused soon-to-be Supreme Court Justice Brett Kavanaugh of sexually assaulting her while in high school. According to her LinkedIn, McLean worked for the Justice Department and the FBI for a total of 24 years.

The Russia Probe

Flynn was one of the targets of the FBIs Russia investigation, which probed whether the Trump campaign colluded with Moscow to sway the 2016 election. Under FBI rules, the bureau can launch counterintelligence investigations simply to collect foreign intelligence or to probe matters relevant to national securityit doesnt need to pursue a specific crime.

As part of that probe, Peter Strzok, then-deputy assistant director for counterintelligence operations, and Supervisory Special Agent Joe Pientka interviewed Flynn in the White House on Jan. 24, 2017.

The probe was taken over in May 2017 by a special counsel, former FBI Director Robert Mueller. The probe concluded in March 2019 without establishing any Trump-Russia collusion.

Flynn said he agreed to hire Kelner and Steven Anthony, another Covington lawyer, to represent him in any issue arising from the Russia probe.

During one of his first meetings with Kelner and Anthony, they asked him if he had anything on Trump, as it would help his position. I told them from the beginning I was unaware of President Trump doing anything wrong, Flynn said.

The FARA Conflict

According to Powells filing, by Aug. 10, 2017, the Covington lawyers learned that the Justice Department was probing FIGs FARA papers. The firm launched a review of its work on the registration, but didnt tell Flynn about it.

On Aug. 30, they sent Flynn an email, wanting to talk about a matter they said was not urgent.

Flynn replied that he was on his way to a dinner with his wife and friends, but that he can take the call on the way.

The lawyers called him and relayed that Rafiekian was facing imminent indictment on FARA charges, Powell said.

The lawyers mentioned a possible conflict, that Kelner might have to testify, but they assured Mr. Flynn they would still be able to vigorously defend his case.

In Powells view, this was actually a serious conflict of interest. It was in Covingtons interest to say that any problems with the FARA papers were the fault of Flynn and his associates. Flynns interest was to claim that any problems were the fault of Covington.

By this time, Covington now knew there was a distinct possibility that one of Mr. Flynns lawyers not only might have to testify against his former partner Rafiekian, but that he would be required to testify against his own client, Powell said.

Moreover, the Covington lawyers themselves could potentially face liability, not to mention a tarred reputation.

Under D.C. courts ethics rules, a lawyer cant continue to represent a client under a conflict of this magnitude, even if the client wants him to, Powell argued.

On Nov. 1, 2017, the Covington lawyers learned from the lead prosecutor, Brandon Van Grack, that Flynn was facing three possible charges: failure to register under FARA, lying in FARA papers, and lying to the FBI. Van Grack told them that they may be witnesses in the FARA case, though the prosecutors were not considering to call on them to testify. He explicitly asked the lawyers to talk to Flynn about the conflict.

But they didnt, Powell said.

They only told Flynn in an email three weeks later, seeking his consent to keep them as lawyers despite the conflict. Covington recommended Flynn to talk to another lawyer before consenting, the email said, but assured him the lawyers believed his defense wouldnt be affected by the conflict. Flynn said he didnt understand the legalistic email and that he fully trusted his lawyers to put his interests first. The lawyers cited wrong ethical regulation in the email, one that is not as strict as the ethics rules in D.C. courts, Powell noted. She deemed the consent invalid.

Plea Deal

At that point, the lawyers had already convinced Flynn to talk to the Mueller team and convinced him to use words and phrases that werent part of his normal vocabulary, he said. It appears the plan was to make the prosecutors happy so they would give Flynn a good plea deal.

He said the lawyers told him he was facing 15 years in prison, couldnt get a fair trial in Washington, and that his son, who also worked for FIG, may be charged toounless he accepted the deal.

Flynn finally relented on Nov. 30.

The threat to indict his son was the most important factor, Flynns wife, Lori, said in her declaration.

That was unacceptable to us.

A week later, legal magazine The American Lawyer named the Covington team Litigators of the Week for negotiating Flynns plea.

In his statement of offense, Flynn affirmed that he had lied to the FBI agents by denying that he made two requests in December 2016 to then-Russian Ambassador to the United States Sergei Kislyak. One request was for Russia to not escalate the situation after President Barack Obama expelled dozens of Russian diplomats. The other was for Russia to abstain from or delay a United Nations vote on Israeli settlements. Some media raised the possibility that Flynns requests violated the Logan Act, but that was a paper tiger, according to Powell. Nobody was ever convicted under the law and the last charge was brought more than 150 years ago. As a member of the transition team, it was Flynns job to communicate with foreign officials regarding the incoming administrations positions.

Flynn now says that he didnt lie and that he doesnt remember the details of the calls with Kislyak he supposedly lied about since they were short and didnt stand out from the flurry of other calls with foreign officials at the time.

I believe I was honest with them to the best of my recollection at the time, he said.

He also noted that calls with foreign officials are both sensitive and classified and that he, as an intelligence professional, has a filter that is ingrained in him to not disclose such information except to the right people, such as his supervisors or those with proper clearances and a need to know.

The statement of offense also listed three lies and one omission in the FARA papers. Flynn took responsibility for those too, but Powell now argues the registration was substantially correct and that the statements were either not false or not made by Flynn in the first place.

Legal Offensive

Flynn said he raised multiple times with the Covington lawyers the prospect of withdrawing his plea, but they repeatedly told him to stay on the path.

During the Dec. 18, 2018, sentencing hearing, District Judge Emmet Sullivan, who presides over the Flynn case, extensively questioned Flynn, his lawyer, and the prosecutors.

I cannot recall any incident in which the Court has ever accepted a plea of guilty from someone who maintained that he was not guilty, and I dont intend to start today, the judge said.

He asked Flynn whether he wants to withdraw the plea. He said now.

Flynn now says the Covington lawyers only prepared him for what he expected to be a short hearing. They told him to only respond to such a question with no.

The Court would be giving you the rope to hang yourself, he said they told him.

It was not until spring 2019, when the Covington lawyers insisted he got a second opinion, that he approached Powell. He fired Covington shortly after, but not before they billed him upward of $3.9 million.

Since then, hes been on the offensive.

Powell has filed motions accusing the prosecutors of withholding exculpatory evidence and asking the judge to remove the government attorneys. Sullivan denied all the motions on Dec. 16.

The prosecutors recently argued that Flynn didnt deserve a call for leniency outlined in his plea because he undermined a separate criminal case against Rafiekian, who was eventually acquitted of several FARA-related charges for lack of evidence.

The prosecutors demanded that Flynn testify that he signed the FARA forms knowing they contained false statements. He refused, accusing the prosecutors of trying to make him lie. Instead, he asked Sullivan to allow him to withdraw his plea.

On Jan. 29, prosecutors told the court that Flynn still deserves probationthe deal Covington steered him toward.

Theres no indication Flynn is now inclined to accept.

Correction: A previous version of this article misquoted and incorrectly attributed the belief that Flynn had sure demeanor during his FBI interview and that he did not give any indicators of deception. It was the belief of one of the interviewing agents, according to the prosecutors. A previous version of this article also incorrectly attributed Flynns description of his discovering and responding to a letter from the Justice Departments FARA unit. Flynn provided those descriptions in an interview with prosecutors.

Update: The article has been updated with further details regarding the Clinton and Russia investigations and Michael Flynns legal fees.
She welcomed her only child with Michael Sheen when she was only 25-years-old.

And over two decades later, Kate Beckinsale has taken to Instagram to send wishes to her daughter, Lily Sheen, on her 21st birthday.

The 46-year-old beauty shared a series of old and new photos of her stunning look-alike daughter, calling her a 'fairy person.'

Scroll down for video

All grown up! Kate Beckinsale took to social media to wish her daughter, Lily Sheen, a happy 21st birthday on Saturday

'Happy 21st birthday, you amazing fairy person,' she began.

'I love you my Lily, and your smaller than the rain hands. Happy birthday, funniest,best,most brilliant angel face '

And in true Kate form, she ended the note with a hilarious line.

Mini-me: The photos saw Lily a very much look-a-like to her famous mother

Throwback: Kate even posted some baby photos of her young daughter

'ps please feel free to finally try a sip of alcohol for the first time.'

And while Kate encouraged a 'sip of alcohol' to her now legal daughter, she recently shared that she herself doesn't drink any alcohol or caffeine.

'I think some people's systems are just a bit sensitive to things,' she explained her reasoning to Women's Health last month.

'If you told me you had nausea yesterday, I might start throwing up myself. If I ate too much dark chocolate, it would be like someone else taking cocaine.'

Clean and sober: And while Kate encouraged a 'sip of alcohol' to her now legal daughter, she recently shared that she herself doesn't drink any alcohol or caffeine

Kate welcomed Lily with her ex-boyfriend, Michael Sheen.

They were together for eight years, from 1995 to 2003, after meeting during a touring production of The Seagull.

And while they were together for quite some time, Michael never proposed, leaving Kate 'embarrassed.'

'When I was doing the interviews for Pearl Harbor, everybody kept asking the same thing,' she told Scottish Daily in 2001.

Mom and dad: Kate welcomed Lily with her ex-boyfriend, Michael Sheen (pictured in 2011)

'And I was too embarrassed to admit I really didn't know why Michael hasn't got round to proposing to me yet. So I would make up stories like "when Lily's old enough to be our flower girl, we'll get married"'.

'But the truth is that Michael hasn't asked me to be his wife yet. I actually asked Michael outright, "Why aren't we married yet?" I couldn't believe it when he said, "Because every time I was going to ask you, you did something annoying"'.

The pair amicably ended their relationship in 2003 and Kate moved on to the director, Len Wiseman, of her new movie, Underworld.

Over: Kate moved on to the director, Len Wiseman, of her new movie, Underworld, in 2003. They split in 2016 (pictured 2013)

They married in Bel-Air in 2004 before announcing their separation in 2015.

Len filed for divorce in 2016 citing 'irreconcilable differences' and it was all officially finalized in November 2019.

As for Michael, he recently moved on to Swedish actress, Anna Lundberg, 25, and announced they were welcoming a child together last summer.

Their daughter, Lyra, was born in September 2019.
EDMONTONThe Alberta government and physicians are bringing in a mediator to help break a logjam in talks on a new master agreement.

Health Minister Tyler Shandro says while there has been progress, the two sides have been unable to reach a deal to replace the current contract, which expires at the end of March.

Dr. Christine Molnar, head of the Alberta Medical Association, says both sides have agreed on the mediator and hope this will break the impasse.

The master agreement encompasses the broad relationship between doctors and the government, including working conditions and compensation.

This complex negotiation process became even more complicated late last year when Alberta Health advised doctors that it planned to bring in new policies.

The major change would affect how long a doctor must see a patient before tacking on an extra fee, known as a complex modifier.

Shandro believes the government has the power to make the changes, but the association contends many of the modifications must be negotiated.

The complex modifier was originally set to kick in Saturday, but Shandro has said the deadline has been extended while talks continue.

The province also wants to end double billing for overhead, scrap duplicate billing for diagnostic imaging and cap how many patients a doctor can see and bill for in a day.

Alberta is paying $5.3 billion this year for physicians.

Premier Jason Kenney has said there is room to find savings in government to reduce the deficit while making health care more efficient.

Read more about:
Email Whatsapp Menu Whatsapp Google Reddit Digg Stumbleupon Linkedin Comment

My goodness, how the headlines have changed over the past many years! It seems that America has become obsessed with protecting animals from abuse, while the act of euthanasia as a way of dealing with ailing human beings has grown in popularity.

In Polk County, Florida, animal lovers were recently invited to a local meeting so that the subject of reducing the number of pets euthanized by Polk County Animal Control could be discussed.

In Houston, a woman was reported to be distressed because her pet cat was the victim of a veterinarians error, resulting in the cats death. It seems the cat was scheduled to get a regular vaccination and instead was vaccinated with a euthanasia drug. According to the article: The animal hospital responsible for the incident would not comment on the situation at the advice of legal counsel.

In Niagara Falls, New York, the local SPCA was the subject of an external audit that revealed animal abuse on the part of those caring for the animals in their care. A 44-page report explains incidences of animal euthanasia that violate the SPCAs no-kill policy.

In addition, we see headlines about rehabilitating green sea turtles as well as mini-pigs that would face euthanasia if not rescued.

Clearly our fellow countrymen respond emotionally when four-footed creatures are abused or killed. Needless to say, we all have had pets or known of special animals that are near and dear to our hearts, and that can be a beautiful thing. So you would think it would be logical that this same type of heartwarming emotion would translate to concern for our fellow humans as well. But that does not seem to be the case.

Take for example, Californias Governor Newsom. He has called for the state to be a no-kill state, which means that euthanizing animals would be against the law. However, Newsom is an avid supporter of abortion, having recently signed a bill that mandates free abortions at all state colleges and universities.

Sadly, Newsom is not alone. Across this nation the public appears to be split on subjects like abortion and euthanasia  acts that kill human beings. Yet we seem united in our disdain for animal cruelty. In fact, according to one poll, 1/3 of us think that animals should have the same rights as human beings.

Astonished? Well, dont be. The true story here is that propaganda really works.

For nearly 50 years we have lived in a nation where aborting a child has been legally condoned. America talks about the abortion issue  a term that immediately dehumanizes the child who dies as a result of the act of abortion. Abortion has never been an issue! It is a crime.

We hear much about the compassionate treatment of the ill and the dying, but as far as policymakers are concerned, that compassion translates into a form of palliative care that literally puts patients to death. Such acts are forms of euthanasia, but that is rarely reported honestly.

In Texas, there is a 10-day rule that allows a hospital to overrule parents and take actions resulting in the death of a newborn infant with physical challenges. Where is the outrage?

All this is happening in a cultural vortex of disinformation that has lulled the public into complacency. Perhaps this is why millions of dollars flow to groups that truly do care about animals, such as the SPCA, but when it comes to pro-life groups on the front lines caring for the children and their mothers, those groups scrape by.

That is what I call an upside-down view of human dignity versus care for animals. Yet, veterinarian Jo-Anne Pontone gets it, writing:

Animals should be appreciated as being wonderfully different from us. Further, if we consider animals as Gods gift to man in creation, we are bound in responsibility over them. Fulfilling this responsibility requires that we first must affirm mans true nature and dignity. It is only then that we can strive to imitate Gods compassionate care for the animals and all of creation.

Indeed, God created us in His image and likeness, and our first concern must always be of our brothers and sisters in Christ. Only with persistence in this teaching our pro-life message can we engage folks and challenge their thinking.
Share this article Whatsapp

Facebook

Twitter

Linkedin Bailey Lipschultz (Bloomberg)  Sat, February 1, 2020 22:02 709 7f440ff09e92db75a02bbad20620d23d 2 Health peanuts,allergy,health,medication Free

US health regulators approved the first drug for children and teenagers with peanut allergies, marking a potential paradigm shift in treatment.

The drug, which will be sold under the brand name Palforzia, will be marketed by Aimmune Therapeutics Inc.. The therapy involves ingesting small doses of peanut protein, gradually increased over time to help desensitize patients to higher levels. The medicine is similar to oral therapies offered by some allergists; however, it is the first to be cleared by the US Food and Drug Administration.

Shares of Aimmune jumped 22 percent in extended trading Friday to $37.90 a share. The stock had gained 32 percent over the past 12 months.

The drug will be a game changer for both food allergy doctors and patients, according to Christina Ciaccio, an associate professor of pediatrics at the University of Chicago and an investigator for Palforzia in US studies. To date, we have not been able to do anything but tell patients to carefully monitor what they are eating and to always be prepared with an epinephrine autoinjector in case a reaction does occur.

The new drug is not a cure for patients and studies show it may not work for everyone that receives it. However, Aimunne says the benefits can be life-changing for parents and children who worry about the potentially fatal effects of accidental exposure.

Read also: Korean Air stops serving peanuts after teens' flight disrupted by allergy

Palforzia is intended to appeal to patients and allergists who want regulated therapy that is trusted and has a consistent protocol, according to Chief Executive Officer Jayson Dallas. The approval is a defining moment for the entire peanut allergy community and can help usher in a new era in the treatment of peanut allergy and, in the long term, for food allergy in general, Dallas said in a message to Bloomberg News.

The drugs path to approval was rocky at times as a government shutdown to start 2019 meant the FDA didnt begin reviewing Aimmunes application as early as investors hoped. Shares have climbed since September when an advisory panel to the FDA voted in favor of the drug.

Peanut allergy impacts patients and their families on a daily basis and the threat of a severe reaction related to an accidental peanut exposure creates anxiety and interferes with their quality of life, Dallas said.

The company compares the dosing regimen to that of allergy shots; there are 12 visits during the first six months of increasing doses, followed by daily dosing at home. While the current label is for patients between four and 17 years old, the company is studying the medicine in toddlers between one and four years old.

Analysts expect Palforzia to start slow with about $48 million in sales this year, rising to $1.2 billion in 2024, data compiled by Bloomberg show. The stock has high short interest, at about 30 percent of the available shares, according to financial analytics firm S3 Partners.

Aimmune can buck the trend of the typical short-the-launch biotech thesis, Piper Jaffray analyst Christopher Raymond wrote in a note to clients in December.

University of Chicagos Ciaccio echoed that sentiment, saying she has already scheduled patients for treatment upon approval and even has a six month wait to set up a visit. While the drug will not be a universal fit for all patients, she looks forward to the day where there are multiple treatments to offer patients and decide which is the best fit.

Of the roughly 3 million people in the U.S. with peanut allergies, Aimmune says about half of them would meet the target age group of four to 17. The Brisbane, California-based company sees a similar opportunity in Europe.

Aimmune says it has identified about 1,300 allergists that they see as ready and willing adopters for the therapy when it becomes commercially available. Of that group, around 250 are already using do-it-yourself oral immunotherapy in their offices. Aimmune set the wholesale acquisition cost to $890 a month, regardless of the stage in patient dosing.

Given elevated share prices and the fact that experienced allergists can treat patients using peanut flour at a much cheaper cost, there are some skeptics on Wall Street. Credit Suisse analyst Evan Seigerman sees upside for the stock as limited heading into what he called a challenging commercial story.

Seigerman downgraded shares near the end of 2019, saying there could be hiccups in the timing of approval and launch given it is Aimmunes first commercial drug.

Aimmunes approval paves the way for DBV Technologies SA and its experimental patch for peanut allergies. The FDA plans to make a decision on the Viaskin peanut patch by Aug. 5 after an advisory panel meeting.

Brisbane, California-based Aimmune intends to use both digital and social media to help inform patients and families of the drug with hopes that they can consult with their allergist on potential treatment.

--With assistance from Jeremy R. Cooke.

Topics : peanuts allergy health medication
Prime Minister Boris Johnson hailed an astonishing moment as Britain formally left the European Union (EU) after 47 years on Friday, saying his government had obeyed the people who voted for Brexit in a 2016 referendum.

For many people this is an astonishing moment of hope, a moment they thought would never come, Johnson said in a recorded speech.

The speech was broadcast via his Facebook account one hour before Brexit became official at 11 pm (2300 GMT), or midnight in Brussels.

And there are many of course who feel a sense of anxiety and loss, Johnson added.

And then of course there is a third group  perhaps the biggest  who had started to worry that the whole political wrangle would never come to an end.

We have obeyed the people [who voted for Brexit in a 2016 referendum, he said, adding: We have taken back the tools of self-government.

Johnson and the European Unions top officials earlier pointed to new opportunities ahead after Brexit.

Thousands of eurosceptics gathered to celebrate Brexit Day in London and other cities, rivalled by smaller groups of pro-EU activists in some areas, but most British people were not expected to mark the date.

A light show and other events organised by Johnsons Conservative government at Downing Street was outshone by a nearby Brexit Celebration: Countdown to freedom event fronted by veteran eurosceptic and Brexit Party leader Nigel Farage in Londons Parliament Square.

In Brussels earlier, European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen, European Council President Charles Michel and European Parliament President David Sassoli said Saturday would mark a new dawn for Europe.

The blocs remaining 27 member sates will continue to join forces and build a common future, they wrote in an op-ed for several European newspapers.

READ ALSO:

Leaders across Europe expressed similar sentiments.

German Chancellor Angela Merkel said Brexit was a deep cut for us all but underlined that the remaining EU members would continue to do everything necessary to move forward.

Brexit is a historic alarm signal that must sound in all our countries, that must be heard by all of Europe and make us reflect, French President Emmanuel Macron said.

Irish Prime Minister Leo Varadkar expressed his thanks for the enormous solidarity from our European partners. His country, which shares a land border with Britain in Northern Ireland, is the EU state likely to be most affected by Brexit.

Today is a very sad day. People in the north did not consent to Brexit, Mary Lou McDonald, leader of Irish republican party Sinn Fein, said as she joined a border protest.

This is not something that people on the island of Ireland want, bar a small minority, McDonald said.

After Brexit, little will change in practice during an 11-month transitional phase, as the two sides seek to negotiate a future relationship spanning trade, security and political cooperation.

Officials in Brussels warn that the timeline is extremely ambitious, but Johnson has ruled out an extension.

Fifty-two per cent of voters across the United Kingdom chose Brexit in 2016, but there were majorities for remaining in the EU in Scotland and Northern Ireland.

Scottish National Party leader Nicola Sturgeon, who leads the devolved regional government, insisted on Friday that Scotland is being withdrawn from the EU against its will. She demanded a referendum on independence.

Opinion polls suggest that 53 per cent of people across the United Kingdom now support the country remaining in the EU, said John Curtice, a political scientist at the University of Strathclyde.

Johnsons predecessor, Theresa May, was among the many Conservatives who welcomed Brexit Day.

Advertisements



After more than three years, we can finally say that we have delivered on the result of the 2016 referendum and have kept faith with the British people, tweeted May, who resigned after lawmakers had rejected her Brexit deal three times.

Opposition Labour lawmaker David Lammy said Brexit was a national tragedy.

I oppose it today for the same reasons I have always opposed it, Lammy wrote. Brexit is a con. A trick. A swindle. A fraud. (dpa/NAN)
AFPTV

Climbers brave freezing temperatures in an ice climbing festival held in Sandstone, Minnesota. "Dealing with the cold is definitely a big part of ice climbing," participant Ethan Baker says. For fellow climber Catherine Schneider, it's all about the views: "That's why I like it, and it's quiet and you are in places where mostly you couldn't normally be."
One person was wounded in an early morning shooting in the 12400 block of Southeast Powell Boulevard, Portland police said.

The person suffered injuries that were not life-threatening.

The incident unfolded shortly after 1 a.m. Police were dispatched to a disturbance with shots fired. When they arrived, they found evidence of gunfire in a parking lot but those involved had fled.

A short time later, a gunshot victim arrived at a hospital.

Investigators would like to speak with witnesses to the incident. Witnesses may leave a message at 503-823-4106 or email information to GunTaskForce@portlandoregon.gov.

-- Noelle Crombie; ncrombie@oregonian.com; 503-276-7184; @noellecrombie

Subscribe to Oregonian/OregonLive newsletters and podcasts for the latest news and top stories.
Secretary of State Mike Pompeo insists the Trump administration is committed to supporting Ukraine in its defence against aggression by Russia, which invaded and annexed part of the country and is supporting a separatist insurgency.

Today Im here with a clear message: The United States sees that the Ukrainian struggle for freedom, democracy and prosperity is a valiant one, Mr Pompeo said at a news conference on Friday after meeting with Ukraines leader in Kyiv. Our commitment to support it will not waver.

Ukraine is a bulwark between freedom and authoritarianism in Eastern Europe, Mr Pompeo added.

His visit, in which he met with President Volodymyr Zelenskiy, was aimed at calming unease among Ukrainian officials about the relationship between Washington and Kyiv, which has been thrust into the spotlight because of the impeachment of Donald Trump, based on charges of abuse of power and obstruction over the presidents actions on Ukraine.

Mr Pompeo and Mr Zelenskiy met before noon in the presidents office in central Kyiv, and the Ukrainian leader said they had talked about new steps to strengthen the partnership between the two nations.

Protests break out after Russia seize Ukraine warships in 2018 Show all 32 1 /32 Protests break out after Russia seize Ukraine warships in 2018 Protests break out after Russia seize Ukraine warships in 2018 Activists of opposition parties burn flares during a rally demanding to break an agreement with Russia on the use of the Azov Sea and the Kerch Strait, in front of the parliament building in Kiev Reuters Protests break out after Russia seize Ukraine warships in 2018 Volunteers with the right-wing paramilitary Azov National Corps light flares during a rally on the snowy streets in front of the Ukrainian parliament in Kiev after Russia seized two of their armored artillery vessels and a tug boat in the Black Sea AP Protests break out after Russia seize Ukraine warships in 2018 Ukrainian Nationalists demand to break the diplomatic relations with Russia and nationalization of Russian property in Ukraine EPA Protests break out after Russia seize Ukraine warships in 2018 Ukrainian activists burn flares during their rally in front of Russian Consulate in Kharkiv EPA Protests break out after Russia seize Ukraine warships in 2018 Reuters Protests break out after Russia seize Ukraine warships in 2018 Seized Ukrainian ships, small armoured artillery ships and a tug boat, are seen anchored in a port of Kerch Reuters Protests break out after Russia seize Ukraine warships in 2018 AP Protests break out after Russia seize Ukraine warships in 2018 The President of Ukraine, Petro Poroshenko, announced, on 25 November, at a meeting of the National Security and Defense Council that they will introduce martial law in Ukraine for a period of 60 days and appeal to the Parliament to consider the move Reuters Protests break out after Russia seize Ukraine warships in 2018 Russia seized two small-sized 'Berdiansk' and 'Nikopol' armored artillery boats. The 'Yany Kapu' tugboat has forcibly been stopped Reuters Protests break out after Russia seize Ukraine warships in 2018 Children from an orphanage volunteer to help the city defenders strengthen trenches on Ukraine's Army positions near the village of Rybatske 25 km from Mariupol AP Protests break out after Russia seize Ukraine warships in 2018 AP Protests break out after Russia seize Ukraine warships in 2018 Policemen guard at Russian consulate during a protest action in the Black Sea Ukrainian city of Odessa AFP/Getty Protests break out after Russia seize Ukraine warships in 2018 EPA Protests break out after Russia seize Ukraine warships in 2018 AFP/Getty Protests break out after Russia seize Ukraine warships in 2018 With relations still raw after Russias annexation of Crimea and its backing for a pro-Moscow insurgency in eastern Ukraine, the capture of three Ukrainian naval vessels risks pushing the two countries towards a wider conflict. Graphic explains how the naval incident unfolded on a map Graphic News Protests break out after Russia seize Ukraine warships in 2018 Activists of far-right parties burn flares in front of the parliament building in Kiev during a rally to support the Ukrainian navy Reuters Protests break out after Russia seize Ukraine warships in 2018 A Ukraine army APC moves toward on position at an undisclosed location in eastern Ukraine AP Protests break out after Russia seize Ukraine warships in 2018 Ukrainian Nationalists sign a banner with a slogan reading like 'Not retreat and not surrendering!' EPA Protests break out after Russia seize Ukraine warships in 2018 AFP/Getty Protests break out after Russia seize Ukraine warships in 2018 Activists glue Ukrainian flag on the fence of Russian consulate AFP/Getty Protests break out after Russia seize Ukraine warships in 2018 A volunteer with the right-wing paramilitary Azov National Corps during a rally on the snowy streets in front of the Ukrainian parliament in Kiev AP Protests break out after Russia seize Ukraine warships in 2018 AP Protests break out after Russia seize Ukraine warships in 2018 EPA Protests break out after Russia seize Ukraine warships in 2018 Reuters Protests break out after Russia seize Ukraine warships in 2018 A National Guard serviceman extinguishes a torch thrown by a protester during a rally against the seizure by Russian special forces of three of the Ukrainian navy ships Reuters Protests break out after Russia seize Ukraine warships in 2018 A protester throws a smoke grenade during a rally in front of the embassy of Russia in Kiev AP Protests break out after Russia seize Ukraine warships in 2018 Protestors set up paper ships on the tires during their rally near of Russian embassy building in Kiev EPA Protests break out after Russia seize Ukraine warships in 2018 Reuters Protests break out after Russia seize Ukraine warships in 2018 A man extinguishes a burning car of the embassy of Russia Reuters Protests break out after Russia seize Ukraine warships in 2018 Paper boats are seen placed during a protest Reuters Protests break out after Russia seize Ukraine warships in 2018 EPA Protests break out after Russia seize Ukraine warships in 2018 EPA

I dont think these friendly and warm relations have been influenced by the impeachment trial of the president, Mr Zelenskiy said at a news conference with Mr Pompeo when asked whether Mr Trumps impeachment had affected ties between Kyiv and Washington.

While the two officials offered reassurances that relations were strong, Mr Pompeo did not give Mr Zelenskiy one thing he has sought since his election in April: an invitation to meet Mr Trump at the White House, which would be an important signal to Russia of US support for Ukraine. Mr Pompeos message that Trump was not ready to receive Mr Zelenskiy at the White House was a blow to the Ukrainian presidents national security efforts.

Evidence that Mr Trump had earlier demanded, in return for such a visit, that Ukraine announce the start of an investigation that could benefit him, became an important part of the impeachment inquiry. In response to a question on Friday, Mr Pompeo said a White House visit by Mr Zelenskiy was not dependent on the kind of investigation that Mr Trump had sought.

Ukrainian officials are angry the Americans have granted Russias foreign minister, Sergey Lavrov, two visits with Mr Trump in the White House, most recently in December.

In renewing his request for a meeting on Friday, Mr Zelenskiy said: If we have an important subject for this conversation other than strategy and tactics, but important things we can negotiate over, something to sign and that I can bring back, then I am ready to go tomorrow!

Mr Pompeo was the first official from Mr Trumps cabinet to meet with Mr Zelenskiy since the impeachment inquiry began in the autumn. Mr Trump met briefly with the Ukrainian leader 25 September on the sidelines of the UN General Assembly in New York  the day after Democrats in the House of Representatives announced the opening of the inquiry.

The Democrats move was prompted by a formal complaint filed by a CIA whistleblower who said that Mr Trump had pressed Mr Zelenskiy in a 25 July call for political flavours at the same time he was withholding from Ukraine $391 million (296m) of military aid mandated by Congress.

The impeachment trial in the Senate began this month but appeared as of early Friday to be moving to a swift close.

The military aid from Washington, which the White House released 11 September, after Mr Trump heard about the formal whistleblower complaint, is aimed at helping Ukrainian soldiers fight a years-long Russian-backed insurgency in eastern Ukraine.

Ukraine and other European nations want the Trump administration to get involved in talks with leaders in Kyiv and Moscow to help settle the conflict.

Analysts say Mr Trumps actions on Ukraine  which critics say centred on gaining political advantage for his re-election campaign this year  and his open admiration of President Vladimir Putin of Russia have weakened decades of US support for Ukraine.

US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo, left, gestures as Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy stands beside after their joint news conference following the talks in Kyiv Ukraine Friday Jan 31 2020 (Efrem Lukatsky/AP)

Mr Trump and his aides deny that he withheld the aid for political reasons and say they were asking that Ukraine conduct legitimate investigations into corruption. And Mr Pompeo said on Friday that the United States under President Trump has been the worlds fiercest defender of Ukraines sovereignty".

Alyona Gemantchuk, director of the New Europe Center in Kyiv, a research group, welcomed the move by Mr Pompeo and Mr Zelenskiy to reaffirm US aid for Ukraine, including military support, but said there were still major concerns.

At the same time, we feel that Ukraine has become toxic in Washington, and there is a lack of new initiatives toward Ukraine, she said. Theres also a lack of US support and US involvement in peace negotiations with Russia.

On Friday morning, as snow fell lightly in Kyiv, Mr Pompeo met with Vadym Prystaiko, Ukraines foreign minister, and went to the golden-domed St Michaels Cathedral downtown to attend a wreath-laying ceremony for the soldiers who have died fighting in the Donbas. In the evening, Mr Pompeo visited wounded soldiers at a hospital.

More than 13,000 Ukrainian soldiers and civilians have been killed since the war began in 2014, the same year Russia invaded and occupied the Crimean Peninsula on the Black Sea. The conflict has become grinding trench warfare in open fields with regular shelling.

The Ukraine trip is a fraught one for Mr Pompeo, who arrived Thursday night after a stop in London and plans to travel afterward to three more nations that became independent from Moscow.

Mr Pompeo has been dogged by sharp questions over his role in the Ukraine affair and, more recently, an acid comment he made about Ukraine in a 24 January conversation with a National Public Radio reporter. The reporter, Mary Louise Kelly, a veteran national security correspondent, said that after she asked about Ukraine, Mr Pompeo shouted at her and asked her to locate Ukraine on an unmarked map. She added that, using the F-word, he asked, Do you think Americans care about Ukraine?

Mr Pompeo enabled Trumps actions on Ukraine by ordering the recall of Marie L. Yovanovitch, the respected ambassador to Ukraine, in April. Mr Trumps personal lawyer, Rudy Giuliani, and associates with Ukraine business ties had been pressing the president hard for the ouster of the ambassador, who had been an anticorruption advocate.

Mr Trumps main demand of Mr Zelenskiy had been that he announce investigations into Joe Biden, the former vice president and a leading Democratic presidential candidate, and his son Hunter Biden, who had been on the board of Burisma Holdings, a Ukrainian energy company.

There is no evidence that the older Biden acted inappropriately on Ukraine policy because of his sons corporate ties.

On several occasions, Mr Pompeo, an ardent Trump loyalist, has reiterated Mr Trumps conspiratorial assertions about Ukraine, the Bidens and questions of interference in the 2016 presidential election  assertions that have been discredited and have angered the Ukrainians.

As secretary of state and CIA director, Mike Pompeo had every opportunity to put his mark on Russia and Ukraine policy, said Andrew Weiss, a former US official who worked on Russia and Ukraine and is now at the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace. But at nearly every turn he focused instead on the audience of one  Donald Trump.

Thats why he turned a blind eye when Trump and cronies like Rudy Giuliani decided to totally dismantle the Ukraine policy framework that has been in place since 1991 and, knowingly or unknowingly, did a huge solid for the Kremlin, he added. Making a short pit stop in Kyiv hardly begins to undo the damage that has been wrought.

Mr Pompeo canceled planned trips to Ukraine twice  once in November and once at the start of January.

William Taylor, the veteran diplomat whom Mr Pompeo appointed to be chief of mission after Ms Yovanovitch was forced out, wrote a 26 January opinion piece for The New York Times in which he tried to address Mr Pompeos angry, dismissive question to National Public Radio about Ukraine.

Russia is fighting a hybrid war against Ukraine, Europe and the United States, Mr Taylor wrote. This war has many components: armed military aggression, energy supply, cyber attacks, disinformation and election interference. On each of these battlegrounds, Ukraine is the front line.

In an interview in Kyiv with ABC News, Mr Pompeo said he absolutely wanted the Ukrainains to get the military aid and did not deny that he had argued to the president to lift the hold on aid, as The New York Times reported. But he also said Mr Trump wanted to ensure that resources get to the right place", and Mr Pompeo would help deliver for him".

The New York Times
Container trucks wait for approval to pass the border between China and Viet Nam in Lang Son Province's Cao Loc District. - Photo thuonghieucongluan.com.vn

The analysis and solutions must stick with the development of the Vietnamese economy so that the economy increased its competitiveness, quality and productivity, he said.

It is time we hastened the restructuring of all sectors, the minister said, adding it was necessary to look for opportunities in other markets, especially those with potential for further penetration.

According to officials at the Ministry of Industry and Trade, the restriction that nations are deploying to prevent a global-scale outbreak of the disease would slow the growth of the retail sector down.

In addition, the number of foreign tourists, especially the Chinese, will fall down in the future while bilateral trade between Viet Nam and China will be jammed.

The border gates between Viet Nam and China in Lang Son Province are being shut down as the Chinese government has taken drastic measures to control and prevent the coronavirus from spreading.

The shutdown is jamming Vietnamese container trucks, which are filled with fruits, vegetables and other short-term agriculture products.

According to the Agency of Foreign Trade, the outbreak of the deadly coronavirus has lowered retail sales in China. In addition, the Chinese government has carried out measures to strictly control the infection, leading to the extensive shutdown of the border gate.

Viet Nam and China had planned to open the border gate in Lang Son Provinces Cao Loc District on Friday for the continuance of bilateral trade after the Tet (Lunar New Year) holiday. However, the spread of the disease forced Chinese officials to extend the shutdown until February 9.

The Ministry of Industry and Trades foreign trade agency has asked logistics firms to help Vietnamese agriculture producers following Chinas decision to temporarily stop importing local farm products.

The consumption of agricultural products had fallen in China while trade activities between the two economies was also badly affected, the agency said in a request sent to the Vietnam Logistic Business Association (VLA) on Thursday.

The agency asked the VLA and member companies to pay attention to new developments and assist exporters to store agricultural products while waiting for the border gate to be re-opened. Local firms are also advised to look for alternate consumers in both domestic and overseas markets.

The Ministry of Industry and Trade also asked local companies to keep close watch on trade activities between Viet Nam and China amid new developments of the current event to avoid negative impacts on their business.

The ministry will also work the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development to encourage local firms to produce dried products and fruit juice to raise the product value and extend the product expirations.

Harsh time

Some Vietnamese fruit exporters have had a difficult time when the Viet Nam-China border gate is closed.

Nguyen Thi Hong Thu, director of fruit export firm Chanh Thu, said its containers full of fruits exported to China, had been returned. The fruits had been either sold very cheaply or processed.

The company is suffering with high inventory and there is no solution for the situation. We need support from the government agencies, local farmers and producers to share the risk, Nguoi Lao Dong (The Labourers) newspaper cited her as saying.

Nguyen Dinh Tung, general director of Vina T&T Group, said the extensive shutdown of the border gate between China and Viet Nam clearly dampened all trade activities, especially fruit and plant exports.

Most of the fruits were kept fresh for a maximum of 15 days. Only those with durations of at least 30 days would be stored in the cooler to wait for the re-opening of the border gate, he said.

The border gate could still be closed after February 9 amid fears about the disease and other markets were also restricted to prevent a possible global outbreak, Tung said.

Therefore, Vietnamese firms should look for alternate destinations for their products, he added.
Georgian Foreign Minister David Zalkaliani thanked Turkey for helping to evacuate the country's citizens from the Chinese province of Wuhan, which became the epicenter of a new deadly coronavirus.

I want to thank Turkey for the evacuation of Georgian citizens. Such support once again confirms the close partnership and solidarity of the two countries, Zalkaliani wrote on Twitter

According to the latest data, 259 people became victims of the virus, about 11.7 thousand are infected, Sputnik-Georgia reports.
The pair are understood to have had issues since July last year with photographers noting an increase in public salty exchanges when capturing images of the pair. Bridges and Willis got together in 2013 after meeting while working together on The Biggest Loser. Before officially confirming their relationship, they were both in other relationships, Bridges with her former business partner and gym owner, Bill Moore, and Willis with a woman known only as 'Froso', who is the mother of two of his children Ella and Jack. Willis also has an older daughter Brianna from a previous relationship with a woman named Natalie Montgomery. Speaking to Emerald City last week Bill Moore confirmed he has not been in touch with his ex-wife since her headline-making split. "I havent spoken to Michelle since her breakup (with commando), no, We havent worked together since 2015 so we dont communicate on a daily basis anymore and whilst theres no bad blood between either of us, I wish her well," he added.

Bridges was pulled over in a 4WD in Sydney's eastern suburbs around 11.25am last Sunday and taken to Waverley Police Station where she allegedly returned a blood alcohol reading of 0.086, which if proven would make it a mid-range offence. She is due to appear in Waverley Local Court on February 18. Loading Kellie Hush's makes Bazaar swipe about copycat mag cover They say imitation is the sincerest form of flattery, but when the latest Marie Claire Australia hit newsstands not everyone was applauding the publication's cover featuring model Elyse Knowles cradling a koala. Elyse Knowles and koala joey Tink on the latest issue of Marie Claire. Credit:Instagram

Former magazine editor Kellie Hush was quick to upload to social media a 2015 Harpers BAZAAR cover she produced in 2015 that had model Shanina Shaik holding a koala. The timely post set tongues wagging in magland. "Everyone's done a koala cover at some point, it's hardly groundbreaking," a fellow magazine editor explained. "She [Hush] needs to pipe down #noonecares." Marie Claire Australia editor Nicky Briger dismissed the copycat claims, instead focussing on the national bushfire crisis. "When millions of animals died in the recent bushfire tragedy, koalas became the global 'face' of the devastating impact of climate change. An opportunity arose to photograph a joey koala from the Currumbin Wildlife Sanctuary, who are doing amazing work to ensure their future, so we jumped at it," she told Emerald City. "We hope baby Tink, our favourite cover girl to date, sends a message of hope. And we're grateful to those who feel inspired to buy the mag as proceeds will go directly to charities and organisations who are working tirelessly to protect our wildlife."

Kellie uploaded a throwback of a past cover she curated for Harper's BAZAAR. Credit:Instagram Happy ending for bushfire victim She was thrust into the national spotlight when she refused to shake the PM's hand during the recent bushfire crisis. But since losing her home on New Year's Eve, heavily pregnant Zoey Salucci-McDermott now has something to celebrate after eloping with partner Mike. "22.01.20 we eloped in the most Zoey and Mike fashion ... some good after the storm [sic] some good after all the storm," she captioned her wedding day photo, uploaded to Instagram. Zoey and her husband Mike on their wedding day. Credit:Instagram
The solar energy stocks are in focus as Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman in her Budget 2020 speech said that goverment is going to help farmers to set up solar power units.

The government is expanding 'PM Kusum Scheme' to 20 lakh farmers to set up solar pumps.

The farmers can make a living out of barren land using solar power, she added.

At 11:28 hrs Suzlon Energy was quoting at Rs 2.42, up Rs 0.03, or 1.26 percent and Surana Solar was quoting at Rs 8.85, up Rs 0.42, or 4.98 percent.

Websol Energy System was quoting at Rs 29.10, up Rs 0.35, or 1.22 percent and Ujaas Energy was quoting at Rs 5.12, up Rs 0.24, or 4.92 percent.

Shakti Pumps (India) was quoting at Rs 275.65, up Rs 31.85, or 13.06 percent.
Two men in their 20s drowned in a canal in outer Delhi's Bawana area, officials said on Saturday.

The victims have been identified as Raj Kumar (24) and Shiv Kumar (21), they said.

According to a senior fire official, they received information about the incident near Khera Pul in Bawana canal on Friday night.

The fire department, accompanied by the Department Of Delhi Disaster Management Authority and Boat Club, started the rescue operation around 12.40 am on Saturday but the bodies could not be traced, the fire department said.

Due to night hours, the search operation was stopped. It was resumed around 10.30 am.

The bodies were fished out in the noon and handed over to the police, the department said.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
KYODO NEWS - Feb 1, 2020 - 18:50 | World, All, Coronavirus

The Health and Welfare Ministry said Saturday that a Chinese tour guide who entered South Korea from Japan has tested positive for a new coronavirus raging through China.

While he was in Japan, the male guide had contact with a person who had been found to have been infected with the virus, and he took a test in South Korea after the infected person in Japan recommended that he do so as well, according to the ministry.

(A disinfection worker wearing protective gears spray anti-septic solution in an train amid rising public concerns over the spread of China's Wuhan Coronavirus at SRT train station on January 24, 2020 in Seoul.)[Getty/Kyodo]

After staying in Japan for work, the guide entered South Korea from Gimpo airport in the suburbs of Seoul on Jan. 19.

The mayor of Bucheon, Gyeonggi Province, of which the male guide is a resident, said on Facebook that the man is presumed to have contracted the virus in Japan while he was with a tourist bus driver and guide who had already been infected with the virus.

The tour guide is the 12th case of the new coronavirus confirmed in South Korea.

On Saturday morning, a second group of South Koreans returned to South Korea from China on a government-chartered plane.

Including about 370 South Koreans who returned home on the first chartered plane the previous day, about 700 South Koreans have been evacuated from the central Chinese city of Wuhan -- at the center of the outbreak -- and its vicinity, according to local media.
The 2019 Novel Coronavirus (2019-nCov) or the Wuhan coronavirus, has spread from China to over 20 countries, including the United States, France, and Japan.

The following updates are from Feb. 1. Click here for updates from Feb. 2.

Pentagon to Provide Quarantine Housing for US Citizens Returning From China

The Pentagon said it would provide housing for Americans arriving from overseas travel who may be subject to quarantine measures.

Yesterday, the Trump administration announced that U.S. citizens who have traveled within the past two weeks to Hubeithe Chinese province housing the disease epicenter of Wuhanwill be subject to a mandatory quarantine of up to 14 days.

In addition, Americans who visited other parts of mainland China will undergo special health screening upon their return, followed by up to 14 days of monitored self-quarantine.

Defense Secretary Mark Esper approved a request for assistance from the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) for housing support for 1,000 people who may be subject to quarantine on arrival from overseas, Assistant to the Secretary of Defense for Public Affairs Jonathan Rath Hoffman wrote on Twitter.

Four military installationstwo in California, one in Colorado, and one in Texashave been selected for the housing support. HHS will be responsible for all care and transportation of quarantined individuals.

DOD personnel will not be directly in contact with the evacuees and evacuees will not have access to any base location other than their assigned housing, Hoffman said.

US Confirms 8th Case of Coronavirus in Boston

U.S. health authorities have confirmed the eighth case of the Novel Coronavirus in the United States.

The virus was detected in a man in his 20s from Boston who recently traveled to Wuhan, the central Chinese city where the outbreak originated, the Massachusetts Department of Health announced in a press release on Feb. 1.

The health officials later confirmed he is a student at the University of Massachusetts. He has been under self-isolation at his off-campus home since Jan. 29, after complaining of flu-like symptoms.

Read more here.

Feces May Reveal Hidden Risk of Virus Spread

The new coronavirus was detected in feces in the first case confirmed in the United States and that finding could point to a hidden risk in the spread of the virus.

Its not only excreted in your respiratory secretions, its also secreted in your stool, Scott Lindquist, the state epidemiologist for infectious disease at Washington States Department of Health, said on a conference call on Friday, reported Bloomberg.

Fang Li, an associate professor of veterinary and biomedical sciences at the University of Minnesota, said that the SARS and Wuhan viruses attach to the same protein receptors, which are seen in the lungs and intestines.

John Nicholls, a clinical professor of pathology at the University of Hong Kong, told Bloomberg that fecal material would be a very likely place where you might get the transmission.

If its using the same receptor as for SARS, I cant see why it shouldnt be replicating in the gut, he said.

Ten to 20 percent of SARS patients experienced diarrhea, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). Diarrhea was the source of a major outbreak of that coronavirus in a Hong Kong complex. The CDC said that coronaviruses most commonly spread through the air by coughing and sneezing or close personal contact. In rare cases, the viruses spread through fecal contamination.

Russia to Start Evacuations From Hubei Province

Russian Aerospace Forces will be used in the upcoming evacuations of Russian citizens from Hubei province, where the coronavirus started, government spokesman Dmitry Peskov told reporters on Saturday.

President Vladimir Putin ordered the involvement of the forces, which would start evacuating citizens on Feb. 1, according to Peskov, the Russian news agency TASS reported.

Some 341 Russian citizens are in the province, including 300 in Wuhan. No Russians in Hubei Province have the new coronavirus, Russian officials said.

The first coronavirus cases in Russia were confirmed on Friday. The two Chinese nationals were isolated and being watched closely.

Australia Confirms 2 More Cases

Australia confirmed the 11th and 12th cases of coronavirus in the country late Saturday afternoon local time. The cases are the first in the state of South Australia.

The man and a woman, a couple, are both aged 60 and both recently returned from Wuhan, the epicenter of the outbreak.

According to News Corp, the couple contacted authorities after they suspected they were sick. They also took precautions to self-isolate and are now in preparation to be admitted to a hospital.

News Corp also reported that another person who had come into contact with the couple has been tested for coronavirus, and results are pending. The person has also put themselves in isolation.

Medical workers in protective suits move a coronavirus patient into an isolation ward at the Second Peoples Hospital in Fuyang in central Chinas Anhui Province on Feb. 1, 2020. (Chinatopix via AP)

US Confirms 7th Case

The seventh case of the new coronavirus has been confirmed in the United States.

The male patient lives in Santa Clara County, California. The case is the third in California but the first in Santa Clara County and the Bay area.

The man traveled to Wuhan, the epicenter of the virus, and became ill after returning home, Dr. Sara Cody, the health officer for the county, told reporters at a press conference.

Since he has been home to the county, he has been self-isolating at home and did not leave home at all except to seek medical care. He was seen in a local clinic and hospital but was never sick enough to be hospitalized, Cody said. U.S. officials said on Friday that the coronavirus was officially a public health emergency in the country, announcing a ban on foreign nationals who have been to mainland China recently.

Read more here.

Dr. Muntu Davis, MD, MPH, Los Angeles County Health Office, briefs the media on the new coronavirus in San Gabriel, Calif. on, Jan. 31, 2020, after the outbreak reached Southern California. (Damian Dovarganes/AP Photo)

Qantas Airlines Suspends Flights to China

Qantas Airlines said it was suspending flights to mainland China, the latest airline to restrict travel over the coronavirus outbreak.

The carrier typically flies from Sydney to Beijing and Sydney to Shanghai. Those flights will be suspended from Feb. 9 to March 29.

This follows entry restrictions imposed by countries including Singapore and the United States, which impact the movement of crew who work across the Qantas International network, the company said.

These entry restrictions pose significant logistical challenges for rostering crew to operate mainland China services, leading to the need to temporarily suspend these flights.

Read more here.

UK Withdraws Some Staff from China Embassy

Some staff members are set to leave Britains embassy and consulates in China due to the coronavirus, the UK government said on Saturday.

As of Jan. 31, some staff and dependents from the British Embassy and Consulates are being withdrawn from China. Essential staff needed to continue critical work will remain, the statement reads, Reuters reported.

In the event that the situation deteriorates further, the ability of the British Embassy and Consulates to provide assistance to British nationals from within China may be limited.

Australia Bans Travelers from China

Australians are being warned to avoid travel to China on Saturday as the countrys prime minister, Scott Morrison, announced that travelers who have left or passed through China will be denied entry.

The exception will be for Australian citizens, permanent residents, and their immediate family members. However, all travelers among this group will be required to self-isolate for 14 days.

If you come from mainland China any time from Feb. 1, then you will be required to self-isolate for a period of 14 days, Morrison said. For anyone other than Australian citizens, Australian residents, dependents, legal guardians or spouses, then you will not be permitted entry into Australia.

The warning to avoid travel to China comes from Australias Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade (DFAT), which has raised its travel advice to Australian to level 4, which is do not travel, for the whole of mainland China.

Similar measures were announced by the United States on Friday, as its advisory status was also raised to a level 4 warningthe highest alert possible of do not travel to China.

People wear face masks as they listen to a presentation in an Apple Store in the Sanlitun shopping district in Beijing as China is hit by an outbreak of the new coronavirus, on Jan. 25, 2020. (Thomas Peter/Reuters)

Apple Closing All Stores in China

Apple on Saturday said it would shut all of its official stores and corporate offices in mainland China until Feb 9. as fears over the coronavirus outbreak mounted.

Out of an abundance of caution and based on the latest advice from leading health experts, were closing all our corporate offices, stores, and contact centers in mainland China through Feb. 9, Apple said in a statement. The company said looked forward to reopening stores as soon as possible.

Earlier this week, Apple closed three stores in China due to concerns about the spread of the virus.

Its joining a handful of overseas retailers, including Starbucks and McDonalds to temporarily shut storefronts as a precautionary measure.

Many other companies, meanwhile, have called for employees in China to work from home and cease non-essential business travel in the first week of February.

Two girls with face masks ride the subway in Hong Kong on Feb. 1, 2020. (Kin on Cheung/AP Photo)

Air NZ Suspends Flights to Shanghai

Air New Zealand announced on Saturday it will suspend its Auckland-Shanghai flights from Feb. 9 to March 29.

The companys chief operational integrity and standards officer, captain David Morgan, said that the move owes to the potential consequence of international travel bans on crew logistics, New Zealand news service News Hub reported.

Our teams are currently putting in place alternative travel options for customers impacted by the suspension and they will be contacted directly over the coming week, Morgan added.

New Zealand has issued a do not travel warning for Chinas Hubei province, which houses Wuhan city, the epicenter of the coronavirus outbreak.

Thailand Confirms First Case of Human-to-Human Transmission

The first case of human-to-human transmission of the coronavirus in Thailand was observed in a Thai taxi driver, health officials said according to the Bangkok Post.

The Thai person who was infected does not have a record of traveling to China and it is likely that he was infected by a sick traveler from China, said Tanarak Pipat, deputy director-general of the Department of Disease Control, reported the Bangkok Post.

Earlier cases of the new coronavirus in Thailand have involved Chinese tourists or Thais who traveled to China.

The announcement came as a top United States top infectious disease doctor said that theres no doubt the virus can spread without symptoms.

A man, wearing a mask, pushes a sharing bicycle with goods crossing a street in Beijing on Feb. 1, 2020. (Wang Zhao/AFP via Getty Images)

Indians From Wuhan Taken to Quarantine Facility

A group of 324 Indians that arrived via an Air India flight at Delhi Airport Saturday morning have been sent to quarantine.

Indian news agency ANI reports that the group was taken to the Indo-Tibetan Border Police (ITBP) Chhawla Camp in Manesar, where they will be kept in isolation for 14 days while under medical observation.

Chinese authorities barred six Indians from taking the flight to Delhi after it was deemed that the six were suffering from high fevers, according to Indian daily newspaper Economic Times.

The paper reports that another flight is scheduled to leave Delhi today around 12:50 p.m. local time to evacuate Indians from Wuhan.

India confirmed its first and so far only case of coronavirus on Friday morning, which involved a student in Kerala who studied at Wuhan University. The student is in stable condition and is being kept in an isolation ward at a hospital.

An Iraqi Health Ministry employee checks a passengers temperature, amid the new coronavirus outbreak, upon their arrival at Basra airport, in Basra, Iraq, on Feb. 1, 2020. (Essam al-Sudani/Reuters)

Kurdistans Erbil Airport Denies Entry to 3 Chinese People

Erbil International Airport in the semi-autonomous Kurdistan Region of Iraq denied entry to three Chinese citizens over fears about the coronavirus outbreak in China, authorities said on Saturday.

The three passengers were sent back to Dubai, from where they had flown to Erbil, a statement from Kurdistans airport authority said.

Several countries tightened travel curbs on Friday, a day after the World Health Organization declared a global health emergency.

Iraqs Basra International Airport said on Friday it was denying entry to passengers of any nationality traveling to Iraq from China.

Click here for updates from Jan. 31.

From The Epoch Times
STATEN ISLAND, N.Y. -- Groundhog Day is this weekend, and Staten Islanders can easily check out the festivities Sunday as a four-legged prognosticator tells the world whether or not well have an early spring.

The holiday attracts the attention of winter-weary Americans of all ages, who will turn their attention to a host of famous groundhogs, and make note of whether the rodent sees a shadow when coming out of its burrow first thing in the morning.

Staten Island has its own resident rodent superstar -- Staten Island Chuck, who resides at the Staten Island Zoo in West Brighton.

If the groundhog sees its shadow, there will be six more weeks of winter, according to the superstition. If not, an early spring is on the way.

HOW TO CELEBRATE AND WATCH

This years Groundhog Day celebration at the Staten Island Zoo will begin at 7 a.m. on Sunday. Staten Island Chuck is scheduled to make his prediction at 7:30 a.m.

Admission to the ceremony is free.

Those unable to attend the ceremony at the Staten Island Zoo can watch Chuck make his prediction on Silive.com .

For those who want to watch a furry prognosticator besides Staten Island Chuck, you may be interested in Punxsutawney Phil.

It all started with the Punxsutawney Groundhog Club, founded in Punxsutawney, Pa., in 1887 by a group of groundhog hunters. The editor of the Punxsutawney newspaper was a member of the club, and he claimed that Punxsutawney Phil was the only true weather-predicting groundhog.

Today, tens of thousands travel to Gobblers Knob, the location in Punxsutawney where Phil makes his prediction.

HISTORY

The Groundhog Day tradition can be traced to Candlemas, an early Christian holiday where candles were blessed and distributed. Those who celebrated Candlemas decided that clear skies on the holiday meant a longer winter.

The Germans eventually began to believe that if the sun made an appearance on Candlemas Day, a hedgehog would cast a shadow -- predicting six more weeks of harsh winter weather. And it was the Germans who brought this belief to the United States.

When German immigrants arrived in Pennsylvania, they found a large number of groundhogs. And they tasked the groundhog, which resembles the European hedgehog, with the job of predicting the weather.

PAST CELEBRATIONS, CONTROVERSIES

Chuck has been making his prediction in the borough for more than three decades -- and some years have been more eventful than others. In 2009, Chuck bit Mayor Michael Bloomberg. And, in 2014, Chuck was dropped by Mayor Bill de Blasio. That groundhog, which was actually a female stand-in named Charlotte, died several days later.
PHILIPSBURG:--- The Chief Financial Officer (CFO) Gerben Stevast has quit his job at the Princess Juliana International Airport (PJIAE).

SMN News understands that Stevast will be leaving as of Monday. Sources say Stevast reportedly has family-related issues.

SMN News further learned that the former chairman of the Supervisory Board Michel Hodge and Chief Executive Officer (CEO) Brian Mingo already met with a potential replacement in the Netherlands in early January.

SMN News contacted Michel Hodge for a comment and he said he is no longer on the Supervisory Board of PJIAE. Further research shows that Hodges term expired on January 15th, 2020.

SMN News tried to obtain a statement from Chief Executive Officer Brian Mingo who is currently in Europe on a working visit and he was not immediately available. As soon as a comment is obtained from Mingo this article will be updated.
A county Limerick company has passed a major milestone in its revolutionary bid to harness the kinetic energy of rivers, estuaries and tidal flows with a special turbine and generate electricity.

DesignPro Renewables, based in Rathkeale, in conjunction with Leask Marine Ltd, have successfully completed testing of their 60KW turbine, the DPR60, in the Orkney Islands off the Scottish coast and can now move on to developing the prototype to commercial level.

The original turbine prototype was first tested in the Shannon estuary.

The primary end users of such turbines will be remote or island communities and businesses that are off-grid or grid poor and who are forced to use diesel generators as their only viable option.

Our 60kW device can provide a clean, independent and predictable supply of electricity to these users, removing the burden and constant drain of funds spent on polluting diesel fuel thus improving quality of life and creating positive change, Roisin McCormack, the companys sales and marketing manager said this week.

Ms McCormack added that they were very excited about the test results from the Orkney Island which follow on from favourable results from testing of the companys 25KW turbines in France.

The potential for these turbines, once they are commercially available, is huge, Ms McCormack added.

In Europe alone, the ocean energy industry plans to deploy 100GW of production capacity by 2050, meeting 10% of electricity demand.

Thats enough to meet the daily electricity needs of 76 million households, she pointed out.

The DesignPro system stands out due to the predictability of the power it generates, its ability to provide baseload power and its ability to generate more power in lower flows thanks to its patented bluff body concept.

The device itself is a floating platform with turbines underwater and is deployed via a mooring system, which can be tailored for either a unidirectional or bidirectional flow and can be easily moved if needed.

Another key feature is that the rotation direction is adjusted so that objects are diverted away from, and outside, the turbines.

This significantly mitigates the risk of injury to marine life, the impact of debris on the turbines and any danger to users or damage to the turbines themselves.

Leask Marine Ltd, a marine construction and engineering company with offices in both Ireland and the UK, won the tender for the design and build of DesignPros 60kW unit and led the testing in Scotland.

The team at Leask have done an exceptional job at managing and delivering what has been a very ambitious project, said Vincent McCormack, Innovation Manager at DesignPro Renewables.

Their knowledge and experience are second to none and meant the most efficient means of reaching the project goals were identified and followed.

The team have a great hands-on and positive attitude that gets results and we couldnt recommend them enough.
World renowned blues-rock icon Carvin Jones, voted one of the greatest blues guitarist of all time by Guitarist magazine, is set to play The Spirit Store on Sunday night.

Carvin Jones was born in Lufkin, Texas. At a very young age, he was seduced to the blues by listening to BB King records his grandfather constantly played in the house and before long began playing himself.

His style of playing soon earned him the acclaim of more seasoned musicians including Eric Clapton who said' Carvin Jones is a young cat out of Phoenix who I think is the next up-and-coming blues player' while Albert Collins described him as 'one of the brightest young stars on the blues scene today.'

He has shared the stage and toured with legends including BB King, Santana, Jeff Beck, Albert King, Albert Collins, The Animals, REO Speedwagon, Jimmy Vaughan, Double Trouble and many more.

His current band averages around 330 live performances a year, and have played a several major blues and music festivals in the USA, Europe and South America.

He has released over ten albums and several DVDs to date, and his music has been also be featured on the movie 'Scrutiny', which features Carvin's debut acting roll.
Non- invasive Ventilation is a newer way of providing ventilation to patients without a need to perform any invasive procedure

ResMed, a digital health company whose cloud-connectable devices help treat sleep apnea and other respiratory diseases in more than 120 countries, hosted a workshop for Intensivist and Chest Physicians on when and how to prescribe non-invasive ventilation (NIV) to patients in hospital and homecare environments in Delhi recently.

ResMed India is centered around people and technology that are changing the face of healthcare. ResMed Academy is the clinical arm of ResMed in India, who conducts educational workshops for medical experts throughout the year in the fields of NIV and Sleep for education and patient benefit.

Non- invasive Ventilation is a newer way of providing ventilation to patients without a need to perform any invasive procedure. The ventilation is provided to the patient through mask and an air tube connected to the ventilator. It is recommended in various Respiratory diseases, in hospitals as well as long term management of such diseases at home and one such indication is COPD

Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease (COPD) is a common, respiratory disease that is characterized by persistent respiratory symptoms and airflow limitation that is due to airway and/or alveolar abnormalities usually caused by significant exposure to noxious particles or gases. The chronic airflow limitation that is characteristic of COPD is caused by a mixture of small airways disease (e.g., obstructive bronchiolitis) and parenchymal destruction (emphysema), the relative contributions of which vary from person to person.

It is one of the leading causes of deaths in India, especially during winters. A survey claimed 12 lac plus deaths in 2017-18 through both outdoor and indoor pollution. The most common causes and risk factors for COPD are smoking, passive smoking, fumes, chemical and dust in construction sites.

Patients benefit from NIV as it provides pressure support and which assists patients breathing. This decreases their work of breathing (WOB) and improves quality of life.

This workshop covered both theoretical and hands-on learning on the application of Non-invasive ventilation (NIV) in various respiratory diseases including acute hypercapnic respiratory failure, acute hypoxemic respiratory failure, and chronic respiratory failure.

Dr Prashant Saxena, Associate Director & Head, Pulmonology and Sleep Medicine, Max Super Specialty Hospital, Saket followed by Dr. Anand Jaiswal, Director, Respiratory & Sleep Medicine, Medanta Hospital, Gurugram; Dr (Brig) Ashok K Rajput, Chief Respiratory Critical Care and Sleep Medicine, Artemis Hospital, Gurugram; Dr Sandeep Nayyar, Director & HOD, Chest & Respiratory Disease, BLK Super Speciality Hospital, Delhi and Dr Manoj K Goel, Director & Unit Head, Pulmonology, Pulmonary Critical Care Medicine, Fortis Hospital, Gurugram were part of the symposium.

Dr Saxena started with the introduction of NIV, goals, settings and interfaces, Dr Jaiswal discussed usage of NIV in Hypoxemic failures. Dr Rajput took a session on Hypercapnic failure, in order to spur this application, for the patient benefit or end users whereas, Dr Nayyar touched the areas of Chronic care and Dr Goel gave the download on NIV initiation, Monitoring, troubleshooting and guidelines. Further, Dr. Ashwini Mandana, Clinical specialist ResMed, shared newer modes of NIV devices and interface.

On the occasion, Dr Ashwini Mandana, Clinical Specialist, ResMed Academy mentioned, NIV has revolutionized the management of Chronic respiratory failures like COPD, Obesity and Obstructive Sleep Apnea (OSA). Further it is useful in management of mild to moderate hypoxemia respiratory failures by avoiding intubations and providing ventilator support. Hence it is very useful to have comfortable life in the patients with COPD and OSA which is easy to use at home, thus preventing hospitalization of a such patients.

The workshop offered all the doctors from different specialty in the healthcare system a platform to learn, share and connect. The workshop brings together a multi-disciplinary audience from across the healthcare spectrum to share their experiences, ideas and break the conventional silos that exist in this field.
After the death of the chief of the Revolutionary Guards Quds Force (IRGC-QF) Qassem Soleimani, the Iranian regimes meddling in the Middle East has received an irreparable blow. Notably, Soleimani played a key role in the crackdown on the Iraqi protests.

In this context, the elimination of the IRGC-QF chief delighted Iraqi people and many of them flooded into the streets to demonstrate their happiness on the same day.

In such circumstances, the Iranian regimes supreme leader Ali Khamenei as the main enemy of Iraqi protests tried to deviate the path of the Iraqi revolution. In this respect, he assigned his mercenaries to hold counter-demonstrations in tandem with conducting political maneuvers.

He ordered his Iraqi agents to recognize and support Moqtada al-Sadr as a leader of the people. In truth, Khamenei relied on mercenaries who were trained in Iran for many years.

In 2003, after the U.S. invasion of Iraq, the Iraqi agents of the Iranian mullahs interfered in the highest ranks of Iraqs military-governmental hierarchy to perform the orders of their masters in Iran.

A Book of the Iranian Regimes Mercenaries in Iraq

On January 26, 2007, the National Council of Resistance of Iran (NCRI) revealed the identities of tens of thousands of Iraqi officials who were serving Tehran. At the time, the NCRI held three simultaneous press conferences in Paris, London, and Berlin.

NCRI representatives offered a classified document obtained by supporters of the Peoples Mojahedin Organization of Iran (PMOI/MEK). The document consisted of names, specifications, a monthly wage, etc. of around 32,000 of the Iranian regimes mercenaries in Iraq.

The NCRI also provided sensitive details about the IRGC-QFs network that is used for sending weapons and ammunition to Iraq. At the conferences, representatives of the Iranian Resistance (NCRI) exposed details of the IRGC-QF hierarchy and affiliated networks, traffic paths of the IRGC agents and their terrorist agents, and gates for smuggling the weapons and ammunition. Notably, many Iraqi figures later confirmed the accuracy of the NCRI revelations.

Revealing the Dimensions of the Mullahs Influence in the Pillars of the Iraqi Political System

Mohammad Mohaddessin, the head of the NCRI foreign affairs committee, unveiled new dimensions on the Iranian regimes influence in Iraq. He also pointed out the direct role of the IRGC, IRGC-QF, and Irans Ministry of Intelligence and Security (MOIS) in the creation and expansion of intelligence and terrorist networks in this country.

Mohaddessin also revealed that the Iranian regime is behind producing and importing progressive improvised explosive devices (IED) in Iraq. Since 2004, IEDs have killed or injured many people including opponents of Irans influence in Iraq in addition to many U.S.-led Coalition forces.

In this document, you have 31,690 mercenaries from the Iranian regime. The nationality of all these are Iraqi, but they are paid by the Iranian regime, Mohaddessin said. He clarified that the document is part of the entire confidential information that has been obtained by the MEK sources inside the IRGC.

According to evidence provided by the NCRI representative, all the mentioned mercenaries were hired by the IRGC-QF. Mohaddessin mentioned that most names are related to the Badr Organization and the Islamic Supreme Council of Iraq, in addition to many figures and movements that were funded by the Iranian regime.

Irans Mercenaries Enjoy Two Houses and Families, One in Iraq, and Another in Iran

The document also included the Iraqi name and also the Iranian name of each IRGC member in Iraq. This means the mercenaries who live in Iraq also have an Iranian name. All these people are official members of the IRGC-QF.

Additionally, the personnel code, the individual account numbers of these men and their salaries were stated in the document. The document declared the personal specifications, membership date, name of their military unit, military rank, and personnel number when they served the IRGC-QF.

It also revealed that after 2003, these mercenaries in big groups entered Iraq under the command of Qassem Soleimani, current Irans ambassador in Iraq Iraj Masjadi, the commander of Ramazan forces Ahmad Frouzandeh, and another IRGC commander Hamid Taghavi.

Notably, the Iranian regime has implemented the path of Vali-e Faqih representative office in Iraq and assigned many forces loyal to Ali Khamenei in Iraqi government offices and military institutions. The number of Vali-e Faqih representative in the Badr organization is more than 481 people.

And many of them have posed in the highest ranks of the Iraqi government and parliament. The names have been mentioned in the document. Also, several highest, special figures such as Abdul Aziz al-Hakim were not noted on the list because the IRGC headquarters have separated communications with them.

International Press Coverage of the NCRI Revelation

Many international presses and news agencies covered the NCRI press conferences. The Associated Press reflected the news of the conference and released a film including the interview with the head of the NCRI foreign affairs committee.

Alireza Jafarzadeh, an Iranian opposed to the current regime in Tehran, divulged in New York Tuesday information he received from sources inside Iran  mainly from the MEK  with which he enjoys close ties.

The MEK released a list of nearly 32,000 Iraqis on Tehrans payroll, including senior Iraqi government officials, the Washington Times published in March 2007. This newspaper in an article titled, Iran training Iraqi death squads? added, These individuals travel to Iran in different groups, under different covers and use various legal and illegal borders, and go back to Iraq after their training is complete.

According to information obtained by the MEK, since February 2006 Iraqi militias affiliated with the Quds Force, such as the Supreme Council for the Islamic Revolution in Iraq  SCIRI  the Badr Corps, Hezbollah, Islamic Revolution Mujahideen, and Seyyed-of-Shohada Movement have traveled to Iran in groups and are trained in various camps of the Quds Force.

Also, In January 2007, Aljazeera.net published an article in Arabic that covered the NCRI revelation about confidential information related to the Iranian regimes recruitment in Iraq. The MEK movement revealed the names of [around] 32,000 Iraqis who are definitely mercenaries of the mullahs regime in Iraq and are paid by Tehran, Aljazeera.net wrote.

Iraq: the Iranian Regimes Launchpad for Occupation the Entire Middle East

The fact is that Iranian mullahs see Iraq as their gate for influence in the Arabic states. In this context, since 1979, they have constantly tried to occupy this country as the main part of the establishment of a Shiite Crescent.

Therefore, they seized the opportunity of Iraqs invasion by the then-U.S. administration and spread their agents in all Iraqi apparatus. In 2009, they practically completed their operations, and the hidden occupation became obvious.

Before Coalition forces retreat from Iraq, the Iranian regimes then-president Mahmoud Ahmadinejad rudely announced his governments readiness for filling the vacuum of power in Iraq. The regime has effectively gone down this path and taken all of Iraqs affairs under its control.

In this respect, the NCRI revelation alerted the world about the ominous intentions of the mullahs regime in Iraq. Following the revelation, Khamenei assigned Abdul Aziz al-Hakim to perform the Iranian regimes plan for expelling the MEK members from Iraq.

Iranian officials declared that the Iraqi government should resolve the problem [of expelling the MEK from Iraq], the IRGC-owned newspaper Javan quoted the current Iraqi prime minister Adil Abdul Mahdi as saying on February 1.

Then-prime minister of Iraq Nuri al-Maliki also pretended that the MEK presence in Iraq was one of the main obstacles toward the implementation of the security plan of Baghdad. He threatened the U.S. that the plan would not be implemented until the MEK departed from this country.

However, today the Iraqi people well realized that their enemy was, is, and will be the Iranian regime and its malign meddling in this country through tens of thousands of mercenaries.

On the other hand, they grasp that the eviction of the mullahs regime and its militias, parties, and vassals in their affairs is the sole solution for a democratic Iraq. In this respect, they target this regime and its affiliates and state that they wont return home until they expel all of Irans mercenaries and establish a new government that refuses sectarianism, discrimination, and fundamentalism. A government that takes its credit through ballot boxes, not via Iran-backed politicians.
A 23-year-old man who drove his car into the Shannon after he was pursued by gardai was ordered to attend a Pro Social course in a bid to secure a lesser conviction for careless driving.

Oisin Bancroft, Aughrim, Ballinaglera faced a single count of dangerous driving at Knockmacrory, Rooskey, Co Leitrim on December 18, 2018.

The court heard that at 2.10pm on the date in question gardai had been on patrol in the area when a vehicle approached them.

The driver of the vehicle turned to hide his face and the gardai turned and followed.

The vehicle sped off and drove through a crossroads, noted the evidence before Carrick-on-Shannon District Court.

The vehicle then turned left and gardai lost sight of it for a time before they noted a comotion at Knockmacrory, Rooskey.

When they stopped they found that the vehicle had crossed the road (the old N4), driven through a paling fence and crossed a green area before entering the Shannon River.

The three occupants of the vehicle had escaped. One sustained a cut on the head and all were taken to hospital but were later released.

The defendant acknowledged that he was the driver at the scene.

Solicitor Gerry McGovern, acting on behalf of Mr Bancroft, said his client was prepared to plead to the lesser charge of careless driving.

However, after hearing the evidence, Judge Kevin P Kilrane said that this is undoubtedly a case of dangerous driving.

Mr McGovern claimed there was no evidence of speed involved in the incident and said there had been roadworks in the area which left a gravel surface. His client had hit the gravel and skidded into the Shannon.

He pointed out that Mr Bancroft had never come to the attention of gardai before and said that he had made sure that his fellow passengers were ok following the accident.

The three occupants were apparently attending a course together at the time.

It was an unfortunate incident, said Mr McGovern adding that his client had cooperated fully with gardai.

He said Mr Bancroft was a carer for his mother who had lost a leg following a serious accident. The defendant needed his licence to drive his mother to hospital appointments and also to pursue his chosen career as a chef.

Judge Kilrane said this was a frightening accident involving the defendant driving across the old N4 where he must have jumped the kerb, gone in through a railing, across a green area and ended up in the river.

It is amazing they werent all drowned, he observed.

Whats outlined is a bad case of dangerous driving and if convicted, (Mr Bancroft) will be disqualified for two years. It really is an extraordinary case, he said.

Noting that Mr Bancroft has no previous convictions he ordered him to undertake a Pro Social course adding that, if he passes this course then Ill deal with this as an incident of careless driving.

He said that this lesser charge would include a 500 fine before adjourning the matter to April 28 to allow Mr Bancroft to complete the course.
Between 1,000 and 1,200 new homes are to be delivered by the council at Ballymastone, Donabate, as the local authority completes construction of its first project under the Local Infrastructure Housing Activation Scheme, according to the council.

With the Donabate Distributor Road approaching completion, the project will facilitate access to council-owned lands at Ballymastone, delivering between 1,000 and 1,200 homes through a mixed tenure development of 20% social, 20% affordable and 60% private housing as well as schools and a recreational hub.

Councillors in Fingal County Council have also approved plans to construct 87 more social homes on three sites in Swords, Cappagh and Clonshaugh as the council delivers on its commitments under the Rebuilding Ireland Action Plan.

The council has constructed 288 homes since 2016, with 2019 seeing the completion and allocation of homes at Rolestown, Castlelands in Balbriggan, Avondale and Church Road in Dublin 15.

Construction is ongoing on four sites which will deliver a further 98 homes in 2020, while another 236 homes are at tender stage or in the planning process.

The delivery of affordable homes in the county will be facilitated at four sites via 18m of funding to be provided under the Serviced Sites Fund.

The first of these schemes will be introduced at Lusk during 2020 and the others will be rolled out in Mulhuddart, Cappagh and Hackettstown.

Work on Fingal's second LIHAF project, the Rathbeale Road in Swords, is underway while the tender for the third project, at Stapolin, Baldoyle, has just been awarded.

These three strategic projects will deliver 2,800 homes by 2021 and have the long-term potential to facilitate the provision of 6,900 units.

Activity in the private housing sector is also positive and currently there are 135 sites in the county with planning permission granted for 15,430 units.

Eighty-three of these sites are active and have delivered 4,950 units so far, with another 2,400 currently under construction and a further 3,200 units to be delivered.
Former WA Police Commissioner Karl O'Callaghan has taken aim at the WA government's war on meth, saying taskforces, seizures and arrests aren't making any difference.

Speaking on 6PR's Weekend Breakfast, Mr O'Callaghan said past and current governments had poured a lot of money into tackling the issue but meth use remained high.

Former WA Police Commissioner Karl O'Callaghan.

Instead, Mr O'Callaghan said the government should divert first and small-time meth users away from the courts and into therapeutic programs.

"We've seen a lot of stuff seized, we've seen some Mr Bigs gone after but it still isn't making any difference to availability," he said.
Tigerair Taiwan cancels flights to Macau amid coronavirus fear

ROC Central News Agency

01/31/2020 08:59 PM

Taipei, Jan. 31 (CNA) Tigerair Taiwan, a subsidiary of Taiwan's China Airlines, will cancel some of its flights to Macau next month following the outbreak of a new form of coronavirus in the Chinese city of Wuhan and its spread to other countries.

The carrier will cancel a total of 52 round-trip flights to the former Portuguese territory between Feb. 4 and Feb. 26, including halving the current four flights a day departing from Taoyuan, the airline said.

On the Taichung-Macau and Kaohsiung-Macau routes that have one round-trip flight per day, the flights on Thursdays will be canceled (Feb. 6, 13 and 20), the airline said.

Passengers on affected flights can either change to other flights seven days before or after the dates of departure free of charge or cancel their trips and get a refund, Tigerair said.

Taiwan has confirmed 10 cases of the 2019 novel coronavirus (2019-nCoV) as of Friday, while Macau has seen seven such cases as of Thursday.

(By Lee Hsin-Yin)

Enditem/ls





NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address






Annastacia Palaszczuk has urged Queenslanders to unite behind the state's Chinese community, amid discrimination stemming from fears over coronavirus.

The Premier told the community not to be afraid, as health officials worked to contain the spread of the virus.

Premier Annastacia Palaszczuk has urged Queenslanders to "show respect and treat everybody equally", as some in the Chinese community have experienced harassment. Credit:AAP

"It is very important that people do not discriminate against our Chinese community," Ms Palaszczuk said.

"They are so involved, they contribute so much to our community, and all of the communities are absolutely doing the right thing, especially families returning from China.
In November 2019 the Oral Health Foundation and the British Orthodontic Society announced joint plans to warn of the dangers of DIY orthodontics. Dr Gregory of Specialist Orthodontist Harley Street is one of the UKs most qualified and experienced orthodontists. Dr Gregory has joined the calls to stop this DIY practice and make it illegal for these companies to provide services within the UK.

Going to a trusted orthodontic specialist, with a history of providing treatment and plenty of experience is important.

PR-Inside.com: 2020-01-29 13:22:35

Press Information

Specialist Orthodontist Harley Street

46 Harley Street





London, W1G 9PB



Jonathan

Marketing

020 7788 8982

email

https://specialistorthodontistharleystreet.co.uk/



Published by

Jon Seadon

01214595066

e-mail

https://seadoak.co.uk/







# 1061 Words

46 Harley StreetLondon, W1G 9PBMarketing020 7788 8982Jon Seadon01214595066

Your smile and teeth form part of the first impressions people have when they meet you, so it is understandable why so many people choose to have orthodontic work done. However, the cost of this type of treatment can be considered expensive by some and regular trips to the orthodontist may be too time-consuming for others. These pressures are causing some people to resort to taking the extreme measures of DIY methods of moving teeth, either by not considering or ignoring the risks involved.The human body is a very complex system and needs to be treated as such. There is no such thing as one size fits all and this rule applies to your teeth. No single technique for moving teeth is suitable for everyone. The best solutions are tailored to an individuals requirements and circumstances. A healthy, white, visually appealing set of teeth is what many people either dream of or strive to have.Online or mail order methods of getting braces may cut out the need to see an orthodontist for an appointment but can also result in damage to your teeth. The theory is, all the materials and instructions are sent to you, you follow the instructions, you send these back to the company together with any x-rays or dental reports, the company then produce the aligners for you to wear and move your teeth. Although this may seem like a less time-consuming and less expensive option, many people are not considering the risks to their oral health. Many dont even consider seeing a professionally trained orthodontist who can spot problems and perform any adjustments needed.In November 2019 the Oral Health Foundation and the British Orthodontic Society announced joint plans to warn of the dangers of DIY orthodontics.If you embark on any orthodontic treatment without a suitably trained clinician taking the time to examine you and make appropriate recommendations, you could be in real danger of having potentially life-threatening conditions missed, as well as inappropriate and dangerous treatment carried out. Jonathan Sandler, BOS President.Dr Gregory of Specialist Orthodontist Harley Street is one of the UKs most qualified and experienced orthodontists. Dr Gregory has joined the calls to stop this DIY practice and make it illegal for these mail-order braces companies to provide services within the UK.Those who sign up for these services simply arent aware of how risky orthodontic work without a medical professional is. DIY orthodontics can result in many avoidable problems, such as irreparable damage and pain to your teeth, bone damage, tooth wear, damage to the gum and jaw bone as well as risking infection, due to the presence of foreign objects in your mouth. Replacing missing teeth often requires complex and costly dental procedures, which need to be repeated periodically and can end up being even more expensive. Even with the advancement in restorative dentistry within recent years, dentures and dental implants are not a like for like replacement for your own teeth. Dr Gregory.The worst result for many users of DIY orthodontics could be the emotional trauma of damaging their smile and the need to have expensive dentistry to save their irreplaceable set of adult teeth.A beautiful smile is known to boost self-confidence and self-esteem. However, most people wouldnt think of approaching Dentistry in a 'DIY' fashion. There are far too many things that can go wrong. So why are so many people prepared to take this risk with orthodontics? The popularity of social media platforms such as Instagram have been cited as contributing to the pressure on the public to look a certain way. This may well have resulted in people who cant afford braces looking to take shortcuts. A quick search on YouTube will reveal DIY style tutorials that show people how to close gaps between their front teeth using an elastic hairband without any consideration for the risks involved. Such self-treatment can lead to problems such as infections and tooth loss, to name but a few.Any self-imposed attempt to straighten a smile with wires or elastic bands can have disastrous consequences that result in needing to see an orthodontist to correct the DIY style attempt at moving teeth. Therefore, going to a trusted orthodontist who is a specialist, with a verified history of providing quality treatment and plenty of experience is very important. A good orthodontist will discuss the best way to straighten your teeth, consider all factors, including your lifestyle, appearance and financial circumstances. Going to a good orthodontist will provide the patient with peace of mind that they are in the safe hands of a professional who is both qualified and experienced in moving teeth without risking damage to oral health.By using a qualified and reputable orthodontist, patients will benefit from their expertise, care and training to move your teeth with either fixed braces or removable aligners, such as Invisalign, to get the ideal smile. Teeth dont know the difference between fixed metal braces or removable aligner trays; they will simply respond to the force thats moving them. Due to this, your orthodontist must have a very good understanding of tooth movement because it is through this understanding that good results are achieved. Experience and knowledge of how teeth move is a crucial input to straightening adult teeth. If this goes wrong the outcome is likely to fall well short of expectations. - Dr Gregory.Could a ban on DIY braces work? Clinical strength tooth whiting kits and Botox have been illegal to administer unless you are a medical professional for many years. However, a quick search on google will show how easy it is to get hold of these products and also how many people are still falling foul of unethical and unqualified providers. Have tooth aligners become just another item on a growing list of medical procedures the public shouldnt do without the oversight of a qualified medical professional? Only time will tell.The British Orthodontic Society strongly advise the public not to undertake such treatments. If you are considering braces please seek the advice of your dentist first.[1] https://www.dentalhealth.org/safebrace-what-is-diy-orthodontics [2] https://www.dentalhealth.org/news/new-campaign-set-to-warn-against-diy-orthodontics [3] https://specialistorthodontistharleystreet.co.uk/ [4] https://www.bos.org.uk/News-and-Events/BOS-Statements/BOS-Statement-Do-it-yourself-braces [5] https://www.mentalhealth.org.uk/publications/body-image-report/exec-summary [6] https://www.colgate.com/en-us/oral-health/cosmetic-dentistry/early-orthodontics/what-are-gap-bands---will-they-fix-your-teen-s-teeth--
Ajay Bisaria has been appointed as the next High Commissioner of India to Canada. Bisaria was serving as India's High Commissioner to Pakistan but returned to India in August last year after the union government revoked Article 370, which gave special status to Jammu and Kashmir.

READ: Will Continue To Remain Engaged With European Parliament Members: MEA

New appointment

Privileged to be appointed Indias High Commissioner to #Canada today, at a time when the IC strategic partnership is poised to move to the next level. Looking forward to catching up with old friends and making new ones! @HCI_Ottawa pic.twitter.com/UI8MJwIKE8  Ajay Bisaria (@Ajaybis) January 31, 2020

Soon after the announcement, Bisaria tweeted that it was a privilege and that he was looking forward to catching up with old friends.

Bisaria is a graduate from the 1987 IFS batch and was posted as First Secretary in the Indian Embassy in Berlin (19951999), where he looked after commercial matters at a time of rising economic engagement between Germany and India. He was also entrusted with the project for the development and construction of the now iconic building of the Indian Embassy in Berlin in the historic Tiergarten.

He has previously served as the Principal Secretary to former Prime Minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee between 1999 to 2004. He has also worked at the World Bank as the advisor to the executive director for four years between 2004 and 2008.

READ: CAA Internal Matter Of India, Will Continue To Remain Engaged With European Parliament Members: MEA

He was Indias Ambassador to Poland, based in Warsaw, with concurrent accreditation to Lithuania from January 2015 to November 2017. During this stint, he focused on forging strong economic partnerships while deepening Indias cultural footprint.

During his stint as India's High Commissioner to Pakistan, Bisaria oversaw the development and the opening of the Kartarpur corridor. He currently holds the rank of Secretary to Government of India and is engaged in multiple policy issues.

Bisaria was also part of the team representing India at the UN Human Rights Council, Geneva in September 2019, for a successful outreach on Indias human rights record.

The External Affairs Ministry notification stated that Bisaria will be taking up the role 'shortly'.

READ: Taranjit Singh Sandhu Appointed India's Ambassador To US: MEA

READ: British High Commission In India Extends R-Day Wishes, Celebrates 'vibrant Partnership'
New U.S. air force statistics show the U.S. dropped more bombs on Afghanistan last year than any year since 2013, even as Washington's peace envoy sought to boost regional support for a reduction in violence ahead of a final deal to end America's longest war.

In a statement Saturday, the U.S. Embassy in Islamabad said Zalmay Khalilzad was in Pakistan the previous day to rally support for getting an agreement with the Taliban to reduce their attacks, as a first step toward a peace agreement to end 18 years of war in neighboring Afghanistan.

Pakistan's Foreign Ministry, following a series of meetings with Khalilzad on Friday, said it supported a quick peace deal with the Taliban and repeated Washington's call for a reduction in violence.

But the violence on the side of Afghan government forces and its U.S. allies has also raised concerns. Stepped up bombings by the United States and operations by CIA-trained Afghan special forces __ several of which have resulted in civilian casualties __ have been sharply criticized by human rights groups, some Afghan officials and even resulted in the sacking of Afghanistan's intelligence chief.

Increasing U.S. air attacks began in 2018 and have led to higher death tolls in the conflict. In 2019, the U.S. Air Force dropped 7,423 bombs on Afghanistan, up slightly from 2018 when it dropped 7,362 bombs on the war-shattered country, according to statistics from the U.S. Central Command Combined Air Operations Center. This compares to a far lower 4,361 bombs dropped in 2017 and 1,337 in 2016, according to their statistics.

The U.S. military statistics said that its air force carried out a total of 2,434 sorties last year, in which at least one bomb or strike was carried out on Afghanistan.

The United Nations has blamed the increased U.S. bombing, at least in part, for a rise in civilian casualties in Afghanistan. For the first time since the U.S.-led invasion in 2001, the U.N. said that Afghan government forces and its U.S. allies killed more civilians in the first three months of last year than insurgents.

The U.N. also points out that insurgent bombings and attacks wounded more civilians during the same period and almost daily the Taliban targeted military and government officials. The militants now control or hold sway over nearly half of Afghanistan. The U.N. has called for all sides in the protracted conflict to take better care to avoid civilian casualties.

The most recent airstrike to raise hackles in Afghanistan occurred overnight on Friday when a family of six, including a child, were killed in a northern province. The U.S. military initially said the airstrike in Kunduz killed three Taliban and destroyed a cache of weapons.

U.S. officials have since said the strike is under investigation, in reply to queries from The Associated Press.

``We are aware of the reports of civilian casualties reported to have occurred in Dasht-e-Archi district or Imam Sahib district, Kunduz Province, on Jan. 30,`` a U.S. military statement said. ``We are looking into these reports and will provide more information when it becomes available.''

Family members and local officials said the dead were all civilians, including an infant child.

The family killed were relatives of Gulbuddin Hekmatyar, who was an anti-government insurgent before signing a peace agreement with Afghan President Ashraf Ghani. He is now a politician headquartered in Kabul, and was a candidate in last September's presidential race.

In 2016 when Hekmatyar signed the peace deal, it was hoped it'd be a blueprint for a peace deal with the Taliban.

His son, Adbulrahman Hekmatyar, said the dead were two uncles, their wives and an infant who were returning from a funeral in the Dasht-e-Archi district, an area largely under Taliban control.

In a tweet on Friday, former president Hamid Karzai condemned the airstrike saying: ``the bombings of our homes and villages is an injustice against our people & a violation of our national sovereignty.''

He called for ``the end to all military operations in our country.''

Earlier, the Taliban said they offered Khalilzad a 10-day cease-fire window in which to sign a peace agreement that would be followed by intra-Afghan negotiations.

Khalilzad was appointed by the White House in 2018 to find a negotiated end to Afghanistan's war that would allow the United States to bring home its estimated 13,000 soldiers and end its longest military engagement.

He has held multiple rounds of talks with the Taliban in the Mideastern state of Qatar where the militant group maintains a political office.

Talks in recent weeks have focused on finding a way to reduce hostilities and bring both sides in the conflict to the negotiating table. Until now the Taliban have refused to talk to Afghan President Ghani's government. Ghani has also been unable to agree on a negotiating team with Abdullah Abdullah who is currently his partner in Afghanistan's so-called Unity Government. Abdullah accuses the president of foiling efforts at peace by imposing new conditions on talks.

Ghani and Abdullah were the leading contenders in last September's presidential polls. The voting was mired in controversy and is still without a final result.

Search Keywords:

Short link:


Shawnee Mission school board approves new contract as dispute with teachers continues SHAWNEE, KS (KCTV) - Despite there being no agreement between the teachers union and the Shawnee Mission School Board, the board approved a new three-year teacher contract Thursday night. The contract calls for a three-year deal, with yearly increases of 1 percent after this school year followed by 1.25 percent and 1.5 percent raises over the next two years.

Worthwhile roundup report here for anybody who cares to understand this issue beyond the headlines . . . Meanwhile, we wait in see if so many Shawnee teachers will leave like they've been threatening . . . Read more:
Boris Johnson told ministers and aides 'we did it!' as they celebrated Brexit finally happening at a reception in Downing Street last night.

The PM marked the historic step by drinking English sparkling wine with his team, including chief adviser Dominic Cummings, who is said to have been close to tears as he was hailed for his crucial role.

However, Mr Johnson had to count down to the crucial moment at 11pm himself after the TV feed to the light show outside the building failed with just seconds to go.

He is understood to have banged a small gong to signal that the UK's departure from the bloc had officially taken place.

The cast list for the reception included Cabinet ministers, No10 staff and officials who had been part of the huge effort to force through Brexit. Mr Johnson's partner Carrie Symonds tweeted a picture of their dog Dilyn dressed up in a Union flag coat.

Boris Johnson (pictured left in Sunderland yesterday) hailed the role of his adviser Dominic Cummings (pictured right in London last night) at a Downing Street reception to mark Brexit

A countdown was projected on to the famous No10 black door from 10pm, as the party continued inside

They were served a selection of patriotic canapes including fillet of lamb on toast, Shropshire blue cheese, beef and Yorkshire pudding with horseradish sauce, mushrooms tarts and roast chicken skewers.

Meanwhile, outside a countdown was projected on to the famous No10 black door from 10pm - and a pre-recorded address to the nation by Mr Johnson was broadcast.

Within the walls, the premier voiced gratitude to everyone who had helped secure the huge change for the country.

'This is a fantastic moment in the life of our country. There are very few moments in our lives that really can be called an historic turning point, and this is it,' he said,

'This is not the end, as some people would say. It's not even the beginning of the end. It's not the half of the middle. This is the end of the beginning.

'This is the start of something fantastic and different. And this is our chance to do something different and fantastic with our wonderful country.'

Mr Johnson told the audience he knew many of them did not vote Leave in the 2016 referendum, but he 'didn't care'.

'We did it, we absolutely did it. But much more important than that, this is a turning point for the life of our nation and a genuine chance for change and renewal,' he said.

'It is the moment where we have to answer the demand of those who voted for Brexit in 2016.'

Mr Johnson said the British public were the 'real heroes of this story'.

'If you think what happened, in 2016 they were given a choice - and they voted very substantially to leave,' he said.

'The people of this country voted to leave despite everything they were told by the CBI and the BBC.

'But the people of this country in their bravery, in their absolutely brilliant, logical, divination of the truth, they voted to leave in spite of all of the threats of punishment that they heard.'

Mr Johnson's partner Carrie Symonds tweeted a picture of their dog Dilyn dressed up in a Union flag coat last night

In nearby Parliament Square, Union flags were prominently on show as Brexit supporters showed their delight about the departure from the EU

Many of the pro-Brexit revellers had decided to dress up for the good-natured party in Parliament Square last night

The massive change was also recorded in lights on the white cliffs of Dover as the UK came to terms with the new reality

The PM did nod to the scale of the task that now faces the government to thrash out trade terms with the EU and overhaul the UK's services, saying they had to move 'very fast'.

'I am a Conservative and we are going to deliver a fantastic agenda to take this country forward. And time is marching and we've got to go very, very fast to get it all done.'

He also paid tribute to Mr Cummings, pointing out that he had been the architect of the Vote Leave campaign and drove the Tory election strategy that resulted in a stunning 80-strong majority last month.

'It was he, I seem to remember, who came up with the famous phrase that we should 'take back control'.

'It was also Dom that came up with the other three word epigram, that the policy of the government should be to ''get Brexit done''.

'And I want you to remember that you were here tonight, after 11 oclock, when finally, we got Brexit done.'

Mr Cummings was said to be close to tears as he rose to make a speech, and merely said: 'Lots of people in this room know what happened. Thank you.'
As Katie Holmes stepped out in New York City on January 30, I doubt she knew she was breaking both of my mother's cardinal fashion rules.

When I was a teenager in the year [redacted], I owned a pair of strappy Marc Jacobs sandals I was absolutely obsessed with. I wore them almost every day until the Connecticut leaves fell from the trees and the temperature dropped to unreasonable levels. Initially, I'd planned to continue wearing my treasured footwear, so I simply threw on a pair of tights to protect my legs from the chill.

"Change your shoes," my mother told me before I walked out the door. "You don't wear open-toed sandals with tights." Why? Because it looks "weird," and it's just not done. Well, tell that to Katie Holmes, Mom!

The actor attended the American Australian Association Arts Awards Thursday night, wearing a 90s-inspired white ruched dress from designer Khaite's prefall 2020 collection under a black overcoat from Wardrobe.NYC. Oh, and she finished off the look with a pair of Calzedonia tights, strappy black sandals, and a pop of red polish on her toes.

Celebrity Sightings In New York City - January 30, 2020 Raymond Hall

(BTW, if Katie wearing Khaite sounds familiar, you may recall the Dawson's Creek alum's viral cashmere bra moment from last year.)

Speaking of bras, Holmes ignored another fashion ordinance, purposely exposing one black bra strap under her dress. She basically put an end to the off-the-shoulder stress we've all been facing for the past few years. Ill-fitting strapless bra? I don't know her.

Celebrity Sightings In New York City - January 30, 2020 Raymond Hall

Zendaya also attended the benefit for the Australian Bushfire Relief Fund with her Euphoria costar Jacob Elordi, wearing an asymmetrical Christopher Esber dress featuring the pockets of every woman's dreams. She paired the daring look with simple black pumps and Vhernier drop earrings.

2020 AAA Arts Awards Jim Spellman

Now excuse me while I text a million pictures of these looks to my unsuspecting mother.

Originally Appeared on Glamour
Finance Minister Paschal Donohoe has said a government involving Fianna Fail and Sinn Fein would be a "coalition of the wreckers and reckless".

Mr Donohoe described Mary Lou McDonald's party as "dangerous", and said he believed it will be put into power by Micheal Martin's "spineless" FF.

Mr Donohoe said there is a "cocktail of risk to jobs, taxpayers, public services" and the economy from such an alliance.

The minister's intervention came after Taoiseach Leo Varadkar was forced to defend Fine Gael TDs who said they are open to working with Sinn Fein in government.

Mr Varadkar said there was a "difference" between his party members saying there are "good people" in Sinn Fein and Fianna Fail TDs saying they would be open to going into coalition with Ms McDonald.

Scorch

Expand Close Fianna Fail leader Micheal Martin speaks to Brian Clegg as he canvasses in Rathfarnham Shopping Centre / Facebook

Twitter

Email

Whatsapp Fianna Fail leader Micheal Martin speaks to Brian Clegg as he canvasses in Rathfarnham Shopping Centre

Mr Donohoe claimed there is sufficient support among Fianna Fail TDs to go into coalition with Sinn Fein.

"I believe we could have a government that will be a combination of the dangerous and the spineless," he said.

"Dangerous in that we will have policies from Sinn Fein that could scorch our econ- omy. Spineless because I don't believe Fianna Fail will be able to resist those ideas."

The Fine Gael director of elections said the party will, over the next week, be hammering the point home on doorsteps that there is a huge risk to the country.

Expand Close Roisin Shortall and Catherine Murphy during a press briefing by the Social Democrats at the Woolen Mills on Ormond Quay, Dublin / Facebook

Twitter

Email

Whatsapp Roisin Shortall and Catherine Murphy during a press briefing by the Social Democrats at the Woolen Mills on Ormond Quay, Dublin

"Fianna Fail on their own, I would have grave concerns about. Fianna Fail and Sinn Fein together is a policy cocktail that would be bad for jobs, bad for taxpayers and bad for our ability to improve public services," he added.

Fianna Fail finance spokesman Michael McGrath rejected Mr Donohoe's claims and accused Fine Gael of "leaving the door open to going in with Sinn Fein".

"As each day passes, the Fine Gael campaign becomes more dishonest, more desperate and more duplicitous," he said.

"Our leader and our party have been very clear that in no circumstance will we be having any arrangement with Sinn Fein after the election. We made and kept that promise in 2016 and we have made and will keep that promise in 2020."

Mr Varadkar said he has "nothing personally against individuals in Sinn Fein".

"I worked closely with some of them on Northern Ireland," he said.

Cosying

"There is a big difference between saying there are people in Sinn Fein who are good people and people who you can work with on the situation in Northern Ireland, and being open to a coalition with them."

The Taoiseach's comments came after he listed the Fianna Fail TDs who previously said they were open to going into government with Sinn Fein during a televised election debate.

He said Mary Butler, Kevin O'Keeffe, Darragh O'Brien and Pat 'The Cope' Gallagher were in favour of a coalition.

Last night, Mr O'Brien said the Taoiseach was "wrong" to suggest he supported going into government with Sinn Fein.

"It's Leo who's cosying up to Mary Lou, not Micheal," he added.

Mr Martin dismissed Fine Gael claims his party is divided on a deal with Sinn Fein and claimed it is Mr Varadkar who cannot be trusted on the issue.

He said the same argument was made by Fine Gael before the 2016 election, and added that Mr Varadkar's comments on Fianna Fail TDs who were in favour of a coalition with Ms McDonald's party were "more electioneering".

"He had some TDs in his own party as well, Jim Daly, Kate O'Connell, who were arguing for a Sinn Fein alliance," he said. "I wouldn't trust Leo in terms of not doing a deal with Sinn Fein.

"I think Leo would do whatever it takes to get himself back in the Taoiseach's position."
Billy Brownless suffered a huge family loss on the day of his eviction from I'm A Celebrity... Get Me Out Of Here! Australia in the South African jungle.

On Friday, The Herald Sun reported that on the day he left the jungle - 21 January - Billy's father Anthony 'Tony' Brownless tragically passed away aged 82.

According to the publication, Billy flew home to Australia immediately to attend a thanksgiving service for his dad in Jerilderie, New South Wales, on January 29.

Tragedy: Billy Brownless (centre) celebrated his 53rd birthday on 28 January. His father had tragically passed away days earlier, while he was still in the South African jungle after appearing on I'm A Celebrity... Get Me Out Of Here! Australia. Pictured alongside children Lucy, Ruby, Oscar and Max

While he hasn't publicly spoken about the loss, Billy shared a photo of himself alongside his children on his 53rd birthday - one day prior to the service.

Holding a huge chocolate cake while surrounded by his children Lucy, Ruby, Oscar and Max, Billy wrote: 'Birthday celebrations in Jerilderie! Cake and Froffies. Thanks Abbie and Millie for the cake.'

He then poignantly added the hashtag: 'Having a beer for dad.'

Daily Mail Australia have contacted Channel 10 for further comment.

Tragic: On Friday, The Herald Sun reported that on the day he left the jungle - 21 January - Billy's father Anthony 'Tony' Brownless tragically passed away aged 82. According to the publication, Billy flew home to Australia immediately to attend a thanksgiving service for his dad in Jerilderie, New South Wales, on January 29

On on social media post, he poignantly added the hashtag: 'Having a beer for dad'

Billy wasn't afraid to wear his heart on his sleeve during his stint in the jungle in January.

It was there he spoke about his ex-wife, Nicky, and how she left him after an affair with his friend Garry Lyon because she 'fell out of love'.

In a conversation with Rhonda Burchmore, he said the pair were estranged, before he opened up about the split which shocked the nation in 2015.

'It was public, very public. Front pages and all that,' he said.

Emotional: Billy wasn't afraid to wear his heart on his sleeve during his stint in the jungle in January

'We had separated which surprised a few. Well she left me, really. She just fell out of love which happens, you know?'

Rhonda asked how long they were together for, to which he replied '18 years'.

He continued: 'I didn't expect it. You think she'll come back and all that, but she didn't. So that was a good kick in the guts.'

The clip then cuts to another section of the conversation that shows the sporting legend saying: 'She's shacked up with one of my good mates and he's in the media too.'

Open: The 52-year-old former Geelong forward discussed his failed marriage during a chat with entertainer Rhonda Burchmore (pictured together) in the I'm A Celebrity jungle

Billy said he was well on the way to getting over the affair - but admitted he was out of sorts for two years after finding out.

'But it's been four years now so you get through it, you know?

'I reckon it takes you two years when you split, when you bounce back and to be yourself,' he said.

Lyon and Garry had been friends for 15 years and worked together on the popular AFL Footy Show between 2009 and 2015.
A nondescript field in Bavaria has been marked with a flag after becoming the new centre point of the EU after Brexit.

Gadheim, a village of 80 people near the German city of Wuerzburg, was ready for the bittersweet honour well before Britain left the EU at 11pm on Friday.

A red-and-white pole set on a boulder marks the new spot, and the flags of the EU, Germany and the local Veitshoechheim municipality fly on flagpoles next to it.

"On the one hand, of course I am proud and happy that we are becoming the new geographical center of Europe," Veitshoechheim Mayor Juergen Goetz said.

"On the other hand, of course it's a sad occasion, because with Britain a country is leaving the EU for the first time."

A pole marks the new geographical center of the European Union / AP

The honour of being the centre of Europe stems from calculations by France's national cartographic institute, IGN, which places the point at 9 degrees, 54 minutes, 7 seconds east and 49 degrees, 50 minutes, 35 seconds north.

Gadheim takes over from a spot in another northern Bavarian municipality, Westerngrund, which is 56 kilometres (35 miles) to the northwest.

The EU's geographical centre, as calculated by IGN, has been in Germany ever since the bloc expanded from 15 to 25 members in May 2004 by taking in 10 mostly eastern European countries.

It has moved around, however, with the 2007 expansion to include the eastern nations of Romania and Bulgaria and then in 2013 with the arrival of the newest member, Croatia.

Brexit Day at Parliament Square - In pictures 1 /22 Brexit Day at Parliament Square - In pictures Anti-Brexit protesters in Parliament Square, London PA Police presence at anti-Brexit protests in Parliament Square, London PA The Winston Churchill statue and Union flags in Parliament Square, London PA Pro Brexit supporters hold placards at Parliament Square as people prepare for Brexit Getty Images A man carries an EU themed wreath at Parliament Square Reuters Anti-Brexit demonstrators in Parliament Square, London, ahead of the UK leaving the European Union PA Pro Brexit supporters hold placards at Parliament Square as people prepare for Brexit Getty Images A man wears a President, Donald Trump mask and holds an American flag at Parliament Square as people prepare for Brexit Getty Images People hold placards in Parliament Square opposite the Houses of Parliament in London AFP via Getty Images A man holds up a President, Donald Trump, American flag at Parliament Square as people prepare for Brexit Getty Images A Red Viking apple with the Union Jack is displayed and given out for free to promote British produce as an Anti-Brexit demonstrator waves the European Union flag in Parliament Square AP Joseph Afrane in Westminster Jeremy Selwyn Pro-EU anti-Brexit protesters hold placards in Parliament Square AFP via Getty Images A man takes a photo of political artist Kaya Mar's paintings in Parliament Square Getty Images A man in an oversized 'Keep America Great' hat and draped with a US flag holds a Union Flag in Parliament Square opposite the Houses of Parliament AFP via Getty Images A woman holds a newspaper at Parliament Square Reuters A woman wears a face mask in Parliament Square PA

Mr Goetz said he first heard of IGN's calculation on a local radio station in March 2017, months after Britain voters decided to leave the bloc in a 2016 referendum.

"At first, I thought it was an April fool's joke, an early one. But it turned out very quickly that it was really the case," he said.

Local officials mulled what to do about it amid years of uncertainty over when, and even whether, Britain would actually leave the EU.

The village of Gadheim is the new geographical center of the European Union / AP

Goetz's solution was to get the new centre point ready "and, if Brexit hadn't happened, we would have made a monument for the unity of Europe out of this point."
B ritain is today waking up to life outside of the European Union after an historic night which marked the official end to almost half a century of membership to the bloc.

Brexit was triggered at 11pm on Friday, more than three years after the UK voted to break ties from the bloc in a referendum that left the country bitterly divided on the issue.

The UK now faces tough negotiations with Brussels in the coming months as officials work towards a new kind of relationship after a divorce agreement was reached.

Workers of the European Parliament lower the British flag from the row of flags of European Union member states / Getty Images

Attention has already turned to the next set of talks aimed at the relationship in trade and other areas which will apply from January 1, 2021.

There may be "bumps in the road" but Brexit can "unleash the full potential" of the UK, Mr Johnson said in a message to the nation before Britain broke ties with the EU.

"For many people this is an astonishing moment of hope, a moment they thought would never come," he said. "And there are many of course who feel a sense of anxiety and loss."

Pro-EU activists protest at Parliament Square / Getty Images

But after years of wrangling since the 2016 vote to leave, Mr Johnson said his job was now to "bring this country together".

There will be few practical changes due to Brexit as the deal negotiated by the UK and EU keeps Britain aligned with EU rules for the rest of the year.

But in a potent symbol of the changed relationship, the Union flag was removed from the European Union institutions in Brussels.

Thousands see in Brexit on Parliament Square

Brussels is pessimistic about the 11-month timetable for reaching a deal and made clear that Britain will have to accept worse terms and conditions for trade than if it were still a member of the EU.

European Commission president Ursula von der Leyen said: "We want to have the best possible relationship with the United Kingdom, but it will never be as good as membership."

Senior Cabinet minister Michael Gove acknowledged the trade-offs that would have to be made in any deal.

Leave Means Leave party - in pictures 1 /17 Leave Means Leave party - in pictures Pro-Brexit supporters in Parliament Square PA Brexit supporters carry Union flags and a Welsh flag as they gather in Parliament Square AFP via Getty Images Brexit supporters gather during a rally at the Parliament square in London AP A pro-Brexit demonstrator carries a child, wearing a Union Jack top hat, on his shoulders on Parliament Square REUTERS A Brexit supporter poses for a photograph with a Union flag as he waits for the festivities to begin in Parliament Square AFP via Getty Images Pro-Brexit supporters in Parliament Square, London, ahead of the UK leaving the European Union at 11pm PA People draped in UK flags walks across Parliament Square during a rainfall in London AP A pro-Brexit supporter draped in a US flag and wearing an oversized "Make America Great Again" cap AFP via Getty Images A Brexit supporter takes part in a rally during a rally at the Parliament square in London AP Brexit supporters take part in a rally during a rally at the Parliament square in London AP A Brexit supporter takes part in a rally during a rally at the Parliament square AP A man waves Union flags from a small car as he drives past Brexit supporters gathering in Parliament Square AFP via Getty Images Brexit supporters gather in Parliament Square PA

There "will be some regulations that will differ in Britain" so "that may mean that when it comes to trading with Europe there are some bureaucratic processes there that aren't there now", the Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster said.

Mr Johnson is reportedly prepared to impose full customs and border checks on all European goods entering the UK in an effort to create leverage in the negotiations with Brussels.

The Prime Minister hosted a reception in Number 10 for senior ministers, officials and supporters of Vote Leave who drank English sparkling wine while the light show was beamed onto the exterior of the building last night.

Brexit Party leader Nigel Farage laughs as he celebrates the UK's exit from the EU / AP

Nigel Farage told cheering crowds at the rally in Parliament Square: "We did it. We transformed the landscape of our country. There are some that say we shouldn't celebrate tonight, but we are going to celebrate tonight."

He added: "The people have beaten the establishment. The real winner tonight is democracy. And I am someone who believes we should be pro-Europe, but not the European Union."

German Chancellor Angela Merkel said Brexit was "a deep break for us all" and warned the "negotiations will certainly not be easy".
A man who stormed a gas station northwest of Houston nearly a year ago and allegedly shot an attendant to death was apprehended Friday night, according to the Harris County Sheriffs Office.

Marcus Kenneth Cox-Davis, 20, has been charged with capital murder in the death of 31-year-old Donna Pena. Pena, who had worked at the gas station just three days, was survived by two children, ages 4 and 15.
Republican Senators rejected Democrats' efforts to call witnesses and documents during impeachment trial on Friday (local time).

Senators voted 51-49, with Republican Senators Mitt Romney (Utah) and Susan Collins (Maine) breaking ranks to join Democrats in voting for witnesses. Fifty-one votes were needed to approve witnesses, The Hill reported.

The voting paved the way for President Donald Trump's acquittal on two articles of impeachment passed by the House.

Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell accused Trump and the House for taking the US "down a dangerous road".

"Speaker Pelosi and the House have taken our nation down a dangerous road. If the Senate blesses this unprecedented and dangerous House process by agreeing that an incomplete case and subjective basis are enough to impeach a president, we will almost guarantee the impeachment of every future president," McConnell said at the outset of the trial, making the case for Trump's acquittal.

The Republicans in the Senate have faced increased pressure from Democrats and the public in recent days to let John Bolton testify after a report appeared in the New York Times (NYT) about damaging claims the former NSA allegedly made about Trump in his forthcoming memoir.

According to NYT, Bolton claims in the manuscript that the President had said he wanted to withhold millions of dollars in aid to Ukraine until the country announced investigations into his political rivals.

While the White House is working to block publication of some aspects of the book, Trump has maintained the reported claims as untrue.

The US President is accused of abusing his power by pressuring Ukraine to investigate former Vice President Joe Biden and his son, Hunter Biden, who served on the board of a gas company in Ukraine, as Trump withheld USD 391 million in military aid that he later released. The President is also accused of subsequently obstructing a congressional probe into his actions.

The Republican Party holds a 53-47 majority in the chamber and conviction requires a two-thirds majority. This means if all Democrats voted to convict, then 20 Republicans will also have to vote for Trump to be convicted and removed from office.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
The Donald Trump administration has OKd a deal to supply Egypt with excess air defense units, even as several senators press the White House to sanction Cairo over the recent death of a US citizen.

As part of a recent deal, the United States will send the Egyptian military parts to maintain Chaparral fire units along the nations border through a Pentagon program that supplies American partners with excess weapons.

A State Department official told Al-Monitor. that the transfer will provide the Egyptian military with parts to maintain its existing Chaparral fire units, which are deployed throughout the country in support of border security operations. This will help the Egyptian military maintain its operational capabilities and defend Egypts homeland.

Transferring the tank-like Chaparral units will not adversely impact American military readiness, the official said, or hamper future US sales to Egypt, which receives $1.3 billion in American military aid each year.

The official did not disclose the value of the Chaparrals, which were designed during the Cold War to target Soviet aircraft. The Pentagon stopped using the weapons more than two decades ago, and finalized the deal to send the units to Egypt in December.

But the move comes as Congress is expressing increasing anger over the death of Mustafa Kassem in Egyptian custody, and the Trump administration is concerned that Egypt could be falling under Russian influence.

The former New York taxicab driver and dual US-Egyptian citizen was detained by authorities during the deadly 2013 Rabia al-Adawiya Square massacre in Cairo when military forces killed hundreds of protesters after military leader Abdel Fattah al-Sisi overthrew the Muslim Brotherhood-backed government. Sisi is now president.

Kassem was held without charges until last year, when he was convicted by a court on grounds that his lawyers indicated were bogus. In the wake of his death, Democratic Sens. Patrick Leahy of Vermont and Chris Van Hollen of Maryland have called for the Trump administration to sanction Egypt and slap top officials with visa bans.

The State and Defense Department floated potential sanctions against Egypt last year over a deal to buy Russian Sukhoi fighter jets, The Wall Street Journal reported, but no sanctions have been publicly reported. Egypt, which exited the US-led Middle East Strategic Alliance that the administration set up to counter Iranian military influence, also recently gave Russia overflight rights and has flirted with buying different weapons systems from Moscow.

The State Department official said the agency had no updates on a $1 billion sale of 24 Apache helicopters to Egypt that the United States OKd in 2018. Egyptian forces using US-made rotorcraft mistakenly fired on a tour group in 2015, killing 12 tourists and wounding an American citizen the military believed to be terrorist plotters.
Toyota Kirloskar Motor (TKM) on Saturday reported a 41 per cent decline in total vehicle sales at 7,122 units in January as against 12,067 units in the same month last year.

In the domestic market, the company reported sales of 5,804 units last month, down 48 per cent from 11,221 units in January 2019, TKM said in a statement.

"We are happy that our BS-IV stock correction measures helped us efficiently liquidate the BS-IV inventory from our plants by January 2020," TKM Senior Vice President, Sales and Service Naveen Soni said in the statement.

The company has consciously cut down BS-IV production this month to start delivering BS-VI vehicles in a phase wise manner depending on BS-VI fuel availability across the country, he added.

The company is cautious on how customers respond to the increased pricing of BS-VI vehicles, especially in the diesel car market, as this will play a key role in the growth trajectory of the industry, Soni said.

"The next few months may turn out to be highly volatile and challenging for the auto industry. TKM is making plans and continuously adjusting to match the changing market conditions," he added.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
A Northwestern University research team has revealed a new approach to conducting chemical reactions -- one that doesn't require direct contact with a catalyst.

In typical catalytic reactions, the catalyst -- the substance that increases the rate of a chemical reaction --and the substrate reactants must be present in the same medium and in direct contact with one another to produce a reaction. The research team's new system demonstrates a chemical reaction produced through an intermediary created by a separate chemical reaction. The findings could have applications in environmental remediation and fuel production.

"Improving our understanding of the catalyst-intermediary-reaction relationship could greatly expand the possibilities of catalytic reactions," said Harold Kung, Walter P. Murphy Professor of Chemical and Biological Engineering at the McCormick School of Engineering, who led the research. "By learning that a chemical reaction can proceed without direct contact with a catalyst, we open the door to using catalysts from earth-abundant elements to perform reactions they normally wouldn't catalyze."

The study, titled "Noncontact Catalysis: Initiation of Selective Ethylbenzene Oxidation by Au Cluster-Facilitated Cyclooctene Epoxidation," was published January 31 in the journal Science Advances. Mayfair Kung, a research associate professor of chemical and biological engineering, was a co-corresponding author on the paper. Linda Broadbelt, Sarah Rebecca Roland Professor of Chemical and Biological Engineering and associate dean for research, also contributed to the study.

The research builds on previous work in which the team investigated the selective oxidation of cyclooctene--a type of hydrocarbon -- using gold (Au) as a catalyst. The study revealed that the reaction was catalyzed by dissolved gold nanoclusters. Surprised, the researchers set out to investigate how well the gold clusters could catalyze selective oxidation of other hydrocarbons.

Using a platform they developed called Noncontact Catalysis System (NCCS), the researchers tested the effectiveness of a gold catalyst against ethylbenzene, an organic compound prevalent in the production of many plastics. While ethylbenzene did not undergo any reaction in the presence of the gold clusters, the team found that when the gold clusters reacted with the cyclooctene, the resulting molecule provided the necessary intermediary to produce ethylbenzene oxidation.

"The two reactions are totally independent of each other," Kung said. "We saw that the gold nanoclusters and the cyclooctene were ineffective to oxidize the ethylbenzene on their own. Direct contact didn't cause the reaction to proceed. Thus, the intermediary reaction was necessary."

By demonstrating how normally ineffective catalysts can be made effective in a reaction through an intermediary, the researchers believe it is possible to design systems using catalysts that are physically separated from a reaction medium that would otherwise harm the catalyst. This new approach could provide an effective workaround in environmental remediation, such as cleaning a contaminated river, where some components in the water may be poisonous to the catalyst.

"You could use a membrane to separate the catalyst from the medium, then use the catalyst to generate an intermediary that can pass through the membrane and degrade the contaminant in a safer way," Kung said.

The work also opens the door to greater freedom in industrial chemical production. An ability to conduct coupled parallel reactions without the constraints of traditional stoichiometry -- the strict quantity-based relationships among reaction products -- could make industrial hydrocarbon co-oxidation processes more versatile, efficient, and cost effective. These processes are vital in the production of gasoline and conversion of natural gas to liquid fuel and other chemicals.

The research team's next step is to determine gold's reactivity against other hydrocarbons of different bond strengths. They also hope to learn whether similar phenomenon can be applied to other metals, such as silver or copper.

"We are not quite there yet, but once we understand the relationship between the reactivity of gold clusters toward hydrocarbons and bond strengths, we will be able to predict and design other chemical reaction systems," Kung said.

###

The work was supported through the Office of Basic Energy Sciences within the US Department of Energy's Office of Science (grant number DOE DE-FG02-03-ER15457).
The Australian government on Saturday said it would bar non-citizens arriving from mainland China from entering the country under new measures to combat the spread of the coronavirus epidemic. Prime Minister Scott Morrison said only "Australian citizens, Australian residents, dependents, legal guardians or spouses" would be permitted into the country from mainland China from Saturday. "The arrangements are being put in place through our border authorities to ensure that that can be actioned," he added. Border control authorities would be able to "step up" processes in the next 24 hours to screen those who had departed or transited through China, Morrison said. Exceptions will be made for airline crew "using appropriate personal protective equipment". "We're in fact operating with an abundance of caution in these circumstances. So Australians can go about their daily lives with confidence," Morrison told reporters. "We're acting here in advance of many countries in terms of when similar types of arrangements are being put in place." The requirement of people arriving in Australia from Hubei province to "self-isolate" for 14 days was expanded from Saturday to include anyone travelling from mainland China. Australia's foreign ministry also updated its travel advice for mainland China to "do not travel". The ministry said the temporary measures do not apply to Hong Kong, and that they will be reviewed in two weeks. Qantas Airways, Australia's flag carrier, said earlier Saturday it would suspend its two direct flights to mainland China -- Sydney to Beijing and Shanghai -- from February 9 because of various virus-linked international restrictions. Air New Zealand followed suit, announcing a suspension of its Auckland-Shanghai service from February 9. Australian officials have confirmed 10 cases of coronavirus in the country so far. Foreign Minister Marise Payne said plans to evacuate Australian citizens from the epicentre of the outbreak in Wuhan to facilities on Christmas Island to be "agreed soon". It is not clear how many people have requested "assisted departure" but Morrison defended the Christmas Island facilities, typically used for detaining refugees. Canberra said it will make available 500,000 masks to airport staff and arriving passengers. "There is no basis for alarm. It is important to remember the risk to Australians is currently very low. We need to keep it that way," the prime minister said later in a joint statement with the health and foreign ministry. Any non-citizens that arrive from Saturday "will be subject to mandatory quarantine" should they not agree to return to their "port of origin".
Imperial Valley News Center

Proclamation on Suspension of Entry as Immigrants and Nonimmigrants of Persons who Pose a Risk of Transmitting 2019 Novel Coronavirus

Washington, DC - The United States has confirmed cases of individuals who have a severe acute respiratory illness caused by a novel (new) coronavirus (2019-nCoV) (the virus) first detected in Wuhan, Hubei Province, Peoples Republic of China (China). The virus was discovered in China in December 2019. As of January 31, 2020, Chinese health officials have reported approximately 10,000 confirmed cases of 2019-nCoV in China, more than the number of confirmed cases of Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome (SARS) during its 2003 outbreak. An additional 114 cases have been confirmed across 22 other countries; in several of these cases, the infected individuals had not visited China. More than 200 people have died from the virus, all in China.

Coronaviruses are a large family of viruses. Some cause illness in people and others circulate among animals, including camels, cats, and bats. Animal coronaviruses are capable of evolving to infect people and subsequently spreading through human-to-human transmission. This occurred with both Middle East Respiratory Syndrome and SARS. Many of the individuals with the earliest confirmed cases of 2019-nCoV in Wuhan, China had some link to a large seafood and live animal market, suggesting animal-to-human transmission. Later, a growing number of infected individuals reportedly did not have exposure to animal markets, indicating human-to-human transmission. Chinese officials now report that sustained human-to-human transmission of the virus is occurring in China. Manifestations of severe disease have included severe pneumonia, acute respiratory distress syndrome, septic shock, and multi-organ failure.

Neighboring jurisdictions have taken swift action to protect their citizens by closing off travel between their territories and China. On January 30, 2020, the World Health Organization declared the 2019-nCoV outbreak a public health emergency of international concern.

Outbreaks of novel viral infections among people are always of public health concern, and older adults and people with underlying health conditions may be at increased risk. Public health experts are still learning about the severity of 2019-nCoV. An understanding of the key attributes of this novel virus, including its transmission dynamics, incubation period, and severity, is critical to assessing the risk it poses to the American public. Nonetheless, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) has determined that the virus presents a serious public health threat.

The CDC is closely monitoring the situation in the United States, is conducting enhanced entry screening at 5 United States airports where the majority of travelers from Wuhan arrive, and is enhancing illness response capacity at the 20 ports of entry where CDC medical screening stations are located. The CDC is also supporting States in conducting contact investigations of confirmed 2019-nCoV cases identified within the United States. The CDC has confirmed that the virus has spread between two people in the United States, representing the first instance of person-to-person transmission of the virus within the United States. The CDC, along with state and local health departments, has limited resources and the public health system could be overwhelmed if sustained human-to-human transmission of the virus occurred in the United States. Sustained human-to-human transmission has the potential to have cascading public health, economic, national security, and societal consequences.

During Fiscal Year 2019, an average of more than 14,000 people traveled to the United States from China each day, via both direct and indirect flights. The United States Government is unable to effectively evaluate and monitor all of the travelers continuing to arrive from China. The potential for widespread transmission of the virus by infected individuals seeking to enter the United States threatens the security of our transportation system and infrastructure and the national security. Given the importance of protecting persons within the United States from the threat of this harmful communicable disease, I have determined that it is in the interests of the United States to take action to restrict and suspend the entry into the United States, as immigrants or nonimmigrants, of all aliens who were physically present within the Peoples Republic of China, excluding the Special Autonomous Regions of Hong Kong and Macau, during the 14-day period preceding their entry or attempted entry into the United States. I have also determined that the United States should take all necessary and appropriate measures to facilitate orderly medical screening and, where appropriate, quarantine of persons allowed to enter the United States who may have been exposed to this virus.

NOW, THEREFORE, I, DONALD J. TRUMP, President of the United States, by the authority vested in me by the Constitution and the laws of the United States of America, including sections 212(f) and 215(a) of the Immigration and Nationality Act (INA), 8 U.S.C. 1182(f) and 1185(a), and section 301 of title 3, United States Code, hereby find that the unrestricted entry into the United States of persons described in section 1 of this proclamation would, except as provided for in section 2 of this proclamation, be detrimental to the interests of the United States, and that their entry should be subject to certain restrictions, limitations, and exceptions. I therefore hereby proclaim the following:

Section 1. Suspension and Limitation on Entry. The entry into the United States, as immigrants or nonimmigrants, of all aliens who were physically present within the Peoples Republic of China, excluding the Special Autonomous Regions of Hong Kong and Macau, during the 14-day period preceding their entry or attempted entry into the United States is hereby suspended and limited subject to section 2 of this proclamation.

Sec. 2. Scope of Suspension and Limitation on Entry.

(a) Section 1 of this proclamation shall not apply to:

(i) any lawful permanent resident of the United States;

(ii) any alien who is the spouse of a U.S. citizen or lawful permanent resident;

(iii) any alien who is the parent or legal guardian of a U.S. citizen or lawful permanent resident, provided that the U.S. citizen or lawful permanent resident is unmarried and under the age of 21;

(iv) any alien who is the sibling of a U.S. citizen or lawful permanent resident, provided that both are unmarried and under the age of 21;

(v) any alien who is the child, foster child, or ward of a U.S. citizen or lawful permanent resident, or who is a prospective adoptee seeking to enter the United States pursuant to the IR-4 or IH-4 visa classifications;

(vi) any alien traveling at the invitation of the United States Government for a purpose related to containment or mitigation of the virus;

(vii) any alien traveling as a nonimmigrant under section 101(a)(15)(C) or (D) of the INA, 8 U.S.C. 1101(a)(15)(C) or (D), as a crewmember or any alien otherwise traveling to the United States as air or sea crew;

(viii) any alien seeking entry into or transiting the United States pursuant to an A-1, A-2, C-2, C-3 (as a foreign government official or immediate family member of an official), G-1, G-2, G-3, G-4, NATO-1 through NATO-4, or NATO-6 visa;

(ix) any alien whose entry would not pose a significant risk of introducing, transmitting, or spreading the virus, as determined by the CDC Director, or his designee;

(x) any alien whose entry would further important United States law enforcement objectives, as determined by the Secretary of State, the Secretary of Homeland Security, or their respective designees based on a recommendation of the Attorney General or his designee; or

(xi) any alien whose entry would be in the national interest, as determined by the Secretary of State, the Secretary of Homeland Security, or their designees.

(b) Nothing in this proclamation shall be construed to affect any individuals eligibility for asylum, withholding of removal, or protection under the regulations issued pursuant to the legislation implementing the Convention Against Torture and Other Cruel, Inhuman or Degrading Treatment or Punishment, consistent with the laws and regulations of the United States.

Sec. 3. Implementation and Enforcement. (a) The Secretary of State shall implement this proclamation as it applies to visas pursuant to such procedures as the Secretary of State, in consultation with the Secretary of Homeland Security, may establish. The Secretary of Homeland Security shall implement this proclamation as it applies to the entry of aliens pursuant to such procedures as the Secretary of Homeland Security, in consultation with the Secretary of State, may establish.

(b) Consistent with applicable law, the Secretary of State, the Secretary of Transportation, and the Secretary of Homeland Security shall ensure that any alien subject to this proclamation does not board an aircraft traveling to the United States.

(c) The Secretary of Homeland Security may establish standards and procedures to ensure the application and implementation of this proclamation at United States seaports and in between all ports of entry.

(d) An alien who circumvents the application of this proclamation through fraud, willful misrepresentation of a material fact, or illegal entry shall be a priority for removal by the Department of Homeland Security.

Sec. 4. Orderly Medical Screening and Quarantine. The Secretary of Homeland Security shall take all necessary and appropriate steps to regulate the travel of persons and aircraft to the United States to facilitate the orderly medical screening and, where appropriate, quarantine of persons who enter the United States and who may have been exposed to the virus. Such steps may include directing air carriers to restrict and regulate the boarding of such passengers on flights to the United States.

Sec. 5. Termination. This proclamation shall remain in effect until terminated by the President. The Secretary of Health and Human Services shall, as circumstances warrant and no more than 15 days after the date of this order and every 15 days thereafter, recommend that the President continue, modify, or terminate this proclamation.

Sec. 6. Effective Date. This proclamation is effective at 5:00 p.m. eastern standard time on February 2, 2020.

Sec. 7. Severability. It is the policy of the United States to enforce this proclamation to the maximum extent possible to advance the national security, public safety, and foreign policy interests of the United States. Accordingly:

(a) if any provision of this proclamation, or the application of any provision to any person or circumstance, is held to be invalid, the remainder of this proclamation and the application of its provisions to any other persons or circumstances shall not be affected thereby; and

(b) if any provision of this proclamation, or the application of any provision to any person or circumstance, is held to be invalid because of the lack of certain procedural requirements, the relevant executive branch officials shall implement those procedural requirements to conform with existing law and with any applicable court orders.

Sec. 8. General Provisions. (a) Nothing in this proclamation shall be construed to impair or otherwise affect:

(i) the authority granted by law to an executive department or agency, or the head thereof; or

(ii) the functions of the Director of the Office of Management and Budget relating to budgetary, administrative, or legislative proposals.

(b) This proclamation shall be implemented consistent with applicable law and subject to the availability of appropriations.

(c) This proclamation is not intended to, and does not, create any right or benefit, substantive or procedural, enforceable at law or in equity by any party against the United States, its departments, agencies, or entities, its officers, employees, or agents, or any other person.

IN WITNESS WHEREOF, I have hereunto set my hand this thirty-first day of January, in the year of our Lord two thousand twenty, and of the Independence of the United States of America the two hundred and forty-fourth.

DONALD J. TRUMP
The number of confirmed cases of the Wuhan coronavirus has overtaken the 2003 SARS outbreak inside of mainland China, as multiple countries evacuated their citizens from the city at the heart of the outbreak.

As of Wednesday, there were 6,061 confirmed cases of the virus in mainland China, including 132 deaths, according to Chinese officials. The number of cases grew by around 1,500 from Tuesday, a more than 30% increase. The figures do not include Hong Kong and Macau, both of which have reported a small number of cases.

There have also been at least 91 cases of the virus reported outside mainland China.

During the 2003 SARS outbreak, there were 5,327 confirmed cases of the disease in mainland China, with 349 deaths. Experts have previously estimated the Wuhan virus figures could still be vastly under-reported, making the novel coronavirus far more contagious, but also less deadly, than SARS.

Wuhan's Communist Party chief Ma Guoqiang said Tuesday that testing had been streamlined in recent days, leading to a spike in diagnoses. "This does not mean the speed of the disease spreading has increased drastically," he added.

Authorities in China also reported a suspected case of the Wuhan virus in Tibet, previously the only region to have avoided the virus. If confirmed, the spread to Tibet despite the implementation of strict checks on travelers and closing of tourist sites will renew concerns about how easily the virus is transmitted, particularly when people are asymptomatic.

The semi-autonomous city of Hong Kong, which has reported eight cases of the virus, announced Tuesday it was closing many of its border crossings with mainland China, slashing the number of tourist visas it issues to mainland Chinese visitors, and halving the number of inbound flights from the mainland.

Hong Kong has also instructed government employees to work from home for the rest of the week, and requested private companies do the same. The streets and public transport were noticeably quiet on Wednesday morning, the first day back from the Lunar New Year holiday.

Chinese President Xi Jinping on Tuesday vowed to do everything to tackle the "demon" epidemic.

Speaking during a meeting with World Health Organization (WHO) director general Tedros Adhanom in Beijing, Xi said the Chinese people "are engaging in a serious battle against the outbreak of the new coronavirus."

"People's lives and health are always the first priority for the Chinese government, and the prevention and control of the epidemic is the most important task at present, so I have been directing and deploying the works myself," Xi added. "I believe as long as we can strengthen our confidence, stand together, scientifically prevent and control the epidemic and adopt precise measures, we will definitely defeat this epidemic."

First evacuees leave Wuhan

Wuhan, the capital city of Hubei province at the center of the virus outbreak, is on effective lockdown and countries have begun repatriating their citizens trapped there.

A flight carrying 206 Japanese nationals arrived in Tokyo Wednesday morning. The passengers are all quarantined on board and those with any pneumonia-like symptoms will be taken to a special medical center for treatment. Passengers without symptoms will be taken to separate hospitals for further screening.

Around 450 more Japanese citizens have not yet departed. Japanese citizens who live close to the Huanan Seafood Market -- pinpointed by Chinese authorities as the likely source of the virus -- and highly populated areas in Wuhan were given priority on the first flight.

A plane carrying approximately 210 US citizens -- mostly diplomats and their families -- has also left Wuhan, according to a State Department spokesperson, bound for Riverside, California via Alaska. More Americans remain in the city, hoping to be evacuated at a later date.

The plane had originally been destined for California's Ontario International Airport, but officials said late Tuesday that it would instead land at a military base near Riverside. No reason was immediately given for the change in itinerary.

As of early Wednesday morning, the plane had landed in Anchorage, Alaska, where it will refuel before heading on to the US west coast. The Alaska Department of Health and Social Services said passengers will undergo health screenings there to ensure they are not experiencing coronavirus symptoms before traveling onward.

After landing in the US, passengers will be placed in isolation for between three days and two weeks, a California official told CNN earlier. Doctors have previously recommended a two-week quarantine for people exposed to the virus.

South Korea and New Zealand are chartering flights to bring their citizens home. More controversially, Australia said it will charter a flight to fetch citizens, but they will be transported to quarantine on Christmas Island, site of a former offshore detention camp for migrants.

Virus spreads worldwide

The first cases of the coronavirus were detected in Wuhan in mid-December. Since then, the number of confirmed cases has increased exponentially, and infections have been reported worldwide.

Hospitals in Wuhan are already massively overstretched, and hundreds of emergency medical personnel have been dispatched to the city to help. Two new hospitals dedicated to treating the virus are also being built on the city's outskirts, due to be operational by next week.

Authorities in the city said that as of January 27 there were still more than 4,000 Wuhan residents overseas. The Wuhan culture and tourism bureau said that all tour groups were canceled after the lockdown was announced, but groups that left prior to that date were still slowly returning to the city.

More than a dozen countries have confirmed cases of the Wuhan virus, as authorities struggle to stop its spread.

Across Asia, many countries have put in extra screening at airports and warned citizens to avoid travel to China. To China's north, neighboring Mongolia has imposed stringent border checks on travelers coming into the country. Indonesia and the Philippines have both introduced extra restrictions on Chinese tourists, while Japan has upgraded its response, allowing authorities to "force the suspicious cases for hospitalization and testing."

Around a hundred cases have been reported worldwide, with the most, 14, detected in Thailand, a popular destination for Chinese travelers. Countries with colder climates are more at risk for future spread, as coronaviruses thrive in cold environments and do not transmit as well in sunny, hot locales.

While most cases reported outside of China have a direct link to Wuhan, there are indications the virus is beginning to spread within other countries. Three new cases were reported in Germany on Tuesday, including what is believed to be the first human-to-human transmission in Europe.

Multiple countries have advised citizens not to visit China due to the ongoing outbreak. On Tuesday, the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) issued a level 3 alert advising against all "nonessential travel" -- its highest alert on a scale of 1 to 3. However, the White House denied reports suggesting it was planning to suspend all flights between the US and China.

Cases will continue to spread

With much of China seeing the type of cold weather ideal for the coronavirus, and uncertainty remaining on just how contagious it is, experts expect the number of cases to continue to rise for several weeks.

Speaking to state media Tuesday, Zhong Nanshan, one of China's leading respiratory experts and a hero of the 2003 fight against SARS, said he expected the peak to come in up to 10 days.

"It is very difficult to definitely estimate when the outbreak reaches its peak. But I think in one week or about 10 days, it will reach the climax and then there will be no large-scale increases," Zhong said.

However, other experts have warned that while the outbreak in Hubei may peak in the coming weeks, other Chinese megacities may see self-sustaining epidemics that continue to spread the pathogen around the country and worldwide.

"We modeled epidemic curves out to August 2020 for all the major city clusters: Chongqing, Shanghai-Guangzhou, Shenzhen and Beijing. Chongqing is predicted to have the largest epidemic due to large population and most intense traffic volume coupled to Wuhan," Gabriel Leung, a leading Hong Kong researcher and public health expert, said earlier this week.

He said outbreaks in China's largest cities could peak in April or May and gradually slow in June and July.

A laboratory in Australia became the first outside of China to grow the Wuhan coronavirus from a patient sample, it announced Wednesday. Doing so will "provide expert international laboratories with crucial information to help combat the virus," the scientists said.

During a news conference on Wednesday, Mike Catton, director of the Victorian Infectious Diseases Reference Laboratory said "we are proud to have grown the virus in such a short space of time" and added they will "share this with international colleagues" to help with the developments of vaccines and medicines.

Catton added that this successful growth will "help us understand the epidemiology of the outbreak."

UPDATE: This article has been updated to reflect the status of a suspected case of the Wuhan coronavirus in Tibet.
South Carolina State University will host two events commemorating the 52nd anniversary of the Orangeburg Massacre, the first-ever shooting by law enforcement on a college campus.

The Orangeburg Massacre refers to four days in early February 1968 when students at S.C. State and Claflin College protested a segregated bowling alley and demanded change in the city and on campus.

The protests prompted officials to impose curfews, restrict movement in Orangeburg and seek assistance from the FBI and National Guard. The unrest culminated in a burst of violence on the night of Feb. 8 when state troopers fired buckshot into a large group of unarmed black students gathered at the edge of campus, killing three  Henry Smith and Samuel Hammond and high school student Delano Middleton  and injuring at least 28.

Cleveland Sellers Jr., a civil rights activist from nearby Denmark and member of the Student Nonviolent Coordinating Committee, was the only person convicted of a crime, though the charges were dubious and eventually he was pardoned by the state.

The killings were never investigated formally by the state of South Carolina, and many involved or affected continue to seek some kind of appropriate resolution.

Following are the free events:

Orangeburg: A Town, a Team, an American Tragedy, 4 p.m. Friday at the SCSU Fine Arts Building. It features filmmaker Jim Fabio and Oliver Buddy Pough, as well as survivors of the violence. Participants will discuss the civil rights movement and current issues.

A commemoration program, 11 a.m. Saturday in the MLK Auditorium. It features guest speakers from the Smith, Hammond and Middleton families. New bronze busts of the three men will be unveiled and the 2020 Smith/Hammond/Middleton Social Justice Awards will be delivered to Barbara Jenkins, retired SCSU historian and preservationist, and Tolulope O. Filano, sculptor and chairwoman of the SCSU arts department.
In Iran, at the airport of Kermanshah, a passenger plane of Iran Air airline, when landing, rolled out of the runway. Mehr news agency reports.

A representative of the Iranian civil aviation organization, Reza Jaafar Zadeh, said the cause of the incident was a defective Airbus-319 front wheel.

He also said that the plane flew from Tehran, and that there were 102 passengers and 8 crew members on board the liner. None of the passengers were injured.

As we reported, the plane, which evacuated Ukrainians from Chinese island Hainan (over 1,500 km from Wuhan, where the epidemic of new coronavirus started), landed in Boryspil International Airport near Kyiv

Thus, 158 Ukrainians returned from Sanya, the popular city. They said that there is no panic on the island concerning the spread of coronavirus in China; however, people are wearing masks and bought most goods from the pharmacy and shops.

After arrival at Boryspil, the temperature of all passengers of the plane was checked; however, no other checks were held. Earlier the Healthcare Ministry has already stated that no other checks are needed.
With China reeling from the coronavirus outbreak, an Indian medical student, M Velam from Chennai was the sole passenger on a flight from Tianjin to India via Singapore. According to reports, Velam wanted to stay put in China to help patients amid an outbreak that has claimed a total of 259 lives and infected 11,791 people. According to reports, the student hailing from Chennai was in her final year of MBBS.

Velam's father reportedly said that his daughter wanted to stay back and help people but they convinced her to come back. The father further added that his daughter had to undergo strict scanning procedures after she landed in India.

India thanks China

Indian Embassy in Beijing expressed its gratitude to Chinas Ministry of Foreign Affairs and local authorities in Hubei province and Wuhan for assisting the evacuation of Indian nationals from the epicentre of Coronavirus outbreak. Vikram Misri, the Indian Ambassador to Beijing, said that he was relieved on the safe return of Indian citizens from Wuhan.

Relieved to see AI 1349 return safely to #Delhi with 324 of our fellow citizens from #Wuhan in #China | Grateful to @MFA_China for their assistance as well as local authorities in #Hubei and @Wuhan | Thank you also to #AirIndia and our team in @EOIBeijing | Now for second flight. pic.twitter.com/rhJvBGMpYj  Vikram Misri (@VikramMisri) February 1, 2020

Read: Another Flight To Evacuate Indians From Coronavirus-hit Wuhan To Leave Delhi On Saturday: AI

Read: Britain Confirms 2 Coronavirus Cases After Chartered Planes Bring Evacuees Home

Air India flight carrying 324 Indian nationals, majority of who were students, from coronavirus-hit Wuhan landed in New Delhi on February 1. Indians who arrived at the Delhi airport will be taken to an Indo-Tibetan Border Police (ITBP) camp where they will be kept in isolation for 14 days under medical observation. Currently, the doctors are conducting coronavirus screening at the airport all the 324 Indian airports.

Another Air India flight is prepared to take off for Wuhan to evacuate remaining citizens who gave their consent to leave Hubei Province for the time being. Indian Embassy in Beijing urged all Indian nationals living in Hubei province to contact the embassy through hotlines if they intend to avail the next flight.

Read: Coronavirus Claims 250 Lives In China, 11,000 Infection Cases Confirmed

Read: Amid Coronavirus Scare, Centre Prohibits Export Of Masks With Immediate Effect

(with inputs from agencies)
Ms. ODonnell: Youre going to propose a plan to the American people, and youre not going to tell them how much it costs?

Mr. Sanders: Of course, I will. Do you know exactly what health care costs will be, one minute, in the next ten years if we do nothing? It will be a lot more expensive than a Medicare for all single-payer system.

 in an interview with CBS in January

This is disputed. Mr. Sanders has a point that a large degree of uncertainty exists in projecting how much a Medicare-for-all system would cost, though he has also been comfortable offering his own estimates in the past. And his claim that a single-payer health care system would be less expensive than the status quo is disputed by some health economists.

Mr. Sanders said in July that Medicare for all would cost somewhere between $30 trillion and $40 trillion over a ten-year period. That is in line with estimates from several major studies: $34 trillion over a decade, according to the liberal Urban Institute; $32.6 trillion, according to the conservative Mercatus Center; and $24.7 trillion, according Kenneth E. Thorpe, a health policy economist at Emory University. (Lower estimates include $13.5 trillion from a study from the University of Massachusetts Amherst and $9.6 trillion from Gerald Friedman, a health economist at the same university who did not contribute to that study.)

These estimates vary so widely because many key details of Medicare for all remain unsettled, including how doctors and hospitals would be compensated and how prescription drug prices and administrative fees would change. Other effects, like whether a single-payer system would lead to people using more health care services, are difficult to predict precisely. These myriad factors are why the Congressional Budget Office previously declined to estimate the cost of Medicare for all.

Just as it is difficult to put a price tag on a single-payer system, it is similarly difficult to say with certainty that it will cost less than the current health care system, despite Mr. Sanders assertion that it will. Some analyses back his argument while others contradict it.

The Urban Institute found that total health spending would reach $52 trillion from 2020 to 2029 under existing law compared to $59 trillion under Medicare for all. The RAND Corporation, a nonpartisan research group, estimated the current system costing $3.8 trillion in 2019 versus $3.9 trillion if a single-payer system had been in place.
By Javier Hasse and Andrew Ward.

When Seedo Corp (OTC: SEDO), an Israeli startup promising to fully automate cannabis home growing by using AI, released the first images of its home grow kit resembling a mini-fridge, the cannabis community went bonkers.

The concept of automated grow boxes was not entirely new, but Seedo has garnered attention since launching in 2013 with a slick design and cool explainer videos. Doubling down on its social media presence, the company sought endorsements and ultimately signed Snoop Dogg as a brand ambassador.

If you aint growin right you aint goin right get urself a #SEEDO and grow all ur greens the right way! plants, herbs, veggies, u name it!

go n get urs at https://t.co/FllcDaE0of #ad pic.twitter.com/V1RmpML40p  Snoop Dogg (@SnoopDogg) December 9, 2019

But its not all roses in Seedos world: the company has had shake-ups in the C-suite and debt settlement of late. Customers now face the prospect of losing investments, and for some it's for a device they have yet to receive.

The company began 2019 by touting its delivery of units to pre-sale consumers. By April, Seedo announced plans to produce an additional 1,800 units for the second quarter of the year. In July, the the company reported "outstanding results" from the initial home grows completed by pre-sale customers.

Seedo Customers Beg To Differ

Despite the hype and the company assuring that its product works wonders, reports of faulty devices and unfulfilled shipments have surfaced, with a number of complaints posted on Twitter, Facebook and the companys Reddit subreddit page.

For instance, one customer posting on Reddit as rabbi-reefer reported major problems, including leaks, pump failure, and connectivity issues," adding that "users have lost entire grows due to machine failures.



Story continues

When Seedo did respond to customer complaints, the answers were not particularly satisfactory.

The company said refunds were taking longer than expected because "the multiple delays ... in production, supplies and customer care, are also affecting the financial dept," according to Reddit user rabbi-reefer.

The post said the company promised a refund in six to eight weeks.

Seedos CEO Responds

In early December, Zohar Levy, Seedo's CEO and chairman, responded to inquiries from Benzinga.

Six months prior, Seedo began shipping devices to the first of its 3,000 pre-sale customers in the U.S., Canada and European Union, he said

The companyslowly ramped up manufacturing during 2019 with its third-party manufacturer in China, "trying to ensure product stability" as the device debuted in the market, the CEO said.

"We have moved forward with deliveries in the fastest possible manner despite unforeseen roadblocks such as the 30% Trump tax, with Seedo absorbing the whole tax cost," Levy said.

Seedo has successfully delivered hundreds of devices and already has "satisfied clients who have already completed full grow cycles and are enthusiastic from the results," he said.

As 2019 drew to a close, the company discovered "a fault in the production line" with its Chinese manufacturer, the CEO said.

"Because of this, there have been some customers who have received devices containing these manufacturer faults. These customers will of course receive replacement devices at the soonest possible time."

As of December, Seedo had temporarily paused production in order to assess the issue and find a solution moving forward, Levy said.

The situation caused delays in Seedo's estimated delivery times, both for new and replacement devices, he said.

"It is important to note that during our pre-sale campaign, we provided an estimated one-year shipping time to our early adopters but did not promise an exact date. We have done our best to keep our pre-sale customers updated on realistic shipping times despite the unforeseen delays."

The CEO addressed customer service complaints and said Seedo recently reorganized its customer service team "after discovering inadequate timely service."

The new team has been working dilligently to respond to all inquiries, Levy said, promising that any customer requesting a refund will receive one.

"As a startup company with an innovative product in a new market, we were lucky enough to have a large following and early adopters. As I'm sure you know, with this comes many challenges and we are constantly striving to achieve the best possible product and service for our loyal customer base."

Mistakes have been made along the way, and Seedo is doing its best to communicate and fix these issues, the CEO said.

Since Levy made the comments to Benzinga, Seedo saw its CFO Uri Birenberg resign Dec. 9. The following day, Levy filed in an Israeli court for debt settlement, according to an SEC filing by Seedo.

The filing said the company's wholly owned subsidiary Eroll Grow Tech Ltd., was in debt of roughly $20,609,827 and lacks the capital to continue operations.

Before Birenberg, a few board members also left the company.

Seedo In Limbo

The uncertainty of the companys future leaves consumers in limbo, especially since many believe a closure of the company would mean the devices would stop working, as much of the data and software seems to be lodged in Seedos servers.

The fate of the company and its customers remains to be seen.

Investors are not as optimistic as they once were. Over-the-counter Seedo shares have tumbled from a the $1.85 level six months ago to the current price of 0.0600 cents per share.

Related Links:

Law Enforcement Struggles To Differentiate Weed From Hemp: This 50-Year-Old Technology Might Be The Solution

65 Outstanding Black And Hispanic Men Leading In Cannabis

Photos courtesy of Seedo.

0

See more from Benzinga

 2020 Benzinga.com. Benzinga does not provide investment advice. All rights reserved.
TROY  Eight days after Rensselaer County District Attorney Joel E. Abelove lost his 2018 bid for re-election, he emailed copies of sealed records in a politically charged criminal case to his private email account, according to documents obtained by the Times Union.

Abelove sent the files to his Gmail account nearly two years after a judge  citing concerns about the appearance of political motives  removed the district attorney as the prosecutor in the case of three men suspected of leaking a 911 call made by the wife of an Abelove political ally. State Supreme Court Justice Richard M. Koweek subsequently dropped the charges in October 2017 and imposed a sealing order that shielded records in the case from public view.

The 19 emails related to the sealed records that Abelove emailed on Nov. 14, 2018, included the arrest and booking records of the three defendants; correspondence with the special prosecutor who replaced Abelove, Columbia County District Attorney Paul Czajka; as well as defense motions and court orders including the final sealing order.

After Koweek's order, the files were removed from the county clerk's office where they had previously been available for public viewing. State criminal procedure law states that once a case is dismissed, related files and records in any court, police agency, or prosecutor's office shall be sealed and not made available to any person or public or private agency.

Abelove, now in private practice, declined to speak to the Times Union when contacted about the matter last week.

The sealed records were tied to an investigation of the leak of a 911 call made in July 2015 by Melissa Gordon, whose husband, Republican city councilman and Abelove political ally Jim Gordon, was at the time running for Troy mayor against Democrat Patrick Madden.

In the recording  obtained by the Times Union, which reported its contents in October 2015  Melissa Gordon can be heard telling a dispatcher, "My husband held me down. ... I just want him to leave." Jim Gordon, who was not arrested, later described the episode as "just an argument  it wasn't anything serious."

The couple filed a complaint with Troy police. The investigation targeted Ronald Fountain, a retired Troy detective; Gary Gordon, a former district attorney's investigator (no relation to Jim and Melissa Gordon); and Shane Hug, a former assistant district attorney. After Abelove presented the matter to a Rensselaer County grand jury, the three were indicted in October 2016 on charges that accused them of conspiring to steal a copy of the 911 recording from Troy police.

But six months later, Judge Koweek of Columbia County dismissed that case, ruling that Abeloves office had improperly instructed the grand jurors. Czajka, the special prosecutor, declined to present it to another grand jury.

The leak-related files were among 264 emails and documents Abelove sent to himself during the last two months of his single term as district attorney following his November 2018 defeat by Democrat Mary Pat Donnelly. The emails were released to the Times Union in response to a Freedom of Information Law request to Rensselaer County seven months ago. The county withheld 61 records, including files detailing the content of the 911 call and another email the county argued was sealed under grand jury confidentiality rules.

The defendants and their attorneys were angered when they learned of Abeloves emails.

I am disturbed that a man with no moral scruples now has my personal information including my Social Security number," Hug said after reviewing the emails. Gary Gordon said it displayed Abelove's "malice."

Attorney Joseph Ahearn, who represented Fountain, stated that Abelove's action violates the terms of the sealing order issued in 2017. I have never seen anyone intentionally violate a sealing order  including a prosecutor, police officers or any other person.

In an odd twist, Abelove in the spring of 2019 filed a FOIL request with the city of Troy seeking police department files regarding the investigation of the 911 leak case  a request that would have sought the very records Abelove had sent to himself just a few months earlier.

The city rejected Abeloves request. Troy Corporation Counsel James Caruso told the former prosecutor in a June 28, 2019, letter that as district attorney he would have had actual, or at a minimum, constructive knowledge of the sealing order. " ... The fact remains that the Court Sealing Notice does exist and the Troy Police Department is barred from releasing those records to you.

The state District Attorneys Association would not comment on the specifics of the matter, but said it expects prosecutors to obey the law. A spokeswoman for Donnelly, who took office as district attorney in January 2019, declined to comment.

Special Investigation 147 NY dams are 'unsound,' potentially dangerous Thousands of dams have not been inspected in over 20 years.

Abelove has personal experience with sealing orders  as a criminal defendant.

Court records in a pending criminal case against him were briefly sealed in June 2018 after acting state Supreme Court Justice Jonathan D. Nichols of Columbia County tossed out an indictment that accused Abelove of lying to a grand jury about his handling of the investigation of the April 2016 fatal police shooting of drunken-driving suspect Edson Thevenin during a traffic stop in Troy. Abelove allowed the officer who shot Thevenin, Sgt. Randall French, to testify without waiving his right to immunity, a move that effectively barred anyone from bringing charges against the officer.

The state attorney generals office appealed Nichols decision, and the Appellate Division of state Supreme Court reinstated the charges against the former prosecutor. Abeloves attorneys recently asked the state's highest court, the Court of Appeals, to reverse that decision.

Among the other emails Abelove sent to his private account were copies of his correspondence with Grant Garramone, co-chairman of the district attorneys association's Forfeiture Law Advisory Group and a longtime member of the Oneida County district attorneys office.

Abelove asked in a Nov. 19, 2018, exchange if forfeiture funds from criminal cases received by the district attorneys office could be used "to pay private attorneys fees for the defense of an action that directly relates to the DAs job duties.

Garramone said the rules prohibited the payment of costs associated with lawsuits.

Abelove responded, Its not for a lawsuit. Its the criminal case that the AG brought against me which has been dismissed. Does that make a difference?

Garramone said the answer was still no.

Abelove also sent himself a copy of a Jan. 7, 2015, email he sent to his prosecutors immediately after taking office that outlined the way he expected them to act.

Assistant District Attorneys shall adhere to the ethical requirements and guidelines of the legal profession in New York State, to include those promulgated by the District Attorneys Association of the State of New York, Abelove wrote.

At no time should any member of the Rensselaer County District Attorneys Office engage in conduct that jeopardizes the integrity of either the prosecutorial process or this office," he wrote. "Any questions regarding this guidance should be brought to my attention.
Presenting the Union Budget for the financial year 2020-21, Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman on Saturday announced an allocation of Rs 30,757 crore for Jammu and Kashmir, and Rs 5,958 crore for Ladakh.

Both Jammu and Kashmir and Ladakh are now union territories, carved out of the erstwhile state of Jammu and Kashmir, following the passage of the Jammu and Kashmir Reorganisation Bill by Parliament in August last year.

Speaking in Parliament, Sitharaman said the government is fully committed to supporting all-round development of the newly-formed union territories.

Reacting to finance ministers announcement, Ladakh MP Jamyang Tsering Namgyal tweeted, Continuing the path of development, Honble Finance Minister @nsitharaman ji announced Rs 5958 cr for our UT Ladakh. Ladakh will surely prosper under the leadership and vision of our Honble Prime Minister @narendramodi Ji.

Continuing the path of development, Honble Finance Minister @nsitharaman ji announced 5958 cr for our UT Ladakh. Ladakh will surely prosper under the leadership and vision of our Honble Prime Minister @narendramodi Ji.  Jamyang Tsering Namgyal (@MPLadakh) February 1, 2020

Sitharaman also read out a poem in Kashmiri by celebrated poet Dina Nath Kaul Nadim. The Opposition, however, raised the issue of Lok Sabha MP and former chief minister Farooq Abdullah being still in detention. Since August 5, when the J&K reorganisaton bill was introduced, Abdullah has been in custody and was slapped with provisions under the PSA (public safety act) since September.

On Friday, while addressing a joint session of both the Houses of Parliament, President Ramnath Kovind had also referred to the governments intent to invest in the development of J&K and Ladakh.

He said the abrogation of Article 370 and Article 35A paved way for equal development of the regions and people in Jammu and Kashmir and Ladakh have got rights on par with the rest of the country.

SHARE THIS ARTICLE ON
Three years after President Trump first signed an executive order barring entry to the U.S. for citizens of seven majority-Muslim countries, hes adding six new countries to the so-called travel ban list.

Speaking to reporters on background Friday afternoon, officials with the departments of State and Homeland Security confirmed that Trump was signing a proclamation extending the list of countries subject to the travel ban to include Myanmar (which officials referred to by its former name of Burma), Eritrea, Kyrgyzstan, Nigeria, Sudan, and Tanzania. Existing restrictions imposed against Iran, Libya, North Korea, Somalia, Syria, Venezuela and Yemen under a third iteration of the original travel ban and upheld by the Supreme Court in 2018 will also remain in place, the officials said.

Among the six countries added, Sudan and Kyrgystan are majority Muslim, with Christianity and Islam more closely split as the main religions in Tanzania and Nigeria. Myanmar is predominantly Buddhist and its government has been accused of encouraging an ethnic cleansing campaign against its Muslim minority, the Rohingya  making the country one of the worlds biggest drivers of refugees in recent years.

Protestors hold signs in support of ending a ban on travel to the United States for citizens of several majority-Muslim countries. (Sarah Silbiger/Getty Images)

A senior DHS official, who declined to be named, told reporters Friday that the decision to add these specific countries to the travel ban list was based on their unwillingness or inability to meet certain enhanced security and information-sharing standards established by the Trump administration to address potential national security and public safety threats from foreign nationals. Among the deficiencies the DHS says it identified within these countrys vetting capabilities include a lack of an electronic passport program, failure to provide sufficient information on lost or stolen passports, and other issues identifying travelers who may pose a risk to national security.

The new restrictions imposed on the six countries added Friday  which will take effect on Feb. 22  are less stringent from those applied to the other countries already on the list. Those will remain in effect.

Story continues

The restrictions will apply specifically to those seeking immigration visas from Burma, Eritrea, Kyrgyzstan and Nigeria. For Sudan and Tanzania, the restrictions will only impact diversity visa applicants. The ban will not apply to refugees from these countries, a State Department official confirmed. They estimated that the regulations could potentially affect around 12,400 applicants annually, before applying waivers and other exceptions.

Its focused on people who want to reside in the U.S., not people who want to visit, the DHS official said.

President Trump signs a travel ban executive order at the Pentagon as Vice President Mike Pence, left, and former Defense Secretary James Mattis look on, Jan. 27, 2017. (Carlos Barria/Reuters)

Asked to explain why the restrictions would not be applied to visitors, in light of the stated objective of preventing terrorists and other public safety threats from entering the country, the DHS official said, "because we have higher confidence that these six countries will be able to make improvements  in a reasonable period of time, we did not feel [it was] proportionate to impose restrictions on all immigrant and non-immigrant visas.

The intent, he said, was to prioritize categories that could have the greatest long-term challenge on removal proceedings and the like. DHS experience, the official said, was that it is much harder to deport a visa holder already in the country than to deny entry in the first place. The agency decided to focus energy on populations that may present the greatest challenge.

The focus on blocking immigration from these six countries seems to raise new questions about the administrations national security justifications for earlier versions of the ban.

Looking at all of the terrorist attacks on U.S. soil during the 1975-2017 period, only .56 percent were committed by a terrorist who entered on a green card, said Alex Nowrasteh, director of immigration studies at the Cato Institutes Center for Global Liberty and Prosperity. Nowrasteh published a comprehensive risk analysis in May that examined the immigration status and nationality of every foreign-born terrorist whod been convicted of planning, attempting or carrying out attacks on U.S. soil between 1975 and 2017.

Based on his report, Nowrasteh told Yahoo News that during that 42-year period, a combined 11 people from the six new travel ban countries were involved in terrorist attacks on U.S. soil that resulted in a total of six deaths. Of those 11 terrorists, only one entered the country with a green card.

The most this ban would have prevented is a single murder, said Nowrasteh.

The Cato Institute report expanded on an earlier analysis published by Nowrasteh in January 2017, as Trump prepared to sign his executive order onProtecting the Nation from Foreign Terrorist Entry into the United States, which mandated a temporary halt on travel to the U.S. for citizens of Iran, Iraq, Syria, Libya, Yemen, Sudan and Somalia. Despite the stated objective of the executive order, which quickly became better known as the Muslim ban, Nowrasteh similarly found that the countries that Trump chose to temporarily ban are not serious terrorism risks.

Demonstrators listen to speakers during a rally outside the U.S. 4th Circuit Court of Appeals on Tuesday. (Steve Helber/AP)

Trump signed the order on Jan. 27, 2017, prompting massive protests, chaos and confusion, as immigrants from the affected countries, including some green card holders, were unexpectedly detained at airports across the U.S. and, in some cases, removed from the country. The Department of Homeland Security later reported that, within the first 72 hours after the order went into effect, 721 people with valid visas were prevented from boarding U.S.-bound flights.

The original Muslim ban was revised multiple times amid a lengthy legal battle. Immigration advocacy and civil rights organizations won nationwide injunctions to temporarily block the government from enforcing the order from federal judges in New York and Washington state, as well as Maryland and Hawaii. In June 2018 the third and current version of the ban was upheld by the Supreme Court, which found it had a legitimate grounding in national security concerns.

The latest expansion of the travel ban, which comes just days after the third anniversary of the original executive order, was widely condemned by immigrant rights advocates as well as some Democratic lawmakers, such as Mississippi Rep. Bennie Thompson, chair of the House Homeland Security Committee.

In a statement, Thompson described Fridays announcement as a brazen step to begin dismantling the Diversity Visa program which, he said, has been a longstanding political priority for the President and is consistent with what has been widely reported about his thoughts on immigration from countries with predominantly black and brown populations.

The fact that he has couched this political decision in homeland or national security terms is grotesque, Thompson stated. Both the timing and the focus of these new restrictions represent a shameful political maneuver that hurts thousands of people and families.

In a joint statement, Rep. Jerry Nadler and Rep. Zoe Lofgren, both impeachment managers in Trumps Senate trial, accused Trump of improperly acting beyond the limited legal authority granted to presidents under federal immigration law to protect the national interest by excluding small, well-defined groups of individuals from entering the country.

Lofgren and Nadler noted that the House Judiciary will soon consider proposed legislation to repeal the Muslim ban, strengthen provisions of the Immigration and Nationality Act by prohibiting discrimination based on religion, and ensure that executive authority to prohibit the entry of non-citizens can no longer be abused in this manner.

Even after the Supreme Court ruling, civil rights groups including the American Civil Liberties Union have continued to fight the travel ban, making their latest legal arguments before the Fourth Circuit Court of Appeals in Virginia earlier this week.

The ban should be ended, not expanded, Omar Jadwat, director of the ACLUs Immigrants Rights Project, said in a statement following the announcement Friday. President Trump is doubling down on his signature anti-Muslim policy  and using the ban as a way to put even more of his prejudices into practice by excluding more communities of color.

Benjamin Johnson, executive director of the American Immigration Lawyers Association said, Although the Supreme Court has previously upheld the presidents authority to issue these bans, denying people entry to the United States based solely on where they are from is bad policy and is contrary to the principles underlying our legal system. AILA remains deeply troubled by this bans intent and impact.

Correction: This article previously stated that Myanmar is predominantly Hindu. It has been corrected to reflect that the country is predominantly Buddhist.

_____

Read more from Yahoo News:
If the Calvin Klein cologne that you got for Christmas is starting to gather dust on your dresser, you could always try to return it.

Or, you could give it to a leopard instead.

Banham Zoo in Norfolk, England, put out an appeal Tuesday for any unwanted fragrances, explaining its big cats are running low. As it turns out, cheetahs, jaguars and ocelots really like perfume  and they tend to favour expensive designer labels.

For some reason Calvin Klein perfume is a huge hit with all big cats but in all honesty any perfumes work well and we do like to offer them a variety of different smells, Mike Woolham, the zoos animal manager, said in a statement, adding that donations of aftershave were also welcome.

As the zoo demonstrated in a short video this week that showed sprightly leopards taking turns pawing at a tree and a tiger rubbing its face against a log, large predatory mammals respond very positively to scents more typically found at mall department stores. Thats because of a little-known ingredient called civetone, Mandy Aftel, a perfumer and the author of Fragrant: The Secret Life of Scent, told the Washington Post.

The civet, a small catlike mammal found throughout Southeast Asia and parts of Africa, marks its territory by secreting a distinctive scent from its anal glands. For hundreds, perhaps even thousands, of years, those pheromones have been used in perfume, although today most fragrances rely on civetone, a lab-made copy.

The scent is what Aftel describes as a fecal floral, meaning its kind of poopy, but kind of floral, and creates a complicated musky aroma when used in perfume.

While its unclear how humans first realized that the secretions of a wild animal could be bottled and sold in luxury perfumes, Aftel suspects it may have something to do with the fact that civet and other aromatic materials like musk were also historically used as medicine. She points to a quote from Shakespeares King Lear: Give me an ounce of civet; good apothecary, sweeten my imagination.

Harvesting civet oil requires keeping the animals in captivity, which raises questions about ethics and sustainability, Aftel notes. But around the turn of the 19th century, perfumers realized they could use a synthetic formulation instead. And cats  both wild and domestic  cant get enough.

My own personal cat liked it, she told the Post. Hed rub against it, more so than with catnip.

Although fragrances such as Chanel No. 5 and Jovan Musk also contain civetone, the scent most popular with wildcats is Calvin Kleins Obsession for Men. Or at least thats what one curator at the Bronx Zoo found after testing 24 different scents on cheetahs, leopards and tigers.

As the Wall Street Journal reported, zookeepers already knew spraying perfumes in a big cats enclosure was a good way to keep them from getting bored, since the animals would eagerly investigate the new scents and start rolling around. But in 2003, Pat Thomas, general curator at the Bronx Zoo, decided to figure out which scent would attract felines to come running the fastest and keep them occupied the longest. Obsession for Men was the clear winner, easily beating out competitors such as Estee Lauders Beautiful.

Zookeepers all over the world soon confirmed Thomass findings: Big cats lost their minds around Obsession for Men.

They literally roll onto the ground, rub their cheeks all over it, and rub their faces with it, Louise Ginman, the unit supervisor for carnivores at Sydneys Taronga Zoo, told Scientific American in 2014. I guess its kind of like the reaction that you get from a cat when its enjoying catnip, they just seem to be in absolute heaven.

Before long, wildlife biologists were stocking up on the amber-hued cologne, which made its debut in the 1980s and retails at $82 for a four-ounce bottle at Ulta Beauty. With a few judicious sprays, biologists were able to get elusive species such as jaguars to approach their trail cameras. That, in turn, helped researchers to conduct more accurate population counts, the Wildlife Conservation Society said.

Researchers have brushed off concerns that the fragrance could become a potent tool for poachers, pointing out that people who illegally hunt for big cats tend to use dead animals as bait anyway. And the colognes appeal only goes so far.

In 2018, Indian authorities tried to use Obsession for Men to trap a wily female tiger accused of killing 13 people. It didnt work, and the tigress, known as both T1 and Avni, was tracked down and shot by hunters in a military-style operation that angered conservationists.

She was too clever for the cologne, one of the hunters, Asgar Ali Khan, told the Sunday Telegraph. We were dealing with an extraordinarily smart tiger.

Because perfume companies are secretive about their formulations, its hard to say exactly why wild cats are more intrigued by Calvin Klein cologne than other civetone-heavy fragrances. In an interview with the Journal, the scents creator suggested the allure of Obsession for Men might have something to do with its lickable vanilla heart.

Apparently, some women like it, too.

This cologne should be prescribed in marriage counselling sessions, says one of the top-ranked reviews on Ulta.com, where reviewers give the cologne an average of 4.7 out of 5 stars. If the desire has gone out of your marriage, ladies, have your man (wear) this and see what happens!
The government proposes to attach a medical college to a district hospital under the public-private partnership (PPP) model to address shortage of qualified doctors, Union finance minister Nirmala Sitharaman said in her Budget speech on Saturday.

There is a shortage of qualified medical doctors both general practitioners and specialists; it is proposed to attach a medical college to a district hospital in PPP mode; details of the scheme to be worked out soon, she said.

India faces a massive shortage of doctors. Last year, the government had estimated that the country has only one doctor for every 1,457 people as per the countrys current population estimate of 1.35 billion, which is lower than the World Health Organisation (WHO) norm of 1:1000.

Sitharaman said priority would be given to aspirational districts that lack hospitals empanelled under the governments flagship health insurance programme Ayushman Bharat.

Viability gap funding window to be set up to cover hospitals, with priority given to aspirational districts that dont have hospitals empanelled under Ayushman Bharat scheme, she said.

Ayushman Bharat-Pradhan Mantri Jan Arogya Yojna (AB-PMJAY) billed as the worlds largest public health insurance scheme was launched in Ranchi in September 2018 by Prime Minister Narendra Modi who called a game changer.

But many opposition-ruled states have not adopted the Ayushman Bharat scheme and have instead chosen to implement their own versions of health insurance.

In her Budget speech, Sitharaman proposed using taxes on medical devices to build hospitals.

Proceeds from taxes on medical devices would be used to support setting up of hospitals, she said.

Sitharaman also proposed to expand Jan Aushadhi Kendras in all districts of country to provide medicines at affordable rates.
New Delhi: The Jammu and Kashmir Police said that the three terrorists Jaish-e-Mohammed (JeM) terrorists killed in an encounter on Jammu-Srinagar Highway on Friday had Improvised Explosive Device (IED) ready to be used around Nagrota through a third person in a few days.

"Recovered from 3 Slain Pakistan terrorists of JeM today (January 31). They had an IED ready to be used around Nagrota through some third person in a few days. They had dumped it at a convenient location on Jammu-Srinagar Highway," the Jammu and Kashmir Police tweeted.

The police stated that huge quantities of sophisticated arms, ammunition and communication equipment were recovered. The recovery includes AK rifles, pistols and armoured piercing steel core ammunition which can go through Level 3 protection bulletproof vehicles.

On January 31, the Jammu and Kashmir Police killed at least three Jaish-e-Mohammad terrorists in an encounter near the Bann toll post in Nagrota on the highway. The police also apprehended a truck driver, who they claimed to be the cousin of the Pulwama suicide bomber Adil Dar.

The incident took place at around 5.45 am when a police team conducting a vehicle check near the toll booth intercepted the truck.

Jammu and Kashmir DGP Dilbagh Singh told ANI that the truck driver, identified as Samir Dar, is being interrogated for further information.
(Natural News) When youve got a crap job  literally  sometimes you may have to color outside of the lines, so to speak, in order to get ahead.

At least, that seems to be what happened with Mohammed Nuru.

As reported by the San Francisco Examiner, Nuru, 57, has been charged by the FBI along with San Fran businessman Nick Bovis for allegedly engaging in corruption, bribery, and side deals by one of the citys highest-ranking public employees, says the 75-page complaint, unveiled earlier this week.

As such, the city has been betrayed the complaint alleges.

The complaint alleges corruption pouring into San Francisco from around the world, said U.S. Attorney for the Northern District of California, David Anderson.

Now for the kicker, and about that crap job: The San Fran Department of Public Works that Nuru headed is responsible for cleaning up human feces left all over the city by the rising number of homeless people, who Democrats that run the city have allowed to camp anywhere and everywhere.

The infamous poop patrols, in other words.

That said, its not as though picking up crap day in and day out as your job doesnt pay: The city hands out six figures in salary and benefits for poop patrollers.

If convicted of all counts, Nuro faces a lot of time behind bars  20 years, according to Zero Hedge. That would include another five years because he lied to FBI agents about not remaining silent regarding the ongoing investigation as he originally agreed to do when he was arrested earlier this month.

San Fran officials cant seem to get their hands on enough money

Maybe Nuru thought that since former FBI Director James Comey wasnt arrested for leaking and mishandling classified information  like Hillary Clinton  or lying to federal investigators like former FBI Deputy Director Andrew McCabe, he could get away with lying to agents too.

Guess not. Little did the chief of the San Fran poop patrol realize that he may be a big fish in the city by the bay, but hes not a Washington, D.C. insider or member of the deep state. So he is subject to that other system of law  the one that holds people accountable for their actions, not the one used in the nations capital to let people who commit the same or worse infractions get off scot free.

As further noted by Mission Local:

The alleged actions took place in 2018 and 2019 and were documented during a long-running and broad investigation involving undercover agents, informants, and extensive wire-taps. Other figures Bovis or Nuru interacted with are described obliquely in the complaint. Anderson said hes certain individuals will recognize themselves and encouraged them to come forward.

They have an opportunity to do the right thing  for San Francisco and all of us, he said. If they are inclined to do the right thing, they should  run to the FBI offices and disclose what they know. Or well do it the other way.

In all, FBI agents outlined five schemes involving Nuru, Bovis, and others, allegedly.

Mission Local reported, They are: 1. The Airport Scheme; 2. The Multimillion-Dollar Mixed-Use Development Scheme; 3. The Transbay Transit Center Scheme; 4. The Bathroom Trailer and Homeless Shelter Scheme; 5. The Vacation Home Scheme.

Its not clear yet how these charges are going to affect the poop patrols, if at all. But sufficed say, those will still be crap jobs.

Meantime, as San Frans socialist Democrats continue to find new and inventive ways to spend the peoples tax dollars, San Fran city officials apparently are looking for new and inventive ways to get their hands on more money, too.

Sources include:

ZeroHedge.com

MissionLocal.org

SFExaminer.com

NaturalNews.com

.
File Image

Opposition parties in West Bengal on February 1 criticised the Union Budget for 2020-21, contending that the government made a host of announcements, but indicated no concrete plans to execute them.

Congress MP Adhir Chowdhury said the budget showed no direction on how to take the country ahead on the economic front. He also took exception to the Centre's plans to sell a part of its shareholding in insurance behemoth LIC.

Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman earlier in the day said LIC will be listed as part of the government's disinvestment initiative.

The Centre proposes to sell a part of its holding in LIC through initial public offer, she said, while unveiling the Union Budget 2020-21.

CPI(M) leader Sujan Chakraborty said the budget is "anti-poor", and it "completely ignored" the rural economy.

The ruling Trinamool Congress in the state said the budget will be of no help for the masses.

"There are no broadbased plans for reviving the economy in the budget. It is a pipeline budget. There are a lot of projects in the pipe, but no plans on how to implement them," TMC MP Sudip Bandopadhyay said.
The foreign ministers of the member states of the Arab League unanimously adopted a resolution on Saturday rejecting the Trump Israeli-Palestinian peace plan and said that "it does not satisfy the minimum of the rights and aspirations of the Palestinian people."

Why it matters: The Trump administration was counting on a coalition of Arab countries it has built over the last several years to prevent such a resolution and press the Palestinians to go back to the table. Those efforts did not materialize.

The state of play: The Arab League foreign ministers convened on Saturday in Cairo at the request of the Palestinians to discuss the Trump plan. The closing statement, which passed in consensus between all member states, said the U.S. plan contradicts the principles of the peace process and UN resolutions. The statement also explained that Arab countries will not engage with the U.S. on the plan and will not cooperate with the Trump administration in its implementation.

What they're saying: The Arab League foreign ministers' statement said the Arab peace initiative is the basis for any peace deal between Israel and the Palestinians, which must include a Palestinian state on the 1967 lines with East Jerusalem as its capital. The statement also warned Israel not to annex any part of the West Bank and underscored that the U.S. and Israel will be responsible for the consequences of such moves.

Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas in a speech at the meeting rejected the Trump peace plan and stressed he "will not go down in history as the one who sold out Jerusalem."

He said President Trump tried to reach him through the CIA the week leading up to the unveiling of the peace plan, but Abbas refused to take the calls and even refused to get a copy of the plan in advance.

He said that he told the U.S. through the CIA and Israel by letter to Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu that if the plan is implemented, there will be no relations between the Palestinian Authority and the U.S. and Israel, including security ties.

Abbas added the Palestinians will not accept the Trump administration as the sole mediator in peace talks with Israel, and he said he would present a Palestinian peace plan soon  likely in a speech at the UN Security Council meeting in two weeks.

But, but, but: At Saturday's meeting, Arab foreign ministers who spoke after Abbas backed the Palestinian position, but almost all refrained from criticizing the Trump administration.

The foreign ministers of the United Arab Emirates, Oman and Morocco went further than refusing to criticize the Trump plan, giving positive statements about it while suggesting it could be a basis for talks, but not a final solution.

"The United States is appreciative of the positive remarks from many Arab countries made with regard to our Vision for Peace today at the Arab League meeting in Cairo. It is only by having a willingness to try a new approach that we will make a breakthrough in a conflict that has left the Palestinian people to suffer for decades. Past Arab League resolutions have placated Palestinian leadership and not led to peace or progress and it is important to try a new approach or the Palestinian peoples' fate will not change."

 A senior U.S. official told me

Go deeper:
TIPPECANOE COUNTY, Ind. (WLFI)  People working in the Indiana Juvenile Justice system say it has come a long way in the last decade, but there's still work to do. News 18 is learning what this looks like at a local level.

On Friday, United Way of Greater Lafayette held a luncheon and invited Juvenile Judge Faith Graham of Tippecanoe Superior Court 3 to give the community a picture of the challenges she sees every day.

Judge Graham talked about where we were, where we are now, and what we have to do to improve.

A lot of these kids have experienced so much trauma that it is a barrier for them to succeed, said Graham.

The Tippecanoe County Juvenile Justice System has been actively working to break those barriers.

One of the things that we always use are evidence-based programs, trauma-informed approaches and we are increasingly using those methods, said Graham.

It wasn't always like this in Tippecanoe County, in fact, the beginning of the decade looked a lot different. 334 kids spent time in juvenile detention in 2010. There were 1,031 arrests overall and 408 of them were arrested for felonies.

Our county has worked on a number of initiatives, pilot projects to improve our delinquency and child welfare system, said Graham.

This includes using a holistic approach through mental health and substance abuse screenings instead of juvenile detention. As of last year, all the numbers have dropped with 98 kids spending time in juvenile detention, 817 arrests overall and 132 of them were arrested for felonies.

It takes an entire community to do that, said Graham.

Judge Graham said the community stepping up to lead youth programs and becoming mentors has been a major help but theres still work to do.

I have seen more and more children at a younger age, committing more serious offenses, said Graham.

She said shes seeing more thefts, robberies, and crimes involving firearms, crimes that were rare for youth ten years ago. Judge Graham is hoping the luncheon encourages those in attendance to do more.

Seeing the reward and the growth that takes them through it and maybe there's some little thing that you did that gave that kid hope to get them to the next level or to get them to believe they can be successful and when she talked about that, that really hit me, it hit me pretty hard because Ive experienced that, said David Barrett, assistant principal at Tecumseh Middle School.

Decide to become foster parents and help some of our youth and maybe don't cast judgment so easily because you never know their story, said Jessica McVey, a foster parent in Greater Lafayette.

Our young community is who is going to take over our community in the long run so we want to invest in them so that they believe in themselves so that they can do better for our community, said Jaqueline Varela, United Way of Greater Lafayette Emerging Leaders co-chair.

United Way has launched a new program called the Career Coaching Program. The program is designed to connect students and young professionals in Greater Lafayette to help youth navigate their careers. The idea is for young professionals in the area to give students insight into what they do and the path they took to get there.

We found that there were gaps and some things we wanted to fill in as an emerging leaders group to help that particular age group, especially with the young children so that we could be that support system, said Brandy Marsh, United Way of Greater Lafayette Emerging Leaders co-chair.

If youre interested in volunteering for the Career Coaching Program click here.
Iraqi president names new PM, dividing protesters



Baghdad, Feb 1 (AFP) Feb 01, 2020



Iraq's president named former communications minister Mohammad Allawi as the country's new prime minister on Saturday after an 11th-hour consensus among political blocs, but the streets seemed divided on his nomination.

Baghdad and the mainly Shiite south have been gripped by four months of anti-government rallies demanding snap elections, a politically independent prime minister and accountability for corruption and protest-related violence.

Faced with pressure from the street and the Shiite religious leadership, Prime Minister Adel Abdel Mahdi resigned in December and political life came to a standstill.

In a bid to end the paralysis, President Barham Saleh gave political blocs until Saturday to name a replacement to Abdel Mahdi or else he would appoint his own candidate.

On Saturday evening, Allawi posted a video to Twitter saying Saleh had nominated him as the new premier.

"After the president appointed me to form a new government a short while ago, I wanted to talk to you first," he said, addressing the camera in colloquial Iraqi dialect.

"I will ask you to keep up the protests, because if you are not with me, I won't be able to do anything," Allawi said.

There was no announcement from Saleh but Abdel Mahdi congratulated his successor and powerful cleric Moqtada Sadr swiftly endorsed Allawi.

"This is a good step," tweeted Sadr, who controls the largest bloc in parliament and key ministerial posts.

"I hope the president's appointment of Mohammad Allawi is acceptable to the people and that they have patience," he wrote.



- Protesters split -



But many protesters across Iraq were unconvinced.

Within minutes of the announcement, many in Baghdad's main protest camp of Tahrir Square began chanting "Allawi is rejected, Allawi is rejected!"

Demonstrators hit the streets in the holy city of Najaf, pledging to escalate their movement further as Allawi was not the independent they had long demanded.

"Mohammad Allawi's nomination came with the approval of the same corrupt political blocs we've been protesting against for over four months," said lawyer Hassan Mayahi, marching in the southern hotspot of Diwaniyah.

Meanwhile, the United States issued a carefully worded statement, saying it hoped Allawi's nomination would lead to "an independent and honest government committed to addressing the needs of the Iraqi people."

Despite the prime minister-designate's call for them to keep rallying, protesters were skeptical he would be able to implement their demands.

According to the constitution, he now has one month to form a cabinet which would need a vote of confidence from parliament.

In Iraq, the cabinet is typically formed by consensus among political rivals after intense horsetrading over influential posts.

"If the (political) blocs try to impose their candidates on me, I'll come out and talk to you and leave this nomination," Allawi said.



- Sadrists in the streets -



Allawi, a Shiite Muslim, was a member of the secular Sunni-backed Iraqiya bloc which was headed by his cousin and former prime minister Iyad Allawi.

He served as communications minister twice under former PM Nuri al-Maliki but resigned both times, alleging corruption and interference in personnel appointments.

Maliki, who still holds sway in Iraq's parliament, is said to have rejected Allawi's candidacy but other political blocs came to a consensus amid pressure by the president.

Sadr, too, had renewed his push for an end to the political crisis after suspending his support for the rallies for one week.

He endorsed the protests in October then appeared to change his mind last month, saying he would no longer "interfere" in the movement.

His hard-core backers -- the most well-organised of the demonstrators -- promptly dismantled their tents in protest camps across the country.

But on Friday he seemed to flip again, calling for his supporters "to renew the peaceful, reformist revolution."

They flooded in the streets on Saturday afternoon, setting up tents in Tahrir with portraits of Sadr and blaring music praising him just hours before Allawi's nomination.

The move came after both the United Nations and Iraq's top Shiite religious authority both called for an end to the political paralysis gripping Iraq.

The UN's top official in Iraq Jeanine Hennis-Plasschaert had tweeted Friday that solutions were "urgently needed" to "break the political deadlock".

And the country's top Shiite cleric Grand Ayatollah Ali Sistani urged Iraq's political parties to "accelerate the formation of a new government".

"It is imperative to speed up holding early elections so that the people will have their say," he said in his sermon, which also demanded an end to bloodshed.

More than 480 people have died in protest-related violence since October, the great majority of them demonstrators killed by live rounds or military-grade tear gas canisters.
Vietnam has suspended all China flights as part of "strengthening measures" against the coronavirus outbreak

Vietnam has suspended all China flights as part of "strengthening measures" against the coronavirus outbreak, its civil aviation authority said in a statement on Saturday.

The step applies to all airlines "which have routes between Vietnam and China" and also includes Hong Kong, Macau and Taiwan, it added in the directive which was posted on its website and took effect at 1 pm Saturday (0600 GMT).

An AFP correspondent on a flight from Taiwan to Vietnam was among 98 passengers told to disembark just as the announcement went public.

"The decision is ridiculous and unacceptable," Vietnamese tourist Doan Thi Ngoc Diep told AFP after leaving the plane.

Vietnam is the latest country to impose extraordinary travel barriers after the virus spread to two dozen nations and killed 259 people in China where it originated in the city of Wuhan.

The United States temporarily barred entry to foreigners who had been in China within the past two weeks and Australia said it was barring entry to non-citizens arriving from China.

Italy, Singapore and Mongolia have also taken similar sweeping precautions.

The World Health Organization declared the coronavirus outbreak a global health emergency on Thursday but did not advise international trade of travel restrictions.

Vietnam's announcement came after the country confirmed its sixth case of the coronavirus.

A 25-year-old hotel receptionist working in Nha Trang contracted the SARS-like pathogen after coming into contact with Chinese tourists who were later diagnosed with coronavirus.

She was also the first domestic infection for a Vietnamese national with no known history of travel to China.

Three of the country's six cases were Vietnamese nationals who had travelled to Wuhan.

The receptionist's health is "stable, no fever or cough", a hospital staffer told AFP on condition of anonymity, adding she had "no history of travel to China recently".

Vietnam has joined Thailand, China, Germany, Japan, South Korea, France and the United States as the only countries with confirmed domestic coronavirus infections.
Source: Xinhua| 2020-02-01 11:33:05|Editor: huaxia

Video Player Close

CHANGSHA, Feb. 1 (Xinhua) -- Central China's Hunan Province, a neighbor of Hubei, is providing full support to battle the novel coronavirus, according to local authorities.

By Wednesday, the province had sent 284 medical workers to Hubei, which was hit hard by the epidemic.

Changsha, capital city of Hunan, had provided accommodation and medical services for citizens from Hubei. A total of 14 cities in Hunan have arranged 127 hotels to accommodate individuals from Hubei.

Individuals and enterprises in Hunan have also donated masks and other medical devices to Hubei.

"Hubei and Hunan are good brothers and neighbors. When people in Hubei encounter difficulties, it's our duty to help them solve the problems," said Liu Mingli, deputy mayor of Changsha.
BAKU, Azerbaijan, Feb. 1

By Ilkin Seyfaddini  Trend:

Ministry of Energy of Uzbekistan held talks with a delegation of the World Bank (WB) led by Regional Director for the World Bank's Infrastructure department in the Europe and Central Asia region Lucio Monari, Trend reports referring to Uzbekistans Ministry of Energy.

The sides discussed the progress of cooperation between the Ministry of Energy and the World Bank, aimed at promoting reforms in the energy sector of Uzbekistan.

The sides noted dynamic cooperation with WB in creation ofgenerating capacities area based on renewable energy sources. In particular, the Ministry of Energy jointly with the International Finance Corporation (IFC), part of the WB, as well as with Asian Development Bank, is working to identify potential investors for the construction of 2 gW photovoltaic (solar) power plants until 2025.

Furthermore, jointly with IFC, a work is underway to hold a tender within the framework of the project for construction of a 1250-1500 mW thermal power plant.

Other promising projects, which may be supported by the World Bank, were also discussed during the negotiations. In particular, the country is developing a target program to install an average capacity of 2 kW in 150,000 private households of solar thermal power plants in the period from 2021 through 2023.

In addition, 33 potential rural and remote regions of the country have been identified to develop targeted program for the autonomous supply of energy (electricity, heat and biogas) in the spring and autumn.

Lucio Monari emphasized that World Bank aims at multidimensional development of cooperation with Uzbekistan.
Toronto, Ontario--(Newsfile Corp. - January 31, 2020) - American Aires Inc. (CSE: WIFI) (the "Company" or "Aires") is pleased to announce that it has entered into a call centre service agreement (the "Service Agreement") effective January 28, 2020 with Answer 365, a Canadian call center, pursuant to which Answer 365 will outsource Aires' customer service providing 24-hour support and increased purchase satisfaction for Aires' customers around the world.. The Service Agreement may be terminated by either party upon 30 days' prior written notice.

Pursuant to the Service Agreement, Answer 365 will supply a call service center on behalf of Aires to provide coverage through e-mail, live chat, and phone channels. Services will be offered in English, French and Spanish. The anticipated start date will be on or around February 15, 2020.

Aires is also pleased to report that it has commenced negotiations to partner with a fulfillment company who operates fulfillment centers located in Toronto, Chicago, Dominican Republic and the United Kingdom. Each center will have the capacity to handle over 1,000 orders per day and the ability to provide warehousing and storage to process all orders in less than 24 hours.

These partnerships will allow Aires to create deep, lasting and sustainable customer relationships, at a reduced cost, while ultimately increasing the Company's sales and margins.

"In January alone, we have initiated the creation of a new website that is capable of handling up to 10,000 orders a day. We have initiated two new product lines, one for the global pet market place and the other for all of us that are concerned with the harmful effects from exposure to electromagnetic radiation emitted from the new 5G cellular technology. We have opened our first on-line sales platform with Best Buy Market Place and have initiated our global sales and marketing campaign targeted to increase product awareness and sales. We have been busy," commented Dimitry Serov, President and CEO. "These initiatives along with Answer 365 and our fulfillment centers will all be running at full speed in Q2, 2020, just as we have previously reported."

Story continues

Serov added "Aires products have global appeal, and we are just starting to capture the size of demand as we see daily increased sales that are occurring simply organically. In order to handle anticipated demand, we have taken careful consideration in building the proper infrastructure globally in order for us to realize, with the very best means before us today, the size and scope of this global on-line opportunity that allows all mankind to safely integrate with the technology of today."

About Answer 365

Answer 365 provides customer service support that helps businesses run efficiently, and with the confidence that customers are taken care of. Answer 365 is a Canadian call center that has been in business for over 70 years, processing millions of transactions with cost effective and innovative communication solutions.

About American Aires Inc.

American Aires is an Ontario based technology company that is focused on the research, development and implementation of innovative technology solutions to allow consumers to safely engage with electronic products of the 21st century. The Company is currently engaged in the business of production, distribution and sales of products intended to protect persons from the harmful effects of electromagnetic emissions, which is produced from electronic devices such as cell phones, Wi-Fi routers, tablets and electric cars to name a few. The Company has developed a technology that restructures and transforms electromagnetic field haze into a more biologically-compatible form to reduce the harmful effects of electromagnetic radiation. The Company's current principal products are the Shield Pro, Air Defender Pro and Air Guardian.

For more information please visit: www.airestech.com

On behalf of the board of directors

Dimitry Serov, President & Chief Executive Officer

Email: dimitry@airestech.com

Phone: (905) 482-4667

Investor Relations:

Samina Deen, Head of Partnerships|

Email: samina@airestech.com

Phone: (416) 320-1634

wifi@airestech.com

Certain information set forth in this news release may contain forward-looking statements that involve substantial known and unknown risks and uncertainties. All statements other than statements of historical fact are forward-looking statements, including, without limitation, statements regarding future financial position, business strategy, use of proceeds, corporate vision, proposed acquisitions, partnerships, joint-ventures and strategic alliances and co-operations, budgets, cost and plans and objectives of or involving the Company. Such forward-looking information reflects management's current beliefs and is based on information currently available to management. Often, but not always, forward-looking statements can be identified by the use of words such as "plans", "expects", "is expected", "budget", "scheduled", "estimates", "forecasts", "predicts", "intends", "targets", "aims", "anticipates" or "believes" or variations (including negative variations) of such words and phrases or may be identified by statements to the effect that certain actions "may", "could", "should", "would", "might" or "will" be taken, occur or be achieved. A number of known and unknown risks, uncertainties and other factors may cause the actual results or performance to materially differ from any future results or performance expressed or implied by the forward-looking information. These forward-looking statements are subject to numerous risks and uncertainties, certain of which are beyond the control of the Company including, but not limited to, the impact of general economic conditions, industry conditions and dependence upon regulatory approvals. Certain material assumptions regarding such forward-looking statements may be discussed in this news release and the Company's annual and quarterly management's discussion and analysis filed at www.sedar.com. Readers are cautioned that the assumptions used in the preparation of such information, although considered reasonable at the time of preparation, may prove to be imprecise and, as such, undue reliance should not be placed on forward-looking statements. The Company does not assume any obligation to update or revise its forward-looking statements, whether as a result of new information, future events, or otherwise, except as required by securities laws.

No securities regulatory authority has either approved or disapproved of the contents of this news release. The Shares have not been, nor will they be, registered under the United States Securities Act of 1933, as amended, or any state securities laws, and may not be offered or sold in the United States, or to or for the account or benefit of any person in the United States, absent registration or an applicable exemption from the registration requirements. This press release shall not constitute an offer to sell or the solicitation of an offer to buy any common shares in the United States, or in any other jurisdiction in which such offer, solicitation or sale would be unlawful. We seek safe harbour.

Neither the Canadian Securities Exchange nor its Market Regulator (as that term is defined in the policies of the Canadian Securities Exchange) accepts responsibility for the adequacy or accuracy of this news release.

Not intended for distribution to United States Newswire Services or for dissemination in the United States. Any failure to comply with this restriction may constitute a violation of United States Securities laws.

To view the source version of this press release, please visit https://www.newsfilecorp.com/release/52011
Sajin Shrijith By

Express News Service

Anveshanam starts with the images of a happy, loving family. There is a deliberate artificiality to the way theyre depicted. Anyone who has seen the trailer knows that this moment doesnt last that long. We also get tiny glimpses of the personal life of the films supporting characters. There is a medical professional (Lena) who nurses (no pun intended) animosity towards her bed-ridden dad; a doctor (Srikanth Murali) presumably going through a divorce; a cop with a baby bump (Leona Lishoys characterisation is a possible nod to Frances McDormand in Fargo).

There is a reason why we are shown all this. These characters and their emotions will collide at some point. Prasobh Vijayan, who made his directorial debut with Lilli, doesnt waste time setting up the films central conflict. A family brings an unconscious child to the hospital. We are told about an accident, which could or couldnt be intentional. There is an interrogation. There are multiple, Rashomon-style flashbacks of short durationperspectives of either the interrogator or the suspect(s). Some of these perspectives are shaped by prejudices, the hint of which are given in the opening scenes.

Ace cinematographer Sujith Vaassudev plants us in the middle of these people, his camera closely surveying the actors faces and capturing their anxiety. We get a lot of near claustrophobia-inducing moments in the films first half. At one point, Leona suggests putting Jayasurya in a place where he feels the most uncomfortable. In another brilliantly composed scene, Leona is photographed like a giant towering over a seated Jayasuryaan apt composition given who is in charge.

Its nice to see Leona, who is often relegated to insignificant side roles (except for last years Ishq), finally given a role that brings out her hidden potential. She is undoubtedly the standout performer in the film in spite of the presence of a bigger star like Jayasurya. There are multiple instances where the film makes good use of her eyes, which deliver a sharply piercing glance that can intimidate anyone sitting across from heror maybe even shatter glass. In the past, we have seen many female actors go over-the-top in police roles which are usually reserved for male actors, for obvious reasons. This is a performance that couldve gone wrong in another actors hands, but Leona gives her role just the right amount of gravitas. Note the scene where she immediately composes herself after a sudden table-slap in the middle of an interrogation. She also displays a slightly mischievous side. In one particular scene with a female character, Leonas performance alternates between compassion and an I know something you dont attitude.

But post-interval, Anveshanam doesnt quite deliver on the promise made not just in the first half, but also before the films release. It attempts to dig for drama in scenes that dont have enough dramatic depth. Sometimes it hopes to elicit an anxious reaction from the viewer in situations that are not really anxiety-inducing. In fact, some of the performances, especially that of Jayasurya, occasionally border on the comical. But in some places, it makes sense why he is giving an exaggerated performance. Here is a man who was told at work, hours ago, that his ideas are outdated and that sometimes a wealth of experience can be a burden. So its perfectly understandable why he would react extremely to the events in the hospital.

But this is something that applies to the other actors as well (minus Leona, of course). Im not implying that their acting is bad; its just that theyre delivering good performances in scenes that dont actually require them. After a while, when the underlying layers are slowly peeled away, the film begins to look more like an acting exercise. I also found the approach taken to express its ideas in the latter portions a bit problematic. In retrospect, the back-and-forth switching begins to feel like a gimmick and the delivery of information, confusing.

The film wouldve worked a lot better had it been not projected as a whodunit. Perhaps it wouldve been a smarter idea to begin the film with its final moments and then go for more of a psychological drama vibe than a psychological thriller. Truth is always bizarre, says its posters. After having seen the truth, I dont think its bizarre, just underwhelming. I understand the intention was to create a sense of ambiguity the films desire to bring up a point for serious debate about the moral conflict is certainly commendablebut I wish it was done more coherently.

That said, Anveshanam is a well-staged, engaging film that didnt bore me even for a single second. But I expected more.
New Delhi, Feb 1 : Prime Minister Narendra Modi seems keen to present a Budget that goes beyond incrementalism and gradualism.

On January 6, he held a series of meetings with Indian Inc, economists and experts on the Union Budget for 2020-21.

"He was open to criticism and heard out suggestions and seems keen to present a budget that goes beyond incrementalism and gradualism," a source said.

The Modi government seems to be getting ready to roll out a series of bold initiatives in the Union Budget.

The PM has held as many as 12 meetings with sectoral experts and is investing a lot of time in these interactions stretching up to 2 hours as happened at the Niti Aayog on January 6.

Home Minister Amit Shah was also present in the meeting. Over the last few days the Prime Minister has been brainstorming over a range of issues affecting the economy and on thrashing out appropriate policy interventions.

He has held as many as 12 meetings so far with groups of industrialists and experts. This pre-Budget exercise is probably is the most extensive ever consultations that Modi has held on the economy in the past five years.

Modi has also held discussions within the Council of Ministers recently on more than one occasion and each ministry has been asked to prepare a five-year vision and the Prime Minister is personally reviewing each plan.

In a meeting with experts held at the Niti Aayog on January 6, the Prime Minister said that he was happy that the two hour open discussion has brought to forefront the experience of people on the ground and those working in their respective fields.

He said that this would enhance the synergy between policy makers and various stakeholders.

Modi said that the idea of $5 trillion dollar economy is not a sudden development and that it is based on a deep understanding of the strengths of the country.

He said that the strong absorbent capacity of Indian economy shows the strength of its basic fundamentals and its capacity to bounce back.

The Prime Minister said that the sectors like tourism, urban development, infrastructure and agri-based industry have a great potential to taking forward the economy and for employment generation.
YEREVAN.  Past daily of Armenia writes: According to Past newspapers information, a draft version of a bill on the application of legislative regulations to officials is being discussed by the authorities.

To our knowledge, these regulations shall apply to officials who theoretically and practically possess, or may possess, state secrets.

It is envisaged to clearly define the list of those officials, as well as the scope of applying certain restrictions on them during and after their tenure.

According to our sources, representatives of pro-Western NGOs have been actively promoting this topic in the backstage.

In fact, if such an initiative is to be implemented, it will be possible to limit the capacity of public officials to freely move and engage in activities in the future.
First President of Kazakhstan Nursultan Nazarbayev met with Russian Prime Minister Mikhail Mishustin, the Elbasys official website reads, Kazinform reports.

Nazarbayev congratulated Mishustin on his appointment. In his turn he thanked the Elbasy for the meeting and conveyed warm greetings on behalf of President of Russia Vladimir Putin. During the meeting the sides debated the current state and prospects for deepening cooperation within the EAEU and focused on the realization of infrastructure development projects and further strengthening of trade ties between the nations.
OTTAWA - Sen. Lynn Beyak should be suspended again without pay, the Senate's ethics committee recommended Friday.

Hey there, time traveller!

This article was published 31/1/2020 (709 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

The Senate ethics committee is recommending that Sen. Lynn Beyak continue her suspension  without pay. A picture of Senator Lynn Beyak accompanies other Senators official portraits on a display outside the Senate on Parliament Hill in Ottawa on Thursday, Sept. 21, 2017. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Sean Kilpatrick

OTTAWA - Sen. Lynn Beyak should be suspended again without pay, the Senate's ethics committee recommended Friday.

Beyak's colleagues ousted her from the upper chamber temporarily last spring after condemning as racist several letters she had posted to her website.

The Ontario senator had published letters supporting her view that some Indigenous people had had positive experiences in residential schools, which the Truth and Reconciliation Commission concluded caused generations of First Nations, Metis and Inuit children to suffer abuse and alienation.

Some of the letters went beyond that, suggesting Indigenous people or their cultures are inferior.

Beyak's suspension ended automatically when Parliament was dissolved for the federal election last fall.

Attempts to reach Beyak through her lawyer and her Senate office weren't immediately successful Friday. In November, Beyak said she had met all the conditions to return to work.

She had removed the letters the ethics committee found most objectionable from her website, taken a briefing on the role of a senator, completed education programs on Indigenous history and delivered an apology, she said.

"I deeply respect the Senate and love working with my Senate colleagues. I pledge myself to uphold the highest standards of conduct and look forward to working hard for all of the people of Ontario and Canada," Beyak wrote in a statement at the time.

But the committee concluded in a report released Friday that Beyak did not meet the conditions set out for her return, calling an apology she delivered insufficient and her participation in educational programs on racism towards Indigenous Peoples in Canada incomplete.

The committee agreed that the letters had been taken down and that Beyak had been briefed on her duties as a senator. But it wasn't satisfied that she had taken her education on Indigenous history seriously.

"On the one hand, Sen. Beyak can rightfully assert that she attempted to complete the training that was provided to her," the report says. "On the other, the training provider indicated that Sen. Beyak failed to exhibit any willingness to learn and because of this the training provider did not provide the agreed-upon instruction in its entirety."

The committee also found that Beyak's one-sentence apology for having been found in breach of Senate rules wasn't good enough. The senators "cannot accept an apology that fails to show awareness of the wrong, fails to accept responsibility for the wrong, fails to sincerely apologize, fails to atone for past actions and fails to commit to take action in order to rectify the situation," they wrote.

Among the committee's five members is Sen. Murray Sinclair, who led the Truth and Reconciliation Commission on residential schools before he was named to the Senate. The committee includes three senators appointed by Liberal prime ministers and two appointed by Conservative Stephen Harper.

Beyak was also a Harper appointee, though Conservative Leader Andrew Scheer ejected her from the Tory caucus amid the controversy over the letters.

The conclusion that Beyak should be suspended again is only a recommendation; the full Senate would have to vote to carry it out. The committee says it will keep an eye on Beyak and report again at the end of June.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published Jan. 31, 2020.
Several countries, including India, scrambled to evacuate their nationals from the Chinese city of Wuhan, the epicentre of the coronavirus outbreak, as the death toll in China soared to 259 and nearly 12,000 people infected with the deadly virus.

The virus that emerged in early December and traced to a market in Hubei province capital Wuhan that sold wild animals, has now spread to more than two dozen nations, including India where the first case is confirmed in Kerala, the US, Britain, Russia and Sweden.

Chinese health authorities on Saturday announced that the death toll has increased to 259 as 46 more people, all but one in Hubei, died in the preceding 24 hours.

With 2,102 new infections, the total confirmed cases in China increased to 11,791, the biggest increase since China began reporting the spread of the virulent virus on January 21.

China's National Health Commission in its daily report on Saturday said that 1,795 patients remained in critical condition, and 17,988 people were suspected of being infected with the virus as of the end of Friday.

So far about 124 cases have been reported in other countries, including India where the first case is confirmed in Kerala. Several countries, including India, US, Japan, South Korea, UK and Bangladesh, have evacuated their nationals from Wuhan by sending special aircraft.

Air India's jumbo B747 aircraft carrying 324 Indians, including 211 students, 110 working professionals and three minors, reached New Delhi on Saturday morning from Wuhan city.

Another flight of the airline departed for the Chinese city from New Delhi on Saturday afternoon.

Five doctors from the Ram Manohar Lohia (RML) Hospital who were onboard the first flight are also in the second flight, the Air India spokesperson said.

The Indian Army has set up a quarantine facility in Manesar near Delhi to keep around 300 Indian students being evacuated from China's Hubei province in view of the coronavirus infection outbreak.

Separately, border-guarding force ITBP has set up a 600-bedded facility in southwest Delhi's Chhawla area to quarantine and provide basic medical care to those suspected to have been affected by the virus.

The World Health Organisation has declared the outbreak a global emergency on Thursday but did not advise international trade or travel restrictions.

According to a study by University of Hong Kong scientists, as many as 75,815 people in Wuhan may have been infected with the new coronavirus, the South China Morning Post reported.

The research, published in The Lancet on Saturday, is based on the assumption that each infected person could have passed the virus on to 2.68 others, the Hong Kong-based daily said.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
Photo:

Dont expect the same Korean fried chicken restaurant at the new Dak & Bop in the Lazybrook/Timbergrove neighborhood.

Owner Jason Cho quietly opened his second Dak & Bop last week in the former La Vista space at 1805 W. 18th. But while the restaurant bears the name of the original Dak & Bop in the Museum District, the new restaurant is a much more elevated dining experience.

Yes, you can still get the crispy Korean chicken wings that drove Houston nuts when Dak & Bop opened five years ago. But the signature twice-fried chicken takes a back seat to an ambitious menu overseen by Chos new executive chef and culinary director Jordan Economy working with chef de cuisine Geoff Kimbro and sous chef Matt Wommack.

Korean flavors such a gochujang (red chile paste), doenjang (umami-rich fermented soybean paste), jjajang (black bean paste), and kimchi dance across Economys menu of artfully plated dishes. Starters include Korean poutine of fries, cheese curds, bulgogi, smoked cheese and red eye gravy; garlic bread oozing with garlicy cream cheese and mascarpone; fried cauliflower laced with doenjang and the spicy Korean paste ssamjang; Seoul fries topped with braised pork butt, smoked kimchi, candied gochujang sauce and an egg; frilly fried Brussels spouts with a fish sauce reduction and shot through with chopped mint; and bruschetta smeared with black garlic ricotta and topped with smoked tomato salad. Also meant to be shared on the appetizer lineup: sliced scallop crudo with pickled blackberries, macerated strawberries and a doenjang and scallion vinaigrette; Korean dumplings (mandu) stuffed with braised pork butt; smoked kimchi pancake served with creamy gochujang honey; and a banchan flight of small Korean side dishes.

TAKING WING: Super Bowl means chicken wings and we have our favorites in Houston

There are sandwiches (beef cheek and ground beef kimchi burger; bibimbap burger on a crispy rice cake; and the Dak signature fried chicken sandwich with green cabbage slaw, bacon and a house pickles), flatbreads (topping include vegetables with fermented black bean paste; pork belly with Bloody Mary collard greens and smoked cheese; and bulgogi); and soups and salads including kimchi soup and a Cobb salad with smoked kimchi, blistered shishito peppers and a white miso dressing.

Larger plate options include risotto flavored with soju (the distilled, low-alcohol beverage popular in Korean), wild mushrooms and jjajang; seafood yaki-soba made with octopus, shrimp, calamari and scallops; pasta with bulgogi ragu; a pasta carbonara made with pork belly, kimchi and egg yolk; and soy-marinated salmon on kimchi fried rice.

The happy hour menu (served from 4 to 7 p.m.) includes oysters with smoked kimchi; smoked jalapeno and gochujang hummus topped with beef shoulder ragu; fried oyster and wonton nachos; kimchi pancakes; and scot egg served with scallion mustard and candied gochujang sauce.

The full bar offers draft, can and bottle beer, top-shelf whiskey, and a list of playful house cocktails. Those cocktails include Night at the Noraebang (strawberry soju, strawberry cordial, lemon, and rose water); Timbergrove Tea (vodka, Midori, and melon, guava and coconut lychee juices); Honeymoon in Jeju (green grape soju, and elderflower liqueur); and Whats Kraken (spiced Kraken Rum, Thai tea, half and half and boba tapioca).

Chos partnership with Economy (whose resume includes work at Boheme, Rudyards, Doris Metropolitan, Prohibition Supperclub, and Travelers Table) will extend to new projects Cho has in the works. By May he hopes to open Tom N Toms, a second location of a Korean coffee house concept at 5353 W. Alabama (adjacent to the project called Conservatory 2, modeled on the original Conservatory food hall in downtown Houston).

And third quarter 2020 is the projected opening date of Karne, an upscale Korean steakhouse now under construction at 2805 White Oak. Karne has been described as an elevated take on a traditional Korean barbecue restaurant.

Greg Morago writes about food for the Houston Chronicle. Follow him on Facebook or Twitter. Send him news tips at greg.morago@chron.com. Hear him on our BBQ State of Mind podcast to learn about Houston and Texas barbecue culture.
The global talks Cop15 on biodiversity treaty due to be held in the City of Kunming, China has reportedly been relocated to Italy over the looming global Coronavirus outbreak. The Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD) meeting was supposed to be hosted at Yunnan province from 24th February onwards to 29th where negotiators were due to review draft proposals for a global framework for the conservation of wildlife and plants, suggest reports.

Read Hong Kong: Trade Unions Threaten Strikes For Border Closure To Curb Virus Outbreak

According to the reports, U.N.s Secretariat of the Convention on Biological Diversity announced Saturday that while Kunming stands well in consideration to host the main round of global biodiversity meeting in October 2020, the current meeting has been conveyed to Rome. It said that the decision comes after consultation with the government of China as a consequence of the 2019-nCoV global public health emergency.

Elizabeth Maruma Mrema, the acting executive secretary to U.N.s Secretariat of the Convention on Biological Diversity, told the media that the CBD secretariat recognised the enormous efforts undertaken by China to control the virus pandemic and limit disruption. She further added that the sectarian and China regret the inconvenience and are committed to ensuring that the development of the post-2020 global biodiversity framework and other preparations (for Cop 15) proceed in a timely and effective manner.

Read First Ferries Leave France, Arrive UK Post-Brexit

Cop15 would serve as a framework for biodiversity protection

Negotiators, Biodiversity campaigners, and experts suggested that Cop15 would serve as a framework for biodiversity protection similar to the Paris Agreement that monitors climate change, suggest reports. According to the reports, the early draft proposal suggests conservation of 30 per cent of the worlds land and seas by 2030, halt of the destruction of planets biodiversity including climate change, depletion of habitat, pollution, and invasive species.

Last year, Cristiana Pasca Palmer, Former CBD head reportedly resigned amid allegations of mismanagement ahead of key biodiversity summit as CBD came under the scrutiny of UNs Office of International Oversight Services (OIOS) auditors.

Read Hong Kong Tanks At Reopen On Virus Fear But Most Of Asia Bounces

Read France Confirms 5 Cases Of Coronavirus, Patients Kept Under Surveillance
Lets talk about Vietnam.

I can understand if you dont want to and you close your browser or your page right here. Fine. For the rest of us, I want to take a look at the event that shaped our generation the way September 11th has shaped our childrens generation.

In 1968, I was draft age and I applied at the Selective Service System. I remember thinking that everybody I saw in the room that day was exactly my age, as we all had been born on the same day. A wide diversity of people, united by the fear of dying in a war we didnt believe in.

That was the thing. Unlike the wars our fathers fought, this war seemed unjustified. Many people werent quite sure why we were going there. This was a civil war between North and South Vietnam that we really had no business butting into. So, why did we go?

Oil? Land? Greed? Nowe were told it was to protect our families from the Russians showing up off the beaches of Long Island. We were fighting for democracy, truth, our sacred values.

Maybe thats what a lot of young men who enlisted thought they were going for. Maybe we had been lied to. Maybe the old men who ran the country were sick of having us around, constantly judging them and calling out their crappy values of money over anything. Maybe religion or country or respect didnt matter anymore. Maybe the Beatles mattered more than Jesus. To this day, nobody is quite sure.

The thing is, we were asked to lay down our lives for something we didnt really believe in. And, they were lives that had barely begun. I often feel that if pro life people were really serious about protecting life, they would not only stop abortions, but wars and barring women from getting complete health care. But, thats not the way that things work.

I knew four people who went. They all came back shattered. Two of my friends never recovered and the other two are ardent anti-war activists.

Well, it was a war. It was called a police action (to prevent giving veterans their rightful care when they got home) but it was a war. It had all the earmarks of a war and all the consequences of a war. And, it was the war that shaped our nation. It divided the country into hawks and doves. It mean that flashing the peace sign or having long hair or wearing certain clothing could get your head smashed in. It meant you were a walking target because, just like today, people associated being anti-war with being anti-country.

Nothing could have been further from the truth. We all loved our country, our families and friends and our lives very, very much. And we did not see the reason for our sacrifice, the early termination of a chance to work for country and family and live the life we were promised as part of the American Dream.

When half a million people showed up at Woodstock, they werent only going for three days of peace and music, they were going to protest the war, to ask why we had to give up the things we loved for no good reason. That is why that event is still so powerful fifty years later.

The left became the anti-war party, and, as stated, the unAmerican party. But, the core values we all fought for were the same. We wanted our homes, our families, our country safe from tyranny. Only, some of us were pretty sure that the tyranny we were fighting stemmed from the Oval Office, not from a land thousands of miles away.

Nixon may have gotten re-elected, but he wasnt a popular President. People did not trust him. There was something hinky about him, hence his nickname Tricky Dick. Harry Truman called him an s.o.b. Nixon had a lust for power, born of his previously failed political ambitions. He was definitely a Ill show them kinda guy.

And, he did. He showed us that that a lust for power can sometimes overcome a mans better attributes, and end in disgrace and abandonment by his party. How many times has the GOP invoked Nixon in the past twenty years?

Yet, when he died, all you heard about were the wonderful things he accomplishedhis dealings with China, his strong domestic policy (which basically consisted of telling mayors to beat up kids and barring the press from the White House), his firm stance on the war.

Lets be clear: Lyndon Johnson and Nixon both were responsible for the deaths of thousands of young Americans. LBJ had the good sense to quit after one term. Nixonnot so much. He took it to the limit and paid the price.

An unpopular war, spearheaded by an unpopular President. Weve seen this movie before. And unfortunately not, I think, for the last time in our lifetimes.

The war may be over, but the damage goes on.

We should be grateful to the young men and women who gave their all to protect our lives and freedoms, some of them sacrificing their own.

Especially to all you vets... Hold those grey heads up!
Still, the plans have raised questions from residents such as Hill, who want to know: How exactly is affordability calculated? Will developers have to set aside a specific number of new units for lower-income residents? Will those same rules apply to investors rehabbing old structures? Will the mandatory set-asides discourage developers from constructing new buildings? Will there be tax breaks for long-term homeowners, and how will the discounts be calculated? And where will the funding for refinancing and grant programs come from?
Deputy Chief Executive, Geneva, Switzerland

Organization: United Nations Office for Project Services (UNOPS)

Country: Switzerland

City: Geneva, Switzerland

Office: UNOPS Geneva

Closing date: Sunday, 9 February 2020

The United Nations Office for Project Services (UNOPS) is an operational arm of the United Nations, supporting the successful implementation of its partners peacebuilding, humanitarian and development projects around the world. UNOPS supports partners to build a better future by providing services that increase the efficiency, effectiveness and sustainability of peace building, humanitarian and development projects. Mandated as a central resource of the United Nations, UNOPS provides sustainable project management, procurement and infrastructure services to a wide range of governments, donors and United Nations organizations.

RBM Partnership to End Malaria

The RBM Partnership to End Malaria is the global platform for coordinated action against malaria. It mobilizes for action and resources and forges consensus among partners. The Partnership is comprised of more than 500 partners committed to end malaria, including malaria endemic countries, their bilateral and multilateral development partners, the private sector, nongovernmental and community-based organizations, foundations, and research and academic institution.

The RBM partnerships strength lies in its ability to form effective partnerships both globally, regionally and nationally. Partners work together to scale up malaria-control and elimination efforts at country level, coordinating their activities to avoid duplication and fragmentation, and to ensure optimal use of resources. The partnerships overall strategy aims to reduce malaria morbidity and mortality by reaching universal coverage of at risk populations and strengthening health systems.

The RBM Partnership is seeking a Deputy CEO to support the CEO in managing the RBM Partnership Secretariat in Geneva, Switzerland, and representing the Partnership at the global level.

The RBM Partnership Secretariat is hosted by the United Nations Office for Project Services (UNOPS) in Geneva, Switzerland.

Under the direct supervision of the EO of the RBM Partnership to End Malaria, the Deputy EO will have the following responsibilities:

Stakeholder Management

Leads support to malaria endemic countries to effectively implement malaria prevention, control and elimination activities, working closely with the RBM Management Team, RBM partners and donors
Bank employee unions went on a two-day strike on 31 January over wage revision and other demands. According to All India Bank Employees' Association (AIBA), around 31 lakh cheques amounting to Rs 23,000 crore remained uncleared across the country on the first day of the strike.

Several bank branches remained closed due to Bank Unions' strike. This affected services like deposit, withdrawal, cheque clearances, instrument issuance and loan disbursement.

"In the clearing grids in Mumbai, Chennai and Delhi, about 31 lakh cheques worth about Rs 23,000 crore could not be cleared due to the strike," All India Bank Employees' Association (AIBEA) general secretary C H Venkatachalam said.

On 1 February as well, bank branches will continue to remain closed, adding to the woes of the public on the salary day.

The unions are demanding a 20 per cent hike on payslip components with adequate loading. One of the bank unions, United Forum of Bank Unions (UFBU), decided to go on strike after its discussion with Indian Banks Association (IBA) on wage revision failed in the recent round of negotiations held on January 30.

In the latest round, IBA improved their offer to 12.5 per cent, but this was not acceptable, the unions said.

However, the IBA in a statement said despite the revised offer of up to 19 per cent hike, including performance-linked incentive, made by it during the meeting on Thursday, the unions decided to go ahead with the all-India bank strike.

The past wage settlement happened in 2017 wherein the employees got a 15 per cent hike for the period 1 November 2012 to 31 October 2017. Earlier in January, several bank employees had gone on strike in support of ten trade unions against the "anti-people policies of the government".

The strike call has been given by the United Forum of Bank Unions (UFBU), an umbrella body of nine bank unions, including All India Bank Officers' Confederation (AIBOC), All India Bank Employees Association (AIBEA) and National Organisation of Bank Workers (NOBW).

(With PTI inputs)

Also read:SBI customer? ATMs may run dry over weekend due to bank strike

Also read: Two-day bank strike starts today; operations to be hit, ATMs may run dry

Also read: Bank strike this week: Services to take hit on January 31, February 1
African countries are scrambling to avert an outbreak of the rapidly spreading coronavirus strain, as health officials warn that the poorest countries are ill-equipped to combat the deadly disease. Across the continent, governments have stationed nurses at airports to check for feverish passengers and have suspended Chinese entry visas, while ordinary people grow increasingly nervous. There have been no verified infections in Africa to date, but deep trade links with China and often overstretched healthcare systems are raising concerns about the capacity to respond to an outbreak. The World Health Organization (WHO) on Thursday declared a global emergency as coronavirus infections spread, after initially downplaying the threat. "Our greatest concern is the potential for the virus to spread to countries with weaker health systems," WHO chief Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus said. J. Stephen Morrison, director of the Global Health Policy Center at the Center for Strategic and International Studies in Washington, said the disease risked taking root if it reaches certain African countries. He warned that such a scenario could usher in a "global pandemic". Several poor African states have recently suffered disastrous viral outbreaks -- and they're keenly aware of the threat. The Ebola virus raged through Liberia, Sierra Leone and Guinea in 2014-2016, killing about 11,300 people. Mosoka Fallah, the head of Liberia's public health institute, told lawmakers this week that the rapid spread of the new coronavirus was "catastrophic". "Steps must be taken as early as possible to prevent it from entering here," he said, adding that the government had ramped up airport checks. Anciao Fabiao Paulo, an Angolan student, told AFP that "it's over" if coronavirus reaches his country. "Our health system is vulnerable and there are no good specialists. With malaria, people are already dropping like flies," he said. Coronavirus has killed more than 200 people in China -- where it emerged in the central city of Wuhan -- and infected thousands more. - Screenings at airports - At Senegal's Blaise Diagne International Airport, health officials peer into a small thermal camera before the passport check. "The first sign of these communicable diseases is a fever," said Barnabe Gning, in charge of sanitary control in the West African country's airports. The doctor, who previously helped prevent Ebola from reaching Senegal, said the airport installed the safety system late last week. It was only able to do so quickly because, by chance, it had held disease-outbreak training in November. However, Gning cautioned that thermal cameras are not foolproof. Similar thermal cameras which detect feverish passengers are now going up across African capitals. These allow people with a high temperature to be identified -- the camera screen shows their body heat -- and then quarantined pending a lab test confirming a coronavirus infection. John Nkengasong, the director of the Africa Centres for Disease Control and Prevention, told reporters this week that some countries were being watched more closely than others. Egypt, Morocco, Ethiopia, Kenya, South Africa, Rwanda and Mauritius are expected to "enhance screening" because of frequent traffic with China, he said. - 'Avoid Chinese shops' - Elsewhere, governments have enacted travel bans or urged people to remain indoors, adding to a sense of alarm. Fears of an outbreak were rife in Nigeria this week, for example, when authorities shut a Chinese supermarket in the capital Abuja. But they did so to remove expired products. The southern African country of Botswana announced a suspected case on Friday, also sparking fears. "The first thing is to avoid going to Chinese shops as much as possible," said Mqondisi Dube, a journalist in the capital Gabarone. And in the West African archipelago of Cape Verde, locals are rushing to buy fennel because of false claims it heals coronavirus. In a sign of extreme caution, some governments are also asking Chinese nationals to remain indoors. Nigeria has urged any person arriving from China to "self-isolate" for at least two weeks, even if they are not ill. The Chinese embassy in Mauritania has similarly asked its recent arrivals in the West African country to remain indoors for two weeks. In Mozambique, the government has suspended visas for Chinese citizens and forbidden its citizens from travelling there. South African authorities are checking passengers' temperatures at airports and have listed 11 hospitals that will deal with emergencies if they arise. - Suspected cases rising - Though Africa is one of the few continents not to have confirmed coronavirus cases, the number of suspected cases is increasing. Several countries, including Ethiopia, Kenya, Angola, Botswana and Ivory Coast, have signalled possible infections. But confirming coronavirus can take time, as health authorities lacking expertise have to send samples to labs in countries such as South Africa. "It is very possible that there are cases that are going on the continent that have not been recognised," Nkengasong, the Africa CDC director, told reporters on Tuesday. "This strain is big. I have not seen a rapidly evolving outbreak like the one we are dealing with," Nkengasong said. Passengers from an international flight being screened at Juba International Airport in South Sudan Health workers set up a thermal scanner to screen arriving passengers at Dakar's international airport
The New Orleans Public Library is hosting free public art classes taught by professional artists at the main library (219 Loyola Ave.; www.nolalibrary.org).

The hourlong classes started Jan. 13 and are limited to 15 students per session, but enrollment is ongoing. Class times for ages 8-12 are 4 p.m. to 5 p.m. Thursday and 1:30 p.m. to 2:30 p.m. Saturday. The class for children 4-7 years old is 12:15 p.m. to 1:15 p.m. Saturday. Enroll here.

Algiers Mardi Gras Festival debuts at the Algiers Courthouse Feb. 1 The event includes a parade and live music by the Brass-A-Holics, DJ Jubilee, Algiers Brass Band and others.

The classes are part of the nonprofit ProjectArt, a program that recruits contemporary resident artists to teach art classes to underserved children as well as creating their own artwork in the library. The resident artists have a nine-month residency (from September through June) at a public library, with resident and student art exhibitions at the end of the residency.

MILAGROS, founded by Felici Asteinza and Joey Fillastre, is the current resident artist at the main library . The collaborative creates works that explore the history of a place and has completed a mural on the exterior of the main branch of the library.
The entire school district serving Knoxville and Knox County, Tenn., which has 57,800 students, shut down this past week because of flu circulating among students and staff. In Cuyahoga County, Ohio, which includes Cleveland, 218 people have died and 2,500 have shown up in emergency rooms in the city alone, said Merle Gordon, director of the citys Department of Public Health. In Arkansas, nine school districts are closed, 33 people have died and hospitalizations have increased sharply in the past two weeks.
After Brexit, what would a good outcome for the UKs fishing industry look like? The answer is something like the EUs current fisheries relationship with Norway.

Norway is an independent coastal state, with the rights and responsibilities under international law associated with that status. Stocks that are shared with the EU are managed through annual bilateral negotiations. Each autumn these talks set total allowable catches on the basis of scientific advice.

Quota shares are then agreed to reflect the resources within each others respective zones, rather than historic catch patterns. Likewise, access to fish in each others waters is not an automatic right but is part of the annual negotiations. Quota exchanges of mutual benefit can also take place.

Above all, the agreement is reciprocal and balanced, meaning that both parties benefit more or less equally. This contrasts starkly with the current position of the UK fishing industry within the EUs Common Fisheries Policy.

Brexit timeline: How did we get here? Show all 20 1 /20 Brexit timeline: How did we get here? Brexit timeline: How did we get here? Britain votes to leave the European Union - 23 June 2016 A referendum is held on Britain's membership of the European Union. Fifty-two per cent of the country votes in favour of leaving AFP via Getty Brexit timeline: How did we get here? David Cameron resigns - 24 June 2016 David Cameron resigns on the morning of the result after leading the campaign for Britain to remain in the EU Getty Brexit timeline: How did we get here? Theresa May takes the reins - 13 July 2016 Theresa May becomes leader of the Conservative party and prime minister, winning the leadership contest unopposed after Andrea Leadsom drops out Getty Brexit timeline: How did we get here? High Court rules parliament must vote on Brexit - November 2016 - 3 November 2016 The High Court rules that parliament must vote on triggering Article 50, which would begin the Brexit process Brexit timeline: How did we get here? Article 50 triggered - 28 March 2017 The prime minister triggers Article 50 after parliament endorses the result of the referendum Getty Brexit timeline: How did we get here? May calls snap election - 18 April 2018 Seeking a mandate for her Brexit plan, May goes to the country Getty Brexit timeline: How did we get here? May loses majority as Labour makes surprise gain - 8 June 2017 After a disastrous campaign, Theresa May loses her majority in the commons and turns to the DUP for support. Jeremy Corbyn's Labour party makes gains after being predicted to lose heavily AFP/Getty Brexit timeline: How did we get here? Negotiations begin - 19 June 2017 David Davis and Michel Barnier, chief negotiators for the UK and EU respectively, hold a press conference on the first day of Brexit negotiations. Soon after the beginning of negotiations, it becomes clear that the issue of the border between Northern Ireland and the Republic will prove a major sticking point AFP/Getty Brexit timeline: How did we get here? MPs vote that withdrawal deal must be ratified by parliament - 13 December 2017 The government suffers a defeat in parliament over the EU withdrawal agreement, guaranteeing that MPs are given a 'meaningful vote' on the deal Brexit timeline: How did we get here? Boris Johnson resigns as foreign secretary - 11 July 2018 Following a summit at Chequers where the prime minister claimed to have gained cabinet support for her deal, Boris Johnson resigns as foreign secretary along with David Davis, the Brexit secretary Reuters Brexit timeline: How did we get here? Draft withdrawal agreement - 15 November 2018 The draft withdrawal agreement settles Britain's divorce bill, secures the rights of EU citizens living in the UK and vice versa and includes a political declaration commiting both parties to frictionless trade in goods and cooperation on security matters. The deal also includes the backstop, which is anathema to many brexiteers and Dominic Raab and Esther McVey resign from the cabinet in protest Getty Brexit timeline: How did we get here? May resigns - 24 May 2019 After several failed attempts to pass her withdrawal agreement through the commons, Theresa May resigns Reuters Brexit timeline: How did we get here? Johnson takes over - 24 July 2019 Boris Johnson is elected leader of the Conservative party in a landslide victory. He later heads to Buckingham Palace where the Queen invites him to form a government Getty Brexit timeline: How did we get here? Parliament prorogued - 28 August 2019 Boris Johnson prorogues parliament for five weeks in the lead up to the UK's agreed departure date of 31 October. Stephen Morgan MP Brexit timeline: How did we get here? Prorogation ruled unlawful - 24 September 2019 The High Court rules that Johnson's prorogation of parliament is 'unlawful' after a legal challenge brought by businesswoman Gina Miller Getty Brexit timeline: How did we get here? Johnson agrees deal with Varadkar - October Following a summit in Merseyside, Johnson agrees a compromise to the backstop with Irish prime minister Leo Varadkar - making the withdrawal agreement more palatable to Brexiteers Getty Brexit timeline: How did we get here? Final Say march demands second referendum - 19 October 2019 As parliament passes the Letwin amendment requiring the prime minister to request a further delay to Brexit, protesters take to the streets in the final show of force for a Final Say referendum Getty Brexit timeline: How did we get here? Johnson wins 80 seat majority - 12 December 2019 The Conservatives win the December election in a landslide, granting Boris Johnson a large majority to pass through his brexit deal and pursue his domestic agenda Getty Brexit timeline: How did we get here? Withdrawal deal passes parliament - 20 December 2019 The withdrawal agreement passes through the commons with a majority of 124 Getty Brexit timeline: How did we get here? EU parliament backs UK withdrawal deal - 29 January 2020 Members of the European parliament overwhelmingly back the ratification of Britain's departure, clearing the way for Brexit two days later on 31 January. Following the vote, members join hands and sing Auld Lang Syne AFP/Getty

EU vessels are currently permitted to catch the lions share of the fish in UK waters, and they fish about six times as much in UK waters as UK vessels fish in EU waters. This amounts to an asymmetric and essentially exploitative relationship that has placed the UK at a massive disadvantage for more than 40 years.

The UK government has signalled that among its top five priorities in the forthcoming negotiations with the EU is a pivot away from this kind of distortion, which limits UK cod fishermen in the Channel to 9 per cent of the quota while France enjoys 84 per cent.

Brussels has said that a trade deal with the UK will be contingent on maintaining the status quo of quota shares and automatic access rights to fish in UK waters.

Our view at the National Federation of Fishermens Organisations is that both the EU and the UK need a deal on trade, and that there is no international precedent for one country to obtain free access to another countrys natural resources as part of a trade deal.

The Fisheries Bill that has just begun its passage through parliament will provide ministers with the powers to manage the fisheries within the UKs exclusive economic zone in a flexible and agile way, compared with the EUs cumbersome and inflexible system under the Common Fisheries Policy.

Negotiated access for EU fleets, rebalanced quota shares, and a more flexible and adaptive way of managing our fisheries all add up to a welcome change for the fishing industry.

Additional fishing opportunities have the potential to transform the fortunes of some of our coastal communities. Having learnt the bitter lessons of the past, we will be careful to avoid the pitfalls of over-expansion and over-exploitation  but, in the fisheries industry, leaving the EU is widely seen as a hugely positive development.

It is true that perishable commodities such as live crab and fresh fish are vulnerable to delays at borders. There are, however, businesses in the supply chain on both sides of the Channel that are dependent on the trade in fish and shellfish, and the experience of the cod wars with Iceland is that trade quickly finds ways to overcome obstacles and adjust to new realities.

Barrie Deas is chief executive of the National Federation of Fishermens Organisations
The United States government has included Nigeria in its expanded list of countries hit by a travel ban.

While Nigerians will still be able to visit the U.S. as tourists, they will henceforth be unable to obtain visas that can lead to permanent residency.

Other countries affected by the ban are Sudan, Eritrea, Tanzania, Kyrgyzstan and Myanmar.

The measure was announced on Friday.

Acting U.S. Homeland Security Secretary Chad Wolf said the new measure was the result of failures by the affected countries to meet American security and information-sharing standards, the BBC reported.

These countries, for the most part, want to be helpful but for a variety of different reasons simply failed to meet those minimum requirements that we laid out, he was quoted as saying.

He said Nigeria and the other countries will be supported to strengthen their security requirements to help them get off the list, the report said.

Under the new policy, the American government said it would no longer grant Nigerians and nationals of Eritrea, Kyrgyzstan, and Myanmar visas that can lead to permanent residency.

Non-immigrant visas given to visitors for temporary are not affected by the ban.

Nationals of Sudan and Tanzania are banned from diversity visas, which are available by lottery for applicants from countries with low rates of immigration to the U.S., according to the BBC.

Nigeria leads the six countries on immigration to the U.S, with over 8,000 immigration visas in 2018 alone. That year, Sudan received about 2,000, Tanzania got 290 while Eritrea had 31, the BBC reported.

The six countries are the latest on a list that already has Libya, Iran, Somalia, Syria, Yemen, Venezuela and North Korea.

U.S. President Donald Trump first introduced a travel ban in 2017.
Following the rumour making the rounds and negative media reports on working relationship of the Nigerian Military and Borno State Government, the Theater Commander, Operation Lafiya Dole , Theater Command Headquarters Maimalari Cantonment Maiduguri,Major General Olusegun Gabriel Adeniyi Friday described the speculation as mischievous, false and baseless.

He also said that the Nigeria Military has banned a non governmental Organization, ADRA Nigeria from operating in Borno state and north east at large because it's license has expired since 31 at December 2019.

"As such, we have closed the office and their staff handed over to the police in Maiduguri. Hence, their operations is now illegal", Adeniyi said.

The Theater Commander added that the military does not escort commuters in any route as speculated throughout the roads, stressing that," but there are soldiers and patrol teams on mobile going up and down the roads providing security cover to the commuters."

" All commuters should go on their trips. Even the GOC and Unit Commanders are also on patrol of roads within their commands. But the commuters should be law abiding and careful in order not to take undue advantage" Adeniyi said.

On why the military arrested the Daily Trust Reporter Tunji Omirin in Thursday evening, he said," We picked him up because of certain issues we want him to clarify "

"He was made to answer some questions. He gave us his statement but with the intervention of Chief of Army Staff, COAS, Lt. Gen. T. Y. Buratai.

"We the military have the right to call or invite anybody to answer some questions in certain issues especially when it has to do with the national security and integrity of the nation", Olusegun said.

He also said it was the hand work of enemies of the Nigerian military which is untrue, fictitious, and a figment of mischievous makers.

Addressing journalists Friday in his office, the Theater Commander said" It is a lie and false that the Military is not in good working relationship with Borno State Government."

"It is not true. It is a figment of some people who don't like the military. The military and government of Born o state are in good relationship and working cordially.

"We work together every day . Speak with each other as well as Yobe state Government. Even though an incident happened recently between the military and the State Governor. That can not stop our relationships", Adeniyi said.

He added that operations are ongoing along Maiduguri-Damaturu, Maiduguri-Damboa-Biu , Maiduguei-Damsak and Maiduguri-Bama as well as Maiduguri-Minguni roads on daily basis 24 hours per day.

According to him, the military patrol teams have been in Mobile patrolling all routes and hideouts making successes in killing Boko Haram Insurgents, recovering their weapons and trucks among others.

"There is no way Boko Haram will come and say they will fight us. They only go to innocent people's farms and places to loot or steal what does not belong to them. That will even soon come to end with the establishment of our super camps in different locations, Response and patrol teams", Adeniyi said.

On the issue of Maiduguri-Biu road that is closed, the theater Commander said " it is not possible and you as journalists know that it is not true and it can not be possible.
The URL has been copied to your clipboard

The code has been copied to your clipboard.

Democrats in Iowa are grappling with many issues as they weigh who to support in the Feb. 3 Iowa Caucuses, a meeting where party voters choose their preferred candidate. Democratic presidential hopefuls are seeking to defeat Republican President Donald Trump
SUNDAY, JANUARY 26

Raptor Center nursing bald eagle

When the Illinois Conservation Police brought a mature bald eagle to the Illinois Raptor Center on Jan. 7, the chances of recovery were slim.

The eagle had been hit by a car and rescued by an Illinois State trooper. The conservation officer took her to the center, where Program Director Jacques Nuzzo examined her. She had injuries to her head and under her wing, broken talons and possible internal injuries.

With the bird wobbly, still in pain, and unable to bend over to pick up food, Nuzzo cut up her meat for her and fed her. Trooper should be ready to be released in the next couple of weeks, probably early in February, Nuzzo said. He wants to be certain she can sustain long flights, turn and land and bank properly, so she can catch her own food.

MONDAY, JANUARY 27

Conagra sells Lender's Bagels, Mattoon plant

Conagra Brands has sold Lenders Bagels and its Mattoon bagel factory to Bimbo Bakeries USA, Inc., a business unit of Mexico City-based Grupo Bimbo.

Chicago-based Conagra announced the divestiture earlier this month in a press release on its corporate website, with the transaction including "the Lender's brand and related intellectual property, the production facility in Mattoon, Ill., and inventory."

Forbes reported that Conagra acquired Lender's, a refrigerated and frozen bakery business, as part of its $10.9 billion acquisition of Pinnacle Foods in 2018. Conagra reportedly has sold Lender's to Grupo Bimbo for an undisclosed sum.

TUESDAY, JANUARY 28

Decatur native wins Grammy

Decatur native Andrew Craig Brown received a Grammy on Sunday night for his contribution to the Best Opera Recording of Fantastic Mr. Fox.

The Cerro Gordo High School and Millikin University graduate is currently living in Chicago, but with the coveted music award on his shelf, he is contemplating future opportunities outside of Illinois.

Brown recorded the future Grammy-winning album in 2014. As the years passed, he said he had almost forgotten about it.

WEDNESDAY, JANUARY 29

School board moves ahead

The Decatur school board made several steps forward on the district's BOLD facilities plan and extended the contract of a top administrator, over objections from the district's teachers' union.

The BOLD plan aims to reduce the number of schools to 17 from 22, consolidating some buildings and closing others and building a new Johns Hill Magnet School at the current site. The board approved moving forward with seeking bids for construction of a new Johns Hill, with a goal of completing the building and opening to students by August 2021.

THURSDAY, JANUARY 30

Sheriff recount agreement reached

A legal battle over results of the November 2018 Macon County sheriff's election has been placed on hold and there will now be a hand recount of all ballots, according to a joint statement from Sheriff Tony Brown and his challenger, Lt. Jim Root.

The final 2018 election tally had seen Brown, who had been a lieutenant with the sheriffs office, declared the winner by a margin of 19,655 to Roots tally of 19,654 votes after all provisional and mail-in ballots were counted. Root, a Republican who continues to serve as a lieutenant with the sheriff's office, had held a 99-vote advantage on Election Day.

FRIDAY, JANUARY 31

Macon Co. monitoring virus news

The first U.S. case of the coronavirus spreading from one person to another was reported in Chicago on Thursday, the husband of a woman who caught the disease while in China. The case is the first confirmed person-to-person transmission of the virus in the U.S. and the sixth confirmed case in the country.

Illinois Department of Public Health Director Dr. Ngozi Ezike said the risk to the general public remains low. Macon County Health Department spokeswoman Marisa Hosier said they're monitoring the situation.

Love 0 Funny 0 Wow 0 Sad 0 Angry 0
The National Chairman of the opposition National Democratic Congress [NDC], Samuel Ofosu-Ampofo says his party and other political parties present at a recent meeting with the Electoral Commission [EC] to deliberate on the compilation of new voters register were 'totally lost'.



According to him, the NDCs position against the EC's decision to compile a new voters register has been justified after the IPAC meeting on Thursday.



He said the EC's IT experts and the political parties experts had a heated argument concerning the technical reasons why there should be a new register.



Mr. Ofosu-Ampofo told Neat FM that all the opposition technical experts felt there was no need.



"Building a new register is not necessary," he said.



"We are not convinced at all, they ended up even confusing the situation the more, he said in an interview with NEAT FMs morning show Ghana Montie.



The EC, at the instance of its Eminent Advisory Committee [EAC] called a meeting of the Interparty Advisory Committee over the decision to compile a new register for the 2020 elections.



The meeting was held at the Coconut Grove Regency Hotel in Accra.



The EC made a renewed presentation to the parties in the presence of some civil society organisations [CSOs] and development partners.



The parties were also asked to make inputs in terms of questions, observations and suggestions.



But the meeting is said to have ended inconclusively as the parties demanded further clarifications on the technical approach of the move.



Listen to Samuel Ofosu-Ampofo below





Source: King Edward Ambrose Washman Addo/Peacefmonline.com/Ghana









Disclaimer : Opinions expressed here are those of the writers and do not reflect those of Peacefmonline.com. Peacefmonline.com accepts no responsibility legal or otherwise for their accuracy of content. Please report any inappropriate content to us, and we will evaluate it as a matter of priority.

Featured Video
January 26, 2020 Joanne A. Lofgren died on Sunday, January 26, 2020, at age 80, after many years of declining pulmonary health. She was born in SW Pennsylvania, and her father died when she was just five years old, which required self-reliance and made her a stronger woman. After high school, she earned her diploma as a registered nurse and moved to the Washington, D.C., area for hospital nursing work, followed by service at the National Institutes of Health where she assisted patients undergoing clinical trials. During the Vietnam War, Joanne felt a calling to serve and she was commissioned a Second Lieutenant in the United States Army Nurse Corps. After initial training in Texas, she was assigned to the post hospital at Fort Ord, Calif. That's where she met First Lieutenant David Lofgren and, after a whirlwind romance, they were married at the post chapel almost 53 years ago. Joanne later retired from nursing to become a dedicated mother and "Army Wife" while the family lived in many places, with Joanne dutifully organizing moves and establishing homes in over a dozen locations as David pursued his military career. Including vacation travels, they were able to live in and visit many places around the world, including Hawaii, New Zealand and Australia, Thailand, most of Europe from Norway and Sweden to England, Spain and Greece, plus Egypt, Israel and Cyprus. Having left nursing, Joanne returned to school attending part time in many locations with the often moving family. She took college courses in Florida, Germany, England and Virginia, earning a Bachelor of Arts degree in Human Resources Management. While in England, she took courses in art history and traveled to the Soviet Union and Florence, Italy. Joanne's study was a personal goal for self-achievement, plus she felt women should always be able to independently support themselves. Her high academic achievement was recognized by conferred membership in Delta Epsilon Sigma, National Scholastic Honor Society. After 26 years in the Army, Joanne and David moved to the Roanoke Valley, where they have enjoyed living for 27 years. Joanne was predeceased by her parents; stepfather; her two brothers; and her sister. She is survived by her grateful and devoted husband, Colonel David J. Lofgren, United States Army, Retired; her loving children, Christine Lofgren and Paul Lofgren; plus cousins, nieces and nephews. The family wishes to thank all those who helped make Joanne comfortable in the past few weeks, plus those who have offered kind thoughts, prayers and assistance. There will be no local services and interment will be at Arlington National Cemetery at a later date. In lieu of flowers or other material tributes, the family requests memorial donations be considered for the Good Samaritan Hospice, a 501(c)(3) charity, at 2408 Electric Rd, Roanoke, VA 24018, (540) 776-0198 (secure online donations at www.goodsamhospice.com)
The race to select a Democratic candidate to depose incumbent president Donald Trump begins in Iowa on Monday. Bette Browne casts an eye over the runners and riders.

The opening round in the battle for the White House will begin in Iowa on Monday when Democratic voters in the state will choose a winning candidate in the race to take on president Donald Trump in his re-election bid.

Trump himself is assured of winning the Republican nominating race in Iowa the same day because his two opponents, former Massachusetts governor William Weld and former Illinois congressman Joe Walsh, have all but zero chances of defeating him.

Mr Trump is now one of only three US leaders to have been impeached by the House of Representatives and will be the first to go on to fight for re-election.

Indeed, he will now be likely driven by an even more intense desire for victory in hopes of mitigating what he calls the stigma of impeachment.

Meanwhile, his party is enthusiastically rowing in behind his candidacy and has cancelled most of the partys other nominating contests around the country.

Its the Democratic race, therefore, that will be the focus of the political drama in Iowa and a win in this first-in-the-nation contest will be a major boost for the candidates chances in subsequent primary nomination votes in every state to choose the partys standard bearer.

A poor showing by the frontrunner, currently former vice president Joe Biden, would be a major body blow to him, while a better-than-expected showing by some of his close rivals, senators Elizabeth Warren, Bernie Sanders, and Amy Klobuchar, along with Pete Buttigieg, mayor of South Bend, Indiana, would give their candidacies a major fillip going into the New Hampshire primary eight days later, on February 11.

Sen Amy Klobuchar, right, speaks as from left, Democratic presidential candidates businessman Tom Steyer, Sen Elizabeth Warren, former Vice President Joe Biden, Sen Bernie Sanders, and former South Bend Mayor Pete Buttigieg before a Democratic presidential primary debate earlier this month. Picture: AP Photo/Patrick Semansky

However, if New Hampshire voters fail to follow the Iowa result and pick a different winner, the result could throw the race wide open in subsequent states.

Iowa is thus a key battleground and Democrats have been blitzing the state, spending millions of dollars on campaign ads, especially on television.

At one point, 29 Democrats were in the race but a number have since dropped out.

Now 12 candidates are seeking the nomination and in the most recent debate on January 14 in Iowa only six met the criteria to take part in the debate based on poll numbers and financial support.

They were Biden, Warren, Sanders, Klobuchar, Buttigieg, and billionaire businessman Tom Steyer.

However, many Democrats said that debate, the last one before the Iowa race, made depressing watching for those hoping for a clear candidate to emerge with the kind of substance and fire the party needs if it is to defeat Trump in November, especially in conservative states like Iowa.

In such states, and indeed in most others, voters make clear in polls that their priorities are access to affordable healthcare and good paying jobs.

Instead, the January 14 debate offered Iowa voters a heated discussion on whether a woman could become president.

Such a topic might have been a big hit over Democratic dinner parties in New York or California but it ill serves the needs of ordinary voters in America and will merely jeopardise the partys chances of winning back the White House.

SENATOR ELIZABETH WARREN (70)

Warren has served as a US senator from Massachusetts since 2013.

She is a leading progressive in the Senate, has taught law at several universities and was a Harvard professor.

She is a leader of the partys liberals and a strong critic of the inequities in US society. She has promised to fight what she calls a rigged economic system that she sees as favouring the wealthy.

Her chances

She is promoting a student loan forgiveness proposal that would cancel up to 45,000 of debt for millions of Americans, and she supports free college tuition for students at two- and four-year public institutions.

She also backs universal healthcare.

Among the top contenders, Warren stands out as someone with the political and intellectual commitment and policies to make real progress in transforming America into a more equitable society.

However, for that very reason she is also probably unelectable nationally in the generally conservative country that is America, though she may do very well in a number of liberal states.

SENATOR BERNIE SANDERS (78)

Bernie Sanders served as a congressman in the House of Representatives for 16 years before being elected to the Senate in 2006.

He ran for the Democratic nomination unsuccessfully against Hillary Clinton in 2016.

He ran a powerful and passionate campaign and is credited with moving the party towards progressive stances on a number of issues.

His proposals include free tuition at public colleges, a $15 (13.50) minimum hourly wage and universal healthcare, or what he calls Medicare for all.

His chances

Polls show Sanders consistently near the top of the polls in Iowa and New Hampshire. If he can manage to win the first few contests, then it may become very difficult for the others to catch up on him.

However, like Warren, the chances of Sanders derailing the Trump juggernaut appear minimal, although for Sanders, a self-described democratic socialist, it would be an even tougher battle than that facing Warren.

Laudable as the progressive polices of both candidates may be, the resounding defeat of either at the hands of Trump would be all but certain, especially as this election promises to be all about sound bite over substance.

MAYOR PETE BUTTIGIEG (38)

Since 2012, Buttigieg has served as mayor of South Bend, Indiana, the state where Trumps vice president Mike Pence was governor.

Buttigieg served in the US navy reserve from 2009 to 2017, including a deployment to Afghanistan for seven months in 2014.

Earlier, he had graduated with honours from Harvard and won a Rhodes scholarship to Oxford.

He is the first openly gay Democratic candidate to run for president.

In 2018, three years after the US Supreme Court struck down state bans on gay marriage by a dramatic 5-4 ruling, Buttigieg married Chasten Glezman, who now goes by the name Chasten Buttigieg on social media.

On the campaign trail, he has frequently spoken about Americas struggle before 2015 to legalise gay marriage.

Im not critical of his [Pences] faith; Im critical of bad policies. I dont have a problem with religion. Im religious, too. I have a problem with religion being used as a justification to harm people and especially in the LGBT community.

His chances

Buttigieg is the youngest candidate in the group, exactly 40 years younger than Sanders, and comes across as smart, articulate, progressive, and personable.

He has acquitted himself very well in a number of debates but his lack of experience of national political office tends to work against him.

Still, polls show he could do quite well in Iowa and if he were to come in second or third it would put him in a strong position going into the other races.

However, in the unlikely event that he becomes the Democratic candidate to face Trump, he would not fare well against the president.

The fact he lacks political experience wouldnt be the real problem, after all Trumps election proved that.

The problem for him is that America is not remotely ready for a gay man or woman to be president.

AMY KLOBUCHAR (59)

Klobuchar, a former prosecutor and corporate lawyer, was first elected to the Senate in 2006, becoming Minnesotas first elected female US senator.

She was re-elected in 2012 and 2018.

Her chances

Klobuchar needed a star performance in the January 14 Iowa debate to close the gap between herself and the four top candidates, but she didnt get the boost she needed. Shes always

been good in the debates but not good enough to move her candidacy upwards in the polls.

Her stance on health insurance, however, could play well in Iowa. She opposes eliminating private health insurance under the Medicare for All plan (universal health insurance) touted by Sanders and Warren.

She made her point like this in a previous debate: Bernie wrote the [Medicare for All] bill, but I read the bill.

And it says that we will no longer have private insurance, as we know it.

That means 149m Americans will no longer be able to have their current insurance. And I dont think thats a bold idea, I think its a bad idea.

Her pragmatism could attract a significant number of Iowa voters who see her rivals as too liberal.

JOE BIDEN (77)

Biden, the former vice president, is leading the field in most polls and looks like the only candidate who may have a chance of ultimately defeating Trump in November.

He is by far the most experienced politician in the race, having served over 30 years in the Senate and two terms as Barack Obamas vice president from 2009 to 2017.

This is his third presidential run.

His first bid in 1987 ended after a plagiarism scandal when he was accused of using a speech delivered by British Labour Party leader Neil Kinnock. He ran again in 2008, when Obama triumphed.

His chances

Bidens chances are very good in Iowa, according to most polls, which put him in the lead. However, this is not because, like Warren, Sanders, Klobuchar, and Buttigieg, hes offering policies that might change the country for the better but because he knows this race will be trench warfare and hes been down in the trenches and survived many times during his career.

He also appears to be the candidate Trump fears most, Democrats contend, accusing Trump of seeking to undermine him in the Ukraine affair, which ironically led to Trumps impeachment.

Biden also attracts support from across the political spectrum, from blacks, Latinos, and working-class and middle-class voters.

He is also seen as personally likable and may thus appeal to the growing number of Americans who indicate in polls that they see Trump as divisive, crude and untrustworthy.

Bidens weak point is that he is prone to making gaffes in debates, although Democrats tend to dismiss this as a minor flaw.

In one poll, for example, 86% of likely Democratic voters thought Biden could probably or definitely beat Trump.

AFTER IOWA

After Iowa and New Hampshire come the largely conservative states of Nevada and South Carolina to close out the February contests.

Candidates who hope to stay in the race must do reasonably well in some if not all of these four contests so that they can head into the crucial Super Tuesday voting on March 3, which sees a dizzying slew of deciders in 14 states, including for the first time California and Texas both of which have usually held their contests much later in the year.

Other primaries will continue at a frenetic pace during the rest of March so that, by the end of the month, 30 of the 50 states will have voted for the candidate they want to take on Trump in November.

By then, or even as early as Super Tuesday, enough major contests will have been held to indicate who is likely to have the most votes and emerge as the winning Democrat when the primaries end in June.

In July, the winning Democratic candidate will be formally nominated at the partys national convention, while Trump will be formally nominated at his partys convention in August.

Three months later, after facing each other in a number of TV debates, both candidates will finally battle it out in the national election on November 3.

The national picture

America is better than this has become a popular refrain for Democrats opposing Trumps incendiary populism.

And maybe America is, but then again when voters go to the polls the value of their retirement investments, now soaring on Wall Street, may win out over their personal values.

It wont be enough, therefore, for the eventual Democratic candidate to simply fight against Trumps perceived character flaws.

They might do well to note the words of the presidents one-time political strategist, Steve Bannon, who said in 2017: I want them [Democrats] to talk about racism every day. If the left is focused on race and identity, and we go with economic nationalism, we can crush the Democrats.

He was right then and hes still right today, and so was Bill Clinton with his winning 1992 slogan: Its the economy, stupid!

The chosen Democratic candidate will have to offer voters more and better-paying jobs, and more affordable health insurance and educational opportunities.

And voters wont want to hear these promises from the two Democratic billionaire candidates in the race: Michael Bloomberg and Tom Steyer.

That message will only resonate in the forgotten corners of America if it comes from the likes of Biden.

Biden is by no means a perfect candidate, but right now he looks like the best chance the party has in Iowa and other states come November.

The harsh reality for Democrats is that in a match-up between Trump and any of the other current candidates, the race may as well be called now for Trump.
Source: Xinhua| 2020-02-01 14:26:19|Editor: zyl

Video Player Close

WASHINGTON, Jan. 31 (Xinhua) -- Final votes on articles of impeachment against U.S. President Donald Trump are to take place next week after the Senate voted Friday to reject effort in seeking witnesses and documents for the proceeding.

The Republican-controlled Senate voted 51 to 49 to block a motion Friday evening that would allow subpoenas for witnesses and documents in the impeachment trial.

Two Republicans joined Democrats in requesting witnesses for the impeachment trial but they fell short of a simple majority needed to pass the motion.

Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer, speaking to reporters after the failed attempt, called it "a grand tragedy."

"America will remember this day, unfortunately, when the Senate did not live up to its responsibilities," the New York Democrat said.

The vote came after the House impeachment managers and Trump's defense team debated for hours over whether the Senate should call witnesses on Friday.

It also followed more than a week of arguments from both sides and a questions-and-answers session involving all senators who act as the jury.

White House legal counsel Patrick Philbin argued on Friday that the Senate "is not here to do the investigatory work that the House didn't do."

Lead House impeachment manager Adam Schiff rebuked the argument, saying that "a trial is supposed to be a quest for the truth."

The Senate voted Friday night to approve a resolution proposed by Senate Majority Leader Mitch that calls for closing statements on the upcoming Monday and votes on articles of impeachment against Trump on Wednesday.

Democrats pushed votes on a number of amendments to McConnell's resolution but all their efforts failed.

The Democrat-led House impeached Trump last month for abuse of power and obstruction of Congress, charges that the White House has refuted.

A whistleblower raised concern in an anonymous complaint last summer about the White House's interactions with Ukraine, triggering a Democrat-led impeachment inquiry against Trump.

The U.S. president was alleged to have pressed his Ukrainian counterpart, Volodymyr Zelensky, into launching investigations that could politically benefit him. Furthermore, the White House allegedly tried to bury it.

House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, who announced the impeachment inquiry last September, accused on Friday Senate Republicans of a "cover-up."

"There can be no acquittal without a trial. And there is no trial without witnesses, documents and evidence," the California Democrat said in a statement.

In a number of tweets on Friday, Trump claimed he's being treated unfairly during the impeachment process.

"No matter what you give to the Democrats, in the end, they will NEVER be satisfied," he tweeted. "In the House, they gave us NOTHING!"

According to the U.S. Constitution, the House shall have the "sole Power of Impeachment," while the Senate shall have the "sole Power to try all Impeachments."

Conviction can only happen in the Senate and requires at least two-thirds of its members, or 67 senators, to vote in favor of at least one article of impeachment after a trial. Currently, the Senate has 53 Republicans, 45 Democrats and two independents.
A pro-Brexit supporter pours beer onto an EU flag in Parliament Square, London, ahead of the UK leaving the European Union at 11pm on Friday.

Hundreds of people celebrating Brexit congregated at Parliament Square on Friday night.

The gathering was generally good-natured - though it was punctuated by a notable act of protest when one man poured the contents of a can of Stella Artois (the reassuringly expensive Belgian beer) over an EU flag.

The unidentified Brexiteer, wearing a navy hoodie and jeans, was cheered on by other pro-Brexit revellers, some of whom filmed it on their phones.

The flag appeared to have already been trampled and mashed into the mucky grass by revellers at Nigel Farages Leave means Leave party.

A pro-Brexit supporter pours beer onto an EU flag in Parliament Square, London, ahead of the UK leaving the European Union at 11pm on Friday.

Hundreds of people turned up to hear speeches from some of the main Brexit players, including the Brexit Party leader and Wetherspoons chairman Tim Martin.

In unison, the crowds counted down together and at 11pm, the UK officially left the European Union after 47 years of membership.

The shift has been more than three years in the making since the 2016 referendum with a seemingly constant back and forth between the two main parties.

Pro-EU campaigners take part in a 'Missing EU Already' rally outside the Scottish Parliament, Edinburgh. (PA)

The historic moment was marked by both celebrations and anti-Brexit protests.

A Missing EU Already rally took place outside the Scottish Parliament. It was organised by the Edinburgh Yes Hub, which backs Scottish independence.

In Northern Ireland, the campaign group Border Communities Against Brexit is to stage a series of protests in Armagh, near to the border with the Republic of Ireland.

Nigel Farage speaks to pro-Brexit supporters in Parliament Square, London. (PA)

Pro-Brexit supporters celebrate in Parliament Square shortly after Britain officially left the EU. (PA)

In London, Pro-Brexit supporters sung bye, bye EU to the tune of Auld Lang Syne

In a series of highly symbolic events earlier, the UK's flag was removed at the headquarters of the European Council in Brussels.

And the EU flag was taken down at the British government's building in the Belgian capital.
Alameda County prosecutors charged the suspect in a fatal Berkeley hit-and-run with murder and identified the homeless victim, officials said.

Oakland resident Alexander McGee, 29, is accused of killing Bernadette Youngbear, 58, by running her over in his car on Jan. 20 while fleeing a police officer who saw him assault his girlfriend, according to court documents.

Youngbears identity had not previously been released because the coroners office had been unable to reach her family members.

McGee also faces charges of evading an officer and causing death, leaving the scene of an accident, vehicular manslaughter with gross negligence and corporal injury to relationship partner.

He was previously convicted of residential burglary and domestic violence, court documents show.

McGee was arrested around 11:45 a.m. Wednesday at a West Oakland residence and booked into Santa Rita Jail where he remains with no bail.

The hit-and-run occurred at the corner of University Avenue and Sixth Street. A Berkeley police officer in the area saw a man in the drivers seat of a gray sedan punching a woman in the head as she screamed no and stop, according to the court document.

The car, which was parked facing north on Sixth Street, did a U-turn but then changed direction and drove toward University Avenue. The police car pursued with its emergency lights activated.

The fleeing car went through a red light, turned west onto University Avenue and drove up onto the sidewalk where it struck Younbear and dragged her, court records show.

The car fled onto Interstate 80 and the police cruiser turned around to help the victim, who was pronounced dead from multiple traumatic injuries, according to court documents.

Drought Map Track water shortages and restrictions across Bay Area Check the water shortage status of your area, plus see reservoir levels and a list of restrictions for the Bay Areas largest water districts.

On Friday, Jan. 24, police located the woman who had been attacked in the suspect car. She said McGee was her boyfriend and he threatened her after the hit-and-run, telling her not to talk to police and that he would kill her.

Police reported that she had a cut on her eye and a bald spot where her hair had been ripped out.

Police recovered the suspect vehicle and found evidence of hair and blood underneath.

McGee will appear in court on Feb. 3.

Anna Bauman is a San Francisco Chronicle staff writer. Email: anna.bauman@sfchronicle.com Twitter: @abauman2
OTTAWAThe Liberal government is exploring whether to revive an effort to make Sept. 30 a federal holiday to commemorate the dark legacy of residential schools.

In an email to the Star, a spokesperson for Heritage Minister Steven Guilbeault said the government is currently looking at options to pursue the bill that died in the Senate last parliament  a reference to a private members bill that sought to declare Sept. 30 a federal holiday as Canadas National Day for Truth and Reconciliation.

We need to recognize the harm residential schools have done to Indigenous peoples and we want to make Sept. 30 the National Day for Truth and Reconciliation to honour the survivors of residential schools, Guilbeaults press secretary, Camille Gagne-Raynauld, told the Star.

She declined to disclose further details.

Former New Democrat MP Georgina Jolibois introduced a bill in October 2017 to create a new federal holiday to mark the importance of Indigenous reconciliation. The bill passed in the House of Commons but was not approved by the Senate before the Liberal-majority Parliament dissolved for the federal election last fall.

The bill originally aimed to make June 21  celebrated as National Indigenous Peoples Day  a federal holiday. The day was switched to Sept. 30 and the Liberal majority government declared it supported the proposed law. The government also provided $10 million in the 2019 budget to support events held by community groups to mark National Truth and Reconciliation Day.

The bill would have made Sept. 30 a paid holiday for workers in federally regulated sectors, such as telecommunications and aviation. It also would have fulfilled one of the 94 calls to action from the Truth and Reconciliation Commission (TRC), which studied the impacts of Canadas residential school system that were found to amount to cultural genocide.

Sept. 30 is currently marked by many Indigenous groups and communities as Orange Shirt Day, a day to commemorate residential school students that started in the Interior of British Columbia in 2013.

In a statement to the Star, Assembly of First Nations National Chief Perry Bellegarde said his organization supports making Sept. 30 a national holiday.

A national holiday would promote reconciliation and provide all Canadians an opportunity to learn more about the Indian residential schools, their impact and their legacy, Bellegarde said.

From the 1880s until the 1990s, the government- and church-run school system removed generations of Indigenous children from their families and home communities to indoctrinate them into the religions, languages and practices of Canadas settler society. Untold numbers of children died at the schools, with incomplete records documenting at least 3,000 deaths, and many others were sexually and physically abused, the TRC found.

Ry Moran, director of the National Centre for Truth and Reconciliation in Winnipeg, welcomed the news that the Liberal government is considering reviving Joliboiss effort to make the day a federal holiday. He noted that the Liberal government has also vowed to pass another failed NDP initiative from the last parliament: former MP Romeo Saganashs private members bill to enshrine the United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples in Canadian law.

The TRC really was trying to ensure that we as a country could never forget, that we would be compelled to remember, and that we were provided ample opportunities to remember the very painful history that we have, and the potential for healing and hope, Moran said by phone on Friday.

We really do encourage the government to take action on this.

The Liberal platform from the 2019 federal election made no mention of declaring Sept. 30 a federal holiday. It did, however, promise to create a new federal holiday for Family Day, which is already a day off in many provinces.
Two male domestic helpers allegedly laced their employers food with sedatives at a house in Palam Vihar Extension and robbed them of valuables and cash on Thursday night, said the police.

The police said the duo started working as helpers in the household from last week. The suspects had approached the family members through their old help, who had gone home in Nepal and had recommended them in his place. Both the suspects are Nepalese citizens, said the police.

Preet Pal Sangwan, assistant commissioner of police (crime), said that one of the victims, 50-year-old Kamlesh Yadav, had hired two men, identified as Anil Shahi and Om Kumar, who were distant relatives of her former help.

On Thursday night, Yadav after having dinner complained of drowsiness and told her son and daughter to check her blood pressure. After a few minutes, the children took me to my bedroom and I fell asleep. When I gained consciousness, I found myself lying in a bed in a hospital. My son told me that the helpers had mixed sedatives in our dinner, ransacked the house and fled with cash and jewellery, she said.

Sangwan said three of the family members consumed the same food and fell unconscious. Mohit Yadav, son of the complainant, said that since his mother is diabetic, he gave her insulin and made her sleep in her bedroom. After dinner, my sister and I also fell asleep. When I got up on Friday morning, I found all the doors and almirah open. I went to check on my mother and found her lying unconscious. I rushed her to a private hospital, where doctors conducted tests and informed us that her food was laced with sedatives. However, she was out of danger, he said. Like him, his sister also got up on her own, the police said.

Yadav said the suspects had not submitted their identification documents, which they promised will be submitted within a week. They told the employer that one of their friends who was visiting India will get all of their documents. They were hired on a salary of 11,000 each, said the police.

The victims house was under renovation and despite 12 CCTV cameras being installed, none was in a working condition. The suspects took the advantage and escaped through the main gate with bags, said the police.

Sangwan said they are suspecting the role of a gang, the members of whom had earlier been arrested in similar cases. The employer received a call from an unidentified man who shared the suspects pictures and their latest mobile numbers. He also shared the pictures of the sleeping pills used by the suspects to lace the food. Police teams are conducting raids at suspected locations and we have received crucial leads which can lead to arrest, Sangwan said.
The second Bahrain Diabetes and Endocrine Conference will open on February 20. The two-day event will be held under the patronage of Supreme Council for Health (SCH) President Lieutenant- General Dr Shaikh Mohammed bin Abdulla Al Khalifa.

The conference is being held for the second consecutive year in cooperation with the Royal Bahrain Hospital, Bahrain Diabetes Society and QTC company, said conference chief Dr Wiam Hussein, Senior Consultant-Endocrinology and Diabetes. Leading practitioners specialised in Endocrinology and Diabetes will attend the conference to discuss key scientific papers that highlight latest diagnostic and therapeutic strides.

Reviewing the latest developments in diagnosis and treatment in the field of diabetes and its implications, and exchanging experiences and experiences in this regard. Dr Wiam Hussein said that diabetes scientific research award. 9.2 per cent of the total number of citizens in the Kingdom suffer from diabetes, it was revealed.

The number of diabetic citizens in Bahrain has reached 63,805, the Ministry of Health has said. The ministry revealed that Bahrain has the least percentage of diabetes when compared to other Gulf countries. In Kuwait it is 19pc, 18pc in Qatar, 17pc in Saudi Arabia, 15pc in the UAE, and Oman 13.5pc. More than 100 million US adults are now living with diabetes or pre-diabetes, according to a new report released yesterday by the Centres for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). The report finds that as of 2015, 30.3m Americans  9.4pc of the US population  have diabetes.

According to World Health Organisation (WHO), diabetes is a major cause of blindness, kidney failure, heart attacks, stroke and lower limb amputation.
Nepal government has initiated the process to evacuate its citizens from Wuhan, the epicentre of the deadly coronavirus outbreak, and is planning to send a chartered aeroplane as soon as possible.

"In the context of the outbreak of the novel coronavirus in China, the Government of Nepal has decided to evacuate Nepali nationals currently residing in the Hubei Province of China. The plans for a special chartered flight are being worked out," the Nepalese Embassy in Beijing said in an advisory on Saturday.

The embassy also has asked the Nepalese nationals in Hubei to fill the form available on the website of Embassy and send it to the official email address- beijing@nepalembassy.org.cn.

The Embassy said the evacuees will undergo a medical check-up at the Wuhan airport before being evacuated.

Meanwhile, Civil Aviation Minister of Nepal Yogesh Bhattarai during a discussion programme said that two aircraft to bring back Nepalese students have been kept on the standby.

"Aircrafts of Nepal Airlines and Himalaya Airlines have been kept ready to be deployed. The government would rescue when it feels it is needed," Bhattarai said.

The deadly coronavirus has claimed lives of over 250 people. Over 10,000 people have been infected by virus in China and confirmed cases have been reported from several countries of the

Most of the deaths have been reported in the central province of Hubei, home to about 60 million people.

The Himalayan nation also reported a case of the infection last month.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
DES MOINES, Iowa  The Democratic National Committee has dropped grassroots fundraising qualifications for the partys Feb. 19 debate before the Nevada caucuses, opening the possibility that billionaire Michael Bloomberg could make his first appearance on stage.

The party announced Friday three different ways for candidates to reach the debate stage that involve reaching certain polling thresholds or banking a convention delegate in the first two nominating contests held in Iowa and New Hampshire. All previous debates have included a fundraising element, and since September, candidates have had to reach both polling thresholds and grassroots fundraising marks. Bloomberg, a former New York City mayor, has not yet hit the polling marks, but he will have until Feb. 18, the day before the debate, to do so  a prospect that pleases some rivals and incenses others.

Under the DNC rules, candidates have multiple paths to the stage: reach 10% support in some combination of four national polls or early state polls from Nevada or South Carolina; reach 12% support in two polls from Nevada or South Carolina or both; or bank a convention delegate in Iowa or New Hampshire, which host the first two nominating votes in early February.

Party Chairman Tom Perez and his aides have said for months that the DNC would likely shift to qualifying standards based on actual results once voting began. But the move is nonetheless significant given Bloombergs unique presence in the race. The ultrabillionaire is self-funding his White House bid  spending at least $188 million from the time he entered the race on Nov. 24 until the end of the year, according to disclosures filed Friday  and thus never could have qualified had Perez continued to require debate participants to reach a certain number of donors.

Rival campaigns have complained for weeks that Bloomberg has been avoiding scrutiny as he spreads his personal fortune across Super Tuesday states, part of his unusual campaign that is skipping the first four states of Iowa, New Hampshire, Nevada and South Carolina.

But how to treat him on the debate stage is a tricky proposition for the campaigns. Some candidates have argued he should be subjected to the same questioning they've endured for months, yet rival campaigns also are wary about validating Bloomberg as a legitimate threat. And they already privately acknowledge that his personal fortune makes him a variable they must consider, regardless of the debates, as they try to amass the nearly 2,000 delegates that will be necessary to win the nomination.

Relaxing rules that govern debates almost certainly will leave some former candidates unhappy. Julian Castro and Cory Booker, in particular, have complained that the DNC's rules unfairly targeted minority candidates because even grassroots donor bases are whiter than the Democratic electorate.

In response to the rules change, Booker's former campaign manager Addisu Demissie sent out a tweet with a gif of Justin Timberlake looking incredulous. Asked for additional comment, Demissie pointed back to the tweet.

Jeff Weaver, a senior adviser for Bernie Sanders, said it would be wrong to change rules that would "accommodate Mayor Bloomberg, who has raised no grassroots donations and is instead flooding the airwaves across the country funded by his billions of dollars of personal assets.

Now, at this late hour, to change the rules to accommodate a billionaire who wants to buy his way into the party would be unconscionable," Weaver said. No one should be allowed to buy their way onto the debate stage or the nomination.

Other Democrats have encouraged the DNC to allow Bloomberg's participation.

Minnesota Sen. Amy Klobuchar said this week that she'd be fine" with Bloomberg being on the debate stage.

I think that instead of just putting your money out there, he's actually got to be on the stage and be able to go back-and-forth so voters can evaluate him in that way," she said on MSNBC.

Liberal groups like the Progressive Change Candidate Committee, which is supporting Sen. Elizabeth Warren, also want Bloomberg on the debate stage.

The group's co-founder Adam Green fears that Bloomberg is rising without having to face media and voters.

Were now at the stage where a billionaire is spending a quarter billion dollars to buy his way into the polls, Green said. "He needs scrutiny.

___

Catch up on the 2020 election campaign with AP experts on our weekly politics podcast, Ground Game.
Prince Harry and Meghan, Duchess of Sussex announced their bombshell decision on Jan. 8 that they would be stepping down as senior royals and will be spending a good amount of time in North America going forward.

Since then, theres been no shortage of questions and speculation about what lies ahead for the couple, but what about the people they left behind? Theres obviously some hurt there and now its been reported that Harrys father, Prince Charles, is particularly upset with his sons wife over Megxit. Read on to find out the sad reason why.

Prince Harry, Meghan Markle, and Prince Charles | RICHARD POHLE/AFP via Getty Images

The royals were blindsided by Harry and Meghans announcement

Although many fans thought the Sussexes decision to step down was inevitable, members of the royal family including Charles, Prince William, and even Queen Elizabeth II were reportedly taken aback by the news.

BBC correspondent Jonny Dymond said that Palace officials told him senior royals like Charles and William were disappointed and felt blindsided as the couple did not tell any of them about their definitive plans prior to their announcement.

Eventually, the queen called for a conference with the three princes at her Sandringham estate to discuss the matter. After that meeting, Her Majesty released a statement saying that she and the rest of the family support the Duke and Duchess of Sussexs choice to forge new paths.

My family and I are entirely supportive of Harry and Meghans desire to create a new life as a young family, Queen Elizabeth said in the statement. Although we would have preferred them to remain full-time working members of the Royal Family, we respect and understand their wish to live a more independent life as a family while remaining a valued part of my family.

Why Charles is so upset with the duchess now

While Harrys father was said to be caught off guard by his son and Meghans decision, he is reportedly very upset with the duchess specifically.

Thats because Charles and Meghan had formed such a close bond before she and Harry tied the knot. The elder prince even gave Meghan the nickname Tungsten after the strong metal because he admired her strength and toughness.

Prince Charles walked Meghan Markle down the aisle | Jonathan Brady  WPA Pool/Getty Images

According to the Daily Mail, the future king was very instrumental after Harrys request seeking permission from the queen to marry Markle as well as where the ceremony could take place.

The publication noted that [Charles] pushed his mother to give his son what he didnt manage to achieve for himself when he wed Camilla  marrying a divorcee in church.

Moreover, the Prince of Wales did not hesitate when he was asked to walk Harrys bride down the aisle in the absence of her own father.

Meghan has also been credited by many for helping Charles and Harry form a better relationship. Now that the Duke and Duchess of Sussex have left royal life behind its no wonder why Charles would be so upset that he doesnt have his daughter-in-law around anymore.

Read more: Meghan Markle Pulled Out of Her First Post-Megxit Event With Prince Harry
French President Emmanuel Macron will pay his first visit to Poland on Monday in a bid to mend ties strained over Warsaw's controversial judicial reforms and its position on EU climate goals. Controversial judicial reforms have put Poland's right-wing populist Law and Justice (PiS) government on a collision course with Brussels over rule of law violations. At the same time, an agreement by EU leaders in December to try to make the bloc carbon neutral by 2050 was immediately undermined by Poland's refusal to implement the aim. Macron's office said the trip, his first abroad this year, was aimed at "clarifying the French position on many European issues, opening up new areas of cooperation with a major EU partner and stressing the need to protect European democratic values." Up to now, relations have been cool at best. Macron in 2018 himself accused Poland's PiS government and Hungary's populist Premier Viktor Orban of "lying to their people" about the European Union's powers to interfere in domestic affairs. - 'Reset needed' - "A reset is necessary because it couldn't be worse," said Eryk Mistewicz, head of the Warsaw-based Institute for New Media think-tank, pointing to "a spiral of misunderstanding and lack of mutual respect" between Paris and Warsaw. Brexit has made good relations with Poland all the more important as the central European heavyweight will now be the EU's fifth-largest member in terms of population and sixth in terms of GDP. "It's time to get real," Polish political scientist Alexander Smolar told AFP, adding that he expected Paris and Warsaw to push forward on economic ties in areas like nuclear and renewable energy as well as military or digital cooperation. Up to now, Poland has sought to buy US military equipment as a way of bolstering its already strong ties with the major NATO ally. In the past, it chose US-made F-16 fighter jets over French Mirage warplanes and now, just days ahead of Macron's arrival, Warsaw sealed a 4.6-billion dollar deal with the US for new F-35 fighters. It also triggered outrage in Paris in 2016 when it pulled out of a 3.14-billion euro contract for 50 Caracal helicopters at the last minute. Now, however, "there is an awareness on the Polish side about its isolation in the EU, of having wasted the chance that the Weimar Triangle gave (a three-way platform between Paris, Berlin and Warsaw) and of a host of other errors," said Smolar, head of the Warsaw-based Stefan Batory pro-democracy NGO. - 'Green Deal' - Despite their political differences, economic ties between the two EU partners remain strong and stable. France ranks sixth on Poland's list of trade partners, having exchanged nearly 21 billion euros worth of goods in 2018. French companies take fourth spot on Poland's foreign investor ranking, having poured more 18 billion euros into the country via some 1,100 companies, according to Polish data. Macron "is likely to try to explore common interests in the Multiannual Financial Framework (future EU budget) negotiations and seek ways to bring Poland into the European Green Deal," according to Pawel Zerka, a policy fellow at the European Council of Foreign Relations. The Green Deal is the EU's new one-trillion-euro ($1.1-trillion) plan to finance its goal of making the bloc carbon neutral by 2050. Macron is set to hold talks with Polish counterpart Andrzej Duda, Prime Minister Mateusz Morawiecki as well as the speakers of both houses of parliament in Warsaw on Monday before meeting with students in the southern city of Krakow on Tuesday.
By Murtaza Ali Khan









A t the beginning of Amjad Khans Gul Makai, a young Pakistani girl asks her progressive father, How did Helen Keller achieve so much in her life despite being deaf-blind.? The father smiles and answers back, Some people are born fighters. The young girl is none other than Malala Yousafzai who would go on to become the youngest Nobel Prize laureate ever. Malala was awarded the 2014 Nobel Peace Prize along with Kailash Satyarthi of India. Gul Makai presents the story of her struggle against the Taliban oppression faced by people in Pakistans Swat Valley.





Now, in the year 2008, a journalist working for the BBC Urdu website comes up with a novel but dangerous idea of exposing the rise of Taliban in Swat. The idea is to get a schoolgirl to blog about her day-to-day experiences of living in the Swat Valley on a strictly anonymous basis. So, a BBC correspondent contacts a local school teacher named Ziauddin Yousafzai to help them find someone who can do the job. When Ziauddin cant find anyone as its considered too dangerous by the families, he suggests the name of his own daughter, the 11-year-old Malala. And so thats how she takes up the name of Gul Makai. Remember, this is the time when Taliban under Maulana Fazlullah is imposing all kinds of bans on watching television and listening to music. It is forbidden for the girls to get any formal education and for the women to step outside their houses. In these dark times, Malala becomes a beacon of hope for everyone. Her blogs make her an overnight sensation and as she grows in popularity, Taliban begins to see her as a major threat. Out of desperation, Taliban orchestrates a plan to eliminate her. On her way back from school, a Taliban gunman forces his way into her school bus and shoots her in cold blood. But she miraculously survives. Her story not only exposes Taliban but also inspires the whole world. Two years later she is awarded the Nobel Peace Prize.



The story of Malala is a classic case of a nightmare turning into a fairy tale. But, Malalas extraordinary courage and inexorable determination is the real reason why she has become such a role model for everyone across the world. Now, casting the right actor for the role of Malala was a major challenge for Khan. He initially zeroed in on a Bangladeshi student after several rounds of casting but the girl backed out of fear after her family started receiving death threats from the fundamentalist elements. Eventually, a young television actor named Reem Shaikh was cast in the role and it can be safely said that it doesnt prove to be a bad choice in the end. What works to Reems advantage is a well-backed screenplay by Bhaswati Chakrabarty and a seasoned ensemble cast featuring the likes of Divya Dutta, Atul Kulkarni, Arif Zakaria, Mukesh Rishi, Abhimanyu Singh, Pankaj Tripathi, and Chandra Shekhar Dutta. Also, the films cinematography deserves a special mention. The team of Javed Ehtesham and Madhu Rao has done a wonderful job of capturing the pain and beauty on the camera with brutal honesty.





Rating: 8/10



A version of this review was first published in The Sunday Guardian .
Under the Patronage of the Ambassador of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia to the Kingdom of Bahrain His Royal Highness Prince Sultan bin Ahmed bin Abdulaziz Al Saud, a special ceremony was held at the Arabian Gulf University (AGU) marking the signing of the agreement to finance the construction of the buildings of the King Abdullah bin Abdulaziz Medical City Hospital.

The agreement was signed between AGU and the Saudi Fund for Development (SFD), and the ceremony was attended by the President of the Supreme Council for Health (SCH) HE Lieutenant General Dr Shaikh Mohammed bin Abdulla Al Khalifa, Education Minister and Chairman of the Higher Education Council Dr Majid Al Nuaimi and Health Minister Faeqa Al Saleh. Signing the agreement were AGU President Dr Khalid bin Abdulrahman Al Ohaly and SFD Vice President and Managing Director Dr Khalid bin Sulaiman Al Khudhairi.

This agreement comes to announce the start of the actual phase of building the city, after Al Fouzan Contracting Company was chosen to implement the King Abdullah bin Abdulaziz Medical City project. The contract has set a period of 30 months to implement the project from the date of its signing, stating that the estimated period for King Abdullah bin Abdulaziz Medical City Hospital to be operational by the beginning of the year 2022.

On the occasion, Dr Al Nuaimi stated that the establishment of the King Abdullah bin Abdulaziz Medical City project in the Kingdom of Bahrain comes as to continue the success achieved by AGU, noting that this advanced educational medical city will constitute a qualitative addition to the facilities of this reputed university and to the services it provides, adding that the Kingdom of Bahrain will spare no effort to provide everything that would advance this great project.

For his part, Dr Al Ohaly asserted that the signing of the agreement and the construction of the City reflects the strategic vision for joint cooperation between the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia and the Kingdom of Bahrain. At the same time, AGU President expressed thanks and appreciation to the Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques King Salman bin Abdulaziz Al Saud for the care and support provided by the Saudi government to the university and financing the medical city project through SFD.

Dr Al Ohaly also extended his thanks and appreciation to His Majesty King Hamad bin Isa Al Khalifa for his generous patronage of the university, and for hosting AGU in the Kingdom of Bahrain and for donating a land to construct the medical city project on.

King Abdullah bin Abdulaziz Medical City was directed to be established by the late Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques King Abdullah bin Abdulaziz Al Saud, who donated SR1 billion to fund the project, and a million square-meter land was allocated for the project in the Southern Governorate as per the instructions of His Majesty King Hamad bin Isa Al Khalifa.
Anti-government protests have been ongoing in Baghdad for months (Hadi Mizban/AP)

Mohammed Allawi has been selected as the countrys prime minister-designate after weeks of political deadlock.

The choice comes as the country weathers troubled times amid ongoing violent anti-government protests, while under the constant threat of being ensnared by festering tensions between the US and Iran.

The selection of Mr Allawi, 66, Iraqs former minister of communications, to replace outgoing Prime Minister Adel Abdul-Mahdi was the product of many back-room talks over months between rival parties.

Iraqi President Barham Salih gave parliamentary blocs until Saturday to select a candidate or he would exercise his constitutional powers and choose one himself.

Expand Close Iraqs President Barham Salih had given rival factions until February 1 to name their candidates (Gian Ehrenzeller/Keystone via AP) AP/PA Images / Facebook

Twitter

Email

Whatsapp Iraqs President Barham Salih had given rival factions until February 1 to name their candidates (Gian Ehrenzeller/Keystone via AP)

In a pre-recorded statement posted online, Mr Allawi called on protesters to continue with their uprising against corruption and said he would quit if the blocs insist on imposing names of ministers.

Addressing anti-government protesters, he said: If it wasnt for your sacrifices and courage there wouldnt have been any change in the country. I have faith in you and ask you to continue with the protests.

Mr Allawi was born in Baghdad and served as communications minister first in 2006 and again between 2010-2012. He resigned from his post after a dispute with former prime minister Nouri al-Maliki.

Parliament is expected to put his candidacy to a vote in the next session, after which point he has 30 days to formulate a government programme and select a cabinet of ministers.

According to the constitution, a replacement for Mr Abdul-Mahdi should have been identified 15 days after his resignation in early December.

Instead, it has taken rival blocs nearly two months of jockeying to select Mr Allawi as their consensus candidate.

Mr Abdul-Mahdis rise to power was the product of a provisional alliance between parliaments two main blocs  Sairoon, led by cleric Muqtada al-Sadr, and Fatah, which includes leaders associated with the paramilitary Popular Mobilisation Units headed by Hadi al-Amiri.
ABU DIS, West BankLike a monument to dashed hopes, an unfinished Palestinian parliament building stands derelict on a ridge in Abu Dis, an unimposing West Bank suburb of Jerusalem that the administration of President Donald Trump has proposed as the capital of a future Palestinian state.

A symbol of the possibilities of sovereignty when it was begun in the mid-1990s, the parliament was supposed to have a clear line of sight to the glimmering domes of the revered al-Aqsa Mosque compound in Jerusalems Old City, barely 2 1/2 miles away as the crow flies. Today it backs onto a hulking, razor wire-topped concrete wall, a section of Israels security barrier that went up in 2005, isolating wingless creatures in Abu Dis from Jerusalem and its holy sites.

Days after the rollout of the long-awaited Trump plan for resolving the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, which strongly favoured Israel and disregarded most Palestinian claims, there was little sense of gathering majesty or of Palestinian control here in Abu Dis.

U.S. administrations have tried repeatedly over decades to mediate a peace agreement between Israel and the Palestinians on far more even-handed terms than the current proposal. But nothing epitomizes the asymmetry more than how it addresses a Palestinian capital.

Palestinians have long aspired to an independent state with East Jerusalem as its capital, but the proposal does away with the long-held notion that the two sides would negotiate the citys future.

Instead, it gives all the desirable parts of Jerusalem to Israel and proposes a group of obscure, outlying areas of the city as the closest thing to a capital in Jerusalem that the Palestinians should ever get. It offers Palestinians the tiny, crowded Abu Dis, along with troubled faraway neighbourhoods technically in East Jerusalem but also on the other side of the security barrier.

In broad terms, the Trump administration plan would give Israel overall military control from the Jordan River to the Mediterranean Sea. It would allow Israel to annex about 30 per cent of the West Bank along with all the Jewish settlements in the territory, although most of the world considers those settlements a violation of international law.

While Israel had long been expected to hold on to some large settlement blocs in the West Bank in return for land swaps, there was also an expectation it would dismantle more isolated settlements in territory designated for a Palestinian state.

And rather than Israel annexing the strategic Jordan Valley in its entirety, previous peace proposals envisaged a special security arrangement, possibly involving third-party forces, along the border with Jordan.

In return for the concessions to Israel, the Trump plan makes the Palestinians a heavily conditional offer that stands little chance of being accepted: an entity that they could call a state made up of the Gaza Strip and several enclaves in the West Bank  pockmarked with settlements and surrounded by Israeli territory  that would be linked by roads or other transportation.

While Israel hailed the plan, the Palestinians angrily rejected it out of hand.

One of the neighbourhoods designated for the capital, the Shuafat refugee camp, is a gang-ridden slum where the Palestinian police have no jurisdiction and the Israeli police fear to tread. Another, Kufr Aqab, became a Wild West of unregulated and unsafe construction when Israeli policies and sky-high housing prices drove middle-class Arabs to seek homes beyond the security barrier but still inside the Jerusalem municipality.

And then there is Abu Dis, the hilly home of Al-Quds University, which opened in the 1980s when the village was just a 10-minute drive from Damascus Gate  one of the portals leading into Jerusalems Old City. Most of Abu Dis was never inside the Jerusalem city limits.

How can this be a capital? asked Ahmed Bader, 25, incredulously. He had come in a small truck to collect garbage from a patch of wasteland behind the parliament building. Children rode horses bareback in an adjacent alley.

Jerusalem has the Aqsa mosque, the churches, business, places to work, he continued. What do we have here, in our little town? If I stop my little Vespa in the main street to speak on the phone, cars pile up behind and cant get past me!

When the Palestinians say they want Jerusalem as their capital, they do not mean suburbs like Abu Dis or areas like Shuafat and Kufr Aqab.

Shuafat and Kufr Aqab are part of territory that the Israelis annexed to Jerusalem in 1967, in the heady days after their victory in the Six-Day War.

Jerusalem is the old walled city. The rest is not Jerusalem, said Nazmi Jubeh, an archeologist and historian who runs the Birzeit University Museum in the West Bank. We mean by Jerusalem  and I think everybody around the world means  the holy sites. This game of playing with words has no meaning at all.

In myriad ways, the Trump plan seemed to reward the Israelis and punish the Palestinians for what each has considered the others bad behaviour.

The Israelis relentlessly created facts on the ground, like settlements in the heart of the West Bank aimed at preventing a Palestinian state from coming together. The Palestinians repeatedly resorted to violence, even after Israeli withdrawals, which led Israel to expand its security presence at the Palestinians expense and to insist on never uprooting its people again.

In its conceptual map of a Palestinian state, the Trump plan did not even mark the location of a capital, although the document did suggest calling it Al-Quds, the Arabic name for Jerusalem.

It did mark Jerusalem  in Israeli territory.

The Americans determined that Israel should remain sovereign over all parts of Jerusalem, including the ancient holy sites that are inside the security barrier built in the early 2000s after a spate of Palestinian suicide bombings.

At least 120,000 Palestinians live beyond the barrier but still inside the Jerusalem city limits so they can cling to their Jerusalem residency cards, which allow them to work and travel inside Israel. Under the American plan, they would find themselves living in Palestine.

(Inside the barrier, the plan says, the approximately 200,000 Palestinians would get the choice of becoming citizens of Palestine or of Israel, or of maintaining the in-between residency status that most of them have today.)

As a purely geographical matter, the Palestinian capital would be fragmented across several neighbourhoods that are miles apart from one another, separated by Israeli communities and major roads, and share little in common. It is not unlike cobbling together a new city from parts of Teaneck, New Jersey; Queens; and the South Bronx.

The Trump plan promises to manage the feat with new roads, tunnels or bridges.

If you know these areas, you know theyre just making a joke of you and your national aspiration, said Jubeh. A capital is a symbol, he added. These areas are not a symbol for anybody.

Indeed, the Palestinians are denied even a symbolic toehold in or near the ancient heart of the city. But Israel gets rid of its only refugee camp and of the violent outland it has become.

In carving off Shuafat, the Trump plan completes what the Israelis first tried to do when they built the security barrier, said Danny Seidemann, an expert on the geography and political history of Jerusalem who is a harsh critic of the Trump plan. It would correct what he said was a mistake in hastily drawing the city boundaries in 1967.

The refugee camp had been a hot spot of violence for years, he said. So the decision was made to build the security wall inside the city in order to cut them out, Seidemann said.

In the Shuafat camp Thursday, residents laughed at the idea of making their neighbourhood a Palestinian showpiece. Water and sewer services in the camp are unreliable at best; the streets contain potholes big enough to lose much of a car.

Its a ghost city, not a capital, said Muhammad Inbawi, 30. Its chaos here. At night, were ruled by the gangsters. What kind of capital is that? Is Trump sane?

The place is not so safe by day, either: As Inbawi spoke, a fog was billowing down the street. It was tear gas fired by Israeli security forces. Crowds of children in school uniforms broke into a run to get away.

Seeing a girl struggling to withstand the effects of the acrid cloud, Inbawi shouted at no one in particular, You dont throw stones when school is letting out!

Abu Dis, which started out as a sleepy village, now has about 13,000 residents in less than 2 square miles. It consists of a single main street and higgledy-piggledy alleys shooting off at strange angles.

We love it, said Safia, 35, an English teacher who would provide only her first name for fear of repercussions from the authorities. But she added, Like all Palestinians, I refuse what we call the American-Israeli agreement to take Jerusalem.

She last visited Jerusalem three years ago to pray during the holy month of Ramadan, a visit that required a special permit from the Israeli authorities.

Tareq Bader, 22, who works in a car accessory store, was last in Jerusalem about 10 years ago. Its so close, he said, but difficult to get to.

But he hasnt lost faith.

Trump promised Jerusalem to the Jews, he said. God promised it to us, and God is greater than Trump.

Read more about:
The woman's actions caused chaos in Manhattan (File pic): Getty

A homeless woman left a trail of destruction in her wake after stealing three cars, flipping one, and crashing into more than a dozen others during a carjacking spree through the streets of Manhattan.

The Friday night crime spree saw Aludein Marks, 25, allegedly carjack three different vehicles and driving through the city while drunk and on drugs.

While the incident only caused minor injuries, it snarled traffic in the heart of the city.

Marks, from the Bronx, has been charged with multiple counts of robbery, grand larceny, driving while intoxicated and operating a motor vehicle while impaired by drugs.

The incident started to unfold at around 7pm near Fifth Avenue and 74th street, when Marks allegedly ordered a motorist out of a Mercedes Benz sedan.

She then hit a vehicle around 68th street and York Avenue, police say, before she made her way south on FDR Drive.

She allegedly dumped the stolen sedan and then carjacked a Mercedes SUV, crashing that vehicle into a car around 34th Street.

Marks is accused of then abandoning the SUV after it flipped over, and forcefully removing the occupants of a Toyota Camry.

Police said she slammed into 15 vehicles with that vehicle as she made her way downtown.

She was finally arrested after crashing into a barrier close to City Hall and taken to a local hospital for observation.

Read more

Carjackers posing as police to stop motorists before stealing cars
With coyote attacks on humans in cities and suburbs making headlines  coyotes injured two people in Chicago earlier this month  officials could tap into a data repository to get a better handle on whats bringing the area's animals into such close proximity to humans.

Called eMammal, the tool has been around for several years in one form or another and has helped researchers manage camera-trapping projects. It uses a data pipeline that takes images and metadata from the field through a cloud-based review processes and into SIdora, a Smithsonian Institution data repository. To date, eMammal has data on more than 1 million detections of wildlife worldwide, including in cities.

Smithsonian researchers collaborated with others at the North Carolina Museum of Natural Sciences, Conservation International and the Wildlife Conservation Society to develop an open standard for camera trap metadata -- the Camera Trap Metadata Standard -- as part of the eMammal project. Camera traps are ruggedized cameras that researchers place in forests, jungles, grasslands, cities and elsewhere to capture images of mammals. Those images are then tagged with metadata and added to the eMammal website, where anyone can use the data to better understand trends, such as coyotes migration.

Wildlife Insights: Camera Trap Data Network, a collaboration among the four organizations, updates and maintains the data standard, and provides application programming interfaces for sharing and accessing the data.

EMammal works like this: Researchers uploads the video from a camera trap to a desktop application that forces them to use the standard metadata structure. The researchers manually enter the metadata such as species type, camera type, latitude and longitude of the camera trap as well as the date and time of the image capture. Next, the metadata and images go to the cloud -- currently, eMammal uses Amazon Web Services but is moving to Microsoft Azure -- where an expert reviews the information for accuracy before adding it to the repository, where it becomes publicly accessible.

EMammal is based on a distributed network of contributors working on different projects and adding their data to the cloud, according Bill McShea, eMammal lead and wildlife ecologist at the Smithsonian Institutions National Zoo and Conservation Biology Institute.

One current eMammal project is called Snapshot USA. Researchers nationwide use the tool to collect data using the same protocol to get a snapshot of the mammals in all 50 states. Thats my dream for something like eMammal because Im very jealous of the bird community," which has thousands of birdwatchers collecting data in the same way and putting it into the same system, Shea said. They can "look at changes over time in bird populations and changes in migratory patterns through their volunteer network, he said. Theyre able to tell a lot about how bird populations are doing in North America. We have nothing like for mammals.

Last September and October, 109 co-operators collected mammal data and submitted it to eMammal, where its currently in the review stage.

EMammal grew out of Smithsonian WILD! (SI Wild), a collection of wildlife images from institution projects that shared basic information such as species and country where the image was taken.

We wanted to turn that more into a data repository, something that is the equivalent of the museum specimens that everybody knows the Smithsonian for, Shea said. If you can take an image and add metadata to it of the person that got the image, the camera they used, the location, the time, the date, the species, then it becomes like the museum specimens," he said. "That allows you to be much more current with tracking biodiversity and a lot more ubiquitous. Rather than the Smithsonian mounting an expedition to someplace and collecting specimens and bringing them back, you can have a whole bunch of people out there setting up cameras and sending back stuff continuously.

Wildlife Insights, an online portal launched in December, is designed to help wildlife managers around the world identify wildlife from camera traps, is applying artificial intelligence to automatically recognize and categorize image data. The organization, whose members include the Smithsonian, Google and the San Diego Supercomputer Centers, has trained models to recognize 614 species, according to its website.

Users upload camera trap data to the Google cloud where they can run AI models that filter out the blank images and classify animals by species. Those models would reduce the amount of manual work researchers have to do with the metadata, and eventually eMammal could be rolled into Wildlife Insights, Shea said.

Weve built an API to move people and their data into eMammal and it moves over to Wildlife Insights on a daily basis. Eventually maybe well be simply a piece inside of Wildlife Insights, he said, adding that sensors on the cameras also hold promise for additional data collection. For example, acoustic sensors can detect bats, which would broaden the suite of species the repository includes.

AI is also being tested on data from the Penguin Watch Project, which taps volunteers to help count penguins in Antarctica from aerial photos taken from drones and planes. A newly developed solution could enable researchers to use computer vision to count penguin populations faster and more accurately.

Data science company Gramener began with data from Zooniverses Penguin Watch tool, which consisted of penguin camera trap images that had been manually tagged by volunteers who indicated where penguins were in the image, according to a report on Datanami. The tagged data  nearly 50,000 images  was fed into a deep learning model based on Microsofts Deep learning ecosystem to solve the problem of accurately counting the penguins.

The approach used a density-based counting method to estimate the numbers of penguins within a given group in an image. The results were validated on another dataset of 8,000 images, and eventually, it will give researchers a faster, more reliable, accurate and economical way to count penguins, the company said on its blog.
Our directory features more than 18 million business listings from across the entire US. However, if we're missing your business, add your business by clicking on Add Your Business.
By ANI

NEW DELHI: Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman on Saturday hailed the Goods and Services Tax (GST), saying that the new tax regime has resulted in efficiency gains in the transport and logistics sector.

"GST has resulted in efficiency gains in the transport and logistics sector. Inspector Raj has vanished. It has benefitted MSME. Consumers have got an annual benefit of Rs 1 lakh crore by GST," Sitharaman said while presenting Union Budget 2020-21 in the Lok Sabha.

Stating that the Budget 2020-21 is to boost the income of people and enhance their purchasing power, she said: "Our people should be gainfully employed. Our businesses should be healthy, for all minorities, women and people from SCs and STs. This Budget aims to fulfil their aspirations."

"With renewed vigour, under PM's leadership, we commit ourselves to present the people of India with all humility and dedication. People have reposed faith in our economic policy," she added.

It is worth mention the gross GST collection in the month of January this year has been pegged at Rs 1,10,828 crore of which Central GST (CGST) is Rs 20,944 crore, State GST (SGST) is Rs 28,224 crore, Integrated GST (IGST) is Rs 53,013 crore including Rs 23,481 crore collected on imports, and cess is Rs 8,637 crore including Rs 824 crore collected on imports.

BUDGET LIVE | Nirmala Sitharaman unveils three themes for year ahead

According to the Union Finance Ministry, GST revenue collection for January 2020 stands second-highest monthly collection since the implementation of the new tax regime. The total number of GSTR 3B Returns filed for the month of December up to January 2020 is 83 lakh (provisional).

According to the ministry, the government has settled Rs 24,730 crore to CGST and Rs 18,199 crore to SGST from the IGST as regular settlement. The total revenue earned by the Central and the State governments after regular settlement in the month of January 2020 is Rs 45,674 crore for CGST and Rs 46,433 crore for the SGST.

The GST revenues during January 2020 from domestic transactions have shown an impressive growth of 12 per cent over the revenue during January 2019. Taking into account the IGST collected from imports of goods, the total revenue during January 2020 has increased by 8 per cent in comparison to the revenue during January 2019.

During this month, the IGST on import of goods has shown a negative growth of minus 3 per cent as compared to January 2019. This is the only second time since the introduction of GST that the monthly revenues have crossed Rs 1.1 lakh crore.
Washington's peace envoy has traveled to Pakistan to boost regional support for reducing violence in Afghanistan ahead of a final deal to end America's longest war, even as new US air force statistics show the United States dropped more bombs on Afghanistan last year than any year since 2013.

In a statement Saturday, the US Embassy in Islamabad said American peace envoy Zalmay Khalilzad was in Pakistan the previous day to rally support for getting an agreement with the Taliban to reduce their attacks, as a first step toward a peace agreement to end 18 years of war in neighbouring Afghanistan.

Pakistan's foreign ministry, following a series of meetings with Khalilzad on Friday, said it supported a quick peace deal with the Taliban and repeated Washington's call for a reduction in violence.

But the violence on the side of Afghan government forces and its US allies has also raised concerns.

Stepped up bombings by the United States and operations by CIA-trained Afghan special forces -- several of which have resulted in civilian casualties -- have been sharply criticised by human rights groups, some Afghan officials and even resulted in the sacking of Afghanistan's intelligence chief.

Increasing US air attacks began in 2018 and have led to higher death tolls in the conflict.

In 2019, the US Air Force dropped 7,423 bombs on Afghanistan, up slightly from 2018 when it dropped 7,362 bombs on the war-shattered country, according to statistics from the US Central Command Combined Air Operations Center.

This compares to a far lower 4,361 bombs dropped in 2017 and 1,337 in 2016, according to their statistics.

The US military statistics said that its air force carried out a total of 2,434 sorties last year, in which at least one bomb or strike was carried out on Afghanistan.

The United Nations has blamed the increased US bombing, at least in part, for a rise in civilian casualties in Afghanistan.

For the first time since the US-led invasion in 2001, the UN said that Afghan government forces and its US allies killed more civilians in the first three months of last year than insurgents.

The UN also points out that insurgent bombings and attacks wounded more civilians during the same period and almost daily the Taliban targeted military and government officials.

The militants now control or hold sway over nearly half of Afghanistan. The UN has called for all sides in the protracted conflict to take better care to avoid civilian casualties.

The most recent airstrike to raise hackles in Afghanistan occurred overnight on Friday when a family of six, including a child, were killed in a northern province.

The US military initially said the airstrike in Kunduz killed three Taliban and destroyed a cache of weapons.

US officials have since said the strike is under investigation, in reply to queries from The Associated Press.

"We are aware of the reports of civilian casualties reported to have occurred in Dasht-e-Archi district or Imam Sahib district, Kunduz Province, on Jan. 30," a US military statement said.

"We are looking into these reports and will provide more information when it becomes available."



Family members and local officials said the dead were all civilians, including an infant child.

The family killed were relatives of Gulbuddin Hekmatyar, who was an anti-government insurgent before signing a peace agreement with Afghan President Ashraf Ghani.

He is now a politician headquartered in Kabul, and was a candidate in last September's presidential race.

In 2016 when Hekmatyar signed the peace deal, it was hoped it'd be a blueprint for a peace deal with the Taliban.

His son, Adbulrahman Hekmatyar, said the dead were two uncles, their wives and an infant who were returning from a funeral in the Dasht-e-Archi district, an area largely under Taliban control.

In a tweet on Friday, former president Hamid Karzai condemned the airstrike saying: "the bombings of our homes and villages is an injustice against our people & a violation of our national sovereignty."



He called for "the end to all military operations in our country."Earlier the Taliban said they offered Khalilzad a 10-day cease-fire window in which to sign a peace agreement that would be followed by intra-Afghan negotiations.

Khalilzad was appointed by the White House in 2018 to find a negotiated end to Afghanistan's war that would allow the United States to bring home its estimated 13,000 soldiers and end its longest military engagement.

He has held multiple rounds of talks with the Taliban in the Mideastern state of Qatar where the militant group maintains a political office.

Talks in recent weeks have focused on finding a way to reduce hostilities and bring both sides in the conflict to the negotiating table.

Until now the Taliban have refused to talk to Afghan President Ghani's government.

Ghani has also been unable to agree on a negotiating team with Abdullah Abdullah who is currently his partner in Afghanistan's so-called Unity Government.

Abdallah accuses the president of foiling efforts at peace by imposing new conditions on talks.

Ghani and Abdullah were the leading contenders in last September's presidential polls. The voting was mired in controversy and is still without a final result.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
Share this article Whatsapp

Facebook

Twitter

Linkedin Trevor Hunnicutt (Reuters) Fort Madison, Iowa, United States  Sat, February 1, 2020 13:45 709 7f440ff09e92db75a02bbad206200fb7 2 World #USA,#politics,Joe-Biden,Donald-Trump,coronavirus,fund Free

Democratic presidential contender Joe Biden on Friday criticized President Donald Trump for reducing US oversight of global health issues before the coronavirus outbreak in China, which has spread rapidly to several countries including the United States.

"We have, right now, a crisis with the coronavirus," said Biden, who is in Iowa campaigning before the Midwestern farm state holds Democrats' first nominating contest on Monday. "This is no time for Donald Trump's record of hysteria and xenophobia - hysterical xenophobia - and fearmongering to lead the way instead of science."

Biden said Trump had rolled back progress on global health oversight that occurred when he was vice president from 2009 to 2017.

In particular, he cited "draconian cuts" the White House proposed to the budgets of "the very agencies that we need to fight this outbreak," including the National Institutes of Health, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) and the United States Agency for International Development (USAID).

Matt Wolking, a spokesman for the Trump campaign, responded that Biden had made "foolish comments" as vice president in 2009 about avoiding airplanes during a swine flu crisis and "caused a public panic."

"In contrast, President Trump is listening to medical and scientific experts and taking every responsible precaution to protect the American people," he said.

The Trump administration declared a public health emergency on Friday and blocked foreign nationals who have traveled to China from entering the country. They also planned to impose a two-week quarantine on US citizens who have traveled within the past two weeks to China's Hubei Province, the epicenter of the coronavirus epidemic.

Still, officials insisted the risk to Americans from the flu-like illness is low. The outbreak has claimed more than 250 lives. None of the US cases have been fatal, and all but one of the patients contracted coronavirus while they were traveling in China.
Finance Minister Nirmala Sithraman on Saturday proposed to allocate Rs 2,500 crore in 2020-21 for the tourism sector and construction of eight new museums, which includes building infrastructure around 5 iconic sites.

"To make India an attractive destination for both international and domestic tourists, we propose Rs 2,500 crore in 2020-21 for the tourism sector and Rs 3,150 crore for Ministry of Culture," said Sithraman while presenting the Union Budget 2020-21 in Parliament.

Highlighting improved tourism revenues due to better ranking, the Finance Minister said, "India had moved up from rank 65 in 2014 to 34 in 2019 in the Travel and Tourism Competitive Index (World Economic Forum)."

"Due to tourism revenues foreign Exchange earnings grew 7.4 per cent to Rs 1.88 lakh crore for the period January 2019 from Rs 1.75 lakh crore," she said.

She further proposed 8 new museums, which include building infrastructure around 5 iconic sites, besides proposing the renovation of 5 major museums across the length and breadth of India.

The 5 archeological sites to be developed as iconic sites with on-site museums are situated at Rakhigarhi (Haryana), Hastinapur (Uttar Pradesh), Shivsagar (Assam), Dholavira (Gujarat) and Adichanallur (Tamil Nadu).

It also includes -- "Maritime Museum to highlight Harappan Age at Lothal, Ahmedabad, by Ministry of Shipping, Kolkata, Indian Museum: Re-curation of the oldest museum in India as announced by Prime Minister Narendra Modi in January 2020, Numismatics and Trade Museum to be located in the historic Old Mint Building, Support for setting up Tribal Museum in Ranchi (Jharkhand) and Renovation and re-curation of 4 more museums across India."

Recognising the role of states in the proposed scheme for growth and employment generation, Sitharaman said, "I expect State governments will develop a roadmap for certain identified destinations and formulate financial plans during 2021 against which specified grants will be made available to the states in 2020-21.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
Refrigerators, air conditioners (ACs) as well as imported fans will become expensive from February 2020 onwards. The basic customs duty has been increased for compressors used in ACs and refrigerators in Union Budget 2020. Duty on imported fans has also been hiked.

These changes are applicable with immediate effect. Hence, the new customs duty will be valid from February 1 itself.

The customs duty has been hiked from 10 percent to 12.5 percent for compressors in ACs and refrigerators.

"There would be a price increase in refrigerators and air-conditioners because compressor manufacturing capacity in India is limited," said Kamal Nandi, Business Head and EVP  Godrej Appliances & President  CEAMA (Consumer Electronics and Appliances Manufacturers Association).

As far as refrigerators are concerned, only LG and Godrej manufacture compressors in India. The rest of the industry imports this component from abroad. Similarly, AC compressors are majorly imported from places like China.

For ACs, this is a double whammy. AC prices are already high due to a 28 percent goods and services tax on the product.

Further, the customs duty on refrigerating equipment like freezers has also been hiked to 15 percent. However, this is only for commercial refrigerators.

The thrust by the government is to promote 'Make in India'. Hence the customs duty on a host of home appliances.

For fans, the customs duty has been hiked to 20 percent from 10 percent for all categories including table fans, ceiling fans and pedestal fans. However, this is not expected to have a big impact since a majority of fans are manufactured in India.

On one hand while the finance ministrys endeavour is to boost local manufacturing of electrical appliances, the fact is that only 30-35 percent is fully manufactured in India. The rest of the products have one or more key components being imported.

For televisions, the nil open-cell panel customs duty is applicable till September 2020. Finance minister Nirmala Sitharaman said that the government will review the rates after September. If the customs duty is hiked post that, televisions will become expensive since the open cell is what makes the television panel.
The Jaish-e-Mohammed militants who were killed in a fierce gunbattle with police near here were capable of several attacks given the amount of armoury and destructive fire power they had, CRPF Director General A P Maheshwari said on Saturday.

He said the forces have zero tolerance against terrorism and are fighting for restoration of peace and normalcy in the union territory.

A possible terror attack was averted by alert personnel of the Jammu and Kashmir Police early Friday when they intercepted a truck, being driven by the cousin of the 2019 Pulwama attack bomber, near Jammu in which the three Jaish terrorists were hiding, officials said.

Maheshwari, accompanied by Additional Director General of CRPF Zulfiqar Hasan, visited the encounter site at Nagrota and congratulated the force personnel who acted swiftly along with local policemen to neutralise the terrorists onboard the Srinagar-bound truck.

"All security agencies are doing their job with satisfaction and are proactive in their approach. We do not wait for an incident to happen but are continuously making attempts to find and neutralise them (terrorists)," the CRPF chief told reporters here.

"Anything could have happened given the amount of the armoury and the destructive power they had," Maheshwari said.

Quoting preliminary investigation, he said the militants were capable of doing several major attacks.

About terrorists using trucks to infiltrate, he said there was no laxity on the part of the security forces.

"They are committed and trying their best to prevent terrorists from sneaking. The adversary also keeps trying different ways of breaching the security grid," he said.

"We are in a conflict zone and nothing can be ruled out. We need to remain highly alert and various agencies are working together and all forces are doing their job with responsibility and dedication," the officer said.

He said the highlight of the operation was that two people, the truck driver and a helper, were caught alive so that they can be interrogated to get further leads.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
The Syrian Islamist group Jaysh al-Islam on Saturday called on France to release one of its former members days after he was arrested and charged with war crimes.

The suspect, Majdi Mustafa Nameh, was arrested on Wednesday in France and charged on Friday with torture, war crimes and complicity in forced disappearances, a French judicial source told AFP.

Nameh, also known as Islam Alloush, was the former spokesman of Jaysh al-Islam, one of several hardline Islamist groups opposed to the Damascus regime.

A prominent part of the opposition that emerged in Syria after the civil war broke out in 2011, the group fought against Islamic State group jihadists but was also accused by rights groups of abuses.

In a statement on Saturday posted on Instagram, Jaysh al-Islam demanded that Nameh be freed and charges against him dropped, saying the accusations tarnish the groups reputation.

Jaysh al-Islam said that Nameh was its former spokesman and had left the group in 2017, ending ties with it.

The group was notably suspected of involvement in the December 2013 kidnapping of prominent Syrian activist Razan Zaitouneh, her husband Wael Hamada and two colleagues, Samira Khalil and Nazem Hammadi. They have never been found.

Zaitouneh was a vociferous critic of abuses by all parties in the Syrian conflict including the regime and groups like Jaysh al-Islam.

In June last year, rights groups including the International Federation for Human Rights (FIDH) filed a criminal complaint against members of Jaysh al-Islam for crimes committed by the group.

After three years of painstaking research, they alerted French authorities in January to Namehs presence in the south of France.

The FIDH and two other groups behind the complaint alleged Nameh was involved in the forced enlistment of children in Jaysh al-Islam.

Several victims also directly incriminate him for kidnapping and torture, their statement said.




Haiti - FLASH : 170 weapons, 24 telephones, drugs and other discoveries at the National Penitentiary





Following the failure of an escape attempt at the National Penitentiary on January 28, the Chief Inspector Gary Desrosiers, Deputy spokesperson for the Haitian National Police (PNH) revealed the results of the search carried out a few days after this attempt failed.



An impressive and disturbing assessment of the detainees' cells. During these meticulous searches, the agents of the Direction of the Penitentiary Administration (DAP) of the PNH, discovered and seized in various hiding places, in particular 3 firearms, 2 pistols of caliber 9 mm and a revolver of caliber 38, ammunition of different calibers, 166 white arms (124 punches or pikes, 37 knives and 5 machetes), more than a hundred sachets of drugs and a large package of marijuana, 24 mobile phones and 33 SIM cards...



Inspector Desrosiers announced that an investigation had been opened to determine like all these prohibited items, some of which feed a vast network of traffic in the prison center (including telephone and drugs), could have ended up in the hands of the detainees.



In addition to these seizures, the search led to the discovery of numerous documents for money transfers.



The PNH deplores the fact that the regulations related to systematic cell searches are not being respected and that the detainees probably benefit from complicity inside the penitentiary, which the investigation hopes to discover so that sanctions can be taken.



The PNH, aware of these shortcomings, announces that corrective measures will be taken so that such a situation cannot happen again.



TB/ HaitiLibre


















Nevertheless, Rudolf Serkin acknowledged that he had not given his son much encouragement early on. I doubted he was talented, he said in a 1980 New York Times Magazine profile of his son. He was so full of tension when he played; I didnt realize that was his real gift. He said that having been compelled by his own father to be a musician, he was reluctant to push Peter.

At 11, Peter Serkin enrolled at the Curtis Institute in Philadelphia, where his father was teaching. (Rudolf Serkin later became the institutes director.) There he studied with the master Polish-born pianist Mieczyslaw Horszowski, who became a major influence, as well as the American virtuoso Lee Luvisi and his father.

After graduating at 18, Mr. Serkin took an apartment in New York, avidly listened to recordings by Frank Zappa and the Grateful Dead, and explored Buddhist and Hindu spiritual teachings. He found the pressure of playing in public, and simply of being a Serkin, almost crippling.

Up until then I was playing concerts largely out of compulsion, and not much new music, he said in a 1973 New York Times interview. I had just fallen into it without ever deciding for myself that it was what I wanted to do.

After his time off and restorative travels, he resumed performing with renewed satisfaction. That he had found the right balance was suggested by the success of two three-LP albums, both recorded in 1973, when he turned 26, both of which earned Grammy Award nominations.

The first offered Mozarts Piano Concerto Nos. 14-19, with Alexander Schneider conducting the English Chamber Orchestra. The performance splendidly balanced Schneiders Old World approach to Mozart with Mr. Serkins youthful, rethought playing.
A Pakistani student's emotional appeal to the its government has gone viral since they have been stuck in Wuhan, which is the epicenter of the fatal Coronavirus. The virus has claimed more than 250 lives and has spread to multiple countries around the world.

READ: WHO Declares Coronavirus Outbreak A Global Health Emergency

In the 90-second video message, the student says, "I am a Pakistani student and my name is Nadeem Habaz. I am currently in Wuhan, where more than 500 Pakistanis are stuck. Yesterday, in my University itself, Coronavirus was detected in four Pakistani students and they are in a serious condition in hospitals. Thus, we had asked the Pakistan government and the Embassy to help us or to evacuate us from here because of the situation is worsening every day. Thousands of people have already been affected by the virus and many have died as well. The virus is spreading everyday and till now, no solution has been found. Hence, I once again want to make a request to kindly rescue us."

He then went on to narrate that the students had already approached the authorities, and were redirected to the Chinese government. "First, you told us to cooperate with the Chinese government. Yes, we are cooperating. But now, our University has sent us an email that we can leave China. So please, take some action and do something for us. Otherwise, we will die here. Our parents and our relatives are waiting for us in Pakistan. So please, take any step," the student added.

READ: Health Minister Harsh Vardhan Reviews Measures To Tackle Novel Coronavirus

The video is the second such recorded message that highlights that Imran Khan's government has failed to take any action to help the students who are grounded.

The WHO recently declared the Coronavirus outbreak as a global public emergency. The Director-General of WHO, Dr. Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, on Thursday, said, "The vast majority of cases outside China have a travel history to Wuhan, or contact with someone with a travel history to Wuhan. We dont know what sort of damage this 2019nCoV virus could do if it were to spread in a country with a weaker health system. We must act now to help countries prepare for that possibility. For all of these reasons, I am declaring a public health emergency of international concern over the global outbreak of 2019nCoV."

READ: Suspected Coronavirus Patient At AIIMS, Rishikesh Tests Negative

READ: Hindu Mahasabha Recommends 'miraculous' Treatment To Combat Deadly Coronavirus
The Republican-led US Senate blocked the Democrats attempt to for more witnesses and evidence in the ongoing trial of President Donald Trump in party-line vote on Friday setting up his acquittal, which had been a foregone outcome, in a final vote on the articles of impeachment on Wednesday.

The resolution was defeated 49-51, with Democrats failing to break away two more Republicans in the 100-member body. Republicans hold the 100-member Senate in a 53-47 majority. Democrats tried one more time on Friday evening, but were thwarted again, leaving them staring at defeat.

Charles Schumer, the top Democrat in the Senate, slammed the outcome as one of the worst tragedies and told reporters, Americans will know that this trial was not a real trial. It had no witnesses, no documents  and that it is a tragedy on a very large scale.

President Trump, who has been railing against the trial in tweets and remarks, accused Democrats of scamming the country as the Senate moved towards the vote. The Radical Left, Do Nothing Democrats keep chanting fairness, when they put on the most unfair Witch Hunt in the history of the U.S. Congress.

The White House had wanted an earlier vote so the president could have touted being vindicated in his annual state of the union address scheduled for Tuesday. Republican leaders couldnt deliver, however, because their own senators wanted more time for discussions.

But the defeat of resolution, albeit narrowly, moved by Democrats to call former National Security Adviser John Bolton and Chief of Staff Mick Mulvaney as witnesses and to seek more evidence demonstrated Republican caucus was not abandoning their president, despite the defection of a few.

The most anticipated of the Friday votes fell 49-51, with only two Republicans, Senators Mitt Romney and Susan Collins, voting in support of calling more witnesses.

The final Senate vote is now set for 4 pm (2:30 am in India) on Wednesday. Senators will make speeches until then, starting Monday, to explain their vote, and their reasons.

Trumps acquittal had been a foregone outcome, with 67 votes needed to convict him and remove from office. And there was no way Democrats could persuade 20 Republicans to vote to convict the president. They had hoped to win over some more with fresh evidence, specially the explosive new information coming from the manuscript of Boltons upcoming book in which he has claimed to have been told personally by Trump to pressure Ukraine to investigate his political rivals.

Trump was impeached last December by the House of Representatives for abusing the powers of his office to coerce Ukraine to investigate his rivals by withholding military aid and a White House meeting and obstructing congress. The Senate was to determine whether or not he should also be removed from office.
A passenger on board the Maasdam has reported that the cruise ship arrived into Tauranga this morning on only one engine.

We limped into Tauranga harbour, running on only one propulsion engine on the starboard side, says the passenger.

The cycle converter which controls both engines has decided to not work so they are flying a guy in from overseas who designed it, to fix it when we reach Auckland.

In the meantime we missed the Gisborne stop and were at sea a day and a night to get to Tauranga.

Its been a great trip apart than that happening. We went up to Norfolk Island, the Bay of Islands, New Plymouth, Nelson, Kaikoura, Akaroa, Wellington and Napier. And just missed Gisborne, says the passenger who lives in the Bay of Plenty.

Some Americans and Canadians weren't happy as they were worried that they would miss connecting flights, but were on schedule to arrive back up in Auckland tomorrow.

They were pretty straightforward with everything and explained what was going on. The captain did a talk in the show room explaining what had gone wrong.

It is understood that the Maasdams propulsion system is diesel electric engines with two traditional propellers, using diesel fuel generators to produce power to run the ships twin screws. To produce enough electricity to spin the screw-shafts fast enough to maintain its maximum speed of 22 knots as well as provide power for all on-board systems including lights, air-conditioning and hair-dryers requires all five diesel generators to be running. With four generators, speed would need to drop back to around 15-16 knots to maintain power to other systems.

The Maasdam is part of the Holland America Line which also runs the Amsterdam, Eurodam, Oosterdam, Rotterdam and other vessels.

Video: Holland America Rotterdam engine room - 'Inside a cruise ship'

A spokesperson for the Port of Tauranga says they have no comment to make about the Maasdam, apart from that it arrived into port this morning and will be departing this evening as per the cruise ship schedule.

The Celebrity Solstice is also here and will be staying overnight.

The Maasdam is due to depart Tauranga at 7.30pm today.
Morgan Voyageur was about 20 feet out on the ice of the Riviere des Rochers in early January when he heard the cracking sound beneath him and his snowmobile.

He stopped and waved at his co-workers, warning them not to go any further, then started to head for shore. Thats when he fell in.

In a matter of three seconds, I was up to my chest in water and holding onto a sheet of ice, said Voyageur. Then his training kicked in.

He held on and kicked until his torso was on top of the sheet of ice. Then he rolled himself away from the hole. A few feet away, he stood up, began running and didnt stop until he was safely back on the shore.

Earlier in the day, a group of children were driving snowmobiles across the very same patch of ice, Voyageur said.

Residents like Voyageur and community leaders say climate change, hydroelectric damming and the nearby oilsands are to blame for the weakening of their ice year after year. The traditional way of life  including trapping, hunting and fishing  is becoming more difficult year-round for the local Indigenous people, throwing the future of Fort Chipewyan and its residents into uncertainty.

For the past six years, Voyageur has been part of the Athabasca Chipewyan First Nation (ACFN) ice monitoring team responsible for checking the ice on Lake Athabasca and the Riviere des Rochers, gathering data and posting updates for the community.

Over the years, he said hes noticed the water getting warmer, the ice getting thinner and the lake freezing over later.

Where the usual crossing is, now theres open water.

***

Every year, around the middle of December, a winter road of ice forms a link between Fort Chipewyan and the rest of Alberta, carving over frozen marshes and rivers.

The winter roads last crossing before reaching the small town is over the Riviere des Rochers, near where the river joins the lake, right where Voyageur fell in.

The small northern Alberta community, home to around a thousand people, is on the western point of Lake Athabasca, where the lake flows into the northward-bound Riviere des Rochers. Established as a fur trading post in 1788, the town is home to the Mikisew Cree and Athabasca Chipewyan First Nations, as well as the Fort Chipewyan Metis Local 125.

Fort Chipewyan residents drive on the ice road for between three and four months, visiting family in Fort McMurray or Edmonton. The rest of the year, they have to take an airplane.

This year, the road opened slightly later than normal, on Dec. 19. Its also 22 kilometres longer than usual, because the des Rochers river crossing had to be moved eight kilometres down after a van went through the ice, according to Kendrick Cardinal, the new vice-president of Local 125.

On Lake Athabasca, open water is clearly visible from the town. At this time of year, its usually frozen.

Candace Voyageur has spent the last 15 years of her life in Fort Chipewyan. She said she arranges medical appointments during the winter so that she can drive to Fort McMurray or Edmonton using the ice road, because flying out with her children is too expensive.

The opening of the ice road this winter is the latest shed ever seen it. Over the years, what was once a long, reliably cold winter has become marked by fluctuations in temperature, she said, and its causing concern in the community.

Youre so used to just hopping in your vehicle and taking off whenever you want  now, things are so uncertain, she said.

The road is currently open for light traffic up to 5,000 kilograms.

Chief Allan Adam of the Athabasca Chipewyan First Nation said that if the road doesnt open for heavier traffic soon, the community will be in a state of emergency.

Tankers that carry in enough diesel to last Fort Chipewyan until next winter require a load limit of 45,000 kilograms. Fort Chipewyan is not on the electrical grid, so the diesel carried into town is used to keep everything going and to heat and power residents homes.

***

On Jan. 7, the day Morgan Voyageur fell through the ice, Adam put out a news release about the incident, warning it was a sign of things to come.

Indigenous communities in the Peace Athabasca Delta have long warned about the culmination of high water levels from the (W.A.C. Bennett Dam), unknown substances being emitted into the water by industry and unpredictable weather patterns from climate change. The result is that even in the coldest time of the year, traditional travel routes that have been utilized for millennia are no longer safe, the release read.

Adam and Cardinal agree that climate change is a major cause of the problems with the ice around Fort Chipewyan. Adam said this year, which has been particularly warm, illustrates what has been going on for years.

On Jan. 26, Cardinal posted a video to Facebook that has been viewed by thousands. In the video, hes driving his snowmobile on the frozen part of the lake.

Ahead of him theres snow, then open water. A small motor boat is speeding along just a few feet away from where the white ice disappears in large, triangular chunks into the dark water. January 26! Boating on Lake Athabasca! Cardinal shouts with a laugh. The boys are cruisin!

Its been almost a decade since Scott Stephenson and his colleagues at the University of California published their research about the effects of climate change on ice roads, attempting to project the effects into the year 2050.

Stephenson said their modelling showed that by 2050, areas that were previously suitable for building winter roads no longer would be; and whats happening around Fort Chipewyan shows that the modelling was correct.

If anything, our climate models have been broadly conservative in the sense that they havent projected enough climate change, he said.

The Peace River, which converges with the Athabasca River into Lake Athabasca, was first dammed in 1968. Research shows that the damming essentially reversed the natural cycle of the water: Where there had once been high water in summer and low water in winter, the opposite became true.

Both Morgan Voyageur and Chief Adam agree that the water around Fort Chipewyan has never been the same since the dam was created  especially since the sinkholes appeared.

In 1996, two sinkholes were discovered in the dam. To reduce risk of the dam breaking, its reservoir was lowered by releasing some of the water. This caused water levels downstream to rise and tore the winter road apart, according to Adam. The community had to call upon the government to deliver fuel by air, because the ice road couldnt handle heavier loads, just like this year.

Before the dams waters were released, Voyageur said there were at least four feet of ice in front of his familys cabin on the Athabasca River every year. Now, theyre lucky if they get a foot and a half.

Adam said higher, warmer waters as a result of the dam and climate change have made the ice unreliable.

If the water is warm from underneath and if its running at a swift pace, no matter how much ice you make on top, its going to eat it out from the bottom, he said. Its just going to get worse from here  we shouldnt be going through this scenario, but unfortunately we are.

In an emailed response to a request for comment, a BC Hydro spokesperson said the company believes that climate change is playing a stronger role than the W.A.C. Bennett Dam in the changes in the Peace Athabasca Delta water levels, citing a recent University of Waterloo study. They said BC Hydro is committed to working with Indigenous communities and has been consulting local First Nations and reviewing studies on downstream effects since 2007 in preparation for the controversial Site C Dam.

In 2017, the ice on the lake broke up in April  much earlier than normal at the time  and four trappers took a boat out onto the lake. Adam said they hit a chunk of ice and drowned.

Candace Voyageur said the accident left a big sore in the community.

It definitely rocked the whole community, and a lot of people are still being affected by it, she said, adding that the loss has made people more cautious of the ice, and more aware of the changing climate.

***

Its not just the ice thats changing. Its also the water, and whats in it.

Around 20 years ago, elder Raymond Ladouceur started catching fish that were deformed.

All species, even the jackfish, the northern pike, and then pickerel. Theres whitefish Ive seen deformed, humpback, crooked tails, bulged-out eyes on their head, my goodness sake.

Locals, including Ladouceur, blame the deformities on pollution from the oilsands. Many have started fishing elsewhere. In 2014, a report found that oilsands pollution was linked to higher cancer rates in Fort Chipewyan, especially in those eating locally caught fish.

To Cardinal, it feels like the oilsands are creeping closer and closer to Fort Chipewyan. The nearest project is Fort Hills, he said, around 150 kilometres upstream. And if approved, the controversial Teck Frontier Mine would be around 110 kilometres south of the town.

Ladouceur, a Metis elder whos almost 78 years old, has lived just outside Fort Chipewyan all his life. Hes been trapping, hunting and fishing using the knowledge passed down to him by his father Frank, who was the subject of a 1975 National Film Board documentary. Frank received the knowledge from his father, Modeste.

Ladouceur remembers catching five or six thousand muskrats each season in the 1960s. But since the 90s, hes hardly caught any. Birds like geese and ducks avoid the area, too, he said, and even the moose are becoming more scarce.

The open water that is clearly visible from the shores of Lake Athabasca this year illustrates what Ladouceur has known for a long time.

The whole delta is destroyed, he said. Everything is just going down, going down the drain.

Chief Adam said there has been talk of creating a year-round road to offset the increasingly unreliable winter one.

Its either that, or build a new community thats accessible by road, he said. Its an extreme measure, but one Cardinal says hes considered as well.

The times are ever changing, said Adam. Its getting harder and harder, and peoples lives are coming into play now.

***

For Ladouceur, the land Fort Chipewyan is built on is everything.

I love the land, because I was born out there, he said. (The) land is my world.

Ladouceur said the changes in the ice have caused unease in the community.

We used to trust the ice, you know?

With the loss of the ice comes the loss of something else: Ladouceurs knowledge, the thousands of years of history that his father passed along to him. What Ladouceur knows about his land no longer really applies to the world in which his grandchildren live.

Theres nothing out there to teach them, he said. It feels pretty bad. I feel pretty bad.

Morgan Voyageur has been teaching his son Sabian, now 15, everything he knows about trapping and fishing. But even in Sabians lifetime, so much has changed. In December, the pair were following moose tracks in the backwoods when Morgan fell through the ice into about three feet of water. This was just a few weeks before his big fall into the river.

Before this winter, hed only fallen through the ice once in his life.

The ice isnt breaking like it used to, he explained. It used to break off in the springtime in big chunks, which would dam up the river, causing flooding in small basins where birds and muskrats would gather. Now the ice just rots away, crumbling from beneath. It looks solid, but breaks when stepped on.

Im going through places that Im not supposed to be going through, he said. Ive travelled these places all my life and Ive never seen it like that.

He knows that Sabian, his right-hand man, might not get to use his communitys knowledge for much longer.

It breaks my heart  its getting to a point where its kind of scary to practice that traditional knowledge, he said.

It just saddens me that were gonna one day lose our culture.

With files from The Canadian Press

Correction - Feb. 1, 2020 : An earlier version of this article mistakenly called the Athabasca Chipewyan First Nation the Athabasca Cree First Nation. The article has been updated to reflect this.

Read more about:
The government through this Budget laid importance on the need to build trust with its stakeholders. The first level of trust building has been through more realistic projections on the government finances and assuming a nominal growth rate of GDP of 10 per cent.

While the deficit estimates have been breached, the government has not abandoned the path to fiscal prudence and has limited the breach to 0.5 per cent that is as per FRBM provisions. The government is committed towards addressing the apprehensions around doing business in India. Inclusion of a Charter for Tax Payers in ...
Ted Cruz appeared to mock Nancy Pelosi's infamous hand clap on the floor of the Senate Friday after 51 Republicans voted against calling witnesses in President Trump's impeachment trial - effectively ending Democrats' attempts to remove him from office.

The Texas senator, 49, was seen mimicking the clap as he spoke with other Republicans, including Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell, before the vote was called around 5 pm.

Last year, Speaker Pelosi 'condescendingly' clapped her hands at President Trump following his State Of The Union address - a move which sparked international headlines and a flurry of memes.

On Friday, Cruz's imitation of the distinct gesture quickly went viral on Twitter, where it divided users.

Some supporters called the clap 'hilarious' and 'awesome', while one detractor claimed that the moment was unbecoming of a senator during such a somber proceeding.

Ted Cruz appeared to mock Nancy Pelosi's infamous handclap on the floor of the Senate Friday, after 51 Republican senators voted against calling witnesses in President Trump's impeachment trial - effectively ending Democrat's attempts to remove him from office

Later in the evening, a gleeful Cruz appeared on Fox News to gloat about Republicans successfully blocking the Democrat's attempts to call witnesses. Senators voted 49-51, despite a bombshell revelation by former National Security Advisor John Bolton just hours earlier.

'For all intents and purposes, this impeachment process is over,' he declared, before claiming the Democrats were hoping to 'drag the process out' and 'go on a fishing expedition' for non-existent evidence.

He further hailed his Republican colleagues for largely falling in line by refusing to deny witnesses to be questioned in the Senate.

Only two Republicans, Mitt Romney and Susan Collins, crossed the aisle to join Democrats in their push for witnesses  but it was not enough to prevail.

The Senate's TV footage showed the moment that the Democrats lost

Trump boarded Air Force One for a weekend trip to Mar-a-Lago after he blasted impeachment as the 'most unfair Witch Hunt in the history of the U.S.'

Mitch McConnell and his chief of staff Sharon Soderstrom head for a caucus meeting after the vote

The Democratic defeat came even as new revelations emerged Friday morning from a manuscript by Bolton, who claims President Trump told him to contact the president of Ukraine as part of a push to get investigations of the Bidens.

'Americans will know that this trial was not a real trial,' said Sen. Charles Schumer immediately after the vote, calling it a tragedy on a very large scale.

Schumer called it a 'perfidy, a grand tragedy, one of the worst tragedies that the Senate has ever overcome. America will remember this day, unfortunately, where the Senate did not live up to its responsibilities ... and went along with a sham trial.'

Loss: Kamala Harris, the California Democrat and failed 2020 candidate, left the Senate chamber after the vote looking angry

Utah Republican Mitt Romney and Maine Republican Susan Collins each voted 'aye' and voted for witnesses on the key vote. Both had indicated they wanted to hear from Bolton.

But it wasn't enough. Two other key Republicans, Lisa Murkowski of Alaska and Lamar Alexander of Tennessee, opted to oppose calling witnesses  which Trump's lawyers could lead to weeks of additional time, with uncertain consequences. That left the Senate GOP majority, which Sen. Mitch McConnell oversees with close White House coordination, in the driver's seat.

Trump was en route to his Mar-a-Lago property in West Palm Beach, Florida, when the vote came down.

Earlier he tweeted: 'The Radical Left, Do Nothing Democrats keep chanting 'fairness', when they put on the most unfair Witch Hunt in the history of the U.S. Congress. They had 17 Witnesses, we were allowed ZERO, and no lawyers. They didn't do their job, had no case. The Dems are scamming America!'
The UK's divorce from the European Union (EU) came into force on Friday night as it became the first country to exit the economic bloc after 47 years of membership following the vote in favour of Brexit in June 2016.

British Prime Minister Boris Johnson hailed the historic moment as the dawn of a new era for the UK in his address to the nation just before Brexit.

Brexit came into force at 11:00 pm (2300 GMT).

"This is the moment when the dawn breaks and the curtain goes up on a new act in our great national drama," said Johnson, in his video message which promised hope and opportunity to every part of the United Kingdom.

"It is not just about some legal extrication. It is potentially a moment of real national renewal and change. This is the dawn of a new era in which we no longer accept that your life chances -- your family's life chances -- should depend on which part of the country you grow up in," he said.

While there will be little change instantly as the UK and EU enter into a pre-agreed period of transition from Saturday until the end of December, the process of complete extrication from the now 27-member economic bloc will begin right away.

Johnson was keen to highlight his vision of a friendly negotiation process for both sides to thrash out a new trading relationship as the beginning of a "new era of friendly cooperation" between the EU and an energetic Britain.

Celebrating the UK's "recaptured sovereignty" to deliver the changes the June 2016 referendum vote signified, he noted, "Whether that is by controlling immigration or creating freeports or liberating our fishing industry or doing free trade deals...is the right and healthy and democratic thing to do."



On a critical note on the EU's evolution over the period of the UK's membership, he added, "Because for all its strengths and for all its admirable qualities, the EU has evolved over 50 years in a direction that no longer suits this country."



"And that is a judgment that you, the people, have now confirmed at the polls.

The Conservative Party leader took charge at Downing Street last year with a "no ifs, no buts" pledge to leave the EU. His General Election campaign pegged around the Get Brexit Done message last December won him a thumping majority, after which Britain's exit from the bloc also became a certainty as his Brexit bill easily crossed the parliamentary hurdle.

Acknowledging the long-drawn divorce process and the deep Remain versus Brexit divide within the UK, Johnson said, "Tonight we are leaving the European Union. For many people this is an astonishing moment of hope, a moment they thought would never come and there are many of course who feel a sense of anxiety and loss.

"I understand all those feelings, and our job as the government my job is to bring this country together now and take us forward.

As part of that forward-looking agenda, the government will kick off its GREAT Ready to Trade campaign across 13 countries, including India, from Saturday. Johnson has repeatedly committed himself to a new and improved trading relationship with India and now as a non-member of the EU, the UK is free to push ahead with those talks unrestricted by the economic bloc's rules.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
As of Friday, there were seven confirmed cases of the virus in the U.S., including two in Illinois: a Chicago woman in her 60s who had recently traveled back from China, where she had been caring for a sick relative; and her husband, also in his 60s, who is the first confirmed case of person-to-person transmission in the U.S. Both are in isolation in stable condition at Amita Health St. Alexius Medical Center in Hoffman Estates.
RALEIGH, N.C.  David Forbes was there when the Student Nonviolent Coordinating Committee staged its inaugural conference at Shaw University in April 1960, two months after a peaceful protest on Feb. 1 at a segregated lunch counter in Greensboro, North Carolina gave birth to a national sit-in movement.

At the time, Forbes was a 19-year-old sophomore and student leader at the private Baptist liberal arts college in Raleigh.

Today, Shaw has an enrollment of about 1,240 students. On April 3-4, the school will commemorate the 60th anniversary of the founding of SNCC and the committee's contributions to society.

Perhaps it was only fitting that the student-led social movement that would help alter the arc of American history was founded at the oldest institution of higher learning for blacks in the southern United States. Established on Dec. 1, 1865, Shaw educated a generation of leaders who went on to found other historically black institutions in the South.

Ed Wilson, left, of Berkeley, Calif.; Peggy Sharp, of Indianapolis, and Cordell Reagon, of Nashville, all members of the Student Nonviolent Coordinating Committee, read about the disappearance of three civil rights workers in Mississippi while at an indoctrination course in Oxford, Ohio on June 24, 1964. SNCC was founded at Shaw University in April 1960.

Our university is one of the touchstones for justice, said Valerie Ann Johnson, 61, dean of the School of Arts, Sciences and Humanities at Shaw.

Shaw spokeswoman Lucera Parker put it this way: Its part of our DNA. It is real. We have a high percentage of first-generation college students, and many of those students when asked why they chose Shaw  its history ranks very highly.

In the early 60s, SNCC  employing strategies and tactics out of Martin Luther King Jr.s campaign of nonviolent resistance  organized peaceful protests and demonstrations to speed up desegregation in the South. In 1964, the committee sponsored the Mississippi Project, in which about 800 volunteers helped thousands of African Americans register to vote.

John Lewis, now a congressman from Georgia, was chairman of SNCC at the time. He traveled to college campuses throughout the country to encourage students to come to Mississippi during the summer of 64 to help register voters.

Two years later, in 1966, SNCC became the first civil rights organization to oppose U.S. military involvement in the Vietnam War. Stokely Carmichael, who became the committees leader that same year, called for a Black Power campaign to fight the white power that continued to oppress African Americans.

Story continues

Shaw is known as the historical origin of SNCC, said Forbes, 79. It was founded on the campus of Shaw in April 1960. I was on the steering committee that planned the first meeting that grew into SNCC. The Southern Christian Leadership Conference in Atlanta decided to host a meeting of the college students who had become active in the sit-ins.

Determination from the start

Forbes said there was total agreement at the Shaw meeting that the United States could not continue as it had on the race issue.

If they had not done the Civil Rights Act, there likely would not have been the Voting Rights Act, Forbes said of the major pieces of civil rights legislation enacted by Congress in the middle 1960s. If there was no Voting Rights Act, nobody would ever have heard of (President) Barack Obama. I am sure ... without SNCC and the Civil Rights Act and the Voting Rights Act, things would be pretty much as closed and racist as during my growing-up years.

David Forbes was 19 years old when the Student Nonviolent Coordinating Committee was created on Shaw University's campus in 1960.

Until his graduation from Shaw in May 1962, Forbes represented SNCC in central and eastern North Carolina. He later served as dean of the Shaw University Divinity School and founding pastor of the Christian Faith Baptist Church in Raleigh.

I am extremely proud of Shaws central role in the civil rights movement, Forbes said. SNCC was the catalyst in the modern civil rights movement. It shook the foundation of racial segregation in the South. Up to that time, there had been little desegregation in public education, public accommodations and employment."

Looking back six decades later, he called the experience exciting. It was scary. It was dangerous. It had to be done.

Wilson Lacy, a 72-year-old Shaw graduate from Fayetteville, N.C., and a member of the universitys Board of Trustees, said, I think it was the black institution of the time to make the civil rights movement relevant. I dont think any school was that relevant..

Ella Baker's role

Shaw alumna Ella Baker, a longtime civil rights activist and mentor to such pivotal figures as Carmichael and Rosa Parks, organized SNCC. The group is regarded as one of the most significant of the American civil rights movement.

We often focus on the men who participated in the civil rights movement, but she positioned herself to help give voice to the young people, Johnson said. Part of why SNCC came to be, its the young peoples way of being part of the civil rights movement."

Black History: Journalist Gwen Ifill honored with Postal Service's Black Heritage Forever Stamp

1619: In Ghana's Year of Return, NAACP goes home on behalf of the ancestors

1619: FamilySearch's new archives expose more African American roots

Baker graduated as valedictorian from Shaw in 1927. Next to the church, it was the most influential institution in Ella Bakers early life, according to her biographer Barbara Ransky.

She moved to New York City and launched her career as a writer, editor and activist with the NAACP. Baker earned a reputation as a great recruiter and organizer. As the 1960s arrived, she became aware of the energy that black college students were bringing to the civil rights movement with the sit-ins at a segregated Woolworth's lunch counter in Greensboro.

Ella Baker, official of the Southern Conference Educational Fund, speaks at the Jeannette Rankin news conference on Jan. 3, 1968.

Baker urged students to take action, while providing them with resources and training.

SNCC starts over spring break in 60 after the sit-ins and they look to find a place to have a meeting and bring people together at Shaw, said Tom Hennessey, a former African-American history professor at historically black Fayetteville State University.

About 300 students, including a contingent of 50 to 60 from Shaw, met over Easter weekend in the Greenleaf Auditorium on campus and in the nearby Raleigh Memorial Auditorium, according to Forbes.

Thats around the same period when Lacy attended Shaw as a freshman.

I got there during Shaws 100th anniversary, which was 1965. They just passed the Voting Rights Act of 1965, he recalled, and we were being admonished to get what we needed to get ready to vote. Take strong advantage of it. That was the push then.

Signed into law by President Lyndon Johnson, the Voting Rights Act aimed to overcome legal barriers at the state and local levels that prevented blacks from exercising their right to vote as guaranteed under the 15th Amendment.

A few days before King visited a church in Raleigh, Lacy was among the Shaw students who marched to show their appreciation for the passing of the Voting Rights Act.

Were proud of that being just a little, small, black liberal arts school, he said, and we were able to put a dent into the civil rights movement.

This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Shaw University marks 60 years of student activism
Well damn

Reply

Thread

Link

I read about this. How did they not know? I understand he took steps to hide his affiliation with the Nazis, but the reporter found all of this information in archives.



I guess unless you're specifically looking since I'm sure there is a lot of documents still for researchers to go through, idk.



At least they did the right thing and suspended it.





Reply

Thread

Link

I read about this. How did they not know? I understand he took steps to hide his affiliation with the Nazis, but the reporter found all of this information in archives.





Years ago I watched Germany, Pale Mother which isn't a documentary but is heavily based on the director's parents experiences in Nazi Germany and one thing she articulated really well that I never saw articulated elsewhere before was that all the mid-tier Nazi people got away with everything. Everyone who was a party member sent the non-affiliated people to go die in the war first and then when everything got fucked up they were still powerful and connected and guilty so they all looked the other way, kept on running governments and awarding each other contracts and pretended they hadn't been involved with the Nazis at all.



So probably everyone probably knew about Bauer but they were willing to look the other way as he covered up his own crimes and established the festival because they were busy covering up their own crimes. And then everyone with first hand knowledge died and all that was left was the myth no one bothered to question (until now).

Reply

Parent

Thread



Link

Huh, I had never really thought about that, but it makes so much sense. Especially when it keeps coming out that so many people were nazi affiliated and that nothing happened to them.

Reply

Parent

Thread



Link

This is true. I never really thought about it that way. I know some Nazis (Albert Speer) were able to rehab their imagine because the full extent of their crimes weren't known. And if most of the people who can incriminate them are dead or trying to hide their own crimes, then there isn't really anyone to testify to the full extent of the crimes committed. Its really messed up. Hopefully more information will come out and people will be exposed, even if they're dead we should still know.

Reply

Parent

Thread



Link

I watched the BBC Krautrock documentary and all the German baby boomers born during the war or after the war said there were still a lot of Nazis working in the government, education, etc. because they couldn't get rid of all people, they still needed teachers, government officials and such.

Reply

Parent

Thread



Link

Yeah, it's mindblowing how little was done to mid-tier Nazis after the war. That's also one of the reasons why students rebelled so much against their parents' generation in 1968. They knew there was dirty laundry to be washed.



A few weeks before my father (unexpectedly) died, we had a longish talk about the war here in my hometown and towards the end, like, the day before the Allies came, they were already on the other side of the river so the people in power knew the jig was up. So SS people would go through the town and shoot the last people they could find. They killed a Jewish doctor's family like THE DAY before the war ended. It's so heartbreaking and senseless how close the capitulation was, you have made it all this time, in hiding, living under these conditions and one day before liberation, you get shot. My father said, what he could never understand was that those people were local, everybody KNEW that they did this, but they were never prosecuted for it and even worse, nobody ever did anything to them, even though everybody was local, people knew each other and they must remember. Disclaimer: my father doesnt have first-hand knowledge of it, only from what his father and grandfather told him. They were a family of communists and deserters on my father's side so some of them were put in forced labour camps, too.

Reply

Parent

Thread



Link

Awkward

Reply

Thread

Link

Related, but I just watched the devil next door. Do you think he was Ivan the terrible?

Reply

Thread

Link

I kept going back and forth on it, but I think he was Ivan.



They just released new pictures found of Sorbibor including the guards. One of them looks exactly like him or at least the picture in his trial, that his lawyer didn't really dispute was him.

Reply

Parent

Thread



Link

His lawyer was really scummy tbh

Reply

Parent

Thread



Link

Tho everyone deserves a lawyer

Reply

Parent

Thread



Link

that whole doc was so lazy, they never really went into who he was if he wasn't Ivan the terrible

Reply

Parent

Thread



Link

Glad they're doing something about it. Are they still gonna have a Silver Bear at all, or just one less prize?

Reply

Thread

Link

I'd hope they rename it but still have the prize, tbh.

Reply

Parent

Thread



Link

Are they still gonna have a Silver Bear at all, or just one less prize?



Right now they're acting like they're just going to cut the Alfred Bauer Prize and I wonder if it's because it's already made and engraved and they can't get a replacement in time cause the festival is this month. But surely it's not that hard to come up with a name and re-engrave something? Like pick another famous (non Nazi) German director and name it after them.



I was looking at previous bears and they look like this:



Right now they're acting like they're just going to cut the Alfred Bauer Prize and I wonder if it's because it's already made and engraved and they can't get a replacement in time cause the festival is this month. But surely it's not that hard to come up with a name and re-engrave something? Like pick another famous (non Nazi) German director and name it after them.I was looking at previous bears and they look like this:

Reply

Parent

Thread



Link

omg cute award

Reply

Parent

Thread



Link

Damn what a thing to find out. Was it that successful a coverup job or was everyone who could have known between 1945 and 1987 just busy looking the other way?





Also I have to give it to OP on that gif choice, it's perfection on multiple levels.

Reply

Thread

Link

+1 on the gif

Reply

Parent

Thread



Link

Glad to see theyre doing something about it. The ease with which a lot of affiliated people just decided to pretend thats not part of their history makes me ill.

Reply

Thread

Link

Is it like that in Germany or do you mean in general? I thought German schools were very good about going death into the evils of Shoah

Reply

Parent

Thread



Link

Not OP but I feel like in general German schools make a good effort to teach people that part of history but not on an "individual" level, if that makes sense? Like it's alright to teach about the evils of Nazi Germany and of course specific people at the top of the regime, like Hitler, Himmler, Goebbels, etc.



But then with otherwise famous personalities, you often seem to gloss over their past on an individual level. Like in the case of Gunter Grass, a novelist who was especially known for his critique of Nazi- and post-Nazi Germany, it took until 2006 for him to come out and admit that he was a member of the Waffen SS (which arguably isn't your run-of-the-mill nazi but something more).



But truly, any German whose family has lived here during the time of the war, they would have to ask themselves what part their own ancestors played in this. And often it's simply not talked about at all. Like, I have some info on my father's side because they were against the Nazi regime... not so much on my mother's side. It's just not talked about. I mean, I dont even know the names of my great-grandparents, I don't know who they were. And it gets even more disconnected in the younger generation. When you don't know anybody who was alive during that time anymore, everything seems so abstract and you seem to understand the evils of Nazi Germany on that level, but not on a level that is directly connected to you.



It doesn't surprise me that a little bit of research into this topic was able to reveal a past like this in case of that director. On an individual level, people are eager to overlook it.

Reply

Parent

Thread

Expand

Link

I didnt mean institutions at all i meant individuals

Reply

Parent

Thread



Link

he worked WITH GOEBBELS? holy shit

Reply

Thread

Link

took them a while huh

Reply

Thread

Link

Its amazing how many never saw any justice after the war.

Reply

Thread

Link

Not surprised at all, unfortunately. If anything I'm surprised no journalist or researcher looked into him before but there have been many similar revelations in recent years (like in the case of Herbert Reinecker) and there will continue to be because there actually hasn't been enough research into individuals like that yet. Glad that the Berlinale reacted promptly.

Reply

Thread

Link

Damn

Reply

Thread

Link
A special investigation team (SIT) constituted to investigate the killing of seven villagers in Burugulikera village in Jharkhands West Singhbhum district on January 19 has found that the so-called Pathalgadi movement was the prime reason behind the conflict between the two groups involved in the incident, and that Maoist splinter ground Peoples Liberation Front of India (PLFI) was also involved, police officials said on Friday.

The SIT was constituted to find the reasons behind the crime. A police officer who asked not to be named, said the SIT will submit its report to the government in the next two to three days.

The village was divided into two groups. One led by pro-Pathalgadi movement leader Ransi Budh, whose wife is the village head, and other by James Budh, who was opposing Pathalgadi. On January 16, a group led by James attacked the home of Ransi . They wanted to retrieve rations and Aadhaar cards of villagers confiscated by the village head. The group then distributed these documents back to the villagers, said the police officer.

He said that James was accompanied by area PLFI commander Mangra Lugun, who was armed. The weapons Lugun was carrying were the reason that Ransi Budh did not physically stop them from ransacking her home, the officer explained.

Indrajit Mahatha, West Singhbhums superintendent of police (SP), confirmed the PLFIs involvement and said that Lugun was close to James Budh.

Pathalgadi is a movement that can be traced back to the 1990s where local village bodies erect stone carvings (literally pathalgadis) signifying their authority over their villages. The movement gathered fresh momentum since 2016 when changes in laws by the then ruling Bharatiya Janata party government made transfer of tribal land easier  something the locals opposed.

The police officer said while Maoists were believed to be supporting Pathalgadi, the PLFI has opposed it. PLFI was formed in 2007 by a renegade Border Security Force jawan, Dinesh Gope, after his elder brother was killed by a local gangster Jainath Sahu.

Under the alleged patronage of then government, which saw in it a means to wipe out the Communist Party of India (Maoist), PLFI grew its area of influence and became a dominant force in Kunti and West Singhbhum. There is raging war between the Maoists and PLFI in Khunti and West Singhbhum, said a retired Indian Police Service officer who asked not to be named.

The SIT also found that accused Ransi Budh and some other villagers met Kunwar Kesri Sinh, one of the prime movers of Pathalgadi. Sinhs name cropped during 2017 Pathalgadi movement in Jharkhand, during which several villages in Kunti and West Singhbhum districts had placed stone slabs declaring self rule and prohibited entry of outsiders into the villagers, leading to crackdown by the local administration.

Ranshi Budh, his brother Sukhram Budh and six-seven other villagers from Burugulikera went to Gujarat last year and were also getting funds from there, said another SIT officer, who too asked not to be named.

The SIT reached this conclusion on basis of the testimony of the two anti-Pathalgadi villagers, Ghusru Budh and Sukwa Budh, who escaped even as seven other members of their group were brutally killed. The SIT has arrested 17 so far. The two have confessed that they were part of the group that ransacked five houses including that Ransi Budh, the second police officer said.

SHARE THIS ARTICLE ON
South Koreas defense ministry announced January 21 that it will send naval troops to patrol the Strait of Hormuz off the coast of Iran. While Seoul claims that this dispatch will be independent of United States maneuvers in the region, the Moon Jae-in administration is in fact lining up with Washingtons war drive against Tehran.

Seoul stated that it will expand the role of its Cheonghae Unit, which has been deployed off the coast of Somalia since 2009 and is comprised of 300 troops, including special forces and a military helicopter. In consideration of the current situation in the Middle East, the government has decided to temporarily expand the Cheonghae Units sphere of activity in order to guarantee safety of our people and the freedom of navigation of our vessels, the defense ministry said.

A South Korean naval destroyer, the Wang Geon, will now operate in the Persian Gulf and the Gulf of Oman, separated by the Strait of Hormuz. However, cutting across Seouls claims of independent patrols, two liaison officers from the Cheonghae Unit will be dispatched to the USs International Maritime Security Construct (IMSC) to facilitate cooperation between US and South Korea forces.

Washington welcomed the decision as it builds a coalition for war with Iran. As we have stated in the past, this is an international problem that requires an international solution, Pentagon spokesperson David Eastburn stated. We welcome our South Korean allies helping to ensure freedom of navigation in the Middle East by supporting the IMSC.

Less than two weeks prior to the announcement, Seoul had cast doubt on joining the coalition. I think the stance of the United States and ours cannot always be the same in political analysis and when considering bilateral ties with countries in the Middle East, Foreign Minister Kang Kyung-wha (Gang Gyeong-hwa) said January 9. We have had sustained economic ties with Iran for a long time and at the moment are continuously trying to carry out exchanges in humanitarian assistance and education.

South Korea had relied heavily on oil imports from Iran, but halted them last May. South Korea is the worlds fifth largest crude oil importer and is dependent on the Middle East for more than 70 percent of its supply.

A meeting with US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo a few days after Kangs statements in San Francisco, coupled with increased demands that Seoul shoulder more of the financial burden for hosting US troops, led to an about-face.

The deployment is open-ended, with a foreign ministry official telling Yonhap news agency that the temporary dispatch meant that it would be ongoing until situations in the Middle East improve. The foreign ministry official also stated: Weve made preparations for possible missions in the Hormuz Strait (emphasis added), but Cheonghaes basic missionsanti-piracy activities and escorting shipsremain unchanged.

In other words, Seoul had been planning for such a deployment. The Wang Geon destroyer had already been outfitted with anti-submarine weaponry, anti-aircraft guns, and other equipment that makes it prepared to deal with military situations far beyond piracy.

In addition, no new law has been passed to confirm the deployment, with the government saying the existing law on the anti-piracy mission allows for operations in surrounding waters. Seoul, therefore, is sending South Korean troops into a potential war zone without even the pretense of public debate on the matter and behind the backs of the South Korean people. This is due to broad anti-war sentiment in the country, in the face of which Seoul sent troops to both Iraq and Afghanistan, under the previous administrations of the liberal Noh Moo-hyun and then the conservative Lee Myung-bak, to aid Washington in those criminal wars.

The troop dispatch is only further proof that Moon and his ruling Democratic Party of Korea, no less than the conservatives, back US imperialist interests around the globe.

Moon came to office in 2017 in part by exploiting anti-war sentiment among workers and youth. Moon claimed that he would distance Seoul from the pro-war positions of the previous Park Geun-hye administration that had lined up behind Washingtons war drive in Northeast Asia.

Under Park, North and South Korea were brought to the brink of war in August 2015 as Seoul sharply escalated tensions following unproven claims that Pyongyang had ordered landmines placed along Southern troops patrol routes along the border. Park also worked to further align Seoul with the US ballistic missile system aimed at China, that included joining a US-Japanese intelligence link and agreeing to deploy a Terminal High Altitude Area Defense (THAAD) ballistic missile battery and its corresponding radar system in South Korea.

While running for office, Moon claimed his administration could serve as a break on the US war drive and led people to believe that he would halt the THAAD deployment. Moon instead has maintained South Koreas position within the US ballistic missile system and praised Trump for the latters threats and ultimatums to Pyongyang. Moons own agenda is aimed at dampening tensions in order to increase the economic exploitation of North Korean workers and resources for the benefit of the South Korean bourgeoisie.

In this vein, the deployment to the Persian Gulf is entirely in line with the Moon administrations pro-war agenda. The South Korean ruling class, whether under the conservatives or the Democrats, believes it can enrich itself by lining up with US imperialism. A war in the Middle East, in particular, could lead to lucrative construction contracts for South Korean companies that have operated in the region for decades as well as access to oil.

A conflict with Iran, however, would not be limited to the region in the same manner as the Iraq War. It would draw in nuclear-armed powers China and Russia, meaning South Korea could easily find itself in a major war with two neighboring countries. These issues are being consciously kept from the South Korean working class and youth.
Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas is in Cairo to garner support from Arab foreign ministers against Trump's controversial Middle East plan

Egyptian President Abdel-Fattah El-Sisi said there is no alternative for direct talks between Israel and Palestine, stressing Egypt's steadfast position towards resolving the Palestinian crisis through the establishment of an independent state amid controversy over the recently announced US MidEast plan.

In a statement on Saturday, Egyptian Presidency Spokesman Bassam Rady said El-Sisi received Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas in Cairo, where he stressed establishing an independent state of sovereignty on occupied Palestinian lands under international legitimacy and accords.

Abbas is in Cairo to garner support from Arab foreign ministers at an Arab League meeting against the controversial Middle East plan announced by US President Donald Trump last week.

El-Sisi stressed the importance of direct negotiations between the Palestinian and Israeli sides towards reaching an agreed settlement under a comprehensive framework that guarantees its sustainability.

Such a settlement would put an end to the sufferings of the Palestinian people through the full restoration of its legitimate rights and preserves the rights of all parties to live in stability, security and peace, El-Sisi said.

Abbas expressed his appreciation of Egypt's efforts in supporting the Palestinian cause, praising its historic role in pushing towards a comprehensive and fair solution for the cause.

He also hailed Egypt's role in pushing towards a national reconciliation in Palestine, and building bridges of trust between Palestinian parties for unification at such a critical period.

Both presidents agreed during Saturday's meeting on continued and intensified coordination and consultation towards various aspects of the Palestinian cause, the statement added.

Last week, Trump unveiled the peace proposal, which would allow Israel to annex all its West Bank settlements, which the Palestinians and most of the international community view as illegal, as well as the Jordan Valley, which accounts for roughly a fourth of the West Bank.

In return, the Palestinians would be granted statehood in Gaza, scattered chunks of the West Bank and some neighbourhoods on the outskirts of Jerusalem, all linked together by a new network of roads, bridges and tunnels. Israel would control the state's borders and airspace and maintain overall security authority.

The proposal was criticised by several countries, yet several key Arab leaders, including Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates, and others, backed the US initiative in a surprising shift in foreign policy towards the Palestinian cause.

Egypt has called on both parties involved in the peace process in the Middle East to carefully consider the proposal, urging parties to open channels for dialogue to resume negotiations between the Palestinians and the Israelis where they can discuss their visions under US patronage to reach a comprehensive and fair peace agreement.

Search Keywords:

Short link:


Adarsh Singh and Shreya Agrawal on Saturday clinched double titles in the ongoing national Shooting trials for Rifle and Pistol here.

Singh, who hails from Haryana, won both the Men's and Junior Men's 25m Rapid Fire Pistol T1 trials. Madhya Pradesh's Shreya too earned victories in both Women's and Junior Women's 10m Air Rifle T2 trials.

In the Women's Air Rifle T2 final, Shreya outclassed Mehuli Ghosh of West Bengal, shooting 250.8 to Mehuli's 250.6. Apurvi Chandela came in third with 228.4.

Aishwary Pratap Singh Tomar, who also hails from Madhya Pradesh, also won the Men's 50m Rifle 3 Positions (3P) T2 trial to continue his good form in the competition. Tomar has earlier also won a quota for the upcoming 2020 Tokyo Olympics.

Aishwary had a great day after he qualified third for the Men's 3P final with a high score of 1172 before a top-class final round score of 460.5 to finish well ahead of second-placed Akhil Sheoran of the Railways who shot 453.7. Parul Kumar of the Air Force was third.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
Photo: The Canadian Press Sen. Lindsey Graham, R-S.C., centre, walks with reporters at the Capitol in Washington, Friday, Jan. 31, 2020, at the end of a session in the impeachment trial of President Donald Trump on charges of abuse of power and obstruction of Congress.

The Senate narrowly rejected Democratic demands to summon witnesses for President Donald Trumps impeachment trial late Friday, all but ensuring Trump's acquittal in just the third trial to threaten a president's removal in U.S. history. But senators pushed off final voting on his fate to next Wednesday.

The delay in timing showed the weight of a historic vote bearing down on senators, despite prodding by the president eager to have it all behind him in an election year and ahead of his State of the Union speech Tuesday night.

Trump and Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell spoke by phone to lock in the schedule during a tense night at the Capitol as rushed negotiations proceeded on and off the Senate floor. The trial came to a standstill for about an hour. A person unauthorized to discuss the call was granted anonymity to describe it.

The president wanted to arrive for his speech at the Capitol with acquittal secured, but that will not happen. Instead, the trial will resume Monday for final arguments, with time Monday and Tuesday for senators to speak. The final voting is planned for 4 p.m. Wednesday, the day after Trump's speech.

Trump's acquittal is all but certain in the Senate, where his GOP allies hold the majority and there's nowhere near the two-thirds needed for conviction and removal.

Nor will he face potentially damaging, open-Senate testimony from witnesses.

Despite the Democrats' singular focus on hearing new testimony, the Republican majority brushed past those demands and will make this the first impeachment trial without witnesses. Even new revelations Friday from former national security adviser John Bolton did not sway GOP senators, who said they'd heard enough.

That means the eventual outcome for Trump will be an acquittal in name only, said Rep. Val Demings, D-Fla., a House prosecutor, during final debate.

Trump was impeached by the House last month on charges that he abused power and obstructed Congress as he tried to pressure Ukraine to investigate Democratic rival Joe Biden, using military aid as leverage as the ally fought Russia. He is charged with then blocking the congressional probe of his actions.

Senators rejected the Democrats' effort to allow new witnesses, 51-49, a near party-line vote. Republicans Susan Collins of Maine and Mitt Romney of Utah voted with the Democrats, but that was not enough.

Senate Democratic leader Chuck Schumer called that decision a tragedy on a very large scale. Protesters' chants reverberated against the walls of the Capitol.

But Republicans said Trump's acquittal was justified and inevitable.

The sooner the better for the country, said Sen. Lindsey Graham, a Trump confidant. Let's turn the page.

The next steps come in the heart of presidential campaign season before a divided nation. Democratic caucus voting begins Monday in Iowa, and Trump gives his State of the Union address the next night. Four Democratic candidates have been chafing in the Senate chamber rather than campaigning.
When you buy shares in a company, it's worth keeping in mind the possibility that it could fail, and you could lose your money. But on a lighter note, a good company can see its share price rise well over 100%. Long term China SCE Group Holdings Limited (HKG:1966) shareholders would be well aware of this, since the stock is up 177% in five years. On top of that, the share price is up 13% in about a quarter.

See our latest analysis for China SCE Group Holdings

While markets are a powerful pricing mechanism, share prices reflect investor sentiment, not just underlying business performance. One imperfect but simple way to consider how the market perception of a company has shifted is to compare the change in the earnings per share (EPS) with the share price movement.

During five years of share price growth, China SCE Group Holdings achieved compound earnings per share (EPS) growth of 32% per year. The EPS growth is more impressive than the yearly share price gain of 23% over the same period. So one could conclude that the broader market has become more cautious towards the stock. The reasonably low P/E ratio of 4.49 also suggests market apprehension.

You can see below how EPS has changed over time (discover the exact values by clicking on the image).

SEHK:1966 Past and Future Earnings, February 1st 2020

It's probably worth noting we've seen significant insider buying in the last quarter, which we consider a positive. On the other hand, we think the revenue and earnings trends are much more meaningful measures of the business. This free interactive report on China SCE Group Holdings's earnings, revenue and cash flow is a great place to start, if you want to investigate the stock further.

What About Dividends?

As well as measuring the share price return, investors should also consider the total shareholder return (TSR). The TSR is a return calculation that accounts for the value of cash dividends (assuming that any dividend received was reinvested) and the calculated value of any discounted capital raisings and spin-offs. Arguably, the TSR gives a more comprehensive picture of the return generated by a stock. We note that for China SCE Group Holdings the TSR over the last 5 years was 253%, which is better than the share price return mentioned above. The dividends paid by the company have thusly boosted the total shareholder return.

Story continues

A Different Perspective

It's nice to see that China SCE Group Holdings shareholders have received a total shareholder return of 36% over the last year. That's including the dividend. Since the one-year TSR is better than the five-year TSR (the latter coming in at 29% per year), it would seem that the stock's performance has improved in recent times. In the best case scenario, this may hint at some real business momentum, implying that now could be a great time to delve deeper. It's always interesting to track share price performance over the longer term. But to understand China SCE Group Holdings better, we need to consider many other factors. To that end, you should learn about the 4 warning signs we've spotted with China SCE Group Holdings (including 1 which is is significant) .

China SCE Group Holdings is not the only stock that insiders are buying. For those who like to find winning investments this free list of growing companies with recent insider purchasing, could be just the ticket.

Please note, the market returns quoted in this article reflect the market weighted average returns of stocks that currently trade on HK exchanges.

If you spot an error that warrants correction, please contact the editor at editorial-team@simplywallst.com. This article by Simply Wall St is general in nature. It does not constitute a recommendation to buy or sell any stock, and does not take account of your objectives, or your financial situation. Simply Wall St has no position in the stocks mentioned.



We aim to bring you long-term focused research analysis driven by fundamental data. Note that our analysis may not factor in the latest price-sensitive company announcements or qualitative material. Thank you for reading.
Politician's 'super drunk' DWI arrest caught on police dashcam originally appeared on abcnews.go.com

A Michigan lawmaker is in hot water after she was busted for allegedly driving on the highway "super drunk" the day after Christmas.

Rep. Rebekah Warren, according ABC Detroit affiliate WXYZ, allegedly was seen by other drivers driving a black Jeep Cherokee that swerved along Interstate-75. When Auburn Hills police caught up to the vehicle, it appears to go off the shoulder and strike a guardrail, the video shows.

Officers pulled over Warren and asked her to take a field sobriety test. She took six steps and stumbled, the video shows, and then was arrested.

MORE: Police body camera footage shows fatal shooting of Hannah Williams in Anaheim

"You don't understand, I'm elected. I'm a senator. People will be, like, 'The senator got arrested,'" said Warren, as she was handcuffed in the back of the police car. "That'll be, like, [expletive bleeped]. This is going to be the most famous arrest you've ever made."

"Do you understand, there's going to be a moment that we're both going to be on TV," Warren continued. "It's going to be, like, the senator from Ann Arbor's career is over. This is like career-ending for me."

Michigan Representative Rebekah Warren was pulled over on Dec. 26, 2019 and charged with Operating Under the Influence of Liquor with a high BAC. ABC7 Action News obtained the video after filing a FOIA request with the Auburn Hills Police department. (Auburn Hills Police Department in Michigan/ABC7)

Warren, 49, was taken to a nearby hospital, where it was determined her blood alcohol content was more than double .08, the legal limit.

MORE: Dash Cam Video Shows Teen Shot by Chicago Police Officer

Warren was charged under Michigan's "super drunk" law that took effect in 2010 and has stiffer penalties if she's convicted, WXYZ reported.

A first-time offender convicted of driving while impaired faces punishments including up to $700 in fines, up to 180 days in jail, up to 360 hours of community service, a one-year driver's license suspension and six points on the driver's license, according to Michigan State Police.

Vincent Haisha, an attorney for Warren, didn't respond to a request for comment from ABC News.
HARRISBURG, Pa.  Pennsylvania will not apply for a Medicaid block grant proposed by President Donald Trumps administration that would include a limit on how much the federal government contributes, Gov. Tom Wolf said.

In a statement, Wolf and his human services secretary, Teresa Miller, said Thursday's Trump administration proposal could lead to cuts in Pennsylvania's Medicaid enrollment or increase its costs, and force states to restrict the number of people and services they cover.

In exchange for operating under a fixed federal allocation, states, among other things, would be able to limit what prescription drugs and benefits will be covered under the federal-state program, within certain guidelines.

Its scope would be restricted to coverage for so-called able-bodied adults under 65. A state could not put nursing home residents, disabled people, or very low-income pregnant women and children into the new plan.

Democratic lawmakers suggested Trump doesn't have the legal authority to make states such an offer.

Former President Barack Obama's signature health care law gave states the option of expanding Medicaid to cover millions more able-bodied adults, and 37 have done so, according to the Kaiser Family Foundation.

Pennsylvania is the nations No. 4 state in Medicaid spending at $30 billion in fiscal year 2018, according to the Kaiser Family Foundation.
Advertisement

The University of York has moved to defuse fears that the deadly coronavirus is spreading throughout campus after one of their students was revealed as the first infection patient on British soil.

Along with a relative, the unnamed student was been whisked into quarantine following their positive test yesterday for the virus which has killed 259.

Aware that the virus is infectious before a victim has even developed symptoms, worried students were pictured wearing protective masks on site today.

Tonight, the university confirmed the infected student had not stepped foot on campus before or after she caught the bug.

To allay the sense of panic, the university established a hotline for anyone with coronavirus concerns while the Vice-Chancellor made a statement that he was ratcheting up efforts to safeguard the institution's 'international community'.

Posters warning of coronavirus have also been plastered over the college buildings and hand gel stations have been set up.

Tough measures to insulate students and staff were also imposed at the University of Derby, which began isolating anyone who returned from Wuhan, where the virus spawned, in the last 14 days.

It came as the number of confirmed cases in China rose to 11,791 today, surpassing the number in the 2002-03 outbreak of Sars.

The spread of this grave global health emergency has also sent alarm bells ringing in British boarding schools which are banning their Chinese pupils from returning home in the upcoming half-term holidays.

Hereford Cathedral School was one of the first to declare all planned visits home have been scrapped, while a senior source at a top boarding school told MailOnline: 'I doubt many, if any, schools will be sending pupils back at half term.

'All of ours are not returning, including some from Thailand. They added: 'As this spreads worldwide do we try to limit movement of anyone, anywhere?'

A student is picture at the University of York campus on Saturday afternoon wearing a face mask following the revelation that someone from the university was the first person to test positive for the coronavirus in the country

One of the first two people to test positive for coronavirus in the UK is a student at the University of York, it has been revealed

Students wear face masks around campus at the University of York today as fears heightened over the spread of coronavirus

University of York Vice-Chancellor Professor Charlie Jeffery (pictured) said he wished to provide reassurance for students and staff

Almost 12,000 people in 24 countries and territories have now been diagnosed with the Wuhan coronavirus and 259 people have died, all in China

University coronavirus email to York students Dear student, You may have heard through media reports that two cases of coronavirus have been identified in York. Public Health England (PHE) has now confirmed that one of the two individuals to have tested positive for coronavirus is a student at the University of York. We recognise that this will cause concern to our community. We want to reassure you that PHE has advised us that the risk of infection being passed to others on campus is extremely low. Current information from PHE suggests that the student did not come into contact with anybody on campus whilst they had symptoms, but investigations are ongoing to fully establish this. Additional information and any updates, as they are made available from PHE or any other health service, will be posted on our coronavirus updates webpage here: https://www.york.ac.uk/alert/. This web page also contains a set of FAQs regarding coronavirus and you are advised to check this page if you have any queries. We are working closely with NHS services and Public Health England who are taking the lead in responding to the case and we will take direction from them in all aspects of this situation. Yours sincerely Heidi Fraser-Krauss Deputy Registrar and Director of Corporate and Information Services Advertisement

The pair of coronavirus patients in Britain were two members of the same family and are being treated at a specialist unit in Newcastle.

They had checked into the Staycity apartment-hotel in York on Wednesday and were taken to hospital that evening.

In a statement today, a spokeswoman for the University of York said the risk of the infection being passed on to other people on campus is low. But she could not fully confirm whether the student had come into contact with anybody on campus while they had symptoms.

Those who have been in close contact with the student or their relative - within two metres of those infected for at least 15 minutes - will get advice provided officials are able to get in touch with them.

University of York Vice-Chancellor Professor Charlie Jeffery said he wished to provide reassurance for students and staff.

Speaking on Saturday afternoon, he said: 'I want to reassure our students, staff and the wider community that we're working closely with the lead agency Public Health England and other agencies to manage this situation.'

He said the university, which is home to students and staff from more than 140 countries, is 'very much an international community'.

Stressing that the university is open and will continue to operate as normal, he added: 'I want to reiterate to students, staff, parents and visitors that we're working with our partners across the city to ensure that York and the university remain a safe and welcoming place to live, work and visit.'

Elsewhere, the University of Derby was also isolating students that have returned from Wuhan for 14 days following advice from Public Health England and the World Health Organisation. The university would not reveal where the students are being isolated - whether it in halls or elsewhere.

And in Wirral, Merseyside, the 83 Britons repatriated from the crisis-hit Chinese city last night are beginning their first day in quarantine - where they will be holed up in the building at the side of Arrowe Park Hospital for 14 days.

Those in isolation have been sharing glimpses of life inside the quarantine zone, with one giving a guided tour of his apartment block - complete with television, food, oven and more - while another shared an image of himself with a surgical mask on while sitting inside his room.

A total of 201 tests for coronavirus in the UK have been confirmed negative, the Department of Health said in the latest figures released this afternoon.

Other developments in the outbreak today include:

China's Premier Li Keqiang has asked the EU for medical supplies to help battle the major coronavirus outbreak

A British father stranded in coronavirus-stricken Wuhan with his four-week-old baby fears the food may run out

Spain confirmed its first case of coronavirus this morning as the worldwide death toll for the killer bug hit 259

The number of confirmed cases in China rose to 11,791, surpassing the number in the 2002-03 outbreak of Sars

The US yesterday declared a public health emergency amid growing concern over the worldwide virus outbreak

Donald Trump signed an order barring entry to foreign nationals who have visited China within the last 14 days

Apple has said it will close all of its official stores and corporate offices in mainland China until February 9, 2020

China has asked couples to delay their nuptials from February 2 this year. It is being considered a lucky date for wedding ceremonies because the sequence of numbers '02022020' reads the same backwards as forwards

Families in China have also been asked to scale down funeral services to help slow the spread of viral outbreak

Dramatic footage has emerged of hundreds of Chinese students queuing to get face masks from a chemist to protect themselves from the coronavirus. The students formed a line all day near the small chemist in Liverpool, near the Royal Liverpool Hospital yesterday afternoon

People in the window of an apartment block at Arrowe Park Hospital this afternoon where British citizens flown in from Wuhan are being quarantined

Supplies including fresh milk, bread and crisps are wheeled into the accommodation block housing the quarantined Brits from coronavirus hit China at the Arrowe Park Hospital site

Members of the public spotted wearing face protection masks in Newcastle today the day after it was revealed that two patients who have tested positive for coronavirus are being treated at Newcastle's Royal Victoria Infirmary

Members of the public spotted wearing face protection masks in Newcastle today the day after it was revealed that two patients who have tested positive for coronavirus are being treated at Newcastle's Royal Victoria Infirmary Hospital

A man wears a mask in Newcastle upon Tyne, near where two patients who have tested positive for coronavirus elsewhere in England are bring treated in the city's Royal Victoria Infirmary's high consequence infectious disease unit

A woman wears a mask in Newcastle upon Tyne, near where two patients who have tested positive for coronavirus this week

Heidi Fraser-Krauss, Deputy Registrar and Director of Corporate and Information Services at the University of York, said: 'Public Health England (PHE) have informed us that one of the two individuals to have tested positive for coronavirus is a student at the University of York.

'We understand this development will cause concern and anxiety among our students, staff, and the wider community.

'PHE has advised us that the risk of infection being passed to others on campus is low.

'Current information from PHE suggests that the student did not come into contact with anybody on campus whilst they had symptoms, but investigations are ongoing to fully establish this.'

She added: 'Our immediate concerns are for the affected student and family, along with the health and continued wellbeing of our staff, students and visitors.

'We are working closely with NHS services and Public Health England who are taking the lead in responding to the case. The University is required to follow their direction in all matters related to this situation.

'The University continues to operate normally. We are monitoring the situation closely and we continue to provide as much advice, care and support as we can to our University community.

'If people have any concerns about their health in relation to suspected coronavirus we ask that they follow current PHE advice and contact NHS 111.

'The University has set up a call centre over the weekend for anyone who has any further concerns or inquiries. The telephone number is 01904 809571.'

What should students at the University of York do? A student at the University of York has tested positive for coronavirus - so what is their advice to students? The University said it has been advised by Public Health England (PHE) that the risk of infection on campus is low, because it is not thought the student came into contact with anyone there while they had symptoms. But, recognising the 'concern and anxiety' the news will cause, the university has set up a special helpline. Anyone with concern about their health in relation to coronavirus is advised to follow current advice from the PHE and call the NHS non-emergency line on 111. The university said it continues to operate normally while monitoring the situation closely. A spokesman said: 'We understand this development will cause concern and anxiety among our students, staff, and the wider community. 'PHE has advised us that the risk of infection being passed to others on campus is low. 'Current information from PHE suggests that the student did not come into contact with anybody on campus whilst they had symptoms, but investigations are ongoing to fully establish this. 'Our immediate concerns are for the affected student and family, along with the health and continued wellbeing of our staff, students and visitors. 'We are working closely with NHS services and Public Health England who are taking the lead in responding to the case. ' Concerned students can call the special helpline this weekend on 01904 809571. Advertisement

Students said the outbreak of the virus had resulted in racism towards Chinese students in York.

Nick Lunn, 23, a physics student from Skipton, North Yorkshire, said: 'If you go through university pages on Facebook there is a clear racial sentiment.

'People don't feel comfortable around them [Chinese students] and it's not right.

'I've seen some people look genuinely scared around a Chinese student wearing a mask.'

Chay Quinn, 21, from Dartford, Kent, who is the editor of the York Vision student paper, said: 'I hope this isn't used a platform to marginalise Chinese students.

'They already feel like they can't engage with the rest of the student population.'

He added he felt the university didn't inform students as quickly as they could.

He said: 'I wish they would have told us sooner because we needed to know.

'PHE need to let us know why it's a low risk so we can understand and calm down.'

A student at York, who asked to remain anonymous, told MailOnline: 'The university have been sending out the occasional email and informed us this morning about the infected student who attended York. But they told us the risk of it spreading was very low.

'I highly doubt this though and feel like the university are trying to downplay everything going on for our own sanity.

'We've barely been informed about anything that will happen to protect us. My seminars and lectures are all still running where hundreds of students gather in small lecture rooms. A very likely place to spread diseases. I feel like no one is really addressing the matter with us properly either and we are being left in the dark about what is happening.'

At the University of Derby, a spokeswoman confirmed to MailOnline a number of students had been 'self-isolating' for 14 days but noted all were 'currently fit and well.

She said: 'We have a very small number of students who travelled back from Wuhan before the travel restrictions were put in place. They are self-isolating for the required 14 day period and are being supported by our student living and wellbeing teams. All are currently fit and well.

'Our Student Wellbeing team is in regular contact with Public Health England. We are ensuring that all our staff and students are aware of their advice and are providing frequent updates.

'In common with all other UK universities, we are in close contact with our Chinese students both here in the UK and those who remain in China due to the travel restrictions.'

The hotel firm where the two confirmed British coronavirus patients were staying has said the apartment involved has been thoroughly disinfected and PHE has been providing support.

The two patients are being treated by Newcastle upon Tyne Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust in its specialist Airborne High Consequences Infectious Disease Centre (HCID).

Hubei province residents, disembarking a chartered Xiamen Airline plane, arrive at Wuhan Tianhe International Airport in Wuhan, Hubei Province, China today

People arrive from the Hubei province at a checkpoint at the Jiujiang Yangtze River Bridge in Jiujiang, Jiangxi province, China, as the country is hit by an outbreak of a new coronavirus, February 1

Customers queue up to buy masks amid the coronavirus outbreak in Hong Kong. Across the globe people have been buying up masks in a bid to protect themselves from the virus

An employee uses a thermometer to check the temperature of a customer at a restaurant following the outbreak of coronavirus in Hong Kong

French nationals repatriated from Wuhan, China, amid the new coronavirus outbreak, get off the plane at Istres Air Base, near Marseille, France yesterday (images were released by French officials today)

Notices referring to the coronavirus are pinned to the door of the Family Practice Western College in Hampton Road in Bristol. The surgery appears to be closed despite the sign saying it is open on Saturday mornings

This is the moment two medics wearing heavy-duty hazmat suits sweep through the lobby of a York hotel where a couple of Chinese coronavirus victims were staying

The pair - two members of the same family - are being treated at a specialist unit in Newcastle

Wuhan evacuee Ben Kavanagh last night shared an image from inside the quarantine as he and 82 others spend their first night locked in a nurses' accommodation block

Workmen move a fencing panel at Arrowe Park Hospital in Merseyside, outside the block where British nationals from the coronavirus-hit city of Wuhan in China are being quarantined

Police officers patrol at Arrowe Park Hospital in Merseyside, outside the block where British nationals from the coronavirus-hit city of Wuhan in China are being quarantined

Supplies, including fresh milk, bread & crisps, are wheeled into the accommodation block housing the quarantined Brits from coronavirus hit China at the Arrowe Park Hospital site in Merseyside today

It comes after dramatic footage emerged yesterday showing medics in hazmat suits entering the Staycity hotel in York where the two Chinese tourists were.

It is believed the medics were deployed to the hotel as part of a cranked-up manhunt to find anyone who came into contact with the two coronavirus patients.

Separately, the Department of Health confirmed it was still trying to contact 438 travellers who have arrived here from Wuhan in the past three weeks. An appeal went out this week urging them to self-isolate for 14 days.

British family stranded in Wuhan with four-week-old baby say food is running out after they failed to catch escape flight to UK Adam Bridgeman, 33, his Chinese wife Su and son Austin are stuck in the quarantined city after they were given just two hours notice to escape on Thursday. He had pledged to stay after he was told seats on a plane to RAF Brize Norton were only for British citizens - meaning his spouse and child would have to stay behind. But he received a call at 11.15pm Thursday saying the family could fly back to the UK - but only had until 1am Friday to get to Wuhan Tianhe International Airport. Adam Bridgeman, 33, his Chinese wife Su and son Austin are stuck in the quarantined city after they were given just two hours notice to escape Mr Bridgeman said it was impossible to clear their flat in time - but the Foreign Office called again saying the rescue flight was delayed and sent a taxi for them. By the time the car turned up it was too late for check-in, leaving them stranded. The father, whose son was born two days before the coronavirus outbreak, is now worried about the health of his baby boy. He told the Times: 'The main concern then is that Austin will need some medical attention. 'We don't want to go to a hospital because of the virus. Most shops are shut. The variety of food we have access to is noticeably reducing.' Ben Williams, who had been in Wuhan getting married and on honeymoon, said he had to leave his new Chinese wife behind after being given short notice to get to the plane. He told the BBC there had been delays in getting paperwork and mistakes in communication between embassies. He said: 'By the time we got out the door it was very much a close call to get to the meeting point to get on this flight and sadly my wife has nothing prepared and it wasn't right for her to enter the UK with essentially nothing.' Advertisement

The hotel remained open on Friday because officials reportedly refused to tell the owners their guests were the coronavirus patients.

Paul Hunter, a professor of medicine at the University of East Anglia, blasted the Government's 'worrying' response after it emerged the hotel has remained open since a Chinese man fell ill there on Wednesday night and rooms can still be booked.

Fris Ilfifi, 30, who recently arrived from Saudi Arabia to study for a chemistry PhD at York University, was among those staying at the hotel when medics rushed in.

She told the Sun: 'I saw the man. He was sitting at reception. Two medics went to his room and tested him.

'When I checked at reception, they told me it was normal flu. Guests were not in masks. Everything was carrying on as normal.

'I was scared then, and now. I'm trying to find somewhere else to stay.'

York's rich history makes it a hugely popular stop for visitors on tours of Britain and Europe.

Concerned guests began to check out yesterday afternoon after learning of the coronavirus link at the aparthotel, just outside the Roman walls of the tourist hotspot.

Michiela Saunders, 26, of Bishop Auckland, demanded a refund and checked out and has spoke of her fury that no-one warned her of the cases.

Other experts have warned ministers need to carry out 'detective work' in order to track down people who have been in contact with the confirmed cases.

The World Health Organisation has warned the never-before-seen virus  mainly spread through coughs and sneezes  can survive on surfaces such as tables and cutlery.

Around 2,000 people are thought to have jetted into Britain from Wuhan  the deserted city at the heart of the crisis  in the past three weeks, with hundreds still believed to be in the country.

It came as the UK Government's evacuation flight landed at RAF Brize Norton in Oxfordshire yesterday afternoon containing 83 Britons.

One of the evacuees from coronavirus-hit Wuhan today shared a glimpse of what life is like inside quarantine as he and 82 others spend their first day inside a nurses' accommodation block in the Wirral.

Matt Raw, who was part of a group flown in from China on Friday over the coronavirus outbreak, revealed that he and others staying in the building can 'go outside for fresh air' and are treated to 'anything we ask for'.

The Briton, who is staying in the block alongside his wife, will be holed up in the building at the side of Arrowe Park Hospital for 14 days - after which they will be allowed to leave provided they are clear of the virus.

Speaking on BBC Breakfast this morning, Mr Raw said: 'Every single thing that we have asked for we get. There is an army of people here who are looking after us extremely well. They are running out and buying everything.

'They've bought us televisions, radios. You name it. Anything we've asked for, they've bought for us.'

Also staying in Mr Raw's four-bedroom apartment is his mother, who has her own room, and a mother and her daughter, who also have another room - leaving one empty room in the flat.

'There is a another room, I think it is a quarantine bedroom, in the event that somebody does become sick,' Mr Raw added.

'We are allowed to have contact with anybody within the facility as long as we're wearing face masks. We can go outside and get some fresh air.

'We can open the windows and get some fresh air. We're being looked after to the absolute maximum that anyone can possibly expect.'

Matt Raw, who was part of a group flown in from China on Friday over the coronavirus outbreak, revealed that he and other quarantined passengers can 'go outside for fresh air' and are treated to 'anything we ask for'

The Briton shared images of inside the quarantined room, showing toiletries and a brand new television left on a chest of drawers in the building

Mr Raw revealed that he can cook for himself inside the apartment, which he shares with his wife, mother and a woman and her daughter. There is a dishwasher, toaster and oven included in the apartment

A woman and her daughter are also staying alongside Mr Raw in the hospital accommodation block. The woman asked to say hello to her husband live on the show

Workmen clean dirty apartment blocks at Arrowe Park Hospital in Wirral this morning, where British citizens flown out of Wuhan will be quarantined for at least a fortnight

Cleaners use a jet wash to clean the outside of a block at Arrowe Park Hospital in Merseyside today. The outside of the building appears as if it hasn't been washed in some time - but is now suddenly getting a sprucing up as British evacuees from Wuhan are set to stay for 14 days

Coaches used to transport British nationals from RAF Brize Norton to Arrowe Park Hospital in Merseyside sit parked in the hospital's staff car park today. The coaches where used to transport Britons who are now under quarantine following their return from the coronavirus-hit city of Wuhan in China

Number of Chinese students at UK universities has soared in recent years The number of Chinese students at UK universities has soared in recent years, and they are of increasing importance to the nation's higher education system. In 2018/19, China sent more students to study at UK institutions than any other overseas country, according to data published earlier this month by the Higher Education Statistics Agency (Hesa). Overall, a third of all international students, from countries outside the EU, are now from the Asian nation. Chinese students are of 'phenomenal importance' to UK higher education, second only to British students, one expert said. Unlike tuition fees for UK and EU undergraduates, which are capped at a maximum of 9,250, charges for those coming from nations outside the EU - including China - vary, and are typically considerably higher, as are those for post-graduate study. An analysis of official data, published by the Times Higher Education magazine, found that in 2017/18, Chinese student fees were worth around 1.7 billion to UK higher education. At five institutions, the analysis calculated more than 10% of all income came from these students. Nick Hillman, director of the Higher Education Policy Institute, said: 'Chinese students are phenomenally important, second only to British students in terms of importance.' During Theresa May's tenure as Home Secretary and then Prime Minister, overall demand from international students for a UK university education fell, Mr Hillman said, in part due to visa rules. But while numbers from many places, including the Indian sub-continent, stalled, demand from China bucked the trend, with numbers growing, he added. 'We are now more reliant on Chinese students because they are a bigger proportion of all students coming here,' Mr Hillman said, adding that the expectation was that the numbers would continue to grow. The latest Hesa data showed that in 2018/19, 35% of all non-EU students were from China. This proportion had increased by a third over a five-year period. In 2018/19, 120,385 Chinese students came to the UK to study, up from 89,540 in 2014/15. A number of UK institutions now have close links with China and its universities. Both Nottingham University and Liverpool University have set up campuses in the country, while Birmingham University now accepts the Chinese national college entrance exam, known as Gaokao, for top Chinese students who want to join its undergraduate courses. Advertisement

In a video blog from inside his room Mr Raw also told the Guardian: 'They've actually put a bag here containing various essentials that we might need - underwear and things that people might not have had time to pack.

'It's a perfectly nice room. We've got all the essentials that we need.'

The evacuees have been supplied with food, and laundry facilities, and have access to the internet and a team of medical staff who will closely monitor their conditions.

Kitchens are available for those who wish to self-cater, and families are being kept together, with games consoles, toys and cots provided.

Coaches which transported the evacuees were seen parked in a fenced-off area of the staff car park at the hospital on Saturday morning. It is understood they will be taken away to be decontaminated later.

In another development on Saturday the Foreign Office announced it is withdrawing some staff from China.

It said essential staff will remain to continue 'critical work' but warned that its ability to provide help to Britons in the country may be 'limited'.

UK ministers have said the Government will send another plane to Wuhan to rescue British citizens if needed and the PA news agency understands that the Foreign Office (FCO) is working with EU countries to add British passengers to any rescue flights they may charter back from the city.

One Briton in Wuhan has told of his fears of being left stranded after deciding he could not leave his wife behind.

Chris Hill, 38, from Sunderland said: 'My wife is a nurse and is not able to get the time off and will not abandon her parents. I am not willing to leave her behind and take my daughter. It's either we all go or we all stay in Wuhan.'

He added: 'I had to make a choice which I did. My only worry now is after everybody pulls out the FCO will forget about those who are staying and not give any support for us.'

He said the departure of embassy staff was 'not a good sight to see really, is it?'

Some reports on social media raised concerns that Paddington station had been cordoned off on Friday night due to a suspected coronavirus case.

But while the London Ambulance Service said two people had been taken to hospital from the station, it is understood the patients are not suspected of having the virus and the station was operational as normal on Saturday.

The number of coronavirus cases worldwide has surpassed that of the Sars epidemic, although death rates are lower.

Qatar Airways has announced the suspension of flights to mainland China from February 3, following in the footsteps of other major airlines including British Airways.

This photo taken on January 31, 2020 shows people disembarking from a Xiamen Airlines plane after arriving from the Thai capital Bangkok at Tianhe airport in Wuhan in China's central Hubei province

People coming from the Hubei province walk into Jiujiang after passing through a checkpoint at the Jiujiang Yangtze River Bridge, Jiangxi province, China, as the country is hit by an outbreak of a new coronavirus

French nationals repatriated from Wuhan, China, amid the new coronavirus outbreak, get off the plane at Istres Air Base, near Marseille, France yesterday in images released by officials today

Staff members, wearing protective suits, watch as a plane carrying 32 Mongolian citizens for their evacuation from the Chinese city of Wuhan arrives in Ulaanbaatar, the capital of Mongolia today

Foreign travellers wearing masks check their flight's departure information at Beijing International Airport in Beijing, China as the country is hit by an outbreak of the new coronavirus

Security guards walk in formation after changing shift at a checkpoint at the Jiujiang Yangtze River Bridge in Jiujiang, Jiangxi province, China, as the country is hit by an outbreak of a new coronavirus

A plane carrying French nationals repatriated from Wuhan, China, amid the new coronavirus outbreak, lands at Istres Air Base, near Marseille, China in a handout picture released today

Passengers wearing masks, amid the new coronavirus outbreak, are checked by Iraqi Health Ministry employees upon their arrival at Basra airport, in Basra, Iraq

Chinese couples are BANNED from getting married on lucky date tomorrow China has asked couples to delay wedding ceremonies tomorrow and scale down funerals to prevent the spread of infection. February 2 is considered a lucky date for wedding ceremonies this year because the sequence of numbers '02022020' is a palindrome, meaning it reads the same backwards as forwards. The appeal came after the death toll from the coronavirus outbreak soared to 259 with the total number of cases at 11,946 worldwide. 'Where marriage registrations have been announced or promised for February 2 this year, you are advised to cancel it and explain the situation to others,' a civil affairs ministry statement said. Beijing, Shanghai and other cities had earlier decided to offer wedding registry services on the date, despite it falling on a Sunday when offices are usually closed. The ministry said it would temporarily halt marriage counselling services and asked the public not to hold wedding banquets. It also said funerals should be held in a 'simple and expeditious manner to avoid gatherings of people' and the bodies of any victims of the coronavirus should be cremated as soon as possible. Staff handling funerals should wear protective gear and carry out temperature checks to avoid risking infection, the statement added. Advertisement

Many other countries, including Australia, South Korea, Singapore and New Zealand have said they plan to quarantine evacuees for two weeks to avoid spread of the virus.

Russia, Mongolia and North Korea have also announced that they will close their land borders with China to guard against the spread of the virus.

The virus emerged in early December and has been traced to a market in Hubei's capital Wuhan that sold wild animals. It spread globally on the wings of a Lunar New Year holiday rush that sees hundreds of millions of Chinese people travel domestically and overseas.

Yesterday, Britain confirmed its first two cases - on the same day dozens of British evacuees from Wuhan arrived in the country - at a York hotel where both members of the same family fell ill.

Dramatic footage from the budget Staycity showed medics in hazmat suits marching through an eerily deserted reception area, despite the 49-a-night tourist spot remaining open to guests.

Officials are trying to trace 438 other air passengers who've recently arrived from Wuhan as medics in hazmat suits were seen entering the York hotel where the two people with confirmed cases were staying.

One of the two coronovirus patients has now been revealed to be a student at the University of York. In a statement today, a spokesman for the university said the risk of the infection being passed on to other people on campus is low.

The virus's rapid spread in two months prompted the World Health Organization on Thursday to declare it a global emergency. Most cases reported so far have been people who visited China or their family members.

On Friday, the United States declared a public health emergency and President Donald Trump signed an order barring entry to foreign nationals, other than immediate family of American citizens and permanent residents, who visited China within the last 14 days, which scientists say is the virus's longest incubation period.

A woman wears a protective mask in light of the coronavirus outbreak in China as she walks at the Trocadero esplanade in front of the Eiffel Tower in Paris, France today

Chinese policemen wear masks and eyewears as they patrol at Beijing Railway Station in Beijing, China today

A soldier closes the gate at the entrance of a military base in Germersheim, near Stuttgart in southwestern Germany today where German citizens evacuated from Wuhan, epicentre of the coronavirus outbreak, will be held in quarantine

At an entrance of a shopping mall, a consumer is required to have his body temperature checked before entering in Beijing, China

A room is pictured at the military base in Germersheim, near Stuttgart in southwestern Germany today where German citizens evacuated from the Chinese city of Wuhan, epicentre of the coronavirus outbreak, will be held in quarantine

A journalist takes a photo of a bathroom at the military base in Germersheim, near Stuttgart in southwestern Germany where German citizens evacuated from the Chinese city of Wuhan, epicentre of the coronavirus outbreak, will be held in quarantine

A plane carrying French nationals repatriated from Wuhan, China, amid the new coronavirus outbreak, lands at Istres Air Base, near Marseille, France today

Coronavirus panic at London's Paddington station as staff don masks 'and cordon off station as two people are taken ill' Two passengers were taken ill at London's Paddington Station last night sparking fears that coronavirus has hit the capital. A woman was seen sitting on a row of seats in the station where she was surrounded by masked rail workers. Staff appeared to be standing at a safe distance from the passenger who fell ill shortly before 11pm. A passenger tweeted this photograph last night of a woman sitting on a row of seats surrounded by masked rail workers The incident has raised concerns that the virus has reached London just hours after two Chinese tourists tested positive for Wuhan coronavirus during a holiday to York. Paddington Station remained open while the passengers were treated by paramedics. Emergency services confirmed two people were taken to hospital but refused comment on fears of coronavirus. Mack Grenfell tweeted: 'London Paddington station being cordoned off due to a suspected #coronavirus case; what looks like a solo Asian traveller.' Advertisement

China has also flown two planeloads of its citizens back home to Hubei, the locked-down province at the centre of the deadly coronavirus outbreak where they were greeted by authorities in full-body protective suits.

A Xiamen Airlines charter flight from Bangkok touched down late Friday in the provincial capital Wuhan, where the infection is believed to have originated in a market that sold wild animals.

And today Spanish authorities confirmed that a German tourist was taken ill with the infection while on holiday in the Canary Islands.

Britain and France are among 20 countries outside of mainland China to confirm cases of the virus as tech giant Apple has confirmed closure of all major stores and offices in the country.

British evacuee Mr Raw is just one of a number to have shared their experiences inside the quarantine zone, after others last night posted images of themselves on social media wearing face masks.

Accommodation for the quarantined Britons - who are separate to the two confirmed coronavirus cases in Britain - was yesterday kitted out with bedding, games consoles and Barbies ahead of their 14 days in quarantine.

The evacuees were driven to the NHS staff accommodation blocks at the side of Arrowe Park Hospital on the Wirral just after 7.15pm after travelling 180 miles from RAF Brize Norton in Oxfordshire.

Ben Kavanagh was among those taking to social media last night to share their experiences of arriving at the hospital.

He posted a picture of himself wearing a mask to Instagram with the caption: 'We are all now safe in quarantine. Everyone has been fantastic, the airline, the stewards/stewardesses, the bus drivers, the NHS. Been travelling for 40 hours. I am mostly grease at this point. I will try to reply to everyone's kind messages tomorrow.'

The coronavirus, which has infected nearly 12,000 people and killed 259 - all in China - is known to spread easily through coughs and sneezes and close contact, and people may be contagious even if they feel well.

**Are you a student at the University of York? Get in touch using james.wood@mailonline.co.uk**

Desperate to get TO Wuhan: Chinese flights full of locals land back in virus lockdown zone where people are queuing for two days to see a doctor

China has flown two planeloads of its citizens back home to Hubei, the locked-down province at the centre of the deadly coronavirus outbreak where they were greeted by authorities in full-body protective suits.

A Xiamen Airlines charter flight from Bangkok touched down late Friday in the provincial capital Wuhan, where the infection is believed to have originated in a market that sold wild animals.

Health authorities in white, full-body protective gear stood by the cabin door as the plane's 73 passengers disembarked, smiling through face masks and waving to news photographers.

Health officials wearing full protective clothing greeted passengers arriving on a Xiamen Airlines flight from Thailand to Wuhan Tianhe International Airport

The Chinese residents were evacuated from Thailand on a specially chartered jet

The people on board the charter flight arrived in an area which has been locked down by Chinese authorities in an effort to prevent a further spread of the Coronavirus

A second Xiamen flight landed soon afterwards carrying Hubei residents from Kota Kinabalu, a popular coastal tourist destination in Malaysia.

China's foreign ministry said earlier on Friday that the country would bring Wuhan residents back from overseas 'as soon as possible' due to 'the practical difficulties that Chinese citizens from Hubei, especially Wuhan, have faced overseas'.

The move came after a more than 30 airlines worldwide announced they were halting or reducing flights to China as the country struggles to contain the spread of the epidemic.

China's aviation agency had said there were 117 nationals from Hubei province in Bangkok and 100 in Kota Kinabalu who are 'willing to take the chartered flights back to Wuhan as soon as possible'.

More than 30 airlines worldwide announced they were halting or reducing flights to China as the country struggles to contain the spread of the epidemic

This woman seems to be happy that she has returned home - despite the threat posed by the virus

This was despite the fact that Wuhan and surrounding cities have been locked down by authorities for more than a week, effectively trapping more than 50 million people in their homes after a near-blanket transport ban.

Nearly all of the 259 people killed in the outbreak so far were in Hubei.

Hospitals have been overwhelmed in Wuhan. AFP reporters saw long queues, with some patients saying they lined up for two days to see a doctor.

The charter flights prompted a flurry of discussion on Chinese social media.

'These people probably don't want to go back,' said one, while another questioned if residents should be returned to Hubei if they were not infected.

China has advised its citizens to postpone trips abroad and cancelled overseas group tours

Several other countries have advised against all travel to China because of the threat involved

China has advised its citizens to postpone trips abroad and cancelled overseas group tours.

Several countries including the United States, Germany, Britain and Japan have urged their citizens to avoid travel there.

The US has also declared a national emergency, temporarily barring entry to foreigners who had been in China within the past two weeks.

Neighbouring Myanmar turned a plane back to China on Friday with most passengers still on board - including French and American citizens - after one man suspected of contracting the coronavirus was taken to hospital.

Inside the lungs of a coronavirus victim: Shocking X-rays show effect that killer virus had on 33-year-old's vital organs

Shocking X-ray scans of 33-year-old show the effect that coronavirus has had on her lungs.

The woman arrived at hospital in Lanzhou, China, with a temperature of 102F and 'coarse' breathing after suffering from a cough for five days.

She had travelled to Lanzhou a day before her symptoms had started and works in Wuhan.

Doctors diagnosed her with the new strain of coronavirus after her white blood cell count was low which determined an infection.

The white patches appear more pronounced in the second X-ray, labelled B, which was taken three days after the first and further into her treatment

The scans show white patches in the lower corners of the lungs which indicates what radiologists call ground glass opacity - the partial filling of air spaces in the lungs.

The white patches appear more pronounced in the second X-ray, labelled B, which was taken three days after the first and further into her treatment.

The images were presented by a group of researchers at The First Hospital of Lanzhou University to the journal Radiology.

Radiologist Paras Lakhani from the Thomas Jefferson University, who was not involved in the study but examined the images, said: 'If you zoom in on the image, it kind of looks like faint glass that has been ground up.'

A World Health Organisation official said other governments need to prepare for a 'domestic outbreak control' if the disease spreads in their countries

'What it represents is fluid in the lung spaces,' he told Business Insider.

The virus has been identified as a new type of coronavirus. Coronaviruses are a large family of pathogens, most of which cause mild lung infections such as the common cold.

But coronaviruses can also be deadly. SARS, or severe acute respiratory syndrome, is caused by a coronavirus and killed hundreds of people in China and Hong Kong in the early 2000s.

Some people who catch the Wuhan coronavirus may not have any symptoms at all, or only very mild ones like a sore throat or a headache.

Others may suffer from a fever, cough or trouble breathing.

And a small proportion of patients will go on to develop severe infection which can damage the lungs or cause pneumonia, a life-threatening condition which causes swelling and fluid build-up in the lungs.

The woman was treated by inhaling a protein used to treat viral infections called interferon.

A shop assistant re stocks boxes of surgical masks as many people queue to purchase protective items

Radiologist Paras Lakhani told how doctors at Lanzhou would have likely administered fluids, steroids or a medication to open the woman's airways.

However pneumonia was ruled out after symptoms persisted and white patches extended to the edges of her lungs.

Lakhari said pneumonia is usually treated with antibiotics and doesn't usually 'rapidly progress'.

He added how ground glass on its own is not 'particularly helpful' in identifying coronavirus as bacterial, viral or even vaping can cause it to appear on X-rays.

Customers queue in a store in Hong Kong to buy surgical masks. Employees in China are being urged to work from home and cease non-essential business travel in the first week of February

People queue up to buy face masks in Hong Kong. Apple has said it will close all of its official stores and corporate offices in mainland China until February 9 as fears over the coronavirus outbreak have mounted

The extended white patches were also identified with severe acute respiratory syndrome (SARS) and Middle East respiratory syndrome (MERS).

Both are also coronaviruses and SARS resulted in 8,000 cases and 774 deaths in China from November 2002 to July 2003.

The radiologist said the scans of those viruses bear 'a lot of similar features' to that of the 33-year-old from Wuhan.



However the best way to identify coronavirus is to take swabs of saliva or mucus from a patient's nose or mouth or alternatively testing phlegm they produce.

Yet the test is only effective when the patient is showing symptoms.

Foreign Office pulls remaining staff out of China as it warns Brits remaining in the country they can only expect 'limited' help

The Foreign Office has announced plans to pull staff from China after warning its ability to help Britons in the country may be 'limited'.

Essential staff will remain to continue 'critical work' as UK ministers said the Government will send another plane to coronavirus-hit Wuhan to rescue British citizens if needed.

However the FCO has warned that its ability to provide help to Britons in the country may be 'limited'.

It comes as the Foreign Office is working with EU countries to add British passengers to any rescue flights they may charter back from Wuhan.

More than 80 Britons flown in from China over the coronavirus outbreak have arrived at their accommodation that was on Friday kitted out with bedding, games consoles and Barbies ahead of their 14 days in quarantine. Pictured: Buses carrying the British nationals arrive last night

Medical staff wear masks as British nationals from the coronavirus-hit city of Wuhan in China arrive at Arrowe Park Hospital in Merseyside

Families had been told that relatives with Chinese passports would be unable to join them after Chinese officials denied them permission to leave the country.

That decision was reversed hours before the plane was due to depart, but some people did not have time to get to the airport.

Chinese health officials said early on Saturday that the death toll in the country from the virus had risen to 259, with the number of known cases rising from 9,962 to 11,791.

No deaths have occurred outside China, although cases have been confirmed across at least 23 countries.

The number of coronavirus cases worldwide has surpassed that of the Sars epidemic, although death rates are lower.

Many other countries, including Australia, South Korea, Singapore and New Zealand, have said they plan to quarantine evacuees for two weeks to avoid spread of the virus.

Russia, Mongolia and North Korea have also announced that they will close their land borders with China to guard against the spread of the virus.

Rescued UK nationals were taken to Arrowe Park Hospital on the Wirral in a convoy of six coaches, arriving shortly after 7.15pm yesterday where they will spend the next 14 days in quarantine.

The evacuation flight from the Chinese city at the centre of the outbreak carried 83 Britons and 27 non-UK nationals and landed at the Brize Norton RAF base in Oxfordshire at around 1.30pm.

Their arrival comes as health officials urgently try to trace those who came into contact with two people diagnosed with coronavirus in the UK.

The UK passengers were taken to the Merseyside hospital to be housed in an NHS staff accommodation block with access to the internet.

A medic wearing a white specialist suit sat next to the driver of each coach.

The vehicles were led by a police escort to the rear of the hospital and on to a side road leading to the accommodation block.

Patients disembarked from behind barriers covering the accommodation entrance, but some could be seen inside wearing masks as they walked upstairs to their rooms for the next fortnight.

They are being given fully-furnished rooms, food, and laundry facilities, and have access to a team of medical staff who will closely monitor their condition.

Kitchens are available for those who wish to self-cater, and families are being kept together, with games consoles, toys and cots provided.

The evacuation flight came as the first two cases of coronavirus in the UK were confirmed by Public Health England (PHE).

PHE confirmed that the two people taken ill  who are members of the same family  had been staying at the Staycity apartment-hotel in York when they became unwell.

The firm has said the apartment involved has been thoroughly disinfected and PHE has been providing support.

The two people diagnosed with the virus are being treated by Newcastle upon Tyne Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust in its specialist Airborne High Consequences Infectious Disease Centre (HCID).

Professor Sharon Peacock, director of the National Infection Service at PHE, said: 'Public Health England is contacting people who had close contact with the confirmed cases.

'Close contacts will be given health advice about symptoms and emergency contact details to use if they become unwell in the 14 days after contact with the confirmed cases.'

Prof Peacock previously said that, while staff were working to trace people who have been in contact with the pair, they do not currently have 'any idea' of how high that number might be.

The PHE definition of close contact is being within two metres of the infected person for 15 minutes.

On Thursday, the UK's four Chief Medical Officers raised the risk level of the illness from low to moderate and the World Health Organisation (WHO) declared an international public health emergency.

The US declared a public health emergency on Friday night, with President Donald Trump signing an order which will temporarily bar entry for most foreign nationals who have travelled in China within the last 14 days.
NIA arrests wives of PLFI chief in naxal terror funding case

India

oi-Vicky Nanjappa

New Delhi, Feb 01: The National Investigation Agency has arrested two accused in connection with a naxal terror funding case.

The two have been identified as Hira Devi and Shakuntala Kumari, the wives of Dinesh Gope the chief of the PLFI.

The case pertains to the seizure of Rs. 25.38 lacs cash which was being deposited in SBI, Branch Bero, Ranchi on 10.11.2016. During investigation it was established that this money was part of a bigger criminal conspiracy relating to channelizing of the extorted levy amount collected from the contractors/businessmen engaged in the developmental projects in Jharkhand and investing these funds into dubious shell companies formed with the partnership of PLFI associates and family members of Dinesh Gope.

NIA charges 4 NSCN (IM) terrorists in MLA murder case

Subsequently, cash worth Rs 42.79 lacs and other movable and immovable properties worth Rs 70 lacs were seized/ attached in the case. Transactions worth Rs 2.5 Crores in two dozen bank accounts in the name of shell companies as well as in the name of individual family members of Dinesh Gope including his both wives had also surfaced during investigation. NIA has already filed charge sheet against ten arrested accused and one absconding accused.
VICTORIAIf Prince Harry ever gets lonesome for royal life while in Canada, he can always visit his great-great-great-great-grandmother, perched at a dining room table over a glass of sherry, her hair lovingly shampooed and fluffed by one of her most devoted subjects.

Until last week, Ken Lane, who once ran the Royal London Wax Museum in Victoria, kept Queen Victorias wax head in a box in his basement, stored with the heads of Elvis, Grumpy Smurf and other items from the museum, which shut down in 2010.

But after the recent arrival of Prince Harry and his wife, Meghan, in Victoria, Lane decided to move the figure of Queen Victoria upstairs. He spent three days getting her ready for display, coifing and styling her real human hair imported from Italy.

Wearing a crown, she now presides at his dining room table, as if in mid-conversation, with the figures of Queen Elizabeth II; Diana, Princess of Wales; and Winston Churchill. Union Jack napkins are at the ready, and multicolour Skittles are available for snacking.

Lane hopes that Harry and Meghans decision to retreat from their royal duties and move to Canada will nourish a renewed fascination with the British royals, and that his collection of 350 wax figures will then find a new home.

Meghan and Harry are popular royals, and I feel sorry for what theyve been through, said Lane, past chairman of the Victoria branch of the Monarchist League of Canada, which works to support Canadas constitutional monarchy. Harrys grandmother, Queen Elizabeth II, is the countrys head of state.

Victoria, on the southern tip of Vancouver Island, has long marketed itself as Canadas most English city. It is peppered with Tudor Revival architecture, pubs with names like the Churchill and specialty shops selling marmalade jam. Until 1950, its police officers wore bobby-style helmets.

Some residents, like Lane, have clung proudly to this image of Victoria. The city was established as a British trading post in 1843, before it became the seat of British Columbias government and a popular destination for retirees and honeymooners.

But increasingly shaped by a wave of new immigrants, a growing high-tech sector and a mayor who refused to pledge the traditional oath of allegiance to the queen, the picturesque city no longer aspires to be a little piece of Old England.

In many ways, said John Adams, 70, a local historian and city guide, the makeover of Victoria is not unlike the rebranding its newest and most famous residents are attempting.

Harry and Meghan are a contemporary couple trying to break with tradition, and that is perhaps why they resonate so much here in Victoria, Adams said. Like them, this city is trying to bring an old past into the future.

Harry and Meghan, also known as the Duke and Duchess of Sussex, are reportedly ensconced in an 18 million dollar, French-inspired eight-bedroom beachfront estate on Vancouver Island, where they spent their Christmas vacation. Their presence has been greeted with a mixture of enthusiasm, curiosity and studied indifference.

But such is the overall interest generated by the royal couples decision to move to Canadas westernmost province, that the CBC, the Canadian broadcaster, issued an etiquette guide for would be royal-spotters that reads like a how-to from the parks authority for engaging with wildlife.

Never touch a royal, the guide sternly warns, citing a royal expert. If presented to the couple, bow or curtsy. Treat them like cats, it adds. Let them come to you.

Lawyers representing the couple have threatened legal action against the British media after reporters hiding in bushes took photos of a beaming duchess walking with her son, Archie, in a public park near their rented home.

Local residents, though, appear determined to leave them alone.

A water taxi captain was feted as a local hero for refusing to bring a Japanese television crew to visit the property. On a recent day outside the estate, at the end of the long narrow road leading to the property, two security men with British accents came outside and barked at curious journalists to stay away.

Not everyone is thrilled by the duke and duchess arrival and even Lane is irked by their royal mutiny.

We are not amused, he said, using a quote attributed to Queen Victoria to express his disappointment with the couples decision to step back from the Crown, which sent shudders through his tight-knit monarchist fraternity.

Opinion on the royal couple was divided on a recent day during high tea, a popular ritual at the imposing and luxurious Empress Hotel, which was opened in 1908, and boasts vaulted ceilings and Bengal tiger head furnishings that hark back to the British Raj.

Sitting among a large group of female friends, wearing fascinators befitting a royal wedding as they sipped tea and devoured tiny egg and cucumber sandwiches, Christina Yee, a human resources manager, said she was drawn to the mystery of what its like to be a princess or prince.

But Rebecca Bertrand, who works in sales and whose mother is British, lamented that the royal couples presence could raise local property prices. No one wants paparazzi here, she added.

Pritam Sunger, the high tea hostess, offered a practical view. I love that they are here, she said. Its good for tourism and the economy.

Jordana Burnes, a Vancouver native who also works in sales, had this to say: I could really care less.

One person who is not obsessing about the royals is Victorias mayor, Lisa Helps, a left-leaning historian who is passionate about pushing for affordable housing, raising chickens and fighting inequality.

The mayor, who was first elected as an independent in 2014, has drawn opprobrium from royalists like Lane because she refused to swear an oath to the queen. Lane called that childish and churlish.

In Canada, representatives at the provincial and federal level pledge allegiance to the queen but mayors in British Columbia arent required to do so.

In not swearing the oath, Helps said she had been protesting the subjugation of Indigenous people by the citys former British colonial masters.

I have deep respect for the British bones of this city, she said, over breakfast at a hip downtown cafe, adding that she would be delighted to welcome Prince Harry and Meghan to City Hall. But, to me such an oath is an anachronism.

The city, she stressed, was no longer a throwback to the British Empire, nor the place some British Columbians have mocked as home of the newly wed and the nearly dead.

Instead, she said, 21st-century Victoria was a place of Indigenous cultural affirmation, green-friendly bike lanes, artificial intelligence companies, and immigration from countries with few ties to the Crown, like China or Brazil.

In Lanes living room, though, God Save The Queen was blaring. His House of Windsor-themed room is decorated with commemorative tea towels of Harry and Meghans 2018 wedding and cushions festooned with corgis, Queen Elizabeth IIs favourite dogs.

He lamented that Victoria had been hijacked by political correctness. But he was still hopeful that his beloved Queen Victoria would find a new Canadian home  even if it was not in the city that bears her name.

In any case, he added, in his collection, there was no wax figures of Prince Harry and the duchess.

Hes a spare  not the heir, he explained.

Read more about:
Mayank Singh By

Express News Service

NEW DELHI: India handed over relief material and stores to the authorities of Madagascar on Saturday. As the first respondent, Indian Navy Ship Airavat, which was en-route to Seychelles was diverted to Madagascar for rendering assistance after the island nation was lashed with cyclone causing heavy flooding and landslides leading to massive loss of life and property. The operation was launched on Tuesday and was codenamed as Operation Vanilla.

Navy in its official release said, As part of Operation Vanilla and on behalf of the Government of India, Abhay Kumar, Ambassador of India to Madagascar and Commander Sunil Sankar, Commanding Officer INS Airavat handed over urgently needed relief material comprising disaster relief stores, tents, blankets, clothing, food and medicines on 01 February 2020 to local government authorities in the presence of Honble Prime Minister of Republic of Madagascar, His Excellency Christian Lois Ntsay.

The Medical Team from the ship is holding a medical camp at Antsiranana from 01 to 02 February 2020 in coordination with local authorities, said Navy. Indian Navy was the first international respondent to this evolving humanitarian crisis in Madagascar.



INS Airavat reached port city Antsiranana, Madagascar on January 30 and immediately began to provide medical aid as required by local authorities and IN the medical team were moved to the affected areas.



INS Airavat is an amphibious assault ship and as part of the mission-based deployment has Humanitarian Aid and Disaster Relief (HADR) as part of its missions and carries relief material in the form of HADR bricks. This enables ships on deployment to respond rapidly to any emergent situation. The ship personnel will also provide diving and communication assistance and undertake transportation and evacuation of personnel using its four large and two medium-sized boats.'



Indias assistance to Madagascar is in consonance with Indian Navys Foreign Cooperation initiatives in line with Indias vision of 'Security and Growth for all in the Region (SAGAR)'.



There are about 15,000 persons of India origin in Madagascar, including approximately 2500 Indian passport holders.



In March 2018, President Ram Nath Kovind became the first Indian President to visit Madagascar. India and Madagascar signed a defence cooperation agreement during the visit of the Indian President.



Madagascar is also a member of inter-governmental organisation Indian Ocean Rim Association (IORA).

Indian Navy has emerged as the first responder to the crisis situations around Indian Ocean Region.
Hundreds of Indonesian students will soon be airlifted out of Wuhan, which has been at the centre of a new coronavirus outbreak.

Indonesia prepares to receive hundreds of students who are being evacuated from Chinas Wuhan city, which has been at the centre of a new coronavirus outbreak.

All of them will be quarantined for two weeks and doctors say they are ready for their arrival.

Despite the outbreaks spread through neighbouring countries, there have been no confirmed cases of the virus in Indonesia.

But authorities say they are well-prepared if the situation changes.

Al Jazeeras Jessica Washington reports from Jakarta.
Wrexham to receive 326,000 to support young people with additional learning needs

This article is old - Published: Saturday, Feb 1st, 2020

Wrexham is to receive an extra 326,000 to support young people with additional learning needs

The Welsh Government has announced it will be providing the funding to support education for children and young people with additional learning needs in Wrexham.

In the draft budget for 2020-21, the Welsh Government announced it would be providing an additional 8m for local authorities and colleges across Wales to support children and young people with additional learning needs (ALN) to receive a high-quality education.

ALN education is being transformed in Wales, following the Additional Learning Needs and Education Tribunal (Wales) Act, which became law last year. A new statutory support system for children and young people with ALN is due to come into force in autumn 2021.

The new amount is in addition to the 20m package currently supporting the implementation of the new ALN system across Wales over this Assembly term.

Confirming the funding, the Education Minister, Kirsty Williams said: We remain determined to ensure that all learners, no matter their background, are supported to meet their full potential.

We recognise that local councils continue to face significant pressures in supporting young people with additional learning needs. The investment we are announcing is specifically targeted to help manage those pressures and provide the best possible education for learners, while implementing our ambitious programme of ALN reform.

We can be proud that Wales is leading the way with our ALN reforms. Our changes will ensure we identify those with ALN as early as possible, so we can work with them and their families to plan tailored support to meet their needs.

We are changing the expectations, experiences and outcomes for young people to help all our learners achieve their full potential.

Sally Holland, the Childrens Commissioner for Wales, added: I welcome the Welsh Governments plans to give this much-needed boost to the system.

My Investigation and Advice Service is contacted more frequently about support for additional learning needs than any other issue and my case work shows that children and young people do not always get what they need.

It is essential to invest now, both so that children and young people can be supported immediately and to increase our capacity across Wales before the new law is implemented.
By Nelson Bocanegra

BOGOTA (Reuters) - Like a race car driver, Karen Londono is competing against the clock. She rests just four hours a day, trying to take as many fares as possible driving for Uber, before the application is deactivated in Colombia.

The company, which has repeatedly clashed with regulators and taxi groups in the Andean country, will stop functioning here from Saturday, leaving drivers like Londono, a single mother of two, worried about making ends meet.

Emboldened by a court ruling in their favor, taxi driver groups have said they will now go after similar apps like Didi, Cabify and Beat, stymieing those drivers who have switched platforms ahead of Uber's closure.

"They are taking away our ability to make a living and to provide for our children ... while knowing that opportunities for work in Colombia are very scarce," Londono, 26, said.

Mobile apps provide a means to earn for hundreds of thousands of people for whom they are the only source of income. Colombia has one of Latin America's highest unemployment rates, with joblessness above 10%.

Uber says it has 88,000 drivers in the country, serving more than 2.3 million users.

Experts say the situation with Uber in Colombia reflects the sluggish pace of introducing legislation regarding the needs of new sectors in the economy, such as apps, and traditional ones, such as the extractive industry, which sends a negative message to investors.

"The lack of adequate regulation obviously has an impact on every level, it impacts the users and those trying to work, as well as current and potential investors," said Alberto Sleshinger, economist and dean at the Sergio Arboleda University. "We are lagging behind."

Last year the ride-hailer canceled plans to build a $40 million support center in Colombia, citing regulatory uncertainty. Uber said the center, planned to be its third in the region, would have provided 600 jobs.

Regular user Catalina Acosta, 28, said there needs to be an "emergency solution" to avoid Uber's departure and make sure other applications do not go the same way.

Story continues

Acosta, an architect and technology entrepreneur, has collected more than half a million signatures through the platform Change.org, which she hopes will persuade the government to provisionally halt the ruling.

"It's very important that we focus on what citizens want," she said, adding that Uber's departure will not be good for Colombian start-ups looking to Silicon Valley's largest investors - including those which backed Uber - for funding.

The government said it has few options because Uber and similar platforms do not operate within the law.

"We cannot modify laws by decree," Transport Minister Angela Orozco recently told journalists.

In Davos last week, President Ivan Duque called for a level playing field between technology and traditional businesses, telling Reuters that unfair competition from apps cannot be tolerated.

For lawmaker Mauricio Toro - who proposed an as-yet undebated law to regulate transportation apps - the decision against Uber could cause similar problems for a wide variety of apps.

"This could lead to a tricky situation where, for example, supermarkets start suing companies like Rappi, Merqueo, Mercadoni, Domicilios.com and other platforms," he told Reuters, referring to popular delivery apps. "It's opening a way to ostracize technology."

(Reporting by Nelson Bocanegra; Writing by Oliver Griffin, Editing by Franklin Paul)
Angie Kent and boyfriend Carlin Sterritt looked every inch the loved-up couple on Friday, as they attended a bushfire fundraiser on the Sunshine Coast.

The Bachelorette star, 29, and her beau, 30, were seen getting cosy at the event at Alexandra Headland Beach Surf Life Saving Club.

The reality TV star stunned on the day in a white strapless playsuit, showing off her trim pins.

The look of love! Bachelorette Angie Kent and Carlin Sterritt looked every inch the loved-up couple as they attended a bushfire fundraiser on the Sunshine Coast on Friday

She dressed for the event in a white and navy polka dot off-the shoulder mini playsuit that also featured bell sleeves.

The blonde beauty elevated her look with a pair of espadrille platform wedges and toted a small cross body bag with silver coin embellishments on it.

Carlin opted for a very relaxed weekend look in a tropical print button up shirt and white shorts

Love: The pair looked ever so smitten at the event as they leaned in for a hug

Cute outfit: The reality TV star was seen stepping off a bus at the venue. She dressed for the event in a white and navy polka dot off-the shoulder mini playsuit that also featured bell sleeves

Looking cool: The reality TV star was followed by her aspiring actor partner. Carlin opted for a very relaxed weekend look in a tropical print button up shirt, white shorts and loafers

Loved up: Before making their way inside, the lovebirds posed together for a photo

He teamed his outfit with round sunglasses and his loafers.

Inside the venue the couple met up with her family - parents Jane and Markos - as well as her younger brothers Josh and Brad.

The group beamed for the snap, with the lovebirds positioned in between her mother and father, and her brothers.

Family: Inside the venue the couple met up her family - parents Jane and Markos - as well as her younger brothers Josh and Brad

At one point in the evening the former Gogglebox star appeared to be getting a cosy with her man.

She beamed at him while holding on to his muscular forearms, while he Carlin smiled back at her.

Later in the evening, Carlin was seen sweetly carrying her bag while at the bar ordering drinks.

Taking orders: Later in the evening, Carlin was seen carrying her bag while at the bar ordering drinks

Getting social: He then joined Angie back at the table enjoying flutes of champagne

He then joined Angie back at the table enjoying flutes of champagne.

Angie and Carlin's appearance at the fundraiser comes as she prepares to star in season two of Dancing With The Stars with the likes of Chloe Lattanzi, Dean Wells and Claudia Karvan.

The former Gogglebox star is in the process of relocating from the Sunshine Coast to Sydney to be closer to Carlin, but isn't moving in with him just yet.

Dancing With The Stars will premiere on February 9 on Channel 10
4 aid workers with French charity Christians of the Middle East disappear in Baghdad

Email Print Img No-img Menu Whatsapp Google Reddit Digg Stumbleupon Linkedin Comment

Four members of the French nongovernmental organization Christians of the Middle East, a charity that seeks to "help Christian communities remain (in the region) and rebuild," have disappeared while working in Baghdad.

The four members of the charity went missing near the French embassy in the Iraqi capital on Jan. 20, Christians of the Middle East director Benjamin Blanchard said at a news conference in Paris on Friday, France 24 reports.

Three of the disappeared workers are French and one is Iraqi, he added. There have been no ransom demands, and the charity has asked that their identities remain concealed for security reasons.

The charity has been working with persecuted Christians in Iraq since 2014 when Islamic State jihadists seized the predominantly Christian province of Mosul, displacing tens of thousands. The group is also active in the Iraqi Kurdish capital Arbil, where many Christians sought refuge.

The missing workers were in Baghdad "to renew their visas and register the association with Iraqi authorities," Blanchard said, and were due to inspect the group's activities in the city, including the opening of a new school.

They left their hotel by car for a meeting "which posed no problem," Blanchard said, describing the men as "experienced staff members who have been working with us for years" and who had "perfect knowledge of conflict zones.

On Twitter, Christians of the Middle East shared photos of people from around the world who've gathered to pray for the missing workers safe recovery.

Today, we will offer to God Our Father, a Special Mass, for the safety and the return of Our Beloved Four Brothers. We gather all of our hearts, minds, souls, and prayers for ONE INTENTION: THE SAFE RETURN TO OUR FOUR BELOVED BROTHERS, reads one update.

The secular news outlet AFP, which is partly funded by the French government, claims that the Christian organization is "fiercely critical of Islam, portraying it as a threat to Christianity in the Middle East."

The humanitarian aid workers' disappearance comes as kidnappings have become commonplace in Iraq, according to persecution watchdog group International Christian Concern. The group reports that America's military presence in Iraq has also become increasingly unwelcome following a U.S. drone strike that killed Qasem Soleimani, the Iranian Quds Force commander, alongside Abu Mahdi al-Muhandis, deputy commander of Iran-backed militias in Iraq known as the Popular Mobilization Forces, and five others in Baghdad on Jan. 3.

Soleimani, was a known terrorist who was responsible for numerous terrorist attacks worldwide as well as the killing of Iranians, Iraqis, U.S. allies and the killing over 600 U.S. soldiers and wounding of thousands of others over two decades. Other countries had tried to kill Soleimani before President Trump authorized the operation.

Iran has infiltrated the Iraqi government and military in an attempt to push out the U.S. and other foreign influences.



"The extent to which Iran has managed to infiltrate Iraqs political and military establishment was revealed in November 2019, when 700 pages containing secret intelligence cables were leaked to two U.S. media organizations. They describe a carefully conceived plan, going back to 2014, for Irans ministry of information and security, along with the Quds Force, to expand Irans influence inside Iraq, and to identify and run sources at the most senior levels of government. The aim was to keep the country pliant and aligned to Irans objectives," The Jerusalem Post reports.

"The leaked cables reveal that Iranian intelligence officers co-opted much of the Iraqi governments cabinet, infiltrated its military leadership, and even tapped into a network of sources once run by the CIA," the Post adds.

Along with exerting it's influence in the Iraqi government and military, Iranian-backed militias in Iraq, such as an armed group known as Kataib Hezbollah, have also been carrying out terrorist attacks, such as a Dec. 27 rocket attack on an Iraqi military base where U.S. troops are stationed.

As a result, all foreigners working in Iraq are at a grave security risk," International Christian Concern. notes. For Christians, the risk is even greater. Following ISIS, Iraqi Christians have come to rely upon foreign aid. For those working in humanitarian aid, and for those receiving, the environment is an increasingly dangerous one.

Earlier this month, Chaldean Catholic Patriarch of Baghdad, Louis Raphael Sako, called on Christians and Muslims in Iraq to pray for their leaders.

In his homily, Sako described the situation in Iraq and the Middle East as a volcano about to erupt and urged Christians to pray and push to avoid further escalation of the ongoing tensions, noting that innocent people will be the fuel for such fire.

Open Doors USA ranks Iraq at No. 15 on its World Watch List of 50 countries where it's most difficult to be a Christian. According to the group, although the Islamic State terror group has lost territory in Iraq, their ideology remains and has influenced society. Many of the militants, it says, have simply blended back into the general population.
Dublin Airport supports or facilitates almost 130,000 jobs in the Republic of Ireland, according to a new study of the airport's overall economic impact.

The study, which was undertaken by economic consultants InterVISTAS, also found that Dublin Airport contributes a total of 9.8 billion in Gross Value Added (GVA) to the Irish economy, which is equivalent to more than 3% of the national economy.

The study reveals that the 57% growth in Dublin Airport's passenger numbers between 2013 and 2018 supported and facilitated an additional 12,400 jobs during that period.

The InterVISTAS study measures the overall economic impact of Dublin Airport and considers areas such as employment levels, the wages of the people employed in airport-related activities, and the indirect benefits that flow into the wider Irish economy.

'Dublin Airport plays a vital role in the Irish economy, as it is Ireland's main gateway to the world,' said Dublin Airport Managing Director Vincent Harrison.

He added: 'The connectivity that it provides underpins Irish tourism and trade, and also helps enable continued investments in foreign direct investment (FDI) in the Irish economy. One of the airport's key goals is to grow route choice and frequency for the benefit of the Irish economy.'

A total of 129,700 jobs are generated and facilitated by Dublin Airport, including about 21,500 jobs that are directly related to the airport operation in areas such as airport security, airline operations, ground handling firms, immigration, customs and air traffic control.

The increase in Dublin Airport's passenger numbers from 20.1m in 2013 to 31.5 million in 2018 boosted the airport's direct employment levels by 5,800 jobs during the same period.

The study found that Dublin Airport spends an average of 218 million per year with more than 1,000 separate Irish suppliers. That spending level purely relates to procurement by daa directly and does not take account of spending by other airport-based companies.

The growth in connectivity has played a key role in Dublin Airport's larger economic impact. Dublin Airport's connectivity increased by 59% in the five years to the end of 2018, making it the second-fastest growing major airport in Europe in terms of connectivity.

Moscow's Sheremetyevo Airport saw the largest increase in connectivity during the period, while Dublin's expansion was greater than other airports such as Helsinki, Amsterdam Schiphol, Lisbon and Barcelona. In 2018, Dublin Airport welcomed 31.5 million passengers and had services to more than 190 destinations in 42 countries.

;Connectivity is hugely important for Ireland, as it is one of the world's most open economies,' according to Mr Harrison.

He added: 'Exports, foreign direct investment and tourism all play a major role in the Irish economy and research has shown that the value of exports with well-connected countries is typically five to six times more than that between countries that are poorly connected.'
Donald Trump's impeachment trial at the senate is set to end next week Wednesday after the senators on Friday night, voted 51-49 against calling witnesses to testify in the ongoing impeachment trial.



The witnesses are needed by Democrats to corroborate House of Reps allegations that Trump abused his power and obstructed congress by withholding military aid to Ukraine in exchange for investigations into his political rival, Joe Biden.



Donald Trump will be cleared on Wednesday!: Senators vote 51-49 against calling witnesses in Impeachment trial



Following a dramatic Friday where new revelations came from former National Security advisor John Bolton saying Trump told him to assist his pressure campaign on Ukraine, and that White House counsel Pat Cipollone was in the room at the time,

Senators arrived in the Capitol for four hours of debate on whether to call witnesses.



Two Republicans, Mitt Romney and Susan Collins, joined Democrats in their push for witnesses  but it was not enough as Republicans had majority votes of 51 who voted against calling witnesses while 49 other senators voted in favour of witnesses.



Donald Trump will be cleared on Wednesday!: Senators vote 51-49 against calling witnesses in Impeachment trial



A final vote on Trump's acquittal will now take place on Wednesday 4pm which will be after the president's State of the Union address.



'Americans will know that this trial was not a real trial,' said Sen. Chuck Schumer immediately after the vote, calling it 'a tragedy on a very large scale.'



Schumer called it a 'perfidy, a grand tragedy, one of the worst tragedies that the Senate has ever overcome. America will remember this day, unfortunately, where the Senate did not live up to its responsibilities ... and went along with a sham trial.'



Republicans Mitt Romney and Susan Collins each voted 'aye' and voted for witnesses. Both had indicated they wanted to hear from Bolton.



Two other key Republicans, Lisa Murkowski of Alaska and Lamar Alexander of Tennessee, voted to oppose calling witnesses.













Disclaimer : Opinions expressed here are those of the writers and do not reflect those of Peacefmonline.com. Peacefmonline.com accepts no responsibility legal or otherwise for their accuracy of content. Please report any inappropriate content to us, and we will evaluate it as a matter of priority.

Featured Video
New Delhi: BJP president JP Nadda on Friday said that the joint address of President Ram Nath Kovind in the Parliament shows how India is rising under the dynamic leadership of Prime Minister Narendra Modi and how the country has taken a big leap in areas of development.

Speaking to ANI, Nadda said, "The President's joint address shows how under Prime Minister Modi, the country has made a leap forward in areas of development. The development was done for all and every sector was addressed. It has been inclusive and in totality."

"All important matters were addressed by the government like abrogation of Article 370 in Jammu and Kashmir and the Citizenship Amendment Act (CAA). Whether it is strengthing UAPA and POCSO and the bold decision of regularisation of unauthorised colonies in Delhi, all these issues were addressed," Nadda said.

"Under Modiji the country is moving ahead and will continue to do so which is reflected in the document," he said.

The BJP president further said, "It gives a picture of aspiration of the people of India and how it will be addressed by the Modi government. And how the roadmap has been set up to go for a 5 trillion dollar economy."

"How we are going to invest in infrastructure and how we are going to see that the development is done for every section of society," he said.

"I consider it as a positive document, and it also shows how India's image internationally has risen and how the world has started looking towards India," the BJP president added while speaking about President Kovind's address in the Parliament.
For Shelley Simon, full-time house-sitting is a way to beat the high cost of living in the Bay Area while pursuing a career as a ceramic artist and teacher.

For Theresa Markle and husband Ken Garrett, it was a way to travel the world economically for 4 years while renting out their home in San Francisco.

They and others who house-sit full time or close to it say its a great way to save money, but its not for everyone. Or even most people. You must treat it like a job, be adaptable and have a backup plan for days when theres no place to sit. And you must love dogs, cats and other animals because most people who want house sitters also want pet care.

House-sitting websites have made it easier to find gigs, mostly unpaid, all over the world. Those doing it locally depend mostly on word of mouth.

Its kind of a crazy cuckoo life, said Simon, who is 65. Im an artist nomad person. Ive never been a real homebody. I like having no clutter and being really free.

It started about eight years ago when a friend asked if Simon could stay at her house when she and her husband went to Mexico for five months. At that point, they took their cats with them and Simon took in the mail and managed the house for free. She had been wanting to move, and gave up the room shed been renting from a family in Pacifica.

After that, Simon started getting house-sitting requests through referrals from past clients and people from her San Francisco ceramics studio. It gradually increased through word of mouth, she said. It wasnt like I came into this full on.

Most of her house-sitting gigs include pet-sitting, for which she charges $25 to $30 per night for cats and about $50 for dogs. She has 10 consistent clients with homes from Fairfax to San Mateo.

When Simon is between jobs, she can rent a room from a friend in Pacifica for $30 a night or stay with friends in Noe Valley. She stores her artwork in another friends barn and keeps other things in the ceramics studio shes had for 40 years. The studio is my anchor. We have a fridge, a kitchen. I can eat there if I need to, she said.

Jessica Christian / The Chronicle

On the job, shes had to deal with overflowing washers and numerous trips to the vet. Its not like a stress-free job, she said.

The hardest part? Figuring out the remote control at each house.

Linda Galiano started house- and pet-sitting occasionally eight or nine years ago. It got more frequent after she retired from an advertising career, six years ago.

It was supposed to be a temporary thing when I was taking classes at the local college, she said. It grew more than I expected. I got attached to my animals. Its a passive thing where I can do whatever Im doing and get paid for it.

For most of those years, Galiano kept a permanent home while she sat in San Francisco, Marin and Southern California, where she once lived. Last May, the place she was renting got sold and she had to move out. That was her second place that got sold in three years, and in between, rents had skyrocketed. Rather than get locked into a years lease, she has been house- and pet-sitting at least 20 days a month since May. When shes not sitting, she visits friends or uses her network to find short-term rentals.

She also became a certified animal masseuse, a service she offers pet-sitting clients at no extra charge. Another perk: She sends them pictures of their pets every day, and in costumes on holidays.

Galiano plans to continue house-sitting while she travels and decides where to move next. She relies entirely on referrals; some new clients find her from reviews that past clients posted on NextDoor, the social media app for neighborhoods.

Markle also thought house sitting would be a temporary thing when she quit her job as a nurse at San Francisco General Hospital in 2015. I had been plotting for a while what I would do if I had a year off to travel. I put together a budget and a spreadsheet and figured out we could travel for a year. We rented out our house in Bernal Heights and got ready to go. Then one friend mentioned house-sitting and gave me a link to trustedhousesitters.com.

They used the site to land a 10-day house-sitting gig in San Francisco before they left for Southeast Asia. While in Cambodia, they applied for a two-month position in the Seychelles and got it.

The place was pretty basic. We had three dogs. The house was on top of a hill and to walk the dogs, we had to walk them down the hill through a gauntlet of guard dogs, mean dogs. Her dogs were used to being taken to the beach in a car and were not leash trained, she said.

House-sitting allowed them to travel for 4 years instead of just one. To find gigs they used websites  such as Trustedhousesitters, Nomador, MindMyHouse and HouseCarers  and occasionally Facebook groups for house sitters. They did about 20 jobs in countries including Bali, Australia, Costa Rica and Bermuda. All except one required pet care. That one had orchids to tend, which was harder in some respects than dogs and cats and bunnies, Markle said.

When traveling internationally, they dont get paid, nor do they pay the homeowner. The sites they used dont allow or facilitate payment. They simply let sitters and homeowners post their profiles and connect online. After that they can call each other, video chat or meet in person to work out details. Some of these sites charge house sitters only, some also charge the owner. The fee generally ranges from $20 to $100 a year. Most let sitters and owners review each other; some only let owners rate sitters.

Air Quality Tracker Check levels down to the neighborhood Ratings for the Bay Area and California, updated every 10 minutes

Jessica Christian / The Chronicle

Before a sit, Markle asks the homeowner to give a video tour of the home and pets.

Others considering this should know what you need in a house sit. Can you get drinking water from the tap or will you have to carry 10-gallon bottles up the hill because there is no bus service she said. A lot of these places dont have AC, some dont have very good Wi-Fi. In the Seychelles, the internet was super expensive, and we ended up paying over $300 a month for it as we used the amount provided by the homeowner in the first two days.

Most of the homes were average quality; many were owned by expats from the United States or Europe. All spoke English. Some gave the couple keys to their cars. The amazing part is, you actually become friends with the community, Markle said.

When assessing advertised house-sitting opportunities, weve learned to read between the lines, she added. There are people who expect you to run their B&B or farm for them. At one sit in Costa Rica, we had to wade into the ocean to get cell service, walk 2 miles and catch the daily bus to the closest town to get food, and clean up the sewage that backed up in the showers and sinks. We learned from neighbors that we were not the first sitters to be lulled into expecting Internet access and cell phone service that didnt exist, nor the first to experience sewage back ups.

We consider house sits like our job, Markle said. You cant go see the sights, take off for two days. When we finish a job we travel, then do our next job. Last year, we did one in Morocco for a month, then we traveled for a month, then did a house sit in Spain, then traveled around Spain for a couple weeks, then flew to Singapore and did a house sit for a month.

The couple has heard horror stories from other international house sitters but we have been incredibly lucky, she said. The worst thing that happened was having a dog in Laos vomiting fluorescent orange vomit with blood clots in the middle of the night. They took him to the vet, who thought the dog might have eaten a poisonous lizard. The dog survived.

When they came home occasionally for a visit, since their house was rented they used NextDoor to find unpaid pet-sitting jobs. Markle has heard that some homeowners in the United States use nanny cams to monitor house sitters, which she considers creepy.

After their tenants moved out in September, the couple moved back home temporarily. They are remodeling their kitchen before renting their house again and hitting the road.

Markle, 57, and Garrett, 63, want to continue traveling internationally, where house sits can be more challenging, while they still can. When we get older maybe we will focus on house sits in Canada and the U.S, she said.

Kathleen Pender is a San Francisco Chronicle columnist. Email: kpender@sfchronicle.com Twitter: @kathpender
North Chungcheong Province Governor Lee Si-jong, center, visits a civil servant training facility in Jincheon County, Saturday, where Korean residents and students evacuated from Wuhan, China, on government-chartered planes are being quarantined. Yonhap



The health authorities reported the country's 12th case of the novel coronavirus Saturday, adding it was monitoring a further 70 potential cases as citizens' braced for a possible spread of the deadly virus amid concerns over person-to-person transmission.



The latest patient is a 49-year-old Chinese man who works as a tour guide in Japan and arrived here Jan. 19 through Gimpo International Airport in western Seoul, according to the Korea Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (KCDC).



The KCDC said the man was acquainted with a Japanese person infected with the virus in his country, indicating that he may constitute a human transmission case. The Japanese acquaintance had urged the man to go to a hospital to be checked, it added.



The agency said it is tracking people who have might have been in contact with the patient.



Since Jan. 3, 371 people had been monitored for potential contagion, 289 of whom turned out not to be infected.



The KCDC said 460 people who had been in close proximity to virus-infected patients are being monitored carefully.



The government confirmed its first coronavirus case Jan. 20, with the second one being reported Jan. 24, followed by one each on Jan. 26 and 27. The KCDC said two more cases were discovered Thursday, and five Friday.





Death toll from China virus rises to 259, border curbs disrupt more flights 2nd chartered plane with 333 Koreans arrives in Seoul from Wuhan Government hit for poor diplomacy, clumsy responses to epidemic LG says coronavirus disrupting supply chain Of the total, five are presumed to involve human transmission as the patients had not been to China recently.



This kind of transmission is worrisome as people may not know they have contracted the illness, even if they have symptoms, and can contaminate large numbers of people unwittingly.



Common signs of infection include fever, coughing, shortness of breath and breathing difficulties. In more severe cases, the infection can cause pneumonia, acute respiratory syndrome and even lead to death.



The health authorities are tracing the steps of confirmed patients, who were asymptomatic upon entering the country, so it can send teams to decontaminate areas they visited.



The KCDC said it has not been able to contact 50 Koreans who had returned from the Chinese city of Wuhan, the presumed origin of the illness.



The total number of passengers who flew in from Wuhan has been tallied at 2,991, with Korean nationals making up 1,085 as of Thursday; 398 foreigners are still thought to be in the country.



The agency said of the 18 Koreans sent to hospitals after being airlifted from Wuhan on Friday, 11 were shown to be not infected, while seven are still awaiting the results of tests.



The first airlift brought in 368 people, while the second carried 333, seven of whom were taken to a hospital for further checks.



The KCDC said the country is struggling to contain the further spread of the new virus and urged citizens to do their part with respect to personal hygiene.



The agency urged those who have been to China in the last 14 days to quarantine themselves.




Vietnam closely follows the situation in the Middle East and welcomes all efforts to restart the Middle East peace process, the foreign ministry's spokesperson Le Thi Thu Hang said on Friday.

She made the statement in response to reporters questions about Vietnams reaction to the United States Middle East peace plan unveiled by President Donald Trump on Tuesday.

We hold that a fair and sustainable solution to this issue can only be reached through dialogue and negotiations between related parties on the basis of respect for international law and related resolutions of the United Nations, Hang was quoted by the Vietnam News Agency as saying.

Trump's plan, unveiled alongside Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, envisages a two-state solution with Israel and a future Palestinian state living alongside each other, but with strict conditions that Palestinians have balked at.

He proposed a demilitarized Palestinian state, with borders drawn to meet Israeli security needs, while granting U.S. recognition of Israeli settlements on occupied West Bank land and of Jerusalem as Israel's indivisible capital.

The last Israeli-Palestinian peace talks collapsed in 2014.

Enduring obstacles include the expansion of Israeli settlements on occupied land over decades, and generations of mutual suspicion.

In November, the United States reversed decades of policy when Secretary of State Mike Pompeo said Washington no longer regarded Israeli settlements in the West Bank as a breach of international law.

Palestinians and most of the international community view the settlements as illegal under international law. Israel disputes that.

The past two decades have also seen the rise to power in Gaza of the armed Islamist movement Hamas, which is formally committed to Israels destruction and is in the midst of a decades-long power struggle with the Western-backed Palestinian Authority, headed by President Mahmoud Abbas.

Like us on Facebook or follow us on Twitter to get the latest news about Vietnam!
Weather Alert

SUB-ZERO WIND CHILLS LATE TONIGHT INTO TUESDAY MORNING Wind chills of near 0 to 10 below zero are likely late tonight into Tuesday morning. This will be from temperatures around 5 to 10 degrees across the interior areas combined with northwest winds of around 10 to 15 mph. For coastal areas, this will be from temperatures around 10 degrees combined with northwest winds of around 15 to 20 mph. If you need to be outside, be prepared for the wind and cold, and dress in layers and wear a hat, heavy coat, as well as gloves or mittens. Frostbite can occur in a short amount of time, so dress in layers and make sure all exposed skin is protected.
WASHINGTONHave you ever heard of a trial without witnesses? You have now.

What had become the key drama of the impeachment trial of President Donald Trump, whether to hear new testimony and evidence, was resolved Friday evening by a 51-49 vote against.

Its all over now but the shouting  although there will be lots of shouting. Senators were still working into the evening to wrangle the plans to close the trial, but the final vote to acquit the president and allow him to remain in office appeared likely to be put off, possibly until as late as Wednesday.

But the final result is not in doubt.

So what have Americans, and those watching from Canada and around the world, learned through this whole ordeal?

Lets go to the definitive interpretive text, the statement of Republican Sen. Lamar Alexander. In explaining his vote, he said new testimony was not required because the proof was already conclusive: There is no need for more evidence to conclude that the president withheld United States aid, at least in part, to pressure Ukraine to investigate the Bidens; the House managers have proved this with what they call a mountain of overwhelming evidence.

He went on to say Trumps inappropriate action undermines the principle of equal protection under the law.

Lesson one, according to the Republican senator who was widely seen as casting the vote that saved the day for Trump: the president leveraged hundreds of millions of dollars of government money to serve his own political campaign interests, and then  the obvious but unstated inference  emphatically lied about it for months.

How is this seen as helping Trump? On to the next lesson from his conclusions: The Constitution does not give the Senate the power to remove the president from office and ban him from this years ballot simply for actions that are inappropriate.

This was a foreseeable conclusion  early in the week, it was clear that the most feasible defence ammunition would likely come from Trump lawyer Alan Dershowitzs arguments that this abuse of power, even if proven, didnt rise to an impeachable standard.

It wasnt just Alexander. Throughout Friday, as lawyers made arguments and the Senates leaders chaotically negotiated how to draw the curtain on this production, other Republican senators echoed his logic.

Sen. Rob Portman issued a statement saying the presidents actions were wrong and inappropriate but did not rise to the level of removal from office.

Sen. Marco Rubio avoided directly accusing the president, but argued that just because actions meet a standard of impeachment does not mean it is in the best interest of the country to remove a president from office.

Sen. Ben Sasse told reporters in the Capitol hallway, Lamar speaks for lots and lots of us.

But not everyone agreed. Its a coverup  thats what the Senate has done now, Carl Bernstein, one of the reporters who broke the Watergate scandal, said on CNN. Hundreds of historians had earlier signed a letter saying that Trumps numerous and flagrant abuses of power are precisely what the Framers (of the Constitution) had in mind as grounds for impeaching and removing a president.

But Republican senators concluded they could not  or should not  do it.

Alexanders statement went on to say, If this shallow, hurried and wholly partisan impeachment were to succeed, it would rip the country apart, pouring gasoline on the fire of cultural divisions that already exist.

In summary: Trump is surely guilty. We dont feel we can do anything about it. And anyway, its really the Democrats fault.

That view may be shared by a fair number of Republicans beyond the Senate.

Meanwhile, despite the vote against witnesses, the drip-drip-drip testimony-in-absentia of former national security adviser John Bolton continued, with another leak in the New York Times from his forthcoming book.

This time, Bolton is reported to have written that Trump asked him directly in May 2019 to set up a meeting between Rudy Giuliani and the Ukrainian president so they could discuss the investigations. Reportedly present at that meeting was Pat Cipollone, who has been leading the presidents legal defence. Trump immediately denied any such meeting took place. The Senate may not get to weigh this evidence, but the American people will.

Which brings us to the one other point in Alexanders statement: The question then is not whether the president did it, but whether the United States Senate or the American people should decide what to do about what he did. I believe that the Constitution provides that the people should make that decision in the presidential election that begins in Iowa on Monday.

It was always going to come down to this Novembers election  that was obvious from the beginning. The Senate was never going to deliver the final verdict. That will come from American voters.

Read more about:
Manana Arrives

A local push to legalize recreational cannabis is making noise at full volume during this odd-numbered year's half-sized 30-day New Mexico legislative session. A joint guest editorial written by two Las Cruces City Councilors was just published by local daily newspaper the Albuquerque Journal. In an opinion piece titled It's time to end failed war on cannabis, Las Cruces City Councilors Gabe Vasquez and Johana Bencomo outline the state of New Mexico's historical failure to catch up with its Western neighbors' economies and progressive policies that have made our neighboring states more prosperous and better able to provide the basic services, infrastructure and quality of life that people deserve. In the editorial Vasquez and Bencomo cite strong pro-legalization polling numbers in the state and the potential for numerous societal benefits ranging from the environmental to the economic. The authors emphasize the war on cannabis' disproportionate negative impact on communities of color, both locally and across the nation, and applaud the opportunity for restorative justice, including the expungement of low-level possession charges as well as commending the forethought and planning brought to the proceedings by the work and outreach of Governor Michelle Lujan Grisham's legalization legislation working group. According to Vasquez and Bencomo, manana is here, and new elected leaders that reflect a changing New Mexico are ready to drive that change. The time is now to legalize cannabis.

Netflix

Pandora's Sample Box

Since Weekly Alibi's Cannabis Manual-and its included coverage of terpenes, phytocannabinoids and the entourage effect-is hitting newsstands as I type, it would be an oversight not to mention a certain editorial by comedian and commentator Ngaio Bealum, who hosts the Netflix series Cooking on High, which was published earlier today by Leafly. Let us smell the legal cannabis for sale, dammit! finds Bealum delivering a paean to follow[ing] your nose, which he describes as rule number one for finding good weed. And he is right. As fans or followers of terpenes already know and Bealum notes: This isn't just emotions talking. This is science. Terpenes are aromatic compounds that give cannabis its flavors and effects. Different terpenes have different aromas. In practice, any attempt to regulate the pre-purchase sniffing of cannabis sounds like something of a regulatory nightmare, considering the standards of health departments alongside corporate operating policies. And even if all those obstacles could be surmounted, wouldn't we still be opening up a Pandora's cannabis sniffing sample box of dispensary discounts similar to those for day-old bread? Read Bealum's editorial and check out our terpene coverage in the latest Cannabis Manual.
She's been a fashion industry favourite for many years, and now Alexa Chung will take on a new role on the small screen.

The model-turned-presenter, 36, has joined Queer Eye icon Tan France, also 36, to co-present a new Netflix fashion competition series called Next In Fashion - which aired on the streaming service on Wednesday.

Both presenters were spotted in New York City on Friday as they larked around during an animated interview to promote the launch, shortly before the fashionista stepped outside for a cigarette while trawling her phone and appearing low-key.

Enthusiastic presenters: Alexa Chung, 36, has joined Queer Eye star Tan France, 36, to co-present a new Netflix fashion competition series called Next In Fashion, which they were promoting in NYC on Friday

The high-fashion competition show is similar to hits like Project Runway in that designers will compete week to week in different challenges.

Alexa and Tan, hailing from Hampshire and Doncaster respectively, will then appear in front of the judges after displaying the collection created for that week.



Speaking to Buzzfeed, the pair discussed how the eagerly-anticipated programme differs from other fashion contestant shows.

Tan explained: 'We have established designers from the likes of Stella McCartney, Alexander Wang and Louis Vuitton, they are seasoned designers that just haven't been given the platform... we want to make them household names.'

Quick break: Both presenters were spotted in New York City on Friday as they larked around during an animated interview to promote the launch, shortly before the fashionista stepped outside for a cigarette while trawling her phone and appearing low-key

Happy days: Alexa and Tan, hailing from Hampshire and Doncaster respectively, will then appear in front of the judges after displaying the collection created for that week

Alexa added: 'It's less of a gimmick and more a representation of what actually goes on in the fashion industry.'

The brunette beauty, who has her own fashion line in London, said she was approached late in the production of the show for the role of presenter - but jumped at the opportunity leaving her CEO to run the Alexa Chung brand.

Spotted after the interview the model wore a large wool camel coat over blue mum jeans and a pink shirt as she stopped for a cigarette.

Open and honest: Alexa added: 'It's less of a gimmick and more a representation of what actually goes on in the fashion industry'

Jet set: She admitted during the early morning interview in New York that she had just landed from London, which was why she was so awake and full of energy

She admitted during the early morning interview in New York that she had just landed from London, which was why she was so awake and full of energy.

Although the show starts out with 18 designers, these numbers will quickly dwindle as the judges decide who has what it takes and who doesn't.

The stakes are high for the talent competition, as it is offering the winner $250,000 and the opportunity to display their collection with Net-a-Porter, an online store offering a curated selection of designer wear.

All 10 episodes of the competition show aired on January 29, giving fans the opportunity to binge watch and discover the winner within hours of starting the series.

Ready to judge: The show is hosted by Queer Eye's Tan France, 36, and model-turned-designer Alexa Chung, 36

In the series the duo search for the next designer who can become a household name with their innovative and showstopping creations.

'Who amongst you is a household name?' he questioned the 18 contestants at the start of the trailer.

His question was then met with raised eyebrows and concerned looks from all the designers, but they were ready to compete.

New competition: Next in Fashion is Netflix's latest competition show, aired on January 29

'Thats exactly why were here today,' Chung told the designers.

Not only are France and Chung notable people in the fashion industry, but there will also be a series of guest judges appearing week to week throughout the competition to judge the designers.

Guest judges set to appear include Instagram's Eva Chen, designer Tommy Hilfiger, designer Prabal Gurung, designer Kerby Jean-Raymond, model Adriana Lima, and celebrity stylist Elizabeth Stewart.
The Delhi High Court on Friday said it expects that vacancies in the police force here will be filled up by the central government as early as possible.

A bench of Chief Justice D N Patel and Justice C Hari Shankar issued the direction after perusing an affidavit filed by the government that said the Delhi Police had a sanctioned strength of 91,962 and 10,130 posts were lying vacant.

The government also told the court that the recruitment process to fill up the vacancies has been set in motion and advertisements in this regard have been issued.

The submission was made in an affidavit filed by the government in response to a PIL initiated by the HC on a Supreme Court order. The apex order has asked all high courts to take suo motu cognisance of vacancies in police forces in their respective jurisdiction.

Taking note of the affidavit filed by the Centre, the bench disposed of the PIL saying we see no further reason to monitor the matter as there is hardly 10 per cent vacancy in the Delhi Police.
Republican Sen. Lamar Alexander broke his silence Thursday in the trial of President Donald Trump, asking to compare the present acrimony with the bipartisan nature of the two previous impeachment inquiries in modern history.

While the question was one of nearly 150 so far, it took on additional significance as the first from Alexander, who is considered a crucial vote on whether to allow new witnesses, along with Sens. Mitt Romney of Utah, Susan Collins of Maine and Sen. Lisa Murkowski of Alaska. Many Republican senators want to block new witnesses from testifying and move to acquit the President as early as Friday. Alexander told CNN he would announce his decision once the questioning period is over on Thursday night.

LIVE UPDATES: Impeachment trial of President Trump

Alexander's question could be viewed as a call-back to a point Ken Starr on Trump's defense team made days earlier, that Richard Nixon's impeachment inquiry was "powerfully bipartisan" and was thus more credible. No House Republican voted to authorize the inquiry under President Donald Trump, but 31 Democrats broke from Bill Clinton in 1998 and nearly all Republicans broke under Nixon in 1974.

But Democratic Rep. Zoe Lofgren of California, who served as a congressional staffer during the Nixon impeachment investigation, argued that even then, at first, "The parties were as dug in as parties are today."

Lofgren said that she "honestly" believed that when a government whistleblower came forward with evidence of Trump's wrongdoing, the two parties would come together as they did under Nixon. "It didn't happen, much to my disappointment," she acknowledged.

But she said that the Senate had a "opportunity" to do what the House did not: hear from first-hand witnesses such as former national security adviser John Bolton, who reportedly heard from Trump in August that he wanted to continue withholding nearly $400 million in aid to Ukraine until it backed a politically-damaging investigation into his 2020 rival, former Vice President Joe Biden.

Last year, the House impeachment inquiry asked Bolton to testify, but he refused. He has since said he would come forward if subpoenaed by the Senate.

"Let's see if that kind of information can help the senators come together as happened in the House Judiciary Committee so many years ago, when we dealt with the serious problem of presidential misconduct -- abuse of power to cheat an election -- when Richard Nixon shocked the nation and ultimately had to resign," said Lofgren.

Senate Democratic Leader Chuck Schumer then jumped in to ask a question to the House managers, attempting to assuage Republicans' concerns that a fight over witnesses would consume the Senate. On Wednesday, deputy White House counsel Patrick Philbin said that the House's request for witnesses "would be very grave" for the Senate as an institution and prevent its work for months. Alexander took copious notes while Philbin spoke.

But Rep. Adam Schiff, the lead House impeachment manager, responded on Thursday that they could depose witnesses in a week, while letting the Senate work, and then return to discuss what they found. He also charged that the White House defense doesn't want witnesses because they would "incriminate" the President.

Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell then inserted himself into the trial and asked a question, read aloud by Chief Justice John Roberts, asking the White House defense team to respond to Alexander's question.

Philbin noted that the House's vote to authorize the inquiry was more partisan than during the Nixon and Clinton eras. He then made the broad point to the central of their case: the House managers had not alleged a statutory crime, only abuse of power and obstruction of Congress, which he called "infinitely malleable" and tantamount to maladministration. Later, under further questioning, Trump's personal lawyer Jay Sekulow said the witness fight as described was not fair, saying the managers want to only call the witnesses they want, while blocking the ones Trump's team would want, like the whistleblower or Biden.

"They are not irrelevant to our case," Sekulow said.

The Senate soon took a break for dinner. Alexander privately met with Murkowski.

Afterward, Alexander told CNN that he would announce his decision on witnesses after the final question on Thursday night.

"We were just talking," Alexander said.

This story has been updated with additional developments Thursday.
Bexar County District Judge Ron Rangel has described himself as a true, leading proponent of bail reform issues.

Perhaps this is so, but we cant agree with this self-assessment. This is partly because of Bexar Countys inability to embrace bail reform for nonviolent misdemeanors in a way that reflects whats happened in Harris County.

But its largely because Rangels family ties to the bail industry cloud every action he takes (or fails to take) on this issue. Its a clear conflict of interest. His family owns Rangels Bail Bond Service. As Express-News reporter Brian Chasnoff recently outlined, not only did Rangel help his father and brother open this business, but multiple family members have worked there, including his mother.

Rangel has said his family connection to industry is not a consideration in his bail reform work as a judge: When I do that, the existence of the bail bonding industry is not in my head.

Perhaps, but reform clearly affects the industry. More personal recognizance bonds  when money isnt used to determine pretrial release  means fewer cash bonds. Unless his family plans to close its bail business, Rangel must recuse himself from any policy work on bail reform. His presence with the newly formed magistrate oversight committee clouds that bodys efforts.

Rangels conflict of interest is painfully obvious, but lets not let it overshadow another issue: surety surrenders for bondsmen.

Chasnoff details the case of Richard Dallas Ortiz, who was charged with possession of a small amount of methamphetamine. A city magistrate set his bond at $5,000. Ortiz signed a contract with Cindy Gabriel of Gabriel Bail Bonds to secure his release from jail for a fee. If he failed to appear in court, Gabriel would be liable for the $5,000.

But a few days later, Gabriel requested a surety surrender because Ortiz wasnt meeting the contracts conditions. This was not about missing court but filling out paperwork and not reporting on a periodic basis.

Rangel granted the surety surrender, triggering a warrant for Ortizs arrest and remanding him to jail without bond. Four days later, Rangel approved a request from Gabriel to reinstate the bond, only to again later grant a surety release to Gabriel.

Rangel has said, This is a ministerial-type action that is pretty much an automatic, so its not really like theres decision-making.

This strikes us as an issue that merits deeper review. While perhaps routine, its odd that a bondsman could collect a fee from a defendant, then petition a judge to be released from the surety only to reinstate the bond days later. Its also odd that its automatic to remand someone to jail without bond. All of this points to the need for reform.

Fellow District Judge Velia J. Meza has said part of the judiciarys concern about bail reform is their hang-up will always be public safety.

But cash bail makes no such assurances. It only makes a distinction by wealth. Or as Bexar County Judge John Longoria told us nearly a year ago:

There can rightly be somebody who sits in jail because he slaps his wife around and didnt have the money to pay for a bond, Longoria said. Now, if somebody else (who) slaps his wife around and has the money, then, yeah, they are going to get out. Our current system is not going to bless somebody for being poor and slapping their wives around.

Inexplicably, this was Longorias defense of cash bail.

We would also note that bail reform in Harris County doesnt bless anyone accused of family violence. While Harris County has eliminated cash bail for about 85 percent of nonviolent misdemeanors, it includes exceptions for family violence, bond violations and repeated drunken driving.

We strongly encourage Bexar County officials to study the reforms in Harris County, review the practice of automatic surety surrenders and embrace innovative ways to ensure those accused of nonviolent crimes make it to court.
A heartbroken mother has paid a heartbreaking tribute to her teenage son who was murdered just hours earlier outside a pub in a pretty Essex village.

Liam Taylor, 19, was stabbed to death at the Rose and Crown in Writtle following an altercation with four men.

Another 19-year-old man was rushed to Broomfield Hospital in nearby Chelmsford with stab injuries. He was discharged earlier today.

The pub and surrounding road has been sealed off and half a dozen police officers remain at the scene this morning.

Liam Taylor, 19, pictured, was stabbed to death outside the Rose and Crown pub in Writtle, Essex. Four men have been arrested on suspicion of his murder

Mr Taylor's ex girlfriend Georgia Wicks, pictured with two police officers, said: 'He was a funny guy, so caring and always messing around'

Ms Wicks, pictured, with Connor Wise, left, said: 'It's so shocking, I used to work with his grandmother at St Peter's Hospital in Maldon'

Connor Wise, 21, and Georgia Wicks, 19, from the nearby village of Great Baddow, said they received a call from a friend on Friday night about Mr Taylor's death.

Mr Wise, who said he had known Mr Taylor for four years, said: 'He was a lovely and caring guy, I would hang out with him in town.'

A tearful Miss Wicks, who said she dated Mr Taylor two years ago, added: 'It's so shocking, I used to work with his grandmother at St Peter's Hospital in Maldon.'

Nearly 100 people gathered on The Green, close to where the teenager was stabbed to death last night.

They laid flowers before prayers were said by Anglican priest Tony Cant who then asked for a minutes silence to remember the teenager.

He asked mourners to remember the teen and to grieve with kindness in their minds. Liams family then released more than a dozen helium balloons into the sky over Writtle. His mother, Michelle, was supported by family and friends - some of whom were wailing in grief - but she was too upset to talk about the events of last night.

Ms Wicks wrote: 'RIP Liam. You will always be in our hearts. Too young to die. Love You. Georgia and Connor'

Mr Taylor's mother Michelle, pictured centre, was with a group of 100 mourners who gathered in Writtle earlier today for a brief memorial

Local resident Steve Burdge, 63, said: 'Its a nice pub and not the kind of place where you would expect trouble. A lot of people go there for meals and its not got a rough edge to it. This is the kind of thing youd expect in London but not out here but sadly that looks to be changing'

Young people lowered their heads and held each other remembering their friend who was murdered hours earlier outside the Rose and Crown pub in Writtle

Anglican priest Tony Cant led prayers and called for a minute's silence to remember Mr Taylor

Police have now confirmed they think Mr Taylor was the victim of a targeted attack.

Four men were arrested following the murder at 8pm last night and remain in police custody this morning.

Mr Taylor's devastated mother, Michelle, has paid a heartbreaking tribute on Facebook.

She wrote: 'Cant even believe my beautiful son has been taking from me.. son u are my world and I know ur be looking down on me.. sleep tight my baby boy till we meet again mummy loves u sooooo much xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx.'

More than 155 people have already offered their sympathy to the devastated mother online.

Police confirmed they believe Mr Taylor was murdered in a 'targeted attack'

Mr Taylor was stabbed to death around 8pm yesterday. Police secured the crime scene while forensic officers

Police are continuing to search the area surrounding the Rose and Crown pub in Writtle, Essex today, pictured, after a young man was stabbed to death and a second was injured in a Brexit night of horror

Friends and relatives laid floral tributes around the edge of the crime scene cordon today just hours after Mr Taylor was stabbed in what police are describing as a 'targeted attack'

Mr Taylor died shortly after 8pm yesterday after being stabbed in Writtle, Essex

And Mr Taylor's devastated ex girlfriend Georgia Wicks, 19, came to lay flowers at the scene.

Fighting back tears she paid tribute to the 'funny and silly' teen who shed remained friends with.

She said: 'I found out last night about what happened.

'I spoke with his mum last night, she was completely lost for words as you would expect. Its so hard to take in at the moment.'

The teenager said Mr Taylor has two younger siblings and lived in the nearby village of Great Baddow.

'He was a funny guy, so caring and always messing around.'

Mr Taylor's mother Michelle left a tribute to her son on Facebook

Forensics officers from Essex Police continued to work at the scene today where Mr Taylor was stabbed

The stabbing happened in a smoking area to the rear of the pub which is in the centre of the historic Essex village

Friends left a range of floral tributes at an impromptu shrine set up after the brutal stabbing

Some left framed photographs while others laid down teddy bears at the scene

Ms Wicks' flowers, left yards from where the teen died, said: 'RIP Liam. You will always be in our hearts.

'Too young to die. Love you. Georgia and Conner.'

The pub is just yards from a pretty area of the village known as The Green.

It is an area popular with dog walkers and has a tea room which overlook the village duck pond.

Writtle was named in the Domesday Book and in 1086 had a recorded population of 178.

Local resident Steve Burdge, 63, said: 'Its a nice pub and not the kind of place where you would expect trouble.

'A lot of people go there for meals and its not got a rough edge to it.

'This is the kind of thing youd expect in London but not out here but sadly that looks to be changing.'

Forensics officers photographed the crime scene where Mr Taylor was stabbed last night

Some mourners let several blue helium balloons rise into the sky to commemorate Mr Taylor's death

Four men have been arrested following last night's stabbing outside the Rose and Crown

The incident happened outside the Rose and Crown pub in Writtle, near Chelmsford last night

Four men were arrested on suspicion of murder following the attack at about 8pm yesterday and they are in custody this morning.

It is not known at this stage what triggered the stabbings.

A police cordon remained at the scene on Saturday morning, with parts of The Green closed to traffic between the pub and St John's Road.

An 85-year-old woman, from Lodge Road, who did not want to be named, said serious incidents were rare in Writtle.

'I've lived here for 40 years and nothing like this ever happens,' she said. 'It's such a quiet place.'

Another 81-year-old dog walker, who lives five minutes away from the pub, said: 'It's a shame it happened at that lovely little pub, the owners must be devastated.'

A mother who lives a short distance away from the Rose and Crown said: 'It's horrendous, there was a lot of commotion down here last night.

'It's really sad, it's a lovely village and a family-run pub.'

Police will be looking for any CCTV footage of the crime which could help with their case

A number of shops along The Green have closed for the day, including the Village Pharmacy.

Detective Inspector Greg Wood, of the Kent and Essex Serious Crime Directorate, said: 'Officers have been working throughout the night and are continuing today to take witness statements and gather information to help establish the circumstances around this tragic incident.

'We are treating it as a targeted attack based on our enquiries so far.

'Id like to thank members of the public for their help and ask anyone who has information but has yet to come forward to please call us, or to contact Crimestoppers anonymously.

'I know people will be concerned and officers are carrying out extra patrols today in Writtle.

'Id ask anyone who has information or any concerns to please speak to them or to call us.'

One man has died and a second was taken to hospital following a Brexit night stabbing in an Essex pub. The incident happened around 8pm at the Rose and Crown pub in Writtle, near Chelmsford

Four men have been arrested on suspicion of murder following last night's double stabbing

An Essex Police spokesman said: 'We were called at 8pm on Friday, January 31 with reports two men had been assaulted outside the Rose and Crown pub in The Green, Writtle.

'Emergency services attended but sadly one of the men died at the scene. The other was taken to hospital for treatment. His injuries were not life changing or life threatening.

'Both men had suffered stab wounds.

'Four men have been arrested on suspicion of murder and have been taken into custody for questioning.

'Officers are carrying out enquiries in the area and the road is currently closed while we carry out forensic examinations.

'Wed like to thank members of the public who are assisting with our investigation and ask anyone who has yet to speak to officers to please call 101 quoting incident 1107 of Friday 31 January.'
BAKU, Azerbaijan, Feb.1

Trend:

On January 31, 2020, the successive session of the Cabinet of Ministers of Turkmenistan took place. In the framework of the session, the President of Turkmenistan Gurbanguly Berdimuhamedov signed a number of vital documents aimed at the uncovering of the energy strength of the country, Trend reports with reference to Turkmen embassy in Azerbaijan.

Berdimuhamedov signed the Decree according to which the Turkmengaz State Concern will settle an agreement with the Malaysian Serba Dinamik Sdn.Bhd company on procurement of the necessary equipment for the construction of the Turkmen section of the Turkmenistan-Afghanistan-Pakistan-India (TAPI) pipeline, including the set of equipment for the gas-measuring unit.

According to another Presidential Decree, the Turkmenenergo State Power Industry Corporation of Turkmen Ministry of Energy will settle contracts with the foreign companies for the procurement of the necessary equipment, materials and techniques for the construction of high-voltage power lines and Akhal-Balkan and Balkan-Dashoguz stations.

In accordance with the document, the Turkish Calik Enerji Sanayi ve Ticaret A.S. company will implement the necessary projecting, supply, assembling and commissioning of the telemechanics systems, communications and program supply of the electric power transmission lines.

These documents are aimed at further uncovering of the energy potential of Turkmenistan, as well as offering the given resources to the international markets, the embassy said.
The finance minister said an amount of Rs 99,300 crore was allocated for the education sector and another amount of Rs 3,000 crore for skill development.

New Delhi: The Narendra Modi government will bring out a national education policy, encourage external commercial borrowings and FDI in the education sector for financing infrastructure. The steps were listed by Union Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman presenting the Budget for 2020-21. The budget has Rs 99,300 crore has been allocated for the education sector and Rs 3,000 crore for skill development for the next fiscal.

The Finance Minister said National Police University and National Forensic University are being proposed, while planning to allow degree level full-fledged online education programme by institutions ranked in top 100. The government has also proposed linking medical colleges to a district hospital through the public-private-partnership (PPP) mode to meet the shortage of qualified doctors, degree-level full-fledged online education programmes in top 100 institutions and holding the Ind-SAT exam in Asian and African countries for benchmarking foreign students interested in studying in India.

The finance minister said an amount of Rs 99,300 crore was allocated for the education sector and another amount of Rs 3,000 crore for skill development. "It is felt that our education system needs a greater inflow of finance to attract talented teachers, innovate and build better labs. Therefore, steps would be taken to enable sourcing of external commercial borrowings and foreign direct investment so as to be able to deliver higher-quality education," she said in the budget speech.

"A National Police University and a National Forensic Science University are being proposed in the domain of policing science, forensic science, cyber-forensics etc,"Nirmala said and added that the new national education policy will be announced soon.

"By 2030, India is set to have the largest working-age population in the orld. Not only do they need literacy, but they need both jobs and life skills. Dialogues have been held with state education ministries, MPs and other stakeholders about the education policy.

Over two lakh suggestions were received. The new education policy will be announced soon," the finance minister said.

Aimed to boost employability of general stream students, about 150 higher educational institutions will start apprenticeship-embedded degrees or diploma courses by March

2021. Similarly, for the students of technology streams, the government has proposed to start a programme whereby urban local bodies across the country would provide internship opportunities to fresh engineers for a period of up to one year.

"In order to provide quality education to the students of the deprived section of the society as well as those who do not have access to higher education, it is proposed to start a degree-level, full-fledged online education programme. This shall be offered only by institutions who are ranked within top 100 in the National Institutional Ranking framework. Initially, only a few such institutions would be asked to offer such programmes," the finaance minister said.

Giving a boost to the "Study in India" programme, the government has proposed to hold Ind-SAT in Asian and African countries. "India should be a preferred destination for higher education. Hence, under the 'Study in India' programme, Ind-SAT is proposed to be held in Asian and African countries. It shall be used for benchmarking foreign candidates who receive scholarships for studying in Indian higher education centres," the finance minister said.
OCAMPO, Mexico  Hundreds of farmers and agricultural workers thronged the funeral of activist Homero Gomez Gonzalez in a homage to him that was like a tribute to the monarch butterfly he so staunchly defended.

The butterflies annual migration, threatened by logging, avocado farming and climate and environmental change, also represents a ray of hope and income for the impoverished, pine-clad mountains of Michoacan state.

Nobody worked harder than Gomez Gonzalez  whose body was found last week at the bottom of a holding pond with a head wound  to stop logging, reforest and bring tourists to the butterflies wintering grounds.

In an area where crime, construction work and wood cutting provide some of the only sources of income, Gomez Gonzalez provided a way out, ensuring income for the communal farmers who own the land in the butterfly reserve.

Thanks to him many of you had work, or more work  those who sell food in the reserve, those who sell their handicrafts, those who bring their horses to carry visitors into the reserve, Rev. Saul Saucedo said in the funeral homily Friday.

It may sound like low-wage jobs, but that tenuous economy keeps the pine and fir trees from being cut down and preserves the butterflies migration from the United States and Canada each year.

It also feeds the family of farmer Raul Garcia Gonzalez. When theres no work here, I go out and look for day labor jobs, he said.

Like many of the communal land owners, he fears Gomez Gonzalezs death could add to the already bad reputation that drug cartel violence has given to the state of Michoacan.

Autopsy results showed Gomez Gonzalez drowned in the holding pond after leaving a party Jan. 13, but they also showed he had a head wound.

Drought Map Track water shortages and restrictions across Bay Area Check the water shortage status of your area, plus see reservoir levels and a list of restrictions for the Bay Areas largest water districts.

There would have been no shortage of people for whom life would have been easier if Gomez Gonzalez wasnt around.

While known as a friendly, big-hearted man who liked to pose for photographs surrounded by the swarms of black and orange butterflies that roost in trees here each winter, Gomez Gonzalez was a leader and a community activist  a dangerous profession in Mexico.

Global Witness based in London counted 15 killings of environmental activists in Mexico in 2017 and 14 in 2018.

Authorities say said an investigation into Gomez Gonzalez death is continuing.

Mark Stevenson is an Associated Press writer.
Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal on Saturday asked Union Home Minister Amit Shah to improve the law and order situation in Delhi, after a man fired two rounds in the air at Shaheen Bagh, the epicentre of anti-CAA protests.

Elections will come and go but for the sake of the people of Delhi, improve the situation in the national capital, Kejriwal urged Shah.

"In broad daylight, bullets are being fired. The law and order situation of Delhi is in tatters. Elections will keep on coming, will also continue, but for the sake of the people of Delhi, please pay attention to improve law and order," Kejriwal said in a tweet.

Two days after a youth fired a pistol at a group of anti-Citizenship Amendment Act protesters near the Jamia university, another man fired two rounds in the air at Shaheen Bagh. He was later taken into custody. No one was injured in the incident.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
Explosive new documents show the US government knew a weather map used by Donald Trump was doctored, despite publicly defending the presidents false claims about a hurricane striking Alabama.

In September last year, Mr Trump repeatedly claimed wrongly that Alabama would most likely be struck by Hurricane Dorian, a category five storm which devastated the Bahamas.

After being rebutted by experts, Mr Trump doubled down by showing off a doctored National Hurricane Center (NHC) map, which featured the projected path of Dorian with an additional Sharpie-drawn line around a corner of Alabama.

The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) leadership later backed Mr Trump against its own scientists when it released an unattributed statement defending the presidents claims and criticising a National Weather Service (NWS) tweet which said Alabama would NOT see any impacts from the hurricane.

NOAA staff were also warned against contradicting the president and told not to provide any opinion about the issue".

"Huge damage" as record Hurricane Dorian hits Bahamas: In pictures Show all 15 1 /15 "Huge damage" as record Hurricane Dorian hits Bahamas: In pictures "Huge damage" as record Hurricane Dorian hits Bahamas: In pictures A road is flooded during the passing of Hurricane Dorian in Freeport, Grand Bahama. AP "Huge damage" as record Hurricane Dorian hits Bahamas: In pictures Hurricane Dorian's eye taken by Nasa astronaut Nick Hague, from aboard the International Space Station. The station orbits more than 200 miles above the Earth. Hurricane Dorian, which made landfall on the Bahamas as category 5 and now reclassified as category 4, is expected to continue on its projected path towards the Florida coast. Nasa/EPA "Huge damage" as record Hurricane Dorian hits Bahamas: In pictures Buildings damaged by Hurricane Dorian are swept by deep floodwater in the Abaco Islands in The Bahamas. Latrae Rahming "Huge damage" as record Hurricane Dorian hits Bahamas: In pictures Tropical Storm Dorian as it approached the Bahamas. NOAA/AFP/Getty "Huge damage" as record Hurricane Dorian hits Bahamas: In pictures Strong winds blow the tops of trees while whisking up water from the surface of a canal that leads to the sea in Freeport, Grand Bahama AP "Huge damage" as record Hurricane Dorian hits Bahamas: In pictures A woman walks in a flooded street after the effects of Hurricane Dorian arrived in Nassau, Bahamas. REUTERS "Huge damage" as record Hurricane Dorian hits Bahamas: In pictures Uprooted trees, fallen power lines and debris scatter a road as Hurricane Dorian sweeps through Marsh Harbour in The Bahamas Ramond A King via Reuters "Huge damage" as record Hurricane Dorian hits Bahamas: In pictures Buildings damaged by Hurricane Dorian are swept by deep floodwater in the Abaco Islands in The Bahamas Latrae Rahming "Huge damage" as record Hurricane Dorian hits Bahamas: In pictures A building is strewn with debris after its roof was torn off by Hurricane Dorian in the Abaco Islands in The Bahamas Latrae Rahming "Huge damage" as record Hurricane Dorian hits Bahamas: In pictures Uprooted trees, fallen power lines and debris scatter a road as Hurricane Dorian sweeps through Marsh Harbour in The Bahamas Ramond A King via Reuters "Huge damage" as record Hurricane Dorian hits Bahamas: In pictures Hurricane Dorian is pictured from a plane flying inside the eye of the storm Garrett Black/US Air Force "Huge damage" as record Hurricane Dorian hits Bahamas: In pictures Inmates from a Florida jail fill sandbags to hand out to residents ahead of Hurricane Dorian in Cocoa, Florida on September 1 EPA "Huge damage" as record Hurricane Dorian hits Bahamas: In pictures Residents stock up at Wal-Mart in preparation for Hurricane Dorian in Orlando, Florida Getty "Huge damage" as record Hurricane Dorian hits Bahamas: In pictures A shop is boarded-up ahead of Hurricane Dorian in Cocoa, Florida on September 1 Reuters "Huge damage" as record Hurricane Dorian hits Bahamas: In pictures Waves batter a pier in Marsh Harbour in The Bahamas on September 1e Mark Hall vie Reuters

But a trove of emails requested by Buzzfeed and released by NOAA late on Friday shows the true extent of the anger and confusion among scientists at the response to Mr Trumps false claims.

I find it unconscionable that an anonymous voice inside of NOAA would be found to castigate a dutiful, correct, and loyal NWS Forecaster who spoke the truth, NOAAs acting chief scientist Craig McLean wrote in an email to leading officials on 7 September.

What concerns me most is that this Administration is eroding the public trust in NOAA for an apparent political recovery from an ill timed and imprecise comment from the President. I hope that NOAA's trust in the public eye will outlast this Administration.

(Getty Images)

He added: Our employees need to know that we stand for science, not politically motivated apologies.

Gary Shigenaka, a senior biologist at NOAA, asked the agencys acting secretary of commerce Neil Jacobs to address this crisis in moral leadership and to reassure employees they were not mere pawns in an absurd game.

He added: Please do not allow the science and support that we perform on behalf of the American public to be tossed into the trash heap by political expediencies. Please support and stand with us.

Other emails confirmed the map used by Mr Trump to defend his assertions had been doctored.

How do you want to handle this one? Looks like someone at the WH drew with a marker on the image of our official forecast, Scott Smullen, deputy director of NOAA communications, said in an email to colleagues.

Under an email with the subject line, Tweet shows POTUS altering NHC map, public affairs specialist at the NOAA, Jerry Slaff told Mr Smullen the map shows a sharpie extension of cone to include Alabama.

Yes, that was doctored, Corey Pieper, an official in the NWS communications division, said to public affairs official Susan Buchanan.

Mr Trump claimed at the time he did not know who had doctored the map  Bloomberg reported he did it  before claiming all models gave Alabama a 95 per cent chance probability of being hit.

Although some early models suggested Alabama had a chance of being in the hurricanes path, there is no evidence the NHC or other forecasters were predicting Alabama would be struck at the time Mr Trump was claiming the state was in danger.
Socialist Equality Party (US) presidential candidate Joseph Kishore spoke at the third meeting in the International Youth and Students for Social Equalitys (IYSSE) campaign for the student parliament elections at Berlin's Humboldt University on January 28.

The meeting, under the headline, The new class struggles and the perspective of international socialism, was attended by more than 60 students.

Helmut Wolff

Helmut Wolff, a candidate for the IYSSE in this years student parliament elections, introduced the meeting. Im very pleased that members of our world party will be able to address this meeting by video this evening. In our election campaign, we have stressed that workers and young people can only realize their interests if they unite on a global scale. To the capitalist logic of inequality and war, they must counterpose the socialist perspective of the worldwide unification of all workers.

The first speaker of the evening was Alex Lantier, national secretary of the Parti degalite socialiste (PES), the French section of the International Committee of the Fourth International.

It is 15 months since the yellow vest protests began, said Lantier. For nearly two months, mass protests by millions of workers and youth have continued against Macrons pension cuts, which became Frances longest strike since the May 1968 general strike. There are growing calls to bring down the Macron government.

The developments in France have exposed the thoroughly reactionary character of the trade unions and pseudo-left, he continued. The General Confederation of Labour (CGT), the Communist Party, the social democrats, the Pabloite New Anti-Capitalist Party (NPA), and the left populist Jean-Luc Melenchon all claimed that the conflict could be resolved through trade union talks with Macron, which has led the workers into a blind alley.

But Macron and the entire ruling elite are determined to enforce the social attacks with ruthless violence in the face of popular opposition, Lantier reported, before providing a shocking summary of the extent of police violence in France.

The scope of police repression in France is unprecedented since the Nazi occupation, he explained. Using armored cars, water cannon and tear gas against protesters, police have arrested over 10,000 people since yellow vest protests began in 2018. Brazenly decorating police units responsible for atrocities at protestslike the killings of Zineb Redouane and Steve Canico, or the near-fatal assault on elderly protester Genevieve LegayMacron uses the police as attack dogs for the banks.

Joseph Kishore, who is also the national secretary of the Socialist Equality Party in the US, spoke to the meeting only two days after the SEP announced his candidacy along with vice presidential candidate Norissa Santa Cruz.

The meeting at Humboldt University with Joseph Kishore joining via video link

Kishore, who spoke via videolink from Detroit, stated, The distance between us is just under 7,000 kilometers. However, the political issues confronting workers here and workers there, and for that matter workers and young people throughout the world, are fundamentally the same.

Kishore said that it was entirely appropriate and indeed correct to speak to a meeting in Berlin at the beginning of his campaign.

In our statement announcing the campaign, Kishore noted, we stressed that its orientation is not only to workers and young people in the United States, but to workers throughout the world. Indeed, there is not a single social problem facing masses of people that can be solved on a national basis. The growing danger of world war, which threatens the very future of humanity; social inequality, which has reached levels without precedent in history; the turn by the ruling elites toward fascism and dictatorship; the accelerating threat of climate change and ecological catastrophe; now the rapid spread of the coronavirusthese are all global problems that require a global solution.

Kishore reported that autoworkers in the United States conducted the first national strike last autumn in over 40 years. Prior to that, tens of thousands of teachers and other sections of workers also went on strike. There is a deep hostility to the entire political establishment, growing support for socialism, and mounting opposition to capitalism, he added.

The political radicalization of workers in America is of immense international significance, he said. As you know, American imperialism is a force of destruction all over the world. The drive by the American ruling class to control the world, to maintain its global hegemony through military force, imperils the entire planet

The American ruling class is seeking to control the globe, but it will find and is finding that it cannot control its own house. Imperialism is coming into conflict with the revolutionary eruption of the class struggle.

Kishore also emphasized that the critical task was the building of a revolutionary leadership. Workers and young people cannot allow themselves to be diverted behind one or another faction of the ruling elite, he stressed. There is no progressive tendency to be found within the capitalist parties.

This is clear in the United States in particular. While Trump is consciously attempting to cultivate a fascist movement based on extreme nationalism, anti-immigrant chauvinism, and hatred of socialism, the opposition Democrats have nothing progressive to offer, the speaker went on. Employing the methods of a palace coup, the Democrats seek Trumps impeachment only because he, in their view, has undermined the US campaign against Russia and the proxy war in Ukraine, said Kishore.

Kishore concluded, What is required is not a tinkering around the edges, futile reforms within the framework of capitalist politics. We live in a revolutionary epoch, and the working class requires revolutionary politics. A political movement must be built that is deeply rooted in the historical experiences of the past, which has drawn from these experiences the critical lessons that must inform the politics of the present. Not the politics of wishful thinking, of pragmatic maneuvers, but a politics based on the science of perspective, on class analysis, on Marxism.

Kishore ended his remarks by emphasizing the importance of the work carried out at Humboldt University. I would like to refer again to the immense importance for the entire world of the work carried out by the Sozialistische Gleichheitspartei in Germany and the IYSSE at Humboldt University, he stated. You have performed an immense service to the international working class in identifying the significance of historical revisionism and its connection to the promotion of the far right and the remilitarization of the German state.

Sven Wurm

Sven Wurm, spokesman for the IYSSE, and a candidate for the student parliament, focused in his concluding report on the central role played by Humboldt University (HU) in trivializing the Nazis crimes and preparing ideologically for war, as well as the IYSSEs struggle against it.

Here, one week prior to the anniversary of the liberation of Auschwitz, Professor Jorg Baberowski was able to declare that Hitler did not revel in cruelty and wanted to know nothing about Auschwitz, remarked Wurm. And this assertion, which comes directly from the classic arsenal of Holocaust deniers, was printed in the Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung.

Here, the political scientist Herfried Munkler can declare that it is once again appropriate to speak the language of power, and here university management, led by the Social Democrat politician Sabine Kunst, was able several months ago to have police break up a student assembly where students were protesting against Turkeys invasion of Syria.

But there is also resistance at Humboldt, continued Wurm. Each time we organize events or campaigns on these issues, we have packed seminar rooms or lecture theatres, he told his audience. How can it be that something like this happens at a German university? is the most common response we hear when we talk about the right-wing developments at HU.

Wurm explained that the ruling class in Germany, just like in France and the United States, is responding with war and dictatorship to mounting international conflicts and the widespread political opposition in the population. Wurm concluded by appealing strongly to those present to draw the necessary conclusions from this. He called on the students to vote for the IYSSE, mobilize friends and classmates to vote, to become members of the IYSSE and join the struggle for a socialist future.

Following the speeches, an intensive discussion took place, underscoring that a new generation of workers and students is being radicalized and searching for a revolutionary way out of the capitalist crisis. Topics discussed included the role of the working class as an objective revolutionary force, climate change and socialism, and why a revolutionary leadership is required to raise the consciousness of the masses and lead the coming revolutionary struggles successfully based on the lessons drawn from the history of the 20th century.
Union minister Ravi Shankar Prasad claimed that the government is ready to talk to protesters in Shaheen Bagh and clear all their doubts provided it is in a structured form.

The BJP minister posted a clip of his answer on microblogging site Twitter today (February 1) morning. He wrote: "Government is ready to talk to protestors of Shaheen Bagh but then it should be in a structured form and the Narendra Modi govt is ready to communicate with them and clear all their doubts they have against CAA."

Live TV

In the clip recorded during a television interview, Prasad answers a question about why no representative of the BJP-led Centre visited Shaheen Bagh, where the women are holding a sit-in protest against the Citizenship Amendment Act (CAA) for more than 50 days now.

The anti-CAA protests at Shaheen Bagh started on December 15, 2019, days after the passage of Citizenship Amendment Bill in both houses of Parliament. The CAA grants citizenship to Hindus, Sikhs, Jains, Parsis, Buddhists and Christians fleeing religious persecution from Pakistan, Afghanistan, and Bangladesh and who came to India on or before December 31, 2014.
Source: Xinhua| 2020-02-01 23:50:21|Editor: huaxia

Video Player Close

BEIJING, Feb. 1 (Xinhua) -- In recent days, more foreign leaders have spoken positively of and supported China's efforts to battle the novel coronavirus outbreak through various means.

In his call to Chinese President Xi Jinping, Russian President Vladimir Putin offered sympathies over the pain and loss inflicted on Chinese families and wished each patient a speedy recovery.

He expressed belief that under Xi's leadership, China's resolute measures will contain the epidemic and minimize losses.

The Russian people are willing to offer necessary aid to the friendly Chinese people, Putin said, adding that relevant Russian departments will work with counterparts in China through closest coordination to eliminate this common threat.

Calling Chinese leaders' efficient response and the heroism of the Chinese people admirable, Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenko said that Belarus, always China's reliable and loyal friend, will offer medical supplies to help the Chinese people battle the epidemic.

Thai King Maha Vajiralongkorn said that the international community is greatly impressed by the efforts and determination of the Chinese government to fight the epidemic and the extensive epidemic prevention measures it has taken.

The Thai people and himself will pull together with the Chinese people in times of trouble, the king said, extending wishes that China will secure an early victory against the epidemic.

Nepali President Bidhya Devi Bhandari said that at this difficult time, Nepal will firmly unite with the Chinese government and the friendly Chinese people. Bhandari expressed appreciation of and support for the Chinese leaders' extraordinary efforts to contain the epidemic, and thanked China for taking care of Nepali citizens in China.

Tunisian President Kais Saied spoke highly of the Chinese government's efforts in combating the epidemic, expressing belief that under the strong and wise leadership of Xi, China's efforts to contain the outbreak will soon pay off.

Cameroonian President Paul Biya said that on behalf of the Cameroonian people, he offered sympathies and support to the Chinese people at a time when the Chinese government and people are fighting a heroic battle against the epidemic.

Cote d'Ivoire's President Alassane Ouattara said the government and people of Cote d'Ivoire firmly support the efforts made by the Chinese government and people in fighting the epidemic.

Pakistani Prime Minister Imran Khan said the Pakistani side highly appreciates and firmly supports China's efforts to combat the epidemic and thanks China for providing help to Pakistani citizens in China.

The Pakistani side firmly believes that China can give full play to its unique institutional advantages to overcome the epidemic, Khan said, adding that Pakistan is willing to mobilize all the country's medical supplies reserves to assist China, and will firmly stand alongside the brotherly Chinese people.

Mongolian Prime Minister Ukhnaa Khurelsukh said the people of Mongolia understand the feelings of the Chinese government and people, who are facing the challenges posed by the epidemic. The Mongolian people believe that under the strong leadership of the Chinese government and with the concerted efforts of the Chinese people, China will soon rein in the epidemic.

Singaporean Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong said Singapore will closely cooperate with China to jointly combat the epidemic. China is making efforts to control the illness and Singapore has been prepared. There is no need to panic.

Prime Minister of Sao Tome and Principe Jorge Bom Jesus offered his sympathy and support to the Chinese government and believed that China will defeat the epidemic.
AAP on Saturday asked the Election Commission to direct the police chief and other agencies to take appropriate measures to prevent unrest and violence planned by "certain political parties" in the city to sabotage the Delhi elections.

In a letter to Chief Election Commissioner Sunil Arora, the Aam Aadmi Party said it has come to know through its sources that certain "anti social elements in connivance with certain political parties" are planning to create unrest and violence on Sunday to subvert law and order in Delhi and to impede the conduct of free and fair election.

"We have attached a video wherein a group can be seen giving a call to assemble near Sarita Vihar in large numbers. We have attached the picture of one of such hoarding being put in some parts of Delhi," the letter said.

"In the light of these, we apprehend that this may be a well planned conspiracy to sabotage the Delhi Legislative Assembly Elections 2020," it said.

The AAP urged the EC to act immediately and direct the Commissioner of Police and other agencies to investigate and take appropriate measures to pre-empt any such criminal act.

The AAP claimed that the BJP is planning a "big disturbance" on February 2 at Delhi's Shaheen Bagh and Jamia Millia Islamia, where anti-CAA protests are underway and urged the Election Commission to take cognisance.

Elections in Delhi will be held on February 8 and results will be declared on February 11.
Two youths who had made a bid to cross over to Pakistan to join a militant outfit were arrested and handed over to their families after counselling, the Army said on Saturday.

"It has been the constant endeavour of security forces that the misguided youth be brought back to mainstream and be prevented from joining militancy. In one such endeavour, two youths intending to cross the LoC have been brought back and reunited with their families today," an Army spokesman said.

He said the youths -- both 16 years of age and hailing from south Kashmir -- were influenced by the false narrative and the rhetoric created by anti-national elements to lure them to join a militant outfit.

After the security forces learnt about their intention to cross the LoC, they launched synergised and concerted efforts to apprehend them, the spokesman said.

"Their movements were tracked closely and all our teams were instructed to apprehend them alive so that they can be brought back to mainstream," he said.

The spokesman said the Army received an input of their presence in Uri, near Police Vehicle Check Post (PVCP), and their plan to cross over to the other side.

The youths sensing tight security at Uri were returning to Baramulla to exploit other routes to cross over, he said.

Based on the input, security personnel was deployed at Ganthmulla Colony on the Baramulla-Kupwara national highway and were instructed to exercise absolute restraint so as to apprehend the youths without any harm, the spokesman said.

The two youths had boarded a bus from Uri to Baramulla. Around 2.55 pm, the bus was intercepted and both the youths were apprehended, he said.

The youths have been counselled and have been handed over to their families with an aim to facilitate their joining in mainstream, he said.

Parents of youths were thankful to the security forces for ensuring safety of their children and bringing them back to the mainstream, he added.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
There's something so appealing about a new house: the smell of fresh paint, the unmarked floors, the appliances that still have plastic-wrapped warranty information inside.

But ... there's something so appealing about a lived-in house, a place that has proven it can weather a storm, maybe with gorgeous oak floors hidden under linoleum, rose bushes that come up to surprise you in the spring and character that can't be bought.

Which one is right for you?

It's a personal decision, but, like most real estate choices, driven by location and price. And, in this tight sellers market with a low inventory of houses for sale, by what's available.

Rebecca Beers remembers looking for a new house as it became clear her family of four was growing out of their first house. Rebecca and her husband, Brett, knew they didn't want to move out of Saratoga County, but there was nothing in their price range  under $400,000  they liked. They decided to build in Milton and hired McPadden Builders.

"We took this route because the inventory wasn't there and what we did find would have been a huge compromise," Beers said. "If we were going to increase our mortgage payment, we wanted what we wanted, not what someone else wanted."

Construction of the Beers' four-bedroom, 2,364-square-foot house took six months, a reasonable time locally for new residential construction of that size. There were hurdles: the Beers sold their house in Saratoga Springs, moved into temporary housing, then moved again when their new home was complete. It was worth it, Beers said.

"It was exciting to walk into a fresh, clean slate and know it's yours," she said.

However, there are not nearly enough houses being built to stabilize the inventory slump.

Market data provided by the Greater Capital Association of Realtors continues to show a drop in pending and closed sales. In its latest report, GCAR summarized: "The lack of affordable inventory and the persistence of historically high housing prices continue to affect the housing market, leading to lower-than expected existing home sales at the national level."

In other words, the lack of houses on the market is driving the price up all around and new construction is out of reach for many buyers.

"There's a specific buyer for new construction: No requirement to sell a house, have at least 10 percent to put down and be more affluent because the price per square foot is going to be higher," said Alex Monticello, who owns Monticello Real Estate and has been in the business for 10 years. "Plus, you pay up-front for upgrades, and no builder will build on a contingency  if you sell your house, then you can move forward."

Real estate agent Jamie Mattison of 518 Realty, who has sold both new construction and existing homes, pointed to one of his current listings as an example of getting a better deal buying a resale versus new.

The house, at 1 Countryside Court in Glenville, is 4,056 square feet on a 4-acre lot and has five bedrooms and four bathrooms. The house was built in 2004, and according to county tax records is assessed at $557,000. It's listed at $564,900.

Mattison estimates it would cost close to $850,000 to build the same house today because of building code changes that have increased construction expenses; a shortage of skilled workers; an increase in the cost of upgrades and the scarcity of big pieces of buildable land close to the area's downtowns.

Cindy Quade, the owner of Signature One Realty Group and a real estate agent for 35 years, said a buyer's timeline is an important factor after budget. In some cases, a builder will have a spec house ready for a buyer.

Sign up for The Knick  Get the latest news and some area history with our afternoon newsletter.

"There's a lot of peace of mind that comes with a warranty," Quade said.

New York state has what's called a housing merchant implied warranty, which means the buyer and builder don't have to draw one up for it to be in place. The warranty covers the construction, materials, appliances, systems, and building components of a home for one year.

Quade brought up other things to consider when buying new.

"Take into consideration how long you will be in the home; if it's a large neighborhood and you won't be there long, you might compete with the builder when you put the house on the market and the neighborhood isn't built out yet," Quade said.

Older homes, Quade said, usually have the benefit of their value growing over time.

Regardless of whether you choose to hire a builder or buy an existing house, do your research.

"Talk to at least three people who have had a house built by the builder and get feeback. Reputation is very important," said Jay Christiana, owner of Berkshire Hathaway HomeServices Blake and president of GCAR. "Look at the details in other homes and check with the local homebuilders association."

lhornbeck@timesunion.com  518-454-5352  @leighhornbeck
(TNS)  On the same day a county schools computer system was the apparent target of a cyberattack, Administration Secretary Allan McVey on Thursday told members of the Senate Finance Committee approximately 22 percent of positions in the states Office of Technology are unfilled.Were on it. Were going to help them through it, McVey said of the school system, whose identity he did not disclose. He said it is too early to know if the cyberattack involved ransomware.With cybersecurity a growing issue, McVey said, staffing that office is increasingly important. Comparatively low pay and better opportunities in the private sector, he said, have contributed to the vacancies.They do get trained, and then there are spaces out there in the private sector that unfortunately  or, fortunately for the economy  pay more than we can, McVey said during the departments budget presentation.About 48 of 216 full-time positions in the agency are open in a competitive market for Information Technology jobs, Josh Spence, state chief technology officer, said.He said there is less turnover among who stay with the state long enough to be vested in the state pension plan, but added it is hard to keep recent college graduates from looking at private sector opportunities.Its hard to retain employees coming out of college, he said.Also Thursday:McVey said work on the Capitol dome restoration project is now a little over halfway finished.The $14.5 million project to repair water damage and major structural issues within the dome began in January 2018, but was halted that summer when the original contractor could not comply with a requirement to build scaffolding around the dome that was not weight-bearing on the dome structure.The contract was then awarded to Pullman Power, of Pittsburgh, which resumed work in the fall of 2018. That has pushed the project completion date back to spring of 2021.Public Employees Insurance Agency executive director Ted Cheatham reiterated that PEIA will need to spend down about $34 million of a $105 million rainy day fund approved by the Legislature last year during the 2020-21 plan year.Cheatham has said that reserve fund should allow the health insurance plan for public school and state employees to get through the 2021-22 plan year without having to impose premium increases or benefit cuts, but the plan will need additional state funding the following year.
A Nebraska Supreme Court decision Friday in a lawsuit over how much, if any, an insurance company should have to pay in the Beatrice 6 case revived the possibility Gage County taxpayers could get help paying the $28.1 million judgment.

But it could be months, if not years, before the county's case against Employers Mutual Casualty Co. is a done deal.

"Were happy that the people in Gage County got some good news today. It means that the case is back on in the district court," said Joel Bacon, one of the attorneys representing Gage County.

Had the Supreme Court upheld a Lincoln judge's 2018 ruling  that the claims were barred by an exclusion in the policy for professional services  the case would've been over.

Bacon said it means the county will still have a shot at some amount of money to pay the judgments, which stemmed from a lawsuit filed by six people wrongly convicted in the 1985 rape and murder of Helen Wilson in her Beatrice apartment.

Joseph White, Ada JoAnn Taylor, Thomas Winslow, James Dean, Debra Shelden and Kathleen Gonzalez served a combined 75 years in prison before DNA evidence showed another man had committed the crime.

After they were exonerated in 2008, they sued Gage County. And, in 2016, a federal jury awarded them each $1,000 a day, concluding that the deputy who led the cold-case investigation, and another who also worked as a psychologist, had manufactured evidence or engaged in a reckless investigation that violated their rights.

After the judgment, Gage County filed a lawsuit against Employers Mutual Casualty, alleging the company should have to pay somewhere between $2 million and $4 million in coverage, plus attorney fees.

In Friday's decision, Supreme Court Justice Jeffrey Funke wrote: "The extent of EMC's liability under the (commercial general liability) policy remains for the district court to determine."

He said there also may be coverage available under the umbrella policy Gage County had with the insurance company.

The sole issue for the Supreme Court was whether Lancaster County District Judge Jodi L. Nelson was right to find that the general liability policy excluded "any and all professional services," including the work of law enforcement officers.

Attorneys for Gage County argued that law enforcement was an occupation, not professional services, but Nelson ruled with the insurer, saying Nebraska case law defined "professional acts or services" as those requiring "special learning or attainments of some kind."

In the opinion, Funke said this case didn't require the court to look to case law to answer whether law enforcement is considered a profession, "because the plain language of the EMC policies answers that question for the parties to this dispute."

Under both the commercial general liability and umbrella policies, he said, law enforcement isn't included on a list of professions but appears as one of five specified categories of occupations under the liability exclusions.

"Were we to apply definitions from our case law rather than the definitions the parties have used, we would be rewriting insurance policies," Funke said.

The court expressed no opinion on any other coverage-related issues in the case, which will be taken up by the trial court. A lawsuit against the county's other insurance carrier, the Nebraska Intergovernmental Risk Management Association, remains pending before Nelson.

Friday's opinion was a welcome development to the Gage County Board of Supervisors, which has wrestled with how the county would pay the judgment, according to Chairman Erich Tiemann.

Tiemann said if the county sees an insurance payout in the future, the money could only be used to pay down the debt quicker  not to ease either the additional property tax that supervisors levied in 2018, or the half-cent county sales tax that went into effect Jan. 1.

For the second year, property owners in the county of roughly 22,500 people are paying an additional 11.76 cents per $100 of valuation to satisfy the Beatrice 6 judgment, or about $120 more in taxes per $100,000 of property value.

Taken together with the sales tax revenue, the county estimates the judgment will be paid in full by the end of 2026.

Tiemann said the board will meet with attorneys Feb. 12 to discuss the next steps in the insurance case.

Reach the writer at 402-473-7237 or lpilger@journalstar.com. On Twitter @LJSpilger

Love 0 Funny 0 Wow 0 Sad 0 Angry 0
President Donald Trump and his administration often justify their national security policies by posing a false choice to the American people: that we can either keep America safe or preserve our fundamental values.

That was Trump's core message in January 2017 when he banned travel to the United States by people from seven Muslim-majority countries, and it's the message we heard today - three years later - when the president announced that he's expanding the ban to immigrants from six more countries: Eritrea, Kyrgyzstan, Myanmar, Nigeria, Sudan and Tanzania.

The truth, though, is that this policy does not make us safer; in fact, it does the opposite. It does not help us fight terrorism, combat extremism or secure democracy around the world. It has senselessly separated thousands of U.S. citizens from their families. It reinforces Trump's message that we should fear refugees and our immigrant neighbors, and it fuels already growing division and intolerance here at home.

The United States is strongest when we are a welcoming country capable of attracting talented people from all over the world. We're safer when we do, too. That's why dozens of national security experts oppose the current ban and why I have strongly opposed it since Trump proposed it during the 2016 campaign.

Targeting people from countries where, in many cases, democracy is just taking root also makes it even more difficult to promote democratic values, encourage economic development and attract talented students who aspire to study in the United States.

Take Nigeria, for example: It has the largest economy and largest population in Africa, and Nigerians represent the largest African diaspora group in the United States, a group that includes doctors, lawyers and professionals across the United States. Nigeria is a multiethnic, multifaith democracy in a region where we have fought long and hard to ensure tolerance and pluralism take root. Nigeria has partnered with the United States on the Global Coalition against terrorism, particularly against Boko Haram, which has killed almost 38,000 people since 2011 and has displaced another 2.5 million. Why, then, would we choose to weaken our ties and our influence with Nigeria?

Just last week, the top court at the United Nations ruled that Myanmar must take steps to prevent further genocide against the Muslim Rohingya minority there. Instead of building on that positive ruling and welcoming more Rohingya refugees to our nation, the Trump administration has chosen, with its expanded ban, to push Myanmar's government even further into China's sphere of influence at the worst possible time.

Finally, Kyrgyzstan, a former Soviet republic, has been able to step out from under the thumb of Russia, and, since its independence in 1991, has made great headway in developing its own democratic institutions. Why, as Russia's regional aggression intensifies, would we make it harder for Kyrgyzstan to protect its independence and nurture its young democracy?

This policy has been rightly criticized as an abandonment of U.S. values that tears apart American families, but these examples show that it is also a grave foreign policy mistake. Though most Americans might never know it, the president's decisions are causing real harm to people all over the world.

In Congress, I'm leading an effort to reverse this senseless policy through the NO BAN Act, which I introduced with Rep. Judy Chu, D-Calif., to repeal the president's Muslim ban and prevent a future discriminatory ban from happening again. We're optimistic this bill can pass the House this year, and I'm determined to force a vote on it in the Senate.

The United States has been a beacon of hope and freedom to the world for generations because we've built our foreign policy and immigration policies on our values, not on fear. Now is not the time to change that.

- - -

Coons, a Democrat, represents Delaware in the U.S. Senate.
China sent two planes to Malaysia and Thailand on Friday to bring "stranded" Hubei province residents back to the virus-stricken city of Wuhan, authorities said. The Xiamen Airlines flights will pick up the Chinese nationals from Kota Kinabalu in Malaysia and the Thai capital Bangkok, according to the Civil Aviation Administration of China (CAAC). There are 117 nationals from Hubei province in Bangkok and 100 in Kota Kinabalu who are "willing to take the chartered flights back to Wuhan as soon as possible", the CAAC said in a statement. This is in spite of the fact that Wuhan, capital of Hubei province, is the epicentre of a new virus outbreak that is believed to have originated in a market that sold wild animals. The city of 11 million has since experienced an unprecedented lockdown, preventing residents from leaving in a bid to stop the deadly virus from spreading further. The charter flights are expected to arrive in Wuhan at 1200 and 1300 GMT on the same day. "The charter flights adopt the principle of voluntary ticket purchase," the CAAC added. China's foreign affairs ministry said earlier on Friday that the country would bring Wuhan residents back from overseas "as soon as possible" due to the "the practical difficulties that Chinese citizens from Hubei, especially Wuhan, have faced overseas". This comes after a number of airlines announced they were halting or reducing flights to China as the country struggles to contain the spread of a deadly new virus. On Monday, Malaysia banned visitors from Wuhan and its surrounding Hubei province as well. The topic was trending online on Friday, with over 67 million views and 21,000 discussion posts on China's Twitter-like platform Weibo. "These people probably don't want to go back (to Wuhan)," said one. Another questioned if residents should be brought back if they were not infected. When asked about the suspension of international flights at a press conference on Thursday, Zhu Tao of the CAAC said authorities were coordinating arrangements to bring travellers home. Hospitals have been overwhelmed in Wuhan. AFP reporters saw long queues, with some patients saying they lined up for two days to see a doctor. As fears of the outbreak have spread overseas, prominent figures in Chinese communities in Italy have warned of episodes of "latent racism" against their compatriots by Italians fearful of catching the virus. China has advised its citizens to postpone trips abroad and cancelled overseas group tours, while several countries including the United States, Germany, Britain and Japan have urged their citizens to avoid travel to China.
New Delhi/Mumbai, Feb 1 : Low consumer sentiment continued to affect sales of major Indian automobile manufacturers in January.

On Saturday, automobile major Maruti Suzuki India reported that sales, which included exports and off-take by other OEMs, grew by just 1.6 per cent to 154,123 vehicle in January against 151,721 during the year-ago month. Similarly, the company's domestic sales, including those made to other OEMs, increased by 1.7 per cent year-on-year to 144,499 units.

The automobile major's exports inched up by 0.6 per cent to 9,624 vehicles against 9,571 shipped out during the year-ago month.

Hyundai Motor India's overall sales, including exports declined by 3.37 per cent to 52,002 vehicles against 53,813 sold in January 2019. The domestic sales edged lower by 8.3 per cent to 42,002 vehicles against 45,803 sold in the year-ago month.

But the company's exports went up by 24.8 per cent to 10,000 vehicles against 8,010 shipped in January 2019.

Tata Motors' overall sales, including exports in January declined year-on-year to 47,862 vehicles against 58,185 units sold in the same month of 2019. Its domestic sales fell by 18 per cent to 45,242 vehicles compared with 54,915 units in January 2019.

Commercial vehicles' sales in January fell by 16 per cent to 33,860 units from 40,175. Similarly, passenger vehicles' sales declined by 22 per cent to 13,894 units from 17,826 shipped during January 2019.

"Commercial vehicle domestic sales in January was 15 per cent lower than last year. Retail was ahead of wholesale for 7th straight month, helping further stock reduction, as we move closer to BS-VI transition," said Girish Wagh, President, Commercial Vehicles Business Unit, Tata Motors.

"With increasing buying interest, particularly among fleet owners, the M&HCV sale in January was second highest in last seven months. In small commercial vehicles, the buying interest continued to be better than other segments resulting in 2 per cent YoY growth," Wagh said.

Mahindra and Mahindra (M&M) reported a 6 per cent fall in January sales to 52,546 vehicles against 55,722 sold in year-ago month. The domestic sales slipped 3 per cent to 50,785 units against 52,500 sold in January 2019. But exports plunged by 45 per cent to 1,761 vehicles against 3,222 shipped out in January 2019.

"Our performance in January has been relatively muted as part of our strategy to start ramping down BS-IV vehicles and move to BS-VI norms," said Veejay Ram Nakra, Chief of Sales and Marketing, M&M Automotive Division.

"We have also started rolling out first batch of BS-VI vehicles with the XUV300, which has been well received," Nakra said.

According to Sridhar V., Grant Thornton India Partner, performance continues to be muted across all OEMs of passenger vehicles and the largest player has shown slight growth overall backed up by new introductions in the small and compact segment, which has been its strength. "Phasing out of BS-IV and introduction of BS-VI is in full swing," he said.
by Shan Ren Shen Fu ()

Prayer, compassion, solidarity, while the inhabitants of Wuhan who have arrived in other cities are treated "like rats". The story of the first week of emergency. The pope's prayer. Meanwhile, the number of deaths due to the infection has risen to 259; 11,823 are infected in China and 129 abroad.

Beijing (AsiaNews) - "Christians must pray sincerely, and our country really needs the help of the Lord". This is the invitation of Fr. Shanren (the mountain "priest"), a famous blogger, to all his faithful and friends, in his story about the first week of the virus emergency. The blockade of the cities, armed defense against the infected, the despair of the sick, but also the many gestures of solidarity towards the people of Wuhan, now treated "like rats". There is a risk of strong social tensions, which only prayer and love can overcome.

Meanwhile, the number of deaths due to the infection has risen to 259; 11,823 are infected in China and 129 abroad. Suspected cases in China have risen to 18,000; at least 243 patients have recovered from the virus.

On the afternoon of New Year's Eve [January 24] I received the communication on the cancellation of the Mass. Just two days before, I had sent a written communication to the faithful about the times of the masses that would take place for the New Year's Eve on January 24, 25 and Sunday. I had planned to return to my home country after Sunday mass. "Returning home after New Year's Eve" has become a custom now. And now that even the mass has been canceled, I have decided to return home on January 25, after having finished having dinner with the faithful on New Year's Eve.

This "home coming" has become a difficult decision to make this year. Before New Year I had repeatedly spoken to my parents on the phone and they always asked me when I would be back. But we were not yet aware of Wuhan's coronavirus. By the time I found out, the epidemic had spread across China. I had assured my parents that I would be back on January 26th and I never thought that I would anticipate my return by a day'. My parents were completely unaware of my early return. Most of my brother priests cannot spend New Year's Eve in their native country; they too come back after the day after. We spoke to each other often discussing if it was still appropriate to return. Everyone thought it was an irresponsible act. But I decided to come back a little earlier, and that God bless me and bless the trip too. I arrived home in the evening of the same day.

We arrived in the village in the rain. Roadblocks had already been installed, but fortunately our village did not use the bulldozer to dig trenches, nor mountains of dirt to block the roads. Civilization is not something that is built overnight, but thanks to faith people have made some progress, they have not adopted the "simple but violent" ways that circulate on the internet. The celebrations that the village had organized were canceled. There are no people who visit relatives, nor children who play secretly with fireworks: the whole village is miraculously shrouded in silence. Everyone at home eating, watching TV, playing on their cell phone, sleeping. There are undoubtedly many elders who pray and recite the rosary silently.

The epidemic situation is more and more critical and holds everyone's heart. On the internet, not only do I watch the latest updates about the epidemic and the new epidemic areas, but I am also discovering some human affection emerging in society. The mayor of Wuhan said that 5 million people have left the city of Wuhan, there are some who return to their hometown, others who have already planned the trip for some time and are staying in hotels. As is obvious, because of the terror regarding the transmission of the virus, people are openly fearful towards citizens from Wuhan. These poor people are now chased away by everyone like rats running across the street! Yet there are many people who, via the internet, have invited all friends from Wuhan, excluded and trapped in other cities, stating that the citizens of Wuhan can get in touch with them and that they are willing to welcome them offering them accommodation and to face this difficult moment together.

In life there are always two different types of people and so two divergent opinions often emerge: those who belong to love, who embrace life with an open heart and affection; those who belong to hatred, who reject the surrounding world with a cold heart. Self-protection and self-isolation are undoubtedly our duty, but if we all ignore humanity, morals and even the law to prevent the "virus", even healthy people who live in safety become equal to the beasts.

Love and hatred for the infected

Currently, the infected must self-isolate themselves without infecting others. Unfortunately, on the internet we see many aggressive actions: there are terrified patients who tear the protective suits and masks off the nurses, asking the faces of the doctors and nurses: Why do only you have protection? If we have to die, we die together ... Then, we also see the roadblocks: there are those who put up red markers; others walking around with swords in hand; there are those who put the banners in front of the house of others; some who even uses planks of wood to block the entrance of the neighbors. For many people, Wuhan's patients are no longer people, but synonymous with viruses. This is truly disheartening news, because even the Lord says he hates sin, loves people. I would always like to embrace the sinner with such mercy, waiting for him to ask for forgiveness.

But the situation today is this: everyone who is out of the city of Wuhan shouts: Come on Wuhan! But if they have any friends who have returned from Wuhan, they tell them: Not only do you infect others, but you also hurt yourself! If relations between people continue in this way because of the epidemic, there will inevitably be greater social divergences.

Fortunately, after the village was closed, no one could move from their home, and with masks you can no longer sing or speak. In silence, people can at least meditate. Believers begin to pray for the epidemic, the village faithful organize themselves to fast. My sister-in-law also joined them, and is no longer having breakfast!

What we really lack in China is self-criticism: everyone weeps and despairs when a disaster occurs, but as soon as the catastrophe ends everything returns as before. In 2002-2003, 17 years ago, there was Sars, today the coronavirus. Both events are related to wild animals. The bat is part of the wild animals, its appearance resembles that of the knight of the night (some faithful say that the bat has the appearance of Satan). Now, it is unthinkable that you could eat such a thing! A friend of mine saw a video where a man consumed a bat during the meal, and immediately threw his bowl away saying: that's awful!

Before the epidemic, my teacher sent me a reflection. Frankly, I don't want to think that today's illness is related to the persecution of the faith, but thinking about it, my master's words are not so out of place.

Think only of December 24, or a month ago: we Chinese firmly affirmed that we had to boycott foreign holidays, we had to ban Christmas, love the country and support national holidays. We slapped our own faces hard, because just a month later, a disaster happened on January 24th. Seeing the difficult situation today, I really have a thousand thoughts: we have refused the peace that God has given us for free, and now we all want peace, but the cost is very high. We must be afraid of God, let's pray for the Chinese! We ask for the immense mercy of God that everything will be resolved soon! ".

At the Angelus on January 26, Pope Francis mentioned the Chinese epidemic, inviting faithful from all over the world to pray for China's ill. Men can make mistakes and errors, but the Lord is great and merciful. God never ignores a repentent and humble heart. Today, Christians must pray sincerely, for our country really needs the help of the Lord.

Shan Ren Shen Fu ( )
Panaji, Feb 1 : Goa Chief Minister Pramod Sawant on Saturday hailed the Union Budget, which was presented in the Parliament by Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman, as a boost for the common man, even as he conceded that the budgetary announcements did not specifically yield much for the coastal state.

However, the Opposition has questioned the Budget's silence on unemployment, saying the financial statement had no specific Goa related announcement.

"This Budget is in tune with the Prime Minister's motto of 'Sabka Saath Sabka Vikas' and 'Sabka Vishwas'. This is a Budget for aspirational India, which focuses on health, wealth, happiness, hospitality, agriculture, safety and security of all the people irrespective of caste and creed. That is very important... The slashing of income tax rates will be a big boost for the middle class," Sawant told a press conference here.

Sawant also said the allocation of Rs 2,500 crore to boost tourism infrastructure and focus on increasing marine output would benefit Goa.

"Goa can definitely benefit from the Rs 2,500 crore kept for tourism. Earlier too we had benefited from central schemes in tourism, and we are confident that we can reap the benefits once again, especially for the promotion of hinterland tourism," Sawant said.

"The 'Sagar Mitra' scheme for cage fishing and inland fishing schemes can be a boon for the state," Sawant said, adding that the announcement for a data centric hub could help Goa, especially because of the several IT parks which the state government is in the process of launching.

When asked about the lack of Goa specific announcements in the Budget, Sawant said that many general announcements were made in the Budget for the development of infrastructure and productivity of the states and Goa would stand to benefit from them.

Leader of Opposition Digambar Kamat said the Budget had nothing for Goa, especially to boost the state's sagging mining and tourism sectors. He also questioned the silence in the Budget speech on the issue of employment.

"Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman has given a long talk but without any plan of action. There is nothing for Goa. It is now evident that the Union government is not interested in reviving mining and tourism industries in Goa," Kamat told reporters here.

The Goa chapter of the Confederation of Indian Industries (CII) said that the Budget focused on aspirations, economic development and caring society.

"Steps to revive the economy will help attain the targeted growth rate for the next year," Goa CII Chairman Lalit Saraswat said.

According to Rajesh Pathak, associate professor, Department of Accounting and Finance, Goa Institute of Management, the announcement to increase bank deposit insurance to Rs 5 lakh for depositors is more a concern than a relief as it reflects the worries in the banking and finance sector.

"I think on economic front, this Budget has fewer good things to offer compared to the expectations of the market overall. There are no big bang announcements as such that will rescue the economy from what it is going through currently," Pathak said.
Regional building society Newcastle is bucking the trend by opening  rather than closing  branches in some of the country's most remote rural communities.

Its bold move follows in the wake of last week's decision by Lloyds Banking Group to cull a further 56 branches across its Lloyds, Halifax and Bank of Scotland brands.

The mutual, whose 29-strong branch network is confined to the North East, will officially open the new style 'community' branches later this week in Wooler, Northumberland, and Hawes in Upper Wensleydale, North Yorkshire  home of 'Wallace & Gromit' Wensleydale cheese.

The bee's cheese: Fromage fan Wallace will see a Newcastle branch in Hawes in Upper Wensleydale

Both communities are somewhat isolated  Hawes is in the heart of the Yorkshire Dales while Wooler lies on the edge of the Northumberland National Park and is known as the gateway to the Cheviot Hills.

The new outlets are in response to both towns losing their last banks.

Barclays pulled out of Wooler in 2018 and exited Hawes a year later, leaving them very much dependent on local post offices and free-to-use cash machines for access to banking services and cash.

Unlike traditional branches, the new Newcastle outlets will not be standalone, but based in the towns' community centres.

But they will allow customers to make savings deposits and withdrawals as well as obtain financial advice on everything from pensions to investments and inheritance tax planning.

A similar community branch was opened three years ago by the society in Yarm, North Yorkshire, inside the town's library, and has proved a big success.

The new branches have been warmly welcomed. Joe Pilling is chairman of the Hawes Upper Dales Community Partnership that has been instrumental in ensuring the town keeps its vital services  including a library, police station and community petrol station.

He says: 'The Newcastle branch will meet a real community need.' Parish councillor Sheila Alderson says the society's initiative is 'brilliant'.

Tom Johnston, chief executive of Glendale Gateway Trust  a charitable organisation set up to ensure Wooler remains a vibrant town  says Newcastle's presence will help 'protect rural services'.

Meanwhile, Andrew Haigh, chief executive of Newcastle, told the MoS: 'As a business, we believe in the high street and the vitality of the region we serve. We want to connect with the communities on our patch.

'Clearly, we're seeing a transition away from cash in favour of contactless payment. But there is still a big need among many people for ready access to cash  not just via a cash machine, but by visiting a branch staffed by people with friendly faces.' He said another community branch could be up and running by the end of the year.

Newcastle's support for the high street is a boost to The Mail on Sunday's 'Keep Our Cash Campaign'. We believe all communities should have access to free cash, whether through a bank, building society branch or an ATM.

Our campaign has drawn widespread support and has already resulted in cash machine network provider Link promising to install by the end of the year up to 200 free-to-use ATMs in communities that have lost all their bank branches or 24-hour access to cash.

So far, seven free-to-use ATMs have been installed  in Silsoe, Bedfordshire; Durness and Gartcosh in Scotland; Bedlinog and New Tredegar in Wales; Nuneaton, Warwickshire; and last week, Battle in East Sussex.

On Friday, Link said a further nine ATMs were ready, waiting to be installed and it had visited 100 communities to assess the viability of a cash machine being provided.

Link said it was happy to receive new requests from communities keen to benefit from a free-to-use ATM. These can be made at link.co.uk.
Dev Patel as David Copperfield in The Personal History of David Copperfield

Writer-director Armando Iannucci OBE realises great expectations with his madcap spin take on one of Charles Dickens's indomitable literary heroes.

The Personal History Of David Copperfield breathlessly abridges the mid-19th century serial and novel to focus on the quixotic and colourful characters, whose fates intersect with the titular hero.

A galaxy of stars in the British acting firmament sparkle in small yet perfectly formed roles including a delightfully bonkers Tilda Swinton as Betsey Trotwood, who mistakes salad dressing for smelling salts, and Peter Capaldi as lovable rapscallion Mr Micawber.

The setting may be pungently Victorian but the tone is unmistakably modern from the hero's knowing narration to nudge-nudge wink-wink flashes of directorial brio that bookmark each chapter of David's rites of passage.

Dev Patel plays the likeable comic foil in the midst of the madness, who is slowly educated in the whims of his fellow man, but flecks of tragedy are always hand-tied with fanciful ribbons to humour.

For example, when David's mother perishes, the sad news is related in hilariously ham-fisted graduations of the truth - "Very ill", "Dangerously ill", "She's dead!"

As a young tyke, David Copperfield (Jairaj Varsani) is raised by his mother Clara (Morfydd Clark) and housekeeper Peggotty (Daisy May Cooper) in a home filled with laughter and love until the arrival of a stern and cruel stepfather, Edward Murdstone (Darren Boyd).

The new man of the house beats and terrorises David, who is dispatched to London into the dubious care of debt-riddled landlord Mr Micawber (Capaldi).

As David comes of age (now played by Patel), he aims to become a scholarly man of the world by attending a boarding school run by Mr Creakle (Victor McGuire).

New acquaintance James Steerforth (Aneurin Barnard) has a profound impact on David's outlook on the world and demonstrates the self-serving nature of the human condition.

In time, David seeks out his eccentric great-aunt Betsey Trotwood (Swinton), who lives in perpetual fear of donkeys with kite-flying companion Mr Dick (Hugh Laurie), and is taken under the wing of respected lawyer Mr Wickfield (Benedict Wong).

Wickfield's slippery clerk Uriah Heep (Ben Whishaw), who is "attempting to learn gentleman's humour from a book", has unrequited romantic designs on the lawyer's daughter (Rosalind Eleazar) and sets in motion a plan to usurp David.

The Personal History Of David Copperfield barrels along at a jaunty pace, buoyed by a magnificent ensemble cast armed with expertly polished one-liners.

Period detail is suitably grim and fusty as a counterpoint to the light and breezy dialogue, which reminds us of how bitingly funny Dickens was on the page.

Iannucci's adaptation, co-written by Simon Blackwell, weaves pithy invented details into the fabric of Dickens's book without drawing undue attention to these delightful authorial touches.
Lagos has always been known for its signature traffic with successive governments thinking up plans and policies to solve the menace once and for all.

However, it appears the traffic situation in the state has remained without a cure, and Lagosians have for a long time, had to grapple with the reality of spending long hours in traffic, both in the day and at night.

As a result of this, the need to seek the easiest way to meet up business or personal appointment has seen a boost in the motorcycle and tricycle business. With the way they are structured, motorcycles easily manoeuvre, even in the worst traffic situation.

Okada and keke napep or marwa as it is referred to in local parlance, have enjoyed the love of Lagosians who need to be somewhere very fast and have the means to board one.

So, it became a serious of form of heartbreak for both riders and passengers when the Lagos state government announced that a ban on this form of transportation would take effect from February 1 2020.

According to the state government, motorcycles and tricycles are not part of the plan for the megacity.

Read Also: Struggles, Pains Of Single Mothers And Societys One-Sided Backlash (Exclusive)

Speaking on the ban, which will be effected in six local governments and nine local council development areas of the state, Gbenga Omotosho said the decision was in response to scary figures of fatal accidents recorded from Okada and tricycle operators in Lagos between 2016 and 2019.

Read Also: Inside Life Of Area Boys In Lagos (Exclusive)

The affected areas are Apapa LGA, Apapa Iganmu LCDA, Lagos Mainland LGA, Yaba LCDA, Surulere LGA, Itire-Ikate LCDA, and Coker-Aguda LCDA.

Others are Ikeja LGA, Onigbongbo LCDA, Ojodu LCDA, Eti-Osa LGA, Ikoyi-Obalende LCDA, Iru-Victoria Island LCDA, Lagos Island LGA and Lagos Island East LCDA.

The restricted highways are Lagos-Ibadan Expressway, Apapa-Oshodi Expressway, Oworonshoki-Oshodi Expressway, Lagos-Ikorodu Expressway, Lagos-Abeokuta Expressway, Eti-Osa/Lekki-Epe Expressway, Lagos-Badagry Expressway, Funsho Williams Avenue, Agege Motor Road, and Eti-Osa Lekki Coastal Road.

The bridges are Iyana-Ipaja Bridge, Agege; Dopemu Bridge, Agege; Airport/Ikeja Bridge; Agege Motor Road/Oshodi Loop, Oshodi; Mushin/Isolo Link Bridge; Dorman Long Bridge; Ojuelegba Bridge; National Stadium Flyover; Apapa-Iganmu Bridge; Apapa-Ijora Link Bridge; Liverpool Bridge, Apapa; Mile 2 Bridge-Loop, Amuwo-Odofin; Okota (Cele)/Ijesha Link Bridge; Apakun/Apapa-Oshodi Bridge Network; Ikorodu Road/Anthony Clover Leaf Bridge.

Others are Trade Fair Flyover Bridge, Festac/Amuwo-Odofin Link Bridge, 2 Flyover Bridges along Alhaji Masha Road, Ojota Clover Leaf Bridge, Ogudu Bridge, Third Mainland Bridge, Maryland flyover, Ikeja General Hospital Flyover Bridge, Kodesoh Bridge, Oba Akran, Ikeja; Opebi Link Bridge; Sheraton-Opebi Bridge; Jibowu/Yaba flyover Bridge; Carter Bridge, Lagos; Bariga-Ifako Bridge; Apapa-Oshodi Expressway/Alapere Bridge; Bariga/Oworonsoki Bridge; Apapa-Oshodi Expressway/Gbagada U-Turn; Apapa-Oshodi Expressway; Third Mainland/ Oworonsoki Bridge; Eko Bridge; Apongbon flyover Bridge; Cowry Bridge (Officers Mess); Mcwen Bridge (Bonny Camp); Marina/Ikoyi Bridge and Ikoyi/Obalende Bridge.

INFORMATION NIGERIA, to understand the depth of the situation as it would affect riders and passengers, spoke to some motorcycle and tricycle operations and every single one of them lamented about the proposed ban.

Sanya Olagbegi, a Gokada operator who stationed at Agege, Pen Cinema at the time of the interview, said the ban will be a big loss to him. He said I have two older sisters and three younger brothers that are dependent on me. I make about N100,000 monthly from this business.

Olagbegi attributed most of the success of the business to the traffic in the state, saying passengers would pay anything as long as they meet up their appointments on time.

He said, you know how Lagos is with traffic, a customer can board this bike from here to Ajah and his fare would be around N3000. The customer would not mind paying it because he knows he is off for business and would get more from the trip than what he expends on transportation.

According to the GOkada operator, he remits N4,000 to the company and whatever he makes after paying his daily ticket fee of N300, fuel and feeding are what he takes home.

Chima Eze, an indigene of Imo state, rides his Okada between Pen Cinema and Ikeja. According to him, the ban will affect both riders and passengers. Eze said the situation of Lagos is so terrible,  things are so expensive and there are no jobs. 

He also said that most of the Okada riders in his park are graduates who had to take to the form of business because there are no jobs.

Most of us you see here are graduates who have the capacity to work anywhere but because there are no jobs, we have decided to take up this business  because we cant just sit at home doing nothing, especially since we have families to cater for.

Eze, an ambitious man in his 40s stressed that even here, you would find policemen and soldiers who work with us, just to make up on what their salaries cant.

On what he will do if the ban takes effect, Eze said; I will find another way to make ends meet as life must go on. I remember during the time of Fashola when a similar ban was imposed, many people ran away from Lagos to seek pastures elsewhere and for those of us that remained, life still went on. I dont believe the ban is the end of the world, he concluded.

Aderonke Fabiyi, an ardent Okada passenger, says she has been making it early to her workplace at Yaba from Agege since she got the job in 2017.

I honestly dont know how I will cope with this ban. This government just make policies without thinking it through, she lamented.

Tomiwa Adisa, a Keke Napep operator who shuttles between Agege and Ikeja, said when one way closes another way opens. I believe my God will not put me to shame.

An Opay rider at Ikeja, John Peter, decried how the ban would affect his life and his nine months of work. According to him, he has worked for Opay for about 9 months on a higher purchase contract of one year, where he would take ownership of the bike after he has paid back the agreed sum.

He said, if the ban comes to play, they might back their bikes which means I have worked in vain for nine months.

He added that some riders may not accept that Opay takes their bike after working for 8 to 9 months, which may cause a lot of trouble.

While the state government may have good reasons to effect the ban, riders and passengers have said the ban is going to have a huge toll on them.

There have been many government policies that have been announced with the tone of finality but enforcement becomes a dream. For this ban, it would be interesting to see where all these lead.
Two acts have been voted off The Greatest Dancer in Saturday's first live show results.

It was the first week of the challenge shows this weekend and twelve acts started the competition - but TWO were seen heading home last night (Saturday, February 1).

Advertisements

Dance captains Cheryl, Oti Mabuse, Todrick and Matthew Morrison returned with their contestants in a bid to win over viewer votes.

After all had performed live for a first time it was over to viewers to vote for their favourite. Once lines had closed, the two acts with the fewest votes were revealed.

The Greatest Dancer results

Hosts Jordan Banjo and Alesha Dixon announced the public votes this weekend (February 1) as all female Jazz group The Queens on Cheryl's team and Todrick's commercial solo dancer Ryan Gibson were eliminated.

Now ten acts remain in the competition with a cash prize of 50,000 up for grabs and the chance to perform on Strictly Come Dancing.

Currently making up Cheryl's squad are Duo Lily & Joseph and all male contemporary dance group Brothers of Dance.

On Oti's squad are hip hop dance crew Dark Angels, contemporary group Vale and Latin & ballroom pair Michael & Jowita

Advertisements

Todrick's squad features contemporary performer Ainsley Ricketts and mixed contemporary dance group Dancepoint.

Finally, on Matthew's squad are contemporary fusion dancer Hannah Martin, contemporary soloist Harrison Ellison and street dance duo Ross and Travis.

In the live shows, each act is given a new challenge each week for their performance. It could be a prop they need to include or a theme they must incorporate into their routine.

As well as the viewer votes, the audience at The Greatest Dancer studio could also vote for their favourite. Here's how the audience voted...

The Greatest Dancer audience vote

Brothers of Dance (Cheryl) 97.8%

Ross and Travis (Matthew) 97.0%

Ainsley Ricketts (Todrick) 95.5%

Lily & Joseph (Cheryl) 95.2%

Harrison (Matthew) 94.2%

Hannah (Matthew) 94.2%

Dark Angels (Oti) 92.1%

Michael & Jowita (Oti) 90.5%

Dancepoint (Todrick) 89.9%

Vale (Oti) 88.9%

Ryan (Todrick) 74.6%

The Queens (Cheryl) 48.4%

Meanwhile, the first live show featured a grand group performance featuring Britain's Got Talent stars Diversity dancing with the dance captains as well as hosts Alesha and Jordan.

Advertisements

The Greatest Dancer continues live next Saturday night on BBC One.

Episodes are available to watch online in full via BBC iPlayer.
Sanjay Jha, Director, ColMed shares his views on the trends in medical devices

Much like drugs, medical devices and equipment is today a key input in the healthcare sector. Widespread availability and easy accessibility of quality medical devices is critical to the realization of our goal of universal healthcare. India is currently the 4th largest medical devices market in Asia after Japan, China and South Korea and the medical devices market in the country is expected to grow to USD 50 billion by 2025. The growth is humongous across the world and the global medical devices market size is likely to grow by a whopping USD 119.98 billion during 2018-2022, according to a report by market research firm Technavio.

With a rapidly expanding healthcare sector, India is today a lucrative market for all global companies manufacturing and selling medical devices and equipment. Most global companies are already selling products in India or are planning to enter the market. Even as the diversity and complexity of the Indian market remains a challenge for distributors, a series of new developments and trends are laying ground for improved regulatory standards, cost effective interventions as well as improved supply chain management.

Here are some prominent new trends that are expected to impact the medical devices distribution in recent years:

1) Distribution Rationalization: For OEMs, managing distribution networks and sales channels effectively has always been a significant area of concern. Today, many OEM's have devised a strategy in which they focus on their core job of developing products, leaving the distribution conundrum to specialist group purchasing organizations. As seen in the USA, the complete Distribution model is outsourced to a few National Distributors, commonly referred to as Group Purchasing Organizations (GPO), who through their expertise and established tiers of distribution, make available the medical products to Healthcare Professionals. ColMed is one such Indian company, which has been at the forefront of this revolution in India. The GPO's big-dollar investment in quality manpower and sophisticated inventory control systems, help local distributors in Tier 2 & Tier 3 cities in catering to health centers, by enabling them to procure quality products at affordable price.

It is a win-win model for all, since OEM's can focus on enhancing Product Awareness, GPOs can use their expertise of distribution, Tier 2 & Tier 3 distributors can purchase products at low price in spite of limited buying volumes, and customers get access to a wide array of products at reasonable price.

2) Pricing Regulations by Government and its implication on Distribution

Recognizing the need to improve regulatory standards for medical devices, the government has initiated measures to set up a separate regulatory authority for this sector that hitherto came under the domain of drug regulator Central Drugs Control Standard Organization. The government is planning to set up a Medical Devices Authority (MDA) that will devise Indian regulatory norms for the entire spectrum in the medical devices sector that till now adheres to FDA regulations. The government is also working on rules for rationalizing the trade margins for medical devices that have been categorized as drugs. In fact, price caps have already been introduced on devices such as stents, reducing the profit margins of hospitals as well as distributors.

All these measures are set to make regulations more stringent for devices, even as price regulations will have an impact on trade margins. Distributors are now trying to work on finding innovative distribution strategies that are more cost effective.

3) Reducing Quality Differentiation: A number of factors have helped bridge the brand differentiation between the products of MNCs and local manufacturers. These factors include improvement in quality of Indian manufacturing and wide scale acceptability of Indian manufacturer products which offer good results at lower costs. The wide brand choices have reduced brand differentiation, which has helped local OEMs to compete with International MNCs. Though manufacturing remains limited to producing low technology products, a few domestic companies and MNCs with manufacturing facilities in India have successfully developed low cost products that are on par in terms of quality with existing products that require complex technical know-how to manufacture. These products have succeeded in developing a niche market in many regions globally. For example, Indian manufactured heart valves have found new export markets in Myanmar, Kenya and Thailand. This has helped the medical devices exports register strong growth.

4) Improved supply chain management using Artificial Intelligence & Machine learning

Supply chain management is often highly under-rated part of an efficient distribution network. A report by an American healthcare supply chain management company concluded that improving supply chain management can enable health systems to reduce their supply expenses by an average of 17.7%, equivalent to USD 11 million annually per hospital.

Growing realization about the need to institute efficacious supply chain management practices have led distributors to turn to sophisticated technologies like artificial intelligence (AI) and machine learning that can leverage big data and help standardize processes. This in turn results in better predictability, optimization of supplies and reduction of wastage and expenses. AI based algorithms that use vast data for predictive analysis proves to be particularly useful in supply chain applications. Similarly, a McKinsey study found that using AI to enhance supply chain management could cut forecasting errors by 20% to 50%.

As Medical Device & Consumable distribution moves towards optimization of resources, AI based applications are set to become a norm in supply chain management practices.

5) Greater consolidation of businesses and growing role of private equity players

A rapidly growing healthcare distribution business is fast catching the attention of private equity players who have turned towards investing in medical distribution businesses. This will result in greater standardization of practices and inflow of more expertise in the sector. Apart from entrance of more private equity players, a greater consolidation of businesses also seems to be on the cards. Globally, pharmaceutical and devices distribution have consolidated to a large extent. However, in India it is still largely fragmented. A series of acquisitions and mergers are already underway in the sector and the trend is likely to continue. As we move towards greater consolidation, this will also result in better supply chain management practices and improved technological prowess.

Sanjay Jha, Director, ColMed
RBS is set to reward its bankers with bonuses of 305 million  10 per cent less than last year.

The bonus pot at the state-backed bank is expected to be cut back from 335 million in 2019 after a tough year.

New direction: Boss Alison Rose is expected to unveil a shake-up that could involve sweeping job cuts and a management reshuffle

The payouts will be revealed when RBS reports its first set of results under new chief executive Alison Rose, Sky News reported.

Rose is also expected to unveil a shake-up that could involve sweeping job cuts and a management reshuffle. She has been under pressure to scale back RBS's underperforming investment bank and improve returns at Ulster Bank in Ireland.

RBS was bailed out by the taxpayer in 2008 for 45 billion and is still 62 per cent owned by the Government, which plans to continue selling shares back to the markets. It is thought taxpayers will lose money on the sale.

The bank's bonuses have fallen dramatically since 2009, when it shelled out 1 billion in payments to bankers.
Isabel dos Santos the first child and also the eldest daughter of the long-serving president of Angola, Jose Eduardo dos Santos. She was awarded the title, Africa's richest woman in a 2013 report published by a Forbes magazine survey. Dos Santos wealth is credited to her business activities in the Angolan oil industry, especially as she once headed Sonangol, Angolas state oil company.

Image: instagram.com, @isabel_dos_santos.me

Source: UGC

Santos owns stakes in the telecommunications industries in Angola and Portugal through her telecoms company known as Unitel, Angolas phone operator. She has successfully run businesses from the ground like the Miami Beach restaurant in Angola. She hopes to help the people of Angola rise from poverty through education and business, which she says is the answer to many problems in her country.

Isabel dos Santos profile summary

Full name : Isabel Dos Santos

: Isabel Dos Santos Year of Birth : 1973

: 1973 Age : 47

: 47 Marital status : Married

: Married Husband : Sindika Dakolo

: Sindika Dakolo Gender : Female

: Female Profession : entrepreneur, businesswoman

: entrepreneur, businesswoman Instagram: isabel_dos_santos.me

Early life and career

She was born in Baku, Azerbaijan to her Angolan father Jose Eduardo dos Santos, who was an Angolan politician at the time, and he then led Angola for nearly four decades. Isabel dos Santos mother was Tatiana Kukanova who went to the same school as her father. In her childhood years, she studied electrical engineering at Kings College London. Like her father, she was good at Maths and Physics, which helped her delve into engineering for her A level education.

Image: instagram.com, @isabel_dos_santos.me

Source: UGC

After her studies, she returned home to join her father in running the country and to start her career. She served as a Project Manager Engineer for Jembas Group. Later on, she joined the country's telecoms industry and built her business, the Miami Beach club and restaurant, which was her first stint at business, and it has been successful ever since. She lives a glamorous life between Portugal and London and loves social media. Isabel dos Santos Instagram handle is @isabel_dos_santos.me

Isabel dos Santos family

She is married to Dakolo Sindika, a Congolese millionaire whom she met while studying in London. Dakolo is also from a prominent family in Congo. They had a glamorous wedding in Luanda in 2002 that was attended by many prominent people. They also have three children.

Image: instagram.com, @isabel_dos_santos.me

Source: UGC

What is Isabel dos Santos net worth?

After her award in 2013 as being the richest woman in Africa, Isabel is said to be worth two billion US dollars by a Forbes magazine survey. She credits her wealth to hard work and focus. Recent reports about her wealth have emerged citing that she has been hiding in her father's shadow of accumulated wealth and riches.

Isabel dos Santos house

Together with her husband Dakolo, they have a 13 million pound mansion in London. The house is in a gated community in Kensington, London, and it is reported to have an underground swimming pool and a spa. The house has also been under scrutiny and media probing following reports of money laundering and embezzlement of Angola's state funds.

Image: instagram.com, @isabel_dos_santos.me

Source: UGC

Does Isabel own a car?

There is no information about the car she drives, but she owns a large private jet and a yacht that she put on sale recently. A move initiated by the recent investigations about her wealth.

READ ALSO: Isabel dos Santos: Africa's richest woman eyes an Angola presidency

Isabel dos Santos scandal

Recently, she has found herself in the eye of a storm in her home country, Angola, where she has been accused of fraud in court and as revealed in the Luanda leaks, a report by the international consortium of investigative journalists. There are a lot of concerns about her source of wealth since Angola remains to be one of Africas poorest countries and most locals live on less than a dollar every day. The leaks also indicate that she could have amassed wealth from her father's corrupt dealings while he was in government.

Image: instagram.com, @isabel_dos_santos.me

Source: UGC

The Luanda leaks published recently show that her source of wealth was questionable and that she transacted millions of dollars that raised red flags in American intelligence firms. The proceeds from her businesses were put into assets like luxury homes and big businesses.

READ ALSO: Folorunsho Alakija listed among only 3 black female billionaires in the world

Santos is a successful and influential woman in her local home and the African scene at large. Despite the ongoing investigations on her fraudulent practices, she is an icon of many African youths, especially women aspiring to make it in life.

READ ALSO: Top 10 most beautiful daughters of African presidents

Source: Briefly News
New Delhi, Feb 1 : Indications from statements made by President Ram Nath Kovind and Prime Minister Narendra Modi at the start of the Parliament's Budget session may presage a Budget woven around the theme of the start of a new decade and the building of a New India.

PM Modi kicked off the "new decade" theme on Friday morning in his customary statement before the beginning of the Budget session.

He asked the Members of Parliament to work towards laying a strong foundation for a "bright future of the country in the new decade".

The Prime Minister called for wide discussions on the economic issues in the country and how to maximise benefits to India in the current global economic scenario.

"We should focus mostly on economic issues in this session and we should to try to see how India can benefit most out of the present global economic scenario and how it can take forward the country's economy." President Kovind laid even more emphasis on the "new decade" theme, which he said, can make this century India's century.

In his address to Parliament, he said: "This decade is extremely important for India. In this decade, we will complete 75 years of our independence. In this decade, we all have to work together with new energy to give impetus to the making of a new India. With the efforts of my Government, a strong foundation has been laid in the last five years, to make this decade India's decade and this century India's century.

"I am pleased to address the joint sitting of Parliament at the start of the third decade of 21st century. I once again extend my best wishes for the New Year and congratulate all Members of Parliament for being a witness to this historic occasion." With the focus on the new decade and India's opportunity to seize the global economic opportunity, the Union Budget, being the first of the decade, may well herald the second wave of structural reforms which can bring the economy out of the hole its finds itself in.

While the Budget is to be presented on Saturday, the budget-making team of the Finance Ministry is short of two key officials, including a full-time Expenditure Secretary.

In addition to Expenditure Secretary, the position of Joint Secretary, Budget, one of the key officials in the entire Budget-making process, was also vacant for almost three months.

The post of Expenditure Secretary fell vacant after the appointment of G.C. Murmu as the first Lt Governor of the newly-created Union Territory of Jammu and Kashmir. Murmu relinquished the post of Expenditure Secretary on October 29 and subsequently, the additional charge of the Department of Expenditure was given to Atanu Chakraborty.

Chakraborty, a 1985-batch IAS officer of the Gujarat cadre, is Secretary, Economic Affairs in the Finance Ministry. In late January, Rajat Kumar Mishra was appointed Joint Secretary, Budget.

-- The story has been published from a wire feed without any modifications to the text
- The US accused Makonda of gross human rights violations

- The regional commissioner also came under fire for oppressing opposition politicians

- He ordered a crackdown targeting members of the LGBTQ community

Tanzania Regional Commissioner for Dar es Salaam, Paul Makonda and his wife have been declared unwanted in the USA.

Washington accused Makonda of what the US Secretary of State Department Mike Pompeo termed as deteriorating respect for human rights in the East African nation.

READ ALSO: Passenger injured after bird strikes Jambojet plane in Kisumu

Paul Makonda was implicated in human rights violations. Photo: Mpekuzi.

Source: UGC

READ ALSO: Gavana wa Bomet na seneta Lang'at wakamatana shati kwenye mchango

Makonda had in 2018 launched a crackdown targeting members of the lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender and queer community, a move that rattled the west.

"We designated Dar es Salaam Regional Commissioner Paul Christian Makonda as ineligible to enter the U.S. for his involvement in gross violations of human rights. We are deeply concerned over deteriorating respect for human rights and rule of law in Tanzania," Mike stated.

He came under fire over the gross violations of human rights which included flagrant denial of the right to life, liberty, or the security of persons.

The statement also implicated Makonda in muzzling and oppressing critics of President Joseph Magufuli, denial of their freedom expression and association.

An ardent ally of Magufuli and a firm believer in African culture, Makonda said homosexuality was a threat to Christianity and Muslim religions and the moral values of Tanzanians.

"As we take this stand, do not tell us about human rights.There is no right to go against creation written on any religious books.

Keep your laws. Being gay is not allowed here in Dar es Salaam. I prefer to anger those countries than to anger God," he remained adamant.

Following the crackdown, which the government, later on, distanced itself from, Amnesty International called for respect of the rule of law.

Several LGBTQ activists reportedly went into hiding for fear of their life.

Do you have a groundbreaking story you would like us to publish? Please reach us through news@tuko.co.ke or WhatsApp: 0732482690. Contact Tuko.co.ke instantly.

Behind the scenes in Babu Owino's Day in court | Tuko TV.

Source: TUKO.co.ke
Under both the commercial general liability and umbrella policies, he said, law enforcement isn't included on a list of professions but appears as one of five specified categories of occupations under the liability exclusions.

"Were we to apply definitions from our case law rather than the definitions the parties have used, we would be rewriting insurance policies," Funke said.

The court expressed no opinion on any other coverage-related issues in the case, which will be taken up by the trial court. A lawsuit against the county's other insurance carrier, the Nebraska Intergovernmental Risk Management Association, remains pending before Nelson.

Friday's opinion was a welcome development to the Gage County Board of Supervisors, which has wrestled with how the county would pay the judgment, according to Chairman Erich Tiemann.

Tiemann said if the county sees an insurance payout in the future, the money could only be used to pay down the debt quicker  not to ease either the additional property tax that supervisors levied in 2018, or the half-cent county sales tax that went into effect Jan. 1.
BEIJING  Chinas death toll from the rapidly-spreading coronavirus rose to 259 on Saturday and a World Health Organization official said other governments need to prepare for domestic outbreak control if the disease spreads in their countries.

The number of confirmed cases in China rose to 11,791  surpassing the number in the big outbreak of SARS, or Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome, in 2002 and 2003. The coronavirus rapid spread during the past two months prompted the World Health Organization on Thursday to declare it a global emergency.

That declaration "flipped the switch" from a cautious attitude to recommending governments prepare for the possibility the virus might spread, said the WHO representative in Beijing, Gauden Galea. Most cases reported so far have been people who visited China or their family members.

The agency acted out of concern for poorer countries that might not be equipped to respond, Galea said. Such a declaration calls for a coordinated international response and can bring more money and resources.

ALSO: The coronavirus outbreak is causing a surgical mask shortage. Experts say stop buying them.

WHO said it was especially concerned that some cases abroad involved human-to-human transmission.

Countries need to get ready for possible importation in order to identify cases as early as possible and in order to be ready for a domestic outbreak control, if that happens, Galea told The Associated Press.

Bill Chen stands outside of customs at San Francisco International Airport on Jan. 29, after arriving on a flight from Shanghai, where he was conducting business and visiting family over the Lunar New Year holiday. Chen said his temperature was quickly screened at the Shanghai airport before he departed. He also filled out a health questionnaire.AP

China criticizes U.S. over travel ban

Beijing criticized Washington's order barring entry to most foreigners who visited China in the past two weeks.

Australian Prime Minister Scott Morrison announced similar measures Saturday, following Japan and Singapore.

South Korea and India flew hundreds of their citizens out of Wuhan, the city at the center of an area where some 50 million people are prevented from leaving in a sweeping anti-virus effort. The evacuees went into a two-week quarantine. Indonesia also sent a plane.

On Friday, the United States declared a public health emergency and President Donald Trump signed an order barring entry to foreign nationals who visited China within the last 14 days, which scientists say is the virus longest incubation period. The restrictions dont apply to immediate family of American citizens and permanent residents.

China criticized the U.S. controls and "unfriendly comments" that Beijing was failing to cooperate.

"Just as the WHO recommended against travel restrictions, the U.S. rushed to go in the opposite way. Certainly not a gesture of goodwill," said foreign ministry spokeswoman Hua Chunying.

WHO Secretary-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus said that despite the emergency declaration, there is "no reason for measures that unnecessarily interfere with international travel and trade."

A girl wearing a face mask stands in the entrance to a shop in Wuhan in central China's Hubei Province. The U.S. advised against all travel to China as the number of cases of a worrying new virus spiked more than tenfold in a week, including the highest death toll in a 24-hour period reported Friday.Arek Rataj / AP

Cities on lockdown

Meanwhile, the ruling Communist Party postponed the end of the Lunar New Year holiday in Hubei province, where Wuhan is located, for an unspecified "appropriate extent" and appealed to people there to stay home.

Another locked-down city in Hubei, Huanggang, on Saturday banned almost all residents from leaving their homes in the most stringent controls imposed yet. The government said only one person from each household would be allowed out to shop for food once every two days.

"Others are not allowed to go out except for medical treatment, to do epidemic prevention and control work or to work in supermarkets and pharmacies," it said in an announcement.

China's anti-disease controls started with the Jan. 23 suspension of plane, bus and train links to Wuhan, an industrial center of 11 million people. The lockdown has spread to surrounding cities.

The holiday, China's busiest annual travel season, ends Sunday in the rest of the country following a three-day extension to postpone the return to factories and offices by hundreds of millions of workers. The official Xinhua News Agency said people in Hubei who work outside the province also were given an extended holiday.

The party decision "highlighted the importance of prevention and control of the epidemic among travelers," Xinhua said.

Workers unload a shipment of protective suits from a cargo plane at Wuhan Tianhe International Airport in Wuhan. Complicated logistics are part of a daily flow of food and other goods authorities say is sustaining Wuhan and surrounding cities with a total of 50 million people blocked from leaving.Cheng Min/Xinhua via AP

Flight restrictions

Americans returning from China will be allowed into the country, but will face screening. Those returning from Hubei province will be subject to a 14-day quarantine.

Beginning Sunday, the United States will direct flights from China to seven major airports where passengers can be screened.

Delta Air Lines said Saturday that it was accelerating plans to suspend fights between the United States and China. Delta's last flight from China will leave Sunday, the airline said. It had planned to end flights on Thursday.

Other carriers including American Airlines, British Airways, Finnair and Hong Kong's Cathay Pacific also have canceled or cut back service to mainland China. Vietnam suspended all flights to China.

The U.S. order followed a travel advisory for Americans to consider leaving China. Japan and Germany also advised against nonessential travel to China. Britain did as well, except for Hong Kong and Macao.

A plane carrying Indians from Wuhan landed Saturday in New Delhi. The government said they would be quarantined in nearby Manesar. Sri Lanka also pulled out 33 more of its citizens and promised to bring back the remaining 204 students.

A special flight brought 312 Bangladeshis back from Wuhan, including eight who were hospitalized with high temperatures. The government says about 5,000 Bangladeshis study in China.

A Turkish military transport carrying 42 people left Wuhan for Ankara. They reportedly showed no signs of infection.

The Kremlin said Russia would use its air force planes to evacuate Russians from areas of China most seriously affected by the virus.

Germany's defense minister said a plane taking 102 citizens back to Germany was refused permission to land and refuel in Moscow due to what the Russians said was lack of capacity and had to divert to Helsinki.

An EU evacuation flight from Wuhan was scheduled for Saturday.

South Korea's second evacuation flight landed in Seoul with 330 people from Wuhan. They were to be screened for fever before being taken to two quarantine centers.

South Korea also reported its 12th virus case, which appeared to be a human-to-human transmission.

At least 24 countries have reported cases since China informed WHO about the new virus in late December.

The death rate in China is falling, but the number of confirmed cases will keep growing because thousands of specimens from suspected cases have yet to be tested, WHO's Galea said.

"The case fatality ratio is settling out at a much lower level than we were reporting three, now four, weeks ago," he said.

Two girls with face masks ride the subway in Hong Kong, Saturday, Feb, 1, 2020. Chinas death toll from a new virus has risen to 259 and a World Health Organization official says other governments need to prepare fordomestic outbreak control if the disease spreads.AP

New virus similar to SARS

Both the new virus and SARS are from the coronavirus family, which also includes those that cause the common cold.

Although scientists expect to see limited transmission of the virus between people with family or other close contact, they are concerned about cases of infection spreading to people who might have less exposure.

In Japan, a tour guide and bus driver became infected after escorting two groups from Wuhan. The country reported four new cases, including a woman in her 20s who worked on the same tour bus, and another person who was asymptomatic, for a total of 20.

In Germany, five employees of an auto parts supplier became ill after a Chinese colleague visited, including two who had no direct contact with the woman. She showed no symptoms until her flight back to China. On Friday, Germany confirmed a sixth case, a child of one of the people already infected.

The United Arab Emirates confirmed its fifth infection, Vietnam its sixth and Australia its ninth.

Spain reported its first case, a German man who had close contact with an infected person in Germany and then traveled to the Canary Islands with friends. Four friends who were hospitalized with him have not shown symptoms.

In the United States, health officials issued a two-week quarantine order for 195 Americans evacuated this week from Wuhan.

It was the first time a federal quarantine has been ordered since the 1960s, when one was enacted over concern about smallpox, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention said.

None of the Americans being housed at a Southern California military base has shown signs of illness.
Belarus supports any formats of talks on the settlement in eastern Ukraine, including involving the United States, Belarusian Foreign Ministry Vladimir Makei said in Minsk on Saturday.

"As for Belarus' stance on Ukraine, everybody knows it. We intend to do our utmost to ensure that the crisis in Ukraine ends as soon as possible. We are ready to provide a venue for any meetings and talks in Belarus. We support any formats, including with the U.S. participation, if only they help to settle the crisis in Ukraine," Makei said following a meeting with U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo.

Pompeo, in turn, said that the settlement of the conflict in eastern Ukraine was one of the issues he had discussed with the Belarusian president and the foreign minister. According to Pompeo, Minsk hopes that the U.S. would continue playing its constructive part in the prevention of those threats that exist in the eastern and southern Ukraine and participating more actively in ensuring that a relevant way out, a relevant approach is found.

At that, Pompeo emphasized that the whole world must take part in the settlement of this conflict. It is the issue, where the entire Europe, the entire world must be involved to find a solution to this issue, he said.

Ultimately, Russia and Ukraine must resolve this issue on their own, he said. But the U.S. will do all it can, Pompeo said, adding that his country will help Ukraine achieve the level of democracy, which he had discussed with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky yesterday.
A man reportedly fired bullets in Shaheen Bagh area of the national capital. Police has taken him into their custody, news agency ANI reported. The development comes days after a juvenile had fired upon Jamia Millia Islamia students who were peacefully protesting against the contentious Citizenship Amendment Act (CAA).

According to eyewitnesses, the man opened fire behind the stage at the site where the protest against the Citizenship (Amendment) Act has been going on since over a month.

The man was overpowered by locals and handed over to the police.

In a video that has been doing rounds on social media, a man is seen opening fire at protesters and luckily no one was injured.

Delhi: The man, who had fired bullets in Shaheen Bagh area, has been taken by police into their custody. More details awaited. https://t.co/MmCwK1l58m pic.twitter.com/cDmaDrIXa6  ANI (@ANI) February 1, 2020

#WATCH Delhi: Man who had fired bullets in Shaheen Bagh area being taken away from the spot by police. pic.twitter.com/lenDhRcWGD  ANI (@ANI) February 1, 2020

#WATCH Delhi: Man who fired bullets in Shaheen Bagh has been taken away from the spot by police. The man claims to be Kapil Gujjar, a resident of Dallupura village (near Noida border). pic.twitter.com/6xHxREQOe1  ANI (@ANI) February 1, 2020

Shaheen Bagh has been the epicentre of the CAA protests for almost two months now.

Meanwhile, the boy, who opened fire in Jamia area on Thursday injuring one student, was sent to 14-day protective custody by the Juvenile Justice Board in Delhi.

Delhi Police's Crime Branch produced the accused before the Juvenile Justice Board.

The Crime Branch has also contacted RML hospital for conducting necessary medical tests to confirm the age of the accused. A medical board is likely to be formed for a bone ossification test of the accused.

The accused, on Friday, said he has no remorse for what he did and was radicalised by viewing videos on social media, claimed Delhi Police.

Police sources also said that the accused had procured the country-made pistol from his village and left for Delhi in a bus to take revenge for the death of Chandan Gupta. Gupta was killed in Kasganj violence on January 26.

The accused had brandished a gun despite heavy police force deployment and fired at the marching students on Thursday.

Delhi police sources said that the accused has denied having any connection or links with any organisation.

A case under section 307 of the Indian Penal Code (IPC) and 25/27 of Arms Act has been registered at New Friends Colony Police Station.


Space News space history and artifacts articles Messages space history discussion forums Sightings worldwide astronaut appearances Resources selected space history documents





advertisements



LEGO releases International Space Station, offers bonus space patch



February 1, 2020  Like the orbiting outpost on which it is modeled, LEGO's new International Space Station has its own mission patch.



Released Saturday (Feb. 1), on the same day that LEGO debuted the 864-piece International Space Station (ISS) set for sale, the colorful space patch is a bonus for the members of LEGO's loyalty program, "VIP."



"VIPs receive this cool space patch February 1-9 for free when they purchase the International Space Station!" LEGO announced on its website.



The 2.75-inch-square (7-centimeter) woven patch depicts the LEGO ISS orbiting over the blue and green Earth, set against a black sky dotted with white stars. The patch reads "International Space Station Set" at its top and has both LEGO's logo and NASA's "ISS 20" logo, the latter celebrating 20 years of continuous occupancy on board the real space station as of this November.



The patch, which comes packaged in its own small box, has an adhesive backing for easy application.



The "ISS 20" logo also appears on the box for the new LEGO Ideas ISS set, which includes the toy bricks needed to build a desktop model of the orbital outpost.



"Build a legend with the exclusive new LEGO International Space Station," reads the product page on LEGO's website. "For over 20 years, the International Space Station has welcomed cooperation from different nations to achieve common goals that benefit all mankind. The largest spacecraft ever built, it continues to unlock discoveries not possible on Earth  and push the boundaries of human space exploration further than ever before."



The $69.99 ISS set, when assembled, forms a 12-inch-long (31-cm) model of the space station, including its habitable modules, eight solar array wings and backbone truss, as well as its multi-window Cupola, robotic arm and expandable activity module. Two microfigure astronauts, three visiting vehicles and a shuttle orbiter are also part of the set, as is a stand on which to support and display it all.



"Use a robotic arm to launch a satellite into orbit. Bring in the next crew of astronauts. Send the microfigure[s] out to perform repairs," LEGO described.



More of a model than a toy, though, the ISS set is recommended for builders 16 years of age and older.



The LEGO International Space Station was based on a project submitted to the LEGO Ideas website by fan designer Christoph Ruge of Germany. On Friday (Jan. 31), the LEGO Store in Nuremberg hosted Ruge for a box signing, providing fans with their first chance to purchase the set.



"That was quite a crowd today  thanks everybody for stopping by!" Ruge wrote on Twitter, retweeting a video showing that the line for his signature filled the store.



The International Space Station VIP bonus is the second space patch that LEGO has given away with one of its space-themed sets. In May 2019, members who purchased the NASA Apollo 11 Lunar Lander received a similar patch celebrating that set's release and the 50th anniversary of the first moon landing mission.



The International Space Station set and its space patch are available exclusively from LEGO Stores and the company's online shop.



LEGO VIP members can receive this space patch with purchase of the LEGO Ideas International Space Station set. (collectSPACE)





The 864-piece LEGO Ideas International Space Station debuted for sale at LEGO Stores and on the LEGO website on Feb. 1. (LEGO)





The new LEGO Ideas International Space Station toy model set on display in the front window of a LEGO Store in Houston, Texas. (collectSPACE)



 2022 collectSPACE.com All rights reserved.
Abbas also stated that he does not want to become the "leader who sold Jerusalem"

Open source

Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas said his administration would cut off all relations with Israel and the United States, including in the security sphere. The reason for this is a disagreement with the plan for a peaceful settlement of the Middle East conflict that Donald Trump proposed. Abbas said this, speaking at a meeting of heads of foreign departments of the League of Arab States, Interfax Ukraine reports.



"We are breaking all relations with the United States," Abbas said.



He took a similar position on relations with Israel.



I dont want to be mentioned in history as the leader who sold Jerusalem, Abbas added.

Related: Palestine threatens to leave all international agreements if Israel annexes Jordan valley

He had in mind a plan for a Middle East settlement prepared by the United States and approved by Israel... It provides, in particular, that Jerusalem should be the indivisible capital of the state of Israel. And the Palestinians will have the opportunity to organize their capital by combining some part of East Jerusalem with the suburbs.



US President Donald Trump unveiled his Middle East peace plan on January 28. During a joint statement with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, Trump said the 80-page document could be the last opportunity for Palestinians to create their own state. Netanyahu supported this plan.
Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar on Saturday hailed the Union Budget 2020-21, saying it is positive and praiseworthy and cater to the interests of common man and farmers.

"It is in the interest of common man and farmers. The change in the income tax slab will provide relief to the middle class," Kumar said in a statement.

He added that the proposal to set up solar power plants on barren lands will strengthen the economic condition of farmers.

Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman in her budget speech in Parliament on Saturday proposed 16 action points to revive the struggling agriculture sector by doubling farmers' income.

With the aim of doubling farmers' income by 2022, Sitharaman proposed to expand PM-KUSUM to 20 lakh farmers for setting up stand-alone solar pumps and help another 15 lakh farmers solarise their grid-connected pump sets.

"She further proposed to operationalise scheme to enable farmers to set up solar power generation capacity on their barren lands and to sell it to the grid. Resource efficiency is the first step in doubling farmer's income and keeping this in mind Sitharaman further stressed to encourage balanced use of all kinds of fertilisers and Zero Budget Natural Farming (ZBNF)," read an official statement.

"She further proposed integration of negotiable warehousing receipts (e-NWR) and Agricultural Market (e-NAM)," it added.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
The special Air India flight with 324 Indians who were evacuated from the coronavirus-hit Chinese city of Wuhan has landed in the national capital on Saturday morning.

The Boeing 747 Jumbo aircraft had taken off from Wuhan's Tianhe International Airport in the early hours of Saturday and landed at the Indira Gandhi International Airport in Delhi at 7:26 am.

On their arrival, the passengers, mostly students were screened by doctors at the airport for possible infection. Even after the initial screening, the evacuees will be put under quarantine at a facility in Manesar which is managed by Armed Forces Medical Services and at Chhawla which is managed by ITBP.

This is because all those who are infected by the virus don't necessarily show the symptoms immediately. The Union Health Ministry had said on Friday that the government has made adequate quarantine camps.

The Boeing 747, a double-decker, one of the largest in Air Indias fleet, had taken off from Mumbai and stooped in Delhi, from where preventives like masks and medical kits were loaded. Doctors and paramedical staff were also on board to examine the Indian citizens before they were allowed to board the flight.

The departure of the flight was delayed from Wuhan airport as immigration and Chinese authorities did not allow six Indians on board after they reported high temperatures during screening.

"Six passengers were offloaded as they had high temperatures," a passenger told ANI.

India thanked China for facilitating the special flight to evacuate its citizens from Wuhan. An Air India flight carrying 324 Indian nationals from the coronavirus hit Hubei Province of China took off from Wuhan in the early hours of Feb 1. Majority of the passengers were Indian students. We sincerely thank the Chinese government for facilitating this flight, the Indian embassy tweeted.

According to the Indian Embassy in Beijing, there will be another flight to evacuate the remaining Indian nationals. "We look forward to operating another flight to evacuate remaining Indian nationals, who have consented to leave Hubei Province for the time being," the EOI Beijing announced on its official Twitter handle.

The second special flight will depart at 12.50 pm Saturday for Wuhan from Delhi. It will have a different set of crew, but the same team of doctors and paramedical staff.

Chinese health officials said on Saturday at least 259 people have died and nearly are 11,800 infected with the novel coronavirus and that the hardest-hit central Chinese province of Hubei reported 45 new fatalities until Friday midnight. The World Health Organization (WHO) on Friday declared the outbreak as an international public health emergency.
She's due to give birth to her third child with husband Gary Clark Jr. in a matter of weeks.

And on Saturday, Nicole Trunfio flaunted her burgeoning baby bump as she posed in the snow ahead of her due date.

Taking to Instagram, the 33-year-old supermodel shared a series of photos, wearing a tight brown jumpsuit and cradling her bump.

Oh, baby! Heavily pregnant Nicole Trunfio (pictured) showed off her burgeoning bump in a tight jumpsuit as she posed in the snow on Saturday

The pregnant model looked out into the distance while she placed her hands on her stomach.

She accessorised her outfit with a pair of brown boots and wore a grey coat as well as a matching coloured beret.

Nicole styled her brunette locks out and appeared to be wearing a neutral palette of makeup.

Bumping along nicely! Nicole took to Instagram to share a series of snaps while wearing a tight brown jumpsuit and cradling her bump

Nicole first announced that she's expecting her third child in an interview with Gary, 35, published in the October issue of Elle Australia magazine.

The model, who appeared on the publication's cover, spoke to her husband about how she 'maintains her identity', before making the surprise revelation.

'I don't know if we're saying this, but I'm also 12 weeks pregnant right now, so I'm committed to getting massages once every two weeks and I've never done that during a pregnancy.'

Growing: Nicole first announced that she's expecting her third child in an interview with her husband Gary Clark Jr. (pictured) published in the October issue of Elle Australia magazine

'That's why I can't sleep and I'm uncomfortable and I miss you and I'm emotional,' she added.

The Western Australian-born beauty went on to gush about her family and how she never takes time spent with them for granted.

She also said that nurturing is her 'highest form of self-care.'

Nicole and Gary, who have been married for three years, also share son Zion, four, and daughter Gia, 21 months.
New Delhi, Feb 1 : As part of efforts to attract investment in the power sector and make its operations viable, the Budget 2020-21 on Saturday extended the benefit of lower corporate tax rate of 15 per cent to generating units by qualifying their activity as manufacturing.

Last year, Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharam provided for a new corporate tax rate of 15 per cent for new manufacturing entities. The concessional rate was, however, not extended to the power sector as its activity was not considered as manufacturing.

Presenting the budget proposals for FY21, Sithraman said that the 15 per cent tax rate would now be applicable to new domestic companies that are engaged in the generation of electricity subject to the condition that they start generating electricity by March 31, 2023.

"Numerous court judgments have made it clear that electric energy has all trapping of an article or goods. The process of its generation is also akin to manufacture or production of an article or thing. In view of this, the broad understanding is that new power projects should also get the same treatment as it is given to other manufacturing units," said a government source earlier.

Industry chambers had also pushed for the changes which they felt would be big incentive for the corporate sector to invest in greenfield power projects. Absence of demand and poor financial ability of state run discoms have created distress like situation in the power sector with several plants coming under stress.

With incentive available to the sector by way of tax holiday also getting over and the government not inclined shift back of the earlier system of tax holidays, relief by way of lower corporate tax could help companies looking at making fresh investment in the sector.

A lower 15 per cent duty would be big relief to promoters of power projects as they are liable to pay 25 per cent corporate tax now. Companies such an Adani, Tata, Vedanta, and JSW Energy are all looking to expand their footprint in the power sector but are waiting for the right climate to commit fresh investment. Tax relief apart from assurance of fuel is expected to give a push to fresh investments.
And now, all eyes turn to Iowa.

O.K., we dont really need to say that. Feels as if all eyes have been on Iowa forever. Right now, the little state in the middle of the country has more political punch than the United States Senate. Plus no Mitch McConnell. What more can you ask?

The quadrennial ritual known as the Iowa caucuses is here. On Monday, Democratic voters will march off to a local gym or school auditorium or hotel ballroom and do their thing. When the results are announced, one or two candidates will be propelled into semiofficial front-runner status. One or two others will survive to trudge again through New Hampshire.

Eight or nine will be gone for good. They wont all admit it, of course. But well know.

Weve now gotten to the point, which comes in almost every story about the Iowa caucuses, when its time to complain about the system that gives one smallish, rather homogeneous state so much political clout. Most of us live in non-first places where the candidates are spotted mainly at fund-raising events. But you get the impression a lot of people in Cedar Rapids not only get to shake hands with all their favorites; they expect a positive response when they invite them over for dinner.

How did Iowa get all this power? It started back in the 1970s, when the Democratic candidate-picking system moved from the party leaders to the regular voters. Iowa wound up going first and really enjoyed the attention. Its going to keep that spot even if it has to start holding the caucuses in August. We take this very seriously, said Troy Price, the state Democratic Party chairman, in a phone interview.
Park Guell, Barcelona, Spain. Ihor_Tailwind | iStock | Getty Images

When Petra Ahmann decided to uproot her life in New York and move to Barcelona, she was motivated by the same reason as many other expatriates. She fell in love with the city. "I felt like I could live here," Ahmann said. An initial trip to Barcelona with her best friend five years ago led to multiple return visits. And in 2017, she took the plunge, putting down a deposit on an apartment through a property developer. The unit would take about a year to be finished, which would give Ahmann, now 33 years old, plenty of time to prepare. But the following January, she received an email from the developer that surprised her. She was informed to disregard a recent article in the press. "The building is still underway. Everything is going great," Ahmann recalled it saying. More from Personal Finance:

Meghan and Harry are still beholden to the IRS for taxes

What the U.S. national debt means for your money

Save $1,000 without sacrificing anything you really love Upon further investigation, Ahmann discovered the developer was allegedly illegally evicting residents in order to get access to the property. What's more, construction was halted due to multiple violations of work permits. "I didn't realize all that when I bought it," Ahmann said. "I wouldn't have bought it if I had known." Sadly, the contract Ahmann signed proved difficult to rescind. Rather than return her deposit and let her out of the deal, the developer offered her a unit in a different building. Her lawyer advised her to take it, even though the second apartment came with a higher price tag. That meant she would have to increase her deposit.

The new property had problems as well. Namely, the apartment was too small. Though it was legally required to be at least 40 square meters (about 430 square feet), it was more like 37 (398 square feet). Not only did that not match Ahmann's contract, it also was in violation of city rules. Now, the company alleges Ahmann is breaching the contract for failure to close on the apartment. Meanwhile, she estimates she has put in about $145,000, plus $10,000 in legal fees. The apartment's total price was 380,000 euros, plus taxes. "I'm in a situation with this developer where I don't know if and when I'm going to get my money back," Ahmann said. Norvet, the property developer, said in an email that Ahmann had breached the sales and purchase agreement and that it was done according to Spanish law.

Beware the risks

Many Americans have been grabbed by the lure of living in another country. About 9 million U.S. citizens are living abroad, according to most recent estimates from the State Department. When it comes to top destinations for expats, Spain is high on the list, according to a recent expat survey by HSBC. The country came in fourth, behind Switzerland, Singapore and Canada. Top reasons for moving there including quality of life, climate and retirement, according to the firm's research. Notably, HSBC's research found that 70% of expats in Spain own property there. As Ahmann's experience shows, it pays to be cautious when entering into a property agreement to buy residential real estate. "Most of the transactions are correct and legal," said Joaquin Cabrera Busquets, a lawyer at Cabrera Il Puigvert in Barcelona. "When things happen, they happen everywhere."

A whole variety of things can go wrong, from the roof to the structure to tenant rights. Carl-Christian Thier attorney at Urban Thier Federer P.A.

Cabrera worked with another U.S. citizen in a similar situation, who found out the property was larger than legally allowed after she had already signed an agreement to buy it. Ultimately, the client was able to recover the money she put down, plus punitive damages. Americans need to exercise even more caution than usual when purchasing property overseas, especially because rules can vary drastically from country to country. "A whole variety of things can go wrong, from the roof to the structure to tenant rights," said Carl-Christian Thier, an attorney and founding shareholder at law firm Urban Thier Federer P.A.

For example, it's possible that liens or zoning restrictions could mean that a buyer can't use the property the way they intended to, he said. If a location has strong tenant protections in place, it's possible that someone could buy a property that's currently rented and then find it impossible to evict existing residents, Thier said. Owners could also be held to other obligations, such as being forced to rent a property out if the local government decides there's a shortage of apartments. "The number of issues and problems that can come up are almost unlimited," Thier said.

Get professional help

Consequently, buyers should work with a lawyer who speaks both their own language and the language that is spoken where the purchase is happening, he said. American consulates in each country can provide lists of attorneys who speak English and are available to help. One source of advice to be wary of: real estate agents or brokers. Many buyers make the mistake of thinking those professionals are their advocates, Thier said, but instead get bad or incompetent advice. It's also a good idea to loop in other professionals. In some countries, professionals called notars can check to see if there are liabilities or liens attached to a property. An architect can help spot any deficiencies the property has and help with urban planning issues, according to Cabrera.

Sagrada Familia church in Barcelona, Spain. Orbon Alija

Another invaluable source: local residents. "Talk to neighbors," Cabrera said. That can help alert buyers to red flags with the property or perhaps undesirable situations, such as tourist rentals. It's also important to take a look at comparable sales to gauge whether the price is fair, said Philip White, president and CEO of Sotheby's International Realty. Make sure you are able to sell the property, if your prospective move doesn't turn out the way you thought, White said. Also be sure you understand the tax implications of your purchase, he advised. Each country has a different tax treaty, and your income could be taxed in the U.S. and the other country as well.

Lessons learned

With so many potential complications, buying international property can lead to unexpected lessons. For Ahmann, who is still living in Barcelona, that has definitely been the case. Now, she just recently closed on an apartment that she has been living in since March of last year. The apartment was sold by the owner. It is located in an older part of the city, and has already been renovated. What's more, the price was lower than the unit she originally bought  370,000 euros. And the size is much bigger  65 square meters (about 700 square feet). But while she was able to put down a 30% deposit on the new apartment, she could have put down even more had she not still had money still tied up in the first property. And she would not have lost all the money she ended up paying in rent instead of a mortgage.
Municipal corporations financial hardship is far from over with the Union Budget again failing to allocate it funds as per the recommendations of the fourth Delhi Finance Commission.

While the MC had hoped for a 1,073-crore grant from the Centre, calculated on the basis of the Delhi Finance Commissions report, it has been allocated just 425 crore  50 crore more than the 375 crore grant in 2019-20.

Although, the UT administration is yet to officially declare the MCs share (grant-in-aid) in the total budget for the city (5,138 crore), a rough estimate reveals that the civic body will not get more than 425 crore.

MC commissioner KK Yadav said while more clarity was needed on the total share for Chandigarh MC in the new budget, it was clear that the corporation did not get its due share as per Delhi Finance Commissions recommendations.

We will now have to keep our expenditure well within whatever is available for the next year, he said.

Last year, the Centre released just 375 crore against the 1,024 crore that MC had expected. This resulted in MCs failure to recarpet roads on time. Several other reforms, such as creation of extra water storage, could also not be taken up. Then contractual staff held multiple protests due to delayed salaries.

NO BIG-TICKET REFORM POSSIBLE

MC top brass confirmed that with the latest 425-crore grant, big-ticket reforms were not possible in the next fiscal as well.

This, despite the fact that the city has been struggling with poor water storage capacity, defunct sewerage and water supply lines, poor waste management infrastructure and broken roads, which require massive investment for reforms.

A senior official dealing with MCs accounts said taking internal resources into account, MC will not have more than 700-725 crore for the next fiscal.

With these funds, we can, at best, ensure completion of road works and other repairs. There is no scope to start big projects for which we will again have to rely on special grant from the UT administration, he said.

MCS FEB 7 BUDGET MEETING MERE FORMALITY

The latest announcement has reduced MCs budget meeting on February 7 to a mere formality.

It had prepared a 1,350-crore budget outlay for 2020-21 based on the projection that it will get 1,073 crore from the Centre, while the remaining will come from its internal resources.

In the budget draft, it had kept aside 450 crore for development works, which now appear next to impossible.

Even as mayor Raj Bala Malik said she will do her best to get maximum funds for MC, Congress leader of opposition Devinder Singh Babla slammed the BJP-ruled MC, saying that it was a shame for the party that it was in power in Delhi and in Chandigarh, yet they could not manage adequate funds for the citys development.

The BJP has no right to remain in power now, he said.

UTS 150-CR BAILOUT PACKAGE

In November last year, UT had announced a 150-crore financial package for MC, based on its anticipation of additional funds from Centre in the new Union budget. MC officials confirmed that now the civic body will not get more than 70-75 crore after the revised estimates got nod in the Parliament on Friday.

SHARE THIS ARTICLE ON
Among other changes, Ernest Cato was named deputy chief of Area 4, one of the most violent parts of the city that covers the Ogden, Austin and Harrison Districts on the West Side. The 29-year department veteran most recently served as a deputy chief overseeing patrol operations in nine districts that covered the North, Northwest and West sides. He also once served as the commander of the Austin District.
Iranian filmmakers and film industry stars attending at an award ceremony in Tehran have expressed their sympathy with the family members of those killed by security forces during the November protests and the victims of the Ukrainian airliner downed by IRGC missiles on January 8.

Taking part in the annual Iranian Film Critics Award ceremony on January 30, Iranian filmmaker Homayoun Ghanizadeh defied the Islamic republic authorities and called on Iranian artists not to remain silent in the face of what he described as "the massacres of 2019 and 2020."

"Silence in the face of a catastrophe such as what happened in November looks ugly. Artists should not leave the people alone" when they are facing ordeals, said the filmmaker.

He dedicated his award to Pouya Bakhtiari, a young engineer who was killed by security forces during the protests. He said Bakhtiari was "killed for his homeland." He warned the artists: "These hard times will pass, and we will remain face to face with the people."

Ghanizadeh won the award for "creativity and talent" at the 13th Iranian Film Critics Award ceremony Thursday evening. The ceremony which was initially planned for November was postponed to January 30 to show respect for those who lost their lives in November.

Hoping for a better future for all Iranians, Mahnaz Afshar, an Iranian actress who left Iran for Europe last year due to government pressure, assured Ghanizadeh in a tweet that "We share our fellow compatriots' pain and sorrow."

Other award-winning artists including prominent actors Hamed Behdad and Navid Mohammadzadeh also spoke at the ceremony voicing their protest against the unfair treatment of citizens during recent events.

Hamed Behdad read out a text message from his mother who had called on him not to celebrate his birthday, reminding him that "many young men and women took to the streets risking their lives to protest against rising prices and economic hardships."

Navid Mohammadzadeh said that "the nation has been through so many ordeals during recent months that we don't know how to describe these sad events."

Videos of the artists talking about those who died as a result of the violent crackdown on protests or as a result of the downing of a passenger airplane were widely circulated on social media.

Up to 1,500 Iranians were killed by security forces during the November protests and as many as 8,600 were arrested, and 176 lost their lives when IRGC mistakenly two anti-aircraft missiles on a civilian airliner as it took off from Tehrans international airport.

The Islamic Republic has still not declared the precise number of those killed during the violent crackdown. Nor has it apologized for killing innocent passengers or named those responsible for the attack the government simply calls "human error," although it acknowledged three days after the attack that an IRGC unit was responsible, but never explained why a civilian aircraft was allowed to fly while a missile attack against American military bases was going on and air defense units anticipated retaliatory attacks by the United States' forces.

During the past week, as the date for Fajr Festival, a major government-organized artistic event marking the anniversary of the 1979 Islamic revolution, approaches members of the public as well as some artists have been reminding filmmakers, stage performers and musicians to boycott the event.

The Fajr Film Festival is the highlight of the Fajr Festivals which showcases the best of Iranian cinema every year at this time. Dozens of film, theater and music artists have said they won't present their works at the festival, but the government has been exerting pressure on individual artists to deny boycott announcements.
Letter, parcels and, crucially, thousands of packages of surgical masks that have piled up over the past week will soon be back on the move with the resumption of limited postal services on Monday.

As thousands of Hongkongers queued up across the city on Saturday in hopes of scoring free masks amid an ongoing shortage, officials confirmed post offices will be reopening, albeit with a truncated delivery schedule and shortened hours.

Post offices will be open between 11am and 3pm on weekdays, and between 9.30am and 1pm on Saturday, something likely to create longer queues and waiting times at service counters, it was announced.

Mail will be delivered and collected from posting boxes on alternate days, while the post offices Speedpost service, which resumed on Wednesday, will continue a Monday through Saturday schedule.

General mail delivery and post office counter services were suspended following the Lunar New Year holiday amid growing worries over the coronavirus outbreak.

Hundreds of people queue up for masks outside a store in Causeway Bay on February 1. Photo: Edward Wong

Since service was suspended, more than 18,000 parcels and pieces of mail from the Speedpost service alone have accumulated at Hong Kongs air mail centre, according to Union of Hong Kong Post Office Employees chairman Ip Kam-fu. About 5,600 of those packages were believed to contain face masks based on customs declarations, he said.

Because postal services in many other countries including Japan and Korea operated normally throughout the Lunar New Year holiday, although it was a public holiday in Hong Kong without delivery services, many inbound Speedpost mails and parcels have been backlogged at the air mail centre for days, he said.

He said postal staff at the air mail centre and Speedpost delivery centres had been identifying parcels containing masks to give them priority.

Hongkong Post said in a statement on Saturday night that about 3,000 of the letters and parcels at the air mail centre contained masks, adding that extra staff would be deployed to work longer hours on Sunday to handle them. It predicted the deliveries could be completed by Monday.

Story continues

Many city residents thanked the postmen for putting priority on delivering face masks.

Thank you postmen uncles for your hard work, city resident Alice Lee wrote on Facebook. Another resident, Ricky Lee, wrote: Hong Kong add oil! Good job! Take care.

Thousands of Hong Kong residents in search of surgical masks, meanwhile, queued up on Saturday as businesses and politicians handed out free ones amid an ongoing shortage.

The queues, an increasingly common sight, came a day after the city confirmed its 13th infection.

EGL Tours, a local travel agency, began distributing 4,000 masks at 2pm in Tsim Sha Tsui after giving out 1,800 the day before. It had 20,000 masks in total.

Members of the citys largest pro-establishment party give out free masks on Kings Road in Quarry Bay on February 1. Photo: Robert Ng

On its Facebook page, it said 800 people could get five masks each, and those with Hong Kong ID cards would be prioritised. About 600 people were already waiting at 1.30pm, with some having arrived two hours earlier.

On Thursday, the government said more than 32 million masks would be available for public use. But residents in the city of 7.52 million have struggled to get their hands on protective gear in recent weeks.

The World Health Organisation declared a global public health emergency on Thursday over the virus spread, with more than 11,940 people infected worldwide. Most of the cases were reported in mainland China, the centre of the outbreak, and the death toll there now stands at more than 250.

To help ease the mask shortage, health care firm Watsons said it would distribute some of its stock to elderly people served by YWCA of Hong Kong.

Although it cant fulfil the needs of all people, we hope to survive the hard time with society, it said on Friday.

Watsons, one of the largest health care and beauty care chains in Asia, is part of tycoon Li Ka-shings business empire.

Even at a price, the appearance of masks can draw a crowd.

On Saturday, online retailer Little Monster and a stationery shop in Fo Tan teamed up to put about 1,000 sets of masks on sale for those holding Hong Kong ID cards.

One woman in the lengthy queue said: If there are no goods on sales, then I will just go out without a mask. I have no choice. So when I heard about [the masks being available], I came out to buy even though I was at work.

Meanwhile, the Democratic Alliance for the Betterment and Progress of Hong Kong, the citys largest pro-establishment party, on Saturday gave away 50,000 masks across the city.

It urged city officials to distribute masks from the governments non-urgent stock to residents immediately, and to share market information on the protective gear with the public.

Party lawmaker Wilson Or Chong-shing, who was in Choi Hung, said a 500-metre queue stretched from Ngau Chi Wan Market to the vicinity of Hammer Hill Road Swimming Pool.

Amid the shortages, not everyone has been motivated by charity. Police said on Saturday they had arrested one man and one woman the day before on suspicion of obtaining property by deception.

The duo is being investigated over 29 cases in which the victims, desperate for masks, deposited money into Hong Kong bank accounts only to receive nothing in return. The amounts allegedly scammed range from HK$200 to as much as HK$50,000, depending on the amount of masks ordered.

This article Coronavirus: Hong Kong post offices to reopen with shortened working hours, thousands of parcels with masks backed up, union says first appeared on South China Morning Post

For the latest news from the South China Morning Post download our mobile app. Copyright 2020.
Police in Victoria would have powers to tear down Nazi flags and jail extremists caught flying the hate symbol under new laws to be pushed in State Parliament by the Victorian Liberals within weeks.

The party says a rising tide of religious and racial hatred and targeted attacks on minorities in Victoria need a stronger legal response and will demand laws carrying up to six months behind bars for racists who display the Nazi standard or other hate material.

Opposition police spokesman David Southwick said the laws would send a strong message that the Victorian community would not tolerate hate.

Mr Southwick will move an amendment in Parliament to the states main piece of anti-hate speech legislation, the Racial and Religious Tolerance Act, to include a clear ban on the public display of the swastika and other Nazi symbols.
In her budget speech, Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman said that the Centre's "Beti Bachao Beto Padhao" scheme has yielded tremendous results.

She said that gross enrollment ratio of girls at all levels of education across the country is higher than that for boys.

Speaking of the women and children-centric measures under the 'Caring Society' head of her budget, FM Sitharaman cited data on gross enrollment ratio of boys and girls at the elementary, secondary and higher secondary levels.

At the elementary level, the finance minister said that gross enrollment ratio for girls stood at 94.32 percent. Meanwhile, at the secondary level, enrollment ratio for girls was at 81.32 percent as against 78 percent for boys at the same level.

At the higher secondary level, ratio of enrollment for girls was 59.70 percent as opposed to 57.54 percent for boys.

She also announced that Rs 28,600 crore have been allocated for women-centric programmes in FY21 under the current budget.

Beti Bachao Beti Padhao was launched by Prime Minister Narendra Modi on January 22, 2015 at Panipat, Haryana. The scheme aims at addressing the declining child sex ratio and related issues of women empowerment over a life-cycle continuum. It is a tri-ministerial effort of the Ministries of Women and Child Development, Health and Family Welfare and Human Resource Development.
Vietnamese Ambassador to the Czech Republic Ho Minh Tuan highlighted milestones in Vietnam  Czech Republic ties during an interview recently granted to the Vietnam News Agency, on the occasion of the 70th anniversary of diplomatic ties (February 2).

Vietnamese Ambassador to the Czech Republic Ho Minh Tuan (L) speaks at a banquet marking the 74th anniversary of Vietnam's National Day

Tuan said bilateral relations have been growing in various areas over the past seven decades. A large number of Vietnamese citizens are living and working in the Czech Republic. About 200,000 Vietnamese people could speak Czech language.

In the recent five years, visits by the two countries leaders have been maintained, notably those made by President Truong Tan Sang in 2015, National Assembly Chairwoman Nguyen Thi Kim Ngan in 2017 and Prime Minister Nguyen Xuan Phuc in April 2019. Czech President Milos Zeman also visited Vietnam in 2017, not to mention the regular exchange of visits at ministerial and provincial officials.

However, economic and trade ties have not met expectations, with two-way trade nearing 1.2 billion USD last year, nearly 1 billion USD of which was Vietnams exports to the country. The European country invested in about 35 projects worth 100 million USD in Vietnam.

As the two countries are preparing for the 70th anniversary of diplomatic ties, they are determined to lift economic, trade, tourism, national defence-education ties to a greater height.

On the political front, both sides will continue facilitating visits by leaders and hope for a visit by the Czech Prime Minister to Vietnam this year. Ambassador Tuan said if realized, the visit is expected to bolster bilateral ties in various areas, particularly in economy.

Leaders of the parliament of the Czech Republic and several ministers also plan to visit Vietnam this year.

On Vietnams part, the ministers of culture, transport, national defence, public security and local leaders will also pay visits to the European country.

Tuan informed that the seventh meeting of the Vietnam  Czech Republic Inter-Governmental Economic Commission will be held in Prague this year, during which they will decide on specific projects to boost economic links. The two sides will also hold forums and seminars to call for investment and promote trade and tourism ties.

In culture, the Vietnamese side will organise the Vietnam Culture Week and send art troupes to perform in localities in the Czech Republic.

Also this year, Vietnams Bamboo Airways is scheduled to launch a direct air route linking Hanoi and Prague at the end of the first quarter or in the beginning of the second quarter, contributing to stepping up collaboration in trade, investment and tourism.

Leaders of the Czech Republic localities pledged to offer funding to Vietnamese residents living there and work with the Vietnamese embassy to hold Vietnam Day events to introduce Vietnamese culture to international friends./.VNA
The aroma of chorizo and tacos filled the air Saturday morning at the fourth annual Bexar County Rodeo Breakfast, the South Side-centric event held just ahead of the San Antonio Stock Show & Rodeo this week.

Thousands gathered  many in cowboy hats and boots  to chow down on some of the 13,000 breakfast tacos that volunteers handed out.

The sense of community was strong as Tejano tunes and country songs boomed from speakers, smoke from the cooking meat coming off grills as people strolled through the event along Pleasanton.

The rodeo breakfast comes a week after the early-morning Cowboy Breakfast, a similar event meant to tee off rodeo season in San Antonio. But Sergio Rodriguez, the Bexar County commissioner for the South Side, who first organized the event, said it was designed to bring some of the rodeo spirit from other parts of the city to the South Side neighborhood.

He and others at the event said attendance this year was up from last year, and Rodriguez said he hopes the event becomes an annual tradition for years to come.

If you look at the crowd, we may have to go to Texas A&M, Rodriguez said, referring to the universitys San Antonio campus and future rodeo breakfast events. I didnt expect this many people.

In addition to lengthy lines for food  the longest was for barbacoa tacos and Big Red soda  the rodeo breakfast also had a petting zoo for locals to interact with an alpaca, a large turtle, a porcupine and other animals.

Most of the people there Saturday were South Side natives looking to participate in the rodeo festivities.

A contest for the best Western outfits saw one couple, who made their own dazzling cowboy clothes, win.

Were really inspired by Roy Rogers and Dale Evans, super inspired by the 50s vintage Western looks, said Kitty Taylor, who dressed up alongside her husband, Caito. The couple wore decorated green and red Western jumpsuit outfits. We love to dress up.

Another winner was John Draeger, who wore a special red Power Ranger-themed sombrero and poncho  a last minute decision for him, he said.

At first, I wasnt going to wear this, and then my wife was like, No, you should do it. Why not? Draeger said. It worked out. I didnt expect to win at all.

The Stock Show & Rodeo begins Thursday and runs through Feb. 23. Visit sarodeo.com to learn more about rodeo events.

diego.mendoza-moyers@express-news.net
220 of the 324 Indians evacuated from the coronavirus-hit Chinese city of Wuhan were sent to the Army quarantine facility at Manesar on Saturday, while the remaining 104 were shifted to Indo-Tibetan Border Police-managed Chhawla Camp in the capital for medical observation, the Health Ministry said.

The 324 evacuees -- including 3 minors and 211 students -- had arrived in India on Saturday morning on Air India's Boeing 747 Jumbo aircraft. The passengers will be kept in isolation at the quarantine facilities for 14 days in the said locations.

All the evacuees had gone through the necessary screening at the Indira Gandhi International Airport upon arrival.

The second Air India special flight will depart to Wuhan on Saturday afternoon for the evacuation of Indians, carrier's spokesperson Dhananjay Kumar said.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
China is fully capable of ensuring daily necessities supply, and laying a solid foundation for winning the battle against the novel coronavirus epidemic, according to the country's top economic planner Friday.

The supply of grain, edible oil, vegetables and other everyday necessities in both Wuhan, the epicenter of the epidemic, and elsewhere across China is adequate to meet the normal demand of the public, said Zhao Chenxin, deputy secretary general of the National Development and Reform Commission (NDRC).

With grain and oil inventories at historic highs and a well-run vegetable reserve mechanism, the country has adequate stockpiles of everyday necessities, Zhao said, adding Chinese families need not hoard life essentials.

Stockpiled vegetables, for instance, would be timely delivered if supply gap appeared in end markets such as supermarkets or wet markets in communities.

At the request of the NDRC, some leading companies have resumed the production of some much-needed daily necessities during the Spring Festival holiday.

A major problem the NDRC must tackle, however, is to ensure sustainable and reliable delivery of daily necessities while preventing the further spread of the virus.

The NDRC has activated an emergency mechanism to track price changes on a daily basis, and will take targeted measures to meet consumers' demand in different cities and forcefully crack down on price rigging and price inflating to maintain market order, the official said.
An apparent suicide note handwritten by suspected wife killer Fotis Dulos before he gassed himself in his garage insists he is innocent and apologizes to his new girlfriend for 'not continuing the fight'.

'If it takes my head to end this, so be it,' says the letter obtained by DailyMail.com and believed to be Dulos' suicide note.

The note, neatly written in blue ink on lined paper, is dated January 28 - the day Dulos attempted to take his own life by carbon monoxide poisoning while on bail over the murder of his wife Jennifer.

Jennifer disappeared on May 24 after dropping their children off at school, in the midst of an ugly divorce and custody battle over their five children.

Her car was found abandoned near to her home but her body has never been found.

Police believe Dulos murdered Jennifer and then disposed of evidence with the help of then-girlfriend Michelle Troconis.

In the suicide note, the suspected murderer proclaims his innocence and the innocence of alleged accomplice Troconis, and his civil attorney Kent Mawhinney.

The suicide note obtained by DailyMail.com and believed to be that of Fotis Dulos

It begins: 'All, If you are reading this I am no more.

'I refuse to spend even an hour more in jail for something I had NOTHING to do with. Enough is enough.

'If it takes my head to end this, so be it.

'I want it to be known that Michelle Troconis had nothing to do with Jennifer's disappearance.

'And neither did Kent Mawhinney. I ask the State to let them free of any such accusations.'

Dulos goes on: 'I also ask the State to stop harassing my friends, Andreas Toutziaridis, and Anna Curry. They are honorable people.'

Toutziaridis is mentioned in Dulos' arrest warrant as a 'childhood friend of Dulos who lives in Greece' and a person central to the investigation.

Dulos apologizes to his new girlfriend Anna Curry (pictured) for 'not continuing the fight' in the note which was found in the car after he tried to kill himself

Michelle Troconis (left), Fotis' live-in girlfriend at the time of Jennifer's disappearance, and Kent Mawhinney, Dulos' civil attorney (right), are charged with conspiracy to murder for their alleged roles in plotting and covering up Jennifer's death. In his suicide note, Dulos proclaims the innocence of his alleged accomplices Troconis and Mawhinney

The police record states that Dulos received an incoming call to his cellphone at 8.24am from Toutziaridis on May 24 - the day Jennifer went missing.

Curry was Dulos' new girlfriend who had fronted thousands of dollars in cash in order for him to make bond and who was with him the morning he attempted suicide, DailyMail.com revealed Thursday.

Dulos also makes an apology to Curry at the end of the note.

Fotis Dulos' 'suicide note' in full All, If you are reading this I am no more. I refuse to spend even an hour more in jail for something I had NOTHING to do with. Enough is enough. If it takes my head to end this, so be it. I want it to be known that Michelle Troconis had nothing to do with Jennifer's disappearance. And neither did Kent Mawhinney. I ask the State to let them free of any such accusations. I also ask the State to stop harassing my friends, Andreas Toutziaridis, and Anna Curry. They are honorable people. Please let my children know that I love them, I would do anything to be with them, but unfortunately we all have our limits. The State will not rest until I rot in jail. My attorney can explain what happened with the bags on Albany Avenue. Everything else is a story fabricated by the Law Enforcement. I want to thank all my family and friends that stood by me this difficult time. Above all Anna Curry. I am sorry for letting you down and not continuing the fight. Fotis. Advertisement

The note continues to proclaim Dulos' innocence for the murder of Jennifer (above)

Dulos' attorneys Norm Pattis (right) responded to DailyMail.com's request for him to verify the contents of the suicide note by saying Dulos had always insisted ex-girlfriend Troconis was innocent

Dulos also speaks of his five children who he shared with his wife Jennifer in the note.

He writes: 'Please let my children know that I love them, I would do anything to be with them, but unfortunately we all have our limits.'

The children, aged 8 to 13, live with Gloria Farber, Jennifer's mother, who was given full custody after she filed a motion the same day Dulos was arrested for evidence tampering and hindering prosecution in relation to Jennifer's disappearance.

She continues to care for them in her Upper East Side apartment on Fifth Avenue.

Dulos' note goes on to accuse the state of fabricating the 'story' of his guilt and alleges that his lawyers could explain 'what happened with the bags on Albany Avenue'.

'The State will not rest until I rot in jail. My attorney can explain what happened with the bags on Albany Avenue,' he writes.

'Everything else is a story fabricated by the Law Enforcement.'

Fotis was found in his car inside his garage. The exhaust pipe he used to try to kill himself is shown attached to his vehicle

Emergency workers are shown trying to revive Fotis Dulos at his home in Farmington, Connecticut, on Tuesday

Dulos appears to be referring to the video surveillance which shows a man and woman matching his and Troconis' descriptions dropping items in the trash along Albany Avenue in Hartford on the evening of May 24.

Jennifer's blood was found on the items later recovered by police.

A homeless man also allegedly found a 'hunting knife' in a trash can in Albany Avenue that investigators believe could have been the dumped murder weapon.

Dulos closes off the suicide note thanking his family and friends 'above all' his new girlfriend Curry.

Dulos new girlfriend Anna Curry (above) had paid 147,000 in cash in order for him to make bond

He wrote: 'I want to thank all my family and friends that stood by me this difficult time.

'Above all Anna Curry. I am sorry for letting you down and not continuing the fight. Fotis.'

Dulos' attorney Norm Pattis responded to DailyMail.com's request for him to verify the contents of the suicide note by saying Dulos had always insisted ex-girlfriend Troconis was innocent.

'Mr. Dulos insisted from day one that Ms. Troconis was not involved and wanted a joint defense agreement with her. He always spoke of her with the utmost respect,' said Pattis.

Dulos' new girlfriend features heavily in his last known message.

Documents obtained by DailyMail.com Thursday found that Curry, 42, put up $147,000 in cash and said she would pay an additional $272,000 to secure the $6million bond that Dulos posted after he was charged with Jennifer's murder.

The brunette bears a striking resemblance to Dulos' missing wife Jennifer (left) and mistress Michelle Troconis (right) who has also been charged in the disappearance

Curry was seen at Dulos' home on Tuesday in the hours before he was due to attend a hearing at Stamford Superior Court where he feared his bond would be revoked and he would be jailed.

She left Dulos' home around 10.30am to run errands and returned to find police officers fighting to revive him on the driveway, according to sources.

Sources confirmed that Curry was in a romantic relationship with him.

She bears a striking resemblance to Dulos' missing wife Jennifer and his ex-girlfriend Troconis, who has been charged with conspiracy to commit murder.

A neighbor previously told DailyMail.com: 'A young woman has been at Fotis' house several times over the past few months. They've been out jogging together. She's been driving one of his cars.'

The Hartford Courant first reported that Curry wrote two checks for a total of $147,000 on January 9, according to public records, in order to pay the bail bondsman his fee on the $6million bond. Dulos contributed a check for $1,000.

The conditions of Dulos' $6million bond meant putting up 7 per cent of that amount or $420,000 in cash, to prevent him awaiting trial in jail.

TIMELINE OF THE FOTIS DULOS CASE 2004: Fotis Dulos and Jennifer Farber get married. It is his second marriage In the same year, her father Hilliard starts loaning him money for his property business, Fore Group 2015: Fotis and Michelle Troconis start taking trips he paid for which he claimed were for business. They later start an affair January 2017: Hilliard Farber dies March 2017: Gloria Farber takes over his estate June 2017: Jennifer files for divorce, saying she is afraid of her husband February 2018: Gloria Farber sues Fotis Dulos for unpaid loans May 24 2019: Jennifer vanishes after dropping off her five children at school June 2019: Fotis and Michelle Troconis are arrested for evidence tampering Gloria Farber files an order for custody of the children August 2019: Troconis 'turns' on Dulos in police interviews, admits she lied when she said she had an alibi for him September 2019: Fotis is arrested again for evidence tampering January 2020: Dulos and Troconis are charged with murder January 28: Dulos is found unresponsive at his Farmington home January 29: Dulos' family fly in to say their goodbyes as sources say he 'is completely reliant on life support' Police conduct a new search of Dulos' home January 30: Dulos dies at 5.32p.m. at Jacobi Medical Center in the Bronx, New York, surrounded by family, friends and his legal team His attorney files a motion to continue with the murder trial after his death as Dulos' family are 'adamant that his name be cleared' Advertisement

According to the filing, Curry also agreed to pay the balance of just over $272,000 in 15 installments until April 2021 to secure the $6million bond.

In the documents, seen by DailyMail.com, Dulos listed Curry as his 'best friend'.

On Curry, Dulos' lawyer Norm Pattis said in an earlier statement: 'It is my understanding and belief these were old friends who developed a friendship years ago at work and out of loyalty to that friendship she has assisted Mr. Dulos. We should all be lucky enough to have such a loyal friend.'

He declined to elaborate on the nature of Dulos and Curry's relationship.

Curry lives in Charlotte, North Carolina, and works in financial services.

She worked at Capgemini, a consulting firm in New York, as a senior consultant in wealth management strategy for four years from 1999 until 2003, according to her LinkedIn.

Dulos overlapped with her time at the company when he was a manager at Capgemini for seven years from 1997 until 2004.

Dulos died on Thursday, two days after a suicide attempt at his home while on bail accused of murdering his estranged wife Jennifer.

Dulos was due at court for a bail bond hearing on midday Tuesday, after the company which insured his $6million bond and got him out of jail reneged on it over doubts around the equity of the real estate assets he put up as security.

Sources told DailyMail.com Dulos was 'losing his mind' at the prospect of having to go back into custody.

A bondsman who had been working with Dulos since his first two arrests revealed he was probably the last person to speak with the suspected killer before he died.

Mark Motuxzick said he spoke on the phone with Dulos just hours before he was found lifeless and that he had sounded like he was 'out of breath'.

When Dulos then failed to show up to the bond hearing, police checked on him and found him inside his garage with a hosepipe taped to his car exhaust in an attempted suicide by carbon monoxide poisoning.

Cops dragged him into the fresh air, performed CPR and rushed him to the hospital. At one point he was legally dead before being revived.

The 52-year-old clung to life for more than 48 hours, before his attorney confirmed he had died at 5:32pm Thursday at Jacobi Medical Center in the Bronx, New York.

Before Dulos passed away, a judge issued a warrant for his re-arrest and added $500,000 to his bail on Wednesday.

The family of Fotis Dulos (pictured being led out of court by officials) are now demanding that he is cleared posthumously of murdering his wife Jennifer last year. 'The family is adamant that his name be cleared,' Pattis said in a statement, after announcing Dulos' death

His attorney Pattis said Dulos family is 'adamant that his name be cleared' posthumously and slammed the public's treatment of his client, saying he was 'executed' by public opinion.

In the statement on Thursday, Pattis said: 'Mr. Dulos was tried and convicted in the court of public opinion. Now he has been executed. We remain committed to demonstrating he did not murder Jennifer.'

'The family is adamant that his name be cleared.'

Pattis filed an 'unusual motion' requesting the state continues to pursue the murder case against Dulos posthumously  so that his lawyers can clear his name.

In the move, which the Hartford Courant said is 'unprecedented', Dulos' estate would become the defendant because Dulos is now deceased.

'It'll be a difficult challenge,' Pattis said. 'We intend to proceed on as if he were alive to vindicate him.'

Jennifer vanished on May 24. Surveillance footage (pictured) shows the last known images of Jennifer driving home, where police say Dulos 'lay in wait', after she dropped her children at school at around 8am

Jennifer vanished on May 24 after the school run.

Police said in arrest affidavits that Jennifer was attacked in the garage of her home in New Canaan, Connecticut.

They think her killer then transported her body out of the home in her own car.

The car was found abandoned not far from the property later that day, but there was no sign of her.

Police then found large pools of her blood in the garage. They also said they had surveillance footage of two people who looked like Dulos and Troconis depositing garbage bags at various locations that night that, when tested later, were found to contain Jennifer's DNA.

Jennifer had said in divorce papers that she was afraid of her husband, and their children's former nanny said she once witnessed him 'chase her through the house'.

Dulos, however, gave interviews protesting his innocence.

He said he never harmed her and, at one stage, his attorney suggested Jennifer had killed herself in a Gone Girl style plot to blame it on him.
Anti-government protests have been ongoing in Baghdad for months (Hadi Mizban/AP)

Mohammed Allawi has been selected as the countrys prime minister-designate after weeks of political deadlock.

The choice comes as the country weathers troubled times amid ongoing violent anti-government protests, while under the constant threat of being ensnared by festering tensions between the US and Iran.

The selection of Mr Allawi, 66, Iraqs former minister of communications, to replace outgoing Prime Minister Adel Abdul-Mahdi was the product of many back-room talks over months between rival parties.

Iraqi President Barham Salih gave parliamentary blocs until Saturday to select a candidate or he would exercise his constitutional powers and choose one himself.

Expand Close Iraqs President Barham Salih had given rival factions until February 1 to name their candidates (Gian Ehrenzeller/Keystone via AP) / Facebook

Twitter

Email

Whatsapp Iraqs President Barham Salih had given rival factions until February 1 to name their candidates (Gian Ehrenzeller/Keystone via AP)

In a pre-recorded statement posted online, Mr Allawi called on protesters to continue with their uprising against corruption and said he would quit if the blocs insist on imposing names of ministers.

Addressing anti-government protesters, he said: If it wasnt for your sacrifices and courage there wouldnt have been any change in the country. I have faith in you and ask you to continue with the protests.

Mr Allawi was born in Baghdad and served as communications minister first in 2006 and again between 2010-2012. He resigned from his post after a dispute with former prime minister Nouri al-Maliki.

Parliament is expected to put his candidacy to a vote in the next session, after which point he has 30 days to formulate a government programme and select a cabinet of ministers.

According to the constitution, a replacement for Mr Abdul-Mahdi should have been identified 15 days after his resignation in early December.

Instead, it has taken rival blocs nearly two months of jockeying to select Mr Allawi as their consensus candidate.

Mr Abdul-Mahdis rise to power was the product of a provisional alliance between parliaments two main blocs  Sairoon, led by cleric Muqtada al-Sadr, and Fatah, which includes leaders associated with the paramilitary Popular Mobilisation Units headed by Hadi al-Amiri.
A group of teachers got a crash course in the labs back in August 2019 and were told the best thing they could do was to stay hands off, and let the students figure things out on their own.

LMS Media Specalist Erin Hanna said students were either involved in big projects they had been working for the past two days, or were bouncing around to different labs, learning what they could from each of them.

Support Local Journalism Your subscription makes our reporting possible. {{featured_button_text}}

Hanna said she had to respond, I dont know, to several of the students questions, but teachers were encouraged to tell students this and let them work through things at their own pace using their new found understanding.

One group of students, Jamilet Magana, Bianca Toledo and Marlene Vargas-Urbina had been working with the robotic arm for three days.

Vargas-Urbina said on the first day they had been able to make the robotic arm write with a pen, on the second day they tried to make the suction cup work, but couldnt make it work exactly the way they wanted to. On the Wednesday they were tackling the gripper attachment.
Popular Nigerian LGBTQ rights activist, Bisi Alimi, has taken a swipe at the management of a popular event place in Lagos, Terra Kulture.

Alimi pointed out that he was rejected by the owners despite hosting a foreign open gay man, Richard Quest.

According to Bisi, the whole situation has left him confused as to what to feel about the rejection as he tagged the owner of TK a hypocrite.

READ ALSO  Nigeria Is A Jungle, Leave Now  Bisi Alimi Tells LGBTQ Community

Alimi then went further to express that Nigerians are generally hypocrites and it is alarming.

See His Post Here:
Share this article Whatsapp

Facebook

Twitter

Linkedin Dian Septiari (The Jakarta Post) Jakarta  Sat, February 1 2020

First-timer: ASEAN Secreatary-General Lim Jock Hoi briefs members of the United Nations Security Council at the UN headquarters in New York on Thursday. (Courtesy of Indonesian Mission to the UN)

With two Southeast Asian nations currently serving on the United Nations most powerful body, ASEAN Secretary-General Lim Jock Hoi briefed for the first time members of the Security Council (UNSC) on Thursday to highlight the organizations role in maintaining regional peace and security.

ASEAN has contributed to the peace, security and prosperity in Southeast Asia region, Lim said, underlining the importance of its relations with external partners, including the UN.

to Read Full Story SUBSCRIBE NOW Starting from IDR 55,000/month Unlimited access to our web and app content

e-Post daily digital newspaper

No advertisements, no interruptions

Privileged access to our events and programs

Subscription to our newsletters We accept Register to read 3 premium articles for free Already subscribed? login
STATEN ISLAND, N.Y. -- A Massachusetts man who traveled to Boston from Wuhan, China, is the eight confirmed case of the coronavirus in the U.S., according to published reports.

The man, in his 20s, lives in Boston and is the first confirmed case of the coronavirus on the east coast, according to 10Boston.

The man sought medical attention upon his return to the U.S., and has been in isolation since then, the report said.

We are grateful that this young man is recovering and sought medical attention immediately, said Massachusetts Public Health Commissioner Monica Bharel in the statement.

Massachusetts has been preparing for a possible case of this new coronavirus, and we were fortunate that astute clinicians took appropriate action quickly. Again, the risk to the public from the 2019 novel coronavirus remains low in Massachusetts, she added.

AIRPORT SCREENING

Starting Sunday, JFK Airport in Queens will be screening people who arrive from China for the coronavirus. JFK is one of seven airports where flights from China will be directed, according to NY1.

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) announced on Thursday that the first person-to-person spread of the new coronavirus in the United States has been reported between an Illinois couple in their 60s  shortly before the World Health Organization (WHO) declared the outbreak a global health emergency.

President Donal Trump declared a public health emergency in the U.S. on Friday in response to the spread of coronavirus.

Today President Trump took decisive action to minimize the risk of novel coronavirus in the United States, said U.S. Health and Human Services Secretary Alex Azar at a White House press conference.

The virus, called 2019-nCoV, has caused severe illness and dozens of deaths, according to the CDC. Symptoms of the respiratory illness caused by the virus include include fever, cough and trouble breathing.

Coronaviruses are typically common in many different species of animals, according to the CDC, though it is rare for animal coronaviruses to infect people and then spread.

Dr. Robert Redfield, director of the CDC, said that person-to-person spread was expected in the United States before adding, based on what we know ... immediate risk to the general public is low.

FOLLOW TRACEY PORPORA ON FACEBOOK and TWITTER
By Trend

The 12th meeting of the intergovernmental commission on economic cooperation between Azerbaijan and Ukraine has been recently held in Kyiv, Trend reports referring to the Azerbaijani Ministry of Energy.

Azerbaijani Minister of Energy, co-chairman of the commission Parviz Shahbazov said that crude oil was among the main products exported from Azerbaijan to Ukraine in 2019.

SOCAR Energy Ukraine company has so far invested more than $304 million, the minister said. The company has more than 60 filling stations and four oil depots in this country. SOCARs proposals on expanding its activity in Ukraine and development of cooperation in non-oil sector, along with the oil and gas sector, renewable energy and energy efficiency, are among the potential new spheres of economic ties between Azerbaijan and Ukraine.

As part of this visit, we review the infrastructure projects in Odessa and Kyiv and listened to the suggestions, the minister added. I think that following these discussions we will be able to implement joint investment projects in many spheres and further strengthen our cooperation. There is a political will, intentions and ample opportunities for this. We are open to the cooperation in all spheres and I think that the meeting of the commission will contribute to the settlement of these issues."

A protocol was signed following the meeting of the Intergovernmental Commission.

Moreover, the sides signed Memorandum of Cooperation between the Ministry of Energy of Azerbaijan and the Ministry of Energy and Environmental Protection of Ukraine and the Agreement between the Cabinet of Ministers of Ukraine and the Government of Azerbaijan on cooperation between the diplomatic mission and employees of consular agencies related to the paid activities carried out by the members of their families.

The Agreement on cooperation between the executive power of the city of Nakhchivan and the state administration of the Lviv region, Memorandum on mutual understanding between the Agency for Development of Small and Medium-Sized Enterprises of Azerbaijan and the Chamber of Commerce and Industry of Ukraine, Agreement on scientific and technical cooperation between the Research Institute of Viticulture and Winemaking of the Ministry of Agriculture of Azerbaijan and the Institute of Viticulture and Winemaking of Ukraine were also signed.

---

Follow us on Twitter @AzerNewsAz
Customers buy gold at a gold shop in HCM City. Demand for gold is expected to skyrocket on the God of Wealth Day on February 3 since buying on the day is expected to bring good fortune through the year. - VNS Photo Xuan Huong

Legend has it that the God of Wealth used to be in heaven. Once, after drinking too much, he fell to earth and lost his memory and had to beg for survival.

After a while his memory returned and he went back to heaven. It was the 10th day of the year and so Vietnamese have a tradition of buying some gold on that day to ensure good luck and prosperity throughout the year.

In fact, in recent years people have been queuing up from 3-4am to buy lucky gold on that day.

In addition to traditional products such as figurines of the God of Wealth inscribed with words like Phuc (Happiness), Loc (Prosperity) Tai (Wealth), and Tho (Longevity), gold companies have also made a variety of items this year featuring the rat since this is the Year of the Rat.

Phu Nhuan Jewelry Joint Stock Company (PNJ) has launched figurines of rats made of 24k gold and weighing 0.213 taels (a tael equals 37.5g) with sophisticated and vivid carvings, and gold bars with Tai  Loc written on one side and a rat figure on the other.

It has also launched a variety of charm bracelets made of 24k and 18k gold with a golden mouse, or pixiu, money pack, carp, gold bar and others at prices ranging from VND4.6 million (US$198.3) to VND6 million ($258.57), and Kim Ty jewellery product line with youthful designs at prices ranging from VND2.4 million ($103.5) to VND3.5 million ($150.9).

Vo Hoang Huy, regional sales manager of the company, said: These are very popular products, especially on the God of Wealth Day. Everyone wants to choose a product for wealth and prosperity throughout the year.

Other gold and jewellery companies like DOJI, Sacombank Jewelry Company (Sacombank -SBJ), Phu Quy Gold, Silver and Gem Stone Group, and Sai Gon Jewelry Company Limited (SJC) have also launched new products.

Phu Quy has a collection of gold coins inscribed with the images of the 12 animals of the zodiac on one side and a money bag on the other to indicate good fortune, wealth and prosperity. Made of 24k gold, they weigh 0.37g each and are exquisitely crafted using 3D embossing technology.

SJC has also launched a lucky gold series this year, including a 24k golden rat in 1 tael and 0.1 tael, besides its traditional gold pieces inscribed with images of the God of Wealth, Maitreya, and the words Phuc, Loc, and Tho, and lucky coins.

DOJI offers 24k items in blister packs and 0.1, 0.2 and 0.5 tael gold coins inscribed with the images of the rat and God Caishen figurines.

Gold and jewellery companies also offer gold bars with Tai  Loc etched on them, Phuc-Loc-Tai, God of Wealth and Bodhisattva figurines made from 24k gold, 24k gold-plated rat figurines, jewellery made from 18k and 24k gold, and feng shui-inspired pixiu bracelets and bracelets with gold rats.

According to gold and jewellery shops, they will employ more staff and open earlier and close later than usual to meet the huge demand on the God of Wealth Day.

Many businesses are selling gold online with the price fixed at the time a customer places an order and delivery to be made on the Gold of Wealth Day.
Open source

Russian militants cut the village of Khoroshe off the grid; the incident occurred in the temporarily occupied territory of the Luhansk region. The press service of the Joint Forces Operation (JFO) headquarters reported that.

"On January 31, as a result of a IFV hitting a power transmission tower on Shkilna St. in the temporarily occupied settlement of Horoshe (Luhansk region), the power lines were damaged and the population was completely cut off the grid," the message said.

As the headquarters noted, representatives of the local occupant administration prepared a series of messages on their information resources that aimed to accuse the Ukrainian military of shelling civilians and destroying civilian infrastructure.

The JFO HQ emphasized that the Joint Forces never fired and will not fire at the housing sector, endangering the civilian population living there.

As we reported before, on January 31, Russian militants violated the ceasefire six times, using weapons prohibited by the Minsk agreements.
It remains to be seen whether Mr. de Blasio, a Democrat who has suffered sagging approval ratings since returning from a failed presidential run, has the political capital to marshal backing for the plan, which could affect 90 percent of all homeowners in New York City.

On Friday, some lawmakers signaled support, though the plan was not immediately embraced by state leaders who said they were reviewing the details. A spokeswoman for Gov. Andrew M. Cuomo said only that he would review the proposal.

Democratic leaders in the State Senate said the same thing, noting they were proud to have passed a statewide property tax cap last year to help homeowners. Kerri Biche, a spokeswoman for Carl E. Heastie, the Assembly speaker, said the plan was a first step in the city coming up with a more fair and equitable property tax structure.

The seeming reluctance to embrace such far-reaching changes to the property tax system is predictable, especially to those who have fought for years to change the system.

The political powers that be see this as a third-rail issue, said Martha Stark, policy director for Tax Equity Now NYC, a group that filed a 2017 lawsuit seeking to force the city to address the property tax inequities.

We have no reason to believe this is going to actually translate into legislation to be adopted anytime soon, and especially not during this administration, said Ms. Stark, a former city finance director under Mayor Michael R. Bloomberg.
For every rupee in govt kitty, 64 paise come from taxes, borrowings contribute 20 paise

Explained: The Budget proposal to increase the insurance cover on bank deposits

Sorry for the long budget speech says Nirmala Sitharaman

Task force to be set up for recommending marriageable age for women: Sitharaman

India

oi-PTI

New Delhi, Feb 01: Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman on Saturday said a task force will be set up to recommend marriageable age for women.

Presenting the Budget for 2020-21, Sitharaman said Rs 9,500 crore has been provided for senior citizens and Divyangs, while Rs 35,600 crore has been allocated for nutrition related programme in FY21.

The finance minister further said that Rs 85,000 crore has been allocated for Scheduled Castes (SCs) and Other Backward Classes (OBCs) in the Budget.

She also said the government proposes to set up a tribal museum in Ranchi, Jharkhand, while five archaeological sites in Haryana, UP, Assam, Gujarat and Tamil Nadu will be developed with on-site museums.

The government has allocated Rs 3,150 crore for Ministry of Culture, and Rs 2,500 crore for Ministry of Tourism.

For Breaking News and Instant Updates Allow Notifications

Story first published: Saturday, February 1, 2020, 13:11 [IST]
Fairbanks, AK (99707)

Today

Clouds and some sun this morning with more clouds for this afternoon. High around 0F. Winds light and variable..

Tonight

Considerable cloudiness. Low -8F. Winds light and variable.
Keytruda Is the First Anti-PD-1 therapy approved for certain patients with high-risk, non-muscle invasive bladder cancer

Merck, known as MSD outside the United States and Canada, has announced that the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has approved KEYTRUDA, Mercks anti-PD-1 therapy, as monotherapy for the treatment of patients with Bacillus Calmette-Guerin (BCG)-unresponsive, high-risk, non-muscle invasive bladder cancer (NMIBC) with carcinoma in situ (CIS) with or without papillary tumors who are ineligible for or have elected not to undergo cystectomy.

Todays approval of KEYTRUDA reinforces our companys commitment to expanding existing treatment options for certain patients with high-risk, non-muscle invasive bladder cancer, said Dr. Scot Ebbinghaus, vice president, clinical research, Merck Research Laboratories. As the first anti-PD-1 therapy approved in this setting, KEYTRUDA will be a new clinical option for a patient population that previously had limited FDA-approved therapies available.

High-risk, non-muscle invasive bladder cancer is a serious disease, characterized by frequent recurrences and progression, said Arjun V. Balar, M.D., associate professor of Medicine and director of Genitourinary Medical Oncology at NYU Langone Healths Perlmutter Cancer Center. Historically, patients with high-risk, non-muscle invasive bladder cancer with CIS whose cancer is unresponsive to BCG treatment had limited non-surgical treatment options. As a physician who specializes in the management of bladder cancer, it is encouraging to now have a new treatment option for these patients.
The Odisha government has set up a special task force to monitor the situation in view of a novel coronavirus outbreak in China while the Paradip Port Trust has stopped the crew of seven cargo ships from disembarking, officials said on Friday.

Five people are currently under the scanner in the state as they have returned from China recently, Health and Family Welfare Secretary N B Dhal said.

While one person has been admitted at the SCB Medical College in Cuttack, four others were advised home isolation. Officials are keeping a watch on the health conditions of the four people in home isolation, he said.

Health department officials said the coastal state was vulnerable to the novel coronavirus (nCoV) only through two routes.

The state has direct air connectivity with Kuala Lumpur, the capital of Malasiya, and another route is the Paradip Port, Dhal said.

Keeping in view the large number of ships coming to Paradip, the port authorities apprehend that crew members of the ships from China, Hong Kong, Japan and Singapore may have been exposed to nCoV.

"Therefore, the crew members have been told to stay on the ships," a senior port official said, adding that there was no restriction on loading and unloading of cargo ships coming from China and the other three other countries.

The official clarified that there was no restriction on crew members of ships from other countries and they can freely come down to the port township.

"We have made elaborate screening of crew members from other countries at gate number 4 itself. Persons showing sign of cold, cough or running nose are put to screening," said Dr Prahallad Panda, Chief Medical Officer of the Port Trust Hospital.

He said a special isolation ward has been set up at the hospital to provide immediate treatment if required. "There has been no such suspected case of nCoV so far," Panda added.

Meanwhile, Odisha Chief Secretary A K Tripathy took stock of the situation on Saturday and alerted all chief district medical officers through video conferencing. He asked the officials to submit daily reports on the situation at the ground.

The state government has constituted a task force headed by the special secretary (Public Health) for proper management of the situation.

While a China-return MBBS student has been admitted at the SCB Medical College Hospital in Cuttack after he complained of cold and cough, the Health Department has sent blood and swab samples of total four people for confirmation to the National Institute of Virology in Pune.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
Residents on the NSW South Coast faced another anxious night, with four fires at emergency level between the Bega Valley and south of Eden near the Victorian border.

However late on Saturday, the RFS said that the conditions had begun to ease, reducing the threat to homes and lives.

"The fire continues to remain very active. It is still not yet safe for residents to return to these areas," the RFS tweeted.

The Clear Range fire in the Snowy Monaro region had been burning at emergency level on Saturday evening, while the Clyde Mountain Fire near Batemans Bay was at watch and act.
FILE PHOTO: Several bikes are seen packed within the premises of Gokada bike company in Lagos

By Libby George

LAGOS (Reuters) - Nigeria's business capital Lagos will ban commercial motorcycles from nearly the entire city, citing overcrowding and safety, authorities said on Monday, a move that could change the commute for thousands and threaten ride-hailing startups.

The Lagos state government announced on Twitter that it would ban motorcycles, commonly known as okadas, from operating in most of Lagos because of what it described as their "chaos and disorderliness" and "scary figures" of fatal accidents.

Companies such as Max.ng, Oride and Gokada have been aiming to capitalize on the congested Lagos roads and the city's teeming population to expand their operations.

The ban cites a 2018 law to bar okadas and small three-wheeled vehicles known as kekes from Feb. 1. It would bar them from virtually all the main commercial and residential neighborhoods. Only one major area, far west of central Lagos, was not listed.

It could anger Lagosians who rely on the two- and three-wheeled vehicles to zip through intense congestion that regularly traps larger vehicles for hours, as well as the drivers who rely on them for income.

On Tuesday morning, passengers queued up in the center of town, some hopping on Gokadas with their signature green helmets and others waiting their turn for one of dozens of other drivers who zipped away as quickly as they arrived.

As yellow kekes streamed past, Lagos resident Folarin Bosun said the government could not offer an alternative to okadas and kekes - which are often his only option to get to work on time.

"RESTRICTION ON POOR PEOPLE"

"Whatever the plan is, it's not going to be good enough," he said.

Chinedu Azodoh, cofounder of Max.ng, said their bikes are above the 200 cubic centimeter engine size banned under the law, and that he had not heard directly from the government. But a ban, he said, amounted to "a restriction on poor people.

Gbenga Omotoso, Lagos state commissioner of information and strategy, said the ban would affect all passenger companies and only courier service companies would be exempt.

Story continues

"They have been found to have become part of the problem they set out to resolve," he said of commercial motorcycle companies.

Max.ng, which also operates in Kano, Ibadan and Akure in Nigeria, had an investment round last year that raised more than $5 million.

Startup Gokada also raised $5 million last year for its Lagos operations. Founder Fahim Saleh said that while their bikes are also above 200cc, he was not sure about the impact of the ban on them.

"It's disappointing," he said, adding they would seek to expand its operations in courier and logistics services. "We don't know how it's going to be enforced."

ORide, part of OPay in which Norwegian software firm Opera Ltd has an equity interest, also offers ride-hailing motorcycles in Lagos. Reuters could not immediately reach the company for comment.

In June, Gokada told Reuters that there are an estimated 8 million okada drivers operating across Nigeria.

(Additional reporting by Nneka Chile and Alexis Akwagyiram; editing by Grant McCool, William Maclean)
US President Donald Trump on Friday slapped immigration restrictions on citizens of six countries including Nigeria, in addition to the list of nations already targeted by his controversial travel ban. Besides Africa's most populous nation, the new measures also pertain to Myanmar, Eritrea, Kyrgyzstan, Sudan and Tanzania, administration officials said. "The president's decision is the product of a comprehensive and systematic assessment that was conducted by the Department of Homeland Security, as well as in partnership with other federal agencies," said one of the officials. The official added that the decision was the "result of these countries' unwillingness or inability to adhere to certain baseline identity management, information sharing and national security and public safety assessment criteria that were established by the department in 2017." Unlike the travel ban Trump unveiled in January 2017 shortly after taking office, which banned citizens of certain Muslim-majority countries from entering US territory, the latest directive, which takes effect February 22, was less sweeping. The official said it would only target certain visa categories and would focus primarily on people seeking to move to the United States rather than those simply aiming to visit. - 'Have to be safe' - Trump had announced his intention to lengthen the list of countries last week on the sidelines of the World Economic Forum in Davos. "We have to be safe. Our country has to be safe," he said. Trump repeatedly promised during his election campaign to implement a complete ban on Muslims entering the US, and he announced his first package of travel bans and restrictions shortly after taking office in January 2017. The move outraged critics and was struck down by a federal court that ruled the ban amounted to religious discrimination. The administration moved a second version of the policy in March 2017, which was struck down again for similar reasons. But the third version of the policy was upheld by the US Supreme Court in June 2018 in a 5-4 ruling that affirmed the president had broad power to set immigration policy based on national security justifications. The countries covered under that version are Iran, Libya, Somalia, Syria, Yemen and North Korea, and political officials from Venezuela. The administration argued the inclusion of non-Muslim majority countries proved the policy was not driven by religious animus. - 'Anti-Muslim policy' - The American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) was quick to condemn the new restrictions, saying that the administration was simply "expanding" the ban's scope. "President Trump is doubling down on his signature anti-Muslim policy -- and using the ban as a way to put even more of his prejudices into practice by excluding more communities of color," the ACLU said in a statement. The NGO Refugees International added that it was "unreasonable and unnecessary to broadly restrict immigration based on nationality, race, or religion." The sentiment was echoed by Democratic lawmakers as well, such as House Homeland Security Chairman Bennie Thompson who said that the measure was consistent with Trump's "thoughts on immigration from countries with predominately black and brown populations." "The fact that he has couched this political decision in homeland or national security terms is grotesque," Thompson added. Nigeria's minister of foreign affairs is expected in Washington Monday for strategic dialogue with the United States. In recent weeks, Trump's administration has shown clear support for the transitional government in fast-changing Sudan and is negotiating Khartoum's removal from a list of countries the US deems backers of terrorism.
Three men are appearing in court in Cork and Dublin this morning after being arrested on drugs charges earlier this week.

It is after drugs found in a car in Cork led to the discovery of a suspected grow house in Dublin.
By Trend

Turkmen Foreign Ministry hosted a meeting with Indian ambassador to Turkmenistan Azar Abul Hassan Khan, Trend reports referring to the ministry.

The role of the Turkmenistan-Afghanistan-Pakistan-India (TAPI) gas pipeline, which will serve as a bridge connecting Central and South Asia, was noted at the meeting.

The parties also spoke about the expansion of partnership in the economy, transport, the agricultural sector, the chemical industry and in the field of information and communication technologies.

The construction of the Turkmen section of the TAPI pipeline was launched in December 2015. The design capacity of the pipeline may reach 33 billion cubic meters of gas per year. The pipeline will pass through the Afghan cities of Herat and Kandahar (816 kilometers), through the cities of Quetta and Multan across Pakistani territory (819 kilometers), and reach the city of Fazilka in India.

The construction of the Afghan section of the pipeline was initiated in February 2018, while the construction of the Pakistani section is planned to be launched in 2020.

The Turkmengas State Concern is the leader of the TAPI Pipeline Company Ltd. international consortium. It acts as the main financier and manager of the project. The consortium also includes Afghan Gas Corporation, Pakistans Inter State Gas Systems (Private) Limited Company and Indias GAIL Company.

---

Follow us on Twitter @AzerNewsAz
The number of deaths from a coronavirus epidemic in China has risen to 259, as the World Health Organization (WHO) declared it as a public health emergency of international concern (PHEIC) and US announced new border curbs on foreign nationals who have been in China.

The WHO, had in a rare move, declared the novel coronavirus outbreak that originated in Wuhan, China as a public health emergency of international concern (PHEIC).

The global health body defines a PHEIC as an extraordinary event that constitute[s] a public health risk to other states through the international spread of disease and potentially require[s] a coordinated international response.

Since that framework was defined in 2005two years after another coronavirus, severe acute respiratory syndrome (SARS), spread through Chinait has been used only six times: for outbreaks of swine flu in 2009, polio in 2014, Ebola in 2014, Zika virus in 2016, Ebola in 2019 and, now, coronavirus in 2020.

A PHEIC is meant to mobilize international response to an outbreak. Its an opportunity for the WHO, with guidance from its International Health Regulations Emergency Committee, to implement non-binding but practically and politically significant measures that can address travel, trade, quarantine, screening, treatment.

WHO can also set global standards of practice, the organization tweeted.

The global health body acknowledges that the disease now represents a risk beyond China and nations can then decide whether to shut their borders, cancel flights or screen people arriving at ports of entry.

In a prompt move, the Trump administration has begun imposing temporary travel restrictions that bar entry into the US by any foreign national who has travelled to China in the past 14 days, officials said on Friday.

The restrictions, a reaction to the coronavirus epidemic, will be put into place at 5 pm on Sunday.

The US yesterday (January 31) declared the coronavirus, which has sickened nearly 12,000 people and has spread to America and 21 other countries, a public heath emergency, reported New York Times.

Fridays action exempts immediate family members of American citizens and permanent residents.

In addition, officials said, any US citizen returning home who has been in the Hubei province of China within the past 14 days  believed to be the viruss incubation period  will be quarantined for up to 14 days. Wuhan, the epicenter of the outbreak, is in Hubei, it stated.

Those who have been to other parts of China within the past 14 days will be subject to proactive entry screening and up to 14 days of monitoring and self-quarantine, it added.

Meanwhile airlines across the globe have swung into action with nearly 10,000 flights already suspended since the outbreak of the coronavirus in China, according to travel and data analytics firm Cirium.

Many nations have put on special charter flights to repatriate citizens from China.

Amid this panic, Gauden Galea, the World Health Organization representative for China, said trade and travel restrictions were not needed.

We would want countries to focus on the mitigation efforts of identifying the possible importation of cases and responding to any domestic outbreak, Galea told Reuters on Saturday.

Around two dozen countries have reported confirmed cases of the virus, but the vast majority of those infected remain in China.

Qantas Airways and Air New Zealand said the international travel bans had forced them to suspend their direct flights to China from February 9.

Cities across China have continued to implement special measures aimed at curbing the spread of the pathogen. Tianjin, a city in northern China with around 15 million people, said all schools and businesses would be suspended until further notice.

A senior leadership group tasked with handling the crisis promised to take action to prevent a big surge in the number of people traveling after the extended Lunar New Year holiday.

The team led by Premier Li Keqiang said they would coordinate with local governments to stagger the times when people are asked to go back to work.

However, Coronavirus anger seems to be boiling over in China.

One week into a lockdown, anger and anxiety deepened in China as the central province at the center of the coronavirus outbreak endured shortages of hospital beds, medical supplies and doctors, reported the New York Times.

In a sign of growing frustration, a relative of a patient infected with the virus beat up a doctor at a hospital in Wuhan, the capital of Hubei Province, the state broadcaster CCTV reported on Thursday, citing the police.

At the same time, hospitals in the region renewed pleas to the public for help to replenish their supplies, which were fast disappearing. The shortages have become especially severe in Huanggang, a city of seven million not far from Wuhan, where some medical staff members were wearing raincoats and garbage bags as shoe covers to protect against infection, according to Yicai, a financial news site.
Delta and American Airlines announced Friday they will suspend flights to China after the World Health Organization (WHO) labeled the coronavirus pandemic as a global public-health emergency.

American Airlines (AAL) said in a statement that it is suspending flights to and from mainland China until March 27. However, it will continue flights to and from Hong Kong. This decision comes after a lawsuit by the union representing airlines pilots sued the company to immediately stop its US-China service due to possible health threats posed by the coronavirus.

Delta Air Lines was the first to announce its suspension of flights, which will begin Feb. 6 and are scheduled to continue through April 30. The last flight will leave the U.S. on Feb. 3, and the last flight to return to the U.S. will be Feb 5.

Shortly after saying it will only reduce service to mainland China, United Airlines also announced Friday it will suspend flights from Feb. 6 through March 28. The airline said in a statement it will operate select flights to help ensure our U.S.-based employees, as well as customers, have options to return home. It said, though, it will continue to service one flight from San Francisco to Hong Kong.

For all three airlines, these suspensions follow travel advisories issued by the State Department and the Centers for Disease Control (CDC). The State Department issued a Level 4-Do Not Travel advisory on Thursday and recommended that all Americans leave mainland China. The CDC issued a Level 3 notice advising Americans to avoid nonessential travel to China.

Several international airlines also have also planned to suspend or reduce service to and from mainland China. British Airways, Air Asia, Cathay Pacific, Air India, IndiGo, Lufthansa and Finnair have announced plans to reduce or suspend flights this week. RwandAir and Kenya Airways canceled all flights to and from Guangzhou until further notice. LOT Polish Airlines has suspended flights to China until Feb. 9, according to a deputy prime minister. Iran also suspended all flights to and from China.
The United States advised its citizens to reconsider any visit to Pakistan and raised the travel alert to the highest level for provinces of Balochistan and Khyber Pakhtunkhwa. Highlighting the threat of terrorism and kidnapping, the US State Department issued the advisory asking its citizens to not travel at all to the immediate vicinity of the Line of Control (LoC) due to terrorism and the potential for armed conflict.

A local history of terrorism and ongoing ideological aspirations of violence by extremist elements have led to indiscriminate attacks on civilian as well as local military and police targets, the department said in a statement.

The department said that terrorists may attack with little or no warning targeting markets, shopping malls, military installations, airports, universities, tourist locations, schools, hospitals, places of worship, and government facilities. It added that the US government has limited ability to provide emergency services to its citizens in Pakistan due to the security environment.

The U.S. Consulate General in Peshawar is unable to provide any consular services to U.S. citizens, read the advisory.

Read: Injured Constable On Nagrota Encounter: 'We Will Neutralize Whoever Pakistan Sends'

It has advised not to travel to the India-Pakistan border due to the presence of militants group in the area and periodical exchange of gunfire and artillery fire across the LoC by India and Pakistan. Citing the only official crossing point between the two countries, Wagah in Pakistan and Atari in India, the US asked its nationals to confirm the status of the border crossing prior to commencing travel.

Read: Pakistan Super League Removes Indian Production Partners IMG-Reliance Ahead Of PSL 2020

Active terror groups in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa

According to the state department, active terrorist and insurgent groups frequently attack civilians, non-governmental organizations (NGOs), government offices, and security forces in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, which includes the former Federally Administered Tribal Areas (FATA).

Do not travel to Balochistan province. Active terrorist groups, an active separatist movement, sectarian conflicts, and deadly terrorist attacks against civilians, government offices, and security forces destabilize the province, including all major cities, the department advised.

Read: 'Narendra Modi Is My PM': Kejriwal Beats Back Pakistan's Attempt To Meddle In Delhi Polls

Read: Pakistan Minister Tries To Meddle In Delhi Elections, Makes 'defeat Modi' Appeal
New Delhi, Feb 1 : A fire broke out at All India Institute of Medical Sciences' Cardio-Thoracic Sciences Centre on Saturday evening, fire officials said.

At least 10 fire tenders rushed to the area to control the situation.

"There was a fire at Cardio-Thoracic Sciences Centre at the ground floor," AIIMS PRO B.M. Acharya told IANS No casualties or injuries have so been reported.

A major fire had broken out at AIIMS last year which caused damage to the second and third floors of the prestigious institute.
The UAE Ministry of Climate Change and Environment (MoCCAE) has announced that it would allocate funds to the Global Green Growth Institute (GGGI), to develop a comprehensive climate change strategy for Bahrain. GGGI is a treaty-based international organisation headquartered in Seoul, South Korea, that aims to help its member governments achieve their environmental commitments under the Paris Agreement and their Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) targets.

Dr Thani bin Ahmed Al Zeyoudi, UAE Minister of Climate Change and Environment, and Dr. Mohamed Mubarak Bin Daina, Chief Executive of the Supreme Council for Environment in Bahrain, made the announcement, Emirates News Agency (WAM) reported. They noted that in developing the strategy, GGGI will leverage the UAEs experience in climate action to devise effective solutions to protect Bahrains environment and natural resources, and drive the countrys sustainability agenda.

The UAE is committed to empowering other nations to become climate-resilient and advance their climate action goals in collaboration with GGGI, Dr Al Zeyoudi said.

We are proud to assist the Bahraini government in developing a framework for boosting the countrys climate change mitigation and adaptation efforts. The UAE is a founding member of GGGI and a leader in green growth. I am pleased to learn of this co-operation, and hope the UAE and GGGI can find more opportunities to promote the green development model in the Middle East region and beyond, Ban Ki-moon, President of the GGGI Assembly, Chair of the GGGI Council, and eighth UN Secretary-General, said.

With the support of the UAE, GGGI and the Bahraini government will join forces to draft and implement a national climate change strategy for Bahrain. The collaboration reflects the long-standing cordial relations between our two countries and consolidates the UAEs position as a global environmental leader, Dr Bin Daina said.
FORT JACKSON -- Fort Jackson brings together senior Army leadership and ROTC cadets from 10 North and South Carolina colleges and universities on Feb. 7 for a day focused on mentorship and leader development.

Army generals will participate in this event to lead, inspire and motivate future leaders of the Army. Many have ties to South Carolina.

"Last year, our event was a success both by the mentoring future leaders and the amount of support and guidance we gained from generals stationed throughout the Army," said Fort Jackson commander Brig. Gen. Milford H. Beagle Jr., a South Carolina State University graduate. "Some generals are able to return again, and others will have their first experience of meeting the great cadets we are producing here in the Carolinas. Plus, several have ties to South Carolina as either natives or students of a South Carolina college or university."

Roughly 300 cadets from the following schools are attending:

 Campbell University in Buies Creek, North Carolina

 The Citadel in Charleston

 Clemson University in Clemson

 Duke University in Durham, North Carolina

 Furman University in Greenville

 North Carolina Agricultural and Technical State University in Greensboro, North Carolina

 Presbyterian College in Clinton

 South Carolina State University in Orangeburg

 University of North Carolina at Charlotte in Charlotte, North Carolina

 University of South Carolina in Columbia

 Wofford College in Spartanburg

Twelve Army generals from all over the United States plan to attend. Three are native South Carolinians who also received their bachelor degrees in state (Claflin University and S.C. State University; two graduates from South Carolina schools (Furman University and Lander College); one graduate from a North Carolina school (Appalachian State); and one who lives in Greer. They hold positions as commanding generals to directors of Army staff and represent Army commands as far away as Utah, Texas and Kansas.

Army ROTC Cadets will have the opportunity to learn from some of today's leaders during the event through panel discussions, speed mentoring and presentations on various topics.

Last year, this event was held at Fort Jackson because it is a central location where cadets could easily commute for a day of mentoring. This event began at South Carolina State University in 2018 where more than 200 cadets from seven ROTC battalions participated. It was developed and orchestrated by Lt. Gen. Stephen M. Twitty, who currently serves as the deputy commander for U.S. Army European Command.

Love 0 Funny 0 Wow 0 Sad 0 Angry 0
The tax plan comes at a crucial moment in Mr. Bloombergs candidacy: He is increasingly seen as a plausible contender for the nomination, and his national poll numbers have risen to the high single digits on the strength of an advertising onslaught funded from his personal fortune.

But Mr. Bloombergs extreme wealth has also made him a figure of suspicion to many Democrats, who are intensely concerned about economic inequality; some of his most prominent rivals in the presidential race, including Mr. Sanders and Ms. Warren, have accused him of seeking to buy the White House.

Mr. Bloomberg has attempted to allay those objections in part by promising to raise taxes on people like himself: He opposed the passage of Mr. Trumps tax cuts in 2017, and on the day he entered the presidential race he called for tax increases on the wealthy. He has highlighted that stance in television commercials, but until now he did not describe in detail how he would seek to make the rich pay more.

He has also repeatedly deferred steps that would give voters and the news media more visibility into his personal finances, putting off the filing of his personal financial disclosure form until late March and declining so far to say when he intends to release his tax returns. While Mr. Bloomberg would certainly pay more under his own tax plan, his campaign declined to specify how much and said that no such assessment had been made.

Right now, I give nearly all of my companys profits to charity, Mr. Bloomberg said in a statement on Saturday. Under my plan, Ill continue doing that  but I will also pay more in taxes to make sure all Americans have the same opportunities I did. Thats only right.
President Donald Trump signed an executive order on Friday that imposes travel restrictions on six more countries with large Muslim populations, bringing the total number of nations under the US travel ban to 13.

Immigrant visas are being suspended for Nigeria, Myanmar, Eritrea and Kyrgyzstan, and people from Sudan and Tanzania will be prevented from entering the US diversity visa program, which provides green cards to immigrants. According to the Department of Homeland Security, the ban will not apply to non-immigrant travelers such as students, tourists or people visiting the US on business.

Trump signed the new order almost exactly three years to the day after he enacted the original Muslim travel ban, one week after he took office. The new rule will go into effect on February 22 and adds the six countries to the current list of Iran, Libya, Somalia, Syria, Iraq, Iran, Yemen, Venezuela and North Korea. The initial travel ban executive order went into effect on February 1, 2017.

The current decision is transparently motivated by domestic political considerations, as President Trump seeks to whip up extreme right-wing nationalism as part his 2020 reelection strategy. Taking the step in the final days of the impeachment trial in the Senate and the lead-up to his State of the Union Address on Tuesday, Trump is openly encouraging anti-immigrant and anti-Muslim hatred within his fascistic political base.

In response to the proclamation, Omar Jadwat, the director of the Immigrants Rights Project at the American Civil Liberties Union, said, Trump is doubling down on his signature anti-Muslim policy and using the ban as a way to put even more of his prejudices into practice by excluding more communities of color.

The addition of Nigeria, Eritrea, Sudan and Tanzaniaall countries with large Muslim populationsbrings the number of African countries on the travel ban to seven, the most of any continent. The expansion of African countries on the list is of a piece with Trumps previous vulgar references to sh*thole countries on the continent and to Nigerian immigrants coming to the US who will never go back to their huts.

In an effort to deflect attention from the obvious, White House Press Secretary Stephanie Grisham said, President Trumps security and travel proclamations have immeasurably improved our national security, substantially raised the global standard for information-sharing, and dramatically strengthened the integrity of the United States immigration system, adding, The orders have been a tremendous and vital success.

According to the New York Times, the expanded restrictions are likely to block 12,300 immigrants over the next year from resettling, finding work or reuniting with their families in the United States. Nigeria, the largest economy and largest population200 million peopleon the African continent, will be the most severely impacted, with nearly 8,000 immigrant visas issued last year.

The White House claimed Nigeria had an elevated risk and threat environment in the country. The countrys minister of information and culture, Lai Mohammed, told the Times that no one in his country had been notified that Nigeria was being placed on the new list. Although Nigeria has partnered with the US military as part of the coalition fighting Islamist militias, Mohammed said, It would be a double jeopardy: The country has committed a lot of resources to fight terrorism.

In an expression of imperialist bullying against the other five countries, the White House said that none had complied with the administrations requirement for information-sharing related to terrorism data and none had updated its passport system. The White House added that it had issues with international criminal reporting methods.

In the case of Myanmar, also known as Burma, where sectarian violence has forced Rohingya Muslim refugees to seek asylum abroad, the travel ban blocks a possible road to safety or family reunification. Krish OMara Vignarajah, president of Lutheran Immigration and Refugee Service, a refugee resettlement agency, said, Nearly 5,000 Burmese refugees started to rebuild their lives in America last year, many of whom seek to reunite with family still in harms way.

Rohingya refugees in Bangladesh fleeing violence in Myanmar [Credit: K.M. AsadLightRocket, via Getty Images]

News of the expansion of the list of banned countries began to leak on January 11 when the Associated Press reported that the White House was considering dramatically expanding its much-litigated travel ban to additional countries amid a renewed election-year focus on immigration by President Donald Trump, according to six people familiar with the deliberations.

During his trip last week to Davos, Switzerland for the World Economic Forum, Trump said he planned to add a couple of countries to the ban, when everyone already knew that six or seven countries were being added.

Early reports on the impact of the travel ban show once again that Trump and his advisors are hell-bent on pursuing their xenophobic political agenda no matter the fallout. A report on Vox notes, for example, Although it doesnt affect student visas, it could also discourage students from coming to the US for their studies, since they might not have the option to remain in the country permanently. Almost 13,000 Nigerian students came to the US last year.

Meanwhile, in an interview with National Public Radio, David Wilson, president of Morgan State University in Baltimore, Maryland, said that at Morgan, we have roughly 10 percent of our nearly 8,000 students or so who are international, representing 60 countries. And of that 10 percent, about 20 percent of those students are from Nigeria.

Nearly 80,000 visa applications have been subject to the travel ban since December 17, according to data from the State Department. Exceptions have been granted to just 6,333 immigrants and another 17,798 were granted waivers.
YEREVAN, JANUARY 31, ARMENPRESS. Prime Minister of Armenia Nikol Pashinyan arrived in the Republic of Kazakhstan on a working visit. The Prime Minister attended a meeting of the Eurasian Intergovernmental Council in Almaty, which was held in narrow and expanded formats.

As ARMENPRESS was informed from the Office of the Prime Minister of Armenia, the meeting was attended by the Prime Ministers of Armenia, Russia, Kazakhstan, Belarus, and Kyrgyzstan. Prime Minister of the Republic of Moldova Ion Kiku partook in the expanded meeting as an observer state representative.

Addressing the meeting, Prime Minister Pashinyan stated:

Dear Heads of Government,

Dear members of delegations,

To begin with, I would like to thank Prime Minister of the Republic of Kazakhstan Askar Mamin for good organization of the meeting and traditional hospitality.

I would also like to welcome Chairman of the Government of the Russian Federation Mikhail Vladimirovich Mishustin, and Prime Minister of Moldova Ion Kiku who are taking part in the meeting of our Council for the first time. I wish you good luck and would like to assure you of our readiness for active and fruitful cooperation.

Dear friends,

This is our first meeting this year, chaired by the Belarusian side. We support the priority areas of integration identified by Belarus for the period of their chairmanship. In this regard, I would like to emphasize the importance of eliminating the remaining barriers, exemptions and restrictions that impede the formation of a common economic space.

It is also necessary to intensify efforts aimed at creating common EAEU energy and transport markets with non-discriminatory approaches in the field of pricing, tariffs and access to the services of natural monopolies. Improving the efficiency of EAEU bodies, developing transport and logistics infrastructures are another area that should be our focus.

Regarding todays agenda, I would like to state as follows: we once again discussed progress in removing the outstanding barriers in the Unions internal market. We have made decisions concerning some of these barriers. However, as I have already noted, we believe it expedient to step up the efforts aimed at eliminating the remaining impediments and creating such favorable conditions as would rule out the possibility of their recurrence.

Regarding the Strategic Directions for the Development of Eurasian Integration until 2025, I would like to note that we attach particular importance to the final approval of this document on the basis of those forms of cooperation enshrined in the Treaty on the EAEU.

As you may know, the Republic of Armenia has actively participated and supported the process of creating and implementing the EAEU Digital Agenda. We believe that the formation of an ecosystem of digital transport corridors will provide an opportunity to shrink the gap between consumers and services, as well as between the manufacturer and the seller. It will reduce the time of delivery, as well as the time to search for optimal ways and methods of moving goods, making the market more perfect in this regard.

Dear participants,

As the term of office of the Chairman of the Commission expires on February 1, I would like to thank Tigran Sargsyan and the Commission for good work and wish them every success in future activities. I would also like to wish fruitful work to the new Commission, headed by Mikhail Myasnikovich, as well as the Republic of Belarus, which will chair the EAEU bodies this year.

In conclusion, I want to express Armenias readiness to host one of the subsequent meetings of the Eurasian Intergovernmental Council during this year. I would be glad to welcome you all to Armenia. And on our part, I want to assure you that we will do our best to hold the Council meeting at the highest level. Thank you.

During the meeting, the Prime Ministers discussed a number of issues related to the further improvement of EAEUs functionality and the improvement of the legal framework of the organization. In particular, issues related to the elimination of obstacles and barriers in the EAEU market, the integration of national information systems, cooperation in the field of customs regulation and the formation of common markets were raised.

A number of initiatives were also discussed, including the possibility of expanding the use of national currencies in the Eurasian space and improving protective measures based on international experience.
The Parliament largely avoided responding because reforms and new elections would likely mean that many established political groups would lose power. The countrys senior religious authorities have largely sided with the protesters in demanding change and their pressure led the prime minister to resign at the end of November.

Since then, neither the Parliament nor the president has been able to find a prime minister candidate on which both the Parliament and the protesters could agree.

The selection of Mr. Allawi is an effort to pick someone who has worked with a wide range of political parties and who is educated and secular as well as having the requisite Shiite Muslim background.

Since the toppling of Saddam Hussein, Iraq has had a political power sharing agreement whereby the prime minister comes from the countrys Shiite Muslim majority, the speaker of the parliament is from the Sunni Muslim minority and the president is of Kurdish ethnicity so that all three main ethnic and religious groups are represented.

Mr. Allawi was educated initially in Baghdad but then went to Beirut to completely his studies in architecture. He lived for years in London and was active in the Iraqi opposition. As a young man, he was drawn to the Dawa party many of whose members have close ties to Iran.

But after the toppling of Saddam Hussein, he began to align himself with his cousin, Iyad Allawi, who was the interim prime minister in 2004, and eventually joined Iraqiya, his cousins political party. It is a secular party that includes Sunni and Shiite Muslims as well as Christians and a number of women, but it has few seats in the Parliament compared to the religious parties.

Within minutes of his nomination, he got an endorsement from the powerful Shiite cleric and political leader Moktada al-Sadr, who controls the largest bloc in Parliament.
The government will reduce its stake in Life Insurance Corporation (LIC) of India through an initial public offering (IPO), Union finance minister Nirmala Sitharaman said on Saturday, as a part of efforts to push through an aggressive disinvestment programme.

The government has set a divestment target of Rs 2.1 lakh crore for FY21 compared with Rs 1.05 lakh crore target for the ongoing financial year. And it has divested Rs 18,094.59 crore so far this year.

Government will list LIC on the stock exchanges, Nirmala Sitharaman said in her Budget speech.

The government will list LIC in the next financial year starting April and it could be the countrys biggest initial public offering in recent times.

Also Watch l Budget 2020 | Cant tolerate tax harassment, will prepare taxpayer charter: Sitharaman

The current year disinvestment could not go beyond Rs 18,000 crore.

News agency IANS cited an unnamed official as saying that LICs listing is going to be complicated as it has huge investments in real estate, art and equity market, which may prove to be time-consuming for valuation purposes.

The employees of LIC, established in 1956 and fully owned by the government, have threatened to go on a flash strike if the Centre announces the listing of the LIC in the Budget proposals.

There is the possibility of it happening. If the government makes such an announcement, LIC employees will go on a flash strike, officials of the All India Insurance Employees Association (AIIEA) had said on Thursday.

LICs surplus for 2018-19 increased by 9.9% to Rs 532.14 billionthe first time that the insurers surplus crossed the 500-billion-rupee mark.

(With agency inputs)

SHARE THIS ARTICLE ON
(Photo : Amazon) (Photo : Amazon) (Photo : Amazon) (Photo : Amazon) (Photo : Amazon)

Apple, Microsoft, and Sony need no introductions as if you are an avid viewer of our articles. You already know who they are and what products they have. Without further ado, here are the latest sales on Amazon that you would NOT want to miss out on!

READ ALSO: Today is the Best Day to Own an Apple iPhone with Sweet Deals from Amazon

Apple Watch Series 3 boasts several features that are surely worthy of your attention. Starting with GPS, which lets you know exactly where you are all the time. Optical Heart Sensor that monitors your pulse if you are using it for a workout, jog, or just lounging in your home. Digital Crown in which helps you navigate in your watch to your desired function or feature. Runs on an S3 with dual-core processor just enough power to get you by. Accelerometer and gyroscope that accurately tracks your location and helps with more accurate GPS. It comes with a choice of either Aluminum Silver or Space Gray.

Sony is an amazing brand and dishes out top quality headphones year on out. This little beauty is not an exception. It comes with HD Noise-Cancelling Processor QN1. Smart listening by Adaptive Sound Control for a more realistic sense of virtual sound. Hi-Res audio that is up to 40kHz in frequency. Lastly has Bluetooth 4.1 LDAC connection that can connect to the Sony Headphones Connect App. Since this is a renewed product, it works and looks like new-backed by the 90-day Amazon Renewed Guarantee.

If you haven't gotten an Xbox One X yet, this may be the time. Bundled with Star Wars Jedi: Fallen Order Deluxe Edition, this is a must-have. It also has one month of Xbox Live Gold, a full one month trial of Xbox Game Pass for consoles, and one month of EA Access. Running an 8-core Jaguar "Evolved" CPU at 2.3GHz, 1TB of storage, 12GB of DDR5 Ram, and 40 CUs (1,172Mhz) 6 TF GPU, this powerhouse of a console is yours for the taking.

Microsoft Surface Pro X - 13" Touch-Screen

This is quite the looker. It comes with a sleek and compact design, powerful specs to boot, and LTE Advanced Pro connectivity. With this laptop, you will never get disconnected from the online world. Did we mention how sleek it is? Matte Black, no less. You can do a lot with a 13" screen, and its PixelSense Display is virtually edge-to-edge, which maximizes the space of the screen. Powered by Qualcomm, a new custom Microsoft SQ1 processor delivers what you would expect as long as with long battery life. This literally transforms from an ultra-thin laptop to a powerful table, to a portable studio. Quite handy indeed.

READ ALSO: [SALE] Amazon Member-Only Sale Up to 70% Discounts on Wireless Earbuds, TV Headsets, and More!

Besides getting this massive 55" 4K Ultra HD Smart OLED of a monstrosity, you will also get a ONE YEAR Disney Plus. What more do you need? If you insist, here are some more. This TV is the first to integrate both Google Assistant and Alexa with the use of LG ThinQ AI technology. Dolby Vision AND Dolby Atmos ready. Can sync as well with Nvida G Sync if you really want this to be your screen for your PC. Has Airplay 2, so if you want to cast anything from your Apple iPhone or laptop, this is the TV that will give you everything you want and more.

For more of these amazing deals, don't forget to click here to find out!

 2021 TECHTIMES.com All rights reserved. Do not reproduce without permission.
The Workshop was attended by students and faculty from various health care institutions and medical officers of ministry of AYUSH

Apex Professional University, Arunachal Pradesh in collaboration with National Institute of Unani Medicine, Ministry of AYUSH, Bengaluru hosted a one-day workshop on the topic Medical Astrology 'An Integral Part of Prevention, Diagnosis and Therapeutics of Diseases', which was inaugurated and presided by Dr. S. Sacchidanand, Hon'ble Vice Chancellor, Rajiv Gandhi University of Health Sciences, Bengaluru. The workshop commenced at 9:30 am on 8th January 2020 in the auditorium of National Institute of Unani Medicine, Kottigepalaya, Magadi Main Road, Bengaluru.

Dr. Sachidananad highlighted that integrated outlook in treatment strategies should be taken on a higher priority instead of remaining as different compartments of medical disciplines. He also added that RGUHS will function as a bridge between various systems and help to break the walls currently existing.

The Resource person of the scientific session of the workshop Acharya Dhanwant Singh who is an IIM Alumnus, a Corporate Yogi and the Hon'ble Founder and Chancellor of Apex Professional University, Arunachal Pradesh., scientifically explained in depth the parameters of the influence of celestial bodies on the prevention, diagnosis and treatment of diseases.

Dr. Abdul Wadud, Director, National Institute of Unani Medicine, Bengaluru delivered the director's address narrating the relevance of Astrology in Unani treatment system. Prof Dr. Mohammed Zulfikar gave a brief talk on the System of Unani medicine and its close relations to the Science of Astrology.

The occasion also marked the release of the book 'Essentials of Research Methodology in Unani Medicine', by the Dignitaries on the Dias.

The Workshop was attended by students, and faculty from various health care institutions and medical officers of ministry of AYUSH wherein the session was concluded by the vote of thanks from Dr. P. Ajith Kumar, Pro Vice-Chancellor of Apex Professional University.
YEREVAN, FEBRUARY 1, ARMENPRESS. The State Commission for the Protection of Economic Competition (SCPEC) has published the results of the sugar market study.

In the period of January-October 2019, 8 million kg of sugar was imported to Armenia by 47 companies. The imported sugar was mainly of Ukrainian origin. In the same period Armenia produced 59.8 million kg of sugar.

The SCPEC informed ARMENPRESS that the shares of the imports by companies have changed. The share of the leading sugar importing companies has declined. The share of imports by ''Alex Holding'' and ''Alex & Holding'' has declined from 67% to 49%, while sales have declined from 95% to 88%.

The study also shows that in 2017-2019, the retail and wholesale prices of sugar decreased as well, from an average of 387 drams to 292 drams.

The SCPEC recorded that sugar market in terms of both imports and sales has been highly centralized.

Edited and translated by Tigran Sirekanyan
SANAA, Yemen - Tribal leaders said Saturday a suspected U.S. drone strike destroyed a building housing al-Qaida militants last week in eastern Yemen.

President Donald Trump, meanwhile, retweeted several tweets and media reports that seemed to offer confirmation the Jan. 25 strike killed top al-Qaida leader Qassim al-Rimi.

The tribal leaders said the drone strike took place in the Wadi Ubaidah area in the eastern province of Marib. The area is known as a stronghold for al-Qaida in the Arabian Peninsula, or AQAP, as the Yemeni affiliate is known.

They said at least three explosions rocked the area, and that the building was set ablaze.

It was not immediately clear how many militants were in the building at the time or their identities. The tribal leaders said a handful of al-Qaida militants arrived at the area directly after the strike and cordoned off the area.

The tribal leaders spoke on condition of anonymity because they feared reprisals.

Trump on Saturday retweeted a handful of tweets and articles that seemed to offer confirmation that al-Rimi, one of AQAPs founders and its current chief, was killed in the strike. The White House did not comment on whether Trumps retweeting was confirmation and The Associated Press has asked administration officials to clarify.

The CIA declined to comment.

The attack was first reported by The New York Times.

Al-Rimi succeeded Nasser al-Wahishi, who was killed in a U.S. drone strike in 2015, as the top leader of AQAP.

Among Trumps retweets was a thread by Rita Katz, director of SITE Intelligence Group, which tracks messaging by militant groups. Katz said the attack took place Jan. 25 and she began tweeting about it Jan. 27.

If true, and it seems to be, the death of al-Rimi would mark a major blow to #AlQaeda on the whole. Al-Rimi was a candidate for succeeding AQ leader Zawahiri, Katz tweeted Thursday. She was referring to al-Qaida chief Ayman al-Zawahiri.

Katz said that of all living al-Qaida leaders, al-Rimi was the most compelling, known for his charisma & beloved across the AQ community.

AQAP has long been considered the global networks most dangerous branch and has attempted to carry out attacks on the U.S. mainland.

Yemen was plunged into civil war in 2014. Al-Qaida and an Islamic State affiliate have exploited the chaos to expand their presence in the country.

___

Magdy reported from Cairo. Associated Press writer Deb Riechmann in Washington contributed.
T he vice-chancellor of a university at the centre of the coronavirus outbreak in the UK has said agencies are working to ensure the city and campus "remain safe".

Health chiefs confirmed on Friday that two people in the UK had tested positive for the killer virus strain, later revealing one of the patients is a student at the University of York.

The university's VC, professor Charlie Jeffery said that while the news will cause concern and anxiety among our students, staff, and the wider community, the risk of infection is "low".

In a statement given in front of the UK's media on Saturday, he said: "Our immediate concerns are for the affected student and family, along with the health and continued wellbeing of our students, staff, and the residents and visitors of our city.

President of the Student Union, Samara Jones and Professor Charlie Jeffrey address concerns over coronavirus in the city / Getty Images

We understand this development will cause concern and anxiety.

I want to reassure our students, staff and the wider community, that we are working closely with the lead agency, Public Health England, and other agencies to manage this situation.

"I want to reiterate to students, staff, parents and visitors that we're working with our partners across the city to ensure that York and the university remain a safe and welcoming place to live, work and visit."

He added the university - home to staff and students from more than 140 countries, is "very much an international community".

York University has become a focal point for the UK coronavirus outbreak after one of their students was struck by the illness / PA

A spokesman said the student is not believed to have come into contact with anyone on campus while they had symptoms.

The student and another member of their family are being treated at a specialist unit in Newcastle.

Public Health England is continuing to work to try to trace people who had close contact  defined as being within two metres of the infected person for 15 minutes  with the pair.

The hotel firm has said the apartment involved has been thoroughly disinfected and PHE has been providing support.

Meanwhile, a helpline has been opened by the Students' Union to field concerns from panicked students.

University of York Students Union president Samara Jones said many students are likely to be worried by the news.

She said: The student community at York is a tight-knit, global community and we will continue to support one another at this time.

Ms Jones said the union would work with the university and health authorities to continue providing accurate, up-to-date information as soon as it is available.

There has been a surge of people wearing masks in the UK since two confirmed cases were announced / AP

She added: I would encourage students with any questions to keep an eye on the university website for any developments and key information. Our dedicated helpline will remain open over the weekend.

The University of Derby has also isolated some of its students who returned from Wuhan for 14 days following advice from Public Health England and the World Health Organisation.

Over 80 Britons repatriated from Wuhan were repatriated on Friday and quarantine at Arrowe Park Hospital in the Wirral.
We understand this development will cause concern and anxiety among our students, staff, and the wider community.

PHE (Public Health England) has advised us that the risk of infection being passed to others on campus is low.

Current information from PHE suggests that the student did not come into contact with anybody on campus whilst they had symptoms, but investigations are ongoing to fully establish this.

Our immediate concerns are for the affected student and family, along with the health and continued wellbeing of our staff, students and visitors.
Two Cases of Coronavirus Confirmed in UK - England's Chief Medical Officer

Sputnik News

09:31 GMT 31.01.2020(updated 10:06 GMT 31.01.2020)

Earlier in the day, the UK Foreign Office stated that a plane carrying 83 UK and 27 foreign nationals had left the Chinese city of Wuhan.

Reuters reported Friday citing Chief Medical Officer for England Chris Whitty that two cases of coronavirus have been confirmed in the country.

The official further added that the two people were members of the same family.

"We can confirm that two patients in England, who are members of the same family, have tested positive for coronavirus," Chris Whitty said, adding they were getting "specialist care".

According to the senior official, "the NHS is extremely well-prepared and used to managing infections and we are already working rapidly to identify any contacts the patients had, to prevent further spread."

The confirmation comes hours after it was reported that a plane had evacuated 83 UK and 27 foreign nationals

from the Chinese city of Wuhan, the epicentre of the new coronavirus outbreak.

Earlier this week, Dr Yvonne Doyle, a medical director and director for health protection at Public Health England, said that the country was "well prepared" for a potential outbreak of the virus.

The novel strain of coronavirus was first detected in Wuhan, Hubei province, last December and has since spread to 19 countries. The virus has already killed 213 people in China as well as infected over 9,600 more.

 Sputnik

NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address






(This story was published Friday in the Ravalli Republic in partnership with the Bitterroot Valley Chamber of Commerce. The Chamber of Commerce's 114th annual awards banquet will be held Saturday, Feb. 8 at the Ravalli County Fairgrounds Interstate Building.)

Susan Wetzsteon is the 2020 Volunteer of the Year by the Bitterroot Valley Chamber of Commerce.

She is the store manager at Mikesell's Fine Jewelry where she has worked for 14 years. Before that she inspired quilters at Fabric Shop and Quilts (owned by Rosalie Reinbold) and owned her fabric business In Good Company with Jaime Grant, Sue Engle and Sue Anne Iman for 17-years.

She said the honor of being selected Volunteer of the Year was a surprise.

I am honored to be receiving the Volunteer of the Year Award, Wetzsteon said. It was very nice to be recognized.

She said she chooses to be involved with the Bitterroot Valley Chamber of Commerce as a nod to the past and to help build a solid future.

It is hand in hand with what I feel passionate about, Wetzsteon said. Why I get involved in the community is that, personally, being a fifth generation Bitterrooter I want my grandchildren and their children to be able to live and work and have a life in the Bitterroot Valley, to continue to live and prosper here.

She is the recent past president of the BVCC and she did put in many hours with that but the award is also for her volunteer work in the larger community. She volunteers with church programs, the Bitterroot Quilters Guild, Sprinkle Pink, the BVCC board and the Downtown Hamilton Business Improvement District (DHBID).

This is my fifth year on the Chamber board and I got involved with the Chamber by being liaison between the Chamber and HDA, as HDA president, Wetzsteon said. The DHBID board represents the property owners of the downtown. We manage the taxing for those businesses, trash collection, outdoor lights, snow removal and flower pots  the beautification of downtown.

My husband says I have a hard time saying no but I think it is a good thing, Wetzsteon said. People need to get involved in their community and this is a great community to get involved in.

She represents the fifth-generation of her Bitterroot family, who moved back Montana in 1969-70. She graduated from Hamilton High School, attended college at the University of Montana.

She got married here and has two sons and families with five grandchildren. Her oldest son lives in the Bitterroot Valley and her youngest son is in the Air Force in Las Vegas.

Wetzsteon said she is optimistic for the future of the Bitterroot Valley.

In other places downtowns are dying but we have a thriving downtown business community, she said.

Shes pleased with two key efforts completed in her tenure as Chamber president.

The Chamber has been able to update our website mobile ap and it will be ready in April, she said. Our website will be more user friendly. Also, weve beefed up and added to our leadership program with guest lectures from leaders from Western Montana.

She said the BVCC Board is a great group of people to work with and that she has enjoyed getting to know them.

People ask what the Chamber is going to do for them but it is more how joining helps makes you part of the community and makes the community a stronger and better place, she said. Also, people need to think about what they can add, how they can help to make it stronger. Its not always what you can get, but how you can help.

Love 2 Funny 0 Wow 1 Sad 0 Angry 0
North Korea's Rodong Sinmun called on the country's people Saturday to show "absolute obedience" to Pyongyang's stepped-up campaign to prevent the spread of a deadly new coronavirus originating in the central Chinese city of Wuhan.







The call came as the North has reportedly shut down all air and railway routes across its borders with China and taken other steps to fend off the highly contagious disease that could potentially hamper its efforts to improve people's livelihoods.







"We have to thoroughly protect the lives of the people and the safety of the nation by ramping up disinfection efforts," the Workers' Party organ said in an editorial.







"We have to establish strong rules to ensure their absolute obedience to the national emergency measures," it added.






A district court judge ruled Friday that a lawsuit brought by Harris County against Exxon Mobil can proceed, a win for county leaders who have stepped up environmental enforcement efforts.

Overall, I think the court recognized that local governments have a role in these lawsuits and that needs to be maintained, Rock Owens, special assistant Harris County Attorney for environmental matters, said after the ruling.

The office of Attorney General Ken Paxton could not be reached for comment, but Owens said the states attorneys will appeal.

The case was the first legal test for an April order by Commissioners Court that allows the county attorneys office to file some environmental lawsuits without first having to get the approval of commissioners on a case-by-case basis.

Harris County filed a lawsuit against Exxon on Aug. 1, a day after a chemical fire at its Baytown facility injured 37.

The states attorney general filed its own lawsuit four days later, and in November took Harris County to court, arguing that its lawsuit should be dismissed because it needed to have explicit approval from county commissioners prior to being filed.

To the extent that Harris County implies the April 30 Order is necessary to respond to emergencies occurring between regular sessions of the Commissioners Court, the County is wrong, the state wrote in court documents. The Legislature has provided the County with the tools needed to address emergencies.

When the countys order was discussed, commissioners and county officials cited recent chemical fires as the reason why the county attorney needed to file environmental lawsuits as soon as possible after an event to protect the public and the environment, to preserve evidence; and to prevent additional negative impacts to the community.

But in a court filing, the attorney general quotes one commissioner as saying: Assuming it meets the standard, I think its a good idea to give you all essentially a rolling authorization because what were really trying to do is get around the State, given the AGs ability to rush to the court, and someone said earlier the concern is: are they rushing to the court to help abate the situation or to give cover to the person being accused of (inaudible)?

Who sues first dictates not only where the case will be heard, but also where the money will go if there are civil penalties. If Harris County leads with the state being a party to its lawsuit, the money is split between both parties. But if the state sues without the local governments involvement, it goes back to the states general revenue.

As chemical plant explosions and fires have disrupted lives and raised air-quality concerns in the Houston area this past year, the Republican-led state and its most populous county, now controlled by Democrats, have been racing to the courthouse to take the lead on environmental suits.

The countys case against Exxon is on hold until the states petition goes through the appeals process.

perla.trevizo@chron.com
The 15th Finance Commission's interim report might be tabled in Parliament on February 1, according to media reports.

If the Finance Commission's report is tabled, states will most likely bring up the topic of "devolution" since they have been seeking a larger share of the Centre's divisible tax pool.

States currently receive 42 percent of the Centre's divisible tax pool, as was proposed by the 14th Finance Commission.

The interim report is expected to keep the devolution at 42 percent for FY21, News18 reported.

Also read: Will states get 42% or more from central taxes? Watch out for the 15th Finance Commission report

States wold be unhappy if their share of the the Consolidated Fund of India (CFI) is lowered since they are already struggling with revenue deficit and delays in payout of goods and services tax (GST) compensation payout.

Thomas Isaac, the finance minister of Kerala, recently said he hopes that the 15th Finance Commission will not lower the existing 42 percent devolution.

"It cannot be reduced, it is politically damaging. So therefore, they are trying it the other way around. Reduce the divisible pool itself.... That is the centres problem," Isaac said, as quoted by BloombergQuint.

Telangana Finance Minister T Harish Rao has asked the Finance Commission to increase the devolution to states.
If theres a prize for the great survivor in politics, the UNP leader will surely get it

Premadasa will lead the UNP-led UNF alliance and head the nomination board, but final say with Wickremesinghe

SLPP confident of winning parliamentary elections and hopes for a two-thirds majority; Sirisena revives PA under new name

It seemed an unusual case of snatching defeat from the jaws of victory for United National Party (UNP) deputy leader Sajith Premadasa.

Adorning the mantle of Leader of the Opposition with a promise in his pocket that he would be the Prime Ministerial candidate, Premadasa fought for weeks to oust Ranil Wickremesinghe and become the leader of the UNP. That was to lead the party and its allies at the parliamentary elections expected in late April.

Last Thursday, the day of reckoning, he and his loyalists boycotted the meeting of the newly constituted Working Committee. It was held at Siri Kotha with 37 of the 59 appointed so far taking part.

The immediate cause for the boycott was the exclusion of Ajith Perera and Field Marshal Sarath Fonseka from the Working Committee. Perera had been dropped for the public utterances he had continued to make against the party leadership, and Fonseka ostensibly for recent remarks that the UNP lost the elections, inter-alia, for pumping funds to the north rather than the south. This had not been well received by UNP MPs whose constituencies had Tamil voters. They pointed out that the UNP would face disastrous consequences if it lost the Tamil vote and said there could be a possibility of the TNA (Tamil National Alliance) fielding a candidate in either Colombo or Gampaha districts at the expense of the UNP. Also removed was Imtiaz Bakeer Markar who occupied a slot reserved for former MPs. A fourth name, that of Rosie Senanayake, the Colombo Mayor, having her membership ended, it was explained, was an oversight from the party headquarters. Her friendship with the Premadasa family was speculated to be the reason for her being dropped by the party leader, but she is expected to be reinstated by party leader Ranil Wickremesinghe.

That these developments came overnight after Wickremesinghe and Premadasa had a one-on-one meeting last Sunday was the cause for the rupture. There they talked of the contours of a peaceful settlement and all seemed set to end the festering crisis within the UNP. There were differences of opinion on some matters, too. Yet, there was no discussion on the new Working Committees composition since that was the prerogative of the leader. There were two additions  ex diplomats Karunasena Kodituwakku and Daya Pelpola.

Ranis plans

Notwithstanding his failings, if there is a politician in Sri Lanka who had gone through the worst rough and tumble in politics, Ranil Wickremesinghe would be a contender for the top slot. He has faced humiliation and insults in no small measure. With the poise of a statue, he stood calm as some MPs hurled abuse at a recent meeting of the partys parliamentary group, some of whom he introduced into politics and mentored. He has been accused on occasions of not eliciting a smile. Yet, his strongest acumen has been checkmating his rivals through political manipulation, perhaps a trait needed to be a successful politician. He has excelled in the art and turned it virtually to a science, which appears to be the adrenaline that keeps him going. It came to play as his plans unravelled.

At Thursdays meeting boycotted by the Premadasa faction, Wickremesinghe declared that Premadasa could lead the proposed broader Alliance and represent the UNP in the Alliance. He (Premadasa) would be the chairman of the Nomination Board to select candidates for the upcoming elections together with other office-bearers. National Organiser Navin Dissanayake has expressed an interest to serve. Lakshman Kiriella proposed the name of Ravi Karunanayake. That was accepted. Kiriella also proposed the name of Malik Samarawickrema, onetime Chairman of the UNP but he (Samarawickrama) declined. But all these nominations are only possible with the concurrence of the Leader,

Wickremesinghe. He will have to approve the final list. While leaders of other parties in the Alliance can be co-opted to the Nomination Board, all those wanting nominations from the UNP will eventually need the nod of approval from Wickremesinghe.

Wickremesinghe then said Premadasa could pick on a General Secretary for the broader alliance, but that person will have to be from the UNP and that nominee will require the concurrence of the Working Committee, read partly, as Wickremesinghe who appoints the Working Committee.

Among the other proposals adopted were that the UNP have a majority in all decision-making bodies of the Alliance and all discussions and negotiations between the UNP and the Alliance members be reported back to the Working Committee.

Finally, Wickremesinghe and Premadasa to discuss the appointment of new party organisers before any decision is eventually taken by the partys Advisory Committee.

Ahead of the Working Committee meeting, Premadasa loyalists met separately to discuss matters. They made appeals to Malik Samarawickrema, who was in Kandy, to come to Colombo. In view of the short time available, he flew in a Cinnamon Air flight. Joining in was Mangala Samaraweera who had just returned from an extended post-election vacation in England, among other Premadasa backers. After the meeting ended, Both Samarawickrema and Samaraweera urged Premadasa that they should not boycott the meeting but take part in it. They argued that the non-inclusion of Ajith Perera and Field Marshal Fonseka was an issue they could raise at the meeting. Samaraweera was to point out that matters could be resolved only through dialogue. However, their efforts proved futile.

Significant enough, both Samarawickrema and Samaraweera attended the meeting of the Working Committee  a strong message that they do not share the views of Premadasa and his faction over the boycott. That is not all. It would also mean they will remain passive supporters of Premadasa at the parliamentary elections. Not surprisingly, the duo, together with UNP Chairman Kabir Hashim, were literally sidelined during the presidential election campaign. That by itself is a blow to Premadasa who would now have to depend on a second eleven team from the UNP. Senior party members John Amaratunge, Kiriella, Vajira Abeywardene, P. Harrison, Range Bandara, Kavinda Jayawardene and Ravi Karunanayake were among those present, while some others like Daya Gamage had excused themselves in order to attend the funeral of Magistrate Pilapitiyas father. It is members of this second eleven team who dissuaded him (Premadasa) from taking part in the WC meeting. Other seniors said it was an outside force who bore heavy influence on Premadasa.

UNP General Secretary Akila Viraj Kariyawasam told the media on Thursday evening that up to date 59 members had been appointed to the Working Committee. Of them 37 were present that day. Six of them had informed the party earlier that they would not be available. Sixteen other members did not turn up. As there was a quorum, the Working Committee meeting was held. It was resolved at the meeting that Sajith Premadasa should give leadership to the alliance for the election campaign under the leadership of Ranil Wickremesinghe. Mr Premadasa would also be the Prime Ministerial candidate.

Q: Why were some Working Committee members removed?

Akila: Nobody was removed. Originally there were 68 members and of them 59 have been reappointed. There are few more nominations to come. Only two former members not reappointed.

Q: Who are they?

Akila: Ajith Perera and Field Marshal Sarath Fonseka.

Q: Why were they not appointed?

Akila: There were complaints against Ajith Perera about his behavior at the last Working Committee meeting.

Q: What about Fonseka

Akila: Regarding him too there were complaints about the comments he made. This can be discussed in future and a decision taken.

His last answer reflects Wickremesinghe agreeing to consider the matter on a later occasion. In fact, Ajith Perera, did call on the party leader after the WC meeting to plead his case. Also present were Chairman Kabir Hashim and onetime Chairman Malik Samarawickrema. Perera only said talks were successful but declined to elaborate.

UNP Chairman Kabir Hashim, though he did not take part in the meeting, told reporters at Siri Kotha on Thursday evening we have achieved most of our aims.

One such aim, he explained, was for them to join hands with other parties in a broader alliance. At least for him, it seemed, the biggest obstacle remained a decision at the new Working Committee. However, it is well known that Premadasa loyalists have been talking to leaders of allied political parties for weeks now. That is in defiance of a directive from their leader who had designated only four members to continue a dialogue.

Hashims statement

There is none so blind as those who refuse to see goes the saying. That could better illustrate the fairy tale explanation of Hashim, who has once served as the General Secretary of the UNP. One of the main campaigners for Premadasa, he has missed the wood for the trees.

The Premadasa loyalists campaign so far has been singularly to oust Wickremesinghe and gain the leadership of the UNP. This is having gained the office of the Leader of the Opposition and the Prime Minister-in-waiting. Whatever achievements Hashim says they have accomplished; he and his partners have failed in their campaign to wrest the party leadership for Premadasa. So, by boycotting the WC meeting on Thursday, they have denied to themselves the opportunity to raise issues, including over leadership and the removal of the two members from the WC. Wickremesinghe could not have asked for better stance by the Premadasa loyalists so he could proceed with a peaceful meeting of the partys highest decision-making body. Thus, are Hashims remarks of an achievement, a way of saying they would now fall in line with Wickremesinghe, whom they sought to oust?

It is not a far cry from the partys parliamentary group meeting held at Siri Kotha on January 19 (Thursday). Highlights in the political commentary of that day are relevant. The meeting began with Wickremesinghe in the chair at the conference hall at Siri Kotha where the Working Committee usually meets. The Working Committee, the main policymaking body of the party, has ceased to exist with members concluding their term on December 31, last year. A new one is yet to be appointed by leader Wickremesinghe.

He dealt at length with the plethora of tape recordings made by Ranjan Ramanayake, who has been suspended from the party. In fact, General Secretary Akila Viraj Kariyawasam has said the Gampaha District MP will face an inquiry. Thereafter, he complained that there was victimisation of party supporters by the SLPP-led alliance government. When he was delving on the subject for a considerable time, Ranjith Madduma Bandara, a former Minister, interrupted. He pointed out that the subject of discussion at their meeting was the leadership issue and urged that it be taken up. Wickremesinghe replied that a leader should take over the party only in 2025..

Harin Fernando, a former Minister, also demanded that a vote for the leadership be taken. I cant give you a vote, asserted Wickremesinghe. That took an interesting turn when Premadasa proposed that a vote from those present be taken first. This was to purely determine whether the majority would agree to a decision on the leadership issue..

By this time, the meeting was taking a chaotic turn with some resorting to boos and catcalls. Several other Premadasa loyalists had spoken taking much of the time as the controversy dragged on. Leader Wickremesinghe declared that the meeting was now adjourned. At this stage, MPs backing him walked out

Premadasa loyalists defied his ruling from the chair that the meeting had been adjourned. They abandoned their chairs and sat on the ground surrounding the main table. They wanted to prevent Wickremesinghe, who was still seated, from leaving. It was a siege of sorts. At one point, Wickremesinghe asked Akila Viraj Kariyawasam, to switch off the air conditioner in the hope that the pro-Premadasa MPs would walk out. Immediately after it was switched off, another MP rushed past others and turned it on. Later, Wickremesinghe found his way into his office room. No one obstructed him.

The matter did not end there. Premadasa loyalists chose to hold their own group meeting with Premadasa in the chair. One MP said it reminded him of the scene when Arundika Fernando sat on the vacant Speakers chair during the constitutional crisis of 2018. Ranjith Madduma Bandara proposed that Premadasa chair the meeting in the absence of the leader. Harin Fernando moved a resolution for those present there to form an alliance with other partner parties of the NDF with Premadasa as leader. The proceedings were videoed on his mobile telephone by Fernando, the former Telecommunications Minister. It showed the voting process. Casting their vote were 52 who raised their hands. There was no one left to oppose. There was clapping. It was agreed thereafter that this group would meet in Parliament on Friday afternoon to discuss the formation of their new alliance.

That event was clear proof that Premadasa loyalists launched a diehard battle to oust Wickremesinghe. They failed. Then they decided to meet again in Parliament the next day. In the aftermath, Premadasa had a meeting with Speaker Karu Jayasuriya. He in turn met Wickremesinghe for a one-on-one discussion. Jayasuriya, the senior figure in the party, is a veteran in politics. He was even named as a member of the proposed Leadership Council, though, he has not figured in the current equation. He has served in such a council before but ironic enough, his name pops up every time only when there is a crisis within the UNP.

The fact that Wickremesinghe is leader of the UNP by virtue of the partys constitution appears lost on Premadasa and his backers. If indeed the idea was to ensure that he was ousted, the question is whether chest thumping at meetings and making statements to the media were only making a bad situation, worse. It is such a move that has brought about a confrontational situation. And now, that has virtually pushed Premadasa and his loyalists to a take it or leave it situation.

Parliamentary elections prospects

The critical question that remains now is whether Premadasa and his backers will accept the latest decision of the WC or continue their campaign. Various MPs backing him have been making contradictory claims. For them, such an acceptance could also come as a performance test at the parliamentary elections. Almost all of them, including Premadasa lost their seats badly in the presidential election. Now comes the dim prospect for a victory at the parliamentary elections. This time their opponent is not exactly Gotabaya Rajapaksa, but Mahinda Rajapaksa, the more seasoned campaigner. Whatever the arguments are, Wickremesinghe has armed himself to point the finger at Premadasa after a possible failure at the parliamentary elections. This is on the basis that he had conceded all what Premadasa wanted except the leadership.

In the event of their acceptance of the Working Committee formula, the first task for Premadasa faction would be to begin negotiations with those who constitute the New Democratic Front  Champika Ranawakas Jathika Hela Urumaya, Rauff Hakeems Sri Lanka Muslim Congress (SLMC), Rishad Bathiuddins All Ceylon Makkal Katchi (ACMC), Palani Digambarams National Union of Workers (NUC) and Mano Ganesans Democratic Peoples Front (DPF).

For example, SLMC leader Rauff Hakeem told the Sunday Times, We are keeping ourselves available whilst exploring a number of other options. Let the UNP decide what it wants to do. We have made clear that we do not want to be exploited. He said that the SLMC had already held talks with the Tamil National Alliance (TNA) and proposed to talk to other parties too. We are hopeful and at the same time very concerned that time is running short, Hakeem added.

If Premadasa backers had earlier spoken on their own to these parties in their pursuit of a broader alliance, such talks now would be under the aegis of the UNP or in other words with two Wickremesinghe loyalists  Navin Dissanayake and Ravi Karunanayake. Premadasa will be only its leader. Such a dialogue will naturally entail demands from each of these parties and are usually worked out on the assumption that they would win. Consequently, that would include the number of ministers, deputies and state ministers.

That such a dialogue will entail substantial time is one thing. What is far more important is the timing for parliamentary polls. After midnight on March 2, the President is empowered to dissolve Parliament. He is set to go for polls in the third week of April. Thus, the protracted delays in the UNP, are bound to add to the partys woes.

On the other hand, if one were to assume that contrary to UNP Chairman Kabir Hashims conciliatory remarks, or the extension of an olive branch, the Premadasa faction wants to take a hard line, they have little choice. And that is to go their own way by forming an alliance under Premadasas leadership and coming to terms with partner parties. Thus, it is a case of eating more humble pie or fall in line.

The Working Committee meeting notwithstanding, an influential section of the Premadasa group are also busy working plans to contest under a different party. Two different persons holding two such parties have offered their names and formalities are now under discussion. However, it is not immediately clear whether or not the Premadasa group will head in that direction. One source said that allied parties of the New Democratic Front (NDF) will meet on Monday to discuss matters.

Either way, Premadasa and his backers imbibed too much gung-ho than weigh rational options in their struggle. This is mainly the cause for their current predicament. Notably some of the seniors will not be available for him. One is Mangala Samaraweera, though under a political cloud after public remarks about Sri Lanka not being a Buddhist country, and his last minute push for the US grant through the Millennium Challenge Corporation (MCC). Nevertheless, he is known to be a good political strategist and was Campaign Manager at the presidential elections in 2005 for Mahinda Rajapaksa. Malik Samarawickremas strong point has remained his links to Colombos business community and the corporate sector. He has not only raised funds for the polls, but also for events like May Day rallies and other occasions.

SLPP, SLFP issues

It is not only the UNP that has issues within to resolve. For the Sri Lanka Podujana Peramuna (SLPP), which leads the ruling alliance, and the Sri Lanka Freedom Party (SLFP), different issues persist, though they intend to contest together with others. Once again, the SLFP has raised issue over a common symbol to replace the Pohottuwa (lotus flower bud). In what appears to be a significant move, former President Maithripala Sirisena convened a meeting of the Peoples Alliance (PA), a precursor of the United Peoples Freedom Alliance (UPFA). The PA has among its members those who are now with the SLPP.

At this meeting it was decided to re-name the Peoples Alliance as the Sri Lanka Podujana Nidahas Sandhanaya (SLPNS). The SLFPs senior Vice President Nimal Siripala de Silva said, Thirteen political parties are in this alliance. In its constitution, the power of the Executive Committee will be shared with 51 percent for the Sri Lanka Podujana Peramuna (SLPP), 31 percent to the Sri Lanka Freedom Party (SLFP) and the rest to the other parties. The Secretary, the Treasurer and the Vice President positions will be for the SLPP. There will be joint leaders  Maithripala Sirisena and Mahinda Rajapaksa. The party symbol is not a problem, that will be resolved.

Since the SLFP signed a Memorandum of Understanding with the SLPP prior to the presidential election, some ground realities have changed. The SLPP leadership wants to seek guarantees from its SLFP counterparts that MPs who win at the parliamentary elections would not cross over. How such guarantees are to be worked out is still not clear but the return of SLPP national organiser Basil Rajapaksa is awaited.

He is due to return to Colombo tomorrow from Los Angeles. One of the tasks he will undertake immediately is to play the role of General Secretary of the SLPP, a powerful position in the light of the upcoming parliamentary elections. It is the General Secretary of a political party who has to signify the candidature of persons contesting the elections.

In changing political equations, this development came amidst key SLPP members making a call to contest under the Pohottuwa symbol. They are of the view that they can win a clear majority if they contest under their established identity. Apart from which symbol the SLPP-led alliance would contest, another issue it faces is the selection of candidates. There is a growing demand to include academics and professionals, the wish of President Gotabaya Rajapaksa. However, seasoned politicians opine that it is important to field winnable candidates and not necessarily academics or those possessing professional qualifications.

Another aspect is the Janatha Vimukthi Peramuna (JVP). It is not immediately clear whether the party, which received a routing at the presidential election, will contest on its own or its adopted identity  the National Peoples Power (NPP).

In exactly a months time the current Parliament will be dissolved. The SLPP, though certain of victory, remains committed to securing a two-thirds majority. Other than the internal issues, day-to-day governance is adding to their woes. Among the issues are the cost of living, unemployment and even a looming power crisis. This is if hydro reservoirs, as feared, go dry. That will cost the SLPP politically. However, a divided and fragile opposition will not be able to seize the situation to make political capital.
The concerns of an overwhelming number of people, particularly men and women from the underprivileged class, have been addressed by Nirmala Sitharaman's Budget speech.

Nirmala Sitharaman's 160-minute Budget speech, the longest ever by a finance minister, dealt with all aspects of the economy and the intended direction for the next financial year.

Sitharaman addressed BJPs core social constituency: farmers and the middle class. With campaigning for Delhi Assembly elections entering its last leg, the revised personal taxation slabs offering relief to the salaried middle class may make an impact.

The Budget will sit well with young entrepreneurs in the National Capital as it puts more money in their pockets, simplifies taxes and the compliance process for start-ups.

The concerns of an overwhelming number of people, particularly men and women from the underprivileged class, who opened bank accounts under the Jan Dhan scheme, have been addressed. Sitharaman proposed hiking the bank deposit insurance to Rs 5 lakh per depositor from Rs 1 lakh, which will surely be a talking point for the Delhi polls.

Sitharaman, addressing the criticism of the government's handling of the Valley, referred to a verse by Kashmiri poet Pandit Dinanath Koul depicting the beauty of the region and its passion for the nation. Hamara watan khilte hue Shalimar Bagh Jaisa, Hamara watan Dal Lake mekhilte hue kamal jaisa, nawjawano ke garam khoon jaisa, mera watan-tera watan-hamara watan duniya me sabse pyara.

From the political perspective, the middle class has been BJPs core support base. The party has made overtures to farmers with several flagship schemes. Sitharaman put a great deal of stress on issues related to agriculture, farmers and developing infrastructure in rural areas, including a digital framework through Bharatnet.

Sitharaman and others associated with the Budget thought it prudent to put schemes for agriculture and rural areas under the broad theme of aspirational India and spoke about it at length, classifying it in three sub-heads: 1. Agriculture Irrigation and Rural development, 2. Wellness, Water and Sanitation and 3. Education and Skills.

She said, This Budget is woven around three prominent themes: One: Aspirational India in which all sections of the society seek better standards of living, with access to health, education and better jobs. Two: Economic development for all, indicated in the Prime Ministers exhortation of Sabka Saath, Sabka Vikas, Sabka Vishwas. This would entail reforms across swathes of the economy. Simultaneously, it would mean yielding more space for the private sector. Together, they would ensure higher productivity and greater efficiency. Sitharaman listed 16 actionable points for development of the agriculture sector.

Though the Modi government offered sops to middle class in previous budgets, this time around expectations were high regarding Income Tax relief. Under the new regime, an individual shall be required to pay tax at the reduced rate of 10 percent for income between Rs 5 lakh to Rs 7. 5 lakh against the current rate of 20 percent.

For income between Rs 7.5 lakh to Rs 10 lakh he will pay at the reduced rate of 15 percent against the current rate of 20 percent. Similarly, for the income between Rs 10 lakh to Rs 12.5 lakh the taxpayer will pay at the reduced rate of 20 percent against the current rate of 30 percent. The income between Rs 12.5 lakh to Rs 15 lakh will be taxed at the reduced rate of 25 against the existing rate of 30 percent. Income above 15 lakh will be continued to be taxed at the rate of 30. Those earning up to Rs 5 lakh shall not pay any tax either in the old regime or in the new regime.

To ensure that her message hit home instantly, Sitharaman gave the following example: A person earning Rs 15 lakh and not availing any deductions will pay Rs 1,95,000 as compared to Rs 2,73,000 under the old regime, thus reducing his burden by Rs 78,000.

Even if he opted for deducting Rs 1.5 lakh under various sections of Chapter 6-A of the Income Tax Act under the old regime, he'd still gain under the new regime. The announcement that a taxpayer could opt for the new or old regime brought cheer to many.

While the business class has been supportive of the BJP, there have been some concerns regarding the way tax authorities and other agencies have pursued some cases. Sitharaman sent a message to such officials: Tax harassment wont be tolerated.
A man from Mississippi is now included in the US Marshals 15 Most Wanted escapees list. This was made after the man faked his death to skip prosecution for a rape case. The victim was his 14-year-old stepdaughter.

Where could he be Hiding?

Authorities think that 43-year-old Jacob Blair Scott may be surviving in the outside world due to his military training background.

A $25,000 reward is up for grabs for those who can provide relevant information that will lead to the discovery of the whereabouts of Scott.

Scott was from Moss Point. He was prosecuted in Jackson County for 14 criminal cases.

Some of the criminal cases charged against this man from Mississippi are touching a minor for lustful reasons, sexual battery, and child exploitation.

According to Carlos Cosby, the Supervisory Deputy Inspector, the need to find and prosecute Scott is their duty to provide justice for his victim and her family.

"This is a horrific act that she shouldn't have to go through and he should be brought to justice for this," said Cosby.

Still, out on bond, the man from Mississippi did not attend a court hearing in July 2018, stated by the authorities. They had also located the boat of Scott on the coast of Alabama in Orange Beach.

In the abandoned boat, the investigators on the case found a gun and a suicide note. There was no sufficient evidence to support suicide by Scott.

The authorities searched through the Gulf of Mexico for Scott's dead body, but it was never found.

Later on, it was discovered by the investigators that before the disappearance of Scott, he was able to withdraw money amounting to $45,000 from his bank savings. The amount has not been recovered.

Is it Legal to Fake One's Death?

In an article by mentalfloss, Pseudocide or faking one's death is not directly illegal. This more or less means that it is legal to fake your death. However, don't get too excited to start a new identity because faking your death may indirectly violate some laws.

As stated above, to fake one's death is not directly a crime. However, doing so may result in the violation of some rules of the state.

Some reasons why people fake their death is for insurance claims, avoid loan payment, and in the case of Mississippi's Scott, avoidance of prosecution for a crime.

Other crimes that may arise after faking one's death include tax evasion, death certificate forgery, and filing falsified police reports.

Despite the absence of a law that prohibits faking death, people who want a new identity cannot do so legally in the United States of America.

Another Case Like Scott's

An article from Insider, dated July 24, 2019, had also reported a man faking his death to escape from prosecution for a staggering 24 rape cases.

Ken Gordon-Avis had faked his death by showing that he lost his life from drowning. His body was never recovered by the police after a thorough search using a helicopter, divers, and drones.

After the search team's failure to locate the body of Gordon-Avis, the police concluded that he too, faked his death.
In a televised statement after Union Budget was presented in the Lok Sabha by Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman, Modi said: "I am sure this Budget will boost income and investment as well as demand and consumption. It will infuse new life into the financial system and enhance the credit flow."

Speaking of various reforms and initiatives announced in the Budget, Modi said the measures will "give pace to the economy, make every citizen financially strong and strengthen the foundation of country's economy".

The Prime Minister particularly mentioned the proposed online common examination to be conducted by the Recruitment Agency for recruitment in various government jobs including in banks and railways. The examination will save a lot of efforts and resources put in by the job seekers who had to appear in separate exams for separate jobs, Modi said.

Referring to the steps to minimise government and maximise governance, the Prime Minister mentioned faceless appeal in tax-related matters, new simplified structure for direct tax, focus on disinvestment, increasing unified procurement and auto-enrolment for a universal pension.

He said that a number of offences of civil nature in the Companies law will be decriminalised, and the taxpayers' rights will be defined through a Taxpayers' Charter.

"This Budget has strengthened my government's commitment towards 'minimum government, maximum government'," Modi noted.

The Prime Minister said that tax benefits given to startups and the real estate will accelerate economic growth.

Besides, concessions offered to foreign investors will attract them towards India.

The Prime Minister noted that the removal of dividend distribution tax will leave corporate houses with an extra Rs 25,000 crore which the companies can further invest.

Modi underlined that the "integrated approach" adopted in the Budget for the agriculture sector combining horticulture, animal husbandry and fisheries will increase "value addition" and generate more employment. The blue economy will provide the youth opportunities for fish processing and marketing.

He said 16 'Action Points' have been formulated to boost employment in the rural areas.

"All in all, this Budget will fulfil the aspirations of future along with the present needs," Modi said.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
South and West Sligo will be the place to be on Saturday, August 22 when adventure racers from all over the country descend on the Northwest as Sligo's newest adventure race Quest Sligo, the latest and most exciting event to be added to the Quest series of adventure races emerges onto the scene supported by the South and West Sligo Tourism Network.

Registration opens next Friday, February 7 for this brand-new, one-day, multi-discipline sporting event which will give participants the opportunity to experience the beauty and hidden gems of South and West Sligo. Temple House Lake, Ladies Brae, Ox Mountains and Coolaney are just some of the stunning locations that participants will traverse on the run, cycle and kayak sections of the event.

Available to people of all fitness levels and abilities, participants have the option of three scenic routes: 35km Challenge, 54km Sport or 73km Expert. As a general rule of thumb if you can run a 10km race you can sign up for a Quest Adventure Race. Whichever route is chosen participants are guaranteed an unforgettable experience with great comradery and adventure.

The finish line buzz at Quest events is legendary, participants will be welcomed across the line with food, drink, Japanese hot tubs, customised t-shirts and much more as well as plenty of other Quest participants ready to celebrate their great personal achievement.

Director of Quest Events, Oliver Kirwan said We are really looking forward to bringing the series to the North West again. Our route design team have been working hard in the area over the past couple of months to map out the course. We engaged the help of participants from the Quest community and brought a group on a Discovery Day recently where they tested out the routes with us. The feedback was excellent and we are really looking forward to a great event. There will be a thrill and a challenge for everyone on the day regardless of ability. The great thing about these events is that theyre really accessible and we would encourage local people to take a look and see if its something theyd like to challenge themselves with.

Quest Adventure Series are working with support from South and West Sligo Tourism Network to bring this high-profile event to the area. Paul Taylor, Chair said, We look forward to welcoming adventure racers and spectators from all over the country to experience what our region has to offer. With an estimated 1200 adventure racers expected to attend, this event will bring a significant boost to the Sligo economy. We will be working closely with the team at Quest to promote and support this event in the coming months while our members will be offering an array of customised packages.

Quest Sligo is part of Quest Adventure Series - their events encompass several one-day adventure races. Already well-established, events across Ireland in Killarney, Kenmare, Glendalough, Lough Derg and South Kerry attracted over 8,000 participants in 2019.

Quest Sligo opens for registration at 9.30am on Friday, February 7 with launch special and early bird rates available for a limited time only.

For more information visit https://www. questadventureseries.com/race/ quest-sligo/ or email annette@eliteevents.ie or call 0646635512.

For further details on visiting South and West Sligo, check out their website https:// southsligotourism.ie/
On Thursday, the Trump administration unveiled a change in the Medicaid program that will potentially slash benefits for millions of recipients, while opening the door for a broader assault on other entitlement programs, including Social Security and Medicare. The announcement received little attention in Washington, which is fixated on the Trump impeachment trial in the Senate.

Medicaid, a health program jointly administered by the federal government and the states, currently covers one in five Americans. There are currently 72.4 million individuals enrolled in Medicaid or the Childrens Health Insurance Program (CHIP). The Trump proposal would allow states to cap Medicaid spending for poor adults without children, many of whom gained coverage through the expansion of the program under the Affordable Care Act (ACA).

This dramatic change would allow states to convert a portion of Medicaid funding into block grants, received in one lump sum or on a per-enrollee basis, thus capping funding. It would incentivize states to cut Medicaid spending by allowing them to recoup the unspent portion of the block grants to be used as they please. To reduce spending, states would be granted flexibility in imposing co-payments and cutting benefits and services.

The Healthy Adult Opportunity initiative, as it is known, would be sanctioned only for adult beneficiaries younger than 65 who are not eligible for Medicaid due to pregnancy, a disability or a need for long-term care. However, states could also decide to include certain pregnant women or adults with children because their coverage is not mandated by federal law. The switch to the new model would be optional, and states would have to seek authority from the federal government to implement its features.

Medicaid was expanded under the ACA in 2014 to cover all US citizens and legal residents with income up to 133 percent of the poverty line, including adults without dependent children. Thirty-six states have so far expanded Medicaid to cover these poor adults, increasing Medicaid enrollment by 13.1 million.

The federal government covered the full cost of the expansion in 2014, reducing the federal governments share yearly by increments down to 90 percent of coverage beginning in 2020 and for all subsequent years. By contrast, the federal government generally pays between 50 and 77 percent of a states total Medicaid costs, depending on the states resources. Trumps new policy openly takes aim at the funding for Medicaid expansion by attacking coverage and benefits for those who have gained coverage.

Seema Verma, the administrator of the federal Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS), has long lobbied for transforming Medicaid. In January 2018, she led the push to allow states to require Medicaid recipients to work or get job training. As of 2019, 15 states had either received or were waiting for CMS authorization to impose the work requirements.

Before the work requirements were challenged in court, thousands had been thrown off the rolls, including nearly 18,000 in Arkansas, the first state to institute the requirements. According to the Kaiser Family Foundation (KFF), if work requirements were imposed nationwide, between 1.4 million and 4 million people could lose their Medicaid coverage. The Trump administration is currently fighting numerous court battles over the work requirements.

In a call with reporters, Verma said that those Medicaid enrollees gaining coverage through the programs expansion under the ACA include adults who may be healthy and with adequate income to cover expenses. She said that Medicaid was not originally designed for this group and that many states had been far too lax in verifying whether people were even eligible for benefits. The CMS administrator said her motivation for the policy change was the governments solemn responsibility to provide for the most vulnerable among us.

A Medicaid recipient currently cannot be charged premiums or out-of-pocket costs that exceed 5 percent of household income. However, the new policies would remove other restrictions on copays, opening the way for their more widespread use and for increasing costs. These changes would disproportionately affect those with the most serious health conditions.

States could also request to eliminate other Medicaid benefits, including non-emergency medical transportation and screenings for 19- and 20-year-olds for a comprehensive series of tests known as the Early and Periodic Screening, Diagnostic and Treatment benefit.

Under current regulations, Medicaid covers all federally approved prescription drugs. Under the new guidelines, a state could ask that it be allowed to cover just one drug per class for most conditions. This is similar to the requirements for private insurance coverage offered in the ACA marketplaces. Access to drugs would be restricted for a range of serious illnesses, including cancer.

The move to follow the ACA marketplaces guidelines on private insurance coverage is confirmation that the program known as Obamacare was not an advance, but regressive legislation aimed at reducing health care costs and rationing care. The Trump administrations adoption of its standards is proof of this.

The White Houses new proposals take advantage of the fact that about two-thirds of Medicaid participants are currently enrolled in private managed-care firms. The policy would reduce federal oversight of how these companies operate, and states would be able to choose if they want to follow federal rules ensuring that health plans provide reasonable access to a sufficient number of in-network doctors and hospitals.

This assault on Medicaid is the latest volley in the Trump administrations war on entitlement programs. After having failed in its efforts to repeal and replace Obamacare in 2017, the White House is seeking to make inroads into the Medicaid program as the first step toward eliminating the social programs signed into law by President Roosevelt in 1935 and Lyndon Johnson in 1965Social Security and Medicaid.

The Democratic Party offers no alternative to this attack. The calls for Medicare for All by Democratic presidential candidates Senators Bernie Sanders and Elizabeth Warren are a fraud. They know that they will not be voted into law, and that the health care industry will not voluntarily relinquish its grip on the delivery of medical care.

A response to the crisis in health care requires a genuine struggle for socialized medicine, which places the social right to health care in the hands of a workers government, which puts human need above the profits of the private health insurers, pharmaceutical corporations and health care chains.
Bollywood star Priyanka Chopras mother Madhu Chopra has said she liked her daughters Grammys dress, adding that she is glad the controversy around the dress happened because it made Priyanka stronger.

Speaking on the sidelines of an event, Madhu said she loved the dress, I loved it. She showed me the sample before she wore, I thought it was a little risque but she carried it well and she was one of the best dressed. I am happy about that.

Also read: Raveena Tandon does not support airlines ban on Kunal Kamra: I dont like him, but the ban on him was not justified. Watch

Priyanka appeared at the Grammys in a Ralph and Russo gown with a plunging neckline. Designer Wendell Rodricks did not like the dress and posted about it, commenting how the the neckline goes all the way from LA to Cuba. Actor Suchitra Krishnamoorthi was quick to call out Wendell who soon deleted the post and even explained his comment in a new post. Soon after, Wendell shared another close-up picture of Priyanka and Nick along with an explanation that his comments were more about dress shaming than body shaming.

Also Watch | Grammys 2020: Priyanka Chopra, Billie Eilish, Camila Cabello slay at red carpet

After he was criticised for body-shaming Priyanka, Wendell wrote, For all those that said some really nasty things about me body shaming, here is my retort. Did I say anything about her body? No. Many women did. I just said the dress was wrong for her despite it being couture. It was more dress shaming than body shaming. Stop this sermon from high and read the post before you speak. There is an age to wear some clothes. Men with huge bellies should not wear tight T shirts. Same with women who wear minis past a certain age. If you dont have it, dont flaunt it. I stopped wearing Bermudas as I have a few varicose veins. Dont make every issue body shaming, sexist or whatever. Or you can be false and fake resorting to being politically correct and not be truthful. If you dont like my posts unfriend me.

About the controversy, Madhu said, I am glad it happened because I feel it made her stronger. She lives life on her own terms as long as she is not harming or hurting anybody. Its her body she can do what she wants, and she has a beautiful one too. I sent her a saying that says Its my life. Whose life am I living, yours or mine? I can do what I want, right? I think that is the philosophy that everybody should follow.

She also shared her views on internet trolls, something Priyanka often deals with due to her constant online presence. Trolls are anonymous people hiding behind computers. They dont have joy in their lives, I think. They think they get attention because of the bad things they say. They dont mean to say bad things but they get attention. I dont give much weight to the trollers, Dr Madhu said.

Follow @htshowbiz for more
Universities Australia will try to help affected students after Prime Minister Scott Morrison announced yesterday that non-citizens who have been in mainland China will be barred from entering the country because of the coronavirus outbreak.

The sector would seek to extend the offers of flexibility it had made to international students in recent days, including providing online studies and delaying the start of courses, the organisations chief executive Catriona Jackson said.

The university sector is offering flexibility to students barred from entering the country. Credit:Yianni Aspradakis

"Our universities will continue to adhere meticulously to the advice of health and immigration authorities while managing the impact for our students," she said.

Our focus is on safeguarding the health and safety of everyone in university communities and minimising any disruption to study, exams and assessment."
A fourth case of coronavirus has been confirmed in Victoria.

The woman aged in her 20s became ill two days after returning from Chinese city of Wuhan, the epicentre of the outbreak, last Saturday.

She was not infectious on her flight back to Victoria and is recovering at home in isolation, as authorities wait for 13 other test results for the respiratory illness.

A fourth case of the coronavirus has been confirmed in Victoria. Source: AAP

Qantas suspends flights to China

From February 9, Qantas will suspend its two direct flights from mainland China to reflect the international travel bans imposed in wake of the coronavirus outbreak.

This come after entry restrictions were imposed by countries like Singapore and the United States, which will impact the crews who work across the Qantas International network.

These entry restrictions pose significant logistical challenges for rostering crew to operate mainland China services, leading to the need to temporarily suspend these flights, a Qantas press release says.

Qantas also said flights to Hong Kong, which is exempt from the travel ban, will run as per usual.

It will suspend its Sydney-Beijing and Sydney-Shanghai services from February 9 until March 29.

The Beijing service was already due to end, due to commercial reasons, on February 23.

When deciding on a date to suspend Qantas services to China, the airline said the volume of passengers flying both to and from China, and Australians wanting to return home from China was taken into consideration.

China confirms 46 new virus deaths

The total number of deaths from a coronavirus epidemic in China had reached 259 by the end of Friday, an increase of 46, state broadcaster CCTV says, citing numbers from the country's National Health Commission.

There were 2,102 new confirmed infections in China during the day, bringing the cumulative total to 11,791.

The local health commission of Hubei Province, the epicentre of the epidemic, earlier on Saturday reported 45 new deaths from the outbreak on Friday, bringing the total to 249.

Story continues

The province has confirmed 1,347 new cases of infection on Friday, with the total reaching 7,153 by the end of the day.

Hubei's provincial capital Wuhan, where the virus is thought to have originated, reported 576 new confirmed cases over the day, and also saw 33 deaths from the virus. A total of 192 people in Wuhan have now died.

The coronavirus death toll has risen to 249. Source: The Yomiuri Shimbun via AP Images

The province remains under virtual quarantine, with roads sealed off and public transport shut down, but small numbers of travellers continue to breach the lockdown.

The World Health Organisation declared the outbreak a public health emergency of international concern on Thursday.

Cities across China have continued to implement special measures aimed at curbing the spread of the pathogen. Tianjin, a city in northern China with around 15 million people, said all schools and businesses would be suspended until further notice.

Amid fears that the virus could spread further overseas, the United States announced measures to restrict entry to foreign nationals who have recently been in China. All three major US airlines announced the cancellation of flights to mainland China on Friday.

Do you have a story tip? Email: newsroomau@yahoonews.com.

You can also follow us on Facebook, Instagram and Twitter and download the Yahoo News app from the App Store or Google Play.
In the video, Kamra could be heard demanding a reply from Goswami, asking him if he is a 'coward or a journalist or a nationalist'. However, Goswami did not reply to Kamra.

Taking a legal recourse, stand-up comedian Kunal Kamra sent a notice to IndiGo Airlines, which has suspended him from flying with them for six months following his confrontation with journalist Arnab Goswami onboard an IndiGo flight. Apart from demanding an unconditional apology, Kamra asked for the revocation of the ban and Rs 25 lakh as compensation.

#BREAKING: @kunalkamra88 sends legal notice to @IndiGo6E, demands unconditional apology. He has asked for flying ban to be revoked and monetary compensation of Rs.25 lakh, along with Rs.1 lakh for his lawyers' fee. pic.twitter.com/b4xd7jdIBO  Karnika (@KarnikaKohli) February 1, 2020

In a legal notice sent to the airline on Friday, Kamra's lawyer asked the airline to "pay compensation towards my client in sum of Rs 25 lakhs on account of the mental pain and agony suffered by my client as well as losses incurred on account of cancellation of his scheduled shows and programmes in India as well as abroad on account of adoption of a totally illegal, arbitrary and high-handed procedure which is against the extant DGCA CAR (regulations)".

"There has been a total non-compliance of the principles of natural justice inasmuch as My Client at no point of time was never informed of the allegations against him that led up to the ban being issued, and neither has he been provided with a copy of the Complaint as made by any passenger or crew member regarding the fact that his behavior on the said flight was unruly and/or disruptive. My Client has also not been served with any notice regarding any proceeding being initiated/contemplated against him and neither was he ever given any opportunity to rebut the same or to make any submission/representation in his defense prior to precipitative and coercive action being taken against him. Suffice it to say that the principles of natural justice are applicable to judicial, quasi-judicial and administrative authorities even if not provided for in statute, where the decision of authority concerned would result in civil or evil consequences," the notice read.

Kamra also took to Twitter to share the news: "Youre love and support is helping me go legal against IndiGo 6E. Also Lawmen and White have taken this fight to court for me as special case, To all artists out there dont fear there are enough good people in society to always support the constitution."

Youre love & support is helping me go legal against @IndiGo6E Also Lawmen & White have taken this fight to court for me as special case, To all artists out there dont fear there are enough good people in society to always support the constitution...https://t.co/5kCrkKn0l3  Kunal Kamra (@kunalkamra88) February 1, 2020

The comedian was banned by India's largest airline for six months on Tuesday for allegedly harassing Goswami during a Mumbai to Lucknow flight. SpiceJet, GoAir and Air India also imposed a similar ban on Kamra without specifying any period.

"In light of the recent incident on board 6E 5317 from Mumbai to Lucknow, we wish to inform that we are suspending Mr Kunal Kamra from flying with IndiGo for a period of six months, as his conduct onboard was unacceptable behaviour," the airline had tweeted.

The controversy surfaced after Kamra posted a video clip on Twitter, where he is seen asking Goswami if he is a "coward or a journalist".

In the video, Kamra could be heard demanding a reply from Goswami, asking him if he is a "coward or a journalist or a nationalist". However, Goswami did not reply to Kamra.

While Goswami can be seen sitting in the plane and watching something on his laptop with his earphones plugged in, Kamra is heard telling him, "Viewers want to know if Arnab today is a coward or a nationalist. Arnab, this is for national interest. I am part of the tukde-tukde narrative. You should deflate me. You should take the enemy of the states down. You should make sure that the country is in safe hands of Narendra Modi."

Later, Kamra in a statement explaining what happened onboard the IndiGo flight and said that he had apologised to all crew members, pilots, but expressed no remorse for what he said to Goswami. "I apologise to all passengers except one."

With inputs from PTI
(Adds further Russian measures)

* U.S. imposes border curbs on foreigners who have been in China

* Russia to evacuate its citizens and halt visas

* More flights cancelled after travel curbs ramped up

* Lunar New Year holidays draw to an end

By David Stanway and Winni Zhou

SHANGHAI, Feb 1 (Reuters) - China faced mounting isolation in the face of increasing international travel curbs and flight suspensions on Saturday, as the death toll from a spreading coronavirus outbreak rose to 259.

The epidemic has led to mass evacuations of foreign citizens as world airlines halt flights, and risks exacerbating a slowdown in growth in the world's second-largest economy.

China's National Health Commission said there were 2,102 new confirmed infections in China as of Friday, bringing the total to 11,791. Around two dozen other countries have reported more than 130 cases.

All of the reported deaths from the virus have been in China.

The Russian military was to start evacuating Russian citizens from China on Monday and Tuesday, Interfax and TASS news agencies reported. Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov was quoted as saying the evacuations would be from regions that had been most affected by the outbreak.

Russia, which has already restricted direct flights with its biggest trading partner, also said it was suspending visa-free travel for Chinese visitors and halting work visas.

Most international cases have been in people who had recently traveled to or were visiting from Hubei province, the epicenter of the outbreak.

Hubei has been under a virtual quarantine for the last week, with roads sealed off and public transport shut down. Elsewhere, Chinese authorities placed growing restrictions on travel and business.

In Beijing, counters were set up at the entrances of housing estates, where volunteers wearing red arm bands and masks noted details of residents coming back from their hometowns after the Lunar New Year holiday.

"As long as I am properly protected and don't go to crowded places, I don't feel scared at all about my hometown or Beijing," said a 58-year-old migrant worker surnamed Sun.

Others were more worried.

Story continues

"There will be a huge number of people returning to the city. I think it will put Beijing at risk of more infections," said Zhang Chunlei, 45, another returning migrant worker.

In Hubei, the provincial government extended the holiday break to Feb. 13 in a bid to contain the outbreak, the Hubei Daily reported.

The World Health Organization, which this week declared the outbreak a public health emergency of international concern, has said global trade and travel restrictions are not needed.

But Singapore and the United States announced measures on Friday to ban foreign nationals who have recently been in China from entering their territories. Australia followed suit on Saturday.

"We're in fact operating with an abundance of caution in these circumstances so Australians can go about their daily lives with confidence," Prime Minister Scott Morrison told reporters in Sydney.

The Chinese data would suggest the flu-like virus is less deadly than the 2002-03 outbreak of Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome (SARS), which killed nearly 800 people of the some 8,000 it infected, although such numbers can evolve rapidly.

EVACUATIONS

The list of international airlines suspending all or some flights to China is growing.

The latest were Qantas Airways Ltd and Air New Zealand, who said travel bans forced them to suspend their direct flights to China from Feb. 9. All three major U.S. airlines said on Friday they would cancel flights to mainland China.

The commander of U.S. forces in the Pacific banned travel to China for all service members and civilian personnel under his authority and ordered those now in China to leave immediately, officials said.

U.S. health officials on Saturday confirmed an eighth case of the virus, a person in Massachusetts who recently returned from Hubei province.

Many nations have sent charter flights to repatriate citizens from China and then place them in isolation for around two weeks, believed to be the incubation period of the virus.

German Health Minister Jens Spahn called for calm and warned against hysteria as more than 100 Germans and family members landed in Frankfurt, none showing any symptoms of the virus. As of Saturday evening Germany had eight confirmed cases.

Britain, which has had two confirmed cases, said it was withdrawing some staff from its embassy and consulates in China.

Many of the private clinics catering to foreigners in China have started to turn away people with fevers.

"I don't want to go to the local hospital with a sore throat only to catch something else," said Czech national Veronika Krubner in Tianjin.

DISRUPTIONS

Infections have jumped in two cities flanking Wuhan, where the new virus is believed to have originated, raising concerns that new hot spots are emerging despite strict transport restrictions.

In Huanggang, authorities asked households to designate one individual who can leave the home, a local newspaper said. The mayor of the city of about 7.5 million people said there could be a significant rise in cases this weekend.

The northern city of Tianjin, home to some 15 million, suspended all schools and businesses until further notice.

Efforts to contain the virus risk slowing economic growth in China. The virus impact prompted Goldman Sachs to cut its estimate for first-quarter growth to 4% from 5.6%.

China's central bank said the impact was temporary and economic fundamentals remained sound, but that it would increase credit support, lowering lending costs for affected companies.

Apple Inc said on Saturday it would close all of its official stores and corporate offices in China until Feb. 9, the latest of dozens of major companies, including IKEA and Walmart Inc, to restrict travel and operations due to the outbreak.

For a graphic comparing this with previous coronavirus outbreaks, see https://graphics.reuters.com/CHINA-HEALTH-VIRUS-COMPARISON/0100B5BY3CY/index.html

(Reporting by Winni Zhou, Brenda Goh and David Stanway in Shanghai, Judy Hua, Se Young Lee, Yilei Sun and Gabriel Crossley in Beijing, Scott Murdoch in Hong Kong, Joori Roh in Seoul, Nick Mulveney in Melbourne, Chris Helgren in Toronto, and Vera Eckert in Frankfurt Writing by Nick Macfie and Rosalba O'Brien Editing by Andrew Heavens, Frances Kerry and Bill Berkrot)
But if it could be done in Illinois to be fair to Republicans, should it? Those who study the issue of gerrymandering estimate that, nationwide, the current political maps give the Republican Party at least 20 more seats in Congress than their actual voting strength ought to give them. Research published in 2017 showed North Carolina had three more Republican seats in Congress than it should if the state delegation mirrored the electorate. Republicans in Michigan had two more seats than they deserved.
01.02.2020 LISTEN

Member of Parliament (MP) for Ayawaso West Wuogon, Constituency Hon. Lydia Seyram Alhassan says she is collaborating with the internal security of the University of Ghana to ensure holistic security.

it is important that the police partner the internal security of the University to ensure holistic security. So far I have provided a car and motorbikes to the internal security of the University of Ghana to ensure the patrol day and night to protect all the students.

...We will be deploying patrol teams and assort motorbikes to partner their counterparts in the University to patrol the entire corridor and other places of interest and will be working in partnership to ensure that we stop such crimes and protect members of the University community, Hon. Lydia Seyram Alhassan told Kwaku Dawuro on Anopa Nkomo on Accra-based Kingdom FM 107.7

We are patrolling both day and night. We are still on our feet, working around the clock, through the police command and putting things in place to make sure that security is always maintained.

The law-maker said plans have been made for strong collaboration with the Ghana Police Service to beef up security at the university.

It has also put in place measures to provide security services with the essential logistics to enable them to operate efficiently and effectively.

She also said his outfit will do its best to reduce the future occurrence of such incidents on campus.

Some of the residents expressed worry at how they were troubled by alleged land guards and called on the government to intervene for their safety.
Major airlines across the globe are suspending direct flights to and from mainland China causing

The death toll from the virus crossed the 200-mark in China with confirmed cases of infection reported in at least 22 other countries and regions.

Meanwhile, economists have signaled the impact of the new virus could be worse than that of the Severe Respiratory Syndrome (SARS) epidemic in 2002-2003, which took 800 lives and cost the global economy and estimated $33 billion.

On Thursday, the WHO director-general said the greatest concern was the virus potential spread to countries with weaker healthcare systems, compounded by cases of person-to-person transfer of the virus outside China.

Early in the session, the markets were boosted by comments from the World Health Organization (WHO) that seemed to calm tensions. On Thursday, the WHO declared the coronavirus a global emergency, but calmed the markets by opposing travel restrictions. It also said Chinese actions so far will reverse the tide of the spread and that it declared the emergency to help those countries with weak health systems.

U.S. West Texas Intermediate and international-benchmark Brent crude oil futures are trading lower on Friday, however, momentum is clearly to the downside as traders continue to worry about the coronavirus impact on global demand. Both futures contracts are in a position to post their fourth consecutive weekly loss.

U.S. West Texas Intermediate and international-benchmark Brent crude oil futures are trading lower on Friday, however, momentum is clearly to the downside as traders continue to worry about the coronavirus impact on global demand. Both futures contracts are in a position to post their fourth consecutive weekly loss.

Early in the session, the markets were boosted by comments from the World Health Organization (WHO) that seemed to calm tensions. On Thursday, the WHO declared the coronavirus a global emergency, but calmed the markets by opposing travel restrictions. It also said Chinese actions so far will reverse the tide of the spread and that it declared the emergency to help those countries with weak health systems.

Coronavirus Update

On Thursday, the WHO director-general said the greatest concern was the virus potential spread to countries with weaker healthcare systems, compounded by cases of person-to-person transfer of the virus outside China.

Meanwhile, economists have signaled the impact of the new virus could be worse than that of the Severe Respiratory Syndrome (SARS) epidemic in 2002-2003, which took 800 lives and cost the global economy and estimated $33 billion.

The death toll from the virus crossed the 200-mark in China with confirmed cases of infection reported in at least 22 other countries and regions.

Major airlines across the globe are suspending direct flights to and from mainland China causing jet fuel demand to plunge. This is also hurting refiners profit margins.

OPEC+ Wants to Extend Oil Production Cuts

According to sources, OPEC and its allies including Russia want to extend oil production cuts until at least June from March, and may deepen the reductions, should demand for oil in China be significantly reduced by the spread of the virus. This story underpinned crude oil prices briefly early Friday.

Its a story that should be watched over the near-term, but the move may not be enough to stabilize prices for a long-period of time. However, the announcement could trigger a short-covering rally.

China Manufacturing Activity in Line with Expectations but Likely to Worsen

Growth in Chinas factory activity faltered in January, an official survey showed, as export orders fell and an outbreak of a new virus added to risks facing the worlds second-largest economy, Reuters reported.

While the PMI showed activity in some parts of the sector holding up, economists are doubtful the survey provides a meaningful read on the economy given recent developments with the coronavirus and distortions from the Lunar New Year break.

The numbers do not reflect the interruption due to the outbreak. This is another bearish development weighing on future demand for crude oil

U.S. Energy Information Administration Weekly Inventories Report

On Wednesday, the EIA said crude stocks rose by more than seven times market expectations, gaining 3.5 million barrels in the week to January 24. Gasoline stocks rose to a record high, increasing for a 12th consecutive week to 261.1 million barrels, the EIA said.

Libya Supply Woes Offer Some Relief

Although the focus is primarily on demand, traders are reminded that outages in Libya should be watched.

While demand is a real concern, its important not to forget about the supply disruptions from Libya  if these losses persist, it would be enough to swing the market into deficit this quarter, ING said in a note.

Technical Analysis

Weekly March West Texas Intermediate Crude Oil Technical Analysis

Weekly Trend indicator

The main trend is up according to the weekly swing chart, but momentum has been trending lower since the formation of the closing price reversal top at $65.40 the week-ending January 10.

The main trend will change to down on a trade through the nearest main bottom at $50.18. Taking out the next main bottom at $50.08 could trigger an acceleration to the downside. The next target after that is the $45.76 main bottom from the week-ending December 28, 2018.

The main range is $71.83 to $45.76. Its 50% to 61.8% retracement zone at $58.80 to $61.87 is major resistance.

The short-term range is $45.76 to $65.40. Its retracement zone at $53.26 to $55.58 is new resistance. Trading below this area is also helping to generate the downside bias.

Weekly Trend Indicator Forecast

Based on this weeks price action and the current price at $51.66, the direction of the March WTI crude oil market during the week-ending February 7 is likely to be determined by trader reaction to the short-term Fibonacci level at $53.26.

Bearish Scenario

A sustained move under $53.26 will indicate the presence of sellers. If this move generates enough downside momentum then look for the selling to possibly extend into the pair of main bottoms at $50.18 to $50.08.

Taking out the bottoms will change the main trend to down on the weekly chart. This could trigger an acceleration to the downside with the next major target $45.76.

Bullish Scenario

Overcoming and sustaining a rally over $53.26 will signal the return of buyers. This could trigger a surge into $55.58. Taking out this level could trigger an acceleration to the upside.

Conclusion

Given the fear of the unknown, its hard to find a reason to go long or cover short positions ahead of the weekend.
People wearing facemasks to help stop the spread of a deadly virus which began in the city, wait for medical attention at Wuhan Red Cross Hospital in Wuhan, China, on Jan. 25, 2020. (Hector Retamal/AFP via Getty Images)

7th Case of Coronavirus Confirmed in US, Man Traveled to Wuhan

The seventh case of the new coronavirus has been confirmed in the United States.

The affected person is a man who lives in Santa Clara County, California, the Santa Clara Public Health Department announced Friday afternoon after receiving notice about the case from the Centers for Disease Control.

This marks the third case of coronavirus in California, but it is the first in Santa Clara County and the Bay area.

Dr. Sara Cody, the health officer for Santa Clara County, told reporters at a news conference that the unidentified man had traveled to Wuhan, China, and became ill upon returning home.

She added, Since he has been home to the county, he has been self-isolating at home and did not leave home at all except to seek medical care. He was seen in a local clinic and hospital but was never sick enough to be hospitalized.

Our preliminary investigation indicates that he came into contact with very few individuals after returning home. We are making sure that anyone that he did come into contact with is being monitored for symptoms and staying at home away from others, she said.

Other cases in the United States to-date involve one in Washington state, one in Arizona, and two in Illinois.

Earlier in the day, the United States officially declared the coronavirus outbreak a public health emergency in the country.

Health officials also announced that the United States would temporarily bar entry to all foreign nationals who visited China within the past 14 days.

U.S. Secretary of Health Alex Azar announced at a press conference that the banto take effect Sunday 5 p.m. ESTwill not apply to immediate family members of U.S. citizens or permanent residents.

US Secretary of Health and Human Services Alex Azar takes questions during a briefing with members of the presidents Coronavirus Task Force in Washington, on Jan. 31, 2020. (Andrew Caballero-Reynolds/AFP via Getty Images)

Azar added that U.S. authorities have officially declared the coronavirus outbreak a public health emergency in the United States.

He said that any U.S. citizen who was in the province of Hubeiwhich houses the epicenter of the virus, Wuhan Cityin the last 14 days will be put into a mandatory quarantine of up to 14 days when they arrive in the United States. Meanwhile, returning U.S. citizens who were in other parts of China in the last 14 days will be given a health screening at select ports of entry, and then subject to up to 14 days of monitored self-quarantine, Azar said.

Three U.S. airlines on FridayDelta Airlines, American Airlines, and United Airlinesannounced they will suspend all flights between the United States and mainland China. For American Airlines and United Airlines, the suspension took effect today, while Delta will be suspending flights from Feb. 6.

The Trump administration announced on Thursday a new task force to monitor, contain, and mitigate the spread of the new coronavirus. The task force is being coordinated through the National Security Council and has been meeting daily.

The task force will give Americans accurate and up-to-date health and travel information related to the 2019 novel coronavirus, White House press secretary Stephanie Grisham said in a statement.

Cathy He contributed to this report.
Vietnam Airlines has recently announced that it will be suspending operations to China, Hong Kong and Taiwan from February 8. This extreme measure has been taken amid growing fears of the new Chinese coronavirus. The virus has been spreading quickly in China and in the Wuhan province where it has infected thousands of people.

Flights suspended gradually

The airline in a statement said that it will be suspending flight in phase, flights between Vietnam and Beijing, Shanghai, Guangzhou, Shenzhen will be suspended from Tuesday itself while flights to and from Chengdu will be suspended from the next day. Flights to Macau will be suspended from Thursday onwards.

The airline in its statement advised all passengers, especially Vietnamese that were visiting China to adjust their plans to fly back home. The statement also added that the airline will be suspending flights between Hanoi and Hong Kong from Thursday and also reduce the regularity of flights between Ho Chi Minh City and Hong Kong to 7 from 10 per week.

The Vietnamese Government also announced on Thursday that it will stop issuing visas for Chinese tourists after three cases of coronavirus were discovered in Vietnam.

The infection could be worse than reported

A recent study published by a team led by Gabriel Leung from the University of Hong Kong has reported that the actual number of people that have been infected by the deadly new coronavirus could be as high as 75,000 people that is a staggering ten times the official number provided by the Chinese authorities.

According to Chinese officials, the number of confirmed cases has crossed 10,000 with over 250 deaths already. According to the study, the discrepancy between their figure and the figures of the government could be caused by a time lag between infection and symptom onset, delays in infected persons getting medical treatment, and the time needed to confirm cases with lab tests.

Read: Coronavirus: Air India Crew Hailed For Mission To Rescue Indians, B-Town Says 'hats Off'

Read: Coronavirus Outbreak: Sri Lankan Students From Wuhan To Be Kept Under Quarantine

The study added that each infected person may have possibly infected a minimum of two or three more people and if the number of confirmed cases keeps increasing in the same rate as it has in the past few weeks then it is possible that there already growing epidemics in multiple Chinese cities just a week or two behind Wuhan.

In more chilling news, the study also said that large overseas cities which have close transport links to China could also become outbreak centres. Confirmed cases of the deadly new coronavirus have already been discovered in other nations like Japan, Singapore and most recent one being in India.

Read: Coronavirus: 324 Indians Evacuated From Wuhan, Another AI Flight Departs From Delhi

Read: Africa: Government Ramps Up Preventive Measures Amid Coronavirus Dread

(with inputs from agencies)
SPRING HILL, Fla. - A Florida sheriffs deputy fatally shot a man who opened fired on him Saturday after the man first shot a relative, authorities said.

Hernando County Sheriff Al Nienhuis told reporters that deputies went to a home in a Spring Hill gated community at about 2:30 p.m. after someone inside called 911 to report that a family member was threatening others with a gun and might be on drugs. During the call, gunfire erupted.

The first deputy arrived within three minutes and was met by gunfire from inside the house. The deputy took cover in a neighbours garage across the street and returned fire, Nienhuis said.

The gunman then came outside and continued firing, even as neighbours emerged to see what was happening, according to Nienhuis. The deputy left the garage and shot the gunman, killing him, t he sheriff said. He said the gunman was in the mid-20s and was believed to live in the home.

A person shot several times by the gunman inside the home was taken to the hospital, but is expected to survive, the sheriff said.

The deputy was not shot, but was treated at the scene for minor injuries suffered while escaping the gunfire. He has been placed on paid leave while the Florida Department of Law Enforcement investigates the shooting.

None of those involved were identified.

Spring Hill is 50 miles (80 kilometres) miles north of Tampa.
(Reuters) - One of 195 Americans evacuated from Wuhan, China, to a U.S. air base in California to begin 72 hours of voluntary observation for signs of coronavirus infection was placed under mandatory quarantine after trying to leave the facility, public health officials said on Thursday

(Reuters) - One of 195 Americans evacuated from Wuhan, China, to a U.S. air base in California to begin 72 hours of voluntary observation for signs of coronavirus infection was placed under mandatory quarantine after trying to leave the facility, public health officials said on Thursday.

The individual, whose identity was not disclosed, was presented the quarantine order on Wednesday night, hours after arriving at March Air Reserve Base near Los Angeles on a government-chartered flight from Wuhan, the epicentre of the coronavirus outbreak, officials from the Riverside County Public Health Department said.

An agency spokeswoman told Reuters the individual has complied with the order, which requires remaining on the base for the entire 14-day incubation period of the virus, and that no base personnel were exposed to the evacuee in question.

(Reporting by Steve Gorman in Culver City, Calif.; Editing by Sandra Maler)

This story has not been edited by Firstpost staff and is generated by auto-feed.
Firefighters in NSW and the ACT will continue to face volatile conditions on Sunday, with high temperatures and thunderstorm activity expected to affect most regions.

Temperatures in Sydneys west are forecast to reach 39 degrees and the mercury will hit 35 degrees in Canberra, where two fires were burning at emergency warning levels on Saturday.

Bumbalong residents defend their property as a bushfire burns south of Canberra. Credit:Alex Ellinghausen

Thunderstorm activity is also expected from late-morning on Sunday for most of NSW and the ACT.

Temperatures reached 46.8 degrees in Richmond in Sydneys west and 42.7 degrees in Canberra just before 3pm on Saturday.
Assam police here on Saturday arrested two cadres of People's Democratic Council of Karbi Longri (PDCK) and confiscated a pistol along with ammunition from their possession.

The accused have been identified as Armung Terang (25) Longkam Dera (21).

"Last night, acting on information disclosed by the already arrested two cadres of PDCK, namely Klarbong Teron and Jirsong Ejangpo, a search operation was launched at Langbongkroi under Dokmoka police station along with CRPF COBRA team," Assam Police said in a release.

"In the morning hours, another two cadres of PDCK - Armung Terang (25) Longkam Dera (21) were apprehended. A pistol along with four ammunition was recovered from them. Armung Terang is a SS Lance Corporal and Longkam Dera is PT( Private trainer, rank not conferred yet) of PDCK," it added.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
Rajesh Asnani By

Express News Service

JAIPUR: Senior BJP leader in Rajasthan, Madan Dilawar, MLA from Ramganj Mandi constituency may soon face serious legal difficulties.

An investigation by the CID-CB has found Dilawar guilty for slogans raised in his nomination rally to spoil communal harmony during in the last assembly elections in Ramganj Mandi town, November 2018.

The FIR was registered under Sections 153 and188 of the Indian Penal Code and Section 125 of Public Representation Act. Initially, this case was investigated by the police but later, when Dilawar was elected as an MLA, the file went to CID CB.

CID CB Kota ASP Mithali Garg investigated it and she found all the allegations as authentic.

Later, the file was sent to the headquarters from where the file has now been received along with the challan order to Ramganj police station.

"After investigation from us, the letter has already been sent to the concerned police station and now the challan has to be presented to them," says Mithali Garg ASP CID CB, Kota.

To file a challan, the letter has been returned to the Kota Rural Police, this case was registered on the report of the then SHO of Ramganj mandi, Hiralal Saini.

The CID CB probe also got the video that went viral in this case investigated by FSL and that probe has proved that there was no tampering in the said video which became a major piece of evidence.

Controversial slogans and songs were played by the DJs during this rally which spread religious venom and spread hatred once the videos of the event went viral on social media.

However, Madan Dilawar denies the allegations and says: "There was a cassette going on in the nomination rally but I do not know myself properly what slogans were being played on it. The slogans they asked me to raise were all patriotic slogans, now if they want to accuse me on those slogans, then I will answer in court."

The police have now sought prosecution approval from the Home Department. The SHO of Ramganj Mandi, Dharmendra Kumar confirms: "We have written to the Home Department for sanction of prosecution. As soon as the sanction comes, we will arrest the accused in the case and present the challan."
Its probably the No. 1 thing that influences my vote, he said.

Mr. Knight, who runs a start-up in Dallas that makes software for the construction industry, said he was not sure how much credit Mr. Trump deserved for the strong economy. But he said his customers have benefited from the administrations efforts to ease regulation, and he said he supported the presidents approach on trade, even though it had driven up some costs.

I think we have the resources to outlast China, hands down, he said. I think its a smart move.

Republicans are counting on voters like Mr. Knight to carry Mr. Trump to victory in November. The president routinely promotes strong economic data and the rising stock market in speeches and at rallies.

Are you better off now than you were three years ago? he asked on Twitter on Tuesday. Almost everyone says YES!

That argument ran into trouble over the summer when turmoil in financial markets and escalating trade tensions with China and other countries led to a surge in news coverage warning of a possible recession. Measures of consumer confidence fell in September and were slow to rebound.

Economic growth cooled last year, according to data released by the Commerce Department on Thursday, and forecasters expect momentum to slow further in 2020. Still, recession fears have ebbed in recent months, as the job market has remained strong and the Federal Reserve has taken steps to prevent damage from the trade war from spreading to the broader economy. Now confidence appears to be rebounding as well.

There was this dark cloud hanging over us, but a lot of that has lifted, said Joseph Song, an economist at Bank of America Merrill Lynch. He noted that wage growth had been picking up among lower-income workers, which could further bolster their economic outlook.

Another factor could also be driving confidence: the stock market.

Mr. Trump frequently cites the rising market as evidence that his policies are working. Experts generally reject that argument: Most Americans own few stocks, and the relationship between stock prices and economic growth is erratic at best. But research has found that the performance of major stock indexes can have a powerful influence on consumers outlook.
PARIS  The Trump administration and leaders of other wealthy nations remain at odds over how to tax technology companies and other businesses that operate online, negotiators confirmed Friday, an impasse that threatens to inflame global trade tensions if not resolved by years end.

There are 130 countries engaged in the discussions, through the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development, that are trying to set new rules for taxing multinational companies in an increasingly digital economy.

Those rules could include international standards for which countries can tax activity that occurs online, and to what degree. They could also establish an effective global minimum tax for multinational companies that shift their profits to low-tax havens like Ireland and Bermuda.

A meeting of countries in Paris this week yielded progress toward an agreement and set a deadline of the end of this year to find one.

It also delayed the most contentious issue in the talks  a demand by American officials that some companies be allowed to choose whether to be taxed under any new international system  until the end of the negotiations.

Resolution of this issue is crucial to reaching consensus, negotiators said in a statement released on Friday.

The talks carry high financial stakes for large companies that operate in several countries.

Countries like France and Britain have approved digital taxes that hit large tech companies, like Google and Amazon, that have large online presences in their countries but face little tax liability because their physical operations are concentrated elsewhere. The United States has objected to those taxes as discriminatory against American firms, which would be among those most affected, and it has threatened tariffs on imports from countries that impose the taxes.

American and French officials reached a temporary truce on the issue last week in Davos, Switzerland, with the Trump administration pausing its tariff threat and the French delaying collection of the digital tax this year while the sides seek a deal through the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development.

Such a deal still appears difficult  in large part because of the Trump administrations insistence that some companies be allowed to choose whether to subject themselves to the new tax standards. That could be an especially important option for nontechnology multinationals, like consumer products companies, which have grown increasingly concerned that they could be subject to new taxation under any agreement.

Pascal Saint-Amans, director of the organizations Center for Tax Policy and Administration, told reporters Friday that for a very large spectrum of countries, the U.S. position would make any agreement difficult or impossible. Negotiators agreed to delay any discussion on that question until all other issues surrounding digital taxation had been resolved.

Still, Saint-Amans said, there is strong political commitment to work together among negotiators, and he hopes that more progress can be made by July, when negotiators will meet in Berlin.

Saint-Amans said the process is moving fast because what is at stake is a massive trade war  particularly between France and the United States.

Angel Gurria, the economic organizations secretary-general, said in a news release that negotiators still face a daunting task bridging critical policy differences, but that a collapse of the talks risked economic calamity.

We are convinced that failure to reach agreement would greatly increase the risk that countries will act unilaterally to impose taxes and tariffs, Gurria said, with negative consequences on an already fragile global economy.

Liz Alderman and Jim Tankersley are New York Times writers.
State sector top posts: Presidents office rejects PMs office nominations View(s):

In several key government departments, top posts continue to remain vacant amid attempts by certain parties to push through the names of their own favourites to fill them.

The Presidential Secretariat has already rejected four names for the post of Commissioner General of Motor Traffic. They were submitted by a top official from the Prime Ministers Office.

The post of Commissioner General of Motor Traffic has been vacant for about a month now, with day-to-day affairs at the Department being overseen by an Acting Commissioner General.

The PMs office senior official had recommended the names on several occasions, but the Presidential Secretariat has rejected them on the grounds that those individuals lack the necessary qualifications to become the Commissioner General of Motor Traffic.

Rampant corruption and inefficiency at the Department of Motor Traffic have drawn the attention of President Gotabaya Rajapaksa, who even made an unannounced visit there in December to check on the institution.

Meanwhile, two officials are vying for the post of Commissioner General of Prisons. One of them is a recently retired senior army officer.

The possibility of an outsider being appointed over more eligible senior and experienced officers within the Prisons Department has caused consternation among prison officials. This is not like other departments.

It took me five years to familiarise myself with the inmates. Its better to appoint someone from within the system, a senior prison officer said.

Another important post that has been vacant up to now is that of the Director General of Customs. The position has been left vacant since its last director general, P.S.M. Charles, was appointed as Northern Province Governor.

The new board without the bikini beauty

Bikini board drowned

The Eastern Provincial Councils Tourism Bureau promptly responded to a cafe item in this page last week.

These columns reported how ex-provincial councillor Shibly Farook had raised concerns about the Bureau using the image of a female foreigner clad in a bikini in one of its billboards near the Kalladdy bridge.

The provincial councillors concern was why this image was used when there were other images which could have been used to promote tourism in the region.

The cafe item last week published the concerns raised by Mr Farook and the image of the billboard.

By Monday morning the image was removed and replaced with another image.

Health Ministry cobweb on coronavirus lingo

Fears of the rapid spread of coronavirus have caused mass hysteria. The health authorities are not only adopting several measures to prevent it after one positive case was discovered. They have also launched a public relations drive.

It is being carried out by the Health Promotion Bureau (HPB), a division that functions under the Ministry of Health.

Just this week, it put out on its website a public warning. Hours later, it was withdrawn. The reason? Someone had murdered the Queens language. This is what the warning in the form of a media release had to say:

Novel Corona Virus Outbreak

A reason for the reason that has been sure to be known as a reason was first reported from Wuhan city in China, China on December 31, 2019.

The first time was identified as the new corona virus on January 2020, 07

According to the current date in this disease (the time taken from the day from the day of the 2-10-10-2-10-10 days) is clear. Did you recognize this disease first from animals (Cobra, fish, bats), now it is confirmed that humans can be told by humans.

The first patient confirmed in Sri Lanka has been reported on January 2020, 27, January 27, 27. The man was a Chinese and has arrived in the island as a tourist 2 weeks ago.

Currently, the person is the treatment of the national medicine in the angoda. Apart from this, there are 5 people who doubt more patients in the company now. Two of them are Sri Lankan.

The Ministry of health has given special facilities for the treatment of this disease in the following 12 hospitals.  National plant diseae my, North Colombo teaching hospital  best, Colombo general hospital, Colombo general hospital, National Hospital  Kandy, teaching hospital  karate, teaching hospital  anuradhapura, teaching hospital  kandy, teaching hospital  kurunegala, Provincial General hospital  rathnapura, Provincial General hospital  colombo, teaching hospital  batticaloa.

Sri Lankan students who are coming to the country from China should stay at their home for 14 days. The men should avoid going to the place where they are going. If there was any disease (fever, cough, camp) during that time, please inform the public health check or health medical officer in the area and get treatment.

The Ministry of health has not been recommended by the ministry of health for the public or children  the ministry of health in the ministry of health 

Irajs post wrapped in mystery

The recent appointment of popular musician Iraj Weeraratne as a member of the Board of Directors of the Sri Lanka Tourism Promotion Bureau (SLTPB) raised many an eyebrow.

Responding to the backlash, Mr Weeraratne clarified that he would not take any payment for his services to the SLTPB.

In his Cabinet paper recommending the appointment of Mr Weeraratne to the Director Board of SLTPB, Tourism Minister Prasanna Ranatunga too mentions that the popular entertainer will provide his services free of charge to the Bureau.

In the Cabinet Paper, the Minister lavishes praise on Mr Weeraratne, noting his massive social media following and years of experience in successful social media promotions.

At the very end, however, the Minister seeks approval to select suitable companies on the advice of Mr Weeraratne to conduct digital media promotional events for the SLTPB and for the Director Board to authorise payments for these companies.

President back from Spore

President Gotabaya Rajapaksa who went to Singapore for medical reasons returned to Sri Lanka on Friday

Govt. acts as Sajith reacts on need to bring back students

Having failed to secure the UNP leadership at a meeting of the Working Committee on Thursday night, deputy leader Sajith Premadasa called a news conference on Friday afternoon.

This naturally aroused the interest of the media. Both local and foreign correspondents turned up in their numbers. They waited in anxiety. He began by saying that he would not take any political questions.

Mr Premadasa was complaining that the Government had not taken measures to bring back Sri Lankan students from the coronavirus-infected Wuhan city in China. But his claim was proved wrong, because the Government was bringing back students from Wuhan.

A SriLankan Airlines special flight had taken off from the Colombo Airport to bring the students back.

The special flight landed at the Mattala Rajapaksa International Airport on Friday night and the students are in quarantine at Diyatalawa.

National security parallel body gets new chief

It was an unceremonious exit for a man who had not been either in the armed forces or related fields.

With the help of a former Cabinet Minister he had set up an organisation to deal with matters related to national security. Ironically, the Minister concerned pushed through the Cabinet memorandum when the former Foreign Minister was out on an official mission.

He travelled worldwide attending seminars and was running his own show. At one point, the Ministry of Defence frowned on him for writing directly to armed forces commanders seeking the exact strength of their organisations.

The same tasks carried out by this outfit were part of functions exercised by the Lakshman Kadirgamar Institute of International and Strategic Studies.

Perhaps, Sri Lanka is the only country where politicians succeed in setting up parallel state bodies to serve the same purpose. All that at public expense.

It is not clear whether the Ministry of Defence will let the outfit function or shut it down altogether. For the moment it seems, it has appointed a former Navy commander and presidential adviser to head it.
For a while now, Tempur Sealy (TPX) has popped up in a lot of the quantitative screens that I run  and I just ignored it because, well, its a mattress company, asserts Tom Bishop, small cap expert and editor of BI Research.

I like a stock with a little more  pizazz. But, alas, 10 years into this bull market stocks with pizazz that havent been bid through the roof are hard to find.

More from Tom Bishop: Top Picks 2020: NV5 Global (NVEE)

With nothing sexier grabbing my attention this time and Tempur Sealys numbers looking pretty good frankly, I decided to at least take a closer look.

Now, here are some things to like about this company. First is that 45% EPS growth forecast for 2020 (and thats the consensus of 11 analysts), and the fact that thats not because its bouncing back from a bad year.

And this isnt just a flash in the pan. Earnings are forecasted to grow a very healthy 24% in 2021, plus the 3-5 year growth rate is pegged at 26%.

Then there is the PE. At 15.6 times 2020 projected EPS, the PE to growth rate (PEG) is a remarkably low 0.6 (15.6 / 26). This is a cornerstone of the BI Research investment philosophy  Growth at a Reasonable Price.

I like to see the PEG near 1 or better and 0.58 is waybetter, indicating investors have not caught up to the bright prospects here.

The company has begun a new relationship with Big Lots and Mattress Firm in North America; during Q3 they completed the rollout of Sealy products at Big Lots and in Q4 they began shipping products to Mattress Firm.

Recently enacted anti-dumping duties against China manufacturing benefited all U.S. bedding manufacturers, another plus here. I should note that the company manufactures its mattresses almost exclusively in the U.S. with one plant in Denmark supplying the European market.

See also: Acadia: From Depression to Schizophrenia

The company opened its 50th Tempur-Pedic retail store in Q3 and expects to open a couple more in Q4. Ultimately management envisions 125 to 150. Stores open more than a year had very strong same store sales, up over 20%.

Story continues

Interesting to note, the direct to consumer online channel is a thing here and saw double digit growth  andits profitable. The company has $1.7 billion of debt, but its EBITDA covers interest 6.6 times over. Bottom line, TPX is an intriguing buy.

More From MoneyShow.com:
A British scientist is sleeping for just two hours as a night as she races against the clock to develop a coronavirus vaccine.

Kate Broderick, 42, from Scotland, has been fighting infectious diseases for more than 20 years including successful vaccines for ebola, zika and Mers (Middle East Respiratory Syndrome).

Dr Broderick has told how she feels a 'personality responsibility' to do everything in her power to develop a vaccine and averages just a couple of hours sleep while testing on mice and guinea pigs during the day.

Vaccine expert Kate Broderick, 42, from Scotland, has been fighting infectious diseases for more than 20 years

'I've spent my entire life working towards making a difference in an outbreak setting like this and I will do whatever it takes,' she told The Times.

The vaccine expert moved to the States following her PhD from Glasgow where she took up a job with the University of California to work on a therapeutic solution to sepsis.

Alongside her team of researchers at pharmaceutical company Inovio, based in San Diego, Dr Broderick is working around the clock to create a vaccine that has claimed 249 lives with 11,946 cases worldwide.

'I personally am averaging about two hours' sleep a night at the moment,' Dr Broderick said.

The virus continues to spread around the world with Spain confirming its first case today after a German tourist was taken ill with the infection while on holiday in the Canary Islands.

Dr Broderick has told how she feels a 'personality responsibility' to do everything in her power to develop a vaccine

It comes as two people tested positive to coronavirus in Britain yesterday with one of the victims confirmed to be a student at the University of York.

The vaccine expert described how it was hard not to 'internalise' the suffering of people around the world who have been affected by the virus.

The mother-of-two told how she was on holiday on New Year's Eve when she first heard about reports of the illness in Wuhan.

Just days after Chinese authorities released the genetic code of the virus online, Dr Broderick and her colleagues designed a vaccine within three hours against the virus.

She said the design went straight into manufacturing the following day after gene-based medicines can be created in much larger quantities within months.

To provide vaccine doses for the 1.4billion population of China, Dr Broderick said a 220-gallon fermenter would be needed to tackle the virus.

In order to distribute the vaccine, her team has been given a 7.5million grant from the Coalition for Epidemic Preparedness Innovations, an initiative backed by Bill Gates.

Dr Broderick said healthcare workers who are in contact with coronavirus patients would be vaccinated first and then people with underlying medical conditions.

If the vaccine is still not contained, the entire population would require vaccination.

The most worrying element of the virus for Dr Broderick is the 14-day incubation period with some people experiencing only mild symptoms.

Alongside her team of researchers at pharmaceutical company Inovio (pictured), based in San Diego, Dr Broderick is working around the clock to create a vaccine

She described how people could be going for dinner and meeting friends without even knowing they are spreading the virus.

'Ticking time bomb is very strong imagery but it is extremely concerning,' she added.

Mild symptoms of the virus are a dry cough coupled with feeling lethargic which may mean people are not going to get themselves checked, Dr Broderick said.

She added how 'viruses don't respect borders' and the length of the incubation period has led to the speed at which coronavirus has accelerated around the world.



It comes as 83 British passengers from Wuhan are being quarantined in NHS housing at Arrowe Park Hospital on the Wirral for 14 days - after which they will be allowed to leave provided they are clear of the virus.

Dr Broderick said holding people in isolation for the incubation period is 'the smartest thing' as she described her doubts over protective face masks.

She told how similar to glasses, the masks 'never fit perfectly' to keep viruses out.

The Scot told how she hopes clinical trials can start in 'early summer' with her team in talks with the US Food and Drug Administration to secure 'emergency-use authorisation' to distribute the vaccine internationally.

She added how a combination of factors including global travel, population growth, people living closer to wildlife and climate change allow viruses to spread easier.

Speaking about climate change she said: 'Viruses are spread from animals and as a result of climate change, animals move habitat.'
Source: Xinhua| 2020-02-02 00:57:28|Editor: huaxia

Video Player Close

WUHAN, Feb. 1 (Xinhua) -- Chinese Vice Premier Sun Chunlan Saturday called for resolute efforts to contain the source of infection.

Sun, who leads a central government group to guide the epidemic control work in Hubei Province, called for concrete measures to interrupt virus spread, as well as strengthened prevention and control measures in rural areas.

She also urges higher efficiency in testing suspected infection cases and distributing medical supplies in the region.

While inspecting the epidemic prevention and control work in Xiaogan City in the afternoon, Sun stressed the prevention efforts at the primary level, especially in rural areas.
Arlene Foster has said she lost friends over her decision to attend the funeral of Martin McGuinness.

Northern Irelands First Minister spoke about the fallout from her attendance at the service for the former IRA commander-turned-Stormont leader as she appeared on RTEs flagship Late Late Show.

I think it was absolutely the right thing to do and there are a lot of innocent victims who felt very strongly about it at the time and I totally understand that as well, she said.

As the UK leaves the European Union, Northern Ireland's First Minister Arlene Foster @DUPleader tells the #LateLate how she feels about Brexit, and her thoughts on Boris Johnson. pic.twitter.com/gY013GQlmy  The Late Late Show (@RTELateLateShow) January 31, 2020

I lost friends over going to the funeral but I still believe it was the right thing to do.

Mrs Fosters first appearance on the RTE show has been widely interpreted as a conciliatory gesture to the Irish Republic after years of strained relations over Brexit.

In a wide-ranging interview, the Fermanagh politician spoke about her childhood experiences of violence when the IRA attempted to murder her father and then blew up a school bus she was travelling on.

The only time in the 23-minute interview when there was any sign of a negative reaction from the studio audience was when she outlined her opposition to same sex marriage.

She spoke about her relationship with Mr McGuinness, whom she served with at the head of the Stormont Executive before the institutions imploded in January 2017. Mr McGuiness died two months later from a rare heart condition.

She said it was very difficult to deal with the fact Mr McGuinness had given an oration at the funeral of IRA member Seamus McElwaine, the man suspected of involvement in the gun attack on her father.

But she insisted it did not colour their relationship.

I took the view that I served with him in government, that I worked with him in government and it was only the right, the Christian thing to do to pay my respects to somebody who had passed awayArlene Foster on Martin McGuinness

I got on quite well with Martin  you may say that is very strange given his background and given my background, but I think we have to make choices and, to me, reconciliation actually starts with the individual, she said.

As leaders we have to show that we want to move forward and do things differently for our children and to give them hope, but reconciliation has to start with the person as well, so I had to see beyond what he had done in the past and I am sure he had to look beyond who I was as well, as a strong unionist.

She revealed that people told her to her face that they no longer considered her a friend after she went to the funeral in Londonderry.

It was difficult because these were people I have known for a long time but they take a different view in relation to this, she said.

I took the view that I served with him in government, that I worked with him in government and it was only the right, the Christian thing to do to pay my respects to somebody who had passed away.

As a leader you have things to do that you may not do if you were just an ordinary citizen and thats why I had to do it.

Expand Close Arlene Foster and Bishop John McKeown arriving for the funeral of Martin McGuinness (PA) PA Archive/PA Images / Facebook

Twitter

Email

Whatsapp Arlene Foster and Bishop John McKeown arriving for the funeral of Martin McGuinness (PA)

The DUP leader was famously applauded by fellow mourners when she entered St Columbas Church Long Tower.

Obviously I was apprehensive going to the funeral because I didnt know what sort of reception I would get because the Executive was down at that point in time and we had had a very difficult election, it was very polarised, so I didnt know what sort of reception I would get at the funeral.

I was apprehensive but I have to say I was welcomed very warmly.

Mrs Foster was mid-way through the interview when the UK formally left the EU at 11pm.

We are leaving the European Union tonight, the United Kingdom leaves, but that doesnt mean we are not still neighbours and I wanted to send out message that we are and will continue to be neighbours, she said.

Mrs Foster said it was right not be triumphalist about Brexit.

I am pleased that the UK has respected the vote that was taken right across the nation but I can understand there are many people who will not be celebrating tonight because they feel sad about that, she said.
By Trend





Azerbaijani and Turkish citizens were evacuated in a plane belonging to Turkey from Wuhan, China on February 1 in the spirit of fraternal relations between Azerbaijan and Turkey in accordance with the decision of Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev and Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan, the Azerbaijani Foreign Ministry said.

In this regard, Azerbaijan expresses appreciation to fraternal Turkey, the ministry said, Trend reports on February 1. This also testifies to the brotherhood of Azerbaijan and Turkey.

"Before the departure, the evacuated Azerbaijani citizens underwent a medical check-up, their health condition is satisfactory, the ministry said. Azerbaijani citizens will be quarantined in Turkey for two weeks and then will return to Azerbaijan.

Azerbaijan also expresses gratitude to the Chinese government for the assistance and support rendered to Azerbaijani citizens and expresses solidarity in these difficult days with China and friendly Chinese people, the ministry said.
In the wake of the Coronavirus pandemic, people are asking questions that may have never occurred before, one of them being--What's the right way to wear a Surgical mask?

Face masks, as we all know it, are used as a shield by wearer against large droplets or splashes of bodily and infected fluids from others.

Reuters

After being declared a global public health emergency, people have been scuttering to get their supplies of face masks, so much so, factories across China and many South-East Asian countries have stepped up production of surgical face masks to meet demand.



A Whatsapp forward suggesting the right way to use a surgical mask has currently been doing the rounds on WhatsApp. In it, an unknown individual claims that a 'Nurse' guided them about the purpose of the coloured and plain side of a surgical mask.

The message alleges that the 'coloured side is for people who are sick' and the 'white side is for people who aren't sick'.

Whatsapp Forward

But this theory was termed fake by a report on The Star. Bel Nawhen a Malaysian columnist who busts medical myths says outer layer is hydrophobic or is a fluid-repelling layer while the inner layer is to absorb moisture, as the air we breathe out contains moisture.

According to the Star, The function of the blue/green layer is to prevent germs from sticking to it. If you wear the mask the other way, the moisture from the air will stick onto it, making it easier for germs to stay there. When you breathe in, the germs will transfer from the outside later and straight into your lungs,  Bel wrote in a Facebook post.

Speaking to the Guardian Catherine Makison Booth, a microbiologist at the UKs Health and Safety Laboratory says, ' before you buy any mask, make sure it has a CE certification mark, which indicates conformity with EU health, safety and environmental protection standards.

One must also keep in mind that surgical face masks should only be used for eight to 10 hours or else they may serve as sources of bacteria themselves.

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (leading national public health institute of the United State) recommends two different kinds of face masks  surgical masks and N95 respirators.

According to a TOI report, N95 masks disappearing from chemist shops in Mumbai, but doctors are warning people that it may not be as effective.



The N95 masks are not recommended for non-medical professionals, according to reports, many are not don't have the knowledge to use them correctly and are at higher risk of contracting the virus.

Speaking to TOI, Chennai-based internal medicine specialist Dr V Ramasubraman said he doesnt advise the general public to use a mask at all. Only if you travel to an affected zone, use a triple-layered surgical mask," he said.

Reuters

To quell fears, Dr Parvaiz Kaul,head, pulmonary medicine department, Shere-i-Kashmir Hospital Srinagar told TOI that there's no need to rush and masks and that the outbreak should die down in the coming weeks if not in a month.

"There also are reports from Wuhan about patients responding anti-HIV medication nelfinavir and lopinavir, and added that vaccines are in the pipelin and the viruss genetic code is known.
She shows off her chic fashion sense as an aspiring fashion stylist on her Freeform series Grown-ish.

And Yara Shahidi put on a stylish display Friday night too, when she attended a performance of Tina: The Tina Turner Musical on Broadway in Manhattan.

The 19-year-old actress rocked an androgynous suit at the show, which was also attended by Pose's Billy Porter, Samantha Bee and Christian Siriano.

Suited up: Yara Shahidi, 19, put on a stylish display Friday night when she attended a performance of Tina: The Tina Turner Musical on Broadway in Manhattan

Yara covered up her slim frame in the light gray suit, which featured a pair of baggy cuffed pants.

She paired the ensemble with a pointy black set of heels and a matching black tank top.

The Black-ish star flashed her infectious smile and wore her raven tresses in a high updo.

She added some flair with a long gold necklace and a silver 'g.'

Style icon: Yara covered up her slim frame in the light gray suit, which featured a pair of baggy cuffed pants

Mix and match: She paired the ensemble with a pointy black set of heels and a matching black tank top

Yara was supporting Tina, which opened on Broadway in November.

The musical depicts Tina Turner (born Anna Mae Bullock) from her early childhood in Nutbush, Tennessee all the way to her mid-career comeback.

The show depicts her marriage to Ike Turner, who collaborated with her on a series of soul and rock success in the 1960s and '70s.

Later, Tina opened up about Ike's domestic abuse toward her in her 1986 memoir I, Tina, and Angela Bassett and Laurence Fishburne depicted their violent relationship in What's Love Got To Do With It (1993).

The Black-ish star flashed her infectious smile and wore her raven tresses in a high updo

Come a long way: The musical depicts Tina Turner's journey from her childhood in Tennessee to her abusive marriage to musician Ike Turner, who collaborated with her on hits in the 1960s and '70s

Pose star Billy Porter spiced up the performance thanks to his unmissable style.

He arrived in a brilliant white suit adorned with thousands of small rectangular mirrors.

The Broadway star wore a white turtleneck underneath and covered up with a brown fur coat.

He stood tall in a pair of white platform shoes, and he stayed on theme with a white handbag.

Making a scene: Pose star Billy Porter spiced up the performance thanks to his unmissable style. He arrived in a brilliant white suit adorned with thousands of small rectangular mirrors

Eye-catching: The Broadway star wore a white turtleneck underneath and covered up with a brown fur coat

Staying cozy: Full Frontal host Samantha Bee was bundled up on the chilly evening in a black coat, while her husband Jason Jones wore a light gray down jacket

Full Frontal host Samantha Bee was bundled up on the chilly evening in a black coat, over which she draped a long dark green scarf adorned with floral stitching.

She added a fierce pair of black leather boots to her mostly monochrome ensemble.

Her husband, former Daily Show correspondent Jason Jones, looked dapper in a light gray down jacket with grayblue jeans and a close-cropped salt-and-pepper beard.

Fashion wunderkind Christian Siriano kept his look casual with a gray graphic T-shirt.

He covered it up with a navy blazer with peaked lapels and wore a dark pair of jeans with black suede boots.
Taiwan confirms another case of Wuhan virus

ROC Central News Agency

01/31/2020 10:43 PM

Taipei, Jan. 31 (CNA) Another case of the 2019 novel coronavirus (2019-nCoV) was confirmed in Taiwan on Friday, bringing the number of cases in the country to 10, the Central Epidemic Command Center (CECC) said.

The latest victim is a man who had returned from the Chinese city of Wuhan on Jan. 12 and developed respiratory symptoms on Jan. 22. He subsequently infected his wife, who was confirmed by the CECC on Thursday as having contracted the 2019-nCoV virus.

The symptoms the husband had were too mild to qualify as a suspected 2019-nCoV case when he initially sought medical treatment at a local hospital, according to Health Minister Chen Shih-chung (), who heads the epidemic response center.

Further tests revealed Friday, however, that the husband was indeed infected with the Wuhan coronavirus, Chen told reporters at a press briefing in Taipei.

Chen noted that the husband and wife cases were contained within their family and did not represent a community outbreak.

According to the CECC, the husband has recovered but it remains unclear if he is still contagious or not.

(By Chang Min-hsuan and Ko Lin)

Enditem/ls

NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address






Prime Minister Scott Morrison has said only 'Australian citizens, Australian residents, dependents, legal guardians or spouses' will be permitted into the country from mainland China from Saturday

The Australian government on Saturday said it would bar non-citizens arriving from mainland China from entering the country under new measures to combat the spread of the coronavirus epidemic.

Prime Minister Scott Morrison said only "Australian citizens, Australian residents, dependents, legal guardians or spouses" would be permitted into the country from mainland China from Saturday.

"The arrangements are being put in place through our border authorities to ensure that that can be actioned," he added.

Border control authorities would be able to "step up" processes in the next 24 hours to screen those who had departed or transited through China, Morrison said.

Exceptions will be made for airline crew "using appropriate personal protective equipment".

"We're in fact operating with an abundance of caution in these circumstances. So Australians can go about their daily lives with confidence," Morrison told reporters.

"We're acting here in advance of many countries in terms of when similar types of arrangements are being put in place."

The requirement of people arriving in Australia from Hubei province to "self-isolate" for 14 days was expanded from Saturday to include anyone travelling from mainland China.

Australia's foreign ministry also updated its travel advice for mainland China to "do not travel".

The ministry said the temporary measures do not apply to Hong Kong, and that they will be reviewed in two weeks.

Qantas Airways, Australia's flag carrier, said earlier Saturday it would suspend its two direct flights to mainland ChinaSydney to Beijing and Shanghaifrom February 9 because of various virus-linked international restrictions.

Air New Zealand followed suit, announcing a suspension of its Auckland-Shanghai service from February 9.

Australian officials have confirmed 10 cases of coronavirus in the country so far.

Foreign Minister Marise Payne said plans to evacuate Australian citizens from the epicentre of the outbreak in Wuhan to facilities on Christmas Island to be "agreed soon".

It is not clear how many people have requested "assisted departure" but Morrison defended the Christmas Island facilities, typically used for detaining refugees.

Canberra said it will make available 500,000 masks to airport staff and arriving passengers.

"There is no basis for alarm. It is important to remember the risk to Australians is currently very low. We need to keep it that way," the prime minister said later in a joint statement with the health and foreign ministry.

Any non-citizens that arrive from Saturday "will be subject to mandatory quarantine" should they not agree to return to their "port of origin".

Explore further Countries evaluate evacuation of citizens in virus epicenter

 2020 AFP
Source: Xinhua| 2020-02-01 02:45:19|Editor: huaxia

Video Player Close

BEIJING, Jan. 31 (Xinhua) -- China on Friday criticized "unfriendly U.S. comments" amid China's fight against novel coronavirus outbreak, saying what the U.S. side did was "certainly not a gesture of goodwill."

Foreign Ministry spokesperson Hua Chunying made the remarks after certain U.S. officials made some unfriendly comments while China is doing its best to fight the epidemic.

The U.S. Secretary of Commerce said the virus could help bring jobs back to the United States. In addition, the U.S. Department of State issued a notice to raise travel advisory on China to the highest grade of warning, which is currently placed on Iraq and Afghanistan.

Currently the Chinese people are going all out to fight against the epidemic, Hua said, stressing that acting with openness, transparency and a high sense of responsibility, the Chinese government keeps the international community including the United States well-informed with timely updates and shared relevant data.

"A friend in need is a friend indeed. Many countries have offered China support in various means," she said. "In sharp contrast, certain U.S. officials' words and actions are neither factual nor appropriate."

Just as the WHO recommended against travel restrictions, the U.S. rushed to go in the opposite way, Hua said, adding this was certainly not a gesture of goodwill.

China has every confidence that with the resolute leadership of the Communist Party of China, the enormous strength of socialism with Chinese characteristics and the strong support from the international community, the Chinese people, fighting with one heart and mind, will definitely win the battle against the epidemic.

China will also overcome any difficulty lying ahead to realize the great rejuvenation of the Chinese nation, she added.
Elon Musk truly is the jack of all trades. From starting his own payment-gateway system to making electric cars that people love, to rockets that land on their own -- hes done quite a few things. And now, you can add EDM artist to this list too, sort of.

Reuters

Elon Musk is known to break the norm and do crazy things every now and then, and yesterday, he went ahead and launched his very own EDM track that he himself has written.



Yes, it sounds crazy. Last year he wrote and sung a song for Harambe the Gorilla, but that was hip-hop. This time hes dipping in the genre of Electronic dance music.

Just wrote a song called Dont doubt yer vibe  Elon Musk (@elonmusk) January 30, 2020

Recently he tweeted that he wrote a song. Well, it wouldnt have taken forever as the four-minute-long song has just four sentences, Dont doubt your vibe, because its true; Dont doubt your vibe, because its you!.

These four rather inspiring sentences keep humming while electronic music elevates in the background. The first thing that youll denote after hearing the music is that it is very inspired by space music.

The beats are not too fast in the beginning, however, they transcend at their own pace and the music has a strong sci-fi DNA. It sounds alright, however, surely nothing David Guetta or Calvin Harris need to worry about.

The song is being launched on Emo G Records -- the same record label where he shared the track RIP Harambe with the world. You can listen to the song for free on SoundCloud.

Reuters

Wont be surprised if he would be open with this track at this years Tomorrowland.



You can listen to the track here.

What do you feel about this track? Should Elon make more music or just stick to making crazy fast electric cars? Let us know in the comments below.
A cohort of University of Miami students will travel next week to the Bahamas, where they will consult with owners of local businesses to help develop rebuilding and resiliency strategies to keep the local economy going in the event of another devastating disaster like Hurricane Dorian.

The students visit is part of the Bahamas Consulting Project, a collaboration launched a year ago between the University of Miami and the University of The Bahamas, with the goal of creating training workshops that would ultimately benefit the local economy. The focus shifted to rebuilding and resiliency after Dorian pummeled the islands of Grand Bahama and Great Abaco last September.

This is such an opportunity to learn and help, said Stephanie Wehby, a second-year M.B.A. student originally from Jamaica who will make the trip. Im from the Caribbean, and the storm felt quite personalit could have been me and my home.

Zhivargo Laing, executive director of the Government Public Policy Institute (GPPI) at the University of The Bahamas, was on the Coral Gables campus this week. He coordinated logistics and, together with University of Miami faculty members, offered students a primer on the cultural, environmental, and business challenges the Caribbean nation has faced since Dorian left 70,000 of its 400,000 people homeless.

Stephanie Wehby and classmates in the action project class.

Laing said the students won't see visible destruction in Freeport on Grand Bahama because the area was mostly impacted by flooding. The eastern end of Grand Bahama, however, where the students are also scheduled to visit, sustained severe damage. But the businesses in Freeport are trying to recover from the floodingthey were all under 5-to-6-feet of water. Commerce has been severely disrupted and if you have limited commerce, you have limited employment and limited affordabilityand a vicious cycle that becomes a long-term reality, Laing told students in the action project interdisciplinary class offered at the Miami Herbert Business School that also includes students from the School of Law and College of Arts and Sciences.

Zhihao Chen, also a second year M.B.A. student, is taking the action project class again this year.

Last year we learned the concepts from the book, and now this is a real-life experience, a chance to put what we learned to work, said Chen, who spent his summer backpacking in Mexico, Cuba, and Argentina to learn about the region and strengthen his Spanish.

Over a three-day weekend in Freeport, studentsworking in concert with students and faculty at the University of The Bahamaswill meet and brainstorm with four Bahamian businesses, selected by the GPPI as representative of the most important industriesfisheries, communications, wholesale, and retail. First, though, they will tour Grand Bahama, and its eastern end where most visible damage occurred, to understand the scope of the disaster.

When you experience a disaster from the ground level, you see what it does to communities, to countriesand solutions are not possible without clarity about the problem, Laing said. Its my hope that students, in real time and in a real way, absorb the totality and immensity of things like this.

The Bahamas, he pointed out, has historically suffered a cycle of hurricanes, but nothing that compares to the wrath unleashed by Dorian. Prior to the storm, the Bahamas was second only to the United States and Canada in terms of highest per-capita income in the region, he said, though noting that tourismwith more than six million visitors a yearis by far the main driver.

The semester-long action project also seeks to generate strategies for resiliency against future storms and seeks to develop a climate change resiliency center at the University of The Bahamas.

Kathleen Sullivan Sealey, an associate professor with expertise on coastal restoration ecology, and small island development and sustainable finances, briefed students on the growing poverty, high cost of living, and the environmental and financial challenges the commonwealth faces.

There is limited credit available, and the use of credit is very creative, Sealey explained, adding that the lack of regulation creates a huge problem for businesses.

Many Bahamians do not separate their personal finances from their professional, and that increases vulnerability and caused an even bigger human tragedy from this hurricane, said Sealey, who will travel with the group to Freeport.

Alex Niemeyer, an associate professor at Miami Herbert Business School who teaches the action project class, outlined the consultancy projects three objectives: for students to learn to apply consulting in a real-world setting, to help neighboring friends who are in need, and to help students gain an understanding of the longer-term reality of climate changein this case prompted by a weather event.

Many dont realize there will be cities and communities that will be drenched out, Niemeyer said. Theyll get a real understanding of the massive impact of the disaster and an appreciation that will enable them in leadership roles to make much more sane policy decisions.
Rep. Jerry Nadler, one of Democratic lawmakers prosecuting President Donald Trumps impeachment trial in the Senate, announced Friday morning that he would miss the conclusion of that case because he needed to be with his wife, who is sick with pancreatic cancer.

Joyce Miller was diagnosed in December, and her husband had previously said he expected to miss part of the trial.

I am sorry to not be able to stay in Washington for the conclusion of the Senate impeachment trial but I need to be home with my wife at this time, Nadler, 72, tweeted on Friday. We have many decisions to make as a family. I have every faith in my colleagues and hope the Senate will do what is right.

After days of arguments and questioning, the Senate is expected to proceed to a final vote on Trumps impeachment charges in the next hours or possibly days. An acquittal is likely, given the number of Republicans who would be needed to vote with Democrats  while conservatives have said they are reluctant to engage with what they called a partisan investigation.

RELATED: Donald Trump Impeached by House of Representatives Over Ukraine Scandal

I am sorry to not be able to stay in Washington for the conclusion of the Senate impeachment trial but I need to be home with my wife at this time. We have many decisions to make as a family. I have every faith in my colleagues and hope the Senate will do what is right.  (((Rep. Nadler))) (@RepJerryNadler) January 31, 2020

Rep. Jerry Nadler (speaking at the Senate impeachment trial. | Michael Brochstein / Echoes Wire/Barcroft Media via Getty

Nadler announced on Sunday that his wife had been diagnosed with pancreatic cancer in December, near the end of the impeachment investigation in the House of Representatives.

She has undergone surgery and is taking further steps to address the spread of the cancer, Nadler said then, adding tht he was planning to return home to New York to meet with doctors, determine a path forward, and begin her treatment.

Story continues

Nadler is one of the seven Democrats from the House of Representatives who were chosen as impeachment managers, presenting the Houses case throughout the Senate trial in a role analogous to a prosecutor.

RELATED: R.E.M. Singer Michael Stipe Once Told Trump to Shut Up at a Concert Because He Wouldnt Stop Talking

On Sunday, Nadler said he was sorry to miss some of the Senate Impeachment Trial, which is of critical importance to our democracy.

Others online were quick to support his decision.

Family comes first, Alyssa Milano responded on Friday. Always.

Read my statement on missing part of the Senate Impeachment Trial on Monday because of a family health matter: pic.twitter.com/fis3vkZrid  (((Rep. Nadler))) (@RepJerryNadler) January 26, 2020

The process leading up to Trumps historic impeachment and his ensuing trial in the Senate has played out since House Speaker Nancy Pelosi announced an investigation in late September.

Nadler has been a leading voice for the Democrats push to impeach and remove the president from office for his role in the Ukraine scandal, in which Trump lobbied Ukraine into investigating political rival Joe Biden ahead of the 2020 election.

Our president holds the ultimate public trust, Rep. Nadler, who was the the chair of the House Judiciary Committee that drafted the articles of impeachment against Trump, said in December. When he betrays that trust and puts himself before country, he endangers the Constitution, he endangers our democracy and he endangers our national security. The framers of the Constitution prescribed a clear remedy for presidents who so violate their oath of office. That is the power of impeachment.
Connecticut State Police

DANBURY  State police are looking for the person responsible for illegally dumping a trailer full of used tires in a westside commuter lot.

The abandoned DICO MightyMover trailer has been sitting in the commuter parking lot at 10 Miry Brook Road since Sunday, police said.
While a lot has been written about the contribution of the Indian Army during World War II, The Forgotten Few by KS Nair, is a rare account of the Indians who participated in the war in the air, alongside British and other Allied pilots. A passionate war buff since his childhood, Nair realised the need for the book only after travelling outside India as part of his day job.

"...Great chap, with a party  and he was always ready to pick a fight with a Britisher. He just didnt like the British. I dont know why - they were grand chaps. But Ranjan would, find some excuse to  wed be walking down the corridor, [someone would brush past]. Hed turn around and say, Mind where youre going, cant you see I have two glasses in my hand? Hed say, One minute, put the glasses down and punch the chap. And before you knew it, there was a fight. And the fight would be, British chaps versus Indian chaps..."

This was how "Phil" Philip, one of the Indian Air Force's (IAF) first Spitfire pilots, described his accomplished, combative squadron-mate Ranjan Dutt, during the period they served together in the Burma Front in World War II.

Against the enemy, though, it was all very different. The War had broken out in 1939 and while on duty, the Indians and the British flew side by side as part of the Allied forces that took on the Axis  the Germans, the Italians, and in Asia, the Japanese. Young men like Ranjan Dutt  who held a commercial pilots' license, spoke impeccable English, and chased flying as a passion  were instantly picked up by the British, drafted into the then-new, still-tiny Indian Air Force. Some of them, including Dutt, were sent to the United Kingdom to train with the Royal Air Force (RAF). And once equipped with the necessary skills to engage in aerial warfare, ardent youngsters like Dutt and Philip were assigned to RAF and IAF squadrons, to take on the Axis powers.

While a lot has been written about the contribution of the Indian Army during World War II, The Forgotten Few by KS Nair, is a rare account of the Indians who participated in the war in the air, alongside British and other Allied pilots. A passionate war buff since his childhood, Nair realised the need for the book only after travelling outside India as part of his day job.

When I visited some other countries that had participated in World War II, I realised that the War was so vital to their identity even after 70 years," says Nair.

"It was a huge marker of social, economic and political change, and a huge contributor to their independence. In India, there was already an Independence movement in place, and the War simply accelerated the move for independence, though few seem to acknowledge this fact, he adds.

The first military flight recorded in India goes as far back as January 1916  five years after commercial flights and air mail had been introduced in the country. That was during World War I, when the British need for manpower saw Indian troops join the action on ground in Europe. During that war, a handful of Indian pilots took to the air as part of the Royal Flying Corps (RFC), the predecessor of the RAF. The first Indian military pilot, Hardit Singh Malik, was among that handful who saw action in France and Belgium. By the time the war was over, men like him had made a case for India to have its own Air Force, though it took a while to set these plans in motion.

A lot of army generals at the time believed that aircraft would not add any military value, because they could barely get into the sky and could break down at any moment. But a few privileged individuals, such as the Tatas and Engineers, besides several Maharajas of princely states, had already taken up flying as a hobby. Men like these stepped up to aid the British in their war efforts, Nair says.

In that period, only a handful of Indians had had the opportunity to train with the British RFC, which, in 1918, became the RAF. Despite a lot of opposition in the corridors of power, in the late 1920s, the Skeen Committee proposed that Indians be drafted into a new Indian Air Force, while also building other Indian military capabilities. After the Indian Air Force Act was passed in 1932, the Indian Air Force (IAF) was established the following year, and flying got underway with the formation of the No 1 Squadron, comprising around six Indian and two British officers, and about 20 Indian airmen or havai sepoys.

However, things were anything but easy during those early days. During those first few years of their existence, No 1 Squadron was confined to insignificant roles like message deliveries, rather than combat roles. Indian pilots were made to play second fiddle to their British counterparts and made to fly inferior aircrafts; the airmen had no roles in maintenance and were initially asked to only keep the aircraft clean. Nair highlights moments where a few Indians dared to indulge in unofficial contests against British pilots, all in a bid to prove their worth.

Its actually quite a story on how they overcame all those prejudices, until the British accepted their abilities and treated them as closer to equals. For instance, they were handed down second or third-hand Hurricanes, which struggled to match up against the enemy aircraft, even as the British started converting to the more effective and prestigious Spitfires. So it was an uphill fight every step of the way and you really have to admire the spirit and determination of those who passed the test, Nair says.

What drove those young pioneers, to endure that discrimination, only for the privilege of risking their lives in combat? For some of those early pioneers, it was an opportunity to fly rather than fight. A few were genuinely committed to opposing fascism, while others signed up for the privilege of serving as commissioned officers, a valuable position in those days, since it was fairly clear that independence was coming, though they were still unsure on when it would unfold, he adds.

Early IAF action was restricted to maintaining peace along the restive borders of the North West Frontier Province. Even until the end of 1941, India was largely a peaceful rear base in World War II, as the Allies looked to expand their military capabilities and set up facilities to train pilots in India and Ceylon.

However, a few IAF personnel did see action in the theatres of Europe and North Africa, while a majority was mobilised for operations closer to home in Burma, where fighting broke out in 1942 as Japan entered World War II. The IAF played key roles in the turnaround from initial defeats to eventual victory in Burma, where the Japanese were made to surrender. Some of them were engaged in carrying out evacuations once Partition was announced, and poignantly, a few found themselves on opposite sides of the border after Independence.

The book is filled with exciting encounters and the unrecorded exploits of these daredevils, unearthed through Nairs research over the last 15 years, besides personal interviews with about 20 World War II veterans including Dutt, the aggressive Spitfire pilot described at the start of this article.

Post Independence, Dutt was the youngest officer to rise to the ranks of Group Captain and Air Vice-Marshal of the IAF. He was awarded a Vir Chakra for his heroics in a single-seater aircraft during the 1947-48 skirmishes. He was also the hardest to track down for Nair.

He left the IAF and India around 1960. Nobody knew where he was for a good 30 years, until I heard he was back in India and chased him for a meeting. I could finally spend two lovely evenings with him when he told me about his experiences. He was frail and confined to a wheelchair by the time I met him, but his swashbuckling personality was evident even then. And when he said he didnt want to talk about something, there was little that you could do about it, he recalls.

And though Nair was able to document a lot of these timeless stories, some have been taken to their grave by charismatic men like Dutt. Some of the stories that he did manage to record figure in his book, The Forgotten Few.
He began as a bet in 1916 when Agatha Christie (working for the Voluntary Aid Detachment in Torquay, providing nursing care for military personnel injured in the war) was challenged by a friend to write a detective story in which the reader would not be able to spot the criminal.

Christie, 26 at the time, loved detective fiction, particularly Sherlock Holmes, but wanted to create a detective who relied on psychology to catch criminals rather than just the hard evidence of a trail of clues which the reader could follow for themselves.

The result of the bet was The Mysterious Affair at Styles and Hercule Poirot: "He was hardly more than five feet four inches but carried himself with a great dignity. His head was exactly the shape of an egg, and he always perched it a little on one side...The neatness of his attire was almost incredible; I believe a speck of dust would have caused him more pain than a bullet wound.'"

A prissy Belgian who once complained about the failure of chickens to lay exactly the same size of egg - he liked symmetry at the breakfast table - and spent considerable time on his hair and moustache seemed an unlikely hero; and yet, 100 years after the publication of his first case, Hercule Poirot stands shoulder to shoulder (albeit he needs to stand on a box to do so) with Holmes as one of the immortals of literature.

That first book, rejected by a number of editors and companies before it was published in New York (she accepted a 25 fee and no control of copyright) in October 1920 was a critical rather than commercial success. But this was a time when newspaper critics still had a huge influence on the reading public and when what later became known as the post-war 'Golden Age of Detective Fiction' was taking root. By the time of his third case, The Murder of Roger Ackroyd, published in 1926 (and which, very controversially, broke one of the 10 rules of the whodunnit genre), Poirot was a success. So successful, in fact, that Christie named her house Styles.

Christie did borrow one thing from Sherlock Holmes, with Captain Hastings and Inspector Japp serving as her version of Dr Watson and Inspector Lestrade. But Hastings never caught the public imagination in the way that Watson did. Watson was there entirely for the benefit of the reader, asking the questions that popped into our minds as Holmes delivered the dazzling displays of deduction.

Watson was everyman, willing to carry the load for our collective stupidity in being able to see without actually observing. But for most of the time Hastings was just a vehicle for pushing the plot along; a role that, in a number of the novels and short stories, was taken over by other characters.

As with Holmes though, it quickly became apparent that the character was bigger than the plot; the sort of character that actors wanted to play. The first to portray Poirot was Charles Laughton, in a 1928 adaptation of The Murder of Roger Ackroyd called Alibi, which played in both the West End and on Broadway. Laughton was an unlikely choice, better known for his barnstorming theatrical style (think Captain Bligh in his Mutiny on the Bounty) than for the quiet fussiness of the detective. But audiences, many of whom probably hadn't read any Christie, came for Laughton and left with a liking for the character. In 1931 Claude Austin Trevor Schilsky (born in Belfast in October 1897 and known by his stage name Austin Trevor) became the first actor to play Poirot on screen, in the film version of Alibi. He played him a few more times in the Thirties, but without much success. Eighty-six years on, in 2017, another Belfast-born actor, Kenneth Branagh, played Poirot in a hugely expensive version of Murder on the Orient Express. Branagh returns to the role later this year with a version of Death on the Nile.

Like Laughton, Branagh played the character his own way and not particularly faithful to Christie's idea of Poirot. Interestingly, there are also some lovely touches of Poirot in Daniel Craig's portrayal of private detective Benoit Blanc in the recent film Knives Out, a delicious pastiche of big-house murder mysteries.

In the same way that Holmes fans have their favourites - Basil Rathbone, Peter Cushing, Jeremy Brett (my 'ideal' Holmes) and Benedict Cumberbatch - Poirot fans have theirs, too.

The list of films and actors is nowhere as long as the Holmes list, but along with Laughton and Branagh it also includes John Malkovich, Robert Powell, Ian Holm, Orson Welles, Albert Finney, John Moffatt (the best radio Poirot, so far), Tom Conti and Tony Randall. Two, of course, stand out: Peter Ustinov and David Suchet.

Ustinov played him six times between 1978 and 1988; three big-screen, star-studded, enormously successful feature films (Death on the Nile, the best of them) and then three made-for-television versions. In one of those, Thirteen at Dinner, David Suchet played Inspector Japp. Rosalind Hicks, Agatha Christie's daughter, observed Ustinov during a rehearsal and commented: "That's not Poirot! He isn't at all like that!" Ustinov overheard and replied: "He is now!"

But the Poirot shoes that all future actors must try and fill belong to David Suchet. For a generation he is Hercule Poirot, their Hercule Poirot.

More important - like Jeremy Brett as Sherlock Holmes - he is the Poirot as written by Agatha Christie. Read again that description of Poirot at the top of this piece and it is Suchet you will see. Suchet, who played him between 1989 and 2013, is the only actor to have completed the entire Poirot catalogue, including 33 novels and dozens of short stories.

His final interview when the series ended summed it up perfectly: "Poirot's death was the end of a long journey for me. I had only ever wanted to play Dame Agatha's true Poirot... He was as real to me as he had been to her: a great detective, a remarkable man, if, perhaps, just now and then, a little irritating. I think back to Poirot's last words in the scene before he dies. That second 'Cher ami' was for someone other than Hastings. It was for my dear, dear friend Poirot. I was saying goodbye to him as well - and I felt it with all my heart."

In 1944 Raymond Chandler described the ideal fictional detective as a man comfortable on mean streets, but "who is not himself mean, who is neither tarnished nor afraid... He has a sense of character, or he would not know his job. He will take no man's money dishonestly and no man's insolence without a due and dispassionate revenge. He is a lonely man and his pride is that you will treat him as a proud man." That's Poirot.

And that's why Poirot will live on when so many other fictional characters have come and gone, rattling through our memories when we set down the book, switch off the television or radio and wait for the next distraction. Christie, like Conan Doyle, wasn't the most revered of the Golden Age writers and some of her work looks cumbersome and contrived nowadays. The age of gathering together a number of witnesses and suspects in a country house, or hotel, or train, or boat has disappeared.

The era of the amateur consulting detective has long gone, too. But, like Holmes, Poirot was a big enough character to escape from those confines.

He remains believable and likeable, irrespective of time and location. Those 'little grey cells' are still capable of dealing with any problem, because Poirot was always more interested in people than in clues.

A new generation of authors, including Anthony Horowitz and Sophie Hannah, has been inspired by Christie and Poirot - pastiche is a booming business. Kenneth Branagh plans a few more Poirot films.

The books have never been out of print. New radio and TV versions are in the pipeline.

A century on and the brand is huge. There will always be another case demanding his attention: "For somewhere," said Poirot, indulging in an absolute riot of mixed metaphors, "there is in the hay a needle, and among the sleeping dogs there is one on whom I shall put my foot, and by shooting the arrows into the air, one will come down and hit a glass house!"
Finally, after 1,317 days of confusion, rancor and endless votes in Parliament, it was time for Brexit. On Wednesday, teary members of the European Parliament joined hands and sang Auld Lang Syne, a clock projected onto 10 Downing Street counted down the minutes, Union Jacks lined the Mall before Buckingham Palace.

A new dawn for Europe, leaders of the European Union wrote in a joint article.

This is the moment when the dawn breaks, came Prime Minister Boris Johnsons echo from across the newly raised dividing line.

It was left to the dispassionate BBC to cut short the bathos: Brexit is far from done, the Beeb coldly said, before listing the many travails still to come, most notably the negotiations that now begin with the E.U. on the details of Britains future relationship with the Continent. Mr. Johnson has promised not to seek an extension of the Dec. 31 deadline, which he could, though a less complex trade deal between the E.U. and Canada took seven years to finish. To discourage other members from exiting, the E.U. is not likely to cut Britain much slack on E.U. standards and rules in their trade.

Britain will now also reach across the Atlantic to what President Trump has held out as a very big trade deal, bigger than weve ever had with the U.K., which Mr. Johnson has touted as a benefit of quitting the E.U. That, too, could prove a disappointment. A former British ambassador to Washington, Kim Darroch  who resigned in July after his derogatory comments about Mr. Trump leaked out  was among those who noted in interviews that Mr. Trump is not given to generous trade concessions, least of all in an election year.
John Kerry is for Joe Biden. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez is stumping for Bernie Sanders. And Julian Castro is for Elizabeth Warren. But whom does George Takei support? (Hint: A certain former mayor from Indiana )

As nominating season prepares to open, weve gathered a snapshot of the endorsement race as it stands. Aside from garnering glittering photo opportunities, endorsements can be important because they can bring along a network of supporters and donors. And more broadly, they offer a validating effect for candidates hoping to demonstrate strength or inevitability.

This is not a comprehensive endorsement list. (Campaigns frequently send statements containing the names of dozens of local officials, activists and former office holders who have backed their candidate  far too many to include in this report.) Heres a sense of which candidates have the largest number of endorsements from people you might have heard of, and which corners, in general, their support is coming from.
We religious folk share many ways to ease our despair: We pray and meditate. We read from sacred writings. We seek solace in our religious communities, in communal worship and reflection.

This fall, I returned to dance as another form of solace, although I didnt realize that at the time. It was to be just a fun exercise, and an activity to share with my husband. We started learning  or relearning  to square dance, something we had both done as children, this uniquely American dance form that draws from European, Native American, and African dancing.

When humans dance together, we create something beautiful and joyful. Humans have always danced, imitating the movements of the flora and fauna around us  blossoms opening, windblown trees, and the choreographed movements of birds, deer, buffalo, cats.

The writer Joanne Dornan notes that the word for dance in the Omaha language is the same as the word for love. Dance is an expression of being human. Many faiths incorporate dance in worship  liturgical dance is noted in Book of Exodus. After the waters were parted and the Jews saved, Miriam led a dance of thanksgiving. This is the dance (with) blissful rapture to the song and melody of the love of God described in Bahai scripture.

Dance is completely in the present. It is apolitical. I have no idea what are the passions, beliefs, or political leanings of the other dancers. We leave all our disagreements and controversies outside.

Dance is an antidote to despair: In this hard and divided world, when we dance together, we express ourselves creatively as one. Square dancing provides a momentary relief from hopelessness and is a pure expression of our common humanity.

How does square dancing in particular work? We start out, four couples facing, two by two, on the sides of a square. We nod, perhaps greet a friend. A caller on stage starts the music, and always begins with a call to courtesy  Bow to your partner, and then to your corner (the dancer to our right, for women, and to the left, for men). When we circle left, we join hands and stroll, skip, or hop in a circle of eight dancers, adjusting to the rhythm of the music. As we move to the increasingly more complex calls, we must keep time to the music and be alert to the next possible move. We synchronize our movements to music and rhythm, making a complex, every-moving pattern.

Now the dance is no longer in a rigid square, as the eight dancers create ever more intricate patterns  large and small wheels, lines that weave and undulate; we may touch hands or brush a shoulder, always maintaining our place in the dance pattern. I may rest my palm against the palm of a partner, with the merest tension  like the pressure to open a door or window. If I misstep, another dancer gently guides me into place.

In dance, I feel the same transcendence and joy of being completely immersed in any project  yes, even in prayer. A well-executed dance is also a model of perfect unity and community.

At the end of an evening of dance, everyone in the hall joins hands to thank everyone else in the room.

If, as I believe, we are all members of one human family, square dancing is a yet another way to express our unity  by forgetting our differences, by joining our hands, by accompanying each other and smiling at a stranger in celebration of our shared humanity.

Sandra J. Bean has lived in the Azores, Israel, and China, and traveled during her professional career as a writer to more than 20 countries, where she was able to meet local Bahais and participate in community activities. She served at the Bahai World Centre in Haifa, Israel, in the late 1980s. She has been a Bahai since 1971 and a student of religion all her life.

Love 0 Funny 0 Wow 0 Sad 0 Angry 0
Edgar Henderson, a Disney animator who brought the Astrodomes scoreboard to life and designed maps and replicas of the Astroworld theme park, died Jan. 25 of natural causes.

He was 95.

People who have visited Houstons two most famous relics are likely familiar with Hendersons work. He made most of the cartoons that danced across the Astrodomes scoreboard in the '60s and '70s. He was behind the Astros first mascot, Chester Charge, only the second MLB mascot in the country.

And he later used his talents for Judge Roy Hofheinzs theme park, designing the maps handed out to Astroworld patrons and creating an 80-square-feet replica of the park that is now displayed in Houston Public Librarys lobby downtown.

Ed was like a dad to me, said Clayton Thorp, a family friend. He was just the sweetest, kindest man you ever saw in your life.

Henderson was born in Mississippi in 1924 and moved to Houston as a child with his family, Thorp said. He was 17 when the attack on Pearl Harbor catapulted the United States into World War II.

He told Thorp he had to seek a special permission from his father to enter the Marines. He would ultimately serve at Guadalcanal, where America made its first major landing of the war.

While there, Henderson contracted malaria, Thorp said, but he survived the war and returned home to wed his wife of 75 years, Shirley.

They lived together until just a few months ago, Thorp said, when a fall landed Henderson in a hospital and then a care center in Katy.

Ed and Shirley moved to California, where Henderson first found work for Screen Gems on a cartoon called The Fox and the Crow, according to Thorp.

He would later join Disney and work on Sleeping Beauty.

The couple had a daughter, Sherry, born in 1954, and the family moved back to Houston in the early 1960s.

He lent his artistic hand to Hofheinz, who was creating the Astrodome and later Astroworld. Henderson worked for the Stros for more than 20 years, Thorp said.

Back then, they lost a lot, so the cartoons were the things that would cheer you up, he said.

Later, when Hofheinz was raising funds for Astroworld, Thorp said Henderson created a folding replica that fit in the judges briefcase.

The 80-square-foot one was featured in the Astroworld corporate offices  and then Hendersons garage  before landing at the library. It has Hofheinzs black Cadillac parked in the northwestern corner.

After the stadium and theme park closed, Henderson worked with his brother, Frank, creating cartoons and graphics for commercials and other work out of his garage studio, Thorp said.

He is survived by his wife, Shirley; daughter, Sherry; sister, Shirley; and nephew, Mark.

Hendersons services will be held Tuesday at the Southeast Church of Christ in Friendswood. The viewing is from 6:30 to 7:30 p.m., with a service until 8:30 p.m.

He will be buried with full military honors at Houston National Cemetery at 1 p.m. Wednesday.
Share this article Whatsapp

Facebook

Twitter

Linkedin John Geddie and Joseph Sipalan (Reuters) Singapore and Kuala Lumpur  Sat, February 1, 2020 11:15 709 7f440ff09e92db75a02bbad2061f8d4a 2 Health coronavirus,Wuhan-coronavirus,face-mask,health Free

"Do not wear a mask if you are well" read a warning plastered across the front of Singapore's main newspaper on Friday, as authorities around the world sought to calm panic buying of masks seen as a guard against the fast-spreading coronavirus.

In neighboring Malaysia, the government urged people to always have masks and hand sanitizers ready, similar to advice by authorities in Thailand and Vietnam.

Conflicting messages have sowed confusion over how to protect against an epidemic that has claimed over 200 lives in China and spread to over 20 countries, with some experts saying wrong handling of masks could even increase infection risk.

"Wearing a mask only when u feel unwell? Then why do u need soldiers when there isn't war? It's better to be safe than sorry" Facebook user Kenny Chan Wai Kong posted in Singapore, where authorities have announced plans to give four masks to every household as retailers' stocks run dry across the island.

In parts of Asia, wearing face masks is common when people are sick or to counter urban pollution.

Official guidance from the World Health Organisation and the Centre for Disease Control and Prevention makes no mention of wearing a face mask as a preventative measure against the virus - but their websites do not specifically advise against them.

Australia and Taiwan have said healthy people don't need masks, but Australia has released 1 million masks from the national medical stockpile, and masks are widely worn in Taiwan's capital Taipei where the government has imposed purchase limits and an export ban on masks.

The Taiwan Railway Administration said on Friday that if the virus continues to spread it will refuse to carry passengers not wearing masks.

Read also: Jakartans struggle to find masks as concerns over coronavirus outbreak intensify

Masks must be fitted correctly

Coronavirus can be transmitted from person to person, although it is not clear how easily. Most cases have been in people who have been in the Chinese city of Wuhan at the centre of the outbreak, family members of those infected, or medical workers.

Transmission is likely through contact with an infected person via particles in the air from coughing or sneezing, or by someone touching an infected person or object with the virus on it and then touching their mouth, nose or eyes.

"Situations that require a mask are when you are in a crowd...or if you are caring for a sick person. If it makes you feel better, wear a surgical mask," Angela Rasmussen, virologist at the Center for Infection & Immunity at Columbia University said on the Reuters Global Markets Forum.

Other experts have said disposable surgical masks may not fit the face tightly enough to prevent infection, while some have pointed out that wrong handling of masks such as touching the front could increase the likelihood of infection spread.

In Hong Kong, a lawmaker who chairs the city's government health services panel was slammed over a short video she posted showing people how to steam and re-use disposable face masks.

More unusual advice has seen India's government suggest a traditional concoction that includes ginger and holy basil as virus protection, while a Myanmar minister was rebuked for sharing a Facebook post that advised people to eat more onions.

Some overseas Chinese have been buying masks to send to friends and relatives in China, where some stocks have been running out. Chinese citizens living in Vietnam, Thailand and Malaysia sent 150,000 masks back to their home province of Gansu on Thursday, China's Xinhua news agency reported.

In China, where nearly 10,000 cases have been reported so far, Zunyou Wu, chief epidemiologist at the Chinese Center for Disease Control and Prevention, told state broadcaster that people need to wear masks when taking public transport.
The Leitrim Observer posed a question to our online readers this week asking them to comment on the issues that matter most to them.

There was a good response and various topics were discussed with a particular focus on employment, health, broadband, forestry and direct provision.

Monica Ward listed a number of her concerns including security on the Sligo to Dublin train which she said is long overdue.

Employment, or lack of, in Leitrim is another important issue for Monica, as is improvement in broadband, rural isolation, waiting lists for hospital appointments, and the ongoing debate about the pension age.

Less lies and broken promises (from politicians) was Monica's wish.

In relation to forestry, Maura Murphy was critical of the amount of hoops you have to go through to appeal.

She added, They will encase us in trees that are not sustainable, they pollute our air and our rivers. They are a dark depressing blanket of green 12 months of the year. God only knows what chemicals are being used on them.

Maire Ni Cheallaigh, in reply to Maura Murphy, stated there is a huge plantation of almost 50 acres looking for planning permission less than a mile from her. She said they destroy roads during plantation and when they decide to cut them down.

Margaret McKiernan referenced mobile coverage in Cloone.

As a Vodafone customer its like something in a third world country. I have complained on numerous occasions, as recent as Monday last, and it is always the same. I am in a black spot. I was going to change provider but have been advised that it will be no different.

We are expected to do everything online now, well how about providing a broadband service fit for purpose that will not cost 45 per month for the very minimum, she said.

Amanda O'Connell spoke about the need for job creation within the county.

Less dealings with hedge fund property developers and more engagement with local development groups or co-op type projects. Keep money in Leitrim rather than lining pockets of rich and corrupt, she stated.

Paula Sneyd said her concerns were to keep 5G out of Leitrim, job creation in the county and help for small businesses to stay in business.

Oonagh McTernan is concerned about the inability of people in Leitrim to secure planning permission.

Kenneth John Moore called for the establishment of a body or action committee to take abandoned or near derelict or run down properties into government / council ownership to refurbish and allow young people to get on the property ladder or to house families without a home, or simply to enhance the appearance of an area.

Kenneth also called for an injection of funds for new enterprise and business ideas to towns that suffered from the downturn, for example, Leitrim Village, Cootehall and Drumshanbo.

Ann Harman is asking for increased investment in angioplasty services in Sligo University Hospital.

Sean McGloin said he wants all the politicians that are elected to declare their loyalty towards the people of Leitrim first and foremost.

Stop the forced direct provision accommodation in Leitrims rural towns and villages. There are far too many native Leitrim people struggling to make ends meet and where medical and educational facilities are stretched to breaking point. Give the politicians who think otherwise their pink slips in no uncertain terms, he said.

Kieran Walsh directly asked the candidates how many homeless people are there in Leitrim?

Other topics he raised were, Pensions are in the headlines today....why did you not do something about it in the last few years?

More homecare facilities for elderly.

Do you agree with the Greens that we should all share the one car?

Free parking for hospital patients and pensioners.

Return of full fuel allowance for pensioners.

Irish homes for Irish homeless first.....discuss.

Finally, Paddy O'Brien, with his tongue firmly in his cheek, asked, Can we annex Arigna into the county please? It annoys everyone no end that we have to go through Roscommon to get between North and South Leitrim.
The Secretariat lauded sectors and agencies for their serious observance of the Secretariats Directive 40 and the Prime Ministers Directive 33 to improve the peoples spiritual and material lives during the festival.

Due attention was paid to social policy beneficiaries, national contributors, the elderly, the poor and labourers in localities, it said.

Through organisations and agencies, the President presented Tet gifts to more than 1.7 million people across the country. Meanwhile, cities and provinces mobilised more than VND1.6 billion (US$69,000) to support over 2.3 million social policy beneficiaries and poor households during the festival.

The Secretariat also commended efforts in ensuring traffic safety, especially administrative fines imposed on violations of traffic rules, and maintaining political security, border, sea and island sovereignty, social order and safety and firefighting,

Officials and Party members have set examples in thrift practice and anti-corruption.

Regarding tasks in the time ahead, the Secretariat asked all-level Party committees to focus on fighting the acute respiratory disease caused by the novel coronavirus (nCoV), considering this a central, urgent task for both short and long terms.

Speaking at the meeting, Party General Secretary and President Nguyen Phu Trong said right after the Tet holiday, sectors and agencies need to resume production and business, and complete their assigned political tasks.

He emphasised the need to further prepare and organise all-level Party congresses, towards the 13th National Party Congress, well perform foreign affairs, especially Vietnams role and responsibility as a non-permanent member of the United Nations Security Council and ASEAN Chair, firmly protect sovereignty, border and territorial integrity, and ensure political security and social order and safety.

The leader also asked all-level Party committees to organise practical activities to celebrate the 90th founding anniversary of the CPV (February 3), and the countrys major festivals.

After scrutinising proposals of the CPV Central Committees Commission Organisation, the Secretariat made some personnel decisions.
Most citizens of Nigeria  Africas most populous nation and biggest economy  and Eritrea would be blocked from coming to live and work in the United States under the measure, which takes effect Feb. 22, while Tanzania and Sudan would be barred from the competitive U.S. visa lottery.
Emma Langford, 47, is alleged to have attacked three cabin crew members on board a BA jumbo jet flight to Cape Town in South Africa when she went on a drunken rampage after being refused a drink (SWNS)

A mum-of-two who attacked three British Airways flight attendants after being denied six Bloody Marys was on her way to a rehab clinic in South Africa.

Emma Langford, 47, had to be handcuffed and strapped to her seat after a drunken rampage on the 11-hour flight which left cabin crew shocked and the aircraft littered with broken plates and glasses.

On Friday, Isleworth Crown Court heard how Langford was travelling from Heathrow to Cape Town on December 6, 2019, with her son to check herself into an alcohol rehab centre.

A cabin crew manager claimed that the businesswoman smelt of alcohol and puffed her chest out before starting to punch him in the gallery are of the Boeing 747-400 (file photo (SWNS)

The court heard how she had crashed catastrophically into heavy drinking after the breakdown of her marriage and fears she would see her children put into care.

During the sentencing hearing a judge heard how after 35 minutes after take-off Langford approached members of staff saying she was thirsty and demanded a large amount of alcohol.

After her first drink, she returned to her seat but came back and launched a tirade of abuse - asking staff if they could afford her 8,000 seats and calling two female stewards fat.

She then punched customer service manager Matthew Richardson before assaulting another member of cabin crew, Poppy Haines.

Read more from Yahoo News UK:

Brexit timeline: From 2013 referendum promise to 2020 exit

Coronavirus: Inside the Wirral quarantine block as Brits arrive for two weeks

Brexiteer pours can of Stella over EU flag at celebrations in Parliament Square

She later shoved a third member of staff, Monique Fogel, against the aircraft door before throwing a tray of plates and glasses to the floor - one of the shards cut Miss Fogels leg.

A cabin crew manager said in a statement the mum-of-two smelt of alcohol and puffed her chest out before starting to punch him in the galley area of the Boeing 747-400.

Prosecuting, Douglas Adams said: About 30 minutes after take off the defendant came to the galley and she saw raiser her voice and was agitated. She was saying that she had been on the plane for ages and was thirsty and wanted a drink.

Story continues

The manager asked the customer not to speak to his crew in such a fashion. He could smell alcohol on her and so asked if she had been drinking but she said no. He gave her a bottle of water and she went back to her seat.

Langford has already admitted charges of being drunk on an aircraft, behaving in a threatening manner towards aircraft crew and criminal damage (SWNS)

A few moments later she approached him again with what he said was her chest puffed out.

She was saying she had paid 4,000 for a seat and 8,000 for two and asked if he could afford that amount but he said he would not comment.

Langford has been receiving treatment for mental health issues since the incident and has completed a rehab programme, the court heard.

Langford, of Old Baising, Hertfordshire, pleaded guilty to three charges of assault, one of criminal damage, and one of being drunk on an aircraft, and behaving in a threatening, abusive, insulting and disorderly manner towards cabin crew.

--How four years of utter Brexit chaos unfolded---
Johnny Mythen and his wife Barbara on their wedding day in November, which fell just before the by-election in which Johnny was the Sinn Fein candidate

The year is 2016. Sinn Fein's Johnny Mythen cuts an anxious figure as he leans over the railings at the St Joseph's count centre in Wexford town. Against the odds he's very close to taking a seat in Dail Eireann.

Going head to head with fellow Enniscorthy man, Fine Gael's Paul Kehoe, the Sinn Fein candidate was to lose out by just 31 votes.

Fast forward three years and Mythen was anxious for a different reason. As the counts rolled in, a major backlash against Sinn Fein became apparent. Johnny would walk away from the count centre having lost his long-held council seat, a bitter blow as the party counted losses right across the country.

'People don't realise you're human as well. You are a human being and things affect you,' Johnny said, reflecting on that loss. 'I felt a little bit let down. I had done a lot of work for people. I think one of the major factors was the boundary changes. Ten areas were taken from Enniscorthy. The likes of Edermine being in Gorey is ludicrous. To me that was a move done on purpose. I believe the figures were done and it was a move that was influenced by government ministers in our area. It put independents and smaller parties like ourselves under pressure.'

While some would have taken the defeat to heart and stepped off into the sunset, Johnny was determined that this wouldn't be his last hurrah in the cut-throat world of politics.

'I'm a republican, I believe in republicanism,' he said. 'What in this country has been easy for republicanism? People have been put in prison and died on hunger strike. To lose an election is not the end of the world. You have to pick yourself up. It's not just about seats. It's a belief, an ideology and looking after the people of Ireland.'

Johnny felt buoyed after a by-election campaign that, although ultimately unsuccessful, he felt put Sinn Fein back in the mix.

'The by-election was always going to be difficult because it's only one candidate for each party,' he said. 'The big parties were obviously going to win that anyway. For us it was about getting back up off our knees and showing the people we're not going to pack it in; that we're fighting for the people.'

If the latest opinion polls are to be believed, Mythen was correct as Sinn Fein moved to within two points of Fine Gael.

'It's good to see that people are beginning to think for themselves and the old way of voting the way your mother and your father voted is gone. People should look at the policies and see what we're about and that's how to judge it.'

In a way Sinn Fein have become the outcast cousin of the political family. In the build-up to this election, we've heard the familiar declarations from the other party leaders that they won't go in to government with Sinn Fein. Wexford's own Brendan Howlin declared his concerns that the party was still 'under the influence of the old IRA leadership', something which Johnny dismisses as rubbish.

'If you're a politician it's your duty to talk to everyone and hear everyone's point of view. It's a bit ironic that these parties are preaching to us to go in with the DUP in the six counties, but they won't even talk to Sinn Fein, but I think after this election they will somehow.'

On Howlin's IRA shot, he said: 'They play that card at every election, they say about the IRA, but it's absolutely ridiculous. If anyone looked at the workings of Sinn Fein, it's grassroots. The policies are decided at the Ard Fheis and any member can speak at that Ard Fheis on any subject that they want. Since the Good Friday Agreement, the IRA have gone off the scene. They're not there and that's the way it is. It's a lack of politics on the part of other party leaders and it's a shame on them really.'

They say that behind every great man is a great woman. Newly married, Johnny's wife Barbara is particularly understanding as their wedding celebrations were somewhat short-lived after the by-election was called last year.

'I didn't think the by-election was going to be called,' Johnny laughed.

'I had some honeymoon! Guys phoning me up for manifestos and that kind of thing! I'm with Barbara 22 years and you kind of get into a rut and you forget the important things. We had never really thought about marriage. I just turned around before that and I said "Listen, will you marry me?" and she said yes and I was delighted.'

'We had a very small wedding, because it was in the middle of the whole thing. We just had the two families together, had a lovely meal and then we went back to the house and had a few beers and a bit of music and it was lovely. She's out canvassing with me now again and she's all on board. But we are both really happy we made that decision to do it.'

While Sinn Fein are flying high in the opinion polls and nobody wants to bring a losing mentality to their campaign, should Johnny be unsuccessful on this occasion, it will be a fourth defeat in four years. Theoretically does that mean this could end up being his last campaign?

'I grew up in a sporting background and I ended up playing rugby. When we started playing first, we were getting beaten 45-0, but we'd regroup and we eventually started winning and now look at the club the way it is at the minute. It's one of the best clubs in Leinster. From that you learn a lot. How to take the hits and the ups and downs.'

'It's not about losing. It's just about what you believe in. Having said that, if I don't make it, we have a democratic system and it's up to the members to decide whether they'd want me to run again.'

'After the last elections I met everyone and asked them if they wanted me to stand again and they said they were 100% behind me, which was good. Ultimately the members will decide.'

However, for now, the Enniscorthy man is not thinking of what could happen if he doesn't win. He's fully focused on riding the surge in popularity that Sinn Fein are enjoying and knocking on as many doors as possible in a bid to succeed where he fell short by the smallest margins back in 2016.
Pizza Hut has regularly tapped into nostalgia for menu items and promotions, including the relaunching of its popular "Book It!" program and now the return of The Edge.
For many in the EU, Brexit is goodbye. But for the MEPs elected to replace the Britons leaving the European Parliament, it is a new beginning. The mandate of the 73 British MEPs ends on Friday night when Britain quits the bloc, but as the EU is getting smaller so too is the parliament -- dropping from 751 to 705 members -- and so 27 representatives from 14 member states will take their place. France and Spain take the lion's share of the new intake with five members each, followed by the Italians and the Dutch with three, then two Irish and, among others, one Romanian, one Austrian, one Polish, one Croatian, one Swede and one Estonian. "I've been living these last few months in a state of emotion and uncertainty. Then Brexit was postponed again and the British held new elections," new MEP 45-year-old Spanish socialist Marcos Ros Sempere told AFP. Sempere, an architect and university professor, plans to pick up his accreditation in Brussels on Monday. Although their term of office theoretically starts on February 1, most newcomers will not take over their offices until February 7, and they will be officially introduced at the parliamentary session in Strasbourg starting three days later. The months of waiting were less of a drag for retired Estonian General Riho Terras, 52, who continued working for his company, which develops unmanned vehicles for the military and industry. He will join the ranks of the centre-right EPP group. Frenchwoman Ilana Cicurel, 47, a member of the centrist Renew Europe group, said the delay gave her time to prepare herself, but now she is "impatient and proud" to be able to start. To help her in her new role, she will employ the Belgian parliamentary assistant of a British Liberal Democrat MEP. For 52-year-old Irishman Barry Andrews starting the new job after eight months in "cold storage" brings mixed feelings. "I suppose the overwhelming sense is of regret," the veteran politician of the centre-right Fianna Fail party told AFP. "I don't want to trot out cliches but there's a lot of real strong bonds of friendship that are being broken now." The excitement of taking up his seat mingles with regret. "That's a tricky kind of paradox for me to try to express," he said. "There won't be any cartwheeling down the centre of Brussels. I think we have to have respect for the many millions of UK citizens that voted against leaving the European Union," he added. - English lessons - But there was no sentimentality about Brexit for Frenchman Jean-Lin Lacapelle, elected for the far-right National Rally party. "Finally, the people are respected," he said, recalling that the referendum on Brexit was held more than three years ago, in June 2016. "The European Parliament did everything it could to thwart the departure of the British," he said. For his part, 62-year-old French ecologist Claude Gruffat has prepared for his mandate by visiting Brussels and Strasbourg "at least twice a month". From the start of the European election campaign he resigned as president of the Biocoop network of organic shops, considering his work "incompatible" with his "commitment in the political sphere". For Gruffat, Brexit is "a weakening of Europe and the British.... We, the newcomers, are facing a political landscape in disarray." He hopes to help "make the Union stronger". And, aware that English will remain the main working language in Brussels despite Brexit, he has decided to take lessons to brush up.
New Delhi, Feb 1 : Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal said on Saturday that the Union Budget presented by Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman has proved that the national capital is not in BJP's priority list, as he questioned why people should vote for the saffron party when it has disappointed the city just before the Assembly elections.

"Delhi had high expectations from the Budget. But once again Delhiites received stepmotherly treatment. Delhi is not part of BJP's priority list, so why should its people vote for them? Also, if the BJP disappoints Delhi like this before the elections, will it keep its promises after the polls," the Chief Minister asked in a tweet in Hindi.

Delhi's ruling Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) government has been demanding more funds from the Centre for the Municipal Corporation of Delhi (MCD) and the city since the past several years.

Earlier in the day, Kejriwal had said that the Union Budget will show how much the BJP cared for Delhi, saying the city should get more in view of the February 8 Assembly elections.

"The people of Delhi are hopeful that the Union government will protect the interests of Delhi in the Budget. Delhi should get more in view of the elections. The Budget will show how much BJP cares for us Delhiites," the Chief Minister had tweeted.

On January 6, while announcing the date for Delhi Assembly elections, the Election Commission had stressed that the Centre should not declare any "state-specific schemes" in the Budget, as the city is going to polls on February 8.

However, Kejriwal had demanded that the Centre should announce povisions for the city in the Budget.
One jawan of Chhattisgarh Armed Forces (CAF) was killed in a case of Fragging in a camp located at Farsegarh police station of insurgency-hit Bijapur district on Saturday evening.

According to the police, constable Dayashankar Shukla fired upon constable Raviranjan with his Insas rifle during an internal fight. What started the fight is not known yet.

One jawan, Raviranjan, died during the course of evacuation from Farsegarh to Bijapur. The incident took place on Saturday evening when a quarrel broke out between two CAF jawans. We were informed that constable Dayashankar Shukla fired upon constable Raviranjan with his Insas, then fired upon self, IG Bastar , Surderaj P told Hindustan Times.

The IG said that Dayashankar and Raviranjan sustained critical injuries and another constable Mohammad Sharif was also injured in the leg.

Later Raviranjan died while other two are serious, the IG added.

SHARE THIS ARTICLE ON
From left to right: Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Pham Binh Minh, Prime Minister Nguyen Xuan Phuc, Permanent Deputy Prime Minister Truong Hoa Binh at the meeting. Photo: VGP

He welcomed the establishment of 45 emergency response teams by the Ministry of Health as the virus infection cases have been reported in most provincial-level regions in China.

As of January afternoon, the acute respiratory disease caused by the nCoV caused at least 170 deaths in China and more than 7,822 infection cases around the world, according to the Ministry of Health.

In Viet Nam, the number of confirmed virus infection cases increased to 5, including two Chinese nationals and three Vietnamese citizens who have returned home from the Chinese city of Wuhan, said the Ministry.

One Vietnamese patient is being kept isolated and treated at the General Hospital of Thanh Hoa province while the other two patients are quarantined at the National Hospital of Tropical Diseases in Kim Chung commune, Dong Anh district, Ha Noi.

PM Phuc asked for plans to evacuate Vietnamese from China if necessary and temporary suspension of tours between the two countries.

The healthcare sector shall have to closely monitor health of Chinese citizens and students during 15 days since they enter Viet Nam.

Vietnamese citizens are encouraged not to travel to China and wear masks at public places.

Earlier on Wednesday, PM Phuc signed a directive clarifying responsibilities of ministries, agencies and localities in prevention and control of the pneumonia caused by the nCoV in the face of rising death toll and infections in China.

Following the issuance of the directive, the Ministry of Public Security asked immigration forces to suspend entry visa issuance to tourists from the novel coronavirus affected areas.

This is part of the ministrys measures to strengthen prevention and control of the (nCoV) thought to have originated from Wuhan, China.

The ministry tasked local-level police to coordinate with relevant ministries and agencies in tightening strict control at land, air and sea ports and encourage citizens not to travel across border crossings to prevent the virus infections.

Local police forces shall be active in detecting, preventing and punishing those who try to disseminate false information on the epidemic.

Meanwhile, the Civil Aviation Administration of Viet Nam (CAV) has asked airlines to proactively adjust their flight schedules and suspended all flights from coronavirus-affected areas to the Southeast Asian country.

In its recent directive on the prevention and combat of the epidemic, the CAV ordered airlines to not conduct regular flights and require additional licenses for flights from Viet Nam to Chinas affected regions.

Flights from and to affected areas in China must be restricted, the CAV said.

The administration requested airports to step up inspection and coordinate with relevant agencies to carry out plans to prevent and cope with a possible virus outbreak.

It asked the air transport department to suspend the approval of new flights from Viet Nam to Chinas affected areas and vice versa.

In its previous directive, the CAV ordered airlines to immediately report suspected cases to service supply agencies for prompt isolation and prevention.

As of January 30 morning, the pneumonia outbreak caused by the new strain of coronavirus (nCoV) caused at least 170 deaths and more than 7,700 infected in China. The outbreak first occurred in Wuhan, China, in late December 2019, and has now spread to 15 other countries with about 60 cases in Asia, Europe, North America and the Middle East.
Ash that came from a Philippine volcano has become painting material for artist Janina Sanico.

Sanico is 24 years old. She lives in a town near the Taal volcano in the western part of the Philippines. The volcano erupted on January 12, releasing huge amounts of ash, steam and rocks. By the next day, ash blew as far away as Manila, about 100 kilometers from the volcano. Ash clouds continued to come out of Taal for many days.

Sanicos backyard plants became covered in ash. She began mixing the ash with water and a sticky substance to create watercolor paint. She then used the mixture to paint images of the destruction that the small but dangerous volcano caused. Some of her paintings were of the volcano itself. Others were of animals that suffrered after the eruption. One of her paintings is called Animal Tears.

Sanico said, I was very moved by what happened in the aftermath. The animals affected. They have no way to save themselves. So that was the pain I felt."

Sanico describes herself as a natural watercolor painter. This means she tries to use things from nature to create the colors that she paints with. She is especially known for using coffee in her watercolors.

She said she was surprised that the ash worked as well as it did, as long as she added enough water.

Hundreds of thousands of people were forced to leave their homes after Taal erupted. Sanico said she has been selling her volcanic ash paintings and donating the money to help those who have been displaced.

On January 26, Philippine officials lowered the danger level for Taal volcano after two weeks on high alert. The move permits many of the areas displaced villagers to return home.

Im Ashley Thompson.

Ashley Thompson adapted this Reuters story for VOA Learning English. Mario Ritter, Jr. was the editor.

We want to hear from you. Write to us in the Comments section, and visit our Facebook page.

________________________________________________________________

Words in This Story

erupt v. to send out rocks, ash, lava, etc., in a sudden explosion

backyard n. an area in back of a house

aftermath n. the period of time after a bad and usually destructive event  usually singular

inspiration n. something that makes someone want to do something or that gives someone an idea about what to do or create : a force or influence that inspires someone

displace v. to force (people or animals) to leave the area where they live

alert n. the state of being ready for something you have been warned about (such as an attack)
Dear Bel,

My late husband and I parted acrimoniously in 2017, after a long history of his drinking and domestic violence. When some of his financial misdeeds first came to light, his violence towards me only escalated.

He couldnt stop drinking, and thats what ultimately ended a long marriage. Hed also racked up ludicrous debts. Eighteen months later, he died suddenly from an alcohol-related illness. My three children had not seen him for months.

Thought of the day I play it cool, and dig all jive, That's the reason I stay alive. My motto, as I live and learn, Is dig and be dug, In return. From Motto by Langston Hughes, African-American poet (February 1, 1902-1967). Advertisement

My problem concerns my ex-husbands parents. While I can understand his mothers anger towards me and her deep sadness over her loss, the children and I have found it hard to deal with their nastiness.

They totally stripped his flat of all possessions, which they refused to return. No one has contacted the children, despite the fact that some cousins came to our house the weekend after his death.

Since his passing I have been through his bank statements and found very high credit card spending  as much as 10,000 in one month. He also put a car purchase on the mortgage without telling me. I feel very sad at his death, but Im also angry that I am left with these bad memories.

I feel most of my marriage was a complete sham  given that much of what he did financially is a complete mystery to me and led to suffering for the children, both when he was alive and now. They know his shortcomings but still love him  and I respect that.

Id be very grateful for advice as I am racked by feelings of guilt complicated by anger. This is very hard on the children, especially given the estrangement from their paternal family.

JASMEEN

This week Bel advises a reader who is racked with feelings of guilt and anger towards her late ex-husband, after a long history of his drinking and domestic violence

You have had so much to contend with  and, without going into detail, I suspect some of the customs and expectations within your particular cultural tradition might have made things worse for you.

That said, this devastating and confusing cocktail of grief, guilt, disappointment and rage is not uncommon, and knows no national or cultural boundaries.

Your mention of guilt is interesting  given that most women would think such a toxic marriage had to be ended. I suspect you held out for quite a long time, in spite of your husbands behaviour, because you believed in the institution of marriage. Did you also fear the shame of separation?

Many of us invest a huge amount of energy, hope, expectation and pride in our marriages  quite apart from the love, which (ideally) kicks the whole thing off. It is hard and painful to acknowledge the end of all that.

In addition, you had to bear the knowledge that your husbands family was furious with you for shaming him in public (by choosing to end the marriage)  an anger that was later compounded by shock and grief when he died.

It seems ironic, as well as tragic, that your husband has left the two women who mattered most in his life (his mother and you) each afflicted by a similar mixture of anger, grief and shame.

Of course, his mother blames you for ending the marriage. But, deep down, perhaps she is also mortified by her son for the behaviour which led to that outcome.

Such a feeling would be hard, if not impossible, for her to admit. Because of that, her anger with you is redoubled  and somehow your poor children have been made to pay the price as well.

What can you do? Only move forward with your children, doing the best for them  and never criticising their father in their hearing.

I admire your respect for their love. As time passes, it might be good for you to get in touch with one or two of their favourite cousins, explaining that you respect their whole family and dearly wish your children to be a part of it.

I have no idea of the ages of your children, but if they are old enough, the impetus could come from them. Slowly, slowly, some contact with members of their paternal family might be re-established.

If it is not, then I hope you have ample support from your family and friends. Your long nightmare of a marriage is over, and I trust you have the means to re-create a stable family life free from stress and financial worry.

Try to put your bad memories in an imaginary box and close the lid. You could even write a letter to your late husband, explaining how you feel, but wishing him peace, then burn it and watch the smoke drift away, quietly glad that you have your own future now.

I yearn to be in my daughters lives

Dear Bel,

I am 79, widowed with two daughters and four grandchildren. My husbands death was quite sudden, and I admit I did not cope very well with the loss. We had been married 54 years.

My elder daughter (for reasons known only to herself) decided to sever all ties with me, so I lost not just my husband but my daughter as well. My younger daughter leads a very busy life and, last time we spoke on the phone, she said: Im busy this weekend. Hope the morphine helps!

Im housebound, needing replacement hips and knees. The morphine is for the chronic pain of arthritis.

Her next contact was an email, advising me of a helping hands company  where you pay a stranger to help you get in and out of the bath. I try not to think what would happen if I had a stroke or dementia, and take my hat off to the 600 people a day, who (according to Carers UK) leave their jobs because of their caring role.

That email was in November. Since then, Christmas and New Year passed . . . and still Ive not heard from my daughters. How many other lonely pensioners had cheese and biscuits for Christmas dinner? So which is worse  chronic pain or loneliness? Neither. Its the feeling there is nobody who cares.

The sad thing is things can never be the same again. I will never forget Christmas 2019. It is still with me. Now my message to my daughters is this: I dont want to take over your lives  I just long to be a part of them.

LEONORA

Even though I understand how complicated and stressful family life can be, I simply do not understand this cutting off of the old.

Im not sentimental, nor do I deny some people can become extremely difficult as they age. Its just that (unless abuse is involved), I believe in the golden rule of treating others as we ourselves would wish to be treated.

Here, we glimpse just one side of a triangle  the other two in shadow. It could be that your elder daughter perceives neglect by a mother too focused on her husband, and the younger might complain of too many demands from a grieving mother, until she simply had to step back. Who knows what the truth is?

You recognise your elder daughter must have had reasons to sever contact with you after the death of her father  and I cant help wondering whether, in your heart, painful though it may be, you do have an inkling why. Some actions seem mysterious and yet can, with effort and pain, generally be traced back to a source that may be long distant.

It sounds as if you might have had a breakdown after your husbands death, and are still reeling to find yourself alone. Whatever the family dynamics were  Was your late husband close to your daughters? Were you involved with those four grandchildren . . . or not?  you are left having to face cruel isolation when in such poor health.

The immediate issue is surely what you can do to make your life better.

Obviously, the first thing would be to somehow have regular contact with your daughters. I fear you may have focused so much on the younger (given your estrangement from the elder) that she is rendered inadequate by guilt. We are all busy, after all. But your throwaway remark about carers, and your irritated dismissal of her suggestion about the helping hands company, suggest that you are angry as well as sad.

If your younger daughter has picked this up, she will be all the less likely to visit. Im not condoning  Im explaining.

Your letter is handwritten, indicating limited access to the internet (despite that email). Therefore, I suggest you first call Essex County Council Adult Social Care, on 0345 603 7630 (8.45am to 5pm), to organise a care needs assessment. Then Basildon Community Transport Services (01268 465 858) may be able to help you feel less isolated. And why not get in touch with Age UK Befrienders (01268 525 353) to see if they can help?

I can almost hear you protesting that you want your daughters attention, not that of others. But please realise that the kindness of strangers can be a glorious force for goodness  and even make up for family neglect.

If you can put some services in place to help, you will have something to tell your younger daughter about.

You could write her a bravely cheerful (yes, I know . . . but try) letter saying how much you would love to be in touch with her sister again, and can she help?

If you feel that there are things to explain, then do so, always remember that it is far better to explain than complain, and to approach rather than reproach. Many families forget how to talk to each other, but its never too late to start.

And if any readers in Essex are interested in volunteering, go to Age UK's Home Befriender. Maybe you can help Leonora.

And finally... How I broke my addiction to Facebook

It might have been the angel that did it. Or perhaps the pile of handwritten readers letters and cards it was among  all speaking directly to me with problems and thoughts and good wishes.

But one day I realised that if I was to continue being true to the kind person they addressed, I had to give up a totally addictive habit that made me mean. Im talking about Facebook.

Contact Bel Bel answers readers' questions on emotional and relationship problems each week. Write to Bel Mooney, Daily Mail, 2 Derry Street, London W8 5TT, or email bel.mooney@dailymail.co.uk. A pseudonym will be used if you wish. Bel reads all letters but regrets she cannot enter into personal correspondence. Advertisement

It was a frosty day when I started on the package forwarded by our lovely Edwina in the office. Warm wishes dating back to Christmas touched me deeply, especially the little card which said: Thank you for your column, hope you enjoy this angel.

No name. The little bead charm sat in my palm, meant (I know) to bring me luck.

Id been engaged with my habitual pointless activity of obsessively checking Facebook and squabbling with bitter, woke folk who seem to hate what I hold dear  like our country and Monarchy. Angry, I posted something unkind (so easy to do) which I deleted immediately. But I felt sorry  and tarnished by it all.

And there was that anonymous readers sweet little gift in my hand, twinkling and telling me to stop  for the sake of my soul. The point is, Im forever telling you that you can take control of your own lives, yet there I was, in the grip of a stupid fixation. Ive never been addicted to anything before, so it had to stop.

So far, its more than two weeks  and I have more time to enjoy life peacefully, without forever feeling I have to post a comment or a photograph online. Such a release!

The angel (thank you, dear reader) is now pinned to my headboard and February is the time for planting seeds. Im so grateful for this seed of independence and hope you might try it, too.
The owners of two homes in northern Escondido that sustained flooding damage during two storms this past winter have filed a lawsuit blaming a nearby development project and the city for combined damages estimated at between $100,000 and $150,000.

The lawsuit contends that the city failed to maintain a storm drain system near Vista Avenue and that a holding pond  created by developer KB Homes to store water while the company builds 40 homes just to the east of the street  overflowed twice during heavy rains.

We are claiming that both the City of Escondido and KB Homes are responsible for the flooding, said attorney Evan Walker, who specializes in flood litigation and is representing owners Ellen Erwetz and Ruben Cruz Sr.

KB Homes declined comment this week, saying it would be improper to do so since litigation is pending. City officials said they have not yet been served with the lawsuit and therefore cant comment on something they havent seen.

Advertisement

In March, KB Homes issued a written statement denying any fault in the flooding.

Walker, the plaintiffs attorney, said Escondido had not properly maintained the drainage system in the area and that the breach of the developers holding pond was witnessed by one of his clients and later by an Escondido Fire Department captain.

A report on the incident filed by Escondido Fire Capt. Derek Chapman confirmed that runoff from the excessive rain breached the holding pond and flooded three homes.

In a March interview, however, Chapman wasnt nearly as conclusive. He said some of the water came from the holding pond but more came from the sky.

Ill discuss only facts as I saw them, he said at the time. Look, there was too much rain. The water overflowed, and it came into the back yards.

The more serious flooding incident happened Feb. 27 when more than four inches of rain fell on Escondido in less than one day.

The Erwetz property sustained damages of $70,000 to $100,000 while the Cruz property sustained damages of roughly half that, Walker said.

Both homes have have since been repaired.

Claims filed by both homeowners against the city were rejected without comment earlier this year. The claim filed by Cruz stated simply: Drain plugged and house is flooded, need help!

In its March statement, KB Homes said the problem was caused by another neighbor who filled in a drainage channel which serves the area. This compromised the water management systems capacity and caused flooding during the recent record rainfall.

As the drainage channel is not located on our property, we do not have the authority to address the issue without permission from the homeowner, company spokeswoman Susan Martin said in the statement. We have notified the neighboring property owner and their counsel of the drainage issues and have even offered to shoulder the costs of restoring the drainage channel to its prior and intended condition.

Martin said this week the company stands by its earlier statement.

Walker said discovery has not yet begun in the case which was filed in Vista Superior Court on July 10.

jharry.jones@sduniontribune.com; 760/529-4931; Twitter: @jharryjones
BAKU, Azerbaijan, Feb. 1

By Tamilla Mammadova  Trend:

New US Ambassador to Georgia Kelly Degnan met with Georgian Prime Minister Giorgi Gakharia, Trend reports citing Georgia media.

The parties discussed a number of topics, including security cooperation, economic cooperation and opportunities to increase economic ties.

"We also had a good discussion about the importance of cooperation in education, including the initiative on a five-year education project worth $7 million to be implemented in Georgia, which USAID recently unveiled", said Degnan after the meeting.

Degnan and Gakharia also touched upon issues related to the continuing democratization of Georgia. The US Ambassador stressed that 2020 is an important election year both in Georgia and the US, the report said.

On January 31, 2020, Kelly Degnan presented her credentials to Georgian President Salome Zourabichvili.

The post of US Ambassador has been vacant since March 2018.

---

Follow the author on Twitter: @Mila61979356
In his now-infamous Newsnight interview, Prince Andrew described himself as someone with a 'tendency to be too honourable'.

The self-aggrandising remark may have surprised those familiar with the Duke's reputation for rudeness and boorish behaviour.

But a message containing a repellent so-called 'joke' about breast cancer, sent by Andrew to a friend and business associate, is likely to shock even those used to his gauche sense of humour.

The Mail on Sunday has seen the appalling message, sent to his friend Jonathan Rowland.

It appears to be a gross distortion of a BBC news report about the benefits of breastfeeding. It is too offensive to be repeated.

In his now-infamous Newsnight interview, Prince Andrew described himself as someone with a 'tendency to be too honourable'

The crude pastiche was circulating on the internet and Andrew, 59, forwarded it to Mr Rowland in an ill-judged attempt at humour.

The Duke sent the message in March 2011 to Mr Rowland, who described it as the 'latest email from HRH'. Mr Rowland then forwarded it to his father, David, another of Andrew's friends and business associates.

Mr Rowland Snr responds to his son, asking if the message had been sent by the Duke. Jonathan Rowland replies: 'Yes he's nuts.'

The revelation is likely to infuriate the Palace as there are 13 cancer charities with links to members of the Royal Family, including the Queen, the Prince of Wales and Prince William.

It is not the first time that the Duke has been accused of highly offensive and inappropriate behaviour.

Last November, former Home Secretary Jacqui Smith claimed he made racist remarks about Arabs during a state banquet for members of the Saudi royal family in 2007. Separately, a former Downing Street adviser claimed that Andrew used the N-word during a meeting at Buckingham Palace. The Palace denied the Duke used racist language.

Andrew sent the breast cancer 'joke' at the height of the scandal about his links with convicted paedophile Epstein.

Andrew sent the breast cancer 'joke' at the height of the scandal about his links with convicted paedophile Epstein (pictured)

It came less than three weeks after The Mail on Sunday published an exclusive interview with Virginia Roberts, one of Epstein's sex slaves, in which she revealed she was flown to the UK to be introduced to the Prince. The report included a photo of Andrew with his arm around Miss Roberts at the London home of Epstein's ex-girlfriend Ghislaine Maxwell.

Andrew was Britain's trade envoy from 2001 to July 2011 and earned a reputation for boorish behaviour.

In 2010, Simon Wilson, a former deputy head of mission in Bahrain who hosted the Prince, revealed how he was known throughout the Gulf as HBH  His Buffoon Highness  'because of his childish obsession with doing exactly the opposite of what had been agreed'.

The Duke of York declined to comment last night.
Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas has threatened to cut security ties with both Israel and the US as he denounced the White House plan for ending the Israeli-Palestinian conflict.

Donald Trumps plan would grant the Palestinians limited self-rule in parts of the occupied West Bank, while allowing Israel to annex all its settlements there and keep nearly all of east Jerusalem.

Mr Abbas addressed a summit of Arab foreign ministers in Cairo on Saturday which was requested by the Palestinians, who responded angrily to the American proposal.

He used his speech to tell Israel and the US that there will be no relations with them, including the security ties following the deal that Palestinians say heavily favours Israel.

There was no immediate comment from US or Israeli officials.

The Palestinian leader said he had refused to take Mr Trumps phone calls and messages because I know that he would use that to say he consulted us.

He added: I will never accept this solution. I will not have it recorded in my history that I have sold Jerusalem.

He said the Palestinians remain committed to ending the Israeli occupation and establishing a state with its capital in east Jerusalem.

Mr Abbas also said the Palestinians will not accept the US as sole mediator in any negotiations with Israel.

He said they will go to the United Nations Security Council and other world and regional organisations to explain our position.

Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas speaks after a meeting of the Palestinian leadership in the West Bank city of Ramallah on Tuesday (Majdi Mohammed/AP)

The Arab Leagues head, Ahmed Aboul-Gheit, said the proposal revealed a sharp turn in the long-standing US foreign policy regarding the Israeli-Palestinian conflict.

This turn does not help achieve peace and a just solution, he declared.

Mr Aboul-Gheit said the Palestinians reject the proposal and called for the two sides to negotiate to reach a satisfactory solution for both of them.

Mr Trump unveiled the long-awaited proposal in Washington on Tuesday. It would allow Israel to annex all its West Bank settlements  which the Palestinians and most of the international community view as illegal  as well as the Jordan Valley, which accounts for roughly a quarter of the West Bank.

Story continues

In return, the Palestinians would be granted statehood in Gaza, scattered chunks of the West Bank and some neighbourhoods on the outskirts of Jerusalem, all linked together by a new network of roads, bridges and tunnels.

Israel would control the states borders and airspace and maintain overall security authority.

Critics of the proposals say this would rob Palestinian statehood of any meaning.

The plan would abolish the right of return for Palestinian refugees displaced by the 1948 war and their descendants, a key Palestinian demand.

The entire agreement would be contingent on Gazas Hamas rulers and other armed groups disarming, something they have always adamantly rejected.

Jordanian police stand guard during a protest in Amman against US President Donald Trumps Middle East peace plan (Raad Adayleh/AP)

Ambassadors from the United Arab Emirates, Bahrain and Oman attended the unveiling in Washington on Tuesday, in a tacit sign of support for the US initiative.

Saudi Arabia and Egypt, Arab states that are close US allies, said they appreciated President Trumps efforts and called for renewed negotiations without commenting on the plans content.

Egypt urged Israelis and Palestinians to carefully study the plan, saying it favours a solution that restores all the legitimate rights of the Palestinian people through establishing an independent and sovereign state on the occupied Palestinian territories.

The Egyptian statement did not mention the long-held Arab demand of east Jerusalem as a capital to the future Palestinian state, as Cairo usually has its statements related to the Palestinian-Israeli conflict.

Jordan, meanwhile, warned against any Israeli annexation of Palestinian lands and reaffirmed its commitment to the creation of a Palestinian state along the 1967 lines, which would include all the West Bank and Israeli-annexed east Jerusalem.

Jordan and Egypt are the only two Arab countries that have peace treaties with Israel.
The third corner in the three-way fight for Delhi in the upcoming Assembly election, the Congress, is speculated to have gone cold in the weeks leading up to the polls on 8 February even as the party's main rivals  the ruling Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) and a determined Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP)  have only amplified their campaign messages day by day.

The third corner in the three-way fight for Delhi in the upcoming Assembly election, the Congress, has seemingly gone cold in the weeks leading up to the polls on 8 February even as the party's main rivals  the ruling Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) and a determined Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP)  have only amplified their messages.

While political circles have been gearing up for a fierce fight to attain control of the National Capital, the Congress' top leadership has been conspicuously missing from the campaign trail, which is likely to translate into votes in the AAP's kitty. Meanwhile, the BJP, with Union Ministers like Amit Shah, Smriti Irani and even Prime Minister Narendra Modi, has introduced a battery of top leaders into the field.

Where is the Congress?

The candidates of the Grand Old Party, which ruled Delhi with Sheila Dikshit at the helm for fifteen years, are facing fierce campaigning from rival candidates. Many are perplexed over why big leaders have not started campaigning for party candidates yet, PTI quoted a Congress candidate from south Delhi as saying, without referring directly to the Gandhis.

While prominent Congress leaders Rahul Gandhi and Priyanka Gandhi Vadra are reportedly scheduled to hold road shows and rallies starting today, analysts are speculating whether the party has given a "walk over" to the AAP, which is being perceived as the major competitor to the BJP in Delhi.

A report by The Indian Express said a tussle between the Delhi Congress president Subhash Chopra and the campaign committee head Kirti Azad is also affecting the party's campaign.

However, Congress spokesperson Manish Tewari was quoted by the report as saying that the conclusion that the party has virtually bowed out of the race to give the AAP more scope to defeat the BJP is "is an erroneous assessment of the situation".

"From 1 to 6 February, the Congress party, from its highest echelons to its last worker in the last mohalla, will be all out in the streets promising the people of Delhi better governance, a better life if given a chance to serve again," he said.

Ostensibly, leaders like Azad and All India Congress Committee (AICC) in-charge of Delhi PC Chacko, are attempting to assure voters about the top brass' commitment to campaign for the Union Territory. PTI quoted Azad said the Congress's election schedule is ready and senior party leaders will hold roadshows and meetings in the coming days in all the constituencies, across Delhi.

Chacko also said the party's campaign has been going on in a systematic way through candidate-centric canvassing. He said its star campaigners have been saved for the last lap of campaigning. "Right now, our candidates and workers are going door-to-door in the constituencies. We are also forming committees, deputing workers and assigning them works at booth level," Chacko was quoted as saying by PTI.

Accusing the BJP of "overdoing it" Chacko said, "We are on time. In fact, the BJP is desperate and overdoing it while (Delhi chief minister Arvind) Kejriwal is a marketing guru. He is just marketing lies," according to India Today.

"There has been no delay. Our senior leaders like Raj Babbar are campaigning. The BJP has deployed all its senior leaders because they are scared and frustrated," a Congress leader was quoted as saying by PTI.

According to reports, Congress interim president Sonia Gandhi is scheduled to hold two rallies in the National Capital while Rahul and Priyanka are likely to be part of roadshows in multiple constituencies.

India Today also reported that the Congress struggled with the lack of candidates in the nomination period, with senior Delhi Congress leaders, including Ajay Maken, refusing to contest and instead endorsing their family members. "Many viewed that the party was facing a certain loss and they feared too much of risk for their reputation," the report said.

Once a dominant player in Delhi politics, the Congress under the chief ministership of Sheila Dikshit ruled the national capital from 1998 to 2013. It has been on a downward slope since it was dislodged from power.

In 2013, the party bagged 24 percent of the total votes and in 2014 Lok Sabha polls held six months later, it slipped to 15 percent. But it fell drastically to 9.7 in 2015  a chunk of it went to the AAP with whom it shares a similar voter base. In the 2017 MCD polls, the Congress improved its vote share to nearly 21 percent. In 2019, it dislodged the AAP to the third position, bagging 22 percent of the votes.

Will the AAP benefit?

With the incumbent ruling party in the National Capital being perceived as the most promising opponent for the BJP, the AAP is likely to receive a majority of votes from the Congress' traditional vote base.

Even though a Hindustan Times report says that Congress is reportedly likely to put up a tough fight in seats like Gandhi Nagar, Badli, Seelampur, Mustafabad, and Ballimaran on the back of the argument that the Muslim community is "disillusioned" with the AAP's silence on the more than month long Shaheen Bagh protest against the Citizenship Amendment Act, the lack of a campaign from the Congress and a strategically "positive" campaign by the AAP is likely to tip the scales in favour of the Arvind Kejriwal-led party.

'Let's go positive' has been the cruz of the AAP's strategy to take on BJP and Congress in the Assembly election. The message has been conveyed loud and clear to all party MLAs, leaders and volunteers with a special emphasis on the work done by the Arvind Kejriwal-led Delhi government in the last five years, with a roadmap for the next five years, this Firspost report said.

Not resorting to any negative narrative to attack its political opponents, the AAP has chalked out a blueprint that encompasses direct dialogue with its voters through multiple tools, on multiple platforms and communicate Delhi government's achievements and share its future vision, as per the report.

"We're communicating positive aspects of Delhi government and the work done for the citizens on multiple platforms. We're talking about good governance and how it has impacted lives of millions in Delhi. The government provides free water and subsidised electricity, and through this people save money which they utilise in improving their living standard and meet their aspirations, however small it may be," Pankaj Gupta, national secretary of AAP told Firstpost in the 4 January report.

AAP has decided to give a twist to its campaigning style by not resorting to traditional public addresses. Instead it plans to go to the public and ask them about achievements and problems in respective localities by organising jan samvad (public dialogue) and mohalla sabhas. Ahead of the upcoming elections, the party has gone for large-scale recruitment of new volunteers and has trained them on contact programme, door-to-door campaigning, booth-level mobilisation of voters, among others.

Free water, subsidised electricity, education (remodelled Delhi government schools) and Mohalla clinics are likely to be the four major thrust areas (or public utility services) that AAP would like to play up in its poll campaigns and on social media.

The AAP has scored a strategic victory by steering the election debate into governance. It has deliberately stayed clear of contentious national issues, which leaves the main Opposition BJP with no strong talking point against the party, another Firstpost report noted.

With inputs from agencies
National Youth Organiser of the ruling New Patriotic Party (NPP), Henry Nana Boakye, popularly known as Nana B has asked the National Democratic Congress (NDC) to stop preaching violence.



He said Ghana is governed by laws and that no amount of threats of violence from the biggest opposition party will hold.



Some elements of the NDC have threatened to face the EC squarely should they go ahead to compile a new voters register despite their resistance.



They claim there is nothing wrong with the current voters register and that if the EC continues to be stubborn, there will be mayhem.



However, Nana B contributing to a panel discussion on Peace FM's morning show Kokrokoo emphasized strongly that there will be no chaos.



He has asked the NDC to either go to court or boycott the upcoming election.



They can go to court . . . immediately the EC starts to do its work, no political party or Civil Society Organization will be allowed to interfere in the affairs of the EC . . . they can also boycott the elections if they wish. We have been in opposition before . . . when we were advocating for a new register in 2016, we never threatened bloodshed, Nana Boakye said.



Listen to him below











Source: Peacefmonline.com









Disclaimer : Opinions expressed here are those of the writers and do not reflect those of Peacefmonline.com. Peacefmonline.com accepts no responsibility legal or otherwise for their accuracy of content. Please report any inappropriate content to us, and we will evaluate it as a matter of priority.

Featured Video
In a separate email to a colleague, Mr. Gallaudet confided he was close to quitting.

Im having a hard time not departing the pattern right now, he wrote to John D. Murphy, the chief operating officer at the National Weather Service, using aviation lingo to describe his desire to leave.

Hang in there, sir, Mr. Murphy replied and suggested the agency needed strong leadership to counteract the creeping political influence on science. Is this battle to die for or better to stay and fight for whats right. Its latter for me  we can do more in pattern.

The stress the White House moves placed on rank-and-file NOAA employees was evident in the reaction of Dennis Feltgen, a normally unflappable spokesman for the agencys National Hurricane Center. In response to an inquiry by the news media about the presidents altered map, he wrote a one-word email to higher-ups: HELP!!!

The documents released Friday under the Freedom of Information Act offer the clearest picture to date of the turmoil brought about by Mr. Trumps initial remark and subsequent false statements about the path of Hurricane Dorian, as well as his decision to trot out a map in the Oval Office that appeared to have been altered with a black marker to suggest Alabama was in the potential path of the storm.

The emails show top NOAA officials knew full well that the map Mr. Trump presented had been altered, even as days later the agency issued an unsigned statement essentially chastising the Birmingham forecasters for having contradicted the president.

The chart shown in the briefing is old and doctored to extend the cone to Alabama, Corey Pieper in NOAAs press office told colleagues on Sept. 4, as the agency received a barrage of requests from the news media to understand the source of Mr. Trumps comments.

Understand the Lastest News on Climate Change Card 1 of 3 Global temperatures. 2021 was Earths fifth hottest year on record, European scientists announced. The finding fits a clear warming trend: The seven hottest years on record have been the past seven. U.S. emissions bounce back. After a record 10 percent decline in 2020, Americas greenhouse gas emissions rose 6.2 percent in 2021 as the economy began recovering from the pandemic. The uptick underscored the challenges President Biden faces to fulfill his climate agenda. Sounding the alarm. A report on the state of the Arctic highlights troubling and consistent trends in the region that are linked to global warming. Researchers are also growing increasingly concerned about Antarctica, where ice shelves are melting and wilder winds are altering crucial currents.





Are you sure it was doctored? Was Alabama never in the cone to that extent? asked Susan Buchanan, another communications officer.
Advertisement

New York police have made multiple arrests at Grand Central Terminal as droves of protesters took to the station to speak out against increased cop presence for the city's subway system.

Besides the action at Grand Central, protesters also vandalized station walls across the city and glued machines where commuters need to swipe their train cards to access turnstiles.

Protesters also put up locks on station doors, allowing multiple people access to train platforms without having to pay the $2.75 fare.

The various actions took place on Friday during the evening rush.

Scroll down for video

Roughly 500 protesters convened at Grand Central on Friday night to protest increased police presence on New York City's subways

The massive group left Grand Central and stayed in Manhattan before indicating they would be ending at Restoration Plaza in Bedford-Stuyvesant in Brooklyn

People could be heard 'F**k the police' as officers rushed to the scene and tried to disrupt the protest. Around five people were arrested during the protest in the station

Police apprehend a protester during Friday's demonstration in Manhattan

Roughly 500 protesters convened at Grand Central, holding signs that read 'Cops out of MTA', '$2.75 is not worth human life' and demanding full accessibility to be invested in instead of increased security.

People could be heard 'F**k the police' as officers rushed to the scene and tried to disrupt the protest.

Around five people were arrested during the protest in the station, the New York Daily News reports.

Some 1,400 police were dispatched to stations across the boroughs as a well to quell the protests. CBS New York reports that there have been no reports of NYPD officers getting injured in the protests.

Leaving Grand Central, protesters tried to continue their action at nearby Bryant Park but police prevented the majority from entering the station there.

A group of demonstrators hold a sign saying 'Abolition Now' at Grand Central during the protests

Several protesters held signs asking for the MTA to make the subways more accessible

The various actions took place on Friday during the evening rush. Some 1,400 police were dispatched to stations across the boroughs as a well to quell the protests

Still, some 100 activists managed to get access to the station at 6th Avenue and West 42nd Street and set off a green smoke bomb.

The massive group then made its way south along Broadway, indicating they would be ending at Restoration Plaza in Bedford-Stuyvesant in Brooklyn.

Protest group Decolonize This Place had taken to Twitter on Tuesday to share a warning about their protests.

'The streets are ours. The trains our ours. The walls are ours. This moment is ours,' they said in the video. 'How will you and your crew build and f**k s**t up for #FTP3 on #J31 (THIS FRIDAY)? Issa mothaf****n' movement.'

A protesters hold a sign that reads '$2.75 s not worth more than human life!'

Demonstrators in Grand Central hold signs that read 'Transit is a right' (right) and 'People not investments'

Protesters also put up locks on station doors, allowing multiple people access to train platforms without having to pay the $2.75 fare

The doors contained multiple locks on them that made it difficult to try to stop fare evaders

Besides the action at Grand Central, protesters also vandalized station walls across the city

Just moments before the protests took place, NYPD Chief of Department Terence Monahan shared that the stations had been vandalized and that police were anticipating the protests.

'This morning, a group of individuals vandalized subway stations,' he said in the post.

'We believe the same individuals will attempt to disrupt the evening commute in the subway by causing disorder, endangering commuters  and even attempting to physically assault our officers. IT WILL NOT BE TOLERATED'

During the action, protesters took to Twitter to share that they had not witnessed acts of violence against police.

MTA spokesman Tim Minton acknowledged the vandalism but said that those who were protesting peacefully were exercising their First Amendment rights.

He added that the MTA was 'dedicating to providing safety and maintaining service.'

During the action, protesters took to Twitter to share that they had not witnessed acts of violence against police

Demonstrators making their way out of Grand Central then tried to gain access to the station at Bryant Park

A woman poses in front of a sign that reads 'No Fare, No Cops'

Demonstrators interact with police officers during a protest

A demonstrator holds a sign that reads 'Poverty is not a crime! Make the MTA Free!'

Earlier this month, New York's attorney general, Letitia James, launched an investigation into whether the New York Police Department has been targeting communities of color for subway fare evasion.

'We've all read the stories and seen the disturbing videos of men, women, and children being harassed, dragged away, and arrested by officers in our city's subway system, which is why we are launching an investigation into this deeply troublesome conduct,' she said in a release.

The statement says that James sent a letter to NYPD Police Commissioner Dermot Shea requesting fare evasion data.

Police officers detain demonstrators during a protest against an increased New York Police Department presence in the subway system

A demonstrator in Brooklyn smiles as he is detained during a protest

A man is apprehended by police at Grand Central on Friday

A person is detained outside of Grand Central

Police hold onto a door at the Times Square subway station

Protesters flocked to Grand Central Terminal and flowed out into Midtown's streets during rush hour Friday

James and her team believe that the data and other information may shine a light on whether officers have exhibited racial biases or engaged in discriminatory practices in their enforcement of these laws and regulations throughout New York City's subway system.

'If groups of New Yorkers have been unfairly targeted because of the color of their skin, my office will not hesitate to take legal action,' she said.

'While we are hopeful that the NYPD will cooperate thoroughly with this investigation, we will not hesitate to use every investigative tool at our disposal to protect subway riders and the people of this city.'

New York's attorney general, Letitia James (pictured), has launched an investigation into whether the New York City Police Department has been targeting communities of color for subway fare evasion




More than Rs 238 crore has been allocated to the Personnel Ministry for the next financial year for domestic and foreign training of bureaucrats and augmenting necessary infrastructure, according to the budget presented by Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman on Saturday.

Of the total allocation of Rs 238.45 crore for 2020-21, Rs 83.45 crore has been earmarked for the ministry to meet establishment-related expenditure of the Delhi-based Institute of Secretariat Training and Management (ISTM), Lal Bahadur Shastri National Academy of Administration (LBSNAA) in Mussoorie and training division of the Department of Personnel and Training (DoPT).

Both the ISTM and the LBSNAA conduct several training programmes for Indian Administrative Service (IAS) officers and all other levels of secretarial functionaries with exposure to rules, regulations and aptitude.

A total of Rs 88.99 crore has been provided to the ministry under this provision for 2019-20.

Under a separate head, Rs 155 crore has been allocated for the next fiscal under the head of "training schemes". A total of Rs 136.93 crore has been given under this head for the ongoing financial year.

It includes upgradation of the LBSNAA to a centre of excellence and augmentation of training facilities at ISTM.

The Central Administrative Tribunals (CATs), which are entrusted with the redressal of grievances of public servants, have been allocated Rs 124.92 crore for 2020-21 to meet establishment-related expenditure.

It has been given Rs 131.57 crore for the current financial year.

The Staff Selection Commission (SSC), which conducts various recruitment examination for central government jobs, has been allocated Rs 241.66 crore for 2020-21 to meet establishment-related expenditure, including those on the conduct of examinations for recruitment of staff in central ministries or departments.

It has the revised estimated budget of Rs 293.92 crore for the current fiscal year.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
It was a scene of horror that is almost unimaginable nearly a century later. In Ballyseedy, Co Kerry, nine republican prisoners were tied to a land mine and the aim of their captors was to blow them all apart.

The writer Dorothy Macardle described the dark and sinister events that happened in the quiet Kerry townland.

The nine men, some of them already injured, had been bundled into a lorry and carried to the area two miles from Tralee.

As Macardle put it: "Their feet were bound together above the ankles and their legs were bound together above the knees. Then a strong rope was passed around the nine and soldiers moved away.

Expand Close Family history: Michael McDowell with the portrait of his grandfather Eoin McNeill, founder of the Irish Volunteers, at the Royal Irish Academy in Dublin. Photo by Arthur Carron / Facebook

Twitter

Email

Whatsapp Family history: Michael McDowell with the portrait of his grandfather Eoin McNeill, founder of the Irish Volunteers, at the Royal Irish Academy in Dublin. Photo by Arthur Carron

"The prisoners had their backs to the log and the mine which was beside it; they could see the movement of the soldiers and knew what would happen next.

"They gripped one another's hands, those who could prayed for God's mercy upon their souls. The shock came, blinding, deafening and overwhelming."

Eight of the republicans were blown to smithereens and, according to Macardle's account, "for days afterwards, the birds were eating the flesh off the trees at Ballyseedy Cross". By some freakish chance, there was one survivor, Stephen Fuller, who was blown into a ditch and managed to escape.

This macabre happening was not an episode during the battles between crown forces and the IRA during the War of Independence. It had nothing to do with Black and Tans. It was an atrocity perpetrated by Irishmen against Irishmen in March 1923 during the Civil War - the forces of the Free State killed their former comrades. Only a few months previously, many of these combatants had fought side by side.

The Ballyseedy Massacre will be one of the events that will be commemorated towards the end of the Decade of Centenaries, one of many dark and harrowing incidents during the revolutionary period.

At the start of this year, a plan to commemorate the Royal Irish Constabulary, the police force from a century ago, became engulfed in controversy, which almost spilled over into the General Election campaign.

Expand Close Personal divisions: Kevin O'Higgins, centre, on his wedding day with Eamon de Valera, left and Rory O'Connor. A year later, O'Higgins would sign O'Connor's execution order / Facebook

Twitter

Email

Whatsapp Personal divisions: Kevin O'Higgins, centre, on his wedding day with Eamon de Valera, left and Rory O'Connor. A year later, O'Higgins would sign O'Connor's execution order

The next government, whatever its political complexion, will have to tread warily as it organises upcoming commemorations to mark the centenary of events from a century ago that are equally controversial. Or perhaps it will prefer not to go there after the recent RIC row and its damaging political fallout.

How will we mark incidents such the Kilmichael Ambush of November 1920, when RIC Auxiliaries were killed. According to various accounts, some of these men had already surrendered when they were shot.

How will the 10 Protestants killed in Dunmanway in just a few days in April 1922 be remembered? Historians still debate whether the killings were sectarian or carried out because victims were perceived to be spies or informers.

From a diplomatic point of view, the Government will have to work out a response if there are invitations to functions north of the border to mark the centenary of the birth of the Northern Irish State. And to what extent will that historical event be part of our Decade of Centenaries?

DUP leader Arlene Foster said: "On May 3, 2021, Northern Ireland will be 100 years old. This will be a day and a year that we can celebrate. For all our trials and tribulations over those years, we have endured, and we have succeeded."

Whoever the Taoiseach is, whether it is Micheal Martin or Leo Varadkar, they are unlikely to be whooping it up with Arlene. And what odds on the leader of Sinn Fein attending, whether she is in or out of government?

Expand Close Family at war: Eoin MacNeill (centre) with sons Niall and Brian (right), who fought on oppositive sides during the Civil War / Facebook

Twitter

Email

Whatsapp Family at war: Eoin MacNeill (centre) with sons Niall and Brian (right), who fought on oppositive sides during the Civil War

The Government's Expert Advisory Group on Centenary Commemorations has recommended that the centenary of partition and the foundation of Northern Ireland be remembered with an academic conference.

That may be seen by historians and the powers-that-be as a safe way out of any political awkwardness.

After the row over the RIC and the Black and Tans, a new government is likely to proceed cautiously when it comes to marking the Civil War, which ran from the summer of 1922 until May of the following year.

Outrages on both sides

The conflict shaped the future of the country: the side that supported the Anglo-Irish Treaty of 1921 backed by Michael Collins, which gave 26 counties a limited form of independence, became Fine Gael; and many of those who opposed the treaty, led by Eamon de Valera, formed Fianna Fail.

Families and friendships were torn apart in the war. In the past month, there has been a concentration on the excesses and cruelties inflicted by the Black and Tans, but there were similar outrages in the Civil War on both sides.

And the trauma was all the greater because the combatants had fought alongside each other only a few months before war broke out. Prisoners on both sides were shot with little regard for due process.

An example of the deeply personal divisions of the Civil War period was the execution of one of the leading anti-treaty figures, Rory O'Connor.

In December 1922, alongside three other anti-treaty activists - Liam Mellows, Richard Barrett and Joe McKelvey - O'Connor was executed by a firing squad as a reprisal for the killing of the TD Sean Hales.

The order for the execution was signed by the Minister for Justice Kevin O'Higgins. O'Connor had been best man at his wedding the previous year. O'Higgins was himself later assassinated.

If Micheal Martin takes office in the coming weeks, his government may have to decide how to mark the centenary of the assassination of Michael Collins in August 1922, if it chooses to mark it at all. The centenary could prove divisive, but it could also be a focus for reconciliation between the two most powerful parties in the history of the State.

The Expert Advisory Group on Centenary Commemorations has recommended that there should be a State commemoration, "focusing on themes of remembrance and reconciliation, to take place on a neutral date for all of those who suffered and died during the Civil War".

Professor Eunan O'Halpin of Trinity College, a member of the advisory group, told Review: "I don't think the State will do a lot directly. What it will do is support events at local and county level because it avoids trouble."

O'Halpin's own great-grandfather, PJ Moloney, was a Sinn Fein MP and, later, a TD with three sons in the IRA and a daughter in the women's republican group, Cumann na mBan. The youngest son Paddy was shot by crown forces during the War of Independence.

Another great-uncle of Professor O'Halpin was Kevin Barry, the 18-year-old IRA man who was hanged at Mountjoy Prison for his involvement in an ambush which caused the deaths of three British soldiers. The centenary of his execution falls on November 1.

Senator Michael McDowell, the former Justice Minister, said we are now entering a period of commemoration in the Decade of Centenaries that will be difficult to deal with.

McDowell is a grandson of Eoin MacNeill, a founder of the Irish Volunteers. MacNeill had a son, Brian, who died fighting on the anti-treaty side in the Civil War, and two other sons fought on the side of the Free State.

The former minister said this week: "We are now entering a tricky period. There are some things that are well worth commemorating, but there are other events during this period that are slightly darker.

"There were many bad things that were committed on either side, and they are not really things that we have to wave flags about." McDowell has explored the story of the uncle he never knew, Brian MacNeill, the young IRA man who found himself on the opposite side in the Civil War to his two brothers, Niall and Turlough.

MacNeill had been sent to Sligo to help to reorganise the IRA in the area, and took the anti-treaty side when the movement split. He was involved in a guerrilla campaign of attacks on Free State forces.

Even though his brothers fought in the Free State Army and his father was a leading figure on the pro-treaty side, Brian continued to keep in touch with the family. The IRA man and three comrades were surrounded on the slopes of Benbulbin by Free State soldiers in September 1922.

"I think it's fairly clear what happened. He was shot while taken prisoner," MacDowell says. "He himself had shot Free State people in his time, so we have to have both sides of the story."

Three other men were shot in the same incident and, two hours later, two more republicans were captured and gunned down. MacNeill and his comrades were later revered as 'Sligo's Noble Six'.

What happened after the killing revealed the strange effect of the Civil War on families. Brian's coffin was carried by his brothers, who were wearing Free State uniforms, to his family grave at Kilbarrack in Dublin.

Showing the complexities of that time, a MacNeill cousin, Hugo, was in charge of the firing squad that executed Rory O'Connor and three other anti-treaty activists on December 8, 1922.

Having studied these events, McDowell says: "These were tough occasions and the rule of law had very little to do with it. It was very real and very visceral."

The former minister says he hopes there will not be too many wreath-laying ceremonies during the remaining period of the Decade of Centenaries.

"All we need to do is to be factual about what happened, and we don't have to be judgemental. We should let ordinary people form their own judgments."

If Fine Gael wins the election, how will it navigate its away around the centenaries of the 77 executions carried out by its political ancestors in the Free State government in the Civil War period?

Professor O'Halpin says a lot of attention is paid to those who were executed by the Free State, but less attention to those killed by the anti-treaty side in the name of the republic.

Until now, the State has tended to shy away from any official commemoration of the Civil War, and that may not be surprising because of all the divisions it caused. Fine Gael has commemorated the assassination of Collins at Beal na Blath in August 1922, while Fianna Fail celebrated the memory of the anti-treaty commander Liam Lynch, shot dead towards the end of the Civil War.

"The famous thing that is always said about the participants in our Civil War is that they never talked about it," says the historian and archivist Catriona Crowe. "There was a very dark silence in a lot of households about what happened in the conflict. It is hard and difficult to go back and confront those stories - events like the Ballyseedy landmine and the many other atrocities on the other side.

"We should do it respectfully and quietly with the maximum amount of information at our disposal."

Other countries also go through periods of historical soul-searching. In Spain, the civil war has become a topic of feverish debate in recent decades and there have been moves to exhume bodies of victims shot by the fascists.

"It is causing no end of difficulty in Spain, but it has to be done," says Crowe. "You simply cannot bury that level of violence, bereavement and trauma and expect it to go away.

"We will have to confront the fact that there are two states on the island, and deal with that respectfully without getting our knickers in a twist. That won't be easy, but it's doable," she adds.

The botched plan for an RIC commemoration may have caused an almighty political row, but other events in the Decade of Centenaries have passed off peacefully.

Crowe says the centenary of the Rising was "a doddle", largely because it was over quickly and relatively few people were killed.

"It could have focused a lot of attention on the use of violence as a political tool, but it didn't because there was a lot of focus on unusual victims such as children. The story of women in the Rising was also told.

"The War of Independence is much more difficult, because it went on for much longer and it ended in a catastrophic Civil War."





Decade of Centenaries: the main events still to come

Autumn/winter 2020: State Ceremony in Cork

A State ceremony will be held to remember Corks involvement in the War of Independence. This will be based around the centenary of the death of the citys Lord Mayor Terence MacSwiney in the autumn. Cork was at the centre of events late in 1920, with the Kilmichael Ambush and the Burning of Cork.

May 2021: Partition and the Foundation of Northern Ireland

The Expert Advisory Group recommends that the centenary of the partition of Ireland and the foundation of Northern Ireland be remembered with an academic conference.

2021: Commemoration of War of Independence

The advisory group recommends a State commemoration for all those who lost their lives during the struggle for independence. July 11 is a suggested date.

1922: Birth of the Free State

Its suggested the centenary of the foundation of the State be remembered in an event to mark the symbolic transfer of power to the Irish State with the handover of Dublin Castle in January. This would be followed in December by an event recognising the leaders who helped embed the democratic tradition in the emerging Irish State.

1922/23 Civil War

A State commemoration, focusing on themes of remembrance and reconciliation, to take

place on a neutral date for all of those who suffered and died during the Civil War.

September 1923: Ireland joins League of Nations

A State ceremonial event to mark the centenary of the admission of the Irish Free State into the League of Nations. Local authorities, community groups and other organisations will hold other events to mark the Decade of Centenaries.

These include the Burning of Balbriggan, Bloody Sunday and the Ballyseedy Massacre.
SAN JOSE (BCN)

A Santa Clara County man is the first confirmed Bay Area case of the novel coronavirus, which has killed 213 people in China since it first spread to humans in December, county public health officials announced Friday.

The man, whose name and city of residence were not released, traveled to Wuhan, China and Shanghai before returning home to Santa Clara County via the San Jose Mineta International Airport on Jan. 24, according to Dr. Sara Cody, the county's Public Health Officer and the head of the Santa Clara County Public Health Department.

The man didn't begin to exhibit symptoms until after he returned home, Cody said at a Friday afternoon press conference

"This one case, in fact, does not raise the risk to the general public," Cody told a gathering of news media at the county's Public Health Laboratory Friday afternoon. "He has been self-isolating at home and did not leave home at all except to seek medical care."

County and state health officials, in cooperation with the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, are now in the process of contacting everyone the man may have encountered since his return home, including his fellow airline passengers, Cody said.

In addition to keeping him at home and away from people until he's no longer considered contagious, Cody said that anyone he was in close contact with will also be kept isolated in their own homes for 14 days.

In an effort to easy people's fears over the spread of the virus, Cody noted that far more people get sick and die from the flu in the U.S. -- 36,000 annually -- than have so far been afflicted by the coronavirus, which to date hasn't resulted in any fatalities in the country.

She also said there is no evidence at the moment that the virus is circulating in the county.

Still, she acknowledged that there is a lot health officials still don't know about the coronavirus.

Also on Friday, Alex Azar, head of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, declared a public health emergency due to the spread of the virus and said that anyone who had traveled to Hubei Province in China, where Wuhan is located, within the past 14 days, will be subject to a quarantine of up to 14 days.

Anyone who was in the rest of mainland China will be required to undergo health screenings at one of seven airports: San Francisco, New York, Los Angeles, Seattle, Atlanta, Chicago and Honolulu.

Also, foreign citizens who have been in China and "pose a risk" of transmitting the virus, except those who are immediate family of American citizens, will be denied entry into the U.S.

Earlier Friday, the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention's website listed the number of positive cases in the U.S. at six, with 121 cases awaiting lab results.

The Santa Clara County case brings the total number of U.S. cases to seven.

The virus, which presents with flu-like symptoms, is thought to have spread from animals to humans, perhaps at a large seafood and animal market in Wuhan, China.

Since first appearing, the virus has sickened at least 9,692 people in China, killing 213, according to the National Health Commission of the People's Republic China.

The commission also reported 4,812 new suspected cases, bringing the total number of suspected infections to 15,238.

The World Health Organization reported Thursday that there were 82 confirmed cases in 18 countries outside of China.

Copyright  2020 by Bay City News, Inc. Republication, Rebroadcast or any other Reuse without the express written consent of Bay City News, Inc. is prohibited.
All eyes might be on Iowas first-in-the-nation caucuses Monday, but political experts say the road to the White House this year will likely once again run through Wisconsin, where the battleground states sliver-thin margin could tip either way and potentially decide the 2020 election.

Wisconsin is the only state listed as a toss-up by all three of the major national political prognosticators, Sabatos Crystal Ball, Cook Political Report and Inside Elections.

Wisconsin could be the decider, said Larry Sabato, founder and director of the University of Virginia Center for Politics and Sabatos Crystal Ball. There are only a handful of states that are truly competitive and that switch sides with any regularity, and Wisconsin is one of them.

Wisconsins significance in the presidential election, where close to a dozen Democratic candidates are vying for the nomination and their shot at derailing President Donald Trumps re-election plans, comes down to the Midwestern states nearly even partisan split.

It really is to a certain extent a bellwether, or very representative of how divided America is  we kind of represent that split, almost 50-50, in terms of politics, with liberal progressive versus conservative free market, U.S. Sen. Ron Johnson, R-Oshkosh, said in an interview. What the attitudes are of Wisconsin voters I think says an awful lot about what the divide and attitude is nationally as well.

In the 10 presidential elections since 1980, Wisconsin has mirrored the nationwide popular vote, ranking fifth in the nation  just behind Ohio, Iowa, Michigan and Pennsylvania  in how closely the states margin of victory in the popular vote compares with the national popular vote.

Wisconsin will play an out-sized role in the Democratic nominating process, hosting for the first time ever a national party convention July 13-16 at the Fiserv Forum in Milwaukee. Less clear is whether state voters will play a significant role in choosing a nominee, with the states April 7 primary coming a month after 14 states hold Super Tuesday primaries on March 3.

Center of the universe

Trump beat Democratic candidate Hillary Clinton by about one point, or less than 23,000 votes, in 2016, becoming the first Republican to win the state since Ronald Reagan in 1984.

In the 2018 midterms, Democrat Tony Evers defeated incumbent Republican Gov. Scott Walker by about one point, or less than 30,000 votes. Last year, conservative-backed Wisconsin Supreme Court candidate Brian Hagedorn edged out liberal-supported candidate Lisa Neubauer by about 6,000 votes, or half a point.

Wisconsin has a track record of extremely close statewide elections over the past several years that I dont think any state can match, UW-Madison political science professor Barry Burden said. You dont need any more evidence than that (to show) that Wisconsin is on the knife edge and could go either way in 2020.

Barack Obama won Wisconsin handily with margins of 14% in 2008 and almost 7% in 2012, but those victories are looking more and more like outliers, as several presidential elections in recent years have been been extremely close. Despite winning nationally, Republican George W. Bush lost Wisconsin by margins of less than a quarter of a point in 2000 and about a third of a point in 2004.

Those are incredibly close elections, said Charles Franklin, director of the Marquette Law School Poll. So were important in the sense that we really are a battleground state that could tip either way when were talking about a history of margins that close, but then were also the center of the universe because we are very close to being the tipping-point state in the Electoral College.

Wisconsin, along with Michigan and Pennsylvania, were states that traditionally voted Democratic in presidential elections  but were critical in 2016 in helping Trump secure the 270 electoral votes needed to win a majority in the Electoral College. Wisconsin has 10 votes, one for each member of Congress, with the winner of the states popular vote taking them all.

Anthony Chergosky, UW-La Crosse assistant professor of political science, said polling seems to suggest a shift back toward slight Democratic leads in Michigan and Pennsylvania, but not Wisconsin, where the split appears to have remained even.

I think Wisconsin is giving Democrats a lot of heartburn, Chergosky said.

Campaign efforts

Sabato said educational attainment is one of the biggest demographic shifts to watch this year. White, mostly blue-collar workers without a college degree had traditionally voted Democrat until they shifted largely to Trump in 2016. Also that year, many traditionally Republican college-educated voters moved more Democratic.

Look at Wisconsins electorate, you have a disproportionately white- and blue-collar electorate, Sabato said. There are plenty of other groups in there, but disproportionately, youre in the category of demographic change as with political change. Well have to see in which direction its gone.

Officials with both state parties have said it will come down to boots-on-the-ground staffing and volunteers to fire up the base, while also trying to secure potential swing voters.

The Democratic National Committee in January announced Battleground Build-Up 2020, a multimillion-dollar investment in six battleground states, including Wisconsin. The committees goal is to double field organizers, open new regional offices and expand staff to lay the groundwork for the partys eventual nominee.

Talking to previous chairs and state directors, were pretty confident this is the biggest organizing push that the state of Wisconsin has ever seen, said Ben Wikler, chairman of the Democratic Party of Wisconsin.

Mark Jefferson, executive director of the Republican Party of Wisconsin, pointed to one potential untapped bank of voters in the strongly Republican WOW counties  Waukesha, Ozaukee and Washington  who voted for Sen. Johnson but not Trump in 2016. In Waukesha County alone that year, the margin for Johnson was 26,000 voters more than it was for Trump.

I think (Trump) can maintain his anti-establishment credentials in the rural areas, his support there seems as strong as ever, but the ground game is going to mean a lot in southeast Wisconsin, Jefferson said.

For Democrats, Chergosky said the challenge will be to find a way to balance their campaign in a manner that can ignite the base, while also appealing to more moderate or swing voters in southwestern Wisconsin. In the Driftless region, Trump won U.S. Rep. Ron Kinds district  the most narrowly divided in the state  by four points.

Its a needle that the party will need to thread, Chergosky said. How can they shift the margin back in their favor in these western parts of the state, while also maintaining and increasing turnout in the core Democratic areas of Madison and Milwaukee?

Democrats also will look to address the nearly 20% drop in turnout among black voters from 2012 to 2016.

Nonwhite voters in the state are an important thing for Democrats, but are a relatively small fraction of the total statewide vote because they  especially African Americans  vote overwhelmingly Democratic, Franklin said. Their turnout rate matters a lot.

A busy year

The 2016 election was marred by low voter turnout, due in part to Clintons decision not to campaign in the swing state, where she lost the primary to Vermont Sen. Bernie Sanders. In addition, Trump, who lost the state primary to Texas Sen. Ted Cruz before becoming the surprise Republican nominee, operated his campaign largely separate from the Republican National Committee.

Despite boasting the second-highest voter turnout in the nation in 2008 and 2012, Wisconsin fell to fifth in 2016, marking the states worst showing in 20 years.

Officials from both parties have said this year will be drastically different, with campaign mobilization efforts now several years in the making.

The RNC and the Trump campaign are now basically one unit  it will be a machine unlike what we saw in 2016, Burden said. The fact that both parties are doing that means that theres just going to be a much higher level of activity in the state than we saw four years ago.

To ensure Trumps victory, Johnson said, campaign efforts will need to focus on the successes of the presidents term, including the economy and recent trade deals, while also spotlighting topics of discussion among some Democratic candidates that will fire up conservatives in opposition, such as the proposed Green New Deal or Medicare for All.

U.S. Sen. Tammy Baldwin, D-Madison, said in an email Democrats are engaged and energized and the partys focus this year will be on Trumps failure to address concerns regarding trade and prescription drug prices.

I also think there is Trump fatigue with independents and some Republicans, Baldwin said. People are tired of the tweets, the division, the chaos and corruption. I think people get it. Trump is only out for himself and doesnt care about anybody but himself.

Last month, Trump held one of his first campaign rallies of the year in Milwaukee, just blocks from where Democrats this July will converge for the Democratic National Convention. Vice President Mike Pence joined him and last week walked into the states Democratic bastion of Madison to celebrate the states private school voucher program, which conservatives and some Milwaukee Democrats have championed. While not a traditional campaign rally, Pences speech was a clear indicator that Trump and the Republican Party have their sights set on a repeat of the partys surprise 2016 victory in the state.

For Democrats, Wikler said, the hope is to have a firm campaign infrastructure ready and waiting for the eventual nominee.

Our goal is to be out-organizing the GOP even before we have a nominee, Wikler said. Were building a field infrastructure that will work for whoever wins the nomination.

With the stage set for potential record voter turnout this year, Sabato said neither party should have much difficulty in getting out the vote. He added that Trump could arguably be the biggest factor at play for both parties.

Trump is that kind of president, he can activate both sides, which is rare, Sabato said. You either love him or you hate him, and pretty much everybody has made up their mind as to whether they love him or hate him.

Love 0 Funny 0 Wow 0 Sad 0 Angry 0
Iran suspends flights to and from China amid coronavirus spread concerns

Iran Press TV

Friday, 31 January 2020 5:39 PM

Iranian Minister of Health Saeed Namaki says Iran has temporarily halted all flights to and from China as the novel coronavirus, which originated in the Chinese city of Wuhan, spreads across the country and the rest of the world.

Namaki said on Friday that no case of coronavirus infection has been reported in the country so far and added that the decision has been made in an emergency meeting in the presence of a number of Iranian ministers and the government spokesman after the virus was declared a global emergency by the World Health Organization (WHO).

The World Health Organization (WHO) declared on Thursday that the coronavirus epidemic in China now constitutes a 'public health emergency of international concern'.

Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, WHO director-general, announced the decision after a meeting of its Emergency Committee, an independent panel of experts, amid mounting evidence of the virus spreading to some 18 countries.

Namaki further noted that he has sent a letter to Iran's First Vice President Es'haq Jahangiri asking the government to adopt new strategies regarding the coronavirus outbreak.

It has been set that Iranian nationals residing in China would be able to return to the country via exclusive flights while being fully supervised by the Health Ministry, Namaki said.

He noted that some 70 uninfected Iranian university students, who are now in Wuhan, would be returned home in cooperation with Iran's Foreign Ministry.

"But these cases depend on the Chinese government's cooperation. These individuals will be kept in quarantine and supervision for two weeks," the health minister said.

In a Persian tweet earlier on Friday, Namaki demanded that the government prevent the entry of passengers from China amid the threat of coronavirus epidemic.

He added that he had asked the Iranian first vice president in his letter "to inform the Iranian Foreign Ministry and Ministry of Roads about a halt to be put on the entry of all travelers from China (by land, sea and air) until further notice."

Wuhan is in virtual lockdown, and nearly all flights at the city's airport have been canceled and checkpoints block the main roads leading out of town. Authorities have imposed similar lockdowns on more than 10 cities near Wuhan as part of the ongoing containment effort.

The virus has so far killed 213 people and spread to at least 18 countries around the world, with the number of confirmed coronavirus cases standing at 9,809.

NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address






We think we know the story: florist Barronelle Stutzman declined a request to design the floral artwork for a gay so-called wedding. Her position, grounded on the First Amendment, landed her in hot water with the Washington State Supreme Court. She appealed to the U.S. Supreme Court, which remanded the case back to Washington. The state Supreme Court sustained the ruling that Stutzman broke the law. The unfortunate game of hot potato between the courts has left Stutzman no option but to re-appeal to the highest court in the land, as she contends that no creative professional should be required or coerced to create art that violates his core convictions. The broader principle at stake is whether the courts can coerce creative expression under the guise of protecting LGBT civil rights.

The media have mischaracterized Stutzman as a bigot, but in reality, she is fighting for the freedom of creative expression for everyone. In a USA Today op-ed piece published in October, she exposes the ruling for what it really is: an attack on creativity. People may not think of florists as artists, but Stutzman reflects on her creative process: "I discuss with the bride and groom their wedding plans and get to know their relationship and personalities; I spend weeks creating dozens of custom floral designs that include not just flowers but also fabrics, pictures and other objects; I bring those designs to the ceremony."

She points out the philosophical irony of strong-arming politically correct creative expression. She asks, "Why would people want to force me to celebrate a wedding that violates my faith? Wouldn't they want someone able to devote themselves to it? I wouldn't want to coerce an atheist to sing at my church on Sunday or a gay graphic designer to create a website promoting my church's views on marriage."

"I order you to be inspired and use your creativity to express a view you disagree with or else." It sounds like a Mel Brooks satire of a dictator, but it's the First Amendment attack that Stutzman is fighting through the courts. The very idea of coercing creativity is a contradiction in terms. Trying to force creativity would, in fact, destroy it.

We know that innovators, artists, designers, and others known as "creatives" pour their souls into their inspired expressions. Surprisingly, Time magazine, though not a Christian publication by any means, finds that the only way it can unpack the relationship of creativity and the soul is by referencing the Bible. In a recent special edition titled "The Science of Creativity," editor Richard Jerome describes the relationship as "a special power imbued with a touch of the divine. After all, creativity supplies the first verb of the Bible  'In the beginning God created.'" In verse 26 of the same chapter in Genesis, we learn that that the supreme Creator made human beings in His own image, apparently endowing the human soul with a similar inventive ability.

Even writers who don't refer to the Bible agree that creativity is crucial to humanity and cannot be coerced by the state. It is the most fundamental of human qualities. University of Notre Dame anthropologist Augustin Fuentes, author of The Creative Spark: How Imagination Made Humans Exceptional, writes, "Creativity is as much as part of our tool kit as walking on two legs, having a big brain, and really good hands for manipulating things." Pulitzer Prizewinning biologist Edward O. Wilson in his book The Origins of Creativity adds that creativity is "the unique and defining trait of our species." He defines it as "the discovery of new entities and processes, the solving of old challenges and disclosure to new ones, the aesthetic surprise of unanticipated facts and theories." That novelty is precisely what would be lost if the state seeks to control the creative process. As tech guru George Gilder notes, technology progress "is the product of human creativity, which always comes as a surprise to us. If creativity didn't come as a surprise, we wouldn't need it, and socialism would work."

If Stutzman loses her court appeal, the state will be essentially stifling creativity by enforcing the expression of a state-sanctioned ideology. This standardization will destroy the very novelty that is crucial to creativity and creative expression. According to Dr. Scott Barry Kaufman, psychologist and co-author of Wired to Create: Unraveling the Mysteries of the Creative Mind, "we do seem to be biased in most schools and workplaces against individual expression and unique choice." Yet "that sort of standardization of behavior is really a killer of creativity." Author Rob Judkins concludes that "the genuinely innovative are led by their passions not by rational ambitions. New ideas spring up from personal interests."

And what are Stutzman's passions and personal interests? Stutzman boldly states: "Life must be lived authentically, and Jesus is my authentic life." "I can't separate parts of my faith if I hope to be genuine." "I can't betray who I am." In the words of Shakespeare, certainly one of history's best known creatives, "to thine own self be true."

Stutzman's re-appeal will determine if the authentic self/soul, which is the essence of creativity, will be censored by the U.S. Supreme Court. Will the state claim jurisdiction over the inspiration, passion, and interests of the individual creative mind? To quote Fuentes again, human creativity is "the capacity to think together, to imagine possibilities, and to hope." Hope  the hope of a free soul, creative mind, and un-coerced expression for everyone  that is what Stutzman is fighting for.

Oscar Caicedo is a creative artist and designer. Founder and top designer of Raccoon Woodworks. A former U.S. Air Force officer, he holds an M.S. in management from Troy University and executive education from NYU, MIT, and Harvard Business School.
Voters in the US are finally starting to have a say on which Democrat should be the partys nominee against Donald Trump in Novembers presidential election.

After a year in which more than two dozen candidates entered the fray, the field has been whittled down to 11 as hopefuls have withdrawn after failing to win backing in the polls or raising enough funds to keep them in the running.

February 3 sees those still standing cross swords at the caucus in Iowa, a swing state Mr Trump took from the Democrats in 2016.

That will be followed by the New Hampshire primary contest a week later and then in early March by Super Tuesday where there are votes in 15 territories on the same day.

The final states vote in June.

Expand Close A voting drive volunteer sets up a table in Richardson, Texas (LM Otero/AP) AP/PA Images / Facebook

Twitter

Email

Whatsapp A voting drive volunteer sets up a table in Richardson, Texas (LM Otero/AP)

Perhaps the most significant to fall by the wayside before the voters had their say is Kamala Harris, the California prosecutor who was seen as an early favourite but failed to make an impact.

The Democrat party is still licking its wounds from its defeat in 2016 when Mr Trump confounded the pollsters with a comfortable electoral college victory over Hillary Clinton, winning several key states from the Democrats, notably in the rust belt which covers the mid-west states that were formerly known for their heavy industry.

Although Mr Trump lost the popular vote by three million to former first lady and secretary of state Mrs Clinton, his electoral college victory was solid.

Those who hope to be Mr Trumps opponent on the November 3 election day have been trying to convince voters they can win back the working class voters who were attracted by the presidents America First platform in which he vowed to defend US jobs.

Expand Close Michael Bloomberg was a late entry to the Democratic race (Jim Mone/AP) AP/PA Images / Facebook

Twitter

Email

Whatsapp Michael Bloomberg was a late entry to the Democratic race (Jim Mone/AP)

Former vice president Joe Biden and senators Bernie Sanders, who has surged in recent polls, and Elizabeth Warren have all constantly polled double digits in the contest so far while.

Of the other candidates, Pete Buttigieg, the openly gay former mayor of South Bend, Indiana, has proven a formidable fundraiser.

Billionaires Michael Bloomberg and Tom Steyer have deep pockets if their campaigns catch fire.

There is a Republican primary too but it is widely assumed that Mr Trump and his vice president Mike Pence will be the party nominees in Novembers election without opposition.

Although Mr Trump is being impeached, the trial verdict is likely to be in his favour because of the Republican majority in the Senate.
Former colleagues, old friends and those that simply admire a man who would give his life for others, gathered by the banks of the Boyne at Scotch Hall on Sunday morning.

They stood at the memorial stone to Leading Seaman Michael Quinn and recalled a true hero, a true son of Drogheda.

It was on January 30 1990, 30 years ago this week, that Michael volunteered with seaman Paul Kellett from the LE Deirdre to go to the rescue of a fishing boat caught in a storm off the Cork coast.

As they returned to the ship, their rescue craft capsized and Paul drowned, his body found the following day.

The Naval service and the ONE were present on Sunday and laid wreaths at his memorial, unveiled in 2012 by President Higgins.

Brian Guildea, President of the Naval Association said it was only right that they honour Michael's memory and said the crowd attending gets bigger each year.

This time, it was special, given that it was his 30th anniversary.

'He was a young, brave man,' Brian stated.

A member of the Ecuadorian navy also attended the event and said it was important to mark an event where someone had given their life for another person.

A formal event to mark the 30th anniversary takes place at the naval HQ in Cork later this week.
The Michigan Commission on Services to the Aging and the Aging & Adult Services Agency invites the public to join community conversations throughout the state to discuss the needs of older adult residents.

Every three years the Aging & Adult Services Agency, which is part of the Michigan Department of Health and Human Services, develops a state plan and seeks input regarding the needs and gaps in programs and services. The feedback is used to ensure priorities are on track with its support of the health and well-being of Michigan's older adult population.

The goal is to complete the new state plan by July 1.

The State Plan on Aging serves as a blueprint that outlines the coordination and advocacy activities undertaken to meet the needs of older adults, including integrating health and social services delivery systems.

"Michigan is one of the most rapidly aging states in the country," said Dr. Alexis Travis, senior deputy director of Aging & Adult Services Agency.

"By 2025, the number of Michiganders age 65 and over will outnumber those under the age of 18. As people are living longer, we must be strategic, collaborative and innovative in our work. That means we need the opportunity to hear from the public about the realities of aging in Michigan and hope to have great participation in these community conversations."

Dona Wishart, chair of the Commission on Services to the Aging, said public input is vital.

"Whether you are an older adult, a caregiver, or someone working with older adults in a volunteer or professional capacity, we urge you to participate in these community conversations," Wishart said.

"Your feedback is imperative to ensuring the new state plan addresses the critical needs of older adults in our state."

Community conversations will take place in 16 locations across the state. In Midland, a session will be held from noon to 1:30 p.m. Tuesday, March 3, at Midland Senior Services, 4700 Dublin Ave.

Anyone with interest or insight into the needs of older adults is invited to attend a local community conversation. Space is limited and organizers require RSVPs for planning purposes. RSVP to Kelly Cooper at 517-284-0182 or cooperk6@michigan.gov.

Visit the Aging & Adult Services Agency website - where the current state plan may be found - or Facebook page for more information.
WASHINGTON - The Senate is poised to end its impeachment trial of President Donald Trump far deeper in the partisan trenches than when it started.

That's a remarkable feat given how deep the Senate has already descended the past decade, but conversations with several of the more widely respected senators revealed a troubling state of affairs that looks nothing like the last time the supposedly august chamber came out of a presidential impeachment trial.

"I've got to figure out where we go from here, because right now, my view, this is the saddest day that I've seen in the Senate," Sen. Lisa Murkowski, R-Alaska, said Friday. "I'm really disgusted with everybody, just really - the House, the Senate, the Republicans, the Democrats. It's just a sad day."

Sen. Tom Udall, D-N.M., known for an easygoing western demeanor, expressed just as much rage.

"This was run hyperpartisan, and I think everybody is very angry and so that's where we are, and I think it will take a while for people to settle down," Udall said Friday night as he left the Capitol for a weekend break from the trial.

And Sen. Angus King, an independent from Maine who caucuses with Democrats, posted a picture of the Capitol dome at sunrise Saturday with a diatribe about today's Senate.

"I try not to make these posts overtly political, but yesterday was the most disappointing and dispiriting day since I started this job 7 years ago. For the first time in American history, we are about to complete an impeachment trial without the Senate calling a single witness," King wrote on Instagram.

So much for Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell's prediction on Jan. 15, when the House articles of impeachment first arrived, that the Senate would rise above "factional fervor" and bring the nation together.

Instead, when the final verdict is rendered with a public roll call Wednesday, the trial will serve as a three-week microcosm of the modern Senate. It has become a completely top-down institution in which the rank-and-file senators feel marginalized, if not completely ignored, and the days of ad hoc bipartisan groups helping cool political passions have vanished.

If the Senate itself were on trial, "guilty" would win the vote in a landslide.

Trump's legal team has multiple arguments against impeachment. Letting the voters decide is the latest rationale.

Part of the problem is the senators themselves and their unwillingness to actually do anything about their anger.

Murkowski issued a statement Friday morning, before the vote on having more witnesses, declaring that "Congress has failed." She said the Senate was incapable of holding a "fair trial" but did not spell out the causes, other than taking a thinly veiled shot at Sen. Elizabeth Warren, D-Mass., for her question Thursday about the "legitimacy" of Chief Justice John Roberts overseeing a trial with no witnesses.

Had Murkowski voted to call more witnesses, the tally would have been 50-50 and, as he later said, Roberts had no intention of weighing in with a tiebreaker vote. She seemed to indicate that one reason for voting against witnesses was to spare Roberts from a decision that could open him to attacks.

Yet, later, in an interview, she declined to say what Republicans had done that so angered her. "That will be a conversation for a later time," she said, drawing a long breath, "when I've just kind of taken a deep breath."

For all their griping about the firm grip McConnell and Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., have on their caucuses, none of the rank-and-file senators made a single real effort to negotiate their own compromise on witnesses.

"Nope. I've made phone calls, I've sent emails," Sen. Christopher Coons, D-Del., said Friday. "And the returns have been polite but brief."

Just 16 months ago Coons and then-Sen. Jeff Flake, R-Ariz., angered both leaders when they forced an extra week of consideration of the nomination of Justice Brett Kavanaugh, allowing for a bit more work by the FBI on an allegation of sexual assault he was accused of committing when he was a teenager. He denied the charge.

This time, senators spoke so little to one another that some Democrats believed Sen. Lamar Alexander, R-Tenn., might lead a GOP rebellion to call witnesses - when in fact Alexander never viewed the case as anywhere near his threshold for removing a president.

McConnell claimed he would model this trial on the 1999 impeachment trial of President Bill Clinton, with a format that would allow the House managers to present their case, have the president's legal team rebut it and then go into two days of a question-and-answer session.

That much resembled the Clinton trial over the past two weeks, but little else did.

Back then, the Senate called three witnesses and held private, videotaped depositions. Democrats are furious that Republicans fell in line behind McConnell and Trump's legal team in blocking witnesses.

But there's a more glaring difference, something that speaks volumes about today's Senate. When the presentations ended in 1999, the Senate closed its doors and held off-the-record deliberations that spanned more than 22 hours over three days.

Some decried the private sessions as a blow to transparency, but the senators of that era have long recalled those jury deliberations as one of their most meaningful experiences - they talked to one another, they didn't preen for the cameras.

Instead of such an experience this time, McConnell and Schumer negotiated a deal to adjourn the chamber for the weekend, hold closing arguments Monday and then allow senators to give public speeches explaining their votes until the scheduled 4 p.m. Wednesday vote.

Even Alexander said he doesn't see the point of private deliberations.

"I don't really see the need - the question is, did he do it? We had nine days of presentation, of arguments, and 11-hour days, we had nearly 200 witnesses' video clips shown to us," Alexander said in an interview Friday.

He believes Trump did everything he is accused of but the crime does not rise to the level of removing him from office. "I don't see what there is to deliberate about," Alexander said.

Udall thinks this is a big mistake. In 2010, he served on a special committee to run an impeachment trial of a federal judge, which led to a period of closed-door deliberations. "Everybody dropped their pretensions, they were asking us questions, they were agonizing with themselves," he said.

In the coming days, with speeches for the cameras, Udall expects more heated partisan warfare. Retiring at the end of the year, he wanted his final year in office to be focused on his policy issues rather than raising $15 million for a reelection campaign.

Doe he feel liberated from fundraising?

"Not after this. No, no, no," Udall said. "This is a pretty sour experience."
India spinner Harbhajan Singh on Saturday applauded state-owned carrier Air India for rescuing Indians from coronavirus affected Chinese city - Wuhan.

The first flight carrying 324 Indian on board landed at the Indira Gandhi International Airport here at 9:26 am on Saturday. Of the 324 passengers, three were minors and 211 were students.

Meanwhile, 95 of the 324 passengers have been taken from the Airport to Indo-Tibetan Border Police (ITBP) Chhawla Camp in Delhi, for medical observation at the camp.

"The national carrier @airindiain once again comes to the rescue - this time to evacuate Indians from Wuhan, the site of the outbreak of coronavirus. This mission begins today with a Jumbo 747 operating between Delhi and Wuhan. Jai Hind," Harbhajan tweeted.

The second Air India special flight will depart on Saturday afternoon from New Delhi to Wuhan for the evacuation of Indians stranded in the coronavirus-hit Chinese city, national carrier's spokesperson Dhananjay Kumar said.

The aircraft will depart at around 12:50 pm. The team of doctors on the aircraft will be the same as on the first, while the crew has changed, Kumar told ANI, adding that the flight operations will be still led by Air India's Director of Operations Captain Amitabh Singh.

The virus originated in Wuhan, China, in December and has since then spread to various cities around the world. China has imposed quarantine and travel restrictions, affecting the movement of 56 million people in more than a dozen cities, amid fears that the transmission rate will accelerate as hundreds of millions of Chinese travel for the Lunar New Year.

Health authorities around the world are taking action to prevent a global pandemic as the virus continues to spread, with cases reported in Australia, France, the United States and seven Asian countries besides China.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
Sinn Fein are two points ahead of Fine Gael with the Republic of Ireland set to go the polls next Saturday, according to a new poll.

A Panelbase poll for The Times has put Sinn Fein on 21%, above Fine Gael on 19% and narrowly behind Fianna Fail on 23%.

The poll, conducted between January 24 and 30, asked 1000 people who they intended to vote for in the upcoming election.

It is the latest strong poll showing for the party ahead of the election on February 8 and puts them ahead of the leading party in the Irish government for the first time.

Read More

Repeated positive showings have led to speculation that Sinn Fein may enter government as part of a coalition following the election.

Taoiseach Leo Varadkar has been adamant that his party will not enter government with Sinn Fein, a sentiment echoed by Fianna Fail leader Micheal Martin.

Both parties are also reluctant to enter into a coalition with each other, despite Fianna Fail supporting the previous Fine Gael government through a confidence and supply agreement.

However, former Fianna Fail Taoiseach Bertie Ahern has said that he believes the possibility of a Fianna Fail-Sinn Fein coalition will be discussed after the election.

Sinn Fein President Mary Lou McDonald has said that it would be a "challenge" to agree a programme of government for coalition with Fine Gael or Fine Fail, but not impossible.

Both Mr Martin and Mr Varadkar have expressed concern over the influence of unelected officials on Sinn Fein.

As recently as November 2019 the PSNI have said that the IRA Army Council retains oversight of Sinn Fein.

The Taoiseach has said that Sinn Fein TDs do not make "key decisions" in the party.

Its made by an Ard Comhairle and we dont think thats proper in a democratic society, he said.

Mr Martin said he could "never be sure with Sinn Fein in terms of who you are dealing with".

"Is it unelected officials in Belfast who rule the roost, who control the levers of power within that party?," the Fianna Fail leader said.

Expand Close Sinn Fein activists calling for a border poll, stage a demonstration outside Parliament Buildings, Stormont (Brian Lawless/PA) / Facebook

Twitter

Email

Whatsapp Sinn Fein activists calling for a border poll, stage a demonstration outside Parliament Buildings, Stormont (Brian Lawless/PA)

Speaking on Friday, Sinn Fein leader Mrs McDonald said she would only enter a coalition government committed to pushing for a referendum on Irish unity and laying the groundwork for a debate on constitutional change.

I have said very clearly that I believe that we should have a border poll within the next five years and more importantly that preparations for constitutional change need to start," she said.

This shouldnt be written up as some sort of exotic red line for Sinn Fein, this is an absolute necessity."

The poll listed independents and others at 11%, the Green Party at 10%, and the Social Democrats, Labour and Solidarity-PBP all on 5%.

Undecided voters made up 13% and they were excluded from the poll, the margin of error was 3%.
Adel said Jaen didnt know when he fired his gun that Arce was 14 and that the suspect was about to run out of the officers view while appearing to be armed. Police officials have said Jaen fired because he thought the gun was real and he perceived a threat.
The digital sector is expected to contribute 30% to Vietnam's economy by 2030.

Vietnam is believed to be the fastest-growing digital economy in the Asia Pacific (APAC) as it is making efforts to push up the digital transformation as a key strategy to boost the national economy.

Internet economy growth vs GDP penetration. Chart: Google, TEMASEK

Over the past years, Vietnam has set ambitious goals for the digital economy such as contributing 30% to the countrys gross domestic product (GDP) by 2030.

Dean of the Diplomatic Academy of Vietnam's Faculty of International Economics Dang Hoang Linh said that if the sector keeps up with its current growth rate, the e-commerce market is likely to hit US$33 billion in value by 2025, Techwireasia reported.

In the report named e-Conomy SEA 2019 by Google and TEMASEK, Vietnams Internet economy is booming as it reached some US$12 billion in 2019 on a 38% annualized growth rate since 2015. With the gross merchandise value (GMV) of its Internet economy set to account for over 5% of the countrys GDP in 2019, Vietnam is emerging as the most digital of all economies in the region.

Vietnam's internet economy. Chart: Google, TEMASEK

E-commerce is a key driver behind the impressive numbers, where homegrown marketplaces like Sendo and Tiki compete with regional players like Lazada and Shopee, said the report.

According to Techwireasia, Vietnam will solidify its position as an e-commerce leader just behind Indonesia with US$100 billion and Thailand with US$43 billion.

Indeed, over the past year, Vietnam has built itself into an attractive destination for global investors and its efforts are paying off, tech giants like Nokia, Samsung, and Olympus have moved some operations into the country.

The high return on investment (ROI) in Vietnams digital-related economy is most apparent in the e-commerce sector, receiving approximately US$1 billion in funding, Techwireasia reported.

Funding in Vietnam's Internet economy. Chart: Google, TEMASEK

The sector is growing robustly, producing successful e-commerce platforms such as Tiki, Thegiodidong, and Sendo.

Another reason supporting the market is Vietnams regulators played a large part in propelling the countrys e-commerce industry forward.

A solid regulatory framework is set in place to ensure that safeguards are enacted, preventing the exploitation of the e-commerce industry.

Specific regulation was recently passed in order to create favorable conditions that can support the high growth rate of the retail e-commerce market, and at the same time, ensure a fair business environment.

In a world where virtually every industry is disrupted by technology, Vietnams priority to boost digitization is a wise move. It also serves as a good exhibit of the integral role regulators play in digital-related fields such as e-commerce, AI, or fintech.

Ultimately, governments and businesses alike must recognize that digital transformation is inevitable. The only way forward is to embrace it, and develop strategies that can best help them thrive against such a backdrop, Techwireasia concluded. Hanoitimes

Linh Pham

Digitalising SMEs road to success Digital transformation is not only a trend but also a must for small- and medium-sized enterprises as Industry 4.0 sweeps across the globe  while at the same time being an ideal solution for improving their competitiveness.
Supporters of U.S. President Donald Trump wait for him to pass in his motorcade on the route to his Mar-a-lago resort REUTERS/Eva Marie Uzcategui

The U.S. Senate voted on Friday against calling witnesses and collecting new evidence in President Donald Trump's impeachment trial, clearing the way for Trump's almost certain acquittal next week.

By a vote of 51-49, the Republican-controlled Senate stopped Democrats' drive to hear testimony from witnesses like former national security adviser John Bolton, who is thought to have first-hand knowledge of Trump's efforts to pressure Ukraine to investigate a political rival, former Vice President Joe Biden.

Those actions prompted the Democratic-controlled House of Representatives to formally charge Trump with abuse of power and obstruction of Congress in December, making Trump only the third president in U.S. history to be impeached.

He denies wrongdoing and has accused Democrats of an "attempted coup."

The Senate approved on a party-line vote a timeline for the rest of the trial that calls for a final vote on the impeachment charges at 4 p.m. EST on Wednesday.

Closing arguments will begin at 11 a.m. EST on Monday, with four hours split between the prosecution and defense. That will give the four Democratic senators who are running to be their party's presidential nominee time to get to Iowa for that night's first nominating contest.

Expand Close Supporters of U.S. President Donald Trump wait for him to pass in his motorcade on the route to his Mar-a-lago resort, as the Senate continues his impeachment trial, in West Palm Beach, Florida, U.S., January 31, 2020. REUTERS/Eva Marie Uzcategui / Facebook

Twitter

Email

Whatsapp Supporters of U.S. President Donald Trump wait for him to pass in his motorcade on the route to his Mar-a-lago resort, as the Senate continues his impeachment trial, in West Palm Beach, Florida, U.S., January 31, 2020. REUTERS/Eva Marie Uzcategui

In between the closing arguments and final vote, senators will have an opportunity to give speeches on the Senate floor, but the trial will not formally be in session. Trump will deliver his State of the Union speech to a joint session of Congress on Tuesday night.

The Senate is almost certain to acquit Trump of the charges, as a two-thirds Senate majority is required to remove Trump and none of the chamber's 53 Republicans have indicated they will vote to convict.

Trump is seeking re-election in the Nov. 3 vote. Biden is a leading contender for the Democratic nomination to face him.

In Friday's vote on witnesses, only two Republicans - Mitt Romney, the 2012 Republican presidential nominee, and Susan Collins, who faces a tough re-election in November in her home state of Maine - broke with their party and voted with Democrats.

"America will remember this day, unfortunately, where the Senate did not live up to its responsibilities, where the Senate turned away from truth and went along with a sham trial," Senate Democratic Leader Chuck Schumer told reporters.

After the first vote on calling witnesses, Schumer offered more amendments seeking to call witnesses and obtain more evidence, but the Senate rejected them all. Romney and Collins were again the only Republicans to support calling Bolton as a witness.

Republican Senator Lindsey Graham said the trial should end as soon as possible. "The cake is baked and we just need to move as soon as we can to get it behind us," he told reporters.

Friday's vote on witnesses came hours after the New York Times reported new details from an unpublished book manuscript written by Bolton in which the former aide said Trump directed him in May to help in a pressure campaign to get Ukraine to pursue investigations that would benefit Trump politically.

Bolton wrote that Trump told him to call Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy to ensure Zelenskiy would meet with Trump's personal lawyer Rudy Giuliani, a key player in the campaign, the Times reported.

Robert Costello, a lawyer for Giuliani, called the Times report "categorically untrue." Bolton's lawyer and spokesman did not respond to requests for comment.

The Times previously reported that Bolton - contradicting Trump's version of events - wrote the president told him he wanted to freeze $391 million in security aid to Ukraine until Kiev pursued investigations of Democrats, including Biden and his son, Hunter Biden.

Democrats had said the news illustrated the need for the Senate to put Bolton under oath.

But Republicans said they had heard enough. Some said they did not think that Trump did anything wrong, while Senators Lamar Alexander and Rob Portman said his actions were wrong but did not amount to impeachable conduct. Senator Marco Rubio said impeachment would be too divisive for the country, even if a president engaged in clearly impeachable activity.

Lisa Murkowski, a Republican moderate who Democrats had hoped would vote with them to extend the trial, said the case against Trump was rushed and flawed. She told reporters she was "angry at all sides" and the prospect of a tie vote on witnesses weighed heavily on her decision.

After the Senate adjourned on Friday, she said she knew how she would vote on the charges but she would not reveal it yet.

"Will I share it with you tonight? Ive had so much drama today, Im just going to chill. Hows that? Was that fair?" Murkowski told reporters.
Jawaharlal Nehru University Students Union president Aishe Ghosh said on Saturday that had society raised its voice against the scrapping of Article 370, "we would not have had to see this day".

Ghosh, who was injured in an attack by masked assailants on students on the campus of JNU in Delhi on January 5, was speaking at a panel discussion on 'Students as the Vanguard' at 'Mumbai Collective' here.

"The first attack on our Constitution was when Article 370 was removed in Kashmir. Had we raised our voice then, we would not have had to see this day," she said, referring to the current situation in the country.

Provisions of the Article 370 of the Constitution, which gave a special status to Jammu and Kashmir, were abrogated last August and the state was bifurcated into two Union Territories.

"This is not the fight of only students and they cannot end it alone, but they are hoping that every section of society will rise and fight together," Ghosh said.

"Why do we have to wait for a student to die, to commit suicide, to be killed? Or for an Aishe Ghosh to be hit by an iron rod? This is not just a fight only for students," she said.

When the history of the current phase of politics in our country is written, the women from Shaheen Bagh and elsewhere in the country who are leading the protest (against the Citizenship (Amendment) Act) will feature prominently, she said.

Being a good student is not about only doing well in examinations, Ghosh said.

"If we are learning democracy in civics, then we need to implement it in society. A student is not someone who just reads about Hitler. Education and being a good student is to see similarities and stop it from happening in India," she said.

It was the "system" in the county which claimed the lives of Rohith Vemula and Fathima Latif (the IIT Madras student who committed suicide), Ghosh contended.

She also spoke about JNU student Najeeb Ahmed, who went missing in October 2016.

"If we had raised voice then that Islamophobia is existing in our system, the current situation would not have arisen," Ghosh stated.

During an earlier session, writer-director Rasika Agashe said she was not "scared of" Prime Minister Narendra Modi or Home Minister Amit Shah, but she was scared of "hate- filled kids who now have guns".

She was apparently referring to incidents of firing outside Jamia Millia Islamia and at Shaheen Bagh protest venue in Delhi.

"We must figure out how we are to root out this hatred," she said.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
CHICAGO  Facebook users in Illinois could soon see a portion of a $550 million settlement over the companys alleged breach of Illinois biometric information law.

The social media giant disclosed that it had come to a tentative agreement over a 2015 lawsuit that alleged the company violated Illinois Biometric Information Privacy Act each time it stored a persons facial data to then notify them about photographs posted on the platform.

When you would upload a photo, it would suggest who was in that photo and it was using facial recognition technology to do that, said Christoper Dore, partner attorney at Edelson PC.

Edelson was a part of the legal team representing the plaintiffs.

Its not yet clear how many people will qualify for compensation as part of the settlement.

Any class action notice will go out through various means, email and other means, to let people know that they are part of the class and present them with the options that they have, Dore said.

Once the suit is approved of by a federal judge in San Francisco, where the case was moved to at the request of Facebook, Dore said those who are eligible will be contacted with instructions on how to claim their settlement.

Dore said the settlement could amount to several hundred dollars per person if it was settled in a way similar to other Biometric Information Privacy Act lawsuits.

The states Biometric Information Privacy Act imposes a fine of $1,000 for each violation, and $5,000 if its proven the defendant willfully neglected the law, but that standard is difficult to prove.

Illinois Biometric Information Privacy Act prohibits businesses, governments or other entities from storing a persons biometric information, fingerprints, facial shape, or otherwise, without their explicit positive permission. It also sets other requirements for the storage of that information.

Biometric information is uniquely sensitive, said Abe Scarr, director of the Illinois Public Interest Research Group. You can cancel your credit card. You cant cancel your face. We should know who is collecting and commercializing information created from the stuff our lives are made of.

Texas has a similar law, but legal recourse must be taken by the states attorney general. Illinois law allows people to file civil suits.

The Biometric Information Privacy Act law has been listed as a reason tort reform advocates have called a couple of Illinois counties judicial hellholes, contending that the opportunity for class-action suits against companies opens up a cottage industry for trial lawyers seeking settlements.
In an illustration photo, a doctor performs an ultrasound on a pregnant woman during her visit to a gynecologist. (Jennifer Jacobs/AFP/Getty Images)

Planned Parenthood Clinic in Kentucky to Resume Abortions

A Planned Parenthood clinic in Louisville, Kentucky, is set to resume abortion services in March after it received a provisional license from the states Cabinet for Health and Family Services.

Planned Parenthood of Indiana and Kentucky (PPINK) announced on Jan. 31 that abortions will resume at the clinic, which had halted the procedures in 2016 when the states former governor previously denied their application for a license to operate.

The group says the license will make the Louisville Health Center the second abortion provider in the state. Currently, the EMW Womens Surgical Center in Louisville is the only site where abortions can be performed.

The granting of the license comes after the current administration of Democratic Gov. Andy Beshear told PPINK in a Jan. 3 letter that the organization hadnt violated any state laws and was free to reapply for a license.

The administration of former Gov. Matt Bevin, a Republican, refused to issue a license to PPINK to operate its Louisville clinic in August 2019, citing state violations because the site wasnt properly licensed as an abortion facility between Dec. 3, 2015, and Jan. 28, 2016. During that time, the clinic performed 23 abortions, the letter said (pdf).

That denial came amid an ongoing federal court battle between PPINK and Bevin over the license the organization has been trying to obtain since 2015. Bevins administration sued the organization, alleging that the 23 abortions during 2015 and 2016 were performed illegally and that PPINK had tried to rush the license application during the final days of the administration of Bevins predecessor, former Gov. Steve Beshear.

The organization has denied wrongdoing, according to media reports at the time.

Andy Beshear, who is the son of Steve Beshear, was elected in November 2019.

Christine Charbonneau, CEO of PPINK, welcomed the news, saying that all people in Kentucky deserve to make their own pregnancy decisions and to have access to safe and legal abortion.

Abortion access has been a topic of national dialogue, as many state legislatures have enacted or are beginning to enact or defend their enacted laws in court to limit abortions. These states are hoping the lawsuits might be a vehicle to challenge the 1973 Supreme Court decision in Roe v. Wade, which protects a womans access to abortion. While so-called heartbeat bills, which make abortions illegal as soon as a fetal or embryonic heartbeat can be detected, have been enacted in several states, some have been invalidated by courts.

Meanwhile, the Supreme Court is preparing to hear a case regarding state laws that put restrictions on abortions. That case asks the court to decide whether an unconstitutional burden has been placed on women seeking abortions, after Louisiana passed a law requiring doctors performing abortions to have admitting privileges within 30 miles of where the procedure was taking place.

The nations abortion rate fell 26 percent between 2005 and 2015 for women between the ages of 15 and 44, according to the Kaiser Family Foundation.
A member of the medical team of the Second Military Medical University puts on protective clothing at Hankou Hospital in Wuhan, central China's Hubei Province, Jan. 27, 2020. (Xinhua/Xiao Yijiu)

"China's performance received compliments from all over the world, which, as WHO's current director-general Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus said, has set a new standard for countries around the world in epidemic prevention and control," former WHO chief said.

"This is a scientific judgment, a prudent and reasonable decision, with the aim to better control the epidemic and prevent it from spreading around the world," Margaret Chan, former director-general of the World Health Organization (WHO), commented after the organization announced the novel coronavirus outbreak a Public Health Emergency of International Concern (PHEIC).

"Human-to-human infections have been found in three countries outside China and none of the patients involved have visited China, prompting the WHO to make such a scientific judgement," Chan said in an interview with Xinhua on Friday.

Chan stressed the decision did not target China nor did it mean the WHO distrusted China's ability to handle the epidemic.

The decision was made to call on other countries to take measures to prevent and control the outbreak, she said.

Members of the medical team of the Second Military Medical University receive praise from a patient at Hankou Hospital in Wuhan, central China's Hubei Province, Jan. 27, 2020. (Photo by Chen Jing/Xinhua)

"China's performance received compliments from all over the world, which, as WHO's current director-general Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus said, has set a new standard for countries around the world in epidemic prevention and control," Chan said.

In about a week's time, China finished sequencing the genes of the new virus and shared the information with the world, she noted.

Chan, an expert in dealing with public health emergencies, said a level of panic was understandable as the epidemic was caused by a novel coronavirus unfamiliar to most people.

She pointed out that it was important for all governments in different countries and regions to take scientific and accurate measures to control the epidemic.

Chan believes that the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region (HKSAR) government is apt at preventing and controlling infectious diseases thanks to its past experience. Hong Kong has experienced Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome (SARS), bird flu and other severe infectious diseases.

A Hubei resident arrives at Tianhe International Airport in Wuhan, central China's Hubei Province, Jan. 31, 2020. The first charter flight sent by the Chinese government to bring home stranded Hubei residents from overseas arrived in Wuhan Friday evening. (Xinhua/Xiong Qi)

A number of people proposed shutting down checkpoints between Hong Kong and the Chinese mainland along with other suggestions to contain the spread of the coronavirus.

"WHO has declared that all countries shall not impose travel or trade restrictions on China. This is also the spirit of international health regulations valued by the WHO," Chan said.

Australia, for instance, once adopted measures that prohibited entry and exit of people during a global flu pandemic, but the measures failed to prevent an outbreak in the country, she pointed out.

Chan acknowledged that it is still difficult to estimate when the current pneumonia epidemic will abate since it was caused by a new virus whose source and hosts have yet to be determined by scientists.

She stressed that effective implementation of existing prevention and control measures should be the top priority at this stage.

"The mainland has done what it should. China has set a new standard for other countries to prevent and control the epidemic, while no other country has the scale, speed, transparency and openness comparable to China," Chan said.
President Ram Nath Kovind has rejected the clemency plea of Vinay Kumar Sharma, one of the four men facing the gallows in the 2012 Delhi gangrape and murder case, Home Ministry officials said on Saturday.

New Delhi: President Ram Nath Kovind has rejected the clemency plea of Vinay Kumar Sharma, one of the four men facing the gallows in the 2012 Delhi gangrape and murder case, Home Ministry officials said on Saturday.

Sharma filed a mercy petition before the president on Wednesday, his lawyer had said. Kovind has rejected Sharma's mercy plea, the officials said.

The president had last month also rejected the clemency petition of another accused, Mukesh Singh.

The 23-year-old physiotherapy intern, who came to be known as 'Nirbhaya' (fearless), was gang-raped and savagely assaulted on the night of December 16, 2012, in a moving bus in South Delhi. She died of her injuries a fortnight later in a Singapore hospital.

The brutality of the crime shook the nation, leading to country-wide protests and a change in India's rape laws.

Six people  Mukesh, Vinay, Akshay Kumar Singh, Pawan Gupta, Ram Singh and a juvenile -- were named as accused.

The trial of the five adult men began in a special fast-track court in March 2013.

The prime accused, Ram Singh, allegedly committed suicide by hanging himself in Tihar jail days after the trial began. The juvenile, who was said to be the most brutal of the attackers, was put in a correctional home for three years.

He was released in 2015 and sent to an undisclosed location amid concerns over a threat to his life. The juvenile, when released, was 20 years old. Mukesh, Vinay, Akshay and Pawan were convicted and sentenced to death in September 2013.

They were to be hanged on 22 January at 7 am in Tihar Jail, a Delhi court had announced on 7 January while issuing their death warrants.

However, the Delhi government informed the high court during a hearing that the execution of the convicts will not take place on the designated day as a mercy plea had been filed by Mukesh.

Following rejection of Mukesh plea, a Delhi court had issued black warrant fixing the hanging of all the four convicts on 1 February.

The scheduled hanging on Saturday was postponed for the second time again on Friday by a local court here.

Reacting in anguish to the delay in the hanging, Nirbhaya's mother Asha Devi has said she will continue her fight till the convicts are hanged.

"These convicts have no right to live. We keep getting disappointed by the system. I will continue my fight till the convicts are hanged," she said.
Coronavirus latest updates: 324 Indians have been rescued from China's Wuhan but sadly 6 persons were left out. Air India's special flight with doctors brought 324 Indians back and now they will be kept under isolation for 14 days at Delhi's RML hospital.

Air Indias special flight-Boeing 747 brought 324 stranded Indians back from Chinas Wuhan on Saturday. The flight took off from Wuhans Tianhe International Airport and reached Capitals Indira Gandhi International Airport at around 7:30 am. Reports said the deadly coronavirus has killed over 200 people till now and the number of people with symptoms is increasing rapidly.

The aircraft that brought all Indians, was loaded with special types of equipment and carried 5 doctors from Delhis Ram Manohar Lohia (RML) Hospital. The officials brought back 324 Indians but sadly they have to leave 6 passengers who had high temperatures, one of the symptoms for coronavirus. `

It has been said that the rescued passengers would be kept under the isolation as they pose serious health risks to others at the ITBP Centre in Delhis Chhawla.

Another special flight to China is also scheduled for today.

One of the passengers told media that the Chinese authorities didnt allow 6 passengers as they were measured high temperatures during the screening.

After the return of the Indians living in China, most of them were students, Indian authorities thanked the Chinese government for facilitating the special flight and their support to send 324 people back from Wuhan.

The Indian embassy today tweeted that the Air India flight carrying 324 Indian nationals from the coronavirus hit Hubei Province of China took off from Wuhan in the early hours of February 1. Majority of the passengers were Indian students. The India government sincerely thank the Chinese government for facilitating this flight, said an official.

For all the latest National News, download NewsX App
Blue Oak BBQ | Photo: Jen B./Yelp

Looking to try the best bars in town?

Hoodline crunched the numbers to find the top bars in New Orleans, using both Yelp data and our own secret sauce to produce a ranked list of the best spots to fulfill your urges.

Hoodline offers data-driven analysis of local happenings and trends across cities. Links included in this article may earn Hoodline a commission on clicks and transactions.

1. Mr Ed's Oyster Bar

Photo: david s./Yelp

First on the list is Mr Ed's Oyster Bar. Located at 512 Bienville St. in the French Quarter, the bar and Cajun/Creole spot, which offers seafood and more, is the most popular bar in New Orleans, boasting 4.5 stars out of 1,094 reviews on Yelp.

2. Blue Oak BBQ

Photo: blue oak bbq/Yelp

Next up is City Park's Blue Oak BBQ, situated at 900 N. Carrollton St. With 4.5 stars out of 865 reviews on Yelp, the bar that serves barbecue and more, has proved to be a local favorite.

3. Mais Arepas

Photo: joshua c./Yelp

Central City's Mais Arepas, located at 1200 Carondelet St., is another top choice, with Yelpers giving the bar and Colombian eatery 4.5 stars out of 581 reviews.

4. Port Of Call

Photo: quentin d./Yelp

Over in the French Quarter, check out Port Of Call, which has earned four stars out of 1,596 reviews on Yelp. You can find the bar and steakhouse, which offers burgers and more, at 838 Esplanade Ave.

This story was created automatically using local business data, then reviewed and augmented by an editor. Click here for more about what we're doing. Got thoughts? Go here to share your feedback.
ANN ARBOR, MI - Anna Frushour arrived in the United States 37 years ago, after her family fled Poland as a Communist regime instituted martial law.

Flash forward to 2020: The law is now in her hands.

In a court room packed with family, colleagues and political figures, the former Ann Arbor public defender was sworn in as a judge of Washtenaw Countys 14A District Court on Friday, Jan. 31.

Frushour was appointed by Gov. Gretchen Whitmer on Dec. 18, 2019 to replace retired Judge Richard Conlin, who hung up his robe early after being diagnosed with Parkinsons Disease. At age 70, he was also mandated to not run for re-election in the 2020 election. His retirement took effect Oct. 1, 2019.

Gov. Whitmer appoints defense lawyer to 14A District Court judge vacancy

Conlin placed the robe on Frushours shoulders Friday after Michigan Supreme Court Chief Justice Mary McCormack conducted the oath of office. The newly-appointed judge teared up as she thanked her parents for their sacrifices.

About 35 years ago, they left their family and their country and escaped with two young children, Frushour said, her voice cracking with emotion. They wanted to give my sister and I a better life and opportunities. I would not be here today without the selfless sacrifice that they made for us.

Frushour hopes to be a judge who changes lives for the better, even in the most dire circumstances.

The ceremony, held in 14A District Chief Judge Cedric Simpsons courtroom, was attended by a number of public figures, including McCormack, U.S. Rep. Debbie Dingell, D-Dearborn, Ann Arbor Mayor Christopher Taylor and state Rep. Yousef Rabhi, D-Ann Arbor.

While Frushour serves on the bench, she is vying for election to same seat in the 2020 primary election in August. When she announced her intentions to run in September 2019, she was endorsed by Conlin, McCormack and Washtenaw County Circuit Chief Judge Carol Kuhnke.

Public defender Anna Frushour running for 14A district judge

Frushour, a Pittsfield Township resident, was a partner at Reiser & Frushour, a law firm that contracts with the city of Ann Arbor to represent criminal defendants in misdemeanor cases, according to the law firms website. She has also served as assigned defense counsel for the Mental Health Court, Veterans Treatment Court, Sobriety Court and Street Outreach Courts in Washtenaw County.

She has a bachelors degree from University of Michigan and a law degree from Wayne State University Law School.

Frushours appointed term began Jan. 13, 2020 and ends on Jan. 1, 2021. Frushour will run for a six-year term.

No other candidates have yet filed to run for Conlins spot in the August 2020 primary.
A couple of weeks ago, when Dan Shure was searching on Google for information about butchering meats, he did something he had avoided for 20 years: He unknowingly clicked on an ad.

Shure, a consultant who helps companies manage where they appear in Google searches, had always thought it was easy to distinguish between paid search results and unpaid links.

That changed Jan. 13 when Google revamped the look of its search results page for desktop computers. Even for someone with a trained eye like Shure, it was hard to see the difference between an ad and a regular link.

I felt dumb because I had never clicked on an ad before, said Shure, 40, owner of Evolving SEO, a consulting firm in Worcester, Mass.

In the two decades since the Mountain View company introduced text ads above search results, the company has steadily made ads less conspicuous. But its latest look may have pushed things too far. Users complained that Google was trying to trick people into clicking on more paid results, while marketing executives said it was yet another step in blurring the line between ads and unpaid search results, forcing them to spend more money with the internet company.

The dust-up comes at a bad time for Google, which is facing accusations around the world that it unfairly takes advantage of its search engine dominance. And it is an indication of just how careful the internet giant now must be when it makes subtle  and sometimes unsubtle  tweaks to wring more money out of its giant ad business.

Regulators and politicians are investigating Googles influence over the digital advertising industry. And some advertisers are openly challenging search ads as a shakedown and ransom by the tech giant, which controls about 90% of web search.

Ginny Marvin, editor in chief of Search Engine Land, a website that covers the search industry, said there is more awareness among users of Googles behavior because of recent privacy complaints and government antitrust probes.

There is much more scrutiny by your regular user who may not have thought anything about this a year or two ago, Marvin said. To see them make this change in the face of antitrust regulation was not going to go unnoticed.

Last month Google said it will eventually strip third-party trackers, or cookies, from its Chrome browser, a decision it described as an effort to build a more private web. But the American Association of Advertising Agencies and the Association of National Advertisers quickly complained in an open letter that removing cookies could choke off the economic oxygen from advertising that startups and emerging companies need to survive.

The reaction to the recent search page changes was so negative that Google took the rare step of reversing some of the design changes last week. Google said it was experimenting with a change to the new logos next to the unpaid links, although it did not alter the new ad logo.

Lara Levin, a Google spokeswoman, said in a statement that the recent design changes mirrored a new look the company introduced for search results on mobile phones in May 2019. The company tested the new look on desktop search, and the results were positive, she said, but it decided to make some changes to respond to feedback from users.

Alphabet, Googles parent company, is expected to report next week that annual revenue topped $150 billion in 2019. But Googles ad business is under growing pressure from rivals like Amazon and Facebook.

Money from Google advertising accounts for about 80% of Alphabets total revenue. Search advertising is essential to the future of Google, though the company does not say how much it makes on it alone. Magna, a media intelligence firm, estimates that overall search advertising increased 14% in 2019 to about $144 billion.

Google constantly tinkers with the design of its search results page, and its once bare bones approach to search results  characterized as 10 blue links  has changed dramatically in recent years. The company once tested 41 different shades of blue to find which one users liked best, and it has steadily made its search ads more inconspicuous over time.

Increasingly, Googles search results page is not just the on-ramp to direct you to the most relevant information on the web, its also the destination. The unpaid links are buried amid a hodgepodge of fact boxes, news links, ads and snippets of text.

For marketers, who rely on Google to bring them web traffic, the blurred lines between ads and regular results make it hard to decipher whether the customers being redirected to their sites are people who were going to come to them anyway or those who stumbled upon them because of the ad.

You cant figure out where the highest value customers are coming from if everyone comes in through that paid ad. Right now its just a bidding war, and brands now have to buy against their own name as a defense mechanism, said Amanda Goetz, vice president of marketing at the Knot Worldwide, a wedding planning group. She called the redesign a transition to this almost deceptive dark pattern.

Josh Zeitz, another Google spokesman for the ads team, said the design changes were in line with guidelines from the Federal Trade Commission. In 2013, the FTC made recommendations for how search engines should label ads but stopped short of specific requirements other than that paid results should be noticeable and understandable to consumers.

Googles recent changes adhered to some of the guidelines but ignored others. Google did not follow what the FTC prescribed for visual cues with paid results marked by either prominent shading that has a clear outline or a border that distinctly sets off advertising from unpaid search results or both. But the new ad icon met the FTCs recommendation for ad labels to appear before the paid result on the upper left hand side.

Google declined to comment on the record about how it interprets the FTC guidelines, citing a quiet period before earnings. FTC spokesman Mitchell Katz declined to comment on Googles changes.

Google is not alone in trying to squeeze more revenue from prominent internet properties. Facebook, Instagram, Twitter and Amazon are increasing the numbers of ads that appear on their sites and apps and labeling advertisements in different ways.

For Shure, Googles recent changes were more jarring on desktop than the introduction on mobile because there is so little visual difference between the paid and unpaid search results. He said he found that there was no difference in font size, spacing or color between the ads and the regular or organic results. On mobile, each ad is contained within a box and comes with an i or information icon on the right.

If you look at a result that is ads and organic links, it all looks the same, Shure said. And thats a problem.

Daisuke Wakabayashi and Tiffany Hsu are New York Times writers.
Police are investigating after a tow-truck driver was shot on Highway 404 in Markham early Saturday morning, the latest violence involving the towing industry in the GTA.

York Regional Police received a call for a shooting at around 1:45 a.m. in the area of Steeles Avenue, near the westbound ramp to Highway 404 northbound. The Ontario Provincial Police Highway Safety Divisions Aurora Detachment is actively investigating the incident.

Police say the occupants of a vehicle approached and fired at a stationary tow truck, the male driver of the truck sustained minor injuries and a female passenger was not injured.

Whats happened is very alarming and disturbing, Sgt. Kerry Schmidt said.

We are still looking at connections to other events and thats why were also looking for witnesses and appealing for anyone to come forward.

The shooting a surge of criminal activity affecting the GTAs towing industry, namely a wave of arson and the murder of a GTA driver that remains unsolved.

Three tow trucks were set on fire Dec. 17, and at least three bullets were fired at tow truck drivers in York Region at Highway 404 and Major Mackenzie Drive East, none of the bullets hitting the drivers.

On Jan. 9, Durham Regional Police said an eight-week investigation of tow truck companies in the GTA resulted in more than 250 charges and the recovery of 31 vehicles.

Police have not released any suspect descriptions.

Correction - Feb. 3, 2020: This article was edited from a previous version to update a headline that mistakenly said the incident occurred in Aurora.
Lashing out at the people protesting against the new citizenship law, Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath on Saturday alleged that those who supported terrorists in Kashmir were staging protest in Shaheen Bagh and raising slogans of 'azadi'.

Addressing a series of rallies in the national capital, Adityanath also said that "their ancestors divided India", so they have a grouse against this emerging 'Ek Bharat, Shrestha Bharat', and slammed the AAP government, saying it "supplies biryani" to protesters in Shaheen Bagh.

At his first poll rally of the day at Karawal Nagar Chowk in support of BJP candidate Mohan Singh Bisht and Mustafabad's sitting MLA Jagdish Pradhan, Adityanath said the anti-CAA agitation was "against India" and an attempt to "malign the image" of the country.

"It is a roadblock in realising the dream of 'Ek Bharat Shrestha Bharat'," he said.

The UP chief minister also attacked his Delhi counterpart Arvind Kejriwal, alleging he and his party were siding with protesters at Shaheen Bagh and that a Pakistan minister and AAP were speaking in similar terms.

"How did it happen? We don't know where all their (AAP's) links are," he said, referring to a tweet on Friday by Pakistan's Minister of Science and Technology Fawad Hussain on Delhi polls.

Kejriwal responded to him on Friday, saying the Delhi election was an internal matter of India and any interference by Pakistan, the biggest sponsor of terrorism, will not be tolerated.

"People of Delhi, you have to decide, whether you want better health, better education facilities, better environment, metro services or whether Delhi needs Shaheen Bagh. I am here to tell you that," Adityanath said, amid chants of 'Yogi, Yogi' and 'Jai Shri Ram'.

At another rally, the senior BJP leader sustained his attack on AAP, saying, "Kejriwal cannot even provide clean drinking water to the people of Delhi... According to a (BIS) survey, the Delhi government is making its people drink poisonous water. But it is supplying biryani to those protesting in Shaheen Bagh and elsewhere in the city."



Hundreds of people, including women and children, have been protesting in Shaheen Bagh since December 15 against the amended law and the National Register of Citizens. They say the citizenship law is discriminatory and fear it targets Muslims.

During the assembly poll campaign, BJP leaders have been urging people to vote for the party to show their disapproval for the ongoing anti-CAA protest at Shaheen Bagh.

At a third rally in support of BJP candidate Vijender Gupta in Rohini, Adityanath claimed Mahatma Gandhi had said India should provide citizenship to Hindus, Sikhs, Buddhists, Jains, Parsis and Christians fleeing atrocities in Pakistan, and "therefore, it (the citizenship law) should be welcomed".

"Those who supported terrorists in Kashmir have come and sat on a dharna in Shaheen Bagh against the CAA and are raising slogans of 'azadi'," Adityanath said.

"You should understand what they want, what they think about India, where are they taking it. If they indulge in rioting or arson...In Uttar Pradesh, I told the administration to make them pay for the damages and we seized their property," the firebrand BJP leader said.

In December, Adityanath declared that his government would recover losses due to violence during protests against the law by seizing the properties of those involved in vandalism.

The UP CM also said that since Narendra Modi became the prime minister, "we have been identifying every terrorist and feeding them 'goli' instead of biryani".

"Let Kashmir remain in peace ... If you will speak the language of Pakistan, in favour of Pakistan, the soldier's gun will show you the way to hell," he said.

At the Karawal Nagar rally, he also said, "The protests (at Shaheen Bagh) have disrupted daily life, we cannot condemn it less," the senior BJP leader said.

"These protests are not about CAA, it is happening because those people are questioning how can India emerge as a major power in the world, and to stop that rising India," he claimed.

Adityanath also asserted that his party and the central government will not allow a rule that divides the country into segments and "will not allow terrorism, insurgency and Naxalism in India".

On the Ram temple issue, he reiterated that it was a "grand dream" of crores of Indian and Congress was a "blockade", but the Supreme Court has cleared the way for the temple.

He alleged that the Kejriwal government is no different than Congress, as they are "trying to ensure the Nirbhaya convicts do not get hanged".

He also alleged that AAP government has not given NOC to a Delhi-Meerut- Haridwar 12-lane expressway project, despite approval by the Centre and funds allocation by the UP government.

On Thursday, the Election Commission banned Union minister Anurag Thakur and BJP MP Parvesh Verma from campaigning for 72 and 96 hours, respectively, in view of their provocative comments at an election rally in the city earlier this week.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
The reins of one of the world's biggest tech firms, IBM, will go to Arvind Krishna in April this year. Krishna, a company veteran who is known for spearheading IBM's big acquisition of Red Hat, will take over the office of the chief executive officer from April. His elevation to the top marks is yet another instance of an India-born IT leader heading a top company. Once he is the CEO, Krishna will join the list that includes Sundar Pichai, currently CEO of Google and Alphabet, Satya Nadella, who heads Microsoft, and Shantanu Narayen, who is CEO at Adobe.

Given this background, the four leaders have several similarities. And, curiously, one of them is that all four of them are from south India. So who is Arvind Krishna?

Born in Andhra Pradesh, Krishna joined IBM back in 1990. His position and power rose gradually and he became a key executive in the company when he struck a deal with Red Hat for $34 billion, which is IBM's biggest purchase so far. Krishna's portfolio at IBM worked in his favour as he was appointed to take up the CEO office on January 31. He looks after the company's projects and developments in the areas of core and emerging technologies, which include Artificial Intelligence, quantum computing, Blockchain, cloud computing, data solutions, and nanotechnology.

But he moved to the US, and years before he landed up at IBM, Krishna was a student in Conoor in Tamil Nadu. After his schooling, he moved to an IIT. Krishna graduated in Bachelors of Technology from one of the country's elite engineering colleges, the Indian Institute of Technology, Kanpur. Later, he went to Illinois in the USA to pursue a PhD in Electrical & Computer Engineering at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign.

Much like Krishna, we have more notable personalities from South India that are now heading major companies in the world. Sundar Pichai, who recently became the CEO of Alphabet, adding to his CEO's position at Google, belongs to Tamil Nadu. His alma mater includes IIT Kharagpur, Stanford University, and The Wharton School.

Then there is Satya Nadella, the CEO at Microsoft. At Microsoft, Nadella succeeded Steve Ballmer in 2014. He was born in Hyderabad and did his Bachelors in Engineering at the Manipal Institute of Technology. Later, he moved outside the country to study at the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee and the University of Chicago.

While Pichai and Nadella are often in news because of the popular brands they head, there is another South Indian who heads one of the biggest tech firms. Shantanu Narayen is the CEO of Adobe who took office in 2007. He was born in Hyderabad and then studied in a local school, before moving to the Osmania University for his engineering. From there, he moved to the US for higher education and studied at the University of California and the Bowling Green State University before joining Apple in his first job.
London, Feb 1 : Small island nation Maldives officially re-joined the Commonwealth on Saturday, it was announced by Commonwealth Secretariat. It joined the Commonwealth in 1982, and withdrew its membership in 2016.

This marks the end of a process that began 13 months ago, in December 2018, when President Ibrahim Mohamed Solih wrote to the Commonwealth Secretary-General expressing the country's interest in re-joining.

After due diligence, which included country assessment and consultations in accordance with the rules and procedures agreed by the Commonwealth Heads of Government in Kampala in 2007, Maldives has been re-admitted.

Commonwealth Secretary-General Patricia Scotland said: "I warmly congratulate Maldives on its successful application. We are delighted to welcome the country and its people back to the Commonwealth.

"The reform process underway in Maldives aligns with the values and principles of the Commonwealth and we encourage the nation to continue on this path.

"Commonwealth members were pleased to note these developments and are happy once again to count Maldives as a member of the family. Together we will support Maldives to realise its ambitions." Maldives President, Ibrahim Mohamed Solih, said: "Today is a happy day for Maldivians as we return to the family of Commonwealth nations.

"As a young democracy, the Commonwealth's foundational values of the promotion of democracy, human rights, good governance, multi-lateralism and world peace remain relevant to us more than ever.

"We gratefully acknowledge the support and help of the Commonwealth to the Maldivian democratic movement, and we look forward to the support of fellow member states to ensure the long-term entrenchment of these values in our society." The assessment included two site visits to the country followed by positive feedback given by a Commonwealth Observer Group which was present for the Parliamentary Elections in April 2019.

Members subsequently agreed to invite Maldives to submit a formal application, which it did on December 25 last year. The country presented evidence of functioning democratic processes as well as popular support for re-joining.

The Secretary-General then consulted with all 53 Commonwealth members and received no objections.

The country will now be part of the Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting (CHOGM) in Kigali, Rwanda on June 22-28.

Its Ambassador to Britain now becomes its High Commissioner, signifying Commonwealth membership.
The U.S. Senate voted on Friday against calling witnesses and collecting new evidence in President Donald Trumps impeachment trial, clearing the way for Trumps almost certain acquittal next week.

By a vote of 51-49, the Republican-controlled Senate stopped Democrats drive to hear testimony from witnesses like former national security adviser John Bolton, who is thought to have first-hand knowledge of Trumps efforts to pressure Ukraine to investigate a political rival, former Vice President Joe Biden.

Those actions prompted the Democratic-controlled House of Representatives to formally charge Trump with abuse of power and obstruction of Congress in December, making Trump only the third president in U.S. history to be impeached.

He denies wrongdoing and has accused Democrats of an attempted coup.

The Senate approved on a party-line vote a timeline for the rest of the trial that calls for a final vote on the impeachment charges at 4 p.m. EST (2100 GMT) on Wednesday.

Closing arguments will begin at 11 a.m. EST (1600 GMT) on Monday, with four hours split between the prosecution and defense. That will give the four Democratic senators who are running to be their partys presidential nominee time to get to Iowa for that nights first nominating contest.

In between the closing arguments and final vote, senators will have an opportunity to give speeches on the Senate floor, but the trial will not formally be in session. Trump will deliver his State of the Union speech to a joint session of Congress on Tuesday night.

The Senate is almost certain to acquit Trump of the charges, as a two-thirds Senate majority is required to remove Trump and none of the chambers 53 Republicans have indicated they will vote to convict.

Trump is seeking re-election in the Nov. 3 vote. Biden is a leading contender for the Democratic nomination to face him.

In Fridays vote on witnesses, only two Republicans - Mitt Romney, the 2012 Republican presidential nominee, and Susan Collins, who faces a tough re-election in November in her home state of Maine - broke with their party and voted with Democrats.

America will remember this day, unfortunately, where the Senate did not live up to its responsibilities, where the Senate turned away from truth and went along with a sham trial, Senate Democratic Leader Chuck Schumer told reporters.

After the first vote on calling witnesses, Schumer offered more amendments seeking to call witnesses and obtain more evidence, but the Senate rejected them all. Romney and Collins were again the only Republicans to support calling Bolton as a witness.

Republican Senator Lindsey Graham said the trial should end as soon as possible. The cake is baked and we just need to move as soon as we can to get it behind us, he told reporters.

NEW DETAILS

Fridays vote on witnesses came hours after the New York Times reported new details from an unpublished book manuscript written by Bolton in which the former aide said Trump directed him in May to help in a pressure campaign to get Ukraine to pursue investigations that would benefit Trump politically.

Bolton wrote that Trump told him to call Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy to ensure Zelenskiy would meet with Trumps personal lawyer Rudy Giuliani, a key player in the campaign, the Times reported.

Robert Costello, a lawyer for Giuliani, called the Times report categorically untrue. Boltons lawyer and spokesman did not respond to requests for comment.

The Times previously reported that Bolton - contradicting Trumps version of events - wrote the president told him he wanted to freeze $391 million in security aid to Ukraine until Kiev pursued investigations of Democrats, including Biden and his son, Hunter Biden.

Democrats had said the news illustrated the need for the Senate to put Bolton under oath.

But Republicans said they had heard enough. Some said they did not think that Trump did anything wrong, while Senators Lamar Alexander and Rob Portman said his actions were wrong but did not amount to impeachable conduct. Senator Marco Rubio said impeachment would be too divisive for the country, even if a president engaged in clearly impeachable activity.

Lisa Murkowski, a Republican moderate who Democrats had hoped would vote with them to extend the trial, said the case against Trump was rushed and flawed. She told reporters she was angry at all sides and the prospect of a tie vote on witnesses weighed heavily on her decision.

After the Senate adjourned on Friday, she said she knew how she would vote on the charges but she would not reveal it yet.

Will I share it with you tonight? Ive had so much drama today, Im just going to chill. Hows that? Was that fair? Murkowski told reporters.
A tax cut is a dangerous fiscal tool to put in the hands of a government that does not know exactly who will benefit or how much it will cost. The current federal Liberal government is an excellent case in point.

Hey there, time traveller!

This article was published 31/1/2020 (709 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

Opinion

A tax cut is a dangerous fiscal tool to put in the hands of a government that does not know exactly who will benefit or how much it will cost. The current federal Liberal government is an excellent case in point.

Finance Minister Bill Morneau is preparing legislation that would make a proposed "middle-class tax cut" touted by the Liberals in last fall's election, effective January 1 of this year. However, even before the tax cut has officially been unleashed, the entire rationale behind it and its impact on the treasury are undergoing profound change.

THE CANADIAN PRESS/Adrian Wyld Federal Finance Minister Bill Morneau is preparing legislation to make the Liberals' "middle-class tax cut" effective January 1, 2020.

The Parliamentary Budget Officer reported in late January that the Liberal tax cut will now cost $1.2 billion more than originally thought. The Liberals told voters its plan to increase in the Basic Personal Exemption (BPE) would reduce federal revenue by $5.66 billion when fully implemented in the 2023-24 fiscal year. The PBO said the true cost is closer to $6.85 billion.

That means the Liberals were more than 20 per cent off target on the calculations they used in their election platform. Those calculations were, in fact, also performed by the PBO but were based on older forecasts of economic growth and potential tax revenue. The earlier projection also excluded, at the Liberal Party's request, the impact of the tax cut on spousal and dependant benefits.

In other words, the Liberals deliberately asked the PBO to produce a number they knew was lower than the actual cost of the tax cut. That is hardly surprising; election campaigns typically see rhetoric and political marketing triumph over data. What is more surprising is the fact that once again, the entire premise for the tax cut is also off the mark.

Prime Minister Justin Trudeau suggested that increasing the BPE was the best way of providing tax relief to more than 20 million Canadians who need it the most  the mythical "middle class" of Canadian society. The people who work hard but are finding that the costs of living are rising faster than disposable income.

The new PBO calculations demonstrate that higher income Canadians will, in general, reap the greatest benefits.

Couples with children who earn up to $159,000 will receive about $573 from the tax cut; individuals earning between $15,000 and $51,509 will receive less than half that amount, about $211. The tax cut starts to be phased out for anyone earning more than $227,504.

So, while the richest Canadians get no benefit, many high-income Canadians are doing pretty well under a tax cut that was supposed to help people with much lower incomes. Which brings us to a second maddening admission by the Liberal government: it doesn't really know who qualifies as "middle class."

Following last fall's election, the Liberals appointed Ontario MP Mona Fortier to serve as minister of middle class prosperity. It's a clumsy and preposterous name for a cabinet portfolio that makes it hard to take Fortier, or the Liberal government, very seriously. Particularly when Minister Fortier was forced to admit she doesn't know how to define middle class.

"The income required to attain a middle-class lifestyle can vary greatly based on Canadians' specific situation," Fortier told the House of Commons in late January. While that may be true, it does not absolve the Liberals from abusing the term in their election campaign. As the details, such as they are, leak out about this tax cut, we can see that it was not very well thought out.

Trudeau was in a dog fight with the Conservatives, who had already proposed a broad tax cut as part of their platform. A competing tax cut was effective in defusing this as a watershed issue. Once the Liberals won re-election, however, it didn't take long to discover how half-baked the plan really was.

Of greater concern is why the Liberals are pursuing a tax cut at all?

Dan Lett | Not for Attribution A weekly look at politics close to home and around the world that is sent every Tuesday. Sign Up I agree to the Terms and Conditions, Cookie and Privacy Policies, and CASL agreement.

Uncertainty continues to envelope the global economy. Most economists believe another recession, while not imminent, will happen at some point in the near future. The Trudeau Liberals need to ask themselves: is this the time to torch more than $6 billion in annual revenue?

The Conservative party would give a resounding 'yes' to that question. But fiscal conservatives have a clear and unambiguous purpose for reducing taxes: first, it fulfills their prime directive by putting money back into the pockets of taxpayers, an accomplishment they rank just slightly behind world peace and curing cancer; and second, out of necessity, it forces government to shrink.

Tax cuts are the most effective way of forcing a government to reduce its footprint. If you reduce the capacity of government to raise money, you have to find ways of reducing costs. That typically involves capping or lowering transfers to other levels of government, reducing the size of the public service and cutting services.

But Liberals, in general, do not want to reduce the size and scope of government. The Trudeau Liberals in particular believe strongly that government can be a force for good. The Grits aren't on a long-term campaign to reduce support or services; they want to do increasingly more to address the most pressing concerns facing Canadians.

This tax cut is messy and desperate. And as we learn more about it, we can see that it had much more to do with getting re-elected and almost nothing to do with improving the life of middle-class Canadians. Whoever they are.

dan.lett@freepress.mb.ca
For beginners, it can seem like a good idea (and an exciting prospect) to buy a company that tells a good story to investors, even if it completely lacks a track record of revenue and profit. But the reality is that when a company loses money each year, for long enough, its investors will usually take their share of those losses.

So if you're like me, you might be more interested in profitable, growing companies, like Billion Industrial Holdings (HKG:2299). While profit is not necessarily a social good, it's easy to admire a business that can consistently produce it. Loss-making companies are always racing against time to reach financial sustainability, but time is often a friend of the profitable company, especially if it is growing.

Check out our latest analysis for Billion Industrial Holdings

Billion Industrial Holdings's Earnings Per Share Are Growing.

As one of my mentors once told me, share price follows earnings per share (EPS). It's no surprise, then, that I like to invest in companies with EPS growth. Who among us would not applaud Billion Industrial Holdings's stratospheric annual EPS growth of 57%, compound, over the last three years? While that sort of growth rate isn't sustainable for long, it certainly catches my attention; like a crow with a sparkly stone.

I like to take a look at earnings before interest and (EBIT) tax margins, as well as revenue growth, to get another take on the quality of the company's growth. Billion Industrial Holdings shareholders can take confidence from the fact that EBIT margins are up from 10% to 12%, and revenue is growing. Ticking those two boxes is a good sign of growth, in my book.

The chart below shows how the company's bottom and top lines have progressed over time. To see the actual numbers, click on the chart.

SEHK:2299 Income Statement, February 1st 2020

While it's always good to see growing profits, you should always remember that a weak balance sheet could come back to bite. So check Billion Industrial Holdings's balance sheet strength, before getting too excited.

Story continues

Are Billion Industrial Holdings Insiders Aligned With All Shareholders?

Personally, I like to see high insider ownership of a company, since it suggests that it will be managed in the interests of shareholders. So we're pleased to report that Billion Industrial Holdings insiders own a meaningful share of the business. In fact, they own 56% of the company, so they will share in the same delights and challenges experienced by the ordinary shareholders. This makes me think they will be incentivised to plan for the long term - something I like to see. At the current share price, that insider holding is worth a whopping CN6.9b. That means they have plenty of their own capital riding on the performance of the business!

It means a lot to see insiders invested in the business, but I find myself wondering if remuneration policies are shareholder friendly. A brief analysis of the CEO compensation suggests they are. For companies with market capitalizations between CN6.9b and CN22b, like Billion Industrial Holdings, the median CEO pay is around CN3.9m.

The Billion Industrial Holdings CEO received total compensation of just CN1m in the year to December 2018. That looks like modest pay to me, and may hint at a certain respect for the interests of shareholders. While the level of CEO compensation isn't a huge factor in my view of the company, modest remuneration is a positive, because it suggests that the board keeps shareholder interests in mind. I'd also argue reasonable pay levels attest to good decision making more generally.

Should You Add Billion Industrial Holdings To Your Watchlist?

Billion Industrial Holdings's earnings have taken off like any random crypto-currency did, back in 2017. The sweetener is that insiders have a mountain of stock, and the CEO remuneration is quite reasonable. The strong EPS improvement suggests the businesses is humming along. Big growth can make big winners, so I do think Billion Industrial Holdings is worth considering carefully. Of course, just because Billion Industrial Holdings is growing does not mean it is undervalued. If you're wondering about the valuation, check out this gauge of its price-to-earnings ratio, as compared to its industry.

Although Billion Industrial Holdings certainly looks good to me, I would like it more if insiders were buying up shares. If you like to see insider buying, too, then this free list of growing companies that insiders are buying, could be exactly what you're looking for.

Please note the insider transactions discussed in this article refer to reportable transactions in the relevant jurisdiction

If you spot an error that warrants correction, please contact the editor at editorial-team@simplywallst.com. This article by Simply Wall St is general in nature. It does not constitute a recommendation to buy or sell any stock, and does not take account of your objectives, or your financial situation. Simply Wall St has no position in the stocks mentioned.



We aim to bring you long-term focused research analysis driven by fundamental data. Note that our analysis may not factor in the latest price-sensitive company announcements or qualitative material. Thank you for reading.
In Vietnam, the saying the first lunar month of the year is the time for pleasure and relaxation is learnt by heart by nearly everyone.

On the first day back to office after Tet (the Lunar New Year, Festival), Ngoc Anh, a salesperson of an insurance company actually did not work. After the long vacation of one week, she was now busy with her Facebook. After posting some photos of the atmosphere at her work, she checked the newsfeeds of her friends, usually with similar photos, to compare who got the most lucky money. It is just one of the multiple activities showing the relaxing festive ambiance of the post-New Year as many people still want to continue the fun.

Office employees like to chit-chat after Tet

It is because the first lunar month of the year is the time for pleasure and relaxation, as Anh said. In fact, this folk phrase is probably learned by heart by every Vietnamese. In the old time, with the rudimentary farming and simple production tool, farmers depended much on the weather for their crops. The beginning of the year, with a lot of rain, was unfavorable for farm work so it became their leisure time after hard working the whole year. Today in the industry and technology age, many still love to preserve this tradition.

The first day back to work after Tet is not really for work, according to Anh. Well, nobody is in the mood for work. We are happy in the atmosphere of the New Year and we dont want it to stop, she said.

So it becomes a tradition in her company for the day that all staff gather for the greeting of the New Year with best wishes from the boss and for each other. Their largest expectation of the day is the lucky money given by the boss and colleagues. The custom of giving lucky money to children in the New Year for blessing is common at work today, not only for luck but also fun for adults as they can live their childhood again. Then they can share it with their family and friends, making it become a theme in social pages this time.

The first day at office is also the good time for colleagues to gather after a long holiday, to update about how the years largest holidays went, like visiting home with family and friends, price escalation for necessary products before and after Tet as usual, traffic congestion from people visiting home and getting back, travel journeys, the weather during Tet, and blah blah blah. Many stories need to be told. So its better to talk about it on a table with food instead of papers of usual business meetings.

Then it is a tip to book a table in a restaurant in advance, otherwise it would be hard to get an available one this time. It is the same with Karaoke boxes, the next common place that they go after eating and drinking. Obviously, few people think about getting back to the office on the day. Everyone is also enjoying Tet now so why dont we? Even if we want to work, we cannot because other relative sectors or our partners are partying. We work the whole year, said Minh Tuyet, a staff of a tourism company.

Karaoke is a favorite activity

To others, it is not enough for this atmosphere just one day but a few days, a week or even more. Besides food and karaoke, house parties are organized often as well. As Tet is for family then post-Tet is regarded as for and friends, colleagues and actually themselves. Once again, traditional food is enjoyed. It is also a good way to help your friends to finish the food left over from Tet as some may cooked too much. With Youtube, they can also satisfy their passion with singing easily at home. They also have fun with card playing, one of the popular games during Tet. We were so busy during Tet with a lot of responsibilities for visiting home in another town, decorating house, cooking traditional food, welcoming guests and visiting relatives. We didnt have time for ourselves. So its now the real Tet time for us, Tuyet said.

Joining Tuyets house party, one of her colleagues, Javier Sanchez from Spain, said that he enjoyed the atmosphere. It is very different from Europe where people got back to work seriously after the long vacation like Christmas and New Year. But we love fiesta (Spanish for party), you know, so I like it as I can have more chance to enjoy more Vietnamese food and drinks as well as singing with my colleagues, he said, actually, it does not affect work because our peak season at Tet had just finished.

Another traditional habit of the New Year which is visiting temples and pagodas to pray for good luck and prosperity is also followed after the vacation as many worshiping festivals are taken place in well-known pagodas in the first lunar month. These festivals provide not only an opportunity for people to pray for the best for the New Year but also animated atmosphere for interesting ritual ceremonies, folk music and games, the best time to visit especially to small villages.

Going to religious places is a custom in Vietnam

While many groups of family and friends organize trips, companies also give a few more days off for everyone, including the boss, to go together. It is also a chance for them to spend time to tighten the relationship out of work. It is an important activity for the New Year as our boss has a strong belief in spiritual power which can influence the business. So we are encouraged to join and even invite our family and friends for more fun, said Anh.

In addition, spring is also one of the best time to travel in the country as various kinds of flowers bloom, especially in the Northwestern where there is a rich system of mountain and forest such as Quang Ninh province, Sapa (Lao Cai province), Mai Chau (Hoa Binh province), Moc Chau (Son La province, Ha Giang province, among others. Therefore, a spring trip has become a habit of the local people for a long time, usually featuring a short time from one to a few days. Then we will have good energy to start a New Year, said Tuyet. Hanoitimes

Le Diem

Southern beaches crowded on Tet Crowds flocked to beaches in the southern province of Ba Ria-Vung Tau to relax on Tet amid the hot weather.
Germany's Finance Minister Olaf Scholz. Photo: Michele Tantussi/Reuters

Germanys finance minister said on Friday he sees no negative impact on Europe from Britains withdrawal from the EU next week.

It will not have a big impact that the UK will have left the European Union in some days, and especially not because we avoided the Hard Brexit, Olaf Scholz said during a panel at Davos. This was the key question that impacted confidence in the business sector.

On the continent, there will be no negative effect of this development.

Scholz made the comments during a panel on the outlook for the world economy on the final day of the World Economic Forums (WEF) annual meeting in Davos, Switzerland.

European Central Bank (ECB) chief Christine Lagarde appeared alongside Scholz but struck a slightly more cautious tone.

READ MORE: 'Boris bounce' data 'kills' expectations of rate cut next week

Brexit is a little bit less uncertain, but we still have that possible cliff edge in December of 2020, she said.

We dont know exactly what the trade relationship will be and its a big partner for the euro area, so thats certainly a question mark.

Britain is set to officially leave the EU on 31 January and move on to the next stage of negotiations with the EU, covering future trading relations.

While German finance minister Scholz said there would be no impact on Europes economy from Britains official exit, he predicted a bumpier road for the UK.

It will be more difficult for the UK obviously because the business model must be reorganised, he said. There will be lower importance although, it will still be a very big place of financial activities in London but it will be different.

US treasury secretary Steve Mnuchin sat alongside Scholz and Lagarde, and stressed that the US was keen to get a trade deal done with the UK this year. Earlier in the week, US president Donald Trump said in a speech at Davos he was looking forward to negotiating a tremendous new deal with the United Kingdom after Brexit.
Turkey may launch a military operation in Syria's north-western Idlib region unless fighting there is quickly halted, President Recep Tayyip Erdogan said yesterday as attacks by Syrian government forces risked a new wave of refugees.

Syrian President Bashar al-Assad's forces, backed by Russian air power, have made rapid advances in Idlib, the last major rebel-held stronghold in Syria's nearly nine-year war, in an offensive which has displaced hundreds of thousands of people.

The recent campaign has also raised tensions between Ankara and Moscow, which back opposing sides in the conflict.

Turkey, which already hosts 3.6 million refugees from Syria, fears a fresh wave of migrants from Idlib.

It has 12 military observation posts around Idlib, set up under a 2017 agreement with Russia and Iran, and several of them have since been surrounded by advancing Syrian government forces.

Mr Erdogan accuses Russia of violating agreements to reduce the fighting in Idlib, a charge Moscow denied yesterday.

Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said Idlib was a haven for militants targeting Syrian troops and a Russian airbase in Syria.

Speaking in Ankara, Mr Erdogan repeated Turkey could not handle a fresh influx of migrants and would not allow new threats near its borders, even if it meant resorting to military power as it did in three previous cross-border operations in northern Syria.

"We will do what is necessary when someone is threatening our soil. We will have no choice but to resort to the same path again if the situation in Idlib is not returned to normal quickly," he said.

He also appeared to hold out the option of another operation in north-eastern Syria, where in October Ankara targeted the Syrian Kurdish YPG militia it calls a terrorist group.

"We will not refrain from doing what is necessary, including using military force," he said, adding Turkey wants stability and security in Syria.

Later yesterday, the Kremlin said Russia was fully compliant with its obligations in Idlib, but that it was deeply concerned about what it said were aggressive militant attacks on Syrian government forces and Russia's Hmeimim air base.

Turkey, which has backed rebels fighting to oust Mr Assad, has repeatedly called for the Syrian president to step down, even while Iran, Russia and Turkey have said they seek a political solution to the conflict.

"We will not allow the regime to put our country under the constant threat of migrants by tormenting, attacking, spilling the blood of its people," Mr Erdogan said.
Adam Taylor, 34, was given a 13-year sentence for the'brutal' attack (Picture: Police)

A man has been jailed after carrying out a brutal attack on New Years Day, in 2015, that left his victim in a coma and fighting for his life.

Adam Taylor, 34, was given a 13-year sentence after assaulting Jason Webb, 33, at a house party in Kernthorpe Road, Kings Heath, in Birmingham.

The court heard Taylor was seen jumping up and down on Mr Webb in the street and repeatedly kicked him in the head.

Mr Webb was left with severe brain damage, still has difficulty communicating with his family and requires round the clock medical care.

Jason Webb, 33, suffered life-changing injuries(Picture: Police)

During a trial which started at Birmingham Crown Court on January 6, the jury heard how a new witness came forward in December 2017 and offered further significant information about what happened that night.

Taylor had previously been arrested and charged with assault shortly after the attack, however, the case was discontinued due to insufficient evidence.

Detectives acted upon the new information and Taylor was charged with assault and appeared at Birmingham Magistrates Court on January 24 last year.

Detective Inspector Jim Colclough, from the homicide team, said: We know some sort of dispute took place at the party, but the level of violence used was completely unnecessary.

Taylor then callously left Jason seriously injured in the street.

We believe more people may have been involved, so our investigation continues.

Were still keen to hear from anyone who may have information.

Jason Webb before the attack (Picture: Police)

Jasons family released a statement, saying: It is heart-breaking to see Jason as he is now in comparison to the person he was prior to the attack which robbed him of his future life.

Jason was very close to his sister and her children. She misses him daily and the close relationship they once had.

READ MORE YAHOO UK NEWS HERE:

Woman tried to force oral sex on stranger inside his home in exchange for bus fare

Drunk mum of two who attacked cabin crew after being denied six Bloody Marys was flying to rehab clinic

Rapist who attacked teenage university student in Southampton park jailed for 14 years

Story continues

They added: The last five years have been a living nightmare for all of us.

Each of us has suffered tremendous heartache and pain.

So many lives have been damaged due to the callous actions of Jasons attacker.

As a family we feel that we have been given a life sentence and Jason will never have the opportunity to live the life that he could have had.

Taylor, 34, from Brockworth Road, Birmingham, was found guilty of the assault on January 23.

He was sentenced to 13 years and eight months in prison on Friday.
People wear medical masks as a precaution against coronavirus, walking around the in the streets of New York, United States on January 30, 2020.

The coverage on this live blog has ended. For the latest coverage on the coronavirus, visit the live blog from CNBC's Asia-Pacific team.

All times below in U.S. eastern standard time.

4:27 pm: First person in New York City under investigation for coronavirus



The first person in New York City is under investigation for coronavirus, according to the Department of Health. The individual, who is under 40-years-old, has been hospitalized and is in stable condition after showing symptoms following travel to mainland China. Testing by the CDC to determine whether this is a confirmed case of coronavirus will take at least 36-48 hours, according to health officials.

"An individual with a travel history to China felt unwell and sought help from a medical provider who promptly contacted the Health Department," said Health Commissioner Dr. Oxiris Barbot.



3:15 pm: Pentagon will provide housing for those who need to be quarantined

The Pentagon approved a request on Saturday from the Department of Health and Human services to provide housing for 1,000 people who could need to be quarantined after traveling abroad due to the virus, according to a Pentagon spokesperson.

3:00 pm: Apple closing stores in China could impact 1 million iPhones

As Apple temporarily closes its stores in China, roughly 1 million of Apple's iPhones in China are at risk of shifting out of the March and into the June quarter if the virus outbreak continues into late February, according to a Webush analyst note. However, the firm notes that it would be a less than 3% of Chinese annual iPhone sales at most and would have a negligible impact.

2:00 pm: Virus outbreak still largely centered in Hubei, WHO reports

A World Health Organization report on Saturday said the outbreak is still largely centered in the Hubei Province in China. About 60.5% of all China cases since the start of the outbreak are from Hubei Province, and the remainder are from 33 other provinces, regions and cities, according to the report.

The second largest number of cases are from the Zhejiang Province. Furthermore, 101 of the 132 cases confirmed outside of China were people who had traveled to China in the 14 days before the onset of the virus.

1:00 pm: Case of the virus confirmed in Massachusetts

A case of the virus has been confirmed in Boston, Massachusetts, in a man in his 20s who recently traveled to Wuhan, China, the Massachusetts Department of Public Health announced Saturday. So far, eight cases have been confirmed in the U.S: three people in California, two in Illinois and one each in Washington state, Arizona and Massachusetts.

11:30 am: Delta accelerates plans to suspend all U.S.-China flights

Delta said it will accelerate its plan to temporarily suspend flights between the U.S. and China to Feb. 2, based on new U.S. requirements that deny entry to foreigners who have visited China in the past two weeks.

The last China-bound Delta flight from the U.S. leaves Feb. 1, and the last returning flight from China to the U.S. leaves Feb. 2. The airline's previous plan was to suspend flights starting Feb. 6.

10:00 am: New research suggests more than 75,000 people infected in China

Roughly 2,100 new cases of the coronavirus have been confirmed in China, raising the global total to nearly 12,000, according to the Chinese and World Health Organization. The death toll has reached 259. All of China's provinces and territories have been affected by the virus outbreak.

But up to 75,800 people in Wuhan, China, the epicenter of the virus outbreak, might have been infected with the virus as of Jan. 25, according to a new report from the medical journal The Lancet.

8:00 am: Vietnam and Qatar Airways suspend flights to China



Vietnam banned all flights to China over coronavirus concerns, the government announced in a statement. Qatar Airways said it was suspending flights to China from February 3 until further notice.



These are the airlines that have suspended flights to China amid the virus outbreak:

Vietnam Airlines, Qatar Airways, Delta Airlines (until April 30), American Airlines (until March 27), Air France (until Feb. 9), British Airways, Air Seoul, Egyptair, Lion Air, Lufthansa, Swiss Airlines and Austrian Airlines (until end February), Kenya Airways, RwandAir (till further notice), Vietjet (effective Feb. 1), all Russian airlines (except Aeroflot).

7:30 am: China will strengthen financial support for anti-virus campaign

China's deputy central bank governor, Pan Gongsheng, said in an interview with state run news agency Xinhua that if needed, the bank would inject liquidity into the markets after the open on February 3 amid stress over the spread of the virus and declines on Wall Street.

6:40 am: China cancels tariffs on some virus prevention materials imported from U.S.

Beijing announced that U.S. imports that help to combat the virus will be exempted from retaliatory tariffs imposed during the U.S.-China trade war, including products like disinfectants.

2:16 am: Apple closes all stores in mainland China

Apple has temporarily shut down all its stores, corporate offices and contact centers in mainland China through Feb. 9, the company said on Saturday. The online store in China will stay open. The company operates 42 stores in mainland China.

This is a live blog. Please check back for updates.

Correction: Due to an editing error, a previous version of this story misstated the age of the person in New York City undergoing testing.
After three and a half years of rancour, bitterness, protests, paralysis, division and  just occasionally  real debate, the UK has left the European Union after 47 years of membership. For millions of people, including me, it is a moment of deep regret and mourning.

For all the hullabaloo of the past few weeks over whether Big Ben should chime to mark the moment, I personally feel that bells should be tolling for what we have lost  including the right to work, study, live and love in 27 countries.

We are now out of the EU, but we have not got Brexit done  whatever Boris Johnson promised during the election campaign. Very little will change immediately as we drift into the transition period. Beneath that apparent calm will be frantic negotiations which will shape not only our future relationship with the EU, but what kind of country we want to be.

Some of the loudest voices behind Brexit were those of English nationalists pushing an image lifted from the 1950s, driven by xenophobia and a narrow-minded view of what we should be as a country. We cannot allow these views to triumph. Our challenge now is to defend values of openness, liberal democracy, pluralism, free speech and the rule of law  values we share with our European neighbours.

I remain convinced that what drove many to vote to leave the EU was a sense of powerlessness. Last year, as part of a project I called Dear Leavers, I travelled around the country to areas which voted for Brexit and heard very clearly peoples anger and frustration that they were simply being ignored by politicians in Westminster. When the opportunity came for them to give the political establishment a good kicking, its not surprising that they took it.

Recommended Global climate crisis inaction is about to lead to mass civil unrest

It cant be a coincidence that most of those parts of the UK where there is local democratic control voted to remain in the EU. Significantly, all the UKs regional assemblies  Holyrood, Stormont and the Welsh assembly  voted against the EU Withdrawal Bill, thereby refusing consent for UK government legislation which will affect them all.

The vote for Brexit was a resounding rejection of the status quo and our broken democracy. People are fed up with politics being done to them, rather than by them or with them. That has to change, but the early signs dont look promising.

The governments bill doesnt give communities back control. It doesnt even give parliament back control, despite all those hollow slogans from Brexiteers about parliament being sovereign again. Any control is firmly in Downing Street which is using our exit from the EU as a massive power-grab.

Brexit timeline: How did we get here? Show all 20 1 /20 Brexit timeline: How did we get here? Brexit timeline: How did we get here? Britain votes to leave the European Union - 23 June 2016 A referendum is held on Britain's membership of the European Union. Fifty-two per cent of the country votes in favour of leaving AFP via Getty Brexit timeline: How did we get here? David Cameron resigns - 24 June 2016 David Cameron resigns on the morning of the result after leading the campaign for Britain to remain in the EU Getty Brexit timeline: How did we get here? Theresa May takes the reins - 13 July 2016 Theresa May becomes leader of the Conservative party and prime minister, winning the leadership contest unopposed after Andrea Leadsom drops out Getty Brexit timeline: How did we get here? High Court rules parliament must vote on Brexit - November 2016 - 3 November 2016 The High Court rules that parliament must vote on triggering Article 50, which would begin the Brexit process Brexit timeline: How did we get here? Article 50 triggered - 28 March 2017 The prime minister triggers Article 50 after parliament endorses the result of the referendum Getty Brexit timeline: How did we get here? May calls snap election - 18 April 2018 Seeking a mandate for her Brexit plan, May goes to the country Getty Brexit timeline: How did we get here? May loses majority as Labour makes surprise gain - 8 June 2017 After a disastrous campaign, Theresa May loses her majority in the commons and turns to the DUP for support. Jeremy Corbyn's Labour party makes gains after being predicted to lose heavily AFP/Getty Brexit timeline: How did we get here? Negotiations begin - 19 June 2017 David Davis and Michel Barnier, chief negotiators for the UK and EU respectively, hold a press conference on the first day of Brexit negotiations. Soon after the beginning of negotiations, it becomes clear that the issue of the border between Northern Ireland and the Republic will prove a major sticking point AFP/Getty Brexit timeline: How did we get here? MPs vote that withdrawal deal must be ratified by parliament - 13 December 2017 The government suffers a defeat in parliament over the EU withdrawal agreement, guaranteeing that MPs are given a 'meaningful vote' on the deal Brexit timeline: How did we get here? Boris Johnson resigns as foreign secretary - 11 July 2018 Following a summit at Chequers where the prime minister claimed to have gained cabinet support for her deal, Boris Johnson resigns as foreign secretary along with David Davis, the Brexit secretary Reuters Brexit timeline: How did we get here? Draft withdrawal agreement - 15 November 2018 The draft withdrawal agreement settles Britain's divorce bill, secures the rights of EU citizens living in the UK and vice versa and includes a political declaration commiting both parties to frictionless trade in goods and cooperation on security matters. The deal also includes the backstop, which is anathema to many brexiteers and Dominic Raab and Esther McVey resign from the cabinet in protest Getty Brexit timeline: How did we get here? May resigns - 24 May 2019 After several failed attempts to pass her withdrawal agreement through the commons, Theresa May resigns Reuters Brexit timeline: How did we get here? Johnson takes over - 24 July 2019 Boris Johnson is elected leader of the Conservative party in a landslide victory. He later heads to Buckingham Palace where the Queen invites him to form a government Getty Brexit timeline: How did we get here? Parliament prorogued - 28 August 2019 Boris Johnson prorogues parliament for five weeks in the lead up to the UK's agreed departure date of 31 October. Stephen Morgan MP Brexit timeline: How did we get here? Prorogation ruled unlawful - 24 September 2019 The High Court rules that Johnson's prorogation of parliament is 'unlawful' after a legal challenge brought by businesswoman Gina Miller Getty Brexit timeline: How did we get here? Johnson agrees deal with Varadkar - October Following a summit in Merseyside, Johnson agrees a compromise to the backstop with Irish prime minister Leo Varadkar - making the withdrawal agreement more palatable to Brexiteers Getty Brexit timeline: How did we get here? Final Say march demands second referendum - 19 October 2019 As parliament passes the Letwin amendment requiring the prime minister to request a further delay to Brexit, protesters take to the streets in the final show of force for a Final Say referendum Getty Brexit timeline: How did we get here? Johnson wins 80 seat majority - 12 December 2019 The Conservatives win the December election in a landslide, granting Boris Johnson a large majority to pass through his brexit deal and pursue his domestic agenda Getty Brexit timeline: How did we get here? Withdrawal deal passes parliament - 20 December 2019 The withdrawal agreement passes through the commons with a majority of 124 Getty Brexit timeline: How did we get here? EU parliament backs UK withdrawal deal - 29 January 2020 Members of the European parliament overwhelmingly back the ratification of Britain's departure, clearing the way for Brexit two days later on 31 January. Following the vote, members join hands and sing Auld Lang Syne AFP/Getty

Yes, theres talk of huge investment in the regions, of levelling-up, in other words repairing the damage first caused by the Thatcher years and more recently by Camerons austerity programme. This Tory prime minister will claim any credit on offer, even though hell only be clearing up the mess that his predecessors caused.

But throwing money at different regions doesnt give them control, however much the money is needed. Communities should be empowered to raise money and decide how to spend it, free of Whitehalls grip. That is what taking back control means.

Recommended London is our best chance of staying connected to the EU after Brexit

We must begin a national conversation about power and who should wield it. A good start is the citizens assembly on climate, which began its deliberations last weekend. Its brought together a representative group of people to tackle the biggest issue facing us  the climate emergency.

This model could work for our damaged democracy too. A citizens assembly to look at how power might be devolved to the regions which could decide themselves how investment is spent in their areas. They could examine options for a fairer electoral system so that in future, every vote in every constituency at every election counts. They could consider how a new institution might be established to represent England, echoing the assemblies in the other nations of the UK. And they could look at our archaic parliamentary system so that people feel it belongs to them.

Our broken democracy has taken a huge battering in the past three years. We need to come back together and, just as important, rehabilitate our politics.

Caroline Lucas is Green MP for Brighton Pavilion
A third man has died after a gas explosion Wednesday at a Chesapeake Energy oil well in Burleson County, according to media reports.

Oil field worker Brian Maldonado, 25, of San Diego, Texas, died on Saturday, the Alice Echo News-Journal reported.

Company officials could not immediately be reached for comment, but Maldonado was part of a crew working at a Chesapeake Energy oil well west of Bryan, Texas, when natural gas in the well ignited at about 3:30 p.m. Wednesday.

The blast killed 38-year-old Windell Beddingfield of Tyler at the scene; Maldonado and two other men were taken by helicopters to hospitals in Houston and Austin.

Fatal Accident: Ignition of natural gas blamed in fatal oil well accident

A second worker, who has yet to be identified by authorities or company officials, died Thursday.

Maldonado was flown to the Dell Seton Medical Center at the University of Texas in Austin, where he underwent surgery Thursday afternoon, the Alice Echo-News Journal reported.

Fuel Fix: Get daily energy news headlines in your inbox

Eleven people from Chesapeake, Fort Worth oil field service company Eagle Pressure Control and Alice oil field service company C.C. Forbes were working at the well at the time of the incident, a report from the Railroad Commission of Texas shows.

Investigators believe that an unexpected amount of natural gas entered the well and ignited. What caused the ignition remains under investigation.

Officials from Chesapeake and C.C. Forbes could not immediately be reached for comment but said in previous statements that they are cooperating with regulators and investigators.

Read the latest oil and gas news from HoustonChronicle.com
Washington: The US said Friday it was declaring a public health emergency and temporarily banning the entry of foreign nationals who had traveled to China over the past two weeks to contain the spread of a deadly new virus.

Sweeping new restrictions will also be imposed on American citizens, with those returning from the province at the disease's epicenter placed in facilities for mandatory 14-day quarantines, said Health Secretary Alex Azar.

US citizens coming from other parts of China will undergo health screening at ports of entry and then be placed under monitored self-quarantine at home.

"I have today declared that the coronavirus presents a public health emergency in the United States," said Azar during a briefing at the White House, adding the directives would take effect on February 2 from 5:00 pm eastern time (2200 GMT).

"Foreign nationals, other than immediate family of US citizens and permanent residents, who have traveled in China within the last 14 days will be denied entry into the United States for this time," he added.

The restrictions apply to people who have traveled to the designated areas in the two weeks prior to their attempted entry.

There have been seven confirmed US cases of the 2019 Novel Coronavirus, which originated in a live seafood market in Wuhan, in Hubei province, in December.

Live TV

The World Health Organization has already declared the epidemic a global emergency, and the Chinese death toll has risen to 259 while total infections reached nearly 12,000, surpassing the SARS epidemic of two decades ago.

Three US airlines, American, Delta and United said they would soon suspend all flights to China.

Earlier, officials imposed mandatory 14-day quarantine orders on 195 Americans who were air evacuated from Wuhan, the first time a federal directive of this kind was issued for more than 50 years. The last case involved a person who was evaluated for smallpox in the 1960s.

A plane carrying the repatriated citizens, who include diplomats and their families, touched down at the March Air Reserve Base in Riverside, California, on Wednesday and officials initially said the passengers would be asked to voluntarily isolate themselves for up to 72 hours.

Early signs were good, and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) declared that none of the individuals showed symptoms of the 2019 Novel Coronavirus.

One of the individuals tried to leave the base and was placed under quarantine by the state of California, said CDC official Marty Citron, before the federal action.

The repatriated group submitted samples for testing at the CDC headquarters in Atlanta -- but officials now say they are not certain about the accuracy of their diagnostic tools.

"We are seeing in the cases that are in the hospital, we've seen people who had detectable virus, and they didn't have the technical virus, and then three days later they had detectable virus," said Robert Redfield, the CDC's director.

Given that the extent of asymptomatic transmission was not yet clear, a negative test was not being used as a release criteria.

"It isn't like it's a horrible test, but it is not a test that's absolute," added CDC immunologist Anthony Fauci.

Despite the seemingly drastic actions, the US public "should not let fear or panic guide your actions," said senior CDC official Nancy Messonnier, but instead exercise normal precautions for stopping the spread of respiratory viruses.

These include washing your hands thoroughly for at least 20 seconds, disinfecting surfaces, staying home when sick and covering your cough or sneeze with a tissue and then throwing it in the trash.

"We do not currently recommend the use of facemasks for the general American public," said Messonnier. "This virus is not spreading in your communities." "Please do not assume that just because someone is of Asian descent that they have this new coronavirus," she added, noting there are four million Chinese Americans in the United States.
Khanh Hoa Hospital of Tropical Diseases which is treating a 25-year-old hotel staff with nCoV. Photo courtesy of Khanh Hoa Department of Health.

Khanh Hoa authorities confirmed Friday that a female hotel receptionist has caught the coronavirus infection from two Chinese nationals presently quarantined in Saigon.

The 25-year-old patient, whose name has not been revealed, is quarantined at the Hospital of Tropical Diseases in the central province and she is recovering gradually, provincial vice chairman Nguyen Dac Tai said Saturday morning.

The patient worked at a hotel on Ton Dan Street in Nha Trang beach town. Li Ding, 66, and his son Li Zi Chao, 28, confirmed as Vietnam's first cases of nCoV infection last week, checked into the hotel on January 16. They were assisted by the receptionist. The father came from Wuhan, the epidemic center, while his son joined him from the southern Long An Province.

Two days later, she developed a fever and cough, but took some medicine on her own.

On January 24, after the two Chinese nationals tested positive for the deadly new coronavirus, Khanh Hoa authorities isolated the receptionist and sent her blood samples to institutes in Nha Trang and Ho Chi Minh City. The results showed that she had contracted the virus too.

Ding had arrived in Hanoi from Wuhan with his wife on January 13 before flying to Nha Trang four days later.

His son Zichao, who had been living in Long An for the last four months, went to visit him in Nha Trang. The three then visited Saigon and traveled to neighboring Long An by taxi.

Zichao developed a fever on January 20, three days after his father. Both were admitted to the Cho Ray Hospital on January 22. Dings wife tested negative.

The son had recovered on Tuesday morning, while his father remains under observation at Saigons Cho Ray Hospital pending further test results.

The Nha Trang hotel staff is Vietnams sixth case of pneumonia virus infection. Earlier, three Vietnamese returning from Wuhan were also infected with the deadly virus.

Besides the female hotel staff, 12 others, including seven Chinese tourists, have been quarantined at the Khanh Hoa tropical hospital.

All the quarantined patients are in stable condition and are being kept under close observation pending test results.

Since last Tuesday, the local tourism sector has stopped all activities to bring Chinese tourists to the province. Nha Trang is a popular Vietnamese destination among Chinese tourists, having helped draw 2.4 million to Khanh Hoa last year.

The World Health Organization (WHO) declared the new coronavirus outbreak a global public health emergency on Thursday.

27 countries and territories have recorded nCoV infections thus far. Apart from China and Vietnam, the others are Hong Kong, Macao, Thailand, Singapore, Taiwan, Malaysia, Japan, Australia, the U.S., South Korea, France, Germany, Canada, the UAE, Nepal, Cambodia, Sri Lanka, India, the Philippines, the U.K., Russia, Finland, Nepal, Sweden, and Spain.

As of Saturday morning, the nCoV death toll had risen to 259, all of them in China. About 2,100 new cases have also been recorded in the country, putting the worldwide total at more than 11,000.
What lesson are book publishers taking away from the controversy raised by American Dirt, Jeanine Cummins novel about a Mexican woman and her son seeking to cross the border? Will the furor change the way editors think about acquiring novels, or does the books sales successits currently No. 2 on Amazons bestseller listobviate those concerns? I asked several editors at Big Five houses (Hachette, Macmillan, Penguin Random House, Simon & Schuster, and HarperCollins)all of whom only felt comfortable speaking candidly if they could remain anonymouswhat went wrong in the publication of American Dirt, how it might have been avoided, and how the landscape has changedif at all.

Advertisement

A reductive version of the complaints about American Dirt claims that the novels detractors believe that a white woman should not write about the experiences of Latino migrants. In truth, nearly all of the considered criticism of the novel points out either inaccuracies or stereotypes that, according to Myriam Gurbas widely shared review on the site Tropics of Meta, betray Cummins lack of knowledge about her subject matter and attempt to render a complex situation and culture into trauma porn palatable to an American readershipa readership envisioned as primarily white.

Advertisement

Advertisement

Advertisement

Most of the critical missteps were obviously done to head off that sort of criticism.

Nevertheless, American Dirt arrived in reviewers hands embellished with endorsements from such revered Latina literary figures as Dominican American Julia Alvarez and Mexican American Sandra Cisneros, writers who either missed or werent bothered by the glaring flaws decried by Gurba. Some of this is generational, an assistant editor, who is white, told me. I would have spoken up 100 percent about how problematic the book was. This is exactly the hypothetical situation that journalist George Packer imagined in a recent speech given while accepting the Hitchens Prize, later reprinted in the Atlantic: If an editorial assistant points out that a line in a draft article will probably detonate an explosion on social media, what is her supervisor going to dorisk the blowup, or kill the sentence? For Packer, thats a dystopian scenario, but it might have saved Cummins publisher, Flatiron Books, a lot of grief.

Advertisement

Advertisement

Most publishers enlist the opinions of multiple in-house readers, particularly when launching a book that commands a large advance (reportedly seven figures in American Dirts case) and a correspondingly large marketing budget. As many of the industrys critics have repeatedly pointed out, however, those employees are overwhelmingly white, although an editorial director of an imprint told me over 50 its just white people who went to Harvard, but the pool of people under 35 is much more diverse. Whether feedback from junior staff is heeded varies from house to house and editor to editor. Several of the outside observers I spoke with suspect that Flatiron, a relatively new imprint of Macmillan Publishers, anticipated that the mismatch between Cummins identity and that of the characters she depicts could attract negative attention; they just misjudged how much. Most of the critical missteps in the marketing of the book, said one editor, were obviously done to head off that sort of criticism.

Advertisement

Advertisement

Advertisement

These moves backfired spectacularly, among them an authors note from Cummins expressing the wish that someone slightly browner than me would write a similar story and describing migrants as people who we tend to see as a faceless brown mass. These measures were tin-eared at best, in the words of one editor I spoke to, as was a bio noting that Cummins grandmother was Puerto Rican and referring to her Irish husband as an undocumented immigrant. A photo of a luncheon the publisher threw for Cummins last spring in which floral centerpieces mimicked the barbed wire in the books cover art further fanned the flames, as did a letter from Cummins editor, Amy Einhorn, included with advance reader copies, that characterized the issue of immigration as having only recently entered the national zeitgeist. Unlike the contents of a 400-page novel, these blunders could be easily circulated on social media. Its the perfect literary scandal, one senior editor observed, because you dont even have to read the book.

Advertisement

Advertisement

Advertisement

Advertisement

Everyone saw this coming, the editorial director told me, but some people thought that the books politics were liberal enough that no one would attack it. They underestimated how the circular firing squad works. He dismissed the notion that everyone at Flatiron was simply oblivious to the pitfalls of publishing American Dirt. Look, he said, book publishers are 10 times more concerned with identity politics than Twitter suspects. This is a media company. The people who work here are the same people who are on Twitter.

Advertisement

But the most common take on the American Dirt fiasco is that it resulted from Flatirons hubristic failure in what the industry refers to as positioningthat is, communicating the genre a house considers a new book to fit into. From what Ive heard, said one senior editor, its a really quick, pacey, dramatic read, and theres a whole coterie of people who will say that to their friends, and word of mouth will move across the country like wildfire. In other words, the novel is a work of commercial fiction, much like Where the Crawdads Sing and other titles that sell in large numbers while generally flying under the radar of cultural critics and political commentators. Where Cummins publisher went wrong, in this formulation, was to present American Dirt as if it was also, in the senior editors words, a contribution to a vital understanding of this issue, with the implied claim of representing the issue accurately rather than using it as a backdrop for an entertaining suspense story. Its a commercial book that was mispositioned as literary, another senior publishing executive observed. Flatirons publisher, Bob Miller, essentially acknowledged this in a statement released Wednesday, noting, We should never have claimed that it was a novel that defined the migrant experience. This set American Dirt up for a degree of scrutiny to which most popular bestsellers are not subjected, at least not right out of the gate. You cant be Twitter woke and Walmart ambitious, the assistant editor quipped.

Advertisement

Advertisement

By comparison, The Help, a 2009 novel by Kathryn Stockett (also, as it happens, edited by Einhorn) was as heavily promoted to the mainstream market as American Dirt was, but without the same appeal to reviewers in major publicationsor claims that it addressed a serious issue on serious terms. (Instead of barbed wire, the cover art features, inexplicably, a genteel painting of three perched birds against a golden backdrop.) Only after the book had sold millions of copies and attracted the attention of filmmakers did it draw high-profile criticisms for its depiction of race relations in the South during the 1960s. To cite a more recent example, Don Winslow, who also blurbed American Dirt, is a white author who writes bestselling thrillers about Latin American drug cartels in which the characters are arguably just as much stock figures as those in Cummins novel, yet his work is not presented as social commentary, with all the heightened attention such pretenses bring with them. While such distinctions may seem arcane, Gurba herself, in a recent interview with the radio program Latino USA, stated that she would have found American Dirt less offensive if its publisher had marketed it as a romance thriller, rather than promoting it as if it was a novel of political protest. She would have much more respect for Cummins, Gurba went on, if she owned who she is and what shes writing.

Advertisement

Advertisement

Advertisement

Advertisement

Advertisement

You cant be Twitter woke and Walmart ambitious.

No one I spoke to expected the controversy over American Dirt to harm the novels commercial prospects. The consumers dont care. They. Dont. Care, said one editor with exasperation. If it does register, theyll just write it off as PC. While one source said he was sure the incident is humiliating to Cummins, her publisher, and other people associated with the book, you can wipe your tears away with money. A petition posted to the site LitHub and signed by more than 130 writers asking that Oprah Winfrey reconsider selecting American Dirt for her book club might have an effect if Winfrey complies, but the editorial director insists that even this could end up helping the title. The challenge in publishing books is making sure people have heard of them, another editor explained. What people will know is that this is a book other people are talking about.

Advertisement

Independent bookstores are likely to suffer the most as the result of the current uprising against American Dirt. On Wednesday, Flatiron announced the cancellation of Cummins book tour, citing threats. Some observers have questioned the reality of such threats, but a spokesperson for Flatiron showed me emails the publisher had received from booksellers, one of which reported that a potential speaker had received physical threats and others explaining that they could not guarantee Cummins safety. Small booksellers dont have the resources to hire security personnel, one editor explained to me, and many of them were counting on the income from a big bestseller this spring. Now Amazon or a big box store could get those sales instead. Neither Cummins (who sold a second book to Einhorn, reportedly also for a seven-figure advance, shortly before Einhorn left Flatiron to become president of fellow Macmillan imprint Henry Holt) nor Flatiron itself is likely to take as much of a hit. So her tour was cancelled, an editor noted. Do people know what a shitshow a book tour is? Theyre so arduous! (Flatiron has announced plans for a series of town hall meetings with Cummins to discuss the book publicly, but no specifics have been released.)

Advertisement

Advertisement

Advertisement

Could adult trade publishing adopt a practice common in the young adult sector and enlist sensitivity readers to screen books for their authenticity in depicting marginalized identities? No one seems to regard that as likely, although one editor did say that she hoped to see in-house talent at publishers acknowledging their own limits and using their powers to consult with outside experts when needed. And while some people bristle at the very suggestion of using such readers, another editor noted that consultations are far from unprecedented. If you set a novel in ancient Rome and you decide that you want a professor of classics to read through it, no one would be shouting about free expression.

The controversy over American Dirt may, however, make publishers more cautious. I dont see this leading to a decision not to acquire a book that we would have acquired in the past at all, said one publisher. But I do think that in cases where theres a mismatch between the identity of the character and author, the value of those books over books where the author is a member of the community being written about will be more closely scrutinized. Theres a fine line between free expressionwhich can mean publishing books that not everyone on the staff likesand publishing responsibly, ethically, and with proper due diligence.
Uttar Pradesh Deputy Chief Minister Dinesh Sharma on Saturday said that the Union Budget 2020 will help realise the dream of New India.

He said that with the first Budget of this decade, a strong foundation has been laid to build an economy of US $5 trillion. Congratulating Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman for the Budget, Sharma said that arrangements have been made to move towards making India a world leader.

"Revolutionary changes are beginning in the field of The system in the country will be reshaped by the New Policy," Sharma said.

Welcoming the proposed amount of Rs 99,300 crore for education, he said that the online programme proposed in the Budget will play an important role in "bringing higher education to the reach of the poor and the deprived".

"Promoting private investment in the education sector will lead to a major improvement in the quality of education. India has been a centre of higher education since ancient times and the 'Study in India' programme proposed in the Budget will be an important link in attracting foreign students to India," he said.

Appreciating the internship programme in the urban bodies proposed in the Budget, Sharma said that this will provide an opportunity for the youth of the country to learn practical aspects. An Institute of Excellence will be created to carry forward the startup scheme launched to encourage innovation.

Welcoming the 16-point action plan presented for the development of agriculture, Sharma said that Annadata (farmer) has always been a priority of the Modi government.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
In a first, families travelling with women and children from Uttar Pradesh were caught red-handed in West Bengal on Saturday while smuggling around 650 endangered Indian soft-shell turtles.

The Wildlife Crime Control Bureau (WCCB) of the Union ministry of environment, forest and climate change and the West Bengal forest department personnel arrested 14 men and eight women, making it the biggest arrest in recent history. There were several children in the group that came to Bengal in the Purvanchal Express, posing as common travellers to evade suspicion. The train travels between Gorakhpur and Kolkata.

Some of the men were travelling with their wives; some had their mothers while a man was travelling with his sister-in-law. This is a completely new modus operandi adopted by carriers to evade detection, said an officer from the raiding team who did not want to be named. The families said they were to sell the turtles, which are considered a delicacy in parts of Bengal and Bangladesh, at Rs 300 a kilo, the officer added.

Agni Mitra, deputy director, WCCB (eastern region), said, The arrests were made outside the Naihati station in North 24 Parganas district. The officers seized 645 live and 12 dead turtles. These were packed in travel bags. The turtles were taken to a rescue centre.

This was this years second big success for Operation Turtshield, a new Central programme to protect endangered turtles. On January 12, the officers seized 983 Indian flap-shell turtles and two Indian peacock soft-shell turtles from a market at Bongaon in North-24 Parganas. The latter figures in the Red List of the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) as threatened species.

In January 2019, more than 1,700 Indian flap-shell turtles were seized in back to back raids in Bengal while being smuggled from Uttar Pradesh and Andhra Pradesh. These, too, were seized in North-24 Parganas.

SHARE THIS ARTICLE ON
US Ends Self-Imposed Ban on Use of Landmines

By Jeff Seldin January 31, 2020

United States military commanders can again use landmines in conflict zones, as President Donald Trump supported the change after a yearlong study concluded U.S. forces were unnecessarily vulnerable to attacks from a range of adversaries, from major powers to terrorist organizations.

The White House announced the change Friday, canceling rules prohibiting the use of landmines in areas outside the Korean Peninsula, arguing the self-imposed ban put U.S. troops "at a severe disadvantage."

"The president is unwilling to accept this risk to our troops," White House press secretary Stephanie Grisham said in a statement. "The president will continue to support and equip our troops so that they will forever remain the greatest fighting force in the world."

The U.S. abandoned the use of landmines outside of the Korean Peninsula in 2014 and began destroying its stockpiles under the direction of then-President Barack Obama.

Obama also pledged to find ways for the U.S. to fully comply with the Ottawa Convention, which banned the use, stockpiling, production and transfer of anti-personnel landmines in 1997.

According the White House, the new policy will authorize military commanders "in exceptional circumstances, to employ advanced, nonpersistent landmines specifically designed to reduce unintended harm to civilians and partner forces."

Speaking earlier Friday, U.S. Defense Secretary Mark Esper argued the military needs landmines to "shape the battlefield" and protect U.S. forces.

"We want to make sure we have all the tools in our toolkit that are legally available and effective to ensure our success," Esper said at a news conference with Italian Defense Minister Lorenzo Guerini.

Strategic environment

Defense officials defended the decision to reintroduce landmines into the U.S. defensive arsenal, arguing the strategic environment has changed since 2014, again making landmines a "vital tool."

"Ultimately, they serve as a force multiplier, helping U.S. forces to fight effectively against enemy threats, which may be numerically superior or capable of exploiting operational or tactical advantages over U.S. forces," according to a Pentagon memorandum signed Friday by Esper.

Defense officials said they could envision using landmines in a variety of theaters against a range of adversaries, including powers like Russia and China, neither of which has signed the landmine ban treaty.

Officials also said landmines could be used to protect U.S. forces from terror groups such as Islamic State and al-Shabab, the al-Qaida affiliate that overran the Manda Bay Airfield in Kenya in early January, killing three Americans.

At the time of Obama's 2014 announcement, Pentagon officials said the U.S. had not produced any landmines since the late 1990s and that since then, the only use of a landmine came in 2002 in Afghanistan.

But defense officials Friday said the U.S. retains enough of an inventory of so-called "smart landmines" that there is no need to restart production immediately. And while there have been discussions about where the landmines could be used, officials said as of yet there had been no requests to actually deploy them.

"We've taken great care and consideration," Esper said. "In everything we do, we also want to make sure that these instruments, in this case, landmines, also take into account both the safety of employment and the safety to civilians and others after a conflict."

The new policy calls for all landmines to self-destruct within 30 days and "possess a backup self-deactivation feature." It also said some landmines could be designed to remain active for as little as two hours.

The chance that any of the newly authorized landmines could fail to self-destruct or deactivate is 6 in 1 million, officials said.

Human rights groups

Yet despite such assurances, human rights groups blasted the U.S. decision.

"These are not advanced weapons. They're inherently indiscriminate weapons," Steve Goose, director of Human Rights Watch's Arms Division, told VOA.

"They're deployed out of aircraft bombs or out of rocket projectiles or artillery shells. And they spread out over a very wide area and they're live once they land on the ground," he said. "If a civilian comes along, then they're going to be blown up."

According the International Campaign to Ban Landmines, 6,897 people  the majority of them civilians  were killed or injured by landmines in 2018  up from 3,457 in 2013.

"There is a reason why the use of antipersonnel landmines is illegal: They can't distinguish between fighters and ordinary people, and often continue to kill and maim for years after conflicts end," Amnesty International USA spokesperson Adotei Akwei said in a statement Thursday, in advance of the U.S. policy shift.

"This decision is consistent with an administration that has proven itself indifferent to human lives and suffering," Akwei said.

Democratic Senator Patrick Leahy also raised concerns, saying to his knowledge, no lawmakers had been consulted.

"Although the United States is not among the 164 countries that have renounced anti-personnel mines, we have consistently sought to limit their production, export, and use," Leahy said in a statement.

"The example we set has global ramifications," he said.

NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address






New Delhi: As Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman presented the Union Budget 2020 in Lok Sabha on Saturday (February 1), reactions started pouring in from all quarters. Here we take a look at some of the reactions that have been coming in on the Union Budget presented by the minister.

Former Congress president Rahul Gandhi described the budget as nothing but 'hollow' saying, "Maybe this was the longest Budget speech in history but it had nothing, it was hollow." The Congress leader further added that the government did not presented any strategic idea on unemployment. "The main issue facing is unemployment. I didn't see any strategic idea that would help our youth get jobs. I saw tactical stuff but no central idea. It describes govt well, lot of repetition,rambling-it is mindset of govt, all talk, but nothing happening," he said.

Congress leader Anand Sharma dismissed the Union Budget 2020 as 'insipid' saying, "it lacks stimulus for growth; no clear roadmap for job creation."

CPI(M)'s Sitaram Yechury said, "Just platitudes, slogans; nothing substantial to alleviate people's misery, growing unemployment, prices."

An official statement from the Congress party said that it was the longest budget speech and was most lacklustre. It also added that the budget had no real solutions to slve economic crisis. "After Acche Din, New India, it appears govt also abandoned USD 5 trillion economy target. Budget full of piecemeal measures, repackaged schemes, jugglery of tax slabs and no real solutions to solve economic crisis."
London: Andrew Laughton knows a bit about beef. From his property in the lush green fields of Lincolnshire, the fourth-generation farmer reels off an extraordinary array of facts and figures at the drop of a hat. The only thing that stumps him is predicting what a post-Brexit free trade deal with Australian means for British agriculture.

"It's so difficult for us to get a read of things because it's early days, and who knows what sort of pressure our government will come under once they sit down at the negotiating table," Laughton said.

Ballarat beef producer Olivia Lawson says the Australian industry is watching trade negotiations closely. Credit:

Having formally left the European Union on January 31, Britain is now free to pursue its own trade deals around the world, with Canberra close to the top of the list. It's not going to be easy and agriculture has often found itself on the wrong side of the winners and losers' ledger at the conclusion of other international trade negotiations.

An impending clash boils down to two questions: whether quotas and tariffs should still be used to limit the amount of Australian beef and sheep meat coming into Britain, and whether hormone-produced beef should be allowed in at all.
The ruling Shiv Sena, NCP and Congress on Saturday termed as "disappointing" the Union budget, claiming that it did not offer much to the "highest tax-payers" Mumbai and Maharashtra.

Opposition BJP in Maharashtra hailed the Budget 2020- 21, saying it strengthens the economy and makes provision for the welfare of all.

"The budget has left Maharashtra and Mumbai the most disappointed. Mumbai gives highest tax, Maharashtra gives highest tax to the Centre, but they were completely ignored," Revenue Minister and state Congress chief Balasaheb Thorat told reporters here.

The budget presented by Union finance minister Nirmala Sitharaman was "old wine in new bottle", he said.

Thorat also questioned the Union government's claim that farmers' income would be doubled by 2022.

The agricultural growth rate should be 11 per cent to achieve this goal, while the current rate is not moving beyond 2 per cent, the Congress leader said.

NCP MP Supriya Sule said, "Sensex plunged when the budget was being presented in the House. It shows the budget makes no sense."



The Budget has introduced new slabs and reduced the income tax rate for different slabs for individual income of up to Rs 15 lakh per annum, if a taxpayer opts for foregoing exemptions and deductions.

Referring to it, Shiv Sena spokesperson Manisha Kayande said there was no clarity about the option offered.

"Who would not like to get a tax benefit? If a person is investing in LIC or mediclaim, why would the person not opt for tax benefit? People basically make these investments for tax benefit apart from getting insurance (cover). So there is no clarity on this," she said.

The Sena leader also expressed concern over "closing down" of government-owned enterprises like Air India.

"It is a major drawback. Plus, they are banking completely on LIC. Almost 290 million people invest in LIC. That means the government is eying public money," she added.

Water Resources Minister and NCP leader Jayant Patil said the budget offers nothing to give a momentum to the economy.

"Farmers too have got nothing from the budget...the budget is mere 'jumlebaazi' (gimmick)," the former Maharashtra finance minister said.

NCP spokesperson Mahesh Tapase accused the government of "over-commitment and under-delivery" leading to loss of faith of investors, industry and consumers.

Tapase said the current gross GDP figures do not support the government's claim about the target of USD 5 trillion economy.

Former Maharashtra chief minister Ashok Chavan said the budget ignores the burning issue of unemployment and the Union government was making no effort to increase purchasing power of the poor and middle classes.

BJP leader and former chief minister Devendra Fadnavis hailed the budget as "progressive and reform-oriented", saying it lays the foundation of a "new India".

"The 2020 #JanJanKaBudget lays the foundation for the journey of Bharat to Navbharat in this new decade, of an even more developed and modern India with a greater speed ! Kisan Rail, Krishi UDAN are path breaking steps for our farmers and will fulfill the ASPIRATIONS of INDIA!" Fadnavis tweeted.

Maharashtra BJP chief Chandrakant Patil said the budget takes care of all sections of society including farmers, women, the youth, tribals, traders, employed and others in line with Prime Minister Narendra Modi's 'Sab Ka Sath, Sab Ka Vikas, Sab Ka Vishwas' (inclusive growth with the trust of all) slogan.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
BAGHDAD (Reuters) - Iraq's leading Shi'ite cleric, Grand Ayatollah Ali al-Sistani, on Friday condemned the use of force to disperse protest camps across the country, as security forces stepped up a crackdown against demonstrators.

Protesters across Iraq are seeking the removal of what they see as a corrupt ruling elite and an end to foreign interference in Iraqi politics, especially by Iran, which has come to dominate state institutions since dictator Saddam Hussein was toppled in a 2003 U.S.-led invasion.

Nearly 500 people have been killed in the unrest which began in October, with both security forces and unidentified gunmen shooting people dead. At least 11 have been killed since the protests resumed earlier this month.

Sistani, who delivered his message through a representative at Friday prayers in the holy city of Kerbala, also renewed calls for early elections to be held freely and fairly.

"It is imperative to hurry and hold an early election for the people to have their say, and for the next parliament to be formed from their free will, to take the necessary steps towards reform," he said.

He said that the next parliament would be able "to take decisive measures that will determine the future of the country, especially regarding the preservation of its sovereignty and the independence of its political decisions."

Separately, populist Iraqi cleric Moqtada al-Sadr on Friday called for a mass protest in the capital Baghdad and for sit-ins near the fortified Green Zone to protest the delayed formation of a government, without specifying when the gatherings should take place.

"I find that it is beneficial to renew the peaceful reformist revolution," Sadr said in a statement on Friday.

Iraq has been without a government since Dec. 1, when parliament accepted Prime Minister Adel Abdul Mahdi's resignation after weeks of violent anti-government protests. He has, however, stayed on in a caretaker capacity until a new government is chosen.

Story continues

Sadr, who has millions of supporters in the capital and in the south, had backed the demands of protesters for the removal of corrupt politicians and for the provision of services and jobs soon after the demonstrations began in October. But he stopped short of calling all his followers to join in.

His supporters had previously bolstered the protesters and sometimes helped shield them from attacks by security forces and unidentified gunmen. They withdrew from the main sit-in camps last week at his request.

Tensions in Iraq boiled over when the United States killed Iranian military mastermind Qassem Soleimani in a drone strike at Baghdad airport on Jan. 3. Iran responded with missile attacks on two Iraqi military bases housing U.S. troops.

Baghdad condemned both the killing of Soleimani and Iran's missile attacks as acts of aggression on Iraq and a breach of its sovereignty.

Five shells landed on Friday near Qayyara airbase, which houses U.S. and Iraqi forces, in Nineveh province without causing any casualties or damage, a military statement said. Similar attacks have taken place regularly over the last few months.

Sistani also "strongly condemned" U.S. President Donald Trump's Middle East peace plan.

"The religious authority condemns strongly the oppressive plan that has been unveiled recently to legitimise the occupation of more Palestinian lands," Sistani said.

(Reporting by Nadine Awadalla and John Davison; Additional reporting by Alaa Swilam in Cairo; Editing by William Maclean, Hugh Lawson and Daniel Wallis)
A womans mission to avenge murders of her family The Rhythm Section View(s): View(s):

The Rhythm Section, a film based on a novel by Mark Burnell of the same title is now being screened in theatres. The British-American action drama narrates about a woman who seeks revenge against those who orchestrated a plane crash that killed her family.

Directed by Reed Morano and written by Mark Burnell, the film stars Blake Lively, Jude Law, and Sterling K. Brown in the stellar cast and the film was released in Sri Lanka simultaneous to the world released on January 31.

Blake Lively stars as Stephanie Patrick, an ordinary woman on a path of self-destruction after her family is tragically killed in a plane crash. When Stephanie discovers that the crash was not an accident, she enters a dark, complex world to seek revenge on those responsible and find her own redemption.
Experiencing many ups and downs over the villages long history, hundreds of households at the village have abandoned the craft, but there is one man still working to keep the kiln burning, thus preserving the chemistry of My Thien pottery. He is artisan Dang Van Trinh.

According to historical records, My Thien pottery village was established at the end of the 18th century and early 19th century. My Thien pottery products were made by using sophisticated techniques and were made-to-order souvenirs for Nguyen Lords.

My Thien pottery products had been transported through waterway, sea routes, and roads to many cities and provinces across the country such as Quang Nam, Da Nang, Nghe An, Binh Dinh, Central Highlands region, and even to neighbouring countries of Laos, Cambodia and Thailand.

As the fourth descendant of a family with a rich tradition of practicing the craft, potter Dang Van Trinh has nearly 40-year experience working with clay, potter's wheels, and kilns. When he was a boy, the craft was taught and passed down to him from his father and grandfather.

The main ingredient for making My Thien pottery products is clay, which is carefully filtered from impurities. The clay is kneaded properly to form different shapes of jars, pots, and vases, its then coated with ceramic glaze and decorative patterns. Finally, it is baked in a kiln at a blistering temperature of over 1,000C, which results in a final product that is solid and will last a life time..

All of the steps are done manually. While other types of ceramic products have a surface that is decorated with engraved patterns, My Thien pottery products have an eye-catching appearance thanks to embossed decorative patterns, which often feature the image of dragons, phoenixes, rats, and leaves.

The secret key to the unique charm of My Thien pottery is the different glaze of the products, which is resulted from the potters control of fire inside the kiln. Every My Thien pottery product is baked twice, each last at least three days and nights, which helps to provide a strong colourful tone and a nice variety for the finished products.

My Thien pottery products have an eye-catching appearance thanks to embossed decorative patterns, which often feature the image of dragons, phoenixes, rats, and leaves.

At the age of 60, Dang Van Trinh and his wife, Pham Thi Thu Cuc, have witnessed many historical ups and downs of the pottery-making craft in their hometown. During the golden era of the craft, roads in the village were filled with people transporting products to the rivers wharf for traders from across the country.

At that time, the craft was practiced by dozens of households, who kept the flame going inside their kilns on all year round. They joined hands to established a pottery collective but it was dissolved after ten years under operation due to fierce competition from mass production and the increase in raw materials, forcing many families to turn their back to the pottery-making craft and sought for other well-paid jobs. Dang Van Trinh is the last potter practicing the time-honoured craft.

With a deep passion for their ancestors craft and their strong determination to keep the chemistry of My Thien pottery alive, Dang Van Trinh and his wife have kept the fire raising in their kiln and have travelled to many cities and provinces across the country including Da Nang, Gia Lai and Binh Dinh to advertise their products.

In addition to producing traditional products such as kitchenware and daily utensils that have made My Thien pottery so famous, the couple have also created indoor decoration products in order to keep pace with the increasing demand of customers.

Their efforts have been rewarded as they have received more and more orders from customers, and thousands of their products are sent to many places around the country every week.

The old couple has planned to open a workshop and an exhibition space so that visitors to the village can learn more about the craft and try their hands at making pottery products themselves.

They also receive support from local sectors and functional agencies in an effort to promote My Thien as a tourist spot for visitors to Quang Ngai province.
It was previously reported that in Spain, the first case of infection with the new 2019-nCoV coronavirus was detected in one of five German tourists.An outbreak of a new virus occurred in Chinese Wuhan at the end of last year. According to doctors, the virus is transmitted from person to person. Cases of the disease were found in several Asian countries, as well as in France, the USA, Australia, Canada, Germany.As of Saturday, February 1, in China, the coronavirus epidemic claimed the lives of 259 people.
As Craig Miller Bennett plummeted through the German sky, the burning B-17 he was once inside now falling alongside him, he thought death was at his doorstep.

But the Charleston resident survived as a prisoner of war, and before his death this week, he even managed to meet the German flying ace who nearly took his life. They became lifelong friends.

Craig Miller Bennett died Wednesday. He was 94. Born in West Virginia in 1925, he moved back to the Palmetto State half a decade later with his family.

He took an interest in military service while in high school and left as an 11th-grader to join the Army Air Corps in 1943. He trained in Boeing B-17 Flying Fortresses where he learned skills as a gunner. He served with the 490th Bomb Group and he 848th Bomb Squadron.

During his deployment to Eye, England, in 1945, he was sent to fly in to Germany with a crew of nine other men. And in March of that year, German fighter jets attacked a squadron of B-17s, and one of the fighters crashed into Bennett's plane.

With the plane's tail cracking off as it began to fall out of the sky, Bennett parachuted out of the burning aircraft. He was picked up by local farmers and taken into custody by Nazi forces. Bennett was the only survivor of the crash.

He was held by Nazis at Stalag VII-A, Germany's largest prisoner-of-war camp located in Moosburg, Germany, according to the American Air Museum.

A Western Union telegram sent to his mother suggested the worst.

"The Secretary of War desires me to express his deep regret that your son has been missing in action over Germany ..." the note read.

It wasn't until American forces liberated the camp later that year that he was freed. Son Craig Bennett Jr. said his father didn't speak much of the war.

"He treated it like a job, this is what you do," his son said. "His comment always was, 'everybody did something.' "

Veterans like Bennett are members of what NBC News' Tom Brokaw dubbed "The Greatest Generation," reserved for those whose efforts during the 1940s helped win the war.

According to U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs statistics, 389,292 of the 16 million Americans who served in World War II were alive in 2019.

As of 2018, an estimated 7,000 Palmetto State veterans of World War II were still alive. Their stories are slowly vanishing.

"In the 1990s, we asked him lots of questions about his experience," his other son, Edward G.R. Bennett, said.

Bennett began writing letters to museums in Europe to get context of the attack he so vividly remembered. He received a reply, one that would change his life.

"I didn't believe, until I was reading your letter, that any person could get out of that airplane which I attacked," the reply said. "Therefore, I am very happy to realize that you are still alive."

The response was from Alfred Ambs, the wingman of the German fighter that attacked Bennett's B-17.

Ambs had celebrity status in Nazi Germany, with seven aerial victories achieved in about 75 combat missions.

In October 2004, Bennett went to Germany to meet his former enemy. They say they talked mostly about their grandchildren, like old friends, according to Edward Bennett. They maintained correspondence, and a close friendship, throughout his life.

"His love for human beings," Edward said, "that's what I'll remember the most about him."

Bennett leaves behind his two sons, and seven grandchildren.